The officer keyed in more data. He sent another holographic space map into the air.
“Now give me the data from every spaceport near its last known position,” Sauro said, pacing behind him.
“Senator, there is a ship on the landing platform on Samaria… .”
Sauro stopped pacing. Samaria! Of course. The hijacking hadn’t been random at all. They’d gone straight to the planet where Ferus Olin was. How could he have missed it? He’d been so blind.
“That’s it. Get me the dockmaster, now.”
“The spaceport is still in the hands of the Samarians, sir, not us ”
“Just get him!”
A moment later, an obviously nervous dockmaster was on the comm.
“Yes, there is an Imperial ship. It’s a diplomatic ship. It’s been cleared for departure.”
“Stop that ship! Now!” Sauro shouted.
“But sir, it’s an Imperial ship,” the dockmaster said patiently. “You must have misunderstood me. All Imperial ships are cleared to ”
“Listen to me.” Sauro leaned toward the comm. “Revoke the order and stop that ship or I will personally escort you to an Imperial prison for the rest of your life.”
“Ah, sir, I’m sorry. But I’m afraid the clearance has already been granted. The ship just cleared Samarian airspace. Sir.”
Sauro slammed his hand down on the console, breaking two sensors.
His assistant hovered by his elbow. “Sir,” he whispered. “The Emperor would like to see you. Now.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Darth Vader left the mess of the botched pursuit behind and climbed into his custom-made airspeeder. He sat. for a moment as his driver waited for orders.
Ferns Olin. So insignificant that Vader had forgotten about him. He had been a blip in his past. Something that had happened long ago, a small jealousy that had never blossomed into a real, mature hatred. He would have been happy never to have seen him again.
But of course he survived the Clone Wars. He hadn’t been a Jedi.
Vader didn’t think of him as a rival. He had never even achieved the status of a Jedi. He had left as a Padawan. A student. Ferns couldn’t come close to matching his power.
But why was he here? Why had his Master employed him at all’?
There could be only one answer. Ferus could be one of the few left in the galaxy capable of becoming a Sith apprentice. Capable of being trained, capable of rising to the heights of power.
Of course it was laughable to think this could be the case. But perhaps his Master didn’t think it so laughable.
Vader was still hampered by the incredible injuries he’d endured. He could never have the full power the Emperor had. It was the unspoken thing between them. The thing he could never change.
Vader let his artificial hands relax before they clenched.
No, Ferus was not a serious threat. But he had won anyway, had he not? The saboteur had escaped. Ferus had aided in that escape. Of that he had no doubt.
Had there been another lightsaber? Had Ferus found another Jedi?
The old jealousy surged in him, the old envy.
He didn’t try to dismiss it. Now he knew how to use it.
The deeply enjoyable part of his conversion to the dark side of the Force was this feeling of sureness. The dark side eliminated doubt.
He never wanted to live with doubt again.
He never wanted to be reminded of what he’d been.
He nodded to his driver, who pushed the speeder engines and lifted the craft into the air. He would control this situation. Sauro was not the problem now.
Ferus Olin was.
Ferus stood concealed behind one of the columns of the spaceport and watched as the Imperial ship took off from the landing platform in Sath. He had to be sure his friends were safe.
What now?
He turned his face toward the city. Astri had managed to tell him how to solve the problem with the BRT droid computer. If Larker gave the okay, the city could be back to normal as early as tomorrow morning, the changes made to protect those fighting the Empire.
He was anxious to return to the secret base. Anxious to see the progress Raina and Toma had made, anxious to see how Garen was faring. And it was hard to say good-bye to Roan. It would have been good to ride through the atmospheric storm to get to the asteroid. Good to be with friends. To rest, even for just a day.
But something was telling him not to leave. Things had changed. He had taken on a job for the Emperor. He was now working for the Empire, at least on the surface. He was certain that Palpatine didn’t trust him, but that wouldn’t prevent him from becoming a double agent.
He was certain that Palpatine would have another job for him, and soon. They were both aware of the game they were playing.
He would risk it.
Risk it, and learn what he could. He’d enter the heart of the darkness he hated and feared.