Astri frowned. “Isn’t Acherin in the middle of a civil war?” “Yeah.”
“With people getting killed every day?”
“Well, okay. Maybe it looks right. It just doesn’t smell right. Flame escaped an Imperial prison with five others. All of them are either dead or back in prison. There’s no way to trace what that operative might have known. And all the records on Acherin are gone. There’s no way to trace who Flame really is. That bugs me.”
“You realize that if you start digging, you might do more harm than good. Might stir something up that the Empire can use. And that could be the end of Moonstrike.”
“Yeah, that’s occurred to me.” Clive hesitated. “You know, you were wrong before. It isn’t true that I don’t trust anybody. I trust Ferus. And you. I need help.”
“Hmm, Clive Flax is asking for help. Never thought I’d see the day.” Astri sighed. “All right. I guess I could use a distraction.”
It wasn’t exactly a rousing show of support, Clive thought, but it was a start.
*
Ferus was due at the Imperial landing platform. But first there was someone he needed to contact.
Obi-Wan appeared in holo-mode in only seconds. His beard was streaked with more silver, and deep lines etched his cheeks. “I haven’t heard from you in awhile,” he said.
“You don’t look so good,” Ferus said.
“Charming as ever,” Obi-Wan said. “I could say the same. What’s going on?”
“Roan is dead.”
The spasm on Obi-Wan’s face told him how deeplv the news had struck him.
“How?”
“Vader.”
Obi-Wan looked off. Ferus tried to imagine what he saw. The dirt and rocks of Tatooine. The dust of his exile.
“I’m sorry,” Obi-Wan said.
“And a Jedi has surfaced,” Ferus said. “Someone you know. Ry-Gaul.”
The sorrow on Obi-Wan’s face eased. “I’m glad to hear that news.”
“I’m gaining more trust within the Empire,” Ferus went on. “I’ve been given a special assignment from Palpatine. Find any Force-adepts.”
“A special assignment? I don’t like the sound of that. You can’t underestimate Palpatine. He is vastly more powerful than you. So is Vader. Together they’re …”
“Unbeatable?”
“For you alone, yes.”
“I know that,” Ferus said. “But there are still things I can do. I’ve met someone, a contact who is trying to organize a resistance, planet to planet…”
“It’s too soon,” Obi-Wan said abruptly.
“Your considered opinion,” Ferus said, “as a hermit living in the Outer Rim?”
“I may be in exile, but I know the Empire,” Obi-Wan said sharply. “Resistance must be built slowly. The Empire has a lock on power right now. It’s been able to move from system to system and its communication network is already in place.”
“Imperials are not the only ones with power,” Ferus countered. Obi-Wan was lecturing him again.
“Just keep your focus where it already is,” he said. “Are there any true prospects for the Force-adepts?”
“A few,” Ferus said. “I was given a list.” He told Obi-Wan of the different subjects on it.
He thought Obi-Wan would focus on the bounty hunter or the teacher, just as he had, but Obi-Wan went very still.
“The baby on Alderaan.”
“Didn’t seem promising,” Ferus said. “A railing gave way, someone didn’t fall… sounds more like a coincidence than anything. Someone’s attempt to curry favor higher up the line with the Imperials. There are informers in every city on every planet these days. Even on a planet like Alderaan. But every report gets followed up, so it made its way to me.”
“You must file a report dismissing the sighting,” Obi-Wan said. “But first you must go to Alderaan and seem to investigate it.”
“I have more important things to do than chase down a false lead,” Ferus said. “I have a couple of real leads to look into.”
“No,” Obi-Wan said. “This is the most important thing you must do.”
Ferus wanted to tell Obi-Wan that he couldn’t give him orders, but he didn’t think that would stop him from issuing them.
“Is there anything else I should know?” he asked.
Obi-Wan frowned. “I’m telling you what you need to know. And that isn’t everything,”
“You know,” Ferus said, exasperated, “this isn’t the Temple, I’m not a Padawan, and you aren’t the Jedi Council”
A ghost of a grin crossed Obi-Wan’s face. “I know. But I’m all you’ve got.”