“Now,” he said, “we contact the Emperor. He will need to know what has happened. Then, we must continue searching for Ashka Boda.”
“We?” asked Mara. “You mean I’m still a part of the mission? After what happened up there?”
“You may yet be of some use to me,” Vader said dryly. “And do not berate yourself too much for what happened. I, too, underestimated Ashka Boda and his defenses. It was my mistake to separate us, not yours. Perhaps together, we might have succeeded.”
Mara was stunned at this generosity, but she did not argue with it. “For what it’s worth,” she said, “you were absolutely right. Boda’s Force powers were what caused me to fail. I had him pumped full of neurotoxin, but somehow, he got rid of the poison. Then he choked me with the Force….wait! I had almost forgotten that! He used the dark side—I could feel it! He’s no Jedi—he’s a dark side adept. We were wrong about him all along.”
Vader’s posture showed his surprise. “A dark side adept,” he said wonderingly. “What does this mean?” Vader paused in thought. “He also told me that it was I who gave him a second chance at life…but he said his name was not Ashka. There is indeed more to this than I have guessed. We must consult with the Emperor at once.”
Vader turned to the HoloNet station and, after a moment of examining it, pounded it in frustration. “It is useless. The explosion must have damaged the connection from this building to the network.”
“I know another way to contact the Emperor,” Mara said hesitantly. She felt gratitude towards Vader for what he had done, and she wanted to turn it into trust between them. She was no longer sure of the truth of what the Emperor had told her about Vader and Boda, but she was sure that Vader was treating her with more respect than Palpatine had. “I’m a strong projecting and receptive telepath…and I’m closely attuned to his mind. I can call him, and he’ll hear me, whatever he’s doing.”
Vader stared at her, considering. Perhaps he was deducing why he had not been told about this before. Mara strongly suspected that there was a deficiency of trust on the parts of both Vader and his Master. Theirs must be a very strange relationship.
“I have received his thoughts at a distance as well,” Vader said, “but I am rarely successful in sending my thoughts to him. His mental screens are formidable, and he does not like interruptions. Very well. Contact him, and tell him that Ashka Boda will be coming for him. I will wait in the next room.”
Mara nodded as Vader moved away. She realized that he was in fact aware of the undercurrents here; he was preventing the Emperor from sensing him, so that Palpatine would not realize that Mara had revealed her talent. She concentrated on her connection to the Emperor, and soon, his face appeared to her. He was highly agitated.
–Where are you, Mara Jade? I was just told there was an explosion in the building where you were. Where is Ashka Boda, and where is Lord Vader?
–I got away in time, Master. Lord Vader rescued me. But it meant he had to let Boda go, in order to save me. He’s…he’s nearby, trying to find out what caused the explosion.
Mara glanced at the doorway nervously, hoping her cover story would be believed, but the Emperor wasn’t even interested in such details. His anger was plain to Mara. She blanched at the heat of it.
–Curse Lord Vader! He had the Jedi in his hands, and he let him go?
–Yes, but-
–It seems that both of my servants are suffering from incompetence this day! Vader will pay for his foolish choice. Must I capture Boda myself?
–But Emperor…it was to save my life. I would have died…
–Young fool! This matter is more important than you realize. You have no idea what is at stake! A life far more important than yours hangs in the balance!
–Master…Ashka Boda…he…he might be coming to find you. Lord Vader told me—
The Emperor’s mood changed like lightning.
–So! The Jedi is going to come to me? Excellent! I wonder what he hopes to accomplish by coming here? If you are correct, then I can deal with him myself. Perhaps your failure will be of no consequence after all. I must prepare a welcome for our fugitive…and so I have no more time for you right now. Return to the Palace with Lord Vader as soon as you can…
With that, he faded out, leaving Mara alone with her crushed feelings. Her Master would have wanted Vader to sacrifice her! What was so important to him about this Boda that he placed so little value on her own life? Slowly, her self-esteem began to bleed out of the ragged hole in her spirit.