Star Wars: The New Rebellion Read online

  SNEAK ATTACK

  An explosion rocked the Chamber, flinging Leia into the air. She flew backward and slammed onto a desk, her entire body shuddering with the power of her hit. Blood and shrapnel rained around her. Smoke and dust rose, filling the room with a grainy darkness. She could hear nothing. With a shaking hand, she touched the side of her face. Warmth stained her cheeks and her earlobes. The ringing would start soon. The explosion was loud enough to affect her eardrums.…

  The tone had truly been set for this Senatorial term.

  And for that, the Empire would pay.

  This edition contains the complete text

  of the original hardcover edition.

  NOT ONE WORD HAS BEEN OMITTED.

  STAR WARS: THE NEW REBELLION

  A Bantam Spectra Book

  PUBLISHING HISTORY

  Bantam Spectra hardcover edition published December 1996

  Bantam Spectra paperback edition / October 1997

  SPECTRA and the portrayal of a boxed “s” are trademarks of Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

  All rights reserved.

  ®, ™, & © 1996 by Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. Used under authorization.

  Cover art copyright © 1996 by Drew Struzan.

  Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 96-8073.

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information address: Bantam Books.

  eISBN: 978-0-307-79635-6

  Bantam Books are published by Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc. Its trademark, consisting of the words “Bantam Books” and the portrayal of a rooster, is Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. Marca Registrada. Bantam Books, New York, New York.

  v3.1

  This book is dedicated to four groups of special people:

  First, to the old friends who sat with me in that darkened theater in Duluth, Minnesota, on May 25, 1977: Mindy Wallgren-Holte, Janine (Plunkett) McCusker, Kevin O’Neill, and Daniel W. Bergman. I miss you all and wish you well.

  Second, to the nieces and nephews who, as children, helped me experience the excitement anew: Tim Rusch, Priscilla Wolfe, Kathy McNally, Kristine Hofsommer, Knute Hofsommer, and Aaron J. Reynolds.

  Third, to the friends of the heart who have never lost their sense of wonder: Kevin J. Anderson, Paul B. Higginbotham, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, and Dean Wesley Smith.

  And finally, to George Lucas, for giving me so many hours of enjoyment, and to John Williams, whose exceptional score still makes me shiver with delight.

  Acknowledgments

  Thanks on this one go to Tom Dupree, Lucy Autrey Wilson, and Richard Curtis for thinking of me in the first place; to Sue Rostoni, who answered all my questions; to Renee Dodds for keeping me on the straight and narrow; to Jenny Goodnough for understanding the depth of the Star Wars universe; to Dean Wesley Smith for reminding me to laugh in all the right places; to Kevin J. Anderson, Rebecca Moesta, Dave Wolverton, Steve Perry, and Barbara Hambly for their thoughts, theories, and advice; and to all the other Star Wars authors for providing me with the most enjoyable month of research I’ve ever had.

  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Chapter Twenty-six

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Chapter Thirty-two

  Chapter Thirty-three

  Chapter Thirty-four

  Chapter Thirty-five

  Chapter Thirty-six

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  Chapter Thirty-eight

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-one

  Chapter Forty-two

  Chapter Forty-three

  Chapter Forty-four

  Chapter Forty-five

  Chapter Forty-six

  Chapter Forty-seven

  Chapter Forty-eight

  Chapter Forty-nine

  Chapter Fifty

  Chapter Fifty-one

  Chapter Fifty-two

  Chapter Fifty-three

  Chapter Fifty-four

  Chapter Fifty-five

  About the Author

  Also by this Author

  Introduction to the Star Wars Expanded Universe

  Excerpt from Star Wars: The Corellian Trilogy: Ambush at Corellia

  Introduction to the Old Republic Era

  Introduction to the Rise of the Empire Era

  Introduction to the Rebellion Era

  Introduction to the New Republic Era

  Introduction to the New Jedi Order Era

  Introduction to the Legacy Era

  Star Wars Novels Timeline

  One

  He stood on the highest point on the planet of Almania, the roof of a tower built by the once-powerful Je’har. The tower was in ruin, the stairs crumbling as his boots touched them, the roof littered with debris from battles years gone. From here, though, he could see his city, a thousand lights spread before him, the streets empty except for droids and the ever-present guards.

  But he was not interested in looking down. He wanted to see the stars.

  An icy wind rippled his black cloak. He clasped his gloved hands behind him. The death’s-head mask he had worn since destroying the Je’har hung on a silver chain around his neck.

  Above him the stars winked. Hard to believe worlds existed there. Worlds he would control.

  Soon.

  He could have waited in his command, stood in the observatory specially constructed for his needs, but for once, he wanted no protective walls around him. He wanted to feel the moment, not see it.

  The power of sight was so pitiful against the strength of the Force.

  He tilted his head back and closed his eyes. No explosion this time. No bright flare of light. Skywalker had told him of the moment when Alderaan died.

  I felt a great disturbance in the Force, the old man had said. At least, that’s what Skywalker told him.

  This disturbance would not be as great, but Skywalker would feel it. All the young Jedi would feel it too, and they would know that the balance of power had shifted.

  But they wouldn’t know that power had shifted to him. To Kueller, Master of Almania, and soon, lord of all their pitiful worlds.

  The stone walls were damp and cold against Brakiss’s unprotected hands. His polished black boots slipped against the crumbling steps, and more than once he had to balance on a precarious ledge. His silver cloak, perfect for a brisk stroll across the city, did not protect him against the winter wind. If this experiment worked, he would be a
ble to go back to Telti, where he would at least be warm.

  The remote’s metal casing was cool against his fingers. He hadn’t wanted to give it to Kueller until the experiment was over. Brakiss hadn’t realized, until a few moments ago, that Kueller would wait for the results here, at the site of his enemies’ triumph and their eventual deaths.

  Brakiss hated the towers. It felt as if something still rattled in their walls, and once, when he was in the catacombs below, he had seen a large white ghost.

  Tonight, he had climbed more than twenty stories, and had almost run the first flights until it became clear that some of the steps wouldn’t hold his weight. Kueller hadn’t summoned him, but Brakiss didn’t care. The sooner he left Almania, the happier he would be.

  The stairs twisted and finally he reached the roof—or what he thought was the roof. A stone hut had been built to protect the steps, but the hut had no windows or doors. Only pillars, which gave a good view of the gravel inlay surface, and of the star-filled sky. Stones had fallen out of the hut and shattered onto the rooftop. The remains from bombs and blaster concussions formed little mounds on what had once been a level plane. Kueller had not repaired the tower or the other Je’har government buildings. He never would.

  Kueller never forgave anyone who crossed him.

  Brakiss shuddered and clutched his thin cape tightly around his shoulders. His frozen fingers barely got a grip on the material.

  “I told you to wait below.” Kueller’s deep voice carried on the wind.

  Brakiss swallowed. He couldn’t even see Kueller.

  The starlight fell across the roof, giving the dark sky a luminescence that Brakiss found eerie. He climbed the remaining stairs and stepped out of the hut. A gust of wind knocked him against the stone. He braced himself with his right hand, losing his grip on his cloak. The fastener tugged against his neck as the wind made the material flutter behind him.

  “I had to know if it worked,” he said.

  “You’ll know when it works.” Kueller’s voice was a live thing. It surrounded Brakiss, resonated within him, and held him at bay. Brakiss concentrated, not on the voice, but on Kueller himself.

  And finally saw him, standing near the edge, overlooking the city below. Stonia, the capital of Almania, looked small and insignificant from this height. But Kueller looked like a powerful bird of prey, his cape billowing in the wind, his broad shoulders suggesting great physical strength.

  Brakiss took a step forward when suddenly the wind died. The air around him froze and so did he. In that moment, he heard—felt—saw—a million voices scream in terror.

  The terror rose in him, and he saw again that moment when Master Skywalker led Brakiss deep into Brakiss’s own heart, that moment when he saw himself clearly and nearly lost his mind—

  A scream formed in his own throat—

  And died as the other screams exploded around him, filling him, warming him, melting the ice in the wind. He felt stronger, larger, more powerful than he ever had before. Instead of fear, his heart felt an odd, twisted joy.

  He looked up. Kueller had raised his arms, his head tilted back, his face uncovered for the first time in years. He had changed, his skin filled with a knowledge Brakiss wasn’t sure he wanted.

  And yet …

  Yet Kueller glowed, as if the pain of those million voices had fed something within him, had made him even greater than he had been before.

  The wind returned, its frigid gusts knocking Brakiss against the stone. Kueller didn’t seem to feel it. He laughed, a deep, rumbling sound that shook the entire tower.

  Brakiss braced himself against the stone. He waited until Kueller’s arms fell to his sides before saying, “It worked.”

  Kueller slipped the mask over his face. “Well enough.”

  Such an understatement for such a great moment. Kueller had to remember that Brakiss was strong in the Force as well.

  Kueller turned, his cape swirling around him. He almost appeared to fly. The skull-like mask that adhered to his face shone with its own internal light. “I suppose you want to return to your paltry job.”

  “It’s warm on Telti.”

  “It could be warm here,” Kueller said.

  Brakiss shook his head almost involuntarily. He hated Almania.

  “Your problem is that you do not understand the power of hate,” Kueller said, his voice soft.

  “I thought you said my problem is that I serve two masters.”

  Kueller smiled, the thin lips on his mask moving with his mouth. “Is it only two?”

  The words hung between them. Brakiss’s entire body felt as if it were made of ice. “It worked,” he said again.

  “I suppose you expect to be rewarded.”

  “You promised.”

  “I never promise,” Kueller said. “I imply.”

  Brakiss crossed his arms over his chest. He would not get angry. Kueller wanted him to be angry. “You implied great wealth.”

  “So I did,” Kueller said. “Do you deserve great wealth, Brakiss?”

  Brakiss said nothing. Kueller had put him together after Yavin 4, after the disastrous debriefing that had nearly cost Brakiss the rest of his sanity. But Brakiss had long since repaid his debt. He only stayed because he had nowhere else to go.

  He pushed off the wall and started down the stairs. “I’m going back to Telti,” he said, feeling defiant.

  “Good,” Kueller said. “But you will give me the remote first.”

  Brakiss stopped and looked at Kueller over his shoulder. Kueller had grown taller in the last hour. Taller and broader.

  Or perhaps that was a trick of the darkness.

  If Brakiss had faced any other mortal, he would have asked how Kueller knew about the remote. But Kueller was not any other mortal.

  Brakiss held out the remote. “It’s slower than the controls I built you.”

  “Fine.”

  “You have to set the security codes. You have to instruct it which serial numbers to follow.”

  “I’m sure I can do that.”

  “You have to link it to you.”

  “Brakiss, I can operate remotes.”

  “All right,” Brakiss said. He braced himself as he moved inside the stone hut. It was warmer in there, out of the wind.

  He didn’t believe Kueller was letting him leave so easily.

  “What do you want from me, when I return to Telti?” Brakiss asked.

  “Skywalker,” Kueller said, his voice thrumming with the depth of his hatred. “The great Jedi Master, Luke the invincible Skywalker.”

  The chill had reached Brakiss’s heart. “What do you plan to do with him?”

  “Destroy him,” Kueller said. “Just as he tried to destroy us.”

  Two

  Luke Skywalker was balanced on one hand, his fingers deep in the moist jungle earth. Sweat dripped down his naked back, onto his face, and off his nose and chin. His feet were bare, but he wore an old pair of tight pants that clung to his damp skin. Artoo-Detoo floated in the air above him, along with several boulders and a half-rotted tree. Some of Luke’s students were gathered around him, half a dozen members of his youngest and most powerful class.

  He had been in this position since the huge orange sphere of the gas planet Yavin had risen on the horizon of its fourth moon. Yavin was now directly overhead, and although Luke was sweating, he didn’t feel tired or thirsty. The Force flowed through him like cool water, holding Artoo, the boulders, and the tree aloft.

  The students were shifting, probably wondering how long they would have to continue watching. Perhaps he would lift them one by one, and then withdraw, leaving them to find the ground delicately or with difficulty, as their talents allowed.

  Luke suppressed a smile. As much as he enjoyed teaching, he didn’t always show that enjoyment. Sometimes the students believed he was laughing at their expense, which was not conducive to a good student-teacher relationship. Still, he had moments of pure pleasure, especially at times like this. Artoo didn’t
appreciate this aspect of the training, but it made Luke feel like a boy again.

  Instead of lifting one of his students, he eased another boulder into the air. It hovered near the others, bobbing a bit before it found its place. The students watched, suddenly still. Luke scanned their feet, hoping for some sign of annoyance. The first one to look restless would be the first one into the air.

  He had learned this method over the years as a way of teaching his students patience, and also as a way of showing them the powers of the Force. Like so many of the methods he used, it worked for some students and didn’t work for others. Often he got an insight into a student’s mind by the student’s reaction to various aspects of training. These class members were still new enough to mimic each others’ reactions. He hoped that mimicry would be gone by the end of the day.

  Then a wave of emotion slammed into him—cold, hard, and filled with terror. The pain was worse than anything he had ever felt, worse than the near loss of his leg on the Eye of Palpatine, worse than the Emperor’s electric blast on the Death Star, worse than the destruction of his face on Hoth. Mixed with the terror and pain was the shock of betrayal, a shock multiplied by the millions of minds who felt it.

  Luke wobbled on his hand, struggling to keep the boulders and tree aloft, to keep them from falling on his unsuspecting students. Artoo screamed as he shot across the sky, the sound mingling with the screams in Luke’s mind. Artoo landed with a metallic bang against the jungle floor, Luke’s students scattered, and the rest of Luke’s control fled.

  His arm collapsed beneath him, and he tumbled to the ground, his breath gone from his body. He lay on his back, sinking in the soft dirt, the screams still echoing in his mind.

  Then, as suddenly as they had appeared, the voices were gone.

  “Are you all right?” one of his students asked. The voice was overlaid with his own, filled with the same trembly fear seventeen years ago. “What’s wrong?”

  Luke put his left hand over his face. He was shaking. “There’s been a great disturbance in the Force.” He wondered how they could fail to feel it, how he had failed to feel something even stronger, all those years ago.