Vision of the future

When they hum, do they all make one note, or are there a couple of different pitches?' There was a short pause. 'There are several different notes,' the Bothan said. 'Five, perhaps six.' Navett let out a low whistle. 'Five of 'em? Ho, boy. Hey, Klif—they got five different broods in there. Well, good luck to you. I sure hope you can get someone on 'em before the brood war starts.' He keyed off the comlink. 'Five broods,' he murmured, shaking his head. 'Wow.'

'Shocking,' Green Eyes agreed, the glint still in his eyes. 'Pretty exotic pests, metalmites.'

'They come in on ships sometimes,' Navett said, wishing he could read that face. Green Eyes was suspicious, all right. But was he suspicious of Navett personally, or just the general metalmite situation? 'I've heard of 'em riding mynocks, too. Sort of scavenging along behind as they—' There was another beep from his comlink. ' 'Scuse me again,' he said, pulling it out. 'Hello?'

'This is Field Controller Tri'byia again,' the same Bothan voice came, sounding disgusted. 'I spoke with you a few moments ago.'

'Yeah, sure,' Navett said. 'What can I do for you?'

'I've been instructed to ask how much you would charge for getting rid of the metalmites,' Tri'byia said.

'Oh, not much,' Navett said, carefully suppressing a smile. From the tone of Tri'byia's voice, it was clear the sudden official change of heart wasn't his idea. 'Matter of fact, as long as you spring for the CorTrehan—well, look. The guy at Customs said we're gonna need a special merchant's license to sell our pets outside Drev'starn. You get us that license, and we'll do it for free.'

'For free?' Tri'byia repeated, the pitch of his voice dropping a few steps. 'Why so generous?'

'Listen, I've seen what metalmites can do,' Navett said stiffly. 'If you think I want to run a business in a town where they've gotten a foothold, you can think again. And the faster we get started, the easier it'll be to get rid of them. You get us a merchant's license and the juice, and we'll call it even.'

'I believe that can be arranged,' Tri'byia said reluctantly. 'You and your equipment will have to submit to a full scan before you can be allowed into the facility.'

'No problem,' Navett said. 'Actually, this'll be kind of fun—just like old times. When do you want us?'

'A landspeeder will pick you up in thirty minutes,' the Bothan said. He still didn't sound happy, but there was a cautious note of relief in his voice. 'Be ready to go.'

'We will,' Navett promised.

The Bothan clicked off without bothering to say good-bye. 'Man, you just never know, do you?' Navett said philosophically, sliding the comlink away. 'Sorry, folks. Did you want us to order some of those krisses for you, ma'am? Klif, you find anything on the lists?'

'Looks like we can get 'em from a supplier on Eislo—have 'em here in two or three days,' Klif reported. 'Or we can get 'em shipped in straight from Kordu itself. That'll probably be a little cheaper, but it'll take longer.'

'You want to order today?' Navett asked hopefully. 'You only have to put a tenth down up front.'

The old woman shook her head. 'I think I'll see if anyone else in town has them in stock first.'

'Well, if you don't find anyone, come on back,' Klif called as the three of them headed for the door. 'We can get express service for a pretty reasonable fee.'

'We'll keep that in mind,' Brown Eyes promised. 'Thanks. We may be back.' They filed out, passing across the front window and out of Navett's view as the door closed behind them. 'I'll just bet you will,' he said softly to himself. He shook his head, dismissing them from his mind. Fringe lifters and even New Rep agents were completely unimportant right now. What was important was that their little metalmite time bombs, introduced into the shield generator techs' clothing, had done their job. And now it was time for Klif and him to do theirs.

'Let's get ready,' he said, heading briskly toward the back room. 'Mustn't keep the Bothans waiting.'

* * *

'And here,' General Hestiv said, keying a combination into the keypad, 'is where you'll be working.'

'Okay,' Ghent said, glancing nervously down the long corridor behind them. It was a long way back to the main base, and Hestiv had assured him that hardly anyone ever came out here anymore. But there was a whole Imperial Ubiqtorate station back there, and he couldn't shake the feeling he was being watched by unfriendly eyes.

With a puff of slightly stale air the door swung open. 'There we go,' Hestiv said, gesturing him forward. 'Go on in.'