more than three or four men aboard each. But they're Imperials, all right.'
'You're sure of that?' Leia asked.
Han frowned down at her. There was a strange look behind her eyes, an unexpected tension in her throat.
'Absolutely,' Carib said. 'We picked up the edge of a transmission on our way in that was using the latest in encrypts from Bastion.'
Leia's lip twitched. 'I see.'
'I presume you got IDs on them,' Lando said.
'On the ones we spotted, yes,' Carib said, digging out a datacard and offering it to Han. 'Of course, there might be more of them out there keeping quiet.'
'Of course,' Lando said.
Carib shot him a look, then turned back to Han. For a moment he held Han's gaze, studying his face... 'Look, Solo,' he said quietly. 'I know you don't exactly trust me. I suppose in your boots, under the circumstances, I wouldn't particularly trust us, either. But whether you believe it or not, we're on your side.'
'It's not a matter of mistrust, Carib,' Leia spoke up. 'It's the whole question of what's real about this and what isn't. With Thrawn pulling the strings, we're not sure even whether we can trust our own eyes anymore, let alone our judgment.'
'Which may well be his most powerful weapon,' Carib countered impatiently. 'The fact that no one's willing to trust their allies or their circumstances or even themselves. You can't live that way, Councilor. You certainly can't fight that way.'
Leia shook her head. 'You misunderstand me. I'm not suggesting we capitulate to uncertainty, but only explaining our hesitation. On the contrary, we have a plan and will be attempting to carry it out.'
'Good,' Carib said, and Han thought he could detect a faint note of relief in his voice. 'What do you want us to do?'
'I'd like you to go back to your ship and start wandering leisurely around the area,' Leia told him, slipping a datacard into her datapad and doing some keying. 'Try to find and identify every Imperial ship that's out there.'
'What if they don't transmit anymore?' Lando asked.
'Won't matter,' Carib assured him. 'There are certain ways Imperial pilots tend to do things that makes them stand out of a crowd. If there are any more out there, we'll find them.'
'Good,' Leia said, sliding the datacard out of her datapad and handing it to Carib. 'Be sure to stay in touch with Han or Lando or me—here are our personal comlink and ship's comm frequencies. Other than that, just stand ready.'
'We will,' Carib promised, fingering the datacard. 'Thank you, Councilor. We won't let you down.'
'I know,' Leia said gravely. 'We'll speak more later.' With a short nod, Carib turned and strode from the room. 'I hope you know what you're doing, Leia,' Han muttered, gazing darkly at the closed door. 'I'm still not sure I trust him.'
'Only history will be able to judge his actions today,' Leia said tiredly. 'Or those of any of the rest of us.' She took a deep breath and seemed to shake off her weariness. 'But we can only do what we can. I need to go talk with Gavrisom about our meeting with the Ishori; and you, Lando, need to call Senator Miatamia and try to get in to see him.'
'Right,' Lando said, hauling himself with clear reluctance out of the comfort of his chair. 'See you later.'
He left. 'What about me?' Han asked. 'What do I do?'
'You give me another hug,' Leia said, standing up and moving close to him. 'No, seriously, you'd better stay completely out of it,' she added soberly. 'You're the one holding the Caamas Document, the one standing on the high moral ground. You can't be seen dealing directly with either side.'
'Yeah,' Han said, grimacing. 'I always like standing on the high ground—you make such a good target up there. Come on, Leia—I can't just sit around and do
'That's okay, I've got spares for both,' Han said. 'Any idea what happened to them?' He could almost feel her wince. 'They ran into a lightsaber.'
