Vision of the future

to think it through. But nobody had.

'But that can wait,' Carib went on. 'I called to warn you that I think there's something happening out by the head of that comet.'

'Yeah? What sort of something?' Han asked, his attention already back on the Predominance and how in space he was going to get Leia off it.

'I don't know,' Carib said. 'But there are a dozen mining ships fluttering around the area. All of them flying under Imperial pilots.'

Han frowned at the comm speaker. 'What are you talking about? What would Imperials want with ore buckets?'

'I tell you they're Imperial pilots,' Carib insisted. 'Their whole flying style just screams it out.'

'Okay, fine,' Han said, not really interested in arguing the point. 'So what do you want me to do about it?'

There was a hiss of exhaled breath from the speaker. 'We're going to go check it out,' he said, sounding disgusted. 'Under the circumstances, I thought you might be interested in taking a look yourself. Sorry to have bothered you.'

The comm clicked off. 'I'm sorry, too,' Han muttered. He glanced at Elegos—

Paused for another look. 'What?' he snarled.

The Caamasi lifted his hands, palms up. 'I said nothing.'

'What, you think I should just take off and head out there with him?' Han demanded. 'Just leave Leia and go running off on a wild-tresher hunt?'

'Can you help her at the moment?' Elegos countered mildly. 'Can you free her, or defeat the attacking ships, or halt the battle itself?'

'That's not the point,' Han bit out. 'Ten to one they're just some miners who used to fly for the Empire. There are thousands of them around the New Republic—it doesn't mean a thing.'

'Perhaps,' Elegos said. 'You must balance that against all the rest.'

'All the rest of what?'

'The rest of all things,' Elegos said. 'Your knowledge of Carib Devist and his observational abilities. Your belief—or lack of it—that he did not, in fact, betray you to the Empire while you were on Bastion. Your own experience with Imperial procedure and style, and whether you believe someone of Carib's skills could recognize them. Your trust in your wife and her reading of this man.' He lifted his eyebrows slightly. 'And most of all, your innate sense of what is right and good. If there is indeed danger of some sort out there, whether you should leave him to face it alone.'

'He isn't exactly alone,' Han grumbled. 'He's got a whole bunch of his other clones with him.' Elegos didn't reply. Han sighed and did a quick search of the sky. There was Carib's beat-up Action II freighter, all right, driving out past the boundaries of the battle toward the blazing comet in the distance. All alone. 'You know, you Caamasi could be a real pain if you worked on it a little,' Han told Elegos, turning the Falcon to follow and keying the comm to Lando's comlink frequency.

'Lando? Hey, Lando, look alive.'

'Yes, Han, what is it?' Lando's tight voice came back.

'You back on the Lady Luck yet?'

'I wish I were,' the other said fervently. 'I'm stuck on the Industrious Thoughts with Senator Miatamia.'

Han grimaced. 'That's one of the ships attacking Leia?'

'If Leia's on the Predominance, yes,' Lando said, his voice both disgusted and more than a little bit nervous. 'Han, we've got to get this thing stopped, and fast.'

'No argument from me, buddy,' Han said, steering clear of a pair of Froffli patrol ships slugging it out with a D'farian starbarque. 'Gavrisom's with Leia. If you can get Miatamia to call off their jamming, maybe he can talk this thing down.'

'I've already tried,' Lando sighed. 'I'm the last person aboard anyone's interested in listening to.'