“You could have alerted the authorities.”
“Who might or might not have done anything.” Nightswan’s smile holds dark humor. “Besides, I had a reputation to maintain. No, my best hope was that you would notice it and deal with it. And you did.”
“As I also dealt with Higher Skies on Coruscant,” Thrawn said.
Nightswan holds up his hands, palms outward. His body stance holds caution and protest. His face holds a mix of anger and contempt. “Whatever you think you know about Higher Skies, believe me when I say that assassinations or attempted assassinations were never part of the plan. The sole reason they were suborning bodyguards was to gain access to high-level files for data on the Empire’s secret project.”
“Did you learn anything?”
“We learned plenty,” Nightswan said. His expression holds determination. “We learned that Grand Moff Tarkin’s involved at the top, for one thing. We learned the work is being done at a single location, as opposed to being spread out all across the galaxy.”
“Not entirely correct,” Thrawn said. “There is a main work site, but there is also a subsidiary one.”
“Really?” Nightswan frowned. “Interesting. I don’t usually miss things like that.”
“An excusable error,” Thrawn said. “Most of the materials for the subsidiary location were delivered some time ago, with only small additions since then. As I say, the main work site is absorbing the bulk of the current shipments.”
“Thanks, that makes me feel a little better.” Nightswan’s voice holds dry humor. “Still, it sounds like we’re talking a single main structure or interwoven structure, rather than a group of large ships or battle stations. Otherwise, it would be safer to split off the ships to different locations.”
“I agree.”
“And I’m getting close. Another few weeks…” He stops, the determination fading again into weariness. “But I don’t have a few weeks, do I?”
“That decision is still yours.”
“Is it?” Nightswan shakes his head. The weariness spreads from his face to his full body stance. “These people have attached themselves to me, Admiral. I can’t turn my back on them.”
“I see,” Thrawn said. “I have always known that you were a master tactician. I see now that you are also a leader.”
“Am I?” His expression holds bitterness. “Let me tell you a secret. At one point I had a grand plan for bringing all these insurgent and rebel groups together under one roof.”
“What stopped you?”
“Paranoia,” he said. “Distrust. Squabbling. Pride.” Again, he shakes his head. “I don’t know if anyone will ever bring them all together. I just know I couldn’t. So much for my leadership skills.” He gestures to Thrawn, his expression holding an edge of confusion. “What I don’t understand is why you still serve the Empire. Can’t you see the evil you’re helping to perpetuate?”
The lights of the mining complex behind Nightswan shone faintly against the low scattered clouds. Thousands of people waited there, preparing for the inevitable Imperial attack. “I’ll give you a scenario,” Thrawn said. “You and I face a dangerous predator intent on slaughter. Running is impossible; tools and weapons are limited. What are your options?”
“The obvious one is for us to join forces,” Nightswan said. His voice holds hesitation and thoughtfulness. “But you’re clearly going for something else.”
“Not necessarily,” Thrawn said. “Unity against the common foe is one choice. But there is another.”
“Which is?”
“You already know,” Thrawn said. “You strike me down so as to make me the easier prey. While the predator devours me, you hope to find or build a weapon you can use to assure your own survival.”
“Logical,” Nightswan said. His tone holds quiet revulsion. His body stance indicates a desire to back away from such a thought. “Cold-blooded, but logical. Your point?”
“My point,” Thrawn said, “is that it was that choice that lay before me when I decided to visit the Empire.”
Nightswan frowned. “The story I heard was that you were rescued from exile.”
“I was unaware that knowledge had been released to the general public.”
“It wasn’t.” Nightswan’s smile holds wry humor. “I had to do some serious digging to find it. As I had to dig to find the records of your time at Royal Imperial Academy, as well as all the other details of your career.”
“I am honored you found me worth such dedication.”
Nightswan shrugs. “To defeat an enemy, you must know them. Not that I’ve defeated you very often, but you’ve always been a fascinating study. Now you tell me you weren’t exiled?”
“It was intended to so appear. But that was not the reality.”
Nightswan smiles faintly. His expression holds anticipation. “Tell me this reality.”
“I was exploring the edges of the new Empire shortly after the Clone War. I had witnessed a small part of that conflict, and had seen the chaos the collapse of the Republic had created throughout the region.”
“There are theories that both the conflict and collapse were engineered by outside agents.”
“The causes do not alter the fact that the Republic was unstable,” Thrawn said. “There were too many different points of view. Too many different styles of political thought and action. The system was by its nature sluggish and inefficient.”
“And you found the Empire to be the opposite?”
“At the time I knew little about the Empire,” Thrawn said. “But during one of my surveys I discovered a colony of refugee Neimoidians. Once they learned who I represented, they pleaded with me to bring the Chiss to battle against Coruscant. They promised their people would rise up in response, and that together we would bring down Emperor Palpatine and restore the Republic.”
“I hope you didn’t accept their offer.” Nightswan’s tone and expression hold contempt. “The Neimoidians have a severely overblown opinion of themselves and their capabilities.”
“I certainly did not trust their unsupported word. Nor did I make any promises. But my superiors were nevertheless concerned by my report.”
“Because of the Empire? Or because of the Neimoidians?”
“Because of reality,” Thrawn said. “There are evil things in this galaxy, Nightswan. Far more evil than the Empire, and far more dangerous to all living beings. We know of some, while of others we have heard only rumors. We needed to know whether the Empire that was rising from the ashes of the Clone War could be an ally against them.”
“Or whether it should instead be collapsed into an easy prey,” Nightswan said. His voice holds dread.
“You understand now my scenario,” Thrawn said. “I had met a Jedi general during my Clone War investigations. That gave me credentials to offer the new Empire’s leaders. I was thus the best choice to send.”
“And so they dropped you somewhere and made it look like you’d been exiled?”
“Yes,” Thrawn said. “The encampment was designed to appear as if I had been abandoned for years. In truth, I was only there a few months. We tried several lures to bring an Imperial ship to the planet. On the third attempt we succeeded. I used my tactical skills to slip aboard the ship, hoping to impress its captain. I succeeded, and was taken to Coruscant.”
“Where you were made an officer in the Imperial Navy.”
“A totally unexpected occurrence,” Thrawn said. “I had hoped merely to persuade the Emperor to allow me to study the Empire’s political and military structure under the pretext of sharing information about distant threats. But his offer gave me the opportunity to learn much more.”
“And your study convinced you that it was better to hope the Empire would someday be your ally than to bring it down?” Nightswan shakes his head. His expression holds disappointment. “I’m afraid that uniform has blinded you to reality.”