Troy Denning 2006 – Del Rey 40 years after The Battle of Yavin Site Rating =  Buy Now From Amazon.Com

SPOILER ALERT: This Will Spoil The Plot of the Book!

In the underbelly of Coruscant, Alema Rar is searching for Jacen Solo in hopes of inflicting the same pain on Leia that she laid to her. She finds her way into a guarded doorway, but realizes that someone is actually stalking her as well. Once inside she learns that Jacen was there to see “the friend”. She catches a glimpse of her stalker and is shocked t o see that it is Lumiya, someone she’d only read about. She finally catches up to Jacen as he is having a conversation with the Yuuzhan Vong World Brain. Apparently it has been helping him track terrorist cells. As Alema shoots a poison dart towards him, Lumiya Force pushes him out of the way and the dart strikes the World Brain instead. Alema is knocked to the ground by Force lightening that she swears came from Jacen. She is surprised as she senses his rage. Alema watches in awe as Lumiya stops Jacen from killing Alema and says her death is unimportant.

Han and Leia are on the Corellian capital ship Thrackan Sal-Solo, part of the secret force the Corellians had been building for years. They are there to meet Wedge Antilles who is in charge of the fleet and he asks them to serve the Corellians in hopes to bring a quick solution to this war. But rather than fight, the Corellian high council wants them to negotiate with Hapes Queen Mother Tenel Ka. Apparently she is getting pressure from other nobles and Corellian Head of State Gejjen hopes to gain her support.

Jaina and Zekk are part of a Jedi spy mission to keep an eye on the hidden Corellian fleet. They intercept the Millennium Falcon and determine from its course that it is headed for the Hapes Cluster.

Luke and Ben meet in the Jedi Temple battle chamber. Luke wants to test the skills that Jacen has given Ben. Ben is afraid he’ll hurt his father, but Luke dominates and disarms him. Ben is bitter and says he will continue with the Galactic Alliance Guard and keep Jacen as his Master. Luke says that will never happen. As a peace offering, Ben agrees to additional sparing practice.

Jaina meets with Admiral Bwua’tu to discuss the situation. Bwua’tu already knows about the Falcon’s mission and thinks it may be to aid the coup in overthrowing Tenel Ka. Jaina thinks that is unlikely and the two discuss other possibilities. Bwua’tu points out that Sal-Solo was most likely going to attack Duro based on the fleet’s position. They decide Jaina will warn Tenel Ka herself.

Han and Leia are kept waiting for several hours before they learn that Tenel Ka was not actually expecting their arrival. They fear that this may be an assassination attempt because they were sent on the day of a big festival that would have numerous unknown males present on the planet. They begin slicing their way out of the chamber and grab C-3PO to return towards the Falcon.

In the evening, Alema overhears Ben and Jacen talking and knows that Lumiya and Jedi Master Tresina Lobi are also listening in. After Ben leaves, Jacen says he wants Ben to return to Luke, but Lumiya disagrees. They also talk about his inability to track terrorists now that the World Brain is dead. He wants the Bothans to believe it is still alive so they will attack. He asks Lumiya to kill several Bothans as they are preparing to side with the Corellians. Alema knows Lobi will transmit this information back foiling Jacen’s plans and she attacks her. They two duel and Lobi makes a run for it, but Lumiya and Alema catch up to her. Alema loses a prosthetic arm in the fight, but they eventually kill the Jedi.

Inside the Queen Mother’s palace, Han and Leia reach the suitor room and Leia can sense that one of them is actually female, and an old one at that! As they try to warn Tenel Ka, all the guards are killed and chaos breaks out. The female assassin sheds her male disguise and the assassins flee down the corridor. Han and Leia chase after them killing many of them, but eventually the Hapan guards begin firing at Han and Leia! The female assassin helps them escape and says they must be involved somehow. She reveals her name is Nashtah. Han wants to get to the Falcon before it is sealed up.

Jaina and Zekk meet with Prince Isolder and Tenel Ka to discuss the assassination attempt and they thank Jaina for sending a message through the Force warning her of the attack. They regret to inform them, however, that Han and Leia are prime suspects as they were seen leaving the facility with the assassin. Tenel Ka says she has asked Jacen to track down the assassin which upsets Jaina. They ask to meet with Tenel Ka in private to tell her about the potential coup. She also wants them to engage in a mission to Terephon for her.

On Coruscant, Luke and Mara are summoned to the crime scene of Tresina Lobi by Coruscant police. They learn that the Bothan ambassador was also killed that night and is tapping into their investigative resources. They show the Skywalkers Lobi’s body and Luke realizes that it was Lumiya’s work. He had sent Lobi to follow Ben and this was probably a message to him. They review video footage and notice that Lumiya did not follow Ben from the temple, but rather she just knew where he would be.

Luke and Mara find Lumiya’s safe house, but her belongings are already gone. The police use Luke’s datapad to access what travel itineraries had been logged at her station. One was to the Bothan embassy, but the other was marked “GAG Access Only”. Luke begins to feel that the answer they are looking for is much less complicated.

On the bridge of the Anakin Solo, Jacen meets with Tenel Ka about the assassination attempt. She briefs him on the situation and that his parents may be involved. Jacen is stunned, but issues a search and detain warrant for his parents.

Han and Leia along with Nashtah exit hyperspace in the transitory mists. They are all weary of each other’s motives as they sit down to talk. Nashtah wants to be taken to Telkur Station, but Han says he doubts any pirates were involved. Nashtah says she does not intend to take them to her employers.

They reach Telkur Station where Han and Leia know she is just testing them to see if they will double cross her. While they wait inside a cantina they are surprised to see Jagged Fell has been tailing them, especially since they thought he was dead. He says he was marooned for two years on Tenupe. As they move to sit with him, the bartender is adamant that they take their drinks with them and they figure that he is probably Hapan security and their drinks are spiked. Jag tells them he’s been following Alema Rar and found a memory charm of hers that detailed her plans for revenge against Leia. He says he’ll continue following them and they know he hopes to keep Alema from restarting the Dark Nest. Han and Leia know that Jag must have been exiled for promising Lowbacca’s safety. After Lowbacca caused so much trouble, his family was probably forced to exile him. Han and Leia both feel some affects from the drug, but Nashtah has already recovered after entering a brief Force trance. Han stuns the leader and they make a break for it. A firefight breaks out and although Han tries to keep his weapon on stun, Nashtah has other plans and begins killing the attackers. Han takes a bolt in the shoulder, but eventually they win out. Han tells Nashtah she’s on her own, but she replies that it is time to meet her contact who is actually inside the cantina. Lady Morwan is waiting for them and says that since the attack on the Queen failed the next target is her daughter Allana. Nashtah gives them a datapad to contact her later and leaves while the Solos take Morwan back to the Falcon.

Once on the Falcon, Morwan tells them that Nashtah was actually Aurra Sing, the lost Jedi bounty hunter. As the Solos continue their ruse that they are working to against Tenel Ka, they try to uncover who the traitor is inside the Hapan community. They transmit some photos of Morwan to Tenel Ka in hopes of determining who she is. After further questioning they believe they have determined the family she belongs to.

Luke and Mara arrive in the Hapes system and receive a Holonet transmission from Han detailing their spying efforts and the likely traitor. They are taken aboard the Anakin Solo to meet with Tenal Ka. Luke is still having bad dreams about the dark man. Luke and Mara continue to argue whether Jacen is behind this, but Mara agrees that if he is behind it, they’ll have no choice but to kill him. They also think that perhaps this will be the time when Ben’s path returns to theirs.

After landing on the ship, they meet with Jacen who tells them Ben is in the transitory mists looking for Jaina and Zekk. They confront him with the information that Lumiya is working for GAG and that he should be weary of trusting her regardless of what she says. They also say the Ben’s days in the GAG are now over and he should return to Coruscant. They further complicate things by telling an altered version of Lobi’s death and their discovery of Lumiya’s apartment. Jacen is shaken, but they are interrupted by Tenel Ka. They play Han’s message about the traitor as well as the warning to be on the lookout for Alema Rar. They also learn the assassin was Aurra Sing. Tenel Ka tells Jacen to take Allana back to the Anakin Solo because when she moves on the traitors, things will get too dangerous on the surface.

Deep inside the Anakin Solo, Alema and Lumiya discuss the plan. Lumiya is being sent to find Ben and she thinks she is being set up to be killed by Luke. If by some chance she kills Luke, Jacen could take over the Jedi Order. Either way she wants Luke to die. She arms herself and Alema with proton packs so if Luke strikes them down he’ll be dead as well.

Ben’s mission reaches Terephon but the location he was looking for has already been destroyed. Ben can sense Jaina and Zekk, but doesn’t know what it means. Suddenly they swing in and pick him up as an attack commences. Jaina and Zekk tell Ben they were not warmly received there. Jaina is shocked to learn that their message did not get through and that Ducha Galney is probably the spy working against Tenal Ka. Tenel Ka is expecting Terephon to be on her side. They need to get a message to the Queen as soon as possible.

Han, Leia, and Morwan come out of hyperspace near a comet in the Hapan cluster. It turns out the traitors are working with the Corellians to plan an attack. They follow the flight into a battle with the Hapans and try to avoid destruction. It appears that the Hapan flight was prepared for the attack and Morwan pulls a blaster on Han and tells Leia to return to the battle. Before she does, Han grabs the blaster and disarms her, but not before being shot several times in the hand. They debate whether or not to contact Tenel Ka telling her to hold fast so the Alliance can spring a trap. Doing this would certainly mean they would be branded as traitors on Corellia. Knowing that Corellia was in the wrong to try and kill a foreign leader, Han decides to make the call.

Back on Hapes, Luke and Mara wait to meet with Ben, but they begin to think that Jacen never actually told Ben about the meeting. Mara is beginning to lose faith in Jacen. Luke says that it is unlikely Jacen would become a Sith since he always has what’s best for the galaxy in mind. They both sense danger in the Force just as a grenade is tossed inside. Luke pushes it outside limiting the damage as Lumiya enters with her lightwhip. The two Jedi remove their shotos (smaller lightsabers) to engage her knowing that Jacen did indeed set them up. Lumiya kills patrons and uses the Force to have them believe Luke is responsible. They fight Lumiya as Alema waits in the shadows with a blowdart. Luke senses the attack and warns Mara, but not before Lumiya is able to disarm him. Mara does avoid the dart attack, but Alema reveals herself and attacks Mara. Mara is able to knock her unconscious and discovers the explosive pack strapped to her. Luke’s body fails and he falls behind a table and Lumiya taunts him that is was really Ben behind the attack not Jacen. Luke finds a blaster and uses it to blast three holes in Lumiya as Mara yells to him about the proton pack. She reaches Luke and says they have to leave immediately.

Han and Leia do their best to survive in a heavily damaged Falcon when the Alliance fleet arrives. After taking several more close calls, they think they’re safe until another fleet shows up.

Ben’s ship arrives with Jaina and Zekk and they see that Galney is preparing an attack. As Ben and the others make their escape others stay behind to send a recorded message to the Hapan navy.

On the Anakin Solo, Jacen is unsure of how many ships to use in defense of the Queen without sacrificing his own fleet’s security. His decision is met with open resistance from his Major; her dissent is met with a Force choke. Jacen chooses to protect his daughter who is onboard the Solo. When Jacen is alone, Alema brings him news of Lumiya supposed death in an explosion. Knowing that Alema was once a member of the dark nest that attempted to kill Allana, Jacen ignites his blade and grabs her in the Force. She recounts how she joined forces with Lumiya and how they have killed numerous people during their partnership. She says that Lumiya was proud of Jacen’s choice to set her up to fight Luke as she knew it was a set up from the beginning. She recounts the detonator strapped to Lumiya and how Luke and Mara barely escaped the explosion. She also says she sabotaged the Jade Shadow to give him time to plan especially since the Skywalkers now know they were set up as well. Jacen realizes that Ben, Jaina, and Zekk are nearby and the Falcon is headed in for a rescue. Jacen allows Alema to leave freely knowing that by killing her, the information of Allana’s parentage will be revealed. After she leaves, Jacen is filled with dread about his parent’s true intentions in the war. He orders his men to enter the attack to wipe out the Galney fleet as well as the Falcon.

The Falcon lurches as the first salvo from the Anakin Solo hits it. He has Ben, Jaina, and Zekk already on board and they work frantically to seal a pressure leak. Han looks at the display in shock and knows that the entire access corridor between the gun turrets has been destroyed which means that Leia’s protective Noghri are both dead. They assess the other damage to the ship and it appears they are in dire straits. Ben says they should head directly for the Anakin Solo. This angers Han since he didn’t know that the GAG had a ship named after his son. When Ben refuses to help them patch up the ship he draws his lightsaber on Jaina! Before he can use it, Zekk catches him from behind. As another blast hits the ship, Ben’s lightsaber slashes Zekk knocking him to the ground. Han convinces Jaina to take everyone into the escape pod leaving her parents behind. After the pod launches, they are able to jump to hyperspace.

Luke, Mara, Jaina, Ben and Zekk all arrive at Tenel Ka’s at the same time and they see Jacen being praised by the Hapans in victory. When Jaina scoffs at it complaining that he fired on his own parents, Ben and Jacen defend his actions. Tenel Ka then tells them that it was the Solos who gave them critical information that helped them when the battle. Jacen feels ashamed.

Luke and Mara confront Jacen about their meeting with Lumiya, but he has every excuse and Ben backs him up saying the he was supposed to meet them. Luke still insists that Ben return with them to Coruscant, but Ben is incensed by this. Jacen sides with Luke saying it is clear that Lumiya is targeting Ben and has contacts within GAG. Jacen does, however, refuse to lift the detention order for his parents saying that they were still involved in the assassination attempt.

Kyp Durron meets the Jade Shadow as it returns to Coruscant and he tells them that Omas and Niathal would like to see them and discuss making Jacen a Jedi Master.

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