I can't enjoy myself when I failed at my mission. Mara Jade had been wandering the corridors of the Imperial Palace, trying not to think about how Luke Skywalker and Dequc of Black Nebula both still lived. Clearly, I've missed something. The Emperor wouldn't have given me a vacation for a botched mission.
She found herself near Intelligence's headquarters within the Palace. Mara had little desire to see where Iceheart herself laired, as an invitation there usually led to unpleasant consequences. Ever since Iceheart had figured out that Mara was more than a simple court dancer, Mara had been attempting to avoid the Director of Intelligence.
Oddly enough, since Mara had returned from Tatooine and Svivren, she had heard little from or about Intelligence. News traveled on Imperial Centre, and something this important probably would have made its way to the most well-informed people in the government.
That very morning, she had received a rather succinct holomessage from Director Isard herself. At your earliest convenience, you are to report to my office. I would speak with you regarding recent events. She had filed the holo away, made a mental note to get to Intelligence, and do so later rather that sooner.
Mara turned away from Intelligence; should anyone of any importance find her, they would immediately send her straight to Isard's office. It was more urgently important to find out what the military people thought of Black Nebula- there had been many who saw them as a lesser version of Black Sun, though there was no official consensus.
Also, Mara was interested in Thrawn. As a newly promoted Grand Admiral, he would soon be given an assignment of some sort that would get him away from Imperial Centre, but before he left, Mara wanted to know a bit more about him.
She had been evading the people of Imperial High Command as much as possible; they were nothing but an inconvenience. Most of them had no business knowing what Mara was, and those who did were already aware of it. As Mara approached their offices, she rehearsed what she was going to say to anyone who inquired about her being more than a dancer, and perhaps aware of the chaos within Black Nebula.
A few people had even asked exactly what Mara had been doing during her apparently rather conspicuous absence. For the most part, she had been able to brush off the questions with a bit of fluff. Unfortunately, some of those who inquired were more than qualified to know the truth…
Of course, one of those people had to be Thrawn. Mara knew better than to trust the less-than-human Grand Admiral; though his promotion was rather informal and held little sway on Imperial Centre, those who knew him understood the reason for the promotion. Thrawn had been quietly asking about Mara's mission and why it had failed, and she had evaded him until he finally cornered her in some of the Imperial High Command offices.
"You've been rather difficult to find lately," he began with his usual cool detachment. "I've heard quite a few interesting reports about your recent whereabouts."
"Right now, I've just been running errands. You probably heard about recent events on Tatooine and Svivren, and since then, I've been on vacation." Mara tried her best I-don't-want-to-talk-to-you vibes, but Thrawn didn't get the hint. "If you want more information, talk to the Emperor."
"Quite an interesting assignment." Thrawn retained an air of detached interest. "Is there any particular reason this failed? I'm disinclined to think it was sheer negligence on your part."
"It's a long story." Mara evasively shrugged off Thrawn's questions; she had always suspected he was just looking for information to get her in trouble. "Some blend of fiendishly bad luck and circumstances beyond my control." She glanced at her wrist chronometer. "If you don't mind, I do have an appointment."
Thrawn smiled condescendingly. "Stop trying to avoid everything. Even the Emperor himself has been complaining about your conspicuous absences. He would appreciate your being at the feast tonight, being sociable, and not doing anything disgraceful."
Mara resisted rolling her eyes or sighing. 'Appreciate' was the Emperor's way of giving an order to those whom he liked, and for the time being, Mara was still in that category. "I'll see you later tonight, then." She turned and left, wandering through the corridors of the Imperial Palace and ignoring the various stares she was probably collecting.
So Thrawn knew all about that mission. He also knew that Mara was an Emperor's Hand, and therefore, probably felt threatened by her very presence. It was a rather standard kind of paranoia, similar to what Tarkin had expressed shortly before his death. You're just here to cause us all trouble. I don't care what the Emperor thinks of you; you're more trouble than you'll ever be worth.
She resisted the temptation to kick the nearest air vent. Clearly, the Emperor was very displeased- he hadn't bothered to convey personally to her his wishes about the feast. He was probably planning some kind of grandiose punishment, which Mara forced herself not to think about. It wasn't worth getting so worked up just yet.
Thrawn watched Mara walk away, rather intrigued. She had failed at assassinating Dequc, which she was obviously aware of. It should have been a rather straightforward mission, but somewhere along the lines, something had gone wrong. No matter- Mara would answer for it.
However, a new complication had come up. Thrawn had ignored the holomessage from Director Isard as long as was polite, though such a direct order was difficult to refuse. Come to my office. We must discuss the matter of Mara Jade; I have good reason to believe she is not quite what she appears.
Of course not, Thrawn thought darkly. He had been informed of the existence of the Emperors' Hands as soon as he had received the secret promotion to Grand Admiral, and he intended to make the best possible use of Mara's unique abilities. She was a very valuable resource, and would prove very useful if Isard made a bid for power; considering Iceheart's recent behavior, that seemed like a distinct possibility.
A familiar voice cut through Thrawn's thoughts. "Admiral Thrawn. A pleasure to see you here." Ysanne Isard caught up to Thrawn in the busy corridors of Imperial High Command. "I've been missing you quite a bit lately."
"Yes." Thrawn didn't trust Isard at all and made no attempt to hide it. "I've been rather busy in the Unknown Regions lately."
"That's your polite way of saying that you're busy and would rather not deal with me now. Tell me where you are headed; I've heard that you are to leave Imperial Center once again."
Thrawn thought over his words carefully. Isard had a tendency to twist things the wrong way, and the mission was quite highly classified anyways. "The Emperor would like me to accompany him to witness some testing of a new weapon."
Isard lowered her voice and glanced around. Her personal bodyguards quickly became deeply interested in the architecture of High Command, while the minor officers running around avoided them. Only when she was satisfied that no one was listening did she continue. "So you are to be at Endor." She smiled a bit. "I've lately heard a few too many rumors of a potential Rebel assault on this new weapon; be very careful lest you have… ambitions."
"You aren't without those ambitions," Thrawn accused. Ever since he had first met Isard, it was obvious that she would love to rule the Empire herself, and would do almost anything to put herself in command.
Of course, she laughed off his suspicions. "Be careful at Endor. You wouldn't want anything to happen to your career, would you?" She turned and headed towards the turbolifts that led to her office, and Thrawn followed- he did owe her a visit, after all.
Thrawn didn't respond. As they entered the turbolift, he mulled over Isard's veiled threat. It was perfectly understood that she frequently threatened those whom she found a threat to her ambitions, though he hadn't expected her to take action against someone of his rank. "Are you sure that would be a wise thing to do?" he finally replied.
Isard's eyes narrowed. "I'm afraid I don't understand."
"You do realize that the Emperor would be most displeased at hearing of what you imply." Thrawn kept his tone light, but allowed his own veiled threat to show through.
"The Emperor trusts me." Isard smirked, completely confident in her position. "Should I go to him with evidence of your complicity with the Rebellion, he would be very quick to acquiesce to whatever I feel would appropriately handle the situation."
Thrawn nodded. "I am not without influence of my own. A mutual acquaintance of ours mentioned your dislike of her, as you fear she will be turned on you at the first sign of your disloyalty."
"Ah, so you are also aware of the existence of Miss Jade." Isard's eyes narrowed. "I have excellent reason to believe she is a great threat to the Emperor."
"If you are so well aware of her existence, you'd never believe that unless you feared she would be used against you." Thrawn sighed. "Clearly, Madame Director, you are scrambling to protect your own position in the face of a rather grave threat. Have you underestimated the Rebellion, or have you done something sufficiently treasonous to fear for your future?"
"Shut up if you know what's good for you," Isard hissed, unable to conceal her fury. As the turbolift reached the level of her office, she stormed out and tossed a last threat at Thrawn. "Watch out or you'll be the next accused traitor."