Chapter 9
"Greetings, General Garm Bel Iblis, Captain Corran Horn," said a large In'ca Din'ca seated in the center of a massive semicircle of at least two hundred council members. "We welcome you to Din'cash, and we extend our greatest sympathies to you for your extreme losses in this war you fight."
The hall in which the In'ca Din'cas' council met was a simply decorated transparisteel dome with nothing but a layer of the clear metal in between them and the dark blue water all around the chamber. Strange shaped fish and other unidentifiable organisms drifted by on underwater currents, and great fizzing bubbles painted blurry patches on the exterior of the dome. Beneath the ceiling, the chairs of the council were arranged so as to seem that they were surrounding and encroaching on the narrow guest speaker platform at the front of the room.
"My deepest thanks go to you," Bel Iblis began, somewhat formally and with the barest hint of sarcasm in his voice. Corran knew he had no affection for addlebrained political maneuvering, and he forced himself to smother a smile. "I am General Garm Bel Iblis."
"Yes, yes, we know this," said the large alien. "I am Deep-Master Or'dathonii, and I am the ruler of this planet. You may address your concerns and arguments for an alliance to me and our council."
"Again, my thanks," Bel Iblis said even more sarcastically. Corran found himself thinking that if Deep-Master Or'dathonii didn't watch himself, his somewhat over-inflated ego was going to get punctured very quickly. Bel Iblis wasn't known for a subtle tongue.
"My friends," Bel Iblis began. "You all, presumably, know of our struggle against Grand Admiral Thrawn. This alien commander has subjugated nearly all of the worlds which once were controlled by the peaceful New Republic regime. If he succeeds in his final campaign, the freedom of the galaxy itself could well be lost forever.
"You were the first ones to suggest an alliance against Grand Admiral Thrawn; I must begin to ask, though I do not reject your aid: Why? Why do you choose to ally yourselves with a ragtag band of rebels who don't have enough military might to assault one planet, let alone an Empire? What do we have that you need?
"I must say again that I am not about to spurn your outstretched hand of friendship. No, I cherish the potential and real aid you have already provided. Your generosity in providing a small fleet to bolster our rebellion is a blessed relief for us.
"Sadly, I can say that, as of now, we have nothing to offer you aside from an obscure chance of a free galaxy that might never come to light. Even if Thrawn knows you not, he will learn quickly about your race. You cannot expect to fight with small losses. Casualties will be staggering if you choose to fight.
"Why do you offer allegiance?"
Corran almost applauded as the general finished his speech. Though it certainly wasn't a hope-inspiring one, the strategy had been beautiful. There was no way the In'ca Din'ca could worm their way into a false response without looking obvious at this point. The only question is whether they were bold or confident enough to tell the truth.
Corran held his breath as the chamber echoed with silence.
"Ha!" Or'dathonii boomed jovially into the stillness, causing everyone except Bel Iblis to jump in fright. He laughed again, a rolling, bubbling chuckle that throbbed through the chamber with its bass undertones. "Very well done, very well done indeed, General!" He paused for thought. "Your questions are excellent, the answers, I fear, are not easy.
"We have, as you must have deduced, been observing the events of the galaxy at large for some time now. At first we were much taken with this Thrawn- he is a warrior to make proud even the lowliest of In'ca Din'ca drones.
"We also observed the struggle as he gained dominion over the Empire. For a while, it seemed as though he might be the hope of the galaxy.
"But we also saw what happened to worlds under his rule. Ukio, once a peaceful, thriving agricultural community is now a mere food depot for his massive war machine. Mrlsst, a center of the arts and culture has become a factory, raped of resources. Mon Calamari, the most similar planet to Din'cash in the entire galaxy. a slave port. Duro. Corellia. Chandrila. Tatooine. So many worlds have suffered.
"And so we turned to the failing Republic. Our aid would come too late to save it, we saw that clearly. But if the time was judged properly, we could force Thrawn from the galaxy."
Here Corran interrupted. "But how?" he burst out. "You are but one planet in a galaxy of millions. How can one planet turn the tide of an all- but-lost war?"
"One planet?" Or'dathonii said. "Whatever made you think that?" He stood proudly, ceremonial robes flapping around him in a sudden gust of air pressure from vents on the ceiling. "We are more than just one, Captain Horn.
"The In'ca Din'ca Combine totals 963 planets, 560 of which are fully colonized and self-supporting. 200 of the others are uninhabited resource caches and refueling depots. The others are resource colonies that rely on outside aid.
"The Fleet stands at a capacity of 826 Talanna class battleships comparable in size to Imperial Star Destroyers, with more than 2000 smaller cruisers.
"Our army numbers nearly 4 million soldiers."
Corran nearly swallowed his Adam's apple in shock. Though the size of the In'ca Din'ca Combine was not nearly comparable to a full-strength Empire, the fleet and its army was. The sheer size staggered him; the amount of battleships rivaled that of the Imperial Fleet after Thrawn's victory at the Katana Fleet debacle. The sectors between here and the furthest of the In'ca Din'ca's worlds must be packed to the eyes with warships.
Bel Iblis also had to collect himself before moving to speak again.
"That's. that's incredible," he breathed. "How have you managed to keep a navy of that size a secret?"
"Surely you don't think we got to be this successful through negotiation, do you, General?" Or'dathonii said slyly.
Corran swallowed again.
"Welcome, Knight Skywalker," said an In'ca Din'ca sitting in one of seven pools of light that rimmed the edge of the nearly blacked-out room Luke had entered.
Due to the immense and suffocating dimness of the chamber, few details were discernible, but several caught his eye. There appeared to be no significant decorations of any sort, and also no identifiable exits from the chamber. All seven of the lighted areas were filled by a plain, comfortable armchair of strange design, and each chair held an In'ca Din'ca, male or female; Luke didn't know the species well enough to tell which gender they were. All of them sported simple robes and clothing of humble manufacture.
All of them wore, visible on plain belts more suited to farmers than warriors, a lightsaber.
"You are.?" Luke faltered, knees nearly giving out from the shock of it. Some of Yoda's final words echoed through Luke's mind: "Luke, when gone am I, the last of the Jedi will you be." It couldn't be. It wasn't possible that.
"Welcome," the In'ca Din'ca said again warmly, rising from the chair and gesturing lightly at some hidden receiver which caused the illumination of the room to increase to a warm, comforting yellow glow. "I am K'talla M'niisonn.
"Jedi Master."
Luke nearly fell over. He didn't know whether to laugh, shout for joy, or cry out of sheer weariness. For all this time he'd been alone, the only Jedi, fighting to try and preserve whatever he could discover so that one day the Jedi could rise again. why had he not sensed them? Why would they hide?
"Knight Skywalker?" Master M'niisonn reached forward to put a large, reassuring hand on his shoulder. Luke began to sense, and decided, that this Jedi was a female. "Please, sit." She beckoned him forward and motioned to the floor. Luke sank gratefully to the cold stones. "You have many questions." It was not a question itself.
Luke took a deep breath. "Why have you hid from the galaxy?" he began, starting calmly and rationally, striving for a true Jedi's control but rapidly losing the battle. "The job of a Jedi is to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Where were you when Thrawn attacked the Republic? Where were you when C'baoth menaced the galaxy? Where-?" he broke off, fighting tears.
For a second, Master M'niisonn's eyes blazed with anger at his impudence, but then they softened to a mother's gentle stare.
"I am deeply sorry for your losses, Jedi Skywalker," she said. "How can you assume we hid? Do you know what we have done out here?"
"But I would have." he began.
"There are many things in the galaxy, Jedi Skywalker, which no one has dreamt existed, things that shrivel you heart to imagine. The Unknown Regions holds similar perils, but we do not venture there. Some grim force holds sway there that we do not tempt."
"The Unknown Regions?" Luke said, confused. "How do you-?"
"Are you familiar with wormhole theory?" she cut him off.
"What?" Luke scoffed. "That old joke? No one has ever." he trailed off as he realized where this was going.
"Yes, Jedi Skywalker," she said. "We have found one. The Unknown Regions is as bad as the Wild Space was a hundred years ago; filled with innumerable threats and menaces. But a power is growing there that is calm and ruthless in its battles. We disturb them not."
"What else have you to hide from?"
"Nothing, anymore," Master M'niisonn said softly. "There were many things, once.
"The Lysard were the first real threat. They are- or were- a reptilian species, slow to respond to changes in their environment but cruel and implacable in their advances. They were also highly resistant to many aspects of the force. That was the first true crisis facing the In'ca Din'ca race. For a time, we were pushed back on the brink of destruction.
"We learned more quickly than they did, though. We built new weapons and counterattacked. Over two hundred of our Jedi lost their lives in that war. We have never been the same strength since."
"What happened?" Luke asked.
"Before our people could check their rampage, we destroyed the Lysard, incinerated their homeworld, and eradicated all trace of their species from the cosmos. This is our species' greatest sorrow; that we caused the extinction of an intelligent race.
"Other threats rose and followed: a renegade Sith cult, which was quickly overwhelmed. The tiny race that we call the Plagued Ones: they fought solely with biological and chemical weapons. That was the second great crisis facing the In'ca Din'ca. But they were pushed out of the galaxy soon enough, and our navy grew stronger.
"We pushed ourselves on a great mission of exploration and conquest. We subjugated and otherwise enslaved more than twenty other species. Three have since died out from rebellion and disease; sixteen now live safely and happily under our banner; the rest have seceded and disarmed themselves.
"Then came the Purge, and the Empire."
"Yes," Luke said. "Tell me of the Purge."
"We learned of Emperor Palpatine's push to eradicate the Jedi from several who fled here. We hid ourselves about that time, and our numbers dwindled. The next news we had was from probing scout teams, who had decided it was time to explore more of the galaxy. We then knew of the New Republic's rise and the coming campaign of Grand Admiral Thrawn.
"And so we waited. And now, the turning point has come.
"Our fortunes now rest with your resistance. We rise or fall together."
"Greetings, General Garm Bel Iblis, Captain Corran Horn," said a large In'ca Din'ca seated in the center of a massive semicircle of at least two hundred council members. "We welcome you to Din'cash, and we extend our greatest sympathies to you for your extreme losses in this war you fight."
The hall in which the In'ca Din'cas' council met was a simply decorated transparisteel dome with nothing but a layer of the clear metal in between them and the dark blue water all around the chamber. Strange shaped fish and other unidentifiable organisms drifted by on underwater currents, and great fizzing bubbles painted blurry patches on the exterior of the dome. Beneath the ceiling, the chairs of the council were arranged so as to seem that they were surrounding and encroaching on the narrow guest speaker platform at the front of the room.
"My deepest thanks go to you," Bel Iblis began, somewhat formally and with the barest hint of sarcasm in his voice. Corran knew he had no affection for addlebrained political maneuvering, and he forced himself to smother a smile. "I am General Garm Bel Iblis."
"Yes, yes, we know this," said the large alien. "I am Deep-Master Or'dathonii, and I am the ruler of this planet. You may address your concerns and arguments for an alliance to me and our council."
"Again, my thanks," Bel Iblis said even more sarcastically. Corran found himself thinking that if Deep-Master Or'dathonii didn't watch himself, his somewhat over-inflated ego was going to get punctured very quickly. Bel Iblis wasn't known for a subtle tongue.
"My friends," Bel Iblis began. "You all, presumably, know of our struggle against Grand Admiral Thrawn. This alien commander has subjugated nearly all of the worlds which once were controlled by the peaceful New Republic regime. If he succeeds in his final campaign, the freedom of the galaxy itself could well be lost forever.
"You were the first ones to suggest an alliance against Grand Admiral Thrawn; I must begin to ask, though I do not reject your aid: Why? Why do you choose to ally yourselves with a ragtag band of rebels who don't have enough military might to assault one planet, let alone an Empire? What do we have that you need?
"I must say again that I am not about to spurn your outstretched hand of friendship. No, I cherish the potential and real aid you have already provided. Your generosity in providing a small fleet to bolster our rebellion is a blessed relief for us.
"Sadly, I can say that, as of now, we have nothing to offer you aside from an obscure chance of a free galaxy that might never come to light. Even if Thrawn knows you not, he will learn quickly about your race. You cannot expect to fight with small losses. Casualties will be staggering if you choose to fight.
"Why do you offer allegiance?"
Corran almost applauded as the general finished his speech. Though it certainly wasn't a hope-inspiring one, the strategy had been beautiful. There was no way the In'ca Din'ca could worm their way into a false response without looking obvious at this point. The only question is whether they were bold or confident enough to tell the truth.
Corran held his breath as the chamber echoed with silence.
"Ha!" Or'dathonii boomed jovially into the stillness, causing everyone except Bel Iblis to jump in fright. He laughed again, a rolling, bubbling chuckle that throbbed through the chamber with its bass undertones. "Very well done, very well done indeed, General!" He paused for thought. "Your questions are excellent, the answers, I fear, are not easy.
"We have, as you must have deduced, been observing the events of the galaxy at large for some time now. At first we were much taken with this Thrawn- he is a warrior to make proud even the lowliest of In'ca Din'ca drones.
"We also observed the struggle as he gained dominion over the Empire. For a while, it seemed as though he might be the hope of the galaxy.
"But we also saw what happened to worlds under his rule. Ukio, once a peaceful, thriving agricultural community is now a mere food depot for his massive war machine. Mrlsst, a center of the arts and culture has become a factory, raped of resources. Mon Calamari, the most similar planet to Din'cash in the entire galaxy. a slave port. Duro. Corellia. Chandrila. Tatooine. So many worlds have suffered.
"And so we turned to the failing Republic. Our aid would come too late to save it, we saw that clearly. But if the time was judged properly, we could force Thrawn from the galaxy."
Here Corran interrupted. "But how?" he burst out. "You are but one planet in a galaxy of millions. How can one planet turn the tide of an all- but-lost war?"
"One planet?" Or'dathonii said. "Whatever made you think that?" He stood proudly, ceremonial robes flapping around him in a sudden gust of air pressure from vents on the ceiling. "We are more than just one, Captain Horn.
"The In'ca Din'ca Combine totals 963 planets, 560 of which are fully colonized and self-supporting. 200 of the others are uninhabited resource caches and refueling depots. The others are resource colonies that rely on outside aid.
"The Fleet stands at a capacity of 826 Talanna class battleships comparable in size to Imperial Star Destroyers, with more than 2000 smaller cruisers.
"Our army numbers nearly 4 million soldiers."
Corran nearly swallowed his Adam's apple in shock. Though the size of the In'ca Din'ca Combine was not nearly comparable to a full-strength Empire, the fleet and its army was. The sheer size staggered him; the amount of battleships rivaled that of the Imperial Fleet after Thrawn's victory at the Katana Fleet debacle. The sectors between here and the furthest of the In'ca Din'ca's worlds must be packed to the eyes with warships.
Bel Iblis also had to collect himself before moving to speak again.
"That's. that's incredible," he breathed. "How have you managed to keep a navy of that size a secret?"
"Surely you don't think we got to be this successful through negotiation, do you, General?" Or'dathonii said slyly.
Corran swallowed again.
"Welcome, Knight Skywalker," said an In'ca Din'ca sitting in one of seven pools of light that rimmed the edge of the nearly blacked-out room Luke had entered.
Due to the immense and suffocating dimness of the chamber, few details were discernible, but several caught his eye. There appeared to be no significant decorations of any sort, and also no identifiable exits from the chamber. All seven of the lighted areas were filled by a plain, comfortable armchair of strange design, and each chair held an In'ca Din'ca, male or female; Luke didn't know the species well enough to tell which gender they were. All of them sported simple robes and clothing of humble manufacture.
All of them wore, visible on plain belts more suited to farmers than warriors, a lightsaber.
"You are.?" Luke faltered, knees nearly giving out from the shock of it. Some of Yoda's final words echoed through Luke's mind: "Luke, when gone am I, the last of the Jedi will you be." It couldn't be. It wasn't possible that.
"Welcome," the In'ca Din'ca said again warmly, rising from the chair and gesturing lightly at some hidden receiver which caused the illumination of the room to increase to a warm, comforting yellow glow. "I am K'talla M'niisonn.
"Jedi Master."
Luke nearly fell over. He didn't know whether to laugh, shout for joy, or cry out of sheer weariness. For all this time he'd been alone, the only Jedi, fighting to try and preserve whatever he could discover so that one day the Jedi could rise again. why had he not sensed them? Why would they hide?
"Knight Skywalker?" Master M'niisonn reached forward to put a large, reassuring hand on his shoulder. Luke began to sense, and decided, that this Jedi was a female. "Please, sit." She beckoned him forward and motioned to the floor. Luke sank gratefully to the cold stones. "You have many questions." It was not a question itself.
Luke took a deep breath. "Why have you hid from the galaxy?" he began, starting calmly and rationally, striving for a true Jedi's control but rapidly losing the battle. "The job of a Jedi is to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Where were you when Thrawn attacked the Republic? Where were you when C'baoth menaced the galaxy? Where-?" he broke off, fighting tears.
For a second, Master M'niisonn's eyes blazed with anger at his impudence, but then they softened to a mother's gentle stare.
"I am deeply sorry for your losses, Jedi Skywalker," she said. "How can you assume we hid? Do you know what we have done out here?"
"But I would have." he began.
"There are many things in the galaxy, Jedi Skywalker, which no one has dreamt existed, things that shrivel you heart to imagine. The Unknown Regions holds similar perils, but we do not venture there. Some grim force holds sway there that we do not tempt."
"The Unknown Regions?" Luke said, confused. "How do you-?"
"Are you familiar with wormhole theory?" she cut him off.
"What?" Luke scoffed. "That old joke? No one has ever." he trailed off as he realized where this was going.
"Yes, Jedi Skywalker," she said. "We have found one. The Unknown Regions is as bad as the Wild Space was a hundred years ago; filled with innumerable threats and menaces. But a power is growing there that is calm and ruthless in its battles. We disturb them not."
"What else have you to hide from?"
"Nothing, anymore," Master M'niisonn said softly. "There were many things, once.
"The Lysard were the first real threat. They are- or were- a reptilian species, slow to respond to changes in their environment but cruel and implacable in their advances. They were also highly resistant to many aspects of the force. That was the first true crisis facing the In'ca Din'ca race. For a time, we were pushed back on the brink of destruction.
"We learned more quickly than they did, though. We built new weapons and counterattacked. Over two hundred of our Jedi lost their lives in that war. We have never been the same strength since."
"What happened?" Luke asked.
"Before our people could check their rampage, we destroyed the Lysard, incinerated their homeworld, and eradicated all trace of their species from the cosmos. This is our species' greatest sorrow; that we caused the extinction of an intelligent race.
"Other threats rose and followed: a renegade Sith cult, which was quickly overwhelmed. The tiny race that we call the Plagued Ones: they fought solely with biological and chemical weapons. That was the second great crisis facing the In'ca Din'ca. But they were pushed out of the galaxy soon enough, and our navy grew stronger.
"We pushed ourselves on a great mission of exploration and conquest. We subjugated and otherwise enslaved more than twenty other species. Three have since died out from rebellion and disease; sixteen now live safely and happily under our banner; the rest have seceded and disarmed themselves.
"Then came the Purge, and the Empire."
"Yes," Luke said. "Tell me of the Purge."
"We learned of Emperor Palpatine's push to eradicate the Jedi from several who fled here. We hid ourselves about that time, and our numbers dwindled. The next news we had was from probing scout teams, who had decided it was time to explore more of the galaxy. We then knew of the New Republic's rise and the coming campaign of Grand Admiral Thrawn.
"And so we waited. And now, the turning point has come.
"Our fortunes now rest with your resistance. We rise or fall together."