Free The Unifying Force by James Luceno Page A

religious ceremony of great significance is scheduled to take place on Coruscant sometime within the next standard week. The purpose of this ceremony is unclear. It could mark theanniversary of some historical event, or its purpose could be to quell the rising tide of discontent that continues to plague Coruscant. The purpose is immaterial, in any case, since it is our belief that the prisoners being transported to Coruscant are to be sacrificed at this ceremony.”
    Separate conversations broke out throughout the amphitheater. Leia tuned them out to absorb the tragic news in silence.
    Almost since the start of the war, the seditious Peace Brigade had transported everything from hibernating amphistaffs to captives for sacrifice. Mixed-species renegades, there wasn’t anything they wouldn’t do for credits and the freedom to move about the galaxy as they wished. But there was small profit in being a Brigader any longer. Those who weren’t hunted down and killed by Alliance operatives or loyalists had usually ended up dying at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong themselves. And no matter which way the war went, they were going to end up on the losing side—useless to the Yuuzhan Vong, traitors to the Alliance. That didn’t seem to matter, however. They lived for the moment, the credits, the thrill, the spice.
    “Everyone here knows that countless lives have ended on Yuuzhan Vong sacrificial pyres,” Wedge was saying. “But it is imperative that this convoy be prevented from reaching Coruscant. In the past, whenever and wherever possible, we have attempted to save lives—that has always been our mandate. We have frequently failed because of erroneous intelligence or overwhelming force. Some of you are probably asking yourselves,
Why this convoy?
The answer is simple: because many of the prisoners—Captain Page and Major Cracken among them—are desperately needed to rally support for planetary sectors on the verge of acquiescing to the enemy. In addition, because their cover will be compromised, those agents operating within the Peace Brigade who helped provide this intelligence will also have to be extracted. And we are faced with having to execute this rescue without the advantage of coordinating operations through the HoloNet.”
    Wedge waited for the amphitheater to quiet.
    “Selvaris is the last stop before the convoy jumps to Coruscant, so our ambush must wait until the prisoners have been transferred. Given the devastating losses the Peace Brigade sustained a year ago at Ylesia and Duro, it’s reasonable to assume that the convoy will be escorted and complemented by Yuuzhan Vong war vessels. Admirals Sovv and Kre’fey have already seen fit to allocate Blackmoon, Scimitar, Twin Suns, and other starfighter squadrons to the mission. The Starfighters will lend support to our gunships, as well as protect the transports needed to house those prisoners we rescue. Captain Solo and Princess Leia have volunteered
Millennium Falcon
for the latter purpose.”
    Leia cut her wide-open eyes to Han. “When did that happen?”
    “I, uh, might’ve said something to Wedge earlier.”
    “You didn’t even know what the mission was going to entail.”
    Han smiled crookedly. “I basically said that he could put us down for whatever they had in mind.”
    Leia took a breath and faced front. Much to her mounting unease, Han had gotten into the habit of accepting every dangerous assignment dreamed up by Galactic Alliance command. It was as if the successes in the Koornacht Cluster, at Bakura, and at Esfandia had merely primed Han’s pump, or had been nothing more than warm-up exercises for some grand mission during which he would defeat the Yuuzhan Vong single-handedly—or at least in partnership with Leia.
    But the war had taken a toll on both of them, beginning with Chewbacca’s death and culminating with the tragic events at Myrkr, where their youngest son Anakin had died, their older son Jacen had been captured, and their