Jaina would have liked to think the brittle calm of the Council Chamber had come in anticipation of the briefing she and Lando were about to give, but everything she saw told her otherwise. Eight of the ten current members were there in person, all watching the entrance so they would not be forced to look at one another. Kenth Hamner’s face was stony and indifferent, Kyle’s inscrutable, Kyp’s openly resentful. Corran Horn avoided a clenched jaw only through an obvious act of will, and Saba’s cheek scales were bristling. Cilghal’s eye pods were bulging, Barratk’l’s nostrils were flaring, and Octa Ramis’s hands had turned white from clutching her chair arms. Even the Solusars, participating via hologram from the Jedi academy on Ossus, looked ready to rap a few knuckles.

Clearly, Jaina’s TOP URGENT request to brief the Council had interrupted a heated exchange, and she had no doubt her report was only going to aggravate the Masters’ mood. On the bright side, it would at least remind them that there were dangers in the galaxy greater than Natasi Daala—dangers that the Jedi could meet only with a bold and united leadership. Once she and Lando finished their presentation, even Kenth Hamner would recognize that.

With Lando at her side, Jaina entered the Council circle and bowed. “Thank you for seeing us so quickly.”

“Given the rumors of where you’ve been, I saw no reason to doubt the urgency of your request.” Hamner’s eyes and voice grew icy. “We’ll discuss your unauthorized actions after your briefing—immediately after.”

The lump that formed in Jaina’s throat was born of anger more than fear, but she swallowed her ire and inclined her head in what she hoped was a look of contrition. The important thing here was to get the Masters moving in the same direction, and she would not do that by antagonizing the temporary Grand Master of the Jedi Order.

That could come later.

“I look forward to the discussion, Grand Master,” Jaina said. “Regarding the briefing, however—before we start, it would be helpful to know what you’ve heard about my trip.”

It was Kyp who summarized the Council’s knowledge for her. “We’ve heard that you went to … evaluate Luke’s situation.” His gaze shifted toward Lando, who was standing at Jaina’s side looking dapper, worried, and exhausted. “Apparently, you ran into Lando and joined him aboard the Rockhound. After some excitement on Klatooine, the pair of you followed Luke, Ben, and a flotilla of pretty nasty allies into the Maw. We’re thinking you were trying to find out what’s been turning Shelter Jedi barvy and eliminate it. Is that about it?”

Jaina nodded. “It is.”

“We assssume you were successful,” Saba said. She flashed a broad, fang-filled grin. “Because the mad ones have recovered.”

Jaina’s heart did not soar—the news she was bringing was too grim for that—but it definitely rose. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to hear that.”

“And I am, too,” Lando said, sounding far from relieved. He reached into his pocket and extracted the datachip they had prepared on their journey back from the Maw. “Because you’re going to need every Jedi Knight you can find.”

“There was trouble with your allies?” Kyle asked.

“They double-crossed us, but we expected that,” Lando confirmed. “What we didn’t expect was this.”

Lando casually flipped the datachip in the general direction of the Council circle. Kyle Katarn raised a hand, summoning the chip to his grasp, then slipped it into the reader-slot in the arm of his chair. A moment later the holograph of a Rebaxan MSE-6 droid appeared above the projection pad hidden in the center of the circle.

Jaina explained what they were seeing. “This is an impostor droid a pirate group used to impersonate Lando’s voice aboard the Rockhound. Its commands redirected us to an ambush point, disabled our comm and sensor systems, and crippled my StealthX.”

“We’ve already delivered it to Lowbacca for analysis,” Lando added. “He’s taking it apart now.”

“Thank you,” Hamner replied drily. “I’m sure those are the orders we would have given anyway.”

“We’re hoping Lowbacca can tell the Council something about the programming style.” Lando’s explanation was directed primarily to Kenth, and his tone was pointed. “It might help you locate the pirates’ home base.”

The image changed to a recording of the cockpit tactical feeds as Jaina went out to challenge the ambushers.

“As you can see,” Jaina continued. “They came at us in three BDY crew skiffs, launched from a Damorian S-eighteen light freighter.”

“I do see,” Hamner said. His voice assumed a disapproving tone. “You filed a TOP URGENT request in order to inform the Council that you were assaulted by … pirates?”

“That’s right.” Lando did not bother to hide his irritation. “Except these pirates also redirected us to Ashteri’s Cloud. And there’s only one way they could have known to choose those coordinates for an ambush.”

“You’re saying they knew you would be coming out of the Maw.” Kyp shifted forward in his seat, then clarified, “You’re saying they had to be Sith.”

“Yes,” Jaina said. “After the mouse droid sabotaged my StealthX, the only weapons I had left were shadow bombs. Every time I launched one, their gunners found me. They felt me using the Force.”

“So … Sith,” Barratk’l growled. “A double cross. Then Master Skywalker and Ben must be—”

“No,” Lando interrupted quickly. “They’re fine—at least they were when we left orbit.”

“We’re not sure of the details, because we never made planetfall,” Jaina added. “But after Abeloth’s death, Luke came to some kind of arrangement with the Sith to investigate her nature. Only three people from each side stayed behind, and everyone else was ordered to leave.”

“And you’re sure the Sith obeyed?” asked Octa Ramis.

“We’re sure they left when we did,” Jaina replied. “And it wouldn’t be easy to return. The planet was tough to reach.”

“The Sith lost a frigate going in,” Lando added. His voice assumed a note of pride. “And they would have lost another if the Rockhound hadn’t been there to pull it to safety. They could probably make it back on their own, but they wouldn’t be eager.”

“And I think I would have felt it if something had happened to Uncle Luke or Ben,” Jaina added. Noticing Hamner’s mouth starting to sag at the corners again, she turned to Kyle Katarn. “Will you advance to the next image, please?”

Kyle pressed a control on his chair arm, and a holographic map of the known galaxy appeared over the projection pad. Scattered along the hyperspace lanes were nearly four hundred bright red squares. Near one edge, in the Corporate Sector, was a large cluster of twenty-seven red triangles.

“This map is derived from the one Jaden Korr has been assembling during his piracy investigations,” Jaina explained. “We spent most of the trip back filtering out attacks that don’t fit the same profile as the one against the Rockhound.”

“Basically, we were looking for two things,” Lando explained. “A recent port call, followed by the total disappearance of the vessel—no survivors, no wreckage, no flotsam or bodies.”

Jaina stepped forward and pointed to the twenty-seven red triangles in the Corporate Sector. “These triangles represent a fleet of old Chase-Master frigates that disappeared on their way to a decommissioning yard,” she explained. “We know that they were taken by the Lost Tribe, because High Lord Taalon had a squadron of twelve with him.”

The Force shuddered with the alarm of every Master in the Chamber.

“And the circles?” Cilghal asked. “They represent assaults you merely believe to be Sith in origin?”

Jaina nodded. “That’s correct,” she said. “There’s no way to be certain, at least until we locate the Lost Tribe’s home base, but they fit the same profile.”

The chamber fell silent as the Masters contemplated what they were seeing. After a moment, Corran Horn rose and stepped over to the holograph, running his gaze along each of the major hyperspace lanes. All eyes were on him, watching in silence as he paused at each of the circle symbols, studying the description of the missing ship and the cargo it had been carrying. Finally, a look of horror came over him, and he turned to face his fellow Masters.

“There are Sith everywhere,” Corran announced. “And they’re building a war fleet!”