Steve Perry - Shadows of the Empire

Rave reviews for previous
Star Wars adventures:

HEIR TO THE EMPIRE
by Timothy Zahn

CHOCK FULL OF ALL THE GOOD STUFF YOUVE COME TO EXPECT FROM A BATTLE OF GOOD AGAINST EVIL.
Daily News, New York

MOVES WITH A SPEED-OF-LIGHT PACE THAT CAPTURES THE SPIRIT OF THE MOVIE TRILOGY SO WELL, YOU CAN ALMOST HEAR JOHN WILLIAMSS SOUNDTRACK.
The Providence Sunday Journal

DARK FORCE RISING
by Timothy Zahn

CONTINUES [ZAHNS] REMARKABLE EXTRAPOLATION FROM GEORGE LUCASS TRILOGY.
Chicago Sun-Times

ZAHN HAS PERFECTLY CAPTURED THE PACE AND FLAVOR OF THE STAR WARS MOVIES. THIS IS SPACE OPERA AT ITS BEST.
The Sunday Oklahoman

THE JEDI ACADEMY TRILOGY
by Kevin J. Anderson

ANDERSON HAS ALL BUT ASSUMED THE TITLE OF CHANCELLOR OF STAR WARS UNIVERSITY.
Starlog

DEFTLY PUTS THE STAR WARS CHARACTERS THROUGH THEIR PACES WITH NEVER A SLIP, AND WITH NEVER A DULL MOMENT.
The Sunday Oregonian, Portland

This edition contains the complete text of the original hardcover
edition. NOT ONE WORD HAS BEEN OMITTED.

STAR WARS: SHADOWS OF THE EMPIRE
A Bantam Spectra Book

PUBLISHING HISTORY
Bantam hardcover edition published May 1996
Bantam mass market edition/April 1997

SPECTRA and the portrayal of a boxed s are trademarks of
Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

, TM & 1996 by Lucasfilm Ltd.
All rights reserved. Used under authorization.
Cover illustration by Drew Struzan. 1996 by Lucasfilm Ltd.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 95-34660.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
For information address: Bantam Books.

eISBN: 978-0-307-79634-9

Bantam Books are published by Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc. Its trademark, consisting of the words Bantam Books and the portrayal of a rooster, is Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. Marca Registrada. Bantam Books, 1540 Broadway, New York, New York 10036.

v3.1

F OR DIANNE;
and for
Tom Mississippi Dupree,
who put me in the rotation and
thus let me get a chance to bat.

I could not have written a book set in such a wonderfully rich and complex universe as this all by myself. I had help, lots of it, and I owe thanks to many people. You should know who they are. My apologies to any I might have missed, and the usual caveat applies: If I screwed up their input, it is my fault and not theirs. If you are a fan of the books, comics, games, or movies, youll probably recognize some of these names.

My gratitude goes to: Tom Dupree; Howard Roffman, Lucy Wilson, Sue Rostoni, and Allan Kausch; Jon Knoles, Steve Dauterman, and Larry Holland; Bill Slavicsek; Bill Smith; Mike Richardson, Ryder Windham, Kilian Plunkett, and John Wagner; Timothy Zahn, Kevin J. Anderson, and Rebecca Moesta; Jean Naggar; Dianne, Danelle, and Dal Perry; Cady Jo Ivy and Roxanne de Bergerac. Id also like to thank the fans in the Star Wars Forum on America OnlineI got some great ideas as I lurked and listened there. And last but certainly not least, thanks to the man who dreamed up, then built this absolutely terrific toy in the first place: George Lucas.

Appreciate it, gang. Really.

F ace it, if crime did not pay,
there would be very few criminals.

L AUGHTON L EWIS B URDOCK

H e looks like a walking corpse, Xizor thought. Like a mummified body dead a thousand years. Amazing he is still alive, much less the most powerful man in the galaxy. He isnt even that old; it is more as if something is slowly eating him.

Xizor stood four meters away from the Emperor, watching as the man who had long ago been Senator Palpatine moved to stand in the holocam field. He imagined he could smell the decay in the Emperors worn body. Likely that was just some trick of the recycled air, run through dozens of filters to ensure that there was no chance of any poison gas being introduced into it. Filtered the life out of it, perhaps, giving it that dead smell.

The viewer on the other end of the holo-link would see a close-up of the Emperors head and shoulders, of an age-ravaged face shrouded in the cowl of his dark zeyd-cloth robe. The man on the other end of the transmission, light-years away, would not see Xizor, though Xizor would be able to see him. It was a measure of the Emperors trust that Xizor was allowed to be here while the conversation took place.

The man on the other end of the transmissionif he could still be called that

The air swirled inside the Imperial chamber in front of the Emperor, coalesced, and blossomed into the image of a figure down on one knee. A caped humanoid biped dressed in jet black, face hidden under a full helmet and breathing mask:

Darth Vader.

Vader spoke: What is thy bidding, my master?

If Xizor could have hurled a power bolt through time and space to strike Vader dead, he would have done it without blinking. Wishful thinking: Vader was too powerful to attack directly.

There is a great disturbance in the Force, the Emperor said.

I have felt it, Vader said.

We have a new enemy. Luke Skywalker.

Skywalker? That had been Vaders name, a long time ago. Who was this person with the same name, someone so powerful as to be worth a conversation between the Emperor and his most loathsome creation? More importantly, why had Xizors agents not uncovered this before now? Xizors ire was instantbut cold. No sign of his surprise or anger would show on his imperturbable features. The Falleen did not allow their emotions to burst forth as did many of the inferior species; no, the Falleen ancestry was not fur but scales, not mammalian but reptilian. Not wild but coolly calculating. Such was much better. Much safer.

Yes, my master, Vader continued.

He could destroy us, the Emperor said.

Xizors attention was riveted upon the Emperor and the holographic image of Vader kneeling on the deck of a ship far away. Here was interesting news indeed. Something the Emperor perceived as a danger to himself? Something the Emperor feared?

Hes just a boy, Vader said, Obi-Wan can no longer help him.

Obi-Wan. That name Xizor knew. He was among the last of the Jedi Knights, a general. But hed been dead for decades, hadnt he?

Apparently Xizors information was wrong if Obi-Wan had been helping someone who was still a boy. His agents were going to be sorry.

Even as Xizor took in the distant image of Vader and the nearness of the Emperor, even as he was aware of the luxury of the Emperors private and protected chamber at the core of the giant pyramidal palace, he was also able to make a mental note to himself: Somebodys head would roll for the failure to make him aware of all this. Knowledge was power; lack of knowledge was weakness. This was something he could not permit.

The Emperor continued. The Force is strong with him. The son of Skywalker must not become a Jedi.

Son of Skywalker?

Vaders son! Amazing!

If he could be turned he would become a powerful ally, Vader said.

There was something in Vaders voice when he said this, something Xizor could not quite put his finger on. Longing? Worry?