He didn't wait for Kav's inevitable protest, but set off across the bridge, leading Mitth'raw'nuruodo back to the office where they'd first conferred two days earlier. He ushered the Chiss inside and sealed the door, noting with no real surprise that Mitth'raw'nuruodo had also left his warrior escort behind. The commander was supremely confident in his abilities, and had clearly deduced that Doriana himself was no threat to him.

At least, not yet.

Doriana's special holoprojector was already hooked into theDarkvenge 's comm system. Punching in the access code, he gestured Mitth'raw'nuruodo to the desk chair. "Your first point is absolutely correct," he began, mentally crossing his fingers that the battleship's huge transmitter would be able to punch a signal back to the Republic's HoloNet system. "My true name is KinmanDoriana, an identity I've taken care to keep secret from Vicelord Kav's crew and other associates."

"You play mutually opposing roles, then?"

Doriana stared. "How did you know that?"

"It was obvious," Mitth'raw'nuruodo said. "Who are your two masters?"

"My official, public master is Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, the head of the Republic government," Doriana said, the words echoing strangely in his ears. He hardly dared even think such things in the privacy of his own mind. To be saying them aloud, and to an unknown alien, was virtually unthinkable. "My true Master is a Sith Lord named Darth Sidious."

"A Sith Lord is. .?"

"A being who stands against the Jedi and their control over the Republic," Doriana explained.

"Ah," Mitth'raw'nuruodo said, a faint smile touching the corners of his mouth. "A power struggle."

"In a way," Doriana conceded. "But on a plane far different from the one where beings like you and I exist. What's important right now is that Lord Sidious has access to information sources that the Jedi don't have."

"And what do these sources tell him?"

Doriana braced himself. "There's an invasion coming," he said. "A massive assault force of dark ships, shadowy figures, and weapons of great power, based on organic technology of a sort we've never seen before. We believe these Far Outsiders, as we call them, already have a foothold at the far edge of the galaxy, and even now have scouting parties seeking information on worlds and peoples to conquer."

"Stories of mysterious invaders are both convenient and difficult to disprove," Mitth'raw'nuruodo pointed out. "Why do you only now tell me this?"

Doriana nodded toward the door. "Because Vicelord Kav and his associates don't know," he said. "Neither does anyone else in the Republic. Not yet."

"When will Darth Sidious tell them?"

"When he's turned the Republic's chaos into order," Doriana said. "When we've built an army and a fleet capable of dealing with the threat. To announce it before then would do nothing but create panic and leave us open to disaster."

"How does Outbound Flight fit into all this?"

"As I said, we believe the Far Outsiders are currently still gathering information," Doriana said. "So far, there's no indication that they even know about the Republic." He felt his throat tighten. "Actually, that's not entirely true," he corrected himself reluctantly. "One of the Jedi, a being named Vergere, disappeared in that region some time ago. That's one of Outbound Flight's private agendas, in fact: to try to learn what happened to her."

"I see," Mitth'raw'nuruodo said, nodding slowly. "And while a single prisoner can give only hints of his or her origin, an entire shipful of them can provide all that would be needed for a successful invasion."

"Exactly," Doriana said. "Not to mention all the data files and technology they would be able to examine. If Outbound Flight blunders into their bridgehead, we could find ourselves facing an attack long before we're ready."

"And the Jedi do not understand this?"

"The Jedi think of themselves as the masters of the galaxy," Doriana said bitterly. "Especially the chief Jedi Master aboard Outbound Flight, Jorus C'baoth. Even if he knew about the Far Outsiders, I doubt it would make any difference to him."

Above the holoprojector, the familiar hooded figure shimmered into view. The hologram was a bit more ragged than usual, Doriana noted, but the connection itself seemed more solid than he'd feared it would be. Sidious was evidently somewhere much closer than his usual haunts on Coruscant. "Report," the Sith Lord ordered. His unseen eyes seemed to catch sight of Mitth'raw'nuruodo, and the drooping corners of his mouth drooped a little farther. "Who is this?" he demanded.

"This is Commander Mitth'raw'nuruodo of the Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet, Lord Sidious," Doriana said, stepping behind Mitth'raw'nuruodo where he would be in view. "I'm afraid we've had a slight setback in our mission."

"I don't wish to hear about setbacks, Master Doriana," the Sith Lord said, his gravelly voice taking on a menacing edge.

"Yes, my lord," Doriana said, trying to stay calm. Even hundreds of light-years away, lie could practically feel Sidious's Force grip resting against his throat. "Let me explain."

He gave Sidious a summary of the one-sided battle with the Chiss. Somewhere during the explanation, Sidious's face turned from staring at him to staring at Mitth'raw'nuruodo. "Impressive," he said when Doriana finished. "And only one of your ships survives?"

Doriana nodded. "And only because Commander Mitth'raw'nuruodo chose to leave it intact."

"Most impressive," Sidious said. "Tell me, Commander Mitth'raw'nuruodo, are you typical of your species?"

"I have no way of answering that question, Lord Sidious," Mitth'raw'nuruodo said calmly. "I can only point out that I'm the youngest of my people to ever hold the position of Force Commander."

"I can see why," Sidious said, a slight smile finally lightening some of his brooding darkness. "I take it from your presence here that Doriana has explained the need to stop Outbound Flight before it passes beyond 'our territory?"

"He has," Mitth'raw'nuruodo confirmed. "Have you proof of this impending alien threat?"

"I have reports," Sidious said. If he was insulted that Mitth'raw'nuruodo would dare to question his word, he didn't show it. "Doriana will detail them for you if you wish. Assuming you're convinced, what will be your response?"

Mitth'raw'nuruodo's eyes flicked to Doriana. "Assuming I'm convinced, I'll agree to Doriana's request to intercept and stop Outbound Flight."

"Excellent," Sidious said. "But be warned. The Jedi will not accept defeat lightly, and they have the power to reach across great distances to touch and manipulate the minds of others. You cannot allow them knowledge of your attack before it is launched."