They ate in the cool silence of the room: thin brown cakes served on carved stone platters, cool water in sweating ceramic pitchers. Their cups were made of green- and red-streaked lamina, and the water tasted pure and slightly sweet. Anakin seemed happy, even ebullient. He looked at Obi-Wan as if he expected his master to burst this particular bubble at any moment.

Obi-Wan withheld his judgment for the time being as to how well they were doing, and whether they had made any progress.

After ten minutes, Gann returned alone. Anakin's face fell on seeing the older Ferroan's dour expression.

"There's a difficulty," Gann told them. "The Magister thinks we should not proceed to the designing and forging until he meets with you."

"Is that good or bad?" Anakin asked. "Do we get to make the ship?"

"I don't know," Gann said. "He rarely meets with anybody."

"When will he come?" Obi-Wan asked.

"You will go to him" Gann said tersely, eyes rolling, as if that should be obvious. "And you will go at the Magister's convenience." He peered at them from under thick, merged brows. "We will keep your seed-partners ready, and when you return, if all is well, we will begin the design, and the conversion, and proceed to the annealing and the shaping."

Captain Kett greeted the commander with civility as he mounted the navigation deck of the Admiral Korvin. "We are nearing emergence," he told Sienar.

Sienar nodded abstractedly.

The port covers slid aside, and Sienar turned half away from the twisted, star-streaming view.

"Reversion at mark," he muttered.

"So ordered, sir," Kett acknowledged.

"How good are the ship's duplication facilities, Captain Kett?" Sienar asked.

"Our astromech complement is adequate to conduct many major repairs in transit," Kett reported.

The E-5 was doing quite well with its new capabilities. And the Blood Carver was reacting favorably to his new perspective. So far, so good, but there was so much farther to go.

Sienar held out a small box of data cards. "I would like to have these programs loaded into the ship's manufactory and placed in all the battle droids. The programming will be duplicated from these data cards and activated in each unit, to replace all previous programming. All, Captain Kett. And, of course, I will perform authentication tests."

Kett's polite expression froze. "That is not authorized, sir. It's against Trade Federation policy."

Sienar smiled at this slip into old ways. "When we return, all our weapons will be handed over to the Republic. This programming meets Republic standards and the droid will answer to Republic control."

"It is still not in my brief," Kett said.

"I have my own instructions, from Tarkin himself, and they are explicit," Sienar said calmly. He knew that as commander, and with Tarkin's backing, his command would be sufficient- now that he had at least some influence over Ke Daiv.

Now that he would not meet an unfortunate accident if he did something unexpected and out of turn.

The Baktoid E-5 droid strode with a surprisingly light tread out of the turbolift and onto the bridge of the flagship. It stood just below the navigation deck, clearly visible to all on the bridge. No threat was implied, merely a demonstration of the new way of things. Normally, this droid would not have been activated until battle.

Kett watched with obvious misgivings. "Understood, sir," he said.

"And show me the astromech reports when the job is completed," Sienar said, sucking his teeth.

Kett watched him for a couple of seconds, barely hiding his distaste.

Sienar ignored him and glared at the port.

"Reversion," the hyperdrive control officer announced.

"Realspace!" Captain Kett shouted as the stars whisked back into proper perspective, and space and time returned to their familiar dominance.

"About time," Sienar said with a sigh. He pushed a lever, and the navigation deck rolled on its track toward the large port until the view filled his field of vision.

He would have reveled in any normal pattern of stars whatsoever, but what he saw now was impressive, very impressive. The outward-spiraling ribbon of the red giant and white dwarf components filled his eyes with a dreamlike, fiery light. Such a sight was a rare privilege.

With some assurance of subtlety and Sienar-bred creativity in his weapons systems, he could actually enjoy the view.

"Our destination planet is in sight, and we are locked on to a holding orbit around the planet's yellow sun," Kett said. "We will not approach any closer until so ordered by you, Commander." Kett, still mulling over his options, was reluctant to leave the bridge.

Sienar did not mind independent thought, so long as it did not become too independent.

"You may carry out your instructions. . now." Sienar pointed aft.

"Yes, sir." Kett hurried to the turbolift, the deep-set and jewel-like eyes of the E-5 droid firmly and balefully fixed on the space between his shoulder blades.

The Sekotan air transport took them south over some of the strangest terrain Obi-Wan Kenobi had ever seen. Flying at an altitude of less than a thousand meters, the small, flat craft dodged with dizzying speed over tall, thick- trunked boras with bloated balloonlike leaves that spun and wobbled in their wake.

"I think the settlers use those leaves to make their airships," Anakin said, looking aft through the windscreen that curved almost completely around the transport.

Obi-Wan nodded, lost in thought. If seed-partners preferred Jedi, then some research was called for. Only organisms strong in the Force could detect Jedi. It was becoming more and more apparent that the life-forms of this world-Sekot, as Gann called the living totality-were special, and that his Padawan strongly attracted them.

"This is really beautiful," Anakin said. "The air smells great, and the jungle is wizard."

"Don't grow too attached," Obi-Wan warned.

"I've never been to a place like this."

"Remember your earlier feelings about Sekot."

"I do," Anakin said.

"You mentioned a single wave, something happening now or in the future."