Star Wars - X-Wing - Krytos Trap by Michael A. Stackpole

  seemed to please no one, save perhaps Admiral Ackbar, but

  he looked grim for his own reasons.

  Primarily because I'm actually here. Wedge knew his

  petition was doomed to fail--Borsk Fey'!ya had said as much

  at the memorial ceremony, and various other councilors had

  repeated the warning in the two days since then, including

  Admiral Ackbar and Princess Leia Organa. In fact, Wedge

  knew, the only reason he was being given a chance to address

  the Council was because of his status as a liberator of Corns-

  cant.

  The Council had arranged three long tables in a half-

  hexagonal formation, with Mon Mothma in the middle,

  flanked by Princess Leia and Corellia's Doman Beruss.

  Ackbar and Fey'lya anchored the far ends of the two angled

  tables. This left Wedge to stand in the open area before the

  Council, as if he were on trial. This is exactly what Tycho

  will face if I do not succeed here today; therefore, I must

  succeed.

  Mon Mothma inclined her head toward him. "I need

  not introduce to you a man who has appeared before this

  Council previously and who has been so instrumental in the

  New Republic's success. Because Commander Antilles may

  end up discussing highly sensitive material, this will be an

  executive session of the Provisional Council. Everything said

  here is confidential, and reporting of it will result in possible

  criminal charges."

  Doman Beruss smiled. "Ah, to have cases before we

  have a Judiciary, now that is civilization!"

  Even Mon Mothma smiled at the remark, then set her

  face again into a mask of solemnity. "Please, Commander,

  speak your mind."

  Wedge took a deep breath, then began. "I have come

  here today to ask you to prevent a gross injustice from being

  enacted. Captain Tycho Celchu has been arrested and will be

  tried on murder and treason charges. The evidence against

  him--what little of it I know about--is circumstantial and

  weaker than the defenses Ysanne Isard left behind here.

  Tycho is a hero of the Rebellion. If not for his efforts, we

  would not be here right now, and I would be dead. The man

  he's accused of killing is someone whose life Tycho saved on

  numerous occasions--Corran would have long since been

  dead if Tycho wanted him dead. Tycho is innocent, and to

  put him through this trial after all he has endured would be

  cruelty on a truly Imperial scale."

  Mon Mothma nodded slowly. "I appreciate your frank-

  ness, Commander, and have no doubt you believe everything

  you've told us. Before we can make any sort of decision, it

  would be useful for us to have a better grasp of the facts

  surrounding the situation." She pointed to a green-eyed man

  whose hair had shifted from its original red to mostly white.

  "If you would, General Cracken, please bring the Council up

  to date with what you have learned concerning Captain

  Celchu."

  Cracken walked over to stand next to Wedge. "I hope

  Commander Antilles will forgive my contradicting him on a

  couple of points. Some of this information has been devel-

  oped recently, and because the circumstances surrounding

  the investigation are tricky, I have not had a chance to brief

  him on them."

  Wedge dropped his voice to a whisper. "Nice ambush."

  "That's the last thing I want to do, Commander."

  Cracken cleared his throat. "Tycho Celchu is a native of

  Alderaan who graduated from the Imperial Naval Academy

  and was made a TIE fighter pilot. Subsequent to the destruc-

  tion of his homeworld which he had the misfortune of wit-

  nessing via holonet communications with his family--he

  defected from Imperial service and joined the Rebellion. He

  joined us just after the evacuation of Yavin 4, served with

  distinction at Hoth, and accompanied Commander Antilles

  on the assault on the Death Star at Endor. He is one of a

  handful of pilots who entered and escaped the Death Star.

  "Slightly less than two years ago Celchu volunteered for

  a covert scouting mission to Coruscant. On the way back

  out, he was captured and sent to Ysanne Isard's Lusankya

  facility. Little is known about this prison, except that people

  who have come from it have routinely been brainwashed into

  becoming Imperial agents who commit acts of murder and

  mayhem when bidden to do so by Isard. Tycho is unique

  among those who have been to Lusankya in that he retains

  some memories of having been there. Prior to his appear-

  ance, former inmates revealed their connection to this place

  only after they had been activated, done their damage, and

  were captured by our forces."

  Wedge shook his head. "I'm sure General Cracken will

  not mind my pointing out that Tycho did not escape from

  Lusankya. Isard transferred him to the penal colony at

  Akrit'tar, and he escaped from there to return to us."

  "Thank you, Commander, I was just getting to that."

  Cracken's expression betrayed neither amusement nor irrita-

  tion, which somehow made Wedge think things were not

  going to go well for Tycho. "Upon his return, Captain

  Celchu was debriefed, and his debriefing, in fact, indicated he

  recalled almost nothing of his time at Lusankya. We could

  find no indication he had been brainwashed by Isard. How-

  ever, we had never detected brainwashing in any of her other

  little bio-weapons. We were left in the unenviable position of

  having to assume the worst about Captain Celchu. Com-

  mander Antilles, believing then as he does now in his friend's

  innocence, struck a bargain with his superiors to get Celchu

  assigned as his executive officer. Security was maintained, for

  the most part, and the incidents where it was not betrayed no

  Imperial leanings on the part of Captain Celchu."

  Cracken frowned. "Unfortunately we have developed

  evidence that suggests Celchu has betrayed Rogue Squadron

  and the New Republic. In the case of Corran Horn, Tycho

  Celchu had access to the command code for the Headhunter

  Horn was flying at the time of his death, and Celchu had

  gone over the fighter, without supervision, just prior to

  Horn's flight. Horn confronted Celchu before they headed

  out; Horn threatened to uncover his treason, so Celchu had

  him killed. He waited until after the shields had been

  brought down, but we have pretty well determined Isard

  wanted us to take the planet and inherit the virus, so killing

  Horn after her goal was accomplished only makes sense.

  "The Horn case is not the only death to which we can

  link Captain Celchu."

  Wedge's jaw dropped in surprise. "What? You can't

  mean Bror Jace?"

  "Indeed I do."

  "Nonsense. The Empire killed him."

  Cracken nodded. "Agreed, but the way they got him

  was unusual. Previously we believed he happened to have

  been trapped by an Interdictor Cruiser out looking for smug-

  glers. However, we have been forced to amend that view

  following
the defection of the Imperial Interdictor Cruiser

  Black Asp. Captain Iiilor indicated in her debriefing that the

  Black Asp was directed to go to specific coordinates to inter-

  cept Bror Jace as he headed back to Thyferra. He was a bit

  late in arriving, but showed up exactly where he was ex-

  pected to. They tried to capture him, but his ship exploded

  during the fight. The arrangements for Jace's journey home,

  including the plotting of his course, were made by Captain

  Tycho Celchu."

  "By my order."

  "Yes, Commander, by your order--which does not

  mean Isard could not have warped Celchu enough to make

  him betray your people."

  "But, again, that's circumstantial."

  "We have more." The Alliance Intelligence chief

  shrugged. "Horn told you, Commander, that he'd seen

  Celchu here on Coruscant talking with a known Imperial

  operative, Kirtan Loor. Horn had worked with Loor for

  years on CoreIlia, so the chance of a mistake in his identifica-

  tion are minimal. In backtracking Celchu's time here on Co-

  ruscant--granting that you ordered him to come here,

  Commander--we have periods of time for which we cannot

  account. Moreover, we have uncovered a number of banking

  accounts in which large numbers of credits have been accu-

  mulated. These accounts add up to approximately fifteen

  million credits, which means Celchu was being paid by the

  Empire."

  "What?" Wedge couldn't believe what he was hearing.

  There was no way, just no way Tycho was an agent in the

  pay of the Empire. "If he was one of Isard's sleeper agents,

  why would she be paying him?"

  "Commander, for years I've been trying to fathom her

  mind, and I have been unable to do so. If I had to guess ,

  however, I would say that creating those accounts was a

  precaution to let us uncover Tycho at some point or, as it

  stands now, a means to guarantee he will be tried for his

  crimes."

  "But she has no interest in seeing justice done, which

  underscores how ludicrous all these charges against Tycho

  are." Wedge brought his head up. "If Isard wants a trial, you

  know conducting it will be to her benefit, which is yet one

  more reason not to go ahead with it."

  Borsk Fey'lya tapped a talon against the tabletop. "Or is

  she providing more evidence than we need to convict so we

  will be convinced Ceichu is being framed? If we are con-

  vinced he is innocent, we could exonerate him, raise him into

  a position of trust, and find ourselves again fodder for her

  schemes."

  Wedge winced. He hated Fey'lya's wheels-within-wheels

  reasoning because it came down to a core problem with

  Tycho's case either he was innocent and being made to look

  guilty, or he was guilty and being made to look innocent

  through a clumsy frame. The evidence served both explana-

  tions well, and sorting good data from bad was a task that

  could easily defy completion. Everyone could agree some-

  thing was not right in the whole situation, but assigning

  blame and assessing truth was not going to be easy.

  And no matter what happened, Tycho would end up

  being stigmatized, reviled, and ostracized. He would be de-

  stroyed by it all, and that was something he did not deserve.

  For Wedge it was simple to separate fact from fiction,

  but he knew that was because he was starting from a deep

  belief in Tycho's innocence. Wedge didn't have a Jedi's in-

  sight through the Force---he just knew Tycho. They'd fought

  side by side through some of the most harrowing battles the

  galaxy had ever seen. They'd shared hardships that others

  could not have even imagined, and they shared good times

  that others could only envy. Wedge knew Tycho could no

  more betray the Rebellion than he himself could, but looking

  around at the Council, he realized that even his conduct

  might not be seen as above reproach.

  "I still do not believe the evidence General Cracken's

  people have gathered is anything more than circumstantial."

  Wedge studied the members of the Council. "For any trial to

  go forward, especially as quickly as this trial is being pushed,

  is reckless and negligent. I know we all want swift justice if

  Tycho is guilty, but trying him on these charges right now

  can only hurt him and, ultimately, the New Republic."

  Doman Beruss, her light eyes glinting coldly in the dim-

  ness, opened her hands. "Your opinion, Commander Antil-

  les, is respected but not universally held. "['he evidence is

  sufficient in any jurisdiction of the galaxy to call for a trial."

  Wedge's eyes narrowed as he sensed a transparisteel bar-

  rier descending between his argument and the Council's will-

  ingness to act. He knew he had to do something to get them

  to open their eyes, so he decided to take a chance. "This

  evidence may demand a trial, but at least delay it until there

  is time to scrape things down another layer or two and find

  out what's really going on. I think it is the minimum courtesy

  you ()we someone like Tycho Celchu, and that's an opinion l

  do not need to keep private."

  Borsk Fey'lya's head came up and his fur rippled like a

  storm-wracked ocean. "Are you threatening to use your

  status as hero to oppose us?"

  Ackbar answered for Wedge. "He was doing nothing of

  the kind. Because Captain Celchu is facing a court martial,

  the trial and everything surrounding it is a military matter,

  and Commander Antilles knows unauthorized discussions of

  same violate regulations and oaths he took when he became

  an officer."

  "Begging the Admiral's pardon," Wedge growled, "I

  was threatening to go public with my feelings about the trial.

  I still am. And if expressing my opinion about an injustice is

  not allowed in the Alliance military, I can always resign my

  commission."

  That bombshell certainly had an effect, but not entirely

  the one he expected. While Ackbar looked disappointed,

  Borsk Fey'lya smiled victoriously. The other councilors re-

  acted with horror or a grim acknowledgment of his bold

  stroke. If they had thought his speaking out against Tycho's

  treatment would attract attention, his resignation because of

  it would undoubtedly be an action with a much higher pro-

  file.

  Leia leaned forward. "Chief Councilor, I suggest we re-

  cess for an hour. I would like a chance to speak with Com-

  mander Antilles, if I might."

  "Please." Mon Mothma stood and gave Wedge a look

  that combined pride with frustration, anger with sympathy.

  Wedge felt not exactly pitied, but as if there was more going

  on than he had access to. He knew that was true, of course--

  he was just the leader of a fighter squadron, and these were

  the leaders of a new nation. But he hated to think their per-

  spective could somehow justify what they were going to do

  to Tycho.

  General Cracken left the room last and closed the doors

  behind himself
, leaving Wedge alone with Princess Leia. In

  all the time he'd known her, she'd never looked so saddened.

  "If you want to convince me to save my career, I appreciate

  the effort, but I'll stand by what I said just now. You can't

  talk me out of it."

  She remained seated and slowly shook her head. "I

  know that, so I'm not going to try. It's important to me that

  you know I think Tycho is innocent, too. I've known Winter

  for as long as I can remember, and she's terribly fond of

  Tycho. tf she can remember nothing that's the least bit am-

  biguous about him, then I can't imagine there's anything sin-

  ister to uncover. You and I both know that the trial will be

  rough on Tycho, anti unfair."

  "Then help me convince them to stop it or delay it."

  "I would if I could, but I can't." A deep frown creased

  her brow as she plucked at the fabric of her pale green gown.

  "The reason I asked for the recess is so I can tell you what's

  going to happen after someone here decides that we have

  been suitably courteous in listening to you and that we need

  to move on to new business."

  Leia chewed on her lower lip for a second. "Mort

  Mothma will thank you for coming to us, but she will point

  out that Tycho is being tried in a military court. The Pro-

  visional Council has nt authority to interfere with the way

  the military deals with violations of the code of military jus-

  tice. Until there is a conviction, and punishment is decided

  upon, there is nothing the Council can do, and even at that

  point it is an open question whether or not we can interfere."

  "But there has to be a chance to appeal a convic-

  tion .... "Wedge hesitated, then nodded. "Councilor

  Beruss's comment about a lack of a Judiciary . . . that was

  meant to forestall this argument, yes?"

  Leia nodded. "In simple terms, yes, but we haven't yet

  had time to make decisions concerning the structure of such

  a body, much less its jurisdiction and duties. For example,

  would an appeal go to the New Republic courts first, or

  would it be sent to the courts on the defendant's homeworld,

  or the victim's homeworld? Putting together a government is

  not easy, and the process is not pretty or without pain. There

  are casualties all over the place."