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her, and she exited quickly, without glancing at Mon Mothma or Leia. Garm Bel Iblis gave her an encouraging look, but he was as powerless as she was, outvoted by his co-leaders of the Alliance and hemmed in by logistical realities. Without ships, they couldn’t fight; if they couldn’t fight, they’d never get any more ships. At this rate, the Rebellion would either tear itself apart or die of attrition before another year was out.
    She was shown to the mess by a bright-eyed young woman who looked barely old enough to be a private, let alone a corporal. Advancement came quickly in any movement afflicted by heavy losses. In the mess, Juno was offered refreshments and a chance to rest, but she declined everything. She simply stared out the viewport at the vistas of molten Nkllon and its fiery sun. She imagined that she could feel the heat even through half a meter of transparisteel, burning her defenses away.
    Finally she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to find none other than Commodore Viedas standing behind her.
    “I thought I’d better come myself to give you the news, ” he said. “I’m sorry, Captain, but we’re standing you down from the Salvation. The demotion is only temporary, while Senator Mothma goes over the case again, and may not last longer than a day or two. Both of you just need an opportunity to cool down. I hope you understand. “
    She bit down on her disappointment and the urge to argue. Viedas was going out of his way to explain, something he was under no compunction to do. “Yes, sir. I understand. “
    “In the meantime, the Princess sent you this, ” he added, patting the head of a blue-and-white astromech droid she hadn’t even noticed at his side. “She hopes that you will put it to good use. “
    “I’m sorry, sir?”
    “She understands that you have a faulty droid in your possession. He’s being brought from the Salvation as we speak. The corporal will show you to a maintenance suite that has been put at your disposal. You have the time to see to your droid now, and I suggest you don’t waste it. “
    With that, he left her. Juno watched him go, frowning. What did he care about her droid? What did the Princess?
    “Is it possible, ” she asked herself, “that I’m dreaming all this?”
    The R2 unit burbled something electronic she couldn’t understand. It didn’t help.
    “This way, ” said the perky corporal, reappearing at her side.
    “After you, ” Juno told her. The R2 trundled patiently in their wake.
    PROXY was already waiting for her when she arrived, stretched out on an examination table in a private workshop. His familiar, skeletal form was dented and scarred by countless rough patch jobs and the occasional field welding. His yellow eyes were extinguished now, as they had been for months. Just seeing him made her uncomfortable for reasons she found difficult to express, even to herself. Surely she should be over it all by now?
    “Let’s fire him up, ” she told the R2 unit when the corporal had gone, “and see what you can do. “
    She reached a hand into PROXY’S innards to reactivate his power supply, but instead of moving to help her, the R2 unit rolled back a step and projected a hologram onto the floor between them.
    “I apologize for the deception, Juno, ” a miniature version of Princess Leia told her. The recording had been taken nor long ago: She was still wearing the clothes she had worn to Juno’s interview; only the background had changed. “I hope you’ll forgive me for not standing up for you before. I cannot speak freely, even when I know what my father would have me say. While he is in hiding, it’s my job to keep the Alliance together, and I know you appreciate how hard a job that is. Mon Mothma is my friend and teacher; I would not defy her openly, when we all know that what she says is at least in part correct. We must proceed cautiously. But at the same time, we must act decisively. No agreement is possible-so it’s better