“And you’d have deserved it,” Thrawn said.

Ziara started to smile. The smile faded as she realized he was serious. “Hardly.”

“I disagree.” Thrawn seemed to consider that. “I respectfully disagree,” he amended. “You’ll certainly make full admiral someday. The Council might as well promote you now and save themselves some time.”

“I appreciate your confidence,” Ziara said, turning away and starting to walk again. “But I’m content to take the slow, steady route.”

Admiral. Actually, the word had a nice ring to it. Provided, of course, that she was as good as Thrawn seemed to think.

And provided that, while he served under her command, he didn’t do something to ruin her chances forever.

Chapter Ten

The hatch into Admiral Ar’alani’s office slid open. Bracing herself, wondering what this sudden summons was all about, Thalias stepped inside. “You wanted to see me, Senior Captain?” she said.

“Yes,” Thrawn replied. “Come in, please. I want to show you something.”

Thalias took another step forward, hearing the hatch slide closed behind her, and looked around. Given Thrawn’s reputation—or perhaps his notoriety—with artwork, she’d expected to find the office filled with holograms of Garwian sculptures and paintings. To her mild surprise, she instead found him surrounded by a three-dimensional map filled with stars and star routes.

“Here’s the Ascendancy,” he said, waving a finger through a familiar cluster of stars just off center on the map. “Here’s the Lioaoin Regime”—he pointed to a much smaller group of stars to the north-zenith of the Ascendancy. “Here’s Rapacc—” He shifted the finger a little way east-nadir. “Here’s Urch”—a little more east-nadir and a bit to the south. “And here are the Paataatus worlds.” He shifted his finger one final time to a spot on the Ascendancy’s southeast-zenith border. “What do you see?”

“The first three are north and northeast of us,” Thalias said, wondering why he’d brought in the Paataatus. They were far away from all the others he’d mentioned, and besides they’d already been dealt with.

“Indeed,” Thrawn said. “Three different nations under Nikardun attack or besiegement, all three on the edges of the Ascendancy.”

Thalias wrinkled her nose. They weren’t that close, really. Certainly not close enough to be a threat.

“So far none of the Nikardun conquests is encroaching directly on the Ascendancy,” Thrawn said, as if he’d read her mind and her silent objection. “But the pattern is troubling. If Yiv is targeting us, this is the ideal way for him to begin.”

“All right,” Thalias said cautiously. “But if he attacks, can’t we deal with him like we did the Paataatus?”