And she absolutely didn’t want a syndic on her bridge, watching her every movement and undoubtedly gathering ammunition to be used against her somewhere down the line. Couldn’t Ba’kif see this was yet another attempt by the Syndicure to intrude on the fleet’s sphere of authority?

“No questions, General,” she said stiffly.

“Good,” Ba’kif said. “Thank you for your interest and input, Syndics. Syndic Zistalmu, you and your wife will report to Admiral Ar’alani’s shuttle in three hours for immediate transport to the Vigilant. Admiral, another moment of your time?”

Ar’alani stayed where she was, her eyes locked on Ba’kif, as Zistalmu and Thurfian walked through the doorway behind her. She waited until the door closed—

“Don’t say it,” Ba’kif warned before she could speak. “No, it’s not ideal. In fact, it’s about as far from ideal as it could possibly be.”

“Then why did you agree to it?”

“Because I didn’t have any choice,” Ba’kif said. “Because if I’d tried to keep Zistalmu off the Vigilant he’d have tied us up in procedural twist-wire until Thrawn died of old age.” He paused. “And because you don’t have a mandate…because Thalias is not, in fact, an official caregiver.”

Ar’alani felt her eyes narrow. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about the fact that she sweet-talked her way aboard the Springhawk,” Ba’kif said. “She’s a former sky-walker herself, which made the sweet-talking a little easier, but the fact is that she has no official credentials.”

“But she’s Mitth,” Ar’alani said, trying to sort it through. “Are you telling me that someone with Thurfian’s connections and suspicions hasn’t figured that out?”

“On the contrary,” Ba’kif said darkly. “He apparently showed up at the last minute to help get her aboard in that position.”

“Really,” Ar’alani said. “What was the cost of that assistance?”

“I don’t know,” Ba’kif said. “But there was a cost, or will be one somewhere down the line. With Thurfian, that’s practically guaranteed. My point is that all he had to do was throw that into the conversation, and you’d have been out completely. But he didn’t. The question is why?”

“Possibly because he’d prefer having me involved with our sky-walker over turning her completely over to the wife of an Irizi syndic.”

“Normally, I’d agree with you,” Ba’kif said. “But you’ve surely noticed that despite their families’ rivalries, he and Zistalmu have shown remarkable unity in their attempts to get Thrawn out of the fleet, or at least out of any position of influence. I don’t think he’d have a problem with Zistalmu’s wife being in complete charge.”

“And of course, leaving Thrawn abandoned on Primea would be a permanent solution to their perceived problem.”