The second novel in Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn Ascendancy series of books is due tomorrow, and EW.com share an exclusive excerpt, with Thrawn facing an unusual threat.
There were times, Samakro mused, where something in his life felt vaguely like a bit of personal history repeating itself. There were also times there was no vagueness about it whatsoever.
Today was one of the latter.
Flying the Springhawk into the Paataatus hive-home system of Nettehi. Flying along the same approach vector they’d used during the punitive raid with Admiral Ar’alani. Flying in with no idea of what was waiting for them.
Only this time they didn’t have the Vigilant and the other ships of Ar’alani’s task force along. This time, they were going in alone.
“Prepare for breakout,” Thrawn called calmly from his command chair.
Samakro glanced around the bridge, long experience enabling him to gauge the officers’ moods merely by looking at them. They were tense, he could tell, for all the same reasons he was. But he could see no panic or serious doubt. They’d been with Thrawn long enough to trust him to get them through whatever mess he was leading them into.
Distantly, Samakro wondered if they’d had that same confidence back when he’d been the Springhawk‘s commander.
“Three, two, one.”
The star-flares flashed and settled into stars framing the planet Nettehi. “Dalvu?” Thrawn asked.
“Combat range: We’ve got fighters,” the sensor officer announced. “Approximately twenty gunboats within combat and mid-range.”
“Check planetary orbit,” Thrawn said. “I think I see some larger ships there.”
“Checking . . . confirmed, sir,” Dalvu said. “I make seven ships: six enhanced cruisers, one heavy frigate.”
Samakro eyed the display. The seven ships were flying in a Paataatus guard configuration: the frigate in the center with a cruiser on either flank and two cruisers each in a line in front and astern of it.
“Full magnification and status readouts,” Thrawn ordered. “Frigate first, then the cruisers.”
The image of a medium-sized ship appeared on the sensor display, blurred somewhat by distance and the tenuous planetary atmosphere it was currently orbiting through.
But it was clear enough to see the standard Paataatus heavy warship design: wide and flat, heavy armor with minimal point defenses on top, main lasers arrayed along the leading edge, missile tubes positioned underneath the bow. It was an unusual design among the various aliens the Ascendancy dealt with, but it fit well with the Paataatus tactic of approaching an opponent with lasers blazing, then pitching up to fire missiles as the attacking ship veered up and away to open a path for the next attacker moving in behind it.
“Mid Captain?” Thrawn invited.
“Looks Paataatus to me, sir,” Samakro said. “Certainly doesn’t match any of the Vagaari ship configurations in our records.”
“Agreed,” Thrawn said. “Which doesn’t conclusively prove anything, of course, given the Vagaari habit of conquering other aliens and adapting their technology. But it’s a strong indicator, particularly since I don’t see any major ship modifications.”
Samakro shifted his attention to the planetary data now streaming across the secondary sensor display. “I also see no evidence of large-scale damage on the planet’s surface,” he pointed out.
“Excellent observation,” Thrawn said approvingly. “The rumors spoke of an alliance, but they could as easily have been a distorted report of a Vagaari invasion. But the Paataatus would hardly have given up without a fight, which would likely have led to visible planetary destruction.”
Samakro nodded. Their joint conclusion didn’t address the original rumors, he knew. But Thrawn liked to trim the weeds from the edges of an operation, clearing out the unlikely options before focusing on the main thrust. In this case, they were going to find the Paataatus either alone or in full alliance with the pirates.
Either scenario could be trouble, but both left the Springhawk free to respond as soon as they were fired on without fear of tearing into victims or—unlikely with the Paataatus—innocent bystanders.
“Captain, we’re receiving a transmission,” Brisch called from the comm station. He touched a key—
“This is the Prince Militaire,” a Paataatus voice came over the bridge speaker.
Samakro frowned. Prince Militaire? He’d never heard of that rank before.
If it even was a rank. It could just as easily be a title or name or something unique to these aliens. Chiss diplomats had dealt with Paataatus negotiators a few times, but the inner workings of their government remained a complete mystery. Certainly the Expansionary Defense Fleet had had no interaction with them that didn’t involve shooting or being shot at.
“You are trespassing within holy Paataatus space,” the prince continued.
“Unusually talky today, aren’t they?” Afpriuh commented from the weapons station. “Sir, all enemy ships are holding station.”
“Talky and standing their ground,” Samakro said. “Not like them at all.”
“No,” Thrawn said. “It’s not.”
Samakro looked sideways at him. Thrawn’s eyes were narrowed, his attention shifting back and forth between the sensor and tactical displays. “You said we were going to ask them about the Vagaari?” Samakro reminded his commander quietly.
“Yes,” Thrawn said thoughtfully. He hesitated another moment, then touched the comm key on his chair. “Prince Militaire, this is Senior Captain Thrawn aboard the Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet warship Springhawk,” he called. “We come in peace, with a question for you.” He keyed the mute.
Samakro frowned. “You’re not going to ask the question, sir?” he asked.
“Not yet,” Thrawn said. “Call this an experiment.”
“Paataatus ships on the move, sir,” Dalvu said. “Ten fighters moving toward us; orbiting ships reconfiguring. Remaining fighters holding station.”
“Watch closely, Mid Captain,” Thrawn said. “Let’s see what they do.”
“Yes, sir,” Samakro said, suppressing a snort. Actually, if the Paataatus followed their standard battle doctrine, what they would do was swarm their target and try to blow it out of the sky. And with the Springhawk out here all alone . . .
“There,” Thrawn said, pointing at one of the displays. “The orbiting ships. You see it?”
Samakro focused on them. The seven ships were on the move, shifting from sentry to defense configuration. One of the lead cruisers moved up to a position above the frigate, while one of the trailing cruisers moved beneath it. “Defense configuration,” he said. “Which suggests our Prince Militaire is aboard the frigate.”
Read more here. Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good by Timothy Zahn is due for release tomorrow, April 27th, 2021, and is available to preorder from Amazon UK and US.
