The Joiner King Read Online Free PDF Page A

A vast fog bank appeared on the horizon, its misty hem dragging in the treetops. “Borao isn’t an easy world to map, and we have a big head start.”
    “And?”
    “And the Reconstruction Authority has to log every claim it receives.” Han eased the control yoke back and started to climb above the oncoming fog bank. Risking a small wisp of cloud was one thing, but even he would not fly blind through who-knew-how-manykilometers of dense fog. “If I can talk Lando into sponsoring us, we still have a chance. All we have to do is transmit our map first.”
    Leia remained silent.
    “Okay, so it’s a small chance,” Han said. “But it’s better than nothing. And it’s not like we haven’t bet on long-shots before.”
    “Han—”
    “Besides, maybe Luke can swing us some support from Cal Omas,” he added. “That would—”
    “Han!” Leia laid her hand on his and pushed the control yoke forward again, ending their climb. “We don’t have time to waste recalibrating the terrain scanners.”
    “Are you crazy?” He studied the atmosphere ahead with a nervous eye. “You are. You’re crazy.”
    “I thought you wanted to win this thing?”
    “I do,” Han said. “And to do that, we need to stay alive.”
    “Captain Solo makes an excellent point,” C-3PO said. “Without our sensors working properly, our chances of hitting an abandoned watchtower in those clouds are approximately—”
    “Don’t quote me odds, Threepio,” Leia said. “I need to concentrate.”
    She focused her attention on the gray curtain ahead, and whorls of fog began to peel away from the center. Han started to make a wisecrack about having a weather-Jedi for a copilot, then recalled what Leia had said to C-3PO and thought better of it. Her training was still casual at best, and if she said she needed to concentrate, it was probably smart to believe her.
    By the time they reached the fog bank, Leia had opened a long channel down the center—a very narrow channel, not much wider than the
Falcon
itself.
    C-3PO’s electronic voice split the tense silence. “Oh, my!”
    “Quiet, Threepio!” Han barked. “Leia needs to concentrate.”
    “I’m aware of that, Captain Solo, but the route she is clearing has opened a small path through the ionic interference. We seem to be receiving an insystem comm transmission from Master Durron.”
    “Take a message,” Han ordered. In the canopy reflection, hesaw a furrow crease Leia’s brow, and blankets of fog started to spill back into the channel. “And stop bothering us!”
    “I’m sorry, Captain Solo, that’s quite impossible. The ionic interference seems to be returning, and our reception is too distorted for me to record. If you were to climb a few hundred meters, I could use the static scrubbers to enhance the signal.”
    “Not now!” The fog closed in completely. Unable to see past the end of the cockpit anyway, Han looked over to Leia. “If this is too much—”
    “It’s not too much, if you’ll just leave me alone!” she snapped. “Do you want to win this thing or not?”
    “All right. No need to get touchy.”
    Han turned his gaze forward, and the fog parted again.
    “Much better,” C-3PO said. “Thank you, Princess Leia. Master Durron seems quite upset.”
    Kyp’s voice came over the comm speakers, scratchy and distorted. “… melt your circuits from the inside!”
    “Take it easy, kid. You’re on,” Han said. “And this had better be good.”
    “When are you going to stop calling me kid?” Kyp asked.
    “Soon,” Han promised. “Look, we’re kind of busy here, so if that’s all you need to know—”
    “Sorry,” Kyp said. “I wish this could wait, but I’m only passing through on my way to Ramodi.”
    “The baradium ring?” Han asked. “I thought Tesar Sebatyne was supposed to handle that.”
    “
Supposed to
is right.” Kyp paused a moment. “Something came up.”
    “Bigger than smuggling baradium?”
    “Hard to say,” Kyp said. “When