Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good

Thrawn and his allies race to save the Chiss Ascendancy from an unseen enemy in the second book in the epic Star Wars: The Ascendancy Trilogy from bestselling author Timothy Zahn.

Thrawn's latest triumph still rests newly on his shoulders. Despite leading the Chiss to victory and bringing glory to the House of Mitth, the true threat to the Ascendancy has not yet been extinguished. Their foes do not send threats or ultimatums, or mass ships on the edge of the Chaos. Their weapons come cloaked in smiles and generosity—gifts offered freely, services granted unconditionally.

Across the Ascendancy, seemingly inconsequential events could herald the doom of the Chiss. As Thrawn and the Expansionary Defense Fleet rally to uncover the enemy plot, they discover a chilling truth. Rather than invade Chiss capitals or pillage resources, this mysterious enemy strikes at the very foundation of the Ascendancy by widening the rifts between the Nine Ruling Families and Forty Great Houses below. As rivalry and suspicion sow discord among allies, each warrior must decide what matters most: the security of their family, or the survival of the Ascendancy itself.

The Vigilant, Springhawk, and Grayshrike are undertaking a mission to eradicate the remnants of the Nikardun military in the Vak Combine. Those warships, commanded by Admiral Ar'alani and Senior Captains Mitth'raw'nuruodo "Thrawn" and Xodlak'in'daro "Lakinda" respectively, engaged battle cruisers and missile boats. Ar'alani reflected that, in all her years in the Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet, she had never seen an enemy present such a combination of viciousness, determination, and utter pointlessness; as the enemy had no hope of victory over the Chiss. The Nikardun remnants' sole motivation was to take as many hated Chiss down as possible while they died. The thrusters of Lakinda's Grayshrike were disabled during the skirmish, leaving the Springhawk and Vigilant to complete the battle. This frustrated Lakinda, as she hated to be left out of the action. Wutroow, assuming that these were the last of the Nikardun remnant, tells Ar’alani that the Vak Combine would be pleased that the Nikardun have been defeated. After the Springhawk and Vigilant eliminated the last of the Nikardun, Ar'alani sent Thrawn and his Springhawk on a mission to the Rapacc system under the private orders of Supreme General Ba'kif. [3]

At the March of Silence at the Chiss Syndicure's headquarters on the Chiss Ascendancy capital planet of Csilla, Syndic Prime Mitth'urf'ianico "Thurfian" broods angrily. Thurfian believes Thrawn was a reckless disaster waiting to happen, and would bring great shame on the Mitth family and the Ascendancy. The Syndic Prime resented that Thrawn's political faux-pas were invariably forgotten as they were always followed shortly after with a glowing victory. Irizi family Syndic Irizi'stal'mustro "Zistalmu" arrives late to his scheduled covert meeting with Thurfian, saying officials of the Xodlak family had asked the Irizi to sponsor their return to the Nine Ruling Families and the Irizi Speaker had "generously" foisted the task on him. Zistalmu and Thurfian discuss Thrawn's militarily successful but politically checkered history. This included the Vagaari pirate operations, in which Thrawn acquired a gravity well projector but Mitth family Syndic Mitth'ras'safis "Thrass" had gone missing and was presumed dead. Zistalmu and Thurfian had been working together to plot Thrawn's demise, and continued plotting in this meeting. They discuss rumors of an alliance between Vagaari pirates and the Paataatus, both often antagonists to the Ascendancy and both regularly beaten by Thrawn. They hope to send Thrawn on a mission far from the Ascendancy where he will be destroyed or at least politically self-destruct without collateral damage. As Thurfian departs, he realizes that the political power that he and Zistalmu have will not be enough to depose Thrawn of his military position. Thurfian decides that he needs to become the Mitth family Speaker.

Haplif, a member of the Agbui species, views the self-destruction of a world with his employer, Jixtus. Haplif was a master of species manipulation, having only needed six months to bring this entire species to the brink of destruction. Jixtus brings up the refugee ship that escaped the system, but Haplif ensures that their escape is only temporary. He explains to Jixtus that he contacted a nearby Nikardun ship and told them that the refugees were conspiring against General Yiv the Benevolent. After being contacted by Haplif, the Nikardun ship immediately pursued after the refugee ship to destroy it. Haplif mentions that there is only one sentient nation on the vector the refugee ship was traveling on and that the Nikardun only have to search along that vector until they find it. Jixtus asks Haplif if there are any nearby Nikardun bases, as he wants to ensure that nobody comes across this world's destruction, and Haplif informs him of the existence of a couple of small Nikardun listening and relay bases. Much to Haplif's dismay, Jixtus informs his client that he requires one more job: the manipulation and destruction of the Chiss Ascendancy. Haplif, noting that it would take much longer than usual, accepts the job. They also discuss Jixtus's lack of confidence in Yiv's ability to destroy the Chiss, and Jixtus reveals that even if the Nikardun fail, the Chiss' attention would turn outwards, providing an opportunity for Haplif to sneak in and orchestrate the Chiss' destruction from within. Before Jixtus departs, he asks for the name of the system on the refugee ship's vector, and Haplif tells him that it is Rapacc.

Before the last jump to Rapacc, Mid Captain Ufsa'mak'ro (Samakro) prepared the Springhawk for arrival. He orders for the bridge to take a short break until Thrawn arrives. As he is talking to the weapons officer, Senior Commander Chaf'pri'uhme (Afpriuh), and a plasma sphere specialist, Lieutenant Commander Laknym, caregiver Thalias converses with sky-walker Che'ri. Thalias is now the official caregiver to Che'ri. Thalias describes the Paccosh species to Che'ri, and they also discuss the fallout of Thrawn teaching Che'ri how to fly a scout ship during their mission to Lesser Space. Thalias also feels sorry that she missed Che'ri's tenth starday and insists on making it up to the girl. Che'ri also informs Thalias of Thrawn's arrival on the bridge one and a half seconds before Thrawn actually opened the bridge hatch. When Thrawn enters the bridge, he recognizes that Thalias had turned to look at him before he had entered the bridge, concluding that Che’ri third sight was ultimately responsible. Thrawn talks with Samakro, and the first officer informs him of the Springhawk's readiness for the final jump to Rapacc. When Samakro asks Thrawn if he should arrange for Thalias and Che'ri to be taken to their sky-walker suite, Thrawn refuses, noting that the sky-walker might be needed for a quick escape (due to the tricky parameters of Rapacc's box system). Thrawn agrees that Thalias and Che'ri cannot be on the bridge, and considers putting them in the secondary command bridge. He asks Laknym if he feels qualified to handle the secondary command weapons control. When Laknym expresses nervousness, Thrawn asks Afpriuh for his opinion. When Afpriuh affirms Laknym's qualifications for the task, Thrawn sends him, along with Thalias and Che'ri to secondary command.

Upon arriving at Rapacc, the Springhawk encounters a Nikardun frigate. Thrawn contacts the frigate, informing them of the Chiss' intentions of peace and friendship. The Nikardun vessel tests the Chiss: if they truly came in peace and were truly Chiss, the Springhawk would be able to disable a small passenger shuttle without destroying it. Thrawn accepts the challenge and disables the shuttle with a plasma sphere. After proving their identity, Thrawn is asked his purpose for coming to Rapacc. Thrawn informs him that the Chiss wish to ensure that the Nikardun blockading Rapacc have been defeated and that he wishes to return the double ring that Uingali foar Marocsaa had given to him. The Nikardun frigate commander, who is Uingali, states that the Chiss might have led with this revelation, as it would have saved them from retrieving the disabled shuttle. Uingali invites Thrawn to land on Rapacc, and when the Nikardun frigate rotates, a depiction of a chimaera is seen painted on its underside. Thalias quietly remarks to herself that the Paccosh might have led with that instead.

At the Paccian capital city of Boropacc, Uingali meets with Thrawn, Samakro, and Thalias. Thalias was specifically requested by Uingali to join in the conversation, which surprises and annoys Samakro. Uingali expresses confusion as to why most of the Nikardun ships had suddenly withdrawn from Rapacc, and Samakro explains that since Yiv's defeat, the Nikardun forces have been fighting for control amongst themselves. Uingali explains that they have heard about the Chiss and their abilities to neutralize enemies without destroying them and explains that this is why he had tested Thrawn with the passenger shuttle. Thrawn asks Uingali why the Nikardun's effort to subjugate the Paccosh was so weak, and Uingali informs Thrawn of the arrival of a refugee ship three months before they first met aboard the mining station. The Nikardun quickly arrived at Rapacc in pursuit of them, but Uingali was able to hide the refugees and lie to the Nikardun about them. The refugees wanted to leave Rapacc for the Chiss Ascendancy, the nation they had hoped would be able to help them, but the Paccosh refused to reveal their existence to the Nikardun. However, after further pleading, the Paccosh decided to populate two refugee vessels and slip them past the Nikardun defenses via the Rapacc system's Shadow Number One and Shadow Number Two. Uingali asks Thrawn if these two ships ever made it to the Ascendancy, and Thrawn informs them of their fate: one made it to the borders of the Ascendancy before being attacked and destroyed by the Nikardun, while the other's hyperdrive failed at a rendezvous point, asphyxiating its passengers. Uingali expresses sorrow upon learning of this, and claims that the Paccosh efforts were for nothing. Thalias retorts, stating that the arrival of the first refugee ship at the Ascendancy was the spark that lead to the eventual defeat of the Nikardun.

Uingali reveals that there is another reason for inviting the Chiss to the surface of Rapacc. Uingali explains the refugees' culture. They are a matriarchal society led by the Magys. Many of the refugees wish to return to their world, but the Magys, for some reason, wants to give up all hope and die. The refugees' culture obligates the citizens to follow the wishes of the Magys, and, therefore, if the Magys kills herself, the rest of the refugees will also do so. Uingali informs the Chiss that the relationship between the refugees and the Paccosh have seriously deteriorated over the course of their seven-and-a-half-long stay at Rapacc, but when Uingali informed the Magys about the Chiss' desire to preserve the art of those who cannot preserve it for themselves, she was intrigued. Uingali hopes that Thalias would be able to talk the Magys out of killing herself and her refugees. Thalias, shocked, expresses doubt of her diplomatic abilities, but Thrawn encourages her ability. Samakro brings up the fact that the Nikardun have a similar attitude: before they could be captured, they would kill themselves to preserve their secrets. Thrawn proposes the possibility that the Magys could fear that she and her refugees would be captured if they returned to their world. Thrawn suggests that he could speak to the Magys instead of Thalias, as he may find common ground with her in art. The group subsequently leaves to speak with the Magys.

The refugees were housed four hours away from Boropacc in what appeared to be either a school or office building. On the journey, Thrawn and Uingali talked about Paccian history and culture. Samakro had spent the time doing research on his questis. Thalias had only listened to Thrawn's and Uingali's conversation, feeling bad about her hesitation to speak with the Magys. When they arrived, they found the refugees sitting in a pattern of concentric circles. From the outermost circle inward, the refugees organized themselves from fighting-age men, older men, older women, child-bearing women, children, and, in the center, the Magys. Thrawn recognizes this as a pattern of desperation: if the refugees were to be attacked, their outermost circles would be the most expendable and fight capable. When the Chiss and Uingali approach the refugees, two of each circle stood and made room for a pathway to the center of the circle, where two of the children would move to make space for someone to sit in front of the Magys. When Thrawn tries to walk towards the Magys, she stops him and demands to only speak to Thalias. Feeling empathy for the refugees, Thalias decides to speak with the Magys. Before she approaches the Magys, Thrawn tells her that she does not need to do this, as it is neither her business nor her responsibility. Thalias, however, states that she has to try, which seems to be approved by Thrawn.

Thalias enters the circles and comes to sit in front of the Magys. The Magys will not reveal her real name or her species' name. When the Magys explains her lack of hope for her world, Thalias recounts the near-destruction of the Chiss world of Csilla. Thalias explains that Csilla's sun had suddenly changed its output, causing the planet to freeze beyond the ability for anyone to survive. She explains that instead of giving up hope, the Chiss rebuild their world, creating societies in underground chambers and caves. When the Magys dismisses this undertaking as something that would house only thousands of people, Thalias surprises her by stating that the number is eight billion. Thalias charges the Magys with having hope for a similar rebound for her people, but the Magys believes that the only hope for rebuilding their planet would be to die and join "the Beyond". When Thalias expresses confusion, the Magys explains that the Chiss has touched the Beyond; this was why she only wanted to speak to Thalias. Thalias recognizes the Beyond as a description of what the Chiss call "Third Sight". The Magys states that her "time has ended", and explains that by joining the Beyond in death, the refugees can bring healing to their world. Thalias asks why they would want to heal their world if all of their people will be dead, but the Magys explains that other species may come to inhabit their world in the future. Thalias retorts by stating that these other species may never come but that there exists people in the present that can go back and inhabit the world: the refugees. Thalias again challenges the Magys to rebuild her world like the Chiss did, but the Magys refuses, stating that her species was not like the Chiss. Thalias, attempting to delay the Magys's suicide, challenges her to prove that everyone on her world is dead. Thalias explains that she can arrange for the Springhawk to take her to her world to investigate, and the Magys eventually agrees. The Magys also requests for a companion to join them on this journey, and Thalias agrees, noting to herself that she did not have the authority to command where the Springhawk would go next.

Nonetheless, Thalias heads back to Thrawn and Samakro to explain the situation. Thrawn would remember what Republic General Anakin Skywalker would call "The Force": an energy field created by all living things from which wielders can derive power and guidance. He akins the Force to the Beyond and the Chiss' Third Sight. Thrawn proposes that if living things create the Force, maybe it works in reverse. This helps Thalias understand what the Magys was saying: she wanted to join the Beyond to create life on her decimated planet. Thalias informs Thrawn and Samakro about her arrangement to take the Magys to her world, bracing for a rebuke. However, to her surprise, Thrawn was pleased with Thalias. Thrawn explains that Samakro, in his research, found nearby Nikardun bases along the vector the refugees had used to come to Rapacc. Thrawn and Samakro agree that it is evident that the Nikardun had at least some interest in the refugee's world and that it would be best to gather more data. Therefore, Thalias's arrangement with the Magys worked out perfectly for the Chiss. Thalias tells Thrawn and Samakro about the Magys's comment about her "running out of time", and asks if they know what that means. Uingali joins the conversation, explaining that the Magys must wait for nine of her months before she can make a decision about suicide, and the conversions state that the Chiss only have around 2 Chiss weeks before that nine-month period runs out. Thalias, upon hearing this, states that the Springhawk better get moving fast, before realizing that she had no authority to command Thrawn and Samakro. Thrawn, amused, makes a note of Thalias's enthusiasm, while Samakro smiles at the ordeal. Thrawn orders Samakro to prepare two rooms for the Magys and her companion. He also orders Samakro to let the ship know to refer to and treat Thalias as a senior officer while she is in the presence of the Magys. Thrawn explains that the Magys clearly thinks that Thalias is a high ranking officer and that he wants to maintain that misunderstanding. While Samakro speaks to the Springhawk, Thalias tells Thrawn that his latest order would not be a good idea, considering the ramifications if the Magys found out about the deception. Thalias also notes that Samakro will not like the arrangement, but Thrawn tells her that Samakro will "accept the reasoning in time".

Samakro overhears this last comment by Thrawn, and starts to reflect on the recent occurrences of his life. First, he was removed from the command position of the Springhawk. Then, Thrawn had repeatedly put the Springhawk in danger and walked close to the line of insubordination and violation of Chiss standing orders in his dealings with the Nikardun. And, now, he was expected to treat a caregiver as if she was a senior officer. He notes that Thalias had been in some sort of dealings with Mitth family Syndic Thurfian, and he theorizes that Thrawn, Thalias, and Thurfian could be engaging in an intrafamily rivalry. Upon finishing relaying Thrawn's orders to the Springhawk, Thrawn asks Samakro if he disapproves with the current arrangement. Samakro states that he does, and Thrawn admits that the situation is not ideal. Samakro believes that the Springhawk should at least let Csilla know about their detour, but understands the limited time frame they have for this mission.

On the Chiss world of Celwis, at the Xodlak White Judgement Seat of Redhill Hall, Councilor Xodlak'uvi'vil (Lakuviv) resides over the days cases. Non-blood Xodlak like Lakuviv, who is a ranking distant, have to scramble for every opportunity to be noticed and promoted by the family. Blood members, like Patriel Xodlak'oo'nifis (Lakooni), did not have this problem. After the fifth case, Lakuviv welcomes Chiss midager Coduyo'pr'nekri (Yoponek) and a family of Agbui, Haplif, Shimkif, and Frosif, to the Judgement Seat. The Agbui species were characterized by their red and off-white facial folds. The Coduyo family, like the Xodlak, were a part of the forty Great Families, the second tier of Chiss familial hierarchy. When introducing himself, Yoponek states that he is in the midst of a wandering year, a gap year when Chiss midagers could explore their passions before pursuing advanced schooling or job training. Yoponek tells Lakuviv that the Agbui, who are described as cultural nomads, have come to ask the Xodlak a favor. Lakuviv demands for the Agbui, and not Yoponek, to ask of this favor themselves. Haplif, who speaks to Lakuviv in the trade language of Minnisiat, asks to borrow a plot of land to grow their spices on. Since the Agbui are cultural nomads, they grow and sell these spices to finance their journeys throughout the Chaos. Haplif specifically asks for four hundred square meters of land, states that the growing process typically takes around five to six months, and gives Lakuviv a sample of the spices. Lakuviv sends his Senior Aide, Xodlak'ji'iprip (Lakjiip), to test these spices for any adverse side effects for the local Chiss flora. Yoponek states that the Agbui also make jewelry and art objects, and Haplip presents Lakuviv with his own personal sample: a pair of four-colored metal brooches. Lakuviv and Yoponek agree to make this an official request from the Coduyo midager, and Lakuviv sends him and the three Agbui to await for further contact about the matter. As they depart, Lakjiip returns, and Lakuviv instructs for her to also send the brooches to be tested at the Vlidan lab, as he would like to know the value of the metal used in the design. He also sends his senior aide to find the Agbui a suitable plot of land with an owner who speaks Minnisiat. The two Xodlak ponder the many possibilities this relationship between the family and these Agbui might bring.

Xodlak'phr'ooa (Lakphro), a Xodlak yubal rancher, his wife, Lakansu, and his daughter, Lakris, watch as two ships land on their property. Lakphro is worried that the Xodlak are coming to confiscate some of his yubals due to some unknown disease scare, and he goes to one of the ships to find out what is going on. To his surprise, Senior Aide Lakjiip emerges from the ship and informs Lakphro that his land has been chosen to be temporarily borrowed to a group of Agbui cultural nomads, who will be growing spices on a small plot of land on a nearby hill. Lakjiip informs the rancher that he will be compensated with either some of the spices or some of the jewelry made by the Agbui, but Lakphro does not see any value in either.

Haplif, having visited eleven regions on five different Chiss worlds, is frustrated with his complete lack of progress over the last three months. He is looking for a handle on Chiss culture that he can use to manipulate them. Haplif, wondering where in the Ascendancy to travel to next, happens to overhear a conversation between two young Chiss, who are discussing the same thing. Haplif calls out to them in Minnisiat, and the Chiss boy, Yoponek, introduces himself alongside his betrothed, Yomie. Yoponek states that he and Yomie are in their wandering year, and Haplif, noting the young enthusiasm in the couple, seeks to manipulate them. Haplif and Yoponek discuss a deal in which the Chiss would travel with the Agbui, saving some of their expenses, in exchange for the Chiss serving as the Agbui's travel and cultural guides across the Ascendancy. Haplif notes that Yomie needs more convincing and gifts her a metal brooch, and, subsequently, the Chiss couple agrees to the proposal. Haplif reaches across the table, where he grazes the temples of the Chiss with his fingers, claiming it to be a gesture of Agbui friendship and kinship. Yoponek doesn't seem to mind, but Yomie is distrusting of this gesture. Haplif reflects, to himself, that he will soon have the capability and opportunity to take down the Chiss Ascendancy.

Arriving at the first of the last two Nikardun base, the Vigilant exits hyperspace only to find that nine derelict Nikardun ships have already been defeated. This confuses Ar'alani, as Yiv's records indicate that there are no planets near this region of the Chaos powerful enough to defeat the Nikardun in such a manner. The Vigilant and Grayshrike receive a message from Supreme Admiral Ja'fosk, stating that Thrawn and the Springhawk are to return to Csilla for a new assignment. Since Thrawn was out of communication range with the other Chiss ships, Ar'alani orders Lakinda to travel to Rapacc to relay the instructions. Senior Captain Wutroow and Ar'alani then discuss the possibility that the Nikardun could be consolidating their forces at the last base.

Aboard the Springhawk, Samakro observes a drunk-looking Thalias enter the bridge to pick up Che'ri. Samakro, noting that it has been fifty-five minutes since the girl's last break, intends to bring her out of Third Sight in five minutes. Thalias asks him to wait for an extra ten minutes, and Samakro asks why. Thalias explains that her observations of Che'ri indicate that she has a natural sleep cycle of one hour and ten minutes, and since a sky-walker's Third Sight cycle mirrors her natural sleep cycle, Thalias is testing bringing Che'ri out of Third Sight every seventy minutes instead of every sixty minutes. Thalias also explains that her "drunkenness" has come from an audiovisual kaleidoscope used in a religious ceremony the Magys insisted she participate in. Samakro, going back to the conversation about sky-walker sleep cycles, wonders why no one in the fleet had ever heard about the topic before, and Thalias suggests that caregivers simply don't know about it. Thalias asks Samakro what he thinks of the Springhawk's current mission, and he states that it doesn't matter what he thinks and that his job is to follow his commander's orders. Samakro notes, to himself, that this conversation brings up an interesting opportunity to test if Thalias is a spy for the Mitth family. He tells her about Thrawn's theory that the Nikardun are consolidating their forces for a final assault at the refugee's planet. This story is false, of course, but Samakro hopes that the Syndicure would find out about it and chastise the Senior Captain for his "wild speculations", which would confirm that Thalias is a spy. Nonetheless, at this point in the conversation, it becomes time for Che'ri to be brought out of Third Sight, and Samakro orders for the Springhawk to initiate jump-by-jump travel during the girl's rest period.

Thurfian meets with the Mitth Speaker, Thyklo. Thurfian confirms that his discussions with the Krovi family have concluded, in which he as agreed to supply them with transports for their harvest in exchange for one percent of the harvest overage. Thyklo is ultimately pleased with the outcome and asks Thurfian if the Irizi have backed off from the Krovi. Thurfian explains that Zistalmu has agreed to step back to focus on Irizi's current deal with the Boadil family, in which they are working together on the latter's new Rentor defense platform. Thurfian explains that his next meeting will involve discussions with the Csap family's proposed Dioya building project. However, Thyklo tasks Thurfian to first deal with an internal squabble between two lower-level Mitth Syndics. Departing from Thyklo's office, Thurfian plans out his day's tasks: deal with the Mitth Syndics, meet with the Csap, and, finally, conduct further study on Thalias, who he still plans to use in his vendetta against Thrawn.

As the Grayshrike travels to Rapacc, Lakinda reflects on her current mission with the Vigilant and the Springhawk. Her thrusters having been damaged during their previous Nikardun skirmish and, now, her role as a mere messenger to Thrawn frustrates her, considering that her family demands excellence, glory, and honor. She believes that she is being robbed of the glory that rightly belongs to the Xodlak family. In fact, she believes that the Grayshrike could have taken the Nikardun out by itself. She even considers the possibility that Thrawn is purposely siphoning away prestige and glory to himself and his Mitth family, but she realizes that there is no way to prove such a theory. Impatient to get back to the Vigilant, Lakinda considers bribing her sky-walker, Bet'nih, with treats to get her to navigate faster. It does not work, and twenty-three hours later, the Grayshrike arrives within ship-to-ship comm range with Rapacc, where Lakinda attempts to signal Thrawn. As Bet'nih's caregiver, Soomret, enters the bridge to pick up Che'ri. Soomret makes a comment about some military types not understanding the needs of their sky-walkers, and Lakinda mentally rolls her eyes, noting to herself that Soomret had arrived thirty minutes later than Bet'nih's official rest schedule had suggested. As Bet'nih leaves her navigation chair to return to her sky-walker suite, she staggers, and the Grayshrike's pilot, Wikivv, catches her in a steadying grip. As Bet'nih and Soomret exit the bridge, Wikivv comments that their relationship does not seem to be conducive, and Lakinda agrees. Wikivv and Lakinda discuss the recommended period of time sky-walkers could navigate for (six to nine hours), and Lakinda reflects on the large disconnect between the lower and upper bounds of this recommendation. She considers bringing this, along with the fact that sky-walkers tend to get woozy after only 5 to 6 hours of navigation, to Supreme Admiral Ja'fosk's attention when she next meets with him.

Lakinda signals the Grayshrike's comm officer, Shrent, who states that no response has been received from Thrawn. Lakinda orders Shrent to signal the Rapacc government. In the preceding conversation, the Paccian Governance's leader, Uingali foar Marocsaa, tells Lakinda of Thrawn's current humanitarian mission for a group of refugees. He states that Thrawn left Rapacc seven hours ago and was going to the refugees' planet, which had been devastated by a civil war. Lakinda, Wikivv, and Mid Captain Csap'ro'strob (Apros) discussed the time required to travel to this planet from Rapacc, fifteen hours by sky-walker, and the time required to travel to the planet from the Grayshrike's current location, ten hours by sky-walker. Both Wikivv and Apros recommend bringing Bet'nih back onto the bridge for navigation, citing sky-walker emergency protocols, but Lakinda, noting Bet'nih's tiredness and Thrawn's non-likelihood of using his sky-walker for all fifteen of those hours, determines to travel jump-by-jump for the time being, instructing to only bring Bet'nih back once her rest period was over. Before ending the transmission with Rapacc, Lakinda asks Uingali for the password Thrawn had given him, trying to extrapolate from his reaction to this fabricated question. Uingali replied that no such password was given to him. As she leaves the bridge for her own rest period, Lakinda wonders how Thrawn will use these events to his and his family's advantage.

Thurfian is settling a dispute between the Xodlak and the Evroes family. He is taken to a cliff face by Evroes'pu'titor (Oesputi), who shows him the border between the local Xodlak and Evroes lands. Oesputi points out a section of forest, originating from the Xodlak lands, that has spread to the Evroes side of the border. He explains that the Evroes cannot remove these trees because the Xodlak have an exclusive title to this specific hybrid species. Oesputi expresses his belief that nothing can be done about the dispute, considering the low-ranking status of the Evroes family and the placement of the Xodlak amongst the forty Great Families. Thurfian explains that, no matter their status, every family within the Ascendancy deserves justice. He points out existence of an Evroes purple crop on the Xodlak side of the border, and explains that, since the Evroes cannot destroy the Xodlak trees, the Xodlak cannot destroy the Evroes crops. Oesputi, recognizing this fact as a bargaining tool, thanks Thurfian for his help, and, at midnight, the dispute was finally settled.

Ar'alani, expecting to find a major battle, arrives at the final Nikardun base, only to find that, like the first base, all Nikardun ships have been destroyed. Ar'alani notes that, unlike all the other Nikardun bases on Yiv's records, this base's purpose was unidentified. The base was also bigger than a typical listening post. Ar'alani also notices an unusually spherical and compact clump of debris, and directs her sensor officer, Obbic'lia'nuf (Biclian), to scan it, noting that if it exploded, the pieces would have been sent flying further apart. Biclian notes that the debris is likely of an asteroid. As the scan was being conducted, Ar'alani concluded that the largest impact on the Nikardun base has probably been the first attack, also noting that it had some off coloration to it. Upon the scan's completion, the full picture emerged. A harmless-looking "asteroid" wandered into the station's defense perimeter, only to shatter its outer shell when it reached the Nikardun base, revealing a missile that blasted into the base before anyone could react. Biclian confirmed that the discoloration was an indication of a missile fired at point-blank range. Ar'alani and Wutroow, stunned at the maneuver, note that whoever did this must have planned and initiated the asteroid's slow movement months in advance. Ar'alani orders a full analysis on both this and the previous Nikardun base.

Before arriving at the refugees' planet, Thrawn wanted the Magys and her companion to be present on the bridge. At the same time, he also needed Che'ri to navigate the Springhawk in and out of the system if needed, so, he sent Thalias and Che'ri to secondary command. There, Thalias has a conversation with Laknym, in which they discuss Laknym having been again stationed at the secondary command's weapons station. Laknym notes that the assignment is a promising sign for someone of his rank: lieutenant commander. Thalias reflects to herself that this rank is often regarded as a place to throw officers who show no signs of future promotion.

Upon arrival, Thrawn asks the Magys for the system's name. When the Magys refuses to give its name to outsiders, Thrawn names it "Sunrise", for convenience. The Magys asks if the name is a mockery of her peoples' destruction, but Thrawn states that the name reflects his willingness to nurture hope. Thalias notices that Che'ri is breathing heavier than usual and asks her if she is alright. Che'ri responds by noting that this last leg of the journey was harder than what the starcharts indicated. As Tumaz'mor'diamir (Azmordi) prepares to take the Springhawk on an in-system jump towards Sunrise, Thalias asks Che'ri if Thrawn had taught her how to do these jumps on their mission to Lesser Space. Che'ri states that he did, but indicates that she did not do a very precise job. As she watches Azmordi do the jump, however, she is amazed at his precision. Thalias looks at the planet, and is horrified to see numerous large patches of black on the surface. Laknym identifies these black patches as signs of a pattern bombing campaign. Thrawn and the Magys discuss the state of the planet, with Thrawn wanting to send a remote drone shuttle to investigate the surface. The Magys states that it is clear that no one has survived the war. However, before they can come to an agreement on the matter, five unidentified gunboats are detected coming towards the Springhawk. The Magys does not recognize the ships and states that these are perhaps the people who have come to inhabit her lost world. As the Springhawk prepares for battle, Laknym identifies the gunboats' formation as a rosette pattern. Then, two more groups of five gunboats emerge and start converging on the Springhawk.

Thrawn orders the deployment of the drone shuttle in the opposite direction from the incoming gunboats. They immediately open fire on the shuttle and destroy it. Thrawn, wanting to know how much these enemies know of the Chiss, orders for the first rosette pattern to be targeted with the spectrum lasers but not to fire at them. The Springhawk enters proximity to the gunboats, but they do not open fire, demonstrating that they do, in fact, know about the Chiss' rules of engagement: do not fire unless you are fired upon. Thrawn orders a breacher missile to be fired down the center of the rosette pattern. When the missile is launched, the first rosette waits and widens their formation before firing upon and destroying the missile. This confirms that the gunboats know of Chiss breacher missiles, and, when Che'ri expresses confusion, Laknym explains that, since they waited a little before destroying it, the acid didn’t have enough time to spread out and splash the gunboats. When Samakro wonders if they know about the Chiss' plasma spheres too, Laknym mentions that they do. Senior Commander Plikh'ar'illmorf (Khraill) gives Laknym the spotlight, and he explains that their formation is wide enough to avoid breachers but compact enough to allow any of them to get in the way of a plasma sphere if they needed to protect a larger ship that may be behind them. Samakro and Thrawn theorize where this hypothetical larger ship may be when, suddenly, it makes its appearance behind the gunboats.

Thirty seconds before arriving at the refugees' planet, Lakinda orders the Grayshrike to be at full combat readiness. Upon arriving at the system, the Grayshrike witnesses laser fire in the distance, coming from five indistinguishable sources. Upon concluding that the Springhawk is in the system, Lakinda witnesses something explode and the laserfire ending. The Grayshrike bridge crew theorize that Thrawn is watching the civil war play out, and when they see the Springhawk move towards the attacking ships, they become furious at the possibility of Thrawn breaking the Chiss non-intervention protocols. Nonetheless, she resolves to make an in-system jump towards the battle, hoping to catch Thrawn's enemies in a pincer. However, when the Grayshrike comes out of its in-system jump, it witnesses the emergence of a large Battle Dreadnought class warship, which fires three missiles towards them. Lakinda subsequently orders for the Grayshrike to retaliate against the Battle Dreadnought.

The arrival of the Grayshrike had complicated Thrawn's initial plan concerning the possibility of a larger warship emerging from behind the planet. Samakro and Thrawn witness Lakinda being fired upon by this as-of-yet unseen ship, both knowing that Lakinda would never back down from a fight. The Springhawk has no choice but to come to her aid. Thrawn orders for the Magys and her companion to be transported back to their quarters. Thrawn, witnessing that ten of the fifteen gunboats have been recalled to help with the fight against the Grayshrike, formulates a plan. He also mentions that Lakinda's telemetry of the Battle Dreadnought indicate the presence of a smaller escort ship. He orders for the Springhawk to follow a course that will take it straight towards the Grayshrike, and Samakro notes that this course will result in the Springhawk taking some damage, to which Thrawn states that it would be only minimal. Upon leaping forward on this course, Thrawn orders for Chaf'pri'uhme (Afpriuh) to target the five remaining gunboats in a simultaneous then sequential targeting pattern. The simultaneous laserfire temporary overloaded the gunboats' sensors before the sequential laserfire destroyed them one at a time. Witnessing the other ten gunboats converging on the Grayshrike, Thrawn orders the Springhawk to increase its speed by thirty percent. In a call with Thrawn, Lakinda questions why Thrawn isn't catching up with the gunboats fast enough, and Thrawn responds by presenting his battle plan, asking if she could play her part. The Grayshrike crew are amazed at the insanity of Thrawn's plan, but Lakinda tells Thrawn that she is ready.

The Springhawk fires its twenty remaining plasma spheres at the ten remaining gunboats. Samakro notes, to himself, that this tactic is a huge gamble, but he is relieved when all the spheres make contact and disable the gunboats. Thrawn then orders for an emergency acceleration, and, after passing through the cluster of disabled gunboats, Thrawn signals the Grayshrike. Lakinda fires a dozen plasma spheres at the Battle Dreadnought, all of them impacting its portside hull. Once the Battle Dreadnought is in visible range of the Springhawk, Thrawn again signals the Grayshrike. Lakinda suddenly leaps into hyperspace, and Thrawn orders the firing of all the Springhawk's remaining breacher missiles at the Battle Dreadnought. Lakinda's previous plasma sphere impacts had disabled the enemy's portside sensors, thus making them impervious to the new threat. Upon the impact of all the breachers, the Springhawk opened laserfire upon the exposed sensor and weapons clusters. Thirty seconds of this laserfire was all it took for these systems to be completely destroyed. Thrawn ordered a second barrage of laserfire on the Dreadnought's portside. The enemy subsequently began a yaw turn, rotating to put the damaged portside out of attack range. However, upon turning around, the Grayshrike once again appeared on the opposite side of the Dreadnought and opened fire on its incapacitated portside. Soon thereafter, the Battle Dreadnought lunged forward out of the planet's gravity well and fired one last laser barrage that completely missed the Springhawk before escaping into hyperspace. Upon the battle's conclusion, Lakinda and Thrawn report no serious damage to their ships. Lakinda points out the enemy's last laser volley, and, to Samakro's surprise, the Battle Dreadnought hadn't missed after all. Its final laser barrage was actually intended to destroy the ten remaining derelict gunboats. Thrawn notes that he would have liked to examine those gunboats. Lakinda informs Thrawn that she has come to deliver a message to him and would like to come aboard the Springhawk to discuss the battle. After Thrawn agrees to arrange a meeting time, Lakinda and Thrawn end their transmission. Thrawn tells Samakro that he believes the Dreadnought stayed in the battle long enough to allow its companion ship to make its escape without detection and theorizes that this companion ship might be a passenger ship or freighter. Thrawn also notes that the Dreadnought and its companion ship were orbiting the planet geosynchronously over a specific area, and he hopes that the Magys would be able to tell him what exists at that location. Samakro asks if he would like to investigate the planet's surface, but Thrawn states that the Springhawk and Grayshrike do not have the capability of sustaining such an investigation.

Five weeks into his arrangement with Yoponek and Yomie, Haplif has learned a great deal about Chiss family politics. However, the Agbui have not made any progress on their goals to infiltrate the upper ranks of the Chiss Ascendancy, and Shimkif had been reminding Haplif of Jixtus's looming deadlines. Suddenly, however, Yoponek made Haplif aware of a promising character: Lakuviv, a Xodlak Councilor on Celwis. Yoponek talked about Lakuviv in a way that portrayed him as an ambitious character, and Haplif saw his opportunity. Haplif encouraged Yoponek to meet travel to Celwis to meet with Lakuviv, stating that the young Chiss would be introduced to him before he would certainly become an important Chiss historical figure. Yoponek is intrigued at the proposition, but, on the other hand, Yomie points out that such a meeting would interrupt her plans to watch the month-long Grand Migration on the Chiss world of Shihon, which is on the other side of the Ascendancy from Celwis. Yomie reminds Haplif of the deal they made: the Agbui would go wherever the Chiss wanted to go. Yoponek tries to get Yomie to see reason, stating that they cannot expect the Agbui to wait on Shihon for an entire month, but Yomie doesn't budge. However, the group agrees to discuss this topic another day, and Yoponek and Yomie retire for the night. As they leave, Haplif touches Yoponek's temple. Shimkif also appears and tries to touch Yomie's temple, but she dodges. When Shimkif and Haplif are alone, they discuss the problem Yomie presents to the Agbui: her complete stranglehold over her betrothed. Shimkif asks Haplif if he "got anything" from Yoponek just then, referring to his touching of the young Chiss's temple, and Haplif explains that Yoponek definitely is intrigued by the idea of getting his face in front of an important official of one of the forty Great Families. Haplif also explains that Yoponek is, at the same time, worried about his relationship with Yomie and doesn't want to stand in her way. Haplif asks Shimkif what she was able to glean from her limited amounts of touches of Yomie, and Shimkif explains that the young Chiss girl values the idea of balanced families. The two Agbui form a scheme intended to manipulate that aspect of Yomie's psyche. Specifically, Shimkif and Haplif will get married in an official ceremony aboard the Agbui ship. The Agbui hope that this ceremony will be enough to convince Yomie to allow the Haplif to travel to Celwis to meet Lakuviv.

Onboard the Springhawk, Thrawn, Samakro, and Lakinda discuss the events of the previous battle. Thrawn notes that the Battle Dreadnought definitely wanted to conceal its companion ship from the Chiss, proposing that if the Chiss were to see it, they would recognize it and know who their enemies were working for. Thrawn also reveals that the Magys was not of significant help when he had asked her what existed on the surface the Dreadnought was orbiting over. Shifting the conversation, Thrawn asks Lakinda if she could give any more information about the message she was tasked to give him. Lakinda only states the likelihood of the orders having originated from the Syndicure and that Thrawn should head back to the Ascendancy with haste. Samakro comments that the Springhawk will have to make a detour to Rapacc to return the Magys and her companion, but Thrawn states that that will not be happening. The Magys, believing her world to be completely lost, as ordered the death of her companion and intends to order the rest of her people to do so as well. Thrawn and Thalias had tried to talk her out of doing so, but the Magys doubled down, going as far as to indicate her intentions of killing herself on the Springhawk before returning to Rapacc (if she did so, the news about her death would reach the rest of the refugees, resulting in the rise of a new Magys who would ultimately make the same decision). To prevent any more future death, Thrawn ordered for the Magys to be put to sleep in a hibernation chamber and kept aboard the Springhawk for the time being. All of this information shocks Samakro and Lakinda. Samakro proposes for the Magys to be placed on Sunrise instead of the Springhawk, but Thrawn believes that this action will result in her untimely death. Thrawn shares his intentions to keep all of this a secret from the Defense Council and the Syndicure. Samakro, bound to his commander, vows to maintain the secret, and Lakinda also agrees to remain silent, as long as she does not have to lie to her superiors.

On Celwis, Lakphro, Lakansu, and Lakris eat their breakfast and discuss the upcoming activities the girl has planned with her new Agbui friend, Frosif. Specifically, Lakris intends to show Frosif her "telepathic call" trick, where she would compel one of the growzers, Slobber, to come to her when she zipped up a pocket with a brass sealer. Once Lakris leaves, Lakphro and Lakansu discuss their Agbui guests. Lakphro is still frustrated with the Xodlak family bureaucrats continually coming to the ranch to meet with the Agbui and the crowds forming along his fence line who wish to observe the aliens. Lakansu, on the other hand, notes that the Agbui aren't disturbing anything on the ranch. Lakphro also complains about Haplif's continual attempts to touch the Chiss's head with his fingers. As Lakphro goes out to check on Lakris's and Frosif's activities, he witnesses Lakris attempt to show the Agbui girl the telepathy trick. However, as Lakris zips up the brass sealer, Frosif becomes scared and falls to the ground, on her face, in a brief moment of terror. Lakphro immediately runs to the girls and checks to see if Frosif is okay. Frosif, embarrassed, tries to play it off, but after Lakphro presses her, she reveals that the noise "reminded her of a bad time". Frosif ran her fingers through Lakris's hair and tried to do the same to Lakphro, but the Chiss reflexively moved out of the way. Lakris tries to explain where the noise was coming from, showing her the brass sealer, but to no avail. Frosif then runs to the Agbui ship, while Lakphro and Lakris watch in both confusion and empathy.

On the Agbui ship, Haplif admonishes Frosif for showing her trauma to the Chiss. Shimkif admonishes Haplif in return, stating that Frosif didn't mean to do it and that he was the one who pushed the flat-blast artillery shells onto both sides of the Sunrise civil war. Haplif asks Frosif how Lakris reacted to the ordeal, to which Frosif states that the girl only felt worried and embarrassed. When Haplif asks about Lakphro, Frosif reveals that he did not allow her to touch him. Haplif is frustrated that Lakphro has learned to avoid their touches. Every other Xodlak, from Lakuviv to Lakris, had succumbed, but not Lakphro. Shimkif proposes that Yoponek smooth things out with the rancher, but Haplif does not want to bother his socialization with the Xodlak's high and mighty. Haplif suggests that the Agbui could manipulate Lakphro by manipulating his wife, proposing that gifting her and her daughter some of the partial-nyix brooches could smooth things over. Shimkif reluctantly agrees.

In Supreme General Ba'kif's office, Samakro is enjoying seeing a shocked expression on Thrawn's face as he receives his next assignment. Thrawn does not believe that the Paataatus would ever align themselves with the Vagaari pirates. In the ensuing discussion, Ba'kif reaffirms that the alliance is only a rumor and that Thrawn is only being sent out in that direction to investigate. Samakro asks Ba'kif about the rumors about Thrawn's capture of an alien artificial gravity well generator on his previous missions against the Vagaari, but Ba'kif gives nothing away. After the meeting, Samakro again asks Thrawn about the rumors, and Thrawn also refuses to answer. Thrawn also reveals that the Grayshrike is being repaired at one of the Ascendancy's blackdocks instead of the bluedocks, a location much further from the Syndicure's reach. This placement allows for the Grayshrike to sneak out of the Ascendancy towards Sunrise without the Syndicure's knowledge (they do not want the Expansionary Defense Fleet exploring that far away from the Ascendancy).

On Celwis, Lakjiip reports the results from Vlidan Labs on the metal brooches. Lakuviv is amazed to learn that some of the strands are composed of pure nyix metal, the rarest metal known to the Chaos. He wonders where in the Chaos there was such an abundance of nyix that it was being used in jewelry and sold at absurdly low prices (the Agbui intended to sell these brooches for one-thousand times less than they are actually worth). Lakjiip states that she has talked to Haplif, who is concerned about how the sale of the brooches on Celwis will impact the local economy (he is concerned that his prices are too high). Lakuviv instructs Lakjiip to invite Haplif for a discussion, and Lakjiip brings up the possibility that the Agbui could be refugees. When Lakuviv expresses confusion, Lakjiip explains that Lakphro reported that an Agbui girl was scared by the noise of a brass sealer being zipped. Lakjiip ran this sound through a waveform comparison, which determined it to be a softer version of a sound from a flat-blast artillery shell. Lakuviv, while flabbergasted by this revelation, instructs Lakjiip to focus on the nyix situation first. To himself, Lakuviv ponders how the Xodlak could benefit from having this large source of nyix.

Aboard the Springhawk, Thalias exits her quarters to find that Che'ri is standing outside looking inward. Che'ri spots the Magys’s hibernation chamber in her caregiver's room and demands to know what it is. Thalias, knowing that Che'ri had used Third Sight to anticipate her departure from her room, reluctantly decides to tell the sky-walker about the Magys and her suicidal nature. Che'ri, shocked, asked if the Magys's companion had committed suicide, and Thalias reluctantly confirms that he did. Thalias makes Che'ri promise not to tell anyone about the Magys, as it is supposed to be known only by her, Samakro, and Thrawn.

Much to Haplif's dismay, Yomie was unaffected by the elaborate wedding ceremony he and Shimkif conducted. Every Agbui on the ship played a role, but even when Shimkif expressed her desires to honeymoon in a location like the majestic waterfalls on Celwis, Yomie did not budge. The Agbui were going to the Grand Migration. However, on the way, the ship's hyperdrive failed, which only angered Yomie more. Haplif arrives at her room and tells her that the repairs are nearing completion and that, at worst, she will only be missing the first day of the migration. Yomie thanks him, and Haplif finds her cloud diaries (a diary stylized into artwork), hoping that this would be the device the Agbui could use to peer into her mind and soul. As Haplif exits Yomie's room, Shimkif informs him that Jixtus wants to meet with the Agbui at Shihon. He wants to know how the operation is going and for Haplif to tell him everything he has learned about the Chiss.

Haplif, Shimkif, and Frosif give Lakansu and Lakris a pair of brooches as an apology for the brass sealer incident. Lakphro, watching, believes this gesture to be a bribe and wonders what the Agbui are trying to accomplish. However, he and his family accept the gifts. At this time, Lakjiip calls Lakphro and asks to speak with Haplif. Lakjjip informs Haplif that another Agbui ship has entered Celwis space and asks him if he knows anything about their arrival. Haplif tells her that they are probably looking for any surplus spices and delivering more metal for the Agbui to use in their jewelry. Lakjiip wants to send a skytruck for Haplif, but Lakphro, wanting to privately speak to the Xodlak about the brooches, volunteers himself to drive Haplif to Redhill. As Haplif prepares to collect the excess spices to give the other Agbui, Lakphro asks his wife if he could see her brooch. Lakansu gives it to him, and Lakphro, intending to distract his wife from the jewelry, asks her if she could pack a travel bag for him, in case he has to spend the night.

Upon arriving at Redhill, Lakphro and Haplif see that the Agbui ship has landed and that Lakuviv and Lakjiip are talking with the newly arrived Agbui. Lakjiip talks with Haplif and Lakphro, showing the Agbui the bags of metal the other Agbui ship brought to Celwis. Lakjiip notes that some brooches have already been constructed, noting that they look as good as the one given to Lakuviv at Redhill Hall. Haplif also notices that there is battle damage on the Agbui ship and wonders if it was attacked by pirates. As Haplif goes to talk with Lakuviv, Lakphro asks Lakjiip if the brooch given to his wife was valuable enough to be considered a bribe. However, Lakjiip, shocked that the rancher is in possession of the brooch, immediately confiscates it and commands him to not tell anyone about the jewelry's existence, stating that the matter is of deepest security to the Xodlak. She asks him if any other brooches were given to him or his family, which Lakpkro denies. As Lakphro goes to the lounge to wait for his return to the ranch, he wonders what the brooch is and vows to solve this mystery with his wife.

Haplif and Lakuviv discuss the battle damage present on the Agbui ship. The Xodlak Councilor asks where the ship will be headed to next, and Haplif states that they will probably be going to their mining world, specifically noting that the planet is unclaimed by any nation. Haplif also reveals that the mines are particularly rich in blue spirea, and Lakuviv recognizes that the Chiss call "blue spirea" nyix. Lakuviv offers to send a Xodlak system patrol ship to escort the Agbui to the world, noting the danger that pirates present to the defenseless Agbui ship. Haplif accepts, and Lakuviv asks if the journey will be via jump-by-jump. Haplif informs Lakuviv that they use navigators, and offers his own ship's navigator to serve on the escorting Xodlak patrol ship. Lakuviv asks what guild the navigator belongs to, and Haplif reveals that he is a Pathfinder. Lakuviv, eager to learn of this unclaimed nyix mining world, arranges for Lakjiip to personally examine the mission.

Arriving at the Paataatus Hiveborn hive-home of Nettehi, the Springhawk looks to confirm the rumors of a Paataatus-Vagaari alliance. They immediately encounter twenty gunboats, six cruisers, and one frigate, but they are all standing their ground instead of immediately attacking the Chiss, which is highly unusual for the Paataatus. Thrawn receives a transmission from the Prince Militaire of the Hiveborn, and Thrawn informs him that the Springhawk has come in peace. The Springhawk notices the six cruisers forming a defense configuration around the frigate, and Samakro and Thrawn deduce that the Prince Militaire is aboard the frigate. Thrawn notes that the cruiser directly behind the frigate dropped to a ventral guard position. Thrawn then resumes his conversation with the Prince Militaire, reiterating their intentions of peace but also stating that, if the current situation does not change, they would "witness the full might of the Chiss Ascendancy". Thrawn then twice reiterates that he stands by the precise words of his statement. After the transmission ends, Samakro witnesses the Paataatus fighters form into groups of two and three instead of immediately swarming the Springhawk (the Paataatus' usual strategy). Then, the groups of Paataatus fighters open fire on the Springhawk. However, Thrawn insists that they are not being attacked, and Dalvu confirms that the lasers are only at one-tenth power. Thrawn orders Dalvu to analyze the laser spectrums. Samakro is confused, as lasers are usually configured to whatever would be best absorbed by the enemy's hull, but Dalvu, amazed, confirms that the lasers are configured to the interplanetary dust profile. Because they are keyed to the dust profile, the lasers are absorbed by the interplanetary medium in such a way that makes the lasers look as bright as if they were keyed to the Springhawk's hull at full power. Samakro finally realizes that the Paataatus, instead of attacking the Springhawk, are putting on a light show. Thrawn reveals his belief that the Nikardun are subjugating and threatening the Paataatus and that the Prince Militaire recognizes this moment as his opportunity to get rid of them. Samakro then realizes the true meaning of Thrawn's earlier statement to the Prince Militaire; Thrawn was promising that the Chiss would show their full might against whoever was subjugating the Paataatus. Thrawn then reveals that the Nikardun are in the cruiser in the ventral guard position behind the Prince Militaire's frigate. Thrawn suspects that the Chiss interrupted a Nikardun military exercise and that the Nikardun cruiser was positioned directly behind the frigate for the purpose of destroying the Prince Militaire if he resisted in any way. Thrawn continues by explaining that the Nikardun the positioned themselves in the best-protected spot, the ventral guard position, when the Chiss arrived. Samakro also realizes that, if there was no Nikardun subjugation, the Prince Militaire’s frigate would have no need to have a defending cruiser behind him. The Springhawk, firing back at the Paataatus using the same laser spectrum configuration, is preparing to fire two breacher missiles and four plasma spheres on a vector pointed towards the Nikardun cruiser. In a final communication with the Springhawk, the Prince Militaire invites the Chiss to "do their worst", and Thrawn launches the breachers and plasma spheres. All the Paataatus fighters and cruisers then theatrically fell back and moved out of the way of the breachers and spheres before they impacted and paralyzed the Nikardun. The Paataatus ships then ruthlessly fired upon and destroyed the derelict Nikardun ship, and the Prince Militaire thanks Thrawn for his timely help.

When the Agbui arrive on Shihon for the Grand Migration, Haplif arrived for his meeting with Jixtus. Unexpectedly, Haplif would find his Grysk master in a mediation room, and Jixtus asks him if he finds the Grand Migration fascinating. When Haplif states that he is only on Shihon to satisfy his Chiss guests, Jixtus explains what he finds fascinating about the birds. Specifically, he speaks of the predatory carnivore birds lining themselves on the borders of the migration grounds to defend the seed-eating birds from any predator land animals. Jixtus analogizes this to the Chiss Ascendancy and Haplif's mission: the Chiss military guards the Ascendancy from without while its citizens are vulnerable to an attack from within. Jixtus asks Haplif to give him his report on what he has learned about the Chiss, and Haplif gives him a datastick. Haplif tells Jixtus that the Agbui will be headed to Celwis in four weeks, but Jixtus only gives him three. After some thought, Haplif agrees to the new three-week timetable, and Jixtus is pleased. Jixtus informs Haplif that he will need a navigator for his manipulations of Lakuviv. Haplif, confused, tells Jixtus that the Agbui already employ the use of an Attendant, but Jixtus states that he does not want the Attendant to be seen by the Chiss. Jixtus promises to give Haplif a replacement navigator and considers the Farseekers and Void Guides before Haplif recommends the Pathfinders. Jixtus agrees and states that he had a perfect candidate Pathfinder for the job. Before Haplif departs, Jixtus encourages him to watch the bird migrations, stating that it will be instructive for him. When Haplif returns to his ship, he finds that Shimkif has departed to "fix their problem".

After three days of the Migration, Haplif sees Yomie and Yoponek return only two hours after departing. Yomie storms off to her quarters while Yoponek explains that, somehow, the Grand Migration is over. Haplif touches Yoponek's temple and feels that he is concerned, confused, frustrated, and relieved. Haplif probes Yoponek about going to Celwis, and when Yoponek expresses solidarity with the idea, Yomie comes out and reveals that there are smaller Migrations on Shihon that they could go to. Yoponek tries to get his betrothed to see reason, but Yomie is still determined to stay on Shihon. She and Haplif eventually agree to stay on Shihon for a couple of days before heading to Celwis. After Yomie and Yoponek go to the salon to eat, Shimkif returns and explains that she was able to move the Migration by poisoning the main areas and manipulating the birds to go to other areas to the point of throwing the migration off balance. Haplif regretfully informs Shimkif that they are heading off to another migration for the time being, which frustrates Shimkif, as she cannot easily replicate her disruptions without prior preparation. However, they agree to find another solution to disrupt Yomie's plans.

In the early morning on Celwis, Lakphro contacts his cousin, Lakbulbup, who lives on Naporar, about the Agbui and the brooches given to Lakansu and Lakris. Wanting to learn what they are composed of, Lakphro wants to send Lakris's brooch to Lakbulbup's wife, Dilpram, a biological scientist, hoping that she will be able to send it to a metallurgist. Lakbulbup accepts the proposition, and Lakphro promises to send the brooch later in the morning, stating that it will reach Naporar in six to eight days.

Qilori, piloting the Chiss escort ship alongside the Agbui transport freighter, arrives at the Agbui mining world. Lakjiip, who Lakuviv has assigned to accompany the mission, asks Qilori if the Agbui had called the world Hoxim. Qilori confirms the name, and, upon Lakjiip asking what the natives of the planet call it, he states that there are no natives, colonies, or observation bases of any kind. Lakjiip continues to interrogate Qilori about the planet and the Agbui's interest in it before focusing on Qilori's role with the Agbui. Specifically, she asks him about the non-standard payments he receives from the Agbui: jewelry, room and board, and a share in the cultural aspects of their travels. Qilori, trying to pitch himself as a similar cultural nomad to the Agbui, confirms all of this. Lakjiip then asks Qilori to show her around the base, which he is not prepared for. However, he accepts, and the tour of the Agbui mining facilities begin. Haplif had tried to prepare Qilori for such a contingency, having shown him the schematics, technical specs, and maps of the facilities. At one point in the tour, Lakjiip tests the ground for acidity levels, finding that it is too acidic for Chiss crops. When Lakjiip attempts to enter the facilities, an Agbui stops them, claiming that there are safety risks for any outsiders. However, she is permitted to look into some of the facilities' windows. Lakjiip and Qilori stayed on Hoxim for the rest of the day and left in the morning after guiding the Agbui out of the system. Upon departure, the Chiss captain of the patrol ship asks Lakjiip if she had accomplished everything she wanted, to which she would affirm. Qilori smiled to himself, knowing that both Haplif and Jixtus also got everything they wanted.

In the March of Silence, Thurfian angrily waits for Zistalmu, who arrives fifteen minutes late. Thurfian and Zistalmu express to each other their frustrations over Thrawn having, once again, pulled out a victory out of nowhere, this time with the opening of relations with the Paataatus Hiveborn. Zistalmu tells Thurfian that his plan to send Thrawn to hunt down a phantom Vagaari-Paataatus alliance has failed, and proposes a new solution. Instead of Thrawn and the Mitth receiving all the glory for any future success against any Vagaari, Zistalmu proposes to send the Grayshrike to join the Springhawk, which would result in the Xodlak, an ally of the Irizi, also receiving a portion of the glory. After some discussion, Thurfian would agree to this idea.

The Vigilant and Grayshrike arrive at Sunrise, where they expect to encounter more enemy forces. They immediately see a large asteroid orbiting the planet with an eccentricity value of 0.005, which indicated that it was likely not a natural satellite. Ar'alani suspects that this asteroid has a similar purpose to the asteroid found at the final Nikardun base: housing a hidden missile launcher. She instructs Lakinda to make an in-system jump to the asteroid and attempt to disable it. When Lakinda approaches the asteroid, the Grayshrike sees the Vigilant make its own in-system jump a quarter of the way around the planet, where it sees the same Battle Dreadnought that Lakinda and Thrawn previously faced and defeated. Unlike that last encounter, however, when Ar'alani attempts to contact it, the Dreadnought responded and demanded the Chiss to leave the system. While the Vigilant and Dreadnought converse, the Grayshrike sees the asteroid slightly rotate and notice that its surface is composed of small hexagon fracture plates. Noting that these sections are too small for a missile to go through, Lakinda reasons that there must be a bigger hexagon section somewhere on the asteroid. Lakinda orders for the Grayshrike to prepare lasers, breachers, and spheres to target this hexagon section whenever it is spotted. As the Vigilant and Battle Dreadnought open fire on each other, the Grayshrike spots the larger hexagon section, and Lakinda orders the ship to open fire. However, immediately upon attack, the asteroid suddenly explodes.

Lakinda orders for the Grayshrike to engage its reverse thrusters. As the missile launcher is revealed, the Grayshrike immediately fires upon it with plasma spheres, hoping to disable it before its missile can be launched. Since the hexagon lattice structure opening was not aligned with the Grayshrike, most of these spheres don't make it to the missile (only three do) but instead impact the lattice structure. Instead, the Grayshrike waits for the large hexagonal opening to align with it before launching another barrage of plasma spheres, which completely disables the launcher. Ar'alani then orders for the Grayshrike to put a tractor beam on the missile launcher and bring it to the battle raging between the Vigilant and the Battle Dreadnought. Lakinda, assuming that Ar'alani wants to study the missile launcher, tries to get it free from its lattice support structure. However, she is unable to do so in time, and Lakinda orders for the Grayshrike to leave it behind. She also orders the Grayshrike to approach the Dreadnought from its damaged portside, hoping that their approach will not be noticed.

As the battle begins between the Vigilant and the Battle Dreadnought, Ar'alani notes that their enemies are testing the Vigilant's defense capabilities, launching salvos of two, four, six, and then eight missiles. Noticing that the Grayshrike is not bringing the asteroid missile launcher to the battle, Ar'alani curses to herself. She hoped that she would be able to use the derelict missile as a weapon against the Dreadnought, but, nonetheless, the Grayshrike is accelerating too fast for it to turn around and pick up the missile launcher. During the battle, Ar'alani and her first officer, Kiwu'tro'owmis (Wutroow), notice that their enemies have adopted a new strategy of deploying "dibber" missiles at the Chiss' breacher missiles and plasma spheres. This new strategy resulted in the breacher missiles being exploded too early (therefore causing the resulting acid globs to spread too far to cause any significant damage) and the plasma spheres dissipating before hitting their targets. Noticing that the Dreadnought probably does not notice the Grayshrike's approach, Ar'alani ceases hostilities and attempts to distract the Dreadnought by contacting it. The Grayshrike subsequently goes into stealth mode for a while. When Ar'alani resumes the battle, she orders the Vigilant to launch six breacher missiles and three plasma spheres at the Dreadnought's undamaged starboard side. When the Dreadnought destroyed the breachers with their dibber missiles, the acid formed a protective wall that destroyed the subsequent dibber missiles aimed at the plasma spheres. As a result, the spheres impacted the Battle Dreadnought, which results in its distraction. When Ar'alani opens fire on the Dreadnought's dibber missiles and bridgeport, the Grayshrike, still undetected, fires two clusters of breacher missiles at the Dreadnought's already-damaged portside. After some more laser fire, the Dreadnought fires a large missile at the derelict asteroid missile launcher before exploding, ensuring that the Chiss will not be able to study it. Ar'alani orders the Vigilant to search for any intact dibber missiles for the Chiss to study, but they also self-destruct.

Lakinda meets with Ar'alani on the Vigilant to discuss the battle and Lakinda's new orders from Csilla. She and the Grayshrike were to join Thrawn and the Springhawk on their hunt for the Vagaari pirates. Lakinda feels dissapointed in herself for not being able to follow Ar'alani's orders concerning the missile launcher, but the Admiral assures her that the missile launcher would have ended up exploded either way. They also discuss the fact that the Battle Dreadnought's commander carelessly used the term "generalirius" when referring to General Yiv the Benevolent of the Nikardun Destiny, and the Chiss wonder if the term is similar to the term of "generalissimo" used in the parts of the Ascendancy past the Tarleev. Ar'alani then asks Lakinda if she wants to join Thrawn on his mission, noting her obvious animosity towards him. Lakinda, however, is determined to follow her orders. She also proposes to give the Vigilant the rest of the Grayshrike’s plasma fluid and breachers before going back to Csilla for repairs, which Ar'alani accepts.

In a conversation at the Panopyl Mountains on Shihon, Haplif continues to encourage Yoponek to go to Celwis to meet with Councilor Lakuviv. Yoponek mentions that he could meet with any Xodlak Councilor on a number of different worlds and asks why Lakuviv specifically is the one he needs to talk to. Haplif, frustrated, reasons that Lakuviv is the only one who administers land that is suitable for the Agbui spice growth, and Yoponek concedes the point. Haplif again encourages Yoponek to talk to Yomie about going to Celwis. The Agbui are currently in their fourth day of the Panopyl migration, and Haplif was beginning to become anxious of the possibility of missing Jixtus's three-week timetable. Once again, Shimkif had left the Agbui when they had arrived at the Panopyl Mountains, and Haplif believed that she was the Agbui's best hope. The next morning, again only two hours after departing, Yomie and Yoponek would return to the Agbui ship. However, Yomie was almost unconscious, and Haplif demanded for Yoponek to explain the situation. The Chiss boy states that Yomie started to feel ill and became too weak to walk on their way back. Chiss medics arrived and performed an evaluation on Yomie, concluding that she had been poisoned by a greenstripe's venom. Feeling defeated, Yomie asked Yoponek and Haplif if they would be headed for Celwis now that she was ill, but Haplif, not wanting to push her, decided to let her rest for the night. When Yoponek also retired for the night, Shimkif returns and explains that she could not poison the migration, stating that she instead found a way to poison Yomie. The next morning, Haplif greets Yomie, who is sitting in her bed. At one point in their conversation, Yomie leans back in her bed to stretch her spine and neck, and Haplif takes this opportunity to touch her head with his fingertips. However, he only feels grand hatred from the girl. Although Haplif tries to play it off, Yomie has figured out that he and the rest of the Agbui are telepathic. When Yomie eventually threatens to tell Yoponek, Haplif has no other option but to kill her. When Yoponek returns from the Panopyl migration viewing grounds, Haplif informs him that Yomie has decided to depart from the Agbui and Yoponek while they travel to Celwis. After some convincing, Yoponek accepts this and becomes eager to go to Celwis. Haplif also gives him Yomie's brooch, stating that she wanted him to keep it as a promise that they would be reunited again, which only solidifies Yoponek's resolve. Six hours after departing Shihon for Celwis, and when Yoponek is fast asleep, the Agbui ship leaves hyperspace to dispose of Yomie's body.

Lakuviv and Lakjiip discuss the Agbui nyix mine on Hoxim. Although amazed that the Agbui are sitting on this mine without knowing its true value, Lakuviv wants more details and has invited Haplif to Redhill for a meeting. Lakuviv and Lakjiip discuss taking this matter directly to the Xodlak Patriarch instead of Patriel Lakooni, who Lakuviv distrusts. Haplif, bringing Yoponek with him, arrives for the meeting, and Lakuviv invites him in, instructing Yoponek to wait in the lounge. In the meeting, Haplif confirms that no other alien species is involved in the mine's operation before turning the conversation towards the subject of the pirates raiding the Agbui freighters. Lakuviv, again wanting to not involve Patriel Lakooni, believes that he will be able to contact the Patriarch's office concerning using Xodlak ships to defend Hoxim, and Haplif is delighted at the idea. Sending Haplif to wait outside, Lakuviv calls the Xodlak Patriarch's office on Csilla. He got through three layers of screening before being rejected by the Patriarch's third aide, who told him to go through the proper channels (through Patriel Lakooni). Lakuviv reluctantly calls the Patriel, who informs him that she is unhappy of his decision to jump over her authority. Over the course of their conversation, Lakuviv convinces Lakooni to come to Redhill for a meeting. Ending the call, Lakuviv informs Haplif and Yoponek that he has persuaded Patriel Lakooni (and not the Patriarch) to meet with him. The group discusses the next course of action, and Lakuviv states that he and Lakooni, together, will have to take the matter to the Patriarch, who will grant the use of the Xodlak warships for the cause. Yoponek, upon hearing that only Xodlak reservists would be called to staff these ships, recommend the use of the family emergencies protocol. When Lakuviv expresses confusion, Yoponek explains that if a family has an emergency, they reserve the right to call upon any active-duty warriors from the Defense Force of Expansionary Defense Fleet to staff their family warships. He also reveals that the Patriarch is not needed to authorize a family emergency and that only a Patriel is needed. Convinced of this solution, Lakuviv thanks Yoponek for the revelation before sending him and Haplif back to Lakphro's ranch.

Lakbulbup contacts Lakphro, stating that he has received the brooch. He informs Lakphro that while he was waiting for the brooch's arrival, he thought of the idea of sending the jewelry to an Expansionary Defense Fleet officer renowned for his ability to analyze alien artwork: Senior Captain Mitth'raw'nuruodo. Knowing that his cousin has made up his mind, Lakphro accepts the proposal and asks when Lakbulbup when he will be able to send it to Thrawn. Lakbulbup states that, through his contacts in the Expansionary Defense Fleet, he can give the brooch to any of the Xodlak warriors on the Springhawk whenever it returns from its current expedition past the Paataatus Hiveborn, who would then give it to Thrawn.

At Redhill, Lakuviv explains the situation to Lakooni. Instead of accepting his proposal to take Hoxim, however, the Patriel expressed her belief that the Agbui were tricking Lakuviv. After some more back and forth discussion, Lakuviv states that the Coduyo Patriarch is preparing to confiscate the Xodlak warships on Celwis for his own family emergency concerning the nyix mines. Lakooni, outraged at this statement, demands to use Lakuviv's comm to order the lockdown of all Xodlak warships on Celwis. Lakuviv, expecting this, gives Lakooni his comm and steps out of his office. There, Lakuviv would tap into his comm and record Lakooni's rolling authorization codes used at the beginnings and endings of her directive. Lakuviv would then inform Lakooni about his manipulations, revealing that he used her authorization codes to issue a Xodlak family emergency. When Lakooni threatens to countermand him, Lakuviv takes out a charric, points it at her, and takes her hostage. Lakooni threatens that Lakuviv will lose everything for his treachery, but Lakuviv is confident that he will be thanked by the Patriarch for his actions.

As Csilla, the Grayshrike's repairs and restocking are almost complete when Lakinda receives a call from Lieutenant Commander Lakwurn, a hyperdrive technician on the Grayshrike. Lakwurn informs Lakinda that he has an unusual request, and Lakinda meets him at the Grayshrike's second hyperdrive. There, Lakwurn makes Lakinda aware of his instructions to give a package, containing a brooch, to Senior Captain Thrawn when the Grayshrike makes its rendezvous with the Springhawk. However, since he has received a Xodlak family emergency summons from Celwis Patriel Xodlak'oo'nifis, Lakwurn hopes that Lakinda would be able to give the brooch to Thrawn instead. Lakinda, who is unaware of the summons, looks at her questis, and finds that she has also received the Xodlak emergency summons. She informs Lakwurn that she will instruct Mid Captain Apros to give the brooch to Thrawn and instructs him to meet her at the weapons hatch in ten minutes to depart for Celwis.

Syndic Prime Thurfian meets with a pair of Obbic and Clarr representatives from Sposia, who are complaining about the Universal Analysis Group supposedly causing fish in a nearby lake to die due to runoff from their facility. After an hour of being subjected to their arguments, Thurfian has had enough. He states that the fish are probably disappearing because of poachers, which offends the Clarr representative. However, Thurfian underpins this statement by promising to send inquiries to the UAG concerning the matter. This seems to satisfy the Obbic and Clarr representatives, and they depart Thurfian's office. Soon thereafter, Speaker Thyklo stops by to speak with Thurfian. She compliments him on his handling of the previous meeting, noting that while she was talking to the representatives on their way out of Thurfian's office, they stated that he was more helpful than any other Syndic they had previously talked to. As Thyklo leaves Thurfian's office, he reflects on the rumors concerning Thyklo's possible retirement and determines to prove himself as a worthy replacement candidate.

After some time searching Thrawn's search pattern, the Springhawk arrives at a system and sees laserfire in the distance. A battle is raging between three gunboats and one freighter (the Saltbarrel), and the freighter's commander, identified as Captain Fsir, hails Thrawn, requesting for assistance. After Thrawn informs the freighter that he cannot intervene due to being on a vital mission, one of the gunboats broke off from its attack on the freighter and converged onto the Springhawk. After it was destroyed by the Springhawk's laserfire, the other two gunboats also attacked and were subsequently defeated. When Thrawn again speaks with Fsir, he asks for him to identify his species, their homeworld, and their purpose for being at this system. Fsir identifies his species as the Watith but refuses to give their nation's location. Fsir tells Thrawn that the Watith are scouting this region of the Chaos for suitable locations to build a long-range communications relay station. Fsir also presumes that their attackers were pirates due to the Watith's current proximity to a Vagaari pirate base, and Thrawn responds by stating that the Springhawk's mission is to find the Vagaari. Fsir offers to guide Thrawn to the location of the Vagaari base, but Thrawn refuses, stating that the Watith could just give the Springhawk the base's coordinates. However, Fsir insists on guiding the Springhawk, noting that the Watith coordinate system likely does not match the Chiss'. Thrawn then accepts, but notes that he wishes to examine the wreckage of the gunboats for a couple of days to examine their missile and electronics debris. Thrawn also asks to be given a tour of the Watith freighter, and, after some back and forth, Fsir reluctantly relents to the request. When Thrawn orders for the Springhawk to analyze the gunboats' debris, he specifically asks for analysis of any genetic material found in the wreckage.

On Celwis, Lakinda is greeted by Lakjiip, who is surprised that someone of the Senior Captain's rank would answer the family emergency summons. Lakinda insists that no matter her rank, she is a part of the Xodlak family and will therefore serve it with full loyalty. Lakjiip asks Lakinda if she would accept command of the Midsummer, one of the Xodlak's frigates, and Lakinda accepts. She asks Lakjiip what the emergency is about, and considering that the operation's commander needs to know, Lakjjip informs Lakinda about the Agbui and their unclaimed nyix mine. Lakinda listens and asks Lakjiip she intends to give the mine to the Syndicure upon its capture. Lakjiip affirms this and states that the Xodlak merely want the recognition and glory of being the ones who found and acquired it. Lakinda then asks about the Xodlak potentially regaining Ruling Family status, and Lakjiip states that that would be a fair compensation. On the way to the Midsummer, Lakinda reflects that Lakjiip's last comment was delivered with less enthusiasm than what was indicated by the senior aide's eyes and tone.

Qilori arrives at to meet with Jixtus for his next assignment. There, he meets Haplif, of the Agbui species. Jixtus informs Qilori that his task is to pretend to be Haplif's pathfinder and that he must remain hidden from the Agbui's passenger. When the time is right, Qilori's services will be offered to a minor Chiss Councilor on a minor Chiss world, where he will guide a Chiss ship to a system that the Agbui will share with him. When they arrive at this planet, Qilori is to act as if he has been there before and answer any questions the Chiss might have (answers that will be provided by Haplif). Qilori asks if Haplif expects for there to be any military action, expressing concern for his safety. Jixtus reassures him that the military action will happen far away from Qilori, but the Pathfinder insists that Agbui should take careful notice of which Chiss military commander they will be dealing with. Qilori reminds Jixtus of Senior Captain Thrawn, the Chiss commander who personally took down General Yiv's Battle Dreadnought. Jixtus accepts Qilori's reasoning, and promises to make arrangements for Thrawn to be far away from the Agbui's sphere of operation, which qualms the Pathfinder's concerns. Haplif and Qilori are dismissed, and the Pathfinder is told to leave his personal ship with Jixtus. However, before Qilori leaves the meeting room, Jixtus makes Qilori aware of the mystery of how the Chiss are able to navigate through the Chaos. Jixtus believes that either the Chiss have their own navigator species or that they have another means of navigating through hyperspace. Qilori and Jixtus discuss the Chiss' history in a past war in Lesser Space, where reports indicated the use of computerized navigation in the Lesser Space ships. As Qilori prepares to leave with Haplif, he promises to himself that, if he did ever find out about these special navigation techniques, he will not tell Jixtus, as he would soon be out of a job.

On the third day of Thrawn's analysis of the attacking gunboats, Thalias is surprised to find the Senior Captain standing outside the sky-walker suite's hatch. Thrawn has arrived to compare the Watith's and the Magys' clothing, hoping that he can establish a connection between the two. However, he does not find one and prepares to leave when Thalias stops him and demands to know what is happening. Thrawn reminds her that she is not one of his officers, but Thalias states that she takes care of Che'ri, which makes her one of the most important people on the Springhawk. She also, after some thought, tells Thrawn that she was tasked, by Mitth Patriarch Mitth'oor'akiord (Thooraki), with looking out for him and his political enemies. Thrawn then decides to tell Thalias about the situation. He believes that the Springhawk is in the midst of a trap by the Watith, stating that Fsir obviously wants to control where and when the Chiss arrive at the "Vagaari pirate base". Thrawn also believes that the battle between the Watith freighter and the three gunboats was staged, as the gunboats were only doing superficial damage to the freighter. Thalias asks why Fsir hadn't called for backup during the past three days, and Thrawn reasons that he wants to lead them to a large and powerful force that is too undercrewed to travel to the Springhawk's current location. Even with these circumstances, Thrawn is determined to see it through, stating that if the Vagaari are the orchestrators, they need to be dealt a final, killing blow. Thrawn commands Thalias to keep this discussion a secret, even from Che'ri, and she agrees. Before Thrawn leaves, however, Thalias asks him if the Springhawk’s analysis of the gunboats had found any Vagaari genetic material. Thrawn responds by stating that, curiously, no genetic material of any discernible kind was found.

As the Midsummer prepares to leave for Celwis, Lakinda listens to a final message from Councilor Lakuviv while gloating to herself that there will soon be ten Ruling Families in the Chiss Ascendancy. She also realizes that she had forgotten to memorize her bridge crew's names, which irks her. Lakuviv instructs them to ignore any transmissions that don't directly come from his office and have the special protocol code. When the Midsummer and the accompanying Xodlak ship Apogee begins their journey to Hoxim via jump-by-jump, Lakinda orders for her comms officer to alert her if there are any incoming transmissions. When the first officer reminds Lakinda of Lakuviv's orders, the Senior Captain reminds him that the commanding officer can countermand any orders where she sees fit.

Before Springhawk arrives at the final destination with the Watith, Thrawn stations Thalias and Che'ri in secondary command in case the ship needs a quick escape. Upon leaving hyperspace, the Springhawk is met with twenty gunboats, who are drifting in a high orbit above the planet. When the gunboats come to life, Fsir panics and urges Thrawn to attack before they send word of the Springhawk's arrival to the Vagaari base. When Thrawn states that there is no base, Fsir states that there exists an orbital weapons platform on the other side of the planet. Two of the gunboats break off and start going towards this supposed base while the other eighteen converge on the Springhawk. Thrawn orders for the closest two gunboats to be shot and destroyed with laserfire and, then, for Laknym to send a spread of plasma spheres towards the remaining sixteen. When the two gunboats are destroyed by the laserfire, a cloud of smoke conceals the release of the plasma sphere salvo. However, the remaining gunboats were able to move out of the way of the spheres, with only two being hit and disabled. Thrawn asks Samakro if he saw what had just happened, and the Mid Captain affirms and requests to finish the battle before the gunboats got into firing range. Thrawn agrees, but instead of firing at the gunboats, he orders five plasma spheres to fire upon the Watith freighter. As the Springhawk prepares to fire, the Grayshrike, commanded by Mid Captain Apros, who had been coordinating with Thrawn during their journey to this system, appears and distracts the Watith. The Springhawk then fires its plasma spheres and disables the Watith freighter, causing all the gunboats to also disable. Thrawn then asks Apros to confirm that there was not any orbiting weapons platforms on the other side of the planet, to which the Grayshrike's commander confirms. Apros then asks to come aboard the Springhawk to discuss a pressing issue, and Thrawn invites him aboard. Che'ri asks Senior Commander Kharill, who is commanding secondary command, what had just happened, and Kharill pushes the question onto Laknym. Laknym explains to Che'ri that Thrawn had always anticipated that the Watith were attempting to trap the Springhawk, and that once he saw that the gunboats moved out of the way of the plasma spheres before they could have possibly seen them (due to the clouds of smoke from the two destroyed gunboats), he confirmed that the Watith freighter (who saw the spheres being fired) were coordinating the attack. Laknym also explains that Thrawn saw twenty control consoles and twenty Watith "passengers" on his voyages to the Watith freighter, which lined up perfectly with the number of gunboats.

On Sunrise, Admiral Ar'alani sends Senior Warrior Yopring to run a search pattern over the area of the planet the Battle Dreadnought was orbiting over during Thrawn's and Lakinda's attack. Yopring found many survivors on the planet before stumbling across a large mine with dozens of workers. However, he is pursued by two skycars. The Vigilant also informs him that four other skycars are converging onto him from two other directions. Ar'alani tells Yopring to hold his course until he gets to a specific location where two rivers intersect, where the Vigilant will fire upon the water, making large clouds of steam. When the skycars saw this, they assumed that the steam clouds would facilitate a vertical escape, but when they fly upwards to attack Yopring, they find that he had anticipated this and stayed close to the ground while flying in another direction. Before the pursuing skycars learned of the misdirection, Yopring has able to escape and make its escape to the Vigilant. Ar'alani then notices that the skycars design was radically different to the destroyed ones on Sunrise's surface, and concludes that the mine is being operated by a group associated with the Battle Dreadnought.

Aboard the Springhawk, Thrawn is informed, by Apros, of the Xodlak family emergency and Lakinda's subsequent departure from the Grayshrike, finding the ordeal extremely unsettling. Apros also shares that the Erighal and Pommrio families also received a family emergency summons, ordering them to rendezvous at Copero and Sarvchi, respectively. Apros theorizes that the three family emergencies could be related to Thrawn's search for Vagaari pirates, but Thrawn submits that the Vagaari rumors are false, given the Fsir revealed that someone else, who was wearing a robe and hooded veil, had hired him to engage the Springhawk. Thrawn, wanting to help confront whatever threat the Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio are facing, asks Apros how many of the Watith gunboats the Grayshrike could carry. Apros states that he could carry nine, and Samakro believes the Springhawk can carry five gunboats plus the Watith freighter. Upon ordering the Grayshrike and Springhawk to begin the gunboat anchoring operation, Apros gives Thrawn the metal brooch he received from Lakinda and tells him that the Agbui gave it to a Xodlak rancher, who passed to a relative on Naporar. Apros also explains that the jewelry caused a lot of Xodlak official commotion on Celwis, and the group concludes that the jewelry and the family emergencies are somehow connected. Upon Apros's departure from the conference room, Samakro also notes that the three involved families are rivals to each other. Thrawn was not aware of this, and Samakro reflects on Thrawn's political ineptitude.

In the Springhawk's sky-walker suite, Che'ri is put to bed before Thalias receives Thrawn and Samakro into her quarters to speak to the Magys. Thrawn wants to determine if the Magys and the metal brooch are connected, and he points out the stylistic similarities between the jewelry and the Magys's clothing. Thrawn tells Thalias about the topics of his previous conversations with Apros and shows her the brooch before the Magys awakes and asks the Chiss how they could deprive her of her leadership responsibilities. When Thrawn again implores her to wait until the Chiss can closely examine the state of Sunrise before she makes her decision on suicide, the Magys determines to kill herself then and there. However, Thalias speaks up and challenges the Magys's view on her homeworld. Thalias shows her the metal brooch as she ferociously argues that society continues to exist on Sunrise. The Magys, shocked, recognizes it as the style of her peoples' Southern Mountain artisans. Convinced that her people continue to survive on her world, the Magys decides to live and asks for Thrawn to deliver her to her people. Thrawn informs her that she must go back into hibernation, as if she is seen on the Springhawk, she would be brought to Csilla to be investigated and questioned. The Magys starts to argue, but she looks to the side for a brief second before looking back and Thrawn and Thalias. Then, she agrees to go back into hibernation. When the Magys goes to sleep, Thalias apologizes for her earlier interjection, but Thrawn would forgive her, stating that he values results more than etiquette. When Thrawn and Samakro eventually leave the sky-walker suite, Thalias goes to sleep and realizes that the Magys had changed her mind after looking to the side - towards Che'ri.

As Lakinda sleeps on the Midsummer, she receives a transmission from the second comm officer, who informs her that a transmission has some from Apros. Lakinda orders for him to be put through, and, after some pushback, the comm officer complies. Apros and Thrawn ask Lakinda what her mission is and where she is going. Lakinda states that this information is confidential, but Thrawn asks her if she is aware that two other families have also called a family emergency and if her mission relates to alien jewelry. Lakinda is shocked, and Apros continues by stating that the jewelry is derived from Sunrise, not the Agbui. Lakinda tells Apros and Thrawn about the supposed nyix mine on Hoxim. Thrawn tells Lakinda that the Agbui are scamming the Xodlak, and Apros also states that the Agbui were probably the ones who instigated the civil war on Sunrise. Apros informs Lakinda of the striking possibility of a civil war breaking out over this fake nyix mine, and Lakinda agrees to help Thrawn and Apros subvert the Agbui's plan. She sends Thrawn and Apros the location of Hoxim, and the group agrees on a plan. Thrawn states that the Springhawk and Grayshrike can arrive at Hoxim well before the three family fleets, and Lakinda agrees to try to get the Midsummer and Apogee to arrive quicker. Before ending the transmission, Lakinda tells Thrawn and Apros that, if it came to it, she was expendable. Lakinda then orders for her pilot to determine how the Xodlak can speed up their passage to Hoxim.

On Celwis, Haplif and the Agbui prepare to depart Lakphro's ranch, confident that their manipulations were successful. However, before Haplif can leave, he is confronted by Lakphro, who is wearing a large jacket with a brass sealer and two electric-jolt luresticks. Lakphro reveals that he knows of the Agbui use of jewelry as bribes, that he sent Lakris's brooch to Naporar, and that he knows of the Xodlak emergency summons. Haplif decides that he must kill Lakphro, and starts to inch towards him. Lakphro activates one of his luresticks and zips his brass sealer before Haplif lunges towards him, knocking the lurestick to the side as he did so. Haplif started to strangle Lakphro before a growzer, responding to the brass sealer, attacked and dug his teeth into his arm. As Haplif fights the growzer, Lakphro recovers and grabs his second lurestick. However, Haplif is able to swing the growzer to hit Lakphro's side, causing one of the luresticks to go wide. Haplif, seeing the second lurestick, then swings the growzer again to hit it, hoping to disable it for a brief second so that he can attack Lakphro again. However, as the growzer hits the lurestick, it convulsively tightened its grip on Haplif's arm, causing him to fall to the ground in agony. On the ground, and before he dies, Haplif sees the Agbui ship fly away and assumes that Shimkif decided to leave him behind. As he dies, he is content to know that his manipulations of the Chiss had worked.

As the Springhawk and Grayshrike get into position to await the Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio arrivals, Samakro runs the fourteen gunboat operators through drills and simulations. Laknym, who is one of the operators, asks Samakro if Thrawn's plan is political in nature, considering that attacking the Xodlak would be a de-facto attack on the Irizi, the Xodlak's ally and the Mitth's rival. Samakro replies that he has never seen anybody as inept at politics as Thrawn and that his actions are purely military in nature.

As the Midsummer and Apogee arrive at Hoxim, Lakinda finds that she was the first family to arrive. She orders the pilot to converge on the planet as she reveals that the Xodlak had sent them to locate and assess the value of rare ore mines. The Midsummer's first officer does not believe that Lakinda is revealing the whole truth, and threatens to use his status as blood in the Xodlak family as ammunition against Lakinda in the future. As Lakinda considers this, six ships from the Erighal and Pommrio families arrive at Hoxim. The Erighal and Pommrio commanders both claim the world for their respective families, and amongst the arguing, Lakinda inserts the Xodlak's own claim to Hoxim, noting that they had arrived first. However, as the Xodlak prepare for battle with the other families, the Springhawk appears from behind the planet's horizon, appearing to be attacked.

As the Springhawk sees the arrival of the three family fleets, Samakro orders for the gunboats to start their attacks. The attack and the ship's erratic movement successfully makes it look like the Springhawk is about to fall to the enemy, and once the family fleets are in view, the fourteen gunboats break off from their attack on the Springhawk and converge onto the Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio.

Witnessing the approaching gunboats, Lakinda and the Erighal and Pommrio commanders assess forming a joint battle front. The commanders argue who is to lead this operation, with Lakinda stating her rank of Senior Captain and her possession of the largest ship, the frigate. The other commanders only hold the rank of Mid Captain and subsequently give command to Lakinda, and she orders the formation of a double-wing formation.

When Samakro sees the formation of the double-wing, he reminds the gunboat operators to be mindful to survive as long as possible. The gunboats then reach firing distance.

The Chiss formation sees the gunboats open fire, and the Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio all respond with their own laserfire. When the Xodlak first officer asks Lakinda if they should be shooting at the other families' ships, Lakinda reminds everyone that they are all Chiss first and Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio second.

Samakro orders for the gunboats to break from formation and engage in one-on-one combat against the Chiss force. Thrawn's plan involved allowing Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio warriors aboard the Springhawk and Grayshrike to operate the gunboats, knowing that these officers are aware of the intricacies and weak points of their family warships. Thrawn hopes that the gunboats' attacks would be maximally ferocious while minimally damaging. As the battle commences, the gunboats slowly begin to be defeated. Then, the Springhawk receives a transmission from the Midsummer, with Lakinda warning that there is a problem.

On the Midsummer, Lakinda realizes a gap in Thrawn's plan, and, knowing that Thrawn is inept at politics, she understands that he would not have calculated this aspect into his battle plan. She notices that, even after the triumphant end of the confrontation, the triumph would quickly disappear as the three families start to fight over the nyix mine again. She decides that Thrawn needs to be warned about this possibility, but she does not want her officers to listen in. So, Lakinda decides to sneak away to the duty office, where an independent transmission system is located. When informs the first officer that she is going there to speak with Thrawn, stating that he may have important information about their attackers. The first officer states his belief that a private transmission would be recognized by the other families as the Xodlak going behind their backs, but Lakinda ignores him and goes to the duty office. There, Lakinda warns Thrawn of the issue, stating that someone will probably need to manually guide the freighter on a collision course with the mine on the surface. However, when she returns to the bridge, the Xodlak second officer and two warriors with charrics are waiting for her. The second officer informs Lakinda that she is being relieved from command, and Lakinda can tell that the entire bridge is on board with the usurpation. The second officer states that Lakinda has betrayed Xodlak family interests by disregarding Lakuviv's orders and by communicating with the "enemy". Eventually, Lakinda would follow the warriors to a room where she would be confined for the remainder of the battle.

Upon hearing Lakinda's message, the Springhawk's bridge remained quiet, recognizing the severity of her suggestion of manually guiding the Watith freighter to the surface. Eventually, Laknym speaks up and volunteers for the job. Thrawn thanked Laknym but stated that the freighter only needed to be look like it was being manually operated.

Thalias and Che'ri, responding to an urgent summons, arrived on the Springhawk's bridge, where Thrawn was communicating with the Chiss task forces. He is informed that Lakinda has been relieved from command of the Xodlak force. Thrawn then signals for the Grayshrike to make its appearance. When it arrives with the Xodlak, Erighal, and Pommrio forces, it joins in the attack on the gunboats. Then, Thrawn orders for the five remaining gunboats to break away and retreat, but only two would remain after the others were destroyed by the Grayshrike's laserfire. Then, Thrawn orders for Samakro to clear the Watith freighter and activate its thrusters, and once Samakro gets aboard the Springhawk, the freighter is released towards the planet. Thrawn instructs his weapons officer, Senior Commander Chaf'pri'uhme (Afpriuh), to fire at specific spots on the freighter, incorporating near misses and glancing blows in his attack. Afpriuh successfully hits the freighter's maneuvering jets, releasing bursts of compressed gas that maneuver the freighter in such a way as to make it look like it is being manually controlled. Then, Thrawn introduces Che'ri to her task, and, to Thalias's surprise, he takes Che'ri to the weapons station instead of the navigation station. He states that the analysts must conclude that whatever happened with the freighter could not have been engineered by the Springhawk. Thrawn explains that Afpriuh will try to use the tractor beam to move the freighter slightly but that the Springhawk needs to do this on its first try, as any subsequent attempts to move the freighter will be correctly interpreted as manipulations from the Springhawk's tractor beams. Thrawn instructs Che'ri that she will be looking into the future with Third Sight to see exactly when the freighter needs to move, but Thalias objects, claiming that this is a sharp deviation from Che'ri's regular Third Sight abilities. However, Che'ri disagrees and eventually agrees to Thrawn's proposal. After Che'ri enters Third Sight, she indicates to Afpriuh that the freighter will soon move. A few seconds later, the freighter successfully turned its bow before being impacted by the two remaining gunboats, causing it to fall towards the surface on a collision course with the mine. When Che'ri eventually comes back from her Third Sight trance, Thrawn orders for her to be taken to the medcenter for an examination.

On Celwis, Lakphro speaks with Patriel Lakooni, who implores the rancher to rethink everything about the Agbui. After stating that he has revealed everything he knows about the aliens, Lakphro asks Lakooni about interrogating the Coduyo midager and the Pathfinder accompanying the Agbui. Lakooni informs him that the Pathfinder escaped with the Agbui ship and that the midager will be interviewed at another time. Before Lakphro departs, Lakooni asks him to remain available for any future questioning and asks him about the status of Lakris's brooch. Lakphro would state that it was never found, and Lakooni orders him to inform her if it ever is.

On Csilla, Samakro refuses to inform Ba'kif about the details of the Springhawk's mission on Hoxim, citing the regulations demanding for bridge officers not to disclose any activities that involved a sky-walker, even to someone who knew of their existence. Samakro states that if Ba'kif wanted details, he would have to ask the commander on the scene: Thrawn. However, it seems as if the Xodlak, Erighal, Pommrio, and their allies in the Syndicure are blocking any attempts of investigating the skirmish at Hoxim. Ba'kif then asks Samakro if he dislikes Thrawn, and Samakro answers by stating that he does. However, he also states that regardless of his personal feelings towards Thrawn, he is bound to obey and respect his commander and his orders. As he departs Ba'kif's office, Samakro reflects that nothing had ever come out of the Syndicure concerning the nonsense story he had given to Thalias about Thrawn's "theory" that Sunrise would be the last-stand fortress for the Nikardun. However, he still does not believe that she isn't a spy, instead believing that she and her controller are just waiting for the right moment to strike at Thrawn.

Qilori again meets with Jixtus, who commends him for making him aware of the cunning of Thrawn and promises to calculate the Senior Captain into his future endeavors against the Chiss. Jixtus identifies his species as Grysk, and Qilori notes that this is the first time he has ever heard of the species. When Qilori asks if Jixtus needs him for anything else, Jixtus reminds him of the mystery of how the Chiss navigate through hyperspace. He formally tasks the Pathfinder to learn the answer to the mystery, and Qilori complies to the order. Jixtus finally warns him that the Grysks consider every individual fully responsible for their failures.

Lakinda meets with Zistalmu, who asks her about her newly unsteady relationship with her family. In fact, the Xodlak, and specifically the Patriarch, was furious with Lakinda for not taking the nyix mine at Hoxim. After discussing Lakinda's previous positive track record with Ar'alani, Zistalmu offers Lakinda the rank of trial-born in the Irizi family. Lakinda asks for time to consider, which Zistalmu grants, but as she left the Syndic's office, she was determined to accept the offer.

Thurfian receives a call from Speaker Thyklo late at night, who informs him that Mitth Patriarch Thooraki has died. When Thurfian asks if the Patriels have made their decision on his successor, Thyklo informs him that he has been chosen, stating that none of the Patriels felt confident enough to step away from their roles, given the recent political climate stemming from the recent Hoxim incident. Thurfian, amazed, asks Thyklo if she had been considered for the position, and Thyklo states that she is also not comfortable with the idea of leaving her position and her vault of personal relationships in the Syndicure. Thurfian then accepts the position, and Thyklo informs him that Senior Aide Mitth'iv'iklo (Thivik) will shortly arrive to take him to the Mitth homestead. Ending the call, Thurfian reflects on his new title and how Zistalmu and Thrawn would react upon first learning of it. When Thivik arrives, he informs Thurfian of his itinerary: speaking with the Patriels, speaking with the Patriarch staff, settling into the homestead, getting a good night's rest, and, finally, learning of the true and hidden history of the Mitth and of a weapon known as Starflash.

The dramatis personae section of Greater Good lists Mid Captain Ufsa'mak'ro as a cousin within the Ufsa family. The dramatis personae of Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil, Greater Goods November 2021 sequel, lists Samakro as an Ufsa merit adoptive, as did both novels' 2020 prequel Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising.

In Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising, the Paccosh spokesperson at the Rapacc asteroid mining station introduced Thrawn and Thalias to another Paccosh, Uingali foar Marocsaa, who gives the Chiss a ring and does not speak. In chapter 2 of Greater Good, Uingali is implied to be the spokesperson that was on the mining station, but that cannot be the case, since Uingali did not speak to the Chiss on the mining station.

In chapter 6, the time required to travel to Sunrise from Rapacc is stated to by fifteen hours by sky-walker. However, later in the same chapter, Lakinda states this time period to be sixteen hours. This article asssumes that the latter number is erroneous.

In chapter 16, the Vigilant's helm officer, Droc'tri'morhs (Octrimo) is called Wikivv, the Grayshrike's helm officer.

• ISBN 9780593158296; April 27, 2021; Del Rey; US hardcover
• ISBN 9780593158302; April 27, 2021; Del Rey; US eBook
• ISBN 9780593358153; April 27, 2021; Del Rey; US hardcover, Barnes & Noble Exclusive Edition
• ISBN 9780593357316; April 27, 2021; Del Rey; US paperback, export edition
• ISBN 9780593158319; February 22, 2022; Del Rey; US paperback

• "Launchpad" — Star Wars Insider 201
• "Timothy Zahn: Heir of an Empire" — Star Wars Insider 202