Obi-Wan gave Mezdec a cool glance, then ignored him. He glanced at the strategy map. He saw that the Typha-Dor had massed all their weaponry and their fleet to the south.
He and Anakin had studied the invasion plans during the flight.
Shalini had been right. Mezdec had given the generals false plans. They were massing troops and ships to meet an invasion that would not arrive.
Meanwhile, the Vanqors would take over the capital cities in one thrust, unopposed.
"I have met Mezdec before. We were the team that was sent to rescue the crew at the outpost," Obi-Wan said. "Have you moved your ships to attack?" he asked the generals.
"We are moving them now," one of the generals said grudgingly, as though she saw no reason to tell the Jedi. "The Vanqors will attack our factories in the south."
"Is it too late to recall them?"
"Why should we?" the general answered. "With all due respect to the Jedi, we did ask for your help, and we are grateful for your response. But we can handle this. We are going to surprise the Vanqors when they invade our airspace."
"You, generals, will be the ones who will be surprised," Obi-Wan said.
"That is not the true invasion plan," Anakin said. He set Shalini's holofile spinning. It unfolded in pulses of light, showing detail after detail of the Vanqor invasion. "This is the real invasion plan. If you mass your forces there, the Vanqors will simply sail in and take over without a fight."
"But the Vanqors have already sent their ships," Binalu said, indicating the map.
"I see evidence of only two destroyers in the south," Obi-Wan said.
"Mezdec explained that more are coming. The crew intercepted the Vanqor invasion plans," a general said. She was tall and imposing, with multicolored medals on her shoulders. "He came to me personally. I am the high general of Typha-Dor, General Bycha."
"That's right," Mezdec said. "We have the plans. I was the only one to make it out alive."
"On the contrary," Obi-Wan said. "The others made it out, too. You'll be sorry to hear that, Mezdec."
"Mezdec is a spy, General Bycha," Anakin said. "I suggest you give an order for his immediate arrest."
The generals exchanged glances. Talus and Binalu looked at the Jedi.
"This is a grave charge," Talus said.
"They are lying!" Mezdec cried.
"You must trust us," Obi-Wan said. "The fate of your world lies in your hands. The Vanqors are not going to attack your factories. They are moving to attack the twin capital cities. Can you move the fleet to these positions?" He took a laser pointer from a general and indicated the map.
"Look. The Vanqors are invading through this corridor. I've studied the star charts. Your moons will align to give them cover, but it will also create a window for you to attack. You can trap the majority of the fleet between the two moons. Even with a smaller force, you could defeat them.
They will be vulnerable right here."
The generals looked at the map. They looked at each other.
"Don't listen to them!" Mezdec cried again. "They are lying!"
Slowly, General Bycha turned to him. "And what reason would the Jedi have for lying?" She held Mezdec's gaze. "I hereby issue an order for Mezdec's immediate arrest."
Then General Bycha turned back to the Jedi. "We don't have much time," she said.
Chapter Sixteen
Mezdec was taken away. The room exploded into activity. Obi-Wan was impressed with how quickly the generals grasped the situation and formulated a response. The fleet sped to the other side of Typha-Dor and lurked behind the string of moons, effectively concealing themselves and ready to attack.
General Bycha spoke to the Jedi. "We were unprepared for war. Our planet has no planetary defensive shield, and only one planetary turbolaser. It's all up to our fleet."
"You have the strategic advantage," Siri said.
"Which means there is another option," Obi-Wan pointed out. "Within seconds of the Vanqors invading your airspace, you will be able to surprise and surround them. They know their entire fleet can easily be destroyed. It is a perfect opportunity for you to force a surrender without losing lives.
" General Bycha looked interested. "Most generals are primed to fight. I will do so if necessary. But on Typha-Dor we always seek to avoid conflict if we can."
"A truce would make sense for Vanqor as well as Typha-Dor," Obi-Wan pointed out. "Typha-Dor has vast resources. Vanqor has factories and technical innovations. The other planets in your system each have something unique to contribute. If there was a strong alliance between your planets, you would all be interdependent. You would learn and profit from one another."
"You could become one of the strongest systems in the galaxy and a boon to the Republic," Siri said.
Binalu shook her head. "But we don't trust the Vanqors. How could we, after what they have done?"
"Alliances are rarely built on trust," Clee Rhara said. "They are built on mutual advantage."
"One of your conditions would have to be complete disarmament," Garen said. "Vanqor might choose that rather than complete annihilation."
"It all depends on you," Obi-Wan said. "You have the advantage of surprise. When you don't fire on the Vanqors, they might hesitate to fire on you. You'll need to speak to the ruler of Vanqor and explain that you have his fleet surrounded. The Vanqor fleet captains will confirm. You have a chance to win a war without a battle."
Binalu and Talus gazed at the blinking lights on the holomap, each representing a ship with hundreds of lives aboard. They had a wordless communication with each other, then nodded.
"Tell the fleet to get into position but not to fire a shot unless ordered," Talus said.
"We will talk to Van-Ith, the ruler of Vanqor," Binalu said.
It was a tense time in the operations room. The generals, the Jedi, and the rulers watched the blinking lights on the map. They saw the Vanqor fleet approach. At the last possible moment, General Bycha gave the order for the Typha-Dor coalition forces to surround the Vanqor fleet. The movement was executed perfectly.
"Arrange for a comm transmission to the head of the fleet," General Bycha ordered.
While General Bycha spoke to the Vanqor captains, Binalu and Talus spoke to the Vanqor leader. The Jedi watched and waited. After a long negotiation, the Vanqors agreed to surrender and enter peace talks.
The Vanqor fleet slowly followed the Typha-Dor escorts to the surface of Typha-Dor, where they would remain for the duration of the talks.
"This will take some time to accomplish," Talus said to the Jedi.
"Thank you for your help. We are in your debt."
"Shalini and her crew were responsible for obtaining the invasion plans," Obi-Wan told them. "They risked their lives. They entrusted the disk to us while they were interred in a prisoner-of-war camp."
"Are they in danger?" General Bycha asked.
"Anakin was also a prisoner," Obi-Wan said. "There's a camp in the Tomo Crater region on Vanqor."