After several hours of hard climbing, they were close to the coordinates of the outpost. The climbing was more gradual now, and they were able to move faster. The darkness grew around them.
Obi-Wan checked the coordinates. "The outpost should be right here."
He squinted ahead in the now-gloomy light. He saw nothing, just the same blank whiteness that they'd been traveling in since they'd started.
Had his eyesight been affected? He checked the coordinates again.
"I know where it is," Anakin said suddenly, striding forward.
Obi-Wan followed him. He relied on coordinates. Anakin relied on his perceptions. He couldn't see it, but he could feel it.
Ahead, what at first appeared to be a sheer ice cliff was really the wall of the outpost. Obi-Wan could now see that ice had completely covered the structure, which was made of a thick white material able to withstand extreme cold without cracking.
There seemed to be no entry, and no way to alert anyone inside that they were there. Anakin pounded on the wall. There was no response.
Now that they were standing still, the wind and cold cut into them, insinuating cold fingers inside their clothes. Obi-Wan wondered if they would have to set up camp and try again in the morning.
Just then the ice began to groan. A door slowly eased open, pushing against the ice that caked it. It stopped halfway.
A slender human woman stood, her hands on a blaster pointed at them.
"We are Jedi, sent by Typha-Dor," Obi-Wan said. "You must be Shalini."
He had studied the text docs of the crew during the journey from the Temple. Shalini was the crew leader. Her husband, Mezdec, was the communications officer.
Slowly, the blaster lowered. Shalini's silvery eyes sent them a sharp glance. "So our leaders have remembered we exist."
"They could not reach you. Your comm unit is down."
"I'm aware of that. It's been down for over a month. Glad they decided to check on us." She stood aside. "Come in."
Obi-Wan ducked his head to get through the doorway. They stood at the entrance to a small room. The lights were at half power. A weapons rack stood to one side. On the other was a console with surveillance and data equipment. Another console was near the doorway. Obi-Wan noted that it was damaged, with scorch marks indicating close blaster fire. Positioned around the room were four other crew members, all with blasters pointed at the doorway.
"It's all right," Shalini said. "They've been sent by Typha-Dor." She tucked her blaster into her belt.
One man leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. He looked weak and pale. "About time."
A tall, muscular woman slipped her blaster into a shoulder holster.
"Past time."
The welcome wasn't quite the friendly one Obi-Wan had imagined. Then a tall man in a thick pullover strode forward. "Don't mind us. It's been a long haul. We're very glad to see you."
"This is Mezdec," Shalini said. "He's our first officer. I am Shalini, the leader of the group. The others are Thik" — the weak-looking man nodded at them — "Rajana, and Olanz." The muscular woman nodded curtly at them, and the other man, bald and as tall as Mezdec, raised a hand in greeting.
"But where are the rest?" Obi-Wan asked. "There are supposed to be ten of you."
"Not anymore," Shalini said. "We had a saboteur in our midst. Samdew was the communications officer. We discovered that he was a spy for the Vanqors. He destroyed our comm system right after we were able to intercept the Vanqor invasion plans."
"He also disabled our transport," Mezdec said. "So we've been stuck here. We're almost out of food, so we're especially glad to see you."
"In that case, let's begin with a meal." Obi-Wan reached for his survival pack. "We brought extra rations in case."
He and Anakin doled out the protein packs. The group sat down and split up the food. While they ate, Obi-Wan scanned the equipment. He took a second look at the damaged comm control console. "What happened?"
"It was the middle of the night," Mezdec said. He swallowed and pushed the rest of his food away. "I was awake, and I heard Samdew at the comm unit. I thought he was doing a sweep — we monitored the channels constantly, and I assumed he was checking to see if anything turned up. I was awake anyway, so I got up to see if anything was happening."
"There was quite a bit of chatter on the system," Shalini said. "The Vanqors knew we had been able to monitor their comm channels. In order to confuse us, they'd flood us with information. That made Samdew a crucial member of our team. He was our senior information analyst."
"I stood in the doorway. He didn't hear me," Mezdec said, his eyes clouding at the memory. "And I saw that he wasn't monitoring transmissions.
He was transmitting to the Vanqor fleet. I realized he was a spy. I blasted the console. I didn't know what else to do. It was the fastest way to stop him. I didn't want to kill him. But he turned and moved toward me, and the next shot hit him in the chest."
"It's all right, Mezdec," Shalini said quietly. She put her hand on his arm.
"I heard the blaster fire," Rajana said, taking up the account, as Mezdec had fallen silent. "I heard Samdew fall, and I ran in. While he was on the ground, he tried to shoot Mezdec just as Thik came in after me. Thik was hit in the knee and went down." Rajana looked at Mezdec. "I was the one who fired the fatal blast. Not you."
"Samdew died," Shalini said. "What we didn't know was that before he died, he activated the fire system in the sleeping quarters. The room goes into lockdown, and all the oxygen is sucked out."
"He had disabled the warning siren, but not the procedure. Four of our crew were in there," Mezdec said. "They suffocated. By the time we realized what had happened, they were dead."
"He meant for all of you to be in there," Anakin said.
"Yes," Shalini said. "We imagine that he was sending his last transmission. He didn't need to be undercover anymore, and the easiest thing to do was get rid of us."
"If the Vanqors know your location, why haven't they attacked?" Obi- Wan asked.