{"product_id":"refugee-star-wars-legends-isbn-9780345428714","title":"Refugee: Star Wars Legends","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSwift and deadly, the Yuuzhan Vong have blasted their way across the galaxy—and now stand on the threshold of total victory. Yet a courageous few still dare to oppose them. . . . \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eRife with hostile cultures and outright enemies, the Unknown Regions holds many perils for Luke Skywalker and the Jedi, searching for Zonama Sekot, the living planet that may hold the key to dealing once and for all with the Yuuzhan Vong. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMeanwhile, on the edge of the galaxy and in the heart of a trusted ally, old enemies are stirring. The Yuuzhan Vong have inflamed long-forgotten vendettas that are even now building up to crisis point. And as Han and Leia journey on their quest to knit the unraveling galaxy back together, betrayal and deception await them. . . .\u003cb\u003eSean Williams\u003c\/b\u003e and \u003cb\u003eShane Dix\u003c\/b\u003e are the bestselling and award-winning coauthors of the Evergence series. Their last novels were \u003ci\u003eEchoes of Earth\u003c\/i\u003e and its sequel \u003ci\u003eOrphans of Earth\u003c\/i\u003e. Individually, both have numerous short story credits, and Williams is a successful author in his own right. His novels include \u003ci\u003eMetal Fatigue\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Resurrected Man\u003c\/i\u003e. His fantasy series, The Books of the Change, concluded in December 2002.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWilliams and Dix both live in Adelaide, South Australia, a city Salman Rushdie once described as the ideal setting for a horror story. Dix lives with his wife, Nydia, and has two children from a previous relationship. Williams lives with writer Kirsty Brooks and DJs in his spare time.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor more information, please visit www.seanwilliams.com.au.It was a huge pit: easily thirty meters deep and almost\u003cbr\u003ea kilometer across. Mighty columns stretched up into the sky, reaching for the planet that hung in the blackness like an overripe fruit about to fall. Around her on the ground were a number of ships, some secured in their birthing bays by restraining carapaces, others just lying on the ground in various stages of disrepair and decay.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe knew the place to be an old spaceport—one that\u003cbr\u003ewas both comfortingly familiar and disconcertingly alien.\u003cbr\u003eShe wanted to climb into one of the derelict spaceships\u003cbr\u003eand fly off to the planet up above—for she knew that here,\u003cbr\u003eat least, she might be safe—but the dilapidated condition\u003cbr\u003eof the ships told her that this simply wasn’t an option.\u003cbr\u003eThe spaceport and all its craft had lain unused for many\u003cbr\u003eyears. It was abandoned, just like the world beneath her\u003cbr\u003efeet—as abandoned as she felt herself to be.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSomeone was standing behind her. She turned, startled,\u003cbr\u003eand found herself staring at a distant reflection of\u003cbr\u003eherself. Only it wasn’t her at all. This person had scars\u003cbr\u003eacross her forehead. Reaching up, she realized she didn’t\u003cbr\u003ecarry any such scars. The only scars she carried were the\u003cbr\u003eones on her arms, and they felt completely different. Her\u003cbr\u003ereflection’s scars stood out boldly, proudly, and had been\u003cbr\u003ecarved into the flesh with \u003ci\u003epurpose\u003c\/i\u003e. Hers, on the other\u003cbr\u003ehand, were a product of anger and an intense desire to\u003cbr\u003eremove something she’d thought she had seen lurking\u003cbr\u003ebeneath her skin . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“There’s nowhere left to run,” the ghostly reflection said.\u003cbr\u003eIn the distance came the howl of the lizard beast.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Not for you, either,” she pointed out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDespite obvious effort to hide it, there was fear behind\u003cbr\u003ethe reflection’s gaze.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Why do you want to hurt me?” she asked it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Because you want to hurt me.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I want to be left alone! I want only to be free!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“As do I.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“But I \u003ci\u003ebelong\u003c\/i\u003e here!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe reflection surveyed their surroundings, then faced\u003cbr\u003eher again. “As do I.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe howl of the creature sounded again, louder this\u003cbr\u003etime, and closer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“It can smell us,” the reflection said. “It can smell my\u003cbr\u003efear, and it can smell your guilt.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I have nothing to feel guilty for.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“No, you don’t. And yet there it is, nonetheless.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe looked into herself, then, and saw the guilt of\u003cbr\u003ewhich the reflection spoke. It had always been there, she\u003cbr\u003eknew; she just hadn’t wanted to see it. But now the amorphous\u003cbr\u003eand neglected emotion took shape, forming into\u003cbr\u003ewords that rose in her thoughts, in her throat, finally demanding\u003cbr\u003erelease:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhy am I alive when the one I love is dead?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eAnd with this came a deafening roar from the lizard\u003cbr\u003ecreature. It was a roar of anger, of remorse, and of regret;\u003cbr\u003eit was a bellow whose echo called back to her out of the\u003cbr\u003edark over and over again, fading each time until it be-came\u003cbr\u003elittle more than a far-off whisper, a distant speck in\u003cbr\u003ethe dark . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eTahiri . . . Tahiri . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Tahiri?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe hand shaking her shoulder did more to dispel the\u003cbr\u003edream than the sound of her own name being spoken.\u003cbr\u003eShe blinked, then looked around vaguely at her surroundings.\u003cbr\u003eThe walls so close around her seemed small\u003cbr\u003ein comparison to the dreamscape she’d just left—so much\u003cbr\u003emore restricting.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Come on, kid—snap out of it.”\u003cbr\u003eHan’s voice was rough and hard, like the hands shaking\u003cbr\u003eher. She looked at him through tear-stained eyes and\u003cbr\u003esaw his worried and fatigued expression. Leia stepped\u003cbr\u003ebetween them, her gentle features smiling reassuringly at\u003cbr\u003eTahiri.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Are you okay?” she asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I’m awake,” the girl mumbled hazily. Then, realizing\u003cbr\u003eshe hadn’t answered the question, she nodded and\u003cbr\u003eadded: “I think I’m all right.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHer head was pounding, and the harsh light felt like a\u003cbr\u003enaked sun burning into her eyes. She winced, blinking\u003cbr\u003eback more tears as she tried to sit up. She felt strange,\u003cbr\u003econfused—and this confusion was only magnified when\u003cbr\u003eshe saw where she was: lying on the bed in Han and\u003cbr\u003eLeia’s suite.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What happened?” she asked. Even as she spoke the\u003cbr\u003ewords, she knew the answer: the same thing that happened\u003cbr\u003ebefore, on Galantos and elsewhere. The illusion of\u003cbr\u003eignorance was her only defense. “What am I doing\u003cbr\u003ehere?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You don’t remember?” Leia asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBoth of Anakin’s parents were standing over her,\u003cbr\u003edressed in their night robes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I—” she started. How could she tell them the truth\u003cbr\u003ewhen she herself wasn’t even sure what it was? “I was\u003cbr\u003elooking for something.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeia held out the silver pendant. Its many-tentacled,\u003cbr\u003esnarling visage seemed to mock her from its cradle of\u003cbr\u003esoft, human flesh. “You were looking for this, weren’t\u003cbr\u003eyou?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTahiri nodded, embarrassed. “It—it calls to me. It reminds\u003cbr\u003eme of . . .” She trailed off, unable to put what she\u003cbr\u003ewas feeling into words.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Of who you are?” Leia suggested.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe words seemed to stab a sharp pain in her mind, to\u003cbr\u003ewhich she responded with anger. “I know who I am! I’m\u003cbr\u003eTahiri Veila!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeia crouched down beside the bed to look up into the\u003cbr\u003egirl’s face. Tahiri didn’t want to meet her eyes, but the\u003cbr\u003ePrincess was hard to resist. “Are you?” she asked in a\u003cbr\u003elow, searching tone. “You don’t seem like the Tahiri I\u003cbr\u003eonce knew.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What are you talking about, Leia?” Han said, looking\u003cbr\u003eequal parts exasperated and tired. “What exactly is going\u003cbr\u003eon here?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Sometimes I think we forget what happened to her on\u003cbr\u003eYavin Four, Han.” Leia kept her warm, reassuring eyes\u003cbr\u003eon Tahiri as she spoke. Then she stood and addressed her\u003cbr\u003ehusband fully. “The Yuuzhan Vong did something terrible\u003cbr\u003eto her while she was in their hands—something we\u003cbr\u003ecan’t even begin to understand. They tried to turn her\u003cbr\u003einto something other than human. You don’t just get over\u003cbr\u003ethat easily. It takes time.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“But I thought she was given the okay. Wasn’t that\u003cbr\u003ewhy she was invited to join us on this mission?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe two kept talking, but Tahiri had stopped listening.\u003cbr\u003eAlthough he probably didn’t mean it, there was a suggestion\u003cbr\u003eof mistrust in Han’s words that was hurtful to her,\u003cbr\u003eand for a brief moment she felt overwhelmed by grief—a\u003cbr\u003egrief that was exacerbated by the way Anakin’s parents\u003cbr\u003ekept talking about her in the third person, as if she\u003cbr\u003eweren’t even there. It made her feel strangely removed\u003cbr\u003efrom what was taking place around her . . .\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I wasn’t asleep,” Leia was saying to Han in response\u003cbr\u003eto something he’d said. “Jaina told me what Jag found\u003cbr\u003eon Galantos; I was expecting Tahiri to come for it. That’s\u003cbr\u003ewhy I instructed Cakhmain and Meewalh to stay out of\u003cbr\u003esight—to let Tahiri come for the pendant.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs she said this, Leia gestured off to one side, and for\u003cbr\u003ethe first time, Tahiri noticed the Princess’s Noghri guards\u003cbr\u003estanding there.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHan sighed. “I still would have preferred it if you’d\u003cbr\u003etold me what was going on.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“There was no need, Han. I wanted to see what would\u003cbr\u003ehappen.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“So what’s causing this?” he asked. “You think it\u003cbr\u003emight be Anakin?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeia shook her head. “It’s more than that; much more.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe’s hiding something—from herself as well as everyone\u003cbr\u003eelse.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe accusation stabbed at Tahiri’s heart, making her\u003cbr\u003ejump to her feet. “How can you say that?” she cried,\u003cbr\u003etaking a step forward. But a single step was all she managed\u003cbr\u003ebefore Cakhmain moved to stop her, taking Tahiri\u003cbr\u003eby the shoulders to hold her back from Leia. She wriggled\u003cbr\u003ein his slender hands but couldn’t break free. “I would\u003cbr\u003enever hurt either of you! You’re—” She stopped, remembering\u003cbr\u003eJacen’s note back on Mon Calamari. “You’re my\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003efamily\u003c\/i\u003e.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHan stepped over to her, then, taking her hands. “Hey,\u003cbr\u003etake it easy, kid.” He wiped at the fresh tears on her\u003cbr\u003echeek with the back of his hand. “No one’s accusing you\u003cbr\u003eof anything, Tahiri. Just relax, okay?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe did so, feeling oddly calmed by the large man’s\u003cbr\u003erough but friendly voice. She saw Leia motion to her\u003cbr\u003eNoghri guard, who immediately released Tahiri and retreated\u003cbr\u003eto the shadows.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeia came forward. “I’m sorry, Tahiri. I didn’t mean to\u003cbr\u003eupset you.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTahiri didn’t know what to say—she felt foolish and\u003cbr\u003eashamed at her outburst—so in the end just nodded her\u003cbr\u003eacceptance of the Princess’s apology and said nothing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Tell me, though, Tahiri,” Leia said. “Do you have\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eany\u003c\/i\u003e idea what’s been going on in your head these last\u003cbr\u003ecouple of years?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I-I—sometimes I black out,” Tahiri stammered awkwardly.\u003cbr\u003e“I have these . . . \u003ci\u003edreams\u003c\/i\u003e that—”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“That tell you you’re somebody else?” Leia offered.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis brought her up defensive again. “My name is\u003cbr\u003eTahiri Veila! That’s who \u003ci\u003eI am\u003c\/i\u003e!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeia took Tahiri’s shoulders in her hands and looked the\u003cbr\u003egirl in the face with her penetrating brown eyes. “I know\u003cbr\u003ethis isn’t easy, Tahiri. But you must try to understand. I\u003cbr\u003ewant you to think back to just before you blacked out.\u003cbr\u003eDo you remember what I said to you?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTahiri thought about this. “You called my name.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLeia looked over to Han.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“What?” Tahiri said, angered by the almost conspiratorial\u003cbr\u003elooks being exchanged between them. “You \u003ci\u003edid\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003ecall my name! I heard you!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSympathy shimmered in Leia’s eyes. “I didn’t call you\u003cbr\u003eby \u003ci\u003eyour\u003c\/i\u003e name, Tahiri. I called you Riina.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA feeling as cold as ice spread across Tahiri’s shoulders\u003cbr\u003eand ran down her back in a horrible, clammy rush. At\u003cbr\u003ethe same time, a terrible blackness rose up in her mind,\u003cbr\u003ethreatening to engulf her. “No,” she mumbled, shaking\u003cbr\u003eher head slowly and fighting the feeling. “That’s not\u003cbr\u003etrue.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“It is true, Tahiri. Before, when you blacked out, you\u003cbr\u003ewere shouting at me in Yuuzhan Vong. You were calling\u003cbr\u003eme something that not even Threepio could understand.\u003cbr\u003eYou weren’t Tahiri, then.” She paused uncomfortably\u003cbr\u003ebefore pronouncing the terrible truth. “You were Riina\u003cbr\u003eof Domain Kwaad, the personality that Mezhan Kwaad\u003cbr\u003etried to turn you into. Somehow, the Riina personality is\u003cbr\u003estill inside you.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTahiri shook her head again, more vigorously this time,\u003cbr\u003ewanting to deny the spreading darkness as much as the\u003cbr\u003ewords themselves. “It—it \u003ci\u003ecan’t\u003c\/i\u003e be true. It just can’t be!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“It is, Tahiri,” Leia said. “Believe me. And the sooner\u003cbr\u003eyou accept that, the sooner we can start doing—”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“No!” Tahiri screamed in a pitch that surprised her-self\u003cbr\u003eas much as it obviously did Leia, who took a step\u003cbr\u003eback at the outburst.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs though a dam had burst, she was suddenly in motion.\u003cbr\u003eWith the full strength of the Force flowing through\u003cbr\u003eher, fueled by her desperation and her need to escape, she\u003cbr\u003esnatched the pendant as she pushed past Leia and Han\u003cbr\u003eand headed for the door—too quick for even Cakhmain\u003cbr\u003eto grab her. C-3PO was standing on the other side of the\u003cbr\u003edoor when she went through, but she didn’t even give\u003cbr\u003ehim time to utter a single word of objection; she just\u003cbr\u003eshoved him aside as hard as she could, throwing the golden\u003cbr\u003edroid clean off his feet and into the wall. Then she was\u003cbr\u003ethrough the door and out of the suite, running as if her\u003cbr\u003every life depended on it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe saw nothing but corridors flashing by, and could\u003cbr\u003efeel nothing but the cool pendant of Yun-Yammka against\u003cbr\u003eher palm, grinning in vile satisfaction.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnd somewhere beyond the sound of her own sobbing,\u003cbr\u003eshe could hear a name being called. That she couldn’t be\u003cbr\u003esure the name even belonged to her made her cry that\u003cbr\u003emuch harder, and run that much faster.","brand":"Random House Worlds","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46304177488101,"sku":"NP9780345428714","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780345428714.jpg?v=1767735576","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/refugee-star-wars-legends-isbn-9780345428714","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}