Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

thousands of guerrillas and insurgents the Empire's cruel dictatorship had spawned.Thousands more joined this Rebel Alliance. Mon Mothma became theacknowledged leader of all the galaxy's creatures who had been left homeless by theEmperor. Homeless, but not without hope. She traversed the room, now, to the holographic display where she conferredwith her two chief advisors, General Madine and Admiral Ackbar. Madine wasCorellian—tough, resourceful, if a bit of martinet. Ackbar was pure Calamarian—agentle, salmon-colored creature, with huge, sad eyes set in a high-domed head, andwebbed hands that made him more at home in water or free space than on board aship. But if the humans were the arm of the Rebellion, the Calamarians were thesoul—which isn't to say they couldn't fight with the best, when pushed to the limit.And the evil Empire had reached that limit. Lando Calrissian made his way through the crowd, now, scanning faces. He