Omega Sqadron Black Knights
Chapter 20

Martellon seethed silently as he strode along the corridor towards the waiting elevator, the Emperor’s guard trailing mutely behind him. He knew he would have to bring his emotions under control before the audience with Palpatine, but that could wait for a few minutes…

Right now he took the time to let the anger and frustration fold round him, taking strength from it.

Kazlyn Hawkspar had been so close to breaking that he had been able to taste the victory. She had been so close to breaking that she had even ceased trying to hide behind the name rank and number she had been so stubbornly clinging too since he had started questioning her.

And then, just at the point of triumph, his success had been thwarted by a summons from the Emperor…

Martellon had no doubt that the reprieve would give Hawkspar the strength she needed to resist him for another few hours. The medical attention alone would see to that… but Hawkspar was as close to dying as she was to breaking and he had no desire to face the wrath of the Emperor should he have to report that the Rebel Commander had died before he could return to her…

As the elevator doors closed behind him, Martellon took a deep breath, calming himself, bringing his emotions under control and preparing himself for his audience with Palpatine.

~*~

Lainy Kal’Ten watched the last TIE fighter die at the hands of Ryven Soieen. Emaar, his wingman, had been particularly reticent about firing on the TIE, Lainy noted. It was only Emaar’s second mission with Omega, she allowed, and there was all that baggage about Edraa being her sister… Still, it might be worth keeping an eye on her.

Decision made and instantly discarded for more immediately important things, Lainy turned her attention to Xen, obeying the Acting CO’s orders to regroup.

With the base safe for the moment, Xen searched the tactical screen, smiling in relief when she saw the frail emergency homing beacon. She keyed her mike, “Knight Two, Chezz is calling for help. You should have him on tactical…”

Lainy searched the screen then grinned, confirming, “I see him, Knight Leader...”

“Roger,” Xen confirmed, then ordered, “Go and see if he’s in one piece then join us up above.”

Lainy swung her fighter round and headed towards the beacon, her wingman following, “Roger that, Knight Leader.”

Xen turned her attention back to the rest of the fighters, switching the tactical screen to show what was happening in the outer atmosphere of the planet and deeper into space. The picture wasn’t good. One of the Star Destroyers was closing on the Home Two. The other Destroyer was trying to target the ships hugging the outer ionosphere, but the atmosphere was sending their shots wild. And it looked as if Hobbie had deployed the X-wings with him into hit-and-run attacks on the second Destroyer.

Quick thinking, Xen considered.

“Aryad Base, this is Knight Leader,” Edraa began. “You’re free to evacuate the last of your personnel. Get them to their transports, but remain on the ground! Acknowledge!”

“Roger that, Knight Leader. The last of the personnel are evacuating now…”

“Copied, Aryad. One of the Knights is down; Knight Two’s checking his position now. I think he’d appreciate a ride back…”

“I’m already on it, Knight Leader,” Catterin Poom-Bar told her. “Tell him to hold tight and I’ll pick him up as soon as my passengers are strapped in.”

“Roger that,” Xen acknowledged, asking, “Knight Two did you copy?”

“Copied,” Lainy assured her.

“Roger,” Xen acknowledged again, then ordered, “Aryad, keep your ears open and we’ll send orders when we can… Break break,” Edraa continued, not waiting for an acknowledgement, turning her attention back to the squadron. “All wings, listen up. Knight Four has organised hit and run attacks on the Star Destroyer that’s targeting the ships in the atmosphere. We’re going to join him. Stay in your pairs and watch your backs! On my mark…”

Lainy listened to the orders, her attention on her tactical screen as she flew low across the sand and rock terrain, following the distress beacon Chezz Traykar was sending up. “Knight Five, Knight Five, this is Knight Two, do you copy?”

Nothing…

Lainy tried again. “Knight Five, Knight Five, this is Knight Two. Chezzie, do you copy?”

Again there was nothing, but Lainy noticed that the distress beacon had moved slightly. In fact it was moving slowly towards her and Lainy grinned, realising that Chezz had obviously not been badly injured and was making his way towards Aryad Base. She glanced back, checking on Dav. He was tucked in behind her to starboard, following her every move.

Lainy keyed the mike again, just in case Chezz could hear her but couldn’t reply, “Knight Five, we’ve got your beacon and we’re coming to check your still in one piece…”

Trudging painfully across the sandy terrain, Chezz heard the noise of the engines and lifted his head, searching the horizon, trying to gauge what direction the sound was coming from, trying to work out if it was TIE or X-wing engines he could hear. At this distance it was difficult to tell…

Then, dead ahead, two X-wings swept over the rise, circling round behind him. Chezz grinned, waving at them, staying where he was until one of the X-wings had landed in a cloud of dust, the other keeping watch from above. Then he limped towards the fighter, knowing that he would still be on his own, knowing that they couldn’t take him back to Aryad, but feeling lots better now that he knew he had been found.

Lainy cracked the canopy open, pulling off her helmet and dropping it on the seat as she stood up. She swung her legs over the side of the fighter, climbed down the rungs and dropped to the ground. Walking toward the front of the fighter, she opened the belly locker and pulled out some basic supplies, knowing that Chezz would have lost most of his survival gear with the X-wing.

She closed the locker and turned, walking towards the bedraggled figure of Chezz Traykar. “Boy, am I glad to see you…” he greeted with a grin.

Lainy smiled back at him, handing over the equipment, asking, “How bad’s the leg?”

“Not too bad,” he assured her. “Just twisted my knee. Makes it slow going but at least it’s going…”

She nodded, telling him, “There’s some painkillers in there somewhere, and a canteen of water. Stay put and the SAR will come to pick you up. I’ll give her your location on the way out. They’re evacuating the last of the Aryad people now and she’s just strapping in some passengers. And you’ve got my emergency communicator in there…”

He nodded, “No worries, Boss… Been a while since I relaxed on the sand and got myself a sun tan…” Then he held out his hand, telling her, “Give them hell for me.”

Lainy shook his hand, nodding, finding a smile. “Hell they’ll get. You have my word.”

~*~

“Admiral…” a quiet voice warned Notrahw. “Shields have failed…”

The Admiral nodded, knowing that this was the end. Without the shields, the cruiser was now laid bare to the Imperial firepower. It was only a matter of time before she was crippled and unable to defend herself. Their own barrage was still doing damage to the huge ship following them, but it was going to be too little, too late.

“Continue targeting the Star Destroyer,” he ordered calmly, pushing as much confidence into his voice as he could. There was no one on the bridge who believed they were going to get out of this alive, but he was damned if he was going to let them think that he believed it too.

He watched the screen, seeing more of the Omega X-wings swarming up from the surface to engage the second Star Destroyer.

“Sir!” another voice called. “Sensors report major explosions within the Star Destroyer. Her speed is dropping off…”

Notrahw rose to his feet, eyes locked on the screen. A spit of flame appeared from the Destroyer’s port side, expanding into an explosion that ripped along the length of the huge ship.
“Cease fire!” Notrahw ordered. “Cease fire!”

He heard his ordered being relayed through the ship, watching almost spellbound as another explosion blew a huge hole in the bow of the Destroyer. The Imperial ship was still firing at them, but only the rear guns. All the forward batteries had either been destroyed or had fallen silent. Notrahw held his breath…

The huge ship ahead of them swung slowly, the stern sliding down and towards them. Another explosion erupted from the Star Destroyer, almost cracking the ship in half. The ship shuddered, the rear batteries were still firing, the front of the ship now a mass of flame. Tiny escape pods burst from the Destroyers hull, getting caught in Pryatt’s gravity as soon as they were launched. The unlucky ones were caught by the ship’s wildly fired laser bolts. They blossomed into flowers of orange that died almost instantly.

Notrahw sank back into his seat, watching the destruction in numb dismay. They were the enemy, but they were still living beings dying horrifically…

Attention fastened on the horror unfolding before him, he didn’t see the laser bolt that sliced toward the Home Two and impacted with the bridge. He saw the screen shattering, the front bulkhead fragmenting and warping, the force throwing the bridge personnel toward him. For a brief moment, Notrahw felt himself start to float in the weightlessness of vacuum… Then a wall of superheated air hit him and there was nothing but darkness.

~*~

Strapped into the confines of an escape pod, Aryes Drake felt the blast shudder through the Home Two. Still clutching the bottles of Sullustan Glid wine, he glanced at Andy Sedalbi.

Andy returned the look, murmuring, “That hit the hull. Shields must be down…”

Ary nodded, “We’ll be launching any second now, then.”

He chewed on the inside of his lip, bracing himself for the sudden kick of the escape pod being jettisoned. “Any second now…”

The time crawled past.

“Any… second… now…” Ary repeated.

“There haven’t been any other hits,” Zoi put in quietly, glancing at her sister. “Maybe they’re not going to launch…”

“Or maybe the damned thing’s stuck!” Andy sighed in disgust then muttered under his breath, “Just my bloody luck! Stuck in an escape pod with you lot and it won’t even escape!”

Still muttering, he undid his restraints.

“What,” Ary asked, “are you doing?”

“Getting out to shove!” Andy shot back. “I thought it might help!”

Swearing softly, Ary handed the twins the bottles of wine he was nursing. “Here, keep these safe for me…”

“Where are you going?” Zoi asked, her hands trembling as she took one of the bottles.

“To help this big lug push!” Ary told her, reaching into one of the compartments above him, dragging out some oxygen masks. “If we’re stuck, some of the other pods might be. Here,” he said, turning to Sedalbi and handing him one, “We might need these….”

“Thanks,” Andy smiled, taking one of the masks, putting the strap over his head. “Ready?” he asked.

“Ready,” Ary confirmed.

Andy hit the door release switch and stepped into the corridor. Ary followed him, the escape pod door swinging shut behind them. The lights in the corridor flickered slightly, but there was more than enough light to see. It was chilly, though and Ary knew that life support must have failed, at least on this deck.

Still there was no sign of fire or smoke. “I’ll go this way,” he told Andy, pointing down the corridor. “You go that way…”

Andy nodded and headed down the corridor as Ary turned and walked the other way, checking the escape pods as he went. They were all still here…

Maybe, he considered, it hadn’t been a breach to the hull that they’d felt shudder through the ship. Maybe it had just been amplified in the pod. On the other hand, the life support was definitely failing. Maybe there was some sort of malfunction on this deck…

He stopped, keying one of the commlinks on the wall, not wanting to take the respiration mask off and knowing that Andy wouldn’t hear him through it that far along the corridor. “Andy? Andy? Hey, Sedalbi! You there?”

He saw Andy lift a commlink further down. “Here,” the other engineer confirmed. “All the pods in this end are still in place… And is it just me or is it getting cold in here?”

“Must be a malfunction on this deck,” Ary hazarded. “If life support’s down, there may be a short circuit somewhere. You check that end and I’ll check this end…”

~*~

The crowd cheered the athletes wildly, the cacophony of sound almost but not quite drowning out the blare of a trumpet fanfare. The sun sank slowly behind the twin towers of the main entrance setting the few clouds in the eastern sky alight with golden and bronzed reds. The bounty hunter walked casually along one of the elliptical corridors that ran around the outside of the arena, heading for the hashna stall. He perused the wares for a moment then bought a succulent meat pastry that he hadn’t tasted in years.

Turning, he walked across to lean against the balcony beside a blond man resplendent in black Imperial Naval uniform. Unwrapping his purchase, he savoured the aroma for a moment before biting into it. It tasted better than it had ever done.

Major Crix Madine glanced at him and smiled, “Still eating that muck, my friend?”

Mirgot Risnuu nodded, finishing the mouthful of pastry, giving a small sigh of delight before answering, “Only when I can afford it.” He pulled the wrapper down a little further, asking the Imperial Intelligence officer, “So, what brings you to this grand spectacle?”

Crix applauded politely as a group of winning athletes stepped down from the podium, “I’m in trouble, my friend. It’s only a matter of time before they pick me up.”

Mirgot swore softly then asked, “Hours or days?”

“A day at the most,” he replied. “In fact I’m rather relieved you got here so soon…” Then as one of the sprinters put on a last burst of speed he yelled, “Take him, Man!” Only to make a small sound of disgust as the sprinter still only made second place, accusing, “He’s probably Corellian!”

“So are you,” Risnuu reminded him. “I left Bargarron at the ship, keeping the engines warm. I’ll get him to file a flight plan. We can leave as soon as we get clearance.”

“Not just yet. I’d like to make a small stop first…”

“What the hells do you mean?” Mirgot growled softly. “Make sense!”

Crix turned, walking away and Mirgot followed him. “I saw a chance,” he explained softly over the muted roar of the crowd, “to get the plans for the shield generator on the Endor project. But with the Organa incident I thought it prudent not to put you in further danger. So I found another source. Only my source was discovered. I found out too late to stop the Alliance sending an agent to get him out. The source is dead. The agent is now being questioned in the bowels of the Imperial Palace...”

Mirgot whistled softly, “You should have used me! My mother always said sentimentality would your downfall, Crix.” He took another bite of the pastry.

“Hmm,” Madine agreed. Then he sighed, anger at his own stupidity flaring, “I’ve covered my tracks. But they are already shredding the access logs. It’s only a matter of time before they find me.”

“And the problem is…?” Risnuu asked through a mouthful of food.

“The Rebel agent is Darrik Hawkspar’s daughter.”

“Hawkspar?” Mirgot recognised the name but couldn’t immediately place it.

“He’s on the Ruling Council,” Crix explained. “Mothma’s left hand, shall we say…?”

He paused; bowing elegantly at two grandly dressed women who strolled passed, arm in arm. “The Emperor is, by all accounts, displeased that he wasn’t informed of her capture,” he continued finally, “and unless her current interrogation breaks her quickly, I have no doubt that she’ll be handed over to Lord Vader. We both know he’ll definitely break her and when she’s given him everything she knows, then I’d lay odds that the Emperor will decide to have her publicly executed. If that hits Rebel morale hard enough, the Emperor may see that as the time to move against them.”

“And the problem is?” Risnuu repeated.

“I’d like to bring her out with me.”

Mirgot nearly choked on the pastry, “What?”

“I’d like to bring her out.”

“Didn’t you say that she was in the bowels of the Imperial Palace?”

“Yes.”

“So what, we just walk in and take her?”

Crix gave him an evil smile, “I’ve always liked the simplicity of smash and grab!”

He glanced at one of the monitors, “If my security clearance still stands, and if we time it right, the plan might just work.”

“And if it doesn’t?” Mirgot asked, throwing the wrapper in the refuse receptacle.

“Then we leave without her.”

~ * ~

Elhen Anders turned as Xen Laruna swore and slammed the desk with the flat of her hand. The Major watched as Laruna calmed herself, took a deep breath, stretched her fingers then set to work again. Pushing herself out of the chair, Anders walked towards her, asking, “Problems?”

Laruna nodded, muttering something uncomplimentary under her breath about Imperial systems. “There was so much traffic on the frequencies going into Coruscant that I kept getting bumped for more important messages. I’ve only got fragments of information… And I can’t correlate anything while we’re in hyperspace… Some of the information was distorted, though. I’m trying to decipher it…”

She sighed, then continued, “And getting nowhere fast….”

Elhen slipped into the seat beside her, “Have you managed to get anything concrete at all?”

Laruna nodded, lifting a hand from the keyboard to push a pad towards the Major, “Some… but nothing I can substantiate. There was some sort of altercation involving Imperial personnel. One dead, the other taken prisoner, but I can’t confirm who it is. Can’t find anything official… yet…”

Elhen looked through the pad, keying through the pages, drinking in all of the information. “Nothing on the name Tinnan?” she asked. The name was familiar, as was the man’s occupation, but there had to be hundreds of engineers in the universe called Tinnan.

And no matter how many times she had told herself that since she had listened to the recording of Commander’s Hawkspar’s message, she still couldn’t shake the feeling that she knew who this man Tinnan was.

“Nothing,” Laruna confirmed.

“Nothing on any of the news channels?” If the Empire had arrested the daughter of one of Mon Mothma’s advisors, they might take great delight in throwing it all over their current affairs programs…

Laruna shook her head, “Nothing yet, but the Imperial games are in full swing. They might be biding their time, waiting for the right time to announce it.” She frowned, swearing softly again before grinning and carrying on, “Or they may not announce it at all…”

Until they’ve broken her and are ready to execute her, Elhen thought bitterly. She put the pad down, “We need answers as quickly as we can, Xen…”

The Lieutenant Commander threw her a look that said I know, don’t hassle me!

Elhen smiled and nodded, pushing herself to her feet. “I’ll leave you to it… Can I take this pad?”

“It’s all yours,” Laruna told her, already preoccupied with what she was trying to do. Being in hyperspace made things more difficult, but there were things she could do. And right now, any information she could get was important.

Once they dropped out of hyperspace it would be easier. And if they dropped out of hyperspace and actually stayed there for more than half an hour she might even get something useful… The time delay because they were so far from Coruscant was bad enough without the complete distortion of hyperspace…

“You know,” Laruna muttered to no one in particular, “For an organisation that requires complete domination over every piece of information sent to and from Coruscant, the Empire is doing a pretty lousy job of safeguarding it...”

Granted, they pretty much had the outgoing signals locked down, but it had been a piece of cake for her to piggyback on inbound frequencies. The only problem she had had was getting established before the frequency was locked-out for another incoming message. She could get around that once she had scanned all the frequencies and set up a program that persuaded the central communication computer that her signal was more important than anything else. Given half a day, Laruna was quite certain that she could crack the Imperial headquarters wide open.

Elhen Anders paused for a moment as her office door hissed open, glancing back at Laruna. The Lieutenant Commander hadn’t had much time to get anything before they jumped into hyperspace. The information had come in painfully slowly, but Laruna was the best slicer Elhen had ever worked with and she’d procured more information than the Major had dare to hope for...

Breaking her reverie, Elhen headed into her office, leaning back against the door as it closed behind her and rubbing her hands across her face.

Pushing herself off the door, she wandered across to her desk, re-reading the information Laruna had given her. An altercation had been logged but not followed up. There were no names listed, no times and no more pertinent details other than two people being arrested, one of them being shot while trying to escape.

Kazlyn Hawkspar’s words echoed in Elhen’s mind. “Mission aborted. Say again, mission aborted. Imperials closing in!”

“Mission aborted. It was a trap!”

Instinct, born of her years as an Intelligence operative, told Elhen that the two people who had been arrested were Commander Hawkspar and the engineer she had been sent in to bring out. Elhen had not been given the name of Kazlyn’s contact, but that same instinct was also telling her that the engineer’s name was Tinnan.

Sinking into her seat, Elhen let her memories flow back to a meeting four years before. Maggs Ronnoc had been there… as had her fiancé, Griss Tinnan. Back then he had been a line manager in a Corellian engineering company. The meeting had been to celebrate the fact that Griss was going to be involved in the building of what was now the Lord Darth Vader’s ship – the Executor.

Elhen had a dreadful feeling that up until very recently, Griss had been working in the company’s offices in Coruscant, still spying for the Rebel Alliance…

That little voice in the back of her mind, that little sixth sense, was telling her that Griss Tinnan was Kazlyn Hawkspar’s contact…

And one of them was now dead.

~*~


The deck beneath Soosaan’s feet shuddered again, almost pitching her to the floor this time. She staggered back a few steps, but kept her balance. The lights flickered again then failed, plunging the medical section into darkness. The uninterrupted power system kicked in, smoothly taking over the life-saving systems in the medical bays, but the lights remained off.
Soosaan looked up, swearing softly.

Beside her, the medical droid produced a narrow beam of light from its chest, illuminating the patient she was working on. Before she could thank it, the main lights fluttered back on, going out once more before returning in a steady, if diminished glow.

“Go and make sure everyone’s okay, Fourbeefive,” she ordered.

“Yes, Doctor,” the droid acknowledged, turning and heading out of the cubicle.

They had evacuated as many from the medical section as they could, but there were only so many who were fit enough to be moved. And there were a finite number of escape pods that could be filled. The medical droids had urged Soosaan and Bluesky to go to the safety of an escape pod. Neither Soosaan nor Bluesky had entertained the idea, hushing the droids and sending them off to attend to their duties.

Soosaan’s patient, a young man whose leg they’d had to amputate only hours before, caught her hand. She smiled at him, smoothing back his hair, assuring him, “Everything’s fine…”

He shook his head weakly, telling her, “You should go, Doc. They’ll be launching the escape pods soon…”

She opened her mouth to deny it, but he squeezed her, hand informing her, “The lights… Main power’s gone… We’re running on battery…”

“I don’t care what is powering those lights,” she told him, her voice gentle but brooking no argument. “But as long as they remain on, I have patients to attend. And even if they go off, we’ll find a way round it…”

He looked up at her, searching her face, “Ship’s dying, doc… Once the lights… go out… life support will fail…”

“Then we will cross that particular bridge when we come to it!” she shot back with a smile. “Now, are you going to rest or are you going to force me to sedate you?”

The youngster looked up at her, his eyes flickering with something that she couldn’t identify. Then a small ghost of a smile appeared on his lips and he nodded, closing his eyes. Soosaan patted his arm gently, then turned, heading out of the cubicle.

On the far side of the huge room, Bluesky moved from cot to cot, checking on the patients, talking with them in her quiet, reassuring voice and using her knowledge of psychiatry to quell their fears as best she could. The ripple of fur along her spine, that would have signalled her unease to others, was carefully hidden beneath a doctor’s tunic…

She could feel the slight fluctuations in the ship’s gravity and taste the change in the air that warned her that something was wrong with the life support. There was an acrid undertone of burning insulation.

She smiled reassurance to a young woman then turned, catching sight of Ettei. She moved toward the other doctor, making her way past the cots, but an alarm pulled her attention back the way she had come, back towards the other side of the room. The medical droids were already reacting, moving to help, but right now Bluesky knew that a more human touch was needed.

Ettei watched Bluesky turn away, heading over to deal with the emergency. Taking a deep breath, rubbing her hands over her face and pushing away the young man’s words about the ship dying, Ettie followed her.

~*~

“She’s hit! She’s hit, Boss! She’s hit!”

For a brief second, Xen ignored the words, expecting Kaz Hawkspar to answer. Then a wave of nauseating recollection hit her and she realised that the ecstatic voice was talking to her. She swore softly, pulling her X-wing away from the Imperial fire and keyed the mike, “Who’s hit? Say again?”

“The Destroyer’s hit! The Home Two’s got her!”
Xen jerked her X-wing round, fingers dancing across the tactical screen. Keying the mike again, she acknowledged, “Roger that! Standby!”

She searched through the data that the tactical computer was throwing up for her then glanced out of the cockpit to try to confirm what she was being told. The Star Destroyer that had targeted the Home Two was on fire, explosions blossoming from the surface of the huge ship…

Beyond that, however, hidden from the squadron by the huge bulk of the Imperial ship, the Home Two had also been hit, but at this distance she couldn’t tell the extent of the damage…

Still too high on adrenaline to concentrate for long on one thing, Xen keyed the mike, ordering, “Keep harrying the target!”

Before anyone could reply, though, an alarm stabbed through the cockpit. Xen swore, demanding, “What the hell’s going on, Deesix?”

The droid burbled, dropping data across the screen. Xen swore again, “Ships coming in? Damn it! I don’t have time for this… Heads up!” she warned the others, “Heads up! Incoming! Incoming! Stay with the target, but watch your backs! Knight Twelve, stay with me!”

“Roger that,” Triona Elyob confirmed, then muttered under her breath, “Like I’d be doing anything else, Boss…”

In the atmosphere below, Lainy heard Xen’s order and keyed the mike, “Need some help, Knight Leader?”

Xen reassessed the situation. If Lainy went to find out the status if the incoming ships, then she could stay with the squadron… “Affirm, Knight Two! Incoming ships from…” She checked the screen then continued, “Point four four eight… Go see if they’re friendly!”

“Roger that,” Lainy acknowledged, already pulling data off her tactical screen and turning the X-wing onto the new vector. Then she continued, “Knight Five is walking wounded…”

“Copied, Knight Two…” Xen replied, already turning her attention back to the Star Destroyer, but relieved that Chezz wasn’t too badly injured.

Shei Redav dipped into the planet’s atmosphere before pulling the fighter back round and heading towards the Star Destroyer. She glanced back to make sure her wingman was still with her then poured on the power, lining up a new strafing run. The Destroyer’s fire was still being affected by the planet’s atmosphere, dissipating it and rendering it almost harmless to the transports hiding in it and the TIEs that the Destroyer had launched had been destroyed either in Pryatt’s turbulent atmosphere or under Rebel fire power…

If, however, the incoming ships were Imperial reinforcements, it would only be a matter of time before the Rebel ships had to surrender or be destroyed…

~*~

The medical droid hummed softly as it hovered above the patient. Its sensors identified the burns to the patient’s body, detected the low levels of body fluid associated with the wounds, and noted that the patient was slowly slipping into shock. Working quickly and efficiently, it applied Bacta dressings to the wounds, pushed re-hydration pads into place against the undamaged skin and arranged for the ambient air temperature to be raised before administering an analgesic.

Having completed its assigned task, the droid turned, floating slowly towards the door, up the steps and out into the corridor. The door sliced closed behind it.

For a long time after the droid had gone, Commander Kazlyn Hawkspar remained motionless on the floor, drifting in pain, only half aware of reality. Jumbled images ran through her mind and she moaned softly, frowning, her lips forming soundless words as the images gradually slowed and merged into one.

Wedge was there, and Lainy and Xen… She could see them standing at the far end of a corridor. It was flooded with hazy light, but she could just make them out. They were shouting at her, waving at her, beckoning her… but she couldn’t move, she couldn’t hear what they were saying…

The haze slowly dissolved and she saw an X-wing behind them, engines running, the deep thrum resonating down the corridor to where she stood, unable to get to them. There were other people there too, she realised; Shei, Poom-Bar, the Doc, Notrahw, Aryes Drake, Maggs Ronnoc…

They had glasses in their hand, they were drinking a toast to something, but she still couldn’t hear what they were saying. The sound was warped, like a vid that was running too slowly…

Another sound caught her attention and she turned, looking behind her.

Shrouded in black, the figure of the Emperor stabbed fear through her. She stumbled back, but he followed her, stepping into the light and giving her a cold, predatory smile. He lifted his hands, pushing his hood back from his face and she moaned softly, sinking to her knees.

It wasn’t the Emperor…

Martellon took another step toward her, holding his hand out. “Come, my dear,” he purred softly. “We have much to discuss…”

She shook her head, trying to back away, but he moved more quickly than she could. He reached out, grasping her arm…

Gasping for breath, Kazlyn Hawkspar slammed back to reality, blinking in the semi-darkness, momentarily confused by her surroundings and the burning sensations along her arms and collarbone. Then it all flooded back, the enormity of the situation crashing in on her.

She had almost betrayed them. She had almost broken…

The guilt stabbed at her, whispering despair into the depths of her soul. She tried to swallow down the sudden constriction in her throat; her eyes prickling with unshed tears…

Martellon being called away had given her a brief respite, but she had no illusions. The tears slid down her cheeks. Once he came back it would only be a matter of time. She was too tired to fight any more, too exhausted to even move.

Lainy… I’m sorry… I can’t do this any more…

For a brief moment she could have sworn Lainy was there in the cell with her…

And then, astoundingly, a slow wave of calm flowed through her, bringing with it clarity of thought and smothering the guilt. A small, rational voice in the back of her mind agreed that yes, she was exhausted and close to breaking, but it also warned her that if she did something – anything - to stop the process Morrit was subjecting her to, then she might just have a chance of regulating what she told him.

Once she started giving him information, she wouldn’t be able to stop. He would know what buttons to press, he would know how to play her and she would be unable to prevent herself opening her soul to him…

That was what truly scared her, she realised. She wasn’t afraid of death, she had courted it too long and lost too many friends to be afraid of it. But betraying the Squadron and the Alliance, that was a different matter.

She eased herself into a more comfortable position on the floor, moaning softly, clenching her teeth against the pain as the Bacta dressings pulled at the blaster burns on her arms and chest. What had he been asking?

The previous hours were a blur…

Think, damn it! What had he been asking?

The Richlo’s Rest… He had been asking about The Richlo’s Rest, about the personnel they had lost over the previous weeks …

He had asked about her father too, and about Mon Mothma…

A wry chuckle cracked from her throat. She had been brought up as the daughter of a diplomat. She knew better than anyone else the concept of “need to know.” From the moment she had flown Mon Mothma out of Coruscant and joined the ranks of the Rebel Alliance as front-line personnel, she and her father had had an unspoken understanding that she would not be privy to his whereabouts, and hence Mon Mothma’s.

Thus the only thing she really knew for certain was that Mon Mothma hadn’t been on Hoth...

Mon Mothma hadn’t been on Hoth… but did the Empire know that?

A slow smile spread itself across Kazlyn Hawkspar’s face as an idea formed into a plan of action… The resolve gave her strength, strength she knew she was going to need.

Stopping the interrogation and leaving her here alone, for whatever reason, had been a mistake because it had given her time to think. When Morrit came back for her, she would endure whatever he threw at her for as long as she could and then she would answer his questions…

With lies…

~*~

Lainy’s eyes were riveted on the technical data display as the ships dropped out of hyperspace. A slow smile pulled across her face as, one by one, the ships were identified, all of them carrying Alliance identification. She keyed the mike, “Alliance ships! Alliance ships! This is Knight Two! Do you copy?”

There was a burst of static, then a voice crackled in her earpiece, “Knight Two, this is the Raszial Haven. Reading you loud and clear! Need a hand there?”

“Knight Two, this is the Sjubak. Our sister ship, the Kabujs will drop in shortly. We’re carrying four light guns apiece and can join the fray…”

Lainy’s smile turned feral. Three armed ships… On the tactical screen another three ships appeared from hyperspace. She keyed the mike again, “Any help is gratefully appreciated… Which one of you is the medical supply ship.”

“That,” Rishard Bess told her with a grin, “Would be the Troubadour Aayirdree.”

“Good to hear from you again, Troubadour,” Lainy told him, grinning as she recognised the ship and the voice. “Route direct to the Home Two. We need those supplies more than we need your fighting ability.”

“Copied, Knight Two…”

Rishard turned to his tactical officer, “You heard the lady…”

“Sir…” Jinkcs began, fingers dancing over his console. “Sir, the Home Two’s been hit… Looks like her command deck has gone…”

Rishard looked at him for a moment in disbelief, “You’re sure?”

Jinkcs nodded, “As I can be, Sir. Their shields have failed and as far as I can tell, the command deck has been wiped out…”

Rishard moved his hand to key the mike again.

Another voice crackled over the speakers, “Knight Two, this is the supply ship Lyisswk. We’re armed and ready to rock if you need us, but we’re also carrying medical supplies…”

“Lyisswk, Knight Two. Thanks for the offer, but we need your supplies… Follow the Troubadour to the Home Two.”

Rishard paused, fingers hovering over the switch. If Lainy Kal’Ten knew that the Home Two was hit there was no point in mentioning it again. And if she didn’t know, then she already had her hands full without worrying about the Mon Cal cruiser…

Slowly, he lifted his hand away from the switch, ordering, “Lay in a course and let’s see what we can do…”

“Aye, Sir…” Jinkcs replied. “Course locked, feeding to the helm now…”

~*~

On the bridge of the Star Destroyer Assertion, Admiral Aiain Intish stood impassively, hands behind his back, watching as the other, burning, Imperial ship drifted away towards the pale, yellow sun that blazed at the centre of this system.

He had, he knew, three choices. He could stay here and fight the Rebel ships. He could move after the crippled Mon Cruiser and finish her off before fighting the rest of the Rebel ships. Or he could cut his losses and run.

Option one was looking less and less palatable. None of the TIEs had survived and Rebel freighters had just arrived to join the fray. In time he would be able to deal with them, but if any more Rebel ships arrived, especially another Mon Cal cruiser, the Assertion’s chances might not be so good.

Option two was equally unpalatable. Heading towards the crippled Mon Cal cruiser meant placing his ship closer to the burning Destroyer. If she blew up, she might seriously damage the Assertion and that would leave the ship as helpless as a mating vornovck.

Option three, he had no doubt, would result in the extreme displeasure of the Lord Darth Vader and most probably the extreme unpleasantness of his own death, but at least the Assertion would be safe.

Turning away from the windows, he snapped his orders to the bridge crew. Then he strode off the bridge towards his private sanctum to finalise his last will and testament.

~*~

Xen pulled her fighter round, taking a quick time-out to review the situation. With one Star Destroyer down they were actually holding their own. None of the freighters lurking in the safety of Pryatt’s atmosphere had taken any hits. More importantly, the three Aryad pilots were working well with the rest of the Squadron. Even in the midst of battle, part of Xen’s mind was already calculating what she could do to keep them as part of Omega.

“Knight Leader,” Lainy reported. “Incoming ships are armed and friendly. We’re coming to join you.”

“Roger that!” Xen grinned, checking her tactical screen. “Loop round behind the Destroyer,” she ordered. “We’ll catch it in a pincer!”

Kirixchi Kenobi heard the order as she pulled away from the Imperial ship, dodging the fire and dipping back into Pryatt’s atmosphere. She grinned, unable to stop the hope stealing through her. They wouldn’t be able to destroy the Imperial ship, but they might be able to make it turn tail and run…

“Knights Three, Four and Six, take your wingmen and join Knight Two in the pincer!” Xen ordered. “The rest of you keep going as you are!”

Shei, turned her fighter, checking to see that her wingman was still with her before searching the tactical screen for Lainy’s position. “Knight Three, complying!” she confirmed, “Joining Knight Two now…”

“Knight Leader,” Hobbie acknowledged, “Knights Four and Nine heading out… Keep it close, Mas.”

“Right on your tail,” Mas told him, looping round behind him.

“Knights Six and Sixteen joining Knight Two as ordered!” Ryven confirmed, turning his fighter and checking to make sure Xen Emaar was following.

“Heads up!” Lainy warned. “The Destroyer’s moving!”

Close in and firing at the ship, Sha Aegis had already noticed. He pulled out, spiralling away, telling Xen, “She’s turning to starboard!”

What the hells was the damned thing up to now, Xen wondered, keying through the technical data. It had been stationary from the moment they dropped in… Not that she was going to take any chances. “Knight Two!” Xen ordered, “Fall back! Fall back! She’s turning toward you! All ships fall back!”

The Destroyer’s bow turned slowly away from Pryatt. Then, as they watched, the ship began to move forward, picking up speed, sliding away from the Rebel ships.

“Gods,” someone said, disbelief hanging in their voice, “She’s running…”

“Cut the chat!” Xen snapped back, attention flicking from her tactical screen to the huge bulk of the Star Destroyer ahead of her. And the longer she watched, the more she had to agree. The Star Destroyer was, indeed, running.

It accelerated away, heading out of the solar system. Almost unable to believe her eyes, Xen Edraa watched the ship disappear into hyperspace.

Continued in Chapter 21