Chapter Ten
It was another horrendously boring day at Zatlin Corporation for Nom Anor.
To say he hated being on Thyferra would have been an understatement. Any half competent Yuuzhan Vong or Peace Brigade member could manage the operation there, which was little more than overseeing a modified version of the amphistaff venom being injected into all bacta produced. The shapers had designed it based on human DNA but were confident it would infect many other humanoid species as well. The production line workers had no idea the bacta was tainted and simply continued following their monotonous tasks for packaging it up for shipment off world.
If he was to be exiled on Thyferra then he would use that time to plan his next move. Right now Shimrra was enjoying humiliating him but when that ended he was going to need to find another way to amuse the Supreme Overlord. If not, he would end up executed – something Shimrra had already threatened to do on more than one occasion.
A Peace Brigade office he didn't know the name of approached him then, saying, "Executor, we have lost the Holo cam feeds on levels two through four."
"Rather than waste my time with that you should be reporting what's being done to fix them."
"We're not sure what happened. Diagnostics show everything was working fine. We should have them back online soon."
"See that you do."
The man walked away and Nom Anor resisted the urge to sigh as he did. Yes, a complete waste of his talents Thyferra was. One day he would find a way to pay back Shimrra for this insult.
"Executor, we have another problem."
"What is it now?" He asked, his tone impatient as the officer from before bothered him once again.
"The Yuuzhan Vong unit on level three reported in," the man began. "They're saying the voxyn are extremely agitated."
Nom Anor's eyes widened. There was only one thing that could render such a reaction from that creature. "Jeedai," he snarled.
He had known that eventually the Galactic Alliance would realize their precious bacta had been tainted. With bacta production solely handled on Thyferra it would have made tracking down the source all the more easy. He was sure Shimrra hadn't anticipated it would happen this quickly. Now, it would be his responsibility to take care of the Jedi before they became a problem.
No more failures.
Shimrra's words echoed in his head. This was the chance he had been looking for. If he could capture the Jedi he would once again prove his worth to the Yuuzhan Vong and their cause. Better yet, perhaps he could use them to inflict more damage on the fragile Galactic Alliance.
"You – have a security team meet us on level three and make sure they have voxyn with them," he barked at the last officer who reported in. "And you – get those Holo cameras working."
It looked like it wouldn't be such a boring day after all.
[*[*[*[*[*[
"Forcing the Solo brothers to work together wasn't a smart idea."
Tahiri shrugged at the Twi'lek's comment. "It can't possibly make things any worse."
"Please, you and I are like best friends compared to those two."
"Whoa, Alema. Don't you think you're exaggerating just a little?"
"Okay, maybe a little. I understand why you did it though. Sometimes I think those two take family for granted."
Tahiri regarded the Twi'lek closely. Alema was always like a wide open book, never hiding her emotions, and in that moment she could feel the loss of her sister like a fresh wound. Sometimes she forgot what Alema had lost during the war.
"Let's not have a moment," Alema said immediately upon sensing Tahiri reading her. "I make one joke about us being best friends and you go all soft on me. Where's the fiery blond who went all crazy killing a ship full of Yuuzhan Vong?"
Tahiri flashed her a contemptuous look. "Why do you do that? Just when I think you might be a half decent person, you go and turn into a – a – "
"Complete bitch?" Alema supplied.
"That sounds about right."
Alema shrugged. "Maybe that's just who I really am."
Tahiri made no response to that remark. She was distracted by several distinct Yuuzhan Vong presences, including the ones she had felt earlier - and they were getting closer.
A paralyzing shriek filled the air around them. That eardrum shattering sound had been permanently burned into both Jedi's ears, but neither thought they would ever hear it again.
"Voxyn," Tahiri and Alema breathed in unison.
It brought back memories of Myrkr and all the Jedi who had fallen as a result of that Jedi hunting beast the Yuuzhan Vong shapers had created.
"We killed the Queen. There shouldn't be any more of those kriffin' things," said Alema in complete disbelief.
Tahiri, likewise, thought the same thing but at the moment whether the voxyn should be extinct didn't matter. They could worry about that later. First, they needed to take care of the ones closing that were there.
She thumbed on her wrist comm but all that came out was a burst of static. "Comms are still down."
"After that shriek, Anakin and Jacen would have to be deaf not to hear that. How many are there?"
"Two that I can sense for sure. There's at least one Yuuzhan Vong presence as well."
"Not bad," Alema said, weighing the odds. "We can take them."
She ignited her lightsaber and Tahiri did the same. Together, they followed the shrieking howls that would lead them to the voxyn.
[*[*[*[*[*[
The Solo brothers emerged into a warehouse-like facility. Keeping themselves hidden in the shadows, they watched as workers went among their daily routine in the production of bacta. The scene before them looked completely normal, just as what they had witnessed as part of the tour. There was nothing to indicate that the bacta being manufactured and packaged for distribution was tainted.
"Ideas?" Jacen asked his brother.
Anakin looked momentarily stunned that Jacen was asking his advice. "You mean aside from checking every square inch of this place? Well, if we can find a terminal I might be able to hack into it."
It didn't take long for them to find a small enclosure with several computer terminals. There was an interface for a droid to plug into as well as a keyboard. While Jacen stood guard, Anakin began trying to access the system.
"How's it going?" Jacen asked him a few minutes later.
"It's encrypted," Anakin replied. "I can probably hack it but it's going to take some time."
An inhuman shriek filled the air around them. From past experience both knew only one kind of animal – or rather Yuuzhan Vong genetically engineered creature – could make that sound.
"That must have been what Tahiri sensed earlier," Jacen reasoned.
Though the shrieks had sounded off in the distance, once a voxyn got a scent of a Jedi they wouldn't stop until they hunted them down. That shriek was evidence enough that they had found something to their liking. Jacen didn't bother mentioning that something was probably Alema and Tahiri. No point in stating the obvious.
The voxyn, however, were the least of their worries at the moment. Jacen sensed several dozen beings approaching from different points, as if trying to surround the two brothers.
Anakin appeared beside him, lightsaber in hand. "I think this means the cameras are working again."
Before Jacen could voice a response they were greeted by a barrage of blaster fire.
[*[*[*[*[*[
Alema just narrowly missed being hit by a spray of acidic brown saliva but she was far from out of the woods. With the voxyn's next attack, its venomous barbed tail lashed out at her.
She had no intention of allowing herself to be killed by the voxyn – the same beast that had slain her sister Numa. Although she knew better than to take it lightly, this creature facing her now was not in the same class as the ones she had encountered at Myrkr. Those voxyn had been vicious, unrelenting; slaughtering half their strike team. The creature circling her now paled in comparison to his fallen brethren. She could tell it was blind in one eye while the one remaining was covered in cataracts. So far its attacks seemed to do more harm to its Peace Brigade handlers than to her. The latest causality had been too slow to get out of the way of its barbed tail. The powerful neurotoxin contained within it had killed him within minutes.
She quickly glanced over at Vong Girl, almost in disbelief that she had yet to finish off her own voxyn. She was the one who could sense Yuuzhan Vong after all. This should have been easy for her.
"Maybe you should stop playing with it like it's a pet and kill it already!" Alema shouted to her as she fended off a blindside attack from the remaining Peace Brigade officer. With her lightsaber, she cleaved him through from shoulder to thigh.
"I'm not playing with it!" Vong Girl snapped back.
Any retort Alema had in mind disappeared as her voxyn came forward for another attack. She decided to put her own advice to good use, propelling herself over the creature, ducking low under its tail so she could slash at its underbelly with her saber. A normal voxyn was covered in thick scales almost as strong as durasteel, but this one was sickly and clearly on its last legs so her lightsaber easily penetrated its skin. It emitted a deafening howl of pain but Alema didn't relent. She continued to dig her saber in deeper, cutting into muscle and bone. The creature shook horribly, gurgling blood until it collapsed on the ground.
With her kill out of the way, she could see that Vong Girl was just finishing off her voxyn as well, slicing off its jaw before plunging her lightsaber down its throat.
"I really hate these things," said Alema, lightsaber still ignited.
"Can't argue with you on that," Vong Girl returned.
"Then what took you so long to kill it?"
Tahiri looked away from her. "I'm not going to try and explain that to you."
"Is it a Vong thing?"
"Yuuzhan Vong," Tahiri corrected irritably. "And no, it wasn't. I'm still working on not losing control like I did on the Drifter. It's hardest when I'm fighting anything Yuuzhan Vong related."
Without warning she ignited Tahiri lightsaber once again, but Alema didn't need an explanation as to why. She might not have Tahiri's abilities but she could still sense the Force void surrounding them.
Twenty meters away at the other end of the hallway, a new group of Peace Brigade officers were flanking a Yuuzhan Vong. Though most Yuuzhan Vong looked the same to Alema, this one was quite familiar to her. She had seen his face on the HoloNet more than once and most recently in a video he had made announcing his capture of Tahiri and Jacen.
Nom Anor, at seeing the two Jedi, commanded his troops to kill them. While the Peace Brigade forces opened fire, he disappeared around the corner he had just come from.
The Executor didn't know it yet but his luck was about to run out. Alema was not going to let him escape. He was far too dangerous to be allowed to live any longer.
With a battle cry, she ran forward, ignoring Tahiri's shouts of protest as she charged at the unsuspecting Peace Brigade officers. They clearly weren't expecting that a Jedi would charge at them so recklessly while under fire. They were about to learn that Alema was far from the stereotypical Jedi they were probably used to dealing with.
[*[*[*[*[*[
Anakin's wrist comm chimed and he took cover behind a large durasteel crate to answer it. The sound of blaster fire made it difficult to hear Tahiri's voice on the other end.
"Anakin? Are you all right? What's going on?"
Concentrating hard, he used a Force push to send a skid of crates in the direction of the Peace Brigade soldiers closest to him. The crates toppled over, trapping some of the men underneath while others retreated back to their comrades.
"Just dealing with some old friends from Yag'Dhul," he responded dryly.
"Sounds like the same friends Alema and I just dealt with. Including a couple of voxyn who decided to join the party. We're fine," she added, sensing Anakin's concern. "Nom Anor's here, Anakin."
As Tahiri spoke those last words, he left his temporary shelter to join his brother in dealing with another pocket of Peace Brigade attempting to take them out.
"Anakin, did you get that?"
"Yeah, I heard," he responded. "Nom Anor's here," he informed his brother.
Jacen appeared mildly surprised by that news but that was the extent of his response, probably because he was preoccupied with not getting hit by the weapons fire coming from the larger blaster assault rifles the second Peace Brigade wave had brought with them.
"We're going after him. I know what you're going to say," she went on, "but Alema kind of made the choice for the both of us. She went after him and I'm following her."
"He would be a valuable prisoner if we could capture him alive," Jacen pointed out.
"I'm not sure Alema's thinking about it that way."
"Tahiri – "
"You were the one who wanted us to get along, remember? Alema's methods I might not agree with but Nom Anor is valuable to the Galactic Alliance. We can't pass up this opportunity."
"Just be careful," said Anakin, knowing it was pointless to talk her out of it.
"You too, Hero Boy. I'll comm you when we have him so we can get out of this place."
His comm went silent and once again Anakin devoted his full attention to the chaos around him. While they continued to be attacked by Peace Brigade, the few workers who had remained behind after the initial opening of fire were scrambling toward the emergency exits.
"How about a change in tactics?" His brother suggested to him.
"What did you have in mind?"
[*[*[*[*[*[
Alema moved with a single purpose in mind. She had to give Nom Anor credit though. For as large as he was he seemed to be incredibly fast. Then again, self preservation could be an amazing motivator.
"We can't kill him," Tahiri panted, running along beside her.
"You really think it's a good idea to bring someone like that back with us? You know what he's capable of. His most recent crime includes contamination of the galaxy's bacta supply. Have you already forgotten what he did to you and Jacen? He deserves to die."
"We can't kill him," Tahiri repeated, not disputing the Twi'lek's words. "If we can get any information out of him – "
"You really think that slimy Vong bastard is going to tell us anything?" Alema rounded on her. "Let me tell you what's going to happen; he'll feed us just enough tidbits of somewhat useful information so we keep him alive. Then at some point he's going to figure out a way to escape, people are going to die and then everyone will remember that I was right and we should have killed him when we had the chance."
"Anakin and Jacen agree with bringing him in alive."
"Amazing. The Solo brothers agreeing on something," she bit off scathingly.
"Alema, we need him alive."
"Fine, I won't set out to kill him but if we can't get him to come with us, I'm taking him out. If he doesn't leave with us he's not leaving here at all, understood?"
Rather than get a verbal response from Tahiri, Alema found herself being pushed out of the way. She only just managed to keep her balance when she heard the snap-hiss of a lightsaber. She looked back in time to see Tahiri's blade connect with the amphistaff of Nom Anor who was standing where she had been a moment earlier.
[*[*[*[*[*[
Tahiri barely had enough time to bring her lightsaber to bear before the fanged amphistaff could bite into her neck. As it was, knocking Alema out of the way had her off balance and she was forced to drop to one knee to defend herself.
Nom Anor's gruesome face inches away from hers, broke into a chilling smile. "It's good to see you again. Have you been watching your Holo news recently?" He spoke to her in Yuuzhan Vong.
Using all her strength, Tahiri managed to push him back enough to allow her to get to her feet. He didn't come at her so the two circled each other wearily.
"Even after all this time in your galaxy, it never ceases to amaze me how easy humans are to manipulate, even Jedi," he went on in his alien tongue. "I suppose I should be thanking you. Without you, I wouldn't have been able to create the first Jedi-Yuuzhan Vong hybrid warrior."
"You're a monster," she hissed in Yuuzhan Vong before charging at him.
Nom Anor wasn't a warrior by any means but he was still strong and defended himself easily. He let out a gruesome laugh as the petite blond drove him backward in the suspended walkway they were standing on.
As her anger mounted with each swing of her blade, she started to wonder if Alema was right. They would all be better off with Nom Anor dead. Even if she ignored what he had done to her, he was the one who had been behind the outbreak of Project I17A, causing the death of millions. Not to mention he had been present at Myrkr and bore responsibility for the creation of the voxyn, which would have likely led to the eventual annihilation of the Jedi. Now with the bacta contamination - even if he hadn't started it, just his presence there signaled his involvement - there was no telling how many lives would be lost.
The poisonous head of the amphistaff grazed her thigh, cutting through the material of her pants. She immediately summoned the Force to flush out the poison. He continued to land hits with his amphistaff but that only served to spur her own. She used the pain to remain strong, focused. After all, Yuuzhan Vong embraced pain and she was part Yuuzhan Vong.
That last thought caused her to falter and instead of following through with her saber, it remained hovering in the air, leaving her vulnerable for attack. Nom Anor saw the opening and went to strike a mortal blow. Even with her abilities, Tahiri didn't think she would be able to recover from an amphistaff through the heart.
So focused on killing her, Nom Anor didn't see Alema running at him, knocking the surprised Executor off his feet. The Twi'lek grunted in pain but managed to get to her feet, gingerly holding her left arm. She flashed a feral grin at the Yuuzhan Vong and beckoned to him with her hand, daring him to attack her.
Alema challenging Nom Anor to a hand-to-hand fight was what broke Tahiri from her stupor. But she wasn't fast enough. Nom Anor was already upon Alema, but rather than try to defend herself the Twi'lek stepped to the side at the last minute. The Executor's speed and momentum carried him over the side of the hanging walkway, but not before he could grab hold of the thing closet to him, which happened to be Alema.
"Alema!" Tahiri shouted frantically, scrambling to where the Twi'lek had just been.
About twenty meters below on the next floor Nom Anor was sprawled onto his back. Alema was close by and just starting to get to her feet. Tahiri propelled herself down to where they were, glad to see the Twi'lek still in one piece.
Tahiri leaned over the hulking Yuuzhan Vong. "He's still alive."
"You're welcome. So what's the plan for getting him out of here?"
As if on cue, Tahiri's commlink went off. "Where are you guys?"
Tahiri looked around, trying to gather where they were. "Third floor. Looks like a hallway with just meeting rooms and offices. Oh, and we've got Nom Anor."
"Really? I mean not that I'm surprised or anything – "
Tahiri glanced over at Alema, who likewise gave a similar roll of her eyes.
"Getting him out of here might be tricky."
"Understood. Jacen and I are coming to you now."
"I hate to break it to you Anakin but dragging an unconscious Yuuzhan Vong with us is going to draw a lot of attention."
"Don't worry. We've got that covered. Can you stay out of sight until we get there?"
"Probably."
"Good. We'll be there shortly."
"Next time you do the falling," Alema said with a grimace. "Since you can heal yourself."
"Let's get out of sight and I'll see what I can do for you."
Each woman grabbed an arm and dragged the Executor in the first empty room they came across. Tahiri wasn't sure how Anakin would manage to get them out of this mess but she had learned long ago that he could make the impossible possible. After all, aside from using it in jest most times there really was a valid reason for why she called him Hero Boy.