Title: Touch and Go
Chapter: Part Four: "As Luck Would Have It"
Author: bactaqueen
Author's e-mail:
Category: New Jedi Order, EU
Keywords: Jaina Solo, Jag Fel, NJO
Rating: PG
Spoilers: New Jedi Order up to Balance Point
Summary: Space battles, pilot banter, and pre-romance interaction. After Ithor, Rogue Squadron was deployed to the warfront in the company of Spike Squadron. What happened between Jaina Solo and Jag Fel?
Disclaimer: "Star Wars" is copyright George Lucas and Lucasfilm, LTD. Jagged Fel is copyright Michael A. Stackpole. No profit is being made, this is purely for entertainment purposes. Additional disclaimer must be issued: The battle in this chapter takes place in Aaron Allston's X-wing novel, Solo Command. Wedge's orders are quotes from the book, as are Wraith Three's contribution and Wraith Five's reports. Again, here, no money is being made, and no infringement is intended.
Part Four: "As Luck Would Have It"
She slid into the tiny confines of the simulator's cockpit and pulled the hatch shut behind her. Even before she began flipping the switches to activate the machine, Sparky's chirped greeting translated into written Basic displayed on the message screen above and to the right of her flight stick.
"It went well," she answered, referring to the debriefing. She started the initiation sequence and the X-wing cockpit came to life around her.
Sparky had another question.
"I found him in the ready room near the main bay." Jaina entered the override codes for the simulation she and Jag had agreed on.
Sparky had a comment for the choice.
"Yes, Dad was there. It was his task force. The part we want to run will end up atmospheric. Rogue Squadron was there, Wraith Squadron was there, and the 181st was there."
The droid's next query displayed a substantial amount of insight on the part of the little mechanical helper.
Jaina smiled. "Yes," she said. "Jag is flying as Cowall flying as his father. I have a feeling the colonel's a better imitation of the baron than that actor, though." Jaina stifled a giggle at a sudden, ridiculous observation. "He even has the flightsuit to match."
Sparky blatted something sarcastic, and then wanted to know where the rest of Rogue Squadron was. One of the other droids had claimed there would be a full squad-on-squad sim between the Rogues and the Spikes.
Jaina nodded and told the droid, "Colonel Darklighter more or less gave us the day off until nineteen-hundred. That's when we're going to re-fly Gyndine against the Spikes."
Sparky whistled.
"Nope."
He wanted clarification.
As Jaina punched the last button to bring her screens to life, she told Sparky exactly what the droid expected to hear. "He's a hard taskmaster," she said, as the tunnel of hyperspace spun around her. "His people are reviewing the battle data, and a few of them are already simming."
The droid had a remark that wasn't completely flattering for the young colonel, but respectful nonetheless.
Jaina agreed. "He is good at what he does. So are his people."
There was no time for more idle conversation; as the simulator's warning tone sounded the one-minute-to-realspace countdown began on her HUD.
They were only going to run the half of the sim where Zsinj's Iron Fist was hiding in the debris ring around Selaggis Six. As the original mission had gone, Wedge Antilles and his group of six starfighter squadrons-the Rogues, the Wraiths, three more X-wing squads, and an A-wing unit-had been sent into the ring around the planet to do recon for General Solo's battle plan. Then the warlord had launched his decoy 181st Squadron to strafe the ruins of a settlement. That had gotten the Rogues out of the way so Zsinj could meet Solo without the interference of the best fighter squadron in the galaxy.
Jaina knew Baron Fel would have argued that point. She also knew Jag would argue the point now, if given the chance. She didn't expect to be giving him the chance.
With a realistic lurch the stars around her reverted to normal pinpoints of light. Ahead, the yellow-orange gas giant Selaggis loomed; its seven moons were barely visible. Jaina's sensors immediately started screaming with a half-dozen large contacts moving toward Selaggis Six: a Victory-class Star Destroyer, anImperial-class Star Destroyer, a Lancer, two Dreadnaughts, and a Quasar Fire-class starfighter transport.
While the two capital ships could obliterate an X-wing with a single turbolaser shot, the craft Jaina was really worried about was nowhere to be seen.
It was, after all, merely a short range fighter assigned to a Super Star Destroyer hidden within the asteroid belt.
'Ah, well.' She'd just have to concentrate on the original mission. For now.
The command over the comm came: all squads were ordered to form up, then break by tasks. Jaina followed her wingmate dutifully, moving with the rest of Wedge's group toward Selaggis Six and surveying Zsinj's chosen battlefield.
That was Zsinj's Doctrine, wasn't it?
Jaina's comm unit crackled, and from the static, then-commander Wedge Antilles's voice emerged. Since no one was flying as Group Leader-or anyone but Rogue Eleven-the default settings were used. Meaning that, technically, Jaina was flying with the best Rogue Squadron ever had.
"Group, this is Leader. When we reach the ring, we'll break by squads to our assigned task. Rogues and Wraiths will head counter-spinward and spread the width of the ring for reconnaissance..." The rest of the transmission had nothing to do with Jaina's immediate situation. She followed her wingmate into the rocky ring.
They prowled the belt, using the asteroids as cover as they swept sensors through the field, searching for a rather large ship controlled by a rather testy foe.
As she'd known it would, the communique came. The Iron Fist had been found. Polearm One had earned the three-day pass. All squadrons were ordered to form up on Captain Todra Mayn.
It was only a matter of minutes before all six of the squadrons under Wedge's command were grouped together, hiding behind the larger rocks and watching Zsinj's ship blast a path parallel to the edge of the ring.
The Iron Fist was the long, thin, triangular shape of a Super Star Destroyer. On sensors it was much like the TIE Interceptor: not very intimidating, save for the size of its red blip compared to the size of the friendly blue blips surrounding her position. Through the viewport, though, it was breathtaking.
Not entirely the good kind of breathtaking, either. Despite that it was a simulation, Jaina felt her heart skip a beat.
The order came for the squadrons to break up, for each squad to make its own approach on the warship. So she hopped from asteroid to asteroid, right behind Rogue Twelve, slowly advancing on the Iron Fist.
When Rogue Squadron finished a half-orbit around one of the moon-sized asteroids, Zsinj's flagship was in full view, less than a klick below. The only active weapons were the bow guns being used to clear the path.
The order came to maintain the orbit. Zsinj hadn't detected them yet. Wedge's announcement of Rogue Squadron in position ended in a burst of static, and each of the other squadron commanders came back with their own in position reports.
As soon as one more quick orbit was complete, Wedge Antilles gave the order to attack.
It was time to engage the enemy.
The cry came through the comm as a near shriek. Even under the circumstances, it surprised Jaina.
"Break off, break off! It's an ambush!"
After a pause, the same voice came on again, calmer this time.
"Group Leader, this is Wraith Three. Please order an abort on the assault run."
It was an ambush. A tactic Zsinj had used before, and would doubtless use again. The starfighters broke away; Jaina hauled back on her own stick and feathered her rudder, to send the X-wing into a loop back toward their initial position. Iron Fist's guns went active, blazing a trail through the rocks as they fired on the now-obvious assault force.
There were two casualties. Commander Antilles pointed this out, and Lieutenant Donos explained the situation.
The instructions were modified accordingly. Rogue Squadron began another assault run, but this time, they stayed away from the big rocks.
Jaina knew Zsinj had recalled his TIEs even before the first eyeball screamed up on her tail. It was part of the battle plan. Once the eyeball was in her aft scope, she dived toward an asteroid, hoping to catch the pilot unawares and have him splatter a mess all over a boulder. She twisted around a rolling asteroid, and instead of looping back to find the TIE splashed across the rock she'd been aiming him for, she found something sweeter: the profile of an Imperial eyeball in her crosshairs.
Two dual-linked shots fired in quick succession turned one more Imp pilot into so much space dust.
Jaina had to haul back on the stick to keep from losing the head-to-head with a moon-sized rock. When she crested it, she found exactly what she'd been waiting for.
Filling her viewport was the Iron Fist, and spilling from the Super Star Destroyer's belly bay were TIE Interceptors. They formed up quickly-three groups of four-and arched toward Selaggis Six.
And the already slagged colony there.
One of the squints flashed by, close enough for Jaina to see the red stripe painted on the wing. She knew that red stripe, and she grinned in anticipation.
Sparky blatted a remark.
"You're right," she agreed, and aimed the snubfighter's nose for the planet. All she had to do was wait for Wedge's order. "He does look like his ship."
The only ships under Wedge's command capable of keeping up with Baron Fel's 181st were the captured squints flown by four of the Wraiths. Kell Tainer, Ellassar Targon, Shalla Nelprin, and the infamous Wes Janson trailed the enemy at a respectable distance; the X-wings were losing ground with each klick.
The report came back over the comm from Wraith Five; they'd already entered the atmosphere, and were following the 181st toward the west coast of the primary continent. The last time Zsinj's forces had visited the planet, the colony there had been pounded flat. Also, according to Wraith Five atmospheric conditions were not helpful. It must have been monsoon season for the way he was talking.
"Heavy rain, heavy winds."
It was one of the reasons Jaina had proposed this specific engagement. The inclement weather could toss around a squint a lot more easily than it could an X-wing, and she figured if she could catch the Chiss commander at a disadvantage in lousy weather, maybe she'd have a shot.
Jaina followed the Rogues and the rest of the Wraiths down into the storm clouds, and heard Kell Tainer's almost frantic broadcast. The 181st was strafing the colony. He wanted permission to engage.
Wedge Antilles agreed. "Permission granted," he said.
The furball was already underway when the rest of them arrived, slipping through the cloud cover. They broke by pairs to swoop in on the squints like ungainly birds of prey. As soon as the newcomers registered on sensors, however, hell broke loose. Interceptor pairs scattered and adopted almost comical flight paths in order to gain the advantage on the more rugged, less swift Republic starfighters.
Jaina told Sparky to find Jag, and designate him Target Primary. She kept one eye shifting between her scopes and Sparky's reports, and the other eye focused out the viewport. She was trying to pick Jag out by sight alone, wondering if she'd recognize any of his hotshot maneuvers.
Sparky's announcement that he'd found Jag occurred at the same instant her sensors started screaming that someone had a lock on her. Jaina cast a quick glance at her aft scope.
"Let me guess," she said, dryly. "He's behind me?"
Sparky tooted an affirmative.
Jaina jerked her ship around to avoid his blazing shots as she performed a mental countdown. For once, she had a plan.
Granted, it wasn't a very good plan, and she'd be the first to concede that, but it was a plan, and that was an improvement. One thing she'd learned quickly from Jag Fel: tactics were important. Even a Jedi couldn't rely on instinct, reflexes, and the Force alone all of the time.
Despite her best efforts, Jag scored more than one hit on her rear shields. Jaina didn't like that much; she never liked getting hit.
She shoved the stick forward and throttled to full. Rather than a horizon in her viewport-one veiled with the slanting rain of the storm-she was seeing the beach. To her left was the roiling ocean, and to her right, the sandy-brown of the shore. She nudged the ship over so the beach was merely in her peripheral, and she waited.
Jag didn't overshoot her this time. Jaina decided then that she was going to have to come up with variations on her sudden dive technique. It was getting predictable.
'That sounds like something Dad would say,' she thought wryly. 'And Jag, too, for that matter.'
Jaina kept her attention divided between her rear sensors and the angry view of the ocean growing more defined in her viewport. For the moment, life was good.
Jaina knew that she wasn't going to run her X-wing into the water just to spite him, and she knew that Jag knew that, too. Which was why he wasn't backing off. She may be reckless, but she wasn't stupid. He was probably trying to figure out which direction she'd take as soon as she leveled off.
She didn't intend to give him a peek.
Less than a klick above the surface, Jaina fired into the ocean. It was trick that had actually been used in this specific battle-Wraith Five had done it, and Jaina was hoping that Jag had never encountered this particular circumstance before.
Steam boiled up from the water. Inside the steam cloud she'd created, Jaina leveled off. It was much like flying through an explosion, she thought, and swung the nose of her ship around to face where she was expecting Jag's squint to come out.
For once, things went as she hoped.
Colonel Fel wasn't stupid, either, and Jaina had been counting on that. Even the most reckless fighter pilot would be more cautious through a steam cloud, as they were with regular clouds. He eased up enough on the throttle for his ship to drift into Jaina's crosshairs as he leveled out; the reticle went green with a solid lock.
Jaina didn't hesitate. She fired.
One of her shots slipped between the pylon and the cockpit, and the other went low and to port. Jag was already reacting, jinking his fighter around, and he was taking the fight where he wanted it. As he banked back toward land, Jaina followed, firing, and fighting the atmospheric conditions.
Jag tried to use his ship's speed to outrun her, and he would have succeeded if they hadn't been flying into the storm. But the Interceptor was much lighter than the X-wing, and with Jag in front cutting down wind resistance, Jaina managed to keep up with him.
She hadn't been lying when she'd told Xada she felt lucky. No matter what her Jedi training said, Jaina always had believed in luck. It was something her father had taught her.
She was staying with him, anticipating his moves. More than one of her shots actually scorched his ship. Jaina knew that it was definitely one of her better days.
Still, with or without shields, and regardless of Jaina Solo's sudden surge of reckless confidence, Jag Fel was good.
Jag juked his fighter around, bobbing and weaving, and pouring everything he could into speed. Jaina was prepared for the possibility of climbing, and kept a loose hand on the stick just in case. It wouldn't have surprised her. After all, what could he possibly hope to accomplish above the forest?
Then it hit Jaina. They were skimming the treetops. At this speed, a collision with one of the tall woods would be deadly. It would shred the fighters, shields or no, and the sim would be over real quick.
Jaina gritted her teeth as she felt a flash of anger. He was underestimating her and her abilities. He was trying to lure her into making a mistake-into crashing her ship.
Jaina was insulted. And an insulted Solo is not one you want to have at your back.
She thumbed the switch to link her lasers for single-shot cycling. The energy was lower and the shots weren't quite as damaging, but they came faster. Jaina created something of her own storm on Jag's tail as her shots converged on the rear of his fighter.
When she'd blown a hole in the TIE's cockpit, Jaina thumbed off one torpedo for good measure. She knew she was doing it out of spite even as she watched the blue ion tail streak toward the squint. Jag pulled up, but his damaged ship wouldn't cooperate for very long.
The explosion was a spectacular thing.
Sparky's bleat was reprimanding. Jaina grinned as she got a mission end note. Then the screens around her went dark.
"I did not waste that torp," she defended. "He deserved it."
Sparky's reply was a lament Jaina had heard from droids all her life.
He was never going to understand humans.