Mace's legs burned as his feet pounded the durasteel floor. All around him, people were screaming, papers, some confidential, were flying, and chaos reigned. Through the windows, Mace spotted hundreds of Trade Federation war freighters, landers, and droid fighters. He ran through a sliding transparisteel door only to find himself on a empty landing platform. Sithspit! he cursed in his mind.
In that instant, his ears caught the faint hum of what could unmistakably be the atmospheric engines of two Trade Federation droid starfighters, closing in from both sides of him.
In the same instant that they simultaneously fired blaster bolts at him, he allowed himself to immerse in Vaapad, drew his violet lightsaber, and in one swift motion, deflected both shots back at the fighters, missing one completely, but connecting with the other directly on the fragile and hastily forged durasteel armor that protected its droid brain, causing a chain reaction inside the ship.
The impact of the blast caused the starfighter's remaining chunks of durasteel, the largest being the wings, to fly off in random directions. One of the wings flew straight at the other droid fighter, causing it to veer off course and make contact with the side of the government building. The other wing collided with base of the platform Mace was on, causing a massive crack to form less than a foot away from the transparisteel door.
The platform's crack weakened the structural hold of the building on the platform, and the platform began to fall. In one hundredth of a second, Mace calculated in his mind that by the time he could execute a Force-assisted leap onto what remained of the platform, he would already be too far down to reach it. So, he too let himself fall. Considering the height of the platform Mace was on relative to the trees below, and the effects of gravity on this system, Mace calculated that he would have about twenty seconds before his body was sliced to shreds by the branches of the canopy below.
'Twenty seconds to form a plan', Mace thought. 'I've faced worse'. Unfortunately, that thought cost Mace some time, narrowing his odds to only eighteen seconds.
Suddenly he caught a glimpse of a speeder- a manned speeder. Mace quickly made calculations in his head. He could make it. If the speeder didn't turn. If Mace could jump in time. If he hit nothing on the way down. But it was the only way.
Mace gathered the Force inside him, crouching his legs, and jumped outward from the platform. His hands reached out for the speeder- he caught it. He breathed a long sigh of relief as the bewildered pilot shouted a long string of curses in his confusion.
Mace climbed up onto the top of the speeder and turned his head, barely catching a glimpse of the doomed platform crashing into the green canopy, causing thousands of frightened birds to quickly fly out of harm's way.
After explaining the pilot his situation, with a little persuasion from the Force, Mace was dropped off at the landing pad where his Jedi Starfighter awaited.
"R4!" Mace shouted as he ran toward the ship. "Fire up the main engines! And hurry!" As the transparisteel cockpit cover closed around him, Mace looked toward proud Olkan City, now reduced to a mess of charred and flaming buildings.
As he entered the planet's orbit, he met nine other Jedi and one Republic cruiser. "Commander!" Mace yelled over the comlink static. "Commander, status report!" The obedient clone trooper answered immediately. "General Windu, we have lost five Jedi Starfighters and a Republic assault cruiser. We attempted to engage the enemy on the planet. We lost a cruiser within minutes, and were forced to withdraw. We did manage to inflict heavy damage on the enemy, taking down three war freighters, six landers, and dozens of droid starfighters. I have contacted Coruscant as well as Republic-occupied planets in the area with a call for reinforcements. They should arrive momentarily, sir."
'Hmmm...' thought Mace. 'Good.'
Almost as if someone was reading him mind, just as he thought this, a blaring alarm went off from Mace's sensor display. He looked at the readings. Three hostile capital ships were emerging from hyperspace, and they began launching fighters at once.
Mace sighed. It looked like the Republic wasn't the only side getting reinforcements. He gritted his teeth and kicked his sublight thrusters into full throttle.
In that instant, his ears caught the faint hum of what could unmistakably be the atmospheric engines of two Trade Federation droid starfighters, closing in from both sides of him.
In the same instant that they simultaneously fired blaster bolts at him, he allowed himself to immerse in Vaapad, drew his violet lightsaber, and in one swift motion, deflected both shots back at the fighters, missing one completely, but connecting with the other directly on the fragile and hastily forged durasteel armor that protected its droid brain, causing a chain reaction inside the ship.
The impact of the blast caused the starfighter's remaining chunks of durasteel, the largest being the wings, to fly off in random directions. One of the wings flew straight at the other droid fighter, causing it to veer off course and make contact with the side of the government building. The other wing collided with base of the platform Mace was on, causing a massive crack to form less than a foot away from the transparisteel door.
The platform's crack weakened the structural hold of the building on the platform, and the platform began to fall. In one hundredth of a second, Mace calculated in his mind that by the time he could execute a Force-assisted leap onto what remained of the platform, he would already be too far down to reach it. So, he too let himself fall. Considering the height of the platform Mace was on relative to the trees below, and the effects of gravity on this system, Mace calculated that he would have about twenty seconds before his body was sliced to shreds by the branches of the canopy below.
'Twenty seconds to form a plan', Mace thought. 'I've faced worse'. Unfortunately, that thought cost Mace some time, narrowing his odds to only eighteen seconds.
Suddenly he caught a glimpse of a speeder- a manned speeder. Mace quickly made calculations in his head. He could make it. If the speeder didn't turn. If Mace could jump in time. If he hit nothing on the way down. But it was the only way.
Mace gathered the Force inside him, crouching his legs, and jumped outward from the platform. His hands reached out for the speeder- he caught it. He breathed a long sigh of relief as the bewildered pilot shouted a long string of curses in his confusion.
Mace climbed up onto the top of the speeder and turned his head, barely catching a glimpse of the doomed platform crashing into the green canopy, causing thousands of frightened birds to quickly fly out of harm's way.
After explaining the pilot his situation, with a little persuasion from the Force, Mace was dropped off at the landing pad where his Jedi Starfighter awaited.
"R4!" Mace shouted as he ran toward the ship. "Fire up the main engines! And hurry!" As the transparisteel cockpit cover closed around him, Mace looked toward proud Olkan City, now reduced to a mess of charred and flaming buildings.
As he entered the planet's orbit, he met nine other Jedi and one Republic cruiser. "Commander!" Mace yelled over the comlink static. "Commander, status report!" The obedient clone trooper answered immediately. "General Windu, we have lost five Jedi Starfighters and a Republic assault cruiser. We attempted to engage the enemy on the planet. We lost a cruiser within minutes, and were forced to withdraw. We did manage to inflict heavy damage on the enemy, taking down three war freighters, six landers, and dozens of droid starfighters. I have contacted Coruscant as well as Republic-occupied planets in the area with a call for reinforcements. They should arrive momentarily, sir."
'Hmmm...' thought Mace. 'Good.'
Almost as if someone was reading him mind, just as he thought this, a blaring alarm went off from Mace's sensor display. He looked at the readings. Three hostile capital ships were emerging from hyperspace, and they began launching fighters at once.
Mace sighed. It looked like the Republic wasn't the only side getting reinforcements. He gritted his teeth and kicked his sublight thrusters into full throttle.
