Chapter 15 Strike Team

It seemed to take forever for the ramp to descend. It was like hellish torture for Mara just waiting, saber in hand, to see if there was a greeting party of droids. When the ramp finally did land there was nothing at all. Luke arrived behind Mara and the strike team as the exited the craft careful not to miss anything.

" Clear." Mara finally said. She and Luke moved up to the door of the hanger silently flanked by their strike team of Jedi.

" Be prepared." Luke said." Behind this door could be anything."

The door arose and there was nothing but a huge catwalk over nothing but a bottomless pit. It went down halfway through the circular room and split to the right and the left.

" Which way will we head?" Asked a team member. Luke tapped into the force to feel his way to the dark presence aboard this station. The force came up with an answer. The right.

" To the right." Luke said very sure of himself. Indeed they all followed him to the catwalk that went right. It led to a door which opened swiftly to reveal seven of the strangest droids they had ever encountered.

" Drop your weapons Jedi." One said. Its guns were built into it shoulder area and they raised ever so slightly and pointed at Luke.

" That is something I cannot do." Luke stated. He activated his saber. There was an eruption of fire. Luke parried each bolt that sizzled his way and when he Mara and two of the team reached the droids they died in an instant. No one of the ten member team was injured.

Now was a chance to explore the room they were in. In basic description it was another bottomless pit with cat walks leading straight forward and one curving up to the left. Luke had already tapped into the force and knew which to take. He led the party single file forward to the door. When they were no more that ten feet away at least a dozen Sith apprentices jumped out from the dark ceiling above. They landed in all places of the line.

A slightly crazy fight broke out. These Sith were willing to commit suicide to kill a Jedi. One in fact after cutting a party member's saber in half literally jumped on him and knocked him off the cat walk. The Sith went down with him he was still tightly latched onto him as if they were madly in love. Luke decapitated the last Sith apprentice and his body fell down into infinite blackness. They had lost one. Now it was a nine member strike team.

Through the door in front of them was a room. It was like a big hallway with nothing but a window on the right side. It was circular and Luke could see a turbo lift to his left. And he could also see more Sith. There was more room to fight in here. Everyone spread out. Luke killed the first two Sith that came at him with little effort.

When the next one struck something incredible happened. There was an explosion. Straight ahead Luke could clearly see a Sith that was fighting two Jedi take out a bomb and blow him and the Jedi into bloody chunks. Luke removed his opponents head and used the force to crush Mara's opponent's chest.

" Guerrilla tactics. Not something I would expect form Sith." Mara said.

" Their masters must be very desperate." Luke replied. He turned to the seven remaining party members. He called five to into the turbo lift along with Mara and himself the other two went into the one exactly next to it. Both were headed to the same floor, top, and rose at the same time. Just before theirs stopped Luke heard screams and then a muffled bang. He sensed the two Jedi leave the world. In the force he discovered their elevator had stopped and fallen.

There was a chime and the doors opened. Mara Luke and the remaining five stepped into the room. The generator of the station appeared to be in front of them and also three Sith. These ones were different though, they wore robes of a high ranking person. And they lunged at the Jedi. Four of the five party members were struck down in an instant. That left Luke, Mara, and the last Jedi. Each took a separate opponent.

Luke struck fast at the Sith's head, his blow was easily parried. He struck again and got the same results. This time his opponent struck. It would have been a crippling blow had Luke not jumped. When he came down though so did his saber right into the Sith's brain. He fell to the ground and the smell of charred flesh filled the air. Mara was still battling at the moment but the last party member had just been stabbed. His opponent quickly rushed at Luke. Calling on the force Luke moved to his left and his hand contacted with the rushing man's masked face.

He fell and Luke drove his saber through his heart as Mara cut into the chest of her opponent, both his the floor within seconds of each other.

" Perfect." Mara grumbled as she looked at the party member." Now what?"

" That lift." Luke said pointing to the one behind Mara. She nodded and they both headed to it. Once they entered and the door had closed Luke pressed the top floor botton. It slid up fast and opened to a hall. It was guarded by a single droid who shot at them. With a deflected bolt it fell. Luke had a clear view at the turbo lift at the far end of the hall.

He and Mara reached it quickly. It opened fast and they stepped in taking it to the top floor. The door opened into a room. It was basically a metal grate over some pipes on the floor. A ramp leading up to the lift. There was another ramp across the floor in front of them that led to a deck type area behind a huge window. Two more ramps led to it to the left and the right. It must have been the control room, but Luke and Mara were not paying attention to that because in the middle of the floor stood a tall masked Sith Lord and behind him stood a person Luke was not expecting to see. There stood Darth Sidious.

" Sidious you are alive!" Gasped Mara.

" Surprised?"