Chapter XVII
Suddenly, the quiet that had overtaken the Nomad's crew as they watched for Kali'sto's return was interrupted by a fast, loud alarm on the intercom accompanied by the sensor screen flashing red.
"What are that?" Niner asked, peering at the sensor screen in response to the alarm.
"Proximity alert," Val replied, "Something's coming!"
"Space fighters!" Niner yelled, "Sixty-seven percent likely they is hostile!"
"How many?" Bao asked.
"Two."
Val quickly returned to his console and engaged the Nomad's shields. Bao stared at the sensor screen as the fighters flew deeper into the Nomad's sensor range.
"Rapiers," Bao observed grimly.
"Bao, can you man the gun?" Val glanced at his old friend, "I need someone to hold off those fighters."
"Yes," Bao said with clear reluctance.
"What's taking you, old man," Val muttered, "How long do you need?"
"I don't know," Bao said as he mounted the gunner's chair, "Let's hope they're almost out."
"Let's hope," Val responded, igniting the engines.
For one minute, the crew focused entirely on sealing up the ship and engaging all its defenses. Val had been in this type of situation before, and already had prepared a strategy for this. Rooted to the ground, the Wild Nomad was like a tank, possessing both durability and firepower to rival even the Empire's celebrated All-Terrain walkers. She would endure until Riko and the others made it back.
Deet-deet-deet! the alarm droned as Val's heart raced, Deet-deet-deet!
"Look!" Niner pointed out the viewport, "There they are!"
Sighing with relief, Val flicked the switch, "Lowering the ramp!"
"Incoming!" Bao yelled.
After exiting the dusty aftermath of the scuffle in the entryway, Riko, Kali'sto, Jade, and Artoo left the temple, stepping back into Nyr'itz's illuminated foliage.
"There it is!" Riko yelled, pointing to the parked Wild Nomad.
"Fighters!" Kali'sto gestured upward.
Riko looked up to see a pair of thin, angular, sword-shaped fighters approaching.
"Go!" Kali'sto yelled as the fighters rained fire, impacting the Nomad's armor and tearing into the surrounding landscape, raining dirt and debris on the beleaguered quartet. The ground shook as The quartet hurried towards the parked Nomad as the battle raged around them. Riko struggled to keep up with the others, the roar of her engines, the heavy percussive force of the blasts impacting the ground and the heat of the explosions overwhelming his senses, almost paralyzing him as he panicked, barely able to cope with the overload of stimuli around him.
Jade grabbed his wrist, her touch soothing the overstimulated boy. Riko focused on her presence, relying on her as an anchor to keep him from feeling lost in the storm around him.
"Hurry!" Kali'sto yelled.
Jade leading the way, Riko resumed running, Artoo and Kali'sto close behind. Riko reassured himself that they would make it through. They just had to keep going.
The Nomad shook as laserfire impacted its hull, burning into its armor plating and straining its shields.
"Agh!" Niner yelped, falling to the floor.
"Hit any?" Val asked.
"None!" Bao responded.
Immediately after the first two passes, he recognized the flight style of their targets. These pilots were good. Incredibly agile, their reflexes lightning-fast. He was once again fighting Jedi.
Solemnly, Bao swung the turbolaser around for another strike as the fighters came around for another pass.
TW93 Rapiers were fast and agile. Their design focused on vast speed and maneuverability; they were the perfect craft for Jedi pilots.
Their greatest weakness? They were lightly armored, their weapons geared for dogfighting. It would take time for Rapiers to bring down a durable target, like the Nomad.
Enough time for an observant opponent to study their flight patterns. A Jedi Knight was especially observant…
Bao felt the pilots in the Force, saw the nuances of their flight pattern, and knew which target to strike first.
As the fighters opened fire, Bao moved the turbolaser down the Nomad's dorsal hull, and fired.
As it flew past the Nomad, the leading Rapier was hit directly through the heat sink. The engines exploded. Trailing fire, the rapier sped downward.
Bao clutched the control knob as the fighter crashed in the foliage, a spike burrowing in his heart. He forced himself to turn his attention to the other rapier.
Though the downed pilot had been their wingman, clearly said pilot had been the more experienced of the two. The second one was tense, his movements more cautious...with subtle hints of panic. He would hesitate before he reengaged the Nomad. Bao hoped that he had just bought Riko and the others some time.
One of the fighters spun out of control and plowed into the ground, crashing against the glowing vines. The other continued to hammer the Nomad with blast after blast, inflicting new gouges and burns in its heavily scarred hull.
Kali'sto, Riko, and the others continued to sprint towards the parked transport. The landing ramp was lowered, the ship's engines primed. They were almost there, just a few meters away…
Suddenly, Kali'sto felt a disturbance.
"Duck!" Kali'sto ordered.
A lightsaber swung at the spot where Kali'sto's arm had been. Kali'sto backflipped, turning to face his opponent.
She was dressed in a simple dark robe with a light tunic beneath, most of her weathered face concealed by a hood. In her hand was a unique lightsaber: two blades, their hilts connected at the base by a hinge.
It was the same Jedi Shadow who had ambushed him when he first arrived on this world, the one who had hunted him for the past few days.
"Kali'sto," she said in an accented, stern voice, "Stand down."
He brandished his staff, ready to meet her attack. The Shadow flipped her saber's hinge, locking the two pommels together, turning her emerald-bladed weapon into a saberstaff. For one moment, the two faced each other down, taking note of each other's stances to assess their fighting styles…
The old man heard a lightsaber ignite behind him. He glanced behind to see Riko standing just outside the ship, holding his lightsaber defensively.
"Riko, get aboard!" Kali'sto declared, "Go!"
"Dad, I need to help you!" Riko replied.
"I can handle her," Kali'sto retorted, "Go!"
The Shadow engaged the old man, wielding her saber with efficiency and speed. Kali'sto frantically parried her jabs and strikes, hoping that Riko listened to his instructions. She was quick and precise with her saberstaff, and understood Kali'sto's style. Kali'sto struggled to hold her back, her emerald blades burning against the dense subspecies of yorik coral that coated his staff.
Suddenly, Kali'sto heard another snap-hiss amidst the sounds of cannonfire. Briefly turning his head, he saw Mîranda charging towards him, her black blade humming as she prepared to swing it….
The Mandalorian turned away from Kali'sto as another lightsaber ignited. The Trandoshan Knight – Bao – engaged her, diverting her attention away from Kali'sto and the Shadow's deadly dance. The Jedi and the wanderer held their respective opponents at bay, mere meters from the transport as the remaining fighter's cannonfire tore through the ground, the jungle and the Nomad's hull, stirring up debris and dust and igniting small fires in the foliage.
Suddenly, the Shadow flipped her saber's hinge, catching Kali'sto's staff between the two blades, her saber mere inches from his face. With both of his hands gripping the staff on either side of her blades, Kali'sto struggled to move his staff.
The Shadow began to angle the blades towards Kali'sto's right hand. Kali'sto let go of the staff, but the Shadow then pushed her saber against the coral, the momentum whacking the staff towards Kali'sto's body, painfully impacting his shoulder and knocking him back.
As the Shadow prepared to strike again, Kali'sto fired a powerful Force-blast, sending his opponent into the air. As she landed nimbly on the ground, Kali'sto understood the truth of this engagement.
He couldn't defeat her. He could only delay her.
Kali'sto knew there was only one way he could hold her back. Nyr'itz was a unique world, its flora deeply attuned to the currents of the Force, even receptive to its commands.
Closing his eyes, the old man reached out to the web of roots that burrowed beneath the ground, calling upon them to emerge and help one in need.
He sensed his opponent analyzing him, angling her saber into a guard stance, preparing to attack again. Kali'sto begged the roots to help him and his son.
Small, wiry, fibrous organisms emerged from the ground, snaking over the Shadow's feet and attempting to entrap her arms and legs. The same roots burst forth all over the grounds, ensnaring Mîranda as well.
As they tried to cut the roots and free themselves, Kali'sto opened his eyes.
"To the ship!" Bao ordered, a faint hint of awe concealed beneath his commanding tone. Following his lead, Kali'sto grabbed his staff, and limped aboard the vessel.
"Are you okay, Dad?" Riko asked, quickly raising the ramp.
"I am alright," Kali'sto said, "We must leave, now."
Kali'sto followed Riko to the cockpit. Inside the large, rectangular room, the girl was manning the pilot seat, the man in Mandalorian armor was her copilot, Artoo plugging into a terminal between their seats. A hovering, multi-limbed medical droid with a monitor for a face was manning what looked like the gunner's position in a nook while a familiar little droid was staring at a sensor screen on the left.
"Kali'sto!" Niner declared ecstatically, "You is here!"
"Yes," Kali'sto smiled, "I am here, Niner."
"We're all here," Riko said with relief.
"Let's go," Bao declared.
The transport lifted off and flew out into the atmosphere. Kali'sto's heart raced as they leapt forward…
Suddenly, the ship jerked to a halt, staggering the crew.
"What's wrong?" Niner asked, trembling.
"Everything's working fine," Val declared, "We're just not moving."
"The Shadow," Kali'sto realized, "She's holding us in place."
"Alright," Val declared, "I got this."
Kali'sto heard the sound of cannonfire. Within seconds, the Wild Nomad suddenly lurched forward, racing at full speed into the void of space and leaving the cursed world behind.
Author's Note:
Obviously, I borrowed a few ideas from The Rise of Skywalker, Rebels, and The Clone Wars. I thought that the swing-saberstaff (or hingesaber) was interesting, and that such a weapon could have all sorts of applications. I felt it was a good choice for this character.
The wrist-mounted lightsaber, or "lightsaber gauntlet" was an idea considered for Revenge of the Sith (there's concept art). My interpretation of such a weapon was inspired by the Sangheili Energy Sword from Halo and Bo-Katan's wrist knife. I thought that this lightsaber––paired up with beskar armor––sounded pretty cool, and would make a good weapon for a Mandalorian studying the Jedi way.