Chapter 10
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A truly stellar idea Skye thought to herself. Her whole body ached from head to toe. Okay she admitted being pelted with blaster fire even if most of them didn't strike home, and being repeatedly slammed into a wall by a stimmed-up power-armoured mandie was not what one would call an inspiring much less intelligent decision but they needed the credits They needed to get Bastila off the planet and they needed to do it sooner rather than later.
Going up against packs of diseased infested rakghouls, crazed grammarians, a rancher monster and entering a race with a hyper-sensitive prototype accelerator was crazy enough but then to top off her more brilliant schemes Skye decided that yes entering a death match with a Mandy merc was the easiest and fastest way to make the crests. Yep truly stellar idea.
Next to all of that breaking and entering the Sith base, stealing launch codes and high-jacking a crime bosses' ride was all academic in comparison.
Skye gave a look to her battered body in the mirror and grimaced. 'Yeah right. Crazy is as crazy does. What have you gotten yourself into this time Ravensong? I just should have said no when the Jedi came calling. Tell them I had other obligations. But nooo. I had to go and say yes of course you will have my aid…' She shook her head and immediately regretted the action as it made her scull ache along with her entire spinal column. "You know if they say it's my duty one more time, I'm going to tell them screw you, I'm going home. I'm not playing in this sandbox anymore and I'm taking my toys with me!'
She rolled her blue eyes. Knowing of course she'd never truly do that. She had too much of a sense of duty to even carryout the idea of going AWOL but damn is sure felt good to think it!
A direct assault on the base was more than foolhardy it was immediate death. There had to be away in that wouldn't get them all killed. Marching up and saying she had captured the 'lost Jedi' wasn't going to work, she already affirmed that Shan was nothing more than a Tarissian noble slaten. And Bastila's little performance after the Death Match had cemented the deception.
What they needed was one hell of a distraction…or very very subtle. The problem was that uppity Jedi was about as subtle as a bantha stampede. Sneaking in wasn't going to be an option. The scout knew Shan would insist on coming along, hell the human would assume control and so far, her leadership qualities were lacking. Now was not the time thrust her into that position even if she believed she had every right to it. Aw well nothing is to be done but get on with it.
Walking back in to the common room, Skye stepped into the middle of an argument.
"…is in no condition to go into the Sith base. Therefore, I will take the droid and acquire the necessary codes."
"And how do you plan on do that Bastila? Walk up to that big door and plug Tee-Three in and hopes he splices it before patrolling guards spot you?" Carth said
Skye looked at the little astromec droid, she didn't fully know what Kang had Janice program it with but she did know it had state-of-the-art slicing capabilities. It if could bypass the firewall of a Sith base then it could do a lot more than that.
"Actually, that is exactly what we're going to do." Ravensong said. "But we're going to need a bit of a diversion."
"We? You are not fit for battle." Bastila said haughtily yet with the undercurrents of concern coloring her voice. "However, from what I heard from the others you have quite brilliant ideas, if not unorthodox, what is it do you have planned?"
'Yep assumed control, just like I knew she would.' "We'll argue on fit for duty latter, right now I'll layout what I have in mind. You've noticed all those protocol droids walking around? I'll have Tee-Three initiate a virus and make those clankers go a little more 'helpful'." she grinned, "by making them become a public menace. We just get a microprocessor to reprogram them in mass. We also need to stage a riot somewhere near that hate-monger across Nall's shop. I'm thinking a few drunks I know might just do the trick. A little Jedi mental nudge will be our insurance. All you have to so is make them a little more confrontational, their drunken stupor will do the rest.
"Those silverbacks go chasing after the dysfunction tinnies and attempt to bring the riot under control, leaving us a very small window to make our move. Of course, knowing you'll want to be there Bastila, you'll be incognito. We still have one of those troopers's armour, put that on and you'll blend right in, and three of us will strap on the stealth generators and we take out the opposition."
"With only three stealth belts that leaves one here." Mission said. "Who's it going to be?"
Ravensong gave the kid a long silent look.
"Me? No way! I'm going in with you!" she all but stomped her foot in protest.
"Mission, you're a good slicer, I'll give you that, even better at demolitions but it's too dangerous." the Nagai shook her head.
"Living on the streets in the Lower City is dangerous." the girl protested. "And I've been doing that since I was five years old!"
"She does have a point. If anyone should remain behind it is you, Ravensong. You're not hundred percent." Carth said. "But I get the feeling that isn't going to happen."
"Damn right it isn't." the scout crossed her arms.
"About this distraction of yours, it had too many variables. Too many innocent lives will become caught in the crossfire." Bastila said evenly. "It is too risky to pursue such a path, however there is an alternative. That silver tongue of yours can get us into the base, especially if it is you wearing the armour and I the stealth generator."
"If we do it that way it means we face more troopers." Skye said.
"Enough innocents have suffered because of the battle overhead, we will not add to their numbers." The Jedi became forceful. "If we must confront more Sith troopers in the stronghold so be it."
"You're putting a lot of faith in her ability to finagle her way in." Carth said. "She's good but I don't know if she's good enough to swindle the masses." He quickly looked to the Nagai and held up a hand as if in surrender, "No offense, but face it that's a lot of minds to control."
Skye nodded. "Well maybe I don't have to swindle them all, especially if I allow the reputation of the Mysterious Stranger's more recent exploit to speak for me. Maybe hire myself out to them…hypothetically say in exchange for a pass off this rock."
"If you go in as MS, that leaves a stealth belt free, then I can come along." Mission said in earnest. "Besides what if you need my particular skills? Tee-Three will be busy dealing with the computers getting the codes and all; you may need someone else who can slice into an isolated computer system or even droids. I know you can do it and so can Big Z, but you'll need me. It can't be any more dangerous than rakghouls, rancor monsters and a base full of spiced up swoopers. "
Skye opened her mouth then snapped it shut with the click of her teeth. "Very well, Mission. But you stay out of sight until I say, is that clear?"
The young Twi'Lek nodded excitedly. "I promise."
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In the end, it was Carth Onasi who was wearing the silver armour, leaving Bastila, Mission and Zaalbar with the stealth generators. Following directly behind the three visible companions so no one would bump into them or rather a solid form no one saw.
"I just hope this works out better than that farm boy's plan the last time I tried something like this." Skye grumbled.
"I remember you saying something about that." Carth said, his voice muffled and tinny thought the helmet. "You said it didn't go well."
"It ended in farm boy's death and the mission was a fracking bust. Dressing up in enemy uniforms never-ever works no matter what the spy-vids say. Someone will always realize they are being duped and then the jigs up."
"Hopefully they won't realize it until after we're passed the door. At that time, it won't matter if they realize they have been infiltrated or not." Bastila whispered somewhere to Ravensong's left shoulder.
"Good point."
They approached in time to see a handful of silverbacks emerging from the great door. One approached a little faster than the others. With her helmet off it was easy to see that it was the blonde Sarna.
"Good, we can use her to our advantage." Carth said quietly.
"My Lady Sith." Skye bowed theatrically. "Now isn't this fortuitous?"
The Sith woman smirked. It wasn't an expression of mirth but of a woman scorned. "I'd say so."
Bastila had felt the stirrings of malaise in the Force as soon as the Sith troopers were approaching, in truth the whole planet was rife with it. But coming from the blonde one…the woman called Sarna it was particularly wafting off of her like the fetid stink off a corpse.
The Jedi prepped her mind to quickly send a mental warning to Ravensong to beware the woman but it was not necessary. Nearly as good as readying body language as a Lorridian, Skye shifted her stance ever so subtlety into one that allowed for a swift offensive manoeuvring of blades.
"Who is that with you?" Sarna gave a look Carth. Who immediately felt exposed even under the silver helm.
'She is right…disguising yourself as the enemy never works. The jig is most defiantly up…' the pilot thought.
"Don't know." Skye shrugged nonchalantly, "we were simply walking in the same direction. I was hoping to run into a familiar face. I want to meet with the Governor."
Another of the silverbacks removed his helm; it turned out to be the man Skye knew only as Luke, the one who attempted to recruit her back at the party. "And why may I ask is that?"
"As you may or may not know I recently slew Starkiller in a death match, and becoming the grand champion of the same arena, add wining the season opener of the Taris swoop-trek I think I have proven my abilities. I believe I may be of more use as a freelance currier of the Sith than wasting away here on a retainer however fat."
"You'd join the Sith?" Sarna said incredulously. "I thought you said that wasn't for you."
"Wearing the uniform still isn't, which is why I said freelance. After all that is, what I am. A currier, a grounded currier is of no use to anyone. My true skills are wasted here on this rock, when I should be amongst the stars."
"And what skills are those, Skye?" Sarna sneered. "The theft of Sith uniforms and playing with noble whores."
'Oh dear…she is a bit jealous of my Jedi…' Skye thought. "What uniforms do you speak of my dear Lady Sith?" Skye said oozing sensuality.
"We caught an Aqualish with three of our uniforms just after that party we had."
Once more Skye gave her most alluring sultry look enough so that the chilled iron in Sarna's eyes began to erode and melt. Striding up as confidently she had when facing the rancor, the Nagai touched the face of Sarna. "Oh… I recall that night…though the details are a bit cloudy due to all the ale we drank…" here she nipped the woman's ear causing the Sith to moan softly. "Still a good night, do you not recall the song we sang in your bed? It didn't take much to make you purr."
In a lower huskier whisper, she added, "If you think I had enough talent to bed you and steal away your shinny uniforms then I must be some sort of magician or perhaps a sorceress …" Skye licked the Sith's neck nearly buckling the blonde's knees. "A Force wielder perhaps?"
Bastila watched struggling to keep her seething emotions in check. She detested to see Skye wooing this woman even if she could read it was all a farce. She was not so sure that Carth knew it to be a charade. For in him the Jedi sensed dark strings. The man already saw conspiracies everywhere he went, watching Skye weave her magic with the Sith woman only seeded that paranoia.
"I…I…that night…" Sarna uttered nearly undone by the seduction. "The booze was spiked… After the party our uniforms were gone missing. As I said we found an Aqualish with three of the uniforms but how he came to have them..."
"I know how it looks," Skye uttered softly, "but rest assured it was not I that gave your missing uniforms away to any Aqualish." She added softly and fired the blaster she had in her hand: point-blank into the belly of the Sith. A look of complete surprise came across Sarna's eyes before she fell dead Ravensong's feet. That expression was mirrored in the eyes of the companions. "I took them for myself."
One of the four Sith with Sarna were so shocked by the Mysterious Stranger's action he hesitated, and it cost him. It was Bastila who moved first. So, attuned to the Force, to Ravensong she knew the scout's actions even before she enacted them.
Snap-hiss of a lightsaber engaged turned four heads to the spot to the Nagai's right they believed empty. One such head fell from the shoulders even as it turned-the man named Luke toppled bonelessly near Sarna's body. The moment of hesitancy might have cost Luke his life but still the others were trained soldiers. They recovered swiftly from MS's betrayal and reacted just as quickly.
"Jedi!" one of them cried.
They fell back drawing their blaster riffles rapidly, counting on the fellow silverback that had been with the treacherous Mysterious Stranger to aid them. They had not expected the man to fire on them! Nor had they expected a Wookie to suddenly appear from thin air, or a Twi'lek girl to be at the hairy brute's side. The beast took hold and snapped the neck of the one who had cried out. The last was shot both from behind by the street urchin and frontally by the turn-coat trooper.
"Well so much for stealth." Carth said looking at the fallen bodies. He never stopped looking at Skye. He had never even suspected she would have killed that Sith woman by seduction. He didn't know if he should feel applaud by the fact Ravensong so blithely gut-shot the other woman or admiration that had used the Sith's emotions against her and took the open opportunity to kill the enemy. He knew he didn't like the conflict in his mind or the conflict of what he felt towards the Nagai. It was almost as if she had been challenging the Revanchrist, and that set off a whole set of warning bells in his mind.
"Despite the fact, we quickly dispatched them, this will draw unwanted attention." Bastila said sagely. Her words interrupted Carth's internal monolog, enough to draw his attention back to the dead bodies.
"Tee-Three open that door." Skye commanded. "And do it quickly."
The droid bleeped an affirmative and moved to obey his orders. "We have a few seconds at best. Less if one of them hit his wrist-comm and opened a bloody channel to their superiors."
"I don't think they had the time." The Jedi said. "I think we'd be swarmed by back-up if that were so."
"Good point." came Ravensong.
"We gonna leave them here or attempt to get rid of them?" Mission asked.
Skye looked over her shoulder to the little astromec droid still working at the doors security lock, he seemed to be nearly finished with the task. "We leave them, but only after stacking them and putting on the stealth belts onto their bodies. We don't have the time to do anything else and we're out in the open here. There's no place to ditch the corpses."
"Cordwood corpses. Wonderful" Carth groused. "We better get to it then. Like you said we have a microsecond window of time."
Skye only shrugged. She riffled through the Sith bodies taking thermal clips, credits and a what looked to be armoury pass-coded keycard. No doubt measures both in security and disciplinarian had been taken since the theft of so many uniforms with in the past couple of days. There were the three she and Carth had stolen and those that poor Aqualish from the Hidden Beks had taken. No wonder Sarna was angered and suspicious of Skye; it hadn't all been jealously over the 'Tarissian noblewoman' becoming a body-slave.
Bastila turned in time to catch the expression of regret on the young scout's face. But it was Carth that spoke even as they approached the door the T3 now had open.
"That was a bit cold-blooded. Is that what they teach you in that monastery of yours? How to murder?"
Skye didn't even look at the human when she answered her voice heavy with sarcasm. "Yes of course I was. You manipulate events to your favour, eliminate your enemy as necessary and take possession of an opportunity to best your foe when you can. It's called survival. What do you care in the manner of Sarna's death was she not a Sith? Was she not the enemy?" now she turned and pinned Onasi with an expression of…nothingness. "This is the difference: you were trained in a boot camp to kill your foe several meters away or from orbit, Flyboy. A Nagai scout is taught how to do so when you are only inches from your enemy and you are looking directly into their eyes when you take life from them. All death is cold."
She strode ahead without further word leaving Carth starring after her with his mouth opening and closing not unlike a fish. Bastila was in the Nagai's shadow just as Onasi gathered his wits and jogged up to the Jedi. "Do you really think someone like that should be trained as a Jedi? What if she goes all dark and twisty just like Revan? Maybe that's why Revan turned, because it's how the Nagai are raised. You know what they say: 'All Blades are killers at heart.' Maybe the Masters should just take the Force away from her before she comes into her own."
Bastila seethed inside for the presumption. "Revan was raised in the Jedi Temple on Corrisant from the age of three, Carth. Or are you making some racial judgment? And if you listened to Skye you would have known she was being sardonic."
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The foyer of the base was completely unlike any of them expected with its spartan white painted walls and titled floors. Then again, the building hadn't started out in Sith custody, it had been the Tarsian municipal chamber of commerce. As soon as the occupation commenced, Malak sent one of his governors to oversee the operation. And obviously there had been a change in the internal decoration or rather a removal of one.
"What is it with military institutions and the blasé?" Skye wondered aloud not expecting an answer.
"I suppose they feel the utilitarian look clashes less with the uniforms." Bastlia said so straight faced and so dead-panned it caused the Nagai to burst out laughing. She had to give the Jedi credit for having wit even if it was subtle.
The foyer gave way to Reception. It was rather shocking to see a Twi'lek manning the desk, though it shouldn't have been considering that the Sith weren't as xenophobic as the dominate populace of Taris.
"Hey- you can't come in here! This is a restricted area! You better tell me what you're doing here or I'm going to hit the alarm" she demanded.
"I have exactly no time for this. Bastila get rid of her." Skye ordered. "Tee-three, Mission get to work on security. Carth, Zaalbar flank the doors."
Hearing the order given the young Twi'lek nearly reached for the alarm button but the Jedi's stopped her. Her voice soft, soothing entered her mind in such a compelling fashion she gave into the suggestion easily. "You are unhappy with the working conditions here. You want to quit and good riddance to the Sith."
"I'm unhappy about the working conditions here. I quit." She moved from behind her semi-circular desk and headed for the door and tossed over her shoulder. "If you're here to clear them out then good riddance to the Sith. Shoot them in the heads because they don't have hearts."
T3-M4 moved to where the receptionist had just vacated and began downloading the security codes for the base: door codes, the base-layout and slicing into the patrol droids. He blurted out a serious of beeps to his new master asking a question.
"No don't shut them down. Disengage their IFF drives, turn them on their Sith masters. If you can do the same to any security turrets that'd help too."
The little droid bleeped what seemed to be an affirmation. Then it made a worrying kind of sound.
"Wait? What?" Skye's voice raised in pitch.
"He's right." Mission said looking at the monitors. "Looks like the Sith have an assault droid near the lift that goes up to the Governor's offices. It will be pretty nasty fight in the small confines of the building, especially in that area."
The droid bleeped his agreement.
"Tee-three can you deactivate it?" Ravensong asked.
There a blurting mechanical raspberry sound in the resounding negative way.
"Then can you at least power down its weapons systems, shields… anything?"
There was a hopeful bleep.
"Take down the shields then. It will help some." Skye's voice carried the notes of grudging acceptance.
"Zaalbar and I can take care of that big clanker, you and Bastila see to the governor." Carth suggested.
"Sounds like a plan. Mission, stay here at the desk and pose as the receptionist that just left. I doubt any of the troopers pay that much attention to their girl who sits there. For once their bigotry of all Twi'leks look the same will work in our favor. I want you see if you can't detour any back-up from storming the place when the shit hits the fan. In fact, see what sort of chaos you can create with dispatch, send the silverbacks to different parts of the city, anywhere but here. Cut into their communications, feed them false reports and misinformation as long as you can. I don't know how long you can do it internally but anything you can do to help, I'll be grateful for."
"You got it." Mission nodded. "This is going to be fun!" She clapped her hands gleefully if not a bit manically. "They will be so turned around they won't know whose coming and going."
Skye smiled at the girl's enthusiasm. She was a might worried she'd have to talk Mission into staying behind where it was infinitely safer than rushing headlong into the base with hair-trigger troopers shooting at anything not in silver. The other adults in the group including the Zaalbar gave the scout a look that said: 'Well played.' "Tee-three stay with Mission, give her back-up when needed but I'm going to need you to purge their security systems. If there are any prisoners in the detention areas, override the codes and set them free."
"You're letting out prisoners? You don't know what they did to get them in there." Carth protested.
"I doubt any of them did anything more heinous than say: 'Hey the Sith suck bantha poodoo! Darth Malak is nothing more than a steal-jawed meatbag with a stick up his ass.' Oh, and let's not forget the truly horrible crimes of protesting how their rights were ripped away from them. You know you all things irredeemable us non-humans do."
"You're going to use them as a distraction." Bastila realized.
"I'd say cannon fodder." Carth counter-pointed ignoring Skye's last comment.
Mission was snickering with the visual description of Malak as a stick puppet…Skye had such a fun sense of humour.
Skye turned, "Do you wish innocent lives to perish when this place is blown to hell and gone? Which will happen when you and Big Z take out that assault droid. At least free they have a chance to make a run for it and yes it will be a distraction." She didn't say she knew they were as good as canon fire and dead, she didn't have too. "I will not debate this Onasi. We have a task before us, and the only way to get it done is to do it."
They spit up after leaving the reception area with the pilot and Wookie taking the west leaving the east wing with the computer core and Sith governor to the women.
The sounds of battle were already commencing, the patrol droids with their Identify- Friend-Foe systems hacked they became unwitting allies to the companions. The Sith troopers didn't know what hit them. With many scrambling to avoid being shot, others trying to neutralize the sudden threat and still more attempting to regain a foothold were unprepared when assault came from four invaders sweeping into the place on two fronts.
Communications were scrambled, with static their only answer, the troopers desperately fell back upon their intense training. It would not be enough. The enemy began to realize it too. They began converging in bottle necked areas in hopes to better defend themselves against four well trained warriors, and berserk droids. Barracks and labs were no safe harbor, even as they barricaded themselves; the troopers had sprung a trap. Environmental systems overloaded causing conduits to overheat and explode, killing many almost instantly.
Bastila reacted fast, causing a bubble of shimmering energy to rise up and swallow both her and Ravensong least they because in the blast radius. Shrapnel became harmless detritus as it slammed into the Force-barrier. Breathing heavily super-heated air and ozone filled their lungs. Their heads rang with sound. Overhead fire and toxin suppressants systems automatically activated extinguishing the threat from spreading.
"Handy thing that Force." Skye said glibly thankful.
For a second it looked as if Bastila was going to rebuke her for such levity when speaking of the Force but as soon as the expression was there it was gone. "Indeed." was all she said on the matter. "I assume that was Mission's doing."
"I did say keep a look out for anything that could aid us. Guess she found a way." the Nagia answered.
*Skye. Skye, you reading me? *
Skye grinned. "Speak of Demons of the Night Wind…. Yeah, Mission I read you. I assume that little explosion, was you?"
*Yeah. Cool, wasn't it? Sent one Big Z and Carth's way too, they had a bunch of guys hold up in a computer lab. I can see everything from the security console. It's great. *
"Where are they now?"
*Looks like they're headed to face off that big assault droid. I think you've got a clear run to the lift. Ahead of you is some sort of brig. There were force cadges but Tee-Three and I sliced them just like you said. There was only one active cage though. I don't know who was in it. Sorry if its bad news, but you did say…*
"It's alright, Mission. You did good. From the schematics, Tee-Three downloaded there is an armoury just to the left of the reception desk, get into it and take what armaments you can, sabotage the rest."
*Will do. Mission out. *
Survivors of the barracks attack silverbacks and grey bellies both rushed out into the hall, headlong into blades of a Jedi lightsaber and the metal of a Nagai.
Bastila's twin blades deflected blaster bolts back to their source felling two more. One took vibroblade into his stomach, another one a throwing dagger in the throat.
Blaster riffles were no match for the power of the Force. A single, powerful push scattered them like little tin soldiers. Before they regained their feet, Skye tossed two grenades one cohesive the other a fragment snuffing out the last of them.
Not pausing to take in the collateral damage the two sprinted forward down corridor that lead to the lift that would take them to the second level. Just as they were entering the detention area, a terrified Duros came rushing out nearly colliding with Ravensong.
"Get out of my way…Oh! It's you!" The man squeaked in his own language. "Remember me from the apartments, you helped me against the Sith and I ditched the bodies for you?"
"Right, of course."
"They caught up to me though. I wasn't clever enough it seems. But if this is you're doing getting me out an all, thank you thank you!"
"You're more than welcome; you may want to get the hell out of here. I'm bringing this whole place down."
"Good! Splatter them into paste." The terrified man scurried past the women and disappeared down the long corridor presumably for the exit.
Skye made a move for the lift but was stopped short by Bastila's hand on her arm. "Wait a moment, Skye. Ever since we've come here I have felt something in the Force. At first I felt it was the Sith we dispatched outside, but it has grown stronger here."
"That's only natural, were in the heart of Sith territory."
"No, it isn't that either. I believe it is the governor. He's a Force wielder. Beware Skye do not underestimate him."
"A Force wielder. A dark Jedi, like those that stormed the Endar Spire?
"Very likely. You will stand back and let me confront him. Your connection to the Force is strong and wild; he will use that against you. I won't allow that to happen. As you told Carth this is not open for debate."
They entered the lift weapons drawn and at the ready, even as they were reaching the top, Skye turned to her companion. "You know I have something he won't be expecting. You know that low yield thermal detonator I had Zaalbar make for me? I still have it. I didn't get a chance to use it when I faced down Starkiller. If we chuck this at the governor, he won't literally won't know what hit him. And he sure as hell will be taken by surprise."
"And what collateral damage to his office? Such a thing may well damage the Intel we're after."
"There is that. Okay so no explosives. It was just a thought."
"We cannot use it but the threat of it may make him more amenable to negotiations."
Dark eyebrows shot up to meet the hairline. "What kind of negotiations do you call that?"
"Hostile."
Skye grinned. She was defiantly warming up to the Jedi.
The hall leading from the lift to office was a short one. Not a great deal of time to prepare for what no doubt would become a hostile confrontation. A Jedi was trained to adapt to situations quickly, fortunately so were frontline scouts.
Without preamble, the women stormed the office startling the man within. He spun around glaring, his left hand going for his sidearm almost instantly.
"Who dares break my meditation? You will pay for interrupting my…wait." the man took a step forward, studying both young women before him. One he sensed was a Jedi the other however…the other was…something else, could be something more than a Jedi. "I sense the Force is strong with you very strong."
At first Skye assumed he was speaking of Bastila but the bald human kept starring at her. An uneasy feeling rattled in her gut. He was reaching out, attempting to touch her through her connection to the Force.
"They call that a violation of personal space, you know." She said flippantly.
"You felt that. Good. Good…Your connection is wild and untamed. I can aid you young one, I can aid you along the path."
"Help me? How?" Skye scoffed. "You are no master Force wielder. You're not even armed with a lightsaber."
"True, I have not yet earned my lightsaber, however if I bring you before my Master he will reward me with mine and you shall earn yours as well, young one."
"Hum…yeah tempting but I'll pass. Red really isn't my colour."
"You're a fool!"
"I've heard that one before sleemo. Let's get this over with, I have things to do, other places to be, other people to kill."
"If you will not join you will pay for such insolence."
"Heard that one too." Skye said. Even as she had him talking her hand had slowly gone to the holster at her right hip, gingerly withdrawing her blaster. As soon as the last syllable pasted her lips she fired.
The shot landed directly in the chest only his armour's initial kinetic barriers stopped the bullets from fully penetrating the cuirass. But it was enough to knock him back off his feet. Bastila moved.
The Force could not be stopped by technology; the armour's shields were inert next to its awesome power. Hurtled into the far wall by a full Force push the Governor slammed so hard he nearly lost consciousness.
The Force doesn't take sides Light or Dark and its wielders have equal access. The Sith beat back the telemetric attack with one of his own, shoving Bastila in the chest with the force of a small explosion, throwing the Jedi backward across the room.
The human was sure on her feet. She landed upright and launched herself back into the fray. Golden yellow lightsaber flashed—the governor's vibroblade came up too slowly to block a blow to his chest, allowing the Jedi's blade to slash deeply across his armoured throat. The governor staggered backward, gauntleted hand upraised to the smoking wound.
There was no blood. Instead of pressing the attack, Bastila stood her ground. Despite herself she was a surprised as the Sith governor. Ravensong took the advantage, twin swords in hand she slammed both into his sides, puncturing through the armour into both kidneys.
This time there was blood, spilling over the scout's hands, she held him dying on his feet Bastlia looked him in the eyes, "You are not dead yet, you do not need to follow this path. There are many to choose from, they need not all lead to the same place. We can save your life; you need only to turn away."
Coughing up blood, the man teetered on his feet; the only thing holding him in place was Ravensong's blades. "Trying to turn me away from the Dark side, Jedi whore? Go to hell!" He spat in Bastila's face. His blood and spittle struck her in the cheek; instinctively she wiped it away with the black of her hand.
"Now is that anyway to treat a lady? What would your mother say?" Ravensong said twisting the blades effectively killing him. She drew her blades out, shook the blood off before sliding them home into their sheaths.
"You have a very cavalier attitude, Ravensong."
"Only very slightly." She tipped her head as a courtier before royalty.
Bastlia was on the verge of telling the scout it was not a quality best found in a Jedi but held her tongue at the last moment for she knew more than one master who was more than a bit reckless and a little more than cavalier. Instead of chiding the young Nagai she turned her attention to the dead man at their feet.
"You gave him a chance, he rejected it," came a pragmatic response. "You can't force people into accepting your help. Besides when you sign up for the military, you go in knowing there are risks. It's not like families can say 'we only thought you had to bake cookies'." Without preamble, the scout started looting the body, searching for the OSD that contained the access codes. Not finding it on the body they expanded their search to the rest of the office.
They found the codes in hidden alcove within the desk, along with a handful of credit chits worth hundreds. Ravensong swiftly pocketed them.
Bastila activated her wrist-comm, radioing the second team, alerting them on their success and ordering a status report from their end.
*…it was a little harry at first but we managed to neutralize the droid. Fortunately, Zaalbar had another one of those low yield thermo detonators, combined with a few photonic bursts from a riffle Mission recovered from the armoury took the thing right out. She and that little astromec also initiated Ravensong's idea about slicing into the main CPU core and causing the protocol droids to create a disruption in the streets. Combined with the jammed and garbled transmissions we should be able to evacuate without engaging in major opposition. *
"Excellent work all of you. We will rendezvous in the lobby in the next minute. Shan out."
It was almost anticlimactic when they exited the base the companions found no opposition to confront them. Still it was a blessing for it meant they had a bit more time before all hell broke loose. When it did they did not intend to be anywhere near the base.
Rather than rush from the compound the companions ambled along the street as might tourists as to attract less attention. It seemingly worked for they passed two Sith troopers they were not stopped for either questioning or to be placed under arrest.
"We have to get to the Lower City before our luck runs dry." Mission said. "This whole going unnoticed thing is making me jittery."
"I know what you mean I half expect to hear a voice shrill out 'Hey you there! Stop!' any moment now." Skye nodded. "Come on Canderous and our meal-ticket out of here is waiting."