CHAPTER 18
Haste was redefined when Carletta swept out of the vault like a rushing wave and reopened the stone doors with such renewed will the resulting thump reverberated throughout the building. Her pace never slackened as she kept the tightest grip over the holocron and ran through the grandly vast corridors of the citadel. Although it didn't take long for obstacles to appear, Carletta never let them stall her. She first encountered a squad of troopers, who ordered her to stop, yet she only needed to throw them into the walls, never needing to slow down. Then the alarm sounded. It was loud, and gave Carletta the grim message she prepared herself for: she would have to fight her way out.
Her pace never slackened as she navigated the grand passages, not even when confronted by more guards, who were either shoved back, or met the end of her blade. So far, she hadn't encountered any Sith, but it was bound to happen, she could feel it. How many of them she would face however was something beyond her certainty and it left her worried, almost scared. So, when she burst into another corridor, her heart would backflip at the intimidating sight of five cloaked, masked figures all brandishing their crimson weapons.
The thought of turning back hovered over Carletta, yet her stubbornness proved too overpowering. All she had to do was get her bearings and keep a cool head. After all, she'd beaten Sith Lords before, so what made them so fear inducing now? The answer swiftly came as all of them leapt at her, all attempting a death stroke from the off. Spinning her blade seemed an adequate enough defence, since it barely kept her alive at that point and made them hold back for a moment before returning to the offensive. Carletta knew they'd attempt to surround and overwhelm her, a prediction becoming very true, judging from their movements. She cautiously backed away from them, eyeing an opening, but it never seemed to appear. A new set of tactics would be needed.
A grunt of frustration escaped her as Carletta charged at the group, presenting them with a vicious display that caught them off guard for a second. She never let up, launching strike after strike in a furious attempt to overpower at least one of them. Through her rage however, she noticed one of them retaliated with more unease. A light clicked on in her head at the discovery of her weak link.
An intentionally wide swing sent most of them back, allowing Carletta to single out her target, who'd wound up between her and a wall. Taking full advantage of the tiny gap in time, she clashed with the opponent, using a series of wild swings and low swipes before succeeding in a shallow slice of the legs. With a cry, he fell, incapacitated.
There was no time to catch any breath though, as the fallen Sith's companions immediately renewed their efforts. One of them started by launching bolts of lightning into Carletta when her back was turned, but Matturn had trained her well in dealing with electricity. She caught the blast with her lightsaber, absorbing the blow, but left herself vulnerable.
Their tactics had changed from fighting as one to taking turns in crossing weapons with their quarry. Carletta understood it as a way of exerting smaller force, but resulting in her strength being riddled away. The perfect way in letting their duel drag on until back up arrived. There was little time left and she wasn't going to waste any more of it with her murderous posse. The first sight of a gap compelled her to sprint to the door. With the Force, she commanded them open. A wild glance over her shoulder saw a crimson blade come unbearably close before she slammed her hand on the control panel and the doors slammed down, the blade piercing through. Carletta swiped the panel with her lightsaber. It wouldn't buy her much time, not a minute even, she reckoned, but at least it gave her some breathing room, which was all she needed at that point.
The hanger was the first escape idea that had formed in her head. There was no shortage of ships to steal there. However, with the whole place alerted, there'd no doubt be a lot of eyes keeping watch there, but few realistic options remained. She'd have to try. That was unless she could navigate the labyrinth of halls. The Sith didn't seem to be big fans of directional signs, she mused.
Through the many lefts and rights Carletta took, she'd infrequently encountered more soldiers and Sith, though none were nearly as challenging as the group from before. She tried not to stop for them, simply dashing and slashing whilst keeping her path full of wild turns to confuse her pursuers. Although it was keeping her one step ahead, her tactic gave no help in finding the hanger. A stroke of good fortune would be needed and that's exactly what she received.
Upon speeding into another corridor, Carletta noticed a stray control panel. She glanced behind her and saw no one rushing after her, so she took the possibly one time opportunity and inspected it. To her relief it did offer directions, but the alarm had such an option on lockdown; she would have to hack it to gain any access.
Throughout her life, Carletta had attained enough experience in tapping into electrics and, to her surprise, the panel showed little resistance to her attempts, but the bellowing alarm and flashing lights went to great effort in making it feel excruciatingly drawn out. Beads of sweat raced down her forehead as she crouched down, toying away at wires before a compliant beep went off. For a few short seconds Carletta's mind felt at ease when she turned on the holo-projector and glimpsed the map before her. A wry smile formed when she caught the first glimpse of the hangar, a place of salvation not too far from the labyrinthine hallways she'd explored enough of. Swiftly, she shut off the glowing display and carefully hid the evidence of her handy work before making a renewed effort of escape.
Few obstacles stood in Carletta's way when she made for the hangar. A few soldiers tried their best in putting an end to the chase, but found it was beyond their ability. Besides that, Carletta had a surprisingly free run for what she hoped would be her way out of the Empire's very heart. One more hard right and she would be led straight to bay. That was until she hit something stiff and metallic, judging from the clang Carletta's mask made. She felt the force unsteady her, though when she recaptured her balance the sight of what caused it made her almost fall.
Dath Jadus stood with no visible reaction, or surprise, only a gaze from his blank mask that, combined with his painful essence, bored through Carletta's eyes and very mind. Then he turned his attention to the blue glow from her robe's pocket. He slowly reached into it with a large hand, producing the holocron. Carletta felt the urge to protest, to fight for it, but she was not insane to try. Instinct told her to stand her ground however and be prepared for whatever might happen.
Even with no discernible expression, Jadus examined the artefact with an almost innocent curiosity. His head tilted to see every angle and once done with observing it he finally spoke.
'This belonged to Darth Alundus, a former Jedi healer. She stored all her medicinal cures within this one holocron it's been told...' he said matter-of-factly, while continuing to stare at it. Carletta couldn't tell if his words were aimed directly at her, or himself. 'How fortunate you are that I have no use for it.'
Jadus floated it back to Carletta. With gentle hands she caught it, utterly baffled.
'The docking bay is straight down this hall, though I imagine you know that already.' he continued.
'You're not going to kill me?' said Carletta breathlessly.
'No. You are too good a distraction and too little a threat. Enjoy this amount of mercy while you can...'
The former Dark Councillor swept off, emitting unnerving calm usually experienced before the harshest of storms. Carletta never thought she'd feel thankful to such a person. Interestingly, she highly doubted Matturn would do the same, which reminded her...
'Darth Jadus?' she called. It was total impulse and as soon as she spoke she regretted it, but Jadus had already halted and glanced round at her. 'Please, if you ever see him again, tell Matturn I... I did it to save others and that – that I will always thank him for teaching me... Can you do that, please?'
Jadus shot her the same blank stare as before. It was a crazy long shot, Carletta knew, but there panged a need to explain.
'I don't make those kinds of promises, but... we'll see...' he said slowly before finally leaving her. Carletta spent little time lingering and returned to her charge. In small time she stood before the hangar entrance. An eagerness compelled her to open it quickly, but she held back. There was no possibility such a place would receive light security. She crept away from the door, scanning her surroundings until she spotted another vent above and cut it open. A powerful leap and she was in, crawling silently before stopping at the next vent. Any vision through it was scarce, yet she knew it was inside the hangar. A figure walked by, urging her to try elsewhere, not noticing the hem of her robes trapped under her knee. In a rush to head further up the vent, her heart skipped as she tripped, making a cold, hard thud. No time was spent cursing herself over it though unless she wanted to be an easy target for the soldiers.
The panicked scuttling reminded her of the burrowing insects on Korriban, the big difference being they didn't have to avoid blaster shots bolting through their tunnels. Despite the mounting pressure, Carletta seemed to keep one step ahead of them, but she dared not presume they were simply lousy shots. She could still hear the bolts zip by, motivating her to move faster, but such motivation would prove not enough to remain unscathed.
A flash of green light caught the corner of Carletta's eye, instantly followed by a burning, stinging pain in her thigh, reducing her to almost limping. It didn't feel too deep a wound, but it didn't change Carletta'a opinion on it: it hurt like hell. Although it felt not enough to keep her from at least trying to get out, so she slipped out her lightsaber and cut herself out of the vent, knowing she was better off able to fight whoever was attacking. When she dropped to the floor however, her mind was starting to debate such tactics.
Two dozen soldiers were spread out across the hangar's pervasive expanse, where ships were carefully docked along the walls. All of them converged on the injured intruder before them. Carletta felt a searing burn of pain at the sight of them, yet she steeled herself, set her eye on the nearest ship, readied her weapon and threw herself into the fray. Besides the wound, defending against the soldiers proved arduous in the flashing red light and booming alarm, though it didn't stop her from felling two with ease. After that, the rest of them made the wise choice in keeping further away, making careful, thought out shots at Carletta. Bizarrely she found herself almost respectful of their skill. They never let her have any room for even slight mistakes. The fire was constant and alarmingly consistent. How they were able to maintain accuracy was beyond her, Carletta thought, since her lightsaber at this point was almost a spinning wall of white light, ricocheting the bolts throughout the whole hangar bay.
Another pang in her leg made some frustration erupt from Carletta, which she channelled into throwing the nearest troops flat on their backs. With her chance open, she set off for a fighter, but her limp worsened. Luckily the small, angular ship grew closer, but so did the blasterfire. Fiery stinging suddenly cropped up on Carletta's shoulder. It was only a slight graze, but it carried the message that she could not keep up with the savage momentum the many troopers carried. Clearly however they didn't think they were sufficient enough as they then demonstrated by the arrival of several Sith warriors. They approached the scene from all angles. Through the doorways, leaping from the rafters, the sight made Carletta think of them as a daunting swarm of insects. All of them working together as one, unstoppable swarm in their endeavours, whether it be capturing, killing, or simply overcoming obstacles. She felt terror flood her heart as they belted closer towards her, but, she reminded herself, the fighter remained even closer.
It was a true test of nerve for Carletta just to walk a few more metres to the cockpit that was waiting so patiently for her. She kept her lightsaber a defensive blur against the blasters, ignoring the searing hurt in her injuries and the predatory wraiths gaining with their crimson swords ready to strike. Yet she'd reached the tips of the fighters long, geometric wings, a worthy shield from the heat. Carletta threw a hand out for the cockpit door, almost ready to experience triumph.
'Carletta!' a voice cried. It was an echo that somehow drowned out the noise of battle, one filled with confusion and uproar. Carletta barely dared to turn her head around to glimpse Matturn standing on the other side of the hangar. She couldn't deduce if he had worked out her true intentions, or he remained in the dark. A split second, that felt unbearably longer than normal, told her he had just put it together, a fact he displayed by igniting his lightsaber and taking off in a rage fuelled sprint.
'Don't let her escape!' he bellowed at the soldiers. Carletta had almost forgotten his own bit of thievery had gone unnoticed until realising he likely hadn't hidden his tracks so pitifully like her. As far as everyone else was concerned, she was the sole criminal. Jadus was right, she was the perfect distraction.
Quickly snapping herself out of such lingering thoughts, Carletta opened the cockpit, barely dodging the incoming fire that bounced and sparked off the ship. It was painful to hoist herself up and clamber inside, but desperation motivated her enough to press on rather than wind up with the alternative. A small wave of relief flowed over her when the canopy closed, eliminating the danger of blasters, yet the Sith moved ever closer, while Matturn remained not far behind. Carletta anxiously perused the controls; they were familiar to the craft she and Matturn had flown, so getting it running wasn't an issue. What was however would be how unprepared she was of its much nimbler handling. Throughout her piloting past she'd only been accustomed to craft no smaller than a light freighter. The featherweight sensation of a fighter caught her off guard, even within the tense situation of escaping the Empire's Citadel.
A slight pitch up sent Carletta hitting the larger bomber above. No major damage had been done, but she struggled to get any grip on the sensitive controls. Although wobbly and unsettled, she did move forward, growing more confident until she felt the ship lean to the right jerkily. A single glance revealed a Sith had leapt from the rafters and landed on the wing. His footing was unsteady, yet that did little in attempting to slash away at the craft. Carletta banked left and right, unable to shake off the persistent warrior till an accidental bump threw him off.
In spite of the furious fire and all the Sith deftly trying to attain higher ground, Carletta continued her move for the bay doors, scanning the ground for a control panel. Her mind became clouded however, buzzy from the adrenaline and worry.
'Oh, to hell with it...' she muttered and pressed the firing button. Neon green laser fire was sent into the nearby walls as well as an unlucky interceptor, turning it into smouldering flames. Carletta steered it round, bringing blazing chaos to an already chaotic scene. Her heart almost jumped out of her chest though when the corner of her eye caught sight of a trooper hoisting up a rocket launcher. There was no time to fire at him, just to avoid. One hard bank to the left and the rocket merely scraped by, hitting another fighter. Carletta opened fire and sent the figures scattering. A nudge of the stick twisted the fighter to the left, igniting the nearby wall in a blaze of smoke and sparks. Soon it was accompanied by the sound of a loud, muffled clunk that felt a sound of hope to Carletta's ears. One jerk to the right revealed the massive hangar doors slowly open, letting the storm rain flood in.
Her heart set soaring, Carletta swung round and prepared to swoop straight for the storm ridden skies when a judder violently halted her. With slow, shaky movement the fighter turned around and allowed Carletta to glimpse Matturn and two other warriors each holding a hand out. She could sense the wave of primal fury from Matturn, enough so to set her nerves off. Although she tried pulling up the ship crept downwards inch by inch whilst taking the barrage of fire. A finger hovered over the trigger button, yet Carletta stopped herself to think. In spite of everything, she found no intention to kill Matturn and somehow she knew he recognised that. The very thought made her scowl.
'Sorry if this stings, Matturn...' she murmured and fired. The blast set dust and rubble into the air, but it only met before their feet, sending them reeling in the shock of it. In an instant the ship lightened and Carletta returned to her escape route.
There was a split second when her eyes met Matturn's as he picked himself up. The daggers he shot tore apart her regretful stare. Any sorrow Carletta tried to convey met not only steely anguish, but confusion as well. A part of her hoped he would discover the missing holocron and discern her motives, should Jadus ever relay her last message to him. Perhaps he would somewhat understand why and move on, or at least feel a lessened urge to kill her. Unfortunately, she lamented, she would never know. Then again, Matturn would never know where she was going after seeing the small fighter swoop out of the hangar and disappear into the stormy skies. He would never know that she would return to her home and successfully rescue her people from their plague. And he would never know the joy, the triumph, or the lingering remorse she felt in her achievement. What he did know however was that his influence would affect Carletta much, much more than her affect upon himself.