Chapter 13 The Luck Runs Out
The Jedi blew down the door to the cell with their lightsabers blazing and killed the two guards. They got through the temple easily but when they reached the hanger they met the cyborg again. He just stared them down with his snake-like eyes.
"You don't want to get in our way again" said Nate.
"Oh, I think I do." said the cyborg.
"Um, no I don't think you do." said Dan.
"You don't know who I am, do you?" asked the cyborg.
"Well, if you have to ask then I guess we do," said Steph.
"Sarcasm won't help here Steph." snapped Nate.
"I am an old friend, a memory." said the cyborg.
"An old friend?" asked Dan.
"You could say that, or you could say an old, adversary." said the cyborg.
"You couldn't be…" started Steph.
"Oh yes I am, I'm General Grevis!" he said.
"No, that is not possible. You went up with the factory." stammered Dan.
"Actually I survived the blast but I needed these cybernetic parts to survive." said Greivis.
"Well dead or alive, you will get out of our way." said Nate.
"I don't think so." said Grevis.
Right after he said this Grevis pulled out four lightsabers. He activated all of them and then his arms split in two to reveal four arms to hold the four sabers. This sort of caught the trio of Jedi off guard. But they got back and started to attack Grevis. Fighting a person with four sabers was hard, even three on one. It was a back and forth fight, sometimes the Jedi were on the retreat, and sometimes Grevis was on the retreat. But no one was making any sort of great advantages until Nate decided to turn tail and ran out of the hanger.
"What is he doing?" asked Dan.
"I don't know anymore than you do." replied Steph.
So for the next couple of minutes the two JedI were kept at a disadvantage. But all of a sudden the next thing they hear it the roar of the engines of a LAAT. And suddenly it dropped from above into the hanger doorway. Grevis whirled around and stared into the cockpit, and Nate was staring back at him. The couple seconds the two were staring each other down seemed like an eternity, and the first one to make a move was Nate. He let loose a barrage of blaster fire and rockets. Even though Nate got the first shot Grevis was still too fast to be hit. He ran all over, and when I say all I mean all, celings, walls, everything. When Nate ran out of rockets and overheated the guns it looked like nothing but total destruction had happened, Grevis was back in the same spot, Dan and Steph hadn't moved, and Nate hadn't moved, the only way you could tell something had happened was the walls were missing large chunks and the LAAT's guns were smoking. Just then a bunch of bounty hunters ran into the hanger with a tired Boorka slithering along behind. With this Grevious decided to bolt, he jumped right onto the gunship and then out of the hanger. Now against all these bounty hunters and with out the guns of the LAAT the Jedi were toast.
Dan slowly raised his hands and said sheepishly, "Ap-xmasi keepuna."
Boorka, who was very cross, said quite angrily, "Yacha neechu!"
The bounty hunters then proceeded to take the JedI into the throne room. This time there wasn't as much debating, but there was some conversation.
The only thing Boorka said was, "U wamma wanka?"
"Pay for what slimo?" asked Steph.
"Not a good time." commented Nate, who had been taken, quite forcefully, from the gunship.
At this Boorka exploded in a fit of rage. There was random babbling but most of it didn't make sense. The guards got enough out of it to know to take the Jedi's lightsabes away and put them back in the cell, without their weapons.
This time the escape wasn't as fast cause no 'easy' way was found to get out of the cell, get their weapons, and make it to the hanger. They especially hit the problem with getting their weapons, the rest was 'easy', well to Nate it was.
"It won't be that hard." said Nate for the hundredth time. "and besides it will be fun."
"I have already discovered your idea of 'fun' to be very difficult to make our idea of 'easy'." said Steph a little cross at his constant pestering.
"Well when you come up with an idea let me know," said Nate going to lay on the durasteel bed in the cell.
This imprisonment lasted for about three or four days, but finally Dan and Steph decided to go with Nate's idea. The 'fun' and 'easy' way to get out. So when they did go ask him he laid it out it detail, but was missing one small one.
"How are we supposed to get our weapons?" asked Steph.
"Well we…we could…could…well…I forgot about that part of the plan." said Nate grinning sheepishly.
"That doesn't help us at all." said Dan throwing his hands into the air.
"I have a plan to supplement the plan." Nate said bolting upright.
"What?" asked Dan and Steph in unison.
"Watch and learn." said Nate walking over to the cell door. The next second Dan and Steph heard two thuds as the guards seemingly hit the ground, then a click as the cell door opened.
"Tada!" exclaimed Nate bowing.
"Now we are out…our weapons?" asked Steph.
"Over there." said Nate pointing off down the corridor to the right a little ways.
"Ok. Sabers, check. Plan, check. Anything else we need?" asked Dan.
"Stealth." said Nate peering around the corner.
"And a lot of luck." added Steph in a barley audible whisper.
With that the Jedi took off down the corridor toward the hanger. This time it was more of a covert op. They didn't ignite their sabers unless absolutely necessary. And when they did they made sure it was quick. They made it to the hanger seemingly undetected. Seemingly. When they reached the hanger it was full of bounty hunters, and other lowlifes, and right in the middle of it was Boorka.
"Well it looks like we are going to have to fight anyway." said Nate.
"Insert coined phrase here" said Steph.
"No this time there is no alternative." said Nate.
"Well, are we going or not?" asked Dan.
"OK, OK." said Steph. "We'll fight, but we will need to keep our gunship in working order."
Both Nate and Dan then peered over the crates they were hiding behind. They saw their gunship sitting there, seemingly in working order. Seemingly.
"Ok new plan, you two get their attention" said Nate pointing at the mob with a nod of his head. "I'll go an make sure the gunship is working. If it is I'm going to start bringing this place down around everyone's ears. Meaning if you hear it start up, run for it."
"I guess you don't want to be put in the line of direct fire this time, huh?" said Dan.
"Shut up and get going" said Nate.
The Jedi split up Nate headed toward the gunship while Dan and Steph headed toward the mob. Steph had an easier time persuading Dan that they didn't have to run in there sabers ablaze. She reached out to their weak minds and made the bitterly argue about many little things in their many different languages. That was good enough for Nate. He bounded aboard the gunship. A quick check showed the gunship was just as he had left it last. In the next second and a half the gunship lifted off, flew out of, and spun around to face into the hanger. The people inside the hanger were so taken aback that they were released from Steph's control. Nate sat there for only a second before he aimed for the weak sections of the hanger and let of barrages of rockets. At that time Dan and Steph figured it was a good time to head for the ship. They ran between the bounty hunter straight to the gunship, then with a leap aided by the Force they jumped into the gunship.
"OK, let's go!" shouted Dan.
"Hang on, this is going to be a little bumpy!" said Nate, aiming for a fuel container and setting it off.
The resulting explosion caused the gunship to rock back and forth as it sped away. Nate pushed it to the limits trying not to get caught in the fireball.
"OK, to tell Jángo…" Nate was cut off by the comm.
"Commander Jángo," said the robbed figure. "Execute order sixty-six."