The lightning storm started to thin but would not concede defeat, its blue flashes strobing through the open hangar bay. The Keeper's men began to return one-by-one. First, the A-Wing floated through the open port, followed by a Delta-6 Sprite class starfighter.
Boba and Videsse stared out of the cockpit window of the Falcon at the entering ships, studying them and forming a plan. Meanwhile, PZ-85 was just recovering from the ion pulse, shaking his head. "I don't know what your headaches feel like," PZ-85 said cradling his head with both hands, "but I think I can relate."
The other two ignored him, concentrating too hard to even tell him to shut up. "There, that's the third one," Videsse said. One of the TIE fighters entered in and came to rest in its designated place.
"Yeah," Boba agreed. "We'll let them land, then take out the next two on our way out. That will divide them well enough."
"Do you think Donal took any of them out," Videsse asked.
"Ha! Donal? He'd be the only pilot in the galaxy that could manage to shoot his own foot with that ship before he hit a moving target. I'm lucky he could hit the tethered X-Wings."
Videsse giggled at that and turned to leave. "I'll get on the guns." She left the cockpit and climbed the center gun well to the dorsal gun turret.
"Get ready on the shields, PZ," Boba ordered to the protocol droid as Boba deactivated the ion pulse and punched the ignition.
PZ-85 moved to the copilot seat, his head down and sluggish. "I don't feel so good, Master."
"You'll get over it. Forward shields," Boba replied.
PZ-85 complied. Boba closed the ramp.
Another A-Wing and the Naboo fighter darkened the blue hangar bay port, slowly entering.
"Time to give this girl a little room and see what she can do," Boba yelled out.
"Let's do it!" Videsse called back.
The Falcon rose steadily, its forward hull reflecting the strobing lightning. Videsse did not waste a moment and fired on the front A-Wing. Not ready for any battle, the A-Wing's shields were down, and the full impact of the laser fire ripped through its hull. The yellow Naboo fighter tried to maneuver away from Videsse's aim, but the hangar wall boxed it in. The Falcon rushed for the open bay door, and Videsse swiveled the gun turret to the starboard and fired on the Naboo fighter as they passed it by. She hit its port stabilizer causing it to spin into the parked V-Wing, the resulting explosion cracking the plastocrete wall and floor, and jarring the Falcon as it pitched forward violently.
Boba used the momentum by increasing the accelerator and vaulted out of the bay into the blue haze. The clouds were clearing and the visibility was now half a kilometer, but still rain hit the cockpit window as the lightning flashed and wisps of thicker clouds passed by.
The returning Eta-2 Actis-class interceptor came into sight as a patch of clouds swept out of the way. Videsse saw it and started to fire before any target lock was acquired. The laser blasts went awry and the Eta-2 sped to engage the Falcon. Its attack was well aimed and one laser blast deflected off the starboard shields. Boba rolled the Falcon to avoid more fire, then pitched up into a spiral, trying to make the Falcon a more difficult target. The Falcon rose in an expanding helix high above the Eta-2. The Eta-2 inclined to follow it up and continued its relentless fire, but Boba then dove the ship down almost on top of the attacker. Their proximity was eight hundred meters and closing as he swiftly angled down on top of it. Videsse heard the blaring alarm of a target lock and fired instantly, directly hitting the fuselage of the Eta-2. The explosion spit the snub fighter into two stabilizers that fell wistfully into the blue fog and disappeared.
The three snub fighters from the hangar had now joined the fray.
"Three enemy fighters behind us," PZ-85 informed Boba. "Now four."
Another TIE fighter had joined the pursuit from above.
"Rear deflector shields," Boba ordered.
"Already done, Master," PZ-85 replied.
"I've got an idea," Boba said. "Hold on!" He pulled up hard on the controls and rose sharply up and then back over the edge of the upper disc of Spire. The cerulean fog hid the distant building pinnacles that gave the floating city its name, but Boba knew where they were. The two TIEs, being faster and the most agile, led the attacking fighters. Behind that the second A-wing followed; and last in line was the slowest of the four, the Delta-6 sprite-class starfighter.
Videsse kept the heat on the TIEs but could not make contact. "These pests are fast!" she called out.
"Just keep them busy!" Boba yelled back.
The colossal bases of the two center pinnacles materialized before them, the space between being very narrow at the bases but widening as they rose to their heights. Boba aimed for the narrow gap close to the bottom-the too narrow gap. He boosted the accelerator and rushed forward, tilting the Falcon vertical.
"Master, the ship will not fit," PZ-85 called out with as much of a nervous tone his vocal emitters were capable of.
Boba ignored him and narrowed his eyes in concentration. The two TIE's closed in from behind, side-by-side with each other. The Falcon, still on its side, drew nearer the gap- four hundred meters. He then pulled into a barrel roll. However, he didn't finish the complete roll but stabilized the Falcon at the top where the gap was just wide enough for the Falcon to pass between. He zipped through the gap just in time to barely miss the edges.
The TIEs, flustered by the move and still rushing toward the two huge buildings, both reflexively made for the same gap. They slammed into each other at such a speed that they simply crumpled and exploded.
The following A-Wing pilot was blinded for a moment by the explosion and lost his view of the gap. On regaining his bearings, the pinnacle base filled his view. He pulled up instantly, but it was too late as the A-Wing grated up the hard building surface and erupted in flames.
Lucky for the Delta-6, its slower speed allowed for it to see the chaotic mess and swing around the buildings back into the draft behind the Falcon. It boosted its engines, racing to catch up and firing wildly.
Boba sent the Falcon into a dive like a flash, heading right for Spire's surface; then Boba made a hairpin turn just before impact. His momentum diminished, and his velocity eased as he rose, causing the Delta-6 to pass over him. He then punched the engines again and slipstreamed behind it. Videsse saw her opportunity and took it with a whoop of excitement. "Gotcha!" The Delta-6 blew up and shattered as the fuselage cracked under the barrage. The last three of the Keeper's snub fighters found the Falcon and dove into battle- the B-Wing, the X-Wing, and the Aqualish's TIE interceptor.
"If you keep this up, Master, the Spire peace officers are going to tarnish that clean record you worked so hard to obtain," PZ-85 commented.
"Good point," Boba agreed.
PZ-85 leaned forward and looked at him. "Really?" He turned his upper body and angled more directly at Boba. "I am surprised to receive an agreement from-"
"Shut up, PZ," Boba interrupted and inclined the Falcon abruptly. PZ-85 slammed back into his seat.
"Now that is expected," PZ-85 muttered to himself.
As he ascended, the clouds thickened, the lightning becoming more intense at the higher altitudes. The Falcon dodged to port and starboard, weaving between white flashes of lightning and enemy fire like a moon moth in the night. The snub fighters followed close behind; they also darted about to avoid the dangerous electrical streaks. The B-Wing was not so fortunate as it was struck through with a prodigious bolt. Though it did not appear to be damaged, all its systems failed, and it hung weightless in the air for a second before drifting down into the blue, nebulous unknown. The Aqualish's Interceptor skirted the listless B-Wing to its port side and accelerated to join the remaining X-Wing in pursuit.
The Falcon climbed steeply, and finally sprang from the top of the thunderclouds, ribbons of clinging mist trailing off its hull. Black space had shown dark in contrast to the glowing azure stratum. Boba leveled the ship out, and the X-Wing and TIE interceptor appeared behind him. The Aqualish boosted up to the Falcon just behind on the port side, as the X-Wing rushed forward to press in from the starboard, causing Boba to cut to port across the interceptor's path. They were sandwiching the Falcon in, but Boba knew the maneuver and how to counter. Instead of allowing the X-Wing to determine his path, he veered back to starboard passing in front of the X-Wing. Videsse swiveled her chair and focussed her fire on the Aqualish, keeping him at bay. The X-Wing, trying to stay behind the Falcon, swung to port. He found himself pinched in by the interceptor and turned sharply back toward the Falcon. However, the Falcon turned back and was now behind the X-Wing, barely.
Videsse whipped her chair forward and leaned in as she pulled hard on the trigger, the laser cannons blasting out a barrage on the X-Wing. The explosion was too close and Boba dove sharply to avoid a collision, but still the Falcon lurched at the air burst. Videsse felt like her stomach surged into her chest, and if not for her straps, her whole body would have flown out of her seat.
"Yeehaw!" Videsse called out, "Now we're flyin'!" She pushed her black hair back out of her face. "One left!" She spun the laser canons to the port where the TIE interceptor was, but she could not see it.
The Aqualish had dived with the Falcon, making sure to stay ventral to it and away from the dorsal gun turrets. He fired green laser blasts at the hull, hitting the shields directly.
"That was a direct hit, Master," PZ-85 informed. "Our shields are at twenty percent."
Videsse called down. "I can't hit him; he's staying beneath the ship!"
Boba tried a few lateral turns and dodges, but the Aqualish was unshakable.
Videsse, still not able to get a shot on him, unbuckled her straps, having an idea. She mounted the ladder of the gun well and started to descend.
Boba was unaware of what Videsse was attempting and tried to loop over and come down on the interceptor. He pulled up hard. The centripetal force of the loop pulled down violently on Videsse. She lost her hold on the hand grips and slid down the gun well wildly. She tried to slow herself by pinning her hands and feet to the well walls as she skidded all the way down to the ventral laser cannons. She hit her chin on the last foothold and landed not perfectly in the seat.
She spat out some blood, blew the hair away from her face again, and smiled at finding herself almost ready to fire, her knees in her face and head on the gun's control arms. The TIE interceptor came into view as Boba had completed the loop.
"Aw, this is all too easy!" she cried out as she twisted to get half-upright and gripped the trigger, firing into the TIE. The sharp laser fire darted into the dark sky and found its mark. The TIE erupted into flames before her eyes, shard fragments spraying in all directions and arcing down into the blue clouds. She wiped more of the blood away from her lip with her forearm, finally got herself seated correctly in the chair and slumped back, panting heavily. "Hey, Boba, we did it!"
PZ-85 looked at Boba as if he had not heard Videsse, "Master, it appears that we did it."
"Yeah," Boba said, looking pleased. He let go of the controls and settled into his seat, thoughtful. "We did."
"Clean Record?" What is PZ-85 talking about? Check out my Episode VIII Rise of the Dark Jedi.