The Great Escape

"Speech"

"Radio or calls"

'Thoughts'

Control Room of the Ruin

The group wordlessly followed Anew as she went at a steady pace. It was still dark, and she had to keep her senses sharp as there was nothing that indicated where they were on the map as they moved. Anew was in front, Setsuna right behind her to take the heat off of her. Allelujah took up the rear, with Tieria in the middle of the loose formation. The storm trooper armor on the two men rattled as they walked, echoing around the hallways.

The scraping and scuttling sounds were getting closer, and Lyle was sweating as the potential of failure weighed on him. 'If we all die here, not only are Feldt and Christina alone, but all of us are buried in this underground tomb.' He had no idea what sort of implications this information had, but it was weighing on his shoulders regardless.

And they were greeted by the rest of the security here as a dozen little droids surrounded them. In contrast with the guardian before, these were octagonal disks with four razor-sharp legs, three yellow sensor built into the front of it like eyes. They were crawling along the floors and walls, coming from both sides as they keyed into the intruders. And further down the hallway was the sound of a larger droid. Tieria looked at the group, his voice firm, "We have to keep moving. If we stop, they could overwhelm us."

The man then aimed his blaster, striking one of the droids center mass. The bolt singed the armor, and there was a noticeable dent in the armor, but all that did was cause it to fall to the ground, quickly righting itself as it joined its brethren. Anew and Lyle joined Tieria, taking shots at the fast moving droids, getting some glancing hits as they got used to the dim light. Add onto the fact that they were fast, and the group could only feel like it was a suicide mission to charge into them.

Allelujah called out to the rest of the group, "Keep focus on the front! I'll keep them busy back here." He raised his lightsaber as he knocked back four droids with the force, keeping his senses open to make sure he was keeping up. He couldn't turn all the way around, but he twisted his body to make sure none of the droids were out of his sight for more than a split second.

His blast had only knocked them back for a second, and one launched itself at him, the Jedi slicing through it, cutting off part of the chassis that had one of the legs. Sparks and heat radiated off of it, and it struggled back onto three legs, shaky as it tried to keep up with the rest of security. Allelujah's eyes went wide as he deflected a blast coming from the back of it, nearly hitting the droid, but it seemed to react faster than his deflection.

He knew he could handle them if he could charge forward, but he couldn't lose the crew, only able to turn to the side instead of all the way around. Another one leaped off a wall, Allelujah slicing through two of the legs, though one of the legs grazed his cheek, leaving a clean, if shallow, cut. Fending off more blasts, he looked at the group as the kept a steady pace. It was hard to move and deflect, but it was all he could do.

Setsuna, having moved in front of Anew, blocked an attack with his new blade. The movement certainly wasn't as smooth as his old blade, the weapon heavier in his hand than he was used to. Yet at the same time there was a naturalness holding it, like it was where it was supposed to be. A few more attacks were blocked as he was engaged by two of them, which kept him on his toes. They were fast enough to keep him from being able to focus, one on the ground and another on the wall.

Blasts went past him both ways, his friends keeping the blaster enemies busy. He let his pregonition flow through his actions as he dodged blaster bolts coming from either side of him. 'Let the force flow through you.' Allelujah's lesson from before were coming in handy as he had to focus on multiple things. The enemies in front of him, the group continuing to move. His legs were feeling the exhausting level of action he had to do right now, the only thing keeping him up was the force and adrenaline.

A lucky counter-strike sliced through one of the mini-droids, Setsuna shoving back the other small droid with the force into another, knocking both into the wall, sparks coming off both of them. Dust came off the stone walls as the two droids left a dent in the wall. There were still a few more droids in front of them, but several more blaster bolts from the blaster-wielding members knocked them out. Allelujah was cleaning up the last couple droids, when the ground near them exploded in rubble, bringing the group to a sudden stop.

A guardian appeared out of the darkness of the tunnel, and Lyle looked at Anew, knowing this hallway was a trap. 'We have no cover and it has a perfect shot at us.' His voice was low, but filled with urgency, "How close?"

Anew just looked at the map then the right turn twenty feet away, "There." She pointed, Setsuna throwing the remains of a droid to block another incoming attack, scattering the parts of the formerly intact droid. Tieria began laying covering fire down the hall, hoping he could at least force it to stay on the move.

"Then get moving." Setsuna's voice was low and intense, breathing hard as he could hear another guardian moving from the other side of the hall where Allelujah was. A blast was blocked, and the rest of the group got the hint as they once again took off down the halls, Anew on the lookout for a door on the left. Setsuna and Allelujah drew up the rear, a silent look passing between the two of them. Sounds were echoing from deeper down the halls, more security on their way.

Allelujah took one last look at the t-junction. 'How many droids does this place have? Was this place so important?' They had beaten back a dozen of these little things, but it had exhausted all of them, especially him and Setsuna. The two caught up with Anew and the others as they were at a door, the woman pressing the open button with no success, bad audio saying something that none of them understood. They were clearly at the end of a hallway, which was bad news if this door was a dead end for them.

Tieria looked at her, "What is wrong with the door?"

"I don't know. There seems to be some kind of lock. If I had to guess, it's saying I need a pass or some form of ID. And we didn't find anything." Anew tried to press the button again, but nothing came of it once again, "How are we going to get out of here?"

Lyle's eyes turned to see one of the guardian droids at the entrance to the hallways, and dove to tackle Anew, a blaster bolt shooting over them, hitting the wall, shattering the stone. Lyle took a deep breath, and Anew just nodded at him, silently thanking him. He smirked slightly, "I like this." Anew just rolled her eyes and got out from under him, the team scattered as much as possible, taking cover behind what little pillars and rubble that could be used.

Allelujah looked at the door, and called out to the team, "I can get us in. Just hold off that droid!" Tieria and Lyle looked at him in confusion, but didn't question him as they began to shoot at the droids joints, like that they did earlier. Setsuna took a deep breath and charged in once again, drawing it's gun to him. The droid rotated and moved as Setsuna tried to aim for the legs, the guardian skillfully parrying his blows. The blade strained under the blows, but his attacks left gashes in the armor of the large droids.

Setsuna kept his focus on dodging his allies attacks, Tieria, Anew and Lyle having to be more careful. To the four of them, this felt like minutes were passing as the droid took the blaster bolts, some hitting the softer, unarmored parts, while other harmlessly deflected off the armor. Sparks emanated every time the blade and the legs clashed, Setsuna narrowly avoiding some of the attacks. 'The only advantage we have here is that it can't dodge effectively.' He managed to slice through one of the lines on the legs, oil spilling onto the floor.

And while his team fought, Allelujah activated his lightsaber and plunged it into the stone and metal door. The stone hissed and bubbled as the lightsaber carved into it. The Jedi could feel the resistance, but forced the lightsaber to move as he started to rotate it, creating a circle which the team could leave through. He strained a bit as melted materials fell onto the ground, some of the stone cracking as he got further and further.

His attention turned to look at the group, who were still struggling as the droid knocked Setsuna into the wall, knocking the wind out of him. Blaster fire echoed down the hall and scarred the walls as the droid retreated back a bit. Frustration bubbled up in him, wanting, no needing to cut faster. Hallelujah's voice filtered into his mind, "Just use it. Use me. Then you can save your friends. That is what you want, isn't it?"

The Jedi took a breath as the offer hung in his mind. Sweat dripped down his face as the heat from the melting stone and the exertion. Tieria had rushed over to Setsuna, who was catching his breath. He could feel the desperation coming off of everyone. He shook his head and grit his teeth as he pushed the force through his arms, slicing through the stone. The melting rock was red hot, and Allelujah grabbed the cut away part with the force, throwing it at the droid, which smashed into its sensor, the droid buckling and falling to the ground.

He gestured to the circular hole, the edges of it rapidly cooling in the cold ruin, "Everybody, through the hole! More are coming!" The rest of the rebels saw the other guardian approaching, and the one that Allelujah knocked down was getting up, its head sparking hard, the sensor cracked and crumbled.

Lyle took a deep breath at that, "You heard the man! Get moving! Setsuna, take up the rear." Setsuna called out affirmatively, and the group, still running on adrenaline, ducked through the hole, entering a small room with what looked like heavy couches and chairs. Shelves and a desk were on a free wall, and more markings covered the walls, tatters of old banners and fabric the only remains of the old culture that used this room. There was no obvious stairs, but Anew noticed out of the corner of her eye a tucked away button on the strange, projector-like device. She shined her light on it, and pressed it with no hesitation, not knowing how many more droids were approaching them.

A metallic sound rung out as a hatch uncovered a set of metallic stairs, a wall of darkness greeting them. She looked between the descending stairs into darkness, her light shining till it hit a curve in the wall. Tieria just took a step down the stairs, "Move." He walked into the darkness with little fear, taking the lead as Setsuna and Allelujah tried to cover the hole with the furniture and heavy objects in the room. Their bodies strained a bit as their use of the force was tiring them, Setsuna having used a lot to enhance his speed and senses.

They were the last two down the stairs as the rest waited a bit further ahead. The group took a breath as they could hear the pounding on the door, and Lyle looked over the group, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm a bit tired of this place. And Christina and Feldt are probably worried about us." He looked at Anew, drained, "No offense, but I don't think I want to see a place like this ever again."

Anew just nodded, "No, I understand you completely. One of the most ancient ruins in the galaxy wasn't something that I expected Ribbons to have found." Her eyes reflected the sheer relief and thanks she had, directed at Lyle especially. 'One step closer to killing that bastard. And even if we can't attack him, we denied him what he wants.'

Setsuna rested against a wall, next to an electronic panel. Tapping the button, the hatch above them closed, and low lights lit the tunnel, giving them a much better view of the winding tunnel in front of them. Lyle gestured for the group to start walking, and without any argument, the group walked down the winding tunnel, happy to be out of this place.

Bridge of the Vagabond

Feldt and Christina looked at the comms, waiting for the signal that everyone was ok. They had tried to contact them over and over, but all they had gotten was static. Both Feldt and Christina were aware that ruins could make comms hard, but sitting here for an hours had done nothing to help calm their nerves. Feldt was taking deep breaths, focusing on her bond with Setsuna. 'It's not broken, but I can't sense anything from the other side.' She had never felt anything like this before. It was like a dead zone, and there was no natural force flowing through the area.

The force was in everything, so something bad must have happened, wherever they were. 'Why does that feel worse than if it was just the dark side?' And contrasting Feldt's outwardly calm, but secretly nervous energy, Christina was nearly shaking in her chair. It had been so long since something like this had happened on mission. She was always mission control, and here she couldn't do anything for anyone. Her hands gripped the flight console hard, her pink skin pale. The group had never been out of contact like this, not so suddenly and for so long.

Her breath was heavy, and she looked up at the Miraluka, "Are they ok? Can you sense Setsuna or Allelujah? Or anyone else?" Her words were a mile a minute, panicked breaths leaving her. Feldt's expression was a frown. 'They can't be dead. Feldt would be crying, right?' The girl had fallen hard for the stoic Kiffar, so logically she would be inconsolable if he was dead.

Feldt looked at Christina, and could feel the radiating waves of anxiety coming off of her. The force user let out a breath, and smiled, though it didn't reach her metaphorical eyes, "I don't know. But I'm sure they are alive. We know all of them are stubborn and wouldn't die easily. Especially Tieria." Panic wouldn't help them, or bring back their team. And they couldn't risk going back to the camp to look.

Christina's lips quivered, a small hint of a smile reaching one side of her lips, "Yeah. That guy wouldn't die. He would refuse to." Her nails were still digging into the console, but her grip loosened a bit, a few tears threatening to leave her. She took deep breaths, trying to collect herself. 'Lichty wouldn't want me to be like this. Not for him or anyone.' Her passion her people had often made this hard, so she was doing all she could to not rush out of the ship and look for the group herself.

"Hello? Vagabond? Can you hear us?" Lyle's voice filling the room filled both women with hope as the breath they had been holding left both of them. Feldt could feel Setsuna's warming and comforting prescence, Allelujah near him. She couldn't sense the others at whatever distance they were at, but just feeling those two hopefully meant all the others were alive.

Christina let out a cry of joy and relief, "Oh thank the force. I didn't know what happened to you guys! Where are you?! Is everyone alive?!"

"Yeah, all of us made. No major injuries, but let's just say that I don't want to ever go back to a place like that again." There were sounds of agreement with the rest of the group, and Christina was even more curious as to what happened down there. But getting them safe and back on the ship was the most important thing right now.

"What is your position?" Feldt spoke calmly, beating Christina to the question.

"About two miles from the temple near a small clearing. That tunnel was really long." Their position was marked on their sensors, showing he was pretty close. Christina was already lifting the ship up, Feldt having to rush to activate the stealth drive, the imperials still on edge after the chaos from before. Christina looked at the location and shot off as fast as she could, her response a little bit hysterical.

"Just hold your position! We'll be right there!"

Clearing

The rebels waited at the edge of the clearing, sitting on a bunch of rocks. Tieria stood apart from them, tapping his foot as he waited for the ship. Allelujah was mediating, trying to center himself after all that chaos, which wasn't easy when he was surrounded by the dark side and Hallelujah badgering him. Setsuna was watching the sky when Lyle's voice met his ears, "You must have missed Feldt all day yesterday. Going to give her a big kiss?"

Setsuna glanced over at the Corellian, a shit-eating grin on the man's face. Setsuna grunted and just responded simply, "Yes." The relationship was new, and Lyle wasn't wrong that he had pangs of loneliness when he infiltrated the camp. 'I hate the fact that my job worries someone like her.'

But Lyle just groaned as he walked up to the man, clapping him on the shoulder, "Is that a yes to a kiss or that you missed her?" Setsuna just gave him a blank look, and was relieved when Anew came to help.

"Hey flyboy, you don't have to harass him like this. Besides, are you in any position to judge him?" Anew smirked as Lyle turned to look at her, his eyes roaming her body subconsciously. Memories of their night together filtered into his mind, and he couldn't help but grin at her, Anew's cheeks a bit pink, biting her bottom lip as one side of her lips rose in a smirk.

Setsuna's voice rung out to the pair, "If you two want to make out, at least do it behind a tree." There was no teasing or obvious joking, and the pair just took a deep breath as a corner of Setsuna's mouth upturned. Lyle groaned, and sat down, deflated at being embarrassed by Setsuna.

Anew sat down next to him, squeezing his hand in comfort. The Corellian just looked at the Kiffar, "You know, you are more clever than you pretend not to be."

"I don't know what you are talking about."

He was about to respond when the wind began to pick up around them, all of their hair blowing in the wind, and a large shadow descended on the middle of the clearing, a familiar dinged-up spaceship hitting the ground. Tieria was the first to start walking to the ship, everyone else following suit as the ramp lowered. What no one expected was a pink-skinned woman rushing off the ramp, practically tackling Lyle and Allelujah, holding them both close, "Thank the force you guys are safe! You had us worried!"

Lyle just smiled and held Christina close, "There was no way we could have died. We had a mission to do. And I'm sure you could have beaten the imperials to get to us." Christina smacked his back, and Lyle grunted in pain, "Fine. I got it."

Allelujah blushed slightly as Christina had an arm around him. He knew she was affectionate, but seeing her worried, and now happy expression sent a surge of love through him. After being surrounded by the dark side for a while, it was a good sensation to feel. 'This is why I fight against Hallelujah.'

Tieria smirked seeing the other two men attacked, but regretted it as Christina soon latched onto him, squeezing him tight. He blushed deeply, looking away from her. She was warm, and certainly soft, and the sensation of unrestrained affection was still a new-ish sensation to him. Allelujah and Lyle chuckled, Anew joining that.

And in contrast to that, Setsuna walked up to Feldt, who had taken a few steps off the boarding ramp. In contrast to Christina, the couple slowly wrapped their arms around each other, her arms around his neck and his around her waist. He rested his forehead against hers, the force flowing freely between them. Both closed their eyes, and she whispered, a hitch in her voice, "I was so worried. I couldn't sense you or Allelujah." He could innately feel her worry as it went through her mind, and he had a streak of guilt flow through him, even though he knew he had no choice.

He didn't move as he whispered back, "It wasn't fun to be there. But I came back. I'll explain inside." She just nodded slightly, noticing the sword at his side. 'Anything new about the force would be good to know. And where did he get that sword? It looks old.' The two held their pose for a few more seconds, their fingers intertwining.

Christina broke the hug with Tieria, who despite seeming like he didn't like it, frowned as she let go. She looked to Anew, "You didn't let my boys get hurt, did you?"

Anew just smiled, "Besides some scrapes and bruises, nothing major." Christina scanned her and the rest of the men, seeing no serious injuries. The Zeltron then nodded at her.

Tieria grumbled as he looked at Feldt and Setsuna, "So we get rushed and yet Setsuna doesn't?"

Christina rolled her eyes, "I was going to hug him after they were done." She looked at the pair, and tears welled up as she looked at the intimate embrace. She hugged herself and smiled as she turned around, "That's love right there. It wouldn't be proper to interrupt that."

Tieria scoffed and Christina just grinned, before seeing the happy couple break their embrace. Without hesitating, she walked over and hugged Setsuna more softly, the Kiffar just rolling his eye but returning it. She punched him in the shoulder, and Setsuna just shrugged, "I missed you too."

Feldt chuckled at that, and looked at the group, "Did we find anything useful?"

Anew nodded, "I found some data that needs to be analyzed. I'm pretty sure it's a star map from an ancient empire."

Christina's eyes lit up, "Wait, I get to work with ancient data?" While it was exciting to work with relevant data for the war effort, there was something more pure and altruistic looking at a revelation about the past. Anew's tapping on her hip, tapping on something told Christina the imperial wasn't lying. The Zeltron excitedly gestured to the ship, "Well then let's get going! We need to get somewhere safe."

Lyle looked at their surroundings, "Would anyone find a place on this planet?"

Allelujah shook his head, "Even if the imperials wouldn't be looking for us, I don't want to stay on this planet. And Feldt and Setsuna are probably in the same boat." The other two force users nodded in agreement, the dark side haze emanating from the planet still sitting in the back of their mind.

"Alright. We can travel to an uninhabited moon. Easier to hide from the imperials." While a part of Lyle thought about going back to that shadow port, that also risked more run ins with criminals. The ship had plenty of supplies, and no one would look for them in a desolate or unsettled planet in this sector. The crew made their way up the ramp, happy to be back somewhere safe.

Lyle called to the crew as he headed up to the bridge, "The rest of you get some rest. Anew, Christina, you two start any prep you need for the info and get some sleep. Feldt, make sure the stealth drive is working."

The crew had no issue following these orders, though Tieria still went to the gunner station, wanting to make sure they were safe just in case. And as the ship slipped past the imperials in orbit, Tie Fighters still scrambled, the ship quietly went to hyperspace, heading towards safety. Yet as they traveled, Feldt had a bad feeling about something, but she couldn't place why. But the feeling fell back into a buzz, the hum of the engine drawing her back to her familiar and comfortable environment.

Author Note

Our archaeology adventure finishes, and our heroes now have to learn what Ribbons is so interested in. And why he was so focused on the Infinite Empire. But you'll have to wait for next time. I'll see you guys next time and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!