Starting high school is sure to give one a whirlwind of a year, but that is usually caused by nerves, insecurities, and the constant struggle to fit in and debating on which clubs, cliques, and sports teams you may or may not join. But for some, it gets a little crazier, especially if you're part of a magical royal family of Jedi, and happen to be on the hunt for several escaped prisoners and a dark sorceress turning ordinary people into villains against their will.
Not much luck with locating Mariverde's new hideout.
With Mariverde still at large, as well as many of the escaped convicts, it seemed like there was no end to any war in the Galaxy. And it didn't help that Mariverde made fewer clavatizations recently, only to randomly clavatize a lot later, either.
Luckily, the royal family continued under Garrett Heartwood's teachings, and soon the Jedi started seeking his help too; the more they could learn about magic, the easier it would be to confront various enchanteds.
The Bad Batch were especially determined to help the royal family and the Jedi bring Mariverde and her minions to justice.
With the lab on Kamino destroyed, the search for these criminals just became personal for the Batchers and even for Boba. That was where Boba's birth father had raised him, and now not just his old house, but the entire city was totally destroyed. But now, the Batchers were working harder than ever to help keep the Galaxy safe once more.
And they weren't alone either. Thanks to an incident earlier in the summer with Clovis being given magic sand to switch lives with Anakin (upcoming Magical Jedi Tales story), they found out at least Mariverde's magic couldn't reach other dimensions, which meant their friends in the Madrigal family were totally safe as long as Mariverde didn't make her way through the mirror to their world. Who knows what Mariverde would do if she got to them?!
But of course, Tech's fiance Mila decided she wanted to get out of there for a while, and help fight a battle on a real adventure, like some of the courageous characters in her books. She knew a real journey was different from reading, but she didn't enter into it lightly. Besides, she had to figure out somehow where she and Tech would live after they got married. Like a lot of brides, she was eager to say 'I do' and start a family, and like a good mother or future mother, she wanted to pick a great place to raise the little ones. Going on adventures now, it would give her and Tech lots of great stories with hopefully important lessons to tell their future children.
And today, the Bad Batch were on yet another mission for Cid.
With the horses by their side, handling the wilder missions was a little easier. But in this case...
"Go, go, go, go, go, go!" Wrecker shouted, riding Pinto as Maybelle handled carrying the package with her magic.
"I told ya to be quiet back there!" Pinto scolded as he ran.
Echo, Hunter, Wrecker, and Crosshair were all riding their horses across the beach as they were chased by a bunch of giant crabs. The horses had to run at racehorse speed to avoid the crabs's snapping claws, just barely managing to literally save their tails.
"We went over the plan five times." Echo scolded Wrecker.
Despite this not being the first time Wrecker did something reckless, it bugged the other Batchers to have to babysit him sometimes.
"I got the package, didn't I?" Wrecker said.
"That I have to carry because somepony can't take the weight and run fast enough." Maybelle shouted.
"Can you guys argue another time?" Banjo shouted. "Such as, maybe when we're not being chased by these overgrown crustaceans?"
"Just keep moving." Hunter said. "Indira, time to start flying!"
"Passin' it to you, Banjo!" Maybelle said.
Banjo took the package with his magic and began flying up with Indira so the crabs couldn't reach them.
Meanwhile, fourteen-year-old Omega sat back at the ship, studying on a data tablet with Mila tutoring her for an important test coming up in science class. Just because the royal children were helping on missions didn't mean their parents didn't still expect them to do well in school.
And Mila, being Tech's future wife as well as a powerful telepath, started coming along on missions in part because she worried about him and because she wanted to help, especially after Tech proposed to her on Valentine's Day earlier that year. Plus, she never got out of the Encanto, and the chance to see more places and do so with her true love, it was an adventure she couldn't pass up.
It would give them lots of exciting stories to tell their children someday, that was for sure. And that was one adventure Mila started to talk a little more about with her future husband.
While Mila went into the ship to ask Teatra for any updates from the royal family, Omega started to lay back and relax when she heard a splash from the waters down below. She grabbed onto the fishing line to see if anything was biting, when Tech came to check on her.
"Does this unscheduled break mean you are fully versed in every aspect of the human body?" Tech asked expectantly.
"Do I have to do this right now?" whined Omega, biology being her least favorite subject. "We're on a mission."
Tech held the tablet to Omega, holding his expression of expectation. He took his job as the children's private tutor for school very seriously, even when he was helping any of them study for one of Garrett's tests.
"That does not give you a pass on your studies."
Omega groaned and reluctantly went back to studying as Estrella came back with a basket of wild plants in her mouth.
"I found some good comida on the island." Estrella said.
Suddenly, the comm beeped.
"Tech, we've got the cargo, but Crosshair and Wrecker could use more firepower down below."
"Wrecker woke the pod, didn't he?" Tech said, not sounding surprised.
Even Indira was rolling her eyes at this point.
"Perhaps Wrecker needs a lecture in self-control before another mission?" she suggested.
Hunter answered Tech before acknowledging his horse.
"Yeah, and they're not happy. We need a pickup. And you are right about self-control, Indira."
Back at the ship, Tech and Mila began getting it powered up, when Omega noticed the line moving.
"Tech, we caught something." said Omega excitedly. "And I think it's big."
"Release the line." said Tech. "We do not have time to reel-"
Mila screamed as some of the giant crabs suddenly jumped onto the windshield. Tech started to steer as his wife began telepathically pushing the giant crustaceans, when the ship shook and threw Omega off the ship...
"Omega!" exclaimed Tech.
...until Estrella swooped in and caught her.
"I've got her!" shouted Estrella.
"I'm okay." Omega confirmed.
"Get her back in here." said Tech.
With the crabs off the ship's front, it would be easier to take off, but there was still one hanging onto the line.
"I expected excitement when I signed up for this," said Mila. "But this is more than I could've imagined."
Omega knew just what to do, though.
Using what she'd learned in cheer practice and gymnastics lessons, Omega athletically jumped down to the ground and used her new bow to strike at the two crabs that went after the line. Unfortunately, that didn't stop more crabs from going after her and Estrella.
Estrella and Omega both blasted the crabs with magic before running away as fast as they could after the ship. Teatra also flew down as backup to distract the crabs, and they flew after the ship to assist in the pickup.
"Tech, where are you?" Wrecker called out as the wingless horses continued to run.
The unicorns used their magic and Crosshair his blaster to try and slow the crabs down or scare them off, but more of them just kept coming.
That was when the ship flew into the picture, and Hunter spotted Omega riding Estrella outside the ship.
"Why is Omega not in the ship?" Hunter asked.
"An unscheduled study break." Mila said.
The flying horses dropped their riders off in the ship and came back to take Crosshair and Wrecker up while Omega used a spell she'd learned to create stairs made of light for Pinto and Maybelle to run up and jump onto the ship with the others.
Everyone felt tired and relieved to have made it out alive. But Maybelle was pretty sure one of those crabs had pinched her back left leg.
"I thought the beach was gonna be relaxing." Wrecker said.
"This ain't summer vacation, Wrecker." Pinto said. "Especially since school started."
"If it were, we would've packed our swimsuits." Teatra said.
"Do you guys even wear swimsuits?" Mila asked.
"Not usually." Indira said. "Not wearing anything was another thing that I struggled to adjust to when I transformed."
Hunter looked at Omega and said, "Appreciate the backup, but try staying inside the ship next time. Your parents aren't the only ones who worry about you."
"I'll try." Omega said, taking off her helmet. "But it was still pretty fun."
That was when Omega got an alert on her phone. And she giggled.
"Estrella, look at this." Omega giggled.
Estrella looked at the phone and looked like she was about to die of happiness. Apparently, Gabby had sent Omega a little picture of the baby twins all dressed up in some new little butterfly outfits made just for them.
"When are babies ever not adorable?" Estrella asked.
"When they're keeping you up all night?" Crosshair mumbled, having been kept awake at night by the babies' crying before.
It once got so bad he went to sleep with Maybelle and the other horses in the stable, which was full of itchy hay.
The Batchers soon arrived at Cid's Parlor to deliver the package. But the horses had to wait outside. Cid was not too fond of the horses leaving hoofprints in her parlor or sniffing around and potentially breaking something.
"Greetings." said a familiar droid. "It is I, AZI-345211-"
"Yeah, yeah, we know." Wrecker said, not wanting to hear the full designation of the droid for the hundredth time.
"We've met you before, AZ." Crosshair said.
"Hola." Mila greeted the droid. "Hello."
"I do not recall meeting you, Miss." AZ said.
"Call me Mila. Short for Milagro Madrigal. I'm Tech's fiancé."
Mila smiled and showed her engagement ring, which had been attached to a necklace so she wouldn't lose it on the mission. Now that the mission was over, she could safely wear it on her finger again.
"Oh my! Congratulations to both of you. You are all extremely late, however. Mistress Cid has been extremely vocal about her displeasure."
"Well, there's a surprise." said Echo sarcastically.
"I'm sure it's nothing compared to how much my abuela used to voice her displeasures. You should've seen how she lost it when one of my experiments exploded and left Casita covered in purple goop."
Tech couldn't help laughing as he imagined that. That was one thing that really made him fall in love with Mila; she was the only girl who could really make him laugh without even trying. Even Comedia couldn't do that; not easily anyway.
And just like AZ said, Cid was displeasured when the Bad Batch arrived late.
"Well, well, well." said the Trandoshan. "The space lugs decided to finally show up."
"Better late than dead, I always say." said a new voice.
Hunter looked in the direction of the voice, and found it belonged to a darker skinned woman than Mila with a blue scarf in her hair. He'd never seen her before.
"And who are you?" Hunter asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" said the woman. She got up to get a good look at the group. "So, this is the top team you've been talking about? The clones who work for the legendary royal family of Solaris, huh? How juicy."
"You told her about us?" Hunter looked at Cid.
"Don't get twitchy." said Cid. "Phee's a friend. She's the most trustworthy pirate I know."
"Is that supposed to be comforting?" Echo asked.
"Aren't clones supposed to look alike?" said Phee, looking at the group. "So much for quality control."
Phee looked at the whole group and saw a lot of differentiations in each of them. First Wrecker, then Omega, and then Hunter.
"This one's too big. This one's too small. This one's got a face tattoo." she chuckled sarcastically. "Yeah, real subtle."
Then, Phee caught a glimpse of Tech.
"Oh. Hey now. Got a name, brown eyes?" Phee said flirtatiousy.
Mila immediately disliked the way Phee was looking at her husband-to-be.
"Tech." said the clone, adjusting his goggles. "However, the phenotypic eye color for all clones is brown. Iris pigmentation was not affected by our mutat-"
Both Cid and Phee looked unamused by Tech's smart talk, and Phee interrupted him.
"Well, as fascinating as this has been, I have places to be." Phee sipped her drink and seemed to wink at Tech, which angered Mila.
"Back off, Señorita. He's already got a woman." Mila said, stepping in. "And trust me when I say you don't wanna mess with a Madrigal girl's boyfriend."
"I don't remember meeting this girl." Cid said. "Care to explain her?"
"That's Mila. She's the other girl we mentioned coming along." Hunter said.
"She's Tech's girlfriend." Wrecker teased.
"Fiancé, actually." Mila said, showing her engagement ring. "Take note, Phee. Tech and I, Mila, are engaged to be married."
Cid had to admit, she was surprised but also glad to see Tech made a real man out of himself and found himself a woman; one that most men would consider exceedingly hot and out of his league at that.
"So, you weren't making up this mystery lady of yours after all." Cid said, motioning to Mila's ring. "When did this happen?"
"Valentine's Day earlier this year." Tech answered. "That was when I proposed."
"And as you might've guessed, I said yes." Mila said, fluttering her lashes at Tech, which made Tech blush and the other guys laugh. "We just haven't set a date."
"Be careful with this one, Goggles. I know some guys who may try to steal a prize like her." Cid teased.
"Or someone may try to steal the groom here." Phee teased.
And that got Mila angrily shouting in Spanish as Tech hugged her from behind to hold her back.
"Mira, mujer diabla!" was among the things she shouted.
"Milagro, heel!" Tech begged, him being the only one who learned enough Spanish to understand what Mila was saying. Other than Omega, who learned a lot from hanging around Estrella and occasional visits to Mila's family.
"Será mejor que mantengas tus manos alejadas de mi hombre si quieres vivir!" Mila said angrily, huffing and puffing. "Cruzame y estás muerto! Muerto!"
"Alright," said Phee, tapping Wrecker's arm. "Let's see those muscles of yours in action. Grab that and follow me."
"You hear me, diabla?! He's off limits." Mila said, heavily breathing. "You do not wanna find out what I'm capable of."
"Mila, please calm down. You know you're the only woman I desire to marry." Tech said. "There is no need to be jealous."
"Uh, yes ma'am." said Wrecker, lifting the crate.
"And Cid, that intel's not free. I expect a cut if your 'top team' comes through."
While Wrecker was helping Phee, the others turned to Cid.
"What is she talking about?" said Hunter.
"Your next mission." said Cid. "You lot are heading to the Outer Rim."
Cid pulled up a holo-transmission of what looked like a palace.
"That is Castle Serenno, the former home of Count Dooku." said Tech.
"Who's that again?" Mila asked.
"A Jedi who betrayed the Republic and led the Separatists in a war." Echo said.
"He was my grandpa Qui-Gon's teacher." Omega said.
"With him being in prison, Dooku's entire war chest is up for grabs." Cid explained. "And pirates have been pillaging his palace already."
"I'll admit, I'm not yet an expert on the laws around here," said Mila. "But I'm pretty sure that's still robbery, as well as breaking and entering. With Dooku still alive, and all."
"Technically, she is correct." Tech said.
"I'm not sure my grandpa would be too happy about it either." Omega said.
"Also correct. And I don't need too much creativity to know that King Qui-Gon would be more than a little upset if his granddaughter were involved in such an illegal activity."
Cid sighed.
"Why don't you have Princess Omega here call King Grandpa and ask him?"
The grownups looked at each other. It couldn't hurt to ask.
"Call your grandpa." Hunter said.
So, Omega did call her grandfather and told him about the mission Cid was talking about.
"Absolutely not!" Qui-Gon said. "Not only is that illegal, but it is also immoral. If anything, you need to stop these pirates!"
At first, the others thought Qui-Gon was crazy, as most of Dooku's fortune came from profiting off victims of the war, but that was not what Qui-Gon was worried about. As it turned out, Mariposa recently discovered something while she was helping Anakin and Carmine oversee construction in Solaris.
It turned out, Lady Morpha had stolen an important Solaran relic from the castle's old treasury before she was destroyed and gave it to Count Dooku just after she'd given him Rosella. If Mariverde should send one of her villains or an escaped criminal to retrieve it, the whole Galaxy could be in jeopardy!
"What kind of relic is it?" Omega asked.
Qui-Gon sent a picture of the relic. It looked like a crystal star. A very shiny and beautiful relic.
"According to Garrett's and my research, this is an old relic belonging to the Enchanted Education Board known as the Vario Star, which the royal family was given to guard many years ago." Qui-Gon said. "I don't recall precisely what it does. But I do know you mustn't crowd around it. I will do more research and contact you with what information I can find."
The Batch wasn't sure they wanted to find out either. But if rescuing that relic was essential to the Galaxy's safety, then they had to go in. And Mila made it very clear to Cid that she wasn't going to allow her to use her fiancé and his brothers to rob anyone, even if they were a Separatist leader.
"And don't try to say we're being like Robin Hood." said Mila. "I'm pretty sure wanting a cut of someone's fortune doesn't qualify for being the needy to give goods stolen from the rich to."
Cid looked at Tech.
"Be ready for a ride planning the wedding, Goggles." Cid commented. She didn't show it very openly, but she liked Mila, as Cid found her to be a tough woman who made it clear when she wasn't going to change her mind.
"Mila is an influential woman. That's why I chose her." Tech said.
"And I intend on our marriage being wonderful from the wedding till death do we part."
Mila fluttered her lashes and seduced her fiancé into yet another make out session, which Phee looked away from and the others just ignored. But the couple couldn't care less.
That's just what Tech loved about Mila. She was smart in more ways than one.
But for Cid, seeing as she needed a little something for Phee to give her some intel... luckily, Omega was prepared. After helping Tech with Mila's engagement ring, Diamond had been turning a lot of rocks into diamonds lately, which meant plenty of riches for the royal family to use to help a lot of people in need, as well as set aside for the children's college funds. And at the moment, Omega had at least a few small diamonds which she placed on Cid's desk.
"Is that enough to get the intel?" Omega asked.
"Where'd you get all of these?" Cid asked, looking at one of the gems.
"They were obtained legally." Omega said. "That's all I can say."
Cid looked at the many diamonds before her. She took them in her claws and told Omega she'd see what she could do.
The Batch soon arrived on planet Serenno, everyone exiting the ship.
"So, where is this palace?" Wrecker asked.
"The city is on the opposite side of this mountain range." Tech confirmed.
"Stay close, Omega." Mila said, taking the girl's hand as they both climbed onto Estrella, the horses carrying their riders through the forest and around the mountain.
The group soon arrived at the city, except it didn't look very lively. In fact, it looked almost deserted.
"That's the city?" Omega said.
"What happened to it?" Mila added.
"I'd say Mariverde and dark magic bombardment, same as on Kamino." Echo said.
The group started to head where they believed the crates to be.
"What do you guys know about Mariverde's plans for this world?" Mila said. "You mentioned she's got some large operation in the works?"
"We don't even have a hypothesis of her plans," said Tech. "What we do know is she is the one who arranged the kidnapping of several clone troopers, and she has been creating many villains in an attempt to acquire the royal family's crown jewels. And she created a clone of her own, a modified one, who is none other than our little friend Mona. Since she combined her own DNA with someone named Ollie Sommers, it is possible she purposely did so to create a powerful heir to carry on whatever legacy she has."
"In short," said Teatra. "We're not sure what her ultimate plan is."
The groups stopped as they spotted something. Tech peeked through his binoculars and saw several crates being transported.
"It appears that they are beginning to transport the war chest off-world." Tech said. "Our window of opportunity is quickly closing."
Echo also looked down and saw several soldiers in green and black armor, like the ones in the prison where they found Mona.
"There's over 40 troopers down there." Echo said.
Wrecker punched his hand with confidence. "That's nothing."
"Stealth, Wrecker. Remember?" Omega reminded her brother.
Mila also saw something the others didn't before.
"Wait a minute!" Mila said. "are those... griffins?"
A few of the soldiers held whips and riding crops, and they were using them to guide some griffins to move some of the crates, many of which had glitter sprinkled on them. Most villains wouldn't bedazzle their loot, but it appeared Mariverde was knowledgeable when it came to various magical creatures.
"Why would they purposely put glitter on the crates?" Crosshair said.
"Remember what Garret said about griffins?" Maybelle reminded the others. "They love shiny things, and glitter shines like a shooting star in the dark of the night in the countryside."
"Griffins also got claws that can scratch ya good," said Pinto. "We'll have to be real cautious here."
"And smart about it." Omega said. "Stealing from griffins is the second hardest heist in enchanted thievery."
"What's the hardest?" Echo said.
"Dragons."
"Makes sense." Mila said. "In that case, Omega... what else do you know about griffins?"
"I know they're meat eaters. I'm not that far yet."
"Here's what we do then," Hunter said. "Get to the nearest container and grab what you can. I'll be the eyes on the ground. If things go sideways, I'll divert their forces and buy you some time."
"If you need eyes on the ground," said Pinto. "I'll accompany you."
"Me too." Maybelle said, joining her brother and Hunter.
"Then I'll stay to be another set of wings," said Indira.
While Hunter, Pinto and Maybelle went to be eyes on the ground, the others moved as close as they could to the war chests, where there were many soldiers and griffins.
"In position," said Echo over the comm. "And the second transport's launching."
Only one transport left. Meanwhile, Hunter and the two horses hid behind the trees.
"We've got roving patrols." Hunter confirmed. "Stay alert."'
They weren't the only ones staying alert though.
Suddenly, one of the griffins stopped and sniffed the air.
"Uh oh!" Omega gasped. "I just remembered! Griffins have a keen sense of smell!"
"Hunter," said Mila over the comm. "You have to be careful. The griffins can smell you!"
"No worries," Maybelle said, gathering some mud. "I know how to take care of that."
Hunter grunted as he felt himself being splattered with mud and grass.
"Maybelle!" Hunter said. And soon Maybelle and Pinto were rolling in the mud like pigs.
"This'll make it harder for the griffins to catch your scent."
Reluctantly, Hunter got through, covered in mud, and he placed a device on one of the ships, while the others got closer to the transport ship.
Everyone climbed quickly into the back of the transport ship, Wrecker staying back to keep watch... until one soldier sensed something and started to look into it, when Wrecker stunned the soldier, only to change them into a butterfly.
"What the-?!" Wrecker clapped his hands over the butterfly and held it in his hands.
The others gave Wrecker the same look.
"What? I did it quietly. And I caught a butterfly!" Wrecker said, sounding like an excited child with that last sentence.
"They will definitely notice when that soldier does not report in." Tech said.
"Even if he or she weren't turned into a butterfly." Mila said.
"Well, let's be gone by then." Echo said.
"I'll keep watch." Wrecker said. "Start loading up. But what do I do with this bug?"
"Luckily, I came prepared," said Mila, reaching into her bag and taking out a little jar made specially for catching bugs.
Mila held the open jar to Wrecker's hands, and quickly put the lid back on as the butterfly flew around the jar.
With Wrecker keeping watch, the others looked around the war chest.
"Whoa." Omega gasped. "So this is what a war chest looks like."
"This is only a fraction of it, but that is all we need. The priority is items of high value."
"Like what?" Omega asked.
"Anything shiny or heavy would be a start." Echo said.
"And luckily, with four horses, as well as my telekinesis, the heavy stuff won't be hard." Mila said.
"Don't forget the Vario Star." Omega said. "Grandpa also said don't crowd around it."
"Why not?" Banjo asked.
"He didn't say." Omega shrugged.
"Retrieve the remaining containers from the palace," said one soldier. "Stay on schedule."
Hunter, Maybelle, and Pinto continued to sneak around the area, being careful not to be spotted or smelled. Which did not come easy with all these griffins around.
Sure enough, there were a lot of treasures and credits in the crates when Mila looked inside one.
"Wow!" Mila gasped. "These crates have more credits than Camilo has cookies stashed in his room."
"According to my intel, Count Dooku inherited a great fortune long before the war," said Tech, "but I am certain more of this must have come from war profits than the former."
"Not really that surprising, given what you've shared with me about this count. This could feed an entire planet, at least, by my world's standards."
According to Mila, when she'd taken some Republic credit coins to her world for studying, some of them turned out to be made of rhodium, a metal that was considered very valuable there. So, she kept a few stashed away, saving them for a rainy day. She wanted to be prepared for college prep when she and Tech had kids.
"Maybe we should keep a bit of this stuff for ourselves, Techy-Bear." Mila said, still trying to come up with a nickname for her love. The guys except Tech just laughed at that one.
"Really?" Echo said. "That's your nickname for him?"
"I'm working on it. Lovers' nicknames aside, it's never too early to prepare for the future."
"Echo..." Omega called as she opened another crate.
The other humans looked inside it, and sure enough, there was something valuable.
"I'd say that qualifies as high value." Echo said.
The crate was full of colorful crystals.
"How could all of this belong to one person?" said Omega, looking at a jewel.
"This coming from a princess with two horses that turn things into jewels?" said Mila.
"I've only been a princess for a year." Omega said.
"Fair enough." Mila shrugged.
"It is safe to assume that the majority of Dooku's fortune after his inheritance came from the many worlds he controlled and exploited. All in the name of his war effort."
"That's what corrupt people do." Echo said.
"Well I hope he's proud of himself," said Mila. "Because if our future kids suffer from what he's done, assuming he lives to see the day, I'm gonna show him how scary Madrigal women can really be."
"Isn't exploiting what we're doing?" Omega pointed out.
"Depends on how we use it," said Echo.
Meanwhile, with the soldiers.
"Sir, DT-8801 is not reporting in." said one soldier.
Now the batch had a new problem.
"DT-8801, come in." said a voice on a comm that was dropped.
"DT-8801, report." said another.
"Hunter," Echo whispered over his comm. "I think we're about to have some company."
"Leave that to me," Teatra said, clearing her throat and activating the comm. And then she spoke in a different voice into the comm. "This is DT-8801, I copy."
"Where are you, DT-8801?"
"Reconnaissance."
"Report back, immediately, trooper."
"I will be there shortly, Sir." Teatra finished. Then in her normal voice after hanging up, "I don't think that'll buy much time."
"Are you clear?" Hunter asked.
"Negative. Teatra bought maybe a few minutes, but not a lot." Echo told Hunter. "We could use that diversion about now."
"On it."
Hunter and the two horses hid in the nearby woods, where Hunter took out a small device and pressed a button that blew up the smaller ships, spooking some of the griffins into flying off, and sending soldiers into a panic.
"Explosion on deck!" cried one over the comm. "Send damage control!"
"Transport team, fall back and hold your positions!"
Hunter hopped onto Pinto, but accidentally startled him by touching a sensitive part near his shoulder.
"Watch it!" Pinto whinnied. "That's a tickle spot for me."
"Sorry!" Hunter said.
"Oh, just give me him!" Maybelle said, tossing Hunter on her back to start running.
"We're heading your way." Hunter told the others over the comm. "Be ready."
"Let's speed this up." Echo said. "Wrecker, that one goes first."
Wrecker picked up one of the heavier crates and carefully checked outside before sneaking away with the crate.
Meanwhile, the soldiers went on with damage control.
"The damage was contained," confirmed one soldier. "But two of the escort ships were destroyed and at least a dozen griffins were scared off."
"What caused the blast?" asked another.
"Unknown, Captain. All systems were normal prior to the explosion."
The captain then barked some new orders.
"Transport Three, secure your cargo and prepare to launch. All squads, return to the courtyard and hold the perimeter."
Unfortunately, that order was initiated while Tech, Omega, Crosshair, Mila, and Wrecker and the horses were still inside the transport!
"Uh oh!" Mila said. "The door's closed!"
"That is concerning," said Tech.
Echo got Mini-R2 out and had him connect to a part of the transport, while the unicorns tried to use magic to open the door.
Wrecker, meanwhile, met Hunter, Pinto, and Maybelle.
"Where are the others?" Hunter asked.
"Still in the container." Wrecker answered.
"You mean the container about to take off?!" Maybelle exclaimed.
"Tech, the ship's taking off! Get out of there!"
The others kept trying everything they could to get through the door, but no one's magic was having any effect on it. Echo kept trying to open it from the inside, though.
"Hurry, Echo!" Omega said.
"It's externally sealed. I can't open it." Echo said.
"Hunter, we're trapped in the container." Omega panicked over the comm. "We can't get out."
"We're on our way." Hunter said.
"Uh, Boss?" said Wrecker. "I think they know something's up."
Sure enough, there were soldiers looking for a disturbance.
"We're done hiding anyway," sighed Hunter.
"Let me at 'em!" Maybelle whinnied.
Wrecker and Hunter ran in, firing shots, the horses blasting with their horns and jumping onto the transport. Without any wings, Pinto and Maybelle had to use their hooves and their teeth to climb the ladder.
"Ha ha! Come and get me!" Wrecker taunted from the ladder.
Hunter's hand eventually slipped, and he would've fallen had he not grabbed Pinto's tail at the last second.
"Ow! My tail! My tail!" Pinto cried, still holding onto the ladder with his teeth.
Hunter then saw a high tower.
"We gotta go!" Hunter said.
"Go where?" Wrecker said.
And at just the right moment, Hunter gave the word.
"JUMP!"
And the two humans and horses jumped and slid down the tower.
"This isn't any better!" Wrecker groaned, amid getting knocked down when Pinto landed, Maybelle piling on top of everyone.
"Maybelle! Get your tail out of my face!" Hunter groaned
"You seem attracted to horse's tails today, don't ya?" Pinto said.
"Hunter, where are you?" said Omega over the comm.
"Sorry, kid. We got sidetracked." Hunter said. "You need to get off that ship before it jumps to hyperspace."
"If we gain access to the ship's main hold, we could commandeer an escape pod."
"Do it. We'll get to the Marauder and recover you."
Hunter got onto Maybelle and quickly started to ride her while Wrecker got back with Pinto.
"Quick! Hide!" Hunter said.
Except, Hunter quickly found Maybelle was a lot faster and wilder in her riding than when he rode Indira.
"Maybelle, slow down!" Hunter panicked
But they didn't really have time for that, seeing as the soldiers were preparing to flush out the intruders.
Meanwhile, everyone else was working out a plan to get the heck out of there.
"Are you sure this hatch will lead into the ship?" Omega said.
"If I am correct, we will instantly be sucked out and perish." Tech said.
"Wait to be optimistic, Amor." Mila said.
"I am seldom wrong."
And the door opened.
"Congratulate yourself after we escape." Echo said, Mini-R2 beeping in agreement.
"I'll never get over how cute you are, Mini." Mila smiled at the little droid.
"The closest escape pod is five corridors away." Tech said, he and Echo starting to pick up a crate and strap it on Banjo's back since he was the strongest.
Meanwhile, Hunter, Wrecker, and the two remaining horses ended up in what used to be Dooku's office. It looked totally abandoned.
"This place gives me the creeps," said Wrecker.
"You and me both," said Pinto.
"Achoo!" Maybelle sneezed. "I haven't sniffed this much dust since that last rodeo race."
Suddenly, the door opened, and yet another shooting match began between the Batch and Mariverde's soldiers.
The group managed to find refuge behind the desk to keep firing.
Back on the transport, the others soon found themselves in a shooting match. Mila immediately used her telepathy to push more troopers away, but they kept coming. Tech began shooting, then he looked at his wife and said,
"Find an alternate route to the pod." Tech said.
Echo and the horses immediately began searching for alternate route while the rest of the humans fought with whatever weapons they had.
Unfortunately, the soldiers ejected all of the escape pods to make sure the intruders wouldn't be able to escape.
"There has to be another way off this ship." Tech said.
"Other than overtaking this vessel, what do you suggest?" Echo said.
"Wait a minute! Can't the horses' shoes get us out?" Mila said.
"That would work," said Banjo, lifting his hoof to reveal a regular steel horseshoe. "Except we had to send them in to get cleaned and wear these shoes."
"That's convenient." said Mila sarcastically.
Luckily, Omega had an idea.
"This is a class four freighter, isn't it?"
"Yes, why?" Tech asked.
"Containers on class four freighters are equipped with reentry thrusters. We can escape in a cargo container."
"Excellente, Omega!" Mila said.
Tech checked on his tablet and found his sister was right.
"You are correct. I am impressed. However the containers must be ejected before leaving the atmosphere, which means our window is rapidly closing."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Indira said. "Chalo, chalo!"
And everyone began moving as quickly as they could to get the heck out of there!
As for Wrecker and Hunter's team. Even magic and blasters combined weren't enough to stop all the soldiers.
"Any idea how we're getting out of here?" Wrecker asked.
Hunter looked around and then felt around, and declared, "We're not going out. We're going down. There's a lift below us. Cover me."
While Wrecker and the horses covered for Hunter, the latter got into the computer. But more troopers came in quickly.
"What is taking so long?" Wrecker said.
"I'm trying. Tech usually does this."
"Oh for crying out loud!" Maybelle exclaimed, pushing Hunter aside. "Let me at it!"
Maybelle quickly hit her hooves on some buttons, and the lift started to move, though not very quickly.
"It's jammed," groaned Hunter.
"I can fix that." Wrecker said.
Wrecker threw a smoke bomb to distract the soldiers, while Maybelle had an idea. She started jumping up and down, and so did Wrecker.
"Wait! Don't! No!" Hunter begged.
And the four fell fast down the lift.
Tech shot one last trooper before he and Omega joined the others in the last spot they could escape from.
"How much time do we have?" Mila asked.
"Very little," said Tech.
Echo kept shooting troops in the hall while Tech finalized the release.
"Initiating final release!" Tech called. And everyone got into position.
And all the containers fell from the ship.
"Everyone hold on!" Mila called.
"When are the reentry boosters supposed to fire?" Echo said.
"I think they should have by now." Omega said.
But, they didn't.
"I think that is going to be a problem," said Tech, grabbing onto something.
Everyone held onto something as they fell down, down, down!
Soon the whole box was filled with screaming.
"You wanted excitement!" Tech said to Mila, who was next to him. "Is this is exciting enough for you?"
"I don't doubt we'll be okay," said Mila. "But in case we don't make it..."
Mila grabbed Tech's hand so no matter what happened...
"We're in this together. Two worlds, one love."