Mace located a lift tube at the other end of the security office. Entering the lift, he found a voice-activated control panel on the lift’s wall. He said, “Hangar 173.” Instantly, the lift sped through the tube. Less than ten seconds later, the lift slowed to a stop and the door slid open. Mace stepped out.
The lift had delivered him to the end of a catwalk that extended across Hangar 173. Peering over the edge of the catwalk, Mace looked down at the hangar floor. Just as he had seen on the video display in the security office, six droids stood guard around their large group of captives on the hangar’s landing pad.
The six droids were all FX medical assistants, each equipped with twenty precise manipulator arms and a single primary grasping arm. Like the power droid and two astromechs that Mace had already encountered, the medical droids would not have appeared out of place on a space station under normal circumstances, which was probably how they had been able to infiltrate Fondor Spaceport so easily. However, the circumstances were hardly normal, and instead of wielding medical tools, each FX unit brandished numerous deadly weapons. Also, all six droids were mounted on treadwell bases, allowing them greater mobility than any standard-issue FX unit.
So far, none of the medical droids had noticed Mace’s presence on the catwalk. As he considered his next move, he realized he was within reach of the hangar’s tractor-beam projector, a device that produced a powerful, maneuverable force field that could capture and move objects. Normally, the tractor-beam projector was used to safely move starships through the hangar’s docking port, but since three of the six droids were positioned near the docking port, Mace had another use in mind for the projector.
With great stealth, he moved behind the controls of the hangar’s tractor-beam projector. Aiming for the three droids that were close to the docking port, he activated the beam and trapped them in its force field. Before the other three FX units realized what was happening, Mace pushed a lever, sent the trapped three through the docking port and into space, then switched off the projector. Outside the spaceport, the three ejected droids tumbled off in the direction of Fondor’s sun.
Below Mace, on the hangar’s landing pad, the three remaining FX medical droids rotated their diskshaped heads to look up, then raised their weapons to his position on the catwalk. Because of the droids’ proximity to their captives, Mace could not risk using the hangar’s tractor-beam projector again. He knew he had to draw the droids’ fire away from the beings on the landing pad.
“Get down!” he shouted to the droids’ captives. As dozens of humans and aliens dropped and hugged the landing pad, the three medical droids fired their weapons at the Jedi on the catwalk.
Mace ducked behind the tractor-beam projector, while laser bolts pinged and popped all around him. Then he realized the droids were moving around on the floor to get a clear shot at him. Bolting from the projector, he sped across the catwalk until he reached a service gantry. As a spray of laser bolts hammered at the gantry, Mace spied an electromagnetic pincer crane suspended from the hangar’s ceiling, directly above one of the three remaining FX units.
Drawing and activating his lightsaber, Mace leaped out from the gantry and dragged his lightsaber through the pincer crane’s ceiling mount. The Jedi Master landed on the hangar floor at the same instant that the crane crashed down on the FX unit, crushing the droid.
Exposed on the hangar floor, Mace watched the last two FX units roll forward on their treadwell mounts, moving into attack position. The droid on his right sought defensive cover behind a tall column, but the droid on his left was less careful, and moved past the edge of a deep, rectangular hydrolift well. The well was typically used to transport cargo to a lower level of the spaceport, but as with the tractor-beam projector, Mace thought of a different use for the hangar’s utilities.
Reaching out with the Force, Mace pushed at the droid to his left, sending it over the edge of the hydrolift well. The FX unit fell down the shaft, and its impact produced a satisfying explosion.
The last FX unit was about to fire at Mace from behind the nearby column when, without warning, one of the captives sprang from the landing pad and raced at the droid. It appeared that the captive, a young man in mechanic’s coveralls, was making a brave effort to stop the droid from harming the Jedi. But before the man could reach the droid, the FX unit spun and struck him with a stun baton. Instantly paralyzed, the man collapsed to the hangar floor.
“Rench!” shouted a young woman from the landing pad. Rising from the cowering crowd, the woman ran toward the fallen man. Mace recognized the woman immediately. He had seen her holographic image at the Skull Queen’s fortress.
The woman was Princess Calvaria.
“This doesn’t look good,” Groodo the Hutt grumbled.
“There’s only one droid left in the hangar?” Senator Rodd shouted in panic.
“Shut up and let me concentrate!” Hurlo Holowan shouted back as she manipulated the remote control for the last FX unit.
Groodo, Rodd, and Holowan were on Groodo’s cruiser, and Rodd was peering over Holowan’s shoulder to look at the viewscreen that was set before her. It displayed the view of the last heavily modified FX medical assistant droid, one of six that Holowan had unleashed upon Fondor Spaceport. The six FX units had performed well, rounding up all the life-forms on the spaceport and bringing them to Hangar 173. But then the Jedi had knocked out the spaceport’s shields and busted into the hangar. That hadn’t been expected. Now there was indeed only one FX unit left.
Groodo considered ordering Holowan to destroy the spaceport immediately. The plan had been so simple—seize control of the spaceport, wait until its orbit carried it over the planet Fondor’s most important surface factories, then send the entire spaceport crashing down upon the factories. There was never any intention for Holowan’s droids to issue demands; Groodo simply needed one hour to allow the spaceport to reach the right point in Fondor’s orbit. The spaceport wasn’t in position yet, but Groodo didn’t want any more trouble with the Jedi. He clutched at his thick-skinned chest, took a deep breath, and prepared to give the order for an early destruction.
“Wait!” Rodd exclaimed. “Look there!” He jabbed a finger at the viewscreen, where the image of a woman was running toward a man who lay on the floor near the last FX unit. “That woman! She’s Princess Calvaria of Nallastia! We have to get her off the spaceport before it drops!”
“You must be kidding,” Holowan said.
“She’s the daughter of the Skull Queen!” Rodd explained. “She’s worth infinitely more alive than dead!” He turned to Groodo and said, “Think of the ransom!”
Groodo gave his order. “Grab the princess, Holowan.”
Mace Windu wished Princess Calvaria had not run to the fallen man. She was so close to the last weapon-wielding FX unit that Mace dared not attack. As Calvaria neared the man she called Rench, the FX unit reached out with three of its manipulator arms and snared her. Calvaria struggled, but the droid used the stun baton on her, and the princess went limp. Lifting her unconscious form, the droid used four other manipulator arms to aim one blaster pistol at the princess, a second in the direction of the captives on the landing pad, a third at Rench’s motionless form, and a fourth pistol at Mace.
The FX unit stared at Mace through a black photoreceptor, as if challenging the Jedi Master to make a move. Mace knew the droid would not hesitate to pull any one of the blasters’ triggers.
Suddenly, Bultar Swan entered the hangar via the lift tube, and Kit Fisto ran in through a doorway from an adjoining hangar. The two Jedi had their lightsabers drawn.
Keeping his voice calm, Mace told his allies, “Lower your weapons.”
Bultar and Kit deactivated their blades. Still carrying the princess, the droid slowly backed away toward a doorway, through which it exited the hangar.
Facing the other Jedi, Mace said, “Stay here and protect these beings. I’m going after that droid.”
Mace left the hangar through the same doorway that the
FX unit had used and entered a corridor lined with ten closed doorways. He looked at the corridor floor, but the droid had not left any tracks.
Closing his eyes, Mace cautiously moved forward and listened for movement beyond the doors. Hearing a faint clattering sound from behind one door, he drew his weapon and put his hand to the door. It was locked. Mace drove his lightsaber through the area of the door’s locking mechanism, then retracted his weapon and kicked the door.
He had entered another hangar. According to a sign on the wall, this particular hangar was reserved for use by Fondor Spaceport Flight Control. To Mace’s right, three astromech droids were jacked into a broad computer console. Rotating their domed heads, the astromechs trained their photoreceptors on the Jedi in the doorway. To Mace’s left, at the far end of the hangar, several light starships rested on a landing pad. Mace spotted the FX unit carrying Princess Calvaria into one of the starships, an ion-powered Incom Corporation landing craft with a large, single-aft thrust vector.
Mace was about to run after the FX unit when he noticed a wide monitor on the console in front of the three astromechs. On the monitor, there was a digital image of the spaceport’s position relative to the planet Fondor. Near the image was a numerical counter. From what he could see, there was a countdown in progress. Then he realized the awful truth: The droids had destabilized the spaceport’s orbit and were deliberately steering the spaceport into Fondor’s atmosphere.
As the landing craft angled for the hangar’s docking port, Mace reached to his belt and removed a palmsized tracer beacon, a device used for tracking ships across space. He whipped his arm fast, hurling the tracer straight at the landing craft. The tracer’s magnetic grips sunk into the landing craft’s hull, just as the vehicle blasted out of the hangar.
Mace drew his lightsaber and moved toward the three astromechs. There was a rapid series of snapping and clicking sounds as the droids flipped open various panels and extended weapons from their cylindrical bodies. From its domed head, one droid raised a periscope that had been modified to support a micro-laser cannon.
The astromechs fired their weapons at Mace, and his lightsaber blurred as he struck back at the fired energy bolts and slammed them back at the shooters. Despite their combined firepower, the droids were no match for the Jedi Master’s skill, and all three astromechs were immediately riddled with holes made by the deftly deflected bolts. Moving in closer, Mace dragged his lightsaber in a wide arc through the droids, severing their domes from their bodies. Sparks flew from the droids, and Mace kicked them away from the computer console.
With the three astromechs defeated, Mace turned his attention to the spaceport’s flight controls. He could see that the controls had been sabotaged by the rogue astromechs, but they were not beyond repair. Switching the controls over to manual, he made several adjustments until the spaceport entered a safer orbit.
Just then, the Skull Queen ran through the doorway and entered the chamber. “Where is Calvaria?” she asked. “Kit Fisto said she was captured by a droid!”
“I’ll go after your daughter,” Mace said. Gesturing to the fallen astromechs, he said, “These droids tried to make the spaceport fall out of orbit. Tell Kit Fisto to summon an astromech from our cruiser and make it run a complete diagnostic.”
Mace knew the Skull Queen was concerned for her daughter’s safety, and he expected her to protest or demand that she accompany him to pursue the droid. If necessary, he was prepared to use the Force to make her obey his command.
The Skull Queen hesitated but only for the briefest moment. “I’ll tell Kit Fisto,” she replied as she ran out of the hangar.
Scanning the remaining starships in the hangar, Mace was surprised to see a wedge-shaped Delta-6 starfighter in the hangar. Manufactured by Kuat Systems Engineering, the Delta-6 was a long way from the Kuat system, but it looked clean and ready to fly, and Mace was familiar with the controls. He sprinted for the starfighter, leaped into the cockpit, and lowered the canopy. Firing the engines, he zoomed out of the hangar and into space. Seconds later, the Delta-6’s navigational sensor had a lock on the tracer Mace had attached to the droid’s landing craft.
The Delta-6 was significantly faster than the Incom landing craft, and Mace was soon looking at the droid’s vessel through his transparisteel canopy. The landing craft was heading for a ship with an unusually colorful exterior and enormous, decorative fins. Mace generally thought of starships for their utility, but as he looked at the one that the landing craft was approaching, he could only describe it as truly hideous.
Mace accelerated after the droid’s ship.
Inside the main cabin of Groodo’s starship, Hurlo Holowan was busily using her remote control device to make the FX unit steer the escaped landing craft. She was also fielding questions.
“When will the landing craft get here?” Senator Rodd asked.
“Soon,” Holowan replied.
“When will the spaceport reach Fondor’s atmosphere?” Groodo asked.
“Soon,” Holowan answered.
Groodo’s son, Boonda, yawned as he slithered into the cabin. He’d been taking a nap and there was spittle at the edges of his mouth. Boonda asked, “Are we home yet?”
“Soon,” Holowan said, just to shut him up.
Boonda licked his lips as he sighted a fast-moving object through the cabin’s viewport. “Hey, what kind of starfighter is that?”
“What starfighter?” Holowan asked.
“The one that’s following that ion-powered Incom Corporation landing craft,” Boonda responded.
Holowan cursed, “Oh, stang! There’s probably a Jedi piloting that thing.” She turned to Groodo and said, “In my humble opinion, the princess has just become more trouble than she’s worth.”
Groodo sighed. “Change of plans. Ditch the landing craft. Then get us out of here.”
From his starfighter, Mace Windu watched as the Incom landing craft suddenly veered away from the hideous-looking starship and curved back toward the spaceport. He tightened his grip on the starfighter’s controls and steered after the elusive droid.
As the landing craft raced closer to the spaceport, it angled for the hangar from which the droid exited. The landing craft did not decrease speed. Although Mace could only imagine the FX unit’s sinister motivations, he realized the droid was attempting to crash its ship.
The Delta-6 was equipped with two dual laser cannons. Desperate to save Princess Calvaria, Mace aimed the starfighter’s cannons at the landing craft’s aft-thrust vector and fired.
The landing craft’s thrust vector exploded. Mace had successfully disabled the ship’s thruster, but because the vacuum of space offered no resistance, the landing craft continued on its collision course with the spaceport.
Mace accelerated. Bringing the Delta-6 over the landing craft, he matched the vehicle’s velocity, then dipped his fighter’s nose down. There was a loud whump as the Delta-6 made contact with the landing craft’s roof, then Mace deployed the starfighter’s landing gear. Equipped with claw-like grippers for zero-gravity docking, the Delta-6’s landing gear latched onto the hull of the droid-piloted vehicle.
Mace hit the Delta-6’s inertial dampers, and both vehicles, traveling as one, rapidly decelerated. With his starfighter still securely locked to the top of the landing craft, Mace steered into the hangar reserved for Fondor Spaceport Flight Control, and set the Incom ship down on the hangar’s landing pad.
Popping the Delta-6’s canopy, Mace leaped out of the starfighter’s cockpit and activated his lightsaber in midair. He had expected the FX unit would put up one last fight, but as he looked through the landing craft’s viewport, he saw the droid leaning at an odd angle in the cockpit. The droid’s visual sensors were not illuminated, and it appeared to be shut down.
The landing craft’s egress hatch was locked. Mace drove his lightsaber through the hatch and made a large, circular cut. A split second after the hatch fell away from the craft and landed on the floor, Mace was inside the vehicle.
Princess Calvaria lay motionless on a long seat. Mace touched her wrist and felt her steady pulse.
Calvaria was going to be just fine.
At this point, readers who chose to follow the adventure in the Star Wars Adventures Game Book can return to the novel The Hostage Princess.
When Princess Calvaria awoke, she was lying in her bedroom at the fortress on Nallastia. Her mother, seated on a chair beside the bed, was holding Calvaria’s hand and gave it a squeeze.
“Good morning, Calvaria,” the Skull Queen said. “You gave us all quite a scare.”
“What happened?” Calvaria asked. “The droids on the spaceport—?”
“The droids were all destroyed,” the Skull Queen said. “Except for a few bumps and bruises, no one was harmed.”
Calvaria thought of Rench, then felt her blood go cold. “Mother?” she said weakly. “What day is it?”
The Skull Queen looked out the window and said, “Well, I believe it is still your wedding day.”
“But, Mother, I don’t love Prince Alto!”
“Now, now,” the Skull Queen interrupted, turning to face her daughter. “Given all the excitement of the past several hours, I will allow you to reschedule your wedding, if you wish.”
“Reschedule?” snapped Calvaria. “But I want to cancel it!”
The Skull Queen smiled. “Let’s not be too hasty. While you’re thinking about it, there’s a young man who would like a word with you. He’s very concerned.”
Calvaria sat up in bed. “Who is it?”
“One moment.” The Skull Queen rose from the chair, went to the door, and opened it. “You may come in now.”
Seeing the man appear in the doorway, Calvaria’s eyes went wide and her heart raced. “Rench!” she cried.
Star Wars Adventures 003 - The Hostage Princess Page 4