Luke Skywalker's voice echoed through the thick jungle and the sounds of battle. Callista froze when she heard him calling her name, and her resolve began to melt. She shouldn't be leaving him--but she had to. There was only one way ... if Callista had the courage to follow through.
"Callista!" Luke called again, but she plunged on through the underbrush, not looking back.
From above, bludgeons of turbolaser fire slashed through the atmosphere, leaving screeching ionization trails as Admiral Daala's Knight Hammer pounded Yavin 4. Callista looked up and saw another blast come down. With a single strike, the Super Star Destroyer obliterated an acre of ages-old growth. One lucky shot could level the Great Temple .
According to Kyp Durron, Dorsk 81 had flung away an entire Imperial fleet, seventeen Star Destroyers hurled beyond the range of battle. The Jedi trainees would have been safe right now had it not been for the appearance of the Super Star Destroyer. The real enemy remained in orbit, out of range.
Callista pushed thorny twigs away from her face, searching for an opportunity. Up ahead in a flattened section of trees, broken branches, and plowed-up dirt, she spotted a crashed TIE bomber, a ship with angled power plates and a double cockpit, one for the pilot/bomber and a second to hold concussion missiles. The ship had been damaged, part of its rear engine exhausts crimped as if from a thrown boulder.
The TIE pilot wore an opaque black helmet and padded black flightsuit that seemed uncomfortable and cumbersome; he worked frantically and alone. He had straightened the exhaust crimp, with a toolkit from the cockpit and test-fired the engines.
Callista seized the opportunity, plotting an unexpected way to strike at Daala. She didn't have Jedi powers, and she was armed with only a lightsaber--but Callista knew she had the power to take out the Super Star Destroyer. She alone held that responsibility, and she had no choice but to follow it.
Moving silently with a smoothness born not from the Force but through her own training, Callista eased herself out of the thorny undergrowth and sprinted toward the TIE pilot as he moved toward the access hatch, ready to climb into his bomber again.
The pilot must have seen some flicker of motion through his helmet visor, though, some telltale signal that gave away Callista's stealthy approach. He turned, and she found herself facing her dull reflection in the black plasteel of the facemask.
He reacted with blinding speed, snatching a blaster from the holster at his side. Callista kept moving, picking up momentum, her arm sweeping in an arc as she punched the lightsaber's power button. With a snap-hiss, the topaz beam speared out, dazzling the TIE pilot. In a smooth stroke she lopped off his black-gloved hand. Before he could cry out in pain, holding up his smoldering stump, Callista struck sideways across his chest.
Deactivating the lightsaber, she didn't slow as she kicked his steaming body away from the repaired TIE bomber. Callista hauled herself up to the hatch and dropped into the cramped cockpit.
Like a ghost, Luke's voice echoed thinly through the trees, calling her name. But she forced herself not to hear it. She had seen her personal weakness, watching the other Jedi Knights fighting together--she wasn't part of their brotherhood anymore. Callista would fight in a different way, her own way--and together they would all succeed.
She sealed the hatch overhead. The cockpit was cramped and smelled of old lubricants and stale flightsuits. The pilot would normally be wearing a breathmask and helmet, so he wouldn't notice the recirculated air. Callista didn't care.
She easily deciphered the controls. The Empire did not waste time or energy modifying their flight systems, and a TIE bomber still functioned the same way Imperial fighters had worked decades earlier, when Callista had first begun the fight.
The dark ship rose slowly from the crash scar as its engines warmed up. Climbing into the air above the tangled treetops, she could see the burn path where the damaged craft had plunged through the canopy.
Then the twin ion engines kicked in with a bone-chilling roar, and the TIE bomber angled up to where the atmosphere thinned--toward the Knight Hammer.
"I'm sorry, Luke," Callista whispered, and continued on course.
The nightmare ship hovered overhead, eclipse-black and so large that Callista could barely grasp its size. She knew little of its internal configuration, though she had once studied sketches of Darth Vader's flagship Executor. She knew, though, that the Super Star Destroyer--fabulously expensive and cumbersome despite the benefits it gave in sheer magnitude of weaponry--had very few vulnerabilities. She had to get on board somehow and work from within.
The bomber's engines didn't respond at maximum capacity, but Callista headed toward the Knight Hammer with all the speed she could manage. Her mind spun as she tried to concoct a sufficiently audacious bluff that would allow her to land inside the bays: doubly difficult because she was a woman and could not immediately pass for a TIE bomber pilot; she would have to speak gruffly and muffle her words over the comm system.
Other TIE fighters spun about through space. Admiral Daala's superiority over Yavin 4 seemed complete, and she could safely sit back and launch deadly volleys against the entire moon without risking herself.
Callista was surprised to hear a female voice over the comm channel, a battle director requesting her identification and status. A woman! Callista had never heard of the Empire placing female officers and bridge crew aboard their ships; Admiral Daala herself must have changed things. Callista swallowed and leaned forward to respond. She intentionally tuned the comm system slightly off-frequency.
"This is TIE bomber number--” she adjusted the knob to give a burst of static to obliterate her number, then switched back to a clear signal again, “- have sustained heavy damage. All of our Star Destroyers are gone. The Jedi Knights did something, and the entire fleet ... wiped out. No sign of them."
"TIE bomber," the female battle director transmitted back, "please repeat, with augmented details. Give a full summary of the battle below."
"Most ground forces are destroyed,” Callista said. "The Jedi Knights have put up an incredible resistance, far more than we expected. Our losses are heavy. I've managed to escape, but my engines are damaged. I need a place to land right now." Callista twisted the knob, adding a few extra bursts of static for good measure.
"State the extent of your damage," the battle director said.
"Engines failing," Callista answered. "My solar panel has been damaged. I think I'm leaking coolant or radiation ... can't be sure. Suggest you find an isolated bay where I can land. Evacuate it and seal down just in case something goes wrong. I'll check the leakage and report."
"Acknowledged, TIE bomber," the battle director said. "We are eager to debrief you about the battle for Yavin 4."
Callista smiled but made her voice sound ragged. "Understood." She drifted toward the Super Star Destroyer until finally the battle director gave her instructions on where to land.
The rear bomber bay was cavernous, though the entrance seemed no more than a tiny blemish on the hull of the Knight Hammer. Callista guided her stolen ship inside and was immensely pleased to see that she had reached a hangar that held an entire squadron of TIE bombers. Apparently Admiral Daala was not planning to use this particular squadron, content to blast with her turbolasers. All personnel were evacuated from the bay because of possible hazardous leakage from Callista's bomber.
As she landed, she found herself inside a vast unoccupied chamber filled with row upon row of TIE bombers each fully loaded with a complement of concussion missiles. Callista's lips curved in a hard smile.
She couldn't have hoped for better than this.
CHAPTER 55
The Falcon's engines roared as Chewbacca sat in the copilot's seat, grabbing the controls for liftoff. Leia strapped in, while Han Solo stood on the boarding ramp gesturing toward Kyp Durron. "If you're coming with us, Kyp-- get moving! In the Falcon at least we can provide air cover."
Han's heart wrenched as he watched the young Jedi who had already been through so much, who had been h
elpless while his companion Dorsk 81 perished from his overloaded contact with the Force. With brittle movements and a hard expression, Kyp took one last glance around the jungle and the temples, then ran to the Falcon.
"Take us up, Chewie," Han called.
Threepio stood behind them flustered. "Oh, dear! You're not going to ask me to operate the gunwale again, are you, sir?"
Han dropped into the pilot seat and strapped in. "I don't know, Goldenrod. We might make a commando out of you yet."
"Thank you, sir, but that's not in my programming."
Han ignored the droid and punched the accelerators. "Let's go. We've got some loose ends to take care of."
"I'll take one of the gunwales,” Kyp said.
Han gave a nod of encouragement. "Be my guest." Then he turned to his wife. "Feel like showing off again, Leia?"
She smiled. "As Chief of State I don't often get the opportunity to take any direct action. If the Council were here, we'd still be having a meeting about which button to push to fire the guns."
The Falcon roared away from the Great Temple , its white-hot sublight engines rippling thunder across the misty sky. Han followed the lines of fire through the tree canopy below and saw armored machinery moving, scout walkers plodding through the thick trees, rolling ground-assault vehicles, Juggernauts, and Flying Fortresses.
In the gunwales Kyp and Leia shot repeatedly, but they had a difficult time targeting through the tangled mesh of tree branches.
"Chewie," Han said, pointing through the cockpit window, "see that Flying Fortress down there, just barely between the branches?" Chewbacca grunted. "Let's drop a concussion missile on its head."
Chewbacca launched one of the Falcon's missiles, which burned through the treetops and exploded below. Through the dense knot of trees, Han saw only wreckage where the Flying Fortress had been a moment before. Chewbacca made a chuffing sound of Wookiee laughter.
"Company from above," Leia shouted, her voice hollow and tinny through the gunwale corridor.
"I see 'em," Kyp said, then both gunwales began firing. A squadron of TIE fighters soared overhead, either the remnants of Pellaeon's forces or a new wing deployed by Daala's Knight Hammer.
"These are targets more to my liking," Han said, and took the initiative, charging straight at the oncoming fleet. Chewbacca groaned in distress, and Threepio covered his optical sensors with his golden hands.
But again the bluffing trick worked, and the TIE fighters scrambled out of the way, firing crazily as they split apart. Han was disappointed to see that their usual clumsiness had improved so that the TIE fighters' stray bolts did not destroy any of their own ships. Kyp and Leia concentrated their firepower on the lead ship; both of them cried out in excitement as it exploded on its hectic flight to escape.
Taking advantage of his new tactic, Han streaked forward with the Falcon, chasing after the fleeing TIE squadron. He wondered how long it would take them to realize he was only one opponent and they had many more laser cannons to turn against him.
Then an indiscriminate river of fire seared through the atmosphere, ripping the air apart in a screaming ionization path. A massive turbolaser bolt from orbit struck one of the TIE fighters and disintegrated it in a puff of released energy. The shockwave buffeted the Falcon, making Han and Chewbacca scramble to regain control of the ship. Han pulled the Falcon away, did a backward loop through the air, and rocketed off in the opposite direction. The remaining TIE fighters spun about, spiraling out of control. They lost their formation and whipped about in a flurry of confusion.
Another turbolaser bolt came down in the distance, igniting a portion of the jungle kilometers away.
"That's Daala," Han said, shaking his head in disgust. "She doesn't even know what she's firing at."
Kyp climbed out of the gunwale, and the look of twisted determination on his face made Han shudder. "Admiral Daala owes both of us big time, Han." Kyp looked away with his sharp, dark eyes. "Dorsk 81 sacrificed himself to get rid of the first Imperial fleet. We would all be safe now if it weren't for Daala. She's the target I want to go after."
Threepio stood up, indignant. "But sir, that would be a highly irrational course of action. The Millennium Falcon is no conceivable match for the likes of that Super Star Destroyer."
"You're crazy, kid," Han said uncertainly.
Kyp shrugged. "Just determined--and it's worked to my advantage before."
Chewbacca growled his reservations, but Kyp squatted beside Han. "Before I came to Yavin 4, Dorsk 81 and I sent an alarm to the New Republic fleet. Reinforcements should be on their way. I don't know how long they'll take, but we can't let Daala destroy everything before they get here."
Han thought again of how Admiral Daala had strapped him in the torture chair of her Star Destroyer Gorgon. "Whatever you say, kid," he answered slowly. "It's like a big sabacc game, so let's throw all our cards on the table and hope Daala doesn't see that we're bluffing."
The Falcon peeled through the outer skin of atmosphere and headed into the blackness of space where the immense planet Yavin filled most of the vicinity like a giant eye watching the battle. The Knight Hammer lorded over the tiny jungle moon, a dark city in space loaded with deadly weapons.
"Punch it, Chewie," Han said. The Falcon soared forward, picking up speed directly toward the Knight Hammer.
Leia came down and stood beside Kyp next to Han. "I don't know what you're doing, but I hope you have a plan," she said.
"A plan?" Han answered, raising his eyebrows. "I'm just trying to get Daala's attention."
TIE fighters swirled about the front of the Super Star Destroyer, but the Falcon came in so fast they didn't have time to scramble and acquire the new target. Han punched the comm system. "Hello, Admiral Daala! Han Solo here, with my friend Kyp Durron. Maybe you remember us?"
Within seconds the Knight Hammer had stopped blasting the jungle moon below and targeted the Falcon instead.
"Let's get out of here, Chewie," Han yelled, slammed back into his seat as acceleration hurled them away from the Knight Hammer.
"That was real smart," Leia said.
"At least we got her attention," Han said. "Not to mention that she stopped shooting down at the Jedi academy for a few minutes."
The forward bay doors opened on the Super Star Destroyer, and four squadrons of TIE fighters launched after the Millennium Falcon.
"I hope our shields are strong enough,” Leia said.
Daala's TIE fighters closed in, firing repeatedly. The Falcon rocked and lurched from endless blows hammering its shields. Han uneasily looked at their power levels, and though the Falcon fled at top speed, their shields were drastically weakening--and the TIE fighters kept coming.
"Sir," Threepio said, "by my estimate there are two hundred and eighteen TIE fighters after us, each firing with two laser cannons. That provides an anticipated shot number totaling--”
“I don't want to know, Threepio. We're doing our best."
"But what I meant to say," Threepio continued, "is that statistically we can't possibly hope to--”
“Threepio!" Leia said, "I think we've figured that out for ourselves."
Then an unexpected volley of fire came from the side, blasting through the swarm of TIE fighters and sending them into absolute confusion.
"What was that?" Han said.
Chewbacca yowled, and Kyp smiled. "It's our reinforcements," he said.
Admiral Ackbar's Galactic Voyager dove into the system, flanked by four Corellian gunships. The Calamarian Star Cruiser stabbed through the clustered TIE fighters, wiping out half of them in its first pass. The Corellian gunships, more specifically designed to take out attacking starfighters, enclosed themselves in a cocoon of blaster fire as the ranks of independent gunners took on the mass of enemy ships, while a few desperate stragglers fled back toward the Knight Hammer, their twin ion engines coaxed to maximum power.
Ackbar's voice came over the comm system. "General Solo, is that you? You look as if you could use
a bit of help."
"Admiral, are we glad to see you!" Han said.
"I suggest you come to safety aboard the Galactic Voyager," Ackbar said.
"Oh, I think that's a splendid idea,” Threepio said.
"We'll do that, Admiral," Han answered, but Leia grabbed the comm system.
"Admiral Ackbar, I'm sure you can see what's going on down at the Jedi academy. Luke and his trainees need our help, but I don't know if you can take on Daala's Super Star Destroyer."
Ackbar made an indecipherable angry sound. "I will never forgive Admiral Daala for the damage she caused my beautiful home planet."
Kyp shook his head with an ironic smile. "Daala's not very good at making friends, is she?"
The Falcon was welcomed into the protected landing bay of Ackbar 's Star Cruiser just as Daala opened fire on the Calamarian battleship. The four Corellian gunships continued to sweep space clean of TIE fighters, but the Knight Hammer still out-gunned their combined force. ...
"The remainder of the New Republic fleet is coming to join us," Ackbar said as Han, Leia, Chewbacca, and Kyp came to the bridge of the Galactic Voyager. Threepio found another protocol droid and was soon busily regaling him with tales of their adventures so far.
"The Empire has launched a concerted attack on all parts of the New Republic ,” Ackbar continued. "General Antilles has taken his arm of the fleet to answer a desperate signal from General Madine. We believe Madine has tracked down the Hutt secret weapon--and we've been receiving reports of destructive Imperial attacks at strategic targets across the New Republic ."
"We have to stop them here and now," Kyp said.
"We will," Leia said, and looked up at Han and Ackbar. "That Super Star Destroyer is a much bigger target than we can handle, but we have enough firepower to hold our own, delay Daala's attack until reinforcements get here. It shouldn't be long."
As if hearing them, Daala launched a powerful salvo of turbolaser bolts.
"Shields on full," Ackbar said. "Drop back."
As the Galactic Voyager and the four Corellian gunships wheeled about, increasing their distance from the Knight Hammer, an invincible wall of turbolaser fire appeared off to starboard, without warning. Ackbar's shields were damaged, and one of the four Corellian gunships, taken completely by surprise, split apart and exploded beneath the Galactic Voyager.
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