Part 9 (1/2)

s.h.i.+ps were exploding on all sides of him. Laserfire blotted out the stars. All those weeks on the ground, Han had longed to be back in s.p.a.ce again, behind the controls of his s.h.i.+p.

But this wasn't exactly what he'd had in mind.

There had been twelve guards surrounding the Falcon Falcon-not exactly a challenge for the combined might of Luke, Han, Div, a Firespray, and an angry Wookiee. Han had been all ready to blast his way through, but Luke had stopped him in his tracks. ”Let me deal with it,” he'd said...and a moment later, the guards laid down their weapons. Han did his best not to look shocked, but Luke saw straight through it. ”Jedi hok.u.m,” he'd explained with a laugh.

But after that, there was no more time for jokes or hok.u.m. Div launched his Firespray, and Han and Chewbacca set off in the Falcon Falcon. Luke jumped into the X-wing he'd arrived with. They plunged into the thick of the battle, adding their firepower to the Rebel attack.

Han took out two more TIE fighters and then spotted Luke's X-wing zig-zagging through the battlefield, three Imperials on his tail.

Han opened a comm link to the X-wing. ”Luke, you've got company, six o'clock.”

”I see them, but I can't shake them,” Luke reported.

”Going in.” Han reversed thrusters and swooped toward the TIE fighters chasing Luke. He pummeled them with laserfire, but they swerved out of reach. These guys were good.

Han was better. ”On my mark, pull up, hard,” Han told Luke.

”Copy that,” Luke said, without question.

Han accelerated to full speed, dipping beneath the TIE fighters. ”Now!” he shouted, and Luke's X-wing twisted in midair, s.h.i.+fting into a sharp climb. The TIE fighters overshot, and as they tried to compensate, Han picked them off one by one.

”Got 'em!” he crowed, grinning as the c.o.c.kpit lit up with the glow of fiery wreckage.

”You Imperial flyboys never learn, do-”

”Han!” Luke screamed through the comm link. ”Pull up! Pull up, now!”

The Millennium Falcon Millennium Falcon was careening straight toward a squadron of TIE fighters. was careening straight toward a squadron of TIE fighters.

Their laser cannons were blasting at full force. Han yanked hard on the controls, but the s.h.i.+p didn't respond. The viewscreen showed smoke billowing from the port thrusters.

They were going to crash.

Luke didn't stop to think. He pivoted to his port side and swooped down toward the squadron of TIE fighters, strafing them with laserfire. Div's Firespray came in hard and fast from the other direction, spiraling and weaving in sync with Luke's maneuvering, as if they had coordinated the attack. The TIE fighters fanned out to evade the Rebel blasts.

Div and Luke gave chase. The Falcon Falcon gave them cover as they zoomed through the maze of s.h.i.+ps, firing without stop. gave them cover as they zoomed through the maze of s.h.i.+ps, firing without stop.

”Thanks for the save, kid.” Han's voice came through the comm.

”What happened?” Luke asked. For a moment, he'd been sure the Falcon Falcon was going to crash straight into the Imperials. was going to crash straight into the Imperials.

”Little trouble with the nav system,” Han said casually, as if he hadn't just narrowly avoided a fiery collision. ”Nothing to worry about.”

Luke shook his head and had to laugh. The Falcon Falcon didn't look like much of anything- didn't look like much of anything- except a pile of junk, that is. The Millennium Falcon Millennium Falcon was always breaking down-if it wasn't the particle s.h.i.+elds, it was the hyperdrive or the aft sensory array-but Han always claimed the s.h.i.+p had never let him down, and never would. And Han was right about one thing: If you treated her right, she could fly like no s.h.i.+p Luke had ever seen. was always breaking down-if it wasn't the particle s.h.i.+elds, it was the hyperdrive or the aft sensory array-but Han always claimed the s.h.i.+p had never let him down, and never would. And Han was right about one thing: If you treated her right, she could fly like no s.h.i.+p Luke had ever seen.

Still, it was going to take more than a few good s.h.i.+ps to untangle this mess. Luke never felt more at home than when he was behind the controls of a s.h.i.+p. He was able to clear his mind and focus it, all at once, letting himself become one with the machine. He dipped and glided, slipping through the web of Imperial attackers, watching his torpedoes streak through s.p.a.ce. They always. .h.i.t their mark.

But even if he shot down every s.h.i.+p he saw, he was only one pilot-there were hundreds of TIE fighters, maybe thousands of them. The Rebel fleet was barely holding its own.

The comm unit pinged. ”You thinking what I'm thinking?” Div asked.

”We need to take out more s.h.i.+ps,” Luke said, stating the obvious.

”Not to mention stop from getting taken out ourselves,” Han chimed in, as another X-wing burst into flame.

”Exactly,” Div agreed. ”And I've got an idea.”

Luke listened as Div laid out his strategy. It was dangerous, and probably crazy.

Which meant it might actually work.

”On my mark!” Div barked into the comm. He pulled his s.h.i.+p into a whiplash turn.

”Mark!” He looped up and around the squadron of TIE fighters, leading them on a wild chase through the battlefield. Han and Luke flanked him on either side, joined by several other Rebel s.h.i.+ps. As planned, the Rebels didn't fire-they channeled all their power into the thrusters, narrowly outpacing the TIE pursuers.

”Faster,” Div murmured, pus.h.i.+ng the engines far past their breaking point. ”Come on.”

The cloud was nearly in reach. The Mon Calamari cruisers had done their part perfectly. The plasma bombs they'd detonated had expelled a ma.s.sive cloud of gas. It obscured a thousand meters of s.p.a.ce behind an eerie red glow. The cloud would be harmless to s.h.i.+ps pa.s.sing through it, but was poison to navigational instruments, which meant as soon as they entered, they'd be flying blind. Perfect.

Div streaked into the cloud, letting his instincts guide the way, as they always had. He counted off the seconds aloud. ”Three, two, one...Now!” he shouted into the comm. He yanked the controls, dropping the s.h.i.+p into a steep dive. Every Rebel s.h.i.+p did exactly the same. But the Imperials had no one to signal them-and no one to remind them that a Star Destroyer hovered on the other side of the cloud.

The squadron of TIE fighters slammed into the side of the s.h.i.+p, ripping a jagged hole in its hull. The ma.s.sive s.h.i.+p began to list and shudder. Only a few of the TIE fighters peeled off in time, alerted by the explosions and shrapnel that danger lay ahead. Div wasn't about to give any of them a chance to shoot down the fleeing Rebels. As the X-wings followed orders and sped away, Div zoomed into the fray, picking off the TIE fighters one by one.

Dimly, through the comm, he heard Luke and Han urging some of the Rebel transport s.h.i.+ps to activate hyperdrives while the Imperials struggled to regroup. The X-wings gave the larger s.h.i.+ps cover as they sped out of the system and winked into hypers.p.a.ce. But Div's attention was laser-focused on the four s.h.i.+ps that had survived the sneak attack, all of which were firing on him at once.

He was a good pilot.

The best.

But he couldn't evade missiles from four directions at once. One struck a glancing blow to his forward hull. Another blasted into his rear thrusters. Smoke filled the cabin.

The navigational controls became sluggish...and then stopped responding altogether.

Which meant whether he survived this encounter or not, he'd be of no use to the Rebel fleet. And since the hyperdrive had been blown out with the first missile, it was only a little longer before he'd be of no use to anyone.

But the laser cannons were still operational, and as the TIE fighters moved in for the kill, Div let them approach. ”Just a little closer,” he whispered. If this was going to be his last fight, he intended to win it.

They thought he was helpless, and were careless as they approached. Which gave Div one chance. He lined up the shot, then closed his eyes, waiting.

This time, he didn't have to try to connect to the Force. It was there for him, as Ferus had always promised him it would be. Now. Now. He felt it, with a deep certainty. He pulled the trigger, and opened his eyes. A missile screamed into the nearest TIE fighter. The s.h.i.+p exploded, neatly splitting down the middle. Its solar energy collectors blew off in opposite directions, cras.h.i.+ng into the two TIE fighters that flanked it. The fourth got caught in the blowback, and blew up a moment later. He felt it, with a deep certainty. He pulled the trigger, and opened his eyes. A missile screamed into the nearest TIE fighter. The s.h.i.+p exploded, neatly splitting down the middle. Its solar energy collectors blew off in opposite directions, cras.h.i.+ng into the two TIE fighters that flanked it. The fourth got caught in the blowback, and blew up a moment later.

Just not before it released one final torpedo.

Div had miscalculated-only slightly, but enough.

As the torpedo rocketed toward him, time seemed to slow. Unfortunately, it only gave him a chance to watch the end creeping closer.