CHAPTER FIVE
As Anakin, the troopers, C-3PO, and Jast walked out of the Toydarian trader's shop, with four landspeeders in tow, Naar's comlink chimed and the Iktotchi commander answered it, putting the audio reception on a volume high enough for the others to hear.
"Master Katarn?" Naar said. "Have you found Arek and the others?"
"Yeah, kind of," Anakin heard Kyle reply. "They're being held at the Snatchers' hideout on the outskirts of Mos Eisley."
"And have you 'dealt' with these Snatchers yet?" Naar asked.
"That may be difficult," Kyle muttered. "First of all, mind tricks probably won't work. I think they know one of us is searching for them. And secondly..."
"What is it?" Naar asked urgently when Kyle's words trailed off. "What?"
Anakin heard the Jedi Master sigh. "They have two Dark Jedi with them."
"Dark Jedi?" Naar repeated, as if he had never heard the term before. "Isn't that pretty much the same thing as a Sith?"
"Not quite," Kyle muttered. "But in the end, I suppose it doesn't really matter..."
"So what do we do?" Sev Nep asked, loud enough for Kyle to hear him through the comlink. "Should we go on ahead to Anchorhead?"
"Yes. Jast knows a place there that serves as a hideout for a group of mysterious criminals that could be Glorians. And don't worry about me. I'll meet up with you once I'm done."
The Iktotchi commander nodded. "Very well. May the Force be with you, Master Katarn."
"And with you," Kyle said before ending the connection.
* * *
Hooking his comlink back onto his belt, Kyle Katarn looked back down through the steel grate in the air vent he had found himself in within the Snatchers' hideout, which was on the outskirts of Mos Eisley just as Jast had said. Through the grate he could see a male Rodian, a female Zabrak, and another being of a species Kyle did not recognize, with large, scaly, scissor-like hands attached to cybernetic arms. In fact, the being's entire body seemed to be almost droid-like, including his head, where only a reptilian snout was left organic.
All three of the Snatchers seemed to be playing a game of sabacc, although they seemed to be more interested in their conversation instead of the game.
"So how much are you willin' to bet on what price them others will want to pay for their friends, Nekuz?" the Zabrak woman asked the cyborg.
The scissor-handed Snatcher grunted. "I'm not gonna gamble in a sabacc game, Veshira, but I'd say, knowing those goody-two-shoes in the Alliance, they'd probably give an arm and a leg for them."
The Zabrak let out a shrill, high-pitched laugh. "Yeah, you're probably right."
She seemed to glance around the room and Kyle followed her gaze. Sitting in a nearby corner was who he presumed to be Commander Jokar and the other three troopers. From his position, he could catch a glimpse of Jokar's dark brown hair and a little bit of Reeda's green head.
"Say, Harido?" Veshira said to the Rodian Snatcher. "I know for me it's hard to tell your kind apart, but doesn't that Rodian girl look kinda' like you?"
Without looking up, the Rodian Snatcher hastily shook his head. "No. Not at all."
The three criminals fell silent, returning to their game. Kyle stayed where he was, thinking of a strategy to rescue Jokar and the others without starting a conflict.
Of course, given his history, that was likely close to impossible.
After taking a deep breath, Kyle grasped the bars of the grate with one hand and used the Force with the other to loosen its screws. Freed from their sockets, the tiny bolts dropped to the floor, creating a tinkling sound scarcely heard by the three Snatchers. Then, after counting down to three, he released his grip on the grate, letting it fall to the floor with a loud clang. Before the Snatchers could react, Kyle leaped down from the air vent and landed gracefully, igniting his lightsaber's azure blade.
The Zabrak Veshira was the first to fire, unleashing a round of plasma bolts from her BlasTech light-repeating blaster. Kyle easily deflected the shots, redirecting one to hit the Zabrak woman in the shoulder, incapacitating her for the time being.
The cyborg known as Nekuz charged towards him, snapping his scissor-like hands. The burly being jabbed his arm as if to skewer Kyle with his blades, but the Jedi Master moved to the side, narrowly avoiding it. He then grabbed Nekuz's arm and severed its scissor appendage, causing the Snatcher to howl in pain and back away from the Jedi.
This left only the Rodian, who had his blaster pistol aimed at Kyle's head, his arms shaking. Deactivating his lightsaber, Kyle stared at the mercenary calmly.
"You don't need to do this," the Jedi Master said quietly. "Just drop the blaster. I will take my friends and you will be left unharmed."
"N-no..." the Rodian stuttered, his voice trembling. "I can't...I can't let you!"
"Yes, you can," Kyle said, slowly approaching him. "Just drop the blaster and everything will be all right."
"I find that highly unlikely," a low voice muttered. Hearing the quiet hum of a lightsaber, Kyle gripped his own weapon, turned around, and saw a face he never thought he would see again before everything in his vision went black.
No comments:
Post a Comment