Star Wars_ The Jedi Academy Trilogy 03_ Champions of the Force - Kevin J. Anderson [83]
As Doole ushered them toward his cell, he smelled the musky wetness of their fear and uncertainty. The immature Rybets did not like change, preferring a rigid daily routine until eventually they molted and became adults, gaining intelligence and self-awareness.
Distracted by trying to think of what other defenses he might bring to bear, he was startled by a high-pitched scream echoing from three of the nearby chambers. Several of the freed female Rybets sprang out, wailing and throwing sharp objects at them.
Doole ducked as broken shards of transparisteel, sharpened knives, and heavy paperweights flew at him. Doole tried to grab a blaster from one of the two satchels on his back, but a drinking mug struck him on the soft side of his head. He dropped one of the satchels and ran wildly down the corridor, waving his sucker-tipped hands.
Most of the larvae followed him, but a few split off to stay with their mothers. Doole ran, wanting only to get back to the safety of his cell. Finally slamming the thick door behind him, he emptied his remaining satchel and placed fully charged blasters in the hands of six potential defenders.
“Just point it toward whatever noise you hear,” he said. “When they break in, it’s up to you to shoot. This is the firing button.”
The smooth-skinned creatures shivered and ran their sensitive mouth tendrils over the barrels of the weapons.
“You point it, and it makes a blast.” Doole repositioned the pistols in their vestigial hands, pointing them toward the door.
Without warning the vision in his mechanical eye flickered again, and Doole couldn’t see a thing. He moaned in terror. The escape tunnel was sounding better and better.
With a growing dread in the pit of his stomach, Han Solo hurried down the prison corridors. The entire place was full of cold shadows, echoing with emptiness.
Over the comm link Mara Jade said, “We’ve found him, Solo. He’s barricaded in one of the dungeons. We tapped into the surveillance cameras. He’s got some creatures standing with him, and they appear to be armed.”
“On my way,” Han said.
When he reached the lower corridors, Han saw heavy barricades thrown in place across a sealed door. Mara watched the operation as the two female Mistryl guards placed concussion detonators around the door seal.
Lando paced nervously. “Don’t do any more damage than you have to,” he said. “I’ve got enough repairs to make here on Kessel as it is.”
The two women ignored him as they sprinted out of the way. They ducked their heads and covered their ears as a rapid thud thud thud echoed from the concussion detonators.
They heard a volley of sudden blaster fire from inside the sealed chamber, a high-pitched shriek of energetic beams striking and ricocheting off the walls.
“No, no! Not yet!” came a howling voice that Han recognized as Moruth Doole’s.
With a final thump the last concussion detonator blew the bottom off the door. The hairy Whiphid rushed forward to elbow the heavy plates aside.
“Look out,” Mara called.
The Whiphid ducked and rolled as the soft larvae flailed, pointing their blasters and firing in every direction. Their huge glassy eyes spun around without seeing anything.
“Get them!” Doole yelled. The larvae whirled at the sound of his voice and fired their blasters toward Doole himself. But he had already ducked behind a thick piece of wall plating. “Not at me!”
Hissing, the reptilian Trandoshan shot inside, cutting down two of the blind larvae. He lumbered into the chamber, but before the other smugglers could rush in, another explosion came from the ceiling. Han, Mara, and the Mistryl guards used the distraction to muscle their way forward, ducking down and firing again. Han took out another of the