Star Wars_ The New Jedi Order 09_ Edge of Victory 02_ Rebirth - J. Gregory Keyes [46]
A few blaster bolts seared by, along with a number of obscenities. Then the judicial ward was behind them.
* * *
By the time they reached the spaceport, Anakin and Tahiri had picked up a respectable tail and were starting to dodge long-range fire. For that reason, when Anakin saw the Lucre’s cargo port open, he drove the nimble craft directly into it, nearly clipping a very surprised Corran Horn while doing so.
“Sithspit!” the older Jedi shouted. “What do you think—”
“Close the landing ramp, Corran! Close it now!”
“What? What have you—”
Several bolts fizzling against the bulkhead cut Corran short. On reflex he slapped the close mechanism, carefully not showing himself through the port.
“I take it we need to fly?” Corran said as Anakin and Tahiri dismounted the speeder. What have you done now, Anakin?
“Might not be a bad idea,” Anakin replied. He was trying not to sound cocky, and failing.
“I’ll be very interested to hear why,” Corran snapped.
“Fly now,” Anakin said, heading for the cockpit. “I’ll explain later.”
“Explain while,” Corran said as they settled behind the controls.
“Right,” Anakin said as the engines begin to whine to life. “It started when we felt a Jedi in trouble …”
“You’re right; it can wait,” Corran decided. Hearing the story was probably only going to make him angrier, a distraction he didn’t need right now. “And I’m flying. You calculate a series of jumps, at least three, and close together.”
“To where?”
“Anywhere. No, strike that. Not back toward the Errant Venture. Coreward. We’ll find the Venture later.”
“Okay,” Anakin said. “Working on solutions now.”
“And hang on. Tahiri, you strapped in?”
“Yes, sir.”
Corran rose on repulsors and kicked the engines violently into light. The Lucre sliced through the murky clouds, where Corran steepened their angle, watching his sensor readouts, wondering how long it would take the Eriaduans to scramble their fighters, trying desperately to remember what he knew of their planetary defense from his days in CorSec.
Soon enough, both questions were answered: not long and not nearly enough, respectively. As several heavily armed interceptors closed from several sides, he cleared his throat.
“Any time now, Anakin.”
“Hang on,” Anakin replied. “I have three jumps. I’m rechecking the last bit.”
“No time. Lay it in and let’s go.”
The transport’s shields trembled beneath a terrific blow. The port opaqued.
“Wow!” Anakin said. “What—?”
“That was no interceptor,” Corran said grimly. “That was a planetary defense laser. Are we laid in?”
“Sort of …”
“Great.” Corran broke atmosphere, engaged the hyperdrive, and the stars sleeted out of existence.
The first jump took them no more than half a light-year, and Corran had time to see that one of the interceptors had correctly guessed their vector before they jumped again, seconds later. The second jump was longer, followed immediately by a third. It was hard to tell, but it looked as if they lost their tail on that one.
“How long is this jump, Anakin?”
“A few hours.”
“Great. Then why don’t you explain to me, in great detail, why you were joyriding on a judicial speeder. And do not leave out the part that explains why people were shooting at me, and why you two disobeyed my direct order.”
“I understand why you did it,” Corran said when the two had finished relating their story. “But you shouldn’t have.”
“Why?” Tahiri demanded. “Wouldn’t you have done the same?”
Corran hesitated fractionally. “No. I felt Kelbis Nu, too, but so dimly I couldn’t figure out where he was. But even if I’d known, I have both of you to think of. As you should have been thinking of me. Anakin, you’ve always been impulsive—”
“This was my fault,” Tahiri interrupted.
“Yes. Emphatically, yes. But Anakin set the example. Didn’t either of you learn anything on Yavin Four?”
“Yes,” Tahiri said. “I learned that the Jedi can count on no one but ourselves.”
“Really? Your dad is no Jedi, Talon Karrde