Star Wars_ X-Wing 08_ Isard's Revenge - Michael A. Stackpole [136]
He ruddered his Defender around on a course that directed it toward the Daplona base training center. When he’d asked the others in One Flight for a full scan of the shuttle, it had included data on the comm frequencies being used, including their strength and the direction from which they were coming. By having his computer compare the vectors, he triangulated Isard’s location and the place from which she was directing the shuttle.
“Oh, one more thing,” Wedge added. “Tell Colonel Lorrir he sideslips too much. That’s why I got him. And you.”
Switching over to concussion missiles, Wedge targeted the building and tightened his finger on the trigger. A pair of concussion missiles jetted out on azure fire and another pair quickly followed it. All four hit it in sequence, blowing into the squat building’s lower two floors. Brilliant explosions ripped through the building, blasting out transparisteel windows and cutting through support structures. The comm dish on the roof tipped and broke off as the upper two floors twisted, then descended into the dust cloud below them. Smoke, both black and white, rolled through the surrounding area like surf breaking. In its wake lay a mountain of rubble leaking thin vapors.
Wedge got nothing but static on Isard’s comm frequency.
With a smile blossoming on his face, Wedge brought his Defender around and headed it toward the prison. Isard had betrayed them, and the individual that was a slice of her tried to deny them the prize for which they had worked so hard. Both Isards had been thwarted and, no matter what else happened, that made it a very good day.
Corran and Jan Dodonna were the last two people to come down the stairs. Because of the hole at the top of the stairs, Corran had used the lightsaber to widen the door and let folks mount the stairs from the side instead of the landing. Nrin and Ooryl led the way down and the former prisoners filed out without incident.
Corran felt an odd chill as they made their way to the lower floors. Stormtrooper and guard corpses clogged the stairwell save for the narrow path that wormed its way between their bodies. It struck Corran as very odd that very few of the bodies showed signs of having been killed with blaster bolts. Blood leaked from most of them, with knife wounds in the chest, or armpits, or any other location where a blade could easily sever a major blood vessel. Broken arms and legs appeared on some of the corpses, along with spinal dislocations. A couple of guards had broken necks, with the damage so severe that it appeared someone had tried to twist their heads right off.
They came out into the sunlight and Kapp snapped to attention. He tossed a salute to Jan Dodonna, which Dodonna returned with a crisp grace. The Devaronian extended his hand to the older man. “It is a pleasure to meet you, General.”
“My thanks to you and your men.” Dodonna smiled broadly and handed the borrowed blaster to Corran. “I never doubted you’d make good on your promise, Corran. You even got around to it faster than I expected.”
“Not as fast as I wanted to, but Warlord Zsinj and Grand Admiral Thrawn took up a fair amount of our time.” Corran turned to Kapp, shifting his recovered helmet beneath his left arm so he could shake hands with Team One’s leader. As he did so he glanced from the line of freed men making their way to the two freighters parked beyond the twisted prison doors to Kapp. “Speaking of your men, where are they?”
Kapp smiled and opened his arms. “They’re all here.”
Corran looked around and only saw a half-dozen bipeds he didn’t instantly recognize. The small, gray-skinned bipeds’ exposed legs and arms rippled with muscles and their large dark eyes watched each passing individual with the closeness of a predator seeking prey. They smiled at men who nodded thanks to them, exposing mouths