Star Wars_ Young Jedi Knights 04_ Lightsabers - Kevin J. Anderson [60]
Lowbacca, guessing her intention, let out a questioning whine.
"I know what I'm doing, Lowie," Jaina said.
Jacen must have smelled the same thing. He leaned toward his sister in alarm. "You're not actually going into that seaweed field, are you?"
Jaina shrugged. "They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they?"
"The Bartokk assassin hive will follow us to the ends of the planet," Tenel Ka said. "They have no concern for their own danger."
"Good," Jaina said, "then maybe they'll get Sloppy."
Suddenly the sound of the engines grew muted as they streaked over the writhing forest of carnivorous seaweed. Just below the hull of their wavespeeder, the weed thrashed in agitation. Clusters of red eye-flowers rose up, keeping a vigilant watch for new prey even in deepest night. The seaweed flickered and snapped, as if it remembered its near miss with the group of young Jedi only days before.
"I sure hope this thing is still hungry," Jacen said.
"How about we give it some plant food?"
"As long as it's not us," Jaina responded.
The Bartokk assassins paid no heed to how the sea had changed, intent only on closing the gap between them and their prey.
The matriarch stood at the rear of the wavespeeder, holding her small blaster. "Two shots," she said, pointing her weapon at the approaching boat.
"Target their repulsorpods," Jaina shouted. "That's the only weak spot on a big assault craft like that."
The wavespeeder jostled, but the matriarch took careful aim and fired a high-powered blaster bolt.
The streak of energy skimmed the bottom of the pursuing assault craft, leaving the repulsorpod undamaged. The shot reflected off the B artokks' metal hull and sizzled into the churning seaweed creature.
"No damage," the matriarch said. "One chance left."
"Your shot was not wasted," Tenel Ka said.
"Observe the plant."
The seaweed now seemed fully awake and angry.
Its spined tentacles thrashed in the air and slapped at the craft roaring over its fronds.
The Bartokk assassins approached the wavespeeder, apparently unconcerned that one of their intended victims had just used a blaster. The Bartokk craft fired a return shot with one of its laser cannons, but Jaina, sensing the impending bolt through the Force, rocked the wavespeeder to the left. The blast struck the seaweed again, eliciting a hissing, low-frequency roar from the plant monster.
Ta'a Chume stood again, raised her tiny blaster, and aimed a second and last time.
"May the Force be with you," Tenel Ka murmured.
The matriarch took her final shot. This time the energy bolt struck one of the Bartokk repulsorpods squarely. Though the tiny weapon was not powerful enough to cause great damage, it was enough to throw the pursuing assault craft into a spin.
The stem of the assassins' boat rose up and, as the Bartokk insects scrambled for control, the bow plunged, grazing the ravenous seaweed. Before the pilot could regain stability, a dozen spiked tentacles whipped up to wrap themselves around the rails, snatching at the hull, the repulsorpods, the lasercannon emplacements. The insect assassins chittered, more in anger than fear, because the hive mind couldn't comprehend its impending death.
Within moments, however, Bartokk assassin legs were flailing as spiked weed tentacles plucked the insects from their stations at the side of the boat and dragged them thrashing beneath the foaming waves.
Soon the seaweed had engulfed the entire sharpedged craft, dragging it under the roiling water.
Pincer-ended tentacles clamped down on hard chitinous shells, and Jaina heard muffled crunching sounds as the seaweed monster snapped exoskeletons apart to reach the tender parts inside. She stared at the water in horrified fascination.
"I think maybe this is our cue to leave," Jacen pointed out, giving his sister a nudge. Lowie roared his agreement.
Bloodred eye-flowers blinked hungrily