Ahsoka, Daughter of the Light (Book 5): Rescue

Chapter 24: Can't Catch a Break

AHSOKA TANO-BONTERI

"A Venator?" Ahsoka asked. "I thought they were all decommissioned!"

"You can't replace a whole navy of ships in just a few months," Lux said. "My guess is they haven't built enough new destroyers yet. Either way, we're getting pulled in."

"I'm surprised we even made it out of the atmosphere," Ahsoka continued.

She sighed, and slumped back in her chair.

"You good, 'Soka?"

"No," Ahsoka replied. "I've just been through a lot lately. Dear Kriff, I hope we make it out of this alive..."

The hangar bay doors opened on the Venator.

"Look," Lux said, "Nothing but stormtroopers on that ship. We have a window of time to go in there, kill the tractor beam, then get out before Vader boards the ship. We can handle this. I'll be with you every step of the way."

R7 beeped.

"And R7 will, too, apparently."

Ahsoka sighed. It wasn't over yet.

It's never over, Ahsoka thought.

The ship was finally pulled into the hangar, and the hangar doors closed behind them.

There was a sizable squad of stormtroopers waiting for them. Ahsoka could see that some were wielding rocket launchers.

The ship touched down.

"Ready?" Lux said.

"As much as I can be right now," Ahsoka replied, reluctantly standing up.

R7 lowered the ramp, and a stormtrooper immediately fired a rocket into the ship.

However, Lux was quick to act. He quickly force-pushed the rocket back at the squad of troopers before igniting his lightsaber.

"Nice!" Ahsoka said, igniting her sabers as well. "You're getting good!"

Lux and Ahsoka deflected any blaster bolts that came their way, while running to the door to get out of the hangar.

"R7," Ahsoka yelled, "a little help?"

He beeped and plugged himself into a wall, opening the door.

"Got it, let's go!" Ahsoka said, before rushing through the door. R7 and Lux quickly followed.

R7 plugged himself into the wall on the other side of the door and closed it.

"If that's all they've got," Ahsoka said, "This might just be easy."

They ran through the hall, and the Imperial defense was just downright pathetic. There were loose squads of Stormtroopers easily taken out, and randomly closed blast doors that were all too easily cut through with a lightsaber.

DARTH VADER

"What do you mean they took my shuttle?" Vader asked the commander with a stern voice.

"That astromech was insane!" replied the frightened commander. "T-there are troopers here that are DEAD. We look away for one second and it sneeks onto the shuttle and starts blasti-"

The commander suddenly found himself unable to speak, and grasping for his neck. A few moments later, he was dead on the ground.

For but a mere moment, Vader couldn't help but think of his own droid, R2-D2, who would have gone to similar lengths to protect him back during the Clone Wars, but he quickly banished the thought from his mind.

"Find me a ship!" he beckoned the nearby Purge Troopers. "I have to get on board that Venator!"