SWRC: Gaining Trust. (Book 1)

Chapter 34 Break-In.

"We are going to be in so much shit when Neeran discovers that the kids went after her," groaned Shakkuri.

"What are you complaining about?! I'm gonna receive the worst of it!" said Zach.

"You're the idiot who told them about that certain topic we weren't supposed to mention!"
"Well, it seemed appropriate at the time," said Zach.

"Are you okay, sir?" asked a nearby Ithorian pedestrian. "Do you have schizophrenia?"

"I'm just having a very bad day," assured Shakkuri, forgetting that only he could see Zach on the mostly empty street. "I'm fine though."

"Oh, good evening then."
"Bye," said Shakkuri and added to Zach, "Should I have told him that there's more to schizophrenia than talking to yourself?"

"It would have just made our job longer and we've gotta find those five," said Zach turning to face elsewhere on the street trying to find the five kids of their family.

Suddenly, Shakkuri and Zach felt the Force signal them something. Their heads snapped up in unison at the Imperial ship leaving the landing platform for the ship in low orbit.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me," groaned Zach and Shakkuri practically in unison.

Zach and Shakkuri were both surprised for a moment before Shakkuri sighed and softly face-palmed, "I've known you way too long to get that."
"Only about 11 years," replied Zach. "And we're going to need a ship and one very damn good explanation."

<On board...>

Ezra peered out of the crate that he and Kyipen had hidden in to see if any of the stormtroopers' on board the ship had come to check the cargo hold that they were hiding.

When he saw none, he and Kyipen slipped out of the crate to join the other three who were elsewhere in the hull.

Silently, they all met at the access panel on the wall of the hull as Janan and Jexxel accessed the ships' manifest.
"We should be arriving in 5 minutes," informed Jexxel after scanning through the incoming files.

"Where are we landing through?" asked Chopper.
"Exactly where we wanted them to," replied Jexxel.
"Two minutes to arrival," said Kyipen, reading the panel on the wall.

"Everyone ready?"
Four nodding heads and the raising of several weapons confirmed Jexxel's question.
"5, 4, 3, 2, 1."

<In the ships prison cells...>

"You might want to head down to hanger bay 13," said Neeran casually to the Inquisitor as she lent against the wall in the back of the cell.

The Inquisitor raised an eyebrow in a quizzical gesture at Neerans' sudden out-speak since the pervious days sudden out burst.

"Why should I believe you? It could easily be a trap."

"Possible, but the five children in that hanger bay may convince you otherwise," replied Neeran with a shrug. "And besides, it may give your guys back home a reason to send out an Imperial team to deal with a double murder case back on Lothal. Even though one of the murders will be of an invisible being who has already been dead for as long as I've been alive in this form."

The intercom came to life and an officer on the command deck said, "We've been intruded in hanger bay 13. All units converge."

The Inquisitor turned and left with his com-link and Neeran smirked.
"Called it. It's them."

But what Neeran didn't hear, was the Inquisitor giving an order to the commanding deck officer who just announced the deck intrusion.
"Officer, prepare to jump to Mustafar."

<In the hallways of the ship...>

"How could you be so stupid to trip the fricking alarm Chopper?!" shouted Jexxel as the five of them raced down the interior halls of the Imperial cruiser.

"It's not my fault," replied Chopper turning and gunning down three of the pursuing stormtroopers'.
"You were the best soldier your age at that compound, how could you muck up that badly?!" explained Jexxel as she also gunned down two more of the pursuing troopers'.

"I haven't exactly been on many missions recently," said Chopper as the five of them rounded the corridor corner and took cover behind the bulk wards.

Janan, Ezra and Jexxel were on one side and Chopper and Kyipi were on the other, each taking turns at shooting down incoming troopers until a small problem occurred.

Chopper spotted it first as he turned to fire.

"Jexxel, we have a problem."
"I thought we already did?"
"Well it just got exponentially worst!"
"What are you-" started Jexxel as she turned to fire and saw what he was talking about.
"Give me a break!"

"We've gotta move," said Janan.
Chopper was one step ahead in planning and had signaled Kyipen to run to the other while he took pot-shots at the figure.

"At least it's not Juan!" said Chopper as Jexxel and Janan covered his escape to their side of the hallway.
"Just as bad!" replied Ezra.

"You said it," said Janan as she took cover behind Jexxel.
"Let's move before he catches up," said Jexxel heading down the hallway they were standing in front of. "The last thing we need on our tails is an Inquisitor."

"Something tells me that my plan isn't going to work," said Neeran as she stood up and placed her hand on the wall where the control panel for the cell was.

Her hand glowed for a second before the door opened.

"Thanks Theta," said Neeran as she exited the cell she was in only to be greeted by a voice she hadn't expected to be so cheerful.
Or so exhausted.

"Neeran!" shouted Ezra.
Neeran stood in the middle of the prison compound hallway with a stunned expression on her face.

"What's wrong?" asked Janan.
"I kinda half-expected you guys to get captured," said Neeran. "I had a plan to get out of here if you did. Oh well, improvisation!"

As Neeran finished her sentence, she flung her right hand forward over the heads of the five kids in front of her and knocked the several approaching stormtroopers' back down the hallway they'd just come from after them.

"Come on, we gotta move," said Neeran turning and running down the hallway.

Suddenly elsewhere, the view out over the ship changed to that of a ship moving through hyperspace.
"Oh shit!" shouted Neeran as she felt the thoughts of an Imperial become hers.

"What?" cried everyone else.
"We just jumped into hyperspace!" replied Neeran. "And I don't have a ship to get us out of here or the knowledge of where we're going!"

"So..."

"So, we're stuck on a Imperial cruiser heading who knows where to do who know what with no way of getting back home! Simple enough for you?"