Face hobbled, with the aid of Ka'iulani, up to the cockpit and all but collapsed into the co-pilot's seat, just in time to watch Vix swoop the Nest down over the city before coming to a rest a metre above the roof of a warehouse-like structure. He could make out several people waving at them, and though he couldn't make out details, he could readily guess who they were. He heard the whine of the ramp being lowered, then whoops of joy from Kai and Twitch, then a moment later as those two and Ro'vena joined them in the cockpit. Twitch was cradling his rifle. Kai looked singed.
'All aboard, cap,' said Ro'vena, losing her natural accent for a more rotund, Outer Rim one. Vix didn't wait another second to gun the engines, arcing the ship up into the sky, heading spacebound.
'Wait,' Face said suddenly, 'head back to the station for a sec. I just want to make sure of something.'
Vix looked at him like he was mad, but did it anyway, turning the ship back down to the city, the ship's internal gravity fighting against the planet's pull, and Face fell back into his chair, his body feel much heavier than it really was. As the Nest headed for the spear shaped building, he could just make out the ships on top of the roof. The black smoke from Vix's attack run obscured most of the building, but he felt certain that there was no dark hulled command shuttle still there. 'All good,' he turned to Vix and smiled. 'Just admiring your handiwork.'
'Just wait for mine,' Kai leaned on the back of Face's chair.
'I heard about your little accident,' Face grinned up at him, rubbing his leg. 'Excellent work.'
'Oh no,' Kai shook his head vehemently. 'That's an appetiser. The main course is coming,' he looked out the window expectantly.
The ship rocked; a moment later the proximity alarm went off.
'Helpful,' Vix muttered, flicking off the alarm. 'TIEs incoming.'
'Combat stations,' Face ordered, and Vix immediately unharnessed himself and dashed out of the cockpit to man the turbolasers, followed quickly by Twitch. Face jumped over to the pilot's seat, and Ka'iulani took the newly vacated co-pilot's chair. Ro'vena and Kai strapped themselves into the passenger seats behind them, for the moment unable to contribute.
Face swung the ship about, lining up the nose with the navpoint marker in his HUD as Ka'iulani performed a tech check on the ship's systems. 'Shields are online and full; engines good.'
'Time to test them,' Face said to himself as he let the ship come to life, racing up through the atmosphere. The ship vibrated with deep, rhythmic pulses as the cannons roared at unseen enemies on their tail. Green beams shot past them and up into the blue sky beyond, which slowly turned purple, then black as they reached the upper atmosphere. Face could just make out the circular shield gate - their way out. As they approached, smaller specks of light began to stand out amid the starry field, small ships hovering around the entrance. Around, but not through. The shield was still up. No way out.
'Uh, Kai,' Face risked looking behind him, at the Bothan. 'Are you sure you got the right transport?' the Nest rocked from another direct hit. He glanced at Ka'iulani, who gave him a thumb's up. Not a bad shot, then.
'Positive,' Kai replied, leaning forward in his chair. He had a manic gleam in his eye. 'Oh-six-hundred, every morning. Troop transport C-5 Alpha, docking port B.' Kai tensed. He wasn't the only one.
The computer pinged, and Face spared a glance. There was an encrypted message, which he ignored, and a newer one; he opened that one up. In response, on the radar, one of the white transport IDs turned green. That was Garan's Upsilon class command shuttle. Face turned the Nest to head towards it and the ship received a glancing blow on the side that had turned planetward.
