The stormtroopers - the real ones - rushed them in what Luna could only describe as a suicidal attack.
No, Luna realised. That was wrong. They didn't rush them all, just the Klatooinians, and it wasn't a suicidal attack. They must have believed the Nexus were real stormtroopers and they were coming to aid their allies against the Klatooinian infiltrators. It was a snap judgment aided by the Klatooinians, already primed for a fight, letting off wild, hasty shots at their attackers. Luna and the Nexus watched as the two groups tussled and grappled each other and, if Luna was completely honest with herself, was tempted to leave them to it, but almost immediately put the idea out of her mind. It felt wrong, this whole situation did, and she couldn't leave them at the hands of the stormtroopers. She dived into the melee, and the Nexus followed suit, taking the stormtroopers from the back. Vix did most of the work, the unarmed combat instructor taking out two of them quickly by picking one up and using them as a bludgeon on another. The last two were quickly overwhelmed by the other Nexus. They were disarmed, dis-helmeted and thrown into the Nautolan's cell, watched over by Twitch, Vix and Hoshi. Face, hearing trooper control on the comm, picked up one of the helmets and swapped it for his own. 'We had some prisoners try to escape during a transfer but the situation is handled,' he spoke into the comm, then turned it off to address the others. 'I'll buy us some time. You see to the Nautolans,' and he walked away, talking into the comm. 'No casualties, just some blaster discharge to dissuade them...'
Luna went to the Nautolans - or rather, Nautolan. Zatt's mother still lay there, asleep, and Zatt's father stood protectively over her. He looked like he was about to collapse, his arms and legs trembling, but he stayed there, shielding his wife.
'Mister, uh,' Luna paused, 'Fenndy? We're here to rescue you.'
Mister Fenndy looked her up and down, unwavering. She lifted her helmet, brushed her sweaty hair back, hoping that he would see beyond the armour, recognise her as a person and not just a stormtrooper.
It didn't quite go like that. 'More tricks,' he snarled, his voice a croak. 'I'll tell you nothing.'
Luna opened her mouth to speak, then paused and turned to the others. 'Can you give us a moment?' she asked, pointedly staring at Snett. She and her Marauders were no longer looking to shoot the Nexus, but that didn't mean the issue was at rest. Nevertheless, she ordered her Marauders out of the room. She turned back to Zatt's father. 'Listen, Mister Fenndy? I'm sorry, I don't know your name.'
He looked suspiciously at her for a moment, weighing his options. 'Khenan,' he said at last, evidently coming to the conclusion that this was information the First Order would already have and so safe to give.
'Khenan,' Luna repeated. 'I'm a friend of your daughter, Zatt. I'm with the New Republic. We're here to get you out.'
'My daughter,' he said hollowly, and Luna hated how he seemed to brighten as the words registered. 'Is she here?'
Her inside twisted into knots. 'No,' she said slowly, and looked him over again. He looked like a feather would knock him over. Whatever they'd done to him...it didn't bear thinking about. She didn't want to tell him, but she couldn't not let him continue to hope. 'I'm afraid I have some terrible news.'
She didn't need to say the next words for he seemed to know what was coming next, for his face and body crumpled in on itself, and he collapsed next to his wife. 'My little girl. My wonderful little girl.'
'I'm sorry,' she said, taking his hand in hers. 'I'm so sorry.'
They stayed there in silence, until Face came in. 'We can't stay here. I managed to talk control down but they'll be sending back up any moment now.'
Luna nodded, then looked to Zatt's mother. 'Is she okay?'
Khenan looked at his wife, his lip quivering. 'What am I going to tell her?'
'Khenan,' Luna said forcefully. 'Can she walk? We need to get out of here.'
Khenan shook his head sadly, and Luna motioned Vix over. 'I need you to carry her out.'
Vix leaned down and gently but firmly pushed Khenan aside. 'I'll take care of her,' he said, his deep voice rumbling comfortingly. 'What's her name?'
Khenan looked from his wife, up to the giant. 'Vea,' he said quietly, as if the word would wake her.
'I'll keep Vea safe,' Vix promised, and scooped up the Nautolan in his huge arms.
Face stepped over to Khenan and wrapped an arm around his shoulder. 'Here,' he said, 'you stick with me. I'll help you.'
'Time to go,' Luna raised her voice, leading the others out of the cell, closing and locking it behind her. She looked around her. There was a clear line of demarcation between the Nexus and Marauders, and each group looked at her expectantly. 'I'm not going to pretend this is going all that great,' she told them, 'but we're so close to the finish line. We need to work together to get out of this. Now, let's get out of here,' she led the way out before anyone could disagree.
They passed lone guards as they made their way to the exit, each giving them confused stares, but none interferred, and no one troubled her. That is, until one of the prisoners stepped up to the barred window and spat at her feet. Luna almost ignored the act and walked on, but she felt the gaze of a nearby guard on her, and she knew she had to react. She turned to the prisoner, her fist raised, and paused. She was a Mon Calamari woman, her face was bruised and bloody. Luna didn't recognise the face, but she did recognise the bright orange flight suit.
The New Republic pilot sneered at her, waiting for the hit. Luna hit the durasteel bar by her head. 'Pilots know when to take their shot, and this isn't the time,' she said softly and walked on as the pilot stared, confused, at her.
Seeing the pilot shook her, and she wasn't sure what had come over her as she said that, but she tried to put the encounter out of her mind. But as the exit came to view, and as they came closer and closer, it came back to her.
The exit was blocked by a detachment of a dozen stormtroopers.
'That's far enough,' the same officer from earlier told them again. 'No one leaves the detention area after a firearms discharge. You know the rules.'
There was no way out, and as her mind raced, trying to think of how to talk their way out of this, the image of the pilot all but screamed at her, and with it, an idea. It was an idea that had popped into her mind earlier and floated about, not taken seriously but not entirely ignored either. Now she could not ignore it, for it was the only way she could think of getting out of this.
Luna could see, beyond the detachment, through the open blast door, the command console. It was so close. Luna looked to Hoshi, who was already staring at her, evidently having sensed what was going on inside her mind. She reached behind her and grabbed her lightsaber out of her belt pouch, hiding the cylinder behind her blaster. Hoshi looked away, her movements carefully measured, and judging by how the other Nexus tensed up, Luna knew that Hoshi was telling the others to be ready. Luna stepped up to the officer as casually as she could, her body already filling with adrenaline in anticipation.
'Identify the shooters and relinquish blasters,' the officer ordered. He looked almost bored as he said it, which was good, Luna thought, as he wasn't expecting her right hook, nor being shoved into the two stormtroopers behind him. Luna charged through the opening as the Nexus opened fire behind her, rushing towards the command console. Shots followed her, but none reached her as the sound of the lightsaber followed her out as Hoshi waded into the fray.
Luna's hands were shaking as she tried to feed the security cylinder into the recepticle, punching in the commands. Over the sound of blasterfire, a multitude of high pitched whines sounded out from the inside of the detention area as hundreds of cell doors shot open. It was a magnificent sound that made her heart swell, but one that was immediately drowned out by the loud angry alarm klaxons.
