FORSAKEN II - Eternal Dawn

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

"Their scanners are working overtime." Elynn's hands danced all over her panel, activating countermeasures to defeat the Imperial sensors.

"Keep this heading." Theleema flipped a few switches at the co-pilot's seat. Everyone assumed their places the moment the Outcast was airborne. "We'll fly under the Star Destroyers and jump to hyperspace once we come out behind them."

"I'll plot a route to Savareen as soon as we're spaceborne." Virra kept an eye on the position of the TIE fighter patrols. "That's weird." She studied her monitor closer.

"What is it?" Syrran said.

"All the TIEs are patrolling the areas outside the capital ships. It's as if they're waiting for something."

"Yeah," said Elynn, checking her instruments. "They're keeping their communications to a minimum. Something's up."

"Reinforcements?" Theleema said.

"For three Star Destroyers and a garrison on-planet? I don't think so," Virra said. "It's got to be something else."

"We're not going to hang around to find out what it is," Syrran said.

The Outcast managed to fly unnoticed under one of the Star Destroyers. All starfighter patrols searched away from it, keeping the YT freighter from being spotted visually. Once at the stern of the capital ship, Syrran aligned the Outcast with the Star Destroyer's massive propulsors, using their brightness to remain hidden, while the navigation computer made the final calculations to their destination. Syrran was about to power up the hyperdrive, when the Hypori's Revenge came out of hyperspace right in front of them.

"Fire." Captain Haibak said from the bridge.

A volley of proton torpedoes streaked toward the Outcast. Syrran dove in a roll to avoid running into the projectiles headfirst. The Star Destroyers moved in to strike.

"They're locked into our heat signature," Elynn revealed as she tried to jam the missiles homing signal.

"That's the Hypori's Revenge," said Jarriss, confirming the ship's transponder code. "How did they find us all the way from Tatooine?"

"That's the least of our problems now." Theleema switched more power to the rear deflector shields.

Syrran pulled the rudder back to pull out of the dive, keeping the Outcast rolling. A third of the missiles hit the deflector shields, shaking her with enough violence to make the lights blink.

"The deflector shields are down," said Gorin from the engineering station. "The XF-16 power generator overheated and shorted out by that crazy missile strike. I'm diverting power from the main generator."

"What's going on?" Virra called out from the dorsal gun.

"We got ambushed," Syrran said.

"Really? Didn't noticed," said Addia at the lounge, holding on to the table.

"You people didn't plan this all the way through, did you?" said the Weequay, sitting next to her, still handcuffed with his face covered.

"You can exit through the airlock if you like."

"Incoming, TIE fighters," Virra said.

"How many?" Ilum said from the ventral turret.

"All of them?" The target hits filled Virra's radar screen.

Aboard the Hypori's Revenge, the senior sensors officer said, "Captain, we can't get any readings on the Corellian freighter. Their countermeasures are too sophisticated for our equipment."