FORSAKEN II - Eternal Dawn

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

The next morning, Grakkus' promotional machine went into overdrive. Posters of the arena's main event, "Ghost Fist vs Bloodsight. The Battle of the Jedi. One night event," were plastered all around the planet. Every holoscreen advertised the fight. Tickets sold out within twenty minutes after they went on sale.

"Tell me again, why we are stealing an airbus?" Elynn sat on the pilot's seat of a Magnaline 3000 parked in a dilapidated garage as she was trying to use Electronic Manipulation to start the vehicle.

"Because we have a busload of people to ferry out of the palace." Gorin leaned against the airbus outside, keeping an eye out for trouble.

The radio turned on. "That's not it." Elynn switched it off with her hand and tried again. "Skimmers, ComfortRides, airbuses—not to sound like a joysmasher, but I never get to steal anything alpha anymore."

"A what?"

"Someone who steals expensive speeders and then wrecks them for fun." The windshield wipers activated. Elynn growled in frustration, turned them off, and tried again.

"That's a waste of tech. Do you want help?"

"I got it. It's just got to sense the right line of code in the programing."

"By the way, I got something for you." Gorin unrolled one of the posters announcing the arena fight. "This planet may not produce anything but crime, but it does make memories."

Elynn grabbed it to take a better look. "Go, you're the best. This is an amazing memento. Thank you." She gave him a hug through the window.

"I knew you'd like it."

Elynn returned to work and the airbus started up. "Yes! I love this Force ability."

"Well done, Little Sister." Gorin boarded the bus, waving off the smoke from the thrusters with his hand. "Boy, these engines sound like a reek in a trash compactor. We'll have to do something about that."

As Elynn pulled out of the garage, a human ran into the garage from a small office when he heard the airbus fly away. "Hey! Come back here! Somebody, call the police! Help!"

That evening, the crowd outside Grakkus' palace was larger than ever. It seemed every denizen in Nar Shaddaa wanted inside the arena. A knock on a side door was met with anger by the answering guard.

"If someone is trying to bribe me again to get seats for the fight, I swear to Ardos—" the human guard was ready to punch the interloper, when he saw an IG-100 MagnaGuard, blaster in hand, standing behind a shackled Theleema. "Huh? What's this?"

"New fighter for the arena," Ilum said. "The master wants her with the top fighters."

"This little number?" the guard glanced Theleema up and down. "Your circuits must be crossed? She looks like harem material to me. Are you sure?"

Theleema headbutted the guard and then front-kicked him onto his back.

"Affirmative," Ilum said.

"Well, she's going to be fun," said a Besalisk guard, walking over. "Follow me."

He guided them to the single cells in one of the sub-levels of the arena. The dank and dirty hallways were hectic with activity. Wranglers dealt with ferocious beasts, taking them to and from their cages, and avoiding sharp talons and teeth. Fighters stood by the arena's gates preparing to fight. Some of them pleaded and cried, waiting their turn to face death. The ones who didn't make it were carried in from the arena in hover stretches to the medical droids, or to be fed to the wild beasts.

"Right this way, my lady," said the Besalisk guard, opening one of the single cells and waving Theleema inside. "Your luxury suite."

"What about my orders?" Ilum said.