They looked at each other. They hadn't given up hope. There was a way
out. There always was.
They just didn't have much time to figure it out.
Lava was now spewing out of the top of the mountain. Whole kilometers
of dirt and rocks mixed with hot lava would soon be barreling down the
steep slope.
Obi-Wan pushed his lightsaber through the door. He began to move it
downward, straining with the effort. Anakin joined him, the sweat rolling
down his face.
Suddenly and violently, molten lava poured out of the volcano at
frightening speed. The avalanche of rock and lava smashed against the ship.
The jolt threw them across the cockpit and slammed them against the
opposite wall. The craft tilted onto one side, sending them crashing onto
the floor. The ship jolted downhill at incredible speed, carried by the
force of the landslide.
Anakin hung on to the wall. Looking straight up, he could see through
the cockpit windscreen. All he saw was rocks and lava obscuring his view of
the sky. He knew where they were being carried. The rock slide would drop
them into the sea. They would sink. Or else they would be caught in the
giant tidal wave that was forming even now.
His head slammed against the side of the ship. He held on as his teeth
rattled. Death was near. Anakin could feel it. Now he understood why he had
felt so uneasy on this planet. Here death had waited for him.
Obi-Wan suddenly pounded against the ship's wall with his lightsaber
hilt as they bounced down the mountain, swept along by the lava flow.
Anakin had never seen his Master give way to his anger before.
"That's it," Obi-Wan shouted over the awful roaring noise. "It's a
ship within a ship. That's why the walls are so thick. Anakin, help me find
it."
"Find what?" he shouted.
"The cockpit. The real cockpit!" Obi-Wan scrambled along the wall,
knocking on it with the hilt of his light-saber. "Listen for something
hollow."
The lurching of the ship made it hard to maneuver, but Anakin followed
his Master. He knocked against the wall with his lightsaber hilt.
"Here!" Obi-Wan shouted suddenly. He activated his lightsaber and
began to cut through the wall.
Anakin grabbed handholds and fought his way toward his Master. He
worked alongside him. Obi-Wan was right. The metal was thinner here. It
peeled back in strips. They were being pounded by the landslide and it was
hard to cut, but they struggled to finish.
At last there was an opening large enough to crawl inside. To Anakin's
surprise, he found a complete cockpit with engine controls.
"Can you fly it?" Obi-Wan asked.
Anakin nodded. He strapped himself into the seat. The ship was on its
side. He pushed the left engine and the ship rose straight up.
He kept pushing the engine and the ship revolved. Then he accelerated,
and they shot through the lava and the pummeling rocks into the clear air
above.
Obi-Wan sank back into the seat next to him. "That was close," he
panted.
"I wouldn't want it any closer," Anakin admitted. "Where to, Master?"
"They'll be watching from a safe distance," Obi-Wan said. "Along the
coast, but out of range of the wave." He bent over the scanner, comparing
its readings to the map on the shipboard computer. "Let's try these
coordinates." He pointed them out to Anakin.
He nodded and piloted the ship back toward the eruption. He would
skirt the worst of it, but they would have a bumpy flight. Rocks hammered
down on the shell of the ship, and the air pockets were deep. The ship kept
slamming into them.
"Master, look!" Anakin pointed ahead. The Haariden captain and the
soldiers were trapped on the plain as the landslide headed toward them.
They had turned to face it. There was nowhere to run.
"See if we can make it!" Obi-Wan ordered. "Push the engines!"
straight into the spew of lava and rocks. The ship shook as a boulder
struck it. Then another.
Captain Welflet saw them approaching and lifted a hand. Anakin did not
know if it was in thanks or farewell. In the next instant the landslide had
swept him and his soldiers to their deaths. They were buried under the land
they had fought over so desperately.
Shaken, Anakin pushed the engines to rise above the eruption again. He
felt a sickness in his stomach.
His Master said nothing, but closed his eyes for a moment.
"I wish I hadn't seen that," Anakin said.
Obi-Wan opened his eyes. "Such is the life of a Jedi." The cockpit
indicators began to swing wildly. The ship lurched to one side.
"I think the power cells were hit," Anakin said. "We've got to land.
The power is draining fast."
"We're almost out of range of the eruption," Obi-Wan said, his eyes on
the monitor. "Keep going..."
Anakin held onto the controls as the ship lurched again. He heard the
whine of the power cells as they powered down. "Master, I'm losing the
ship."
"All right. Land it where you can."
Anakin found a smooth area of sand. They were near the coast of the
sea here. He set the ship down bumpily. He had just enough energy to land.
The ship settled into the sand and the engines cut out.
"Good thing we still have the swoops," Obi-Wan said.
They climbed out of the concealed cockpit. The swoop bikes were
smashed from the rough journey, but still functioned. Anakin activated the
landing ramp from the interior cockpit. It squealed as the metal rubbed
against metal, but it opened far enough for them to slide out with the
swoops.
The air was thick with ash. A strange smell was in the air. It was
like burning, but it wasn't born of flame or smoke.
"It is the core," Obi-Wan said. "Metals and molten rock
They piloted the swoops away from the ship and began to search for
Omega and Mellora. At last they came upon them on a plateau that overlooked
the sea. There they would be protected from the tidal wave.
Granta Omega saw them coming. There was no way to surprise them.
Anakin saw him bend down. He settled something against his shoulder. A
missile launcher.
"Master - "
"I see it. Dive, Padawan."
They dived as the first missile headed their way. Its target was Obi-
Wan. His Master leaned to one side and the missile missed him by a meter.
Another missile was launched. Anakin dived, but the missile was
targeted at Obi-Wan again. His Master practiced evasive action, and this
time, the missile missed him by mere centimeters.
Another missile was launched. This one, too, was headed for Obi-Wan.
"He's only aiming at me," Obi-Wan called. "Get closer, Anakin!"
Anakin zoomed past the missile. He saw Omega smile and target a
slowing Obi-Wan again, but Mellora had vanished. He pushed the swoop
engines past maximum.
He jumped the last few meters just as Omega launched another missile.
Anakin glanced back in time to see his Master barely evade it. His swoop
seemed damaged b
y the action.
Omega had anticipated Anakin. He held the missile launcher against his
shoulder, his finger hovering over the activation button. "Your Master's
swoop is overheating. He doesn't have good maneuverability anymore. This
one might get him. I've always thought that to be personally responsible
for the death of a Jedi would truly help me make my mark. Would you really
miss him so much, Anakin?" He grinned at Anakin, the ash-filled wind
whipping his dark hair across his face.
"Don't," Anakin said. "You will regret it."
"I knew you'd get out of that ship!" Omega cried. "You will make a
great Jedi Knight one day, Anakin Sky-walker. But you will be even greater
if you listen to me!"
Anakin took a step toward him. "My Master and I request that you
return to Coruscant with us for questioning by the authorities."
Omega sighed. "What a kind invitation. I'm afraid I'll have to refuse.
I'm busy, you see." He inched backward toward his swoop, his finger still
hovering over the launch button.
Anakin leaped feet first. But instead of going for Omega, he kicked
the swoop. Omega's eyes widened in shock as the swoop was knocked over the
edge of the plateau. At the same time, Anakin's arm flew out and came down
on the missile launcher, dislodging it from Omega's shoulder. With dismay,
Anakin saw that the readied missile was launched as the launcher hit the
ground.
Omega fumbled inside his tunic. Anakin heard the whine of a swoop
engine behind him. He whirled in time to sidestep Mellora, who headed
toward them at top speed. Omega tossed a thermal detonator as he clumsily
leaped aboard Mellora's swoop.
Anakin caught the detonator and tossed it as far as he could. The
explosion sent shock waves through the air. He raced back to his own swoop
and leaped aboard.
Omega released seeker droids into the air. There were at least ten,
heading toward Obi-Wan like a flock of deadly attack birds. Obi-Wan now had
to contend with the droids and the tracking missile.
Anakin swung at the droids with his lightsaber as his swoop lurched
crazily. He was trying to corner Omega and Mellora against the sheer face
of the ridge, but the two zoomed below him, heading for the sandy plain.
It was a tactical error. Now they were heading toward the sea.
Obi-Wan turned his swoop at the last possible moment and the missile
impacted on a seeker droid. He joined Anakin. They zoomed after Mellora and
Omega.
The seekers were as thick in the air as the ash. Obi-Wan and Anakin
swung their lightsabers constantly, sending them smashing down to the
ground below.
Obi-Wan's speeder engine was smoking badly. "I'm overheating," he
called to Anakin. "Some shrapnel pierced the engine."
Anakin maneuvered his swoop close to his Master. "Hop aboard."
Obi-Wan balanced on the seat and leaped onto Anakin's swoop. The swoop
rocked from side to side, but Anakin straightened it and kept on flying.
Obi-Wan stood on the seat behind him, balancing easily. His lightsaber was
a blur as he swung it at the attack droids.
"Master, the water!" Anakin called.
Far out on the sea, they could see a wave. It was as tall as a
Coruscant skyscraper. It was a wall of water moving at more than a hundred
kilometers an hour.
Omega and Mellora had gone too far in order to escape. Now they were
trapped between the oncoming wave and the Jedi. They hovered in the air,
staring at the wave. Omega looked back at the approaching Jedi defiantly.
Mellora only looked afraid.
Anakin pulled up the swoop close to Omega. They could hear the eerie
sound of the wave now, a sound like no other Anakin had ever heard.
"You must come with us now," Obi-Wan said, his lightsaber raised.
"Granta, it's over," Mellora said, her eyes on the approaching wave.
"We must - "
In answer, Omega wrenched the controls from Mellora. He shot the swoop
straight toward the wall of water. They could see Mellora's mouth forming a
scream before its sound was snatched away by the roar of the titanic wave.
Grimly, Anakin headed after them. He stayed below Omega's swoop,
hoping to force them upward. He didn't know if they would be able to clear
the wave in time.
Omega swerved up, trying to clear the wave. Mellora had Darra's
lightsaber and was trying to activate it. Anakin didn't know why. There was
little she could do with it. Perhaps she wanted to force Omega to
surrender.
Omega suddenly reached out and casually put his foot against Mellora.
With a push, he shoved her off the swoop.
She fell toward the wave, shrieking.
Anakin gunned the motor and dove under her. Obi-Wan caught her in his
arms. The lightsaber fell from her fingers, and Anakin lurched to the side
in order to snatch it from the air. Then he zoomed above as the water
curled over their heads.
They couldn't make it. He took a deep breath as they went straight
into the top of the wave. He felt the power of the water drive them
backward. The controls shook in his hand. He heard the engine whine. He
could only see water, and he was confused now. Were they heading up or
down?
Then the Force entered him, and he did not see the water as a wall. He
saw it for what it was. Full of particles, full of gaps, honeycombed with
light. He headed for the gaps, willing the swoop engine to obey him.
They broke through the water into the air. Mellora clung to Obi-Wan,
gasping.
Omega was a speck in the distance, heading away from them.
"He would have killed me!" Mellora choked.
Anakin hovered in the air, watching the speck disappear. They had lost
him again.
"Head for our ship, Padawan," Obi-Wan said.
Anakin turned back toward safety. He did not believe that Omega wanted
to kill Mellora. He had pushed her off knowing that the Jedi would save
her. He just wanted to get away.
But it was better that Mellora not know that.
"I know where he is going," she told the Jedi. "I know where he goes
when he loses. I can take you there."
"You don't have to," Obi-Wan said. "I know where he is going, too."
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Because of the eruption, hostilities had ceased temporarily on
Haariden. They left Mellora with the authorities there with instructions to
hold her until the Senate could send a ship for her. But they could not be
certain how long she would be held. It was clear that she was prepared to
lie her way out of trouble.
"She hates him now," Obi-Wan said as they hurried to their ship. "I
only hope she sees what he really is. He would sacrifice her young life to
save his own."
"But he knew we would catch her," Anakin said.
Obi-Wan shot his Padawan a curious look. "Are you certain of that?"
Anakin said nothing. Disquiet settled inside Obi-Wan as they both
jumped into their craft. He plugged in the coordinates for Nierport Seven.
They were so close behind Granta Omega. They just might catch him.
"How do you know where he is going, Master?" Anakin asked as they s
hot
into hyperspace.
"It was the ship within a ship that told me," Obi-Wan explained. "I
remembered his boyhood home. The walls were thicker than the other houses,
but not too thick that they didn't blend in. But when I thought about it, I
realized that the proportions were slightly off. I think there is a hidden
room there. A room in the walls themselves."
Dusk was settling on Nierport Seven when they arrived. They landed on
the outskirts of the settlement and hurried to the house.
There were no lights inside. Obi-Wan took out his lightsaber and cut a
hole in the door.
The house was empty. Even the bedroll and stove were gone.
"We are too late," Anakin said.
"Yes," Obi-Wan said. "He must have assumed that Mellora would tell us
what she knew."
He felt along the walls, knocking them with his lightsaber hilt. When
he found what he was looking for, he cut through the walls with his
lightsaber. Here the stone was only centimeters thick, bound to durasteel
walls.
Beyond the wall was a room filled with datascreens. Obi-Wan and Anakin