Which left Brandei only one real option. Much as he disliked the idea of moving into range of that Dreadnaught's turbolasers, he was going to have to take the aJudicator into combat. 'All ahead,' he ordered the helm. 'Shields at full strength; turbolaser batteries stand ready. And inform the leader of the boarding party that I want that Dreadnaught in Imperial hands now.'
'Yes, sir.' There was a dull roar through the deck as the sublight drive came up to power And, without warning, the roar was joined by the hooting of the ship's alarms. 'Bandits coming out of lightspeed astern,' the sensor officer snapped. 'Eighteen craft-freighter class and smaller. They're attacking.'
Brandei swore viciously as he punched for the appropriate display. They weren't Rebel vessels, not this group, and he wondered who in the Empire they could be. But no matter. 'Come around to two-seven-one,' he ordered the helm. 'Bring aft turbolasers to bear on the bandits. And launch Squadron Six.' Whoever they were, he would soon teach them not to meddle in Imperial business. As to their identity ... well, Intelligence would be able to ascertain that later from the wreckage.
'Watch it, Mara,' Aves's voice warned over the comm. 'They're trying to come about. And we've got TIE fighters on the way.'
'Right,' Mara said, permitting herself a sardonic smile. For all the good that would do. The bulk of the Star Destroyer's starfighters were already engaged with the New Republic forces, which meant that all Karrde's people were likely to get would be recon ships and bombers. Nothing they couldn't handle. 'Dankin, Torve-swing down to intercept.
The two pilots acknowledged, and she returned her attention to the inconspicuous spot beneath the Star Destroyer's central sublight drive nozzle where her Z-95's lasers were currently blasting away. Beneath the shielding at that point was a critical part of the lower-aft sensor package. If she could take it out, she and the others would have free run of the relatively undefended underside of the huge ship.
With a sudden puff of vaporized metal and plastic, the lasers punched through. 'Got it,' she told Aves. 'Lower-aft-central sector is now blind.'
'Good job,' Aves said. 'Everyone: move in.' Mara pulled the Z-95 away, glad to be leaving the heat and radiation of the drive emissions. The Wild Karrde and other freighters could handle the job of tearing into the Star Destroyer's outer hull now; her small starfighter would be better utilized in keeping the TIE fighters away from them. But first, she had enough time to check in. 'Jade calling Karrde,' she said into the comm. 'You there?'
'Right here, Mara, thank you,' came a familiar voice; Mara felt a little of her tension drain away. Right here, thank you, meant everything was fine aboard the New Republic ship.
Or as fine as could be expected while facing an Imperial Star Destroyer. 'What's the situation?' she asked.
'We've taken some damage, but we seem to be holding our own,' he said. 'There's a small tech team aboard the Katana and they have the turbolasers operational, which may account for the Star Destroyer's reluctance to move any closer. No doubt they'll overcome their shyness eventually.'
'They've overcome it now,' Mara said. 'The ship was under power when we arrived. And we're not going to be able to distract them for long.'
'Mara, this is Leia Organa Solo,' a new voice came on the comm.
'We've got a Star Cruiser on its way.'
'The Imperials will have backup coming, too,' Mara said flatly.
'Let's not be heroic to the point of stupidity, okay? Get your people off the Katana and get out of here.'
'We can't,' Organa Solo said. 'The Imperials have boarded. Our people are cut off from the docking bay.'
Mara looked across at the dark bulk of the Dreadnaught, lit only by its own running lights and the flickers of reflected light from the battle raging near and around it. 'Then you'd better write them off,' she said. 'The Imperials aren't likely to be far away-their backup will get here long before yours does.'
And as if cued by her words, there was a flicker of pseudomotion off to her left; and abruptly three Dreadnaughts in triangular formation appeared.
'Mara!' Aves snapped.
'I see them,' Mara said as a second triad flickered in behind and above the first. 'That's it, Karrde. Get out of there-'
'Attention, New Republic forces,' a new voice boomed over the channel. 'This is Senator Garm Bel Iblis aboard the warship Peregrine. May I offer our assistance?'
Leia stared at the comm speaker, a strange combination of surprise, hope, and disbelief flooding in on her. She glanced up at Karrde, caught his eye. He shrugged slightly, shook his head. 'I'd heard he was dead,' he murmured.
