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Back Against the Wall

Fleet Admiral Polanski greeted the shuttle as it landed in the hangar deck. What was most puzzling about it was the passenger it contained.

Commodore Vortagh stepped out and onto the shipyard. "Did you miss me?"

"How'd you come back so fast? What happened to Vek'din and the trial...?"

Vortagh laughed. "Like usual, Vek'din was a fool. When he was being taken to the courthouse, he thought he would make a break for it. The planetary governor had authorized the use of deadly force, and Vek'din was shot trying to escape."

"Hardly an impressive end, eh?" Polanski smirked.

"No. The medevac teams got there and took him to the hospital, but he was dead by the time he arrived. He got shot right in the head. Not much you can do when that happens."

"No, certainly not. What of Steel?"

"He's decided to stay behind and help train the space forces... You might see him again when they're ready."

"I like the sound of that. Well, welcome back, Commodore Vortagh. I'll have somebody get you an office here on the shipyard..."

"Anything to see there, Jagged?"

"Nothing of note, General. Recommend we blow the place and get off this rock." Jagged's voice filtered over the comm.

Jansen paused for a minute. "Okay, get clear and set off the charges." The General awaited the rumble and force of gasses that would mean the charges had blown the Rebel command centre.

Nothing.

"Sir, I think the detonator is a dud," that was Foley. "I'll have demolitions rig up another detonator..."

Jansen interrupted. "Always the hard way, isn't it...". Jansen grabbed a sniping blaster from a nearby trooper. "Get clear."

"Sir, what are you..."

Jansen targeted and fired on one of the explosive charges hooked to the fuel pipelines of the Rebel command centre, setting off the charges, the fuel. The chain reaction explosion set off all of the other explosives, bringing the Rebel command centre down to molten metal and smoke.

"Nice shooting, gene-"

Jansen cut him off. "Let's get moving."

Wedge paced nervously. Several hours had passed since he'd signaled La Forge... The weak resistance in the Muunilinst system meant surely that the enemy forces were going to follow up with something bigger. And so he summoned the Chimaera.

La Forge had seemed eager. Almost as though he wasn't interested in taking the assignment that he was normally going to be doing. Figuring out who had attacked the shipyard and from where. La Forge was always for excitement, evidently.

But it was taking him an awfully long time. Or at least it seemed so. Wedge had passed word to General Jansen of the Army that they might want to think about getting out of there. The Army troops were scouring for important data or artifacts on their way out. But they'd be evacuating soon, back to the Nemesis.

Wedge had already dispatched some craft to pick up the Army Officers. The last thing he wanted was to make them sitting ducks on the asteroid while the battle went on.

"Sir," I've got a ship coming in from hyperspace.

"Ah, the Chimaera. Took them long enough, eh?" Wedge cracked a smile.

"Sir, I'm reading a Mon Cal cruiser."

"Great. Psi Squadron, Epsilon Squadron, you are go for launch!"

"Thank you sir! Get the paint ready for putting more outlines of rebel fighters on my starfighter!" MAR was always excited for battle.

"We're running out of space on your fighter, MAR," Laithlis chimed in from belowdecks. "Try to leave something for the others to do."

"Sir, I've got another Mon Cal cruiser! And another! I'm reading a dozen capital ships!"

Wedge swore in an obscure tongue. "Psi, Epsilon, change of plan! Cover the Nemesis. We can't take all of these on alone."

"Roger, sir," Lieutenant Branet said.

"Bring the Nemesis about! We're getting out of here!"

"Sir, what about the Chimaera?"

"They'll make it out when they realize what's happened. As long as La Forge doesn't try to be a hero again!"

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