The Bartokk Assassins Page 3

  legs as well. The Bartokk hissed and wobbled forward, moving like a massive,

  armored worm in an effort to use its mandibles to take a bite out of Obi-Wan.

  The Padawan raised a hand at the Bartokk and concentrated, using the Force to

  push the murder - ous monster back. The dismembered assassin slid quickly

  across the ground, leaving a slick traii in wake until it reached its final

  destination in the chemical spill. An ear-piercing shriek sounded from above.

  Obi-Wan glanced up in time to see a single Bartokk perched at the curved edge

  of Docking Bay 28's roof. Although all Bartokks were nearly identical, Obi-Wan

  was fairly certain it was the same Bartokk who threw the stun net. He imagined

  the Bartokk was furious for what had happened to the other assassins. The

  Bartokk pulled a broad-bladed gutting knife from his weapons belt and sprang

  out into the air, descending headfirst toward Obi-Wan.

  Obi-Wan jumped aside, and the Bartokk reacted by coiling its insectoid

  body in midair. The assassin hit the ground in a perfect dive-forward roll and

  came up standing. Before Obi-Wan could attack, the Bartokk's upper right arm

  snapped forward and aimed a crossbow at the figures in the stun net. With

  another claw, the Bartokk motioned for Obi-Wan to drop his lightsaber. The

  Padawan knew if he were to deactivate his lightsaber and drop it on the

  ground, the Bartokk would probably shoot at the net anyway. Impatient for Obi-

  Wan's response, the alien gnashed its mandibles and hissed. Obi-Wan threw his

  lightsaber in a tight spiral at, the loathsome assassin. The lightsaber's

  blade sliced through the Bartokk's right shoulder and evered the crossbow-

  wielding arm. As the arm struck the ground, its claw tightened on the cross -

  bow trigger and released two arrows directly into the assassin. The Bartokk's

  legs buckled, then the creature toppled face first onto the ground. The

  spiraling lightsaber looped back through the air and returned toward Obi-Wan.

  The Padawan had used the Force to control his weapon's every move. He snatched

  the lightsaber from the air and thumbed the switch to deactivate its lethal

  blade. Obi-Wan went to the fallen Bartokk and removed the alien's vocabuiator.

  Although he doubted the Bartokks would want to negotiate their surrender, Obi-

  Wan thought he might need the translating device to communicate with the

  assassins. On the Bartokk's weapon belt, Obi-Wan noticed what appeared to be a

  remote control unit for the stun net. He grabbed the control unit and ran to

  his unconscious allies. Suddenly, the nearly deafening roar of a large

  repulsorlift engine filled the air again.

  Obi-Wan looked up and saw the spike-covered Bartokk freighter as it rose

  up and away from Docking Bay 28. The Bartokk freighter was a massive vessel,

  nearly seventy meters long and twenty-five meters wide. To Obi-Wan, it

  resembled a bloated, barb - encrusted sea creature. Even the large, triangular

  sensor dish that jutted out from one side of the vessel seemed more like a fin

  than a technical extension. On the freighter's other side, a six-winged

  Bartokk starfighter was moored to the outer hull. Secured to the freighter,

  the starfighter looked like a mutant offspring clinging to its gargantuan

  mother. Obi-Wan guessed that the Bartokks had deiayed their liftoff in

  anticipation of an easy victory on Esseles. The freighter's sudden departure

  indicated they had given up this round.

  It would take several minutes for the freighter to reach the upper

  stratosphere of Esseles and enter space. Although Qui-Gon might have

  criticized Obi-Wan for his decision, the Padawan took the time to free his

  unconscious friends from the stun net. He would give chase to the freighter as

  soon as possible. The stun net no longer released any electric power, but its

  duracord strands were locked tightly around Qui-Gon, Bama, and Leeper. Obi-Wan

  examined the Bartokk-designed remote control unit, then pressed a switch to

  release the stun net. The net glowed suddenly, and Obi-Wan quickly threw the

  switch off. He realized he had acciden - tally pressed the wrong switch and

  caused an-, her shock to pass through Qui-Gon, Bama, and eper. Although it had

  been a mild shock and Qui-Gon and the others were already unconscious, Obi-Wan

  felt horrible for having caused them any more discomfort. Furthermore, they

  were still trapped within the net. As Obi-Wan examined the remote control unit

  more carefully, Trinkatta slithered out from under the parked landspeeder.

  "Is it over?" asked the Kloodavian. "Are our friends ali right?"

  "They'll be fine," Obi-Wan answered, then added, "no thanks to you."

  "What's that supposed to mean?!" Trinkatta snapped. "Can I help it if the

  sight of Bartokks scares the stufting out of me?" Trinkatta leaned forward and

  looked at the Bartokk-designed device clasped by Obi-Wan. lt had ten colored

  buttons.

  "What's this? A stun net remote control?"

  "Oon't worry," Obi-Wan said as he lowered a finger toward a green button

  on the device. "l think I've figured out how to use it." With his good arm,

  Trinkatta lashed out and grabbed Obi-Wan's wrist.

  "First of all, you're holding the remote upside down," warned Trinkatta.

  "Second, that button you were about to push will kill everything within the

  net. Now, if you'll allow me?"

  Obi-Wan handed the remote control unit over to Trinkatta, who pressed two

  yellow buttons at the same time. Instantly, the stun net fell away from the

  three unconscious bodies. Trinkatta saw the look of concern in Obi-Wan's face

  as the Padawan pulled his Master's limp body up from the ground.

  "He'll be okay," the Kloodavian assured. "They'li all be fine. They just

  need some time to recover."

  Obi-Wan carefully lifted Qui-Gon and carried him to the parked

  landspeeder. After Obi-Wan placed his Master within the vehicle, he turned for

  Bama Vook.

  "Help me with this guy, Trinkatta. He's pretty heavy."

  Without argument, the Kloodavian helped carry both Bama and Leeper to the

  landspeeder. After the three unconscious figures were secured, Trinkatta

  asked, "So what's your plan, kid?"

  "You should take this speeder back to your factory," Obi-Wan answered.

  "Until they wake up, our friends here need someone to watch over and protect

  them. They need you, Trinkatta."

  "But... why can't you watch them?" Trinkatta asked nervously. "That

  Bartokk freighter's carrying the Trade Federation's starfighters and

  hyperdrive engine."

  "I'm going after it."

  "By yourself?" Trinkatta gasped. "Is that a good idea?"

  "It's the only idea I have," Obi-Wan admitted. he Bartokks have a

  hostage, and right now I'm e only one who can pursue them. Unless the Barfokks

  did something to Bama's starships, there should be a Corellian freighter and a

  Z-95 Headhunter in Docking Bay 28. I'll take a ship to fly after the

  freighter."

  "But think of the odds you'll be up against," Trinkatta warned.

  "Let's see, fifteen Bartokks to a hive, minus the first two at the

  factory, then the three who jumped us, and the one with the net..." He wagged

  the fingers on his left hand as he counted.

 
"Why, there are still nine Bartokks left in this gang of assassins!"

  "Then wish me luck," Obi-Wan said as he picked up Trinkatta and dropped

  him onto the speeder's driver seat.

  "Now get moving"

  Trinkatta started the speeder. As he zoomed down the street with his

  three passengers, Obi-Wan noticed two hooded figures lurking across the

  street. He was not certain, but they looked like two Neimoidians, possibly the

  same pair that Bama had described earlier. Obi-Wan wondered whether the

  Neimoidians had overheard his conversation with Trinkatta about the

  freighter's cargo, but he did not have time to deal with them. He ran for the

  lift tube to Docking Bay 28. Obi-Wan pressed a switch but the lift did not de

  - scend. Something was wrong with the lift mecha - nism. The headstrong

  Padawan did not waste time with any thoughts of repairing the damaged lift.

  Instead, he reached for his lightsaber, activated the blade, and carved a neat

  hole in the lift's metal fl oor. The ruined metal grating fell away, tumbling

  down until it crashed at the bottom of the tube. Obi-Wan jumped down through

  the hole he had cre - ated and caught the edge of the broken grating. Clinging

  to the bottom of the lift, he dangled in the air. He realized the drop to the

  floor was farther than he had expected. A wall-mounted energy cable offered a

  solution.

  Obi-Wan reached out and grabbed the cable. He quickly scrambled down the

  cabie to the floor of the docking bay. Just as Bama had claimed, there were

  two star - ships. Obi-Wan recognized the different models. The larger ship was

  a bulky Corellian YT-1300 Transport with a starboard-mounted cockpit. The

  smaller ship was a dart-shaped, twin-engined Incom Z-95 Headhunter.

  According to Bama, the Headhunter had been modified to carry a second

  passenger and was capable of space travel. Although the YT-1300 had a greater

  carrying capacity, Obi-Wan did not expect to retrieve much from the Bartokk

  freighter. The modified Headhunter offered enough room for both Bama's son and

  the Neimoidian prototype hyperdrive engine. Because Obi-Wan suspected the

  Headhunter was probably much faster, he decided against the Corellian

  transport and went for the Headhunter. Obi-Wan preferred speed over bulk any

  day. Obi-Wan raised the Headhunter's canopy and slipped into the cockpit's

  front seat. He scanned the instrument panel and found himself impressed by the

  many modifications made by Bama and Leeper. Most remarkable was the way they

  had ex - panded the cockpit interior to accommodate a second seat behind the

  cockpit. There was even a tairly sophisticated autopilot system.

  Setting the controls on manual, Obi-Wan pre - pared for liftoff. He

  reached up and lowered the canopy, but as it locked into position, he heard an

  odd beeping noise. It was a bomb.

  There wasn't any doubt in Obi-Wan's mind that the bomb had been placed in

  the Headhunter by the Bartokks. Anyone else might have simply disabled the

  starship's engine to prevent it from launching. Rigging the ship to blow up

  and kill anyone on board was more the Bartokks' style. Closing the

  transparisteel canopy had triggered the bomb's timer. The beeping timer was

  also in - dicative of the Bartokks' flair for booby traps. They didn't just

  want their victims to be blown to pieces; they wanted them to know they were

  about to die. Fortunately, Obi-Wan had studied bomb disposal on Coruscant and

  knew what to do. He located the trigger-wire that ran down from the timer in

  the canopy and traced it to the bomb's location. It was directly under the

  seat. He reached down and let his fingers hover over the bomb, using the Force

  to trace the weapon's subtle contours. The bomb was a canister-shaped proton

  grenade, and Obi-Wan was familiar with the design. He pressed the twist

  plunger release and the grenade was instantly disarmed. Obi-Wan removed the

  deactivated proton grenade from under his seat and gave it a quick study, then

  he secured it to his own weapons belt. He had a feeling the explosive device

  would come in handy later on, and he could hardly wait to return it to the

  Bartokks.

  He activated the Headhunter's repulsorlift. Dust kicked out from under

  the Headhunter as its engines fired, and Obi-Wan steered the fighter up and

  out of Docking Bay 28. He accelerated and zoomed away from Calamar. The

  Headhunter rock - eted into the sky with great speed as Obi-Wan ctenched his

  teeth and gripped the controts. Less than a minute later, the fighter had

  ascended through Esseies' atmosphere and entered space. Obi-Wan gazed outside

  the cockpit canopy and searched for the Bartokk freighter, but he only saw a

  field of stars. Even without a hyperdrive en - gine, the freighter was already

  well beyond visual range of Esseles. Among Bama's many mocfifications to the

  Head - hunter was a powerful scan-mode sensor. Obi-Wan activated the unit and

  two distant blips appeared on the scanner grid. Uncertain of which blip repre

  - sented the Bartokk freighter, the Padawan closed his eyes and reached out

  with the Force. From across space, he sensed a traii of fear leading directly

  to the nearest blip on the grid. Obi-Wan was certain the trait was emanating

  from the young Talz hostage. Although he was reassured to know Bama's son was

  still alive, it disturbed him to know the youth was in such a frightened

  state. Because of Obi-Wan's upbringing among the Jedi, fear was not something

  he easily understood, but he felt sorry for Chup-Chup and was eager to rescue

  him from the Bartokks. Obi-Wan opened his eyes and shook his head.

  "Perhaps some of Qui-Gon's compassion has been rubbing off on me after

  all," he muttered to himself. He entered the nearest blip's coordinates into

  the Headhunter's nav computer and activated the drive system. The Headhunter's

  speed increased so rapidly that he found himself suddenly pressed back into

  his seat. He fought the pressure and reached for the acceleration compensator.

  After he quickly stabilized the artificial gravity within the starship, Obi-

  Wan wondered if the Head - hunter's modifications held any more surprises. Two

  minutes later, the Bartokk freighter came into view. The Bartokks had ignored

  spacer proto - col and switched off their running lights; their freighter

  appeared as a dark blot against the vast starfield. Except for the distinctive

  silhouette of the triangular sensor dish, Obi-Wan almost mis - took the

  freighter for a large meteor. An alarm sounded and a red light flashed within

  the Headhunter's cockpit. Obi-Wan had acciden - tally flown within the Bartokk

  freighter's sensor range. The freighter's running lights suddenly illuminated.

  The Bartokks knew the Headhunter had arrived.

  As Obi-Wan pondered his next move, he saw a small engine flare at the

  side of the freighter. The flare was from the engine exhausts of the six -

  winged Bartokk fighter craft. The fighter broke away from the larger ship and

  swung out in a wide approach toward the Headhunter. Obi-Wan had once seen a

  diagram of a Bartokk starfighter. tf he remembered correctly, such a fighter

  required a crew of three: a pilot, a gunner, and a tailgunner. The three

  Bartokks wouid be po - sitioned with their
backs to one another, and each

  assassin had a view through a triangular viewport. Because the Bartokks

  communicated telepathi - cally and shared a hive mind, they functioned as a

  single twelve-armecf piiot. The Bartokk fighter fired a proton torpedo. As the

  explosive warhead streaked toward the Head - hunter, Obi-Wan tried to avoid a

  direct hit by bank - ing hard and away from its path. But instead of

  exptoding, the torpedo curved back and continued to pursue the Headhunter.

  Obi-M/an realized the torpedo had a built-in homing sensor, and decided to

  take a more evasive action against his attack - ers. With the torpedo hot on

  the Headhunter's tail, Obi-Wan pulled back on the controls and navigated his

  fighter through an insanely tight loop. The Headhunter rolled out of the loop

  and onto a straight course for the Bartokk freighter.

  The Bartokks must not have anticipated Obi-Wan's daring maneuver, for the

  proton torpedo suddenly veered out of the Headhunter's trail and soared away

  from the freighter. Its retreating flightpath confirmed Obi-Wan's suspicion

  that the torpedo had been equipped with a remote destruct mechanism as well as

  a homing sensor. When the torpedo was a safe distance from the Bartokk ships,

  it detonated in a wild explosion. The Bartokk starfighter zoomed so close to

  the Headhunter that Obi-Wan could see the three assassins in the craft's

  cockpit. The Bartokks pulled their fighter back in a tight loop and circled

  back to attack from the rear. Obi-Wan's hands flew over his controls to

  channel energy from his engines to his deflector shields. The Bartokk gunner

  fired, and a hail of crimson energy bolts spat out from the laser can - nons

  mounted to each of the fighter's six wings. The energy bolts hammered at the

  Headhunter's shields, and Obi-Wan's ship shuddered at the assault. He knew the

  shields wouldn't hold up much longer, so he threw the Headhunter hard to the

  left, then right, then down into an outside loop. The Bartokk starfighter

  tried to follow Obi-Wan's zigzag path. Their ship seemed to wobble at high