STAR WARS: RETROSPECTION- Trials

Xavier watches and hopes that the Ravaging Claw does not attack the ship.

It will unless someone does something about it. These transports stand no chance against the Claw, not without a superior pilot like Trax. The slaves have lost Prassk's piloting skills and are flying mundanely.

Edit:

Could the slaves make a break for the planet?

Didn'y they say they were going to be sending help?

Perhaps that would give them a chance to get reenforcements while we run itnerefence for awhile?

Reinforcements will not be here in time. And if the slaves make a break for the planet, they must be contacted, but the Ravaging Claw is moving toward the planet. They could outrun the ship, but there is only so far you can go when a planet is in the way.

"Quick Trax engage the ship we need to by the remaining slaves a chance to escape."

"We wouldn't last long against that cruiser!" Trax says.

"Hmm, that is a rather large vessel, and not designed for star fighting. Quick tell the Slaves to divert upwards away from the ship. It will not follow."

Trax sends the message...

The slave-filled freighter races towards open space when the Ravaging Claw appears, putting itself directly into their path. It does not vary speed as a sudden deceleration could destabilize the ship and send it out of control, or leave it a sitting duck for the Claw... so, following your advice through Trax... they send more power to the thrusters and suddenly arc upwards, just as they enter firing range. Bolts screech off of their shields, but the sudden maneuver ensures that there are no direct hits. Going at such great speeds, they manage to leave targeting range and into open space!

The freighter blips out of sight once it jumps into hyperspace, toward Coruscant.

"Well that is done then." Xavier says upon watching the ship escape.

"Now it's our turn to get out of here..." Trax says.

"No," Cabas tells him. "We must follow Svidrigailov down to the surface. He must not be allowed to escape!"

"But the Claw..."

"Do not worry about the Claw."

"Yes, sir."

Trax angles the freighter down toward the surface of the planet, putting in as much speed as possible to keep up his pursuit of Svidrigailov's plummeting vessel. Racing through the atmosphere, Trax turns the ship slightly to get out of the smoke trail that Svidrigailov is leaving behind.

This is it. This is the final moment that Xavier has known would come.

Yes but whose final moment will it be

The surface of Varloucant comes into sight. You cannot see the ground; the forests that cover the surface are dense and dark, but relatively low to the ground, unlike the forests of Endor or Kashyyyk. The thick forestry goes uninterrupted until a small city comes into sight, the squat buildings rising just above the treetops with vines growing up their sides.

Svidrigailov's freighter descends until it is skimming the treetops... and the pirate cuts the engines. The crippled freighter drops into the dense forest, snapping trees beneath its weight and coming to a sudden halt when it smashes itself against the thicker bases of the trees. A plume of smoke rises from its crash site, on the outskirts of the city.

"Can you land in the forest?" Cabas asks.

"I can try, but there aren't any clearings," Trax says.

"Set down in the starport, then."

At this point, as Trax brings the freighter into the starport, a small group of outdated starfighters are lifting off, Z-95 Headhunters and CloakShapes. The Ravaging Claw is looming in the distance, moving toward the planet...

Do these aircraft have any chance against the Ravaging Claw?

Once landed Xavier will try and stand seeing how his wounds are doing.

You have no idea; your knowledge of the Varloucant Aerospace Militia is a little rusty, if you have any at all. But they would do better if they had an ace pilot up there with them.

Standing is a possibility, but little more than that is unlikely.

Xavier stands, although he can not yet make himself move forward.

They will need another good pilot if they are to stop that ship.

"Master, we need Trax in a ship helping them attack the Claw. The rest of us can go get Friste, and Svid."

Cabas notices how unstable you are on your feet.

"Not a chance," Cabas says. "You will not be able to fight in this state. Patience is required... but, Trax must assist the pilots, I agree. Our nemeses are relying on the Claw for rescue, at this point. If it is destroyed, their confidence is lost as they will reveal themselves in time. We must count on this."

Trax agrees that his skills are required and asks you all to disembark the freighter.

"I'll handle myself fine in this ship, thanks," Trax says.

Hoondan volunteers to remain on as his gunner, but Trax reasons that, with both Jedi wounded and Loola possessing no notable skill with a blaster, you will need his help. Hoondan agrees and joins you all on the landing strip just before Trax sends the freighter jetting back up into the atmosphere after the starfighters.

Xavier barely able to walks watches as Trax rises to go do battle.

Hoondan supports you with an arm as you leave the landing site. A man in uniform comes up to meet you.

"Are you the Jedi?" he asks, hurriedly.

"Yes," Cabas says. "We need medical attention."

"Of course, of course. Just follow me."

The man leads you into the starport, a small rundown place that you assume is rarely used to any frequent extent. A landspeeder is waiting for you outside, and the soldier helps you climb in.

"What do we do if our fighters can't stop that ship?" the soldier asks.

"Hope for the best," Cabas says. The soldier looks baffled as the landspeeder drives off, leaving him standing in front of the starport.

Xavier sits in the back of the landspeeder watching the sights fly by.

Above, the Ravaging Claw is growing steadily larger. There are now small flickers around its form as the starfighters try to penetrate its powerful deflector shields. It cannot be seen from here, but it can be assumed that they are having little success.

The landspeeder makes its way through the Varloucant city. Squat, run-down, off-white buildings huddle together on either side of the dirt roads. Nobody is in the streets; an alarm must have been raised after Cabas informed the planet that the pirate threat was coming to them.