"Michael Stackpole "I, Jedi"" - читать интересную книгу автора

Laanars looked right and left, disbelief on his face. УHow stupid can you be?Ф His right hand dropped to the butt of his blaster as he stared me right in the eyes. УYou're dead.Ф
Using the Force, I filled his mind with the image of his blaster being drawn and pointing straight at my forehead. I painted a look of terror on my face, but gave him the impres-sion that I'd been concealing a hold-out blaster up my right sleeve. He saw it appear in my hand and swing into line with his body. He had no choice. He pulled the trigger three times.
But his blaster hadn't yet slid even halfway from its holster.
All three shots struck him in the right thigh, collapsing the leg. He went down screaming and thrashed in the aisle. Biril ran toward him and crouched down, taking him out of Keevy's at-tack range. The larger man looked at his stricken comrade, then at me. УYou're dead.Ф
УNot likely.Ф The Halcyon line might not have been strong in the ways of telekinesis, but it's never required much of an effort to slip the latch on an overstuffed cargo compartment. The panel snapped open and the Kuati's bundle came crashing down to hit Biril across the back of his shoulders. He angrily spun toward it, slashing with his vibroblade, then turned back toward me. By that time, however, I'd vaulted myself across the central seats and caught him in the chest with both feet.
He flew back, tripping and stumbling over the Kuati's satchel, just as Keevy came charging blindly in from the Pre-mier cabin. Keevy's forehead caught Biril square on the chin. The bigger man went limp and crashed down while Keevy caromed off him and landed sprawled across the laps of two young women.
I snatched up Laanars' blaster, flicked it to stun and pumped a shot into him. I fired two more into Biril. I turned and tossed the weapon to the flight attendant. УCan you retract the gang-way?Ф
She caught the gun and nodded hesitantly. УI can, but only on the captain's order.Ф
I glanced at her nametag. УOkay, Annissya, you've got the order.Ф
УSir, I know you are qualified to fly one of these shuttles, but . . .Ф
I opened my hands. УThere's more pirates coming, and your pilot likely isn't. I'd just as soon be out of here. We might as well make a run, because waiting here isn't going to do us any good.Ф
She thought for a second, then nodded. УAs ordered, Cap-tain Idanian.Ф
I grabbed Keevy by his collar and hauled him from the laps of the two women who, from the looks on their faces, were convinced he'd saved them from certain death. УYou really know how to work an AP127 whatever?Ф
УThe AP127CP?Ф His larynx bounced up and down as his voice cracked. УYes, sir.Ф
УYou aren't lying, are you? Lives are at stake here.Ф
He straightened up and assumed a pose he clearly thought of as military. УI can do it.Ф
I smiled. УTo the cockpit then, my boy. You wanted to fly in combat? This is gonna be it.Ф
Keevv rubbed at the bump on his forehead. УWe're going to try to outrun an Imperial Star Destroyer?Ф
УThat a problem for you?Ф I narrowed my eyes.
УWell, it won't be easy.Ф
УYeah, well, if it was easy, it wouldn't be worth doing.Ф I gave him a shove toward the front of the shuttle. УYou just plot me a course and get me an exit vector. I'll get us on it and we'll all ,,et out of here.Ф
He glanced back at me. УSir, even a Rogue Squadron pilot couldn't get us out of here. I know.Ф
УAnd after this, you'll know some more.Ф I patted him on the back. УStrap in, son, you're in for the ride of your life.Ф
I dropped into the cockpit com-mand chair, pulled on the communications headset and started hitting switches. The layout hadn't been modified much from that of the shuttle I'd flown to Yavin. I noticed the weapons-control panel had been replaced with something labeled УEn-tertainment system.Ф Shrugging, I punched a button and started some holodrama playing in the back.
Keevy sat across from me in the navigator's position. He strapped in and sat there for a moment, then looked up and froze.
The Invidious hung out there in space, its dagger shape de-emphasized since we were looking at a profile shot of the ship. Its deck plane lay slightly below ours-if we took off in a straight line we'd pass a good hundred meters over the top of the ship's main decks. I eyed the ship the way I would have were I sitting in an X-wing's cockpit, checking the guns, locat-ing the shield generators. On a secondary monitor I brought up a scan of the Invidious and saw it didn't have shields up.
Just one proton torpedo and you'd pay' for that a~ogance, Tarira. I glanced over at Keevy, but he'd not moved. УProblem, Keevy?Ф
He blinked and shivered. УNo, sorry.Ф
УYou can use the navicomp?Ф
УYeah, sure.Ф He started punching buttons. УWhere to?Ф УShort hop out to the edge of the system, then double back across it. From there we head out.Ф I frowned and thought for a second. УGet us into the Quence Sector, Elshandruu Pica. I have friends there.Ф
УOkay. Courses being plotted now.Ф
My console beeped and I saw the gangway had been re-tracted. УKeevy, hit the green button over there.Ф
He looked up and punched the button that released our docking claws and retracted them. УDone.Ф
· 'Good. On your right, the inertial compensation unit. For the cockpit, dial it back to .95. For the passengers, keep it at full.Ф I glanced around. УWe have to have shields here some-where, don't we?Ф
Keevy smiled. УOver here, I've got them. Hey, these are Chepat Supreme Defender models. Very nice.Ф
УI hope we don't need them.Ф I punched the ignition switch, powering up the main drive unit and shunted power to the repulsorlift coils. I hit the button for the ship's intercom and tried to keep my voice light. УWe're on our way. Sit tight and you shouldn't feel a thing.Ф
I hit a button on the comm unit to try to make a call for help, but a hideous screeching filled the headset's earpieces. УThey're jamming the comm channels.Ф I snapped the comm unit's jamming filter on, which killed the screech.
Keevy's eyes widened. УWe can't summon help.Ф
УNope, we're really on our own.Ф Of course, if help was close enough to summon, Tarira would be out of here rely fast. The fact dlat she's actually here means there's no rescue coming.
Annissya came into the cockpit and strapped herself into the ,jumpseat I'd been offered earlier. УEveryone is seated and braced.Ф
УOkay.Ф I took a moment, concentrated, then nodded.
УKeevy, first heading.Ф
УCourse two two three, angle three one five.Ф
УI copy. Power to shields.Ф
УShields full.Ф
УAnnissya, can you hit the scan-recorder? I want to pull in as much data as I can while we head out.Ф
I settled my hands on the steering yoke and stared out at the Im'idious. УHere we go.Ф
I nudged the throttle forward and pulled back on the yoke, lifting the nose. As it came up and the Palette slipped away beneath us, I hit the switch to lower the wings and lock them into place. I knew that if our raising the shields had not alerted the Invidious to the fact that something was wrong, lowering our wings certainly would. A glance at my tactical screen showed three Tri-fighters breaking off a patrol and beginning to vector in on us.
The wings locked down, so I shoved the throttle to full, then pitched the ship forward into a dive.
Our comm unit crackled as the jamming faded on the emer-gency comm frequency. УShuttle Tinta Blue, this is the Invidi-ous. Stop now and we won't destroy you.Ф