"Michael Stackpole "The Bacta War"" - читать интересную книгу автора

landing. Brandishing blaster pistols fitted with adapters to accommodate their
thick-fingered hands, the Ashern warriors bulled their way through the door and
stalked down the hallway.
The security station's duraplast door crumpled beneath a Vratix kick. The Vratix
went in, and lurid blue backlighting accompanied their assault. Iella arrived at
the doorway sec-onds behind them and went in with her carbine ready, but all
three of the Xucphra security police were out. Two had never even had a chance
to draw their blasters and all three lay in pools of steaming caf.
"Definitely picked the wrong time to be taking a break. Secure them so they
won't be a problem when they wake up."
Two human resistance fighters complied with her orders while a third dropped
into the chair at the center of the build-ing's security console. "Can you shut
this place down, Jesfa?"
"Can a Vratix jump?" The dark-haired commando pointed at the twin banks of four
monitors atop the console. "These provide views of various sites around the
building- one for each of six floors and the two towers. I can see every-thing
and," he added as he settled his fingers on the key-board, "from here I can shut
everything down. This is the same system I used to use when I worked security
for Zaltin."
"Good. Lock everything down except for one turbolift. Secure the shuttle hangars
in the towers and open up the main entrance."
"Consider it done. I'll shift my comlink to Tac-two so I can keep you apprised
of anything I see."
Iella smiled. "Do that, but don't be surprised if they shoot the holocams out. I
would."
She patted him on the shoulder, then fished her comlink out of her pocket. "Hook
to Blade, we're in. The way is clear for you."
"On our way, Hook." Elscol sounded happy for the first time Iella could
remember. "Good work."
Erisi Dlarit's anger at having her squadron last in the long line of Thyferran
Home Defense Corps fliers heading out to engage the Rebels made her tighten her
grip on the Intercep-tor's controls. Might Squadron, a group of green pilots
that shared hangar facilities with her Elite Squadron, had been scrambled
immediately. They take their name to mean strength, but we've always considered
it the answer to the question "Will they fight?"
. She'd had to place a call to Isard's office to find out why her pilots had not
been called up, but no one there answered. Exercising the discretion her
position gave her, Erisi immedi-ately scrambled her own squadron. Better we're
destroyed in space than destroyed on the ground.
The instant she became airborne, Erisi pulled tactical data from ground control
and didn't like what she saw. An
Imperial Star Destroyer and an Alderaanian War Cruiser were moving to engage the
Lusankya. The Imperial Star Destroyer had rolled and was flying along so its
hull was perpendicular to that of the Lusankya. This would allow the Impstar's
port gunners to be shooting down the top of the Super Star De-stroyer. The
Alderaanian War Cruiser worked back toward the Lusankya's aft; and once it
worked its way in past the system's freighter traffic, it would be able to
attack the larger ship's engines.
The snubfighters deployed by the Impstar were closing in formation on the
Lusankya. The THDC fighter squadrons coming up to oppose them were not flying