Lost Tribe of the Sith 05 - Star Wars Purgatory

have you gone spacesick? With only three engines, that starfighter is going to be about as maneuverable as an escape pod!”
    “Maybe, but it still beats sitting around like a blind bantha in this thing. Thanks for worrying, though.” She shot Lando a sour smile. “It’s so sweet when you old guys do that.”
    “Old?” Lando cried. After a moment, he seemed to recognize the mocking tone in Jaina’s voice, and his chin dropped. “I deserved that, didn’t I?”
    “You
think
?” Jaina laughed to show there were no hard feelings, then added, “And you know what Tendra would do to
me
if I came back without Chance’s father. So let’s
both
be careful.”
    “Okay, deal.” Lando waved her toward the hatchway. “Go. Blow things up. Have fun.”
    “Thanks.” Jaina’s tone grew more serious, and sheadded, “And I mean for
everything
, Lando. You didn’t have to be here, and I’m grateful for the risks you’re taking to help us. It means a lot to me—and to the whole Order.”
    Lando’s Force-aura grew cold, and he looked away in sudden discomfort. “Jaina, is there something you’re not telling me?”
    “About this situation?” Jaina asked, frowning at his strange reaction. “I don’t think so. Why?”
    Lando exhaled in relief. “Jaina, my dear, perhaps no one has mentioned this to you before …” His voice grew more solemn. “But when a Jedi starts talking about how much you mean to her, the future begins to look
very
scary.”
    “Oh … sorry.” Jaina’s cheeks warmed with embarrassment. “I didn’t mean anything like
that
. Really. I was just trying to—”
    “It’s okay.” Lando’s voice was still a little shaky. “And if you
did
mean something—”
    “I
didn’t
,” Jaina interrupted.
    “I know,” Lando said, raising a hand to stop her. “But if things start to go bad out there, just get back to Coruscant and report. I can take care of myself. Understand?”
    “Sure, Lando, I understand.” Jaina started toward the hatchway, silently adding,
But no way am I leaving you behind
.
    “Good. Try to stick close. We won’t be hanging around long.” A low whir sounded from Lando’s chair as he turned it to face RN8. “Ornate, prepare an emergency jump to our last coordinates.”
    “I’m afraid that’s impossible, Captain Calrissian,” the droid replied. “You gave standing orders to empty the navicomputer’s memory after each jump.”
    “What?”
Lando’s anger was edging toward panic now. “How many other orders—no, forget it. Just countermand my previous commands.”
    “
All
of them?”
    “Yes!” Lando snapped. “No, wait …”
    Jaina reached the hatchway and, not waiting to hear the rest of Lando’s order, raced down the rivet-studded corridor beyond. She still had no idea what the Sith were planning, but she
was
going to stop them—and not only because the Jedi Council needed to know everything she and Lando could tell them about the Lost Tribe of Sith. Over the years, Lando had been as loyal a friend to the Jedi Order as he had to her parents, time after time risking his life, fortune, and freedom to help them resolve whatever crisis happened to be threatening the peace of the galaxy at the moment. He always claimed he was just repaying a favor, or protecting an investment, or maintaining a good business environment, but Jaina new better. He was looking out for his friends, doing everything he could to help them survive—no matter what mess they had gotten themselves into.
    Jaina reached the forward hangar bay. As the hatch opened in front of her, she was surprised to find a bank of floodlights already illuminating her battered StealthX. At first, she assumed Lando had ordered the hangar droid to ready the
Rockhound
’s fighter complement for launch.
    Then she saw what was missing from her starfighter.
    There were no weapon barrels extending from the wingtips. In fact—on the side facing her, at least—the cannons themselves were gone. She was so shocked that she found herself waiting for the rest of the hangar lights to activate, having forgotten for the moment that the
Rockhound
did not have automatic illumination. The whir of a pneumatic wrench sounded from the far side of the StealthX, and beneath the starfighter’s belly, she noticed a cluster of telescoping droid legs straddling the actuator housing of a Taim & Bak KX12 laser cannon.
    “What the …”
    Jaina snapped the lightsaber off her belt, then crossed twenty meters of tarnished