Chapter 28 - Slaughter. Part three

So little activity. I am sad :(

Immediately after the plasma cutter destroyed the integrity of the locking mechanism of the emergency airlock, Yazuo Vayne, intercepting his vibrosword, fired at the opening doors.

The blaster, combined with a bladed weapon, worked properly, making a burnt hole in the chest of the Weequay, dressed in a semblance of an imperial naval uniform, but painted in completely ridiculous colors of gray and green. The Errant Venture's security officer fell onto his back.

But before his corpse even touched the deck, pirates from the Lecherous Twi'lek were already pouring aboard the Star Destroyer.

Yazuo, without much ceremony, slashed his vibrosword across the chest of another man, Booster Terrik, giving him a huge chest wound. He blew off the head of another one and drove a blaster bolt into the side of the Kel Dor, who did not have time to react to the appearance of the privateer next to him.

With a practiced move, Captain Vayne plunged the blade of his weapon into the enemy's neck, causing him to choke on his own blood.

- Forward! - he growled, the first to rush along the corridor of the Errant Venture's superstructure.

Let the Imperials from "Strike", "Tartan" and "Victory-I" storm the main, cargo hangars and capture the main decks of the ship - its guys from both sides poured directly into the superstructure of the starship. It is here that the control room and living quarters of the most influential members of Booster Terrik's crew are located. And if only later the Imperials don't give him a worthy compensation for this raid, they will greatly regret it!

He lost a huge number of good guys in this operation. Yes, not all of them are decent and respectable reasonable (or rather, none of them), but they were in his group, and therefore, some will have to fork out for their deaths. And seriously fork out, since capturing the superstructure and conning tower actually means complete control over the star destroyer, since from the bridge you can easily control absolutely all the ship's systems and thereby either make it easier for the imperial assault teams to board, or, conversely, make it more difficult.

At first, Yazuo wanted to do exactly the second thing - when he saw that Talon Karrde's freighters were attacking the Interdictor. If the interdictor cruiser had been destroyed, there would have been a great opportunity to capture Terrik's ship and steal it, and then, at a very favorable rate, sell it to the same imperials, but in the Remnants, or the New Republic, or in the Corporate Sector. Hutt, yes, even the Hutts would fork out money for such a "fit". Fifty to seventy million would be enough for Vayne and his people to live comfortably for the rest of their lives somewhere away from the eternal fight between the Empire and the New Republic.

The arrival of the latter two ships only confirmed the correctness of such thoughts, and he ordered his attention to be switched to the Errant Venture, looking for the right moment when the Imperial pilots would finally thin out the air wing covering the once custom-colored Star Destroyer.

But after the appearance of two more imperial -ones-, it became uneasy.

The plan had to be adjusted instantly. Not only did Karrde not only not destroy the interdictor cruiser, but also reinforcements arrived to Thrawn, who could easily shoot the engines of the "Errant Venture" and then himself and his people would be taken care of by the space marines of the blue-faced Grand Admiral. In such conditions, contradict the employer, who easily caught in his trap not only the always cautious and sensitive Booster Terrik, but also the pirate group of Leonia Tavira. Despite the enemy's numerical advantage, Grand Admiral Thrawn not only managed to defeat them, but judging by the abundance of landing boats scurrying between the ships, he also intends to capture all the starships that survived the battle without exception.

Therefore, Yazuo thought very simply - he would attack the "Errant Venture's" control room, capture Booster and subjugate his ship, after which he would watch. If, after a couple of New Republic starships, more ships arrive that are capable of turning the tide of the battle, then he will try to escape into hyperspace and take the ship further away, wait for rumors about who won and offer him to buy the starship.

But if nothing happens or Thrawn wins, then the capture of the ship will clearly contribute to an increase in commissions from the Grand Admiral himself. In this case, even escaping on a Star Destroyer can be justified to Thrawn by the motivation that, in any case, I wanted to save the ship for you and took it out of the combat zone so that the vile rebels would not inadvertently destroy it in a fit of impotent anger towards the Empire and you personally .

It is unlikely that the Grand Admiral will believe in such a motivation, but this will have to be thought about later, when it comes to dividing the spoils. If it comes, of course.

And there should be a lot of loot on the Errant Venture. Maybe Booster didn't drag into battle all the underground businessmen and bounty hunters who were guests on his ship in normal times, but the goods must definitely be hidden here. And knowing firsthand about Terrik's tight-fistedness, Yazuo had no doubt that there was something to profit from here.

- Yo-ho-ho! And a vibrosword in the seat! - Vayne yelled, seeing how the unlucky flax of the destroyer's crew was trying to escape from his people around the bend in the corridor. They are very easy to identify - they are wearing Imperial naval uniforms, repainted in Corellian colors. No matter what Terrik said about himself, he still felt nostalgia for his homeland. And he would probably have returned to Diktat if this did not mean his next business trip to Kessel in the orange uniform of a prisoner.

While the fighters behind him continued to fire blasters and carbines, Yazuo made the threat from the old pirate song, but limited himself to shooting him in the back with a blaster. Well, really, why not chase him around the ship in the hope of increasing the depth of the canyon between the halves of the buttocks?

Having destroyed three enemy detachments and lost two fighters, the crews of the " Lecherous Twi'lek" and the second freighter Yazuo finally united into one strike force, having actually cleared the officers' living deck... Oh, I wish I could indulge in robbery in personal apartments now on the ship, but that's the problem - while they are engaged in small-scale collection of valuables that may not exist at all, the Imperials will seize the control room. And then the contribution to the capture of the starship from Vayne's gang will be minimal.

I should have continued to stick to the plan, but...

- You and you,- Yazuo pointed his finger towards a couple of fighters. The guys in their team are new, they usually die after one or two raids, so remembering their names at the moment is impractical. — Take a handful of ass and walk through the cabins. Everything valuable - jewelry, fabrics, spice, chips - everything goes to our ships, we'll sort it out later. If you try to grab something for yourself, I'll gut it on a hot spit.

-LikeMarcus? — one of the neophytes quietly groaned, remembering the recent friendly trial of a pirate who tried to hide a credit chip worth a couple of hundred peggats from the crew. Nobody knows what the amount is, but it's a matter of principle.

- Well, of course not, - Yazuo chuckled. The couple breathed a sigh of relief. - I knew Marcus for three months and almost didn't consider him Bantha crap. Therefore, before frying him, they did not inject him with anti-shock and painkillers - so that he would not suffer for long. But I barely remember what to call you two...

- Biba and Boba, sir, - said one of them. Strange names for two young people who are somewhat similar in appearance. Brothers or what?

- Well, why do I need this information? Yazuo sighed. What kind of pirates are not recruited by advertisement, huh? - Briefly speaking. If you try to steal something from the team, you will also be fried inside a fuel barrel. Only they will inject you and the necessary drug so that you don't die prematurely, and we'll give you an oxygen hose so that you don't suffocate. All clear?

Two silent nods.

-So why the Hutt am I still seeing you before my eyes?!- - he barked, and at the same moment both pirates rushed towards the unlocked doors of the cabins.

-Boss,- the assistant said quietly in his ear as the pirate squad made their way to the turbolift shaft - the shortest way to the conning tower. -You understand that they will certainly try to steal something?-

-I hope so,- Yazuo yawned, wiping blood from the blade of the vibrosword with a rag. - Dividing the spoils into twenty reasonable ones is easier than dividing them into twenty-two.

-Well, there are twenty-six of us now,- the assistant added in the same whisper. - And these two are on the living deck...

-Yeah,- Yazuo replaced the gas cartridge in the blaster. - Do you realize what I mean?

-Of course,- the pirate bared his teeth, flashing his metal teeth. — Is it time to optimize the size of the gang?

-I don't know what you're talking about,- Wayne shrugged. - I am against such perversions...

-Uh... Boss,- the assistant was confused. - So you yourself said that it should be twenty and...

-What I'm saying is that I don't know the meaning of the word «optimize»,- answered Yazuo, the first to step into the turbolift cabin that had arrived in response to the call from the panel. The rest of the pirates followed him. And they hardly knew what fate would befall some of them at the end of the assault.

Yazuo Vayne was ready to cross the galaxy in a rusty trough with a class sixteen hyperdrive if needed to help out one of his guys. He gave the Grand Admiral twenty Tartans to save a dozen of his entourage. And I would do it again.

The problem was that the number of "his guys" was strictly limited to twenty-one crew members of the Lecherous Twi'lek. Including the pirate captain himself, of course.

And no one ever really intended to share such a jackpot with the «meat».

***

Still, it's a little strange to regain a lightsaber, but continue to wield a blaster. Moreover, stay within four to five meters of the stormtrooper, who has a cage with ysalamiri attached to his shoulders, cutting it off from the Force.

And from the mad dark Jedi, Palpatine's experiment.

Mara, waiting for the moment when the enemy ran out of either the charge in the energy cell or the gas in the cartridge, emerged from around the corner of the corridor, with a well-aimed shot making a hole in the Trandoshan pirate just above the eyes. The scaled humanoid fell to the deck as if decimated. And three of his other relatives, sitting in cover behind a couple of massive cargo containers, roared in such a way that the blood of any unprepared sapient would freeze in their veins.

Mara only tightened her grip on the handle of the naval SE-14C, which had now become her service weapon. Blaster pistol, the service weapon of the Imperial military. Yes, she could take any of her own blasters on a mission, but today she was playing the role of Navy Lieutenant Jade.

She also wanted to feel the pleasant weight of the blaster in her hand again and experience some discomfort from the fact that the knurled handle cut into her palm.

SE-14C blaster pistol.

Unfortunately for the Trandoshan pirates, who had this battered spaceship at their disposal, they were opposed not just by some intelligent ones, but by stormtroopers of the Empire. And to be even more precise, precisely those who had a specialization that was very unloved by pirates, smugglers and rebels.

Despite the archaic name, the Imperial Marines had nothing to do with the sea, as such. Honestly, the only physical state of water and any liquid that they could most often see during the period of direct execution of the task assigned to them was ice.

Because the Imperial Marines were a specialized unit of the Storm Corps, the prototype of which in the past, during the Clone Wars, were clone paratroopers. And the Marines received their tasks from them, so to speak, -by inheritance.-

They were stationed aboard all major Imperial warships such as cruisers and Star Destroyers to perform boarding and counter-boarding duties against enemy starships. Trained to fight both on starships and outside of them, in a vacuum, these stormtroopers never succumbed to a threat, did not take flight, and did not strive for any great ingenuity. They acted strictly according to the instructions developed at the dawn of the Empire, carrying out the tasks assigned to them with frightening efficiency.

And even now, as if not noticing that they were being shot at from disintegrators mixed with blasters and even bullet guns, the infantrymen (funny, but sometimes they are also called paratroopers or space marines) methodically cleared one deck after another. With a frightening shiver, Mara watched how the paratroopers, who were sometimes monstrously wounded, continued to fight as if they did not feel their injuries at all.

Despite the fact that she thought that she had long forgotten such subtleties as the criteria for the specialization of stormtroopers, as soon as she plunged into the battle, the information carefully memorized over the years began to slip out of the unconscious by itself, returning to her memory.

While she waited out the next wall of blaster fire from the enemy, the stormtroopers, dispersed beyond the edges of the bulkheads, fired back. Every now and then one of them received a targeted shot in the body or head and fell to the deck, but the rest continued to shoot.

The attack aircraft moving in dashes towards her turned out to be not as efficient as it might have seemed initially. An apparently large-caliber explosive bullet pierced his armor below the chest on the right, tearing apart both the plastoid of his snow-white armor, the durable suit-underarmor of fabric armor, and the body underneath.

The fighter, falling to his knees, continued to clutch the E-11 blaster rifle, standard for the soldiers of the Empire's Storm Corps, in his hands, shooting and at the same time as if not noticing that blood was pouring from his torso and pieces of flesh and internal organs were falling out. And this is truly scary - because even one look at this injury is enough to understand that it is impossible to survive it silently. You can't survive it at all - death from blood loss will occur faster than a medic arrives from a neighboring detachment. Because the medic of that detachment, with which Mara made her way to the battery deck, was lying ten meters earlier along the corridor, with a huge hole instead of the face shield of his helmet.

Blaster rifle E-11.

Mara knew that on Carida, the planet where stormtroopers are trained, ordinary people are actually turned into living weapons, for which their own hardships are not important - only the completion of the task. But she also knew something else - even stormtroopers scream in pain. Maybe if it were a blaster burn, such stoicism would look much more appropriate, but to do this with your guts torn apart...

Sometimes you wonder what these people are made of, since even the instinct of self-preservation recedes at the sight of them. But you also understand that you don't want to know the answer. For the reason can be found out only in one place - on Carida. And only after becoming a stormtrooper himself.

But Mara did not want such a fate for herself, and therefore...

With a loud ringing sound, a small silvery ball with several blinking indicators fell on the floor of the corridor, about half a meter from Jade's feet.

Thermal detonator!

Type A thermal detonator.

Offensive-defensive ammunition designed to destroy sentient beings and vehicles within a radius of up to twenty meters. The explosive substance - baradium, is dressed in a shell of material - thermite, and is the most vile thing that an attacking or defending intelligent person can only see in front of him. Because you never guess. Whether you have time to get out of the affected area or not depends on what time the fuse was set by the one who threw this «death ball». A standard fuse is designed for six seconds and this is quite enough to either throw him back or leave the affected area, but...

It was not without reason that the enemy threw him in the middle of the corridor. To throw it away, you need to get out from behind the bulkhead. Straight under the Trandoshan trunks, and they certainly won't make a mistake. Running away is also not an option - on one side it runs into a damned corridor, and on the other, the half-meter branch where she is now ends with a terminal that has not been working since the days of the Clone Wars. And there is no way out!

But they had so little left to suppress the resistance on the battery deck and the star destroyer in the hands of the Empire, Thrawn! Her first task of any worth, and she failed it!

The world seemed to freeze in front of her, not allowing her to even move. The fear of death, which she had not experienced for a long time, sent its slippery tentacles inside her, constraining her movement, forcing her to look at death, which would detonate soon, leaving no one alive within a radius of several meters. And those who survive this explosion will be deafened by the sound wave passing through the enclosed space. Stormtroopers, of course, may be saved by their armor, but...

The bloodied trooper, without further ado, made one short jerk on his knees, found himself next to the ammunition and covered it with his body, curling up so that the armor and torso absorbed as many damaging elements as possible...

It exploded. The body of the unfortunate man was thrown up, torn into several pieces and splashed with blood on the walls of the corridor. The disfigured body did not move - Mara did not even need to wield the Force to understand that the stormtrooper was dead. And she knew exactly the reason why he did it.

He sacrificed himself, knowing that he would not live to see a doctor. He understood that he was dying and the only way he could help his comrades was to take the fire upon himself. Or cover a grenade with your body to prevent it from exploding and causing even more wounded.

An act that is difficult to explain.

Stormtroopers do not receive any serious salary - they, like the clones in their time, only serve the government. The small credit cards they have for their thankless work can in no way ensure the desire to die for them.

Stormtroopers do not know how to empathize with anyone - they are indifferent to losses, even among their own. It doesn't matter to them whether they kill one or the other - they have no sense of camaraderie with each other. Even the clones during the wars had more motivation to save each other than the soldiers of the Storm Corps.

And now, just like that...

-Suppressive fire,- came the quiet voice of the detachment commander. - Forward.

The stormtrooper sergeant did not shout, did not raise his voice, did not tear him apart. He commanded calmly, and there was not even a hint of panic or excitement in his voice. He did his job, which he knew perfectly well, and did not want another share. Otherwise, he would have long ago found a reason and opportunity to escape from service and start life anew. This is what stormtroopers did - not many, but they did. It's not a secret.

But the sergeant was in command. Here and now.

His orange shoulder pad poked out from behind the bulkhead and waved his hand to the other fighters. Four paratroopers - just four of the eight in the squad - left their shelters, laying down suppressive fire. With a quick step, they moved forward along the corridor, leaving Mara Jade behind her snow-white armor.

The girl, hearing the Trandoshans screaming, jumped out of cover, instantly found her bearings and opened fire, supporting the surviving three fighters and their commander with the fire of her blaster.

The light body armor she wore during the operation felt pleasantly pressing with its weight—or rather, with its almost complete absence. The blaster pistol spewed out scarlet lightning, which always found targets - once the squad overcame the improvised barricade, nothing could stop them.

Next is just the battery itself. And this is a huge space practically devoid of shelters. And several fleeing Trandoshans, firing indiscriminately.

Aimed shots put an end to the pirates' careers.

The stormtroopers, passing by the corpses, habitually and routinely fired control shots into the heads of the once intelligent reptiles.

After which, covering each other, they entered the battery deck.

As expected, the place was empty. Well, almost empty. Even during the landing, Mara noticed that most of the Venator's batteries were silent. And this could only mean one thing - either there are no guns there anymore, or they are in a technically faulty condition. But she relied on the former.

And I was right.

Of the ten guns assigned to this battery, only one was in place. And now she was silent, despite the fact that she looked completely fine.

-They just ran out of ammunition,- Mara said gloomily, seeing empty gas cartridges scattered across the deck. Yes, this is a starship from the Clone Wars. The batteries do not contain turbolasers at all, but simple cannons with cartridge loading. But, if so, then where...?

-Movement,- the stormtrooper who was carrying the ysalamiri on his shoulders told the sergeant. His right hand held the E-11, pointed towards the massive instrument panel. The stormtroopers synchronously aimed towards the perceived danger.

Mara instantly recognized this ancient mechanism. An artillery computer that received information about the target from the control room. But behind him...

- Do not shoot! - she ordered.

The stormtroopers did not fire a single shot. But the weapons were not removed either, limiting themselves only to slightly lowering the muzzles of the blaster rifles. On the one hand, the targets are safe and even an accidental shot will not harm them, but on the other hand, it will only take a split second to return the weapon to the previous line of fire.

-In the name of the Empire, come out,- Mara commanded loudly, noticing in the dim light of the deck that the shadow on the far side of the artillery computer was moving a little. There is someone behind the device. - No harm will come to you.

A few seconds later, a shaggy Wookiee head appeared from behind the device. Tall, but with saggy, matted fur, brown with black shades. The reasonable one was thin, looked around timidly and showed with all his appearance that he wanted to look very, very small, inconspicuous. Get lost, like the massive metal band around his neck, studded with indicators and microcircuits.

Slave collar.

Actually, what else could you expect on a Trandoshan starship, famous for their «trade» - the slave trade?

The Wookiee whined lowly and pitifully, looking at her.

-I don't understand shirivuuk,- Mara Jade immediately warned, defiantly putting the weapon into a holster on her belt. -I doubt that they,- she nodded towards the stormtroopers, -either. You understand me?

The Wookiee, intimidated (Hutt, what had to be done to this guy for him to be so downtrodden? Even the Empire during the construction of the Death Star could not so destroy the will of the representatives of the proud people of Kashyyyk!) looked at her. He nodded barely noticeably in agreement. He seemed to think he had found a new owner. Who needs you, you flea-riddled rug?

-No harm will come to you,- she repeated. — The slave-owners' ship was captured by the Empire. Now you will be taken to a place where the other slaves we discovered are located. Our doctors will examine you and give you medicine and food. After this, the command will decide on which planet to land you.

The Wookiee continued to look at her, as if frozen in place. He whined questioningly.

-I don't understand,- Mara Jade said irritably. - Just... don't do anything stupid, okay? Believe it or not, the Empire does not need slaves. Well, at least the one I work for. So, be a friend, don't hold me up and just obey orders, okay?

The native of wooded Kashyyyk growled again with a questioning intonation.

- I don't understand! — Mara had already barked, thinking for a moment whether the stormtroopers could be quietly laughing at her under their helmets? After all, their armor systems allow you to turn off the vocoder - and everything that is said under the helmet will remain under the helmet.

Although no, what nonsense. Paratroopers can't laugh. Ordinary stormtroopers, considered mere -meat- even among their comrades, are yes, but those are less... trained and they still have the beginnings of individuality. But not space marines!

-In general,- she said, pulling herself together. -You,- she pointed a finger at the Wookiee, -are coming with me.- You won't get hurt or do any harm, okay? -Just don't attack anyone,- she asked. -Otherwise these nice guys,- again nodding towards the four stormtroopers, -will quickly fry you.- Truncated?

The Wookiee, thinking, nodded again. I agreed.

-Well, that's great,- the girl waved her hand towards the exit from the battery deck. - Well, that's it, let's go, let's find you something to eat... Although no, first take a shower. There must be a working shower on this vessel. Otherwise you smell like you were standing under a rancor while it was urinating...

After taking a couple of steps, she realized that the Wookiee had not moved.

- What else? - she grimaced. - Forgot to say «please»? Well, today is not your day. Believe me, I'm already extremely sweet and... Holy crap.

No, the Wookiee didn't ignore her. And he didn't even try to pity him or show his temper.

He was simply waiting when the shaggy heads of his fellow brothers began to appear from behind cover all over the battery deck.

Lots of heads.

***

-Admiral,- Captain Pellaeon turned to me, running his hand over his face in an unconventional way to somehow relieve the tension. — Reports are coming in from ships.

— Presumably, not the most comforting? — I asked, carefully imitating indifference in my voice. To be honest, I was scared to hear now the information that after the completion of this battle, more precisely, the naval part of it, all efforts would result in a Pyrrhic victory.

-As always after a large-scale battle,- due to his fatigue, Pellaeon did not notice or simply did not pay attention to some signs of my nervousness. -The Chimera is ready to continue the battle, but we have lost sixty percent of our artillery, we have multiple holes and losses among personnel. The air wing... They retained one and a half squadrons of TIE interceptors, six fighters and only one bomber. Evacuation shuttles have found four more damaged vehicles and are now being transported on board. "Stormhawk" and "Nemesis" escaped with the total loss of several towers, and the SFU...

-They interest me the least now,- I rebuked the captain. In fact, what kind of fucking fighters can we talk about now, when the naked eye can see that some of our battleships have been beaten to the point where, at best, it's time for them to undergo major repairs. In the worst case, it's easier to put the crews on other starships, take away everything valuable and blow it up so that it doesn't fall into the hands of the enemy. -Let the captains in their unit carry out standard protocols - collect the surviving pilots and surviving vehicles. Pirate ships, too. We will receive a detailed report on the condition of the flight teams of our ships at the base. I'm more concerned about the condition of the ships.

-The reactor on the Steel Aurora has been breached.- I wonder if Pellaeon started with good or bad news? -Captain Kalian ordered it to be shut down as an emergency.- Using the remaining energy, his -Victory- reached the Republican MC80 and boarded it. They are currently fighting for the ship. The reactor, engine and navigation compartments, and the hyperdrive compartment were captured. As soon as the weapon blisters are taken under control, we can say that the starship is in our hands.

- Can Victory be saved? - I asked.

-The reactor is not able to produce even a third of its operating power, and even then only if the repair teams can stop the fuel leak and establish at least temporary protection from radiation. I ordered three emergency teams from the Chimera to be sent to help them. However, without extensive repairs, the ship will not be able to go on a long hyperjump.

— «Sentinel»? — I asked about the fate of the long-suffering destroyer cruiser.

-Major Himran finishes destroying pockets of resistance on the Acclamator, while the helmsmen uncouple the ships,- Pellaeon continued. — The Interdictor has major damage to its lower decks, a significant part of the reactor room is either destroyed or seriously damaged. The team is engaged in restoring the sealing of the compartments and returning the reactor to its place. Judging by the remaining equipment, they will be able to jump into hyperspace in about thirty minutes - but not far, otherwise the capacitors and coolers of the reactor compartment equipment may explode.

- What about the other ships? - Ysalamiri, whom I stroked on the back in a very unfriendly manner, lazily raised her head to give me a look full of dissatisfaction.

— Lieutenant Jade and squads of Marines are conducting a cleanup on the Venator. An interesting fact is that there are more than two thousand slaves on board. Lieutenant Jade requests medical teams - many wounded. Apparently, the Trandoshans intended to kill them, realizing that the ship would be captured. The slaves ran away and hid. Presumably, they performed the duties of lower ranks on ships, and also served as artillery servants. The majority are Wookiees, more than a thousand individuals. The rest are also non-humans, of different races...

Well, yes, a military operation could not take place without problems with slaves. And what to do with them now? Surely no one will send them home. But it's a shame to throw it into space...

-Send the ship the necessary food supplies if they don't have them,- I said with a furtive sigh. -Having delivered them to the base, then we'll decide what to do with them.- Is there anything else worthwhile about Venator?

- In fact, the ship is already behind us and can make the jump to Tangren. The Crusader has lost almost all of its artillery, but is on the move and is able to get out of here. The same cannot be said about «Strike» and «Tartan» - they were very unlucky. The hull and life support systems were damaged. Even if they can go into hyperspace, they can't get back out in one piece.

-Notify the nearest Interdictor and let them start removing the remaining crew, weapons, hyperdrives, on-board computer and recorders from the ships,- I ordered. — Deliver the corpses of the crew members to the ship's morgue. We will bury them according to naval tradition at the base. Upon completion of the disarmament of the starships, the ships will be stretched to different points of the battlefield and mined to be detonated when attempting to penetrate on board.

— A surprise in the best traditions of stormtroopers? - Pellaeon grinned. Yes, he is absolutely right: in the imperial fleet there was no practice of mining ships for a delayed explosion. Everything that could not be repaired was either thrown, giving it a direction vector towards the nearest star, or the surviving starships were shot from turbolasers. But the guys from the Storm Corps dabbled in leaving mines on the bases and settlements they cleared - delayed retribution for the comrades of those who try to return.

-Let's make the enemy fear our abandoned ships,- I said. In fact, I had a thought about who might want to rummage through the abandoned vessels right after we left the Rugosa system. — Did anyone escape from the destroyed Strike and Tartan?

-Two fighter pilots,- Pellaeon showed awareness.

-Enlist them in the Chimera flight group,- I ordered. - Make a note to redistribute the surviving crew members from these two cruisers between the ships taking part in the battle.

-Yes, sir, surviving a battle with a numerically superior enemy is actually heroism.- And if you are also the pilot of a TIE fighter, which is essentially a -death capsule-, you are almost a legend. Guys like this should be encouraged. And enrolling them in the flagship crew is a great motivation. Moreover, we need pilots and fighters. And replenishing the crew with people who already have good combat experience is only to the benefit of the entire crew.

-Now let's go through our trophies,- I ordered. -Inform the Stormhawk and Nemesis to board the frigates and corvettes we have captured.- Is the Neutron Star capable of jumping?

— The hyperdrive is fine, but there are big problems with the sublight engines - there are only a few intact ones left.

— The crew of this ship is not going to surrender? - I clarified.

Pellaeon scratched the back of his head.

- We didn't offer it, sir.

Oh yes, exactly. There was a mistake.

-Offer on a general wave to surrender to everyone who wishes,- I ordered. Indeed. Previously, the Empire did not particularly care about taking pirates prisoner - only if there was a manifestation of humanism on the part of the ship captains. Usually they were destroyed along with the ships during the battle. Now, if someone voluntarily agrees to surrender, then we will at least save time by not having to fight with them in the process of capturing ships. At most... No, I have no particular desire to keep them as prisoners of war in a prison built by volunteers on Tangren. But to offer them a job... Not everyone, of course, but even among this rabble there will be those who want to take care of their future. - Everyone who surrenders will be distributed to the ship's punishment cells and taken under guard. In exceptional cases, land captured teams on starships and take all key objects under guard. We will either take the Neutron Star with us or shoot it if its crew does not surrender. Pass the order to the nearest Interdictor and let them resolve this issue immediately.

The main thing now is to get to your base and lick your wounds. I don't really believe that Cyre Yonka came here only accompanied by one ship. With the tactics of «finishing off» or «detaining» this could work, however, at the moment we must understand that if this pair of ships is part of a formation, then the rest of the starships are already moving toward us at all times. And three Star Destroyers and two damaged Interdictors are all that can now resist them. To fully understand what is happening, let us add the almost complete absence of aircraft carrier cover - and now the prospects are becoming quite sad.

And the Neutron Star cannot become a stumbling block - its combat value is low, the ship is frankly outdated and is inferior in combat effectiveness even to heavy cruisers of the Dreadnought class. I planned to use it as a donor of rapid-fire and medium guns for other ships. Disassembling it on the spot, if there is an opportunity to take it with you, is not the point, it will just waste time. Whether it would have been in such a sad state as «Strike» and «Tartan» would have been a different matter. But while there is a choice, you need to save time as much as possible.

Carried away by his thoughts, he did not even notice how the commander of the Chimera called Lieutenant Tshel to him and conveyed to him my instructions regarding the prisoners. A young officer with a rumpled face, silently listened to the order, saluted sluggishly and left us, quickly walking away to the communications post. Well, at least this time he doesn't run and scream across the entire control room.

— What about captured star destroyers? - I asked.

-We're almost done with the Errant Venture,- Pellaeon said. -Captain Vayne captured the control room, Booster Terrik himself was captured, but he is seriously wounded and is in a bacta chamber. Vayne has only twenty reasonable ones left under his command, they want to return to Tangren aboard the trophy. Captain I-Gor from the Crusader has already inspected the ship and found it suitable for transportation to the base under its own power. Now the crews from the starships we left behind are landing there. Some of Terrik's people are willing to cooperate, but we still don't have enough people to even cover a full watch.

-Send the Chimera to the trophy and transport some of our junior ranks on board,- I ordered. - Let's distribute attack aircraft among the captured ships to the least qualified positions — it should work.- "Freedom" and "Invidious"?

-At the first, the fierce resistance had already subsided,- Pellaeon answered. — Lieutenant Tshel reports that the crew began to surrender en masse immediately after one of the stormtroopers informed them over the intercom about the death of Captain Jonka.

— Did the Freedom commander die during the battle? - I clarified. The streamlined form of the report on the death of the captain hinted at the possibility of a different scenario.

-Yes, sir, his body was pierced and crushed by the force set of the conning tower,- Gilad reported. -Most likely this happened during a raid by bombers from the Nemesis on the Freedom superstructure.

-Or our stormtroopers organized grenade-throwing exercises in the control room of the starship under attack,- I suggested.

-Unlikely, sir,- the Chimera commander said confidently. — The stormtroopers aboard the Chimera are well trained and disciplined. They would not use such weapons in such a limited space, and even on the bridge of a ship that is supposed to be used in the future and there is a need to deliver it under its own power to the base...

-I want to meet the stormtrooper who took the initiative and reported Yonka's death to the crew — the guys in white armor, mockingly called «dolls»,- are trained in combat. Methodically, purposefully turning them into a source of increased danger. They are tactically proactive in battle, but to show ingenuity and influence psychology... No, there is clearly something more here. It is possible that among our stormtroopers there is someone who did not want the personnel of the star destroyer to die in vain. And this is very strange for a stormtrooper. But not unusual for New Republic spies, for example. An unpleasant assumption, but a fact. Someone, masquerading as a stormtrooper, is clearly trying to pass themselves off as someone they are not.

-I will inform General Covell so that he immediately recalls this soldier from the battle, disarms him and delivers him aboard the Chimera under escort,- Pellaeon voiced his intentions.

-Under no circumstances,- I forbade. - Let everything go as it goes. The manager will establish additional surveillance over him so that he never again remains somewhere on the Freedom or Chimera alone until my separate order. After we go into hyperspace, I will decide the fate of this man. Continue your report, captain.

Pellaeon, obviously confused by my tirade, was silent for several seconds, collecting his thoughts. And as soon as he decided to answer, Tshel approached him, whispering something in his ear. The captain, after a pause, nodded and the lieutenant left.

— New information, captain? - I asked.

-Yes, sir,- he replied. — Work on Tartan and Strike has been completed, the equipment has been dismantled, data logs have been cleared, and hard drives have been removed. Everything that could somehow indicate our fleet was destroyed or transferred aboard the Crusader. The crews were transferred to the "Errant Venture", the dismantled weapons were also stored there, fortunately... the internal space allows.

-Your hesitation indicates that there is something intriguing on Booster Terrik's former ship,- I noted.

-Yes, sir,- Pellaeon took a deep breath. -I don't have enough words to describe it, but... Admiral, this intelligent one redesigned part of the internal compartments of the star destroyer. There are now fountains, statues...

-I'm sure we'll hear the details of this bacchanalia from Chief Engineer Reyes, however, I'm sure that this is not all the information that Lieutenant Tschel told you.-

-I just wanted to tell you about this,- Pellaeon became sad. — No buzz droids were found on the ship.

- An unpleasant, but quite expected step - very bad. I was really hoping to get them completely free. Events are gaining momentum. And the Morrt project is just what I need to clarify a number of points for planning future operations. -All the more reason to save the lives of the father and daughter of the Terrik couple - they will still work for us.- Speaking of their family. Has Master C'baoth come to his senses yet?

- No, sir, still in a coma...

- Fine. Contact Honogr. Let them send several groups of death commandos to Jomark. Their task is to conduct reconnaissance of the area. Equip the future home of our master with listening devices and continue surveillance until further orders are received. The Master knows where he should go. And I wouldn't be at all surprised if now he's taking advantage of the situation and trying to play his behind-the-scenes games.

— Do you think he can communicate with Horn now? — Pellaeon's eyes widened, and his hand reached for his belt, where it should have been, but there was no holster with service weapons. While C'baoth was on board, the weapon remained in the armory. And only those who were in the ysalamiri's coverage area could receive it. Stormtroopers, for example.

- I won't be surprised if this happens. The master is not known for his patience. And it's quite suspicious that, having learned about the presence of Force-sensitive sentients on board the «Invidious», he did not want to get them for himself. So, we will continue to pretend that everything is going according to the pre-planned plan. But let's insure ourselves in case of unforeseen circumstances. The Noghri will play a role in this. It goes without saying that neither they nor their ship should be discovered by either local residents or those who arrive later. And yes,- I pointed to the lizard who had fallen asleep at my feet. -Send her to a cage closer to our Jedi.

- It will be done, sir.

-And now let's get back to your report, which tends to be interrupted,- I could no longer hold back a slight grin, looking at how Tshel, who was falling asleep while walking, was once again muttering something to his commander. I wonder what is the reason why this boy is here? After all, before the start of the battle with the ships of the New Republic, we changed the watch - those who fought under the influence of Battle Meditation were already almost falling off their feet and had to be changed to colleagues from another watch during the time that I was talking with Yonka. But the latter is not my merit; Pellaeon himself took the initiative here. But he still prefers to test Tshelya's strength. Curious.

-On the Offensive, General Covell captured Leonia Tavira,- Pellaeon finally reported. -With the help of the Ysalamiri, three unknown sentient beings were captured, wearing closed armor of an unknown type and armed with lightsabers. The Star Destroyer has a considerable amount of damage, themain enginesare damaged, but thry can reach a third of its cruising speed, as well as go into hyperspace to Tangren. Most of her crew have surrendered to us and have expressed a desire to return to Imperial service under your command...

-How unexpected,- I thought. Considering that the crew of the Offensive were formerly Imperial military personnel under the command of the Imperial Admiral Teradoc (if my memory serves me correctly), then an attempt to return to service instead of being convicted of pirate crimes is a more than logical act from their point of view . Because in the past of the Empire, pirates faced a far from pleasant fate. And at the moment they don't even imagine how the winner will manage their lives. And again, this opens up new and new horizons for the development of events.

-... the pirates on the Neutron Star agree to surrender and give us their cruiser in exchange for saving their lives,- Pellaeon continued. Also a reasonable move. For the most part, if apart from this incident there are no claims against them from the Empire, then they can indeed exchange their lives in this way. And most likely, at least - at the moment - I am inclined to agree to their «offer». The main thing is to get out of here as quickly as possible. I may not be a Jedi, but the logic is all right - there is a suspicion that they will soon come here. -The search teams found forty-seven surviving pirate pilots and more than fifty different types of fighters and -freaks- with those who died from decompression or due to failure of the pilots' life support systems inside. All vehicles were delivered to the hangars of our ships, the pilots were placed in punishment cells. Captain Kalian, with the help of attack aircraft units from the -steel Aurora,- subjugated the MC80. The ship is in relatively combat-ready condition and can independently reach Tangren. On the Venator and Acclamator, the last resistance was either destroyed, or the surviving pirates surrendered - there are no more than a hundred intelligent ones. The remaining captured ships, suitable for restoration and further service, were delivered aboard the fleet starships.

But this news cannot but rejoice. It even lifts my spirits somehow.

— Is there any information about repairs on the Sentinel and Steel Aurora? - Looking at the chronometer, I noticed that about thirty minutes had passed since the start of the conversation with the commander of the Chimera - the maximum time I had determined for being in the Rugosa system. And in fact, most of the urgent matters have now been completed...

-Everything is in accordance with preliminary reports,- this time Pellaeon had to request additional data. -They will be able to leave Rugosa, but they will not reach Tangren.- You will have to make short hyperspace jumps using minimal energy and give the reactors time to cool down - otherwise, detonations of power plants are possible.

And therefore, we will have to adapt to them and return to Tangren at a snail's pace, having on our tail in a day or two (depending on how soon it becomes known about what happened in the Rugosa system) a squadron of the New Republic, which will definitely have at its disposal either Interdictor-class minelayer cruisers (which is doubtful, because the new government of Coruscant doesn't have many such star destroyers, and besides, they are based mainly in theCoreWorlds), or Immobilizer 418-class interdictor (of which they have quite a few), or some similar starships, but of a similar orientation. Risking the entire fleet for two starships, which even when returning to base will be forced to undergo lengthy repairs, is not a good idea. In one battle, I had at my disposal three Imperial II-class Star Destroyers, a Mon Calamari star cruiser, a Neutron Star-class cruiser, a Venator-class Star Destroyer, an Acclamator II-class strike cruiser, a number of fighters and other small aircraft. enemy star cruiser Mon Calamari, at least two Corellian corvettes of the DP-20 type... something else seems to have happened, or is it just me?! However, now this fact is no longer so important.

Having lost only two not very strong starships in battle - a medium and a patrol cruiser, leaving their brothers unsuitable for further use as a trap, and having in my hands the seriously damaged Victory and Interdictor, I simply do not have the right to hobble the main forces with these two "wounded animals". Because if we fall into a trap by delaying retreat, then we can lose absolutely everything and everyone. And then my plans are dead.

Yes, partly I want to save everyone and arrive on Tangren triumphantly and to the sound of fanfare, so that word spreads throughout all the Imperial Remnants, they say, look, Thrawn is good, well done, he fights and wins, let's show everyone under his wing What else can the Empire do?!

But at the same time, I understand that the best is the enemy of the good. I achieved a lot with this battle. Too much to risk it all. You can't substitute yourself. We'll have to divide the ships.

-Inform Captain Schneider that the Nemesis will escort the Steel Aurora and the Sentinel to our operational base on Lainuri,- I admit, I only now remembered that I even have it. Having settled on Tangren and not conducting any significant raids after the operation in the Dafilvean sector, I even somehow forgot about the outpost behind enemy lines. But I sent a lot of trophies from the plunder of Ord-Pardon there. An ion cannon, for example. None of my opponents know the location of the planet, therefore, I can send damaged ships there so that they can be properly repaired there and move to the main base. - Contact Lieutenant Jade - I will need her in five hours. Also inform General Covell to deliver Leonia Tavira, the captain of the Invidious, and the Jensaarai prisoners to the Chimera's punishment cell. Don't forget my instructions about the stormtrooper we talked about earlier. As soon as the prisoners are delivered, the ships under the command of the Chimera will head to Tangren. "Nemesis", "Steel Aurora" and "Sentinel" - on Lainuri. That's all, Captain Pellaeon. If you need me, I'll be in my cabin. Command.

Rising from his chair, he handed the ysalamiri into the hands of the commander of the Chimera, slowly, catching the looks of the watchmen, headed along the central platform to the turbolift. Now, the only thing I wanted was to lie down and sleep for at least a few hours, let my brain rest, and the adrenaline boiling in my blood calm down. This tactical victory increased the size of my fleet, saved me from several problems in the future, and clearly added new ones. It is necessary to calculate the -cards- in my hands and decide how to play them in the future. There are already several suitable options and...

- Grand Admiral Thrawn, sir! — the inspired commanding voice of Captain Pellaeon came to me from behind. Stopping, I turned around, looking at the commander of the Chimera, standing at attention next to my chair. His eyes are bulging, his hands are at his sides, and in one of them, Ysalamiri is licking his lips sluggishly. I don't like this formal-official piercing gaze, full of admiration. This is not good.

- What's the matter, captain? - I asked, sneaking a look into the right and left -pits-. The watchmen wearing them exactly copied Gilad's posture. Unless without ysalamiri. So... Did I screw up somewhere? Have I been found out?! Rukh is to my right, but he also doesn't have a blaster, only with knives. What the fu...

-It is an honor for me, my crew and every Imperial to serve under your command, sir!- the commander of the star destroyer Chimera said, as if firing a burst from a blaster.

So... This is already something new. So what does the Imperial Naval Regulations tell the senior officer on the bridge to say in response to such a saying? Think think...

Stop. But there is no such thing in the charter. And there is nothing like it. In the Empire, subordinates do not express their admiration for the commander.

-You are a good officer, Captain Pellaeon,- I said slowly. — And you have talented people under your command. Keep improving and one day I will say the same words to you all.

Light smiles appeared on the faces of the watchmen.

-And now let's get to work,- adding metal to my voice, I gave the signal to stop the minute of such an obvious and massive violation of statutory relations. But it was hard not to notice that people were encouraged by such a display of emotions. -We are not yet on Tangren, the enemy is still breathing down our backs.- Upon returning to the base, there is a dayof weekendfor everyone.

Despite the fact that the turbolift doors seem to be sealed hermetically, I still heard the roar of applause. Rukh saw my sly smile.

But he won't tell anyone anything.