Ep V: Chapter 2

Enthea uses the to snatch the lightsaber from Graytube in the blink of an eye. She catches it and raises her hands. There’s a moment of stunned silence, and then twelve blasters are pointed at her.

She patiently cocks her head at Graytube.

“Believe me now?” She lazily shakes the silver saber hilt at him.

Graytube takes a hurried step back. Enthea looks left, then right.

“You don’t all want to die here,” she says, giving him one last hopeful look. “Just give me what I want.”

“You think I don’t have an insurance policy for your kind?”

Enthea’s losing patience and her smile fades. “I’ll bet you do,” she says.

Metal strains and natural light floods the warehouse as a heavy falling object tears through the flimsy roof, smashing to the ground just a meter to the right of Graytube, filling the air with dust.

Several goons cough. Enthea watches Graytube stare at the mangled remains of the powered combat suit and its pilot, knocked senseless by the landing. Sparks fly and smoke rises from the suit’s joints. This kind of suit is meant for battle and blaster fire, not falling from tall heights.

Everyone looks up through the new hole in the roof. A figure stands on the cliff, silhouetted against the red sky. With a flutter of robes, a young human boy lands lightly beside Enthea. His blue lightsaber springs to life with a crackle as he takes up a combat stance, facing down the goons.

“Do we take them, Master?” he asks eagerly. Enthea raises an eyebrow, and the boy glances at the wrecked combat armor. “Maybe I pushed him too hard,” he admits sheepishly. Enthea wasn’t going to say that; she feels as though it was just the right amount of push. The problem is his eagerness to fight the rest of these idiots.

“Anakin, do you really think they want to fight after that?” Enthea asks him, gesturing at the fearful goons. One of them is still pointing a blaster at her. Irked, she glares at him, and he lowers it.

“Um,” the boy says. “Right. Sorry, Master.” Blushing, he extinguishes his saber as Enthea turns back to Graytube.

“Using a child,” Graytube says disdainfully.

Enthea’s temper snaps.

“Still? We’re still doing this?” she demands, throwing out her free hand. Graytube chokes and rises into the air, clutching at his throat. “Seriously?” Enthea roars.

“Master Enthea?” Anakin says uncomfortably.

Enthea closes her fist and Graytube desperately reaches into his coat, coming up with a data stick. He holds it out. Enthea takes it and releases him. The Tognath spills to the ground, wheezing behind his mask.

Anakin is no taller than Enthea. The goons tower over the two of them, but they get out of the way. They even open the door for them. Very polite.