The walk back up from the vault and its metal corridor should've been loud, not only because of our steps echoing everywhere, but generally speaking. The usual things should be happening when someone apparently robs an auction house... no? But... Where are the sirens? Blaster fire? Maybe some shouting? Droids? There should be at least some security droids, no? Apparently not. Instead of all that, it was surprisingly silent, and no matter how far I reached out via the Force, I couldn't sense anyone. Not even an ambush or something... huh... What's happening? While hurrying, Vila stayed close beside me, her lekku brushing against her back every time she turned her head, trying to sense any of the others but... Nothing. Not even a soul. She even looked at me to see if she was feeling it right, making me nod, showing her that I wasn't picking up on anything either.
"That's not a good sign," She murmured.
"Yeah," I agreed. "It's way too easy... Maybe we are going to run into them at the docking bay? Maybe they have some super guardian droid? An AT-AT?"
"Maybe." She chuckled, shaking her head, "If they do, I am going to kick your butt!"
She just said that as we reached the final junction, getting back up to a level, and that's when a crackle buzzed in my ear, followed by the metallic tone I'd been waiting for.
[Transmission: Finally connected. Correction: I have been connected. Your communicators were simply under heavy jamming from a device I can't locate, as it's not part of the main gearrid.]
"HK?" I breathed, barely hiding my relief. If he was right, our airspeeder was still intact. "What's the situation?"
[Status report: I am suppressing every alarm within the internal systems in the building for now. Still, I advise haste, as the radio chatter suggests that guards have begun noticing something is off, and there has to be a secondary alarm I have no access to beeping in the distance. Structural lockdown protocols are beginning to override my efforts, and I can't push it down for a prolonged period. Sub-clarification: Hurry. Now.]
"We are already coming," Vila answered, "Try to keep the fire under the lid, we are close by!"
We moved faster, tapping into the Force to increase our speed, flashing through the corridors, recalling all the routes we took, and as we did so... no one came at us still. Apparently, HK wasn't simply delaying the building-wise lockdown and alarms, but also redirecting the guards, sending them away from us, allowing our duo to arrive without any further impediment.
Well... When we got into the hangar, we did see people, but those four were unconscious, lying on the ground...
"Huh..." Vila looked over them, feeling that they were still breathing, "…Did you do this?" She asked HK, who was still inside the airspeeder.
[Statement: They refused to leave the vicinity of the vehicle and were asking too many questions about my origin. Non-lethal removal was mandatory. Addendum: I followed your parameters, Meatbag Vila and Kael. I acted as a Jedi's companion, however gross that is. Please do remember that the next time you complain about my methods.]
"HK," I sighed, "Just get the speeder ready to leave! We have to go while we can!"
Slipping past him, we climbed into the luxury airspeeder with HK occupying the pilot's seat, his fingers tapping the controls, taking us up before we even closed the door behind us. But... the moment we lifted a little... we also stopped. The reason was apparent, as the hangar's ceiling, the hidden platform that took us down here, remained sealed shut. Just... great.
[Complaint: The exit is refusing to open. It has been decided to be difficult... Clarification: It has been disconnected from the main hub and rerouted to a private control hub. I am trying to trace it but...]
"HK?!" Vila spoke up, and her anxiety was apparent, and I knew why. I could feel it, too. People were waking up to the issue, especially because they couldn't reach the vaults.
[Further Clarification: I am still jamming the alarms, but I am not equipped for rewriting their live programming. The doors are inaccessible to me, and they are locked with military-grade clamps. Conclusion: We need another exit.]
"We don't have the time for that!" Vila was already lowering the windows at her side, "Then we do this the old-fashioned way."
"I got you," I followed suit, already knowing what she wanted to do, leaning out from my side.
A moment later, we both reached upward with both hands, palms out, getting a feel for the mechanical system in place within the hangar doors. The Force, connecting us, flowed through us together, like two streams merging into one massive river, as we not only shared our will but also our powers, acting as one being. The next moment, I could hear the metal in it suddenly groan, echoing in the closed space, as if it were an aging, abandoned structure, ready to collapse under its own weight... Then, the ceiling buckled, and multiple hydraulic pistons screamed and burst apart when it did. By then, both of our faces were red, as we were using much more than I thought it would take, making us sweat... but... That is for later to worry about.
"Just… a little… more...!" Vila moaned, while I also pushed on, letting it all out, pulling, pushing, tearing at the machine.
Then, as if its resistance snapped, it stretched beyond its limits, the whole ceiling cracking open with a thunderous bang, the clamps breaking off, and the hangar's door, although deformed, was forced to slide open enough for our speeder to pass. The moment we managed to create a gap wide enough for us, HK slammed the throttle forward, shooting through it, no hesitation in his movements.
[Announcement: Exiting before gravity reconsiders your efforts and slams it shut.]
Our speeder shot upward, scraping through the half-opened hatch, and the moment we were out, hurrying to get into the constant flow of traffic, I saw how we had already picked up three skimmers, lifting and coming after us. It seems that our escape was only as good as the alarms going off, as we immediately gained multiple pursuers. Apparently, they were stationed outside, and the way we escaped was enough to tell them something had gone absolutely wrong inside.
"Really?" Vila groaned, looking behind us, "We couldn't have gotten just one? Three? That's overkill!"
The moment she said it, blasterfire rained down around us as bright red streaks slashed past the windows, right as HK threw us into a stomach-dropping evasive dive, avoiding their shots.
[Observation: Their aim is subpar as they missed by entire meters. Addendum: Embarrassing.]
"Less commentary!" I snapped, bracing my shoulder against the seat as we shot between two mirrored skyscrapers. "More not-dying!" I grunted, trying to keep myself steady, but both Vila and I were rolling in the backseat with every turn he made, trying to shake our three guests. Somehow... I hated the fact that it was not me piloting, but... I had to trust HK's skills.
"Subpar?" Vila snorted, "They are still behind us!"
True enough, they were still coming, and their passengers were firing from their speeders' windows, finally hitting us, causing the shield indicator to blink yellow... as it was not built to withstand something like this but to resist simple accidents that might happen in its daily use. Hell, if it were any cheaper model, it wouldn't have any shields at all!
"Argh, damn it!" Vila cursed as she leaned out again from the side window, her dress and lekku whipping in the wind, prompting me to grab her legs to keep her steady and make sure she won't fall out when HK made another stomach-turning maneuver.
"Vila!" I shouted.
"I'm fine!" she yelled back over the howling wind, "Keep me steady!"
I did so, feeling the Force pulse and gather around her, following her guide, catching one of the pursuing skimmers across its engines, forcing it to... malfunction. Looking back over the backseat, I saw the craft sputter violently, veer to the side, and spiral downward as it was about to hit a crowded pedestrian platform.
"Not good," I muttered, reaching across Vila's back with my free hand.
Together, we shoved the crashing vehicle sideways, diverting its trajectory until it crashed into a decorative fountain in an eruption of water instead of pulverizing civilians... Phew... that was too close!
"One down!" Vila yelled over the wind.
"Barely!" I yelled back as two more remained, and they were closing in on us.
Just as I pulled Vila back, HK whipped us upward, weaving through the dense air lanes where civilian airspeeders darted between the multiple towers, our pursuers red bolts flashing past my window, without any care for collateral damage, one grazing the shield again and sending a ripple across the hull, making it groan.
[Vocal Irritation: This vehicle's shielding is mostly decorative. I suspect it was designed by an artist, not a mechanic. The next shot will go through.]
"Let's not give them the chance!"
Watching one of them pull up closer, wanting to take a sure-shot, I reached out as the mercenaries' skimmer came parallel to us. I caught a feeling not only of the four apparent killers inside, but the whole machine altogether. I didn't try to do anything fancy at all. I just found the main repulsor and... crushed it. Their engine hiccuped at once as sparks burst along its side, then the whole craft lurched, losing power and spinning downward in a screech, this time, heading towards a parking lot... What I saw last was a ball of fire... Well, at least no innocents were lost in this one.
"One more!" Vila shouted, as we still had a pursuing vehicle.
I was about to do something about it, but then HK flew us into a narrow transit tunnel barely wider than our airspeeder's span from side to side. Good thing I wasn't leaning out or I was about to be toast... damn it. I blinked my eyes, seeing lights flicker past in a dizzying strobe, almost as if it was trying to blind us both... Or maybe hypnotize us. Behind our vehicle, the final mercenary tried to follow, but Vila was ready, nudging its nose to clip the tunnel wall. That was enough, as the resulting explosion behind us was instant, and it rocked the whole tunnel, but luckily, the fireball stayed contained within it while we sped away, finally free to relax.
[Statement: Evasive maneuver successful. I remain superior.]
"Get us back to Lando!" Vila groaned, leaning back, gasping for air.
[Affirmation: Route already plotted. I will take multiple detours and take a route that will keep us hidden.]
We burst out of the tunnel as he spoke, diving beneath a skybridge, banked so hard Vila landed in my lap, and finally, thank every star in the galaxy, we crossed back into a thick lane of vehicles, getting lost in the crowd. Still, neither of us relaxed, not until we were back at Lando's place, passing the shielded perimeter of the casino tower.
Arriving, HK put the skimmer down in the private hangar we left from, waiting for the doors to close before we finally climbed out of it. Vila exhaled shakily and leaned against the speeder, wiping her forehead with her sleeve, visibly exhausted from using the Force the way we did.
"Next time," she muttered, "we take a skimmer with proper guns and shields..."
"I agree..." I groaned, feeling just as exhausted as the opening of the hangar bay was more than anything I had ever done before, but... it also felt good. I finally knew, I was back in form and even with one arm missing... I was still stronger than before. I was... truly connected to the Force... And to Vila.