Star Wars - When the Domino Falls Read Online Free Page B

he managed to dislodge the rifle. The result was a wild ricochet that bounced off the corner wall before striking the Wookiee. Nikaede howled in pain as the bolt struck her shoulder and arm.
    Dodging the stormtrooper, Ancher reached for the blaster rifle. But before he could accomplish his goal, the raging Wookiee snatched the rifle from thestormtrooper’s frantic hands, breaking the weapon over his head. Shrugging off the singed burns, Nikaede roared, charging the door with the wrecked rifle locked in her grip.
    Ransom leaped against the plasti-shield wall, unexpectedly rebounding onto the astonished guards. Beneath his flailing fists and elbows, two men fell to the floor unconscious. “Drake!” Negotiating a spinning back kick, he knocked the second stormtrooper into the wall. Unfortunately, as the stormtrooper fell, he took three of the other guards and Drake to the floor with him. Wrestling through a tangle of legs and arms. Ransom quickly grasped the stormtrooper by the head and twisted sharply, effectively breaking the Imperial’s neck and removing the combat helmet.

    Alarmed by the sight of Drake being held and beaten by the remaining guards, Ancher grabbed one of them from the floor, slamming his fist into the man’s jaw and smashing his knee against another sentry’s mouth. Nikaede swarmed through the guards with unmitigated violence, fracturing skulls beneath her fingers.
    “I’m okay,” Drake whispered, as she pulled him from the carnage.
    “Rusty!” Ransom screamed into the commandeered comlink. He manipulated the signal transmitter. “Rusty?”
    “Tait, we heard you got snuffed!” came the startled reply. “Where are you?”
    “In the Imperial playpen across the street.” Ransom chuckled. “Look. Rusty. I got a little Imperial hot foot.”
    “What’s their ETA?”
    Ransom stared at the alarm that tripped when the stormtrooper fired his blast rifle. “About 10 minutes for them to get here,” he replied. “Five to figure out what happened and another five to start closing down the port.”
    “Acknowledged, I’ll have Seth clear a path for us.”
    “Don’t worry, my boys’ll handle it,” Ransom urged, ushering Drake and the Wookiee to the door. “Just run!”
    They followed the outside walls of the Bureau jail, staying in the shadows. The streets were quiet except for a herd of distracted Ithorian tourists, who were examining a series of carbonite plaques displayed against the starport wall. Darting across the street, they slipped into the port entrance, using the Ithorians to dodge a squad of stormtroopers running toward the exit signs, which led to the outside street.
    Inside the hangar arena, Ransom recognized the portly security executive. Standing beside a security sealed dock that was reserved for port authority ships, Seth quickly motioned to one of his guards. He acknowledged the all clear sign from the Elomin and nodded, waving the fugitives into the massive shadow of the starport generators. Leading them into the inner recesses of the port docks, he scolded, “Tait Ransom, somehow you always seem to stir up trouble when you’re around.”
    “I had a good teacher,” Ransom replied, throwing an accusing look at Ancher.
    Guiding Drake by the shoulder, Seth led them to Omman’s government controlled dock. “I’ve relayed our emergency coordinates to your co-pilot. Here,” he surrendered the bowcaster to the Wookiee. “Hopefully, you won’t need this before you get off the planet.”
    “How is the traffic?” Ransom asked breathlessly, scanning the starport floor for stormtroopers.
    “Clear,” Seth reported. “So don’t bother to declare your departure. The tower is aware of the problem.”
    “I owe you, Seth. We all owe you a big one.”
    “I’ll expect a few cases of Socorran raava to arrive within the next 24 hours.”
    “Agreed,” Ancher snapped, ushering Drake and the Wookiee onto the dock. “Even if I have to fly it here myself!”
    The rotund security