6

Of all the jobs they'd ever run for Cid, this had to be the most dangerous.

Castle Serenno sat before her, only just visible through the press of trees. From the schematics they'd gone over, Saedii knew it was massive – several stories high and a half-mile wide. Made entirely of glass and stone, it was an old reminder of the vibrant culture that had once claimed Serenno, long before Count Dooku had ruined it with his own greed.

Only a short distance away, the remains of the ruined city sat. Visible from the upper levels of the castle. It felt like such a terrible metaphor for the kind of man Dooku had become – elegant sophistication overshadowed by deadly cruelty.

In the palace courtyard, a swam of Clone troopers weaved in and out of the castle entrance. Some carried small boxes, sealed shut with heavy locks. Others drove hovercarts, piled high with massive chests that rattled as they drove. All carry pieces of what used to be a priceless fortune.

Dooku's war chest.

Saedii had never met the traitor Jedi turned Sith lord, but she'd known of him. As deadly with a lightsaber as he was charming, Dooku had betrayed the Jedi and sided with Darth Sidious. It had been a massive blow to the Jedi, many of whom had counted Dooku has a friend.

While Dooku had met his end with Anakin Skywalker, his massive fortune had remained here in Serenno. Unclaimed. Waiting.

The Empire had been only too eager to take it.

"It appears they are beginning to transport the war chest off-world," Tech observed, looking through a set of binocs.

He was perched just below her on the knool, shadowed by the canopy of trees above them. Hunter crouched beside him, watching as the troopers ferried their treasure into massive transport containers. There had to be hundreds of them.

Tech lowered his binocs, handing them to Echo. "Our window of opportunity is quickly closing."

"There's over forty troopers down there," Echo added thinly.

"We can take care of them easily enough," Crosshair said languidly.

Hunter shook his head. "We're not here to kill Clones. We're here for that chest."

Overhead, several fighter ships took off with a roar. Saedii watched their ascent as they settled into a flight pattern behind the massive cargo ships overhead. Trailing after them as they lifted towards the clouds.

"Imperial escort ships," Tech said. "Standard protocol for when high-level cargo is being transported."

"Those fighter ships are fast," Saedii commented. Faster than the Marauder. They would have a hell of a time trying to outrun them if things went bad.

Hunter's helmet swung towards the cargo pods. "Get to the nearest container and grab what you can. Crosshair and I will provide eyes on the ground. If things go sideways, we'll divert their attention to give you time to run."

"Double or nothing says we need that diversion," Saedii whispered to Crosshair as Tech began to lead their group off to the left, towards the cargo containers.

He gave a snort. "You're on."

Hunter grabbed Saedii's arm before she could leave. "Stay close to Echo."

"I don't need a babysitter," she maintained.

"Good, because I don't have time to babysit you." Echo gave her a gentle nudge in the direction that Wrecker, Tech, and Omega had gone off in.

Omega kept close to Saedii as they filed down the hillside, keeping under the dense cover provided by the trees. Dappled green light played along the panes of the Batch's armor as they came to a stop at the edge of the forest's reach, crouching down among the shade. Ahead of them, flashes of white announced marching Clones as they passed by on their way to the cargo pods.

Saedii's blood hummed in her veins. She'd missed this the past several months – the anticipation and adrenaline that came with the start of a new mission. Her muscles twitched as she watched the soldiers passing by. Eager to get back into the action.

As Tech drew out his blaster, Echo reported into comms, "In position. The second transport's launching."

The air seemed to hum around them as, through the trees, one of the massive transport ships lifting up into the air. Following the path of the others as it departed Serenno, laden with the immense treasure of Dooku's war chest.

At her wrist, Hunter's voice cautioned, "We've got roving patrols. Stay alert."

"Let's go." Echo waved them all forward.

Their steps were near-silent as they crept down towards the transport vessels. Close by, stomping footsteps announced the Clone troopers as they went by on their patrols. The Force swelled around them, fueled by the emotions of the Batch and the troopers as they went along on their tasks.

Tech led them to the closest transport, hopping in first to do a quick sweep. Saedii jumped up behind him as Wrecker hoisted Omega inside.

Omega's eyes were wide as she looked over the vast amount of expensive things inside the cargo pod. "Whoa! Look at all of this!"

It was certainly awe-inspiring. Massive chests overspilling with bright precious gemstones, some the size of Saedii's hands, were piled on top of intricate golden statues of ancient gods. Swaths of fine silks and lace were wrapped around glistening crystal chandeliers and fountains, embedded with what appeared to be diamonds along the edges.

Smaller chests along the floor were opened to reveal mounds of golden coins, pressed with strange symbols. Pearl necklaces and rings sat on top, next to a massive ruby that had to be bigger than Saedii's head. Framed pieces of priceless art were propped against most of the walls, next to stained glass mosaics depicting battles long-past.

"This is only a fraction of it," Tech said matter-of-factly. He peered into one of the smaller chests beside him, as if mentally calculating the value of its contents. "But that is all we need."

Behind them, Wrecker gave an explosive curse, followed by the muted blaster of a stun shot. A strangled cry lit the air as a trooper slumped against the side of the cargo pod.

Echo and Tech turned in Wrecker's direction. They said nothing but their displeasure was palpable in the air around them.

"What?" Wrecker demanded, yanking the trooper up into the pod with them. "I did it quietly!"

"They will definitely notice when he does not report in," Tech said with great annoyance.

Echo gave a little shake of his head. "Let's be gone by then."

"Prioritize items of high-value."

Saedii slipped the empty pack off her back, kicking open the nearest chest. Inside were thousands of tiny black diamonds, each a perfect dark circle. With both hands, she began to scoop handfuls into her bag. They were sharp and cold against her hands, and when a few spilled out onto the floor, struck against the metal ground with sharp little clink clink clinks!

Omega began to peek inside several of the chests. "How do we know what's high value?"

"Anything shiny or heavy." Echo was lifting a solid-gold statue of a rancor our of a padded crate.

"Or gold," Saedii added.

"Like this?" Omega pointed to a statue at the center of the room, plated with silver and gold. It was a statue of Dooku himself, scowling and surly-looking.

Saedii gave a little chuckle. "That one we can probably leave. I can't imagine many people would willingly pay to have that looming around."

Omega turned next to an inconspicuous crate beside Dooku's statue, peeking under the lid. Her expression brightened. "What about this?"

As the lid fell open, piles and piles of golden credit bars glinted against the light. Nestled amongst them were bars of pure diamond and emerald.

Echo came to look over her shoulder. "I'd say that qualifies as high-value."

Her bag was heavy as Saedii hefted it up onto her shoulders. Stuffed with thousands of those tiny black diamonds.

Wrecker grunted as he lifted the trunk that Omega had discovered, balancing it on a massive shoulder. With a quick peek outside, he hopped down and disappeared in the direction of the trees.

"How does one person have all of this?" Omega asked in a small voice. "It doesn't seem fair."

"It's not," Saedii agreed. "Dooku was known for being corrupt and conceited."

"It's safe to assume that the majority of his fortune came from the many worlds he controlled and exploited," Tech agreed.

A furrow appeared between Omega's brows. "I thought Dooku was a Jedi?"

"Not at the end," Saedii said quietly.

At the front of the pod, the unconscious trooper's helmet gave a sharp crackle of feedback. Then, a voice demanded, "CT-8801, come in."

"I think it's time to go," Saedii said as Wrecker hopped back in the pod.

Echo seemed to agree, reporting into his comms, "Hunter, I think we're about to have some company. We could use that diversion about now."

A smug little smile played on Saedii's face. She was going to enjoy taking those ten credits from Crosshair.

Somewhere close by, an echoing boom announced the arrival of their diversion.

"Come on! Let's speed this up!" Echo urged them, patting another chest. "Wrecker, one more here."

Omega quickly began to stuff some glittering pieces of jewelry into her bag. Saedii ran over to help her as Wrecker slipped out of the pod. Behind them, Echo and Tech began to drag a chest between the two of them towards the entrance.

But the two of them came to an abrupt stop as, with a sharp hiss of steam, the cargo pod doors slammed closed.

Omega stood, alarm settling over her face.

Saedii let out a harsh sigh. "You've got to be kriffing kidding."

"This is concerning," Tech said as he switched on his flashlight.

"Maybe I can cut out a door," Saedii suggested. But as she got to her feet to do just that, the cargo pod gave a little shudder as it began to lift off the ground.

"The door's too thick," Echo said grimly. "By the time you get a sizeable chunk out, we'll be too high to jump down."

"So what's our contingency?"

Echo ran over to the scomp input, shoving his prosthetic inside. He grunted. "No use. The door's externally sealed. I can't open it either."

On comms, Hunter's tense voice ordered, "Tech, the ship's taking off. Get out of there."

"Hunter, we're trapped in the container!" Omega reported back. Saedii walked over and rested a comforting hand on her shoulder as she felt the cargo pod begin to rise up higher and higher.

Distantly, the sound of blaster fire sounded. The sure-tell sign that a firefight had broken out.

It was too late, Saedii knew. When she reached out with the Force, she could feel just how high they'd already gone. It was too high up for Hunter or any of the others to reach.

They were on their own.

"What do we do?" Omega asked in alarm.

Echo was calm and focused as he said, "If we can make it to an escape pod, then we can take it back down to the surface."

"How do we get to the escape pods?"

"One of these doors should lead to the main compartment." Tech was standing at the far wall. His shrewd eyes were flicking back and forth between the three choices in front of him.

Saedii ushered Omega in his direction. Trying to keep her close to Tech and Echo as they figured out a way off this pod.

"Are you sure these doors will lead into the ship?" Omega asked uneasily.

"Either into the ship or outside." Tech was concentrating. Leaning in close to analyze the seam along the doors.

"What happens if it leads outside?"

Off-handedly, Tech answered, "We will instantly be sucked out and perish."

Omega took a step closer towards Saedii.

"Comforting, Tech," Saedii grumbled, giving Omega a reassuring squeeze of her shoulder. Her small friend leaned into her side.

"There is no need for panic. I am seldom wrong." With a confident little nod, he went to the door in the middle and pressed the access button.

Omega flinched as the door swung up, revealing a dimly lit corridor. Thin rails lined the narrow hall, protecting the walker from the nearly fifty-foot drop to the bottom of the ship, where the engines were humming with effort.

Tech looked pleased as his helmet swung back in their direction.

"Congratulate yourself after we escape," Echo grumbled.

Together, he and Tech bent down, each grabbing a handle of the chest they'd tried to carry out before the doors had shut.

"The closest escape pod is five corridors away," Tech reported. "I suggest we hurry."

Saedii led the way into the hall, Omega trailing behind her. Towards what she hoped would be their ticket out.

Shrewdly, Echo said, "Well, kid. Welcome back to the action. Looks like we're right where you left off – at the mercy of the Empire."

Saedii gave a grim smile. "I wouldn't expect anything else."