"Look at all these Radnorans in bio-isolation suits,"
Darra observed. "I sure hope Curi is telling the truth, or we'll be in for a big surprise when the winds shift."
Darra spoke lightly, but no one felt entirely easy about their decision. Even Anakin was a little worried. He was betting everything on his intuition. If he was wrong, the consequences would be severe. He could die, along with the other Padawans.
I'm not wrong.
He could feel Ferus's eyes on him. He kept his gaze forward as he piloted the craft. He wasn't about to retreat now.
Ahead they saw the energy gate that led to the Isolation Sector. Curi had given them the coordinates to bypass it.
Anakin entered them into a signal beam and the energy gate opened. They zoomed through.
For a moment, they all held their breath. Then Ferus took a deep breath. Darra did the same.
"Well, there's no turning back now," she said.
Ferus accessed the mapping device on the shipboard computer. He studied the ground canyon site. "There are several access points," he said.
"We have to assume that they're probably still very close to where Curi saw them," Darra said. "She said their speeders were destroyed."
"She also said the transport following them was quite large," Tru added. "So if we take a narrow route through the canyons, we might have the element of surprise."
"We're going to need more than surprise if that transport was filled with Prototype Droids," Ferus remarked. "Not only that, the transport probably has some sort of blaster cannons."
"If you're trying to raise our confidence level, it's not working," Darra said.
"We're coming up on the ground canyons," Ferus warned.
Anakin slowed down slightly. Ahead he only saw what looked like scribble markings on the ground. Then he realized the markings revealed deep cracks in the ground surface.
Ferus read out a coordinate. "Take that route," he said.
"It will bring us close to where Curi saw our Masters."
Anakin zoomed down the canyon. He hugged the canyon walls, going as fast as he dared. By the look on Ferus's face, it was faster than the other Padawan would like. Anakin pushed the engines up a notch. He knew he was in complete control.
Ahead he saw the large, hulking shape of the Avoni transport ship. It was idling, its repulsorlift engines on low, keeping it a few meters off the ground. Dust rose around it in a filmy cloud. Anakin grew excited.
"I've seen that kind of transport before," he said. "It was years ago, in the Trade Federation battle for Naboo.
This is a slightly smaller version of an MTT — a Multi Troop Transport. They store Battle Droids and are usually piloted by two droids."
"They also have heavy frontal armor. The ship itself can be a weapon." Tru looked uneasy. "They can go through rock walls."
"It looks like this one already did," Darra said, swallowing hard.
A solid wall of rock had been splintered into fragments.
Droids littered the ground.
"Our Masters must have battled there," Ferus said in a hushed tone.
Anakin hovered near the sight, careful to keep out of sight of the MTT's bridge. They saw no evidence of their Masters.
"I hear blaster fire," Darra said suddenly. "We're close."
Then Anakin could hear it, too. He placed his hands back on the controls, ready to zoom ahead.
"Wait!" Ferus commanded.
Annoyed, Anakin turned to him. "What now? More planning?"
"Yes," Ferus said steadily. "If we rush in there without a plan, we won't be much help to them."
"What kind of a plan do we need?" Anakin asked. "They're being attacked by droids! We go in and help them!"
Darra groaned. "I thought the worst thing about being on this mission was protein cubes for breakfast. Now I know it's you two. Ferus, what are you thinking?"
"How many droids did the MTT on Naboo hold?" Ferus asked Anakin.
"I don't remember," Anakin said. "Over a hundred, I think."
"One hundred and twelve," Tru said softly.
"And this is only a little smaller," Ferus said. "So let's say it holds about fifty to seventy droids, at least. What are the chances we can battle that many with our lightsabers?"
Darra swallowed. "I can't tell you how much I hate to hear the odds before a battle."
"So what are you saying?" Anakin asked. "We call for more Jedi?"
"Or more lightsabers," Darra said.
Ferus shook his head. "Of course not. We just need to think, that's all. We have a couple of advantages. One is surprise. The other is the fact that you and Tru seem to know a lot about that transport."
Anakin nodded. He had explored one on Naboo after the battle.
"The question is, how do we get aboard?" Ferus asked.
"Can you deactivate the droids from the MTT?" Darra asked.
Anakin shook his head. "No, they're controlled from either the landing ship or from orbit."
"No stress with that," Ferus said. "If you get aboard, can you pilot the ship?"
"I can pilot anything," Anakin said flatly.
"Didn't you say that the ship is also a weapon?" Ferus asked.
The four Padawans looked at one another.
"Of course," Anakin said. "If we control the ship, we control the battle."
"There's the deployment hatch," Tru said. "But the release valve is on the bridge."
"I think the only way is — " Anakin began.
"You're right," Tru said. "But we'd have to do it — "
"Exactly. But the venting system — "
"So we don't have to worry about being seen." Tru nodded rapidly. "Okay, that's it, then."
"That's what?" Darra cried. "Are you two speaking some weird language from the Outer Rim?"
Anakin turned to her. "The MTT is designed by the Baktoid workshop. The Trade Federation buys most of their ships, but they rotate out the old ones and sell them off to various planets. I'm betting that's what this transport is. Which means that its exhaust and cooling system is vented straight down toward the ground. There's some unusually large vents on the bottom. That's why you see all that dust around it.
It's kicked up by the wind coming out of the ship."
"So the dust will give us cover," Tru said. "And the vents are big enough. We can just climb up them to get aboard."
"Won't the wind blow you back?" Ferus asked.
"If the ship was moving, it would," Anakin said. "But the engines are idling. The ship is in passive mode. We shouldn't have too much trouble."
"We've got another problem," Darra said. "If you get control of the ship, our Masters won't know it. They'll most likely attack the ship when it comes toward them."
"That's why we have to split up," Ferus said. "Darra, you and I have to make contact with the Masters while Anakin and Tru steal the ship. We have to get the droids to follow us to an ambush." He looked at Anakin and Tru. "Does that sound okay to you?"