Марта Уэллс: From a Certain Point of View

“Do you know where we’re going?” asked a miner Tal didn’t know. This one looked like she’d been kidnapped in the night, as she was dressed for bed.

“Wherever the Mining Guild sends us,” said Rajin, morose, no doubt thinking of his child.

“Nah, these are stormtroopers. They loaded up a ton of Tibanna in here with us, too. We’re in Imperial custody.”

“For now.”

Tal remained quiet.

Another miner noticed. “Tal, you don’t even work for the mine.” He’d clearly been taken midshift, as he still wore his brown work smock. “You’re up to something. You gotta have a plan.”

“Yeah, same as what yours should be. Mind my business.” Tal knew this one. If she told him anything, everyone would hear about it.

Tal gestured for Kiren and Baudu to come talk to her. Kiren managed to stand up, almost convincing Tal that their wound wasn’t killing them. Baudu tried to gently push them back down. “No—I just had to kick two people outta your seat. No.” Kiren growled and waved him off. Kiren was all-in. Good.

“Can you fly this thing?”

Kiren gave her a look like that was the most insulting question they’d ever heard.

“Okay, okay. Can I fly this thing?”

Kiren nodded their head side to side. A solid maybe.

“It’ll have to do. Let’s go.”

Baudu nearly climbed over two people to get in front of her. “You pull us from our duty—perfectly safe duty—and con us into taking out some really overdressed idiots in the market, and then you get us shot at, captured, and sent off to mine some offworld— No. You can’t say this was part of the plan.”

“It was…a possibility.” Tal rubbed her arm, hedging. “But it’s not going to get better if we don’t do anything.”

Baudu gestured toward Kiren’s wound. “If you think I’m letting you get them into another fight—”

“Oh, Kiren’s not fighting.” Tal tapped him on the shoulder. “We are. I always have a backup plan, you know that. But we better hurry.”

“I’m not getting talked into— Wait a second. Why do we have to hurry…?”

—

For the first time in her life, Ela struggled to maintain her expression. She had reported to her station on the bridge in the Star Destroyer in orbit. The cool darkness, the blinking control lights, and the soft hum of the ship normally calmed her nerves. But she could feel Kelos’s eyes on her, monitoring her, as he had been since the beginning apparently. She guessed she was Fool #1 all along.

She focused on the task at hand: ensuring the U-33 with its prisoner cargo joined them in orbit over Bespin. It came into view on the command screen, in front of several ensigns seated at their posts on the bridge, likewise preparing for the journey. She went over her checklist. She tagged the U-33 for tracking, cataloged the last of the Tibanna canisters on board her Star Destroyer, adjusted the weapons systems and the comms, locked them behind her security code.

“All is ready, Commander.” She paused for a moment, choosing her words carefully. “Representatives of the Mining Guild are requesting custody of the U-33, since it is destined for mines they control. However, I’m noting this particular communication is coming from Bespin airspace, which is off limits to them. Exactly what we wished to avoid at the dock. What are your orders?”

He turned toward her, arms behind his back. “What do you recommend, Lieutenant?”

It was a test.

Ela continued, carefully. “They came to Bespin against Imperial edict. They must be taught a lesson.”

Kelos smiled. “I agree. Permit them to board the U-33. I accept your earlier suggestion.”

“Sir?”

“We refuse them their prize. By eliminating them all.”

—

Tal led her reluctant comrades toward the head—the only area minimally guarded by stormtroopers. The stench of urine explained why. They hadn’t gotten around to wiping down the ship before it had been commandeered with its new cargo.

The three squeezed past the troopers in the hallway, then as a unit entered the stalls and closed the flaps for privacy. Tal had made quite a show of running water while she spurred Kiren and Baudu to unfix the back of the stalls. They’d been in and around these ships long enough—they knew the crawl spaces that would lead to the bridge.

—

Kelos puffed up his chest as he turned toward the controllers at the command screen. “Ensign, target the U-33 transport with the turbolaser cannons.”

“Yes, sir.” The ensign turned toward him. “The Mining Guild representatives have boarded, and I’ve relayed the usual five-minute warning for our officers to evacuate.”

“Make it two minutes. The rest are an acceptable loss.” Kelos surveyed the rest of the people on the bridge, then settled on Ela. “Any objections?”

Ela remained silent.

—

Tal squeezed into the crawl space. Kiren had been forced to stay behind—they truly couldn’t fit, even without a shoulder wound. They’d nodded and patted her on the head, then helped her climb in. She felt Baudu climb in behind her, and the two clambered beside pipes and wires. She grabbed his glow rod so she could find her way as he coached her toward the bridge.

“The two of us can’t take the entire ship, Tal. We don’t even have a weapon.”

“Then we get a weapon. Once we take the bridge, it doesn’t matter how many stormtroopers are aboard. We have the ship.” She took the last turn and found herself with nowhere to go. “Damnit, dead end.”

“This is it. This is the bridge,” he said. “You should be lying on a hatch.”

She reached under herself, her hand following the cold metal floor, finding a latch.

“Just make sure you don’t—”

She lifted the latch and immediately crashed to the floor of the bridge. The element of surprise, her only ally, had turned on her. She leapt to her feet and assumed a fighting stance, ready to take on all comers.

The bridge was empty.

—

“Clear!” said the ensign.

Kelos approached a control panel in the center of the bridge. “Transfer firing control to this console.”

“Yes, sir.”

Ela took a deep breath. Kelos held his finger over the button, pausing for effect, to twist the knife further.

He lowered his finger.

“No!” she cried out.

Kelos turned toward her, his finger hovering still, as he raised an eyebrow. “A problem, Lieutenant?”

“Please, sir.” She lifted her chin, determined. “Allow me.”

He smiled and gestured for her to take his place. “By all means.” Without hesitation, she assumed his position in front of the console.

—

Baudu dropped down behind Tal and took in the abandoned controls, the chairs spun around as though their occupants had just stood up.

“This…was a lot easier than I thought it would be.”

Tal rushed over to the control panel and pulled up the ship reports. “I’ve got to shut us down.”

An alarm sounded. “What’s that?” Baudu spun around.

A red light started blinking on one of the screens: WARNING: TARGET LOCKED.

“We’re being targeted.”

“What?”

“I’ve got it handled.” She slid into a seat and began trying to regain control of the ship. “I hope.”

The screen turned solid red. “Tal…!”

—

Ela pressed the button to fire.

Silence followed.

Then the ensign spun around to face Kelos. “Confirmed hit, sir.”

Kelos was studying Ela. “Sensors report.”

“Uhh…” The ensign turned around. “Complete destruction. I’m reading a lingering energy cloud, likely from excess Tibanna gas we put on the U-33. No signature of the ship.”

“Very good. You may return to your post, Lieutenant.”