Project Boussh: Busted! by Brad Corletti He knew it couldn't have lasted. Not long after he and Dorset finally rendezvoused with the escaping Jedi, the mouse droid they had been following had led them to a dead end, its programming obviously hijacked. That meant Security was onto them, and that meant they could not evade pursuit. A warship, in many ways, is a living entity. It eats, breathes, ages - and feels. And right now it was watching with interest the activities of a handful of bacteria who apparently intended to leave. These were important bacteria. The warship was not very happy about that. "Don't move." The standard interrogative was clipped by the stormtrooper's comm gear. Brad turned calmly to face it. "Well, it's about time you showed up," he said simply. To be honest, he was surprised they hadn't caught up to them sooner. Perhaps... The two Rebels seemed surprise by his action. They both screamed "What?" How to cover the circumstances effectively? Only one thought came to mind. There was only one code he knew the Jedi Vickie would know that none others would. An old Terran code. "I've done all I can do. I'm sorry I couldn't do better, but I have my own problems." -- They were to go to the Bridge. That suited Brad just fine. It would give him a chance to prove his loyalties, and explain his actions, if it became necessary. Just a victim of circumstance, really. And he'd tied them up pretty well, hadn't he? He nodded his permission to the black-shirted marine officer and followed him, the prisoners being forced at gunpoint. He heard some thumps behind him. He turned and saw Vickie on her knees, holding her head in her hands. Dorset spoke and pushed back a trooper who tried to get them moving. The marines pointed their weapons. "Pick her up or drag her. We don't care. Just keep moving." Vickie stood, slowly, holding onto Dorset for support. She looked at Brad, answering his unasked question. "I'm fine," she said. Then she said more, but her lips did not move. "The battle has begun. There is something... wrong, though." The battle has started. That explained a few things. It also opened possibilities. He nodded, to indicate he'd recieved the message. For the Lieutenant, he raised his voice slightly. "Let's go. Thrawn will be displeased if we are late." -- Brad walked onto the bridge. It was a sight that always stirred his heart. Junior officers manned terminals below the main level, where senior officers stood and watched the developing battle. Thrawn himself sat in a command chair, constantly adopting minor subsets of his plans to match developments. Around the bridge the imposing red forms of the Royal Guardsmen stood stoically. Feeling the suspicious gaze of the Royal Guardsmen upon him, he approached Thrawn and stood at attention until Thrawn deigned to look his way. The battle was well under way, it appeared. "The prisoners, as ordered, Grand Admiral," he said. Thrawn nodded distractedly, and returned his attention to the battle. The prisoners remained near the entrance to the bridge, guarded by the Security detail. Whatever the Admiral had planned for them would be revealed soon enough. Brad turned on his heel and spoke briefly to the Lieutenant, then he descended the elevator into the crew pit. Once on the floor he headed for one terminal in particular - Droid Ops. A recently installed terminal, it controlled the actions of the BLR-3025 crew droids onboard. Already Brad could see that many of his droids had been disabled. Brad swallowed. He had a choice to make. If he was successful, he could do a world of good, if not... the cost. The terrible, terrible, cost. "Send a signal to them," he told the Droid Ops specialist. "Override Omega Three." He had just told the droids to ignore the unique sound that caused them to shutdown.