Project Boussh: Last Stand
by Durandir

MENDELLIA: RESISTANCE HEADQUARTERS

In the shadows at the foot of the stairs, the defenders waited. The hangar
was once again still; the only sound was the chatter of Kristy's comlink,
set to the frequency that the Resistance's starfighters were using.

"Grace Eight has cleared the hangar." Eight--that was Tede, as Becki knew,
but his voice sounded strange through the comlink's distortion.

"Good." That one she recognized: Kell, leading this impromptu battle.
"Wraiths and Graces, form up and let's see what we've got. Watch out for
your wingman. And be careful; it's the real thing this time, Graces Nine and
Ten."

"Noted," came Thayer's voice, bearing a hint of amusement but also
excitement.

With no less amusement and excitement, Reth added, "Just you lead the way
and we'll follow your example."

Silence followed. "If only we had a tactical display of some sort..." Becki
fretted.

"Not that it would do *us* much good, for our part of the battle," Kirret
answered brusquely. "When Atner gets to the caverns, trust me, we'll know
it. Until then, there's nothing we can do about what happens out there,
anyway."

Becki frowned and glanced uncertainly at the Resistance's Prophetess of
Doom. "But don't you want to know what's going on?" To her surprise, Kir's
face when she glanced back had lost its perpetual scowl. Replacing it was a
look of pained anticipation--and an utterly unreadable half-smile.

"Yes, terribly so," said Kirret quietly, "and even more terribly not. I only
wish I were out there with them. If he--if they should--oh, I can't bear to
know, and yet I couldn't live not knowing." She looked away quickly. "It's
his first combat, you know. Darwinia doesn't really count."

Finally catching on, Becki smiled and laid a hand on the other woman's
shoulder in hopes of reassuring her. "Don't worry, Kir. They'll come back.
How could they not?"

Kirret sighed. "Reth says the same thing every time any of us go off on a
mission..."

"Well, he's been right so far, hasn't he?"

"No." Kirret frowned uncertainly. "But...more often than not."

From the front of the group, Fir, who'd been given command of the forces
within the caverns--such as they were--turned to speak to the others. "They
should be over the cliffs by now. Atner's forces had just left the Palace
when Mirax spotted them on the scanners, so I imagine our folks will meet
them somewhere around the middle of the island. Mount Atner, maybe.
Shouldn't be long before--"

He was interrupted by a burst of static from the comlink, and then Mirax's
voice: "Incoming--looks like troop transports mostly, but there are TIEs
escorting them, at least a full squadron. Eyeballs--either Atner doesn't
merit anything more sophisticated, or else he's saving it for later."

"All right," Kell answered. "Wraiths, we have the eyes. Graces, see what you
can do about the transports. Mirax, can you fight?"

"Sure," came the answer. "I've got your Grace Two on the guns. She claims to
be a fair shot, so we've made a little wager. For each kill she makes, I'm
shipping a load of bacta to our Resistance friends."

Reth's laughter burst over the comlink. "Way to go, Iris--"

"I'd save the congratulations for when the bacta arrives, if I were you,
Ten," replied Iris's calm voice. "I haven't shot anything yet."

"Well, you'll have your chance, that's certain," said Kell. "Here they
come..."

And then it was all "I've got him!" and "Hey, can someone get this guy off
my tail?" and "I could use a little help here" and "Coming your way" and
more and more chatter piled on chatter until those who waited in the caverns
could no longer keep track of the battle going on outside. They waited in
tense silence at the foot of the stairs, eyes as well as ears focused on
Kristy's comlink, save for Fir, who stared resolutely toward the night sky
showing at the hangar's entrance.

After some time, they heard a loud "WAHOO!"--the voice was distorted by the
static, but from the widening of Kirret's eyes, Becki guessed Reth was the
speaker--followed by Thayer's voice: "That's one transport that won't be
doing any cavern-sweeping today!" Those who waited in the shadows for the
cavern-sweepers to arrive breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"Blast," came Mirax's voice minutes later. "They're getting away. Grace One,
Terras--you've got a troop transport en route to your position. And--"

"--And," Kell interrupted, "here come Atner's reinforcements. Ships
departing from both Beagle and Mendel City. Looks like we've got our work
cut out for us up here."

Back at the caverns, Morwen groaned, "Great. Now would be a really good time
for Sci and our fighters to show up..."

"At least we know they're on their way," Kristy pointed out, "since they
called Thayer for the Palace details earlier today, and to send the team
assignments just before we spotted Atner's forces."

"Now if we could just finish with Atner's forces here," Becki said,
reluctantly drawing the blaster at her right side and wishing it could be
the piccolo at her left instead, "we could go help the rest of Terra Group
make use of those Palace details."

"Back! Get back," Fir whispered suddenly. "Comlink off, Kristy. Here they
come!"

Straining to see what the Resistance soldier had seen, Becki ducked back
into the shadows with the others. At first she could make nothing out
against the midnight sky, but within seconds she could *hear* the
approaching ship. And then, there it was, a ship of a kind unfamiliar to
her, filling the mouth of the cavern. *Here's hoping Kell's traps will
actually work...* she worried momentarily as the transport landed near the
center of the hangar.

The ship's hatch opened, and the stormtroopers within began to emerge. They
gradually spread out, moving warily through the cavern as if to inspect it.
She recognized a sort of pattern to how they positioned themselves,
reminiscent of a drill she'd marched once in band, though the strategic
importance of it at this moment was beyond her comprehension.

As one group of troopers drew nearer to the hidden stairway, Fir whispered,
"Now!"

Kristy thumbed her comlink back on; no sounds of the air battle emerged,
however, for the device was now set at a different frequency. She clicked
the comlink twice, quickly.

Across the cavern, to the defenders' left, a series of shots rang out. The
stormtroopers' helmets all swiveled in that direction; a group of the
troopers broke off and headed in search of the origin of the shots.

"And...now!" Fir whispered. Three clicks from Kristy this time, and to the
right of the stairway, the scenario was repeated: the shots, the
stormtroopers distracted. "Last one!" Fir said. "And then we go up!" Kristy
tapped out a pattern of five clicks, and as the defenders of the caverns
scurried up the stairway, the sound of thunder echoed behind them in the
hangar. The sound of half the cave's roof falling in on the confused
stormtroopers below.


They regrouped at the top of the stairway: three Terra Groupers, three of
the Resistance leaders, and a handful of other Resistance fighters whose
names Becki had never learned. Fir and Kristy, as the best marksmen in the
group, crouched at either side of the stairwell, blasters aimed back down
the steps, with the others crowding behind them as backup.

It was a disappointingly short wait. In a few minutes, the first
stormtrooper appeared at the base of the stairs, turning to gesture to
someone back in the cavern, no doubt alerting his superiors to the stairway
he'd just discovered.

The only question was whether he managed to finish alerting that superior
before Fir's shot dropped him to the cavern floor.

Whether or not that trooper managed to get the word out, it wasn't long
before another took his place. A pair of shots from Kristy felled him, but a
third stormie appeared immediately. After that, it quickly became clear that
the whole passenger list of the troop transport (or what remained of the
passenger list--not to mention the transport itself--after Kell's roof trap
had discharged) was now aware of the stairway. White armor swarmed below,
glowing faintly red in the light of the blaster shots now flying freely in
both directions.

Fortunately, the troopers didn't seem to be quite as good shots as Grace and
Terra One. But they kept coming, no matter how many the defenders killed.
"Another transport must have gotten through," Kirret called over the noise
of the fight.

It seemed likely she was right. The stormtroopers gradually pressed their
way up the stairs, climbing over fallen companions, unstoppable in their
upward surge. At last, Fir called grimly, "Fall back! To the tunnels!"

And as Fir and Kristy held the stairway, the others retreated as ordered.
Finally Kristy too ran to join them in the tunnel entrance. Fir took one
last shot, tossed a thermal detonator down the stairwell as his parting
gift, and then ran for the tunnels as the explosion kept the enemy busy.

"Now run!" he shouted, and so they did. "Kristy?" Fir prompted.

"Got it," the Prophetess answered, making one last series of clicks on her
comlink. Behind them, the ceiling over the stairway landing and tunnel
entrance did its best to emulate the ceiling of the hangar below. Being
considerably smaller than that of the hangar, it produced a considerably
less impressive thunder, but it was still enough to pin the advancing
stormtroopers there while the defenders ran.

They came at last to a small, round chamber where another tunnel crossed the
main one. "Straight ahead," Fir commanded. "Kirret will lead you; she knows
the Palace best of all us here."

"What about the rest of you?" Becki asked.

"All of Kell's traps together won't hold those stormies back there forever.
We're your rearguard," Fir explained.

"But--"

"Go on," Fenya urged, his mild voice startling Becki somewhat since she so
seldom heard it. "You're needed in the Palace. We're needed here. So go."

Becki frowned, but nodded. "All right."

"All three Terras," Fir added. "Our Wraiths were supposed to take part in
the Palace assault too; since they're out there for the sky-battle, you'll
need Kristy and Morwen in their place."

Sensing that arguments would be of no use at this point, the three Terra
Groupers nodded and followed Kirret into the tunnel that would lead to the
High Palace. Behind them, Fir, Fenya, and the rest of the Resistance
fighters took up positions in the two side tunnels, waiting for the enemy to
arrive. The women hurried on through the underground maze.