“The most notable was in the Hetzal system,” Imri said, speaking to the group for the first time. “Master Douglas helped to save a lot of lives.”
“Imri is correct. As a Jedi who was called in to deal with the disaster, I can tell you that the tragedy has been handled,” Douglas said with his usual good cheer. “A heartbreaking catastrophe, to be sure, but the Jedi and the Republic came together to handle not just the initial disaster, but the subsequent Emergences, as well. There is nothing to fear now.”
Ambassador Janex tapped her lips. “Do we know this for certain? The chatter across the news feeds seems to indicate that even though the Jedi response was quick and efficient, the reason we are still seeing these . . . Emergences . . . is not because the original ship is still breaking up in the hyperspace lanes but because the saboteurs are still on the job.”
Master Douglas shook his head. “Trust me, esteemed ambassador. There is nothing to fear. Hyperspace is safe as it always has been, even safer since the Republic undertook the mapping project a century ago.”
“So, we will be traveling through hyperspace, then,” said Avon.
Douglas nodded. “Eventually. I spoke to the pilot, and most of the in-system access points to the hyperspace lanes are still closed, so we’re going to have a slight detour before we jump. It’ll add an extra day of travel time, but that just gives everyone an excuse to tour the gorgeous Pantoran-style hanging gardens on deck three instead of working.”
The adults around the table laughed, and Vernestra frowned. She didn’t like that they would be going into hyperspace, but she couldn’t tell if it was her own misgivings about traveling the lanes or the nervousness of the Dalnan delegation. They all looked a bit unsettled after the hyperspace conversation. Douglas had told her that the Dalnans rarely left their home planet and disliked space travel as a whole, so maybe that was where the feeling came from.
The server droids moved closer and began placing the first course in front of everyone. The dishes had just been settled on the tabletop when there was a jolt and then another.
“Oh my,” the Pantoran ambassador exclaimed. “A bit of debris, perhaps?”
Douglas grinned, but his smile evaporated too quickly. “Stars,” he breathed. He threw out his hands and Vernestra felt like she was being pushed into her seat. That was when she felt the disturbance in the Force.
It was like a blade slicing through her, a sharp edge made of fear and panic. But it wasn’t coming from her companions; it was coming from every other living thing on the ship. There were several large crashes, and then alarms began to blare just as the roof of the dining room ripped away to reveal the stars beyond.
“Hold on!” Master Douglas yelled, reaching out with the Force to hold everyone at the table in place. The emergency bulkhead overhead, a metal curtain made of interlocking pieces, began to close before screeching to a halt, leaving several meters open. The doors to the dining room slammed shut at the same time, leaving them with only the air that was very quickly escaping into space.
“It’s stuck!” Avon yelled. J-6 stood behind the girl, holding her in place. The vacuum of space pulled all the available atmosphere out of the ship, creating a sucking motion that made Vernestra’s eyes water. Droids flew out into the black, as well as dishes and tablecloths, and Vernestra threw her own energy into keeping everyone at the table so they would not also be pulled out into the unforgiving void. But if they did not manage to close the bulkhead, it would not matter. They would very soon suffocate.
“Vern, you need to clear out that edge. Do you think you can do that?” Master Douglas had his eyes closed, and sweat beaded on his forehead from the effort of keeping everyone where they were.
A quick glance up and Vernestra’s heart sank. It looked impossible. How would she keep from being sucked out into space like everything else?
“I’m on it,” Vernestra said, pushing aside her doubts and releasing her hold on the people at the table, leaving that task to Master Douglas. She stood, only the Force keeping her from flying away. Debris from odd corners of the room still flew past every now and again.
Vernestra looked up toward the bulkhead again and saw what Master Douglas had meant. A chair had lodged in the bottom edge of the track, and in order for the bulkhead to close it would have to be removed.
She pulled out her lightsaber, took a deep breath, and released her hold on the Force, letting herself be sucked out toward space.
Vernestra could not catch her breath as she was pulled along by the current of air exiting the dining room. A plate flew past her head and she leaned back to avoid it, which sent her into an end-over-end tumble. A brief second of panic, and then Vernestra twisted and corrected her flight, only to slam into the edge of the bulkhead as she did, scrabbling for purchase as she tried to stand.
Flying was much, much easier in theory than practice.
“You’re doing great, Vern,” called Avon, and Vernestra glanced down at the people below. Avon looked so small and scared, and the boy Honesty was not much better. Vernestra felt a surge of motivation.
She was a Jedi, and the Jedi protected all life. She could do this.
Her faith in her abilities brought forth a fresh burst of energy, and the Force was there, all around her. It filled her and flowed through her as she ran across the bulkhead, lightsaber drawn, the lavender light as steady as her intent. There was not a shred of doubt in her now, and she slashed at the chair blocking the track, shaving off a bit of the bulkhead in the process.
As the metal began to move, Vernestra ran along the shutter, using her lightsaber to liberally slice through any other debris that threatened to jam up the shield. She remained a few centimeters above the metal, and when it finally slammed close, silencing the roaring wind and sealing the breach, she did a backflip and slowly lowered herself to the ground. By the time her boots hit the floor everyone was talking at once.
Master Douglas held up his hand, and the noise died down. “We need to evacuate.”
“What is happening?” demanded Ambassador Weft, his eyes bulging with panic.
“I believe something hit the Steady Wing. An Emergence, perhaps,” Douglas said. He reached his hand out toward the exit door, which had sealed itself when the bulkhead refused to close. He touched the emergency release next to the door, but nothing happened. When that did not work, he pulled out his lightsaber and cut through the door, using the Force to shove the pieces out into the hallway.
“We need to move,” Douglas said. “Vern, lead the way!”
Imri could swear his heart was about to pound right out of his chest. It is as the Force wills it, he thought, taking a deep breath and letting it out. If they survived this trial it would be because the Force wished it to be so, and that certainty gave Imri a measure of calm. He trusted the Force just like Master Douglas said he should. Imri could be confident as long as Master Douglas was by his side. Even if he had asked Vernestra to lead the way and not Imri, his trusted Padawan.
He took another deep breath and ran along with the rest of the group.
The once impressive hallway was crowded with droids and panicked passengers. Imri did not know who they were, but he figured they must be other important passengers invited to the reveal of Starlight Beacon by the Chancellor. Everyone ran down the hallway toward the escape pods, and the crowds were so thick that Imri had to press against the wall to get past the knot of people.