"I had no idea the Empire had a ship like that!" Han Solo exclaimed in shock.
"That's overkill for taking down a single planet," said the Mandalorian.
Amir swallowed hard. "You're right. They don't need that much firepower for a planet—because they're here for me."
"Hahaha, you're funny, friend," Han laughed.
"I'm afraid he's not joking," the Mandalorian said, staring at the wave of TIE fighters launching from the light cruiser. He silently pivoted the Razor Crest.
"We're locked on!" Amir suddenly shouted, slamming the throttle. The Wanderer surged forward at full speed.
The cruiser unleashed a barrage of laser fire.
Amir swerved hard, narrowly dodging each blast.
"They weren't locking on to you!" Han Solo yelled. "They're cutting off your escape—they want you alive!"
Amir had come to the same conclusion. None of those blasts had actually aimed for the Wanderer.
"Damn it, we can't jump to hyperspace," cursed the Mandalorian.
"They're really after us? Why?" Han Solo took his hands off the controls in frustration.
"Don't give up now, Mr. Deserter," Amir snapped. He was just as stunned as the rest of them.
How the hell had this cruiser tracked him so precisely? Did they implant a chip in his brain?
The TIE fighters had surrounded them.
Amir felt a wave of despair. Dozens of TIEs closing in, a cruiser right behind them—and worst of all, some means of tracking him no matter what.
Rango kept firing, and Han Solo began adjusting the ship's power distribution.
"Divert 90% to the engines," Amir ordered. He was betting they wanted him alive—so he lowered shield power to boost speed.
"Copy that," Han replied. For once, no sarcastic comeback. Speed was their only hope.
"Mand'alor, go the other way!" Amir shouted into the comm. If they split up, the Mandalorian might make it out.
"Good luck," the Mandalorian replied, veering off at full throttle.
Han Solo scowled at the radar. "We're not getting out of this! Think of something, quick!"
"I am!" Amir slammed a button. The ship shimmered and vanished from view—optical cloaking activated.
"You've been holding out on me! Got anything else? Hit me with another surprise, buddy!"
Amir shut down every signal-emitting system. The AI, sensors—everything went dark.
The Wanderer vanished from the TIEs' radars—and from the pilots' view.
"That won't fool the cruiser's scans," Han said, eyeing Amir as he powered down the engines.
"I don't intend to fool them," Amir replied.
As the Wanderer decelerated rapidly, seven TIE fighters streaked past its now-invisible hull. Amir's fingers twitched.
"Rango!" he shouted.
The front-mounted heavy laser cannons rotated under manual control, locking onto the TIEs from behind.
Amir and Rango fired simultaneously.
A deadly barrage of concentrated fire tore through the TIEs. Three exploded instantly, another had its wing ripped off, and only two escaped unscathed.
Without the swarm harassing them from behind, Amir re-engaged the engines and surged forward. The Wanderer was finally gaining speed.
"Still not enough!" Han shouted, seeing the cruiser drawing closer.
"That's everything she's got!" Amir gritted his teeth. He had no idea how long the interdiction field stretched, and they couldn't stall forever.
The cruiser loomed, its underside glowing ominously. Amir recognized the charging sequence for a tractor beam.
There was no escape this time.
"Is death the only punishment for desertion?" Han muttered.
"There are jobs at the mines," Amir offered flatly.
"I'll take death then."
BOOM! A massive explosion lit up the cruiser's hull. The tractor beam fizzled out.
"What the hell? What broke through its shields?!" Han yelled in shock.
Amir's comm crackled to life.
Greta's voice came through.
"Just doing you a favor before I head out, Amir. Don't say I broke my promise."
He remembered her words: if his target was the mining world, she'd send help.
Looking back, Amir spotted a starfighter strafing the cruiser, raining fire across its hull.
"This system's interdicted—how are you escaping?" he asked, while accelerating again. If he could just reach open space, he could jump to hyperspace.
He didn't know how much farther, but with help—he had hope.
"Haha, don't worry about me." Greta kept harassing the cruiser's tractor beam emitter, flying dangerously close. If she got caught, she wouldn't make it out.
Amir couldn't let her effort go to waste. He pushed forward with everything he had.
Time felt slower than ever. Every second stretched unbearably.
The TIE fighters looped back, rushing to intercept Greta.
"We're close!" Han shouted, watching the console as red indicators flashed and began to fade.
Once the red lights disappeared, space would be stable enough for a jump.
"There! We're good!" Han finally shouted, panel nearly clear.
"Go now, Greta!" Amir nodded and pulled the hyperspace throttle.
Before he could even finish speaking, Greta's starfighter flashed past—then vanished into the distance in a streak of light.
"She didn't jump to hyperspace, did she?" Han asked in disbelief.
"Sub-light engines. I like her style," Amir said with a grin.
The Wanderer jumped to hyperspace right after her.
As the stars streaked around them, Amir went silent.
That cruiser had tracked him too well. There had to be a reason. Did someone install a tracker on his ship?
He retraced every step—there had never been a chance to plant one. And if they could've tagged the ship, why not just capture him outright?
Seniel had handed over this ship to get him to raid the Empire's prison vessel. Selling him out didn't make much sense.
Even if he had sold him out—what was Amir worth to the Empire?
What was it that kept them coming after him?
He couldn't figure it out.
But one thing was clear—he needed a full scan of his own body.
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