Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II by Sean Williams Read Free Book Online Page A

Juno could be found. Nothing else mattered. Not even the endless vistas of space, or the light of an unfamiliar sun.
    His ship had been noticed the very moment he had arrived. On descent, it was immediately joined by a full escort of TIE fighters, acting on the assumption that the being piloting it was Darth Vader, the Emperor’s chief enforcer, as its transponder code suggested. Starkiller didn’t disabuse them of this notion. Anything that eased the path ahead was fine by him. The TIEs broadcast warnings and cleared a landing bay ahead of him, and then peeled off to resume their regular duties. He brought his stolen starfighter safely to a halt on the swaying platform, conscious but nor caring that there was nothing between him and the sinkhole below but several layers of metal. It might intimidate others, but it made no difference to him.
    Several skiffs parked on the platform had scattered as he approached the waiting hangar. A squadron of stormtroopers stood to attention in two perfectly parallel lines, their weapons honorific, not threatening. If Vader had guessed that he was coming here, word had not yet reached the local potentate. That was good.
    He landed, shut down the engines with smooth efficiency, and climbed out of the pilot’s seat. The hatch opened with a hiss. His booted feet hit the hot metal of the landing deck with a ringing boom.
    A new person had arrived, a balding man dressed in heavy robes with Imperial insignia mixed with Neimoidian trappings, standing at the head of the double line of troopers. He looked nervous, but that soon turned to puzzlement as Starkiller strode into view.
    Starkiller realized only then how he must have looked. The flight suit he wore was torn and filthy, thanks to weeks in Vader’s pit and ceaseless combat training. In the former Starkiller’s life, he had had the art of stealth and invisibility drummed into him, but he was in too much of a hurry now to worry about that.
    “I was expecting Lord Vader, ” said the robed man-the potentate himself, judging by the air of authority he thought he radiated.
    Starkiller recognized his voice; he had heard it in a vision on Kamino, saying, “Try the Corellian razor hounds. “
    This was time for neither small talk nor mystical catch-lips.
    “The Jedi, ” Starkiller said. “Where is he?”
    “He’s alive, for the moment. “
    “I asked where he is. “
    The robed man straightened, sensing a challenge. “What are the security codes for this sector?”
    Starkiller ignored the question and kept walking between the double lines of stormtroopers.
    “The security codes!”
    With a rattle of plastoid, the stormtroopers shifted their weapons to point at him. The robed man drew a blaster and aimed with a steady hand.
    The Imperials stood between Starkiller and Kota. With a tightening of his lips that might have been a smile, Starkiller ignited his lightsabers.
    “Kill him!” ordered the potentate, snapping off two precise shots. Starkiller deflected both of them harmlessly into the floor. The troopers opened fire on both sides, and he turned to deflect the incoming blaster bolts. In the corner of his eye, he saw the potentate heading for the turbolift.
    Not so fast, he thought, reaching out to pull the man back.
    The lift doors opened, and a pair of heavily armed troopers emerged, already firing. Pressed on three sides, Starkiller forced himself to forger about the potentate and concentrate on the immediate threats. Blaster bolts ricocheted wildly around him, deflected by his double blades and hitting neck joints, visors, and breathing systems. Missiles from the newly arrived pair peppered him, filling the air with smoke. His Force shield kept the worst of their effects at bay, and he pressed forward, reaching our to telekinetically crush the missile launchers and trigger the remaining charges. With a bright flash and a deafening boom, the last of his obstacles disappeared.
    A powerful excitement thrilled through him. For the