Empress Sa T’lak took a deep breath. DART’s manipulator found the correct circuit and the door behind Novax opened with a hiss.

“About time!” Novax’s voice thundered through her headset.

“Meet us in docking bay 4. And don’t dawdle!” she commanded.

“Madame, the shortest r-r-r-route to the ship is b-blocked by Hantorian troops.”

Sa waved an irritated hand in the direction of the droid. “Tell me something I don’t know. Find us a way around them.”

DART took several seconds to calculate a clear path. Sa checked her blaster. It was only half charged. Hopefully they would be able to avoid any trouble. They opened the portal and eyeballed the empty corridor. She flowed toward the next intersection, the droid following in her wake.

She could hear troops running toward the fighting. Novax better keep that Chronocom safe or she would have his head.

As she turned the last corner, she heard a noise behind her.

“Stop right there and drop the blaster!”