Star Wars - Last Call at the Zero Angle by Jason Fry

Author:Jason Fry
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2015-03-31T23:00:00+00:00

The Nashtahs and Banshees dragged over the one remaining table, gathered the dispersed chairs, and sat down together amid glances of mutual suspicion. Hastur and Akrone ordered a round of drinks.

The muscled Banshee next to Trompo touched his swollen cheek gingerly.

"“They call me Bruiser,”" he said. “"You threw a good punch back there.”"

Trompo looked surprised. "Really? It didn'’t even make you blink. And if you hadn'’t slipped back there, you'’d have flattened my nose.”"

Trompo and Bruiser plunged into an animated conversation about the finer points of brawling, while Olvar waited for a chance to join in and the other pilots looked up at the wall, lost in their private thoughts.

“"My brother’'s on the wall, too,”" Akrone said, pointing.

Hastur located the holo of his old classmate and raised his glass. One by one the others did the same.

"“Now we’'ve got three more Nashtahs to add,"” Essada muttered.

Akrone nodded. “"We lost two pilots at Phindar ourselves. I saw Portocari on the sitrep. It was rough, then?”"

"“It was,”" Hastur said before Essada could speak. “"We were hitting rebel artillery in the hills when we got the call to regroup for a strike on an urban safehouse. The brass said hitting it would prevent house-to-house fighting and civilian casualties.”"

Akrone nodded, listening.

"“The rebs brought down Muller with an anti-air warhead —- she'’s in bacta. Barsay got stitched by a Z-95 inbound to the safehouse -— he'’s dead. We splashed the Skull that killed him, along with its wingmates. Then one of our bombers hit the safehouse. Turned out it was full of munitions —- the blast vaporized both our Dupe and her escort.”"

“"Riggs and Chan,”" Essada said. “"They had names too, you know.”"

"“You think I don’'t remember that?"” Hastur snapped, and Essada lowered his eyes.

Hastur shook his head, finger tracing the rings on the table left by generations of previous drinks. "“Riggs and Chan. We would have opted for a high-altitude run with burrowing warheads if we'’d known.”"

“"They never knew what hit ’'em,"” Trompo said. “"That’'s something at least.”"

"“What are you talking about?"” Essada demanded. "“It’'s nothing. Three pilots dead, and Muller may never fly again. And for what?”"

"“So the intel was bad?"” Akrone asked quickly, mindful of the two Nashtahs glaring at each other.

Hastur shook his head, but his hand went for his drink. “"That's above my pay grade.”"

"“You want to blame someone, Artur?"” Trompo growled at Essada. “"Start with the rebels for once. They claim they'’re fighting for the common people, and now thousands in that city are dead because of what they did.”"

"“That’'s right -— if the brass had learned it was a munitions depot, they’'d have canceled the strike,”" Olvar said.

The Nashtahs and Banshees nodded -— except for Essada.

"“'I’m not sure I believe that any more,”" he said.

“"That’'s rebel talk, Artur,"” Trompo said. “"How many times have I got to tell you I don'’t like hearing it?”"

"“And how long are you going to fly blind?”" Essada asked heatedly, then pointed an accusing finger at Hastur. "“And how long are you going to pretend this isn'’t happening?”"

Chellaine had had enough.

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