Harry Potter and the Dark Lord of the Sith

Chapter 57.

"Yes, I said closer!" Lando yelled. "Move as close as you can and engage those Star Destroyers at point-blank range!"

Good idea, Hermione thought. "Get as close as you can. They'll be afraid to hit their own fighters."

"Yes, ma'am," Linra'sin replied.

Hermione dropped towards the underside of the nearest Star Destroyer.

"Leader, what about--" Loth called out before Hermione fired a torpedo at her target.

"--tractor beams," Loth finished. "Sorry."

"Focus, Eleven. Come about... now!"

The six fighters behind her moved swiftly, getting back to the topside of the Imperial warship. They saw two Y-wings pursued by TIEs.

The three A-wing pilots in their group accelerated towards the enemy. One of the Y-wings went down. Hermione barely gave it a glance before joining the battle.

She abruptly pulled up, causing one enemy fighter behind her to crash into the Star Destroyer's surface. Lin was having trouble maneuvering with her damage, and she had to blast another off her tail.

"Thanks, ma'am," the Twi'lek said.

XXXXXX

Luke's strike at Palpatine was blocked by Vader. Harry looked towards Mara. Is she still under--

His unspoken question was answered when Mara's attacked Voldemort, getting him to block. Harry smiled and joined the fight.

An idea flashed in his mind. "Reducto!" he shouted, pointing his wand towards Palpatine while using his lightsaber to parry Voldemort's strikes.

He didn't expect it to harm the Emperor, which is why he didn't aim it at him. Instead, he hit the viewport behind the throne, which shattered, opening the room to the vacuum of space. Air began rushing out.

Voldemort was caught in the swirl. Harry grabbed on to one of the steps with one, holding with all his strength. He saw Mara doing the same. Maybe, if they were lucky, Palpatine would be sucked out. He was the closest to that viewport.

XXXXXX

Han, Leia, Jan, and one of the Patil twins were fighting Imperials with their backs to the bunker door. Jan wasn't moving very fast. She must be wounded. Oh, no...

"We've got to get to them!"

"Going to be difficult," Kyle said. "We'll be sitting ducks in that clearing."

"I have an idea. Accio broomsticks!" He raised his wand. There were plenty of broomsticks lying on the ground, left when their unexpected rescue squad disembarked.

"Just do what I do," he told Kyle. He got on the broomstick, leaned forward, and flew across the clearing. Stormtroopers tried to shoot him, but he was too fast. He landed at the door.

"Ron!" Jan cried. "What--"

Kyle managed to launch the broomstick, but couldn't stop. "Immobulus!" he cried, to prevent him from crashing into the bunker. He and Jan quickly got Kyle off the broomstick.

Ron shook his head. "Sorry. We'll make a Quidditch player out of you yet." Kyle grunted and fired his blaster into the forest.

Ron looked at Jan. "You're wounded. Narcosio!" he said, pointing at her arm. "Just something for the pain," he said.

Ron turned to the Patil twin. "Parvati?" he asked, making a guess.

"I'm Padma," she replied. "You did take me to the Yule Ball, you know."

"Sorry." It was at this point that he realized that Padma, Dean, Susan... everyone who arrived at, he had to admit, the most opportune moment, was wearing the same style robes of dark purple, with a pair of half-moon glasses and stitched in gold thread on the left breast. Inside the glasses were two letters: D.A. Dumbledore's Army.

"Protego!" Ron threw up a shield for what must have been the hundredth time today. Padma nodded at him, as he helped strengthen her own block.

She tapped a silver bracelet on her right arm. "Greengrass, where the heck are you?"

"Well, we have one of their mechanical monsters--" a woman's voice came from the bracelet.

"Freeze their leg joints!" Ron shouted.

"Greengrass, do you--"

"Got it!"

"Greengrass?" Ron asked Padma. "Daphne Greengrass?"

"Best door breaker in the Army," Padma replied. "I told her to get over here and help us with this." She pointed at the bunker, where Han was struggling with the wires. "What?"

"She's a Slytherin! Who let her in--"

"I did, Weasley. And yes, I'm certain she doesn't work for You-Know-Who."

"How--"

"Which--" Padma was cut off. "Hey, careful!" she yelled as Jan fired a blaster bolt right between them.

"Sorry," Jan said. The stormtroopers' fire intensified. Ron really didn't know how much longer he could hold out.

Swoosh. Ron and Padma turned back and groaned. Instead of opening the bunker, Han triggered a second blast door.

Padma tapped the bracelet again. "Greengrass!"

"What?" a new voice called out. "I'm here."

Daphne Greengrass got off her broomstick. She was of medium height, and had soft features and short auburn hair.

"Aaaah!" Padma's distraction caused her shield to lapse and she was hit by a blaster bolt in the leg. She fell backwards, but Kyle Katarn caught her.

"Are you--"

"Dammit, I can't keep up the shield this size alone!" Ron shouted.

"Ow!" As if to prove what he just said, a shot got through and hit Leia.

"Oh." Threepio looked at them. "Princess Leia, are you all right?"

"Let's see." Han looked at her.

"Just a few seconds," Greengrass said. She threw several spells at the bunker door, aiming at key points. "This is rather unusual," she commented.

Several stormtroopers ran at them, blasters blazing. He couldn't take his attention off the shield to do anything else. Kyle was helping wounded Padma, Han was doing the same with Leia, Greengrass was trying to open the door...

Jan! He completely forgot about her! She was now at his side, taking out stormtroopers charging them. And despite being wounded in one arm, she was a fantastic shot. The attacking team didn't get withing twenty feet.

When the last Imperial fell, she turned to him. "How are--"

"Watch out," he replied. An Imperial walker had come up, aiming its cannons at them.

"Got it," Greengrass said. "Ready?" She turned to them, and then also saw the walker. "Uh-oh."

The top hatch of the AT-ST opened, and Chewbacca popped out. Ron gasped.

"Chewie!" Han yelled. "Get down here, she's wounded!"