"Jedi!"

This time he was able to get the direction of the shout, and he looked over to where Roshton was standing beside his tree. The commander was looking back at him, beckoning frantically toward himself. Frowning, Tories changed direction, lightsaber blazing as he again skirted the droid attack line to the relative safety of the trees. "What is it?" he called as he came within shouting distance of Roshton.

"Didn't you hear me?" Roshton shouted back. 'The Jedi!"

"What about me?" Tories demanded, thoroughly confused now.

"Not you." Roshton jabbed a finger skyward. "The Jedi.

"The Jedi have come."

"The Jedi?" Doriana demanded.

"You got it," Lieutenant Laytron said, a mixture of surprise, hope, and relief in his voice as he peered into the eastern sky.

"A whole assault transport full of them, the message said, heading in to help. We've got orders to pull back and give them room."

"But that's impossible," Doriana objected, watching the other's face carefully. "Where could they have come from?"

But if there was any doubt at all in Laytron's mind, none of it reached his face or voice. "I don't know, and I don't care," the younger man declared.

"All units: pull back. Where?" He tilted his head upward. "Got it," he confirmed, pointing to the sky. Doriana followed the direction of his finger.

There, in the distance, he could see a dark speck moving swiftly toward them.

"Hustle on that pull-back," Laytron ordered. 'They're on their way."

He grinned tightly at Doriana. "Now we're going to see some seri ous work."

Doriana didn't answer. On the near edge of the rooftop the clone troopers had made it back to their ascent lines and were sliding back down them toward the waiting landspeeders. The approaching air vehicle was growing steadily larger, and he could see now that it was indeed a Republic assault transport.

And as it grew closer, it opened fire.