The diplomatic cruiser veers off-course to avoid the missiles. Jinn stands behind Marya, who is focused on piloting the craft. His hand rises and he closes his eyes. The first salvo of concussion missiles fired by the cloakship scatters in many directions, some of the warheads being set off in impacts with each other. Marya makes a hard swerve. As the cloakship lets loose another volley of missiles and then closes in for the kill with its keel-mounted turbolaser, Jinn clenches his outstretched hand into a fist. The missiles explode in close proximity to the cruiser, knocking off one of the wings. The dismembered wing strikes the Mandalorian cloak ship, which catches fire and explodes.
Unable to maintain their course towards the starport or even extend the landing gears, Marya crash-lands the cruiser into a barren, sandy area utterly devoid of civilization.
Cut to Alderaan.
Inside the war room of the Royal Palace, General Obi-Wan Kenobi takes his seat at the command chair. He is clad in the traditional plate armor vest and pads of the Jedi Knights, studded leather stretched between the hard blaster-resistant plates. Surrounding him are officers tapping at displays, orbital maps and diagrams displaying predicted avenues of attack. Kenobi orders his number one, Raffe, to provide a situational report. Raffe tells Kenobi that the flagship is protected by a screen of battlecruisers and that the fleet’s trajectory is directed at the Royal Palace; all ground defense cannons are charged and ready for battle and Home Guard fighters are in formation in the upper atmosphere.
Kenobi contacts Bail Organa via hologram. Bail sits on his Throne surrounding by his blue-robed, blaster-armed Custodians. Kenobi tells Bail to join him in taking the secret passage leading from the Royal Palace to the Redoubt in case the clones mount a ground assault on the capital. Bail agrees and switches off the hologram. Kenobi contacts Grant Lars, leader of the Home Guard fighter squadron, who tells his General that the Mandalorian battlecruisers have unsheathed their turbolasers. At the back of Grant's fighter, Cufour chirps an affirmative. The time for battle has come.
To be continued.