[Galaxy Of Fear] - 02(31)

Boba Fett let him go, and Zak’s weakened legs gave out from under him. Deevee helped him back up. “Deevee, how did you know?”

“I found Evazan’s files,” the droid explained. “And I convinced Boba Fett that you had information he needed. Can you walk?”

“I think so.”

“Good. We must hurry.”

To Zak’s surprise the droid reached down into the coffin. Zak looked down into the hole where he had been buried. The coffin was now full of boneworms wriggling and writhing over one another, searching for the body that had been there-his body. He shuddered.

Deevee pulled out a handful of wriggling boneworms. “We may need these. Let’s go.”

Tash was too shocked to resist when Evazan’s zombie servants dragged her and Uncle Hoole into the hidden chamber, shutting the doors behind them. They were shoved into one of the holding cells, now empty of the zombies that Zak had seen earlier. The door was slammed shut by one of the undead servants. Tash recognized him as Kairn. But she didn’t care. She couldn’t stop thinking about Zak.

They had buried Zak alive.

She could imagine nothing more horrible.

From behind the bars of the cell, Hoole studied the undead creatures. The scientist in him could not help but be impressed. “Astounding. Complete reanimation.” He looked at Evazan. “And you brought yourself back, too, no doubt.”

Unable to resist the urge to gloat, Evazan told Hoole the same things he had told Zak.

“The new version of my serum seems to work quite well,” he added, giving only a small twitch. “My brain functions and memory are fully intact, as are those of my other test subject.” He pointed at Kairn, who guarded the door to the cell. “The serum is now ready for delivery.”

“Delivery?” Hoole asked. “To whom?”

Evazan laughed. “Don’t insult my intelligence, Doctor Hoole! I may like to gloat over my victims, but do you think I would reveal a secret that important, even to the doomed?” He scratched the blackened scars on the right side of his face. “My employer wouldn’t look kindly on that. And I don’t intend to be killed a second time.”

Even as Evazan spoke, the doors to his secret laboratory exploded inward. Everyone except the zombies ducked for cover as debris flew across the room. Evazan dove behind his examination table. Pylum cowered on the floor with his hands over his ears.

When the smoke cleared, Boba Fett stood framed in the doorway. “Evazan. I do not like to repeat myself ” Evazan snapped, “You won’t get the chance. Zombies, destroy him!”

At Evazan’s command the undead creatures turned and lumbered toward Boba Fett. Fett moved with the calm efficiency of a trained professional, leveling his blaster and firing with perfect accuracy. Every shot found a mark, blowing the zombies backward a few meters and knocking them to the ground.

But the zombies slowly picked themselves up and started forward again. Fett fired again, blasting more of the zombies out of reach. Again the zombies ignored the gaping wounds in their undead bodies and charged forward.

In the confusion of smoke and noise, Zak and Deevee slipped past Boba Fett and into the chamber. Since Evazan had ordered them to attack the bounty hunter, the zombies ignored Zak and Deevee.

“What are we going to do?” Zak shouted over the noise of Boba Fett’s blaster. “Boba Fett can’t even stop them.”

Deevee raised his vocal volume up a level and said, “I need to get to Evazan’s equipment. I think I can reverse the process!” He clutched the handful of boneworms to his chestplate.

The equipment-covered table was only seven meters away, but Boba Fett’s blaster fire turned into a frantic laser storm as he fought to keep the zombies at bay. Stray shots flashed across the room to explode against the far walls, shattering many of Evazan’s specimen jars and spilling their slimy contents on the floor. Zak and Deevee had to crawl on their hands and knees to avoid the blaster bolts.

They reached the table, and Deevee immediately dropped the squirming boneworms into a shallow bowl. As they wriggled about, the worms left small slime trails along the glass. Deevee scooped drops of the disgusting liquid out of that bowl and into another, explaining, “Evazan’s files explained the reanimation process. I believe I can reverse it by canceling out the chemical substance in the boneworms.”

From his hiding place behind the examination table, Evazan yelled to Pylum, who lay crouched nearby. “Pylum, stop them!”

“Stop them yourself!” the Master of Cerements screeched. He bolted for the door and slipped out the same way Zak and Deevee had slipped in.