Alicorns: The Clone Wars

Chapters

Chapter 2: Muunilinst
Extra: Jedi Knight
Chapter 4: Christophsis
Chapter 5: Teth Pt. 1
Chapter 6: Teth Pt. 2
Extra: 99's
Chapter 7: Ryloth Pt. 1
Chapter 8: Ryloth Pt. 2
Chapter 9: Massacre on Felucia
Chapter 10: The Zillo Beast
Extra: Making Amends
Chapter 11: Point Rain I
Chapter 12: Point Rain II
Chapter 13: Weapons Factory
Chapter 14: Incident TB-73
Chapter 15: Endurance Saboteur
Chapter 16: Hostage
Chapter 17: Defense of Kamino
Chapter 18: Mimban Killing Grounds
Extra: Partying with the Commander
Extra: Files
Extra: New Armor
Chapter 19: Darkness on Umbara
Chapter 20: The General
Chapter 21: Plans of Dissent
Chapter 22: Carnage of Krell Part 1
Chapter 1: Foerost
Chapter 3: Ambush on Yavin IV
Extra: Traitor
Extra: The Old Breed

Chapter 2: Muunilinst

Clone Wars: Day 67
Coruscant: Clone Barracks

More paperwork, one of the banes of being an officer in the Republic Army. Luna dreaded it whenever she had to do paperwork, she could never understand how her older sister thought it was “therapeutic.” These papers were reports that needed to be filed after the recent battle of Fresia. Seperatist forces attempted to invade the planet, but elements of Army Group 2 managed to push them back and destroy their fleet. It was a swift victory, but there was still the task of documenting everything, especially since the battle required support from local resistance and the Senate demanded an answer as to why. Luna rolled her eyes, she wasn’t one for politics, but she hated the Senate, with their misguided attempts at controlling the Clone Army. With a sigh, she placed the last signed paper on the pile, glad to finally be able to go back to her room and get some much deserved sleep.

Before she could stand up, the door to her office opened and one of her troopers stepped in. It was one of her lieutenants, Knave. He saluted casually as he approached the desk.

“Captain.”

“Lieutenant.” Luna responded with the same casual salute. “What brings you here, if it’s more paperwork, then consider yourself fe-”

“General Kenobi just sent out marching orders.” Luna’s eyes widened. She wasn’t expecting to be back in the field so soon. “Where? Another attack?”

Knave shook his head. “Negative, we’re going on the offensive, ma’am. Muunilinst.”

The 501st stood tall and proud as their brothers from the 212th marched onto the Acclamator. The sound of thousands of armored boots stomping on the ground nearly drowned out the roar of the starship’s engines. AT-TEs followed closely behind the infantry battalions, along with the regiment of SPHAs that were to be used in the attack. Luna spotted her younger sister, Captain Cadence and her Ghost Company marching ahead of the artillery section. The midnight blue alicorn hoped she was doing better. The memory of seeing her on the ground, screaming as her vision was burned away by a lightsaber, replayed over and over again in her mind. She stayed with Cadence until her eyes were replaced with cybernetic ones. Since then, they haven’t seen each other much.

The 212th and 501st were usually placed in separate areas of combat, with Commander Skywalker leading the 501st in battle while General Kenobi would coordinate with the rest of their forces.

Once the last SPHA squadron passed her company, she turned her head and ordered. “Company, column left, march!” She turned her head forward and marched out, turning left onto the pathway. Her troopers quickly followed, marching in perfect sync. The next company followed behind hers, then a platoon of AT-TEs, followed by two more clone companies. They marched toward the Acclamator, parading down the pathway.

The massive ship was the main transport/cruiser of the Republic Army. Not as strong or as big as a Venator Class, but was great for actually landing on planets. Coruscant was currently working creating specialized landing zones for the Venators, but until that happens, the ships would have to be loaded through transfers via gunships. Considering the fact that the entirety of Army Group 2 was being deployed to the planet, it was deemed simpler to just used the Acclamators as transport ships.

Once the Company marched into the hangar, they stood at attention in formation as the rest of the 501st boarded the cruiser. Once the rest of the troops and equipment were aboard, the door closed and the clones felt the ship lift slowly into the upper atmosphere. Some nearly fell when the ship jerked against the planet’s gravity, earning a few chuckles from their fellow troopers.

“Battalion, dismissed!” Came the order. Luna about faced and gave the order.

“Company, fall out!” The troops stood tall before dispersing to separate areas of the hangar, while the alicorn marched away to the briefing that General Kenobi was preparing to hold.

Cadence overlooked the battle plan as the General explained each step. There was to be a massive assault which would drive the enemy forces into the open, where the SPHAs would then be able to pummel them with a constant barrage, which would cover the troops as they advance into the outskirts of the city.

The 212th would attack the left flank while the 501st charged the left. The center was going to be held by General Voolvif Monn’s 203rd Storm Brigade. The youngest Alicorn looked over at the Shistavanen wolfman, who stood in silence as Kenobi explained his role.

At the same time, a squad of ARCs led by Captain Fordo would infiltrate the city, take out the main artillery battery at the base of the enemy’s HQ tower, and await the General’s arrival before capturing the base and forcing the Banking Clan to surrender. Once Kenobi leaves, General Monn will lead the attack into the city and destroy as many active droids as possible before the units are shut down by the Clan.

It was bold, everything had to go right or it would turn into a slugfest. Cadence just hoped the Clan would surrender quickly. She turned her head to see her sister, Captain Luna, studying the map like a hawk. Luna lost a lot of troops on Geonosis, and while it was a victory, Luna did not take her losses lightly. Cadence’s men were lucky, they only lost about a squad’s worth of men during the battle, and most of them were from the Arena assault.

But Cadence still remembered what she lost that day, as her cybernetic eyes clicked when she blinked.

“Study this map and prepare your men.” Kenobi ordered before looking toward the ARC Captain. “Fordo, gather your team, I wish to speak with them.” The ARC nodded silently before pressing a button on his wrist comms. After a few seconds, the two left, leaving the Clone Officers alone to go over their strategy once more.

“This is bold.” One clone said.

“But it’ll work, the General hasn’t let us down yet.” Another one argued.

“True, but this is too much like Geonosis.” Luna stated, silencing the room. Most of the clones were there on the frontline, and those that weren’t saw the casualty lists. The one thing no clone wanted to see again was a death toll that high.

“We must take caution.” Luna continued. “I suggest our armor take the brunt of the assault, and we use the hills as cover for the gunships to avoid their anti-air defenses. We hold the line until those heavy guns arrive. Once they begin their barrage, we advance slowly.”

“What’s our ROE?” Cadence asked.

“The city is abandoned, it’s only purpose now is to serve as a shield for their factories and as a way to hide from invading forces. So we are allowed to level the city if need be. Any further questions?” None. “Then let’s brief the troops and the pilots.”

Acclamator Hangar Bay

Captain Luna stepped into the hangar bay, a question for General Kenobi on her mind. All around her, troopers and pilots were preparing for the attack. Some of the shinier troopers conducted drill to pass the time, others made sure their weapons were clean and primed, and a select few were playing cards inside a parked gunship.

She looked around to find the Jedi General talking to his padawan, who was performing maintenance on his personal fighter. Luna then remembered that Commander Skywalker was put in charge of the space forces for the assault. Rumors among the troopers spread, most were about the fact that Kenobi argued against it, but the Chancellor overruled the decision. As the alicorn approached the two Jedi, she could faintly make out the conversation over the noise of the busy hangar.

“... I’ve argued this before, but the decision has been made.” Luna winced as she heard the sternness in his voice. General Kenobi was a generally fair and friendly man, but when he was angered or annoyed, it was ugly to witness. “May the Force Be With You… Commander.”

With that, the General walked away, ignoring Luna, who watched him go before turning to the padawan; Anakin sighed before turning back to his work. The dark blue alicorn frowned, then walked over to the Commander.

“Master, I just want to…” Skywalker turned to see Captain Luna standing behind him, rather than Master Kenobi. Somewhat embarrassed, the padawan looked away for a second.

“Sorry, sir, I’m not General Kenobi.” The alicorn smiled slightly. “But I can offer some advice.” Anakin raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. “Trust your instincts. I relied on them more often than not, and it hasn’t led me astray yet.”

Skywalker didn’t say anything, he just stared at the trooper as if she had just declared herself a Jedi, which she sounded like when she gave that piece of advice. With a cough, the Jedi padawan nodded his head.

“Thank you, Captain, I shall take it into consideration.” With that, he turned back to his fighter. Luna laughed a little at the semi-bland delivery of the response. Commander Skywalker was not known for being gracious to others, especially when out in the open as he was.

Luna fought alongside the Commander since his recovery after Geonosis, fighting in skirmishes has formed a small bond between them. One that she hoped would last, as Skywalker was one of the few Jedi Luna felt she could trust. She gave the Commander a pat on the shoulder before walking away, once again beginning her search for the General.

Muunilist: Orbit

The massive fleet appeared out of hyperspace, the planet Muunilist rotated slowly below them. In front of the fleet, however, was a massive array of Banking Clan Orbital Defense Towers. Vulture droids were immediately launched, the clone fighters charged forward to meet them. At the front of the fighter attack group, was Commander Skywalker.

“All Squadrons to me.” He ordered. The two swarms clashed, the fighters beginning their own personal duels for dominance.

As the fighters engaged, the Acclamators flew closer to the planet before unleashing their cargo from the hangars. Hundreds of gunships raced to the planet below, quickly breaking through the upper atmosphere. The gunships dove down until they neared the ground, the bottom of the transports barely scratching the surface. Mountains towered over them as they sped through the valleys.

Inside one gunship, Captain Cadence readied her blaster. “ARC Troopers, deploy!” Came the order from General Kenobi.

“Yes sir.” Cadence watched the specially marked gunship bank left before flying away from the main force. The blast doors opened up, allowing the wind to blow freely through the ship. The gunships crested the hill and the city came into view. Cadence stuck her head out of the ship to see the city ahead.

From the city came a storm of anti-air missiles.

“Evasive action!” Gunships scattered to avoid the projectiles, some were not able to maneuver in time, many being consumed in fireballs. Shrapnel from one such explosion slammed into the engine of Cadence’s gunship, knocking many of the troopers off their feet. Two troopers fell from the gunship, their screams echoing through the squad comms. Cadence tried to use her magic to catch them, but the ship was moving to fast for her to see them. Two crunches were heard through the radio before static buzzed. It was quickly silenced.

The damaged gunship managed to land on the ground, its left engine coughing up black smoke through the exhaust. Ahead of them was a massive droid army coming to greet them. Cadence and her men launched themselves from the gunship, joining the rest of the 212th in their charge into the droid lines. More missiles were launched, destroying several gunships above. The Battle of Muunilinst had begun.

Luna jumped from the gunship before it touched the ground. As she did so, several LAAT/c’s lowered to the ground and dropped the AT-TEs from their magnetic hooks. The slow moving walkers immediately opened fire at the mass of droids advancing on their position. AATs and Hailfires fired back, destroying one walker, and damaging another.

A trooper to her right goes down with a scream as a blaster bolt rips through his shoulder. Luna catches the trooper before he could hit the ground. She took one look at the burn on his armor before placing her ear on his chest. The trooper’s heart was still beating, and he was still breathing.

“Medic!” She called. “I need a medic here!” She looked around the mass of troops charging across the open ground. Among the troopers, she saw two familiar medics assisting an injured gunner.

“Kix! Radar!”

The two medics looked to her position, then quickly spoke to each other. About five seconds later, Radar stood up and ran to her position. He jumped over craters, ducked under blaster bolts, and weaved his way through the sea of clones charging forward. He slid the last few feet on his knees to avoid a blaster bolt aimed for his head.

“Where’s he hit?”

“The right shoulder.” Radar took a quick look, and nodded.

“Alright, I’ll take care of him.” Luna sighed in relief.

“Thank you, Radar.” She was about to move on when the medic spoke up again.

“And Captain… Never make me do that again.” He said sarcastically. Luna smiled under the helmet, then moved on. Radar watched her go before getting to work. “Alright, buddy, let’s get ya bacta’d up.”

Cadence ducked under a torrent of blaster fire, two troopers that were behind her stood no chance as the bolts ripped through their chests. She quickly used her magic to drag them into the cover before a medic looked at each of them, then shook his head. The alicorn sighed, then reloaded her blaster.

She looked back to see her company finding what cover they could. Most of the AT-TEs were still functioning, but their pace was slow as AAT cannon fire grew thick. A stray shot impacted the top turret of a walker, destroying the gun and vaporizing the trooper operating it. Another blast wiped out a squad of troopers out in the open.

Cadence had to think of something fast before her unit was annihilated. They needed air support. She activated her comlink. “This is Captain Cadence calling any available gunships.”

“This is Wing 5, Captain. Whatcha need?”

“I need airstrikes on enemy armor at coordinates 700, 990, Marker 9, over.”

“Understood, Captain. Making our attack run.”

The alicorn looked up to see two sets of missiles sail over the battlefield, impacting into tanks and droid squads. A few seconds later, the gunships flew over the frontline, and opened up with their blasters and beam cannons. Droids and tanks were cut apart by the oncoming fire. Cadence watched for an opening, and grinned when she found it.

She turned to her troopers. “Follow me, boys!” She charged forward, blasting at the droids that were still in front of her.

“Come on!” “Go go go!” “Eat this clankers!” were the shouts of the troopers of the 212th as they charged forward, their slow moving walkers advancing behind them, providing cover fire.

Cadence quickly closed the distance between her troops and the remaining droid units, forcing the gunships to back off in fear of friendly fire. She blasted three droids before slamming her gun into another, lifting a fifth into the air, and smashing it into two more. The fight turned into a one sided melee as the 212th fought their way through the thin lines of B1s and B2s. A trooper to her left is smacked in the head by a B2 armed with a grenade launcher. Before she could stop it, it fires into a group of clones, sending them flying through the air. She fired at the droid several times to make sure it went down, then continued her assault.

The droid lines crumbled under the clone onslaught, and the remaining forces fell back to the city limits.

General Kenobi watched the battle from his makeshift command post. The post was a group of parked gunships set up in a small circle to act as security, as well as a way to quickly move troops and provide air support. It would make due as the portable command post was still being set up by the engineer squad.

Obi-Wan watched as the 212th broke through on the right flank, then turned his attention to the left. He could see the 501st making a steady advance, but the amount of wounded troops being brought to the rear gave the Jedi a pretty good idea of how costly it was becoming. The center was already on the outskirts of the city, so overall, the battle was going well. Once the artillery batteries were ready, it would go even better.

But he was still worried about his padawan. Anakin had never commanded troops before, and while he was highly skilled, he was brash and quick to temper. If he became too focused on a dogfight, it could cost him and his squadrons.

Obi-wan would just have to trust his student, and hope the Force would guide him well.

Luna ducked as a string of bolts impacted her cover. Gunships flew overhead to provide support, but it was still slow going. The droids had set up several positions inside the city, turning the buildings into fortresses. The AT-TEs didn’t have the range to effectively take them out. She needed that artillery support, and she needed it now.

“Captain Luna, report.” Came the voice of General Kenobi over the comms channel. With a groan, she activated her headset radio.

“General, my unit is pinned down. The droids are using the buildings as cover and we cannot advance. I need priority artillery support, over.”

“Understood, Captain. The batteries have just landed, they’ll be ready shortly.”

Thank the Force for that. “Understood, General. We’ll hold position until support is ready, out.” She deactivated her comms, and turned to her troops.

“Don’t worry, boys. The big guns are here!” She activated her commlink. “This is Captain Luna, I need fire support at coordinates 770,991 Marker 7, over.”

“Understood, Captain. Heavy rounds inbound.”

“Get your heads down!” Luna shouted as the sound of heavy blasters filled the air. The troopers dove for the ground as the massive plasma round impacted the buildings in front of them. It was a hurricane of rounds that impacted the building, within seconds the once great structure crumbled, effectively eliminating the targets inside. Dust kicked up, creating a chalky fog that fell over the clones. Luna groaned before standing again.

“Alright, let’s move out!” She ordered. “Get the wounded back to the landing site. I need those walkers moving at the double. Troopers stay behind them, use them for cover!” The troopers got up and followed orders. Some went with the medics to assist the wounded while the rest took cover next to the AT-TEs that were still able to move.

A platoon of troopers moved up to Captain Luna, who then turned to her company and their AT-TE escort.

“Alright, let’s move!” She about faced and marched forward toward the city. The rest of the company followed quickly behind, marching toward the city.

Cadence smirked at the sight before her. Her troops had reached the city limits, and were engaging in street fighting. Thankfully, the streets were massive, which allowed for the walkers to easily move in and support the advance. The constant artillery barrage helped too, wiping out entire squads of droids and tanks with ease. She ordered her troops to halt, wanting to consolidate her troops before advancing further into the city.

She set up a small Command Post on top of a rubble pile that was once a building, which gave her a near perfect view of the city in front of her. Droid troops stood in front of a massive smoke cloud, creating from a clump of burning tanks. The smoke obscured everything behind it, but that didn't deter the alicorn.

"I want all squads to advance through the smoke, we need to get into the city center as quickly as possible."

Watching the battle on a holotable were several members of the Banking Clan. The Muuns watched in horror as their troops were being pushed back into the city.

“Those guns are destroying our forward positions.” One pointed out. “The Republic is breaking through!” The building suddenly shook as a loud explosion echoed through the chamber. The Clan members looked around in shock as the shaking grew violent. When it finally stopped, realization kicked in.

“Sir, our cannon at the base of the tower has been destroyed!”

“Their range is greater than we thought.”

“It must be their artillery!”

“What are we going to do? What are we going to do?!” The leading member shouted. He turned to a bulking figure standing in the shadows, and pointed an accusing finger at him. “I don’t know why Dooku sent you here if all you’re going to do is stand arou-” His rant was interrupted by an armored hand wrapping around his long neck.

“I mean…” He choked out. “Whenever you’re ready.”

The armored creature growled before marching away, dropping the Muun to the floor.

Durge growled as he approached the hangar. How dare the little creature talk to him in that manner. He was Durge, the deadliest bounty hunter in the Galaxy. It was a title he was proud of and now he was going to prove it to those fools cowering in their tower.

He entered the hangar bay, where several rows of IG units sat on speeder bikes. Their engines revved as their leader approached. He sat down on his personal, activated the engine, and grabbed the lance offered by one of the IG units.

The Gen’Dai revved his engine, then flew from the hangar, past the remains of the tower cannon, and charged toward the large column of smoke.

Pops marched forward with the rest of his squad, making their way through the thick smoke that obscured the city in front of them. The rest of the 212th were already engaging on the other side, quickly wiping out any and all Droid units. His troopers quickly walked through the smoke, and the sight in front of them brought back memories. Lines of troopers and AT-TEs charged forward into a massive line of droids. But the clones were taking advantage of their experience, and were crouching low and using the walkers for cover.

The clone sergeant urged his men forward and the squad quickly joined the fray. One of his troopers readied a rocket launcher as an AAT came into view. The trooper aimed at the droid tank, fired, and scored a direct hit. The tank exploded into a fireball, blasting away several nearby droids in the process. Pop was about to congratulate him when something appeared from the smoke. A line of IG units on speeder bikes charged forward, their lances lowered. Pops watched in horror as the droids charged into the clone ranks, running dozens of them down. He aimed his rifle and fired erratically in a vain attempt to stop the charge. Two other troopers did the same, only to be run down by a pair of IG units. He watched them go flying into the air and land with hard thuds several feet away. He continued to fire his blaster to avenge them, never seeing the lance aimed for his back.

The IG unit was about to hit its target when a bolt found home in its head. The action sent the droid veering right past Pops, who stared in shock as the speeder crashed into a pile of rubble.

He then turned to the trooper who fired the shot. The trooper was firing at other targets before being impaled by another IG droid’s lance. Pops watched as the trooper’s corpse was carried for several dozen feet before the droid lowered its lance, allowing the body to slide off the weapon and roll several more feet.

Pops ran for the trooper, being weary of anymore speeder bikes. He kneeled down next to the trooper and examined him. His armor was punctured. Blood poured from the massive gaping wound. Pops nearly vomited when he saw the ground through the hole in the clone’s chest.

Cadence watched the smoke through her binoculars. She heard several explosions and blaster fire, when her comms net was suddenly bombarded with cries of panic and agony. She had no time to decipher what any of it meant before spotting something in the smoke. In an instant, hordes of IG units on speeders charged through, and began cutting down the troopers caught in the open.

The alicorn’s eyes widened before she grabbed her blaster and began firing. The rest of the troopers hiding in the rubble did the same, but the droids proved to be too fast for them. Cadence could only watch as entire squads were run down by the droids. She turned her attention to the droid leading the charge. It looked distinctive compared to the others. She opened fire on the droid, unleashing a full auto barrage on the target.

Durge looked back, slightly annoyed at the terrible attempt to kill him. He aimed one of his pistols at the four legged clone and fired three shots before turning back to driving.

Cadence continued to fire, until three blaster bolts hit her in the leg, the chest, and the wing. She went down with a cry of pain, however a trooper caught her before she could fall off the rubble.

“Loop, get over here!” The trooper shouted. A clone medic ran up and immediately went to work.

Sergeant Hardlight of Carnivore Company sighed. His company has been ordered to stay behind and guard the artillery. The captain may have been fine with hanging back, but not him. He wanted action. Why bother carrying a Z-6 if he wasn’t going to use it to blaster droids? There was no way the droids were going to get through, not when the 501st was attacking.

“On the right!” A trooper shouted. “Incoming!” Never mind, he was wrong. The sergeant turned to his squad.

“Get ready, boys!” He revved up the rotary cannon and aimed to the right. Through the smoke that obscured their right flank came a large line of IG units on speeder bikes!

“Oh kriff!” Hardlight shouted as the droids quickly closed in. Before he could order his squad to open fire, the droids began sweeping the artillery camp. Their lances scraped the repulsor engines of the artillery tanks, causing massive explosions that were disintegrating the massive vehicles. Hardlight and his squad opened fire.

The troopers did their best, but the speeders were simply too fast for them to hit. Hardlight tried to aim ahead, as they had been trained to do with fighter attacks, but the targets were a lot smaller than Vulture droids.

The clone sergeant turned to see his captain firing from a small dugout position. The captain aimed at two IG units that were charging right for him. He hit one, but the other reached him too quickly. Hardlight watched as his captain was lifted into the air, impaled on the lance, before his body was dropped back into the dugout.

“Dammit! Take cover!” He shouted to his squadmates. “We need to-” A loud clunk caught his attention, then rapid beeping made his eyes widen. He and his squad dove for cover as a massive explosion engulfed the SPHA. The explosion also engulfed three of Hardlight’s troopers who screamed as the fire consumed them.

Hardlight could only watch as his brothers were consumed in fire, screaming as they were boiled alive in their armor. His mind flashed back to Geonosis, and the brothers he lost in the same gruesome manner.

Dammit. Not again.

Obi-Wan watched the battle begin to crawl. Why had the artillery stopped firing? He never gave an order to cease fire.

“General Kenobi, our cannons are being destroyed!” Well, that answers that question. Kenobi turned his attention to the massive fire where his cannons used to be. He watched as the camp was in chaos. Troopers were scattering, IG units were running them down, artillery vehicles were blowing up, and an armored figure was leading the attack. With a glare, the Jedi lowered his binoculars. There was only one thing he could do.

“Mount up.” He ordered.

“Yes sir.”

Luna ducked behind her cover as a droid turret hit her position. “Dammit. What happened to my artillery support?!” The alicorn watched as an AT-TE was hit by a rocket. She followed the trail to a four story building. She gave the location to a rocket trooper, who fired his own rocket into the building.

Troopers were pinned down behind cover as the droids used more buildings as defensive positions. The captain had to think of something fast before her company was completely bogged down. A rifleman to her right was hit in the leg. Luna pulled him back before a second shot could finish him off. Radar immediately went to work on the clone.

“Well, ain’t this a fine mess, ma’am?” He joked as he worked on the trooper’s wound.

Luna sighed. “I just want to know what happened to my support, we need to break through.” She looked over to observe the battlefield in front of her.

Three walkers stood in a line to cover the infantry, their turrets fired at anything and everything that moved within the buildings. Clones huddled behind cover, occasionally making a brave move to a new location or firing at a droid they spot out in the open. Medics dragged dead and wounded troopers away from the fighting before treating them.

Luna looked back at the three AT-TEs that were lined up, and idea forming in her head. She ran up to the tanks, dodging the blaster fire that came her way. She jumped on top of the middle AT-TE and turned to her company. Her brothers watched her in awe and fear as she stood tall on the walker, never flinching at the blaster bolts hitting her spot.

“Troopers, to me!” She called out. “We’ve got to break through and take this city. The ARCs are counting on us meeting with them at that control tower! Our brothers are counting on us!” She opened her wings and readied her blaster. “Now follow me, brothers!” She then jumped from the tank and ran toward the building. A droid gunner spotted her approach and aimed at the alicorn. Before it could fire, however, a blue bolt slammed into its head, knocking it clean off.

Troopers jumped from their cover and made a beeline for the nearest buildings. The fighting in the streets quickly changed into room by room engagements. If a room was too tough to take, the AT-TEs would annihilate them with their main cannons before advancing up the street.

Luna jumped through an open window into a room full of droids. Before they could react, she unleashed a full auto barrage from her carbine, quickly taking out them out. She then ran into the next room and repeated the process, and again, and again, and again until the floor was devoid of enemy troops.

Once the last droid was destroyed, she took a deep breath to calm herself. It was after she exhaled that her ears picked up on something. It sounded like… speeders?

The alicorn looked out of the nearby window to see a swarm of speeders approaching her from the rear. They were clone lancers. But why were they being deployed? She looked the lancers to the direction from which they came, and saw a huge column of smoke rising into the air. She took out her binoculars to see what was left of the artillery camp.

“So that’s what happened.” She said solemnly.

Hardlight groaned as his vision returned. The screams of wounded troopers echoed in his ears. The very first thing he could see was his helmet, charred in some areas, and a piece of the visor was broken off. The trooper attempted to get up, but pain in his back kept him on the ground. A clone medic ran over and immediately checked him over. Once he performed a medical check, he called over two more troopers.

“I need a stretcher!” Hardlight tried to lift his head, but the medic kept it down. After a few seconds, the sergeant felt himself being lifted up, and sudden fatigue forced him to close his eyes once more.

Loop finished placing the ointment bandages on Captain Cadence’s wounds. The alicorn of the 212th was still unconscious, but she was alive at the very least. The medic sighed as he finally had a chance to catch his breath. He felt a hand on his shoulder, forcing him to look at who it was. It was Pops, one of the few surviving members of the speeder bike attack. The fatherly clone kneeled down to match Loop’s level.

“How is she, kid?”

“S-she’s okay, sir.” He said, stuttering slightly. “Just, just a bit banged up. The armor took, took most of the damage.” Pops gave him a soft pat on the back before turning to look at him.

“We got other wounded that need care, kid. I’d get to it, I’ll watch over the Captain.” Loop looked at him before nodding and getting up to help the other clones.

Pops watched him go before looking back at Cadence. He remembered the last time he saw the alicorn like this. It was back on Kamino.

CT-9095 was overlooking the training of his company, including an unusual trooper. She wasn’t like him or his brothers, as she was cloned from a different host. While they host was top secret, the fact that she was different from them was not.

He watched as she struggled to fit in with the others, always the odd trooper out. At first, 9095 didn’t care. If a clone couldn’t do what they were made to do, why bother with them. She would only slow them down. But after seeing her determination, including spending extra hours in the training simulator, spending hours on a single scenario until she got it right, it made him realize that she wasn’t as different as he thought.

So he made it his goal to not only train her better, but also help her fit in with the others. He taught her Mando’a, how to play cards, how to talk to others, and how to be a leader. She obviously took those lessons to heart, as by the time the 212th was formed, she was selected to be the company commander, and not a single clone objected.

Later that night, as the rest of the company was going to sleep after a long night of partying, 9095 put his armor away in his locker. A near silent cough caught his attention, making him turn to see Cadence standing behind him. He saluted quickly.

“Captain.” The alicorn giggled.

“At ease, sergeant.” She then sat down on the bench, motioning for him to do the same.

“I just want to thank you, for everything.” 9095 was slightly surprised. He didn’t actually expect troopers to thank him. With a cough, he spoke.

“Cadence, I only got you started.”

“Bantha Osik.” She said, surprising the clone further. “You helped me fit in, far more than you know. So just take the appreciation, Pops.”

9095 raised an eyebrow. “Pops? I’m only a year older than you.” Cadence shrugged.

“The whole company calls you that, Pops. You’re like a father to a lot of us, I just take it a little more literally.”

Pops. He could get used to that name, especially if the whole company called him that when he wasn’t around. It actually rolled off the tongue rather well.

Pops smiled at the memory, then gently stroked the alicorn’s hair. “Don’t worry, little vod. Pops is here.”

General Kenobi stepped out of the Base Tower, the ARCs and Banking Clan prisoners in tow. He was half expecting to fight his way out, but was genuinely surprised to see the 501st camping around the area. The city was quiet, almost too quiet. He marched out into the open to see Captain Luna waiting for him. She stood tall and saluted.

“General, the Tower Square is secure. All droid forces are being pushed back to the very center of the city. The Storm Brigade is advancing while the 212th and 501st consolidate.”

Kenobi nodded. “Excellent, then all we need to do is get the Clan to officially surrender.”

“Yes sir.” Luna then raised an eyebrow. “And sir, if I may ask… why are you soaking wet?”

Obi-Wan sighed. Memories of that creature devouring him were still as fresh as the liquid covering his body.

“It’s a long story, captain.” A loud explosion suddenly echoed throughout the city. “What was that?”

Luna looked around, none of her troopers had fired, and the area was cleared over an hour ago. “I don’t know, General.” In an instant, a strange ship flew over their heads. Luna ducked her head as the fighter flew over.

“That’s not one of ours.” Kenobi pointed out.

“No, General.” A second fighter flew overhead, one both the Jedi and alicorn recognized.

“That was Anakin!”

“Yes, General.”

Obi-Wan activated his wrist comm. “Anakin, come in.” The two fighters had a quick dogfight in the air before the rogue fighter dipped back toward the ground. Luna watched as Skywalker’s fighter followed it down.

“Scatter!” The troopers ran for cover as the Jeci opened fire on the fighter. The shots missed and instead impacted the ground around Kenobi and Luna.

“You’re supposed to be in space, leading our forces.” He said calmly, as if his padawan didn’t just fire high energy blasts at him. The two fighters continued to fight, destroying several buildings in the process.

“Under control?! I don’t think so. You’re place is with your squadrons, Young One. Not-” He ducked as the two fighters once again flew over his head.

“Not chasing one ship through the city streets!” After another burst of plasma, the two fighters took to the air, becoming specs in the eyes of the troopers.

“Anakin, I am also sensing something strange, but you must let that ship go, it’s baiting you.” As the call went through, Luna watched with her monocular helmet attachment. The two ships flew off into space. They were going to jump. Luna quickly activated her coordinate map, and activated the emergency tracker beacon on the jedi’s starfighter. Every ship had a beacon that could be activated by troopers on the ground. It was incase any ships were stolen and the troopers who witness it could quickly track it if it escapes.

“Do not follow that ship. Anakin do you hear me?! Do not follow that ship! That is an order! Anakin!” Kenobi was frantic now. His padawan refused to listen to him, and he feared the young Jedi was falling into a trap.

“Padawan, if you-” The signal cut as the fighter jumped into Hyperspace. Kenobi glared at the spot where Skywalker’s fighter once was before turning to Luna.

“Do you have the coordinates?”

Luna nodded. “Yes, General.”

“Take a squad and follow him.”

Luna hailed over a squad of her best troopers, twelve in all. Once that was done, she had a Consular Class cruiser pick up the squad. The pilots were quick to punch in the coordinates. It lead to the Yavin System, more specifically, the Fourth Moon of Yavin.

Why would the fighter bring him there? It must’ve been an elaborate trap if the Commander was being led so far away from any battlefields.

Luna had a bad feeling grow in her chest as the cruiser launched into orbit and jumped to Hyperspace.

Author's Note

Another Chapter Complete. Answer me this?
- Who was in that fighter?
- Where have we seen Yavin IV before?
- Will Anakin and Luna survive their encounter?

Extra: Jedi Knight

Anakin Skywalker was not in a good mood. After returning to Coruscant after Muunilinst, he was hoping to spend some time with his wife, Padme Amidala. The Jedi and the Senator were married in secret, as Jedi were forbidden from falling in love, let alone get married. They were forced to meet in secret, in the lowly street of Coruscant, rather same at her home, safe and in private.

Unfortunately, just as he was ready to take her back to her apartment to spend the night, he was hailed back to the Jedi Temple by the Council. It angered him to no end. Why must he keep his love a secret? Why must he be in love in the first place? Why? Why? Why? The one question he keeps asking, and he knew he would never get an answer.

He approached the Council Chamber, then stopped as a hooded Obi-Wan Kenobi turned to face him.

“Anakin, you’re late.” He scolded. The padawan groaned and rolled his eyes. He was used to this, probably more than any Jedi padawan in history. “When the Council summons you, it is of great importance.”

“If I’m late for another scolding, what’s the difference?”

“Scolding? You’re not a little boy anymore.” Kenobi stated. “But when the Council summons you, you must show respect.” Anakin’s eyes narrowed as his mind raced. He wasn’t a little boy anymore, yet the Council still treated him as such. He wanted to be respected, to be equal to the other Jedi Knights that were just as powerful as he was. Who worked just as hard as he had.

“You’re right, I’m not a little boy anymore.” Skywalker growled, then turned. “And you’re no Qui-Gon Jinn!” Anakin stopped himself from continuing when he saw the look of hurt on his master’s face. His anger was gone, replaced by guilt and shame. First, his impulsive behavior got a squad of troopers killed, a friend injured, and now he just landed a low blow against the man who agreed to raise and train him when the rest of the Council simply wanted to cast him aside. His face fell, and he looked away.

“I’m… sorry.” Obi-Wan lowered his hood, a sad smile on his face.

“I know, I miss him too.” The older master did what he always did to comfort his padawan. He placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, and gave him a smile he always carried. “I promised him that I would train you and you have become a better Jedi than he hoped you would be. But our time as Master and Student must come to an end. It was time we became… Brothers.”

Anakin raised an eyebrow. Was Obi-Wan being reassigned? “Master?” Obi-Wan said nothing, he simply gestured toward the door leading to the Council Chamber. The padawan cautiously stepped through the door into a dark room. He walked to where he remembered the center of the room was. The door closed behind him, leaving him in pitch black.

The darkness was quickly extinguished by a circle of lightsabers surrounding the padawan. He looked around, a smile forming on his face. He turned to his former master, who shared the same proud smile.

“Kneel, Padawan Skywalker.” Yoda commanded. Anakin did so without hesitation. Yoda lowered his lightsaber over his right shoulder.

“By the Wisdom of the Council.”

He moved the blade to his left shoulder. “By the Will of the Force.”

The Master moved the saber back to the right. “Dub thee, I do… Jedi.” with a flick of his wrist, the braid of the padawan was removed.

“Knight of the Republic.” Anakin Skywalker stood proud as he was no longer a padawan, he was now a Jedi Knight.

General Anakin Skywalker marched into the hangar of the Venator, where his new unit awaited him. Standing in rows along the length of the hangar was the 501st battalion. All of the officers stood in their own group, saluting as their new general approached.

“Commander Appo.” The clone lowered his hand as the Jedi acknowledged him. The other captains did the same.

“General Skywalker, sir.” Skywalker looked at each of the clone officers under his command. The line of captains specifically. He spotted Luna immediately. She wasn’t hard to spot. With a nod to Appo, he walked up to the alicorn, who saluted as he approached.

“General.”

“Captain.” Skywalker immediately turned his gaze to the new cybernetic wings, guilt returning in an instant. Luna quickly noticed and attempted to regain his attention.

“Sir.” His eyes went back to her face. She points to the clone captain standing next to her. Anakin turns to inspect him. The clone was wearing the standard captain outfit, with some noticeable differences. He was marked in spotted blue rather than the full blue lines. He had a kama wrapped around his waist with blue outlines, which almost hid the dual DC-17 pistols in their holsters.

“This is Captain Rex of Torrent Company, sir.” Luna continued. “He’s going to be in charge of your personal company.”

The Jedi looked back at Luna, confused. She clarified. “Jedi are now being given personal company sized units to always go with them on assignments if deemed necessary, rather than sending whole battalions. Commander Appo will lead the 501st unless another Jedi is assigned. Torrent Company is yours to command and will follow you on any assignment deemed necessary by both you and High Command.”

This was done to avoid the same problem on Geonosis, where the clones had no idea which Jedi to follow orders from. This confusion lasted for over two Galactic Months as the Republic struggled to organize its brand new military.

This was a suggestion by Chancellor Palpatine, a suggestion the Military was quick to consider.

“Very well.” Anakin turned back to Rex, who still stood at attention. “Captain Rex, I’m Anakin Skywalker.”

“Glad to meet you, sir.” The clone said plainly, still at attention.

“Once I’m done here, Captain. I want your company to stay here, I want to meet them personally.”

Rex nodded. “Yes sir, it won’t be a problem.”

“Captain Luna, walk with me.” The alicorn did as ordered and followed the General down the lines of clones.

As they walked, Luna was explaining the situation of the 501st. Most of the companies had to have replacements after Muunilinst, but overall, they had few casualties. The alicorn would catch the new Knight looking at her wings at random intervals. She would have to deal with this after the inspection.

It was quick, and soon, the other companies were dismissed. Only Torrent Company remained. As she walked away, she whispered into the Jedi’s ear. “I’ll be in the mess when you’re done.” Before he could ask for clarification, the captain stepped out of the hangar.

Skywalker sighed before turning to Torrent Company to greet them.

Luna sat in the mess, just finishing the only good food she’ll have in the next few weeks. Her metal wings clicked as she adjusted them in order to sit comfortably at the table. A few clones from her company sat with her, talking and joking. They never stared. They knew better than to do that. Enough of their brothers had to receive cybernetics over the past few weeks, if they were lucky enough to survive the injury.

The alicorn looked over the shoulder of one of the troopers to see General Skywalker walking into the mess. She nodded to the clones at her table, who immediately got the message. They got up and walked past the General, saluting as they did. One clone pointed a thumb in her direction, helping the Jedi figure out where she was.

The Jedi Knight sat down at the table, and the awkward silence rose. Luna was not going to let it stay for long.

“I don’t blame you, sir.” That surprised the Knight. “It was a mistake, and it cost lives. That’s war, General. Not every decision is the right one. You just have to go with your gut and make sure you keep your men alive.”

Anakin Skywalker said nothing. He merely nodded. He made a promise to himself and to Luna. he would never put his troopers in a situation that either he or they could get out of alive. He would make sure as many troopers lived as he could, even if it meant losing a battle and escaping. The Jedi Knight would not make the same mistake as he did as a Padawan.

Author's Note

This was the first of what will be Extra Chapters. These chapters will be smaller to help fill in the gaps and to add some extra fluff to the story. Each Extra will follow a certain chapter, either at the same time or a day after.

Hope ya'll enjoyed it, as it was a bit fun to do the Knighting Scene from Clone Wars.

Chapter 4: Christophsis

Christophsis
Day 93

R2 rolled away as the blaster fire intensified. Troopers ran past the little astromech in an attempt to find cover in their prepared positions. Among the troopers was Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker. He stopped to observe the massive droid army marching toward them.

“They’re back!” Obi-Wan runs up, with several clone officers in tow.

“I told you this victory was too easy!” The Master claimed. “We never should’ve sent the ship back for supplies.”

“It wasn’t my idea to send the ship back.” Skywalker rebutted.

“Generals,” Captain Luna interrupted, knowing this argument could last a little while. “Second wave is incoming. The Jedi nodded, then turned to their respective officers.

“Rex, you and your men follow me.” General Skywalker ordered, the clone captain signalled his men over and followed Anakin to their position.

“Cody, Luna, battle positions.” Luna nodded and ran toward the rear. Cody simply turned toward the front and moved to the prepared position in the street. Clones gathered behind the massive crystal barricade that walled off the street, readying their blasters as the droids advanced. A few troopers were picked off by stray bolts. Just ahead of the wall were several pickets, who were already skirmishing with the droids marching toward them.

Leading the pickets was Captain Cadence, as her company was scattered along the main road, using whatever cover they could find. She fired into the droid ranks, making every shot count in hopes to thin their numbers. Massive tri-droid walkers towered over the droid infantry, their own guns firing explosive bolts. Cadence watched as a group of three clones attempted to move, only to be obliterated by the blast.

Obi-Wan signaled the clones behind the barricade to fire, unleashing torrents of fire into the ranks.

In the rear area, the heavy cannon battery was firing away, taking out huge chunks of droid units before they could reach the frontline. Directing the artillery was Luna, who observed the fire from her binoculars. She felt something tap her leg, followed by rapid beeping sounds. She looked down to see R2 looking up at her with his singular eye. Luna smiled and rolled her eyes before petting the little droid, calming him down.

Luna remembered when the astromech was first assigned to them after Anakin became a Knight. He was a jokester, much like some of her clones, but he was tough and could get any job done. Some of her brothers didn’t like the astromech, they didn’t like droids in general, but they were first to admit they admired his ability to get work done without that much of a fuss.

She went back to observing the targets, until she noticed a few figures standing above the carnage.

Above the battle stood General Skywalker, along with Captain Rex and a platoon of troopers, all of them equipped with jetpacks.

“What’s our plan of attack, sir?” Rex asked. Anakin only smirked.

“Follow me.” The Jedi then leaped into the air and landed on top of the leading tri-droid, then activated his lightsaber.

“Let’s go, boys!” Rex ordered before taking off.

“I got a bad feeling about this.” One trooper remarked before joining his brothers. The platoon of clones landed next to the tri-droid, and opened fire, aiming for the weak spots in its turret. A couple of troopers had to roll out of the way as the droids attempted to stomp on them with their massive legs. They then concentrated fire on the ring that allowed the turret to rotate. Anakin blocked each blast a second tri-droid sent his way, at first sending them in random directions, then focusing on the droid he was standing on.

With a leap, he flipped over the top of the droid, landing on its gun. The second droid continued to target him, even as he sliced into the first droid and directed the second’s explosive blasts into the cut. The first droid exploded, then collapsed, forcing Skywalker to jump down before joining the other troopers.

Obi-Wan witnessed his former padawan succeed in his part of the plan. Now it was their turn. He raised his lightsaber as he turned to his troops.

“Come on, men!” He cried before charging forward. A trooper stood and motioned for them to follow before he was blasted away by a bolt to his head. The other troopers charged forward, their numbers slowly dwindling as they advanced toward the droid lines.

Cadence ran forward, slamming a droid’s head with her blaster. She fired into the ranks, which never broke as the clones melted in. She watched as a trooper attempted to bare punch a droid in the face. The result was as expected when punching a droid. Pain in his hand, then a blaster bolt to his chest. Cadence quickly avenged the trooper.

Cody had a much better time, using the cuffs of his armor to take the blow as he knocked away several droids with his advanced combat training to clear a path. The clones continued their assault, forcing the droids to finally halt. This gave the artillery free reign of the field, firing at whichever target they wanted.

Toward the rear was the droid command tank, where their leader, General Whorm Loathsom, was ducking down as another tank was decimated by the artillery. He activated his commlink as the convoy stopped, the forward droid commander flinched as a shell landed near him.

“Why are we stopping?!”

"We cannot get past their cannons, sir. The commander answered.

“Cannons?” This will never do. “We must pull back and activate our deflector shields.” He deactivated the comm and looked toward his other officers. “Turn the troops around!” When another tank exploded, he decided to duck back into the turret of the tank.

The droids, still under fire from the clone troops, turn and began a brisk run, retreating from the battlefield.

Anakin grinned as he watched the droids retreat, the clones ceased fire in order to preserve ammo. With no supply ship available, every shot had to count. Captain Luna and Captain Cadence ran to meet each other, wrapping themselves in a hug for a well earned victory. Troopers cheered as they pushed the clankers back, meaning they still had a chance to win. They heard the sound of engines coming out of the upper atmosphere, and the sight they saw flying through the city was more than welcoming. A Republic Shuttle flew through the skyscape, heading toward the main landing site, which was currently serving as the medical center.

Obi-Wan and Anakin saw the ship fly by.

“Looks like help has arrived.”

The two Jedi and the alicorns marched toward the shuttle as it landed. Troopers gathered around to grab whatever supplies were brought in.

“Our fleet must have returned.” Kenobi suggested.

“Which means we’ll be getting our reinforcements.” Skywalker announced with glee.

“I just hope we get ammo, most of my troopers only have two or three packs left.” Luna added.

“Same, we had to start stripping the dead to pool supplies.” Cadence admitted. The shuttle landed on the ground, and the door opened. What walked down the plank was not something either the Jedi nor the troopers could have predicted.

A young Torgutan female, in somewhat revealing clothing, not untypical of a young Jedi. She looked at the two Masters and immediately made her way over.

“A youngling?” General Kenobi asked in surprise. Cadence looked at her General with suspicion. He was expecting a new padawan. Why was he surprised at how young she is?

“And… who are you supposed to be?” Luna looked at her General before rolling her eyes. If there was one thing General Skywalker wasn’t, it was tactful.

The youngling didn’t even give a look as she spoke. “I’m Ahsoka Tano, Master Yoda sent me.” Luna and Cadence looked to each other. If Master Yoda sent for them, something must be up.

“I was told to tell you that you must return to the Jedi Temple immediately, there’s an emergency.” And they were right.

“Well, I don’t know if you noticed.” Skywalker said, obviously annoyed. “We’re in a bit of an emergency right here.”

“Yes, our communications have been a bit… unreliable, but we’ve been calling for help.” Luna growled as she remembered why their communications were down. The traitor, Slick, sabotaged most of their equipment, especially the communication hub. It could still transmit planetside and, if they were lucky, the space around the system, but beyond that was impossible. Cadence placed a calming hoof on her back, to which the dark blue alicorn sighed.

“Master Yoda hadn’t heard from you, so he sent me to deliver the message.” Ahsoka added.

General Skywalker sighed. “Oh great, they don’t even know we’re in trouble!”

“Maybe you can relay a signal through the cruiser that just dropped me off.” The youngling suggested. All eyes were on her, then toward each other before they made their way to the comms station. Cadence turned to see wounded troopers being brought back from the frontline, so she turned to assist however she could.

As they made their way to the comms station, Luna and Ahsoka walked side by side. The alicorn captain could feel the youngling’s eyes on her. With a small sigh, she turned to the Jedi.

“Is there something I could do for you, ma’am?”

Ahsoka’s eyes widened. She didn’t actually expect the trooper to acknowledge her. “Uh, just… wondering.”

Luna raised an eyebrow, not that the Jedi could see under her helmet. “Wondering?”

“About… who you are? What species?”

“Ah, if I had an answer, ma’am, I’d gladly tell you.” Luna answered. Ahsoka looked at the alicorn in shock. “All I know is that I’m a clone of somebody, and that’s it. All I took was the look and the name of my host, and that’s it. It’s the same case for my sisters.”

“There are more of you?”

“Two others, ma’am. My older sister, Celestia, and my younger sister, Cadence. She’s the pink one in the 212th, over there.” She pointed to the other alicorn, who was busy helping the medics treat the wounded. Ahsoka was surprised at how a Captain was treating wounded, as her teaching taught her that officers never did such a thing.

Luna noticed the look and chuckled. “Yeah, Cadence cares a lot about our brothers. Same with Celestia and I, all of the officers are given basic medical courses, just incase.” The conversation ceased once the group arrived at the comms table.

Admiral Yularen was not having a good day. He was originally on a relief mission to support the troops on Christophsis, that changed when the Jedi Council contacted him, demanding that he dropped off a messenger to General Kenobi and Skywalker. He could’ve dropped her off with the relief supplies, as then he would have a whole fleet to break through the blockade, but the importance of the message was too high to wait.

Now he was taking on several Separatist Cruisers with a lone Venator. The messenger managed to make it planetside. Mission Complete, now he had to hold while the Nav Computer made the arrangements for Hyperspace. He was not aware of the events taking place in the communication room.

“We’re under attack by warships, but I’ll patch you through to the Jedi Temple. Stand-by.” The clone officer boosted the signal, a process that would take several agonizing seconds. The three Jedi looked toward each other as the holotable beeped. Each beep intensified their mood. After what felt like ages, the image of Master Yoda appeared.

“Master Kenobi, Skywalker. Glad to see you, I am.”

“Master Yoda, “Obi-Wan began. ‘We are currently trapped on Christophsis. We are in no position to go anywhere or do anything. Our support ships have all been destroyed.” Normally, Kenobi was the more tactful of the Jedi pair, however, the situation was dire and the comms might shut down again, so he had to be quick in order to get the message through.

“Help, we shall, shdhfhfhuwebufbfewybweubcu” The holo image glitched out and the communication was cut once more.

“Master Yoda, Master Yoda!” General Kenobi called out, in a vain attempt to hail the GrandMaster once more. The glitching image was quickly replaced by the clone officer.

“We lost the transmission, sir.” A second clone enters the room.

“We must leave immediately, more enemy ships have just arrived.”

“We’ll get back to you as soon as we can-” The transmission cut, leaving the Jedi to their situation.

“Well, it looks like we have to hold on a little while longer.” Skywalker said to Kenobi and Luna. Ahsoka stood there, patiently waiting for the Jedi to address her. Obi-Wan was the first, choosing to go into his welcome pose, with his arms behind his back and standing tall. Captain Luna had no idea how this was supposed to be welcoming, it scared even her whenever he stood around like that.

“I’m the new Padawan Learner, I’m Ahsoka Tano.” Oh, so this was the new Padawan General Kenobi asked for. Luna was surprised at how young she was; from the alicorn’s experience, padawans were usually older.

Ahsoka’s face grew to one of awkwardness as Kenobi talked to her. “I’m at your service, Master Kenobi. But I’m afraid I’ve been assigned to Master Skywalker.” She pointed to the Jedi Knight, which surprised both him and the alicorn standing next to him.

“What?!” They both exclaimed.

“Woah, woah, woah, woah. There must be some mistake,” Skywalker argued, “he’s the one who wanted the padawan.” Skywalker pointed his robotic arm to his old master, who was grinning unapologetically at the scene.

You sneaky little… Luna glared at the general. She caught on to what happened. Obi-Wan didn’t request a padawan for himself, but General Skywalker instead.

“It’s no mistake.” Ahsoka spoke up. “Master Yoda told me that I am to be placed under the tutelage of Anakin Skywalker, and he is to further my Jedi Training.” The Jedi Knight was shook. This was really happening.

This shouldn’t be happening. He was a Knight for only a few weeks, and already he’s been assigned a padawan. Anakin didn’t want a padawan for a number of reasons, but the biggest one was because he wasn’t ready. He, himself, has only begun to understand being a Jedi, and is busy fighting in the war. With a padawan, he has less time and less chances to sneak off and be with Padme.

“But that doesn’t make any sen-”

“Perhaps we should continue this another time.” Obi-Wan interrupted. “It’ll only be a matter of time before those droids figure a way around our cannons.”

Anakin sighed before turning around. “I’ll check in with Rex.” He started to walk away when Obi-Wan coughed.

“Better take her with you.” Skywalker said nothing. He only stopped, then walked off again. Ahsoka followed briskly behind him, leaving Kenobi and Luna alone. The alicorn trooper walked up to him and frowned.

“This was your idea from the start, wasn’t it, sir?” Kenobi only gave her a grin, giving her the answer she needed. She saluted before moving on to the frontline to talk with her men.

Cadence wrapped the last of the bandages around a trooper’s waist. He groaned as pain in his chest intensified. It would take a few minutes for the bandages’ ointment to start working, but when it did, he would feel more comfortable. The captain sighed as she looked around. Medics were running around, trying to spare as much medical equipment as possible. When Slick destroyed the base, he didn’t only destroy the vehicles and half of the ammunition dump, he also destroyed the fresh medical supplies that were dropped off that night.

In his attempt to “Free his brothers from enslavement,” he caused more deaths than what were truly necessary. If they survive this, there was no doubt that Luna will put him in front of a firing squad, or just strangle him to death in his cell. This time, Cadence wouldn’t stop her.

A clone medic kneeled down next to another wounded trooper and began work. Cadence watched as the medic worked, his body movement becoming more sluggish the longer he treated the trooper. With a sigh, she got up and walked over. She stood above the medic as she spoke.

“Stitch, take a break.”

The medic said nothing, he only continued to work.

“Stitch, that’s a direct order.”

“Captain, let me just finish this one-”

“I’ll finish up, Stitch, you’re tired, and a tired medic is no help to anyone.” Stitch didn’t budge. Cadence glared. “Trooper, either you go sit down and rest for five minutes, or I knock you out with the first thing I find!” Silence fell, all eyes were on the two, not that either of them noticed. Without a word, Stitch stood up and walked over to a nearby pile of rubble. Cadence watched the clone medic sit down, and his head fall forward.

The captain sighed, then got to work on the wounded trooper. “Sorry about that, you’ll be fine. Just let me work my magic.”

Luna arrived at her company’s location. Her troopers were scattered in a small picket line before the square. She could almost see the droid camp from her location, but the distance was too great for the naked eye.

“What’s the scene like, Zombie?” She asked. A prone trooper with a sniper rifle sighed, then turned to his captain. Luna rolled her eyes.

“I know, don’t call you that, but what can you see?”

“Six platoons of B1’s, a company of B2’s three platoons of AAT’s, and three squads of dwarf spider droids, moving into assault formation.” The sniper said bluntly before returning to his scope. Luna shook her head and turned to a small group of clones huddled around a corner.

“Osprey, relay the information.” The trooper, Sergeant Osprey, nodded, then performed the hand signals.

Since communications were limited, the troopers had to resort to relay posts to pass information along. Troopers on top of a roof further down the street would receive the signals, then pass them onto Rex’s position, to which he can then inform the Generals. This worked so far, as the troopers in the building received their message, sending back a confirmed signal.

“Keep your heads on, troopers. Be ready for anything.” She turned to head over to the small gathering of clone lieutenants. Among them were Hardlight, Knave, and Coward.

Why Coward chose his name, no one could ever truly know. He was always the one to charge head first into battle, and was well known to scare the living shit out of anyone who was not under his personal command.

She sat down with the three officers and removed her helmet. Knave and Hardlight had their helmets off as well, Coward, being his usual self, kept it on.

“Ma’am, how’s it going?” The helmeted trooper asked. Luna sighed.

“Way too much to explain, Lieutenant Coward, way~ too much.” She looked over at Hardlight, who was drinking from his canteen.

“How about you, Lieutenant Hardlight, used to the rank, yet?” Hardlight shrugged.

He was not used to it yet. It had only been a few weeks since Muunilinst, where his most of his old company, Carnivore Company, was chewed up by the droid calvary assault. All of the officers were killed, making him one of the highest ranked troopers still alive. Rather than refill the officers, Carnivore Company was folded into Lunar Company, and Hardlight was made a lieutenant to fill in the officer slot.

He was not used to leading units bigger than a squad, it felt less personal. It meant he couldn’t fight as much without risking the Chain of Command. He hated it. He was a fighter, not a leader. But, it was what the Republic asked him to do, so he was going to do it.

“If you ever need advice, Lieutenant, simply ask.” Luna said gently. Hardlight nodded a silent thank you and went back to drinking.

Knave simply went to work on his blaster, making sure it was in tip top condition. With the trooper remaining silent, Luna went back to talking with Coward, who was always ready to chat. They talked until a reddish purple glow reflected in the crystal structures. All eyes turned to the droid camp, where a deflector shield was growing.

“Kriff.” Was all Luna could say.

All of the Jedi and Clone Officers stood around the holomap. The big thing that all eyes were on was the ever growing energy shield near the center of the city.

“The droids are using the energy shield as an umbrella for their troops.” Luna explained. “It’s meant to keep their formation safe as they advance toward the cannons.”

“What’s the status of our anti-vehicle weapons?” Cody asked.

“Not good.” Cadence answered solemnly. “We only have a handful of rocket launchers left, and about three packs of thermal detonators. That’s if the clankers even let us get close enough to the tanks to hit them.”

“I suppose our best bet is to draw them into the buildings, it might even the ground a bit.” Kenobi suggested.

“It’s risky, sir.” Rex stated. “The droids far out number us, and our ability to street fight is limited without the heavy cannons.” He moved the map display to the artillery camp, where the cannons were displayed. “They’ll march under their shield until they’re right on top of our cannons, then they’ll blow them away.

“If that shield is such a problem, why don’t we deal with it.” All eyes turned to the young padawan who spoke up, surprised. None of them were used to a padawan speaking unless spoken to.

“Well, I for one… agree with her.” Anakin admitted, surprising everyone even more. “Someone has to get into that camp and destroy the generator, that’s the key.”

“Well, I suppose you could tiptoe past their lines and destroy the shield generator before they reach the cannons.” Obi-Wan planned out with humor in his voice. Luna looked at her general and his padawan. It was much more likely they’d kill each other before they got to shield, as evident by the small bickering the two were doing as they walked away to find some explosives.

Rex, apparently, had the same thoughts as he stood next to Kenobi. “They make… quite the pair, sir. Think they have a chance?”

“They better. If they don’t take down that shield before the droids destroy our cannons, there’s no escape for any of us.”

Cadence and Luna looked to each other, worry covering their faces. Luna then nodded in determination, same for Cadence.

“Our companies can hold the line, sir. We fought off worse than this lot.”

General Kenobi smirked at the blue alicorn, then turned to fully face her. “Alright then, I’m putting you in charge of our first line. Cadence and Cody will hold the second line. Rex and I will fight in the third. We’ll allow the droids to march toward our positions to which we can ambush them. Their tanks won’t be as effective when they can’t aim at us.”

“So we’ll use hit and run tactics.” Cadence summed up.

Kenobi nodded. “Exactly.” The alicorns ran off to collect their men, and ready for the fight of their lives.

Zombie watched the shield advancing toward them. It was close enough now that he didn’t require the sniper scope to see it. He could see the droids marching in perfect sync down the street, the only thing that stood in their way was a box in the middle of the street. The clone watched that box, a little suspicious. It wasn’t there a few minutes ago, and he saw no one put it there. His eyes stayed on it, even as it started moving. The clone sniper blinked, then shrugged. His mind must’ve been playing tricks on him.

Besides, he had other things to worry about, like the shield that was currently passing over his position. He readied his rifle and awaited the command. He didn’t have to wit long.

“Go go go!” Luna and several troopers jumped down from their position, and landed in the middle of the droid lines. They easily took out the first platoon of droids, then pushed into the second line. Zombie watched as the captain and her squad cut down the droids with ease. If he ever felt like smiling, this was the time to do it. But it would have to wait, as he could see the tanks advancing toward them. Through his scope, he could easily see the droid commander standing out of the turret. Easy shot.

He aimed at the droid’s head and squeezed the trigger. The head went flying, and the tanks stopped. That bought the captain a few seconds as the droid programming selected a new leader. AKA, his second target. A second droid stood out from its tank. A second shot, a second kill. It became a pattern. Shooting droids that caused a threat to the captain, then taking out the next droid leader. It was pattern he would do for the rest of the fight.

Hardlight lifted his Z-6 and aimed. Three platoons of droids advanced toward him. “Alright, ya clankers. Suck laser!” He squeezed the trigger, the barrels began to spin, and the chain gun unleashed its terrible resolve. The first three rows of droids were down before they could retaliate. The rest of his platoon joined the firefight, and gunned down the first two platoons of droids. The third, however, got smart and scattered into a loose skirmish formation before firing. Two troopers went down, Radar dragged them back. Then a third and a fourth and a fifth. Hardlight ceased fire, then turned to his troops.

“Fall back into the building, now!” The platoon obeyed, and made their way back inside. The droids followed, and the fight became much more personal.

Osprey fired each shot with care, making sure each one would count. Two members of his squad were already dead, and another three were being dragged back to the medic station. With only four able-bodied members, he would hold this line. Like the trooper he was.

Luna jumped on top of a tank, blasting at any droids trying to protect it. She pressed the button the thermal detonator and dropped it into the open hatch the turret. She then jumped from the tank and charged toward the next one, ignoring the explosion behind her.

Just as she jumped onto the turret of the second tank, a third tank aimed and fired. It hit the spot next to the tank, and Luna felt a burning pain in her back legs. She had to ignore it as she dropped the thermal into the turret. A clone who saw her get hit ran over to catch her and carry her away before the tank exploded.

From his position, Coward could see the captain being carried back to safety. “Well kriff, fall back!” He ordered, continuing to fire to cover the retreat.

Zombie kept up the fire, taking out droids every which way. He had already lost count. He fired another round at a B2, then turned his attention to an AAT aiming at his position. The trooper didn’t hesitate.

“Everyone out!” The tank fired and the room was obliterated.

Hardlight covered his men as they ran from the building, his rotary cannon wiping out the entire droid squad with a single burst. With his men clear, the lieutenant made his way back to the second line of defense.

Osprey held the line as the rest of his men retreated, even as the B2 aimed a wrist rocket at his position. He never stopped firing until his feet left the ground, and his back was on the floor.

The trooper dropped Luna off behind cover, where Radar looked her over. She was still breathing, which was the first good sign. The second good sign was that she responded to his touch.

The third good sign was that she managed to wake up, albeit with a massive headache and a bit of pain in her legs. Nothing a quick injection won’t fix when she gets the chance. For now, she had a battle to win.

Luna stood and grabbed a blaster from a fallen trooper. She aimed at a group of droids advancing toward her. With a quick burst of the rifle, they were scrap. The captain could see more troopers falling back into the line, blasting the droids that stood in their way. She turned to one of the troopers.

“Fall back and send a message to the General. Tell him that the Skirmish Line ahs fallen and are holding position within the shield.”

“No need, Captain, I’m right here.” Came the voice of General Kenobi, who blocked several bolts with his lightsaber. Luna blinked. How had she not noticed him standing there?

Cadence ran up to the Jedi and started blasting in between swings. The pink alicorn wasn’t even afraid of being hit by either a bolt or the General’s Saber. Luna shook her head in amusement before returning to blasting.

The amount of pain Osprey was in was unbearable. His back was on fire, and his legs were… he wasn’t sure. He couldn’t feel them. Was he crippled? No, he couldn’t be. He won’t be! The trooper looked around the room. The droids had moved on, obviously thinking that he was dead. Good, so he had a chance to move.

Except he couldn’t. Everything below the waist was dead weight. Blast it! Why him? Why now?

There was movement coming from down the hall. It was slow and clunky. More clankers? The sergeant grabbed a blaster. If he was going down, he’d go down fighting. The clone aimed at the door and lightly squeezed the trigger; not enough to fire the weapon, but enough to warm it up.

A clone trooper limped through the door, sniper rifle in hand. His armor was almost completely destroyed, with holes and scorch marks all over the place. His helmet visor was broken, revealing his scarred face. He stared at the clone pointing the blaster at him, then moved into the room. Other wounded troopers did the same, each either limping or holding their wounded arms. Each had a blaster with them, in case they ran into droids.

Zombie limped over to Osprey and looked him over. After a few seconds, the trooper silently hailed two troopers over. The two were the least wounded, with only minor cuts and bruises. Effortlessly, they picked up the sergeant, and carried him over their shoulders as the wounded squad made their way back to friendly lines.

Kenobi ducked behind a desk as tank bolts slam into the clone position. Luna was ducked down with him.

“Sir, the shields have almost reached the heavy cannons, we stand no chance out here!” Obi-Wan thought for a moment before making his decision.

“Pull your men back to the cannons, do everything in your power to protect them. I’ll delay the droids.”

Luna’s eyes widened. “But-”

“That is an order, Captain!” The alicorn trooper obeyed without another word. She made a run for it as Kenobi cut down a B2 trying to sneak up on them. The captain ran to meet with her squad before giving the order.

“Fall back! First platoon, cover the retreat!”

Troopers got up from their positions and ran down the street toward the heavy cannons. Luna could see droids surrounding Kenobi’s position and sighed. Cadence noticed and gave her a reassuring smile.

“Sis, trust me. The General knows what he’s doing, now come on!” The two ran back as the rest of their men made their way to the last defensive line.

Obi-Wan watched his troops escape as the droids surrounded him and a tank aimed its massive barrel at him. Overkill? Probably. The AAT’s hatch opened up and out of it rose the Separatist Commander, Whorm Loathsom.

“You must be the infamous General Kenobi.” He said smugly.

Obi-Wan sighed. He hated saying these words. “I surrender.” A B2 cautiously stepped toward him and roughly took the lightsaber from his hand.

“Now, General, order your troops to stand down.” Kenobi ignored him and instead used his Force abilities to lift several crystal stones to create a table and two seats.

“Please, have a seat.” Whorm looked at the Jedi as if he had lost his mind.

“Have you gone mad?”

Time to use his ‘negotiation skills.’ “I’ve conceded the battle, now all that’s left to do is work out the terms.” The Kerkoiden looked at him suspiciously.

“Don’t try any of your tricks, Jedi.” he said before climbing down. Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. This was going to be easy. Whorm stepped out of his tank and sat down in front of the Jedi General.

It was time to play it up. “I must say, it is truly an honor to meet such a worthy opponent face-to-face. You’re a legend throughout the Inner Core.”

“Hehe, thank you. The honor is all mine. I’m so glad you decided to surrender.”

“Well at some point, one must accept the reality of the situation.” The Jedi Master was just hopeful that the situation would change, otherwise this would turn into a real surrender negotiation. He coughed into his hand. “Might we have some… refreshments?”

Loathsom pondered for a moment before turning to his droid assistant. “You there, fetch us something liquid.” The droid bowed before running off.

Kenobi could only hope that droid wouldn’t come back with cups of oil.

Cadence threw a thermal into the open hatch of a tank before taking off into the air. The tank exploded, taking several battle droids with him. She landed behind cover, where Luna was firing her rifle.

“Luna, we can’t keep this up!”

“We don’t have to, we just have to wait for General Skywalker to take out that shield.” She fired another burst, taking out a B2 before it could fire. A second aimed and fired its rocket at the position. Luna’s eyes widened.

“Watch that wrist rocket!” She cried before diving to the ground. Cadence did the same just before it impacted their old position. The crystal wall that served as their barrier now had a breach wide enough to left droids march through. The two alicorns fired into the gap, turning the breach into a chokepoint. Other clones opened fire to keep the pressure on the breach.

“We’re almost out of ammo!” A trooper cried before his blaster clicked empty. He ran forward and grabbed a droid blaster, firing it into the droid formation before being gunned down.

“Do you really think General Skywalker stands a chance?”

“I do, it’s dealing with his new Padawan that worries me.” Luna used her magic to violently throw a B2 back into its squad, knocking them all over and crushing their servos in the process. In the distance, there was a loud explosion. What followed was the best sight the alicorns have ever seen: the shield was receding back. Time to end this. Luna turned around.

“All cannons, open fire!” The gunners wasted no time and opened fire into the droid formations. The entire droid army was annihilated by the full power blasts of the cannons. The clones cheered as the droids were blown to smithereens by their superior firepower.

Osprey and the others watched as the shield disappeared and the droids were taken out by their cannons. With a smile, Osprey nudged the troopers to continue forward. Now he could go to the medics and not feel useless.

Kenobi held Loathsom hostage, keeping the droids from firing. At that moment, his commlink went off and the image of Admiral Yularen appeared.

“General Kenobi, if you can hear me, we broke through the droid blockade. Your reinforcements should be arriving shortly.” The Jedi looked up to see gunships flying over the city, filled to the brim with fresh troops and supplies. He smiled as he knew that his former Padawan and his hopefully permanent student had done it. A gunship landed, along with Cadence and a squad of clones. They walked up to the droids and used their tasers to deactivate them.

The alicorn looked at the knocked over table and saw spilt tea on the floor. She gave her General a look, to which he responded with his signature grin.

Anakin and Ahsoka watched as the gunship landed. They boarded and were greeted by Captain Rex. “great job, General Skywalker.” The clone captain said before turning to the Padawan. “You too kid.” Ahsoka beamed. She had a feeling this was going to be the start of a great relationship. The gunship took off and made its was back to the central landing stage, where several Acclemators were docked.

Osprey was taken on a stretcher back onto the ships. He was going to be on medical for quite a while. But at least he would be able to fight again very soon. He watched as Zombie walked onto the medical transport. The sniper had an annoyed look on his face, one that was shared by Captain Luna. The alicorn saw the state of his armor and his body and ordered him to be treated and have his armor replaced. Zombie didn’t care about his armor, he felt the damage gave it character. But regulation was regulation, and when Captain Luna gave an order, you followed it without question.

Luna huffed as she watched Zombie board the transport. She turned and walked back to assess the remains of her company. The alicorn could already tell how chewed up they were.

Cadence helped the last of her wounded onto the transport, then stepped back to allow it to take off. Her unit was hit hard, but most of them were minor wounds. She lost around two dozen men, far less than the rest of the companies. Guess her men were just lucky this time. The captain watched as Kenobi, Skywalker and Ahsoka were talking to Master Yoda.

This must’ve been about the mission the Jedi Council needed them to do, something she was not looking forward to. She watched as Ahsoka suddenly took off, her face showing excitement. The Padawan ran over to Rex, who was talking to Luna. After she spoke, the two captains looked to each other in annoyance.

Cadence saw that Ahsoka’s face fell a little. It was made worse when Luna angrily walked away.

Luna couldn’t believe this. They literally just finished a battle, and already the Council was sending them on another mission; to rescue a kriffing Hutt! Hutts were criminals, why would the Jedi work with them?! Have they stooped so low already?! If this mission got any more of her men were killed, she was going to raise hell, damn the Jedi superiority! A calming hand was placed on her back. She turned to see General Skywalker standing next to her. The captain took a deep breath and turned her body to face the Jedi Knight.

Anakin coughed into his hand. “So… obviously you’re not excited-”

“No, I’m angry, sir!” The alicorn yelled, gaining the attention of some troopers and a young Padawan. “Why? After we just got through with a difficult battle are we being sent to do a mission… for Hutts?!”

Skywalker cringed. “Trust me, I hate this mission too. You know how I feel about Hutts.” Luna looked down. She knew all too well. “But we have our orders, and if this helps the Republic win this war, then we’ll do it.”

Luna groaned, but said nothing. She only stared at her General. She could tell he hated this just as much as her. But he was right, orders were orders; even if she didn’t agree with them.

“Alright, sir. I’ll gather my men. But volunteers only, most of them are going to be too tired to fight.” Anakin nodded.

“I understand. Rex’s men are mostly okay, so any volunteers will be folded in with them. I’m also bringing a tank platoon. I’m not taking chances again.” Luna smiled softly. He was learning to be a better leader. With a salute, she marched off to find her troopers, never noticing the look she got from Ahsoka Tano.

Author's Note

Hooray, another long chapter done! We finally hit the Clone Wars Movie, and soon the rest of the series shall come!

Now, time for some questions:
Why would the Jedi help the Hutts?
How could the Hutts win them the War?
Why does Anakin hate them so much?

Chapter 5: Teth Pt. 1

Teth
Day 94

The Acclamator flew over the planet of Teth. The space around it was calm and quiet. The inside of the ship, however, was a different story. Troopers were bustling about, readying weapons and equipment.

A Republic Shuttle landed in the hangar and was greeted by General Anakin Skywalker and Captain Luna. Two ARF troopers stepped out of the ship and saluted. Luna spoke first.

“Alright, boys, what do we have?” The ARF Captain presented a holomap of a monastery standing tall on a mountain. The structure was massive, and there was no land surrounding it. This meant that only gunships could land in the courtyard.

“We spotted several droid units defending the courtyard, with Dwarf Spider Droids in support.” Which meant they couldn’t land in the courtyard. They would have to scale the cliff. That was going to be a long climb.

“We saw bounty hunters going in, but none have returned.” Oh great, so these droids were good at killing bounty hunters. Luna could only hope they weren’t good at killing clones.

Skywalker nodded. “Very good, go get some rest.” With that, The Jedi and the alicorn turned to gather their men. As they did, the two talked about their plan.

“We have two AT-TEs ready to go, along with two platoons of men.” Luna sighed. “I don’t like this, maybe we should wait for General Kenobi to bring the rest of the battalion.”

“As much as I would like that, Captain, time is of the essence. We can’t afford to wait.” Skywalker explained. “We done better with worse, Luna.”

“I know sir, but…” She stopped talking as Ahsoka’s voice filled the air.

“... and so I sent the wall down, crushing all of the droids and saving the General.” Clones that were gathered around the padawan were laughing at the story, even Rex, who turned to face the Jedi Knight.

“Is that true, sir?” Anakin blushed.

“Well… most of it.” Luna gave her general a look, one that told him of the many jokes that were to come. Including one right now.

“The Great General Anakin Skywalker requiring assistance? Perish the thought, sir.” Skywalker rolled his eyes and elbow checked the alicorn.

“You’re just jealous it wasn’t you.”

“If Commander Tano is to take over my duty of keeping your reckless rear safe, then she can gladly take it. It’s one less fool I have to keep an eye on.” That got everyone laughing. Once it stopped, Luna changed gears.

“Storytime is over, boys. Grab your gear and get set for a combat drop and a climb.” The troopers did as ordered and went to get their gear. Rex walked up the alicorn.

“So what’s the plan?”

“We have to land at the base of the monastery, then climb up the cliffs to reach it. We got droids defending the perimeter, so be ready for a fight.”

“Great~, this should be fun.” Rex said as he went to grab his helmet. Luna watched him go, then went to grab her blaster. Ahsoka watched the two, however her gaze fell on the alicorn walking away.

The ship entered the upper atmosphere, the sun setting behind it. The bottom hangar doors opened and the squadron of gunships flew off toward the monastery.

Inside one of the gunships, Luna did one final inspection of her blaster. The captain couldn’t place her hoof on it, but she had a bad feeling about this mission. This was too strange. Someone kidnaps Jabba the Hutt’s son, has a droid force for protection, and was able to kill over twenty different bounty hunters! Maybe they should have waited for General Kenobi to bring the rest of his troops. Several small explosions knocked her out of her musings.

The blast doors closed, and the light went out. A low red glow gave her vision.

“Thirty seconds.” Rex announced. Troopers checked their gear. A low buzzing rang through the comms in their helmets. Luna turned to a trooper, who had it the loudest.

“Dek, your comms' have static.” The trooper slammed the side of his helmet several times until the noise stopped.

“Got it.” He said before lifting up his rifle. The gunship slowed as it landed on the ground.

“Welcome to Paradise, Rock Jumpers.” The pilot jokes.

The troopers readied themselves. The light changed to green.

“Green light!” The doors opened.

“Go! Go! Go!” The troopers and Jedi jumped out of the gunship and ran forward. Blaster fire rained down from the top of the cliff. The two AT-TEs were dropped off and the gunners immediately returned fire.

Luna and her squad quickly ran for the base of the cliff, which had a small overhang that protected them from the incoming fire. More troopers joined them, and the two Jedi quickly followed.

The alicorn was about to order them to climb, but a droned out scream interrupted her. She looked over to see a B1 battle droid on the ground, struggling to get up. A pair of dropped binoculars landing on its head made sure it wouldn’t.

Well… that just happened.

“Time to start climbing.” Skywalker said before looking to his padawan. “Race you to the top?”

“I’ll give you a head start.” She responded cockily. Anakin grinned.

“Big mistake.” With a mighty leap, the Jedi Knight grabbed a vine and began to climb.

“Ascension cables!” Rex ordered. The clones aimed their rifles and fired their ascension cables. The cable mechanism pulled them up and the company began their climb. Luna fired her cable and attached it to her belt. She felt the tug of the cable and she jumped up. Blaster fire intensified. A trooper to her left gets hit and goes down, his body slamming into the ground with a sickening crunch.

Luna turned to see the General climbing up the vine, using his lightsaber to block all incoming fire. Not far behind, she saw Ahsoka struggling to keep up, until the Padawan swung her vine wide to the right, allowing her to jump onto an AT-TE to ride to the top.

“Hmm, clever.” The captain mumbled. A new blaster sound caught her attention. Near the top of the cliff was a squad of Dwarf Spider Droids. They were hanging from the edge of the cliff, firing down at the troopers and the tanks. Another trooper is hit, sending his body falling to the ground below. The clones were halfway up the cliff, when one of the AT-TEs exploded and toppled to the ground, taking the squad of troopers behind with it.

Luna felt sick to her stomach as she saw the troopers turned to paste against the cliffside. With a loud exhale, she put it at the back of her mind and continued to climb.

Hardlight was not having a good day. First Christophsis and now this! He was not expecting to be scaling a cliff, so he had to borrow a carbine in order to climb. This left his Z-6 useless, as it was too high a recoil to even attempt to fire it. Three of his men were hit, their bodies joining the others on the ground. Just ahead of him was the remaining AT-TE, it’s top turret gunner long gone. He saw the padawan jump up to the front of the tank to use her lightsaber to block the bolts.

Loud engine drones echoed over the sounds of battle. To his left, a squad of four droid STAP speeders flew in from behind the cliff. They lined up with the climbing clones and opened fire. Several troopers were hit, the explosions and the bolts ripped through their armor. Screams of pain rang through the comms before cutting out. Hardlight watched as one of his troopers fell from the cliff, his legs heading in different directions from his torso. He swiveled the carbine around and prepared to fire on the speeders’ second pass.

Before he could, however, General Skywalker leaped from his vine, cutting down the first three speeders before commandeering the fourth, kicking the original pilot off. The Jedi took off with the speeder, using its cannons to destroy the spider droids. Once they were destroyed, he turned to his padawan.

“Try to keep up!”

“Hey, no fair!” Hardlight couldn’t help but laugh at the scene. He could tell those two were going to get on each other’s nerves very quickly, and he and his brothers were going to enjoy every second of it.

“Rex, Luna, meet me at the top!” The General ordered.

“Yes sir!” “Yes sir!” The two captains responded. Luna rolled her eyes as Rex grumbled.

“Get this thing moving!” Luna saw Ahsoka ordering the AT-TE pilot.” She is way too much like the General.” She mumbled before she continued her climb. They were almost at the top and she could see droids being flung over the edge, either intact or in pieces.

Luna watched as the AT-TE climbed over the edge and fired its weapons into whatever was still up there. After a few more hard tugs on the cable, she made it over, and the sight before her was unsurprising.

Droid parts lay scattered everywhere, General Skywalker was not one for neat combat, everything was a mess by the time he was done fighting. The alicorn pushed herself up and walked over to join Rex and Ahsoka.

Anakin turned to face them. “Too many here to be a renegade.” He stated. “I think Count Dooku is behind this, Luna take some men to clear out the rest of the Monastery, Rex have a detail look after the wounded.”

“Yes sir.” Luna walked over to a squad to rally them up while Rex informed them of the gunships moving to a safer distance. None of them were aware of the figure watching their every move.

Hardlight and his squad followed Captain Luna as they marched into the Monastery, the massive doors were wide open, leading into a pitch black hallway. The clones turned on their helmet lights, illuminating the dark corridor. It was quiet, too quiet after what they had just been through. There wasn’t a sign of any life inside, giving off a dark aura that even a cadet could feel.

Hardlight made his discomfort known. “I don’t like this place, gives me the creeps.”

“I think this is a B’omarr Monastery that I read about in my studies at the Temple.” Ahsoka stated as she looked around.

“Hutts and smugglers like to hang out in places like this, turning them into their own personal retreats.” Skywalker added.

“And the Monks just let them?”

“Smugglers usually get what they want, one way or another.” The General answer cryptically, adding to the spookiness of the place.

Hardlight swore that if he saw some spooky Monk bantha poodoo, he was leaving, deserting the army, and never looking back. If he could escape Captain Luna first that is. Although the tension in her body was telling him she was ready to do the same if anything went wrong.

No doubt the General felt their discomfort as he turned to face them. “Ahsoka and I will search the dungeon, the rest of you prepare for extraction. Luna, let me know if Obi-Wan arrives.”

“Yes sir.” Oh what a relief, Hardlight never thought he’d enjoy the outside so much in his life.

Dek carried the last wounded trooper to the AT-TE. There weren’t many, as most of the men hit fell from the cliff and died on impact, so it was mostly those who received shrapnel damage and still managed to climb. He didn’t envy those poor bastards. They couldn’t find anymore droids, which put them on edge. He had only fought in two major battles, and a couple of skirmishes, but there was always one thing each of them had in common. The seppies always had more tinnies for them to fight. It was something every trooper knew, that way they could never be ambushed. Captain Luna and Captain Rex must’ve thought the same thing, as they were organizing a defense until the General gets back with the Hutt’s son.

He just hoped that today would be an outlier, and that this was nothing more than a few guards.

Luna sat atop the AT-TE as a trooper was getting acquainted with the control layout of the top turret. Every trooper was trained to handle the equipment they would be working with, except ships, but that was irrelevant; Luna doubted she’d ever fly a fighter. So that meant that any crew on ground vehicles could be replaced by a regular trooper. The problem was that the troopers weren’t always experienced in the equipment, which was why she ordered some of the troopers to regularly practice using the turrets alongside their weapon drills.

A soft crying made her head turn as she saw the two Jedi walking out of the monastery with a… baby Hutt? What? This was Jabba the Hutt’s son? This little thing? She knew he was young, but this was a bit ridiculous. This was turning into a literal babysitting job.

The alicorn jumped down from the tank and made her way over; she took her helmet off to show her surprise at the situation. She gave Skywalker a look to which he responded with a shrug. The captain’s attitude changed when she heard the little slug begin to cough. Ahsoka felt his head once his coughing fit stopped.

“Master, I think we have a problem. Stinky’s getting sick, he’s coming down with a fever.” Anakin used his human hand to feel the forehead, and drew the same conclusion.

“We’ll have to get him some medical treatment aboard the cruiser, until then, Luna see what supplies you can find from the walker.” Luna saluted and ran for the tank. Her mind was racing.

Of course the little slime ball had to get sick, nothing ever worked out for them just the way they wanted to, could it?! She ran inside the tank and scrambled to find something, anything that could keep the fever down long enough for them to get to a medical bay. When she couldn’t find anything, she grabbed a backpack and ran back outside.

She gave the pack to Ahsoka, who gladly put the Huttlet inside.

“I couldn’t find anything, sir.” She explained. “But the pack should protect him from the elements.”

“Good thinking, Luna, we’ll just have to-” Two loud booms echoed from the sky. All eyes turned upward as Separatist landing craft appeared from the sky.

“Oh gives us a break!” Luna cried as fighters dived toward their position.

“Ahsoka, get the Huttlet inside!” Ahsoka didn’t hesitate as she ran past the troopers into the monastery. The fighters began their strafing run, blasting at any troopers out in the open. The troopers tried desperately to shoot them down, but to no avail. The fighters pulled away just as the landing craft touched down. The massive doors opened, allowing their cargo to exit. Several squads of droids marched out into the courtyard.

The AT-TE fired its weapons at the ship, but it did little to deter the droids marching toward them. A platoon of spider droids marched out and opened fire. Several shots impact the cockpit of the walker, killing the pilot. The walker crumbled, crushing a troopers that was standing under it. Luna quickly realized the situation they were in and made her decision.

“All squads, get inside now!” Troopers ran for the monastery, some slowly walked back as they continued to fire into the advancing droid crowd. A couple were gunned down before the rest ran inside. Skywalker covered their retreat.

Luna slammed the panel, forcing the doors to close. She looked to the Jedi Knight.

“Hurry, General!” Skywalker blocked another bolt then slide under the door just before it closed.

Rex made sure the panel was fried, ensuring that the door wouldn’t open without force. “That should buy us some time.”

“We can’t stay in here, sir.” Luna argued.

“You’re right. Ahsoka and I will find another way out with R2. Luna, Rex, hold this position until Obi-Wan arrives or we find an exit.”

“Yes sir.” “You got it.”

The two Jedi and the astromech head down the hall disappearing into the darkness.

“Alright, troopers. Get ready to turn those clankers into scrap metal!”

Hardlight checked his blaster rifle, his rotary cannon still sitting in the carcass of the AT-TE outside. Stupid droids, stupid mission. He lost most of his troopers because of this mission. The lieutenant could hear the droids through the door. They were trying to figure out that lock. It was almost comical, if it wasn’t for the fact that the moment that door opened, what remained of his men were going to die.

Screw it. If he was going to die, then he was going to die taking those clankers with him.

Dek was not having a good day. His arm was killing him. Blaster bolts tend to do that. He couldn’t use a rifle, but Captain Luna was able to hand him a pistol. He was going to defend himself as best as possible. He looked to see Bridge adjusting his comms, something he always did to calm himself down. So long as he did his job, Dek wasn’t going to say anything.

Luna sighed. General Skywalker and Ahsoka hadn’t returned yet, nor have they called in. She hope they didn’t run into any trouble. A loud groaning echoed throughout the hall as the massive doors began to open.

“They cut the lock!” Hardlight called out. Looks like trouble just barged its way in. Luna readied her blaster as the sunlight shined in.

“Here they come!” The troopers opened fire as the droids marched in. The first and second rows were wiped out before they could enter. Two troopers go down. The rest of the droid squad is wiped out.

“Second wave, second wave!” B2s and spider droids march in, firing their blasters as they did so. More clones go down. Luna fires her rifle, taking down several droids in the process. The remaining clones slowly fell back further into the hallway, putting some distance between them and the droids.

Luna watched as Dek went down, a bolt to his chest sending him to the floor. She made sure he was avenged. She saw a B2 aiming its wrist rocket at her position. She aimed and pulled the trigger.

*Click*

Her eyes widened as she weapon clicked empty. The droid fired.

“Get down!” She called out as the rocket impacted her position. She hit the roof, then a wall, and finally the floor. Her body was screaming in pain, her vision was blurred, and her ears were ringing to near deafening proportions. She didn’t welcome the embrace of darkness, but she couldn’t push it away either.

Author's Note

I can already see the reaction now.

Readers: What? This is outrageous! It's unfair! How can you do a complete chapter, yet still have a cliffhanger?!

Me: Take a seat, young Fimfiction Reader.

Chapter 6: Teth Pt. 2

Teth
Day 94

Luna slowly awoke, her eyes begging to close again. But why was she asleep anyway? Wasn’t she on a mission? What was that mission? Save… someone? Was that it?

“Take care of what’s left of the clones, I’ll go after Skywalker.” That voice. It sounded so familiar. Where did she hear that before?

Her eyes opened and the sight before her was horrifying. The bodies of troopers littered the floor. Not a single one moved. Standing over them was an army of droids. One of them was talking to a bald woman in some dark clothing.

Wait a minute. Luna did recognize that voice. That was the woman who killed her men! Ventress, Count Dooku’s Top Assassin!

“Yes, mistress.” Came the drone of the command droid. A blaster went off, killing the droid as it stepped to the right. Luna turned to see Captain Rex leaning against a wall, firing his pistol at a rapid pace. The assassin blocked very bolt before using the Force to yank the pistol from his hand and close his windpipe.

The clone captain was lifted into the air.

“Where is Skywalker?” The Sith demanded.

“I… don’t talk to… Separatist Scum.” The assassin released her grip on his neck, dropping the clone to the ground. She then waved her hand.

“You will contact Skywalker now.”

“I…” Luna watched in horror as Rex struggled against her will before turning to face the woman. “Will contact Skywalker now.”

“Rex, no!” The alicorn managed to jump up and pulled out her vibroblade. She roared as she charged at Ventress. Her anger was blinding. The assassin turned and used the Force to the alicorn back. But she planned for that. With her magic, she grabbed a fallen blaster rifle and flung it at Ventress. The Sith sensed it and used her lightsaber to cut the weapon in half.

Luna felt her windpipe close and her hooves leave the ground. Rex watched for a moment before activating his commlink.

“Anakin, come in.” If she wasn’t busy trying not to pass out, Luna would have shown her surprise. Rex never referred to the General by his first name, none of them would, even when he wasn’t around. Which meant…

Rex, you clever clone.

“We held off the droids, sir.” Silence was all he got. “What is your location?” Ventress stepped over to listen in. Nothing. The General didn’t respond. She glared at the clone, thinking about the multiple ways she planned on killing the survivors, when another droid appeared.

“Mistress, I must inform you that Republic reinforcements have arrived.” Luna grinned as the realization dawned. General Kenobi was here, they were successful. There was no way Ventress could hold with the amount of troops she’s got.

“We must act quickly.” A squad of Droidikas appeared from the hall, rolling in before standing tall. “Find Skywalker and hold him down until I arrive.” She turned to Luna. “I shall follow shortly.” The rolling death balls beeped in compliance before rolling away.

The Sith Assassin slammed the alicorn captain into the wall, knocking her helmet off her head. She looked at the captain with interest. “Once I finish Skywalker, I shall return to kill you and what’s left of your clones.” With that, Luna felt her windpipe open up, and she sucked in more air than she ever thought she’d need to. It was too much for her to handle at the moment, so her lungs decided to punish her for it. She coughed several times before getting her breathing back under control. At that point, the assassin was gone, and a squad of droids surrounded her.

With a sigh, she got up and joined the other members of her squad outside.

High above in the atmosphere of Teth, a Venator opened the large hangar doors. Out of those doors came a large contingent of fighters, led by General Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Captain Cadence watched from inside the bay as the fighters launched and the gunships were brought out. She wasted no time gathering her troops, who had their equipment all ready. She readied her blaster as her paranoia kicked in. For some reason, she had a really bad feeling about this.

Luna, Rex, Hardlight, and four other troopers stood next to the downed AT-TE. Their hands were held behind their heads as the platoon of droids kept their blasters trained on them. Above them, they could hear the sounds of fighters and combat. The clones said nothing as a plan formed together.

Rex’s commlink blinked to life.

“Rex, come in. This is General Skywalker.” The General?

“Did you hear that?” One droid asked.

“It came from the prisoner!” Another declared. The two approached the captain, who grinned under his helmet. He presented the commlink to the droid.

“Let me show you how it works, clanker.” The droid stared at the device, never realizing that’s exactly what the clone wanted. He slammed his wrist into the side of the droid’s head, knocking it loose and shutting it down. In an instant, he grabbed its blaster and turned it on the other droids. Luna used her magic to rip a blaster from the second droid’s hands and fired into the mass. The other clones charged forward and did the same as Rex. Hardlight slammed two droids’ heads together and grabbed both of their blasters. He then duel wielded them both to increase his fire power.

The droids returned fire, their aim going high in the confusion. Luna raised a shield to cover her troopers as they ran for the AT-TE. Once they were clear, Luna dropped the shield and ran to join them. The battle of Teth resumed.

Luna ducked and answered the next hail from Skywalker. “I read you, General. We’re pinned down in the courtyard!”

“Do you need help?!” Luna didn’t respond, she just started blasting. She was about to tell him to finish the mission, but the General already made up his mind.

“I’ll take that as a no, Captain. We’re on our way.”

“Wait, General, no!” The commlink bleeped, signaling an end to the transmission. No, he had a mission to complete. He was letting his emotions get the better of him again. A series of bolts forced her to duck.

Hardlight ducked down as several bolts impacted his cover. He fired back, killing the B2 responsible. He watched as a trooper was hit and fell from the top of the AT-TE, then looked up as he saw Republic fighters do a fly over of their position. Did that mean they broke through?

A squadron of Vulture Droids flying right behind them answered his question.

“Just a few more minutes!” Luna called out, using her stolen blaster to take down entire clumps of droids.

Just a few more minutes, that’s all they needed.

Cadence jumped into the gunship, the doors closing behind her. Her Ghost Company stood tall as the gunship took off. As they did, her commlink beeped. She pressed the blinking green button to allow General Kenobi’s voice through.

“Captain Cadence, I can see combat down below. Looks like Luna and Rex are holding out, but not for long. I need to find Anakin, you secure the courtyard.”

“Yes sir, we’re on it.”

“Good, my fighters will clear a landing zone for you.”

“Understood, sir. We'll rope down once clear.” Meaning she and her troopers were going to rope down from the gunships, instead of the gunships landing. It was risky for the troopers, but allowed for a more rapid deployment, which was needed.

“Very well, Captain. May the Force be With You.”

“And you, sir.” With that, the commlink cut. Cadence turned to her troopers. “You heard the General, boys, time to show these clankers what it means to be a Ghost.” Her troopers responded with a series of spooky boo’s, an action that almost made her laugh.

“Get ready.”

Hardlight ducked down once more, clutching the only working blaster he had. He aimed at a droid out in the open.

*Clink*

No, why now?! Stupid droid blaster! He needed another one. Where would he get one? The lieutenant looked up, he could see gunships approaching. This was it, they held out. Just a minute more.

His gaze turned down. He saw a B2 readying its wrist rocket. That was going to wipe them out!

Without a second thought, he made his decision. If that droid fired, everyone would be blown to bits. He lost enough brothers in that gruesome manner, he was not going to let it happen again.

“For the 501st!” He bellowed as he charged out of his cover. The trooper ran toward the Super Battle Droid and swung. He hit the wrist rocket arm, sending the rocket careening into the air. The Super grabbed him with its free arm and lifted him into the air. Two pairs of bolts ripped through his lower abdomen, and he was unceremoniously thrown to the floor.

The pain was unbearable, but worth it. It bought his brothers and sister a minute more. He struggled to look up, but the sight was one he couldn’t miss. The gunships halted above the courtyard, their turrets ripped the droids apart, giving room for the troopers inside the exit. Hardlight watched the troopers of the 212th rope down and create a circle that extended toward the AT-TE.

It was worth it, he thought as his vision darkened and the pain faded away.

Cadence covered her troopers as they roped down, blasting away droids that fired in their direction. Once she watched the last trooper drop, she jumped from the gunship, opening her wings to slow her descent. Her first instinct was to make a run for the downed AT-TE. She had to make sure her sister was alive.

The sight of a droid flying through the air gave the alicorn assurance that she was. Luna jumped up to the top of the walker, using her magic to ripe a droid in half. Cadence flinched for a moment, not used to seeing her older sister in such a fury… scratch that, she has.

“Luna!” She called out. The blue alicorn blinked, dropped the droid, and looked over to the youngest alicorn.

Her smile erased the aura of rage that floated around her. “Cadence!” The alicorn jumped down, absentmindedly crushing a B1 standing below her. She ran over to her sister and wrapped her in a back breaking hug.

“You made it!”

“I told you I would.” A small cough broke them up. Both looked over at Pops, who was standing tall despite the blaster fire around him.

“Battle now, hugs later!” Luna blinked, then gasped.

“Cadence, that woman that killed my men, she’s here for the Hutt!” Cadence’s face turned to shock. If that woman was here for the Hutt, then the situation just went from bad to the worst ever… of all time. They had to finish this fight so they could go help the General.

Luna’s commlink bleeped, on instinct, she activated it.

“Luna, Rex, this is General Skywalker.” Oh thank the Force, she hadn’t found them.

“I read you, sir.” There was a pause, allowing the alicorn to tense up.

“We’re not going to be able to help you.” Luna smiled confidently.

“Don’t worry, General. We’ll be alright.” Luna saw a random freighter fly over the battlefield. That must’ve been him.

“The Mission always comes first, sir.” Rex added over the net. The freighter disappeared into the air. There they go. Mission was almost done, now they just had to finish this battle.

Luna dropped her stolen droid blaster and grabbed a rifle from the ground. This was a quality weapon compared to the mass produced trash that regular droids carried. It was accurate over long distance and did a lot of damage to the target.

She thought about the decision that the General made. She was proud of him, using his head to make a choice rather than his heart. If he stayed to help, that Huttlet would’ve died from whatever illness he had. The Captain also thought about his padawan. No doubt she helped him think straight, Ahsoka seemed like a girl who would make her thoughts known on decisions, something that might become a headache every once in a while. But Luna was willing to deal with that if it kept General Skywalker in line.

The alicorn fired into the ever shrinking group of droids near the entrance of the monastery, the overwhelming fire from the clones were quickly diminishing their numbers. This battle was going to end, and it was, hopefully, going to be worth it.

Cadence dragged a wounded trooper behind the AT-TE. As soon as she let go of the clone, Loop went to work. She watched as the stuttering medic checked the wound, a blast to the shoulder, and immediately begin treating it.

“R-right. J-J-Just a nicked shoulder. You’ll be fine.” He said as he applied bacta to the wound. The clone groaned as the medical liquid poured through the hole in his armor and into his wound. “Yeah, yeah, take it easy.”

Cadence rolled her eyes, but still smiled. Loop was a good medic, one she could always count on.

Luna kicked a B2 to the ground, then unleashed several rounds into its weirdly positioned head, The super battle droid was torn to pieces by the point blank barrage. The alicorn then swung her rifle to knock a B1 away before blasting its comrades. Within seconds, another droid squad was killed, but it wouldn’t make up for the troopers lost today.

She turned to the body of Hardlight; the body was lying still among the pile of droid corpses. The Captain nodded solemnly in respect before charging forward and unleashing hell among her enemies.

Dek groaned as pain flared everywhere. How hard was he hit? The trooper tried to move his head, but it refused to obey him.

Great, just great. Was he crippled? He was hit in the chest, he should be dead.

Maybe he should change his name to Lucky.

A series of heavy footfalls got his attention. That didn’t sound like droids. They sounded like clones.

“Search the area, leave no clankers left!” That was the Captain! She made it! He just had to get her attention.

Luna perked up at the sound of groaning. That was a trooper in there, and he was still breathing! She signaled the troopers with her to fan out and find him. They slowly marched forward, listening for the groans of the wounded trooper.

The alicorn looked down as the groaning sounded close. There, on the ground, with a hole in the chest plate of his armor, was Dek, alive and in pain. Luna lowered herself to the ground and placed a calming hoof on his shoulder.

“Take it easy, trooper. We've got you.” She raised her head to the squad behind her. “Get me a medic, now!”

“Yes ma’am.” One of them ran back to the courtyard. Luna turned back to Dek and did her best to keep him awake.

“Hey, Dek, I think we should change your name, want to be called Lucky?” That got a small chuckle from the wounded trooper. The chuckling stopped when the medic ran in and went to work on his chest.

“W-wow, you’re lucky, vod.” Loop stated. Luna rolled her eyes, Loop’s bluntness knew no bounds. She turned back to the squad.

“Two of you stay and check for more wounded, the rest of you follow me, we must find General Kenobi.”

“No need, Captain, I’m right here.” All eyes fell on the Jedi General as he appeared around a corner, his lightsaber illuminating the entire hallway.

“Sir, all droids have been eliminated.” Luna reported.

The Jedi nodded. “Very good, let’s collect the dead and wounded, then join Anakin on Tatooine.” His expression darkened. “I just hope Dooku didn’t have other surprises for him.”

“Sir, I know General Skywalker. Nothing will stop him from getting that Huttlet home, and Commander Tano isn’t going to let anything happen to him.”

Obi-Wan smiled. “You seem to have a lot of faith in them.” He pointed out.

Luna nodded. “From what I’ve seen, sir, they’re perfect for each other.” The Jedi and alicorn walked outside into the courtyard, two troopers lifted Dek onto a stretcher and carried him to the gunships.

The Battle of Teth was over, and the mission was almost complete.

All but six are dead and wounded. Luna attacked with two companies; sure, they were under-strength, but that’s not the point. They attacked that monastery with over sixty troopers, and only six were able to escape injury and death.

The Captain slammed a hoof onto her desk, resulting in a loud bang that she was sure echoed through the barracks. All those lives wasted on a Hutt.

She sighed. But the mission was completed, the Huttlet was returned safe and sound, and the Republic now had space lanes through the Outer Rim that let them travel to Kamino without threat from Separatist fleets.

But she hated taking casualties like this, but this was a situation where they weren’t expected to survive. She supposed that was the 501st’s specialty, surviving the impossible. The alicorn sighed as she walked over to a wall near the back of her office.

The wall was made of a special material, one that she could etch into. On the wall were names of troopers she had lost under her command. It was a list that was always growing. Now she had more names to add to it. Using her magic, she took a pen and began etching names into it.

The first name she put onto the wall was: Hardlight.

Author's Note

Teth is complete, and we have now passed the Clone Wars movie!!! Hooray!!!!

Onyx, I'm so sorry for Hardlight. If you wish to submit another trooper, go right ahead. I'm always accepting new OC's. Please forgive me, I know, I'm a murderer!

Extra: 99's

Luna signed her name onto the sheet, once the program accepted her signature, it sent the file to the main server. Thankfully, that was the last file, meaning she could finally relax. There was only one place where she could relax tonight. Time to take a trip to 99’s.

The alicorn stood up from her seat and walked over to her closet. She opened the door to reveal several officer uniforms hung up neatly on a rack and a large mirror on the door. Luna looked herself over in the mirror, realizing that she was still wearing her armor. How busy was she that she didn’t notice that she was still wearing her armor, her dirty armor that needed a wash more than anything. But that could be dealt with later; for now, she needed a drink. Using her magic, she unhooked the latches on her suit. The bottom chest piece immediately fell off. Next went her foreleg pieces, then the hind leg pants. All that was left was the undersuit. She stopped for a moment to stare at it.

It was pitch black with a gray symbol of the Republic on the chest. Making sure that no one was coming in, she removed the suit. Now she was left in the bare, her dark blue fur was flat from being in that suit for several days. Her body never breathed so well in her life.

For some reason, this felt more natural to her, but for now, she decided to ignore that feeling. With a shrug, she grabbed her officer uniform and placed it on. It was gray, with the symbol of her captain status pinned onto her chest. There was even a little hat that she would wear, but knowing how tonight would go, she’d lose it lickety split.

Speaking of which, she needed to get her hooves on a ride. She knew just the clone to give her one.

99s was the famous Clone Bar on Coruscant. Most restaurants and other places refused to serve the troopers, despite the fact that they were dying by the thousands each day to keep them safe. The owner of 99s was a former Republic soldier before the Clone Wars, and he held every clone with the highest respect.

Inside the bar was a scene of pure entertainment. Troopers were in their off duty uniforms, drinking away as the drinks were half off on certain days. Twi'lek females walked around, serving drinks to the troopers who occasionally flirted with them. Sitting around one of the few tables were a group of troopers with papers in their hands. One of them looked especially disappointed with his orders, as he was currently hunched over the paper that contained them.

“You gotta be kriffing kidding me!” He exclaimed. The others looked at him with raised eyebrows.

“Not happy with your orders, Ronan?” One of them asked before taking a swig of his drink. The trooper named Ronan sighed before sitting up straight.

“No, I was hoping to join up with the 501st, those guys are as tough as Tuskans from what I heard.” Ronan explained. “My squad did the best on the training course, and we’re put with the 187th?!”

Another trooper raised an eyebrow, as well as his orders. “What’s wrong with the 187th? I’m heading there too.”

“They don’t do much, mostly recon and Jedi business.” The third clone said as he chugged down the last of his drink. This trooper was different from the clean shinies. He had a thick mustache that covered his upper lip and dragged down the side of his mouth before connecting to sideburns, however his chin remained nice and clean. This was a trooper that obviously cared less about regulation.

“Which can be some of the most boring assignments in the GAR.” He finished after putting down his glass. The second trooper looked at him.

“Really? I thought Jedi business was exciting.”

“It depends on the Jedi, trooper.” All three turned to see a pink alicorn alicorn walking up to them, more drinks being held within her magic. All three stood up and saluted, although the bearded one’s was more lopsided. Cadence rolled her eyes as she caught the gesture and handed him a drink.

“The Jedi I serve with always somehow end up in the most bizarre of circumstances.” She said knowingly as he handed the bearded trooper another drink, which he happily accepted. “The 187th is under General Windu’s direct command, and he tends to be a very by the books, only doing work for the Council kind of Jedi. The only time you see action is when your unit is placed under another Jedi’s Command, or if his help is desperately required. Otherwise, they’re mostly a recon oriented unit.”

The Captain looked to Ronan. “Let me see your orders.” Ronon obliged, handing her the sheet. She quickly read it over before handing it back with a smile. “Don’t worry about being bored Ronan, you’ll be seeing plenty of action.”

Ronan raised an eyebrow. “You’re being placed in ARF, those guys go everywhere, more so than the rest of the 187th, so you’ll see plenty of action.” Ronan perked up, but still didn’t smile. It wasn’t what he was hoping for, but he supposed it was the cards he was dealt.

A group of clones at another table called out for Cadence, who turned her head before shaking it with amusement. The clones of the 212th were doing strange gestures that the three troopers could only guess was them begging for drinks.

“I better go before my boys decide to assault me for these babies.” She said, jiggling the full glasses to emphasize her point. “Good luck, boys. You’ll do great.” With that, the Captain walked away, leaving the three to chat once more.

Luna stepped into the bar, taking a long glance around the area to see if there was a place to sit. There were none, every seat had troopers in various states of intoxication; from slightly buzzed to passed out on the bench with a twi’lek servent checking to make sure they weren’t dead. Her eyes fell on a particular group of troopers who were sitting at a table, particularly the one with the way out of regulation facial hair. The alicorn thought back to where she saw this face before, which was hard considering that 90% of the people she knew all shared the same exact one. Then she remembered, one of the new transfers to her platoon.

She walked over to the group as the mustache trooper told his story.

“... So I was out on patrol outside the base perimeter, when suddenly WHAM! Razorwolf jumps out from the brush to chew my head off. But I made sure he wouldn’t.” He pulled out a large hunting knife, no doubt one he bought from the village that the base protected. “Sliced right through his spinal cord and he was dead. Made for some good meat.” Luna held in her giggle as she saw one of the troopers look ready to vomit. The trooper telling the story didn’t seem to notice as he added “Too bad regulation only lets us change the uniform so much, otherwise I would’ve used the fur to make some cool cloak for my armor.” The sick trooper only got worse as he got up and ran for the nearest bathroom. The mustache trooper laughed as the Shiny ran off to puke his guts out, taking a swig of his drink.

But before the glass made contact with his lips, it was yanked away by some unforeseen force. He head turned to see Captain Luna guzzling it down in massive gulps. Within seconds the entire glass was empty, shocking the two troopers who witnessed this event. Once the last of the refreshing alcohol passed her lips, Luna exhaled and put the glass back on the table. She then looked to the victim of her robbery.

“I’d better not find you trying to take my fur off my skin, Corporal Razorwolf, otherwise we’ll have a serious problem.” The trooper now known as Razorwolf spluttered to find a response before the alicorn let out a slightly adorable laugh. “Relax corporal, I’m only teasing.” She gestured to an empty seat. “May I?”

“O-oh, of course, Captain.” Razorwolf spluttered. Luna smiled and sat down.

“Thank you. I’m glad I ran into you. I was hoping to meet the trooper who was well known for killing a razorwolf and accidently blowing up one of the training facilities on Kamino.”

“Uh, those charges were never proven, ma’am.” Razorwolf argued, although his flushing cheeks betrayed his embarrassment. Luna giggled again.

“Of course.” She then turned to the other trooper sitting across from her. “And who might you be?”

The trooper straightened up. “Sneak, ma’am. 187th ARF Unit.” Luna’s eyes widened. “An ARF, eh? You must be good at what you do.” Sneaks rubbed the back of his head. “I try my best, ma’am.”

“That’s good, My sister expects the best, so give her yours and you’ll be fine.”

“I hope so, ma’am.” Silence fell between the three before the alicorn spotted a familiar captain a few tables away.

“Sorry to leave you like this, troopers. But I need to talk to my sister.” She turned to Sneaks. “Good luck, ARF Trooper, you’ll do great things for the Republic.” Then turned to Razorwolf. “And make sure when you return to the barracks to keep quiet, most of my men are getting some well deserved sleep.”

“Yes ma’am.” Both said at the same time. Luna nodded, then left. It was after she disappeared into the crowd the crowd that the sick member of their group returned.

“So,” Ronan said slowly. “What did I miss?”

Author's Note

Another extra complete, just a quick welcome to three of our newest troopers. Hope you all enjoyed this little dribble at 99's. I'll see you next time.

Chapter 7: Ryloth Pt. 1

Cadence stood in the gunship as it took off from the Acclamator, joined by four more. The doors were closed, but the slits were open to allow some view of the world outside. The skies were gray, giving off an aura of death and misery. The ground below did the same. All she could see on the ground were dead trees and charred earth.

This was the planet of Ryloth, a Republic world that was overrun by Separatist forces less than three months ago. Now they were back to retake the planet, and liberate the people.

“Remember why we are here.” General Kenobi said, gaining everyone’s attention. “We’re here to aid the Twi’leks, not destroy their homes.” He then turned to Commander Cody, signalling him to take over. The clone commander nodded and stepped forward.

“That means we’re taking it back the hard way.” He said, looking at some of the troopers who brought heavy weapons. “Minimal destruction with blasters and droid poppers only. No rockets or detonators.” Cadence turned to see one of the rocket troopers lower his rocket launcher with a sigh, trading it for his secondary DC-15a Carbine. He was one of the two not wearing their helmets at the moment, Boil and Waxer if she remembered correctly.

“So check your aim.” Cody continued. “Keep an eye out for the locals, am I understood?”

“Yes sir!” Came the response. Cadence’s ears perked up as she heard a scoff.

“If we’re here to free the Tailheads, the least they could do is get outta our way.” That was definitely Waxer. Cadence sighed. None of the troopers were that used to interacting with civilians, and the few times they encountered them near battlefields were less than ideal situations. Cadence didn’t fully agree with his statement, but she could see where it was coming from.

The sudden loud explosions turned her attention outside. Through the slits, she could see flak explosions all around them. In the distance, she can see one if the Acclamators sinking toward the ground, one of its engines gone and replaced with an ever expanding fireball.

Behind her, General Windu appeared on the holocomms. “Kenobi, those guns are causing significant damage to our fleet. We cannot land the heavy transports until you take out those guns!”

“Pull the ships back, we’ll take them out.” The Jedi bowed slightly before his image disappeared. Kenobi looked to his troops. “Who’s up for a challenge? We’re not getting any reinforcements until those guns are out of commision.”

Dread spread through the gunship as their situation worsened. “Here we go again.” Waxer said. Cadence’s helmet comm went off two of their five gunships were hit and destroyed. It was quickly followed by a third. The flak fire soon lessened, giving a small bit of relief for the remaining troopers.

The side doors opened to reveal the landscape, as barren as it looked from the air. The gunships began their descent, landing in a small wooded area. Cadence could see small creatures scatter into the woodline before burrowing into the ground.

Silently, the troopers their General jumped down from the gunship and made their way through the woods. They were taking no fire, so far. But that was about to change very soon. The ground in front of them was on an incline, which offered some cover from the droid forces ahead.

Scans of the area showed a half destroyed wall which was the main entrance to the village. It was a guarantee that the droids were going to use it as a defensive position.

Cadence and her Ghost Company bobbed and weaved their way through the trees, preparing for whatever the clankers were going to throw at them. While their ROE prevented them from doing anything destructive to the area, the droids had no such problems. Droids could care less if they destroyed a person’s home to get what they want.

It was silent, the only sound that could be heard were the dozens of stomping boots on the ground as they ran through. It was eerie. They hadn’t seen even a single animal. This could be a trap, if they were ready to destroy their transports, what else was awaiting them in that village?

Cadence could now see the village, and the wall fortification that served as its entrance. Atop the two towers on either side of the wall were small squads of droids, along with turrets. She could see the droids panic for a moment before they crewed their turrets and aimed.

“Take cover!” She ordered, ducking behind a tree. Most of the other troopers followed her example, but a few were caught out in the open. They ran for cover further down, but only a couple made it.

Cadence watched as three of her men were cut down by an MG. She aimed her blaster and returned fire, the rest of her squad did the same.

Blade took cover behind a tree to avoid the incoming fire. A trooper to his right was not so lucky. From his position, he could see the turrets and their crews. A look to the wall itself revealed a small fire team lying prone on the wall. He decided to aim for those, firing several shots. One hit, sending a droid toppling to the ground. Another trooper behind him goes down, a blaster bolt striking him in the leg.

The trooper screamed out in pain, attracting the attention of Loop the medic. Loop ran over and immediately dragged the trooper out of harm’s way.

Blade watched him get carried back before firing once more. He was going to trash these droids if it was the last thing he did.

Cadence organized the squads to fire on certain targets. Below the hill, she could see General Kenobi leading Waxer and Boil down to the base of the wall. She needed to keep the droids from firing at them, so she ordered her squads to draw their attention without exposing themselves.

She watched as Waxer threw a popper toward the wall, but it fell short. He threw a second, and this time the device floated up into the right side turret position.

“Concentrate fire on the droids on the wall!” She ordered. The troopers immediately shifted fire to the center of the wall, just as a second popper landed in the left side turret position. Both poppers went off, wiping out the droids inside. A few volleys later, the last droids were taken out.

The alicorn captain immediately ran up to the wall, with her troopers in tow. Now they just had to climb over to get into the village and take out those guns.

TX-20 stood idle as it awaited word from the defensive line. It ran every scenario through his servos a dozen times each in just a few mili-seconds. One of its subordinate B1’s stepped up to him.

“We have lost contact with the outer defenses.”

Scenario #2, the perimeter is overrun and the clones were now moving in to secure the guns. TX-20 just needed information on their attack strategy in order to prepare.

“They have overrun the village perimeter, find out how they next plan to attack.” It ordered, the B1 gave the signature ‘Roger, Roger’ response before turning around and activating a recon droid.

Kenobi and Cadence stared at the large smoke column in the distance, no doubt this was the area where the guns were placed. Cody walked up to them and saluted.

“The wall is secure, sir. Are we moving onto the guns?” The General rubbed his beard in his signature thinking pose.

“We need to know what the droids have in store for us, send your best men to scout ahead.” Cody nodded, then turned to Waxer and Boil.

“Waxer, Boil, come with me.”

The two looked at each other before shrugging. “I guess we’re the best.” They followed Cody and Wally down the road, preparing for the recon mission they’ve been assigned. Obi-Wan then turned to Cadence.

“Set up a temporary HQ in that building over there until they get back.” Cadence nodded and went to work right away.

She walked over to what appeared to be the remnants of a cafe, with a counter covered in smashed plates and tipped over cups. She looked around on the other side to find more of the stuff littered all over the floor.

The alicorn sighed, she could only imagine what the Twi’leks had to suffer while under occupation. She just hoped that they were still alive. She turned to a couple of idle troopers and hailed them over.

“I need you guys to grab one of the portable holo-tables we have in the gunship. Bring it here, I’ll tell you where to set it up.” They saluted and walked off. Cadence laughed as she heard one of them grumble about lifting the damn thing over the wall.

Waxer and Boil were moving cautiously down the desolate street, scanning the area for any movement. It was silent, with only the occasional howl of the wind to echo through the buildings.

“I’m telling ya, Boil, this is creepy.” Waxer stated. The trooper then looked inside an open door to see personal belongings thrown all over the place.

“You think they… killed them all?” He asked. A huge pit was dug into his gut as the thought crossed his mind. Waxer never thought much about civilians, only that he didn’t like seeing innocent people hurt. After all, he was a soldier, his job was to defend the innocent. You have to care about someone if you’re going to defend them.

Boil, however, had a different idea. “No, no, no, there’s no bodies.” he pointed out. “They were driven from their homes.”

That didn’t help much. “I don’t think they had a…” The sound of crumbling dirt drew his attention, forcing the clone to point his blaster into an alleyway. There was nothing there that he could see.

“Didn’t have a what?” Boil asked, scanning the surrounding area.

When nothing appeared, Waxer sighed and finished his thoughts. “... Choice.” The two continued their patrol, unaware of the small pair of eyes watching them from behind a corner.

Cadence was seething in rage. Her troopers made the wise choice of taking a few steps away from her, the alicorn was becoming a hyper fuel tank with the information they had just received.

Cody and Wally had found the guns, surrounded by at least two platoons of droids, an AAT, and the entire village populace chained up to act as shields. Cadence always thought that the droids were scum, but this was a new low. If she ever got her hooves on that Tactical Droid, she was going to use its head as vibroblade practice while it was still active!

General Kenobi glared at the images, then thought out loud. “The hostages will make it difficult, but not impossible. I still have a good plan for taking out those guns.”

“Getting the villagers out of harm’s way is our first priority.” General Windu summarized as he took in all of the information. “I have faith in you, General Kenobi.”

“Cody, we’ll go in with everything we have. Clear those hostages.” Cody nodded and signalled for the others to get ready. Obi-Wan turned to Cadence, who was still glaring lightsabers at the images presented.

A calm hand on her back snapped her out of it. He gave her an understanding smile. “I know how it feels to be angered by these situations, but we need a clear head if we’re going to succeed.” Cadence said nothing, she only nodded and grabbed her blaster.

They had work to do.

TX-20 marched past the rows of prisoners scattered throughout the square. It gave them a once over, noticing a few of the more spirited Twi’leks giving it glares. A few kicks from their security detail made them look down once more.

TX-20 walked down the stairs into the dungeon area, where the subordinate droid was waiting.

“I starved them like you ordered, sir.” It said. Inside the cages were groups of starved, bloodthirsty Gutkurrs. These creatures were native to the area, and proved to be a problem for the local villagers. Now the Tactical Droid planned on making them his newest weapon against the clones.

“Are you sure they will not attack us?”

“I need a test in order to prove my theory.” TX-20 pressed the button that opened the cell, the B1 in front of it was completely oblivious to the creature sneaking up behind it, until it was in the creature’s mouth. After a few seconds of thrashing, the droid was spat out, and the creature was returned to its cell.

“Just as I calculated, the creatures require organic meat.”

The droid that was nearly eaten stood up, covered in the saliva of the gutkurr. “Well that’s a relief.”

“It will not be for the clones. They will provide a most generous supply.”

Back at headquarters, Cadence noticed Cody messing with his wrist comms. She raised an eyebrow, then walked over to see what the problem was. Cody noticed her and knew what she was going to ask.

“Waxer and Boil haven’t reported in yet.” That made Cadence worry. They would’ve reported in by now, even to just notify them that they were late. Something must’ve happened to them.

“Which way did they go?”

Cody pointed to the west of the smoke column. “On the west side of the village, but from there, I have no idea.” Cadence nodded and readied her blaster.

“I’ll go find them, if I’m not back in 20, leave without me.” She was about to turn when one of her forelegs was grabbed by Cody.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea, Captain.”

“I’m not leaving troopers out there, Commander. You know I can’t.” Cody sighed, he did know. He still remembered the last time troopers went missing on patrol. Cadence found them three days later, dead from being eaten by the local wildlife. She took it personally, as she was the one that sent those poor souls out in the first place.

Without a word, Cody let go and allowed Captain Cadence to make her way out into the village alone.

On the west side of the village, Waxer and Boil were still on patrol, never hearing their comms bleeping. Waxer was too deep in thought about the Twi’lek girl they encountered a few minutes ago, and Boil was too annoyed by his brother’s constant worrying.

Waxer looked behind him as he swore he heard the little girl’s footsteps behind him. He saw nothing, but didn’t lose hope.

“I wonder what happened to her family.”

“Probably dead.” Boil answered bluntly. “Hopefully, she’ll survive this mess.” Waxer turned around, this time he knew he heard the girl behind him. But once again, she was gone.

“So, what happens to her, once we leave?”

Boil shrugged. “I don’t know.” He stopped when he immediately realized what Waxer was getting at. “Oh no, we are not taking her with us!” Waxer turned around as the street became silent. He couldn’t see the girl anywhere, despite hearing her just moments ago.

“She’s… gone.” He said somberly. Boil sighed. His brother’s heart was too big sometimes.

“I’m sure the little biter will turn up.” He said, hoping to keep Waxer moving. The troopers turned to continue their patrol, but stopped as the little girl stood in front of them.

Waxer could never describe the relief he felt when he saw the girl standing in front of him. He smiled brightly under the helmet as he knelt down.

“Hey, there you are.” He said happily, poking her on her cute little nose.

Boil, on the other hand, was completely confused. “Wait, how did she get in front of us?”

The girl suddenly grabbed Waxer’s arm and pointed further down the street. “Neera, Neera.” With that, she ran off. Waxer’s eyes widened.

“No no, don’t go that way!” He called out, but the little girl ignored him as she ran around a corner. “That’s where the recon droid went.”

‘Waxer, let her go.” Boil insisted.

“I’m not just going to let the droids get her.” The trooper said before running off after her. Boil growled.

“I’m just trying to keep you alive!” He sighed as Waxer kept on running, and as his brother, he had to follow. “Although I don’t know why.”

Cadence marched down the street, scanning the horizons for any sign of the two missing troopers. She was starting to get worried. She was supposed to report back, but she didn’t want to give up on them.

“Just five more minutes, then I’ll make my way back.” She muttered to herself. Suddenly, the sound of feet stomping the ground caught her attention. She looked down an alleyway to see a little Twi’lek girl running down toward her. The girl didn’t seem to notice her as she turned a corner and disappeared.

“Where’s she going?” Cadence asked herself as she began heading down the alley. A few seconds later, two clone troopers ran down the same alleyway, following the girl’s steps. It was Waxer and Boil, they didn’t notice their captain, who could only watch in surprise as they rounded the same corner. Without a second thought, the alicorn ran forward to follow them. She followed them through another alley way and stopped when they reached a residential area.

Cadence stopped when she saw them catch up to the girl. Unsurprisingly, Waxer rubbed the top of the girl’s head in a comforting manner. He always cared for the civilians, especially kids.

“There you are.” He said, catching his breath. Boil quickly joined them.

“Good, I have binders if we need ‘em.” Waxer glared at the trooper, who only shrugged in response. Cadence chose that moment to reveal herself.

“I don’t think this girl is a threat, trooper.” The two troopers and Twi’lek looked at the alicorn as she marched over to them. The girl hid behind Waxer’s leg, the trooper placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Cadence smiled and removed her helmet. “It's okay, Sweetie. I’m with these two goofballs.” The girl stared at her, then smiled and pointed.

“Eswok.” She said simply. Cadence laughed.

“No no, I’m Cadence.” She then looked at the two troopers. “So I take it this is why you haven’t reported in yet?” The two looked at each other as they realized how long they’ve been gone.

“I understand, but expect to be polishing R2 units for the rest of the month for not checking in.”

Boil pointed a thumb at his brother. “Blame this guy, he’s the big hearted bloke.” Waxer took offense to that statement. The alicorn turned her attention back to the little girl, who was staring at the remains of a small hut. The soft sniffles she heard made the Captain’s heart melt.

She walked over to the girl, and signalled for her to head inside. The girl grabbed Waxer’s hand, and pointed inside. Waxer simply nodded and walked in with the girl.

The hut was in shambles. The floor was covered in rubble, holes where the roof used to be gave a clear answer as to what happened. This place was openly attacked and the house was hit by explosives.

Cadence and Waxer stared at the girl as she stood in the middle of the room and began to cry. Cadence’s instincts took over and she began comforting the Twi’lek.

“I guess, this was her home.” Waxer said softly. “Poor thing, she’s lost it all.” His eyes fell on a small doll that was left on the floor. He carefully picked it up and dusted it off, the toy made a small squeak as he did so.

The girl still stood there crying, with Cadence rubbing her back in support. Waxer slowly knelt down to her and presented the doll. The Twi’lek grabbed it, and stared before she began crying again. She held the doll close.

“It’s okay now, we’re here to help.” Waxer said. The girl lunged at the trooper and wrapped her arms around him. Without hesitation, he did the same. The captain and the trooper looked at each other in sadness as they let the girl cry between them. Boil then walked over and knelt down in front of the girl.

“Don’t cry, kid, we’ll keep you safe. I… I promise.” The girl looked at Boil, then hugged him. The trooper awkwardly returned it, looking at his captain, who smiled at him.

TX-20 watched General Kenobi ordered his men to move. Now was the time.

“They are on the move.” TX activated the intercom. “Sergeant, the attack is coming. Release the beasts.”

“Roger Roger.”

Down below, the droids opened the Gutkurr cells and used electric prods to move the creatures down through the tunnels and out onto the open streets.

Back at the girl’s home, Cadence stood up and grabbed her helmet. “We have to go, the General and the Commander are about to launch the assault, we need to head back to HQ, now.”

Waxer stood up. “Wait, how are gonna explain this… eh, her?” He gestured to the girl, who had calmed down enough to pay attention to the conversation.

“Don’t worry, I’ll explain everything to the General, and we’ll keep her safe at HQ til we find her family.” She looked at the Twi’le and smiled. “I promise.” Waxer and Boil grabbed their helmets and blasters and stepped outside. They were only a few feet from the door when Cadence felt a chill go up her spine. Something was wrong.

The girl seemed to sense the same thing, as she hid behind Waxer’s leg.

“Gutkurr, Gutkurr!” She warned. Cadence didn’t know what a gutkurr was, but she had a feeling that it wasn’t good.

Loud hissing echoed down the alley they came from and large shadows precluded the arrival of large creatures. The troopers backed up, pushing the girl back into the house. From around the corner, several creatures appeared. Their eyes were filled with hunger and they landed on the organics ahead of them.

“I think I know why the kid never came back here.” Boil said as he aimed at the creatures.

The gutkurrs charged forward, forcing the three troopers to open fire.

‘See what happens… when we don’t follow orders.” Boil said, scolding Waxer.

“Let’s get outta here!” The group ducked back inside, Cadence used her magic to slam the stone door shut and hold it closed as the creatures slammed against it. She grunted and groaned as the strain was getting too much. Waxer and Boil braced themselves against the door as the girl began moving a large stone across the floor.

Cadence watched as the girl then lifted up a secret hatch in the floor. It was an escape door. She turned to the troopers. “Get the girl outta here, I’ll follow, go!” Waxer and Boil didn’t ask twice. Boil jumped down first, with the girl following close behind. Waxer held the door open for Cadence to follow. The captain released the door and shot over to the escape hole. Both troopers jumped down into the darkness, just as the gutkurrs entered the room.

Cadence activated her lights, revealing the dark tunnel around them. The girl pointed in a certain direction, pulling on her leg. The captain looked to Waxer and Boil, who could only shrug. They followed the girl as she led them further down the dark tunnel.

They weren’t sure how long they were in the tunnel, but eventually. The girl stopped and pointed up. Cadence looked to see sunlight peeking through. There was a manhole cover above them. They were close to getting out.

“Waxer, Boil, take point. I’ll carry the girl up.” The two did as they were told and climbed up the ladder. Waxer pushed the cover out, and climbed out. He turned to see the General and the Commander standing there watching him. He climbed out, followed by Boil.

“Waxer, Boil, where have you two slackers been?” Cody demanded. “And where’s Captain Cadence?!”

“I’m right here, sir.” All eyes turned back to the open hole when Cadence flew out and landed softly. Obi-Wan saw a little Twi’lek girl giggling as she sat on the Captain’s back.

“Who’s this?” He asked kindly. Cadence lifted the girl off her back and placed her gently on the ground.

“The reason these two were sidetracked, sir.” Obi-Wan gave them two troopers a knowing smile before turning to the girl. Before he could talk to her, Boil spoke up.

“She managed to get back here through the tunnels, sir. Little biter knows them pretty well.”

“I see.” Kenobi then spoke to the girl in her native language, a conversation that none of the troopers could understand. They were only taught basic. The conversation lasted for a few minutes before Obi-Wan stood up.

“Little Numa here can lead us to the prisoners through the tunnels.” Cadence’s eyes widened, then narrowed into a glare.

“Sir, we are not voluntarily bringing a little girl into a combat zone!”

Kenobi turned to her. “Cadence, she will only lead us to the tunnels. After that, she’ll stay down there until it is safe, I promise.” Cadence stared hard at the Jedi Master, then sighed as she relented.

“Fine, but if she’s hurt....”

“She won’t be, I promise.”

The plan was all set. General Kenobi would follow Numa, with Waxer and Boil in support, and free the prisoners and sabotage the guns. At the same time, Cody and Cadence will lead the assault force to cause a distraction. Hopefully, it would draw the AAT and the Tactical Droid from the area.

Ghost Company readied themselves for the fight, taking cover where they could. Cody took a squad forward to draw the droids in.

Cadence stood behind a building, her blaster at ready. The rest of the troopers did the same as blaster fire suddenly erupted in front of them. It lasted a few minutes before troopers appeared further down the street. Behind them were several squads of battle droids.

“Open fire!” Cadence opened up, careful not to hit the retreating troopers. The droids were quickly being cut down, then the tanks showed up.

Two AATs, one more than Cody reported. Great.

The first tank fired its main cannon, the shot landing a few feet short of the alicorn’s position. She could see the Tactical Droid standing in the turret.

“Aim for the droid in the turret!” She ordered. Several troopers concentrated their fire on the tank turret, but not a single shot managed to hit.

The fireight continued for a few more minutes, until the Tactical Droid pressed some buttons on its control panel. The AAT turned around, heading back to the campsite.

Cadence saw it leave and cursed out loud. The tank disappeared around the corner, leaving only one AAT and half a platoon of droids left. The alicorn had an idea.

“Blade, give me a popper!” The trooper pulled a droid popper from his belt and tossed it toward his captain, who caught it with her magic. “Cover me!” Blade nodded and opened fire on the remaining droids.

Cadence spread her wings and took off toward the droid tank. She dodged incoming fire, bobbing and weaving past the battle droids, then flew onto the tank.

“Hey!” The battle droid standing in the hatch called out before it was flung from the vehicle. Cadence pressed the button on the popper and threw the small device into the tank. She jumped clear just as the EMP grenade went off, shutting down the tank and the crew inside.

It took only seconds to finish off the droids, clearing the way for the troopers to move in on the artillery camp. The loud explosions at that area gave them a pretty good idea of how it went, along with the arrival of the Acclamator Assault Ships.

They did it.

Cadence and the rest of Ghost Company had gathered at the landing site, along with the villagers who wished to thank them for their liberation. Cadence blushed as a few of them gave her special attention.

The one she didn’t mind was little Numa sitting on her back and laughing. Constantly repeating the word “Eswok.” What that meant, she’ll probably never know. She looked over to see Waxer and Boil approaching. With a knowing smile, she let Numa down, allowing the little girl to run up to them. She immediately wrapped her arms around Waxer’s leg, who patted her head in response. Once she let go, the trooper knelt down to her level.

“See you later, little one.” he said cheerfully before walking away. Boil stayed a few feet away, but still called out.

“Hey Numa, stay out of trouble.” The Twi’lek girl ran up and hugged the trooper, who laughed loudly. A few of his squadmates looked at him like he lost his mind. He took no notice.

“Don’t be afraid, we’ll be back.” With that, he walked off to join the others. Numa’s uncle joined her in watching the troopers leave. She waved enthusiastically, shouting all the while.

“Neera! Neera! Neera!”

Waxer and Boil looked to General Kenobi, asking him, “Sir, what is that she keeps calling us?”

Obi-Wan smiled before looking at the troopers. “Neera, it means ‘Brother.’” The two looked back at the girl and waved, then continued their march to free the rest of this world, and keep their promise to their new little sister.

Author's Note

And now we begin the Ryloth Campaign. I'm going to admit. The scene with Numa's bombed out home made me tear up a bit.

Today's Trivia:
What does Eswok mean?

That's it, that's the only question I could think of.

Chapter 8: Ryloth Pt. 2

Commander Celestia of the 187th Legion was not having a good day. For starters, her armoured company was stuck. Three of their tanks were taken out by AATs earlier that morning, and now General Windu is gone as he had left to seek the help from local freedom fighters.

The alicorn rolled her eyes at this. She still remembered when Windu was dead set against the idea of using locals to bolster their numbers. Now he was doing the same thing, and leaving his troopers to continue the offensive. At least this campaign was almost over. It was just the capital and some outlying villages that needed to be liberated. Then the Republic could resume their operations in the Mid-Rim.

Celestia flew low over the ground, a small company of ARF troopers on their AT-RTs followed. She was scouting ahead of the convoy to see where the remaining droids were located. After that initial line of tanks they encountered on the highway, there had been little to no droid resistance. It was strange. Normally, droids had a strong multi-layer defense, with lines of increasing difficult defenses.

But not here. It wasn’t normal, and Celestia didn’t like it when her enemy wasn’t normal. The sun was setting below the horizon. She could see it as she crested a large hill. The alicorn stopped and landed on the ground. Her troopers stopped behind her.

She stared into the sunset, although she wasn’t sure why. The alicorn had been to over 20 different planets over the course of the war. She had seen hundreds of sunsets. But for some reason, this one was special.

Her eyes followed the sun down until it disappeared behind the horizon, where a small village was coming into view. When day turned to night, the lights from the buildings revealed that it was still inhabited.

Celestia shook herself to focus. She had a job to do. She turned to one of the troopers and spoke.

“Inform Ponds that we found a village, and we’re going to secure it.” The trooper nodded and activated his long range comms. Once that was done, Celestia spread her wings and took off.

Nothing. There was nothing in the village. According to the villagers, the droids left hours ago, taking all of their treasures with them.

Ronan angrily kicked a can into an alleyway. The others were right, the 187th was weeks of boredom and minutes of action. He was hoping that being an ARF trooper would meana he’d see more action, but instead, he’s been more of a glorified scout! When would the droid put up another fight?

His anger must’ve been obvious because Celestia marched over to him. He couldn’t see her face under her helmet, but he could tell it was a scowl.

“Trooper, calm yourself. We’re here to free these people, not kick their trash around.”

“Sorry, ma’am.” He looked down, not wanting to look her in the face. Celestia was much like General Windu, she was too cautious and stoic. She didn’t seek out any action, nor did she seem to like to fight. What kind of trooper didn’t want to fight?

“Trooper, I know you’re frustrated.” The Commander said softly. “I know you’re eager to fight. But this is not the time or the place.” Ronan looked up at her. “This is going to be a long war, you know it and I know it. You’ll have your chances, but for now, do your job, follow orders, and help these people. They are innocent people, and soldiers protect the innocent.” Ronan nodded, then walked back to the unit. Celestia watched him go, shaking her head slightly. That trooper was too much of a fighter, which she normally didn’t mind. But he was trying to act like the Mandalorians of old, from the stories Jango and the other trainers told to inspire them.

Some troopers just took it more to heart than intended.

With a sigh, she activated her commlink. “This is Commander Celestia calling Command.”

“This is Command, send traffic.”

“Village is cleared, droids have pulled out and left the villagers alone. Be advised, it’s mostly women and children.”

“Understood, we’re 3 miles out. ETA: 10 minutes.” Good, hopefully there were some rations to spare.

“Understood, out.” With that, she shut down the comms and walked back to meet with her troopers.

It was at that moment her ears picked up on something. It was like a shrill hum. The sound of droid fighter engines. Her eyes shot up to the dark skies, where a formation of bombers were seen diving down toward the village.

Ronan turned his eyes to the sky, the sound of droid bombers filling his ears. “Take cover!” Came the order. Troopers and civilians ran for whatever cover they could find. Ronan ran for a building to his left. He could see a group of women and children inside. As he ran, he looked up again. The bombers were pulling away. But their payload was still screaming towards them. One of those bombs was heading directly for the house he was running to.

In a flash, the building exploded, engulfed in flames. Ronan only had a split second to see a little twi’lek girl look at him with terror before the flames consumed her. The ARF trooper was flung backwards onto the ground as more bombs fell around him.

Celestia activated her shield, expanding it as far as it could go. The bombs impacted the shield, their flames spread over it. The heat was intense, troopers and civilians inside had to shield their eyes from the bright light. The alicorn pushed against the flames, burning her energy to ensure that others would survive this attack. Her horn burned as her magic was pushed to the limits.

She gave it everything she got; the only other thing she could do was scream.

It was over in less than a minute. As quickly as the bombers appeared, they were gone. The village was engulfed in flames. Screams mixed in with the roar of the fires. Ronan slowly got up and looked around at the hell that surrounded him. The building he almost ran into was completely gone, replaced with a tower of napalm.

He could see troopers putting each other out with blankets and fire equipment. Villagers running around to either help or escape. But his eyes fell on the young mother holding her child, who was almost unrecognizable as the body was burnt to a crisp. Her cries were drowned out by the others, but the ARF trooper could hear it so clearly. Ronan couldn’t describe what he was feeling.

It was like rage, sorrow, pain, fear, and confusion, all rolled into one. Why did this happen? Was it because they were there? Was there even a reason?

Ronan couldn’t answer those questions. But he could answer a different question. He was never going to let this happen to innocent people, ever again.

Celestia lowered the shield, panting to catch her breath. She looked at the destruction around her. With a groan, she slowly stood up. Two troopers ran over to assist her, but she waved them off. Once standing, she turned to them.

“Get these villagers out of here, and start putting out these fires!” The troopers nodded and went to work escorting the Twi’leks out of the village. Celestia watched them go before she collapsed once again. When she fell to her knees, the reality of the situation hit her like a speeder. The droids had bombed the village, with the intention of burning it to the ground. They had no purpose other than to cause destruction, kill as many as possible. They did this to leave only ashes for the Republic.

“Commander!” Celestia turned her head to see Ronan running toward her. He slid over to her and grabbed her withers. He started to lift her up, but she stopped him.

“I’m fine, Ronan. I can get up.” It was a struggle, but she eventually managed to stand up. She faced the ARF trooper, who stared the scene around him.

“Ronan.” She said, he said nothing. “Ronan!” He turned to her. “Focus on helping those still alive, help them get to safety.” Ronan nodded and ran off. Her radio was going haywire as dozens of troopers were calling in. They were from other units in different villages. All were reporting fire bombing raids. This wasn’t random. The droids were going to destroy everything on Ryloth. She had to contact General Windu.

Mace Windu watched the Twi’lek female dance alongside General Syndulla. He was trying his best to convince the rebel leader to help him take the capital. The problem was that Syndulla feared that the Republic would occupy them like the Separatists did.

“How long before I am fighting you, Master Jedi?” Before Windu could remark, his commlink bleeped rapidly. He pulled it out and activated it, and the image of Commander Celestia appeared. Her hair was disheveled and her eyes were sunken, her energy was drained.

“Commander, report.” Celestia sighed, then spoke.

“The droids have started a fire bombing campaign.” Windu’s eyes widened. “Several villages in our sector have been destroyed, sir.” All had gone silent in the rebel base. Syndulla was shaken. There was a long silence before he spoke.

“Make the arrangements, I will speak to Senator Taa.”

Celestia pulled the last body out of the wreckage of a hut, the corpse was unrecognizable. But the small frame made it obvious it was a female. Two troopers carefully grabbed the body and brought it over to a gathering point. Twelve rows of 7 bodies each were laid out on the outskirts of the destroyed village. Most of the fires had either been put out or died from lack of fuel. She sighed as she ran the numbers through her head.

84 Dead Civilians, with dozens more suffering severe burns, and 8 of her own men were lost in the flames. The loud stomps of the AT-TEs signalled the arrival of Commander Ponds and the rest of the Battalion. She turned to face the commander as he hoped down from the walker and marched over to him. He gave a stoic salute, but she did not return it. She was too tired to be respectful.

“General Windu ordered all units to move out, immediately.” He stated. Several ARF Troopers turned to look at him. Celestia could see the looks of shock and anger under their helmets, since her face was sharing in the anger.

“Ponds, we can’t leave these civilians.” She argued.

“General Syndulla is sending some of his people over to bring them to their hideout. They’ll take over. General Windu ordered us to leave some spare rations and medical supplies and move out. We have to take the capital before the week is over.”

“I’m not leaving these people behind to fend for themselves before the others arrive.”

Now Ponds was getting annoyed. “I’m sorry, Commander. But those are our orders.” He made sure to emphasize the word Orders. Celestia growled as she knew what she had to do. She turned to her men.

“Leave the spare blankets and rations here. Then grab your walkers. We’re moving out!”

Another ARF, Sneaks if she remembered correctly, stepped forward. “Ma’am, you can’t be serious!”

She didn’t even look at the trooper before continuing. “If your walker was damaged and can’t move, then pile into the AT-TEs, we leave in 10.” Without hesitation, she left with Ponds to sit in the Command Walker. She could hear the grumblings and growls from her men as she walked past.

The sun rose over the plains of Ryloth. Celestia stood on the top of the Command Walker, watching it do so. She felt the pull again, as if the star itself was calling out to her. Maybe Knave had a point, maybe she did have the Force if she was having these feelings.

Maybe she should talk to one of the Jedi about it. Not General Windu, she already had some issues with him and suddenly asking him about having the Force would make that distrust soar. She had to ask someone else.

She thought of Cadence’s relationship with General Kenobi. From what her younger sister said about him, he seemed like a caring Jedi. Maybe he could help her.

“All tanks halt!” The AT-TE stomped and halted. Celestia jumped down and walked up to Ponds and the two Generals. She could see the Capital in the distance, poking out like a spike in the ground. It was surrounded by a bottomless pit and high walls. Taking the city was not going to be easy.

She spotted something else that made her blood boil. Civilians, hundreds of them, lined the walls. Surrounded by droids, who abused any who moved out of place. Living shields. It wasn’t enough that the droids were bombing them, but now they were using them to protect themselves. Wat Tambor was a coward and she was going to ensure he dies a coward’s death.

“I’ll go.” Windu said as he stood up. “Be ready to charge across once I have the bridge open.” With the orders given, he and two ARF troopers walked away. No doubt putting in a plan that would ensure the bridge was up when they crossed it. Ponds walked off to ready the men. Celestia was about to join them when General Syndulla stopped her.

She looked at him as he seemed to be looking her over.

“Can I help you, sir?” His eyes went to hers, his expression neutral.

“I see you suffered some burns.” He said. Celestia looked herself over, realizing how filthy her armor was. It was ashy in some areas and pitch black in others. She remembered pulling a little girl out of a burning hut. The poor girl was crying her eyes out as her mother and father were crushed under debris. The alicorn had to run through a wall of flames to get to her, but she couldn’t go back for the rest of the family as the hut exploded as soon as she escaped.

The girl’s screams echoed in her mind for the rest of the night.

“I did, I was in one of the villages.” She said, not noticing the tears that built up in her eyes. “I’m so sorry, General.”

The Rebel General nodded. “I understand. I thank you for doing what you could.” He gave a small bow, which surprised the alicorn. She was used to people blaming the clones for everything.

They never did enough, it didn’t matter that they were dying by the thousands to protect them. It wasn’t enough that they had to suffer everyday so that others wouldn’t. It wasn’t enough that they were trying!

But Syndulla, he understood, and, in a selfish way, Celestia appreciated that, more than she realized.

“I wish I could’ve done more.” She said honestly, then walked away. She had a battle to prepare for and she was going to make sure she did more.

It went well, too well. It was barely even a battle. There were so few droids left in the city that it didn’t matter. Celestia watched as Wat Tambor was taken away in cuffs aboard a gunship, escorted by Ponds and his men. She glared at him, the source of all of the suffering she had witnessed and endured. But that changed as she watched her men march side by side with the rebels, as the citizens cheered them on as they paraded through the Capital. She saw clones hugged and kissed by females and patted on the shoulder by the males.

It was a sight that made her heart melt. For some reason, she turned to the sun, and felt the ball of plasma and flame smile upon them.

Author's Note

Sorry about the lack of proper action in this chapter, but I wanted to focus on the civilians that are caught up in this conflict and the thoughts of Celestia as she witnessed these horrific acts.

Also sorry for how short this was compared to the others, I promise to have longer chapters in the future.

Let me know if you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you soon, on the battlefield.

Chapter 9: Massacre on Felucia

Luna could only describe Felucia with one word. Hell, pure hell. It had been three weeks since they were deployed onto the planet and she regretted every minute of it. The terrain was a pain to fight in, with narrow pathways, swamps, and thick jungles, it was impossible to move armor through. On top of that were the diseases they had to deal with.

Half of her company was laid up with every type known to their medics. Some of them flesh eating, all of them fatal. She was glad that General Plo Koon and the Wolffe were taking over. Hopefully, they were better prepared than they were.

But she still had a job to do, and that job was to patrol the area for droid guns that were reported in the area. That was the easy part, the hard part was the Commander. General Skywalker insisted on Commander Tano coming with them. Normally, she wouldn’t mind, but the padawan was getting a little too enthusiastic about this patrol.

She was far ahead of the company, scouting for droids to slice up to add to her kill count. So that left Luna in charge of the patrol and right now it was a mess. Her forward platoon reported that their AT-TE broke down and they were stuck along the stream. So now, she had to wait for engineers to show up and repair the damn thing.

She activated her comms. “Knave, how’s it going down there?”

Knave pressed his wrist communicator. “Quiet, Captain, too quiet.” He looked around at the jungle around him. He couldn’t hear anything and it frightened him. He turned to Razorwolf, who was relaxing on top of the walker. It broke down half an hour ago and they had to sit tight and protect it until the engineers got here.

The corporal leaned against the turret, whistling a small tune to himself. He looked out at the alien forestry and admired its beauty. Sure, it was a swamp that seemed to be designed to kill them, but beauty was beauty in his mind. He turned his eyes and saw movement in the treeline. Razor grabbed a pair of binoculars and scanned the area. He couldn’t see what was out there, as the thing had disappeared.

Okay, now he was freaking out a bit.

Dek sat and stared at the motion sensor inside the busted AT-TE. His frustration was obvious, these tanks rarely broke down and the one time it does is in the middle of this disgusting swamp. He didn’t know why the Jedi just vaporize this planet and be done with it.

He sighed. That kind of thinking is why he isn’t a Jedi. He was a trooper and troopers had to follow orders.

The sudden shrill beeping from the computer broke him from his thoughts as six large red dots appeared on the screen. Dek activated the comms of the AT-TE. “Lieutenant, we got six massive objects moving in our position!”

The clones outside scattered, forming a small circle around the crippled vehicle. Knave stared at the incline ahead of him. It was high ground that was walled off by trees. Very few troopers could fit in there, but it was very good ground for an ambush. He ordered the tank crew to aim the top turret in that direction, hoping to blast whatever is coming from there.

“Knave, what’s going on out there?!” Luna demanded. Knave knew he had to respond.

“Unsure, Captain. We got movement all around us.”

“Understood, we’ll reinforce-” A loud screech made the officer snap his head around. On the other side of the AT-TE was something tall, with spiked legs. He could see troopers panic firing at the creature.

One trooper was unfortunate enough to trip and fall onto his back. The creature made him pay for his mistake by impaling one of its legs into his chest. Another trooper tried to run away, but he was picked up by the creature with its teeth. He screamed as the teeth ripped him in two and his top half was swallowed whole.

The remaining troopers tried to move away. One trooper attempted to take cover behind a large floral. He took a moment to catch his breath, but a loud screech made him lose it. His eyes fell on a second creature charging at him. He had no chance to scream before he was sliced in two by the rows of sharp teeth. A second trooper was impaled from behind by the first creature and flung against the tank. A line of blood marked his trail down to the ground.

Razorwolf watched the trooper slide down the side of the walker and felt sick. “That’s not right.” He aimed and fired at the creature, which seemed unaffected by the bolts. It grabbed another trooper and threw him into its mouth, then impaled another. The second creature stormed into the perimeter and went to work, killing three troopers in a number of horrific ways.

“We’re under attack by some sorta creatures! I’m taking casualties!” Knave shouted. He aimed at a third creature approaching. He jumped clear of the charging beast, the impact shaking the tank.

The turret gunner was shaken from his seat and he began falling off the tank.

Razorwolf saw this and ran to catch him. He grabbed the trooper’s arm and began pulling him up. The third creature wanted that trooper more, as he impaled the gunner with a leg and flung him into the air. The gunner screamed as he fell into the creature’s mouth.

Razorwolf stared in horror as the event unfurled, then reached back to grab his blaster.

A fourth creature appeared, snatching a trooper and throwing him into a cloud of red mist. The trooper attempted to get up, but couldn’t. He tried to look around, but all he could see was red, and all he could feel was pain. Burning pain. His armor eroded first, then his flesh, and finally, his bones.

The fourth creature attempted to bite the tank, but a blaster bolt to the eye swayed it away. Razorwolf held down the trigger and hip fired at the creature as it turned away from the tank.

Knave fired on the fifth creature that appeared from the floral. He fired at its neck, hoping to find some weakness on these things. He focused so much on the fifth creature, that he never noticed the sixth going for the bite. But Razorwolf did and aimed.

Luna could hear the screams of terror and pain in the radio and the screeching of demons in the distance. She ran with her company toward the site, trying to keep in contact with Knave. The moment his radio went out was the moment her panic grew tenfold. That panic quickly led to rage, rage at a certain Youngling.

Where was Ahsoka? She should’ve been with those men! Damn that Padawan! If Luna had the chance, she was going to kill her and inform the General of her demise with a smile on her face.

She arrived at the site and all she saw was carnage. Dozens of bodies lay everywhere. The stream was red with blood, and six spider-like creatures stood over it all. A few troopers were still alive, using the top of the tank as their hold out point. Luna felt like she was going to throw up, but she forced it down and went to work. She motioned for her troopers to form ranks. They quickly complied, forming two rows. One kneeling, one standing. All of them aiming their blasters at the creatures.

“Fire!” A storm of blue bolts filled the air, striking hard against the creatures. Two collapsed immediately under the fire. A third attempted to charge before going down. The remaining three retreated into the treeline and disappeared.

“Cease fire!” It was over in seconds. Silence reigned. There were no cries of wounded, no cheering, not even the annoying chirp of local wildlife could be heard.

It was a bloodbath. That much was obvious.

12 Dead, 8 Missing, but those could be assumed dead as well. No wounded. Those creatures never left wounded behind. Knave was sitting inside the AT-TE, trying not to let her see his pain. His men were slaughtered and there was nothing he could’ve done to prevent that. She understood, more than anyone, what it’s like to lose men in such vicious ways. She still remembered the squad that drowned in a swamp after falling into sinking mud, or the troopers that were cut down during their assault on the monastery.

This war was brutal, and it had no end in sight. But she was going to save as many troopers as she could until they reached it.

Knave was going over the scenarios over and over again. He lost troopers to monsters. They were expected to fight droids, not those things that ripped them apart. He had to get himself together. He still had men that needed their lieutenant. The clone stood up and placed his filthy helmet on his head.

A loud beeping drew his attention to the screen. The screen displayed dozens of smaller dots. Dek didn’t need to inform him, he knew what they were. He activated his comms. “We got droids!”

Luna scattered the troopers to find cover, which wasn’t much. The engineers continued their work on the tank, making sure the turret was online. Razorwolf powered up the gun and aimed into the floral to his 3 o’clock. Speed aimed his rifle in the same direction, taking cover behind one of the legs.

“Here we go.” He whispered excitedly. His squad leader, Sgt. Launch, heard him and smacked his helmet.

“Keep your excitement down, kid. Otherwise, you’re gonna eat dirt fast.” He said quietly before hiding behind the other leg of the tank. The battlefield grew silent, even the local wildlife silenced themselves, as if knowing how much destruction was about to befall the area.

The sound of clanking grew in the distance. The troopers tightened their grips on their rifles.

Luna readied her blaster and aimed into the floral. She spotted a B1 marching forward. She fired and down it went. The clanking stopped. There was a loud pop and a rocket appeared from the floral.

“Incoming!” The troopers near the tank ran for cover as the rocket appeared. Speed managed to get away and dive to the ground as the rocket landed. It slammed on the ground next to the tank, the concussion sending an engineer flying. Razorwolf held on tight as the AT-TE shook violently.

“Hold the line!” Luna bellowed as she fired into the floral. The other troopers followed her example and fired into the trees. Droids marched out, returning the incoming fire.

Launch ran over to Speed and helped him. “Come on, Shiny, we got work to do!” A bolt slammed into his head, sending his helmet flying and his corpse to the ground. Speed stared in horror at the body before shooting up and running for cover.

Razorwolf aimed at a small clump exiting the floral. The explosion sent the droids into the air in pieces and some of the floral tumbling to the ground, crushing more droids in the process. He let out a small cheer. He was going to earn his stripes today. He aimed at another group and fired.

Luna lifted a droid into the air and flung it back into the treeline. She then tossed a thermal to go with it. But the droids do not stop coming. If anything, more of them were coming. A trooper to her right drops, followed by another, and another, and another. The alicorn threw up a shield to block the incoming volleys as medics ran over and pulled the wounded from the disease filled swamp water. The AT-TE continued to fire as the engineers put the finishing touches on their repairs.

Circuit muttered to himself as he used the welding tool to close the circuit together. It took several agonizing seconds before the engine roared to life. “Yes!” He exclaimed before running back out, shotgun in hand. He ran up to Luna and gave her a thumbs up. She looked at him and nodded.

“Good work, trooper. Now take cover in the tank.” Circuit saluted and ran back into the AT-TE. One of the crew members climbed inside the cockpit and activated the main walker controls. Luna activated her comms.

“All troopers, prepare to fall back, Osprey, I need your platoon to cover the retreat-” The sudden sight of two long, green sticks of light appearing behind the droids made the captain pause. She watched as a figure cut her way through the droids advancing on their position.

It was Commander Tano. The troopers watched as she swiftly took out most of the remaining droids. Funny, they could’ve sworn there were more. She flung the last battle droid into the air, then turned to see the clones staring at her.

She gave a smug two finger salute before turning to the alicorn. Ahsoka couldn’t see Luna’s face under her helmet, but she could feel the anger radiating off of her.

“Where. Were. You?” She growled. The troopers that stood nearby backed away. Everyone knew about Luna’s temper, from the few that lived to see it first hand, they could tell you how deadly it was to stand next to her. Ahsoka took a step back, suddenly very afraid for her life.

“I… was scouting ahead. I told you where I was going-”

“Commander’s don’t scout ahead, we have regular scouts for that. This patrol was one giant scouting mission!” Luna would have normally been more tactful with those who went off mission, especially if they accomplished something. But Ahsoka was a Jedi, a Commander who needed to lead men.

“Your job is to be here, with your men, Commander Tano!” She spat. Ahsoka flinched. She had grown used to troopers calling her Ahsoka when not in formal meetings, Luna included. For the alicorn to call her Commander Tano in such a spiteful way hurt more than she was prepared for.

Luna turned to one of the troopers. “Assess the casualties and load the wounded into the AT-TE, we’ll link up with the rest of the armoured patrol and head back to base.” The trooper saluted and went to perform his duty. Other troopers spread out to assist the wounded and gather the dead.

“And as for you, Commander.” Luna growled. “The General will hear about this, once we return.” Ahsoka’s face fell. There was no doubt in her mind that her master was going to punish her for this, and she knew she deserved it. The alicorn turned and left to assist where she could, seething the entire way.

Was she harsh? Probably. Was it justified? Wholeheartedly. Men’s lives were wasted because of this. Could Ahsoka have prevented this? Probably not. But that’s not the point. A Commander is supposed to be there with their men, not off on some personal hunt for kills.

Unfortunately, she would never get the chance to report to General Skywalker about the incident, as on their way back, they were ambushed and the 501st was forced to evacuate from Felucia.

Author's Note

And we hit Felucia. Screw that planet, I say we just nuke it from orbit!

What do you guys think? Was Luna justified? Or was she a bit too harsh?

Chapter 10: The Zillo Beast

Celestia stood tall over the flat wastes of Malastare. The sun was beginning to set, giving the planet a dark purple atmosphere. Under normal circumstances, she would take a moment to appreciate the beauty of the world around her. But these were not normal circumstances.

The Separatists have launched another campaign against the Mid Rim, striking at key Republic Worlds. The 187th and the 501st were quick to respond when Malastare was attacked. The planet provided a large amount of fuel needed for their ships, and if it fell, it could out the Separatists within striking distance of Coruscant. They were holding, but barely, being pushed back from the main droid landing zones.

Now she and her detachment of troopers had to hold the line at one of the major fuel refineries. They had to be careful, if one of these fuel tanks behind her blew, there would be nothing left of the 187th. They had to win, or this war was going to end badly.

“Are you still up here contemplating life, Tia?” The Commander turned to see her sister, Luna, walking up to her with a grin on her face, another trooper marched behind her, Captain Rex if she remembered correctly.

“I suppose I am.” The one good thing about this campaign was that it gave her an excuse to see one of her sisters again. Now if only she could see Cadence, then it would be a proper reunion.

“Contemplating about how you’re going to lose this bet?” Luna asked cheekily. Celestia chuckled, remembering when they were younger how competitive Luna could be. It was good to see that hasn’t changed.

“If you think you can blast more droids with that dinky little thing you call a blaster than my heavy chain gun, then I might just write you up for a Section 8.” Luna rolled her eyes and pulled out a bundle of thermal detonators. For the past few weeks, she started favoring explosives over her traditional blaster. It was Celestia’s turn to roll her eyes.

“I swear, that Razorwolf has too much influence over you.”

“I like to think I reflect the best qualities in my troops.”

‘Well, let’s see if your best qualities beat my firepower, Lulu.” The look Celestia received from her sister could blow up a Providence Class Cruiser. Rex bellowed in laughter, even with the look Luna shot him.

“I thought we agreed never to call me that, again.” Luna growled, then smirked. “Crusty Face.” Rex laughed even harder while Celestia’s white fur turned red.

“Shouldn’t… shouldn’t you check on your men, Captain?!” The tall alicorn spluttered. Luna laughed and nodded.

“That’s why I came, the troops are ready. General Skywalker and General Windu want us up front to lead the defense.”

Celestia pushed the embarrassment back and put on her helmet. “Very well, let’s head back.” The three made their way back to the frontline, with Captain Rex having a hard time containing his laughter.

Captain Rex wasn’t laughing anymore. Through his macrobinoculars, he could see a massive army of droids approaching. He could see the formations of B1s, B2s, Crab Droids, AATs, and Dwarf Spider Droids slowly marching toward them. They easily outnumbered the troopers stationed at this refinery.

Celestia and Luna could see the same thing, and they were not liking the odds. Celestia, especially, hated this plan. It required her troops to engage the droids head on and draw them in, where the Generals could then test their new weapon. The alicorn knew that if anything went wrong, this mission would be their last.

The new weapon was designed by the Republic’s Top Scientist, Doctor Sionver Boll. But she was a biologist, now a weapon specialist. She didn’t know if her new bomb would work, or if it wouldn’t kill her men. Too many variables, too little room for error. That seemed to always be the situation when it came to the Jedi’s plans.

Luna tapped her shoulder, gaining the commander’s attention. “Sister, we’ll be fine.” She said confidently. Damn her if that confidence wasn’t contagious. Celestia smiled and nodded.

“Good luck, Sister.”

“You as well.” With that, Luna ran off to be with her company, which were right next to Rex’s on the front line. Celestia watched her go, hoping it wouldn’t be the last time she saw her.

Cy readied his blaster as the droids approached. They were almost in range for the attack. He turned to his platoon. One of his troopers, Shotwire, was preparing his dual blasters. The Platoon Leader could feel the glare his sergeant was giving the droids.

Shotwire had barely survived Ryloth, losing most of his squad when they were hit by the firebombings. Seeing his men burn alive left the clone filled with anguish and rage. Cy just hoped his hatred wouldn’t burn him or his men.

“Sergeant.” he called, gaining Shotwire’s attention. “Keep it cool.” Shotwire stared at him for a few seconds, then turned back to the droids. He never acknowledged the request. Cy sighed and turned back to the approaching army.

Osprey slowly walked behind his squad, checking each one to make sure they were ready. One trooper laughed as he revved up his Z-6.

“Hehe, time to kick some ass.” The trooper muttered. Osprey tapped the back of his helmet, forcing him to turn around.

“Keep your head down, Bash.” The Sergeant advised before moving down the line. Bash shook his head and went back to giggling. He lowered his cannon and patted the small hammer that was strapped to his hip. He was going to show those Seppies why his brothers called him Bash.

Luna checked her men over, twice, before she felt satisfied that they were ready, and just in time too. The droids were well within range, and the attack began. A wall of laser bolts raced toward them, striking whatever stood in their path. A few troopers were caught in the open and went down quickly. Luna ducked as several bolts slammed into her cover. She popped out and returned fire. Her men followed suit, and fired into the seemingly infinite droid ranks.

“Hold the line!’’ She bellowed as more of her troopers went down.

To her left, Zombie was in his element. He targeted the Command Droids, popping their heads off with each shot of his blaster. The tactical Droid was his next target, were it not for the sudden appearance of a Dwarf Spider Droid in his vision. It aimed at a small clump of clones behind a wall. It fired a single shot, which destroyed the wall, and the troopers behind it. He aimed at the left eye of the droid and fired. It never stood a chance. But now his chance at killing the Tactical Droid was gone, as it had ducked into the turret of the tank.

Celestia unleashed hell with her rotary cannon as the battle began. A trooper to her left goes down, followed by two at her right. An AT-TE is hit and falls limp. She motioned for a squad of troopers to recover the crew inside.

“How much longer do we have to hold out?!” Havoc called from his position.

“Just until the bomb drops!” She replied, never releasing the trigger.

“Can I just say how much I hate this plan?!” Indie shouted as he fired.

“Your opinion has been noted, trooper.” The Alicorn snapped. Normally, she welcomed Indie’s criticism of bad plans, but now was not the time for it.

“You like that?!” Shotwire called out as he fired into the droid ranks, anger flowed through his voice with every syllable. “Well how about some more?! Take this!”

Cy watched the sergeant begin to step out from his position, marching toward the droids while firing his pistols.

“Trooper, get back here!” The Lieutenant ran out and tackled the clone to the ground. The battle continued to rage as Cy dragged his sergeant back into cover. Shotwire tried to get up, but Cy kept him pinned against the wall.

“Now listen here, trooper. Keep your head in the game! Now is not the time for your vengeful bantha poodoo!” His lecture was interrupted by a stray bolt slamming into his shoulder. Shotwire’s eyes widened as his Lieutenant fell to the ground. His first instinct was to stand back up and take his revenge on the droid who fired that shot. But for now, he had to follow his training.

He kneeled over the officer and checked his wound. It was a clean burn, with a small charred hole in the shoulder pad. “I need a medic here, now!”

Luna watched as Vulture Droids took off into the air. “Take out those fighters!” She ordered into the commlink.

In the rear, with a company of RX-200 tanks, was Circuit, who signalled the tanks to fire. The turrets turned and aimed high into the air, just ahead of the vulture droids, and fired their electron beams. Fighters flew straight through the beams, shutting down as their electrical circuits were fried beyond repair.

Luna winced as one of the fighters crashed into an AT-TE. She would have to make up for that mistake by winning this battle.

Celestia ducked as a vulture slammed into the ground next to an AT-TE. The tank wobbled and fell to the ground as the top gunner went flying from his seat. The Alicorn raised her cannon once more and fired into the approaching ranks. She was surrounded by the dead and wounded, and it was all piling up around her.

When were they going to drop that bomb?!

She turned to see a squadron of Dugs charging into the droid lines like cavalry. She watched as all but one of them were gunned down by the line of droids. The one that made it through jumped on top of a Dwarf Spider Droid and began stabbing it with its electro-spear. The spear was ineffective and the Dug was sniped by a second Spider Droid.

Celestia shook her head. She had warned the Dugs not to use this tactic, as all it did was get them killed. But they were a prideful race and very traditional. She both admired and hated that aspect.

“Commander.” General Windu’s voice came over the net. She activated her comms to acknowledge him. “The bombers are launching now.”

Well it was about kriffing time!

“Understood, sir. We’re ready.” With that, she closed the channel and looked to her men. “The bomb’s coming, get ready!”

“Finally!” Indie shouted. The clones slowly began their way back into cover, trying to move clear of the blast zone. She held her ground until the last trooper was behind cover before following Indie behind a wall.

Her eyes turned upward as the bomber came into view. It easily slipped through the fighter screen and avoided the flak fire from the enemy vehicles.

The Y-wing was over the drop zone within moments, and Celestia could see a small object drop from the bomber. That bomb was huge, and she knew it would pack a big punch. The Alicorn readied a shield summon, just in case.

It disappeared into the middle of the droid ranks, and was replaced by an explosion cloud that expanded high into the air. The concussion wave of the blast sent droid parts into the air, and shook the very ground she stood on. Were it not for the tint of her helmet, the Commander would have surely gone blind.

The explosion was then sucked into itself and a large ball of electro-magnetic energy was created. The ball expanded through what remained of the droid army and continued to do so long after it overran the last functional droid.

Celestia’s eyes widened as she realized how large this pulse was getting. “Brace yourselves!”

Luna shielded her eyes as the pulse overtook her. A high pitch screech drove nails into her ears, drowning out her agonizing scream. She threw her helmet clear of her head and took several breaths to steady herself. The Captain saw her troopers suffering similar fates, some focusing more on getting rid of their wrist comms that were going haywire.

AT-TEs stopped dead in their tracks, with their pilots having to shield themselves from the sparks of their damaged control circuits. Luna felt shocks against her sides and looked at her short-circuiting wings.

It was over within seconds, but it felt like minutes. Silence fell over the battlefield as troopers tried to reassess themselves. The Alicorn Captain could hear the Dugs cheering in the distance. The bomb had worked, albeit a little too well.

She felt relief for the end, as it meant they now had a powerful superweapon that could end this war much quicker, and save Malastare.

Her relief turned to curiosity as she felt the ground rumble. She looked down to see the pebbles wobbling back and forth. Other troopers noticed the same thing, taking steps to balance themselves. The shaking got more violent and a loud crash was heard near the droid positions.

Luna looked out at the sea of deactivated droids and gasped in shock as the ground below them disappeared. Her shock turned to horror as the sinkhole expanded toward them.

“Run for it!” She shouted, making a run for the refinery.

Celestia lowered her shield as the ground began to shake. An earthquake? Now? She saw the creation of the sinkhole and realized what was happening. “Fall back, get away from the blast site!” her troopers were quick to obey, grabbing what wounded they could and making a break for it.

Shotwire turned to see the sinkhole expanding toward them. He looked to the troopers. “Get clear!” They obeyed without question. The clone reached down to help Cy, but the Lieutenant stopped him.

“Get outta here, sergeant.”

“I ain’t leaving you here, sir.”

“That’s an order, trooper!” Cy retorted, shoving the clone away from him. Shotwire was about to go back, but saw that the sinkhole was almost on top of him. He turned and ran for his life, looking back to see Cy disappear below the ground.

He ran past the dead AT-TEs, which were also sucked into the ground. He could see one crew stuck inside as it fell into the abyss. He continued to run with the edge of the hole right on his heels. He could feel the ground about to give way below him, so he jumped forward and landed roughly on the ground. The rumbling stopped, and so did the sinkhole.

Shotwire almost didn’t want to look back, but his curiosity got the better of him. His eyes widened in shock at the sheer size of the sinkhole. What was once a battlefield littered with droids, troopers, and tanks, was now a massive hole in the ground with no bottom to be seen. Dust kicked high into the air, obscuring whatever was inside the hole itself.

“Oh scray.” Shotwire muttered before standing up and joining the others.

A few minutes have passed since the sinkhole, and Celestia was already organizing a search party, with Sergeant Raptor leading it.

“Now make sure to keep the survivors together, preferably next to an open area so that our gunships can get them out easier.” She instructed. Raptor nodded and motioned for his men to follow. They prepared jetpacks to jump down and land inside the hole, along with replacement commlinks after theirs were destroyed by the bomb.

Celestia shook her head. That bomb was too much. Next time, they should make sure clones are clear of the area before dropping another one. She watched the rescue team, consisting of 20 troopers, disappear into the smokey abyss that was the sinkhole.

Raptor landed with a soft thud, the rest of his team quick to land behind him. He activated his helmet light and looked around. Something didn’t feel right. There was a soft rumble that echoed through the whole thing. It made him feel uneasy.

“Sir, I see a tank!” One of his men called out. He turns to see what the trooper was pointing at. An AT-TE laying on its side. He couldn’t see any troopers nearby, but they were likely inside.

“Alright, go check for survivors.” Raptor ordered. The trooper nodded and signalled for two others to follow him. Raptor turned away to check for any other wrecks or signs of life. There weren’t any.

The ground shook once more, knocking the troopers off balance. Raptor quickly steadied himself, then looked up. A wall snow stood in his sights. The trooper tipped his head to the side in confusion. This wall wasn’t here a second ago, was it. The wall shifted, revealing a large toxic green eye.

Raptor reeled back in shock and raised his blaster. There was a loud roar, followed by a loud rumbling, which drowned out the screams of the rescue team.

“Rescue Team, this is Commander Celestia, come in, over.” Static was all she got. It had been several minutes since the aftershocks began, and now she had lost contact with Raptor’s team.

Luna was getting the same thing, after she had sent Jump and his squad down into the hole to recover her missing troopers. Something wasn’t right. She had to talk to General Windu. Luna seemed to have the same idea, as she was already contacting Rex, who was with both Generals at the moment.

Communication was finally established after General Windu entered the sinkhole. They found several survivors and were now sending gunships to rescue them. But where were the troopers originally sent to rescue them?

Celestia and Luna stood tall on the edge of hole, looking down for signs of… anything really. They were just hoping for something to make sense.

“Why do I get the feeling we messed up royally, Sister?” Luna asked. Celestia shrugged.

“When do we not? I’m surprised the whole Galaxy hasn’t exploded yet at this point.”

“What do you think the crew meant, when they said something was down there with them?” Now that was a mystery. Whatever it was, it had them spooked, and there was little doubt in Celestia’s mind that it was the reason twenty of her men, and eight of Luna’s were missing, if not dead.

A loud roar echoed from the hole, followed by a violent shaking. Celestia was quick to jump into the air, using her wings to stay above the ground. Luna was not as fortunate, as her wings had yet to go back online. The shaking knocked her off balance and she fell into the hole.

“Luna!” Celestia dove down and used her magic to catch her younger sister. Luna floated in the air, just barely visible in the smoke and dust that was kicked up. Celestia carefully lifted the Captain back above solid ground and placed her on the ground.

“Thanks, Tia.” Suddenly, General Skywalker’s fighter flew into the hole, and the two sisters could hear its blasters going off out of sight.

“That’s not good.” Luna muttered as Celestia raised comms.

“I want all troopers up here on the double, ready the tanks. Something big is about to come out of that hole!”

And right she was. After another small explosion, General Skywalker came out of the hole riding R2. General Windu was already organizing a defense when the Jedi landed not-so-graciously on the ground.

“Okay, not my best entrance.” Skywalker muttered. Windu knelt down, an eyebrow raised.

“And where is your starfighter?”

“That Thing ate it!” Luna’s General retorted.

“That Thing is a Zillo Beast!” Nakha Urus, leader of the Dug People, announced as he approached. All eyes turned to the Dug as he explained what a Zillo Beast was. “They used to roam Malastare, devouring our Ancestors.”

“Well now we know what happened to our troopers.” Luna growled. She hated the fact that she lost more troopers to beasts. Memories of Felucia were still fresh in her mind.

“When the Dugs first began mining the fuel in the planet’s core, they were killed off.”

“Oh great, so now it’s an extinct creature back from the dead, a real miracle.” Luna said sarcastically, rolling her eyes as she did so. Celestia tapped her back to silence her.

“We’ll have to contact the Chancellor and explain the situation.” Anakin stated. Windu and Urus nodded before walking off. Celestia sighed. They could’ve at least given her and Luna instructions on what to do next.

“Guess it falls to me… again.” she muttered under her breath. “Alright, set up a perimeter around the sinkhole, but do not go near the edge and do not provoke the creature!” She ordered. That last thing they needed was for this ‘Zillo Beast’ to get more angry than it already was.

Some time had passed since the Zillo Beast was awakened, and the Dugs were hard at work trying to kill it. They unleashed a barrage of explosive disks with their catapults, and were constantly bombarding the sinkhole. The cries of the Zillo Beast could be heard from the Clone Camps, several hundred yards away.

Every gun was trained on the hole, but Celestia forbade any troopers to go near it. She lost enough of her brothers to that thing.

“Commander.” Indie called. “General Windu wants you to attend the meeting with the Chancellor.”

Celestia sighed. Great, she could already tell her head was going to roll.

“How remarkable.” Palpatine said as he stared at the image of the creature. “I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”

Celestia was thankful her helmet prevented the others from seeing her glare. The Chancellor seemed to admire the beast that swallowed her brothers.

“I recommend that we transfer it off the planet as soon as possible.” Windu stated. “We can find a place for it to live undisturbed in the Outer Rim.”

Again, they seemed to care more about a creature that ate her troopers more than the troopers themselves. Celestia was normally fine with whatever General Windu stood for, as she had similar principles. But her principles were also to keep her men safe, and the Zillo Beast violated those principles.

“And what do the Dugs have to say in this matter?”

“They want us to help them destroy it.” Windu answered.

“Then by all means, help them.” Palpatine said simply. “This creature is of no importance to us. We cannot be alienating the Dugs at this crucial time.”

Of course, because the Dugs were more sensitive than a mouse droid.

“It is not the Jedi Way to take an innocent life.” Windu explained. Celestia disagreed. That thing was anything, but innocent. Anything that killed her men was considered hostile in her book. “Especially if it is the last of its kind.”

“Chancellor Palpatine.” Doctor Boll interrupted. “I think it would be in our best interest to study this creature.” The Doctor adjusted her collar as the heat seemed to be rising in the room. She felt the source coming from the Alicorn Commander standing opposite from her. The Scientist would have to ask the trooper about that later.

“Its outer scales are impenetrable. None of our weapons could harm it.”

General Skywalker sighed. “Not even my lightsaber could damage it.”

“If we could somehow duplicate that for our ships…”

“An impenetrable armor.” Palpatine finished in awe. Now that was something Celestia hadn’t considered. If they would duplicate the outer scales, then her men would be a lot safer from blaster fire. Many more lives could be saved if they did it. Now she wanted this beast captured, but they needed the Dugs to sign the treaty.

How were they going to convince the Dugs to sign without killing the creature? The Alicorn had an idea for that.

“What if we let the Dugs think we killed the beast.” She suggested, gaining everyone’s attention. “We could use the EMP features on our RX-200s as a sort of stun blaster. We could shut down its nervous system long enough to transport the beast off-world and make the Dugs think we killed it.”

“Hey, that could work.” Anakin added. “When I was fighting the creature, I noticed small gaps in between the scales that had exposed skin. Our tanks are more than accurate enough to hit those spaces and get at the soft tissue underneath.” General Windu looked at Skywalker, nodded, and turned to Celestia

“Very well, Commander.” General Windu said. “Organize the tank battalion and inform the men.” Celestia saluted and turned about to walk away.

She could hear General Skywalker chuckle. “Now I know why she’s under your command. She has all the ideas.” Celestia giggled a little as she imagined the indignant face General Windu was giving his fellow Jedi.

Everything was almost ready. Celestia guided the tanks into position. Ahead, she could see the Dugs dumping the toxic green fuel from their pipes into the hole. The Zillo’s cries echoed from the hole.

Not good, if that creature climbed out of the hole, it was going to be a harder target. She saw General Windu and Skywalker arguing with Urus, who seemed far too pleased with himself.

“Get ready, I want all guns aimed at that hole!” She ordered. The tanks aimed their cannons at the hole and waited.

The ground began to shake and loud thuds could be heard getting louder from the pit. “Oh kriff.” The Alicorn muttered. The Zillo Beast was climbing out! “Get ready to fire!”

The Beast rose from the green mist and roared as it stared at the rows of tanks and troops awaiting it. It slapped away the catapults that had been bombarding it all day, and fully climbed out of the hole it once called home.

The Dugs ran for their lives as the Zillo stomped through their camp. Many tents and Dugs were crushed under the massive feet of the creature.

“Aim for the gaps!” The tank gunners rotated their turrets and raised the cannons toward any gap their computers could locate.

“Fire!” The tanks fired continuous streams of their pulse cannons, slashing along the creature until they could find a gap. The creature roared as the beams scraped its scales. It swiped at a tank, sending it flying through the air. Celestia heard the crew scream before it crashed back onto the ground.

“Back up!” The tanks slowly moved back from the creature, still firing their pulse cannons. Another tank was slapped away. Two more were whipped by the Zillo’s long tail.

“This isn’t working!” General Skywalker announced over the comms.

“It will work, General!” Celestia replied confidently. Though that confidence waned a bit when the Zilllo picked up two more tanks like toys and smashed them together into a pancake. Another tank was thrown into the refinery, causing a massive explosion. The creature stomped through the destroyed building and stopped on the other side.

Celestia could see the creature beginning to wobble. It was working! The Zillo suddenly grabbed her tank and lifted into the air. She held on to the chairs as the crew struggled to stay in their seats.

“Whose bright idea was this anyways?!” Celestia blushed and shrunk a little in her armor. Suddenly, the creature dropped the tank. The Alicorn braced herself as the vehicle slammed into the ground.

“Is everyone okay?” She asked. The two crew members nodded. Celestia sighed in relief and looked outside. “Good, now keep firing. He’s getting tired.” The gunner opeyed and fired the pulse cannon once more.

The creature was now surrounded on all sides, and the beams had found homes in several gaps in the scales. It gave one last defiant roar before collapsing on the ground.

“Cease fire!” The beams died down, and Celestia hopped out of her tank. She walked over to the eye of the Zillo, which was still partially opened. The Alicorn stared directly into it, and realized something. The look it was giving her was not malicious, hungry, angry, or blank. It was a look of terror, confusion, and pain. It was afraid of… her. Because the first thing it saw was her after dealing with insurmountable pain. It was a face she had seen on troopers’ faces before they died, or before they were carried off to be treated for severe wounds.

All the anger and hatred she had for the Zillo evaporated. Instead, all she felt was pity and guilt. “I’m sorry.” She said, putting a gentle hoof on its head scale. “I promise, you’ll be okay.”

“It will be.” General Windu said as he walked up to her. “Once we get it out of here.” Celestia nodded.

“I already signalled the gunships to transport it to a nearby Venator. They have clear hangars to transport it to whichever planet you deem fit, sir.” General Windu smiled, much to the Alicorn’s amazement.

What neither of them could have known, was how much trouble this beast would cause in the future.

Author's Note

And we have another chapter complete. Let part 2 begin!

Trivia Time:
1: what kind of trouble does the Zillo Beast cause after this?
2: Is it right to kill something like the Zillo Beast?
3: Who's excited for rest of Part 2?!

Extra: Making Amends

Ahsoka sat down on the public bench, exhausted from the day's events. She had spent the whole day evacuating civilians from a rampaging monster that Anakin and Master Windu brought from Malastare. It broke out of containment and started destroying everything in its path. The creature seemed to beeline for the Senate Building after the Chancellor began broadcasting messages across the district.

The Padawan worked with Luna and her company, who were also helping with evacuations. She was looking at the Alicorn the whole time, more afraid of her than the Beast.

Luna was livid when she heard the news, her face never straying from a snarl. It reminded the young padawan of Felucia, and the anger that was directed at her for the mistake she made. Ahsoka hadn’t spoken to Luna since then, she was afraid of how much the alicorn hated her. She was used to Master Skywalker’s moments of anger, but it was never directed at her in such a way.

The incident on Felucia was never reported, as they were forced to evacuate the planet before the report could be made. She could only imagine her teacher’s disappointment if he ever found out.

“May I sit here?” Ahsoka turned to see Captain Luna standing above her. The snarl was gone, replaced with a neutral expression that she could not read; and that terrified her more than she could ever imagine. The padawan nodded and moved down to make room.

Luna sat down and stared at Ahsoka.

Was she sweating? Pretty sure it wasn’t this hot out a minute ago. What was she going to say? Was she informing her that Anakin was told about the incident? Was she going to be punished more for it?

“I just… wanted to apologize, about snapping at you on Felucia.” Okay, that wasn’t what she was expecting.

“I was angry, and I’m not sorry for what I did.” Ahsoka flattened a bit. She didn’t blame her. It wasn’t the first time her recklessness got troopers killed. “But I know you are still a learner, and General Skywalker isn’t the best at teaching patience.” Both smiled at that, knowing how true it was.

“But I just don’t want you to go through what he did not long ago.” The padawan looked at the captain, an eyebrow raised. Luna saw the look and clarified. “He made a mistake, chasing after Ventress when she attacked our fighters. I was sent with a squad to go and get him. Instead, we were slaughtered, and my wings were replaced with these.”

Her cybernetic wings slowly expanded and retracted.

“I was so angry, I was ready to chew him out for his stupidity. But then I saw the guilt, the shame that reflected in his eyes, and before I could say anything, he apologized. He swore that his troopers would never suffer from a stupid mistake ever again, and he made me promise to keep him to it.”

Ahsoka couldn’t believe it. She had no idea just how relatable she was to her Master. Her vision grew blurry. Why? Was she crying? Why would she be crying?

A pair of hooves wrapped around her shoulders, a comfort she never had before.

“I promise not to be hard on you anymore.” Luna said softly. “Just promise to think about my brothers.” Was she crying? Her voice was breaking.

“They’re all I have. I lost so many already, and I know I’m going to lose more. But if I can save at least one trooper, then that’s a victory.”

It was outlandish. The tough and hardball Captain Luna, was afraid, crying on her shoulder. Thankfully, the street was empty, otherwise this would not look good for the Council, or the troopers. But something changed in Ahsoka, her mind no longer thinking about using her gifts to smash droids. Now she knew, she had to use them to save as many lives as she could.

“I promise.” Ahsoka swore. Even if only one survives, it will be a victory.

Chapter 11: Point Rain I

Luna growled as she stared at the dustball where it all began. Before her stood the planet of Geonosis, mocking her as it continued to rotate on its axis. The war began on that planet, when the Clone Army first engaged the Battle Droids in open combat. She still remembered the losses she took that day, the brothers that were killed because of their lack of experience and the lack of leadership from the Jedi. They won, in the end, but that victory was apparently for nothing.

Word reached the Jedi that the planet had been retaken by the Geonosian Loyalists. Those bugs never knew when to give up. Now it was once again pumping out weapons for the Separatist War Machine, and it was up to the 501st, 212th, and the Galactic Marines under General Mundi to shut it down permanently.

She turned as the door behind her opened. It was Knave and Razorwolf, they walked up and saluted. Luna returned the gesture. “Alright, is everything ready?”

“Yes ma’am.” Knave answered. “General Skywalker has just briefed all Commanders. Our objective is to link up with General Kenobi and General Mundi and push onto the Shield Generator. Once that happens, we’ll launch the heavy assault on the factory itself and capture Poggell.”

“Alright, and what happens should one of the parties not arrive?” The two brothers looked to each other before Knave explained.

“There is no contingency plan, ma’am.” Luna sighed and facehoofed. Of course there wasn’t. This had Skywalker and Kenobi written all over it. Normally, she would get angry. But she was already there, and didn’t feel like snapping at her General… again.

“Fine, make sure everyone knows the plan in case something goes wrong.”

“I think you mean ‘when’ something goes wrong, ma’am.” Knave corrected. Razorwolf looked between the two, then spoke up.

“So, what was Geonosis like… the first time, I mean?”

Luna raised an eyebrow, then remembered that Razorwolf never served on Geonosis. He was deployed afterwards. “It was Hell, sergeant. That’s all you need to know.” With that, she walked away. Razorwolf watched her go, then turned to Knave.

“Got any advice?”

“Yeah, keep your eyes on the skies. The bugs love to fly.” Knave said, patting the sergeant’s shoulder before following their captain out of the room.

Cadence sat still in the dark. Well, for her it was dark. Her eyes were currently being adjusted to handle the unique atmosphere of Geonosis. The alicorn shuttered at the mere thought of going back to that graveyard. It was where she lost her original eyes, to that monster Count Dooku. Too bad he wasn’t on the planet, she would’ve liked to give him a piece of her mind, courtesy of her vibro-blade.

“Alright, Captain.” A clone said, though she wasn’t sure who. Her brothers all sounded the same. “All fixed up, let me just…” There was a soft click, and her vision was filled with bright white lights. After a few moments, the white faded away, and her world returned in full color. She looked to see Stitch and Loop standing over her, with Loop doing a small wave in the corner of her vision.

The alicorn smiled and waved back.

“G-good, you’re, eyes, uh, adjusted just fine.” He said, putting his hand down.

“Are they comfortable?” Stitch asked. Cadence moved them around without turning her head. She could feel them move, but it was a sensation she had grown accustomed to.

“As comfortable as they can be, Stitch. Thank you, and you, Loop.” The medics gave thumbs up and left. Cadence had only a moment of peace before Pops appeared in the doorway.

“Feeling alright, Captain?”

She nodded, but didn’t say anything. Pops walked over and sat down next to her. There was an awkward silence until Cadence broke it.

“Is everything ready?”

“As they can be.”

“How are the boys?”

“Ready as they can be, though some are more anxious than others.”

“Loop seemed more nervous than usual.” Cadence said softly. She knew what they were going through. No clone wanted to go back here. Not after what they had seen. The first time they were here, that was when Loop gained the stutter that earned him his name.

“Let’s hope we’re better prepared this time.”

“Just do me a favor, Cadence.” Pops said softly, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Don’t lose any more limbs, please.”

Cadence smiled. “I won’t, Pops. Promise.”

“Attention, all troopers report to the Hangar Bay immediately. This is not a drill!”

Time to get to work.

The gunships took off from the Acclamator Hangar Bays into the tanned skyline of Geonosis. Luna triple checked her blaster and grenades in preparation for this assault. Hopefully, a ship wouldn’t crash into her landing zone this time.

The transport shook as flak fire suddenly erupted all around it. She could hear the comms going haywire as pilots and commanders tried to coordinate a flight path through the wall of AA that stood in their way.

Bomber pilots were receiving coordinates to the known gun positions. Hopefully, their A-Game was there today. The gunship rocked from side to side as the pilot moved to avoid the incoming laser bolts.

Great, now there were Geonosian Fighters in their airspace. Just what Luna had wanted to deal with today. A large explosion from outside signaled the destruction of a gunship. For a split second, she could hear the screams of the surviving clones who were now in freefall toward the surface.

This was only the first few miles to the Landing Site!

“Mayday, we’re going down!” That was the General’s signal! “Our position is 5-” The message fizzled out. Luna attempted to reestablish contact, but to no avail. Kriff, the plan had already gone wrong. She knew it would!

Her gunship suddenly shot forward and a small explosion rocked the cabin. A large hole appeared in the rear of the gunship, and the velocity of the suction began to drag her men out of it. They screamed as they were sucked out into the atmosphere. Some tried to hold on for dear life, but the suction proved to be stronger.

Luna gripped the floor of the gunship, but was slowly sliding toward the large hole. She made one last attempt to get a better grip, but that proved fatal as she was finally forced from the gunship.

She began to spin in midair. Gunships and fighters flew past her. Flak fire exploded all around, and the ground was quickly approaching. Luna opened her wings, and felt them tug against the gravity of the planet. She managed to steady herself just above the surface, but it didn’t stop her dissent. The alicorn slammed into the ground, sending her helmet flying from her head. She rolled several times until finally stopping, leaving an imprint in the sand. Her eyes fluttered open for a second before closing and embracing the darkness.

Cadence tightened her grip on her blaster as the gunship touched down. The door opened before the greenlight lit, she was quick to jump out and put some distance between herself and the transport. Her troopers followed her example and moved forward. Other gunships landed and unloaded their troops, while AT-TEs were dropped from their transports. The walkers immediately began moving.

Cadence halted as Geonosian fighters flew down and strafed their position. Two of her troopers were immediately blown away by the concussive blasts. “Take them out if they come around for another pass!” She ordered a trooper.

The trooper nodded and readied his rocket launcher. He could see a fighter coming around. It flipped around and aimed straight at his position. The trooper lifted the launcher onto his shoulder and waited. The fighter came closer, and closer, and closer. It fired two shots before the trooper returned the favor.

The rocket launched from the launcher, and slammed dead center on the fighter. It exploded into a fireball and screamed toward the trooper.

“Uh oh.” He muttered before turning around and running for cover. The fighter slammed into the earth and dragged itself along the ground. The trooper continued to run, the wreckage coming up right behind him. He could feel the heat from the flaming ball of metal on his back. With a mighty leap, he jumped out of the way and landed face first in front of Cadence.

She stared at the trooper for a moment, then helped him up with a smile.

“Nice work, trooper.” She said.

“Thank you, ma’am.” The trooper replied as he dusted himself off.

“Got a name?”

“Just my number, CT-8127.”

Cadence smirked. “Well, former shiny. We’ll have to fix that.” A loud explosion drew their attention. Ahead of them was a flaming gunship dragging along the ground, which then flipped over and stopped a few hundred yards beyond their position.

“But that’ll have to wait, report to your squad, trooper.” 8127 saluted and ran off to join his brothers. Cadence watched him go before returning to her work.

“Alright, get this perimeter set up and prepare for the next assault, move it!”

Luna blinked as her head did everything in its power to float away. Her body was aching worse than she ever thought possible. Her vision was clouded and blurry.

She was never going to crash land again as long as she lived. Which would be impossible considering her current General. The alicorn slowly got up as her mind cleared, and her awareness returned. She was alone, near a large rock formation. Above her was the air battle between gunships, bombers, and fighters.

The Captain looked around, her blaster was located not too far away. But it was bent and broken. But where was her helmet? That was a custom job! If she lost that, or if it got broken, her armorer was going to kill her! She looked around, but couldn’t find it. Where could it have gone?!

Bzzzzt

Her ears perked up at the noise.

Bzzzzt

They swiveled around to catch the noise. Her eyes followed in their direction. There it was, buried slightly in the dirt! Huzzah! She was not going to get strung by her mane today! The alicorn used her magic to pick up the helmet and shake the sand out of it.

Luna never felt so happy to have a helmet on in her life. Now, if only she had her blaster. She checked her holsters and found a DC-17 still inside. Okay, good, so she wasn’t totally disarmed. Plus, her vibroblade was still in place.

“To any surviving units on this net, rally at Grid Section 100342. Emergency LZ has been established. Say Again, rally at these Coordinates.” Luna used her advanced HUD to check her map. She wasn’t that far away, only a klick if her math was correct. She wi=ould be there nice and quick.

The Landing Site was in chaos. With the tanks and gunships set up in a circle, the troopers were able to make use of the little cover they had. Unfortunately, the bug and clankers had no regard for cover as they charged out into the open. Heavy guns pounded the position, uprooting most of the defenses in place.

Cadence scanned the outskirts of the perimeter, looking around at the enemy forces. They were splitting into two groups, which meant only one thing: the bugs were going to try and surround them.

“Not good,” She said to Cody. “The bugs are splitting up.” It didn’t help that General Kenobi was still missing. His gunship never reported in and no word has come in from the stragglers. Cody said nothing as he focused on a single gunship out in the open, almost directly under the droid position. If there was any hope, General Kenobi was inside, alive.

“Boil reporting as ordered, sir.” Both officers turned to see the Dynamic Duo step up.

“Waxer, reporting as ordered, sir!”

“We got a crashed gunship, five klicks east of this location. We believe it’s General Kenobi’s.” Cody explained. “I need you to get out there and check for survivors.”

“Sir, Yes Sir!” Both troopers responded before charging out into the open toward the wreck. Cadence signaled a gunner to fire at enemy positions nearby, in hopes of covering the two as they ran.

Through her binoculars, she could see enemy tanks and bugs approaching fast. This was the third attack in the last hour. Her men didn’t have the ammo for this. The alicorn turned her attention to Waxer and Boil as they opened the gunship door. The two stepped into the gunship, and a few seconds later, they appeared, with General Kenobi and Trapper over their shoulders.

“They got the General.” She said with relief. She turned to some nearby troopers. “Micro, Blade, Pops, get out there and cover Waxer and Boil!” The troopers nodded and ran out, ducking down to avoid the incoming fire.

Micro ducked under a tank round that landed just a few yards away, any closer and he would’ve been paste.

Blade fired at an advancing bug, popping a shot right into its exposed right eye. It screeched before hitting the ground. The trooper fired a few more shots to make sure it was double dead.

Pops ran over and helped Waxer with Trapper. The two carried the wounded trooper back to the perimeter, setting him down next to Loop, who was looking over General Kenobi.

Cody stood over the Jedi and explained the situation. “We got no air support, two generals on the ground beyond our position, and a mess of bugs surrounding us.” In other words, they were in deep Bantha Poodoo.

“They were more than prepared for us, sir.” Cadence added. “They knew our every move.” Loop carefully injected morphine into the General’s neck, the Jedi grimaced as the uncomfortable sting that followed.

“Well, I trust General Skywalker and General Mundi will reach our position.” He said calmly. “We’ll just have to make sure we are still here when they arrive.” Cadence nodded solemnly and sat down next to Kenobi as Cody went back to organizing the defense.

“Are you sure, you’re okay, General?”

“Unfortunately, Cadence, I am used to ship crashes at this point.”

Cadence chuckled. “I guess General Skywalker taught you something after all.” Obi Wan joined in.

“I suppose, but don’t tell him that. He’d never live it down.”

The Emergency LZ was in chaos, with officers doing their best to make it more organized. Luna looked around to see Galactic Marines, 501st, and 212th troopers all organizing into their platoons. Any squads that had no platoon were folded into units that needed them. She watched as dead and wounded clones were pulled from the wrecks of gunships and loaded onto the surviving tanks.

Her eyes fell on a familiar sight, Razorwolf and Knave were talking to another 501st trooper. From his armor design, he was new to the unit, as he had yet to earn his blues.

“Our brothers are waiting for us at the Landing Site, we need to get there!” Razor argued.

“We need to wait for reinforcements, we’re too scattered.” The new trooper said calmly, though his posture was anything, but calm. Knave rolled his eyes.

“There are no reinforcements, we’re the reinforcements the General needs.”

“We can’t break through that!” The trooper pointed toward a large canyon, where small columns of smoke rose over the echoes of battle. Luna chose that moment to butt in.

“Are you doubting the 501st, trooper?!” All eyes turned to the alicorn. Razor and Knave looked relieved, while the new trooper looked shaken.

“Captain Luna?”

“Answer the question!”

“N-No, ma’am.”

“Good!” The alicorn punched his shoulder to emphasize her point. “Because the 501st will always get the job done, no matter the risk or the cost!” She turned and looked at the remaining tanks and troops, who were gathering around her to listen in. She smiled and turned back to the trooper.

“The first time I was here, we had to charge across open ground, battle around a crashed cruiser, and wipe out an army five times our size, and we’ll do it again.”

“What’s the plan, ma’am?” Knave asked as Razor readied his blaster.

“The plan, Lieutenant, is to punch through those lines, punch through to Point Rain, and kill any bug and droid dumb enough to get between Us and Poggell the Lesser!” She turned to the trooper from before. “So get ready, trooper, because you’re coming with us.”

The trooper saluted. “Yes, ma’am!”

“What’s your name, trooper?”

“Gallus, ma’am. Lieutenant Gallus.” Now Luna remembered. He was the recent transfer from the 212th.

“Alright Gallus, grab your men, we move out in ten minutes.” She turned back to the troopers. “You heard me, gather up!” The surrounding troopers scattered to grab their equipment and find their squads. Luna felt a hand on her back, looking around to see Knave standing behind her.

“Glad you made it.” He said simply. Luna smiled.

“Almost didn’t.” She turned back and went to find some spare weapons. Knave watched her go before returning to his platoon. They had a battle to win.

Author's Note

And we are here, at the Second Battle of Geonosis.

Who ever said Bugs can't aim is fired! (Literally and Metaphorically)

Chapter 12: Point Rain II

“L-Luna.” The alicorn captain looked to her wounded sister, the pink alicorn’s eyes were covered in a bandage, but Luna could never get their burnt images from her mind.

“I’m here, Cadence.”

“Did… did we win?” Luna smiled as she had some good news from all this mess.

“We did, sister. The droids retreated, we won.”

Cadence smiled weakly. “Good, we did. Not bad for my only battle.” She could see the look her older sister was giving her. “My eyes are scorched, Luna. I’m not combat capable anymore.”

“Cadence…”

“You know what they do to non-capable clones, Luna. Either maintenance or termination, and I’ve never heard of a blind janitor before.” The atmosphere inside the gunship grew heavy. No one wanted to look at the two alicorns as it dawned on them. A lot of their brothers lost limbs, had mental trauma, and were tired. What was going to happen to the ones who couldn’t heal? Not everyone was able to perform physical tasks, so where did that leave them?

“No one is getting terminated.” Luna said with determination. The troopers could see how confident and sure she was of herself. “No one is going to die in vain so long as I draw breath, and nothing is going to happen to you, Cadence. I promise.”

If her tear ducts weren’t ash, Cadence would be crying. “I’ll hold you to it.”

Cadence ducked as a tank round flew overhead. It slammed into the ground behind her, sending a pair of troopers into the air, leaving a small crater in their place. “Medic!” Stitch ran over and checked the two troopers. Only one was still breathing. He grabbed the trooper and carried him back to the aid station.

Said aid station was overflowing as more and more wounded troopers were brought in. Loop did what he could, prioritizing those who could be sent back to fill the gaps in the line. Every once in a while, he would check on General Kenobi, who was still unable to stand up on his own.

“I’m still holding you to that promise, sis.”

Cadence fired her blaster at anything that came close. Sometimes it was droids, others it was Geonosians. The alicorn swore, she was going to glass this whole planet one day. One of her shots made true and dropped a bug from his speeder. The other two swerved to avoid the incoming fire.

“Because I’m not sure how much longer we can hold.”

The AT-TE shook violently as something slammed into the front. The driver’s area was completely engulfed in flames.

“Everyone out!” The troopers and crew members inside ran out toward the back and opened the rear hatch. They climbed out and jumped down. Luna checked to make sure it was clear before she climbed out and jumped down to join the others in their attack.

The battlefield was wide open, with only small ditches and sharp cliff faces for cover. The alicorn ran forward to catch up with her charging brothers.

The Separatists could see the whole field from their elevated positions, and with the heavy guns on their side, it was basically target practice.

Luna could see one of the four guns taking aim at another AT-TE. Her eyes widened as the cannon fired and the large energy blast approached. In an instant, her horn lit up with aura and a large dark blue shield appeared in front of the walker. The round slapped the shield, creating a ripple along the surface. The alicorn grunted as she felt the impact of the blast. She fell to the ground as her shield disappeared.

Knave stopped and knelt down. Another trooper behind him did the same, keeping his weapon raised at the enemy.

“Ma’am, are you alright?!” Luna took several deep breaths and gulped.

“I’m fine, just… really tired.” Knave tapped the other trooper’s shoulder.

“Help me get her up.” The trooper nodded and grabbed Luna’s front right leg while Knave grabbed her left. They carefully dragged into a small pit, where other troopers were taking cover.

Medics carefully checked over the wounded and dehydrated troopers. The two placed their captain on the ground and the other trooper pulled out his medical kit. He carefully took off her helmet and checked her over.

“Simple dehydration, and making that shield definitely didn’t help.” He grabbed a water pellet and made her swallow it. “It’ll take a few minutes to take effect, but she’ll be fine in a few minutes.” Knave sighed in relief, he was not going to have a repeat of last time. \

“Goods, thanks Little Vod.” The medic rolled his eyes at the nickname.

“Sir, for the last time, my name is Junior.” Knave laughed and got up to rejoin the attack. Junior watched him go before getting back to work. Luna might be fine, but he wanted to be sure.

Knave rolled out of the way of a stray rocket flying past his position. He landed in another pit, where another squad of troopers were taking cover. It was a squad he recognized.

“Fierce, you make it?” A trooper with blue arrows along both sides of his head nodded.

“My squad is green to go, sir.”

“Good, then get everyone ready to move.” They had to take out those guns if they wanted to break through to the Landing Site, and time was not on their side.

“Sir, my squad managed to find a small hole in their bombardment zone. If we can time it right, we might be able to get through without scattering to the wind.”

Knave looked at the sergeant. Could that work? Possibly, but it had to be timed right. “Alright, once we’re ready, we’ll head for that next pit, over there.” Fierce nodded and signaled his men.

“Ready?” They nodded. Knave turned to watch the enemy guns fire another volley. The rounds soared across the sky. “Go!”

The troopers charged forward, heading toward the next pit several yards away. The rounds were gliding toward them. They ran as fast they could, never faltering. The rounds grew closer and closer. Knave almost didn’t see the pit as he dove in. The rest of the squad followed closely and dove in. The rounds landed behind them and exploded, taking another group of clones with them.

Other troopers managed to make it to Knave’s position, and took cover where they could in the pit. He gave them a quick briefing of the plan and they prepared themselves. Fierce watched the enemy guns fire once more, hitting another AT-TE dead on. They only had a few left, and there were not going to be anymore until they secured Point Rain. Everything had to count.

The guns ceased fire and their chance had come. “Okay, let’s go!” The large group of clones charged forward.

Quick slipped as he tried to get up. He quickly recovered, but was now falling behind the others. “Oh kriff!” He ran to catch up, but it was too late. The guns had reloaded and were preparing their next volley.

The droid commander spotted the clones approaching. “Eliminate those clones!” One of the guns aimed at the group and fired. Most of them managed to jump behind the cliff face. But Quick and a few others were not. The round slammed into the ground, sending the troopers flying into the air.

Quick felt a burning pain in his front and was forced to shut his eyes as his helmet visor shattered into hundreds of tiny pieces. He felt his body leave the ground and soar through the sky. The wind blew in his face until he once again made landfall, and knew no more.

Fierce looked back at the place where Quick and the others once stood. It was a blackened crater. He miscalculated. He had to have. It was his fault.

“Fierce!” Knave shook the sergeant’s shoulder, gaining his attention. “You’re doing great.” Doing great?! How?! “That wasn’t your fault, it was just bad luck. Most of us are still here, and you can lead us out, understand?!” Fierce nodded, but didn’t agree with the lieutenant. But he had a job to do and a squad to lead to safety.

“Alright, wait for it…” The guns fired once more. “Okay, go!” The troopers charged. They could see the droids clearly know, and the droids could see them approaching. One of them turned a heavy MG on them and aimed. They didn’t stop their charge. It was do… or die.

“Fire!” The MG opened up and a large blue shield appeared in front of the troopers. Knave and Fierce turn behind them to see Luna leading a larger clone force forward. Her horn was alight with magic and the air filled with the roar of charging clone troopers.

The troopers followed the shield all the way into the enemy position. Once it passed over the droids, it dissipated, and the clones charged in. Fierce knocked the command droid to the ground and unleashed a torrent of rounds into its chest and head.

Launch jumped over the barrier and smacked a droid away before firing at its comrade. He aimed at another droid and blasted it away. The rifleman ducked as a B2 fired its twin blasters at his position. A trooper next to him goes down. Launch takes aim and fires. The shot hits the B2’s firing arm, shattering it all over the place. The droid stumbled as its equilibrium was knocked out. A second shot shut it down permanently. Launch cheered and ran forward to join the others.

Spark tossed a thermal at one of the guns. It stuck to one of the legs and exploded, toppling the gun and destroying any nearby droids. He cheered and turned to continue forward, but was smacked by a B2. The Super aimed and fired at the downed trooper, ripping him to shreds.

Magnet saw the B2 and fired, blasting it in the chest/head several times before it went down. The engineer ran over to his comrade and checked him over. There was no need to see if he was breathing, his torched lungs were evidence of his demise. He knelt down and closed his brother’s eyes. “See you on the other side, brother.”

Luna swung wide with her vibroblade, cutting another B2 in half. The rest of the troopers surged forward, knocking down and blasting any remaining droids. She stood tall as her brothers charged across the hill, running down the other side. In the distance, she could see a circle of Republic vehicles and explosions.

It was the Landing Site. They were close. Her eyes shifted to the long of droid tanks awaiting them. Typical. It would take just a little while longer to reach Cadence. If she was still alive.

Buck jumped over another small crater as he ran for cover. Cadence caught him before he could trip and pulled him into the gunship. The transport turned bunker was taking a beating; tank rounds, sonic blasts, and energy bolts slammed into the side.

A turret set up in the doorway was the only form of defense they had, and the gunner just got his head blown off. Micro dropped his rifle and immediately took up the position. He fired at a small group of advancing Geonosian speeders. Two exploded while the third turned back.

“They just keep coming!” The trooper shouted, never taking his eyes off of the hordes of bugs approaching them.

“Just keep firing!” Loud screeching drew their eyes upward. In the orange skies above were scores of Geonosian Warriors. They flew over the battlefield and made a dive for the Landing Site.

“Incoming!” Troopers turned their guns up and opened fire. Most bolts struck and killed the incoming bugs, but many still made it through the wall of fire. One grabbed a trooper and lifted him into the air. The trooper screamed as he was dragged high into the air and dropped from high altitude.

Another trooper was hit by the sonic blaster and sent flying across the site. Cadence ducked as another bug attempted to grab her. Once it flew over, she used her magic and grabbed the Geonosian. She flung it onto the ground and pulled out her vibroblade. The Geonosian screeched for mercy as Cadence sliced open its chest. It lived through the first cut, but didn’t survive the thrust through the open wound.

Cadence pulled the blade out and swiped at another Geonosian approaching. She cut its wing clean off and fired several rounds to finish it off. The wave of flyers took off and flew away from the Landing Site. The clones watched them go, their numbers far lesser than before.

“Ma’am!” Cadence looked at Micro, who was running from the burning gunship. He fell to his knees in front of the captain. “They’re coming!” Cadence turned her gaze toward the enemy and the large wave of speeders approaching. She looked around and saw almost all of their gunships and tanks were burning. Their defense had fallen and now the bugs were rushing in to finish them off.

With a look of acceptance and determination, she reloaded her blaster and readied her blade.

“Troopers! Prepare to defend yourselves!” The troopers looked to their captain and nodded. They reloaded their blasters, formed a circle around the medical area, and stood tall as the enemy approached.

Cadence looked around at her men. The troopers she had led through hell and back. Now, it looked like the end. But she was not going down quietly. She intended to die as her Father had taught her to die.

“Remember Cadence.” Jango Fett said to the young cadet. “Mandalorians are a Warrior Culture. We do not fear death, we embrace it so long as it is glorious. If it is worth the sacrifice, then it is a sacrifice worth making.”

Cadence nodded. “Will… yours be worth it, Papa?”

Jango chuckled. “I’ll do my best, but you’re the Soldier, Cadence. Not me.” He then scratched behind the filly’s ears, which made her giggle.

“Now, remember the prayer…”

"Give ni te kot at rohakar ner aru'ese, te kar'tayl at me'dinuir ti ner kin, bal te wisdom at guide ner actions. " She muttered, remembering the prayer her Father, Jango Fett, had taught her. She was going to die, and it was going to be glorious and worthy of her ancestors.

The speeders circled the perimeter, firing into whatever hole they can find in the line. Troopers began to fall once more, but it was not in vain. The troopers fired back, hitting plenty of targets.

Obi-Wan stood tall, using a crate as a crutch and activated his lightsaber. The Jedi General intended to die fighting with his men.

“The reinforcements!” A trooper shouted in excitement. “The reinforcements have arrived!” Y-Wing bombers flew over the Landing Site, their payloads dropped all over the place. Some landed within the horde of speeders, the rest hit the line of tanks in the rear.

The 212th cheered as their fellows from the Wolf Pack and the 501st charged into the Landing Site. Cadence smiled as her sister flew overhead and landed on the top of an AT-TE. The pink alicorn walked up and removed her helmet.

“Glad to see you made it, a bit last minute though.” Luna rolled her eyes at her sister’s cheeky grin and jumped down before removing her helmet.

Both alicorns were soaking wet with sweat and their armor was covered in dirt and blood, some Geonosian, the rest their brothers’.

“Eh, we got tied up. These bugs aren’t the most welcoming bunch.” The two laughed for the first time all day.

“I’m just glad you made it.” Cadence said softly.

“Hey, I made a promise, didn’t I?” The two hugged it out, ignoring the coos and awes of their fellow troopers. Once it broke, Luna put her helmet back on.

“Have the 212th rest, you guys earned it. We’ll take it from here.” Her wings spread and the captain took off into the air. The troopers of the 501st and the Wolf Pack followed closely behind. Cadence watched Luna go and lead the attack on the shield generator.

The pink alicorn smiled as she remembered the other lesson her Father taught her.

“You’re sisters. You will always be there for each other, no matter what. You may argue, you may be separated through fate or farse. But, no matter what, you will always find one another again and that, is the most powerful force in the galaxy.”

Author's Note

And there it is, the Geonosis Arc continues.

And now for Trivia:

How did the Geonosians take back Geonosis in the first place?
How could the bugs know about their plan?
Who is excited for the rest of this Arc?

I'll give Bonus Mustaches to anyone who can translate that Mandalorian Battle Prayer.

Chapter 13: Weapons Factory

Luna stared at the landscape around her. She stared at the large cliff with the bunker on top. There was the small spire next to the pit that served as her command center during the first campaign. She could see the large hanger in the distance where droid tanks rolled out to face her men for the first time. But the magnum opus was the massive wreck of a Techno Union ship in the middle of the canyon. It stuck out of the sand like a splinter embedded in skin. The metal creaked and groaned as it weakened with age. Within another year or so, this wreck would be rubble, with nothing left to resemble a ship.

And Luna wouldn’t have it any other way. She wanted nothing to remain of the Separatists. She wanted their droids to melt, their ships to rust on forgotten worlds, and those who supported them locked up and the key thrown away.

Perhaps, that chance would come soon enough.

“All company commanders report to the Command Point for briefing.” Luna sent an acknowledgement signal back and turned. It was time to leave this place behind.

Luna stood in the back with Rex. They watched intently as Commander Tano gave the briefing. She stood behind a hologram of the target. The droid’s main foundry on the planet, the only place Poggel the Lesser could be.

“This bridge is our first entry point.” Ahsoka explained, pointing at the thin bridge that went over the ravine that separated the foundry from the rest of the landscape. She turned to the artillery officers. “Focus your fire on the gun emplacements here and here.” Red dots marked the locations of the emplacements. “Because it’s only-”

“It’s only after the guns are taken out that we can push on the factory.” Luna rolled her eyes as General Skywalker interrupted his padawan. She knew her Jedi General well enough to see what he was doing. He wanted to make sure everything was done right, even if it meant taking over a briefing he trusted to his student.

Some of the clones, mostly those from other units, looked at each other in surprise as the General spoke. They weren’t used to a Jedi breaking protocol and interrupting a briefing. Some of the men from the 501st had to hide their grins, as this was the best form of entertainment before a battle.

“Now, expect stiff resistance-”

“And don’t forget to top up your energy cells and ration packs.” He did it again, making the alicorn shake her head in bemusement. She had a feeling the two were going to argue and she was going to have to break it up. “Once we leave, we won’t be getting resupply.” The Jedi turned obliviously to his padawan. “Anything else, Ahsoka?”

“No, I think you pretty much covered everything, in my briefing.” She said, muttering the last part so as to save what little face she had.

“Very well, troopers dismissed.” All of the officers stood up and went to ready their men. Luna decided to stay behind to make sure the two wouldn’t go overboard… again.

“Okay, what’s next?” Anakin asked as he walked away.

“You know, Master.” Luna’s face fell. She knew where this was going. “My briefings might go better if you didn’t interrupt me every time I try to-”

“I wasn’t interrupting, I was trying to help you.” Luna silently prayed for some miracle to save her from the coming battle, one she couldn’t end with a blaster.

“Which I would appreciate, if you didn’t interrupt me to do it.” Maybe if she snuck away, she wouldn’t be called out. “I just think you don’t trust me enough to give the briefing.”

“It’s not about trust, it’s about getting the job done right.” That was it. Anakin Skywalker just sealed his doom.

“So you don’t trust me to give the briefing. I knew it!”

“Now Snips, I didn’t say-”

“Luna trusts me!” Oh no, please don’t do this. Why was she always dragged into this?!

“Luna is loyal, Snips.” Wait, did they know she was there? “She trusts you on the battlefield.” Well, now the alicorn felt offended. She was standing right there! They just walked right past her! Sheesh, this was the last time she felt like staying to talk to them.

Luna left with a huff and walked over to the gunships that were landing nearby. The alicorn stood at attention next to Rex as the doors opened and General Luminara and her padawan, Barriss Offee, stepped out.

“Good day, General.” Rex said. “Skywalker is waiting for you.” Luminara nodded and walked away with her padawan. Luna marched alongside them as per protocol. All three could see Skywalker and Tano still arguing.

“At it again, are they?” Luminara asked.

Luna nodded solemnly. “Unfortunately, ma’am, and it’s a fresh one.”

“Again, Master?” Barriss asked in confusion.

“Let’s just say those two have a penitent of playing loose with regulations and rules of command.”

Luna felt like she should defend her General and Commander. But she was taught better than to question a Jedi like Luminara, a Jedi who felt themselves above others who were not as strict and disciplined as them. The alicorn often wondered how Gree was able to stand her. She could never follow a Jedi that wasn’t like Skywalker or Kenobi.

“... Well if you don’t trust me, then maybe you should just send me back!”

“Oh, don’t tempt me, Snips.” Yikes, that was low, even for them.

“If you are both finished.” Luminara said, effectively ending the dispute. “I believe we do have a factory to destroy.” The three stepped up and stood tall. Luminara looked at her pupil expectantly. “Well Barriss, aren’t you going to introduce yourself?”

The Padawan nodded and bowed. “Padawan Learner Barriss Offee at your service.”

Skywalker and Tano gave each other bemused looks before Ahsoka offered a hand to the new Learner. “Pleased to meet you, I’m Ahsoka Tano.”

“It’s good to see you two again.” Anakin added. Luminara sighed.

“I wish it were under more peaceful circumstances.” Luna couldn’t agree more.

“I’ll leave you to fill each other in.” She said at last, drawing everyone’s attention. She saluted and walked away. The alicorn almost didn’t notice the surprise look General Skywalker gave her.

Knave could not believe it. The plan of attack was to launch a forward assault, in parade formation! He knew General Skywalker was bold, but this was insane. He knew Luna felt the same way. It was turning into the first battle all over again. The losses were getting just as high as well. He turned back to check his platoon to see how they were doing.

While he couldn’t see their faces, he could tell how they felt with their habits.

Razorwolf was sharpening his knife with his shoulder pad. Something he did in anticipation for a fight.

Fierce was constantly checking his weapon, making sure there wasn’t a single dent in the weapon.

Circuit checked his helmet, tapping the side of it repeatedly every few seconds.

Osprey looked around, scanning the skies for Geonosians.

Gallus was the same way, except he was on top of an AT-TE and using binoculars.

Knave wished he had a habit he could fall into. But he didn’t have the luxury. Officers were meant to be seen as calm, cool, and collected at all times. If the officer was afraid, the rest of the unit would be running for their lives. It was the trust he earned from his men, the trust of an officer to get them back safely aboard the Venator after this battle was over.

In the distance, the large metal doors of the factory opened, and rows of battle droids marched out. Knave readied his rifle, his platoon doing the same.

Gallus pointed at the droid lines, motioning for the gunner to take aim.

“This is it, boys!” Luna shouted and the first droids opened fire. The clones followed suit, firing back at their enemy. Red and Blue energy bolts flew over the flat ground, some striking home on the droids and clones.

Knave ducked as a bolt slammed into a trooper’s chest, sending the trooper to the ground. The Jedi surged forward and their troops charged with them. Knave and his platoon joined in and closed the distance between them and the droids.

More troopers went down as the range shrunk. He didn’t even have to aim much at this distance. He whacked a droid with the barrel of his gun, and kicked another with the bottom of his boot.

Gallus directed the AT-TE’s gun, firing into the rear lines of the droids. If he could break up their reinforcements, it might make things easier for the men on the ground. “Just keep up the pressure, trooper.” He said. The gunner said nothing as he fired another round into a block of B2s.

A loud screech drew his attention behind him, and the sight before him made his skin go pale. Behind the clones were tall spires that reached high above them. From the tops of those spires came plagues of Geonosians. Some fired their sonic blasters into the backs of the clones, melting their insides with the concussive force. Gallus aimed his blaster and fired.

Razorwolf turned and fired his blaster, shouting, “Ambush!” He ducked as some Geonosians attempted to grab him. A trooper behind him wasn’t able to avoid their grip and was dragged off into one of the spires. Razorwolf prepared his knife as another Geonosian made an attempt at him. Instead of ducking out of the way, he made a wide slash at the creature, slicing into its right wing. The bug fell with a screech, and the trooper made sure to end its existence with a hard stomp to head. He groaned as bug juice covered his leg.

“Aw, gross. This is never gonna wash out!” His disgust had to be put down for the moment, as more Geonosians came in.

Luna rolled out of the way of a sonic blast and fired at the bug responsible. It was hit several times before falling to the ground. She spotted more of them approaching and had an idea. She removed the bandolier of grenades and flung it into the air. One of the bugs caught it and prepared to throw it back when she fired a single shot at it. The bolt hit one of the thermal detonators, creating a massive explosion that consumed the plague. Charred bits of Geonosians rained from the pitch black cloud.

The alicorn smiled in satisfaction at her large kill count. Her gaze fell to the large groups of droids that were advancing on her position. Guess it was going to get bigger before long.

Within the droid ranks, squads of droidekas rolled forward. She spotted them instantly and turned to one of her troopers. “Strike, front and center!” The trooper ran up and lifted a rocket launcher onto his shoulder. He aimed at the droidekas as they halted and opened their shields. Strike fired, sending a High Explosive round toward the group. The rocket struck the ground below the shield, sending shrapnel into the air. Bits of rocks and metal managed to penetrate the weaker shields of the destroyer droids, ripping them to pieces.

Another troopers followed Strike’s example and used rocket launchers to destroy the rolling death balls.

Luna smiled under her helmet. This assault was going well, much better than expected. She only hoped Ahsoka and Barriss managed to reach the reactor, otherwise this false flag attack may actually become legitimate. “Push forward!” She pulled out her vibroblade and charged toward the droid lines.

Dek crushed another bug beneath his foot. He had no time to react before a second Geonosian attempted to grab him. A quick roll to the right and some blaster fire ensured his survival and his enemy’s demise. He took a moment to look around and check on his squad.

Radar was dragging a wounded clone away from the combat zone, ignoring the incoming fire he was receiving. Junior was helping him by providing cover fire. Trigg was going ham with his blaster rifle, gunning down entire rows of droids with glee.

Dek couldn’t find the rest of his squad, so he had to hope they were simply further away from his eyesight. But there were still a good amount of clone corpses on the ground.

Gallus watched as the tanks blasted the remaining droid units away with their cannons. He felt like celebrating, but a development in the situation changed his tune.

The large factory door opened, and two columns of unknown vehicles floated out. He used his binoculars to get a closer look. The vehicles were box shaped, with a very large profile. He couldn’t see much in the way of weaponry, outside of the twin blasters on each side of them. Could they be a new sort of droid transport? The design looked a lot like the MTTs the Seppies use.

Luna watched as Captain Rex ordered the artillery to open fire. With how slow these things were, they were easy targets. The heavy cannons opened fire, and scored direct hits. The barrage lasted a few seconds, completely devouring the tanks in fire and smoke. Luna did her best to try and make out the situation, but her binoculars were unable to make anything clear.

Maybe the artillery was so good at its job that they blew the tanks completely off the bridge. But why were they deployed in such a way? It was too easy, her gut was telling her something was wrong, and her mind was keen to agree. She stared on a for a few seconds, and her gut was proven right. From the smoke came these new tanks, without a scratch or dent on them.

“Oh kriff.”

“How could anything survive that?!” Razorwolf shouted in disbelief.

“Probably anything with a ray shield.” Circuit estimated. “Which means…’

“Our fight just got more difficult.” Luna concluded. She turned to her troops. “Fall back, we’re exposed out here!” Just as she gave the order, loud pops filled the air. All eyes fell on the Super Tanks as rockets appeared from above the them.

“Take cover!” The troopers scattered as the rockets fell toward them. Within moments, they slammed into the ground. Troopers were either sent into the air by the blasts or turned to ash by the fireballs. Luna landed with several hard thuds on the ground, her helmet’s visor shattering on impact. Pain flared throughout her body as she struggled to get up. Radar managed to make his way over and drag her toward a rock formation, where other troopers were seeking cover.

The alicorn struggled to keep her eyes open, her vision fading in and out. With one last effort, she gave up and blacked out.

Gallus’ eyes widened as he saw the incoming missiles. He leaped from the AT-TE just before they hit. The explosion sent him sailing forward into the ground below. He rolled several feet, several of his bones snapping from the sheer force of the impact. The tanks were completely destroyed, reduced to nothing but flaming wrecks. The trooper couldn’t move. His muscles refused to obey him as they could not make use his broken and fractured bones. Two medics ran over and checked his vitals before picking him up and carrying him from the field.

Luna awoke with a start as something poked her side. Her eyes snapped open to see Radar packing away the spent needle. He saw her look.

“Easy, ma’am. It’s just some adrenaline. Normally, I’m against using this stuff, but we need you awake.”

Luna nodded and sighed. She could feel the energy coursing through her body, making it almost shake uncontrollably. Her eyes fell on Knave, who was standing above her. Rockets continued to fall around them, but the Lieutenant ignored them.

“Status Report.” She said simply.

“General Skywalker’s ordered a retreat. He wants us to lure the tanks onto the bridge so he can blow it out from under them.”

Luna smiled. That was definitely a Skywalker plan. “Then let’s make it tempting. Have our wounded moved from the field. I want rockets and heavy guns to fire on those things and make them cocky. Fire two volleys worth, then fall back. If they launch rockets, get clear. Understood?”

Knave saluted. “Yes, ma’am.” He turned and gathered his men. Luna watched the troopers move about as the rockets stopped firing. She only hoped she made the right decision.

General Skywalker placed another thermal detonator on the side of the bridge. So far, he placed half of his pack on the sides and under the bridge. On the other side, Master Unduli was doing the same. The two Jedi swung from stalactite to stalactite, placing explosives where they knew it would have the most effect. In less then three minutes, they finished along the bridge and hoped over to the surface on the other side.

They ran clear of the bridge as Anakin prepared the detonator. He checked to make sure his fellow Jedi was clear before pressing the large yellow button.

The explosion was massive, as a series of smaller explosions formed one large one. The bridge fractured, then collapsed, taking the Super Tanks with it. They crashed into the ravine below, exploding into fireballs and crushing each other under their own weight.

Skywalker could hear his troops cheering on the other side, and his eyes fell on the prideful smile of Captain Luna, who had her damaged helmet off. He waved back in celebration, but he suddenly had a feeling that something was wrong. He ran over to the door to the factory, but didn’t see either Ahsoka or Barriss.

“Where are they, they’re supposed to be here!” He activated his comms. “Rex, have you heard from Ahsoka?”

“Negative, Sir.” Not good, something must have happened to the Padawans. “But this place is about to blow. Evacuations ships are on their way, I suggest you get on one.”

“Not without Ahsoka.” He said with determination.

“My Padawan will not fail.” Luminara countered plainly. She didn’t realize that wasn’t what he was worried about. He needed to be sure if Ahsoka was okay. She may be a Jedi Padawan, but she was still young, someone who shouldn’t have to be on a battlefield. He tried to raise comms once more.

“Ahsoka, where are you?!” The doors opened, giving the Knight some hope. But that hope was quickly dashed when another platoon of droids appeared from within. The two Jedi activated their lightsabers and prepared for the next attack.

Luna helped the last of the wounded onto gunships as blaster fire erupted from the factory. She looked over to see the two Generals fighting off another wave of droids. Her instincts told her to go help, but her brain kept her in check. She still had men to get clear of the blast zone.

A loud explosion drowned out the distant fight, drawing attention to the massive spire. Explosions appeared all over the place. They had done it, the factory was destroyed. But where was Ahsoka, she didn’t check in!

The building collapsed in chunks, crashing into the ground. A massive dust storm kicked up and rushed toward the troopers.

No, she couldn’t have still been in there!

“Get down. Get down!” Gree called out. Troopers ran for cover. Luna raised a shield around the gunships as the wounded braced for impact.

She couldn’t. She was still so young! They were all too young!

The dust storm slammed into her shield. The alicorn grunted in pain as she felt every single speck of dirt slam into it with the force of a rocket.

They had just made up, became friends. They could’ve been sisters. But now, Ahsoka may not even be alive!

It was over quicker than it began. The dust had settled, the factory was replaced with a smoking crater, and Captain Luna was on her knees, sobbing for all she had lost.

It had been almost an hour since the explosion. Troopers were working within the crater to remove the debris. Tank lifters were used to lift away the bigger pieces. But for every bit of debris removed, three more chunks took its place.

Luna used her magic to do what she could, but she felt it was hopeless. Almost a lifetime of death and carnage had made it easier to just accept death. But not for General Skywalker, and if he still had hope, then she was going to make an effort.

Ahsoka may not have been born in a pod, but she was no less a sister to her or her brothers, and as her father had taught the young alicorn, Vods take care of their own.

“We found them!” She looked to see Rex and other troopers gathering around General Skywalker, who had just jumped into a hole. Luna opened her wings and flew over to their position. Where she could see Ahsoka and Barriss being assisted by the General and some medics. As soon as the Padawan was on stable ground, she attacked.

Ahsoka gasped in surprise as the alicorn wrapped her hooves around her tightly. It only took her a second to realize what was happening, and she returned it in kind.

“Don’t ever do that again!” Luna snapped with a relieved smile. Ahsoka laughed and rolled her eyes.

“With Skyguy as my Master, I doubt I could if I tried.” The two laughed, joined in by Barriss and the troopers. Skywalker tried to look indignant, but failed and joined in the moment of joy. For Ahsoka was alive, they had achieved their objective. That was all that mattered right now.

Author's Note

Happy May the Fourth!

And to think, this started a year ago on Geonosis, and now we're back on the same dust bowl as before.

I hope you all enjoy, and May the Fourth be with You.

Chapter 14: Incident TB-73

It was finally over. Cadence and Luna watched with satisfied smiles as Poggle the Lesser was dragged in cuffs onto the shuttle that would take him to his temporary prison aboard the Venator. The leader of the Geonosians was captured after he tried to escape into a large catacomb beneath the planet. The two alicorns had no idea what happened down in the catacombs, and, for once, the Generals weren’t keen on sharing the details. All they knew was that two whole squads were lost down there; killed in horrific ways by the Geonosian Guards.

“I just can’t wait to get off this rock.” Luna said, letting out a sigh of exhaustion. It had been a hard fight, costing them a lot of good men. But now, they could rest with the knowledge that they had shut down the factories on this planet for good.

“Same, I can’t wait to just nap on the Venator.” Luna turned to look at her sister, but spotted a certain padawan on approach.

“Something tells me we’re not going to nap much, Cadence.” The pink alicorn turned to see Ahsoka walking up to them. Her expression was one of annoyance and expected boredom. Which meant she had an assignment that had nothing to do with combat. Great.

“Cadence, we got an assignment. Master Windu needs medical supplies on Dantooine, and my Master volunteered Barris and I to do it.” Cadence raised an eyebrow.

Ahsoka caught the look and sighed. “Master Kenobi volunteered for you as well.” Cadence followed the padawan’s example and groaned in annoyance.

“Of course he did.” Luna chuckled.

“Chin up, sister. It’ll be a nice bonding experience for you and Ahsoka.” Cadence gave her sister a look.

“Guarding medical supplies is anything but a bonding experience, Luna. Besides, my company is already on board the Venator.”

Luna thought for a moment, then had an idea. “I’ll contact Trap and his platoon. They’ll help provide security.” Cadence nodded in thanks, and followed Ahsoka. Luna watched them go before activating her comms.

“Trap, this is Captain Luna. I’ve got a nice little assignment for you.”

Cadence watched as Ahsoka, Barriss, and Tango Company boarded the medical frigate. None of the troopers were wearing their helmets, which didn’t surprise the alicorn. The fighting was over, and the planet’s temperature reminded her too much of the kitchen during lunch. She scanned each man’s face. Something she learned to do with her company, should they ever need someone to talk to. Clones were bred to never talk about their feelings, but that couldn’t stop the natural process of facial expressions. It was her way of understanding what each trooper was thinking, how they were feeling, and if they were hurt in any way.

All she saw were three expressions from the troopers of Tango Company. Relaxed smiles, tired eyes, and bored out of their wits. Pretty standard. No troopers liked going on supply runs, especially after a big battle where their adrenaline was still coursing through their veins, but Cadence knew that the 501st tried to avoid it like the plague.

Trap and his men must’ve done something to Luna for her to be pissed off at them, if she had them assigned to the mission. She was about to turn in and board the ship when she caught the expression of a clone in the rear of the boarding party. A bald trooper with a vaded blue X on his chest plate. His eyes were scanning the horizon, occasionally looking at the straps of his backpack. His movement was careful, as if he were stepping on eggshells. He must have something in his pack, something he should not be carrying. Anyone who was paying attention like she was would see how suspicious it was.

Granted, it was probably something minor. Clones took trophies all the time, whenever they felt they could get away with it. If it was harmless stuff, like a souvenir from a civilian or a piece of food they paid for, then she didn’t care. But if it was military contraband, like droid pieces or equipment, she made sure they were caught, punished, and had their stuff confiscated.

Considering that Geonosis was not friendly in any interpretation of the word, the trooper had something on the contraband list, and was trying not to get caught.

Cadence was going to have to talk to him later about it. Right now, however, she wanted to lay down in a comfy bed in the officer’s quarters. Cadence followed the troopers aboard, the ramp closing behind her. As soon as it closed, the ship lurched and took off into the vast space around Geonosis. It wasn’t long before they entered Hyperspace.

None of them were aware of the danger everyone was now in.

It was later into the voyage when Cadence felt hungry, so she decided to head to the mess hall while the rest of the troopers slept. The ship was running on skeleton crew, since they were in secure space in a pretty fast ship. There was little cause for concern. The security was just a formality. She passed the trooper, Scythe as she found out, again as he was on his way to the sleeping quarters, but ignored him in favor of food.

She arrived at the mess hall and walked over to the kitchen window. The crew wasn’t operating at the moment, since almost everyone was asleep, but there were still some quick to grab options that didn’t require cooking.

It was mostly slop and some fruit. But hey, it would keep her tied over until she could get some proper food from the medical station. The lights were dimmed, which gave off an eerie vibe, and the alicorn suddenly felt uneasy, like something was gnawing at her mind.

The doors behind her shot open, frightening the young captain, who unconsciously reached for a blaster. She quickly realized she didn’t have one, but decided to play it off cool with a quick calming exhale. She turned to see Ahsoka and Barriss approaching.

“Ah, Ahsoka, Commander Offee. Good to see you.”

“Captain, please.” Unduli’s Padawan said shyly. “Just call me Barriss.”

Cadence smiled. “Only if you call me Cadence, ma’am.” Barriss nodded, and the alicorn stepped aside so that the two girls could grab some of the food left out. All three sat down and dug into their food.

“So, Cadence.” Ahsoka said suddenly before gulping down some paste. “How ya feeling?”

“A little tense, but that’s normal.”

Barriss raised an eyebrow. “Is it?” Her Master had always taught her that feelings only existed to cloud your judgement, make you make mistakes. It was why she was trained to ignore her feelings.

“It is, it’s what makes us human. Well, relatively speaking.” Cadence explained. “That’s why we’re more superior to droids. We have a conscience, we can feel. Soldiers with feelings, who follow them, will always be superior to machines.”

“I’m… not sure I follow.” Cadence looked at the Padawan for a moment before nodding.

“Right, so think about this. We’re fighting to liberate people oppressed by the Separatists. We’d be fighting in front of the people. Would you rather they see droids simply following orders, uncaring of who or what gets in their way, ignoring the pleas for help or the cries of the wounded. No, you want people who have the ability to respond to such a thing.”

“But, won’t emotions lead to making mistakes, making poor judgments?”

Cadence shrugged. “Possibly, but why ignore feelings? Why deny half of yourself?”

Barriss looked at the trooper in surprise. A few minutes ago, Ahsoka couldn’t even rest in a bed, all jittery and wasting energy. She was too excited about combat that she couldn’t comprehend peaceful times. It was moments like then that made her think her Master was right. But from what Cadence explained, it seemed like emotions made who you are.

Barriss’ eyes wandered over to her fellow padawan, who seemed lost in thought. “Ahsoka, are you alright?”

The Togrutan looked up at her in surprise, as if she was just shaken from a dream. She looked at Barriss, then Cadence, then back to her food.

“I was just thinking about what you said earlier, about enjoying the peace while it lasts.”

“Good words to live by.” Cadence said absentmindedly.

“As a Jedi,” Ahsoka continued, “I’m not sure how to do that.”

“Master Windu says we are Keepers of the Peace, not warriors.” Barriss stated. “However, once the War is over, it will be our job to Maintain the Peace.”

“Yes, but would we do as Keepers of the Peace, or Warriors?” Barriss thought about it for a few moments as Ahsoka continued. “And, what’s the difference?”

“I don’t have all the answers, Ahsoka.” Barriss concluded. “Like you, I am, but a Learner.” She grabbed her drink. “What does your Master tell you?”

“Anakin? Oh, uh…” Ahsoka wasn’t sure how to answer that question without making her Master out to be another Count Dooku. “You might find his ideas about the Future a little… radical.”

Cadence scoffed. “I think you mean realistic.” The alicorn had heard Luna talking about what her General had said to her in conversation, about how the Jedi could change their ways to be more about the people, how the clones could be of service. Maybe even change the way systems are handled should they decide to protest. It might stop more wars like this one from happening. She also remembered how Ahsoka seemed to agree with some of his ideals, but decided to avoid mentioning that in front og Barriss.

“Really, why?”

“Let’s just say my Master will do what needs to be done.” Ashoka said ominously. “I don’t think Peace will agree with him.”

“Well, I know a few people who might be in the same boat as him.” Cadence added before getting up. “I’m going to go check on the Bridge, see you later.” With that, the two padawans watched her exit out of the mess.

Not even a minute later, two more troopers entered the room, blasters in hand. Ahsoka smiled as they came in.

“Evening Ox, Edge. Care to join us?” The two said nothing, only staring blankly at them. Ahsoka had an uneasy feeling in her stomach. “Something wrong… troopers?” The clones aimed and fired. The padawans whipped out their lightsabers and blocked the first few bolts. Barriss was quick to jump above the bolts while Ahsoka flipped the table to form a barrier. Barriss landed next to her.

“Troopers, stand down!” The clones ignored her orders and instead charged at them. Barriss sliced one trooper’s blaster in two while Ahsoka forced them into the wall, knocking them both unconscious.

Within seconds, the doors opened again, and Trap and another trooper entered the room, blasters raised. Barriss and Ahsoka pointed the tips of their sabers at the troopers’ necks.

‘What are you doing?!” Trap asked in alarm as he raised his hands.

“Two troopers just attacked us, what is going on?!”

“Trap, could you tell us what happened to these men?”

“Couldn’t tell you, Commander. We’re just as confused as you-”

“You’re in charge of those men, did you order them to kill us?!” Barriss demanded, pressing the lightsaber a little closer to the trooper’s jugular.

“No sir, I did not.”

“What’s happening?!” Ahsoka asked, pleading for answers. The doors suddenly opened and Cadence burst.

“What happened, I heard shots!”

“Ox and Edge attacked me and Barris!” Ashoka quickly explained, “And I don’t trust these two!” Cadence’s gaze snapped to the two troopers, then the still intact blaster by Edge’s foot. She quickly used her green magic to grab the blaster and aim at the troopers.

“Weapons on the ground, now!”

“Okay, okay!” Trap said quickly. “Look, no guns.” He and the other trooper placed their blasters on the floor, just out of effective reach. The padawans deactivated their lightsabers and the alicorn lowered the blaster.

“These men wouldn’t just attack us without reason.” Barriss said to get the thoughts going.

“My Master had a clone betray them once, a traitor who was paid off by Ventress.”

“Slick.” Cadence growled. “I remember him, but that’s impossible now. Every conversation clones have outside of their units is monitored, and there is little room for anyone to slip through without other loyal troopers spotting them.”

“It didn’t feel like a betrayal either.” Barriss concluded.

“Excuse me, sir.” Trap said, gaining everyone’s attention. “We should make sure we’re still in control of the Bridge.”

“Bridge, this is Barriss, respond.” All the padawan got on the commlink was static, which meant the crew were either dead or refusing to respond.

“We need to get up there, we need to know what’s going on.”

Barriss shook her head. “But these two could be coming around any minute.”

“Havoc can stay and watch them while we check on the Bridge.” Trap suggested.

“Good idea.” Cadence said. “Let’s go, we’re low on time.” The padawans ran out while Trap grabbed his weapon and followed them. Havoc grabbed his blaster as Cadence approached.

“Let me know when they wake up.” Havoc nodded and turned to the two unconscious troopers while Cadence ran to join the others.

Luna walked onto the bridge of the Venator, passing the other Jedi Generals. She stopped to observe General Skywalker as he passed. She could see his face was full of fear and anger. Something was wrong, and she knew just the clone to ask.

“Rex, what’s going on?” Her fellow captain turned to face her.

“Commander Tano failed to check in on schedule. There hasn’t been any reply from the medical frigate.”

Luna’s eyes narrowed. “Something is wrong.”

“General Skywalker had the same conclusion, but the others persuaded him to help with interrogating Poggel.”

“I see, I’ll help monitor the situation, and help the General where I can.”

Cadence was running down the hall, trying to catch up with the others. Her quick order to Havoc gave the padawans and Trap a running start. Just around the corner, she heard blaster fire and screaming. She quickly picked up the pace and turned the corner just as Trap dropped dead with a lightsaber cut through his stomach.

Ashoka slashed something that was on the floor before deactivating her lightsaber. Cadence ran up to them, stopping when she saw what was on the floor. It was a sickly green worm, cut in half, twitching on the ground.

Ahsoka recoiled in disgust. “Ugh, what is that?”

“It’s some kind of parasite. It must be controlling their actions.” Barriss realized. Cadence looked at them in shock.

“Mind control.” Ahsoka muttered. “Well, that explains a lot. Trap was my friend, he would never have tried to kill us.” The padawans carefully picked up each half of the worm while Cadence checked around. Her eyes darted in every direction as sweat poured down her forehead. When did it get so hot on this ship?

“It must’ve infected the clones while they were on Geonosis.”

“No, they were fine. It must’ve happened afterward.” The two looked at Cadence as she spoke. “I spotted a clone acting suspicious as we were boarding, Scythe. He must’ve been infected on the planet and brought the rest on board.”

Barriss raised a questioning eyebrow. “Are you certain?”

“Trust me, nothing happens on this ship without me knowing about it.” The alicorn said. The padawans dropped the worm on the floor, allowing Cadence to crush in under her shoe.

“We have to contact Master Fisto, and let him know about the situation.” Barriss said, turning to Ahsoka.

“We can cut through the cargo hold to save time.” Cadence suggested.

Ahsoka nodded. “Let’s go.” The three ran off, with Cadence glancing back at Traps’ dead body.

As they made their way to the cargo hold, Cadence had an idea. “We might be able to stop the ship if we cut the Reactor.” Ahsoka and Barriss turned to her as they ran.

“Could that work?” Cadence nodded, and the three made a plan. Contact Master Fisto, then cut the Reactor in order to stop the ship from reaching the station.

The three ran down the hall, turning the corner toward the entrance to the cargo hold, when they heard noises coming from within. Ahsoka signaled for them to stop and listen. The sounds were buzzing, clicking, and groaning. The same sound made by native Geonosians.

The padawans creeped up to the door while Cadence covered their rear. Through the doorway, they could see infected clones making the noises and surrounding an uninfected trooper. He was held down by two troopers against a crate, but he struggled nonetheless. A third approached him with a fresh worm egg, the worm wiggling its way free of the shell.

“We have to help him.” Ahsoka whispered.

Barriss thought for a moment before seeing a sickly sight. The worm jumped from the egg onto the trooper’s face and climbed up through his nose. The trooper grunted and twitched violently as the worm weaved into his mind.

“It’s too late.” The Jedi said sadly as the trooper became fully infected. Shots rang out behind them as Cadence fired on a trooper charging toward them. The trooper fired back, sending energy bolts toward the padawans. They were forced to use their lightsabers to block the rounds, alerting the other infected to their presence.

The three backed into the cargo hold and jammed the door closed. They turned around to see the troops approaching them. One of them held two eggs in his hands. The padawans used the Force to yank the eggs free and sliced them in half with their sabers. The trooper cried out in Geonosian as the other troopers aimed at them. Cadence aimed at the troopers and fired several stun rounds at them. Each one missed. The door opened behind them, and the trooper behind it opened fire. The two Jedi blocked as many bolts as they could while Cadence fired back at her infected brothers.

Barriss knocked over some crates to block the clones from getting too close. Cadence fired at the clone in the door, hitting him and knocking him out. She turned to the two padawans. “Get out through the vent, I’ll draw them away.”

“We’re not leaving without you!” Ahsoka cried out.

“I’ll be fine, now go! I’ll meet you back at the Reactor!” The alicorn fired more stun rounds before taking cover behind the door. The padawans jumped high into the air and dove through a vent into the shaft above the hall. Once the Jeid were clear, Cadence fired a few more stun bolts, then closed the door and ran down the hall toward the Reactor. She could only hope the plan worked.

The alicorn stopped once she realized she wasn’t being followed, and she couldn’t see the padawans in the vent. She activated her comms and spoke in Native Geonosian.

Barriss jumped down from the vent as soon as the coast was clear. She landed quietly on the floor and tiptoed her way over to the entrance to the Reactor Room. It was quiet, and there was no sign of Cadence. She must have been captured, or worse. There was no time to waste. The padawan tiptoed into the dark hall, listening for anything that would give her warning.

Her only warning was quick hum before thousands of volts of electricity swam through her body. The pain was unbearable, her body spasmed to compensate, forcing her to drop her lightsaber. The hilt rolled clear of the hall and was picked up by a toxic green aura.

The electric tap shut down and Barriss fell to the floor. She slowly looked up to see Cadence grinning with satisfaction as she inspected the lightsaber. Ox and Edge stood next to her with their blasters raised.

“If there’s one thing we clones know,” Cadence purred, “it’s how to stop a Jedi.” The other infected troopers surrounded the dazed and disoriented padawan. She watched in despair as Scythe approached with a fresh worm egg.

“No!” She cried out as Cadence activated the security shields. She turned to her infected troops. “Prepare for a fight. No doubt, Ahsoka warned Fisto we’re coming.”

“Should we still dock the ship as planned?” Edge asked.

Cadence shook her head. “No we wouldn’t stand a chance, even with Jedi. No, we ram the ship and infect those caught unaware.”

Back on the Venator, Anakin Skywalker and Captain Luna approached Poggle’s cell. He looked at the two troopers guarding the Geonosian. “Leave us.” The troopers followed their orders, and left the prison area. They knew what was about to happen, and they knew the drill.

The Jedi and the alicorn walked into the cell as Poggel sat across from them. A protocol droid stood next to him to serve as a translator.

“You will answer my questions.” The Jedi said, pointing at Poggel. The Geonosian Leader spoke, with the droid providing translation.

“Your feeble Jedi mind tricks do not work on Geonosians, the other Jedi had already learned this.” Anakin faced away from the prisoner and chuckled.

“Mind tricks?” He looked to Luna, who nodded, and back hoofed Poggel across the face. The Geonosian was knocked to the ground. Anakin stepped over to him and growled. “I don’t need mind tricks to get you to talk.”

“I will never talk, Jedi.” Anakin raised his hand and cupped his fingers. Poggel felt his windpipe close rapidly and he struggled to breath. He was suddenly lifted into the air.

“We’ll see about that, Poggel.” Luna watched with hatred as her General began his own personal negotiations with the Geonosian, and she awaited her turn should it still refuse to talk. Protocol and the Rules of War be damned, her sister was in danger, and nothing was going to stand in her way of saving her.

The Geonosian struggled until he looked ready to pass out. Skywalker realized this and dropped the prisoner. “Luna, see what you can do.” The alicorn nodded and she pulled out her vibroblade. Poggel spoke through a coughing fit.

“This is against the rules of war, this is cruelty!” Luna kicked the Geonosian in the gut and sliced off the tip of one of his wings. The Geonosian cried out and tried to get up, but a strong hoof held him down.

“Do I need to educate you on the rules of war, because last time I checked, parasites were not listed as legal weapons!” Poggel’s eyes widened in realization. Some of the brain worms must have infected troopers. “So, care to tell me all about them?” The alicorn was centimeters away from the Geonosian, and for the first time since meeting Count Dooku, Poggel felt true fear.

Cadence stood in the cargo hold with most of her brothers. Soon, they could start a new hive, and spread as the worms should have centuries ago. No longer would they have to follow the commands of a weak minded, feeble queen. Now, they were free to grow like never before. A trooper walked up.

“We are on final approach.”

“Excellent, prepare the eggs. Make sure they are protected.” The trooper nodded and went to perform his task. These clones were impressive, very intelligent. Especially this alicorn, and apparently, there were two more. This was perfect, with three alicorns within their thrall, the worms would be unstoppable.

Suddenly, the lights flickered, and mist appeared from the vents. What was happening? Was it Ahsoka doing something to the ship? Wait a minute, why was it so cold? No, without the heat-

“AH!” Cadence joined the symphony of Geonosian cries as the parasites froze to death. They attempted to escape out of the troopers’ mouths, but it was all in vain as it proved to be much more fatal.

Cadence felt the worm’s influence fade, and the last thought she had was a prayer for forgiveness before she was consumed in darkness.

That darkness seemed to only last a second as Cadence shot up. She looked around to find herself in an isolation room, most likely on the Medical Station. Everything was white, except for the midnight blue alicorn asleep next to the bed.

“Luna?” The alicorn’s head snapped up and her eyes immediately fell on the patient.

“Cadence!” The pink pony was crushed in a death hug by her sister. Not that Cadence minded, she still felt really cold. Everything she had done under the control of the worm came back to her. The lies, the deception, the plan, and what she said to Barriss. How would the padawan trust her again. How could she trust herself? The worm may have been in control, but it still used her memories to do it!

She was so lost in herself that she didn’t realize she was crying. Luna, however, noticed, and wiped away the tears.

“It’s okay. You’re safe, the others are fine, and the parasites are contained.” That did little to reassure Cadence, as she had other horrors on her mind.

“Luna, would you ever betray the General?” Luna recoiled in shock at the question.

“What? Never, why would you ask such a thing?” Cadence said nothing, she simply looked away. Luna pressed on with a hardened face.

“Cadence, what happened on that ship.” The pink alicorn didn’t know what to say. How could she answer her sister and not expect fear and hatred in return.

“When… the parasite got a hold of me, it… learned.” Luna raised an eyebrow, but stayed silent. “It learned my training, protocols, memories, and my desires. It learned about how we’re trained to… take down Jedi.” She went on to explain how she captured Barriss, and what she said to the padawan shortly before infecting her.

Luna said nothing and stroked her chin in thought. Cadence shrunk back in the bed. What would her sister say? After an endless silence, the older alicorn spoke.

“I would never. You’d have to do something pretty drastic to make me betray General Skywalker.” Cadence looked down, feeling ashamed. “Like a parasite.” Luna continued, placing a comforting hoof on Cadence’s shoulder. “It wasn’t you, it was a worm that got inside and warped your thoughts.”

“You’re a good soldier and a good person, Cadence. Never forget that.” Cadence smiled and hugged her sister, who returned it in kind. Once it broke, Luna spoke again.

“Feeling better?”

Cadence nodded. “Still got a headache, but yeah.” Luna chuckled.

“Then rest, I’ll inform General Skywalker and Ahsoka of your condition.” With that, Luna stood up and left the room, leaving Cadence alone to sleep peacefully, for the first time in a long while.

Author's Note

And boom! Two for one! This was actually really fun to write.

Let me know when you realized Cadence was Infected

Chapter 15: Endurance Saboteur

Celestia stood on the bridge of the Endurance, the flagship of the 2nd Fleet and the home of the 187th Legion. She stared out into the vastness of space, a sight she had grown used to since the war began. The aura was calm, a rare occurrence these days. Most of the crew was still asleep, since it was technically dawn on Kamino and Coruscant.

“Enjoying the view, Commander?” Celestia turned to see General Skywalker approaching her, holding two mugs of glorious coffee in his hands. She smiled and about faced the Jedi. Without a word, he handed her a mug and she immediately sipped it down. The alicorn may be an early riser, with a record of waking up before her instructors back during her youth, but it was coffee that made it possible in times of war.

“It’s one of the few sights that’s always constant, sir.” She said after draining half of her cup. Skywalker hadn’t even taken a sip yet. He chuckled before asking his next question.

“Is it in your sisters’ DNA to need coffee?” Celestia laughed. Only one being in the Galaxy could match the cream alicorn’s need for coffee, and it was her little sister, Luna.

“I take it you’ve seen her addictive side?”

“Oh you have no idea.” The General then began to tell her a story from the front, of when Luna organized a nonviolent raid of Republic stores in order to find a single cup of coffee. The blue alicorn ordered her company to search, and swore her wrath upon any who had a sip of the liquid energy before her. They understood the severity of the threat and almost tore down the supply tent in an epic search for even a single bean. There was none, so she led a much more violent raid on a Separatist base, and they found an entire section of the supply depot of the stuff. There were no casualties, so the captain only received a slight scolding for leading such a dangerous operation without informing Command first. But the alicorn got her coffee, and a droid outpost was destroyed, so the punishment was null and void.

Celestia laughed, that did indeed sound like something her sister would do. She turned back to look at the stars once more, getting lost in their beauty. It made her remember being a cadet on Kamino, and the nights where her and her sisters would sneak out to see the stars on clear nights, which were almost nonexistent on the hydroplanet. Luna especially loved the stars, she imagined what it would be like to make them into cool shapes, one time trying to do so when they discovered their power. Cadence just enjoyed the change, getting away from the white walls of the barracks and training room.

But Celestia loved the idea that she could see it all, defend all of it, and become a hero of the Galaxy. That is what their Father intended for them, to be the best soldiers the Galaxy would ever see, to become Legends.

Now she just wants the war to end, and find somewhere peaceful to live out the rest of her days.

“General, Commander.” The Jedi and Alicorn looked to see one of the troopers approaching. “The Cadet Frigate is within visual range.”

That’s right, Celestia remembered, the Cadets were coming on today for a tour. Well, weren’t they going to be surprised.

“Good, prepare for docking and make sure everyone is on their best behavior today.” The trooper saluted and walked off. Anakin turned to Celestia.

“I suppose you want to greet the cadets.”

She thought for a moment, then shook her head. “I’ll meet up with them when they arrive on the bridge. I think they’d like to meet some Jedi for a change.”

Anakin smirked that cocky smirk her sister had warned her about. “Alright then, I’ll be sure to give them a true Anakin Skywalker welcome.” Celestia gave her own smirk.

“Just don’t crash my cruiser, General. She may be called the Endurance, but you seem to have a knack for wrecking Republic Property.”

The Jedi blushed, something she thought they were incapable of, and walked away. No doubt to escape the burn he was just inflicted, and find General Windu. Once he was gone, the Alicorn turned to finish her coffee.

But the mug was already empty. She stared at the lack of coffee and groaned. “Maybe I should cut back a bit.” Well, back to her duties of watching space and preparing to welcome the next generation of soldiers.

Celestia laughed as she dodged an attack from her younger sister, Luna. The two were sparring in the arena, and having a blast while doing so. Cadence watched from the sidelines, enjoying the show the two were putting on. Other cadets gathered around, wanting to see the mysterious Alicorns in action.

She ducked under the stun baton and responded with an upper swipe. The blue alicorn blocked the attack and sent a hoof toward her jaw. The unexpected strike managed to hit, knocking the white alicorn off balance. A swipe against her legs sent her to the floor. Luna placed the baton against her throat.

“Gotcha, Sis.” She said smugly. Celestia smiled back, her horn glowing with yellow aura.

“Sure you do.” Luna’s eyes widened in realization, but it came too late as Celestia’s baton struck home. She spasmed for a second, then dropped to the floor next to Celestia, who jumped up and cheered.

“Yes! Now you have to do the paperwork, tonight!” Luna groaned as the effect of the baton wore off. Since the fight was over, the clone cadets dispersed, going back to their duties. Celestia helped her sister up and they both walked over to Cadence.

“You guys were awesome!”

Luna scoffed. “She only won because she cheated.” Celestia stuck her tongue out.

“All’s fair in love and war, sis.”

“Exactly, Celestia.” All eyes turned to see Jango Fett approaching. As his gaze was on Luna, she shrunk a little bit. Jango was never harsh, but it can still be humiliating when he agrees with the other sibling.

“You have to remember that your enemy cannot always be defeated in a fair fight, most times, deception and strategy will win the day.”

“But why learn to fight Jedi, papa?” Cadence asked innocently. Jango stiffened slightly before answering.

“You never know what might happen, Jedi can be deceitful and may one day betray you. The only people you can rely on are yourselves and your brothers.” Cadence nodded, but didn’t fully understand. Jango hoped she never would.

“Speaking of brothers, Celestia, you need to watch Boba tonight, I have a job that needs me to leave soon.” Celestia groaned. She was hoping for the rest of the day off, since she heard it was a sunny day outside. Since when was it ever sunny on Kamino?!

“Aw, but Father…”

“No buts, Boba is still young yet, and needs to be watched.” He grinned slightly. “Beside, from what I hear, you have a free day.” Celestia sighed. She supposed she deserved that.

“Alright, I’ll head up now.” Jango nodded and walked off, heading back to grab his armor and weapons. Luna and Cadence said goodbye and went back to their barracks, while Celestia went to Jango’s personal quarters.

“Commander.” Celestia was snapped out of the memory by a trooper calling her attention. She turned to face him and let him speak.

“The Generals were called into the War Room, General Skywalker suggested that you meet with the Cadets.”

Celestia shook her head. Of course, they had all forgotten about the War Meeting taking place today. It was for Jedi only, so that there would less likely be a chance of a security breach.

“Well, can’t disappoint them now, can I?” She walked away, calling up Ponds to take over the bridge.

Celestia walked into the Gunner Section 15, where the Admiral and the Cadets were waiting. She walked up behind them and waited for them to notice her. Admiral Kilain did first, his gaze falling on her. It took one cadet to notice her, and he quickly signalled his squadmates to look behind them.

She stood tall before the cadets, who stared back at her with wide eyes. All except one. One trooper looked at her with narrowed eyes. It made her feel uneasy, but it was a look she had seen before. Mistrust.

"Tell me, Cadet." She said softly. "What's your name?"

The cadet looked away, seemingly embarrassed. He didn't speak up for several seconds. The other cadets looked at him like he was crazy. One of them looked ready to laugh.

"It's okay if you don't have one." Celestia placed a hoof on the cadet's shoulder. "We all get one even-"

"Lucky." The cadet said, surprising the alicorn. He turned to face her again, this time with a blank expression. "My name is Lucky." Celestia blinked, then smiled.

"Well, let's hope you live up to your namesake, Lucky." Lucky nodded and looked away again. She gave him a saddened look before turning to the Gunnery Officer. “How did the weapons drill go?”

The Gunner shrugged. “They could use some work, but Lucky here. He’s a natural.” Celestia smiled, feeling a sense of pride. She looked at Lucky, who still refused to look at her. He must be one shy trooper.

“I see, perhaps I’ll see your skills soon enough, Lucky.” He said nothing, earning some gazes from his fellow cadets.

"Now, I will leave you with your tour and see you again in the Mess for Lunch. There, I can tell you a story I was told as a cadet by…" Celestia had to stop herself, she was about to say 'Her Father'. But the cadets wouldn't understand. "Someone who trained me." A quick glance at Lucky showed his face flash with shock before he looked away again.

Celestia couldn't out her hoof on it, but the cadet seemed very familiar. Sure, all clones looked alike, but there was something about him that brought back memories.

Memories that she didn't have time to relive. She turned to the Cadets’ Instructor.

“Trooper, take them to Observation Deck 13, I have some troopers there that want to share some stories.” The clone saluted and began marching the cadets out of the Gunner Section. She watched them leave, but her eyes connected with that of Clone Cadet Lucky. She would have to pull up his file when she had the chance, but for now. She would have to return to the bridge. No doubt General Windu and General Skywalker were finishing up their meeting and would want to brief all commanders as soon as possible.

She was right. General Skywalker was ready to give the briefing while Windu was nowhere to be found. Anakin had sent a trooper down to retrieve him, until then, he would give the briefing.

“So our new strategy will involve better landing tactics. Geonosis proved that we need to change up how we conduct landing operations.” Ponds and Celestia nodded in agreement. She had heard from Luna about what happened on Geonosis. Thousands of troopers were killed within an hour because of the Landing Strategy. She tried to ask Cadence about it, but her youngest sister seemed unwilling to even mention that planet anymore. Luna wouldn’t explain it either, feeling it would be up to Cadence to explain what had happened. Perhaps one day she would find out.

“The new strategy will involve bombardment of the landing zones and all areas along the approach. The payloads will depend on the area and type of landing. Which means we cannot land in or near villages and cities. We cannot risk civilian casualties.” Again, that she could agree with.

“Will this be for all landing operations, sir?”

“No, our idea for smaller operations will be to-” The ship rocked suddenly, knocking a few troopers off balance. Alarms blared, and the warning lights left the bridge in a deep red hue.

Celestia turned to a trooper on the console. “Damage Report!”

“Sensors picked up an explosion in Section 12A.”

“That’s where General Windu’s quarters are located.” Ponds explained. Celestia activated her commlink.

“I need a squad and fire crews at Section 12A, now!”

“Sound General Quarters. I want this whole ship sealed off and scanned.” Kilrain instructed. Celestia pulled out her pistol from its holster and ran to meet with the troopers. General Skywalker ran to join her. Ponds stayed behind to help the Admiral coordinate the sweep of the ship.

It did not take long to reach Windu’s quarters, or what was left of them. The entire room was charred and warped beyond recognition. Windu was inside, inspecting the damage. General Skywalker joined him.

“You’re lucky to be alive.” General Anakin Skywalker, the only Jedi who could match Windu for his bluntness. “And our trooper?”

“Dead.” Celestia came in.

“Report says the explosion was caused by an explosive that was triggered from inside the room.” She explained. “This was no accident.”

Windu turned to her. “Seal this ship and warn all troopers that we have a saboteur on board.”

“The question now is, what was he after?” The three thought for a few moments, until Anakin had an idea.

“The ship’s navigation is nearby.” Windu activated his commlink and contacted the bridge.

“Admiral, has the ship’s navigation been damaged?”

“Probable, but not fully. They can be repaired, but I’m ordering all engines tah shut down until we are fully operational. We’ll hold off at Vanqor.”

“Any sign of attack ships?” This would be the perfect time for the Separatists to attack, meaning this saboteur was likely working with them. But who on this ship would work for them, and why?

“None, but we’ll keep scannin’. Until we get navigation back online, the Endurance will be an easy target. Ay won’t ‘ave it.” Under normal circumstances, Celestia would smile at the Admiral’s love for the ship, but now was not the time.

So navigation wasn’t the target, meaning the saboteur was after General Windu, she thought. Both Jedi seemed to have the same idea.

“I’ll order all sections locked down and take a squad with me to search the ship.” Celestia suggested. Windu nodded.

“I’ll gather Ponds and the other security units on standby. Be careful, this isn’t sabotage anymore.”

Celestia nodded and readied her blaster.

“I want him alive, Commander.” Windu said before walking away with Skywalker to the bridge. She watched him go before turning to the troopers in the hallway. “Split up into groups of three. No one goes anywhere alone, and stays in constant communication. Ponds will sweep the ship while we secure the hard points. I need some men to reinforce the guard at the Main Reactor, and a squad to make sure no one leaves in an escape pod without my permission. Understood?”

“Yes ma’am!”

“Good, let’s move out!”

Celestia entered the room, expecting the young Boba to run up to her as he used to when she and her sisters would visit. But he didn’t. The hallway was silent.

“Boba?” She called out. “It’s me, Tia.” Nothing. It was quiet. Too quiet. She focused more energy into her ears as she slowly advanced down the hall. Something faint hit her ears. It was soft, like a child… sniffling? Her instincts took over and she ran into the main room.

There, curled up on the sofa, was the young Boba Fett, barely seven years old. She slowly approached, hoping not to startle the young lad. It didn’t work as she accidentally kicked a ball on the floor. Boba shot up and glared at Celestia with a look of mistrust and anger.

“What… Do you want?” Celestia’s ears went flat against her head.

“Father left to do a job, I came to see how you were.”

“You mean Dad sent you to watch me.” He stated, getting up and walking past her. Celestia frowned and looked at the floor. Boba was young, and simply wanted to be with Jango as much as possible. For him to leave so suddenly, so often, it hurt him. But she knew they both loved each other, and she cared about him just as much as she did her other sisters.

But for now, he needed time alone. She would make sure he ate something later.

“This is CT-1138, nothing to report, over.”

“Engine room is all clear, out.”

“Escape Pods are all accounted for, nothing further to report.”

How could there be nothing? They had searched most of the ship at this point. What were they missing? Celestia’s brain was in overdrive, trying to think about how this assassin was able to evade them for this long. There was almost nowhere left to go. But who could have snuck aboard the ship? Maybe someone snuck in with the cadets? No, impossible. But… what if… No, she shouldn’t even humor that line of thought. They were cadets, loyal. None of them would even dream of trying to kill a Jedi.

But she couldn’t be too careful. She activated her commlink, but before she could use it, a message was coming through. It wasn’t meant for her, it was going to the bridge. She pressed the button to listen in either way.

“This is CT-1477, I need an escort for a cadet back to his group.” Wait, 1477 was in the Main Reactor. Why was a cadet all the way down there? She didn’t listen in on the rest of the call, as she instead rerouted to a different channel.

“This is Commander Celestia contacting the Youth Brigade, come in.”

“Youth Brigade here, Commander.”

“Crasher, I need a headcount, sound off all the cadets with you.”

“Understood.” The line was silent for a moment before it activated again. She listened carefully for each name. All accounted for, except for Lucky. Celestia thought hard about that cadet. She thought about how silent he was, how reclusive he tried to be, and the look she gave him. Her memories came flooding back to her. She remembered where she saw that look before. Her eyes widened, letting loose the tears she didn’t know she was holding back.

“Boba.”

The ship was rocked violently by another loud explosion. The lights went out and the emergency power kicked in. Celestia fell to the ground, losing her helmet in the process.

“We got breaches on Decks 13B to 17A, all hands evacuate the sector immediately!”

“Emergency Power has kicked in! We are dead in space!”

“Two out of three starboard engines are gone, and I mean gone!”

Her cheeks were stained with tears. How could he do this? Why would he… No, she knew why. She understood why more than anyone in the whole Galaxy. She had to find him, and fast.

“All hands evacuate, repeat, all hands evacuate!”

Celestia ran through the ship, in a vain attempt to search for Boba. she had to find him before he could escape, or get hurt. She almost fell when the ship shook again, another explosion. The ship was falling apart. Her commlink bleeped. On instinct, she opened the line.

“This is Commander Celestia.”

“Commander, Ay need you on the bridge, now. We’re preparing an emergency landin’ on the planet surface.”

“What about the cadets, sir? And the crew?”

“The cadets are away, and most of the crew are in pods. Only volunteers are left.” Celestia released the breath she had been holding. Boba was safe, and she could find him later.

“I’m on my way.” She said, then cut the line. She turned down the hall to make her way back to the bridge.

When she reached the bridge, she saw the Jedi arguing with Kilrain. Ponds was busy evacuating all the non essential crew to the escape pods. She ran up as Kilrain made his final argument.

“... an Admiral must go down with his ship. Ay don’t expect ya tah understand it, Jedi.” That ended the argument. When it came to Kilrain and the Endurance, there was no way of swaying his decision.

“I’m staying with the Admiral, sir.” She spoke up. “I’ll make sure he comes out in one piece.” Windu nodded and walked away, Ponds following close behind. Anakin stopped and placed a hand on her back.

“Keep yourself in one piece too, Commander. Luna would kill me if you died on my watch.”

Celestia smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to tell her the ship crashing wasn’t your fault this time.” Anakin chuckled and ran to join Windu and the others.

She stood alongside Kilrain, who looked at her with a forlong smile. “I’m glad ya decided tah join me, Commander.”

“The Endurance is my home too, Sir. I won’t leave her without a fight.” Kilrain laughed.

“Ay knew I liked you for a reason.”

The ship drew closer and closer to the planet, and soon a wall of heat formed around the bridge.

“Let’s hope we can set her down on the surface and not disintegrate.” Celestia said as sweat poured down her head. The heat was getting inside the bridge. Soon, everyone on board would be cooked.

“Aye, we should be fine. The Endurance is a tough lass.” The ship shook violently again, but Kilrain and Celestia stood firm. They cleared the upper atmosphere and were now sinking below the clouds.

“Brace for impact!” The surface revealed itself, and within moments, their ship collided with it. It screeched across the surface, slowly melting into the earth. The two officers struggled to stay upright as the ship swung and lurched in every direction possible. It continued for what felt like an eternity, then stopped so suddenly. There was a long silence as everyone on the bridge finally had a chance to breathe.

That moment didn’t last. “Alright, let’s get away from the ship. We still have explosives on board and I don’t want to be inside a bomb.” Kilrain nodded in agreement. She watched as the remaining crew slowly but surely made their way down the emergency stairs to the nearest exit. She was about to join them when her ears picked up the sound of an engine. A very familiar sound. She turned to see a ship approaching and it made her tremble in fear.

It was Slave I, her Father’s ship.

Author's Note

And here we go! It's ya boy, Boba! But what's going to happen next?! What will Boba do to Celestia?!

Chapter 16: Hostage

Celestia was awoken by the sound of a door opening. She slowly opened her eyes to look over at Boba’s bedroom. The young boy had finally come out. It had been so long since she had seen him. He refused to talk to her, so she slept by the door in case he needed anything, if he was ready to talk. The look on his face gave her his answer.

She stood up and used a wing to gently nudge the boy toward the kitchen. She had already prepared his favorite meal, it just needed to be heated.

She awoke to the sound of the door opening again. This time, she was not waiting for Boba to come out to talk. The alicorn looked up at his face, it reminded her of the one she saw so long ago. It was sad, begging her to hear him out, and give her comfort. But she could not, for she was bound and gagged by that bounty hunter woman that dragged him along.

Celestia watched as he walked over, knelt down before her, and removed the gag from her mouth. She closed her mouth and moved her jaw around to get feeling in it again, and sucked in a large amount of air.

“This isn’t what I wanted.” He said, checking her over for any other injuries. When he found none, he stood up.

“You don’t have to, you’re not like them, Boba.” She said softly, in the same tone that had reassured him in the past. It didn’t seem to, this time.

“What would you know? I haven’t seen you since the Arena, where you rescued the man that murdered my Father!”

“He was my Father too, Boba. He is the reason I exist, just like you.”

“You are not like me!” He shouted, getting in her face. “I’m not a soldier, I’m not a normal clone, not like him!” Ponds grunted when a small finger was pointed at him. Celestia was about to speak again when the door opened and Aurra Sing entered the room.

“Boba.” She said, in a sort of caring voice. “What’s going on?” It made Celestia glare. She could hear the false sympathy, she heard it a thousand times from people who had said they cared about the clones, and the suffering they had to endure. Those same people are the ones that vote to keep the war going, rather than end it.

Boba quickly gagged Celestia and stepped away from the prisoners. “Nothing.” He snapped, not even looking at the bounty hunter. But he did turn around to ask her an important question.

“What’re you gonna do with them?” Aurra looked at him, then the three hostages bound before her. Admiral Kilrain, Commander Ponds, and Commander Celestia. Three very important Republic officers that the Jedi would do anything to save. She knelt down before Celestia and traced the alicorn’s face with a finger.

“I think these three are about to be of some use to us.” In an instant, her smooth finger turned into a clawed hand that scratched the side of Celestia’s face. It was followed by several hard punches to her jaw and kicks to her stomach. The alicorn refused to scream, but every hit was followed by a painful grunt. Boba could only watch helplessly as she was beaten senseless by the bounty hunter.

The two ate in silence, sitting across from each other. Celestia’s eyes never fell from Boba as he ate his favorite meal. There was one vacant seat, the one reserved for their Father, Jango Fett. Celestia bit her tongue to prevent herself from saying anything. She knew Boba could never deal with his feelings, choosing to lash out rather than discuss it. He was much like his father, and many of her brothers in that regard. Luna seemed to pick up that attitude as well, now that she thought about it.

“Did he have to go?” He was speaking. Good, that’s step one.

“He did, it was another important job.”

“It’s always important, but when am I going to be important?!” He slammed a fist on the table, but the alicorn did not flinch. Her resolve was as steel as her gaze.

“Boba, you must understand, Father is a bounty hunter. His job is to take jobs and complete them.”

“So like a soldier?” Celestia shook her head.

“A soldier follows orders without question, without hesitation, and without expectation of reward. Bounty hunters follow their own code, one where they demand reward and are able to refuse should their safety or honor be compromised.” It was drilled into her by the Training Instructors, time after time. Like many other things.

“Is that why you watch me, because it’s an order?” The alicorn blinked, then started to laugh. Boba watched in confusion as she did so.

“Boba, I don’t need to be ordered. You’re my brother, just as Luna and Cadence are my sisters. I care about you, and that can never change.”

Boba wondered if that statement was still true as he held a blaster in his hand, with the three hostages kneeling before him. It was a message for Windu and the Jedi. Aurra Sing’s idea.

“Mace Windu.” He wondered if his voice was shaking as much as his hand was. “You were lucky to escape.” He aimed at Ponds, who didn’t so much as flinch as the blaster was pointed at his head. “Your friends here were not so fortunate.”

“Until you face Boba, these men will be killed.” Aurra added, kicking Ponds for good measure. “One at a time.” She looked down at the clone. “What’s your name?” The clone said nothing. So she kicked him again. “Name!”

“CT-411.” He growled, raising his head to meet the barrel of the blaster.

Aurra scoffed. “Pathetic, Boba, do it.” She watched as the boy’s hand shook. Her eyes narrowed as he did nothing but stand there and shake. “Boba.” She said loudly. Still nothing. That little brat! Boba lowered his pistol. Aurra Sing would not be made a fool. She aimed her blaster and fired. The bolt went straight through the clone’s head, hitting the floor below him. His corpse dropped as Celestia cried out from within the gag. A smack to the back of the head silenced her.

“Only two to go, Windu. Come and find us, we’ll be waiting.” With that, the message was sent. No doubt Windu would come after them now.

Celestia watched in horror as Pond’s body was dumped out of the airlock into the void of space. Her brother in the 187th deserved a better death than this. He was a soldier, and she would remember him as such.

She had no time to mourn as Boba was suddenly shoved against the wall by Aurra. Her instincts made her jump up, but her bonds ensured she wouldn’t move.

“Next time I tell you to pull the trigger, you do it!” After that, she let him go. He clutched his shoulder in pain as he watched her head into the cockpit. Boba’s eyes widened when he saw Celestia try to move over to him. Her look was pleading, begging him to be okay.

She did still care. He said nothing as he left them alone and followed Aurra out of the hold. Celestia watched him go until the door closed.

Celestia closed the door behind her, thankful for the quiet hiss rather than the usual loud click that the door usually made. She had just placed a sleeping Boba Fett in the bed. He had finally let it all out, passing out in her hooves. The alicorn now sat in the common room and brushed up on her studies. It was almost time for her final exam, one where she would lead a small group of men in a simulation. If the mission was successful, she would become a Commander, and then placed in charge of an entire battalion of troops. Her excitement was quelled only by her concern for Boba. The young boy needed a father in his life, and they both knew it. She would just have to make sure Jango knew that as well.

“Ssssk Get up.” Celestia opened her eyes to see the Trandoshian Bounty Hunter standing above her. He already had Kilrain on his feet. No doubt the Generals were her for an exchange, or worse. He was going to kill them. Knowing Windu, she was probably going to be executed in a few minutes. She stood up, with some “help” from the hunter. He marched them out of Slave I, and had them kneel down in front of him.

The alicorn looked around to take in her new surroundings. It was barren, in a canyon. No defining features that could give away where she was. There were dozens of desert planets in the Galaxy. All the same no matter where you could go. So she really was stuck here til death or exchange. Perfect.

The Trandoshian checked his communicator, which buzzed with white noise, meaning whoever he was trying to contact was no longer transmitting. “Aurra? Aurra!” He hissed as he put away his communicator and readied his blaster.

“Bad news, boy and girl.” He licked his lips. “If I don’t hear from Aurra soon, I’m gone, and you’re both fried. Hssssk.” Celestia glared at the bounty hunter with enough rage to boil him alive. She had to get herself free, but how?

She looked around, taking note of everything in her surroundings. The quality of the ground, the temperature, and the yellow hue of the sunset. Wait. She flared her horn, activating the magic. She watched the bounty hunter look at her with no change in expression. He couldn’t see it. With as much subtly as she could. Her thoughts concentrated on the ropes, specifically the knots that held them together. She slowly began to move them, making as little noise as possible as the hunter continued to try and contact Aurra Sing.

She left him. How could she do that? Boba watched helplessly as Aurra abandoned him in favor of escaping. Now he was left at the mercy of the Jedi. He kept demanding to know where the hostages were. He didn’t say a word. Why would he help them? He was all alone, now. Nobody cared about him.

He was brought outside to see Hondo, one of his father’s old friends. “The boy refuses to tell me where the hostages are.” The Jedi explained. “I was hoping you would talk some sense into him.”

Hondo knelt before the boy and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Boba.” He said in a caring voice. Not like Aurra’s, but Tia’s. The one that told him everything would be okay. That she would be there for him. “Tell the Jedi what he wants to know.” It wasn’t an order. Not like Aurra. She would make him do things, like one of her own little soldiers.

“It is not what your father would want. He believed in honor, as should you.” Hondo explained, making the distraught boy look at him. Honor, that was what Celestia had told him about. Bounty Hunters should have Honor. His Father was honorable, he had heard that from everyone time and time again.

It was time to be like his father.

Celestia felt the ropes loosen. She could move again. So long as she could move, she could fight. Now she just had to wait for the proper moment.

“Time’s up.” The hunter raised his blaster and prepared to fire. Celestia prepared a shield when the sound of a speeder echoed from the canyon. All eyes turned to the entrance, where a lone speeder bike appeared.

Celestia’s eyes widened in joy. It was Ahsoka, General Skywalker’s padawan. The bike’s blasters opened fire, forcing the Trandoshian to dodge. Celestia used the opportunity to jump up from her bindings and tackle him. He kicked her off and reached for his blaster. She grabbed it first and aimed at his head.

“Don’t move.” Ahsoka jumped from the speeder and cut open Kilrain’s binds. He stood next to the alicorn and glared at the bounty hunter.

The sound of a second speeder caught their attention. Celestia turned to see Aurra Sing come flying in on a speeder. She jumped clear at the last second, landing a few feet away. The bike slammed into Ahsoka’s and caused a massive explosion that sent everyone to the ground. Aurra ran right into Slave I and activated the engines.

The ship began to take off. Ahsoka jumped onto the wing, almost falling off when the ship dipped to the side. Celestia raised the blaster and fired several shots at the cockpit. The glass did not shatter or even break, but it still caused the huntress to flinch. This gave the padawan a chance to recover and cut the hydraulics that kept the wing attached.

Celestia did not relent. She continued to fire, increasing the power of each shot. She was going to kill that bitch The one who thought she could control Boba and turn him into a monster. No one touched her brother and escaped with their skin. She held down the trigger as the glass shattered into pieces. Slave I spun out of control, falling to the earth, and crashing just beyond the horizon. The large explosion that followed guaranteed Aurra Sing’s death.

For the first time in hours, Celestia could breathe. It was over. Now, she just had one more thing to take care of.

It was night on Kamino when Jango finally came home. He tiptoed into the common room, hoping not to awaken his son. What he didn’t account for was the alicorn who was still wide awake and sitting before him with her hooves crossed.

“So, another job complete.” Jango raised an eyebrow, he never expected Celestia to take such a dark tone with him. But that raised brow fell down with its twin upon the realization of what was bothering her.

“I know, it was last minute and I’m sorry-”

“That’s not the issue.” She snapped, then stood up and marched into his face. “This is the fifth time this month, Jango.” The bounty hunter flinched. Celestia never used his name unless she was extremely angry, which was not something he had encountered before.

“Boba needs you in his life. I had to hold him as he sobbed, each tear falling in the hopes it would bring you home! He did this until he finally passed out!” Celestia knocked his helmet away and marched toward him as he kept trying to move back.

“I will not let this happen again.” The alicorn’s eyes glowed with a bright yellow hue as her magic and wings flared. “I will not stand by and let my brother suffer because you can’t say no to bounty hunting. You don’t need to do jobs all the time, but Boba needs his father here and now!” Jango stood in silence as the light from her eyes dimmed and her wings folded against her sides. She took a deep breath and walked past him.

“I’m going to bed, and if I’m asked to watch Boba again within the next two weeks, your ship is going to be at the bottom of the ocean, do I make myself clear?” Jango nodded, giving her the answer she was looking for. Without another word, she stepped out and marched back to her barracks, leaving a stunned Jango Fett in his room.

Celestia walked alongside Boba as he was escorted to the Republic Prison on Coruscant. She hated the idea of Boba being forced to spend the rest of life with hundreds of other criminals and traitors. But it was out of her hooves. She placed a comforting wing around him, like she did when they were younger, and he melted right into it. The sibling moment ended when General Windu stepped forward

He knelt down in front of Boba, who bowed his head in shame. “I see now, I have done terrible things.” His head shot up with a glare. “But you started it when you murdered my father!” Windu didn’t flinch, nor did Celestia. He wasn’t going to fight, that was over.

“I’ll never forgive you.” Boba growled. Windu stood up and looked down at the boy.

“Well, you’re going to have to.” Celestia’s eyes widened at the cold statement given by her General. They then narrowed into a glare. How dare he?

Windu watched as Boba was taken away by Republic Guards, followed by Master Skywalker, Master Plo Koon, and Padawan Tano. Now it was just him and Celestia.

“How dare you?” He turned to see Celestia glaring at him with the burning hatred of a sun. “How dare you say such a thing to him?!” Her wings flared up, forcing the normally stoic Jedi to take a step back.

“He is a little boy who watched a ‘Keeper of the Peace’ cut off his Father’s head- My Father’s head!” She took a single step toward him, stomping hard on the metal floor. “He is just as much a victim of this war as anyone else, alone except for me in this Galaxy, and you tell him that he has to forgive you?!” She gave an empty laugh. “Typical Jedi, and people say us clones are the heartless ones.” With a brisk turn, she began to leave, ending with a single thought. “And here I thought the Jedi were supposed to be better.”

Windu glared at the alicorn as she walked away. He didn’t say a word, he knew better than to argue with her when she was angry, on the rare occasion she was. She did not understand, her emotions cloud her judgement. That boy had killed hundreds of brave and loyal troopers, and because he wanted to kill him. The first step to becoming a better person was to forgive and if Boba wanted to be better than his father, was going to have to.

With his resolve held firm, the Jedi made his way back to the shuttle to the Jedi Temple. He still had a war to fight.

Author's Note

Well, that was an ending. Even I didn't fully expect that, but hey, I'm glad with how it came out.

Seriously, F*** Mace Windu in this episode. I would never forgive him for killing My Father, nor should he expect it!

What did you think of Mace Windu in that moment?

Let me know in the comments.

And Thank You for Reading.

Chapter 17: Defense of Kamino

Cadence had thought about returning home for a long while. She wanted to visit and see how the new cadets were coming along, see old friends in Maintenance, and talk to her creator, Ya Pe. The alicorn had gotten her wish, but not for the reason she hoped.

Pops had come running into her quarters, informing her of the Generals’ discovery: General Grievous was planning an attack on Kamino. Anger burned in her chest at the thought of the cowardly general even thinking of an attack on her home, and the rest of the clones in the 501st and 212th felt the same. She was sure Luna was a raging mess when she heard the news.

The sun was shining for once on the planet, as if welcoming her defenders with open arms. She marched in front of her company down the ramp onto the platform leading into the main hangar. Troopers from the PDF stood at attention to greet them. From the corner of her visor, Cadence could see General Kenobi and General Skywalker talking to General Shaak Ti, the Jedi in charge of training on Kamino.

Cadence never knew the Jedi personally, but the troopers that were trained in her care spoke volumes of her generosity and kindness. Perhaps if she was given the chance, she could thank the general herself.

But that would have to wait, as she had a home to defend.

Luna stood among the other captains in the briefing room. Commander Appo was going over the strategy the defenders would take.

It was a textbook defensive strategy. They would set up defenses along key intersections and force the droids into a killing zone. The facility designs would cripple any number advantage the droids might have. She stared at the layout of Topica City. Her home, the city from which all her brothers were created. The captain remembered the days when she would play in these halls as a child with her sisters.

The young Luna ran down the hall with a large grin on her face. It was her day off and she planned on enjoying it with her sisters. A few Kaminoan scientists stared at her as she passed. Not once did she ever see one with a smile. But who cares, she was going to see Tia and Cady.

The alicorn turned a corner and smacked head first into another being. They both fell to the ground, the later dropping the blasters he was holding in his scrawny arms. Luna shook her head to clear the headache and looked at her obstacle. It was a clone, she thought it was. He had a face similar to her brothers. His body, however, was a whole other story.

The clone had a large hunchback, scrawny arms, and skinny legs. He was bald and his skin seemed to be shriveled up like a raisin. It was CT-099. The defective clone she heard about from her brothers.

He blinked for a second before looking at the filly who knocked him over.

“Oh, ello there.” He said, his voice sounding just like her brothers, yet softer. “And who might you be?”

“Umm, PL-025, but everyone calls me Luna.” she said, standing up.

99 perked up. “Oh, so you’re the ‘special clone’ I’ve been hearing so much about.” Luna shrugged. It could’ve been her, or it could’ve been her sisters. Her eyes fell upon the DC-15 rifles that littered the floor.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” She exclaimed, activating her horn. “Here, let me-”

“Don’t worry about it, Luna.” 99 said with a smile. “I got it.” He stood up and bent over to grab the blasters. “Now, you better get going. The way you were running, you must be in a hurry.” His smile never faltered. Not once did his voice drip with malice or sarcasm. He truly was the gentle defect that the others told stories about. The alicorn nodded in thanks and ran off, excited to tell her sisters about her meeting with the famous Clone 99.

She was walking down that same hall, only now it was barren. Most of the Kaminoans were evacuated to a nearby shelter, despite their belief that the Defense Fleet was too large for any Separatist attack to break through. Only the most necessary workers remained to keep the facility going. After all, they still needed fresh troops to be trained up.

Luna watched as a squad of cadets marched past her on the way to target practice. The looks they gave her made her laugh. Guess some stories about her circulated all the way back to the cadet corps. She could only imagine what they were told.

The lights dimmed and were replaced with a dark red. Alarms blared, and the hall suddenly became more active as clone troopers ran in the direction of the armory. The squad of cadets were led by their instructor to the barracks and Luna ran toward the armory to grab her equipment. She placed her helmet on and activated her comms.

The net was live with warnings from officers about the droid fleet above the planet. It was time. The battle of Kamino had begun.

Cadence organized her company within the hangar. General Kenobi ordered all units to be placed on full alert. So far, no landing craft made it through the blockade, but when it came to Grevious, anything could happen.

She watched as Commander Havoc, of the elite Rancor Battalion, organized whatever troopers he could find to defend the city. He called over some men from the 501st and assigned them to the picket positions to act as snipers. They were needed to hold back the droids long enough for other units to arrive, if any were available. Some of her men were placed in picket position, while the rest prepared to defend the hangar.

A loud splash drew all eyes to the outside world, where a trident-class assault ship appeared from below. A second one followed, and the crash from above announced the presence of the third.

“Close the doors!” The large doors began to close just as the assault ships climbed up onto the platform. All guns were raised as the troopers prepared to defend their home.

The doors proved a futile effort as the first ship rammed right through one door and the second used its tentacles to force the other open. All blasters opened up, targeting the closed hatches of the ships. Cadence’s eyes widened when the tentacles swept through the lines of troopers, sweeping them aside and crushing most. She jumped clear as the mechanical tentacle wiped out her position. As soon as she landed, the doors opened and aqua droids were deployed.

She fired her carbine into the forming rows of droids, knocking out several. But those were easily replaced as more were deployed. The aqua droids returned fire, taking down several troopers.

“Hold the line!” She called out. A trooper to her left goes down from a round to the shoulder. Stitch immediately gets to work and drags the wounded clone away to be patched up.

Micro ducked as a bolt almost nailed him in the face. He fired back and ended the droid that dared try to kill him. He sent several more shots into the ever growing mass of battle droids.

The roof suddenly exploded as the third assault ship drilled through and deployed its cargo into the hangar. Micro raised his rifle to try and destroy what he could, but more droids dropped from the ceiling than he could count. More of his brothers went down from the intense fire they were receiving. One of his squadmates is hit in the head, going down immediately.

“Kill them all!” Comes a raspy mechanical voice from within the mass of aqua droids. Micro felt a shiver go down his spine as he saw the owner of that voice. General Grievous. The droids began their march forward as more clones fell. Micro ran back to the rear, knowing that he stood no chance against the infamous Jedi killer. His knee suddenly gave out as a bolt went through. He falls to the ground with a groan. The trooper reaches out to begin crawling when a heavy foot slams into his back.

Micro cries out in pain as the foot slowly lowers itself. He could hear his bones breaking from the sheer weight. Above him, General Grievous laughs.

“Your pain is music to my audio receptors.” With a final sickening crunch, Micro could no longer feel any pain in his legs, but the rest of his body cried out in agony. The droid general flung the crippled trooper to the side and continued on his path, leaving his army to finish off the remaining clones.

Micro crashed into a pile of crates, losing his helmet in the process. He tried to stay awake, but the amount of trauma his body had suffered proved too much. His world darkened.

Cadence helped drag Havoc’s dead body away from the fighting. The last remaining troopers of the 212th held their ground, forming a line in front of the hall leading into the main hallway. She looked around at all the corpses of Kamino’s defenders. Their bodies were still as the droids marched over them like discarded trash. If her troopers kept up this defense, the hangar would become their deathbed.

“Fall back, second platoon, cover the retreat. Medics, grab what wounded you can and move back into the barracks!”

She stood tall and fired into the advancing droid lines. She needed to buy time for her company to escape. The second line of defense should be ready when they see the retreating troops. This fight was far from over.

Luna fired at the droids as they advanced down the hall. The floor was littered with clone corpses and droid scrap. The walls were blackened with burns from the onslaught of blaster fire. The alicorn turned as another trooper fell. Her platoon sized element was reduced to only two squads worth of men.

Her company had been scattered when the assault ships crashed through the walls and roof of the facility, forcing them to defend their isolated positions, and separating them from their objective: the Archive Room. The alicorn ducked down as a B2’s grenade exploded behind her. A trooper flew above her and slammed into the ground, his armor charred and splintered. She fired and destroyed the Super before dragging the clone back behind cover. He groaned in pain, which gave Luna some relief that he was alive. She turned back to fire her blaster again, taking down large numbers of droids. But more kept on coming.

Behind her, Trigg threw a thermal detonator into the squad of droids coming down another hallway. The explosion engulfed the aqua droids and damaged the walls, blackening the once pristine white walls. The clone raised his blaster and fired into what was left of the unit. His squad followed suit, quickly destroying the rest. Just as the last droid fell, another, much larger unit appeared in the entryway. Trigg hears the cry of one of his brothers as he was hit, then another, and another.

He turned to see he had only four of his nine troopers left standing. “Fall back!” He ordered, firing into the entryway to cover their retreat. One of his men grabbed a wounded comrade and helped him back. Trigg held down the trigger, the constant fire heating up his blaster. He slowly backed up, keeping his front toward the enemy. After several seconds of firing, his rifle had enough and shut down, smoke emanating from the barrel with a hiss.

“Kriff!” The sergeant turned and ran for cover behind a crate. The droids returned fire, pinning him down. “This is not my day.” he muttered, flinching as a bolt hit a little too close for comfort.

Luna watched as the wounded clone was carried back by Radar, praying for his safety. The droids were piling into the hall, their constant fire overwhelming what was left of her men. With a frustrated groan, she gave the order.

“Fall back! Rally at the Landing Pads!” She raised a shield between her and the droids. The alicorn could feel each hit as it slammed into the wall of energy. It was a strain, but she would hold until the last of her men cleared the room. She watched as Trigg made his way through the door and turned with his new rifle raised. With a grunt, she lowered the shield and ran for the door. Trigg fired over her head to provide cover, knocking out droids as best he could.

Luna ran with her head low to make herself as small of a target as possible. In a last ditch effort, she dove through the door. Trigg slammed on the lock and blasted the panel, sealing the door shut. “That oughta hold ‘em for a few minutes.” He said as he helped Luna to her hooves.

She took some time to catch her breath, then spoke. “Time to set up a proper defense. I just hope some of the others made it into the Archive Room before it’s too late.”

Osprey closed the door that led into the Archives Room. So far, only a handful of troopers managed to reach the area before the Assault Ships cut them off. He looked around at the clones who were with him. There were some familiar faces, like Dek. But the rest of them were shinies, replacements for the men he lost just a week ago. Now he was going to lose more. But this was in the defense of their home. This time, it was truly a planet worth dying for.

Blaster fire suddenly drew everyone’s attention to the door leading into the main hall. It was light, meaning it was a small firefight. Each trooper readied a blaster as the sounds of combat slowly died down.

Dek swore he could hear something among the blasters, a swishing of energy and the screams of troopers. His heart raced as it was a sound he heard before. He raised his blaster and wrapped his finger tightly around the trigger.

The sounds died down until only one blaster was firing. In an instant it stopped with a blood curdling cry. Dead silence followed. All eyes and blasters were on the large doors. The troopers waited for any sign that they would open.

Two red lights pierced through the coor and began spinning clockwise at high speeds. Dek began to pray as memories returned. Memories of a monastery and the dead clones with missing limbs. The lights spun around until there was a bright orange circle in the middle of the door. The melted metal hissed from the heat. The piece of the door was suddenly shoved forward, slamming into two troopers unfortunate enough to be in its path. Every remaining gun was unleashed upon the newly formed hole, disappearing into the smoke.

Osprey watched as nothing happened within the smoke. They were wasting ammunition. He silently signalled the men to cease fire. The silence returned.

Dek could hear his breathing and his visor fogged up. But his blaster remained firmly trained on the entrance.

A red lightsaber flew through the hole and sliced through a trooper’s neck. “Open fire!” The clones opened up once more. The assassin from Teth jumped through and used the Force to retrieve her saber, blocking the bolts with her secondary. Once both sabers were in hand, she went on the offensive. She launched herself onto a clone, knocking him to the ground. Another clone was forced against the wall and knocked unconscious. Osprey fired at her, but his shots were easily avoided. With the first swing, she sliced his blaster in half. On the second swing, his torso was split open. The trooper fell to the ground with a loud thud. It burned, more than he could imagine. Osprey struggled to move. His lungs desperately gasping for air.

Dek fired rapidly in a vain attempt to land a shot, but the sith assassin was too quick. One by one, she either knocked out or killed the troopers until he was the only one left.

He slowly backed away as he kept firing. The woman simply kept pace while blocking each bolt with a swing of her saber. After a few seconds, she put one saber away and raised her hand toward him. The hand closed into a fist and Dek felt his windpipe close without warning. His instincts took over and he dropped his blaster in favor of desperately clawing at the invisible force around his neck. He was slowly raised into the air. The woman raised her lightsaber toward him and pulled back.

Dek was dragged through the saber, the light impaling his chest. In an instant, she dropped his corpse and flung it against the wall.

Ventress smirked at the pitiful clones; clearly, they were no match for her superior abilities. Now all she needed were the two sets of DNA. One of Jango Fett, the other of the mysterious Alicorn, Captain Luna.

Cadence watched her troopers push the droids back. It seemed the droids were not as prepared for this invasion as they hoped, as their numbers were not efficient enough to take the city. She was expecting hope to fill her up with energy and drive her forward. But all she felt was dread in her but. Something was wrong and she knew it. Separatists do not make this kind of mistake. They never bring too few battle droids, numbers were always their biggest advantage. So what was different about Kamino? If Grievous was not after the city itself, he had another objective in mind.

And there was only one thing the murderous cyborg could want. With fear in her eyes, she activated her commlink.

"General Kenobi! Grievous is after the Fett DNA!"

"I say again, Grievous is after the DNA!" Luna's eyes widened. Osprey's squad was in the DNA room. If the Droid General got there before she could reinforce, they will be slaughtered!

She turned to Knave. "I need a heavy weapon squad with me, now!"

Ventress tossed the dead clones aside before entering the Data Chamber. In the center of the chamber was a large tower with rows upon rows of DNA samples. Only two were required and thanks to her master's assets, she knew where to find them. All it took was an access code and the Mango Fett DNA was her's. The same was said for the Alicorn DNA.

The Sith Assassin had already acquired the files and simply needed to escape.

The activation of a lightsaber and the presence of the Force complicated things. Behind her stood Anakin Skywalker, his lightsaber held in a defensive posture.

"I was beginning to think my presence had gone unnoticed." Ventress said smugly. It hid her fear well. Her mind would always flashback to their first encounter on Yavin IV. The anger, the rage, the strength. It made her feel weak and helpless in comparison. Something a true Sith must never be.

"You weren't planning on leaving without saying goodbye now, were you?" Was he trying to hide his fear? She could not sense it. Perhaps he never truly feared her. Maybe, in his eyes, she was simply an annoyance.

Well, she would make this Jedi fear her. Ventress attached the two samples to her belt and grabbed her lightsabers. Her goal was to escape. But maybe she could end Skywalker's life along the way.

Trigg helped a wounded trooper get to cover behind a stack of crates. His men were out in the open on one of the landing platforms. A platoon of aqua droids slowly marched toward them while firing their blasters. The clones returned it in kind.

The clone sergeant drags his comrade over to Radar, who was helping another trooper with a shoulder wound. The clone grunted in pain as he administered the bacta. “Easy, this should stem the pain until we get you to the aid station-”

“No! I can still fight.” The trooper grabbed his helmet and placed it back on his head.

“Lieutenant Warren, as the platoon’s medic I highly advise-”

“This is our home, Radar. Every clone is going to fight today. I will not be the exception.” The Lieutenant grabbed a pistol from his holster and stood up. It was a painful endeavour, but he was able to stand tall and look toward the enemy. He turned to face the medic, who had begun work on Trigg’s comrade.

Radar rolled his eyes under the helmet. “Fine, but put it on record that I thought this was completely idiotic.” Warren smiled under his helmet.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” On that note, the clone officer marched out and took aim. “For Kamino!” He fired a volley into the droid ranks, hitting one in the arm and another in the head. The rest of the platoon increased their veracity, and soon the entire droid unit was scrapped on the ground. Warren grinned at the result.

“Alright men, let’s drive these clankers back!” The clones charged forward, just as more droids appeared from the facility.

Luna ran through the torched halls toward the DNA Room. Dead clones littered the floor, all of them missing limbs and twisted in sickening angles. All of them were members of her company. Brothers she had sworn to protect. Soldiers who deserved better fates than this. Behind her was Sergeant Coyote’s Heavy Weapons Squad. Each of them carried the big guns of the Republic Military, from the Z-6 Rotary Cannon to the Cip-Quad AutoCannon. If Grievous was going to take the DNA, then he was going to have to get past a large wall of high energy plasma to do it.

She ran down the halls until she reached a door with a large hole in the middle. Through that hole, she could see a squad of clones utterly ripped apart. She could smell the burning flesh, even through the filters in her helmet. Her stomach churned as she cautiously stepped through the entrance and walked among the dead.

A gasp of air made her head swivel around. On the ground near the door to the Archives was Osprey. His chest was scorching, his armor chipped and blackened. He struggled to breathe as she ran over.

“Osprey!” She placed a comforting hoof behind his head. He coughed as he struggled to speak.

“C-Captain, I… I’m sorry. I…”

“Save your strength, Osprey. It’ll be okay.”

“Ma’am… Ventress- *cough* has… the DNA. The General- *wheeze* w-went after her.” His arm shook violently as he pointed further down the hall. “T-t-that way.” He gave one last gasp and his arm went limp. His head laid back and his eyes closed.

“Osprey.” She whispered. “Please. It’ll be okay, just st-stay with me.” Coyote and his brothers removed their helmets and bowed their heads in respect. “Please. Please.”

Cadence shoved the droid to the ground and fired over a dozen bolts into its chest. Once it was reduced to a smoking wreck, she looked up and saw the 212th charging forward.

They were doing it. The droids had overstretched themselves and were now being overwhelmed by the Republic Forces. She couldn’t help but laugh at the irony. The droids being overwhelmed by superior numbers.

Shaak Ti stood next to her and smiled. “It is almost over.”

Cadence tried to reply, but something nagged at her mind.

Jedi… Kill…

The alicorn held her head to silence the voice.

“Captain?” Cadence blinked and looked at the Jedi General. The expression on her face reminded Cadence of something. It made her feel loved and comforted.

“I-I’m fine, ma’am. Just… a little tired.” Shaak Ti nodded.

“I understand, it has been a long day. But it is not over yet, I’m afraid.” Cadence nodded and readied her blaster. Shaak Ti activated her lightsaber and the two ran forward to join the others.

Ventress stared at the army of clones surrounding her, Skywalker standing among them with a victorious grin on his face. In the hands of one clone was the Fett DNA.

“I suppose you expect me to surrender.” The Sith Assassin mocked. She felt anger surge through them all. These were clones of the 501st, Skywalker’s personal army. She has killed hundreds of them at this point in the war. They had no intention of taking her alive.

“Actually, I was planning on having the clones execute you. Right now.” Ventress’ gaze shifted to her wrist comm. It beeped to signal her escape. In the distance, she could see a kaminoan ship flying toward her. She could sense General Grievous on board.

“Not this time.” With a massive Force Push, she shoved them all to the ground and jumped. She landed inside the open hatch of the ship. She sat down and said nothing as Grievous steered the ship toward what remained of their fleet.

The Sith grabbed the DNA container from her belt. The one that she had hidden in her clothing. She may have failed to get the Fett DNA, but she had succeeded in acquiring the Sample her Master truly wanted: Captain Luna.

Luna stood in front of what remained of her company. They stood at attention with their rifles shouldered. In front of them all were coffins, filled with the bodies of their fallen brothers. Osprey and Dek among them. Luna had her helmet removed. Her pain was hidden behind a steel gaze. The Battle of Kamino was a major victory for the Republic. But it came at a terrible cost.

“Company!” She shouted. “Present, Arms!” The troops lifted their rifles and held them in front of their bodies, holding them up like flagpoles.

“Today, we honor those who have given their lives to protect more than just the ideals of the Republic. They gave their lives in the defense of our home, our planet, our brothers who have yet to see the harsh realities of war.

Today, this became more than just a war for the Republic. It is now a war for our survival. A war that we, the Clone Troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic, will win. Their sacrifices will not be in vain. We will not vanish from the Galaxy. Our Legacy will be assured because of the sacrifice these men made.”

She placed a hoof on Osprey’s coffin.

“These men were my friends, my vod. Soldiers that I swore to lead and protect. I failed them, but I will not fail with you.” She turned to her men. “This I swear, as a Captain and as a Sister.” The silence was deafening. Nothing was said as the coffins were lowered. Not a sound was made as the flags were gently lifted up. Not one soldier moved from their position as the bodies of their brothers were lowered into the calm ocean below.

Not a word.

Cadence tossed and turned in her bed, her eyes shut tightly. “No… I can’t…”

The pink alicorn stared coldly at the prone form of Obi-Wan Kenobi on the ground. He reached out to grab his lightsaber, but a clone’s boot stood in his way. Cadence looked around. The Jedi Temple was burning, with the bodies of Jedi and Clones mixed together in an infinite sea of carnage. She raised her rifle. Kenobi looked at her, pleading. She snorted and fired. Her brothers joined in, firing in a pattern that littered the Jedi general’s body. He screamed in agony as his body withered away into ash.

Cadence did not stop firing. Not as the Jedi’s body disappeared, not as her brothers moved on to slaughter more, and not as Luna and Celestia stood behind her and executed their own Jedi Generals.

All the while. The same voice, her voice, repeated: “Good Soldiers Follow Orders.”

“... Orders…” Cadence muttered. “Good. Soldiers. Follow. Orders.”

Author's Note

I was originally going to release this as part one of the finale, but I decided to release it early as a little something.

However, the final chapter for Part 2 will be released on July 31st, as scheduled.

Let me know how excited you guys are for the finale in the comments down below.

and I'll leave you guys with a question: Why would Dooku need Luna's DNA?

Chapter 18: Mimban Killing Grounds

Author's Note

Before we begin this chapter. I just want to thank everybody for taking the time out to read this work of fiction, dedicating time that could be spent reading much better fics than this.

And also to those who have created Original Clones to be inserted into this story. This has been just as much your journey as it is mine. I raise a glass to Alicorns: The Clone Wars. A project that is over 1 year and 1/2 old. And also to another 1 and 1/2 as we have now reached the halfway point.

This is General Jo, a proud Brony and Star Wars Fan, who is forever thankful to the people who read my story, and to those who have yet to begin their journey through the Clone Wars.

Without further ado, let us begin...

Chapter 18: Mimban Killing Grounds

If Celestia could describe the most foul, disgusting, wretched cesspool, she would be describing a paradise in comparison to Mimban. This mud filled swamp world was her new home for the time being, as the Separatists have made headway in their campaign.

The 187th was sent to the planet to help hold the line as the 224th “Mud Jumpers” were severely understrength. The line has been stalemated since the invasion began, nearly one whole Galactic Cycle ago, just weeks after the First Battle of Geonosis. The 224th were specialized in this kind of warfare, but were not prepared for such a long battle. Their numbers dwindled and most of their officers were dead within weeks of the campaign.

For three grueling weeks, the 187th has had to slug it out, fighting both droids and nature. The near constant rain made the ground mushy and hard to step in. She had already lost several men when they sank into the mud. Tanks would get bogged down on the “roads” between cities, leaving them open to ambush. If Celestia’s unit would ever be transferred off of this slimeball, it would be the greatest gift the Jedi Council could give her.

She sat in the Command AT-TE with the rest of the officers, going over a plan of attack. One of the largest cities on Mimban, a large mining settlement in the Western Hemisphere, was one of the last Separatists in the sector, and it served as their main landing stage for the planet.

General Windu ordered her to take the settlement and secure the surrounding area to prevent reinforcements from arriving. It was going to be a challenge. Normally, she would rely on the native Mimbanese scouts to give her the intelligence, but none have returned. Which meant she was now going to have to rely on her ARF companies.

It was beyond risky, it was a suicide mission. But she could not form a better plan, beyond a full frontal assault, without intelligence. She turned her head to face the trooper that had just entered. It was Sergeant Blindside, leader of her ARF troopers. He stood with his helmet in his hands and saluted. She gave a quick salute back, giving him the chance to stand at ease.

“Alright Sergeant, here is the situation.” she activated the holomap of the city and began her briefing.

“Our native scouts have yet to report back on the enemy strength of this settlement. We have no intel on their numbers, their positions, or their defensive capabilities. As you know, I will not charge blindly into enemy guns. We are supposed to be smarter than our enemy, not dumber. I want your squads to scout the outskirts and give me a rough idea of what we can expect when we begin our assault.”

She sighed. “Normally, I would wait before making any moves, but General Windu has given us a time limit. We must take this settlement within three days. We’re still a day’s march from the settlement as this muck is slowing our progress even more. You’ll take the speeder bikes and provide information as you receive it. Am I understood?”

Blindside nodded. “Very well, dismissed. You leave in 30.” The ARF trooper saluted, placed his helmet back on his head, and stepped out. Celestia could feel the gazes of her officers on her. The pest few months have been hard on her men. General Windu has been pushing them hard, far greater than they were used to. The 187th has hardly had any rest since the incident with Boba Fett. Celestia hasn’t even had the chance to contact her sisters and see how they were doing.

The last thing she had heard was from Luna. She spoke of the worry she had for their youngest. Her nightmares were getting worse, and she seemed to be more distant from everyone, especially General Kenobi. Once the Seppies were driven from Mimban, Celestia was making a personal call to get some answers from Cadence.

Ronan groaned as his boot hand sunken into the mud. For the fifth time this week. He quickly pulled it out and sat on his speeder bike. The AT-TEs and AT-OTs stomped past him. He hated riding around in the rain while the regulars got to stay nice and dry. He sighed. Tis the life of an ARF Trooper. The scout trooper ceased his inner grumbling when his commanding officer approached. The rest of the squad did the same as Blindside approached. The sergeant simply marched to his speeder and sat down.

“Alright, this is going to be brief. We’re scouting out a local settlement that the droids are using for a landing zone to supply their operation. General wants this done in three days, so-”

“So Celestia obliged?” Sneaks interrupted, earning a glare from Blindside.

“She followed orders, which is what you’re all going to do, understood?”

“Yes, sir.” Every trooper in the ARF Platoon knew how Blindside felt about soldiers who questioned orders. More than enough of them were transferred out when they questioned their assignments. Sneaks was very lucky to be on a timed mission, or the sergeant would have gladly taken the time out to chew him out.

“Good, so we go in, scout of their defenses and report back before they begin the assault.” He got into a comfortable position on his speeder bike and turned his head to the men, who were following his example.

“Let’s move out!” With a rev of the engine, the bike sped off, leaving the rest of the men to catch up. Ronan grumbled as he sped off. ARFs were ready to move out at any time, but to be sent out without a proper briefing was a little ridiculous, even by their standards. A part of him wondered what would have happened if he had been assigned to the 501st like he had hoped. Would Luna have taken the orders from her General? Or would she have disobeyed and come up with something better? He was not sure and he knew he should never ask such a question about his commanding officer. He was just tired. Tired of the mud, tired of the constant moving around, tired of the war.

It was nothing like he had expected, nothing like the stories told to him as a cadet. There was no glory, no grand victory. It was only one firefight to the next, death and destruction at every inch. Ronan hated every moment of it.

Havoc stood next to Celestia as she went over reports from other fronts. His battalion was sent alongside her’s to provide support and the necessary transportation and armor for the assault. He stroked his ever growing beard in thought as the alicorn commander went over every single detail of the reports. It was not good. Troops were either on the retreat or stalled just short of their objectives. At this rate, the 187th would be wiped out, and Mimban would be in Separatist hands.

General Windu seemed to stay in the rear much more often, instead of leading the charge like he used to. Not that he blamed the Jedi, not entirely, at least. More and more Jedi were getting killed each day, either being overwhelmed by droids or cut down by General Grievous. If a Jedi Council Member were to fall, this would give the Separatists all of the fuel they need to boost their morale and their drive to destroy the Republic. Havoc would be damned before he let that happen.

Sneaks was laying down in a field, looking toward the settlement with binoculars. So far, he could not see much of a defense. Only a handful of droid patrol squads and an AAT at the main bridge.

The settlement itself was surrounded by a moat, with only two bridges that allowed crossing. Tall buildings blocked much of the view into the settlement, so he could not determine what lies beyond the bridges. It was large enough to be a city, if only the mining company ever bothered to name it. He could see buildings stretch all the way to the horizon. The streets were narrows, except for the wide main avenue that connected every single road to the center of the settlement.

“We might finally catch a break, sir.” Sneaks said into his comms. “There’s hardly anything here.”

“Don’t get cocky, trooper.” Blindside warned. “We still need intel on what’s inside.” Sneaks nodded, then crawled back behind the hill to his speeder. He looked around to make sure no one could see him as he climbed on and activated the engine. The trooper sped off to meet with the others, who were already gathered near one of the bridges. Once he stopped, Blindside began making a plan.

“Alright, we’re going to cross this bridge, here. Since there are only two small squads, we can take them out before they raise the alarm. Once we’re across, we split into teams of three and scout out some of the buildings. If we can ca=onfirm what we’re up against once inside, we can give the Commander the information.” The sergeant turned to Sneaks.

“Send her the numbers we have now and let her know we’re pushing in. We’ll report back once we’re done.”

Sneaks nodded and transmitted the information. Ronan shook his head. Sneaking around was not one of his favorite things to do. His stomach churned at the thought.

“Excellent work, trooper. Proceed with the mission.”

“Green light, sir.” Blindside nodded.

“Alright, let’s move out ARF Troopers!”

R-442 was bored out of its circuits. It had to stand and guard the bridge all day. His battery was close to critical levels and the mud was getting into its joints. It hoped to be joining the action, like the rest of its factory group, but no. It had to be assigned the most boring post in the droid army.

A loud thunk broke it from its inner complaining. It looked right to see its fellow guard fall to the ground. A blue bolt slammed into the B2 that was with them, destroying it instantly. Within moments, the rest of 442’s squad was destroyed. It had just enough time to see a clone riding a speeder as it ran it over.

With its last few seconds of power, it transmitted an emergency code to Command.

In the tallest building of the settlement, General Grievous stood before the hologram image of Count Dooku and Asajj Ventress.

“So while you failed to secure the Fett DNA, you say you’ve successfully taken the Alicorn’s DNA?” The Count stroked his beard in thought.

Asajj bowed. “Yes, my Master. I have already prepared it to be sent to you as requested.” Dooku nodded, then turned to Grievous.

“And General, I must congratulate you. While you were not able to halt the production of clones, your plan was successful in causing significant damage. I expect the Republic Forces on Mimban are being dealt with?”

“Of course, My Lord. The Republic counter attack has been halted, and soon, with the new weapons and equip0ment, their troops will be wiped off the face of this Galaxy.” The General clenched his metal claw.

Grievous felt like he was on top of the world once again. After weeks of failures, he is finally able to report success to his Master.

But it seemed that the Galaxy was against him as one of his subordinates chose that moment to enter.

“General, our bridge post was wiped out by a Republic Scout Squad.” The General turned to the droid, who flinched under his destructive gaze.

“General.” The cyborg almost flinched himself at that tone. It held disappointment and contempt. Anyone who brought out such tones from the Count always ended up dead within hours. “If the Republic manages to secure this landing site, Mimban cannot be held. I expect you to take care of this.” Grievous turned and bowed, ignoring the smug look on Ventress’ face.

“I will deal with these clones, myself.” Without another word, he turned and left to deal with this minor annoyance.

Dooku turned to his apprentice. “Return to me as soon as possible. You will receive further instruction later.” Asajj bowed and deactivated her comms. Dooku did the same, leaving the General to deal with the Republic.

Ronan watched as the rest of the squad moved off to scout out the city. He was left with another brother, Spear, to clean up the mess and hold the point for the ARF Squad to escape, should they need to. The trooper never realized how heavy a B1 was. He had more respect for 99 and the other maintenance clones that had to clean up after his messes back in training.

With a loud grunt, he picked up the droid scrap and tossed it over the side of the bridge. It splashed into the swampy waters below and disappeared below the surface. If the trooper had leaned over a little more, he would’ve seen the small explosive charges activating on the support beams.

Sneaks slowly entered a building through a door in the alleyway. Two other troopers covered his rear as he scanned the room. It was empty, with only a few scraps of random objects strewn all over the floor. His helmet light hit a picture frame on the wall. Inside the frame was the holoimage of a family. The moving image displayed a daughter happily playing with her parents, one dressed as a miner.

Sneaks couldn’t help but feel sorry for the Mimbanese. They didn’t ask to be invaded, to be driven from their homes, and killed by heartless machines. He wondered where the family was now, and if they were alive. He shook away the thoughts as he moved into the next room. His teammates followed closely behind. Watching them enter the building from a nearby apartment was a pair of MagnaGuard droids.

Blindside finished his sweep of the second floor. The building seemed clean. Something wasn’t right. The ARFs had spotted nothing since entering the settlement. A city of this scale should have patrols everywhere, especially with the strategic importance it held.

Anyone else would assume that the droids might have been pulled out or were stretched thomas they waited for reinforcements. But Blindside didn’t stay alive long enough to make such a mistake. He signaled for the other clones to make their way out as he activated comms.

“Sneaks, get your men back to the bikes and back over the bridge, now.”

“....”

“Sneaks, respond, over.”

“....”

“Sneaks, come in.” The trooper fiddled with his comms, hoping that it was just a faulty communicator or that Sneaks simply changed frequencies by mistake. Nothing. Blindside’s eyes widened as he realized what was happening. They were being jammed.

A loud thud made him whip his head around. At the foot of the doorway was one of his troopers, his chest plate scorched and his body smoking. A large metallic foot appeared from the side, followed by a MagnaGuard with an electro staff. Blindside unholstered his dual pistols and opened fire. Three shots hit the droid, sending it to the ground. A second Guard appeared and leaped over its fallen comrade.

Blindside took a step back as the droid landed in front of him and thrust its staff forward. The sergeant narrowly avoided the electrified tip and fired a single shot at the droid’s face. The bolt slammed into its eye, instantly knocking out its circuits. It fell to the ground, giving Blindside the chance to escape. In the hall, he could see the body of the second trooper, who was impaled in the wall.

How had he not heard this? That did not matter, he had to find Sneaks and the others and escape. He had to warn Celestia that it was all a trap.

Sneaks ducked down as his brother’s body was used as a weapon. The pair of Magna Guards had ambushed his team when they entered the second floor of the building. It was so sudden. His brothers stood no chance as they were quickly electrocuted by the Guards’ infamous electro staff.

He fired a shot from his carbine into the large red light of the first Guard. It broke through and destroyed the inner circuits almost instantly. It stuttered before falling to the floor. The second slammed its hand into the side of his head and knocked him to the floor. Before he could react, it drove its staff into his abdomen. Sneaks cried out in pain as thousands of volts burned his insides to a crisp. A blue bolt shot through the Guard’s head, disabling it immediately. The body fell to the floor, letting go of the deactivated staff.

Sneaks could see Blindside in his blurring vision. His sergeant ran up and knelt down beside him. He grabbed the staff and carefully pulled it out. Sneaks’ world went white with pain. He screamed as the long staff was pulled out and tossed aside.

Blindside placed a hand behind his head to keep it leveled. Sneaks looked at his squad leader with a pained filled expression.

“S-sorry, sir.”

“No worries, trooper. It’ll be alright. Now come on, we’ve got to-”

“No… sir. I… I can’t.” Blindside looked at the wound. He could see his brother’s organs. They were blacked and sliced open in more places than he could count. With a shaky nod, he looked back at his face.

“Okay, let me give you a little bit of this.” He pulled out a bacta syringe and injected the drug into the wounded clone’s system. Sneaks grunted as the bacta got to work numbing the pain.

“I… I’m sorry, sir. I wasn’t-”

“You were great, Sneaks. You actually got one.” Blindside chuckled a little. “Not even the Commander could boast that.” He sighed and looked at the other dead clones before turning back to Sneaks. “Just rest, trooper. You earned it.”

“S-sir, save the others.” Sneaks reached into his pack and pulled out a thermal detonator.

Blindside recoiled. “Sneaks-” He stopped to listen. More footsteps were coming from the hallway. Metallic footsteps. The clankers brought reinforcements. He had to leave. The sergeant nodded and stood up. Sneaks clumsily pulled out his sidearm and aimed with a shaky hand at the door. Blindside looked out the window to see a vacant speeder bike.

With one last look at Sneaks, he jumped out the window and landed next to the bike. He wasted no time getting on and driving off.

Sneaks laughed as the first droid entered. He fired his first shot, killing it instantly with a shot to the chest. A second one entered and was also taken down. Then a third, and a fourth, and a fifth. The sixth got lucky. It fired and hit his firing shoulder. He dropped the pistol with a grunt and pressed the button on the detonator.

The droid squad entered the room and aimed their blasters at the wounded ARF Trooper. He grinned as he raised the detonator. It began to rapidly beep, announcing its final countdown.

“It’s been fun, clankers…. But I don’t take prisoners.” The device detonated, destroying the entire room, along with the droid squad, and ARF Trooper Sneaks.

Blindside didn’t look back as he heard the explosion. He didn’t need to. He was going to make sure Sneaks’ story would make it back to the Republic. But first, he had to warn Celestia. In the distance, he could see Ronan and his teammate standing guard. He opened up the throttle and charged toward them.

Ronan turned to see Blindside coming toward them like Hell was on his heels. He grabbed his blaster and stood up.

Rapid beepings turned his attention to the side of the bridge, where he could see explosives blinking in the final countdown. He snapped his head around to his brother.

“Off the bridge!” The trooper turned to run while he waved Blindside off. When the last shrill beep went off, he made a quick decision. He jumped over the side. The explosion sent him into the air.

Blindside was tossed from his speeder. Spear was consumed in the blast.

Ronan landed in the muddy waters below. His world went black.

Celestia sighed as she was told. There were no further reports from the ARFs. She stepped out of the command tank to see her men gathered around in a makeshift camp. They huddled around onto whatever wasn’t sinking into the mud. It pained her to see her men suffer like this, and she had no idea how many of them would die in the next battle. She opened her wings and flew onto the roof of her tank. The position gave her a perfect view of the settlement in the distance. She scanned the outskirts and saw exactly what Blindside had last reported.

Small patrol squads and a single AAT. But something was different. She activated her comms. “Havoc, did Blindside report two bridges intact?”

“I believe so, why?” That was it. Celestia looked at the second bridge further away, or what was left of it. It does not take a genius to figure out the rest.

“Because this attack is now a rescue operation. Prepare the men to move out at first light. Increase the pickets.”

“Yes, ma’am.” The comm went silent and Celestia looked over everything again. This was a trap, and now she had no choice. She had to launch a full scale assault.

Havoc scanned the area through his binoculars. Nothing changed in the droid defences. It was strange and it left him feeling uneasy. But nevertheless, he had orders to follow. The AT-TEs were all lined up, with their turrets facing different targets. Some were pointed at the droid squads, two were zoned in on the tank, and the rest aimed at possible sniper positions within the city. Behind him, the sun began to rise.

Celestia stood behind the tanks with her men, who were doing last minute preparations to their equipment: checking their weapons, securing their supplies, fixing comms, and loading up energy packs. The 187th was ready to face whatever lies beyond that moat.

The alicorn felt the sun rise behind her. Her body was filled with energy that she only ever had during bright and sunny days. She was going to need it if her instincts told her anything. With one last look to her men, she took a deep breath and gave the order.

“Havoc, let’s begin.”

“Understood.”

“All tanks, open fire!” The first tank fired, then the second, and the third, and soon, a pattern of shots took form as the first shots were fired. Most hit their mark. The AAT was destroyed. Some of the droid squads were now scrap heaps, and the buildings were toppled.

“Charge!” Celestia flew past him, followed by her troopers, AT-RTs, and TX-130 Saber Tanks. Havoc scanned for more targets and relayed them to the gunners. Red bolts appeared from other buildings, taking pot shots at the clones moving across the open ground. Havoc scanned the buildings to identify the targets.

They were the new droideka based sniper droids, with blast shields that kept them safe from the standard small arms. Good thing his tanks weren’t small arms. “Focus fire on those buildings!” The walkers’ turrets turned and fired at the buildings, blowing holes in the tall structures.

Shotwire ducked as a red bolt screamed past his head. It slammed into a trooper that was directly behind him. He could hear and see the tank rounds firing overhead, vaporizing targets within the city. His eyes followed one round that impacted directly across the bridge. In front of him, his brothers charged forward. From the corner of his eyes, he could see a flash from a building, followed by a smoke trail.

“Rocket!” The missile slams into the ground in front of him, knocking the trooper back. Other troopers were also sent flying from the impact. Shotwire’s vision blurred and his ears were ringing. His movement was sluggish as he tried to get up. An armored hoof appeared before him. The engineer looked up to see Celestia looking down at him with a glowing horn.

“Get up, Corporal Shotwire!” She ordered as she picked the trooper up. “We do not stop moving!” She threw him onto his feet and his legs went back to work. His vision cleared and he could hear clearly again. He grabbed a carbine from the ground and continued his charge.

Indie crouched down on the edge of the bridge. A bolt slams into the ground behind him. He takes a deep breath before raising his blaster and firing at the droids on the other side of the bridge. Other troopers lined up next to him and did the same. Some troopers made an attempt to reach the other side of the bridge, when a window on the second floor of a building opened. A heavy blaster appeared in the window and took aim at the advancing clones.

The droid opened fire and cut down the clones halfway across the bridge. Indie turned to see the carnage, then turned to his troopers.

“Back, get back!” Two troopers do not receive the message in time and are gunned down. The rest make their way back to the other side to find better cover.

Havoc follows the troopers on the bridge, then trails the blaster fire to the turret in the building. He signals for an AT-TE to take it out. The tank’s top turret takes aim. The gunner waits for the computer to lock in the target before squeezing the trigger. The gun fires, sending the large energy round toward the building.

The droid sees the incoming fire and does the one thing it can do. Stand there in acceptance and say “Uh oh.” The building explodes, sending debris everywhere. Havoc watched the impact from his position and saw more movement in the building.

“Tanks 3 and 5, target the ground floor. Bring that building down.” Tank 5 aims its turret at the ground floor. Tank 3 lowers the elevation to match. They fire at the same time, sending twice the explosive charge. The explosion was much larger, this time consuming the whole building. The metal structure buckled, groaning and screeching as the walls warped and the roof caved in. The entire structure collapsed within itself, sending smoke and debris everywhere.

Troopers cheered as the building came down and the remaining droids retreated into the city. AT-RTs charged across the bridge and the infantry followed close behind. Last to cross were the Saber tanks. On the beam cannon of one such tank was Tech, a clone dunner with the 187th Tank Company. His tank, “Droid Popper” was in the middle of the convoy while his commander, Captain Steele, sat in “Heavy Hitter” in the rear. “Curb Stomper” took the lead as they crossed into the city. Smoke obscured his vision, but that did not faze the crews as they pushed forward.

From both sides of his vision, he could see infantry moving into buildings and walking alongside the tanks. The AT-RTs pulled off to the side to allow the repulsor tanks through. The scout walkers were good for many things, close quarter urban combat was not one of them. The troopers on board waved them off as they set up a perimeter around the bridge. This was their only way to escape the city without having to swim, and that water did not look very swimmable.

“Gunners, watch the windows and rooftops.” Steele warned. “This whole city just became a hostile fortress. Out.”

The tanks advanced down the street further into the city. It was quiet. Far too quiet for an enemy stronghold.

“All squads, report.” Came Commander Celestia’s voice.

“Nothing here, moving through the market area, now.”

“All clear around the bridge.”

“Nothing in the residential block.”

“This place is dead.” Tech muttered to himself. He scanned the rooftop of a building directly in front of him. All clear.

The first tank turned a corner, then a red bolt impacted the gunner’s shield. The gunner ducked down as a second bolt hit the tank again. Tech readied his beam cannon as his tank turned the corner. On the roof of a building further down, he could see… nothing.

“Can you see it?!” The third tank gunner asked frantically.

“I see nothing!” The first gunner said, just as panicked. Blaster fire echoed through the streets. It was like some had just flipped a switch and turned on the war.

“This is Solar 1-2, we’re taking fire from multiple buildings, pulling back to regroup!”

“Solar 2-1 is pinned down, requesting support, over!”

“Solar 2-2 is hit! I’m down to half a squad!”

“All units, proceed on mission! Secure strongpoints in the city and stay calm!” How could they stay calm? It’s hard to stay calm when you can’t even see the enemy! Tech spotted movement on a nearby apartment block. With a squint, he could make out thin figures moving into positions.

“Droids!” He held down the trigger and opened fire. A long blue beam of energy trailed from his gun to the target, which was a B1 battle droid with a sniper rifle. The other droids aimed and returned fire.

The first tank swerved left, right into the path of a rocket. Tech watched the gunner launch from the exploding vehicle and land several feet away. His lower half burnt to ash.

“Get us outta here!” He screamed as he fired a second beam. It cut through several droids, including the one with the rocket launcher. They driver floored it, accelerating to escape the killzone. More droids appeared in windows, using a wide range of weapons. Red bolts peppered the tank, forcing Tech to duck down to avoid losing his head. The gunner behind him did his best, but the beam could only cut through so many before needing to prime another shot. The tanks swerved around corners, almost sending their gunners flying from their seats.

As his tank rounded a corner, Tech could see a droid preparing a rocket launcher. He would not be able to prime a shot in time. The droid pressed the trigger, launching the rocket. Tech had only a second to react. He jumped from the turret and away from the tank. The rocket rammed through the cockpit, exploding where his feet should have been. The explosion sends him into the air. He could see the second floor of a building before he made his downward descent. With loud, sickening crunches, he hit the dirt.

A trooper appears from inside the building and drags the unconscious Tech inside. Just as the third tank explodes and consumes its crew in flames.

Celestia growled as she listened in on comms. More reports were coming in. Almost every platoon in the city was taking fire. Some were taking heavier casualties than others. She knew it was a trap, and now she was going to pay the price. “All units, set up defenses wherever you are and hold tight.” She had to make a new plan, and it was going to be hard if her units were moving around without proper coordination. She looked over the map that one of her men found in a communication center. Already, it was covered in markings and colored lines to represent the situation as far as she knew. It was a mess, to say the least. .

It was supposed to be a simple push toward the Industrial Sector, where the landing pads were located. But now her squads were scattered and confused. It was time to come up with a better plan.

Shotwire dragged the tank gunner inside, placing him against the wall furthest away from the building. His sergeant, Fours, was talking to his second-in-command, Twos.

“This isn’t good, sir. We need to fall back-”

“No, we make our stand here. Those are our orders.” Fours shot back, glaring at Twos for making such a suggestion. “Now, take a fire team and secure the second floor. We’ll turn this place into a stronghold and wait for further orders.”

Twos nodded and signaled his fire team over. Shotwire made sure the gunner was comfortable before joining them. “Okay, Shotwire, Shock. On me, we search each room. Stay away from the windows.” He turned to Shock. “Shock, you’re on point.” The trooper nodded and walked over to the stairs.

Shotwire stacked up behind him, then followed by Twos. Shock slowly stepped up the stairs, weapon raised. The hallway was clear, but that meant nothing to the troopers. They continued to march slowly down the empty hall, aiming at the doorways leading to other rooms. There were three doorways, meaning there were three chances for an ambush. Shock stepped lightly over to the first door. Shotwire stood on the other side. Twos covered the hall. Shock kicked in the door and Shotwire charged in.

He scanned the room and found nothing. Just overturned furniture. “Clear!” He exited the room and leaned up against the second door. Twos moved opposite of him as Shock covered them. Shotwire pressed a button on a panel, opening the door. Twos moved in. There was a few seconds of silence.

“Clear!” Shock and Shotwire moved to the next door as Twos moved out. Once ready, the two troopers nodded. Shock kicked open the door and was consumed in a small explosion. Shotwire was knocked back and Twos shielded his faceplate from the heat.

“Shock!” The two troopers ran to their wounded comrade, who groaned in pain. Shotwire looked his teammate over. His armor was covered in burn marks and missing in a few areas. His helmet’s visor was broken, revealing his burnt face to them both. Shock writhed on the floor as the pain set in.

“Medic!” Shotwire called out and in seconds, a trooper charged up the stairs. He pulled out a syringe of bacta and injected it into Shock’s neck. The medic then took the opportunity to check him over and sighed. He looked at Twos and shook his head.

Twos nodded solemnly and gestured for the medic to carry on. He then looked at Shotwire.

“Come on, let’s get going.”

“But what about…” Twos shook his head and Shotwire understood. Shock was not going to make it. He looked down at the scorched soldier and exhaled slowly. “It’ll be okay, brother. Just stay here. Bacta should make you feel better shortly.” If Shock heard him, he made no attempt to acknowledge him.

Shotwire and Twos stood up and moved on, clearing what was left of the third room. Nothing. It was empty. They left the room and moved back downstairs, leaving Shock alone to succumb to his wounds.

It took some time, but Celestia finally came up with a plan. It was going to require air support, however, and that’s exactly why she was trying to contact High Command. It took a little while for anyone to pick up her signal. Surprisingly, it was General Windu.

“Commander, what’s the status of that settlement?”

Celestia sighed before speaking. “It’s bad, sir. The droids left a trap for us, and now we’re stuck in the city. We can’t leave because they’ll launch an assault while we’re out in the open, and it’s going to be almost impossible to move around in the streets without being picked off by snipers and rocket teams.”

Windu placed a hand on his chin in thought. “I see.” He paused. “Please, continue.”

“To put it bluntly, sir. I need air support, and I need it now. I’ve already picked out key targets that require air strikes-”

“I’m afraid we have no assets available at this time.” Her ears shot up and her eyes widened. “I’m sorry, but with all of the other offensives taking place, all of our fighters and bombers are on mission. I cannot send anything that far out at this time.”

“B-but, sir. I was told this was a priority mission.”

“I am aware, but you must understand that there are other battalions that need the air support as well.” He spoke slowly, as if explaining this to a child, rather than a commander that was losing men every minute this conversation dragged out.

“General, with all due respect, I need that air support, now. If I cannot take this city, then-”

“The city does not need to be taken yet, Commander. So long as you contest their primary landing zone, the Separatists cannot reinforce their frontline.”

Celestia could not believe this. She had to be hearing wrong. It sounded as if General Windu did not want them to succeed. As if he was complacent with simply fighting a stalemate rather than win.

A clone approached and saluted. “Sir, the Jedi Council is awaiting your call.” Windu nodded and turned back to Celestia.

“Press on if possible, Commander. Otherwise, hold position until further notice. Out.” Celestia opened her mouth to retort when the communication was cut. Every clone stared at her as she stood there, mouth agape. Her chest rose and fell at a rapid pace. Her eyes were glowing orbs of flames. She growled and slammed into the holotable, leaving a sizable dent.

She could not believe this. General Windu, a Jedi she thought she could trust, had just abandoned her men to a stalemate. Because he was unwilling to stay a course of action he had set forth.

Now, it was down to her, another day, where she has to fix everything and deal with the losses these corrections will create.

“Fine then, General. I will press on.” She turned to her men, some of them covered in bandages. They all stared back at her with worry and fear in their eyes. “We are soldiers of the Republic. Clones of the Might Jango Fett. We are superior to these droids, and they will learn that tonight! Tonight, we take this city! Not for the Republic and not for the Jedi, but for ourselves!”

“We will take this city because it is our brothers that are dying here! Our blood, which is boiling for a fight! This is our fight, our blood, our war!” Troopers nodded and grabbed their blasters.

“We will end this war, and our march to victory starts tonight, right here!” She used her magic to grab her rotary cannon. “So let’s get marching!” Troopers raised their fists in the air and cheered.

Celestia activated her comms and relayed her plan to all Company Commanders and stood before her brothers. Her mane, once tied down, was now flowing freely in the breeze. She smiled with determination at her men before placing her helmet back on her head, retying her mane as she did so.

Havoc began moving his walkers across the bridge. He gave her a two finger salute as he stood tall on top of the lead walker. She nodded her head and turned toward the frontline. Down the main street, she could see droids behind sandbag positions, supported by AATs that began to fire.

Their rounds hit the ground around her, but she did not falter. The alicorn held firm in her stance. “Charge!”

The Clone Troopers ran forward, following their Commander as she began her sprint toward the droid position. Havoc’s tanks opened fire.

Shotwire followed Twos and Fours as they ran forward.

Indie led his men forward, staying close behind his sister.

The 187th Clone Battalion charged forward. Their March to Victory had begun.

Extra: Partying with the Commander

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Extra: Files

File Report: PC-001-A

The three bodies of the unknown specimens have been properly scanned and their DNA is now undergoing a complete splice. The process should be completed within the next 24 Hours.

Context: Approximately two days ago, Jango Fett (Note for his Hosting of Jedi Master Sifo Dyas' Clone Army) returned from what was supposedly a regular bounty. However, he immediately brought the three unknown specimens to our Research Facility.

When asked why he did so, he simply replied that "He owed them his life." Any further attempts at getting more details and context has met with failure.

What we do know is that Jango was on Trandosha, working with a native named Bossk on a posted bounty. Judging from the sounds on the specimens and the damage on his armor, it can be assumed that he was attacked by a large animal, possibly a Rancor, and the specimens came in to help him. If so, they were killed and maimed in the struggle.

Specimens: Three quadrupeds with avian limbs and large horns on their heads. No known species match in our current database (investigation into the completeness of the Archives has been requested).

More shall be discovered upon the completion of the DNA splicing process.

END LOG

File Report: PC-001-C

We have begun the cloning process so that we may be able to study living versions of the specimens. Enough of the host’s cells are still active in order to proceed with the cloning.

More shall be added to this entry once results arrive.

The procedure was a failure. The clone designated PC-001 came out physically healthy and seemed to have a basic understanding of its surroundings, as all fresh clones do. However, something went wrong.

There was a large energy spike coming from the horn protruding from its head. Before that energy could be contained, PC-001 went into cardiac arrest and the brain was destroyed before she could be revived.

What this energy is has not been confirmed. More tests will have to be run. Our incubators are already preparing another batch of PC Clones. PC-002 will be our next subject.

Subjects PL and PCE are also preparing for their second batch, as the first two subjects experienced similar results. (See Files PL-001-D and PCE-001-B for more detail)

END LOG

File Report: PC-003-D

We may have finally made progress. After moving to testing with a single subject, (see File PL-002 for context) we have made significant progress. With the three subjects, now identified as Alicorns, based on information discovered by Jango. (Jango still refuses tell us where that information comes from.)

PC-003, named Celestia by Jango, has been given the Inhibitor Chip, as per instruction by the Prime Minister, along with PL-025 and PCE-008.

Without much else to learn, the three alicorn subjects are being made officers in the Army being created for Sifo Dyas’. This is a request by Jango, who has gone far enough as to refuse to offer more DNA unless the subjects are made a part of the army.

More reports shall be made once more has been found out about the subjects.

END LOG

Extra: New Armor

Captain Luna stared at her new helmet with wonder. She was already in the brand new Phase II armor that has been distributed enmass to the Republic Army.

The Phase II Armor was designed to fix some of the flaws with the Phase I variant. The new armor allowed her troops to become more specialized, having the ability to the variety of equipment they needed to use. It was lighter, more flexible, and extremely comfortable compared to the Phase I. Especially the helmet.

Luna hated the old Phase I helmet. It felt like someone just cut holes in a bucket and put it on her head. But the Kaminoans ensured that she and her sisters would receive better fitting armor.

With the new armor, Luna was able to ask for a specific type. She had the standard body armor, but instead of the new Phase II helmet, she held a BARC Trooper helmet in her hooves.

The helmet was designed to keep the trooper’s attention forward at high speeds. It was definitely going to make her stand out. Well, more than she already did.

Cadence took comfort in her new armor. She especially enjoyed the chance to customize it. The 212th Attack Battalion was told that they can customize their armor, with whatever paint design they want, so long as it was orange to mark their unit.

She received the same armor as her other men, with a few more assets to mark her as an officer; such as her shoulder pauldron and a kama. Her helmet also had the macrobinoculars attached. A tool that she can flip down to see further. It saved her room in her toolkit when she did not need the handheld binoculars.

The captain watched her men begin work on their armor, adding little designs to make them standout. She felt her heart melt when Waxer added a small picture of Little Numa to the side of his helmet.

They never had a chance to return to Ryloth and see if she was alright. But they made a promise and clones kept their promises.

With that thought in mind, she grabbed the armor paint and got to work.

Celestia smiled as she watched her men show off their armor designs. She enjoyed the little designs they had made to make them unique. But she hated the armor color. Since the 187th was mostly commanded by general Windu, most of the men agreed that they should wear purple. It seemed like a good idea that first, but now the alicorn commander was not so sure. She hated the purple that covered her armor. Her new armor was something to behold.

It was the new Airborne Armor, including the complementary kama, and a bandolier wrapped around her chest. Unlike the rest of her men, she did not have an antennae sticking out of the back. The 187th was mostly recon and vanguard assaults, so they would need long distance communicators built in.

All three commanders placed their helmets on their heads and stood in front of their men. The new armor gave a whole new look to the Clone Army. No longer were they the peacekeeping force the Republic wanted them to be.

Doctrines have changed, battles were now fought with more aggressive strategies, and the armor reflected that. It made them look more intimidating, more like soldiers bred to win wars. For better or worse, this was the new Clone Army.

Chapter 19: Darkness on Umbara

Luna stood in the Briefing Room among her fellow officers. General Skywalker was going over the Strategy for the Republic’s newest campaign: Umbara. It was a shadow world, wrapped in secrecy and myths. The people of the planet turned against the Republic, swearing allegiance to Count Dooku.

The Republic’s response was swift. The 501st and the 212th have been ordered to seize the planet before the Separatists could send their droids to reinforce. The Umbarans had a military. But that was the only known fact about them. There were no details of weapons, strength, or tactics. The terrain was going to make their fight difficult, it was almost entirely jungle with hills and ravines covering the approach to the capital.

This invasion had disaster written all over it. Everything was going against the clones. But they were not afraid. They had General Skywalker leading them. He always got them through the toughest of situations. He never led them astray in the past, and they knew he would not do so now.

Luna scoffed at how simple the strategy was. They were going to land in Sector Delta, just miles from the enemy capital. The only vehicles they would be able to bring were the AT-RTs, since anything bigger would have a hard time in the jungle. It was going to be a blitz to the enemy capital, with the 501st taking the lead. The 212th and the 7th Sky Legion were going to bring up the flanks, securing them as the 501st surged down the center. Nothing was being left to chance. A drawn out battle could lead to further complications.

The alicorn captain spent as much time as she could preparing her men for night time combat. Night Vision and Low Light Equipment were distributed and checked over for malfunctions. The LAATs were all fitted with searchlights to illuminate their path. She could only hope that the Umbarans had poor aim, as the lights would make the gunships easy targets.

Knave stood tall as the gunship took off. He felt the familiar lift as the gunship flew out of the massive hangar of the Venator. Other gunships quickly flew into formation and disappeared under the cloud layer that surrounded the planet. He looked around as his platoon members prepared their weapons.

Junior gripped his carbine, his finger tapping the trigger guard in a pattern. Razorwolf fiddled with his new wolf pelt shoulder guards. How the trooper got to add it without getting an article 15 is above his rank. Zombie simply stood there with his trusty sniper rifle. His new armor was already ruined, a few days in the 501st would do that. The silent sniper never cared for cleaning his armor, unless given a specific order to do so, and even then, he’ll only listen to Captain Luna and General Skywalker.

The gunship shook as the flak opened up. Knave looked through the slits to see strange lights flying through the air. It was plasma, not the typical laser fire the clones had grown accustomed to. His stomach churned. Plasma was still an experimental weapon, deemed too unwieldy and expensive to mass produce. If the Umbarans have plasma weapons as their main armament, then this invasion was going to be much more problematic.

He held on tight as the gunship suddenly dropped and hit the ground. The doors opened and instinct took over.

The troopers leaped from the safety of their transport and charged out into the open field. Green bolts of energy flew past them, the defenders were well hidden in shadow. Knave took aim and fired into the darkness, hoping to hit something.

Razorwolf opened fire as well, having a hard time finding a target. He spots a ball of plasma heading his way. He dove clear and clung to the dirt as the ball slammed into the ground. Two troopers are hit by the plasma as they disappear into dust. Razorwolf looks at the spot where the troopers once were and holds back the bile in his throat.

“That’s not right.” He groaned as he got up and got moving again.

Luna kept in constant communication with the other companies. It was chaos; troops could not see in the advanced darkness, the enemy hid themselves well, and their weapons were beyond anything the Republic could wield. Why was it always the 501st that got the suicide missions?

She was interrupted from her thoughts as she tripped over something. She looked down to see a vine strewn on the ground. Thinking nothing of it, she kept moving, the rest of her men following close behind. None of them noticed the vine slowly moving around.

What they did notice was a loud screech and the vines whipping into the air. The troopers turned and aimed at the creature, but it grabbed three of them before they could react. It flung them around, dropping one unfortunate trooper into its mouth and swallowing.

Luna whipped around and immediately opened fire at the creature. She aimed at the mouth and fired several bolts into it. The creature screeched and went limp, dropping its near victims to the ground.

“What the hell is wrong with this planet?!” One trooper snapped.

“I’m getting Felucia flashbacks!” Another added on. Luna stomped on the ground.

“Shut it and keep moving, we still have a job to do!” She raised a shield to block some incoming blasts. The troopers steeled themselves and pressed onwards.

“All units rally around the ridge at Grid Section 421, 959.” Luna checked her holomap for the coordinates. It was just ahead of them. She looked up to see some fire coming from the ridge. Time to get to work.

“Company! We need to take that ridge!” She charged forward, lowering her shield to preserve her energy. The rest of the company followed close behind. They surged up the incline, ducking low to avoid the green bolts. Luna heard the grunt of a trooper being hit, then another. She turned to see Radar looking them over.

“Radar, do what you can, then bring them up the ridge.” Radar nodded and got to work.

Luna turned back and made the final push to the crest of the ridge. She raised her blaster and fired into the darkness. Her brothers followed suit, and they began a firing advance into the flora.

The green bolts suddenly stopped. Luna gave a signal to cease fire and the battlefield went silent.

Luna stood next to General Skywalker and Captain Rex in the trench. The clones behind them were hard at work preparing their defences, while some took the chance to rest. One of the troopers, Dogma, approached them and saluted.

“All platoons have reported in, sir.”

Anakin looked at the trooper. “Good job, trooper. Now get some rest.”

“Thank you, sir. I’m fine.” Luna looked at Dogma and raised an eyebrow. Did he see that as a suggestion? She knew that some troopers, especially new ones, were wound up tighter than their body suits, but to refuse rest after an assault like that was a little worrying.

“The General is giving you an order, Dogma.” Rex said, placing a hand on his shoulder. Dogma saluted once more.

“Yes sir.” He aboutfaced and marched back down the trench. Rex sighed and looked back at the General.

“Dogma’s a little wound up, but he’s loyal.”

The General chuckled. “Kind of reminds me of you.” He joked. Rex nodded.

“Maybe, back in the day.” Luna shook her head in amusement. She remembered when Rex would salute every time General Skywalker approached. It took a direct order from him that the clone captain finally stopped.

She looked at her brother and thought back to their own first meeting. He was new, fresh from Kamino is shiny armor. The look on his face when she approached was priceless. She must have been wearing her feelings as both captain and general noticed.

“Something funny, Luna?” Skywalker asked.

“Just thinking about Rex, sir. Back in the day.” Rex groaned and facepalmed, earning laughs from the alicorn and Jedi.

“You two are going to be the death of me.”

Magnet sat in the trench, cleaning the gunk from his weapon. His legs were burning, not used to that long of a sprint. The rest of his squad was quietly resting, enjoying the break while they could.

He felt something crawl up his arm to his neck. He was about to swat the bug away when his veins were suddenly shot with thousands of volts of electricity. He screamed in pain before losing consciousness.

Sergeant Fierce spotted the attack and aimed at the small creature. It leaped from Magnet’s body and began crawling toward him. He opened fire as it approached, his squad doing the same as they grabbed their blasters.

Green bolts appeared from their rear, hitting some of the distracted troopers.

“Ambush!” Cross shouted as he grabbed his sniper rifle. “They’re behind us!” He fired into the darkness, hoping to hit something.

Luna placed her helmet back on and ran to her company. She raised a shield to protect Radar as he dragged wounded men into the trench. Razorwolf fired into the flora, using the green bolts as a tracer to find his targets. A trooper to his right goes down, taking a shot to the head.

He felt something latch onto his foot and, on instinct, he smashed his foot against the wall of the trench. He looked down to see a small scorpion-like droid sparking in pieces on the ground.

“I really hate this planet.” He muttered before firing again.

Luna dragged an ARF trooper’s body into the trench, then let the medics get to work.

“All platoons, move off the ridge! I repeat, all platoons move off of the ridge!” Luna looked to her men.

“Off the ridge! First and Second Platoon, provide cover fire!” She held her position as her men moved past her, making their way down the ridge.

Radar and the other medics grabbed as many wounded as they could. Fierce grabbed Magnet and made a dash for the bottom of the ridge. An AT-RT explodes to their right, the trooper piloting it being sent sailing to the ground.

Luna tossed a thermal into the flora. The explosion lit up the darkness, revealing several Umbarans advancing toward her. She fired into the group, wiping most of them out. Knave came up to her.

“The rest are clear!” Luna nodded and raised a shield to cover their retreat. The last two platoons ran down the ridge, avoiding the incoming fire and taking cover at the bottom.

The Umbarans pursued them, using the terrain and elevation to their advantage.

“Take cover. Airstrike incoming.” All eyes turned upward as the Y-Wings appeared from the dark skies. They flew over the ridge, dropping their payloads. It created a wall of fire that incinerated everything on the ridge, including their old position. Luna sighed in relief. Good Old Oddball. She needed to buy him drinks when this was over.

It was not long before the 501st was ready to move out again. But something else came up. That something was a visit from General Krell.

Luna stood alongside General Skywalker and Captain Rex as the gunship arrived. It landed and allowed the Besalisk to disembark. Anakin bowed respectfully.

“Master Krell, my thanks for the air support.”

“Indeed, General Skywalker.” The Jedi Master responded. “The locals have proven more resourceful than anticipated.” Luna rolled her eyes. Another score more Military Intelligence.

“But that’s not the reason for your visit.” Skywalker stated.

Krell shook his head. “No. The Council has ordered you back to Coruscant, effective immediately.” That shocked everyone, especially General Skywalker.

“What? Why?!”

“I’m afraid a request was made by the Supreme Chancellor,” Krell explained, “and the Council obliged.” He shrugged his shoulders. “That is all they would tell me.”

“But… I can’t just leave my men.” Luna smiled. Anakin’s loyalty for his men was unmatched. He would do anything for them, no matter what. The General before her was a far cry from the Padawan on Yavin.

“I’ll be taking over in the interim.” Krell added, but the General was still unsure.

Rex moved forward. “Don’t worry, sir.” He said reassuringly.

Luna joined him. “We’ll have Umbara under control before you get back.” She added. Anakin smirked at them both.

“Master Krell, these are Rex and Luna, my First and Second in Command. You won’t find finer and more loyal troopers anywhere.”

Krell raised his nose a bit. “Good to hear that. I wish you well, Skywalker.” Anakin nodded to his commanding officers and walked onto the gunship. Luna watched the gunship take off and disappear above the clouds. An awkward pause fell over the men. Rex decided to break the ice.

“Your reputation precedes you, General.” He said. “It is an honor to be serving with you.”

“I find it interesting, Captain, that you are able to recognize the value of honor,” Luna and Rex looked at the Jedi in shock, “for a clone.” Luna glared. How dare he speak to Rex that way? How dare he insinuate that her brothers had no sense of honor?!

“Stand at attention when I address you!” Instinct took over and both captains stood at attention in front of the General.

“Your flattery is duly noted, but it will not be rewarded.” Well, guess respect can go out the window, then. “There is a reason my command is so effective, it’s because I do things by the book!”

He bent down to be eye level with the alicorn. “And that includes protocol.” He stood up and marched away.

“Have all the platoons ready to move out immediately!” He bellowed, not looking at the two clones.

Luna and Rex gave each other the same fearful expression.

It was not long before they were on the move again. Luna led the battalion through the jungle as the forward company. She could hear her men talking in hushed tones. All of it was about their new General.

“Is Krell really this uptight?” Razorwolf asked.

“From what I’ve heard, he can be much worse.” Fierce answered.

Warran butted in. “So what, he’s just following protocol, nothing wrong with that.”

Fierce elbow checked him. “Come on Warran, do we look like a unit that follows protocol?” Warran looked at the large assortment of clones. All of them had armor decals that were way under regulation. He thought about the tactics General Skywalker used to win, always unorthodox.

“Good point.”

Luna turned to talk to her men when blaster fire went off behind them. The company halted and readied themselves. Luna prepared a platoon to move back and provide support when it suddenly stopped and General Krell appeared from the darkness.

“Sir, is everything-”

“Keep moving! We’re behind schedule as it is!” He snapped, marching forward. Luna glared at him as he shoved troopers out of his way like a brute. It took so much of her willpower to not snap back at that besom. Instead, she followed orders and got her men moving again.

It was not long before Luna stopped her company. Captain Rex and General Krell marched up to her.

“Is there a reason you stopped?” The Jedi demanded.

Luna nodded. “Yes, sir. There’s a road just under a mile away. I was about to send some scouts to find an alternate-”

“There will be no alternate route taking, PL-025.”

Luna’s eyes went wide. “Excuse me, sir?”

Krell rolled his eyes. “As I already explained to CT-7567, we will be launching a full frontal assault on that road.”

“Sir, with all due respect-”

“I already heard enough complaints, PL-025, this is my strategy and you shall follow it, understood?!”

“Sir, this plan is severely-”

“Do not question me, clone!” Luna flinched back. No Jedi has ever addressed her in such a way.

“If you are too cowardly to lead this assault, then CT-7567 will.” Luna’s face fell and her heart dropped.

‘Sir, I can-”

“Luna, it’s fine.” Luna looked at Rex. She could see it under his helmet. He was just as afraid as she was. He knew as well as she did that this was the wrong thing to do. But they were bred to follow orders, no matter how much they disagreed with them.

“Very well, then. My company will follow behind yours, Captain.” Rex nodded and went to prepare his men. Now, the alicorn was alone with General Krell. She was about to speak when a hand smacked the side of her head. She fell to the ground and removed her helmet. A large bruise had formed on her cheek.

Krell stood above her. “Do not question me, again. Clone.” Without another word, he walked away, leaving Luna alone on the ground. She stared off into space as she delicately pressed a hoof against her cheek. She hissed at the pain.

How could Krell behave like this? Were the other units under his command treated this way? Why? What did clones do to warrant so much hatred?

Her commlink derailed her thoughts as Knave called in. “Captain, we’re in position.” She didn’t say a word, nor respond to the hailings of Lieutenant Knave. She needed a moment to steel herself, place her helmet back on her head, and stand up.

“I’m on my way, prepare for a frontal assault.”

Captain Rex’s company was out of sight just around the bend. The plan was to move one company at a time down the main route, so as to avoid getting too bunched up and overwhelmed. If Rex needed to fall back, he would have somewhere to fall back too.

Knave and Razorwolf looked at each other as Luna stood silent on the road. She has not said a word since the attack began, not even to reassure the men like she always did before battle. Something was wrong and two troopers knew it. But now was not the time to dwell on it. Once everything settled down, Knave would talk to her, with Razorwolf as backup. Luna hated opening up to others. But she was their sister, and they always looked out for their sister.

“This is Rex, we’re falling back! The Umbarans are right behind us!” Luna’s eyes widened. She readied her blaster and turned to her men.

“Get ready, here they come!” She ran back to take cover behind a tree. “Watch for friendlies.”

Razorwolf and Knave readied their weapons. The time to worry about Luna was over. Now, they had a job to do.

They could hear the blaster fire in the distance. It was getting louder; the enemy was getting closer. Razorwolf steadied his breathing and waited.

The first of Rex’s company appeared from behind the treeline, firing behind them as they ran. The Lunar Company troopers held their fire as their brothers ran past. Torrent Company took position behind them as the first Umbarans appeared.

Razorwolf aimed at an Umbaran approaching and squeezed the trigger. The bolt went home and broke through the Umbarans helmet. Gas seeped through the hole in the mask, releasing the airborne drug used to strengthen their troops. The rest of the company opened fire, carefully aiming each shot as their brothers were still out in the open.

Rex was the last one to pass their line, which gave the clones all the space they needed to rain hell. The heavy guns opened up and the AT-RTs arrived to provide some explosive firepower.

Luna fired rapidly into the Umbarans, using them as a target for her anger. They deserved it. If they never rebelled, this would not be happening. Her brothers would not be on this forsaken planet, she would not have to watch them die in the most gruesome ways possible, and they wouldn’t be stuck here with General Krell! She roared as the Umbarans retreated into the trees, disappearing in shadow as they always do.

The troopers exhaled when the last hostile vanished. It would be quiet, but only for a moment. Luna watched as Krell shoved his way past the exhausted troopers and marched right up to Rex.

“CT-7567, is there a malfunction in your design?!” Luna walked up to stand next to ARC Trooper Fives. She was sure he was glaring at the Jedi like she was.

“You pulled your forces back from taking the Capital City, the enemy now has full control of this route!” Luna scoffed. The enemy already had control of the route, that was why General Skywalker had planned to avoid it. But Krell did not care. He thought them as nothing but fodder. Luna growled. Her brothers were worth much more than fodder, and she was going to make Krell see that.

“This entire operation has been compromised, because of your failure!” Krell emphasized his point by shoving a large finger into the captain’s shoulder, forcing the clone to take a step back with each hit.

“General Krell,” Fives spoke up, “In case you haven’t noticed, Captain Rex just saved his company.” The ARC took a step forward. “Sure you won’t fail to recognize that.”

The Jedi’s eyes narrowed. “ARC-5555,” he activated his lightsaber and floated it next to the trooper’s neck, “stand down.” A vibroblade knocked the saber to the side. All eyes turned to Luna in surprise and shock. She glared at the Jedi General.

He glared back and tried to move his saber, but Luna held it in her aura’s grip. She marched up to him, close enough to have him see her burning gaze through the visor.

“You don’t have the right to threaten my brother.” Krell was about to activate his second saber when Rex spoke up.

“Sir, if I may address your accusation,” he growled, “I followed your orders in a plan that was, in my opinion, extremely flawed. A plan that cost us men!” All eyes turned to Rex as he removed his helmet. “Not clones, men!” Luna smiled at him, proud of his bravery and devotion.

“As it is my duty to remain loyal to your command.” He gestured to his men, who were watching the exchange in awe and fear. “I also have a duty to protect those men.”

Krell gazed at the men of the 501st in thought. After some silence, he deactivated his lightsaber, allowing Luna to lower her blade.

“You have a spark of tenacity, Captain, I’ll give you that.” Krell said. “I know I don’t command like the Jedi you’re used to serving.” He shook his head. “Certainly not like General Skywalker. But I have my way.”

Luna glared. The General won’t even admit he was wrong. Typical.

“It may be difficult, but these are difficult times.” Krell’s authoritative voice returned. “And it’s proven effective.” The Besalisk cleared his throat. “And I suppose your loyalty to your men is to be commended.”

‘Did the General almost compliment Rex?’ Luna raised an eyebrow.

“They seem to admire this. That’s important to an effective commander.”

Luna felt that he should start practicing his own teachings.

“Alright Captain Rex, your opinion has been noted.” With that, the General walked away, leaving the men baffled.

Fives and Luna walked up to Rex.

“I think the General almost complimented you.” Fives quipped.

Rex scoffed. “Eh, it’s hard to tell.”

“Are you two alright?” Luna asked. They both nodded.

“Ambush!” Magnet shouted as a plasma ball screamed from the forest. It slammed into the ground behind the troopers, thankfully hitting none of them. The Umbarans charged out of the woodline toward the Republic position.

The two Captains and the ARC put on their helmets and ran to lead the defense, taking cover behind a wrecked walker.

“They're relentless!” Warran shouted as he fired.

“Everyone, hold this position!” Rex ordered.

“Do you really think General Krell intends to take the Capital using this strategy?” Fives asked as he fired.

“I don’t know,” Rex admitted, “I’ll get back to you on that if we survive this battle.”

The 501st held the line, hoping for a change in strategy or the return of General Skywalker.

Author's Note

And here we go, let the Third Part of the Clone Wars Series Begin!

I'm sure we all feel the same way about Umbara, but don't worry. We'll get through this highway through hell together.

Trivia Time:
1. Why did the Umbarans join the Separatists?
2. What War is Umbara always compared to?
3. Who's excited for the rest of the Arc and Part 3?!

Special Birthday Shout-Out to spartanzero. Thank You for being an awesome fan, and I hope you enjoy the rest.

Chapter 20: The General

Luna raised a shield as an Umbaran fighter raced toward her position. It launched two plasma balls toward her men, who ran under the shield for cover. The balls slammed into an AT-RT nearby, sending the walker flying into a group of unfortunate clones. She lowered her shield and used her magic to lift the walker off of one of the clones. Radar immediately runs over and drags the half crushed trooper away.

The fighter came back and hovered over another squad of troopers. It quickly spins around several times, smacking away the men before they could move. It then flew off and disappeared into the sky once more.

Luna watched the fighter go and ran over to Captain Rex’s position. The clone captain was leaning against a tree, doing his best to coordinate the defense, since General Krell was further back from the action.

“We’ve got to move before those fighters come back!” She shouted as she kneeled down next to Rex.

Before he could reply, Rex was hailed over by Jesse. He ran over to them, leaving Luna behind. She growled before returning to her men. She found Knave, Gallus, and Steele already gathered up.

“Have the rest of the men ready to move, those fighters will be back and we need to get out of the open!” She explained, ducking down as more blaster fire ripped through the air.

“And where exactly do we go, Captain?” Steele asked, firing into the trees.

“Somewhere with more cover, we need to widen our frontline and space our squads out.” She turned to Knave. “Take your platoon to the right and push past that small hill.” He nodded and left to lead the attack. She then turned to Gallus. “Gather up what men you can for a center defense here, I need the medics covered while they move the wounded out.

“Copy that!” Gallus turned and left to follow his orders. Luna then turned to Steele. “Steele, I need your men to shift left and try to push the Umbarans back. We need breathing room.”

Instead of turning and following his given order, he cocked his head to the side. “Is that a good idea, Captain?” Luna glared, she did not have time for this.

“Unless a better plan comes along, then yes. Now get to it!” Steele nodded and ran to gather up his men. Luna watched his go with a forlorn expression. She knew why he was acting like this. The past week has been nothing but one botched plan after another. The men were tired. She was tired. But until that capital was seized, General Krell would not let them rest.

‘Would he let us rest even after we took the city?’ She thought for a moment, but it passed when she remembered that she had a job to do, which was to make sure her men made it out safely through this campaign.

A few yards away, Radar and Junior were working overtime to patch up the wounded. They gave minor wounds a quick check up and some pain relievers before sending them back into the fight, while the more heavily injured were patched up and given bacta before being taken back to the medical area in the rear.

The Umbaran weapons left wounds that were much more severe than they were used to. The burns were worse, the wounds were vastly different than the ones in the past, and General Krell’s tactics left too many of them to be treated in a timely fashion.

Radar made his grievances known to the General, but the Jedi simply scoffed and made him go back to work without a second thought. Now, Radar was not one to question his leaders. But Krell was something else.

Razorwolf charged up the hill, throwing a bundle of thermal detonators into an enemy foxhole and blasting it. The explosion sent bits of Umbarans into the air. Some blood and a chunk of flesh landed on his armor. But, he could care less, he simply brushed it off his visor and continued his assault. His anger was something to behold. He saw that bruise on Captain Luna’s cheek after the engagement on the road last week. While it had faded within that time, he knew where she got it from.

General Krell. Razorwolf swore that if he survived and escaped this hellspawn planet, he was going to end Krell’s like himself. A trooper to his left falls dead, his buddy drags him back and moves on.

Razorwolf shook his head. This was worse than anything he had seen before, and he fought on Geonosis.

Luna helped drag some wounded men into the medical area, which was already overflowing. Her heart stopped at the sight of half burnt and ripped open men laying in stretchers on the floor. Krell gave them no time to set up proper medical facilities. He always kept them moving, with only enough time to eat one ration bar a day and get only about an hour’s worth of sleep.

The alicorn was sure that this was in violation of several Republic Military Laws. But what she did not know was if the law applied to her and her brothers. After all, they were just clones, not citizens of the Republic.

“All units, prepare to move out, head to coordinates 772, 992, 00.34215, over.” Luna growled as the message came through. Once again, the 501st was moving out, without a doubt, into another hell storm.

Once they were able to drive the enemy back, the 501st marched toward the coordinates of the airbase. Luna’s Company was once again at the front of the column. Normally, the quietness would be a welcome sound for the clones after a major battle. But Umbara robbed them of that joy. Their heads and weapons were on swivels as they marched through the flora.

Luna marched behind Steele’s platoon, who were at the very front of the formation. Steele took a few quick glances at the alicorn, his face unreadable behind the helmet. He was not sure how to feel about Captain Luna, there were moments where she genuinely cared about her men, then there were times where she did not. It was hard for him to understand. He cared about his men, and had disobeyed orders in the past to make sure they were safe.

The Captain never disobeyed orders. Were it General Skywalker’s orders, that was understandable. But she followed Krell’s orders to the letter. Why? His orders would get more men killed, and half the time for nothing.

Did Dek die for nothing? Of course not. Did he have to die? He had no idea. But with the way Captain Luna acted, it felt like it didn't matter to her.

A palm to the chest shoved him out of his thoughts. Spark stood in front of him with an arm extended. The lieutenant was about to reprimand him when he saw what was ahead.

It was a deep ravine, with thick flora running down the middle. In the distance, the lights of the airbase can be seen. It was a massive tower surrounded by flat lands and hangars. It was the only thing bright in this shadowed world.

Luna approached the two troopers and looked at the sight. She was silent, her eyes checked every rock and flora of that ravine. This was going to be a kill box.

“Rex, we have a problem.”

Steele and Spark looked at each other.

Krell and Rex approached the edge of the cliff to look at the ravine. Luna handed her fellow captain the binoculars. Rex looked toward the base and scanned everything.

“Looks like the base, alright.” He confirmed. “And heavily guarded.”

“Zombie and the scouts report three units of tanks, plus heavy artillery.” Luna added, pulling up a map of the area. “They’re surrounding the base and are guarding all approaches.”

Krell wasted no time coming up with a plan. “We shall push through the gorge and engage the enemy in a full frontal assault.” Luna looked at him with widened eyes and nearly spoke out. But she stopped. The bruise on her cheek has faded, but the pain still lingered. Rex scanned the gorge, and he formed his own opinion.

“The gorge is too narrow, sir. We’ll only be able to move our platoons in single squads.” He stood up and looked at the Jedi. “Perhaps a closer recon could find a better route.”

Luna prayed to whatever would listen to make Krell see sense. The General rubbed his chin in thought for a few moments. Her hope had risen, but was quickly dashed.

“Obi-Wan and the other battalions are holding off the enemy, right now. While they wait for us to take out this base. We don’t have time to look for a more secure route.”

Luna thought back to the scouts. There were routes, but every one of them would meet resistance. But this gorge would be their grave if they charged through it like Krell intended. Her brain argued with itself on whether or not to question Krell. But she was in the open, surrounded by her men and fellow officers. She was safe. For now.

“General, I report that-”

“What have I said about questioning my orders, Captain Luna?” She froze. She could feel his hand against her cheek once more. She felt the fear and the confusion. But he did not strike her this time. He simply spoke to her in the same tone.

“Sorry, sir.” She said, silencing herself. The alicorn shrunk in her armor as Krell turned back toward the Command Section. Rex watched him go, then turned to Luna.

He approached her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She nearly jumped and shook the hand away. Her men watched as Luna walked back through their formation and disappeared behind a large vine.

Knave watched it all unfold, then turned to the other platoon leaders.

“Get ready to move out, have all squads ready to go!” He then looked at Razorwolf. The trooper was already making his way to find the alicorn captain. He walked through the flora, listening for anything that could give Luna’s position away.

His audio receptors picked up on hastened breathing to his right. He turned to find a sight that did not seem possible. Captain Luna, without her helmet on, eyes wide with fear. He could see the sweat soaking her fur. He never saw the captain like this. After all they had been through, the men of the 501st made bets that she could take on a sarlacc pit and not even flinch. But here she was, afraid of something.

Razorwolf had no idea how to approach her. They were never trained to handle emotions like this. He thought back to how General Skywalker helped Commander Tano. Perhaps, he could try one of his approaches.

“Captain.” The alicorn jumped out of her skin. Her wings flared for a moment before retracting. Razorwolf slowly stepped toward her. “Are you alright?”

Luna said nothing. She just stood there, staring off into space. “Captain,” he tired again, “do you need help?”

He placed a hand on her back. It did not stay there. It was flicked away with his captain’s powers. Her glare made him back up.

“No, Corporal. I do not need help. I am perfectly fine.” Her tone was almost as robotic as a medical droid’s. “Now, get back to the others and prepare for an assault.”

His training told him to obey, but his instincts held him in place. “Luna, we’re just-”

“I said return to the line corporal, or I’ll have you back on a venator doing maintenance for disobeying orders!” Razorwolf nearly fell in shock. Luna said nothing more as she placed her helmet back on her head and returned to the formation.

The men of Torrent Company advanced into the gorge. Their AT-RTs lead the way. Luna’s company stood at the entrance of the gorge, waiting for the signal to advance, or cover the retreat when things would go wrong. Not a single clone in the entire battalion felt safe.

“This is insane!” Radar bellowed as they marched on.

“Krell is going to get us killed!” Junior added. Gallus turned to his men.

“Keep your thoughts to yourselves troopers and wait for the signal.” His authority held little power, as the troopers were too fed up to listen.

“We’ve kept our thoughts to ourselves long enough, sir!” Warran retorted.

“This is gonna be a meat grinder!” “We don’t have the firepower for this attack!” “Not even a Jedi could survive this!”

Steele managed to quiet his men long enough for him to find Captain Luna. She was talking to Knave, planning out their part of the assault.

“Captain!” Both officers looked at him. He pointed to the troopers, who were still arguing. “Perhaps, you should take charge for once and reassure your men.”

“Now hold on, Steele-”

“It’s fine, lieutenant.” Luna stepped forward. “I’ll handle this.” She walked toward the men while Knave walked up to Steele.

“What is your problem?” He growled. Steele glared back.

“My problem? How about hers? She doesn’t seem that concerned about the men as she should be.”

“When you’re a captain, you’ll understand just what she has to do to-”

“To what? Stay in Krell’s good graces? She seems pretty good at following his orders.”

“We all follow orders, Steele-”

“But her orders get us all killed!” Knave finally had enough. He grabbed Steele by the shoulders and shoved him back against a vine.

“Listen here, soldier. I don’t know what your problem with her is, but Captain Luna does her best to get us through this alive!” Steele was about to retort, but Knave kept on going. “Luna did her best at Geonosis, twice. She held us together on Felucia when we were ready to blow our own brains out! She’s seen so many of our brothers die, and she blames herself every time! I trust her judgement because she always did what was right by us, and the Republic. Men die, Steele. That’s the way it is! So suck it up and follow orders because those orders might save your life!”

With that, Knave let go and marched away, leaving Steele to think about what he said. The clone approached Luna, but was stopped by Razorwolf.

“Knave, we need to talk.”

The ground suddenly shook. Troopers held onto each other to keep from falling down. Blaster fire went off in the distance. The troopers readied their weapons and began moving toward the fighting.

Luna activated her comms. “Rex, status!”

“Enemy tanks came outta nowhere! They’re ray shielded!”

Some troopers readied their rocket launchers. Green bolts suddenly appeared from the vines. One trooper next to Junior goes down. He grabs him and pulls him clear. The company halted and aimed at the jungle ahead.

The ground shook once more. Razorwolf felt the ground beneath him begin to give way. He jumped clear right before a large centipede arose from the earth. Green bolts fired from the guns attached to the tank.

“Ambush!” Several troopers and two walkers were gunned down before the tank dropped and started running circles around the men. They fired at the tank in vain hopes of damaging it.

The tank turned to a group of troopers and charged toward them. The poor men had no chance to run before they were crushed by the monster. Another pair of troopers were blasted away by the turrets. Another walker explodes, killing its pilot. Radar and Junior work overtime to try and help any wounded, but the tank’s constant assault kept them pinned down.

Jumpstrike readied his rocket and aimed at the tank. The head of the tank looked toward him, revealing the driver inside. “Gotcha.” he squeezed the trigger and fired. The projectile left the tube and slammed into the eye of the beast. A chain explosion rocked the tank, blowing away the turrets and splitting it in two.

Blue plasma splashed around, forcing the men to duck into cover to avoid it. Luna looked around to see if any more tanks were coming. There was a large wall of explosions in the distance, followed by silence.

“Rex, are you okay?”

“.... I’m fine, Luna. We got hit hard, but the tanks are scrap. How about you?”

“Ambushed, but alright. I lost a lot of men, though.” She looked at her men, then back at the cliff. She could feel Krell’s eyes on her. “My men will join yours in the assault, I’m leaving a small detachment behind to help the wounded.”

“Copy that, we’ll hold until you’re ready.” Luna cut the comms and turned to her men.

“Knave, you take your platoon and the medics. Get the wounded back to camp. Once there, Rex will send you his wounded and you do the same for them, understood?”

Knave nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Everyone else, let’s move out!”

The two clone companies quickly joined up. Most marched past the hulking wrecks of Umbaran tanks, but a few searched through looking for trophies or survivors.

Steele found an Umbaran crewman stuck beneath some debris. The Umbaran spoke rapidly in its native language, which he did not understand. He didn’t care enough to understand anyway, as he pressed his blaster barrel against the Umbaran’s head and fired a single shot.

Some more blaster shots went off as the clones finished off the survivors. The Umbarans never left prisoners, why should they? Luna grabbed one by the neck and squeezed just enough to crush its windpipe. Her helmet reflected the Umbaran’s pleading face as the life drained from its eyes. Long ago, this would have made them flinch.

But now, the men of the 501st could care less.

They moved past the wrecks and continued to the airbase, prepared for the next ambush.

Rex halted the advance as he and Luna looked through their binoculars. All movement stopped as a thunderstorm boomed. Luna looked at the sky. Despite how dark and misty it was, there was no sign of a storm. She scanned the flora and saw something move.

Whatever it was, it was big. It looked like a bug of some kind. She thought it might be some wildlife they haven’t encountered yet, but then she saw the massive cannon on the top. More Umbaran tanks, and these ones were much bigger than the crawlers.

At first, there was one, then there were two, then three, then five, then seven. It was an entire tank company, with infantry support.

“We’ve got a problem.” Rex summed up, just before the tanks opened fire.

A giant ball of plasma sailed through the air. The clones scattered to find cover.

“All squads, fall back!” Luna bellowed as the plasma rounds impacted around her. The troopers ran for their lives as more plasma balls came their way. The tanks gave chase and were soon on top of the retreating clones.

Steele turned to his right, and watched as an entire squad was engulfed in a toxic blue light and were vaporized. “Oh skray.” He muttered in shock. Another pair of troopers were crushed under one of the tank’s legs. The leg raised above his head. He closed his eyes and braced for the pain. Something slammed into his side and knocked him out of the way.

Steele and her savior rolled several feet before stopping. He had not time to recover before he was lifted back onto his feet. The clone blinked and looked at his savior. It was Captain Luna. Her gaze was not on him, but the tanks that were marching over them. Green bolts flew past them, revealing the Umbaran infantry squad charging toward them. Luna fired at the squad and gunned them down with ease.

She then pulled Steele forward, making his sprint. “Keep moving, Steele! Get the men out of here! I’ll cover your back!” Steele gazed at his commanding officer for a second, then did as he was told. Luna fired at the advancing Umbarans, then turned to follow.

Her comlink bleeped as two voices came through.

“Captain,” Krell snapped, “continue your attack!”

“Sir, we’re overpowered, we need reinforcements.” Rex explained.

“The rest of the Battalion is holding the entrance to the gorge, Captain.” What? But they had already cleared the area, surely another company would be able to assist them? Was Krell trying to get them killed?!

“They’re guarding it so your troops can break through to the airbase!” Luna saw Radar dragging a wounded clone into some cover. Two Umbarans aimed their blasters at him. The alicorn beat them to it and fired a barrage, eliminating the threat to her medic. Radar nodded his head and began treating the clone.

Another squad was caught in an explosion and torn to shreds. Gallus ducked to avoid the shrapnel. Spark aimed at an Umbaran as it gunned down a trooper. He fired one shot, and nailed it in the head.

“Sir, we can’t possibly-”

“You will stand your ground! Do you read me?!” The rest of Krell’s rant was drowned out by the screaming in Luna’s mind. Something inside her felt ready to snap, and she was just about to let it. It took all of her strength to keep her mind together. She had a job to do, men that needed to survive, and she was not going to let them down.

Several troopers were vaporized by the arcs of plasma lightning shot from the undercarriages of the tanks. Radar had to hold back the bile as he continued work on a trooper. There wasn’t much he could do when the trooper’s arm was vaporized. All there was left to do was make the pain stop. Just some bacta to numb the pain and clean out the wound.

The wounded were gathered in a large clump of vines, where the enemy tanks could not enter nor see inside. Rex helped Kix lay a wounded trooper on the ground. “Keep the wounded as quiet as possible.” Luna helped another trooper inside, then walked up to Rex.

“Rex, we need to fall back.” Rex looked at her, then shook his head.

“Luna, we can’t. The General-”

“Screw the General, Rex! He can put me in front of a firing squad for all I care! We cannot continue this slaughter!”

“I used to think Krell was reckless,” Fives stepped in, “but now, I have a feeling he just hates clones.”

“We have orders,” Dogma rebutted, “Now let’s move out.” Rex tried to move, but Fives held him in place.

“We can’t take them head on, we need to find another way.” Rex stared at the ARC trooper.

“You got any ideas?” He meant it as a way to shut the trooper up. But the Captain was actually hoping for an idea. When Fives stayed silent and looked down, he knew there wasn’t one.

“Then this is it.” He turned to move when he was once again stopped. This time by Luna stepping in front of him.

“I think I do.” She said. Rex could see the sly smile under her helmet.

“Alright, let’s hear it.” Luna gathered up the others and explained her plan.

She wanted Fives, Hardcase, and Circuit to sneak through the Umbaran lines and infiltrate the airbase. Once inside, they need to steal three fighters. The Umbaran weapons would have more than enough firepower to decimate the enemy forces, clearing the way for the rest of the 501st to launch a full scale assault and overrun the airbase.

Fives and Hardcase laughed. This was a plan General Skywalker would be jealous he didn’t come up. The three troopers saluted and ran to get around the Umbaran attack.

“As for the rest of us,” Luna stood and primed her blaster, “let’s buy them time.”

“Okay,” Jump said, “let’s do it!” He prepared his rocket launcher and took aim at the tank. He aimed for the base of the cannon, hoping it was weak enough. The launcher sent the rocket spiraling toward the target. It impacted, making the tank reel back. But it did no damage. These tanks were tough, far tougher than the crawlers.

Luna gulped. She was hoping the rockets would do some damage. “All squads, hold this line! We keep them here!”

Her comlink bleeped again, Krell was contacting Rex, demanding an update. She was ready to snap, but she held her tongue at bay. Instead, she listened in.

“CT-7567, do you read me? Where are you?”

“General Krell, we’ve come up with an idea to infiltrate the airbase.”

“What is your plan?” Krell sounded both curious and nervous. Luna hummed. Something wasn’t right.

“I’ve dispatched three men on a stealth incursion into the airbase.” Rex explained. “They've been ordered to co-opt starfighters and use them against the tanks.”

Luna could hear the shock in Krell’s voice as he snapped. “You what?!”

“You put this entire assault on your hope that three clones would do what two companies cannot?!”

Luna glared at her comlink and slammed on the transmitter. “General, this is my plan, and yes I do! We cannot get past these tanks, we’re outgunned and outnumbered! Unless you want this assault to fail, then you will-”

“Do not give me orders, clone!” Krell bellowed. “You will launch a full scale assault and call off that strike team, or both of you will be relieved of duty!”

The alicorn captain just smirked and turned off her transmitter, she held on for a few seconds to see if Rex would comply. When she heard nothing, her grin went wider. “Good on you, Rex.” She turned and fired at the Umbarans and prayed that Fives and his team would get to the airbase quickly.

Fives’ strike team were quick to arrive at the airbase. “The second they spot us, I start blasting.” Hardcase declared, aiming the rifle at the base to prove his point. Fives and Circuit rolled their eyes. They knew Hardcase meant it, he was as gung-ho as a new recruit, despite his combat experience.

“Hardcase, can’t ya take it easy, for once?” Fives asked as they crept their way to the base perimeter.

“Please, stick to the plan instead of guns blazing.” Circuit added.

“I’m sorry, it’s just how I am.” Hardcase said dejectedly. He truly was sorry, but the clone couldn’t help himself. “My commanders say that my growth acceleration tube had a leak. Made me hyperactive, I guess.”

Circuit swore he heard him whimper. He sighed. Hardcase wasn’t that different from some of his old squadmates. They got excited and rushed into fights at every opportunity. Now, most of them were buried on Geonosis.

The three men stopped when they could see the electric fence that surrounded the base. They crept as close as they could to get a better view. They could see three fighters perfectly lined up near the fence. There were no guards near them. But a small squad was patrolling along the airstrip.

Fives looked at the fence, then at the tall tree right next to it. He led the others to the tree. “Use this tree to get over the wall.”

“Uh, how am I supposed to do this, exactly?” Hardcase asked.

“Figure it out!” Fives replied as he grabbed some detonators from Hardcase’s bag. Hardcase aimed his rifle up and fired the tow cable. It embedded itself in the tree. Fives began placing explosives around the base of the tree as Hardcase climbed the tow cable. Circuit waited a few seconds, then followed Hardcase up.

Once they reached the top, they could see more of the airbase. “Great, nice view.” Hardcase muttered. They then quietly walked down a vine that hung over the fence.

“I prefer a good fight to all this sneaking around.” Hardcase groaned. Circuit rolled his eyes.

“With your groaning, it’s a wonder the whole base doesn’t know we’re here.” They slid down onto the airstrip and watched Fives climb up the tree. He grabbed the tow cable and reloaded it into the rifle.

As Fives moved onto the vine branch. One of the flying creatures charged toward him. Fives ducked to avoid getting nabbed, almost losing his balance in the process. He tried to swat the creature away with the blaster, but the beast knocked it out of his hands. Hardcase caught the rifle as Fives fell and grabbed the vine.

The creature turned back to attack when Hardcase fired, nailing the creature to the tree. It screeched out in pain, then went limp.

Fives slid down the vine and landed next to Hardcase and Circuit. “Wow, I never actually thought that would work.” Fives joked before the three ran to the sitting fighters.

They made their way past a hanger and found a spot to hide near the fighters. Circuit covered his two comrades as they turned a corner. An Umbaran guard marched past them, unaware of their presence. Fives pressed a button on his wrist, detonating the thermals he had placed on the tree. The Umbaran guards heard the explosion and ran to investigate.

With the way clear, the three charged toward the fighters. Circuit led the way, but was unprepared for the Umbaran that jumped from behind a tank leg. He felt something pierce his side, but he ignored it in favor of shoving the guard back and firing a shot from his shotgun into its head. The guard dropped dead and the three continued. Circuit kept the pain to himself, they had a job to do and no time to waste.

They approached the fighters and looked at the seats. They were below the fighters, with no clear controls. “So… how do I start this thing?” Hardcase asked as Fives sat in one.

“Well, how should I know?” Circuit asked, realizing the irony of his next suggestion. “Start pushing buttons.” Fives pressed a button, activating the cockpit shield. Along with the shield appeared several monitors. He removed his helmet to get a better view of his new surroundings. Hardcase sat in another fighter and did the same.

Circuit stopped at a third fighter and was about to sit down when a squad of Umbarans approached. He could see Fives and Hardcase still trying to figure out how to fly the fighters. Then, he looked at the stab wound in his side. He could not fly with it, as he would probably bleed to death before he could land.

With a sigh, he made a decision. He primed his shotgun and took aim. The Umabrans came into range. He pulled the trigger, unleashing a devastating scattershot into the group. Three were cut in half while the other two took cover.

Circuit did the same and fired at the remaining Umbarans. He killed one, but more quickly appeared from the shadows. Fives and Hardcase finally figured out how to attach the cockpit to the fighter, then saw the skirmish going on.

Fives called out. “Circuit, get into a fighter, it’s ray shielded!”

“No time!” Circuit called back, firing another shot into the Umbarans. “Just get going, save the others!”

“We ain’t leaving ya, Circuit!” Hardcase declared.

“Just go, I’ll be fine!” All three men knew that was a lie, but Fives and Hardcase relented. They took off, firing some blasts into the crowd, thinking out their numbers a bit. Circuit nodded his thanks and watched them go. He smiled, then readied his blaster.

More Umabrans appeared from the hanger. Circuit fired into them once more, ripping them apart. More Umabrans appeared, firing into his position. One got him in the leg, knocking him down.

But he got back up and fired again, killing more Umbarans. A second shot hit his already bleeding side. But he continued to fight. He would not stop. He fired until a third round hit his back. He paused to suck in the pain, then fought back.

A fourth shot ripped through his arm, forcing him to drop the gun. He pulled out a pistol and fired again, killing another, and another, and another.

A fifth shot ripped through his chest, a sixth through his shoulder. But he continued to fire. A seventh burned his foot. An eighth scorched his other shoulder. With no way to fight, Circuit stood straight in defiance as the Umbarans marched up. It was a ninth shot to the head that finally ended Circuit’s fight. His last thoughts were of his brothers and the lives he knew would be saved because he gave one last good fight.

The situation was getting desperate. Half of the men were either dead or dying. Luna dragged a dead clone out of the crater where his squad once stood. Her breathing was erratic. Her fur was matted with sweat and tears. This was a nightmare, one where there was only one hope of escape. “Blast it, Fives, where are you?”

As if to answer her question, two Umbaran fighters dropped from the skies. She watched as they sailed over the battlefield and turned around. They fired at the Umabran tanks, giving the troopers a chance to run.

The tanks fired back, but the fighters were much too nimble for their weapons to be of any effect. Luna watched with glee as the fighters ripped the tanks apart.

The clones cheered as the fighters spun around in a less than dignified manner. They were overjoyed by the success of the strike team. Luna cheered with them before she realized something. She sent three men to retrieve the fighters. But there were only two in the air.

Her joyous mood did not last.

Clones from the rest of the Battalion charged toward the airbase, intending on taking it with a clear path. One that was cleared by the men of Torrent and Lunar Company.

They found Circuit’s body, surrounded by over twenty dead Umbarans. Luna oversaw his transport to a nearby hanger personally. There, he was placed along with the rest of the dead. The 501st made a vow that no trooper would be buried in this shadow world. Once the fighting was over, their bodies would be transported back to Kamino, where they would be ceremoniously released into the sea. It was the least these men deserved.

Her mind went to a much darker place as she stared at the tarps. Rows upon rows of dead men, dead brothers, and the words of Krell made her boil. To him, this was all worth it. All of the lives snuffed out today were worth an airbase. One that could’ve been bombed or overrun with a more efficient attack! But no, krell had to do it his way. The Jedi, once again, used them as cannon fodder.

How could Krell do this? How was he still considered a Jedi? Luna had to wonder, were other Jedi like this? Were Jedi like General Skywalker, Kenobi, Ahsoka, and Plo Koon the exception?

She remembered Celestia’s story of Mimban, how General Windu was so willing to let her men die just to keep a stalemate going. Why? Were they afraid of clones being smarter than them? Why were they running the war? They were merely swordsmen with special powers!

Luna threw her helmet against the wall. She had to stop herself. She couldn’t let these thoughts take hold.

‘Maybe… Slick was right. Maybe we are just slaves to the Jedi.’ She cast the thought aside. The battle isn't over yet. Once they took Umbara, then she could think about her place in the Galaxy.

Author's Note

Another chapter, another day of regret as I continue to torcher my favorite princess and her soldiers.

Why? Why must Krell exist?! Why must Umbara exist?! Someone get me a Death Star, I have a new target for them!

Chapter 21: Plans of Dissent

Luna never realized how much she missed a bed. Weeks of laying in trenches in rain and shadow gave her little reason to sleep. But now, in a nice, warm bed, she could finally catch up. Surprisingly, things had quieted down. The Umbarans haven’t counter attacked like they usually did.

Many of the rookies felt nervous, like they were expecting something big to jump out of the ground and eat them. Luna laughed at the thought. She had been the same way during her first few weeks in action. They’ll learn eventually.

The veteran members of the 501st took the opportunity to rest. But their rest would not last.

The base’s PA system rang out and the base alarm roared. Luna shot up and grabbed her helmet. This is why she was glad she stayed in her armor. She readied her blaster and ran out of the room to join the rest of her company.

Troopers scrambled around in their barracks, grabbing their armor, weapons, and ammunition. Most of them were fast asleep in their bunks, all of them were caught off guard by the alarm. They ran through the halls to the outside airstrip, taking cover behind sandbags and in trenches.

Razorwolf growled as he dove into a trench and aimed at the surrounding flora. “Can’t we get a chance to sleep?!” He called out. There was no reply. The clones sat in their trenches and waited.

…
…

Nothing. Not even a stray bolt or a sniper glint. It was quiet. Was it a stealth attack? Was the enemy scouting them out?

Luna scanned the vines with her macros, but she could not see anything. No Umbarans, no animals. Nothing. What was going on?

“Captain Luna!” The alicorn turned to see Dogma running up to her. He stopped and saluted her, lowering her arm once she gave one back.

“What’s going on, Dogma?”

“General Krell is running surprise drills to see how well the men respond.” Dogma explained. Luna glared.

“Is that so?” She turned to Knave, who was sitting nearby. “Order the men to stand down, get them back to bed.” Her Second-In-Command nodded and activated his commlink. Luna then turned to Gallus, who was just as annoyed as she was.

“Make sure the men get rest, shift change every three hours. The well rested ones get first duty.” Gallus nodded. She stood up and marched toward the massive tower at the center of the base.

Luna could feel the Jedi’s eyes on her as she approached, and the feeling lasted as she rode the elevator to the top.

Troopers steered clear as the captain marched through the base. They could see the glare under her helmet and knew that it was going to be ugly. Kix had to side step into a wall to avoid the oncoming storm.

Luna burst into the Command Room, gaining the attention of every trooper on duty. All eyes fell on her, except for the ones that mattered. Krell just stared out the window, standing perfectly still with his lower arms behind his back. He didn’t twitch as Luna marched up and removed her helmet.

“General Krell!” The Jedi turned to face her with a neutral expression. His upper arms are crossed.

“Is there a problem, Captain?”

“You’re damn right there is!” The clones recoiled at Luna’s anger. They may have hated General Krell, but none of them were willing to raise their voice at him. Regulations drilled into their heads made sure they wouldn’t dream of it.

“What was the meaning of that drill?”

“The drills are to ensure the men are prepared. This was sloppy. In the time it took to get your company into position, the Umbarans could have pushed into the base and slaughtered you in your barracks.” Krell explained it in the same tone as explaining it to a youngling.

“General, the men are tired. This is the first time they’ve had a chance to get proper sleep since the start of this invasion.” She took a deep breath and calmed down. “General, we’re not droids. We have needs that are hardly being met. Men are starving, exhausted, and irritated. They need time to-”

“Captain, there is no time. Every minute we waste eating or sleeping is another casualty being sustained by the other battalions. I understand the men have needs, but they need the resolve to carry on and win this battle. This airbase is too vital to leave to chance.”

He paused to lean toward Luna. “I think you’d be more intent on holding this base. You lost many men trying to take it, after all.” The alicorn glared. Troopers noticed how cold it suddenly got in the room. Luna said nothing as she turned on her hooves and marched out of the room. She felt eyes on her as the doors closed behind her.

Razorwolf threw his helmet on the ground in frustration. Knave and Gallus watched the helmet roll up to the wall and stop. The clone sat down on his bunk, slamming a fist on his pillow. Warran entered the room just in time to catch Razorwolf’s violent acts.

“You know, that pillow did nothing to you.”

If this were any other day, Razorwolf would have laughed and offered Warran a drink. But now, he just wanted to destroy another pillow.

The clone sergeant watched the hot headed clone go after another target, then turned to Knave and Gallus.

“Krell wants everyone to ‘clean up the base,’ as he put it.”

The two officers rolled their eyes. “Right, no rest for the weary troopers.”

“I’m starting to think the General doesn’t like us.” Gallus added as much snark as he could muster. Razorwolf ripped apart another pillow. More specifically, Zombie’s pillow. The sniper watched as the most comfortable thing on this base was destroyed. He blinked once, then got up and grabbed a pillow from an empty bunk.

Other clones in the barrack hid their pillows away, leaving Razorwolf with nothing to destroy in his anger. It took him a few moments to inhale and sit down on his bunk. Knave walked over and sat down next to him.

“Finally got it out of your system?”

Razorwolf glared. “Not. Even. Close.”

Knave sighed and stood up. “Well cool it fast, we don’t have time to lash out.”

“Put me on a combat patrol and I’ll let my rage out on better targets.”

Knave laughed. “Next time, buddy.”

Other troopers took out their pillows and tried to get back to any resemblance of sleep. It was a small peace, and it was not going to last.

Steele was about to explode. Clean up duty. Clean up duty! What was there to clean up?! His platoon had been roped into taking the captured Umbaran supplies and stacking them up in a storage hanger. Why?

There were well over one hundred platoons in this battalion. Why was his unit selected out of all of them?! His back was on the verge of snapping with how heavy these crates were. What was in them?

A trooper to his right buckled under the weight of his crate, dropping the heavy object onto the ground. The crate popped open and several missiles rolled out and bounced off the floor. Everything halted. Steele stared at the missiles, then at the trooper, and back to the missiles. Well, that answered his question.

The rest of the day had gone on as normal. Normal as any base occupation could be. Prisoners were placed in cells and interrogated. All systems were checked and locked down to prevent sabotage. Weapons were locked away in vaults. Troopers were either on patrol or still stacking crates of supplies.

Luna lifted a heavy crate with her magic and lowered it gently onto the ever growing pile. She heard about the contents of these crates and did her best not to stumble.

“Captain Luna.” The alicorn almost threw the crate in fright as her commlink bleeped to life. She growled and placed the crate on the ground, gently.

“What is it, Rex?”

“Orders from the General, we move out in twelve hours.”

Luna should be surprised that they were moving so soon, but nothing was surprising about Krell anymore.

“Where to?”

“We’re moving to the Capital.”

Oh yes, because that worked so well last time they tried. Luna wasn’t a fool. She knew it was a suicide mission. Hell, she was sure the others knew it too. Most of them just didn’t want to admit it.

Suicide missions seem to be a specialty for the 501st, even under General Skywalker. But at least General Skywalker led from the front and did everything in his power to get his men out of harm’s way. Krell only cared about victory and was more than willing to kill as many clones as possible to achieve it.

She could hear the battle going on above the base. The Republic’s Fleet was taking on the Umbaran Defense Group, which has been reinforced with droid warships. If it was going their way, they would just bombard the Capital until it was a crater. But it wasn’t, so now the troopers had to slog it out in the jungle once more.

Luna could not believe the General’s strategy. Full frontal assault! Is that the only tactic he knows?! A B1 battle droid had better tactical sense. Luna knew, just as every clone knew, that those missiles would wipe them out in a single barrage.

They needed a better plan, and the alicorn knew just who to see. She marched into the hanger, where Rex was talking to Fives, Jesse, and some other men from Torrent Company. From the sound of the men, they were about as thrilled about the plan as she was.

“Great, another suicide mission.” Jesse droned as he continued his work on an Umbaran fighter. “The Capital is too well armed.”

“Why does it seem like he has it out for clones?” Tup asked.

“I think you’re all over reacting!” Dogma snapped. “Obviously, General Krell knows what he is doing. Do you really think he doesn’t care if he loses men.”

“I’m not saying that, but I think that his desire for victory has blinded him to the fact that there are lives on at stake.” Jesse said, slamming a hand on the console. “I’ve never seen a general with these kinds of casualties.”

“He’s outta control!” Fives said, turning to face the men. “He is not acting like the other Jedi. He has no respect for us!”

“Listen, I don’t agree with him either but… I don’t have a better plan.”

“Which is why we’re going to come up with one, Rex.” Luna said as she marched up. She turned to Fives. “Were you able to get it done, Fives?”

The ARC nodded, much to Rex’s confusion. Luna smiled and explained. “I asked Fives to look into the Umbaran hardware, see if he could find anything to exploit it. A little idea General Skywalker used often.”

Rex looked at Luna in surprise, then Fives, who nodded. “I was able to get their access codes and cracked the security on their hardware.” He scoffed. “A protocol droid is harder to crack.”

Luna beamed. “I knew it would be easy for an ARC Trooper.”

“So now, we can get in with their ships where our ships can’t.”

“Including a certain supply ship giving us trouble. We destroy that ship, we cut off supplies to the Capital.” Luna finished, giving Captain Rex hope of a less bloody victory.

“Great, I’ll inform General Krell and see what he says.” All clones exchanged a look. Luna sighed.

“Just don’t be disappointed Rex when he says no.”

“If he says-”

“No, I mean when, Rex.” The clone captain frowned, then turned on his heels and marched out of the hanger. Luna and the others watched him leave before she turned back to the ARC Trooper.

“Make sure the other fighters are ready. I want one wing of men ready to learn in two hours.”

Tup looked at the captain in shock. “You want us to learn how to fly starfighters in only a couple of hours?!”

Luna looked at the rookie and grinned. “Tup, if Hardcase can fly it. You’re bound to be an ace in a day.”

“Is that what you call flying? Looked more like he was avoiding the ground.” The troopers laughed. Something they haven’t done together in weeks.

Luna knew it was going to happen. Krell ordered the attack to go ahead as planned. There was to be no deviation from it. But she wasn’t deterred. She decided to take a page out of General Skywalker’s book and go ahead with the idea and just accept the consequences after the mission was successful.

She got Fives, Jesse, and Hardcase working on it. They had managed to convince everyone in the hanger to keep quiet about the training and deny the General any information. The bond the 501st shared with each other was something Luna would always be proud of. They were loyal to each other above all else. Brothers.

The training went well at first. Until Hardcase got into the cockpit. Then the hanger exploded, and Krell was aware of their plan. She was going to kill him when this was over with.

“I swear, Hardcase is Razorwolf’s clone rather than Jango’s.” She muttered to herself. It was going to be hard for Fives and his wingmen to steal the fighters when Krell had ordered them locked down. Good thing they had a beautiful captain to make it easier for them.

She made sure no one was around when the three took off in their fighters. She watched with pride as her brothers took to the sky on a mission to destroy an enemy supply ship.

Troopers suddenly went into a frenzy. Enough of them were out and about to see the fighters take off and none of them were aware of the plan. She had to suppress a giggle. Her trickster side was enjoying this far more than it should.

“What did you do?” Luna whipped around to see Gallus and Knave looking at her with bored expressions. She never could get anything under their noses.

“I didn’t do anything, I just made sure the mission I approved was to go ahead.”

“What mission?” Luna smiled cheekily.

“Exactly.”

Knave just shook his head with a grin. “You’re impossible.”

It wasn’t long before they returned Luna had joined Rex and Tup in greeting the men as they touched down.

“They did it!” Tup said excitedly.

“I never had doubt.” Luna said with pride. She held a calm outward appearance, but she was screaming with joy on the inside. If this was how General Skywalker felt after his plans succeeded, then she was more than willing to do more in the future.

But that joy quickly faded when she realized something. Only two ships came back. One piloted by Fives and the other by Jesse.

“Where’s Hardcase?” Tup asked. Fives and Jesse removed their helmets.

“He didn’t make it.” Fives said mournfully.

“We couldn’t have done it without him.” Jesse added. The five troopers held a moment of silence for their fallen brother. Luna gulped as she realized that it happened again. She gambled and lost a brother in the process. First Circuit, now Hardcase.

How many more were going to die because of her orders?

Their moment of silence ended when a squad of troopers marched up to them, armed. They were led by Commander Appo.

“General Krell would like to see them in the tower.” This was it. Time to face the music.

The atmosphere of dread was strong in the tower’s command room. Krell held his back to the clones as they exited the elevator. All of them stood at attention as Rex cleared his throat.

“You wanted to see them, General?”

There was a moment’s pause. “Indeed.” The air grew cold. This was the most silent Krell has ever been. “It seems they have accomplished a very brave act, unfortunately, they have also committed a serious crime by directly disobeying my order.”

The General turned to face them, his arms crossed to match his scowl. Luna took a brave step forward.

“Sir, the order to attack the supply vessel was mine.” Krell glared at her. “I organized it and selected them to do it because of their skill. The blame falls to me as their commanding officer.”

Fives stepped forward. “General, sir. Captain Luna is attempting to take the blame for actions that were clearly mine.”

“Fives!” Luna snapped.

The ARC ignored her and continued. “I request that her admission be denied and blame be placed directly on me.”

Just as Luna thought Krell’s glare couldn’t get colder, she was proven wrong.

“Oh, do you?” She felt the air become colder still. She swore she could see her breath. “You willfully counterman my direct order, and now you have the audacity to request who should take the blame for your insurrection!” Krell’s massive finger slammed into Fives’ chest twice before the Jedi backed away.

“Let me be clear about the punishment for the treason committed by ARC 5555 and CT 5597!”

He closed in on Luna. She stood tall against the much taller Jedi General. “They will be court-martialed. They will be found guilty, and they will be executed!”

“Not when I give my report in their defense!” Luna snapped, surprising everyone in the room. There was silence as the Jedi and alicorn stared each other down.

“I’m afraid not, PL 025.” Luna blinked and glared. What was Krell up to?

“With your confession of guilt, you are to be placed under arrest as a co-conspirator in the insurrection of ARC 5555 and CT 5597. You will suffer the same punishment as these men, and will not be able to defend them.”

Not a word was said. No one moved. Luna’s glare did not falter. Her mind ran with an image of her driving a knife through his head. Then a blaster ripping his chest open. The images appeared in rapid succession, followed by the images of carnage. Carnage created by Krell. Her men dying in gruesome ways, men being ripped to shreds by the native life forms. Her men being vaporized by enemy weaponry. Troopers suffering malnutrition and exhaustion because of Krell.

Luna finally snapped. With a roar, she charged at the General. She got in one good punch before an entire squad of clones jumped from behind and dragged her away. Krell quickly recovered and simply watched as the roaring alicorn was dragged away, along with her conspirators.

“I’ll kill you, Krell! I swear, you will pay for their lives! Their blood is one your hands!”

Rex could only watch in shock as the events took place. He was silent as Luna, Fives, and Jesse were dragged away by their brothers.

Krell stood tall and faced the shocked captain. “Have her company confined to barracks under armed guard. I want their files ready for investigation in one hour.”

Luna’s cries of rage could be heard as the doors closed and the elevator went down to the detention block.

Luna struggled against the men that held her down. She was going to kill him. He was going to pay! She was going to make him suffer as they all had suffered! Justice was going to be served.

It took a stun round to finally calm her down, at least long enough for her to be thrown into a cell. Fives and Jesse were placed on either side of her, looking at her in concern and fear. Some Umbaran prisoners eyed them with curious gazes. They were surprised to find clones being thrown with them. But the novelty quickly died and their interest went away.

The effects of the stun blaster did not last long, but Luna had no more strength. She felt broken, and she did not have the willpower to piece herself back together. All she wanted to do now was sleep, and sleep was what she got.

Author's Note

Wow... I... didn't expect it to go this way, and I wrote this chapter.

Just... wow.

Chapter 22: Carnage of Krell Part 1

Cadence stood at attention as General Kenobi laid out the plan. The Umbaran Capital was almost under their control, despite the lack of support from the 501st. It was unlike the boys in blue to have problems on the offensive. Normally, General Skywalker was able to work things into his favor, no matter how impossible the mission seemed. The tactics and attitudes of his men reflected it. But now, with him on a mission for the Chancellor and the 501st under the command of General Krell, everything was going wrong.

The alicorn felt a pit in her stomach. Something about Krell did not feel right. His lack of compassion for his men was well known, even to the Jedi. General Kenobi had been trying to contact him whenever possible, hoping to keep him in line. But with the constant ambushes from the Umbarans, the general found little time to check in every day.

Cadence hoped that Luna was okay. They have not talked in weeks. Not since before the initial landings. Maybe once the capitol was taken, the Umbarans would finally surrender. It might have been a foolhardy hope, in this war, but a girl could hope.

‘Jedi… enemy…’ It was there again. That voice. Her voice. Only, it didn’t sound like her. It was like a droid copy of itself. With a practiced shake of her head, the voice went away. For now. She focused on the General’s plan. It was simple, rush through to the Parliament Building at the heart of the city. Attack from multiple directions and overwhelm the defenders. A simple plan, but proven effective.

“Brief your platoons, we move out in three hours.” The clone officers nodded and went to meet up with their men. Cadence lingered for a moment, then marched up to the Jedi. His eyes were focused on the map, but she knew he was looking at her.

He sighed and turned off the holomap. “No, Cadence. I have not had any luck reaching General Krell. Something seems to be wrong with the communication hub. Again.”

Cadence groaned. What could be the problem? Their communication equipment could reach the ships in space and piggyback off them to the Jedi Council. So what could be wrong with Krell’s equipment?

The holotable bleeped, surprising the two. Obi-Wan pressed the blinking red button, activation the holoprojector. There stood General Krell. Cadence glared at the Basilisk. The voice in her head was screaming ‘Jedi… enemy… kill!’ It took all of her willpower to keep it quiet as the Jedi spoke.

“General Kenobi, I am in need of assistance.” He spoke in a tone that left little room for argument. But Kenobi was always ready to argue.

“I’m afraid that it might not be possible. I’m about to make one last push to the Capital.” He stroked his beard and glared. “If anything, I should have asked you for assistance, but you have not been keeping in contact with me.”

Krell was silent for a moment, as if considering his next words much more carefully. “I’m afraid that is why I’m contacting you. Some of my platoons were ambushed and their equipment was stolen. I fear that they may infiltrate my positions and sabotage the airbase. I need men from a different unit to deal with this, so as to avoid confusion. Once dealt with, I promise to assist your push to the Capital.”

Kenobi stroked his beard in thought. It was a risk if the Umbarans took Republic equipment. But something did not feel right. After some quick thinking, he turned to the alicorn.

“Captain Cadence, take Ghost Company and deal with this. Once you’ve dealt with the Umbarans, rendezvous with the 212th in the Capital.” Cadence nodded. Krell gave a single nod in thanks.

“My thanks, Master Kenobi. I’ll keep my men inside the base while Captain Cadence deals with this. I don’t want to cause an incident.”

Cadence’s ears snapped to attention. Something in his tone put her on alert. It sounded like a predator, and she felt like prey. Without another word, the general’s hologram disappeared. Cadence placed her helmet on her head and turned to leave.

“Be careful, Cadence.” Kenobi said before turning to the command center. He had to coordinate with the rest of the 212th. This battle had to end quickly.

Pops was leading his platoon through the jungle. An eerie fog was making it virtually impossible to see anything, even with the advanced optics. It put the troops on edge. Cadence had given them a basic rundown of the situation. It chilled him to the bone that he can’t even trust the armor that should be protecting his brothers.

“I swear, when this is over, I’m sleeping with the barrack lights on.” Mecky jokes. But no one laughed.

Buck fidgeted with his blaster and turned to his squad leader. “Sir, if we could just use a flashlight for a few-” Pops shut down that suggestion quickly. It was too much of a risk.

Blade wasn’t bothered by the mission as much as his brothers were. He watched as the Umbaran capitol burned in the distance. A squadron of Y-Wings flew over the city, dropping their payload onto one of the skyscrapers.

“Hehe, go get ‘em, boys.” His musings were interrupted by a shoulder check from Tech.

“Come on, aren’t a little nervous about this?”

Blade shrugged. “Their armor, our armor. If they’re shooting at us, they ain’t my brothers.” The two troopers marched together in silence.

Further ahead of the company were a pair of snipers. Wreck and Hawk-Eye moved swiftly from tree to tree. One covered the other as they moved up. Wreck scanned the treeline further away. The terrain was bumpy, with small hills every few feet. It was a good spot for cover if needed.

Hawk-Eye gave him the signal to move. He was about to move to the next tree when something caught his eye. Through the scope, he watched as a lone trooper appeared from behind a tree. Two more followed, then a squad, and finally a full platoon packing serious heat. Heavy blasters and mortars. Not something one carries on a standard patrol.

“Eyes up. Unknowns moving up. 1-6-8, two thousand yards.”

Hawk-Eye raised his rifle and scanned the area. He could see a platoon moving up, with more appearing from the mist. Their armor was painted in 501st markings, but were they 501st?

Hawk-Eye activated his comms. “Captain, this is Scout 1. Unknowns in Clone Armor approaching at patrol pace.”

“Are they 501st colors?”

“Yes, ma’am, and they’re packing for an assault.”

There was silence for Force knows how long. The two snipers watched the men approach with itchy fingers. They already had eyes on the ones carrying the biggest guns. All they needed was the word.

“Weapons free.” Two shots rang out at the end of the syllable. Two men drop dead with burning head wounds. The Umbarans panicked and tried to take cover. Two more, three more, and so on. The two fired into the platoon.

“Sniper on the right.” Hawk-Eye called out. Wreck took aim and fired.

“Sniper down.” This was how they worked. One would spot a priority, the other would fire. They worked in tandem, taking shots as they were called. It was easy pickings.

Sting gunned down an Umbaran that charged his position. It writhed in pain before he fired several more to end its suffering. One of his men goes down with a bolt to the stomach. sting makes sure to avenge him.

More men are hit, all of them dead. Sting growls. How dare these Umbarans do this? Use their weapons and their armor to harm his brothers? He was going to make them pay!

“Incoming!” Flashes of light hover in the air, resembling stars in the dark sky above. And like stars, they came crashing down. Sting had no time to dodge before one round slammed into the ground behind him.

One of his men gaped as his body went in one direction, and his right leg flew off in the other.

Buck aimed his launcher at an enemy position. If they wanted to use explosives, he would answer in kind. The rocket flew through the air and landed precisely where he wanted it to. Three hostiles were obliterated before they even realized it.

“Haha! I got some!” A shoulder pat from Pops was all the approval he needed. He slung the launcher over his shoulder and picked up his carbine. It was time to push forward.

Cadence helped a wounded trooper behind a tree. Stitch quickly grabbed the trooper and gently placed him in a comfortable position. The captain looked at the growing humber of wounded being brought in. this firefight was far more brutal than she thought it would be.

This was not some small infiltration force, it was an entire battalion’s worth of Umbarans in clone armor. Something wasn’t right and she knew it. Her instincts were screaming at her to stop. But what was she missing?

She pushed those thoughts away as Boil ran up.

“Captain, we’re outnumbered and taking too many casualties. It might be better to fall back.”

Cadence shook her head. “We can’t. The General already sent everyone else to the capitol. If we don’t stop the Umbarans here, they will cause havoc in the rear.” she paused to let the gravity of the situation sink in. “We hold out, Boil. That’s an order.”

She blinked as she realized something. “Where’s Waxer?”

Tech and Blade were giving the Umbarans hell. Blade was having the time of his life as he gunned down two of them. Tech kept his head down. His shotgun didn’t have much range, so he simply laid down and spotted targets for his vibro wielding friend.

He caught sight of one Umbaran running through the middle of a squad. It shoved past them, with no weapons drawn, and reached for its helmet. The figure was ducked down, the top of the helmet hiding its face. Once it stood up, Tech felt his blood freeze.

It was a clone. He could hear him shouting. Tech grabbed Blade’s weapon in panic.

“Woah woah woah woah!” Blade looked at him like he had grown a second head. He pointed a shaking finger forward, his mouth unable to utter a sound.

Blade looked out and quickly took off his helmet to vomit.

Pops turned toward movement out of the corner of his eye. He aimed to kill but stopped as a clone charged at him. He had no time to realize what had happened before he was tackled by the clone.

He only stared in shock as the clone ripped off his helmet and held him up.

“Look, we’re clones!” The clone shouted, spinning Pops around to show him off to both parties. That was when it finally donned on him. They were killing their own brothers.

The clone loosened his hold, allowing Pops to fall on all fours.

What had they done?

“Ceasefire, all squads!” Cadence blinked in confusion. What was going on? She tapped into the comm channel to ask for more when it came in. “They’re not Umbarans. I repeat, we are firing on clones. Blue on blue!”

She didn’t waste a second. “Ceasefire! All units, ceasefire. Helmets off!” The blaster fire slowly dwindled to nothingness. The two units dropped their weapons and marched up to face each other. Medics took the initiative and ran to assist the wounded on both sides of the field. The alicorn captain fell to her knees and wept.

It took some time to find everyone. The number of dead and wounded reached over one hundred.

Troopers stood around, baffled and confused. “What… what have we done?” Sting stuttered out.

“I don’t understand!” A clone from the 501st snapped. “Why did these troopers attack us?!”

Pops helped a wounded clone to the medical area, where Stitch, Kix, and the other medics were overwhelmed by patients. Stitch did the best he could for a trooper with a blast wound in his stomach. His bacta supplies were already gone, along with Kix’. The best they could do for these men was make them comfortable with some painkillers they had on hand, and those were about to run out.

“W… why?” The clone coughed out. Stitch placed a hand on his shoulder as he tried to sit up.

“Stay down, trooper. It’ll be alright.” It was an easy lie to tell.

Rex coordinated the effort of finding every clone that was hit: dead or alive. He was silent throughout the whole thing, only giving out orders or calling over a medic. What could he say? They just murdered each other without hesitation. What was going on?

“Captain!” He turned to Dogma, who was running up. “I found their company commander. It’s… Captain Cadence, she’s still alive.”

Rex’ eyes widened. If Cadence was here, then she must be made aware of what happened to her sister. Without another word, he followed Dogma to a group of 212th troopers huddled around a tree.

He pushed past them and stopped. Cadence was kneeling next to a trooper with a large wound in his stomach. The trooper groaned as she gave him a shot of painkiller.

“Easy, Waxer. It’s okay.” The alicorn spoke softly. Waxer groaned and tried to sit up. But something kept him down. Rex could see the alicorn’s horn glowing. It provided the first welcoming light in this darkened world.

Cadence continued to speak to Waxer, no doubt hoping it would keep him awake long enough to be treated. “I need you to stay awake, Waxer. It’ll be fine.”

“C-Captain, you know… that’s a lie.” She didn’t respond. Not even with a glance. She kept her eyes on the wound as she applied alcohol. Waxer screamed as the liquid burned in his already scorched stomach. No amount of painkillers would numb that.

“I’m not lying, Waxer. You’ll make it. I promise.”

“Don’t promise me that, Captain.” His face was getting pale. Rex could only watch as his fellow captain grew desperate. She began wrapping gauze around the wound when a bloodied hand held her foreleg. That made her look at Waxer.

Their eyes met, both full of tears that were about ready to flow. “Did we… mess up?”

Cadence said nothing. All eyes were on her. They were all asking the same question. Who made the big mistake? Whose fault was it that their brothers were dead?

“We didn’t, Waxer. It wasn’t our fault. It was Krell.”

That shook Rex to his core. It was the fault of his general. A lie he should have seen coming. But why? For what purpose?

“I’m sorry, Captain.” Waxer whimpered. Small streaks flew freely down his cheeks. “I didn’t… I wouldn’t…”

His breathing was shallow and his body went limp. Waxer’s eyes closed and his head dipped down. Cadence said nothing. The silence was deafening.

After some time, she stood up and marched directly up to Captain Rex. Her eyes burned with a fire that could burn this whole planet to the ground.

“Gather your men, get them ready to move out, and tell me what the Fuck is going on.”

The men were gathered, the medics patched up the last of the wounded. The ones who could still fight stood alongside their brothers. The rest were being readied to be carried back to the airbase.

Rex and Cadence stood in front of them all. Men of the 501st and the 212th battalions stood side by side.

“We all know who did this.” Rex stated. “But what we don’t know is why. What we’re about to do is highly treasonous.” He paused and let Cadence take over.

“If anyone wishes to back out, do so now.” All of them took a step forward without hesitation. The men of the 501st and the 212th never backed out.

“From this moment on, we are in uncharted territory.” Rex continued. “My orders are… we arrest General Krell and put him on trial for crimes against the Republic.” Nothing had to be said. The glares from each man said enough.

The men of the 501st and the 212th were angry, they wanted justice, and they would do everything necessary to get it.

Author's Note

Cliffhanger! Haven't done that in a while.

I'm sorry this took so long to get out (and leave you on a cliffhanger.) But everything that could go wrong has gone wrong and I haven't had the time or the energy to write.

I promise to get part 2 out as soon a possible because I can't take anymore heartache in this arc.

Chapter 1: Foerost

Clone Wars: Day 29
Enroute to Foerost

Commander Celestia watched from the bridge of the Endurance, General Windu’s personal ship. From her view, she could see a small fleet of seven Acclemators, escorted by two Venators and four Corellian Corvettes.

This was one of seven fleets that were on active deployment. On board these vessels are elements of the 187th Attack Battalion, along with the 13th Armored, and the 2nd Flight Group.

This was part of a large military operation being conducted in the Inner Core.

While the Battle of Geonosis was considered a major victory for the Clone Army, most of the Seperatist Leaders managed to escape, including Count Dooku. This allowed them to swiftly secure several key worlds within the Republic, including the planet Foerost.

It was vital that the Republic secured this planet, as it was a major supplier of fuel for their ships, and was within striking distance of Coruscant.

Celestia turned back to the holotable in the center of the bridge, just as the doors opened up, and General Windu entered. All officers surrounding the table saluted, to which the Jedi only responded with a nod. The officers of the 187th were used to this, as General Windu was not a very sociable leader. He marched up to the holotable, and began the briefing.

The image that came up was that of a heavily forested area, as expected from a planet called Foerost. But the one thing that caught everyone's gaze was the massive steel structure built into the landscape, and the giant towers protruding from it.

This was the Seperatist Base. It was a landing platform that allowed for the larger Techno-Union ships to land and unload their ground units.

"Our objective is to destroy this base." Windu explained bluntly. "The challenge is that turbo-laser tower." He pointed to the massive gun tower that stood on the northern edge of the base. Celestia gulped as she stared at it, knowing just how dangerous it was.

"I plan to launch a full scale assault on the base, and use it as a permanent landing zone as we push out and re-secure the planet." He looked to the clones under his command. "Any questions?"

The clone commanders looked at each other, unsure of what to say to the general. Celestia knew what they were thinking, and decided to be their voice.

"General, with all due respect, I have a better solution." Windu raised an eyebrow, but kept silent.

"There are reports of Militia and Resistance forces on the planet. I suggest we contact them and land a small force to support them in taking the tower. Once we destroy it, we can use our bombers to hit the hard targets before landing the rest of our forces."

"What you're suggesting, Commander, is to rely on Militia to win our fight." While his face remained blank, Celestia could feel the glare of mistrust behind his eyes. Not that she expected anything different from General Windu.

"What I'm suggesting, sir, is to use all available resources, sir." She argued. "Our forces are sufficient enough to take the base, however, that turbo-laser tower will level the playing field." The alicorn paused, and stared her general directly in the eye. "I want to avoid casualties as much as possible, General."

Windu stared at her, his expression remaining stone cold. Celestia silently gulped, thankful for the fact that she was wearing a helmet, otherwise he would see the sweat pouring down her face.

The Jedi's gaze went down the map, and his eyes narrowed. After a few more seconds of silence, he shook his head.

"I will not be endangering Republic citizens if it can be avoided." Now it was Celestia's turn to glare, not that Windu could see it under her helmet.

"We will follow the plan already set, dismissed." The clones didn't waste a beat, quickly exiting the bridge. None of them wanted to bring up the change in temperature, they all knew where it came from.

Celestia was practically glowing inside her armor, her anger burning brightly.

"It is a good plan." Ponds spoke up as they entered the elevator. The others looked at him, to which he shrugged. Celestia said nothing until the elevator stopped and the door opened. The commanders stepped out, and she spoke.

"It is, for battle droids. Last time I checked, we are living beings." The others stayed silent.

"If General Windu wants to continue the plan, fine. But I'm going to do more than simply object to it." That surprised the other clones. Celestia was always a by-the-books leader.

"I'll lead a small scouting team to the surface, and rally any volunteers from the Militia, so we can, at the very least, establish some sense of a frontline, and maybe slow the droids down and keep their attention on us."

"Now hold on." Commander Havoc snapped. "You're not doing it alone, my recon unit has some AT-RTs with them. You can take a platoon of them if you want."

Celestia nodded. "Thanks, Havoc." She looked to the other commanders with a confident grin that was not so easily hidden.

"I'll take three of my infantry platoons and the scout walkers, then destroy the gun, and secure the landing site."

“Just be careful, Vod’ika.” Ponds warned, to which she nodded. The commanders watched her go as she made her way to the hangar, where most of her troops were already waiting.

Ponds looked to Havoc, who shrugged. “Hey, I want this to work as much as you do.” He retorted.

(~)

Endurance: Hangar

Activity in the main hangar of the Endurance was at an all time high. Crews prepared the ships and ground vehicles that would be needed in the assault. Celestia observed the troopers that were assisting in preparing the AT-TEs for the assault, as their top turret barrels were replaced, and the legs were greased and oiled. Pilots were performing final checks before they launch. Celestia stopped to look around the hangar, she could see platoons of troopers from different regiments preparing for the invasion.

Some were cleaning and repairing their weapons, others were performing drill to keep themselves sharp. She spotted one platoon standing at attention near a group of gunships. The clone lieutenant leading this formation was just the one she was looking for. The alicorn marched up to the marked officer.

“Lieutenant Cy.” The clone swiftly turned around, and immediately saluted.

“Commander, how may I help you?” Celestia rolled her eyes, and saluted back.

“First off, you can relax Cy. I’m not General Windu.” She could hear a couple of the troopers chuckle at the jab. A quick glare from Cy shut them right up. Celestia sighed as she witnessed the interaction.

Cy was a good soldier, but the alicorn always knew he was a bit of a wind-up. Always serious, never one to take a moment to breathe, or allow his men the same luxury. Hopefully, he’ll ease up over time.

“Secondly, I want your platoon ready to move in a few minutes, we’re launching early.”

Cy tilted his head to the side. “And… why is that?”

“You’ll be briefed on the flight, just ready your men for an assault on a fortified position, that’s an order.” Cy nodded, and saluted.

“Yes, ma’am.” Celestia saluted, and started to walk off.

She suddenly stopped. “Also, where are Tipper and Dash?”

“Tipper is sitting by the AT-TEs, and Dash is gathering his men now, ma’am.”

Celestia nodded. “Alright, thank you, Lieutenant.” With that, she walked off to the area of the hangar, where several AT-TEs were idle. Sitting around the idle walkers were several squads of clones, with another clone lieutenant standing above them. She could see the officer performing some rather exaggerated movements, and she got closer, could make out what he was saying.

“... and so, the entire platoon is surrounded by clankers, and all of a sudden, the Commander swoops in and blasts them to smithereens with nothing but her Force Abilities!” Most of the shinies seemed impressed, while the veteran members of the platoon simply sighed. Celestia had to resist the urge to facepalm. Tipper was known to exaggerate a lot, it was his way of impressing others. While it worked for shinies, the experienced troopers knew better than to accept his tall tales.

“Lieutenant.” Tipper snapped his head in her direction, and sent her a half-baked salute.

“Commander.” Celestia shook her head, same old Tipper.

“I’ve told you time and time again, Tipper. Stop exaggerating! I’m not a Force User.”

While she didn’t have an official name for her and her sisters’ abilities, Celestia was never one to say it was the Force. For one, the Force didn’t have a color when used, it was invisible. Another is the fact that the Jedi couldn’t sense it. It shocked more than a few of them when they witnessed her powers being used. One or two of those Jedi tried to argue that they were, in-fact, Force Users. But the alicorns were troopers first and foremost.

“Oh, come on, Commander. What else could it be?” Tipper argued.

“I’m not having this argument right now, Tipper.” Celestia snapped. “I need your troops ready to move in a few minutes. Our assault is launching early.”

“Understood, ma’am. We’ll be ready.” Tipper said before motioning for his troops to get moving.

“Thank you, Tipper.” Two down, one to go, then she needed to find the officer of the AT-RT platoon Havoc promised her.

She activated her comlink. “Dash, come in, this is Celestia.”

“Dash here, Commander, what can I do ya for?”

That response was way quicker than Celestia expected. “Have your platoon ready to go in a few minutes, we’re going in ahead of schedule.”

“Understood, Commander. Finally, some action.” Celestia suppressed a giggle. That last part was not meant to be heard, but as usual, Lieutenant Dash forgot that she had more advanced hearing than the average clone. She then switched to another channel.

“Havoc, are my scout walkers ready?”

“That they are, Tia. They’re waiting for you by Bay 12.”

“Thanks again, Havoc.” She shut off her comlink, and made her way to Bay 12, where, as expected, a group of ARF troopers and their walkers awaited her. It didn’t take long to brief them, as Havoc gave them a broad description of their objective. Once they were briefed, she explained her plan to the pilots, who were quick to ready their gunships. With everything in place, she simply had to grab her equipment from the Armory.

It was easy to get what she needed. Not many clones were able to wield a Z-6 Rotary Cannon, along with several thermal detonators.

She made her way back to the main hangar, when the ship’s alarm sounded.

“All hands to battlestations, repeat, all hands to battlestations!”

Well, time to move out. Clone pilots were quick to enter and launch their fighters. The troopers scrambled to their gunships and ground vehicles. Celestia ran straight for the cluster of gunships that were loaded with her troops. She climbed aboard right before the door shut, and the transport took off.

She turned to see Cy standing stoically next to her. “Commander.” He said simply.

“Lieutenant.”

The gunships flew out of the main hangar, right behind the fighter squadrons, and made their way toward the planet.

Endurance: Bridge

General Windu watched the battle from the bridge of the Endurance while the officers scrambled to maintain control of the situation. Standing between them and Foerost was a small blockade of frigates, and a control ship. It was a standard sized fleet, but the Republic was caught off guard by the aggressiveness of the Separatist ships.

As he watched the battle, he noticed a small contingent of gunships slip through the droid lines. He glared at the group of fighters, knowing that he didn’t order the ground units to launch yet. The Jedi Master, however, was quick to figure out who did. As the gunships made their way onto the planet’s surface, Windu thought about how to deal with this particular commander.

(~)

Foerost: Planet Surface

The small group of gunships flew low over the trees. The pilots did their best to remain steady as the bottom of their gunships scraped the treetops. In the distance, the pilots could see the towers of the base slowly approaching them.

“Commander, approaching target.”

“Understood, find a clearing for us to land in.” Celestia ordered.

“Yes, ma’am.” A sudden explosion to the right caught the pilot’s attention, as well as Celestia’s. It was a red flare that exploded just above the treeline. Celestia stared at it as it lit up the sky.

“All pilots, head toward that flare.” She said, a small smile growing under her helmet. “That’s our landing site.”

“Yes, ma’am.” “Copy that.” The gunships banked to the right, turning toward the direction of the signal flare. The alicorn was right in her assumption, as she could see a large clearing below her, standing in the center of the clearing was a small group of humans armed with pistols, and wearing rugged armor.

The troopers readied to drop as the back hatches of the gunships opened up to release the scout walkers. Ropes were dropped from the sides of the gunships, and the soldiers dropped down.

The troopers quickly established a perimeter around the edge of the clearing, with Celestia being the last to drop. Once clear, the ropes were cut, and the gunships took off. Celestia waved them off, then turned her attention to the humans standing in front of him. She watched as one of them approached.

He then extended a hand. “Tweed Lars, Foerost Militia.” Celestia accepted the hand, and shook it.

“Commander Celestia, Grand Army of the Republic.”

Celestia looked around, seeing a dozen other civilians armed with small blasters, way too small to do any real damage. Her attention turns to the AT-RT walkers being dropped from the gunship, their pilots moving them toward the treeline.

She turned back to Lars, who watched the walkers go by with awe. “I need a clear path to the Turbo Tower, I was told you know the way.” Lars looked back at her and nodded.

“Of course, my men will escort you to the base.”

The walk was long and hard, sounds of battle were scattered in the air. The Resistance were fighting all around the area, engaging droid units that were patrolling the area. The clones were in tight formations, their heads on a constant swivel.

Celestia and Lars marched alongside each other, much more calm than the rest of the troopers.

“So tell me, Commander.” Lars said. “How much battle have you seen?”

Celestia stared at him dubiously. The question was so random, and the fact that he had asked that question out of the blue didn’t help. She hesitated for a moment, then decided to humor him.

“I was there during Geonosis, right on the frontline.” She raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Lars shrugged. “I was just hoping to have experienced troopers.” He explained. “Most of my men are from the old security forces and-”

“You don’t trust us.” The alicorn stated bluntly. Lars stared at her, his shoulders slump.

“You’re right, we don’t.” The clone shook her head. Of course, no one trusted them, not the Senate, not the citizens, and most certainly not the Jedi. She understood that trust had to be earned, but the amount of blood they have had to spill since Geonosis should have at least given them an idea of how reliable they were, how skilled they were. Celestia turned away, she was done with this conversation, just as she was done with not being trusted by those she was bred to protect.

It didn’t take long to reach their location. Celestia used her binoculars to study the area. The base was massive, with high walls surrounding the whole thing. The Turbo Laser tower stood tall over the base, along with the Communication Tower. B1 Battle Droid squads patrolled the perimeter while Supers guarded the gate. There were at least 20 yards of open ground they would have to charge and that laser tower could easily turn down on them and obliterate the whole company.

Celestia turned to the Lars. “Tweed, take your militia and go around to the other side, I need you to assault the main gate.”

Lars gave her a dubious look. “You want my militia… to attack the base directly.”

“The other side is better guarded, but the turbo laser cannot fire in that direction. I need to destroy that tower before reinforcements arrive. If you can draw the droids away from the base-”

“So we’re bait.”

“No, you’re our frontline.” Celestia pulled up a holo-map, with several markings blipping in and out. “Once the tower is destroyed, reinforcements can land and support you. You just need to fall back to the river and hold there.”

Lars raised an eyebrow. “How do I know they’ll come.”

“A Jedi will be leading the charge.” The alicorn stated, which was the only evidence Lars needed to do what needed to be done. “Good luck, Lars.”

“You too.” with that, Lars signaled his rebels to follow as he ran off toward the other side of the base. Celestia watched him go before turning to her troopers.

“Cy, on me.” A clone lieutenant crouched walked over, taking a knee next to the Commander. “I want your platoon to secure that gate, I’ll move the rest of the Company once you do. Wait for my signal.” The officer saluted, then went back to his platoon. Celestia went back to observing the gate.

A B2 patrol exited the gate, marching stoically down the small dirt path. Cy’s platoon readied themselves, taking cover at the very edge of the treeline. The Lieutenant prepared his carbine, as well as the thermal detonator attached to his belt. Two troopers readied their own detonators, a third loaded a grenade into his launcher. The others readied their blasters.

The other platoons readied to move, each preparing their weapons. Celestia revved up her rotary cannon, her ears went up to listen for Lars’ attack. The AT-RT pilots readied their walkers, arming the laser cannons. It grew quiet, except for the mechanical marching of the B2 squad.

On the other side of the base, Lars observed the main gate’s defenses. At least two platoons of B1s, a squad of B2s, and an AAT tank. He didn’t have that much in terms of anti-tank. Just one rocket launcher that his men stole from a battle droid. He told one of the better shots to aim at the AAT. It had to be a precise shot. He counted to ten, then shouted. “Fire!” The rebel squeezed the trigger, letting the rocket loose from the massive launcher. It sailed straight towards the tank, managing a shot in just the right spot, right where the body and turret were linked. Several B1s that were close to the tank were sent flying. Lars opened up with his blaster, the other rebels following his example. More droids went down under the barrage, then came the B2s. One aimed at the treeline, firing a wrist rocket toward the rebel position. It made impact just sort of the trees, but two rebels were still hit with the concussive force of the weapon. Two more rockets found home, however, killing several more rebels.

More battle droids began to pour from the base, quickly blanketing the rebels under a blizzard of laser fire. Lars ducked as a bolt nearly impacted his face. He looked around to see many of his rebels dead and dying on the ground.

“Fall back!” He ordered. “Get to that landing zone!” The rebels didn’t have to be told twice. The droids charged after them, chasing them further into the woods.

Blaster fire suddenly echoed through the forest. Birds scattered to the wind as explosions could be heard. The B2’s halted and turned to look toward the sound of battle. “Now!” Cy and his platoon charged out, unleashing a torrent of blaster fire. The supers had no time to react before they were turned into scrap metal. The two B1’s guarding the gate didn’t fare any better. Once all the droids were down, Cy’s platoon made a rush for the open gate, quickly getting inside.

Inside the base was a large open courtyard, where dozens of battle droids could be seen making their way toward the other entrance. Lars’ distraction was working. He lead to platoon toward the turbo laser tower, which was turning to face the main gate. The troopers rushed toward the base of the gun, blasting away the droids that were standing guard.

Cy signaled for one squad to follow him while the others guard perimeter. The squad stacked up on both sides of the door. The lieutenant motioned his hand, silently ordering a trooper to place a charge on the door.

Once the charge was planted, he gave a vocal command. “Do it.” The trooper pressed the detonator, and the squad pushed in. Cy blasted two droids while the trooper behind him took down a third. The turbo laser crew had no time to react before the squad rushed in and mowed them down at their stations. Two troopers then ran up and deactivated the tower. Once the gun was offline, Cy activated his commlink.

“Objective complete, ma’am.”

Celestia smirked, then turned to the other troopers. “Let’s go, brothers!” A rowdy cheer echoed through the company as they charged into the base, blasting away as more droids were being deployed. As the battle raged, Celestia activated her comms once again. “Havoc, come in, this is Celestia.”

Several gunships made their way to the planet’s surface as the space battle still raged above. Commander Havoc tuned his comms in as Celestia’s message came through.

“Commander Havoc, this is Celestia, come in.”

“Read ya loud and clear, Tia. How’s it going down there?”

“The turbo laser is down, and my company is securing the base. The local rebels are engaging the main droid army further away near these coordinates. It’s good enough for at least two companies to land at a time. Please hurry, I promised them reinforcements.”

Havoc had to stifle a laugh, of course she did. “Understood, we’ll handle it.” He deactivated the commlink, and turned to the pilot. “Pilot, send these coordinates to the other gunships!”

“Yes sir.” The gunships turned, heading towards the smoke columns in the distance.

Celestia deactivated her comms and revved up her Z-6. “Alright, clankers.” She stood tall and hefted the rotary cannon up. “Suck laser!” The barrels spun and the weapon unleashed its terrifying rate of fire. Several B1s were annihilated within seconds as Celestia marched forward.

“Ha!” A trooper laughed. “Who needs a jedi when ya got the Commander at the front?!” His brothers laughed in agreement as they marched forward. A B2 readied its wrist rocket, aiming directly at the alicorn marching toward them. He fires.

“Watch that wrist rocket!” A trooper shouted. Celestia spotted the missile quickly approaching her. With a quick snap of her magic, she grabbed the rocket and flipped it around. It sailed back toward a group of B1s.

“Uh-Oh.” One said just before the rocket hit, sending droids parts in every direction.

“Push forwards, brothers!” The clones charged forward, quickly overwhelming what was left of the droids forces. Celestia used her magic to throw two B2s into the air, sending them flying over the wall. A third battle droid was smashed by a force of a rotary cannon being flung at it. The alicorn could see more B1s being deployed onto the field from the techno union ship.

“Rockets, over here!” Celestia turned her laser cannon to fire into the incoming reinforcements. Several troopers readied their launchers, aiming at the deployment bay. “Fire!” All at once, the troopers fired. All at once, the rockets found home in the bay. All at once, the ship engulfed itself in flames before collapsing into a pile on the other side of the base wall.

It was quick and easy to mop up any remaining droids, so Celestia left that to some of the more eager troopers to handle. The area became deathly quiet except for the occasional shot of a DC-15. No more explosions, no more clanking, nothing. She observed the main gate as Havoc’s Dune Runner Battalion came marching in, with Lars’ rebels in tow. The alicorn walked up to both commanders and saluted. They saluted back, and the formalities were dropped.

“Good to see you, Lars.”

“You too, Commander.” The rebel leader said with a grin. “What can I say, you were mostly right.”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Mostly?”

Lars nodded, then motioned for Havoc to answer. “General Windu didn’t join the battle. He escorted us down to the planet, but didn’t land with us.” Celestia sighed. Well, at least it saved her a few hours before whatever the General had planned as punishment.

“He also wanted to congratulate you on taking the base, and will speak with you back on the Endurance once the base is cleaned up.” Now that took the alicorn by surprise. She did not expect general Windu, of any Jedi, to congratulate her on a mission, one that he did not condone. A smile grew on her face as she nodded to Havoc.

“And I couldn’t have done it without some local help.” Lars gave a thumbs up, and the three turned to watch the clean up operation after a long day’s fight.

Author's Note

"I have good news, sir. The fanfic has begun."
"Good, everything is going according to plan."

Here we go, troopers. Our first chapter is done, let me know what you think in the comments. See you next time, troopers.

Chapter 3: Ambush on Yavin IV

The Consular Class Cruiser sailed through Hyperspace at an incredible speed. The troopers inside readied themselves for a fight. Luna checked her carbine, then looked around at her troopers.

They were in pursuit of Commander Skywalker, who foolishly followed a rogue fighter that appeared over Muunilinst. They had no idea who was in that fighter, but the clones were not going to take any chances. Some readied grenade launchers, one trooper, Ghost carried his Z-6 Rotary Cannon, and the rest made sure their power cells were fully charged up before they hit the surface.

The ship lurched, meaning the ship has exited Hyperspace. Luna made her way to the bridge, where the crew of 5 were waiting. She walked up to the lead pilot.

“Ace, where is the Commander?” She was expecting the Jedi to still be dog fighting with the rogue fighter, but neither ship could be seen in the space around Yavin IV.

“On the surface, ma’am.” The pilot responded. “Tracker can give you a better read than me.” Luna nodded and turned to the clone manning the radar system.

“Commander Skywalker’s tracker shows his fighter landing here.” The clone pointed to a small dot on the planet. “The area is a massive jungle, with an old ruin nearby. There isn’t enough space for us to land.”

“Then make room. Have our cannons blast the trees to give us enough space near his fighter. I’m not taking chances.” The clone crew didn’t hesitate to follow her order. Once the ship entered orbit, the pilots turned the ship so that the lower cannons would face the landing site. With the push of a button, the cannons blasted at the surrounding area. Within seconds, the entire area was scorched and the surrounding trees were nothing but ash.

Luna turned back to her troopers, who were all waiting for the doors to open. She grabbed her blaster, placed her helmet on her head, and stood before her 12 man squad. The ship shook as it touched the ground, and the doors opened up. The moment it did, the troopers ran out. They quickly hit the mud and surrounded the ship.

“Secure the area.” Luna ordered.

“Captain.” Luna snapped to attention as Commander Skywalker approached.

“Commander Skywalker.” The alicorn acknowledged.

“Obi-wan?” The Jedi asked, an eyebrow raised.

“Yes, sir.”

“Gave you orders to follow me.” he stated.

“Yes, sir.” Luna answered. Skywalker glared, making Luna feel uncomfortable, and a bit annoyed. Normally, a Jedi was thankful for the escort. Afterall, this was a trap, surely some back up wouldn’t hurt.

“Fine, leave two men to protect the ship. The rest of you split up, prepare to sweep the jungle.” With that, he turned to walk back to his fighter. Luna glared at her commander before adding on.

“I want teams of three. If you see something that isn’t the Commander or a clone, blast it.”

“Yes ma’am.” “On it.” Thunder echoed across the sky. Luna looked up to see dark clouds floating toward them. Great, a storm, just what she needed. Whoever the Commander was chasing would be a lot harder to track.

She quickly joined up with Skywalker, who didn’t even acknowledge her presence. The teams marched off into the jungle, moving in different directions to cover more ground. They were all unaware of the pair of eyes watching them from the shadows.

Ghost marched alongside two of his brothers, Bravo and Easy. They scanned their surroundings with care, not knowing what lay behind the vines and trees of the jungle. Thunder continued to boom above them but no rain has fallen and no lightning has struck.

Ghost stood at the front of the formation, as Bravo was in the middle, and Easy was in the rear. They watched each other with care, until a noise distracted them all. It sounded like a rock flying through the air. A big rock.

There was a loud series of bangs from behind them. Both Bravo and Ghost turned to see Easy was gone, his rifle left on the ground. Ghost ran over to check it out while Bravo covered him. The trooper looked around, there was no sign of Easy. it was like he vanished. There was a thud, followed by the sound of crushed grass. Ghost turned to see Bravo was now gone, without a trace. The clone attempted to use his radio, but all he got was static. The storm was messing up their comms. Kriff.

Ghost readied his blaster, rotating the barrels of the Z-6 cannon. He had to move and fast. He made his way down the path. He could hear rushing water, meaning he was near a river.

He was right. It was wide and deep, and the only way to the other side was a fallen tree. The clone carefully walked up to the tree, then examined it closely. It was large and thick, so it wouldn’t break on him. He had to get to the other side, he had to reach the other teams before it was too late. He had to warn the others. So, the clone climbed onto the tree and began making his way across.

He was about halfway across when something picked him up, and he was thrown into the water below. He tried to scream, but the water quickly flooded his helmet. Ghost tried to swim, but the weight of his armor, the thickness of the water, and the force pushing down on him made sure he would never get out of that river ever again. His lungs were on fire, begging for air. But he could provide none. He struggled and struggled until his limbs grew tired, and he could no longer move.

His brain began to shut down as it wasn’t getting the oxygen he needed. Within a few seconds, Ghost knew no more.

Killjoy watched in shock as his rifle was crushed by an unseen force, then that same unseen force violently thrashed him against a tree before sending him flying through the air.

Thatcher was dragged to the floor with such force that his helmet flew from his head. A red lightsaber quickly made sure he wouldn’t miss it.

Dodger screamed as he was thrown in several directions before his head was buried in a tree.

Wallace was slammed against a tree, he could feel his spine break in several places, giving him great pain before he blacked out.

Ace hid in the small compartment with a blaster pistol. The screams of his crew and the hum of a lightsaber could be heard on the other side of the door. He shouldn’t be hiding. But the assailant was too fast and too deadly for them to handle. He was just a pilot, he stood no chance. No more of a chance than the rest of the crew.

The screams died out, but the him of the lightsaber remained. Ace could see the blood red glow through the window. He hid further into a corner as eyes peered through the glass. He prayed to whatever would listen to save him. To keep him safe so that others might be able to get away. It felt like an eternity, but finally, the eyes went away, and the red glow and hum of the lightsaber dimmed.

Ace felt so much relief. He let out the breath he had been holding. He wished he held onto that breath, as the sudden crushing force choking his windpipe guaranteed he would never take another one.

Anakin stopped as he felt a great disturbance. As if several lives were suddenly snuffed out. Luna stopped and looked around.

“Something’s not right.” he said ominously. “I can feel it.” Birds chirped innocently, but it did little to drown out the cry of a clone being dragged across the ground.

Luna and Skywalker ran back to the clearing to find nothing damaged, and a single trooper picking himself off the ground.

“Trooper?!” Anakin called out before looking around, completely confused.

“Bravo?” Luna asked as she approached the trooper. “Are you alright? Where are the others?” Before he could answer, the Consular Ship exploded into a fireball. Luna was thrown back by the blast as Bravo was completely consumed. Anakin shielded his eyes before looking to his own fighter. His eyes widened in horror as he saw something.

“R4!” The astromech droid inside of Anakin’s fighter bleeped and blinked in rapid succession before the small fighter also exploded. Luna quickly recovered and used her magic to grab her blaster. Skywalker looked to the flames that were once two Republic ships as a third presence approached. The fire parted, allowing the figure to step through.

Skywalker glared at the figure. He could sense the same dark force within that the rogue pilot had. It was the same person. “I’m going to make you pay for what you’ve done.” He growled.

Luna said nothing as she aimed her blaster at the new target. The figure removed its hood, revealing a bald Dathomirian Zabrak female.

“Come padawan.” she said, her voice hissing and scratchy. “Your fall will by my ascension to the Sith.” She activated two blades, their red light illuminating her gothic clothing. Neither side moved, waiting to see who would make the first move. Anakin activated his lightsaber, then waited. Luna aimed…

The Sith woman charged, Skywalker counter-charged, and Luna fired three bolts at the target. She blocked all three with ease before parrying a blow by Skywalker. Luna realized she wouldn’t have a chance at firing another shot, so she did as she trained to do. She placed the blaster on her back, replacing it with a vibro-blade. She waited for an opportunity to move in and found it.

The woman jumped over Anakin, and tried to take a swipe at him. He ducked and turned to face her. Luna flew in and tried to slash at the woman’s back, but a lightsaber blocked the blow. She kicked the alicorn in the chin, knocking her off balance. The pony slammed into a tree.

The Sith tried to cut her open, but Skywalker managed to drag Luna out of the way before she could be hit. The sabers cut through the tree, sending it crashing to the ground. The woman growled before attacking again. She never got the chance as Skywalker pushed her back with the Force.

She spotted several thick branches on the ground. She threw them at Skywalker as he attempted to charge forward. He cut through every branch sent his way. Once he landed, she tried again, sending branches from multiple directions. He cut them all down, all except one, which flattened him against a tree.

Before she could attack, Luna charged in and quickly went on the offensive. The alicorn used her training; to throw her opponents off their game, so that they couldn’t use the Force or their lightsabers effectively. If there was one thing she, her sisters, and her brothers were good at, it was killing Force Users.

The Sith blocked every blow, but she was forced to back peddle to avoid the violent slashes of the trooper. A parry from her turned out to be a big mistake as her left handed lightsaber was knocked from her hand. She tried to correct herself, but a kick to the stomach forced her to drop the other lightsaber and crouch down to soften the pain.

The alicorn raised her blade to swing the final blow, but a sudden burst of the Force knocked her onto her back. The woman jumped high, disappearing into the trees. A few seconds later, her lightsabers followed. Skywalker recovered from the branch attack and helped Luna to her hooves. They looked up before jumping into the air.

Anakin used the Force to jump onto a large branch while Luna hovered nearby with her wings. The two looked around when suddenly, Skywalker’s branch collapsed under him. Luna dove to catch him, but she never got the chance as a flying lightsaber cut through her left wing. The alicorn screamed in pain as she fell to the earth below, her body going one way, and her torn off wing going another.

Anakin quickly used the Force to grab a vine, then caught the alicorn before she could fall to her death. He swung low to the ground, rolling on the floor as he wrapped around Luna. Once they stopped, he got onto his knees to look her over. Her wing was gone, along with some fur and flesh that surrounded the stub. There was no bleeding, as the intense heat of the blade cauterized it completely. He removed her helmet to give her more room to breathe. The alicorn tried to control her breathing, but he could hear the pain behind it. He knew how that felt as his eyes unconsciously shifted to his robotic arm. This was all his fault.

He was the one who foolishly chased after the Sith Warrior, ignoring his master’s orders. He was the reason those troopers were killed, and now Luna was hurt in a way only he could understand. Anakin thought about the Captain as a friend, and it was obvious she did too. When they first fought side by side, they earned each other’s respect. Now he surely lost it with this stupid stunt.

“C-Commander.” Skywalker’s eyes widened as he looked down at the injured Luna. She tried to get up, much to Anakin’s distress. “Go… go get her.” The padawan was surprised. Did she seriously think he would leave her here? “I’ll head back to the clearing and see if the beacon… still works. You need to finish that shabuir.”

Anakin stared at her for a second, then nodded. He helped Luna up before jumping into the trees once more. Luna pulled out her blaster and ran. It hurt, more than anything in the world. But she was a trooper, and troopers could take the pain, no matter what.

It took a while, but she finally reached the clearing. The fire was still raging, she had no chance of getting close to the ship with how hot it was. She would have to wait for it to die off. But that could take hours, Skwalker could be dead, or hurt, and wouldn’t get help in time. Luna had to figure something out.

Her worry was interrupted by a drop on her snout. She realized two things. One, she left her helmet behind like an idiot. Two, it was beginning to rain. The rain came down, and it came down hard and fast. Within seconds, it went from a few droplets to a full blown torrent. Luna watched in amazement as the fire dimmed and drowned under the intensity of the rain.

The alicorn thanked whatever deity existed for the break as she ran for what was left the Consular Ship to find a working distress beacon. Hopefully, there was a fleet nearby that could pick them up, or at the very least, some medical supplies that survived the explosion.

Anakin ignored the rain as it poured. He focused all of his energy into the fight before him. He blocked every blow sent his way by the assailant, who blocked each of his attacks in turn. Every strike filled him with rage, his thoughts were one: Kill Her. He struck and swung with all his might, but the Sith Warrior was strong and skilled.

His robes were torn, their battle burning and scraping away its cloth. He continued to fight inside the abandoned temple. He would not lose this battle.

Luna searched the scorched remains of the ship. She couldn’t find much, as the explosion seemed to have claimed everything. She stared down at what remained of the crew. Their bodies were torn to shreds and burned to ashes. The sight made her sick. What sort of monster could do such a thing? Is this who she was trained to fight?

Well, that turned out well. The alicorn looked at the stump that was once her wing and sighed. She was doing her best to ignore the pain, but the burn was intense. It felt like the entire left side of her body was on fire, and every step seemed to spark a new ember. Is this was the Commander felt when the Count cut off his arm?

Luna could respect what the Commander was going through, even if she was angry at him for making such a big mistake. Why would he chase a random fighter into an obvious trap? Why was he suddenly so reckless? Actually scratch that, he was always reckless. But it was never to this degree.

Was he trying to prove himself to General Kenobi? Did he think he could take on any challenge on his own? Probably. But he can’t do that, not if he wants to lead troops. He lost a squad today because of this. 16 brave men were cut down and slaughtered in such brutal fashion. As evident by the crushed and mangled bodies she came across on the way here.

If he was going to ever lead again, Luna would make sure he never made this kind of arrogant mistake ever again.

Anakin roared as he charged at the Sith. his lightsaber was long gone, replaced by one of her’s. He didn’t relent as she was pushed back to the edge of the cliff. He didn’t relent as she fell onto her rear. He didn’t relent as the force of his blows cracked the very ground beneath his feet. He didn’t relent as he thought about his masters. What they would say if they saw the power he was unleashing. He only thought about the troopers he lost. The mistake he made. The friend he might lose. And the wife who waited for him on Coruscant. He didn’t stop until the ground crumbled, and the assassin fell into the darkness with a scream.

He stared into the abyss as the wind blew through. He said nothing as the adrenaline now had nowhere to go, no action to enhance. There was only one thing he could do. The padawan let out a mighty roar, in both victory and anger. It echoed into the abyss, repeating itself back to him several times before dying out in the darkness.

He stared down as he deactivated the Sith’s blade and threw it into the void with her corpse. He never said a word as he turned around and started his trek back through the jungle.

As he stepped down the steps of the temple, he spotted something in the darkness. The fighter that led him here in the first place.

The battle of Muunilinst was finally over. The Banking Clan officially surrendered and the droids were shut down. Clone then began the slow and agonizing process of cleaning up the mess, assessing casualties, and loading everything back onto the ships while a small occupation force ensures nobody tries to reactivate the factories before they’re repurposed for the Republic Military.

Cadence limped over to General Kenobi after she took a check to see what remained of her company. 47 troopers were killed, and another 72 wounded, counting the officers. The attack carried out by Dirge caused most of the casualties. The captain tried to find her sister after the fight, but she quickly found out that Luna was sent on another assignment during the battle.

She sat next to General Kenobi, who gave her a small smile before observing the operation below.

“We were fortunate that this battle ended quickly.” He said.

“True, sir.” Cadence said as she adjusted herself. “But we took a lot of casualties.” The Jedi sighed. He’d hoped to avoid this, but the loss of the artillery so early in the battle made it more difficult in the street fighting. He would have to make sure the artillery had better protection from now on.

“We won’t take them lightly. We’ll learn from this.” Before cadence could respond, ARC Captain Fordo approached.

“Sir, we detected a ship exiting Hyperspace, it matches the one Commander Skywalker pursued. I have batteries standing by.” Kenobi looked up to see the fighter coming in for a landing.

“Hold your fire, Captain.” The fighter landed without trouble. A squad of troopers surrounded the fighter and aimed at the cockpit. Cadence readied her weapon, just incase. The hatch opened up to reveal two figures inside.

“Commander Skywalker?!” The padawan jumped from the fighter, a wounded alicorn cradled in his arms.

“Get her to the medics, now!” He ordered two troopers, who immediately took the captain from his arms. Cadence got up from her spot and ran over to her sister, despite the pain her wounds gave her for doing so. The clones gently placed Luna on a stretcher, and lifted her up.

Cadence slowed down and began to limp next to her sister. “Luna, are you okay?” As she asked the question, she saw the stump where her wing once was. Luna struggled to open her eyes, the fatigue from the day’s events were beginning to take hold.

“I’m… fine, Cadence. Just a scratch.”

“A scratch?” Cadence growled. “You lost your wing!”

Luna gave a cheeky grin, but the pain was still evident. “R-really? Hadn’t… hadn’t noticed.” The troopers carried the alicorn to a gunship full of wounded. The troopers on board did their best not to stare. The medic on board immediately treated her as she was placed on the floor of the gunship.

He noticed the pink alicorn watching her sister with worry. He gave an assuring smile, not that she could see it under his helmet.

“She’ll be alright ma’am. I’ll take good care of her.” Cadence stared at the medic, then back at Luna.

“I’ll see you later, sis.” Luna smiled.

“Indeed.” With that, the doors to the gunship closed before it took off and flew away to the nearest Venator. Cadence watched it go before turning back to the two Jedi, who were watching a holo-comm from another Jedi. She sighed before going back to her men, who were assisting their own wounded being put on the transports.

On the Fourth Moon of Yavin, Ventress struggled to climb up. She used her hatred and her anger at Skywalker as fuel for her strength, as true Sith do. She climbed from the darkness, thinking about that padawan and his trooper ally. Ventress felt humiliated. How could she, a Sith Warrior, be bested by a student and a lowly clone? She would become better, even if it killed her. She would prove herself to Dooku, and become his apprentice.

She would become true Sith, and she would have her revenge.

Author's Note

Another chapter done, and done quick because I had the biggest Star Wars/Writing bug ever. This was written in one night because of it. Please Kill Me. :fluttershbad:

Hope y'all enjoyed this chapter, let me know what you think.

Will Anakin and Luna bond over this? Or will she hate his reckless ass forever?

Also, sorry prince_WinterBorn for killing your OC off so quickly. Please forgive this old, foolish writer for his wrongdoing.

Extra: Traitor

Rex and Cody marched Slick through the base, his hands tied firmly behind his back with the handcuffs clutching his wrists tightly. The sergeant marched past the brothers he had betrayed, the ones he had almost gotten killed. Among them were the two alicorn captains. Cadence looked away, tears pooling in her eyes. Luna, however, was livid. With a hoof, she stopped the procession.

“Sergeant Slick, explain your actions.” The Captain growled as she marched in front of the traitor. Slick glared.

“I did it for freedom, Lun-”

“You will refer to me as Captain, traitor!”

“Captain. I did it to free my brothers. The Jedi kept us enslaved, but what I did struck a blow for all clones!” Silence fell. The clones watched as Luna stared blankly at the disgraced clone.

Freedom? That’s what this was about? Freedom from what? The duty they were created to perform? The Republic that paid for his existence, that asked for their service? The Jedi that led them, fought alongside them, and died to protect them?

How many clones would never get the chance to experience this freedom because of Slick? What about Killer? Lucifer? Tan? Bacter? Charlie? Droid? Astro? Mal? Deegan? Red? What about the dozen troopers injured during the bombing?

Slick felt his windpipe slowly being closed, a blue aura surrounded his throat. It was getting hard to breath. His feet left the ground. Now he was struggling to get air, his hands reaching out toward an invisible assailant in a vain attempt to stop them. Luna stared blankly as she choked the trooper to death.

“You wanted freedom, Slick? Then here is your taste.”

The other clones could only watch as their captain was slowly killing the traitor. Cadence ran forward and wrapped her hooves around her sister.

“Luna, please. Don’t.” Luna’s eyes widened before her magic dissipated and Slick was dropped to the floor. Rex and Cody helped him up as he coughed, his lungs screaming for oxygen.

“Take him away, the Generals have just returned.” The two clones nodded before marching Slick away. All eyes were on them until they disappeared around a corner. The eyes never left that corner, until Luna spoke up.

“Well, what are we waiting for? Get back to work, we’ve still got a battle to win.”

Author's Note

Another Extra done, and the next chapter shall be up by next weekend.

God Dammit, Slick. Why'd ya do it?

Extra: The Old Breed

Luna sighed as she walked into the bar. She grabbed a pint from the server who was passing by and sat alone at a table. Some troopers were playing music a few tables away, singing drunkenly somewhat in tune with the song. She stared at these troopers. They were young, well, as young as clones could be. They were fresh, most likely a small skirmish that dirtied their armor. She sat and stared at them, not noticing a familiar trooper sitting next to her.

“Credit for your thoughts, ma’am?” Luna turned to see Knave sitting next to her, with a glass of his own drink in his hand. The captain said nothing and turned back to take a swig of her drink.

“Have you seen Coward?” She froze. He didn’t know. Knave wasn’t there. The 501st just got back from mop up operations on Ryloth. There were still some droid outposts putting up a fight, and the 501st was available to take them out. It was successful, with very few casualties. But there was one loss that struck Luna to the core.

“He borrowed my boots since I was stuck on the ship and I need them back. Have you seen him?” Luna nodded somberly. Knave didn’t notice.

“Where is he?” Luna swallowed and spoke.

“In a grave, on Ryloth.” Knave’s eyes widened. Luna went back to her drink, gulping down the alcohol in a vain attempt to drown her sorrows away.

“You mean… he....?” Knave slammed a fist down on the table, which went unnoticed by everyone else in the bar. “That means there’s… only you and me, from the Old Breed.” Luna didn’t want to hear it. But it was true. She and Knave were the only officers left. Radar was alive, but he wasn't as close to her as the officers were, as close as Coward was.

The Old Breed was the nickname given to troopers that survived Geonosis. As the war dragged on, more and more of them were getting killed, and their replacements were arriving in droves. Most of the men that fought in her company were either dead or transferred. Coward, Hardlight, and some of the troopers were all that were left after Geonosis. Now they were dead, and it was just her and Knave. The problem with being the few was that they were getting fewer.

Luna wanted to cry, but her tears had run dry weeks ago. So instead, she and Knave silently drank, remembering their brothers who had fallen in the line of duty.

Author's Note

This is just a small chapter to tide over until the next big chapter. If you can get the reference of this scene, points to you.