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.