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.