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                      Fallen Knights                       
                      -by DanishDash-                      
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                         Prologue                          
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Prologue
There is no emotions, there is peace
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.
There is no passion, there is serenity.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
Whoever wrote the Jedi code, thought Liam, never had to deal with Venator under attack. Padawan Liam Valar took a hold of a nearby console, as the massive hull of the Venator-Class Star Destroyer (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/e0dc8eb0-7eb3-4716-b7a1-4364a45acdc0/d75ftb1-045f6f47-d90e-43f3-bec0-f38f37314258.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcL2UwZGM4ZWIwLTdlYjMtNDcxNi1iN2ExLTQzNjRhNDVhY2RjMFwvZDc1ZnRiMS0wNDVmNmY0Ny1kOTBlLTQzZjMtYmVjMC1mMzhmMzczMTQyNTguanBnIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.HhBakbRC5nu9HA9tu8d0HY41MeVbF0C9mWSe8a_V6eY) shook violently. The alarms were blaring, as the bridge crew tried to keep the situation under control.
Liam, only a 15 year old human, felt himself fear the outcome of this fierce battle. 'Calm yourself,' Liam thought, trying to calm his breathing, and regain his focus. 'I can't let my master down, or the clones.'
Outside the viewing ports of the bridge, Liam could see vulture droids (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/e0dc8eb0-7eb3-4716-b7a1-4364a45acdc0/d6w49wr-24452af0-2f6a-46f3-9191-e90348f0df68.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcL2UwZGM4ZWIwLTdlYjMtNDcxNi1iN2ExLTQzNjRhNDVhY2RjMFwvZDZ3NDl3ci0yNDQ1MmFmMC0yZjZhLTQ2ZjMtOTE5MS1lOTAzNDhmMGRmNjguanBnIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.ghRu5JesBgQIFaiJ4dTgIiXpQGxSb_WqqvXX1lc_P8k) zoom past, and the flashes of turbo laser fire. Then he saw his master, standing by the end of the bridge walkway. Jedi Master Ven Allusis (https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/swtor/images/f/fb/Belth_Allusis.png/revision/latest?cb=20101017110137&path-prefix=nl) was a tall imposing figure. Broad shouldered, strong looking. He had a hard face, despite the fact he was a kind and gentle man.
He stood unflinching as the battle progressed, and Liam found himself wishing he had his master's calm. In the years Liam had known his master, he was sure he had never seen his master flinch with uncertainty or fear. He was like a mountain in the middle of a roaring ocean.
A clone officer in one of the crew pits looked up at master Allusis. "General, all star fighters are secure. Hangar doors are sealed!"
Allusis calmly turned around as the clone gave the report, and he gave a firm nod in response. "Then the time has come for us to retreat."
"Yes sir!"
The ship shook again, but this time Liam managed to stay on his feet as he made his way towards his master. Today had been the hardest battle Liam had ever been in. Starting with a rescue mission, that ended up with a massive evacuation and battle.
Liam had never felt so drained, and he couldn't rest now. Not until he knew everyone onboard was safe once more. Reaching the side of his master, Liam tried to stand a bit taller, wanting to reflect the calm his master displayed so masterfully.
As the ship's bow started to turn away from the battle, master Allusis glanced down at him. "Padawan," he said in his deep voice. "You're injured. Go to the medical bay."
Liam frowned, looking up at his master as if he had just been told of. "I'm fine, master." Although as he said it, he could feel his side arche from the fall he took during the battle. "The medics should focus on the real wounded."
"Liam," Allusis said, understanding shining through his tone. "There is nothing more you can do here, you should at least rest."
Liam's frown deepened. He wasn't a child that needed a nap, did his master think him incapable of handling the situation? No, that wasn't it, his master didn't treat him like that, never. But it didn't feel right to leave the bridge right now. "With your permission master, I'd like to stay. At least until we're in hyperspace."
The many clones on duty didn't get to walk away and rest because they had a slight injury. So neither would he, not until the danger had passed.
Allusis regarded his young student for a moment, then nodded. "Sometimes I forget how much you have grown. You've become very wise, my young Padawan learner. You can stay."
Liam felt a surge of relief fill him. "Thank you, master."
He looked forward again, watching as the ship turned away from the planet, the lucrehulk (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/e0dc8eb0-7eb3-4716-b7a1-4364a45acdc0/d6vxnmr-1934965d-b000-4790-a94f-e547a11474ab.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcL2UwZGM4ZWIwLTdlYjMtNDcxNi1iN2ExLTQzNjRhNDVhY2RjMFwvZDZ2eG5tci0xOTM0OTY1ZC1iMDAwLTQ3OTAtYTk0Zi1lNTQ3YTExNDc0YWIuanBnIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.fj4y-Ulq6jDgmKdK5Jw7rRnlCXzgl6vvv4fh4YmkXlw) in the distance, and the planet behind that. Soon enough, they would be able to jump to hyperspace, and by the will of the Force, retreat safely.
Then suddenly, the swarm of vulture droids started to turn around, and make their way back towards the lucrehulk. Liam had barely noticed it before a clone from one of the crew pits spoke up. "General, the vulture droids are retreating!"
"I see it," Allusis said, crossing his arms over his wide chest. His eyes narrowed, trying to figure out what was going on.
Liam didn't understand it as well. Their ship was damaged, and they were trying to retreat. Had the commander on the droid control ship just decided to let them go? That was certainly unusual for a separatist commander, especially a geonosian commander.
The sensor officer turned in his chair. "General, we are picking up strange energy readings coming from the lucrehulk."
Liam's eyes widened as he saw a dark purple energy beam being charged from the between the hangar wings of the lucrehulk. "There!"
"I can't get a proper reading, General!" The sensor officer reported. "It's some sort of ion blast, but I am seeing flickers of static. It's like the hyperdrive is spinning up."
Before anything else could be said, the massive lucrehulk seemed to flicker in and out, then with a massive explosion of energy, the ship just vanished without a trace. But before anyone had a chance to be shocked by that, the explosion of energy sent a wave of the left over energy build up.
Allusis turned around to face the entire bridge. "Evasive action! Prepare for impact!"
"All hands, prepare for impact. I repeat, all hands, prepare for impact!" One of the officers said into the com system.
The wave hit barely two seconds after the message was repeated throughout the ship. The Venator shook, as if a massive ocean wave had collided with it. All the lights and consoles flickered on and off, some even going black with an electrical crackle.
Then for a moment, everything was silent, and a moment after that, the power came back. Liam was just about to breathe a sigh of relief, when a crew member called once again from one of the bridge pits. "General, we have strange power surges, the hyperdrive is spinning up, we can't stop it!"
For a moment, Liam thought the ship was going to explode, but then he heard the familiar sound of the ship's hyperdrive. He turned to the viewport, and saw how the stars collapsed in on themselves, as the ship jumped into hyperspace.

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                    Chapter 1: Crashing                    
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Chapter 1: Crashing
There were few things Twilight Sparkle enjoyed more than sitting down, and learning from yet another great book from the royal library. However, a close contestant was star gazing. It was a fascination she had inherited from her father. His love for the stars had rubbed off on her, and he had taught her a lot. Like using a telescope.
The night sky was beautiful, but moreover, it was the mystery of the universe that attracted the teenage filly the most. There was so much to learn about how their universe functioned, so many mysteries to unlock.
She smiled to herself, and adjusted the large telescope she had placed near her window. she was levitating a pen with her magic, using it to take notes if she should sight anything of note. A tiny yawn caught her attention, and when she looked back she noticed the tiny baby dragon in his tiny bed.
Spike was his name, and not so long ago, the little dragon had started talking and holding conversations with her. Dragons were an amazing species! She'd read that dragons could live for hundreds of years, and their physical age was slower than their mental age.
She drew her attention back to the telescope, but was interrupted yet again as the door to her room opened.
"Twilight?"
A gentle and almost motherly voice said as light from the corridor spilled into he dark room. In walked Celestia, dressed in one of her simple, yet beautiful white dresses. Twilight herself was only wearing her pajamas, as she was technically supposed to be asleep by now.
As the door opened, she clumsily stumped away from the telescope, half moving to her bed, and half hesitating doing so. Seeing her mentor's slightly disappointed, and yet amused look, she decided to just give half a smile, and face the music.
Celestia eyed the little dragon, still blissfully asleep. The princess of the day smiled a little, and then slowly made her way to the telescope. "What are you doing up so late, Twilight?" She asked, and sat down on one of the pillows Twilight had placed there for comfort.
"I, uhm..." Twilight looked down at her hooves, moving it around in a circle. "I wanted to watch the stars." Twilight was 14, almost 15 in just a few days, so she didn't really have bedtimes like she did before she was a teenager. Still, it was well past midnight, and that was stretching it, even for her.
Celestia chuckled, her voice so warm and comforting. "They are beautiful aren't they?"
Twilight looked up at her mentor. "They are, but I was hoping to discover something new, to learn about them."
"I see." Celestia said, not sounding surprised at all. "There is much to be learned from studying," she nodded. "But it's important to appreciate the beauty of life too."
Twilight frowned, she didn't understand what her mentor meant by that. Wasn't that what she was doing already? Her confused expression made Celestia chuckle again. Twilight was a very bright filly for her age, and her thirst for knowledge was commendable. But at times, Celestia worried that Twilight would lose appreciation for the world around her.
But that was a discussion for another time. "Nevertheless," Celestia then said. "It's late, Twilight, and you should be in bed."
Twilight opened her mouth to plead for just another ten minutes, or even five, but as id on cue, she yawned. "Mmm, I'm not..." Seeing her mentor's raised eyebrow, Twilight decided not to plead her case, and then nodded. "Yes, Princess."
Celestia smiled, and reached out with her hand and stroked Twilight's cheek. "The night sky will be here tomorrow evening, Twilight. I promise."
Twilight couldn't help but smile at that. Princess Celestia had always been so kind, and nurturing. She was almost like a second mother to her. She was so intelligent and wise, but not without a certain sense of humor. Twilight glanced towards the telescope.
"One more look?" She asked, her eyes pleading with her.
Celestia made a mock stern face, and then rolled her eyes. "One quick one, but then it's time for bed."
Twilight beamed. "Thank you, Princess."
As Twilight quickly stepped up to the telescope, Celestia rose from her seat once more, and started to walk to the door. She'd barely gotten halfway, when Twilight gasped. She stopped, and for a moment thought Twilight was going to ask her to stay up longer because she thought she had seen something.
"Princess Celestia, come quick!"
The volume and the alarm in her voice startled Celestia, just as it made the young Spike jerk awake. The solar Princess turned towards her student, for a moment considering being more stern with her. Any such thoughts came to a complete stop as she saw Twilight's expression.
She was truly startled, her eyes wide with alarm and a hint of fear. "Twilight? What's wrong?"
The unicorn filly pointed to the sky. "Something is up there! Something big!"
For a short instant, Celestia felt a primal fear rise within her, but she quickly forced it from her mind. It was impossible, it was too soon for, her, to return. It had to be something else. Seeing the urgency in Twilight's eyes, she made her way back to the telescope, and looked into it.
It took Celestia a second to fully grasp what she was looking for, or at. Instead of the focused night sky, she instead saw something grey and red. She adjusted the optics, and as she fully understood what she was looking at wasn't the sky, she let out a gasp.
She wasn't sure what exactly she was looking at, but big was hardly the word Celestia would have used. The object far above them was massive, shaped like the tip of a spear, and was lit up by hundreds, if not thousands of tiny lights.
"I-It just appeared out of nowhere, Princess. What is it?" Twilight said, her voice sounded both panicked and fascinated.
Celestia stood, moved to a glass door that led to a balcony. Twilight followed, with the young dragon crawling out of his bed to clumsily follow. As Twilight came up beside her mentor, she looked up at the sky to see if she could see the massive object in the sky.
It took her a moment, but then she saw it. It was just about visible, but not clearly yet. At least until there was a bright orange glow around it. Twilight gasped again, putting her hands over her mouth. It took her a moment to figure out what was happening, but when she did she looked at her mentor with a distressed look in her eyes.
"Princess, it's entered the atmosphere! It is coming down!"
Celestia's eyes narrowed as she looked up at the objects coming down. "Stay in your room, Twilight." She knew it would unlikely she could get Twilight to sleep now, although she hoped she would. "Look after Spike."
Twilight wanted to protest, and beg her mentor to take her with her, but Celestia turned around and walked back inside before she got the chance. She was about to follow, when she felt the tiny arms of Spike hug her legs. Twilight looked down at the little dragon, who looked back up at her with those big green eyes of his.
She heard the door close, and she knew any chance she had to follow Celestia was now gone. Besides, she would probably only get in the way, and she was right. She had to look after Spike, but that didn't mean she couldn't watch from her room.
Liam stood on the bridge of the Venator, or at least he tried. The shaking made it have to remain standing, although his master seemed to manage much better than he did.
The mood on the bridge was confusion, but not panic. Unlike before when they were under attack, there was a more controlled response, as the bridge crew tried to get the ship under control. Another shake rumbled through the hull, and Liam could see the orange glow crawl over the bow.
"General, we are entering the planet's atmosphere."
His master quickly turned his attention to the helm officer. "Engage engines, and slow us down."
The officer acknowledged, and for maybe a minute he and the rest of the crew tried everything they could to stabilize the ship. "We're slowing down, general." The helm officer said, sounding just as relieved as Liam felt.
"Can you take us back into space?" Allusis asked, walking closer to the officer's station.
It took maybe a minute or two before the officer responded, the light tone slightly more grim now. "No sir, I don't think the ship can pull away."
Master Allusis nodded grimly. "Can you make a controlled emergency landing?"
The clone considered for a moment, then nodded. "It will be tricky sir, but I think we can do it. But she won't fly again."
"Do it." Allusis said without hesitation, and the helm officer nodded again, calling commands in his headset that was quickly acknowledged by the other stations. "Are the sensors picking anything up on the planet's surface?"
"Yes sir, we are picking up weak energy signatures that suggest minor settlements." The sensor officer replied briskly.
"Compute our vector, and steer us clear of any settlements. Com, send out an emergency broadcast." Allusis commanded. "If anyone can pick up the signal, then hopefully they can get anyone below us clear of us."
Again, Liam had to admire his master's calm and ability to see the larger picture. Liam hadn't even thought about anyone living on the planet, although in hindsight, he knew that he should.
"Padawan," Allusis then said.
"Yes, master?"
"We need to prepare for the worst. Get to an escape pod, I will alert the rest of the ship to do the same."
Liam frowned. He didn't want to leave the bridge without his master, and more importantly, they had thousands of clone troopers onboard, many of them were survivors they had saved during the evacuation. Then there was Talek Thren, a padawan like Liam, but older, and closer to becoming a knight than he was.
He'd been badly wounded, and had lost his master in the process. Liam didn't want to lose his master too, let alone leave Talek on the ship. He wanted to express all of this, but as he looked up into the eyes of his master, he knew he had all of this in mind, and this wasn't the time to argue.
"I will do as you ask, master."
Allusis nodded. "Good. Liam, if you have to launch, make sure to keep calm, trust in the Force, and your men." He nodded towards the end of the bridge. "Now go."
"Yes master, I will not fail you."
With those final words, Liam hurried down to the escape pods. As he did, the announcement came for personnel to get to their muster stations, but not launch unless ordered to do so.
The large hallways of the Venator were buzzing with activity. Crew and clone troopers alike moving about to their different tasks and stations. How many of those were heading for the escape pods? Liam didn't like to think about how some of these men might die when the Venator hit the ground.
'Stop it. You're thinking of events outside of your control. Focus on the here and now. Your master has given you a task, you have to do it.' Liam thought to himself, and with a renewed conviction, he sped up, and ran to the station he was assigned in case of him having to go to the escape pods.
As he arrived at the many rows of escape pods, he saw clones already running into them and strapping down. Unlike him, they didn't hesitate. Without a second thought, Liam hurried to one of the pods, and got inside. Three clones were already seated and strapped in.
"Good to see you kid." One of the clone troopers (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/47ec53bb-1396-4153-a1f9-5c919a1fc898/dfzx4vj-f441a3c1-755f-4a4d-8079-664002a55ee1.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzQ3ZWM1M2JiLTEzOTYtNDE1My1hMWY5LTVjOTE5YTFmYzg5OFwvZGZ6eDR2ai1mNDQxYTNjMS03NTVmLTRhNGQtODA3OS02NjQwMDJhNTVlZTEucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.LUrBEfsDS7JBeY7CjKFsJ0QEPgf2c5L7GB6yGC_BMu4) greeted.
Liam gave a small nod, and a small smile back. A second clone gave the thumbs up. "Don't worry, commander. It's going to be a bit bumpy, but we've survived worse!"
He was just about to reply to their friendly banter, when a blue spark near the entrance to the pod caught his attention. The hatch slammed shut, sealing itself. The clones looked at one another, their helmets making their expressions unreadable to Liam, but he had the same bad feeling as they did.
The third clone, who sat at the small steering station, pushed some buttons and called back to them. "Lucky, the hatch, I can't get it open!"
The clone, apparently named Lucky, looked back at the other. "Keep trying, Dex. Our orders are not to launch before giving the go-ahead."
The third clone, who sat in the seat next to Liam, took a hold of his straps and let out a laugh. "This is where the fun begins!"As if on cue, the sound of safety clamps released, and with a powerful force, the pod shot out of the side from the Venator, and flew towards the planet below.
Liam took a hold of his own straps too, trying to keep himself calm as the pod shot through the air. The clone named Lucky turned toward their pilot. "Get us down, Dex!"
"We don't have much of a choice in that!" Dex called back over his shoulder, grunting as he tried to keep the escape pod steady.
The clone next to Liam let out a cheer, while Liam tried not to throw up. The pod shook and turned, and as Liam tried to keep calm, he found his world fading, as he slowly lost his consciousness. Faintly, as the world turned black, Liam thought he could hear Lucky call out for him.
Then, everything went black.
To any pony who happened to be awake at this late hour, the sight must have been frightful. The sheer scale of the Venator, and the fact it seemed to almost float down to the surface, although far it might be from any settlements.
To those who saw it, it looked like luck that the ship would crash far from any farms and settlements. Of course they did not know it was the work of the Clones, and their General that saved many of the towns, and skillfully made an emergency landing.
In the distance, in view of a few towns, and in view of Canterlot. The ship laid on its stomach, towering over any building they might have built. Its many lights cast a faint glow at the horizon. In the moments that followed, it was like all of Equestria became quiet, just for a moment.
Their world suddenly seemed small, and the universe suddenly much bigger. To Princess Celestia, she knew she would not let anything happen to her subjects. Her mind raced, as she considered her options, and the potential dangers. While she didn't know what the Venator was, she knew someone had built it.
She just hoped that whoever was in there would be peaceful...

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                    Chapter 2: Contact                     
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Chapter 2: Contact
One must endure a lot of trials when in war, this was a lesson Jedi Master Ven Allusis had learned many years ago, when he himself was a Padawan.
The clone wars was the first galactic wide conflict in centuries, but it hadn't been the first war master Allusis had been involved in. Throughout the years, Allusis had been on many worlds that were minor to planetary conflicts. He was familiar with war, perhaps too much for a Jedi.
All the fighting, the pain, it never got any easier, but you learned how to deal with it. Allusis suspected if it wasn't for his Jedi training, he wouldn't have been able to handle it.
But that was in the past, and Allusis knew he had to focus on the here and now. There were far more pressing matters at hand, like securing his ship, and see to the many clones under his command.
The Venator landing had been a success, although as his officers had said, the ship's back was broken, and if they tried to lift off, the whole ship would likely pull itself apart and collapse. Without a full salvage team, this ship wasn't going anywhere for a long time.
But there was good news.
The ship was mostly intact, and the systems were running as they should, so as long as they didn't try to move it, the ship would hold up fine. The ship's crew were already inspecting damage, and taking care of any fires, or whatever else that might need attention. In time, Allusis had no doubt the ship would be fully secure again.
That left only one immediate task, the care of the injured.
Reports were still coming in, updating the numbers of the injured, or dead. Allusis didn't like losing men under his command, they had already been through so much when evacuating the remains of the 481st Legion. Still, it could have been worse. Had it not been for the amazing work of his crew, the ship would have crashed, and likely all would have been killed.
It was a bitter comfort, but it was out of his hands. The best thing he could do was to oversee operations, organize the efforts to help the injured, and secure the safety of his men. Despite his wish to go see the injured clones, he knew he had to stay on the bridge to organize things from there.
The clone captain, also called Nemo (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/1dbc1935-6542-4ee3-822f-135cff4ba62c/ddpxspp-3aa2ad69-e899-4e62-a536-495e125a1c18.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzFkYmMxOTM1LTY1NDItNGVlMy04MjJmLTEzNWNmZjRiYTYyY1wvZGRweHNwcC0zYWEyYWQ2OS1lODk5LTRlNjItYTUzNi00OTVlMTI1YTFjMTgucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.eVT1dqyMtbeMlyQXBsuHLe_5GANqxgIPGuafWbhrdAs), made his way over to his general, holding a datapad. Nemo was a good soldier, and had impressed Allusis time and time again. "Anything to report, captain?" Allusis asked.
"The core is stable, sir. The technicians are not worried about a leak, but they'll keep working to make sure it stays stable."
Allusis nodded. "Very good. Have you organized the troopers that are fit to help the others?"
"Yes sir," came the swift reply. "I'm only organizing a few squads to secure the perimeter around the ship."
"Be sure to take care, captain. We don't know the creatures of this world, so don't take any chances. Also be sure to watch for natives, we don't want to make any enemies right now."
"Understood, sir."
Allusis considered for a moment, then let out a sigh. "Anything new on the launched escape pod?" It had been three hours since Allusis learned that the escape pod his Padawan was in had malfunctioned and launched on its own. Thank the Force it wasn't all of them, or they would have several missing clones.
Nemo gestured to the tactical map on the projector table. "We think they landed somewhere in this area." The captain said and pointed at a large forest area some miles from the massive mountain in the distance. "Their beacon stopped emitting a signal when they landed. Either the transmitter is damaged, or something is interfering with the signal."
The map was a bit crude, as the sensors were still a bit out of shape. The holographic map showed a large area around their ship, and in time, it would be more detailed.
Allusis nodded, not thinking the pod would be too damaged, as it was built to take a beating. Still, that was not a guarantee. "How soon can we send a squad to their position?"
Nemo hesitated for a moment. "It will take some time, sir. We are still getting a handle on things here. I don't think we will be able to get anything done before dawn."
Allusis sighed, he didn't like to wait that long. As it stood, they had three missing troopers, and his Padawan. Allusis didn't like the fact his Padawan was out there, but at least he wasn't alone, and he was capable. He would need to trust him to handle himself until they could send out someone to bring them back.
"I understand, captain. Please inform me once you have a squad available. I want my student, and those troopers back safely."
"Understood, General."
Nemo was just about to return to his other duties, when the sensor officer came over. "Sir, we have several vessels leaving one of the cities. They could be heading towards us." Allusis gestured to the tactical map, and the officer moved to one of the panels.
After pushing a few buttons, three green markings appeared on projection near the mountain city. "The vessels are airborne, sir, but not fast."
Allusis frowned. "If they are heading towards us, how soon until they reach us?"
The officer shrugged. "It's hard to say, General. We are barely picking up any energy signatures from it. If I'm being honest, I'm surprised our scanners even picked them up. I'll give them maybe two hours, perhaps less."
"Have you tried to communicate with them?" Allusis asked.
The sensor officer nodded. "Yes, sir. But either they are ignoring us, or they don't have anything to receive our transmissions."
That was surprising. Allusis knew there were civilizations around the galaxy that hadn't reached the advancements to be able to receive transmissions. If that was the case, then what else did they not have?
Allusis considered for a long moment. "We have to act carefully," he said with a thoughtful hum, crossing his arms over his chest. "Captain, gather some men. We have to prepare to receive them, and hopefully negotiate peacefully." He looked at Nemo with a serious expression. "Make sure they know not to fire unless fired upon."
Nemo gave a firm nod, knowing exactly what his Jedi General was expecting from them. "Understood, General. We won't let you down."
Allusis favored him with a small smile, and inclined his head. "I know you won't, Nemo." He looked back at the sensor officer. "Continue your scans, and keep trying to communicate with those ships. Perhaps we will be lucky, and they will respond."
Allusis sighed, it looked like his apprentice would have waited longer than he wanted. He just hoped that whoever was coming would be friendly, otherwise things could turn ugly fast.
Liam groaned, he felt lightheaded as his mind slowly returned him to cautiousness. As he started to open his eyes, he found that he was laying on the floor of the escape pod. His tunic had been removed, and his brown robe folded under his head as a pillow.
It took a moment for Liam to remember what had happened, and why he was here. When he did, he almost let out a gasp and quickly tried to sit up. That wasn't a good idea, Liam quickly found out. He felt dizzy, and lightly slapped back down on his back.
He must have fainted, Liam realized, feeling a slight touch of embarrassment wash over him. He was a Jedi, he shouldn't have fainted...
The sound of footsteps interrupted his thoughts, and he looked towards the hatch and found a clone trooper looking down at him. "Good to see you awake, commander." The trooper took off his helmet, and sent Liam a friendly smile. "Hey Dex," the clone called over his shoulder. "The commander is awake."
A moment later, and the clone known as Dex came inside. His helmet was off too. Unlike the others, he was almost completely bald. The first, who Liam reasoned was the clone known as Lucky, had let his hair grow into a more basic human haircut.
Dex reached Liam's side. "How are you feeling, commander?"
"I'm alright," Liam replied. "Just a bit dizzy, that's all."
"It's understandable," said Dex. "It was a pretty rough trip." He handed Liam a canteen, which Liam gladly accepted, taking a sip of the refreshing cool water. "Better?"
Liam removed the canteen and let out a satisfied sigh. "Much, thank you." Dex nodded, and took back the canteen as Liam sat up. He looked down at his torso, finding a large bacta patch sticking over the place that hurt since his fall.
"Took the liberty and fixed that up for you," Dex said as he got up. "It looks like you took a nasty fall."
Liam nodded, standing as he found his tunic folded on one of the seats. "I did, thank you, again." Dex smiled, and gave a nod as he got up himself. "Do we know anything about the ship?"
"We don't think it crashed," Lucky answered. "Before we crashed, the venator looked like it had its landing under control."
"We don't know the extent of the damage either," Dex added.
"What about communication?" Liam asked as he secured his belt, and lightsaber.
Dex shook his head. "We are having problems sending or receiving any signals. It could be because of the forest we've landed in."
Liam frowned. It was rare that a simple forest could make communication difficult. Then again, it could be an issue with the Venator, and not them. As Liam collected his brown jedi robe, he followed the two clones outside. The forest around them was indeed large, and thick, with all sorts of plants and trees Liam was unfamiliar with.
"Okay, we should find our way out. Perhaps once we clear the trees we can get a signal."
"That could work," Dex said.
"Hey, commander." The clone who had sat beside Liam greeted. He was walking towards them carrying a DC-15A blaster rifle (https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/6db37440-06e9-407e-9f36-af4524d8d831/d9mo03a-f4779b64-044b-4eb7-94a6-524bebd0f4ee.jpg/v1/fill/w_2006,h_398,q_70,strp/g_force_s_dc_15a_heavy_magnum_blaster_rifles_by_solgravionmegazord_d9mo03a-pre.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9MTExMCIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzZkYjM3NDQwLTA2ZTktNDA3ZS05ZjM2LWFmNDUyNGQ4ZDgzMVwvZDltbzAzYS1mNDc3OWI2NC0wNDRiLTRlYjctOTRhNi01MjRiZWJkMGY0ZWUuanBnIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTU1ODUifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ.Kn7EiYeaDnGBEgTrATSzjSvurMmOOBvz9okKEugGD3o). "Good to see you up and about again."
Liam smiled a little, and inclined his head. "Thank you, trooper."
"The name is Jeice, commander." The clone responded, with some amusement in his voice.
"They call me, Dex." Dex then introduced himself.
"And my name is Lucky."
Liam already knew their names, but it was nice to finally be introduced officially. He made a small bow in greeting to all three of them. "I'm Liam Valar."
"Oh we know, commander." Lucky said with a small smile, and put on his helmet.
Liam felt a little embarrassed, but quickly let the feeling fade away. They had a mission, and they couldn't wait. "We should get moving."
He looked up, seeing noticing but thick three branches a lot of foliage that almost sealed them off some the sky above them. The path of the crashed pod however made a large gap, and Liam could see the sky was already just a little brighter. Dawn couldn't be far away. Liam wanted to get moving, and find his way back to the venator, and his master.
Though as he looked at the clones, he hesitated. "Are you well enough to travel?" He asked, knowing they had to be tired just like him.
Lucky gave a confident nod, and all three stood a little taller. "We'll manage, sir."
Liam couldn't help but smile a little. "Alright, then let's gather up some supplies and get moving."
"You heard the commander," Lucky said to the two others. "Gather the kit, and let's get moving."
"Sir, yes sir!"
Celestia stood on the bridge of the airship. After taking a moment to raise the sun, she returned her attention to the matter at hand. They were approaching the crashed vessel, and as they had gotten closer and gotten a better idea of the sheer scale of it, every pony onboard had gone quiet.
Briefly she had wondered if she should have brought more of her guards with her. Especially after seeing activity around the metal ship.
But it was too late to change course now, doing so would only make all her guards more nervous, and if need be, she would defend them to her last. Of course Celestia hoped it wouldn't come to that, her hope was this could be solved diplomatically.
After all, the metal vessel hadn't attacked them, nor had it destroyed any buildings or towns, or killed any of her subjects that she knew of. Moreover, the ship looked damaged, so she thought this might be an accidental landing of some sort. Perhaps the occupants, whoever they were, needed help. Celestia had prepared for this, by bringing any doctor and nurse she could find on short notice.
Although as they came closer and closer, she was unsure on how much help they could be. Still, it was worth a try, and hopefully everything would go over smoothly.
"Princess," the captain of the ship said. "We are approaching the ship, and are preparing to land. Should we get the guards prepared?"
Celestia considered. She didn't want to make it look like she was preparing to attack them, but neither did she want to signal that they could be pushed around. "Prepare four of my personal guards. We shall depart first, the rest may follow behind us, calmly."
The captain nodded. "As you command, Princess."
"Captain," the first officer said as he hurried to them. "You should see this sir." He handed a spyglass to the captain, and pointed head at the ship. "Several white armored warriors are coming out in formation."
The captain frowned, and took the spyglass to see. He clicked his tongue, and lowered the spyglass. "There must be one hundred or so..." He looked at Celestia.
"May I?" She asked, and held out a hand.
"Oh, of course, Princess." The captain said, and handed her the spyglass.
"Are they taking any aggressive stances?" She asked as she raised the spyglass to her eye.
"I wouldn't say so, your highness. Looks more like the same formations we use during parades." Explained the captain, and was handed another telescope so he could watch with Celestia.
Celestia moved her gaze over the strange warriors. They had the discipline of trained soldiers, Celestia could tell that from their stance, and the way they moved. She took in their features, noting their body shapes. The armor struck her as odd, she'd never seen the like before.
While her own soldiers wore armor, she had never seen armor that covered just about every inch of their body and face. At least, they hadn't used armor like that in centuries, but she didn't feel she could compare the two. Their armor seems lighter, and it didn't look like any metal she knew.
The weapons they were carrying were also strange. She recognized them as projectile weapons, or at least she assumed that was what they were, but like their armor, they looked more advanced than their own muskets.
Like the captain had said, it didn't look like they were taking up any defensive formations. Instead they came marching out, weapons held in low position, and not taking aim at them, even though she was sure they could see them. There were two formations marching side by side, fifty in each, Celestia guessed.
At the head of them, Celestia noticed someone who was dressed in robes, instead of armor it seemed. She couldn't see too much detail, but a glance was enough for her to confirm who she was looking at wasn't a pony. But more importantly, she could tell whoever it was down there was waiting for them.
As she lowered the spyglass, she considered for just a moment, then made a decision. "Begin your landing, Captain. I believe our guests are expecting us."

//-------------------------------------------------------//
                  Chapter 3: New Friends                   
//-------------------------------------------------------//
Chapter 3: New Friends
Celestia took a deep breath as she stepped forward, alone.
When the ship had landed, and her guard forces had assembled, one of her officers had called out to her. The creature in the brown robe was slowly coming towards them, his own soldiers staying behind. He wasn't alone, a shiny metal creature was following behind him.
Celestia figured it might be a diplomat or something. Thankfully she had thought of the same options, and asked her most trusted diplomat to come with her. Although he had largely retired as a diplomat, and returned to the private sector, he was still happy to help her out when times called for it, like now.
When she saw he was approaching without any guards, she decided to do the same, although her officers didn't like it. Still she was determined to show some good will. She looked at Fancypants, her diplomat, and without hesitation he stepped up beside her to walk alone towards the strange creature.
Step by step they moved towards him, when he suddenly stopped, a respectful distance from his own soldiers, and a good distance from her own. Celestia recognized the diplomatic move, putting them right in the middle between the two groups, so they could meet on a neutral spot.
Celestia was pleased, some of her worries had eased, but not vanished. The massive ship still loomed in the background. It was bigger than a town, and taller than most buildings in Equestria. In fact, the only thing that could rival this thing was perhaps Canterlot, but even that seemed small when compared to this monster.
As they got closer Celestia had a chance to look at the creature in the robes in more detail. He was tall, taller than most of her ponies, with only herself being perhaps only half a head taller than him. He had broad shoulders, and while his brown cloak hid most of his body, she could tell he was muscular too.
He had a full gray beard that had grown around his mouth and hid his chin. His mane was long, but some of it tied into a messy tail. His eyes were like thunder clouds, and as she looked into them, she could see his age, and the experiences that came with that age.
As she took him in, she could tell he was a warrior, but his stance was so relaxed, although with a degree of self discipline. It was something Celestia could recognize, because she found that trait in herself at times when she felt more like her age.
They came to a stop, perhaps just three meters apart. He watched her expectantly, apparently waiting for her to make the first move. "I am Princess Celestia, ruler of Equestria. And this," she gestured to Fancypants. "Is my diplomat Lord Fancypants."
She noted a shift in the creature, but he was controlled enough to not let the shift show in his face. Instead he did a respectful half bow, not the kind of overly dramatic her subjects did at court, but the kind she might see from martial artists.
"I am master Ven Allusis, Jedi Knight of the Republic."
His voice was deep, but respectful. She had never heard of a Jedi Knight before, nor did she have any idea which Republic he was from, but she knew it wasn't anything she knew from this world.
"I am sorry for our intrusion into your lands, and about any distress we might have caused." The Jedi continued, his voice even and calm. "But we were attacked, and managed to flee, but we ended up crashing here."
Attacked? Celestia didn't like the sound of that, but she didn't interrupt him.
"We managed a controlled landing, and avoided any of your settlements, but our ship is beyond repair, and cannot fly again. We hope to call for help, but until then, we would humbly ask for your permission to stay here."
For a brief moment, Celestia found herself stunned. Her whole world had suddenly changed, and while some of the more pressing questions had been answered, she found millions more coming to her mind.
"Hm, bad business indeed." Fancy said beside her, which jostled her out of her thoughts.
"Yes, quite." Celestia said, regaining her focus. "I am sorry to hear of your plight. As I hope for peaceful talks, I have brought doctors and nurses, should you have injured our wounded."
The Jedi inclined his head, his eyes looking a bit softer now. "Thank you, your highness. But I don't think your doctors would be of much help at the moment. But I thank you for your kind gesture, and share your hope for peaceful talks."
Celestia favored him with a small smile. "I'm glad we see eye to eye on this. For a while, we were not sure what to expect."
"I understand," Allusis said. "It was brave of you to show up with so few soldiers, and approach me alone."
"The same goes for you, does it not, Ven Allusis?" Celestia asked, a small smirk playing on her lips. "But I am glad if this can be solved diplomatically, and of course you are welcome to stay here, provided we establish some common ground rules together."
Allusis bowed to her again. "Of course, your highness. For now though, I humbly ask your permission to send some of my men out to pick up my student, and three of my men. They got separated, and we believe they landed some miles from your city." He explained, and nodded towards Canterlot mountain.
Celestia frowned. "But of course, perhaps some of my personal guards should go with them, so your men don't startle my subjects."
"Very wise, your majesty. I thank you."
They'd been walking for about two hours now, and the sun had brought all the colors out of the forest. Liam had little time to truly appreciate it though, as he was more focused on moving forward.
He was tired, and he wondered if he had made the right decision ordering them to travel, instead of setting up camp. Liam had hoped he would be used to command by now, but in truth he always felt nervous. It was one thing to take care of yourself and your own needs, but it was something else to think of what others might need.
Master Allusis had always told Liam that the safety of the men under their command should always come first. As leaders, it was their duty to look after them, and make the best possible decisions. Liam agreed with his master, and always strived to do what was best.
"Anything, Dex?" Liam asked over his shoulder.
"Nothing yet, sir."
Dex replied, holding a com-scan in one hand, while he carried his DC-15S blaster (https://us.v-cdn.net/5021068/uploads/editor/ju/m72imu4qxlwl.png) in the other. Lucky, who Liam saw as the leader of the two other clones also carried this blaster. Leaving Jeice with the longer DC-15A.
"Hey, can I ask you something, commander?" Jeice asked suddenly.
Liam glanced behind him to see who had actually spoken, then nodded. "Of course, Jeice."
"What's it like using a lightsaber? I mean, don't get me wrong, I like blasters, but it is pretty useful to have something to deflect blaster shots."
Liam was a little taken aback by the question, but couldn't help but smile. It was one of those questions he himself, and probably every youngling had asked before they got a lightsaber of their own.
"It is difficult to explain," Liam began. "Any being can pick up a lightsaber and swing it around, but it takes a lot more skill to wield it effectively than if you were to use a blaster."
That wasn't to say aiming a blaster did not require skill, but to use a lightsaber in an effective way, you needed to be Force sensitive. Otherwise you might as well just pick up a normal vibroblade.
Jeice hummed thoughtfully. "I bet I could use it."
Dex snorted. "Oh yeah? How would you be able to deflect blaster shots?"
"Good point," Jeice conceded. "I guess I stick to blasters then."
Liam chuckled good-naturedly. He'd served with the clones for two years now, but he was almost amazed at how individually they were despite being clones. In the Force, each and every one of them were unique. Liam promised himself to remember that lesson well.
"Commander," Lucky said, getting Liam's attention. "The forest is thinning out."
As if by cue, Dex nodded. "The signal is getting stronger, just a few more meters and I think the disturbance will be too weak to interfere."
Liam smiled. "Good, once we've contacted the ship, we should find some place to rest."
The words had barely left his mouth, when he suddenly heard screaming. Without having to give any orders, Liam ran towards the screaming, with the clones quickly following their commander.
Liam was quick, his Jedi robes were easy to move in, and so made a quick headway. As he cleared the final trees and came into the open, he was met with a horrifying sight. A massive three headed beast, snarled and growled as it towered over two aliens.
Its body was muscular, and covered in orange and brown fur. Its tail was of green scales, with the third head snarling at the two aliens on the ground. It had horns, fangs, and saber teeth. And it had only one intent, Liam could feel it through the Force.
Without hesitating for a second, Liam leaped forward as his hands reached for his belt and pulled out the hilt of his lightsaber. Using the Force to enhance his speed, he leaped forward, and ignited his lightsaber.
The blue blade sprung forth as he landed in front of the two aliens. His instinctively tightened a bit, as the hum of the lightsaber vibrated gently through the air. He didn't look back at the aliens, he could sense their fear through the Force, and he knew instantly if he did not defend them, they would be killed.
The creature roared in outrage, focusing on him as it clearly recognized he was a thread. Liam moved his lightsaber, letting the creature see it in motion. While it didn't understand what it was, it instinctively knew it was dangerous.
He hoped to scare it off, send it fleeing into the forest, but he could sense its growing anger. The beast wanted to kill, to feast, and its three heads focused on him as only a predator would. It reached out for him with its claws, but quickly redrawing them as it was testing the danger.
Liam in turn stepped away, and then moved forward, startling the creature for just a moment. It stepped back, as Liam had hoped it would.
Lucky and Jeice ran up in front of the aliens, raising their blasters while Dex came to the aliens' aid. The creature assessed them with one head, while the saber toothed head kept its glaring green eyes on him.
They moved, with the creature clearly trying to figure out how to deal with him. At this point it completely ignored the clones, and its first victims. Liam still hoped it could be chased off, but as if sensing hesitation to attack, the creature turned slightly, and let its tail, and third head lunge at him with deadly speed.
If it wasn't for Liam's Jedi reflexes, the tail head would have plunged its fangs into him. Instead he quickly side stepped and made a quick cut!
The beasts roared as its tail head fell to the ground. It retreated a few steps, its eyes going from shocked pain, to intense hate. Liam could feel it through the Force so clearly that he was startled for just a moment. As if in a blind rage, the creature was about to leap at him, when three to five blue blaster bolts took the massive beast down.
Liam let out a sigh, as he deactivated his lightsaber. As the blue blade retracted back into the hilt, he watched as both Lucky and Jeice carefully approached, their blasters still aimed at the now dead beast.
"Nice shot," Liam complimented as the clones lowered their blasters.
"The girls are secure, sir." Lucky reported. "Dex is seeing to their injuries now."
Liam frowned as he turned towards the alien girls still on the ground. They looked dumbfounded at them, which Liam couldn't exactly blame them for. As he secured his lightsaber hilt back in his belt, he made his way back to them.
As he came closer, he had a chance to really look at them. Both were female, or at least Liam assumed as much because of their body shape. They were largely humanoid, hands, walking on two legs, but no feet. Their eyes were colorful, and so were their fur and manes.
One of the females had blonde hair and tail, her eyes were a deep green. The second female, she was the most colorful out of both of them. Cyan colored coat, her eyes magenta, and her hair and tail in multiple colors.
Liam stopped maybe a meter from them, giving them space as Dex looked over the cyan colored female's wounds. She's been hid in the side, the cut had torn her shirt, and stained it with blood. She looked at him with wide eyes, her chest rising and falling as the adrenaline still rushed through her body.
He could sense their fear, so he tried to put them at ease by lowering his hood, and giving them what he hoped would be translated as a friendly smile.
"How bad is it, Dex?"
Dex was kneeling next to the wounded female. The backpack from the pod opened, as he used the medical kit to tend to the girl's wound. "It looks worse than it is, sir. But she should be okay."
Liam let out a relieved sigh, and returned his attention to the girls. They looked about his age, he noted. "Can you understand me?" After a moment's hesitation, they both nodded. "My name is Liam, and these are my friends. Don't worry, you're going to be okay now."
The blonde haired girl stared at him, then glanced at the clones for a moment as Lucky and Jeice stayed in the background. Her eyes fixed on him once again as she opened her mouth to speak.
"What are you?"
It sounded like a simple enough question, but there were so many answers to it. "Like I said, my name is Liam. These are my clone troopers." He gestured to each of them as he introduced them. "Dex, Lucky, and Jeice." Liam decided to keep it simple for now, as they were clearly still in shock.
"We crashed not far from here, and got separated from our ship. We want to return, so we were passing through when we heard you scream." Liam noted the cyan colored girl looked away, her cheeks flushing. He decided not to ask her about it, and pushed on. "So what are your names?"
The orange one hesitated for just a moment, glancing at Dex as he patched up her friend. "I'm Applejack, and this here is my friend, Rainbow Dash."
Liam nodded. "Alright, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, nice to meet you." He said with a friendly smile.
"Same," Applejack replied, although she still seemed a bit reserved.
Dex finished with the one called Rainbow Dash and gave a satisfied nod. "There we are. This should do just fine until you can see a doctor of your own."
Both Dex and Liam stood up, holding out their hands to help the girls up. They looked a bit unsure for a second, but did take their hands and stood up.
The one named Rainbow Dash winched as she stood up, holding a hand to her side where the wound was. Liam let out a bitter chuckle, she had been hurt in the same place he had. Thank the Force she was going to be okay. As if feeling her eyes on her, Rainbow looked up at him, her eyes a mix of suspicion and wonder.
"Do you live nearby? Perhaps there is a town nearby?"
"Sure is, Ponyville ain't that far," said Applejack. "But my family has a farm just over the hill there." She pointed to a large hill not far from there.
"Do you think we could rest there until help arrives?" Liam asked.
Applejack narrowed her eyes as she thought it over. "I don't see why not, seeing you helped us and all. But I can't say if my granny will fancy the idea." She shrugged. "But there is no harm in asking."
Liam inclined his head to her. "Thank you."
"Well shucks, no need to thank me." Applejack said, her stance more relaxed now. "You saved me and Dash here, it's the least I can do."
"All the same," Liam smiled, and bowed respectfully.

//-------------------------------------------------------//
                  Chapter 4: A Brief Rest                  
//-------------------------------------------------------//
Chapter 4: A Brief Rest
Rainbow Dash winced, her side was sore, but thanks to one of the white armored creatures, it didn't hurt as it did before. She was walking beside Applejack as they led these strangers towards AJ's farm.
A part of her was suspicious, another part of her was curious. She'd never seen creatures like them before, nor their armor and weapons. At the time, she had been too much in shock to really say anything, and after a while, she didn't know where to begin.
She carefully glanced over her shoulder, seeing the one called Liam, walking with the three soldiers. She noted the glint of that sword thing hanging from his belt. She had never seen anything like it before. The way he had used it was amazing, and she wondered how it worked.
His eyes suddenly met hers, and she quickly looked away. Applejack noticed the quick motion, and looked at her with concern. "You okay, Dash?"
Rainbow gave a weak nod. "Yeah, I'll live..." She moved her right arm a little, feeling the soreness get some relief from it. "Just itches."
"I'm sure it does," Applejack replied dryly, then sighed. "We were lucky. If those strange fellas hadn't shown up," Applejack winced at the thought. "I don't even want to think about it."
"No kidding," Rainbow agreed.
Normally she would have given some boastful answer, but she simply didn't have it in her right now. The only thing she wanted right now was to be back at the farm, and rest. She glanced back at Liam, thinking perhaps she would have a chance to ask him more about who they were.
It didn't take them long to find the dirt road leading to the farm. It was on a white painted fence. On one side of it were rows upon rows of fruit trees. On the other hand, they had open grass fields. Liam could see the town of Ponyville maybe a mile or so away.
As they walked along the road, Dex had gotten through to the Venator. To Liam's relief, everything had gone well, and his master had even established contact with the ruler of these lands.
"We can expect pick up in about an hour, sir." Dex informed him.
"Very good," said Liam. "Be sure to report what has happened, and we will rest at a local farm."
"Roger that, sir."
As Dex reported back to the Venator, they came up to the main gate of the property. Beyond it was a wide dirt road, leading to an open courtyard. The farm consisted of three main buildings. The farmhouse, the barn, and the workshop.
When they approached the farmhouse the front door swung open, and out stepped another alien. This one was red, and clearly male. He looked shocked upon seeing them, and for a moment Liam thought he would panic.
But seeing the orange female, he made his way down to them fast. "Are you alright?" He asked, his voice deep.
"We're fine, Big Mac. These fellas saved us from becoming Chimera's breakfast." Applejack explained, earning him a raised eyebrow from Mac.
The male eyed the four of them, then gave a firm nod. "Better take her inside."
"I'm fine!" Dash said, frowning. "They fixed me up."
"Who fixed who up?" An older voice asked. Another alien, an older female stepped out the front door."Oh? Who have we here?"
Liam took it as a cue to introduce himself and his men. He stepped forward and gave a respectful bow. "Greetings, I am Liam Valar, and these are my friends. We were trying to get back to our friends when we heard screaming, and found these two in a bit of trouble." He gestured at Applejack and Dash, who both looked a little sheepish. "Luckily no one was seriously hurt. We asked Applejack if we could rest here until our friends can come for us."
The older woman regarded Liam and the clones, and then gave a firm nod. "Well, I ain't going to turn away folk who saved my grandchild and her friend. You can stay for as long as you want."
Liam bowed to her again. "Thank you."
"No need for all that bowing, sonny. I'm no royal." She said with a cheeky grin before turning back into her house.
That made Liam smirk. He turned to Lucky and the other clones. "Get through to the ship, give them our position. Then we rest."
"Yes sir."
A few minutes later they were all sitting and relaxing on the porch to the farmhouse. The old woman even decided to treat them with a tray of ice-cold fruit juice, and some freshly baked bread. Liam wasn't going to refuse her hospitality, and neither was his men.
After putting their blasters against the house, they took off their helmets, earning a small gasp from aliens around them. "Now either I'm seeing triple, or you fellas look the same." The old woman said, squinting her eyes as if testing her own theory.
Lucky smiled and took one of the glasses. "You are not wrong, ma'am."
"We're clones." Dex added as he also took a glass.
Applejack frowned. "Clones? You said that before," she looked at Liam. "Do you mean like they're twins?"
"In a sense." Liam explained. "They have a lot of brothers, but it is a bit complicated to explain." In all honesty, Liam wasn't sure about all the details. When the clone wars started, he had just been a Padawan for a little over a year. It was a sudden change, and everything seemed so muddled up back then.
"Well, it must be nice to have a big family. We know a little about that, don't we?" The woman said.
Applejack smiled, and gave a firm nod. Liam smiled too, while he had never known his parents, he knew about family. The Jedi order was his family, and there he had hundreds of brothers and sisters.
"So, you're soldiers?" A raspy voice asked.
It was the first time the one known as Rainbow Dash had spoken to them. She sat in the shade, leaning against the wall of the farmhouse. Liam looked back at her, glancing at the clones. They seemed happy to let him explain, enjoying the cool fruit juice in the shade.
"In a way," said Liam. "They," he nodded at the clones, "are trained soldiers. I'm a Jedi."
"A what?" Rainbow asked.
"A Jedi," he repeated. "We are an ancient order of Force users who have dedicated our lives to peace, and the protection of the innocent." Liam tried to keep it as simple as possible. It had quickly become clear to him they had little, if any, knowledge of the wider galaxy.
Rainbow frowned in puzzlement, and so did the others, except for the clones. Liam had expected this, and so continued. "The Force is what gives a Jedi their power." He did his best in explaining it as he had it explained many years ago. "It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the universe together."
"So you use magic?" Applejack asked, listening just as intensely as Rainbow Dash.
Liam smiled, "we don't call it that, but I think some beings see it as magic."
Rainbow leaned forward a bit, and pointed at his belt. "And what about that blue sword you used?"
"Oh, it's a lightsaber." He said, with a little suppressed hint of pride. "It's the weapon of the Jedi. We build it while we are still younglings, as part of our trials. It's a very personal thing." His hand reached for the hilt, and unhitched it from his belt. He looked at it fondly, with a warm smile on his lips.
"Ain't it dangerous?" Applejack asked.
Liam shrugged, "no more than any other weapon. It's a tool, and we are taught early on how to use it, and respect it. One of our teachers always told us that our lightsabers are our life."
"Now that is some wisdom I can get behind." The green matriarch said, as she made her way over to an old chair and sat down. "This here farm is our life. The land and the trees are part of our history. Each tree we grow, it becomes a part of us."
Liam couldn't help but smile at her words. "Wise words, ma'am."
The old alien snorted, but still smiled good-naturedly. "Don't have to call me ma'am, sonny. You can call me Granny Smith," she said with a twinkle in her eyes. "And that goes for you clone twins too!"
"Uhm, yes ma'- oh,, Granny smith." Lucky said, sounding almost like he was talking to an officer.
Liam chuckled, and so did Dex and Jeice. Rainbow scooted just a little closer to Liam. "So, how do you become a Jedi? Do you go to school?"
"Kind of," Liam responded. "There isn't a lot who can tap into the Force. Those who can are brought to the Jedi Temple when they are about three years old. Then when we are old enough we begin our training."
Rainbow listened with rapt attention as Liam explained. "We learn how to tap into the Force through meditation, and daily exercises. We have classes, and learn the basics of lightsaber combat. Then when we are about twelve, we get selected to be the personal student of a knight, who will see to our training until we are ready to become knights."
"Then what?" Rainbow asked.
"Well, then we go on missions, try to help people. Protect them."
"That sounds awesome!" Rainbow gushed, her wings fluttering a little. "So are you still a student?"
"I am, but I hope to become a knight in a few years." Liam smiled. It felt nice to have such a casual conversation again. He could talk with his master of course, and the clone he knew back at the Venator, but it had never really felt the same.''
He often missed his friends from crèche. Before the war, he and his friends would often spar in the Padawan dojo, or send holomessages to each other, talking about the missions they went on with their masters. After the war broke out, such times had become much less frequent.
Before the conversation continued, Lucky's wrist communicator beeped. He brought it closer to his mouth and answered. After a few seconds, he gave a firm nod. "Understood, sir." He turned his head towards Liam. "Commander, our transport will be here soon."
Liam nodded and stood up. The clones followed, and put on their helmets. Granny Smith looked at the young Jedi, and smiled at him. "Guess your friends are here then?"
"They are," answered Liam. Already he could hear the familiar hum of an LAAT Gunship (https://th.bing.com/th/id/R.1eebe44fa6a70456f44fb8942aeb81bb?rik=Q2US7cSiTh9lng&pid=ImgRaw&r=0) approaching. "Thank you again for your hospitality."
The woman waved her hand in dismissal, but still smiled. "It's the least we can do for someone who saved my grandchild and her friend. I hope you find your way home again."
"So do I." Liam managed to say just before the gunship came into view.
Applejack, her brother, and Rainbow Dash gasped as they saw it hover above their home. The dirt right under it began to move around as it landed. Its large side doors were open, revealing five clone troopers, and three alien soldiers.
Liam smiled, relieved that relations with the natives had been established without any problems. It gave him hope that everything was going to be fine now, and the worst of their ordeals were over.
As Lucky, Dex and Jeice gathered their stuff and stepped onto the ship, Liam took one final look at natives. His eyes met Rainbow Dash's for just a moment. He could sense her through the Force, then, for just a moment, he felt as if she was reaching back.
Liam hesitated, when a clone called for him. He nodded, deciding it was probably nothing, and so got onto the ship. Without another word, the gunship rose into the air. Applejack and others below waved at them, and Liam and the others waved back.
With one final look at Rainbow, the gunship flew back towards the Venator.
Author's Note
This chapter is a bit on the shorter side. At first I intended it to be part of the last chapter, but I liked it more if it was its own contained chapter.

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                Chapter 5: Canterlot Visit                 
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Chapter 5: Canterlot Visit
Ven Allusis let out a long calm breath as he let himself drift out of meditation.
As his eyes opened, he found the dull gray metal walls of his quarters. He sat on a simple meditation mat in the center of the room, listening to the faint hum of the Venator. The engines were no longer in use, but various other systems were still running.
Over the many months he had been onboard, he had gotten used to the hum. It was almost calming. Allusis took a deep breath, then slowly got to his feet. There was still much to do, and the day was only just starting.
It had been two days since they landed on this planet, and since his first meeting with Princess Celestia. They had both talked, but decided it was better to do so once they were both better prepared. So Allusis had suggested meeting in two days, which would allow him and the clones to secure the ship.
Celestia readily agreed, as it would give her time to inform her subjects, and made sure no one got near them. She even assigned some of her guards to patrol five miles around the ship, making sure no one tried to get close.
This was now considered a military area, and Captain Nemo and his men had made sure to secure the perimeter, and set up their security. Although neither he or Allusis thought any attacks were likely, the security of the ship and the men were of utmost importance.
The ship was now secure, and the clones had settled into their new duties. More importantly, the wounded were being taken care of now, while the dead had been gathered. Allusis frowned, knowing despite his losses being so few, it never made the loss of good men easier.
For now, his focus had to be on establishing working relations with the Equestrians, and finding a way to contact the Republic. So far there had been no such luck. They had tried to catch any signal out there, and while it sometimes seemed they could catch a glimpse of some kind of signal, it always slipped away from them.
Allusis could only assume they were in the unknown regions of the galaxy, but he had no way of knowing exactly where. He could try to send out one of his ships, but without knowing where to send it, he could risk losing the pilots in a fruitless effort.
No, for now it was better to take his time, and think about a plan. In time, he was confident they would find a solution. Until then he might as well make the best of things.
His meeting with Princess Celestia today was good. Her diplomat had come daily to answer questions, and give reading material to a protocol droid Allusis had tasked with gathering information about the world. The talks with Fancypants had been interesting, and the reading material the droid had translated from their books had helped.
Obviously Allusis had responded in kind, having his droid make a report that Fancy could take back to Celestia. It would help bridge the gap, and fill in the basics of their two worlds.
There was a soothing ding coming from the door com, indicating someone wanted to come in. "Enter," Alussis said as he picked up his brown robe.
The door slid open, and in stepped his clone captain. "Morning, sir."
"Nemo," Allusis greeted with a nod. "Anything to report?"
"We are ready to leave for Canterlot, General."
Alussis nodded. "Very good. I will meet up with you shortly," Alussis informed his captain, and then paused. "Any updates on Talek's condition?"
Nemo frowned, and shook his head. "I'm sorry, sir. He is stable, but he is still in a coma."
"I suspected as much. How are the remaining men of the 481st legion settling in?"
"Pretty well given the circumstances..." Nemo tried to hide it, but Allusis noticed his frown deepening ever so slightly, his eyes turning away.
"You may speak freely, Nemo. You know that."
Nemo looked up at his Jedi General. Allusis had been an excellent General. Nemo knew how much he cared for them all, despite being clones. He treated them as brothers, trusted them, and shared in every hardship. He deserved trust in return, he had proved that a long time ago.
"There has been," Nemo hesitated for a moment as he searched for the right words to use. "Rumors, or grumblings from the men of the 481st..." Allusis raised an eyebrow, but he didn't speak, so Nemo continued. "Apparently Talek Thren pushed them pretty hard, and pushed for some aggressive attacks."
Allusis didn't like the sound of that. He folded his arms inside the large sleeves of his robe. "Did he mistreat the men?"
Nemo shook his head. "No, I wouldn't go that far. However from what they are saying, he pushed the attacks, and ignored solid advice. It was how they ended up surrounded. If we hadn't come to their aid when we did, they would have been destroyed."
Allusis nodded, mostly to himself. "This was after master Lupai Ores's death?"
"Mostly, sir. Apparently even before his master's death, he seemed eager to push for attacks." Nemo's frown deepened, but this time he hesitated only for a moment, then looked Allusis directly in the eyes. "They had disagreements, even an argument. Apparently master Lupai wanted to evacuate much sooner, but when she died, Talek insisted on staying."
"I see," Allusis said, then sighed. "He wanted revenge..."
"That seems to be the case, sir." Nemo said, his voice equally worried. "The 481st boys mourns master Lupai's death, they say she cared for them deeply..."
Allusis smiled just a little. "That sounds like Lupai," he said with a small hint of sadness. He was thankful they had managed to recover Lupai's body, but with them stranded he knew he couldn't bring her back to the Jedi temple for a proper funeral.
If needed, they could do it here. It would give the 481st a chance to show their final respects to their Jedi General, but he knew he couldn't do it before Talek was awake. Allusis would need to have a talk with him when he woke up, but that was for later.
"Thank you for telling me, Nemo." Allusis said, inclining his head. "We will address this later, for now we can only try and make the 481st comfortable, and make them feel welcome. They are our brothers in arms, so I trust we can take care of them."
Nemo gave a firm nod. "Yes, General."
"For now, we need to get going. I'll meet you in the hangar shortly, be sure we are ready to take off when I arrive with my Padawan."
"Yes, sir." With that, Nemo turned on his heels, and walked out.
Allusis took a moment to himself. The path ahead was unclear to him, the Force felt strange to him, but not unfamiliar. He had to trust in the Force, as he sensed the days ahead would be critical.
Celestia stood in the courtyard, waiting along with her diplomat, and council members. At any moment now, their stranded guests would arrive in one of their flying ships.
It wasn't without a certain amount of trepidation that she waited. After all, the universe just became infinitely bigger than she could have ever imagined. The ship, the aliens, all of that was world turning enough, but from what Fancy had reported, it was much bigger than anything she could ever have imagined.
A galactic war? A clone army, machines built for warfare. Planets with billions of lifeforms, so many cultures, so many potential enemies, so many potential allies.
If everything they had been told were true, she was glad she had one of these Jedi Knights here. Although, she had no way of knowing if what they had been told were true or not. She would just need to have faith in this Ven Allusis.
On the day of their meeting, she had found out master Allusis's student had saved two of her ponies in Ponyville. That by itself spoke well of them, but that didn't mean she could fully trust them. Not yet at least.
There was still much she didn't know, but she would learn...
"Your highness," Captain Iron Hoof said, nodding to the sky.
She looked up, and saw two of those flying ships. The small crowd around her let out small gasps. They had heard about the aliens, seen their massive ship from afar, but seeing them up close for the first time, that was something else.
Far away, at the main gate, she noticed flashes of lights. The press were there, taking as many pictures as they possibly could. Captain Iron Hoof had doubled the guards on the walls, and at the gate, not wanting to take any chances. This was a diplomatic meeting between two worlds, and she would not have it disturbed by some daring journalist.
The flying ships had their sides open, revealing not just master Allusis, but a younger looking Jedi who Celestia assumed was his student. The rest among his group were more of those white armored soldiers. The second ship had a few small crates, and more soldiers.
When the ships landed, the Jedi stepped off, making their way towards Celestia, along with three clones following behind them. The rest stayed with the ship. Celestia could feel the unease among her council members, knowing they were still undecided what to think of these newcomers.
Allusis and his companions stopped at the foot of the stairs, and he and his student bowed respectfully. "Your majesty, an honor to see you again."
Celestia inclined her head in recognition. "The honor is mine, master Allusis. Welcome to Canterlot. I assume this is your student?"
"Yes," Allusis answered. "This is my Padawan, Liam Valar."
On cue, Liam bowed again. "It's an honor, your majesty."
Liam was young, not much older than Twilight, Celestia noted. She favored him with a smile. "I've been told that you saved two fillies near Ponyville. I must thank you for your gallantry."
Liam shook his head. "I only did what had to be done, majesty. I could not leave them to be harmed, or worse. It is not the Jedi way."
"I'm gratified to hear that," said Celestia. "Well then, shall we?"
She stepped aside, and gestured to the open doors to the palace. Her ministers all stepped aside, allowing Celestia to walk in front with the two Jedi, and one clone. The two others stayed back with the rest.
Celestia walked side by side with master Allusis, while his student walked a step behind his master. She could tell the two Jedi studied her palace, although she wasn't sure what they thought of it.
As if sensing the question, master Allusis sent her a small smile. "Your palace is very impressive, your highness."
She chuckled. "I would guess this isn't the first one you have been to?"
"No, it isn't," Allusis admitted. "It isn't even the biggest. But each palace says something about their rulers."
"Oh?" Celestia tilted her head slightly. "And what do you think Canterlot palace says about me?"
"I don't know enough about pony culture to give you an exact answer, your highness. However, I would say your city, and palace is in the center of everything. A beacon of hope to your subjects."
She smiled, "that is a generous reading." Celestia said, "and perhaps it is close to the truth."
They came to pass one of the larger doors, entering a large room that had been set up for their talks. The seats had been set up in a square, like if they were sitting at a long table. Celestia had a central seat at one end, while the Jedi and their clone sat at the other.
To their right and left were a row of seats reserved for her ministers. There was no table between them, but instead an open space where they could stand, if they so wished. Each seat was very comfortable, with arms rests so one could sit and relax as the talks went on.
As they sat down, Nemo took his helmet off and placed it on a small side table beside his seat. Everyone in the room had a small side table beside their seats, some of them already having papers on them. Celestia knew her ministers wanted to go through all sorts of legal matters, but she hoped she could avoid most of it for now.
"Everybody comfortable?" Celestia asks, trying to sound casual and hopefully ease the tension in her ministers. From what she could see it didn't help. Thankfully the Jedi looked more relaxed, which was more important right now. "So once again, I'd like to bid you welcome to our capital, master Jedi."
Allusis inclined his head. "And we once again thank you for all you have done, your highness."
Celestia sent him a smile. "As I'm sure you can imagine, we have a lot of questions. Our whole understanding of the universe has suddenly changed rather drastically."
"I can imagine so," Allusis said, with a small hint of seriousness.
"Then let us cut to the chase."
One of the ministers spoke up. It was Celestia's minister of foreign relations who spoke up. A plump little unicorn stallion by the name of Scribble. He looked rather nervous even levitating a napkin to his forehead.
"I think the most pressing issue right now is to learn more about this war between your Republic, and this Confederacy." Scribbler said, looking increasingly nervous. "What exactly do the Republic expect from us?"
Allusis leaned forward a bit, looking at Scribbler with a calm expression. "Nothing, minister."
Scribbler made a snort, which was unlike him, Celestia knew. "Do you expect us to believe your Republic does not want something from us?"
Allusis shrugged. "Until we came here, minister, we had no idea of your existence. If the Republic were to contact you while helping us, then it would only be to establish diplomatic relations."
"How would th-"
"If I may," Allusis cut in as gently, yet firmly as he could. "As things stand right now, I am unsure what exactly would happen until we learn more about our whereabouts in the galaxy."
The minister of trade leaned forward, interested. "How so, master Jedi."
"Space travel is not as straightforward as traveling on land or sea." Allusis glanced at Nemo. "Captain."
"Yes, sir."
Nemo reached into his utility belt, and produced three small disks. He held them out with one hand, and Celestia watched as Allusis made a slow hand motion. She watched with fascination as the three disks floated into the air, and gently landed in the middle of their seating arrangement.
The disks were spread out in a triangle formation, and after just a moment, they started to project light into a single point between them. Celestia watched as maybe a meter above the floor the beams of light met, and created a large holographic galaxy.
Celestia watched as the galaxy gently spun, giving them all a good look. She could see millions of tiny stars, with the hologram growing slightly brighter at the very center.
Nemo pushed a button on his wrist, and lines started to appear, dividing sections of the galaxy from the center and outward. There was text floating in each divided section, but it wasn't a language Celestia knew.
Allusis stood, and moved closer to the hologram. "This is the known galaxy, and how we have divided everything. The closer you get to the center, the more we know, the more we have explored. The farther we move out from the core, the less we know."
He gestured with his hands at each section. "We have the core worlds here, which has the capital world of the Republic. Then we have the inner rim, the expansion region, mid rim, the outer rim, and wild space."
Everybody in the room listened, unable to really wrap their heads around just how massive the universe was, and how small their own world now seemed.
"As we move out into these regions, the less we know. Beyond wild space, which has barely been explored so far, we have what we call the unknown regions." He paused to make sure they were all following so far.
"We don't know what is out there. We have not mapped out anything, we have not explored, and there are likely millions of systems who like you, have no idea about the Republic, or what is going on in the galaxy."
Celestia started to see where this was going. "And you are unsure which of these regions we are in?"
Allusis looked at her, then nodded. "Yes. The trouble we are having right now is to establish communication with the Republic, and determine our coordinates." He let out a long tired sounding sigh. "We are starting to think we are in the unknown regions."
Minister Scribble narrowed his eyes. "And what does that mean for us with the Republic?"
"In the event we do get in contact with the Republic you will be so far away that official relations will take years, perhaps centuries to fully be explored." Allusis turned away, and moved back to take his seat as the holographic image vanished again.
"Even so, right now the Republic is at war, and unless your system is located in a strategic position, you should not look forward to deep diplomatic ties for some time."
The room went silent for several moments. Celestia couldn't tell if her ministers were happy, relieved, or disappointed. If she was being honest with herself, she wasn't sure what to think right now. There was still so much she did not know.
"And all these systems," Celestia then continued. "They are all in this Republic?"
Allusis shook his head. "No, some systems prefer to be independent."
"Like these, what were they called... Separatists?" Celestia pressed.
For a moment, Allusis hesitated. Celestia didn't think it was to deceive her with an answer. The older knight looked thoughtful, as if considering his answer.
Finally his eyes met hers. "The answer is complicated, your highness. If it was simply a matter of leaving the Republic peacefully, then I don't believe the Republic would be at war. But the Jedi feel there is much more to this war than what we can see..."
Celestia narrowed her eyes ever so slightly as she leaned back in her seat. "Please," she said, gesturing for Allusis to continue. "I want to know everything you might be able to tell me."
Author's Note
I hope you guys are enjoying the story. I know there hasn't been any cool battles yet, but I am giving this story more room to grow.
As for the short chapters, it works better for me like this. I can separate it easier, and write the chapters with more ease.

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                Chapter 6: Diplomatic Ties                 
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Chapter 6: Diplomatic Ties
Twilight strained to see what was going on.
It had only been about an hour since these aliens showed up. Ever since the ship had landed, Twilight had wanted to go and explore, but Celestia had refused.
Moreover, she had refused to let Twilight read any of the reports her diplomat had gotten for her. Now that they were here, Twilight wanted nothing more than to sit in on this meeting and learn about them, but once again, Celestia had refused her. So here she was, trying to look in through the windows, doing her best not to be seen by anypony.
"Twilight, I'm hungry..." Said Spike. He was sitting against the wall, looking bored out of his mind.
"We'll eat soon, Spike." Twilight promised as she leaned closer to the window, hoping to hear more of what was said.
She couldn't hear much, but watching was also interesting. The aliens in robes, and the aliens in white armor. She had heard about the robed ones, apparently they were some sort of knights. Princess Celestia had been very tightlipped, only telling Twilight the bare minimum of what was going on.
She had been very clear that Twilight shouldn't try and intercept one of these aliens, at least not until an understanding had been reached. Twilight wasn't sure what kind of understanding they needed to come to, as she had already said she didn't think they were a threat, but she was the Princess, and it was usually best to heed her teacher's words.
Although she hoped she would be able to talk to them soon...
The universe had just become so much bigger, and she didn't intend to miss out on anything!
For a Jedi, the Force is their greatest ally.
It allows the Jedi to sense the universe around them, and grant them power to do what ordinary beings cannot. It allows them insight into the thoughts and emotions of others, and what Liam could sense from these ponies were astonishment, fear, and paranoia.
Liam could sense it clearly through the Force, as each minister listened intently to his master explaining the nature of the clone wars. The flickers of their emotional shifts stood out like rocks hitting a calm river, sending waves through the Force.
It only became more clear as Nemo showed them footage of some of the battles they had been in. The footage of their fleets, the battle droids, and their worlds, made the fear stand out not just within the ministers, but their faces. Liam could not blame them, their entire view of the universe had been shattered. It was like a pet fish being let out into the ocean.
But in the center of all these impressions and emotions, Liam couldn't sense Princess Celestia. At least, not in the same way as he sensed her council members. She was like a pillar of calm, standing firm, and her mind was closed off to him.
Liam stretched out with the Force, trying to get a sense of her feelings. But no, her mind was closed to him. He did however sense something else, or rather someone else. He glanced towards the windows, and his eyes met those of a unicorn filly. She quickly got down and out of view, but Liam had no doubt she knew he had seen her.
Who was she? Celestia's daughter perhaps?
"I must say," Celestia said, gaining Liam's attention once more. "This war is quite confusing. These separatists want to break from the Republic, but they are conducting offensive warfare, and are conquering other systems." She tried out the last word, clearly used to dealing with nations, and not planetary systems.
"However, I cannot say I condone the Republic using a slave army either." She continued.
Liam felt a stir within Nemo. "If I may, your highness..." Nemo said, his words polite, but his voice was tense. When Celestia nodded, Nemo stood. "We clones are soldiers of the Republic, and we are not slaves. We fight to protect the innocent, not to conquer. Me and my brothers serve the Republic proudly."
Liam looked to his master, who listened calmly. The Jedi had never been thrilled about the clone army, not because of the clones themselves, but for the same reason Celestia had brought up. They had been bred to be soldiers, they never had a choice.
Celestia inclined her head to the good captain. "Yes, please forgive me. I didn't mean to offend you, or your brothers." It was a diplomatic answer, but Liam could see genuine concern. "But we have never experienced anything like an army composed of clones. It is all new to us."
"I understand, ma'am." Nemo responded, sounding less tense as he sat down.
Celestia glanced at the window for a moment, then addressed the room. "I think we have a better understanding of how things stand now, I thank you for coming to us to explain."
Allusis gave a polite nod. "Of course, your highness."
"I think a break is in order. Please, everyone, there are some refreshments prepared in the south garden. Master Jedi, you are of course most welcome to join us. I would love to continue our conversation under a more relaxed setting."
"We would be honored," said Allusis, giving a small respectful bow. "Thank you for the invitation."
As the room started to empty of the many ministers, Nemo stepped up to Allusis and Liam. "General, if you don't mind, I will go back to the gunship and oversee the cargo."
"Very good, captain." Allusis responded. Liam looked at his master, who turned to him as Nemo walked away. "Come, Liam. There is something I would like to discuss with you before we join the others."
"Master?"
Allusis gestured for Liam to follow, and so he did. Liam didn't speak, waiting patiently for his master to elaborate as they stepped into the large hallway of the palace.
"I have spoken to the Princess, and I think it would be wise if you stayed here at the palace, Liam. Acting as our ambassador." Allusis explained as the two walked side by side. "There is still much that needs to be done back at the ship, and this would be a good opportunity for you."
Liam considered his master's words. He wanted to help, but he could see the wisdom in his master's decision, so he nodded. "Yes, master. Will I be alone?"
"No," Allusis answered. "I'll leave a squad with you, along with some equipment so you can contact the ship."
Liam nodded. "Perhaps, if the Princess allows it, a gunship, and my starfighter?"
"A good suggestion, Padawan. I will ask her." The two walked for a bit before Allusis continued the conversation. "Your primary duty will be to establish a relationship with the natives, learn about them, and let them learn about us. If nothing else, we may have at least gained an ally once we contact the Republic."
Liam frowned, glancing up at Allusis. "Master, what if we can't get in contact with the Republic?"
"We deal with that then. Full loss of contact isn't the end of our options." Allusis explained, calm as always.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Liam sighed.
Allusis placed his large hand on Liam's shoulder. "Keep your concentration on the here and now where it belongs. Be mindful of the living Force, my young Padawan."
"Yes, master."
Liam followed his master into a large impressive room. The ministers mingled about with ponies that hadn't been at the meeting. There was a large table with all sorts of foods, and even a small band playing relaxing music in the corner.
As soon as Liam and his master stepped inside, a servant near the door announced them. "Introducing, Jedi Master Ven Allusis, knight of Republic, and his student, Padawan Liam Valar."
Every head in the salon turned towards them. There was a ripple in the Force as Liam felt the many emotions in the room. Although, he didn't need to be Force sensitive to see the slight nervousness in their eyes. To them they were aliens from a galaxy that had just become much bigger to them.
Liam had been used to seeing different species from a very young age at the Jedi Temple. To him this wasn't very shocking, but he could see a species who hadn't even reached out to the stars yet would be shocked. But that didn't mean he would ever get used to being the center of attention.
Master Allusis didn't acknowledge the attention, instead started walking calmly into the room, with Liam walking close by. Allusis was used to diplomatic missions, and of course being his Padawan, Liam had attended some of those meetings with him, but that was more before the Clone Wars.
Allusis led them to the end of the large room where Celestia stood, and greeted some of the guests. When she spotted Allusis and Liam, she smiled warmly at them both.
"Ah, and these are our esteemed guests." Celestia said to a young and elegantly dressed mare. She wasn't alone, as the stallion beside her was the young Fancy Pants who had been visiting them regularly.
The mare's eyes lit up, and she took a step forward, smiling brightly at both Liam and his master. "C'est un plaisir de vous rencontrer tous les deux. Est-il vrai que vous êtes tous les deux de nobles chevaliers?"
Liam blinked in surprise at the words, he'd never heard her language before. Allusis however didn't show a hint of surprise, and just smiled at the young mare.
Celestia giggled a bit. "Please, excuse Fleur de Lis. She is visiting from Prance, and while she can understand our language pretty well, she has a hard time speaking it."
The mare gave a sheepish smile. "Toutes mes excuses."
Allusis nodded, still smiling. "What did she say?"
"She said it is a pleasure to meet you, and asked if you were truly noble knights?" Explained Celestia, with a small smile of amusement.
Allusis chuckled warmly, while Liam felt a little self-conscious. Never had he heard anyone call them noble knights before. She made it sound so romantic.
"Thank you for the compliment, young lady." Allusis said, with a warm and almost playful tone in his voice. "Yes, we are indeed knights, sworn to protect the innocent." Liam couldn't help but chuckle at his master's display.
The young mare however seemed to love it, and almost squealed in excitement. Fancy Pants told her something, and she was quick to thank Allusis for his time before the two left. Celestia giggled behind her hand, and looked at Allusis with a hint of approval.
"I am glad my kingdom is able to host such noble knights." Said Celestia.
Allusis turned to her, and bowed a little. "We are at your service, your majesty." The two shared a laugh. It was strange to see master Allusis so relaxed. Not that Liam hadn't seen his master like this before, but it had seemed almost a lifetime ago since he last saw him this relaxed.
"Now, Princess." Allusis then said, looking at Celestia, and nodded towards Liam. "My Padawan has agreed to act as our ambassador, while I tend to our men, and ship."
Celestia's eyes lit up, and she looked at Liam with a pleased smile. "I'm glad to hear it." She said, "we still have a lot to learn about your Republic, and the galaxy out there. I am sure your time with us shall also be enlightening for you." Celestia beamed. "I have set up the west wing for you to use as a sort of embassy while you're here."
Liam bowed respectfully. "Thank you. It will be my honor to be at Equestria's service, Princess."
"The honor is mine," Celestia said. "It is a historic day for Equestria, and I feel working together will bring a lot of benefits, and make your stay here as peaceful and easy as possible."
"I couldn't agree more, Princess." Master Allusis nodded.
Allusis and Liam had left the festivities an hour or so later. They had acted as expected, politely making conversation, and answering questions posed to them by curious nobles and ministers. Most of them were innocent enough, but some had been vague attempts of leaning more of their ship and troops.
Allusis hadn't been too worried, and skillfully answered every question with a diplomatic tact that Liam could only marvel at. Once again he was reminded of how much he admired his master, which was why he was even more determined to make him proud during his new assignment.
They came back to the two gunships, with the clones waiting for them. Liam noticed a few crates had been carried out, and placed near the doors to the palace.
As they came out, Nemo turned to them. "General," he greeted respectfully. "Commander Valar's squad is ready, sir." A group of ten clones were lined up, standing at attention.
Liam looked from Nemo to his master. Sensing his confusion, Allusis turned to his apprentice. "Yes, the Princess and I thought it best if you had a few clones with you, and protect your new embassy."
Liam was about to ask about it, but he stopped himself. It wasn't strange for diplomats and ambassadors to have protection, and while Liam didn't need it, he knew it would look strange to onlookers if he was simply here alone, with no staff or protection whatsoever. At worst, it might tempt rash actions from those with ill intent.
"I understand, master."
"Good," Allusis said, sounding pleased. Then he smiled. "I thought it would be best if you had someone you were already familiar with."
As if on cue, a clone at the end of the line took a step forward. "Sergeant Lucky, reporting for duty, sir!"
Liam couldn't hide the small smile that graced his lips. "Sergeant, congratulations on your promotion." He said, glad to have Lucky here with him. If he was here, then surely Dex and Jeice would be here too.
Allusis smiled too. "Sergeant, please prepare to move everything inside."
"Sir!" Lucky promptly responded, and turned to his new squad.
While the clones started to work, Allusis turned to his Padawan. "You should have everything you need here," he began. "I'm leaving you a protocol droid for you as well, to handle the data, and running of the day to day operations." Allusis started to walk towards one of the two gunships.
"Learn as much as you can about their planet, and their culture. We don't know how long we will be here, so we might as well make the best use of our time." Allusis stepped onto the gunship with Nemo, leaving Liam to stand a few meters away, watching him. "I'll contact you every day for a report."
Liam nodded. "Yes master. Let me know if I can do anything to help, and... Let me know if Talek wakes up."
Allusis nodded, folding his arms in those large sleeves of his robe. "I will. Goodbye for now, Liam, and may the Force be with you."
The gunship hummed as the engines started, and soon enough it started to ascend. Liam watched as his master flew back towards the Venator, leaving him with his first solo diplomatic mission. Although his master would not be far away, Liam couldn't help but feel the hint of trepidation and excitement to be on his first solo mission.
While it wasn't the most exciting mission, he was determined to not letting his master down!