I own nothing Star Wars, besides my own ideas.
This is a continuation of the Alternate Sequel Trilogy I am working on. I highly suggest reading The Force Awakens Alternative Version first, as it has a very different version of events, such as Rey and Finn having different names, and very different alternate events of what has happened.
I know I said I would wait until July to start the new version of TLJ, but I have too many ideas that need written before I forget them!
STAR WARS EPISODE VIII: THE LAST JEDI
The NEW REPUBLIC in turmoil!
Despite the destruction of STARKILLER BASE and its dreaded GALAXY GUN, there is no time to rejoice. Billions have been slaughtered and the New Republic's severally damaged military fights to hold back the tyrannical forces of the FIRST ORDER.
Yet hope remains. General LEIA ORGANA-SOLO and other Republic heroes and warriors fight on. The leader of the Republic, GAR STAZI, is a warrior by training and knows what needs to be done to fight back the First Order. There is also the hope that the NEW JEDI ORDER will emerge from their exile and fight alongside the Republic.
As the war rages, KIRA REY SOLO trains under JEDI GRAND MASTER LUKE SKYWALKER at the FIRST JEDI TEMPLE. As she struggles to gain mastery over the FORCE though, time is running out. For KYLO REN has is recovering from the wounds he received at the hands of Skywalker so he can continue to serve the mysterious SUPREME LEADER SNOKE….
Prologue
Hyperspace, 0 ABY
The Chimera plunged through hyperspace, a steady course in the tunnel of blue and white light. The Star Destroyer sped on and on, its destination unknown to any who would have been outside the Imperial capitol ship. Some would have claimed it was like the ship was being dragged by space whales, but only the delusional propaganda of the insignificant Rebellion would have made such an outrageous claim to suit their own purposes for why it was no longer over Capitol City on Lothal.
The thing was though….no one knew where they were speeding towards. Certainly not the Bothan who ran towards the bridge. No one would have been able to tell him race though. Two companions followed close behind him. They work identical armor, except for the one in the rear, whose helmet was open in the back to allow twin lekku to fall. But no one dare stop them, as their blood red armor signified their rank, as did their long Force Pikes.
"You!" the Bothan commanded, pointing to a group of four black pauldroned Stormtroopers. "Fall in and be ready!"
"Yes sir," the troopers reported, all of them women as their armor clearly showed the bumps to allow their larger chests to fit.
Palpatine had assigned six of the Royal Guard to this mission. When Palpatine had briefed the guardsmen personally on their target, the Bothan admitted that he felt that Palpatine was overcommitting the Guard against this Jedi. He wasn't a fully trained Jedi. By the Moons that Orbit Bothuwai! He wasn't even a full-grown human yet! He still hadn't taken Ezra Bridger seriously, not even when Palpatine had given operational command of the task force to him.
Every single Royal Guard had a status screen for all personnel on a mission that appeared on the inside of their visors. They learned how to both keep an eye on it and ignore it at the same. He had divided thiet team in two, giving command of Team B to Lieutenant Sarvva, an Umbaran male who was a few years younger than him.
His impressions on the skills of this fledgling Jedi had completely altered when Team B suddenly went from Green to Red, indicating death at the very same moment. The guardsman and his entourage approached the turbolift and they all climbed inside, pressing against each other. Turbolifts were really only meant for four people at a time, but there was no time to wait.
"Set your weapons for kill," he ordered and he heard the satisfying hum as the blaster rifles exited safe mode. "Bridge, now!"
As the closest trooper turned the nozzle to the bridge, he clenched his Force Pike. Several good friends and comrades had been killed but his professionalism outweighing any immediate rage at the death of his comrades. The lift rapidly ascended to the Bridge Deck, and before he knew it, they were charging out towards the blast doors. Three troopers we're already there, trying to hotwire the door.
"What's going on?" he demanded, striding to them. "Why is that door not open?"
"The Jedi sir," the biggest of the troopers said, standing behind the two others who were working hard. "He's locked the doors on us. We are trying to hack into…..'
"You idiots," the Twi-lek guard snarled at them. "He's using the Force! You won't open it that way!"
The troopers looked back and forth at each other. It was almost comical, the frowning visors of stormtrooper helmets almost looked like they were gawking at each other stupidly. But the Bothan had no time for such foolery.
"Each of you ignite a thermal detonator and put it against the door," he ordered them. "We will use our pikes to hold them in place. Get behind us and be at the ready to shoot as soon as the door blows open."
The troopers rapidly turned on their thermal detonators and placed them against the door. As soon as they were set, they scampered behind the guards, raising their weapons to point at the door. Stepping forward, the three guardsmen pointed their Force Pikes at the thermal detonators, beeping faster and faster as they prepared to explode.
"Reverse hold!" the Bothan ordered in the Royal Battle Language designated for use only by the guard. A quick twist of a nob and the suspension field grabbed hold of the detonators. They lifted them, using the field to guide them to the center of the door. A shuddering ran through the floor, signifying they had dropped out of hyperspace.
The detonators exploded, the suspension field forcing the explosive forces to push away from the group. The door could have handled one or even two explosives. But seven at the same time? Not a chance. The blast shield ripped apart, a massive hole appearing as the middle section was sent flying forward.
"Advance!" the Bothan shouted to the troopers and they sprang through the smoke the explosives had left.
Even as he hit the floor, he rolled and came to a crouch. His comrade guards did the same thing and at once they found the Jedi. Bridger was standing behind Thrawn, holding the taller Chiss by the arm which he had wrenched behind him and a blaster pointed to his head. The troopers also advanced, fanning out into a semi-circle.
"Take one step closer and I put a bolt in his high blue skull," the Jedi threatened the Imperials.
"You overestimate yourself, Ezra Bridger," Thrawn said calmly. "Do you think the Royal Guard will care what you do to me? They have only one goal and that is to kill you."
Bridger snorted, and with a sharp single command, the Bothan snapped a quick order to third guard who hadn't talked. He touched a button and thrust it forward. Thrawn suddenly flew back, Bridger behind him. Caught off guard, the Jedi's hand faltered for a second and the two men slammed hard against the viewscreen. The window of the central viewport had been blasted out, but a heavy blast shield had slammed shut to prevent loss of atmospherics during the jump. With another quick motion, Thrawn was thrown roughly sideways, slamming hard on the floor.
"Shoot the Jedi!" the Bothan shouted and blaster fire rang out, the bridge bathed in strobing lights from the lasers.
But the Jedi was fast. He put a hand behind him and used the Force to push him forward. The lasers missed him by a good deal and he lifted his other arm at the same time. Twice he pulled the trigger, and two of the troopers collapsed as they were both hit square in the chest.
"Hold him!" the Twi'lek Guard shouted and the third guard caught him in mid-air.
"Got you!" the guard growled and the troopers began to fire a crisscrossing fire. Most missed him but the Jedi screamed as one bolt seared his right calf. The Bothan turned his own holding field on and catching him in a second field.
"Nice trick, but I got better," the short-haired boy growled and he flicked a finger.
A humming sound grew from the right and glancing, a troopers ammo pack was beginning to lit up in white light. The trooper glanced down only too late, and a massive explosion ripped out the trooper's side. The female trooper collapsed to the floor, screaming in pain.
The Bothan suddenly felt something hit him at the same time a stormtrooper helmet's modulated voice let out a surprised cry. He managed to keep a hold of the Force Pike but he fell hard to the ground. He shook his head, the helmet skewed ever so slightly. Even as he tried to get back up, he felt the troopers hand begin to move, ready to blast the Jedi. A shot rang out, and even though the HUD was a little skewed, a third guard suddenly flashed red.
"No!" he shouted, throwing off the trooper. Yet even as he did, the trooper was moving his hand towards his head, blaster in hand. The trooper was struggling to stop himself, strangled cries of exertion. That ended with a single blast and plastoid flying across the bridge.
The Twi'lekj guard screamed as she charged the Jedi, and she swung her Force Pike. He jumped up, kicked it and it went flying, throwing her off balance. The Bothan charged but even as he got close, the Star Destroyer hit the ground of the planet hard. Everyone was thrown off their feet and the Force Pike flew from his hands. The Jedi was already on his feet and with a small salute to everyone, he Force jumped, spiraling as he crashed through a side window and flew out of the bridge.
"Let's get the Jedi Scum Sergeant," the Bothan said. Luckily, he was made of stern stuff and nothing had broken from the impact. The troopers were steadily getting to their feet.
"I will see to our exact location," the Grand Admiral said. He was on hhis feet, dusting off his pure white Grand Admiral uniform with his gloves and straightening it to look more presentable. "But yes, you should hurry if you can. That Jedi is particularly bothersome, and we can't have a rogue Jedi running around."
The guard held out his glove and pushing a button in the palm of his hand, the Force Pike jumped to his hand and running to the shattered window, he jumped out, turning and using magnetic discs to slow his descent along the side of the Star Destroyer.
The planet they had crashed on looked desolate. A dozen squads of stormtroopers had exited the Chimera and had joined the two guards. So many deaths had been caused by this boy, they were not going to take a chance. They approached a massive volcano with black sand mixed with brown grass that rose to their knees, where his HUD was picking up the boy's tracks. He was limping and the Bothan knew they were gaining on him.
"Do not worry Sergeant," he told the Twi'lek in their Battle Speech, sop none of the troopers nearby could hear him. "We will kill the little poodoo and bring his head back to the Emperor on a platter."
"All hail Palpatine," she replied vigorously.
They advanced towards an entrance to the volcano, where Bridger had fled inside. There was nowhere for him to run. The Bothan turned to the commander of the troopers, an army captain with a marvelous black mustache. He raised his hand and waved with two fingers three times forward.
"Quite right," the Captain said, holding up his pistol. "Three squad front lengths!"
The troopers moved to flank the guards. Yet even as they did so, a transmission came over their comms. Every trooper hesitated as the Grand Admiral's cultured almost lazy voice spoke to them all. Even as he spoke, the Jedi was running….towards them! He was waving his arms and motioning for them to get back. He was shouting something even as he ran but they couldn't make it out as Thrawn spoke to them all.
"All troops: fall back to the Chimera," Thrawn said. The Bothan frowned as he listened to the Grand Admiral's voice. He sounded…..afraid? "I repeat, all troops fall back to the Chimera. Retreat back at once!"
Even as the communication ended, the Jedi was running towards them. "Run!" he could now be heard and understood with proximity. "If you value your lives, run!"
Something picked up on the Bothan's HUD and he reached up, tapped the side of his helmet so it zoomed in. Something was pouring out to meet them. Even as he looked, several of the troopers also picked it up.
"What's that?" one of them asked and a few stepped forward, forgetting the Jedi. "Those look like shadows."
They advanced a dozen yards and stopped. The group watched as the shadows reached these troopers. At once screams of pain tore from the troopers. They watched in horror as the armor of the troopers began to shrivel, compressing like cans. Even as the troopers began to collapse, the rest of the troopers broke and ran, running as fast as they could to get back to safety. The Bothan, pride of the Imperial Military, chosen personally by the Emperor to be part of the elite Royal Guard, to guard him and kill the Jedi Ezra Bridger, turned and fled for the Chimera, following the Jedi back to safety.