I've got quite a few "requests" to get the second movie story up. Now, I know it's been awhile, but I PROMISED. And I intend to make due. Therefore, here's the long-awaited sequel to SW:Insurgency: Star Wars: Retribution. Unlike the last fic, it won't have Phoenix cameos. It has ACTUAL PHOENIX CHARACTERS. Now, please excuse me while I deal with the angry mob that has suddenly appeared at my door.
DISCLAIMER: To my great displeasure, I don't own any Star Wars of any kind. If I did, I would be stupid rich and probably live on Skywalker Ranch. (Which is an actual place, mind you.)
Part 1: The Map
!0*0!
"We've intercepted an leak from the Empire," Mon Mothma announced. "Overall, it gives us a schematic for the Star Destroyer Vanguard, which also happens to be orbiting Lothal at this moment.
The motley crew assembled in front of her subconsciously shuddered at the mention of Lothal. Where it had all started.
"So what are you asking?" the blue-haired boy near the back asked.
"A… raid, you would say."
The burly Lasat in the front raised an eyebrow at that, but said nothing.
"What strategic purpose would this hold?" the Twi'lek pilot and the leader of the squadron inquired.
"Simple. From what we've deduced, Grand Admiral Thrawn himself will be there to oversee… something. We don't know quite what that is yet, but the purpose doesn't matter. And to be blunt, Thrawn is one of the few servants of the Emperor who actually recognizes the threat the Rebellion poses as it stands. Therefore, if Thrawn could be, say… eliminated…"
The squadron's collectives eyes widened at the statement. But somewhere, deep down inside, they relished it. They looked to each other, as if affirming something.
"How much time do we have?" the Mandalorian asked.
"Four rotations. You'll be meeting them on Dantooine," Mon Mothma replied, grinning.
!0*0!
Grand Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo, better known as Thrawn, watched from the bridge of the Star Destroyer Vanguard. He had commissioned it when he was only Vice-Admiral, and thus it held a small place in what remained of his heart.
A veritable ocean of ensigns assaulted his ears as they gave each other orders pertaining to how to maintain the ship. What an utter waste of veritable skill, no? Couldn't a starship look after itself?
Then there was… the other one. GRG-892. A recently promoted Stormtrooper Commander. Of all his subordinates on the Vanguard, GRG-892 was the most respectable. He was devious, even by Thrawn's standards. So perhaps it was a benefit to have GRG-892 as one of his subordinates.
Despite his best efforts, Phoenix Squadron still managed to elude some of his plots. Luckily, the victories the Rebels actually carried out were not necessarily the most important in Thrawn's grand scheme, but still noteworthy. If anything, the victories were almost too lucky, as if someone had tipped them off.
And Thrawn was determined to figure out who.
The Vanguard exited hyperspace over the volcanic world of Vjun. The Emperor had ordered all available troops to be shifted to Dantooine, and for good reason. Phoenix Squadron and the Insurgent, combined, had already discovered four of the five Star Maps necessary to discover the Star Forge that was central to Operation. While Thrawn loathed menial jobs like this, he understood its importance to the Empire's strategy, and accepted it.
For now.
!0*0!
I'm just a number.
I'm just a number.
I'm just a number.
I'm just a number.
I'M JUST A NUMBER.
The lone thought coursed through G5-81356's mind, and he was unable to dispel it. The mantra seized all waking thought, and only the mindless state of sleep could hope to grant a moment's peace.
But even that was not enough, for the twisted abominations George had called dreams consumed every wink of rest available to G5-81356. But it wasn't G5-81356. He was Kastan Enderbeck, the one and only, Grandmaster of the True Light, Friend of the Rebellion, Sworn Enemy of the Empire, and most recently, Sith Clone.
And ironically enough, somehow… Kastan was okay with that. Perhaps George's words held more wisdom than he had thought; just because he was a clone made from the DNA of some of the most heinous and powerful Sith Lords in history didn't mean he had to be like them. And deep down, he had always known. Why else would he refuse the Empire's offer to join their ranks?
Because he wasn't one of them.
The door to his overly small cell slammed open, and Grand Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo strolled inside. From outside the window, Kastan could make out black rocks, red lava flows and an oddly shaped castle-like structure in the distance.
"Salutations, G5-81356," Thrawn said curtly. Even when Thrawn was making power plays like this, Kastan could still appreciate his courtesy.
"What brings a Grand Admiral to the dwellings of a humble Sith Clone? I'm afraid I don't have any chair on which you can sit, but feel free to squat on the floor if you wish."
Thrawn narrowed his eyes before responding. "I'm not going to respond to… that."
"But you just did…"
"What I want from you," Thrawn said, ignoring Kastan's remark, "is your allegiance to the Galactic Empire. Nothing more, nothing less."
Kastan narrowed his eyes into slits, but said nothing.
"Last chance," Thrawn said, subtly showing keys from within his pocket.
"I told Emperor Palpatine no, what do you think will be different now? Nothing. The answer is still no."
"I had thought the time alone in these rather dank accommodations would more than convince you to change your mind, but I suppose I shouldn't have expected anything more from you, G5-81356."
Thrawn nodded, then left, slamming the door behind him. From the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Kastan smirking.
"Prepare a shuttle," he all but shouted at a random ensign. "I'm going to the surface."
!0*0!
The Ghost exited hyperspace above the farming world of Dantooine. It seemed peaceful from up in space, but appearances were all too often deceiving.
"A party of three would be most efficient, Kastan said," Hera Syndulla announced. "Who volunteers?"
"Statement: T3-M4 has displayed a desire to accompany whoever travels to the Star Map," HK-47 said. They had picked both of Kastan's old droids on Manaan, as well as a Selkath Rebel, funnily enough.
"And why is this?" Zeb inquired suspiciously.
"Answer: T3-M4 claims to be the most knowledgeable on the location in question," HK-47 answered. "And I personally agree."
"Fine. T3 is going. That leaves two," Kanan concluded. "Either myself or Ezra should accompany them, as T3's knowledge of the location and our Force-sensitivity should be able to triangulate the location well enough. Hera should probably stay on the ship, as she's best with piloting. No offense of course," he added hastily upon seeing Hera's expression. "And we don't need Chopper nor HK because T3 is already with us," Kanan finished. "That leaves Zeb, Sabine, Ezra, and me. And if I go, Ezra probably shouldn't, and vice versa."
"Frankly, I think I'll pass," Zeb enunciated. "Because if I do, nobody on the ship will have the brute strength to do anything. Besides, I've never had the patience for all this searching."
"C'mon," Ezra replied, playfully punching Zeb's shoulder.
"So it's settled. T3, Ezra, and Sabine. Keep the lines open, and may the Force be with you." Hera said as the three in question made their way towards the Phantom.
It only took half an hour for them to land in a somewhat decent, and it would have took less time had the ground not been on fire for miles at a time.
"What even happened here? I don't understand," Ezra voiced.
"Beep-oop weep dee-boop. Boop doop weep beep," T3 answered.
"Then again, what did we expect? The Empire destroys everything," Ezra replied, his eyes almost glazed over.
"Ezra. Ezra!"
"Huh? What happened?"
"It looks like we've got company!" Sabine yelled, pointing off to the horizon.
Ezra squinted and saw what looked like Mandalorians charging towards them with a good number of heavy armaments.
"We can probably take them, wouldn't you agree?" Ezra proclaimed.
"Something's off about them," Sabine said quietly.
"What do you mean?" Ezra replied.
Then he got hit by T3-M4. The blow wasn't too substantial, but it was enough to knock the breath out of him.
"Oh, that's why," Sabine said. "They can use the Force."
T3 suffered the most damage, and the only real problem was that it landed upside down. A quick repair kit and a flip and T3 was good as new.
They had already closed half the distance between them, and the odds suddenly weren't looking so good.
"Let's head to those ruins. They should probably offer a strategic advantage," Ezra said, gesticulating towards a few broken-down buildings.
"Not like we have any better options," Sabine replied, shrugging.
Having made their decision, the three companions turned and scampered through the maze-like hills and valleys of Dantooine. A few wild iriaz passed them by, and more than enough packs of Kath Hounds too many attempted an ambush, but other than that, the run to the ruins were more or less uneventful. The Mandalorians appeared to back off the closer they got to the ruins. Interesting.
The door slammed shut behind them as they caught their breath.
"Because the galaxy needed Force-wielding Mandalorian raiders," Sabine grumbled.
"I think you make it sound worse than it actually is, Sabine," Ezra replied with a sly smirk.
She rolled her eyes in response.
The trio began to explore the ruins that they had found themselves inside. The whole area was coated in a darkened gloom. As they progressed, the air became staler, the ground cooler, the walls danker. One of the rooms was completely flooded with freshwater, or so T3 claimed.
They thought it wasn't very fresh at all.
There was another room, within the deepest sanctums of the complex, that was filled with books, books, books. Ezra opened one at random, then dropped it in surprise as a family of crickets burst from the new hole in their surroundings. He picked it up, dusted it off, and then looked at the cover. On it was the insignia of - the Jedi? There was only one logical conclusion to make.
"Hey, Sabine?" Ezra called.
"What?" She replied from halfway across the building.
"I think this might have been an old Jedi Temple," he yelled.
"Come to think of it, Kastan mentioned this," Sabine said.
"When did he say that?"
"Before he left for… well, here."
Ezra rolled his eyes, not bothering to demean that with a response.
"He also said that the Star Map was kinda close to it. Somewhere in… that direction," she said, pointing to the west. "In some… ruins."
"There are ruins everywhere, though," Ezra whined. "How are we supposed to tell which one has the Star Map in it?"
"This is your department. Kastan said something about it being a beacon of Dark energy. You're telling me you haven't sensed it or whatever?"
"Honestly, I never looked," Ezra replied sheepishly. "Let me check."
A moment of silence ensued before Ezra stumbled back.
"Found it. To the west, like you said. Geez, that's a lot of twisted Force Power. I suppose we should head out."
"Let's."
They walked outside the ruins of the Jedi Temple to find the Mandalorian raiders staring them down from only a few feet away.
They glanced at each other, nodded, and leapt into battle.
The Mandalorians took aim, but found their many, many guns futile when they were promptly chopped in half with Ezra's emerald saber. None fled; rather, they garnered swords and charged.
It was a hectic battle, but it was T3's gravity generators, Ezra's Force, and Sabine's ingenuity that led them to victory… somehow. Frankly, it wasn't even like the Mandalorians were trying to begin with. Ezra looked to Sabine with a quizzical expression on his face, but was only met with the same look. They shrugged, turned, and strolled towards the ruins in the distance.
The whole thing was shaped like a hemisphere. It had the old, rusted look of something that used to be antique, but had fallen out of favor long ago, and was left to rot in the backwater of the world, only to be remembered in the vestiges of memory. The thing was adorned by statues, or at least things that used to be statues. Now they were little more than caricatures of what they were meant to be.
Ezra, Sabine, and T3-M4 slowly walked along an inclined plane, towards what appeared to be a door. Anything and everything was possible; like the other Star Maps, a heavy aura of darkness shrouded the entire complex. The door didn't open to admit them, and trial and error proved that it was unaffected by explosives, gunfire, lightsabers, or even the Force. They were stumped.
"Maybe it's not the entrance. There's probably another way," Ezra said glumly.
"From where? Whatever was used to build the door was probably also used to build the rest of the ruins. This has to be the way. It has to be!" Sabine retorted.
They began bickering over what to do. Unbeknownst to them, T3-M4 slid out from behind them and approached the door. The humans behind it suddenly stopped arguing, anxious to see what magic the droid was about to pull off.
All T3-M4 did was tap the square in the center of the door with a probe from its midsection. For some reason, the square pressed inwards as it made a scraping noise. The top and bottom of the door split open, surprisingly quick for something of its age.
"T3? How did you do that? I tried that, and it didn't work!" Ezra said.
T3 mumbled something incoherent, something about a key in the Jedi Temple.
"Oh, the other ruins?"
T3 whistled to the affirmative.
"Well? What are we waiting for?" Sabine inquired.
"I've got a bad feeling about this," Ezra drawled.
"Like Master, like Padawan," Sabine mumbled before the trio slinked into the ruins.
!0*0!
The Star Destroyer Vanguard leapt into hyperspace yet again, this time a few hundred thousand stormtroopers heavier. Whenever he saw a mass array of stormtroopers, Kastan had to question whether their incompetence was intentional or not. Frankly, it made more sense than met the eye; each blaster shot that killed a worthless trooper is one that didn't kill a trooper the Empire spent time training and equipping. From what precious little Kastan had overheard from his mostly soundproof cell, the vessel was headed to Bespin to pick up the last payload of stormtroopers before jumping to Dantooine. Why didn't they just leave him on Bespin? He would have to ask George when he showed up again. Speak of the devil; the cell door slid open to admit GRG-892. His face was a bit flushed, and he was grinning giddily.
"What's got you so worked up?" Kastan asked, smirking.
"Just set a new Empire record for target practice. 36 targets in 20 seconds. Pretty good, eh?"
"Certainly better than I would do."
There was a pause.
"So George, I've been thinking. Why would Grand Admiral Thrawn want to bring me to Dantooine, where the rebels are as of this moment? Wouldn't it be safer to leave me on Bespin, so it's less likely that I'll be… ahem… rescued?" Kastan voiced.
"It's already been considered; the odds of Lando Calrissian freeing you are just too high. At least here, myself and Thrawn can keep an eye on you. Now doesn't that make more sense?" George replied.
"I suppose so," Kastan admitted. "You know, George?"
"Hm?" George grunted, turning around. To be truthful, he was headed for the door.
"I was just wondering something. Never mind."
"No, tell me," George asked, sitting back down on the poor excuse for bedding.
"It's nothing. It's just- the Force kind of… swirls around you. Not much, but just enough to be of notice."
"Oh?" George said. It was only around now that he was actually interested in what Kastan had to say this entire time.
"I think you might be," Kastan said, barely audible over the ship's engine, "Force Sensitive."
He paused. "I think I'd know if I could wield the Force as you do. To even be able to touch it, as you do. Frankly, I think you're deluding yourself. Nothing against it, deluding oneself can be the best coping mechanism for a tough situation. No, I'm not Force Sensitive."
George often talked like this, pushing for callous logic without any sense for the feelings of others. Maybe that was one of the reasons why Kastan enjoyed his presence so much.
!0*0!
"What kind of droid is that?" Ezra questioned. "Is that even a droid?"
They were looking at a lump of metal that remotely appeared to be a droid of some kind. Without any prompt, it whirred to life, eight spindly legs pushing its core into the air. It had one eye, which was shifted somewhat to its right. It glowed yellow.
Unintelligible ululations spewed forth from the tiny tube it called a mouth. These noises were utterly incomprehensible, to Ezra, Sabine and T3.
"Sabine, did you understand that?"
"Nope. Not a clue what it's trying to say."
New noises started emanating from the droid. These sounds were completely different from the ones it had used before.
"What is this thing doing?"
"I think it's cycling through languages in order to figure out which one it can communicate with us with," Sabine reasoned. "Either that, or it's broken."
"Hm…" Ezra muttered.
The droid started spouting another shpiel of disjointed vocalizations.
"Yup, it's definitely cycling through languages," Ezra concluded. "That one sounds an awful lot like whatever those Jawas were saying back on Tatooine."
"But can we tell what it's trying to say?" Sabine asked.
"What I wouldn't give to have HK right now," Ezra mourned.
I can reproduce any of the languages spoken by the slaves of the Builders, emanated the droid. This time, it had spurted an archaic variant of Shyriiwook.
"Hey! Doesn't that sound like what the Wookiee were saying?" Ezra exclaimed.
"Sure am glad I came along. I can understand most of it," Sabine said offhandedly.
"When did you learn to do that?" Ezra inquired, narrowing his eyes.
"Kastan gave me a crash course, but that's not important," Sabine dismissed. "I think it can understand us, but-"
That would be correct.
"Okay then. Let's ask it some basic questions and go from there," Sabine reasoned. "What is your purpose?"
I am the Overseer. The Builders programmed me to enforce discipline among the slaves while this monument to the power of the Star Forge was constructed. At project completion all slaves were executed. I was reprogrammed to serve should a Builder return in search of knowledge of the Star Forge.
"Well, what do you know of the Star Forge?" Sabine pushed.
The Star Forge is the glory of the Builders, the apex of their infinite empire. It is a machine of infinite might, a tool of unstoppable conquest.
"But… what is it? Can you be more specific?"
The… The Star Forge is the glory of the Builders, the apex of their infinite empire. It is a machine of infinite might, a tool of unstoppable conquest.
"Evidently, this droid isn't programmed with that much knowledge," Sabine lamented.
"Try asking it another question," Ezra reasoned.
"Okay. Who are these Builders you keep talking about?"
The Builders are the great masters of the galaxy, the conqueror of all worlds, the rulers of the infinite empire and the creators of the Star Forge.
"Well, when was the last time you saw a Builder?" Ezra asked.
I have been here ever since the creation of this monument. In all this time, no Builder has returned to seek information of the Star Forge.
"How long have you been here?" Ezra pushed.
My chronological circuits have marked over twelve full revolutions of the system's outermost planet around the sun since the Builders left.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Twelve revolutions of the outermost planet in this system would take… more than twenty-four thousand years. If that's true, than this droid is at least 9,000 years older than the dawn of the Republic! There has to be some mistake." Sabine said with a palpable aura of disbelief.
There is no mistake. The Builders constructed my chronological circuitry using the technology of the Star Forge itself. My calculations are infallible, the droid asserted.
"Sabine, we're getting off track. Ask it about the Star Map," Ezra said chidingly.
The Star Map is just behind this door. Before you enter, you must break the life and death seals.
"And how do we do that?"
Enter the Proving Grounds to the east and west. Within them, those who understand the wills of the Builders can unlock their secrets and open the door.
But those who fail will be destroyed by the power of the temple itself. More than this, I am not programmed to say.
"Sounds like a plan. Sabine, we're going."
Ezra randomly picked the door to his left and dragged Sabine in that direction.
Unlike outside, he was able to open the door. Immediately afterwards, a landslide of rock and dust pummeled the room, just barely avoiding the Overseer. Ezra was able to use the Force to push the stones out of the way. Scattered droid parts filled the room, but there was an evident computer.
As Ezra walked towards the computer, the screen flickered to life. A series of incomprehensible characters flooded the screen. Ezra pushed a button, causing even more characters to fill the screen. He started punching random buttons, hoping something would change. Nothing did. Hopelessly lost, Ezra kicked the base of the computer. Now his foot hurt. Way to go.
"Ezra!"
"What?"
"T3 is saying to take a datapad and stick it in the computer," Sabine said.
Ezra patted his clothes before looking at Sabine sheepishly.
"You wouldn't happen to have one on you, would you?"
Sabine groaned before pulling a datapad out of nothingness and handing it to him. Ezra did as he was told, and suddenly the computer went silent. New characters blared across the screen, but this time, they were in Basic.
LANGUAGE DETECTED.
ANALYZING…
ANALYZATION COMPLETE.
PLEASE SELECT THE THREE LIFE-GIVING PLANETARY TYPES:
DESERT
ARBOREAL
BARREN
VOLCANIC
OCEANIC
GRASSLAND
"Well, this is easy," Ezra taunted before quickly pressing 'Arboreal', 'Oceanic', and 'Grassland'.
ANALYZING…
ANALYZATION COMPLETE.
BREAKING LIFE SEAL…
"The heck?! It just booted me from the system!" Ezra exclaimed.
"Let's just go to the other one…" Sabine groaned.
They exited the room, only to find that T3 had beaten them to it.
"Beep-weep boop beep doop weep!" it emitted.
"Oh… that works too," Sabine said, shrugging.
They approached the northern door, and as they approached, it opened. Both of them continued forward, and opened another door to find the Star Map just… there.
"No super-deadly things to fight?"
"Don't complain. You'll jinx it," Sabine retorted.
He approached, datapad in hand. As he did so, the upward prong split into four, gaping wider and wider. The central ball began to rise to where the tip of the prong was before its transformation. Once there, it lit itself on fire, and a map of the Galaxy appeared. Ezra expected the same old broken coords as usual, but this time, something was different. There were five dots on the map, and suddenly, the whole system went black as red triangles started appearing between all the points. Eventually, one turned green, and then another. The Star Map started spurting completed hyperspace coords, and even afforded them a glimpse of the Star Forge itself. Then all too soon it died, and the temple was plunged into darkness.
"Well, that's it. The Star Forge."
Ezra's communicator blared. "Ezra? Come in."
"Hera? We got the Star Map."
"About time! The Empire's here!"
Sabine punched Ezra in the shoulder. "I told you not to jinx it!"
"We're going for the Phantom now," Ezra replied. Hera was about to start saying something, but in his panic Ezra shut the communicator off.
There would be time for talking once the Star Forge was destroyed.
Or did it have to be? Could there be another way?
The trio exited the temple to witness an whole system's worth of stormtroopers crest the horizon, beelining towards the ruins.
The hardest part of this chapter was the dialogue for the Overseer. I spent more than three hours trying to figure out the exact wording… and then I watched a video and it was stupidly easy. Oh well.
Anyway, that was that. Now that midterms is almost over, I'm not going to be able to post as frequently. By which I mean expect the next one at, like, next year or something stupid like that.
Oh, and if you haven't already: LEAVE A REVIEW ON SW:I! I would really appreciate any feedback you would have.
Overall, this is Phoenix -1, AKA Prof. Zerkxes, over and out.