CIS fanfic: Hero of the Confederacy
"Traitor or hero—it depends on your point of view."
Desperate escape! In the year 22 BBY, the Leemurtoo system —represented in the Galactic Senate by Senator Madis Abenda— seceded from the Republic and joined the Separatist Alliance. Three years later, the Clone army pushes forward and invades Cato Neimoidia. Fearing an imminent attack on the system, senator Abenda wants the capital of his home planet —Rosha— to be evacuated, for it is too close to the Republic stronghold of Corellia. His first born son, the Separatist admiral Sayun Abenda, leads his fleet in this risky task…
A Providence-class Separatist dreadnought orbited the planet of Rosha. On its left side its name could be read, written in Aurebesh—The Resilient. The flagship was scorted by a Recusant-class light destroyer and four Munificent-class star frigates—a medium-sized fleet of the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
On the command bridge of The Resilient, OOM-series pilot battle droids were engaged in tasks, pressing the control panels' green screens. A creature very similar to a human being, excepting his brownish mottled skin and four antennae that protruded from his forehead, stood there, watching through the armored glass the white surface of Rosha, his home planet. Sayun Abenda sighed while seeing how shuttles —full of refugees— headed towards the hangars.
"Admiral", a metallic and monotonous voice said behind him, capturing his attention.
"Yes, commander?", the Roshan answered, turning towards the T-series tactical droid who acted as his lieutenant.
"We receive a transmission from Raxus Secundus. From the Office of Senator Abenda", the droid said without any emotion.
"Go ahead".
The droid assented with a metallic circuits' noise, turning around with its hands crossed behind the back in a gesture of serenity. An holographic projection of senator Madis Abenda appeared in the center of the bridge. He was an old Roshan with hieratic expression, although the antennae on his forehead twitched, revealing a hidden nervousness.
"Sayun, my son, I believe the evacuation is proceeding uneventful", the senator said.
"It is, father", the admiral answered when he approached the hologram: "This fleet is almost the pride of the Separatist Navy. We have to thank our friends from the Trade Federation especially for lending The Resilient to us".
"I'll make sure Viceroy Gunray is aware of your gratitude, Sayun", the senator said. His nervousness seemed to have decreased, for his antennae didn't twitch then.
"The last shuttles are landing in our hangars, father. The people of Rosha is safe", the admiral reported.
"Be careful, son—it isn't over until it's over. The Republic is a sly rival. I'm almost sure their next step will be to besiege the Leemurtoo system between Cato Neimoidia and Corellia", the senator explained, worried: "Once you've put the last ones of our people in a safe place, you must bring the fleet to Raxus. I'll be waiting here".
"As you wish, father".
One of the pilot droids approached the admiral:
"Sir, the President of Rosha requests your presence in the main hangar".
"Go. Don't make the President wait", the senator said: "Tell him that Count Dooku and I will welcome him when you arrive to Raxus. And, please, when you see your brother, give him my greetings".
"Yes, father".
Sayun Abenda made a slight reverence before leaving the bridge. Senator Abenda's hologram remained there, though.
"Do you wish anything more, my lord?", the tactical droid asked.
"Commander TX-30, make sure that my sons arrive to Raxus safe and sound. I don't want them to be hurt. Have you understood?"
"I have, my lord", the droid assented with a reverence.
The senator's hologram seemed relieved before disappearing.
In the main hangar of The Resilient, a crowd of Roshan citizens gathered around their President, the leader of the planet. The people's anxiety was palpable—some of them muttered, worried; others showed their discontent with the situation complaining loudly for the President to hear them: "Why did we escape the planet?", "The war has come to our home!", "The Separatists have brought disgrace upon our people", et cetera.
"Calm down, my brethren, clam down!", the President said, not knowing how to maintain order.
"This fight doesn't make sense, the Republic is going to win!", a voice cried out within the mob.
One of the Roshans, a green-skinned teen of noble mien took a step forward with a dissatisfaction expression:
"Who said that?", he asked.
None said anything. His voice, although youthful, showed self-confidence.
"Brothers and sister—few wars make as much sense as this one we're fighting for", he said; "Few things are as worthy as this one we're fighting for. My brothers, compatriots of Rosha", he went on; "With this war, the Republic wants nothing more than to put an end to the Separatist Alliance. But, what does the Separatist Alliance want to achieve with this war? What do we want to achieve? We want nothing more than to exist! And that's the difference between them and us—we fight for our freedom; they, to enslave us. Because of that, brothers, this war makes sense. Because of that the Republic cannot win, because of that they are not going to win! Long live the Separatist Alliance!
The young Roshan raised his fist in a decisive gesture, and his fellow citizens did the same thing applauding those wise words:
"Long live the Separatist Alliance! Long live the Confederacy!", they exclaimed: "Long live Royt Abenda, the senator's son!
The boy smiled when he listened to how the crowd acclaimed his name; at the same time, the President rested his hand on the youngster's shoulder respectfully.
"Royt, you're a worthy son of your father", the President told him.
"I'm flattered, Your Excellency", he answered, nodding.
"Politics run through the boy's veins, President. Be careful: there's nothing more dangerous than an idealistic politician".
Sayun Abenda had listened to his younger brother's little speech from an upper platform. The admiral descended now by a ramp, escorted by two B2 battle droids—or superdroids, as they were commonly named.
Royt walked to meet his brother, whom he fondly hugged.
"I missed you, Sayun".
"I missed you too".
"Admiral Abenda", the President of Rosha said; "I'm glad to see you again".
The admiral bowed before him:
"Your Excellency, my father wanted me to greet you on his behalf. He's waiting for us in Raxus and he told me that Count Dooku will welcome you in person once you've arrived to the system".
"Dooku will want us to double our efforts to the Separatist cause", the President stated as his antennae twitched.
"To our cause, Your Excellency", Royt stated.
"Indeed".
The rhomboid gates opened—troops of OOM security battle droids entered the hangar.
"My troops will kindly escort you and our people to the crew deck, where you'll be able to rest until we arrive to Raxus", Sayun explained.
"I understand", the President said only.
"Royt, you'll accompany His Excellency and you'll make sure he has everything he needs on behalf of the Abenda family".
"So I will, brother", the boy answered.
The droids scattered through the mob and made the Roshans form groups. "This way, please", "Follow me, please", et cetera, the droids stated with a reedy voice. Little by little, the hangar became clear.
Sayun Abenda was ready to come back to the bridge with his B2-bodyguards when an unexpected explosion made all the ship shake. The admiral and both droids toppled and hit the ground. The electricity turned off, but the auxiliary energy generator turned on the emergency lighting —of red color—, while the security alarm began to sound stridently.
"TX-30, answer me: what's going on?", the admiral asked contacting his lieutenant using his wrist comlink.
"Admiral, a Republic fleet just exited hyperspace on sector 34215", the tactical droid answered without a hint of emotion in his monotonous voice.
"They come from Corellia!", Sayun stated.
The Roshan jumped up and began to run throught the ship's deck, commanding any troop he met to mobilize.
"Commander, I'm on my way to the bridge", the admiral explained; "Be ready to jump to hyperspace, ¿have you understood?"
"Yes, sir".
At that time, five Republic Venator-class destroyers opened fire over the Separatist fleet, viciously shooting against The Resilient. The human admiral Wilhuff Tarkin beheld how his cruisers intensified their attack from the relatively safeness of his command bridge. He stroke his chin in a distinctive thoughtful gesture.
"Admiral", one of the officers said, "We've begun the attack against the enemy fleet. But it seems The Resilient is going to jump to hyperspace".
"Prevent it!", Tarkin replied, "Focus our artillery fire on their hyperdrive. I want that ship still where it is".
"As you command, sir".
Another explosion on The Resilient's hull made Sayun topple and hit the deck. That couldn't be anything good. The admiral jumped up and arrived to the bridge after turning to the left on one of the hallways.
"Inform me, commander".
"Sir, the hyperdrive has been damaged. We can't jump to lightspeed", the tactical droid reported.
"They've prevented our flight!", the Roshan exclaimed.
"Admiral", one of the pilot droids said, capturing his attention, "More ships of the Republic are exiting hyperspace on sector 68315".
Sayun ran to the bridge glass just in time to behold the arrival of another five enemy destroyers. They opened total fire upon one of the unaware Munificent frigates, which disintegrated in minutes.
"The new enemy fleet comes from Cato Neimoidia system, admiral", another pilot informed.
"My father was right, this is a pincer movement!", Sayun stated.
"What are your commands, sir?", the tactical droid asked.
"We shall meet the security protocol", the Roshan replied, "Shunt the hyperdrive auxiliary energy to the shields generator. I want those deflectors at maximum, now!"
"Yes, sir".
"This' gonna be a bumpy ride… Deploy the vulture droids; I want the Hyena-bombers to maneuver by groups and to open fire upon the nearest destroyer. I want the frigates and The Resilient escorted at all times"
"Sir, in this situation, I calculate the frigates are our greatest asset", TX-30 explained, "Are you sure you don't want them to engage combat?"
"Those frigates carry my people inside, commander. I won't risk their lives anymore. I want them to leave here, to jump to hyperspace and to head to Raxus as soon as possible".
"The probabilities of resisting the enemy onslaught without the frigates' support are…"
"I don't care for your numbers right now, TX-30!", Sayun replied frowning angrily, "I want them to leave. Only the light destroyer will stay here with us".
"As you wish, sir".
The Munificent frigates jumped to hyperspace, leaving behind The Resilient and the Recusant-class destroyer.
"Contact the enemy flagship", Sayun ordered to one of the pilot droids, "I want to talk to their commander".
After a few minutes, the holopraphic image of Admiral Tarkin appeared on The Resilient's bridge.
"Admiral Abenda, what a pleasant surprise", the human said hypocritically.
"I cannot say the same, Admiral Tarkin", Sayun answered, "The Republic may have lost honor, but you never had it".
Tarkin smiled—"Charming to the last".
"Admiral, you're assaulting a ship that transports civilians from planet Rosha. You've already destroyed one of our frigates with fifty thousand innocents aboard", Sayun explained bluntly, "At this point in time, The Resilient carries a hundred thousand Roshan civilians that want to take shelter away from the war, in Raxus. I demand you to cease this slaughter!"
"If a Jedi were in command of this fleet, admiral, perhaps your words would be taken seriously", Tarkin replied, "However, my information is that you transport military equipment and resources with the main purpose of slowing the Republic's campaign on Cato Neimoidia. Don't take it personally—we're on different sides of this conflict and I'll do whatever it takes to prevent The Resilient from escaping. Over and out".
"That's a lie! We…!", the Roshan tried to protest, but Admiral Tarkin's image had disappeared.
Sayun, overcome with frustration, hit the command table.
"Enemy cruisers intensify their attack over us, admiral", a pilot informed, "Our light destroyer's shields are failing".
Then, the Recusant-class destroyer exploded with a flash that dazed Sayun momently.
"I calculate that our deflector shields will start to fail in 3.49 minutes", the tactical droid stated.
"What about the Hyena-bombers? I want to be informed!"
"The shields of the Republic ships are at full power and resisting", one of the pilots reported, "The bombers have been destroyed by their flak cannons, sir".
"Then, this ship is lost. I want the civilians to flee the ship!", the admiral commanded, "And get a shuttle ready—the President and my bother must jump to hyperspace now. They can't be captured by the Republic".
"Yes, sir", TX-30 said.
The droids moved from here to there, pressing buttons and the ship's control panels.
"Sir, a transmission from Count Dooku", a pilot informed.
"Go ahead".
The Count's image appeared there where Tarkin's had spoken a few minutes ago. Sayun bowed before his leader.
"Admiral Abenda, I've been informed that the Republic fleet is interfering with the evacuation of Rosha", the Count's voice was deep and strong, though the transmission was utterly defective.
"My lord, three of our four frigates are now heading to Raxus carrying the people of Rosha inside".
"I gather the fourth one has been destroyed".
"Unfortunately, it has", the Rosha assented, "We're in the middle of a delicate situation—The Resilient can't jump to hyperspace and our shields are failing. We won't resist for long. I've ordered the evacuation of the ship."
"And the President?"
"A shuttle will bring him to Raxus, as planned".
"Make sure he arrives safe and sound".
"I'll handle this personally, my lord".
"So be it, admiral. May the Force be with you".
The holoprojection disappeared then.
"Admiral, we have 1.14 minutes left before we go unshielded", TX-30 reminded.
"We must save enough time to successfully evacuate the ship!", Sayun exclaimed, "Try to shunt the telecom's and the central reserve system's energy to feed the deflector shields."
"If we do so, we'll be left incommunicado and we won't be able to restart the ship, sir", the tactical droid replied, "Although I calculate we'll save 7.32 minutes before the shields generator's total failure".
"This ship is going nowhere, so do it!"
TX-30 assented.
"Commander, you're now in full command of the ship", Sayun said, "I must safeguard the President and my brother".
The admiral left the bridge and began running through the ship's hallways. The alarm sounded foretelling the inevitable while the explosions on the ship's hull were every time heavier.
"Royt!", Sayun tried to contact his brother using the comlink, "Do you hear me? Is the President with you?"
"Sayun, the President and I are being escorted by the droids. They're taking us to the main hangar as you ordered".
"Hurry up! We have six minutes left before all the ship blows up".
"Got it, brother".
The Roshan continued running. He toppled twice because of the tremors shaking the ship, but he immediately jumped up and ran again.
"TX-30, make sure the vulture droids are ready to escort the President's shuttle until we jump to lightspeed", Sayun ordered using the comlink.
"Yes, sir".
An explosion shook the ship's side violently. The Roshan admiral, who couldn't stay up, began to crawl on his hands and feet. The ship didn't stop shaking—something wrong just happened.
"Admiral", TX-30's metallic voice sounded through the comlink, "The navigation system ignited due to overload. The bridge is lost and we're leaving our orbital course—we're falling to the surface of Rosha".
"C'mon, commander—give me a good new…", Sayun replied.
"According to my calculations, crashing against the planet Rosha is a minor concern. We've lost our deflector shields and the Republic cruisers have begun to bomb us heavily using proton torpedoes".
"I see you're having an optimistic day, TX-30", the admiral said sarcastically.
"My analysis concluded—you must evacuate the ship immediately".
"I agree".
When Sayun arrived at last to the main hangar, the President —along with his councilors and advisors— and his brother were getting on board of a Maxillipede-class shuttle.
"Sayun…!", Royt exclaimed before being interrupted by another explosion that shook the ship entirely.
The young Roshan and the others had to cling to where they could to avoid falling to the ground. Then, a durasteel plate fell from the ceiling, hitting Sayun.
"BROTHER!"
Royt ran towards him. The admiral was conscious, but his legs were trapped beneath the plate's tons.
"Royt, listen to me—this ship is hopeless", Sayun coughed up blood, "I'm hopeless. Flee here. Save yourself and bring the President to Raxus".
"I won't abandon you here… Not like this."
The young Roshan sobbed, his eyes filled with tears.
"You must, Royt!", his brother replied and pushed him, "Get into the shuttle! RUN!"
"Bring him here, hurry!", the President ordered the security droids that had escorted them to the hangar.
The droids obeyed and, grabbing Royt, brought him to the shuttle not listening to the boy's protests and painful cries of helplessness.
"Farewell, brother—live to fight another day", Sayun told him by last time.
The Maxillipede shuttle took off at once and left the hangar, breaking through the enemy lasers up to the safeness of open space.
"TX-30, are you still there?", the admiral asked using his comlink. Everything around him crumbled.
"Admiral? Your comlink's signal comes from aboard The Resilient. Are you here yet?", Sayun was surprised to hear an odd tone in the tactical droid's commonly monotonous voice, almost like if the droid were worried about him.
"I fear so, commander. I'm trapped in the hangar, but that can't be fixed anymore. Tell me what you know about the President's shuttle."
"The vulture droids just reported, sir—the Maxillipede-class transport shuttle in which the President travels jumped to hyperspace on sector 34621", the droid said, "They're heading to Raxus".
"They're safe, then".
Another explosion much more violent than the previous ones shook The Resilient.
"What was that, TX-30?"
"I calculate the reactor imploded. The cruiser's stern ignited and we've lost propulsion", the droid explained, "We're falling to Rosha at 3.1 speed rate, sir".
"This is the end", the Roshan stated.
"According to my calculations, our chances of surviving the entry into the atmosphere and the landing with the ship in these conditions are of 0.001 percent".
"I feared so".
"Admiral, it's been an honor to serve by your side".
"Have you been programmed to say so?"
"Most likely".
"Thank you, TX-30. To me it's been an honor to serve by yours".
Admiral Tarkin beheld how The Resilient fell against the planet's surface while disintegrating. When the Separatist cruiser entered the atmosphere, it broke into three different pieces which instantaneously caught fire.
"Officer, contact the Office of the Supreme Chancellor", Tarkin said, "Tell them that The Resilient has been destroyed and that the Separatist fleet escaped to hyperspace".
"Sir, our sensors confirm The Resilient launched all its escape pods before losing its shields. We receive multiple signs of life".
"Good. In that case, tell them that we made prisoners; and tell them the Leemurtoo system is ready to capitulate…"