A long time ago, in a Galaxy far, far away…
The freighter rushed between attackers, taking a few down its path. The Ghost Crew were on their way to Mandalore to help Sabine's mother and her family to rescue her father, imprisoned by the Imperials. Expectedly, they had to contend with a roaming Star Destroyer and a horde of Tie Fighters.
Hera rallied her team to act as quickly as possible. "Ezra ! Watch your aim on the nose gun ! Zeb ! Don't let any Ties hit our rear, shoot them down ! Chopper, prepare to divert all power to the forward shields and prepare calculations for hyperspace ! We're gonna plow right through them !"
A stray blast rocked Zeb's location. "Hera ! I think they've got a hit on us ! Not sure, looking for damage on the hull !"
"Anything, Zeb ?"
Zeb quickly replied. "No… Doesn't seem like they hit us at all. There's no scorch marks anywhere !"
"Good enough for me !" She turned to her trusty astromech. "All right, Chop ! Calculations are in ? Ok, hang on, everybody !" She pulled a lever, bringing them to the safety of hyperspace.
Kanan, blinded but able to see through the Force, congratulated her. "That was close ! But we pulled it off ! Nice teamwork, everyone !"
Ezra climbed down from his location to meet up with the others. "Just when I was about to bring one down, we lost them. I was so close !"
Sabine placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "There's always a next time, Ezra. You'll get plenty of chances. The faster we can reach my mother, the faster my father can be rescued. I'm sure the majority of Mandalorians with rally with Clan Wren and do their best to get the Empire off our planet."
Suddenly, a light whine sounded through the ship. Hera tried to identify the cause. "I didn't like the sound of that one bit ! Zeb, run a scan, will you ?"
"On it !" Zeb pulled up from his comfy chair, lumbering over to the scanning area. "Starting the scan now."
Several minutes passed. Hera turned over to the Lasat carefully reading scan results. "Anything ?"
"Karabast !" Zeb pounded the wall in disbelief. "Uh, Hera… we might have a slight problem…"
Hera dreaded his answer. "What ?"
He scratched his head, not sure how to deliver the report. "Uh… heh heh heh ! It appears those Imps got us after all ! The hyperdrive is… leaking."
Hera's eyes went wide in shock. "A leaking hyperdrive ?! YOU CALL THAT A SLIGHT PROBLEM ?!" She quickly flicked a few switches in haste.
Sabine quickly realized what she was doing. "Hera ?! You-you can't exit hyperpace now ! We're almost there !"
Hera grabbed Sabine's arm, pointing at the navicomputer. "Look there ! Do these look like the coordinates to Mandalore to you?! That stray blast must have fried the calculation circuits as well !"
Once out of hyperspace, the ship cruised around some very unfamiliar space. Ezra looked for points of reference, but couldn't find any. "Where… are we ?"
Hera looked sadly at the blank screen in front of her. "Uncharted space, by the looks of it ! We could very well be light years away from our destination."
Zeb came back to the cockpit. "Hera… I don't know how to say this to you : I've checked in the cargo hold… we've got no replacement parts for the hyperdrive."
Kanan stroked his beard in thought. "Which means we're stuck until we get a new one." He turned to his Twi'lek lover. "Any planets we could land onto around here ?"
"Let's run a Bioscan to ensure some planets even support life…" Results came in quickly. "There ! That blue planet up ahead. Breathable atmosphere, seems teeming with life. And from the looks of it, no Imperial presence."
As they entered the atmosphere, they searched for a place to land. "There !" Sabine pointed. "On that beach, looks deserted."
Ezra peered down the viewport. "What are those grey things on the sand ? Woah ! I saw something move !"
"Probably just an animal." Kanan hoped. "If they're smart, they'll move away from us as we land."
Piedras Blancas Beach, San Simeon County, California
So far, it was a typical day for the Northern Elephant Seal colony, at the height of the breeding season. A great number of cows were busy giving birth to pups, while bulls often tried to wander into the harem, in hopes of mating with any available cows. All would-be competitors were quickly chased away by the resident Beachmaster, a colossal bull which local marine biologists aptly named Big Boss. Weighing at an astounding 6500 lbs, he was much larger than the typical bull. Some had first thought that he was a vagrant Southern Elephant Seal, which usually weigh from 5000 to 9000 lbs. DNA testing confirmed he was simply an oversized Northern bull.
As the Ghost landed in a small unoccupied part of the beach, nearby cows and pups simply hobbled away from the strange machine.
Once the boarding ramp was lowered, Sabine was the first to complain. "Phew ! What a stench ! Is it coming from all those animals around us ?"
Ezra could only smirk at Sabine's discontentment. That still didn't keep him from pinching his nose too. "Yep ! Look around, Sabine ! There's a whole army of these things around ! I see babies, moms… and that really big one fighting with that other one must be the dad."
The Ghost Crew silently watched in the distance as Big Boss demonstrated his dominance over a smaller bull, right at the edge of the roaring waves, crashing onto the beach. Standing tall, he lunged and bit at the other's neck, causing bloody gashes. The smaller bull tried to headbutt into him, only giving Big Boss the chance he needed. With a quick swing, he grabbed hold of the other's proboscis, nearly rendering it into a mess of fleshy tendrils. Defeated, the smaller bull quickly turned tail and swam into the ocean. Big Boss celebrated his victory by vocalizing loudly using his enlarged proboscis, allowing his roar to resonate through the entire beach. It was enough to deter most bulls into giving up on attempting to sneak into his harem, which comprised of nearly 100 females.
Zeb shook his head, trying to ignore the stench. "So what now ?"
Hera crossed her arms over her chest. "We'll have to stay here for a while, Zeb. I'll try to make contact with High Command. Maybe we can get an Alderaanian Cruiser to deliver us the spare parts we need." She walked back inside the ship, leaving the others to gawk at the "smelly" spectacle of Nature before them.
Zeb face-palmed. "Great ! Just great ! So we have to endure this stink for how long ?!"
Kanan gently punched Zeb on the shoulder. "As long as we'll need. Cheer up, we've been through worse than this. Don't forget Thrawn's recent assault on Atollon."
None of the Ghost Crew knew what to expect, for good or ill.
The Pond, Anaheim, California
The odds were greater than ever. One of the players from the Chattanooga Cheeselogs managed to snatch the puck from the Mighty Ducks' team center, Duke.
The announcer seemed overexcited. "Incredible ! One of the Chattanooga Cheeselogs is on fire with the puck ! It's gonna be a close one, folks ! The Ducks have scored 8 points and so have the Cheeselogs ! Whoever scores next wins ! One minute left on the 3rd period."
The Ducks' team leader, Wildwing, was acting as goalie as usual. "Come on, you ! Give me your best shot ! I can take it !"
The player took his shot, but Wildwing quickly blocked the puck with his stick. One of the other Cheeselogs players attempted the same stunt, only to have himself boarded by the Ducks' right defenseman, Grin. "Become one… with the board !"
Losing the puck, Wildwing's younger brother, Nosedive, took the opportunity and skated off to the Cheeselogs' goalie, with only a couple of seconds left. "Lucy… I'm hoooome !" With a quick flick, Nosedive launched the puck right through the goal net. A second later, the alarm blared, signaling the period was over.
The announcer once again was thrilled. "Another great victory for the Mighty Duuuuucks ! Woo !"
All of the Ducks joined together, touching their hockey sticks all around. "Duuuucks ROCK !"
Their manager, Phil Palmfeather, was ecstatic as usual. "Yes, yes, yes ! That's my Ducks !" They quickly ran into the locker room, completely ignoring him. "Hey, hey, hey ! Wait for me ! We gotta celebrate somehow right ?" He ran off after them.
Duke highfived the younger Puckworldian. "Nice job, kid ! Ya did good out there !"
Nosedive laughed it off. "Yeah…. I learned from the best, you know ?"
Mallory, one of the female Ducks, quickly scoffed at Phil's suggestion. "No, we shouldn't celebrate."
Tanya, the other female in the group, had to probe her friend. "But why… ? This is our 10th victory since we won the Stanley Cup, 3 months ago."
Duke crossed his arms around his chest. "Somethin' botherin' ya, Mal… Ya gonna have to tell us, you know ?"
She turned to face the group. "Don't you all feel it's been too quiet lately ? There hasn't been any sightings of Dragaunus since his ship went down ! I don't like it !"
Nosedive was positive the threat was long gone. "Relax, Mal ! Ol' Lizard Lips is stuck at the bottom of the ocean, what could he possibly do ?"
Wildwing supported his brother's claims. "Nosedive is right, Mallory. With the Raptor out of commission for good, Dragaunus can't do anything. If they're even still alive…"
"Oh, I don't think they've drowned, guys !" Mallory began. "They're waiting for another chance…"
Duke counted his fingers. "Eh, not likely, Mal. Let's see… We haven't heard of anything from other villains we've fought over our first year on Earth. Dr. Droid, Asteroth, Dr. Pretorius, Phineas Viper, Falcone… They've all dissapeared."
"Don't forget Kamelia and her goons, Duke." Wildwing reminded. "It's a good thing that Dragaunus never had the chance to use those ballistic missiles she stole for him."
Nosedive shook his head. "No way, man ! That snazzy lady was sent out to space on that rocket, remember ? She isn't coming back anytime soon !"
Suddenly, Tanya's wristcom chirped to life. "It's a Drake One alert ! Let's see what's going on !"
At the Ducks' supercomputer room, Tanya quickly grasped the important details of the alert. "A spaceship landed on the Piedras Blancas Beach in San Simeon !"
Wildwing quickly took charge. "We've gotta check it out ! There's no telling what kind of alien might have landed there."
Mallory was quick to remind the rest. "And we all know who would love to get his scaly hands on it !"
For now, Wildwing agreed with her. "She's right ! If Dragaunus gets that ship, he may find a way to go back into Dimensional Limbo and free the rest of the Saurian Armada."
"So we're taking the Aerowing, then ?" Duke asked.
Wildwing quickly nodded. "Let's go, team !"
Several minutes later, the vessel was into the skies and on its way to San Simeon County.
Into the depths of the Pacific Ocean…
3 months had passed since Dragaunus failed to release his comrades from Dimensional Limbo. With the Balerium Power Crystal unit destroyed beyond repair, his Dimensional Gateway Generator was rendered useless. Hunter Drones worked relentlessly to solder the doors of the main room in order to keep the Raptor from being completely flooded.
Lord Dragaunus, the last of the Saurian Overlords, grumbled in his chair, while his henchmen, Siege, Chameleon and Wraith, kept their distance to avoid his ire.
"Three months and none of you have been able to find an alternate power source to fuel or repair the Raptor ! If we remain here in the ocean's depths, it's only a matter of time until the waters break through the last doors and forces us to flee… which will make us easy targets for those meddlesome mallards !"
The Wraith tried to reason with his boss. "As I've said many times, Lord Dragaunus, the technology on this planet is far too limited to suit our needs."
Siege walked over to the console and punched it a few times to get it started. "Partial systems are restored, my Lord !" A beeping caught his attention. "And what do you know ? Our radar's picked up a ship that landed on a beach ! It's equipped with a hyperdrive !"
A new scheme was hatched. "Yes ! We could steal that ship ! And use its hyperdrive to reach Dimensional Limbo, freeing what remains of the Saurian Armada ! The Saurian Empire would return to some of its former glory !"
Wraith always enjoyed to remind the obvious. "And the Ducks will come after us, as they've always done !"
Dragaunus knew time was of the essence. "Siege ! You and Chameleon will capture that ship ! Take as many Hunter Drones as you need ! Do not return here empty-handed !"
The Chameleon morphed into a teenaged pizza delivery boy, complete with pimples and shaggy hair. "Hey, hey ! We deliver in 30 minutes or less !"
He was quickly slapped over the head by Siege's clubbed tail. "Quit clowning around, you little freak !"
The Chameleon then turned into Curly Howard. "I'm sorry, Moe ! I'm a victim of circumstances ! N'yuk N'yuk N'yuk !"
The two Saurians teleported with a squad of 50 Hunter Drones.
Piedras Blancas Beach
20 minutes had passed since the Ghost landed. Ezra and Sabine were still admiring the Elephant Seal pups close by while Kanan was busy meditating. Zeb, on his end, was pacing around the others, silently grumbling.
Hera walked down the boarding ramp to meet with the rest, Chopper in tow. "Well… I've tried to get in contact with High Command on several attempts. No luck. Either we're too far or our communications equipment needs repairs."
Zeb finally let loose with his temper. "Ain't that great ?! We're stuck here with smelly animals and we can't even get to High Command ! WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG ?!"
Siege and Chameleon teleported near the group. The large, Ankylosaurus-like Saurian aimed his blaster at the Ghost Crew. "All right ! That ship is now the property of Lord Dragaunus ! Ha ha ha !"
Hera quickly drew out her blaster and held her ground. "Over. My. Dead. Body."
Sabine somehow recognized them. "Saurians ! I read about them back at the Imperial Academy ! I thought they were extinct…"
"Apparently, they've missed a few !" Zeb readied his Bo-Rifle. "Come on, give me your best shot !"
Siege turned to the smaller Saurian. "Chameleon ! What are you doing ?! We need the Drones now !"
The Chameleon morphed into Bozo the Clown, complete with a honking red nose. "Oh, ho ! Send in the Drones ! Send in the Drones ! Oh ho ho ho !"
The 50 Hunter Drones appeared surrounding the Ghost Crew, aiming their blaster arm at them. One of them made the critical error of attempting make the nearby Elephant Seals take their distance from the conflict. "Step away, Earth Creature ! For your safety !" It aimed its blaster at a cow which was nursing her pup. Frightened, she howled in alarm.
The howl caught Big Boss' attention. He quickly hobbled over to the threat, trying to intimidate the Drone with his loud bellowing at first. The Drone wouldn't know how dangerous it was to confront the Beachmaster. "Step away, Earth Creature !"
In a flash, Big Boss clamped down on the Drone's blaster arm, ripping it off from its socket. He then proceeded to crush the Drone under his massive weight.
Ezra and Kanan ignited their lightsabers, deflecting the shots from the Drones, taking out a few. "Heh, these remind me of the Super Battle Droids in the Clone Wars, only far less efficient !" Kanan remarked.
Sabine used her aim to take out at least 5 Drones while Hera managed to take down 3. Zeb took pleasure in shooting down as many Drones as possible. "Take that, you clankers !"
Before the battle could get more intense, a ship passed overhead, in which 4 of the Mighty Ducks dropped down to help against the onslaught of the Drones. Wildwing, Nosedive, Mallory and Duke began to shoot down a good number of Hunter Drones with their puck launchers.
Sabine marveled at the sight. "Puckworldians ! I've heard about them too ! They're the good guys !"
In the midst of the battle, Big Boss managed to take out 10 Hunter Drones on his own, throwing them around like ragdolls.
Nosedive had to crack a joke, making a motion towards the Beachmaster. "Now that guy gets my Seal of Approval ! Get it ?"
While the other 3 Ducks face-palmed and groaned in unison, the Saurians quickly realized their attempt was foiled. "Curse those Ducks, we gotta go !" Siege was the first to teleport back to the Raptor.
The Chameleon was soon outnumbered, with the Ghost Crew, the Mighty Ducks and Big Boss standing tall behind everyone, bellowing loudly. He morphed into the Wicked Witch of the West. "I'll get you my pretties, and your little droid too ! Uh ha ha ha ha !" With that, he teleported back with Siege.
Chopper warbled his response to Chameleon's threat.
Hera surveyed the battlefield. It was now littered with Hunter Drone parts. She turned to the crew's saviours. "Thank you for helping us."
Wildwing began the introduction. "Not a problem, Ma'am. We're the Mighty Ducks. I'm Wildwing, there is my kid brother Nosedive, and here are Mallory and Duke. You'll get the chance to meet Tanya and Grin later. Any enemy of the Saurians are friends of ours."
Hera thought it best to introduce her team. "We're the Ghost Crew. I'm General Hera Syndulla, part of the Rebellion against the Galactic Empire. Here we have Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger, two of the last Jedi left in the Galaxy. This is Sabine Wren, of Mandalore. Garazeb Orellios was one of Lasan's Honor Guards. And this is Chopper."
Mallory couldn't believe her ears. "Jedi ?! Really ?! You're the stuff of legends !"
Kanan nodded sadly. "There used to be more. Much more. Then the Empire formed and hunted us down. Very few of us are left out there."
Duke took a quick look at the Ghost. "That's a fine ship ya got there. What brings you people out here, on the other side of the Universe ?"
Hera looked down at the sand. "We were surprised and pursued by Imperials on our way to Mandalore. One of the Tie Fighter pilots got lucky and hit the hyperdrive. I've got no spare parts and can't reach the High Command of the Rebellion for help."
Wildwing nodded. "We'll have our tech expert, Tanya, look over it. If anyone can fix your ship, she can."
Duke suddenly had a great idea. "Hey, I know ! They can come with us to the Pond, can they ?"
Wildwing took a moment to think over his decisions. "We usually don't take in strangers. But for you guys, we're happy to make an exception."
Hera bowed before the Ducks. "Thank you for your generosity, Wildwing. We won't get in your group's way, we promise."
Nosedive turned over to Big Boss, whom was slowly returning to his harem. "Hey there, sea doggo ! You were cool ! Thanks for the help !"
Big Boss quickly glanced back at Nosedive, giving the impression of winking back at him. He then made the rounds, checking up on the females and the pups he produced.
The Aerowing soon landed, allowing the other Ducks to climb onboard. The Ghost Crew boarded their own vessel and followed the Ducks back to their headquarters, The Pond.
They would be hidden from any threats while there… or would they ?
Orbiting Earth
A lone Imperial Cruiser stood motionless in space. Over at the bridge, Commander Brom Titus was busy giving his report.
"Without a doubt, the trail left by the fuel seems to indicate they've landed on this planet. Odds are that they might have problems with their hyperdrive. If it is the case, we could go down and capture them."
"You will do no such thing, Commander Titus." The hologram turned to face Titus, revealing a High-ranking Imperial. A Chiss of all species. "But I feel that you have more to tell, don't you ?"
Titus nodded nervously. "Indeed, Grand Admiral. Com-Scan has detected a couple of odd-looking vessels. One of which is in dire shape."
Thrawn immediately became curious. "Show me."
Commander Titus pressed a button, which revealed a hologram of the downed Raptor. Then the Aerowing quickly came into view.
Thrawn seemed shocked at the sight. "A Saurian Warship ? In this day and age ? How fascinating !"
Over at the Chimera's bridge, Governor Ahrinda Pryce scoffed at the image. "So it's a ship that crashed… What use could it be to us ?!"
Thrawn paced around Pryce, slightly irritated by her show of ignorance. "Do you know of the feud between the Saurians and the Puckworldians, Governor ?"
She simply shook her head. "No."
"Then allow me to enlighten you." He pressed a button, revealing various images of Puckworld. "Long ago, before the time of the Galactic Empire, far away from the influence of the Galactic Republic, the Saurian Overlords of old were the reigning conquerors of their part of the Galaxy. Warmongers to the very core. They enslaved and destroyed many planets and peoples. Their campaign was met with great success… until they set their sights on a little-known planet called Puckworld. Initially, they had seemed to have succeeded in seizing control of the planet. But a rebellion soon formed. Under the leadership of a Puckworldian named Drake DuCaine.
He ingenuously crafted a special mask that allowed him to see through the Saurian's Cloak of Invisibility. In the end, the Saurian Overlords were banished to Dimensional Limbo, a pocket of space which has been turned into a prison. No escape has ever been recorded. Apparently, one of the last descendants of the Saurians of old must have figured out a way to escape. Going from the images that Commander Titus has provided me, I can conclude that this Saurian Overlord failed to retake Puckworld and escaped to this planet, in which a group of Puckworldians followed. It would seem that they succeeded in rendering his vessel powerless."
Pryce still couldn't see what the big deal was. "With all due respect, Grand Admiral… I don't see…"
Thrawn was quick to cut her off. "The point of my interest in the Saurians, am I correct, Governor ? With their ship in wreck, they are vulnerable. It would be easy for me to "rescue" them."
Pryce slowly backed away. "But… but ? Aren't these in direct competition with our Emperor ?!"
Thrawn nodded. "They would be. But they won't. I have everything planned. When they've outlived their usefulness, I'll send them back to Dimensional Limbo from whence they came." Thrawn turned his attention back to Commander Titus. "Thank you for your report, Commander Titus. With these coordinates you've provided, we'll be able to scour for the Ghost Crew within a few rotations. I will make sure to mention of your help when I speak again with the Emperor. Who knows ? Perhaps, you'll be re-promoted to the rank of Admiral".
Thrawn walked over to the viewport of the Chimera, which began to move at high speed through hyperspace.
Hey, hey, hey ! Haven't shown up here in a little while, right ? It's an idea that has been floating in my head for some time. Back in the Mid '90s, the Mighty Ducks was one of the coolest cartoons I've seen as a kid. Too bad it only lasted a season. What made it stand out was definitely the villain voice-over cast.
Tim Curry, whom we Star Wars fans know as the voice of Palpatine/Darth Sidious in Clone Wars's Season 5 episode "The Wrong Jedi" and most appearances on Season 6, voiced Lord Dragaunus. Clancy Brown, which we know as the voices of Savage Opress and Ryder Azadi, voiced Siege. Tony Jay, probably best known for the voice of Claude Frollo, the villain from the Disney movie The Hunchback of Notre Dame, voiced Wraith. Last, but certainly not least, Frank Welker, whom did innumerable voices of various cartoons from Scooby Doo in the late '60s, many other Hanna-Barbera cartoons over the '70s, the popular late '80s Disney cartoon Duck Tales and many, many more, voiced Chameleon.
So the Ghost Crew currently find themselves stranded on Earth. Good thing that the Mighty Ducks were able to keep Dragaunus from getting the Ghost for himself. And Thrawn's involvement will show more in the next chapter. One of the characters mentioned in the beginning, Kamelia, is an original creation of mine, which will be explored in a future story. And what about that little nod to Elephant Seals ? Didn't see that coming, did ya ? They're not the cutest of seals, but they are nonetheless fascinating.
And no, I haven't given up on The Chosen One's Chosen One. A new chapter will be uploaded likely over the coming week. Feel free to leave a review.
