Star Wars: The Souls of my Boots
Please note: this story is not based of the RPG, as it has yet to be written, although some ideas were originally inspired to be a part of that game.
It's been said that boots can pick up dirt and hold onto it until the grime of a planet gets taken off by hand. Me, I've been taught to clean my equipment, or else. I can't question authority; it's not supposed to be in my nature. I am a trooper, soldier of the Republic. At least, I used to be. If I hadn't wiped my boots so much, you could find soil from a dozen worlds, including the scene of the most tragic massacre the droids of the Confederacy ever committed, Naboo. My boots would tell an interesting tale around a campfire, given enough time.
I was in my bunk with some of the other volunteer troopers when I heard the destination of our cruiser, The Resolution, for the first time. Why would we go to Naboo? More importantly, why would the CIS want the home world of -of course. Naboo is the home world of Chancellor Palpatine and Senator Amidala. As usual, the ship's captain came over the intercom and ordered all enlisted men to the hangar bay for briefing.
"At this point in time, we are the only ship in hyperspace. Early reports have come back saying that there is only one droid cruiser in the system. Of course, the number doesn't make a difference: the droids will fight as hard as always. Their starfighters and auto-turrets have taken heavy tolls, so make sure you don't get caught up with one of them. Good luck."
The rest of the trip to Naboo was dedicated to preparing our blasters, charging power packs, and readying the ship to do battle. About when the ship's crono read "1 hour until dropout," the quartermaster distributed armor in the hangar. My yellow and white plastoid suit had a built-in life support system that would last a few days, not to mention a multi-pouched utility belt, (I would later put in these pockets hand-held proximity mines, extra blaster battery packs, and a plasma torch). Pre-flight checks were done, shields tested, engines powered up, cloaks engaged and orders were given, and when we dropped out of lightspeed, the cannons were already firing away at the droids. Pilots took off and steered their ships through the airlock field and out into the Big Beyond. Infiltration teams with their DC-15s,filed into LAATs, ready to face whatever wait for them in the enemy corridors. I found my battle station: I had been assigned to the #4 airlock, along with a Corelian we affectionately called "The Bum," Lt. Striker, some low-ranks I'd never seen before, and a pair of Advanced Recon Commandos, or ARCs. These last troopers had one rocket launcher each, a blaster pistol, and in their belts and armor pockets, an unknown number of hidden grenades and mines. One ARC reached out and introduced himself as Savage and the other as Stretch.
At this point, the ship lurched beneath us, and the all-to-familiar battle sirens sounded. Stretch waited until the turrets started shooting, then turned the access wheel. The doors opened with a creak in front of us and the air rushed out. Replacing the life-giving oxygen was a total nothingness, filled with planets and stars- so many stars. Looking at a slight decline from the strengthened airlock door, red and blue and green bolts of light crisscrossed in the emptiness. Pinpoints of dark gray approached quickly, turned into sleek Droid Starfighters, then disappeared just as quickly, either because of their speed or the accuracy of the turret gunners. Striker gave the signal, and he leapt out the opening, not waiting to see us following. Down the side of the ship, away on both sides, white figures flew towards the enemy. Arc-170 starfighters streaked past with both blaster cannons blazing green death. Wing after wing flew by, breaking off to pursue the droid pilots. Closer to the surface we got, and with every meter it seemed more and more droids kept coming. The metal surface of the Providence-class cruiser was only 100 feet away now, and the auto-guns turned on us. Those of us who made it didn't have time to mourn the loss of "The Bum." Savage bolstered himself against an antenna and aimed his PLX-1 rockets at a nearby turret. The explosion was the first of many in a long series in the battle of Naboo.
When the fleet had been vanquished, only half of the deployed troopers returned. The resident Jedi who had been a part of one of the infiltration teams came down from the bridge, and gave us a new assignment. We were to investigate the planet and to destroy any Separatist resistance we found. Three LAATs dropped out of the hangar bay, delivering a cargo of 15 clone troopers, myself, Capt. Dax Wells, and two war droids, along with an ARC trooper armed with three anti-personnel mines and a couple of anti-tank mines, a DC-15 model A carbine blaster rifle, and a set of macrobinoculars, to the grassy planet. They put us down in a field just outside Theed, the capital city of Naboo. Then, they left us there, alone.
We watched the sun set from the top of a grassy hill. The reds and pinks mixed pleasantly, and it made us forget that we were fighting a war.
"In the morning, we're going into the city. Not that the Naboo are hiding the Separatists, but we just have to check. It's protocol." Then, the Captain ordered us to set up the mines in a defensive perimeter. We finished by the time the remainder of the sunset had turned to a deep velvet blue.
One of the clone troopers woke me in the middle of the night for my watch. The war droids had been programmed to the patrol setting, leaving the flesh-and-bloods to keep watch in the darkness of night. I reached for my helmet and lifted it over my head.
"Switch to prime vision settings for this level of light." I commanded and it did. Now I could see through the curtain of gloom covering the planet. Before my eyes, the planet came to life and turned red. My field of vision grew from 10 feet to 100 in a matter of seconds. Away down the hill in a glade of trees, a Kaadu grazed silently. Another red shape creeping through tall grass came close to the flightless bird-lizard. Leaping into the air, the creature sunk it's teeth into the Kaadu and proceeded to devour the animal. Those sounds will haunt me until the end of my days, the sounds of flesh and muscle being torn from bones, the chomping of the beast's jaws, the shrieks of the poor Kaadu being eaten alive.
When the sun rose, we packed everything into the specialized comaprtments our suits had underneath the armor plates. Then, we proceeded to march in the pouring rain on to Theed, following a small cobblestone road the ARC trooper discovered. The ornate stone arches gave way to roads leading through rows of brick houses with terracotta shingles. The entire city seemed deserted because of the rain. The warm water ran down visors of our helmets, and just about everything else. The gutters ran with creeks of the stuff, and yet, unlike Coruscant, and like Bothawui (or from the stories I've heard), no trash crowded the narrow alleyways.
"This planet is too clean. I don't like it. " The white-clad soldier said.
Suddenly, Wells gave the squad the "hold up" signal. A blaster bolt came whizzing by, and we ran for cover, anything that would keep us from being hit. The alleys were the only suitable protection, but as I was just about to get there, the sniper hit me in the leg and I fell. My helmet rolled off as I hit the hard stone road, and I tried to stand, but only managed to get to my knees. Capt. Dax came back for me and carried me to the safety of his alley. The shot hurt like hell, but I had to be able to walk for the rest of my squad.
The medic of the group, dressed as a regular clone trooper so they couldn't be targeted by enemy snipers, popped the lid off a vial of bacta and poured the gel onto my leg. The cool, squirming material soothed the minor burn that was under my scorched leg piece. Luckily for me, my armor stopped most of the energy from reaching my skin. I stood up and wanted revenge.
"Hey, where is he?" The war droid used it's sensors to find an answer for me. "Response: third building on the right, top floor. Calculation: from the length and velocity of the beam, the weapon being used is a BAW E5s, four shot semi-automatic sniper rifle modified with a x4 zoom scope and high-powered rounds able to pierce armor."
"Thanks. Here's a cookie."
"Response: no thank you. I've been trying to limit the amount of viruses I contract."
I took an ion grenade from my belt and emerged from the alleyway. Another shot missed my head by inches, and I ran to the alley across the street. Turning a corner, I counted up three buildings and walked in. The luxurious if not small sitting lounge held a few couches, a chair, and a small table in between these. A stone staircase close to the rear of the house led up to the second floor, the location of bedrooms and a small balcony decorated in hanging purple flowers. The B1 assassin droid crouched in some of the flowers, and apparently had used it's thermal vision to focus in on us as we advanced up the empty streets. I tossed the grenade out, and it rolled up to be directly underneath the droid. The noise distracted it however, and it turned and came at me. The ion grenade exploded,deactivating the droid. I blew the robot to bits as it stood silently, unmoving.
"The sniper has been taken care of, sir."
The voice came back raspy and full of static interference. "Good job. We're on our way up. ETA, two minutes."
I rejoined my team, and we continued up the road until we entered a plaza. Like the rest of the streets, the open area was empty, but it was a different kind of emptiness. It felt like something was missing.
"LaPointe, take half the squad and swing around the west end of this immediate area, checking for any other resistance. I'll take the others and go east, meeting up with you at the Palace to the North. We'll rendezvous at 1300 hours. Got it? Good."
I didn't want to do it, but I did. Dividing the squad into two was risky, but I had to do what I was ordered to. Now, I relive that day and speak out against this course of action.
Eight men shuffled towards me. I had my half, Wells had his. We went west, they went east. I, we were about two kilometers from our destination when we heard a heavy grinding sound.
"Everyone, get inside! Now!" We ducked inside, and looking down the street, an IG-227 Hailfire Tank Droid rolling down the street at high speed.
"What are they doing with THAT kind of firepower on Naboo? The Naboo are a peaceful people!"
"Yeah, which makes them a perfect target for the Seps. They know the Naboo won't fight back."
"Hey! Cut the chatter; we have a mission to complete. Drone, plant an anti-tank mine on the street while I distract that thing!"
"Right away!"
I crossed the room and climbed the stairs, waiting until the mine was in place. When it was, I grabbed a plant pot and threw it down to the cobblestone below. The shattering grabbed the tank's attention, and it spun around to face our way. Just as the giant robot got close, the mine exploded, ripping the massive wheels from the body of the droid. They kept rolling, straight towards us. I didn't have time to warn them, my half. The building came down around me: brick and mortar and those damned green terracotta shingles. The walls fell inwards, in upon themselves, in on my troopers. A great plume of dust rose into the sky, and when it settled, I knew none had survived. I was the only one left. Just me, Gren LaPointe, leader of half a squad who had managed to get them all killed. And now, I have to get to the Royal Palace by myself in order to meet up with the other half of my squad and my commanding officer. I can't even collect their identification cards.
"Damn it! I only have an hour to get to the Rendezvous Point."
I started running North, and I only stopped to rid the planet of a patrol of Super Battle Droids. Nearly took a rocket to the face there. I reached the domed building known throughout the galaxy as the Naboo Royal Palace, but saw no sign of Wells, the ARC, or the other troopers. I waited. And waited.
Maybe they got tied up with a big group of droids. Ok, but they had an ARC with them. He's been through some of the toughest training the Republic has to offer. Maybe they got lost? No, Wells knew exactly where he was going. What if... No... I'm not gonna think like that. I'll just wait, and when they show up, I'll ask what took so long. Then, we can all get back to The Resolution and get a good night's sleep.
I woke long after the sun had set. Footsteps, quiet and hesitant, moved past me in the plaza outside the Palace. I looked up and saw the Naboo people being lined up in front of the gates. The droids that accompanied them were not the ones that joined Wells' strike team, but rather Droidekas, foldable droids armed with twin blaster cannons and a built-in shield generator. More and more Naboo kept coming, and as much as I wanted them to stop, they didn't. I couldn't do much against those Droidekas, even if I did have any more EMP grenades. So I was forced to watch as the hundred or so Naboo were blasted; men, women, young, and old alike. My stomach churned as the bodies fell, the sickening thud that came with the smell of burning hair and skin. I pressed the emergency locator the Republic engineers install in our suits, and radioed up to The Resolution.
"Resolution. This is Gren LaPointe. Capt. Wells split the squad and my half was killed by a Hailfire. Wells to make at the R.P. and I fear the worst. The Naboo are being massacred by the hundreds by the Separatists. I am relaying my coordinates to you now. Request a fully-loaded LAAT at the south end of the Royal Palace in Theed ASAP."
"Coordinates received LaPointe. LAAT responding."
The dropship landed and I loaded in. Another troop transport had been dispatched to Wells' last known location and had discovered the bodies. They had to take cover in a building when a wing of bombers passed over. The building had been rigged with explosives by the CIS; it was to be the site of a new droid programming facility.
My boots would have held the dirt from Naboo, but I cleaned them in the hopes that I wouldn't have to carry the weight of all those people. I still carry it- the cleaning of the boots didn't help. Now I wish I hadn't wiped them, rid them of the memories of my fellow soldiers, protectors of the Republic. I was named a hero, but I didn't deserve it. The ones who died are the ones who should be given awards. Still, I accepted the commendation in memory of them.