Alright everyone, I wanted to write something based off of Mel Gibson's 2016 film Hacksaw Ridge. I was listening to One Man at a Time, which is a OST for Hacksaw Ridge, and thought: Well, Jonathan's Jedi backstory has yet to start. I'll start it at Geonosis. In this, Jonathan is basically Desmond except he goes for 125 saves, not 75, while the real events took place as they did in WW2, as opposed to the film. Overall, the movie is really great, I highly recommend you watch it. On with the show! Italics represent dreams, while italics with brackets around them represent thoughts.
Hacksaw Ridge: Deployment to Geonosis
Jonathan Laws was no stranger to war, yes, but this was the first time he served with exactly 9216 identical men. "Damn. The 51st battalion is really havin' a hard time up there." A clone, CT 36-88, said, and the Jedi Padawan found himself agreeing with the man.
"Alright men. We're relieving the 51st, but we're going to need a miracle to take that ridge." The legion's clone captain, CC 44-43, said. Jonathan nodded, and the captain nodded as well. "Commander." The soldier said respectfully.
"That means we'll be using the artillery to cover us as we move up. Once we're at the top, it's our duty and responsibility to take this ridge and honour the dead." The Canadian said, face set in determination. As the 225th Legion moved towards the 400 foot escarpment, the former lieutenant fell into step, and then paused as he saw the 51st return from the ridge.
"Kriff." Someone behind him said, and he nodded. Instead of soldiers marching along to the beat, there were only bodies and the moaning of the injured.
"Make way," another clone said, and the battalion stepped aside. A clone saw the Padawan, and motioned towards him. Jonathan complied.
"When we got up there, sir, it was a bloodbath," the clone said, "they fired on us with everything they had. Be careful sir." Jonathan nodded, and the clone continued on his way.
"What'd he want sir?" CT 12-66 asked.
"He warned me." The lieutenant said.
After a few more (which really was half an hour) minutes of walking towards the ridge, Jonathan finally saw it.
"Bloody hell," he said. "That's what we're supposed to be assaulting?" He added.
A few soldiers whistled.
"Hey Cliff, this the thing you wanted?" A clone asked.
"Shut up!" Another clone, Cliff, answered. But he radiated nervousness. Jonathan felt the nervousness of the other men. The clone captain simply looked up at the ridge, and motioned towards a rope ladder.
"Why don't we use tanks?" Someone beside Jonathan asked.
"It's unknown why. We think there might be anti-tanks guns." A lieutenant replied. As the men began the climb up the ladder, fog-unusual for Geonosis-rolled in. Jonathan's hands shook as the rope seemed to pull harshly on his skin, daring him to let go to wipe his hands on his robes, but he resisted. Finally, the last soldier pulled himself up, and the battalion began treading carefully amongst the craters, trenches, and bodies of both sides.
"Damn!" The Jedi Padawan cursed softly as he saw a man with his helmet cracked on the ground, blood having pooled around his severed arm. A clone gasped.
"Cracker!" The clone said as he put his blaster away and rushed over to the dead clone. Another, CT-47-8847, explained.
"CT-44-6756 and Cracker, or as by his CT number CT-55-8878, were close in training. Whenever they did exercises in weapons training, the squad they were in almost always won. After they graduated, the Kaminoens saw it fit to separate the squad. CT-44-6756 and I stayed in the same squad, but it was filled by different clones who weren't as close to us, while Cracker was put in the 51st. Cracker did have a sense of humour, but whenever we trained he was serious, didn't make a joke." Jonathan nodded in understanding.
"I had a friend like that," he admitted, "name was Ethan, and he became a commando during the first war I fought in. His first action was the Dieppe Raid, which failed terribly, and Ethan wasn't the same again. He was killed by friendly fire a few years after the raid, which happened in 1942, my home world's years, but Ethan died in 1945 because he apparently knew something the US, or United States of America, government didn't want him to know."
A few clones muttered curses under their breathes as Jonathan stopped. "It's okay, I've forgiven them." He said, right before blood red bolts began flying towards them.
"Karabast!" Someone shouted, and Jonathan ducked, throwing himself to the dirt.
"If we can't see them," he suggested, "then maybe they can't see us!" A very familiar scream, an artillery shell, sounded, and a mushroom cloud of red sand flew up into the air. A clone beside him, called Smitty, snorted.
"That disproves it," the clone muttered.
After a few hours of fierce and hard fighting, night fell. The second battalion hadn't exactly lost many men, they'd been wounded and taken off the ridge for medical treatment, but the advance had stopped because not only was it night, but the clones were tired, and a reluctant order to halt the attack until the morning had come through the comms. Smitty and Jonathan had been quick to claim a shell hole for themselves. "Get some sleep sir." Smitty said, helmet off, revealing his black hair.
"Can't." Jonathan yawned. When Smitty shot a confused look at him, he elaborated. "I can't sit still. According to the Temple healers, I have something called ADHD, which causes me to be unable to sit still." He yawned again, stretching his arms out. Smitty nodded.
"And I suppose this is why you're shifting so often?" He asked, and Jonathan bobbed his head up and down once.
"Yeah. Think my body's got the message and is shutting down temporarily. Wake me in about six hours." the Canadian said, shutting his eyes.
He opened his eyes, squinting at the sudden light. Smitty was still awake, holding his blaster. Jonathan blinked, suddenly he was wide awake, not needing to know about the sudden harsh source of light. He rolled over, glancing toward Smitty, who nodded once. The Canadian lieutenant crawled up the slope of the shell crater, but when he reached the top he froze. There, in front of him, also prone, was a hostile soldier with a small raiding squad behind him.
Jonathan let out a shock cry and Smitty opened fire, but the shots missed the raiders somehow as Jonathan tumbled back into the crater. As Smitty fired one last time before he was shot in the head, the leader stood over the Jedi, and plunged a bayonetted rifle into his chest.
"Fuck!" Jonathan cursed, sitting straight up, wide awake. Smitty, who had been keeping watch, jumped.
"What sir?" He asked, concerned.
"Dreamt I got gutted by a hostile soldier," the soldier said, checking himself over. He didn't have much, just some medical equipment and a book that had been on him when he'd been found at the Temple steps, which he privately referred to as his bible, years ago. Apparently, a note had been found in the book which had told the Council members to hold onto the book until he was a more appropriate age, so before he'd left for his home world the Jedi Council had returned it to him.
Smitty whistled. "Kriff." The two soldiers chuckled and chatted for a few more minutes before Smitty fell asleep.
A few hours later, the attack resumed, but it wasn't by the Republic's hand. Human Separatist soldiers swarmed towards them, shrieking and yelling loudly. After half an hour of fierce and brutal fighting, the order to pull back was given. Smitty had been hit in the ribs by both blaster fire and shrapnel, and Jonathan was pulling him back to the edge of the escarpment. Smitty was groaning, but the Jedi Padawan had faith they'd make it. "Sir! Come on!" The captain, CC-920, called.
"I can't leave Smitty!" He said desperately. Deep inside him though, he knew the bitter and harsh truth. Smitty was dead.
"We have to go now!" The captain called, grabbing onto the rope ladder, and climbing down. Jonathan was alone.
"What is it you want of me? I don't understand," he whispered brokenly. "I can't hear you." Then he heard a familiar voice.
"MEDIC! HELP ME!" "MEDIC!" The voices were clones, Jonathan realized, injured clones.
"I understand," he murmured, throwing on Smitty's helmet. He stood up, and walked back into the kill zone. Shells crashed down around him, but he continued on.