Chronicles of Talon Chapter 2 Road to the comm tower

Dekkarun, Capital city Fermark

Talon leaped out of the gunship when the doors retracted with her blue lightsaber activated. The clones inside followed her, as did Spartacus. Five more gunships landed in the same plaza. Once their gunship lifted off, another took its place and off loaded more troops.

As the men were securing the LZ Spartacus marched to up the three AT-RTs.

"Troopers," he said in his authority heavy voice.

"Chief," a trooper said. He was sitting on top of his AT-RT.

"You're part of Captain Locke's Battalion," Spartacus presumed.

"Yes, sir. 1209th Armored," the trooper confirmed.

"Until further notice I need one of you to stay put and defend the LZ," he ordered.

"Yes, sir!"

"Remaining two, up front and ready to move out," the black clad giant finished.

"Sir!" Both pilots answered in unison.

Spartacus marched up to a Squad of troopers. All with violet stripes on their armor.

"Sergeant, I need you to secure that house-" he pointed to a building across the plaza. "-and fortify it."

"Yes, Chief. We're on it!" The Sergeant replied.

Spartacus walked over to Talon and Abyss after he spent a few minutes organizing the troopers around the LZ. They were looking over a small blue holographic map with five other clone officers.

"You have your orders," he heard Abyss tell the officers.

They replied with a "Sir!" And left to carry out those orders.

Talon eyed the map carefully.

"We're quite far from the Council Pyramid," she noted. "Let's hope Gecko was able to land his men closer." She paused and looked up at Spartacus. "We're close to the communications tower though."

"If we're going to convince the Dekkarun people Armed Forces not to fight us, we need to take that tower," Abyss added its strategic importance. "The objective fell to a detachment from Nitro Battalion."

Spartacus pointed over his shoulder.

"Two gunships dropped off troopers from Nitro," he told them. "I moved them up to the AT-RTs."

Talon continued looking at the little map for a while. But she couldn't deal with the big picture right now. First of all, they had to take that comm tower and gain control over Fermark's lines of communication. That would allow them to send a message across the city, pleading with the troops to join the Republic and help liberate their homeworld. That would leave-experts had estimated-a small number of loyal soldiers and whatever detachment of droids where in the region.

They were lucky that the plaza only had to entry points of foot. A staircase that went down and a road going forward along the Cliffside. It made defending it a lot easier.

Turning the map off she saw three more gunships setting down to unload troops and material.

"We're moving on the comm tower," she ordered. "It's the closest from here. Then we try making our way to the Council Pyramid."

"Yes, general," Abyss complied.

The three made their way to the two Platoons waiting to advance. Both AT-RTs was with that and stood up front.

Around them they could still hear blasting from artillery pieces and fighters and bombers. A large dogfight took place above their heads. Talon trusted her pilots to stay clear of the batteries and beat their CIS counterparts to a pulp.

As this happened the two Platoons of mismatched clones swiftly advanced forward along the white stone laid road. Talon led from the front, as always. She was flanked by Abyss, two clones with violet markings and an AT-RT. Spartacus came right behind them, moving along the house walls on their right. The white and golden houses had been dug into the Cliffside itself. Only a few buildings stood on the opposite side, giving them a great view over the edge to see what was below and across on the Cliffside on the over side. That side of the mountain was just as filled with streets, junctions and buildings as the one they currently occupied.

As the road turned downward slightly and steep stairs followed Talon's eyes stumbled upon a Squad of eight demolished battle droids.

"General T'racen, your two o'clock," she heard over the comm.

Following the instructions she spotted two clone snipers on the roof.

"I see you made it down in one piece, Ghost," she remarked.

"Yes, sir," the sharpshooter confirmed in his low voice. "Me and Dino survived our crash and set up here."

As the two Platoons continued moving Talon said: "There's an LZ five hundred meters back that way if you need backup or supplies. Just link up with 'em."

"We're good for now general," Ghost assured her. "We can stay and pick off whatever force the bastards try sending this way. Give the brothers a warning if they come this way. Ghost out."

With that he cut the conversation.

Talon's unit continued down the road until they reached a steep staircase cut out of the mountain that led upward to the communications tower one hundred meters above them.

"No way that the AT-RTs make it up there," Abyss said aloud.

It was not enough room for the walkers to make it up the steep section of white stairs.

"Leave two Squads and both AT-RTs to guard our asses," Talon decided. "Rest start moving."

"Copy that." Abyss quickly picked out two squads while Talon led the rest up the stairs.

Making their way up they could see the seventy feet high golden and white tower stretching towards the sky. From a distance below Talon could make out three anti-air cannons placed strategically around the tower to keep any aero fighters and bombers away. She presumed it would be rather heavily guarded.

The once distant gunfire was drawing closer and closer and she realized it must be up top it came from.

"Hurry!" She exclaimed and started running.

The troopers double timed it and ran after her, trying to keep up with their jedi superior.

Talon was the first up and looked quickly around on the road. It lead out to the tower and to a few buildings in the other direction. A burning gunship had crashed into one of the buildings. A bunker separated them from the comm tower.

Six clones laid dead on the ground and two humans in dark brown armor and helmets with wings on them laid on the left side of the bunker.

She activated her lightsaber and jumped in front of the two clones pulling an injured trooper towards cover. First they were surprised to see the general appear but that was quickly exchanged joyful relief.

"Get to cover!" Talon shouted at them while she deflected the incoming fire from the Medium Repeating blaster inside the bunker.

The clone medic grabbed his injured brother and pulled him behind cover of a house wall.

"Stop groanin', Maze," the medic told his injured brother. He then looked up at the uninjured man next to him. "Don't just stand and watch, peek out and cover the General."

"R-right!"

He leaned out from cover and fired a burst of four bolts at the bunker. As Talon still stood firm and blocked the repeaters fire the first clones arrived.

"Get the rocket launcher up front!" Abyss ordered and jumped behind cover.

"No, a grenade will do fine!" Talon countered him.

She then ran out of the firing line.

Abyss didn't argue and pulled out a grenade of his own. He lobbed it towards the bunker and Talon used the force to guide it inside easily. The following screams showed that the Dekkarun soldiers spotted it, but the next second the bunker exploded from the inside. It killed the bunker crew and obliterated the turret and its gunner.

"Move up!" Abyss ordered. "Secure the towers surroundings. Chief, mind leading a squad inside?"

The giant of a man obliged with a nod.

"I'm on it Commander," he answered in a professional voice.

Meanwhile Talon walked over and kneeled beside the medic and injured trooper. She put a smile on her lips and a gentle hand on the grunting troopers shoulder. He immediately looked up at her while the medic tried patching him up. He had a blaster wound through his right leg and two wounds in his chest. The armor seemed to have stopped the bolts from going through there and instantly killing him, instead it caused him pain and a possibly far slower death.

"G-general," he stuttered painfully.

"You'll be alright trooper," she told him in a soft voice.

She saw the medic preparing biofoam. She reached out and took the wounded troopers hand and he squeezed back tightly.

"It's alright. The pain will pass."

After a while the medic straightened his back and stood up.

"General," he said as he had finished up. "Appreciate that. Corporal Stitches. Echo Battalion."

"The 81st's glad to have men like you, Corporal," Talon told him.

"Thanks ma'am," Stitches replied sincerely. "Lost six men assaultin' that tower, includin' sarge. Don't mind if we stick with ya, do ya?" He then looked down at his brother. "Maze needs to get out of here. Field treatment will only get him so far. He needs some real medical care in Glacier's infirmary."

"I-I'll be fine," Maze tried, and failed to assure them. He tried standing up.

"Stay down trooper," Stitches ordered him firmly with a glare.

"I'll divert men to get him back to the landing zone," Talon said. "Don't overexert yourself, trooper. We'll need you when you're up and about again."

"Thank you ma'am," Stitches appreciated it.

Talon and Stitches joined the rest at the base of the communications tower. She saw that the clones were already in the progress of dismantling anti-air cannons. Two men stood outside the door into the tower itself and Spartacus stepped outside.

"General," he said coming towards her.

"Report, Chief. Done already?" Talon asked.

"Yes ma'am," he confirmed and hung his DC-15A blaster rifle over his back. Then he gestured to the left side of the tower. Half a dozen clones was standing guard around the Dekkarun soldiers that came in to stand in one spot. "The majority of them surrendered immediately when we entered the tower."

"The majority? Casualties?" She picked up on the detail.

"One man injured, nothing serious on our side, but four enemy troops eliminated in the short firefight," Spartacus informed her. "The techs from Nitro Battalion will be ready to transmit the message city wide in an hour. Until then, they can easily block enemy comms inside Fermark."

For a moment he looked down at her through his bright blue helmet visor.

"How you holding up, Talon?" he asked, almost whispered.

She glanced away from him.

"I…this isn't the time." With that, she turned and walked over to Abyss. "Commander."

"Yes general?" He said immediately.

"We're leaving one Platoon here to secure the tower and I want a squad to follow the wounded back to our LZ," she told him.

"I'll get right on it," Abyss said.

She nodded.

"Good, 'cause were rejoining our rearguard when as soon as possible," she said referring to the two AT-RTs and squads left behind below the long stairs to the tower.

Spartacus looked at her from a distance with concerned eyes behind his visor.