Author's notes: Wow. I'm honestly surprised I managed to make another chapter in under a week or so. Consider this as an extra Christmas gift or an early New Year's gift. Anyway this is also my longest chapter for this story so I hope you enjoy how much I wrote. Leave any comments or reviews to as how the story can be improved, constructive criticism is welcomed. Happy New Year's and happy holidays


-time: 2295. Location: Republic base, Christophsis-

The entire base was on high alert as an impending tank unit was coming towards the base. Without much armor or air support, we wouldn't be able to create much of a defense. At the moment, all high ranking officers were meeting in the war room with the Generals.

"Our scouts have reported the enemy has massed a large amount of armor and is own their way here. We don't have much time we need to evacuate," General Kenobi explained to the officers.

"Sir what about the heavy cannons? Can't we use them to defend the base?" One of the officers asked.

"It would take too long to assemble the cannons," the Jedi master replied.

"How will we be evacuating?" Denal questioned.

"We will head south towards a small plaza located within the city. A platoon armed with tripod cannons will stay and hold the enemy long enough while the rest of our forces retreat," Kenobi further explained.

"Permission to lead the rearguard unit sir. Also I'm requesting that one of the tanks we have stay to help us defend the base," I asked both Generals.

"Permission granted to lead the vanguard but I'm not sure we can spare one of the tanks that we have.." Kenobi considered.

"This is basically a suicide mission for whoever is staying behind. The least we can do is allow them to have some sort of chance," Skywalker argued with his comrade. General Kenobi put his hand to his chin in thought before answering.

"Alright, we'll leave AT-TE 214 to help with the vanguard," Kenobi agreed.

"We need at least 29 volunteers to stay behind. Ask amongst your men who will be willing to volunteer. Send all volunteers to center of the base where they will meet ARC trooper Prowl. Dismissed," General Skywalker concluded.

Everyone immediately dispersed. I put on my helmet and held my rifle in my hands. I walked over to the center of the base, walking past dozens of troopers who were getting mobilized and moving as much gears and supplies as possible. I finally made my way to the center and waited for the volunteers to show up. I sat down against the nearest supply crate and pulled out my data pad in effort to calm my nerves. I was anxious to be leading my own group of soldiers, usually I would share the burden with Denal while leading his platoon but now I was leading my own men. Anxiety and stress began to press down on me, I was an ARC trooper and yet I was worrying over my first command. Fighting droids, getting shot at, none of that fazed me. Now I was close to shaking from nerves over commanding troops. I'd have to ask Rex how he handles the pressure.

Slowly troopers began to show up, each of them a volunteer for the near suicide mission. Once everyone had assembled I stood up to address the men when the sound of a heavy walker moving began to be heard. We all looked and watched as the Republic tank approached the platoon stopped in front of us. The driver and gunner of the walker hopped off and approached us, giving a salute when they were in front of us.

"Sir! AT-TE 214 callsign "Open Casket" reporting for duty sir!" The driver and gunner called out simultaneously. I raised an eyebrow at the call sign they picked.

"Any reason why you chose that name for your walker?" I asked.

"Life expectancy of an AT-TE crew is very low sir. We usually take the brunt of droid armor," the driver explained.

The driver and gunners armor was different from the standard phase I armor. The driver had a pilot like helmet with oxygen hoses attached from the back of the helmet to a small console on his chest. The drivers helmet was grey for the most part with red lines. The gunner had extra armor plates attached to his helmet and chest along with his shoulder pads being grey.

"Good point. Alright men listen up, I'm not going to lie this mission is in essence a suicide mission. But this mission is vital to the rest of the men, we need to hold long enough for our brothers to evacuate. Everyone clear?" I asked everyone.

All the troopers nodded while others said yes sir. I looked around while trying to figure a good strategy to hold the base for as long as possible. I saw along the walls and saw a few tripod cannons.

"Alright I want the groups of three for each of those cannons. I need two volunteers to come with outside the walls. The rest of you are to take cover around the inside of the base. Open Casket, I want indirect fire from the main gun as long as the walls hold. Once the walls fall I want everyone including the tank to fall back to the south road, the rest of the army will provide cover fire for us. Move!" I ordered with a shout.

Immediately all the troops dispersed while the tank crew got back inside their tank. Two troopers armed with DC rifles approached me.

"So what daring and courageous suicide mission do you for us sir?" One of the troopers asked sarcastically.

"Well sorry shiny but you knew what you were signing up for," I replied in a nonchalant tone.

"Anyways we're going to head to the rear of the enemy column and hijack an enemy tank. We will cause confusion and havoc while keeping the pressure off the rest of the men," I explained to both troopers. The two volunteers nodded.

I then ran off towards one of the small access doors at the north gate. I opened the door and the two troopers and I ran off towards one of the skyscrapers away from the base. We all hid behind furniture in the 1st floor and waited for the enemy convoy.

"Open Casket I want you to hammer the lead of the convoy. Avoid hitting the rear of the convoy friendlies will be in that area copy?" I asked the crew of our only tank.

"Copy sir," the driver replied.

We waited for what felt like hours when in reality was at least half an hour until we could hear the clanking of droids and low hum of repulsor engines. The lead of the column eventually began to walk past the building we were in. The lead of the column consisted of battle droids, around fifty or so. After the battle droids passed us we saw AAT tanks, 20 of the armored tanks made up the rest of the convoy.

"All troopers open fire on the infantry as soon as they are in range. All tripod cannons focus on the tanks. Any sergeants in the platoon I want you to call out significant targets for Open Casket, I'm talking clusters of droids or tanks don't waste the few chances we have on a couple of tinnies. I will be securing an enemy tank and taking out as many targets as we can. Good luck to you all," I addressed to all the men over the general channel for the vanguard. I then turned to the two troopers with me.

"Ok this is the plan, we are going to attack the farthest tank from the enemy. I'll go through the turret and clear out the tank. Then I'll lower the hatch for you two to get inside and drive the tank," I explained the troopers.

"Yes sir," both troopers said.

I began heading out of the building with the two troopers following me. The closet tank to us was a few feet away from the rest of the column. I sprinted towards the tank just when all hell broke through, the troopers opened fire on the battle droids and the AT-TE fired on one of the AAT causing it to explode. The Separatist retaliated with the rest of the droids unleashing a barrage of red bolts while the tanks began to spread out to form a firing line. I managed to get onto the tank and work my way up to the hatch to fire a short burst, blowing a whole into the turret and destroying the droid at the gunners seat. I pushed my way past the blasted droid and used my pistol to destroy the last two droids in the tank. The droids didn't even have time to register the fact they had an intruder let alone be able to do anything about it. I slammed down on the button to open the rear hatch while climbing into the turret. The two trooper quickly discarded the broken droids and settled into driving the tank.

"Pulls us back a little so we can have a nice view of the entire enemy line. One of you use use the secondary guns. We don't have much time move it!" I shouted frantically to both of them while sighting the main cannon on the rear of one of the AATs.

The firefight was getting more intense with the enemy tanks now firing against the walls of the base. From the looks of things the walls couldn't last against another couple minutes of tanks rounds. The AT-TE was doing the best it could but it was only one tank.

"We're in position sir!" One of the troopers called out.

"Fire at will!" I replied while firing the main gun at one of the AAT tanks.

The tank immediately exploded with the turret flying off the tank. The trooper manning the secondary guns opened up on another tank, eventually piercing the armor and destroying the tank. Another round from Open Casket destroyed a Seppie tank while the troopers decimated the battle droids. An incoming hail from a different channel broke my focus from firing the cannon again.

"Prowl, all the troops are evacuated and are fortifying the plaza. The two tanks we have left have created a checkpoint to provide cover for your men," General Skywalker informed me.

"Copy that sir. I'll start having my men pull out," I told the General. I ended the comm channel and focused on the battle.

With the way things were going we could actually wipe out the enemy unit. Around six tanks had been destroyed including the tank we hijacked and half the droids were destroyed. I would've loved to stay and finish them off but a force of more than ten tanks was not something to brush off.

"The army has pulled out and set up our new outpost. I want the platoon to retreat one squad at a time. Set the cannons to sentry. Open Casket continue your barrage," I ordered to the entire vanguard. A chorus of 'yes sirs' answered my orders.

One of the enemy tanks turned towards our tank and fired a shot, barely skimming the frontal armor of the tank.

"Return fire!" I barked while firing the main gun.

The trooper heard me and immediately began peppering tank with the small guns. The combination of the main cannon and small guns completely destroyed the enemy tank. The rest of the enemy tanks were still firing at the base's wall, suddenly they all aimed at the main gate and fired as one. The immense firepower pounded a large dent into the door, showing that the gate wasn't going to last much longer.

"All trooper fall back immediately the droids are about to breach the gate!" I cried desperately into the general channel.

Unfortunately it was too late, the tanks had fired again and destroyed the gate entirely. What was left of the droids immediately began to pour in the base while the most of the tanks followed behind while two stayed to take out our hijacked tank.

"Trooper evasive maneuvers!" I called out to the soldier driving the tank.

"Yes sir!" The trooper replied.

Immediately we started weaving in and out the nearby buildings, dodging rounds from the two tanks. I aimed the cannon just when we turned the corner on a building and fired on one of the tanks. The round hit just below the turret, causing the entire tank to explode. The other tank fired at us hitting one of the side guns tearing it off in the process. I retaliated by firing the main gun again but it merely impacted the ground underneath the tank.

"We don't have time for these bastards! Trooper full speed ahead we're ramming them!" I shouted angrily.

"Sir yes sir!" The trooper replied in determination.

I was pushed to the back of my seat as soon as he gunned the throttle. The driver in the enemy tank must've been surprised because they didn't bother to fire until we had gotten too close. We crashed against the enemy causing the sound of screeching metal to fill the inside of our tank and almost slamming me into my gunner console. Our driver continued pushing the AAT further and further getting close to the base walls. The second trooper held the trigger on the secondary gun while we pushed the enemy tank. Once the droid controlled tank slammed against the wall fire and smoke began to billow from the hatches and the main cannon.

"Get us inside the base we need to save our brothers!" I ordered desperately.

They didn't need to be told twice as the driver quickly pulled us away from the enemy tank and into our base. The sight before us made me grip the controls in fury and anger. 6 of the enemy tanks were dodging cannon fire from our AT-TE while 5 other tanks were harassing the clones on foot. A large tank round impacted the center of a squad, throwing 2 troopers high into the air while knocking the rest to the ground. Only 1 soldier got up from the explosion and ran to find better cover.

"I'm going to go assist our brothers, one of you man the main gun and help Open Casket," I ordered before climbing out of the hatch and activating my jetpack.

The sudden burst from the jetpack propelled me all the way onto another enemy tank. I quickly switched to automatic and hosed the turret until there was a gaping hole. I dropped a thermal detonator from one the pouches I had, jumped off the tank and sprinted towards the next tank while the previous one erupted in a bright flame ball. The next tank turned towards me and angled the main gun at me. I dove to the side just when the gun fired, dust and debris peppering my armor. I got up and kept running before the gunner could fire again. I climbed onto the tank and fired a long burst into where the driver would be. I grasped the barrel of the main gun and swung myself onto the barrel and ran on top of the turret. I fired a couple shots into the base of the cannon causing it to fall of and slam into the tank with a loud thud. A loud explosion occurred to my side, I turned and saw a group of clones using a tripod cannon to take out a tank. Unfortunately there were two tanks left and they were pounding the platoon relentlessly. One of tanks turned its main gun towards me and fired. I desperately fired my jetpack in hopes getting out of the imminent explosion. I wasn't quick enough and the shockwave launched me high into the air, making me disoriented and flail in the air. I managed to right myself just as I was heading back down and right towards the enemy tank. I saw some nearby trooper stop firing and watch what was happening. The tank aimed its main gun towards the sky to fire again.

"Throw me a thermal det I'm out!" I shouted to the shocked troopers.

One of the managed to listen to me and threw the detonator as best as he could towards me. Unfortunately the tank decided to fire just at that precise moment. I tapped my jetpack giving me a short burst to stay airborne as the tank round skimmed half an inch from my boot. I angled myself downward and tapped my jetpack again, propelling me towards the the thermal det. I slung my westar rifle and grabbed the grenade with my right hand. I continued falling until I was close enough to the tank's cannon, I rammed the live thermal det down the barrel and landed hard against the tank's hull. The impact was enough to cause pain to spread throughout the right side of my body almost incapacitating me. I managed to throw myself off the tank just as it exploded. Two troopers ran over and helped me onto my feet while the rest of the platoon took out the last tank.

"ARC trooper this is Open Casket. We have sustained heavy damage and our mobility is severely crippled. We'll hold off the enemies while everyone else gets out of here," the driver suddenly spoke into my helmet calmly.

I frantically turned and saw that the battle wasn't going well for our tanks. The captured AAT tank was dodging fire from three tanks to the point it couldn't return fire. The AT-TE was being peppered by three other tanks as it tried to take them out with its own cannons but the walker's two front legs had been shot clean off leaving the walker imbedded into the ground.

"Hell no! No one gets left behind!" I roared defiantly. We had already lost enough troops I wasn't going to consider sacrificing more brothers.

"Our walker can't even move. There are six tanks still left, we can provide a good enough distraction. Get our brothers out of here. We were born to die for the Republic," the driver said way to calmly to be considered normal.

The gunner of the walker fired its main gun, destroying one of the tanks that was harassing the two troopers in the AAT. The two other tanks stopped firing at the repulsor tank and moved to start firing at Open Casket. One of the shots hit one of the main legs causing the tank to lurch further to the ground. The tank retaliated by using one of its laser cannons and hitting another droid tank right into the main gun causing it to explode.

"Its been an honor sir," the gunner of the Open Casket said with a tone of finality. I grinned my teeth in frustration and sorrow but the tank crew was right, this was the best chance we had.

"Get that AAT tank over here! Trooper get ready to load all the wounded into the Seppie tank. Everyone else will have to onto the outside of the tank," I ordered solemnly.

What was left of the platoon gathered around me, numbering around 12 soldiers with almost half the amount laying on the ground groaning from the wounds they suffered. Our captured tank arrived a minute later with the rear hatch open, everyone gathered the wounded and piled them inside while the gunner of the AAT made sure that no clankers tried to get the drop on us. Once the wounded was secured we closed the hatch and everyone climbed onto the top of the tank as we sped away from the ruined base. I gave one last look at the practically destroyed walker and its crew as it continued to hold out against the remaining tanks. I turned away from it just when we started driving down the road. Off in the distance I could see our remaining two tanks flanking on either side of the road. Since there were troopers all around the captured Separatist tank they knew not to fire on us.

"ARC trooper Prowl is that you sir?" One of the AT-TE drivers asked.

"This is Prowl," I answered emotionlessly.

"Where is Open Casket?" The driver asked in slight apprehension.

Before I could answer a loud explosion echoed from the base. We all turned and saw a huge billowing stack of smoke coming from the part of the base that Open Casket was in.

"They sacrificed themselves so we could get out of there. Do me a favor and turn any clanker that comes down this way into molten slag," I growled out in anger while our tank drove past the walkers.

"Don't need to tell us twice," the driver stated coldly.

"Tell the Generals that we will fall back in half an hour to cover you're retreat," a different driver requested.

"Copy. See you back at base," I replied emotionlessly.

The drive towards the new outpost was a quiet and depressing one. Everyone was in their own thoughts for what happened for the suicide mission, the aftermath was a lot to take in. It hit me hard as well, first mission that I had to lead and at least half the platoon was dead. Not wounded or missing, no 15 brothers were left to rot at the fallen Republic base. I was going to have to talk to Rex and see how he dealt with the loss of his men, having to lead an entire battalion couldn't have been easy. As we drove deeper into the city, I saw more broken down skyscrapers flanking either side of the large road. I could spot a couple of clone recon teams stationed in a few of the buildings but they were hard to make out in the dark. Eventually we could see the lights from the improvised Republic outpost. A large trench made out of rubble blocked the road so we had to get off the tank. A squad of medics immediately came by to pick up the wounded while the rest of the troopers just sat on the ground to catch their breaths. General Skywalker walked over to us.

"Prowl. What is the status of the platoon?" Skywalker asked. I stood up from the ground and gave the General a weak salute.

"Sir. The platoon has suffered 15 KIAs, 5 WIAs, and we lost AT-TE 214," I states emotionlessly. Skywalker's eyes widened and then were filled with sympathy while placing his hand on my shoulder armor.

"Have you and your men get some rest, you all truly earned it," Skywalker said sympathetically. I turned to my men and gathered all their attention.

"Everyone go relax or find something to eat. I don't want to see anyone from this platoon on duty. Dismissed," I ordered tiredly.
All the troopers got up and slowly walked over to the Republic outpost. Surprisingly the two troopers that went with me to capture the droid tank walked up to me and saluted.

"It was a lot of fun fighting besides you. You should bring me along for more suicide missions," the trooper half joked.

"You got us through that mission as best as you could. I wouldn't have wanted any other clone leading us," the next trooper stated. Surprise and gratefulness completely washed over me, I had honesty thought that everyone would hate me for how many brothers were killed.

"Thank you, both of you. What are your names?" I asked them.

"Joker sir. But you can probably already guess why," the first trooper answered, his tone indicating that he was smirking.

"Ka'rta sir," the second trooper replied.

"A mandalorian name?" I asked the trooper. My question surprised the trooper if his body language was anything to go on.

"Yes sir. Was given to me by a Mandalorian trainer back on Kamino. I wish I could remember his name, it was like Mal Kirta or something like that," The trooper explained with a sense of nostalgia.

"How did you know it was Mandalorian?" Joker asked.

"I've done my reading on Mandalorian culture. The trainer must've saw something in you if he called you heart," I commented with a smile.

"Yeah he said I had a lot of it with how much I pushed myself in training," The trooper stated.

"Anyways, it was an honor to have such outstanding troopers under my command. If I ever need you I'll give you a call, now go get some rest," I ordered.

The troopers snapped off a salute and walked back to the outpost. Talking to them relieved the burden that I was feeling from the lost of my men, it felt good knowing that I did manage to save at least a few troopers.


-time: 1135. Location: Republic outpost-
Invasion of Christophsis: day 5

A lot had happened during the time the platoon and I were holding back the droid armored convoy. From what the Generals had told me the battle in space had gone from bad to worse. Our fleet had managed to completely destroy the latest set of droid reinforcements but at the cost of losing almost all our ships except General Skywalker's flagship. Once the battle had been settled, General Kenobi sent the flagship to get supplies and reinforcements, communications off world had been completely jammed by the Separatists. During the confusion of the evacuation from our base, Slick had managed to escape from his prison cell and there had been no sign of him since. The Generals managed to erect a nice barrier made out of rubble to create a barricade in front of the road. The barricade was meant to prevent droid tanks from advancing as well as provide cover for troops. The heavy cannons had been assembled and were far behind our own lines and were well secured. The cannons had perfect fields of fire on the main road making any assault a costly one. A field hospital was also created out of the ruins of a downed building near where the heavy cannons were, medical supplies were one of the main things that were taken out of the base. Unfortunately everyone was running out of ammo, we had just been attacked at least an hour ago by three company sized units of B1 and B2 battle droids. Casualties were light but a vast amount of our ammo had been expended, even I was running low on charge packs for my rifle and I only had a single det left. Right now I was in a meeting with Captain Rex, Commander Cody and the Generals on how to engage should the enemy attack. General Skywalker was going to go over details of the plan when a loud explosion erupted towards the front of the line. Everyone ran away from the holo table we had been surrounding and turned towards the front lines. Bodies of soldiers were laid on the ground with smoking holes in their armor as bright red and blue blaster bolts were zipping through the air. The few troopers that had guard duty at the moment where returning fire with more and more soldiers heading towards the front. Some troopers outside the barrier were taking cover behind a downed Republic tank. Skywalker, Cody and I were ahead of Rex and Cody as we finally saw the advancing army of droids heading towards us. Sheer size of this attack was enough to make me wonder if we could actually win.

"There back!" Skywalker turned and shouted to Kenobi. Kenobi and Rex finally managed to catch up as the blonde Jedi pulled out his lightsaber.

"I told you this victory was too easy. We never should have sent the ship back for supplies," the Jedi master argued calmly over the intense battle going on behind us.

"It wasn't my idea to send the ship back," the brown haired Jedi knight countered.

"Alright men second wave incoming," General Kenobi addressed the men that had gathered around us.

"Rex, you and your men follow me," Skywalker ordered us in a serious tone.

Rex nodded and the three of us immediately began to sprint towards one of the buildings that housed some of our equipment. I contacted Denal and told him to gather a few troopers to meet us there. Once we had arrives inside the building Skywalker opened a crate that held a few sets of jetpacks. Just at that moment Denal and some of his soldiers had gathered in the building. The men he had picked all had blue details on their armor, signifying that they were from our original platoon on Geonosis. Denal made an addition to his present blue details by adding two blue lines on the facial part of the helmet going down to the edge from the visor.

"Everyone put on a jetpack," Skywalker ordered quickly. Everyone grabbed a set and attached it to their back.

As soon as we were done Skywalker opened the door for an elevator that we all clambered in. It felt like we had been in there for hours as the battle continued raging on with more and more brothers getting killed. With a small ping the door opened and Skywalker led the way onto a large sphere like structure on the building. Rex, myself and the rest of the men stood behind him as he looked out onto the battlefield.

"Whats our plan of attack sir?" Rex asked. The General glanced back at Rex with a smirk on his face and a small glint in his eyes.

"Follow me," he merely stated.

Without saying another word the General jumped off the building with a flip, plummeting at high speeds until landing onto of one of the tri droids and activating his sky blue lightsaber.

"You heard him lads lets go!" Rex roared as he activated his jetpack and flew down towards the battlefield.

I was right behind my brother with the rest of the team behind me. We all landed right next to another tri droid and immediately opened fire on the three legged clanker. Troopers within the team were calling out to one another as we moved as a unit to take down the droid. The tri droid ignored us and opened fire on General Skywalker. The General deflected each shot with his lightsaber as we continued our attack. Suddenly I could hear our army rushing the enemy in a desperate charge against the enemy. I had voiced my disagreement with this part of the plan but the Generals pointed out that we didn't have the strength or the supplies to hold out in a siege. I got down one knee after having to roll away from the tri droid's foot and fired a long burst into the bulbous head of the droid. Each bolt pushed the armor further and further in until finally it gave way and revealed the hardware inside the war machine.

"Focus fire on the weak spot!" I shouted to the soldiers.

Everyone concentrated their aim for the hole in the armor and fired while General Skywalker destroyed the tri droid he was on and then lept onto a different one. The entire bulk of our garrison was hammering the enemy attackers, our single tank, the heavy cannons and the combined effort of two battalions was ripping the tinnies to shreds. We finally managed to hit a important spot in the tri droid causing it to to explode and then collapse to the ground. Skywalker jumped into the air and slice one of the tri droids legs causing it to topple and fall. With the last of the lead units destroyed, both battalions formed up and created a new line. I stood next to Denal and a couple soldiers from the 212th as we focused on an AAT tank. Soon enough a heavy cannon knocked out the tank in a shinning red and blue explosion. We switched to a new target and continued firing. Every soldier focused fire upon the enemy tanks that were slowly coming forward while they tried to retaliate with cannon fire. The heavy cannons were making short work of the stationary targets until the tanks and the infantry supporting them retreated. As they retreated the distant sound of a shuttle engine began to come from the rear. Everyone looked up and cheered at the sight of a Nu attack shuttle flying in and landing somewhere within out outpost. I took off my helmet and ran my glove covered hand through my hair. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked to see that it was Rex standing with out his helmet.

"I'm going to head over to look out post. It'd be great to have a former sniper if needed," Rex suggested. I shrugged off his shoulder and playfully slugged him in the arm.

"What do you mean 'former sniper'? I can still outshoot anyone in the battalion brother," I stated with a grin. Rex shook his head and motioned me to follow instead of replying.

It took a few minutes but we managed to get to the central look out post which was on top of one of the skyscrapers nearby. A couple of clones were moving supply crates while a single soldier stood nearby with a DC-15a rifle pointed towards the front. Rex grabbed a pair of macro binoculars and looked towards the recon teams we had out there. I simply sat down with my back against the wall while I took a cleaning rag to polish my rifle.

"That last attack was a close one. I wonder how many men we lost," I said quietly.

"We had taken 19 KIAs and 23 WIAs. It could've been worse," Rex replied trying to reassure me. I went to talk to Rex after the rearguard mission and he helped me cope with the losses of my men but the damage had been done. I was very adamant now on anything that would cause high casualties.

"We could've found another way. The 212th shouldn't of had to charge the enemy so recklessly," I argued while grinding my teeth. Rex sighed.

"We went over this already Prowl. We don't have the manpower or the supplies to be able to fight them from cover. It was either we rushed them or they rushed us," my brother countered.

"But maybe I could of been with a small team to stall the enemy or capture some tanks or-" I tried to reason but Rex cut me off.

"And then what Prowl? You are just one soldier even if you are an ARC trooper. You have gone above and beyond to save as many soldiers as you can and thats the thing. Being a good leader and a good soldier isn't about saving everyone, its about being able to save those you can and honor those you couldn't," Rex explained wisely. I sighed and decided not to argue any further.

I may be an ARC but Rex was the one who was basically born and trained to lead soldiers, he knew what he was doing. I looked up and saw General Skywalker walking towards us with a small orange torgruta wearing a small top, brown skirt with a purple design going down the middle and white tights going towards brown boots. At her side was a lightsaber. Her face was covered in intricate white markings while the tails coming from her head were blue and white. I nudged Rec in the shin and got up, putting the cleaning rag away and shouldering my rifle. Rex gave a signal to one of recon teams before walking towards the General. I followed behind Rex.

"What the status Rex?" The General asked the Captain immediately.

"All quiet for now sir. They're gearing up for another assault," Rex answered professionally. Rex finally took notice of the girl that was standing next to Skywalker.

"Who's the youngling?" Rex asked. The girl turned towards all three of us.

"I'm Master Skywalker's Padawan. The names Ahsoka Tano," the youngling answered.

Both Rex and I looked at the General in confusion.

"Sir I thought you said you'd never have a padawan,"

"Not only that but we're in the middle of a war zone. Not the place to have inexperienced troops," I added.

"There's been a mix up the youngling isn't with me," Skywalker explained.

"Stop calling me that! You're stuck with my sky guy," Ahsoka stated with a smirk.

Now this caused both Rex and I to start laughing at how the youngling just made fun of the General's name. I had to admit, for a green youngling she did make up for it in personality. Skywalker however didn't find it amusing in the slightest. He immediately turned on the young Padawan.

"What did you just call me? Don't get snippy with me, little one. I don't even think you're old enough to be a Padawan," Skywalker argued while getting in her face.

"Well, maybe I'm not. But Master Yoda thinks I am," she countered back with a smile. Seriously I've never seen someone tell off the General like this.

"Well you're not with Master Yoda now. So if you're ready, you'd better start proving it. Captain Rex and ARC trooper Prowl will show you how a little respect can go a long way," Skywalker explained while gesturing to the both of us.

I groaned while Rex just looked uncomfortable. I wasn't up for teaching a rookie, let alone a Jedi rookie. She may seem confident but I got the feeling her type of attitude could get us all killed. Rex stepped forward while trying to find the right words to say.

"Uh...right. Come on, youngling," Rex tried to be enthusiastic about this.

"Padawan," Ahsoka mumbled under her breath.

"Rookie," I whispered to her.

This caused the small torgruta to glare at. I wouldn't admit this to anyone but the way she stared me down almost made me want to take cover.
Rex and I decided to escort her around the rear of the outpost. We had already shown her the field hospital, the groans of the injured men affected not just her but Rex and I. His face just hardened, she looked on in horror while the sight just brought me back to the suicide rearguard mission. We left shortly after and now we were walking around the heavy cannons.

"Have you thought about moving that line back, Captain? They'd have better cover that way," Ahsoka suggested to Rex.

"Thanks for the suggestion but General Skywalker thinks they're fine where they are," Rex stated calmly.

"So...if you're a Captain, your friend is an ARC trooper, and I'm a Jedi, then technically I outrank you right? She asked curiously.

"No offense rookie but I'm not taking orders from you anytime soon. I trust those who know what they are doing," I said nonchalantly. It may have seemed harsh but honestly I wasn't going to let an eager inexperienced Jedi get myself or my brothers killed.

"What Prowl is trying to say is that experience outranks everything," Rex said while giving me a glare that said 'what the hell?'. Surprisingly Ahsoka didn't seem to take it to heart, instead her face turned to that of motivated and determined.

"Well if experience outranks everything, I guess I'd better start getting some. What's that?" Ahsoka asked as we all heard what sounded like the activation of an energy relates device.

We all looked to where the droids where based and saw a expanding dome of red energy.

"Shit," I muttered while unslinging my rifle from my shoulder.

"Not good. They've got an energy shield. It's going to make things damn near impossible. If you want experience little one, it looks like you're about to get plenty," Rex stated gravely to the young Padawan.

Ahsoka looked at us slightly in fear before looking out to the to where the dome was.

"Prowl. Call back all recon troops tell them they need to run as fast as they can. I'm going to bring Ahsoka back to General Skywalker," Rex ordered. He gestured to the youngling and ran towards the main staging area.

I proceeded to run towards the main barricade while activating my communicator and accessing the recon team comm channel.

"This is ARC trooper Prowl to all recon teams. Pull back immediately, the enemy is preparing for another assault," I ordered to everyone.

"This is scout 2-1 heading back to base,"

"Scout 2-4 here already on my way,"

"Scout 2-7 packing up and leaving post over,"

"Head back to base and report to either Captain Rex or Commander Cody," I interrupted everyone and then left the comm channel. I was then contacted by General Skywalker.

"Prowl, I want you to gather a squad of five men. They will be under your strict command and you will only answer to General Kenobi. Cause havoc anyway you see fit. Ill see you when this is over, General Skywalker out," Skywalker ordered before ending the channel.

I processed the information that I was given and realize that the General ordered me to command my own special forces squad however I see fit. Unfortunately there weren't any other ARCs within the 501st or the 212th so I would have to command standard troopers. I thought back to the two troopers that were under my command yesterday and realized they could fit what I needed. I opened a comm channel with Denal to see if he knew where the two where.

"Prowl? What's going on I'm getting the platoon ready for the assault," Denal asked over the sounds of soldiers gathering their equipment.

"I need to know where the troopers Joker and Ka'rta are right now. The General wants me to command a squad and lead them during the attack" I explained.

"Last I heard they were at the field hospital checking in on their sergeant. You better hurry though from how things are sounding the droids are getting closer," Denal stated with caution.

"Thanks brother, I'll see you on the battlefield," I said thankful and then ended the comm.

I started running towards the hospital past all the troopers in chalk armor that was dirtied and scuffed from fighting. The sounds of the heavy cannons started going off, no doubt in an attempt to pierce the shields. Finally I arrived at the field hospital as spare medics continued treating those that needed attention while getting supplies ready for the upcoming battle. I kept looking until I saw 5 troopers all in their armor with weapons at their side.

"Joker, Ka'rta," I called out to them.

The two troopers looked at me and began to walk over.

"Sir? What are you doing here?" Ka'rta asked in confusion.

"I need a squad to go cause chaos amongst the droid lines. Figured you guys would be the best troops to find," I answered honestly. Joker nudged his friend in his side.

"Would you look at that Ka'rta. An ARC recognizing the skill that we posses," Joker boasted proudly. I rolled my eyes.

"Will you be taking the rest of the squad sir?" Ka'rta asked respectfully.

I thought about it for a moment before shaking my head.

"No, it'd be best if our team is small. That way we're more mobile, lets go," I ordered.

With that said we all ran outside just as the energy dome was befitting to encroach on our lines. We sprinted as fast as we could towards the front where most of the army was positioned just behind the rubble barricade. The energy dome was surrounding a building nearby where a firefight was going on.

"Should we head there and provide support sir?" Ka'rta asked. I nodded and we all raced over to that area. Once we got inside the building we saw troopers falling back inside as droids began to pour in. Nearby was a small console that General Kenobi and Captain Rex were taking over in.

"Fire at will!" I ordered while firing a couple shot, hitting a B2 droid and knocking it down.

The two troopers unleashed a hail of fire from their carbines, causing some more super battle droids to fall down. This caused some of the droids in the building to begin taking shots at us. Joker got down on one knee and kept firing while I went prone and aimed for the heads of B1s. Ka'rta did the smart thing and threw a droid popper, landing in the midst of B2s, causing all of them to crash into the ground. Unfortunately even with our combined efforts we still couldn't stem the tide of war machines. I saw Rex begin to fall back along with the rest of the troopers to exit the building.

"Fall back I'll cover you!" I ordered to the two soldiers under my command.

I switched my rifle to automatic and fired a long stream of blaster fire, hitting some of the droids and causing the rest to seek cover. Joker and Ka'rta immediately ran out the building with me right behind them while firing a couple bursts. Once we were out of the building it was clear that the situation was getting worst. The droid army was advancing towards the barricade and were pounding the area. Our last walker was doing its best to take out enemy tanks but eventually it was destroyed. The droids now outnumbered us in numbers and in armor superiority, I was surprised they hadn't sent a fighters to perform strafing runs.

"What are we going to do now?" Joker asked quietly. I kept looking around, trying to find someway of evening the odds. I noticed a building close to the advancing droids that was swaying back and forth slightly. Its structure was heavy damaged and was close to collapse.

"How many thermal detonators do you have?" I demanded urgently. Ka'rta shook his head but Joker took out two grenades from his belt.

I held my hands out as he tossed the two grenades to me. I attached them to my utility belts and looked back at them.

"Head back to the line and help Captain Rex. Thanks for the help but this is as far as you guys go," I explained to them while turning to head towards the enemy lines.

"No can do sir, we're going to see this through," Ka'rta stated in determination. I looked back and saw that Joker nodded in agreement. It was touching to me that these men were willing to go on another suicide mission.

"Ok this is what I want u to do, take these two dets and plant them within the foundation of that building by the road. After you will wait for my signal," I ordered while jogging towards the enemy line.

"What will be the signal?" Joker yelled.

"You'll know it when you see it!" I shouted back while slipping inside the red dome.

I took cover as I crept past the main lines of infantry as they fired at our army. Once the tanks began to pass me I rushed out onto the road and climbed onto the closest tank. I immediately fired a hole in the crews cabin and slipped inside, destroying the droid crew immediately. I pushed aside the broken husk of the tank driver and moved the controls so that the tank drove towards the building. I saw Joker and Ka'rta taking cover as they traded shots with a few battle droids. I used the side guns to wipe out the droids quickly. The two troopers cheered but then stopped as they saw my tank continuing towards their position.

"Get out of the way!" I shouted to them over the comm channel.

They quickly got out of the way as I left a timed thermal det inside the tank and lowered the hatch so that I could jump out. As I fell to the ground I heard the tank collided into the building causing the structure to groan in protest. The building was pushed past its limit as the explosives went off. I looked up and saw the skyscraper rapidly coming down on me. I rolled to the right and dove to the side just as the building crashed to the ground. I felt a pair of hands help me up, I looked and saw that Ka'rt was covering us while Joker pulled me up. The entire droid army was cut in half literally. The infantry and some tanks were on the side in front if the Republic garrison while the rest of the armor was blocked on the other side.

"Nice job if I do say so myself sir," Joker chuckled as I managed to stand up on my feet.

"I think things are getting a lot better now sir," Ka'rta commented. I looked in confusion to what he was referring to and saw that the energy dome was receding. This meant that the heavy cannons could start firing again.

"Well?" I asked my men as I readied my rifle. They both looked at me in confusion.

"Are we going to show these clankers not to mess with the soldiers of the Republic or not?!" I shouted while running pass them.

"Yes sir!" Joker and Ka'rta shouted as they ran with me while we all fired at the confused and stunned droids.


Prowl: Glad that's over, that battle was almost as bad as tibrim

Rex: It could of been worse

Denal: how so

Rex: Denal could of made a bet and lost, his men could of suffered

Denal: -glares at me- that joke is getting old buddy

Deathz: - grabs Denal by the collar- listen here you di'kut, I make the rules here. So help me I'll turn you into Jar-Jars wife where you have hundreds of babies with him. Understand?

Denal: -nods at super speed-

Deathz: I do not own any part of star wars or its characters except my own OCs. PAR KOTE BAL IJAAT BE MAND'ALOR!