Chapter 10- The War Continues

In the upper atmosphere of an Imperial controlled planet, an Imperial supply fleet was under attack by the Rebel Alliance. The fleet had come here to refuel before distributing supplies to the Empire's garrisons throughout the Outer Rim, but the Rebels learned of this and launched a surprise attack. The ships carrying the supplies were long and narrow, with the bulk of the ships weight being focused on the front, where the Command Bridge was, and the back, where the engines were located. The narrow middle section had magnets running along it that kept the metal crates in place, even in the middle of hyperspace. Unfortunately, these ships were lightly armed and vulnerable to attack, which is why they were always accompanied by an escort fleet.

Astrid flew through the heat of the battle, destroying TIE Fighters left and right. She had just tallied her sixth kill for this battle. She observed the battle around her. It was smaller than the battle at Fondor, there was only one Star Destroyer and a less than a half a dozen support ships escort the supply fleet, and the Alliance had several Assault MK II Frigates, Nebulon B-2 Frigates, Corellian Corvettes and Gunships with fighter support for the Rebel Alliance. The battle was going smoothly for the Alliance, with the destruction of an Acclamator Cruiser and a Tartan Cruiser confirmed before the Imperials could counter attack.

Astrid attention was diverted to a Victory Class Star Destroyer. The Command Bridge was in flames and there was damage all throughout the hull. Without warning, flames burst out from within the hull but were quickly snuffed out by the vacuum of space. Within moments, the ship started to crack and fell apart, the pieces drifting throughout space.

Astrid noticed that the destruction of this ship had given them an opening, "Attention, the right flank of the support ships is open! I repeat, their right flank is exposed!" She called out into the comm channel.

"We read you Stormfly." She earned from the commander in charge of the attack in response, "Stormfly, lead Blue Squadron and keep those TIE Fighters around those supply ships occupied, Windshear's Gray Squadron and Jorgenson's Orange Squadron will assist you." The commander ordered her.

"Roger that," Astrid responded, her squad forming up behind her. Astrid looked to her right to see Heather's gray colored X-wing and her squad forming up, and to her left was Snotlout's orange colored X-wing and his squad joining them.

From the cockpit of his X-wing, Snotlout rolled his shoulders and neck, producing loud cracks and pops. "The Empire won't even know what hit them." He boasted arrogantly.

Heather just rolled her eyes when she heard that through the comm, "Whatever you say." She muttered, but she shook off his boasting and focused on the battle in front of her.

The three squadrons made a beeline for the supply ships. The ships anti-starfighter locked onto them and opened fire as they got in range. The squadrons broke up to avoid the laser fire, but one X-wing was unlucky and was hit, exploding into multiple pieces.

The supply ships weren't the only ones to notice them as the Star Destroyer prepped its Starboard cannons and launched more TIE Fighters to assist the ones protecting the ships. Just as a section of cannons was ready to fire, they were hit by proton torpedoes, resulting in their destruction. The culprits who fired these torpedoes became apparent as a squad of Y-wings flew past them, only to be followed by another squad that launched their payloads at another section of laser cannons. Within minutes, all the cannons on the starboard side of the Star Destroyer were destroyed or disabled by several squads of Y-wings.

From a safe distance away with his squad, Fishlegs observed the carnage, thankful that he survived this bombing run and wasn't involved in the fight around the supply ships. This was his first time in a Y-Wing after the battle of Fondor and was glad that this run had gone just as smoothly. His peace and quiet were disturbed by yelling from the comm, "THAT WAS AWESOME!" Was what he heard, and he recognized it as Tuffnut's voice. The twins had been allowed to fly in this battle, just like Snotlout, and were assigned as part of the bomber wings. Ruffnut was flying and Tuffnut was manning the turret in their Y-wing. This was decided because Tuffnut lost a Thorston challenge.

"Cut the chatter Tuffnut, we'll head back to the ships to rearm, then we'll go for another pass." Alpha leader, the squad leader in charge of this part of the attack, ordered through the comm. All the pilots who received this order obeyed and headed back to the ships.

Back with Astrid's attack group, Astrid opened fire on a TIE Fighter she had been chasing, destroying its right wing which caused it to spin out before exploding, making her kill count nine. The battle on the end was going smoothly. The supply ships couldn't get a lock on them, and they were destroying TIE Fighters left and right, and they had only lost three fighters so far. "Alpha group, the Star Destroyers guns have been incapacitated, you're clear to make your move. Stormfly now is the time to attack the ships, get them to drop their cargo." The commander ordered through the comm.

"You heard him, attack those ships," Astrid called out to her attack group. Three X-wings complied and headed towards the supply ships. Before they could open fire, they were destroyed by a series of TIE Fighter laser fire from their left flank. Astrid along with a few others who weren't already preoccupied, including Heather and Snotlout, looked over to see a squad of TIE Fighters heading their way. These TIEs looked different from the rest, instead of the standard gray and black aesthetic, these TIEs had red accents across their hull and the image of a snake in the center of their wings.

"It's Viper Squad!" One pilot called out in terror. All the pilots had heard of them, they were mainly whispers from survivors of raids they lost in the early days of the Rebellion, but now they knew who they were. They were the Empire's elite pilots, and responsible the deaths of countless pilots. Now they were here.

The squadron, consisting of seven TIE Fighters, broke their formation and launched their attack. Within seconds, two more X-Wings were destroyed. Astrid began to chase one that had broken off from the group, but no matter what she tried, she couldn't get a lock on him. This pilot was good. She was just starting to get a lock on him again when green laser fire streaked past her. Looking back, she saw a Viper and two other TIE Fighters pursuing her. The Viper she was previously pursuing managed to get away while she was distracted.

Now Astrid was the one who was being chased. She put full power to the thrusters and tried to outrun them, but they were on her tail. No matter how fast she went or how evasive she was with her maneuvers, they were still there. Suddenly, streaks of blue and purple flew past her and hit all three TIE Fighters behind her, destroying them. She looked towards the origin of the shots, and saw two X-wings, on painted black, and the other painted a deep blue instead of the usual red.

"We leave you alone for a few days and you already get into trouble." She heard Hammond's voice in her comm. While he was clearly joking, it angered her like he had insulted them.

Heather looked over from her X-wing, "What are you guys doing her?" She asked them.

"I finished my work on our fighters, and Dad told us to assist you as necessary," Hiccup answered immediately.

"We appreciate any help you can provide." The commander told them from his station on the bridge. "Now take care of those fighters, then secure the cargo." He ordered.

"Understood," Hiccup replied, then flew into the battle with Hammond in tow. Within seconds of entering the battle, the two Jedi proved that they were not just warriors on the battlefield, but were easily two of the best pilots in the Galaxy, with Hiccup being the better pilot. From time to time, Astrid watched as Hiccup's fighter would whizz through and devastate any TIE Fighter in his path. In one of his runs, Astrid counted at least ten kills, easily topping her current kill count in this battle.

However, Astrid wasn't the only one to notice their skill. The remains of Viper Squadron were watching, and they were hell bent on avenging their fallen comrade. Soon enough, Hiccup and Hammond each had three Vipers pursuing them.

Streaks of green shot past Hammond's X-Wing, "I don't think these guys appreciate us being here." Hammond stated, with BB-12 beeping in agreement in the astromech slot on the fighter.

Hiccup looked back to see the three Vipers that were on his tail, feeling a sense of Déjà Vu. In that moment, he remembered something that could help them now. "Hey Hammond, remember that move we pulled off at the space battle over Maanan?" He asked Hammond vaguely.

It took Hammond a few seconds for his memory to kick in, "Yeah, what about it?" He asked Hiccup, trying to figure out why he brought that up now. That was when it hit him, "You can't be serious?" He let out in disbelief.

"If you have any other ideas, I'll listen," Hiccup replied back. On the other end, Hammond was silent. He had no other ideas. Hiccup took this answer as a sign of compliance. "Alright, I see you at my five o' clock. Bank right and I'll meet up with you." He told him.

From her cockpit, Heather watched this happen. She saw Hammond do as Hiccup told him and backed right, the three Vipers in hot pursuit. When Hammond came out of his turn, she noticed that he was flying straight for Hiccup, who now was flying directly at Hammond. "Hammond, what are you doing?" She asked into the comm, a slight tinge of fear in her voice.

"Trust me, Heather, we know what we're doing," Hammond responded with, before returning his focus to the controls. BB-12 buzzed and chirp from his spot in Hammond's X-Wing, making his worries know. "I hear you on that BB-12, but we don't have much choice." He told him.

Hiccup focused on Hammond's approaching figure, ignoring the battle around him and the chatter in the comm. The Vipers who were chasing both of them had bought the bait, and Hiccup was ready to act. He just had to get closer to Hammond.

Suddenly, a stray shot headed his way, but Hiccup sensed it coming with the Force and swerved out of the way of it, but just barely. He looked ahead to see that he got with a hundred meters of Hammond. "NOW!" he yelled into his comm.

Simultaneously, Hiccup and Hammond both turned to their left, just within feet of hitting each other. The Vipers were unable to react to this quick enough and two of them crashed into each other as they attempted to evade each other, the debris from this crash hit a third Viper, destroying him instantly, and a fourth Viper hit a random TIE Fighter that was in the area, leaving two Vipers left to avenge their fallen comrades.

The remaining Vipers chased after Hiccup, but Hiccup was ready for them. He went into a dive and activated his boosters, created a larger gap between himself and the two TIE Fighters. Suddenly, He cut his engines and flipped his X-Wing around, now facing them. With bot TIEs in range, Hiccup pulled the trigger and opened fire. Streaks of purple laser fire erupted from his cannons and found their targets, destroying both Vipers. "We're all clear now, begin making your runs on those transport ships. " Hiccup called into the comm.

The other pilots heard this, but they were still in a stunned silence over what just happened. Within minutes of joining the battle, their two Jedi had wiped out on of the Empire's best squadrons and dozens of fighters. Heather was the first to shake out of her shock, "You heard them, let's finish this." She called out.

She flew in for her attack with her squadron. Once in range, they launched their proton torpedoes at them. The torpedoes hit their target, damaging the hull of the ships. Snotlout and his squad followed suit, then Astrid's group came in after them. Hiccup and Hammond came in for their attack last, using torpedoes and laser fire to finish the job. The ships' hulls broke apart, and the magnets holding the cargo failed, causing the crates to float is space.

"You're clear now Alpha group, time to sweep things up and head home." Hiccup said into the comm.

"Roger that general." He earned in response, causing him to raise his eyebrow when he heard what he was called.

Alpha group, consisting of Corellian Gunships and Corvettes with large magnets attached to the bottom if their ships, moved in. The magnets grabbed all of the crates and some debris they could use as scrap metal. "We've got the cargo." The leader of Alpha group announced.

Understood, all ships make the jump to Hyperspace." The commander ordered. Within seconds, the Rebel fleet was disappeared, leaving a ruined Imperial fleet behind them.

Two days later, Astrid was leading a team, which included Hiccup and Hammond, in a raid against an Imperial weapons testing facility that had recently been discovered. Hiccup and Hammond lead a team into the main control center to download any intel they could find. Meanwhile, Astrid led a team that was to collect any prototypes they could carry, and destroy the ones they couldn't.

Currently, Astrid ducked behind a crate that was her cover, just as laser fire from Imperial Stormtroopers streaked past her head. The mission was going smoothly on their end so far. They had just gathered up several prototype blasters and personal shields without getting noticed but had run into several squads of Stormtroopers when they came across an open area with several hanger doors, where they would hold prototype vehicles. The Stormtroopers opened fired the moment they saw them and set off an alarm, calling for reinforcements. It wasn't looking good for Astrid's team as they were outnumbered three to one.

But just when it seemed like they were doomed, several crates flew into Imperial lines. Astrid's team turned their attention to where the crates came from, and found Hiccup and Hammond, with Toothless and Guardian in tow, charging into the Imperial's right flank. Hiccup and Hammond's lightsabers became a blur of green and blue as they deflected and redirected laser fire. Guardian took cover behind a crate and took his time lining up his shots with his sniper rifle, making every shot count. Toothless charged in an opened fire with his bowcaster, launching Stormtroopers clear across the when he scored a hit.

Astrid looked at them with surprised eyes. This wasn't part of the plan, they weren't supposed to be her. "What are you guys doing her?" She asked them with fury.

"Our team download everything from the facilities computers and got back to the extraction point without being detected. When we heard the alarms go off, we decided to come and help you." Hiccup answered simply, then redirecting a blaster bolt back at the Stormtrooper that shot it, hitting him in the chest.

"We don't need help!" Astrid fired back at him as she shot anther Stormtrooper. She was about to continue on when she noticed a squad of Stormtroopers just set up a blaster cannon on a tripod, and were about to open fire. Just as the Stormtrooper pulled the trigger, several crates floated in front of the Rebels, forming a shield and protecting them from the cannon's fire.

Astrid looked over to see Hammond with his left hand raised and a look of concentration on his face, using the Force to levitate the crates, and his lightsaber in his right hand, deflecting any shot that came his way. "I think they beg to differ." Hammond pointed out, clearly talking about the Stormtroopers they were fighting. Hammond then closed his eyes and thrust his hand forward, sending the crates towards the troopers around the blaster cannon. The troopers were either knocked back or had to jump out of the way, leaving them exposed to Rebel fire. Hammond then threw his lightsaber forward, the blade becoming a whirlwind of blue as it sailed through the air. The blade cut through the cannon's barrel and tripod like butter, rendering it useless and returned to Hammond's hand.

From her position on the team's right flank, opposite from where Hiccup and Hammond entered, Heather popped up from behind a barrel and shot two more Stormtroopers. Her Force training had benefited in more ways than she could have imagined, and she was seeing that as she dropped Stormtroopers left and right. From behind the Imperial's line, she saw what looked like two pilots head into a large hanger and shut the door behind them.

"Astrid, I think the Imperials have a prototype stored in that hanger." She called out.

Astrid was about to answer but was interrupted by Hiccup, "They do, all we found of from the computer is that it's called an All-Terrain Armored-Transport, or AT-AT for short, but that's all we know. We weren't able to find any available schematics on it, and all the others were encrypted." Hiccup replied, too focused to notice Astrid's irritated look.

Hammond flashed him a confident look, "Then let's find out more shall we?" He stated, earning a nod from Hiccup.

Hiccup raised his lightsaber up above his head, then pointed it towards the Imperials, "Follow me!" she shouted, then charged towards the Stormtroopers, deflecting any blaster fire heading their way. The strike team watched as Hiccup brought his lightsaber across Stormtrooper's chest, and as Hammond stabbed one in the belly and threw another into a stack of crates.

Their charge had the desired effect as the other Rebels joined in on their charge, led by the twins and followed by Snotlout. Pretty soon, all the other Rebels joined in, including Astrid, who was a bit reluctant to follow Hiccup. This was her mission, she was the one to lead it, and yet he was unseating her with ease.

Hiccup jumped over another Stormtrooper and thrust his lightsaber behind him, the green blade now sticking through the Stormtrooper's chest. He brought it out and raised up to redirect another blaster bolt coming towards him. When all was quiet, he deactivated it and observed the scene around him. The Rebels had defeated the Imperials, with half of the Stormtroopers bearing lightsaber burns or missing limbs.

Astrid walked up to the hanger the pilots disappeared into, "Get these doors open," she ordered. Three members of her team approached the door with explosives since the door was locked and there was no way to unlock.

"Hold on that, let us handle this," Hiccup called out, ready to open the door with the Force with Hammond's help.

But Astrid wasn't taking any of this. "Thanks for the offer, but we can handle this," she shot back with a challenging look.

"We have no idea what's in there, I don't think blowing those doors open is the best plan of action." Hiccup countered, confused to why Astrid was challenging him all of a sudden.

"Blowing things up is always the best plan of action," Tuffnut chimed in from the side, earning an irritated look from Astrid.

Once Astrid was sure Tuffnut would stay quiet, she turned her attention back to Hiccup, "We'll deal with what's in there once those doors are open. Now, get those doors…" She continued but was interrupted when the doors exploded outwards, blowing everyone back and killing the three Rebels by the door. When the dust settled and the Rebels regained their footing, they saw a massive leg step out of the hanger, followed by another leg and a head that was over twenty meters off the ground, with two heavy cannons under its head and a light blaster cannon on each side of it. The hulking walker slowly emerged from the hanger, revealing a large, armored body and two more legs.

Hammond looked up to see what they were facing, "Well, now we know what an AT-AT is." He pointed out.

"No Kidding," Heather spoke out in agreement.

The AT-AT then targeted the Rebels in front of it and opened fire, its heavy cannons thundering as the ground shook from its footsteps and the impact of its cannon fire. The Rebels were sent running, and no cover proved strong enough to protect them from its heavy cannons, and the light cannons fired quick enough to hit a moving target. A Rebel soldier brought out a rocket launcher and opened fired, striking the front portion of the body next to its neck. To his horror, he only scratched its armor and left scorch marks. The walker then turned towards the Rebel and fired its heavy cannons, obliterating him.

Hiccup scanned the walker, there had to be some kind of weakness. He then realized that its line of sight was limited, and a team could sneak around and take it out, but that wouldn't be easy.

He looked around to see Hammond on the gang taking cover with him, "I have a plan: Hammond, I need you and the others to distract that thing, Ruff, Tuff, you're with me. Understood?" He elaborated, earning nods from the others, except Astrid, who looked like she had another plan.

"But I think we can…" She started until she was interrupted.

"Got it," Hammond said, interrupting her, and ran out. He threw his lightsaber at the walker's head, scratching its armor and gaining its attention. The walker let a volley of heavy and light blaster fire, but Hammond was too fast to be hit, thanks to the force amplifying his abilities.

With the distraction in play, Hiccup and the twins flanked around the walker and out of its view. "So, what is your plan?" Ruffnut asked.

"Does it involve explosions?" Tuffnut questioned, excited and hopeful.

Hiccup looked back at them, "You'll see," he told them, then jumped into the air, using the Force to propel him higher. He landed on the top of the walker, then reached out with the Force and lifted both of the twins, bringing them to his level.

He let the twins down, and the two stumbled when they landed, trying to regain their footing. "Well that was fun," Tuffnut stated about their trip up.

Hiccup then took out his lightsaber and plunged it into the walker's armor. The blade went all the way down to the hilt, showing how thick the armor was. He moved his blade in a circular motion, cutting a clean circle out of the armor. Once he was done, he pulled the piece out with the Force and threw it away.

"How many detonators you got?" Hiccup asked.

Tuffnut and Ruffnut looked at him with excitant, "More than enough to take this thing down," Ruffnut answered him.

Hiccup smiled, "Then do your thing." He told them.

"Now you're speaking out language," Tuffnut responded. The twins pulled all the detonators they had, which totaled about half a dozen. They rigged all of them to a remote detonator and threw them into the walker. With his plan in place, Hiccup jumped off the walker and used the Force to cushion his landing. He signaled the twins to follow his lead, and they did and soften their landing as well. Once they were all on the ground, they ran to a safe distance and warned the others to do the same.

Hiccup jumped behind a barrel and looked over to the twins, "Do it," He ordered.

"With pleasure," Tuffnut replied and pushed the button. From their hiding place, they could see flashes of light from each explosion coming from the walker's belly. Suddenly, the top of the walker's body exploded outwards along with the head, leaving only a stump where its neckpiece was. With no one controlling it, and part of its legs damaged, the walker fell to the side, producing a loud thud when it landed.

Hiccup's focus on the walker was interrupted when he heard clapping. He turned around to see the remaining Rebels cheering, except for Astrid. It took him a minute to realize their cheers were directed towards him, and what he just did. While he was used topraise for his feats in the past, this was something different. He saw that spark of hope in their eyes like they could win against the impossible. And this just made him even more nervous about who he was, and his role in the Rebel Alliance.

Astrid and the gang were sitting in the Mess Hall aboard The Skullcrusher, enjoying a well-deserved meal after their mission at the weapons facility and their encounter with an AT-AT. While the prototype they encountered was destroyed, they couldn't find any of its plans in the data they stole, and they learned it was one of five prototypes. While they learned it wasn't indestructible, they doubt the Empire would fall for the same trick again.

While they were talking, Hiccup and Hammond walked past their table with their own meals, trying to find a quiet place to eat. Easier said than done, considering their status in the Rebel Alliance, particularly with Hiccup. In just a week, he saved two critical missions that were tittering on the edge of disaster, and his father had promoted the two of them to the rank of General, for their service to the Alliance.

Hiccup and Hammond found an empty table and sat down, but the moment they settled in, Alliance members, be it Berkian alien, rushed in and surrounded them, asking questions or offering praise for recent missions. Even those who were at Astrid's table joined in, leaving only her and Heather. Astrid looked over, furious how Hiccup seemed to go so much attention in such a short amount of time, then slammed her cup on the table and left the Mess Hall. She decided to head over to the Training Room, she needed to blow off some steam.

Streaks of red flew down the firing range, hitting the target down range, adding another scorch mark to a target already covered in them. From her station a hundred yards away, Astrid continued firing in rapid succession. She had been here for an hour, and she still felt furious. She pulled the trigger again but nothing came out. She looked at the training rifle in her hands and realized that it had overheated. Frustrated, she dropped the rifle and picked up her axe.

She walked to a section of the Training Room with heavy steps, where training dummies were set up for practice with vibro-weapons, and a sparing ring was a couple yards away. She approached one the dummy and swung at it, her axe implanting deeply due to the power in her swing. She would wrench the axe out and move on to the next one. She repeated this process for another hour, sometimes throwing a cartwheel, summersault, or throw to mix things up. Within that hour, she worked up a good sweat and was taking deep breaths. She always found that hitting something with her axe made her feel better, and it did help her a little bit just now.

While some her anger was gone, her thoughts on Hiccup were still there. She didn't understand it, in just a week, he salvaged two missions she was in charge of and unseating her command in the process, proved to be a far better pilot and fighter than her, and was promoted to General while she was still a Captain. She never cared for the position before, and preferred to be called Astrid instead of Captain Astrid, but something about Hiccup outranking her just angered her.

'He must be showing off, trying to impress everyone and be a called a hero. That's what it is!" She thought to herself, it was the only answer she could come up with. With a sigh, she walked over to the refresher to wash up. She turned on the sink and washed off the sweat and soot from her training and dried off with a towel. Upon leaving the room, she decided a flight might clear her mind and made her way to the hanger.

She walked through the halls in silence. Every now and then, a crew member would walk by and be ready to greet her, but they would decide against it when they saw the look on her face. It was one of Astrid's look that says, "I'll hurt you if you just breathe in the wrong way around me." So they just left her alone. Eventually, she walked into Hanger One, where her X-Wing was always docked in. Upon a first glance, everything seemed normal. Pilots were in their jumpsuits talking about missions with each other, mechanics were working on ships, and astromech droids were cruising around the hanger from workplace to workplace. The only thing that stuck out as a crowd of people off to the side, like they were watching something.

Curious, she walked over to them. As she got closer, she heard the sounds of a lightsaber, the hissing sound it made as it moved through the air and the cracking sound it made when hitting another lightsaber or a blaster bolt. She arrived at the crowd and made her way to the front, where she discovered the source of the noises and the reason everyone was watching.

Heather was training again, she was wielding Hammond's lightsaber and was following a training remote, the spherical machine hovering in the air and occasionally letting out a puff of air to change direction. At random moments, the remote would fire its weak laser at Heather and she would deflect it with the lightsaber in her hand. To her surprise, Astrid discovered that Heather was wearing a helmet with a plate that blocked her vision, but she was still able to block the remote's laser fire.

"That's good," Astrid heard Hammond's voice call out. She looked over to see Hammond in his Jedi Robes without his armor, he stopped wearing it when not on missions, standing to the side and watching Heather train. This was clearly another exercise. Heather then blocked three consecutive shots, but the fourth one hit her in the shoulder when she couldn't block it in time.

Hammond didn't let this dampen his spirits, they had been doing this for an hour, and she was starting to catch on to the exercise. But he decided that was enough for now, "Alright Heather, you can take the mask off now. You're done for now." He told her.

Heather deactivated Hammond's lightsaber and took off the helmet, finally able to breathe properly. That helmet wasn't suffocating, but the mask would block most fresh air from coming in. She walked over to where Hammond, along with the rest of the gang including Astrid, and sat down on a crate. Hammond approached her and gave her a canteen of water, which Heather accepted. She brought the canteen up and drank it in greedy gulps. "Thank you," she said to Hammond when she was done.

"Your welcome," Hammond replied, sitting down next to her.

Now that things had slowed down, the crowd began to disperse and Astrid had a question that needed answering, "What was with the mask? Why was she training with it?" She asked, directing it towards Hammond.

Hammond picked up the helmet, "It's used so the wearer can get used to relying on the Force instead of their eyes." He responded, "'Your eyes can deceive you, don't trust them' my Master always told me." He added in with a nostalgic smile, remembering his Tahl Sathel's lessons well.

"Hmph, why would they say that?" Snotlout butted in.

Before Hammond could answer, Hiccup answered for him, "Tahl Sathel, Hammond's Master and the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, was a Miraluka, a Force Sensitive species that is born without eyes."

When they heard that, this left everyone confused. "Then how do they see?" Fishlegs asked.

"Yeah, it's pretty hard to see without eyes, right sis?" Tuffnut added in.

Ruffnut nodded, "They are pretty essential."

Hammond was unfazed by this and answered plainly, "All Miraluka are born Force Sensitive, and they use the Force to see. I would wager they see better than every other species in the galaxy."

The gang was silent as they thought about his answer until the silence was broken by Snotlout's laughter. He was holding his stomach with one hand and wiping away a tear with the other. After his laughter died down, he decided to speak, "That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard." He stated bluntly.

Hiccup had his eyes narrowed, amazed by his cousin's insensitivity. He was about to speak, but they Hammond interrupted him. "Is that so?" he asked, standing up and grabbing his lightsaber from Heather. He then grabbed a rag and walked a couple of paces. Then he stopped and turned around, tying the rag around his head so his eyes were covered, making him blind. "The let's see how a blind man fights." He challenged.

Snotlout's eyes widened at the challenge as everyone looked at him. "What about you lightsaber, one mistake and I lose a limb," He pointed out in a hurry, trying to weasel his way out of the fight.

Hammond didn't respond, he just turned a notch on the hilt of his lightsaber, lowering its power levels. Once his adjustment was complete, he activated the lightsaber and hit his hand with it. To everyone's shock, it didn't cut through. It just bounced off his hand and left a small singe mark. "That fixes that problem unless you're afraid to lose," Hammond said to him.

Everyone in the hanger could hear a pin drop when Hammond issued that challenge. To avoid embarrassment, Snotlout pulled out his vibro-sword, "You're on." He responded, and gripped his sword with two hands. Hammond responded by bring his hands up and holding his lightsaber in a reverse grip, ready to strike.

Instead of charging in, Snotlout did the unexpected and began to creep around Hammond, making practically no sound. Meanwhile, Hammond reached out with the Force and his other senses. He could feel the air shift as Snotlout moved, hear Snotlout's quiet breaths and the sound of sweat falling off of his brow and hitting the floor, and his ungodly stench filled his nose, he could go by without that.

Slowly but surely, Snotlout made his way around to Hammond's exposed back. Once he was in position he went for an attack but was surprised when Hammond flipped his lightsaber and brought it to block his back. He pushed Snotlout's sword away and went on the offensive, fighting like he was still using his eyes. He went for an overhead attack, then an underhand, a side attack, and back to an overhead again in quick succession. Snotlout was barely able to keep his blade up, even getting singed in the shoulder by Hammond's blade.

Snotlout then pushed Hammond back with a shove and went for a two-handed attack, but Hammond caught his wrist and flipped him over. Snotlout landed on his back with a loud thud, knocking the wind out of him. When he got his breath back, he noticed Hammond's blade under his chin, the blue glow illuminating his face. Realizing he was beaten, Snotlout let his sword fall out of his hand, indicating his surrender.

The crowd watching was silent, in complete disbelief at what they had just seen except for Hiccup, Toothless, and Guardian, they knew that Hammond would win. Snotlout got up and limped away, he didn't anyone to see him like this. Hammond was about to leave, but the twins ran in with their electro-staffs, "We're next," they yelled out, wanting in on a piece of the action. Their staffs crackled to life with electricity, and Hammond let a smile crossed his face as he prepared for the next fight.

Heather watched from the side, just like when Hammond fought Snotlout, as Hammond fought the twins, ducking and dodging their attacks with ease. "He's incredible," She commented, "How does he do that?" She asked Hiccup.

"As part of his training, Master Sathel had Hammond live without his sight for six months, and it paid off," Hiccup replied, watching as Hammond defeated the twins by redirecting Tuffnut's swing so it hit Ruffnut while her jab hit Tuffnut. The two were hit by a non-lethal charge of electricity from their staffs and collapsed. Hammond was about to step out, but another Berkian stepped in, this on with a vibro-hatchet. Hammond decided to stay in, this was good practice.

While the gang watched, Fishlegs had his own question for Hiccup, "Who was your Master?"

While Hiccup was caught off guard at first, Hiccup was happy to answer, "My Master was Otto Graf, an Echani Jedi Master. He was a master Technician, could make any junk you give him work and make it look like a piece of art. He taught me everything he knew." Hiccup elaborated with a nostalgic smile.

Meanwhile, Hammond had just delivered a kick to the face of his Berkian opponent, knocking him out. "Which includes his sarcasm," Hammond directed at Hiccup, "Master Graf rarely spoke at important meetings, but when he did, there was some sarcasm there. Some Masters said that his sarcasm could start or end wars." He continued, then focused his attention to a Lasat wielding a bo-rifle that wanted a chance to spar with a Jedi, who his people held in high regard.

Hiccup sighed, but nodded his head in agreement, "Can't argue with that." He stated. Hiccup then sat down and decided to watch Hammond's duel with the Lasat. The Lasat was once a member of his world's Honor Guard before the Empire nearly wiped them out a year ago. It was unknown how many survived, but this Lasat was determined to find them all. The Lasat charged in and attacked with all of his might. Hammond blocked the attack but was caught off guard by his sheer strength. He pushed the Lasat back and rolled away before beginning his offensive.

While Hiccup was watching, he looked to Heather and realized he didn't know anything about her heritage, or if anyone in her family was ever Force Sensitive. "Heather, is it okay if I ask you something?" He asked awkwardly.

Heather looked at him, "Sure, what is it?" She answered.

"Uh, this is hard to ask, but where are your parents?" He asked nervously.

Heather froze for a minute and swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat, "Why do you ask?" She questioned.

Hiccup fidgeted with his hands, "I just want to know about your line, like if you have had ancestors who were Force Sensitive." He replied.

Heather took a breath in, trying to calm her emotions, "My parents are dead," She replied bluntly.

Hiccup's widened as he realized it must have been a sensitive subject for her, "Oh, uh, well, I'm sorry for your loss, and for asking." He said to her.

Heather looked way, "It's okay. You were going to ask at some point." She told him, then got up and walked away, desiring to be alone. This was noticed by Hammond, who just thrown the Lasat away from him.

Hiccup looked to Fishlegs and Astrid, "Her parents are a sensitive subject that's best not to bring up," Fishlegs advised him.

Hiccup sighed, "Yeah I just figured that." He replied. Astrid was about to speak, but then they noticed that Hammond had disappeared, Heather's departure had distracted them all, and now they were trying to find out where he went. Astrid looked back to Hiccup, "He does that," He told while shrugging. If Hammond disappears, then he has a good reason to, and it's best to just leave it at that.

Heather was staring out of a window, her eyes looking at the nearby nebula the fleet was gathered around. Nebulas made perfect places to hide since they scrambled with sensors and made detection difficult. She found the sight to quite beautiful and calming, especially after the subject of her parents was brought up. She wasn't angry at Hiccup, she knew he would find out eventually. She just didn't like talking about her parents, the memories were too painful.

"Beautiful sight isn't it?" She heard Hammond's voice say to her. She looked around to find the source of the voice but found nothing. Suddenly, Hammond appeared to her right, like someone removed a curtain that was covering him. It was his Force Cloak ability, he could use it combat, but he found more uses out of it when trying to escape the crowd for some alone time.

Needless to say, Heather was startled when Hammond appeared out of nowhere. "Please don't scare me like that again," She warned him, slightly out of breath from that scare. That scared her more than she was expecting.

Hammond chuckled, "Sorry about that," He apologized with a warming smile. After Heather calmed down, she returned her gaze to the nebula outside the window, observing its brilliant patterns of blues, greens, and reds. Hammond joined her, and there was an easy silence between the two as Hammond tried to figure out what to say next.

After a few moments, Hammond decided to speak, "So why did talk of your parents make you so upset," He asked her.

Heather was silent, torn between answering and staying silent. Eventually, she decided to speak, Hammond was her friend and Master, after all, he deserved to know. "It's just a touchy subject I don't like to talk about." She told him.

Hammond looked at her sympathetically, "I understand that, believe me." He said, referencing his own painful memories of the fall of the Jedi Order, "But, you showed me that talking about it, getting off your chest instead of holding it in, helps. So if you want to talk about it, I'll listen." He offered her, his eyes shining with kindness and concern.

Heather smiled in appreciation and took a few deep breaths, "My foster parents took great care of me," She started, not noticing Hammond's raised eyebrow at the word foster, "They raised me from the moment they found me like I was their actual daughter." She continued one smiling, but that smile fell, "They died when the Empire invaded, they died telling me to run." She finished, her voice shaking when she remember their final moments.

Hammond took a moment to think on her story, it was certainly understandable why it was a touchy subject for her. "You have my sympathies." He offered to her, to which she responded with a thankful smile. "But what about your birth parents, what happened to them?" Hammond asked her.

Heather paused for a moment before answering, "I don't know, my foster parents found me and my mother in an escape pod. My mother was already dead and my father was nowhere to be found, they guessed it was a pirate attack based on my mother's wounds" She told him, hugging herself in comfort.

Out of the blue, Hammond wrapped an arm around her shoulder and brought her closer, offering comfort to her. He didn't know why he did, he just acted out of instinct. Heather was unsure how to respond to this at first, but then she laid her head on Hammond's shoulder and a hand on his chest. She actually found this to be quite comfortable and let a smile form across her face. "Anything you remember about your birth parents?" Hammond asked her, hoping there were some happy memories in there.

Heather thought about that, shifting through her memories to find anything. "I remember my father's hands, they were rough, like he was working all the time. I remember playing with some of my father's tools, I don't think my mother approved of that." She recalled.

Hammond nodded, glad that she had some good memories of her parents. He decided not to press the issue anymore, and the two simply enjoyed each other's embrace as they gazed at the nebula.

Nar Shaddaa, the Smuggler's Moon. The moon orbited the world of Nal Hutta, the Hutt's main power base. The moon was similar to Coruscant, it was one big city. Unlike Coruscant, it was a slum, host to refugees and criminals from across the galaxy. It was the perfect place to hide.

On one of the spaceport's landing pad, a large and bulky ship was coming in for a landing. The ship was meant for a crew and balanced armor and firepower with speed and maneuverability. As the boarding ramp was boarded, two large figures emerged. These figures were lightly armored, but were armed to the teeth and looked like they meant business.

From the entrance of the landing pad, a deep blue toydarian approached them, his thin wings somehow kept his fat, stumpy body in the air. "You, you there!" He yelled to the two figures, "What's with you, think you can that piece of junk on my landing pad?!" He questioned, flying into one of the figure's face.

The man had to hold his nose, this toydarian clearly didn't believe in bathing. "We're landing here, like it or not. If you have a problem, take it up with the boss." The man told him.

The toydarian looked offended, "Of course I'll be taking it up with him, not a bunch of brain-dead goons like you. Now, where is your boss?" He yelled at them, unaware of a third figure moving behind him.

"He's right here," The figure responded in a cocky voice that was distorted by his helmet. The toydarian turned around but was gripped in terror when he saw what the figure was. It was a Mandalorian, standing about six feet and four inches tall, in green armor and a brown undersuit. The figure had two DL-18 blaster pistols on his belt, a jetpack with a concussion missile on his back, an EE-3 repeating rifle and vibro-sword were also on his back. On each of his armored gauntlets, he had dart launchers, flamethrowers, rope launchers, and mini rocket launchers. A vibro-knife was strapped to his back, and he even had a smaller vibro-knife stored in each of his boots. The Mandalorian's face was hidden by a helmet, with the T-shaped visor that the Empire based its trooper's helmets on. On his shoulder pad was his clan symbol, the face of an owl.

"Uh, I uh, I didn't mean to offend you, sir," The toydarian apologized pathetically, "It's just, this wasn't on my schedule, and I have all this work to do." He passed off as excuses.

But the toydarian was interrupted by the Mandalorian grabbing his hand and placing something in it. The Toydarian opened it up to see credit chips, totaling a value of five hundred, in his hand. "Does this covered the landing fees?" The Mandalorian asked arrogantly.

The toydarian's face lighten up, "Done! Pleasure doing business with you." He told him, before flying away.

The Mandalorian turned to the boarding ramp to see the rest of his crew unload, "Let's get moving lads, we got a Jedi to find!" He called out, getting himself ready for the hunt.

Author's Note:

Wasn't expecting to update today, I had a writing binge and did half of this chapter in one day.

I have a question for you guys: How would you feel if I brought in actual Star Wars characters? I'm not talking about major figures from the films but from the animated series, video games, and novels. Examples are Captain Rex, Zeb Orrelios, and Grand Admiral Thrawn. I mean, I've made mention to characters who lived thousands of years before the films, but that's a different beast entirely.

Let me know what you think.

Next thing, I won't be writing for a while, I'm going on a trip soon and won't be able to write again until next Monday. Just to let you know.

If you like this story, please feel free to follow, favorite, and review, (this isn't just a cry for attention, it really helps with motivation) feel free to leave constructive critics in reviews, and I hoped you enjoyed this chapter.