Part 25
Captain Hart: Legendary Stormtrooper commander
Elder: Clone Commander Wurk: Boltrunian heavy Trooper
Lieutenant Ingrid Betoncourt: Storm Trooper officer and sniper
Aradian is a steamy, tropical planet, full of jungle vegetation that obscures vision beyond a meter. Captain Hart can see the condensation collecting on the Stormtroopers' armor, hear their huffing breaths. Deliberately slow, he moves a leafy plant aside to reveal the rebel base. If their bodysuits didn't regulate temperature, he'd be drenched in sweat. His whole squad would.
Night fell hours ago and security lights create brilliant cones illuminating the jungle, swirling with dust particles and pollen. The rebel base clings to the edge of a sheer ravine. Their landing pad uses the gap for ships to land and take off. The rest easily disappears into the jungle. Vines and weeds grow up along the walls and trees lean against it, their bushy leaves obscuring it from above. If not for the generators and exposed landing pad, it would be undetectable.
Captain Hart studies the base. He's seen the probe droids scans and images but there's so much missed in pictures. For all their technical genius, droids simply lacked that creative spark, to bridge the gap between recording information and comprehension.
A pair of guards protects the front entrance. Captain Hart raises a fist causing his troops to freeze in place. His hand slowly unclenches before he motions for his troops to crouch. They obey instantly. He points at Wurk and Elder before he points out the pair of guards, and then runs a finger across his throat. He points at Elder, points two fingers at his eyes, and then thumbs over his back. Both troopers reply with a thumbs up.
Captain Hart creeps to the left while Wurk takes the right side. The rest of the 886th Legion wait patiently, disciplined, as the three troopers move ahead. Captain Hart and Wurk move right up to the wall of the stronghold, concealed by the vegetation and the rebel's sense of safety. The guards appear bored, disinterested. Wurk smashes his rotary blaster into a rebel's head. He collapses instantly.
"Wha-!" The second rebel turns in surprise as Captain Hart snaps his neck.
Hart pats the rebel's body, searching for his passcard or key. Then Wurk reaches out and pushes a button, a light flickers green and the doors whoosh open. No keycards, no passcodes? Hart wonders. Elder steps out of the bushes. Even with his jetpack, he was completely hidden only a heartbeat ago, and appears suddenly beside them.
Captain Hart stands up, studying the open doors, when Wurk glances at him and whispers, "Trap?"
Hart shrugs and then he motions for the unit to move forward.
Earlier that evening on Overwatch,
"Lieutenant Ingrid Betoncourt," the stiff but attractive blond Human declares. Her coreworld accent is as crisp as her uniform and rigid as her poise. Her hair is swept back from her face, cut just below her ears. It is as meticulously cared for as her armor, polished to a perfect sheen. She's just below regulation height, easily ignored by a recruiter. "Reporting as ordered."
"At ease Lieutenant," Captain Hart commands as he gives her file a cursory glance. His helmet rests on the desk in his office, his long rifle leaning against it on the opposite side of him. "You're Admiral Betoncourt's daughter; I served under your father during the Clone Wars. He's strict but fair, a good man to serve under."
"Yes sir," she replies mechanically, as if she'd repeated it a few too many times. The way she purses her lips and clenches her jaw when Hart mentions him, tells the captain she doesn't have a good relationship with the man.
"This is my command staff," he motions. "My second in command Elder and Wurk, sergeant of my squad."
Elder removes his helm and nods to her while Wurk waves. She gives them a look and replies, "I was under the impression that I would be taking the position of second."
It wasn't a question; her tone certainly isn't intended for it to be mistaken as one. Betoncourt shifts her weight before she stiffens up again. "Sir, I believe there was a mistake."
"Please," Captain Hart taps his finger on his rifle. "Continue."
"I came here to serve as a junior officer on your squad."
"That's the position that's open."
Her mouth works and her skin flushes before she indignantly declares, "I will not be regulated to some position of support! I am a Stormtrooper! I will not be some administrative assistant. I will not be getting you your coffee! I'm here to serve the Empire!"
"How dare you!" Elder snaps. "You're speaking to your commanding officer!"
Betoncourt returns to the position of attention. Her face turns crimson with anger, not embarrassment. Captain Hart raises his hand; Elder ceases instantly and snaps to attention as well. Wurk chuckles at them, thoroughly enjoying the drama.
Captain Hart studies her for a second, "You came in third in your class with a specific complaint that you, and I quote. '…fail to express and display proper respect to an instructor's expertise.' That means when they were wrong, you pointed it out, and refused to accept their view. That means you were probably first or second. They academy is not fond of dissent. Afterwards, you were first in sniper school, with excellent marks on trajectory and academics."
Her flat eyes never leave the walls behind Captain Hart, "Sir."
"We are leaving for an operation in ten minutes," Hart informs her as he puts on his helmet. Elder and Wurk immediately do the same. "If you want a transfer then you'll have one, effective immediately. There are three other units that need a junior officer, on this vessel alone."
"Yes sir," she replies a little more softly.
"Before you make that decision though, I want you to be very clear about what you're leaving. The 886s, the Headhunters, are not a line unit in spite of our armor. We do not stand garrison duty. We may be cycled out of the rim occasionally but even then, we are on a mission. We personally put down planetary insurrections. We crush alien invasions and decimate pirate fleets. Not the corps, not multiple legions working in concert, the 886s. Only the 501st has more kills and mission completions and success percentages than my unit."
"We are the tip of the spear," Elder vows.
"It's kinda unfair too," Wurk insists. "The 501st got Vader and all."
Captain Hart smiles at his comrades but Betoncourt gives them a concerned look. After a laugh Hart's tone turns serious, "Elder has nineteen years of service; Wurk has many, many more. Every one of my troopers has been through Storm Commando training or sniper school. Successful members of my unit went on to command their own, to join elite squads, and command COMPNOR assault teams. Many of them return afterwards, specifically requesting to rejoin my unit. Some of my men have joined the Royal Guard."
"He hates it," Wurk tells her. "He says it's tedious."
"The choice is yours Lieutenant. For us, we're going on a mission," and without further discussion, Captain Hart moves out.
Rebel Base on Aradian
The pitched klaxon signals their discovery, immediately followed by, "Imperial troops have entered the base! Imperial troops have entered the-shhh!"
Hart lowers his smoking rifle and orders, "Capture the senior officers, droids, and leaders. Try not to damage anything you don't have to! Inform command that we're discovered!"
"This is 886 to Overwatch, be advised: we're in the open and requesting air support."
"Roger that 886, launching fighters now."
"To the landing pad!" Captain Hart blasts an armed rebel emerging from a hallway. "Don't let anyone escape."
They rush down a long hallway, blasting rebels taking cover in the doorways. Near the exit they discover an improvised barricade of shipping crates. Captain Hart dodges behind a doorway where he blasted a rebel moments ago. A trooper just behind him is shot in the chest. Hart grabs him and drags him in the door.
"I-I can…still fight," he gasps.
Captain Hart nods and reloads his blaster, "Damn right you can. Hold this point."
"Y-yes sir!"
"Wurk! Cover fire!"
WHAAAA! His rotary blaster fills the hallway with blaster bolts, inaccurate but overwhelming, two rebels are shredded while the others take cover. Hart pulls a grenade then tosses it. It strikes the corner of a crate and lands just beyond them. Rebels scream and flee as fire rips through them.
Hart leads his men on a sprint out of the base and onto the landing pad. He blasts a pilot climbing into a TIE. Then he notices a man giving commands. The leader points at a Twi'lek and Mon Cal, "Destroy everything! Go!"
The leader boards the Skiprey while the pair race towards a warehouse. Captain Hart makes a split decision, "Wurk, capture those men! Elder with me! The rest of you, bind the survivors and secure this base!"
Both Elder and Captain Hart sprint towards the Skiprey blastboat, stolen from Sienar Tower. They blast a pair of rebels that begin shooting at them as the ship begins taking off. It rises a dozen feet up before Elder's jetpack launches him off the ground and onto the ramp. Captain Hart raises his DC-15 rifle and shoots his ascension cable, the line striking the edge of the ramp and carrying him into the air. With a whirling noise, it drags him up to the ship as it rises. Tie fighters from the star destroyer announce themselves with their screaming engines, blasting at it as they go. From within, red light flashes as Elder fights with rebels.
Captain Hart gets a hand on the ramp, still holding his blaster, as he drags himself in. Suddenly a rebel steps on his hand, placing a blaster against his helmet, "Ready to die?"
Captain Hart looks at him. A blast strikes the rebel and he tumbles out of the ship.
"Thank you lieutenant," Captain Hart calls over the radio.
"My pleasure sir," Betoncourt replies.
Hart drags himself the rest of the way onto the Skiprey and closes it. He finds a pair of rebel bodies and follows the trail to third. Elder appears from the shadows, "What took you so long? You're slowing down in your old age."
"Ha-ha, speak for yourself," Hart counters. Then he motions for them to move forward. They creep down the hallway to the bridge where they can hear the rebels. The ship lurches and trembles with impacts. Suddenly gravity goes mad as the ship rolls to evade its attackers.
"This is Strike to Avenger, come in avenger!"
"It's no good, they're jamming our transmissions!"
"We have to escape!"
Hart motions to Elder and displays his switch to stun. The Clone immediately does the same with his pair of pistols. With measured steps they reach the bridge, where a pair of pilots struggle against the TIE fighters. One spots Hart and reaches for her blaster. Elder stuns her. The second spins in his chair as Hart clubs him with his rifle butt.
"You rebel scum," Elder curses.
"Overwatch this is Headhunter actual, we've captured the base and taken their leader."
Cheering from the bridge of the Star Destroyer answers him. Then Admiral Antony congratulates him, "Well done captain, our COMPNOR friends will appreciate that. Unfortunately, you're not done yet. We just received orders; we're moving on Port Harton."