A/N: Heeeeeyyyyyy... bet your were not expecting an update from me today huh? Anyway like I promised, here is the next chapter and let me say this one time, it was not easy to come up with. But I do hope you like it :)
To "Opaque-Cavalire": Maybe... but would it be any more interesting?
To "Unknown4804": Yea... that was my bad. I was editing while I was doing the Author Notes.
To "MeleeSmasher": Come on man... update your story already cause I have things in here people will need a back story to.
To everyone else, thanks for the positive/constructive reviews. Now on to the fic.
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[ Attack... Attack... Attack... ]
( Onderon, Japarel Star System. )
Despite being on the receiving end of the allied onslaught, the Galactic Empire still had enough ships and men to throw at the combined fleets of the UNSC, Confederacy Navy and Rebel Alliance. This was never more evident around the temperate world of Onderon, where the Empire had begun to gather their forces in an attempt to defend the Core worlds of the galaxy, as well as the Empire.
Ever since being forced to abandon all attempts to retake the outer rim, the Imperial military had instead decided to focus their forces along strategic points of the inner rim of the galaxy. As this was the last region of space one would have to travel through before they reached the galactic core. If they were to fail in protecting this important area of space, then the enemies of the Empire would have the perfect staging area to launch their anticipated invasion of the galactic core. If that were to happen then it would only be a matter of time before the Empire would truly be in serious trouble.
You see the galactic core was not just the location of Imperial Center, but is was also the heart of star ship production and maintenance for the Imperial Navy. Literally hundreds of facilities existed which were able to both build and maintain thousands of ships at any given time, giving the Empire the ability to operate and maintain their massive fleets of cruisers, star destroyers and other capital ships. But if the allied forces were able to invade the core then that would no longer be the case, as they (The U.N.S.C.) had adopted the strategy of deploying dozens of extremely powerful nuclear weapons against similar Imperial facilities, with predictable results.
But what really made this prospect even more frightening, was the fact that the UNSC could deploy these weapons within a matter of seconds and be out of the line of fire before the Imperials knew just what was going on. It was a tactic the Terrans had used to great effect against the Empire and as a result, the military leadership was more than a bit on edge. Who could blame them? Just how do you fight an enemy who you can't even see coming?
This was just one of the many questions which floated within the mind of Admiral Corlen, as he sat within the bridge of his flag ship and stared into the blackness of space. Like many other high ranking Imperial officers, Corlen knew just what the outcome would be if the allied forces managed to seize the mid rim and it was it was something that the fleet officer felt that he could not let happen. Especially since his particular fleet of ninety thousand vessels were responsible for the defense of the Japrael sector or more specifically, the planet of Onderon. You see Onderon was home to Jyrenne Base, a massive facility which supplied both the Imperial Navy and Army in the sector with ordinance.
It was basically one big munition depot and if it were to fall into hands of the allies or be destroyed, then the supply lines which the Empire relied on to defend the sector would be crippled beyond repair. Leaving the inner rim's defense fleet helpless against the enemies of the Empire, effectively leaving the Galactic core open to invasion and if that were to happen, the Empire which was to last ten thousand years would only have months left.
But despite this grim reality, Corlen was still confident that the vessels under his command would be able to beat back the Terrans and their allies. The plan called for the Imperial fleet with the inner rim to be broken up into "small" task forces and be stationed near areas which were believed to be prime targets for the advancing force. If attacked, then the fleet for that particular area would attempt to hold out as long as they could until reinforcements from the Core worlds arrived to fight. It may not have been a great plan, but at this point in the war the Empire was getting desperate and were now at a point where they, (Or rather the Emperor), did not mind sacrificing more lives to save "New Order."
Besides, among the vessels which were assigned to to his fleet was a ship which packed a very nasty surprise. At first the vessel looked like the a normal Imperial I-class star destroyer, which was work horse for the Imperial fleet. But its general appearance hid the fact that this particular ship housed a massive super laser, similar to the one which was used on the ill fated Death Star before it was destroyed. Even though the Death Star was a waste of resources, there was no denying that the super laser it carried was a very powerful weapon indeed and it did not take long for someone to suggest that these weapons be added to the Empire's lead capital ship class. As a result a new breed of warship was born out of this project and the Emperor was very much interested in fielding as much of these vessels as he could. Ships which were now being dubbed as the "Conqueror II-class" Star Destroyer.
Not surprisingly, Corlen felt so confident in this vessel's design he decided to make it his new flag ship and now he waited to see just where the enemy would strike next. Unfortunately for the admiral, he would not have to wait long.
"Sir, we have lost contact with Admiral's Vesic's fleet in the Gallinore system." a young officer announced from his station. The Gallinore system was home to several major research facilities and labs which were used by the Empire and as a result, the Imperial navy had stationed a sizable force to defend the system.
"Then I guess it has begun." Corlen muttered, as he cot up from his seat and made his way to the tactical station on the bridge. Where a giant map of the inner rim region was on display with markers which highlighted the locations of all imperial task forces, one of which was Vesic's fleet in the Gallinore system. "Did they report in before you lost contact?"
"Negative, sir." the young man replied. "They reported in as schedule two hours ago, but they have failed to report in an hour ago"
"Then that means the Terrans are making their first move at Gallinore." the admiral stated, as he saw an icon representing the UNSC suddenly moved into the highlighted star system and engage the icon which represented Vesic's force. "We shall continue to hold position here, while the relief force from from the Core will move in and reinforce his fleet."
"Sir, I advise that we move the fleet to yellow to be on the safe side." one of the senior officers under Corlen's command suggested. "Intelligence reports have stated that the UNSC have been known to hit at multiple targets in one strike.."
"Very well, alert the fleet and have them go to yellow alert." Corlen ordered. "Have our frigates move to the edge of the fleet and have them run scans for magnetic anomalies, the Terrans may attempt to deploy stealth ships to break our ranks."
"At once sir." the subordinate replied crisply, as he went off to relay the admiral's orders to the rest of the fleet. But as went off to do his assigned duty, the officer did not notice that the seemingly calm and cool admiral had begun to sweat just a bit and for good reason.
Corlen, like many in the Imperial Navy, knew about the "super warships" which the Terrans had deployed and even though he had every bit of confidence in the men under his command, the same could not be said about the ships they had. Even if his vessel was armed with a super laser, what good would it do against a vessel/vessels which destroyed the the ship it was originally for?
Possibly the only thing that the Empire had going for it was the element of surprise, as he doubted the Terrans or their allies even knew about the existence of the Conqueror II's. Or that there were more of them currently under construction within the Imperial core, but then again the Terrans were also full of surprises of their own. All Corlen could do right now was keep his fleet in its position and wait to see if his counterpart's force in the Gallinore system had been able to hold the line.
Meanwhile in space the Frigates which were under Corlen's command had begun to move into position around the fleet, so as to create an early warning screen around Onderon. But as the Imperial force prepared themselves for a possible invasion force to arrive, they were completely oblivious to a large formation of meteorites which were moving in to their lines. A formation which the UNSC had left an nasty surprise of their own.
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'When I see that gambler again, I am going to ring his neck.' Han muttered to himself quietly, as he sat within the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon and guided the cargo ship to its next destination. Normally the Corellian would not mind doing jobs for his friend Lando but this was one time Han wished he did not even bother to answer his communicator while in Theed.. Just how Lando managed to con him into making this trip in the first place?
But now here he was piloting an light freighter towards the last place he ever wanted to see again and considering the nature of his cargo, the normally cool headed smuggler had every right to be nervous. You see, Han's destination was at the very heart of the Galactic Empire and he was transporting someone in which the Imperial government had done its very best to vilify for decades. Han just hoped that this operation would go as smoothly as that Terran agent said it would be during their briefing and if all did go to plan, then he and Chewbacca would be back in friendly space before the Empire knew what was even going on.
Meanwhile within the freighter's cargo bay, a lone individual sat on an metallic crate, as his facial expression showed that he was in lost in deep thought. His body was dressed in attire normally worn by those who were in the Jedi order, while in his hands was the one weapon which had served both himself and the Jedi for years. Unfortunately it was also a weapon which was used by the Jedi's mortal enemies and their hands, it had become an symbol of treachery and betrayal. Two words the Empire had used to describe the Jedi's "defection" to the Terran government during the short lived Terran-Republic war.
But for the exiled Jedi order, their apparent "treachery" had come about after they realized too late that the seemingly kindly Chancellor Palpatine, was in reality their greatest threat. The Sith Lord had not only managed to make the Jedi blind to his true nature, but had also caused them to lose sight of what they truly were supposed to be. Even Anakin had allowed himself to be blinded by the Sith's war and had allowed himself to become swept up in the war madness which had gripped the Jedi. If it were not for the covert actions of the Terran government, there was really no telling of just what could have become of them.
It was because of Palpatine's/Sidious' manipulation that the Jedi had fallen from grace. Even after making changes within their own code to mirror the new path they were taking, there were still many within the Galaxy who were unwilling to believe that the Jedi could ever be trusted again. It was a difficult truth for the Jedi as a whole to swallow, but they managed to push on and survive.
But after so many years hiding in the shadows and supporting the growing Rebel movement, it was now time for the Jedi to come out in the open and show the Galaxy that they were no longer in hiding. As one of the senior members of the Jedi council, Anakin felt that it was his duty to lead the Jedi fight back himself and as a result he came up with a rather audacious plan, one which made many to wonder if there were personal undertones to it.
Anakin proposed that he would actually lead a joint Jedi-UNSC team to the Imperial capital itself and conduct what could have been guerrilla warfare against Imperial forces on the planet. This was to both demoralize the forces within the city and make way for the eventual invasion of Imperial Center the the combined forces of the UNSC, Confederacy and the Rebel Alliance. But before that could happen Anakin and his team would have to locate at destroy Imperial Center's defenses, but there were those who wondered if the Jedi had personal reason for doing this.
Despite the efforts of the Jedi to carry on after their fall, the Order still had a collective feeling of guilt within them. For years Palpatine/Sideos had played them all, forcing them into positions where they would have to abandon the very principles the Order stood for and defended, allowing themselves to become corrupted and ultimately be seduced by the dark side. There had even been times during the war where Skywalker had been tempted by dark side, starting with the death of his mother and the loss of so many friends and comrades during the course of conflict.
Quite possibly, the only thing that may have prevented him from becoming one with the Dark Side was Master Yoda's discovery of Skywalker's marriage to Padme and the Order's acceptance of their relationship. But the fact that he had been manipulated be Palpatine to eventually turn on his fellow Jedi, still haunted Anakin for many years and it took him a long time to rebuild himself, his life and as head of the Jedi Council, the Order as a whole.
Now he would be going back to a planet where the Jedi were almost destroyed, in an attempt to aid in the destruction of a Empire, an Empire which had the blood of countless billions on their hands. But the question still remained, was Anakins decision to return to Imperial Canter/Coruscant come from the Jedi's need to redeem themselves, or was it a result of a subconscious need for revenge against an individual who had manipulated them all.
"Master Skywalker." a voice called out, bringing the elder Jedi out of his meditation. His eyes soon locked on muscular form of one of the UNSC soldiers which for the mission, was under his command. "The captain of this bucket of bolts said that we'll be entering Imperial System shortly."
"Right... "Anakin replied, as he got off the crate and walked up to the UNSC Army Ranger. "Where are the rest of your men?"
"Getting ready for the drop, though they are not too happy about the arrangements that were made." The Major said with a slight grin.
"I can see why." Anakin said with a amused look on his face, knowing that UNSC Rangers were not normally prone to complaining. "But your CBMI did say that those crates were to hide you from Imperial scans."
"I know what they are for, I just wish they were bigger." the native from The New United Kingdom replied, as he and the Jedi made their way out of the small cargo hold to rejoin the rest of the team for their final briefing.
Within a few minutes the duo had entered what could have been best described as the freighter's recreational area, a compartment which was made even smaller with the presence of just under a dozen individuals. Most of them were members of the UNSC's Army Rangers, all of whom had volunteered to infiltrate Imperial Center ahead of the invasion which was to happen soon. Normally the CBMI's STARUs would have been the ones chosen for this operation, but they were needed in other sectors of the galaxy to confuse Imperial units. Besides, the Army wanted to show that their Ranger units were capable of a lot more than just supporting Marines units in battle.
There also some familiar faces Anakin knew, who had decided to go with him to the former capital of the Republic. The first was Skywalker's former padowan and close friend Ahsoka Tano. Who just like himself, had been scared deeply by the Jedi with drawl all those years ago, but was now living in New Plymouth with her husband who she met just months after the Jedi resettled. Another familiar face was that of Jedi Master Shaak Ti, who quite possibly took the loss of the old Jedi Temple harder than anyone else. As in the months following the fall, Shaak Ti fell into what could have been best described as a deep depression and at one point she had even left the order so as to "find herself once again."
But she ultimately returned and took up role of being the Jedi's spokes person when it came to public relations with the Worth population, where she became a very public figure in the colonies. Now here she was on a mission that was of the greatest importance to the UNSC, her first mission for the Jedi in decades and it was something the Togruta looked forward too. She hoped that with this mission, the Galaxy would once again see the Jedi as beacons of hope and that in some way, redeem themselves.
"Looks like your men are more than ready for this mission, Major." Anakin stated, as he noticed that a number of them were going over their weapons and other items which they had taken along for the mission.
"Well we are literally heading into unknown territory." Major Xander explained, "And we are not about to take any chances."
"I can see that." the Jedi replied, as he could see one of the Rangers go over what looked like a rocket launcher. "Let us just hope that they won't be needed one time, once we touch down."
"This is the captain, we'll be in scanner range of the Imperial patrols in five minutes. I strongly advise that you get in those pods you brought along with you." Han's voice said over the vessel's intercom system, alerting everyone that their target was near.
"You heard the man, lets go!" Xander ordered, as he and his men got ready to load themselves into the specially designed cargo containers which were lined with a special material which would prevent the Imperial scanners from picking them up.
"Well, you heard them. Lets go." Anakin said to his fellow Jedi, as they too proceeded to their assigned hiding containers. Knowing very well that there was really no turning back now and that they had no choice but to follow through with their mission.
Meanwhile back in the cockpit of the YT-1300 freighter, Han switched off the vessel's auto pilot and manually began to control the craft. Now he would have no choice but to place his trust in the equipment which the Terrans had supplied him with to mask his vessel's true nature.
"Unknown vessel, you are approaching restricted space, identify yourself or you will be destroyed." a firm and serious voice suddenly said over the cockpit's speaker system. Almost immediately Han began to remember just why he left the Imperial academy in the first place, but Han was able to keep his cool and remembered what he had been told by the CBMI agents who had met with.
"Uh... this is the Pax Magellanic. I am carrying a cargo of hydroponic pump housings out of Shili." Han replied coolly, as he began to dawn the persona of a trader coming from the industrial complexes located on the Togruta home world. "They are for a development project on the Great Western Sea."
"Which project are they for?" the voice asked curiously, as it was known that the Great Western Sea was a popular tourist spot and as a result, their was always some new development going up. Even with a war going on, there were always individuals trying to make a profit.
"Uh yes... they are for the Urban Development Authority, for their project on the southern shore line."
There was a moment of uneasy silence before the individual on the other end replied, "Alright, proceed on the designated rout as indicated on your navigational computer. Any deviation from this course will result in your immediate destruction."
"Understood." Han replied, before the the radio went silent once again. "Hey Chewie. How you doing down there?"
A long roar came through the intercom.
"You are the one who wanted to come along, and you do know what could happen if they found out I had a Wookie on board." the smuggler replied, as he talk to his friend who was hiding in a hidden compartment on the Falcon. The Wookie did not like the idea of being left behind, while "his" ship went on a cargo run. More roars came back.
"Don't worry, we will be in and out in a matter of hours." Han replied, as his friend switched off his communicator. 'Sometimes I wonder about him' the CBMI employed smuggler thought to himself, as he began to follow the course which had been supplied to him by the Imperial authorities. Passing literally dozens upon dozens of Golan II and Golan III stations, as the light freighter made its way towards the planet's surface.
Within thirty minutes, the aging cargo ship was soon flying over the Great Western sea, a massive reservoir which was created during the city's construction. Mainly used for recreation by the planet's population, numerous artificial islands which housed many resorts, but one such "island" which was currently under construction, would become the perfect setting for the UNSC's latest operation.
Coming to a hover over the darkened structure, the disguised Falcon began to slowly descend on to one of the platforms on the island. No sooner than it did, the vessel's ramp came down where a group of individuals were waiting.
"Are these the... pumps, we have been waiting on?" the leader of the assembled group asked Solo, as he came out with the shipping crates on seven automated hover trollies.
"Yep, and on time." Solo replied, as he walked up to the man. Just has the island's construction crew came and took the containers. "Um... do you have my cargo?"
"Oh yea, here they are." the construction supervisor said quickly, as two of his men brought up five crates on trollies of their own. "Just some old power cells to be sent to a Disposal station on Onderon. Oh... and a little something for you." and with that, the man gave Han a small box which held a large quantity of credits. "Is their any way I can persuade you to joining me for a cup of Corellian ale?"
"Sorry, but but I promised someone that I would return home as soon as possible." Solo replied.
"Say no more." the supervisor said with an understanding tone, just as his men finished loading up the freighter with the old power cells. When they were done, Han boarded his ship and within a matter of minutes, the old freighter ascended into the sky before shooting off into space.
Taking a moment to confer with his men and ensuring that the area was safe, the supervisor then ordered that the shipping creates be opened.
"Finally!" Ahsoka exclaimed, stretching a bit as she and the rest of the joint Army/Jedi team came out of their creates.
"Master Skywalker I presume?" the supervisor asked as he walked up to the Jedi Master.
"Yes, and you are...?"
"Colonel Matt Ventis of the Rebel Alliance, and let me to be the first to welcome you to Coruscant."
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(Japarel Star System.)
"Damage report!" Admiral Corlen called over his vessel's alarms, as he slowly began to pic himself off the bridge's floor. As the fleet officer looked around him, he saw that the bridge of his flagship had been turned into a scene of absolute chaos. Fires were now erupting from numerous computer consoles, as the bridge crew desperately tried to assess the situation.
"S...Sir... sensors are down!" one of the surviving officers spoke up, as he had some how managed to get back to his station.
"What happened, what is the status of the fleet?" Corlen asked all but frantically, as his fore head now sported a healthy look gash on its left side.
"Unknown!" the officer replied, trying to fight off the effects of a possible concussion. "Everything's down!"
But the admiral did not need the scanners from his vessel to tell him just what was the status of his fleet, as she see from his vantage point that a number of his vessels were burning bright. It was very clear to Corlan that the Terrans had struck and struck hard, the stories of them using extremely powerful nuclear weapon proving to be a lot more than gossip.
Suddenly his gray eyes caught sight of a single white circle suddenly forming a distance away from his vessel, an overwhelming sense of dread suddenly sweeping over him as he saw a very large, skeletal vessel emerge from the even horizon. "Is the super laser still on line?" he asked same officer from before."
"Ye... yes sir." he replied groggily, a line of blood running off the side of his head.
"Target that vessel."
"Yes sir." the officer replied, as he began to send the commands to the super weapon's firing team. Suddenly the Star Destroyer began to move out of formation to engage the Terran's super war ship. His fleet may have been in a state, but if his vessel was able to destroy the Terran's capital ship, then it would not matter.
Meanwhile in space, the "Lazarus-class" UNSC Warspite began to unleash her awesome firepower on the Imperial vessels that had survived her initial strike of nuclear missiles. Her combination of Forerunner and Terran based weaponry proving to be absolutely murderous against its would be attackers. Suddenly the Warspite's scanners picked up an imperial vessel which was moving in to intercept it, as if it was not phased by the fact that it was attacking by its self.
Then, a blue beam of energy suddenly shout out from under the Star Destroyer and impacted the Forerunner built vessel head on. But to the complete horror of the Imperials, the beam concentrated energy did nothing as the vessel's shielding just caused it to peel around the vessel with ease. Apparently the ship was too far away for the laser to be effective.
"N... no effect sir..." The officer said in disbelief, just as the bridge crew began to evacuate the now doomed vessel.
Corlen at this point could not even bring himself to say anything, as his mind began to fill with thoughts of his life up to that point and his family who lived on Onderon's surface. The last thing the Imperial admiral could do at this point was make his peace with the universe and hope that he would be forgiven for all the things he had done.
Just as a blue beam of energy shot out from the Terran capital ship and engulfed Corlen's flag ship.
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A/N: There you go, not all that epic but you already know how I roll. Now before you bombard me with questions, I must ask that you PLEASE wait until the next chapter because they will be answered. (Mostly).
Oh... special thanks to Wheelspin for his OC in this chapter. Until next time, Nightstalker out...