I own nothing except a few characters and the plot.
STAR WARS REBELS
The New Spectres
Aftermath of an Attack
NEW YORK
"We're here." Darius said as he walked onto the Ghost along with Ezra and Chopper. Thrawn, Noah, R9, and the rest of the teenaged Spectres were on it already.
"What kept you?" Josh asked.
"A fat woman clip-clopped into the classroom and complained about the note that was mailed home regarding her kid being held back a grade and having to go to Summer School due to all the incomplete homework assignments that collected in my filing cabinet since January. I do clean out the desks at the end of the day. Her kid failed US I and I'm the bad guy because I refused to change the grade." Ezra replied.
"One of those kinds of parents. Raising a child that won't know how to function in the real world." Noah said.
"She then threatened him with her lawyers. Ben Haagen and Jerry Dazs." Darius added causing everyone to burst out laughing except for Thrawn who was trying to maintain his composure. Hera joined them soon after everyone had calmed down.
"Did I miss another one of Ezra's stories about a woman that's the size of a bantha?" She asked and handed Ezra a file.
"The Vicans?" Ezra asked as he read the file.
"Someone attacked them. Commander Fel said the destruction was horrible. He thinks it was the First Order trying for a major score. The Chimaera was sent out there to find out who it was." She replied.
"The only First Order ship in this area was Captain Canady's ship until it crashed. Unless another one found its way out here." Thrawn said.
"It wouldn't be the first one that did. About a year ago, they were recruiting people at school until Mr. B showed up and they got caught." Darius told them as a large crate was loaded onto the Ghost.
"This one weighs about 300 pounds." One of the workers said. Thrawn decided to open the crate and reacted with mild surprise when he saw the contents.
"Klinger! Not again." Ezra shouted.
"I fell asleep in here. I didn't know this was going somewhere." The Corporal said as he climbed out of the crate and grabbed a salami.
"Then what was the salami for?" Darius asked.
"Off and take this empty crate with you." Ordered Hera.
"Should put him in the brig for that. That's what Mr. F does with him when he pulls these kinds of stunts." Darius told her. In the cockpit, Josh was starting the takeoff sequence when Lucy joined him.
"You're not flying this thing." She said.
"I'm doing the pre-flight." He told her.
"We're almost ready. Hera's giving Ezra the file on where we're going and Klinger tried smuggling himself aboard again." Darius said as he joined them followed by Chopper.
"Where's R9?" Lucy asked looking towards Chopper.
"R9's supposed to be here in case we need to use the Phantom." Josh replied.
"We shouldn't since the Chimaera is patrolling the place we're going to." Ezra told them as he and Thrawn joined the three teens followed by Noah and R9.
"Chopper threw him in a compartment." Noah said.
"Someone hasn't changed much. It was always suspected that this droid was wired wrong or had a malfunctioning logic circuit." Thrawn added.
"R9 goes out the airlock, Chopper goes in the incinerator as per my dad." Lucy explained.
"Just remember that" Josh said to Chopper.
SPACE
The Ghost traveled through hyperspace as Ezra checked a couple of things.
"How much longer?" Josh asked.
"We'll be there soon." Ezra replied.
"We're coming into the system now." Darius told them. Ezra dropped the Ghost out of hyperspace and saw a Star Destroyer with a pair of Corvettes.
"We know the Star Destroyer is the Chimaera. What are the Corvettes?" Josh asked.
"HMS Yorkshire and USS Fort Worth." Darius replied." A transmission came through.
"We have you on our screen now. Please identify." A voice said.
"Wow, really? This is the only VCX-100 in this area." Ezra replied.
"Ezra Bridger. I thought you were busy teaching kids about stuff." Vitor Reige said over the comm.
"Meet my crew for this job. Thrawn, four kids, and two droids."
"Go on through, just be prepared for the scale of the devastation. This looks like it has the First Order's calling card all over it." Reige said.
"Hence the international task force." Josh quipped as the Ghost flew towards the planet they were supposed to drop their cargo off on.
"Whoa." Darius said as they flew over a damaged city.
"Definitely First Order." Lucy added.
"I wonder if this was another one of Captain Canady's strikes before his ship encountered the Varox, crashed on Gratha, and the Israelis reunited him with Brendol Hux's equally repulsive child." Thrawn said.
"Did I tell you guys that Chopper got banned from Stop & Shop? He tried to fight with Marty and then do to it what we think he did to R9." Ezra asked everyone.
"Dad blames part of R9's sudden personality change on R2. Speaking of, R2-D2 has also been banned from Stop & Shop for trying to tamper with Marty." Lucy replied.
"I was expecting Chopper to get banned from places for being a thief." Darius said.
"That's how he got banned from Target. He was caught stealing frozen pizzas." Ezra told them causing Thrawn to try and hide his amusement.
"I thought my dad ordered a restraining bolt put on Chop because of all the stealing." Lucy said as they landed.
"Hera took it off while he was at that conference and told Chopper to stop stealing. Darius, give me a moment."
"If it's about that write up from Ms. Pryce because you didn't want something around people like Radar and Sylvia and had me put it in my locker. I was told by another teacher that since I'm already being written up for no reason that I might as well get my money's worth and tell her what she can do with her nonsense write ups." Darius said.
"She hates me and Ms. Wren more then she seems to hate everyone else, there's a history that involves this ship, and I already heard that part from Mr. Tate because he told the whole school that."
"You should introduce her to Jacen." Josh said earning a glare from both Ezra and Thrawn.
"That would go over real well with him. Her grandmother tortured Hera while she was pregnant with him for her own sadistic pleasure and then killed his father. R9, shock him twice." Lucy said.
"Now you know the history." Ezra told Darius.
"Governor Pryce was scheduled to either be relieved of her duties or terminated as a result of her ordering the destruction of my fuel supply." Thrawn added.
VICA
"I was expecting Captain Syndulla." The local Prime Minister said to Ezra as the Ghost was unloaded.
"He had other things to do." Ezra said.
"Who is this?" The PM asked as Thrawn joined them.
"Thrawn. After the First Order was forced from the Lothal System, they began a rather unsuccessful campaign against my people before moving on to other targets. I suspect their ultimate target is Earth itself." Thrawn replied.
"Houston wants him around since he has experience in dealing with the First Order and he's interested in Earth." Ezra explained.
"We seem to be short a crate." Someone said to Ezra and the PM.
"Whatever was in it was removed and replaced by one of General Felth's corporals and a salami." Ezra explained.
"That must have been Corporal Klinger. General Felth already told me what happened." The PM said.
"Could have been worse, Sylvia could have eaten everything." Josh said earning his third shock of the trip from R9.
"Would you stop doing that? You're becoming worse then Chopper with that."
"Stop making inappropriate comments all the time." Darius told him while Thrawn reviewed reports of the damage and civilian casualties.
"Thank you for your delivery, Commander Bridger." The PM said as everyone got back on board the Ghost. Ezra looked at the devastated city again. This did not go unnoticed by Thrawn or Darius.
"Something wrong?" Darius asked.
"I've only read about this kind of attack in some of the books I work with. It's something else to see the end result of a blitzkrieg in person." Ezra replied.
"Captain Canady clearly fired without regard to what he hit. What makes it sad is these people never fully recovered from the UAE attack in 1998 and now this. I will make note of this in my report to those in charge." Thrawn added.
"R9, get us ready to takeoff." Ezra said. R9 beeped a reply and started the takeoff cycle.
NEW YORK
"These people will need a lot more help then we thought." Senator Padme Skywalker said as she read the reports of the attack on the Vicans at a conference the next day which was attended by Padme, Wanda, Michael, Tevin, Thrawn, Hera, and Mike Piett.
"As soon as Landon's officially an officer. I'll assign him and whatever squad he gets to most of these runs. They can take the Astro Megaship. That will be by the end of the month." Tevin told everyone.
"The Chimaera will be assigned to that location until further notice. Captain Reige said he has most of the wounded civilians in his sickbay." Mike Piett added.
"What was in the crate that Corporal Klinger tried smuggling himself off the planet in?" Wanda Houston asked.
"Medical supplies. Jacen Syndulla is delivering those as we speak." Hera replied.
"And what of Corporal Klinger?" Padme asked.
"He's in the brig again and he will stay there until I decide to let him out." Tevin said.
"Good, don't let him out." Wanda said.
"Anything else?" Michael asked.
"Mossad took a statement from the Captain of the First Order ship that crashed on Gratha. I find it questionable given how they got it."
"What system were they going after next?" Mike askled.
"As soon as Hux was recovered from Israeli custody, they were going after the Republic shipyards on Dac. Then the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV, and finally Coruscant." Tevin replied.
"Tell Director Elbaz that she may arrange the executions of both Hux and this Canady person as she sees fit." Wanda said to Michael.
To save himself a toll. some gas, and time. Ezra had left Darius with the Felths for the night. Darius ended up sleeping on one of the couches until he was woken up by C-3PO in the morning.
"Excuse me, Sir. Please clean up your mess." The droid said as Lucy came over.
"Want breakfast?" She asked.
"Of course." He replied.
"So, Darius. I heard you have Regents coming up." Kelly said as she made sure everyone had some breakfast.
"Yeah. I have to take them, but I'm exempt from passing this year and next because of everything that's happened to me."
"I have to pass them." Chris Felth protested.
"So you better stop screwing around in school."
"I think my teacher buys her shoes from the McKnights. She got upset when I called her Ms. Blob once."
"Blob?" Darius asked.
"Her name is Blaub." Kelly replied.
"But she looks like The Blob." Chris said.
"You get In-School for doing that where I'm at right now. The example to the incoming Freshmen is calling Chopper a trash can." Darius told him.
"It was a mistake. I can't help it if she needs to lose a few hundred pounds."
"You don't hear me complaining about my teachers." Justin Felth said.
"That's because they don't complain about you." Kelly told them. After breakfast, Lucy and R9 traveled to The Bronx with Darius since he had to work that afternoon.
"Your mom won't miss you?" Darius asked her.
"She's going food shopping. R9 being with me means one less droid to worry about trying to start trouble with Marty. She has 3PO with her." Lucy replied.
"Here we are. I guess I'll see you tonight or something." He said as they arrived at the store Darius worked.
"Depends on what my dad needs. I got the impression the First Order tried to do to Vica what the Nazis tried to do to Poland and I think Dad got the same impression when he read Thrawn's report."
"Way to ruin the moment talking about the Second World War."
"Does this help?" Lucy said and kissed Darius while R9 played romantic music.
"Big time. See you tonight." He told her and went inside the store to start his shift. Lucy and R9 went on their way soon after.