Earth, ONI Headquarters, Officer of the Commander-In-Chief,
Day 8, 5:00 hours Local time
"Good morning, Director."
Serin Osman closed the door behind her and went over to her desk,"Morning Shogun. I assume you I've been disturbed at such an early hour for good reason?"
The A.I. projector lit up, displaying an image of a traditional Samurai warrior from medieval Japan. Shogun placed a hand on his sword and bowed his head respectfully,"Yes ma'am. A top priority transmission from the New Frontier Expedition."
Osman's brows shot up,"Already? Didn't we just send Admiral Rockford out there with a fleet?"
Shogun's face darkened,"Yes ma'am. This is from a Captain Ramon Santiago. He was with the original expedition under Rtas' Vadum and Hanako Ito."
"Show me the file."
He bowed again,"Right away." The hologram winked out of existence, leaving Osman staring at the large glass pane which allowed her to look out on the city below.
A storm had blew in overnight, which only added to her misery getting to her office when she was paged half an hour ago. Now, she could stare out at the dark grey clouds blanketing the city and her window with rain droplets. She could appreciate it more when she wasn't trying to wade through puddles at 4:30 in the morning.
Glancing back at her computer screen, she found an encrypted file with,'top secret' emblazoned on the screen icon. Double clicking, she opened the file.
Incoming Transmission/":
/Priority Code Alpha Niner/:/
From: Captain Santiago, Ramon, Service Number 36718-77234-RS
To: Osman, Serin, Service Number 39489-72738-SO
Subject: PRIORITY COMMUNICATION FROM RTAS VADUM
Director Osman,
I've been sent to inform you we've confirmed Flood activity in the new galaxy. From what we can gather, the first outbreaks coincided with our arrival. Currently unclear whether or not our presence was a factor. The parasite is spreading across multiple worlds, infecting billions of life forms daily.
Fleetmaster Vadum and Captain Ito have aligned themselves with the local governments, the,'Galactic Republic' and,'Confederacy of Independent Systems' to combat the threat. Full measures are being taken to ensure the route back to the Milky Way cannot fall into the hands of the Flood.
Fleetmaster Vadum and Captain Ito are requesting as many NOVA bombs as the UNSC can spare to contain the outbreak.
Captain Ito requests HIGHCOMs orders regarding the situation.
Ramon Santiago,
Captain of the UNSC Zaragosa
/End Transmission/
Osman read the transmission again, just to be sure she understood what he was saying. The Flood is active in another galaxy...
Perfect.
She buried her head in her hands, thousands of scenarios playing out in her mind. How widespread are they? Are Rtas and the others still alive? Should we pull the plug and hope they don't follow us? What if they hop over here?
She pounded a closed fist on her desk. This is the definition of FUBAR.
A crack of thunder stirred her from her thoughts. Looking up, the city was still storming. Something about rainstorms had always comforted her.
"Shogun."
The A.I. reappeared,"Director?"
"Classify this top secret. No one sees this until I can brief HIGHCOM and we develop a plan of action. Not even the Sangheili." She turned and locked eyes with the A.I.,"Do you understand?"
Shogun nodded,"It will be done ma'am."
He winked away again, leaving her once again by herself.
Serin groaned and leaned back in her chair. They just got done with the Covenant and the whole Cortana flare-up. Now the friggin Flood was across the galactic street.
She didn't believe in a God, but if he existed, it seemed as if he had it out for humanity.
"Shogun, schedule me an emergency briefing with HIGHCOM ASAP." She stood from her chair and locked her computer,"We have no time to waste."
"It will be done ma'am."
Poseidon-Class,"Barbarossa" Low Atmosphere over Cloud City
23:04 hours Local time, 00:02 hours Senate time
Even in darkness, Cloud City was illuminated by a city-wide system of lights dotting the outer walls and roofs of the floating behemoth. Its luminance shown brilliantly in the night sky for the passing traveler, like a lighthouse or safeport in a sea of gas clouds.
Now, its surface was marred with signs of battle. Collapsed rooftops and smoking hulls of crashed freighters pockmarked the surface while infernos replaced the city's normal source of light. From her vantage point, she could see laserfire streaking across crosswalks and through windows. Explosions from what she assumed were grenades or rockets bloomed into existence periodically before fading away into the night sky.
Captain Ito put her hands together behind her back and watched the unending fury of battle rage on below. The conflict could almost be called beautiful, she supposed, if there weren't real people down there. Civilians. Republic clone troopers. Most importantly, her men.
Her gaze focused on a wing of ARC-170 starfighters bearing down on what she assumed was a flood force for a strike. She imagined what the situation was like down on the ground and mentally willed the strike to be effective.
It made no difference, the outcome was in the hands of the pilots and the communications officers on the ground calling the strike in. But a part of her liked to believe her mental well wishes and desire for success had an effect on their efforts.
The fighters unleashed their payload, and 6 pairs of glowing blue orbs the Republic called,'proton torpedoes' streaked down on the city below. They disappeared in the structure, before erupting in a ball of flame and flying, charred rubble high in the sky.
Hopefully, they hit their target.
She brushed her thoughts aside."I need a status report on the city."
"Right away-" The communications officer paused for a moment,"Ma'am, Captain Jackson is hailing us."
Ito dipped her chin,"Alright. Patch him through please."
A large viewscreen slid down from the roof. After a moment, the older man came through on the screen. His typically stern expression hadn't gone anywhere."Captain Ito."
She nodded in greeting,"Captain Jackson. Have you come to give me a status report?"
He narrowed his eyes inquisitively,"That's your officers job, ma'am."
"Well, you just interrupted them, so I'll hear it from you this time."
He scowled slightly,"Alright. We still have full control over airspace. Blue team and the two surviving ODSTs returned roughly one hour ago to the Barbarossa with Grievous in-tow. On the ground, our Marines combined with the clones and battle droids are fighting like devils, and the flood are still inching forward with flanks, ambushes and their bag of 10,000 dirty tricks." He paused, giving her a moment to digest the information,"Grievous successfully planted the explosives in the city, so when we need to bring it down, we can."
She glanced back at the city. The fires still raged, a reminder toward her of the situation at hand."When we first came here, Grievous was confident the city would fall. What say you Captain?"
"He's right." Jackson squared his shoulders and glanced at something off-screen,"The only one who doesn't think this is a losing battle is the jedi, Plo Koon." He shook his head,"He's an idealist through and through."
Hanako stared silently at the city for a few moments. They'd successfully evacuated thousands of civilians already, but far more were still waiting."While I wish I could say I'm confident we'll pull through... You two are right about one thing, Captain. The situation is certainly bleak."
"Its time we pull our assets back, ma'am. We don't stand to gain anything here."
"Captain, you know we still have thousands of civilians waiting to be evacuated. Men. Women. Children." She locked eyes with him,"We leave, and they're flood food."
"We stay, and our boys down there are flood food." He narrowed his eyes slightly,"And there will be plenty more battlefields to throw away our men's lives in this worthless place."
Ito scowled,"Your acrimony is not appreciated, Jackson." She added a little emphasis on the last word,"The longer we stay, the more lives we save. The longer we have to find a way to win this thing."
Jackson reigned his scowl in to a contained expression of anger."Ma'am, do you really think we can win this thing, or are you just being optimistic?"
"You know good and well the odds are against us captain." She replied,"On the same note, our allies are counting on us. We need to do our part for the benefit of the coalition." She glanced down,"We are still waiting on orders from HIGHCOM. Until then, we need to do what we can to control the spread, in case the brass decides to commit ourselves to stopping this thing."
"There are plenty more planets we could be defending, ma'am." He replied,"And unlike a normal continental world, we can't just scuttle the planet and call it done." He pointed offscreen,"This thing we can. We cut our losses, blow it to oblivion and leave to defend some other critical asset."
"Blow it up with tens of thousands of civilians on board?" She clenched her teeth together,"Do you really think we are at that point?"
Jackson sighed. He closed his eyes and put a hand on his face in contemplation. Letting out a breath, he opened them again and assumed an at-attention posture,"Ito. I know we don't agree on a lot of things. We obviously don't see eye to on this. But this," he gestured off screen again,"Those are our men fighting down there. Ours. Our friends, our family, our people. They're down there on our orders."
She tilted her head,"Your point, Jackson?"
"My point," His expression grew serious again,"Those civilians are not. Many aren't even human. If we pull our guys back, we save their lives, wipe out a flood infestation, and live to move on and protect another world tomorrow." He dropped the tone of his voice,"This war does share one similarity with the war against the Covvies. People are going to die. Civilians are going to die. But we still did whatever we had to, to achieve victory. We need to do the same here."
Ito was silent for a long moment, staring out at the city. Whichever call she made, it was going to feel like wrong one. They were gonna lose people either way... Truth be told though, she'd already thought through most of what he'd said. She'd just been holding out for a better option, a way to save lives.
She couldn't let emotions get in the way of this one. So, she pushed them aside and examined the situation logically. Diplomatically, it might be smarter to stay. Tactically, it was best they pull out.
Guess my job is to make the hard decisions.
She turned back to him,"Very well. I'll issue a general evacuation order-"
Jackson interrupted,"The flood get their tendrils everywhere. If we issue that order, and the flood infects a single marine, which they'll do within 10 seconds, they'll know what we're planning. We don't need them trying to escape with nothing to lose."
"What would you suggest then?"
"We pull back our assets, just don't give a theater-wide evacuation order. We do it by unit to mask what we're doing. We pass the word to Grievous and Koon, with instructions to do so discreetly. Then, when everything's pulled back, we evacuate ASAP, nuke the place to wipe out the flood, blow the explosives to sink the city, then leave the system."
Her eyebrows shot up,"You want to use a SHIVA?"
He nodded,"Yes ma'am. If we just blow the structures keeping the city afloat, spores and flying flood forms will likely find a way to survive. We nuke the place, and we incinerate every last one of those imps."
"Alright, we'll do that. Thank you Captain." She rubbed her forehead with her hand,"Its gonna be a headache convincing the Republic to pull back. They won't want to leave the non-combatants."
"Then we blow the bloody thing, whether they cooperate or not." He spat.
"And that's how we shatter an alliance." She held a hand up before we could argue,"I understand your political position on this whole thing, and I will not tolerate any arguing." She shook her head,"Start issuing the orders to the Marines. I'll speak to Koon and get him on board."
"With some luck, we'll be out of here before dawn."
Krassos City Hall, Vassek, East Wing Committee Chamber,
02:34 Hours Senate time, 22:15 Hours Local time
Some things hadn't changed since Ahsoka left the order. One of which being she still wasn't fond of meetings.
She was far more patient then when she was a 14 year old padawan out in the field, exuberant and over-eager to prove herself as a jedi in combat. Working through a meeting wasn't an issue, it just wasn't her idea of fun.
The Mandalorian officer beside her did little to make her comfortable.
When she was younger, she might've resented Anakin for putting her here, rather then leaving her to focus on troop logistics while he attended meetings. She understood now that, while he was more experienced, she was more graceful in diplomatic situations. Anakin's blunt, straightforward-style rarely endeared him with the bureaucrats and foreign leaders, other then, perhaps, the generals.
On top of that, he was still a bit torn up over the death of Admiral Yularen. If anything, what he was doing now would help take his mind off the past few days.
That still left her with meeting-duty.
The city fire chief, a large zabrak donning firefighting equipment, was busy spelling out the effects of the EMP an hour or so before."When the pulse hit, the majority of civilian vehicles were fried, particularly the atmospheric cloud cars. With no power, they crashed all over Krassos, destroying buildings and starting fires all over the place. I've got teams on every blaze, but we're spread thin." He wiped his forehead with the back of his wrist,"My men are struggling to keep the fires under control. Unfortunately, the pulse knocked out a lot of our equipment as well. We're doing our best, but there is only so much we can do without power."
He shook his head grimly,"Not that it matters much, I suppose. The parasite will be on us soon."
The native general raised his hand,"Let me stop you right there Chief. We'll take care of the flood, all you need to worry about is containing the blaze and ensuring the evacuation process is not impeded by the flames."
The fire chief nodded,"Will do sir."
"Good." He sat back up and placed his palms on the table,"While we're on the subject, how did the EMP affect the evacuation?"
A technician at the table stood up,"The effect was surprisingly minimal, sir. Nearly every civilian spacecraft is ruggedized to protect the craft from Coronal Mass Ejections in space." He sat back down again,"Atmospheric transports, however, are not equipped with the same measures, since the Vassek atmosphere shields the planet from solar interference. When the pulse went off, nearly every atmospheric craft was shut off and crashed."
The general nodded,"Understood, Polpolus." He turned toward the fire chief and droid commander beside him,"You two are dismissed. Keep me up to speed on any further developments."
When the door slid shut, he gazed down at the table and sighed."I need a up-to-date threat assessment."
Another technician stood up,"We got lucky sir. Wind is blowing toward the northeast, it'll be at least two days before we start to feel the effects of the fallout." His expression darkened,"Provided the wind doesn't take a sudden change of direction, of course. What's more, we have military assets downwind."
Ahsoka's stomach dropped."What do we have downwind? Battle droids, clones, or Vasseki soldiers?"
The man didn't turn to face her."All three, ma'am."
A pang of sadness struck her heart. Cautiously, she lowered her emotional force barriers slightly and allowed the Force to flow in.
She shivered. The Force was hideous. The dread of the commanders, and the civilians praying to get off world in time. The terror of the troops, now not so far away, as a nightmare bore down on them. Death and pain parlayed about.
And the worst by far, the agony of those infected.
"Madam Jedi?"
Snapping back to her senses, she realized everyone was looking in her direction. Closing her eyes, she released the vertex of pain and raised her barriers again,"Apologies, I felt a tremor in the Force. Continue."
"What's a,'tremor in the Force'?" The general demanded.
Ahsoka shook her head,"Its nothing important general. A horde of hyper-intelligent space zombies are bearing down on us, there's a lot of energy churning through the Force right now."
The general eyed her suspiciously, then shrugged and shook his head,"That brings us to our next matter of discussion. While the EMP, apparently, had little effect of the evacuation process, tens of thousands of civilians are pouring into the city by the hour." He gestured broadly toward the outdoors,"Krassos was a city of some 800,000. Now we have millions of refugees all trying to get off-world. We're nearly out of civilian transports to use, and the Republic vessels will hit capacity soon." He glanced at Ahsoka,"I'm unsure how many a Acclamator or Venator cruiser can carry, but you'll be at full capacity soon."
A heavy cloud of despair descended on the room. Several commanders cursed and slammed their fists. Some buried their heads in their hands. Ahsoka herself glanced down at the floor gloomily.
The general cleared his throat."Gentlemen. The odds are not in our favor, but this is not the time to lose hope. We exhaust our options before we give up, then we keep going." He paused, making eye contact with several commanders in the room,"What's more, we have the 501st legion alongside several thousand Mandalorians willing to support us in this fight. The Sangheili are also providing us with mostly orbital support. While the situation is... far from desirable, we have some of the galaxy's finest backing us up."
A Neimodian raised his hand,"Begging your pardon, sir, but what the kriff is a Sangheili?"
"I have no idea, colonel." He shrugged,"But, they are on our side.
"Our objectives aren't as clear cut as they usually are, gentlemen. I don't think anyone here actually thinks we can fight the flood off and save the whole planet. Our goal is instead to evacuate as many civilians as we can, hold off the parasite as long as we can, and avenge the fallen." His expression shifted to a snarl. Gritting his teeth, he spat,"And I'm sure we all have plenty to avenge, warriors."
Another commander stood up,"Correct me if I'm wrong, sir, but you make it sound as if we are test womprats."
"We are. If we die, we die for the galaxy."
Stunned, the commander sat back down without a word.
Ahsoka sensed he was about to dismiss everyone. Before he had the chance, her holocommunicator on her hip started beeping. The sound caught the attention of the others in the room.
Shaking her head, she muttered an apology and answered the transmission."Ahsoka Tano."
A clone in officer's armor appeared. To Ahsoka's surprise, he was trembling."This is CT-4458, Sector Beta-Omega-41-6! We're getting torn apart out here commander! Requesting permission to fall back!"
He sounded terrified. Ahsoka had never heard fear in a clone's voice. Even on suicide missions, they were professional, if grim and resigned."Is it that bad, trooper?"
The sound of an automatic blaster echoed behind him, causing him to duck and glance back. Several clones were shouting or screaming in the background, followed by a chilling flood wail,"Yes! Requesting permission to fall back sir!"
Another light on her communicator started going off, once again highest priority. By the Force.
"Fall back if you have to trooper. I have another transmission coming in."
Switching the channel, it was another clone officer, this one more composed then the last. The faint sound of heavy turret blasts echoed behind him,"Commander Tano, CT-5476. Sector Gamma-435-9. The parasite's picking off my AT-TEs one-by-one. I'm requesting backup stat, my men can only hold out so much longer."
Two more lights started blinking. Heart pounding, she checked the I.D. Two more clone officers, each highest level of urgency.
"Have you contacted general Skywalker?"
The clone nodded,"Yes sir. I couldn't get through to him, his communicator was busy."
She cursed mentally."Alright, I'm placing commander Appo in charge of the front lines. I need to focus on the evacuation and make sure you guys have a place to fall back to. May the Force be with you trooper."
Ending the transmission, she closed her eyes and shook her head. No way she was gonna let her barriers down anytime soon. The 501st was getting hammered.
Ignoring the other calls coming in, she flipped through her list of contacts until she found the fleet's. She hastily typed out a message to Appo, giving him full authority over the frontlines while she focuses on the evacuation and Anakin focuses on troop movements and logistics.
Sending the message, she called upon the Force to calm herself. The dread and hopelessness flowed out, leaving her at peace again.
Glancing up, she saw the Vasseki commanders watching her expectantly."My men will buy you as much time as they can. Don't waste it."
After a lull in discussion, the Mandalorian stepped forward,"Generals, Lord Maul has ordered me to focus on the defense and evacuation of the city, if the meeting is concluded."
The general nodded,"It is, commander." He stood up,"Dismissed."
Ahsoka fell in step behind the Mandalorian and left the room. It was time to get back to work.
As the pair's footsteps echoed in the dark hallway, a chill ran down her spine.
The Kom'rk transport descended gently, followed by the hum of a motor as the doors slid open. Ahsoka hopped out, her boots crunching on the crops a local farmer had planted. The Mandalorian commander slid out beside her, entourage in tow.
She paused for a moment and stared at the horizon. The blue skies were slowly turning a murky grey-green. Presumably smoke and flood spores entering the atmosphere.
Guess we better get to work. She set off at a stiff jog toward the Republic staging area.
Anakin (or perhaps the Mandalorians, she wasn't sure) had chosen a large field a short distance from the city owned by a local rancher. The once open field was now covered in mostly Republic supplies, vehicles, weapons, and troopers. LAAT gunships hummed in the sky above, passing over the bustling crowds of troopers and officers aiding the logistics process.
Her master was in the middle of this, somewhere, directing it all. Reaching out with the Force, she found his signature a short distance away at a small, mobile command console. She picked up the pace, weaving her way through the throngs of military hardware and the occasional alien warrior along the way.
After a good minute of running, the command post was in front of her. Anakin was on the platform, arms crossed and a slight scowl on his face as several barge transports landed with what she assumed were juggernauts.
Hearing her ascend the ramp, he turned toward her and smiled,"Ahsoka. Glad to see you could make it."
She grinned back,"Well, I was gonna go by the bars with some of the Mandalorians, but I'm gonna to wait til tonight so you don't smell the alcohol on my breath."
He gave her a apprehensive look, as if trying to determine if she was serious or not."Uh huh. You're starting to sound like Obi-Wan."
"Well Master Kenobi is a smart man." She gave him a smug look before her serious expression returned,"How're the troop deployments coming?"
He shook his head in frustration,"Slow. Far too slow. It'll be at least a few more hours before we have a force sizeable enough to start reclaiming the planet from those freaks."
"You think we got a shot?"
He nodded,"I'm sure of it. The 501st are the finest legion in the Grand Army of the Republic. We'll show the rest of the galaxy how its done and restore hope."
She sighed quietly, her attention on a large battalion of clones forming up,"I sure hope so Master. The men on the frontlines are struggling. I don't want to lead our boys into a massacre."
He glanced at her, his eyes steely with resolve,"I will NOT allow that to happen. I promise Ahsoka." He turned back to a console and begin typing in a command,"It won't be easy, but we'll get through this in one piece."
He gestured toward another terminal,"Care to give me a hand?"
She nodded, deciding not to vocalize her doubts. Perhaps she was being a pessimist. She really, really hoped she was being a pessimist.
The top task on the display screen was a battalion of RX-200 tanks on the surface and ready for orders. Ahsoka broke them into 5 smaller companies, then sent them to guard major entrances to the city.
The rather rudimentary work raced by. It wasn't long before she found herself lost in her thoughts, crunching numbers while she gave orders. With a few swipes she took a look at an updated map of the front lines. The parasite was still over 50 miles away, but the gap was closing with time. The local troops and initial clone force was exhausted and nearly out of reinforcements. Most fronts were slowly falling back or in a orderly retreat, setting up camp a few miles back and fortifying in preparation for their brethren and the horde on their tail.
Once again, their aerial superiority was helping tremendously. Bombers were on near-constant runs, releasing their payload then returning to their hangars to re-arm. The orbital fleet was providing what orbital bombardment they could, but Venators weren't exactly made with mass orbital bombardment in mind.
Valtamare's battlecruiser, on the other hand, was armed with something called an,'energy projector' and it was apparently working quite well. However, there was still only one of them in the armada.
She typed in a few more commands and brought up the evacuation numbers. Tens of thousands had officially been evacuated onto Republic vessels, with countless more leaving unannounced in private or commercial craft. Unfortunately, hundreds of thousands were still trapped in the city, waiting their turn to be evacuated. A feeling of dread began to build inside. There was simply no way they were gonna be able to get that many people off the surface. She didn't even think they had room for hundreds of thousands in the fleet.
"Don't worry Snips. We'll save them."
She glanced at him over her shoulder,"Huh? What did you say?"
He paused and glanced at her,"You're projecting your thoughts. Don't worry, we'll find a way."
She felt a frown crease her face,"Sorry about that. I wasn't trying to distract."
Another 15 minutes of work had the beachheading process humming along smoothly. Ahsoka examined a master list of assets deployed and decided she could leave the rest up to Anakin and the officers.
Activating her comlink, she typed in Commander Appo's code. The clone appeared a moment later and saluted her formally,"Commander Tano. Pardon my tact, but unless this is critical please keep it brief."
She nodded,"Of course, apologies for bothering you Appo. What's the status of the frontlines?"
Appo's lips pressed together,"Its.. Not good commander. Both our boys and allied troops are pulling back on most fronts. Some of our men are managing a tactical retreat, others are closer to a full blown rout." His shoulders drooped slightly,"Morale is at its lowest I've ever seen. The men are terrified, sir."
Ahsoka took a apprehensive peek at the polluted horizon, then turned back to him,"How much longer do we have?"
"We can buy you a few hours, sir. But they're going to need support soon."
"Understood. Thank you commander."
The clone raised his hand to stop her,"Sir. I need a rally point for retreating units to rendezvous at."
She types in a couple commands, sending him a set of coordinates,"We've cleared an industrial park out for you guys. There'll be plenty of room for them."
Beep beep! Beep beep!
Ahsoka glanced behind her and saw the main communication terminal blinking red. Another high priority message."I need to go Appo. May the Force be with you."
Snapping her communicator off, she hurried over beside her teacher who was answering the call. Darth Maul appeared, hood down inside what she assumed was his command bridge,"Skywalker. I am receiving reports of flood activity inside Krassos."
"Inside the city?" Anakin asked.
"Yes. I've sent you the coordinates. I will let Shipmaster Valtamare know." The hologram fizzled out of existence.
Anakin put a clenched fist on the console."Well, you want to handle this one master, or should I?"
He gestured toward her,"You take care of it. As much as I'd like to get some action, I'm needed here and our troops should have no trouble mopping up a small group behind our lines."
Her heart started pumping faster."I'm on it master." She did an abrupt about face and jumped on an idle BARC speeder.
The speeder squealed as she put more power in the engines, air whipping about her as she lowered her head to avoid a potentially-fatal impact with debris. It was time to see these things up close and personal again.
She activated her comlink again,"Appo, what's the situation?"
"We already had units on site, sir, they've been ordered to eliminate or at very least contain the threat until reinforcements arrive. I have a full battalion of troopers backed up by armor en route." She swerved past a patrol of AT-RTs and increased speed,"The parasite popped up less then 2 minutes ago in a large, multi-level superstore that had been repurposed as a refugee center to process civilians freeing the conflict." He paused for a moment,"I'm connecting you with the lieutenant on the ground. Good luck sir!"
Sounds like the creeps slipped in with the refugees. Her face fell into a scowl as the distance closed. The type of thing I'd expect from a Sith.
A few blocks out, she was met with a mob of panicked civilians fleeing the area. Hundreds of screaming, frantic people ran past her while squads of clones weaved their way toward the site. She heard a strange wailing sound overhead and saw a wing of Sangheili atmospheric craft escorting a half dozen LAATs in the same direction.
Letting out a nervous breath, she calmed her mind and focused on the task at hand.
She spotted a massive building covered in a gratuitous number of neon signs and adjusted her course. The crowds seemed to be thicker the closer she got, while the clones had set up a staging area on the street. Troopers and TX-130s branched out on both sides of the structure to form a perimeter. She found a spot to leave the speeder and hopped off.
Boom boom! Boom boom!
A chorus of echoing booms thundered down the street, followed by what looked like heavy rounds impacting part of the building. A look down the street revealed a trio of Canderous assault tanks hammering the structure with their main cannons.
She yanked her communicator off her belt and contacted the clone Lieutenant,"Lieutenant, hook me up with the Mandalorian commander now!"
A moment later, a Mandalorian officer appeared."This is Ahsoka Tano. Your tanks have decided to destroy the refugee center, tell them to stand down immediately!"
"Nayc." The Mandalorian growled,"We are only destroying a portion of the structure without friendly assets in the area. Your troopers aren't in the line of fire."
"And you haven't considered the fact there might be civilians inside?" She snapped.
"This is war, jedi!" He barked,"We're cutting off a route of escape so when we come in with orbital bombardment, there is no risk the parasite might slip by."
"You will not!"
"I don't answer to you!"
Ahsoka's nostrils flared,"Innocents are going to die!"
"I AM AWARE!" She felt a spike of anger coming from the man,"I will inform your troops if we need to flatten any other part of the building." With that he shut his communicator off.
These Mandalorians are ruthless! She hooked her communicator back on her belt and joined a squad of clones entering the building.
The interior was a disaster. Walls blown out, furniture overturned, trampled bodies scattered across the now red-streaked floor. A small store that looked to her like it was dedicated to fashionable humanoid clothing had been transformed into a makeshift triage. Wounded clones and civilians were flowing in while clone doctors tended to the wounded.
She spotted the clone officer inside and jogged up to him. The trooper noticed her approach and saluted,"Commander Tano!"
She glanced briefly at the wounded,"Status report!"
"I've got men covering every exit except the northwest, which the Mandalorians are obliterating then entering by. The infection started on the second floor amongst the uncatalogued civilians and started to spread downstairs before a rapid response pushed them back up. No status on the 3rd and 4th floor, although we have troopers landing on the roof as we speak."
He gestured toward one of the many stairways now filled with clones filtering through,"Troopers are establishing a foothold upstairs, but they're meeting heavy resistance."
Beep beep! Beep beep! She grabbed her comlink and took the message. It was Valtamare,"Jedi, where are you?"
"I'm on site right now, about to make contact with the enemy."
"Pull back, jedi," he answered gruffly,"Keep them contained and I will flatten the block before they can escape."
Firefek, not this again."Negative, we are clearing the building and evacuating civilians. We have far too many assets and innocents to risk heavy bombarment."
The Shipmaster shouted something in his native tongue, which she assumed to be a curse,"I'm sending in aerial assets to decimate the 3rd and 4th floors. I'll leave banshees on patrol to ensure they do not escape through the air.
She opened her mouth to respond before pausing a moment. Escape through the air?"I have troops on the roof working thei-"
"Tano, trust me! Pull them out, clear the area so we can glass the block!" He threw his hand out to the side angrily,"If we do not contain this immediately, the whole city could be compromised!"
She exhaled heatedly,"Fine. We're working on the infection as we speak. Tano out."
Shutting off the comlink again, she turned to the lieutenant,"Focus on logistics. Get some more troops in so we can sort this out and get the civilians out of harm's way. I'll deal with the parasite."
Grabbing her lightsaber, she sprinted off toward the main stairway.
As she charged up the stairs, Ahsoka delved into the Force for strength. She was met with a swirling vortex of power, the hope and grim determination of the clones clashing with the sheer horror and emptiness emanated from the parasite. The darkness they emit was... different, however. It was as if the flood wasn't connected to the Force. Separate from the whole, like a stranger peering inside a building, hand pressed against the glass.
She didn't dwell on it long, however. She felt hope grow within the troopers as they saw her pass by. She had men to lead.
The second floor was even worse then the first. Merchandise and possessions scattered about, papers and trash littering the floor below yellow caution tape, streaking out for a purpose now lost. The air was thick with the scent of blaster burns and gasses, the floor a mess of green and red gore and fluids staining the once elegant tiles.
Ahead, several dozen troopers were behind cover or peering out from around the corner, firing at an unseen enemy. She raced ahead to join them.
Dodging several infected and clone corpses, she saw a trooper step out from around the corner and fire a burst from his DC-15, before being felled by a volley of return fire.
She slid behind a clone sergeant, who jumped slightly at her arrival."Didn't know you were coming sir."
She nodded,"What's the situation, sergeant?"
His eyes stayed focused ahead in case a target popped around the corner,"We don't know exactly what happened sir. But we think the parasite slipped in with the evacuees, perhaps an infection form inside the luggage. They caught us by surprise but we responded fast enough that its nothing more then their standard creature and occasionally a bloated... thing which explodes and releases the little guys."
"Understood." She crouched as her legs prepared to spring her into action."Follow me."
She leapt out into the open and ignited her lightsaber, deflecting the relatively light amount of fire headed her way. It seemed that the flood were ill equipped with weapons, which worked to their advantage.
But, by the Force, they were Disturbing. Mutated forms of humans and aliens alike moaned like an army of undead, seemingly retreating backward in sync from the more powerful clone force and into the shops. Dozens of smaller creatures about the size of a small dog scurried toward their lines, but the clones pummeled them with fire, popping their soft bodies and splattering a small pile of goop where they once stood.
And the smell. She had to resist the urge to cover her face. It smells like feces mixed with molting flesh.
She advanced, deflecting the occasional blaster shot while the troopers followed behind her dutifully. The flood disappeared around corners and into side shops.
"Keep moving!" She started forward before slipping and losing her balance. She threw a hand out and caught herself, but it landed in a puddle of multicolored blood mixed with flood juices.
Gross. She wiped her hand on a dry spot and kept moving, a bit more careful where she stepped from then on. She neared the entrance to the first business and hopped into view, lightsaber at the ready.
Nothing. The ransacked business was filled with what, at least to her, looked like cooking appliances, with smaller utensils like pots, pans and steamers scattered across the floor. The lights were off other then a handful of dim, flickering emergency lights, casting a faint, eerie glow.
The whole thing screamed trap. She motioned for a pair of fireteams to follow her in. Carefully, she crept toward the entrance, lightsaber in front of her humming menacingly.
Once she was inside she scanned the room and still didn't see anything. The whole place was filled with crevices and hiding places, perfect for an ambush. She tensed as she moved deeper into the store.
Clang! She spun around with the other troopers, expecting to see a monster but there was nothing. The troopers in the main walkways suddenly spotted and opened up on an enemy further down and out of sight.
Then the Force screamed in warning.
Spinning around, she barely managed to deflect a hail of blaster bolts meant for her. Several more bolts screamed past her and hit several of the clones, sending them to the ground in a crumple. Combat forms leapt from the sides of both sides, bearing down with their tentacles. Realizing what was happening, she quickly corkscrew flipped, dodging their strike by inches. Landing on two feet and a hand, she immediately raised her lightsaber and desperately deflected the blaster bolts meant for her.
Her heart pounded as she searched for a way out. She picked up a large oven with the Force and threw it at the combat forms. The parasites were caught off guard and swept away by the large flying object.
Standing up, she was starting to get comfortable again when a vent grating crashed to the floor beside her.
She let out an involuntary scream as infection forms poured down from the ceiling. The clones behind her shouted an order to fall back and, out of options, she blindly backflipped in retreat.
Before the barrage of fire ended her, a clone wearing heavy armor stepped in the way. His body was filled with with a half-dozen blaster bolts instantly, followed by an infection form on his chest.
With everyone out of the room, the clones threw several thermal detonators into the room while she scrambled to her feet.
The room erupted into a fireball, ending the blaster fire.
Panting, she bent down and put her hands on her trembling legs. Pushing aside a swell of emotions trying to make their way in, she looked around and saw the handful of surviving troopers on the other side of the entryway behind the wall. Several were clutching burnmarks on different parts of their body while the others stood guard and motioned to the other squads for reinforcements.
Suddenly, from within the flames, a flood scream echoed. The body of her savior twitched violently as flood growths burst from its body, its long, hideous tentacles erupting from his forearm. From the inferno, nearly a dozen immolating flood combat forms emerged, either firing if they had the ability or simply charging them as their corpses melted like wax.
Ahsoka quickly deflected a bolt and charged. She cut down a pair of infection forms while the clones poured fire onto the mutants. The last combat form leapt into the air and was swiss-cheesed, but not before he scored a deep gash on one of the trooper's arms.
The wounded trooper fell to his knees, crying out in pain. His comrade rushed to his side and motioned Ahsoka over."Cut his arm off sir!"
Her eyes widened in horror,"What? No!"
"We have to sir!" He pointed at the wounded arm,"We can't let the infection spread!"
"NO!" The trooper cried out,"Don't take my arm!"
She shook her head,"I will not."
"Sir you must!" He was near shouting, obviously trying not to break discipline. After a moment he reached for her lightsaber,"I can do it for you sir."
Ahsoka caught his hand and gave him a stern glare,"I said no, trooper. Not unless we have to." She pushed passed the man and knelt beside the wounded trooper. He held his upper arm in a deathgrip while blood spurted from the wound."You're gonna be fine, soldier. Take him to the triage downstairs."
The injured clone trembled in pain,"Th-th-thank you sir. I'-," he broke in to a violent coughing fit."I'll be-," The coughing cut him off again, becoming more intense by the second. He fell to his hands and knees, gagging and heaving violently.
"Medic!" She knelt beside him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder,"It's gonna be okay."
The clone was unable to respond, instead making a wretching noise as his body began to shake. He suddenly fell onto his side, spasming as if he was having a seizure.
She opened her mouth to say something, when a red blaster bolt hit his head. The man fell limp.
Ahsoka's stomach churned violently. Looking up, she saw a Mandalorian with a smoking blaster in his hand. The man approached the body and fired several more shots into the torso.
She instantly leapt up and shoved the blaster aside. To her surprise, the warrior shoved her back hard. Her small frame went flying back several feet before landing on her behind. The Mandalorian's fireteam backed up defensively while several clones raised their weapons.
That was it.
"Who did that?!" She shouted, hopping to her feet.
The Mandalorian gripped his blaster tightly,"He was infected, di'kut. We couldn't just let him turn."
"That was MY man, and our medics are PERFECTLY capable of treating our own soldiers!" Her anger burned hot inside her. Before it grew any more, she felt the tickle of the dark side and pushed it down the best she could.
The Mandalorians raised their weapons defensively,"We had to, jedi. He was about to turn into one of those freaks." He lowered his weapon and raised a hand,"I swear on my honor I was protecting your men and mine."
She motioned to her own troops,"Lower your weapons!" Both sides did so, relieving a bit of the tension in the air,"We'll deal with this after the operation." She stepped forward menacingly,"But if you or your men try to hurt mine again, I will defend them."
The Mando swore loudly,"Di'kutla shebs! We will do what we have to to finish the mission! Can't you sort it out with Lord Maul once this is done?"
Ahsoka shook her head, glancing sadly at the deceased trooper. There was still a battle to be won.
"Fine. Let's move men!"
Eriadu City, Bassimilisk Park,
16:02 Hours Local time, 03:05 Senate time
A stiff westerly wind blew through the park, throwing her lekku into the air like flags bending to the wind.
She wondered what the air must've smelled like a day or two before the infestation. Probably like pollutants, she thought sadly. Now, the wind brought the smells of war; smoke, burning debris, the telltale scent left behind by blasters discharging.
It was comparatively faint, being over a kilometer from the front lines along the river. But still a potent reminder or the destruction taking place everywhere.
She didn't even dare delve into the Force at this point. It was as if a black abyss of despair and agony sprouted when the flood appeared, only growing by the day as their numbers grew.
What if it keeps getting worse?
Aayla shook her head. They would figure that out when the time came. Right now, they needed to focus on the here and now, so that fear wouldn't become a reality.
The thumps and groans of the limping Republic convoy grew louder as they approached. She bit her lip as she examined the line of vehicles. Vos' troops had taken a beating.
Standing on a small platform she assumed was a performance stage, she was about the height of the AT-TEs leg, giving her a good view of the damage on the lead vehicle. The grey and red streaked hull was now stained with dark burns and flood juices. The front right leg's joint looked like it was about to collapse, perhaps the work of a well placed rocket.
She reached out with the Force and found the signatures of Vos, Bly and Jax. She allowed a relieved smile to spread across her face.
The lead tank came to a halt. The personnel hatch on top popped open, which her master emerged from. The Kiffar looked beat; His clothes were dirty and tattered, his face covered in mud and blood, his usually well-kept dreadlocks a moppy mess.
He glanced around a minute before spotting her. She approached the tank as he front-flipped onto the pavement."Master, glad to see you made it."
He dipped his chin in greeting,"Aayla."
She gave him another once over, examining his body for obvious wounds,"Are you feeling alright?"
He nods,"Yeah, I'm fine. We got hit really hard on our way up here." He gestured toward the line of damaged vehicles.
Thump."Ow!"
The jedi glanced over to see Vos' commander, Jax, sprawled out on the road. He groaned audibly,"Sorry about that sirs."
Bly, who was making his way down the ladder, chuckled,"Need a hand Jax? Don't worry I'm not clumsy, I won't slip off the ladder." He hopped down to the pavement and extended a hand.
Jax waved him away, rising to his own feet,"Thanks, but I'll pass." The two commanders joined the jedi as the convoy began moving again.
Vos shook his head, muttering,'clones' under his breath. He looked past Aayla at the activity inside the park,"How's the evacuation going?"
"So far, so good. We're ahead of schedule at this point." She decided not to mention the conflict with the Sangheili earlier. He doesn't need to know about that."We've pulled thousands off world already, but there's still plenty of civilians pouring into the park."
The Kiffar nodded,"Good. We need to find a way to accelerate the process though and get the innocents out of harm's way." He finished examining the park and turned back to her,"How's the perimeter holding?"
She took a deep breath,"We've managed to hold the parasite to the southern part of the city across the river. We've had a couple flare-ups on the north side, but they were successfully put down." She glanced far off in the distance toward the edge of the city,"That doesn't account for the possibility of the flood coming from the other side, of course. But there's no sign of enemy activity in that direction so far."
"Even if they do, We'll hold them out of the city," He said confidently,"The Republic's army is the finest in the galaxy. We'll hold them out, and get the refugees to safety."
He glanced back at his convoy, beaten and scarred from battle,"All it takes is perseverance and sacrifice."
Aayla pursed her lips together at the remark, but said nothing.
A few moments later, an LAAT gunship landed beside them. She gestured toward it,"This is our ride back to the command center. I imagine the Sangheili are eager to meet you master."
The four commanders marched up the hill toward the Sangheili command tent. Aayla had always found the choice of a tent interesting; the Republic used mobile-deployable command centers or even built temporary structures. The Sangheili, however, seemed perfectly happy with their well-adorned, colorful tents. Its probably a tradition of theirs.
The guards at the door eyed Vos wearily. Aayla nodded in greeting,"N'tho, this is my commander Bly," She gestured toward Vos,"And this is Quinlan Vos, my former master, and his commander."
"We need to speak with Fieldmaster Zahran."
Sraom nodded and stepped to the side, holding the flap open.
The massive Sangheili commander turned at their entrance and examined the four closely. He placed a large, handled drinking jug on a crate and approached the display table,"General Secura! What have you brought me this time?"
She tilted her head toward her companions,"This is clone commanders Bly and Jax, and my former master Quinlan Vos. They'll be aiding in the coordination of the defense of the city."
Zahran gave Vos a cool stare, as if trying to hold in a comment toward the man."Your learner has told me much about you, Master Vos."
Vos nodded curtly in greeting but said nothing.
Zahran held his gaze a moment longer before taking a few steps to the side and changing the display on the table,"So, I assume you two have a plan to defend the city?"
Aayla opened her mouth to speak, but Vos stepped forward first,"While Aayla and I are both generals in the Grand Army, as the ranking jedi I will be calling most of the shots for our forces." He examined the display table, missing the disapproving look from the fieldmaster,"Jax, I'm putting you in charge of defending the bridges. Take our men down there and make sure the parasite doesn't get across. Bly, your familiar with the 327th, I want you to focus on handling the corps' assets and defending the city." He glanced at Aayla,"Aayla, you can plug yourself in wherever you like. I'll be overseeing the evacuation of the civilians."
Zahran cleared his throat loudly,"So, let me clarify: As the ranking jedi, you are the supreme commander of the Republic's forces here?"
Vos glanced up at him,"Technically, Aayla is still in charge of the 327th. But, she is my former padawan, and I'm more experienced."
Zahran's expression went blank,"Very well. I suggest we prepare our warriors, we do not know when the parasite will return." He examined each of them individually,"I suggest each of you get sleep and a meal. Your troops will need you to be ready when the hour of bloodshed arrives."
Vos nods,"Good idea Fieldmaster." He turned and glanced at the other three,"The clones are bred for war, they'll be fine. Aayla, you can go ahead and go."
She held her hands up defensively,"Quinlan, you just pushed through a flood-infected city. You need it more then I do."
The kiffar smiled warmly and placed a hand on her shoulder,"Thanks, but no. I want to make sure you're okay."
She stared at him blankly for a moment, then nodded,"Fair enough. I'd suggest you familiarize yourself with the tactical situation, master." Her gaze traveled from him to Zahran,"Fieldmaster, I still need to show you our command center. Could you spare a minute?"
The Sangheili looked confused for a split second before a flash of understanding crossed his face,"I'll return shortly master Vos."
As Zahran and Aayla exited the tent, several of the Elite honor guards went inside to keep an eye on things.
Walking down the steep hill, Aayla stared at the scene of activity before her. The mass of civilians was still growing by the minute as more refugees poured in. Her troops alongside the Sangheili had done an admirable job cordoning them off and making sure basic needs were met. Several dozen portable restrooms had been set up, with lines 20 or so deep standing before them. Clone chefs, with the help of some locals, used extra military rations and food scrounged from the area too prepare basic meals and hand them out to the populace.
"Tell me, jedi: do you allow him to push you around like that all the time?"
Aayla could sense the frustration and disgust inside him. Zahran was a warrior through and through, who seemed to have no tolerance for weakness. His heavy footfalls paired with his gleaming armor and hulking mass of muscle really fulfilled that image in every way. She was almost 3 feet shorter then him, and probably 250 lbs less muscle.
She shook her head,"Quinlan Vos is my former master, and I try to respect him for that and his experience. But he is not calling the shots for the 327th." her gaze traveled from him to straight ahead, at a platoon of clone troopers headed toward several gunships,"Don't get me wrong, he's a smart man. But he's also very proud. Sometimes he builds a different reality more suitable to his tastes, and part of that is being the same little girl he taught and took care of for so many years."
He glanced at her questioningly,"And you humor him?"
She slid a hand down the side of her face,"I do care about him. I try to let him do his thing if its harmless, but I will not let him undermine my authority, and I sure as the stars won't let him command the 327th."
The massive Sangheili nodded,"He seems to have little regards for his troops."
Aayla huffed in frustration,"Quinlan Vos has never been the picture of the perfect jedi, but he certainly shares some of the arrogance that infects-" She paused, then shook her head,"Sorry. A lot of higher ranking jedi are very idealistic, seeing it as their responsibility to protect innocents at all costs. Some of them also see the clones as tools, weapons and numbers to accomplish that goal rather then human beings."
They began to reach the edge of Republic activity. Clones scurried about, making way for the commanders and offering salutes. Once they were past them she sighed sadly,"Look at them. Born and bred for one purpose: to serve and die. They age twice as fast as we do, so most of them are between the ages of 9 and 12-"
Zahran made a chocking sound,"These troopers are TEN years old?"
She nodded,"Yes they are. No parents, just their life and service in the military. Completely expendable, with nothing but their brothers and their mission to die for the Republic." She pushed down a swell of emotions trying to make their way to the surface,"But when I look at them, I don't see identical, nameless machines. I see people. Each with a maturity and bravery far beyond what anyone their age should have. No clear future but they try so hard to become their own person. That's why Republic standards are so lax when it comes to body markings and hair styles. So the clones don't have to be numbers. They can be Bly, Flash, Switcher, Lennox, and so on."
Aayla's voice rose slightly as conviction flooded her,"So no, Vos won't call the shots for my men, I will. And I'll take care of them the best I can. I'm just trying to work with Vos as much as I can and not jeoprodize our relationship."
Zahran was silent for a long minute. The two turned around and began walking back as her words hung heavily in the air. When he did speak, he was quiet enough as to make it hard to hear,"I can respect that, Secura. Take care of your warriors, and they will take care of you." He was silent again for a moment,"But remember not all relationships are worth keeping."
They stopped for a moment as they reached their destination. Zahran would head back up to the command tent while she would return to her personal quarters,"I will inform my men working with your master to be vigilant. Rest well Secura."
She nodded as he began to walk off."Oh and Fieldmaster," he froze,"If you see Bly, remind him he is my subordinate and answers to me. Not Vos."
Zahran bobbed his head,"As you wish."
Aayla shut off the refresher and grabbed a towel, stepping out on the cold metal floor of her temporary quarters. She glanced it the mirror and frowned at the exhaustion evident on her face. Ever since the 327th had re-deployed a few months back, they'd been running pretty much nonstop, and it was showing. The past few days in particular had been pretty hectic, with the sudden appearance of the flood on the galactic stage.
Not two weeks ago, they didn't even know the cursed things existed.
Shaking her head, she glanced down at the pile of clothes before her. They were pretty much identical to the outfit she wore in the field. As a jedi, she owned several sets of 2-3 outfits, for the sake of austerity. And while it didn't really bother her, she found herself wishing she packed something more comfortable to sleep in.
After a moment of deliberation, she came to a compromise and put on her standard top and a pair of compression exercise shorts. Comfy and, should she need to wake up in a hurry, she'd at least be half dressed.
She stepped out of the tiny refresher and into the almost-as-tiny bedroom. It was simple, with metal walls, a small cot, and a dresser for clothes and storage. The walls didn't block out much outside noise, which she supposed was a good thing, but it would be that much harder to actually sleep.
Not that falling asleep would be difficult. Seeing the bed, she felt the fatigue of the past several days hit her like a brick wall.
She set an alarm for 90 minutes from now. Enough time for a good nap to keep her going. Sliding under the standard-issue blanket, she was out of it in moments.
Didn't think I'd forgotten you did I? If you did its fair, you haven't heard from me since March 29th. Alas, we are one day from the 4 year anniversary of this story. How time passes.
But, I reiterate my promise to see this piece through. And I think its shaping up quite nicely.
As always, reviews are appreciated! Feel free to message me if you wanna talk about Halo or Star Wars. Given the state of both franchises, its kinda up to us to keep the fire going. Usernames out.