2 Months Later:
"So this is our ride?" Hans asked as they looked at the ship in front of them. It was a generic Taylander model, one that had definitely seen better days. But it was sufficient to get them to Garnizon II, which was all it needed to do.
"Yes. I don't see any others." Petrova replied. She raised her voice to reach everyone in the platoon under her command.
"Alright everyone, we're heading out. Make sure you have everything."
With the success in capturing the Imperial interdictor cruiser, the platoons worth of troops dedicated to special operations had been expanded to 3, all under her command. Known simply as the Special Operations Force, these troops were picked from both the new UN forces and existing militaries of Earth's nation states. Few passed the multitude of neigh impossible tests, and those that were trained for even more extensively.
Two platoons would be going to Garnizon and Zoloch Prime respectively, with fake identities as bounty hunter groups to get past the Empire. They would then try to find and make contact with local rebel groups and help them prepare for an uprising.
Soon three dozen soldiers were boarding the transport, awaiting the long ride to begin. They could not travel the most direct way from Earth to Garnizon, as that would attract too much suspicion. Instead, they had to go a long, convoluted way around several worlds to make it seem like they hadn't come from Earth.
After getting strapped in, the shuttle left the discreet base it had taken off from. Another one soon followed, carrying the troops that would go to Zoloch Prime. The soldiers grabbed a variety of phones, tablets, and books to entertain themselves on the long trip.
They soon left the atmosphere and through the windows could see Earth's war machine beginning to churn. Dozens of orbital drydocks were producing the ships that would allow Earth to take control of the Zoloch Sector. Most of the fleet was still made up of corvettes, frigates, and destroyers, but Petrova could see five ships similar to the revenge fitting out, along with a number of smaller but still impressive cruisers. Several more were also starting the early stages of production, but they would not be ready until months after the operation began.
And that didn't count the ships that had already been produced. There were now almost 350 ships in the fleet already, ranging from transports and corvettes to captured star destroyers and the revenge. It was going to be a force to be reckoned with.
The ship was mostly filled with silence once they got to hyperspace. There was a little quiet talking, but most people were engrossed in whatever entertainment they had brought or slept. Some odd noises could be heard from the bathroom, and Petrova realized two of her men and women were not in their seats. She was half tempted to go and knock on the door, but decided against it. The two lovebirds in there deserved to have a little time to themselves.
The trip was uneventful, and nothing really happened until they reached Garnizon. They got past Imperial planetary patrols without issue; their disguise seemed to work. When they reached the starport and the Major stepped out, they were greeted by an Imperial Lieutenant.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Petrova." The Imperial Army officer was young, probably not long out of his training program. "I'm Lieutenant Jkabsoi, here to provide you information on these rebels and help you find them."
"Thank you. I intend to make those rebel scum pay for what they have done to the Empire and it's loyal citizens." Petrova found herself playing the part well.
"First, here are some passes that will get you past most Imperial security on this planet. And here is an emergency comlink that will allow you to call in extraction or even an airstrike on these rebels." He handed her the items.
"Thank you, I did not know the Empire was bestowing such power onto us." She replied.
"Let me show you this information about the local rebellion." He produced a datapad and handed a physical drive to her. "This drive contains the information in writing, but I'll tell you some of it now. These local rebels are not affiliated with the Alliance in any form, they are more along the lines of a separatist holdout. They call themselves the Free Confederacy and engage in guerilla warfare like other rebel groups, and use a large number of old B1 and B2 battle droids supported by a diverse mix of species fighting and commanding them. He produced a map with highlights on his datapad. "This is where they are most active. Jgarda City is where they are most active, and while many Imperials won't tell you this, our Stormtroopers have abandoned large parts of the city.
"That is where we will look first, Lieutenant. Is there a starport in that city?"
"Indeed. I will arrange that your docking fees are waived. And remember, the payment for one confirmed dead rebel is 100,000 credits and one dead or alive leader is 1,000,000 credits."
The Empire must be desperate if they were paying such high prices to hunt rebels. She thought to herself. The fact that they were having such a hard time gave her more confidence in her mission as well as the upcoming strike by the fleet.
"Oh, I certainly remember."
"Won't all that money be a lot less split 36 ways?" The officer asked.
"It gives 36 times the firepower. We will be making plenty of credits." She replied.
Soon the transport had moved the undercover soldiers of Earth to Jgarda City. The facilities were significantly less pleasant and parts of the starport looked to be barely operational. Most ships there were rundown and many were in disrepair.
Petrova looked around at the squad she would be leading. They were going to do a little reconnaissance where the rebels were located. It would mostly be made up of the people she had stormed the cruiser with. Taylor, Meyer, Fennel, Virtanen, Bunt, and a few new guys. The rest of the platoon would stay at the shuttle and the hangar they had been given.
It took them a bit of walking to get near the rebel-infested area. The Imperials that they passed were cleared by the passes Lieutenant Jkabosi had given them.
"I hope that Imperial leaves us alone. I can't be sure if he believes us." Taylor said as they walked down a derelict alleyway. Garbage and waste littered the streets and most people wore threadbare clothes.
"Ehh, he's just curious," Hans replied. "Considering there are 36 of us, he has good reason to be."
They soon saw a beggar, desperately pleading for food. He was gaunt and thin, as well as being older than most of the other people.
"Major, we all have a few credits to spare. What if we ask him about the rebels?" Taylor asked.
"Go ahead. He could potentially have more information that the Empire has neglected to tell us."
Taylor walked up and produced a couple of credits as the old man thanked her.
"Do you have any information about the Free Confederacy?" She asked as the credits were handed to him.
The old man chuckled. "Are you Imperial?"
"No, we are independent contractors. My squadmates and I have some personal business with them." She pointed at the rest of the squad.
"Well, all I've seen of them has come from that alley. Or at least who I think they might be. But that's all I know about them."
Taylor handed him some more credits. "Thank you for your time." She said, walking off.
"What did you find?" Petrova asked.
"They come from that alley. That was all I could get."
"Well, it's a start." She replied.
They traveled into the alleyway and saw there were doors to various run-down buildings. None of them had any kind of locking on them, and most appeared to be abandoned.
"Check all these buildings for any passages somewhere else." Petrova was thinking that the rebels eighter had a passage that ended here or they just came from somewhere else on the other end of the street. It was worth looking at, at least. "Meet back here in half an hour or when everything has been searched. If you run into trouble, contact any of us on the comms."
The squad initially didn't find anything in the rundown buildings. Most looked as if they had been abandoned for quite a while.
Sergeant Hans Meyer so far had had no luck in finding any routes the rebels were using to get into the alley. He was now almost sure they had just come through the other end instead of some secret passage when he stumbled on a thin sheet of metal that looked like scrap metal at first glance. Falling into a small hole, he could see a narrow, short tunnel.
"Meyer to Petrova, I've found some sort of tunnel here. It's in the second to last building on the right."
"Good job Hans, I'll get everyone over."
Soon the squad was creeping through the tunnel in a single file line. There were a few sporadic lamps on the walls, but otherwise, it was almost completely devoid of light. Each of their rifles had underslung flashlights, however, allowing them to see what was in front of them.
After a while of walking, they heard faint noises of talking. Continuing, they soon found that there was a door to some sort of room, and light could be seen coming in through the cracks. The talking got louder and louder as the squad got closer. As they reached the door, Petrova silently signaled for them to halt. They could now overhear some of the conversations.
"We don't have the arms for such a strike, the last shipment got intercepted." One voice said.
"That's exactly why we are hitting the Imperial garrison, to get more weapons." Another replied.
"If you intend to strike an Imperial installation, we can help." Petrova opened the door and walked in, the rest of the squad in tow. The room had a number of basic furnishings, and there were several people of various species sitting on hastily arranged chairs. Their brown and grey clothes contrasted against the black armor of the Earth Marines. These people were of varying species, from human to twilek to duros. None of them were presently armed, but a variety of blasters were lined on the opposite wall. Petrova motioned for her squad to lower their weapons.
"Who the hell are you?" One of the humans asked. He was tall and dark-haired, and he seemed ready to reach for a blaster.
"Major Victoria Petrova, Commander of the Special Operations Force of the United Nations Marine Corps. Do you happen to know about Earth?"
"You're from Earth?" A blue skinned female Twi'lek exclaimed?
"You know about Earth? That's both confusing and relieving." Hans said.
"We received a communique from our leader to send him any information about Earth. He desperately wants to know more about that place." She continued, eager to learn more.
"Well we have good news for him. Earth is planning an offensive into this sector in a month with the goal of knocking out Imperial presence in the system. We have a ship departing to find your spaceborne assets, so we can coordinate an attack." Petrova said.
"Then what are you here for?" The human male asked. He still seemed a bit hostile.
"We forged documents from the bounty hunters guild to make it look like we are trying to hunt rebels like you. What we plan to do is help harass the Empire and strike while the fleet in orbit advances. We can sow chaos here and cause problems for the Empire behind the lines." Taylor spoke up.
"You did say you wanted to attack an Imperial garrison… Well we can help with that." She said.
"But we are still under cover. We would risk our relationship with the Empire." Hans replied.
"Bit of an understatement." Petrova agreed, turning to the other man who apparently led this rebel group. "Can we get in contact with your leader?"
"I'll try." He replied. "And my name is Jul Zark, commander of the Free Seperatist forces." He held out a hand.
Petrova shook it."Pleased to meet you."
She was fascinated how plenty of customs, even ones as simple as informal greetings, were similar between Earth and the rest of the galaxy. It was truly interesting, but it was a thought for another time.
"I will patch you into my superior, Admiral Gorky. I'm sure he will be pleased to hear from you."
"Tles, get me Admiral Gorky via the secure channel." The female twi'lek obliged, and in no time the holoprojector was up and running. Everyone just hoped he would be available.