AN: So after a three chapter false start of a rectonboot that shall not be posted. I've decided to rework Flight of the Kestrel from the ground up, focusing on Kelia's development from an idealistic young cadet into a cynical and burnt out flag officer while at the same time retconning a few things regarding the interpersonal relationships she has.
This was in actuality precipitated by pacing problems with the original version.
Honestly a bit more focused and interesting than what I was doing before. Instead of paying relative lip-service to her Mandalorian traits, I plan to more thoroughly integrate them, especially with regards to how Clan Aean has affected Bothan internal politics. As well as provide a slight leadup to Kelia getting the helm of a Star Destroyer.
That and actually give her character interaction before tossing her into the crucible of the Clone Wars.
In addition, I'm taking heavy influences, and even making a few references to, from Golm-Fervse-dra's interpretation of the Bothan species and its culture as seen in their 'Edge of Doom' fanfic series, used with permission of course.
(On an aside, their series is a good read, and probably some of the better fics with non-human characters in general who aren't big-name characters like Ahsoka, Thrawn, or Maul.)
As a disclaimer, all I can really claim any credit for are my characters, interpretations of certain concepts, and some world-building and backstory stuff.
EDIT: Done some cleanup and changed a couple things to help the story flow better.
EDIT 2: Did it again.
o.o.o.o.o
Anaxes, defender of the Core, shield of the Azure Imperium.
It was a world rich with ancient naval history. A proud history marred only by the Pius Dea era's atrocities.
Countless cadets passed through the walls of the Citadel, either as a stop on their way to another academy, or as their means of graduation into military service.
Many of the Galaxy's finest Naval Officers had studied at some point or another on its soil.
Be they human, or not.
o.o.o.o.o
Kelia Los'ean
PSF College PT Grounds, Anaxes.
Kelia Los'ean's heart pounded in her chest and her lungs screamed for oxygen. The blond-furred Bothan struggled to keep ahead of those behind her as they moved rapidly to catch up. It was however ultimately futile however, and she eventually collapsed to her hands and knees on the middle of the running track.
Kelia panted desperately to regulate her body temperature in the scorching midday light from Solis Axum, a troupe of semi-concerned looking humans passing her as she wheezed on all fours just short of her lane's lap marker.
"Cadet Los'ean! Get over to a rest bench before you die of heatstroke! Double time it!" A human PT instructor bellowed from afar, Kelia's fur twisting nervously as she shakily stood and did as instructed, slowly ambling over to a sheltered area.
She'd long given up trying to reason away why that instructor in particular kept giving bad instructions to her and other non-human cadets.
It was simple, he was xenophobic. And there wasn't much she could do besides take the bad advice and do what her instructors from the Martial Academy would've told her instead.
Planting her rear on the bench, she took a canteen from the cooler and slowly began to drink as she relaxed in the shade. Almost as soon as she did that, the auto-misters kicked in to help cool her off, her legs burning from the exertion she'd placed on them.
She felt the bench rumble a moment later as someone sat down next to her.
Looking up, the Bothan saw it was her friend Ielec Gilbe. The sweat covered violet Twi'lek raised a hairless brow ridge, a questioning gesture directed towards the panting Bothan at her side. "You doing okay?"
"Fine, just annoyed I couldn't beat my record." Kelia huffed as she reached under her PT shirt and checked her sports bustier's elastics to ensure it hadn't stretched too much, moving her hand back to her knees when she was satisfied.
"I'd hardly call almost vomiting fine, you could've damn near killed yourself Kel. Besides it's not like you need to prove anything." The Twi'lek chattered idly, the subtle patterns of her Rylothian accent resurfacing as she spoke.
The Bothan's blond fur rippled as she flicked a bang, a couple shades darker than her fur, out of her eyes. "Nokiz eyevriwis mo." ["Not my objective."] She muttered in Bothese. Her boxy canid snout twisting into a frown as her ears folded back, her arms pressing her substantial bust between them as she placed her right hand back on its matching knee.
"Well then what were you trying to do? Prove you're a Mandalorian badass who can stab twenty beings to death with their feet tied together or something?" Ielec prodded, lekku subtly twitching in her curiosity. "You're not normally trying to get people to notice you either, at least openly."
Kelia sighed in exasperation at her friend and switched back to basic. "I've told you before... It's more of a pride thing. I hate the subterfuge osik that keeps going on between the other clans. And even Bothans who normally consider eachother friends."
"You or your clan?" Ielec inquired, the Twi'lek leaning down a bit to allow Kelia to keep her voice down.
Kelia waggled a hand. "A bit of both... Mostly the pretentious refusal to change despite the system inherently turning Bothans against eachother for no good reason."
Ielec gave her a shrug just before an electronic chime sounded the end of their class's physical training period, the Twi'lek tapping the Bothan on the shoulder to get her attention. "So... You wanna get lunch after we shower? My treat."
Fur swam warmly as Kelia looked over at Ielec and smirked as she raised two fingers. "Two cafs please."
"Yeah I'll get you two cafs you little addict." Ielec chuckled as she stretched out a bit before standing up. "Get you a couple iced ones too from that one place on level twenty-four for later. You've still got that assignment from your logistics instructor and need to cram for it, right?"
Kelia exhaled and nodded, fur swirling anxiously as she got to her feet, adjusting her shirt in the process. "Yeah, I do… It's the one about the new system they're coming up with in response to all the new ships being built right now. Ones that fill the weird gap between cruisers, like the old Rendili Dreadnaughts, and those big Kuati, Alsakan, and Corellian designs."
She exhaled in exasperation as she took a breath before continuing. "Categorizing all these classes is more confusing than it needs to be. Mostly since they also have to account for firepower, speed, reactor output, and role as much as length." Kelia groused as she picked up her canteen. Stretching for a moment before she began to walk towards the exit to the track grounds in concert Ielec.
"Wonder what they look like? All the docks at the yard-dome that're building the new designs are sealed off under heavy security." Ielec mused to herself as the two females neared the above ground access for the railjet tram that linked the grounds with the base of the mountain-sized ziggurat that was the Anaxes Citadel.
Clouds swirled around the immense structure's upper levels as the famous terraced Sirpar hills housing the Anaxes estates of many of the galaxy's most prestigious naval families spanned out above and behind it, with the city of Pols Anaxes spread out at the foot of the immense building.
Kelia, glad for the subject change, nodded. "Yeah, a lot of the docks they're using are all new construction too. Really does make you wonder what kind of ships'll come out when they're done." She agreed as they walked up to the waiting railjet and boarded, both falling silent for the moment as the conversation died off.
The two ignored the stares directed directed at them from some of the barves on the tram, most of whom seemed intent on getting a good view of the 'profiles' of the two females despite the fact neither were human.
In the end, a quick baring of teeth from Kelia discouraged many of them after she grew irate at the continued staring, her anxiety having started to act up from the amount of attention on her. Ielec laughed and gently placed herself between Kelia and the onlookers for the sake of the Bothan's sanity, the two sat down near a door as the acceleration compensator kicked in and the tram departed.
o.o.o.o.o
The ride back had been thankfully otherwise uneventful.
Afterwards though had been different as they, and at least eighty other female cadets of varying species, had been stuck outside the locker room for about half an hour. This being because security had supposedly found yet another mini-droid cam in the rooms.
"Kriffing barves. Third time this damn month that some nosey little kriffer tries to get a free show." A darker skinned human female at the back of the group muttered under her breath, Kelia's ears perking up as she picked it out over the background noise.
For once Kelia was thankful for her Clan's slightly degraded sense of smell compared to the Bothan baseline owing to millennia of wearing helmets. More baseline Bothans generally would've found the dozens of competing post-workout scents, particularly those from so many different species, even more difficult to deal with.
She turned and subtly made an agreeing gesture of discontent at Ielec, whose torso visibly vibrated with unvocalized laughter. As this happened, two female security officers exited the locker room with their scanning equipment in tow.
"Looks like that was the only one." The burlier of the two humans informed the cadets. "Notify head office if anything else pops up."
On that note, the two humans turned and walked off, allowing the cadets to slowly filter back in to shower off and change.
Stripping down once inside the changing area and after packing her clothes into her locker, Kelia walked into the shower bank. Quickly, she picked an empty stall and powered on the sonic emitter after attuning it for Bothan physiology.
All the while she ignored the competing pheromones and musks flying about as another Bothan female, with the lankier build of Sennatt Bothan rather than Kelia's taller and more muscular Krantian heritage, strode past her and into another stall.
It was mildly irritating to use a sonic instead of a water shower given her sensitive hearing, but it was more efficient than water and less of a hassle to dry herself off given the misters only activated just briefly enough to scrub any lingering dirt and other material from her fur.
She, along with just about everyone who'd ever used a sonic, admittedly enjoyed water showers more. But at the Citadel those were reserved for upper level staff, high ranking government officials, visiting naval officers holding large ship commands, decorated academy alumni, and graduating classes from the PSF College as a luxury.
Second years like herself were relegated to sonics, at least partially due to the infrastructure required to support showers throughout the immense expanse of the Citadel, which served not only as the house of the PSF College, but also the seat of Anaxes's planetary government and the central command center for the entire Azure Sector's military.
In any case the use of sonics did help cadets from more 'water fortunate' worlds where such showers were common. This mostly helped them get used to the more austere water stocks the ships and bases they'd deploy to were likely to have.
"Hey Kel!" Ielec called as she passed her stall, derailing the Bothan's line of thought.
"Yeah?" She called back, looking out of the shower at the Twi'lek.
"I'm heading up to the commissary on level fourteen, what sounds good? Biscuit Baron, Bantha Burger, or Power Sliders?"
Kelia paused for a moment. "Biscuit Baron sounds fine. I'm still holding you for those two cafs by the way!"
The Twi'lek waved dismissively. "I got it, I got it. I'll save you a seat, just get your furry ass dressed properly alright?"
The Bothan's fur rippled in annoyance. "That was one time!" She shot back heatedly, a female Rodian giving the two of them a rather intense glare.
Kelia gave her an apologetic look before turning back to Ielec.
"Still going in the yearbook!" The Twi'lek laughed as she walked away, much to the amusement of some of the other female cadets, a gold skinned Togruta elbowing a Chagrian as both females chuckled knowingly under their breath. "Remember! Level fourteen commissary!" Ielec called back.
The Bothan slinked back into the shower and finished the cleaning cycle as she muttered in annoyance. "Forget my undershirt before drills one time and nobody lets me live it down. Not my fault my jacket was too tight for my chest."
Shaking her head and slapping the sides of her boxy canid snout to refocus, Kelia stepped out of the shower and made her way over to her locker.
She got some sideways looks from some of the less 'accepting' humans, but paid them little mind. At this point she'd learned to tune them out just as easily as the harassment she got from mainstream Bothans regarding her being from Clan Aean.
Slipping into a casual cadet uniform after putting her normal underwear on, the Bothan sighed and picked up her bag once she'd finished stuffing her PT clothes into it. With that out of the way, she began checking her datapad's notifications for any messages on her Clan's extranet, which was run separately from the normal Bothan FamilyNet for a variety of reasons.
The most notable of which being giving SpyNet's monitors the proverbial finger, specifically by forcing them to spend valuable resources updating separate data gathering routines just to keep an eye on Clan Aean and the minor sister clans it had spun off since returning to Bothan Space.
There honestly weren't many meaningful messages other than status updates, and the occasional holopict, despite the size of her family.
Still, some caught her attention. Kelia was especially elated to see that one of her closer cousins had been doing well in therapy following her miscarriage. An event that'd severely shaken Kelia given her own deep-seated aspirations to have pups one day.
She sent Cin a message she'd hoped would be uplifting, but only time would tell if her cousin would take it as such.
Further down her notifications was one from her cousin Jaster about her older brother. Mostly that he was alive and currently on a mercenary contract for some Trade Fed goon on Qiilura with an actual Mando from Mandalorian space as his captain.
Some part of her felt jealous, but she also remembered that Qiilura was a farming world in the shebse end of the mid-rim and basically irrelevant.
Though the off-hand and very much coded mention of Jedi at the end of the message had her curious.
The next was from her father.
[[Kel'ika. Just got your grades. You've done well and I know you'll be a fine officer when you graduate.]]
Her fur swam warmly as she basked in the praise, sending a thankful reply to him.
Beneath that she also saw a message from her childhood friend Mineth Lya'wen courtesy of Konekonet, ConnectNet in basic.
It was an application meant to allow friends to connect more easily over long distances, and was doubtlessly loaded with SpyNet monitoring malware.
Kelia didn't mind that as much, mostly as it let her communicate with her small social circle of Bothan friends given her clan only truly worried about internal communications by contrast.
It was a curt and short, but nonetheless excited if the spelling errors were any indication, message.
[[Heu Kei, I mad it into th cmba engierin curs!]]
Which if Kelia's ability to read fragmented Bothese meant anything either, it implied Mineth had made it into the Martial Academy's combat engineering course.
Kelia snorted softly. She knew Mineth's parents undoubtedly greatly disapproved of the choice. Mostly because they'd tried to groom her to become a singer or musician like most of the rest of their family.
Instead Mineth had decided to use her hands to help out instead of her voice. An odd thing given her family were fairly wealthy, but it sent a subtle message to other Bothans that these were dangerous times they lived in, and that everyone should be ready to defend their homes if war broke out.
She sent a congratulative message Mineth's way, knowing it would mean a lot to her.
Changing tact, Kelia briefly checked messages from her handful of other friends and gave them carefully worded responses to them before closing the application.
It always made her uneasy that as she and her friends aged, most of them began playing power games with her. Something that had been an unfortunate inevitability given her technical status among the 'nobility' of Bothan society.
Mineth and another friend of hers, Linay Sul'fay, had been among the few to not fall into this trend.
Though Linay's refusal to engage in such methods was for less... Platonic reasons than would be expected.
Her fur swirled nervously and her face heated up a bit as she remembered that night she and Korsk had spent with Linay.
Quickly she turned her train of thought to something less...
Smutty for the lack of a better term.
Putting away her datapad after checking the local time, and a brief thought about asking a question that'd been at the back of her mind for a while, the Bothan slung the bag over her shoulder and strode out.
Leaving the locker room and boarding a nearby turbolift. Squeezing in among the packed assemblage of other cadets and Citadel staff, Kelia set her destination on the fourteenth level before settling in as the doors slid shut and the lift ascended.
o.o.o.o.o
Ielec hummed to herself as she waited at the table for Kelia to arrive, idly scrolling through news articles and opinion pieces on her datapad.
"So, wait long?" Kelia asked as she sat down in the seat across from the violet Twi'lek.
"Not really, food's still being prepped. By the by, remember that they hot-plate the caf at the same temps they brew it at to save creds and because they expect us to drink it after leaving, don't want you to repeat last time." The Twi'lek warned somewhat cheekily as she paused briefly on an article, specifically one about the ongoing debate on the legality of sector government courts ruling on the constitutionality of Republic laws, before scrolling onwards.
Kelia groaned and made a guttural noise from the back of her throat. "Don't remind me, I was in the infirmary for a week dealing with the burns..." Sitting back up, the Bothan glanced around, seeing small crowds of humans in the restaurant.
There were non-humans as well gathered around in numbers. Mostly Zabrak, but more than a few Twi'leks, Togruta, Rodians, and Bothans.
She spotted a few of the Bothan cadets giving Kelia nervous stares if the rippling of their fur was any indication, their varied builds indicating they were either mostly colonials or were from outside Bothan space.
Giving them a friendly wave, which was the best she could do, Kelia proceeded to lean back in her seat and turned up the table's holoterminal volume.
She noticed it was explicitly set to play Senate broadcasts by whomever was sitting here last. Odd but not out of the ordinary given that many instructors and staff also ate here, and they generally kept an eye on the advancing political situation.
["-saber diplomacy on Azterri was an utter failure! Out of twenty-five hostages, half were killed alongside a third of the Jedi negotiators who went to assure their release!"] The voice of Senator Shayla Paige-Tarkin of the Seswenna sector echoed over the speakers. ["How many more innocents must die before the Senate understands that the Jedi and their Force wizardry is no substitute for a professionally trained law enforcement group or military force! More to the point, how in the blazing stars did the Order expect for only six Jedi to not only secure the release of the hostages but also to secure the area around the landed commuter shuttle to prevent outside forces from escalating the situation to the debacle it became!?"]
Dozens, maybe even hundreds of Senators chattered in the background. Many in agreement with her, with the rest begrudgingly conceding the argument.
Even Kelia agreed to a point, the Jedi were simply too few and too detached from how normal people worked to help in a lot of situations.
Naturally, the Trade Federation representative Lott Dod made his move at that point. The slimly Neimoidian's platform entering view, his intent clearly being to stir the pot further. ["The presence of Jedi in this matter is most outrageous! The Gotal Foreign Affairs committee had already declared their intent to handle the situation internally, so what right did the Jedi have to become involved without their permission!?"] Dod demanded, even Kelia begrudgingly admitting the corporate slimeball had a point.
The Jedi should've stood to the side and advised hostage negotiators, not stormed in and acted as negotiators themselves. Regardless of their intentions, half of the hostages and two of their own had been killed as a result of their inability to control the situation.
This event further stirred the debate into a fervor even as Mas Amedda's booming voice called for order in the Senate.
As she continued to watch, a BD-3000 luxury droid decorated as a Biscuit Baron server sauntered over and set down their trays in front of them, the droid then taking its leave and walking off.
Unwrapping her sandwich, Kelia picked it up and took a bite of it. Ielec turned down the volume as she turned to her own food, but kept an eye on the Aurebesh subtitles flickering across the screen as the debate continued.
Onscreen, Orn Free Taa of Ryloth gave his two creds on the subject by pointedly questioning how the already quite vulnerable Ryloth could be expected to defend itself from slaving raids without a strong outside military, a pertinent question given the Gaulus sector forces were a showpiece fleet of outdated naval units that were effectively Hutt enforcers in all but name.
"Y'know… Mebeh uh'll geht a cehmisshien ohn a chruser if thish kheeps uhp." Kelia mumbled, her words garbled through a full mouth. Comically, the sides of her snout were puffed out like an angry nuna given how full her face was.
Ielec raised a brow ridge and bit into a nuna nugget, her pointed carnivore teeth easily cutting the meat to shreds. "Easy there Kel." She cautioned after swallowing. "You'll choke yourself if you get too excited."
Kelia finished chewing and swallowed her food. "Fine… So, what do you think'll happen with you? Weren't you going for command and control operations?" She asked, idly scratching an itch behind her left ear.
"Yeah, hopefully I'll get into a strategic ops role on Coruscant or something. You still aiming only for a cruiser chair?" Ielec inquired, leaning back in her seat and waiting for Kelia's response.
Kelia shrugged. "Don't really have much ambition to sit on my shebs in some battlecruiser guarding Coruscant, Alsakan, or Kuat... The only thing those ships do aside from sit around is showpiece runs chasing down smugglers. I'd rather be in something where I can make a difference beyond being a colossal waste of credits. And if I was solely in it for the pride of commanding a big ship for the sake of commanding a big ship, manning the helm of my family's Kandosii would be well… Kandosii."
Ielec frowned as she took a bite out of a tato finger, pointing the remainder at the Bothan across from her. "You never explained how the kark they even kept those around, I thought the Republic had them all melted down for scrap?"
"Three were off on a patrol when the hammer came down on Mandalorian space, the Bothans who'd go on to form my clan ended up taking them and about nine Teroch cruisers as 'collateral' when they were forced to leave." Kelia explained as she picked up her Nuna breast sandwich again, waving a hand almost absentmindedly in the process.
Seeing Kelia about to go off on another of her tirades, Ielec calmly waved a hand in a cut-off gesture, the Bothan's fur rippling nervously. "Cut it down to like a sentence Kel." She told the Bothan.
It wasn't that her friends didn't enjoy listening to her talk usually, it's just that sometimes Kelia talked too much for her own good.
"Right... Ah, we have twelve of them now, plus two carrier conversions, and a bunch of smaller ships." She uttered, fur rippling in embarassment.
The Twi'lek cocked her head as Kelia took another sip of her caf. "Huh, that's pretty damn stellar. Even though they're probably not as well armed as they could be, warships that big outside wealthy sectors or Hutt space are pretty rare in large numbers, at least when operated below the sector level."
Kelia nodded excitedly. "I know right!" She stopped suddenly as a chime emitted from her datapad, causing her to look down at the time.
The Bothan's fur spiked in alarm as she read it. "Oh shtak! I'm gonna be late for my tactics class!" She yelped as she scrambled to slip her satchel over her shoulder.
Ielec laughed heartily as Kelia shot to her feet, grabbed her second caf and remaining food in a carriable manner, and rushed off in a hurry.
o.o.o.o.o
The door to Kelia's mid-day tactics class slid open. The lecturer, a one Wullf Yularen, formerly of the Kwymar Sector forces, SBI, and Palpatine's special Anti-Corruption Unit, adjusted his gaze to see the late-coming Bothan enter.
With a half-eaten nuna-meat sandwich clutched in her jaws, a Biscuit Baron takeout bag stuffed in her class ruck, and a caf cup carrier in her 'free' hand, Kelia appeared as the model of an idiot savant.
Something Yularen knew was a fact about the Bothan given the grades she'd earned in his class. And it was not for the first time he wondered how his star student in this class was a neurotic Bothan female descended from Mandalorian exiles.
"At ease Cadet Los'ean, now take a seat, and for the stars' sake please finish your lunch." Yularen sighed in exasperation.
Fur swirling in embarrassment, she did as instructed, plopping herself into an empty seat off to the side, pulling out a flimsiplast notebook and a stylus.
"Now, with that slight interruption out of the way. Onto our current topic of the day." Yularen began as he pressed the screen on his datapad, switching the large holo display behind him along with the terminal screens in front of each cadet.
It was a top-down tactical display, a vastly simplified iteration of those used on warships and in command centers throughout the galaxy.
Aurebesh symbols flickered across the screens, with many cadets murmuring as the words BATTLE OF MALASTARE NARROWS resolved themselves in concert with a large number of ship markers.
Mostly generic types representing a variety of privateer ships. But there were also the larger profiles of Fantail destroyers, Dreadnaught and Carrack cruisers, and lastly a smattering of exported Corellian types, such as DP20s and CR90s, to round everything out.
Bracketed to the side was the image of a Harch in an officer's coat, with a spider-head emblem in a sub-box next to them.
Below the images, the words ADMIRAL TRENCH appeared in Aurebesh.
"Today we'll be detailing the battle of Malastare Narrows." Yularen uttered, his face even and the tone in his voice grim. "This is a subject that is rather personal for myself, but do not hold yourselves back from asking any hard questions regarding the battle."
Kelia's furl swirled anxiously, the various, mostly human, beings around her looking equally off-put by the topic.
Most of them wanted to study the glorious battles of the past, where great lines of warships stood off and pummeled eachother into submission, often whilst wings of fighters swept in and among the opposing fleets and struck wherever possible.
Malastare Narrows on the other hand… Was nothing less than an utter military debacle for the Republic, and one of several crisis that eventually cost Valorum the Chancellorship.
"The opening moves leading up to the battle of Malastare Narrows were fairly standard for a trade crisis of this type. A mix of privateers backed by flotillas from the Tyus and Var Hagen sector forces operating under the authority of Chancellor Valorum were dispatched to end the blockade of Malastare conduced by the Corporate Alliance. The background of which is detailed in your textbooks and will be on your next exam." Yularen informed his class before continuing, turning on a large 3D holodisplay of the battle. "In addition a number of officers from the Judicials and stronger sector groups served as military advisors, myself among them, as at the time I was a Captain in the Kwymar Sector Forces."
He paused for a moment and then went on with the lesson. "Opposing us was a sizable force of Alliance Fantail-class destroyers, backed by a fleet of Sikurdian pirates financed by the Alliance. Leading this blockade was Admiral Trench, a member of the Harch species of Secundus Ando, which are distantly related to the Aqualish."
Kelia fought back an impulse of anger at the mention of pirates and quickly jotted down another note in Botha Cyrillic. A reminder to study the Harch-Aqualish genetic relationship for her Xenobiology final.
Turning her attention back to the lecture as she heard Yularen speak again, Kelia listened at rapt attention.
"At approximately 1500 hours Galactic Standard, Republic-aligned forces moved to break the blockade… Only to be met with accurate long-range missile and turbolaser fire as well as a barrage of mines deployed well in advance. With our assault stymied and broken up by Trench's delaying tactics, he launched his trap as soon as we were in the position he wanted us."
Eight more Fantails popped out of hyperspace behind one of the outer wings of the Republic forces and began hammering the off-guard warships with repeated salvos. The newcomers focusing down those vessels with the weakest shields first to thin out the number of targets on the field.
While on the tactical display this was merely represented by images flickering out of existence, the holo by contrast displayed the sobering reality of warship after warship breaking apart under heavy fire, debris spinning off into space before the projector simply stopped rendering it to reduce processing lag.
"Our forces vastly underestimated Trench's tactical prowess, and we were thoroughly outmaneuvered. Desperate, several ships attempted a last ditch charge against his lines, which repulsed by the sudden deployment of a wing of missile armed Skipray Blastboats, Toscan 8-Qs, and Z-95 Headhunters that devastated our surviving cruisers, and which destroyed the bridge of the command ship. Our handful of CL-1c Lancet and A-6 Seeker squadrons, inexperienced and suffering from flagging morale, were slaughtered." Yularen stated flatly as he pursed his lips, remembering the beings under his command he'd lost that day. "It was nothing less than a massacre."
Yularen exhaled as the displays projected the course of the battle as he explained it. "As the highest ranking officer left alive, I saw that the situation was untenable and ordered a full retreat. Trench, sensing blood in the metaphorical waters, pursued and destroyed a dozen more ships before we managed to flee into hyperspace. We barely escaped with our lives." He uttered solemnly.
Letting the statement sink in for a moment, Yularen finished off his lecture. "After the engagement, the Jedi Order and the Senate properly intervened and a Jedi-led taskforce of Alsakan and Corellian warships broke the blockade. In the ensuing battle, Admiral Trench's flagship was vaporized after its reactor detonated under heavy torpedo fire from a pair of Alsakan Atagas-class heavy cruisers and he was presumed killed. Between the loss of an entire corporate flotilla and with both military and political pressure being brought upon them by the Senate and Trade Federation, the Corporate Alliance agreed to drop the fuel allocation dispute with Malastare's government. The political ramifications of the crisis were far more profound however, further weakening the Chancellor's position and opening him up for the no confidence vote that occurred following the invasion of Naboo."
There was a measure of uncertainty in Yularen's statement about Trench that some of the more astute cadets, Kelia among them, noticed, as if he wasn't entirely sure that the Harch had truly went down with his command. "That concludes our overview of the Battle of Malastare Narrows. Questions, comments?"
Kelia quickly raised her hand.
"Anyone aside from Cadet Los'ean?" Yularen sighed at the lack of patricipation, Kelia's fur swirling in embarrassment as she lowered her arm.
A Duros sitting at the back of the room raised a hand, Yularen gesturing at him to speak.
"What was the level of training maintained by the initial Republic taskforce in comparison to the Alliance Fleet and its Pirate associates?" The Duros, Fom Hoog, asked as he lowered his arm.
"A good question Cadet Hoog. One whose answer is disturbingly poor. Chancellor Valorum opted to utilize nearby Sector Forces under the belief that the political pressure of having nearby sectors involved would force Trench to withdraw."
He let the words hang for a moment before he brought reality crashing down. "Unfortunately the Tyus and Var Hagen sectors didn't have the same military budget as the wealthier Dustig sector did, with most of their naval funding going to fleet maintenance, resupply, kickbacks, and crew pay instead. This was at least partially responsible for the collapse of the Republic battle lines alongside a lack of discipline among the hastily hired privateer groups, whom scattered when Trench launched his ambush attack." Yularen explained. "The well trained and disciplined Corellian and Alsakan crews, backed by Jedi pilots in Whitecloak fighters, fared infinitely better in comparison."
A Human cadet, Miscall Sevena of Eriadu, raised his hand, Kelia rolling her eyes in exasperation. "Here we go…" She thought dryly, a dry look from Yularen indicating he knew what the subject would be but nonetheless called upon him anyways.
"Aren't most of the Tyus and Var Hagen sectors populated by nonhumans?" Miscall snarked upon lowering his hand while edging a look over at Kelia, whose fur bristled in anger, as he did so. "So wouldn't most of the crews be as such?"
He left his true feelings unvocalized, but everyone in the room knew the unsaid statement he intended.
Humans wouldn't've messed up like aliens had.
Ignoring the murmurs, Yularen initiated his practiced response. "While that may be, the vast bulk of their vessels were commanded by human officers, all of whom were highly inexperienced." Yularen retorted sharply. "In my experience species tends to be largely irrelevant, unless they are physiologically or psychologically incapable of perceiving certain tactics. It is culture and sociology that has a greater impact on tactical acuity… For example..." His eyes wandered over the seated cadets before falling upon Kelia. "Cadet Los'ean."
Kelia's ears perked up. "Khiz Instructor?" She uttered, accidentally slipping into Bothese before catching herself and finishing the statement in basic.
"As this is a matter you would be at the least decently well aware of owing to your personal connection, to say nothing of how it has become a case study in boarding actions since, I shall field you this question. During the Third Battle of Void Station in the last of the major Bothan clan wars one-hundred and twenty years ago, what was the primary difference in tactics between Clan Aean's 62nd Basilisk Shock Cavalry Company, and the Torolisian 44th Guards Heavy Infantry Regiment of Clan Onel, which led to the utter defeat of the latter?"
Kelia racked her brain for the answer, remembering that her clan had gotten involved on the side of Clan Askar after Alya, Ufay, and Onel had begun trying to interdict Clan Aean's civilian shipping. She didn't remember why the conflict itself had started, but it was probably something to do with colonization rights if the previous clan conflicts during expansion periods were any indication.
Eventually, she came to an answer. "Well, it was the simple fact that Clan Onel assumed we'd come to them via conventional assault, as Clan Askar and their allies had since Onel took Void Station, and attempt to secure it block by block in an effort to take it intact. They hadn't considering that due to our Mandalorian dominant culture that we might choose avenues of approach that increased collateral damage exponentially, but would equally increase the odds of a quick victory… So they were caught completely off-guard when every bulkhead between the outer plating and their main barracks was ripped wide open by our cavalry scale Besu'liik. Basilisk war droids to be precise." Kelia stated, pausing after her clarification to take a breath before continuing.
"At that point in time nobody had really considered the war droids as, well, anything other than an expensive novelty meant for cultural pride. A viewpoint held ever since we started replicating a few repaired units we recovered off Raxus Prime... And one which ended after the Basilisks slaughtered about a quarter of the 44th's reserve platoons while they were still putting on their RIS armor, followed by our warriors pouring in through the gap to storm the main command center and forcing their commanders to issue a stationwide surrender at blasterpoint." She finished.
Kelia fell silent after her long-winded explanation, adding a silent 'sorry' at the end after realizing she'd gone off on a tirade again.
"And yet, Clan Aean's troops were outnumbered and outgunned significantly by the station's defenders. Additionally, in the harsh and extremely confines of a space platform the material strength of Mandalorian armor no longer significantly defeated the technical specs of Bothan Reactive Interceptor Strike armor, as it would in planetary combat. Am I correct?"
"Correct Instructor." Kelia acknowledged.
"In light of this, why do you believe that Clan Onel didn't account for their enemy shifting to unexpected tactics?" Yularen asked, raising a hand to add emphasis to the question as the other cadets chattered among themselves for a moment.
Kelia made a soft trilling hum as she thought on it before answering. "It was because Clan Onel's military was entirely optimized around fighting Clan Alya, Clan Askar, and their respective allies. Depending on whom they had an active disagreement with of course. And all of whom boasted similar enough cultural mindsets and equipment that it made the highly unorthodox and far more destructive Mandalorian derived tactics of my Clan, and our sub-clans, almost impossible for the average Bothan officer to predict or counteract. Most officers would also never consider the level of danger only two hundred Mandalorians, even if not full Mandos, presented as meaningful when outnumbered ten to one."
She trailed off, not wanting to out any cultural blind-spots in her own species too readily. Stars knew other clans already disliked Aean enough without her going full laserbrain and teaching a bunch of foreign military cadets how to best defeat most conceivable Bothan opponents.
Yularen seemed to ignore this hesitation and spoke again. "An astute observation. And one that you should all hold in mind. Knowing one's enemy is more than just merely understanding their equipment, skills, and battle stratagems, but also their mindsets… Trench understood this at Malastare Narrows, and he bled our initial assault all but dry for our underestimation of him."
He let this sink in and then swapped gears over to the class's current assignment. "Owing to our truncated classtime today, your next assignment will be to take one culture from galactic history and attempt to discover any weakpoints in their military mindsets due to sociological inflexibilities. Certain highly pacifistic cultures that abhor warfare in any capacity, such as the Camaasi, are disqualified. Additionally, you will be graded on effort rather than result as some of you may find it impossible to discover any vulnerabilities without a greater understanding on sociology. Also, while we're on the subject of assignments, I'm giving you all one last reminder that your reports on the doctrinal failings of the ORSF during the Stark Hyperspace War are due next week. Class dismissed."
Kelia, feeling a little put-off by suddenly being the center of attention, stood up and finished off her sandwich and first caf as the class began to filter out.
As she did so, one of her friends, a Cathar male by the name of Marn Jorgan, gave her a pat on the back to catch her attention as he stopped next to her. "Hey, Kel, Ielec wants to try out Endar Spire out in Navy Town later for dinner since classes are done for the day, wanna come with?"
She'd heard stories about that restaurant, not the least that it was supposedly being founded by the wealthy family of an Endar Spire crew member. With the restaurant being built from a heavily repaired and dressed up Hammerhead cruiser's hulk, supposedly that of the Endar Spire herself after she was recovered from the wastes of Taris following the Second Great Galactic War. "Pretty classy but sure, just let me get go changed."
He nodded at her and left, leaving Kelia to pause for a moment wondering if he'd been indirectly asking her out on a date, but she shoved the idea aside. Marn was only a friend and he knew Kelia's past. There was also the fact that Ielec at the least would be there, which implied it was a friendly gathering anyways.
Briefly her thoughts turned to that ever-nagging question she'd had for the past two years, but she sighed and finished packing up her notes before slinging her bag over her shoulder and finishing her now cold tato fingers.
Somehow though, she had a feeling that dinner was going to be an interesting event anyways. Or about as interesting as it got for her.
o.o.o.o.o
It had been a while since Kelia had returned to her dorm room, but the Bothan had still not yet managed to pick out anything presentable after doing some work on her military history and politics class reports.
She made a soft trilling hum as she looked through her casual wardrobe for anything that would be comfortable yet presentable enough for a decently classy establishment, especially one that would undoubtedly also be crawling with off-duty naval officers from throughout the Republic, most of who were on Anaxes for one reason or another.
The Mando in her was absolutely ecstatic to see what was claimed to have been the Endar Spire itself firsthand, mostly given the ship's supposed relation to none other than the Revan. The man who not only destroyed the Mandalorians, but also laid the seeds for their survival.
The cadet in her, however, was somewhat mortified that she'd be going to a high-class establishment.
Slip-ups would be unlikely to be forgotten, especially if someone was angered by them. So every action would have to be as carefully measured as if she was interacting with another Bothan from outside Clan Aean.
Pausing as she picked out a nice green and grey skirt with thigh-cuts for mobility, the Bothan wondered how much anyone really knew about the Old Republic era as it was barely covered under most of the War College's available historical records and classes beyond a handful of key events.
Her own heritage notwithstanding, the most the general populace living outside Mandalorian, or Sith Space naturally, seemed to even remember about the Sith was that they were some kind of Force using boogeymen.
She shrugged the thought off as her mind turned to other subjects, mostly making herself look presentable.
Satisfied with her picks, Kelia idly sniffed at herself and recoiled slightly at the smell.
While Bothans did emit natural odors that were a bit stronger than those most mammalian species, it was clear she still stank somewhat of sweat.
She mildly cursed her direct ancestors for evolving sweat glands under the armpits to cool themselves in more tropical climates.
It also didn't take particularly good eyesight to show that her hair wasn't exactly in the most pristine condition either, nor that the short whiskers on either side of her snout could do with some untangling.
Stars knew how badly other high-class Bothan females would've torn into her for improper grooming. Especially since it would only confirm their biases regarding Clan Aean as being 'rough and uncultured', and herself as a ruddy 'mutt' of Askar and Aean genetics.
At the least her teeth were nice and white, if there was one Askar tradition her father had drilled into her it was keeping them clean and presentable.
Sighing, she pulled out a can of deodorant meant to desaturate any odors lingering in the fur for the sake of non-Bothan species who found such smells unappealing and went over herself a couple of times. Kelia flinched and her fur rippled as some of the aerosol got in her nostrils as she oversprayed it a bit.
A quick but careful brushing fixed the visual presentability issue, mid-length layered wasn't exactly a style she was fond of, but academy guidelines prohibited having longer hair. Otherwise she'd have gone with a ponytail.
Quietly, she let her hair settle before doing a once over of her facial fur and whiskers.
"Well… That looks good enough." She mused softly before picking out a fresh set of underwear that would go with the outfit and then proceeding to change.
A chime emitted from her datapad mid-way through trying to work the strapless bustier's cups over her breasts, the Bothan picking it up to see a notification about a new upcoming special course under the Emergency Defense Strengthening Act, intended to bolster the ranks of the Judicials and those Sector Forces in need of new officers and enlisted personnel.
Included in the message was a suggestion that interested students should apply, but offered no details beyond it being an advanced placement program.
Shrugging, Kelia tapped the accept button before finishing getting dressed. Only then did she put the datapad in her personal satchel alongside her wallet and bank card before exiting her dorm room, locking the door behind her as she left.
o.o.o.o.o
Ielec Gible sighed as she and Marn Jorgan waited at the entrance of the Endar Spire, converted from one of the Hammerhead's cruiser's docking tubes, in the central Navy Town district of Pols Anaxes, which laid not far from the Citadel. Hover-limos zipped about quietly on the handful of surface roads alongside Keffi drawn carriages belonging to the elite of Anaxes and her sister-world Axum, the twin jewels of the Azure Imperium.
From a nearby groundcar tunnel access well, Kelia strode out and in doing so gave her friends an inadvertent view of her thighs through the skirt cut as her legs moved.
Ielec whistled softly, catching Kelia's attention. "Damn, you really know how to dress Kel." She appraised, giving the Bothan a smirk and a thumbs up.
The Bothan's blond fur rippled in embarrassment as she turned and spotted them. "Well… I figured since this place was pretty classy…" She admitted sheepishly as she trotted over.
Marn laughed in agreement. "It is. The whole thing to bring it to Anaxes was financed by House Ulgo of Alderaan. So establishment rules are if you're not in a well-maintained service or dress uniform, you've got to be at least dressed snazzily."
"How'd you even get a reservation for this?" Kelia inquired, a number of security officers from the Azure Sector Forces passing her as they headed the tunnel entrance, the men giving the cadets curious looks for a brief moment before ignoring them. "When me and Helec tried to get a reservation we got told we'd need to wait like three years!" She huffed in annoyance.
Marn smirked. "Perks of being descended from a decorated member of Havoc Squad." The brown-furred Cathar uttered simply as he crossed his arms across his formal coat-clad chest.
Ielec, wearing a Corellian Cocktail dress, rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Yes, yes, we bow before the might of the Jorgan family's ability to produce exceptional soldiers." She uttered sarcastically before turning to Kelia. "Shame you and Helec never went anywhere."
The Bothan gave her a glare. "We were only friends." She replied nonchalantly. "Great guy though... Kinda sad he dropped out when his homeworld joined the Confederacy. You guys would've liked him."
"You keep saying that. Doesn't that imply there was a bit more to it?" Ielec prodded with a smirk, Kelia's fur bristling in anger as Marn rolled his eyes at their antics and went over to talk to a human attendant standing nearby about their seating.
Ielec made a move to press the matter, but the soft sounds of a police landspeeder coming to a halt nearby cut her off. This was followed by a pair of well-equipped patrol officers exiting the vehicle, which had its green and white lights flashing. The two officers strode over to a rather aggravated looking Anaxes Government official, whose speeder limo had been smashed up before being sprayed blue and white with poorly drawn CIS markings, the man visibly complaining about the lax security and the 'hooliganism' of the offworld cadets.
The two cadets stared at the sight, somewhat unnerved by the fact neither of them had noticed it at first.
The silence was so awkward that both of them readily headed inside the moment Jorgan waved them over after getting their seats.
o.o.o.o.o
By contrast, the walk through the Spire's hull was marvelous, like a time capsule of naval history.
Old Republic naval and army memorabilia including uniforms, weapons, and droids lined the walls here and there. Mixed in among them were models of old warships, fighters, and even the armor of a Jedi Knight of the era. To say nothing of how the ship's internal architecture was so different from modern functionalist designs.
Not all of said artifacts were of Republic origin however. The chrome plated armor of a Revanite Sith Trooper stood imposingly near the refresher entrance, while a suit of red Neo-Crusader Rally Master armor occupied a space near the bar the three cadets sat down at.
Said bar was in turn built around an old Aurek-class fighter with the wings folded in stowage mode.
Kelia's brain had immediately gone into full 'look at everything' mode, it taking a gentle tap on the side of her head from Ielec to get her back on focus.
"So, what'll you two be having?" Marn asked as he checked a menu after they were seated.
Ielec shrugged. "I'll have whatever's the spiciest thing they've got."
"Bothawui Sez fillet with Corellian Mashed Tatos." Kelia replied flatly as she set her menu down.
"What is it with you and fish? You keep ordering fish every time you get the opportunity and it's a decent place to get it." Ielec inquired as she looked over at Kelia.
The Bothan shrugged. "I just like fish…" She said softly as a loud cry of NUUUNNNAAAA! issued from a nearby speaker set.
A quick glance at a nearby holoscreen revealed that one of Baktoid Combat Automata's Nunaball demo teams of B2 Super Battle Droids had scored a game-winning touchdown goal, specifically against Serv-O-Droid's team of RIC labor droids.
The B2s excitedly raised their mitten handed arms into the air in celebration while the RICs rolled off the field in discontent.
Kelia whistled at the designs as the sleek blue-grey shelled droids marched off to where the Baktoid Rep, a Skakoan in a pressure suit, was waiting. "Damn, the Seps are actually going the full length and showing off their designs aren't they."
"Just mass production ones apparently." Marn noted warily. "It's one of those, 'if they're confident in these to show them off publicly, what else do they have' kinda things that probably gets the Bothan SpyNet, and everyone else, thrown into a tizzy. Anyways, I'm gonna be having a Nuna Veruna Salad." He said as he punched their orders into a restaurant datapad sitting nearby, a ding from the device indicating the order.
"I feel like that's a bad pun, and not the name of an actual food." Ielec scoffed, Kelia groaning in agreement.
Marn gave them a hapless shrug. "Supposedly the Naboo chef who first made it like a decade ago named it in reference to some food from some planet in the Fath sector, don't know what world though."
"That's just kriffing stupid." Kelia uttered flatly.
"I'll say… Hey Kel, what's the Bothan word for spoon again?" Ielec asked as she looked at her utensils.
She stared at Ielec "Why are you asking this now?"
"Just tell me the damn word."
"Lolof." The Bothan stated.
"Well, in honor of Janson, who sadly was not invited today. I say…" Ielec began with a smarmy grin, her violet lekku twitching eagerly.
Kelia, now aware of where her friend was going, sighed. "I swear by Golm and Mandalore the Resurrector…" She grumbled under her breath.
"They better knock it lolof." The Twi'lek joked, elbowing Kelia slightly as Marn groaned softly and facepalmed.
"You just said 'they better knock it spoon'." Kelia pointed out, entirely unamused.
Ielec pouted. "Kel, quit trying to ruin my fun."
"Get me drunk and I'll stop." She retorted testily.
Marn sighed. "I should've invited Vel…" He muttered under his breath before sighing as he took in the sight before him. "Alright, drinks are on me then." The Cathar half-growled before waving over the bartender droid. "Give us a few rounds. Corellian Ale to be precise."
"Aight." The automaton uttered before pouring a few shot glasses. "By the by, I'm legally required to remind you to take it easy. Don't want no hassles here."
"I'll be fine…" He informed the droid before looking over at his friends. "But them? Kriff if I know."
"Just keep it clean buddy." The droid snapped at him in its electronic drawl before turning away and handing out the drinks.
Watching the two females trade jabs with eachother as they began to down their first shots while waiting for their food, Marn realized that maybe the bartender droid should've told Kelia and Ielec that. Kelia was already anxious as hell and in a classy environment, where social pressure was probably bearing down on her shoulders...
And Ielec didn't know when to stop sometimes, especially when intoxicated.
"I really should've brought Janson." The brown furred Cathar realized much too late for his own sanity.
o.o.o.o.o
AN: Hopefully I can keep this up within a meaningful timeframe.