I do not own Star Wars The Clone Wars or RWBY. They belong to Lucas Films and Rooster Teeth respectively.
Chapter 2: Where are we?
Remnant, a beautiful planet with a dragon-shaped continent and a shattered moon. In the untouched vacuum of Remnant's Space, a large fleet jumped out of nowhere. The ships, or more specifically, their crew and passengers, were more or less in good shape, but if the previous events that the fleet experienced were anything to go by, these men were certainly scared shitless. On the bridge of the RSD Independence, Garreth Azure finally opened his eyes and found himself still alive and not in a crisp like he expected to be. He took one look at himself and then towards the rest of the crew.
"We're not dead are we?" Azure asked as he patted down his white coat.
Admiral Vaux, who was also recovering from shock managed to reply "Unfortunately yes..."
"Must your humor be so dry?"
"Only for you Garreth, only for you."
Azure paid no mind to his Admiral's retort and finally took control of the situation "Status report?"
Several officers scrambled quickly to fulfill the requested information. One officer finally responded, "All systems except for the... navicomputer..."
"What?!" Vaux exclaimed as he checked on the console that the officer was observing.
"Admiral, what's happening?" Azure asked as he approached the console as well.
"What the devil... the navicomputer... it's been completely wiped out..." The older man said. Azure felt dread upon hearing this. "You mean to say that any data for jumping into hyperspace is gone?" he tried to confirm.
Vaux could only mutter an affirmative. Azure and the rest of the bridge crew's hearts sunk. Without the data of the navicomputer, getting back to known space would be as difficult as finding a small syringe in the middle of a scrap yard, not to mention the risk being too great. For all intents and purpose, they were royally fucked. It's one thing to lose their navigational records, but it's an entirely new thing to attempt to jump without said records.
Azure took a moment to organize his thoughts before finally giving orders "Admiral, I want all fleet officers to be briefed on our situation. The crew should also be informed as well." he began, "I also want our long-range communications back up as soon as possible. If we can get a message to the Army Command, then maybe they can track us, send us navigational data and help us get back."
"Aye, sir!" the bridge crew replied.
Azure nodded and then looked at the Admiral "Hold the relay repairs for 30 minutes and deactivate our hyperdrives. Relay these orders to the rest of our ships, if any are remaining..." he said, the sudden realization that his fleet may not have been so lucky. Admiral Vaux, who had looked out the bridge windows, put his worries to rest. "They seem to be here Garreth. Go rest, I'll sort this lot out."
"Bless you, Vaux. Bless you."
With that, Azure retired to his quarters.
Toro Company Barracks, Independence
"Kriffing hell, talk about a bumpy ride eh Gus?"
"Killdane, shut up and help me clean this mess on the floor."
"Jeez Gus, don't tell me you left your sense of humor back on Florum."
The trooper known as Gus sighed "No Killdane, I didn't leave it. I turned it off. Now please, just help me clean this up."
"Well, if you put it like that, maybe I won-"
Before the trooper named Killdane could continue, a gruff voice finally silenced them.
"Killdane. Shut. Up."
"S-sir! Sorry, sir!" The cheeky clone apologized.
Captain Sixers rubbed his temples before speaking "Go on and help Gus and don't start any cheek again."
"Yes sir!"
With that done, Captain Sixers went back to his thoughts. He knew that there was something up with the fleet, especially after the sudden shouts from the Admiral himself. "A sudden hyperspace jump? When does that happen?"
His thoughts were cut short when his comm went off "Calling all commanding officers to the briefing room. Admiral's orders. Repeat, calling all officers to the briefing room to receive new orders."
With his next orders now coming through, Sixers rose from his desk in his unit's bunks and went off to the Independence's bridge.
As he exited his bunk, he was met with one the sight of a familiar trooper. The trooper in question had his helmet off which helped him identify who it was. The distinct skull tattoo on his left cheek was a dead giveaway of who it was.
"Mors old boy? How's it been?" Sixers beamed as the trooper now identified as Mors turned to meet him.
"Kriffing hell Sixers! I didn't know I was passing your bunks." Mors replied as he patted Sixers on the shoulder.
"You got new orders for the bridge?"
"Nah, mate. Commander Moris asked me to wait in his office."
Sixers nodded in understanding "Well, I gotta get moving brother. Admiral called the commanding officers to the bridge."
"Right, see you around Six."
"You too Mors."
The two officers would soon go on to their respective destinations, with Sixers arriving alongside some of his fellow Guard captains. As they entered the briefing room, they were greeted with the sight of other regiment officers and even a few holograms of legion officers that were off-ship. At the end of the table were Admiral James Vaux and a few other senior naval officers. Chatter filled the room as officers spoke to one another on what was going on. A few minutes later, the doors to the briefing room opened to reveal the Field Marshal in his crisp white uniform.
"Marshal on parade!" One of the clone officers shouted. The officers saluted and were met with the Field Marshal saluting in reply before speaking "At ease."
Azure walked towards where the Admiral before he finally spoke again "Gentlemen, as you are no doubt aware, we have recently engaged a subjugator-class dreadnaught. Sometime before the engagement ended, the ship dashed our fleet and destroyed itself. At first, we did not receive any damage, however, not long after the explosion, the fleet was thrown into hyperspace without assistance from the navicomputer which leads us to our next predicament. As I've just confirmed with the rest of the fleet, all ships had their navicomputers wiped following our arrival to this system."
A series of murmurs sounded across the room, but Admiral Vaux would have none of this "GENTLEMEN, please maintain order."
The noise died down before a voice sounded off "Permission to speak sir."
Azure looked at the officer. He bore the colors of the 501st on his armor, accompanied by a sunvisor, a kama, and a pauldron which most officers tend to wear. What stood out was the engravings on his helmet which read as "Born To Charge" in aurebesh.
"Yes, Commander Moris?" The Field Marshal acknowledged.
"Do we have any idea which system we're in?"
Azure replied "At first glance, I would've said we were at the Solar System, but we're not. The planet looks identical, yet everything is different. There's only sun, a planet, and a shattered moon."
"Will we be sending probes to investigate?"
"No commander, we won't. We'll send a reconnaissance team to find out more about this planet."
Admiral Vaux looked at Azure "Are you sure Field Marshal? It would be risky to send a team, not to mention the fact that the system does not seem to have the means to travel into space."
Garreth replied calmly "We'll discuss this at a later date, I want Commander Moris and the Admiral to stay, the rest of you are dismissed."
The officers replied with a chorus of "Yes sir! and Aye, sir!"'s before leaving the room.
When the last of the officers had gone, Azure tapped a few buttons on the briefing room's table before 8 other holographic figures emerged. The clone troopers as Commander Moris observed seem to be various arrangements of ARC Troopers, Republic Commandos, Scout Troopers, Pilots, and Airborne Troopers.
"Gentlemen, welcome," Azure said as the men on the hologram saluted to which he returned with his own.
"Let's not waste any time. As you all know, our fleet has ended up in an unknown system. Initial scans suggest that the planet is inhabited. Our objective is to gather intel as best as we can without raising suspicion. The secondary objective is to make first contact with the planet's government. Questions?"
"I do have a question Garreth." Admiral Vaux said.
"Yes, Admiral?"
"Are you sure about this? The procedure is usually, probes first, men second."
Azure nodded "It is, but I feel that we would gain more if we get down there personally."
Admiral Vaux relented "Very well. Which unit are we sending in?"
"I'm sending Foxtrot 9 as my escort to the surface," replied Garreth. As he said this, the clones looked at the Field Marshal as if he were mad.
"Yes, very goo- Wait, ESCORT you?!" Vaux exclaimed as the Marshal's words finally clicked into him.
"Why yes, they will escort me to the planet. Is there a problem?"
The Admiral looked as if he were assigned to Anakin Skywalker at the start of the Clone Wars "Problem? Sir, you are effectively the head commander of this entire operation. It's too risky for you to go planetside."
"I did say I would be accompanied by Foxtrot 9 did I not?" Azure replied calmly.
"What if you were captured?!" Vaux tried, yet he knew it was no use. Working with Azure had shown him that when he made up his mind, it would take a lot for him to at least reconsider.
"Then Foxtrot 9 blasts the Shabuir to Teth," Garreth replied again, but he does understand his Admiral's concerns "I understand that it's risky, but I'd rather be there on the ground than stuck in the operations center. If it puts your mind to ease, Besh 6 has special orders to assist Foxtrot 9 should they need it, and you know Besh 6 can get shit done."
Admiral Vaux finally surrendered "Very well, I know better than to try and stop you, but I'll have fighters and gunships ready to scramble on a second's notice."
The Field Marshal smiled "That's good. I'll leave you in charge Admiral. Commander Moris, you're the Admiral's right. The rest of you gentlemen may go. Foxtrot 9, Besh 6, Main Hangar Bay in 15 minutes."
The men replied with a chorus of affirmatives as they went on to fulfill their tasks.
Main Hangar Bay, Independence
Captain Hound, also known as Foxtrot Actual, waited patiently for the Field Marshal in the hangar bay. A few minutes after their briefing, he and his men were ready for dust-off. He looked at the hangar adjacent to him and was met with the sight of a black LAAT gunship, most likely fitted for Besh 6, just like his own gunship. Speaking of Besh 6, he saw the 12 man Commando Unit in their blackened Katarn class armor that varied for each commando. One of the clone commandos looked at him and nodded in greeting, Hound nodded back.
"You know, after transferring from the Coruscant Guards to the 501st, you'd think that I would've met them by now." Hound thought to himself "Then again, Besh 6 is one of the supreme commando units for a reason..."
Before he could think of anything else, he heard a familiar voice.
"Ah, you're here. I apologize for my delay, my armor's HUD was still installing the newest software when I tried to open it."
Hound looked at the origin of the voice and was met by the Field Marshal in phase II clone armor. The markings signified that he was 501st. The armor itself was very similar to what a clone officer usually wears, a kama, a shoulder pauldron, and a pair of macrobinoculars adorned his helmet. The helmet itself possessed only basic 501st markings with the only real difference being the distinct small flag on the right side of his helmet with the words "Stand up and at 'em!" in Aurebesh below it. The ARC Captain nodded "It's quite alright sir, as you said earlier, we don't have a timetable."
Azure nodded "Yet it's good to maintain the time, you know how it is Captain... Hound correct? I remember reviewing your file a few days ago. You we're in the Coruscant Guard were you not?"
"Yes sir, I was. I requested a transfer to the 501st 3 months ago before I applied for ARC certification." Hound replied as he led the Marshal and his men to their gunship.
Azure nodded "Yes, you had quite the file so I've heard," he said as he placed his helmet on "Right, let's get started. Comms check, 1, 2, 3. Can I be confirmed? Callsign Aurek Actual."
"Comms check acknowledged Aurek Actual. You've been switched to comms channel 302 with Foxtrot 9 and Besh 6. ATC will clear your gunships in 2 minutes tops, over." The officer on the other end of the comms informed.
"Aurek Actual copies all, be advised, Foxtrot 9 and I will maintain radio silence upon landing. Besh 6 will report our movements, Actual, over, and out."
Not too long later, Azure felt his gunship take off. Sure enough, Besh 6's gunship was following suit. The two LAATs were then being escorted by 2 Z-95 Headhunters which had also been fitted for this stealth mission. The entourage of spacecraft would make their descent on the planet's surface where they would split up, with the fighters maintaining high altitude, while the two gunships would maintain their course for the forest near the large structure.
The pilots eventually opened the LAAT's gunships to reveal the ARC Trooper team and the Field Marshal inside. One ARC Trooper was holding a device out as if he were scanning for something. Finally, they found a clearing where they could land, and soon, Foxtrot 9 and Field Marshal Garreth Azure took their first steps on the planet.
Garreth lowered his macrobinoculars as he took the time to observe the area as the ARC Troopers secured the LZ. The forest was filled with trees that seem similar to those he saw on his expedition on Earth. The wildlife also seems to be the same. He looked at the ARC Trooper who was scanning the environment earlier and signaled with his hands for an update on the atmosphere.
The ARC Trooper signaled back with an all-clear. Garreth nodded and signaled his men to disable their helmet speakers to avoid being heard while they talk on comms.
"Gunship Theta, you are cleared for dust-off, return to this LZ in an hour and a half," Azure told his gunship pilot.
"Roger that Aurek Actual, Gunship Theta, over, and out."
The gunship that carried them soon took off. Azure then saw the Gunship carrying Besh 6 land at a different LZ. Knowing his men were in place, he gave the order to advance into the woods.
...
Elsewhere in the Emerald Forest, a blonde woman who seems to be in her late 40s, a green-haired, middle-aged man, and a portly man who was in his senior years, were treading carefully in the forest. A few minutes ago, Ozpin reported that several of the cameras in the Emerald Forest had gone offline. Hence, Professors Glynda Goodwitch, Bartholomew Oobleck, and Peter Port set out to investigate the disturbance. As they got closer to the anomalous area, Glynda couldn't help but notice something off, as if she were being watched.
They finally arrived at the disturbed area and were met with the sight of the cameras. At first glance, they seemed undamaged, but they noticed that the cameras were deactivated as if they were no longer being powered.
"Odd... the circuits don't seem to be damaged in any way. What do you think my friend?" Oobleck asked Port.
"One thing's for certain, a Grimm didn't do this." The stout professor replied as he watched the trio's backs.
"You two, come look at this." A voice that sounded like Oobleck's said.
"What is it, Bart?" The portly man asked.
"I didn't say anything, my good friend."
Glynda raised an eyebrow at this.
Port looked at his friend "You what? I am certain you DID say something."
Oobleck looked at Port "As I said, I didn't say anything."
Amidst the confusion between the duo, Glynda heard the faint sound of a click before she spotted two cylindrical devices lay before her, Port and Oobleck.
"GET BACK!" She yelled, but before she could use her semblance to throw the devices away, her vision was impaired by a bright flash that blinded her, alongside a disorienting ringing sound.
When she slowly regained her vision back, she was met with the sight of Peter and Bart on the ground, most likely unconscious, and armored men surrounding them. Before she could stand up and fight, she felt a barrel line up with her head. She dared to look up and sure enough, one of the armored men had his firearm aimed at her. The Deputy Headmistress looked up to the man who had his weapon pointed at her and was met with a helmet similar to what Atleasian soldiers would wear, yet the helmet doesn't appear to be Atleasian at all. The man in question shook his head at her as if telling her not to try anything. In her position, she could do nothing but comply and hope that Ozpin tries to find them.
...
Unbeknownst to the huntress, the armored men were conversing via their helmets.
"Was that really necessary?" Field Marshal Azure asked the ARC Trooper Captain, Hound.
"With respect sir, you did say that we should remain cautious." The ARC Captain replied as he kept his DC-15s on the blonde woman.
"Touché. Well, we don't want to leave a bad impression, stand the men down and help them up."
"...yes sir."
No sooner was the order given, the ARC Troopers of Foxtrot 9 lowered their blasters and began helping the 3 hunters.
Garreth approached the blonde woman who looked confused at the sudden change of attitude "Do you speak my language?" he asked slowly.
The blonde only nodded. It was clear that she did not trust them one bit after what they did. He reckoned that introductions were in order, maybe he could still clear up this misunderstanding. Azure turned on his helmet speakers so that the woman could hear him.
"Good evening, I am a commander of a group of explorers..." he began.
The blonde once again looked in confusion as she began to get up, but Azure continued as she took a more defensive stance. Behind him, Captain Hound gripped his blaster, ready to fire at a split second's notice.
"...we apologize for assaulting you and your friends, we were simply cautious with any who approaches us."
The woman muttered under her breath "If that was cautious, then I fear what paranoid would look like."
"To make up for our mistake, we would like to accompany you back to where you came from." The Field Marshal explained.
The blonde opened her mouth to reply, but a sudden howl stopped her.
"Aurek Actual, motion trackers just went off. Besh 6 reports several unknowns heading your way." Hound said through their helmet comms. The rest of Foxtrot 9 began to set up a perimeter around the Field Marshal and the 3 strangers. Garreth pulled out his DC-17 Commando Pistol to defend himself. He didn't notice that the blonde woman behind him had pulled out a riding crop as well.
A rustle was heard in the bushes, an ARC Trooper aimed his WESTAR-M5 at said bush. Then, a black wolf-like creature sprang out and tried to pounce on the trooper but before it could get him, it was held in place. Not wasting a minute, Hound and some of the ARCs shot at the pouncing beast, it was destroyed in a matter of milliseconds before fading into dust. It only occurred to them that the creature glowed a hint of purple. Azure and Hound looked at the woman and saw her with her riding crop out and aimed at where the beast was.
"There are more. We must get back to the Academy." The blonde announced as she helped the portly man they stunned earlier. The green-haired man was also recovering but needed help.
"We have a ship, we can get it and get us out of here faster. Do you trust us?" Azure tried, maybe this time, she'd be willing to hear them out.
The howls increased in number, the woman finally replied "Then get moving, lead the way!"
"Hound, get one of your men to assist their friend. Besh 6, cover our retreat. Gunship Theta, return to the LZ, stat!" Azure ordered as his men followed without question. The small group began to make their way to the landing zone, with some of the ARC Troopers pausing to fire back at the pursuing beasts. Elsewhere, Besh 6 was assisting the fleeing Foxtrot 9 and their guests by taking potshots at the unknowns.
"Captain, we gonna rendezvous with them?" asked one of the Besh 6 commandos as they shadowed the group.
The Commando's leader replied "Negative, we have gunship Volley to pick us up when they get out."
That was enough to satisfy the other commando as they dropped another one of the dark creatures.
Back with Foxtrot 9, the group continued to flee and while the nearby Besh 6 had taken out a good portion of the hostiles, the pack was still at large. At this point, some of the ARC Troopers had resorted to throwing behind thermal detonators which saw some success.
As the group got closer to the LZ, larger beasts had begun to show up which needed more than a single shot, unlike their previous counterparts. Azure monitored his HUD as he received updates on their extractions ETA. Finally, the group reached their destination. There was just one problem. The gunship was not yet here.
"Damn it Theta, where are you?" Azure commed as the ARC Troopers began to fire upon the incoming beasts. The woman also flung away the monsters with a flick of her crop while the green-haired man and the portly elder began to fire into their foes as well. Just as the largest of the monsters came, a relieving sound filled the air as gunship Theta arrived with its automated composite beam turrets making short work of the hostile creatures. With the LZ now clear, the gunship finally landed as Foxtrot 9 went aboard. At another LZ, Besh 6 were quietly extracted by their gunship.
As the gunship flew, the pilot asked Azure "Back to the Indie sir? Or do we drop off our guests at the nearby castle?"
"Affirm on the latter lieutenant." The Marshal replied as he eyed their guests. The blonde tended to the green-haired man whilst their other companion panted in exhaustion "Hoo... hoo... hooo... that was certainly a run that hard-pressed even me... wouldn't you agree Barty?"
"Indeed Peter, in our state, we surely would've had a more difficult time. It was just so fortunate of us that these gentlemen were kind enough to assist us back to Beacon... though there should be some resentment due to the events prior, what say you, Glynda?" The man who Azure now knew as Barty replied to his friend Peter.
The blonde who was now known as Glynda finally spoke "While I am grateful for their assistance, Bartholomew, their earlier actions tell me that there is more to these men than simple, over-cautious explorers."
The ARC Troopers remained alert as they gripped their weapons. Azure sighed "Well, you'd be right to be so, but rest assured, no more harm shall come to you."
"Forgive me when I say that I find it hard to believe."
The Marshal shrugged "I don't blame you, Miss Glynda."
The rest of the trip went off without much conversation apart from the report that Captain Hound was giving to the Admiral through private channels.
It wasn't long before the gunship touched down at the courtyard of what Azure and his men assumed to be the Academy that Glynda mentioned. At the center of the courtyard stood a man with white hair, a black and green suit, and a cane. He eyed Azure and the ARC Troopers with curiosity as they helped the 3 hunters off the gunship. The man approached the Field Marshal, but one of the ARC Troopers got in his way. Azure signaled him to stand down as he approached the new individual.
"I take it you were the ones who were causing our equipment in the forest to malfunction?" The man asked.
"We were, for which we are sorry for, as we were simply being cautious with our approach," Azure replied.
The man nodded "Very well. I believe introductions are in order. I am Headmaster Ozpin of Beacon Academy."
Azure smiled "Azure. Garreth Azure. However, I'm afraid there is more than what meets the eye here."
"Do tell," Ozpin responded.
"It would be better if we discussed this somewhere more private."
Ozpin nodded "Very well, follow me if you would please," he said as he gestured Azure and his men to follow him. Glynda sighed at Ozpin's recklessness but trusted the Headmaster's judgment nonetheless.
...
The group soon find themselves in Ozpin's office and Azure had to admit, the office design was certainly one of a kind. The entire floor seems to be above gears and mechanisms. Their purpose left much to the imagination, but his thoughts were soon cut off by Ozpin.
"Now that we are all settled, I am intrigued by what you meant by "more than meets the eye."
Azure nodded "Indeed, but before I explain, I must ask a question."
Ozpin motioned for him to ask.
"Have you ever been to space?"
The Headmaster shook his head "No. No, we haven't. For all its usefulness, Dust does not work outside of Remnant's atmosphere."
Azure nodded "We thought as much... Headmaster Ozpin, would you believe me if I tell you that we are not of this world?"
"Well, I would be skeptical. However, if presented with sufficient evidence, I would indeed believe you."
"Good. Now allow me to tell you about us. We are not simple explorers. We are part of a Galactic Expeditionary Corp, and we would very much like to establish diplomatic relations here."
Thus the Field Marshal explained his story to the Headmaster and his friends.
And that wraps up Chapter 2 of the story! Hope you lads like it and look forward to seeing more of this. Tried my hand in military comms and I'd say that I tried my best. Tell me what you think about them in the reviews!
Now, onto reviews!
MidKnightMoonglow99: Yes, the resolution does seem a bit cleaner than it should be. However, the reason behind this was so that this story could exist. Perhaps I could've done more repercussions that may or may not affect future stories. Rest assured, I'll take the review into mind next time I make story lore for future fics! Thanks!
The next chapter will take place after this one (after Azure's explanation.) If you are curious about what I have planned for the story, feel free to ask and maybe I might answer your inquiries (won't spoil anything too major of course :b )
Until then, this is Solemn signing off! Stay frosty because that's soldiering!