Chapter 1 – Pirates
I do not own Star Wars or its characters. I do, however, own this work of fanfiction :D
"Incoming transmission, Sir," said a B-1 Battle droid from where it sat before a set of screens aboard a Separatist Destroyer-class vessel.
"Put it through," growled the droid's superior.
"Roger roger."
A hologram flickered to life. It was of a bearded, old-looking man who nevertheless exuded an air of authority even though he was systems away on the planet of the Serenno. He looked on at the figure standing before him, the Supreme Commander of the Separatist Armies, the Jedi Killer, the cyborg that was General Grievous.
The General's reptilian-looking eyes turned from the Battle droid to the hologram as it appeared. His arms were folded behind his back, the long black cape he wore fell down his back, showing a body that resembled that of a Krath War-Droid. He stood in a hunched-over position, making him appear shorter than the large hologram before him.
"Grievous, I have a task for you," began Count Dooku.
The cyborg said nothing, waiting for his superior to carry on. A task? thought the General. Whatever it is, it had better be worth it. Grievous cared little about politics – a fact he had made clear several times before – he much preferred to be on a battlefield or leading his droid army in a space battle.
"It is of the utmost importance, Grievous," the Count added, perhaps sensing Grievous' disdain. "The Zygerians have requested an alliance with the Confederacy. They are willing to provide us with much-needed resources… as long as we can provide them with the necessary labour."
"I did not realise the Separatist Alliance dealt in slaves now," Grievous commented.
"As the Clone War drags out, we are losing money faster than it can be made. During wartime, it does not matter where those credits come from so long as the supply is steady." Was Count Dooku's curt reply.
"And what would you have me do, Count?" Asked the General.
"The Zygerians have dispatched an envoy to Serenno," the Count explained, "it has already lost both its escort ships to a band of pirates. You will meet the ship in the Yavin System and ensure that it makes it to its final destination. That is all."
"Of course, Count Dooku." Grievous bowed his head.
With a curt nod in the cyborg's direction, the hologram disappeared, leaving Grievous standing alone. He turned his head towards one of the many Battle droids manning the bridge.
"Set a course to the Yavin System," he ordered.
"Roger roger," responded the droid and made the necessary calculations.
The Destroyer turned almost ninety degrees to the left as the droids adjusted its position.
"Preparing to jump to lightspeed," said another.
All it took was the simple push of a lever and the Destroyer plunged forwards into one of perhaps millions of blue-tunneled hyperspace lanes, moving at a speed that should have been impossible to reach in such a large vessel.
About an hour later, the same lever was pulled back, dropping them out of hyperspace. Around the ship, the stars blurred back into individual specks again and a low boom announced their arrival in the Yavin System. Ahead of the Destroyer loomed the massive red planet, Yavin Prime, orbited by its many moons. It ought to have been peaceful here, far from any active fronts, but it was not. Before the Destroyer raged a battle between the very same envoy ship Grievous had been sent to protect and a small fleet of starships.
The fighters zoomed past the Zygerian ship, nimbly avoiding the blasts from its cannons while one circled around from behind and fired a single ion torpedo aimed at the ship's rear thrusters. It detonated on impact and almost immediately, Grievous saw the ship power down. A larger ship sped in, wasting no time in docking with the disabled craft. He couldn't help but wonder if his Destroyer had been spotted yet. With a growl, he pointed to the two ships.
"Send out the Vulture Droids now!" He snarled, "I want those enemy fighters destroyed!"
"Yes, Sir!"
"Roger roger."
The hangar bay doors opened, and out of them zoomed almost a hundred Vulture Droids, ready to shoot down any unknown craft. The Vulture Droids hounded the enemy fighters, not allowing them a moment's respite and downing them at a rate. Of course, their side was not without loss, too, with nearly a dozen Vulture Droids destroyed by the enemy. Eventually those pirates that were left decided to cut their losses and jumped into hyperspace, Vulture Droids scattering in their wake.
So much for honour among thieves, thought Grievous as he looked to their main ship that still remained docked with the Zygerian vessel. He eyed the ships, suspecting that the pirate crew must still be aboard the envoy's ship; perhaps even headed back to their own ship to try and escape. The corners of the cyborg's eyes lifted as he smiled. It was the kind of smile that sent shivers down spines.
"Have the tractor beam ready!" Grievous instructed the droids, "If that ship attempts to flee, keep it here!"
"I'm not sure they'd like that, Sir," quipped one droid.
Grievous shot it a withering look, immediately making it uneasy.
"Prepare a boarding party. I will deal with the remaining forces."
"Roger roger."
And that's it for Chapter 1! Thanks so much for reading and feel free to leave a review!
See you all next time, and until then please stay safe everyone!
:)