Hey guys, I'm back with another chapter of Remnant Unleashed. Glad I'm getting a lot of follows and favorites for this story, I'm really pleased with the support. There's a lot going on right now in my life, but I am still able to get out some great chapters for my stories and the support you guys and girls are giving me means a lot to me.
Last time, Blake revealed to Sun and Rose that she used to be part of the White Fang, Arthur is a Human/Faunus Hybrid, Galen is not the only lightsaber user on Remnant but the person who has the sabers is out cold and wounded, more droid forces appear to be on Remnant than the ones encountered in Forever Fall, ARC-77 or Fordo has arrived and now a small Imperial Fleet has arrived in Remnants system. What does this mean for the planet? You'll have to wait and see.
Now onto the reviews.
Spartan-626: Thank you for those words. It means a lot to me. As too how the droids got on the planet, that will have to wait for a while. But I will give you and the others a hint, it involves someone whose fate remains unknown in the Legends universe of Star Wars.
42: There are other versions of Clones that are on Remnant as you are about to see in this chapter. But there are a few Clone Commando Squads with them, as for X-1, X-2 and Clone Assassins, I'm not so sure about them or the Nul-Class or Blaze Troopers, but I assure you when Ironwood meets them and one of the Jedi, I have made survive Order 66, he will be in for quite a surprise.
Sheploo: How indeed did the SDC get their hands-on battle droids. I'm still working on that part.
Jack Smith1: Thanks for that my friend and there are going to be more clones arriving this chapter, all of whom have by my will removed their chips. I can't tell you the names of all of them, but I can assure you that several clones that worked with and were a part of the 501st who originally died in the series are alive, along with a certain Captain we all know and love.
Ok, reviews done let's get it on. Disclaimers are the same as before, please enjoy.
Chapter 11: Return of the Clone Army
To say that Galen was surprised would be an understatement. Standing in front of him and Ozpin, was the leader of the Muunilinst 10 ARC Trooper company who fought in battles like those on Muunilinst and other planets was something he didn't expect. He was told that eighty-percent of the Clone Army was decommissioned save for several battle-hardened veterans who continued to serve the Empire as advisors, combat instructors or commanding officers and many of them were probably old and grey by now.
But in front of him, he saw that Fordo hadn't aged since his disappearance shortly after the Battle of Coruscant seventeen years ago. "How are you still alive? Why are you on Remnant? Are there more of you? What about surviving Jedi? How many are still alive?" Galen asked the Arc captain.
"Easy there, Commander. I can answer all your questions if you can answer mine." Fordo answered.
"Well, we are all ears and I am sure that your tale is quite a long one." Ozpin stated.
"That is true." Fordo answered and began to explain everything. "It all happened after the Battle of Ringo Vinda. Tup, one of the troopers in the 501st for some unknown reason executed General Tiplar. The Separatists, for some reason managed to get their hands-on Tup, but he was quickly rescued by General Anakin Skywalker, Captain Rex and Fives." Fordo began.
"So, you were there when it…" Galen began.
"No, I wasn't on Ringo Vinda when it occurred. I was back on Coruscant with my men dealing with some terrorists, but I did hear about it when one of my men, High-Tech intercepted an encrypted transmission from someone in the senate to a Kaminoan named Nala Se, turns out Tups breakdown was the result of a chip of some kind which malfunctioned. He died shortly after the chip was removed, but shortly after Fives arrived on Coruscant to explain the situation to the Jedi, an all points man-hunt for my brother was issued after he tried to assassinate the Chancellor of the Republic. Of course, that didn't stop Fives from talking to Kix, another member of the 501st and asked him to set up a meeting between him and Skywalker. Both of them didn't know, that I heard them seeing as they were both at 79's shortly after the 501st returned to Coruscant." Fordo added, pausing for breath.
"I was concerned about the situation so, I asked High-Tech to hack into the Coruscant Guard systems and purposely sent Commander Fox to another location, since they had somehow followed Fives. I managed to sneak into the meeting between Fives, Rex and General Skywalker. Fives went on about how the chips were not meant to control our aggressive side in combat, but also held another purpose. These chips, when activated would make all my brothers follow any order without question particularly one that force us to turn on our Generals. I soon realized that the Kaminoan's obviously had not told us something so I knew right away that if Fives were to die, the secret he learned would be lost and the Jedi would be in danger. So, I tossed a flashbang, blinded them, rushed to Fives and got him to safety while also freeing Rex and Skywalker from the Ray Shield he trapped them in, to protect him." Fordo went on.
"So, then the reports of a parasite native to Ringo Vinda were nothing but lies?" Galen asked again.
"That's right. I then had one of my brothers on Kamino 'acquire' the droid that helped Fives learn about these chips and once we finished analyzing it, we all realized that were nothing more than tools for some greater plan. A lot of my brothers owed the Jedi their lives for saving them in the war, so you can imagine their surprise when we told them about these chips. Something had to be done but from the data we gathered, we wouldn't be able to remove the chips from every one of my brothers. So, I had my men remove their inhibitor chips and then sent out a message to those like Rex, Bly, Doom, Locke, Stone, Moonk, Wolfe and Bacara to remove the chips from their men as quickly as possible. Pilots, technicians, Arc-Troopers, Commando's, anyone who believed and trusted the Jedi had their inhibitor chips removed and by the time Coruscant was attacked, we had close to fifteen thousand chip free troopers. Then, it happened." Fordo continued, clenching his fist at the memory.
"I was on Coruscant when Order 66 came down. My men and I were instructed to go to the Jedi temple and 'eliminate the traitors' as the Chancellor called it. Without our chips, we were able to think for ourselves and managed to save as many Jedi as we could. The men of the 501st that were on Coruscant didn't hesitate to gun down the younger Jedi and the sight of it made me sick. I may have fought in the war, but I never killed those who were unarmed. We didn't save many Jedi, but we did save Serra Kato and by luck a Padawan named Zett Jukassa who was shot by one of the boys in blue and somehow survived. Despite the limited success of keeping most of the Jedi texts out of the hands of the enemy, we only saved two Jedi. It was right when my men and I were leaving, that we noticed who was leading the men against the temple. Someone who I trusted and someone who's padawan I knew was innocent when she was accused of a crime she didn't commit."
"Wait, you mean…" Galen began.
"That's right, General Skywalker who was now called Darth Vader slaughtered all those who got in his way regardless of whether they were Jedi or temple security guards. I then realized the man I trusted was gone. Anyway, we were quick to return to our ship and made contact with General's Yoda and Kenobi who managed to survive the attempts on their lives, Kenobi being saved by two ARC-Troopers of Ghost Company who have been with him since Ryloth. Both of them went to the temple to disable a homing beacon coming from the Jedi Temple which if left unchecked, would lure any other surviving Jedi into a trap laid by the Chancellor, who we then learned was the one who was behind the entire war. While they disabled the beacon, the Chancellor told the senate that the Jedi were plotting to betray the Republic and take over the senate for themselves. He then self-proclaimed himself as the Emperor of the newly made Galactic Empire and to further supplement his power, informed them that the Separatist leaders were all killed." Fordo said sadly. "I trusted General Skywalker ever since I met him and I found it hard to believe. Afterwards, we regrouped with the survivors and decided to go into hiding in the unknown regions. We couldn't fight the Empire now, so we had to wait."
"But it looks like you haven't aged in years." Ozpin noted.
"That's because we captured a scientist who was not only to remove our accelerated aging, but also gave us a large number of stasis pods which we used to keep us alive. After that, we the droids on our ships jump to a random point in the unknown regions where we slept for years. My men and I first awoke a several months before we heard rumors about someone called the 'Wandering Huntsman' or something like that. I'm sure the Commander knows when I first saw him." Fordo stated.
"But that guy with the armor…" Galen began.
"He's an ally of ours. We met him shortly after we awoke from stasis, led us to an old military base that we've been using as our base as to avoid any unwanted attention, told us all about Remnant and the creatures of Grimm. After that, we've been searching for the other ships that landed on the planet, but haven't found them yet. But we've also been monitoring everything related to the White Fang and any sightings of Battle Droids." Fordo explained.
"So, aside from Zett and Serra, who are the Jedi that survived?" Ozpin asked curiously.
"General's Kit Fisto, Plo Koon and Aayla Secura. Also, with us, is former Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano." Fordo answered.
"Do they know about…" Galen asked.
"No, we haven't told them. But we will tell them when we find them. Though I am not so sure about Commander Tano and Captain Rex. They served with Skywalker longer than I have so it will be a bit hard for them to except the fact that their general and master is not the person they remember anymore." Fordo added.
He then turned to Galen. "So, Commander. How are you still alive and why haven't you aged?" Fordo asked.
"First off, I didn't serve in the Clone Wars. My name is Galen Marek and my story… well it's a lot more complicated." Galen corrected. Taking a deep breath, Galen told Fordo everything that he told Ozpin and Glynda when he arrived in Vale. Fordo was taken aback by this revelation, but somehow understood Galen's predicament.
"So, General's Ti and Paratus are dead. Somehow, I had a feeling that you might have had a hand in that. But you were used by Vader so I think I can understand that. Somehow, I knew that General Kota was alive. I know he didn't think highly of us clones, but I respected him as a military genius. Good to know he's alive and fighting the Empire." Fordo said after he heard Galen's story.
"So, Captain. What do you intend to do when you find your allies? I assume your ships were damaged when they crashed on Remnant." Ozpin asked the ARC-Trooper.
"Your assumption is correct. Many of the systems on the ship my men and I were on are damaged, but not from the crash. Our ships came under attack by the Empire shortly after Kenobi and Yoda went into hiding. Life-support, shielding, sensors and communications were damaged from enemy fire and we lost a few of our brothers. Even our hyperdrives were damaged but we were still able to land on this planet, but we're scattered all over the planet and like I've already said, we've been trying to find the others. The droids have been repairing them as best as they can and we've even been able to use parts from other ships that crashed long before on the planet long before us." Fordo answered.
"Well, it's obvious that you aren't here to invade us seeing as you helped out not only at the docks but in the Emerald Forest as well. So, I see no reason to keep you here." Ozpin said to the Arc Captain.
"What about the boy?" Galen asked, getting both Ozpin and Fordo to turn to him.
"He's still in critical condition, but I've been able to pull up some of his files. His name is Rick Autumn and he's one of the few Huntsmen to become a fighter pilot. His callsign is Trigger and it appears he trained under the Galm Team before earning his wings. He was to begin classes at Beacon this year, but he dropped out due to a 'family matter' as he put it and hasn't been seen since." Ozpin said, showing Galen the boys files on his scroll.
"I think I might know why he dropped out." Galen began, remembering the picture of that the boy dropped when he met him at the store. "But I think we should focus on finding the rest of the clones plus the Jedi survivors. I still feel like the Empire might make their way to Remnant and they are the best means for us to defend the planet from the Empire and let's not forget about those droids from the forest and docks." He added.
"Agreed. Why don't you and the Captain go to his base, maybe you might be able to help him find the others." Ozpin said in agreement. "But, don't forget. Ruby did invite you to spend the break with her and her family." Ozpin reminded.
Galen did indeed remember that Ruby and Yang had asked if Galen had any plans for the break, but he didn't want to impose. However, he did tell Ruby that he would think about it, after she gave him a puppy-dog look which he couldn't say no to.
A couple hours later, Galen and Fordo were on the Muunilinst 10's custom Gunship and were flying over the Emerald Forest. "You never told me how you came into contact with that Autumn kid." Galen said to Fordo.
"He found us actually." Fordo explained. "Said he was looking for his sister who disappeared several weeks before he was to go to Vale so he could attend Beacon. We almost thought he was a bandit trying to get his hands on something he could sell for money. Some of the boys were willing to blast him, but after he said he could help us understand the planet and give us a run of the land he became an ally, especially after we noticed the lightsabers, he had with him. He even used a few spare parts to modify that rifle of his to give it a few more options for combat."
"Why was he looking for his sister?" Galen asked.
"He didn't say. All he said that she was going to meet with someone and she would be back, but she never did come back. She's the only family he has left, seeing as his father was killed during the White Fang's first violent protest." Fordo added. Soon enough the Gunship began to descend down to the ground and the doors opened.
To Galen's surprise, the old base looked to be completely refurbished and modified with tech used by the Clone Army during the war. AT-TE, AT-RT, AT-ET, SP-HA and AT-PT walkers were lined up in berths being repaired while TX-130 Saber tanks were getting their weapon systems check out. Gunships were being loaded with missiles while Troopers were either returning or heading out for patrol. "I'd never thought I'd see anything like this." Galen said to himself. It was then that several troopers noticed that Fordo had returned with Galen and many a trooper murmured that things were starting to look up with a Jedi now with them. "I'm going to take a guess that there weren't any fighters onboard the ship you were on, right?" Galen asked.
"You catch on quick. The Acclamator my boys and I were on had only the vehicles you see here. A lot of them were damaged and the ships weren't even fully loaded when the Empire ambushed us. Turns out a tracking beacon on one of the ships was activated shortly after we made it to the outer rim. Like I said back at Beacon, we lost many brothers who willingly risked their lives to allow us the chance to jump to hyperspace. A third of the troopers who removed their chips didn't make it." Fordo said.
"If it makes you any better, I heard that the Kaminoan's created several batches of clones that were trained to take on the Empire shortly after the Clone War ended. Sadly, the leaders of that resistance cell were killed when the Empire retook control of Kamino, but I heard rumors that some of the troopers made off world. I estimated about close to fifteen thousand before the Empire attacked." Galen said.
"Good to know that there might be more of us out there in the galaxy." Fordo said as he led Galen into the main building of the old base. To Galen's surprise the clones had entirely renovated the base with technology he was familiar from holo-tables to other pieces of tech he was familiar with. "It's not much, but we've been making adjustments to the place as we see fit. I hope we can find a place a lot better than this when we find the rest of the men." Fordo explained.
"Well, I'd say you've managed alright. Though I think the Grimm might be a problem." Galen said with a chuckle.
"Those furballs are nothing compared to Wookie's. Sure, they look intimidating, but they don't stand a chance against our firepower." Fordo said proudly before he spotted a familiar trooper. "Alpha, I'd like you to meet Galen Marek. The 'Wandering Huntsman'." Fordo said to the ARC-Trooper.
Alpha turned around and looked at Galen. He looked Galen once over and smiled. "With a Jedi on our side, this will make our fight against the Empire a lot more interesting. I only wish Rex and the others were here." he said.
"You're about to get your wish, Captain." A trooper who Galen assumed to be the one called High-Tech from his station. "I've just picked up the signatures from the ships and they picked one hell of a place to land in." he said and pulled up the location of the other ships. "Seems our ship was the only one that went off course while the rest of the ship landed somewhere in the Vacuo desert. And its in close proximity to a large Grimm nest. I can't give you an exact location, so we'll need someone to guide us to the ships before we can call in the gunships."
"I think I know someone who'll be able to help us and I'm sure she'll be willing to but she'll be asking a lot of questions about us, so I'll take Alpha and Fordo. No need to cause a panic." Galen said to the two troopers who nodded. He then turned to High-Tech. "I need a datapad with the names of the troopers and the legions they're from. I want to know what kind of defense we can give Remnant when and if the Empire shows up." Galen instructed.
"Yes sir!" the troopers responded.
"And stop calling me sir. I didn't serve in the Clone Wars." Galen said annoyed.
It took a few hours, but after everything was taken care of, Galen and the two troopers arrived at the Henry farm where Rose was waiting for them after Galen gave her a call. To say that Rose was surprised about who Galen really was would be a lie, seeing as she suspected he wasn't telling them everything about him but she understood his reasons seeing as no one would believe him. "Yeah, I know the place. I've steered clear of that area whenever Rufus and I go to help the ranch hands with herding the cattle. Though it might be a bit more of a challenge. Heard some bandits were holed up in an old Schnee Dust mine not too far from the nest. We'll need to deal with them before getting to the ships." Rose said, walking into the nearby barn.
"We'll take any help we can ma'am." Fordo replied.
"Well, hope you boys know how to ride cause we're going to be using a few horses." Rose answered back bringing out four dark grey horses each of them with a saddle on their backs and loaded with supplies. "I've trained these horses since they were colts and their used to long rides. It will take us about a day or so to each them ships of yours." Rose said, climbing onto one of the horses. Fordo, Galen and Alpha followed suit, despite being unsure about how to ride a horse for the first time, but they soon got the hang of it and were ready to head out.
Rose then turned to her mother. "We'll be back as soon as possible, Ma." Rose assured her mother. "Don't worry, the boys in armor won't try anything funny, same thing can be said for Galen."
"I know." Her mother said before turning to Galen. "But if anything happens to my little girl, you'll be answering to me!" she said in a threatening tone.
"Trust me, your daughter is more than capable of looking out for herself. But I'll keep a close eye on her. After all, we're teammates." Galen assured Rose's mother before he followed after Rose and the others.
Their journey took them into Vacuo, through numerous towns, avoiding Grimm hordes and passing by SDC vehicles abandoned by the side of the road. "I've been told that the only form of law enforcement in Vacuo is a place called Shade Academy. Why do they put the law in the hands of those who still have a lot to learn?" Fordo asked Rose.
"The Vacuo council doesn't really have a lot of power. Sure, they represent the interests of the people, but the people have a lot of disregard for the law. You see, a long time ago, Sanus did have a militia that acted as both the police and military of the kingdom. They gave them total authority to do whatever they saw fit and it wasn't long before the leader of the militia, a man named Thomas Magruder decided it was time for them to take control of the kingdom and attempted a coup thirty something years ago." Rose explained.
"So, what happened?" Alpha asked.
"Well, that's up to debate. Some people say that they just gave up when Atlas showed up. Others said that the militia suddenly turned on each other for some unknown reasons. But I've talked with a few of the people who actually saw the event and were a part of the militia. They said that someone just stepped in front of the militia as they made their way towards the council building and tried to have them end this peacefully. They failed and some of the militia attacked the man, who wielded a lightsaber much like Galen's. He took down a few of them before he challenged Magruder. In the end, Magruder was defeated and arrested while his militia was either arrested like him or vanished. As for the man, no one knows what happened to him but it was said that he came as quickly as he arrived." Rose answered. "This also made the people distrust the council, despite their best efforts by the council's that followed to make up for their mistake."
"That's now two Jedi that have made their way to Remnant." Galen mused to himself.
"Though it seems that Magruder's ideals still live on. The Bandits close to the place where your ships are, they call themselves Magruder's Marauders. They plan to follow Magruder's plan and take control of the Kingdom. Magruder was a person who believed in Human superiority and claimed that the Faunus were nothing but a plague upon the planet and the gods gave him the task of wiping them all out in a 'noble war' as he called it. The Marauders are known for robbing farms and villages, not only for supplies but also making an example of any Faunus they come across regardless of whether they are with the White Fang or not." Rose added.
"So aside from all the warfare, mining and ecological disasters in the kingdom, the biggest problem are these bandits. I thought the Outer Rim had it tough." Galen said to himself.
After that little history lesson, the four riders kept riding until they came to a stop. "The hideout is right up ahead. We'll go on foot and scoop out the hideout. If those bandits are there, we'll have to find another way around. If not, we can get through without any trouble." Rose said as she hitched the horses to a nearby dead tree, close to an oasis before leading Galen and the two ARC-Troopers to a ridge overlooking the old mine.
When they reached the ridge, the two ARC-Troopers pulled down their rangefinders and scooped out the mine while Rose pulled out a pair of regular binoculars. "Well, it doesn't look like the bandits are occupying the mine right now." Rose said with relief. "Lucky thing too, these guys are cold blooded killers and won't hesitate to kill anyone who gets in their path." Rose said between gritted teeth.
"Lets just hope they don't have any fighters or tanks down there." Galen said.
"They've been known to try steal vehicles like that, but they end up trying to steal them from a few mercenary groups who have been hired by the Kingdom to try and at the very least give Vacuo a better chance at defending itself from both the Grimm and these guys." Rose added.
Alpha raised his rangefinder before he pointed out something he spotted. "Look's they've got quite a bit of explosives down there. If I had to guess their planning on either raiding a settlement or robbing a convoy. That's what I would do." Alpha stated.
"Then why don't we destroy their stockpile. We may be looking for the rest of your brothers, but we can't just leave these bandits to do what they please. I'm a huntress in training and I can't just ignore this treat to the people, for all I know they could be targeting my home." Rose added.
"Then let's do it." Galen said in agreement. The two ARC-Troopers and Rose nodded in agreement and readied themselves before they headed down to the old mine.
With his lightsabers in hand, Galen led his allies into the old mine but refrained from activating his weapons so as too not alert the bandits. "Keep those fingers off your triggers, last thing we want to do is alert all the bandits here and be outnumbered." Galen reminded. Just then Rufus rushed by his legs having caught the scent of something and Galen facepalmed. "That dog's going to give us away!"
"No. Rufus caught the whiff of something that he doesn't like. Come on!" Rose shouted and raced after her dog. Her shout should have given them away, but to their surprise none of the bandits even came out. They soon found out why.
When they finally caught up with Rufus, they found something that was something horrifying to say the least. The reason the bandits didn't come out looking for them is that they were all dead. Weapons of all types laid scattered among the ground while the users laid in pools of their own blood, some of them having lost limbs even their heads. Some of the bodies were cut apart at the torso leaving large pools of blood while many of the others that had their limbs cut off had no blood at all and where they were slashed or stabbed were cauterized.
"My God…" Rose muttered, putting her mouth to her hand to stop herself from gagging.
"I… I don't think I've seen anything like this in my life time. I know that aside from Ventress, Dooku and their acolytes, the only other person who carried lightsabers and could do this kind of work was Grievous himself, but he's dead." Fordo said, slightly disturbed by this sight.
"Its obvious that the Grimm got into the hideout." Galen said and walked over to a nearby bullhead which was no doubt stolen. "These claw marks are from a Beowulf while some of those bodies looked like they were cut by a set of pincers from a Deathstalker." Galen surmised.
"Where'd you get the Deathstalker?" Rose asked. Galen just pointed to large hole that led into the direction of the Grimm nest. "Oh. Right."
"Now look at this body right here." Galen continued. "Most people would say that it was the Grimm that sliced off this man's arm, but the wound is cauterized. The only weapon that can do that is a lightsaber."
"You don't think…" Fordo began.
"No. Rick doesn't strike me as the type of person to do something like this. These bodies look to be a few days old." Galen answered before he spotted a nearby wheeled vehicle with a compact metallic frame, twin seats, four heavy duty wheels designed for off-road terrains, two boosters in the back and a pair of dual-mounted machine guns. "Seems these guys had their own vehicles." He said.
"This will make our trip to the ships a lot quicker. Those horses are lot smarter than most people, so we can send one or two of them back home and one of us can take the vehicle." Rose suggested.
"Fordo and I haven't operated anything like this before." The ARC-Captain said.
"I think I can manage it." Galen spoke up. "It can't be too hard to figure out."
It proved to be easier said than done, but a while Galen was able to get a feel for the vehicle's controls, the group was on their way yet again with Rufus riding by Galen's side. It wasn't long before they encountered a swarm of Grimm. The swarm consisted of several stampeding Goliaths which were heading straight towards them. The three on horseback quickly moved out of the way followed by Galen who turned sharply to the left. "I don't like the looks of this!" Galen said aloud.
(Harsh Wasteland starts)
The Goliaths soon turned around and once again headed towards the group. "Ride like hell boys!" Rose said and kicked her spurs into her horse, getting it to go faster. Galen on the other hand turned his vehicle around, got behind the Grimm and fired the vehicles twin-machine guns at the creatures of Grimm. Bursts of dust infused bullets armor-piercing rounds riddled the creatures full of holes before they dissipated into black mist before he turned his head and noticed that more Grimm were starting to catch up with Rose and the two ARC-Troopers.
"Hang on boy." Galen said to the golden and hit a button on the vehicles stick shift and activated the boosters behind him. "Woah! This thing is almost like a Podracer, only without the machine guns." Galen said as his body lurched back into the seat.
He got in range of the Grimm and open fired. The machine gun rounds tore through the Grimm like they were made of tissue paper, thanks in large part to the ammo the bandits had loaded into the vehicle's main weapons. One of the Goliaths had its legs blown apart, landing on the ground hard before it dissipated into black mist. Seeing that one of their kind killed, the remaining Goliaths turned around and headed towards Galen and Rufus. "Great, I took the heat off the others and now I got the Grimm to focus on me." Galen muttered before he turned the wheel of the vehicle sharply to the right, making a donut before giving the vehicle some gas and headed in the opposite direction.
Hitting the booster button again, Galen increased his distance from the Grimm before he noticed a rock that looked a lot like a ramp. Turning the vehicle around, Galen shifted his vehicle into gear and charged towards the Grimm, firing the machine guns at the Grimm. While the Goliaths were one of the largest land-based Grimm on Remnant, they were slow and heavily armored. Precisely what Galen was hoping for. Taking his finger off the trigger, Galen swerved to the rock ramp kicked in the boosters and launched himself, Rufus and the vehicle off the ramp and landing behind the Goliaths before he raced after the others who were much farther ahead of him than he thought.
Turning his head around for a few seconds, he spotted that the Goliaths had given up their chase and this gave Galen a chance to breath a sigh of relief. "Doctor Oobleck said that Goliaths are much smarter than most Grimm. So why did they come after me?" he asked himself. Rufus barked and Galen turned to the dog. "Yeah, I hear you. Come on, lets meet up with Rose and the ARC-Troopers."
No sooner had he said those words, four Deathstalkers erupted from the ground below him and first one nearly slammed its stinger right into the vehicle, had Galen not sensed them approaching him. Putting the vehicle into first gear, Galen swerved around before he started driving in reverse and fired the machine guns at the scorpion Grimm.
The bullets impacted the creatures bone armor, doing some damage but this only enraged the creatures which started to move a little faster in an effort to try and catch up with Galen and Rufus. "I really hate these things." Galen groaned before his scroll rang. "Not really the best time, Rose! I've got my hands my hands full with a couple of Deathstalkers." He snapped.
"Yeah, your two trooper buddies spotted them and came up with a plan. If you can lure them towards us, we'll be able to crush those bastards!" Rose exclaimed before the call ended. Galen quickly noticed the location marked on his scroll and looked up to see the exact location that Rose indicated.
"Clever girl." Galen said to himself and turned his vehicle so it would face the opposite direction and gunned the buggies engines to full power. "I need to keep them following me, so I'll save the boosters for later."
He then turned to Rufus. "Hang on buddy, we're in for a Ruff ride!" he joked for the first time. Rufus barked in acknowledgement. Pushing his foot down on the gas pedal, Galen pushed his 'borrowed' vehicle to as close to full speed, glancing back every now and then to see that the Deathstalkers were still on his tail. "That's it, just a little closer." He said to himself before he noticed the area Rose had indicated, a large canyon pass that lead directly towards the ships.
"Time to punch it!" he quipped and hit the booster button. Twin exhaust fumes from the boosters burst from behind the vehicle, sending Galen, Rufus and their vehicle speeding towards the pass with the Grimm still on his tail. Once he cleared the pass, he spotted Fordo and Alpha standing nearby with a detonator in their hands which they pressed just as the Deathstalkers entered the pass.
A series of explosions on the rock wall caused numerous rocks to fall down, causing a rock slide which killed the creatures of Grimm. "Thanks, I ow you two one." Galen said once he brought the vehicle to a stop and hopped out.
(End OST)
"Just doing our job, though I don't think our job included taking out giant creatures of darkness." Alpha stated.
"At least we're through the Grimm nest. You must have rotten luck, Galen. You got the big guys while the three of us only dealt with the small fry." Rose chimed in as Rufus leapt up and licked his owners face. "But it was worth it, because we found what we were looking for." She added and gestured to what was behind her.
Covered in sand but still intact were four Venator Class Republic Star Destroyers and several Acclamator-Class assault ships, covered in sand and untouched. "Guess it's a good thing that they landed here, if they landed anywhere else then the wrong people could have gotten their hands on the weapons and vehicles inside those ships." Galen said.
"Then I'd say it's time we get inside one of those ships." Rose stated and headed towards one of the ships. Fordo soon contacted the rest of his men and transmitted the location of the ships before he followed suit.
"Anyone have a key?" Rose asked.
"The Venators were controlled by several droids. Everyone else was loaded on the Acclamator's since the stasis pods were loaded onto those ships." Fordo explained before he pressed a button on his gauntlet. The ramp of the dormant ship soon lowered down to the ground, causing Rose's eyes to widen in surprise at not only the number of vehicles, but the amount of what she assumed to be the 'stasis pods' that Fordo mentioned.
A quick glance into one of the stasis pods revealed to Rose that the trooper inside it was still alive but that still raised a question she had. "So, the guy in this pod has blue markings on his armor." she began before she noticed another pod with a trooper with yellow markings on their armor. "And this one has yellow markings. What's with all that?" she asked.
"We all may be clones, but we all don't belong to the same legion. Those with orange markings belong to the 212th or are ordnance specialists, green the 41st elite, maroon means they are part of the Wolf-Pack, yellow the 327th Star Corps, those in specialized armor are part of the Galactic Marines, dark red means they are part of the 91st. As for those with the unique helmets and oxygen box on their armor are pilots while those with no markings are just basic troopers who have yet to be assigned to a legion. Many of them weren't assigned to a legion before we learned the truth." Fordo explained.
"Wow." Rose answered.
Rufus pressed his nose to the ground and sniffed the inside of the ship before he stood in front of the stasis pod that contained Plo Koon. He barked to get the attention. "Look's like the dog found one of the generals." Galen said and found the controls to the pod of the Kel Dor male and activated it. The pod opened and steam exited the pod as the Kel Dor Jedi Master awoke. "Take it easy, General. You've been in stasis for seventeen years." Galen explained, helping the Jedi out of the pod.
"Do I know you?" Plo asked.
"I'll explain everything once we get the others out of the pods." Galen answered.
It took a few hours before every single trooper and the Jedi that survived were out of the stasis pods, but before Galen could explain everything, Rufus barked again and caught the attention of both Galen and Rose who followed the dog and found four more pods. These ones contained troopers wearing unique black armor. "Hey! Who are these guys? They look badass!" Rose exclaimed.
"So, they did exist." Galen said in awe. "There the Bad Batch. Clone Force 99. An elite squad of clone commando's who were named after a fallen clone who died when the CIS launched a second attack on the Clone's home world of Kamino. They were born with 'desirable genetic mutations' giving them a different appearance then most clones. I heard that they weren't reported as killed in action, but I didn't think they joined up with these troopers." Galen admitted.
"We gathered many allies before we were betrayed by many of those, we considered to be our allies." Aayla Secura, the Twi'lek Jedi Knight and commander of the 327th Star Corps said as she walked over to them with Serra, Zett, Ahsoka, Kit and Plo. With them were Commanders Bacara, Jet, Wolfe, Bly, Fordo and Alpha. Behind them, clad in either ARC-Trooper armor like Fordo and Alpha were Kix, Hardcase, Fives, Echo and Jesse of the 501st being led by none other that Captain Rex of the 501st.
"I believed in law and order. So that means you are innocent until proven guilty. But to forcibly execute someone without a fair trail is not something I'll ever do." Bacara said with his fist clenched remembering how he questioned why they were forced to execute Ki-Adi-Mundi without launching so much as an investigation.
"You can blame the Emperor. He used all of you and the separatist leaders to do his dirty work so he could take over the galaxy. With the Jedi gone and declared as traitors, no one would stand in his way." Galen stated.
"I still can't believe the Chancellor was also the true leader of the Separatist Alliance." Ahsoka said aloud. "And because of him, Anakin is dead."
"Deception is the art of the Sith. They deceive anyone they can use before eliminating them once their usefulness has come to an end. It happened to Dooku and many Sith before him." Kit said, putting a hand on the young Togruta's shoulder.
"Get me a clear shot at that old man and kill that old man." Fives said with venom in his voice. He did after all have personal score to settle with the man who now held the galaxy in the palm of his hands.
"I'm with you on that, brother. We'll do it for Hevy and all of our brothers who died in his quest for power." Echo said in agreement.
"We're going to need that kind of determination if we're going to win." Rex added.
"Captain Rex, is it? Can I talk to you in private?" Galen asked.
"Sure." Rex answered and followed Galen to an isolated part of the hanger while everyone else went about getting the ships ready for flight. "What is this about?"
"Its about General Skywalker. He didn't die." Galen answered.
"He's not dead!? I've got to tell the rest of the 501st and Commander Tano. We've got to find him." Rex stated.
"That's not a good idea. Yes, he's alive but its complicated and you're not going to like it." Galen corrected and told Rex everything that Fordo told him. "I'm sorry I had to be the one to tell you this, but you can't tell Ahsoka. I know she was close to Anakin and if she found out, it would break her heart. I plan on telling Master Plo and the others soon, but with Ahsoka I just don't know if I should tell her." he later admitted.
"I… I don't believe it. There's no way General Skywalker would…!" Rex began to protest.
"Whether you want to believe it or not, Rex its true." Fordo began as he and the others walked over to them with the recently awaken Bad Batch. "I saw General Skywalker on the temple security recordings slaughtering anyone who got in his path when he and the rest of the 501st attacked the temple. Recordings don't lie. He's not the man you once knew." He added.
"I know that, but there's got to be a way to bring him back." Rex said.
"Maybe there is, maybe there isn't. But you need to consider Anakin… no Darth Vader as your enemy." Galen said to Rex. He then turned to the others. "I think its time we get these ships out of here and to a more secure location before you all meet with someone who will want to meet you." He added.
"Hey, I got a question." Rose said before motioning towards the machine-gun equipped vehicle that Galen had used to eliminate the Grimm. "What are we going to do with that thing? It'd be a shame to waste a perfectly good vehicle, even it was made by bandits who are now pushing up daisies." she added.
"Perhaps we can take it with us. Someone might know how to replicate this vehicle with different abilities." Serra suggested. "I may not be a soldier, but a vehicle like that would be useful in battle."
"I can think of one person who would want to try and put different weapons on this thing. Grenade launchers and weapons like that." Galen said in agreement.
"Sounds like you admire her." Aayla observed.
"She's more like someone who intend to protect." Galen corrected, though his heart was saying something else. Did he admire Ruby? Did he have feelings for her? If he did, what would Juno say about this? Either way, he pushed those thoughts away and walked over to the Bad Batch who were being debriefed about Remnant from Waxer and Boil, who were promoted to ARC-Trooper after their actions on Umbara. "Say, wasn't there a lost legion of troopers?" Galen asked.
"You speak of the 332nd armored legion. Our last reports indicated that their last known location was the Moddell sector of the Outer Rim. They were investigating reports about a Separatist weapons project before Order 66 was issued. They had recently lost their general to a Separatist spy who was the admiral of their battle group. Fortunately, there new Jedi General was one that was called the 'Ghost of Mandalore'. He was born on Mandalore and was brought to the Jedi order and while he was more of a Grey Jedi, he was a skilled Jedi. I can only hope that he and his legion are alive." Ayala said.
It took a couple of hours, but after all the ships were airborne and Rose, Rufus and her horses were dropped off at her home, the remnants of the Republic Navy cruised the air towards the base the ARC-Troopers established while a single Gunship touched down on one of Beacons landing pads where Ozpin and Glynda were waiting for Galen and the others. "It appears that you were successful." Ozpin said to Galen with a smile.
"Koh-too-yah. I am Plo Koon, former member of the Jedi Council of the Jedi Order, protects of peace and justice for the Galactic Republic. These are my fellow Jedi, Serra Keto, Zett Jukassa, Aayla Secura, Kit Fisto and former Jedi Ahsoka Tano." Plo introduced.
"It's a pleasure to finally lay eyes on another Jedi after all these years. I'm Professor Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon Academy and this is my associate, Glynda Goodwitch." Ozpin said back.
"I can assume that the rest of your ships are safely away from the Kingdom? The last thing we want…" Glynda began.
"Is to draw the Grimm to the city with people panicking and believing that one of the other kingdoms is starting a war." Kit finished. "We've been told about the dangers of your planet from Fordo, Alpha and young Galen." He added.
"Yes and Galen told us everything he knows about your galaxy." Ozpin answered while Galen felt his scroll vibrate in his pocket. Checking the id, he found that it was Yang who was trying to contact him.
"Yang, what's…" Galen began, walking away from the others. "Woah! Slow down, what's going on?"
"Galen, its Ruby. She's been taken by these weird people in white armor!" Yang exclaimed.
"WHAT!?" Galen shouted, getting the attention of everyone else.
And done. I know, it's a Cliffhanger, but it sets up the events for the next chapter.
Now as for Rick's callsign 'Trigger' and the Galm Team. I'm planning on bringing in some Ace Combat characters with different names, aside from Solo Wing Pixy. As for their fighters, they'll appear later on. I want to give Remnant a fighting chance when the Empire arrives.
As for the vehicle Galen used, it's the Sand Shark from Jak 3. The other vehicles, aside from the Tough Puppy will appear but under new names, which I need.
For those wondering how Waxer and Hardcase still being alive and Echo not being half-machine, well I'm doing what I did in my Lone Wolf series and keeping them alive. As to how they survived, the fighter Hardcase flew on Umbara took a hit from enemy fire forcing him to fire one of the missiles before he was in range and hit the reactor of the supply ship.
Waxer survived the ambush Krell lured them into because he was pushed out of the way by a fellow trooper who was killed instead of him.
The 332nd Armored Legion and the character known as the 'Ghost of Mandalore' were given to me by ComparedDread12. These characters will appear later on, possibly by Volume 2. I sure many of you wanted to see them appear now, but it will have to wait.
I know they didn't appear in the legend's series, but I included the Bad Batch simply because; I LOVE THE BAD BATCH! They will be kicking ass in the future I promise you.
Now in regards to the bandit camp, seems that there is someone else on Remnant with a Lightsaber and no its not Raven. Its someone else, someone who's far more dangerous.
Also, for the sake of the story. I am making it so that after Zett was saved by Fordo, he went onto living in the lower levels of Coruscant for seven years before he was captured by the Empire. Like many of you may remember with Luminara's fate in Rebels, her body was used to lure other Jedi to their deaths. The same thing would have happened to Zett, had the imperial transport he was on not suffered a mechanical failure and landed on Remnant, close to the hidden Republic ships before he put himself into stasis until her was awoken. In other words, he's seventeen years old right now.
Anyway, please read and review and I'll be seeing you all next time.