Author's Note: 30 pages and twenty thousand words later... good gravy, y'all are wlecome! This chapter really put the 'epic' in 'epic struggle' and I do hope you don't mind if the next chapter is a bit shorter. Regardless, enjoy!
-Chapter 42: Slugfest
Location: Celanon
"History is written by the victorious."
Time passed, slowly and quietly. No missions had come in since his rampage across Coruscant and The Wraith was starting to get anxious. He needed something to get his blood pumping, something that would fuel the adrenaline that sat stagnant in his veins. But he refused to act without just cause, his rampage had been justified by the Republic's assault on his last base and further motivated by Scipio's condition. So until something sanctioned came in, the super-soldier was forced to wait.
During this period, Scipio's condition had greatly improved to a point where the Pau'an doctor was able to walk around a little. The medical droids recommended he take it easy so to not aggravate his wounded innards. Despite this setback, the doctor was well on his way to having fully recovered. He and Wraith took some time to get to know their part of the Dominance, checking out the lab, machine room, training facilities and the small cellblock. Enough for up to six prisoners, the cellblock was an interesting addition but also a welcome one.
And then, finally, Wraith was contacted by Count Dooku with an assignment.
And a big one at that.
Scipio and Wraith stood side by side before a holotable and the renderings of both Count Dooku and General Grievous.
"So, this is the super-soldier you speak so highly of, Count." Grievous mused with a rasp as he examined Wraith. "He does cut a very imposing figure."
"As is the point, General. Having gained such notoriety by his actions, his very appearance strikes fear into the heart of all Republic military affiliates." Dooku stated. Wraith crossed one arm across his chest and bowed from the waist.
"All in service to the Confederacy, sirs." He replied. Straightening up, he turned to the cyborg General. "General Grievous, it is an honor to meet such a high-ranking individual as yourself. I will admit, you are one of my idols." He admitted. Grievous chuckled.
"His intelligence is also impressive." The General mused.
"I take you now to the point at hand, soldier." Dooku stated, moving them along. The holographic render of a planet suddenly appeared between them. "Republic forces have made a deep cut into our territory and have taken the world of Celanon by force." He explained. "It appears to be in response to your rampage, soldier." He added as an aside. Wraith shrugged.
"They can try. But they won't succeed." He rumbled.
"A collective of survivors have banded together to form a rebellion, but the Republic has been most relentless in tightening their grip on the world. Their leader, one Kage Videl, has reached out to us and begged us for aid." Dooku informed them.
"And I take it we plan on responding?" Wraith inquired.
"As long as they stand loyal to us, we will not abandon our own." Dooku stated. "We are planning to retake Celanon and need you to join us, soldier."
"I am ready and willing." Wraith replied.
"You shall begin by joining us aboard the Invisible Hand, it will be our ship of choice for this endeavour."
"Begging your pardon, my lord," Scipio interjected, "but why not use this fantastic ship on which we reside?" He wondered. "Surely it has enough firepower comparable to a whole fleet."
"We wish to keep the Subjugators out of battle for the time being. If we lose one before they are all completed, it would greatly lessen our grand scheme." Dooku replied. "However, the Republic fleet is small enough for us to use a series of Municifient frigates in addition to our own capital ship without worry of major losses."
"When does this fleet plan to leave for Celanon?" Wraith asked.
"As soon as possible." Dooku answered.
"Then I best get moving." Wraith stated as he made to leave. "Stay out of trouble Doc." He added.
"Don't you worry about me, my boy. I plan on merely reading datapads today." Scipio answered. Wraith nodded and exited the briefing room, destined for the hangar below where his shuttle was waiting.
Elsewhere in the galaxy, on Mortis...
Ahsoka sat alone by the fire she had constructed. It was late at night on this bizarre world she, Master Kenobi and Skyguy had crashed on, and she was still trying to sort out where they were. Things seemed to be happening wildly and at random, inexplicably changing without rhyme or reason. She had just received a vision of someone who claimed to be her future self, warning her to sever ties with Anakin lest his Dark Side tendencies begin to corrupt her as well.
It had been more than a little eerie. She had been noticing Anakin's declining behavior ever since that fateful battle with The Wraith on Tibrin. But was it really as bad as that apparition said it could be? Was that as bad as her future could get? Was that the only outcome? She had so many questions and was wrestling with all of them.
At that moment, images flashed through her mind as she experienced another vision. A vision of the future.
More specifically, a vision of what she could only describe as her future.
She saw herself, or at least someone who looked a lot like herself, looking much older with long headtails and expanded markings across her face, sitting on a sofa reclining against a rugged and handsome man. This man was broad and muscular, so much so that Ahsoka could easily deem him the walking-definition of physical perfection. He had long dark-red hair that reached to the base of his neck, neatly combed back so only a few stray bangs hung before his face. His bright green eyes stared lovingly at a bundle of blue blankets in Ahsoka's arms, whom he had his arm around.
And there, in her arms, to her complete and utter shock, was an infant Togruta.
She couldn't have been more than a few weeks old, judging by the way her skin was so soft it was practically glowing and the small size of her headtails and facial markings. But unlike any other Togruta she'd seen, this child's skin was like that of a human's; peachy and pale.
Was this... Was this child hers? A product of her relationship with this human man?
Shaking her head and closing her eyes, Ahsoka rushed the thoughts from her mind.
"The future is always in motion, never solid, always changing." She quickly repeated to herself, silently hoping this vision was not true. At the moment, she couldn't imagine herself dabbling in something so forbidden like a relationship, marriage included, especially one that produced a child!
Ahsoka began to worriedly ponder how this could be, completely forgetting about her strange surroundings...
Hours later...
Arriving aboard the Invisible Hand, Wraith was promptly escorted to the ship's bridge by a pair of battle droids. The super-soldier took note of how the ship's corridors were notably similar and felt a bit smaller to those of the Dominance. The halls of the Dominance provided a sense of openness that effectively accommodated his size and bulk. While he knew that the Invisible Hand had to be designed with similar measurements, something about the corridors just felt constrictive and confining. Perhaps it was because he knew the destroyer to be a smaller ship, but he couldn't know for certain.
Entering the bridge, Wraith was treated to the sight of General Grievous and another tall, heavily armored individual next to him as they examined a display on a holotable before them. It didn't take him long to recognize who this cybernetic hunter was: the Gen'Dai bounty hunter known as Durge, the fearsome Separatist field commander and easily just as deadly and terrifying an opponent as Wraith was.
"Now I'm really starting to like this assignment." He muttered under his breath, smiling beneath his mask. Grievous took note of his arrival and gestured to his compatriot as Wraith drew closer.
"Wraith, this is Durge. He will be your primary superior for the majority of this battle. In addition to myself and Count Dooku, of course." He said.
"Of course." Wraith agreed with a nod. Durge walked around the table to properly greet the super-soldier.
"How ya' doin', kid? High command's told me about you and your helluva-long list of achievements. Gotta admit, I'm impressed. And I don't impress easily." He stated. Wraith couldn't help but tilt his head up in order to look Durge in the optics. The mechanized commander stood at a whopping nine feet, eight inches. Almost ten feet tall!
"I too am aware of your feats, Durge. You are one of my idols, someone I aspire to take after... especially in the bloodlust department." Wraith replied. Durge cackled.
"Sounds like he's got his head screwed on straight!" He noted to Grievous.
"I thought so too." The General replied.
"You seem alright, kid. Stick with me and we'll go places!" Durge continued, clapping Wraith on the shoulder. His mighty hand was enough to stagger the super-soldier a little. "I heard about your little stunt on Coruscant. Pretty badass if you ask me!"
"It was a partially emotional outburst. But, yes, the Republic had it coming." Wraith informed him.
"Damn right, they did. All those damn Clones need to hurry up an' die!" Durge emphatically agreed, pounding his hand with his fist. "Bet you an' me will see to that, eh?"
"Every opportunity to off some duplicates is a good opportunity."
"'Duplicates'! Hah!" The Gen'Dai laughed loudly as he dwelt on Wraith's preferred term for Clones. "I like this kid, Grievous! A man after my own preferences!" He exclaimed to the General. Grievous chuckled in agreement as Durge pressed Wraith with another question. "How about Jedi, huh? Whaddya think about them?"
"Arrogant and over-rated fools." Wraith replied, crossing his arms. Durge started cackling again.
"It's like they cloned me!" He said, quite loudly. His titanic metal arm fell around Wraith's shoulders as the hunter pulled him in close. "I have a good feeling about this partnership, Wraith. You and I will be the bane of the Republic!" Durge declared.
"I like that sounds of that." Wraith responded with a nod. "But I would also like to know what our plans are for Celanon."
"Count Dooku is transmitting a message to the planet's leaders as we speak, informing them of our coming arrival." Grievous replied. "They will give us some information to work with, as will the local resistance efforts."
"Which we can then use to learn the battlefield beforehand." Wraith surmised. "A tactically sound move." He determined with a nod of agreement.
"You like all this planning stuff, eh Wraith?" Durge wondered.
"I am essentially geared for it. The scientists behind Project Sunstorm spent fifteen years turning me into the perfect solider. Being a tactical genius was one of the outcomes." The super-solider responded. "Even still, my favorite pastime is when they point me in the direction of the Republic and then let me loose." He added with a slight growl. Durge chuckled.
"You and I are gonna get along just fine."
Wraith spent the better part of trip to Celanon pouring over the tactical data the locals had sent them, analyzing the Republic positions the resistance scouts had managed to identify. The invading army had gone straight for the planet's capital: Celanon City, meaning urban warfare would be a given. He memorized the city's roads and pathways, assuming many of them had been thoroughly destroyed by the Republic's assault on the city. It seemed a likely possibility that the Republic might try to funnel the Separatists through roads of their choosing, likely laden with traps and ambushes. It would be up to the likes of him and Durge to clear a path for the droids, a task he had been anticipating. He was looking forward to working alongside the Gen'Dai hunter, wanting to examine Durge's arsenal of weapons as well as observe his fighting styles. So far, Celanon was proving to be a welcome engagement.
But Wraith would be totally unprepared for the other events that would transpire over the course of this day.
In his shuttle, Wraith was busy ensuring his gear was in proper order. He had already attached his kinetic plates to his gauntlets and was now swapping out tools. Exchanging his regular blue duster for his urban camouflage one required shifting all of his concealed tech over to it. He was thankful much was stored on his belt, but there were a few devices in his inner pockets that needed to be changed over. He stood alone, organizing his gear before the weapons locker Scipio had installed. His jacket was off, revealing a tight, specially-designed working shirt covering his muscular body. It was then, in his unprepared state, that something strange occurred.
"Hello Wraith." A sweet, feminine voice called to him. Wraith's head shot up and he froze in place, knowing he was supposed to be alone. Suddenly whirling about and deploying his arm blade, Wraith found himself staring at Ahsoka.
"Ahsoka?!" He gaped, wondering how she could possibly be in here with him.
It was then that he realized something was wrong with her.
Her skin was pale, very pale, and her veins were visibly blackened. Her eyes were yellow and the expression on her face was twisted, like she was some other version of the Togruta girl he knew.
This was not the Ahsoka he knew. And her changed appearance caused him to feel something he'd never felt before... fear.
"What is wrong with you?" He wondered, blade disappearing back into his arm.
"Nothing's wrong with me." She replied in a sing-songy tone. There was even something off with her voice. It was her alright, but Wraith could clearly see she wasn't well. "I'm perfectly fine." She started walking towards him, her hands behind her back as her body swayed from side to side, like she didn't have a care in the world. "I just wanna talk, Wraith. Is that so bad?" She wondered.
"I... I suppose..." He mumbled. Then he shook his head, snapping himself back to reality. "No. There is something wrong with you." He stated, the fear kicking in again. Ahsoka giggled. Giggled.
"There's nothing wrong with me." She told him. She wasn't far away from him now. She was close enough Wraith could see every little detail of her body. Her pointed teeth, which he always thought to be rather alluring, now looked downright dangerous.
Everything about this... 'dark' Ahsoka was definitely wrong.
"What do you wish to talk about?" He hesitantly wondered.
"You, me... and the thing you have for me." She replied. "I know you like me. You think I'm beautiful. The Jedi say you desire me." Ahsoka revealed. Wraith maintained his even composure, but a questioning feeling fluttered in the pit of his stomach. "But I think it's more than that." Ahsoka continued, a somewhat sinister grin appearing on her face. "You don't just like me... you looooove me." She emphatically said, stepping closer to him. "You really love me. Head over heels even!" She exclaimed, suddenly chuckling. "But you're afraid it won't work. You're afraid we're too different. You're a bad guy... and I'm a good girl."
"I am." He rumbled in a low voice, but even as he said those words his mind was not on this conversation. This was too strange, too confusing. How was this happening, what caused this? How the hell was she even here? Ahsoka giggled at his response.
"It's okay. I have a dark side too." She told him in a low voice, her smile both alluring and unsettling. "We could get into all kinds of trouble together." She added in a rather teasing tone. "I can be whatever you want me to be. I can be your little Togruta slut." She whispered with a devilish smile. Her words surprised Wraith and instantly shook him out of his confused stupor.
"No. No..." he growled, fighting off the desire that swelled within him. "That is not what I want!" He stated, tearing his crimson gaze away from her.
"Aw, of course it is Wraith." Ahsoka continued in a sympathetic tone. "You want me... and a big, powerful Separatist like you takes what he wants. And that includes me..."
"Ahsoka that is not what I want!" Wraith repeated, quite firmly this time. The dark Ahsoka appeared to be taken aback by his words. Then, with a smile, Ahsoka undid her belt and dropped it.
"You sure?" She wondered, moving her hips side to side as she started to slide her leggings down, revealing her bare, dull-orange thighs. "You sure this isn't what you wanted all along?" Then she reached for the diamond-shaped cutout above her chest and pulled it down, teasing him with a gratuitous display of her cleavage. "You sure you don't want all of this...?" She asked in a seductive voice. Wraith turned away, he knew she was trying to tempt him. But he refused to give in. This wasn't her!
"Ahsoka! Enough!" Wraith growled firmly, denying his own attraction to what he was witnessing. "Yes, that is what I want. But not like this." He told her. "I want you to want me. I don't want to take anything from you or do anything that you don't want."
"Now that's no fun." She pouted, fixing her clothes and putting her belt back on. "What kinda bad guy doesn't wanna have fun with a willing girl like me?"
"You are attempting to appeal to a part of me that has no application to you." He answered. "My power and potential is applied to my trade. Not against you, as you would insinuate."
"What, you think you're so 'high and mighty' now?" Ahsoka demanded, practically accusing him, as she put her belt back on.
"I will have nothing to do with this... perversion of the real you." Wraith rumbled as his hands clenched into fists.
"Oh, whatever!" Ahsoka waved him off, appearing disgusted all of a sudden. "You're such a disappointment! You think I want that? Pah!" She spat, her venomous words totally out of character for her. "You're such a monster! It will never work between us!"
"I AM NOT...!" His roar was cut short as he stopped himself, refusing to give in to what this dark Ahsoka wanted. "I may be a monster, but at least that is who I am." He calmly stated. But there was a definite edge to his voice. "This... This isn't you."
"Oh yeah? Can the real me do this?!" Ahsoka surged forward and lashed out with her lightsaber. The green blade hummed through the air and passed through Wraith's torso.
But it did not affect him at all.
Recoiling with a gasp and clutching his body where he saw the saber strike, Wraith felt no wound and no pain. It was like it never happened. He looked down, his heart racing, but he saw no damage. He looked up, ready to demand an answer from the dark Ahsoka.
And just like that, she was gone.
"What the hell...?" He breathed, dumbstruck by what had taken place. What even was that? She seemed so real, but at the same time it couldn't have been real. She was never there, she could never have gotten aboard the Invisible Hand. Nothing made sense and Wraith was left shaking his head in utter confusion... and was left shaken to the core.
"Hey kid! Boss says we're comin' outta hyperspace, so get ready for landfall!" Durge's voice boomed over his comms.
"Understood." Wraith quickly replied, forcing himself back to the task at hand. Turning around he threw on his grey jacket and holstered all of his weapons, performing a quick final check before he departed his ship, doing his best to focus on the battle to come and nothing else.
Yet no matter how hard he tried, he simply couldn't shake that encounter from his mind.
Later, in Celanon City...
Having established a formidable presence over the planet, the Separatist armies descended to the surface of Celanon, destined for the outskirts of Celanon City. The planetary capital, Celanon City was full of towering high-rise buildings, all built to support the planet's booming merchant economy. But with the Republic invasion, many of the once splendid constructs were now full of holes and torn to pieces, smoke rising from still raging fires within the husks of the buildings. The city streets, once jam-packed with citizens around the clock, now stood empty and filled with only debris.
It was a clear, sunny sky that met the Separatists as they descended. Perfect weather for those who wished to fight a battle or wage a war. Refugees, the displaced inhabitants of the city and a mix of humans, Bith, Duros and the native Nalroni, had fled the advancing Republic and were now all huddled together in a colossal camp near where the Separatist's destined landing spot was to be. Dirty, ragged civilians, disheartened in spirit, looked up as the mighty thrum of droning engines, belonging to C-9979 landing craft, announced the arrival of the droid army. Looks of desperation turned to expressions of excitement, shouts of joy rising all over the camp as the people of Celanon ran to greet their saviours. Local enforcers did their best to keep the refugees back, ordering them to keep their distance so that the Separatists could do their job. The landing craft set down and thier mighty bay doors opened, MTT troop carriers and AAT tanks rolling out much to the glee of the onlookers. The Separatists had arrived in full force, a display that would assure the galaxy that they would be willing to defend worlds loyal to them no matter what opposition the Republic offered.
Surely this display would be enough to send a strong message, their actions a stern warning that the Republic would be foolish to ignore.
Disembarking his solar sailor, Count Dooku and The Wraith emerged from between landing craft, revealing themselves to the distant throng. A great clamour arose at the sight of the Separatist supreme leader and the deadly super-soldier whom many had come to greatly admire. Realizing this, Wraith paused behind Dooku and turned to the crowd, crossing one arm over his chest before throwing his arm up into the air as a salute to the people. Many returned the gesture, a roar of approval reaching his audio receptors. Chuckling to himself, Wraith turned and made to rejoin the collective of leaders standing before him.
"Guess you're something of a celebrity around here, huh?" The Gen'Dai wondered as he walked up.
"They are a people who look up to the Separatists, Durge. We are their heroes, not the Republic. Admittedly the admiration and praise is a welcome change of pace." Wraith replied.
"You said it!" Durge agreed.
"The people's cooperation will go a long way in helping us retake Celanon." Dooku stated. "Now it is just a matter of retaking their city."
"A fact easier said than done." Grievous rasped.
"We should start by moving into the city, maybe try to establish a base along the outskirts. We don't want these people to get caught in the crossfire." Wraith suggested. Dooku agreed with him and they made to lead their forces deeper into the permacrete and glass jungle that stood prominently before them. To do so, they needed to bypass a stream of refugees evacuating the city, something the local enforcers quickly got to work on. But as they did, two human women burst from the crowd and ran over to Wraith.
"Help me! Help me, please!" The oldest of the two cried as she rushed over to him. "My daughter! I can't find my daughter!" She shrieked, clearly hysterical, clinging to Wraith with a look of wild desperation in her eyes.
"Calm yourself ma'am." Wraith urged her, easing her back and off of him. He quickly analyzed her short, white-haired appearance and guessed her age to be somewhere over sixty. "Where did you last see her?" He asked. It was the younger, ebony-haired woman who answered him.
"She's my younger sister. We were separated when the Clones attacked us in the guild section." Wraith regarded her and nodded in understanding. "She looks just like me. Please, you must help us!" She begged him.
"Understood." Wraith replied, taking a moment to memorize her physical features. "If I find her, I will bring her back." He assured them. The woman breathlessly thanked him before another enforcer moved them on into the camp. Wraith turned on heel and jogged over to Dooku and the others, standing beside an AAT.
"Kinda hysterical, that one." Durge commented as he arrived.
"The Republic claim to be peaceful... yet here they are tearing apart families." Dooku added.
"True, but they also revealed something to us. They claimed that the Republic had forced them out of the guild section. That's not far from here." Wraith stated, having memorized a map of the city and compared it to their current position.
"Indeed." Dooku thoughtfully mused as he crossed his arms.
"If we want to maintain any sort of advantage, we need to keep the Republic from establishing a foothold this close to our staging area." Wraith continued.
"Agreed. Wraith, Durge, investigate the guild section and eliminate any Republic opposition. Report back to us once you have swept the area." Dooku ordered.
"Right. You an' me, kid! Let's fly!" Durge gleefully stated as his jet pack extended from behind him.
"I don't fly... I move out!" Wraith replied, breaking into a sprint towards the city, Durge taking off after him. The two Separatist warriors moved side by side as they found themselves on a main footpath that would bypass the oncoming refugees and take them on a straight path to the market sector. Wraith's superhuman stamina powered him onwards, sprinting non-stop at a speed that was able to match Durge's thrusters, surprising him. Looking over and seeing Wraith's limbs almost a blur as he kept pace with him, Durge chuckled to himself.
"Remind me to get a dose of that serum." He commented over his comms.
"Sorry, it's an exclusive number." Wraith retorted, optics on the road. Durge shrugged.
"Thought I might get lucky."
After several minutes of continuous momentum, Wraith and Durge arrived on the edge of the guild section. Sliding to a halt, Wraith quickly surveyed their surroundings, examining the damaged buildings around him an empty courtyard in front of him. Rubble and debris were strewn about, the remains of destroyed stalls and vehicles evidence of where they were located.
"I'm guessing this is the place... guessing, mind you." Durge stated as he touched down, wings retracting into his pack. Wraith said nothing, pinging his sensors as his optics sweeped back and forth. Then, he found something.
"Thermal's picked up a cluster of hits to the southwest. I'm willing to bet they're Clones, but they might also be civilians."
"Depends on how quickly they wanted to peel out." Durge mused as he reached behind him for a power cord as a big carbine repeater unfolded from his arm and into his grip. Wraith drew his own carbine from behind him and armed it, power cells coming online with a hum. The two moved closer to Wraith's finding, winding around destroyed buildings as they made their way through the empty streets. Rounding a corner, they found themselves staring at a heaping mound of rubble, having fallen from one of the buildings around them.
"Looks like the Republic showed this place no mercy." Wraith quietly muttered. "What were they doing, deliberately attacking civilians?"
"Maybe the resistance effort was hiding among the crowd. I wouldn't discriminate if they were hiding in plain sight." Durge suggested. The two of them crawled over the rubble, both of their heavy boots crushing permacrete under them as they rose to the top.
And when they reached the top, Wraith and Durge found themselves less than ten feet away from a squad of Clones.
"Well, would you look at that. We got ourselves some white-clad duplicates!" Durge chuckled as sadistic thoughts entered his mind. Powering up his carbine, Durge cocked his weapon as the troopers suddenly recognized the imminent danger they were in. "Let's kill 'em all!"
"Gladly." Wraith growled, leaping forward and opening fire with his carbine. Durge did the same, pulling the trigger as heavy, thunderous rounds exploded from his cannon at high speed and ripped through Clones. Caught off guard, the troopers fell in droves as Wraith and Durge cut them down with relentless efficiency. Their twin blasters blazing away, the Clones nearest them died first while the ones further away quickly scrambled to counterattack.
It was just two men, they thought, surely they wouldn't be a problem...
When the blue fire started shelling them, Wraith paused and quickly analyzed the Republic's change in tactics. "What's say we take this to an up close and personal level?" Wraith wondered, stowing his carbine behind him.
"You're speakin' my language, kid!" Durge replied as he kicked his jet pack into gear. "Go ahead, I'll cover ya!" Wraith gave a quick nod and broke into a sprint. Charging ahead with an unquenchable desire to spill blood, Wraith triggered his arm blades and tore into the Clones before him. Durge joined him soon after, producing a flail in his other hand as he lashed out at the entrenched Clones. Ripping and tearing, hacking through bodies with blood and severed limbs flying, Wraith gave a roar as his blades shredded Clone after Clone, vivisecting their bodies with a messy spray of red fluid every time.
"Nothing like spilling Clone blood to get the adrenaline pumping!" He growled as he tore apart another Clone, his victim screaming in pain as he was brutally killed.
But it reality, he was attempting to purge his body of the remaining emotions left from his connection with the corrupted Ahsoka. They had been bothering him all the time and he hoped a decent firefight would be enough to clear his head.
"I like the way you think, kid!" Durge shouted over the clamour. Pulling a Clone in with his flail, Durge pulled him to the ground and crushed his head under his foot. Grabbing another Clone by the chest armor, Durge picked him up off the ground and promptly threw him towards the super-soldier. "Think fast!" He called in warning. Turning about and seeing the Clone hurtling towards him, Wraith acted on the first plan that came to mind. Dropping to one knee, he held up his arm and tensed up, his muscles going taut. The Clone made contact with his blade and was bisected, quickly shorn in two as his flying body met the razor-sharp edge of Wraith's weapon. Blood splattered the ground and a brief shower doused Wraith, covering his camo-grey shoudlers and helmet with blood as the two halves of the Clones landed on the ground with a wet splat. "Nice move!" Durge remarked.
"The constant praise is not necessary." Wraith replied, blade disappearing into his gauntlet. "On you're right." He added. Durge whirled about and leveled his carbine at the Clone Wraith had spotted, blasting him at point-blank range and evaporating his head in a shower of blood.
"Thanks." Wraith nodded and blasted two more Clones with his drawn pistols before he attacked another with a hook kick that put him on the ground, executing him while he was down. It was then that his sensors picked up a fresh batch of thermal targets that were nowhere near this battle.
"Durge, handle the rest of these, I'm detecting more Clones a street over!" Wraith explained as he bounded across the rubble towards his new find.
"Copy that, kid!" Durge called over his shoulder, his flail producing a series of spikes that tore into another Clone, ripping clean through his armor. With this battle under control, Wraith was free to investigate this new batch of thermals. Running some possibilities through his mind, Wraith determined there was a high probability of them being Clones, with a slim chance of it being some civilians. Either way, he had an appropriate response prepared for either occasion.
But he needed to know for certain first.
Leaving the clamor of combat and the screams of dying Clones behind him, the super-soldier soon found himself in the shadows of the ruins of another high-rise, slowly creeping towards this little group. Careful poking his head around the edge of the building, scouting out this other rubble-strewn courtyard, Wraith's suspicions were quickly confirmed. He found Clones alright, five of them to be exact. Along with a young, black-haired woman who looked exactly like the woman he'd spoken to earlier.
He'd found the lost sister.
Problem was, the Clones had found her too.
"What've we got here... a little Separatist schutta!" One of them remarked as he advanced upon the fallen woman, rifle in hand. Said woman was on the ground, her arms in the grasp of another trooper who was standing directly behind her. She was struggling fiercely to get free.
"Get your hands off me, you filthy dewbacks!" She cried. Her outburst roused only a chuckle from the Clones.
"Looks like we got a lively one on our hands!" Another trooper mused. Wraith quickly calculated his best angle of approach and began to stalk the Clones, quietly advancing on them. He did not know what their true intentions were, but based on their actions he could only assume they were up to no good.
No Separatist-aligned civilian would suffer such a barbaric fate while he was around.
One of the troopers knelt down and forced the woman to face him.
"This is what's you deserve for working with those damn clankers!" He hissed, threatening her with what was to come.
"And this is what you deserve for existing in the first place!" Wraith growled as he made his presence known, a pair of throwing knives whistling through the air before becoming embedded square in the back of the trooper's head. The other Clones were quick to react, but Wraith was quicker. Slugthrower in hand, Wraith promptly obliterated the heads of two other Clones while a third slug tore through the chest of another Clone, leaving a hole where his heart had once been. The last Clone took two slugs through his knees and fell to the ground, screaming in agony. Wraith promptly executed him with another slug to the head, blood and brain matter splattering across the ground. With the last of them dead, Wraith holstered his weapon and stooped down to help up the woman. "Are you well?"
"I am now..." She replied, taking his head. Looking up, her eyes locked with his crimson optics and she quickly recognized her savior despite his blood-splattered appearance. "You... You are The Wraith." She said in awe.
"I am." He answered. The woman breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you sir." She whispered, clinging to him.
"I encountered your mother and sister, they informed me of your disappearance. You are fortunate I managed to find you." He stated.
"My family lives? Please... will you take me to them?" She asked.
"I'll do my best." Wraith answered, reaching for his comms. He needed to check in with his comrade. "Durge, how're those Clones?"
"Dead on the ground!" The Gen'Dai replied. "You pickin' up any more on your scanners?"
"No. I think we've cleared them out." Wraith said, concluding their work here was done. "Let's get back to the staging area."
The droid army was on the move by the time Wraith and Durge returned to the staging grounds. The super-soldier headed for the refugee camp with the young woman while Durge returned to Dooku's side, the Count standing near a holotable that had been set up near their makeshift headquarters.
"The Clones have been dislodged from the guild section, sir. We're in the clear." He reported.
"Then it is time for us to make our move." Dooku replied. "I have spoken with some of the city's leaders and they tell me that Kage Videl's resistance forces were last seen fighting the Republic in a northeast sector. We should link up with them as they would have current information on the Republic's whereabouts."
"Sounds like a plan." Durge agreed. It was then that Wraith jogged over to them, the young woman safely reunited with her mother and sister.
"There's one happy family for you." He muttered as he stepped over to Dooku.
"Was the old lady all over you again?" Durge wondered.
"Pretty sure she wanted to be my mother-in-law." Wraith mumbled, crossing his arms. Durge cackled loudly, the super-soldier rolling his eyes beneath his helmet in response. "What now, my lord?"
"We make for the southwest sector of the city and find Kage Videl's resistance." Dooku answered.
"Is Grevious already moving?"
"He is. I have stayed behind to discuss tactics with you." Dooku answered. He turned to the Gen'Dai. "Durge, fly to Grievous' position and join him on the front lines." He ordered.
"With pleasure boss!" Durge emphatically replied before taking to the skies, leaving Wraith and Dooku alone. The Count escorted the soldier over to the nearby holotable where he pulled up a render of the city, the occupying Republic forces highlighted in red.
"I have spoken with the local leaders and they have supplied me with what little data they managed to acquire from the resistance before the Republic took total control of the city." Dooku explained, gesturing to the render. Wraith crossed his arms as he thoughtfully examined the layout before him. Coupling this with his prior knowledge about the city and the planet, Wraith was quickly amassing quite the knowledge base for this fight. "Take a look at the Republic forces. They're concentrated in one area near the city centre, but their ground units are spread far and wide across the city."
"They're trying to cover as much ground as possible. They want this city out of our hands and they're doing their damnedest to keep that up." Wraith replied, tactical mindset taking over as he slipped into his analytical mode. A mode, he felt, he hadn't been in for a long time.
It felt good to be back in it.
"It would appear so." Dooku agreed. "We need to determine what their plans are. They have not moved from this city, they have not even made an advance elsewhere on the planet." He explained. Wraith grew even more thoughtful as he did his best to get into his enemies' head.
"This is the capital. They must think that holding this is equal to them controlling the rest of the planet." Wraith surmised.
"That is a valid tactic?" Dooku wondered.
"It's what I'd do. Cut off the head and the body falls." Wraith replied. "As for their continued presence in this city and why they haven't spread out, I don't know why just yet." Leaning against the holotable, he studied the map carefully. His gaze passed over each and every position marked in red, examining the surroundings and looking for a pattern in the Republic lines. "Looks like the bulk of their forces are being used to defend their forward position, a place far from their command center." He commented, gesturing to the multiple waves of red lines that extended out from where their field command was situated. It appeared to be a fairly routine defensive placement. The Republic had obviously witnessed their arrival and were making their stand, trying to head off the droid army before they got too close. "They're prepping for us." He added, nodding a little. But then, something clicked in his mind. Why would the Republic put up such a rigorous defense before the Separatists were even close to their headquarters? "Wait... they want to keep us away from their position..." He slowly and quiet realized, staring intently at the map before him. He continued to observe the Republic lines as Dooku watched him, waiting for him to continue. "They're not ready for us. They're putting up a front." He finally stated, realizing the Republic's apparent bluff.
"How can you be certain?" Dooku wondered.
"Why else would they put so much effort into their defense when we've only just arrived?" Wraith countered. "They're panicking. They know this is Separatist territory, that this world truly belongs to us. They want to keep what they've got and their desperation shows." Dooku straightened up, folding his hand behind his back as he examined the map with Wraith's realization in mind.
"How should we proceed then?" He asked.
"I get the feeling we'll really have to 'divide and conquer' today. The Republic is spread out, covering multiple hotspots that we need control of." Wraith replied, pointing to various clusters that were not joined to the main lines of defense. "But the rest of their troops are solidified in a defensive formation throughout the rest of the city, giving us multiple barricades we need to get past."
"Why do you suppose that is? Apart from the obvious, of course."
"Urban warfare, my lord. They're making the best use of the terrain, forcing us to run their little gambit in order to wear us out, before we can reach their command center and do some real damage." Wraith responded. He was quickly piecing together the Republic's game, figuring them out now before the battle of Celanon truly got underway. "That and they know this is hostile territory for them, resistance could come from anywhere. They're playing the defensive game, trying to be safe about all this while waiting with baited breath for our arrival."
"And how shall we respond?" Dooku asked.
"The Republic appears to be trying to get us to run a gauntlet, hoping multiple, fortified defensive positions will be enough to break our efforts and exhaust us." Wraith explained, highlighting the specific pattern in which the red lines were organized. "I say we just punch right through their lines, prove them wrong and make them even more fearful."
"Do you believe we have what it takes to accomplish such a strategy? A forward assault could be costly." The Sith queried, wanting to make certain their strategy would be sound.
"Put Durge, Grievous and I on the front lines and we will manage, my lord. Together we have a strength that no Clone army can match." Wraith firmly replied, his belief in the potential of him and his leaders quite obvious.
"Very well. We will relay this information to General Grievous. Once we acquire the data the resistance possesses, we will make our move." Dooku stated.
"Then I better go join them."
Kage Videl's resistance was nothing more than a few ragtag members of the Celanon City Volunteer Defense Department, barely any of them were as seasoned as Kage himself, a man who had moved his family to Celanon after a stint as a military commander serving on Chandrila. But he cared deeply for the well-being of the citizens of Celanon, almost as much as he did for his own family. Which was why he started up this resistance once the Republic invaded. Some might call them zealous, others insane. But they did what they did in the name of their fellow citizens.
The Clones were a well-trained fighting force, their skill giving them a significant advantage over the resistance. But Kage and his freedom fighters were stubborn and determined. If they couldn't take back their city, the least they could do was be a thorn in the Republic's side.
A rocket whizzed past overhead, exploding in a column of flame behind the resistance line, a hail of blue blaster rounds following as the Republic mercilessly assaulted them. Kage and his men crouched behind pieces of fallen building and whatever large debris they could find.
"They're really givin' it their all!" A Duros commented over the clamor.
"They want us gone!" Kage replied, gripping his rifle tightly. "But we're not going anywhere!" The forty-something man cut a fierce appearance with his black, shirt-cut hair, bright green eyes and sharp goatee. He was as recognizable a figure as they came. "Come on men! For Celanon!" He cried, poking over the debris and returning fire with a few scattered shots towards the Clones. The two dozen men with him joined in his counterattack.
Meanwhile, the Clones were finding the resistance nothing more than an irritating nuisance. They had their orders to capture them all, preferably alive. But Commander Kert was a Clone who knew when it was time for a change of plans. And that time was drawing near...
"Commander Kert, sir," a trooper called as he dashed to his side with urgent news, "scouts report the droid army is making its way through the city. Looks like they're coming here." Kert shook his head. He had hoped they could clean up this resistance before the real fight began. Unfortunately, the Separatists seldom played by the Republic's preferred timetable.
"I know our orders were to get them to surrender... but it looks like we don't have a choice any longer." He grimly replied. "Get a message back to the General. Tell him we're doubling back to reinforce the second line, the resistance has been dealt with." He ordered. The trooper nodded in understanding before leaving. "Lieutenant! Increase the barrage, none of them are leaving!" Kert commanded a green-plated trooper.
Kage and his men suddenly found themselves under another fierce barrage, several Nalroni falling with scorch marks marring their chests. Kage and the rest ducked down as the Republic continued, refusing to give them any breathing room.
"Sir! We can't survive another push like that!" A Duros exclaimed.
"Do they want us dead or alive?!" A human questioned. Kage sighed in disappointment. He hated running from a fight. But for the sake of his men, he had no choice.
"Fall back. Head for the embassy." He ordered begrudgingly. The men around him nodded and began to quietly creep away, using the debris for cover.
But then, the rush of turbines alerted them to a presence above.
Durge swooped in from overhead, blasting the Republic lines with a flamethrower that popped out of his right gauntlet. The resistance fighters watched in awe as Durge held the Republic back, his belt-fed carbine now blazing away at them as well.
"Kage Videl?" The weary resistance leader turned to see Wraith standing behind them, carbine drawn and perched atop a chunk of permacrete. His fellow soldiers gawked at the sight of the legendary super-solider in their presence. They had thought all hope lost... until now. "Count Dooku requests your presence." Wraith continued as he stepped down into their midst. Kage walked closer to him, eyes darting back and forth as he studied Wraith's every feature. His men were just as enraptured. Never did they think they would ever meet the man who beat the Chosen One, the man who inspired their brothers and who their sons sought to imitate.
"The Wraith... The legendary Wraith..." Kage breathed.
"Such titles are not necessary." Wraith replied, laying a hand on the man's shoulder. "I'm a fighter, just like you."
"Then... Then let's fight! We have a chance now!" Kage declared, charging his rifle.
"No Kage. Not this time." Wraith stopped him. "We need to pick and choose our battles if we want to see Celanon free."
"But... But we've been running for so long." Kage countered, desperate to strike a blow to the Republic on behalf of his people. "To actually be able to stand a fight for once-"
"You will get your chance to fight. Right now, I need you alive." Wraith continued.
"But the resistance-"
"There will be no resistance if none of you are left alive!" Wraith firmly stated. "Now go. Durge and I will cover you. Count Dooku needs any data you might've acquired concerning the Republic." He explained, shouldering his carbine.
"Wait. There's more of us. Further south." Kage suddenly informed him. "My son Khol, he's leading another group of fighters. He has more data you can use." Wraith quickly digested this new information. Dooku would need to be informed. Durge continued fighting in the background, the scream of a dying Clone echoing loudly as the Gen'Dai shredded him with his flechette launcher.
"We'll get to him in due time." Wraith finally said. He turned to the other resistance fighters. "All of you, go!" He commanded. The men wasted no time retreating, leaving Wraith alone with Kage. The new information he'd revealed changed his demeanor greatly, something Wraith quickly took note of. "You're worried about your son." He observed.
"I am. But he's done me and all of Celanon proud by standing up to the Republic." Videl replied with a nod.
"I'll see to it you get to see him again." Wraith promised. Kage nodded in understanding and moved out as Wraith started jogging towards Durge.
"Could use your help, kid!" The Gen'Dai shouted over the comms. From his position, Wraith took aim and fired a burst of rounds, gunning down several Clones with precise shots. A nearby rocket trooper took aim at the super-soldier, but was quickly cut down by another blast from Wraith's carbine. He managed to fire one last shot before he keeled over, his rocket racing high into the air, over Durge and over Wraith. Flying over them in a wide arc, the projectile came down hard right in the midst of the fleeing rebel fighters. Wraith turned around in time to see a blast of flame send men flying in every direction.
"Kage!" He shouted, charging back towards the group. Sprinting past the bodies of others, Wraith slid to a halt over Videl's blackened body. The man was sporting a nasty wound across his forehead, blood dripping down his face. Wraith have him a shake. "Kage! Stay with me!" He growled, desperate to keep him alive. The injured man sputtered and fished a data chip out of his belt with a weak hand.
"H-Here..." he weakly rasped, offering it to Wraith. "I-It's all we've... l-learned..." The super-soldier took it, clasping the man's hand as he did. "Tell my son... I'm proud of him..."
"You can tell him yourself, just hang on!" Wraith stayed, reaching for his comms. Kage sputtered and coughed, blood spraying from his mouth.
"It was... an honor... to meet you..." Kage whispered, his body slowly falling still. Wraith's scanners quickly recognized that Kage's body was shutting down. His injuries were too severe and he would not live long enough for medics to arrive.
There was nothing he could do.
With a sigh, Wraith retracted his mouth guard, letting the resistance leader see a glimpse of his true face.
"The honor is mine." He replied, clasping Kage's hand tightly. The man gave a weak smile before he lost strength and fell limp, his heart stopping as he died. Wraith shook his head sadly, mourning the loss and the absolute waste around him that didn't have to be. "Your death will not be in vain." He whispered. Releasing Kage's hand, Wraith took the drive and stuffed it into his jacket, rising to his feet as he did. "Durge, it's time to go!" He stated, mouthguard sliding into place.
"The resistance all clear?" Durge called over the comms.
"They're all dead. That last rocket killed them." Wraith uttered with a growl. Maybe he could've done something...
"Damn. Alright, fine!" The Gen'Dai relented. "Give me some breathing room, would ya?" Wraith obliged, stowing his carbine and sprinting towards Durge. An impressive amount of bloody corpses were already strewn across the ground, evidence of Durge's relentless killing spree.
Right now, Wraith was in the mood to do something similar.
Rushing past Durge, blades slid out over his hands as Wraith tore into the nearest Clone, cutting him to pieces with a quick swipe.
"You killed a good man today!" Wraith growled as he tore apart another one. He quickly turned on another one who was rushing towards him. "I hope!" He rumbled, attacking low and cutting off his legs. "You're happy!" He finished, bringing his other blade down and beheading the Clone. Sheathing his blades, Wraith drew his pistols and opened fire, gunning down Clone after Clone and quickly growing lost in the blur of activity unfolding around him.
"Thanks kid! I'm clear!" Durge's voice stated through his comms. Taking that as his que, Wraith turned on heel and booked it after Durge. The remaining Republic troops fired a few scattered shots after him didn't have it in them to give chase. But they were able to get a single message back to their General.
The Wraith was here.
"So Kage was killed. That is most unfortunate." Dooku quietly said.
"He managed to give me his data before his death." Wraith continued. "I have it right here." He said, plugging the drive into a holoprojector. He held it out before Dooku, Grievous and Durge and a map of the city soon appeared. Marked on it were a series of additional red sites not present on their current understanding of the city.
"The Republic has set up a command center in the middle of the city." Grievous observed.
"Damn good place to put it. And look! They got a force field generator close by." Durge added, pointing at the new construct a few kilometers away from the command center.
"They're doing a good job of protecting their center of operations." Wraith mused, agreeing with both his commanders. "If we can't take down that central mobile hub, they can hold out behind that force field until reinforcements arrive."
"Fortunately, it would appear their defenses are focused towards the mainland and not towards the harbor district in the southwest." Dooku commented. "This is good. They are weaker in this one spot."
"I bet that's where the second resistance unit is." Wraith stated. "Kage told me his son Khol was leading another group to the southwest of him. They might be trying to exploit this weakness in their defenses."
"And I'm willing to bet they don't have the resources to last against the Republic if they do engage them. I mean, if the last group was any indicator..." Durge said, crossing his arms. Wraith powered down the holomap as Dooku turned to him.
"What do you recommend, soldier?"
"If we're going to do this, we have to fully commit. Once we start moving and the Republic figures us out, they're going to send as many of their troops as they can spare to reinforce those lines. We have to punch through their defenses now while we can." Wraith replied, the gears in his head turning as he explained his newly devised plan.
"And the resistance?" Dooku inquired.
"We bail them out first. They might have additional data that can help us."
"But we have no idea where they are." Durge interjected. "They could be anywhere in the harbor district!"
"Send me ahead. I'll find them and let you know." Wraith suggested, turning to Dooku. The Count nodded, processing the unfolding plan.
"Very well." He surmised, looking up to the cyborg General. "General Grievous, we make for the south of the city. Wraith... find the resistance. This war is about to begin." He commanded.
Later...
The group of a dozen resistance fighters jogged through the debris-strewn streets, passing under the shadows of wrecked high-rise complexes adjacent to Celanon's harbor. Comprised of mostly humans as well as a smattering of Bith and Duros, the ragtag group of vastly under-resourced freedom fighters was doing their best to avoid any Republic assaults and survive as long as they could, all while dealing as much damage as they could to the invading army.
It was a task easier said than done.
They came to a halt in the middle of a street, pausing as they assessed their surroundings.
"Were we followed?" A young man with short black hair asked his fellows.
"I don't think so." Another helmeted human replied. "Khol... all due respect, but we can't keep this up. We can't keep running." He continued. "The Republic is bound to find us."
"I know. But what are we supposed to do?" Khol countered, running a gloved hand through his black hair. He hated making decisions like this. His father was the leader, not him.
"We have the tactical data on the Republic. Maybe we should put it to good use." The soldier suggested.
"How? We don't have the resources to even put a dent in their lines." Khol responded. "Besides, you remember our orders: we get the day, draw the Republic's fire and get out." He recounted, remembering the last thing his father had told them. "That's what my father told us to do and I'm inclined to stick to those rules."
"We haven't been in contact with your father for hours. We don't know what's going on, if the plan's still good... anything!" A Duros interjected. "Maybe we should just turn around and do what we can with what time we have left."
"And do what? You saw the artillery the Republic was pulling out. They're digging in and we won't stand a chance against them if we go back in there." Khol retorted. "Look... until help arrives, we're on our own. So we have to fend for ourselves and keep this resistance alive. And going back into that meat grinder is not gonna help." He finally stated, laying down the law. The other fighters slowly agreed, hating to have to abandon the fight for their home but knew that they had no other choice. "We just have to face facts. Maybe the Separatists won't come for us until it's too late." Khol added, sounding doubtful. Just then, heavy blaster fire lit up their position as a pair of Republic BARC speeders arrived on the scene.
"Heads up!" A soldier shouted before he was knocked off his feet by another blast. Khol and the others scrambled for cover, a few soldiers firing off retaliatory rounds as they did. The Clones had their orders to locate and terminate this small squad of resistance fighters, already relaying their position to their commanding officers and requesting backup. The powerful laser cannons on their speeders would certainly do a number on these men, but the scout troopers were equipped with mere blaster pistols, not nearly the standard-issue blasters other Clones were outfitted with.
They would have to make due until reinforcements arrived.
From behind his cover, Khol spotted the bodies of four of his men, a Bith, a Duros and two humans, lying dead on the ground. He realized these Clones were here with one purpose: to wipe them out. He had to keep them safe and get them out of here.
"Suppressing fire!" He called out. But another blast rocked them all as a few more men were shot to pieces by the speeders. The Clones slowly maneuvered to take aim again when, suddenly, a quick barrage of blaster fire killed the Clone on the right. His body collapsed and fell from the speeder, his partner looking just in time for some more blaster fire to strike his speeder, causing an explosion that launched him off his ride and sent him tumbling across the ground. Khol and the resistance fighters shielded themselves before looking up, awed by what happened and questioning who had done it. When their gaze turned down the street, their hearts leapt in surprise.
The tails of a blue duster flapped in the gentle breeze and the towering man walked forward at a determined pace, his silver armor gleaming in the sunlight. A blaster carbine in both hands, he charged up his weapon and cycled the power as he approached the impromptu battleground. His gaze landed on the surviving resistance fighters as he planted his boot against a raised piece of debris.
"As long as you remain loyal to the Separatists, you shall never be abandoned. For we will always defend our own!" The Wraith declared for them all to hear. The men slowly came out from behind their cover as Wraith turned to his comms. "All units, to my position!" He radioed. Khol and his men, rifles loosely held as they beheld their legendary savior with a sense of reverent awe. Until this moment, stories were all they had of The Wraith.
Now they were getting to meet him in person.
The whoosh of jets overhead drew their attention skyward as Durge made his presence known, touching down near the wrecked speeders as he surveyed the area. Khol made a beeline for The Wraith as his men flagged down the approaching droid armies.
"It's you...!" he softly exclaimed. "You're... You're The Wraith!"
"I am, Khol Videl." Wraith greeted, holstering his carbine behind him. The young man was only a few inches shorter than him, but he greatly resembled his father. "Your father spoke very highly of you."
"You met my father?" Khol inquired. "Where is he?" Wraith's shoulders slumped a little as he prepared to deliver the bad news.
"Your father has died, Khol. He was killed by a Republic rocket strike." He answered. The young man suddenly dropped his rifle as all color was drained from his face.
"Dead...?" Khol whispered in shock. He was too stunned to cry or react, his men quietly moving away to give him a moment.
"He gave his life in service to his people and his planet." Wraith continued, speaking solemnly. "It's up to you now to lead the resistance." Khol said nothing, still stunned by the news of his father's grief. But deep down he resented this new weight that had been pressed upon him. He was no leader, he always lived in the shadow of his father's ability to command and control others. Now being thrust into a position like this? He had no idea what to say or do... "Your father had faith in you. Now the Separatists hold you in equally high regard." Wraith told him, trying to reassure the young man. He turned and gestured to the droids. "Go and speak with Count Dooku, he will need your tactical data." He instructed. Khol nodded numbly and slowly moved to obey, picking up his fallen rifle. Wraith watched him go, feeling a great deal of pity for the boy. He could only imagine what he was going through. Losing a loved one to death was never an easy ordeal...
"Hey Wraith! This one's still kicking!" Durge suddenly called to him. Jogging over to the Gen'dai, Wraith discovered a disarmed Clone in Durge's grip, thrashing about as he tried to free himself. The commanding General looked to Wraith. "How ya wanna handle this one, kid?" He asked. Wraith took a split second to make up his mind. Having witnessed the death of a boy's father, the demise of a family unit by the Republic's hand, he felt only hatred for the Clone. And he knew just how to act upon it.
"Grab a limb..." He growled. Durge immediately picked up on his plan and chuckled darkly in response, grabbing the Clone's right arm with both hands while Wraith grabbed his left. Together they pulled hard, the Clone struggling and crying out in pain as the two Separatists tugged. Suddenly, the Clone's arms came off in a messy shower of blood, the limbs now held in Durge and Wraith's hands as the Clone collapsed, screaming in bitter agony. He thrashed wildly on the ground, blood spurting from the stubs of his shoulders. Wraith tossed his arm aside. "Now the legs." He instructed. Durge did as asked and they proceeded to pull and tug again, summoning their raw strength to finish drawing and quartering the Clone. After a few minutes of applied strength to the tortured trooper, their combined power ripped his body in half, severed like a wishbone. Dumping the carcass, Wraith dusted off his hands and motioned for Durge to join him back alongside Dooku. Khol had turned over his tactical data to the count and was busy informing him of their situation.
"Our understanding was that your group was attempting to exploit a weakness in the Republic's defenses." The Count inquired as the data shimmered to life.
"That's what we came to do. Then we found out that they've got more troops back here than we realized. They've managed to create a second defensive line." Khol replied. Dooku took a moment to study the data before him.
"What do you know about these defenses?" He asked.
"The one closest to their shielded position is dense and thick. There's a lot of Clones set up in a courtyard that's too much for us to get through." Khol explained, gesturing to the army closest to the Republic's mobile command center. "The closer one has less Clones defending it, but they've set up their defenses well between a set of buildings so they can snipe at us from the upper patios." He added, drawing a line across the red-marked units closer to their position.
"So it is a cross between strategically placed and heavy opposition." Dooku thoughtfully mused, stroking his beard as he weighed the options presented to them. As he did, Wraith and Durge arrived and the old man turned to him. "Wraith, what do you make of this?" He asked. The super-soldier took a moment to study the map and analyze the Republic positions.
"These ones aren't far, but it looks like this is their only layer of external defense. It's not like the multiple lines to the north and east." He observed, quickly noting the thin layer of defenses. This was good for them as it meant less work and less resistance en route to the Republic's center of operations. "If we're going to make a move, my lord, I suggest we punch through this defensive line and take the battle straight to the heart of their position." He said, looking up to Dooku. Ultimately, the choice was his to make, being that he was his superior.
"Hell yeah! Now that sounds like a plan!" Durge chimed in, liking Wraith's idea of pursuing battle. "All this movin' around's got me bored, I'm itchin' for some action!"
"Then it is settled. We make for this line. Khol, might I ask you and your men to lead us there?" Dooku requested. The young man nodded, taking up his blaster rifle.
"Yes sir." He replied with a quick nod.
"Grievous, expand our forces so that they cover the whole width of the street. Of the Republic tries to ambush us, I want to be able to see where they are before chaos settles in." Dooku ordered. "As for the rest of us, it's time to move!"
The Separatist army began moving at double their original pace, the resistance fighters leading them through the angular city streets, Wraith and Durge keeping pace alongside them. The condition of the city seemed to grow worse the deeper they traveled, leaving Wraith to wonder if this is where the fighting had been the fiercest. Eventually, the resistance split into two groups, dividing between both sides of the street they were one. Khol led Wraith towards a nearby building as the super-soldier told Durge to fall back and support the main line. He would go on recon duty for now. Following Khol inside the ruined building, Wraith crouched next to the resistance leader as he gestured to a shattered window. Taking a look, Wraith quickly realized they were right next to the Republic lines and he quickly took stock of their formation.
"You weren't kidding. They're really using those rooftop patios to their advantage." Wraith quietly noted, his HUD scanning over ever Clone he could see.
"Whatever they can keep out of reach of us. And support those on the ground." Khol replied.
"Right. We'll have our work cut out for us." Wraith agreed. He reached for his comms. "Wraith to Count Dooku, I've got eyes on the Republic forces."
"What do you see soldier?"
"The resistance data is accurate. The Clones have stationed the majority of their forces on rooftop balconies. I see rocket troopers and snipers and a lot of them. Our ground forces are gonna have a helluva time getting close." He reported.
"Understood. Be advised, that area is close and narrow. Our tanks will have to find another way around." Dooku replied.
"I copy. Confirm long-range bombardment?"
"Negative. Not while we're so close and within firefighting distance." Dooku responded, the communication concluding.
"Damn." Wraith muttered, understanding this was now a numbers game. He turned to Khol. "Alright kid, looks like we're strongarming our way through this one." He announced. "Ready to show off some Separatist manpower?"
"But how? There's so many of them and so few of us." Khol replied, sounding like this task was impossible. Having tried something similar earlier only to meet failure and being forced to retreat, those negative memories ate away at this confidence.
"We'll take them together. This time, you've got me for support." Wraith replied, drawing his pistols. Khol supposed he was right. The legendary super-soldier would likely be able to hold off all the Clones by himself. His men would find a much better example in him. "Besides, your people look up to you. You're their leader, their hero." Wraith added.
"I'm no hero. I'm nothing like you." Khol replied with a shake of his head. Wraith paused, realizing the combined aspects of today had taken a massive toll on the young man. He knew that Khol would have to view him as an equal, not someone superior. He needed this man to find the confidence to inspire his fellow Separatists. Wraith retracted his mouthguard, revealing the human mouth beneath as well as his own voice, surprising Khol.
"I'm not a hero. I'm just a solider, fighting for what I believe in." He told Khol, laying a hand on the man's shoulder. He was trying to emphasize with him. Wraith always believed himself to be a servant of the cause, but those with admittedly lesser abilities always thought him more than that. This was one such moment where he needed to be on the people's level, instead of leagues away setting a high standard. "You and I are equals. We are soldiers, we fight for what we believe in." He declared, giving Khol a reassuring squeeze. Khol slowly nodded, his confidence slowly growing. With him and Wraith working together, the Republic wouldn't stand a chance. "Now let's fight for the freedom of Celanon!" With a firm nod, Khol powered up his rifle. "Your orders, sir?" Wraith wondered with a slight grin.
"You're the tactical genius." Khol responded with a light chuckle. Wraith nodded and closed up his mouthguard, reaching for his comms again.
"Durge, you wanna be tip of the spear? We're right behind you!" He radioed.
"Yer speakin' my language kid!" The Gen'Dai replied as he swooped in and started blasting the Republic lines with his belt-fed carbine repeater in one hand and a flamethrower mounted to his other forearm. The commotion outside bought Wraith and Khol time to abandon their cover and surge into the fight, weapons blazing away. The other resistance leaders followed suit, forming the first line of offense as battle droids made their way down their street from behind them. The Clone sharpshooters were quick to open fire as their ground-level brothers scrambled to counterattack. Many resistance fights were felled under the initial hail of sniper fire, rounds ricocheting off Durge and Wraith's armor.
"Get to cover!" Wraith ordered the resistance fighters, diving behind a large piece of fallen permacrete. The others did so as well, the bodies of their comrades enough of a warning should they not.
"We can't survive this!" A Bith shouted.
"Yes you will. Leave them to us!" Wraith replied, popping out of his cover and attacking with quick pistol rounds. He knew that Durge and him could handle such intense firepower. But the lighter armor of the resistance fighters couldn't. As he and Durge continued, Khol and his men firing periodically, Dooku, Grievous and the droid army arrived to bolster their ranks, the leading Separatist generals now on the front lines. Grievous hung back to direct the droids while Dooku's lightsaber flashed as he deflected incoming blaster bolts, standing alongside Wraith and Durge. To their right and left, droids were cut down one by one by the Clones aiding their grounded allies from above.
"These duplicates are dug in pretty damn deep!" Durge shouted, mowing down a couple of rooftop Clones with a barrage from his carbine.
"Indeed. If we continue in such a fashion, Republic reinforcements will be here sooner than we'd like." Dooku replied. As he continued, he spied a fallen tower that had collapsed into another high rise where the Clones happened to be stationed. While most of the structure had fallen away, it appeared wide enough and sturdy enough for one person to scale it. And Dooku knew just who to send on such a mission. "Wraith?" The super-soldier turned at the mention of his name. Dooku gestured to the collapsed tower. "Think you can clear them out?" Wraith clued in immediately.
"Consider it done." He replied with a nod, stowing his pistols and sprinting towards the downed tower. Durge paused to watch him go.
"Somethin' tells me we're gonna wanna watch this!" He commented aloud.
"The skill Wraith possesses is unparalleled. He surpasses the standards set by most armies." Dooku quietly stated in agreement. He turned and looked up at the hulking Gen'Dai. "Yes, Durge. Watching him work is something worth taking the time to witness." Wraith fired his grapple and was hoisted up onto the tower, allowing him to run vertically along the raised edge as he scampered up to the patio where the Clone snipers had settled in. The Clones suddenly realized their advancing quarry and trained their sights on him, blaster rounds ricocheting off his armor and the surface beneath him. Leaping off the tower, Wraith drew his weapons and gunned down the line of Clone defenders, those nearest him falling first while the Clones further away ditched their rifles in favor of their short range arms. But as Wraith finished killing the Clones around him, they too were quickly gunned down as he made quick work of them with his heavy pistol rounds. The Separatists below cheered him on, eagerly watching the famed super-soldier go to work on their Clone adversaries. Khol and his men rested their advantage, their hopes fueled by Wraith's assault behind enemy lines.
For the first time in a long time, they felt like they stood a chance.
Wraith continued to kill off the Clone snipers on this building. He still had a few more to traverse and the Clones on the other high-rises realized this. Some of them switched targets, one of them grabbing a rocket launcher as they attacked Wraith while he finished off their brethren. The rocket trooper quickly trained his sights on Wraith, a red laser dot appearing on his jacket. The super-soldier quickly realized his predicament and hit the deck as the trooper fired. The rocket shot through the air and exploded right near Wraith, kicking up a massive cloud of dust as fire flashed from the ensuing explosion. The Separatists paused, watching to see what would happen. It looked like the rocket had exploded right on top of Wraith.
"Uh... Is he still alive?" Durge wondered, voicing the question on everyone's mind. Nobody moved, waiting for something... anything.
Suddenly, Wraith burst forward from the smoke at a full sprint, pistol drawn as he gunned down the rocket Clone on the opposite building as well as a few of the snipers. Charging ahead at full speed, Wraith leapt off the building and through the air, attempting to make it to the other patio on his own. At the last moment, he reached out and fired his grapple, snagging the ground and reeling him in the last few feet. His additional momentum allowed him to stretch out his leg and nail a Clone in the head with a lunge kick, effectively taking him out. Rolling across the ground and to his feet, Wraith continued his onslaught, pistol rounds methodically picking off Clones one by one as he moved on, unstoppable in every sense. The Separatists took up their cheer again, pressing their advantage and moving on the Clones as they lost their supporting fire. As they made their gains on the ground, shooting Clones in droves, Wraith had deployed his blades and continued to cut down the Clones on the rooftops, slaughtering the remaining snipers before he moved on to the third balcony, drawing his carbine and opening fire as he swung through the air on his grapple.
The battle had decidedly turned in favor of the Separatists, the defending Clones dying in droves as the invading battle droids and resistance fighters attacked them hard and relentlessly. Durge and Dooku closed the gap significantly, the Gen'Dai annihilating Clones with every weapon in his arsenal. Dooku destroyed several Clones with bursts of Force-lightning, electrocuting them as they screamed in bitter agony. Having finished with the last balcony, Wraith leapt over the edge and dug his blade into the side of the building as he descended, leaving a long gash behind as he dropped down. Landing on his feet, he drew his pistols and gunned down a few more Clones as they retreated from the advancing Separatists. He rejoined Dooku and Durge moments later, holstering his pistols.
"Nice job, kid! Gotta say, that was impressive!" Durge complimented, his rifle stowing away within his arm. "By the way, how'd ya survive that rocket?"
"I did... and I didn't." Wraith replied, motioning to the seared and blackened armor on his shoulder.
"But you took it like a champ!" Durge cackled, clapping Wraith on the back and pitching him forward a little. "I love this kid, boss! Where'd ya find him?" He asked Dooku.
"In a lab, you might say." The Count answered with a slight smirk. Wraith shrugged. It technically was the truth. As they conversed Khol ran over, rifle in hand.
"We've got them on the run!" He victoriously exclaimed. The leaders turned and watched as a small party of Clones took off down the nearest street and disappeared behind a corner as the droids shot after them.
"Indeed." Dooku thoughtfully replied, developing their next plan of action in his mind. "Wraith, see to it their forces are routed and permanently disabled. With what's to come, we cannot afford to fight this war on two fronts." He ordered the super-soldier.
"I'm on it." The super-soldier replied, charging off to mop up the rest of the Clones and triggering his cloaking field as he left.
"The rest of us make for the city center. It is time to put Celanon back in the hands of its people." Dooku declared. The few remaining resistance fighters cheered, ready to take the fight straight to the Republic. Dooku turned to Khol. "Take your remaining men and fall back to the refugee camp on the outskirts of the city." He commanded. Khol stood stunned for a moment. Finally, with victory so close at hand and now being able to avenge his city and attack the Republic directly, and Dooku wanted him out?
"But... sir, we can help." He protested.
"And you have. But this next phase will be intense, too intense for a few dozen resistance fighters." Dooku responded, gesturing to the few that were left of his original group. The Clones had done a real number on them. "You can help us better by ensuring our territory is not lost." He added, attempting to help the boy see the validity of his plan. After a moment of hesitation, Khol relented.
"I understand, sir." He replied with a nod.
"Your men will lead us to the Republic's position and then return. This battle will be ours to fight."
Elsewhere in the city...
The small collective of a dozen Clones ran has fast as their stamina would allow as they tried to put as much distance between them and the invading Separatist forces as they could. Thier leader, a lieutenant, eventually called for a halt as they found themselves underneath a raised high rise, surrounded by pieces of rubble. They appeared to be hidden and safe for the moment.
"Did we lose 'em?" One of the troopers asked.
"I hope so." Another replied.
"Skipzone, do a thermal scan, make sure we're alone." The lieutenant ordered. The Clone technician in question nodded and withdrew a scanning device from his belt, the information relayed to devices within his helmet.
"How the hell'd they take us down like that? We were dug in harder than a krayt dragon." Another one of the troopers wondered aloud.
"It was The Wraith. That one-man monster slaughtered our support, I saw it all." Another answered him.
"That quickly?" The trooper remarked, sounding surprised. "Then... what chance do we stand alone?!"
"Calm down, trooper. The Seppies just wanted our position dismantled, they're likely not into finishing the job. They just wanted us gone." The lieutenant reassured him.
Unfortunately for him, he was about to be proven wrong. Everything these Clones were saying was being registered on Wraith's audio receptors as the cloaked super-soldier observed them from afar. He quickly took note of the lieutenant in question, sporting a decently-sized Republic insignia on the left of his chest plating. It would make for an easy target...
"Skipzone, were we followed?" The lieutenant asked his technician.
"I don't think so." The Clone replied, examining the last of the data his device was sending back. All it could register were him and his allies. "Scans report back negative. Sector is clear." Skipzone replied as he tucked the scanner away. Just as the Clones breathed a sigh of relief, the loud CRACK of a slugthrower echoed around them and the Skipzone's head disintegrated in a shower of blood seconds later.
"I'd reconsider that statement." Wraith growled as he deactivated his cloaker and made his presence known and advanced upon them. The Clones scrambled to do something... anything!
"Not clear! Not clear!" Another Clone cried, moments before Wraith ended him with a slug through the head.
"Damn right." He growled. Drawing his second slugthrower, Wraith promptly down four more Clones with his slugs, their bodies torn open with blood sprays as the rounds blasted clean through them. One of the Clones, an assassin, quickly deployed his arm blades and charged Wraith, raking his blades across the super-soldier's armored arm and sending sparks flying. Wraith quickly sidestepped and backed away, stowing his weapons and triggering his own blades. "Two can play that game." He rumbled. The two clashed, blades grinding together as the assassin boldly challenged the super-soldier.
"Run! I'll hold him!" He told his comrades. The Clones quickly made to evacuate the area, a move that did not go unnoticed by Wraith.
"Oh no you don't!" He growled, stabbing the assassin clean through the torso. Turning around, he sheathed his blades and sent a series of throwing knives flying after the five remaining Clones. Two of them took knives to the back of the head and were killed instantly. The others took knives in the back, stumbling as they ran. Wraith quickly gave chase, drawing a pistol as he did. He executed one of them as the others, the lieutenant and another Clone, opened fire with their blasters. Wraith shot both blasters out of their hands before he promptly picked up the lieutenant and emptied six rounds into his gut before tossing him aside. Then he pitched him aside and shot the Clone beneath him twice in the gut, causing him even more pain.
"Your battle is at an end." Wraith stated as he sheathed his pistol. "Celanon returns to its rightful owners today." The Clone still had some life in him though, a sat up a little to regard the super-soldier towering over him.
"You can't kill us all... others will stop you..." He rasped in defiance.
"And they will suffer the same fate as you." Wraith replied with a growl. Grabbing his head, he gave it a vicious twist and snapped his neck.
One down... one to go.
Leaving the body, Wraith stepped over to lieutenant and rolled him onto his back with his boot. The lieutenant lay gasping for air, his wounds severe. Wraith drew his pistol and got ready to end him.
"Such flawed futility..." He muttered.
"What we do... we do for a reason..." The lieutenant replied.
"A flawed reason, might I add." Wraith remarked, planting his boot on the lieutenants wounded gut and causing him to cringe in pain. "Know that you died for nothing." Not to be deterred, the lieutenant gestured to the Republic emblem painted on his chest.
"This symbol... you may think it's nothing more than paint... but it represents something-" He started to say.
"Yeah, a bullseye." Wraith promptly replied as he took aim and killed the Clone with a shot clean through the chest, a scorch mark burned dead center of the Republic insignia. Spinning his pistol around in his grip, Wraith holstered his weapon as he surveyed the dead Clones around him.
Mission accomplished.
But just as he was about to call in his success, a sudden searing flash ripped through his mind, forcing Wraith to stop everything and gather himself. It was the strangest feeling, something he had never experienced before... almost like an out-of-body experience, like he was being shown something or being taken somewhere.
"What the hell was that...?" He muttered, attempting to discern what he'd just experienced. His comms suddenly crackled to life.
"Hey kid! Ya read me?" Durge called. Wraith immediately responded.
"Loud and clear, Durge. What's the situation?"
"We're comin' up on the Republic's primary position... and we could use the extra firepower." The Gen'Dai general informed him.
"Understood. Tell Dooku I've just finished mopping up those Clones and that I'm on my way." He reported, shutting off his comms and breaking into a run, shaking of that strange moment and mustering his senses to focus on what was to come.
The battle for Celanon was about to begin.
The resistance fighters led the Separatist army through the streets of Celanon City, making their way forward ever so cautiously, anticipating Clones of some kind to be lurking within the structurally safe high rises and ready to pounce on them with some manner of ambush. But the journey was smooth and safe, relatively boring by comparison to Wraith's assault on the small Clone detachment. All was about as peaceful as things could get in the middle of a war-torn city. That is, until they arrived at another courtyard, a large piece of square ground overshadowed by towering high-rises on all sides.
And within this courtyard lay the bulk of the Republic's defenses.
Legions upon legions of Clones stood ready to defend their territory, too many to count. The previous few engagements the Separatists had couldn't even compare to this.
This was where the real Republic army lay. And this was only part of the force, the rest of it spread out in a circle around their mobile command center.
With Dooku, Grievous and Durge in place behind a building, Khol and his team bid them farewell as they retreated back to secure the rest of their territory, the leaders ready to scout out the battlefield.
"That's a helluva lotta Clones." Durge commented, his multi-sensor optical units scanning the Clone army.
"It appears Wraith's conjecture has proven correct." Dooku stated. "The Republic is protecting itself, making it weak to our bold forward assault."
"We must attack quickly, before they send all of their forces against us!" Grievous rasped.
"In due time, General. We must wait for our super-soldier now." Dooku replied, knowing they absolutely needed Wraith in order to pull this off.
"Then it's a good thing I'm here." Wraith announced, arriving beside them and crouching at the end, of their hiding place, next to Durge. "What've we got?"
"An entire army that is ready for the slaughter." Dooku told him with a knowing grin.
"Color me interested." Wraith remarked with a chuckle, drawing his carbine and arming it.
"You ain't afraid of all that, kid?" Durge wondered.
"We can take them." Wraith replied. "We have a renown Sith Lord and two of the galaxy's most dangerous warriors on our side." He added, emphasizing his great respect for his superiors. The confederacy leaders shared partially amused looks, but knew that Wraith's count was short one.
"Correction Wraith," Grevious said, his arms splitting into four as he drew his lightsabers, "we have a renown Sith Lord and three of the galaxy's deadliest warriors on our side." Dooku nodded in agreement and he looked to the super-soldier as Durge engaged his carbine. Wraith shook his head in mild embarrassment, chuckling to himself.
"I love my job!" He muttered under his breath.
"You are what I would deem the ideal soldier. I would gladly take command of an army just like you." Grievous continued.
"Sorry General, but I'm limited edition." Wraith responded, knowing there was no other super-solider like him.
"An unfortunate reality."
"Make small-talk later, gentlemen. We have a world to liberate." Dooku interrupted, drawing his own lightsaber. "General Grievous, order our tanks to shell the Republic forces." He commanded the cyborg. Grievous did so and soon enough, the whistle of shells flying over head and the ensuing explosions kicked off the true battle for Celanon. The explosions sent Clones flying into the air as they detonated amongst the Republic army, sending Clones scrambling for cover and to take up defensive positions.
"Alright, I say we softened 'em up enough! I like to seem 'em squirm when I kill 'em!" Durge cackled with sadistic glee.
"Very well." Dooku replied and led the charge over the top.
"Attack!" Wraith shouted as he joined them, carbine pressed into his shoulder as he unleashed a hail of laser fire. The Separatist forces began their push towards the Republic army as the Clones opened fire in response, red and blue blast bolts being trained back and forth with increasing frequency. Republic heavy defenses began to charge up, mounted turrets and cannons opening fire as they attempted to repel the invading battle droids. Wraith crouched behind a piece of rubble, carbine pressed into his shoulder as he trained his sights on the Clones. He had taken the lead in the fight, establishing a forward position in an effort to soften up the first line of Clones. "As soon as one goes down, another takes their place!" He noted, blasting away with his carbine. It was true. There were so many Clones and the lines were so deep that they could easily hold their own unless the Separatists were able to cut deep and exploit some sort of weakness.
Maybe Wraith would have to spearhead the surge... and he hoped his armor was up to the challenge.
Leaping out over his cover, Wraith charged forward again, blitzing the Clones with rapid fire shots. The smoke and haze from repeated shell explosions were starting to cloud the area as Wraith and the Separatist leaders made a big push to try and overwhelm the Republic. Suddenly, another flash, just like before, ripped through his mind, causing him to pause and clutch his head. Shaking his head to try and clear his mind, Wraith felt like someone or something was attempting to connect with his mind.
"Come on kid!" Durge's exclamation shook him back to reality. Shrugging it off, Wraith booked it around the corner and joined the main assault, sprinting alongside his fellow Separatists. Suddenly the feeling came again, even stronger this time, and Wraith faltered in his step. Overcome by a horrific sensation, Wraith dropped his carbine and fell to the ground, feeling overwhelmed.
It was death. He knew it well, having caused it enough to know the innate sensation of what death 'felt' like.
Images flashed before his eyes, stemming seemingly from his mind, of someone dying. While at first blurry, they soon became vividly clear as the vision crystallized and Wraith watched in dismay as he witnessed a heart-wrenching sight. A single body fell to the ground, falling limp and refusing to stir. He recognized that outfit, that skin... those montrals. It was then that he came to a horrifying understanding.
Ahsoka had died.
Wraith doubled over onto his hands and knees, refusing to believe what he was seeing. It was like he was there, but the rubble-strewn ground beneath him was clearly that of Celanon. "No... No..." He rasped, desperate to deny this reality. But somewhere, deep within him, he was convinced that Ahsoka was gone.
He felt like he was choking. Feverishly mashing the mouthguard release on the side of his head, Wraith gasped for air as his mouth and jaw were exposed, his hands clawing the ground as he fought to recover his senses as the vision continued to glare at him through his mind's eye. The battle around him became incoherent, turning into an indecipherable din of a variety of noises as everything save for this horrific moment was pushed from his mind. At some point, Dooku was by his side, as were Durge and a company of battle droids.
"Soldier? What's wrong?" He asked. Wraith didn't respond, too choked up to form a coherent sentence. Hot tears rolled down past the corners of his mouth as he struggled to find some level of sanity within his tormented mind.
But there was none to be found.
Somewhere, deep within him, he felt convinced of what he'd seen. No matter how hard he wanted to deny these images, he couldn't escape some deeply ingrained sense that he had seen the truth.
She's dead. She's dead. She's dead. A voice deep in his soul repeated over and over again.
Wraith was on the verge of weeping, trapped between disbelief and total grief. Why now? Why, on this day of all days, was this happening to him? First the dark Ahsoka, now this? How had this happened? What had done this?
...Who had done this...?
Wraith suddenly turned cold, all emotion vanishing as that thought resonated with him. Someone had done this to her. Someone had killed her.
The lone thought was enough to spark a flurry of emotions within him. Shock, disbelief... and anger...
So. Much. Anger.
His rage swelled, exploding like an atomic bomb. His fists clenching tighter than a vise, a low growl escaped through his clenched teeth, his mind overwhelmed by sorrow and fury. It all happened so fast and so suddenly Wraith could barely comprehend what was happening. But he felt it all. He felt the sorrow, he felt the agony... and he felt the rage. The swirling, churning emotional vortex that had consumed his brain unlocked a part of him he'd never known before, like some hidden power was unleashed.
The Wraith was about to be unleashed.
The veins around his mouth became visible, glowing bright red as RGE-7 ignited with incredible ferocity. Reaching its peak in seconds, Wraith threw back his head and loosed a beastly roar as he felt a rage unlike anything he'd ever felt before.
"GrrAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
His emotional outburst unleashed a ripple through the Force in the form of a wave of intense, searing heat. Dooku stumbled backwards, feeling its intensity overwhelm him as Wraith succumbed to his rage.
"I've never felt this much anger before." Dooku breathed as Durge helped him up.
"The hell's wrong with him, sir?" The Gen'Dai wondered.
"It is rage, Durge. More than any Sith could ever muster. More, I believe, than any being has ever felt... ever." Dooku replied in a low voice. He could sense Wraith's powerful emotions through the Force... and they were unlike anything he'd ever sensed before. The RGE-7 triggered such an intense outburst of rage that it tripled Wraith's strength, fueled by the knowledge of Ahsoka's death. It shattered all previous possible outcomes and records, driving Wraith to an all new level of power as his rage reached critical mass. His blades slid over his hands as his mind was filled with a single thought: kill.
With a savage, beast-like growl, Wraith was on his feet and surging towards the Republic lines, sprinting like a man possessed. His breathing was shallow and heavy, his heart racing, pounding against the confines of his chest as he was driven to lash out at those closest to him. The Clones were firing at him, blaster rounds ricocheting off his body, striking him all over. Wraith barely felt them. He didn't care if they were shooting at them, he didn't care if they wounded him. All he felt was seething, boiling anger that demanded to be unleashed.
Lunging into the Republic frontlines with a roar, Wraith tore into the Clones as his ferocity exploded into a visceral reality. Hacking and slashing, ripping and tearing, Wraith butchered Clones left and right as he went on the warpath, his unstable emotions spilling out as he left a trail of bodies in his wake. He carved a bloody path deep into the Republic forces, cutting through Clone after Clone, pieces of white-armored limbs splattered with crimson hit the ground and flew through the air. He cut deep into their lines, tearing through the Clones without care or concern for his own safety. His actions, while questionable, allowed his allies the opportunity they needed.
"He's creating a gap in their defences..." Dooku realized. "Quickly! Follow him! Wraith is giving us our opening!" The droids gave chase in order to exploit the now-weakened Republic forces. Wraith continued his rampage, charging through the Clones like a wild beast, his blades swinging this way and that and mutilating bodies with every strike. He went berserk, driven to kill and destroy, the Clones feeling the full force of his wrath.
Little did he realize that, elsewhere in the galaxy, others were feeling it as well...
On Mortis...
The ground cracked and shook, columns of fire shooting forth from the ground and reaching high into the sky. The shaking was so violent it managed to fling Obi-Wan, Anakin, the Son, the Daughter and the Father to the ground, the dagger skittering away from the Son's grip. The air around them suddenly grew hot and heavy, like they were in the midst of a raging fire.
"The Dark Side... it's so... strong...!" Obi-Wan struggled to say. There was only one explanation for this, the Light would never be able to bring about sensations like this.
"It... It feels like... an inferno...!" Anakin rasped as his senses were overwhelmed by a surging heat. Both Jedi could tell that someone was causing this.
"Such anger... Such intense... rage..." the Father muttered, feeling it too.
"How... How is this... happening?" Obi-Wan asked, crawling to his hands and knees.
"Someone is... causing this..." Anakin realized. "But... who? I thought... the Dark Side was... cold?"
"Oh my." The Son muttered, still on the ground. Being the literal embodiment of the Dark Side, he could feel and determine these sensations more than the Jedi could. "Someone cared so deeply for her, knowledge of her death has sparked great rage within them." He realized, looking at Ahsoka's pale, unmoving body. He looked up at the two Jedi. "This is a rage born of passion..."
"But who else cares so much for her?" Obi-Wan wondered, struggling to rise. A sudden thought came to Anakin.
"You don't think that-?" He started to say before, as if to answer his question, a flashing above drew their collective attention skyward.
There, illuminated in the sky, stood a pair of blazing red lights set in a cloud shaped like Wraith's helmet and appearing much like his crimson optics...
Tearing through Clone after Clone, Wraith rammed through the Republic lines like an infuriated reek on a stampede, not caring who was in his way and only caring about causing as much carnage as possible. The Clones eventually gave away, their lines broken and a bloody, innard-strewn path left behind. A Mon Calamari Jedi, wielding a green lightsaber, stood before him now, waving his blade this way and that as he warded off incoming fire. He caught sight of Wraith and the two locked gazes as the super-soldier determined his next victim. Charging ahead, breath coming in heavy, heaving snorts like an animal, Wraith managed to commando roll under a piece of debris the Jedi had picked up and thrown at him, only to spring back up and drive his blade deep into the Jedi's exposed torso. "Die!" He growled, tearing his blade free and stabbing the Jedi in the back as he maneuvered around him. "Die!" The Mon Cala hit the ground, coughing up blood as Wraith drove another sword through his back. The super-soldier then hoisted the impaled body over his head. "DIE!" He roared, tearing the Jedi in two with his brute strength. Blood showered him as the two halves of the carcass his the ground, explosions suddenly erupting all around him as lucky tank shells from the Separatists destroyed mobile cannon embankments around him. Wraith stood tall, shoulders heaving as he watched his allies cleave the Republic army in two, sending the Clones scrambling as their defence was broken. The sudden surge of rage died down, the red glow retreating from his face as clarity returned to Wraith. He closed his mouth guard and sank to one knee, fighting off the sick feeling welling in his stomach as he returned to normal. But he could not shake what he'd seen in his mind.
Nor could he ignore the dark and horrible truth that had been revealed to him.
"Damn, kid, that was impressive!" Durge cackled, coming into his view. He was carrying his discarded carbine. "You and I oughtta do this more often, the Republic won't last a day with us on the warpath." He remarked, tossing Wraith his weapon. The soldier caught it and half-heartedly slung it over his back.
"Agreed." Wraith panted, regaining his breath. Shaking his head a little as he tried to regain his composure, Wraith felt hollow inside. Like a part of him was missing. Dooku appeared next, walking right up to the super-soldier as Grievous ordered his droids to cover the area.
"What happened just now, Soldier?" He asked in questioning tone. Wraith knew he couldn't tell him the truth, deciding to fake ignorance.
"To be honest, sir, I don't know." He replied. "It was all so... sudden." Dooku nodded thoughtfully, folding his arms behind his back.
"I am aware of the enhancements Doctor Scipio has infused you with. Perhaps it would be wise to speak with him about this." He recommended. Wraith nodded in agreement.
"And I will. Once this is over." He answered, standing up. Dooku then turned to Durge.
"We have broken through this line, but the battle is not yet over. We must now destroy their command center." He stated.
"Behind that shield, right?"
"Indeed. The Republic have positioned themselves quite well." Dooku continued, drawing a holoprojector and switching on a holographic render of the Republic command retrieved by the resistance. "They are surrounded by multiple high-rises, defended by multiple barricades and a deflector shield generator." He explained, the holomap highlighting the various structures surrounding the mobile command center.
"Vaguely reminds me of General Loathsome's assault on Christophsis." Wraith mused as he crossed his arms.
"With such a defensive measure, our tanks cannot successfully shell their position and any droids we send through it will likely be cut down before they can deal any real damage." Dooku added.
"Guess our only option is to shut it down." Durge stated, hefting his carbine over his shoulder.
"Fortunately, the actual generator is several streets over, a good distance away from the command center." Dooku continued, putting the device away.
"Then the obvious solution would be to draw their attention away from the generator while a sabotage party takes care it." Wraith determined. Dooku nodded in approval.
"Good to see your brain is still with us, Soldier." He commented. "We will send a detachment of droids to go and deal with the generator while the rest of us attack them directly. We can only hope that they'll have it down before the rest of the Republic army arrives to drive us off." Wraith dwelt on Dooku's plan for a moment before realizing that it was not efficient enough for what they were trying to do. With the Republic alerted and their defence broken, Wraith deemed the next response to be like that of a wounded animal: to protect itself at all costs. They would need speed, more hit-and-run than sabotage. There was only one logical path to follow, regardless of how the rest of them felt about it.
"No." He said, contradicting Dooku. The Count turned to him with a raised eyebrow, curious as to what he had in mind. "Send me. You'll need all the droids you can get to keep them occupied. I'll get the job done." He told him, revealing his own plan.
"Are you sure you're up to the task?" Dooku questioned, his faith in Wraith's stability less than optimal after his recent random outburst. Wraith stepped closer to him.
"If not my words, then let my actions prove myself capable." He quietly responded. Dooku paused and considered this option. While he was wary of Wraith's apparent 'malfunction' he was also aware that there was no one better to hand this task to. He knew Wraith could be trusted, regardless of his physical condition.
Besides, time was not on their side. It might be against his better judgement, but it was the correct path.
"Very well. Go." He finally answered. Wraith nodded, turned and started running, having memorized the location of the generator. "The rest of us will go the opposite way and draw the Republic's attention." Dooku stated aloud, Durge making to follow him as the droid army went on the move once more.
Tromping over the Clone position, the Separatists advanced deep into the Republic's territory, Grievous and his advanced droids slaying a few of the scattered Clones fleeing the scene of their defeat. They moved quickly at double their pace, following the retreating Clone troopers back to the core of their territory. Their tanks flanked them from behind, ensuring that their approach went undisturbed by any follow-up assaults. The metal army marched down the rubble-strewn streets in row formation, a mighty and imposing force that trod onwards under the many high rises of Celanon city.
And then, rounding a bend, they found it. A wall of impenetrable blue energy, protecting a battalion of Clone troopers.
The white clad Clones opened fire the instant the battle droids came into their field of blue, destroying an entire line of them with a hail of laser fire. Dooku and Grievous immediate took up a defence, lightsabers drawn and spinning as they deflected blaster bolts right and left, Durge laying down cover fire as he took to the air, only to have his rounds harmlessly deflected off the shield.
"Aw, come on!" He grumbled.
"Quickly! Get to cover!" Dooku ordered, sidestepping over the low-overhang of a nearby building. Grievous did the same on the opposite side of the street, Durge touching down and moving to Dooku's side.
"All droids, continue the assault! Get behind the shield!" Grievous ordered. He knew it was a suicide mission, but they needed to keep the Republic's attention on them. Besides, droid were replaceable, hardly worthy of any sentimental value. The battle droids continued their relentless assault, drawing closer but still being felled in droves.
"Boss, there any gettin' past this thing?" Durge wondered, reloading his carbine.
"No Durge. And the longer we wait, the closer Republic reinforcements draw." Dooku gravely replied, knowing that if they kept this up, Celanon would not be won back this day. "Our hope lies with Wraith now."
Sprinting headlong down another street, Wraith was moving nearly his top speed as he invested all of his energy into this mission. He vaulted over pieces of rubble and slid under others, a man truly on a mission. The Separatists were counting on him now and he had no intention of disappointing them. A furious passion to win the day had flooded his veins, he felt driven to achieve victory. If he could not even save...
No. He dared not go there.
The buildings around him past by, blurring together. The blue wall of the energy shield came into view, reaching high into the sky, almost as tall as the buildings around it. Drawing a blaster pistol, Wraith charged into the protected zone, anticipating a fight. Mere minutes after he entered, he gunned down a trio of unsuspecting Clones, the first of many around the generator. He charged onwards, hellbent on destroying the generator, gunning down more Clones as he rushed ahead, moving and shooting simultaneously as his urban combat training kicked in hard. He needed to hit-and-run this objective, there was no time to waste. As he rounded a bend in the street, he found his objective within a plaza; a large conical piece of technology mounted atop a pile of rubble and shooting a blue beam into the sky... and guarded by nearly a dozen Clones. Wraith powered up his personal shield and drew his second pistol as they charged towards them, his charging form quickly spotted by the defending Clones. One of them cried out in warning and opened fire, the others quickly followed suit, some kneeling and some standing as they unleashed a barrage of blaster fire upon him. But the rounds were quickly absorbed by Wraith's shield and he continued unhindered, blasting away at the Clones. The fell, one by one, none of them standing a chance against his superior aim, their bodies pitched away by plasma-infused blaster rounds. He rushed right up to their numbers, stowing his pistols and triggering his blades as he hacked the remaining Clones to pieces, their blood splattering across the grey pieces of building littering the ground. As the last one hit the ground, a large, bloody wound torn in his armor, Wraith set to work on the machine. His blades disappearing with a metallic ring, the super-soldier quickly analyzed the solid design of the generator through his optics. Unlike most generators, there was no typical external access system from which one could shut it down. Usually there was some kind of keypad or lever in place to allow for shutdown and startup sequences. But in this instance, the entire generator was covered in pieces of thick metal plating, all of it interlocking without a single panel in sight.
"Blasterproof casing... they anticipated sabotage." He mused, kneeling next to the generator and spying a tiny access port designed for datapads and select holoprojectors. "Doesn't mean I can't hack it though." He continued, withdrawing a few access cables from his gauntlet and plugging them in. He quickly began cycling through the controls of his gauntlets, engaging the shutdown sequence. It was complicated and methodical, obviously designed to keep any average technician from accessing it. The Republic wanted their defences to last as long as possible.
But did they have The Wraith in mind when they designed it?
The super-soldier's fingers flew across the holographic controls, swiping and pressing as he unlocked the generators system options and began to remove the programs that were blocking his way. To himself, Wraith found it quite remarkable that he was able to focus despite the trauma he'd just endured.
Then again, maybe he needed to get buried in his work... if only to force the memories from his mind.
As he continued to work, his comms crackled to life.
"Wraith, we have arrived at the edge of the Republic base. We need that shield down." Dooku informed him.
"I'm working on it now." He quickly reported, finalizing the shutdown sequence. With the last of the Republic failsafes out of the way, the generator was his to access. "Alright... I'll have the shield down-AARRGH!" He started to say when a sudden explosive shot knocked him off his knees and sent him tumbling across the ground. His armor glowed as the remnants of the artillery round sizzled and smoked where it had struck him, a blackened wound torn deep into his side. Wraith growled and groaned as he fought to recalibrate, his gauntlet's systems torn away from the generator during the blast. He wasn't quite sure what state it would be in, but he needed to assess things quickly. Looking up, Wraith saw to his dismay a group of Clone troopers advancing on the generator, led by three blaze troopers.
And one of them was pointing a smoking cannon at him, looking like it had been ripped off an AT-TE and fitted in the place of his flamethrower.
"No..." he growled, rolling onto his back, "not one of them."
"Get that shield secure, we've got this." He told his brothers. A technician Clone quickly went to work on the generator as the blaze troopers surrounded Wraith, the lead one aiming his weapon right at Wraith's head. "Had a feelin' you were gonna be here. That's why they called us to make sure this shield stays up." The Clone remarked. The super-soldier didn't dare move, quickly working to come up with a plan. With three blaze troopers surrounding him, there would be no easy way out of this. "You eyein' my piece, Bucket-head?" The blaze trooper wondered in a cocky tone, ready to show off his piece of equipment. "It's a special shell cannon, designed to take out the likes of you." He explained, a dull blue glow charging up way at the end of the barrel. "You're not gettin' Celanon today, or any day for that matter!"
"Wraith? Wraith, come in." Dooku's voice resounded through his audio receptors. "We need that shield down now!"
"What makes you so certain?" Wraith replied.
"You're surrounded, with no chance of gettin' up. I'd say that means we win." The blaze trooper replied. Wraith managed a chuckle in response.
"You really are as dumb as you look." He growled. Suddenly rolling to the side, Wraith drew his slug pistols and shot the knees out of the blaze troopers behind him before leaping to his feet and ducking just in time as the barrel of the other trooper's cannon missed his head by inches. He lept forward and somersaulted over the blaze trooper, shooting him in the back and igniting his jet pack, creating a rather spectacular flash of flame as the round penetrated the fuel cell. Landing on his feet, Wraith shrugged off the pain in his side and gunned down the technician near the shield generator, his head exploding in a shower of blood. Charging back up the pile of rubble, Wraith shot each and every Clone in sight, the ones further away being his primary targets. A nearby trooper rushed him with the butt of his rifle, but Wraith turned and blocked his incoming blow with one arm before emptying two slugs into his torso, leaving a bloody mess behind. "Shield coming down now, sir!" Wraith stated through his comms as he sheathed his pistols and got to work on the generator again.
On the far side of the Republic position, the droid husks were starting to pile up as the Clones continued to mow them down. They hadn't yet penetrated the forcefield, leaving the higher-ups to simply stand by and wait for Wraith to announce his completion. But some of them were growing worried.
"Boss, when we get through that shield... we gonna have enough droids to finish the job?" Durge wondered.
"I have thought about that and I believe I have a swift and terrible end for them in mind." Dooku replied. He then contacted the cyborg General. "Grievous, contact the Invisible Hand and have a squadron of bombers make for our position." He ordered.
"Now?"
"Yes, now. Wraith will have that shield down in time." Dooku answered, his faith in the super-soldier small but present.
"But what if he doesn't?" Durge asked, pressing for an answer to the alternate outcome.
"He will." Dooku solemnly declared.
Wraith fiddled with the controls for the generator, attempting to swiftly undo the work of the Clone technician, when loud footsteps to his left signalled trouble. The three blaze troopers had gotten to their feet and were charging him again, one of them looking blackened and significantly worse for wear.
But his cannon was still intact.
Wraith quickly turned, drew his slugthrower and fired two rounds that killed the lagging troopers with quick headshots. But the other trooper managed to bash him into the generator was his broad forearm, forcing him to drop his weapon. Another heavy punch staggered Wraith before the trooper quite literally threw him off the generator, before taking aim and firing a quick shot with his cannon that collided with Wraith and sent him flying, smoke and bits of armor trailing behind him. Wraith came to a sudden halt as his body slammed into a nearby pile of debris and he roared in pain as three pieces of metal rebar speared clean through his body, two through his left thigh and another through his side, somehow bypassing his jacket. Wraith struggled to recover, gripping the metal pieces as his blood flowed from the fresh wounds. The injured blaze trooper advanced upon him, cannon raised and ready to deliver another shot.
"I've got you now, you kriffing slagger..." he growled. Wraith tried to move but found himself stuck, pain surging through his body every time he tried to lift himself off the debris.
Perhaps this was it. Perhaps this was how he met his end.
The Clone's arm cannon charged up bright blue, ready to deliver the final blow. Wraith wondered for a fleeting moment if these feelings were similar to what Ahsoka felt, right before her oppressor-
"Wraith! If you can hear me, we have bombers en route! If you cannot shut down the shield, this will be the end of Celanon!" Dooku exclaimed over his comms.
No. No... today was not the day. Nor would any other day!
The sudden thought sent a burst of mixed adrenaline and rage surging through Wraith's veins, dulling his pain receptors and giving him the strength to push off with a roar, the bloody rebar leaving his body. Racing forward, the super-soldier grabbed the Clone's arm by the hand and promptly tore his hand in two, the blade trooper screaming in agony as Wraith ditched the fleshy pieces, triggered his blade and promptly sliced his cannon to pieces before cleaving his helmeted head in two. The trooper fell dead as Wraith dropped to one knee, the adrenaline rush dying down as pain surged through his wounded limb. Wraith fought for clarity, a turbulent swell of emotions overcoming him as he tried to escape the images he'd conjured. He needed to get up, to get going. But how? He felt weak, he felt incapable. If he couldn't even save her how could he save anyone else.
But somewhere, deep within him, he found the strength to do what he'd been made to do: overcome.
He would win this day. And he would win every day.
For her.
With a shout, Wraith forced himself to a standing position, putting pressure on his leg. As blood streamed down and the pain registered, Wraith pushed past it all as he limped back over to the generator, clutching his wounded side. He slowly climbed up the pile of rubble one more time, dragging his leg over the uneven surfaces. As he approached the generator, he realized his run-in with the blaze trooper had dented the armor plating around it, giving him access to the machine's very innards.
He had a chance now.
Hobbling over and grabbing hold of the plating, Wraith began to tear it open with whatever strength he could muster. The very components of the machine were revealed to him as the plating was removed, giving Wraith an idea.
The roar of the incoming Hyena Bombers was loud enough to be heard over the din of battle. Dooku turned to see the group streaking in low and fast down the street, heading for the still-protected Republic position.
"Any time now, kid!" Durge shouted into his comms.
Wraith quickly fixed five of his explosive disks to the shield generator, setting them on their shortest timer and their highest explosive setting. He took a step back as they began to count down.
"Time to light things up..." He rumbled, turning and hobbling away as quickly as he could. Seconds later, the disks detonated and the machine was lit up in a cloud of pure fire, the immense explosion pitching Wraith into the air as the shockwave sent him flying. He crashed into the ground and sprawled out, feeling utterly spent. But looking up, he saw the beam vanish and the shield begin it dissipate, holes growing larger all over the surface of the energy.
Dooku, Durge and Grievous looked on as the forcefield shut down, disrupted by the sudden lack of origin as the generator was destroyed. The Hyena Bombers swooped in moments later, dropping a deadly payload on the exposed Republic forces. A colossal explosion rocked their lines, pitching Clones and debris everywhere as the mobile command center was obliterated.
"Hoo-rah!" Durge shouted victoriously. "You did it kid! The Republic is history!"
"Job well done, soldier." Dooku remarked, a slight grin on his face.
Wraith heard it all through his comms and was satisfied knowing he'd helped win the day. He certainly bore the scars of battle; his armor was dented and scratched, chipped and scorched. And yet in spite of his wounds, he was victorious. Never wavering, never faltering.
'Give up' was not in his vocabulary.
But right now, he just wanted to lie there for a while.
"Yahoo..." he muttered.
Later that day, aboard the Dominance...
Scipio took his time as he scanned over a bandaged Wraith with his medical sensors, ensuring every puncture and every burn was on its way to nonexistence.
"I'll admit, the close-quarters cannonfire was unexpected. Remind me to revamp the molecular structure of your armor next time." The Pau'an mused.
"You can do that?" Wraith wondered, sounding distant.
"If I bond raw phrik with other metals to create a superior alloy, it should withstand an explosion that close just fine." The doctor replied, making some notes on a datapad. "But apart from that anecdote, you appear to be just fine..."
"Good." Wraith rumbled as he sat up.
"Physically speaking." Scipio continued. "How are you mentally? That was quite the uphill endurance run." Wraith said nothing for a moment, rolling his shoulders as he tried to both act and sound normal. He hadn't made mention of his sudden and uncontrolled outburst, nor did he want to.
"Just fine." Wraith replied. "Never better."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm fine, Doc. Really." Wraith assured him. Scipio shrugged.
"If you insist. But if I find out otherwise..." He added.
"You won't." The super-soldier rumbled, making to leave the lab. "I just need some sleep is all."
"Ah, the best medication." Scipio agreed. With him satisfied, Wraith returned to his own personal quarters and sealed the door behind him, heaving a deep sigh as he did.
He felt so cold... and alone.
Walking over to his bed, Wraith picked up the case of Corellian Brandy one of the gracious Celanonians had given him after the battle and pulled one free. He popped the top and took a long swig, the burning in his throat reminding him he was alive.
Even though he wished this was all a bad dream he could wake up from.
Breathing deeply, Wraith tried to clear his mind with another swig from the bottle... but all he could think about was the death of Ahsoka. The image had been seared into his mind, a permenant horror to haunt the rest of his days. Leaning against the nearest wall, Wraith slowly sank to a seated position, despair and despondency sinking in faster than he'd like. He took another swig, hoping to burn the moment from his memory. He knew his metabolism was revved up to the point where he couldn't get drunk, but maybe the taste and scent of the brandy might be enough. In a last ditch effort, he tried in vain to pluck up his hopes and believe he had seen nothing. But somehow he knew in his heart of hearts that Ahsoka was gone.
She had died... and he had been powerless to do anything about it.
As far as he was concerned, The Wraith had failed his greatest mission.
