Author's Note: Ladies and Gents, my longest chapter yet! I suppose that is what happens when you put four whole episodes together, but hey, Umbara deserved all the respect possible for being one of the greatest arcs in the show (imo). So grab your popcorn and drinks, you're gonna be here for a while!
-Chapter 83: Friction-
Location: Umbara
"No one's loyalty is ever set in stone."
Umbara. The dark world. A planet perpetually shrouded in shadow, whose skies were black with an infinite midnight. The homeworld of the CIS loyal Umbarans and a real Separatist hotspot.
A world the Republic wanted to wrest from them.
A joint task force led by four Jedi had broken through the Separatist naval blockade and were making a run on the world. Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi would be leading the ground assault with the objective being to take control of the planetary capitol as speedily as possible. Anakin would be diverting the attention of reinforcements away from Obi-Wan's approach, who would be assisted from above as well.
The Republic, however, would not be alone in their endeavours. With news of The Wraith aiding the local Umbaran militia with preparations, the Titan Conglomerate was dispatched with the hope they would keep the infamous super-soldier busy while the Republic ground forces overcame the Umbarans.
As the ground assault began, it soon became very apparent that the Umbarans were unwilling to give up their homeworld without a fight. Not only did they put up an incredibly strong show of strength as the Republic arrived, shelling the incoming Clones with their hover tanks, but they also took any opportunity they could to ambush the invading Republic as they rallied on the ground. The 212th, being the driving spear of the Republic, faced intense opposition, with Obi-Wan ordering several squads behind enemy lines in order to scout out their positions...
Creeping through the misty darkness, a small squad of orange-painted 212th Clones went ahead with their advanced reconnaissance directive, determined to scout out the true depth of the Umbaran militia as well as the strength of the Separatists aiding them. Their trek led them through the dark and misty environment, which had grown without any sunlight for generations.
"This place gives me the creeps." Jarek mumbled.
"What's wrong? You're not afraid of the dark, are you?"
"Shut it Movor." Jarek retorted.
"Cut the chatter, boys. There could be Umbarans out there." Squad leader Damien commanded.
"Ugh. Shadow People. Why can't the Seppies ever set up shop on some beach world?" Rollbar complained.
"It's the atmosphere. Since when has a sandy beach ever suggested 'I'm evil and I like it here'?" Movor replied.
"Yeah, well, around here it's real easy to get picked off in the dark." Splice chimed in from the rear. His partner continued the dark humour,
"No noise, no fuss, just lots of blood." Gauge snickered.
"That's enough of that, lads. We won't get picked off... especially if we're quiet." Damien reiterated, hoping to restore some sense of order to this squad of his. They were new and fairly green, 'shinies' the others called them, but Damien knew they would be good if they kept up their hard work ethic. These boys had potential...
Suddenly, Damien felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end and heard a very faint rush of wind from behind them. He looked around, his visor HUD not offering any clues or targets. Then Gauge clutched his throat, spluttering as dark red seeped through his hand. His brothers turned to see what was wrong, only to watch him collapse with a slit throat.
"What the hell?!" Jarek exclaimed, thinking everything had been just fine until now. Damien knelt to examine his body as Splice suddenly recalling his friend's last words. Spoken in jest, they suddenly encapsulated, with scary perfection, the dire nature of their predicament.
"No noise, no fuss, just lots of blood..." Splice repeated, suddenly feeling quite panicky.
"Enough of that!" Damien commanded, standing up and turning back to his men. He had to restore order. Something was out to get them and they needed cool heads to pull this off. "Heads on a swivel, eyes-" he was interrupted when he was suddenly jerked backwards into the mist, his men frozen in place for a moment.
"Sarge!" Movor cried, finding his tongue as he heard Damien screaming not far off. The will to move suddenly found them and the four Clones sprinted after their sergeant, only to find Damien lying on the ground, dead from a broken neck.
It was painfully obvious considering both ends of the bones were protruding from his skin.
The four remaining Clones started to freak out, panicking at the sight of such violence.
"What the hell did this?! Umbarans?" Movor worriedly asked.
"No, it has to be commando droids!" Jarek replied, knowing how vicious they could be with a blade.
"No..." Splice interjected, trailing off as he looked around. Something just felt off to him, like this wasn't a normal battlefield situation, "it's something else." He breathed, gripping his blaster tightly as he stopped and just listened for a moment.
Then he heard it, the sound of footsteps, somewhere close by.
Before Splice could even turn to try and spot their attacker, he caught a flash of red out of the corner of his eye just as Rollbar dropped dead from a knife wound in the side of his helmet. Movor screamed and started firing, aiming his blaster in the direction of whatever had killed Rollbar and just firing into nothingness with the hopes he'd hit something.
Unfortunately for him, something hit back.
Two red blaster rounds streaked out from the fog and took out Movor at the knees, dropping him to the ground. While he was downed, another round struck him in the head, killing him instantly.
"Woah!" Jarek exclaimed, shocked by the suddenness of the kill. "Kriffin' hell, I told you it was droids! Umbarans use green bolts, not red!"
"Who cares who shoots what! Shoot it!" Splice retorted, opening fire alongside Jarek. Their rounds disappeared into the fog, the Clones not knowing if they'd hit something or not. They backed up slowly, firing blindly into the mist and darkness around them. They couldn't see anything or anyone, not having a single clue as to what they were up against.
Then a hand emerged from the fog, followed by a long dark arm as twin red eye materialized not far behind. The hand grasped Splice around the neck, lifting him up off the ground as he choked him out. Jarek stumbled back as the hand crushed Splice's windpipe and the rest of his neck shortly after with a sickening crunch. The Clone went limp and fell to the ground as the dark figure emerged, its hulking body towering over Jarek. The Clone backpeddled, eyes wide with fright beneath his helmet as he took in this monster, tripping over the body of Damien as he did. On the ground, Jarek tried to scramble backwards with his blaster still raised.
"No! Stay back!" He screamed, pulling the trigger as fast as he could. His rounds simply bounced off the shadow, who continued to draw near despite Jarek's attempts. The red eyes got bigger and bigger, the phantom virtually atop the helpless Clone. "No! NO! NOOOOO-hrk!" Jarek's cries of desperation were promptly silenced as a blade was thrust through his throat, blood spilling down his shiny white armor as his body went limp.
Anakin and his 501st made landfall only to face equally heavy opposition. His Clones were fresh and ready for combat, many of them fresh out of training, referred to as 'shinies' by the more seasoned Clones in the unit. A whole batch of new Clones had been transferred to the 501st with the intention of them forming a new Torrent Company. Rex had taken a moment to memorize their names, but was unconvinced they would ever be able to replace the men he'd lost.
Fives, Echo, Tup, Kix, Jesse... there was simply no replacing who they were.
They did their best to repulse the Umbarans, but the Shadow people were overtly determined to not give the invaders a break. One such effort employed a deadly millicreep to electrocute the resting Clones, providing enough of a distraction for the Umbaran militia to get the drop on their adversaries. But the Republic was just as determined, and that determination was slowly paying off as they rebuffed the Umbarans at every turn.
And then everything changed.
Anakin Skywalker was called back to Coruscant for reasons unknown. In his place, now in charge of Captain Rex and the 501st Legion, was Jedi General Pong Krell. A tall and imposing member of the Besalisk species, the four-armed Krell was known for his many victories on the battlefield... but at a high mortality rate among his men. Rex was quick to discover that Pong Krell did not share Anakin's easy-going attitude and relaxed sense of military structure, nor did it seem that Krell cared much for Clones.
"Stand at attention when I address you!" Krell had ordered. "There's a reason why my command is so effective, and it's because I do things by the book. And that includes protocol." Krell had then led them on a hard twelve-hour march towards the capitol, offering the Clones no break and no reprieve between ambushes by, of all things, the Umbaran wildlife.
It seemed everything was out to get them today.
To make matters worse, Krell had opted to completely disregard Anakin's plan of making a surgical strike against the Umbaran defences with numerous stealth strikes, in favor of a full frontal assault at full strength along the main route to the capitol... the route most heavily defended by the Umbarans. Rex it was insane and could not, let alone should not, be done.
"With all due respect General, we don't know what we're up against." Rex protested. "It might be wiser to think first-" that's when Krell turned on him.
"Are you questioning my order?" The Besalisk demanded, pulling up a holomap as if he needed to physically show the Clone what he had in mind. "This battalion will take the main road straight to the capitol. You will not stop and you will not turn back, regardless of the resistance you meet! We will attack them with all our troops, not some sneak attack with a few men." He ordered, showing clear contempt for Anakin's plan. "That is my order and you will follow it explicitly! Do I make myself clear CeeTee Seventy-five Sixty-seven?!" Krell thundered, now in Rex's face. The Clone was helplessly cowed by the sudden harshness coming from Krell. There was simply no debating anything with him.
"Yes General." He quietly affirmed.
"Now engage!" Krell ordered, ordering Rex to lead his men into what the Clone knew would be a meatgrinder.
The road to the capitol was well lit, too much so for Rex's liking. He and his men stood out against the darkness on Umbara all too plainly, making them easy targets for the more nocturnal species. His men couldn't help but agree.
"So, why aren't we sticking to the original plan and probing the city's defences first?" Reverb asked, the Clone identifiable by the claw mark on the forehead of his helmet.
"We can do this. Let's take 'em!" Another responded, sporting jagged striping along his helmet and armor and gung ho and ready for action.
"Yeah, leave it to Sixshot to dive in headfirst." Backlog remarked, the Clone with small Republic emblem and a fist in the middle on the side of his helmet. Rex put on a momentary smirk under his mask, even when approached by his newest ally. It was times like this when he wished Fives and Echo were still around. But they were long since dead, killed by The Wraith on Eridicon Three. Instead, he had a new ARC trooper lieutenant by his side; CT-6249 AKA 'Jolt'. Easily identifiable by the twin lightning bolts running from front to back along the top of his helmet, as well as the lightning bolt-shaped tattoo running from his forehead down across his left eye, Jolt had enough seasoned experience to make him a trustworthy and reliable partner.
But, in Rex's mind, there was no replacing Torrent Company.
"The General's new plan is reckless." He muttered, clearly none too enthused with Krell's way of doing things.
"You ever think that maybe the General knows what he is doing?" Lugnut shot back. Jolt ignored him.
"I know you think this is a bad idea, Captain," he stated, talking to Rex now.
"I raised my objection to General Krell's plan, but he didn't agree. So... this is it." The Captain responded.
"What if he's wrong? Then what?"
"This isn't the time for a debate, Jolt. Right now we have to stay alert."
"It's too quiet out there..." Another Clone muttered, not liking how silent the night was. Usually they'd have been ambushed by now...
The stillness was broken soon enough when a pair of Clones stepped on hidden mines, which detonated in large green explosions. Rex heard the screams of dying men and went into action, quickly analyzing the problem.
"Mines! Get down!" He ordered. The best approach for this was to lay still. After a few seconds of no further movement or explosions, Rex silently signalled for the rear men to check on the unfortunate.
"Crater's down." Came the report.
"So's Octone." Another added. Two down. Two men who could've easily been spared if they stuck to Anakin's plan...
"Can you sweep them?" Rex asked Jolt, who nodded and took the lead. Producing a holoscanner, Jolt swept the road ahead, the mines picked out in blue light. In the dark, one could not differentiate them from the road itself.
"There's more here, the whole road's been booby-trapped!" Jolt announced. "Everyone watch your step." He cautioned. Rex followed his careful lead as the Clones fell into a single file formation behind them... but then a cannon blast exploded in their midst, the shell falling from behind them. The 501st whipped around to see Umbaran fighters emerging from the dark, opening fire on them.
"We're completely exposed!" Reverb shouted, kneeling with no cover to protect himself with.
"Hold your ground!" Rex ordered, firing back with his twin DC-17s. The Umbarans were many and relentless, raining down continuous fire on the pinned 501st Legion...
While this was going on, Pong Krell took a moment to engage in a very important call, one he did not wish for any of the Clones with him to hear. Entrusting them with observing the unfolding battle below, Krell disappeared for a moment, holocom in hand.
"The Clones do not take kindly to my method of command." He was saying. "It appears they are used to Jedi with far more lenient principles than I. They cannot even manage a twelve hour walk... something you are said to be very good at, I understand."
"It is true that I have been in combat for twenty-four hours straight in the past. But that is not the purpose of this discussion," The Wraith replied, "the Umbarans do not take kindly to these invaders. They could stand to do with a couple of blunders that would put them at an advantage."
"The Republic demands victory and I intend to give it to them. But at a very heavy cost." Krell responded. He still had to keep up appearances after all.
"So you say and so your record shows." Wraith agreed. "If you can take the capitol with only a few surviving Clones to hold the line, that would be better for the Umbarans."
"You needn't worry about immediate reinforcements, Field Commander." Krell responded. "The Republic is doing their best but is stretched thin. Such is what I've told my troops. You may strike whenever you wish to."
"I would prefer it if you did my job for me." Wraith told him. "Ensure that the Five-Oh-First is depleted both numerically and physically. I will deal with the Two-Twelfth battalion in the meanwhile." He instructed. Krell nodded in understanding.
"And you are certain Count Dooku will hear of this?" The Besalisk asked.
"If anything, he's watching it all play out as we speak." Wraith affirmed. A pleased Krell nodded once more.
"Very well. I will contact you as things develop." He signed off, ending the call. So far, things were proceeding according to his plans. His reputation proceeded him, which was working in his favour.
Krell was not like most Jedi. The Besalisk Master had seen a vision of the future, one where the Jedi were gone and the Republic replaced by a powerful new military force that spanned the entire galaxy. Sensing only doom by the end of the war, Krell took it upon himself to create a plan that would earn him a place on what he thought was the winning side. His ultimate ambition was to stand by Count Dooku as a member of the Confederacy and he sought to gain the Sith's attention by wreaking havoc on the Republic's forces from within, using costly strategies to further deplete the Republic's Clone army. Now in communication with The Wraith, who was virtually a direct line to Dooku himself, Krell believed that Umbara would be his chance to prove himself worthy of Dooku's attention... all he needed to do was break down these pathetic excuses for soldiers and see to it they were broken in every regard, so much so that they could not pull themselves together by the time the Separatists attacked in full...
"You want a piece of this?!" Sixshot hollered, unleashing the power of his Z-6 rotary cannon and cutting down several Umbarans with his returning fire. But for every one he shot, more seemed to arise and take part, the Umbarans seemingly numerous in comparison to the Republic's limited numbers. The distant hover tanks didn't make life any easier, shelling the sithspit out of the 501st with heavy suppressive fire.
"I think Sixshot made 'em mad!" Backlog remarked. As he did, several Umbarans rushed the Clones, attempting to put them in strangleholds. Reverb promptly threw one over his shoulder and shot him at point blank range while his brothers fended them off with ease.
The Umbarans may not be the most skilled of fighters. But they had a tactical advantage that was slowly paying off.
Another shell exploded in the midst of the Clones, tearing through them.
"The Umbarans are advancing!" Rex cried, shooting down two at what was virtually point blank range.
"Make 'em eat these!" Sixshot boomed, mowing them down in droves with his cannon. Rex continued firing along with his men, but the Umbarans were getting too numerous for the Clones. One tried to ambush Rex from above, only to be knocked to the ground as the Clone Captin put a little extra in with his mechanical elbow and shattered the Umbaran's protective helmet. He started to cry out in his native tongue, but Jolt finished him off with scattered blaster rounds. The Umbarans didn't let up and pressed their attack, utterly surrounding the Clones and killing them in droves.
"They're coming from all directions!" Lugnut cried.
"We don't have any cover!" Jolt added, disgusted with this situation.
"We need to pull back, get them to follow us." Rex stated thinking on his feet. "If we can draw them out, we can see them. And if we can see them, we can hit them! All squads! Fall back now!" Rex ordered. Jolt took the lead, urging his brothers back the way they came.
"This can't be good." Lugnut muttered as he joined them. The Umbarans gave chase, not letting up for a second as they pursued the fleeing Clones with a hail of blaster fire and tank shells.
From a distance, Krell watched and received updates from the Clones with him, very displeased with Rex's efforts.
"Feeble-minded Clones," he muttered, turning to the reinforcements with him, "get in there and save their necks!" He ordered. Several ATRTs and a squad of Clones moved to obey, descending down towards the road. Rex and his men continued to pull back, taking cover behind rubble as the Umbaran militia continued advancing towards them while their own reinforcements arrived on the scene.
"Get ready, here they come!" Rex called, ordering his men to form a defensive line. The ATRTs took up position near the front, alongside Sixshot and his Z-6 as the Clones rallied and opened fire on the Umbarans. "That's it! Hit 'em with everything you've got!" Rex encouraged, every Clone in his battalion firing back at the Shadow People. the suppressing fire was enough to force the Umbarans to slow, their advanced halted by the rallied Republic forces. With more of their numbers being cut down by the calculated strike, the Umbarans started to backtrack, making a tactical retreat.
"HA HA! Where ya goin'?!" Sixshot cackled, clearly enjoying himself. "Get back here!" He cried, his rotary cannon running hot as he happily gunned down the fleeing Umbarans.
"They're pulling back!" Jolt happily reported, pleased that they were finally winning the day. The Clones slowly stopped firing as the last of the Umbarans disappeared into the darkened mists and the survivors breathed a sigh of relief, glad that they had managed to turn this around.
But someone was not nearly as pleased.
Krell stomped onto the battlefield, his hands clenched tightly and his demeanor not a friendly one. The Besalisk shoved past Jolt as he made a beeline for Rex.
"CeeTee Seventy-five Sixty-seven..." he growled, "do you have a malfunction in your design? You've pulled your forces back from taking the capital city, the enemy now has control of this route! This entire operation has been compromised because of your failure!" He accused, giving Rex a hard shove as he did.
Jolt had had enough.
"General Krell... in case you haven't noticed, Captain Rex just saved this platoon!" He countered. "Surely you won't 'fail' to recognize that!" He added, fed up with the frank tactical stupidity of this Jedi. Krell turned around, his eyes ablaze with a low, simmering anger.
"ARC Sixty-two Forty-nine," he addressed him, drawing a green lightsaber, igniting it and holding the blade dangerously close to Jolt's head, "stand down." He gravely commanded.
"Sir yes sir." Jolt muttered, his distaste for the Jedi inflamed to an even higher degree now. Jolt backed off as Rex came around to face Krell.
"Sir, if I may address your accusation..." he began, "I followed your orders. Even in the face of a plan that was, in my opinion, severely flawed. A plan that cost us men," he stated, removing his helmet, "not Clones, men!" He repeated, getting fired up the more he spoke. Krell eyed him with a passive, almost unimpressed gaze. "As surely as it is my duty to remain loyal to your command, I also have another duty to protect those men." Rex continued, gesturing to all the Clones around them. He paused, waiting for Krell's retort. But after a moment of contemplation, Krell switched off his lightsaber.
"You have a spark of tenacity, Captain. I'll give you that." He replied. "I know that I don't command like the Jedi you are used to serving. Certainly not like General Skywalker." Rex deeply wished Anakin was here right now. "But I have my way. It may be difficult, but these are difficult times and it's proven effective. I suppose your loyalty to your men is to be commended. They seem to admire this and that's important to an effective commander." Krell continued. Rex wasn't sure if he'd just received a backhanded compliment or not. "Alright Captain 'Rex'... your opinion has been noted." Krell mused as he turned to leave. "Dismissed." Rex could only stand there and watch as the Besalisk departed, grateful that he'd been able to speak his mind but none too certain if Krell had really listened to him. Jolt strode over,
"I think he almost complimented you." He remarked. Rex sighed.
"It's hard to tell." He agreed. Suddenly, another shell exploded within their midst, fired from a distant, unseen hover tank.
The Umbarans were back!
They were attacking from the trees this time, their artillery targeting the ATRTs in an effort to cut off the Republic's heavier fire support. Rex quickly donned his helmet as the Clones went back to work. "The Umbarans must've regrouped for a counterattack." Rex surmised as he drew his twin DC-15s. "Everyone, we must hold this position!" He called as he and Jolt dashed to the front of the line. Rolling his mechanical shoulder and feeling the synthetic nerves ripple in active response, he took aim at the militia downrange.
"You think General Krell still intends to take the capitol using this strategy?" Jolt wondered as he started firing.
"I don't know. I'll get back to you on that if we survive this battle." Rex responded, both pistols blazing away. As the 501st held their position, exchanging fire with the doggedly determined Umbarans, there was one thing Rex did know; the battle for Umbara was far from over...
And it had just gotten a lot harder.
The sustained firefight continued as the Clones bravely held their ground despite the Umbaran onslaught. Green and blue blaster rounds flew back and forth along the length of the road, soliders on either side falling victim to well-aimed shots.
And then, the Umbarans ceased firing.
The sudden halt came so suddenly and without warning that the Clones were caught off guard.
"They just... stopped?" Jolt wondered, just as confused as the rest of his brothers.
"Something's not right." Reverb muttered, not liking this one bit.
"Hey, a victory's a victory in my book!" Sixshot proclaimed. "If they wanna stop and run, that's on them."
"It can't be that simple." Backlog responded, agreeing with Reverb. "There must be something in the works."
"Stay sharp men." Rex cautioned, leaving their cover behind to slowly advance forward. "Lugnut, Jolt, with me." The two quickly joined him and took a few careful steps onto the road. No one shot at them, no further attack came.
But it was still too quiet for their liking...
"I'm hesitant to order the company to advance." Rex mused aloud.
"I know what you mean." Jolt agreed. Something about this just seemed wrong...
Their suspicions were soon confirmed when a Clone behind them hit the ground, his head rolling away.
"Sir! Gearbox is down!" A Clone known as Kickstand reported. Seconds later, he too was killed as a slug bored through his skull and spilt his brains across the road. Their deaths jarred the Clones as they started sweeping back and forth erratically like fresh cadets, wondering who and where the unseen killer was. Rex, Jolt and Lugnut went back to back as they scanned the area for any sign of them.
"Homewreckers. That's what you are." A voice the Clones could only describe as demonic echoed around them. There was no one source, just a voice coming from every single direction. The Clones started to panic, weapons raised as they looked around for the unknown source.
But Rex knew otherwise.
"Sir... that's not an Umbaran." Lugnut slowly asked, his voice filled with fear.
"No it is not." Rex growled, already knowing who it was.
"You come here, thinking you can just do as you please against a people who had no quarrel with you? They were at peace until you brought them war and death!" The voice continued and a Clone named Ripclaw was flung back as blood exploded from three holes in his chest. "See for yourselves that the Galactic Republic is full of warmongers... and nothing more." Suddenly, from the mist, a pair of red eyes materialized, taking shape against a tall, dark body that was so imposing some of the Clones started trembling in their armor. Rex steeled himself, his gaze narrowing beneath his helmet, a few circuits twitching in his prosthetic as if purposefully reminding him who this was.
It was The Wraith.
"Rise Umbarans! Defend your home!" He shouted in Umbarese, drawing his carbine and unleashing a deadly barrage that mowed down multiple Clones.
"Fire! Fire everything now!" Rex screamed, every Clone lighting up the super-soldier, the ATRTs included. To their dismay, every shot just seemed to bounce off of him, exposing silver plates of songsteel armor that could take an infinite number of blaster rounds before even acquiring a dent. Behind The Wraith, the Umbarans milita started up their attack again, green bolts shooting past Wraith as they assaulted the Clones again. With the attack renewed, the 501st fought on, even though they were now at a severe disadvantage. That didn't stop them from trying.
"Come on you kriffer! Come on!" Sixshot roared, unleashing his Z-6 upon The Wraith. The super-soldier quickly snapped up an arm and deployed an energy shield from the back of his gauntlet, one not unlike the kind used by BX commando droids. It took everything the rotary cannon had to offer, protecting him from harm while Wraith began to slowly advance.
"Where the hell are those Titans?!" Rex shouted. Those hunting The Wraith should be here, on top of this situation. Things were going poorly as it was, his men did not need to put up with a deadly super-soldier too. "We need to back off, without proper help we won't stand a chance against Wraith!" He surmised.
"But General Krell said-" Lugnut started to say.
"To hell with the General!" Jolt snapped. "You see him, shiny? You see that thing?" He bluntly asked, jerking Lugnut's face in The Wraith's direction. "That thing has been engineered by the Separatists to kill us in droves! Unless we act quickly, you an' me and everybody else are gonna be part of one big pool of blood before this is over!" He growled. "Now forget about Krell and kriffing MOVE!" With a shove, Jolt sent Lugnut scampering back to their lines as he and Rex followed close behind.
Wraith was already on top of the Clones, his autogun put away as he favoured his hands and feet and melee weapons. A single knife drawn, the super-soldier cut, slit and stabbed his way through the Clones, a flurry of blaster rounds ricocheting off of him. His strength was immense, able to grab and throw a Clone with minimal effort and crush the necks of others with one hand alone. His killing spree would go unchecked, not even the more power ATRT cannons enough to stop him. Rex rushed Wraith with pistols blazing, trying to throw the super-soldier off and at least buy his men some time to put some distance between them. But The Wraith was no simple pushover and, as soon as Rex was in range, grabbed his mechanical arm and twisted it sharply, causing Rex to cry out in pain. He then threw the Clone over his shoulder, slamming him into the ground before grasping his neck in one hand and hoisting him up off the ground. "Hold fire!" Jolt shouted, trying to avoid getting Rex killed with a stray, unintentional shot. Knowing this, the super-soldier tightened his grip on Rex's neck, slowly squeezing the life out of him.
But then Krell arrived back on the scene.
The Besalisk unfolded and ignited his unique double-lightsabers, blue and green flashing as the Clones quickly parted to give him room to pass as the Jedi General surged ahead and came face to face with the super-soldier in the midst of the Clones, blasting him with a strong Force push and sending Rex tumbling from his grip. Wraith backflipped to his feet and sized up the newcomer.
"You're a new one." He mused as he sheathed his knife.
"I am Pong Krell. And you will remember my name." The Jedi stated.
"Sure I will. Just one more Jedi dead by my hand." Wraith remarked as he drew Tyth and ignited the fiery blade. The two clashed in an epic brawl, Krell a very powerful Jedi with four deadly blades to work with and an unorthodox style that proved lethal to all who faced him. The Wraith was a seasoned veteran of combat and a master of hand-to-hand skills that surpassed even the training of Jedi. Krell came hard and fast, Wraith meeting him with a solid and active defence. Every strike was met with a block or parry, Wraith occasionally letting his armor take the brunt of a lightsaber only to whip around and strike back. Krell had the advanatge of four arms nimble enough to handle his four blades at once, but Wraith's enhanced abilities and trained body were enough to counter him at each turn.
They were equally matched in almost every way.
Krell brought a sudden change to the fight when he blocked Tyth with two blades, freeing two of his hands to attack Wraith's open midsection with Force-fueled blows to his sides. But Wraith was able to shrug off the pain and retaliated by shoving his blades aside and executing a dropkick that shoved the Besalisk back. Rolling to his feet, Wraith quickly ducked and dodged as Krell came at him with his lightsabers spinning like buzzsaws. One lucky strike grazed Wraith's back plating, leaving glowing scorches behind. The super-soldier executed a leg sweep that dropped Krell to one knee as his boot collided with the back of his knee. But the Besliask was not to be moved so easily and retaliated with another Force push that sent Wraith skittering back across the road.
By now, the Clones had managed to hold off the Umbarans, so much so that the Shadow People were calling for a tactical retreat due to their dwindling numbers. Wraith would've been more than happy to remain behind, but he had his priorities.
Besides, Krell would do some of his work for him.
"Running like a coward? Not very becoming of a so-called 'super-soldier'." Krell taunted as Wraith backpeddled.
"This is far from finished, Jedi Krell." Wraith retorted as Tyth's fire vanished. "This meeting is but a first... the next you may not survive." He threatened, slowly disappearing into the misty darkness alongside the Umbarans. Rex and the others made to pursue, firing after him.
"Hold fire, he is not worth pursuing." Krell ordered as he slung his lightsabers back on his belt.
"General Krell, sir, if we can stop him or at least slow him down we might be able to save some lives." Rex persisted, knowing that even if they could inflict some sort of injury that could keep Wraith out of the fight they'd have a much easier go at taking the capitol without having Wraith-backed Umbarans to deal with.
"CeeTee Seventy-five Sixty-seven did you not witness that battle?" Krell suddenly asked.
"Yes sir. I did sir." Rex replied.
"And did you not see the difference between when The Wraith battled Clones in comparison to when he battled me?" Krell continued, facing him now.
"Yes, General." Rex replied again. This time, Krell got right into his helmeted face.
"There is a reason you have a prosthetic arm, Captain. And I do not." The Besalisk stated. Rex suddenly felt his anger boil over as Krell effectively called him weak and ineffective against The Wraith. "We will hold this line and make our advance from here. That is all." Krell directed as he made to leave the battlefield. He didn't get far as the Umbarans renewed their barrage.
"Here we go again!" Jolt grumbled, blaster in hand.
The fighting was fierce and constant, the 501st gradually forced off the road and into the trees for better cover as the Umbarans continued to hound them with protracted firefights and further shelling, as well as bombardments from Zenuas 33 starfighters. Rex and his men held their ground, Krell standing by but not actively engaging. Inwardly, Rex longed for Anakin or even Ahsoka to be here so that someone with a lightsaber and the Force could give them a hand, as Krell certainly wasn't going to.
as the battle drew on, Krell received a transmission from Obi-Wan.
"The capital city is too fortified, we need your battalion to help us take it!" The Jedi urgently told him.
"Resistance from the Umbarans has been greater than anticipated." Krell responded. "We're holding our ground at the moment."
"We've gathered intel on an airbase to the west. It is resupplying the capitol's defense-" Obi-Wan informed him, only to be cut off as a Clone shouted in warning, "Incoming INCOMING!" moments before a shell exploded not far from them. The men took cover for a moment, dirt and debris raining down on them while Krell stood tall and unmoved by the attack. "If you could capture that airbase it would sever the capitol's supply line, allowing the rest of our forces to move in." Obi-Wan continued again.
"I will see to it that the airbase is placed under our control." Krell promised.
"Remember General Krell, the entire invasion depends on your battalion." Obi-Wan gravely told him, further cementing Krell's words and his hasty plans calling for immediate action and less tactical thinking.
"Captain Rex, have those coordinates mapped and have all troops ready to move out immediately." Krell ordered as he put his holocom away.
"Yes General." Rex readily agreed, more than happy to take his men anywhere but here.
Another long march had led them to a high ridge overlooking a gorge which led straight to the airbase. Jolt, Rex and Krell paused to overlook the terrain, Rex using a set of scopes to examine the distant enemy defences.
"There's a base there, alright, and it's heavily guarded. At least three tank divisions... plus guns." Rex reported, not liking the looks of things.
"We'll advance along the central gorge and engage their forces in a full forward assault." Krell determined. Rex knelt to study the suggested terrain, also not liking the looks of the path that was bound to be both guarded and boobytrapped.
"The gorge is narrow, sir, we'll only be able to move our platoons in single squads." Rex informed Krell, hoping the new information would change his mind. "Perhaps a closer recon will tell us if there's a more secure route." He suggested.
"Obi-Wan and the other battalions are holding off the enemy right now," Krell replied, "while they wait for us to take out this base. We don't have time to look for a more 'secure route'." He turned and made to leave, Rex having a sinking feeling at seeing Krell was determined to go through with this suicidal maneuver.
"Yes sir." He quietly affirmed.
The 501st dropped down into the valley, right near the entrance to the gorge. Rex rallied his men there and got ready to split them up. "Alright, listen up. We'll assemble the squads into two divisions, move straight up this gorge towards the airbase on the far side." He instructed. As expected, his men didn't take well to this plan.
"The casualties are gonna be high." Ransack, a Clone sporting a pair of blue wings on either side of his helmet and the resident medic, bluntly stated.
"Is Krell trying to get us killed?" Reverb asked, voicing his distaste for the situation.
"Well I wasn't sure if Krell was crazy before... but now I'm positive!" Backlog agreed.
"We had to retreat from the capitol because the General pushed a flawed strategy." Jolt chimed in. "Now this?!"
"I don't know... could be fun!" Sixshot argued, hefting his prized Z-6.
"Well I for one agree with the General's plan," Lugnut announced, "we're running out of time and this is the best option."
"Kriffin' bootlicker." Jolt muttered udner his breath.
"No recon? No air support?" Backlog shot back. "We don't know what we're up against! They have weapons we've never seen before!" Before any further arguments could break out, Rex stepped in to wrest back control.
"A few of General Skywalker's plans seemed reckless too, but they worked." He stated.
"Yeah, but General Skywalker's usually leading his men in the front. Not bringing up the rear like General Krell." Jolt argued. The Besalisk Jedi remained at the top of the ridge, accompanied by their reinforcements led by Seregant Appo. "A full forward assault would leave us too exposed!" The Clones began to murmur amongst themselves, taking sides as to whether or not they preferred Krell's plan or agreed with Jolt, Backlog and the others. Many avidly took their side.
"We have to look at other options."
"This is gonna be a meatgrinder!"
"Jolt," Rex beckoned his resident 2IC to join him for a quick conference. Once out of earshot of the others, he said, "I know you and I have only just started working together, but it would help if you eased their minds."
"Oh, you mean coax them into following another one of Krell's suicide missions?" The lieutenant retorted, rather sardonically. "We lost a lot of men last time."
"Krell may do things differently, but he is effective in getting them done. He's a recognized war hero." Rex countered.
"He may have had some victories, but have you seen his casualty numbers?" Jolt asked. "More troopers have been killed under his command than anyone else." Rex sighed.
"That's the price of war, Jolt. We're soldiers. We have a duty to follow orders and, if we must, lay down our lives for victory." He stated, turning to leave. But Jolt caught him by the arm before he could go,
"You believe that?" He inquired. "Or is that what you were 'engineered' to think?" A forward and generally free-thinking Clone, Jolt was the kind of soldier who would actively think beyond the usual perimeters typically set for Clones. He was in that mode now, not caring for the perimeters both Rex and especially Krell wee trying to set for him.
"I honor my code. That's what I believe." Rex plainly responded before walking away. Jolt watched him go, not buying a word. Rex was simply boxed in by his loyalty to any Jedi General and his rather blind obedience to any order he received. The lieutenant had to make him see trough this blind somehow, preferably before Krell got them all killed.
The gorge was indeed lined with multiple defences, ones able to inflict massive casualties on the invading Clone battalion. Caterpillar Impeding Assault Tanks as well as Umbaran mobile heavy cannons, or 'spider cannons', were powerfully shielded and heavily equipped will all manner of anti-personnel weaponry that made life hell for the 501st. While thermal detonators and rockets might've been enough for some, it wasn't for others and Rex was indeed faced with a high casualty count, just as Jolt and Ransack had predicted. Despite pleading with Krell for reinforcements or at least a new plan of action, all Rex received was constant belittling and even firmer orders from the Besalisk General. It finally took a little bit of outside-the-box ingenuity on Rex's behalf as well as some stealth courtesy of Jolt and Sixshot to get the job done, the two Clones stealing a pair of Umbaran starfighters and turning their firepower against the mobile cannons to finally clear a path. Only then did General Krell and his troops make their move to take the air base.
By the time it was over, the surviving Umbarans had been captured and the airbase was officially in Republic hands. Rex and his core men had survived to take the air base, but their losses were simply unignorable.
"Despite Sixshot's flying, you two saved us all." Rex congratulated Jolt and Sixshot.
"Ah, it wasn't so tough." Sixshot responded, waving it off.
"You sure?" Backlog wondered. "You looked a little green when you came out of that fighter." That roused a chuckle from the group, but it was quickly cut short when Krell arrived.
"Captain," he addressed Rex, "report. What is our situation?"
"General, we've taken the base and cut off enemy supply lines to the capitol." Rex informed him. Krell nodded.
"Luck has smiled on you today, Captain. Consider yourself... fortunate." He replied.
"It wasn't all luck, sir. A lot of men died to take this base." He somberly stated. Having witnessed dozens of men be shot, blown up, crushed or straight up vaporized by the Umbaran defenders, Rex knew that their sacrifices were the reason they had taken this air base.
"The price for such victory." Krell responded. "Perhaps some day you'll realize this." His dismissive nature of the deaths of the men, his brothers, caused Rex to ball one hand into a fist. He'd had just about enough of Krell's attitude towards Clones, but chose to remain quietly indignant. Krell turned around and casually dismissed him, leaving Rex to stew in his continually growing distaste for the Besalisk Jedi. Behind him, Jolt, Reverb, Backlog, Sixshot and Ransack stood vigilantly by their Captain.
"He's the one who'll never realize." Jolt mused. Rex silently agreed.
As the 501st settled in and turned their air base into their staging grounds, a momentary lull seemed to settle over everything. Jolt and the others refused to put any more trust in Krell, absolutely convinced he had it out for them. "I used to think General Krell was reckless. But now I'm beginning to think he hates Clones." Jolt had said. Rex would never publically condone a statement like that, but he and all the others were in consensus with him. But now there were no imminent battles on the horizon and therefore no more suicidal battle orders to carry out for the time being. Krell had gone to have a few words with the Clones in the upper control deck as they began the process of understanding Umbaran technology and putting it to use for the Republic. This left Rex alone for a moment, feeling rather winded by everything going on around him and looking for nothing more than a breather when someone called out to him.
"Oy! Rexy!" Hearing the familiar accent, Rex reluctantly turned around as Corsair sauntered over to him, the remnants of a cigarra clenched between his teeth.
"Corsair... what do you want?" Rex bluntly asked, really not in the mood to deal with any Titan right now. "And where were you while we were pinned down by The Wraith?"
"Ah, so ya've met 'im, have ya?" Corsair replied, flicking the butt away. "We've been trackin' that kriffah fo' a while now, tryin' ta figure out his movements. It was hardah durin' the early phases, but now that ya'll 'ave shown up we've got a lock on 'im now. Won't be much longah." He explained.
"So you've been on Umbara for a while..." Rex surmised.
"You could say that." Corsair replied. "As fo' why I'm 'ere, I jus' wanted ta see if Skywalkah's around." The merc causally wondered.
"Unfortunately no, he's been called back to Coruscant." Rex responded.
"Has 'e now?" Corsair mused, stroking his goatee. "Then 'o's in charge of ya?"
"That would be General Krell." Rex answered. His reply evoked a dramatic response from Corsair as the mercenary suddenly lost his carefree attitude and his gaze narrowed at the mentioned of the name.
"Krell? As in Pong Krell?" He clarified.
"Yes..." Rex slowly answered, dragging out the word as he warily observed the visible change in Corsair's attitude. "Why?"
"I always told myself if I saw that ovahgrown Ardennian again it'd be too soon." Corsair growled, crossing his arms. "And it's too damn soon!" He added, muttering to himself Rex was drawing a blank but could tell there was something that had transpired between the mercenary and the General. "Where tha bloody hell is 'e?" Corsair curtly wondered.
"I believe he's-" At that exact moment, the four-armed Jedi walked in on the conversation, advancing towards Rex.
"Captain Rex," he called out, "There is a-" Krell cut himself short as he suddenly laid eyes on the grizzled mercenary who had been speaking with the Clone. He was older, much older, and the scars were new. But the face, the body, even the aura about him was all too familiar despite the Jedi's fervent desire to forget about him. "Corsair." Krell ground out.
"'Ello Krell... ya kriffin' pile a' sithspit." Corsair spat in reply.
"What are you doing here?" Krell demanded, taking a step forward.
"I could ask ya tha same bloody thing." The mercenary shot back. "Trust me, I'd like nothin' bettah than ta be nowhere near ya." Rex could tell Krell was seething as he towered over the mercenary, all four of his hands balling into fists, his eyes narrowed into very small slits as a distinct frown, one even more distinct than the one he usually wore, overcame him.
"I am leading these men to victory. A concept I'm certain a degenerate like yourself wouldn't understand."
"Well now, don't you jus' sound all high n' mighty," Corsair growled, "betcha think yor tha Force's gift to tha universe, eh?" Krell didn't respond, his unflinching glare affixed to Corsair. "Guess some thing's nevah change."
"As if you have." Krell retorted.
"I'm actually workin' on ordahs from yor Chancellah. Me an' my crew 'ave got plenty a' work to do an' I was hopin' we could tag-team." Corsair replied, his tone still hard and his frown almost as permanent as Krell's. "But, seein' as yor here, we're bettah off doin' it ourselves."
"I will not let you and your band of belligerents get in the way of my victory." Krell stated. "You alone have ruined me enough!"
"Oh, is that what yor callin' it now?" Corsair shot back. "Let tha recahd show I did nuthin', nuthin' at all, ta make ya do what ya did on Foundry. Ya made those moves yorself Krell!"
"What I did?!" The Besalisk thundered, advancing menacingly close to Corsair who didn't budge an inch. "It always has been and always will be on your head Corsair! I will never forgive you for what you did to Meline!" Krell snarled, jabbing a finger towards the Titan leader.
"And I'll nevah forgive ya for what you did ta her!" Corsair growled. "That day, if thing's had been just a little bit different, I woulda' killed ya then and there."
"If you wish to settle this here and now, I will oblige you!" Krell determined, hands reaching for his unique double-lightsabers.
"Come on then, ya four-armed Hutt!" Corsair snapped, cracking his knuckles. Rex watched the two threaten each other, rather bewildered by the sudden turn of events, and wondered if he should maybe get his men in between these two and intervene before they came to blows. But before a fight could commence, a helmeted Clone approached the Besalisk with a message.
"General, you're needed in the command tower. There's a transmission from General Kenobi." He stated. Krell regarded him with a momentary glare before calming down and putting his lightsabers away.
He had better things to do.
"This is not over." Krell growled as he turned and left. "Captain Rex, come with me."
"It's ovah when I say it's ovah," Corsair bit back, "not befor'." As their General left, the Clones gradually dispersed, conversing amongst themselves about what they'd just witnessed. Rex himself had plenty of questions and, his curiosity getting the better fo him, decided to try and get some answers before he had to leave with Krell.
"Corsair... what happened between you two?" He asked as the mercenary started moving. Corsair simply huffed.
"'S none a' yor damn business, Clone." He muttered, turning and walking with his head dipped a little lower than before.
Krell and Rex entered the topmost level of the tower where a pair of Clone technicians worked to harness the strange Umbaran technology. A central display in the middle, comprised of floating holographic cubes readily assembled to take on the appearance of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
"Congratulations on your capture of the Umbaran air base, General Krell." The human Jedi congratulated. "It's refreshing to have good news."
"There will be time for celebration when we take the capitol." Krell stated in response.
"Yes, well, I'm afraid that's going to be more difficult than anticipated. Their attacks have increased and long-range missiles are forcing us to retreat from our positions." Obi-Wan informed him, revealing the grave situation his battalion faced.
"I was hoping we'd cut off their arms shipments and supplies when we took this air base." Krell replied.
"You did. But it appears that they had planned for such a reality. Their defences are now-" Obi-Wan's words were suddenly cut short as the projection flickered and stuttered.
"General Kenobi?" Krell inquired as the technicians worked to fix the signal.
"...having trouble... transmitting..." Kenobi managed between bursts of static. The reception finally cleared, allowing the Jedi a full sentence. "They seem to be trying to jam our signals."
"Are their defences still fully operational, General?" Rex inquired.
"Yes and they're making it very hard for us to do anything. Not only are their munitions supplies out of our sight but the missile platforms are defended by heavily entrenched pillboxes." Kenobi replied. "Master Tiin's air forces are preoccupied with the larger fleet above and without proper cover or support, we are helpless against them."
"Then we will simply have to take the capitol regardless." Krell surmised, earning a worried glance from Rex as the Clone sensed another reckless plan afoot.
"No, General Krell. We need your battalion to help relieve us. We need those defences put down, the sooner the better." Obi-Wan countered, having far more strategic insight than Krell, at least in Rex's opinion.
"Understood, General Kenobi. We will see to their complete destruction." Krell assured.
"I'd would advise you-..." Kenobi started to say before the hologram fell apart completely, the signal fully disrupted.
"I'm trying to get him back sir!" One of the technicians announced.
"Don't bother. The enemy is jamming our transmissions." Krell replied, eyeing Rex. "We're on our own." the Jedi turned to leave with Rex not far behind.
The Captain had a sinking feeling that another bloodbath was on the horizon.
Back outside, Krell was busy with a plan in mind. It would be simple yet straightforward and be very characteristic of him.
"Have those containers searched and all weapons prepped and loaded!" Krell ordered some Clones rooting through Umbaran supplies. "Have the battalion ready to move out in two hours. We make for their defence ring immediately." He then ordered Rex.
"Sir, should I try to get a message through to General Kenobi? Maybe we should coordinate our attack, especially in light of the recent threat. He might have intel that would prove useful." The Captain suggested as they walked.
"General Kenobi has his hands full, same as us. We must throw everything we have at them, now!" Krell countered.
"We'd be marching into a blast zone, sir." Rex replied, stating a simple fact. As he finished, thunderous explosions sounded in the distance, wrought form the missile fire the 212th was enduring. Both Rex and Krell turned to see green explosions from Umbaran weaponry beyond their perimeter.
"Damn insurgents." Krell swore. He took a moment to regard Rex. "I realize you haven't agreed with all my strategies Captain. But you are smart enough and loyal enough to obey my orders." He stated. Perhaps that was his greatest strength... or weakness. In the moment, Rex didn't know. "Now prep those troops!" Krell ordered, compelling Rex to obey. The Besliask walked off, leaving Rex alone to fulfill his order. But as he did, his holocom suddenly beeped with an incoming message. Through the Force, he could sense who it was... and the realization irritated him.
Slipping away to a spot on the base where no Clone would find him or eavesdrop on his conversation, Krell opened the line as a render of The Wraith appeared before him. "Wraith, I told you I would contact you! Not the other way aroun-"
"Count Dooku has taken notice of your actions." Wraith interrupted, forcing Krell to go silent. "He wishes to see more." His words sparked a notion of hope within the Besliask. Finally, he could show Count Dooku that he was worthy of joining his side and that he would do whatever was necessary to help the Separatists.
"Tell him I will continue to provide results." He plainly answered.
"You had better." Wraith growled. "The bit on the main road was a nice touch, but the Umbarans are desperate for their defences to prove effective. Perhaps an undermanned squad is in order?" The super-soldier suggested.
"Yes. That would be a proper course of action." Krell concurred, already having a few ideas for how he would begin the assault on the missile platform. "If you can, keep me updated on how things on your end progress and I will be certain to meet them in turn." The Besliask replied.
"My biggest concern is someone catching on to your ploy." The Wraith informed him. "Those Five-Oh-First Clones aren't ARC troopers for no reason."
"Trust me, Field Commander, I'll have them so preoccupied with trying to save themselves that they won't suspect a thing." Krell confidently responded with a dirty smile.
"I like the way you think, Krell." The Wraith responded.
Meanwhile, Rex sought out Jolt and the others in one of the hangar bays as they busily worked on trying to crack the Umbaran tech. He knew he needed to fill them in on what was coming up.
As anticipated, it did not go over well.
"Those missiles have a hundred-megaton yield!" Jolt exclaimed. "We won't even make it to the delta!"
"What can I do? I've tried to reason with him. Those are the orders." Rex responded with a sigh.
"Great... another suicide mission." Backlog grumbled. "The defence stations are too well-armed."
"Yeah... and why does it seem like he has it out for Clones?" Reverb wondered, referring to Krell.
"I think you're all overreacting." Lugnut stated. "Obviously General Krell knows what he's doing. You really think he doesn't care if he loses men?" His statement earned a huff and an eyeroll from Jolt.
"Obviously..." The lieutenant muttered.
"I'm not saying that. But I do think that his desire for victory has blinded him to the fact that their are lives at stake." Backlog responded. "I've never seen a General with these kinds of casualties."
"He's out of control!" Jolt proclaimed. "He is not acting like the other Jedi. He has no respect for us!" Then he turned to Rex. "Captain, you've always told us that when Commander Tano first joined she was snippy and impatient but still respected us, which has amplified over the years. If a kriffing teenager can do that, then what the hell is wrong with Krell?" He tried to reason.
"Look, I don't agree with him either, but it all boils down to planning. I don't have a better plan." Rex told him. "If either of you do, then by all means, suggest it now."
"Well, uh..." Backlog starting looking around, scratching his head as he looked for inspiration.
"What about these starfighters?" Jolt piped up. "Sixshot and I learned how to fly them, we could totally do a quick strafing run over that defence platform. Maybe punch a few holes in the pillboxes, possibly even drop the missile platform."
"You really think that could work?" Backlog wondered.
"Of course! If Sixshot and I could take out those mobile cannons, surely we could take out a missile platform." Jolt assured him.
"Well... I guess it is preferable to walking into another meatgrinder." Reverb agreed. "But now you've gotta convince Krell it's a good idea."
"And you know he won't condone it." Backlog chimed in.
"I'm past asking permission." Jolt stated. "If it means I can spare a few of my brothers an unnecessary death, I'm all for it!"
"You're talking about dissenting against General Krell..." Lugnut realized, suddenly rejoining the conversation. "That's worthy of a court martial!"
"Shut up, Lugnut. I've had enough of you and your bootlicking of this guy." Jolt retorted.
"Well at least I'm not planning to go behind his back! That's treason!" Lugnut exclaimed.
"I'm not following orders that I know are wrong, especially ones that mean others will suffer as a result. That includes you and your sorry hindquarters!" Jolt informed him, jabbing a finer in Lugnut's direction. "If that is treason, then yeah, I am treasonous!" He firmly stated.
"Both of you stand down!" Rex commanded, forcing both of his men to back off. "Jolt... even if you were able to go through with this, it's just you and Sixshot."
"Not if I'm with them." Backlog finally determined. Rex gave him a quick look as the Clone voiced his support for his brothers. "Besides... I've always wanted to be a pilot."
"General Krell's not gonna stand for this." Lugnut said, backing away. "You three had better sort yourselves out before he does!" With that, he turned and left.
"I'm really starting to hate him." Jolt muttered.
"Maybe a stun round could fix him..." Sixshot suggested in passing.
"No one's stunning anybody." Rex firmly told them. "Now, Jolt... you and I both know Lugnut's bound to report this. And he's right, Krell will sort you out and ten credits says you're not going to enjoy it."
"Rex... even you have to admit that this idea would save us men." Jolt responded in a lower voice. Rex shook his head, not knowing what more he could say. "Look, I get it, I'm not Fives. We're not Torrent Company." He said, gesturing to the others. "But we've worked out this far. Put a little faith in us, would you?"
"It's not faith that's the issue, Jolt." Rex gently reminded him. "Yes, I do miss Torrent Company, but that has nothing to do with this."
"You sure?" Jolt wondered. Rex could tell he could see more than he let on. This Clone was an insightful one, he'd give him that. Had the makings of a really good team leader.
"Even if I did give you the go-ahead, how would you do it before Lugnut got to Krell?" Rex asked. "You know he'll do whatever is necessary to throw a wet blanket on this... and I won't be able to spare you any trouble when you're caught."
"That's okay. I've got another idea." Sixshot stated from behind. Rex and Jolt turned to their brother who had a suspicious grin on his face.
"You do?" They both wondered.
"Yup. We just need Ransack." Sixshot responded.
Corsair boarded the Titan's transport Stolen Horizon with a sigh, shaking his head as he shrugged off the memory of his unintended meeting with Krell. He hadn't even known KRell would be here and walking into that unintentional trap had sparked a lot of bad memories within the grizzled mercenary. The last thing he ever wanted in life was to see Krell again, especially after everything that happened all those years ago. But now... fate was just being cruel. "I need a drink," he told himself, determined he needed something to help get him through the rest of today. But while on his way to his quarters, Corsair was intercepted by Theris.
"Boss, how did it go?" She asked.
"Jus' got back from seein' tha Five-O-First. Skywalkah's not in charge this time, Pong Krell is." Corsair responded in a low, grumbling tone.
"Is that... bad?" Theris wondered.
"'S bad fo' me." Corsair sighed. The Mando could only assume that this Krell was a figure from his past, but considering how he didn't discuss his history with anybody, she was left to simply guess.
"And you don't want to talk about it." She assumed.
"Good guess." Corsair confirmed. With a sigh he shrugged off his need for a drink, knowing he needed to get back to business. "Ya got somethin' for me?"
"Possibly. I've reviewed our available data and I think we might have something." Theris replied. "The Republic continues to try and take the capitol, but each new layer of Umbaran defence sets them back." She explained. "I was thinking that if we were to target one of these defences, it might draw out The Wraith and force him to act. That would put him in a position where we could take him down." Corsair nodded slowly, mulling over the information. It was sound, incredibly so, and definitely a plan worth acting on.
"Good plannin'." He complimented. "Get tha gang ready. SpeedFreak, Hatah, anyone who can fiah a rocket. Figah out where Kenobi's at an' plot a course fo' the defences nearest 'im, 'cause ya know Wraith'll be stalkin' 'is unit on approach ta tha capitol." He ordered.
"On it, Boss." Theris replied.
Two hours later...
Rex had every available man in the 501st who was not instructed by Krell to remain behind ready and information by the hour Krell had set for him. As the Besalisk general stepped before the men under his command, Rex marched forward and saluted.
"The battalion is ready to move out, General." He stated. Krell paused to survey the lines of men before him. His gaze narrowed, mind at work as he made note of something...
"Captain Rex... I see we are missing CeeTee Sixty-seven Oh-one, ARC Sixty-two Forty-nine and CeeTee Twenty Ten." Krell stated. "Can you confirm a reason for their absence?" Rex knew he was inquiring about Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog. While he had promised he would not cover for them when they were found out, he would at least uphold his end of the lie.
"Yes General. They seemed to have come down with a sort of virus, our medic Ransack confirms it and recommended they be bedridden until further notice." Rex told him.
"Is that correct, CeeTee Twenty-five Oh-five?" Krell asked.
"Yes sir, General Krell!" Ransack quickly stated. The Besalisk's gaze shifted back to Rex.
"I had told you to make this company ready, Captain. What are Clones doing in sick bay?" Krell demanded.
"Sir, I also thought it best that they remain behind. After all, we wouldn't want an unknown disease to spread through the ranks... and you need as many men as possible to take the capitol." Rex replied, appealing to Krell's painfully apparent nature. The Besalisk paused and nodded as he digested what Rex had to say.
"Your forward-thinking is to be commended, Captain." He finally said. "Three Clones who cannot stand do not deserve to be part of this battalion anyway." Rex nodded dutifully, hoping Krell did not bother to try and search out this lie any further. He did not and simply turned with a shout of "Move out!"
As soon as the company was gone and the air base left to the few designated to oversee it, Sixshot, Jolt and Backlog emerged from Ransack's designated medical center and made a beeline for the hangar where the Umbaran starfighters were kept...
Another hard march led the 501st through the Umbaran wilderness, which was thankfully quiet and uneventful. Many of the Clones were grateful for this, but for others it seemed to simply add to the sense of impending doom with another Krell-led mission.
The proverbial calm before the storm.
The march led them to a distant hill overlooking a valley where the missile platform was located. Krell observed with arms crossed as Rex took a closer look through his scopes. What he saw was a tower, on which the missile launcher was located. Surrounding its base were multiple mobile heavy cannons, identical to the ones Rex and his men fought in the gorge en route to the air base. Built into the ground leading to the tower, like steps towards a pinnacle of destruction, were multiple pillboxes surrounding the tower on all sides.
"There's the pillboxes General Kenobi was describing." He mused, seeing they were made of thick permacrete. The lower he scanned, the more he saw. Connected trenches in the ground, row upon row of them, covered the field leading to the pillboxes, offering even more defensive options for the Umbarans. "Seems like the Umbarans also have trenches for forward lines..." Rex really didn't like the look of this.
"We will overwhelm them with a full forward assault and take the entire platform by force." Krell directed, an almost anticipated response by this point.
"But, sir... that's enough firepower to wipe us out, we'd never even make it past their lines." Rex frankly replied. He had another idea and decided to pitch it, knowing Krell was bound to turn it down. "Maybe we could shell them from a distance. The walkers have the kind of firepower to handle those trenches and some of the men carry missile launchers that could do a number on the pillboxes." Those were RPS-6 shoulder launchers. They'd proven effective before against the Umbaran's impeding assault tanks and Rex had faith they would come in handy again.
"Every second we would spend attempting to make things 'easier' for us means Obi-Wan Kenobi suffers further losses and loses strength with which to take the capitol." Krell replied, attempting to convey the gravity of the situation through his characteristic sense of boundless determination. "We do not have time for little 'play fights' Captain. You have your orders, now engage!" Krell commanded. Rex could only nod, salute, and return to his men.
"This is outrageous!" Reverb shouted as weapons fire exploded around them. He, Lugnut, Ransack and Rex took cover behind a single upturned rock. The field leading to the Umbarans was virtually free of any debris or terrain to be used as cover. Only a few rocks here and there were suitable for such a task, but only just, meaning the Umbaran defenders had a clear shot with all their weapons at the advancing Clones.
"If we move quickly and take the forward trench, we can take cover there!" Rex suggested. Just as he finished, an explosion right beside him forced all the Clones to flinch and cover themselves as they were reminded of the near impossibility of such a notion.
"If we can make it!" Ransack retorted over the shelling and yelling and screaming of the dying.
"If we just follow General Krell's plan-" Lugnut tried to say.
"SHUT UP LUGNUT!" Reverb screamed. "DON'T YOU GET IT?! THIS IS KRELL'S PLAN!" He continued, grabbing Lugnut and shaking him. Taking a moment to calm himself and breathing heavily, Reverb's eyes narrowed beneath his helmet as he forced Lugnut's head towards him "You wanna be a good little bootlicker? Huh? You wanna be the perfectly obedient Clone and follow Krell's every word? Huh? Then get out there and take that forward trench! Without support and without backup!" He shouted.
"Reverb! Back down!" Rex commanded. "Fighting amongst ourselves isn't gonna get us anywhere. We need to take that trench and we need to take it now!"
"Yeah? How?" Ransack wondered. "By moving fast enough and hoping to the Force that we don't get hit?" Before Rex could even respond, another cannon round exploded behind them, taking out their cover and sending sprawling across the ground. They slowly shook off the impact as Rex picked them up.
"The trench. Now!" He cried, urging Reverb and the others up. He started running first, the others right behind him. All around them Clones were running and dying, getting cut down by withering turret fire from the pillboxes or blown to pieces by incoming cannon salvos. All around them, assaulting their senses from every angle, was constant screaming, shouting and yelling as Clones fought, ran and died. Blaster fire from both sounds drowned out any other sensible noise, all of it overpowered by the deafening impacts from the cannons.
Krell watched from above, waiting with most of the armored units as well as the battalion's reinforcements. He smiled a little as he watched the chaos below unfold, the Clones running around like ants in the face of the Umbaran defence. Surely this would net him the praises of Count Dooku for so expertly dismantling one of the Republic's finest legions without anyone suspecting him to be the genius behind their decimation.
Rex made it to the trench first, hopping in and blasting the Umbarans around him. They were quick kills, adrenaline pumping through his veins as he started to singlehandedly clear out the trench. Reverb, Lugnut and Ransack were right behind him, other Clones joining as they continued to clear the Umbarans from the trench. Some died before they could get in, some died while in the trench, others successfully added a few more kills to their tallies.
"Ransack! Tend to the wounded as best you can!" Rex ordered as soon as they had some space. "The rest of you target the other trenches... and watch out for the pillboxes!" He ordered.
"Captain! We've got a problem!" Reverb suddenly announced. Rex turned around to see Umbarans rising from the rear trenches and advancing towards them, hellbent on gunning down the Clones where they were.
"Defensive positions! Take 'em ou-" Rex was cut off when another cannon round hit close to the trench, showering the Clones with dirt and debris and even killing some as the shockwave rolled through. It bought the Umbarans enough time to, by the Rex cleared his vision, charge with weapons raised, ready to put them all down.
But then, blue blaster fire raked across their line, obliterating the incoming Umbarans to the surprise of Rex and the others. Turning around, Rex looked to see Corsair standing behind them and lugging an M-45 repeating ion blaster.
"Cheers boys!" He called, charging his weapon with a grin, "Cavalry's 'ere!" From behind him, SpeedFreak wheeled around in their airspeeder and Freak unleashed the mounted man-pack launcher upon the Umbaran lines, the powerful explosives tearing open both a gap in the Umbaran forces as well as the trenches. "SpeedFreak! Clear a path fo' tha lads!" He ordered.
"Not to worry Boss! I am a champion podracer in-" Corsair clicked off his comms as Speed carried on, rolling his eyes as the Sullustian announced his achievements... again.
"There's our opening!" Rex realized, hope filling his voice. "Come on men! Move it!" He ordered. The surviving Clones readily followed him, offering shouts and whoops of their own as the battle suddenly took a turn in their favor... finally!
The trenches had been cleared but the pillboxes had clear shots, and turns mowed down many of the frontmost Clones.
"Binary, ya got us covahed?" Corsair asked.
"I've got your six, Boss. Everything's in front of you." Binary responded, the distant sniper keeping everything in his scope.
"Good work. Hatah! Take out those pillboxes!" Corsair then ordered into his comms.
"Affirmative. Engaging Shadowbuster protocol." The HK droid responded. Some distance behind the battle, Hater stood atop a single rock with a pair of box launchers over his shoulders, each containing four rockets for a total of eight. "Targeting obstacle..." The droid continued, its photoreceptors highlighting and marking the four pillboxes facing the Republic. Seconds later, two missiles, one from each launcher, streaked through the air as Hater launched his deadly payload.
For these were no ordinary rockets... but Wildfire rockets. The kind that unleashed a payload of incendiary gel upon a targeted area, everything catching fire as a result.
Each rocket detonated right before the single open slit in the pillbox, spewing its contents into the protective structure as the Umbarans inside were quickly covered in a fire that could not be extinguished. Glowing flames filled every inch of the interior, momentarily disrupted by the staggered shadows of dying Umbarans.
From his perch above, Krell's four hands balled into fists and he audibly growled as he observed the Titans suddenly joining the fray.
"I told him not to interfere!" He growled, very displeased. He needed to deal with this, Corsair would not ruin his chances! "All units! Advance into the valley!" He ordered the Clones behind him.
SpeedFreak finished obliterating the pillboxes with more missile rounds, turning them into piles of broken permacrete that the Clones advanced past, charging the missile tower. The tanks were next, their big guns busy shelling the distant Clones while their anti-personnel weapons started up and began to shred the Republic ranks. Corsair, watching the Clone advanced, qeued his comms again.
"Theris-" He started to speak.
"I'm on it!" His 2IC responded. Coming in from overhead and wearing a Mandalorian jetpack, Theris flew in low and fired the single rocket mounted behind her. The explosive tore through the underbelly of the Umbaran cannon and blew it to pieces, the heavy machinery collapsing as it was rendered useless and ineffective. A shout of joy rose up from the Clones followed as they charged past the fallen cannon... only to run into another that had quickly maneuvered to continue the job of defence. But Corsair dashed up to the surface, a surprising act for a man of his build carrying such a large weapon, and pulverized one of the legs with a sustained stream of fire from his ion repeater. As the cannon lurched over, Corsair trained his weapon on the ray-shielded cockpit and blitzed it with continuous fire. The shielding held, but the ionized aspect of Corsair's rounds chewed through the energy and soon the mercenary was riddling the Umbaran driver with repeated fire, his corpse blown to pieces before Corsair considered him dead.
Two cannons were down, but there were still more to deal with.
Just then, a trio of Umbaran fighters screamed past over head, jerkily maneuvering over the site. Corsair quickly deemed them enemies and put in a call to his HK droid.
"Hatah! Switch out an' put some heat on those flyahs!" He ordered.
"No wait!" Rex stopped him, watching as the Umbaran starfighters ignored the Clones and executed a quick strafing run against the cannons, forcing their focus away from the grounded units. Corsair quickly recognized the diverting ploy.
"That yor doin'?" He wondered.
"No... but I know whose it is." Rex replied, smiling beneath his helmet as he proudly watched the trio of Clones go to work. Within the cockpits, Sixshot, Jolt and Backlog laughed like madmen as they unleashed the power of their starfighters upon the other Umbaran ground defences. The heavy cannons tore through the remaining cannons and blew through the columns of incoming Umbaran reinforcements. Together they effectively annihilated the pillboxes on the other side of the platform, leaving the missile tower vulnerable and defenceless. Corsair smirked as he lowered his weapon, approving of what he was seeing. "We... appreciate the assist, Corsair." Rex slowly told him.
"I wasn't doin' this fo' you." The merc curtly replied, seeing this job as nearly completed.
"Boss, heads up, that General Krell's on his way over." Binary suddenly reported. Corsair let out a quiet sigh and nodded in understanding.
"Hatah, change out and tahget the launchah up top." He continued.
"Affirmative." The droid responded. It would take some time before Hater had new rockets ready to go, ones with a penetrating tip that would annihilate this tower with ease. Unless Rex and his men had another option, the tower would remain as is for a while. This was proven quite drastically, when the tower fire a trio a missiles that struck all of the Umbaran fighters piloted by Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog. They spiralled out of control and crashed into the grounds around the base.
"Hurry! We've got to make sure they're okay!" Rex cried, urging his men to make for the crash sites. They did, leaving the mercenary alone for a moment.
"CORSAIR!" A familiar voice boomed from behind. The mercenary rolled his eyes and turned around as Krell stomped onto the scene, looking very displeased.
"Door's open," Corsair casually told him.
"I told you not to interfere in my operation!" Krell bellowed.
"Yor bloody welcome!" Corsair spat, crossing his arms. He could care less about what Krell thought, but upon seeing the troops that arrived with him, Corsair couldn't help but wonder aloud, "You were tryin' ta take this without any fiah support or heavy units? That's jus' suicidal." He stated, loud enough for all the Clones to hear. Many of those who were on Jolt's side of the argument concerning Krell's recklessness quietly agreed amongst themselves with what he had to say.
"See?" Reverb whispered, nudging Rex as he did. "If that ain't proof, I don't know what is." He added.
"You are in no place to question my maneuvers on the battlefield Corsair!" Krell firmly stated, stalking towards the mercenary.
"Is that right?" Corsair casually shot back, clearly unfazed. As the argument continued to unfold, Theris and SpeedFreak arrived, silently watching the hostile interaction.
"Yes. That is right!" Krell growled in affirmation. "Your opinion is both inconsequential and unnecessary!"
"Well in that case, my opinion is that yor an idiot an' a moron!" Corsair retorted. "That plan wasn't gonna win tha day, it was gonna get Clones killed!"
"Who are you to tell me how my plans are to work?!" Krell shouted, slowly getting into Corsair's face as he continued his rant. "Your opinions and actions have always been short-sighted and flawed, always about yourself and never once in consideration of the consequences they might have for others Estobarr!" He bellowed.
With that, Corsair snapped.
Suddenly ramming his forehead into Krell's face, the mercenary became violently unhinged as he tackled the staggered Besalisk to the ground and pounced on him, laying into him with powerful blows.
"MY! NAME! IS! COR! SAIR!" He roared, each word punctuated with a heavy, bruising punch. The pummeling lasted less than a minute as both Clones and Titans pulled Corsair off of Krell. As much as some of the Clones wished for the beating to continue, he was their General and they were bound by duty to keep him safe. Corsair shrugged his arms out of their hold and felt determined to continue. But rational sense took over and he calmed down, his outburst dwindling. Several of the Clones trained their blasters on him, but Corsair shot them all a withering glare that forced them to think twice. Krell picked himself up, assisted by Appo. The Besalisk wiped some blood from his lips and couldn't resist a chuckle.
"Such ferocity..." he mused, gaze drifting back to Corsair, "where has this been all these years Corsair?" He asked, almost tauntingly so.
"A long time ago I made a promise. But since you an' I are alone, I don't hafta keep it!" The mercenary responded, turning and shoving past those around him as he left the area.
At the crash sites, Rex helped Jolt out of the remains of the cockpit, the lieutenant a little woozy on his feet but fine nonetheless.
"You actually did it." Rex mused.
"Did you doubt me?" Jolt wondered as he pulled off his helmet.
"Maybe for a little bit." Rex replied as he took pulled off his helmet. They were soon joined by Sixshot and Backlog, who was being helped along by Reverb and Ransack. "You okay soldier?" Rex asked.
"Of course my ray shield gives out on landing." Backlog complained with a grin and a little laugh. "Just a slight twist, sir. I'll be good to go in no time." He stated. Their brevity was suddenly clenched as Krell arrived on the scene, his hands behind his back... and a very hard look in his eyes.
"It seems you three have achieved a very brave act... in addition to breaking numerous regulations." The General gravely observed.
"All due respect sir, but I condoned the mission these men embarked on. If there is any punishment to be given, it should be directed towards me. I'm their commanding officer-" Rex started, making to defend his men,
"General Krell, our actions were our own. We undertook them as we sought fit." Jolt interrupted.
"Jolt!" Rex hissed. Jolt offered him a simple look before continuing on,
"I request that his admission of guilt be denied and all blame placed on me as the superior officer to both Sixshot and Backlog." He stated.
"Oh do you?" Krell wondered, walking right up to the lieutenant. "You would undermine my operation through lies and deceit and then through breaking my direct order to leave the Umbaran craft alone... and then you have the audacity to request who is to accept the blame for your insurrection?!" He boomed, jabbing Jolt in the shoulder as he did. The Besalisk's gaze shifted to Rex as Krell made his decision. "Let me be clear, Captain, about the punishment for ARC trooper Sixty-two Forty-nine, CeeTee Sixty-seven Oh-one and CeeTee Twenty Ten: they will be court-martialled, they will be found guilty... and they will be executed!" He thundered, loud enough so all the other Clones around could hear him. "I will not stand for any more plans of dissent! Make no mistake, Lieutenant, for crossing me you will pay the price." Krell growled threateningly as he regarded the defiant Jolt once more.
"Quite frankly, General, I don't give a damn." Jolt bluntly stated. Krell lingered on him with only a huff of air before turning to Reverb and the joining Lugnut.
"Place them under arrest and escort them back to the air base." He ordered. "Captain Rex, I want this entire perimeter locked down. Any remaining Umbarans are to be captured immediately." Krell added before moving on. The Captain watched him go.
"Yes sir." Rex gravely responded.
From a distance, The Wraith watched the destruction of the defence tower through his optics, which magnified the scene. With a simple grumble, he turned and triggered his comms, putting in a call to Count Dooku.
"Report soldier." The Sith Lord greeted.
"The Republic continues to make slow yet steady gains." Wraith reported. "Krell's plan to virtually obliterate the Five-Oh-First was routed by the presence of the Titans." He had not known about the presence of the mercenary group until now, now having to anticipate them in addition to dealing with the Republic ground forces.
"I see." Dooku thoughtfully mused, assessing the situation. "Assure the Umbarans we will aid them as best we can. Tell me, what does the presence of these Titans suggest to you?"
"Obviously they're after me. But I believe their strategy is one of inciting my appearance. They think that damaging the Umbarans and their efforts will be enough to draw me out into the open. Otherwise, I don't see a valid reason for them to active assist the Clones." Wraith replied, his tactical mindset having been hard at work attempting to deduce their motivations.
"Will it?" Dooku inquired.
"I am a man who knows when to act and when to observe, sir. I wish to aid the Umbarans, but I know bigger things are at stake." Wraith responded.
"Well phrased." Dooku praised. "What do you make of this Pong Krell, soldier?" He then asked. Having been in direct contact with the traitorous Jedi, Wraith had much time to formulate an opinion.
"He's desperate for approval, willing to use any means necessary to gain your attention and favor."
"Such desperation does not sit well with you?" Dooku asked.
"He's eager to please... but it's the way he treats the Clones under his command. I could care less, but if that's how he treats the Republic's troops, what's to say he won't do similarly with ours?" Wraith stated. "In short, sir, I think he'd be nothing more than a liability. He'd be so desperate to stay by your side that he'd waste our resources to perform feats in the moment, when time and patience would save us those resources." Dooku did not reply immediately, taking a moment to process Wraith's evaluation. It was one thing to have another Jedi under his spell, but was Pong Krell really necessary? At this stage of the game, there were more than enough Dark Jedi to accomplish certain goals. Was another really needed?
"An astute evaluation soldier. Continue to oblige his wishes for the time being. Whether or not he proves worthwhile remains to be seen." Dooku finally replied.
"Understood, my lord." Wraith acknowledged as Dooku signed off. Just as Wraith terminated his call, his own holocom beeped in notification and, triggering it, Wraith was greeted by a render of Krell.
"Field Commander... I would like to apologize for what happened at the defence tower. That was by no means intentional-" He began to say.
"You neglected to inform me of the presence of the Titans." Wraith interjected.
"I did not think their presence worth mentioning." Krell responded.
"In this you have failed Krell. Do you not know the potential those mercenaries have? They have aided the Republic on more than one occasion to disasterous end!" Wraith firmly stated.
"Allow me to rectify my error with a more... cunning approach to things." Krell responded, voice dripping with sinister notions. "I have a final plan for how to best eliminate more Clones before I openly defect... but it will require some assistance, possibly on your part." His plan piqued Wraith's interest, but only to a minor extent.
"What kind of assistance?" He asked.
"The deceptive kind." Krell told him with a cunning grin.
Four 501st Clones slowly wandered through the Umbaran wilderness that surrounded the now-defunct missile platform, their goal being to find and root out any possible Umbaran militia members that might still be around the site. They were beyond the visual and audible range of their comrades, but they had every intention of making this recon mission quick.
"Boy, that Corsair guy sure did call Krell out." Sureshot mused as the trekked.
"You're telling me. I just wish we had another Jedi to stick up for us." Mak agreed. "I watched Dion get blown apart by one of those Umbaran cannons, and for what? Captain Rex was right, if we shelled them before making our advance we might've been spared some losses."
"If General Krell wasn't here, we might still be at full strength." Dev grumbled.
"That's enough men. I don't like him either but so long as he is in charge we are duty-bound to obey him." Ryker commanded.
"Yeah, but... what he did to Lieutenant Jolt and the others, for saving us? They pulled a move General Skywalker would've done and they're facing a court martial because of it." Dev replied. "It's just not right."
"I know. But what can we do?" Ryker replied, sympathizing with Dev. "Unless the General decides to-"
"Sir! Something's over here..." Sureshot suddenly reported, directing their gaze to a trail of mist that floated irregularly, standing out from the rest.
Something had disturbed it.
"Move in, weapons hot." Ryker stated, taking point as he cautiously led the way. The Clones were on high alert now, looking for something or someone, likely an Umbaran. From out of the darkness, a pair of glowing red shapes appeared, followed by the singing of a blade as it whipped through the air, slicing clean through Ryker's neck and beheading him. Dev never had time to fire as another blade punctured his helmet right in the visor, spearing clean through his head. Mak and Sureshot did have a chance to fire and opened up on the shadowy being, aiming specifically for its red eyes. Optics flickered for the briefest of seconds before the being resumed its rampage, one katana spearing clean through Mak's torso as the being crushed his wrist with one hand and then his knee with a hard stomp, putting the Clone in a downed position before snapping his neck. Ignoring every bolt from Sureshot that ricocheted off his armor, the being swung around and carved through both of his knees, shattering the plastoid armor there. Sureshock collapsed with a cry, blood spilling from his knees as he writhed in agony while the super-soldier collapsed his katana and drew his own blaster. He took aim at the whimpering Clone's head, ready to deliver a single kill shot.
But he could not pull the trigger.
Wraith started to struggle. Something was holding him back, keeping him from killing this Clone. Wraith could sense his every desire to put an end to him, but something was preventing him from following through. His hand started to shake as he applied more force to his hand and tried in vain to pull the trigger. But his finger simply wouldn't budge. Something else within him was keeping him from killing this Clone, but Wraith was unable to focus on that. The Clones looked up at him, confused and expectant. He couldn't show weakness, not in front of a Clone. Snapping his arm out of its frozen state, Wraith flipped his pistol around and whipped the Clone with it, shards of plastoid breaking off his helmet while others were driven into his head. Sureshock limply dropped as Wraith stowed his weapon, breathing quite heavily from the sheer amount of exertion needed just to try and fire his pistol.
"What the hell was that...?" He wondered aloud. Such a sudden stop was new to him and he never clammed up like that. He'd wanted to kill that Clone but something had stopped him...
Shrugging off the moment, knowing he had work to do, Wraith examined the corpses around him and the armor they wore. He was going to need it...
Later...
Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog were stripped of their armor and weapons and detained within the lower levels of the air base control tower by Krell's command. Neither of the three Clones felt guilty, though. They knew they'd done the right thing, they knew they'd saved their brothers, they knew this Krell was a one-off crackpot who wasn't even their primary General. Even if they did pay an unfortunate price, they set the example for their brothers.
But Captain Rex wasn't about to let them go that easily.
Once the 501st had returned to the air base and settled in, Rex travelled to the top of the command tower to have a private word with the Besliask. He found him staring out the viewport, surveying the Umbaran terrain. He was quiet, likely contemplating... or scheming.
"General Krell, I respectfully request you reconsidering court martialling Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog." Rex politely asked as he stepped up to Krell, mustering his courage.
"The actions of ARC trooper Sixty-two Forty-nine, CeeTee Sixty-seven Oh-one and CeeTee Twenty Ten were a clear act of treachery and disregard for my command. If punishment isn't swift, their actions might inspire others to follow suite." The General calmly replied. Rex noted it seemed as though Krell new all about how much the 501st Clones clearly despised him. Except for Lugnut, that is...
"Sir, the men are with you," Rex assured him, "it's just that some of them feel you're putting their lives in danger, needlessly."
"All the more reason to send a clear message that I am in charge and that insubordination will not be tolerated." Krell replied. "The truth is, these Clones have had a difficult time respecting my command since the beginning. I've seen it before. Some Clones are just... defective. They aren't able to succumb to authority." He quietly mused, trailing off into his own thoughts. After a moment of quick contemplation, Krell decided it was time for action. "You're right, Captain. I don't think I can court martial them. It will only be a waste of time and that's something we don't have." Rex was filled with hope, believing he had bought his brothers some time as KRell turned to face him. "I'm afraid they'll need to be disposed of." Krell then stated, startling Rex. "Prepare a squad for execution." He ordered.
"What?! B-But sir-" Rex spluttered.
"You heard me Captain!" Krell gruffly responded. "Have it done immediately or I will do it myself!" Krell threatened. Rex's hopes hit rock bottom and then shattered, leaving him with little choice. Jolt and the others were perfectly decent men... they didn't deserve this!
Outside, Corsair and one of the Titan snipers, the deserting Clone known as Binary arrived at the base on foot. The mercenary really didn't want to be back again, but he needed to get some info after that platform raid.
"Boss... why did you bring me αlong again?" Binary wondered, feeling a little uncomfortable at being around so many Clones again.
"'Cause, mate, I figahed these blokes would loosen up if they saw ya with me." The Titan leader responded as smoked a cigarra. "Plus, aftah we bailed 'em out, they owe us." He added. They made a straight line for the command tower, some Clones milling about pausing and casting a couple of curious glances towards them. The door to the tower swung open, revealing Rex who was speaking into his wrist comm.
"Appo, grab three men you trust, then meet me at the tower." He was saying. Appo confirmed the order as Rex looked up, appearing a little surprised to see Corsair here. "Corsair... what is it?"
"Well, I ain't here ta talk ta Krell, if that's what yor wonderin'." Corsair remarked. "Actually, I was hopin' to get some info outta ya."
"Such as?" Rex wondered with a raised eyebrow.
"We hit that defence platform wit' tha sole purpose of lurin' out Wraith. Didn't work, far as we could tell. I was wonderin' if you or yor boys might've spotted somethin'." Corsair replied.
"No visual confirmation. But one of our scouting groups failed to report back and he found no trace of them." The Captain told him.
"Krell left without 'em?" Corsair asked, earning a nod from Rex. "Typical." He scoffed. "There might be sumpthin' there... but I dunno..." He mused, casually exhaling another could of smoke. As Corsair thought, Rex turned to his partner, noting a very familiar appearance about the mohawked Titan.
"What's your name?"
"Binary." Came the reply. The voice was instantly recognizable and Rex's eyes widened.
"You... You're a Clone!" He exclaimed.
"I use to be." Binary responded.
"What're you doing working for the Titans?" Rex asked, starting into a barrage of questions.
"They offered good pay and I needed something to do." Binary quietly replied.
"You deserted?" Rex wondered, remembering Cut back on Saleucami. Binary didn't say any more and Clone was left strapped for answers. "Why? What drove you to do so? You're one of us! One of our brothers!" Rex implored, tapping his own chest for emphasis.
"We may share blood. But we are not brothers." Binary firmly told him, suddenly getting very defensive and regarding Rex with a hard look. Rex was taken aback and said nothing more.
"If that'll be all, we'll be on our way." Corsair mused, turning around with Binary right behind him. "Thanks Rexy." He called over his shoulder. Rex didn't respond, left to his own, puzzled thoughts. What was a Clone deserter doing with the Titans? What drove him to leave? Rex had so many unanswered questions, most of them, he assumed, arose from having a desire to maintain order over all the Clones he could while Krell continued on with his maddening ways. Shaking his head, Rex knew he had other things on the go. This would be something to take up with General Skywalker... if he lived long enough to see him again...
Joined by Appo and three other Clones, Rex continued on with his horrible orders from Krell, descending to the lower level of the control tower to where Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog were detained behind a ray shield alongside many Umbarans. The lift stopped at their cell and Rex approached his bound brothers with a great distaste for what he was about to do.
"Jolt, Sixshot, Backlog... I'm sorry." He started. "General Krell has ordered your execution. Immediately."
"What?!" Backlog exclaimed. "But... how? He can't do this!"
"He has authority to render punishment during combat." Rex replied, sounding disheartened.
"I can understand a court martial and locking us up in the brig... but executing us?!" Backlog was still in disbelief. Who had ever heard of a Jedi going this far with Clones?
"I tried to convince him that it's my fault. He wouldn't let me." Rex explained.
"Rex, you have to face it, he's been using you." Jolt stated. "He needs your loyalty to control us."
"I won't let him get away with this." Rex promised with a sigh. The cell shield deactivated and Appo led the three of them out.
"Ah, don't beat yourself up about it." Jolt shrugged it off. "We made our choice. We knew what the price was."
"Yeah... don't sweat it Captain." Sixshot agreed.
"Speak for yourself." Backlog retorted, none too enthused by the notion he was going to die for what he did.
"Still got your sense of humour, eh Backlog?" Jolt wondered with a smirk.
"Yeah, who said I was joking?" The Clone bit back. Jolt said nothing more, sadly shaking his head.
"Well..." Sixshot mused, breathing deeply as the lift started to rise, "Guess this is it..."
Taken behind the control tower, six Clones from the 501st had been selected for the firing squad, all of them obedient but none of them in agreement. Ransack and Reverb were among them, hating having to be here but knowing Rex and Appo had picked them and the others for a reason. Reverb watched as Lugnut took control of the situation with a sense of pride, something that made him sick.
Next time I get the opportunity to get into a bar fight with that Huttspawn, I'm doing it. He internally promised himself. Lugnut ordered the prisoners to be lined up and Appo escorted the trio of Clones before the firing squad, Rex standing by and watching from the sidelines. Seeing their impending doom, Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog couldn't help but be afraid of the inevitable.
"Well... I've lost my sense of humour." Backlog whispered to them. None of them responded.
Rex cast a glance up to the top of the tower, his gaze settling on the viewport where General Krell was watching. The Captain didn't know if he got some sort of sick satisfaction from watching this or not, but his level of spite for the Besliask Jedi was swiftly growing.
With the three lined up, Lugnut approached them.
"Would the prisoners request to wear blindfolds?" He asked, following protocol. The trio said nothing, regarding him with firm glares.
"Kriff off, Lugnut." Jolt finally spat.
"I'll take that as a no." Lugnut determined.
"Just sayin' what everyone's thinking." Jolt retorted. Lugnut turned and marched back to the line.
"I hope you can live with yourself, Lugnut!" Sixshot called after him. Lugnut ignored the comment as he took up position beside the line of Clones, Rex joining him.
"Ready weapons!" He called, the Clones obediently taking up arms.
"Never thought we go out this way." Backlog muttered.
"Yeah... I wanted it to be clankers." Sixshot agreed. Rex turned away. He simply couldn't watch this mockery of justice.
"Aim!" The Clones lined up the trio with their DC-15 rifles. Reverb steadied himself. He knew where he was aiming. The moment was tense, the silence unbearable as the Clones waited for Lugnut's command.
"Wait!" Jolt suddenly called out. "This is wrong! We all know it! The General is making a mistake and he needs to be called on it!" He pleaded with his brothers. "No Clone should have to go out this way!" Reverb shared a glance with Ransack, both of them silently acknowledging that they knew Jolt was right.
They couldn't do this.
"We are loyal soldiers!" Jolt continued. "We follow orders but we are not a bunch of unthinking droids! We are men, we must be trusted to make the right decisions, especially when the orders we are given are wrong!" His speech resonated with every Clone present... except for Lugnut.
"FIRE!" He ordered. The line of six each pulled the trigger on their rifles once, blue bolts streaking through the air. They lowered their smoking weapons, much to Lugnut's chagrin and Rex's relief, their rounds having pierced the wall above Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog, leaving the trio of Clones very much alive. All three of them had flinched, but slowly recovered as they realized their brothers had purposefully missed. "What...? What happened?" Lugnut demanded as he stepped in front of the squad. Reverb, Ransack and the others all threw their rifles down.
"They're doing the right thing, Lugnut." Rex stated as he walked over. "Because if this is how soldiers are rewarded for heroic actions, then one day, every man in this battalion may face a similar fate." Jolt breathed a sigh of relief as he heard Rex's words. It seemed like his Captain was finally coming around. "Take off their binders!" Rex ordered Appo.
"No... we have to go through with this!" Lugnut protested, turning to the firing squad.
"We're not doing it." Ransack stated.
"But... we have orders!" Lugnut cried.
"Then fulfill them yourself." Reverb retorted. "We're done doing what Krell wants."
"And good luck finding anyone to go through with them." Ransack added for good measure.
Afterwards, Krell summoned Rex and Lugnut to the command deck, the two Clones having a pretty good idea what the General wanted. While both of them were on opposite sides of the issue, neither of them were really looking forward to facing Krell's anger, should he be furious by the failed execution.
"You wished to see us, sir?" Rex quietly asked on arrival.
"I ordered those Clones to be destroyed." Krell stated as he turned to face Rex. "You are making a mistake by crossing me, Clone." He whispered threateningly.
"It's Captain. Sir." Rex bit back, finally building up his backbone. Krell audibly growled as Rex's gaze hardened, trooper and Jedi staring each other down.
"General, there's an incoming transmission." One of the technicians reported, breaking things up. Krell straightened up, having a feeling he knew what this was.
"Put it through." He ordered, walking over to the central holodisplay. The holocubes quickly reassembled to take on the appearance of a kneeling Clone trooper.
"General, the Umbarans have stepped up the offensive." He informed them, voice sounding deeper and more synthesized to Rex, but the Captain chalked that up to the strange Umbaran frequencies. "We're holding them off, but their squadrons have ambushed one of our platoons, stealing weapons and uniforms. We believe they may be planning to launch a massive attack." The cubes fell apart as the transmission came to an end, Rex and Krell turning back to each other.
"Looks like you have your stay of execution... for now." Krell commented, walking past the Clone. "Lock the traitors in the brig and have your platoons ready to move out immediately. We need to preempt the enemy by hitting them now with everything we've got! We're finally going to take the capitol!" He stated as all three of them boarded the turbolift. The doors sealed and they started to descend. "And Captain, make sure the troops are aware that the enemy may be disguising themselves as Clones, trying to trick us." He added.
"I will, sir." Rex dutifully replied, sharing a glance at Lugnut.
He had a feeling this wouldn't be an easy mission.
They had been lied to.
Rex discovered only a few minutes into the engagement that their 'enemy' was not in fact disguised Umbarans, but Clones. Ripping off his helmet as well as that of the 212th Clones he'd tackled, Rex revealed to them all the horrible truth behind all of this.
Both sides were devastated.
They had been shooting at their own allies, their own friends, their own brothers. They had actively shot and killed good and decent Clones who had done nothing wrong. They had been misled, they had been set up... someone had ensured that both sides would fight and kill each other. Rex fell to his knees alongside many others, lost for words as to this absolute travesty. Reverb and Ransack were sickened. Being the local medic, Ransack was hit hardest. It was his duty to same the lives of his fellow soliders and brothers... yet he had actively killed some of them. A few Clones wept, simply overwhelmed by the horro of the moment. Many simply stared in shock as 501st and 212th Clones recognized each other, suddenly realized they'd been trying to kill one another.
Hidden in the mists and drifting with the shadows, watching the entire thing unfold, The Wraith couldn't help but chuckle as he watched the devastated Clones come to grips with the horror of their reality.
"Such delicious despair." Was all he had to say.
The Clones immediately began to tend to their wounded, helping those who could still be saved while trying to ease those with far more grievous injuries. Those who were not involved were simply left reeling as they moved their dead, stunned by what had just happened.
"This can't be happening..." Reverb whispered, still in a state of shock, "What've we done?" He wondered aloud.
"I... don't understand. Why did these troopers attack us?" Lugnut asked Rex. The 212th had technically opened fire first, meaning they had a similar directive. Rex did not answer as Ransack arrived on the scene.
"Captain, I've found their platoon leader." He urgently told him. "He's still alive." Rex and the others quickly followed him over to where the orange painted trooper was propped up against a tree, a scorch mark bored deep into his abdomen. A pained Rex slowly removed his helmet, the Clone gasping from the pain.
"Tell me... who gave you the orders to attack us." He softly asked. Through his dying gasps, the trooper clutched his arm.
"It was... General Krell..." He managed, Rex frowning deeply in reply as Lugnut and Reverb shared looks of shock. "He sent us... to these coordinates... to stop the enemy." The trooper continued. "We thought... they were wearing... our armor." A single tear escaped his eye, running down his smudged cheek. "But... it was... you..." Going limp, the Clone rested against the tree and breathed his last, his head sagging. For a brief second, Rex felt immense sorrow... but it was swiftly overcome by rage.
Wrapping things up, Rex organized both the surviving 212th and 501st Clones into a single unit.
"We all know who's responsible for this. What we don't know is why." Rex gravely told them. "Something has to be done. What I'm proposing is highly treasonous. If any man chooses to opt out, do it now." He stated.
All of them stepped forward.
"From this point forward, we are entering uncharted territory. My orders are, we arrest General Krell for treason against the Republic." Rex instructed. All of the Clones clutched their weapons tightly. They knew this was even more suicidal than any plot or plan of Krell's, trying to take down a Jedi was virtually impossible. But after what had just happened, they were all willing to try.
The carnage of Krell stopped here and now.
As the company moved out, Wraith watched them go, receiving a single communication as he did.
"Wraith here." He answered.
"Soldier, I have made my decision concerning Pong Krell." Dooku began. "A traitor once is a traitor always... see to it he is eliminated. He is now but a loose end that needs to be dealt with." He commanded.
"Consider it done, sir." Wraith confirmed, cracking his knuckles.
Back at the air base, the squad of Clones marched towards the control tower, all of them filled with a newfound determination to rise up against Pong Krell. As they did, Rex was approached by Corsair, who had come alone. Before the Titan leader had a chance to speak, though, Rex had an idea.
"Corsair." Rex called, motioning the mercenary over, "I need to speak with you." Curious, Corsair sauntered over.
"What about?" He wondered.
"We've discovered that Pong Krell has actively committed treasonous actions against the Republic." Rex told him. The barest of expressions crossed Corsair's face and the mercenary opted a thoughtful posture.
"Is that right...?" He mused.
"I and these men are making a move to try and arrest him... And I was wondering if you could possibly assist us in taking him down. We would greatly appreciate the support." Rex asked. The news and offer certainly piqued Corsair's interest.
"Ya want my help, eh?" He replied.
"Given your apparent history with him, I was hoping you might be of interest." Rex added.
"Now why would I wanna commit to a dangerous job I ain't gettin' paid fo'?" Corsair responded. Rex paused, momentarily frozen even though he should've anticipated this.
"I... suppose the men and I could come up with a small commission." He finally replied, trying to come up with something. "It wouldn't be much, but-" He was interrupted by Corsair's sudden laughter.
"I'm jus' messin' with ya Rexy." Corsair chuckled, slapping him on the shoulder. The mercenary then unslung the scattergun over his shoulder and pumped it. "I'll do this one fer free!" He stated with a toothy grin.
Advancing on the control tower, Rex donned his helmet as he led the Clones onward with Corsair by his side. They were armed and as ready as they could be.
Lugnut, however, was not.
He trailed behind the Clones and pulled off his helmet, diverting from the main path as the others moved ahead. He couldn't go through with this...
Entering the tower, Rex knew he had one more stop to make and took the lift down to the cellblock where Jolt, Sixshot and Backlog were imprisoned. The Clones rose as a fully armored Rex shut down the ray shield and offered the three of them their armor and weapons, which they readily accepted.
Now at full strength, a small detachment of the Clones took the lift up to the darkened command deck, weapons primed and ready. They emerged from the lift and took up positions behind Krell with blasters raised. Rex and Corsair entered last, the mercenary keeping his scattergun in a ready position.
"General Krell, you're being relieved of duty!" Rex announced. The Besliask simply turned with a narrow gaze.
"It's treason then..." He mused in a low voice.
"You stahted it." Corsair replied. "I always knew ya were a right big pile a' sithsipt, ya kriffin' bastahd. But this is a new low, even fo' you."
"Surrender General." Rex stated, pistols drawn.
"You're committing mutiny, Captain." Krell observed as he slowly advanced towards them.
"Explain your actions." Rex ground out as the Clones fully surrounded the Jedi.
"My actions?" Krell wondered.
"For ordering your troops against one another!" Rex commanded.
"Oh... That. I'm surprised you were able to figure it out. For a Clone." Krell scoffed.
"Answer 'im, ya damn cowahd!" Corsair pressed as Reverb and a few others advanced. "What prompted ya to go this low?" Krell said nothing as the Clones tightened their circle around him.
"Surrender General." Rex repeated. "You are out numbered." Krell offered him a simple look of sinister intent and a cunning grin before snapping out all four of his arms and blasting the Clones into the walls with the Force.
"But not overpowered!" He remarked. "You dare to attack a Jedi?!" He thundered. The loud sound of Corsair's scatterblaster rang out as the mercenary fired, Krell bringing up a spinning lightsaber to block the shots. What he didn't realize was that Corsair was using solid rounds and not energy, resulting in the lightsaber melting the blast but also sending superheated streams of metal streaking past Krell's guard and impacting his body, leaving him injured and burning in multiple places. The Besliask growled furiously as the pain set in and he eyed Corsair with a withering snarl.
"An' there's plenty mor' where that came from!" Corsair shouted as he pumped his weapon. The Clones recovered and opened fire with their weapons, Krell having an easier time reflecting them. His twin-bladed green and blue sabers sprung like wild buzzsaws as the General went to work killing his way through the Clones around him. Six fell dead almost instantaneously before Rex ordered his men to back away.
"I will not be undermined by creatures bred in some laboratory!" Krell growled to Rex. "Or a ghost from my past!" He added, glaring at Corsair. Seizing his moment, Krell turned and sprinted to the viewport, smashing through it and somersaulting down to the ground below.
But Rex had been anticipating that and left the rest of the company behind to wait for him.
The Clones opened fire immediately, Krell charging their ranks and ducking low under the incoming fire as he attacked with powerful swings and hits that cut down Clones in spades. Rex and his group quickly entered the turbolift as Krell powered through the defenders below, tossing them around like they were nothing. The dozens of Clones kept trying, though, even as Krell threw them about with the Force and made his escape. He would find The wraith and be delivered to Count Dooku, the proof of his allegiance evident in the trail of destruction he'd leave behind.
Rex and Corsair's group surged out of the tower as they made for the air base. The survivors of Krell's rampage were picking themselves up and making to chase after Krell.
But then Lugnut stepped between them.
"Hold it right there!" He shouted, training his DC on Rex. The Clones slowed, all of them pointing their weapons at Lugnut along with Corsair.
"Ya want me ta blast 'im?" Corsair asked.
"No! Wait!" Rex commanded. "Lower your weapon, Lugnut." He calmly asked.
"Yeah? While yor tryin' ta convert 'im, Krell's gettin' away!" Corsair shot back. Things were settled when Reverb hit Lugnut with a stun round, dropping him instantly.
"Corsair's right, Krell's getting away. Besides, I've been wanting to do that for a while!" He mused as he adjusted his weapon's settings.
""E's not gonna hurt no one in that state." Corsair agreed.
"Alright. Come on, don't let General Krell escape!" Rex urged, the entire company forming up as they chased the Besalisk into the Umbaran wilderness.
The red-lit wild bathed the mist on Umbara in an eerie glow as the Clones advanced in pursuit of Krell, splitting off into two teams as they tried to catch the Besliask in a pincer move. Fortunately, quickly subduing Lugnut hadn't taken much time and the General wasn't too far off. Rex and Corsair led the way, the mercenary surprising Rex with a very tactical and soldierly way of doing things. Even as Krell vanished into the mists, Corsair remained calm and collected, staring at everything through the ironsights of his scattergun. That's when they picked up Krell decimating the opposite team and Rex's group hurried to intervene.
But then Krell jumped into the trees and vanished from sight.
The Clones continued their sweep, checking high and low for him even with no visible signs to pursue.
"You should've listened to the ARC trooper from the beginning, Captain!" Krell taunted as his voice carried on the air. It sounded like it was coming from every direction and the Clones quickly fanned out, keeping their heads on a swivel. Krell started cackling, his voice projected through the Force to sound like an echo with an unknown point of origin. "He was right! I was using you!" Krell continued, mocking Rex. The Captain didn't let it get to him, even as Krell suddenly slammed down into their midst, lightsabers drawn and causing them to scatter. "You've all been my pawns!" He announced.
"Pawn this!" Corsair snapped as he fired, Krell avoiding his shot thanks to his Force-enhanced agility. The General cut down the surrounding Clones with ease, lightsabers swinging this way and that as bodies fell with glowing cut marks running across them. He deflected shots as his blades hummed with a vicious energy, sweeping through entire ranks of Clones as he stabbed and cut and slashed his way through them. Then he put his lightsabers away and struck with sudden swiftness as he flexed his melee skills. Powerful blows sent Clones flying into trees, one of them he picked up only to bring down on his knee, snapping his spine with an audible crack. Clones were picked up and thrown in every direction, as useless as rag dolls this close to the General.
A sudden blast from Corsair's scattergun painted Krell's back with multiple scorch wounds, throwing the Besliask forward as Krell lurched in pain. He shrugged it off and empowered himself with the Force, turning around and blasting Corsair with a wave of telekinetic power.
"It will take more than that to subdue me, Estobarr!" He cackled, even as the Clones surrounded him. But just when they figured they had him, The Wraith dropped down from above, slamming into the ground in between The Besliask and the Clones. Krell stopped and grinned broadly as the man he thought to be his ally arrived on the scene, forcing the Clones to halt. "Ah... Field Commander Wraith. Ready to put an end to these bothersome sub-humans?" Krell wondered as Wraith rose to full height. Rex, Corsair and the Clones quickly trained their weapons on the shadowy super-soldier. Clad in dark armor, Wraith certainly looked like a nightmare, even if his appearances here had been minimal. Rex rugged his men to hold back with a simple gesture, not wanting to lose any more than he already had.
"It all makes sense now... You're working for the Separatists." Rex growled.
"Working to appease them. I have yet to fully pledge my allegiance." Krell replied. "But seeing as my liaison is here, I suppose I can do so now." He added, igniting his lightsabers once more. "Are you with me, super-soldier?" He asked. Wraith remained silent, even as Corsair arrived on the scene.
"Aw bloody hell." He muttered, taking aim with his scattergun. Rex urged him to hold fire, seeing as Wraith was not making an immediate move. The super-soldier studied the Republic Clones through his optics, every one of them on edge as they questioned how he would also attack them.
Then, to the surprise of everyone, he slowly turned around.
"Pong Krell..." he rumbled, facing him, "You have been declared a liability of the Confederacy... and are hereby sentenced to the fate of every Jedi: death." He stated, igniting his firesaber. Standing alongside Corsair and the Clones, Wraith completed the eclectic band of soldiers ready to put an end to the treacherous Jedi General.
It was a sight that... well... you just had to be there to see it.
The Clones flanked him, forming a line as trained their sights on the clearly startled Krell. Corsair and Rex approached him from either side.
"Why are you doing this?" The Captain demanded.
"My orders just so happen to align with your perogative, Rex." Wraith told him. "Our chances of success would increase if we worked together."
"Just this once." Rex stated, grateful for the extra help and knowing Clones alone wouldn't be enough to stop Krell, but also very reluctant to work the with man responsible for killing dozens, if not hundreds of his brothers.
"Just this once." Wraith repeated in affirmation.
"I know I'm s'posed ta be huntin' ya right now... but whats say we shake hands fo' a bit an' take this kriffah down?" Corsair asked next. "Whaddya say, Bucket-head? Room fo' one more alliance?"
"Deal." Wraith agreed, gripping his firesaber tightly. The newfound alliance advanced on Krell, the Besalisk twirling his lightsabers around as he realized he was all alone. Both factions in the Clones Wars were out to get him now. He lashed out with another mighty Force push, the Clones and Corsair sent tumbling as Wraith drove Tyth into the ground, sent sliding only a few feet.
"I do not need you!" Krell roared. "I will take you all on! You cannot beat a Jedi!"
"Tell that to the ones I've killed." Wraith growled, surging forward with a shout, a blazing trail of fire in his wake. He would not have to act his way through this battle with Krell.
Tyth collided with Krell's double sabers as the Besliask attacked hard, blades spinning and flying as he and Wraith clashed in a power manner. Rex, Corsair and the Clones quickly recovered, opening fire as they knew they could get a shot off on Krell and Wraith could handle any strays. Wraith fought well, but Krell was able to overwhelm him through sheer power and speed alone, the super-soldier analyzing his moves as quickly as possible before being forced to go on the defensive. He parried an incoming strike from both of Krell's blades, watching in mild shock as his arm quavered under the blows, his own enhanced strength not only matched but surpassed by Krell.
A swift kick from the General blew Wraith backwards, the super-soldier barely recovering. Krell instantly turned his sights on the Clones and Corsair, who pulled the trigger on his scattergun only for Krell to duck. The Besalisk's gaze locked with his and Krell made a slow march towards Corsair, blocking incoming shots from Clones and cutting to pieces those in his way. Rex tried to intervene, but Krell through him to the side, his arm slamming against a tree and knocking away armor, revealing the metal beneath it. Corsair pumped and fired another shot, Krell deflecting with his lightsaber and actually taking the molten residue with only a growl. Seeing Krell's determination, Corsair dropped his scattergun, reached into his vest and pulled out a silver hilt...
An orange lightsaber blade flashing on seconds later.
"You...!" Krell looked stunned by the sight, almost as much as the Clones and Wraith were.
"Yeah, that's right, I kept it!" Corsair thundered, charging Krell with his new weapon. He attacked hard, but his moves were basic and by no means on the level of a Jedi or even Wraith. Krell soon found Corsair's erratic strikes appallingly laughable and easily blocked him at every turn before throwing him back with a hard slash.
"You always were better a killing people with a blaster than you were a bladed weapon, Estobarr!" Krell sneered as he lifted Corsair with the Force. He dropped him suddenly as Wraith attacked Krell from behind, striking the rear pressure points of his two upper arms before grabbing his lower arms and behind them behind him, forcing him to drop his lightsabers.
"Rex! Hit him!" Wraith ordered. Seeing the need for blunt force, Rex followed the suggestion, pistons and actuators whirring as he flexed his arm.
"My metal arm would like a word with you!" Rex shouted as he clotheslined Krell with his prosthetic, clubbing him across the head. Krell faltered, but Wraith grabbed the General from behind, hoisting him off his feet and started running.
"Corsair! Incoming!" He shouted as he drove Krell forwards. The recovering Titan looked to see what was happening and quickly formed a plan. He rose and started runnng towards them, boosting himself off a tree to gain some air.
"Smile!" He called as he drove a boot straight into Krell's face, blood flying from the intense blow. Krell cried out in pain as Wraith promptly bodyslammed him into the ground only to pull him back up as Corsair came around with a knife in hand. He stabbed the exposed Krell four times in the midsection before delivering a swift kick that drove his knife in even deeper. Wraith threw Krell to the ground as Corsair pounced on the fallen Besalisk, driving another boot into his face as he stomped down on Krell.
Rex ordered his men in closer as Wraith and Corsair stood over the fallen Krell. The Jedi was in pain and his face bloody, his breath coming in deep gasps as he was surrounded by his opponents. "Gotta admit... that felt good." Corsair mused, rolling his shoulder.
"Yeah... Yeah, I bet it did." Jolt agreed, switching his blaster to stun and shooting Krell at point blank range, the Besalisk going limp immediately as he was knocked out.
"Did that feel good?" Backlog wondered.
"Hell yeah, it did." Jolt affirmed as Rex holstered his weapons.
"Good work all. Reverb, cuff him." The Captain commanded. "I want him ready to face Republic justice." Reverb came over with a pair of cuffs and was ready to do so when Wraith's firesaber suddenly ignited, startling the Clones.
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm not big on Republic justice." He rumbled. Twirling his firesaber around, Wraith promptly drove it through Krell's head, killing him instantly. The Clones were shocked by the sudden move, thinking it was all over.
They never expected Wraith to do such a thing.
Putting his weapon away, Wraith regarded the surprised expressions all of the Clones were showing despite wearing helmets. "General Krell was killed by the Separatists, therefore none of you will have to accept the blame." He told them. "You're welcome."
"Good riddance." Corsair mused, taking a moment to spit on Krell's corpse. "Woulda loved ta do it myself... but maybe it's fo' tha bettah you did."
"Why would you actively help the Clones take him down?" Wraith asked, the question having been on his mind since the beginning.
"This sack a' sithspit an I 'ave a hist'ry. We go way back, an' it ain't nice." Corsair cryptically told him. "Trust me Bucket-head, I've wanted 'im dead fo' a real long time." He added in passing, leaving to collect his weapons. "I'll give ya a head start, by tha way." He called over his shoulder. Wraith turned to regard Rex, who eyed him warily. Now that the reason for their 'partnership' had come to an end, there was no reason for Wraith to not start killing them, especially since they were all close by. Wraith seemed to sense what he was thinking, because he stated, "You've been through enough. Take a break," and started walking away. "But know this; while I may have been ordered to terminate Krell, I wholeheartedly agree with much he had to say." He growled, asking past them. "You'll never be men. You're Clones, nothing more. Bred to be slaves of the Republic, easily replaced and easily forgotten. You were born to die... And that's exactly what you'll do." He said, eyeing them individually with his terrifying red optics.
"And that is what makes us men." Rex suddenly piped up, having enough of the insults. "We don't have a superiority complex like you. We're willing to die for our cause." He retorted.
"Stop kidding yourself, Clone. You were never given the opportunity to choose your cause. You're like livestock, you have but one purpose in life and that is to grow up, do your duty and then die. You'll never be more than this." Wraith rumbled in response, turning on heel and making to leave. But Rex called after him.
"You're saying you had a choice?" He asked.
"I did. And after reviewing my options, the Separatists were the ONLY way to go." Wraith answered. With that, he disappeared into the mists, leaving the Clones alone with the body of Pong Krell.
Later...
The Clones took Krell's body back to base, willing to use it as proof Wraith had killed him in addition to their testimonies regarding his traitorous actions. They reported the incident as soon as they could to General Kenobi who had every intention of coming by with Cody as soon as he was able.
In the meanwhile, the Clones took a moment to simply rest after the insane past few days. Everything that had transpired with Krell had really winded them and those who had survived the encouter were grateful to be alive. Jolt, Backlog and Sixshot were quite happy to be back in the barracks, Lugnut occupying their place in the cells below. Rex arrived to find all of them in fairly high spirits.
"You all seem like you're having a good time." He commented, striding up to the group.
"It's not because Reverb found a cache of Umbaran liquor, if that's what you're wondering." Jolt joked, earning a laugh from them all. Rex chuckled too.
"How's the ol' bootlicker?" Reverb wondered, referring to Lugnut.
"I had a talk with him. I'm sure he'll come around, given time." Rex replied. "But you all... you're the ones I need to talk to now."
"Uh oh, sounds like you three are getting a court martial after all!" Ransack joked, Sixshot playfully shoving him in response.
"No. No more court martials." Rex assured them. "Over these past few days, all of you have proven yourselves to be levelheaded when under pressure, calm and determined in the face of uncertainty, and above all loyal to your unit even when tested. Those are admirable traits in a soldier."
"Aw shucks, Captain, you're gonna make us blush!" Sixshot joked, earning another round of chuckles from the Clones.
"I mean every word, Sixshot." Rex stated, smiling as he did. "The way you've all acted... it's helped me realize where I've fallen short." He turned to Jolt, a rather thoughtful look on his face. "Jolt... you were right. To an extent, I was letting my memories of Torrent Company cloud me to what all of you had to offer." He admitted. "Fives, Echo... I'll never forget them, nor can I ever replace them."
"I know, Captain." Jolt assured. "But we're here for you. For the Five-Oh-First." He continued, standing up and placing a hand on Rex's shoulder. Rex nodded.
"Thank you Jolt. Torrent Company would want me to move on. My problem was I was seeing you all as replacements, not for the unique and strong-willed individuals you are." He continued, gesturing to all of them. "You have what it takes to lead, the others respect you and your opinions. We were unwilling to shoot you when Krell told us to and we were supportive of your 'disobedience' when push came to shove. You've all got what it takes to be model Clones... and leaders." Rex told them. "To hell with what Wraith said. Bucket-head doesn't know anything." He added.
"Yeah, like hell he does!" Sixshot agreed in his usual uproarious tone. After another collective chuckle, Rex continued.
"So to that end, would you all be willing to join me in the formation of a new unit for General Skwalker to command? I'd say you've all got what it takes."
"Sir... are you talking about reforming Torrent Company?" Ransack asked, standing up. Rex shook his head.
"No. Torrent Company died along with Fives, Echo, Hardcase, Tup, Jesse and Kix. I will remember them, but that is who they were. You're not them, so I think we need a new unit. A new company." He explained. "If you're interested, that is." All of the other Clones stood up.
"If you lead, Captain, we'll follow." Backlog stated, a sentiment quickly affirmed by the others. Rex looked around, feeling proud of who he stood with. This trial by fire had forged a deep bond between them, an unshakeable one that would form the backbone of this new unit. They had what it took to stand together, to lead, to do the impossible. They would fight together until the bitter end and Rex knew it.
"In that case; Jolt, Reverb, Backlog, Sixshot, Ransack... welcome to Tempest Company." He declared.
Author's Note: Hope you all enjoyed that, I know I did. I always have fun adapting an episode (or four) and turning it into a chapter. But since this one has clocked in at almost 22,500 words, you'll excuse me if the next few are significantly smaller in length. Don't worry, another monster like this is bound to come along at some point...
