After saving Bugsy's life I heard no further comment on my personal stance on the war or argument to my suggestions and warnings as I gave them. Kidd and Bugsy now treated me with an entirely new level of respect that it bordered on reverence, though I took little notice of it and simply maintained my focus on what needed to be done. Sensing that we were nearing the Separatist droids, we began to come across patrols of them scouring the network of tunnels and guarding certain entryways to guard their stations as the rest of them continued drilling directly down. The constant whirring of the drill was felt so acutely that I did not need to confirm what they were doing, I simply needed to ascertain why they were tunnelling into the planet's core, and neutralise the threat they posed to this sacred ground.
A few Blismal rodents squeaked as they scuttled over our feet and I used them to recognise when the enemy was approaching us, for they would always scatter a few moments before a droid patrol would enter the scene. We were now close enough that we could see the drill itself, hidden within a Razhak made tunnel which gave us a higher vantage point over the droids as they worked. Sergeant Green made contact with the other teams, all of which had arrived at their allocated positions without any trouble, meaning that we were now all in place. "What do you want to do now, Jedi Rouyn? Do we attack, or shall we retreat and report our findings to General Secura?"
"If they are drilling with such powerful equipment meant for mining ores and minerals deep into a planet's surface, I can only speculate that the Separatists are after kyber crystals." I murmured softly as not to be overhead, carefully crouched low to the ground with my hand pressed against the icy wall of the tunnel. "But we do not yet know for certain this is what they are after, and for what purpose they intend to use the crystals."
"It must be to make a weapon of some kind. It's the only logical explanation." Kidd said, keeping an eye out for the returning droid patrol. For a moment there was silence in which we continued to observe and listen to the conversations of the droids as orders were relayed to them, but thus far, very little was said of any genuine importance. "Sir, can I ask something?" Now addressing me directly, I tilted my head to indicate that he could if he so wished. "How did you know that giant worm thing was coming for us? And how did you know these clankers would be here? It's like you know things before they even happen."
"I have an exceedingly high instincts which allow me to anticipate dangers before they occur. My senses are also extremely focused on my surroundings, and can pick up vibrations that others cannot hope to feel. I use this skills to my advantage, which makes it easy for me to track prey, and also prepare myself for the attack of a predator." Responding calmly and slowly, my eyes remained focus on the droids as they halted their drilling, dimming the noise so that they could be more easily heard so I held up my hand, signalling for everyone to remain silent so that we would not be overhead. The battle droids talked the most, seemingly made to be highly communicative from one droid to another, and they spoke a little of their commander, as well as their task in drilling down through the planet's crust through the cave network, and the fact that the blizzard on the surface had frozen a great deal of their circuits.
It was then that a tactical droid came into view from where we were hiding and it was clear that they were the one overseeing the operation, and immediately I pinned it as my target, as it's head would be full of useful information, including what the Separatists wanted with the planet Ilum. From the general chatter, we were also able to discern the current condition of the battle that was occurring that very moment in orbit, Aayla having engaged the Separatist fleet once it had arrived. Thankfully the battle seemed to be going in her favour, though the Separatists were managing to hold their position and were not retreating despite their losses. "Who do you reckon their commander is?" Bugsy whispered after one of the patrols had passed and whilst the others conferred, I reached out through the Force in order to try and discover the truth for myself.
There was a darkness which hung over a certain being which caused ruptures in the Force, their presence filled with greed, hatred and anger. My instincts told me that if I met the commander of these droids, then I should at all costs not engage them unless absolutely necessary, for they were powerful and artful, which spelled danger for me and Talon Squadron. "We must destroy the drill. There is no benefit to holding back any longer. Sergeant Green, I shall follow your lead from now on since you have the experience that I lack. What do you suggest is our best course of action?" Turning to Sergeant Green, he quickly nodded his head and began to formulate a plan which he soon relayed to each of us.
We were to move with stealth, something that I would not have trouble with, and attach detonators to the drill's inner frame in order to collapse it from the inside, limiting the detonation as to not cause a cave collapse around us, otherwise we would be trapped under the planet's surface with an entire platoon of droids programmed to kill us. The squad's explosives expert, Longshot, soon had the charges ready to hand as Sergeant Green relayed his command, keeping an open frequency so that we would all move together. I was to go first as my movements and attacks would make a great deal less sound and would go undetected for the longest, whilst the others would cover me as I cleared out as many of the patrols and guards as possible before they became aware of our presence. It was a good plan, and once the exit strategy had been decided to rise to the surface through the opening that the drill had made, we pushed the plan into motion.
Sergeant Green, Bugsy and Kidd moved behind me as I took the lead, allowing myself to take a moment to relax my nerves before engaging with the enemy. The first droids fell before they even knew what had struck them, slicing through them from behind before then moving onto the next. Any stragglers or sudden arrivals were taken out by Sergeant Green and his two rookies, and as we continue to move forwards into the larger chamber of smooth ice walls, the others also began to shoot down the droids with their blasters. Longshot ran for the drill whilst his teammates Ink and Rune covered him, protecting him from the droids as they began to catch onto the fact that they were under attack.
Meanwhile, Trickster, Lower and Data secured our exit, preparing their ascension cables up to the surface as everyone moved as one unit. Their efficiency and skills were undeniable, and I could not help but admire the level of capability these clones displayed as they carried out their mission. Before the tactical droid had time to organise the droid troops, I cut off the head and caught it in my other hand, ensuring that it was not otherwise damaged in order to retrieve the data from its mainframe later. Everything went smoothly, and in the space of a few minutes, had secured the area, rigged the drill to implode and ensured a safe retreat up to the surface.
The blizzard had subsided enough that we would be able to call for an evacuation, which Sergeant Green was handling directly as we began to gather once more. "What happened to you Bugs? You look like something swallowed you up and spat you back out." Trick laughed jokingly as he clapped a hand down on Kidd's shoulder before drawing his hand back once more, revealing the thick, mucus-like grime which still covered his armour.
"Funny you should say that…" Kidd snorted before eagerly explaining what had happened to Bugsy and how he had to be rescued before he could be swallowed. The others all joined in the laughter and teasing at Bugsy's expense until they were snapped at by Sergeant Green, ordering them to all fall in or get left behind.
"Longshot, how's those explosives coming?"
"Primed and ready sir, I've got the detonator here." Rounding everyone up, I allowed myself one last sweep of the area and caves to ensure that no droids had been left behind before joining the clones as they began to ascend up the cables to the top of the opening, going in groups of three and keeping their weapons ready in case of a surprise assault.
"Need a lift, sir?" Offering me his help, I politely declined the sergeant's kind intention and aimed my arm for the top of the ridge before firing my own grappling hook, allowing it to pull me up and out of the small crater before I could then step out into the open where I immediately pulled up my hood to guard against the snow. My stomach gave a rather unnerving twist, causing me to freeze in place as I analysed my feelings as they began to spark within me, the cold dread of foreboding a strong and constant feature as the last of the clones also joined me topside just as the thick swirling mass of snow, ice and wind began to subside.
"Everybody down!" Crying out in alarm, all nine of them hit the snow without question as I drew my lightsaber and instinctively turned it to block the incoming blaster fire, anticipating where it would strike and deflecting it back as I leaped forwards to stand in front of the clones, defending their position as they swiftly ordered themselves into a line. From within the storm, B-Two Super-Battle droids were now advancing on us in large platoons with several tanks also pushing through the subsiding storm with greater ease, aiming directly for us. "Aayla! We've been cornered down here, we need an immediate evac! Aayla, Aayla do you copy?" Attempting to make contact with Aayla, I continued to deflect the blaster fire before then rushing forwards without restraint.
I let myself lose upon the droid army that had landed upon Ilum, tearing them to pieces and destroying their tanks before they could get too close to the clones who were by no means hesitant to join the fight. Sergeant Green maintained complete control as he ordered his men forwards, breaking them off to flank the droid platoons on both sides and take them out as I worked my way down the centre. Their landing ships were only a short distance away, and in a brief moment of respite I turned my face upwards to look into the sky where I could see bright burst of explosions and blaster bolts tearing through the sky like comets, the ships from both sides still heavy engaged in combat.
"…zzt…ca…zzt…Theca do you read me…zzt…Theca, a transport is on its way, hold your position!" Aayla's voice filtered through the channel as I quickly brought myself back to the present, dodging a battle droid and leaping backwards with a summersault to land upon a tank and carve my way through the hatch.
"Message received, we'll do our best Aayla, but you should hurry. More Separatist troops seem to be on their way to land, I think they intend to try and take Ilum by force." I reported to her as I answered her communication, keeping the channel open so that I would not lose her again. Keeping half an eye on the Talon Squadron, I was swift to take hold of several of the battle droids and fling them aside as they had enclosed around Kidd and Data, allowing them time to reload their ammo and return fire to the enemy.
"We are barely holding the skies, Theca, I need you to hold the ground until reinforcements arrive. Do not allow them to take Ilum, no matter what the cost!"
"Understood, you may count on me, my friend." Promising her that I would not allow the planet to fall into Separatist occupation, I increased my aggressive attack upon the droids with a fervour that I rarely unleashed. In fact, so complete was my focus on decimating the droids that the clone squad that had accompanied me soon did not need to shoot, for I was more than enough to deal with these metal machines. They were shocked to see me, a reputed pacifist, to fight with such ferocity and destructiveness, as it was the last thing that they would have expected. Soon enough the two platoons that had made initial contact with the surface of Ilum was completely wiped out, and I stood amongst the wreckages of machines that would never again march into battle.
"That…was unexpected." Trick finally broke the silence as the group of nine stood in a line before the carnage, watching me as I walked back towards them having resumed my quiet, serene state of mind to maintain focus. "Seems like you didn't need us here to protect you at all, sir."
"Perhaps not, but your company was appreciated all the same." I answered, looking up and followed the movement of the next droid ships which were coming into land. By my judgment, this time we would be facing an entire battalion, and more than that, it appeared that one of the ships carried someone of high rank within the Separatist army, for it looked to be a luxury cruiser rather than a warship. Retrieving my macro-binoculars, I focused on this particular ship as it lowered the ramp to reveal none other than General Grievous himself. So distinguishable was this cyborg, I needed no confirmation from Sergeant Green to know who the commander of this particular droid fleet was. General Grievous had first been encountered at the Battle of Hypori, where Aayla herself had fought him and suffered grave injuries as a result. Trained to wield lightsabers, the mere presence of this formidable foe was enough to set me on edge, and the change in my demeanour was immediately noticed by the clones.
"It's the metal-head himself. If we capture him here, we'd be one step closer to winning this war." Ink said with eagerness, surging forwards with the intent to charge directly into battle however Data wisely held him back, reminding him that there was an entire battalion between us and Grievous and that he'd only get himself killed if he went in there without a plan. "Well, what do you suggest we do then?" Having little time left to decide on a plan of action, I once again contacted Aayla to ask where those transports were, however as it transpired, the Separatist fleet was not allowing anything to reach the surface, and were suicide bombing anything that attempted to land.
"Until we take care of these numbers, we cannot make the landing. You will have to retreat Theca, pass my order to Sergeant Green and his men, you are all to find shelter and do not engage Grievous until reinforcements have arrived." Aayla barely managed to get her instructions through before the communication was cut off, leaving us completely alone down on the surface. The droids were now marching, and having no other option, Sergeant Green moved his men out in order to find somewhere defensible to hold our ground as Grievous was already moving in this direction. His voice carried on the wind, and upon hearing his vow that he would be coming for me, as I was a Jedi, I knew that if I stayed with these men, I would likely get them all killed.
"Don't even think about it sir, we're staying together as a team. Talon Squad never leaves a man behind!" Sergeant Green informed me rather strongly, possibly already reading my intentions from my expression.
"Very well, then follow me." Out of time and options, I focused first on finding somewhere safe to barricade ourselves for the time being so that we might last a little longer until Aayla and her reinforcements arrived. I sensed safety towards the ice mountains, and so I led the men that way as the droids began to fire at us from the rise, moving more swiftly than I would have preferred. "Two clicks to the north-east, there is a cave in the mountainside, go there now!" Drawing my blade once again, I covered their escape before racing away myself, all of us together moving collectively as one unit until we had located the large cave mouth which I had sensed, allowing us to take shelter and for the troopers to make an inventory check.
"We're low on ammo, sir, and Lowe's injured. He can't shoot with his arm like this." Data informed Sergeant Green as he too checked his own weapons, looking up to Lowe who had been blasted in the arm which Rune was now attempting to patch up as best he could.
"I still got this other arm, I can shoot with that." Lowe answered stubbornly, and I felt a small bubble of affection for the tenacity and sheer grit of these soldiers even in the face of impossible odds in a dire situation.
"What do we do sir?" Kidd questioned, beginning to sound a little nervous as he guarded the entrance with Ink and Longshot.
"We follow orders, and General Secura ordered us to hold our ground until reinforcements arrive." Sergeant Green answered before he went to ensure that Lowe was alright, checking on the condition of each of his men to establish their state of fitness before organising them into a more defendable position. The droids were still advancing, having turned towards us in order to give chase and in the distance, I could hear the hacking wheeze of General Grievous as he pursued us.
"You cannot hide, Jedi scum!" The threat lingered in the air and my skin crawled in response. A dire situation indeed. We were limited on options, however we had to ensure that the mission succeeded, which meant that someone had to return the tactical droid's head to the fleet so that it could be analysed for information. It was still in my possession, tucked away into the billowing sleeve of my cloak and so I drew it free then passed it to the sergeant, instructing him to ensure that no harm came to the droid.
"It must be returned to the fleet, this is our main priority, Sergeant Green." I said to him as I racked my mind for an idea, a means to deal with the approaching army of droids. Sergeant Green warned me once again not to do anything reckless, reminding me that he also had orders from Aayla to protect me, so if I attempted any heroics then he would have no choice but to race out of their position in order to defend me. At this, I could not help but smile. "Do not worry, I am not typically as reckless as most other Jedi. Give me a moment, a stroke of genius may yet come to me." I murmured, looking around to see what I had at my disposal to use, as well as the information I could gather from my current situation.
If General Grievous had left his command ship to land upon Ilum, then there had to be a very good reason for it, and I doubted it was to deal with a rabble of clones and a single Jedi merely because of the advance platoon's destruction. Perhaps it was to do with the purpose of the drill and their goal of the precious crystals beneath the planet's surface. Although I still did not know exactly why they were after those crystals, I knew that I had to protect them at all cost, for if Ilum fell, then it would not be long before they destroyed it for its resources. Grievous must want to continue the operation, then, and our destroying the drill was enough to take his attention away from Aayla and her own fleet.
Through my own processing, I gradually became aware of something else being present inside the cave behind us, bringing me out of my contemplation in order to turn around and focus. The Force led me to recognise the presence of non-sentient creatures dwelling within the cave structure, and it did not take long to name the creatures. Asharl panthers. Large feline creatures with bulbous, sloping figures standing at a metre in height, covered in mottled fur of white, grey and blue. They were angry that their home was now riddled with invaders, and as their snarls began to reverberate into life around us, I raised my hand to focus the Force upon the pair that began to prowl forwards. "Do not attack." Murmuring to the others before they could raise their weapons, I maintained my focus on the asharl panthers in order to connect to them, establishing a link between us.
As powerful as they were aggressive, the two felines gradually grew lax at my gentle contact, the Force engaging their trust as they continued to move forwards until finally, I felt the thick fur of one of the panther's faces press against my hand with a rumbling purr which caused even my eardrums to vibrate. "We need your help." Speaking gently, I stroked both of them with my hands, maintaining a calm and dispassionate demeanour in order to keep them focused on me. "Please." With their tempers settled and assured that they would no longer attack either myself or the squad, I then stepped aside and directed my hand towards the droid army which was now visible to the naked eye even through the snow.
The territorial threat sparked their fury once more, and in a single bound, both asharl panthers leaped from the cave they called their home and bounded directly into the droids to begin tearing into them, roaring ferociously as I then rushed outside and looked to the mountain itself. Compacted sheets of snow lay in thick layers upon the mountain of ice, the statuesque mountain standing with a sheer cliff face which I now intended to use as another form of defence against the droids. "Longshot, do you have enough ammunition to bring down that ice shelf?" I questioned, pointing to the mountain where a particularly large gathering of snow had collected from the endless snowstorm which fell around us.
"Not enough to bring it down, but enough to dislodge that snow." He confirmed, pulling off his carrier with all his remaining charges. "If you want a real avalanche, we're going to need a lot more power behind it."
"You mean like the power those tanks have?" Trick pointed, and almost simultaneously, a plan lit itself in our minds. It was reckless, had a very low probability of success, however it was the only real chance we had at surviving long enough until help arrived. It was decided in an instant. I would head directly into the droid army alongside Longshot and we would use the tanks to open fire on the mountain to bring the ice cap down and, all things going well, sweep away the droid battalion before it could kill us. The advance troops were almost upon us, so while the rest of the squad laid down cover fire, I ran headfirst into the droid ranks with Longshot right behind me.
He was an excellent marksman, his aim never once missing as I cut our way through all the way to the nearest tank, whereby I then used the Force to help him rise to the top of the tank so that he could break inside, tossing out the droid that had been driving the tank then moved the cannon into position as I took another. "So much for abstaining from warfare, Theca Rouyn." I murmured to myself rather sarcastically, which was rare for me. Sarcasm was not always a strong suit of mine, however sometimes I managed to interpret and execute it correctly. This being one of those moments.
Grasping hold of the controls, I brought the cannon around to where I locked onto the ice cap slightly to the west of the cave mouth, waited for the signal from Sergeant Green to be certain that he and his men were removed to safety before then opening fire. Mine and Longshot's plasma blasts flew through the air and struck the ice mountain with such an explosion that I felt the responding ripples from the disturbance quake through me. The snow shifted, then all at once it came crashing down in a heavy white waterfall. Now came the more difficult part, escaping. Leaping back out of the tank, I vaulted across to Longshot as he too appeared from the porthole as the avalanche came rushing towards us, the droids already in full retreat and wailing as they attempted to outrun the snow. "What now sir?"
"An excellent question." Searching quickly, I found the objects of my search still chewing their way through several battle droids, though at the oncoming rush of the avalanche, they lifted their bulbous heads and with a whistle, they bound towards us. Leaving Longshot no choice in the matter, I kept a firm grip on him as I jumped onto the back of the larger of the two asharl panthers, seating myself on the broad, sloping back before grasping hold of the fur as the feline sprung away and swiftly carried us away from the avalanche before it could catch us, the remainder of the droid forces and their heavy artillery being swept up and completely buried under the thick cluster of ice.
A sense of relief took me, allowing me to take a moment to relax and enjoy the victory that we had claimed as Longshot hooted behind me, punching the air as the asharl panthers let us down near to our comrades, purring softly before disappearing back into their cave where they buried themselves deep into the mountain. Talon Squadron were all celebrating the victory, clasping shoulders and waving their weapons into the air just as Republic transports flew overhead with a rush of sound, landing on the open range in order to set down their ground troops and engage with the remainder of General Grievous's army.
I believed that was the end of it, that there was nothing more to be done, however I then noted to myself that Grievous had been absent from the droid battalion just now, which meant he had not been leading them. If that the case, then what was he up to? The question posed itself in my mind, and almost as if I had already known the answer, it came to me in a flash of inspiration. The crystals. In the space of a heartbeat I had surged forwards, taking the others by surprise as I skidded my way down the slope and raced back to the crater where the drill had penetrated the planet's crust, and to my heart's dismay, I witnessed General Grievous crawling up from within the hole whilst clutching something blue and softly glowing in his metal claws.
Behind me the others were already following me as I aimed straight for Grievous, the battle already erupting around us between Republic troops and the Separatist droid forces, however my sole and only focus was Grievous. Whatever reason he needed that crystal, I was adamant that he would not have it. As he climbed aboard one of his army's tank, I flicked out my hand in which my lightsaber jumped to my palm with the Force, feeling it flow through me almost like an energy which brought me alive, setting my heart racing as I engaged both blades and with all the strength I could muster, threw it forwards.
It spiralled through the air, humming rhythmically as it travelled and cut through everything in its path, all the droids falling as they were sliced rather unceremoniously until my weapon struck Grievous's tank, carving into it effortlessly which caused it to lose its gravitational supports and list before crashing into another. Holding out my hand, my lightsaber flew back to me, once again slicing through everything it came into contact with as it continued to spiral until it was once more in my grasp. Grievous was not damaged or injured by the crash, however I had now his complete and undivided attention.
Shaking his metal head to recover from the crash, he barely had time to look up as I descended upon him from above, bringing my blade down just as the cyborg vaulted himself backwards. My blade burned through the metal of the tank, leaving red hot streaks from the crevasse it created which melted the snow around it and caused steam to rise up as Grievous snarled and wheezed in fury at me. "Insolent Jedi!"
"You will not take that crystal, Grievous. You may as well surrender now." Speaking with utter false bravado, I launched myself forwards to engage in battle with Grievous as he revealed his extra limbs, meaning that each of his four appendages were now carrying a lightsaber and, having been trained how to fight, used all four of them to attack as he now clasped the crystal he had collected in his foot. This was where my impenetrable defence saved my life, for I could not deny that Grievous was a rather terrifying and formidable opponent. Defending myself against his attacks was difficult enough to keep up with, since I had four different offensive fronts to deal with all at once, and I struggled to find any weakness in Grievous's own defence for me to strike at.
So instead, I decided to focus on the crystal and retrieving it. By changing my tactics, I introduced quick style changes with my detachable lightsaber in order to keep Grievous guessing, separating and linking my weapon at random intervals whilst continually moving about him, keeping the cyborg so occupied on my movements that he would not see my true intentions until it was too late. Around us the snow swirled and I felt the temperature beginning to drop once more, which added to my chances of success as the sheer cold began to affect the cyborg's mobility, slowing him little by little until finally, I saw my chance.
Force pushing Grievous to unbalance him, I then ducked under a swing and twisted to slice off his foot which caused an unnatural howl from the cyborg as the crystal flew from his grasp and I quickly seized it, feeling the familiar thrum of energy within it as I then retreated backwards to a safe distance and assumed a defensive stance. "I will kill you for this!" Spluttering and coughing, Grievous began to back away, seeing that the battle was going poorly for him. His forces were overrun and soon, the Republic army will have him surrounded. They were already breaking through the flanks of the droid forces, and with his command ship the only one left yet undestroyed, it appeared to me that he had thoroughly lost this battle.
"Surrender yourself peacefully, and you will be treated fairly." I invited, seeking to end this conflict sooner rather than later since it was clear to me the victors in this case were the Republic.
"Surrender to Republic dogs? Never." Launching into a violent assault, I had to parry upon instinct in order to keep my head attached to my shoulders, staggering backwards under the sheer mass and power behind Grievous whilst still clutching the crystal in my other hand. A metal claw reached for it, intending to take it back but I wrenched my arm out of reach and slid under the cyborg, keeping myself out of his grasp as the battle became to come to a close, though I sensed that something was soon going to happen. Turning my head, I saw Sergeant Green alongside Commander Bly as well as several members of the Talon Squadron fighting a last pocket of resistance, however above them, I could see several Hyena-bombers moving into attack position.
They must have broken off from the battle above to deal as much damage to the clone army as possible before utter defeat, and they were aiming directly for Talon Squadron and Commander Bly. My choices were either to save them and risk defeat myself, or defend myself from Grievous and allow them to perish. In my hand I felt the crystal pulse, almost as if to comfort me whilst I battled with my conscience all in the heat of a single moment before all at once, I committed to my decision. Drawing back my arm, I held my breath as Grievous came scuttling towards me like a horrifying metal arachnid, yellowing eyes seemingly piercing my mind and soul as I flung the crystal into the open air and returned it to the pit that had been drilled into the surface, dragging a ragged howl of rage from the cyborg as the crystal flew beyond sight into the blizzard.
In the next moment I had thrown my lightsaber, once again allowing it to spin out of my grasp and curve up into the air where it sliced through the wing of one of the bombers which caused it to immediately spin out of control and crash into another and they both exploded upon impact. The last of the bombers flew directly into the cloud of fire, slamming into the wreckages as they began to fall which took out the final bomber with relative ease, however even as I held out my hand to bring my weapon back to me, I felt something heavy and metallic slam against me.
The force knocked the breath out of my body, causing me to see bursts of light before my eyes before I was thrown once more like a ragdoll as General Grievous released his frustrations at his failures upon me. My lightsaber was now lost upon the field of battle, and the last I remembered was the garish yellow eyes of the cyborg general above me before a cruel blow to the head rendered me unconscious can completely vulnerable, whereby I became the prisoner of General Grievous and the Separatist army.