Chapter 42: Lir Sey'les
MGX-93776
At least this is better than sitting on a hill, Sey'les thought as she hopped out of the cab of a Cargo Master Z-24 Heavy Speeder Truck. "All right people! You know the rules!" she growled threateningly to a crowd of Koorivars pushing garbage bins. Some were adults; many were teenagers. All were taking out the rubbish.
Sey'les pulled out her scanner device and began scanning the bins for bombs.
Overhead, atop the cab of the truck, Grath angled his turret around to the side the Koorivar civilians were approaching from.
"No threats detected," the screen of her scanner said. Sey'les gestured towards the direction of the rear of the truck. "Put 'em in," she ordered.
The Koorivars nervously walked past Sey'les towards the rear of the Z-24 and began depositing their rubbish.
Even in the Z-24, Sey'les could smell of rotten fruit, diapers, fireplace ash, busted batteries, garlic, and an assortment of other smells. Standing outside the Z-24, the stench was even worse.
"All right now! Stand clear!" Sey'les snarled to the Koorivars.
They all stepped away from the vehicle, pulling their empty garbage bins with them.
When Sey'les was content with the distance the Koorivars had put between themselves and the speeder, she hopped back in and switched on the comm. "Muun Leader to Bearcat, RCV 1 is oscar mike."
"Very well Muun Leader," a Clone pilot said into the comm, "ready to follow on your mark."
o-o-o
A week had now gone by since Sey'les and her team relieved the all Clone sanitation team. Those Clones had seemed all too happy to be redeployed to the new front on the northern continent.
While Sey'les had the authority to change their refuse collection schedule, she decided to keep the schedule implemented by her predecessor. Four days a week, their job was to sit around at the dump, monitor the sensitive electronic waste, and ensure its destruction. For the most part, Sey'les and Wulf goofed off on these days.
The remaining three days, their job was to drive around in the two RCVs (Refuse Collection Vehicles) to different areas of Azagor City, picking up the civilian's garbage. The RCVs were each militarised Cargo Master Z-24 Heavy Speeder Trucks with an armoured canopy and a rail gun mounted on the top of the front. Each vehicle had three members of Team Muun. At the top of Z-24, the most foul-smelling position, was the turret gunner. Another position was the passenger. The passenger's job was to stand or sit at the ready, get out whenever the speeder stops, and scan the garbage bins. Civilians had to bring up to the truck manually, and the driver, of course, drove the vehicle.
Of course, the operation was a security nightmare. Thankfully, Ekos spared two LAATs each garbage day to provide Team Muun with overwatch.
Since Sey'les did not have a license and had never sat behind the wheel of anything in her entire life, every garbage day thus far, the Bothan opted to take the passenger position in Wulf's speeder truck.
o-o-o
"When we get back," Sey'les spoke to Wulf, "I am going to see if Holo-servers recorded the Boontah Eve."
"That sounds… fun," Wulf muttered as he engaged the turn signal and steered the speeder truck to the right. "Mind if I join you ma'am?" he asked with a tone of innuendo.
Sey'les paused. "I actually do want to get caught up on this, Lieutenant," she growled cautiously. You are also extremely immature. Her fur twitched in annoyance as she remembered his dramatic narration of how she ate grapes.
Wulf opened his mouth to say something but paused. "I am sorry Captain," he said in a sad voice. "I know I made you upset."
Sey'les fur stood on end. Upset does not begin—you know what? "Wulf, how about I learn to drive this thing so that way, you can deal with the civvies sometimes?"
"Uh… Ma'am, I can fly a speeder, but I am not licensed to teach," Wulf said uncertainly.
"There must be someone who can teach me here!" Sey'les growled, pulling out her datapad. She clicked personnel filesàtraining and certificationsàlight and heavy speeders. Only one name popped up: Lieutenant Itoll Oc.
"ITOLL?!" Sey'les exclaimed in bewilderment. "ITOLL CAN TEACH SPEEDERS?! WHY? HOW!"
"You know what Captain?" Grath yelled from the ladder well leading up to the roof turret.
"What?!" Sey'les yelled back up. You are interrupting something, Trooper.
"I've been thinking ma'am, if you were a bit nicer to the civvies, maybe General Olgar'kla wouldn't hate you so much, and perhaps you would not mind sitting in the passenger seat."
"What the kriff are you talking about trooper?" Sey'les snarled, her fur standing on end. You're the one to lecture me on why people hate me! You are ten years old! I AM A CAPTAIN!
"It's just, ma'am, the Koorivars seem intimidated by you, no offense intended," Grath yelled, his voice echoing over the roar of the engines.
"It's called a show of force!" Sey'les yelled back. "We are not public relations! We are…" We are garbage handlers… She sighed despondently, her fur twirling unhappily.
"Muun 1 to Bearcat," Wulf said into the comm, "approaching site 17 of our sanitation run."
"Very well Muun 1, we have you covered. I see a crowd of kilo romeos on site, waiting for you with their bins," the Clone LAAT pilot said, using the 12th Army's procedure word for Koorivars.
"Can confirm," Grath yelled into the comm.
Sey'les scowled, folding her arms. The speeder truck was now flanked on either side of the road by greenery. Sanitation site 17 was right next to Azagor's largest city park. You know what? Maybe tomorrow I'll visit the park after our sanitation shift. Maybe—
"—DAMN!" the pilot screamed into the comm, "RCV-1 YOU HAVE CONTACTS INCOMMING, THREE O'CLOCK!"
Sey'les's fur fell flat in fear. Remaining seated, she grabbed the handgrip over her head. A flood of regrets began pouring into her mind. Maybe I should have been nicer to the Koorivars! Maybe—
—In an instant, the bushes to the right exploded in a whirr of wind. A BARC speeder with Republic markings bounced out of the bushes, skipping onto the road directly in front of them. Wulf slammed on the airbrakes. The BARC skidded to a stop right in front of the truck. Bush branches were stuck in its handlebars. Leaves flew from the park, settling on the permacrete.
The speeder's driver, a Wookiee, stared up at the speeder truck, eyes wide in shock as he recognised that he had nearly been run over.
Wulf honked furiously.
"That's Stomper of Puddles!" Sey'les snarled furiously. "WHAT THE KRIFF IS HE DOING ON A REPUBLIC BARC?!"
The pilot swore into the comm. "More kriffing… damnit! INCOMMING!"
Another bush came apart in a gust of wind as a fast moving BARC speeder, crossing the road in a fast blur next to Stomper of Puddles, nearly hitting him.
A third BARC emerged from the bushes and slammed on its airbrakes, far too late. The speeder coasted right into the side of the RCV, front stabilisers crunching as it scratched their RCV's paint in a horrible metallic screech. Sey'les cringed from the noise, her ears falling flat as she winced in pain.
Child of the Cave Beach moaned in agony as his un-helmeted head slammed into Wulf's door with a thud.
Sey'les roared in Shyriiwook into the general comm. "RYUYAG GA KAPAN SHEY'LESH SHAWESHNY WOOHIEE-N! EGH-RARGH—MARSH OH OO MARK!" [THIS IS CAPTAIN SEY'LES TO ALL WOOKIES! WE ARE—STOP YOUR SPEEDERS!]
Itoll's voice was yelping onto the comm in Shyriiwook [Come back! WHAT THE KRIFF ARE YOU ASSHOLES DOING?!]
[ITOLL?! WHAT IS GOING ON?] Sey'les snarled in Shyriiwook.
"The Wookiees!" Itoll yelped in Basic. "They… holy shtak! YOU ARE NOT CLEAR TO ENGAGE!"
A few panicking Clone voices screamed onto the comm too. The entire channel devolved into yelping and screaming chaos.
Stomper of Puddles plucked one of the bush branches off his speeder handlebars and continued on as if nothing had happened.
Child of the Cave Beach moaned in a slurry voice and tried steering around the RCV with bent stabilisers. His BARC listed to the left, scraping into the RCV even harder. He roared in pain as the friction skinned his leg before, mercifully, the decrease altitude pedal on the right side of the BARC crunched, causing its nose to aim down onto the permacrete.
Once his leg was free, Child of the Cave Beach rolled to the ground, moaning.
Sey'les swore under breath and stepped out. "This is Muun Leader, I am exiting the RCV to provide assistance, please—"
"WATCH OUT!" the Clone pilot screamed into her comm.
Yelping, Sey'les jumped back behind the RCV. At a hundred kilometres an hour, a BARC speeder whizzed past the spot she had been standing a moment. The wind from the speeder blew Sey'les's shaggy fur. "WHAT THE KRIFF IS GOING ON?!" Sey'les snarled furiously into the sky.
"We have some activity…" the LAAT pilot started, then paused. "The Wookiees seem to be converging on a house about a click away. Republic troopers are in pursuit."
o-o-o
Itoll Oc
The wind pushed Itoll's stiff flat fur as he sat in the passenger sidecar of a modified BARC. His curly eyelashes squinted as he struggled to look forward in the wind.
A situation had occurred, to say the least. Around 1100 hours, Stomper of Puddle's mate, Roarer of Yowls, had failed to report back to base after going fishing. She had completely ignored the guidelines posted everywhere, saying to never leave Joint-Base Golshten-Myyydril without a battle buddy. From the southside of town, a Koorivar called in to the 152nd Company Security Corps, reporting that she had seen a Wookiee being dragged loudly into a house.
Itoll and some of the Clones under his command had been apprised of the situation, and Itoll was going to help coordinate the rescue with the Wookiee forces; with all of the ARC Troopers deployed to the northern continent, and Sey'les and Wulf out on sanitation duty, Itoll was the only officer on base with any hostage rescue experience.
The plan was for Itoll, Fojo, and Ekos to lead three elements of Clones and Wookiees to arrive to the south side of town, in force, and then to attempt to negotiate for Roarer of Yowl's release.
The Wookiees had other ideas. Shortly after the briefing commenced, Rider of Storms excused herself for a moment. A few minutes later, Itoll's ears perked up at the roar of BARC engines outside. Clones began screaming onto the comm. Somehow, 16 of the 18 speeders belonging to the Mobile Recon Squad had been stolen.
o-o-o
As the BARC speeder entered the park, the Clone driver, Corporal Vest, pressed his left foot down, increasing their altitude by a meter to avoid any of the bushes. In the corner of his eye, Itoll could see a bleeding Wookiee seated on the ground next to a crashed BARC and… Next to Sey'les? His snout hung open in shock as they passed the refuse collection vehicle. These Wookiees don't even know how to fly!
"This is Commander Ekos to all Cave Wookiee forces," the Padawan's voice finally came onto the comm, speaking in surprising calm. "If you do not return our speeders immediately, we may be forced to terminate our alliance."
"Sir, there is an injured Wookiee back at Captain Sey'les's RCV," Itoll yelled into his comm over the wind.
"Wulf has already told me," Ekos replied. "But thank you, Lieutenant. Continue your pursuit, I am on my way, switch to the Republic channel."
Itoll switched channels using his wrist terminal and entered in his clearance code. This way, the Wook Wooks won't be able to listen in, he scowled bitterly. Good.
His ears shuffled around under his helmet in anticipation. All he heard was static. Suddenly, he felt the familiar tug of deceleration. The Bothan lurched forward in his sidecar as Corporal Vest applied the air brakes. Ahead of them, a Muun was driving a convertible XP-34 far slower than the BARC.
Itoll winced in terror for a moment as the BARC barrelled down on the XP-34 but then, Corporal Vest once again pressed down his left foot, levitating the BARC another meter into the air, sailing over the XP-34.
The Muun flinched as the BARC descended right in front of her speeder. Itoll looked back to flash a Spacer apology but she was already flashing a very rude hand gesture.
Itoll ignored it and began sniffing the air furiously. What the kriff is that burning smell?
At long last, Ekos's voice came onto the Republic Channel. "Wookiees have stolen most of our BARCs and their actions are disrupting all operations in Azagor," Ekos said solemnly. "General Olgar'kla has authorised all mobile units deployed in the city to converge on the intersection of Trizmith Way and Nolar Avenue. I say again, all units with access to a vehicle, converge on Trizmith Way and Nolar Avenue. Proceed with extreme caution."
o-o-o
Itoll Oc
A few more minutes down Trizmith Way, and the burning smell became more intense. It smells like fuel, Itoll thought grimly to himself. Up ahead were several burning speeders, behind them, masses of fur.
Strung across Trizmith Way, the Bothan saw a dark ultraviolet shadow in the shape of a thin wire or a string, directly over the Wookiee corpses. In his 28 years, Itoll had never seen anything like it. It looked organic, but like a string. What could that be? String, wait— "STOP!" he yelped. "Corporal—"
—It was too late. As Vest engaged the airbrakes, Itoll ducked in his sidecar, crouching as flat as possible on the ground. While the Bothan could see the ultraviolet shadow from organic material failing to reflect the sun's rays, Corporal Vest could not. Clone or not, genetic enhancements or not, the human was unable to see the thin transparisteel wire strung over the street, covered in Wookiee blood, until the wire was meters in front of him.
Vest screamed as his armoured chest collided with the transparisteel string at nearly a hundred kilometres per hour. The Clone's chest plate's integrity held, but the Bothan could hear his ribs cracking. As the BARC twisted to the right, the transparisteel string slid along the Clone's chest diagonally until it was caught in the rubber joint under his armpit. With a sickening crunch and blood curdling scream, the Clones arm was torn away as he flew through the air, careening backwards, ripped off the speeder.
Itoll screamed as the BARC continued sailing forwards without a driver. He remained flat on the ground in the sidecar as the BARC skidded on the ground. Sparks flew up from both sides as the sharp screech of aluminum and duranium against the permacrete pierced the Bothan's ears. After what seemed like an eternity, the screeching stopped.
Gasping in a panic, Itoll looked up. There was a thin cloud of smoke above him. He could hear Vest moaning. His fur relaxed and began twirling unhappily. His ear twitched as he heard another BARC speeder incoming and his fur fell flat again.
Itoll shook his head, turned on his wrist comm, and began screaming. "STOP! TRANSPARISTEEL STRING HUNG OVER TRIZMITH WAY! BARCS… NO SPEEDER BIKES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES! I SAY AGAIN, THERE IS A TRANSPARISTEEL WIRE HANGING OVER TRIZMITH WAY!"
Panicky voices came over the comm, yelling back and yelling at each other.
"We have… holy shtak," Itoll swore as he started walking back to help Vest. Strewn about on the street were Wookiee bodies, diced in a variety of ways. None of them seemed to have survivable injuries. "All of the Wookiees are down. Multiple… We need a medic!"
"Hold your position Lieutenant," Ekos's voice came over the comm. "Is there any danger to aircraft?"
Itoll was unable to focus as he stepped over yet another bit of gore. "Vest…" he croaked.
"Sir," Vest gasped, clutching at his stump as he laid on the ground, bleeding profusely. "I should have listened. You tried to tell me."
An LAAT hovered overhead, shining a spotlight down onto the scene.
"LIEUTENANT!" Ekos yelled, "ITOLL! IS THERE A DANGER TO AIRCRAFT?!"
Snapping out of it, Itoll answered. "I don't think so sir. The wire is very low to the ground. Can't be sure there isn't anyone out there with an anti-aircaft weapon with these traps around though."
