Welcome back! I have some good news! At least good for me XD. I've already graduated and I have all the final exams done and I basically have summer holidays right now which means I have much, MUCH more free time and hopefully I will be able to post a little bit more frequently XD. But I also want to ask all of you who continue reading this story to write a review in the comments below. It also helps me as an author and sometimes makes me write next chapters faster so it's also up to you to see this story come to an end ;) With that said, enjoy.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Chapter 13
"This is Admiral Sommos to Grey Leader, move your squadron to assist the planetary assault. Take down their defense turret grid" Noma ordered, observing the battle that was being displayed on the holoprojector of her ship.
"Copy that. Grey Leader out" Wolfie replied. "All wings, form up behind me," he said through the communicator, spreading Admiral's orders to his squad mates. "We have to punch through their fighters and aid our boys who made it already into the atmosphere. All wings, report in."
"Grey two, standing by."
"Grey one, standing by."
"Grey four, standing by."
"Grey seven, standing by."
We've lost a few of our mates already, so do your best to not get blasted off. It's stupid to die in the very beginning of the war" Wolfie commented, realizing that his Squadron was reduced by four members. "Incoming fighters, twelve o'clock. We'll have to break through them as we did with Mandos on Telerath."
"Sir, we can't. There's too many of them." Jenx replied, voicing his objection.
"It's either that or we can as well capitulate right now. So shut up, and focus. Spread out, don't make yourselves an easy target for them!" he shouted and maneuvered his fighter, doing his best to avoid being hit by their enemies. Other wings did the same. Thankfully, due to the Star Forge, their fighters were much more agile than those of their enemies. "Don't do any predictable moves! Fly in all directions!" Wolfie added.
"They're turning back!" Jenx shouted, watching his scanner.
"I've got one on my tail!" Buster exclaimed with fear in his voice as his ship's computer beeped in a warning.
"Hold on, Buster, I'll be there in a minute" Wolfie replied, maneuvering his fighter to aid his squad mate. "Engage all thrusters! Full engine power and aim for the planet below! Seera, lead others to General Derred, I'm pulling back to help him."
"Copy that, Sir."
Noma was trembling slightly in front of the holoprojector. War wasn't new to her. Her carrier began when Exar Kun waged his war on the Republic. Later, already as an Admiral, she served all the years throughout the Mandalorian Wars and in the Jedi Civil War but right now she was just… stressed. Or even afraid. Revan was very concerned about the outcome of the war that they've just started. And if what he said was true, then this would be the last war in their lives. She didn't know, though, if he meant that they wouldn't survive this.
"Sir, where are you?!" Buster shouted, panicked. The Sith fighters were getting closer and closer, despite his engines being pushed to one hundred percent of their power.
"On my way, I can already see you" Wolfie replied, trying to reassure his squadmate as he pushed his fighter to its limits.
"Sir, there's too many of them! I don't know if I can go on much longer!" Buster nearly screamed as he could see the Sith fighters not only on his scanners but also through his viewport, above his head. The projectiles fired from their cannons were exploding right next to him.
"Steady," he said, prolonging the word on his tongue. "Admiral Sommos, this is Grey Leader, we could use some help out here!" he added, switching his communicator to contact the Grand Admiral.
"Copy that, Grey Leader" Noma replied, turning towards the operators of her flagship. "Concentrate your fire on their fighters" she ordered to the men and women who were sitting at the terminals, operating The Crusader's systems. "Batteries: B2, B3, and B4 clear the path for the Grey Squadron to make it through to Ziost. Eighty percent of firepower. Try to not hit any of our fighters."
"Copy that, Admiral" one of the Lieutenants replied. "Batteries: B2, B3, and B4, eighty percent of firepower, concentrated on the fighters amongst the Grey Squadron." Noma watched first at the holoprojector and then through the viewport as their enemy's ships were being blasted into the emptiness of the space.
"Thanks, Admiral" Wolfie commented as the path for them was cleared a little. "Buster, you okay?"
"Yeah, Captain. Thanks a lot. That was… close" he replied, sighing with relief. "I… panicked a little."
"Don't worry, Buster. It could have happened to anyone. Now let's rejoin the others and rendezvous with General Derred."
"Copy that, Sir."
They quickly made their towards the Ziost's atmosphere, catching up with Jenx, Seera, and Seth. "Everyone's okay?" Wolfie asked.
"Safe and sound, Captain."
"Let's go, General needs our help in breaking through towards the city."
The Grey Squadron flew past the layer of clouds and into the planet's atmosphere. "Adjust the engines. The air here is thick and we wouldn't want to crash against something. All wings, slow down a bit. General Derred, this is Grey Leader, where are you?" Wolfie asked, switching the channel in his communicator.
"We're twenty kilometers south from the city" General replied after a moment. "The atmosphere has slowed us down drastically, and I'm sure that they've already spotted us."
"That's why we're here, General. Figured out you could use a hand in breaking through. We're approaching from behind so don't shoot at us accidentally."
"How far are you?"
"Roughly two kilometers away from you. We can see you now. We'll pass by the transporters and clear a path for your ships."
"Thanks, flyboy. General Derred out."
"All wings, form up behind me, our targets are the turrets. Take them down and try to not get blasted out of the sky!"
The Grey Squadron flew by the General's ships and made their way swiftly towards the city. Quickly, they managed to destroy the defense turret grid, allowing others to enter the city safely, even though they still were at the safe distance.
"Admiral Sommos, this is General Derred. We've managed to break through their orbital defenses and we're approaching the city. We owe one to those grey flyboys" he added with a small chuckle.
"Copy that, General. Stay for a few more moments outside the city. We're sending you help" Noma said, sighing with relief. So far so good, she mused. "Grey Leader, General Derred has made it through thanks to your assistance. Now pull back and return to us."
"Grey Squadron, pull back to the orbit" Wolfie ordered to his squad mates.
"Admiral Len, Admiral Davim, do you hear me?"
"I hear you, Grand Admiral" Len replied.
"I hear you too."
"Send the bomb squadrons to the planet. Drop only the EMP bombs!" she ordered, remembering Revan's words. "But watch out for General Derred. He's approaching the city now, and we wouldn't want to blow his ships out of the sky."
"Copy that Admiral, we're sending the bombers now" Len replied, repeating almost immediately her orders to the crew of his flagship.
Noma turned her attention once again to the holoprojector. Small dots began to appear next to the bigger ones that were Len's and Davim's flagships. She exhaled heavily, losing count which time that day she had done it already. She watched as more and more dots that represented their ships began to multiply, contrarily proportionally to those that portrayed the ships of the Sith Empire. She allowed a small smile to find its way onto her lips.
"Captain Wolfie, rendezvous with the Arrow Squadron and the Hybrid Squadron to clear a path for the bombers. And be quick about it! They have to reach the city before General Derred does."
"Copy that, Admiral. All wings, you've heard our orders. Do your best!"
"How do you enjoy the spectacle in front of you, Your Highness?" Noma asked Queen Talia with a small, smug grin plastered across her face.
"I will enjoy it much more once we land safely on the planet below" Talia replied.
"It's just a matter of time" Noma countered with pride in her voice.
Meanwhile, Wolfie and the Grey Squadron joined the Arrows and Hybrids and were swiftly taking out Sith fighters out of the cosmic space. Soon, there were little to none fighters left.
"This is Grey Leader to the bombers. The path is clear for you to go." Wolfie announced, not waiting for a response.
"Squad Leaders, this is Admiral Sommos, pull back your fighters. The cruisers will take down the remnants. There can't be any disruption between our fleet and the planet when the bombs fall down on the city."
Noma watched on the holoprojector as the bombers disappeared on the planet below and the fighters pulled back towards the cruisers.
"Officer Halan, was any message send from the planet?" she asked, turning towards the Intelligence Officer.
"Not even one, Admiral" Halan replied proudly. "Our blockade made sure of it."
"Good. When the EMP bombs fall, I'll want you to break into their Command Center and remove their securities. We have to make it possible for the technicians to claim their codes!"
"Of course, Admiral."
The door to the bridge opened and through them entered Wolfie, in the lead of the rest of the Grey Squadron, and Atton with his Arrow Squadron close behind him. Each and every one of them was smiling proudly and chatting about the recent actions.
"Good job out there, pilots" Admiral complimented them. Their smiles grew even wider.
"What is our next order, Admiral?" Wolfie asked.
"Rest, for now. The second part of the campaign belongs to General Derred."
"Admiral Sommos, we've received the message that the bombs have been dropped" one of the Lieutenants reported, turning from the terminal towards her. "The city is cut off from the rest of the Galaxy. General Derred and his ships weren't within the range of the bombs."
"Very well, Lieutenant. Officer Halan, proceed with your task." The man only nodded in response. "General Derred, do you copy?"
"I do, Admiral."
"The city was hit with the EMP bombs and they're all dark. Proceed with the invasion. We're waiting for the information from you once it's all over. We're activating the HK units now. Have fun down there" she added with a smile, even though Derred couldn't see her.
"Thanks, Admiral. I'll contact you when we're done here. General Derred out."
"Officer Halan, how's breaking in going on?" she asked, once again turning towards the Intelligence Officer.
"Not so good, Admiral" he replied. Shit, Noma thought, running up towards the terminal. "I don't know why, but I can't get into their database."
"How is that possible? All of their systems are down, they can't protect themselves against us!"
"I… I don't know Admiral" Officer admitted. "Even offline, their securities are too good. I haven't seen a coding like this anywhere else!"
"Is there no way you can go around it?"
"I think I can, but… I'd need at least an hour or so."
"In one hour we must be done here, celebrating victory down on the planet. We don't have that much time!" Noma shouted. Her senses told her that the battle was going way too smoothly and something was bound to go bad, and it did. "The shock from the EMP bombs will not last forever and once their electricity is back up, this task will be much more difficult."
"I'm sorry, Admiral, but I can't do anything about it. There are just some things that require time."
"Blast it!"
"And how long will it take us now to land on the planet?" Queen Talia asked with a hint of mockery in her voice. Admiral Sommos cast daggers at her with her eyes.
"Save your comments, Your Highness" Noma replied, forcing the last two words through gritted teeth. "May I remind you that if we fail now, all of us, including you, will be in serious danger. So if you have no idea how to help then at least don't bother us with your petty jokes."
"Watch your tongue, Admiral" Talia warned; her tone changing from mocking to an intimidating one. "Remember that we're not friends and neither are we equal."
"You're right, we're not friends" Noma admitted, straightening her back, trying to look as proudly as she could. "And by no means are we equal. We're not on Onderon anymore, and so your word means nothing here. You're not in charge of MY flagship. Here, MY words are law, so I suggest it is you who should watch your tongue, Your Highness" she replied, once again forcing Talia's title through gritted teeth. "Officer Halan, any progress?" Noma asked, hoping that miraculously the man was able to find a way to go through the securities.
"Unfortunately no, Admiral" Halan admitted, sighing in defeat. He leaned back in his seat, staring blankly at the terminal in front of him. "No algorithm that I know works. Their securities are far superior to even those of the Republic's Senate. I'm sorry Admiral, but there's nothing I could possibly do."
"What's the problem?" Wolfie, who alongside others, has been listening to the conversation, asked, coming closer towards the Admiral.
"I'm worried that nothing you could help with" Noma answered sadly. "The problem is with their Command Center's securities. Officer Halan says it's impossible to break through them.
"But the city was hit with the EMP bombs" Atton observed, stepping in front of Wolfie. "All of their systems are down, their securities can't possibly be up now" he commented, standing beside Halan and starring into the terminal as if he was trying to break in with his own eyes.
"Yet somehow their securities still work, assassin" Halan replied, agitated that his skills proved to not be enough. But Atton seemed to not hear him, as he continued on staring into the screen.
"Move away, grandpa," he said after a few seconds of looking into the terminal. All he received in response was a shocked look from the Intelligence Officer.
"What did you say?"
"I said: move away, grandpa" Atton repeated, looking him straight in the eye. "You're not omniscient, and I think I know the way on how to break through this security."
"Officer Halan" Noma called, drawing the man's attention. "You've had your chance. Step aside, let's give Atton a shot."
"Fine" Halan spat, standing up from the chair. He eyed Atton up and down with a clear contempt in his stare. The man answered only with a smug grin plastered across his face.
"You see, Officer," Atton said as he sat on the seat previously occupied by Halan. "The fact that you haven't seen this type of coding before, doesn't mean that no one has."
"Are you capable of breaking it?" Noma asked with hope in her voice. The previous tone she used in her talk with Talia was long gone.
"Sure" Atton replied smugly. "It might take me a few minutes, but I'll have it done."
"Hurry up," the Grand Admiral said, coming closer to the seat that Atton was occupying. "The EMP bombs will not work forever and once their systems are back up, it might turn out that we don't have a second opportunity to break their securities."
Atton didn't respond to that. Instead, he proceeded to do numerous things on the keyboard, carefully observing the screen in front of him. Noma could almost hear gears, pivoting in the assassin's head. His gaze was focused and, at some point, Atton began to bite the tip of his tongue – a clear sign that his entire attention was directed at the terminal. Noma could only listen to steady pressing of the keyboard as Atton worked his magic. She was inhaling deeply, trying to calm down herself, but to no avail.
Finally, after what seemed to the Grand Admiral to be hours, but in reality was not more than a few minutes, Atton straightened up in the seat with a smile appearing on his lips. "Fourteen plus two is sixteen" he murmured, typing a few more times on the keyboard before his smile turned into a full grin. "Pure Pazaak, the console's ours!" he announced proudly. Noma let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Her lips also curled up in a smile. The next words she said with a clear joy in her voice.
"Now let's get those codes."
"The city was hit with the EMP bombs and they're all dark. Proceed with the invasion. We're waiting for the information from you once it's all over. We're activating the HK units now. Have fun down there" Noma said to General Derred through the communicator. The man smiled, not knowing that the Grand Admiral did the same aboard of her flagship.
"Thanks, Admiral. I'll contact you when we're done here. General Derred out" he said. "Prep yourselves!" he ordered his soldiers, through the communicator. They were approaching the city with twenty ships – each and everyone was carrying troops, war droids or Dark Jedi. "The city is blind so we have a great advantage. They most probably know that we're coming but with their systems down, they shouldn't be able to defend themselves well." After his words, Derred pulled out a pocket-sized holoprojector turning it on. It displayed a hologram of the city ahead. "The Command Center is located near the city center but we won't be able to land so close – that area is too built-up and Lord Revan ordered us specifically to avoid damaging any building, especially those around the Command Center. And this is our main objective: capture that place and secure it. The data stored in there has a great value for us. I'm sending the location of the drop off point to the pilots of the ships. From there forward, we'll proceed on foot." With that said, he turned off his communicator and reloaded his rifle. They were approaching their destination.
It wasn't long before they passed the city's walls and landed on a large marketplace. As soon as their first ships touched the ground, Derred and the rest of the crew could hear shots fired in their direction. Luckily, their ships were thick enough to not allow any of the projectiles to penetrate through the armor.
"Deploy the HK units first" Derred ordered through the communicator to the pilot of the other transport that was carrying the war droids. "Allow them to clear a path for us."
"Copy that, General."
Yuthura and Voren were waiting patiently, standing right next to Derred. They both had their lightsabers already in their hands, ready to fight. With them, a few dozens of the Dark Jedi were readying themselves as well. Yuthura felt her heart beat slightly faster when new shots were heard from the outside – the HK units were already deployed.
"The path is clear" Derred announced, as everyone that was on board heard the recognizable sound of the air escaping the hydraulic cylinders. The loading ramp was being lowered. Soon, the sunlight shone brightly through the ship's entrance. "Go, go, go, go!" he shouted as he ran out of the transport, straight into the battle.
Yuthura, Voren and other Dark Jedi followed him immediately, igniting their lightsabers. Now, with the loading ramp lowered, the shots were even louder. Everywhere around, the other transporters were landing or were already on the ground with troops and the war droids running into the battlefield.
The purple Twi'lek thanked silently her ever vigilant senses because before she could move more than a few meters, a projectile flew in her direction. Without thinking, she raised her crimson blade and deflected it, sending it into the ground. She looked up. From between the buildings, the Sith troops, as well as the Sith warriors, were running towards them. She deflected another shot, this time sending it back at the soldier who fired it, killing him instantly.
"All hail Lord Revan!" Voren yelled, running towards their enemies, followed by all Dark Jedi who repeated his words. They were quickly joined by the military – both droids and troops. The HK units have taken positions on the streets, keeping themselves safe behind the buildings' walls, but every now and then they were leaning out, firing a few shots that most of the times met their targets.
Yuthura ran up quickly towards a stack of crates that were laying in the middle of the street. General Derred, two HK units and a couple of troops were hiding there as well, occasionally standing up to fire in repeat.
"Didn't expect such a fierce defense, to be honest" General admitted, panting slightly. "And we've still got around three kilometers to cover."
"Luckily, they can't deploy their war droids" Yuthura observed, leaning out for just a moment in order to take a better look of what was ahead. She squatted down quickly, though. "And, their securities are offline."
"Fair point, but it will be to no use if we won't reach the Command Center fast. The EMP shot will not work forever and soon their systems will be back up." Immediately after saying it, he stood up and fired a few shots before squatting back down. They could clearly hear the screams of their fellow soldiers, falling dead on the ground.
"Do you have any idea?" Yuthura queried, instinctively covering her head, as one of the shots flew by near her. Derred pondered for a while.
"We have to capture that alley," he said after a moment, pointing with his rifle towards the general direction of the place he was speaking of. "Right now it's their main advantage over us, but I don't know how possibly we could break through them. They're too well organized!"
Yuthura pondered for a moment, looking around, taking in her surroundings. The alley that Derred spoke of was a narrow one, causing the numbers to not matter in that place. Supplied well, their enemies could defend themselves there forever – that is, for as long as their electricity was offline.
"Darth Voren, do you hear me?" she asked through her communicator, after a moment of wondering.
"I hear you, Yuthura" Voren replied after a few seconds. His words were followed by a low grunt. "What do you want? I'm a little busy over here." As if in confirmation of his words, Yuthura could clearly hear a sound of two lightsabers clashing against each other.
"We have to capture the alley, northeast from our position" she explained. "And I think I have an idea on how to do it but I will be needing your help. Take as many Dark Jedi as you can and meet me near the building on the right of that alley." She didn't receive any response, but she was sure that Voren heard her.
"Do you have a plan, kid?" Derred asked in between of firing the shots.
"I do, actually, but I'll need assistance."
"Whatever you need."
"Order your troops to throw the smoke grenades in the alley, we'll be needing a cover for a moment. And send with me a few HK units" Yuthura replied, breathing deeply. What she was going to was risky, but it had a chance of success.
"Attention, soldiers," Derred said through his communicator. "Throw smoke grenades towards the entrance of the alley northeast from us."
"How long will the smoke last?" Yuthura asked, looking at him.
"No more than half a minute" General replied immediately. His orders were quickly obeyed and soon, a series of explosions could be heard, followed by a grey smoke that covered the ground. Yuthura made a ran for it right away. Two hundred meters, half a minute.
The purple Twi'lek was running as quickly as she could, though it proved to be a challenge as multiple blind shots were fired in their general direction from the alley. So she was staying low on her legs, focused on reaching the wall of the building that she referred to in her brief talk with Voren. She was followed by half a dozen of HK units that, just like her, stayed low on their legs. Two hundred meters, half a minute, she repeated in her mind as if it was a mantra. Another shot flew by her head, roughly one meter away from her. But just as the smoke began to vanish, she reached the building, accompanied by the HK units. Darth Voren and a group of Dark Jedi were already there, waiting for them, all pressed tightly against the wall, trying to remain out of sight as much as possible.
"What's your idea, Yuthura?" Voren asked, panting slightly. He was covered in many small cuts; from a few of them, the blood was sipping slowly.
"We have to surprise them from behind or… from above" she answered, panting as well from her running. She looked up. The building was merely three stories high – low enough for her and the other Dark Jedi to jump onto it. "Follow me," she said simply.
Gathering the Force and directing it through her palms, Yuthura pushed herself off the ground, jumping high into the air. As she thought, the building was low enough to jump onto it. She landed with grace on top of it, quickly followed by other Dark Jedi. The HK units shot climbing hooks. She could clearly hear their metallic footsteps, that were being interrupted by the sounds from the blaster rifles and the explosions down on the ground. The battle was still going on, and, fortunately, their enemies were unaware of their actions. It wasn't long before all of their small team was standing on the roof, squatting as to not be spotted. Yuthura peered over the edge of the roof, looking down on the alley beneath them.
"Now what?" Voren asked, though he already knew the answer.
"HK units, remain on the roof" Yuthura ordered, smiling lightly. "Give us a cover fire and take out people in the alley. The rest, follow me" she explained, standing up. Igniting her crimson lightsaber, she leaped out of the roof, straight into the alley that was filled by the Empire's troops and Sith warriors.
So, this is it. I never thought I would give over an entire chapter to describe a battle and not finish it yet and honestly, it was the first time I did it, so let me know what you think of this chapter in the comments below and remember, the more reviews you write, the faster the next chapter will appear ;) See you soon.