Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.
So, this will feature the beginning of the Terran preparation for the attack, but will also include something people have been asking for.
Let's get to it.
Guest: Yes, they will use an SSD.
Chapter 44- Storm on the Horizon
(February 7, 2016, Santa Clara, California)
"Go Broncos!"
Sabine looks at Ezra as he cheers loudly, intrigued to see this side of him. After the Rebellion came to Earth, Ezra had decided to try and introduce his friends from the Ghost crew to Earth culture. He had spent a lot of time recently trying to introduce them to music, movies, and Earth sports. For the last one, he decided to take them to the Super Bowl. So, Ezra, along with the Ghost Crew, as well as Kelly, Luke, Ahsoka, and Leia, had all gone to Santa Clara, California to attend Super Bowl 50, which was being played by the Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers.
Zeb grins as he watches the Broncos quarterback, Peyton Manning, make a pass to one of his wide receivers. The initial kickoff was just a minute ago. "I love this sport! I need to learn to play!" he says.
Rex grins as he remembers the few games he played in the Grand Army of the Republic Football League. "It's definitely a fun game. I still remember the first game I played. Oh, did I tease my friend Cody over beating him for weeks."
"So, how exactly does the scoring system work again?" Hera asks.
"So, they can advance one of two ways. That guy, the quarterback, handles the ball. He can either throw the ball to someone or just hand it off. The guy with the ball will then have to run with the ball to try and get to the end zone. If he can get it into the end zone, his team gets six points. They can then try and kick it through those pole for one point, or try and run it into the end zone again for two points. They can also choose to kick it through the goalposts before reaching the end zone for three points," Ezra explains.
"Okay, I think I get it," Hera says, though still sounding confused.
"If you pay attention to the game as its played, it'll make more sense," Ezra says.
Right then, another rush is made, and Ezra starts cheering loudly. This rush, and another rush, get the ball all the way to the Panthers' 14 yard line.
Meanwhile, Luke is watching in fascination. Kelly had shown him video tapes of football games to prepare him for the Super Bowl, and he's grown to really like football.
"Thank you for bringing me," Luke says to Kelly.
Kelly smiles at Luke. "Hey, if you're gonna be my husband, you need to learn to appreciate football," she says, making Luke laugh.
The group watches as the Broncos make their next move. To their disappointment, the Panthers' defensive line keeps the Broncos from advancing. Realizing they're in trouble of losing the ball, the Broncos decide to go for a field goal.
The group watches in anticipation as the Broncos' kicker, Brandon McManus, lines up for his kick. After the ball is hiked to his setter, McManus charges at the ball and kicks it. The ball sails through the goalposts, giving the Broncos the first score of the game.
The stadium erupts in cheers from Broncos fans. Ezra, Kelly, and Ahsoka are on their feet clapping and cheering, and the others soon join them as they realize this is normal.
The ball is soon turned over to the Panthers. As they begin their push down the field, Zeb laughs a bit as he snacks on his bag of popcorn. "I love this game. And this food. We need to take popcorn with us when we go back," he says, making everybody laugh.
Suddenly, out of the blue, Ahsoka's commlink comes to life, buzzing again and again. Ahsoka, knowing this could be something big, pulls out her commlink and activates it. A moment later, Hall comes up.
"Hey, Tyler. Any chance this could wait? We're at the Super Bowl right now," Ahsoka says.
"No, it can't. An emergency has arisen. We actually have a shuttle headed for the stadium right now. You all need to get out of the stadium and out to the parking lot so it can pick you up. This is top priority," Hall says.
Ahsoka's face grows serious. "I understand. We're on our way out," she says. She then deactivates her commlink and returns it to its place. She then looks at everyone in the group and says, "I'm sorry everybody, but we need to go. There's an emergency, and there's a shuttle on its way to the stadium to pick us up!"
Everyone is immediately on alert, and are on their feet in seconds. "Alright, let's go," Hera says.
Everyone hurries as fast as they can down the row and out of the stands into the concourse. They race down through the concourse before finally racing out of the exit to the stadium.
"Did General Hall say what happened?" Hera asks.
"No, just that there's an emergency that is of high priority," Ahsoka says.
The group waits outside in the parking lot for about 15 minutes before they see a shuttle approaching. The shuttle descends close to the ground and halts in midair, with crew throwing out lines to pull them aboard. Within a minute or two, all of them are aboard.
As soon as the last of the group is pulled aboard, the shuttle immediately sets off south at high speed. As the shuttle is flying south, Ahsoka makes her way up to the cockpit.
"Where are you taking us?" she asks.
"San Diego," the pilot says simply.
Ahsoka nods. Naval Base San Diego is now the main base of the United States Pacific Fleet, which is about 70 percent of its size prior to the Clone Wars. Some of the other main bases, including Bremerton and Yokosuka, have drawn down their activities, and Pearl Harbor now hosts less US Navy activity, and hosts much more activity with the Terran Starfleet. Most of the Pacific Fleet's activity and ships now congregates mostly in San Diego.
With the speed of the shuttle, it takes just over an hour for the shuttle to reach Naval Base San Diego. The shuttle sets down just outside the main administrative building, and are met by US Naval officers. The officers hurry the group into the building, leading them through the halls to a main conference room. Once inside, they see Admiral Kenny Floyd, commander of the Pacific Fleet, sitting before a large holoprojector, which shows a number of people, all present for a large conference. The group recognizes Hall, Adams, Grand General Dempsey, Grand Admiral Roughead, Obama, General Rommel, Plo Koon, Fleet Admiral Zambellas, Mon Mothma, Admiral Ackbar of the Rebellion, Head of Intelligence John Brennan, and Thrawn, as well as several other officers and people they aren't as familiar with.
"General Tano. General Syndulla," Obama greets the two highest ranking members of the group, and the main reason the group was brought to San Diego.
"President Obama. Why have we been called here?" Ahsoka asks.
At this, John Brennan speaks up. "This discussion will contain highly classified information that does not leave this meeting," he begins with. He pauses, then says, "Some time ago, intelligence agents were able to convert janitorial staff in the Imperial Palace, who were able to plant a bug in a room within the Imperial Palace used for military discussions. We've used it several times to gain critical intel. And just two days ago, we received a report from the team monitoring that bag that they picked up on a conversation in that room. According to the team, the discussion centered on preparations of a large fleet meant to attack Earth."
"What?" Ahsoka asks in shock.
"Yes. We investigated the report from the team, and we have managed to gather further information supporting it. We have reports from other intelligence agents confirming that large numbers of ships have been gathering to form a massive fleet. Then, just a few hours ago, we received another report from the team monitoring the bug in the Imperial Palace that they recorded a discussion in which a senior Imperial officer, believed to be Grand Admiral Danetta Pitta, gave the timeline for the attack as being set to take place in 3 weeks," Roughead says.
"Three weeks?" Hera asks.
"Yes," Roughead says.
"The Empire isn't going to take any chances. They're going to do everything they can to destroy Terra's ability to fight them for good," Rex adds.
"I do not disagree. The Empire never thought the Terran Alliance could put up as much of a fight as it could. The Emperor is not to take such defiance lying down forever, especially after an attack on Coruscant itself. He will do everything he can to see this world and its fighting forces destroyed," Thrawn says.
"What are we going to do?" Ahsoka asks.
"All Terran forces are being mobilized. As many ships as possible are being called back to reinforce the Home Fleet, and as many troops as possible are being brought back to Earth to defend it. We are preparing every possible defence," Dempsey says.
"And the Jedi?" Ezra asks.
Plo now speaks up. "While the original goal had been to keep most of the order out of the war as much as possible, that will not be possible now. The entire Terran jedi Order will be prepared to join the fight," he says.
Everything is quiet for a moment before Obama says, "This is going to be the fight of our lives. If we win this, we could deal a critical blow to the Empire. If we lose, then the Terran Alliance is finished. This is one fight we cannot afford to lose."
And, I'll end there.
I wanted to show our friends from the Andromeda Galaxy getting exposure to Earth culture, and given the timeframe of when I wanted this chapter to take place, I figured the Super Bowl was a good idea. Also, for those wondering why I had them rooting for the Broncos, it's because I'm a Broncos fan, so I'm kinda biased.
Next chapter will actually show the final preparation for the impending invasion, and then the invasion will start in Chapter 46. Hope you're excited for it. Until then, leave a review, and stay tuned.