Sun and Moon . . .
The planet Ryloth has been invaded, Separatist leader Wat Tambor has taken control of the planet Ryloth and subjugates its people through a brutal droid occupation. In a daring surprise attack, Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan Ahsoka have defeated the space blockade guarding the planet. Little do they know, Solar Flare and several others are already on the planet's surface waiting for them. A few days ago, they managed to sneak past the blockade by entering Ryloth's atmosphere through the shadow of the planet.
An Autobot Starship with a large cargo hold attachment stands hidden in a canyon. Onboard in her private quarters, Solar Flare is sitting on her bed looking at a picture of her and her son, Bumblebee. She smiles happily at the thought of seeing her son again after a month.
Solar Flare contacted Optimus and told him that she was on Ryloth. She was surprised that the Republic was coming to retake the planet, she was eager to play a part on the ground to give them some headway so she can have a chance to let out all her pent up rage after she found out Bumblebee lost his voice to Blitzwing, she was proud of her son for returning the favor by blowing the up the Seeker with his own artillery.
She then hears the intercom beep, she puts away the picture in a drawer before standing up and heading to the cargo bay. Inside the cargo bay there was Solar Flare's sister, Moonrider.
She's wearing a dark gray bodysuit under blue and white armor with medium-sized mechanical bracers that appeared to have silver retractable claws on top of her gray, fingertip less gloves over her hands, she has a black belt with a buckle that has the Autobot insignia on it, silver-blue shin guards with silver kneepads and gray-blue combat boots. Compared to a human, she looks to be in her mid-thirties with a slightly tan Caucasian skin tone and bright yellow eyes. Her most notable features are her claws, wolf-like ears and tail.
The second person is Moonrider's adopted daughter, Catra. Compared to a human she looks to be in her late teens with tan skin. She has a slender build with angular features, such as a pointed chin, straight nose, and slanted, almond-shaped, heterochromatic eyes; pale yellow (left) and turquoise (right). She features three freckles on her cheeks, and soft curving dark eyebrows. Catra also has retractable black sharp claws on her hands and toes, small fangs, large, black, panther-like ears slightly buried within hair, a long prehensile dark brown cat tail, and light brown horizontal markings on her arms, with three on her back that resemble a tabby cat's stripes. She also sports wild, spiked, cedar brown hair with two lighter colored tufts below her ears, held back behind a scarlet headpiece.
She wears a reddish leotard, with a black garment that covers her collar, has a small, diamond-shaped opening above her chest and has a long sleeve on her right arm that has a red diamond with a black Autobot insignia on the right shoulder and ends in a fingerless glove. She wears a fingerless glove on her left arm, and around her waist is a black belt. She has burgundy and black leggings, which open to show the back of her legs mid-thigh. She is barefoot, per usual.
Despite not being related to Catra, Solar Flare loves her as family all the same. Moonrider then notices her older sister and smiles. "Hey sis, Optimus informed me that he and Bumblebee are heading to the city of Nabat, are you ready to go?" She says.
"Yes, I am. But seeing as the Republic is launching attacks on multiple fronts, we should split up." She replies. "It's not that I don't want to see my son, but I'd rather see him under better circumstances." She adds.
Moonrider places her right hand on her shoulder with a comforting smile, knowing that she is also concerned for her nephew and is also eager to see him.
Catra smirks, getting an idea. "I have an idea." She says, gaining their attention. "We know that Optimus and Bee are heading to the city of Nabat, right?" They nod for her to continue. "If Mom and I meet them there while you help out the Freedom Fighters, we can contact you when we see him and it will help get your worry of him off your shoulders." She states.
Solar glanced to the side for a moment, thinking. Catra did have a point. She was worried for her son after he lost his voice, but if they tell her how he's doing once they find Bee, it'll take her worries away. She looks at Catra with an impressed smile. "I knew it was a good idea for us to teach you the art of negotiation." She says, ruffling the teenager's hair.
Moonrider crosses her arms and chuckles at her adopted daughter's cleverness. She decides to get back to the task at hand. "Seems we have the pep talk out of the way, what do you say we free this planet?" She says, the others nodded in response.
Later, Solar Flare is walking down the landing ramp with a large scythe sheathed on her back. Once she reaches the bottom, she turns back to Moonrider and Catra watching her leave.
"Since we're splitting up, I'll take Skullcruncher to meet up with the Freedom Fighters while you two head to Nabat." The former gladiator states. "We'll meet up when our mission here is finished." She adds.
"Sounds like a plan." Catra replies.
"See you later, Solar." Moonrider says. "Don't have too much fun." She adds teasingly, putting her hands on her hips.
Solar gave a laugh of amusement before heading down the canyon to meet up with Skullcruncher. Moonrider and Catra then head up the ladder into the ship to fly to their destination.
Separatist Camp, Nabat
The droids have set up camp in the village and they were holding the local Twi'leks hostage around the command center. The tactical droid is then contacted by Wat Tambor.
"You must not allow the clones to reach the surface." He says.
"Our new proton cannons are in the optimum position to prevent that, sir." The droid replies in a monotone voice.
"What-" his modulator warbles before he turns a dial on his suit to fix it. "What if they focus the attack on your cannon?" He asks.
"I am utilizing the prisoners from this village as living shields." He states. "I calculate the Jedi will not risk the prisoners' safety with a direct assault." He adds.
With the Republic cruisers, a squadron of gunships exit the hangar bay and head towards the city. Inside one of them was Obi-Wan, Optimus, Bumblebee, Commander Cody and a group of clones. Obi-Wan was briefing them.
"We need to remember why we're here. We came to aid the Twi'leks, not destroy their home." He stated. "Cody?" He ushers.
The clone nods before he starts. "That means we'll be taking it back the hard way. Minimal destruction with blasters and droid poppers only." He says. "No rockets or detonators. Check your aim. Keep an eye out for the locals." He adds.
"Am I understood?" He asks.
"Sir, yes, sir!" They reply in unison.
While the clones get ready, Obi-Wan decides to ask Optimus about something. "I've heard you received a message from a few of your comrades who were on the planet. Care to tell me who they are?"
"I did indeed receive a message from fellow Autobots who managed to sneak past the blockade a few days prior to our assault." The Prime starts. "The Autobots here are surprisingly Solar Flare, Moonrider and Catra, along with Skullcruncher."
Obi-Wan hummed in curiosity. "Those are interesting names." He says. "Who are they?"
"Moonrider is Solar Flare's younger sister and Catra is her adopted daughter. Skullcruncher is Solar Flare's animal companion." He simply replied. The Last Prime then remembered something he forgot to mention to the Jedi Council upon their first meeting. "Master Kenobi?" He asks.
"Yes?"
"There is one detail I forgot to mention during our first meeting about Solar Flare."
"What is it you forgot to mention?" Kenobi asks curiously.
"During the War for Cybertron, after our former leader Zeta Prime died, Solar Flare and I both became co-leaders of the Autobots so the weight of leading would not press down on one person's shoulders." He explains. "As Solar Flare's younger sister, Moonrider acts as her first lieutenant." Optimus added.
Obi-Wan was impressed. He figured Solar Flare would be a high ranking officer given her history, but he never thought she'd be Co-leader of the Autobots.
"I'm assuming that they are going to meet us at Nabat?" He inquired.
"(You're not wrong, but partially.)" Bee states.
The Jedi raised an inquisitive brow. "Do tell." He asks.
"(Before we left the hangar, I received a message from Moonrider that she and Catra will meet us at the village while Solar goes with Skullcruncher to help the Freedom Fighters alongside several others who came with them a few days ago.)" The scout explains.
Back at the camp, the scanner picked up the gunships headed there way.
"Sir, the enemy is in range." A battle droid says.
"Fire at will." The Tactical droid commands.
The proton cannons then rise up and aim towards where the gunships are, the thunderous sound of them firing causes a few hostages to cover their ears. Many explosions ring through the air, one shell actually hits one of the Acclamator I-Class Assault ships, dislodging one of the thrusters. The ship then begins to fall.
"General, the enemy fire is penetrating our shields." One clone states.
"Get me Kenobi." Mace Windu orders.
"We can't risk landing the larger transports until you take out those guns." He says via hologram.
"Pull back." Obi-Wan replied. "We'll take care of it."
The gunships engage in serpentine to avoid the blasts, but one was hit and it crashes into another.
"Who's up for a challenge?" Obi-Wan asks. "We're not getting any reinforcements until those guns are out of commission." He states.
"Here we go again." One clone jokes.
One more gunship was shot down, but
"Optimus, do you read?" A female voice said from the Prime's comlink.
Optimus taps his comlink to answer. "Moonrider?" He inquired.
"You know it." She replies. "Catra and I are a few minutes behind you. We'll join you shortly after you land."
"Commander, the Republic transports have turned away, but the gunships and an unknown ship are still heading towards us." The droid says.
"Just as I calculated." The Tactical droid replies. "Though this unknown ship was unexpected, they too shall fail."
As the gunships keep going, the side doors open. Down below, two insectoid predators were feasting on a large kill. They heard the sound of the gunships' engines, they hissed at them before running into the forest. The gunships then land in two clearings. Optimus, Bumblebee, Obi-Wan and the clones jump out and head through the forest to make their way to the village.
Back at the Separatist Camp, the Tactical droid prepares for Obi-Wan's assault.
"Prepare for ground assault." He orders.
At the edge of the village, droids stand guard. "I think I see movement in the trees." He says, noticing the clones. "Fire, fire!" Another one shouts before blasting on them. Some clones returned fire while others took cover.
Bee ducks behind a tree and brings out his faceplate. The lenses focus on the droids, he brings out his black gauntlets, then he remembers the plan he and Optimus had. Obi-Wan activates his lightsaber and deflects a few blaster bolts as more droids come to engage. Obi-Wan and Optimus reach the clones.
"That bunker's gonna be a problem, General." Cody states.
"Leave the bunker to me and Optimus." Kenobi says. "Bring your troops in on my signal." He orders. He then looks at the two clones next to Cody. "You two wanted action, follow us."
Optimus, with his faceplate out, carefully looks out from behind the tree. He then notices Bumblebee down by the rocks below the bunker close to the bunker and is out of view from the droids. A plan forms in the Prime's head. The droids press down on the clones, completely unaware that Optimus, Obi-Wan and the two clones known as Waxer and Boil make their way to the scout. Optimus has a forward facing hilt in his right hand with a white Autobot insignia on it, he presses his thumb on a button and it activates a large, sky blue energy shield in the shape of the Autobot insignia. He holds it up, blocking the fire from the droids.
"Bumblebee, now!" The Prime says. The scout then throws three droid poppers into the air. Optimus eyes the highest one, brings out his left ion cannon and blasts it causing a chain reaction with the others. The blast of electricity takes out the droids, deactivating them.
"Whoa." Cody says as he and the rest of the troops look in awe.
Obi-Wan was impressed. He never thought blasting a droid popper would have a larger effect on the droids. Optimus then turns off his shield and retracts his blaster.
"That was an innovative tactic." Obi-Wan compliments.
Optimus retracts his faceplate. "I appreciate your compliment, Master Kenobi."
"How did you know the droid popper would have a larger effect if you shot it?" Cody asks curiously.
Before he could answer, galloping was heard, and it was getting closer. Obi-Wan turned to the forest and was totally shocked at what he saw.
He sees a large panther-like animal with a royal blue colored scaly head, segmented horns, two rows of small fin shaped spikes on its back and a reptilian tail that resembles an Earth alligator. Its tail is covered in large and small iridescent blue and black scales. Along with a black, amber orange and white coat of fur. It had large, canine-like teeth. It had big, webbed paws with long claws and a sickle shaped dewclaw on the hind legs. The animal had a mane of black fur on its neck going down its back with amber orange blotches on the sides, white fur on the legs and underbelly, a black pattern on the amber fur on its sides and shoulders. Tufts of fur lie under the white ears and behind the jaw filled with sharp white teeth. The creature was 8 feet tall and 30 feet long with amber eyes and black pupils.
What surprised him more was the two people riding bareback on it. The one thing that caught his attention was their animalistic ears and eyes from them both.
Optimus and Bumblebee recognize the animal and the people riding it before walking over to them. Moonrider and Catra dismount from the animal, the former carrying two black sawback machetes on their back. "It is good to see you again, Moonrider." The Prime greets.
"It's nice to see you too, Optimus." Moonrider replies. "I trust that Bee has been staying out of trouble?" She remarks.
"(Moonrider!)" The scout chides, embarrassed.
Catra chuckles in amusement. "I'm sorry to put this reunion on hold, but we have a village to free." She states.
"I agree with your statement." Kenobi says. "We must-" he was interrupted by the creature smelling him.
"Miharu, stop that." Moonrider says, stopping the animal from sniffing the Jedi. "Sorry about him, he's just curious." She explained with a chuckle.
A droid walks up to the Tactical droid. "Sir, I've lost contact with our outer defenses." The droid says.
"The Republic troops have overrun the village perimeter." He theorized. "Find out how the Jedi plan to attack."
"Roger, Roger."
After scaling the wall, Obi-Wan sees smoke in the distance.
"The wall is secure, sir." Cody says. "Are we moving on to the guns?" He asks.
"We need to know what the droids have in store for us." He replies. "Send your best men to go with Bumblebee to scout ahead." Cody nods in response.
"Catra, I think you should go with Bumblebee, you never know what might happen." Moonrider says.
"(Catra, you don't have to come.)" Bee offered, knowing that she is more of a fighter than a scout.
"It's alright, Bee. Besides, someone has to watch your back." The teen remarks with a teasing smile.
At the camp, a droid pressed a button on the console, sending out two probes.
Bee, Catra, Cody, Waxer, Boil and another clone are scouting the area ahead, and so far they've just come across empty houses. Bumblebee brings out his faceplate, the receptors scanning the area. Catra smelled the air, it was dry and there was no smell of rotting flesh. 'They must have taken the villagers hostage, but there's no scent trail as to where they took them.' She thought.
"Buildings are just buildings. What really makes a city are the inhabitants that live in it." He says, shedding some wisdom on the clones.
"So where are they?" Waxer wonders.
Cody holds his fist up, signaling for them to stop. He turns to Waxer and Boil. "We'll check out the courtyard. You two take the south sector with Bumblebee and Catra. Be back at command by 0620." He says.
"Yes, sir." Waxer replied.
"I tell you, Boil, this is creepy." Waxer voices his thoughts.
"You got that right." Catra agreed, offset by how quiet it was.
"You think they killed all of them?" Waxer says, uneasy.
"That seems unlikely." Catra states, getting the clones' attention.
"How so?" He asks.
"Given my heightened sense of smell, I can pick up the scents lingering in the air, and since I don't smell any rotting flesh, it's likely they were taken hostage." She explains.
"She's right, there's no bodies." Boil agrees. "They were driven from their homes. I don't think they had…" a soft crunch was heard. Waxer and Bumblebee looked to where it was heard from, but they saw nothing.
"Had a what?" He asks.
"(Sigh)... Choice." He finished.
They all looked around for what caused the noise before they continued.
With Cody and the other clone, they were hiding in an alley as a group of droids passed by. He sees how many droids there are through his helmet's visor, and there were a lot. "Not gonna be easy getting to those guns, sir." The clone says.
"There is always a way, Wooley." Cody replies, looking through his binocs, seeing an AAT Tank go by. He then sees the villagers. "Wait, Twi'leks. They're holding all the survivors hostage." He states as a droid pushed one into the pit. "We have to report this to General Kenobi." He states.
With one of the probes, it flies to the top of a building that has a large hole in the ceiling. Inside, Optimus, Moonrider, Kenobi and a hologram of Mace Windu. Cody had reported back and they were looking at a map of the city. "Found the guns. They're in the courtyard here and here." He points to places on the map. "But there's a complication." He adds.
"What kind of complication?" Optimus asks.
"They've taken the locals hostage and they're using them as shields." He explains, all of them unaware of the probe watching them.
Moonrider growls in frustration. "That's a cowardly move, using civilians as shields." She seethes, bearing her sharp teeth.
"The Twi'lek prisoners will make this difficult but not impossible." Obi-Wan states, rubbing his chin in thought. "I still have a good plan for taking out those guns."
The Tactical droid sees them through the probe's lense. He was unsure who the other two were though.
"Getting the villagers out of harm's way is our first priority." Mace says. "I have faith in you, General Kenobi."
"Cody, we'll go in with everything we have." Obi-Wan states. "Clear those hostages."
"We must make sure no harm comes to them." Optimus states.
"So, it's General Kenobi and this unknown adversary who is leading this assault." The Tactical droid presumes. "Kenobi is known for his deceptive maneuvers."
"Roger, roger." The battle droid says. "Download his file."
Back with the scout team, they're still looking through the streets. A stone clatters nearby, causing them to find cover. They stop by an alley, Bee brings out his dual wrist blasters on his bracers. The clones give a silent nod before rushing in the alley, only to find a scared young Twi'lek. She hides fearfully behind two small crates. Bee retracts his faceplate and his wrist blasters back into his bracers.
The clones lower their DC-15s. Boil groans. "Ah, it's just a little girl."
"We'll, what are we gonna do with her?" Waxer asks.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Why do we have to do anything?" Boil says. "We've got a mission to finish."
"We should do something. I say we take her with us." Waxer says, not wanting to leave the little girl alone.
"You can't be serious. She'll only slow us down." He argued.
She then cowers behind the crates. "Look, she's afraid of us." He says. Waxer then notices a probe droid go by. "Not us. Quick, hide." He says before they all hide in the alley. The probe continues on. "That was a recon unit. We better get moving." Waxer ushers. "We can't just leave her here." Catra states. Waxer reluctantly sighs. "Fine, we'll take her." He replies. He kneels down to her eye level. "Be careful." Waxer warns. "Don't worry Waxer. I don't think she's armed." He says sarcastically, holds his hand out to her only for the girl to bite it. "Ow! Little tail-head bit me." He says in disbelief. Catra smirks at the girl's boldness.
Catra plants her hand on his shoulder to hold him back. "Stop, stop. You're scaring her. She probably thinks you're droids." She says. "Take off your helmets." Waxer takes off his helmet to show his face.
"It's all right. See? I'm flesh and blood, just like you." He says. She flinched as he held his hand out to her. "She looks half starved." Boil states, noticing her scrawny body. Boil hands an energy bar to Waxer, he then holds it out to the girl, she sniffs it before snatching it from his hand and hungrily munching on it. Boil then takes off his helmet, showing his face. The young Twi'lek notices the similarities between the two clones. "Nerra. Nerra." She says in her native language, pointing to Waxer, then Boil.
Catra smiles at her, over the last standard month in this new galaxy, she took to learning the many languages here and after understanding several new languages, one of them being Twi'lek, she understands the young girl.
"No, I'm Waxer and he's Boil." He says slowly.
"Nerra. Nerra." She repeats.
"Oh, you made a friend. Mission accomplished." Boil says sarcastically as he puts his helmet back before sighing. "Can we go now?" He impatiently asked.
Waxer puts his helmet on as well before standing up. "Come on, kid." He says, holding his hand out for her. "Come on." The young shyly looks down as she continues munching on the bar.
"Look, she doesn't even want to go." Boil states. "Little monster was fine before we came along, so let's move." He firmly adds. Waxer looks at the kid as she finishes the bar before he then reluctantly follows.
Catra was sympathetic for the girl. She then got an idea. "Bee, how 'bout you go on ahead. I'll catch up." She said hopefully. Bumblebee, having known Catra all his life, figured out what she planned to do. He then walks out of the alley to catch up with the clones.
Catra slowly walks closer to the girl, holding her hands up as a sign that she's not a threat. She kneels down to her. "Hey, it's alright." She softly says, trying to not appear as a threat. The young Twi'lek looks at her warily. "I know you're scared, I would be too." She admits. The teenager holds her right hand out to her. "If you want, we can help you find your family after this is over or wait here until they find you." She offers. "It's your choice." She adds. The girl thinks about this, if this strange being can help her find her family, why not take this opportunity. "Well, when you make your choice, you know what to do." She smiled. Catra stands up and leaves.
The Tactical droid walks around the pit where the hostages are. He casts a glance at them, ignoring the many glares sent towards him. He walks down a staircase into a tunnel where there were several cages full of insectoid creatures. The droids next to them had electrical prods. "Sergeant, are the creatures ready?" He asks the battle droid.
"I starved them like you ordered, sir." He replies.
One roars at him before biting at the bars. "Uh, are you sure they will not attack us?" He asks warily.
"I need a test to verify my theory." The droid says, pressing the large button on the terminal. The bars slide open letting one out.
"Uh, sir. What are you doing?" The battle droid then bumps into the predator. He looks at the creature then the Tactical droid, knowing what his theory was about. "Oh, no." He says knowingly before the animal bit down on the droid. The forearms and legs sticking out. The droid's screams were heard as the animal shook him around. "Ow! Not my motivator!" He said from inside its mouth.
The creature then stops shaking him. Thinking he was food, it ate him without a second thought, but now that it's tasted him, it spits him in disgust. The droid lands at the Tactical droid's feet, covered in saliva.
"As I calculated, the creatures require organic meat." He speculates.
"Well, that's a relief." The battle droid says, not wanting to be inside that creature's mouth again.
"It will not be for the clones." He states. "They will provide a most generous supply." The creature is then zapped back into the cage and closed. The creatures in the cage next to it were already engaging in cannibalism.
Back with the scout team, the four continue walking the streets. The Twi'lek girl was carefully following them, wanting to find her family. Due to her advanced hearing, Catra heard the young Twi'lek following them a few minutes ago. The fact that she was following them was enough to know which choice she had made.
Catra herself envies the girl, she knew her family. The teen always wondered what her birth parents were like, don't get her wrong, she's happy where she is with Moonrider. After all, she was the one who raised her for Primus' sake, but she couldn't help but wonder. Who was her real family?
Waxer looks back over his shoulder, causing the girl to scurry away to hide. "I wonder what happened to her family?" He says.
"They were probably taken captive when the Separatists took over." Catra speculates.
Waxer again looks over his shoulder, seeing her hide behind a wall, only to peek her head out.
"So, what happens to her?" He asks. "I mean, after we leave." He clarified.
"I don't know." Boil responds. "Ah, don't get any ideas. We're not taking her with us." He states, not wanting a kid to hang around with them.
Waxer and Catra look back to see her and find nothing. Catra's left ear perks up and she then figures out where the little Twi'lek is.
"She's gone." Waxer observes with the slightest hint of sadness.
"I'm sure the little biter will turn up." He says comfortingly.
'Sooner than you might think.' Catra says mentally with an impressed smirk. Waxer turns around. Surprisingly, the girl was behind him the whole time. She looks up at him with a smile.
"Hey. There you are." Waxer says happily, tapping her on the nose. She laughs at that.
"How'd she get in front of us?" Boil inquired.
"(I gotta say. Even I'm not that stealthy.)" Bumblebee beeps.
"Nerra. Nerra!" She says, tugging on Waxer's DC-15. She points down the street before running in that direction.
Waxer notices something about where she's headed. "No, don't go that way! That's where the recon droid went." He shouts towards her.
"Waxer, let her go." Boil says, trying to knock some sense into his friend.
"I'm not just gonna let the droids get her." He argued before he, Catra and Bee ran after her.
"I'm just trying to keep you alive!" He shouts back. "I'll be darned if I know why." He wonders to himself.
They chase after her, having trouble keeping up as the young Twi'lek was surprisingly quick.
"Where's she going?" Boil asks.
"I'm not sure, but she is fast. I'll give her that." Catra replies.
The girl hides behind a pillar and quietly waits for them. When they were close, they looked around for her before she took off again. "Wait! Hold on, there!" He says, trying to get her to stop. They continue following her before she stops. Waxer, Bee, and Catra catch up to her. "Hey, there you are." He breathed heavily as he rubbed the top of her head. Boil catches up to them. He sighs. "Good, you caught her." He says. " You know, I have binders, if we need them." He offers, causing the three to send him looks. "What?" He says, defensively.
Catra looks down at the girl. After arriving in this galaxy, she felt like she had this sixth sense and couldn't put her finger on it. The hybrid couldn't help but notice that she felt sadness from the Twi'lek. She then looks around the area. Something about this place made her sad, but what? She did not know.
The girl tugs on Waxer's hand and points to one of the houses. She holds his hand as she leads them into one of them.
"What are we doing here, anyway?" Boil questions.
They all walk through the doorway to an empty house with rubble piled up against the walls and a large hole in the ceiling.
Bee looked around the house and wondered why the young Twi'lek brought them here. He looks at the girl and notes her sad expression, then realizes something. This was her home. Waxer sets down his blaster and takes off his helmet while Boil sits down on the rubble.
"I guess this was her home." Waxer summarized. "Poor little thing. She lost it all."
Bee then notices a little doll on the ground. He kneels down and picks it up. It squeaked as he rubbed off the dust. He walked over to the child as she sniffled in sadness. Bumblebee gently puts his left hand on her shoulder and shows her the doll. She grabs it from his hand and hugs it close as she starts crying as she remembers what her life was like… before it was taken away.
Catra kneels down in front of her and holds her chin up. "It's okay now." She assured her. "We're here to help." She says with a comforting smile. The Twi'lek looks up at her and wipes a tear away before she embraces Catra in a hug. Catra glances up at her cousin then back to the Twi'lek and slowly wraps her arms around her. Catra knew that this might happen. She too has seen the damage of war-torn homes on Cybertron. The homes could be repaired, but the memories the families had in them were irreplaceable.
Boil walks over to them. "Don't cry, kid. We'll keep you safe." He assured her. "I… I promise." Unexpectedly, the child embraces him in a hug. Boil was a bit surprised given the fact that he wanted nothing to do with her in the first place. He awkwardly pats her on the back as he didn't know how to respond to this.
Back with Optimus, Moonrider and Kenobi, who were biding their time for their assault. Kenobi walks towards Moonrider who was pouring some water from her canteen into Miharu's mouth, Obi-Wan notices the animal's tongue that was split at the end. She stops and he swallows what she put in. He nuzzles her in appreciation. Moonrider pets him in response. From what Obi-Wan could tell, she was 7 feet and 3 inches tall. He clears his throat, getting their attention.
"I don't believe we were formally introduced." He says.
"No. I guess not." She replies.
"My name is Obi-Wan Kenobi. Jedi Master of the Jedi Order." He says holding out his hand.
"Moonrider, first lieutenant to my older sister, Solar Flare." She says, shaking his hand. "I've read a lot about you on what you call the "holonet" and I must say, I was kind of looking forward to meeting the famous "Negotiator" in person." She says with a small laugh.
Obi-Wan flushed a bit at the compliment. He knew he was known for his negotiating skills to turn arguments in his favor, but he admits, the nickname was kind of neat. He then notices the animal known as Miharu steadily moving towards him. "Might I ask who this is?" He inquired.
"You may." She answered. "This guy here is Miharu, translated in your language, he is a Yry'fer Jaguar. One species of Cybertron's wildlife." She explained. "He's been mine and Catra's animal companion for 1400 years. He is a very sweet and loving individual. He personally loves basking in the sun and taking a good swim. He has been there for us when we need him and he, us." She adds, petting the animal's head.
Obi-Wan could tell that Moonrider had a strong bond with the animal. Miharu looks at Obi-Wan with his amber eyes in inquiry, he was curious about this individual. He turns his head to Moonrider and utters a few growls and moans. She understood what they meant and her eyes widened as she stifled her laughter by putting her hand over her mouth.
Obi-Wan was intrigued by this, could she understand this animal? "Can you understand him?" He spoke up, pointing to Miharu.
After her laughter subsided, Moonrider nodded for confirmation. "The reason why I can understand him is that I am a Hybrid Cybertronian, meaning I have animal DNA in my blood. Since I'm part animal, I can understand what animals are saying. They can talk, but the way you or anyone else would hear them is by the noises they make." She explained.
Obi-Wan was totally shocked by this, he knew animals were capable of communication, but what she explained was something beyond anything he could ever imagine. He was curious to find out what the animal had said. "What exactly did he say?" Kenobi inquired curiously.
"Of course, though I'm not sure you'll find it as amusing as I did." She replies, scratching the back of her head. He nods for her to continue. She takes a deep breath and exhales through her nose. "He said, and I quote; "This man's face fur looks funny." And it's his words, not mine." She states.
Obi-Wan was perplexed. 'Face fur?' He thought. 'What does that mean-?' He then realized that Miharu meant his beard. He chuckles in amusement. "He's spunky, that's for sure." He says, petting the animal's head.
Cody walks up to Obi-Wan. He clears his throat, getting their attention. "The men set, Cody?" He asks. The clone nods but doesn't answer. Obi-Wan picked up on that. "What is it?"
"Waxer and Boil are not responding." He replied. "They never returned from scouting."
They were unaware however, of the probe droid that was spying on them.
"That isn't like them." Kenobi stated, knowing that the two clones were normally punctual when returning from scouting. "They may have run into trouble." He figured. On the inside, she was slightly worried about Catra, she knew her adopted daughter had already proven herself for going alone but… as a mother, she couldn't help but worry.
Moonrider put her finger to her chin in thought. "Come to think of it, Catra and Bee haven't called back for some time." The hybrid states. "It's possible they all must've gotten sidetracked." She suggested.
"Sergeant," Cody addressed the clone, "use the high-powered transmitter to see if you can reach the scout team." He ordered.
"Yes, sir!" The sergeant responded.
"Let's get the rest of the men moving." Obi-Wan states. "The others will catch up."
As the probe was watching them, Optimus carefully sneaked up behind it with the sword from his right bracer out. He reeled his arm back before stabbing the blade into the droid, killing the camera feed.
The Tactical droid saw the feed die, and calculated that these unknown individuals were more adept to their surroundings and one of them noticed the probe. "They are on the move." He says. He taps the comlink button. "Sergeant, the attack is coming. Release the beasts." He ordered. "It is time to execute my plan."
Down in the chamber the droid heard the orders. "Roger, roger." He complied, pressing the release button. The creature from earlier roared at the droids before it was zapped with the prod, it growled back at them before it ran down the tunnel with the rest.
With the scout team, Waxer's comlink beeps. Boil realized who it could only be. "It's the commander." He says knowingly. They stand up. "We're way overdue, Waxer. We're gonna end up polishing R2 units!" He says, speculating what might happen to them. He was about to answer only to be stopped by Waxer. "Wait. How are we gonna explain all this…" he says. "Her?" "You're asking me?" Boil asked with a raised brow.
Catra and Bee glanced at each other then back to the clones. They've pulled this kind of thing before, Optimus and Solar Flare understood why they didn't report back at the scheduled time because they explained the reason for them being late. But these two clones were overthinking this.
"Maybe if we hurried back, we could tell them we ran into a little trouble." Waxer offered a good excuse.
"Oh, that's for sure." Boil replied sarcastically, thinking that that might not work.
"And our transmissions we're jammed, eh, by the droids." He added. Catra shakes her head in amusement at them. "It's worth a try." Boil reluctantly says. The two clones put their helmets back on. "But mark my words, this will end badly." He states before they all walk out of the house.
Catra then felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and felt her sixth sense warning her about something, what? She didn't know. She smelled the air and found a distinct scent… and it was close. Boil felt something off as well, he held his hand out, signaling for them to stop. The girl hides behind Waxer. He was confused by this.
"Gutkurr! Gutkurr!" She says. Catra knew what she was talking about. Before she could say anything, growling was heard and they saw the two creatures, now known as Gutkurrs, come around the corner. Bee recognized them as the Gutkurrs that lost their kill when they landed. One of them smells them, looks in their direction and growls.
"I think I know why the kid never came back here." He said as the child fled back into the house to hide.
The other Gutkurr smells them, thinking of them as a potential meal. The first one growls before they both stalk towards them.
"You see what happens when we don't follow orders?" Boil said, raising his blaster to fire, but Catra stopped him.
"Wait." She says. "Let me try something." Catra then starts to carefully move towards them.
"(Catra, are you out of your mind?!)" Bumblebee questions in shock and disbelief.
"Just trust me." She replies reassuringly. She slowly walks towards the two Gutkurrs, who hiss in confusion at why she's not afraid. She carefully lifts her hands to show she's not a threat. The first one growls at her. Thankfully, since she was also a hybrid, she could understand them. "It's all right, there's no reason to be scared. Even if you are just looking for something to eat." She says. They both smell her and, to everyone else and Catra's surprise, they gently push their snouts into her palms. Catra lets out a heavy jagged breath, she honestly thought that wasn't going to work. "Told you to trust me." She says, taking her left hand off the first Gutkurr to turn to her cousin.
"How are you doing that?" Waxer asks in total shock.
"To be honest," she started. "I have absolutely no idea." She admits. They were a bit hesitant to come towards them. "It's okay. They won't bite." She reassured them. "I think." She added, not totally sure.
Back with Optimus, Moonrider, Obi-Wan and the clones, they were making their way to free the hostages. Miharu smells the air and picks something, he growls at what's coming. He catches the attention of everyone, Moonrider looks to her animal companion. Before she could ask what was wrong, her ears then perked up, hearing the ground rumble. Optimus notices this.
"Moonrider, what is it?" He asks.
She turns to him. "We've got incoming." Moonrider answered, causing the Prime to close his faceplate and bring out his gauntlets. Obi-Wan ignites his lightsaber while the clones ready their blasters. Optimus brings out an ion cannon from his right bracer while Moonrider pulls her machetes. They were expecting droids to attack them but they were not expecting a pack of 8 hungry Gutkurrs charging straight for them. 3 clones run back to the group, one of them is hit by a Gutkurr using its head to throw him out of the way. Before the clones could fire, Miharu jumps in front of them and releases a loud and ferocious roar. The Gutkurr pack stops in their tracks, apparently somewhat frightened. The clones and Kenobi look on in awe.
The Tactical droid, now in a tank, speaks to Wat Tambor through a hologram. "The Republic troops have been routed, Emir." He reports. A roar was heard in the distance. "What was that?" Tambor asks. "I calculate the remaining clones and these unknown individuals have brought something unexpected into the equation and are attempting a desperate final offensive." He states. "Their chances of success against us are 742 to 1." He adds. "You had better be right." Tambor lectures. "I am a droid. I am always right." He corrects before turning off the hologram.
Miharu stands protectively in front of everyone, his teeth bared and growling at the Gutkurr pack. He drags his front right paw backwards, digging his claws into the ground before stomping the food on the ground. Obi-Wan leans his head towards Optimus and Moonrider. "What is he doing?" He asked them, quietly.
"Miharu is displaying his ferocity to the Gutkurrs in order to protect us." Optimus explains. One Gutkurr was bold enough to step forward. It growls at Miharu, challenging him. He growls back. "What are they saying?" Kenobi asks Moonrider. "The Gutkurr is challenging Miharu, saying if he wins, he and the rest of them get to eat us." She replies. A shocked look appeared on Obi-Wan's face. "Miharu is saying that if he wins, the Gutkurrs have to help him. I hope he does win, for all our sakes." She says, sheathing her machetes.
Both predators begin to circle each other, searching for a sign of weakness. Everyone looks at them in suspense and anticipation, waiting to see who makes the first strike. Suddenly, the Gutkurr roars at Miharu before charging him, anticipating this, Miharu jumps up onto a house and out of the way, letting the Gutkurr hit the stone wall. Now dazed, Miharu uses this to his advantage, he jumps at the Gutkurr and bites its neck, tackling it to the ground. It screeches in pain as the Yry'fer Jaguar sinks its teeth into its neck. Miharu then clamps his jaw down on the Gutkurr's neck, causing it to shriek in pain before it's thrown towards the rock wall. The Gutkurr slams into the wall, no doubt cracking a few ribs upon impact. It whimpers in pain, it then sees Miharu stand tall before him. Angered, it roars in anger as it charges towards him with intent to kill. Miharu dodges to the right as it jumps at him, he catches it by the back of its collar. He bites it again to get a better grip, he then pushes up with his front legs, lifting up the Gutkurr. It gives a squawk of surprise before Miharu slams it into the ground, He lets go while it groans in pain, the Gutkurr tries to get back up, but is stopped by Miharu placing his front right foot on his neck, holding down. The Gutkurr looks up to see him give it a look that firmly says 'stay down'. The Gutkurr knows that after being beaten, it has to hold up its end of the deal. It then slowly lowers its head to the ground in submission. Optimus, Moonrider, Obi-Wan, and the clones looked on in awe as Miharu turned to the rest of the pack and growled at them, causing them to lower their heads submissively.
"Incredible." One clone says in awe.
"Quiet, rookie." Cody says.
Obi-Wan gave a sigh of relief. Glad that he wasn't going to be eaten. "That was extraordinary what he did against them." He says to Moonrider, who was rubbing Miharu on the neck in gratitude.
Before she could reply, her ears perked up. She looks around for what she heard.
"What's wrong?" Optimus said.
She smelled the air and recognized a scent that was coming near them. "It seems our scout team has returned." She says. As if on cue, Catra, Bumblebee, Waxer, Boil and the two Gutkurrs come around the corner.
Moonrider walks up to them. "Where have you all been?" She sternly says, causing them to flinch. The clones even stood at attention.
"Mom, I know you're mad…" Catra says, trying to explain.
"Do you have any idea how worried I was?" She lectures.
"Yes, but…" Catra takes a breath before continuing. "The reason why we were late to report in is, well…" she starts.
"(We got a bit sidetracked.)" Bee finishes. He then steps to his left, revealing the Twi'lek girl behind him.
Obi-Wan looks at the Twi'lek girl. "I think I see what sidetracked you." He points out. 'Really? This is what sidetracked them.' He thought amusedly.
A battle droid steps up to the Tactical droid. "The clones and the unknowns have defeated the creatures." He reports.
The droid does some quick calculations. "Yes, this presents a certain problem. These unknown individuals are an unforeseen variable, nonetheless, they will fail as I have calculated." He states. "Prepare for their final attack."
Obi-Wan kneels down to the Twi'lek who shyly hides behind Boil. "Hello, little one." He says to her, who hides behind Boil in fear.
Optimus retracts his faceplate and looks towards Bumblebee. "Bumblebee, Catra." He says, getting their attention. "How did you come across this young native?" He asked.
"(We came across her as we were searching the streets. She later followed, then led us to what was left of her home.)" He explains.
"When Waxer and Boil's comm sounded, we realized we were late to check in. And as we were leaving, we then came across Starsky and Hutch over there." Catra added, Bee pointing with his thumb towards the said Gutkurrs.
"Catra, I have to ask; I noticed that they were docile when they were with you. How did you tame them?" Moonrider spoke up.
Catra scratches the back of her head. "To be honest, I have no clue." She confessed.
Bumblebee then remembered something. "(While in the girl's home, I noticed a slab that opens up to a network of tunnels that run beneath the village.)" He whirs, showing a hologram of the tunnel network. "(I think we can use it to our advantage as all the tunnels lead to the courtyard.)" He adds.
Optimus thought for a moment. "If we use the tunnels, it should give us the advantage we need to free the hostages and destroy the cannons." He states.
"Considering that this is her village." Moonrider speaks up, gesturing to the Twi'lek. "She might know her way around them more than any of us."
"And I think I've found us a way into the tunnels." Catra says, taking off a manhole cover.
Obi-Wan sees where they're going with this. He turns back to the girl. "Loonala kwee jannweelo?" He asks in Twi'lek.
"Ooh yana-yana." She replies. "Wah nerra. Kumee nerra." She tugged on waxer's blaster, gesturing for him to follow her.
"The girl can lead us through the tunnel to the prisoners." Moonrider says. Obi-Wan looks at her with both shock and surprise that she understood the Twi'lek so easily.
"Cody, Moonrider, we're going to need a diversion and I think I know what to use." He says, standing back up and looking towards Miharu and the Gutkurrs.
Later…
Moonrider, Miharu, the Gutkurr pack, Cody and the rest of clones sneak next to the corner of a building next to a street leading to the courtyard. Moonrider mounts Miharu and brings out one machete, holding it in her left hand. She nods silently to Cody who nods back. He gestures for a few clones to head to the other side.
In the courtyard entrance to the tunnels, one droid was scrubbing the floor in one of the cages while two others were standing guard. Unaware that Optimus, Bumblebee, Catra, Obi-Wan, Waxer and Boil were sneaking up behind them.
"Yep, this is about the worst job in the droid army." The battle droid gripes. He then hears a lightsaber ignite and the sound of one cutting through metal. "Huh? What?" He then sees Obi-Wan with the Twi'lek girl being held in his right arm standing in front of the cage entrance along with the Prime, scout and hybrid. "And it just went into overtime." He says, admitting defeat. Catra walks over to the terminal and presses the button to close the cage with a smug smirk. As the droid whines disappointedly, Waxer and Boil come running up behind them.
"Bin-bin-kooneena." She says, pointing up to the courtyard.
"Optimus, Bumblebee, Catra and I will take care of this. You keep her here." Obi-Wan says, handing the girl to Waxer. The four of them carefully move up the stairs and look out to the courtyard where the citizens are being held captive.
Cody checks where the droids are and gives the signal to Moonrider. She nods and then looks at Miharu. "You ready, boy?" She says to him. He looks back and nods in response.
Optimus, with his faceplate out, then silently signals to Waxer and Boil to come. Boil gestures for the girl to be quiet. Catra stays by the doorway as they all then swiftly and quietly move towards the statues and hide behind them.
Cody sees them in position. "There they are. Let's go!" He says before he and the rest of the clones fire at the droids who fire back. Miharu then roars out before running to where the droids are with the Gutkurr pack following. The charge towards the droids, as they attack them, the Gutkurrs rip apart any droid in their way. Miharu dodges a few shots before jumping up onto a tank and grabs the main cannon in his jaws. Moonrider jumps off and slices the turrets and tosses a grenade to the droid pilot who catches it in his hands. She gives the droid a two-fingered salute with a smile before she and Miharu jump off the tank and after a few seconds, the grenade explodes taking the tank with it.
With the others, Optimus and Kenobi nod to each other before the Jedi master ignites his lightsaber, the Prime brings out his sword from his right bracer and the scout brings out his faceplate and his dagger from his left bracer. They move towards the droids guarding the hostages and cut them up. Waxer and Boil shoot down the droid on their flank. Optimus, Bumblebee and Obi-Wan then start cutting the villagers' cuffs off.
The Tactical droid delivers heavy fire on the clones preventing them from firing back. He even takes out a few Gutkurrs. Cody ducks his head behind a rock to avoid getting hit. "Pull back! Pull back!" He orders.
After freeing all the hostages, Obi-Wan gestures for them to follow him. "Wa-janeel. Wa-janeel!" He says. They all follow him to the tunnel entrance. One droid happened to turn back and saw what was going on.
He presses his comlink, contacting the Tactical droid. "Commander, we have a problem." He says.
"Uh, the Jedi and the unknowns are freeing the prisoners." The Tactical droid heard him over the comms. He taps a few buttons and starts to turn around.
Optimus, Bumblebee, Waxer and Boil were covering the villagers' descent into the tunnel. The former two, now using their ion cannons and wrist blasters.
The Twi'lek girl watches the villagers come down the steps, hoping to find her family. One male blue Twi'lek sees her. "Numa! Koma jel ree-kha!" He says happily, most likely being her father. He then picked Numa up and embraced her in a hug which she happily returned.
"Obi-Wan, Bumblebee and I will handle the cannons." Optimus says, firing at a droid with his ion cannon, leaving a gaping hole in the body. "You, Waxer and Boil must protect the villagers." Obi-Wan nods. "I hope you have a plan." He replies.
Optimus then runs towards one of the cannons and as it aims at him, he fires a shot from his ion cannon straight into the barrel, causing it to erupt in a large explosion. Bumblebee brings out his dagger from his left bracer and cuts down the droids in his path. He climbs up to the pilot seat, cutting the head off before throwing the droid out. Optimus picks up a shell for the cannon and loads it into the tank.
"Bumblebee, fire at will!" He says to him. The scout taps the screen and aims the cannon at a pile of tank shells in-between two tanks. He powers it up and fires, resulting in a large explosion taking them out. Bee then aims towards another tank. The droid piloting it was trying to work swiftly.
"Setting alpha 5 or 6." He panicked. Optimus then loads in another shell as he targets it. "Where's the override?!" Bee then fires the cannon, destroying the tank. As it collapses, it misfires at another tank, blowing it up.
The Tactical droid returns and fires at the proton cannon. Optimus and Bumblebee are quick to spot this. Bee jumps out of the pilot's seat and Optimus brings out his insignia shield to protect him from the blast. They are both blown back by the explosion. Optimus grunts in pain as he hits the ground, the shield deactivating as the handle flies out of his hand. The villagers hear the explosion, Numa quickly runs up the stairs, her father follows after her. She slips past Obi-Wan, Waxer and Boil and runs towards Bumblebee and shakes his arm, waking him up. The villagers then rally together and charge out. Bumblebee rubs off some of the dirt on his armor. Numa then ran towards Optimus. She helps him up, they then hear a mechanical maniacal laugh. They look up to see the Tactical droid pointing the tank's main cannon at them. "You lose, unknown. Though your presence in this attack was unexpected, you have failed nonetheless." He boasts.
"That is only a matter of perspective." The Prime replied.
The droid then hears shouting and he looks to see the angry mob of Twi'leks running towards him. "Does not compute. Does not compute." He says in disbelief, refusing to believe his calculations were wrong. They climb the tank and start attacking him. As the shouts continue, Optimus stands up and covers Numa's eyes to shield her eyes from the brutality, but she peeks anyway. The villagers then toss the tactical droid out and rain blows upon the droid. Numa's father then rips off the droid's head with a victory cry before they see the cruisers and look in awe.
The cruisers prop out the landing gear. Later, the ramp was lowered with troops and AT-TE tanks walking down it. Mace Windu meets up with Obi-Wan, Optimus, Moonrider, Bumblebee and Catra. "Great job getting rid of those cannons." He congratulates them.
"Eh, It was nothing." Catra replies.
"Now we have a more difficult objective." He starts. "We must take the capital and free this world." He says.
Waxer walks over to Numa and kneels down to her. "See ya later, little one." He says, she smiles as he ruffles his hand on her head. He then stands up to catch up with Kenobi.
"Hey, Numa." Boil says. She turns around to see him with a few clones. "Stay out of trouble." He adds with a smile, no doubt, behind his helmet. She then runs over and hugs his leg. He pats her head in response. "Don't be afraid. We'll be back." He reassures. He and the rest of the clones then move with the rest of the forces.
Bumblebee makes eye contact with her and smiles behind his lower faceplate. He pats his right fist into his chestplate twice before winking as he points at her. He then catches up to everyone else. Numa looks down in sadness at her new friends leaving, her father walks up behind her and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. He gives her a side hug before she waves goodbye. "Nerra! Nerra! Nerra!" She says while waving.
Meanwhile, the Gutkurr pack was leaving into the wild with Miharu watching. The one he fought looks back to him. It nods in respect. Miharu returned the gesture before it left with the rest. Miharu then moves to catch up with his owner.
Waxer and Boil overhear Numa calling out to them. They then brought up a question to their general. "Sir, what is that she keeps calling us?" The former asks.
""Nerra." It means "brother"." Moonrider replies, she glanced at Obi-Wan and by the look on his face, she could tell she took the words right out of his mouth.
They both look back to her before Waxer waves goodbye to her.
After a mile or two, Obi-Wan then remembered that since they would be meeting up with Solar Flare later, he should probably know who the others with her are. He looked at Moonrider and decided to speak up. "Moonrider," "Hmm? Yes, Master Kenobi?" She responds. "I understand that we are going to meet up with your sister later on, but who are the others that arrived on Ryloth with you?" He inquired.
Moonrider understood his curiosity and smiled at him. "The group we're meeting up with alongside Solar Flare are the Maximals." She answered.
Obi-Wan was intrigued by the name, he figured they would be more interesting when he might meet them face to face. But for now, they need to free this world.
-Hi everyone. Sorry for the delay but I can assure you it was well worth it.
-Catra rightfully belongs to Dreamworks studios. She is a surprise character for this story and I have some big plans for her later on.
-Note: the design for Miharu goes to the fan artist, Nightrizer. I would like to thank them and Avian-King for giving me inspiration for creating the creatures I plan to use in my story as Cybertronian Wildlife.
-And in preperation of introducing the Maximals to the story, I would like everyone to take a look at the newly updated Cast page.
-Until next time.