In memory of John Cygan
The Mantellian Wilderness
Skirmishes and campaigns on Ord Mantell! After arriving on the Mid Rim, the Rebel Alliance rages a brutal campaign to bring down the Empire's secret operation. General Heten Feless marches to the west while General Rachi Sitra marches to the east, both en-route to the Imperial citadel; while Han Solo and a group of Rebel commandos proceed to take out the shield generators which protect it.
But Luke Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano have found themselves trapped in an out-of-control river and are sweeping away from the battle! But nothing can prepare the Alliance for what the Empire has in store…
Ord Mantell
"Ahsoka!" yelled Luke as he desperately pulled himself onto the top of the Imperial dropship transport. He could barely see or hear anything due to the vast currents of water around him. "Ahsoka!"
"Luke!" yelled a voice. Luke could see Ahsoka pulling herself up towards him.
"Quick, take my hand!" said Luke as he crawled over to her. Ahsoka crawled towards him and the two desperately reach out to each other before finally grabbing each other by the wrist and pulling themselves closer. "Are you okay?"
"I think so" replied Ahsoka "Luke, look out!" They both felt a sudden jolt which was caused by the dropship becoming jammed between two large rocks. "Well that was fortunate"
"I don't think this will hold us for long" said Luke. The two of them looked around.
"Look, a shoreline" said Ahsoka whilst pointing to the riverbank on their left.
"We have to get off this piece of junk first" said Luke. He slowly lifted himself up, grabbed onto the rock beside them, and slowly climbed up. It was then that the dropship creaked further slightly. Ahsoka got herself up, causing the dropship to creak further. "Careful"
"I'll try to be" said Ahsoka. She grabbed onto the rock and slowly climbed up. Suddenly, the dropship creaked forward enough to be washed away downstream. As this happened, Ahsoka's hands slipped off the rock due to the wet surface.
"Got ya'!" said Luke as he grabbed onto Ahsoka's hand.
"Thanks…Skyguy" said Ahsoka.
A few minutes later
"We're not anywhere near the battlefield, that's for sure" said Luke.
"And that river busted up our comlinks, so we can't call for help" said Ahsoka.
"We'll have to get to higher grounds to have a look at our location" said Luke "Let's go" The two of them turned to the forest behind them and walked towards it.
Meanwhile at the Imperial citadel
Inside the large Imperial citadel stood a big black droid with red sensors which resembled a ginntho. Ga'llaa walked up to it with five small drones in his hands. He let the drones fly up out of his hands and hover around them.
"Target practice has begun" said Ga'llaa into his comlink "Shoot all five drones within one minute" He stepped back as the drones began to whizz around. The droid lifted up its blasters and shot all of them within in a minute. "The target practice was a success" He turned to a tall figure that stood in the shadows behind him. "What is your next move with the project?" The figure stepped out of the shadows and revealed himself to be General Tame Cronos.
"With all tests successful thus far, let us move up to a full field test" replied Cronos "And what a better opportunity to test them out than at the exact moment the Alliance is at our doorstep. Prepare a full battalion of drillers for the attack"
Meanwhile
Han and the rest of the commando group walked forward and found themselves in a large canyon.
"Well, this is new" said Han.
"We'll rest here for the moment; stay put while we scout the perimeter" said Orrimaarko "Solo, Ab'yla, with me" Han and Tani followed him as he walked over to down the canyon whilst everyone else sat down.
"I must admit, all the Mandalorian conditioning in my life could never prepare me for foot aches like this" said Corea. Chewbacca growled. "Because if I got above tree levels it could give away our position to the Empire; plus, with all this foliage around it could start a forest fire. Now that would really give our position away"
Meanwhile
As Han, Orrimaarko, and Tani walked through the canyon they began to hear loud bellows and groans off in the distance.
"What's that?" said Han.
"Presumably whatever lives at the outskirts of the canyon" said Orrimaarko. As they walked further they reached a large clearing at the end of the canyon covered in a vast grassland-like terrain.
"By the Vast Veldt, look at those things!" said Tani. Filling the clearing from all the ends was a herd of Gapillian grazers. "What are they?"
"Gapillian grazers" replied Orrimaarko "They're herbivores native to this planet"
"Are they aggressive?" asked Tani.
"I've heard that they're generally passive unless during the mating season or when provoked" replied Orrimaarko.
"Then we don't have to worry about them then" said Han "This part of the area: secure"
"I wouldn't be too sure" replied Orrimaarko "Herbivores, even ones as large and heavily built as these, attract predators of all shapes and sizes" Within the forested undergrowth at the edge of the clearing, a faint four-legged silhouette crept in the shadows and snarled slightly.
Meanwhile
"Y'know, during my travels, the things I heard about this planet made me want to avoid it like an intergalactic plague" said Corea whilst lying down with her arms behind her head "I heard things like it was just a giant junkyard or the fauna was just unbearable; but now that I'm here, I must say that it's not so bad a planet. Sure, there's the Imperials and those big creatures, but other than that—" It was then that the ground around them began to shake and tremble. "What's this?" As she got herself up, she could see Han, Orrimaarko, and Tani running towards them from the end of the canyon.
"Run!" shouted Han.
"What?" said Corea.
"If anyone wants to stay alive, run!" snapped Han. At that moment, the herd of Gapillian grazers rampaged towards them through the canyon.
"Why can't we just have a normal mission for once" said Corea as the other rebel troopers her began to run away. She quickly grabbed her helmet and placed it on. "C'mon Chewie!" Chewbacca growled and followed her. A loud Wilhelm scream was heard as the grazers ran up and accidently crushed one of the rebel troopers.
"I thought you said they weren't aggressive!" said Han.
"If you were observing carefully, something provoked them and caused them to stampede" said Orrimaarko.
"Thanks for the update, but what could provoke them like this?" said Han. At that moment, a large razoronn pounced out and roared as it chased after them. "Oh, that" Another razoronn leapt out and chased after them as well. It began to catch up to Han. "Okay, two's too much for me" He pulled out his blaster and shot it in the face two times, causing it to collapse and be crushed by the incoming grazers. Corea activated her jetpack and caused her to become airborne. Chewbacca growled at her angrily.
"Sorry Chew, but I can't lift you" said Corea "If you were smaller, perhaps—" Chewbacca growled angrily again. "No, it's not an insult; but I can't lift you" She flew on top of a grazer and extended her hand out to him. "Here, and try not to use full force" As Chewbacca extended his hand out, a large razoronn leapt up onto the grazer and pulled it to the ground. As it collapsed, it walked up menacingly to Corea who got out her blasters and pointed them at it. "Come on, you ugly mug!" As the razoronn pounced forward with a roar, Chewbacca charged up his bowcaster and shot it dead. "Eh, that was my one!" Chewbacca huffed, run up to Corea, and pulled her along by the hand. Han leapt up onto a grazer from behind and began to pull himself up. As he stood at the top of the grazer, he noticed a rebel trooper get taken down by a razoronn and eaten alive.
"Now that's just bad" said Han. It was then that he heard a growl. He looked down beside the grazer and noticed that a razoronn was chasing him. "You guys just walk right into this, don't you?" He was about to get out his blaster but lost his footing and fell onto the grazer's back and held on tight. "Damn it!" The razoronn snapped up at him and only just missed. "Oh no you don't; I deserted the Empire, I won the best ship this side of the galaxy in a game of Sabacc, I did the Kessel Run! I'm not going to end up the meal for some overgrown tooka like you!" He pulled out his blaster and shot at the razoronn, only for it to run to the side of the shots. "You just don't give up, do you? I almost admire that about" As the stampede moved on, they reached a cliff area that led to a steep ravine. Han slowly pulled himself along the back of the grazer until he reached its horns and hung off them. The razoronn swiped him again, but this startled the grazer who knocked it into the wall with its horns. "Now that's more like it!" Suddenly, another razoronns ran up behind the grazer and it leapt onto its back startling it further. "WHOA!" The grazer charged forward at full speed. The razoronn crept up to Han; but just as it was about to pounce, the grazer lost its footing and fell off a ledge, bringing both Han and the razoronn down with it.
"I think we're reaching the end" said Corea "We'll be with Han and the others in no time" Just as they reached the end of the canyon, she and Chewbacca realized that there were two pathways down the canyon. "Oh shoot! Two of them, just the thing we need right now!" Chewbacca groaned. "We'll take the one on the left, we'll worry about catching up with the others later" Chewbacca groaned. "I know, but we've got no other choice" The two of them ran down the pathway on the left to which there was still no foreseeable end in sight. "Great, looks like we'll just keep running until we're exhausted and die. This is not how I pictured my death would play out" Suddenly, another razoronn leapt at them again. "Down!" She and Chewbacca ducked down as the razoronn leapt past them. Chewbacca ran over to a grazer and leapt on top of it. "I'm guessing this makes us even" She activated her jetpack and flew up onto the grazer's back. "Okay, so what's next?" Chewbacca groaned. "Excuse me, but did you just say we should jump across on a moving creature and grab onto the wall of the canyon?" Chewbacca growled. "Not exactly the best idea I've ever heard, but there's about a thousand worse ones behind us and coming up on us if we stay put. Let's do it then. Okay; three…two…one!" She and Chewbacca grabbed onto the face of the canyon and grabbed ahold. Chewbacca's claws helped him hold on well, but Corea began to slip quickly. Fortunately, she activated her jetpack and was able to hover above the stampeding grazers. "Sometimes I forget I even wear this thing" She flew up to the top of the canyon and Chewbacca climbed his way up. "Well, let's see if we can find the group"
Meanwhile
Orrimaarko and the rest of the group took cover on a rock above the stampede.
"We should be safe here until the stampede lessens" said Orrimaarko "If we don't make contact with the predators, they should be unaware of our presence"
"We lost Private Johnson and Boreas back there" said Tani "And there's no sign of Captain Solo, Corea Narth, or Chewbacca anywhere. We'll have to search the canyon for them after—"
"We will not be searching the canyon" said Orrimaarko "When everything's clear, we head off in the direction we were supposed to go"
"But we have to find them" said Tani "If they're still alive, we have to find them"
"We cannot take that risk" said Orrimaarko "We have a job to do and we cannot let anything get in the way. There loss is tragic, but it'll all be in vain if we don't get the final shield generator down"
"But we can't just leave them!" said Tani "They wouldn't leave any of us behind if we were in the same position!"
"We move out as soon as possible" said Orrimaarko "Are we clear?" Tani sighed.
"Clear" replied Tani reluctantly.
Meanwhile
Han held onto a vine at the side of the cliff face. He looked down at the ledge that was just beneath him. He slowly loosened his grip of the vine and dropped down onto the ledge below.
"That was lucky" said Han. He looked up at the cliff and saw that he was far from the top, which was covered in mist. "Well, there's no way I'm climbing back up there. But I can't just stay here and wait for something to come along" He looked around and noticed that a rope bridge lay in front of him. He walked up to it and looked at it. "Not my preferred way of travel, but it seems I have no other choice" He slowly and reluctantly gave a first step onto the bridge and started walking down the bridge.
Meanwhile
"You summoned me, general?" asked Ga'llaa as he entered the control room where Cronos stood.
"Ga'llaa, I have a task for you" said Cronos "My spies have informed me that they believed to have seen a Jedi traversing the forest by the river. From the description they have given me, I believe it to be none other than Luke Skywalker and his Togruta companion Ahsoka Tano. I want you to track them down and bring them both to me, alive. Do you think you can do it?"
"It can be done" replied Ga'llaa "But why not use overbearing force against them; one of the weaknesses of the Jedi is being outnumbered by a powerful force"
"I do not wish to draw attention to them or away from the battle" said Cronos "We have to keep this battle going no matter what. But if you are really concerned about taking the Jedi head on…" He gestured to a small box which lay on a table near them. Ga'llaa walked over to the box and opened it, revealing a pair of blades inside that was identical to his own pair. "These blades are created from cortosis; a very rare ore which is resistant to most forms of energy, including a lightsabers blade" Ga'llaa picked them up and looked at them.
"For what purpose do you need Jedi for?" asked Ga'llaa "Why are you so interested in them?"
"As I recall, you were not trained to ask questions" replied Cronos.
"But I was trained to served Lord Vader" replied Ga'llaa "Vader may have lent me to you for the time being, but I still serve him above all else"
"But he is not here right now, so quit asking questions and leave" said Cronos "Every second you waste means that the Jedi get further and further away" Ga'llaa clenched his fists in disdain.
Meanwhile at the former Imperial base
Feless looked out to the battlefield on the Imperial base. At that moment, a rebel trooper walked up to him.
"Sir, we've received a transmission from General Rachi Sitra" said the rebel trooper.
"Show me it" said Feless. He walked over to the strategy table where the rebel trooper brought up a hologram of Rachi Sitra.
"General, how was the battle?" asked Sitra.
"We were victorious" replied Feless.
"That's good to hear" said Sitra.
"You want much more than a simple update on our progress, don't you?" said Feless.
"That is true" said Sitra "I've received information that you have been cold and distant towards Commander Skywalker"
"He told you, didn't he?" said Feless.
"That isn't what matters" said Sitra "I understand why you are doing this, but it is wrong"
"I cannot get the image out of my head" said Feless "He acts so much like his father, too much for my liking"
"He is Anakin's son, not Anakin himself" said Sitra "He is not bound to the same fate. If we are to fix the mistakes of the past, we must learn from them instead of ignoring them. Otherwise history is doomed to repeat itself. So for all our sakes, I merely request compassion towards him instead of disdain"
"Then I guess I'll have to thank him when we find him" said Feless.
"Excuse me, what do you mean find him?" asked Sitra.
"He disappeared during the battle and without, along with his partner Commander Tano" said Feless "We've sent out search parties but have found no sign of him"
"Keep searching, we have to find him" said Sitra "We can't lose anoth—" At that moment, a rebel trooper appeared behind Rachi Sitra.
"General, we're under attack" said the rebel trooper.
"We'll discuss this later" said Sitra. The hologram switched off.
Meanwhile
"What's attacking us?" asked Sitra as they walked outside "Is it the Empire?"
"I'm not sure" replied the rebel trooper "I only just got inside when—" Suddenly, a large driller drilled its way out of the ground and uncoiled in front of them, hissing.
"By the Force!" exclaimed Sitra as she ignited her lightsaber. She swiped at the driller, only for it to leap up and land on top of an AT-TE. "Whatever it is, we have to stop it before it causes any more damage" Suddenly, the sound of a shrill scream hit the air. Sitra turned around to see another driller with the dead body of a rebel trooper in its claws. The driller threw the body away and began to fire lasers at them, which Sitra deflected with her lightsaber. Suddenly, the driller shot out a harpoon which landed into her leg and pulled her towards it, charging up its laser in the process. Suddenly, an energy arrow landed in it and exploded. Acashto Tano leapt down with an energy bow in hand, cut the harpoon's cord with a blade, and helped her up.
"Are you alright?" asked Acashto.
"It could've been worse" replied Sitra. The driller got itself up and crawled towards them quick. The two of them prepared their weapons when Alarnaa leaping down and stabbing it throw the top with a battle staff. The driller collapsed onto the ground deactivated.
"Well, that's one down" said Alarnaa.
"Now we have to deal with the other" said Sitra.
"Wait a second, where has it gone?" said Acashto. They looked over at the AT-TE and noticed that the other driller had gone.
"It must have retreated" said Sitra.
"Maybe it's gone forever" said Alarnaa.
"Best not to take the risk" said Sitra "We'll check the perimeter and organize patrols and guard duties. In the meantime, help me take this thing inside; we could learn something from this.
Meanwhile
As Ga'llaa kneeled on the riverbank, he observed the footprints left by Luke and Ahsoka.
"Ga'llaa to General Cronos, I'm at the riverbank of the estimated area" said Ga'llaa into his comlink.
"Have you found any trace of them?" asked Cronos through his comlink.
"From what I've been able to deduce, they were in the river and found their way to land" replied Ga'llaa "The water may have covered their scent, but there are other ways to track them"
"So what have you recovered?" asked Cronos.
"Footprints" replied Ga'llaa "They lead straight to the forest"
"Then what are you waiting for?" said Cronos "Find them immediately"
"It will be done" said Ga'llaa. He walked off into the forest.
Meanwhile
Corea and Chewbacca walked through the dense jungle.
"Well, it's official; we're lost" said Corea "And the worst part, we can't call for help" Chewbacca growled. "I know; so much for being part of a team" She looked up at the trees. "Hmmm; I may not be able to use my jetpack here without burning everything, but this tree looks tall enough to help us have a good look around" She walked over to the tree and was about to climb it when she heard the crunch of a stick. She looked over in the direction it came from. "Hang on…that wasn't us" She pulled out her blaster and shot the direction the sound came from.
"AH!" exclaimed a voice. Suddenly, the body of a shadow stormtrooper materialized and collapsed on the ground. Corea walked up to it to examine it.
"Cloakers…" said Corea. She pulled out her other blaster and put her helmet on. "Be on guard; no matter whether they can disappear or not, stormtroopers always bring company" Chewbacca growled and got out his bowcaster. "I know; with the element of surprise, perhaps they could finally hit some—" Suddenly, a load of blaster fire erupted at them. Corea was shot twice which caused Chewbacca to growl angrily. He fired randomly them, which hit two shadow stormtroopers. He then grabbed Corea, leapt onto the tree, and climbed up. He groaned and nudged Corea slightly. "Uhhh…yeah, I'm fine, Chewie. Mandalorian iron absorbs and deflects pretty much anything; doesn't mean it can't hurt still" Suddenly, blaster bolts shot up at them from the ground. "But it looks like they're still not giving up" She pulled out a CryoBan grenade. "Let's see how those cloaking devices hold up against this" She dropped the grenade and it detonated upon landing on the ground, outlining several shadow stormtroopers in ice. "Alright, Chewie; let's drop down!" Chewbacca let go and landed on top of one, crushing it. Corea dropped out of his arms and the tow of them began shooting down the shadow stormtroopers. "I think we've got all of them"
"AH!" exclaimed a voice. The dead body of a shadow stormtrooper flew towards them and landed at their feet.
"That's not good" said Corea. At that moment, a large creature burst out from the undergrowth. Chewbacca growled and pointed his bowcaster at the creature.
"No, wait!" said Corea as she pulled the bowcaster downwards. As the creature slowed down, it revealed itself to be a Mantellian Savrip who held a large staff which appeared to have been made out of tree branches stuck together with vines. The Savrip turned towards them, groaned, and made a few grunting noises and vocalizations. "What did he just say?" Chewbacca shrugged his shoulders. Suddenly, the Savrip lifted up his staff and slammed it down towards them. "Incoming!" The two of them rolled to either side as the staff slammed down on the ground. The Savrip made more vocalizations and growled. Chewbacca growled and pointed his bowcaster at the Savrip. "Wait, Chewie; drop it!" Chewbacca groaned in response. "I know, but I think it presumes us to be a threat; so drop the bowcaster" Chewbacca reluctantly put away his bowcaster. Corea put her blasters and pulled her helmet off. "Listen; I'm not sure if you can understand us or not, but we don't mean you any harm. Please, we don't mean any harm" The Savrip calmed down and lowered his staff.
"No harm?" said the Savrip.
"Wait, you speak Basic?!" exclaimed Corea.
"Crusher can speak Basic" replied the Savrip.
"So your name is Crusher?" asked Corea.
"Name Crusher, yes" replied Crusher.
"I know what you are, you're a Mantellian Savrip" said Corea "I've heard of your species. Who taught you to speak Basic?"
"The Mechanic taught Crusher to speak Basic" replied Crusher.
"The Mechanic?" asked Corea "Is he with the Empire?"
"Empire?" snarled Crusher "No! Empire hurt Crusher!" It was then that Corea noticed that his right foot appeared to be a simply constructed cybernetic one, which would explain why he needed the staff.
"Wait, the Empire did this to you?" asked Corea.
"Empire hurt Crusher" replied Crusher "Mechanic find Crusher like this and fix Crusher, make Crusher better. Are you with Empire?"
"No, we're not with the Empire" replied Corea "In fact we're fighting against them" Crusher lowered his head down and sniffed her.
"You Human" said Crusher "Humans with Empire. You look like Humans with the Empire. Empire hurt Crusher and everything else! Empire destroy trees and burn ground! Empire evil! Empire bad!"
"I know that I'm Human, but we're not with the Empire" said Corea "Please, you have to believe me" Crusher snorted and grabbed hold of both her and Chewbacca and started walking off.
"Where are you takin us?" asked Corea.
"Crusher take you to Mechanic" said Crusher "Mechanic know things of the world. Mechanic know whether you're Empire or not"
Meanwhile
"What have you found out about it?" asked Sitra whilst examining the remains of the driller on a medical table.
"From what we've uncovered, it appears to have been controlled remotely" replied a rebel medic "Its key offensives appears to be its lasers and its claws, along with a variety of other weapons. From what we've been able to make out, it also appears to have been designed to drill underground to travel faster"
"That must have been how they took us by surprise" said Sitra "I've never seen the Empire design anything like this before"
"It's like a big metal spider" said Alarnaa.
"Do you think we should move camp?" asked Acashto.
"They'd probably still chase after us" replied Sitra "But you're right in one respect, we're still sitting ducks here. We'll have to move to more uneven ground where they'll find it hard to drill"
Meanwhile
As dusk fell, two rebel troopers stood guard and watched carefully.
"Have you seen anything yet?" asked the first rebel trooper.
"Not yet, but we'll be ready for them" replied the second rebel trooper.
"Have you heard back from anyone else?" asked the first rebel trooper.
"I'm not sure why they would attack like that" said the second rebel trooper "I mean, that's just asking for—" Suddenly, a swift and silent laser bolt shot through him and killed him within an instant.
"What the—" exclaimed the first rebel trooper shortly before getting shot himself. The shot had come from a single driller who stood alone on the hill.
Meanwhile
An Imperial pilot sat at the controls of the driller with Cronos standing beside him.
"That's all the guards done" said the Imperial pilot.
"With the Rebels on guard, we're able to kill them easier and weaken their defenses" said Cronos "We'll ready the rest of the pilots. The real battle begins now"
Meanwhile
Han walked across the bridge, with no foreseeable end in sight. It was then that the distinct sound of a kloo horn hit the air.
"What the heck?" said Han as he stopped walking. Off in the distance he could hear distant footsteps. As the footsteps got closer, a large but somewhat humanoid figure materialized from the mist. As the figure got closer, it revealed itself to be a large male Rodisar with his eyes closed and playing a kloo horn. When he finally reached Han, he stopped, lowered the kloo horn from his mouth, and opened his eyes.
"Well, well, well; I never thought I'd find one of you out here" said the Rodisar.
"Neither did I" replied Han.
"So; what are you doing here, little man?" asked Rodisar.
"I'm…well; to cut it short, I'm lost" replied Han "Just stepped away from one hell of a stampede that almost killed me and now I'm walking across this bridge to get away from the mist and see if I can find the rest of my group"
"You're walking in the wrong direction" replied the Rodisar.
"Excuse me?" said Han.
"Nothing but mist back there" replied the Rodisar "Why do you think I'd take the risk of walking on this precarious rope bridge if everything was safe back there" There was a short silence as Han thought about what to say next.
"Anyways; regardless of what's on the other side, I've really got to get going and this bridge seems to be my only way acro—"
"Eh; you don't want to go back there" said the Rodisar "Nothing on the other side except that damn battle that's going on"
"Really?" said Han sarcastically "Well; too bad, I'm still going that way"
"But I'm going this way" said the Rodisar.
"Then just walk backwards until we reach the other side" said Han.
"No way!" said the Rodisar "It took me almost five hours to get to this point, there's no way I'm going back"
"Then why don't you step aside?" said Han.
"Step aside?" said the Rodisar "On a rope bridge? Do you know how far that fall is?"
"Well; unless you can miraculously learn how to float in midair, then I suggest walking backwards" said Han.
"Why am I the one who has to move?" said the Rodisar "Why can't you be the one who does something? Why don't you dangle underneath the bridge or climb over me"
"That seems like a bit too much" said Han.
"Oh right, I forgot; you're Human" said the Rodisar.
"And what is that supposed to mean?" said Han "Because unless I am much mistaken, you used the word Human as if it were a defect"
"Are you kidding me?" said the Rodisar "HA! Humans; you're small, physically weak, have no claws or sharp teeth, no advanced senses, no major fur or scales. How evolution went easy on you, I'll never know. Do yourself a favor and stay in Worlport next time"
"Listen; I'd love to continue on with this incredibly interesting conversation on archaeology and what not, but I've got to get going" said Han whilst pulling out his blaster "So if you don't mind, walk back the way you came"
"By Nal Hutta!" said the Rodisar.
"Yeah, that's right" said Han "What's the point of being what evolution deems physically right if you're afraid of a fight"
"No, it's not about that" said the Rodisar "It's about what you're holding in your hand. A DH-44 heavy blaster pistol; you'd seriously call that a blaster?"
"Yes, actually" replied Han.
"HA!" laughed the Rodisar "I bet you couldn't hit a dead bantha with that if I laid it in front of your foot"
"It may be small, but it packs a punch" said Han "At the end of the day, that's what really matters"
"Small blaster equals small shots" said the Rodisar.
"What's your name then: "Mr. Big Shot"?" said Han.
"It's Mugger, actually" said the Rodisar "And my point is; that's not a blaster…" He pulled out a large rotary blaster from his back. "…this is a blaster!"
"A Z-6 rotary blaster cannon, unless I am much mistaken" said Han "Nah; those things cause unnecessary ruckus and go everywhere. I prefer a more precise shot"
"At least it could be called "impressive"" said Mugger "I've never seen anyone call a SH-44 impressive"
"You obviously never followed me before" smirked Han.
"Still; by the time you shoot me with one shot, I'll have already put a thousand in you" said Mugger "Can your DH-44 do that?"
"You're talking about blaster shots, right?" smirked Han.
"What else would I be talking about?" said Mugger "Or is that too complex for your tiny Human brain to wrap around?"
"Tiny Human brain?" said Han "Tiny blaster? Are we just going to spend all day going on about how everything I have is tiny? I've got a rep to keep up"
"Perhaps you should never have taken it out to begin with" said Mugger "You've got no one to blame but yourself"
"Oh yeah?" said Han "At least it's good at one thing"
"And what's that?" asked Mugger. At that moment, Han shot his kloo horn and it fell down into the mist in pieces"
"That" smirked Han.
"Eh!" snapped Mugger "That was an antique copy of Figrin D'an's kloo horn!"
"You know, I never pictured you as a collector" smirked Han.
"You just crossed the line, buddy!" snapped Mugger.
"Oh yeah, what you gonna' do about that?" smirked Han. Suddenly, Mugger fired countless shots at him using his rotary blaster, causing the smuggler to duck down. "Oh, that…" He shot up and shot several shots at Mugger, who ducked from the shots and fired some more. It was then that the bridge began to creak. The two them noticed that the ropes for the bridge had been badly damaged and were about to snap. "Now you've done it!"
"It was your fault!" snapped Mugger. Suddenly, the rope snapped and sent the two of them plummeted towards the mist below as they held onto the bridge's remnants for safety.
Meanwhile
Sitra watched as a HWK-290 light freighter lifted off and flew away. At that moment, a rebel trooper ran up to her.
"General, I have urgent news…" said the rebel trooper "Wait, where have those two gone?"
"Who do you mean?" asked Sitra.
"The Togrutas" replied the rebel trooper "Where have they gone?"
"They wanted to see their sister again, so I allowed them to go on a task that would enable them to see their sister again" said Sitra "Why do you ask that?"
"Because we need everyone we can get" replied the rebel trooper "I went out with my partner to begin our guard duty shift, only to find the ones we were supposed to be replacing had already been killed"
"Killed?" said Sitra "By what?"
"We had no idea until my partner got shot" replied the rebel trooper "Then I saw them…they're back….the Imperial—" Suddenly, he was shot. Sitra looked over and saw the approaching drillers.
"By the Force!" exclaimed Sitra. She ignited her lightsaber and ran back to base. "Everyone, this is General Sitra. Prepare yourselves, we're under attack; the Imperials are back!"
Meanwhile
Luke and Ahsoka traversed the wilderness of Ord Mantell in an attempt to reach higher ground. It was then that a faint rustle in the bushes was heard which caused Luke to turn around and look at it.
"I can sense something" said Luke "Someone's here"
"I sense it too" said Ahsoka "We're being watched"
"Let's get out of here" said Luke as he turned around, only to find Ga'llaa standing in front of him with his blade pointed towards his chest.
"Hello again, Jedi" said Ga'llaa.
"Ga'llaa!" said Luke "What are you doing here?"
"I am here to take both of you away" replied Ga'llaa. With a swift sprint, he pulled off both Luke and Ahsoka's lightsabers within an instant.
"Hey!" exclaimed Ahsoka.
"I'd recommend you come willingly" said Ga'llaa "I am instructed to bring you back alive, and I would prefer to do it in one piece" At that moment, Luke extended his hand out and summoned his lightsaber to himself, only for Ga'llaa to catch it in midair. Fortunately, Ahsoka joined in and the lightsaber flew back into his hand and he ignited it. "So you have chosen to come by combat" He extended his blades out. "I'll do my best not to harm you"
"You don't have to try hard" smirked Luke. Ga'llaa leapt at him and Luke blocked him out using his lightsaber, seeing that the blades could stand up against his lightsaber's blade. "What the!?" Ga'llaa leapt back. "Your blades…my lightsaber couldn't cut them!"
"Your lightsaber cannot damage my blades" said Ga'llaa "With the firepower removed, all that's left to this battle is skill" He leapt at Luke and again and the two began to duel.
Meanwhile
"How far are we now?" asked Corea.
"Not long" replied Crusher as he walked up a large hill "Mechanic nearby" As he reached the top of the hill, Corea and Chewbacca looked out over at what lay in front of them. A vast and barren landscape filled with the remains of crumbling buildings and destroyed Starfighters and starships. Chewbacca growled.
"I know, Chewie" said Corea "The Scraplands" Crusher moved downhill towards the scraplands.
Meanwhile
"I always had faith in the drillers" said Cronos.
"Killing the rebels just became a whole lot easier when they can't kill you back" said the Imperial pilot.
"Do not get too overconfident" said Cronos "Just because they can't kill you doesn't mean they cannot beat you. Stay on the task"
Meanwhile
Sitra deflected the lasers from the drillers before taking cover behind a group of crates. At that moment, a Lucas Keyes ran over to her side.
"Lucas, what is our progress?" asked Sitra.
"We're still no closer to defeating these things" replied Lucas "What are your orders, general?"
"There has to be some way to stop them" said Sitra. She peered over the crates at the battle. "Do we have any fuel in the base?"
"I think there's some still in the base" replied Lucas.
"Get everyone out of here as soon as I give the order" said Sitra "Make sure everyone gets out except for one hailfire droid. Leave one behind"
"What's the plan?" asked Lucas.
"We're going to take all of them out at once" replied Rachi Sitra.
Meanwhile in the Scraplands
Inside the remains of a crashed Munificent-class star frigate sat a turquoise male Rodian with a pair of goggles who was tinkering with some devices. At that moment, a Savrip entered the ship.
"Crusher returning" said the Savrip. The Rodian lifted up his goggles and turned around.
"Take me to him" said the Rodian whilst placing the goggles back onto his head.
Meanwhile
As Crusher moved throughout the scraplands, he entered an area filled with makeshift tents (some of which were attached to the starship remains).
"Welcome to Savrip village, I assume" said Corea. All around them stood both male and female Savrips of different ages. When Crusher reached the Munificent-class starship's remains, he placed both her and Chewbacca down.
"This Mechanic's workshop" said Crusher. At that moment, the Rodian emerged from the starship with the other Savrip.
"You wanted me, Crusher?" said the Rodian.
"I'm going to assume you're the Mechanic" said Corea.
"What; a Mandalorian!" exclaimed the Rodian "You brought back a Mandalorian?!"
"Mandalorians bad?" asked Crusher.
"Mandalorians have done bad things, yes" replied the Rodian "I lost an uncle to one of them once"
"Look, listen; I know what this must look like" said Corea whilst pulling off her helmet "But I don't mean you any harm?"
"And why should I listen to you?" said the Rodian whilst pulling a blaster from his holster.
"Okay, I get it" said Corea. She pulled the blasters from her belt, dropped them on the ground, and slid them across to the Rodian. "See, I'm unarmed"
"And why should I trust you?" asked the Rodian "For all I know, you could be carrying more weapons"
"Look, please listen to me" said Corea "We're both lost and got separated from our group. This area's crawling with Imperials so—"
"Not this area" replied the Rodian "This area is so inhospitable and spooky that the Imps leave it alone; lady, you've just stepped into the one place on Ord Mantell where the Empire won't follow"
"Okay, yeah" said Corea "But still, I don't want to be a problem. We're just passing through in hopes of finding our friends. All we ask is that you allow us to stay until we find a way to find them" There was a short and sullen silence.
"Come inside" said the Rodian as he turned around.
"Wait, what about me being a Mandalorian?" asked Corea.
"True; but there's only one of you" said the Rodian "And even the toughest Mandalorian wouldn't stand a chance against this many Mantellian Savrips alone, even with a Wookiee backing them up"
"I think you underestimate our chances; eh, Chewie?" smirked Corea sarcastically. Chewbacca huffed.
Meanwhile
Sitra force-lifted a fuel canister and slowly placed it with the others just outside the base and out of sight.
"Lucas, it's time to leave" said Sitra into her comlink "Remember to leave one hailfire droid behind"
"What about you?" asked Lucas through her comlink.
"I'm handling this" replied Sitra.
"Wait, you're not coming with us?" asked Lucas.
"I never said that" replied Sitra "Just make sure the area is cleared as soon as possible"
"Yes general" replied Lucas.
Meanwhile
The rebel vehicles started moving away from the base.
"What are they trying to do?" said the Imperial pilot.
"It doesn't matter" said Cronos "If they're really trying to escape, don't let them"
"Wait!" said a voice. The Imperial pilot turned the controls to view Rachi Sitra who was approaching the drillers.
"What is she doing?" said Cronos.
"Take me" said Sitra. She pulled the lightsaber from her belt and dropped it on the ground in front of herself. She then kneeled on the ground. "Take my life and spare the rest"
"Is she being serious?" said the Imperial pilot.
"Even if she is, this too great an opportunity not to pass up" said Cronos "We'll make it look like we're going along with it and then turn on her troops. Put all the drillers' focus on her"
"Yes general" said the Imperial pilot.
Meanwhile
The drillers all turned towards Rachi Sitra and charged their lasers up. Suddenly, Rachi Sitra summoned her lightsaber to her hand, force-gripped all of the fuel canisters at once, and threw them at the lone hailfire droid. They all exploded on impact, destroying all of the drillers in the process. Rachi Sitra sprinted out of the way just as the explosion struck.
Meanwhile
The control monitor went haywire as all of the drillers destroyed.
"No!" exclaimed the Imperial pilot "That blasted Jedi! You said you had faith in—"
"I said I had faith in the drillers, not you" said Cronos.
"And what's that supposed to mean?" asked the Imperial pilot.
"It means that even the most full-proof and impervious weapon can be brought down by a single flaw" replied Cronos "One which all weapons share"
"And what's that?" asked the Imperial pilot.
"Its wielder" replied Cronos "We'll have try something more subtle"
Meanwhile
As Luke and Ga'llaa dueled, Ahsoka peered out at her lightsaber which still hung from Ga'llaa's belt. She attempted to summon it to her but found it hard to since Ga'llaa was moving.
"We don't have to do this, Ga'llaa" said Luke "There must be another way"
"That we can both agree on!" snapped Ga'llaa. He pushed Luke back until Luke lost his footing and fell off a ledge, grabbing ahold of it just in time.
"No!" exclaimed Ahsoka. Ga'llaa walked over to the ledge and looked down at Luke, who looked utterly helpless. He then kneeled down, extended his arm down towards him, and pulled him up.
"Uh…thanks" said Luke "But aren't we supposed to be fighting against each other?"
"If I let you fall, it would merely be a coward's victory" said Ga'llaa "I may have my orders and they come first; but if we are to resolve this in a fight, I will intend to truly earn it. We may be enemies for being on opposing sides, but sometimes enemies can show respect" He then clashed with Luke again. As the fight raged on, Ahsoka took a deep breath in, closed her eyes, and extended her hand out slowly, putting her full concentration on her lightsaber. The lightsaber suddenly swung up and pointed desperately towards her, being hindered back by the belt it was attached to. Ga'llaa was too preoccupied fighting to notice. Suddenly, the lightsaber was ripped from his belt and swung back into Ahsoka's hand, which she ignited and joined in on the fight.
"What took you?" asked Luke.
"Needed full concentration, that's all" smirked Ahsoka. Ga'llaa pushed them both back viciously.
"I'll give you one last chance" said Ga'llaa "Surrender and come willingly"
"You can't do that" said Ahsoka.
"I had hoped you would see reason" said Ga'llaa "But it seems I'll have to drag you there myself. You're coming with me, whether you like it or not!" Suddenly, a bright light appeared in front of them, causing him to cover his eyes at its sight. Hovering down before them was
"Commander Skywalker, Commander Tano; I have come to pick you up" said a female voice through an intercom from HWK-290 light freighter "Get in here now!"
"Do you think they're with the Alliance?" asked Luke.
"It's either the ship or him, take your pick" replied Ahsoka. She and Luke ran over to the ship and leapt aboard it. It took off and flew away.
"Come back here!" snarled Ga'llaa "Cowards!"
Meanwhile
Luke and Ahsoka entered the ship's cockpit, where a Human woman with brown eyes and dark brown hair sat at the controls. Her outfit was jumpsuit like and was varying shades of brown and she wore her hair in a ponytail with a pair of goggles on the top of her head.
"Good thing I arrived just in time" said the woman "Things looked pretty bad for you there"
"Who are you?" asked Luke.
"I was sent by General Sitra to pick you up" replied the woman. She reached across to extend her hand out towards them. "Jan Ors, Alliance Intelligence"
"Luke Skywalker, Jedi Order…I guess" said Luke whilst shaking her hand.
"Ahsoka Tano, same" said Ahsoka.
"Welcome to the Moldy Crow" said Jan "Better get yourselves cozy; we've got a quick pickup to make"
"Who are we picking up?" asked Luke.
"The other two who were sent to find you" replied Jan.
Author's note: The meeting between Han and Mugger was a homage of the meeting between Samurai Jack and the Scotsman.
Hellman76: I might add them to the Alliance roster.