Barriss Offee wasn't quite sure what had happened to bring them to this point.
Even though she was now a Jedi General, battle still made her uncomfortable. Her job was always after the battle was done, when wounds needed to be bound and healed. The idea of rehabilitatory patrols had been her idea. Bred and born to work, the clones were always restless when forced to recover in hospital beds. As soon as they were on their feet, they could be sent out in simple crews to patrol usually peaceful worlds. It was excellent for morale, and a practical part of their therapy. Barriss was quite proud of how well the program had turned out.
Nexu Company was one of the better ones she had been assigned to shepherd around. All of them worked well together, and all of them had similar injuries thanks to a missile blast to their transport on Geonosis. But the lake country of Naboo was pleasant for a simple patrol. There had been a few odd radio signals, and after the Blue Shadow Virus scare, Naboo was happy to have a truly Republic presence in the countryside, however briefly. A few days of camping, helping the soldiers learn to cope with their injuries, and pleasant scenery. Almost a vacation. Barriss had been looking forward to it for weeks.
...until the first shot.
The Council had not informed her about the mounting evidence against Palpatine, some of it pointing to a cache of secret Sith knowledge hidden on Naboo itself. Neither did she know that the Separatists were starting to splinter as Apprentice turned against Master in a desperate grab for power. All Barriss knew is that Nexu Company had suddenly been tossed into the middle of battle.
"Jex, Blu, get behind me -" Her lightsaber spun in front of her, and two clones, one of them limping, dove for cover. The lush plains of the lake country didn't provide much in the way of rocks or trees to hide behind, but there was at least a grassy hillock for the moment. "Grey!" She cried out as one of the troopers scrambling up the hill towards them went down.
"Zek's down too - " Barriss could almost hear the clone gritting his teeth in anxiousness as he looked to her for a command. "Orders, General?"
Two solid lines of super battle droids were marching towards them in lock-step. Barriss could hear her heart thudding in her ears. After working with Nexu Company for the last month, helping them recover as a unit, there was only one choice in her mind. A Jedi's life was about sacrifice. Perhaps her lightsaber would only be able to slice through a few of the droids with their thick plating, but it would at least buy the clones a bit of time. She took a deep breath, standing up -
And the first battle droid went down in a shower of sparks.
Barriss' eyes widened, while the clones watched in amazement, assigning the kill to some secret droid prowess. The droids themselves glanced side to side confusedly, and then another shot hit, going smoothly through three - head, chest, legs. Barriss ducked down behind cover once again as the droids started firing wildly into the air, trying to figure the trajectory of the shooter. It was just enough time for someone to line up another perfect shot.
"Sir - General Offee, sir -" Barriss nodded, showing that Blu had her attention. "Those are slugthrower rounds. Specialized armor-piercing ones. All of that type of munitions would have to be acquired through the Republic military."
"So there's one of ours out there?" She questioned in a whisper, and he nodded.
Another shot. The last two droids fell. Someone was being meticulous and precise. A shot that missed was completely out of the question: likely the shooter considered that it was a loss when he only hit one target instead of several. It was almost showy in its prowess.
Barriss gingerly stood, looking around warily as if she expected another shot coming for her. But the sniper was indeed on their side. "Blu, go see about Zek..." She paused a moment more before diving to go check on another one of the fallen clone troopers. "Grey?" He groaned when she shook his shoulder, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Injured, but still alive. One of the others paced forward, standing on top of the hillock to get a clearer view of the surrounding countryside, raising his binoculars. Reconniasance would be Jerjod's problem. Right now, her problem was Grey. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the Force flowing around him. Every injury was a tangle, and she could work on smoothing it. Right now it was enough to stop the bleeding, and keep Gray insulated from some of the pain.
The wind picked up once more. It was a pleasant day out in the lake country, and the view was stunning. An odd calm settled over the battlefield. Aside from the wounded soldiers and destroyed battle droids, it would have made a classic pastoral scene.
"Sir - I think I've found our sniper's nest."
She murmured a few words of comfort to Gray, even though the clone trooper was unconscious, before standing up. "That, in the distance? It's... a farmhouse?" Jerjod handed her his binoculars, and she squinted through them. A small pen in the backyard, a numa-house within it; vegetables planted in long straight rows; green fruit hanging on trees. There was even a small swingset - children lived there. The house itself was nestled securely in the gently rolling hills, but there was still the muzzle of a sniper rifle peeking out of one of the top windows. As soon as she found the dial to try and zoom in and identify whoever had helped them, they quickly drew back in the window, drawing the curtains and only leaving Barriss with a view of fluttering cloth.
"Think we can get the injured moved there?"
Jerjod nodded. "We can carry Gray and Zek. If you think it's safe, sir..."
"We need to have proper shelter for tonight," Barriss murmured, nodding. "At the very least. It'll be better to camp in their garden than out in the open, even if they don't have any room." She ran a tongue along her teeth in thought. There was something in the Force... almost a pull, drawing her towards the house. A bright point of light, a nexus of power. Completely unexpected in the middle of the quiet Naboo lake country.
"Help me bandage Grey's side, Jerjod. Then... we'll go meet our friendly sniper."