The gunship landed with a jolt that had Kara depending on the Force to keep her balance, but still managed to leap off the ship on Sergeant Blaze's heels. At first glance, the moon wasn't the most impressive place, seeming to be a reddish-brown desert with outcroppings of rocks, some of which were black and others almost silver. The lack of confirmed plant life should make her job easier, she reflected as she got out of the way of the troopers moving around, while ignoring her shadow, a pair of Troopers she thought were Shy and Tiny, but wasn't sure.
Assured that she was within a reasonable distance of her people, but out of the way, she sank into the Force, allowing the warmth of it to flood through her and wiping away the edge of tiredness she'd been dealing with. Her troopers were bright spots to her left, filled with the purpose of their tasks. She could even sense when Captain Zip came over to address her, and she held up a single hand to stall him. Her immediate surroundings identified, Kara sent her perceptions outward in a spiral pattern.
Her master had had a knack for finding lost things, a skill that he had taught to Kara over the course of their twelve-year association. It wasn't anything specific, just scanning for life on the moon, and then seeing the patterns and emotional flares associated with it. She found three groups of possible troopers easily, two of them had a fear edged sense of purpose to them as they moved towards each other, a sense of order and pattern that felt like it could be martial. The third group was more panic than purpose, and even as she touched on them, she winced to feel as part of the group flared and died.
Droids were a lot more difficult to trace in the Force directly, but they created certain ripples that she was still learning to recognize. It looked like the third group was facing droids, but she wasn't going to swear to that one. She moved her senses onward, if the life she'd found before were hearth fires, then General Secura would be a bonfire. That was her task now.
As she swept her senses behind her, opposite the other groups, she found her bonfire. General Secura was as distinct in the Force as a Jedi, and from the concentration and protective concern, Kara knew the other Jedi was fighting something, probably a droid squad.
Kara blinked slowly, bringing herself back to awareness, listening to the troopers moving around and allowing the noise to draw her back to her body. She turned to find Zip waiting with Tiny and Rusty and nodded, unwilling to even try to smile now.
"Base is set up," Captain Zip said, stepping forward, "we're preparing to begin our search grids."
Kara nodded, "Keep your grids, but I sense three groups of life forms in that direction," she pointed. "Do we have a map?"
"Here, sir," Zip gestured, "it's not much."
"It's enough," Kara replied as she followed him to a folding table under an awning. She leaned forward and stared down at the map for a moment, comparing it to what she'd sensed. Then pointed, "Two groups were here and here, and if what I could detect is accurate, they're actively moving to link up together. The third was here," she touched what the topography said was a canyon, "They're under attack, troopers or no." She glanced at Zip and tilted her head, "Feel free to send a squad out there, Captain. I mean, your choice, but feel free." She pointed to her last point, "General Secura is there and in combat. That's where I'm going."
"Sergeant Blaze is unloading the speeder bikes now," Captain Zip said contemplatively. "I'll send two squadrons after the people in combat, and the third after the other two."
Kara nodded, "I didn't get a sense of any lone lifeforms really, for a supposedly inhabited moon, it's rather devoid of life." She looked around pensively, "Makes me wonder what they were up to around here."
"It isn't our job to investigate, sir," Zip said carefully.
Kara smiled at him, "You're right. I'll just make a note in the report. I'm sure someone will be interested."
"Captain, General," Blaze said, approaching and saluting.
"Yes Sergeant?" Zip asked as Kara looked at the map again, scanning the symbols between her and General Secura. She wished she was better at remembering what it all meant.
"Speeders are ready to go, sir," Blaze said.
Kara straightened up then and looked at the Sergeant, "And do we have the necessary supplies?"
"Yes sir," Blaze said.
Kara nodded, and turned to Zip, "Captain, I leave this in your capable hands. Remember, you have until General Secura is on a ship and I return here to finish your mission."
"Yes sir," Zip said and saluted.
This time, Kara saluted him in return and turned to the Sergeant, "Let's go. We may not have much time."
The speeders were new and black. Kara rested her hand on her bike for a moment before she mounted, prepped the speeder, and hit the ignition. The bike released a sickly growl, shuddered, and then coughed. Kara blinked, checked the gauges and switches, then hit the ignition again. The bike unleashed a screaming whine like a dying beast and Kara threw herself off the bike, rolling away as fast as she could get the Force to push her. At what seemed to be a safe distance, she turned to look at the bike.
The bike was sparking and smoking, shaking enough that even the other Troopers were backing away in alarm. Kara realized that it was, in fact, going to explode and shoved with the Force, punting the bike into the air where it disappeared in a brilliant fireball.
"Kriffing hell," she swore, using the Force to direct the pieces away from the camp.
"Are you all right sir?"
Kara blinked at the Trooper who had appeared beside her, "I'm fine," she managed and began to stand up. The Trooper, she realized by the red symbols on his collar bone, was Bones, their medic. He reached out his hand and she took his help gratefully. Once on her feet she brushed herself off, checking physically and in the Force for any damage. "I'll have a bruise on my calf later," she said finally, "banged it on the seat."
"If you're sure," Bones said.
"We need to move," Kara said, "when we get to the Retrieval, you can take a look at it." She turned, "Sergeant, in the interest of time, I'll need to ride double with someone. From what I could sense, the General is under attack."
"I'm lightest," one of the Troopers said, "you can ride with me." Kara glanced at him and realized it was the doubter from the hanger bay. Someone had carefully painted silver edging to the front of his helmet, outlying the T-slit and angles.
"You sure about that?" Kara asked.
"I'm sure, sir," the Trooper replied.
"All right," Kara said. "Let's go." She walked over and swung up behind the Trooper, resting her hands on his shoulders for a moment, as she turned to the Sergeant. "General Secura is in that direction," she pointed, "and there were others with her. I'm not sure how far out, and I don't think we can maintain a straight line, but that's where we want to go. I'll keep checking it, and I'll let you know if we need to correct our course."
"Yes sir," Blaze said as he half rose on his bike, "Knight Squad, let's move out."
Kara grabbed for the Trooper's waist as the bike accelerated, clenching her teeth on the desire to yell in delight. She loved speeder bikes, for all that she rarely got to actually use one. She was a competent pilot of most space craft, trained enough to use them if need be, but lacking the skill that had marked some of her fellow Padawan. Speeder bikes, on the other hand, she loved. There was something about racing in the open air on the narrow craft that felt freeing. Even as a passenger, she felt the soaring joy that always characterized such trips.
It wasn't until they dropped off a rise that she remembered her task. She firmed her grip on the Trooper, ducked her head until there was no wind smacking her in the face and reached out. Up ahead was the bonfire that was the General, still bright and powerful, although dimmer than before as the General tired.
For the most part, they were able to shoot straight for the General, and Kara could tell they were getting closer rapidly, but she still fretted about the time it took. She was wondering if she should try to let General Secura know they were coming when danger alarms shot through her from the Force, spurring her into instinctive action. She sprang from the speeder quickly, twisting to redirect momentum as she lit her lightsaber, deflecting a hail of blaster bolts back towards their attackers before she had even landed.
The Troopers were stopping and firing back, but Kara couldn't worry about them. Not when she had bolts to deflect and shooters to locate.
Just as she'd located the origin of the blaster fire, Kara was thrown out of the half-trance by someone pulling her down behind a boulder. "Are you hurt?" Her driver demanded.
"Fine," Kara replied, "what the hell?"
"It's generally considered good tactics to take cover when people are shooting at you," the Trooper said.
"Good tactics?" Kara repeated, glancing up the cliff at the emplacement. "Good tactics would be to make them stop shooting all together."
"None of us have more than our blasters ready," the Trooper said.
"Of for," Kara said, "Look, Trooper- "
"Chip," the Trooper said quickly.
"What?" Kara asked.
"My name," the Trooper said hesitantly, "it's Chip."
Kara stared, wishing she could see her companion's face in that moment. She'd gotten the sense that names were important to the troops, but this was something else.
A blaster shot hit the boulder they were crouched behind, yanking Kara back to the present. She took a deep breath, "Chip, I need you with me, all right? We have to take down that emplacement."
"We don't have jet packs," Chip said.
"No, we have a Jedi," Kara said. I can get you up there, but it's not going to be a comfortable feeling. Are you in?"
Chip was silent for a long moment, and then he nodded, "I'm in."
"Good," Kara said. She reached out in the Force to latch onto Chip, then she sent him into the air towards the emplacement, staying still long enough to watch him land on a ledge just below the emplacement, then she raced forward, leaping up to join him in seconds. "Everything all right, Chip?" She asked as she leaned into the ledge.
"Next time, a little warning would be nice," Chip said, his voice unsteady.
"I did warn you," Kara said, "are you good to move?"
"I'm good," Chip said after a moment.
"When we get up there, I'll shield, you shoot," Kara said. "I can keep you from getting hit."
"Right," Chip said.
They climbed the remaining distance together, finding a second ledge that allowed them to crouch just below the opening and ready their weapons. After a mutual three count, they surged into the ledge to find several droids waiting. Kara launched into a Shien kata as soon as she had her balance, blocking the droids as they turned to fire on her and her companion. Chip took a moment longer, but soon was returning fire from behind her defense. Between the two of them, they had the droids destroyed in minutes. The sudden silence that signified the end was deafening.
Then Chip turned to her, "Was that all of them, sir?"
"I think so," Kara replied. She hesitated a moment, "Droids are difficult to place in the Force because they are at the root a mechanical construct. We can use the Force to act and react to them, but they're machines, they don't have a Force presence. I don't have any warnings of danger, like I did earlier, and even that alarm has faded. We should return to the Squad."
"How?" Chip asked. He paused and seemed to remember where they were and why, "Sir?"
"Same way we got up," Kara said. She smiled impishly at Chip, "I promise, if you jump, I'll catch you."
Chip glanced at the edge of the ledge for a moment, then looked at her, then nodded. "Yes, General." He moved to the ledge and jumped. Kara wrapped the Force around him, almost cradling him as he dropped to the ground. Once she was sure he'd made it, she took a running leap off the ledge herself, throwing her arms out and letting the Force carry her down.
The other troopers were gathered around the speeder bikes, and Kara noticed that they'd lost three. Then she did a headcount and realized someone was missing, as she looked around she saw him. Shy was lying on the ground near a broken rock. It took her a moment to realize that he was lying in a pool of blood. She hadn't noticed him dying, not while she was focused on their opponent. It disturbed something deep inside her for a moment, but she put it aside to focus on the rest of her men.
"Are there any rites we need to observe for Shy?" She asked as she approached him.
"Rites, sir?" Blaze asked hesitantly.
"Funerary rites, for the fallen?" Kara replied. "Is there a way that you honor the victorious dead?"
"No," Blaze said slowly, "we don't."
Kara nodded once, "All right. We should go then. There will be a service when we return to the Retrieval. We will remember those we lose." She walked over to Chip's bike and swung up behind him. "General Secura is somewhere down this canyon. She's still fighting, so there will be more droids ahead. Be mindful of further ambushes. Let's move out."
"Yes sir," the Troops replied and mounted their bikes.
Kara settled her hands at Chip's waist and reached for the Force, finding comfort in the familiar warmth as she grieved for a man she hadn't gotten a chance to know.