"You cannot be bloody serious." Jassin said angrily into the comlink. Cael would not be popular when we came back. "I mean, I can see the bloody thing. We could open fire on it if we wanted to." Jassin barely managed to keep his mouth shut to hear the reply. It was twelve o'clock and we had found a clearing that gave us a nice overview of the garrison. I immediately jumped onto channel C-09 to see if Braelor had any update, but the channel was empty and silent. I waited until I was out of earshot to speak. I was hoping he had some information about Cael's change of heart.

"Braelor." I said into my comlink, before Jassin could release his rage again. For once in his life, Shaz knew to shut up. Melia was no more than two metres away from him. After my words of warning, she had kept an eye on him. I knew Shaz was a charming man on the surface, but give him a knife and let him loose on a squad of enemies... It would take a full lab of specialists to tell one from the other. "Braelor." I said again, checking my chrono. He should be up by now. Perhaps he was busy flying supplies from Mandalore. I stayed on the channel for five minutes listening for signs of life as well as to Jassin's raging.

"Do you really mean to tell me that I should pull back?" He asked. The reply was so loud everyone could hear it.

"Get your shebse moving before tear you a new one!" Cael shouted. The order to haul ass was not something to disobey.

"May I ask the reason for it?" Jassin asked after regaining at least some measure of calm. It was not visible unless you knew the man. He received his answer and stepped into the forest to someplace he would not be easily heard. "Make sure the garrison doesn't go anywhere!" He ordered before he vanished.

"Right!" I said, assuming authority. " Shaz, you take Loback and Qill and set up a forward perimeter. I want to know if something is coming. Calo, climb a tree and get your binoculars out. I want an overlook over the garrison at least. The rest of you, back into the forest and fan out along the treeline." No one bothered questioning me and everyone put down their backpacks behind the treeline and followed my orders.

"Where do I fit in sir?" Melia asked, giving me a fake salute.

"You stay within two metres of me." I said, and loaded a power-cell into my rifle.

"Yes sir!" She saluted me again and settled in against a tree-trunk. Looking up, I saw that Calo was about to reach a thick branch to settle in on. I heard a faint click as someone switched to the channel I was on.

"Erdal?" Braelor asked.

"I'm here." I replied. "Shit is going down Braelor, or should I say not going down, what is going on back at base?"

"I have a feeling there won't be too many recruits for the next few days." Braelor said.

"Recruits? What are you saying?"

"The plan was to recruit new soldiers from the surrounding villages." He explained quickly. "That was the cargo I was flying. The villages one the other hand has put our recruitment out of action for the most part. Seems like they have formed some sort of coalition to discuss the 'recruitment rights' we're asking them for." I cursed mentally.

"How many people know of this?"

"Everyone by now." Braelor answered. "Heard Cael shouting from his office... To Jassin?"

"Yeah."

"I'll call you back when I have more solid intel. Braelor out." He said and cut went off the channel. We both knew what speculation did to the minds of soldiers, and there was no need to speculate right now.

"Friend of yours?" Melia asked.

"I'll introduce him to you later. He likes playing cards." I said, and her eyes lit up. I let my eyes fall on the walls surrounding the garrison. It was walled on three sides, south, west and east. The northern side was fortified by a single lonely peak, no more than three hundred metres high. It was no doubt fortified, and the job was done professionally. "Calo! What do you see?" He did not answer at first.

"Not good things. I can tell you that much." Calo said slowly. "I see camouflaged emplacements embedded in the mountain, but they have hatches covering them." he went on

"Those metal hatches you see," Melia began, "hide E-WEBs and line-of-sight artillery." She said. Whistling loudly afterwards. "It would tear you guys a new one should you try anything." Calo threw a small branch down at her. "Hey!" She said, throwing the branch back up. She hit every branch on the way up, which was an achievement in itself. Calo however, remained unhurt.

"I hate to say it Erdal, but I think she's right."

"Can you tell how many cannons?" I asked.

"Two is for direct fire, there are two others, high-arc artillery." Melia said. "Those are not embedded in the mountain."

"You know I can't take what your word for it." I said, and thought hard. "If I remember correctly though. A full artillery platoon has four pieces." Calo nodded in agreement. "Do you see anti-aircraft emplacements?"

"They won't need it with that many E-WEBs." Calo answered and got a small notebook and pencil out. He noted the various emplacements, counted vehicles, height of the walls, estimated thickness, etc. He was a mechanic to the bone. Now his job consisted of tearing things down rather than building them up. These preparations would help him do just that, so I let him work in peace.

"Do you like playing cards?" Melia asked after being quiet for a good long while. Jassin was sure taking his time talking to Cael.

"When I am not losing." I answered. "I've played Braelor a few times. I'll let you play him sometime." I went on, and switched back to our usual channel. "Anything to report Shaz?"

"Nothing. It is as quiet as can be." He answered. "See anything new?"

"Nothing worth mentioning." I answered. "I'll fill you in face to face." Time passed quickly and after thirty minutes, Jassin came walking back, looking a little less angry than he had before. I met him, and Melia followed not far behind. "How did it go?"

"Recruitment has turned into a political quagmire," Jassin explained, "and it will take some time to clear. In the meantime. You, Trace, Calo and Quill will dig down right here and establish a proper overlook."

"How invasive are we allowed to be to the terrain?"

"Trenches and a pillbox." Jassin answered. "No more. Retreat if the enemy spots you."

"Yes sir." I said, giving him a mock-salute. It always lightened his mood. "Can Melia stay with us?"

"As long as you never let her out of your sight." He answered. "I would prefer it if you sent her back with Shaz. Were is he by the way?"

"I sent them forward to establish a perimeter." I said. Jassin nodded approvingly, and called them back. He barked out the new orders from Cael when everyone was assembled. Everyone was displeased at having marched for two days for nothing. "Get used to it." Jassin said, and Melia backed him up. "A select few will remain here. We will help them dig a small trench and a pillbox on top of it. Then we have a small caf-break before waving goodbye. Is that clear?"

A chorus went up "Yes sir." Those of us who had shovels started digging while the others cut branches and found logs to build the pillbox and support the trench-walls. The result was satisfying enough, at least to Jassin. It would keep out light rain, but not much more than that. The enemy would have a hard time spotting us though. Quill dug the latrine while Calo and I made the trench more comfortable, laying a floor of branches and we dug out a cold-pit. It really was redundant at this time of year, but you never knew. We also dug out spaces for sleeping. At the end of the day, it started to look quite homely. Before they left, Shaz came to talk.

"I hear you want Melia to stay." He said, leaning hard against the pillbox. "It seems to me like you've been getting the most of her company lately."

"That's because she likes me best." I said with a grin on my face.

"I just wanted to remind you that we own her together." He said, there was no hint of humour in his voice.

"Of course!" I answered, realizing I was on thin ice. "I just want her to get to know our culture a bit." I lied. "So she does not end up insulting more people around camp than she have to."

"Good point." Shaz said. "You're better at that culture-stuff than me." He said. "You keep her. Just stay away from my parts." He said, grinned and winked at me. Melia sat inside the pillbox behind me. "Don't miss me too much Melia." He said, and winked at her.

"That will not be a problem." She answered, her words were filled with lethal venom. She did not like Shaz at all. Probably thanks to me.

"I'll leave you two alone." He said and turned to follow the rest of the squad. The sun was still in the sky, so they could at least a few hours left to march before calling it a day. Trace lay in a bed already, cradling his weapons. Calo was up in his tree taking notes. There was nothing left to do, so I walked in and sat down by Melia's side. Quill was out hunting for dinner. He was only allowed knives to hunt with. It had originated as a bet/challenge and he had accepted. He had sworn to come back with some kind of animal called "bushtail", but he had left only thirty minutes ago. For now, there was only Mandalorians at the lookout. Jassin had named it Werd, Shadow, before we even started working.

"I hate him." Melia muttered under her breath, so low I barely heard it. She had good practice swearing at authority behind its back. I ignored it. "Are you going to convert me now?" Melia suddenly asked, turning her attention to me.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you not a religious group of crazy people?" She asked as if she had believed me when I told her that.

"I am not here to convert you." I said. "I just want to keep you away from Shaz." I explained. "But some cultural training could not hurt." I went on, and started thinking through a curriculum.

Gaver Village

The Polished Mug, Tavern

Three days later

"Can I count on your support then Elkanah?" Sai asked the young man sitting opposite of him at the table. The Mandalorian had been buying drinks all day, speaking to various representatives, elders and envoys all day. They were all green as grass when it came to this kind of negotiating. Elkanah thought hard. Sai had used all rhetorical skills and subterfuge at his command. Elkanah was a key player. At least three other villages would join if he did.

"You have it. As long as we can use your space-port for free." He said and held his hand forward. Sai shook it eagerly.

"That will be arranged." Sai answered. The elders and negotiators were all easy to deal with when you talked to them one on one. When they stood gathered as they did during official negotiations, they were hard to deal with. Unpredictable even. Karaz was working around the clock as well. He was working in one of the erected tents where the negotiators took their breaks. "A pleasure doing business with you." Sai said, and Elkanah got up and left. The tavern was hot and full. The air was stiff and heavy as well, but that was how Sai did his negotiations. It was easier to listen in in an empty locale. He had learned that the hard way. He turned the comlink on and spoke to Karaz. "Elkanah is in. How are things at your end?"

"Rafe and Sulley both pulled out. Seems like Old Woman Rendt got to them first." Karaz answered. Rafe and Sulley represented fairly small villages, but even they could cough up some much needed money and recruits.

"I'll talk have to talk to her then." Sai said, finishing his third ale for the day. It did not taste nearly as well as Mandalorian ne'tra gal. They made dark ale here as well, but it was far too bitter for his liking. Bottles with clear liquid stood on shelves behind the bar, but Sai did not even wish to taste the spirits the locals brewed. "Keep working through your half. Sai out." He said and got up. No one paid attention to the Mandalorians any more in Gaver. They still believed them to be bandits or mercenaries, but not the locals were playing cards with them and challenging them to drinking-games. They had blended in nicely. As Sai stepped out into the sunlight and drew his first breath of clean air in hours, he did a headcount. All in all there were thirteen villages having pledged their support already. Seven were still undecided, and the Kambay council was among those. The old lady, Rendt, was working hard against them. So far she had managed to get three villages to turn down the Sai and his offer. While she could not sway her own council, her words still bore weight with the other villages. Sai would have to take care of her, one way or another. She had not been in The Polished Tankard, so she was either in the village hall, working her magic there, or in one of the tents. The village hall was closest, so Sai headed there first. Traders had come to sell overpriced food and trinkets of little or no value. Sai never looked at them as he strode through the masses. If they stopped in front of him, then so be it. Either they moved out of his path, or he moved them. Most of them were respectful and backed away. The building itself was guarded by a temporary militia, consisting mostly of local men with guns. Sai greeted one of them as he walked into the building. He knew their faces well enough and they let him pass. He looked forward to having them serve in the Mandalorian army. The lobby was empty now, most of the negotiations were going on in the tents instead of the large hall. If Rendt was in the building, she would be in the council-hall. That seemed to be her domain. Sai walked calmly up the stairs, preparing for the confrontation he had been avoiding on purpose. He had been saving her for last, gathering intelligence and preparing questions and answers. Walking down the hall leading to the council-chambers, he passed the room the militia used as headquarters. The door was open and there were two sleeping men inside along with three others playing cards. They did not even notice Sai as he walked past them. He stole a quick look into the re-purposed storage and laid eyes on some crates neatly stacked against the opposite wall. No care was taken to conceal them, and they were closed. On top of them were various parts for modifying weapons. Everything from barrels of different lengths, grips of various materials, scopes, some attachments. That was all Sai saw before he moved on, but it had piqued his interest. He would throw someone in his squad onto the case later. The voice of his current nemesis became louder as he came closer to the council hall. Inside sat Rendt in conversation with one of the representatives from an undecided village.

"You can count on my support." Rendt said as her victim was wavering in its resolve.

"The newcomers do offer good terms." Another female said. "And they are gathering more supporters every day."

"Of course they offer good terms." Rendt answered. "But as you have seen, they change quicker than water runs. Good terms today could become a curse tomorrow."

"They are severely outnumbered." The other woman answered. "They would not dare change their deal. Their whole army is based on men from our villages."

"And what happens when all your blood is spent? When your people lie dead and dying in the cold space or in front of a Pentastar laser-cannon? They are no army."

"You would know that better than me Vurd." The other woman said. Sai had never known Rendt's first name. Frankly he had not cared until now. Why would she know about armies? She as old all right, but she hardly looked the military type. A refugee from a war-zone maybe? It was likely he thought, and walked into the room. Vurd Rendt looked up and her eyes narrowed as she laid eyes on the thug. The other woman turned when she saw the look on Rendt's face. Sai recognized her as the woman representing one of the most remote villages. Joel's Anchor it was called. "I think this concludes our talk." She said and was ready to walk out.

"No need." Sai said. "I would much like to take part in this little talk."

"Is that why you are here?" Rendt asked, easing back on the hostility.

"I came here to talk to you." Sai answered, stopping halfway between the door and the women. "If I am not welcome here, I can remove myself." He offered, pointing a thumb towards the door. The representative from Joel's Anchor shook her head.

"I was just leaving anyway." She said with a smile and got up. "Please excuse me." She said and walked past Sai. When the door closed, Sai took her place in front of Rendt, looking hard into her eyes, still smiling. Rendt's eyes were hard and cold as durasteel-plating in deep space. Sai tried to look colder, but such a look came from years of experience. Something about her said that Rendt had stared down more men than Sai had shot in his entire life.

"I suppose congratulations are in order." Rendt said, breaking the hard silence. "You seem to be recruiting well." There was no pleasantness in her voice, any attempt at courtesy was just a thin veil disguising cold anger.

"We are doing just fine." He answered slowly. "Our numbers grow daily, but it will take time before the Alignment is driven off-world." Sai was sugar-coating the truth. Soon the sources of recruits would dry up, but the Alignment would not be able to stand against their army. Werd had given them important information. Rendt said nothing for a while and just looked up and down Sai, scanning him as if he was some exotic and dangerous animal.

"What are you guys, really?" She asked out of the blue. "People say you come from the Rebellion, but I can tell you do not." She said. "I would say common thugs with a proper drillmaster." She went on.

"That is actually what I came here to talk to you about." Sai answered. "But the subject is not us. The subject is you, Rendt." He said, his smile grew a few millimetres wider. "I have a feeling you are very knowledgeable."

"You're right there." She said, suddenly slipping into a rougher accent, rolling the r's and even changing the pitch of her voice so it became lower. "And my knowledgeableness is what tells me to either defeat you democratically, or kill you." Her change of mood would have scared anyone else. Sai realized that all he thought he knew about Rendt was a carefully constructed facade. "You bring only instability. The Alignment may be oppressive, but at least I know that I won't be attacked by ruffians like you every day."

"You speak of experience then." Sai replied.

"I do." She said. Her dialect was very different from the local way of speaking. "And I know your kind well. Today you are our friend, but when the hard times come, you'll disappear like leaves in a storm." Rendt leaned back in her chair with a defiant look on her face. As she leaned back, Sai noticed a small but sharp bulge on her left side, almost hidden by her arms crossed over her chest. Sai raised his left eyebrow.

"What are you packing?" He asked, nodding right at the disguised weapon.

"No business of yours." She answered sharply. "I have learned from experience." She went on. "I suggest you remove yourself. Before I let my experience get the better of me." Sai stood up slowly, nodding repeatedly.

"You are a hard lady." He said, turned around and walked out the door. Behind him, Vurd Rendt wondered if she should draw her blaster and kill the man. Her experience got the better of her, and she stayed her hand.

Velyme, Landing Pad

Four days later

"Let us run the tests again shall we?" Braelor asked sarcastically. The four recruits that had been thrown his way had not been entirely useless. One had piloted a trader's ship once before he got homesick and came back. The three others were learning quickly.

"First rule of engagement!?" Braelor shouted to the men standing on the landing pad in front of The Fourth Son. Rain was pouring down from the skies, soaking them and Braelor.

"Identify enemy, scan for numbers and distance!" The men shouted back, their voices dampened by the heavy rain. They were shivering with cold. Braelor had already decided which of them would be trained as pilots and which as gunners. Right now he had three gunners and one pilot. The fellow with a longing for home had good spatial sense and could fly reasonably well, at least in simulations.

"Good!" Braelor shouted back. Merrigous usually took care of training with Braelor as is assistant, but he had more important business today. Cael was probably going over tactics for assaulting the enemy garrison again. Any contact with the observation-post had been strictly forbidden, and Braelor had followed that order. He did not envy Squad Three. It was surely raining as hard on them as on Squad Four. They however, had no proper roof. "I think it is time to let you back inside! Combat-drills! All four turrets, mount and activate simulations!" The men ran past him, eager to get under roof and into warmth. The simulations were simple and programmed by Braelor himself. The crew was pitted against six fighters and the ship manoeuvred on autopilot. The simulation was activated remotely and Braelor took his sweet time walking to the cockpit. It usually took two minutes before the fighters came into range. Different monitors activated as he came into the cockpit. Among the functions was the small holoprojector he used to watch the simulation. On the main monitor he had graphs showing individual and overall accuracy and power consumption, ship damage, shield condition and the status of the enemy ships. They were closing fast. "Incoming enemy fighters!" He said into the internal radio and his voice echoed through the ship. The ship dived so the upper turrets got a clear line of fire. The gunners were too slow, but managed to fire of six bursts each before the fighters passed. The turrets on the sides did slightly better, hitting a fighter in the main body twice. It was still flying, barely. The fighters returned fire, coming pairs doing strafing runs along the flanks and underside. The autopilot did its best to compensate for the enemy manoeuvring, but it took too long, and the gunners failed to hit their targets. Two of the fighters went down before the shield failed. A strafing run took out the right turret and on of the turrets on the roof. The rest of the fighters were damaged, but The Fourth Son was destroyed before any more damage could be done to them. Their accuracy remained below thirty percent, and he knew it would remain that way for a long time. For now, an automated defence-turret was a better shot than them. Even an outdated model. None of them even dared to ask if they had done good. Morale was low.

"You did OK." Braelor said over the internal radio. "Had you had fighter-support, you would have done OK." He said, and noted the idea for the simulation. Having to distinguish friendly fighters from enemy fighters was of vital importance. Even a minimal fighter escort would have made a huge difference. It would make for a fun surprise for the next simulation. In the distance he heard one of the helmets he had given them clatter to the ground. Each of the helmets had been modified with a simple display for running said simulation. The parts had been hard to acquire, but Mandalore had gifted him with the equipment. "Those helmets are worth more than you are at the moment! Take care of them!" He shouted so all could hear. He checked his chrono. It was time for grub. "Get yourselves off my ship and get some food! I want you back here by seventeen-hundred!" Braelor shouted. "Dismissed!" They all walked out with their head low. If any of them had had dreams about becoming war-heroes, they had been thoroughly crushed, first by Marrigous and then by Braelor. Braelor had once again stacked up his personal storage. When they were all off the ship, he cracked open a box of fruit in their juices. The juices went first. It was thick, but he drank it, enjoying the sweet taste as long as he could before he dug into the fruit. As he slowly finished his sparse meal, he opened up the programming for the simulator and began modifying it. First came the friendly fighters, then he modified their appearance and colour-scheme. It was a simple job, and it was not well done either, but when he ran the debugging one and a half hour later he was satisfied when the program was clean. With childish glee, he ran a simulation, pitting six fighters against six fighters. The computer ran it well and it was a close fight indeed. It would indeed make a fine surprise indeed. A two-fighter escort would be sufficient, and the men would need to clock a lot more hours on the simulator before he let them loose in battle.

Pentastar Garrison

The next day

"Attention!" Major Nex shouted, and the entire battalion snapped to. Everyone but essential personnel stood in fine rows, sorted by squad and platoon. Five hundred boots stamped the ground at the same time. A basic podium had been built for the public address. "As you may or may not have heard! Magloran is under attack from an unidentified enemy. They have taken Velyme and fought of a scout-platoon. All attempts at contacting high-command has been unsuccessful. We are under siege, make no mistake of it." The men were silent and stared ahead at him. "The enemy has likely seized our armour, therefore, all helmets are forbidden. Anyone seen with a helmet on is to be detained on sight, or shot if aggressive. No exceptions. The base is locked down and until further notice, all leave is cancelled. All officers will receive new orders and schedules. Dismissed!" He shouted. It took a few moments before the men even dared move. The news was sinking in slowly. None of them had expected to be thrown into battle this soon. Least of all here. They were fresh recruits, getting their last pieces of hard training down. They had come here to march far and hard and practice field-entrenchment. Corporal Tassin was among the few who had seen battle before against the rebellion. If he gathered together the experienced soldier, he would have little more than a full platoon. Nex checked his chrono. The datapads of the officers would be updated in five minutes time. There was no way Nex could bring himself to question the loyalty of his men, but until the nature and origin of the enemy had been ascertained, no information could be given publicly. Nex stepped down from the podium. His personal guards followed close behind him. They had their helmets off and ribbons of deep-blue cloth tied around their right arm. He only had four men to spare for the duty of guarding him. If there was one thing Nex knew, it was to target the chain of command. Wipe out a commanding officer and the army would dissolve. Right now, he was the invaluable core that held the army together.

It was a short way back to his office inside the mountain-facility. On the way he passed along open hatches in front of firing-positions. The sun lit up the otherwise dark and barren hallway. Banners with the Pentastar Alignment insignia hung from the wall at regular intervals next to doors leading further into the facility. They had enough ammunition for a small war, and they had the facilities to recharge them. The E-11 rifles would take some modifications, but Nex was certain he could make them run on electricity instead of tibanna gas. They would need all the fuel they could get for the fighters. He turned left with the hall, going further into the mountain. His guards took up position outside his office and waited there. The office lit up automatically as he entered.

"Activate holoprojector." He said to his computer. A discreet acknowledging beep came from a small loudspeaker as the system recognized his voice. The small machine at the centre of the room whirred into action and hummed as the projector came online. "Bring up strategic overview, zone 0.0." He said. The garrison was the centre of the entire defensive plan and had been given the coordinates 0.0. A map of the local area rose from the projector. Above it were troop numbers. As the computer fed in information, the map grew more detailed down to the last blade of grass. Tactical data was fed in when half a minute passed. Patrol-routes became visible as green lines in the terrain and lines of fire became visible as red fields, overlapping as they were fed in. Every square inch within a five kilometre radius could be targeted and fired upon with 88% accuracy. Beyond that the accuracy dropped drastically, except for with heavy artillery. Except they did not have heavy artillery. They had mortars on the other hand. "Dispatch orders for combat-patrol, route Alpha One. Double strength. They leave in..." He checked his chrono again, "Ten minutes." He ordered. The very same second, an order was dispatched to two squads in Bravo-company. Their route went well within the range of direct-fire artillery, and Nex would make use of it. "Order the artillery company to their positions. Inform the patrol that they will have artillery-support on demand." New orders were dispatched. There were other squads ready for deployment, but there was no need to have them waiting in full combat-gear. They could be outfitted and out of the base within two minutes.

Observation-post Werd

Twenty minutes later

Whistling filled the air, like that of a small bird. Trace and I listened closely. First two quick and low-pitched whistles then one high and long.

"Danger." Trace said and grabbed his rifle. I already had mine in my lap, and I checked the power-levels for the fifteenth time today. Melie moved to the back of the pillbox as she was instructed and sat down, closing her mouth.

Seconds later, Calo came rushing in through the door.

"Patrol. Two squads." He said simply and sat down on the floor without even grabbing a weapon. That meant nineteen soldiers on the move.

"Route?" I asked.

"They advanced into the woods, about eight hundred metres from the outer wall and started coming toward us."

"Walking in a circle then." I replied. Eight hundred metres would take them within two hundred metres of us. We were at approximately nine hundred and seventy metres, give or take a dozen metres. "Spread?"

"Five metres between each man. Which gives them a ninety-metre wide net." Calo answered. "In other words, we're safe. Just shut up the trooper at the back," Calo went on, pointing at Melia, "And we'll be fine." I gave him a thumbs up and found a clean shirt from my bag, the last clean one in fact, and crawled over to Melia.

"Open wide." I said and she obeyed, looking a little hurt that I did not trust her. In her mind she probably felt, at least partially, like one of us. She was not. The fact that she was a POW never left my mind. Though I behaved friendly, I would not think twice before unloading a full magazine into her. "Thank you." I said and tied the shirt around her head. Looking at it, I realized it was more a symbolic gag than a functional one. "That is my last shirt. Don't drool to much on it." I said and crawled back to my regular spot by the door. She nodded and laid down to get some sleep. It was just was well. I found she had a hard time sleeping with a gun pointed directly at her. Then again, who would not? Unless they were a Mandalorian of course. Trace had healed considerably and he sat with his blaster ready. The paleness in his face had been replaced by newfound determination, but he was far from away from being well enough to participating in prolonged combat. As I looked around to see if there were anything that could cause unwanted noise, I noticed all of our looks. Our hair was greasy. I sniffed the air. "We can be glad they don't have animals for tracking." I whispered gently. Trace smelled the air and grinned.

"We smell like shit." He said and nodded. We all silently agreed and waited. Calo called Cael to inform him of the situation.

"Any chance for aerial reconnaissance?" He asked, after looking out through one of the hatches we had made in the direction of the garrison. Calo waited. "No visual, enemy is still far away. We're minimizing activity here... Do that." Calo said and shut down the connection. He turned and mouthed "Restoration" to us. The Mandalorians understood. Quill pretended he did, and Melia was fast asleep. We would have to wait patiently. Half an hour passed before any answer came. We all sat in silence, moving only to get some circulation. Then suddenly, a weak signal came through on all our comlinks. It was faint at first, obviously short-range communication. I started searching through to find the correct frequency and before I knew it, I was listening in on the Pentastar patrol. No encryption or anything.

"Patrol." I mouthed and tapped my earpiece. It was mostly orders and chatter coming through.

"Tighten the left flank, do not disperse too much." The officer said. "Bend the left flank backwards as you've been told." The officer said. I could only assume his orders were obeyed, for he did not order it again.

"Why are they on an open frequency?" Quill asked silently. Everyone shook their heads. He did not ask the right question. He should have asked: "Why are they not using any encryptions?" Perhaps they were as green as grass, officers and troopers alike. Melia certainly had little combat-experience. She had kept her head clear enough to rush to the E-WEB during the firefight, but not to use cover whilst doing it. She sept soundly and quietly, as if the Pentastar presence somehow soothed her. I really should let her play pazaak when she came back. With Braelor. Republic-Senate rules of course. The patrol passed us without incident and I lost contact with them.

"They're gone." I said, and Quill breathed easily again.