Chapter 16
Karel has joined the Republic to lead them to Gaia, and to the Emperor. His final battle was coming up very soon.
The Council brought me to chambers everyday to talk about what I knew.
It was always the same. I would tell them a little more about Gaia, and always forgot to mention something. I still don't remember it.
Obi-Wan asked me a question
"At Corellia, you challenged Anakin Skywalker to duel. Why was that?"
"He killed someone very important to me." I say
Skywalker was in the room and looked at me.
"My master, Jade Yadder." I continued
"That's not possible, Jade Yadder lived five hundred years ago." Mace Windu said
"Knew her, I did. Member of the council she was." Yoda added.
"That's the name of my master. I don't care if you believe it or not. Skywalker here killed her, and so I hate him."
"Hate leads to suffering." Yoda said
"I've suffered greatly master. I suffer whenever I look at him. I can only see him ending my master."
"I don't know a Jade Yadder masters. I don't know why he keeps saying these sort of things."
"I say them because they are true. I know many truths." I said. I knew Palpatine was the Sith Lord. I knew Anakin would be Vader. I know Obi-Wan will kill Grievous.
"I believe this boy's master took the name of the Jedi master and trained our young friend here." Ki-adi-mundi said
"Possible." Shaak Ti said
I don't really understand everything myself, but right now Hawaii and I are the only one's who know that I'm not from this Universe.
"Now, we have to decide who will go and who will stay." Kit Fisto said
"Yes. Of course, Karel Allusis will be leading us to the planet. We're sorry, but we should really do this without an audience." Eeth Koth said
Anakin and I left the room. He looked at me
"I don't know what you're talking about. I don't know any Jade Yadder."
"Or course you don't"
"What is your problem?" Anakin looked me in the eyes
"I watched as you killed her. Ever since I joined the empire, I've been dreaming about killing you." I start to say. "But vengeance won't bring her back. I know this. I should be satisfied to have known her. I guess that's something we have in common."
"What do you mean?"
"I know you can't let go of Ashoka."
His turned dark, with either shame or anger.
Sander came up.
"Karel. What are you doing here?" Sander asked me.
"I'm just reporting to the council again."
"You're up here so much, come on, let's go."
Anakin looked at me.
I think I may have gone too far.
I trained with Sander and Leia. She was good with the saber, but when she lost it, she was still far from helpless.
I had no illusions, they were looking over me, making sure I don't leave. I wouldn't. Not yet.
"Do you know where your last name Allusis came from?" Leia asked me.
"Yeah. About four thousand years ago a Jedi master gave his life at the battle of Bothawui. He gave those imps a real beating. He had a twin brother, who was a part of the army. That's who I'm descended from."
"Yes. Master Allusis was the definition of a Jedi. We've got a few records of your family, but it ends about three or two thousand years ago."
"Yeah. My family moved to Gaia."
"Intriguing. The force works in mysterious ways" Leia said
"Yes it does."
After doing the same thing for a few days the council told me that were going to Takodana. We travel, with me being watched by all the Jedi.
Mace Windu, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Depa Billaba, Caleb Dume, and of course, Leia and Sander. I of course didn't feel like I was being watched, with everyone's hand just so happening to be floating above their lightsabers.
It's not like I would attack anyone here. My nose started to scratch so I lifted my hand up. Skywalker's hand touched his lightsaber. Only him. I don't know what happened, but my middle finger just couldn't go back down. Of course, it was stuck to my face, just rubbing a spot. It had no correlation with where Anakin was sitting. I may have looked him in the eyes as I was doing this.
I don't fell mad that only he went for his lightsaber as I moved my hand. That would be petty.
When we landed, I was in between Windu and Obi-Wan.
"Master Kenobi, I hear that your defenses are like a wall. Even the emperor is impressed by that."
"Thank you." He said warily.
"Windu, I doubt any of the Darths would like to fight you."
He said nothing.
"Have I told you how many of them there are?"
He looked back many me.
"six. Kadabra, the emperor, Khione, the empress, Siren, who I worked under, Lancelot, Drakon, and Harpo. When we attack the planet, I would suggest that the weakest takes out Harpo or Drakon. They aren't exactly the strongest. Lancelot and Kadabra are going to be challenges. Siren and Khione are going to be the biggest problem. Khione uses Ice magic."
"Why didn't you tell us before?"
"I honestly forgot every time."
Obi-Wan just looked at me.
"You forgot that the Darths existed?"
"I don't know how or why, but I forgot every time."
They shook their heads.
"Sorry." I said Sander laughed. I smiled. Even though they saw me as an enemy, I haven't felt so close to the Jedi since before that day… My smile left.
"Don't get cocky." I said
"What does that mean?" Windu asked
"Don't be all high and mighty. Some of the Jedi I've met were some of the most prideful people I've known."
They didn't say anything.
We spent a week on the planet and waited for our invasion force to arrive. Tarkin arrived the other day. I never liked him. He seemed so arrogant. He was sent by Palpatine himself. Which but him on my radar. Of course he didn't even step foot on the planet
We planned out the invasion. The Republic would make a series of jumps that would lead us to Gaia, then send out the invasion forces. Every country would be attacked all at once. No country would be spared.
Nowhere would be without clones. I also helped ensure that they would be added by rebel groups in every country and state. There had to be at least two million rebels, but each cell so small that they were able to go under the radar.
I contacted the Order, and they are ready to join the fight.
Sander was sick, so I don't know how well he'll do. I had some vitamin capsules that I put in water for Sander. It wasn't much. Leia did her best to help Sander, but we had almost no time.
I was listening as Anakin, the clones, and Tarkin went back and forth about the plan.
"Well, Admiral, I think that our plan is certainly solid. I think that for the advance team to reach the destination before the Invasion Fleet, we will have to take the Nubian we recovered from Mandalore to pass through any security measures they might have." I listened more intently now.
"And hope that the access codes on your Nubian are still valid. Otherwise it will be the shortest siege in the entire war." Commander Cody said
"Well, we've already come too far so we will have to hope for the best." Leia answers, leaning against the table, looking at me. "Hey. Since you're the one who told us everything you know about how our enemy is structured, do you think we could just take a path and cut straight through the Empire and arrive at Gaia?"
"No, I don't believe so. We might get lucky and bypass the monitors around the Esfandia and Bakura systems, but Gaia is another story. Its moon, Artemis, is a massive base for creating warships. We will need to hijack a transport from the military base on that station. Let's just say right now, I won't feel bad about stealing any Imperial property, especially if it belongs to the ISD." I said
"I see." Tarkin says, his holographic image returning to the center. "Now, I believe…" He is interrupted when the turns around and addresses a deck officer behind him. "Really? Very good." Tarkin turned back round. "Generals, I just received word that the Invasion Fleet are loading the last supplies and ready for departure."
"Excellent news. Admiral, deploy the fleet now and make sure they follow the plan." Anakin speaks up, smiling slightly.
"Will do, General." With that, Tarkin's transmission cuts out and the comm table's lights go out.
"Well, that was something." Caleb Dume says, speaking up for the first time during the meeting. "But…I can't help but feel like something's not right."
"Speak for yourself." Sander says from his chair before sniffling heavily. "At least you don't feel like bantha crap right now."
I feel bad for the kid. Being sick during war is never a good thing.
"No, Caleb's right." Depa Billaba says, looking around warily with a hand reaching for her lightsaber. "I sense something. Not the presence of a Sith, but something else. Something potentially more dangerous."
Something came to mind… That thing from Hogwarts… No. If that's what I'm thinking, then we must get off the planet yesterday.
"It's the Empire! They're here." Tarkin announced
What?" I asked, shock and horror written on his face and in my voice. "How did they find us?"
"I don't know. Yes, Lieutenant?" He asks, turning around to look at someone who isn't appearing on the screen. His face then turns from anxiety to shocked. "Are you sure? Run planetary scans again and start evacuating all Republic personnel." Tarkin then turns around. "Something's wrong. Our scanners are picking up only 3 Drakkar warships."
"...Excuse me, Admiral?" Anakin asks, confusion on his face, along with everyone else's faces. Usually, Kadabra sends a dozen Drakkars heavily escorted by two dozen light warships whenever a new planet is being conquered.
"That can't be right." This can't be right.
"The Empire goes out of their way to not underestimate their opponents. They wouldn't send so few ships unless they had some…thing…" NO! It can't be. All color had to be gone from my face. It had to be it.
"Go on. Unless what?" Obi-Wan asked.
"God, please let me be wrong. I have heard rumors that the ISD has been creating a super-weapon since its founding, but according to my contact, it shouldn't be ready for deployment for another 2 months." If I'm wrong, then were all dead. If I'm right we're most likely dead.
"And what exactly is this super-weapon?" Anakin asks.
"I don't know exactly. What I do know is that if it is complete, it will bring a new level of warfare to your Coruscant." I wanted to puke.
"Admiral, do not engage the enemy. Make your primary objective to evacuate as many ships from the planet." Windu says, then shuts off the comms table. He then gets out his lightsaber and cuts the table in half.
"Why did you do that?" Caleb asks, shocked at this action.
"Because this is war. We can't allow the Empire to have access to our communications systems." Windu responds, then de-activates his lightsaber and sheathes it. "Right now, we need to ensure the closest cruiser leaves the planet safely."
Sander called us to the window, and my worst fears were confirmed.
"Guys, if half the things about Thanatos Infinity are true, we have only one way to come out of this fight alive."
"What might that be?" Windu asks, wanting to hear some good news for a change.
"Run. Get the commanders to the last cruiser before it leaves then we can get the hell out of here."
We got out and ran as fast as we could. Leia grabbed Sander and carried him to the ship.
Thanatos Infinity lets out another mechanical roar before charging forward at top speeds, each step it takes shaking the ground slightly. It then lifts its right arm and a massive chain gun emerges. The gun then points towards the fleeing Jedi and clones and lets loose round after round. The armor-piercing shells impact the ground all around them, making the ground explode and rain wet dirt.
"This is certainly making my day interesting." Obi-Wan says, holding an arm over his face as mud rains down on him.
Rex called out five AT-TEs.
"We are under attack by a weapon created by the Empire. Unload 5 AT-TEs and have them unload their primary cannons onto this scrap heap!"
"Yes, Captain!" The clone replies then the line cuts out.
"There!" Cody shouts, getting knocked off-balance for a moment as he barely dodges another blast by the chain gun blast. He then points toward the open Republic Venator, where five Republic tanks are marching down the platform. The Jedi continue running towards the nearby black Nubian, none of them stopping for a second.
But no matter how fast they run, Thanatos Infinity continues gaining ground on them and it lifts its left arm with the intention of slashing its prey to pieces. Before it can get that chance, the five AT-TEs finish walking off the cruiser and start opening fire upon the armored battle tank. As they do so, the two clone officers turn around to look at the Jedi. "Thank you, Generals. May the Force be with you on your journey."
"You too Rex." Anakin responds, saluting Rex crisply. The blue-armored clone captain salutes back before running onto the Republic warship, closely followed by Cody.
"Now, let's scrap this thing." Windu growls, getting out his lightsaber and turning around to see the AT-TEs still firing upon Thanatos.
"I don't think we will have to worry about it, Master. There's no way it can take fie heavy cannon blasts simultaneously." Anakin says, also getting out his lightsaber. Idiot, cocky idiot! That probably didn't even scratch it.
The thing survived, then decimated the AT-TEs.
"It's withstanding 5 AT-TEs at once." Obi-Wan states, awe and fear in his voice. He then looks to the cruiser with its engines flaring to life and the open Nubian ready for take-off at a moment's notice. "Get to the ship. Anakin and I will hold it off!" Obi-Wan then activates his lightsaber, the blue blade hissing as the rain hits the blade. Anakin follows suite and they charge towards Thanatos Infinity.
They're both stupid. They can't take this thing down. I don't even think a Zillo beast could take it down.
Everyone gets on the ship, but I couldn't look at the thing.
Leia grabbed me
"Why didn't you tell us about that thing?!" She yelled at me.
"It wasn't meant to be ready for another two months. How could I know that it was fully operational? I didn't work in the ISD."
Windu looks at Leia
"Master Haggar, that isn't needed. Let the boy go." She lets me go
"I agree with you that he should have told us about this, but that doesn't matter right now. What matters is us not dying."
An explosion shakes us. It must have gotten one of the ships. The main force was able to escape in time.
Anakin, Obi wan and Ashoka enter the ship
"Get us out of here!" She yelled.
Wait what is Ashoka doing here. Why is she here? Not that I'm complaining, we need more hand for this mission.
"We can't. I don't have the calculations yet to make a precise jump to the Helios System. Unless… hang on." Leia then starts working on the controls on her right. It takes a few seconds, but then the console starts beeping. "Got you! Hang on, everyone!" Leia then pushes several buttons on the console on her right and starts speeding into the atmosphere.
"Okay. We are so deep in empty space that I think we can take a breath. I need to talk with Karel."
"You mean the former Imperial agent?" Ahsoka asks, standing off to the side. "I've managed to hide within the underworld of Dantooine. Karel has already been branded a traitor of the Empire and are placing such a high bounty on his head that it makes a Jedi's bounty look petty."
"Why? Technically I'm a prisoner of War? They have no proof I betrayed them!"
"You are a traitor though." Ashoka said
"Yeah, but they have no proof. How large was my bounty?"
"Enough to buy a planet. I think it was at least 50 trillion credits. I smiled.
"Yeah, I now have the highest bounty out of all of you."
"That's not a good thing." Anakin said
I stop talking. We were out of harms way.
"Now, Sander, let's get you patched up before we begin our job."
Leia walks towards her padawan, using the Force to summon a small silver vial before she pops it open and pulls out a pill. Then, using strength she didn't think she needed to use, forces Sander's mouth open and makes him swallow the pill. "Reminds me of the good old days." Ahsoka says, leaning against the wall and staring down with amusement on her face.
Her words startled the Jedi to look up, and many of the members are staring at her with stunned looks. "Ahsoka…" Anakin says, standing up. "How did you find us?"
"Well, Andui was my favorite place to lay low at since I do not exactly welcome in the zealous Republic systems anymore. It is also close enough to the Outer Rim so assisting those who try to rebel against the enemy is easy. If only breaking their holds on the systems was that easy. I heard rumors of the massive fleet massing outside the city, so I decided to tag along. Good thing I did."
Anakin just stares at Ahsoka for a few seconds before smiling slightly. "Well, I'm glad to see you again."
"Yes, so am I. We need all the help we can get if our mission is to be a success." Obi-Wan states.
Ahsoka stares at Kenobi, confused. "What exactly are you planning?"
"Well, you can bring her up to speed on things." I said. "I need to prime my comm line, so I can talk with some contacts I have on Gaia. I may not be…the biggest fan of any of them, but after everything that has happened to them, they will not betray us. If I don't tell them we're coming, then they will try and probably succeed in killing us and blowing up our corpses." Hailey isn't my biggest fan, but I think she likes me the most in the order now that I got one of their own killed.
As I get up Sander looks at me. "Hey Karel, what is that?"
He's pointing at my ring.
"Empress Kione herself gave this to me when I saved her life a year ago. It was a ruse to weave myself into the Empire's deepest trenches, but I never expected to see things that have happened since that day." When I say this, something comes to mind.
"Sander?" Leia asks, looking at him confused.
The boy, however, just stares at the ruing with an emotionless look on his face. Windu also watches this action, wary as to what might happen. "Give it to me."
I give him the ring.
Those four words catch everyone off-guard, even Karel, but he just shrugs and pulls the ring off. He then gives it to Sander, whose face is already starting to lose the clamminess that was once there. The Young One looks the ring over for a few seconds before his face turns hard. He sets it down on the ground in front of him and closes his eyes. He starts lifting his hands up and pointing his fingers at it.
Leia, immediately realizing what is about to happen, shouts, "No!"
But it is too late. A concentrated rod of scarlet fire surrounds his hands before shooting forward and impacting the ring. It withstands the fire for several seconds before it starts melting into a pile of liquefied metal. Miraculously, the fire shoots into the air to warm up the bottom of the ship but not melt through it.
So Much money, gone. I'm not a greedy person, but that hurt me to watch it happen. Wait that looked like a semblance.
That's not fair! I lived on Remnant, and I don't get a semblance, but the kid does.
After another 10 seconds, Sander opens his eyes and lets out a breath, the fire dying out. A long moment of silence passes before Windu speaks up. "What are you doing! You could have gotten us all killed!"
Sander turns to stare at Windu, his infamously calm look on his face. "Oh, well I'm sorry for saving our lives. It's obvious that something tipped off our location to the Empire and since that ring came directly from someone who's known for her deceptions, even a fool can see that the ring could be a tracking device."
He has a good point, and it was just what I was thinking. Sander and I are starting to think alike.
Windu glares at him, his usually stoic expression long gone. "You know what, Sander? I've just about had enough. You are condescending of the Jedi Code, disrespectful to many of the Masters, especially to me. Which is why after this mission, I will take charge of your training and show you why only through our ways will you become who you are meant to be."
Sander slams his fist on the table, his calm expression giving way to anger. The Jedi jump back, startled by this reaction, and Leia could have sworn she sees his eyes flash red for a second. "Who I am meant to be? Who do you think you are, my father? You think you can control my life and what I do? You know what, I am going to tell you something I've been meaning to say. I don't trust you. If I am lying on a battlefield, dying, and the only way I would live is if I trusted you, I still wouldn't do it." He takes a deep breath and stands up. "Mace Windu, you disappoint me." Sander then places his hands behind his back as he walks to the corner of the room and leans against the wall, closing his eyes.
Windu isn't his father, but I know who is. Should I tell him.
"Well, this has been a nice reunion." I say.
I don't like this sort of stuff. I was never good with this sort of stuff, especially with the way the order has taught me. Most of my social growing was done on a battlefield, and on Remnant.
"There's no use in just sitting around. I am going to plug in the coordinates for the Helios system, so we can be on our way. Karel, if you would come with me?" I go with Leia to the cockpit, and Skywalker follows us.
"Shouldn't you go to your apprentice?" I say. Skywalker said nothing
He stood in the door way. I sigh and use the force to make the Barrier that Kadabra uses when he talks to Khione. I figured out how to create them and break them for a single person.
"Is Sander normally like that?"
"No. This is a first. I don't know why he hates Windu."
"I was wondering that too. What did Windu do to make Sander hate him?"
"I don't think Windu did any one thing. It was more like how he does things."
"Windu is tough, but he has some great students."
"He takes the Code as law."
"He draws strength from that then, would you say?"
"Or prejudice."
"He's not evil. He's not even mean, he's tough."
"Too tough on Sander I say."
"You have your own prejudices you know." I look forward. "You look like one of my friends from where I'm from, and if you're like her, then I would say that you definitely have prejudices."
"What's this friend's name?"
"Yang Xiao Long." I said.
I lower the bubble. We had a few minutes before we got to Gaia, so I lead myself to one of the empty rooms and open my bag.
Lily, Ninalex, and Jade come out.
"Do you know what it smells like down there?" Lily asked.
"We're returning to Gaia. This is going to be the last battle of our war. After that We go to my home."
They looked at me. "Can we beat Kadabra?"
"We have the help of the Jedi here. They're going to help us with this."
"Which ones?" Ninalex asked.
"It would be easier to show you." I take a breath. "And they need to know that we have more allies." They shake there heads. I open the door and call everyone's attention.
"Everyone. We have more allies that you should meet." I say. They look at me, then Ninalex walks out.
"This is Jedi Padawan Ninalex, is it not. I thought she was dead." Windu said
"I saved her when Savage Opress attacked the Jedi temple. She's the only one who survived."
"There are a few bounties from the empire for Twi'leks. She has no where near the same bounty as you do." Ashoka said
"What Karel says is true, he saved me, and has kept me safe these past few months."
"She and the other allies came from the bag I carried on board. It's from Gaia and has a lot more space on the inside." I say
"Who are these other allies."
"Only one who can fight. He name is Lily Hart, otherwise known as Agent Hawaii."
Lily come out.
"Hello everyone." She said shyly.
"You betray the empire too?" Obi-Wan asked.
"I have seen things that make me turn my back away from those traitors to humanity. I will fight under you in this battle."
"We have one more person, but she's a little girl, so she won't be fighting. She was almost killed by a clone at Dantooine." I say
"Hawaii… She has about a one trillion bounty. I guess you mavens are worth a lot. I wonder why Karel has such a higher bounty."
"What?" She said I smirked at Lily. She shakes her head.
"They are going where I go. Count them as part of me when you split us up."
"I don't think that would be wise." Depa said
"This is nonnegotiable."
"Alright then. They will be under your watch." Windu says.
"Thank you." I turn to Lily and Ninalex. "You should go back to the bag until we meet with the Order."
"Fine." Lily said.
"Karel, I think you should get back here." Leia said.
I go back to the cockpit
We leave beamspace. Gaia was very visible.
"Okay. That's not something I see every day." Anakin states, staring at the scene with awe. They are directly facing the planet Gaia, with a single grey moon nearby. Even from this distance, they can see the massive fleet of ships docked on the moon, waiting for action.
"There's no way we will make it to Gaia without drawing attention. We need to use a ship from the ISD. Head to Artemis." I say pointing to the moon.
"Here goes nothing." Leia sighs, then steers the Nubian towards the moon.
A female officer took our call.
"This is Nubian transport Santa Carla reporting in. We are escorting Dr. Aiyanna back to the Imperial Science Department."
A brief pause ensues, but then the officer speaks up. "Very well. But I need to verify your credentials."
"Acknowledged. Transmitting access codes now." Anakin replies, then pushes another button and starts broadcasting the clearance codes. I didn't worry about them not working. Yeah… lets go with that
A long minute passes, and just as Anakin is about to say something to ease the tension, the woman on the other end speaks up. "Nubian transport Santa Carla, you are permitted for entry. Continue on our current path and proceed to Landing Pad 6."
The comm line crackles for a few seconds before going out. "Great. Some good news for a change." Leia says as she continues steering the ship towards the moon.
"I will tell the others that we will landing soon." I said
As the Nubian arrives at Artemis and flies across the rocky surface to an opening in the ground, its entrance covered in red light, the two Jedi stare in awe at the scene around the hole. Across the surface of the planet, dozens of Triremes and Drakkars are in the middle of production, on the verge of deployment. The Nubian positions itself directly above the entrance before lowering itself down and ejecting the landing mechanisms. Within a minute, the ship sets down and stops moving.
"Nubian transport Santa Carla, be prepared to receive a boarding party." The woman says over the comms line before it goes out once again. I swore under my breath.
The two Jedi get up and walk to the main body of the ship. The Jedi are all crouched in various hiding places, prepared to ambush the Imperials that are coming towards them. They join Obi-Wan under the wall just as the door slides open and the platform lowers itself to the landing platform. A man in a crisp black suit and hat that covers his face walks onboard, accompanied by four Imperial Security guards wearing thick black chest plates, arm and leg plates, and a white helmet that is pointed in the black and has a black square on the front. As they walk towards the back of the ship, Ahsoka jumps up and starts strangling the officer. She breaks his neck with ease and uses the Force to slam the four guards together. They never saw Ahsoka coming and were quickly knocked out.
"Nice." I said. I never really knew Ahsoka during my time, but she's one thing that Skywalker got right.
"Okay, so what's the plan?"
"Well, I believe that we need to split up into two groups to secure a ship. Windu, you lead that group and get us a ride out of here. Karel, since you have knowledge of our enemy, you should lead a small team to establish your communications and let your contacts know we're coming." Obi-Wan says, standing up.
"I'll join you." Sander says, walking towards the guards. Windu glares slightly at Sander for that but doesn't say anything.
"I'm coming too." Leia says, raising her hand. Obi-Wan just nods.
"Alright. Let's get going." I said.
I can't ware my helmet, so we don't have Ce with us. I rarely went to this place, but I had to memorize it.
make their way out of the Nubian and towards the rectangular grey doorway in front of them. Kenobi then waves his hand in front of the door and it immediately slides open to reveal two passageways branching off in different directions. Following the Force's guidance, they turn to the left and come to an open elevator. They walk onboard the elevator and Leia waves her hand over the controls. The monitor beeps, a light above the monitor flashes green, and the doors close.
"Hello. Where would you like to go?" A different automated female voice asks.
"Imperial Science Department, Level 5." Obi-Wan says, noticing that according to the flashing lights on the side of the elevator, there are five levels that make up the science department, below an additional five levels of bunks for the Imperial Army's soldiers.
"Accepted." The voice responds, and the elevator starts going down at surprisingly rapid speeds. It keeps going for a whole minute before jolting to a stop. The doors slide open and they are greeted to a rectangular grey corridor, lined with stone and glowing with orange light. They continue walking down the corridor but stop once they hear voices from directly in front of them.
"In here." Obi-Wan says, noticing a door slightly ajar. The Jedi quickly react, running through the doorway and close the door before locking it. Everyone lets out a simultaneous sigh of relief once the door is locked.
"Well, since we're in the heart of enemy territory, I am going to make my call." I said I forgot to do that on the ship
Thank the force it was Hailey that answered
"Yes?"
"I'm going to be coming to Gaia as soon as I find a ship. I have Jedi with me. Meet us when we land."
"Anything you want to us to bring?"
"Yeah, I had a bag on Gaia last time I was there that I sent to you guys. Get that for me."
"What's in it?"
"Stuff." I said. The shutters in the room start to open.
"Hey, I've got to go. See you soon" I ended the call. I leave them alone for one minute and they go touching things.
The scene is not what any of us were expecting. It is a padded white room with a simple white toilet and sink on the left wall. In the center of the room, staring at them, is a single girl who is in her early teens with long brown hair and scared brown eyes. "Hello? Who are you?"
"I am Obi-Wan Kenobi." Kenobi says.
Before anyone else can introduce themselves, the girl speaks up. "Wait, are you here to rescue me?"
Leia looks at the girl, lost for words, before speaking up. "Well, no, but…"
"No?" The girl asks, standing up. "No? You would leave me here and watch me like I'm a freak behind your fancy walls?" Her voice gets angrier and angrier before she starts shaking violently. The Force explodes in pain, making the Jedi wince and their eyes go wide at what happens next.
The girl's eyes become pure white and her entire body starts dissolving into a thick black cloud with a reddish core. The cloud then charges forward and smashes against the glass wall, which miraculously doesn't even crack under the pressure. A large fist emerges from the cloud and starts pounding against it hard.
"What is going on?" Obi-Wan asks, staring at the scene in shock.
So, this is what it looks like. Its horrifying.
"She's an Obscurial. I learned during my training that in ancient times on Gaia, Force-sensitives were labelled witches and hunted down for execution. These Force sensitives hated their own power and suppressed it. Most of the time, the power becomes too destructive and the host's body is torn to pieces. But there are some who have learned to live with it and survive. Then the two worlds separated and Obscurials faded into obscurity, that is until after the Sith Empire was established. Once Kadabra started kidnapping many Force sensitives and training them to be Sith, some escaped the destruction and suppressed their potential to hide. It seems that the Imperial Science Department is training Obscurials to use their power and create even greater destruction."
"I think it's best we leave before reinforcements arrive." Obi-Wan says. He then walks to the door, but then stops once he hears more voices on the other side.
When no one looked I placed a grenade on the command panel. Once it goes off, she'll rip though the forces on the moon. I look at her before having to go.
"Come on, guys. There's something I want to show you. Trust me, it will blow your minds." One of the voices say, before the footsteps start getting quieter.
"I think it would be best if we leave now." Leia says, starting to look anxious.
"Not yet." Sander speaks up, catching everyone's attention once more. "Why don't we follow those guys and figure out what has gotten them so excited? It would be nice to know a bit more about what we are up against."
"I agree." I say
"Well, I've always been curious as to what they have been making here for months." Leia admits, smirking a little.
Obi-Wan just sighs. "Well, somebody has to keep you in line."
Obi-Wan opens the door, and together, they go deeper into the complex and through a door on the far end of the corridor. Once they pass through the doorway, they come across another rather disturbing sight.
The stone pathway continues, each side lined with cylindrical glass tubes and featureless men and women are floating inside, in fetal positions to cover their private areas. Even farther down the pathway are three Imperial guards staring at a cylindrical spot, waiting for something. Before the Jedi can figure out what, the automated voice in the elevator speaks over a loudspeaker. "Download of software complete. Ejecting Adaptor Mark 2, Number 2022N."
Just then, a panel on the ceiling slides open and a large plastic bag that is airtight starts lowering itself to the circle. The bag itself is airtight and inside is a woman who looks very familiar to Obi-Wan. "Senator Amidala?" He asks, a hint of shock in his voice.
Leia stares at the woman in the bag, her horror increasing greatly as she truly understands. "They are creating androids that look like real humans. They could be creating them to look like real humans to impersonate them."
"Yeah, and they're almost impossible to kill. Trust me, you've tried."
"When?"
"When we broke into the prison."
The female Adaptor starts gasping for air, laying on her side as her long brown hair lays limply at her side. "Well, look at what we have here. Heaven gave us an angel." One of the guards says, leaning closer to look at the female Adaptor. They were the scum of the empire. They should have been the ones to die on that planet, not Philip. I grab my lightsaber, but Obi-Wan is keeping me down.
"Geez, man, do you really have to act like that?" One of the other guards says incredulously.
"Aw, it's okay. The good scientists won't be here for a while. I think we can have some fun with her before they arrive. No one will notice." The lead man says, a sneer forming on his face.
Any of us could move, a man starts walking out of the side door that is hidden shadows. This man is in his mid-30's, has combed light blonde hair with sharp blue eyes behind a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and is wearing neat black pants, along with a long black overcoat covers his entire body. "But I will." He says as he approaches the trio of guards.
They look up, finally noticing the new arrival, along with the woman. "Who are you?" The leader asks, an anxious tone in his voice.
"A machine who is more human than you ever will be." The man growls out then grips the lead guard's head and squeezes. The screams in agony as bones crunch loudly and blood starts gushing from his eye sockets from the eyes being pushed into his head. The third man's eyes widen in horror.
"It's Roland. Kill him!" He then pulls out a plasma rifle and starts firing it at Roland. But the Adaptor is much faster, throwing the corpse aside and grabbing the second guard who is too terrified to dodge and holds in front of him. The plasma shots make direct impact with the guard, killing him instantly.
Roland then throws the other corpse in the other direction and runs towards the last man, gripping the plasma pistol before it can fire again. "Please, no." He says as the pistol starts inching towards his face. "I didn't want to have any part in this. I have a wife and son back home. Please let me go; I swear on my life that I will not say anything to anyone ever." By now, tears are leaking down his face as the point of the pistol touches his chin.
"Your word means nothing to me." Roland says before pushing the man's finger down, pulling the trigger. His head explodes in a shower of blood, coating some of the woman's face. Her face is ashen, and she just stares up at Roland, horrified.
She just stares up at Roland for a few long moments before responding. "Natalie." Slowly, she climbs onto her feet and looks around. "Where am I?"
Roland's smile fades into a grimace. "You are in the worst place in the universe. We are leaving."
"Hold it." Leia says, stepping out from behind their cover. "We can get you out of here real fast."
"Who are you?" Roland asks, picking up a plasma pistol form one of the dead guards and pointing it at her. In response, Leia pulls out her lightsaber and activates the blade.
"A Jedi." Natalie whispers, awe in her voice.
Roland lowers his weapon an inch once he sees the weapon, but he keeps it up. "Just because you are fighting the same people that I am fighting doesn't make you my ally."
"Likewise." Leia replies, a cold tone in her voice.
"Please stop." Obi-Wan adds, deciding to step out and stop the situation from escalating any further. "We can talk this out."
"Talk?" Roland asks coldly. "I will not negotiate with the likes of you. Once we leave this base, you will not follow us. If you do, I will kill you."
"Well, as long as we're not going to the same place, then I believe that can be arranged." Kenobi replies.
Ever the negotiator.
"Attention, attention. We have received confirmation that Roland Crowley is in the facility. Repeat, Roland Crowley is in the facility. You have orders to shoot him on sight." A man says over the loudspeakers.
"Well, it was nice meeting you. But I think we should get going" I said.
We started running, thankfully not running into any imperials along the way.
As the elevator reaches the top, I freeze then lift my hands. The Force bends to my will and holds the elevator's doors shut. Seconds later, the sounds of dozens of soldiers marching rapidly gets louder, before it passes them and slowly fades away. "Good job." Leia says once the Force technique is dropped and the doors slide open. Following the Force's guidance, they run down the corridor on the right until coming to an open docking where a dozen Arrow transports are sitting, waiting to be loaded onto their various war ships.
The hatch is open on one of them, and Caleb pokes his head out. "That's our way to leave this place." Sander says, breaking out into a full-blown sprint. The other Jedi do the same, barely noticing the sounds of plasma shots going off in the middle of the hallways and many people screaming in terror.
Eventually, we make it into the Arrow and get ourselves seated. "Took you long enough." Anakin calls from the pilots' seat as he maneuvers the Arrow out of the hanger and through space. While the moon base looks peaceful on the outside, they can feel the chaos from the inside as the Imperials try their best to end the Adaptors before they also escape. I think I saw Roland ripping off someone's head. Impressive. Wait just one second…
I trigger the grenade, and now She's free. Now that would be very interesting to watch.
The transport continues to fly towards Gaia, its silvery surface turning bright orange from entering the atmosphere. Anakin uses every ounce of his piloting skills to steer the transport towards the planet. But as Anakin continues flying it towards the vast ocean, he realizes that it does not handle nearly as well as other star fighters.
"Hey back there." Anakin shouts. "This is going to be a really rough crash-landing!"
"Just like every other landing you've made?" Ahsoka calls back in response. That took my mind off everything for a second.
"After all the tales I heard about the best pilot in the Galaxy, the first thing he does is crash the ship."
"Very funny, Snips." Anakin snaps, then flips a cover over a large red button on his right and pressing the button. The ramp lowers itself completely, and the sounds of whooshing air can be heard all throughout the small transport as Anakin sails closer towards the vast blue sea, with a large series of islands nearby.
"Get out of here while you can!" Leia shouts, realizing how serious this is. As Anakin gets within a dozen feet above the surface of the ocean, he levels the transport out. Then the crew start making their way to the ramp before jumping out of the transport and into the ocean below. Windu is the first to go, followed with Depa Billaba, Caleb Dume, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan. But once Sander sees the ocean passing rapidly below him, he blanches and backs into Depa.
"Sander, it's okay." She says, using the Force to ease his growing fear.
"Come on, kid. It's not that bad." I said. I loved this part. It was my favorite part of the war. I start walking backwards towards the edge of the ramp and falls into the ocean, doing a backflip. I think that would have been a gold medal. Sander and Leia jumped off. I never have seen what happens when an arrow is crashing on the water and this would be interesting.
Skywalker jumped out, then the arrow bounced a few times. Nice.
We swam to the island that I planned for Hailey to come to. I knew Anakin would fail… I'm not lying to make it look better than it was. I would never do that.
As we get to the island, I see Hailey standing there. There faces were priceless. Its like they never saw Jedi jump out of a ship that was only like ten feet above the water before. Come one guys, do something exciting.
"Karel, it's good to see you again." Hailey came up to me and threw me a towel she pulled out of her bag. Or was that mine. I can't tell. The towel was nice and warm. She pulled out towels for everyone.
"You must be the Jedi he mentioned. My name is Hailey Potter, and I welcome you to Earth."
"Hailey, you're the sweetest. Thank you for that welcome." I say.
"So, as you just heard She is Hailey Potter, one of the leaders of the rebellion and the sister to the man we're trying to kill."
Author's notes: This was a longer chapter. I think this is one of the longest I've ever written.
Thanksgiving is this week. I hope we all have something to be hopeful for.
I'd like to thank my friends on this site, Squasher and SonicXBen. Read what they write.
Have a safe week.
May the Force Be With You
-DragonZlayerx12