Vanguard
Chapter 34
"Reassessment"
[UNSC Vanguard, two days later]
The Halberd-Class Destroyer was making its last slipspace jump of a long and complicated series of randomly calculated jumps after their rescue operation on Coruscant to ensure imperial forces would lose chase and cease pursuit. SPARTAN James, Ahsoka, Jedi Knight Mattis and Komari were gathered in the ship's training bay to help young Bayu Cila with her training to become a Jedi. At the moment Ahsoka and Mattis are helping the youngling master her ability to lift and move objects via the Force while the SPARTAN-ll stood off to the side to watch and Cain relaxing on a bench, using the Force to 'see' what was happening.
"Concentrate young one, the Force flows through all of us. Find it, use it, and you will succeed" Mattis reassured Cila as she tried to lift a small UNSC supply crate.
But she was only so far managing to make it tremble which prompted Tano to step over to James and ask in a whisper "What did you put in that crate?"
Longarm answered reassuringly in the same manner "It's empty. I think she has problems with her concentration."
Ahsoka glanced over to Bayu, who was trying her hardest, and turned back to him "Yeah, she needs something to focus on, something she's familiar with."
The SPARTAN looked over to the youngling and thought for a moment "Perhaps it's about time to take a break from Force training, she's starting to look frustrated."
"What are you suggesting?"
"The one thing she's been wanting to do for some time."
At that moment Longarm walks over to Bayu and Lador and states "I think a break from Force training is in order."
Mattis raised an eyebrow "I'm sorry, but what do you know about the Force my metal friend?"
"I know that it requires focus and patience which is something Bay simply does not have at the moment. I recommend moving on to something she's been eager to do, constructing her lightsaber."
James received a warm grin from Bay but Mattis argued "A Jedi must rely on the Force, she can't live her life by simply using her saber."
"I understand that, but as long as the saber isn't completed it will continue to bother her. Perhaps completing it will clear up her mind a bit."
Mattis couldn't argue with that, it is true that Cila has been wanting to complete her lightsaber for so long that it started to have an effect on her mind, perhaps he was right about something, he sighs and agrees "Very well, Cila let's have a look at your lightsaber."
Longarm stepped over to grab the crate and brought it over for Bay to use as a table as she grabbed her hilt and disassembled it to its finer components, she explains as she carefully examined each piece "I've been trying to make it work but every time there's something wrong with it. I just don't understand."
Ahsoka and Mattis began examining the pieces as well, nothing was missing nor out of place, until they found that one of the components, the small power cell, appeared to have burnt out and rusted away "Well there's your problem Bayu, it must've burnt out after you activated it several times when the saber wasn't built right" Ahsoka comments.
"Great! How am I going to find another power cell!?" Cila exclaimed now feeling defeated.
It was then when Lador notices Longarm approaching them and asks the Pantoran "Can I see that cell?"
She nodded in compliance and handed the small power cell to the SPARTAN who then examined it closely, after a few turns and glares he asks "How much power is needed to activate the saber?"
Mattis answered "A lot just to ensure a consistent flow of energy to keep the blade ignited. Why?"
"Well . . . with Percival's help I could probably build one. Won't be as trusted as what you're used to but if I do it right then I think it'll work."
"Really Longarm!? That's great!" Cila smiled "Thank you so much!"
"Don't mention it . . ." the SPARTAN answered as he came down to a knee in front of her "And maybe when I come back we can get back to your Force training, how does that sound?"
"Sounds great- but before you go there's something I got to ask."
"Such as?"
"You have a lightsaber too, but you're not a Jedi. Is it yours?"
Longarm glanced down to see the energy sword hilt latched to his right thigh, he stood up afterwards and takes it into his hand "Well originally no, it belonged to someone else" he began to recount the day aboard the Covenant corvette that attacked a Republic cruiser "I earned it through fighting its owner, they had a sense of honor and would've preferred dying by their own sword than anything else, I was obligated to give him that honor."
"Huh . . . well how does it work?"
By cue Longarm ignites the sword, the two curved blades of pure plasma erecting from the sides of the hilts, and gently waved the blades about with elegance.
"Such a peculiar design . . ." Mattis noted.
The SPARTAN explains "The blades are pure plasma sealed in by a magnetic field that's generated by a power cell in the hilt, much like your own, but the design of the curved blades can allow me to 'grip' your saber and render you immobile where I can deliver a final blow through other means."
He deactivates the sword and places it back on his thigh when Cila chirped "That's so cool."
"Yes while you dabble in physical combat with such weapons" Cain rebuked from his bench "There are always other alternatives to pacifying your enemies."
Ahsoka saw that Komari was trying to start another disagreement with them, he's been doing that ever since he walked out of the med bay on his own against Percival's orders for bed rest, and gestured the SPARTAN "You should go on and get started on that power cell."
He nodded in agreement and begins to walk towards the exit, with Bay stating as she collected her components "I'm coming with you!" with no objections from the SPARTAN, however Mattis was hesitant to stop her but he eventually lets her go.
He and Tano watched the two walk out the bulkhead hatch before she comments "She's really attached to him. Been like that since he found her."
"I can understand why, with the death of her master she had no one to turn to- no one to look up to as a parenting figure, until he came" he pauses for a moment and asks "Are you sure he will be a positive influence for Bayu?"
She nodded in agreement "While he's a soldier at heart, he's been trained well by others. He knows right from wrong."
Cain was standing up from his bench arguing "Young Cila should not become too attached to Longarm, or less she fall victim to the dark side should something happen to him."
"You forget he's a SPARTAN, Master Komari, they don't go down easy" she retorts just before she bid the two farewell and left the training bay to head for the bridge.
"Let us hope you are right . . ."
[Command Bridge]
Aboard the Vanguard's command deck, Jorge was sitting back in an operator seat watching the spectrum of blue lights of Slipstream Space pass by in a brilliant display, he was relaxing in his armor, with his helmet lying in his lap, trying to understand the kind of position they were in, more specifically he and his brother in arms.
They were both trapped in an unknown and hostile galaxy with no way to reach or contact the UNSC, or anyone they knew as of that matter, and they were severely outgunned and outnumbered by several million to one. And as of recently there was a major shift of power that resulted in the extermination and prosecution of the Jedi Order who were now being hunted down across the galaxy and killed as they were deemed traitors to the Empire, and with them harboring four of them aboard the Vanguard he knew the Empire will not be so kind to them. He didn't like it at all and he was sure James didn't like it either.
But fortunately there were still options for them, the first was to go into hiding and virtually disappear from the face of the galaxy to be never heard of again for the rest of their days. They wouldn't have to fight a futile war and it was their best chance to ensure they all survived, all they had to do was to find a remote planet in the outer-rim territories and live a life there. The second was something James and he would outright refuse to do, though the idea came to mind for the briefest second, they could always hand the Jedi over to Imperial authorities and hope to be granted amnesty, though personally he couldn't go through with that action even if he was ordered to and he knew James would rather kill himself or face the entire Covenant hegemony alone before even thinking about that.
He soon sets the grim thoughts aside and closed his eyes as he laid back in his chair remembering the days being in the UNSC and on his homeworld, Reach. He began to think back to his team that he worked alongside during his final months on his planet before he activated the slipspace bomb that sent him here, Noble Team. He shared a close bond with each members of the team, the most notable was Noble Six who was the most recent addition to the team after the loss of their own at the Battle of Fumirole, it was because of Thom-A293 that the UNSC was able to hold the Covenant off for a few more months before the planet eventually fell. He grinned knowing that being subtle was never Six's strong suit during the time of the Covenant invasion on the planet, but it also pained him knowing how their last time of seeing each other ended with him throwing his fellow SPARTAN out of the Ardent Prayer's hangar bay shortly before activating the bomb. He sighed in grievance wondering what happened to Reach after what he done, a little part of him hoped that the planet was truly saved, but he knew the Covenant would always return in greater numbers. It was likely that his home has fallen.
His ears picked up the distinct hiss of the door hatch sliding open behind him, light footsteps were heard and he immediately knew who it was but he didn't bother to greet her, and soon enough he heard a chair next to him being moved which meant that Ahsoka was sitting next to him.
"Hey Jorge" she spoke with a relaxed tone.
"Ma'am" he responded as he kept his eyes closed.
He heard her lay back in her chair as well, possibly to relax and watch the lights, and give a sigh of calm "It's been quiet the last few days hasn't it?"
"Hm."
The togruta fell silent for several minutes, allowing him to come back to his thoughts.
Ahsoka glanced at the SPARTAN relaxing then turned her eyes back to the viewports; while he's reminiscing of the old days in the UNSC she was beginning to put thought about any other possible Jedi that could've survived the Empire's efforts. The most concerning to her was Anakin, when James had returned to the ship he had told her that he couldn't find Anakin during the operation but stated with hope that he was likely not at the temple at the time of the attack. She could only hope that they find him soon.
Percival's avatar constructed itself on the central holotable and reports "We will be dropping out of slipspace in just a few moments."
Ahsoka asked "Any idea where we're dropping out?"
"Somewhere labeled the Unknown Regions along the Outer-Rim Territories, it doesn't sound likely to be under Imperial control so it is relatively safe for now."
She begins to stand up from her seat and walked over to the holotable and agreed "Yeah but it wouldn't hurt to keep an eye on the sensors, there's no telling what could be out here."
"Of course, I'll maintain a close watch in our zone."
As he said those words, the spectrum of blue began to ripple and distort just before an opening back to realspace tore open in front of the destroyer, the ship trembled gently beneath her feet as it made its transition out of the sub-dimension and subsided shortly after. It's been several days since she saw the stars again, it brought back a small sense of familiarity to her.
"Checking . . . no contacts within scanning range, we're in the clear" Percival reported with a proud grin.
"Great, now we should probably figure out what to do next" Ahsoka comments shortly before looking over to the SPARTAN that still sat in his seat "Wanna help us Jorge?"
The big man gives a small sigh before muttering "Yeah" as he climbed out of his seat with his helmet in hand and walked over to the table to discuss their next move.
[James's quarters]
Longarm was well underway in constructing a power cell for Bay's lightsaber, who was currently standing close behind him looking over his shoulder as he slowly and carefully assembled the pieces, that he managed to scrounge up from the Vanguard's storage bays, together with his pen-sized micro-wielder. Cila watched with fascination as he silently wired and wielded the tiny components into place.
She had to ask "You think it'll work Longarm?"
"This power cell contains a ion breeder, a rough concept Percival developed that recycles the power during activation and should keep you saber ignited as long as you want, all I have to do is to make sure the reactive chamber is properly aligned with the connecting node and the heat sink."
"You really didn't answer the question . . ."
". . . yeah, it'll work."
The SPARTAN-ll got back to work as Bay looked over onto his bed and found a damaged black helmet that somewhat resembled a clone's helmet, it appeared to be in the middle of repairs when James started on her power cell, and sat down on the cot before picking the helmet up in her hands. The Mk. V EOD helmet was much heavier than she expected because unlike a clone's which was primarily made of plastoid this was built with the somewhat heavier and more robust titanium alloy commonly used by the UNSC in nearly everything they use from body armor to starship construction. She examined the helmet further, finding scratches and burn marks across the metallic casing, and carefully slides it over her head. In an instant upon putting it on a blue Heads Up Display system came to life bringing up several operable systems such as radar, shield ratings, user callsign, and a centralized crosshair that remained in place. However it wasn't long until some of the display settings began to blink red as a sign of a malfunction but she didn't mind as she continued to get a feel for the helmet for what it is.
She noticed James had glanced at her wearing the helmet and she asked "How come you don't take your armor off? Doesn't it get heavy after a while?"
"Not really, our armor is neurologically connected to our minds, you can say it's sort of like a second skin for SPARTANs."
"Oh that's pretty cool, but still don't you take it off?"
"Once in a while."
"I wonder what you look like without it."
He grinned lightly to that comment "You should ask Ahsoka about it, she seen me once without it."
"Hm, maybe I will when I see her next time. So where were you born?"
Longarm answered as he was putting the final pieces together "A planet called New Harmony, it was a calm and beautiful place to be on. Bustling cities and spaceports, calm grasslands that almost looked like a waving sea when the wind blew, and the small communities out on the frontiers were always peaceful where everyone helped out one another."
Bay could only imagine now what New Harmony was like "I'd like to go there some day."
"I'm sure you would . . ." he answered, hiding the pain under his helmet and calm tone, it was sad knowing she'll never see such a place after it was burned by the Covenant long ago during the war, a damn shame it was.
"And . . . done" he remarks, finally completing the power cell.
Cila took the helmet off, sitting it back on the cot, and jumped up to see the power source for herself "It looks just like the diatium power cells we use."
"And it should be more durable than the first, seeing how the titanium-lead alloy should hold everything in place. Now let's see if you can put it together."
She nodded in confidence as he held out the power cell and took it before sitting herself on the cot and disassemble her lightsaber down to the tiny components. Longarm remained seated in his chair as he watched her close her eyes and begin to concentrate with the Force, one by one the pieces were lifted into the air all of which moved flowingly as they gradually came together. First was the inner components such as the energy gate, field energizers, focusing lens, the crystal mount, as well as the power cell that connected fairly well along with it to his surprise. Then came some of the more larger and outer pieces to the puzzle, the metallic casing along with the activation stud, blade emitter, handgrip, power adjustments, and other fine little details that was put into it. Just like Bay when he was building her power cell, he was utterly fascinated as he silently watched the final pieces come together into the final build.
The lightsaber was fully constructed once again just as Bay opened her eyes and held the weapon in her hands, she carefully examined it but felt she needed a fresh pair of eyes after constructing it several times over.
She climbs off the cot and hands James her lightsaber for inspection "Here."
He takes the hilt into his hands and closely examined it to the best of his knowledge, everything seemed to be in place from he was able to tell because he knew that each lightsaber was unique so this wasn't like inspecting an assault rifle fresh off the manufacturing line.
He turns the hilt over in his hands several times over before he hands it back to her stating with confidence in his calm voice "Go for it."
She nodded and stepped back to get some distance, she then closed her eyes and drew a breath of anxiety mixed with nervousness, and with the press of the button a bright blue blade of plasma erected from the hilt with a loud swish, it was an astounding success. The SPARTAN felt joy upon seeing the pantoran's face light up with amazement and awe knowing she finally completed the weapon, and it surprised him that the makeshift power cell he created worked flawlessly which made him felt proud to bring a smile to her face.
"It finally works!" Cila cheered as she held the saber in her hand before she deactivates it and quickly threw her arms around the SPARTAN's torso "Thank you so much! You don't know how long I've been waiting for this!"
James was taken back, he should've expected something like this from her, and places a hand on her shoulder "You're welcome" he answered with satisfaction in his voice.
Then Bay had an idea that she enjoyed so well "Maybe you can teach me too!"
But Longarm had to put the breaks on her train of thoughts "Let's slow down a bit, perhaps it's better if Ahsoka or Lador teaches you. I'll admit I'm not the best swordsman around here."
Then her smile shrunk to a small grin "Oh . . . ok" she answered understandingly.
He noticed how displeased she was with the thought so he had another idea "But, I suppose I can teach you some self-defense techniques you could use later on."
Her grin grew a little which made him smile a little when he pats her shoulder and said "Come along, let's show the others" and stood up to the door with her following.
[Command Bridge]
"That's not good news at all . . ." Jorge commented upon learning what happened the last few days.
"Looks like the Empire is expanding its territories as fast as they can, and they're doing a good job at it" Ahsoka remarked as she watched the Imperial galactic border span across the stars in the simulation Percival provided with the data he received from the Holonet shortly after exiting Slipspace.
The AI's avatar walked across the table through the holographic presentation of the galaxy and pointed out to one peculiar front the Empire had not bothered to push on, instead it was pushed back, "And strangely enough there appears to be some resistance here, in the Azloc System along the outer rim. It would seem that somebody doesn't take too kindly to Imperial rule."
"Azloc?" Ahsoka wondered "The last time I heard there was a military research station on Azloc lll but there was no civilian presence on the planet, it's a frozen planet anyways."
Jorge then began to ask "Think it's the Separatists I've been hearing so much about over the Net?"
"Azloc's too far out of the Separatist's way and it doesn't hold any importance other than being rich in raw materials. It can't be pirates- they're too ill-equipped and hardly organized to go up against star destroyers and trained troopers."
Jorge began to ponder as well, no reasonable thought came to mind until he asks "Think it could be rebels?"
Ahsoka hadn't thought of it "Maybe . . . they had to have some serious firepower to drive off the Empire from that system."
But soon enough Percival intervenes with the answer "Well I regret to inform you that is was neither. I've been digging around the occurrence in the Azloc System and turned up some rather disturbing news. I suggest James be here as well, he would want to hear this."
Then by cue the entrance to the bridge swished open with Bay running in with joy and Longarm calmly walking in behind her, Jorge remarks "Huh, ask and you shall receive."
Cila ran up to Ahsoka holding her lightsaber hilt in hand "Ahsoka it works! My lightsaber works!"
Ahsoka quickly put concerning matter aside and turned her attention to the overjoyed Pantoran "Did James's power cell work?"
"Yeah! I can't thank him enough."
James chuckled "She's not lying, she's been saying thank you on the way here the whole time."
Ahsoka grinned and stated to Bayu "Maybe later I can help train you some of the basic forms of lightsaber combat."
"Ok I can wait" she answered with a small grin, and then noticed everyone were in the middle of something before she came in "What're you guys talking about in here anyways?"
James added "I'm wondering the same thing."
Jorge and Percival glanced at one another before the AI reported "Well we were monitoring the recent advances of Imperial advances when I noticed one front that was pushed back in the Azloc System."
"Pushed back? You mean the Empire faced heavy resistance?"
"Yes, but not by pirates or insurrectionists."
"Was there any military reports on what happened?"
"Actually yes. An escort cruiser that was attached to the defense fleet was on a patrol run when it returned to Azloc lll only to find eleven vessels of unknown classifications, one of them three kilometers long, commencing orbital bombardments on strategic locations all across the planet. Now this is where things are starting to sound rather familiar- in the reports it mentioned that each vessel all shared the same purple bulbous design architecture and most of which were firing a large scale directed energy weapon that emitted a bluish beam of highly energized plasma. I'm sure you all knows what this means . . ."
Everyone shared their concerned looks with each other, they knew what happened, the Covenant was back and in greater numbers.
Ahsoka had to ask with worry "How? How did the Covenant get more ships I thought there was only one."
Jorge reminded her "Don't forget about the supercarrier, that thing is still in play."
But James was mainly focused on one detail in Percival's report "What we need to know is where these other ships came from, and why they decided to attack Azloc lll. Is the Empire making a response to the attack Percival?"
"Vague reports are hinting that the Sujimis Sector Command has been pulling assets from existing deployments in the sector and forming a fairly large task force to deal with the Covenant. They will be deploying within the next two days."
Jorge wondered "So where do we go from here?"
A new voice asked as well "Yes, where do we go from here Longarm?"
Everyone turned to see Cain Komari and Lador Mattis already stepping through the hatch before coming to a stop at the holotable, everyone was now looking at James for guidance but even then he didn't know what to do. They could barely stand up to a shielded Covenant corvette let alone eleven warships, and they were definitely in no position to start a conventional war with the Galactic Empire, not with the strength they had.
"I don't know . . ." he answered "We're only a mere destroyer against two massive fleets that overwhelms us in every way imaginable, both opponents have us outnumbered by a hundred thousand to one."
Jorge grinned "That never stopped us humans in our war."
Lador nodded in agreement "We Jedi had held our ground against countless waves of droids over the course of the Clone Wars, I'm sure a few more xenos and Stormtroopers won't be that different."
"Plus we still have a tactical element on our side, we could move anywhere in the galaxy without being tracked by the Empire which allows us to move more freely thanks to slipspace, and we have enough firepower and ordnance to sustain a small gurella war against a superior foe for months" Percival added.
Ahsoka grinned along with everyone else, giving the confidence she always has "And we have something that Empire hates and the Covenant fears, Jedi and SPARTANs."
And finally Bayu adds "And most of all, we have each other. If we stay together then we'll much stronger."
It was as if though everyone was warming up for a fight, save for Komari who held a straight face for the moment, and they all seemed waiting with confident grins on their faces for James's order seeing how he was the commander of the Vanguard and everyone's trusted ally and friend.
Longarm went over the information in his mind, seeing the risks in attacking either the Covenant or the Empire, however he did consider that they were virtually off the galactic grid being in the Unknown Regions which would allow them time to gain more information and play things out more carefully. He glances towards Cain and thought for a moment, and then he came up with an idea.
He mutters "Maybe the Covenant is doing us a favor . . ."
"What do you have in that head of yours?" Jorge asks.
"The Covenant- it's already engaged with the Empire on one front, so how about we make a front on our own against the bigger fish."
"Forcing the Empire on a two-front war? It's not a bad start" Ahsoka comments wondering where Longarm is going with this.
"Yeah but like he said, we only have a destroyer that can only stand up against one cruiser. How do you expect us to hold a front all by our lonesome selves?"
"Because Jorge our front is going to go beyond conventional warfare with all our ships, armor, and weaponry. We're going to hit the Empire from a different angle."
Ahsoka and Jorge gave each other a concerning look with the former stating "We're not following . . ."
Longarm looked over to Komari, who was too trying to understand what the SPARTAN was getting at, and asks "Cain, didn't you say earlier that there are always other ways to defeating an enemy?"
"Somewhere along those lines . . . might I ask what you're getting at SPARTAN?"
"We give the Empire another thing to worry about, open rebellion."
Everyone stood in silence as James went on "Back in the days before we made contact with the Covenant, the UNSC was already having its hands full with multiple insurrections popping up along the outer reaches of controlled space. Every time we quell one world, two more would spring up spewing propaganda to have more systems fall within their ranks. I think we can do the same here."
"Incite rebellion against the Empire? Why that could cause some serious dilemmas even for a military super power. But do you see this possible?" Lador wondered.
"We may have Jedi and SPARTANs but there's one crucial thing we need to start a rebellion on a large scale, we need a voice. A voice that people can rally behind, someone that can be the face of the first rebellion. Perhaps a political figure that shows some distaste for the Empire's ways ever since its beginning."
Cain mentioned "If it is a politician we are looking for then I'm afraid Senator Bail Organa would not be our candidate, he values his planet too much to risk a uprising against the Empire. That goes for other senators that may feel the same."
James thought for a moment then asks "What about Senator Amidala? The one we escorted on Toydaria?"
Ahsoka agreed "Yeah, but she wouldn't resort to violence like that, not yet. I'll go ahead and contact her-"
But Percival interjected "I'm afraid that won't be possible."
"Why?"
"At first I wasn't aware of a 'Amidala' but when you mentioned it, the name has appeared several times in recent broadcasts over the Net. I deeply regret to inform you she passed away four days ago."
Tano's eyes were firmly locked on the holographic WWl british officer, her face displayed confusion and utter distraught "What? H-how did this happen?"
"Official Imperial records states that she, along with other senators, was killed by a rogue Jedi shortly after the Imperial attack on the Temple. Her funeral will be held in two days from now on her homeworld of Naboo . . ."
Jorge noticed Ahsoka's pained expression and asks "Ma'am?"
But the young togruta made no response as tears tried to break free from her eyes, Amidala was one of her longtime friends and someone she deeply respected, James informs his brethren "Ahsoka and Senator Amidala were . . . close friends" he then turns to her "Ahsoka, do you need a moment?"
"How are you not affected by this?" she asks doing her best not to get choked up in this wondering how someone like James was able to keep his calm.
"I am, more than you know, but . . . we SPARTANs just become adjusted for this sort of thing. Look I'm sorry, I knew you and her were very close and it must be very hard. Do need a moment by yourself?"
She then wiped her tears away from her eyes with her arm answering "No . . . I just- I just need time to deal with it, but not now."
The SPARTAN-lls nodded to that with Longarm acknowledging that "Alright . . ." then spoke to everyone "This is why we need something to rally behind, someone who would be willing stand up for people like Senator Amidala."
The Jedi thought for a moment, nobody turning up any answers until Ahsoka remembered someone "I think I know someone."
Everyone turned their attention to her, waiting for her to further explain, "An old friend from not too long ago, he and I known each other since we first met on Raxus and several times later on. The last time I heard he was the newly appointed senator of Onderon."
James then asked "What's his name?"
"Lux Bonteri . . ."
Please leave your comments and thoughts. Thank you.
