Chapter 2
It took about an hour for the Star Destroyer to reach the docking ring which orbited the Blue and Green planet.
Once it docked, Thrawn made his way down to the hanger, where he boarded a Lambda class shuttle. At the controls of the ship were two pilot droids. While he would have preferred organic pilots, Thrawn thought that this would do for now.
After leaving the hanger, the shuttle made its way to the surface of the planet. From his seat in the cockpit, Thrawn saw that surface looked peaceful. The lands appeared to be large fields of dark grass, lakes and forests of black and red trees. Below them, a herd of four-legged creatures hopped away at the sound of the ship overhead.
Within minutes, the shuttle arrived at its destination, a facility with a mixture of round and hexagon-shaped buildings and towers. In a few locations were several open-air areas meant for training purposes, including terrain, ground combat and so on. The facility was also connected to both the land and the oceans as well. As the shuttle descended, Thrawn saw that buildings were colored a mixture of gray and white.
Once the ship touched down, the Grand Admiral exited as he stepped foot on the ground. Looking around, he saw what was to be both his base of operations and home for the time being.
"This shall do," Thrawn thought as he walked towards the entrance of the nearest building.
At first, he saw that no one was around. But once he entered the facility, he found a navy-colored Protocol Droid waiting for him.
"Welcome, Grand Admiral Thrawn. I am MC-82, at your service," The droid said in a mechanical tone.
"Thank you for greeting me MC-82. Now could you show me towards the command center?" Thrawn repiled.
Nodding to his request, the droid led the way through the rounded corridors.
"How long have you been active?" Thrawn inquired.
"About six hours, sir. I've spent my time becoming familiar with this facility. As have the other droids."
"Good to know, now tell me. Have my guests been informed about the situation?" Thrawn asked next, with a cautious look.
"Indeed. Many were in shock to learn about how they came to be here. Some even caused altercations, but our security droids calmed them down," the blue droid answered.
"Excellent. Once they have had time to calm down, have them brought to my office. A few at a time," the Grand Admiral commanded.
"It shall be done, sir," replied his mechanical assistant.
After 10 minutes of walking, Thrawn arrived at the command center. It looked very militaristic, as there were two sentry droids standing outside the doors, each one holding an E-11 Blaster Rifle. The inside room was spacious, furnished with a curved command desk, with a chair behind it. In front of the desk were six empty chairs.
The walls were bare, and the only other furnishing was a drink cabinet, located along the right wall. Behind the desk and chair was a transparent glass window that offered a view of the facility and ocean nearby.
"Hopefully I shall be able to add some pieces of art in here," Thrawn thought as he went around to his chair to sit down.
A quick exploration of the desktop revealed a hidden panel of buttons which allowed Thrawn to access the data network, via a holoscreen map. Once he did this, the officer spent his time going over the schematics of the facility. He quickly memorized the different sectors and locations, including defense turrets, shield and power generators, and armories.
"Sir, the first group of your guests are eager to speak with you," MC-82 said as he entered the room.
"Very good, tell them to enter," repiled Thrawn as he deactivated the holoscreen, then watched three alien beings enter the room.
They look identical as they were both tall and thin, with long arms, legs and neck. Their skin was pale,and their heads were oval shaped, with black eyes and white pupils. The only differences were in their clothing and gender. One was male, and the other two were female.
"I welcome you," Thrawn said to them as they sat down. "You are Nala Se, Koi Sa and Aur Na of Kamino."
"That is correct sir. And I take it you are Grand Admiral Thrawn?" Koi Sa asked first, to which Thrawn nodded yes.
"And now that introductions have been made, can you tell us why we are here, sir?" the Kaminoan demanded.
"Chief Sa, there's no reason to be rude. We should hear what the Grand Admiral wishes of us," Nala Se responded to her companion.
"Of course, as you were told. You, and the others that are here, have been chosen for a important mission. To aid me in saving the Galaxy from a threat greater then anything before."
"Yes, yes. We were told, an race of Aliens from another galaxy. So what of it!"
Thrawn narrowed his eyes at hearing this. "Before we continue, let me say that the Yuuzhan Vong are unlike any threat the galaxy as ever seen. They have the means and the technology to destroy entire worlds and civilizations, rendering them to wastelands of death!" Thrawn retorted in anger.
"AND THEY WILL DO SO, UNLESS YOU DO AS I SAY!"
The three Kaminoans flinched at this remark, saying nothing as they saw Thrawn stare at the Ko Sai for a bit. After a moment, the Grand Admiral calmed himself down and continued.
"Ahem. Now then, you are here to create me an army. One just a powerful as the Grand Army of the Republic."
At first the three aliens said nothing after hearing this. "Is that all?" Ko Sai finally wondered aloud.
"No. This army will be different then those you created before, for I want them to combat the Yuuzhan Vong on any front. On land, space and so on," Thrawn answered.
Accessing the holo-screen, he brought up an image of a Yuuzhan Vong warrior. The three looked at a tall alien wearing dark colored armor. It had a bald head with a sloping forehead, open nose, and sacks beneath their eyes. In its right hand was a snake-like creature that it wielded like a weapon.
"So this is the enemy that is coming," Nala Se stated as she observed the image.
"It would seem so, but tell me Grand Admiral, why should I make you an army?" Ko Sai wondered in a rather rude way.
"I can give several reasons why you should," Thrawn answered. "First, as a scientist, you have pushed yourself, time and again, to create something that no one else has, correct?" He asked, to which the alien nodded yes to him.
"Good. Second, imagine yourself as an artist being asked to create a Masterpiece, even though you have already made so many already. So what do you do?"
Hearing this made the alien woman, think carefully for a bit. Her companions said nothing as they waited for Ko Sai to answer.
"...Well, I would...mm...Make something different, in appearance. But in actuality, it would be the same as the others. A new Masterpiece, all together," she answered.
Smiling at this, Thrawn nodded to her answer.
"Very good. Now onto the third reason. I want you to create a means of defending this galaxy. With my knowledge and your experience of cloning, we can do this. So what say you?"
"...I accept, your challenge, sir," Ko Sai answered with a smirk.
"Excellent! You shall work with Nala Se and another member I've picked. They will be part of your group, and shall report to me," Thrawn explained.
After hearing this, Nala Se asked a question. "Grand Admiral, if we are to create this army of yours, we shall need the right genetic materiel to work with."
"And that shall be given to you in time, Doctor Se," he said to her, then looked at Aur Na, who had remained quiet til now as he choose to speak.
"Sir. What role am I to play in this?" the male asked as he stood up.
"You will work with me in the design and construction of ships and vehicles," Thrawn stated.
"I...see. I am honored you have chosen me for this task," Aur Na repiled as he offered a respectful bow.
After this, Thrawn said that the three should become accustomed to their new surroundings, as this place would serve as both their home and workplace.
Once they left, the next group entered which consisted of six men, all wearing custom looking armors. One of them was in binder cuffs, and escorted by two security droids.
"You may release him," Thrawn ordered.
"But sir, this one caused a disturbance, before in-" one of the droids began, but stopped when Thrawn raised his hand.
"I can handle him, and I'm sure our guest will behave himself." Thrawn stated as he looked at the biggest of the group, who grunted at first.
"I will behave, I give you my word," the person said a gruff voice.
"Good to know, release him," said Thrawn.
The cuffs were removed by the droids who told Thrawn they would be outside if he needed them.
Feeling his freed hands, the giant man looked at his companions first, then at Thrawn.
"Gentleman, please have a seat. Oh and please remove your helmets. As I wish to see your faces," said the Grand Admiral.
Looking at each other, the group members were unsure at first.
"Or would you like me to call the droids back in?"
"You heard the officer fellas. Helmets off," the one who acted as the leader said, as he took his off first. Then the others did the same, as they showed their faces. They were all men.
The first had tan skin with a tattoo on the left side of his face, wild black hair and a red bandana tied around his forhead. He looked more like a mercenary then a soldier. The second had short white hair, tan skin and a bullseye mark on his right eye. His face looked stern as he looked at the others.
Third was different as he had goggles over his eyes, short hair and a younger looking appearance. Out of the five, he looked the friendliest.
The forth looked almost brutish due to his height, and the fact his eye's were different with his right eye looking normal with a gray eye color and his left one white. There were also a few scars on the sides of his face. The fifth was far different with his pale skin color. He had cybernetics on his head and his right hand was a scomp link. Like his companions to his left, he wore special armor that had a mix of different colors of dark and light grays, black and red.
The sixth member looked normal. Expect his right eye was a different color then his left one. Also there was a faded scar over his right eye too. His outfit was a white armor with gray markings on it. And a black Kamas cloth around his lower torso. The helmet was also customized to look different as well.
"Excellent, you five are Clone Force 99. Also known as the Bad Batch," Thrawn said to the five soldiers.
"That's correct. I'm Hunter, that's Crosshair, Tech, Wrecker and Echo," the leader of the unit said as he introduced his teammates.
"Very good, and you are Commander Wolffe of the Republic's 104th Battalion," Thrawn said to the sixth man.
"Yes sir," the clone responded.
"And now that we've got that out of the way, would you mind telling us why we are here sir?" Crosshair asked as he glared at Thrawn.
"Yeah, I mean. One minute we're fighting a squad of Commando Droids in the Outer Rim. Next thing we know, we're in this place, being told about time travel and an alien invasion that hasn't happened yet," Wrecker exclaimed.
"That is true, the invasion hasn't occurred yet. Which gives us the time we need," Thrawn said as then told the Clones what he need from them.
Once he was done, the six looked at each other. Then Wolffe stepped forward. "...So you want us to train your Clone Army to battle these aliens. When they arrive in three years, correct?"
"Yes. I want-" Thrawn began.
"Hold on there, what makes you think we're just going to agree to this?" interrupted Echo with a serious look.
"He's right, we're soldiers. Not instructors," Crosshair added.
Thrawn knew that those he picked would act this way. But rather then act like a brute, the officer remained calm as he addressed them.
"What you say is true. You are soldiers, created to serve the Republic," he said first. "But look at it this way, the main government of this time is the New Republic. Which, in one way, is the successor of the one you swore to protect. And in three years time, it will be threatened by the Yuuzhan Vong's arrival. So, in a way, by training my new army, you will be doing what you were created for."
The clones thought about this in silence.
"...He does have a point. Logically speaking," Tech said as he processed the information in his head.
"That may be, but were still going need time to think about your offer," Hunter added.
"I understand. Use your time wisely. And feel free to explore around. When you've decided upon an answer, you know where to find me," Thrawn said to the six, who then left the room.
Once alone, he looked out the view screen to see the ocean in the distance. It was a peaceful moment for the officer as he saw the sea birds flying over the waves. Then the sounds of MC-82 were heard as the droid entered the room.
"Forgive me for intruding sir. But one of your guests has been detained and placed in the cell block."
"For what?" Thrawn asked, already knowing he would not be surprised by the answer.
"It seems he and two others attempted to escape. But our security forces stopped them," the droid replied.
"I see...Well then, I should go and visit them myself. Perhaps I can convince these troublemakers to behave," he stated, then walked out with the guard droids following him.
(Author's Note)
For those wondering, I decided to bring the Bad Batch into the story as they were first created during the production of The Clone Wars before it's cancellation, which I consider to be part of the Expanded Universe's history.
As for their history in this story, everything that happened to them in the Clone Wars is canon to this story. Including them going with Yoda to Kashyyyk, which did happen even though we didn't see it. But what occurs after the war as shown in The Bad Batch series is part of Disney's Canon. So Omega won't show up, nor Crosshair leaving the group. Also, I liked the Character of Commander Wolffe and decided to include him as well.
Next chapter will see the others that Thrawn chose to work with and for him. Til then, May the Force be with You.