Chapter 28: Raid on Null
October 1, 2226.
The rebels of Null revealed that the imperial base was very particular, because it had been built inside a mountain. The imperials had brought in heavy machinery and demolished an entire rock in order to build the supply base inside of it, leaving only the major hangars exposed so that the transports could easily go in and out.
The hangars were defended by medium-sized anti-air guns, so a reckless air assault was out of the questions. The Ghost and the Bullet had landed into a nicely hidden valley, dismounting the strike team and staying ready for a pickup.
The plan was simple: inside the base it was bound to be some major explosive magazine. The strike team was going to steal some of it, find a few weak spots and blow them up until the base was basically impossible to utilize, even if that meant pulverizing the entire mountain.
Now, after the Millennium Falcon had also arrived and landed to allow its crew to join the strike team, Ezra introduced Luke to Dhara and Zare, and now they were talking about the former's abilities with the Force.
"And since we arrived here, I found out that I am able to heal the physical wounds of others." Dhara was explaining.
"Heal wounds? That sounds very useful." Luke commented intrigued.
"Right," said Ezra, more cautious. "what kind of wounds?"
Dhara calmly replied. "Unfortunately, only those on the surface. Just last week I helped Terrik with a blaster wound."
"She's not lying." Terrik, a man who was about to turn 30, intervened and pulled up his shirt with a hand, enough to show a burn on the right side of his waist. "We ambushed an imperial patrol, and even if we won, one of those bastards got me good. If it wasn't for Dhara, I would have died slowly and painfully."
That was a reference to the fact that the rebels on Null had barely any medical supply, and they probably knew they didn't have anything that would have saved Terrik anyway.
"But anyway, I only managed to help his healing process and basically stop the bleeding. But had he been wounded to his organs, I'm not sure I could've done anything."
"You used it to save a life. That's all you need to care about." Ezra reassured her. "In my experience, you may still have a connection to the Force, but you need to have a clear image of what you are attempting to do. Maybe if you learn some medicine, you might be able to do much more with your power."
Dhara was both surprised and pleased to hear that. The Inquisitors didn't focus much on explaining things to their unwilling students. And after hearing the stories of what had happened in the last years outside of Null, she now understood that her place was to be at the new Jedi Academy, where she could train her powers, maybe build her own lightsaber and give her contribution in building a better galaxy.
Zane also was favorable to return to Lothal and see with his eyes what the Imperial Federation had brought there, but not without his parents, who were still living in one of the nearby villages. To that, Han and Leia offered to go and see if they could convince them to pack their things and go away with them, thinking that the Falcon could find some time to go past the frontline and unload the Leonis and Merei onto a safe world before rejoining the Liberator.
With that issue out of the way, it was time to scout ahead and see what kind of task was waiting for the allies.
Dhara and Zare led the scouting party, reminding everyone that they were both trained at an imperial academy with very high scores, and brought them to the side of a cliff, from which Ezra could clearly see where the imperial base had been built: on top of one of the tallest mountains of the planet, so tall that there was snow on what was left of the top, where the main hangar had three different doors, but the access to the 'underground' facility was still at around 2000 meters above the level of the planetary seas.
"Look at the trench protecting the entrance." Zare said, pointing Ezra's sight to a specific point. "There is an entire company of troopers defending it."
That was true. Ezra spotted a small but well-fortified system of defenses right outside the armored door, but he also noticed that the people manning them were Navy troopers, equipped with just a blaster rifle and a protective vest. If the Coalition was to bring down even a single company of the Republic Army, those poor devils would have been barely equipped to fight them.
Still, against the ragtag band of Kerret they could easily defend the entrance, and it also confirmed that Rax didn't have Army troopers to spare for his rearguard.
"That won't be a problem for a platoon of mandalorians in full set." Sabine commented proudly.
"True, but if we charge through the front door, they will call reinforcements." Ezra noted, then pondered. "We need to first shut down their comms, and we don't have anything powerful enough to do that."
"Well, I think our only way for that is to get inside somewhat." Han said.
"That won't be a problem. Me and Luke can get inside fairly well with our armors."
Since Luke's suit also had both the camouflage hologram and a cloaking device, it was clear to everyone what Ezra's intention was, and they all agreed. So while the rest of the party turned back to go get the strike team, the two Jedi proceeded to get a closer look at the entrance. Observing the situation for another ten minutes, they noticed that right at that moment, the doors were opening and the troopers in the trench were collecting their things and preparing to get in. They were clearly getting rotated.
"Now or never." said Luke, and Ezra agreed.
They activated their cloaking and slipped as silently as they could up the height and into the trenches in a moment where they were empty.
Their cloaks were not going to last forever. Crouching on their knees, they hastened up and reached the door just as the new batch of guards was getting outside, clacking their teeth and lamenting for the cold, as they hadn't been provided with proper winter uniforms.
The Jedi entered by staying next to the walls, where nobody used to walk, and then rushed inside the main entrance, immediately spotting a stack of crate that was just what they hoped for. The moment their cloaks ran out of energy they were almost behind the stack. They didn't want to jump and risk making a ruckus, but Ezra sure prayed that nobody was looking their way as the troopers seemed busy joking and talking with the comrades taking their place. The Jedi sneaked behind the crates and halted, Luke watched their right side, Ezra the left one.
They waited, and the troopers apparently didn't see them as they calmly walked past them, simply relieved that they were finally inside the warm base.
After being sure that they were safe, the Jedi sneaked past the entrance and entered one of the tight corridors and cautiously moved around.
"We need to find a terminal." Luke noted. "We can't wander around until we stumble upon their comm relay."
"I agree." Ezra said, happy that it was Luke to take the initiative. Even if it was an obvious step for their mission, he was pleased to see that Skywalker was speaking up more independently.
That said, he called Jinx up and turned his scanner on, trying to see if it could detect the presence of data cables that would lead them to a near terminal, if not to the entire comm system if the Force had been with them.
Iulius examined the data once again. There was no doubt: the Zann Consortium had set up a base in the vicinity of the Chommel Sector, most likely beyond the Triellus Trade Run that separated the Mid Rim from the Outer.
Finding it was the priority, but for now he had to leave the sending of probe droids to Bolo while he kept going through his daily duties and administering of Lord-Protector.
The one thing that definitely hurt his nerves more was the continuous cuts that Coruscant was making in his budget. It was true that the decentralization was wielding fruits and the various planets of the Mid Rim had managed to establish a seeming of stable economies, but the revenue from their taxation couldn't cover all the needs of the military under Iulius' command. Every month he had to choose between allocating that meager amount of money to the Army or the Navy.
Overall, he had prioritized the production of fuel, as no matter how many soldiers they trained, the ships and vehicles were useless if they couldn't move. The situation was so demoralizing that Iulius had ordered every Task Force of the Mid Rim to have one Star Destroyer active and the others mothballed in dockyards unless they came under attack, because that was the extent of how little Coruscant was giving him.
Per contrast, Admiral Rax was still throwing a dismal amount of soldiers and vessels on the Hydian Way, suffering terrible casualties and not even managing to take Taris or Denova. He might have used the element of surprise in an admirable way at the beginning of his offensive, but now he was unable to outsmart Admiral Edrix and Grand Marshall Ackbar.
The only good news was that ISB had managed to confirm that the Federation was actually fighting a war on its borders. Spies on Lianna and intercepted transmission revealed that the federal fleet over Lothal had been recalled to the Milky Way.
Iulius was just thinking that he would gladly trade a hand if that could give him a clear picture of the geopolitics of the Milky Way, but the ISB was still trying to infiltrate agents on the other side of the wormhole.
While he was thinking about all of this, the terminal on his desk started beeping, signaling an incoming private transmission. He took a look at the name and he made a little smile. Now that was someone he would've gladly speaking to.
He tapped the button and a moment later the hologram of Thrawn appeared standing in front of his desk, his hands as usual clasped behind his back, and the only thing that seemed unusual for him was his mouth twisted in an expression of joy.
The Chiss made a serious bow that contrasted with the joking tone of his voice. "Lord Tanis. It's a pleasure to see you again."
Iulius made a light chuckle. "The pleasure is all mine, Thrawn."
"I received the news about the attack on Karlinus. I admit I was surprised."
"Tell me about it. The bright side is that they knew that because they managed to crack our codes, not because they bought some of my officers. We already switched the encryption."
"Which means they established a hidden base near the Chommel Sector."
"My conclusion, as well." Iulius replied as he calmly stood up. He turned around and reached a bottle of Sendat, a Naboo liquor that, recently, has become one of his companions in dealing with everyday work. "But we know where the only escaped pirate cruiser has gone, and I think I know where they are hiding."
"Wasn't expecting anything else." Thrawn said with his usual cool voice, though the compliment was evident.
Iulius took a sip from the glass, slowly letting the liquid flow down his throat. He stopped quickly, turned around and headed back to the desk with the glass. "I may also have taken this a bit personally. But speaking of something else: how are things going on Carunoia?"
"I would say optimally." that wasn't an expression that Thrawn used just like that, Iulius thought. "The Carunoans and the Angara have established diplomatic ties and signed a defensive treaty just a week ago."
"That is good news. I suppose fighting together has convinced even the Roekaar that we mean no harm?"
"Akksul has certainly moderated his speeches against non-Angara, and the Roekaar lost many followers. However, those who remain have made abundantly clear that they won't tolerate any permanent alien presence in the Angara core worlds."
"So, establishing co-joined colonies is out of the table."
"For now, at least. Governor Pryce believes a moderate approach will make the Angara more keen to collaborate, with time."
Iulius chuckled. "Pryce...said that?"
Thrawn nodded. He was overall serious, with only a corner of his mouth tightly bent into a smirk that shared Iulius' amazement in the incredible change of Pryce's personality.
"Also, I want to report that our mandalorian allies seem to have taken this fight to heart."
"You never said you suspected them."
"I always assumed that Korkie Kryze and his companions had decided to just submit to you after you defeated them and spared their lives. However, after our recent encounters with the Grysk, I can tell that all of them either realized that they are fighting a war that will protect the galaxy and what is left of their kin, or they just consider the Grysk worthy adversaries."
"Which is more or less what I was hoping for when I sent them there." Iulius calmly commented about the latter hypothesis.
"However, I do need to point out that there is still unrest among them. Some warriors wish to know what has become of the rest of their civilization. They remember that you allowed most of the population of Mandalore to safely evacuate."
Iulius was reminded of that...and now was thinking of the consequences that he knew very well, by now. To chase away the frustration he took another sip of Sendat and put the glass back on the desk, after that he leaned his left arm on the table and his head on the index attached to said arm.
"I hoped that destroying their home planet and killing Bo-Katan would scatter them across the stars. But we notice an increased presence of mandalorian warriors every time we face the Jedi on the battlefield." Iulius stated tired. "To put it mildly...that backfired spectacularly."
"Don't blame yourself. Considering the history between the two groups, that outcome hardly seemed a possibility. What you did was the most strategically sound thing, at the moment." Thrawn spoke with his calm, and a wisdom as if he was passing down a very important lesson.
Iulius always appreciated those moments: talking with Thrawn always helped him to gain new perspectives on the art of war, on his choices and their consequences, on putting attention to the details that could spell success or disaster. The officers he had gathered in his fleet were smart, too, but the Chiss always added a level of depth that Iulius couldn't experiment with anyone else.
"I appreciate the thought, however, I guess we need to decide whether Korkie deserves to know the truth or not."
Thrawn seemed to analyze him for a moment before responding with a question. "Do you think they could be more useful?"
"Ideally. But in the current situation that's just a wishful thinking." Iulius replied, still with his gaze fixed in front of him as he tried to come to a solution.
He pondered for another thirty seconds, with Thrawn patiently waiting. Even the Chiss understood that there was the serious risk of Korkie deciding that he and his mandalorians would ask to join their kin or straight-away mutiny and try to escape. And the New Republic couldn't be allowed to know what Thrawn was doing in that region of the galaxy.
All-in-all, there was only one path that could be taken. "Grand Admiral, report to the mandalorians where their kin are. I trust that you will be able to convince them that fighting the Grysks is the only way to protect what is left of their civilization."
Thrawn made a small bow. "As you wish, Lord Tanis." he said with absolute seriousness this time.
There was only one last topic to look into. "News from the Chiss?"
"Yes. I established contact with those who knew about my mission and explained them what we are doing."
"Any chance they might join us?"
"Normally, the Ruling Families follow a policy of strict neutrality outside the borders of the Ascendancy, but the Grysks have become increasingly more aggressive against the Chiss. In fact, my old comrades told me that your appearance might have saved the Ascendancy."
Iulius rose an eyebrow. "Me?"
"Evidence has been found suggesting that the Grysks were preparing a large-scale invasion of Chiss territory right in the period when you reached Carunoia. The Yavzakhs were supposed to be the first wave of the invasion."
"I see. So when the Grysks understood that the Empire had taken an interest in them, they had to delay the invasion."
"Precisely. Which puts our recent conflict with the Kett in a whole new perspective."
Indeed. The Grysks should have known that the meager fleet they had sent to 'assist' the Kett would have been insufficient against the much more powerful Star Destroyers. Evidently, the bulk of their forces was still engaged in whatever conflict they were moving against the Chiss Ascendancy.
Iulius took a moment to make those considerations, then decided it was time to wrap up the conversation. "Keep talking with them. Let them know that I am willing to speak with their rulers on behalf of the Empire, if they want."
"I'll make sure to refer it."
"Anything else I should know?"
"Admiral Daala is making steady progress in the mechanization of the Dark Troopers, however, the first prototypes are still in planning stage."
"Understood. All right, keep me in the loop, my friend. And good luck." the Lord-Protector concluded in a friendly tone.
Thrawn nodded with a smile. "May the warrior's fortune smile upon us." and then he disappeared.
Ezra walked next to the console of the communication array and summoned Jinx, letting the AI plug into the system. He quickly turned his head to check the situation, but all he saw was Luke still making sure that the two guards they had knocked out were not waking up.
In the span of a few seconds, Jinx reported that he was ready to sabotage the comm array without the need to blow it up. Ezra told him to do so, but he also came up with a new idea: since they were already inside the base, they might as well cause a diversion that would distract the garrison and give an advantage to the allied strike team.
Luke even came up with a better idea as they looked at the map of the structure. "Look at the mess hall. And the food storage room." the base was overall well organized, and they had major rooms for food, medicines and weapons. The Jedi were only interested in destroying the latter. "They only have one way in and out. I bet we can trap a lot of those troopers inside and keep them out of the way. By the time we are ready to blow up the ammo, they won't have any chance but run to save themselves."
"You surprise me every day more, my friend. A good idea. I don't want to have more blood shed than necessary."
Luke smiled and then materialized his helmet back. Ezra did the same, and the Knight decided to wait sending the all-clear message, confident that Zare and Sabine would've understood what was happening when the sentinels outside would probably rush inside the base to help.
And so, after briefly studying what the quickest way to aggro the biggest number of guards and draw them inside the mess hall, the two Jedi jumped out in the hallway, found a couple of guards walking with their backs to them and Ezra shot between them, making sure that they were scared and alarmed enough to immediately call for reinforcements while he and Luke ran away.
The guards shot back, but their aim was so bad that Ezra concluded that the people in there were all conscripts with minimal training, which meant that Luke's plan had a good chance of succeeding.
In fact, an alarm resonated throughout the whole base, and Jinx caught up numerous heartbeats coming from the main door and rushing at them, a sign that the guards outside were now taking part in their chase. Soon, there was literally a mob of imperials chasing them down and firing at them. Luckily, in the tight corridors of the base, only two or three of them could actually fire, and while Luke easily parried the bolts coming at him, Ezra's shields could keep up while he easily dodged the terrible shots.
They thus arrived at the mess hall and Ezra rushed in there while Luke apparently kept running forward.
The Knight jumped between the tables, at the moment empty as everyone had scrambled out to find the intruders, but there were still some full trays. Ezra overturned a table to make a quick barricade at the opposite end of the door, from which the imperials started to swarm through.
They fired in his direction, but as always, only a handful of bolts hit the table, which was still made of metal and could sustain a bit of heat. Ezra stayed crouched behind for the next thirty seconds, only standing up a moment to fire a few shots with his Predator pistol and wound two troopers, one at the arm and the other at the leg, to discourage the others from storming his position.
Ezra then felt that Luke had managed to confuse the group of troopers following him and was now returning to the mess hall to cover the door. The Knight thus folded his pistol on the waist and quickly focused. Through the Force, he started to bind an invisible rope around the blasters of all the imperials in the room and gathered them in two different knots. When Luke was close enough, Ezra stood up, exposing himself to the fire, but his shields were fully loaded, so he calmly grabbed the knots and pulled them with all his strength with a gesture of the arms to reinforce his mental image.
The troopers gasped in puzzlement or were thrown down as their weapons were ripped away from them. Then Ezra rushed through, bumping a soldier who was in his way as gently as he could, then passed through the threshold and Luke immediately overloaded the control panel with his omni-tool, sealing the door for good. Inside, the troopers almost immediately went to bang on the door, but unless there was a technician among them, they weren't going far.
"This is done. What about yours?" Ezra asked.
"Already put them into the food storage." Luke replied amused.
Ezra chuckled and rose his hand, letting Luke high-five him. The moment right after, they heard the sounds of an intense firefight going down the hallway. A quick look at the sensors indicated many allied signals. The rebels and the mandalorians were storming the building and quickly overran the few, scattered navy troopers left around.
The Jedi waited until they saw the first mandalorians advancing in their area with Cassian and Jyn, then the Leonis siblings showed up, followed by Sabine and Zeb.
"You just can't resist making a fuss by yourself." Zare commented to Ezra.
"We got half of the garrison locked inside. You're welcome." Ezra quipped in return, casually pointing a thumb toward the door of the mess hall.
"Whatever." Sabine said lightheartedly. "What's the next step."
"Dhara, set time charges in the armory to blow up in one hour. Then offer the rest of the garrison the chance to drop their weapons and run for their lives. We go and take out the hangar." the Knight explained.
The rest of the attack was just as smooth. The guards in the hangar had the time to shore up some defenses, but since the Jedi and the armored mandalorians were the vanguard, they stood no chance and were the conscripts quickly lost all will to fight after seeing that their blaster bolts just didn't seem to have much effect on the protections of their enemies. Those who surrendered dropped their weapons and were allowed to leave, allowing the small vanguard to throw around their missiles and making fuel and other volatile materials turn the hangar into an inferno.
Meanwhile, Dhara and her squad took control of the central control room and she announced on the PA that the base was going to blow up in 40 minutes, inviting the troopers to leave.
The allies then freed those trapped inside only when 20 minuter were left. By that time, panic was widespread among the imperials, who just weren't willing to go down fighting and stampeded toward the exit. Just when everyone was far enough, a rumble shook the earth and a side of the mountain erupted into a massive explosion that left a huge hole.
The imperials watched in horror and discouragement, probably thinking over what would their superiors do to them. Ezra felt pity for them, but at least now they had a chance to survive. And without the supplies, with the battle still raging on the Hydian Way, Rax's fleet would be out of ammo and fuel before they noticed. The risk of him taking the time to punish those conscripts was quite low.
With that, Kerret thanked the Jedi and their allies, and bid farewell to them and to the Leonis as well before they mounted on the three freighters and returned in orbit, preparing to rejoin the Liberator.
Only the Falcon was taking a detour to bring Dhara and the Leonis' parents back to the Coalition territory, so they could reach Lothal in the meantime.
"Zare, please be careful while I'm not around." Dhara said over the comlink with a joke, but she couldn't hide her concern for the brother.
Zare smiled and leaned on the comlink of the Ghost. "Don't worry. I will return. Take care of mom and dad."
"Okay." was Dhara's last word before they closed the transmission and the Falcon headed for Taris.
Ezra then walked into the cabin section with Zare. "I appreciate you sticking around for the mission." he said to his old accomplice.
"You helped me save my sister. Wasn't expecting to return the exact same favor, but here we are." Zare said in an attempt to lighten the mood.
Ezra appreciated the effort and made a faint smile, though now his mind returned to Jaral, and whatever she was going through.
He couldn't let that thought torture him continuously. "Still, every help is welcome for this mission. When we arrive on the Liberator you can join the Republic Army officially and get a uniform."
Zare hummed in doubt. "Don't you Jedi have a militia? I mean, the mandos are a thing, but what if I prefer to fight for you, rather than a State?"
Ezra halted and listened confused. "What do you mean? We are allied with all the UACT."
"Yes, but I mean, if I have to enlist in any army, I would like to know that its cause is just. The way I see it, the Republic is simply trying to substitute to the Empire, and when they become the most powerful nation in the galaxy, who's to say they will manage to keep their promises of peace and equality?"
The Jedi was partially shocked by that lucid analysis. True, the case of Darvos had proven that the New Republic was still fragile and wide open to abuses of power. If they managed to overthrow the Empire, were they going to behave that better?
"I understand your doubts, but it's better to discuss this when we'll be back on Lothal safe and sound." he concluded.
Zare acquiesced and didn't bring up the matter for the rest of the trip.
October 4, 2226.
As Iulius was analyzing the last reports on the bridge's holomap with Ciena, Nash spoke up. "Grand Admiral. We're receiving a transmission from Admiral Rax."
"Thanks Lieutenant-Commander. Pass it into the comm room." Iulius answered.
"Yes, sir." the young man obeyed. Nash had been promoted from being a simple navigator to be a member of the command staff of the Admonitor's bridge. Now he was the one not only planning the best hyperspace routes and giving it to the pilot, but he also managed the communications between the ship and the rest of the fleet.
Iulius walked inside the comm room, motioned the operator to open the transmission and then leave, because the show he would have seen otherwise was not going to be pretty.
The hologram appeared in front of him. Gallius Rax, a man almost 40 years old with a bald face and a scar on his left eye that gave him a tough appearance, but right now the Admiral couldn't hide a degree of frustration on his face. Iulius looked at him with pure annoyance.
"Admiral Rax." he started, trying to keep his voice as courteous as possible. In moments like this, people said that he had absolutely learned to own any conversation from his mentor. "I was wondering when you would call."
"Grand Admiral Tanis." the Admiral said, his teeth tightened. "There have been...complications in my campaign against the rebels. I am humbly asking your help."
"Yes, I know about the raid on Null." Iulius coldly replied. "Didn't my memo about diversifying your supply lines reach you?" he asked calmly, just to add insult to injury.
Rax's mouth twitched. He knew he had made a huge mistake by putting all his supplies into a single base, but he still didn't want to admit it, in pure Coruscant fashion.
"Luckily enough, I always prepare in case our offensives turn out negatively. Admiral Sloane is currently fortifying on Skorrupon. You can head there and join the defense line to receive the crumbs of the crumbs that my army receives." he added with a clear acidity in the back of his speech.
Rax snorted. "I have been sent here by the Emperor himself! I will not take orders from a peer of mine!"
"As long as you are in the Mid Rim…" Iulius replied with a frown that seemed to put Rax back in his place. "you are under my jurisdiction. And since I outrank you anyway, if you want any help from me and my forces, you will do exactly as you are told." he paused for a second to let those words sink into the Admiral's brain. "Otherwise, you can go back to Coruscant and explain to the Emperor why 60% of the last trimester's budget has turned into cinder and ash."
That was the final blow. Rax realized that he had no alternatives, so he reluctantly stood at attention. "Yes...sir."
Iulius made a positive nod as if the conversation had been a friendly one. "Dismissed, Admiral." he said courteously, then went to the console and shut down the channel.
He returned into the command room of the bridge. His attention was required elsewhere: the probe droids had detected activity in the Grumani Sector, literally where he had believed he would find the Consortium's base. The activity had been reported on the planet of Crait, which was considered uninhabited.
"The new cruiser is ready?" he asked.
"Yes, sir." replied Ciena. "They are waiting your green light."
"Granted."
The new cruiser was another one of Namedra's projects. It had been simply called MTC, Modular Task Cruiser. It was different from any imperial ship because it wasn't a ship designed for battle: this vessel was easy to build and it mounted a sensor-cloaking device, carried many spare parts to repair allied ships and, most importantly, it mounted an oval cupola in the middle of the bow filled to the brim with equipment for electronic warfare and sensors for advanced recon from distance.
It was basically the evolution of the IGV-55 surveillance cruiser, which was useful for policing operations inside imperial territory, but didn't have the autonomy or the ability to hide enough to make long-range missions.
This new weapon was about to see its first use. If everything went as Namedra had promised, the Empire would finally have a counter to the Systems Alliance's stealth frigates, allowing it to gather much more accurate intel when planning an offensive.
