The inside of the Gamma class shuttle was pitch black. All electronics had been switched off to avoid any potential Vagaari sensor sweeps. Only the bare minimum of life support systems still functioned in the darkness. Nothing was visible through the transparisteel bubble that encased Ezra's head. The only thing the Jedi had to keep him company was the slow, rhythmic inhaling of his space suit's life support system. He'd spent Force-knows how long floating in zero-G, meditating to himself on the force.
It was calm, peaceful, the perfect environment for a Jedi to reflect on things.
The battle had already started outside, he could sense it.
"Kid, you awake?"
The sound of Captain Ayer's voice caused Ezra to blink awake, rousing from his meditative trance. He couldn't see Ayer, or any other Stormtrooper, but he knew they were there.
"I'm wide awake, Captain. Just meditating, that's all."
"Corporal Solon just sent the all-clear. The Prime fleet's overhead. We're in position to start the operation."
"Alright. Let's get to it then."
Ezra checked his belt, assessing his weapons. The lightsaber of his late master was hooked on one side, and beside it two blasters, a standard issue Imperial handgun and the Celaphid weapon he'd scavenged. Between the three weapons, he was adequately armed for what was to come.
"Here goes nothing." He whispered to himself.
The side doors to the Gamma shuttle flipped open, and light entered the shuttle bay as Ezra activated his suit's jetpack and rotated himself to be facing the exit. A short burst of jump jets propelled him forward, and the Jedi drifted through the rectangular doorway, away from the darkness and out into the light of Neriva's sun.
He blinked and twisted around, getting his bearings. Light bounced off the surface of the asteroid and shone into his sensitive, dark-attuned eyes. Caught off guard he scrunched his eyes closed, instinctively motioning to rub them before remembering the transparisteel bubble surrounding his head. He blinked a few times, allowing himself to adjust, and looked up to see a scene of total chaos.
The Vagaari fleet had engaged the combined Imperial and Narivan forces. Turbolasers, Ion Cannons and kinetic projectiles flew in every which way, and TIE Defenders, Bombers and Interceptors danced and dallied with their Vagaari counterparts. In one corner a Vagaari cruiser was knocked dead by Ion cannon fire, and then torn to shreds by Narivan railguns. In another TIE Defenders strafed a frigate, blowing it to smithereens.
All of the Vagaari ships were covered in transparisteel bubbles.
Ezra winced once again, the tactic disgusted him just as much as it did before, but he steeled himself. He knew that what he was about to do, he would do in the name of preventing more unnecessary suffering, and that gave him resolve.
"Situation is clear, all Zero-G teams exit shuttle bays and form on me. Formation Delta, await my signal to begin approach."
In a synchronized display of military might, Ayer and his men activated their thrusters and flew out after Ezra. Before long he was face-to-face with a line of towering, bulky figures resembling a Stormtrooper in the loosest sense of the word.
Resembling a Stormtrooper, but far, far more formidable.
Ayer and his comrades flew towards him clad in sets of heavy, hulking grey durasteel armour. Standing at over two metres tall, the suits were bulky and mechanical in their appearance, so much so they could have easily been mistaken as loader droids from a distance. A full body set of dynamic thrusters allowed far more speed and manoeuvrability than Ezra's humble jetpack, and magnetized boots allowed them to cling to the hull of any space station or vessel. They came armed with shoulder mounted grenade launchers, and a miniature proton torpedo launcher. Packed into their large, powerful hydraulic claws were a laser cutter for slicing open the hulls of enemy ships, and a blaster cannon for turning the crew into charred, smoking sludge. The weapon setup made them a formidable opponent to light vehicles and a veritable shredder to unarmoured infantry. The whole setup was designed to encase and interface seamlessly with regular Stormtrooper armour, which Ayer and his men were undoubtedly wearing under the spacesuits. In space they had more in common with a miniature starfighter, and on the ground they resembled a light tank or walker more so than any recognizable form of infantry.
The importance of this mission had led Thrawn to authorize the usage of one the most terrifying weapons in the Imperial Arsenal: Imperial Stormtrooper Corps Mark II Zero-G Powered Assault Armour. Its' pilots were colloquially referred to as "Spacetroopers", Stormtroopers specially outfitted to board enemy craft, neutralize onboard resistance and capture the ship intact. They were the bane of many a smuggler, the waking nightmare of any pirate band, and a persistent fear of even the most capable of Rebels, a fact Ezra could personally attest to.
"Alright men, we board the ship at the designated points. Approach from the ventral side, your flight vectors have been calculated to avoid the mothership's point defence systems. Magnetize upon approaching the hull and await further instructions. Kid, you're with me."
Ayer reached out a claw, extending it towards him and motioning to grab on.
It held enough strength to rip a regular human in half and crumple solid durasteel like paper. No doubt if he squeezed the appendage around Ezra's skull, it would be crushed instantaneously.
Once again Ezra gulped, he knew from firsthand experience just how lethal these things actually were.
The last time Ezra had seen Spacetroopers was whilst returning to Atollon Base on a routine supply mission. The Ghost had had the misfortune of running afoul of an Imperial patrol consisting of a Strike class medium cruiser, two Carracks, and an Arquitens out on some anti-piracy operation. Not a problem, the Ghost was more than capable of outrunning any of those ships, except maybe the Carracks. Then they deployed TIEs, also not a problem, as the Ghost's turrets were more than capable of swatting them off long enough to make a hyperjump.
But what the Spectres hadn't anticipated was that the Strike Cruiser had been specifically outfitted for boarding operations against pirate ships operating in the area, so when two Gamma class assault shuttles flew out from the hangar and began spitting Spacetroopers at the Ghost, things became complicated. All of a sudden a squad of heavily armed and armoured Stormtroopers began darting towards the Ghost, dodging and weaving around gun turret fire with their thrusters, only to slam directly into the ship and begin tearing the hull apart with massive hydraulic claws. Ezra, being on the top turret and still young enough to be sporting his longer hair, froze and went wide eyed as a Spacetrooper crashed a mere two inches away from the transparent bubble, dug a claw into the Ghost's hull, and reached up with the other claw to simply rip the gun turret right off before slamming said claw into the transparisteel bubble and prompting him to jump down the ladder fast as he could. Hera in the cockpit turned around in horror to see a set of hulking metal beasts reaching down into her beloved ship and tearing up chunks of durasteel armour plating like tissue paper in their massive claws, clinging with magnetized boots as she tried every complex manoeuvre she could to shake them off.
And all of that was before the Spacetroopers actually entered the ship.
The only reason any of the Spectres had lived to tell the tale was because the Spacetroopers hadn't expected two Jedi on board.
Even now, seeing these monsters on his side, the memory of the whole experience made him gulp. Swallowing his apprehension, Ezra reached forward and gripped the claw.
"Alright. If I'm not mistaken, the Admiral gave you a special set of instructions, kid?" Ayer asked, motioning with the bulky claw arm towards his back.
"Something like that, well, not particularly specific." Ezra replied as he flew up behind Ayer and grabbed onto the suit's backpack. The Spacetroopers could move much faster than him, so he'd have to hitch a ride. The powerful thrusters along Ayer's back and boots kicked into full-gear, rocketing both himself and the Jedi up from the asteroid, and into the vortex of turbolasers and shrapnel above.
"Define, 'not specific'." Ayer asked.
"I'm going to create a distraction." Ezra explained.
"While the Vagaari are busy dealing with me, that should give you guys the opening you need to go and capture the- what did Thrawn call him again? The Miskara?"
"That's the one." Ayer replied.
"Right. That guy."
"May I ask what this distraction entails?"
"Oh that's the fun part. Well the Vagaari rely on slave labour, right?"
"Yeah?"
"Well it's simple. I'm going to start a revolt."
"You're serious?" Ayer said.
"Serious as I'll ever be."
"You're betting everything on being able to successfully incite a revolt among a slave population we have basically no intel on?"
"Relax Ayer, this is what I'm good at. You were on Lothal. You've seen what I can do."
"You better know what you're doing, or else I'm taking you down with me." Ayer snarled back.
With an impressive display of piloting skill, Ayer bobbed and weaved through the vortex of turbolasers and projectiles that now constituted the space around Neriva. Their suits may have been bulky, but the buoyancy of the void granted them a grace that would be impossible within the confines of gravity.
Thrawn told Ezra he would be luring the fighter cover away from the Vagaari, goading them into engaging the Imperial TIEs close. This would give
The closer they came to the Vagaari mothership. The more decrepit it looked. The more Ezra scanned the vast, hulking structure the more engineering issues he began to notice.
The duo were flying towards the mothership, when all of a sudden a turbolaser shot across their eyelines.
Ayer braked immediately, gripping Ezra and bringing him to a similar stop. A Vagaari fighter whizzed past behind them.
The enemy had finally noticed them.
"We're getting contacts!"
The fighter turned, darting right towards them again.
They were stuck in place, unsure of what to do, the Vagaari fighter zooming straight towards them, when Ezra had an idea.
"Throw me!" Ezra yelled into his comm.
"What!?" Ayer yelled out.
"Just do it!"
Combat training took over. Ayer's claw flung Bridger right at the enemy fighter. Reaching to his waist, Ezra unhooked his saber. The battle flying past him in an incomprehensible blur, Jedi instincts kicked in. He flipped around to face the fighter feet-first and hard-burned his jetpack facing towards the ship. Furthermore, he reached out with his hands, drawing on the force as hard as he could, pushing with as much energy as he could muster to slow himself down.
The combined force of the jetpack and his own power cushioned his impact, and his boots slammed against a transparisteel bubble and a particularly awe-struck Vagaari pilot. An ugly, stocky creature, Ezra quickly decided the Vagaari temperament manifested in their appearance.
But he didn't have time to contemplate what the Vagaari looked like as he slammed his saber into the bubble.
The cockpit decompressed in a violent hiss and Ezra was flung spinning into space as the fighter disappeared from view. He frantically fiddled with the jetpack trying to stabilize, growing nauseous at the rapid rotation before a metal claw closed around his waist and stopped him in place.
"Not bad kid! Not bad at all!" A familiar voice said, almost sounding impressed.
"I think I'm gonna be sick." Ezra
The Spacetroopers and their passenger continued to boost towards the Vagaari mothership. The troopers flipped and slammed their metallic boots into the mothership's hull, magnetizing themselves to stay attached. Ezra climbed off Ayer's back, stepped down onto the hull, and similarly locked himself on board.
Laser cannons fired around him, Neriva glowed in the distance, the Chimaera and its fellow Star Destroyers visible against the surface spewing turbolasers at the Vagaari. A vast swarm of Narivan warships surrounded the Imperials,
"All squads, report in." Ayer commanded over the radio.
"Squads 2 and 3 report minimal casualties. Corporal, have we taken any losses?"
"No sir, all troopers present and accounted for."
"Good. We'll take the Hangar bay. Squads 2 and 3 will cut through the hull and enter separately. We'll catch them in a flanking manoeuvre. Jedi, you're with me."
One of the slaves floating in a surface bubble blinked, eyes wide open at the visitors. Ezra recognized the small blue creature. It was a Squib, and it seemed shocked to see him and the others.
Ezra, unsure of how to react, just smiled, waved and gave a thumbs up.
Ezra fought back the nausea associated with suddenly re-entering atmospheric conditions as he sped through the hangar's forcefield. His jetpack lowered him to the ground, hitting the floor as he rolled forward, stood up and ignited his lightsaber. The few Vagaari guards in the hangar froze in place at the unexpected intruder, before quickly assuming combat formation and approaching with guns raised.
The Jedi had just begun assuming a combat stance when a volley of grenades whizzed past him directly into the unfortunate Vagaari in question, blasting them all to smithereens and scattering their remains across the breadth of the hangar bay. The Spacetrooper squad crashed into the ground with a heavy thud before opening fire with their full arsenal. Proton torpedoes scattered across the hangar bay, violently exploding against the fighters and shuttles within, while a hail of blaster bolts flew through the air and cut down more Vagaari.
An alarm blared. More guards rushed into the hangar, now in flames and covered in shrapnel. Ezra raised his blade into a guarded stance and rushed forward. The Spacetroopers stomped forward behind him, continuing to provide a moving wall of blaster fire and grenades, shrugging off Vagaari fire that bounced against their heavy armour and trudging ever onward.
As Ezra rushed forward, deflecting blaster bolts, he grit his teeth.
With the power of the Force he leapt, slicing the barrel off a Vagaari gun and pushing him away before turning around, swinging around and slicing away three more Vagaari weapons and firing them out of sight with a flick of the arm.
The other Vagaari stopped, blinking with their large black bulbous eyes. None of them had ever seen a Jedi before, that gave Ezra an advantage. Their captain yelled a command in a language Ezra didn't understand, and they surrounded him.
Ezra ran forward, slicing and slashing. He deflected blaster bolts, he flung his opponents around the room with the Force and sliced at the enemy at every turn. It was easy, even easier than fighting Imperials, who were currently rampaging around the hangar in a protracted firefight securing more and more of the bay as the Vagaari struggled.
He continued to fight the seemingly endless hordes of Vagaari until morale broke and the aliens fled from their mysterious, sword-wielding assailant. The enemy captain ordered a retreat, now bereft of a weapon, and they fell back.
Ezra held a defensive stance, not wanting to pursue them beyond the hangar.
Then, his instincts fired.
A nudge in the Force. A warning.
Ezra's Jedi reflexes saved him, turning just in time as a Vagaari lunged at him with a large, broad knife, the kind that could do an immense amount of damage to his internal organs if it connected.
With suicidal fervour the Vagaari threw himself at the Jedi, swinging and slashing with the large alien knife, desperately throwing himself at this unknown enemy.
Almost too fast for the human eye to see, Ezra simultaneously stepped backward and swung his saber outwards at the enemy in a single, swift motion.
Hiss
The Vagaari recoiled and screamed in pain with both of his mouths as he held out the hissing, sizzling stump where his hand used to be. The shock overcame him quickly, and he collapsed backwards on the floor.
For a brief moment, Ezra hesitated. He'd made it a point over the years to avoid dismembering his enemies when he could. His first thought was to hold his saber to the creature, order him to surrender, and hope that his order to stand down would cross the language barrier. Once again, the Force saved him. He sensed the Vagaari's intent, his opponent's resolve overcoming the pain, and his intact hand reaching down for the holster beneath his robe.
Ezra plunged his saber down into the creature's chest before it could attack. The last vestiges of oxygen escaped the Vagaari's respiratory system, sputtering outwards in a sickening choking sound as its lungs melted and liquified against the white hot plasma beam currently skewering his insides.
It took precisely 5 seconds for the Vagaari to stop moving. The Jedi de-activated his lightsaber, staring at the lifeless corpse for a moment while Ayer's men secured the hangar, driving back the last of the remaining guards.
It was only just beginning to dawn on him just how ugly the Vagaari actually were. The race's capacity for cruelty, it seemed, manifested on the surface level. He felt an intense amount of anger towards this thing, more than a Jedi ever should. Somehow, deep down, these creatures just enraged him almost as much as the Empire did. Maybe even moreso.
"Kid? You done staring?" Ayer asked.
Ezra nodded.
"Yeah, yeah I am."
A nearby spacetrooper tore a panel off a nearby terminal, and plugged his claw into it. Whatever it did, it was able to interface.
"Schematics are downloaded, transmitting to the rest of the squad." The Spacetrooper said.
"Acknowledged, receiving now." Ayer responded.
Ezra clicked a button on the wrist mounted interface of his suit. He received the holographic map.
"We have the location of the bridge and the throne room! Orders are to capture the Miskara alive! Assume formation and follow me! Move out!" Ayer said.
"There, the lower decks. That's where I'm headed." Ezra pointed on the map.
"Making your distraction?"
Ezra nodded.
"Acknowledged. Good luck with your distraction Kid, we're counting on it. There's twenty decks of Vagaari ahead of us. These suits are quite the force multiplier, but there's a reason we mostly use them for."
"You put far too much faith in that Jedi, Captain." A Spacetrooper remarked.
"Well if he fails, Lieutenant Enoch, we're gonna be the ones fighting our way through twenty levels of Vagaari."
"It does not matter." The Spacetrooper, raising his blaster arm and inspecting the weapon.
"Victory shall be ours, it shall be swift, and it will be honest, purchased with blood."
Disclaimer, I'm having reports of my stuff not being visible for viewing for long periods of time. This is a technical difficulty with the site and there's nothing I can do about it. If you're having trouble viewing any parts of the story I've got the whole thing on AO3 as well so go look at it there. The increased traffic would do me good anyway.
Also, whoever made that TVTropes page, get back to updating it. No particular reason I just find it funny we have one.
The final two episodes of Ahsoka (spoilers ahead I guess) did nothing to change my opinion. In fact it's worse now. Ezra never got to confront Sabine over how she got here. I was expecting a scene where he got angry and chewed her out over enabling Thrawn's return due to her repeatedly evading the question of how she got here but no, I guess not. Even Ahsoka forgives her. Sabine endangered the entire Galaxy for her own selfish reasons, suffered no consequences, and even got some nice Force powers for her trouble.
Had Thrawn simply moved his ship a few metres into the air at the beginning of the final episode instead of waiting for them to arrive, he could've escaped with zero casualties and the heroes could've done nothing. Instead he sends Elsbeth and most of his dwindling ground troops to die like idiots. The "greatest military mind in the Empire" everybody. If I wasn't already a diehard Thrawn fanboy from the books I'd be wondering why this weird blue guy is any special compared to the myriad of existing Imperials we've already seen. But since I am a fanboy, I'm just angry his intelligence has been downgraded.
Also small thing but we never actually see any bridge crew or naval personnel, it's all just zombie stormtroopers, not a huge thing per-se but A big part of Thrawn's appeal to me at least was always how he interacted with his subordinates and that's just a big part of the character gone I guess.
I'm not really sure how Thrawn is even supposed to present that much of a threat to the New Republic anyway. When Thrawn returned in the EU, the Empire still existed, albeit as a rump state, but he still had an army and a fleet to command. Now his forces have dwindled to a single heavily-damaged Star Destroyer and a bunch of zombies, and everything we've seen of the Imperial Remnant suggests that its a tiny insurgent group without any real fleet that Thrawn could lead against the New Republic. And no, zombies don't count, they will not be of any use in a naval battle.
The zombies also seem to be replacing all the Spaarti-cloning stuff from the old books. I dislike this because cloning in general seems to be heavily nerfed in the new canon compared to what it was in the EU. Cloning and genetics was always kind of a recurring theme in the background of the EU. For example, the Empire never really stopped making Clone Stormtroopers, and there were other factions proficient in cloning besides just the Kaminoans, like for example the Arkanians, now its the clone army and nothing else because I guess the mouse is just allergic to exploring cool science fiction concepts like that. (In fact, keep that cloning stuff in mind, it may be relevant to Ascendancy later...)
Also I love how Filoni can go to a brand new Galaxy, which is something even the EU never really did, and the most creative thing he can come up with is more Nightsisters and more Mortis Gods. No seriously I can't overstate how lazy this is, you've got carte blanche to do whatever wacky, out there, crazy nonsense you could possibly want to, and your first instinct is to just copy paste a random minor faction that was wiped out 20 years ago and was never particularly significant or important to begin with. Honestly it just makes the whole universe feel smaller.
Also RIP to whatever they were building towards with Skoll with Ray Stevenson dead, everybody's yelling about the grand reveal of Abeloth but I've learned at this point to expect disappointment.
The only real positive in this situation is my irritation with just how badly Dave screwed the pooch on this one has given me energy to keep writing this story. So uh, thanks Dave, I guess.
