"He's stupid," Percy complained. "I mean, it is that or intentionally ignorant."
"Be as that may, Percy, it is still our duty to protect him," Obi-Wan repeated for the third time in the last twenty minutes. "However, for the best of everyone, we must establish a line with the Chairman's overseers to undo his wishes. You will grab what you need, head out with the Chairman, and do what you can to end this peacefully. I advise you to entrench yourself. The Pantornans may not respond before the night falls."
Snow crunched under their boots as the three generals of the Republic Army made their way to shelter away from the frigid winds.
"I'm not sending my men out for this fool." Percy fell in step with the other two generals. They had returned to the forward operating base and talked to the LAAT pilots about retrieving reinforcements. However, they would have to be cautious of the encroaching storm and may be delayed on the return trip. "He'll send them to die for something so avoidable. Did I also mention it is stupid?"
"You have, Percy, but our duty as Jedi is to protect the life of the Chairman," Obi-wan patronized. "That is why we were assigned to be here."
"And the ones he's trying to take? What of their lives?" Percy stepped in their way. He looked between the two older Jedi and met their uneasy stares. "Is it the Jedi way to condemn life because a man in charge dictates his choice by his ego and greed?"
The LAATs took to the air, heading for orbit and reinforcements. Only one remained, Percy's own, which was to be the emergency craft ground side.
Obi-Wan hesitated to answer, avoiding Percy's stare, but Anakin didn't, "I will call Rex in a minute, and we will have my men set their blasters to stun, then. Only to fire when fired upon. Defensive practices only."
"That will have to suffice for the Chairman," Obi-wan spoke and finally met Percy's stare. "I'll be talking to the Senator and helping her find a way to supersede protocol."
Percy frowned, "And are you sure you want me to be the one out there fighting? I thought that the Senator was my responsibility?"
"I am sure. You'll be in charge of supporting the Chairman's offensive." He held up a hand, silencing Percy from the interruption upon his lips. "You don't want to send your men. That is fine. You'll be with Anakin's men, who won't be trigger-happy from being fresh to a fight." The bearded man laid a hand on Percy's shoulder. "The very fact you don't want to be fighting means you will be looking for the first opportunity to pull the men and Chaiman out of the fight. Use that to your advantage. That and you claim Shaak TI taught you how to limit casualties. Do that and limit how many lives must be reaped today before we can find peace."
Percy bowed his head in acknowledgment to the Master Jedi, "I don't like this."
"You never had to," Anakin tried to assure him, meeting Percy's gaze. "We just need you to do what's right."
"Fine, but if the Chairman gets a spear through his chest, I'm not holding my breath on him finding a bacta tank in time."
The oldest Jedi sighed and touched his forehead, "Hard to believe Shaak Ti took you on. Or that you even listened to her."
"Yeah, well, she believed I was The One." Percy shrugged and turned away towards the FOB. "So take it up with her and why she wanted to teach me."
The hangar of the restored Republic base opened as a wave of speeders departed, a cloud of snow in their wake. Percy stared down the Chairman, ahead of a squadron of blue-marked clones, leading them to war.
"She did?" Obi-wan shifted his focus from the passing speeders and furrowed his brow at Anakin. The two Jedi quickly fell in step with Percy, who led them out of the cold and into the hangar. "She believed it was you to be the Chosen One?"
"You think she gives any teenager a lightsaber and says go win the war?" Percy gestured to the lightsaber on his hip. "Plus, she said something about it surrounding me or the likes."
Obi-wan paused as he looked Percy over more critically, "No. No, I do not think she would do anything thoughtlessly."
"Right." Percy saddled himself onto a speeder. "So, Chuchi can end the war, yeah?"
Anakin turned to his master. The older Jedi sighed and stroked his beard before he looked up, meeting his former padawan's gaze before turning to the newest and youngest general of the army.
"Yes, she could after surmounting approval from her home planet's government to, in short, invalidate the Chairman's declaration."
"Right. What if the Chairman became unable to act? Can that make things easier here?"
"She would assume control of the situation until someone else could counter her own will. However, Perseus, need I remind you we do not beget harm upon allies."
Percy shrugged, "You are worrying about the wrong person."
"And who should we be worried about?" Anakin asked.
"The Senator." Percy glanced backward to the service door of the hangar. Behind that door and up a service elevator, the Senator probably was in talks with her home planet trying to sort this mess. "The Chairman has seen to lower the value of her words. She needs to know the weight they will carry. The power she really holds."
Anakin followed his gaze, "How do you figure this?"
"She doesn't know the repercussions of responsibility yet. The Chairman has never let her. He made it obvious when he belittled her earlier today."
"And what would you have me do?" Obi-Wan called out as Percy started the engine of his speeder. The whirls of the craft echoed off the empty hangar walls.
"I have a plan for that." Percy hollered over the noise as he revved the throttle that roared in their ears. "It will bring peace to all this."
Percy saluted the two men and cranked the handle as the speeder kicked off.
"I've got a bad feeling about this," Anakin mumbled to his master as the two watched Percy Jackson race off to his first unofficial battle. "He didn't even stock up to prepare to fight through the night."
-FInaJ-
The Chairman and the deployed squads of the 501st were already ahead of Percy, but that was fine by him. He didn't need to lead them. He just had to be there at the right time to bring things to an end.
Percy only needed to enact his role in Mother's plan for peace on this frozen planet.
Easier said than done, Mother.
"Do not yield from action now, Persues." Goosebumps riddled his arms, and not from the cold around him as Mother spoke to his mind. "This is only the first taste of what you will have to do to cleanse the problems of the galaxy,"
"I know. I know," he spoke aloud through gritted teeth, his voice fell away into the wind. "Just, this seems crazy… That I am going to do this."
"As crazy as speaking to a voice in your head?"
"Well, no. When you put things like that, I guess justifying mutiny isn't as crazy as a voice in my head."
"Mutiny? That is what you call my plan?"
"Looks better on the track record than treason."
Percy stole a glance behind him. The FOB, the towering grey in the mess of white, was slowly obscured in the planet's monotonous, bleak white. Somewhere in there, the two Generals were trying to find a way with the Senator to end this scuffle. He just had to hope they could finalize a way before it was too late, and he would have to do it Mother's way.
"Are they not the same? Mutiny and treason?" Her voice danced around his head, going from ear to ear. He swore he could even feel the phantom touch of a hand drifting across his back as if she was there, around him, circling him.
"Depends on the cause for such action, I think. Just let me have that, okay? You aren't the one in the driver's seat for this affair."
"Would you prefer that I was? That I was in the 'driver's seat,' as you so aptly called it."
Percy frowned and slowed the speeder, "You can do that? You could possess me?"
"It would not be pleasant for you, but if you wish to relieve your conscious of what needs to be done. I can do it."
"Sometimes, I get the feeling that you are much more than what you want me to believe, Mother."
"Of course I am. Make that whatever you wish it to be. However, our goals are aligned. Our purpose is true. What you perceive me as can be anything as long as you understand I am your strongest ally that will not abandon our like purpose."
"You are my way home. That's why I see you as."
"Good. Because I see you as the way back to my home as well."
"To your kids? I mean, you call yourself 'Mother' after all."
"Yes. I would wish to see them and speak to them. To start anew with them. However, I fear It has been too long. That the differences they share with me have grown a wound too deep."
"Everything heals in time," Percy whispered, an echo of words muttered upon his ears before. "We just have to give it time. You get back together with your family, and I will remember mine. Then we can both go home to them happy. So, for the sake of our ways back home, what you want me to do is the best way forward?"
"The most effective and efficient."
Percy nodded to himself and accelerated once more.
:P LINEBREAK d:
The clone troopers and Chairman were easy to find despite that which sought to hide them.
The persistent winds and snowfall had covered any tracks they may have made, and the low visibility from the onslaught of said snow prevented Percy from seeing too far ahead of him. However, the beacon Captain Rex had triggered was a dead giveaway. It was in a practically straight line away from the Outpost. Perhaps it would have been visible in better weather.
On top of the beacon, Percy knew he was close when he could see the flash of blue that would light up the white in front of him. Clones fired off circular blasts, stun rounds, and the occasional one would fly in his general direction.
Firing even backwards? Are they surrounded?
Percy looked at the orbital topography scans that were uploaded into his speeder's navigation console. This chosen battleground was not ever going to favor the clones. Two massive landmasses were walls to either side of the narrow corridor they found themselves in. The enemy could be perched up there, tossing anything with mass and letting gravity do the rest. They could barrage the clones with simple rocks and spears. The natives only had to close the "front" and "back doors" to the passage, and the clones would be screwed.
And if the clones were firing backwards… The doors were already shut.
They were indeed surrounded.
But Percy didn't need both doors open. He just needed the back door open again, so he could get in and see the clones retreat. He only needed one clear path in and out. He would have to carve throu-
"Duck!" Mother shouted in his ears. Ghostly hands pulled his shoulder.
Percy fell off his speeder into the snow as he watched a wooden spear sail where his head was moments before.
"No need to thank me. You are more important alive."
Thanks. Did-did you grab me?
Mother did not answer as Percy laid eyes upon a mass of fur that had sprouted from the snow.
Right. I guess there are more important things at hand than what yours can do.
…
It was a tad harder to get to the clones than he thought it would be now that he had lost his speeder somewhere in the haze of snow and fighting.
As he predicted, between him and whom he was supposed to protect laid a small contingent of Talz that were all too eager to throw spears at him. That would not be a problem if lethal force were allowed, but it wasn't. Nor should it be. So instead, he had to settle for dashing across knee-deep snow to deliver a haymaker to what was basically a mutated polar bear.
"That's for making me lose my ride!" He stood after hearing the creature moan as it tried to roll over and get up.
The creature in question, however, was not the one responsible for him being forced to ditch his ride.
"Just stay down, you lump of fur!" Percy shouted as he dropped his elbow into the furry being, who groaned as it was finally knocked out.
He lay there momentarily, his breath short as he stared at the clouded skies. Snow fell like rain. The white of the world consumed his gaze as he was forced to blink it out of his eyes. He slowly stood and put his hands over his head as he steadied his breath.
This is getting annoying running through all this snow. Hades, it would be easier if this was actua-
CLACK!
Percy fell hard on his side with the velocity of the blow transforming through his body, sending him into the snow.
Planets coated in white were not his favorite.
He checked his arm, which had just been hit by a thrown wooden spear. The animal tooth upon the spearhead bit a scratch into the armor.
No blood. That's good.
He rolled onto his back and sent a silent thanks to the Kaminoans for their engineering. The superior quality armor had withstood the force of the spear and deflected its total momentum. While the power behind the throw knocked him on his ass, it didn't actually hurt him physically.
"More approach."
Yeah. I figured.
He peeked his head up to see two more fur monsters storming his way.
How many more are there? I swear I've already gone through ten of them already.
He reached out to the discarded spear that had hit him and grabbed it. He rotated the wooden weapon, blunt end facing forward, and chucked it from his prone position. One of the unfortunate natives took the blow to the head and crumpled.
The friend took that as a sign for it to throw their spear at Percy. However, Percy was ready for this spear this time. Being aware and able to see its trajectory made it light work to move his body out of the way and catch the shaft of wood in the air.
Percy planted the spear into the ground and used it to force himself to his feet as quickly as he could. He turned to his next attacker and pulled at the planted shaft. Unfortunately, the spear broke apart as he freed it of its entrenched spot in the frozen soil. The spearhead was stuck in the ground below, and he now held a broken staff for Percy to wield.
More than what I had to fight the first monster…
"They are not monsters, Perseus. They are a civilized tribe."
Yeah, I know. That's why I haven't used the lightsaber on them. Now let me fight, and warn me if you are going to grab me again.
"Of course, Perseus. Do your best work, and stick to the plan."
Yeah, yeah.
Percy watched as the Talz fighter approached him, arms raised like a bear.
THWACK!
Shattered wood chips soared through the air!
The spear that Percy had just swung into his opponent's head was now in pieces and littered the snow.
The fighter fell with a groan after the singular hit. Snow puffed up as it was displaced by the twelfth or so lumbering warrior that had found its way into unconsciousness. Percy was starting to lose count of how many he had put down so far.
The amnesiac scanned the nearby area for any more ambushers. They had first burst from the snow, laying in wait, but that implied they were waiting before his arrival and possibly the clones.
They had stayed hidden even as the fight progressed…
What was their plan?
Were they to attack in waves and assault the clones continuously?
Would it be that the closer he approached, he would only find more either awaiting or already out of the snow attacking? That every native that had set out to ambush the men was either above on the cliffs, in combat, or still waiting to strike…
Just how many were there?
It was in a moment like this that he wished he could just use the Force and banish all the nearby snow away. To strip away their cover and abolish the weather and its limited visibility. He would be able to uncover and see any more hunters before they had the chance to strike at him first.
I just have to try.
He stilled himself. Eyes closed, he inhaled through his nose.
The hairs on his neck rose.
He held it within him. The cold air coalesced in his lungs as he searched for an ethereal power to grasp.
He searched for the Force.
"For power," he whispered.
For the ability to blow back the shelter that his foe sought refuge under.
It was there. He could feel it.
Whatever that had made him special to be The Chosen One, what made him a being of the sea, that power, it was there within him. Whatever Shaak Ti saw special in him, it was all within him.
It had to be.
He just had to find it. Take it by the reigns and control it.
The hairs on his arm prickled under his armor.
It had to be within him.
He exhaled.
The air left him as his body deflated, void of power and breath.
He opened his eyes to see the absence of power. Nothing had been blown away in a fury of might, not even a singular snowflake.
Everything continued on as it was. Untouched.
The Force, the intangible power that Shaak Ti controlled with ease, escaped him.
He sighed as he walked over to the spear he had thrown earlier and grabbed the discarded wood. It was finely crafted. A rigid piece of wood carved out to murder, a finely sharpened point that had likely killed multiple clones already prior.
"You should not look to the Force for power lest you wish to be consumed by it."
He decapitated the spear.
The claw that was the tip fell to the ground. The wood attached to it frayed from where his hand had sliced through with anger.
A weapon of hunting, stripped of its lethality… Now, he could safely hunt for his target.
-FinaJ-
Any unskilled tracker would be able to find where Percy went. His footprints were deep, leaving disrupted snow from where he had sludged his way through. The occasional unconscious native would help too. In his wake, he left a mess, a path of determination that led directly to the clones and the Chairman.
"General Jackson," the clone in command called to Percy as he hurdled into their makeshift fortifications. The clones were in a perfect circle with the speeders they had arrived on parked as the perimeter to be their cover. "What are your orders, sir?"
"Maintain non-lethality. We hold this ground till the Chairman yields, or we are forced out," Percy informed. "Commander Rex, was it?"
"Captain Rex, sir."
"Your men are yours to command. See fit to them surviving above all else. I will try and convince the Chairman to retreat no matter how unwilling he may be."
"Yessir."
Percy nodded and turned on his heel with half the staff he started with in his clutches. The rest had broken apart on his journey.
However, the natives always quickly provided a fresh weapon for his hunt.
A spear landed in the snow before him. A throw made to target his unprotected head, but it had ultimately missed.
"Take it," Mother urged him in his ear. His gaze fell upon the weapon. "Take the enemy's tools and use them to our ends."
Percy looked to the Pantoran Chairman. The man yelled orders that his own guard took to, and their blasters followed wherever he pointed. Lethal rounds blasted out of the barrels of their weapons, only to be followed by a dying scream.
Unneed death.
Percy pulled the spear free of the frozen ground. The fastened tooth dipped forward as Percy marched forward.
"The acts of one man can destroy everything, Perseus. That is the reality of this war. The acts of one man."
The One Man barked another command to his men, who stepped forward for a better shot away from their glorious leader.
Percy stepped past them as he enclosed on the blue creature who had noticed his approach.
"General, here I thought you would not be joining my campaign. No longer afraid of the cold?" the Chairman snarked.
"I'm here to convince you to stop. To settle for peace," Percy yelled over the wind. He planted his decapitated staff into the ground as the toothed one haunted his grasp.
"Never." The Chairman glared. "I'll die before I admit defeat to an inferior. As would any good leader. It is why we are losing to the Separatists. You, Jedi, yield when you should strike."
"Inferior… Ironic."
"More hostiles incoming!" a clone shouted behind Percy. "They are on mounts!"
"It's a cavalry charge!"
"Keep blasting, boys!"
"You said you are brave enough to fight for your people, right?" Percy's eyes fell on the Chairman's chest, which was adorned with war medals that shined even under clouded skies. There was even an amulet; however, that was comparatively dull to the others.
"There's too many of them! We need to fall back, General!"
"Of course, you blasted fool!" the Chairman drowned out the clones. "What do you think I am doing here? What I do is for the glory of my people!"
"Keep firing, men! Don't let them through!"
Percy glanced at the form of a ridden beast that had appeared in the fog of war. The rider tucked their head as their weapon came to bear, "I think you are wasting my time and my resources to end the war plaguing the galaxy."
"Hold the line!"
"I've overheated. Cover m- argh!"
"Medic! I need a medic!"
"Bleh. That war of the Senate, you Jedi, let linger will last forever. You'll have all the time in the world. One day here of righteous warfare won't change how many droids the Separatists throw at you tomorrow. If anyone is wasting anyone's time, it is you to me. Now, pull out your lightsaber and kill these savages."
"You heard the man, Perseus."
"I need a medic!"
"He's bleeding too much. I can't treat him here. We need to fall back."
:P LINEBREAK d:
The fleet of speeders docked themselves within the FOB's hangar. The massive metal doors hissed shut behind them and sealed out the wind and snow.
Not a word was spoken as the Clones tossed subtle glances to the Chairman's speeder.
No one moved as Percy dismounted and approached the Chairman's speeder.
The Pantoran Guard, who had driven it back to base, hurried out of the seat and stepped away as Percy stared down at the corpse lying over the back end.
"He will not be missed," Mother assured Percy. "The right course of action was taken."
The tooth-head of a spear lay entombed where the man's heart was. A clean kill. A perfect kill by a perfect hunter. Out of the need to transport the body of the Chairman back, Percy had taken to severing the head of the spear so the shaft was not in the way.
Will this be what I have to do everywhere?
"If needed."
Percy looked at the dead man's face. The shock still had yet to leave his eyes despite the life being long gone.
Percy dragged his blood-stained fingers across the man's eyelids. He would be the last to see the look of death in the Chairman's eyes. To see the thoughts that swam across his face as his eyes searched for answers in Percy's gaze. As he searched for why a spear was in his heart, killing him…
"You do not have to like it. It only needs to be done." Mother's voice was soft and gentle.
"Jackson!" Anakin shouted before Percy could project a response back to the voice in his head. Percy turned to the Jedi, who had stepped into the hangar from deeper within the base. "Looks like you brought most of my men back in one piece."
"That was all Captain Rex." Percy blocked Anakin's line of sight from seeing the Chairman. "However, I must admit, my mission found mixed results."
"And what results would those be?" Obi-wan entered the hangar as well. His eyes flickered to the bloodstained speeder as Percy stepped away. "I see." The master Jedi stroked his beard. "How did this happen?"
"I was trying to tell him to retreat. My back was turned to the enemy as the clones were providing suppressing fire. I was blind to anything thrown at us, but I watched as a spear found its mark. Without a leader, Captain Rex called for a full retreat. The natives had also progressed with a full ground assault as well. The order to retreat came just in time. "
Anakin turned to his clone, "Is this true, Rex?"
"Yessir. Admittedly, none of us saw when he took the spear as we had our backs to the late Chairman. However, the General quickly informed us as he tried to save the man's life. However, Kix confirmed his death not even a minute later, along with a few other men who were hit. Then we pulled out and regrouped here, sir."
Anakin and Obi-wan glanced at each other before they turned to Percy.
"Your men are upstairs with the Senator if you wish to inform her of the Chairman's passing. She'll be able to assume control of things from there and end this day's conflict."
"Of course." Percy nodded to Obi-wan and stepped past the two Jedi.
Not a word was spoken behind him as he left the hangar for the bowels of the base, but he felt their stares and heard the questions on their lips nonetheless.
"They are uncertain by the actions taken."
Can you blame them? They need the guy dead to make things right, and I return with him dead. Bit convient. Especially when I'm the new guy on the block that they don't know to trust yet.
"They should be thanking you, then."
Look, I know you are trying to appeal to me and like tell me things are fine, but I don't need it. Okay? Let me just do what I need to do.
"And what do you feel the need to do?"
I need to break the news to a senator that she has all the power now.
"Good luck."
Percy opened the sliding door to the command room of the Outpost.
"General." His clones stood and saluted him.
"As you were. I am here for the Senator."
The clones nodded and went back to whatever they were doing. Mostly sitting around the room as the Senator stood by the window and watched him approach.
"Were you able to end this conflict, General?" she asked, hope dripping from her tongue.
"Peace is not secured yet," Percy spoke as he found his way to her side. His gaze lingered on the wide window. The snow had let up, and he could see the distant ice shelves or possibly mountains in the distance. "The natives chased us away. I'd even wager they are likely right before us now, ready to strike."
"I thought you were going to convince them to stop." Chuchi frowned at him.
"No. I was never going to be able to convince anyone to stop. I'm not a Jedi like the other two."
"You carry a lightsaber." She gestured to his waist.
"This?" Percy pulled the hilt out, ignited the orange blade, and let it hum before the two. The blade hummed with power, promises of assured victory. "This weapon does not make you a Jedi, just as words do not make me a senator. It is the discipline and mindset that creates who you are." He deactivated the blade and fixed it to his waist. "Words are your discipline, and politics are your mindset. That makes you a senator."
Her face pulled away from his waist where the hilt rested and instead went to search his face, "And you are a general."
Percy did not let her meet his gaze as he turned to the windows, "Fighting is my discipline. War is my mindset."
"How many did you have to fight to come back?" Her hand ghosted the scar in his armor upon his arm. His eyes followed her finger trace through the groove.
"Just one," he whispered, a silent admission of what he had done upon unknowing ears.
"And the clones, how many did they kill?" She was all but leaning in on him, consuming his space as she searched for answers in eyes that refused to meet hers. Even as her hands touched the dried blood that caked his hands, he did not look at her.
Instead, he stepped away, breaking from her curious contact.
"None." He blinked away the questioning eyes of the dying Chairman. "They used stun rounds only." His eyes and mind found purchase once more on the distant ice. Out there, on the horizon, a blood patch was being buried in fresh snow.
Chuchi snuck a glance at his clones that littered the room. They had been silent and listening to every spoken and whispered word.
"How many clones died for the little the Chairman accomplished?" She focused back on Percy.
Percy frowned, "I could not tell you the men who died out there by the Chairman's directory. However, I know that no more of them will."
"His Majesty is dead, is he not?" She already knew the answer. His hands were not clean.
He refused to look at her. His eyes were still locked on the blood upon the snow.
"He is."
"Was it quick?"
"He never saw it coming. Mere moments were all he had."
"Good. Even those in the wrong do not deserve to suffer a painful death."
I never said it wasn't painful…
He broke, his gaze fell upon her forehead, to the gold ornaments that adorned her hair and markings upon her face but not her eyes. They looked too like the Chairman's. "You are the leading woman of Pantora on this planet, now. From my understanding, you command where this war goes."
"Peace is the only option."
He dipped his head, "I will escort you to the Talz to settle this."
"Will Master Jedi Kenobi be able to speak on my behalf? I have heard he is a great negotiator."
"Not this time. You must speak on your own behalf. Think of it as another meeting in the Senate."
Chuchi frowned, "I have yet to visit the Senate for anything official."
"So both our first missions, huh?" he joked, an attempt to lighten the conversation.
"Yes. It would appear so." She smiled, her lips parting just enough to hint at her teeth.
"Not how I expected it to be, either. I thought I would just be walking in the shadow of some annoying politician and making sure they didn't slip on some ice." He forced a smile back.
"Who knows, I may still slip on some ice, yet."
"Try to fall backwards then, eh?" His gaze finally found her eyes. Her eyes crinkled at the edges from the soft giggle that escaped her lips. Her eyes did not question why there was a spear in her chest. He could look into these joyful eyes.
"Promise not to drop me if I fall?"
"I think I already promised you something similar already." He offered his arm for her to take.
She linked her arm with his, looping from under and behind, "Just making sure."
"Come on," Percy called to his men. "Let's go end this stupid war."
"After you, General." Wrath fell into step.
Percy pulled his communicator on his wrist up, "Lust, come in. Prep for short-range transport. VIP traveling to the ice shelves on the horizon. Over."
"Understood. Igniting engines and seat warmers. Over."
Percy frowned as he looked to Wrath, "There are seat warmers on those things?"
"No, sir. Just metal. Metal that's been in the cold outside. I don't recommend sitting down."
"Someone should install seat warmers then," Sloth said with a shrug as he slid his feet off the perch they rested upon.
"We can file a complaint, sir," Ego added as he grabbed his blaster from where it rested on the console.
Percy nodded, half entertaining the thought, "I'll leave that to you, Ego. In the meantime, let us head out."
"Aye, sir," the clones responded as one.
The small squadron and Senator quickly found their way into the hangar bay. The two Jedis and clones were still in the room. Even the few Pantoran guards had remained near the dead body of their Chairman.
"Gentlemen." Percy nodded and came to a halt.
"Senator. General," Obi-wan announced. "Is there something we can help you with?"
Chuchi stepped forward, "I-I wish to see him."
"Are you sure?" Anakin glanced at Percy before he centered back on the Senator.
"Y-yes." She found her voice, her eyes dancing over to the gathered Pantoran guards who bowed their heads.
At once, the few in her way parted and created a channel to the fallen Chairman. The Senator slowly approached. Her footsteps clicked across the room as she slowly approached the dead.
She sunk to a knee, her arm outstretched as her fingertips graced the Chairman's forehead, "You have served your people well, Your Majesty. May you find peace and prosperity in your next life." She carefully reached for the back of his neck and pulled free a golden amulet that Percy had seen earlier. A circular craft stained with blood rested on a thinly strung wire.
She turned to Percy, "I am ready."
"Ready for what?" Anakin asked, his gaze flipped back and forth between Percy and Chuchi.
"Open the doors," Percy ordered.
"Where are you two going?" Obi-Wan spoke up.
"Not two." Percy gestured to his men. "And we are settling the peace, finally. Greed, shoulder the gold droid. We will need it."
"You must wait for us," Obi-Wan tried to slow them down. "We need to restock the men's ammo that will come with the other gunships, and we will join you."
"Ammo? Whatever for? Just follow us there." Percy shrugged as he backstepped towards the opening doors. His men and the Senator fell in step. "Or, wait for the LAATs to arrive and hold down the fort. I got this. Trust me."
"Perseus, this isn't how things are done," Obi-wan argued as he began to step forward in pursuit. "Wait for us."
"Sorry. I have to leave about now." Percy turned to face the opened doors just as the only LAAT on the planet shuddered down for a landing outside. The blast doors already opening for everyone to board. "We are on the clock before the snow reduces flight conditions again."
Obi-wan groaned as he turned to his former padawan, "Anakin, tell him to stop."
"Why? He's already on board. We might as well hurry up and join them." The Jedi Knight turned to his clone troopers, "Rex, you have enough ammo to bail us out if need be?"
Obi-wan's head fell into his palm as he watched Anakin start to hustle his men to move, "Anakin, that is the only shuttle until the others get back, and he left us. Why do you younger Jedi never listen?"
-FinaJ-
Percy looked down at the Senator. Her head hung low as she stared at the golden necklace in her hand. His cloak was still swaddled around her like an oversize blanket.
"What is the necklace for?" Percy gently prodded.
"A token of peace given to my people many centuries ago. Pirates had taken to invading our planet and stole our women and children. They raided our farms. Killed our people who resisted their attempts to set up a hub on our planet.
"The tale says our people suffered for three generations under this onslaught. Our people were too stubborn, too prideful to ask for help. Instead, they banded together, fought back, and soon the pirates began to hesitate. The Pantorans pushed them back, and soon the Pirates relented. They came to agree to a peace agreement to leave us be. To return what they could part with as reparations.
"We took the deal without hesitation. Our people, united as they were, were not part of the sprawling flowerbed cities we see today. Back then, they were farmers, hunters, and miners. The Pirates had seen to give us a boon for our economy to settle for all the laborers they took. They gave us credits and rare gems. Among other things, they gave us this amulet.
"From there, it was decreed that the family who negotiated the peace would bear this amulet to remind our people what we have survived. They were to carry this token to remind our people and themselves of our history as they served for the people's greater interest."
"And the Chairman, he was of this family?"
"The last son," she whispered.
A pregnant silence filled the air as Percy and Chuchi stared down at the amulet. The blood upon it, the last of a legacy…
"So, what are you going to do with it now?" Percy pulled her gaze.
"Peace," she whispered as her eyes returned to the bloodstained gold. "This will bring us peace once more."
"This is your captain speaking. Approaching the landing zone in thirty seconds. Prepare for the smoothest landing you've had since last aboard my craft. Engines will remain hot in case of emergency. Over"
"Thank you, Lust," Percy spoke into his comm channel before eyeing the rest of his men. "Blasters cold for this. However, if need be, stun only. The first sign of a spear being tossed, we haul the Senator out of there even if you have to carry her. Understood?"
"Yessir," the clones spoke in unison.
"Remember, we are ending this now, peacefully. Keep the barrels down, and things will go well."
"Yessir."
Percy shifted his focus to the woman aboard, "Senator, any questions or concerns?"
"W-will you walk with me?" She looked up at him, her eyes pleading.
He gave her a smile, "Of course. How else will I catch you if you fall?" And she returned her own smile. "Now, before we head out there, we need to make you look in power."
Her brows furrowed as she looked down at herself, "What do you mean?" She was still dressed finely in her aristocratic clothing, minus his addition to her outfit.
"I need the cloak back for a bit."
"Oh." She shrugged the robe off as he assisted with taking it. "Of course, it is yours, after all."
"Don't worry." He laced his arms through the sleeves and pulled the cloak snugly to his armor. "Once things are discussed, it is yours to have again." He could smell a faint jasmine on the robe.
Chuchi looked away, "Thank you."
The LAAT shuddered as the craft came to a standstill.
"Doors opening in five."
Percy took a breath as he positioned himself in front of the Senator. He looked to his left and right. His men had already lined up in two groups on either side. The gold translator droid stood behind the right group.
"Three. Two. One. Opening."
PSSSH.
The doors unsealed and began to pull away. Blinding white light smashed into Percy's eyes as he held his hand out to shadow his vision. Snow pelted his face and melted upon contact with his cheeks, and the wind rippled and tore at his cloak.
The clones stepped out onto the shelf. Their boots sunk to their knees as their rifles pointed outwards, sweeping the horizon. The very horizon he knew the Talz were hidden in or, better yet, under.
Percy stepped off the shuttle and turned to offer his hand to the Senator to follow.
"How long will we have to wait for them?" she asked, glancing at the setting sun.
"Not long at all. They attacked us from these cliffs. They probably already saw us approach and buried themselves in the snow."
Wrath cautiously looked around closer to his feet, "The snow, sir?"
"Yeah. They like to burst out. You can hardly see them either till they do. It is like trying to spot a polar bear in the artic."
"A polar bear?" Chuchi asked. "I have not heard of such a thing."
Percy frowned, nor had he.
"A creature from my home," he reasoned. "Big white and furry. I think."
The group walked forward a few more paces, just over twenty meters from the LAAT, when Percy motioned for them to stop and rest. The clones fell to a knee as they rested their weapons.
"We wait here. The others can join us here while we wait on the Talz to appe-"
Ten meters in front of them, the snow moved as ten furry warriors rose from the snow. Percy could only stare in disbelief. How they blended in so well was a marvel.
"Guns down, boys." Percy met the leader's gaze. "We are here for peace."
The creature before him stood unmoving. Its hand rested high on the shaft of its spear.
"It is studying you. Looking for your softest parts. I can feel its bloodthirst. Its desire to hunt you…."
Not helping.
"Senator, droid. This is where you take the stage."
Chuchi sent him a worried glance, to which Percy nodded back in what he hoped was an encouraging way. She nodded back and composed herself. Her shoulders squared as her head rose back. Her right hand came to her heart, and the pendant swung in her grasp.
"The actions inflicted today by the orders of one man are nothing to be overlooked. However, the path that can be forged forwards is where we will lay our gaze. Reparations and a token are what I offer you. Peace and forgiveness is what I ask for." Chuchi paused and waited for the droid to translate.
She outstretched her hand, and some of the warriors amongst the natives shifted.
"In my hand, I offer the token of forgiveness. In my heart, I seek peace amongst our people. We did not come to this land to take, but we found ourselves the invaders all the same." She paused again for the droid to speak.
The Chieftain grunted and spoke, and Percy found himself looking to the droid for answers.
"' Peace is all we need. Your presence is unneeded. This is our home. We do not need what you can give, only your absence. Leave and peace will find us.'"
Chuchi paused.
Percy could see the slight shake in her hand. Whether it was from the cold or nerves, he would not assume.
"Our absence is your request, then you shall find it done." She nodded to the Talz leader.
He nodded back as he brought his hand upwards to the tip of his spear. Its hand gripped the sharpened spearhead, a beast's tooth bigger than any of the spears Percy had handled earlier in the day, and snapped it clean off. The spear now turned staff was plunged into the ground as he offered his other hand forward, the tooth displayed.
"A token of peace," the protocol droid spoke.
Senator Chuchi lowered her token into the beast's hand as she exchanged it for the tooth.
"To peace," she spoke once more.
The hunters turned away and left. Percy and the clones watched until not a single white bit of fur could be seen before they broke their stance.
"Congratulations, Senator Chuchi. You've ended your first war." Percy stepped to her shoulder as she stared at the token in her hand. "Couldn't have done it better myself."
She pocketed the tooth and turned to him, "Thank you, General Percy."
"Here." He shrugged off the robe and placed it around her. He pulled the opening closed tight around her. "As promised."
She hid her face as she stared at the snow, "Thank you."
"Say, let's get off this planet, huh?" Percy glanced at the horizon, where he could see multiple LAATs on approach.
Late to the party.
The Senator nodded as she still looked down.
"Gentlemen, back on board. Time to leave. Relay to the Jedi that things are settled, and we are heading to The Olympus. If that is fine with you, Senator? We'll get you wherever you need to be next."
"Of course. Though you will have to hail for my belongings off the other cruiser."
"Not a problem. I'll trade Anakin his droid back. I'm sure he will take the deal. That aside, where do you have to go next, Senator?"
"To the Senate. To Coruscant."
AN: Another 7.6k words. Hope you enjoyed it and got a sense of how Percy's involvement in things will go. That he will have a more direct impact on things. Granted the Chairman dies either way, but the way it happens here to canon is much more interesting to write about. Especially for what it might mean later on in the story as we interact with this cast of characters again.
Also, do you find the chapters too long? Very important question. I can reduce these chapters and hypothetically update faster, but it comes with it being less, and I try to cover an episode in the span of a chapter or two at a time with three different thirds in each chapter I do.
As always, please follow, favorite, and drop a review. Those are MASSIVE incentives for me to keep my writing streak going. When I see a story not get a response, it really slows down my process as I think too much about what I might have done wrong.
If you would like to get in touch with me or other FanFic authors, come join all of us in the Emerald Library on Discord. I have my own channel within the server under the PJO section where you can come chat with me and see a bit behind the scenes on my inspirations and what I am working on next. Just type " discord. gg / elibrary " into any URL browser or in Discord itself to join. (Remove the spaces and quotes) If you join the server from my story, let me know! My channel has been popping off lately with new story ideas that will be coming soon.
I will be attempting a genuine realistic Percy x Artemis that isn't cliche asf, so stay tuned for that.
That's about it.
-Manke