Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Seed or Star Wars. They belong to their respective copyright owners. This story is not created with commercial aim. I make no money from it.

Phase 6: Lootforce One

=RK=

Part 1

"Another unlikely coincidence happened shortly after the Naboo Accords were signed giving birth to the Mid-Rim Alliance. Two events happening thousands of light-years apart on the eve of general Veil's Rim Campaign persist as a source of controversy and conspiracy theories. Twenty years later, people all across the galaxy still believe that there's merit to the idea postulated by one Iler Renola from Kuat.

On the face of it, there was a perfectly good and reasonable explanation for what happened. Interrogation of captured ONI agents in the closing years of the Clone Wars reveals the reasons behind the accident on Coruscant used by Renola as a proof for his theory. It was not hard to figure out why Jedi Remnant forces led the raid on Kuat. A bit of hindsight and knowledge unavailable at the time was all it took to understand the reasons behind that attack. It wasn't until the conflict's resolution that it became clear that the Old Republic Remnant used to be short on manpower and supplies. While they did expand through recruitment and training of people dissatisfied with the Republic all across the Rim, their material situation was much harder to fix. That's why the ORR leaders turned to the time honoured practice of capturing enemy hardware to turn against one's opponents. In hindsight, the only surprising thing about their actions was the chosen target and the sheer audacity of executing such a raid in one of the best defended systems in the galaxy...

All the above led to the Rim Campaign and admittedly the parallels are startling. Some historians go as far as to call those events the greatest example of grand theft and piracy in the last thousand years. Others hail the same events as a benchmark for successful raids, sabotage and improvisation in the face of supposedly impossible odds.

Taken in separation and context, each of these events makes perfect sense. Coruscant – it was an attempt to capture bleeding edge Republic armour prototypes being shipped for extensive testing; it was a distraction too, meant to give an opening for two other ONI operations.

Kuat – the ORR faction allied with the CIS needed more capital ships of their own. They weren't satisfied with what the Confederacy could provide them with, nor with capturing ordinary Republic cruisers. Jedi Master Perrion led multiple strike teams made of what little active Jedi and special forces he had left after Kamino augmented by a battalion of Commando Droids in what remains to this day one of the most famous operations of the Clone Wars.

Last but certainly not the least – the Rim Campaign, an operation spanning thousands of ships on both sides, fighting across more than a dozen sectors all made possible thanks to supplies the Republic forces under general Veil seized from the enemy. The campaign came awfully close to disaster multiple times and continues to be held as the example for the fact that sometimes insane military risk do pay off...

At the time of the Clone Wars, those operations were seen in a different light. At least part of it is the lack of hindsight and information, combined with the first confirmed instance of Jedi Master Jerod Perrion fighting in person. To someone living through those events, it would appear that a series of escalations happened and they had a lot in common, perhaps too much to dismiss it as merely a coincidence. It's easy to see where Renola came from, especially when it became clear what the long term effects of those operations were – the Republic, various groups of rouge Jedi and traitors, not to mention thanks to the ORR, the Confederacy were in somewhat better position to continue the war, despite various setbacks suffered by each group. However, it wasn't until the climatic clashes in the Core and Mid-Rim on the eve of the Black Rebellion, we would see the true consequences of the raids and Veil's Rim Campaign..."

Commodore Firmus Piett,

Modern Naval Warfare Magazine,

Sponsored by Kuat Fleet-yards

=RK=

LAAT flight 035-BJ-97

en route to Shan Industrial Zone

Coruscant

"Why did I agree to this..." Mace Windu muttered to himself.

"Temporarily insanity. Though in your case I'll say its permanent." Dooku smiled pleasantry at his one time friend.

"If you want we can still drop you off and let you find your own way away from the Clones." A female voice chirped. It came from an ONI agent clad from head to toe in a Commando armour identical to what Republic Special forces wore, making her gender hard to determine from a curious visual examination.

"That won't be necessary." The count politely declined. "You still haven't told us the extraction plan."

"It's above my pay-grade. My team will be going out with the goods. You're supposed to go with Beta off world, that's all I know." The operative shrugged.

"Alpha One, Insight. Target comms are compromised. There won't be a distress call coming out for the first five to ten minutes. Make sure you're in an out before the window closes. Heavy cloud cover and reflected thermals from the industrial zone will mask you from orbital surveillance in case you have to go loud. Over."

"Insight, Alpha One, we'll do it quiet as long as our credentials hold." The woman responded. Over."

"Alpha One, Insight. That's why Beta's playing overwatch. Just get the package, make the transfer and be out in ten at worst. Insight over and out."

"Get your helmets on and don't play with your lightsabers or Jedi tricks unless everything goes to hell." The operative ordered.

Windu glared at her before catching himself and frowning. He took a series of deep breaths to calm himself before sealing in his helmet making him outrwardly indistinguishable from the other occupants of the vehicle minus Dooku who smirked at the Jedi and only then covered his head.

"You do know we can't really pass for a group of Clones, right?" The Sith asked.

While the arms and armour everyone wore was right, the differences in their height was a dead give-away.

"There are enough non-clones authorized to wear this equipment on Coruscant. Even more after the bloody tank-born went rogue." The operative intoned. "Alpha Team, put your game faces on. We're beginning final approach in thirty."

=RK=

The two LAATs carrying one of ONI's Direct Action Units flew towards the industrial plant where some Republic experimental equipment was produced. Air control challenged them, but let them pass after receiving the correct authentication and recognition codes. It was just another in the aftermath of the Jedi Coup – GAR was going crazy with unscheduled inspections, last minutes additions to security details and whatever else troublesome brainstorm their little minds could cook up to show they weren't exactly useless.

In a time honoured tradition it was too little too late and only happened after the damage was done.

At least that's what the night shift air controller at Victor Industries plant thought after going through the same damn thing for the third time that week alone. There was a whole company of those useless Clones to augment the Corporate Security crawling all over the place. What more two LAATs worth of people could do, he had no idea.

Well, besides more paperwork for him, because he had a bunch of forms to fill because the fools didn't bother to clear their arrival in advance. At least they were the real deal – all the codes said so.

The controller sighed in exasperation and went to refill his caf. The paperwork could wait.

=RK=

Part 2

Victor Industries facility

Shan Industrial Zone

Coruscant

Alpha Team's insertion went in smoothly. Their credentials and pass-codes were enough to land and reach the loading area without trouble. They even got a bored guard to escort them there.

Finding their target was easy too – there were only two light freighters docked inside and only one had heavy security – a platoon's worth of Clones were stationed around it facing outwards. There had to be another platoon as a QRF nearby with the rest of the company playing perimeter security.

"Identify yourselves." A corporal flanked by a pair of troopers intercepted Alpha on their way to the transport. He barked his demand after glancing their way and determining that there was no way they could be Clones.

"Major Winter Hoch, Corellian Security Force on secondment to Military Intelligence. We're here to make sure certain cargo reaches its destination unmolested." Alpha One spoke in a bored tone and slowly uncapped a data-pad from her harness.

The Clone stared at them for a few seconds before picking up the device and examining its contents.

"This is the first time I hear of this. Wait here while I check with command." The corporal gestured to his men who took a step forward to face the operatives.

"As long as it gets done before the freighter leaves." Alpha One shrugged without a care in the world.

"Lieutenant, we've got another bunch of unscheduled visitors." The corporal began speaking in his comm. "LT, do you copy, over? Sir? Check your comms." He ordered the privates.

They did as instructed and couldn't get through.

"Alpha One, Insight. You've got company. We detected an intrusion and had to kill their comms before the alarm went up. Five to ten minutes at best. Secure the objective. Beta's moving in. ETA three mikes. I say again, go loud. Reinforcements ETA three mikes. Insight out."

Before Alpha One's mind could register what was happening the heads of the privates snapped back in synch and the back of their helmets exploded in pink mist. The corporal stood frozen for a moment, before dropping the data-pad and diving for the floor.

"SNIPERS! Take cover!" Alpha One snapped an order after she jumped to kiss the ground.

She couldn't hear the shots over the cacophony of the working machinery in the loading area, however the operative had a front row seat of the corporal's death. A bullet slammed into his chest-plate with enough force to shatter it and another hit him in the neck producing a shower of blood.

"They aren't shooting at us." Dooku intoned over the team's comms. "I don't sense any direct danger or hostility. Do you want to tell us something, 'commander'?" The Sith asked.

"Pop smoke. This isn't part of the plan. Into the transport, go!" Alpha One snapped and followed her own orders.

"Halt!" A Clone raised his blaster at the advancing operatives.

Alpha Three took him out with a double tap.

"Good thing they don't have proper armours."

"The QRF has them." Alpha One hissed.

"This QRF?" Dooku asked mildly.

A side ramp on the freighter went down and a squad of heavy troopers charged out followed by a great many well equipped soldiers.

"Kriff the plan!" Alpha Four grunted and dove for the questionable cover provided by a nearby stack of crates.

Windu lasted no time. He let go of his blaster, summoned his lightsaber and jumped at the charging Clones. Dooku shook his head and merely raised a hand and unleashed a torrent of purple lighting at the soldiers.

"So much for keeping low profile." Alpha One snarled and went for her grenades.

=RK=

ONI safe-house

Coruscant

"Insight, Gamma One. Diversion is a go. Slicers in place. ETA four mikes, over."

"Gamma One, Insight. Well done. Make sure all primary packages make it. What about the secondary objective, over? Beta One, Insight. Code Black. Alpha needs immediate extraction. Go loud. We can give you five minutes of silence at best. Insight out."

"Our new friends are on overwatch providing cover. They have their orders. We're recording everything and... Secondary is a go. Our old friends are engaging. Gamma One, over."

"Good. Carry on, Gamma One. Insight, out. Operative Thelmak, Insight. Status?"

"Insight, I'm in position. No sight of the objective."

"Hold tight, Thelmak. Service the objective if it appears in the next fifteen minutes otherwise exfiltrate. Insight out. So far so good. Now let's see what's going to go horribly wrong tonight." A supposedly dead man whispered to himself.

His eyes darted over multiple monitors where he could see the status of three separate operations he was coordinating that night. While very much real, the raid on Victor Industries was a grand diversion that with a bit of luck would make the other two missions possible. Even if they didn't pan out, this night's work already paid off – once the footage taken by Gamma got uploaded to the holonet, what little support the Jedi had in the Core would be dead and buried bar that coming from fanatics who simply wouldn't be swayed. If only the efforts to draw and quarter that Sith in the media over whatever happened at Kamino panned out, then it would be a very good week indeed.

The intelligence operative sighed. Perhaps he should do something about Kenobi too – it was that man's support and need for proof that provided Veil a friendly voice that people would listen to. Perhaps drumming up the Mandalorian connection between the two of them? Besides, they were brothers-in-law now so Obi-Wan supporting the Sith should be expected and his word shouldn't have as much weight it otherwise might...

"Insight, Beta One. We're in and loud. We've got eyes on Alpha, they're getting into the freighter. We're going to escort them out, then cover their tracks. Do I have permission to sanitize the evidence?"

"Beta One, Insight. Permission granted. Just make sure all primary objectives are secure before the fireworks. Extraction variants three to five are still valid. Make sure the primaries leave Coruscant before sunrise. Insight, out. Gamma One, Insight. Be advised, Beta is going to drop the hammer shortly. Status?"

"Slicing in progress. ETA one mike and we're exfiltrating. We'll transmit the data before going to ground. Gamma One, out."