Chapter 30
Pantora – The Underling Wreckage
A thick layer of ashen char coated the underbelly of the Underling. She had been the third cruiser in their little fleet, and now she sat as a pile of steaming wreckage in the middle of one of city's many illustrious parks. Admittedly, the cruiser had made one of the better landings out of the three crashed Pelta's. It was mostly intact, and the supplies were able to be unloaded via hatches on the upper levels.
But the landing had occurred over twenty blocks. A path of charred and burnt Michellian trees surrounded the ship, looming line skeletons haunting their killer. The captain of the ship, Gibbs, had been recovered, along with most of the surviving crew. He had reported that just when he had managed to get the repulsors working and level out the Underling, another explosion had crippled the engines electronics, resulting in a sudden acceleration and the failure of the repulsors as a whole. The Underling had crashed belly-first on the north end of the park, and finished in the south. Twelve civilians had been crushed underneath the hull, including four children. Most of the ship's crew had been flung about, killed more by the collision than the explosives. But the remaining survivors were hidden well within the twisted hull plates made up the mess below decks.
Fay traced her fingers along the ash coating one of the hull plates, drawing lines in the burnt metal before turning to look at the small recovery team who had ventured inside the danger zone with the Jedi. Three of the Pantoran soldiers who had accompanied them were standing nearby, their ceremonial blasters at the ready. They weren't exactly paying attention to the scorched debris around them. They were watching for enemies, not survivors. The other soldiers, a dozen of the Republic RIG Troopers – Recovery and Investigation Troopers – as well as A'sharad Hett, were scattered around the wreckage, searching through the rubble with scanners and camera droids.
Doctor Nema was kneeling beside the few wounded soldiers they had found in the wreckage, trying her best to ease their pain with the Force and her constant collection of medicines. They had been easy to find, and Fay was beginning to suspect that there were no more to be found.
The Jedi doctor noticed the Silverine staring. She finished whatever ritual she was currently performing and whispered a few kind words to the injured man before she stood and hurried over. Fay looked up at her, shaking her head at the carnage, "This is awful."
Rig nodded, not knowing how else to respond, "A tragedy to be sure. And it has not helped sway the public to join the Republic any time soon. There are riots beginning to start all over the planet against our forces. Mace is still trying to smooth things over with the Assembly. Chi Cho is politely trying to get us to leave. I fear that the politeness will soon cease."
"To make matters worse, we can't even evacuate a third of the seriously wounded locals while taking care of our own men.", Ord Enisence joined them, rubbing the horned ridge of his head, "Do we have any leads on who was responsible yet?"
"Master Kenobi found a sniper's nest in the top of one of the Papano factories.", Fay answered. "Every attack zone could be seen from there. We assume that was where the leader was stationed, and droids are currently searching for any camera's in the area."
Ord spun his thick lightsabre hilt between his three fingers, a frown creasing his brow. "A sniper couldn't do all this by himself. He would be needing supplies, lackeys, probably even an outside partner for information. Plus we have seen the forces they brought. They were coordinated and had good resources."
"We have no leads, and the CSI droids have been combing through the local security to find any survivors. We can track the forces because they take out the cameras as they pass, but clearly, we haven't been able to identify them.", Fay closed her eyes to try and sense any nearby lifeforms near them, "Bultar and Vos are still trying to reel themselves from the attack on their men in the Harshplains. Their commander, Altinrose, is missing now. They have one thread to follow, and are going to come back to the Capitol for our help if it doesn't pan out."
"How are the delivery convoys going?", Nema asked. She was worried about the injured in the other cities, and had been vocally advocating the need to spread their supplies evenly. She was not here to just take care of the wounded. For now though, she was stuck in Fortress, patching up the Republic volunteers.
The wind picked up a bit, and Fay pulled her snow-coloured cloak tighter around her shoulders, "Stass and Luminara returned this morning. The rest of the convoys are going to begin travelling this afternoon. Mace has ordered a squad of troopers be left with every supply centre."
Unlike Fortress, the other attacked cities like Dunlain had been suffering for weeks. They had more than a thousand wounded that had come back to the Capitol for transport to Mel Hullt. Charities and Emergency Services had relief and recovery stations set up around the city. Hopefully, those supplies would ease the suffering somewhat.
"And what of the senatorial delegation?", Nema asked again. She had been locked in the infirmary with Hun'tsmen and Obi-Wan for the past night. There had been rumours floating around between the Republic soldiers. She had even heard some of the less wounded Pantorans talking about Senator Trav-iss' intentions. They said that he was a coward for leaving in their time of need.
"The senator should have left earlier this morning.", Fay stared up at the sky. There was no one she could sense in the rubble, and it was quite disappointing. "They are travelling with a military escort on a frigate. No fighters. From what I understand, they needed to leave before a rumoured attack could occur and have less than a full tank of fuel. They needed to divert to Shili for refuelling."
Ord nodded sagely at her words, "Stass is a good choice for the security detail. She has a reputation for preparing for the worst."
"And Caloc seems to be able to handle himself.", Fay murmured, remembering the aftermath of the failed attack on the Helios.
"Stass should have a quiet mission then.", Nema smiled, "I hope the boy can finally take time and rest up a bit. The stress lately will not be helping his arm."
That caused Fay to freeze. She turned slowly and glared at the doctor. "Mace told me that you cleared him for active duty."
"I did.", the doctor frowned, clearly not understanding the hostility, "But he still needs rest. He hasn't taken a break since he returned from Hala. He still practices for five hours a day with his lightsaber, and I doubt he is resting during his down time."
Ord vaulted over the side of the speeder they had acquisitioned and grabbed the controls. "Come on, ladies. Yularen is expecting our report, and A'sharad can handle it from here."
"We can discuss this more on the way, if you want.", Rig and Fay stared at each other for a moment, before shrugged and grabbed the speeder, bringing her leg up to leap into the speeder.
Fay grabbed the side of the vehicle too, ready to vault into it, but a sudden tingle at the base of her skull made her stop. Unlike most Jedi, the Silverine had chosen to forgo the use of a lightsabre. She had one in her youth, and knew how to use one effectively. But an altercation in her past meant that she never carried a blade on her. It made her reliance on the Force that much stronger. She managed a half-turn and peered up at the nearest skyscraper.
It was at least forty storeys, white stone topped with one of the ridiculously pointed gold spheres that adorned some of the city's more traditional buildings. The airspace around it was clear, most traffic that wasn't military being diverted to other sectors. Her eyes scanned each level carefully, until she reached the thirty-eighth.
A tiny flicker and flash caught her eye. Instinct blared in her brain. She pushed left with the Force, sending Nema stumbling for a moment. Then, she grabbed one of the thick pieces of debris with her mind, dragging it through the air and into her hand. Two blaster bolts hit the ground where Nema had stood a moment before. Another hit the metal she had grabbed, wrenching it from her hand. She reached out with the Force, dragging a larger sheet of hull across to block them from view. A deep scream sounded, and she peered around the barrier to watch as another volley of shots hit each of the Pantoran guards. One shot for each soldier – an impressive sniper.
Ord knelt beside him. "That's three men for three shots. Whoever they are, they seem to be an expert."
"He missed me.", Fay countered.
The Skrilling looked at her, looking her up and down, "I think he meant to."
A bolt sliced through the metal shell of the speeder, and it fell to the ground, the repulsorlift engines dead. A'sharad's dual blades gleamed in the early light, the emerald lights defending his dozen Republic troops. Another shot rang out, this time from the south, and it hit one of the Republic soldiers. Another sniper.
Fay nodded to their other companion, "A'sharad, get the men out of here! Hide in the wreckage until reinforcements arrive."
A high-pitched buzzing filled the air and Nema pointed up into the sky at a group of hovering platform-speeders. "Speeders are coming. Droids by the looks of things. We need to get out of here."
"Where are you thinking?", Fay asked, "Aren't many options. We might have to hide in the wreckage with the soldiers. Maybe the…"
"The sewers.", Ord let out a quiet, grumbling sigh that came from his gut, "The blasted sewers. I always end up below the streets no matter which planet I'm on."
"I've never liked the sewers.", Fay scrunched up her nose, "The smell can be… unsavoury."
"I didn't think you were one to be so pretentious, Master.", Ord chuckled. "You're complaining more than the good doctor, and she has never left the infirmary before."
"That's not entirely true, Ord.", Nema was holding a glow rod above her head, the yellow tinge illuminating her headdress' intricate design, "I used to be a field medic before my own master joined the Force. You see things as a field medic. You don't always forget them."
The Skrilling half-turned to give a retort, when the water before them exploded upwards. The greenish water crashed down, washing over the three Jedi, and a high-pitched whirring could be heard. The shower of water dissipated, revealing a massive droid staring right at them. It was like nothing she had ever seen before. Six armoured legs lined either side and a row of red eyes clicked and clacked back and forth as they tried to focus on the figures before it.
"Karabast!", Ord growled, his emerald blade igniting. It was an ancient design, a cross guard lightsaber, "Crab droids."
"What droids?", Nema asked.
"I fought some a while back.", Ord growled, "Techno Union skirmish on Ulla Five. Watch out for the drills."
"Drills?", Nema's blade snapped open, "How many weapons does this thing have?"
A volley of red laser's erupted from the droid's underbelly, and Fay dodged three of the bolts before she needed to dive into cover. "What can you tell me about them, Ord?"
"They were originally made to clear passages that were blocked by debris.", the Skrilling grunted as he dodged one of the heavy legs. "The blasters are new; they replaced the drills by the looks of it. Not sure if that's a good thing or not. I cut through the last ones from underneath. Won't work this time – the hydraulic layout is different."
"Is there anything that we can try?", Nema asked as she flipped backward over the droid.
Fay frowned, studying the armour closely. "Above it."
"What?", Nema's green blade spun in a circle, deflecting a shot from hitting Fay.
The Jedi lifted one of the looser cobblestones from the wall and sent it flying into the droid's hull, "Ord, you and I will distract it. Nema, when we have its attention, you cut it down."
She dodged to the right, rolling dodge the bolts. Stepping onto one of the nearby pipes, she pushed off and flipped over the droids back. Ord was busy trying to avoid the droid's blasters, and Nema ran towards it, sliding across the slimy ground. Her emerald blade flared to life and she pushed off the floor, leaping over the droid and slicing straight through the droid's shell. It had been a long time since the lightsaber had been activated during her many years of being a Jedi Medic.
Rig Nema was a bit of an enigma around the Temple. During their clan days, she and Ord had been in the same clan, learning together. He knew that even during her youngling years, she had an aptitude for healing. She had carefully studied the art of medical science, and had been apprenticed to the former head of Jedi medicine, Doctor Mantis Tray. As she had previously stated, they were formerly field medics, until disaster had struck. Mantis had been hit by raiders who were stealing medical supplies, and therefore, Rig had been promoted to the head medical officer. Her blade was rarely used, unless it was to cauterise a wound in an emergency. She very rarely left the Coruscant Temple.
Ord, on the other hand, was far less of an enigma. A Skrilling from Agriworld-2079, he was what many of the other Jedi referred to as a 'Brute', a fighter who lived only for battle. He would be sent on missions that required a bit more muscle. His lightsaber was designed after an older model, the infamous cross guard lightsaber. It was a design that was used by brutes throughout the centuries. If there was one thing that could be said about Ord, it was that he had an encyclopaedic knowledge of all kinds of weapons. And more importantly, their weaknesses.
"I hope we don't run into any more of those things.", the Skrilling Jedi rumbled. "I think I preferred them with the drills. They were only close combat droids then."
"We need to get back to command.", Fay pointed north down the tunnel, "It should be that way."
"I hope A'sharad is alright.", Nema muttered, staring down at the droid.
"He should be. I dropped a beacon to let the camp know we were attacked. Kit should be leading a team there now. I just hope they get there in time.", Fay kicked the water, watching the stagnant algae on top move with the ripples. Looking around, she pointed down the sewer, "Camp should be that way. Let's try a few more blocks before we get back to the surface."