Star Wars: Reign of the ISB

by TorchyB

During the height of the Mid Rim Offensive, Imperial High Command is confronted with an unwanted distraction: the kidnapping of an Imperial Senator's family. A small task force is sent out that fights daily to keep afloat as they are cut off from Imperial supply lines. Meanwhile, ISB Agent Flennic struggles to untangle the web of deception. But the enemy isn't sitting idly by ...

18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"Activity in the rebel camp. Looks like they're preparing to leave," the comms officer announced. Vas stepped to the small station aboard the Gozanti's bridge and looked at the screen.

"So much for taking them by surprise. It's go time. Deploy the bombers and get us closer. Scout bikes can close in to one click. All other units have orders to engage immediately. Shoot to kill but we want to take the Senator and his family alive. They're Rodian and everyone should know what they look like but if in doubt, only stun them. We can sort through this mess later."

Vas had to grab the chair to not fall over when the Gozanti accelerated hard. The feed of the mansion showed people scattering in all directions with some jumping into speeders. Then the flight of bombers howled past them as they overtook the Gozanti. Once they were in range of the mansion, they dropped their payload and rushed away to escape the magnetic pulse that engulfed the entire mansion and surrounding fields. Some of the drone feeds vanished as they were hit as well.

" That should disable anything in there for a while. Do we have visual confirmation of the targets?"

"None of the targets are outside. Now that the EMP is over, my drones can infiltrate," Zero said absently, focused on directing them through his HUD. "One target spotted. The Senator is being hurried down the stairs from the second floor."

"The other targets?"

"Working on it."

After only a few minutes of thrust, the Gozanti decelerated again. They were within sight of the mansion when small blaster fire hailed uselessly against their shields.

"Drop the walkers. They are to shoot at everything that moves on the outside but avoid the building itself. Zero, tell me before the Senator leaves the building."

The AT-AT walkers detached, dropped the last few feet to the ground and immediately opened fire. Two of the speeders went up in flames and rebels were tossed all over by the explosion.

"Bring us down near the wall around the mansion. Have the other shuttles deploy all around the perimeter. Zero, status?"

"The other targets are nowhere in the building."

"Damn it. Where is the Senator?"

"They have reached the ground but are hesitant to leave through the front door, they're shouting at each other."

"Good, stay here and keep the commanders updated on their position. I don't want any of the walkers accidentally blowing up our Senator. Call me directly if something new comes up. I'm going out there," Vas said and put on his helmet.

He left the bridge and stepped into the crowded area around the main lift. Sergeant Alphabet and his squad stood ready on the lift. A trooper stepped out of the way to allow Vas to be in the first wave.

The Gozanti jerked to a halt and most likely everyone would have fallen over if there was space for it. The lift lowered them to the ground and they charged onto the battlefield. White armoured Stormtroopers were charging in from the shuttles and other Gozantis nearby while the heavy walkers suppressed the enemy.

Vas levelled his blaster and charged right towards where one of the walkers had torn a massive hole in the man-high wall. A rebel was peaking around the corner and greeted with a dozen bolts.

"Retreat inside," someone yelled.

"They have brought the Senator into the cellar but there is no way out. Eleven hostiles are with him," Zero announced through the comms

"Perfect," Vas said. "Alert all units. There are no friendlies anywhere outside the cellar. Shoot to kill."

Within a minute the entire courtyard and house was cleared with the rebels either dying or a rare few, surrendering.

Patrols of Stormtroopers were sent out into the surrounding forest to catch anyone who might have managed to escape while several squads guarded the only entrance and exit out of the cellar.

Through his HUD he watched the rebels below. The drone's sensors were still damaged by the EMP but it at least still sent images –occasionally. The Senator was cuffed to a rail in the back while the rebels were still arguing about what to do. Currently, the consensus was to surrender and no one had talked about killing the Senator for a while, so Vas contented himself with listening.

"Have a unit ready to deploy with teargas if we have to enter quickly. I think there might be an air vent on the backside as well. Have someone posted there to pump gas in too."

Sergeant Alphabet saluted and rushed away. Vas stepped next to the door and raised his voice.

"I am Commander Flennic of the Imperial Navy." No need to announce that he was ISB. No one surrendered to the ISB. For most, it was preferable to die quickly. "I have the authority to negotiate. Let the Senator go and you can walk away as free men."

"How can we trust you won't kill us once we let the Senator go?" They were ready to negotiate immediately? They had to be more desperate than he thought or less committed to the cause-

"Let's just kill him," someone else growled.

"I strongly advise against killing the Senator. If you kill him, you are dead. None of you will ever see your loved ones again."

"What do we have to lose then? You won't let us go, I know it."

"I have a proposal. Can I come down the stairs? Unarmed. I want to see who I am talking to."

They gathered in a group again but eventually decided it was their best option. Vas left his blaster upstairs and climbed down to the end of the narrow staircase.

"Senator, are you wounded?"

"No, soldier but I command you to kill all of them. Immediately."

One of the rebels, the one who was constantly pleading to kill the Senator, turned around and aimed his pistol at the Senator. "I told you. We won't survive this."

"Put your weapon away," a young human said as he stepped out of the crowd to confront Vas. He looked just like Vas' brother. The same bronze skin and dark hair he got from his mother.

But it couldn't be him.

No, it wasn't him. He lacked the birthmark on his neck and his features were a bit off.

In fact, all of the rebels were extremely young, some may not even be adults yet. What monster pushed them to fight a professional military? Vas tried to clear his thoughts and took off the helmet to signify that he trusted them.

"Are you their leader?"

He looked around if anyone disagreed. "I guess so."

"Good, my offer is as follows: You, me and the Senator stay here while the rest of your comrades can go upstairs where they'll find a speeder –well, maybe we need two. Then they are free to go."

"But what about Zane?"

And now he had a name. Zane glared at his comrade as well.

"Zane will have to trust my word that I will release him afterwards as well. But because I let his comrades go as well, maybe I have earned some trust."

"Or you just want to get more people out of the room so that you can overwhelm me."

"Do you have a choice? We can't stay in this deadlock forever and you know it."

"He is right."

"No, Zane, they're going to kill you," one of the Rodians said.

"I believe him," Zane said but his eyes said something different. "But we need new comms, so I can be sure they are safe."

"There will be a commlink waiting for them in the speeder and you'll get a new one as well."

Through his earpiece, he heard several commanders organising the two transports. Obviously, there would be a tracker in both of them but Vas was pretty sure, the rebels were also aware of that and would stop at the first opportunity.

"Sir," a trooper said from above. "Here are the commlinks."

Vas took them and handed them over to the rebels.

"Zane, are you sure about this?"

"Yes and now go before I change my mind."

Slowly, with lowered gazes the group trotted out and was escorted to the speeders. Zane placed his blaster on the Senator's head and activated his commlink.

"Keep the comms on and tell me the moment something seems wrong."

"Thank you, Zane. I'll take care of your brother and his family."

Then the hum of engines came through the commlink. So they hadn't checked for trackers. Sloppy. Zane placed the commlink on the ground in front of him and slumped against the wall. All the time, he kept his blaster levelled at the Senator who got more and more agitated by the second.

"Soldier, I command you to kill that man right now."

"No, I won't and for your own sake, I urge you to shut up," Vas said and sat down at the opposite side of the small room, leaning against the bottom of the stairs.

"This rebellion didn't quite go as we expected," Zane mumbled. "It sounded so good when Na'tuna approached us and promised to free our world but none of us was prepared for this."

"They are always charismatic. That's why they manage to get so many followers and how they got power in the first place."

"They?"

"Idealists, religious zealots or straight-up lunatics. Do you know what your leader Na'tuna did before this?"

Zane looked up. His eyes were tired but he was definitely interested.

"I was surprised to find something under his name. I suspected he had at least changed his name before joining this rebellion. But no. He was the chairman of Braitun Systems with their headquarters in the Braitun system in this sector. A very powerful engineering cooperation during the Clone Wars. At the end of the war, their operation was dismantled and everything shut down. Since then Kuuniru and its trade station have become more important every year. Braitun is nothing more than a scrapyard."

Vas watched the boy the whole time but he didn't react at all. So either they were not running any operations on Braitun or the boy simply didn't know enough.

"And in the twenty years since he never stopped his personal crusade and has led hundreds of young men like you to their deaths."

That fact was completely made up. Na'tuna had kept an extremely low profile until he captured the Senator but that didn't fit Vas' narrative.

"He never told us," Zane said, blinking in disbelief.

"That wouldn't sound too good to the new recruits, would it?"

"I guess not."

Silence fell over the room. The Senator tried to communicate something by rapidly blinking his eyes and looking at the rebel but Vas ignored him completely. If he judged Zane correctly, he would go peacefully and maybe he would even be an asset in the future if he did it right.

And running at the Senator now would only provoke an unnecessary reaction.

"I think no one is following us." The voice coming from the commlink startled Vas and Zane likewise.

He bent to pick it up. "Are you completely sure?"

"Yes, we have seen no one and are at least a hundred clicks away."

"Don't tell me where you are. They are still listening."

"I suggest you remove the tracker from the speeder," Vas said and had to fight to contain a laugh when he saw the Senator's and Zane's startled faces.

"Why did you tell them?" the Senator hissed while several officers were cursing at him through his earpiece.

"Because I intend to keep my word. The tracker is attached underneath a metal plate near the rear engine."

Zane looked at him for a long moment, before speaking into the comms, "Have you heard? Is there a tracker?"

"Give us a moment."

Zane reduced the volume a bit as his comrades scrambled to dismantle that part of their speeders.

"You are a strange man, Imperial. You seem too nice to serve such an evil regime."

"The Empire creates stability and security. Na'tuna and his friends were the ones who sparked the Clone Wars, killing millions in the process. It was the Empire that created stability for the first time in years. And here we are again. These rebels are still the remnants of the Confederacy. Most of the rebels and all the uprisings happen in the Western Reaches, the heartland of the Confederacy."

"You trade security for freedom."

"My mission here is to protect and serve. Therefore it is my mission to save the Senator and his children. How can you justify kidnapping children?"

"I … No, the Empire is oppressing the galaxy wherever they go."

"I don't oppress people if I have the choice. I am just a man doing the best I can in the system we currently have."

"So, you just flop over and accept all the injustices."

"Not all leaders of our Empire are saints but they are better than rebels like the ones following the late Saw Gerrara. They blow up entire apartment blocks if it serves their purpose. How many deaths are acceptable until you achieve freedom?"

"I-"

"How many children can you kidnap and still call yourself the saviour of this planet?"

The crackling of the comm saved the boy from having to answer but just by looking at him Vas was sure, he might be able to break through to the boy and break Na'tuna's brainwashing.

"The Imperial was right, there was something that didn't belong there that could be a tracker."

"Destroy it, then split up and change directions. Go into a city, ditch the speeder and lay low for a while. Then go home and never take a call from Na'tuna again."

"Zane, are you alright?"

"Yes, now do it."

The speeder's engine started again and drowned out the remainder of the rebels' conversation.

"Why did you place a tracker and then tell me about it? Is this a trick? Is there another hidden tracker?"

Vas deliberated if he should tell him about the tracker hidden in the comms but decided against it since it would create too many problems down the road.

"No, no more trackers. And why my men placed them, it is standard protocol but usually the suspects take the speeder apart on scene and remove the tracker then. It has been some time since they actually took the bait."

"So, you're saying we are stupid, naive kids."

"Yes, stupid, naive kids who got in with the wrong people."

They waited for almost half an hour until his comrades ditched the speeders and another hour to spread out even more on foot when Zane deactivated the commlink and got up.

Vas followed and tensed up since now was the moment of truth. Zane turned to the Senator, the weapon still raised.

"No, please don't shoot me. Soldier! Do something!"

"He won't shoot you," Vas said, watching Zane's pose. There was no defiance in him, only acceptance and defeat. "Relax, Senator and you'll be free in no time."

Zane dropped the blaster and stepped away from the Senator. Vas walked around him and kicked the weapon into the corner.

"I assume I won't get out of here as easily."

"No," Vas said plainly. "But you were braver than any of your friends and bought their freedom."

"I thought so. Then arrest me, commander."

"I'm actually not a commander. I'm Agent Flennic with the ISB. But your friends wouldn't have understood. Now, put your hands behind your back."

With Zane secured, Vas called down the troopers and Alphabet's squad charged down the stairs with the man himself in the lead. The Senator was released and immediately ran at Vas.

"Agent, give me your weapon, I will kill this rebel."

"No, he will have a fair trial once all of this is over."

"He kidnapped my children! He deserves to die and worse!"

"That is not for you to decide."

The Senator looked around for support but none of the troopers made a move, so he charged out of the room demanding a commlink and swearing they would regret this.

"Sergeant, follow him with your squad and don't let him out of your sight again or he will do something stupid again."

"You got him under control?" he asked, nodding at Zane.

Vas nodded and the troopers ran after the Senator.

Suddenly, Vas and Zane were alone again –not truly alone but they had at least the illusion. At least a dozen sensors were hiding all over the room, recording everything.

"Thank you, but you shouldn't have done that. He sounded really angry."

"You should worry more about the silent types. If he yells at you, it usually means he can't really harm you. And he is just a Senator. Powerful but not stupid enough to pick a fight with the ISB."

"I want my wife to be released immediately!" Senator Roolek yelled, slamming the holotable on the bridge of the Challenger. The bridge crew tried their best to ignore the discussion but Vas could see glances from time to time. Whenever met gazes with one of them, they jerked back to their consoles, like scolded children.

"That is not possible, Senator," Vas said, as calm as possible. "She is involved in an investigation of the ISB as at least an accomplice if not more. Her actions helped the rebels to escape time and time again. She forwarded information about the state of our investigation to the rebels. We lost good men because of her and maybe we would have even found your children by now."

"I'm sure she did her best to protect our children. I want her to be released immediately."

"I will not do that regardless of how often you ask."

"Captain, can you back me up here?"

She was clearly uncomfortable but said, "Maybe we can find a compromise. We transfer your wife to her apartments in the city where she is put under house arrest. She won't be allowed to leave until we have finished the investigation but she won't be in the cell of an Imperial Star Destroyer."

"I object, I can't ensure her safety there. The apartment isn't secured in any way and our rudimentary surveillance gear won't be enough. The building has no landing pad with direct access to the apartment. If the rebels control the lift, we can't get to her. Miss Roolek can be a bit uncomfortable after what she did."

"Careful, Agent. You might be ISB but you underestimate my power. I'm willing to escalate this problem higher than you think, so back down or I'll destroy you."

"Gentlemen," Captain Setaro said and stepped forward to get their attention. "Both of you have powerful backers. Senator Roolek in the form of several senators and influential admirals. Agent Flennic is backed by Moff Flennic."

The Senator whirled around to look at Vas. "The Moff Flennic."

The Captain continued as if she hadn't been interrupted. "The Moff Flennic of the Prefsbelt sector. May I speak to you for a moment, Agent?"

The Senator crossed his arms and looked away demonstratively. Captain Setaro led Vas across the bridge to the large view screens. The Challenger and all troops except the garrison had returned into orbit and continued their arduous task of controlling all cargo entering and leaving the system.

"He is really powerful. He might not be able to end your career. Your father is too powerful for that but he can throw you roadblocks every step of the way. Are you sure you want to make an enemy over such a small matter?"

"The life of a person isn't a small matter."

"Now come on, it isn't like she is going to be killed the moment she gets there. Just station a few more guards, install a better surveillance system and that's the end of it. If you worry about the accessibility, I can station some troopers with jetpacks nearby, they can enter through the balcony then."

"Imperial regulations are clear about the requirements for a building to be viable for house arrest."

"But this isn't the academy here, this is real life and you'll never find such ideal conditions."

"I won't back down just because a Senator tries to threaten me. I am with the ISB, this is exactly what we are fighting against."

"You still need his cooperation. There is a chance he will give it willingly to help his children but you can't be sure and you can't put him in jail like you did his wife without definite proof that he has betrayed the empire."

"I don't like it. I want it to be noted in the mission protocol that I formally protested against it."

"That won't help you anything, it just shows you are not strong enough to stand up to me or the Senator. We three are in three different chains of command, so theoretically, no one can overrule the other. THE ISB is influential but an Agent can't overrule a Navy Captain. A senator has a lot of influence but no real authority. As a Captain, I could order you to do something but it could mean problems for me down the road. Don't worry, we'll make sure she will be protected and hopefully, this whole operation will only last a few more days."

Vas grumbled as she turned him back to the holotable. On their back, she put on a more conversational tone. "I heard there is a supply convoy leaving from Yaga Minor soon. I salute you and your father."

"So actually did it," Vas said, cursing his father silently.

Captain Setaro misread him and continued to praise him, "It was impressive how he managed to arrange everything so quickly. I heard one of the escorts is commanded by your brother who has been assigned to this task force. Fresh out of the academy and already his own command. That is quite impressive, almost unheard of. I'm looking forward to meeting him once he gets here."

They both knew it wasn't because of his brother's merits. Vas hadn't seen his brother a lot since Vas had started the academy six years ago and then his brother was just a young teenager, not planning ahead more than a day and fumbling through life. He would be a completely different person after six years and three of them at Coruscant's Royal Imperial Academy.

When they arrived back at the holotable, she conversationally mentioned the supply run again and then looked at the Senator.

"I'm sure once we have freed your children Kuuniru will be much more forthcoming with supplies, am I right Senator?"

"Of course, as long as I get my children back."

"Perfect, your wife will be brought to her apartment this afternoon once we have updated the security systems."

"And performed a full search of all rooms," Vas added.

"That is not necessary," Senator Roolek protested.

"It is house arrest, not a vacation, so you'll follow my orders on this," Vas said, glaring at the Senator.

The Senator sized him up but eventually decided not to make his stand here.

"Alright, if you have to…"

"Then let's talk about what you heard while in their captivity. Do you have any clues where they are right now?"

"No good news I fear. They separated us and talked about jumping to hyperspace. They might not be in the system or even sector anymore."

"When was that?"

"Yesterday, right after that insufferable Twi'lek smuggled us out of the city."

"Captain, did any ship leave orbit yesterday?"

"Not to my knowledge. The Challenger's sensors were limited due to the atmosphere but the remaining ships of our task force should have picked up any ships unless it started on the other side of the planet and used one of the smaller hyperlanes out of the system."

"That's not good but I can work with that."

"That is not good?" the Senator echoed. "My children are gone. They could be anywhere by now."

"That's not correct. Our ships in orbit control the major hyperlane that connects the system to the Hydian way. They couldn't have smuggled them past our security there. So their only option would have been to take one of the smaller hyperlanes deeper into the sector. There are other secret hyperlanes out of the sector but I doubt civilians are aware of them. That means, the rebels and with them your children are trapped in the sector."

"Wonderful, they are trapped on a dozen planets and hundreds of moons. We will find them in no time."

"Most planets only have a very small population and are uninhabitable outside the small colonies. We can have them searched in no time. No other planet is as densely populated as Kuuniru. It will take time but with a bit of reasonable thinking, we can start with the most likely candidates. I will set up a strike team to investigate them right away. Senator, despite our differences I promise you, I will find your children and bring them back to you."

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the slightly longer chapter. Finally, the Imperials are making some progress. The story is hurtling towards the climax and I can promise you, things will only get worse from here. :D