Chapter Nineteen
Explosions burst out like fireworks around the shuttle, causing the ship to rock dangerously despite the pilot's best efforts; the fact that the shuttle hadn't already been turned into space debris was a feat in and of itself as the planet seemed to be using every ounce of firepower at their disposal in their attempt to stop the shuttle from reaching the surface.
Inside, the shuttle was as quiet as a tomb, a direct opposite of the chaos raging just outside the ship as both Republic and Mandalorian ships danced about in battle, each trying to destroy the other.
A dozen Mandalorian warriors stood silently, side by side, as they waited in silence for the ship to either reach the surface or be destroyed; hundreds more waited in similar shuttles spread out across the battlefield, as each shuttle pilot tried desperately to escape the explosions and reach the planet's surface.
Try as he might, Killian couldn't help the fear that gripped him as he readied himself for what would be his first battle since being given his armor; next to him, lost in their own minds, stood the rest of what had once been the third squad. Alexander stood next to Killian and seemed to be muttering under his breath as he checked his disintegration rifle for the third time, but Killian couldn't seem to make out the words due to the explosions rocking the ship. Aola seemed the most subdued and stood quietly with her head bowed and her right hand resting on the blaster on her hip. Dani had the rail overhead gripped in one hand as though she never wanted to let it go. Her other hand hung loose at her side, though every so often, she would reach to the sniper rifle on her back as though to confirm that it was still there. Only Ben seemed genuinely excited about what was coming, and as Killian stared at his friend for a moment, he couldn't help but shake his head as the tall boy bounced in place and eagerly gripped his rotating blaster cannon.
As another explosion rocked the ship, Killian felt himself grip his rifle as though he meant to break it; looking over at Aola, Killian shook his head at how few weapons she was taking. To the surprise of nearly everyone, when it came time to be issued equipment, Aola had asked for a rifle, a blaster, and a knife to store in her boot; it was only when Aola had promptly left after receiving her demands that anyone realized that was all she planned on taking.
Killian had gone the other way entirely and had two blasters on each hip, two knives in both boots and a rifle guaranteed to destroy its target at a hundred yards held tight in his hands; that wasn't even counting all the extra features that Killian's Uncle Lec had commanded be built into Killian's armor, as well as the armor of everyone from the third squad.
It had been nearly six months since Killian and his friends had received their armor, and yet in all that time, they had not been sent to fight like most of those who had trained alongside them under Buta Kug; rather, Killian and his friends had been sent on bodyguard missions or else kept on Mandalore, training. Contrary to what he was expecting, Killian was not punished when he told his uncle that he could use the force; rather, Killian found himself receiving special praise from Mandalore the Avenger at having such a mighty weapon at his disposal, though Lec did emphasize that Killian would be wise to keep it to himself until such time that Lec could inform his generals without fear of them calling for Killian's head.
After six months of wheedling, complaining, and outright demanding, Killian's squad had finally been given their orders, taking them all to their first battle against the hated Republic. In an effort to keep his son and family safe, Lec had placed Killian's squad under the command of Terra; Killian strongly suspected that his mother had outright demanded the role, though he would never say it.
Rather than send Killian and his friends to the front lines right out of training, Lec had instead decided that Killian and the rest of the third squad would receive their first test as true Mandalorians by finishing the conquest of the planet of Bomodon, which lay inside the Mid Rim.
Bomodon was one of the Sith Empires' first attempts to spread their conquest further into the Republic's territory; for nearly ten months, the Sith and Republic had traded blows for this miserable speck of rock, yet neither side seemed willing to let the planet go, despite terrible losses on both sides.
The planet had been conquered relatively quickly in the first months of the battle; the Sith quickly consolidated their hold on the world, sent out representatives to rule on their behalf, and executed all potential troublemakers they could find.
However, things quickly escalated when the Republic sent ships to halt the Sith advance and free the native Bomodon's; against the Sith armada, the Republic stood almost no chance and was quickly forced to retreat, but not before several troop transports were shot down over the planet, several of which managed to safely reach the surface without being disintegrated. Under the command of one annoyingly persistent Lieutenant named Elin Garza, who had been waging a guerrilla war against the Empire's troops for the last ten months, the Sith had been slowly but surely driven back inch by inch until, at last, the Dark Council had ordered the Republic's troops dealt with.
That was why Killian and almost a thousand Mandalorian warriors had been sent to aid the Sith in finally ending this battle once and for all; the Mandalorians were placed under the command of Terra, but the overall command of the army would be under the control of the Dark Lord, Darth Avarice.
Killian didn't know anything about the Sith Lord that he and his people would be serving under, just rumors that she was a force to be reckoned with and that she never took prisoners, something that had caused the Republic to put a bounty of over a million credits on her head.
As another explosion rocked the ship, Killian was thrown against his mother and quickly righted himself before grabbing hold of the overhead bar; Killian couldn't see his mother's face behind the T-shaped visor of her helmet, but he could feel her emotions through the force, and the thing that he felt the most was fear. Killian could feel his mother's worry and anxiety that this battle might very well cost her one of her children, yet at the same time, Killian could also feel pride that she would be here to witness the first of her children's battles as true warriors of Mandalore, no matter the outcome.
"We've breached the atmosphere!" The pilot shouted back to them, "Everyone get ready!"
"Once we hit the surface, I want everyone ready!" Terra shouted over the noise of the ship, causing everyone to look at her, "The fact that we had to fight through the planet's defenses tells me that the guerillas have already gained a favorable position, and I don't think I need to tell you how hard it's going to be to take it from them, so look sharp, got it?!"
"Yes, sir!" Came the shout from a dozen voices, Killian included, though his sounded more like a croak than a shout.
"You five," Terra continued in a softer voice as she looked at Killian and his friends, "This will be your first battle, and I don't want it to be your last. So, stay close to the older warriors; they will show you how to fight a battle and survive one, understood?"
"Understood, General Farr," Killian replied, feeling through the force how proud she was of him, which helped to take the edge off him. A moment later, the others copied Killian's words, causing Terra to fall silent as she stared at them; they were all wearing armor as white as freshly fallen snow, though they had yet to earn their jetpack. The only things that helped her figure out which were the Jaegar Eyes they had earned. That, and Aola's pink Lekku that poked out of her helmet. Terra couldn't help but wince in sympathy as she looked at her children in their shiny new armor; in a few minutes, that armor would be marked by battle, and though Terra tried to fight against it, she couldn't help but be afraid that this would be the last day for perhaps one of them.
Terra tried to think of something, anything that she might say that would give Killian and his friends courage for what was about to come, yet her mind refused to comply, and so the only sound was the explosions coming from outside of the ship.
An older warrior in red armor must have sensed her discomfort, for he promptly placed a calming hand on her shoulder before turning to Killian and his friends.
"Remember this day," the warrior said in a deep baritone voice that seemed to echo through the shuttle, "For it will be yours and yours alone for all time."
The words seemed to ignite something in Killian and the others, for they immediately stood a little straighter and seemed a little less afraid of what was coming; Terra nodded her thanks at the warrior, who quickly nodded back before performing one last check on his equipment.
"Doors opening in twenty seconds!" The pilot shouted back, causing the Mandalorians to grip their weapons tighter,
"Here we go…." Killian said softly as he felt the ship touch down on the surface; a moment later, the door opened, and all hell seemed to break loose.
Whatever Killian was expecting, it certainly wasn't this; his helmet dulled some of the noise, but that was a small comfort when all around him was a cacophony of noise and war.
A tall Mandalorian in grey armor ran past Killian, only to explode in a shower of blood a moment later when he was hit by a rocket; unable to stop himself, Killian froze as he took in the remnants of what had just been a living human.
"Killian!" Terra shouted as she grabbed his shoulder and spun him to face her, "This is no time to freeze! Run, damn you! Get to cover!"
Without another word, Terra shoved Killian to the ground hard before pulling out twin blasters and firing at the Republic soldier, who was trying not to panic as she reloaded the rocket that had just killed the warrior in front of Killian; a moment later the Republic soldier lay dead from the half dozen rounds that Terra had fired into her.
"You heard the General!" Ben shouted as he began to fire his rotating blaster cannon toward the enemy, "Get off your ass and run for cover! We have yet to earn this armor!"
As Killian quickly rose to his feet and grabbed his fallen rifle, he couldn't help but gasp at the carnage going on around him; they seemed to have landed in a clearing, with a vast forest not far away, which the Republic soldiers were using as cover to keep the Mandalorians pinned down, something that was achieving great results if the number of bodies covering the grass was anything to go on.
As Killian stared in horror at what was happening all around him, he saw Dani take two shots in the chest, which ricocheted off her armor and sent her onto her back; before Killian could cry out, he saw Dani rise into a sitting position, pull her sniper rifle from her back, and begin to shoot wildly into the trees while shouting obscenities. A few feet from her, Aola stood calmly and fired off round after another into the trees as blaster bolts missed her by inches.
"We have to get out of this killing zone!" Terra shouted as she waved at the pilot to leave, "Everyone fall back to the trees!"
"The Republic soldiers are in the trees!" Dani shouted back as she reloaded her rifle,
"At least in there, we'll have cover!" Terra snarled back, "We're dead if we stay here!"
Aola turned to say something to Killian but fell silent at a ringing whistling sound that had suddenly appeared and caused her and Killian to look around for the source.
"Missile!" Terra screamed as she dove atop Killian and Aola. "Everyone get down!"
An instant later, Killian watched in horror from where he lay as the shuttle that had just brought them to the planet's surface exploded into a fiery collage of twisted metal and flames barely thirty feet over their heads. For a moment, the shuttle seemed to hang there, suspended in the air, before it began to fall back to earth, and as Killian watched in horror, he realized that the ship was going to land directly where he and his family were lying.
"Fall back!" Terra screamed as she roughly pulled Aola and Killian to their feet and shoved them forward, "Ruuuuuuun!"
His body seemingly on autopilot, Killian immediately followed his mother's command and ran as fast as he could into the forest as the sound of battle echoed all around him; he had just entered the trees when the shuttle crashed into the earth, creating a shockwave that threw Killian off of his feet and into the waiting mud.
"Well, this stinks," Aola growled as she rose from the mud next to Killian and began brushing the mud off her.
"Agreed," Killian stated as he did the same; in the distance, he could still hear the Republic troops trying to keep further shuttles from landing. "But it could be…."
"I swear on the armor of my ancestors that if you say, 'it could be worse,' I'll shoot you where you stand!" Alexander spat, making Aola and Killian grin as he removed his helmet and began to clean the visor; like Killian and Aola, he had run for the forest when Terra called retreat. And, like Aola and Killian, he had been blasted off his feet when their shuttle exploded.
"What do you think you're doing?!" As she approached the trio, Ben and Dani following close behind her, Terra demanded, "Put your damn helmet back on this instant!"
"I was just cleaning my visor," Alexander began before Terra strode up to him and shoved him hard so that he fell onto his butt.
"We are in the middle of a battle!" Terra snapped, "For all you know, snipers could be hiding in the trees as we speak, waiting for some moron to take off his helmet! All it takes is one slip-up for you to end up with your head turned into a bird feeder, understand?!"
For a moment, Alexander simply glared up at his aunt from where he sat before finally lowering his eyes to the ground and muttering out a soft,
"I understand, General Farr…."
"My job is to make sure that you all go back home in one piece," Terra said sternly, "But I can only do that if you follow my orders and do as I say. So, unless I tell you otherwise, you are to always keep your damn helmet on! Understood?"
"Yes sir," Alexander growled before rising to his feet and quickly putting his helmet back on as Killian began to brush the mud off of his rifle; though he was no longer a trainee, Killian had no doubt that Buta would put his boot in Killian's ass if Killian ignored proper weapon readiness.
Seeing what he was doing, Aola and Alexander soon followed suit, and Terra couldn't help but feel proud of her family as she watched Dani and Ben copy their friends.
"General Farr!" A Mandalorian called out from the air before landing next to her,
"Report!" Terra snapped.
"There's no sign of the Republic forces, General," the Mandalorian said quickly as he snapped to attention.
"What do you mean there's no sign?" Terra demanded as she pointed back toward the clearing where shots could still be heard, "What do you call that?!"
"Droids, General," the Mandalorian replied,
"… What?" Terra asked in confusion,
"The ones firing upon us are droids, General," the Mandalorian replied, "I saw them myself. There's no sign of any Republic forces anywhere in the area."
"But I killed one!" Terra retorted, "I put half a dozen rounds through one after she blew one of us up!"
"A scout, most likely," a Mandalorian in dark green armor growled before looking up into the trees surrounding them, "Which means that there are probably more of them out there, watching us, perhaps even now."
"So, what is the plan now?" A Mandalorian in grey armor asked Terra,
"Nothing has changed." Terra said as she shook away the feeling that something was wrong, "We head toward the rendezvous point. Meet up with Darth Avarice and her army, and kill anything in our way."
"I don't understand why we couldn't get closer to the main camp," a Mandalorian in black armor said,
"Because the guerillas have almost completely taken over the planet's defenses," Terra replied angrily, "There's no way we could have gotten closer without being blown out of the sky!"
"How far is it to the main camp?" Killian heard himself asking without realizing it,
"Ten miles is the best estimate," Terra replied with a sigh, "Though we have no way of knowing if they're still there. The last contact was three days ago, after all."
"So, we don't know if there even is an army to meet us?" Alexander asked in disbelief, "What if they've been wiped out? We could be walking into a trap!"
"We could," Terra conceded, "But we're still going, all the same."
"Why? It makes no sense!" Alexander retorted, causing the surrounding warriors to go quiet instantly.
"Because those are our orders," Terra replied, her voice as cold as ice, "Given to us by the Mandalore. Do you wish to challenge his decision?"
Though he couldn't see it, Killian was sure that his cousin was paling at the question; if Alexander dared to say yes, it would be seen as a challenge for the title of Mandalore, and as such, Alexander would be forced to fight his father to the death.
With no other alternative, Alexander looked down at his feet in submission, though Killian knew that inwardly he was seething at this humiliation.
"I didn't think so," Terra sneered; she hated humiliating her nephew like this, but the boy's arrogance had grown monstrous lately, and it was high time that someone reminded him that until he proved himself, he had no right to the superiority that he wore like a coat.
"Alright, Mandalorians, on your feet!" Terra called as she turned back to her troops, "We're moving out!" turning to two Mandalorians in blue armor, Terra said softly, "You two, fly ahead. I don't want any surprises."
"Yes, sir," the duo said before activating their jetpacks and flying off into the distance.
"Alright, let's move out!" Terra called out before striding deeper into the forest, the rest of her warriors close behind, "Killian, upfront with me! I want to speak with you!"
"Yes, sir!" Killian replied as he ran past the warriors, stopping only when he came to his mother's side.
For a few moments, Terra and Killian walked in silence, the only sound being from the grumbling warriors behind them; after what felt like an eternity, Terra finally turned her head to look at Killian, not breaking stride as she did so.
"You can't freeze like that, Killian," Terra said softly so that only Killian could hear her, "You could have been killed. I thought you knew better than that."
Killian bowed his head in shame at his mother's words and tried to find some way to justify his actions, yet could find nothing to say.
"I know it's your first battle," Terra continued, "And it's okay to be scared, but freezing like that in the middle of battle can get you killed, and as someone who has been awarded the coveted Jaegar Eyes, you are an example for others. So if someone who has won such honors freezes, what do you think that says to the other warriors watching?"
"That I'm not worthy of such honors in the first place…." Killian replied shamefully; Terra didn't say anything back, but the silence only made it more apparent that Killian's guess was the correct one.
"I'm sorry, Mom," Killian said softly, "I didn't mean to freeze like that; it's just when I saw that warrior blown to pieces like that, I just…."
"It's okay, Killian," Terra said as she wrapped her arm around the boy and hugged him quickly before releasing him, "As a warrior, you will see such things, and perhaps even worse things to come, and it's okay to be afraid. The trick is to not let the fear control you."
"How?" Killian asked, and Terra frowned as she heard the hint of desperation in his voice.
"By remembering what you're fighting for," Terra stated simply,
"What do you mean?" Killian asked, "Aren't we fighting for the Sith?"
"No!" Terra snapped, causing Killian to flinch involuntarily. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Terra continued speaking to her son,
"We are here to bring honor and glory to Mandalore. Not for some Sith Emperor who thinks himself a god, but for us and us alone."
Seeing that Killian was listening with rapt attention, as though the words were of the utmost importance, Terra continued speaking in a louder voice so that those behind might hear her and understand as well.
"You are Killian Farr," Terra stated proudly, "You carry a name that has brought glory and honor to our people for nearly five hundred years. We are not slaves of the Sith nor the Republic, and we are not beasts that kill just for the sake of killing. We are warriors of honor, and it is for our ancestors that came before us and our descendants that will come after us that we fight."
A roar of agreement came from behind Terra as the warriors screamed out their praise for her words; even Killian seemed to stand a little straighter, and Terra nodded her head in pride at her son.
"I will never freeze again, Mom," Killian said simply; though he couldn't see it due to her helmet, Terra was beaming at the boy and felt her heart swell with pride.
"Good, now get back to your friends," Terra said warmly; as Killian ran back to the end of the line to find his friends, Terra couldn't shake the feeling that she had earlier: something was wrong.
XXXX
Lieutenant Elin Garza smiled smugly as she looked down at the holographic table in front of her, which showed a miniature army of Mandalorians, all headed precisely where she wanted them to.
To those who didn't know her, Lieutenant Erin Garza looked like an elderly woman that belonged in retirement rather than in charge of an army; those who had served with her or under her knew the truth: Lieutenant Garza was a monster to her enemies and a hero to her men. She was of average height and wore the uniform of an officer of the Republic, with her gray hair tied tight in a severe bun; on her hip sat a simple blaster that she used to great effect when the situation called for it.
Turning to one of her nearby subordinates, Garza began to rattle off orders in a gruff voice that was as cold as ice,
"Continue to drive them toward the Sith's main camp! Do not let any of them alter course! Once we have them all in one place, we'll unleash everything we have and finally free this world once and for all!"
"Yes, sir!" The soldier snapped off with a salute before hurrying away to ensure her orders were followed to the letter; bad things seemed to happen to those who disobeyed the Lieutenant's orders.
As the soldiers began to scurry around her command center like ants, Lieutenant Garza turned back to the holographic table where tiny figures were running through a small forest,
"Sergeant Kirkland!" Garza called out, causing an overweight man with a bald head to rush to her side,
"Yes general?" The sergeant replied once he had reached her; as Garza looked at the man, she couldn't help but feel a little disgusted, the sergeant definitely did not deserve his rank, and no doubt had achieved it from bribes and family ties.
"Who is the one in charge of the Mandalorians?" Garza demanded in a rough voice that caused the sergeant to pale.
"According to our spies," the sergeant replied as he pulled a data pad from his coat, "The leader is the Mandalore's sister, a Twi'lek general named Terra Farr."
"The Mandalore's sister is a Twi'lek?" Garza asked in surprise before rubbing her chin with one hand, "How did that happen?"
"Adopted sister," Sergeant Kirkland said simply, "We also have reason to believe that the Mandalore's son is present. Undoubtedly, the Mandalore sent his heir, thinking it would be an easy battle for him to have as his first."
"Now THAT is interesting," Garza said with a cruel grin, "If we manage to capture that brat, we could force the Mandalore to switch sides."
"Does that mean we will be taking prisoners for a change?" The sergeant asked, hope in his voice; so far, every battle he had participated in since joining Lieutenant Garza's unit had been the same, with no prisoners being taken and every enemy soldier slaughtered without mercy. The Lieutenant's reason for this had been a pragmatic one, if a little horrifying to hear out loud,
"Dead soldiers can't be sent back to fight, unlike prisoners can when released by our idiotic leaders."
Sergeant Kirkland was already planning on informing the Chancellor of the atrocities that Lieutenant Garza had ordered or allowed to happen and done nothing to stop; no doubt Kirkland would be rewarded for his information, perhaps even a place back on Coruscant.
"The Mandalore's family are to be taken alive," Garza said after a moment of silence, "The rest are to be killed as usual, understood?"
"Yes, sir!" Kirkland replied with a salute before hurrying away to issue the new orders; as the fat sergeant sped away, Garza couldn't help but sneer at his back for a moment before returning to the holographic table.
"Everything is going to plan," Garza said softly, "Soon enough, you will all be dead, and this planet will be free."
XXXX
Several hours later, Killian nearly cried in happiness when they reached the top of a large hill and looked down on the camp of Darth Avarice; it had taken the Mandalorians far longer to reach the rendezvous point than had been expected due to the Republic soldiers repeatedly ambushing the Mandalorians.
The first ambush had come when the warriors had reached a clearing, and Terra had given the order for everyone to take a fifteen-minute rest; they had been resting barely five minutes when a shot rang out from the trees, and a Mandalorian fell dead to the ground with a blaster hole through his head, his canteen still in his hand, and his helmet resting on the grass.
Immediately, the Mandalorians opened fire on where the blaster had fired from, only for more blaster fire to emerge from the forest behind them,
"Ambush!" Terra shouted as the Mandalorians tried to form a defensive perimeter, made harder as blaster fire, then began to come from a third direction.
The attack had only lasted a few minutes, but by the end of it, the Mandalorians had lost another thirty warriors on top of those lost when they first landed.
Similar ambushes had occurred twice more when Terra had ordered the warriors to rest, leading to a general sense of unease as the warriors expected to be attacked at any minute; Killian, on the other hand, found that he wasn't so much afraid as he was annoyed that the Republic refused to come out and fight with honor.
As they strode towards the camp, they were immediately approached by a large group of soldiers, all wearing the uniform of the Sith Empire; stopping a respectful distance from the Sith troopers, Terra raised her hand in greeting.
"I am Terra Farr, sister to Mandalore the Avenger and general of this army. We have come at our Mandalore's order to aid you and your Lord, Darth Avarice, in taking back this planet."
A look of relief seemed to wash over the commander's face at the words, and he quickly ordered his men to put down their weapons before turning back to Terra.
"You are most welcome here, General Farr," the commander called jovially, "We were beginning to lose hope that any reinforcements were coming."
"I will admit the Republic didn't make it easy for us to get here," Terra said with a smile as she approached the commander before clasping his hand in hers.
"Yes, they've been attacking us non-stop for a week now," the commander retorted as he released Terra's hand, turned, and began to walk back to the camp; after a moment, Terra followed, signaling to her troops to follow.
"Is that why there's been no contact?" Terra asked,
"Yes, the Republic put up a signal jammer on the other side of those hills three days ago."
"Why haven't you taken it out?" Terra asked in annoyance,
"We've tried!" The commander retorted, "But no matter how many soldiers we send, none ever return, and the jammer remains active, so we have no idea who or what is guarding the damn thing!"
"That's the first thing we shall have to do, then," Terra replied, "As long as that signal jammer remains active, we will be unable to call for help if we need it."
"Agreed," the commander replied, "Not going to lie, General, I'm glad you're here."
Terra was about to reply when a silver droid approached them, stopping only a few feet from Terra and the commander.
"You are the leader of the Mandalorians?" The droid asked in a proper voice,
"I am the General in command of this army, yes," Terra replied in a bored voice,
"Lord Avarice is waiting for you. She has set aside the northeast section of the camp for your warriors and now demands you attend to her. Follow me."
Without waiting to see if Terra was actually following, the droid spun on its heel and began to stride away; shaking her head in annoyance, Terra turned to her second in command, Ricket.
"Take the warriors to the site set up for us and have them make camp. I'll be over there when I'm done with the Sith.
"Be careful, General," Ricket replied softly,
"You know me," Terra grinned back, causing Ricket to chuckle,
"That's what I'm afraid of."
Sharing a final laugh, Terra followed after the droid as Ricket shouted orders for the others to follow him and the commander to their designated campsite.
As Terra followed the droid, she couldn't help but look around her as they passed through the camp; more than one tent was filled with groaning men and women in various states of injury. One tent was filled almost to the top with armor covered in blood and blaster holes, and Terra could only shake her head at how many people used to occupy those discarded uniforms.
After following the droid for what felt like miles, Terra finally found herself standing in front of a tent as black as the night sky; standing on either side of the entrance were two guards who looked like they hadn't slept in days judging by how they were leaning.
As Terra approached, one of the guards raised his rifle and shouted a challenge,
"Halt! What are you doing here?"
"I have brought the Mandalorian general that Lord Avarice requested. Please stand aside."
The guards instantly nodded and opened the flap for the pair to walk through, though Terra stayed where she was; all of her instincts were screaming at her to not enter the tent, that whatever was in it was not something she should confront.
Swallowing down her fear, Terra strode forward after the droid, and immediately her vision went dark so that she had to stop; the inside of the tent was pitch black, and for a moment, Terra considered turning on her night vision.
"Ah, General Farr…" A voice purred from somewhere in the dark tent, causing Terra to spin around and look for its owner, yet she found no one because she could not see two feet in front of her.
"I'm so glad to see you and your warriors have arrived unharmed. We have much to discuss…."