"The Terran Systems Alliance Army, like all the military branches of the TSA, was formed from elements of the respective armed forces of its member nation states. This would be one of the major hurdles that the nascent alliance would face during the Clone Wars, with differences in equipment and tactical doctrine leading to massive logistical issues when it came time to deploy their forces out of the Sol System. The number of compatible components between M1A2 Abrams and T-90M main battle tanks for example was practically zero, causing any units that used a mix of the vehicles to rely on two separate supply chains to equip half of their available force. These issues would persist throughout the Clone Wars and would not be fully resolved even by the time of the Galactic Civil War, with elements of the Ukrainian 4th Tank Brigade using a mixture of M2 Bradley IFVs and Leopard 2 MBTs during the Battle of Jakku in 2021 being amongst the most notable later examples."
-Supplying a War Across Planets: Terran Logistics during the Clone and Galactic Civil Wars (1994-2022), published 2035 A.D./20 ABY.
Anakin winced as a flak burst exploded next to his gunship. His detachment of the 501st was currently approaching New York at top speed. Flak was everywhere, primarily from Separatist J-1 proton cannons, and missile trails crisscrossed across the sky.
"Two minutes to drop sir!" the pilot said.
"We don't want to be late for the party trooper. Floor it!" Anakin ordered.
"Sir, yes sir!"
As the gunships sped on towards the city, Anakin saw through the ajar door panels one of the fellow gunships fall victim to a flak burst, its place being instantly taken by a pair of Y-wings on an attack run on the flaks source. Dodging through the towering buildings, the gunships managed to land just a short distance behind the current American lines.
Anakin immediately jumped into the fray, deflecting the stray bolts heading his way.
"Move, move! Get to that cover go!" he ordered his troops. They ran toward a strip of torn up asphalt that several Marines were already hiding behind.
"Who the hell are you?!" one of them asked as they slid into the cover next to them, the clones already firing over it.
"General Skywalker, Republic Army," Anakin replied. "You?"
"Staff Sergeant Ray Tomar, 2nd Battalion, 25th Marines" he replied.
"What's the situation here?"
"Damn droids outnumber us four to one and that machine gun nest has us pinned behind this pile of trash!" the Marine said. Anakin peaked over the cover. A J-10 blaster cannon that had been set up between a pair of destroyed cars was sending dozens of bolts downrange every second. On its flanks were over a dozen droids of varying types on each side. All progressively making their way towards their position.
"Alright, here's the plan," Anakin said. "Echo, Fives, prep droid poppers, two per side. Echo throws left, Fives throws right. Once they detonate, I'll draw the survivor's fire. Once they're locked onto me, you light that nest up."
"Sir yes sir!" the clones replied. Tomas on the other hand was extremely reprehensive.
"Draw their fire? There's nothing but open air between here and them! You'll be cut down in half a second!" he said.
"I'll be fine, don't worry," Anakin replied confidently. "Ready?" he asked the clones, who nodded in response.
"Now!" he ordered. The quartet of droid poppers flew toward the droids, detonating mere milliseconds apart. Anakin then ignited his lightsaber and jumped over the asphalt. The J-10 almost immediately shifted its aim to track him. Anakin expertly blocked the onslaught of bolts sent his way, reflecting several bolts back at the droids.
The clones and marines then peaked over the cover, firing at the weapon emplacement, with one striking the gunner in the face and destroying it. Another then attempted to take its place, only for another round to strike the weapons power generator causing a sizable explosion, which destroyed the remaining droids around it.
Anakin quickly charged the remaining trio of super battle droids. Redirecting several shots into one, he then cut off another's arm, before bisecting the third at the waist, then finishing off the previous B2 before it could raise its other arm with a diagonal slash.
Just then yet another platoon of droids appeared from further down the street. Anakin readied his lightsaber. Yet before he could do anything, a salvo of rockets and cannon fire tore the droid formation to shreds. A pair of Apache helicopters then flew overhead, quickly followed by a series of LAATs which deployed more clones and several AT-TE walkers in front of Anakin, whilst a flight of F-15Es flew overhead. Anakin turned to the men still in cover.
"Come on boys! Can't let them have all the fun!" he said.
"You heard the man! Move it!" Tomar ordered. The clones and marines climbed over the cover to join their fellows.
"I've never seen someone move that fast!" Rose told Tomar as they joined the Jedi.
"You'll find I'm full of surprises!" Anakin replied. "Now let's get these droids out of your city, shall we?"
"Stop squirming you little rat" Thomas ordered.
"Oh yeah? And who was just trapped like one again?" the subject in question asked.
"And yet I'm not the one squirming now, am I?" Thomas asked in reply.
Will rolled his eyes, then winced again as Kix continued to wrap a cloth around his head to keep a bacta patch in place.
"Just be glad that Ahsoka got to you as fast as she did," Sarah told Thomas. "I don't want to think about what would've happened if she hadn't."
"Luckily we don't have to then" another clone, whose name Thomas had learned was Hardcase, said.
'Where did they get these names from exactly?' Thomas thought. 'They seemed to be all over the place.'
"How did you know she'd be able to help me anyway?" he asked Sarah. "Jedi are seen as basically boogeymen out here."
She looked at him sheepishly. "My uncle was a Delta Force guy who worked with a Jedi during the Gulf. Told me the whole story once it was declassified. The Jedi practically saved his whole unit when they came under heavy fire. Said he'd never seen anything like it."
Sarah chuckled. "Guess I take after my uncle more than I thought, cause here I am. Barely a few months out of boot, and I'm fighting with yet another Jedi. Small world-err galaxy I suppose."
"Yeah, I'll be glad to hear the whole story when my head stops feeling as if it's going to explode," Will said.
"It will stop a lot faster if you hold kriffing still!" Kix said. Will finally did as he asked.
Thomas then felt a rumbling in the earth. Turning, he saw a column of American vehicles approaching from up the street, now visible thanks to the removal of the rubble that had buried him, courtesy of the AT-TE that was already present. A pair of Humvee's pulled off to the side of the road as the rest of the column continued deeper into the city. Out popped a trio of marines who made their way over to them.
"You look like shit army dogs!" one of them said.
"Still better than any marine, any day," Thomas replied.
The marine snorted at his reply. "What's you unit?" he asked.
"Third I.D." Thomas said.
"That so? Well, you'll be glad to hear they're pulling up our rear if you wanna get reacquainted," the one in the rear said guesting over his shoulder to another column of approaching armored vehicles.
"Appreciate that. And who might the disposers of such wisdom be?" Thomas asked.
"I'm Lance Corporal Box, this is Private Ramirez, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines" the now identified leading marine said.
"Thought you guys were stuck up in Wilmington" Will said.
"Not anymore. The Seps pulled their asses out of there yesterday before we could even deploy. We were redirected here after that shield came up. But we got to roll before the rest of our boys kill 'em all before we get there. Good luck!" Box said, holding out his hand for a sideways fist bump. Thomas obliged him.
"Leave some for us will ya! I'm itching for some payback!" Thomas said as the Marines climbed back into their vehicle.
"Not a chance!" Ramirez said as they pulled away.
"Quite colorful, aren't they?" Sarah asked.
Thomas laughed. It was nice to know that these marines were just like the ones he had met in his youth. Then yet another Humvee pulled up to their side, stopping suddenly enough to kick up some small rocks and throw them in their general direction.
Before Thomas could even get annoyed at that, the passenger side door flew open and out came a familiar face.
"Tommy, Will!" Ethan said as he ran over to them. "You're alive you sons of bitches!"
"Not for their lack of trying anyway" Will said.
Ethan then slugged Thomas on the shoulder.
"You two ever pull something like that again, I'll skin you both alive" Ethan threatened.
"Where's Sergeant Smith?" he then asked.
Thomas's face fell. "He didn't make it. We have his tags" he said solemnly whilst Will held up the objects in question.
Ethans face then mirrored his own. "Damn it!" he said with frustration.
It was then that Dilaon came up to them. "Tipton, Wilson. Good to see you both alive.
He then noted the tags Will was holding. "I see Sergeant Smith wasn't so lucky."
"If it's any consolation, he went quick sir," Will said quietly.
"The least any of us can ask for," the captain said with a sigh. He then turned to Sarah.
"Name and rank trooper?" he asked.
"Sir, Private first-class Sarah Addie sir!" she replied, standing straight and saluting.
"Where's your unit?"
"Don't know sir, we were ambushed, and as far as I'm aware I was the only survivor."
"Then as of now you're being folded into my unit. You'll accompany Corporal Jacobs' squad. Is that understood?"
"Yes sir!"
As the Staff Sergeant turned back to face his men, it was then that Ahsoka finally decided to make an appearance.
"Staff Sergeant Dilaon, I presume? I'm Commander Tano, and this is Captain Rex. We're here to assist as needed," she said, gesturing to the clone at her side.
"Then you're just in time. We're heading for the shield generator," Dilaon said. "We take that thing out; the air force will lay waste to anything that moves."
"We have half a dozen heavy walkers alongside about seven platoons in the immediate area. They'd love to lend a hand," Rex replied.
"Radio them to head towards these grid coordinates," Dilaon said, handing Rex a piece of paper. "We're mounting a full forward assault. Marines should already be about to begin the attack."
Ahsoka nodded, she and Rex then went to gather up the other clones. Dilaon then turned to Ethan and company.
"Jacobs, take your squad and mount up" he ordered.
"Yes sir," Ethan replied. He then gestured for the others to follow him.
"Addie, you're with me up front. You boys take the back. Wilson, I want you on that fifty," Ethan ordered.
They did as he ordered and climbed into the Humvee. Once inside, Thomas wiggled his way up to the .50 caliber machine gun on its roof. He quickly checked it to make sure it was in working order before cocking it.
"Hold onm" Ethan said. He then pulled them into the now once again advancing column of vehicles. Looking back, Thomas could see dozens more Humvees, Bradley IFVs and Abrams tanks all following their lead.
He looked forward again and took a deep breath.
It was time to lay some hate.
Cody dove for cover behind a destroyed car. Just as he reached it a shell exploded barely twenty feet away, showing his cover with shrapnel.
"Waxer, hit that kriffing tank!" he ordered. Almost immediately a rocket flew out and impacted the offending AAT, blowing it into smithereens.
A pair of A-6 jets then blasted apart a second pair of AATs apart, allowing AT-TEs following the clones to advance up the road.
"Boil take D-squad and flank those droids in that high rise!" Cody ordered.
"Yes sir!"
Cody then turned to continue firing at droids down the street. His, along with dozens of other bolts were sent down range, cutting down several droids. One of which seemed to have had an armed thermal detonator considering the explosion that followed when one got its head blown off.
It was then that Crys slid next to him.
"Commander, we have two more platoons of droids incoming from the west," he said.
"Set up the blaster cannons behind those destroyed tanks. They'll walk right into the firing arcs."
Cody then pulled up his commlink.
"Move the walkers up the lane. We'll advance behind them," he ordered. The troopers rush to set up the cannons, whilst other clones continue to fire on the remaining droids to keep them suppressed to protect their vulnerable fellows. Just as the cannons are primed and the walkers reach the end of the street, the droids round the corner.
"Open fire!"
Hundreds of blue bolts fill the air. Several droids fell almost instantly, whilst many more managed to take cover and return fire, one B2 launching a rocket that impacted the cockpit of the lead heavy walker, causing it to collapse. Several more rockets followed, killing several clones instantly. The cannons rip into the droid positions, whilst return fire manages to knock out one cannon position by first killing its gunner, then a thermal detonator manages to catch the remaining crew unaware and explodes, killing all within its blast radius.
"Get a gunship on the line to hit these clankers!" Cody ordered Waxer as the remaining walkers opened fire with their main and secondary cannons.
"Gold group this is Waxer, fire mission, danger close, Sector J-2R. Trajectory south to north. Friendlies will be south of blue smoke" Waxer radioed.
"Roger Waxer, fire mission ETA thirty seconds" the pilot replied.
"Sir heats incoming, ETA thirty seconds" Waxer relayed. "Copy. Good work" Cody said.
Waxer then threw out several smoke canisters, its blue filament spreading across the street. Thirty seconds later, right on queue, a pair of gunships flew overhead.
"Hit the dirt!" Cody ordered.
Particle beams and laser fire ripped into the droid positions, blowing practically the entire block of buildings apart. Just as the explosive show ceased and all seemed calm, a piece of one of the droid's arms landed right across from the trio of clones.
"Well, that'll do it," Crys said blandly.
"Alright, let's move! Keep them on the defensive!" Cody ordered.
The troopers immediately complied, rushing to advance down the destroyed street. Allied forces in Los Angeles had made significant ground gains since the Republic's arrival, pushing the CIS back to now only four miles away from the transports they'd landed in.
Not all was going so well, however.
The destroyer USS Stump's CIWS spat out dozens of rounds at the incoming proton torpedoes. It was not enough. Four slammed home in rapid succession, blowing apart her bow and the forward portion superstructure. She would sink in only twelve minutes with only two-thirds of her crew either making it to lifeboats or taking their chances in the churning sea.
Despite the loss of the Stump, the rest of the American fleet off the coast of Charleston continued to return fire against their attackers. Dozens of fighters, missiles and cannon rounds sought their targets as Hyena and Vulture droids continued their attacks. A full flight of Hyena bombers focused on the carrier USS Saratoga, its escorts, and the carrier itself firing as they approached. A pair of the droids broke off their attack, but another eight continued in before launching their payloads at the carrier. Despite the droid's best efforts, not a single proton torpedo would hit the carrier. She would not escape unscathed, however.
A single Hyena droid took a missile hit that heavily damaged its repulsor lifts, causing it to slowly lose altitude. Doing calculations in its mind, the droid determined that the most efficient course of action was to ensure its destruction would not occur without retaliation on those who had doomed it to that fate. Turning back around, the droid makes a straight shot for the Forrestal-class carrier it had originally been targeting, whose CIWS opened up in a desperate attempt to destroy the bomber.
It was not to be.
The suicidal droid slammed into the aft quarter of the carriers' flight deck, destroying a pair of parked A-6s, and detonating the ammunition the fighter-bombers had been carrying, killing twelve crewmen, and injuring nineteen more in the process. Despite this damage however, the fires are quickly extinguished in just over twenty minutes and flight ops would resume just twenty minutes after that.
The rest of the droid forces did not fare any better. Only a further pair of destroyers and frigates, as well as a cruiser had been damaged, with the only ship that ended up sinking being the Stump.
Now the fleet set its course for the coast, apart from the carriers and their protective screen.
Their objective? Utterly annihilate the remaining Separatist ground forces the moment their shield came crashing down.
"We need RPGs up here!" A soldier screamed in Russian.
Obi-Wan blocked several bolts sent his way as a rocket flew to and destroyed a dwarf spider droid. He then rushed toward a pack of droids and quickly cut them down before using the Force to throw a piece of debris into another troop of super battle droids. The Republic's heavy units were already bearing down on the Separatists across Moscow. Alongside the Russian army, they had destroyed hundreds of vehicles and thousands of battle droids in the short time since their arrival.
The Republic wasn't the only ally the Russians had in the fight either.
"General, air support's incoming!" a clone yelled. A pair of light grey jets then flew overhead, each dropping its own respective pair of bombs that blew apart a trio of Homing Spider Droids. Obi-Wan then recognized the planes from his time on Earth during the Gulf War. They were American F/A-18 Hornets, undoubtably launched from a carrier somewhere in the Baltic Sea. A pair of Mig-29s quickly followed them, apparently providing escort to the heavily laden naval aircraft. It seemed the rivalry that had defined the last fifty years of Terran history didn't seem to matter so much when faced with a common enemy.
The air battle above them was unrelenting. Even during the heat of the ground war, it seemed impossible to miss the hundreds of missile trails and dozens of aircraft all over the sky. Especially when the results of the battle decided to make themselves known in other ways, such as when a falling Su-25 nearly crashed into an AT-TE, barely missing, and crashing into an apartment block a few hundred feet away instead.
A rumble then caused Obi-Wan to turn. Upon doing so he saw a T-90 tank pulling up next to him, its engine utterly deafening to his ears. It then stopped and its hatch swung open, revealing a fatigue stricken Russian solider.
"Jedi, I'm Commander Chorkov. If your men can handle it, we have been ordered to attack a robot vehicle column heading to the Red Square. Mind giving a hand?" the soldier asked in Russian.
"It would be our pleasure," Obi-Wan replied in the same tongue.
The clone watched as he saw the Russian soldier replied with vicious anger before closing his hatch, after which the tank treaded down the street.
"What did he say sir?" a clone asked.
"He asked us to help him with attacking a Separatist convoy. Then insulted the very fact the droids came to his home and described how he's gonna tear them apart," Obi-Wan replied.
The clone chuckled. "These people are certainly a type of character eh sir?" the clone asked.
"Quite so Sergeant, quite so" Obi-Wan replied. He then turned and signaled for the walkers to move forward as he, the clones, and the Russian soldiers now attached to his unit continued their trek down the street. It would be quite rude to keep the droids waiting now, wouldn't it?
"Generator's up ahead," Ethan said.
Thomas quietly sighed in exasperation. As if they hadn't already figured that out given the massive firefight happening in front of them. The Marines they'd encountered earlier were already in the thick of it, their tanks laying waste to any droid position they saw.
Laser fire then erupted out of the building to their right, smashing right into the Humvee.
"Contact, right side!" Thomas yelled, quickly slinging the .50 around and unloading into the building. As he did so the Humvee made a hard left, which both gave him a better firing angle and minimized the vehicle's profile to the droids shooting them. Thomas kept firing all the while, managing to hit a pair of droids.
If there were any more left in the building after that, it didn't matter as a tank shell blew the entire front of the building off. Nothing was surviving that.
They then continued to drive further down the street until it reached a point where it had been destroyed and covered by rubble. The Humvee couldn't go any further.
"Everybody out, out!" Ethan ordered. The soldiers all quickly dismounted and ran for the fight. Rounding a corner, they spotted a group of Marines firing over a small car at a squad of B2s. Quickly sliding into cover nearby, Thomas aimed at their lower torso's, hoping what they found at the wreck site earlier that day would prove true.
Letting lose a set of rounds he saw them fly true, and sure enough, one of the droids dropped like a rock. Follow-on rounds from the rest of the squad downed yet another pair, causing the last droid to switch his fire, which forced them into cover. Thomas heard yet another burst of gunfire and then a crash. Looking over the barricade, he saw the last droid had shared the same fate as its fellows.
"Nice shooting" a marine called out. Looking over, Thomas recognized Ramirez and Box, alongside another marine he didn't, were the ones they'd just saved.
"You know I just want to say I appreciate you taking my request to save some for us to heart," he said.
"Oh, screw off Wilson," Rameriez replied good naturedly.
"What are we up against?" Ethan asked.
"We got three machine gun nests in that three-story building, one left second floor, one center ground floor, and one on the roof. Roughly three dozen hostiles between us and them as well," Box replied, grimacing as a blaster bolt impacted barely a foot away from his position.
The building he was referring to was in fact an apartment building. Thomas could see the blaster cannons he referred to as well, hundreds of bolts spraying out at any Republic or American position.
"Okay, you, what's your name?" Ethan asked, pointing to the unknown marine.
"Harper sir" he replied.
"Harper, get your SMAW ready. You and Wilson will hit the MGs. You see that Humvee?" Ethan asked, pointing to a destroyed Humvee barely thirty feet away out in front of their position. Its location would provide a perfect angle for a rocket/grenade launcher shot, whilst providing plenty of cover from return fire.
"Harper hit the roof; Wilson hit the second floor. Tipton, Addie, you'll be their escort. We'll cover you as you get into position" Ethan ordered.
The soldiers and marines readied themselves, triple checking their gear. After making sure the 40mm was in working order, Harper looked at Ethan and nodded.
"Everybody ready? On my mark, three, two... go go go!" Ethan yelled. The first four ran out, Ethan and the two remaining marines opening fire as they did so. Blaster bolts hit the ground all around them, one even hitting Thomas's backpack. After only four seconds out of cover, they reached the Humvee, Thomas in particular slamming into its side in his rush.
"Damn droids!" Sarah said as she patted out the fire on his backpack caused by the bolt. "Thanks" he told her to which she nodded in reply.
"Alright let's get set up" Harper said. Quickly pulling his rocket off his back, he readied the tubular weapon. Will and Sarah fired on a squad of B1s as he did so, knocking out one and forcing the rest into cover.
"Clear backblast!" Harper ordered. "Clear!" Thomas replied. Barely a second later the rocket launched, slamming into the apartment building's roof, completely obliterating it.
That wasn't all that occurred though. Barely a second after impact, the forward part of the building collapsed forward, having clearly taken too much abuse from nearly three days of warfare.
"Get down!" Will ordered. The apartment's front practically disintegrated as it hit the ground, sending up clouds of dust that covered the whole area.
"Out-damn-standing!" Will complimented Harper. The Terrans continued to fire at the surviving droids, destroying yet another squad. Then a massive bolt impacted at the front of the Humvee, knocking Thomas and Harper to the floor.
"Spider droid!" Sarah called out. She and Will fired at the car sized droid, which did nothing but bounce off, as the others picked themselves off the ground. The droid fired more shots which hit the opposite side of the Humvee. Thomas quickly switched to his grenade launcher and lined up for a shot. The 40mm grenade impacted the droids' right legs, blowing them off and destroying the side of its head module.
"Yeah, baby wooooo!" Harper yelled. Blue bolts then came from behind them, hitting the damaged Spider droid. Turning, Thomas saw Ahsoka, Rex and other clones coming up to their position alongside Ethan and the marines.
"Looks like it's going well," Ahsoka said.
"Could be going better," Thomas replied.
"The shield generator is barely a hundred meters north," Rex said. "Spotters say it's protected by its own personal shield, meaning simply firing at it with heavy weapons won't work. We'll have to get inside to disable it."
He then held up his commlink. "Watcher, this is Sierra Beta-One Actual. Requesting armor support to cover our advance. We have a clear shot at the shield generator."
"Copy that, Sierra Beta-One. We're already peeling off a pair of LAVs to assist, over" Watcher, apparently the tasking commander, replied.
"Alright then, Terrans, you're with us. Let's get this done" Ahsoka said.
A pair of Bradley's then came from around the bend, firing their 20mm cannons down the street.
"Stack up behind them! We'll use them as cover!" Rex ordered.
They quickly moved to do as the Captain ordered. The Bradley's slowly moved forward, firing at anything that moved. One droid tried to get an angle to take a shot at them from a building the Bradley's hadn't fired on yet, so Thomas used his launcher to once again blow apart the entire windows it was standing in.
"Woooo! That'll teach 'em!" Box said.
The two IFVs quickly reached the edge of the generator's outer structure. Just as Rex said, its own shield protected it from return fire. Too bad it left a gap between the building and the actual shield big enough for people to walk right up to the wall.
"Stand back boys, I've got this" Ahsoka said. She then began to cut into the wall using her lightsaber.
"Can we make those standard issue?" Rameriez asked in wonder.
"If you manage to get the Feds to give us anything more than a board of plywood and some crayons, I will be extremely impressed" Harper replied.
The troops readied their weapons as Ahsoka finished cutting a circular hole and used the force to push the block of metal inside. Quickly checking the hallways inside for any droids, they advanced into the building with Ahsoka and Rex taking the lead. They kept silent as they made their way through various corridors, feeling the building shake as the battle continued to rage outside.
Then they heard the telltale clanking of droids once again. Taking cover behind the wall support struts, they waited for the patrol to pass down the perpendicular hallway ahead.
Except they didn't.
"Hey, what happened to O73?" a droid asked.
"I think he got hit by one of those Terran tanks," another replied.
"Wow. Talk about a way to go."
"Eh, he was due to be replaced anyway."
As the droids reached their position, Will and Rex lunged out and grabbed the droids.
"What the?!" one exclaimed as their necks were snapped and they were thrown to the floor.
"Knew that test would come in handy" Will said.
"Alright, come on. Let's keep moving" Rex ordered.
The group continued going through several more hallways, and taking down a further two patrols. The team came across a large room protected by several dozen droids, at the center of which was a large structure that looked like some sort of generator.
"That's the central power node," Rex said. "We take that out, the shield falls."
"Well, what's the plan?" Ethan asked.
"We can't just blow it up sadly. The explosion would destroy the entire block and us with it" Rex said. "If this base follows standard design philosophy, the control room should be on the far side of this area. We shut it down there and then we destroy the room to prevent it from being reactivated. Once that's done, your air force will have free reign."
"They'd better, otherwise we are in big shi-"
"On our six!" Harper yelled. Before he could move, blaster fire ripped into his chest, killing him instantly.
"HARPER!" Box yelled. A pair of SBDs had flanked them, somehow being quiet despite their now loud clanking. The troopers all turned and tore them to pieces with lead and blaster fire, then quickly ducked under a new wave of fire from the now alerted guards.
Ahsoka blocked many of the bolts, but a pair managed to hit Ethan in the leg and arm, who screamed in pain as he collapsed.
"I got you!" Thomas yelled as he yanked him into the cover next to Kix. Quickly rejoining everyone else in firing upon their attackers, he managed to hit a B1 with a burst causing it to fall off the catwalk. He then heard a rolling sound that was growing evermore loud, followed by a pair of rolling objects setting themselves in the center of the catwalk, a blue shield appearing shortly before they opened fire on the troopers.
"Destroyer droids!" Jesse said, identifying them. Thomas fired a burst at one of the droids, with several rounds hitting dead center, but they simply bounced off the shield.
"Wilson hit the supports with your grenade launcher!" Rex ordered.
"I'll cover you!" Ahsoka said. She then set herself up on the cover Thomas was hiding behind, blocking every bolt sent her way. Thomas quickly lined up a shot on the right beam, took a breath, and fired. The explosive projectile hitting just under the strut proper. The catwalk shuddered and groaned, then gave way completely, the droids on it being crushed upon its impact with the ground.
"Addie, Wilson with me! We'll flank them while they're distracted!" Will said.
With Ethan down the squad was now his to command.
The three troopers moved up and right away from the others whilst Ahsoka, Rex, and the other clones, minus Kix who was tending to Ethan, advanced left on the surviving droids.
The trio then set themselves up behind the rubble of the catwalk. As they began to fire on a squad of droids behind some cover, Thomas noticed a dark shape out of the corner of his eye. Turning to face it, he was met with a kick to the chest which sent him to the ground.
Looking up he saw that it was a commando droid, sparks launching from the points where its joints connected to its body. It must have been on the catwalk when he blew it up and been damaged when it collapsed. It then turned and punched Will to the ground as well. Sarah turned and fired at it, but the rounds simply bounced off the droid's chest armor before it backhanded her against the wall.
Thomas kicked its leg, which caused it to stumble. Turning to face him, it reached out and grabbed him by the throat. Whilst desperately trying to pull its hand from his neck, he pulled out his knife to stab it. It then grabbed the hand holding the knife and slammed Thomas against the wall.
His vision began to go dark as it squeezed his windpipe. He then heard a grunt, quickly followed by a knife that came out of nowhere and embedded itself into the droid's head. Its eyes flickered and went dark as it collapsed onto the floor, leaving the Terran gasping for air on the ground.
Thomas turned to look over and saw Sarah with her arm outstretched, clearly having thrown the knife. Understandable given her rifle, which was lying on the ground, had a bent barrel courtesy of the now deactivated droid.
"Fuckin' skeletal cunt!" she said pulling herself to her feet.
Thomas then started to laugh amidst coughs as he also pulled himself up. Sarah looked at him quizzically.
"What's so funny?" she asked.
"Guess you weren't lying about the accent" he replied. She gained a look of recognition before rolling her eyes and scoffing.
"Yeah, yeah laugh it up," she said.
"Nice throw by the way. I owe you one."
"Let's just say we're even, given the sniper alright?"
A burst of gunfire caused them both to snap around. Then yet another commando droid sparked as it collapsed on the ground in front of them. Turning back around to the source of the gunfire, they saw Will standing with his SAW.
"Now you both owe me one," he said. "Now let's get a move on! We have to get to the control room" he said, tossing Sarah another rifle.
'That was probably Harpers,' Thomas morbidly thought.
The group ran out to where the Clones were. As they slid into cover next to them, Rex looked over.
"The control room is just up ahead," he said. He then turned and fired at the droids before turning back.
"Wilson, throw a frag in there. Hardcase, follow him up with a droid popper!" he then ordered. Thomas quickly pulled out a grenade and pulled its pin.
"Frag out!" he said, throwing it right at a squad of super battle droids. It quickly detonated, blowing the B2s apart. Hardcase threw a pair of droid poppers immediately after the explosion, which caught the remaining droids in their blasts. Rex ran ahead up to the control room door which then opened.
"Hey, you're not authorize-" a voice said before being cut off by blaster shots.
The rest of the Clones and Terrans crowded into the room and kept an eye on the door whilst Rex manned the shield console. A few buttons pressed later, and alarms began to sound from the console.
"Alright, the shield is down. Let's move out!" Rex ordered. He then shot the console to prevent the shield from being reactivated.
They all ran out of the room, making their way over to where Ahsoka was cutting a hole through yet another wall. As they approached her, Thomas heard what sounded like shifting metal. Halting his stride, he turned to the source, spotting the tactical droid he, Sarah, and Will had seen earlier in the day trapped underneath the collapsed catwalk, heavily damaged, but very much still online.
"Captain Rex!" he called out. The clone in question turned around and made his way back to him alongside Will.
"Think we can get anything out of this thing?" Thomas asked him. Rex looked at the droid, specifically at its cracked and sparking head module.
"No, the damage is too extensive," he replied. "By the time we get him back to base he'll be offline and his memory banks would be purged. These droids are programmed to resist traditional interrogation."
He then looked Thomas in the eyes.
"Do with it as you will," Rex said. He then began to walk away.
Having been all but told to kill the damn thing, Thomas turned and aimed his rifle at the droid's head.
Then it spoke.
"You stand against the inevitable. Terra cannot withstand the forces of the Confederacy. Your chances of victory are 1,534,000 to 1" it said, causing Thomas to lower his rifle.
"We've beaten lower odds before," Will replied.
"And we'll do it again and again until you, and all like you, are nothing but rust in whatever scrapyard you end up in," Thomas said as he lifted his rifle again.
"Welcome to Earth."
A pair of rounds made sure the droid would never speak again. The pair then turned and made their way back to the group, where Ahsoka was finishing up the hole in the wall. Ethan was sat a few meters away with his arm and leg covered in bacta patches; parts of uniform having been cut away.
"You good brother?" Will asked. Ethan grunted as he stood.
"Yeah, I'm alright. Hurts like something else, but I can still fight," he replied.
"Then I surrender command to you sir," Will said.
"Get ready boys!" Ahsoka called out. She then yanked the metal sheet down, revealing sunlight on the other side.
As well as a rocket heading straight at them.
"Get down!" Kix yelled. They all dove for the deck as the rocket's explosion showered them in soot.
Coughing, Thomas got back up, noting Ahsoka blocking numerous blaster shots from entering the now slightly larger hole.
"Get moving! Now, now, now!" Rex ordered. They all scrambled out of the building to prevent being locked into a kill zone, taking cover behind a series of concrete slabs that used to be a building and quickly returned fire at anything that seemed to move.
"B2s three o'clock! Three-hundred meters! Count six of them!" Sarah called out. The Terrans sectors of fire almost instantly converged on the super battle droids, reducing all but one to a shattered wreck in only roughly eight seconds. Then a squad of dwarf spider droids rounded the corner, opening fire in rapid salvos hitting a clone and forcing the rest, even Ahsoka, back into cover. Sporadic return fire simply bouncing off their armor, and even Thomas couldn't get a decent firing angle to shoot them with his grenade launcher, if the act wouldn't have killed him anyway that is. The final super battle droid then lifted its rocket arm and aimed straight at his cover.
Before it could fire however, a massive blue bolt hit it dead center, reducing it and the spider droids to nothing but scrap metal. Thomas instinctively turned to look at the source, spotting a pair of AT-TEs flanked by several clones, one of which ran up to Ahsoka.
"Commander! We've pushed droids back to the riverbanks and have them boxed in!" the clone said.
"Good work! Let's finish this!" Ahsoka replied.
Now supported by the walkers, the troops continued to make their way forward, only halted by sporadic blaster fire that was quickly silenced by either the rattle of rifles or the loud 'twing' of a walker's mass driver.
Then, just as the lead walker rounded a street bend, a cannon round slammed into the walker's front right leg, causing it to collapse. Red laser fire quickly followed.
"Take cover!" Ahsoka yelled as the troops scattered. Leaning a section of debris around to return fire, Thomas noticed a pair of tanks and a sizable number of droids coming their way before quickly ducking back behind cover.
"We got two tanks and several dozen hostiles two-hundred meters out sir!" he relayed to Ethan.
"Box! You and Rameriez stay with Rex. Troopers with me! We're going to burn these bastards from up top!" Ethan said, pointing up a small debris pile that overlooked the street.
"I'll come with you," Ahsoka told him.
"Fine, the more the merrier" Ethan replied.
The remaining AT-TE and the set of Separatist tanks engaged each other, whilst the infantry swarmed around them. The little squad of four soldiers and a Jedi made their way up a set of debris, eventually reaching a point which gave them a clear view of the droid column.
"Open fire!" Ethan ordered. Whilst Will, Ethan and Sarah opened fire with their rifles and SAW, Thomas targeted a pair of dwarf spider droids. He once again took a breath, then exhaled. His grenade launcher spoke for the last time that day, its final 40mm explosive round landing directly in between the sizable droids, blowing them apart.
Switching back to normal fire mode, he then joined the others in firing on the remaining droids, whilst Ahsoka continued to deflect fire directed at them. One of the AATs fell victim to the remaining AT-TE causing the other to pull back down the street. Once it was out of sight, the AT-TE began to open up with its lighter laser cannons, destroying many droids. The clones and Marines advanced up the street alongside it, clearing out the survivors.
"Alright let's get down there," Ethan said. The squad quickly descended back to ground level and fell in line with Rex and the Marines. As soon as they did so however, a salvo of missiles impacted barely two-hundred meters away, causing them to duck into cover. Then they heard what sounded like a thousand firecrackers all going off at once played through a stadium's speaker. Looking up, Thomas heard a loud 'VROOOOM' sound, quickly followed by a pair of A-10 Warthogs flying overhead.
"About time flyboys!" Will said in satisfaction. Whilst they pulled away, he also noted that they weren't even close to being alone. Dozens of other aircraft filled the sky, with the contrails of what was most likely a formation of B-52 bombers heading for what they had learned earlier was the CIS's landing site.
Refocusing on the droids, the Terrans saw that they were doing something they had never seen them do.
Run away in complete and utter panic and fear.
Ahsoka noticed as well.
"They're retreating! Advance!" she ordered.
Everyone broke cover, steadily forcing the droids closer and closer to the now visible seawall. Thomas managed to hit a B2 in the arm. As it attempted to switch to its other arm, Ahsoka cut it in half. Switching targets, Thomas then managed to nail a B1 in the head. He then noticed another B1 aiming at him from the shadows, and before he could bring his rifle to bear it fired.
Thomas would have died right then and there if Ahsoka hadn't blocked it, then reflected the second shot right back into the droids' face. The Jedi and soldier pair continued this tag team effort almost instinctively, her blocking and he shooting. Droid after droid fell to them and their fellows, until at long last Will's SAW tore the last B2 apart and combined fire from Thomas and Sarah blew off the last B1's head.
Then, as suddenly as they had erupted, the sounds of war fell silent. The gathered soldiers all simply stared at their surroundings, waiting for yet another droid to reveal itself.
Yet none did.
Thomas finally lowered his rifle, his arms shaking and looked around to see many of the others do the same, with Ahsoka deactivating her lightsaber and taking a deep breath.
His gaze wandered, numbingly noting the various missile trails from the jets in the air and the fleet offshore hitting their targets across the river, the museum ship Yorktown being silhouetted against the roaring flames. He then simply collapsed against the wreck of the destroyed AAT; the tank having been ripped apart by the Warthogs missile strike.
It was over...
The nightmare...
It was finally over...
Tuuk stumbled as his ship took another torpedo hit near the bridge.
"New target! Venator-class in sector 32B! Full broadside salvo, fire!" he barked. The Wrath's portside heavy turbolasers opened fire in a fierce volley, red laser fire cutting through the void of space before impacting a Republic Star Destroyer some thirty kilometers distant.
"Second salvo fire!" Tuuk ordered. Once again, the turbolasers hammered the Republic ship's shields, this time causing them to visually fluctuate.
"Third salvo fire!"
With this final salvo, the Venator's shields finally broke, the remaining bolts of plasma breaching the hull and causing massive decompressions, venting the ships atmosphere, and killing any crew unlucky enough to be in the areas without vacuum suits.
Tuuks eyes travelled back to his tactical display which, as the name implied, displayed the current state of the battle. Which was to some it up rather succinctly, not going well at all for the CIS.
The Republic fleet was not letting up their assault. Ten Lucrehulks, twenty Munificents, and seven Recusants had been destroyed since the battle began.
In return, Tuuk's fleet had only managed to put a dent into the veritable swarm of fighters and bombers, destroy several of the lighter cruisers and a trio of Venators and damaged several more in retaliation.
The Separatists had been on the back foot from the onset, and with the majority of his fighter's still planet side engaging the Terrans, his ships were continuously left exposed to bombing runs until his battleline was eventually fragmented and scattered.
"Admiral, the situation has become untenable. I strongly recommend a retreat to conserve remaining fleet units," Kalani said via hologram, the droid currently located in the ship's combat information center organizing the fleet's fighter wings.
"We will not retreat! Too much is at stake to run now!" Tuuk shouted.
"Admiral, Terran ships approaching from sector 39G!" a droid on the bridge announced.
Tuuk once again looked at his display and confirmed the droid's statement. The remaining Terran ships were heading straight for his fleet, led by their battlecarrier and a pair of Dreadnaught cruisers.
"Redirect frigates 18 and 21 to intercept and bring us around to face them," Tuuk ordered. "If we are to lose this day, we shall take the enemy with us!"
The massive carrier swung around widely, its forward batteries coming to bare on the Terran flagship. The Terran vessel opened fire first, its coil-guns rapidly slinging out projectiles. The Wrath returned fire with all its might, the Valkyrie's shields proving surprisingly resilient. All the while, the KongÅ and Belfast tore the frigates sent to intercept them apart, their fragile hulls proving no match for the cruiser's extraordinary firepower.
As the Separatist vessels fell out of orbit, the two Dreadnaughts turned their attention upon the Wrath.
Constant impacts shook the ship, nearly throwing Tuuk to the floor again.
"Sir! Shields are down to 15% and the fleet is being torn apart!" the bridge droid said.
No! This couldn't be happening! Tuuk was supposed to reclaim his lost glory! Not fall victim to a race that had only been space fairing for less than three decades!
"Set... set a course for a hyperspace jump to Separatist space! We must-."
It was then that a slug from one of Valkyrie's bow coil-guns broke through the shields and impacted directly into the bridge, and Tuuk knew no more.
"Direct hit on the bridge sir!" an ensign called out. White looked at their handy work. The CIS flagship was venting atmosphere, her hull covered in flames.
"Prime missile pods twelve through sixteen. Target is-."
"Sir, massive energy reading coming from the hostile vessel. She's going to jump!"
White's eyes bolted towards his display. The Providence was angling away from the Valkyrie, its turbolaser batteries falling silent. Seconds later, the ship seemed to elongate, then disappeared in a flash of light.
It wasn't the only ship either. All across the battlefield, CIS warships jumped to Hyperspace. Within only three minutes it was all over, the only remaining intact ships belonging to the Republic and TSA.
They'd won.
White took a deep breath.
"Prepare SAR teams and begin damage assessment, I want a report on my desk within six hours" he ordered.
A series of 'aye sir' and 'yes sir' reached his ears as he once again turned his eyes to the display. The Republic Star Destroyers were already setting up a defensive perimeter and launching Nu-class shuttles to scour the debris field for survivors, whilst others headed for Sputnik Station to secure it from the remaining droids that had originally boarded it nearly three days earlier.
With the TSA Navy heavily crippled by the battle, the Republic would have to be the one responsible for the defense of Earth's orbit for the foreseeable future.
White didn't know how he felt about that but for now he had to focus on recovery and prepare the remnants of his fleet for any possible CIS counterattack.
Only time would tell what would happen, but one thing remained certain.
The people of Earth had a habit of holding a grudge, and an unprovoked attack such as this one would stoke the fires of war.
And if there was one thing Terrans were good at, it was waging war.
A beast had been awakened, and it had been filled with terrible resolve.
The Cato's Wrath had seen better days. Its hull had been breached in dozens of locations, its shield generators were working at only half strength, many of its turbolasers had been rendered inoperable either from weapons fire or significant overheating, and its forward bridge was simply gone.
"...Admiral Tuuk was unable to order the retreat before his death. In response, I assumed command and withdrew to preserve our remaining assets. Only nine vessels remain. All others were destroyed or crippled over Terra," Kalani said to the hologram of Count Dooku. The droid remained in the CIC of the carrier/destroyer, given it was the only remaining place on the ship with access to the long-range transmitters.
"That is... unfortunate," Dooku replied. "Set course for Mygeeto. Their fleet yards have recently become available for use."
"Roger, roger" Kalani acknowledged as the hologram dissipated.
On Serrano, Dooku activated another separate comm unit. He then took a knee as the form of his master, Darth Sidious appeared above him.
"Lord Tyrannus," Sidious said.
"My master," Dooku acknowledged.
"Has our dutiful Admiral played his part?" Sidious asked.
"Indeed, my lord. The Terrans will undoubtedly seek vengeance upon the Confederacy for such a devious and unprovoked attack. Even one done by a now deceased officer they will denounce as 'having gone rogue'," Dooku replied.
"Which will leave the Terrans no choice but to come to the Republic for aid and leave them susceptible to its demands in their fury to join the war," Sidious said in satisfaction. "They will be a useful asset, with the right incentives."
"Of course, my master," Dooku replied.
Sidious's hologram disappeared and Dooku let out a sinister smile.
It was time to make sure the CIS parliament was informed of the Clone Wars's new player.
Hello all! The 'Sol Campaign' as it will become know as in galactic history is over, and we now move on to its aftermath. Earth will not be immediately sending its armies to assist in the war yet however, as there simply isn't enough ships to do so. It will be sending elements of them instead, attached to elements of the Republic Army. So hold on to your hats because we, alongside our characters, are soon to be going places.
But for now, onto the reviews:
jmantsch0702: Coil-guns are actually distinct from railguns, as the direction of acceleration in a railgun is at right angles to the central axis of the current loop formed by conducting rails. While Coil-guns do it in, expectantly, coils.
Peter HK: I have gone and fixed some of the details that you pointed out, so thanks for that. The treaties you mentioned also led to extreme resentment amongst the victims of them, which would play a part in the outbreak of World War II. So whilst the treaties ending the GCW will be harsh, they must also be lenient enough as to not cause untold amounts of resentment. When we get to that point in the story it will be more clear, but as that is some time away, you'll just have to wait and see.
Comet9: He is in fact. However, he will not be becoming a Jedi. He will instead be something much different.