[3 BBY]
[Command Bridge, Command Deck, V-series, Vigilant-class Star Destroyer All Seeing Eye, Taskforce Vigilant Wanderer, Imperial Fifth Fleet, Unnamed System, Nearing Wreck-site Outbound Flight,, Utegetu Nebula, Unknown Regions]

Taskforce Vigilant Wanderer moved steadily through space, real-space now after emerging from hyperspace, the trio of V-series Star Destroyers serving as outer guard to the salvage vessels, while the escort fleet of two heavy cruisers and a mixture of frigates surrounded us alongside six Chiss vessels. A joint force, albeit heavy on our side, and even amongst the salvage vessels our two of four were modified Lucrehulks flipped on their sides, four great gantries extending from the inner sphere of each. The three Chiss vessels dwarf by the pair, just as the other two military repair vessels were barely in the light cruiser level of starship. For now, as once the immediate mission was completed the Star Destroyers would be replaced by the two we'd just delivered to the Chiss several systems back.

Ahead lay where our desired salvage lay resting in its grave amidst a binary star system, two suns illuminating six planets and a whole lot of asteroid belts. Or asteroid belts in fact, as the whole place was both gravitonically and radiologically active, where several proto worlds had likely shattered in the distance past to form that wreckage. Amidst which the wreck itself lay distant, secured up against some asteroids, in a decently stable looking orbit of one of the system's worlds. Further clarifying the Chiss had secured the vessel despite internal politics making usage of it inadvisable. This whole system would discourage any casual investigation, while finding the vessel without foreknowledge…

'Would be difficult. At best' I mused, standing on my bridge, hand on railings as I studied the holo-displays showing it, along with the long-range images. The vast cylinder was surrounded by six-dreadnaught hulls, welded into and with passageways from each vessel to the titan itself…though one dreadnaught looked to be shredded, torn up by asteroids most likely as we max-zoomed on our approach. OR perhaps during the battle itself, though radiation had supposedly been the primarily killer. Radiation and a Force backlash that drove the Jedi aboard into madness….that I could see based on the battle description of their battle meditation mixed with mass deaths. My own such magic was heavily warded to avoid such dangers after all.

"Fleet to maintain formation but deploy the tractor tugs at the van. I don't want impacts clearing our way through that asteroid field" I ordered, studying the multi-dimensional displays, frowning as there'd be plenty of effort required to even get safely to our target "We'll only start deployment of defensive drones once we've secured the site"

This was rather a speciality of Fifth Fleet, but it was always advisable to lay out the basics in case someone decided to jump a stage or two. Establishing temporary, or quasi-permanent, orbital defences at salvage sites was something we'd been doing since The Fall, as well as establishing rest and refit areas while we undertook repairs after battle damage in enemy territory. Something that had continued as we'd turned into a Frontier Fleet, and then spent a decade fighting Unknown Regions threats and generally hunting pirates. As such the salvage vessels were hold-full even at the start of the mission; - full of the defensive drone-systems and various sensor nets to deploy around the worksite. And into the wreckage too of course, because wrecks were often full of their own dangers from the past in this galaxy of ours.

"I do believe this supports speculation Sir"

I nodded at Captain Komad's words as she came up beside me. The Chiss had, quietly, told me the reason after all, but I had to avoid stating that to directly to my subordinates "Indeed Captain, the vessel is very intact for a blind jump away. Still, we have a mission to achieve. We just must be on guard during it"

Then nodded at the holo-displays, and at the imagers of the approaching wreck "We need to identify the Command Dreadnaught. Hopefully that is not the one that appears to be destroyed, but if it is we'll work around such, but our best approach would be to access to the bridge and then identify where the data-vaults are located in the main cylinder"

One of the issues was that we didn't have the design documents of Outbound Flight…well, beyond the very obvious at the least. The command codes sure, because the pre-War Galactic Republic tended to very sloppy at the best of times, and the Grand Army of the Republic had centralised such things during the war. But the designs fell into the same 'Right Management' issues that one always ran into with shipyards and other advanced industries – Code Protections. Things in this galaxy were black-boxed, often requiring droid brains and in-house coding to access the higher-level technologies. With Outbound Flight it wasn't just the Republic bureaucracy, but also the influence and competition between KDY and the CEC working against us.

As such I, we, did not possess the internals of the massive vessel, and had to surround it carefully, sensors scanning while our escorts and now deploying salvagers carefully moved asteroids out of the way, forming a 'clean zone' around the wreckage. Several were embedded into the wreck itself, but not dangerously so, and the hours ticked by as the zone was established. Then deployment of missile packs and sensor systems amidst the spherical salvage area. Or rather around the fleet proper as I deployed starfighters and drones to scan and visually observe the outer hull of the titan dwarfing my taskforce. Scans revealing useful things as I drank a mug of kaf hours later.

"So, power sources in the central cylinder" I murmured as the captain revealed the information to myself and my apprentice "That explains the rad-bursts from outer vents a little while ago. That does support what Admiral Ar'alani informed us of, though it doesn't seem to extend to the dreadnaughts"

"It was intended to be an extra-galactic voyage Sir" Captain Komad pointed out, reviewing sensor readings "I would advise the reactors may in fact be dead, but sufficiently damaged to be leaking or even burning considering the only power seems to be in the very bowels of the vessel. Dreadnaught-four seems to be the Command unit, and it has no power nor heat. There are indicators of deep chill from within"

I nodded "That's my why, after we deploy the initial droid probes and establish a perimeter it shall be my household guard and Special units of the Stormtroopers deploying with combat engineers and slicers. In full hostile-space combat armour, with heavy-droid support units. The dreadnaughts are at least within known layouts, but we might have to actively breach at points"

The vessel had been in active combat when it had been wrecked after all, and the Mon Calamari Captain had a competent record by all my research. Scans back up my expectation that security blast doors would be sealed. Sealed and therefore needing breaching to gain access to the command bridge, let alone the fact there'd be pressurised and depressurized zones potentially thanks to that. I expected we'd have to burn through armoured blast doors to get to where we needed to as if performing a boarding operation. Below us a constant babble of noise and activity was in effect as my crew analysed and directed scans, building an ever more accurate image of what remained, as well as in studying the star system itself.

Returning to the central command table my hand brought up a closer holo-image of the command dreadnaught as we understood, active scans updating as I motioned "I'm inclined to breach here and here, then move downwards, then across. It limits the number of potential pressure pockets we might hit. Plus, it's a trained layout for aggressor squads aiming for a rapid bridge seizure"

"The is no power however Master?" Tionne asked motioning "Would the systems be….recoverable?"

"After battle, perhaps. It's also I'm opting for this approach because we can establish portable generators on the outer hull, then feed power cables through the breach here and here" I pointed out the relevant areas, though that was only the start should the command systems functioned and were too corrupted. But dreadnaughts were built sturdy by design, with many backups, and the rapid deaths of the crew should have prevented any scuttling of data-systems. By design said systems should be functional and simply needing restored power in that weird stasis of millennia old data being recoverable at times.

I tapped the holo, showing the scenario, power lines projected "Our Force abilities might….will, be needed Apprentice, hence our taking direct part in the operation. It will be unpleasant though Tionne, from even the bodies we will encounter"

It was going to unpleasant, but she understood, giving a firm nod and determination through our bond, as this was but a tomb versus the killing we had done in battle. So plan I did. We would rest first, then descend into the grave wreck…

[Seventeen hours later]
[Outer Deck, Outbound Flight, Dreadnaught-Four]

Jetpacks flared and died as I landed, mag-boots activating to allow a 'walk' as my squads exited the modified shuttles near the breach into the hull of the command ship. Droids stood upon the ship already, just as they were within, their sensor feeds feeding into the holo-map on my armour. We'd secured the three floors down and around, and sent spider and 'hover-orb' droids into the halls and maintenance shafts till they hit sealed doors…

'Which was basically immediately at two levels in' I told myself as I came to the edge of the breach, looking down, then motioning my descent to my house guard and droids. Two of which, Harold and Harriet, were already two levels down at the staging area with the B1-R Commando droids. Turning off the mag-boots again I 'jump', activating the 'fall' on my thrusters to slowly descend into the large hole in the hull, coming down unto the two levels illuminated by the eerie light of orb-droids and power cables illuminators. No power ran through system down here as expected; which was good and bad as an engineer team was setting up two mobile generator, with shield buffer, above us as my squads descended in silence.

'First bodies' came next as I observed a dead…human or near human, frozen against the wall and floor where they'd fallen. Iced, but a uniform was visible with nothing to rot it away. My emotions were under control, pushing forward as the main obstacle now was one of the hardened, secured, doors similar to old CIS Lucrehulk designs. Likely where they'd taken it from as the Dreadnaught-class went back way before those…or the builders had found them cheaper…

"I want shield emitters to form a barrier so there isn't any suction when I pull it open" I stated on comms, motioning for the team to setup a miniature version of the barriers normally found on shuttle or starfighter launch bays. It'd been designed for breaching situations just like this, and installation took mere seconds, a blue field shimmering into existence from floor to ceiling before I gripped the doors telekinetically. The Force answered easily, and I carefully began to pull my hands apart, the doors grinding apart…

'Yeah, gas pocket beyond as sensors suspected'

…and showing not-breathable atmosphere, from the dead bodies decayed inside before the useable gases ran out and the bacteria died. Leaving the horror scene before us. But not something that could be dwelt upon as a tube was inserted through the shield-field, and then gases remain sucked out and sent out into space as my teams took up defensive positions as per training. Seconds turned to minutes, but the corridor was rapidly emptied of gas, hovering orb-droid moving up and flashing scanning flights into the darkness. Illuminating the skeletons within as well as the damaged corridor extending beyond. I frowned. That indicated that the inner corridors might still be athmo and…

My sensors tracked an insect emerge from a skeleton's mouth. The jaw falling off and…

'What?' my mind thought, but my voice coming out as the thing scuttled away out of sight immediately "Bio-scanners out now! All units alert! We have active organic entities aboard!"

I felt nothing in the Force.