Chapter 4
White Storm revival
Following the success of their first mission with Kylo Ren's young apprentice, the White Storm had returned aboard the Servitor. When they arrive on the bridge, Colonel Shon Drayen is alone. Beforehand, he had the senior officers and others evacuated to debrief the mission.
"Soldiers, I see you're right on schedule." Begins Shon. "This mission must remain confidential. I've read the report issued by Ren's apprentice, but especially yours, Sergeant Dorvaas. If this is the case, war could well break out at any time from now on."
The troopers remain silent while their superior officer moves slowly from left to right, following the line of soldiers.
"I saw that you mentioned a planet in your report, D'Qar, didn't you?" asks the colonel.
"That's right, sir. After extensive research by my colleague Brains, we found the position of this planet in the recovered data. It's located in the Ileenium system and could well be hiding a pocket of resistance that has us as its enemy." replies Dorvaas.
Shon knows what that means. If this resistance has enough troops and military equipment, they could very well enter into open conflict with the First Order.
"You also mentioned a soldier who mentioned the name Organa, is that true?" adds Drayen.
"Affirmative. It is undoubtedly…
"Princess Leia Organa." the colonel finishes Dorvaas' sentence.
"Do you know her?"
"Not personally, but enough to know what she's capable of." replies Colonel Drayen with some concern.
She seemed within his reach. The charismatic leader of the Rebel Alliance, the woman indirectly responsible for his parents' death. Shon had done his research when he was old enough. It was she who had ordered certain members of the Rebellion to infiltrate an imperial facility on Sunuree, his home planet. His parents lived here before the Empire came, and since they were not enemies of this reign, the Imperials didn't chase the Drayen family away. Shon's mother even cooked for the soldiers in garrison, who loved these dishes.
An Arquitens-class command cruiser was parked above the complex and, once the infiltration was complete, a squadron of y-wings attacked the light cruiser. Shon had just returned from school in the neighboring town when he saw the cruiser break up and separate into two parts, the front falling straight into the house where his parents had stayed to prepare the evening meal. He just stood there, watching until the fire went out on its own. He wanted to head for the remains of his house, but there was nothing left to see.
"Colonel? Is everything all right?" Dorvaas asks out. "You seemed... off."
Colonel Drayen shakes his head to recover.
"It's all right, Sergeant. You and your men can go."
"Certainly, sir."
The sergeant motioned for his men to leave the bridge, leaving Shon alone with his thoughts.
On Starkiller Base, Arya waited alone in a corridor, leaning against a wall. Shortly afterwards, the door next to her opened, and her master stepped out. He walked with a step that Arya recognized and that could only mean one of two things: either he was angry, or he was exasperated. The young apprentice followed in her master's footsteps, staying close behind but not daring to open the conversation. She didn't have to do it for long, Kylo Ren spoke for himself.
"Who put such incompetents in charge of this task?!" he said in an obviously angry tone, which gave Arya an answer. He's both angry AND exasperated.
"Is this about my mission?" Arya just asks.
"It wasn't yours, but yes."
Arya stops short.
"Are you kidding? I'm the only one who's done anything on this mission."
Kylo Ren stopped abruptly too, before turning and taking two steps to find himself face to face with his apprentice, well, rather with two heads taller than her. He immediately raised a finger, which had the effect of rendering Arya completely speechless.
"This is not the time. This will be your only warning."
It's rare for Kylo Ren to give this kind of warning. To tell the truth, if it hadn't been Arya standing in front of him, he certainly wouldn't have done it.
"I shared your report with the officers having the level of accreditation authorized to read it, and, how can I put this, it didn't meet with unanimous approval."
"I don't see the problem, for once I've made the effort to do it properly." Arya says rather nonchalantly.
"The problem isn't the form, it's the content. I think we need to take the initiative and nip this potential threat in the bud, while a group of officers led by Hux feel that, given the power of the base, an attack is unlikely."
Arya looks at her master, or at least at his helmet.
"So?"
"I will inform the Supreme Leader of this. He will follow my decision and make it unanimous." Kylo Ren replies.
"Without me then!" Arya says almost offended. "I'm not going to see that old fart."
As usual, Arya doesn't hold back when it comes to speaking her mind about Snoke. Kylo Ren has become accustomed to this, in fact, it's not as if Arya would have left him much choice.
"You shouldn't say that in the middle of a corridor, others wouldn't be as forgiving as me about this."
"So what? You taught me not to care about other people and to rely only on myself."
"Yes, but no. Not in this case." Kylo Ren replies after a slight moment. "Anyway, I'm going to the hologram room, you... do what you want until I get back."
Leaving Arya no time to say anything, Kylo began to walk again with a quick step, this time more determined than angry, in the direction of the room.
In the barracks dedicated to stormtroopers aboard the Servitor, the White Storm had gathered in their quarters. All had removed their armor. With a bit of free time on their hands, they had finally decided to start customizing them. Some had already thought about it beforehand, like Corny, who immediately grabbed a can of red paint to spray the piece of armor covering his crotch.
"I knew you were going to do something stupid like this, but it's not as bad as I thought." Reaper says as she watches Corny out of the corner of her eye.
"I don't think what I had in mind would have been tolerated." he replies.
A little further on, Cyclops was busy adding a simplistic but unique detail to his helmet. He had decided to add a replica of the scar on his right eye to the matching side of his visor. He takes great care to fine-tune every detail before holding his helmet in front of him and looking at the result.
"Not bad at all." he says to himself.
Doc had decided to add red details to his armor to show soldiers in combat that he is a medic. He painted his right shoulder pad red and added a mark of the same color covering a third of the top of his helmet. What's more, he's drawn a medic logo on his left shoulder pad and on the over guard that doubles as ammo storage for the heavy troopers he's decided to wear to bring more care into combat.
"How are you doing?" Butcher asks his heavy soldier colleague.
"I think I'll keep the armor plain. As the only girl in this squad, why should I stand out from the rest of you? I'm already unique." Reaper replies with a smile.
"You'll laugh but I was thinking the same thing, I'll just take a backpack with portable explosives and that's it."
Reaper giggles and does a fist bump with Butcher. Bullseye, as silent as ever, had just picked up a piece of brown cape he'd kept from one of those long-distance victims who'd tried to shoot him with a sniper rifle. He attached the cape to his helmet to form a sort of hood, mainly to protect his visor and keep it clean in case of a major shooting.
"I remember him as a real challenge, even for you." Dorvaas says, putting a hand on the sniper's shoulder.
He recognized this piece of fabric, Bullseye had kept it as a trophy for six years, shortly before the formation of the White Storm. Another sniper tried to shoot him, and the two engaged in a manhunt. But in the end, Bullseye had the upper hand and managed to hit his enemy in the head from a dizzying distance. It was after this that Dorvaas had the idea of grouping together excellent soldiers to make a renowned squad, and he appointed Bullseye as corporal, even though he doesn't show it outside the black pauldron.
"I should have expected you to choose something so meaningful." Dorvaas says.
"It's nothing like that, I wish I hadn't had to do it." Bullseye simply replied.
Brains was already lucky enough to have advanced armor with a transmission antenna on his shoulder and a keyboard of buttons on his left forearm to facilitate his technical tasks. But for a touch of irony, he painted a skull motif that completely covers the top of his helmet, as if he'd been scalped.
"Even I wouldn't have dared do something so... lame." Corny adds, looking at Brains.
"Says the guy who painted his crotch red because he only makes dirty jokes." Butcher replies.
This made everyone laugh. Meanwhile, Dorvaas finished adding the detail that would set him apart. He had decided to modify his white sergeant's pauldron, a true symbol of his career. He could have had a red pauldron, a captain's one, but no. Dorvaas had never liked carrying a pauldron, in truth; it makes him a priority target on the battlefield. So, if you're going to have one, it might be better to have it white like his armor rather than red.
"Guys." the sergeant says as he stands up, making everyone stop laughing and talking.
He holds his pauldron firmly in his hands.
"Our squad has taken a new turn. We haven't suffered a single loss in the six years since our group was founded. Let me tell you, I'm proud to go into battle with men like you, anytime, anywhere. And to keep the momentum going..."
Dorvaas shows his pauldron to the members of his squad. He added a stormtrooper helmet adorned with a lightning bolt in the background, appearing to cross the helmet from top to bottom.
"This is our squad's trademark, and we're going to make it a symbol of inspiration for the soldiers of the Order and a symbol of fear for our enemies!"
All cheer their sergeant and leader in one and single voice. No squad could be more united than this one.
A few days later, members of the White Storm were eating in the cafeteria. Everyone was getting used to the notoriety they'd built up aboard the Resurgent-Class Star Destroyer, and their image had probably already made the rounds among First Order troops too. Dorvaas took his time eating, so much so that he found himself all alone as everyone else had finished their meal and gone about their business. Suddenly, two stormtroopers approached him.
"Sergeant?" a female voice says.
"What is it for?" Dorvaas swivels on the bench to face the two soldiers.
The appearance of one of them caught his eye. His armor is badly damaged by blaster impacts and cracks of all kinds.
"We've been assigned to your squad." the feminine voice replied, coming from the other trooper who is wearing impeccable armor.
"What are your names, troopers?" the sergeant asks.
"KM-7265." the woman responds immediately.
As for the other soldier, his reply took a little longer.
"JD-7839, sir." he seems to be having trouble breathing from the tone of his voice.
"We'll find you some new ones. Take off your helmets."
The woman complied, removing her helmet in a flash. Her face is very serious, and from the brief impression he had of her, Dorvaas understood that this is a woman who follows orders and seems irreproachable in everything she does. Her blond hair is neatly tied back, and her green eyes seem to pierce anyone who meets her gaze.
"Perfect, and you?" the sergeant directs his gaze to the other trooper.
"The helmet... I'm keeping it. There's not much left to see under... and removing it... would be very painful." his voice was cut off between breaths and great difficulty in speaking.
These words took Dorvaas by surprise for a moment.
"I understand. If you've been assigned to this squad, it's because your performance must be worthy of it. I'll give you a week to prove it."
"At your service, sir!" the two stormtroopers answer in unison.
The sergeant stands up and tucks his helmet under his arm, carrying his tray with both hands.
"Follow me, I'll take you to your new quarters."
Arriving at the door, Dorvaas opens it using the access code known only to his soldiers. Out of politeness, he steps aside to let the two new recruits in.
"Just take a look around, I'll ask for two new beds to be installed and I'll give you the code digitally."
The two troopers quickly survey the various rooms and notice that each has his or her own room, which is unthinkable for any other stormtrooper. Even some officers sleep several to a room on bunk beds. Once their visit is over, the two soldiers return to the common room, where Dorvaas is standing.
"Tell me, what do you look for as a soldier?" he suddenly asks as soon as they came back.
This question caught them off guard, but it takes more than that to surprise KM-7265.
"I want to fight all the enemies of the First Order, to bring them fear as a premonition of their imminent demise."
"And me... there's nothing I know better than fighting. As long as my armor... holds my body in place... I'll fight for the glory of the Order." the sinister soldier adds.
Dorvaas took these answers into consideration.
"Yes, I may have a place for you with the White Storm. Of course, on our next mission, I'll be paying close attention to your every move, as you'd expect. Do what you think is best and I'll keep you on this squad."
"Sir, what about those new names you mentioned?" the girl asks.
"Oh correct, give me a moment."
The sergeant thought for a moment, looking at the two soldiers and recalling their answer to his question. Once his time for reflection was over, he approached the woman.
"From now on, your name will be Harbinger. You wanted to be a premonition for our enemies? It will begin with your name." Dorvaas says with a serious tone.
"I'm very grateful, sergeant." Harbinger replied.
A few steps to the left, Dorvaas moves to face the second trooper.
"Your appearance could be an asset in battle, and your name should match that too. From this day on, your name is Grim."
"Grim…" he repeats the name to himself, as if to imprint it. "What's left of me... is grateful to you, sergeant."
Dorvaas returns to his original position to face the newly-appointed Harbinger and Grim.
"I expect the best from you, so don't disappoint me. I'll introduce you to the other members of the squad when they return."
The two new recruits salute Dorvaas, grateful for the honor of being part of this unique squad.