Chapter 7: The Safe Zone
May 2, 2228.
Donations were streaming in, but they simply weren't enough compared to the supplies the state should have granted to the Mid Rim Forces. And the Coalition was still advancing on the Hydian Way and the Trailing Sectors.
The situation was so bad, that Sloane and Krybos generally had to concede terrain simply because they constantly ran out of fuel or ammo, making a lasting defense suicidal. And given the fact that they had to spare every weapon and any veteran they could, Iulius was about to make his final call on the matter.
"Krybos, I want you to withdraw all forces between Eriadu and the Unknown Regions. We will focus all of our efforts on defending the main hyperspace lanes."
"The bureaucrats are going to be furious." Krybos commented, annoyed as everybody else at the prospect of hearing some pale skin from Coruscant screeching their rant about giving up ground.
"Then remind them to give us the means to fight." Iulius replied. It wasn't much of a suggestion, rather a way to state the general mood among the Mid Rim Forces. For them, the lack of supplies had become a daily companion, and yet they were still fighting, despite the central government clearly trying to undermine them and sending nearly all the resources produced in the Core toward the Death Star or toward Rax's Dominion.
Whatever the Emperor planned to do with Rax, it was clearly important to him. And the amount of supplies and ships he had been given suggested Iulius that somehow it was a countermeasure against him.
The more he thought about it, the more he started to wonder whether he should have just attempted a coup, since the government was doing anything to provoke him.
Immediately, though, he always chased that thought, but not out of loyalty to the Emperor: by now, every soldier in the Empire with a shred of common sense was not fighting for the senseless machinations of the elite in power. No, they were fighting to protect their nation and their worlds. They would have been much happy to see the Emperor fall and replaced by someone with any sense of attachment to the country.
"Sloane." he then continued. "How's the situation on Taris?"
"We're holding out. The planet is devastated, but it honestly surprises me how the people is still steadfastly loyal."
"Then it's the perfect place to bunker down." the Lord-Protector calmly assessed. "Establish a defensive line there and on Denova to protect the Skorrupon System."
"Yes, sir."
"Bolo. It seems the enemy is not advancing on your front, but I still want you to fortify Lantillies...again." Iulius added with a note of discomfort.
"That won't be much of a problem: the planet never fully demobilized since that last battle. They're ready to defend their world again."
Indeed, Lantillies' society had undergone a great metamorphosis after that fateful campaign of three years before. The Lantillians had always been loyal to the Empire, but now they had taken pride to be the 'Gateway' to the Mid Rim, and an important bastion of galactic civilization against the barbarian hordes from the Outer Rim. Their local government had invested heavily in the modernization of the local army and to the creation of new defensive structures all over the planet. Lantillies was more than capable to sustain another long siege, and this time its garrison would be much better equipped to fight even the most advanced units of the Systems Alliance.
"Good to hear. Also, we will need to take...new economic measures. If Coruscant won't give us the resources, then we must make good use of whatever we can get from our planets."
The Admirals were a bit worried. "I hope it's nothing draconian, sir. The people of the Mid Rim support us mostly because we have given back some of the old freedoms." Sloane warned.
"No, I don't want this to be traumatic, of course. But the people must understand that we are on the edge, so we all need to renounce some luxuries and focus on the war effort. The private companies will have to cooperate with our administration at some level, or we will never make it."
"It's hard to say, but it's true: the donations we receive from the citizens of the Core are precious, but they're just a drop in the bucket." Bolo reminded.
"I know." Iulius replied with a little tiredness in his tone. "But we need to hold our own. After all, our wise Emperor is preparing to destroy our enemies in a swift blow, right?" he asked, with a tone that was honestly managing to not sound sarcastic.
"Right." Krybos replied. "If that is all, Grand Admiral, I should get back to my units."
"Of course. You are dismissed, everyone."
The holograms faded away and Iulius sat on his office's chair, drawing a sigh of exhaustion. Just for how long could he carry on like this? What was he going to do if the Endor gamble turned out in the worst way imaginable?
Just as he was starting the self-loathing, Nash spoke through the intercom. "Grand Admiral. The Astarte twins have returned from their scouting duty. They request a meeting with you."
"Sure. Bring them here to my office." he replied.
While waiting, he stood up and took a look outside, onto Theed. The city had seen some enlargement since he became Lord-Protector. Though most of the newcomers were refugees, the vast majority of them had been absorbed and integrated in the economy of the city and the planet at large. But if they kept losing ground, the stream of refugees might become simply unmanageable.
Also, if he wanted to increase taxes and partially nationalize some of the strategic sectors for the war effort, he was going to need the collaboration of the new Queen, Marnè, and the Royal Government. He would have to send Sekta forward to start the negotiations.
The door then bleeped and he returned to his desk, pressing the button to unlock the safe. The door hissed open and the Astartes walked in one at a time. The two reached the front of the desk and made a small bow.
"Grand Admiral."
"Welcome back, gentlemen. So, what caught your attention, this time?" Iulius asked, knowing that the twins rarely asked a private meeting to make their reports.
"Two major movements in the Underworld, actually. And before you ask: yes, we believe they deserve your attention." Aiolin began.
Morit then took the ball. "First of all, we confirmed the news that the Hutt have recently sent an ultimatum to the Jedi, directly on Lothal. We don't know exactly the reason behind it, but what matters is that the Jedi refused it, and we all know what the Hutts do when someone they consider weaker than them refuses their requests."
Iulius pondered with intrigue. "Yes, but the Jedi have the protection of the UACT. Why would they risk it…? Unless...Jabba was assassinated a few months ago, am I right?"
"Indeed. We also thought it might be connected to that episode." Aiolin replied. "But as we said, we got no real evidence. All that matters is that the Hutts are ready to go to war against the Order."
"Which means the Jedi might have their days numbered." Morit commented.
"On the contrary." Iulius replied calmly, surprising the twins. "The Jedi have a long track of surviving and overcoming all odds. Especially this generation, which is mostly made of warriors skilled enough to survive the Purge at the end of the Clone Wars. If the Hutts thought they could win just because the UACT is distracted, then they are more shortsighted than I anticipated."
The twins were still a bit skeptical, but given how Iulius was so certain of that, they thought that perhaps they were the one in the wrong.
"And the second matter?" the Grand Admiral then prompted.
"The Zann Consortium is amassing a large quantity of ships and troops in the Mandalore Sector. There were rumors that the Mandalorians have been preparing to reconquer their homeworld since Tristan Wren took the Darksaber from you, so I think it's safe to assume that they are on the verge of launching their expedition." Aiolin replied.
"Indeed. Well...then perhaps fate hasn't abandoned us." Iulius mumbled with a renewed optimism.
"What do you mean, sir?" Morit asked perplexed. "Both the Hutts and the Mandalore Sector are on our borders, and they are useful buffer zones. If our enemies take them…"
"Relax, my friend. This is much of an opportunity for us, but we need to act quickly. Open your ears wide, then, because we have a lot of work to do."
May 4, 2228
Back on Eriadu. Back on long-range patrols that usually got Jordan and Jane nowhere near finding the hideout of the Governor.
"Let's call it a day, sir." Michalina said inside the Mako. "We've been on the prowl for 20 hours straight. The men are exhausted."
Jordan hummed and called up Shepard's vehicle. "Normandy crew, this Spirit. What's your status, over?"
"Still operative. Though I wouldn't mind stopping for a moment." Jane replied with a tired voice.
"All right, then. First we need to leave this damn jungle and find a suitable place to make camp."
"I might have a suggestion, actually." Thabo intervened. "Three kilometers from here there is one of the Jedi Safe Zones. So long as we don't use weapons, they should allow us to stay."
"Uh. Indeed, they will." Jordan replied. "All right, we will catch a break at the safe zone. But we will only use our rations. We don't want to weight on their supplies."
"Sounds like a plan. The base should also be a suitable place for the Kodiaks."
"Then it's settled. ARMA, set us a course."
They reached the safe zone soon enough. It was quite the large camp in the middle of a clearing, surrounded by a wall three meters tall. It wasn't much against heavy weapons, but it was a clear sign that the Jedi and the Peacekeepers were not there to be trampled over.
Before getting near, Jordan hailed them.
"This is Captain Jordan Bridger of the Systems Alliance, talking to Safe Zone Aurora. Please, come in."
After a few seconds, a familiar voice came in. "Captain Bridger, this is Master Kestis. Can we help you?"
"Hello, Cal. Nothing too big, we just ask permission to take a break inside the safe zone. We have our own rations and we'll leave as soon as our dropships can reach us."
Cal mumbled with a dubious tone, which made Jordan suspicious. "Of course. Just wait a little, please."
"Something wrong?" Jordan asked, but he heard the microphone shuffle around until another voice took Cal's place.
"Jordan, it's Ahsoka."
"Ahsoka, what's happening?"
"Well...right now there is somebody else who made a request like yours...we are sheltering an Imperial platoon."
"Uh?" he asked completely taken off-guard. "Hold it, you're sheltering Imperials?! Since when?!"
"They showed up, hungry and quite battered. Also, they're a local unit. Many of them are seeing their families, who have taken refuge in this camp."
Jordan was honestly surprised. Sure, the Jedi had made personal armistices with Imperial forces before, but this was on a whole other level. Then he reminded himself that, by the Yavin Convention, the Jedi had full authority over everyone who entered their Safe Zones, and they decided whether granting asylum or not.
"All right, so I suppose Cal went to reassure them?"
"Yes. Which is why I want to confirm this with you, first: we will let you in if you promise to leave your weapons inside your vehicles. You can bring even those inside, but they will be guarded by our Peacekeepers until you're ready to go. I'm sorry, but it's just to ensure that nobody gets antsy in here."
"Of course, no problem. We are not here to risk the lives of the civilians."
"Much appreciated. Then you can start your approach. Wait until we open the main gate."
"Copy that. Hey Jane, you heard that?"
"Loud and clear, no problem for us."
"Excellent."
With that settled, the column of four Alliance armored and utility transports moved in front of the gate and was allowed in after circa three minutes. They were greeted by a detail of armed Peacekeepers, one of which motioned for them toward where they could park the vehicles. On the right of the entrance, Jordan quickly spotted the Imperial soldiers, with their officer standing next to Cal and observing the arrival of the new guests. They clearly were not happy, but they had put their weapons somewhere else to avoid any incident.
First things first, Jordan dismounted, dematerialized his armor and reached Cal and the officer, who had the ranks of Lieutenant.
"Captain Bridger, this is Lieutenant Xabot of the Imperial Army." Cal presented with a sober voice.
Hearing that name, the Lieutenant became seemingly more nervous. "A Bridger. This sure is a surprise." he said anyway.
"Lieutenant, I understand your preoccupation, but I swear on my kids that we're not here to cause any trouble. We will eat our rations, wait for extraction and then disappear. Our superiors won't even know we met you."
Xabot huffed, still slightly skeptical. "Well, if anything you have the fame to be a man of your word. I will trust that."
"Thank you. As long as everyone stays in place, everything will go smoothly." Jordan reassured.
"Right."
Barely had they finished that suddenly the camp was encompassed by a deflector shield. Two seconds later, everyone heard explosions coming from the top, absorbed by the protection. The soldiers looked up and saw two gunships that were just finishing a strafe run, which would have caused untold damage had the shield not been raised in time. The civilians instead quickly panicked.
"What the bloody…?" Jordan commented loudly.
Cal quickly called the control room. "Ahsoka, what's going on?"
"I don't know. These guys just came out of nowhere and refused to identify." the Togruta replied urgently.
Meanwhile, the gunships kept flying around the shield, angrily shooting a few shots sometime, with not effect.
Jordan promptly turned toward his men, who were already on high alert. "Get on the walls! Now!"
Xabot also turned toward his men. "Soldiers! To arms! We must protect the women and children!"
"Sergeant Uibat, get the civilians to the shelter!" Cal ordered to an Abednedo Peacekeeper. "Everyone else, assume defensive positions! Ahsoka, request assistance. Anything!"
While the soldiers sprang to action and rushed to the wall, Ahsoka sent out an SOS.
"Attention. This is Safe Zone Aurora on all military channels. We are under attack from an unidentified enemy. Requesting assistance."
It might have taken a while, though, before the UACT made an assessment and decided what they could spare for them. In the meantime, Jane had something else in mind.
"Normandy, this is Shepard. Get down here immediately and provide fire support."
"Captain!" Xabot yelled from the other side of the gate. "Over there! Infantry!"
Jordan turned his head and activated his binocular. Coming out from the jungle, he spotted at least 50 men clad in armors he didn't recognize and with blaster models that were common among the Criminal Underworld. They were rushing toward the base with no sign of stopping.
"I don't think they're here to negotiate, Cal!" Jordan warned.
Still, Cal had procedures to follow. Nonetheless, he wasn't that stupid. He took a voice enhancer and gave his warning.
"Attention, unidentified troopers. Stay out of the shield or we will fire!"
Of course, those guys completely ignored the order and simply rushed toward the deflector. Soon enough, the first men entered and started firing toward the wall. There wasn't even the need for Cal to give the order: everyone, Marines, Peacekeepers and Imperials, immediately opened fire and started gunning down those unknown aggressors, but as they quickly cut down ten of them, there were others coming out from the jungle.
"Another attack! Right flank!" Garrus suddenly yelled.
Another squad of mercenaries, or whatever they were, was coming out from another part of the forest. Luckily, there were a few sentries on that side of the wall, as well, so they could be readily spotted, and the Marines spread out to cover that side, which was next to their initial position.
But on the other side, the Imperials signaled that they were being attacked from another direction, too.
The situation might have become even direr if it wasn't for a sudden rain of laser bolts smashing onto the bulk of the assailants.
Jordan looked up and saw the Normandy, standing couple km over their heads and using her GARDIAN lasers to provide some fire support that wouldn't pulverize the entire area.
However, the enemy gunships locked on on her, and two more came out of seemingly nowhere, forcing the frigate to enact evasive maneuvers. Even if it was brief, that salvo had given the defenders some breathing room.
"Cal! All civilians are inside the shelter!"
That was Merrin, who just arrived alongside Cere and a group of four Knights from the Pabu Academy.
"Good. Spread out and cover every side. They are coming back." the Master instructed.
"Just where do these guys come from?" one of the Marines asked frustrated.
"They're too well-equipped to be Imperials." Liara said. "But they clearly arrived here recently."
"And how did they get past the blockade?!" Tali asked.
"Those are questions for later." Michalina warned. "Right now, we need to get out of here alive."
"Incoming!" somebody yelled.
Out of the jungle, suddenly came two ion shots making a parable and heading directly toward the shield. They hit the shield, which clearly fizzled.
"Now they got artillery?!"
Jordan hummed in thought, then turned toward his Legionnaires. "Thabo, Micha, get on the first Mako. We won't let them do as they please!"
"I'm coming with." Kubari came in.
Jordan quickly looked at Cal, who nodded in approval. "All right, then. Get on."
The squad got on one of the vehicles and brought it in front of the gate. At Cal's signal, the guards quickly opened it and the Mako charged the enemy formation, taking them completely by surprise. Some of the mercenaries fired, but apparently they hadn't brought up heavy weapons yet, so the armored vehicle easily reached the jungle and it didn't take long before they found two old Separatist AAT with an ion mortar mounted in place of the main turret.
With a shot of the main cannon, the first one was quickly dealt with, while Kubari jumped outside, ignited his lightsaber and easily jumped on top of the other tank, quickly cutting the barrel of the mortar and provoking a chain reaction that detonated the entire vehicle. He jumped out just in time and on top of the Mako, where he stood to deflect bolts while the vehicle drove back to the safe zone.
Only at that point did they notice that the shield had disappeared. Likely it had just been temporarily deactivated by the second volley of ion shots they saw during the attack.
"Dropships, coming in!" Kubari alerted on the comlink.
With the Normandy still out shaking off the gunships and the Constantinople scanning the other side of the planet, the mercenaries pushed once again with another wave of troops, nearly a hundred. The defenders returned fire, fighting with their lives and, in the case of the Imperials, their loved ones.
"General Tanis, we're approaching the Safe Zone. Two minutes." the pilot announced from the cockpit of the U-Wing.
Darvos rose from his seat, which was next to his security detail and the members of the Bad Batch, and reached the cockpit to have a better view.
Next to the U-Wing flew three Tau transports, two loaded with Fire warriors and one carrying a Hammerhead tank with two rotary plasma guns, and all them were escorted by a squad of ten Barracuda fighters.
The SOS from the Safe Zone had stopped being sent, but luckily, it wasn't only him who received it: the Tau had answered the call by putting one of their airborne companies at disposal for the rescue, plus the fighters. While land forces of the 501st were en route to bring more solid support, the first wave of reinforcements was going to be airborne.
"General, this is Ko'Var Leader. We see smoke coming from the safe zone and unidentified transports landing in the jungle." the leading pilot said on the comlink.
"Engage any unidentified aerial unit, Ko'Var. All transports, deploy ground forces inside the perimeter, on the landing pads."
The aerial vehicles promptly obeyed and the Barracudas dashed forward, taking the mercenaries by total surprise and quickly shooting down two transports and forcing three more to retreat with haste, leaving their companions on the ground. The fighters then veered to engage the two gunships chasing the Normandy, which was having trouble maneuvering inside the atmosphere. Soon enough, the skies were in complete control of the allies and the dropships reached the two landing pads of the Safe Zone, where Ahsoka was waiting alongside Jaden.
"Darvos! They are pushing with everything they have left!" the Togruta warned as soon as the General came out of the U-Wing.
"Then let's make sure they break their teeth." Darvos replied. "Hunter, gather the other troops and be ready for a counter-charge."
"On it!" the clone replied.
Darvos quickly brought up his personal guard on the walls, where he was surprised to notice some Imperial troopers fighting alongside the Marines and the Peacekeepers. Then he found his in-law.
"Jordan!"
"Darvos! Boy, am I glad to see you!"
"I brought reinforcements. Just keep them outside for a couple minutes." Darvos instructed.
"Roger that. Come on, lads! Give them everything you got!"
The fire from the Marines became fierce as they stopped sparing their thermal clips, finally halting the enemy advance and giving time for the Tau to assemble behind the Hammerhead.
Once Hunter gave the signal, the guards opened the gate again and a rain of heated plasma started pouring on the assailants. Those who were caught in the open right in front of the gate were cut down in moments, the others were also swept away by the accurate fire of the clones and their Tau allies. Soon enough, the attacking force was cut down to a few dozen mercenaries that tried to flee as the Tau drones chased them in an attempt to capture them for interrogation.
Essentially, the battle was over, and as the emergency waned off, the defenders started counting their dead.
The Imperials had lost two men and three were lightly wounded; the Constantinople lost one of his Marines and one was wounded; the Peacekeepers had lost three men and had five wounded.
Darvos went and met Jordan, Jane and the Imperial officer, Xabot.
"We can bring your men to a hospital, if you need it, Lieutenant." the General offered.
"Thanks, but none of them is seriously at risk. They already received a stim each, so we will be on our way after taking a breather." Xabot gently declined.
"Lieutenant, I wanted to thank you for helping us defending this place." Cal said after reaching them. "Things might have gone much worse without you."
Xabot shook his head. "No, Master Kestis. It is us who must thank you. Now we are much safer in the knowledge that our families are well taken care of, here."
"Oh, right." Darvos commented. "Most of you guys are from Eriadu itself."
"Yes." replied the Lieutenant. "My daughter and my wife are here, too. I visited them when we arrived."
Indeed, when the civilians were finally allowed out of the shelter, many rushed toward the Imperials, to see if their dear ones were alive. Several troopers were reached and hugged by parents, siblings, spouses or children.
But then a desperate scream ripped through the air. The three officers approached the source and noticed that there was quite the crowd around the line of dead soldiers. It soon became clear that the voice was that of a middle-aged woman, desperately crying over one of the Imperials, a young boy of probably 18. A man of circa the same age was hugging and trying to console her, but he, too, was sobbing even if silently.
"Those must be the Kennir." Xabot mumbled, then removed his beret and approached them to talk with them.
Jordan on the other hand started wondering "Who were those guys, though?"
"I have a theory." Darvos said with relative certainty.
The moment he saw the Bad Batch and the Tau reenter the walls with five restrained soldiers, Darvos noticed that they were all Nikto, and his suspect became even stronger.
"Hunter! Bring one of them here!" he ordered.
Hunter nodded and motioned Wrecker to bring the one uselessly struggling to get out of the giant clone's grip. Wrecker reached the officers and forced the prisoner to get on his knees. The mercenary yelled something in a language that Darvos recognized as a dialect of Huttese.
"Show me his left arm." he ordered.
Luckily, the arms were bound in front, so Hunter only had to remove the glove and forearm guard, not without the Nikto making it difficult, but finally, Darvos could get a grip of the alien's wrist and take a look. It didn't take long for him to notice a carved tattoo.
"As I thought." he said, showing the symbol to Jordan. "These are Hutt shock troopers."
Jordan was taken aback. "The Hutts? Why?"
"Didn't you hear?" Darvos asked a little puzzled. "A few days ago, the Hutts demanded the Jedi to give up Luke to them. Of course, Jari and Ezra refused."
Jordan quickly connected the dots. "So...this is their retaliation. The Hutts are willing to wipe the Jedi out."
"Yes. And I'm afraid these attacks will only escalate. We need to be prepared."
"But how did they get on the planet?" Jane, who had heard the last part, asked. "The orbit is in full lockdown. Clearly somebody helped them."
"The Hutts have a long reach, that's for sure. But to get here they needed to pass through the Empire...or the Commonwealth." Jordan said bleakly.
Jane pondered. "Let's report this to the Admiral and the Council. If there is corruption among our allies, we need to know."
"First, let's make sure the galaxy knows what happened here. The sacrifice of these men...must not go unnoticed." Jordan eventually said.
May 16, 2228.
Sabine took the helmet from her wardrobe and wiped it clean, then put it underarm. She started walking through the hallway of the house, soon hearing Ezra making a silly voice followed by giggles that put a smile on her face.
She reached the babies' room and leaned on the threshold. Ezra was wobbling left and right in an attempt to put Ursa and Caleb to sleep.
"Oh, look who's there, kids!" he said with a playful voice.
Sabine walked toward them, smiling at her children widely, even if her heart was starting to get heavy. He couldn't show weakness in front of them.
"How are my little ones?" she said, caressing one before the other. "Kids. Mama must go for a while." she murmured to them, even if they couldn't understand. "But remember that I love you more than anything." she finished before kissing both on the forehead.
Almost magically, the two drifted to sleep a few seconds later, as if they had been reassured enough, so Ezra put them back in the cradles and the two adults could finally have a moment of their own in the living room.
"Have you gathered everything?" Ezra asked.
"Yeah. Most of my gear is at the colony, anyway." Sabine replied candidly.
She didn't fail to notice her husband's mood, though. "Quite weird, uh? The moment you go to war with a giant crime cartel, we are about to go to war with another." she quipped.
Ezra found the strength to reply in kind. "Well, taking down lawlessness is part of my mission as a Jedi. But if somebody else takes the lead in this, I'm okay with it."
She chuckled back, then murmured "I'm so glad I found an understanding riduur."
"Hey, I have my duties, you have yours." Ezra replied. "For how much I hate not being there with you, I know how capable you are."
"Thanks, Ezra." she replied.
They then shared one last kiss and touched their foreheads before Sabine left the front door and reached her speeder-bike.
She drove all the way to Atin, where the colony was in a complete rush as warriors and workers ran left and right to load all the supplies, the weapons and the vehicles on the transports. However, before joining the effort, Sabine had another place to reach: the cemetery of Atin.
There, among many other graves of the people that died on the final days of Mandalore and after that, stood the little memorial stone of Ursa Wren, guarding the remains of the late Wren Countess.
Sabine still remembered the final day she saw her mother: they had left her defending a vital road and when they returned, she was dead. There were many things that she had left unsaid. So many things she wanted to discuss with her mother, but the war had not given them much time to recover some of the time they had lost when Sabine was exiled.
But now, her spirit lived with Sabine's first daughter. Even if meager, it was a consolation that brought some peace to the young woman's heart.
"I figured you might be here."
She turned around, though she had recognized that voice and wasn't surprised to hear it. Tristan was already clad in full armor and spoke through the helmet. He approached his sister.
"She would've been proud to see all of this." Sabine commented, though she wasn't able to show much happiness.
Tristan put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't the Jedi say that every living being becomes one with the Force?"
"Pretty much, yes."
"Then I'm sure she's watching us. That she is proud of us, and that she is going to fight on our side when we will reclaim the homeworld."
Sabine pondered on those words. She closed her eyes and indeed felt a warm touch on her heart. She didn't know it that was the Force, but she found some comfort in it nonetheless. Now that her mind and her heart were set on the battle ahead, she put her helmet on and turned toward her brother.
"Then let's bring her back."
Tristan nodded and the two returned to the main square. There they found Asha and Moreena among other people.
"Hey, Sabine." the young girl greeted with a smile.
"Moreena." Sabine replied with genuine care. "I see you received the novice outfit." she commented on her light armor, made mostly of metal plates and pads.
"Well, I couldn't go to a heavy fight with just a jacket."
"Prove your worth, my friend, and soon you will have some beskar to add." Tristan said merrily, giving her a pat on her shoulder.
Then Sabine also spotted an unexpected member: Fett.
She approached him. "So you decided to come with us."
The clone only briefly looked at her before returning to rebuild his rifle. "A fight is a fight. I guess that's my nature as a clone. Besides, I know the Zann Consortium fairly well, I figured I would lend you a hand for three credits."
"Three credits?" Sabine asked amused.
"I don't do anything for free." Fett simply replied.
For how grumpy he wanted to appear, Sabine knew that Boba had integrated well into the colony. As Tristan promised, he had found a new purpose among the people of his father.
An hour later, it was time to go. Tristan improvised a podium and stood upon it.
"Excuse me. May I have your attention?" he said loudly.
In a few seconds, the entire colony gathered around, from every building and direction. Tristan had to activate a voice enhancer to be heard by everyone.
"Three years ago, we lost our homeworld." he started solemnly. "Never in our history had such a scenario ever occurred. Mandalore had seen devastation and occupations, but we were always there, taking care of it as much as we could. Never before had our planet be reduced to the state of a tomb world.
"Yet, as the symbol of our culture was shattered, and we were scattered among the stars, not only we endured the hardships: we stood strong, we found a unity that wasn't seen in centuries, and we found a new place among the galactic community. We have learned that our strength is not just a sword with which we destroy our enemies: it is also a shield, and since we are strong, it is our moral duty to protect the weak, not just us. While we must not forget our warrior heritage, it was long due that we learned how to use it for the betterment of the galaxy.
"And while we rediscovered ourselves, as we brought together different visions of our culture, we also learned that our beloved Mandalore was also fighting to live. Now we know that our homeworld, though scarred beyond recognition, is still alive and is waiting for us.
"But we also know that somebody else set foot on it." and now his tone became more aggressive. "Filthy pirates, disgraceful criminals with no sense of honor have tainted the sacred soil of our home and are stripping it of what little resources it has left. Are we going to let this slight stand?"
"NO!" a unison chorus rumbled.
"No! For now more than ever, our strength is unmatched." he said and then took the Darksaber, igniting it as high as he could for everyone to see. "We are Mandalorians! We will show no mercy for those who dare to take our birthright! The sacred soil of Mandalore yearns for our return. What do we say to it?!"
A mixture of words and screams then overlapped, but the energy was all the same: everyone was ready to reclaim the homeworld.
"Then forward, my brothers and sisters! Our Returning Crusade starts now!"
Another yell followed before the warriors and the crew members rushed back to the ships.
Sabine looked around. The Crusade had a strength of 70 ships and over a million warriors, most of them battle-hardened and even the newer ones had served on the frontline with the Jedi. There was no way they were going to fail.
Tristan then turned off the Darksaber and put it back on his belt. "Come on." he said to the three women.
They entered inside the command ship: an Arquitens cruiser that was part of the original Mandalorian fleet and that had survived the Night of a Thousand Tears. It had been chose as the flagship since it had the best Command & Control technology, making it the best ship the expedition had for Tristan to keep the war effort under constant scrutiny.
The Wren and Asha reached the bridge, while Moreena joined the other warriors of the clan in the hangar.
On the bridge, Tristan took the seat at the center while the two women stood next to him.
"My Lord." the Captain of the ship, Roo'koe Matrin greeted. "Lothal Control says we have clearance for departure."
"Onward, then." the Duke decreed.
In a few minutes, from the Capitol and the Jedi Academy, everybody could see the huge fleet taking off. Toward the skies. Toward their homeworld.