Chapter 18:

Running the Gauntlet

 

Arms crossed, Jorgan stood at the front of the ops room. Dorne and Yuun sat at attention, and Forex stood near Jorgan beside the podium. Vik was near the back, his legs crossed and arm propped on the back of the chair.

 

Prudii walked in, and Jorgan snapped off a smart salute. Yuun and Dorne sat straighter, if that was possible, and Tanno at least tilted his head in recognition.

 

“I’ve got the team prepped and ready for assignment, Captain,” Jorgan said. “We’re all eager to do some damage. Like Garza said, we’ll need two for the assault on the bridge. Getting there will be a fight. Vik and Yuun are spoken for, so that leaves me, Dorne, and Forex to hit the bridge. Who do you want on the job?”

 

Prudii considered. “Forex has the most stopping power, and Jorgan–you’re my XO. You two hit the bridge. Dorne, guard the ship. Make sure none of the Imps get past you.”

 

She nodded. “Yes, Captain.”

 

Forex raised his arms. “We will destroy those blasted Imps in glorious combat!”

 

“We’ll make the final adjustments before we land,” Jorgan said. “Any other words for the team, sir?”

 

“Havoc is the best squad in the Republic because it has the best soldiers in the Republic,” Prudii said. “We may be charging headfirst into the deadliest weapon of war in the Empire, but we will succeed.”

 

Yuun and Dorne were visibly moved by the speech, and even Vik sat straight in his seat and uncrossed his legs.

 

“The odds may be impossible. The enemy may outnumber us a hundred to one. But Havoc Squad will succeed!”

 

“Sir, yes, sir!” all five chorused.

 

* * *

 

The Thunderclap docked with the Gauntlet and Prudii opened the hatch. An Imp approached to investigate, and Prudii blasted him. Jorgan turned and followed him into the Gauntlet.

 

Yuun charged ahead, electrostaff whirling. Jorgan watched as the Gand slashed through the Imps. Vik and Forex stood back and opened fire. Dorne knelt and began assembling a field hospital in the corridor.

 

An Imperial sergeant charged into the corridor with a squad of soldiers. They opened fire, and Prudii barked for them to take cover.

 

Jorgan ducked back into the airlock, cocked his rifle, whirled, and took a shot at the sergeant. One of the sergeant’s men pushed him out of the way and took the bolt full on.

 

“Yuun is moving in,” the Gand said.

 

Jorgan wondered about Yuun’s strange speech pattern but couldn’t think about it in combat. Prudii gave Yuun permission to go.

 

“Covering fire!” Jorgan said.

 

He whirled and fired, along with Forex and Vik. Prudii charged in with Yuun. The Gand twirled and slashed with lethal precision. Prudii bashed down a trooper and leapt at the sergeant, ejecting his knuckle plate vibroblade. He buried the blade in the sergeant’s throat.

 

They waited for a count of five before Prudii said, “Clear! Get set for your assignments, people. Vik, make a distraction. Jorgan and Forex, head for the bridge. Dorne, hold this hall. Yuun, you’re with me. Everyone, move out!”

 

* * *

 

Yuun clenched his staff in his hands and walked quietly through the Gauntlet behind Prudii. The captain had his rifle up and ready. An Imp came around the corner, and Prudii blasted him. Yuun raised his staff in readiness. Prudii raised two fingers and swept them in a motion toward the door.

 

Yuun charged. An Imperial fired at him, and Yuun ducked under the shot. He brought his staff up into the Imperial’s chin. The trooper dropped, and Yuun finished him with a clean strike to the chest.

 

Prudii rounded the corner and blasted the last two Imps. Yuun sheathed his staff and approached the console. He began hacking into it.

 

“Hmm,” he said. “Yes, this is one of the points we seek. The first key to the door that seals our great objective.”

 

He continued working, rapidly doing what he had to do. He heard a blaster bolt and looked up to see a dead Imp lying at the entrance to the next corridor.

 

“The signs within this terminal’s workings are clear to Yuun, Captain,” he said. “Several others yet remain. All must be disabled for access to the core station.”

 

“Then let’s get moving,” Prudii said with a nod.

 

“Yuun agrees.”

 

* * *

 

Jorgan led Forex to the nearest turbolift. A pair of Imperial guards by the lift saw them and raised their rifles. Jorgan and Forex cut them down.

 

“Accessing turbolift controls,” Jorgan said, more for his own comfort than anything. He hadn’t been alone like this–not counting Forex–since one of his missions with the Deadeyes. “Destination: bridge.”

 

“Sir,” Forex said. “Are you speaking to me?”

 

“No, Forex. Just…talking to myself.”

 

The lift opened, and Jorgan unclipped a flash grenade from his belt, tossing it into the bridge. A squad of Imperials gasped and tried to cover their eyes…too late. The flash blinded them. Forex cut them down.

 

“Let’s move!” Jorgan said.

 

There were a lot more soldiers on the bridge.

 

* * *

 

Vik saw the door open to his left and realized it was Prudii and Yuun. He fired his rifle a few more times. The Imp at his feet struggled to get up, and Tanno brought his thick boot down on his spine. The Imp stopped struggling.

 

The rest of his squad charged. Vik threw a grenade and took out two more. The final one tried to make a dash at Vik. The Weequay brought up his rifle’s butt and bashed the Imp in the chin.

 

All targets neutralized.

 

“There you are,” Tanno said to Prudii. The captain had fresh scars on his armor. “We ready to finish this, or should I pop out for a drink?”

 

“I could use a drink,” Prudii acknowledged. “But right now we have business. Let’s move.” He turned to Yuun. “Rendezvous with Sergeant Dorne and stay sharp.”

 

“Yuun understands.”

 

The Gand drew his electrostaff and charged off. Vik checked the charge on his rifle. Empty. Lucky he’d bashed the Imp rather than tried to shoot him or he’d have been dead. Tanno clipped the empty rifle to his backpack and drew his vibrosword.

 

“Let’s go,” Prudii said.

 

They reached the first detonation spot and Vik quickly got to work setting the bomb. There was an energy bridge over this chasm–which Vik realized was the Gauntlet’s main weapon.

 

“We’ll have to cross the bridge before I hit the detonator,” Vik warned.

 

“You’re not detonating anything until we get back to the airlock,” Prudii ordered.

 

“Fine. Anyway, let’s get off this thing and back to the many thankful citizens of Coruscant.”

 

Prudii tilted his head. Vik realized he wanted to be liked by his men–and that made Vik respect him on a whole new level. Prudii really wanted to argue but didn’t.

 

“Medals, parades, parties…” Prudii joked. “This could be great.”

 

It wasn’t much, but Vik appreciated the effort. “These crazy missions do have their advantages,” he said. “I’ll follow your lead.”

 

* * *

 

Jorgan saw the captain of the Gauntlet reach for his blaster. He tried to whirl and shoot the captain but he was preoccupied with an Imp with a vibroblade. Forex beat him to the captain, spraying a stream of missiles in the captain’s direction.

 

“Enemy officer down,” Forex confirmed.

 

“Contact Sergeant Dorne and let her know,” said Jorgan.

 

He whirled and blasted the last of the Imps–and a bolt whizzed over his head.

 

* * *

 

Tanno knelt and planted the bomb. He connected the wires and nodded to himself, then synced it with the detonator.

 

“That’s the last one,” he said. “We’re good to go.”

 

Prudii’s comlink beeped. Vik looked around worriedly. He gripped his vibrosword and stood guard.

 

“Sir!” said Jorgan. “Big trouble on the bridge! We got the data but Imperial reinforcements showed up out of nowhere–a lot more than we can handle. Are the bombs planted; can we move out?”

 

Prudii nodded. “Pull out, Jorgan, pull out!”

 

“Roger that. Let’s move, Forex!”

 

As Prudii shut off the comlink, Vik stood easily. Prudii led him to the turbolift. When it reached the top an Imperial Special Forces sergeant was waiting.

 

“Take-take-take!” Prudii said.

 

Vik leapt in, sword drawn. He slashed at the Imp, who tried instinctively to block it with his rifle. Tanno’s blade sliced the rifle in half. The Imp staggered back and drew his own vibrosword. Prudii sent in covering fire, but the Imp dodged, all while dueling it out with Tanno.

 

Prudii’s shot slid through a gap in the sergeant’s armor plates. He dropped to his knees–and Tanno slashed him in the gut.

 

“Double time it!” Prudii said.

 

They reached the airlock, and Vik saw Prudii visibly lock up. Jorgan was lying on the ground, a smoking hole in the stomach area of his armor. Dorne was kneeling over him. She removed his chestplate and put a kolto patch over the hole in his gut. Prudii dashed over.

 

“Sit rep!” he said.

 

Forex said, “Jorgan was wounded valiantly fighting off the Imperials in the retreat.”

 

“Yes,” Dorne said. “And when Leftenant Jorgan took injuries, Forex actually carried him back.”

 

Prudii breathed. “Thanks, Forex.”

 

“It was the least I could do for a hero of the Republic, sir,” Forex said.

 

To Vik, he seemed surprisingly subdued.

 

“Let’s get out,” Prudii said. “Vik can detonate the charges after we bolt. Dorne, keep Jorgan stable, read?”

 

“Yes, Captain.”

 

Vik rushed to the cockpit and sat at the gunner’s seat. He plugged his detonator into the console and programmed it so he could activate the charges with the trigger. Dorne, apparently having taken care of Jorgan, rushed to the copilot seat. Prudii was right behind her, and he ran to the holocom.

 

“Strike team, this is Havoc Squad. We’re clear! Mission accomplished.”

 

“We copy, Havoc. All ships are clear. Proceed with the detonation.”

 

Tanno gave a feral grin and squeezed the trigger. “Boom.”

Chapter 19:

Confessions

 

Dorne looked at Lieutenant Jorgan with concern. He was Prudii’s friend–and more importantly a fine officer and soldier. She had to keep him alive.

 

She patched him up and then pressed IV needles into his arm. She sighed and sat down in the chair beside him.

 

They were en route to Coruscant, and Prudii was in the cockpit with Tanno and Yuun. Forex was shut down in the cargo hold.

 

“Jorgan,” she said quietly. “I don’t know if you can hear me, but it is scientifically proven that men and women in comas can sometimes comprehend what is going on around them even if they cannot react.”

 

She sighed. “I have to get this off my chest. I need to talk to someone. It’s about Captain Prudii. Everyone aboard the ship by now should be aware we have feelings for each other, but I wanted to say it aloud to someone other than him.”

 

Jorgan made no sign of moving–his heart rate did not increase and his eye movement did not change.

 

She continued, “We only shared a few personal memories and stories. After a while we admitted our fondness for each other. I just wanted to tell you.”

 

She stood and left him to rest, feeling better.

 

* * *

 

Yuun sat at the small table in Carrick Station’s cantina. After returning to Garza, Prudii had been promoted to Major–Jorgan, for his valor, had made Captain–Yuun and Dorne been given the title of Lieutenant–Vik had been promoted from specialist to Sergeant.

 

Yuun analyzed the situation. He did not know why they had been praised so. Surely Jorgan did deserve it, but the rest of them…they’d all done only what was necessary.

 

He voiced his doubts to Dorne and Vik.

 

Vik snorted, but Dorne said, “That, in itself, is why, Yuun. When men and women do things that are necessary, because it is necessary and not for promotion or praise, then they are deserving of the promotion.”

 

Yuun tilted his head. “Yuun may understand. In Gand society, we may only earn the right to name by achievements, but they must be achievements recognized by the Gand community, not by the Gand earning the name.”

 

He continued, “Those with some achievements to speak of earn a single name–like Yuun. Others with more achievements earn a personal name in addition to the surname. Only those recognized by all or most Gand can carry the right to speak in first person rather than third person. No matter what, we cannot earn the right by doing what we feel is a great achievement, but…what is extraordinary because it had to be done.”

 

Dorne considered. “What did you do to earn your name, Yuun?”

 

Yuun frowned under his mask, but forgave her. “It is not spoken of, because it is considered to be bragging.”

 

“I’m sorry,” Dorne said.

 

“Yuun forgives.”

 

* * *

 

Tanno crossed his arms and looked up as Prudii entered the mess hall. He had something to say, but…it was awkward.

 

“Sir,” he said. “Can we talk?”

 

Prudii looked over at him. “Sure.”

 

Tanno leaned forward on the table, feeling his own awkwardness. He hated telling people about his flaws, but this was important.

 

“Sir, I have to tell you something.”

 

“I established that,” Prudii said with a smile. “What’s wrong?”

 

“I never told you why I joined the army, did I?”

 

“No.”

 

“I wanted off Nar Shaddaa. See…life wasn’t so good there, running from gang to gang, working for whoever was protecting my part of town. But I found an out, got off Nar Shaddaa, and found a way to keep using detonite.”

 

Prudii smiled. “Better than joining the Empire.”

 

Vik chuckled. “Yeah. I don’t think they tend to allow aliens as non-human as Weequay.”

 

“Why are you stalling?” Prudii asked.

 

“Because,” Vik said, realizing he’d have to come out. “I knew about the Gauntlet probably before anyone else did.”

 

Prudii’s eyes widened. “What? How?”

 

“When I stowed away aboard the cargo vessel, I overheard someone talking. He had an accent. He said the words ‘Gauntlet’ and ‘Empire’ a lot, and when I got closer I saw a hologram of the weapon. I never told anyone.”

 

“Why?”

 

“I…don’t know. But I never thought about it, not really. Not until Lieutenant Jorgan got hurt. And I started wondering: if I’d told the recruiter from the start, would they have dealt with it sooner? Would Jorgan not be hurt now?”

 

Prudii frowned. “It’s a good point, but you can’t dwell on it. Besides, I thought you didn’t like Jorgan. He…ah…explained things to you.”

 

Vik grunted. “He did. But I guess that earned my respect. I don’t like it when my teammates get hurt. I tend to react violently.”

 

Prudii nodded. “Then we’ll find some Imps really soon, okay?”

 

Vik grinned. “Sure.”

 

Prudii got up and turned to leave. “Oh. And I’m sure Jorgan will be fine.”

 

“I’m not gonna be his friend or anything,” Vik growled. “But…yeah.”

Chapter 20:

One Half Down

 

Garza assigned Havoc Squad to rescue a group of Senators captured by Imperial General Rakton–who had apparently been angered by the Gauntlet’s destruction. Dorne would have to stay on the ship to care for Jorgan, and Yuun would be aiding them from the Thunderclap–so it was just Prudii, Forex, and Vik for this op.

 

Vik loaded his rifle and calibrated the scope, but he put it back in its sling and drew his vibrosword–he’d really taken a shine to that weapon.

 

Grinning, he took a few test swings, slashing the air with the lethal blade. Satisfied, he held the weapon at guard position as Prudii guided the ship into the hangar on the tail of a Senatorial aide who had offered to cover for Havoc Squad.

 

Prudii said the man was brave, but Vik thought it was sheer stupidity.

 

The docking clamp sealed, and Vik and Forex charged in. Vik slashed through an Imp’s gut, the thrumming blade cutting through the armor like tin.

 

Prudii joined them in the entrance to the station. He glanced around and then flicked the safety off on his rifle.

 

“Let’s move, Havoc Squad!”

 

* * *

 

Yuun tapped his console patiently, eager to finish his task but also grateful for the chance to rest. He was a Findsman, so he seized a peaceful moment when he could–though that was difficult in the Republic Special Forces.

 

He hacked into the station’s security cameras so he would know when Major Prudii had reached the proper corridor. He frowned at what he saw.

 

Those Senators, for hostages, seemed rather calm, sitting in their seats around the table and talking to a holo of General Rakton.

 

“You have reached the passage from maintenance to crew area,” he said into his comlink. “Yuun now controls this door and all others, along with all security measures.”

 

He tapped several keys on his console. “You will be the only one able to pass from each room to the next. All Imperials will experience…” he pondered the right words, “technical difficulties.”

 

“Good job, Lieutenant,” Prudii said.

 

“Life sign scanners show many, many guards within the crew area,” Yuun added. The holocams in that area had been blacked out. “The battle to reach the hostages is sure to be fierce, Major–please, journey cautiously.”

 

“I will, Yuun,” Prudii promised. “Thanks.”

 

Yuun closed the link and turned to ponder this situation, as well as the war at large. Finally, he did not like the conclusions he was arriving at, so he stood to find company.

 

He walked into the medbay and found Dorne sitting in a chair beside Jorgan’s bed, a datapad in her hand. He sat on Jorgan’s other side.

 

“How is he?” Yuun asked.

 

“He is recovering remarkably,” Dorne said. “It may be his Cathar biology. In any case, he should be able to return to duty by the time we reach our next assignment.”

 

Jorgan groaned and sat up. “That’s good,” he said. “Because I don’t like being in here while the others are out there.”

 

“I know exactly how you feel,” Dorne said.

 

She and Jorgan exchanged glances, and Yuun realized that something had passed between them. He closed his eyes and considered. It was quite possible that Dorne had told Jorgan something while they had been alone.

 

Yes, he decided. She had. It had been about Prudii.

 

* * *

 

Vik cut down the last of the guards outside the main conference room. They could see inside, and Vik didn’t like what he was seeing. A pair of Imp guards stood around the table, and the Senators were treating them like sand panthers.

 

In the center of the table was a holo of General Rakton.

 

“Weapons down!” Prudii said. “Freeze!”

 

The Imps whirled and, of course, opened fire. Vik leapt in, swinging his blade. He cut one guard’s rifle in half, and then impaled the guard. Prudii and Forex blasted the other guard.

 

Abruptly, a squad of Imperials came in behind them. Vik whirled and caught one of the Imps’ shots on his shoulder plate. The shot ricocheted off and left a black scar. Vik sheathed his blade, pulled out his rifle, and opened fire. The three members of Havoc were formidable even without their squad mates. Soon, all Imperial ambushers fell.

 

“Who are you?” Rakton demanded. “Who are you?”

 

“Havoc Squad,” Prudii said proudly. “You’d best remember us, because we aren’t going to stop haunting you until you’re behind bars.”

 

“We’ll certainly be seeing more of each other,” Rakton growled. “I’ll make sure of that. You’ll face justice for all you’ve done. My men’ sacrifice will be avenged–and the Emperor’s justice will be served.”

 

Rakton’s holo vanished. Vik scowled and gently kicked the chair of one of the Senators. The man jumped up, as did the others.

 

“We’re saved!” one said. “The Republic has saved us! Thank you, thank you.”

 

“Shut your mouth, traitor!” said another man in obvious kingly attire. He was Nautolan–so was the aide who’d helped them arrive. “You don’t even deserve to breath the same air as the rest of us.”

 

Vik grinned. He loved watching bureaucrats fight.

 

Another man said, “These cowards were signing on with Rakton–they traded their planets to the Empire in exchange for lifetime leadership.”

 

Icily, Prudii said, “Is that true?”

 

The first man said, “What choice did we have? Our lives were at stake–our peoples’ lives!”

 

A fourth man interrupted. “Don’t hide behind your people. You gave up, betrayed everything we fought for–alliances we’ve held for generations.”

 

“We are at war!” The third man, who Vik saw was a president, agreed. “We don’t have room for cowards and traitors–you deserve to be executed!”

 

“Agreed,” the Nautolan put in. “Give these traitors what they deserve. If anyone asks, we’ll say the Imperials murdered them.”

 

Vik had not missed the political double talk. The politicians were ganging up against these so-called traitors, but other than the first man none had been identified by name.

 

“In the Republic, the accused stand trial,” Prudii argued. “They aren’t executed on a whim.”

 

Vik sighed, wishing to shoot one or two of them right here. But of course the Good Major would not allow that, and if Vik tried Jorgan would “talk it over” again when he was recovered.

 

“We are at war,” the fourth man reiterated, for no apparent reason. “We should not suffer allies who cannot be depended upon.”

 

Up until now, the Twi’lek man had been silent. Now, he said, “This will never happen again. Now that we’ve seen Imperial diplomacy firsthand, I don’t think we’ll take part in any future ‘summits.’”

 

Apparently it was best left at that.

Chapter 21:

A Brief Break

 

Dorne had cleared Jorgan–his wound had healed, and when she took him to the Thunderclap’s small shooting target, he scored at one hundred percent accuracy.

 

Dorne called Prudii into the medical bay while she stocked supplies, and looked down on the four datapads beside her.

 

“Sir,” she said. “I have noticed the other men in the squad have been falling behind in their reports. Especially Sergeant Vik,” she said with a rueful smile.

 

“That needs addressing,” Prudii said.

 

“Yes,” she said. “Indeed. I will send them out to do so immediately, with your permission.”

 

Prudii raised an eyebrow. “You know, that means we have some alone time on this ship.”

 

Dorne nodded. “Yes, I suppose I hadn’t thought of that.”

 

“Get to it,” Prudii said.

 

She nodded and sent the men out.

 

* * *

 

Jorgan huffed and looked down at his report list. This was totally–number of Imps killed on the Gauntlet mission?–ridiculous! How was he to know how many he’d killed? He’d been comatose for the last half of the battle!

 

He rolled his eyes and walked out of the small cantina under the Senate tower where he’d decided to do the work. He stuffed the datapad in his belt.

 

When he reached the Thunderclap, he stormed in, huffing.

 

“Dorne!” he called. “Get in here! Blast it Dorne, where are you?”

 

He walked into the medbay and saw Prudii and Dorne kissing gently. He blushed, removed his helmet, and saluted.

 

“Apologies, sir.”

 

Prudii looked up, embarrassed. “Captain.”

 

“I just…I finished the reports.”

 

Dorne nodded. “Yes, of course you did…ten full minutes faster than I expected.”

 

“Sorry,” he said. “I just…I kind of guessed at the number of Imps killed on the Gauntlet. I was, after all, out cold.”

 

“It is I who should apologize,” Dorne replied.

 

“No, no.” Jorgan rubbed his forehead. “I should have realized you wanted time alone. I…I’ll go.”

 

“Sir!” Forex called from the ship entrance. “General Garza just called. She has assigned us our next mission.”

Chapter 22:

The Prison World

 

Jorgan disembarked onto Belsavis, helmet fit snugly on his head. Ah, it felt good to be back in action. He followed Prudii to the command center. Vik stood to the rear, and Jorgan wondered if he was remembering his “lesson”.

 

Havoc was on Belsavis to free a squadron of fighter pilots known as Dagger Squadron. Rumor was they’d disobeyed orders in order to take out a Sith Lord, and been unfairly imprisoned for it.

 

“Guard Captain Zess?” Prudii said.

 

Zess turned. He was a Kel-Dor. “Ah, Major! I’m glad you caught me. I was just heading out to round up another wave of runners. The Imps are springing everyone they can. The Daggers volunteered to get everything under control. They are spread out across the prison.”

 

Jorgan wasn’t sure he liked that. They didn’t have days, let alone weeks, to round up the men. They had more people to free for the eventual fight with General Rakton.

 

“Can you put me in contact with Conrad Gall?” asked Prudii.

 

Gall was the leader of Dagger Squadron. Jorgan had heard good things about him.

 

“Gall’s in one of the higher security zones,” Zess said. “So my comm won’t reach him. The Daggers’ XO is closer, though. Let’s give him a shot.”

 

He pulled out his holocom and typed in a code. Jorgan watched quietly, impatient to get to the action.

 

“Harlan?” Zess said. “Harlan, come in. This is Zess, over.”

 

Harlan appeared. He was a beefy man with black hair in military cut, with a facial tattoo and wearing prisoners’ garb.

 

“Zess?” he said. “Heh, good timing, pal. We need backup, ASAP. The Imps are opening the vaults!”

 

“Are they insane? We’ll get you backup, Harlan, just hang in there!”

 

“Where are they?” Prudii asked. “We’re ready.”

 

“Who is that?” Harlan asked. “Forget it, I’ll take anyone you got. We’ve got some Imps cornered in one of the vault entrances, but we’re shot up pretty bad. We need medpacs and manpower, and we need them yesterday.”

 

Yes, the Daggers were definitely professionals. Jorgan was looking forward to working with them.

 

“Help is on the way, Harlan. Zess out.” He seemed worried. “We’re out of medpacs. But…there are some caches you can raid on the way. Here are the coordinates.”

 

“Lieutenant Dorne, could you handle them?” Prudii asked. “If so, no need to waste time on raiding caches.”

 

“Not knowing their condition,” she replied, “I would still recommend extra medical supplies.”

 

Prudii nodded. “All right, we’ll get the caches and get to Harlan as quickly as we can. Let’s double time it, Havoc!”

 

“Stay on your toes out there,” Zess warned. “This place is a madhouse.”

 

That, Jorgan decided, was probably putting it mildly.

 

* * *

 

Several caches of medpacs and dozens of angry prisoners later, they caught up to the Daggers. Vik walked into the vault behind Prudii, his rifle at the ready.

 

Harlan was down on his knees, firing at some of the Imps. An explosion rocked the room, and Harlan and his men stumbled. One was cut down.

 

“Dagger Wing is still kicking, you murdering cowards!” Harlan snarled.

 

Prudii fired off a few shots, killing a pair of Imperials. Vik nodded and slowly lowered his rifle. The appearance of reinforcements made the Imps fall back. Vik walked up to Harlan, while Dorne approached the wounded.

 

“Your backup is here, Harlan,” Prudii said. “And your medpacs.”

 

“Best news I’ve had all day,” Harlan replied. “So did the army finally send reinforcements, or are–” he looked at Prudii’s armor and saluted without breaking conversation, “–Havoc Squad! It’s our lucky day, ladies and gents! Dig in and patch yourselves up–the army sent its best.”

 

Vik loved it when they had that reaction. Not that it had happened all that often in his career, but it was still exciting to be recognized.

 

“Give me the Imperials’ position, armaments–everything,” Prudii ordered.

 

He was good at giving orders.

 

“They’re dug in farther in the tunnels,” Harlan said. “And they’ve got some serious heat. If we hadn’t caught them by surprise, we’d all be dead.” He paused. “There may be even worse things in here, too. I’ve heard there’s scary stuff locked in these vaults–nobody opens them. Ever.”

 

Tanno did not like the sound of that.

 

“Whatever’s in there should be scared of me,” Prudii said.

 

“We’ll make sure no one flanks you. Give those Imps what they deserve!”

 

* * *

 

“I don’t ever want to go back in there again,” said Dorne.

 

“Agreed,” Jorgan replied.

 

Whatever had been in there, it had been…well, the closest word Jorgan could think of was unholy. He was shaken, and it took a lot to shake him.

 

“Relax, guys.” Even Prudii’s voice was a little unsteady. “We’re out now. Right?”

 

Vik was totally silent. Yuun was typing into his datapad. He was the only one other than Forex who seemed unshaken. He actually seemed fascinated.

 

“Yuun wonders what the beast with the three legs would be classified as.” He typed more into his datapad. “Was it a mammal or a reptile?”

 

“I don’t care,” Jorgan replied bleakly. “All I know is it ate an Imperial whole before we killed it. And I could see the Imperial’s fists hammering on the inside of its stomach.”

 

Vik had apparently heard enough. He ran out of the vault and vomited all over the ground. One of the outpost guards shook his head and pulled out his comlink to call a cleaning droid.

 

“Looks like we won this round,” Harlan said. “On your feet, people. Get ready to move out.”

 

Jorgan steadied himself against the wall and took off his helmet. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, wishing he’d never seen those monstrosities. Nothing had ever fazed him like this. Nothing.

 

He stood straight and walked outside to stand beside Vik, who was still vomiting. Jorgan patted him on the back. Vik inhaled, retched, and wiped his mouth.

 

“That…was…horrifying,” Vik grunted.

 

Jorgan nodded. “Just…part of the job.”

 

Prudii, Dorne, Yuun, and Forex came out of the vault. Dorne took her helmet off and wiped sweat from her forehead. Prudii kept his helmet firmly planted on. Jorgan wondered why, until a moment later, when Prudii quickly shuffled away and tore his helmet off.

 

“Yuun is surprised,” the Gand said. “Yuun had believed that the major had a stomach of steel.”

 

Prudii returned a moment later, his dark face much paler and a cold ring of sweat around his lip. He inhaled slowly.

 

“That…was bad.” He exhaled. “Anyway, Dorne and I talked to Harlan–”

 

“And I lost my temper,” Dorne admitted.

 

“Relax, Lieutenant,” Prudii said. “Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

 

“Apologies, sir.”

 

Prudii rubbed the back of his neck. “Anyway, we need to move. Some of Harlan’s men have been pinned down in a complex.”

 

“Better a complex than another vault,” Vik grunted. “I’m ready.”

 

“Let’s move out,” Prudii said.

 

Jorgan, as XO, requisitioned five speeders for them and a repulsorlift for Forex. They set out for the complex at full speed.

 

* * *

 

The Daggers’ man outside the complex was Kal, a Twi’lek male. He met up with them in an office, and it didn’t appear he was a prisoner at all, other than the uniform and shock collar. Captain Zess gave them a lot of freedom.

 

He turned. “What? A major? Havoc Squad! This is huge! Oh, I’m Kal. It’s a real honor to meet you. You’re here to help, right?”

 

These men did not deserve to be here, Yuun thought bleakly. They had been ill informed. He had heard Harlan tell Prudii about it. They’d been targeting a Sith Lord on Fest, and instead of hitting an arms facility they’d hit civilians.

 

“Absolutely,” Prudii replied. “Give me a sitrep, kid.”

 

“With all the commotion going on, we started breakouts from one of the labor camps,” Kal said. “Some real bad characters in there, believe me. The worst is a guy named Gouge. You don’t even want to know what that freak was up to before they locked him up.”

 

Yuun considered. The very name Gouge was probably a good indication of what he had been up to.

 

“You told Harlan some of your men were stuck in the prison complex, right?” Prudii asked.

 

“Right, because of Gouge. Let me explain. One of the guard officers, Brok, wanted to storm the labor camp and make sure Gouge didn’t escape. A bit obsessed, that guy.”

 

Yuun shook his head. Anyone obsessive as that would get good men killed trying to achieve his goals–like General Rakton.

 

“Three of our people volunteered to back Brok up,” Kal continued. “But things went bad in the labor camps, and now they’re trapped.”

 

Prudii rubbed his chin. “Can your pilots confirm that, Kal?”

 

“Can’t get through to them.” Kal was sounding worried. “Last I heard, they were holed up pretty good. Here are the last coordinates Brok gave me. You should find everyone there–a little stressed, so take it easy on them.”

 

Now, Yuun thought, was time for action.

Chapter 23:

Captain Gall

 

Tanno kept his rifle ready as they went into the complex. He didn’t want any surprises like last time.

 

Ahead, a Chagrian knelt on the ground, hands locked behind his back. Three soldiers in prison uniforms–the Daggers–and a human male in a Republic blast vest surrounded him, weapons drawn. Vik slowly slung his rifle over his shoulder.

 

“Freeze!” one of the Daggers, a light-blue skinned male Twi’lek, said.

 

He raised his blaster and trained it on Prudii. Vik instantly reached for his rifle, but Jorgan put a restraining hand on his arm. Vik decided to respect Jorgan.

 

“Take it easy, Symo,” said a female Zabrak. “They’re Republic soldiers–they must be here to help.”

 

“Havoc Squad,” Prudii confirmed. “We are here to help.”

 

The Twi’lek, Symo, slowly lowered his blaster.

 

“Havoc Squad?” the Zabrak asked. “One of you have an uncle in the Senate, or something?”

 

“Not me,” Symo said. “Does this mean we can finally get out of this place?”

 

“We’re not going anywhere!” the man in the blast vest said. Vik assumed he was Brok. “I swore an oath to keep the prisoners on Belsavis locked up. I’m not gonna leave and let this scum escape.”

 

Vik looked down at the Chagrian. Gouge, he assumed. He stood waiting for Prudii to make a decision, which he had no doubt been considering even as Brok spoke.

 

“I go free, whether you stay or go,” Gouge said smugly. “Run now, and maybe I won’t find you once I’m out.”

 

Vik snarled and pointed his rifle at Gouge. No one threatened his team. Prudii ignored the convict.

 

“Dagger Wing needs to leave,” he said. He gave Brok a look. “I don’t need you, but I’m disinclined to leave a fellow soldier.”

 

The Zabrak shook her head. “In Dagger Wing, we do what we say. And we said we’d help Brok hold this position.”

 

Prudii shrugged. “Gouge is scum. I’m not about to leave him to be freed to serve the Empire. Bring him with us.”

 

“It’ll be a hard run,” Brok said. “But if you get us back to the entrance, we can take Gouge the rest of the way.”

 

“We’ll follow your lead, Major. Let’s get out of here,” the Zabrak said.

 

Prudii tilted his head toward the door, indicating that Vik and Yuun would take point. Vik nodded, slung his rifle, and drew his vibrosword. Side by side with Yuun, he went back through the hallway.

 

A squad of Imps ran in, firing. Vik charged in, letting his shoulder armor take the bolts. He cut one Imp across the chest, his blade slicing the gray armor like tin. Yuun was beside him, cutting Imps apart with his electrostaff.

 

Blaster bolts rushed up the hall from Prudii, the rest of Havoc, and the Daggers. Soon, the Imps went down. Symo cheered.

 

“We’re here! We made it!” he said.

 

“Thanks, Major,” Brok said. “We’ll drop Gouge off at a holding cell and get back to base. See you around.”

 

* * *

 

Jorgan relaxed as they got back to the watchtower where Kal was stationed. Prudii held up a hand and motioned for Dorne to come with him, and the rest to stay outside.

 

“You did a good job in that breakout,” Jorgan said to Yuun and Vik. “Not many could handle a fully-armed squad of Imps with melee weapons.”

 

“No problem,” Vik replied. “Back when I lived on Nar Shaddaa, blasters were as rare as credits, practically. We used whatever we could get our hands on, and vibroblades were a decicred a dozen. Guess when you’ve cut up gangsters with blades more than guns, it kind of becomes second nature.”

 

Yuun added, “Gand Findsmen use force pikes in their hunts. When Yuun joined the army, there were no force pikes, so Yuun trained with the staff until he won nine out of ten duels in the academy.”

 

“Well, it shows,” said Jorgan. “I don’t know anyone else that could have done that and not take a hit or two.”

 

Vik grinned. “It helps to have shoulder armor like a Baragwin battle tank.”

 

Jorgan inclined his head in agreement. He sat back, grateful for a moment’s rest, and looked out over the wall. Belsavis was really a beautiful planet without all the blaster shots and monsters.

 

It reminded Jorgan of tales he’d heard, early in his training, about this place. Private Iresso had been with Jorgan on Ord Mantell, and they’d been in the mess hall. Iresso, bored, had begun telling tales of an ancient monster called The Primal Destroyer. Other troops in the mess had laughed it off. Jorgan hadn’t quite been able to shake a feeling of wrongness.

 

Prudii and Dorne exited the watchtower, and Prudii had a grim look on his face.

 

“Time to find Commander Gall,” he said.

 

* * *

 

Jorgan entered the tomb with his rifle raised. He had a strange feeling about this place, and he was not about to let his guard down.

 

Vik and Yuun were acting as rear guard, their rifles also raised, and Prudii was at point. Jorgan was about to step into the next room when Prudii raised his fist to halt them.

 

Jorgan froze and blinked into his helmet’s HUD several times so he could see from Prudii’s armor cam. Conrad Gall was in the room ahead, being Force choked by a Sith Lord–probably the same one the Daggers had bombed Fest for.

 

“Go!” Prudii said.

 

He ran into the room, firing his rifle. Jorgan closed his HUD, rolled, and fired, taking down one of the Sith Lord’s Imperial guards. Prudii took out the other guard, and then Havoc Squad entered the room, weapons trained on the Sith Lord.

 

The Sith Lord did not turn, but he threw Conrad Gall across the room and dashed for a door that went farther into the tomb. Jorgan started to pursue but Prudii tapped his arm and motioned to Gall.

 

“Major?” Gall breathed. “Is that you? Ugh…we never had a chance. Ondorru, he…lightning, straight out of his fingertips. Impossible.”

 

He tried to sit up, but fell back. Dorne moved forward and pulled out her medpac.

 

“I can’t…I can’t move,” Gall said. “You have to capture him. You can’t let Ondorru escape–only he can prove that Dagger Wing is innocent!”

 

“He’s in bad shape,” Dorne said. “Please, try not to move, Commander.”

 

Gall snorted. “Are you listening? He’s getting away! He could change everything!”

 

There was a rumbling sound deep in the tomb, and Jorgan raised his rifle to the far side of the room, while Tanno and Forex whirled to guard their rear.

 

“What was that?” Vik snarled.

 

“It doesn’t matter,” Gall insisted. “Go! Forget about me, just get Ondorru!”

 

“Dagger Wing needs its commander,” Prudii argued. “We can hunt down that Sith Lord later.”

 

“This may be the only shot we ever get at that Sith scum!” Gall shouted. “Harlan can take over Dagger Wing, and Ondorru can clear their record. I’ll gladly die to make that happen. Now go!”

 

“Havoc Squad doesn’t leave anyone behind,” Prudii said, finality in his voice.

 

“No,” Conrad begged. “Get out of here. Go!”

 

And then the beast entered. Jorgan had seen rancors in holos and sculptures, but he hadn’t ever seen one in person. It had red eyes that almost seemed to glow, and its skin looked like armor plating. It gave a low growl.

 

“Havoc Squad,” Prudii said, “attack!”

 

Jorgan opened fire, hitting the beast in its belly, the most likely weak spot. But the rancor only roared and charged. Vik and Yuun leapt in, their blades carving at the beast. Vik’s thick sword cut deep gashes in the rancor’s legs, but it bashed him aside.

 

Dorne placed a shot between the rancor’s large nostrils, and the beast swatted at its nose before resuming its charge. Yuun was knocked away by its leg. Prudii and Forex barraged it with their entire arsenal, but it remained stubbornly on the attack.

 

And suddenly Yuun was there, leaping atop its back and attacking the top of its head with his electrostaff. The beast roared and swiped at Yuun, and the Gand ducked under his fist and smashed his electrostaff down again. The rancor roared, and fell down, but did not die.

 

Yuun leapt off its head, and Prudii charged in. He ducked under the rancor’s massive arms and then buried his knuckle vibroblade into its eye. It roared and tried to stand, and he stabbed it again. The beast went into a frenzied panic.

 

It rolled over and smacked Prudii away, but it was now lying on its back. Raising his rifle, Jorgan blasted it in the throat. The beast flailed wildly for a few seconds and then stilled.

 

“Kandosii!” Prudii exclaimed. “Great job!”

 

Then they ran over to Conrad. He was lying on his back, a look of disappointment and defeat on his face. Jorgan looked up when he heard footsteps and saw Harlan and the Daggers running in with Guard Captain Zess.

 

They’d actually done it. They’d won.

Chapter 24:

The Primal Destroyer

 

They were on their way back to the Republic base when a distress call went out on all channels. Dorne put her hand to her helmet to listen in.

 

“This is Republic Patrol Team Cresh!” a male voice said. “We’re under heavy assault in the ancient tombs! We need immediate assist–”

 

“Let’s head that way,” Prudii said. “This is Major Prudii, Havoc Squad. We’re on our way to Patrol Team Cresh’s last location.”

 

“Roger that, Havoc Squad,” replied a controller. “We’ve got two Jedi and a privateer heading that way, too. Rendezvous with them there. Control out. Good luck.”

 

Dorne didn’t like the sound of that.

 

* * *

 

When they reached Team Cresh’s last location, Jorgan went in expecting anything. Ahead, he saw a flurry of brown robes and white armor, so he assumed the Jedi and their teams were here.

 

“Jasin!” Prudii said. “Gareb!”

 

The two Jedi looked up and greeted Prudii. Jorgan glanced at their allies. He remembered the droid T7 and the girl Kira, but Jasin had gathered a few more to his cause. He now had a roguish man in a Balmorran resistance uniform, a Chagrian in a Republic trooper’s armor with sergeant markings, and surprisingly, a red-skinned Sith Pureblood.

 

Gareb also had a few more allies–a Twi’lek with a sniper rifle, a young girl in Jedi robes, and–

 

“Iresso!” he said.

 

The man looked up. “Jorgan?”

 

Jorgan walked up to Iresso and grasped his arm at the elbow. Iresso grasped Jorgan’s arm, and they nodded to each other, grinning fiercely.

 

“How you doing, Jorgan?” Iresso asked.

 

“Good.” He looked at Iresso’s armor. “Made it to lieutenant, eh?”

 

“Oh, that’s nothing…Captain,” Iresso replied.

 

Jorgan laughed. Prudii tilted his head.

 

“Captain Jorgan, who is your friend?” he asked.

 

“Lieutenant Felix Iresso,” Jorgan replied. “He is one of the troops I was stationed with back on Ord Mantell, before you came. Iresso is very good with women…but he never taught me his tricks.”

 

Vik barked out a laugh. “No wonder you can’t get a date!”

 

“Stop!” Gareb’s Twi’lek ally said.

 

Jorgan whirled, his rifle raised, but relaxed when he saw Dankin, Corso, and Bowdaar. What were the odds?

 

“Corso?” he said.

 

“Aw, great,” Corso muttered. “What did we do to get in trouble with the Republic Army?”

 

“Corso, it’s me, Jorgan.”

 

“Oh!” the man said. “Jorgan!”

 

Dankin glanced at Prudii. “Meet my new crew, Major. Akaavi Spar, Guss Tuno, and Risha.”

 

Prudii nodded. “Spar?” he asked. “You’re a Mandalorian.”

 

A female Zabrak nodded. “Yes,” she said. “I am. Akaavi Spar.”

 

“I am Major Prudii,” he said. “I was once a Mandalorian.”

 

“Once?” she asked.

 

“Long story,” Jorgan said, knowing what Prudii would say before he said it. “He still hasn’t told us. And we’ve known him for over a year.”

 

Jasin looked up. “Hey, is this a social meeting? We need to find out what happened to this team.”

 

Jorgan nodded and turned to the corpse. A wide gash opened his torso from hip to shoulder. Other corpses had been maimed in similar manners.

 

“What could do this?” he asked.

 

Suddenly, there was a rumbling noise, and an enormous beast with massive tusks leapt from the top of the mountain. It roared, knocking several of them over.

 

“Shab,” Prudii and Akaavi said.

 

“Fierfek,” breathed Vik.

 

“Blast,” Jorgan gasped.

 

It was exactly how Iresso had described The Primal Destroyer. The beast roared, and at least five lightsabers snapped to life. Jorgan shouldered his rifle, and saw over a dozen other blasters snap up.

 

The beast charged at them, sword-like teeth gleaming with blood. Jorgan fired, but this beast was more impenetrable than the rancor. It smacked away the Sith Pureblood, who had leapt in with full strength. Then it turned and made as if to bite down on Jasin.

 

Jorgan watched in surprise as the Pureblood blasted it with the Force, just enough to knock it off balance so its teeth sank into the ground. Vik and the Wookiee Bowdaar charged in, vibroswords swinging.

 

The beast picked up Bowdaar and smashed him down onto Vik. Jorgan moved to a better position and opened fire–and so did Prudii, Forex, Dorne, Corso, Iresso, and several other armed beings.

 

The Twi’lek with the sniper moved behind the Destroyer and began climbing the mountain. He had his sniper rifle tightly slung over his back, and Jorgan wondered what he was doing.

 

The Jedi Gareb barraged the Destroyer with rocks and refuse, smashing them against its skin at speeds that would have ripped holes in starships. Even so, the Destroyer seemed unaffected. It just pressed on, apparently single-mindedly determined to get the Jedi.

 

“It eats Force sensitives,” Jorgan said in sudden realization. “It eats Force sensitives, so what good can we do?”

 

“Just keep fighting!” Vik snarled.

 

Jorgan glanced up at the Twi’lek. He’d made it to the top of the mountain, and he now had his sniper rifle trained on the beast. But what good could that do?

 

“Trip it!” someone yelled. “Its tusks make it top heavy!”

 

Jorgan fired at the beast’s feet. Gareb and Jasin stabbed their lightsabers into its feet, and it howled and kicked them away.

 

Three sniper bolts slammed into its back in rapid succession, and it seemed off-balance for a moment, but it quickly regained it and once again tried for the Jedi.

 

The Sith Pureblood unleashed a wave of Force lightning into the Destroyer’s legs. The electricity arced up its body, and it roared in agony…and then turned its roar into a blast that knocked the Sith into the nearby lake.

 

Jorgan tossed a grenade between the beast’s legs, hoping it would knock it off balance. Gareb slammed a wave of large boulders into the back of its head, trying to knock it over. Still, the beast kept its balance.

 

“Impossible,” Jorgan said. “It’s unbeatable.”

 

“Not necessarily,” the Twi’lek said calmly over the comlink. “Just knock it over.”

 

Jorgan’s eyes widened as he got an idea. He looked at Forex.

 

“Your grapnel hook!” he said. “Tie its legs!”

 

“Of course,” Forex replied.

 

He fired his grapnel from his wrists, tying one around each leg. Then he yanked them in opposite directions. His abnormally strong metal arms were able to fight even this beast’s legs, and the beast began to tumble.

 

And then, even as it began to regain balance, the Twi’lek fired a rapid series of shots from his rifle directly into the beast’s left tusk. Roaring in anger, the beast toppled.

 

“Off the mountain!” someone said.

 

The Twi’lek didn’t climb down–he leapt. Gareb caught him with the Force and lowered him to the ground.

 

Then, the Sith Pureblood emerged from the lake and blasted the mountain with an unbelievable wave of energy. Jasin, Gareb, and their apprentices joined in, and the mountain toppled on top of the fallen beast.

 

The Primal Destroyer roared in agony as the rocks crushed its skull and spine. The roar knocked Jorgan and several others off their feet.

 

Then, quietly, Jasin said, “It’s dead.”

 

They’d just killed The Primal Destroyer.

Chapter 25:

Decisions

 

Space station A-77 was an Imperial prison, and it currently held over three hundred Republic soldiers including one Ava Jaxo.

 

Jorgan glanced as Prudii as the major processed the information. Prudii and Jaxo had been briefly involved back on Coruscant, and he got the feeling Prudii had always had a soft spot for her, despite his relationship to Dorne.

 

“Blast it,” Prudii whispered.

 

“Sir?” Dorne asked.

 

“Elara…I thought you should know she and I were involved for a while.”

 

“I see, sir.”

 

“It won’t affect my judgment,” he said.

 

“I trust you, Major,” she said.

 

Jorgan loaded his rifle and slung it over his shoulder. Then he slammed down his helmet.

 

“Tanno, Yuun,” Prudii said, “stay and guard the Thunderclap. Dorne, Jorgan, Forex, you’re with me in the prison.”

 

They saluted. “Yes, sir!”

 

* * *

 

Dorne entered the control room, her blaster at the ready. Below, she could see the Republic prisoners working at menial slave labor. It boiled her blood.

 

“You!” a technician said. “You’re Republic, right? This is a jailbreak? Please–I’ll do whatever you want. Just don’t hurt me!”

 

“Relax,” Prudii replied. “Follow orders and I’ll free you, too.”

 

“Oh, thank you!” the tech said. “Thank you so much! You want me to unlock the prisoner cells? I can do it, it’ll only take a m–” The holocom came on, revealing a familiar face. “General Rakton!”

 

“Impressive,” Rakton said calmly. “Your time from learning about A-77 to storming its command deck was shorter than even my most aggressive estimates.”

 

Dorne felt ice form around her heart, and she suddenly realized what had happened. Prudii did, too, apparently.

 

“You knew we were coming,” Prudii observed.

 

“Of course. My strategies leave no room for an error this size. Your soldier’s escape was no accident.”

 

Suddenly, A-77 rumbled fiercely. Dorne and Jorgan immediately readied their weapons, but as she did Dorne realized what the rumblings were.

 

“Imperial warships have maneuvered into position around A-77,” said Rakton. “The facility will be obliterated in a matter of minutes.” He smiled faintly. “Goodbye.”

 

“The shields are already failing!” the technician said. “I have to reroute power…”

 

Prudii leaned forward on the console, staring at where Rakton’s holo had been.

 

“You want to give me an update here, Major?” Jaxo asked over the com. “It feels like someone is shooting at us.”

 

“We are being shot at,” Prudii confirmed. “And we’re working on it. Stand by.”

 

“They’re going to blow up their own prison?” Jaxo asked. “This is insane!”

 

“I can do it,” the tech said. “We can all make it out if I just vent the systems level.”

 

“You can’t vent the systems level–I’m on the systems level!” Jaxo exclaimed. “There are droids everywhere. I’d never make it out–who is this moron?”

 

“We’ll find a way,” Prudii said shortly. “Don’t worry.”

 

“There is no other way,” the tech insisted. For a noncom that was about to be blown up, he was amazingly calm. Maybe he realized he was about to die. “Please forgive me, but we have no other alternative.”

 

Dorne felt bad for Prudii. There really was no choice–three hundred soldiers or one soldier–but he and Jaxo had been close, once. How could one make that choice?

 

What would she do if she were in his position and he in Jaxo’s?

 

“Without shields, we could never get the cells open fast enough,” the tech insisted quietly. “All of the prisoners would die.”

 

“You’ve got to get me out of here, Major,” Jaxo said. Her voice was loaded with panic, as if she had never faced death like this before. She probably hadn’t, Dorne mused. “I can’t die in this place, I can’t!”

 

Prudii was utterly silent, staring down at the prisoners below. All of them were loyal soldiers of the Republic, like them. Dorne could almost see what was going through his mind.

 

“We have no choice,” she said suddenly. She had not even realized she was going to speak. “We are clearly compelled to rescue the greatest number of prisoners possible.”

 

“There’s always a choice!” Jaxo’s voice was really full of panic, now. “Please–don’t do this!”

 

Prudii moved into action. “I have to save these men, Jaxo, or Rakton will kill thousands more like you. I’m so sorry.”

 

He turned to the technician and just gave him a nod–just a nod. The tech got to work.

 

“But…no,” Jaxo begged. “It can’t end like this. It can’t–”

 

And then there was a grinding noise, and static. And then, silence. And Ava Jaxo was gone.

 

“It…worked,” the tech said. “Shields are back to ninety percent, but they will not last forever. You should return to your ship. I’ll ensure the prisoners are freed and find their way to the transport.”

 

Prudii walked away wordlessly. Dorne pulled her helmet off and nodded to the tech.

 

“Thank you,” she said.

 

* * *

 

Upon return to the ship, Major Fel contacted them, thanked them, and asked what had happened to Jaxo. Prudii relayed the news.

 

“Oh,” Major Fel replied. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize. She ought to get a medal. We’d never have gotten out if she hadn’t slipped away to call for help.”

 

“I’ll relay that request to General Garza,” Prudii replied.

 

“Thank you. It seems like the least we can do to try and repay her. I won’t hold you any longer–thanks again, Major. Fel out.”

Interlude 1:

Ava Jaxo

 

Prudii lay on his bunk and contemplated. So she was dead, then. Sergeant Ava Jaxo was dead. He hadn’t lost someone close to him since his family’s death.

 

It wasn’t something he thought about much, let alone talked about. That was why his past was such a mystery to Jorgan and the others–he didn’t like to think about it himself, so why should others?

 

But now another person he’d been close to was dead. Jaxo hadn’t been marriage material, but she had been a good friend. He remembered returning to her home briefly after the Quesh mission.

 

* * *

 

Prudii entered the house alone. He was nervous about coming, mostly because of his relationship with Dorne. He didn’t want her to see this as a sign of disloyalty.

 

He pressed the access panel and entered the home. Jaxo was lounging on the couch across the room, a glass of liquor in her hand. She smiled at him.

 

“Hey there,” she said. “Glad you could make it. Sit down, take a load off. I hear you’ve been a busy man lately.”

 

He nodded politely and sat beside her.

 

“Havoc’s got a lot on our plate these days,” he confirmed.

 

“Quite a stunt you pulled on Quesh,” she said. “I’ve got a pal in the Safecrackers who says you took on half the Empire single-handed. She wanted to know everything about you, of course. I did my best to make you sound boring and ugly. Enough competition out there as it is.” She laughed.

 

Prudii smiled a little, unsure how to break the news about Dorne to her. After that statement, she would take it badly. But he had to tell her.

 

“Look, Jaxo,” he said. “I have to be honest with you. I’m in a relationship with someone.”

 

Her smile slowly straightened. “Huh,” she said, obviously trying not to sound hurt. “Figures, I guess.” She paused. “She’d better be the second most charming and attractive girl in the galaxy, or I’m not going to be happy.”

 

He saw no reason to beat around the bush. “It’s Elara Dorne.”

 

“Dorne?” she exclaimed. “I mean…that’s great. She’s a looker, after all, but…a bit stiff, eh? Sorry.”

 

Prudii smiled gently. “Look, no hard feelings.”

 

“Great. I’m happy for you, really I am.”

 

There was an awkward pause, and Jaxo sipped her liquor. Then she set it down on the table and stood quietly.

 

“Maybe you should go,” she said.

 

So he did.

 

* * *

 

He felt guilty for leaving like that, because now she was dead, and they’d parted on bad terms. He hated that.

 

Elara knocked gently on the wall beside his open door. He motioned for her to come in. She sat on the bed beside him, and he put his arm around her.

 

“Did you love her?” Elara asked.

 

“No,” he replied immediately. “No, she was just a good friend. I only feel this miserable because the last time we saw each other, after Quesh, I left her while she was angry, because I told her about you.”

 

“I see.”

 

“Dorne, I’m the kind of person, I can’t stand to have people upset at me. And when they die while, in all likeliness, still upset at me…well. You get the idea.”

 

“Do you regret our relationship?” she asked.

 

Prudii smiled. “Not for an instant.”

 

“Good.”

 

Prudii considered for a moment. He never wanted to lose Dorne, but more importantly, he wanted to be with her forever.

 

“Will you marry me?” he asked.

 

She paused, her eyes wide. “Yes!”

 

Prudii smiled. “Great. I love you, Elara.”

 

“I love you too, Major. I wonder if General Garza will be so kind as to officiate. She has quite the powerful voice.”

 

“Yeah,” he said. “We can have a ceremony, but after Rakton’s dead on the floor. For now, we can do a Mandalorian marriage ritual.”

 

“Right now?”

 

“Yes. Mandalorian culture is very quick and to the point. Marriage takes seconds, and ironically divorce takes much longer.”

 

“Makes sense,” she admitted.

 

Prudii nodded, then took her hand, meshing his fingers with hers.

 

“Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar’tome,” he said. “Mhi me’dinui an, mhi ba’juri verde.”

 

Dorne paused, taking it in, then said, “Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar’tome. Mhi me’dinui an, mhi ba’juri verde.”

 

“I love you, Elara Dorne.”

 

“I love you, Major Prudii.”

And now we come to maybe my favorite action cutscene in the game!

 

Chapter 26:

Voss

 

Jorgan was still in wonder at the world of Voss. It was quite a wonderful planet, he decided. Somewhat like his homeworld Cathar, but…different, somehow.

 

And the Voss themselves were an odd species. Mostly human, they had metallic skin with tattoos in mixtures of reds, blues, and yellows. Their eyes were droid-like in their vacancy. And they acted unlike any being Jorgan had ever seen.

 

They’d been here for almost three hours, killing Gormak for the Voss and Imperials behind their backs. It wasn’t a good idea, he knew–if their battles were discovered, Havoc would be kicked off the planet, with no chance of freeing up the local Republic battalion they needed for the fight with Rakton.

 

Worse, the blasted Senator was watching their every act through Prudii’s armor cam–any action he didn’t approve of, and he’d reject their help and keep the battalion.

 

Now, a Voss commando team was pinned down and Havoc Squad had to save them. Prudii came to the door to the Gormak complex and held up a fist to halt them. Then, he stepped inside slowly and nodded. Ahead was a Gormak corpse. Jorgan gave it a quick once-over and frowned. A high-tech blaster, not like the Voss’ at all, had killed this Gormak.

 

Prudii knelt and touched its chin. Suddenly, a smoke grenade went off.

 

“Enemy contact!” Jorgan said.

 

A squad of Imperials rappelled from a second level, rifles firing. Prudii made a hand gesture and the squad disappeared into the smoke. Jorgan had his rifle leveled, ready for Prudii’s command.

 

One of the Imps fired at Prudii, and he rolled off into the smoke. Jorgan trained his rifle on the Imp, but Prudii checked Jorgan over the comlink.

 

But Prudii didn’t check himself. He stormed in, a man on a mission. He jabbed his vibroblade into the first Imperial’s chest, and then backhanded the second Imperial. When the Imp fell, Prudii stepped on his chest and choked him with both hands.

 

“Wow,” Vik said. “Brutal.”

 

“He’s been through a lot,” Dorne said.

 

Ahead, an Imperial officer had his arms on his hips, watching his troops fire on the Gormak. One last Imperial limped away from Prudii, and the officer turned. The Imp soldier collapsed. Prudii motioned for Havoc to enter the room. The officer glared at them.

 

Jorgan trained his rifle on the Imp, as did Prudii and Forex. Dorne, Vik, and Yuun brought up the rear.

 

“That’s quite enough, Major,” the Imp said. “We have the rescue operations well in hand. Sadly, for Havoc Squad, the challenge of the Gormak was simply too much. Your remains won’t be recovered for some time. My condolences.”

 

“I’m here to rescue the Voss,” Prudii said. “You can help, or you can get out of the way. If not, I’ll shoot you. Simple.”

 

The major scoffed. “No one will ever know we’re involved with your death. Why not remove the greatest threat to the Empire? Men, open f–”

 

Jorgan snarled and shot him in the chest. The officer dropped, and the other two Imps opened fire. Prudii and Forex cut them down.

 

“Move it on, men!” Prudii said.

 

They ran into the next room and opened fire on the Gormak. The aliens were powerful, but they were not expecting to encounter six Special Forces soldiers. Jorgan cut down the last of them as they ran off.

 

Prudii ran up to the Voss. One raised his rifle, and for an instant Jorgan thought the Voss was going to shoot Prudii. Apparently so did Prudii, because he snapped his rifle up. But the Voss shot past Prudii at a Gormak that had been sneaking behind them. Prudii whirled and shot another one.

 

“You arrived as predicted,” the Voss said. “We return alone.”

 

Well, Jorgan mused, they could have been a little more grateful. But this job wasn’t for the thanks.

 

“I’d be happy to escort you back to Voss-Ka,” Prudii said.

 

The Voss walked past Prudii and said, “We return alone.”

 

Then he and his men were gone.

Chapter 27:

All the Marbles

 

This was it.

 

After Voss, Garza had called Havoc back to Coruscant because a Senator was demanding a hearing. As it turned out, the Senator was on an Imperial payroll.

 

After Prudii had brought him to justice with inarguable evidence, they had returned to Garza’s office to find her gone.

 

That shocked Jorgan–the woman never left Coruscant. But her aide had said that Rakton had attacked Corellia and she’d been needed. So now, the Thunderclap was flying full speed to Corellia, and Havoc Squad was ready for Rakton.

 

It was time to end this.

 

* * *

 

Kneeling outside the Bastion, Tanno Vik watched as the three battalions of Republic soldiers–infantry, artillery, and the Safecrackers–entered the courtyard.

 

“Amazing,” he said.

 

“Yuun has never seen such an occurrence.”

 

Vik looked over at the Gand. He had his hands crossed, standing attentively with his electrostaff slung across his back at the ready. Vik was amazed at his calm, even as they prepared for the biggest battle of their career.

 

“Yuun contemplates,” the Gand said. “It is quite likely that one or more of us will not come out of this alive.”

 

Vik’s heart dropped. “Relax, buddy. No way the Major will let us go down.”

 

“The Major is not immortal.”

 

Vik sighed. He hated Yuun’s straightforward attitude. He always said what he meant, and that was usually the truth.

 

“Havoc Squad!” Prudii said. “Move out!”

 

* * *

 

They fought through the Bastion, blasters blazing. No vibroswords or electrostaffs now–it was pure black-ops, blaster-to-blaster. Yuun raised his rifle and blew apart a security droid.

 

“Move in!” Prudii said.

 

Yuun bashed another droid with his rifle, and its neck crumpled and the head rolled off. Another team of security droids charged in and fired at the squad. They took cover almost as one.

 

Yuun knelt and switched his rifle to full auto. The droids fell as each of his bolts pierced their energy cores.

 

Then, they were outside Rakton’s command center. Prudii stood to the right of the door, and Jorgan took the other side. Vik planted explosives on the center control panel, and Yuun, Forex, and Dorne stood back and trained their blasters on the door.

 

“Clear!” Vik said.

 

He rolled aside, and the door blew apart. Jorgan threw a grenade inside, and as it exploded Prudii swung in. Yuun charged in behind Vik and Jorgan, and the rest of the squad filed in.

 

“Ah, the one worthy opponent in the entire Republic,” Rakton said.

 

He stood in the middle of the room, an Imperial soldier on either side. Rakton stood casually, his hands crossed behind his back and a sniper rifle slung over his left shoulder.

 

“Ironically,” Rakton added, “outmaneuvering all of my plans to save the Republic’s people. Can you not see your corrupt and weak-minded leaders are dragging you down?” He sighed wearily. “Your Republic will fall–by the hands of the Empire or by the weight of its own decadence. The end is inevitable. Why prolong the suffering?”

 

Prudii stepped up face-to-face with Rakton and, to Yuun’s surprise, removed his helmet.

 

“General Rakton,” he said quietly. “There will always be bad leaders–the Empire has its own, and Artus Lok of the Mandalorians is possibly the worst leader we’ve had since the Mandalore who sided with Exar Kun. But that does not mean that this is the answer.”

 

Prudii stepped back and slammed his helmet down. Then he stepped back.

 

“You serve the Empire–who are you to choose the leader of the Republic, let alone Mandalore? Yes, I know the truth–Artus Lok, the man so many Mandalorians call Mand’alor–was set in power by the Empire.”

 

He snarled. “General Rakton, in the name of the Galactic Republic, for crimes against its citizens, and for setting up a puppet ruler on Mandalore, I place you under arrest. Resistance will be met with death.”

 

Rakton shook his head. “Very well. Kill him.”

 

Then he ran backwards. Yuun threw his rifle down and pulled out his electrostaff. Then, as the two Imperial guards attacked, he leapt in.

 

“Go!” he said. “Yuun and Vik will hold these!”

 

Prudii nodded and ran after Rakton, followed by Dorne and Jorgan. Forex remained behind to guard the entrance.

 

Yuun attacked one guard, and Vik the other. The guards had assault cannons, and it took all the flexibility in Yuun’s body to avoid each shot. He jabbed and slashed at the Imp, who continued to fire while dodging Yuun’s blows. Clearly, these troopers were Rakton’s most elite.

 

The guard bashed at Yuun to throw him back. He grunted and rolled with the blow. As the Imp fired, Yuun leapt to his feet and rolled in the air. He spun his staff in quick circles, deflecting bolts as a Jedi would.

 

When the guard paused to reload, Yuun leapt in and jabbed his electrostaff into the guard’s cannon. The weapon overloaded and exploded. The guard dropped to his knees, and Yuun jabbed his staff into the guard’s gut.

 

He sighed in relief and glanced over at Tanno Vik. The Weequay had cut apart his opponent’s chest piece, and blood ran across the corpse.

 

“Well done,” Yuun said. “Come. We must help the others.”

Interlude 2:

General Rakton

 

Prudii dashed after Rakton, not even bothering to see if Jorgan and Dorne were following. Rakton, seeming to realize he was being followed, stopped in his tracks, threw up an energy barrier, and pulled his rifle from its sling.

 

Prudii ducked behind a console as a series of sniper blasts came his way. He let the fear build. His father, a great warrior, had told him that you could either let your fear control you, make you panic in battle, or you could use it, fight with it.

 

So he added to his fear anger–anger at his parents’ deaths, anger at the destruction of his first home, anger at the realization that Artus Lok, the Mandalore he’d served so faithfully, was a plant.

 

Standing, he fired at Rakton. The general ducked back behind his energy barrier. Prudii saw that Jorgan and Dorne were firing at him from the cover of another console.

 

Rakton rose just enough to lay down fire at them and force them to drop behind the console. Prudii fired a mortar round from his rifle, which knocked Rakton away from the energy barrier. He charged in and bashed Rakton across the shoulder.

 

Rakton grunted and dropped his rifle. Prudii pointed his rifle at the man’s temple. Jorgan and Dorne ran up behind Prudii.

 

“So…this is how it ends,” Rakton said. “A lifetime of service to the greatest cause in galactic history. What happens now? A simple execution? Or will the last civilized man in the galaxy be paraded through the streets of Coruscant as a trophy for your ignorant masses?”

 

Prudii considered. He couldn’t very well kill the man in cold blood–as much as Prudii disliked the general, he was a fellow soldier, and he deserved a trial, just like any other POW. But parading around through Coruscant–that would be demeaning.

 

“Neither,” he said. “You’re going to Coruscant, but you’re going as a political prisoner–certainly not a trophy.” He turned. “Jorgan, call for evac. We’re done.”

Edited December 8, 2012 by YoshiRaphElan

That final battle on Corellia was a good one. The target maybe wasn't as epic as some of the other classes, but the battle was pretty nifty.

That final battle on Corellia was a good one. The target maybe wasn't as epic as some of the other classes, but the battle was pretty nifty.

 

Yeah, I just wish we could've fought alongside those other troops - like the Gauntlet mission x10.

This part intersects with the Ilum portion of my Lieutenant Pierce story - read up!

 

Chapter 28:

The Battle of Ilum

 

Jorgan sat aboard the Thunderclap and wondered. The new Chancellor, Saresh, had actually released Rakton to the Empire in exchange for thousands of prisoners of war. Now Havoc would have to hunt him down all over again–blast.

 

The Thunderclap was headed for Ilum, now. The Empire had attacked the Republic there, trying to capture the crystal caves the Jedi reserved for their lightsaber construction.

 

“No break, huh?” Vik asked.

 

“No break,” Jorgan replied sharply. “We go where the Republic needs us. Besides, if Supreme Commander Rans himself is on Ilum, it must be pretty bad.”

 

“Coming in for a landing!” Prudii called. “Get ready!”

 

Jorgan briefly thought about the Deadeyes. Before he and Prudii had left Coruscant, they had talked to Garza about them–but she had been so distracted by Rakton that she hadn’t been able to work on that. She promised to contact her people.

 

He hoped they found them.

 

As they touched down on Ilum, Jorgan looked outside. He saw blaster fire and lightsabers lighting up the night sky. Then he looked up and was awed. The sky was filled with meteors and ice from the orbital rings falling through the atmosphere, and it made for a stunning display.

 

No time to think about that.

 

“Let’s move, Havoc Squad!” Prudii said.

 

As they leapt out of the ship, Rans contacted them to give them orders. Jedi Master Gareb was on the ice fields outside the crystal caves, and he needed backup.

 

They charged in, weapons firing. Gareb and his apprentice Nadia were battling a Sith Lord with a pair of lightsabers–blue and red. Jorgan thought that was odd, but he didn’t question it; he just went in firing.

 

The Sith Lord had backup–an apprentice, a pair of Imperials, a Twi’lek with a pair of blasters, and a large Talz with a vibrosword. Vik charged in at the Talz and Dorne took aim at the Imperial with the captain’s badge.

 

As Jorgan fired, he saw Gareb shake his head at the Sith Lord and then drag Nadia away–strange, but maybe Rans had ordered him elsewhere. Yuun and Jorgan fired at the Sith Lord, and he deflected their bolts back at them.

 

Jorgan grunted as the bolt hit him square in the chest–and so did Yuun. They fell to the ground, and Jorgan thanked his lucky stars that the bolt had not hit his face. As he stood, he saw that the Sith Lord and his allies had moved toward the cave. He grunted and stood.

 

“New orders,” Prudii said. “If we can’t stop the Empire from getting the crystal caves, we at least stop them from blowing them up.”

 

“They’re trying to–” Jorgan stopped. “So that’s where that Sith Lord went.”

 

“Jorgan, Vik, you get in there. The rest of us will hold off the Imps.”

 

“Let’s move it!”

 

Jorgan charged into the cave, rifle shouldered. Inside, the Imperial captain–snotty looking man, he decided–was talking to the Talz, who bllorped in an unintelligible manner. The third Imp, a soldier with lieutenant’s markings, was setting the bombs.

 

Jorgan fired on them, but they ducked and ran out the back tunnels.

 

“Vik! Disable these bombs, now!”

 

Jorgan ran into the cavern and glanced at the bombs, then charged after the Imps. To his surprise the snotty Imp whirled back around the corner and snapped off a shot. Jorgan ducked back and gave a snarl of annoyance before ceasing pursuit.

 

“Uh, Jorgan?” Vik said. “We better get out of here. These bombs…they can’t be disabled!”

 

“Move–!”

This is the final entry of this story - however, coming soon is a story including all classes!

 

Chapter 29:

Blood of His Men

 

Gripping his ankle, Jorgan looked outside the ship. The bombs had gone off when Vik and Jorgan had been just outside the caves, and some ice had flown and shredded the skin on Jorgan’s left ankle, as well as pierced the bone.

 

They were on Hoth now, because Garza had found the Deadeyes. And Imperial prison camp on this world seemed very unlikely–but that was what Zane was after, wasn’t it?

 

“Let’s go,” Prudii said. “Just you and me.”

 

“Right,” Jorgan said.

 

* * *

 

Jorgan felt his blood boil as Zane entered the cave. How had he–

 

It all made sense now. Jorgan snarled and was sure he said something to Zane, but he couldn’t hear what he was saying–the words were coming out of his mouth without his consent.

 

“I’m here to find that Imperial prison!” Zane said. “Now you’ve ruined it! I can’t just stay or they will wonder why two Special Forces troops broke in and didn’t rescue me!”

 

“Forget you,” Prudii said.

 

Jorgan said something to Zane again, and then he turned to the Deadeyes. He could hear himself again.

 

“Come on, let’s get the others and go.”

 

“Sir…” one said. “The others didn’t make it. They…froze to death.”

 

Jorgan drew his blaster on Zane and started yelling accusations. He told Zane it was his fault and he was going to shoot him. Prudii was yelling at Jorgan to stand down and Zane was telling him what an idiot he was–

 

“Jorgan,” Prudii said. “You’ll be court marshaled.”

 

Jorgan sighed. “Yeah. Right. But I’m putting you on trial when we get back to Coruscant, Zane. So help me…you’re going to regret this.”

 

Jorgan regretted it himself. All of it…

 

But he would continue to fight the Empire. For the Deadeyes.

 

END

Congrats on finishing! (I'm holding out hope that we'll find out more about the secret prison later on in the game )

Congrats on finishing! (I'm holding out hope that we'll find out more about the secret prison later on in the game )

 

Thanks!

 

Like I said, more to come.

thanks!

 

like i said, more to come.

 

maaaan, i can't wait for more!!!!

maaaan, i can't wait for more!!!!

 

More is here!

 

Legacy of Destruction

That was an impressive piece of writing full of emotion and laughter.

 

I could visualize what was going on at each point and both felt sadness and joy when the story had such emotions present, especially when you have to make the decision on whether to save Jaxo or save the soldiers because it really is a tough decision to make.

 

I commend you for your writing ability and loved how you intersected the Flashpoints and the companion interactions and past meetings like Jorgan and Iresso.

 

I look forward to reading about Makeb, Rishi and Yavin 4, mainly due the fact I'm at the point with my current Trooper which is another reason I enjoyed this story as its all still fresh in my head from my playthrough.

 

I must add though that when I was reading the first part of the attack on the Gauntlet when you have Yuun as your companion, it reminded me alot of my first playthrough on my first Trooper Vanguard as I found a nice balance between Yuun's melee abilities and my own Shield Specialist abilities.

 

Unfortunately I couldn't recreate the same balance between my Jedi and Sergeant Rusk, but I guess that was down the roles being reversed and Sgt Rusk not being a Tank.

 

All in all I enjoyed your story immensely so well done.