Maze dashed across the compound, dodging bodies as he made a beeline for his newly-assigned ship. As he wove his way through the throng, he caught bits and pieces of various conversations and briefings.
"Gentlebeings, this is the Z-95XR Headhunter. It's not your grandfather's snubfighter and it's not as quick as an X-Wing, but it's still a damn good fighter. Unlike the original Z-95, this one is equipped with a Class 1 hyperdrive, which you'll need to escort our charges to Stronghold."
"Exodus Command, Squad 5-7 actual. Perimeter established, no action as of yet."
"Squad 5-7, Exodus Command actual. We copy. Maintain visual scanning."
"Right, med vials, injector, pressure bandages, pressor field generator, medscanner - you're set. Next!"
"Sir, I understand that this... sculpture... is a free expression of your feelings toward the Empire, but we have no room aboard the ship for it."
"All set? Good. Load 'em up and lock 'em down. Make sure they're secure. We don't need anything shifting mid-flight."
Maze pulled up short as a pair of loadlifters bearing the last of Sarrahban's carbonite-packed nycillin reserves marched up the Harvest Moon's port boarding ramp. The simple-minded droids gave no complaint about their task as the smuggler looked upon his temporary command with a mix of reluctance and worry.
Please, please tell me this thing is going to fly, he thought to himself.
As if by some act of the Force, a voice from behind stole Maze's concerns away.
"She's a beaut, ain't she?"
"Huh?"
A fellow Rebel limped up to Maze, hazel hair blowing slightly in the breeze. Her hazel eyes had that loving glint only a smuggler would have for even the ugliest of tramp freighters.
"I suppose, if you're into flying bricks," Maze replied with a shrug.
"Don't count her out. If it wasn't for this damned brace, I'd be flying her and you'd be stuck in the co-pilot's seat," she said, matter-of-factly. "In fact..." The pilot began to fiddle with the clasps locking her leg in the brace's grip.
Before she could undo the second lock, a motherly, gravelly voice caught her off-guard. "What did I tell you, Captain? You leave that brace on or I'll have you busted back to desk duty," a surly-looking Orfite medic grated.
Eyeing the Orfite warily, Maze watched the almost-familial argument go back and forth.
"Doc, you know I can't fly with this thing strapped to my leg!"
"That's the only way you'll get to fly as a co-pilot. It's either that or you'll be pulling logistics with a full replar splint," the Orfite physician grumped, locking the clasp back in place. "This is what you get for playing repulsor cav hero."
"I still managed to keep the Imps from blowing our cover," the hazel-eyed smuggler harrumphed.
Maze trepidatiously entered the conversation. "Not to interrupt, but who are you? And what does this have to do with my... ship?"
"Sorry, flyboy. The name's Kayna Adro - I'm your co-pilot for this mess of a mission, and you are?"
Maze blinked. "I'm Maze... Maze Cooper."
"And this clucking mother hen is our unit medic, Dr. Aughra," Kayna added, putting a protective arm around the fussing medic.
The Orfite squinted at Maze and sniffed, her large nostrils flaring a bit. "Well, he doesn't smell like a rookie, but he doesn't smell like an ace either," she smirked. "Still, if he keeps his head, you should be OK. Just don't do anything foolish. That's an order."
"Who, me? I'm Captain Cautious," Kayna smirked back.
"Right, just like you were cautious on Tatooine."
"I took out the Imps, didn't I?"
"Barely. Your speeder certainly didn't look like a winner afterwards."
Maze gaped a bit incredulously at his new co-pilot. "Waitaminute - you're not the Kayna Adro?!"
"The one, the only Turbine Princess, at your service," Kayna said, nodding in acknowledgment.
"He's bright, this one," Aughra said, poking Maze in the arm. "You take care of her - and that ship, understand?"
"Y-yes, ma'am," Maze said, rubbing his arm absentmindedly.
Aughra turned her attention to a tech hefting a pair of trauma kits. "Careful with those, Teff. Hopefully we won't need them, but if there's anything broken, I'll have your hide!"
"Doc, are you sure about this? I mean the medical unit they gave us is MSU-4. I've got a bad feeling about this," whined the Zelosian.
"Nonsense," Aughra chided him. "It couldn't be a better omen." The pair launched into their own separate debate over their respective cultural beliefs and superstitions.
Adro nudged a distracted Maze, waving a navcard in front of his face. "Here's the coordinates. Don't put it in the computer until lift-off. The card'll dump its info once it gets uploaded."
"Yeah," the smuggler said, pocketing the card. He watched as a pair of techs pushed a repulsor cart bearing Kakk and his droid project to the Harvest Moon's starboard cargo ramp. Maze's diminutive first mate was in fine form, standing atop the cart, directing the techs like a boss.
"You don't see that every day," Kayna quipped.
"Nope, and hopefully it's just the one time. If he gets that thing working again, he'll be insufferable," Maze replied, shaking his head. "Last thing I need is a menagerie running around... my ship."
"Something wrong," Kayna asked, a puzzled look crossing her face.
"Just remembering that she isn't the Hardback," Maze said sorrowfully.
"The Hardback?"
"Yeah, the Artorian Hardback. She's a Ghtroc 720. Belonged to my mentor and now she's mine - if I can ever get her back," Maze scowled.
"Who's got her? The Hutts? Pykes?" Kayna crossed her arms.
"A piece of pudu named Krellig. He's holding the Hardback until I get the money to pay off Galen's - my - debt."
"Typical Hutt accounting. Previous owner's debt goes to the new owner and the Hutts still get their money," Kayna leaned into the discussion. "If you can't pay the Hutt what he wants, you can always get her back the old fashioned way - the way he did it."
"Steal her back? Are you nuts? I don't want to end up some carbonite scuplture in his collection," Maze yelped.
"Still, let me talk to a few friends," suggested Kayna. "Work the chain of command and find out if there's something we can do, off the books. Every captain needs a ship and every ship needs a captain. I can see you need the Hardback. I might be a speeder freak, but even I get that."
Maze sighed and cracked a crooked smile. "Thanks."
"C'mon. Final briefing's set for 1100 hours and we've got 15 minutes to get there," Kayna said, pulling on Maze's sleeve.
Before they could depart, a new voice rang out in the distance. "Hey! Step it up, people. Skids up in one hour!"
Maze and Kayna turned to see a slightly older man clad in a Rebel flight suit walking toward them. His slightly battered helmet bounced against his thigh as he approached. "Let me introduce you to one of my friends," Kayna noted. "Bran ap-Fiel, pilot, Clone Wars veteran, and part-time Jedi."
"Clone Wars vet? Aren't you a little too young to be a relic," Maze said quizzically.
"I was a little young for a padawan, but I had potential - and still have potential, kid," the pilot grunted through whitening stubble.
"Kid? Kid?! I'm only a couple years younger than you, Gramps," Maze replied, sarcasm icing his words.
"You're still younger than me, so that makes you a kid. Let's get going."
* * *
"Our contacts in the Thustra system have confirmed that Fleet Admiral Tzenkens' strike force will consist of five ships, two Lancer-class frigates, two Lancer II-class frigates, and her own command, the ISD Dominus," the tactician said, marking the force's location on the holomap. "Their ETA is approximately six hours from now."
"Hey, isn't that - " Maze whispered to Bran.
"Yeah, Adar Tallon - wrote the book on starfighter combat," Bran whispered back. "We rescued him from Tatooine before the Imps could grab him, now shush."
"Tzenkens will most likely use her fighter squadrons to herd the transports into the Lancers' net, where they'll be crippled or destroyed. What forces the Sarrahbani government has on hand will form a blockade to screen out as many fighters as possible," Tallon noted.
Maze piped up, offering his own two centicreds to the briefing. "What good are a bunch of snubfighters, gunships, and customs cutters going to do against capital ships? Why not use our own fighters to bolster them?"
"As long as the blockade sticks to engaging the fighters and keeps the Imperial heavies at a distance, we can get most, if not all, of the transports away," Tallon replied, not breaking stride. "With the help of the engineers on Stronghold, we've been able to improve upon the modifications I made to the Z-95 Headhunters that Squad 57 helped to bring in. They're meant to blend in with the Sarrahbani Starfighter Corps' own Headhunters, but with an added surprise - the Class 3 hyperdrives I originally equipped them with have been replaced by Class 1 units."
Maze nodded in sudden understanding as Tallon returned to the main thread of discussion. "The Planetary Defense Corps will offer whatever fire it can from its ion batteries to disrupt the frigates, but I expect Tzenkens will keep the Dominus just beyond their range. That fire support will be in addition to any support they can lend to our ground troops, of course, so don't be too dependent upon it. Saber Flight, led by Commander ap-Fiel, will escort the Harvest Moon and the other transports to the jump point and then to Stronghold in the Ksift system."
Maze drew in a sharp breath. Six Headhunters escorting four transports against even a single squadron of TIEs was a terrible long shot. Knowing the Imperial Navy favored quantity over quality in its fighter strikes, that long shot was going to be nigh impossible. Of course, that was only in space. The ground pounders wouldn't have it any easier.
"Courage, kid," Bran whispered encouragingly. "We're not without tricks of our own. Trust me and the Force and we'll get through this just fine."
"Our contacts and scouts have advised us to expect a large number of partisans and their families seeking evacuation. Two separate convoys are on their way here to the capital with an ETA of four hours. Our infiltrators in the Imperial-leaning provinces report that the various house garrisons are standing guard, but not deploying beyond the regents' estates," Tallon reported.
"Understandable, considering they want the Empire to do all the heavy lifting for them," added Regess Marg Henoin. Having swapped her ceremonial robes for a Rebel uniform with a Commander's pips, she cut a striking figure standing next to Tallon in the room's dim light. "My troops are standing ready, as are house troops from houses Tolik and Tambrin. We've also got a battalion of the Landsguard Militia on hand as support."
Regent Lu Heitman stepped into the dim light of the holoprojector. "Prime Regent Nessus, his daughter - Lady Indara - and their staff will be evacuating aboard the Harvest Moon, so it is vital that ship get away as quickly as possible," he cautioned. "At least one of the transport crews has volunteered their ship to be bait for the Imperials. Their passengers will be armed partisan volunteers along with a mix of militia and house troops from House Nessus. Still, we hope everybody gets out in one piece."
"On that note, this briefing is concluded. Everybody report to your ships and stations. May the Force be with us all," Tallon ordered, switching off the projector and bringing up the room lights.
"Here, here," Bran muttered. "C'mon kid, we've each got pre-flights to do. And Kayna, don't let him wreck that ship, you know it's a loaner."
"Why is everybody a critic of my piloting skills when they don't even know me," griped Maze.
"I dunno. It's that certain special something you've got about you," Kayna chuckled. "Still, it is kinda cute."
* * *
Fleet Admiral Ardana Tzenkens strode onto the command deck of the ISD Dominus with both purpose and menace. The raven-haired officer seemingly melded with the shadows, the only things betraying her presence being the glimmer of an ancient rank placard from the Sith Empire on her chest and the shock of white hair bordering the right side of her face. How she had come by that feature - whether it was genetics or her rumored involvement with the Dark Side of the Force - nobody knew.
"Thanks to Regent Partas and Captain Fenral, we have been given the honor of bringing the Sarrahban system into the Empire's fold," she said activating the holoprojector. "Operation Usurper has three phases which work in conjunction with one another, the failure of any of these will severely compromise or perhaps even cripple the other phases, causing the operation to fail."
"General Krohl, you will lead the ground assault on Sarrahban. Your main objective will be the seizure of the Grand Parliament. Secondary objectives will be to isolate the holdings of Restorationist and Traditionalist regents who actively oppose our landing and to root out any entrenched resistance within the city," Tzenkens noted, sweeping her hand across the map of the capital city.
Across from her, a dour, thin man clad in Imperial Army gray stiffened in acknowledgment. "My troops stand ready. Will we receive any added support from the Stormtrooper Corps, Fleet Admiral," he queried cautiously.
"Yes, you will have three squads at your disposal. When the city has been secured and pacified, I may land with an additional platoon, but that remains to be seen."
Tzenkens pressed a button, changing the map to that of the space nearest Sarrahban itself. "Our spies have reported that the Sarrahbani have a relatively weak military and have relied upon their neutrality, diplomacy, and trade agreements to stave off Imperial intervention. Pirate incursions have been relatively few and far between, given that many of such undesirable elements view Sarrahban as insignificant and not worth the trouble to raid. As such, we will be relying on only three squadrons to carry out our objectives in space. Colonel Sanguinus, the floor is yours."
Colonel Talyn Sanguinus - a young woman, golden hair tied up in a regulation style - stepped forward and took over the briefing. "It's my understanding from our spy network's reports that Sarrahban has no capital ships to call upon, only ships equal to our own customs corvettes and cruisers along with a starfighter corps equipped with aged Z-95 Headhunters."
A touch to the holoprojector's controls closed in on a close orbital shot of Sarrahban. Icons indicating the star destroyer and her frigate escorts quickly slid into position with the frigates in a box formation ahead of the destroyer. "The main job of Nightsaber and Talon first flights will be to chase the transports into the frigates' firing range. Meanwhile, the second Nightsaber and Blood Talon flights will disable and destroy any additional resistance. Finally, the third flights from both squadrons will be responsible for escorting bombers from Wrath Squadron to offer air support against planetary ground forces."
Stroking his chin, Captain Raylan, commander of the Dominus, cleared his throat. Annoyed by the interruption, Sanguinus looked toward him with disdain. "A concern, Captain," she asked. "Do you disagree with the threat assessment?"
Raylan sighed. "Only in that we are relying upon the frigates to disable and capture the transports. None of those ships are equipped with tractor beams. An unfortunate volley - " He was quickly cut off.
"The commanders of those vessels are present, Captain," Tzenkens scowled, gesturing to the holographic projections of the four commanders, "and they fully understand their orders."
"Admiral, I mean no disrespect, but the Rebel Alliance is most likely sending aid to the Restorationist faction. They will undoubtedly have fleet elements in system," Raylan countered shakily.
"The Rebels may be enjoying their little victory at Yavin for the moment, but both Imperial Intelligence and the ISB report they have scampered back into the woodwork like the vermin they are. I doubt they're going to waste any of their precious fleet coming to the aid of an Outer Rim backwater," Tzenkens sneered. "But, your concerns are noted."
Colonel Sanguinus' expression turned to haughty derision in light of her commander's validation. Tzenkens then turned her attention to the second and third phases of the plan. "Once the city has been pacified, Imperial Army troopers and squads from our stormtrooper complement will oversee a brief occupation," she noted. "Once order has been restored and the populace settles into the routine of Imperial occupation and intervention, elements from COMPNOR and COMPForce will take over the day-to-day management of military and government operations."
This time, General Krohl stepped into the line of fire. "Admiral, with all due respect, the Imperial Army can just as easily maintain order. With the proper motivation, the citizens can be brought to heel and - " Krohl's voice faltered as he grimaced and stiffened in pain. Fire raced through every nerve ending and sweat beaded on his upper lip beneath his mustache and across his forehead.
"No, General," Tzenkens hissed, fixing him with a baleful glare. "The hearts and minds of the Sarrahbani people will not yield so easily to the blunt ministrations of the Army. Once COMPNOR and COMPForce have established their presence, CF-General Raine and Adjutant Norr will oversee the necessary sophontarian programs with the help of doctors Nakiim and Kyner."
"Yes, admiral," Krohl gasped, slumping visibly as the pain in his body quickly dissipated.
"Doctor Nakiim, are you and your personnel ready to execute your part of our plans?"
"Yes, Fleet Admiral," Doctor Nakiim said, entering into the circle of light with a haughty air. "IR-13 and its crew stand ready to insure the health of the Sarrahbani should anything befall them. My associate, Doctor Kyner, has promised me he will work closely with COMPNOR's Rehabilitation and SAGroup units to ensure compliance from the populace." At the mention of his name, the second physician, lean and hawkish, stepped silently into the light.
"Excellent," Tzenkens replied, placated. "Then all is in readiness. Report to your stations. Captain Raylan, notify me the moment we enter the Sarrahban system."
"Yes, Admiral," Raylan replied curtly before abruptly returning to the catwalk overlooking the bridge work pit. The images of all four frigate commanders winked out of existence. Colonel Sanguinus stared daggers into the center of Raylan's back before leaving to brief her pilots. Both ground force commanders followed shortly thereafter to brief their respective units. Meanwhile, doctors Nakiim and Kyner retreated to the safety of the star destroyer's medical section to discuss their own preparations.
Tzenkens herself exited the command deck and stalked to her quarters. The fleet admiral seethed inside. Were she a flag officer of the Sith Empire as her ancestor was, she would command both ship and fleet without the impediment of an individual flagship captain. Regardless, this operation would go as planned or heads would undoubtedly roll - Raylan's being the first.
* * *
FADE OUT TO A STARRY BACKGROUND
END CREDITS FADE IN AND OUT OVER STARS
CUE "GRAND ADMIRAL THRAWN - THEME (EPIC VERSION)" BY L'ORCHESTRA CINEMATIQUE
Maze Cooper - Howard Bunyard
Dr. Emery Halcor - Jason Dulin
Dr. Borill of Lorrd - Forest Pavel
Kakk - Philip Spidle
Supporting Cast/Gamemaster - Dale Meier
First Point of Trivia: Bran ap-Fiel is named in honor of my late friend Brian Apfel, a fellow Star Wars fan who attended college with me back in Iowa. Miss you all too much, buddy.
Second Point of Trivia: The designation MSU-4 is intentionally a comedic point of debate as Orfites believe the number 4 is a good omen while Zelosians see it as a bad omen.
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