Star Wars: 30 Years Later The Real Story - Chapter 50

Planet Phindar

– Main headquarters has been taken and the surrender call has been given- said Luke over the radio and Poe smiled.

– “Seriously, General”- said Poe seeing the enemy TIE fighters sending the surrendering signal- “did you even need us here? Looks like yiou could have won this skirmish all by yourself”

– “If only that was so”- said Luke with a sarcastic tone- “start the second phase to take control of the capital”

– “Acknowledged”- said Poe who received another message- “reports of enemies retreating to the South of position.”

– “They are luring us there”- said Luke- there must be an ambush.”

– “So let’s go”- said Poe animated- “to be honest I have not satisfied my fill of battle yet”

– “Go ahead”- said Luke- “I’ll settle things here in the meantime.”

– “Roger that”- said Poe switching channels- “This is G-Red leader to all units. Groups Nylis to Quipus are in charge of settling things here. The rest will follow to deal with enemy renmants”

– “Yes, Sir”- responded the voices of all the members of the squads.

The X-wings immediately changed course to the South where the enemies had retreated. The incredible speed of the starfighter covered the distance in little time and they noticed that the enemies had gotten into a forest with thick foliage which made all kinds of electronic visuals very difficult. X-ray would just show all kinds of confusing images, thermal would be useless in this tropical area and it was still day so night vision was off the table.

– “We’ll have to make passes and try to see something in the old fashion way, guys”

– “Hey, kid!”- said a very rough voice which Poe recognized as the leader of the IronBone squadron composed of the BTL Y-wing bombers, The besalisk called Tarpax or simply “The Boss”- “why not gas them out with a few incendiary droppings? I got some new models I’m itchy ta try!”

– “Phindians are very protective of their forests and we would get problems with them unless we can report a very good reason to do so”- explained Poe trying to see something in his monitor- “also, we heard that many phindians escaped from the initial invasion and took refuge of the forests around the cities so we can’t just burn it down”

– “Cheh!!! That’s why I hate politics and rules”- said the Boss- “it makes everything too complicated. Be a good lad and let me, would ya?”

Suddenly multiple explosions and fire sounds came from the forest and some X- wings and bombers received damage and some were shot down.

– “I’m down! I’m down”- said a voice through the intercom

– “Ground Batteries firing from the forest”- informed Red 12 sending the exact coordinates to the rest of the team- “how the hell did they get that?”

– “Prepare Evasive actions and counter attack”- said Poe making his starfighter move at an incredible speed which made even him, a little dizzy and even though his moves had been impressive, his ship had still received some damage.

– “More batteries detected”- said another pilot- also we can detect TIE fighters approaching from sector S44.

Poe knew it was a trap but he did not imagine it was this kind. The data had never mentioned the existance of hidden ground batteries in the forests. It looked like the First Order had built them in the short time they had been here which made Poe wondered why they had waste so much time and resources in this planet.

– “Hahaha! Hey kid!”- said Tarpax with a sarcastic but gleeful tone- “this a good excuse fer ya?!”

– “Yes, damn it!”- yelled Poe with anger and frustration- “let them drown in fire!!!”

– “Hahahahaha, now now don’t be so angry”- said the besalisk with a massive grin- “you still have lots of fun with those flies coming for us. Be a good boy and swat them fer me, would ya?”

– “Roger that!”- said Poe activatng his shields at maximum while evading- “Let the batteries to the Iron bones, we are gonna take care of the TIE fighters, use flares and chasers and set the forest ablaze around the batteries!”

All the starfighters did so and the forest was immediately set ablaze which made the vision from the ground much more difficult due to the smoke and they immediately went to face the TIE fighters in order to protect the bombers to do their job. Poe could hear the maniatical laughter of Tarpax as he let the bombs fall on the ground batteries while he engaged with the fast moving TIE fighters.

– “There ya go!!!”- shouted Tarpax followed by the rest of his squad who seemed to be fearless of the enemy batteries blastering and giving holes to their Y-wing bombers- “better luck next time, punks hahahahahahahaha!!”

Almost immediately and with a surgical precision all ground batteries were reached and drowned in massive explosions accompanied with a deafining sound which made Poe trembled a little.

– “Ahhhh, what a good sound!”- said the Boss with a satisfied tone as if he were savoring a delicious meal- “this is why I prefer planetary bombing, you don’t have that beautiful sound in outer space!”

– “All ground batteries eliminated”- informed a squad leader- “enemy retreating”

– “What? that’s all?”- said Tarpax with a dissapointing tone- “tha’ was bȧrėly enough! I’m not satisfied!”

– “It seems you scared them, Boss!”- said another member of the Iron Bones

– “What a bunch of sissies!”- commented another who shared the tone full of frustration- “should we chase and have a targeting contest?”

– “Don’t worry, it seems they need your services in the city at the West”- mentioned Poe changing course and sending the coordinates to his squad

– “What are we waiting for?”- said Tarpax once again sounding happy- “my lads will die of boredom if we don’t have more ta go kaboom!”

– “You sure you want to be here and not up there with all the fun?”- asked Poe while flying to the next target at full speed.

– “Nah!”- said Tarpax grinning- “As I said I prefer being down hea, plus I left someone up thea who loves tear those big ships apart and ta be honest she and her group are specialists in doing that, so so I feel sorry for the poor bastards who are in her hands now.”

(…)

– “Let’s go for another pass on the Black Star”- ordered Wedge AKA Rogue leader while guiding his team against the swarm of TIE fighters that tried desperately to defend the Star Destroyers in front of them- “Engage in formation and keep them busy so they don’t go after our bombers. Teams 5 to 8 focus on the reserves and open the way.”

– “Understood, Rogue Leader!”- the leaders of the teams replied through the intercom.

– “IronBone Squadron, we’ll open you a path”- said Wedge contacting with the leader of the group ȧssigned to accompany them- “be sure to hit them hard.”

– “Here, IronBone Charlie Leader”- replied the person who was a female Twi’lek whose squadron had been hailed as experts in dealing with Star Destroyers- “just had these pests out of our way and we’ll send this small credit waste to the scavengers!”

Wedge smiled at her way to describe a mega sized Star Destroyer as a “small credit waste” but then he remembered that for someone who was used to destroy them, in her eyes that may be how she really see them.

– “Engaging with enemy!”- said someone on the radio.

– “Enemy number are lower than expected”- said another voice- “we’ve got this on the pocket.”

– “Enemy fighters are too scattered!”- informed another voice- “are they newbies?”

– “The path is opened for the rancors, Rogue Leader!”- informed another leader to Wedge but this doubted for a moment- “Rogue Leader?”

– “Copied Yellow Leader”- replied Wedge but he did not give the order immediately since there was something bothering him about the behavior of the enemy. However, he also kew he could not let this opportunity slip away- “IronBone Charlie… you have green light!”

– “Copied!”- said the Twi’lek leader and she changed channels- “ok, boys and girls! Time to party! You know the drill so don’t make stupid mistakes! I’m talking to you, Persans!”

– “I won’t! Sheesh how longer will ye roast me for that, I was a rookie!”- said an angered voice throught the intercom which caused the laugh of everyone in the team.

– “I’ll do it every time so you won’t forget!”- said Andora who was the Twi’lek leader- “now let’s go and send this cheeky piece of crap to the end of the universe and after that Persans pays for the tab tonight!”

– “Gimme a break!!!”- shouted Persanas but his yell was drowned among the cheers of the rest of the team.

The team of BTL-Y wing fighters advanced in formation in direction to the Star Destroyer Black Star that started to shoot all the batteries they had on them but then they started to scatter having in mind their objectives. Very swiftly the first wave of bombs were deployed and they went directly for the Fore weapons stations and the weapons targeting systems which were on the frontal part of the destroyer. These section would of course had extra protection to defend them, but the groups of bombs had been so accurate that the shields and extra layer protections had just melt like buŧŧer on a hot pan. Andora imagined the panic that the crew of their enemy would be experimenting now.

– “Target hit!”- informed the responsible for that area- “wish them luck targeting anything without those!”

– “Go for the next target!”- said Andora knowing that now the turbolasers and missile systems of the Star Destroyer would be largely decreased in accuracy which will allow them to enter further into their deadly area- “don’t give them time to think!”

Andora had no sympathy for the First Order crew and just ordered the attack to continue. Her team kept targetting critical places on the Star destroyer which was quickly tranforming a mega weapon into a sitting duck. They were definitely pros and no Star Destroyer would stand tall in front of her.

– “All enemy systems reduced by 60%”- informed the technician of his team after a scan on the Star Destroyer- “Shield systems in critical condition!”

– “Good!”- said Andora ŀɨċkɨnġ her mouth as if already savoring the delicious beef she would be eating after the victory- “All units! Let’s go for the head!”

– “Roger!”- said a voice fulll of vicious intent

– “With pŀėȧsurė!”

– “Victory for our war goddess!”

The flying Rancors went up and even though they were not as fast as their couterparts which they liked to call Flying dancers, in the eyes of their enemies, they must have been swift messengers of death. They went towards the bridge of the Black Star and without a trace of mercy they unleashed their ion cannons and proton bombs on the main location of the humongous star ship which was reduced to ashes and melted metal in matter of seconds. Almost immediately, the once proud massive Star Destroyer Black Star now bent over floating without control on the space being pulled slowly by the gravitational force of the planet Phindar as if it bowed down to the victors who cheered and returned to their groups with smiles and grins.

– “I always wondered why they put their main weakness in such an obvious place”- mentioned Parsens who was trying to calculate how many credits he needed to pay the tab after the battle- “It’s like inviting anyone to destroy them.”

– “Who cares?”- said another member- “it makes our job much easier!”

– “I’ve always said that it was because they are so proud that they believe none would dare to attack them directly”- said Andora looking at the falling Star Destroyer with disdain and scorn- “their pride is their fall and our victory!”

Another round of cheering dominatedt their channel and Andora changed channels to communicate with General Wedge.

– “Mission accomplished, Rogue Leader”- she said with a proud tone- “awaiting for the next target!”

– “Excellent work, Charlie leader”- said Wedge who could see the massive ship of the enemy re-entering the atmosphere of Phindar- “Resupply and await for orders.”

Wedge immediately changed channels and connected with the Galactic Voyager where the Grand Admiral and leader of the Resistance, Gial Ackbar was.

– “Here Wedge Antilles”- said the Rogue Leader not following the protocols since it was a private call.

– “Here Ackbar”- said the raspy voice of the Mon Calamari- “you have also felt it, I presume?”

– “Yes, there is something really wrong with the enemy actions”- said Wedge looking at the fallen Star Destroyer.

– “I agree”- said Ackbar looking at the battle in full- “something is wrong. Any other would feel that the battle is ours and that we would win effortlesly, but…”

– “I know what you mean”- replied Wedge with a worried voice- “Hux may be many things but he’s no fool, he would never place himself in a loser’s end willingly.”

– “Let’s wait and see how things go”- said Ackbar who knew thsat he could do nothing more that taking advantage of the “weakness” the enemy was showing- “Pay attention to any signal of hyperspace jumps.”

– “Will do, Red Leader out!”- said Wedge putting an end to the transmission

(…)

Outer Rim – Bajic Sector – Lyveya System – Verguesso Asteroids

Meanwhile, on the other side of the galaxy in the Outer Rim, there were a very concentrated group of asteroids of varied sizes which would would make any captain of a large ship frown in nervousess. Any attempt to pass through this area would be considered a suicide and all official records marked it as banned area to all ships. It was for this reason that it was very surprising to see a lone ship flying the area while avoiding carefully the asteroids and seemingly loooking for a specific route. The ship was a Modified YT-1300fp light freighter under the name of Millennium Falcon.

– “Grrooooaaa Heeaaarrrg”- said Chewee while adjusting the speed once again.

– “I got it”- said Rey who was the copilot of Chewee and adjusted the instruments with a lot of sweat running down her face seeing the asteroids floating around them as if they were looking down on them- “Evasive trusters at maximum potency. Gravity engine reduced to 23%. Sending greetings to sector 561.2115… awaiting response.”

– “Guaarrrgraaaae!”- said Chewee using the intercom to pass his instructions to Finn and Celina who were manning the turrets and shooting down the asteroids which were impossible to evade.

– “Copy that!”- said Finn who was extremely focused and shooting non-stop to the endless waves of asteroids which threatened to hit the Falcon from the inferior side of the ship- “he said that the energy of the shields will be reduced so we must not let any middle size asteroids hit the Falcon.”

– “Understood”- said Celina with her monotonous tone while she also shot down the asteroids coming from the upper part of the ship.

As they worked hard to clear the way and avoid their destructions, two figures sat down on the resting area of the Falcon waiting calmly as they talked calmly about the mission they had to finish.

– “I still think this is too risky, Leia”- said Mara letting out a sigh after listening to the plan with more detail- “anyone would see that this is clearly a trap using the only thing that could attract your attention.”

– “I know…”-said Leia who was dressed with comfortable clothes totally different from those she normally used in her political life- “Luke said the same when I told him about this.”

– “Then?”- said Mara with an impatient look which would have made any other person feel extremely nervous due to the powerful weight her gaze carried- “I don’t remember you being a fool…”

– “My instincts are telling me to go…”- said Leia using a confident voice and returning the gaze to her friend who could feel the absolute willingness of Leia to bet on this mission- “and as a woman… I can’t let this chance go, even if I know it can be a trap… would you not also do this?”

Mara sighed once again and looked aside since she could not deny her words. Had she been on the same situation, she would have not doubted and she believed she would have even used a much more agressive and direct approach.

BIP BIP

– “Supreme Chancillor”- said the high pitch and sometimes annoying voice of C3PO who had come with Leia to this mission as an interpreter and due to its high end communication program- “news indicate that the attack on Phindar is advancing to our favor and they had already recovered three cities and many other towns…”

– “Thank you, 3PO”- said Leia amazed at the speed that underground network worked in transmitting the news- “and remember to call me master once we arrive… we would only have problems if my identity is exposed.”

– “Oh… my apologies, Supr… I mean… master”- responded 3PO with an embarrased tone- “news indicate that the Centrist faction has already sent a reinforcement fleet to secure the victory.”

– “So fast!”- said Leia with a joyful voice since she had heard of the political problems Senator Casterfo was having in his faction.

There hadn’t been a day since he had ȧssumed the power that he had not been attacked by the opposition in his faction who had tried everything to have him deposed and strip his power in any way possible. This was the reason why she had been surprised that the Centrist faction had been able to convince its members to send military strength so fast. Leia could only feel admiration for the man who seemed to have infinite energy to face all criticism with a straight face and a fearless smile while tackling everything on his way.

– “What about the Populist faction?”- asked Leia

– “My apologies, Senator”- said 3PO who seemed nervous- “there has not been any information about the Populist faction so far.”

– “I see…”- said Leia with a dissapointed expression- “Kep me updated, 3PO.”

– “Certainly, master”- said 3PO.

– “Problems with the Populist faction?”- asked Mara seeing the look of worry in her friend.

– “Amylin is having less and less influence in her faction lately”- said Leia remembering the blue haired woman who had worked together with her and the Centrist faction even though she hated Casterfo to the bone- “many planets in the Populist faction have risen in revolt and many terrorist ȧssociations have taken hold in many sectors.”

– “The First Order has been busy in those places then”- said Mara who knew very well they were the ones behind those groups- “I suppose they are just too busy with their own problems too help the New Republic.”

– “I’m afraid so”- said Leia who could not help blame Holdo for letting the influence of the First Order expand inside the New Republic- “The problem is also economic and cultural…”

– “I thought they were totally into inclusion and social welfare”- said Mara who had only heard of this faction.

– “They are, but…”- Leia sighed remembering the endless quantity of credits they owned the New Republic under the excuse of social help- “there are just too many people to help and limited resources.. also, many communities rebelled when the faction tried to force them to change some of their ancient customs that were considered barbaric and not sufficiently progressive…”

– “Humph!”- said Mara with a scornful tone- “aren’t they just trying to control everything using a passive agressive method? What’s different from the Empire’s methods? Even though I must say the Empire was more intelligent and let those worlds do as they wish so long they accepted their rule. They knew better than trying to mess with anyone’s customs and traditions.”

– “It’s a big mess”- said Leia knowing that in the end, the senate would have to tackle that problem to ȧssure the survival of the New Republic and she could just feel the massive headache it would be- “well, at least the battle is going well in Phindar.”

– “It would be a shame if they didn’t do that at least with the superior numbers they have”- said Mara but she had a strange expression- “I still think the First Order has something under their sleeves… it’s not logical to attack such unimportant planet.”

Leia understood what she meant and she was sure all the generals in the Republican army had the same feeling but there was nothing they could do until the First Order decided to reveal their hand.

– “Let’s hope for the best”- said Leia knowing she could do nothing about that battle- “For now, we should worry about what awaits in Bohiak.”

– “Groogerrrr graaa”- said Chewee and Rey sent the transmission of greeting to what seemed to be an inexistant point of the universe.

“Here ship 6665577897”- said Rey with a clear voice- “requesting permission to dock.”

– “Welcome ship 6665577897”- replied a voice after a short pause- “your access data is being verified please wait for a moment.”

Not anyone could have access to this place and did you not have the correct identification, you could even be shot down without noticing the source of the fire. Leia had used a secret identification that had been used from before the fall of the Empire.

– “Thank you for your patience… your identification has been cofirmed and you have permission to land… please use the dock number HG-3332. Enjoy your stay.”

– “Thank you”- said Rey with a confused expression since she did not know where the transmission came from and she did not know where they should dock.

However, soon her surpise turned into shock and fear as the systems of the Falcon were taken by someone and it started to act by itself. She was about to try to retake control but she was stopped by Chewee who simply put his both arms behind his head as he relaxed in his seat. Soon the Falcon started to maneuver throught the asteroid field and got close to a big asteroid who could be confused for a moon and it entered into one of the craters while moving in a quick and controlled way as if it knew the way by memory. After some minutes of flying through a series of laberynthic tunnels that would make anyone dizzy, the Millniun Falcon finally got out f the tunnels and entered into the central part of the asteroid which was a huge hollow place which had served as the foundation of a big city with endless buildings and which was illuminated by dashing and colorful lights that gave it a vibrant and intense vibe and such glamour that had nothing to envy to Coruscant cities. Rey and Finn could only watch this city in awe and disbelief.

– “Is this really inside an asteroid?”

– “Well, the first part of the plan is done”- said Leia who had come to the ċȯċkpit.

– “Let’s pray it continues like that”- said Mara who had followed her and they both saw the announcement that appeared in the panel of the Falcon.

– “Welcome to the Dark city of Bohiak”