Star Forge - Chapter 11

Even after all the fighting sleep eluded me. I settled for some good old meditation. It had been a couple of days since I had done it. The Force flowed around me as I tapped into my personal reserves. Alderaan was covered in veins of wild energy. A small bit of focus told me they belonged to the vast network of Killik. I had expected their minds to be empty; instead, I found a set of orders on repeats.

Expand. Gather. Serve.

I followed the flood of drones until I found the first soldier ant. It had the same basic commands with some minor knowledge for tactics and how to use scavenged weapons. The Joiners were the worst; they were truly empty. Everything that made them a person had been stripped. Stolen, I realized once I found an Overseer. Skills and useful knowledge had been catalogued and assimilated. The minds of the Overseers were a storm of stolen lives.

Further searching and I found the Queen. Unlike the others, she was sapient, not merely sentient as her drones and soldiers. Even the Overseers with their expanded mental abilities were beasts in comparison. She wasn't Force Sensitive, thank whatever gods there were, but she could feel something to do with my presence.

Her mind was complex but lacked any sort of mental protection. I delved into her memories and found years upon years of darkness. She had been trapped underground with no hope of escape or expansion. I watched as she carved out her own stretch of power. Constant battles over food, wars between colonies, and an ever-present fear of being just another body on the pile of a stronger queens' conquest. Then, as though someone listened to her pleas, passages to the overworld opened. Her life as a beggar queen would be no more. The further flood of memories was seen through flashes of conquest. Humans were converted to Joiners, stripped of useful knowledge, and became the first of a growing surplus. It wasn't until later that she discovered she could use the hollow ones to trap others of their kind.

I pulled back to my body as my HUD chimed to let me know it was morning. Thankfully, I felt refreshed. My air reserves had been refilled through the night, and I swapped over to my internal supply before I forgot. Becoming a Joiner was not something I wanted to experience.

My search through the Force was interesting. It helped me understand the bugs more, but it didn't really do more than that. I didn't know where the queen was located beyond a vague direction. It was tempting to call in the commandos I had gained, but I needed to check on their equipment first. I wasn't going to send them to fight without a gas mask at the least. Plus, I didn't know how they would react to this new world. From what I knew about Sith, they were naturally Force Sensitive and leaned toward the Dark Side. Droids would be a better option.

I wanted to smack myself for not thinking about it sooner.

• [Droid Production]
  [Generation 1 –10 Minutes per 30]
  [Generation 2 – 20 minutes per 30]
  [Generation 3 – RESEARCH IN PROGRESS]
  [Basilisk Droid – UNAVAILABLE]

Second generation was better than nothing. I tried to queue up a batch.

• [Cancel Research?]
  [Remaining Time – Generation 3 – 7 Days]
  [Yes/No]
  [Add Research Slot – 500 Forge Points]
  [Balance: 50 Forge Points]

I glared at the words.

NO.

I couldn't make any until the research was complete. At least my plans weren't reliant on having the droids. Though it did make me wonder why they hadn't used them. There were more kinds of battle droids than the ones from Geonosis. I knew for a fact that they were used as far back as the Old Republic. Maybe Alderaan wasn't on good terms with the Techno Union. That made sense with one being a main member of the Separatists and Alderaan being Loyalists. Bad blood plus desperation equaled price gouging.

"Are you awake, Mando?" Queen asked as she waved a hand in front of my helmet.

"Don't think he'd like that if he is," Kaplan said.

"Then he should stop me," Queen rolled her eyes.

She leaned forward, using the reflection in my visor fix her hair.

"It looks better when you have it up," I said.

She jumped back, practically falling over a nearby cot. The rest of the squad broke into laughter.

"Funny," she glared at me.

I shrugged then stood and stretched. It had to be some sort of space magic that made sleeping in my armor comfortable. There was no reason why I shouldn't have a stitch in my neck and unhappy muscles. I wasn't going to argue.

"Did we get an assignment?" I asked.

"One went to check," Queen replied.

I scanned the room to see Rain was focused on cleaning her gear. Everyone already had their gasmasks on, which helped ease my paranoia just a little. The Joiners really freaked me out now that I had seen through with the Force. Mindless, hollow people that were little better than walking corpses.

Following that thought, I could probably identify them without putting others in danger. Why risk them attacking someone? I reached out in the Force with my focus on the camp area. The search came up clean. Continuing on, I extended to the area beyond the gates. There weren't any Joiners, but there was a group of drones slowly making their way closer to the camp. They moved subtly enough to avoid the sensors.

"Fuck," I muttered. "Grab your gear, we've got a problem."

"What?" Kaplan asked.

"Drones are trying to tunnel in," I said as I reached over my shoulder to grab my rifle.

The motion was instinctual, and no one questioned it. I almost ignored it as well until I remembered I was wearing a jetpack. There was no way it was safe to store a weapon beside it. Now that I thought about it-

• Don't Worry About It

I blinked. What was I thinking about? It didn't matter; the approaching drones were more important.

"How do you know?" Kaplan asked.

"Adjusted my scanner," I tapped my helmet.

It sounded like a better idea than telling them I used the Force. That would lead them to asking why I hadn't done the same yesterday. Then I would have to explain that the fact that I could use the Force had slipped my mind. First the droids, now this, I needed to do better about remembering things. It was better to play into the Mandalorian mystique than look like a moron. I might have access to an array of skills, but I lacked practical experience.

I waited for them to stack up at the air lock with me. We ran through the camp once the doors to the exterior opened with me at the lead. The guardsmen and mercs watched us pass. A few fell into step with us.

"Where are we going, Red?" Bo-Katan asked over comms.

"Drones incoming," I replied.

The gates were closed and locked tight. I wasn't going to demand they be opened with a potential ambush on the other side. My jetpack kicked to life, lifting me over the fence and putting me down onto the stretch of land beyond.

I couldn't help but smile at the disgruntled yelling from the mercs as the Nite Owls followed without missing a step.

"Kiskin, what the kriff?" Rain barked over the comms.

"Keep the gates closed," I said in answer. "Get people on the turrets and guard posts."

She replied with a string of curses.

"Do you have demolitions?" I asked as we ran.

"Of course," Bo-Katan chuckled.

I skidded to a stop in the path of the tunnel. The ants hadn't reached me yet. Hopefully, that would mean we'd have enough time to set something up.

"Here," I pointed to the ground. "Make it good."

"Oh," Bo said with an edge to her voice. "We will."

Three of her crew rushed over. They moved with practiced ease to set the explosive. We moved back to a safe distance and waited.

"Ready," Bo said.

"Give it a moment," I said.

"Brace yourself," Bo practically cackled.

"Now," I ordered.

Her warning was worth it since the blast wave knocked me back a step even at a distance. A stretch of ground collapsed as the tunnel collapsed. I could feel a wave of drones die, but there were still more that survived. The dirt on top of the newly formed trench churned as a cluster of ant started to climb out. Drones made up the front line with soldiers popping up through the ground that was still intact.

I shouldered my rifle and started to pick off the front cluster of ants. The Nite Owls added their support cutting down the drones in a matter of seconds. It gave us a straight shot to the soldiers. I had already burned through two of the magazines. My last one went dry after downing a few soldiers. I drew the DL-44 to focus on headshots. It had enough of a punch to get through their chitin without an issue.

The turrets finally joined once the bugs were in range. Their support finally broke the charge. The bugs didn't stop until the last one was down. I checked the rifle magazines then swap over once I confirmed they were full.

Reaching out with the Force but didn't find more bugs.

"Clear," I called out.

"Owls," Bo ordered. "Clean it up."

The Nite Owls moved as a team making sure the bugs were well and truly dead.

"You know how to show a girl a good time, Red," Bo said as she strode over to me.

"I don't take off my helmet until the third date," I turned to face her.

"It comes off?" Bo practically purred. "I was worried that you were ones that never take it off."

"You have to earn it," I teased. "Family, friends, and those I trust."

We stood in silence watching the Nite Owls finish up their sweep. I used the stillness to do another scan of the area through the Force and found it clear. My HUD pinged as Bo connected to the private channel she had started the other day.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"Do you have another option?" Bo asked in reply.

"To?" I cocked my head to the side.

"Death Watch and the Pacifists," Bo lacked the previous tease in her voice. "Concord Dawn isn't enough to maintain our people."

"I'm going to give us a third option," I stated.

"And how do you plan to do that?" Bo asked with a bit of edge to her voice.

"Simple," I replied. Grow my legend, gather our people, and earn the title of Mand'alor."

"Just like that, eh?" She gave a single, dry chuckle. "Then what? Declare war on the galaxy?"

"We are meant to test ourselves against worthy opponents," I sighed. "Do you think the galaxy fits that description?"

"Then who?" Bo asked.

"Proper hunts, honorable mercenary work, and reclaiming our legacy," I answered. "Then we march if a worthy opponent appears." I paused. "Anyone paying attention can see that there is a war coming. The Republic is failing the Outer Rim and there are plenty of people ready to take advantage. We offer the people another option under our protection and grow our influence."

She didn't say anything. Another chime let me know she closed the private channel. She must have swapped over to the Nite Owls as her crew came over. Watching their body language and hand movements made it hard not to laugh.

I heard the gates open. It didn't take long for Rain and the others to join me.

"What was that?" Rain punched my shoulder.

I chuckled as she shook the tingles from her hand.

"Don't punch Beskar," I teased. "The bugs were trying to tunnel in and were going slow enough to hide from the sensors. It's not my fault you don't have a jetpack."

She glared at me.

"You and blue bird over there are getting chummy," Rain said. "Got a thing for women in armor?"

"Obviously," I replied with a laugh, then knocked on her bracer.

Rain looked down at her bracer. She shrugged.

"Do we have a new assignment?" I asked before the silence stretched too long.

"One has them," Rain replied. "He'll meet us at the Warthog."

"Lead the way," I inclined my head to her.

After a moment I pinged Bo on the private channel.

"What?" She snapped.

"Heading out on assignment," I answered keeping my voice even. "Stay alive. You can take me on a second date."

That got a laugh out of her. I waved as I turned around and walked back to the motor pool.

~

The map of the planet was entirely too depressing. It was set to track the spread of the Killik, the unknown status of multiple cities and towns, and the relatively small amounts of places that were confirmed to be evacuated. I had been wrong before. The planet didn't have separate continents. Instead, large chunks of the landmass were cordon off by mountain ranges or rivers. Those were the only things from the Killik being able to tunnel through the entire planet. At least two-thirds of Alderaan had been lost to the bugs. I could see why they had decided to basically nuke the planet from orbit.

"Your assignments are to locate these space-ports and destroy them," the Alderaan guardsman said. "Rescue is a secondary objective. Top priority is restricting the bugs to leave the planet. The only authorized space flights are the shuttles, everything else is getting turned to scrap."

Damn, they were desperate. The timeline was moving much faster than they had estimated.

"The bugs have attempted to use Joiners to through," another guardsman chimed in. "We've bombed the spaceports in to thin their numbers. Still, it's only a matter of time before they figure out how to reverse-engineer space worthy crafts or find someone with the knowledge they need."

"Any questions?" The first guardsman asked.

We all understood this was a last-ditch effort before things well and truly were fucked.

"Let's go," One waved for us to follow.

"Oya, Red," Bo met us outside.

She hadn't been in the briefing for some reason.

"Bo," I nodded in greeting.

"We're on guard duty while they pack up," Bo said. "Find me on the station. I'm getting that third date."

I gave her a loose salute in reply. She chuckled before turning and walking away. Thanks to the helmet I didn't need to suppress my smile.

• [Smooth Operator]
  +100
  [Roll – Bank – Shop]

It cost a hundred points to roll. I seriously doubted I would get something for fifty. Though I could bookmark anything good.

ROLL.

• [COST: 500]
  [HQ: Old Mansion]
  [Right now, this place is a bit bare and dreary looking, but it comes with some basic furnishings for you and your companions, as well as heat, water, electricity, and other utilities that are paid for or supplied by a generous benefactor. Not impressed? Fortunately for you there's more to this old place than meets the eye. Underneath the mansion is a secret lair equipped with a chemistry lab, engineering workshop, medical station, a high-end computer for scientific research and forensics, areas for weapons and martial-arts training, a large storage vault, and a vehicle bay that can fit something the size of a hovercraft. This can be attached to your warehouse.]

• [Bookmark – Dismiss]

That should help with the housing issue for the twenty-seven new Sith I had in stasis even if it didn't do much for my current mission. All I needed now was four-hundred and fifty points. After surviving this planet, obviously.

BOOKMARK.

• [Balance: 50 Forge Points]

I caught up to the squad as they reached the Warthog. Kaplan had taken the driver's seat. He gave me puppy-dog eyes when he saw me approaching. I chuckled as I walked around to the other side and hopped into the passenger seat. The seat was comfortable with plenty of room for me to have my rifle out and at the ready.

"Rescue is secondary," Medic said a few moments after we passed the gates.

"Alderaan is lost," Queen replied. "This is damage control."

"I didn't sign up to abandon people," Medic said.

"We'll grab the survivors that aren't Joiners," One added. "Only after we confirm they aren't joiners."

Kaplan kept the speed even as the Warthog easily bounced along. The scattered wreckage increased in number as we got closer to the location. Towns had been overtaken with the residents being Drones and Joiners. They were focused on their tasks than bothering us and we didn't have the time to clear every village along the way. Most of the cities had been turned to rubble which left the larger towns that had spaceports. The hangars protected the remaining ships from simply bombing the place with airstrikes and calling it the job done. I didn't want to imagine how much of a fight we would have had before.

My HUD alerted me that we were approaching our destination. The large town had probably been beautiful before it had been taken over by bugs and then bombed. Even with the burned-out husks of buildings and ant hills the location was gorgeous. It looked like Alderaan was doomed regardless of the changes to the timeline.

Kaplan pulled the Warthog to a stop a distance away from the town line. We had a decent view of the area. The guardsmen had provided us with tags for the hangar locations we needed to demo. My HUD marked each with a Waypoint.

"Orders?" Kaplan asked with a little hitch in his voice.

"Take us to the first hangar," One replied. "I'll take the turret. Keep your eye out for movement. Test any survivors before you offer assistance."

The final addition to the order was directed at Medic. Kaplan adjusted the speed due to the rubble. The Warthog still moved along at pace slightly faster than a sprint as it climbed over wrecked vehicles and ruined buildings with ease. Just like the other sites lost to the Killik there was a distinct lack of bodies.

Our first objective was on the edge of the town. On the other side, of course. We took as straight of a line as we could but spent most of the time on detours. The place was entirely still. Only wind and displaced grit from our passing stirred. We made it to the hangar to find a crater instead of building. The charred ground and surrounding buildings told us its change of status was explosion rather than bug related.

Kaplan pulled to a stop and gave One a questioning look. I didn't wait for orders. Instead, I hopped out of the Warthog and strode over to the crater. My HUD didn't detect the slightest hint of the remains of a ship or anything that came close to it. Even a powered-down ship had some sort of signature. The building was gone, as were anything inside. I returned to my spot in the Warthog and motioned for Kaplan to move on. The waypoint winked out then the next one appeared in the distance thanks to my HUD.

Ant hill became more prevalent as we continued on. My HUD informed me that the aim was thick with Killik pheromones. A single unprotected breath would turn a person into a Joiner. Drones went moved in efficient lines as they deconstructed buildings and gathered things seemingly at random. They ignored us as we drove, stopping to let us pass if we got too close. We hadn't seen a single Joiner among them. Either they were being used on the front lines or had been added to the food once they lost their usefulness.

Every passing moment made it clear that the bugs had won. I wasn't sure if our orders were a fool's errand or wishful thinking. This stretch of land looked to have been lost for quite a time. Seeing the Killik casually dismiss us was worse than them rushing us.

"Alderaan is lost," Medic whispered.

We pulled up on the second location to find it covered with Drones. They were in the process of removing chunks of the hangar and surrounding buildings. I followed the line of workers to find they were using the salvage to build something in the distance.

I jumped out of the Warthog as Kaplan slowed down to take a turn.

"Circle back for me," I said walking through the Drones.

I moved through lines of workers easily enough. Their path was as efficient as they could, which didn't take up that much space. The Drones increased as I got closer to the hangar. It was missing the doors, windows, and had large holes in the walls. My HUD picked up the energy readings of four vessels. Only one of them was capable of breaking the atmosphere.

The ship was being taken apart one part at a time. Sheets of metal had been removed, the cockpit glass was gone, and the seats were missing. Their main focus was the engines. Instead of breaking them down into parts they were trying to remove them intact. They moved with guided precision, the technique clearly taken from some poor bastard.

Which meant that an Overseer had to be nearby.

I stepped behind a pile of scrap waiting for the Drones. Being seen by an Overseer would not end well for me. I scanned the ship, looking for something I could shoot to make it go boom. The demo charges were back on the Warthog. They weren't crazy enough to drive through a crowd of Drones to get here.

My mind flashed back to the Overseer yesterday. The Soldiers it had used as a shield hadn't moved to attack without it around to issue the order. In fact, once those ants died the entire group just kind of wondered off or stood around to be killed.

A new plan formed in my mind. A simple one with three steps. Step one, kill the Overseer, don't die. Step two, blow up the ship, don't die. Step three, get back to the Warthog, don't die. Simple? Yes. Easy? I would find out shortly.

I drew the knife sheathed on my lower back. It was the space equivalent to a full-size Bowie knife, big enough to basically be a short sword. I carefully moved forward. My helmet scanned for the Overseer while I kept my head on a swivel. I joined the procession of Drones as they approached the ship. There were two distinct groups split to those taking apart the ship and the others working on the engines.

A quick look at the interior of the ship told me it had once been a shuttle of some sort. The remaining pieces were well made in the Alderaan style of form over function. I dropped down into the ship through a missing chunk of the hull.

I landed easily with plenty of room since the furniture and other décor had already been removed.  The sound of claws clicking on metal grew louder as I stalked through the ship. Everything that hadn't been nailed down, and most of the stuff that had, was already stripped. They had even stripped the carpet from the floors exposing bare metal.

The Overseer stood in the center of the engine room silently directing the mass of Drones under its command. It didn't even look like the same species on closer inspection. The Killik were kind close enough to anthropomorphic ants, but their look was mostly bug. This Overseer was closer to the bastard child of a mantis and stick bug while an ant filmed it.

Regardless of its biological origin or species, it needed a head. The thing was easily two feet taller than me, I didn't think climbing up its back was a valid strategy. A single 'help me' from it would turn me into a splattered mess followed by a burial in bug shit.

I tested the weight of the blade in my hand. It had amazing balance. I could easily see using the blade for years to come. I adjusted my grip, took aim, and hurled it toward the Overseer. The knife completed a full rotation before the blade sunk guard-deep into the bugs' head. Surprise and momentum knocked the Overseer face first to the ground. Its legs twitched a few times before it realized it was dead.

The Drones didn't even pause. Damn, I needed to see what other skill packages the Shop had. This Blade Master one was well worth the points and pain.

Now I just needed to figure out how to blow up the ship. I walked back into the hangar while avoiding the Drones. A quick circuit of the space came up with a bucket of sludge that looked like waste oil, a cracked hand torch, and a bent spanner. The bugs had already taken the fuel cells, which was unfortunate. Those things made excellent explosions. I briefly considered setting some sort of MacGyver trick balancing the cracked torch over the oil using the spanner as a switch of sorts. It would have been a brilliant idea if I knew how to do it.

I had to wait until the Drones dragged the corpse of the Overseer out until I could return to the engine room. It looked exactly the same. They continued to work according to their previous orders. The ants had taken the fuel cells, but there had to be something else that could make the ship explode. I scanned the area with my HUD working overtime. It pointed out the countless missing parts as I searched.

A flashing red warning popped up when I reached a panel near the floor that had been cracked. Something dark blue leaked around the edges. I didn't know what it was. Thankfully, my helmet alerted me that it was a powerful accelerant that should never come close to any sort of flame. I marked the location with my HUD and tagged the fluid to track for more.

Another scan of the ship and I had marked three other panels. They wouldn't spontaneously combust, but it was a start. I carefully removed the panels and disconnected the tubing allowing it to spill out. There was a small puddle from each when I was finished. The cracked hand torch barely had any fuel, but it would be enough to cause a small spark.

I stepped out of the ship and made my way to the closest exit. There was small opening near the fluid spills thanks to the removed portions of the hull. I sparked the torch a couple of times before it caught. A couple of hard shakes back and forth to test the flame proved that it would blink out with a simple motion. Another search of the hangar recovered a grease covered rag. I wrapped it around the torch, sparked it, and tossed it into the ship one the rag caught.

Cool guys don't look at explosions.

I could claim that was why I didn't watch. In truth, it was because I was sprinting to a safe distance when the spark reached the fluid. The explosion lifted me off my feet and sent me flying out of the hangar. I corrected my trajectory with my jetpack and landed a distance away. Chunks of bug rained down around me as I waited for the Warthog to circle around.

• [Bugs-Eye]
  +100
  [Shh! I'm Hunting Ants]
  +100
  [Awaiting Orders]
  +100
  [MacGyver Got Nothing On Me]
  +100
  [Spark of Inspiration]
  +100
  [I Meant to Do That]
  +100

• [Roll – Bank – Shop]

"Red? Do you read me, Red?!" My ears were still ringing when Bo's voice came over my comms.

"What?" I asked, slightly annoyed she interrupted my time basking in the point notifications.

"Get back here now," she yelled.

The sound of blaster fire mixed in with her words.

"We still have two more locations," I said.

"Forget it," Bo snapped. "The bugs are swarming the camp. Get back here now or the shuttle is leaving you behind."

"Fuck," I muttered.