Jedi Insurgency 305

The retreat into hyperspace was a surreal experience. 

For the first time since the day he had transmigrated, Corvus had lost someone who was close to him. Back when Yoda had passed, it felt like the death of a grandfather. The ancient Jedi was fulfilling his obligation as the Grandmaster to battle the baddest Sith of the age. His loss was painful, but also full of hope. Yoda had finally made up for his failures, and lived up to expectations. 

Clip, meanwhile, was one of Corvus's longest subordinates. They were friends, but in all reality, were more like working professionals. The hierarchy between them was set. One man issued orders, the other followed them. As a General, Corvus lost men all the time. Their deaths were like wounds to his heart, but he was a rational man, and had learned to live with that loss. He carried that pain, and used it as motivation. Motivation to be stronger, faster, and work harder. Motivation to teach his students to be better than the last generation, to achieve victory so that the next generation did not have to. 

Not a tear spilled upon his cheek as he stared out into the blue wave of hyperspace, but that ethereal realm of light seemed to pulse in time with his sorrow, and cosmic shards like comets passed them by, emitting brilliant icy-blue drops. Rain-like vapor dripped harmlessly down the windshield of the Falcon’s cockpit, as the Force wept for its Heart. 

The blue kyber crystal at his side pulsed at him: Friend. Force. Forever. 

Then the red came at him with twice the feeling: Anger. Rage. Revenge!

Other Force Bonds filled him like water to a pitcher, filling him with warmth, love, understanding, and a strong will to press on. 

Jax: Unyielding. Protection. Wilderness. 

Yon: Respect. Shadow. Kill. 

Keira: Warmth. Flexibility. Drive.

Tann: Strength. Cunning. Victory. 

Each one of them in their own way shared the concepts of themselves that were like a jumbled puzzle when all placed before him. Yet the Force pulsed, and his shadow wavered, accepting all that was, all that might be, and all there is. Jax, Yon, Keira, and Tann filled his pitcher, and the Force rejoiced. 

Veins of red that only Corvus could see pulsed within the void. Like blood feeding an artery, they coalesced around him. That loss, that void, it was filled with Protection, Respect, Drive, and Victory. 

A brief, heady feeling of enlightenment suffused Corvus. Fleeting as it was, he felt a unique one-ness to the Force at the moment. There was no System telling him what to do, nor was he on some sacred planet like Tython where some trial ground could be attributed to this experience. As his mood settled down, the arteries phased away, and the ‘tear drops’ of the ice comets evaporated. 

Taking a deep breath, Corvus felt himself at peace. Death was not permanent. Clip was now one with the Force. 

Inclining his head towards the brilliant, beautiful, endless cosmos, a small, silent prayer was upon his lips: thank you. 

The universe did not answer back in any grand fashion, or display of power, but a warm, loving pat on the shoulder was enough. 

As soon as his moment ended, it was like an invisible barrier isolating him from the rest of the Falcon had popped, and the men of the Bad Batch all started to crowd around him. 

“Clip was a good man.” Hunter said, plopping down heavily into the seat besides Corvus. 

“When it's my toime, I'd better go out with a bang like'im.” Wrecker jealously bellowed, wiping a tear stained face with the back of his gauntlet. “Clip's a reawl man awight.” Wrecker said, barely getting out the words he could between tears. 

“I estimate that between the forceful push of droid starfighters into the Black Monolith's shields, and the direct impact of the Indomitable, that cannon will be out of commission for several weeks, if not months…his sacrifice achieved a noble goal.” Tech hesitated in his speech, afraid it would give off the wrong vibe, yet pressed on anyway, his scientific mind unable to process things without assessing the pros & cons. 

“Hopefully it won't come to that, Wrecker, but aye. When the time comes, I wouldn't mind going out the same way. Here's to Clip.” Echo said, pulling out a bottle of whiskey, he took a swig, then passed it to Hunter. 

“We lost two Venators, whilst capturing two more, and a dozen+ Acclamators. Every transport made it out, and we recovered 80% of the escape pods from the Indomitable. I call that victory.” Crosshair-emerging from the back-said in his typical acerbic tone. 

Hunter sucked in a sharp breath, and glanced at Corvus in a hurry. “Now General, he didn't mean that now.” 

“I meant every word of-” Crosshair got out, when Echo hurriedly slammed a hand over his mouth to keep him from speaking. 

“Hah, and they says oi'm the dull one…ta Clip! Best bald brother o'mine, on account of him getting me a wife!” Wrecker said with a big, sorrowful grin. 

“Hold the transponder, you? When?! And you didn't invite us?!” Hunter pointed an accusatory finger, and was slowly becoming angry, yet due to current events, was practically choking on his spit trying not to erupt on the spot. 

“Eriadu. T’was a fluke it were. Talsa, ah, Talsa. Then there was'er sister Karna, and the cousin Marique. Thems were the days.” Wrecker said with a wolfish look about him. 

“...Wrecker, are you certain they weren't, erm, you know, ladies of the night?” Tech asked in a nervous, embarrassed tone. 

“Ah, how'd you know we only met at night?” Wrecker asked, raising his voice in alarm. “Jealousy will get ya nowhere, brother.” 

Tech opened his mouth to say something, and held a finger up to explain, but ultimately sagged his shoulders, realizing Wrecker wouldn't understand even if he tried. 

“So how did you and Clip meet these wives of yours.” Corvus asked in a curious tone, as he sensed no falsehood from the big man. From Wreckers's perspective, he was being 100% truthful. At the same time, he took the bottle from his hands-and even though he didn't care to drink-took a swig. 

Wrecker looked up to the ceiling deep in thought, and wore the goofiest big grin on his face. 

“Oh wipe that goofy look off yer ugly mug, ya big lump.” Hunter berated his brother, then turned to Corvus. “You don't really think he married three wives, do you, General? We've been on campaign for six months since we departed from Eriadu, eight since we first linked up with you. You really think the big guy could keep a secret that long?” 

“I must confess, my suspension of disbelief has been thoroughly waylaid.” Crosshair remarked, clearly unimpressed. 

“I think he's onto something. His spirit is remarkably clear. Wrecker's telling the truth.” Echo said, opening his eyes to the accumulated disbelief of his brothers. 

“Oh, and how can you tell?” Crosshair pressed. 

Echo merely smiled, and gestured down towards the garments he was wearing. Whilst everyone else in the Bad Batch were in their beskar, Echo had changed into his Jedi robe. 

“Tch. Show off.” Crosshair spat. 

“Hmph! Never dismiss a man's oaths! Clip had sworn me to silence, making a pact. Unless one of us died, or our children were born, neither of us would say a word to anyone else, lest we jinx it.” Wrecker-for perhaps the first time-spoke in a completely normal way, showcasing how serious this was. 

“Pregnant?!” Hunter gasped. 

“And why nawt? Ai'm a man who can dance with three ladies at once, ya know.” Wrecker flexed his huge biceps, and grinned with pride. 

“But it's been seven months since we departed Eriadu, then that means…” Tech said with wonder. 

“Yup! They'll be born next month.” Wrecker harmlessly laughed. 

“But Wrecker, that's premature. Typically Humans-” Echo got out, when Wrecker held out a big hand to shush him. 

“I didna say they were Humans, now did I?” Wrecker then pulled out a dataslate, and revealed a picture of three Twi'lek's with big bellies, deep into pregnancy. “Clip took me aside for some tactical discussions one day, and one thing led to the next, and we found out we both had an appreciation for s'plosions. We were having a right time at a bar, when I sees these three being placed in harms way. After rescuing them, Clip did some smooth talking, and now I'll become a papa.” 

Corvus gave a thumbs up. “Congratulations, Wrecker. Clip was a good man, looking out for a friend like you. To honor him, we'll have to well and truly destroy that ship.”

Wrecker took a deep breath. Tears covered his cheeks, yet a big white smile spread from ear to ear. “Aye! That's my oath! Clip, if you're out there, I'll explode that damned flying coffin for ya!” 

“To Clip!” Everyone else said, their voices ringing reboundingly in the cabin. 

Whilst the brothers bickered & querreled, Corvus looked upon them with a loving heart. The loss of Clip was steep, but he still had brothers of his own. People, countless faceless billions relied upon him, yearning for a free Republic. A Republic better and less corrupt, one where a man could go out into the stars, and travel without piracy, or groups like the Trade Federation squeezing them for every last credit. 

And now, he was going to be an uncle. Wrecker's children would be born in the next month or two, their first screams into a galaxy at war. Whilst Arcann made a move on Eriadu, he had foreseen that so long as Rahm Kota challenged him to a 1v1, specifically to reduce the losses of innocents, that Arcann would acquiesce. If the planet did fall, at the very least the inhabitants would be safe. 

Taking a deep breath, Corvus couldn't help but think about the future and his next steps. 

Currently the fleet was in retreat, and its destination was clear. Corvus had long planned their path of retreat, and it was to the staging ground of Umbara, where Master Tapal was gathering the Wookiees & Trandoshans to secure the nearby space, and eventually besiege one of the shield world's defending the Core, Commenor. Commenor blocked the westward hyperlanes from the direction of Kashyyyk/Onderon, and was a critical area to bypass. 

The Starcrusher Corp, meanwhile, was moving Rimward from Kuat, with the intent of bypassing the shield world. It was his plan to use the stolen access codes from the captured Imperial vessels to sneak past them. That way, the interdictors stationed at Commenor wouldn't pull his fleet out of hyperspace. Although they could launch an all out attack, that would be foolish. 

Pots and the ground forces had just finished a month+ long campaign, and besides destroying a few sections of Kuat's ring, and slowing down production, had little to show for it. The production planet would likely repair all the damage within another month or two, and would be shitting out new capital ships just as fast as usual. A slog like that was hard on the body, mind, and morale. They needed rest. 

The fleet element had just fought a brutal battle, but were still good to go. 

Therefore, once he linked up with Master Tapal, he would set out to pacify other minor worlds near Umbara's space, secure resources for production, and see if there were any racial hatreds that needed ironing out. Afterall, the Wookiees and Trandoshans have hated one another for millenia. He did not believe that this generational vendetta would be solved so easily. 

Then there were the Umbarans. Fierce warriors, and absolutely insane on the battlefield, he intended to court them away from the Separatists, and into his camp. Although the CIS were nominally their allies, Corvus still did not trust them. Therefore, the Umbarans were prime targets to be poached for Team Good Guys. 

Lastly, within this region of space was Zeltros, the home planet of the sex-craving species known as the Zeltrons. Whilst a vacation there did sound appealing, he was more interested in solidifying an alliance with them. For such a horny species, they actually fielded a remarkably powerful military. 

So powerful in fact, that the Empire did not conquer them for the duration of its existence. Few worlds held that honor, with Mon Cala being one of them. To be in the center of the Galactic Empire, and remain strong despite several invasion attempts was nothing short of extraordinary. 

Nominally a member of the Republic, but acting neutral in practice, they were of great strategic importance to the war. 

Looking out into the depths of hyperspace one last time, Corvus stood up from his seat, and offered a salute in silent memory to his friend. 

Clip. May the Force be with you.