Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 126-127 - Izzy

Ondron, Japrael Galaxy.

Japrael Sector.

Izzi City.

By galactic standards, it is the oldest, largest, most magnificent, and perhaps even the only true city in the galactic sense.

But on this planet, deep within that vast and awe-inspiring wilderness, lie other settlements.

Most of it was the territory of the Beast Rider tribe.

These tribal inhabitants were descendants of criminals expelled from the high walls of Izz.

Over the course of thousands of years, most of these tribes have long since disappeared.

However, Raine felt that the Beast Riders probably preferred to describe their tribe's history as "gradually fading into obscurity."

But we can't entirely blame them.

That being said, the task of monitoring them still fell to the Ondron Space Force, and the relationship between the two sides could be considered to be at peace.

In contrast, the more troublesome group is the "untamed ones".

After the signing of the Kieran Peace Treaty approximately four thousand years ago, the Beast Rider tribe finally settled down.

However, in the Beast Rider tribe, there is always a small group of troublemakers who can't stand the rules and regulations of civilization.

They plunged deep into the interior, venturing further than the territory of the beast rider tribes, calling themselves "the untamed."

In Renn's eyes, those tribal residents were a bunch of complete lunatics.

As the massive shadow of the "White Hand Fleet" swept across the rooftops of Izzz City, Raine quickly glanced down through the shuttle's observation window.

Memories of this city flooded back instantly.

Originally built to defend against terrifying man-eating beasts, Izzi has now swelled into a colossal structure.

Built against the mountain, its walls are incredibly thick and towering into the clouds, as if they were carved out of the mountain itself.

The foundation of the city wall is deeply embedded in the mountainside, blending into the rock, making it almost impossible to distinguish between the natural cliffs and the man-made barriers.

It was covered with bastions and defensive towers.

The only way into the city is a solitary bridge spanning a bottomless canyon.

If attacked from the ground, this city is almost impregnable; there is simply no way to breach it.

As for the threat posed by the "Demon Moon," it has long been a distant legend for the city's four million residents.

Even if a Drexmon manages to evade the Space Force's surveillance, the countless combat bases on the walls of Izzi Castle remain on high alert at all times.

However, those cannons haven't actually fired in a thousand years.

Even so, the armed wave gunner unit still exists.

Because no matter how hard the Milky Way tries to export advanced culture and technology to this world, no matter how the kings of Ondron try to promote change and break this stagnant pool.

The stubborn cultural mentality of this planet is like an invisible wall, always blocking all progress.

Here, brick and wood remain the main building materials.

Gray permanent concrete?

Shiny, transparent steel?
In Izzi, you can't even find a shadow.

Here, every brick and stone in every house and every castle wall can be clearly distinguished.

Even more outrageous is that the standard weapon of the Royal Army is still the outdated laser lance!
Weng Delun is inherently xenophobic and isolating, instinctively resisting any foreign culture, whether it be military technology or artistic aesthetics.

By galactic standards, they are practically stuck in the Middle Ages, stagnant.

The city's towering walls and brick and stone buildings give Izzi an overall rugged and unrefined grandeur...

All of this is a concrete manifestation of the unique psychology of the Ondron people.

The ordinary people here don't seem to care.

For four thousand years, their way of life has remained largely unchanged.

But what about those aristocratic families that have inherited their wealth for generations?
They went to great lengths to push for progress, hoping that Ondron would eventually break free from this stagnation and catch up with the rest of the galaxy.

Therefore, when King Ramses Dendup insisted on remaining neutral in the Clone Wars, the Lords Council finally reached its breaking point.

They joined forces to dethrone him, and then, quite naturally, sided with the party that could offer greater economic benefits:
Separatist alliance.

Ryan thought to himself that if he had known nothing about the separatists, he might have firmly supported the coup.

But after learning the truth behind the separatist alliance...

Now, he can only try his best to find something useful out of this mess.

The shuttle landed smoothly.

Raine stepped out of the Izzi Starport and into the bustling, smoky streets of the city.

A strong sense of nostalgia instantly enveloped him.

The air was filled with the pungent and strong smells of spices and perfumes, along with the heavy snoring of pack animals moving slowly across the open square and the clattering of their hooves on the stone pavement.

The gilded, anti-gravity hovercart, dragged by Dalgo beasts, roughly pushed through the crowd.

Many carriages prominently display the coat of arms of noble families on their sides.

These carriages were speeding along the steep mountain road, heading straight for the Temple of Unifar at the summit.

When Renn first saw Izzi, it seemed like an incredible miracle to him.

Or rather, it was once a miracle.

In those childhood memories.

He ran wildly across the cobblestone streets, narrowly avoiding the heavy feet of the Fambas, and excitedly waved to the Lupin riders circling overhead.

In those childhood memories, he sang ancient elegies in the solemn Valhalla and studied art in the sacred Hall of Auf Taraba.

The feeling at that time was like a dream.

And now?

Cold, combat robots patrolled the streets like mobile metal sentinels.

On the towering, totem-pole-like watchtower, electronic eyes coldly scanned the crowd below.

Gates formed by beams of light coldly divide the city into different areas.

This was the price of siding with Count Dooku. Renn felt heavy-hearted, unsure if the price was worth it.

The shuttle carrying Raine hummed and took off again behind him, merging into the massive fleet that made most citizens stop and look up, pointing and whispering.

Meanwhile, an aerial honor guard consisting of fifty armored Dexon War Beasts and twice the number of Ondron Lupin Beasts was swooping down toward the Temple of Yunifal, where they would circle and await Renn's arrival.

Raine stepped into a waiting anti-gravity levitation carriage.

He subconsciously adjusted the ornate but cumbersome heavy cloak on his shoulders again, making sure it wasn't caught in the car door.

With a low growl from the Dargo Beast, the carriage began to slowly ascend along the invisible aerial ramp.

Ryan couldn't help but peek out slightly from the silk-covered car window, his gaze fixed on his destination.

If the city of Izzi was built around a great mountain, then the Temple of Unifar itself was the peak and core of that mountain.

The royal palace once stood here, but after its collapse, a temple rose up on the site and now performs many of the functions of the former palace.

As for why it is called a "temple," it is because its construction was supported by the state and the religion.

Funding from the Unifaras sect.

However, beneath this religious veil, the Unifarath sect is nothing more than another marketing gimmick meticulously planned by the Lords' Council.

Its purpose is nothing more than to promote open-mindedness and to attract extraterrestrial tourists by utilizing the unique natural scenery of the planet Ondron.

After all, there are quite a few tourists who love pristine natural scenery, and all the sects have to do is erect so-called "shrines" in many scenic spots on the planet.

“Sir, you’d better turn your head back.” A woman’s voice, probably the coachman, came from outside the carriage, her tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible tension. “These days, noble gentlemen… aren’t exactly well-liked.”

"Oh? Why?" Renn obediently pulled his head back into the carriage and leaned back on the soft, thick seat, but his ears perked up.

"They brought the war to Ondron." The coachman's voice sounded somewhat muffled through the carriage wall.

Just as Renn had guessed.

"Is it because of those robots?"

"This doesn't feel like protection, it feels more like occupation."

The driver's answer was straightforward, his voice devoid of emotion.

Renn's brow furrowed.

The driver's voice... had a faint sense of familiarity.

Could it be someone I know?
"What is your rank now?" he suddenly asked, his voice not loud, but clear enough.

Silence fell outside the carriage, broken only by the heavy footsteps of the Dargo Beast and the sound of the wind.

The driver did not answer.

Renn's lips curled down silently, a hint of understanding and self-mockery in them.

The carriage continued to increase its speed.

As the aerial ramp became steeper and more winding, Ryan had to lean back more firmly.

The noise and strong smells below were gradually left behind and diminished.

Instead, there was crisper air and howling mountain winds.

Raine knew they were leaving the lower town and entering the relatively secluded upper town.

He peered out again through the gap in the silk carriage window and quickly recognized the noble estates that jutted out from the steep mountainside like man-made cliffs.

The Bontley family's estate is located somewhere in this area.

The higher you go, the clearer you can see the flying beast procession circling around the temple.

They maintained a neat circular formation, flying slowly around the sacred mountain peak.

As Raine watched this scene, an ominous thought welled up in his mind.

It's just like a flock of vultures patiently circling a dying Falenpasset, hovering and waiting.

“A rebellion is brewing in the shadows,” the coachman’s voice rang out again as they drove into the sparsely populated higher ground of the city, this time more like a warning, “to put Dendup back on the throne. They have a secret camp in the jungle to the south, but we haven’t found the exact location yet.”

Raine forced himself to suppress that disdainful snort.

What kind of thing is a rebellion?

Shouldn't we at least strive for goals like abolishing the monarchy?
Rather than simply replacing one autocratic monarch with another.

Moreover, Ramses Dendup was not an enlightened monarch at all, but just an old stubborn man who only wanted to maintain the old order.

On the other hand, how easy is it to abolish a monarchy that has lasted for four thousand years?
Since the signing of the Peace Treaty of Kieran, every king of Ondron has descended from an unbroken bloodline that can be traced back to the legendary founding monarch—

Oren Kira.

Of course, the gears of aristocratic politics never stopped turning.

Those illustrious families were like a carousel, taking turns sitting on the throne and then stepping down, but the blood flowing in the king's veins was always Oren Kira's.

Whether it's the deposed Ramses Dendup, the current Sanjay Rush sitting on the throne, or even the hundreds of prominent figures in the court, they can all trace their lineage back to that founding monarch.

For four thousand years, almost everyone in the royal court has had some "royal" blood flowing through their veins.

(End of this chapter)