Star Wars: From the Clone Wars to Starfaring Heroes

Chapter 34 - Jedi Hunter (First Test, please continue reading)
Have survivors been searched in District 15?

Anakin's voice carried a barely perceptible urgency.

Apo's gaze swept quickly across the grid-like map unfolding on the head-up display.

Sector 15 is located on the edge of the current operational area and is one of the few areas that has not yet been searched in the field.

He sighed inwardly from inside his helmet.

The general clearly still held onto the hope of finding survivors.

Apo shook his head and affirmed, "No."

He knew in his heart that once General Skywalker made a decision, no reason, no matter how logical, would be able to change his mind.

"Airborne Command Center, this is General Skywalker." The Jedi general tapped the side of his helmet to activate the communication. "Prepare for a full evacuation operation in Sector 15. Send coordinates now."

He sent the precise location via a data board.

"Roger that, General." The air command center's reply was clear but punctuated by background noise. "Landing craft, proceed to the area immediately."

Anakin turned around, the shapeshifting armor making a slight scraping sound as he moved. He nodded to Po. "How about we regroup in Sector 15?"

Are you kidding me?
You have already issued the evacuation order.

This is riskier than I anticipated, but not entirely unfeasible.

"Understood, sir." Apo replied in a calm tone, having no choice but to obey: "I will have the troops ready."

The clone commander turned quickly, his boots clicking on the metal shavings, and strode back to the temporary command post.

He switched to the company's public communication channel and sent the coordinates of Zone 15 to all squad members through the helmet's built-in system.

A clear street grid map instantly appeared on the head-up display on each soldier's helmet.

When he could see the entrance to the command post, Apo raised his arm and made a clear forward gesture.

Although communication technology makes this unnecessary, it is important to maintain this habit.

What if the heads-up display malfunctions?
"Brothers, I've secured an evacuation opportunity for everyone. The evacuation point has been determined." Apo's voice rang out from the helmet's built-in speaker. "However, the location is a bit far, in Sector 15. The general wants to conduct a ground search of that area before evacuating. Each platoon, proceed according to the predetermined route. Don't miss your landing craft."

"Really?" a soldier's voice came through the channel, sounding visibly tired and dissatisfied. "We scanned that area remotely before and didn't detect any life signals. Can't we just evacuate from here?"

“I think so too, sir,” another voice chimed in. “The brothers in Sector 17 will have to take a huge detour. With such a large-scale operation, the enemy’s reconnaissance planes will definitely spot us.”

“Some of the brothers are in very bad shape, their injuries are too severe.” Kix’s identification code lit up in the communication list. “I can put splints on them, but some of their legs… are broken badly. I’ve tried my best, but I can’t set the broken legs properly… What is the general thinking?”

“Then we’ll transport them there in six-wheeled armored vehicles. We won’t abandon anyone.” Apo’s voice was resolute. “We can finally leave this hellhole. Pack your gear and get moving. Don’t want to take risks? Then use your energy to get on the road.”

"Damn it... I feel like my legs are going to split open."

"Ince, shut your mouth, grab your blaster, and get moving."

The team once again infiltrated the labyrinthine narrow alleyways and ruined factory buildings, using the interconnected skeletal structure of the refineries and large factories to evade aerial reconnaissance.

Po followed closely behind Anakin's Jedi robes, which fluttered in the dim light. The night vision filter on his helmet automatically activated, tinting the scene before him with a ghostly green hue.

A few faint beams of light occasionally pierced through the broken, high-strength concrete ceiling, revealing the massive outlines of huge industrial machines in the darkness, with conveyor belts winding and looping between the equipment.

Broken chains and loose cables hung from a great height, their original connections nowhere to be found, and large metal pipes lay scattered haphazardly on the ground.

A faint flicker caught his attention, but the sensor did not sound an alarm.

It's not a trap.

It was just a shard of crystal lying on the ground, reflecting a faint ray of sunlight that pierced through the crack above.

In fact, many such fragments were scattered on the ground, like a table shimmering with starlight.

Apo's gaze swept across the array of icons on the side of the head-up display, checking each transponder signal point representing a team member to ensure no one had fallen behind.

A heavy, rhythmic clanging of metal could be heard from outside.

An AT-TE walking machine is moving, filled with wounded people.

It is a conspicuous target for any observer, but it is currently the only feasible option for them.

A squadron of reconnaissance walking drones patrolled the outer perimeter, keeping watch for any unforeseen events at the robot defense line.

Keix and the injured Ince followed closely behind Apo.

Ince used his blaster rifle as a makeshift crutch and limped forward with difficulty.

Apo said to him, "You can ride in an armored vehicle."

“What? You want me to squeeze in with those ‘corpses’?” Ince tried to hide his pain with a joke. “I don’t want to feel like a dead man.”

Apo twitched the corner of his mouth under his helmet. "You seem to be in pretty good spirits... Want me to carry your radio backpack for you?"

Ince immediately complained, "You just said I was in good spirits!"

They traveled for about thirty minutes before reaching Sector 15. The earlier team had already begun a preliminary search, using handheld scanners to probe among the ruins, despite the helmets having integrated scanning capabilities.

“Just like I said before,” a soldier’s voice crackled in Apo’s private channel, tinged with self-confirmation, “There’s nobody here, not even robot wreckage. Hey, ask how long it’ll take for the landing craft to arrive… Hmm, holy crap, what’s this?”

"What's wrong?" another soldier asked curiously.

"...Damn it, the general definitely doesn't want to see this...Sending coordinates...We've found a Jedi."

A string of numerical coordinates instantly appeared on Apo's head-up display.

“General Skywalker.” He immediately switched to the public communication channel, “A Jedi has been detected.”

Hearing the sound, Anakin noticeably quickened his pace, the joints of his shapeshifting armor creaking rapidly. "Still alive?"

"Are you still alive?"

Apo repeated the general's question over the communication channel.

"What a joke. If he were still alive in that state, I definitely wouldn't be able to sleep." The soldier who found him muttered, then formally reported, "No, sir, he has been confirmed dead."

“Take me there.” Anakin’s voice was strained, losing its usual calm.

What they saw first were the remains of Marines wearing maroon shape-fitting armor, or rather, the remains scattered along the path.

Following the traces of these violently dismembered bodies, they found the warehouse where the Marine squad had last held its ground.

The building stands alone amidst a sea of ​​combat robot wreckage.

The heavy metal door of the warehouse was blown open by some enormous force.

There were more Marine corpses inside the warehouse.

Some had penetrating wounds or burns caused by the energy beam, but most were torn to pieces by the lightsaber.

Judging from the condition of the corpse, it was likely attacked by multiple lightsabers. All the marks indicate that a fierce and desperate resistance took place here.

Apo realized that the Separatist commander was specifically hunting Jedi.

This was the third time he had witnessed almost the same scene.

This Jedi Hunter embodies a patterned, extreme cruelty.

“There, sir.”

A soldier pointed to the depths of the warehouse.

Apo looked up and turned on the tactical flashlight mounted on his rifle.

A bright beam of light pierced the darkness of the warehouse.

“By the gods above,” Kix’s voice boomed in the private channel, accompanied by a gasp of shock, “This…”

“Yes,” Ince’s voice was also hoarse, “This… can’t be fixed.”

That was a Jedi Knight.

His limbs were suspended from the ceiling beams by thick metal chains, and twisted steel bars pierced through his severely damaged torso.

Steel bars pierce through different parts of the body, like a cruel scaffold.

It's as if the perpetrator accidentally dismantled him and then hastily tried to put him back together.

A head was stretched and deformed, hanging upside down on a huge metal hook. The neck was severed, the eyes were wide open, and thick black blood flowed from the slightly open corner of the mouth.

Apo recognized the Jedi from the hologram in the mission briefing.

Anakin stood silently before the corpse, his shape-shifting helmet obscuring his expression, only his hands, gripping the lightsaber hilt tightly with white knuckles, betraying his emotions.

"Has anyone found the lightsaber?" Apo asked in a low voice on the private channel.

Although General Skywalker couldn't hear the conversation on the private channel because he was speaking through a communicator, Po still subconsciously lowered his voice.

"No lightsaber found, sir," the soldier who found the body replied. "I think it was done by the same killer; that guy is definitely a madman."

So far, the three Jedi they have discovered have all met increasingly gruesome ends.

One was nailed to the wall, another was hung on a street lamppost, and this one... nobody knows how to describe it.

Whoever the murderer is, they either derive a twisted satisfaction from this morbid display of the remains, or they are convinced that someone will seek out these dead sites to convey some kind of message.

Apo turned off the flashlight. "Put the body down."

"We'll get right to it, sir." Two soldiers immediately stepped forward and began carefully operating the cutter to process the chain.

“Uh—Commander.” Ince’s voice came through the private channel, tinged with hesitation and unease. “Could you… notify the General? We’ve received an urgent communication from General Yularen, and it’s a very high priority.”

(End of this chapter)