Chapter 29: Breaking a padawan.

"Let us negotiate" Gunray relented, when suddenly the entire battleship shook and alarms started blaring.

"Status report." Commander Gree demanded over the comms.

"Droid fighters. Incoming. They have brought boarding ships. And there's something coming out of hyperspace in front of us..... It's... It's the Deliverance. It's General Hunt!"

There we go!

I felt the Deliverance's signal reach me, pinging off of my reciever as I took charge of the ship.

Time to blow this jig up and traumatize some padawans for life.

"Green company. Prepare to repel the enemy." Gree ordered.

"Green leader to Commander Gree. Super battle droids have breached our hull. We're being overru-"

A blast sounded out through the comms as the signal petered out.

Now then, let's spice things up a bit.

Through my connection, I ordered a Vulture droid company to exit the Deliverance and form a pincer around the Tranquility.

I'm going to do what's called a pro gamer move.

Once they were in position, I demarcated their targets, aligning them properly, before forcing their engines to full burst, at sub-light speeds, issuing the final command.

Go boom.

The eight Vulture droids let loose their entire armaments upon the ship, before in one decisive blow, rammed into the hull of the Tranquility, shearing through the ship's shields and, opening rifts across the hangar and storage, depressurising the entire lower half of the measure, as the entirety of green company was sucked out into space, unprotected, even as the safeties kicked in.

With one move, I had defanged a good half of the ship.

"What just happened?!" Luminara asked, panic setting in.

"The hangar has been destroyed! The green company is...gone." The captain replied.

"Can you get us out of here, captain?!" Luminara asked, sparing a furtive glance at the Viceroy.

"I'm afraid not. The hyperdrive has shut down. It will take too long to get it back on. The emergency protocols have already been engaged. The crew are heading for the escape pods. The damage is too great. I advise you take the prisoner and escape from the secondary docking bay. Your ship might still be intact." He replied.

"Very well." Gree said, cutting off the comms, before looking at me and Argyus.

I nodded, grabbing the viceroy and dragged him out.

"Come on Viceroy. Let's get you to safety." I said, "Master Luminara, lead the way."

"This way. Follow me."

Luminara agreed and pulled off her lightsaber, leading the way.

But tragedy struck when we exited the cells, as a garrison of droids lay in wait, accosting the crew.

"Ahsoka, Offee." Luminara pointed to our backs, taking the vanguard, deflecting blaster bolts from the front.

Instantly, Ahsoka and Offee took the back, with the quiet understanding that cones only from years of training.

"Arguys! Take the viceroy." I said, walking up to the front beside Luminara, much to her concern.

"Stay back and shoot. Don't risk your life at the fr-"

Before she could complete her sentence, I crouched low, unleashing my laser beam across the swathe of droids, cutting through them like butter.

A couple more strafes across the bunch rendered them useless, while master Luminara watched with admiration.

"Let's go. We don't have time for this." I said, gesturing at her.

She nodded, as we made a run for the secondary hangar.

Passing by the mess, we took a shortcut, with master Luminara literally cutting through walls with her lightsaber to get us out fast.

Finally, we reached the secondary hangar, only to hear the familiar clanking of droids echoing across it, over the now silent alarms.

"This is bad." I said, furrowing my brows.

"Indeed. We can't fight through them all. We will need a distraction." Master Luminara added.

I pretended to check the battery on my laser as the rest of them looked at each other.

I knew Arguys was a mole and had already been paid off by the trade federation for just such an eventuality, so he was out. Besides, I need him to betray them in full view of everyone, so there was no way I'm allowing him to be the decoy even if he wants to.

"Leave it to me." Gree said, standing up, "But I can't do it alone. They won't register me as an adequate threat. Someone will need to-"

"I'll do it." Offee said, unexpectedly, raising a hand.

Those old self sacrifice stories of the jedi really got to her huh?

Well, no skin off my nose. But she can't be allowed to die here. I'll need her to destroy Ahsoka's faith in the jedi later. Not to mention, I have plans for her this mission.

No. She can't go alone.

I sighed. Let's do this. I can always just portal out if things go to shit.

I raised my hand.

"I'll go too. I have a ship in the hangar. And it's fast. 14 parsecs in a breath.

Once you have safely taken off we will escape too." I assured.

Master Luminara thought for a moment, conflicted about letting her padawan take the risk, but seeing no choice, agreed.

"Don't die." She requested, grabbing Offee by the hand.

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Offee nodded, as Gree led us around the hangar to the main entrance while the rest took the side one.

"Are you ready?" Gree asked.

Offee nodded.

"I was born ready." I replied smiling, and gave the other group the signal to go ahead.

"Then let's go." Gree said, jumping out, nailing three droids with his forst volley.

"Come and get some, you clankers!" He shouted, getting their attention.

As his voice reverberated across the hangar, the droids turned to us, at first slowly, then with a rush, like the aliens from Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, only instead of accusing fingers, they had blaster cannons.

Offee took the lead now, deflected the blaster bolts, while I slunk beside her, carving up the droids in the quadrant closest to me, before rushing out from cover, tearing across their ranks.

Offee followed suit, jumping over the crates lined up on the side, and assaulted them from behind.

In the distance, the droids began to advance closer, clearing the side entrance.

Good.

With the droids packing closer, I opened fire, this time with my freeze ray, icing over their hips.

The droid's hips contain some of the most crucial wiring, along with a direct line to their battery packs.

It was a flaw I had found in the droids as I was remodeling them into worker drones.

With their circuitry iced over, the wiring became functionally superconductive, overloading their battery, causing the droids to pop like balloons.

Big, metal balloons, that sent sharpnel flying all around, ripping apart the other droids near them in a ripple of dead droids.

That and Offee's zigzagging across the field cut down their numbers by another nice third.

I could see the rest now, exiting the side entrance, Ahsoka casting a worried glance at me.

I gave her a thumbs up, and a smile, assuring her of my safety and she nodded boarding their craft.

Alright. One part done. Now for a heroic sacrifice, to begin turning Offee to the dark side.

I looked back to the main entrance, and spotted Gree still fighting, darting from cover to cover. He had already run out of ammo and was using a droid arm as his implement of choice.

Heheheheh. Perfect sacrifice on a silver platter.

"Gree!" I called out, providing him support, "Come, let's get out if here! The rest of them are in the ship!"

Relief flooded his face as he ducked out of the cover, and rushed to my side, while I gestured at Offee to follow.

She spared me a nod and cut through another droid, before she too followed suit.

Counting the droids, I found twelve of them still left, stciking back and laying down fire like a carpet. Tha won't do.

I remotely accessed the droids and commanded them to move closer, leaving a weaker line-up by my van.

Once Offee joined us, that made eleven of them.

Now for the first gut punch.

"Offee take watch Gree's back. Gree watch mine. I'll start up the ship." I ordered, assigning Offee the responsibility for Gree's life, subtly, and made a rush for the ship, downing two more droids, while hiding a smaller one behind the closely packed droids backs, rolling it nearer to the blind side of the ship.

Now with a hidden droid, I took control of two heavy droids, aiming between Gree and Offee, causing them to step apart. Just the openign I needed.

With laser precision, I moved the droid to hit Gree in his legs, repeatedly, blowing it off.

Gree tumbled to the floor behind me and I skid down to him, angrily cutting through the offending droid, before making my laser sputter with technokinesis,

"Dammit!" I cried, watching the two droids fall, "Offee, my laser is out of power. Help me get Gree to the ship." I said, offloading him onto her ahoulders, literally making her bear the responsibility for his life.

Now, one final step to cement her trauma.

I ran to the ship, while Offee dragged Gree back to the ship fighting off the blaster bolts, leaning him against the stepping pad and climbed in through the open doors to pull him in.

Then just as she began to lift him up hands under his armpits, occupied, I made the last hidden drone roll out, startling the both of them.

Before Offee could react, it let out a barrage, straight through Gree's chest, before she freed her hand stabbing it through with her lightsaber.

I hurriedly shut the doors, taking off, before turning back and letting out a well practiced gasp.

"Gree!" I cried, "Shit! We need to get you some help. Offee take out the...."

Offee just sat there, staring blankly at Gree, watching the blood pour out his mouth with shaking hands.

"It's not....your fault..." Gree said, noticing her distress, but at this point, that wasn't going to help her.

"N-no..." she muttered so silently, it might well have been a whisper.

"No...it was my responsibility....." She repeated, her voice broken.

She pressed on the wound in vain, as her shaking got worse.

"No...Because of me....." She kept on repeating, pressing harder on his chest. But the bleeding only became worse.

"It's....no...your fault..." Gree repeated, softer this time as the light drained his eyes, his head falling limp in her lap.

Offee looked down, cupping his head in alert, slapping it lightly, then harder, and harder as a silent, mournful cry left her mouth.

Padawan successfully broken!

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