Warzone: Chapter 2: The Intruder-Part 1

Chapter 2: The Intruder
Part 1: Ubbar

Written by Brian "RBF" Taylor
Illustrated by Patrick "Pax" Mulnix

Based on Warzone: Chapter 2 by Tom Smallwood.

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Mari Hari walked into to the room, looking much better after having had a chance to clean up after her recent rescue. She tapped a button on the display console, and a 3D rendering of a planet appeared, "This is Corval II, a hot, miserable planet near the edge of Imperial space," she says, as the planet begins to rotate. A small shape appeared, and the hologram zooms in on it. "Jerec's flag ship, the Vengeance, is in orbit, receiving supplies from an outpost in the city of Ubbar. Your mission is to stowaway on a shuttle bound for the Vengeance. Once aboard, your objectives are two fold: disable the hyper-drive and shut down the ship's power core. Without the main power core, the Vengeance will not have any shields or be able to fire the main turbo lasers. Escape will be impossible when the hyper-drive is disabled and the captain will have no choice but to surrender his ship. Remember, we need to capture that ship intact, so don't blow it up, Kyle! Note that there are two factions on Corval II, neither of which are friendly to the New Republic (or each other). Not only is there an Imperial garrison in Ubbar, but there is also a fanatical religious group called the Hand of Fate. Consider them armed and extremely dangerous. Rumor has it that they have a temple hidden somewhere in the city, but neither the Imperial forces nor our own spies have been able to locate it."

"Sounds easy enough. Uh, I won't have to paradrop in this time, will I?" Kyle grimaced at the thought of doing that again.

"No. Although it is a mountainous region, we have something that you'll like a lot more," Mari replied, with a smirk. -----------------------------

The transport raced across the desert sands, under the sure mechanical grips of WeeGee.

"Uh-uh. No way am I wearing this," Kyle threw the storm trooper helmet down on the seat, beside the rest of the armor. "I gave up trooping for the empire a long time ago!"

"Look, Kyle, it'll get you in the city unnoticed by the Imps, and there shouldn't be any trouble from the Hand, as long as you stay out of their business," Mari said, picking up the helmet and shoving it at him. "Now, suit up. We're almost there."

Kyle unhooked his bryar pistol and light saber from his belt. He looked at them, memories flashing through his head. He had the bryar pistol from back during his days as a mercenary. It had been through a lot with him, helped him defeat General Mohc and Jerec. The saber had belonged to a young Jedi named Yun who had given his life so that Kyle could stop Jerec.

It had been a long time since Kyle had gone into battle without either. Well, at least it'll be cooler in this, he thought, putting on the armor. I hope. -----------------------------

"WeeGee, pull off here. I want to see what I'm getting myself into," Kyle said to the small droid. WeeGee whistled a reply, and the speeder stopped behind a large boulder near the edge of a cliff.. The city loomed below them. It was surrounded by a large wall with only a single gate in the front, heavily guarded by Imperial forces. Kyle pulled out a pair of electrobinoculars from under the seat where he had stashed his bryar and saber and climbed out of the speeder for a better view.

Kyle walked to the edge of the cliff and looked down through the binoculars. "They've got at least 20 troopers out front, not to mention AT-STs. And I see an AT-AT. Shouldn't be too tough."

"Freeze!" He was cut off by the harsh mechanical voice behind him. "Drop the binoculars and turn around, keeping your hands where I can see them." Kyle slowly turned, just in time to see Mari kick the blaster out of the stormtrooper's hand, and it sailed through the air. Kyle reached out with the Force and pulled it to him. He caught it lightly, and in seconds, the Imperial army was short another trooper.

"Well, this completes the disguise, I guess," he said, looking at the gun. When he saw the exasperated look on Mari's face, he didn't understand at first. "What?" he asked. Then, as she shook her head and walked away, realization dawned on him. "Oh, thanks."

"Uh huh. Get in," she said, gesturing to the speeder. "You've got a shuttle to catch." -----------------------------

Kyle felt a jolt as the transport set down behind a building just outside the city. He jumped out with his helmet under one arm and storm trooper rifle in the other. A sign above the back door said "Starlight Hotel", in fancy writing surrounded by cheesy looking stars.

"Nice place. A little seedy, though," Kyle remarked. "So what happens now?"

"We get on the roof, and you see where the shuttle is," Mari replied, heading towards the building as WeeGee floated up the side. "Step one, get on the roof," she muttered to herself.

Kyle put on his helmet and walked toward the door. "Imperials aren't paid to have morals. I have an idea. Play along."

"Uhm, I don't like the sound of that," Mari said uneasily as she joined him. They entered the building side by side, and the clerk looked up from behind the desk. "Ah, your room is ready for use. Room 22B, top floor. The elevator is to your right."

"Thank you," Kyle said, turning toward the elevator. Mari followed him, and he hit the button for the top floor.

"We need to get to the roof, Kyle," said Mari, as the door closed.

"And there's no button for the roof. There's probably a stairwell from the top floor to the roof. If not, we'll just climb the building. " Kyle replied as the elevator headed towards the top floor.

A few seconds later the door opened and they walked out into the hallway. The hallway continued for several meters ahead of them before ending at a door with "Roof Access" stenciled on it. It was an old-fashioned door, with hinges and a doorknob. Kyle grabbed the doorknob, but it wouldn't turn.

"It's stuck," he said. "Hang on." He pulled out his blaster pistol and shot the door. He kicked it, and it swung open on its hinges, revealing a stairwell leading up to an open doorway. "Come on," he walked up the stairs.

"Well, that's a good way to get onto the roof discreetly," Mari said, closing what was left of the door behind her.

Kyle pulled off his helmet as he walked out of the stairwell. The roof off to his left was a gradual slope down into the city, and could be easily walked down. To his right WeeGee floated up over the edge of the building. "Welcome to the majestic city of Ubbar, WeeGee," he mocked a tour guide. "As you can see, the Imperials have constructed two landing pylons, and left a shuttle relatively unguarded. Isn't overconfidence great?" WeeGee beeped an agreement.

"Kyle, get over here," Mari called from the building's edge. Kyle walked over with WeeGee at his side. "There's the shuttle, Kyle. Remember, send the signal if you disable the power core. Good luck, and may the Force be with you. And put on your helmet!" She watched him pull the helmet down over his face.

"I can't see a thing in this helmet," he said, as he walked down the side of the building. Nice and easy, he thought. -----------------------------

Mari watched Kyle as he walked down the building side. Apparently his vision was distorted more than she thought it would be, because he didn't seem to see the small ledge ahead of him. "Kyle, look out!" she yelled to him. He didn't hear her, and tried to put his foot down, only to find empty air. She winced as he tumbled the remaining 10 meters down the side of the building.

Oh great, she thought. I hope he can do this. He's the only one I've got. Mari watched as he stood and looked around. There didn't appear to be anyone in sight, so he headed toward the landing pylon, trying the doorway.She wasn't surprised when it didn't open.

She was surprised when the shooting started. -----------------------------

Kyle pressed the button beside the door of the pylon. The light beside the switch flashed red.

Blast! This is going to be harder than I thought, he turned towards the other pylon. His danger sense kicked in and he dove to the ground, a blaster bolt barely missing his head. He rolled on one shoulder, stood and turned, and ducked behind a stack of cargo crates for cover. He dodged blaster bolts as he surveyed the situation ahead of him.

Three grans were engaged in a firefight with six stormtroopers. The grans all wore brown jackets with red handprints on the back. Hand of Fate, Kyle decided. He leaned around the crate, taking a shot at the gran closest to him. The blaster bolt hit the gran's upper arm, below the shoulder. The gran turned to Kyle with a strange look in its eyes. It held out it's hand, and Kyle's blaster went flying towards it.

Blast, he thought. Kyle tried to pull the gun back to him, but the gran caught it and clipped it to his belt. He watched as the other two grans pulled the guns from the stormtroopers and then blasted them with their own weapons. He looked back at his own problem, to find a barrel of a blaster pistol aimed at his head. He watched the gran pull the trigger, and the blue circle shoot towards him, and then, blackness. -----------------------------

Kyle woke, finding himself locked in a prison cell. The cell was rather dark and damp, the only source of light coming through a transparisteel window across the cell. He got up from his cot and walked over to the window. The room contained a small table beside a gran sitting on a chair, his feet propped up on it. Resting on the table was a stormtrooper helmet. Kyle realized his was missing, and assumed that was his.

He was assessing the situation when something popped up in front of the window. He jumped back with small yell of surprise. As his eyes focused, he saw it was another gran.

How many of these guys are there? he thought.

"Sit down," said the gran, through a speaker on the wall. Kyle obeyed, knowing that it was best to cooperate until the escape root wasn't blocked by a large blast door. The door slid open, and the gran entered, blaster rifle in hand. He was followed by three more. The first of the three wore a strange blue robe with a hood pulled over his head. The other two wear dressed as the first one was, in brown jackets that Kyle guessed had red hands on the back.

"So, Imperial," the robed one said. "You have injured one of our brethren. You would have been killed already, but our Glorious Leader demands an Imperial for sacrifice. You are the one who has been chosen."

"Wow. I feel honored," Kyle remarked. Well, they're obviously not too swift, but with three blasters trained on me, I don't want to risk anything just yet. "So, how will I be sacrificed?" Kyle asked, as two of the grans grabbed him by the arms.

"Come with us," one said, as they led him out the door. The other two grans remained in the cell. He was led down a long hallway that ended at a large spiral staircase. He figured if they were as dumb as he thought, they'd be easily trickable.

"You don't understand," Kyle said as the two grans dragged him up the staircase. "You see, your master wants an Imperial. I'm not one. I'm a Hand of Fate, just like you." The grans weren't responsive to the usual Jedi persuasion techniques. He tried to pick up something from either one of them that he could use, but their minds were too controlled.

"Be silent, or be silenced," the gran on his right threatened.

No, that's not corny, thought Kyle. "Look, if you let me go, I know this girl-"

Uh oh.....

"Shut up! We are here," the other gran said, shoving Kyle forward into a room. There were several columns down either side, and the center of the room was clear glass, offering a look a hundred meters straight down to the cell room. He could almost make out the shape of his helmet sitting on the table beside the gran's feet.

The two grans left, and the door behind him closed. "It has been a long time since I have faced a Jedi," a voice sounded from somewhere in front of him. "It's a pity you're the closest thing to one around." The source of the voice stepped forward from the shadows. A gran, like the rest, but larger, wearing a brown tunic and a strange amulet around his neck stood just across from him, on the other side of the glass. Two guards stood beside him, armed with blaster rifles. "The armor of an Imperial, I see. You are the embodiment of both of my enemies."

"Well, you know, it's nice that I'm everything that you hate. But I have a shuttle to catch, so I really-"

"Silence! I shall enjoy your death, fool." He reached forward with one arm, making a strange motion with his fingers. Kyle felt his throat begin to tighten, air barely moving in and out, playing with him before killing him. Kyle reached deep into himself, feeling the Force, allowing it to loosen the grip on his throat. The Priest seemed shocked, and began to move closer.

"I shall kill you with my bare hands, Jedi Pretender!" he roared, stepping forward onto the glass. Kyle decided that now was the time to make his move. He ceased concentrating on the priest, and pulled one of the gran's weapons toward him. The priest was shocked, and released Kyle from his grip.

"Thanks," he said to the Gran, now without a gun. "I never get tired of doing that." He made quick work of the guards, and dodged as the priest lept at him.

Kyle nimbly rolled out of the way. "Ok, your cult seems to be getting smaller by the minute. Plus, your temple's really nice, and I don't want to have to destroy it." The gran pulled a small blaster from somewhere inside his robe and fired a shot at Kyle, barely missing his head.

"But, if you insist," he said, diving behind another column. He used the Force to propel himself high into the rafters of the room, out of the Priest's sight.

"Hiding is useless, Jedi Pretender. I shall find you, and when I do, you will regret ever having entered this temple," the Gran fired a shot in the wrong direction, lighting up part of the ceiling.

"No, I already regret that. It's really musty and damp in here. Wreaking havoc on my lungs, you know? You really should have better ventilation systems," Kyle said, feeling the anger in the Priest surge.

"Good," thought Kyle. "Now he'll be careless," The priest's next shot hit a support beam, sending the rafter Kyle was perched on crashing to the floor below. The armor absorbed most of the impact, but Kyle was still slightly stunned.

"Now, Jedi Pretender, you will meet your death," the Priest slowly walked toward where Kyle lay dazed. Kyle's hand reached out for the blaster he had dropped. His hand closed around it. Feeling renewed strength, he stood and began blasting the gran.

The shots did no damage to him, and he laughed. "Fool. Your puny weapon can not harm me." Kyle watched as a ball of energy formed in the priest's hand.

"Fool? You like that word, huh? Well, how's this? Fool, you're standing on glass," Kyle retorted, as the Gran reached the middle of the glass. "And now, you're not," he finished, shooting the glass repeatedly with the blaster. It shattered, sending the glass shards, and the gran, crashing to the ground hundreds of meters below. The energy the gran had prepared, intending to blast Kyle into oblivion, was released along the way down. An explosion of Force energy washed over Kyle, and he felt the hatred of the Gran, and the pain, and he felt sorry for the creature, who had misused this power.

Kyle could see that the body of the priest landed on the table below, smashing it, and startling the gran. He looked up at Kyle, raised his hand in the air, then leaned over the body. Kyle turned towards the front of the room.

He looked over into the shadows where the Gran had walked out of. There was what appeared to be an altar there. Kyle moved closer to it, and saw the body of a stormtrooper lying upon it. These people are twisted, he thought. He turned and headed down the stairs, prepared to blast his way out through the grans. -----------------------------

The entire starwell was empty, and when he got to the cell room, he saw the body of the priest had been removed. His helmet lay against a wall behind the shards of the table. He picked it up when a voice behind him said, "You have defeated our Leader. According to the Law, all that was his is now yours," Kyle found himself facing the blue robed priest. "You are now our Leader and Priest," he held up his hand to Kyle, much like the other gran did, except now Kyle could see the fingers were held in the same way the hand was designed on the Hand members' jackets.

"Where is the body of the Leader?" Kyle asked.

"It is being disposed of."

"Well, I'd better be going," Kyle pulled on his helmet and headed for the door.

"Wait! What shall we do while you are gone?" Blue Robe asked.

"Take the rest of the Hand and go out into the mountains, and live there, away from the Imperials and the New Republic. Do not await my return, because it is uncertain if it ever shall happen," Kyle grimaced at his poor wording. He wasn't used to talking like this.

"Yes, Leader, we will do as you say," Blue Robe said as Kyle left. "And May the Hand guide you." -----------------------------

Kyle entered the street, and found a stormtrooper approaching him.

"Results of inspections?" the stormtrooper inquired.

"Uh, negative. No Hand of Fate presence in this building, sir." Kyle responded.

"Continue searching the surrounding houses," the trooper said, as he and his partner walked away. Kyle headed down the street towards an outdoor cantina. Tables and chairs were set up on a large patio outside of several archways leading to the interior kitchen area. Kyle's attention was caught by a large gamorrean, obviously drunk, throwing tables and chairs everywhere.

As he watched, a stormtrooper attempted to calm the large pig-like alien. His attempts got him thrown over the heads of several other people. Fortunately, his fall was broken by a large wooden table. Of course, the table was broken by his fall, too. -----------------------------

"Well, this isn't the way to the garrison," Kyle said, as he turned a corner and found himself facing a giant wall. He turned to leave when a large drain caught his eye. But this might be, he thought.

Kyle's time at the academy had taught him many things about Imperial Garrisons, one not being that they always had a way into them through the sewers. That he had learned from his mercenary days. He pulled on the cover of the drain, surprised at the easiness of its removal. He clipped his blaster to his belt and climbed in, grabbing on to the ladder.

Kyle slowly descended into the darkness below him. He dropped from the bottom of the ladder, landing with a splash in the sludge. The light from the drainage ditch was dim, but enough for him to see a ledge running along either side of the liquid. Kyle jumped up onto the ledge, and made his way through the darkness.

He toggled on his field light, but it zapped out on him after a minute or so. Kyle checked the battery levels on his head-up display, but they showed near-full. Such were the wonders of Imperial craftmenship. Kyle continued ahead, using the Force to keep himself aware of his surroundings. A small splash behind him made him jump, but he couldn't sense anything there. The sewers were filled with strange noises, from the rustling of winged creatures overhead to the sound of hundreds of rats around his feet.

Kyle made his way forward, towards a larger life-form down the tunnel ahead of him. It was a strange presence, at the same time both familiar and new, like a drink that you've enjoyed for years, but one of the ingredients has been changed on you. Kyle was so deep in thought that he didn't notice the low hanging beam ahead of him.

"Ah!" Kyle said, stumbling backwards. He landed in the sewage with a large splash. The jolt must have knocked the wiring in the helmet around, because his fieldlight clicked on. He lay there dazed for a few seconds, until something nudged him. Kyle bolted upright, looking at what had touched him.

He found himself face to face with a giant Kell Dragon.

"Uh, nice Kell," Kyle said, slowly backing away. "I don't want to hurt you." He slowly brought his blaster up in front of him. He didn't want to have to kill the Kell, but if it attacked, it wasn't getting him without a fight.

He tried to soothe the creature with the Force, calm its natural instinct to attack him. He was suprised to note the only thing on the creatures mind was protecting its nest, and it didn't consider Kyle a threat. "Well," he said to the Kell. "You're either a good judge of character, or incredibly stupid." He looked down and saw the Kell's nest, complete with eggs, off to the side of the Kell.

"And next time they have a sewage back-up, someone's going to be in for a big surprise," he said, turning down another tunnel. With his fieldlight working, he made much faster progress. Apparently these Imperials didn't build there garrisons according to typical plans, because he couldn't find an entrance to anything that looked remotely Imperial. He eventually found another ladder, which brought him out in a street next to a large courtyard with a fountain in it.

"Well, you don't look like you've had a good time," another stormtrooper's voice came from behind Kyle.

"No, they put me on sewer patrol," Kyle said, hoping the trooper didn't know that there wasn't any sewer patrol. "You know of any place I could clean off? I don't want to report in looking like this. Might get me demoted."

"Right there," the trooper said, pointing at the fountain. "It was some city monument, but no one cares about it anymore."

Kyle thanked the trooper and headed over to the fountain. At least this is waterproof, he thought. He splashed into the fountain, and stood underneath the water as it fell on his armor, washing away the sludge, and, he hoped, the stink. After a few minutes, Kyle walked back out and look around. Right behind where he had come out of the sewer was a large building with an Imperial insignia on it.

Finally, he thought. This city is really starting to get old. He walked up the stairs of an entrance to the garrison, and started down a hallway.

"This is a restricted area, you're not authorized in here!" Kyle saw an Imperial captain hit a button on a panel.

"Oh great," Kyle said, throwing off his helmet. He took out the captain with his blaster, but by then the alarm had already sounded. Kyle attempted to stop it, but couldn't find the right button. "When in doubt," he blasted the control panel. "Shoot."

Kyle began to make his way through the garrison, taking out any Imps he ran into along the way. He eventually found himself on a small landing platform, overlooking the city. He could see the shuttle off to his right. Not good, he thought. He turned, seeing several stormtroopers there, shooting at him. He jumped into a speeder parked beside him, but he couldn't get it to start. He ducked down and began taking out the stormtroopers, when the sound of repulsors from behind him caught his attention.

He looked and saw WeeGee at the controls of a transport. "WeeGee? What are you doing here?" Kyle shouted. He dodged blaster bolts and jumped into the back of the transport. He saw WeeGee had brought his bryar and lightsaber. He clipped the bryar to his belt and ignited his saber. "Get us out of here!" Kyle began blocking the stormtroopers' shots, deflecting some back at the group.

The speeder went flying over the ledge, dropping quickly before the stronger repulsors kicked in. Kyle stumbled, and a blaster bolt caught him in the shoulder. The armor took most of the energy, but he still felt a little sting. He looked up to see the landing pylons getting smaller. "Wrong way, WeeGee," he yelled. He looked back and saw a transport loaded with stormtroopers following them. "Better do some fancy flying, because we've got company." He let the Force flow through him, guiding his saber to intercept the blaster bolts.

The speeders weaved in and out of the buildings, as WeeGee tried to lose the troopers plus make it back to the pylons. Below, the citizens of Ubbar watched the chase with a strange mesmerization. Kyle almost fell off the transport once, but caught himself at the last possible minute. WeeGee neared the landing pylons, and Kyle prepared to jump.

The speeder turned a corner and began to slow, stopping near the pylons. The Imperial speeder came around the corner, and it looked like the pilot lost control due to the way it veered. It smashed into one of the walkways that extended from the pylons that was used to dock AT-ATs. WeeGee pulled closer to one, and Kyle jumped off. "WeeGee, get out of here as fast as you can, and get back to Mari." The droid beeped a reply, and sped off in the speeder, still being shot at from stormtroopers on the ground.

Kyle cautiously worked his way over to the other pylon across the catwalk that connected the two. The door wooshed open silently, and he crept into the other one. There was no way for him to get up to the shuttle from in here. He heard voices below him, and saw two more Imperial officers discussing the situation.

"The Rebel's speeder was seen leaving the city. We assume that he has escaped. The shuttle Alpha 2 will leave as planned in 15 standard minutes. Have the crew on board in 10," the first officer said.

"Yes sir. They are on their way from the garrison now. The loaders are about to load the final set of crates. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must see they are loaded properly." He walked down a slope in the center of the room.

Must be an underground passage connecting the two pylons, thought Kyle. He used the Force to slow his fall, and silently jumped down behind the officer.

"Excuse me," Kyle said, tapping the officer on the shoulder. The officer turned. His eyes widened when he saw Kyle. "It's bed time," he punched the officer in the jaw, and he fell to the floor in a heap. Kyle stepped over the officer and scanned the control panel. He'd seen things like it before, and had little trouble working it. He called up the security camera in the cargo area. He saw the other officer inspecting the crates. He raised a comlink to his mouth.

"Send her up," the officer's voice came over the comlink. Kyle set the elevator to go up in 15 seconds. He ran over to a small elevator and rode it up to the catwalks. He dashed across the area between the pylons in time to jump down onto the cargo elevator. He sliced one of the seals on one of the larger crates, opened it, and hopped in.

The crate was filled with what appeared to be clothing. Nice and soft. Now, as long as they don't see the seal, he thought. Kyle felt the elevator stop, and he heard a voice say, "This one's good." A few seconds later, he felt the crate being lifted and carred toward the shuttle. The crate stopped moving, and then dropped to the floor.

"That's the last one. Seal her up," the voice was muffled by the crate. He heard the sounds of the cargo door closing and sealing. He pushed open the lid, checking to see that he was alone. He pushed it the rest of the way open and hopped out, closing the crate behind him. He ducked down and waited. -----------------------------

The pilots of the shuttle walked up the shuttle's entry ramp. From his position, Kyle could see them, but they couldn't see Kyle. They were about the same height, clad in Imperial flight suits. The one on the right looked at his copilot and said, "Did they ever find the rebel that broke in?"

The second pilot replied, "Nope, they're still looking."

"Well, I'll be glad to get off this rock," the first pilot said, sitting in his chair.

"Yeah, the last place you'll find a Rebel is on a Star Destroyer."

I wouldn't be to sure of that, Kyle thought as the shuttle took off. ----------------------------- To Be Continued.....

Brian "RBF" Taylor had the wrong blurb here,
but now he has the right one.

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