Star Wars: Rise of the Battlemage - Chapter 367 (Patreon)

Hey everyone, just an FYI, there will be no posts on Friday the 6th and Monday the 9th of November. I will be taking a rather needed small break to spend some time with family. Normal posting will resume on the 10th.

Thank you for your support and patience!

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As I had assured my people, even after the "big reveal," we didn't dive right into planning an assassination or start discussions about how to visit Endor without getting caught. As important as the topic was, it was not something we could tackle immediately, so the entire premise was put on a back burner. 

Well, it was but on the back burner for most of the crew. Mara, Ahsoka, and I continued to work on it, trying to figure out something we could use. Mara had a decent amount of information about the Emperor and his goings-on, though all of it had to be taken with a grain of salt.

My plan for assaulting the Death Star was pretty simple. Warn the Rebellion that the station was operable, so that they didn't attack it head-on.  With a simple change in jump position, the Rebel forces would be clear of the laser. Even if the station's escort fleet boxed them in, which I wanted to help with as well, following the back side of the station would keep them out of range of the station's capital ships. On top of that, staying around the unfinished hemisphere of the station would mean that whatever weapons were finished on its surface would be completely ineffective, unable to reach them around the curve of the station. 

Just the warning alone, plus some creativity in stopping the shield projector, would massively shift the pattern of the battle. Of course, we also needed to worry about the Emperor mixing up his original plan, but that would only be the case if the Emperor was the one in control. If he never set foot on the station, then we wouldn't have to worry so much about that.

Plus, I didn't want to have to worry about boarding the massive station to kill him, so I really wanted to kill him first. The greatest issue with that was finding a moment when he was vulnerable, something that he didn't let happen very often. 

That's where our little planning team came in. Mara, Ahsoka, and I, along with an Astromech droid programmed for secrecy and kept nearby, so we could use its astronavigational maps.

Together, over the span of several activities and missions, we would take time in between the action to scan for where the Emperor was. I would use Clairvoyance, the astromech would use their maps and calculations to pinpoint a range of where he might be. Then we would use my knowledge and Mara's to guess where he was, or where he was going, charting them on a map inside the astromech as we tried to narrow down a pattern.

This was a long-term project, something we would be working on for months, during downtime and breaks between missions, so I was not surprised that the first few days we tried this resulted in one locked-in data point. I was even less surprised when it turned out to likely be Coruscant. 

"How often does he leave?" I asked Mara as the astromech tucked itself into a corner of the room Ahsoka and I shared on board the Hope and shut down. 

"If you asked me before, I would have said hardly ever," She admitted. "Now, though, I realize him going into seclusion for weeks at a time was likely him traveling over the galaxy to do his business."

"Yeah, he was not sedentary, especially not in the beginning… he liked to show up when everything was already done so he could gloat, deal the final punishment, or just generally be creepy and evil. If Byss is a thing, which it likely is considering how active a world it is, he makes frequent journeys there to use the Force to mess with anyone on the planet."

"He really corrupts an entire planet by himself?" Ahsoka asked, sounding deeply upset and unsettled by the concept. "That… it's horrific." 

"It is," I agreed. "And it's likely far too late to do anything about it." 

With our off-the-books, long-term study plan set, we set out to continue the Skyforged Vanguards normal duties. At the time, that meant going on a mission to clear out a raider group that had settled on an inhabitable moon near an independent colony. They didn't pay much, but between existing bounties, stealing everything the raiders had on hand and selling it to the Rebellion, and the small payment from the colony in the form of some recently harvested grains, we more or less broke even. 

We returned to Nirn a few days later, and settled in for a few days' rest. We managed to get a single full day of relaxing in before Sheora showed up at my home, carrying a datapad and a new potential mission. 

After shaking hands with Princess Leia and assuring her we would help them find parts to cut costs for their six Dovah-class, I handed the project off to Sheora and told her to collate some potential targets, since she was already tracking some for our own use. 

The plan was to hand the information off so the Rebellion could take care of it on their own, so I was a bit confused when she put a datapad down on my counter while I was making dinner, containing information about a parts manufacturing plant.

"What's this?" I asked, glancing at the open datapad as I stirred a pot of pasta. "Parts delivery… Is this information for the Rebellion? Why bring it here?"

"Because I think we've located a significant delivery, one with enough supplies to lower the cost of three ships in total," she explained. "Two for the Rebellion and one for us. As long as they are willing."

I frowned and moved away from the stove, turning to wash my hands before finally picking through the information. Sure enough, it was a pretty good target, with plenty for us to take even without the specific parts. But there wasn't much need for us to team up, beyond lowering the cost for one of our ships as well. 

"It's also a good way to form more bonds with our soon-to-be official allies," she pointed out, getting me to nod again, realizing her real angle. "The parts and whatever else we take would be useful, but our close relationship with the Rebellion's military has proven to be quite important already. Working to make it closer certainly won't hurt." 

"Not a bad point… I'll reach out to General Syndulla, she will have a good idea of what we can expect, though she will probably have to confirm the deal with Leia if news of it hasn't spread yet. What sort of aid are you suggesting we give them?"

"I think you should go in person with your crew," she suggested. "Having you on board would make a great addition, and show the Rebel soldiers that even the highest level of the Skyforged gets their hands dirty. Moving without your usual escort also shows you trust them to carry you safely. With the right commiserate words at the right time…" 

I nodded along as I read through her report, until I frowned and looked over at her.

"That's a bit more manipulative than I like to get, and I'm surprised to hear you saying them considering your Ex-Rebellion yourself," I pointed out. "What's going on?" 

"...The Mon Mothma debacle could have been a catastrophe for the Rebellion," She revealed after a long pause. "Just a few degrees off course and we could have been looking at the dissolution of the movement. Then, the best we could have hoped for is that the Rebel groups split up, going back to being individual cells, doing the best they could on their own."

"They would have gotten back together eventually," I pointed out. "But I don't doubt it could have been a lot worse. Where are you going with this?"

"With how friendly you are with some of the leaders, and how successful you have been in general, reforming the Rebellion, should this one collapse, around you and the Skyforged would have likely been our best bet at fighting the Empire."

"There is no way-"

"I know, we wouldn't be able to fund or supply that many people," she finished for me. "But given how much the soldiers love you, how much the Outer Rim loves you, and how friendly you are with a solid chunk of their important figures…"

"It wouldn't have worked like that," I said, shaking my head as she trailed off. "They have too many leaders who others would follow."

"And Luke wouldn't have come here?" She asked hypothetically. "He wouldn't have brought his people? General Syndulla? General Dodonna?" 

I opened my mouth to respond, only to pause. I would have likely stepped up in such an abysmal situation, using our forces to keep as much of the Rebellion supplied as possible… And I would have offered a safe place… 

"Okay, I can see it happening to a degree," I admitted with a frown, then a wince, not exactly enjoying the implication.

"It would have been messy, yes, and we likely wouldn't have been able to shelter many people," She stated, agreeing with my unspoken point. "But the splinter groups, the small groups without support or sponsors, would have looked to us eventually. Under that banner, and the support of other major players coming here, you would have been at the top of the list. What exactly that list entailed, I don't know, but you would have been at the top."

"Well… then I'm glad it didn't happen that way," I said, shaking off a shiver at how badly that could have gone. "But how does all of that lead back to what you are doing? Are you trying to improve my standing with the troops so… what, if the group does splinter, I'm more of an obvious choice?" 

"Call it a backup plan, a last resort option," She responded with a shrug. "You already have an iron grip on whatever comes next with their still-rising debt, but with some work you'll have more than that if things go wrong." 

"I'm… not a huge fan of the concept," I said with a frown, turning back to my cooking idly. "But I do understand the necessity of it. Of some of it. No Psy-ops to destabilize morale, no grand acts to make it look like the second coming of Revan. Or third coming, actually… And no spying directly. I refuse to be the ones who start a shadow war with our allies."

"But telling you to pay a visit to Alpha Base's hospital wing when you go?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at me as she leaned against the counter. 

"... that's on the line of acceptable," I admitted, pausing to think about it. "But I'll do it, since I probably should have been doing it the whole time. Damn, now I'm going to feel off about doing it."

"Right, next time I'll tell Tatnia to suggest it," She countered, chuckling as I glared at her. "What? She will agree with me, and you won't have to feel weird about whatever it is you're doing." 

"Not the problem," I pointed out, gesturing at her with my stirring fork. "Whatever, just keep it non-lethal and non-destructive. And that includes reputations."

"Sure thing, Boss," she responded, giving me a casual salute before tapping the still glowing datapad. "Read this, let me know what you think. I'll give you a more complete file to send them if you think it's worth our time."

I nodded and waved her away, done with her sarcasm and underhandedness. As she left, I saw her steal a piece of fruit from a bowl, and I chuckled. I knew that she respected me, she wasn't nearly as friendly with people she didn't, but it was also nice to have someone who worked with me who wasn't afraid to mess with me a bit, at least beyond my crew. 

And hell if she wasn't damn good at her job. 

I finished cooking just about the same time Ahsoka came home from spending some time at one of the meditation parks. She was trying to pick up some new lightsaber forms, so she was learning from one of the Jedi Counselors who taught Form II, Makashi. She already fought with an amalgam of a few forms, and was looking to take her mostly custom form to a new level by adding a level of refinement and subtlety, which Form II was renowned for. 

I set the food on the table, a plate for each of us, before settling in. While we ate, we read through the datapad together, poking through the information and discussing it. The target was pretty simple: a series of factory chains on a planet that produced a specific type of power core insulation, which the Empire used in some of their cruisers. They came in these octagonal panels, and they were difficult and expensive to make, so stealing enough of them would mean a huge discount. If Sheora's numbers were right, which they usually were, we could probably get a two-million-credit reduction for each Dovah-class.

While it didn't solve the cost issue for the Rebellion completely, it would go a long way to cutting down the cost for their first two ships, as well as one of ours. Any excuse to make our production less expensive was good in my books.

"It seems like a simple rough target," Ahsoka agreed with a nod. "With it being on the ground, having us along for the ride makes sense... And we could likely make off with some of these as well... I think it's a solid plan."

"I think Sheora meant for me to make our involvement part of the deal," I responded, nodding in agreement as my fiancé passed me the datapad. "But I think I will make the offer and let them decide. I'm relatively certain they will accept our help, this is the kind of target we've started to excel at taking down. Then they can come in and gather everything up, pick us up, and then we are gone. With a little research, I bet we could even find something fun to steal on the way out." 

"So that's a yes, then?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yeah, I'll send Sheora confirmation, then look up what time it is on Alpha Base," I confirmed with a nod. "Want to let everyone know we will be going on a mission?"

"Sure, let's just finish eating first," She said, tapping the datapad off and sliding it away. "I like your red sauce, but I preferred that last one better, the white one. What did you call it, an Alfredo?"

I smiled, and we chatted over the food for a while before we eventually finished. When we were done, we cleaned up a bit before splitting up to start making calls. There wasn't any rush, but getting the ball rolling now would make it easier to get out and start planning over the next few days.