"What is it, Dageer?"
Boss looked at the commander, impatiently waiting for him to say why he wanted to talk in particular. There was an invasion going on, and they couldn't waste time.
Dageer, on the other hand, seemed almost absent-minded, which was very uncommon. Boss rarely saw a clone more focused than Dageer. The commander could face an entire droid company without even flinching, and more than once, had sustained a wound in exchange for killing a clancker. To see him now, daydreaming, was surprising, to say the least.
"Dageer?"
"Yes. Sorry, brother. It's just... You felt it too, didn't you? The chancellor, there is something about him..."
"Careful, Dageer. Those are dangerous grounds."
Dageer shook his head. By Boss' reaction, he was sure the clone commando had the same doubts as him. Still, none of them could put the finger on what it was, exactly.
"Forget it. Let's go."
...
"Here you are! Boss, Delta Squad is waiting for you the other gunship. Dageer, Hell Squad is on this one."
The lower hangar was bustling with activity, as pilots, crewmen, engineers, troopers, Jedis, and droids walked from one side to the other, prepping Laats, Y-Wings, and V-Wings.
Many sh.i.p.s were already taking off, and Dageer quickly got into his, while Boss nodded to Ragout , and entered another Laat.
"We are ready to go. Oddball, take off. Fly low, you will just drop us and return."
"Yes, general."
The doors of the gunship closed, and it left the Venator-class cruiser. Several calculated attacks were hitting many parts of Geonosis, all so the main force could strike the factories where Poggle the Lesser was hiding. However, if Hell Squad and Delta Squad didn't deal with the anti-aircraft turrets, hundreds, maybe even thousands of sh.i.p.s would be shot down before they could even get near the rendezvous point.
Dageer put on his helmet, and held onto the straps hanging from the ceiling. It would be a rough landing, that was for sure. The red lights flashed, indicating that they had entered the atmosphere.
"Here we go again."
Dageer grinned when he heard Cell. All the members of Hell Squad had been in the First Battle Of Geonosis, so this brought back memories. Even though only a year and a half had passed, it seemed a lifetime away.
"Just like the old times. Let's just hope we don't crash this time."
"Crash? You never talked about the start of the war. What happened?"
Ragout couldn't help but ask. He only met Hell Squad after Mon Cala, and that was a few months after the Clone Wars had started. Before that, he was still training at the Jedi Temple, and wasn't even a padawan yet.
"You weren't at the first assault, right, general? Back then, Hell Squad wasn't a special unit yet. Me, Brain, Tech, and Three-four were already on Hell Squad, but we were just a normal unit. Cell, Dab, and Metal only joined us later."
"And what about the crash?"
"Even though the seppies weren't expecting us, they still had a lot of defenses in position. Our Laat was hit, and we lost our sergeant. Pilots were also down. We did our best to hold on, but we still lost many men when we crashed. To tell the truth, we were lucky anybody survived at all. And, to make matters worse, there were countless clanckers between us and the command post where we were supposed to land."
"Well, that sounds like it was fun."
"It had its moments. The commander took down an AAT, and I had to put his shoulder back in place. Haha..."
Dageer felt like cursing Three-four and the others when he heard them laughing. Back then, it hadn't been so simple as they made it sound now. It was only after a battle was over that one could be so carefree about it. In the midst of it, all Dageer could think was about his brothers dying, and the seppies in front of him.
"Dageer, Cell, Tech, Dab, Three-four, Metal... I heard about Brain. I'm sorry I couldn't be there to help."
Dageer shook his head. Ragout couldn't be blamed for anything. He was at Coruscant, completing his training, as General Di asked.
"It isn't your fault sir. It isn't anybody's fault. Brain made a decision. If it wasn't for him, I would be dead. He went out like a real soldier. And he took that disgusting Separatist, Grievous, with him."
Ragout nodded. It wasn't the first time a clone sacrificed himself, and it wouldn't be the last. He wasn't that innocent kid anymore. He knew that wars weren't a game. War had a price no one in a sane state of mind would be willing to play, but there was no other option than to keep going, until it was over.
"Oddball, how are we looking?"
"Minus ten until we enter their range, general."
"Go lower than. Dageer, Dab, Metal, attach the ropes. We will only have a few seconds to leave the gunship."
"At least we won't be jumping."
"I can arrange that, if you want."
"No, thank you, sir."
Cell shuddered when Ragout grinned at him. He loved to complain about Quell, because he really hated heights, and the Jedi knew that. The other clones laughed freely.
"Well, it is very good to have you with us again, general. Those last six months hadn't been easy, and having a Jedi with us will be of great help."
Ragout grinned, but there was a trace of sadness hidden within it.
"Only because I'm a Jedi? I thought you would think highly of me, Tech."
"Haha... Sorry, general."
Dageer almost facepalmed, but held himself back, and only knocked Tech's head with his knuckles, like an a.d.u.l.t scolding a child.
"You know Tech never was good with words, sir..."
"Hey!"
"... But few know what we all went through back in Ryloth. Hell Squad is glad to have you with us, not only as a Jedi, but as a friend."
The Togruta looked at Dageer for a long time, as emotions dwelled inside him. To him, the clones of the 303rd weren't just soldiers. They all went through a baptism of fire together, especially Hell Squad and him. The commander and the men under him were some of the closest friends he had, and he trusted each of them with his life. He knew they would never let him down.
"We are approaching their defenses! You better hold onto something. This is gonna get bumpy!"
Oddball's alarm brought Ragout back to his senses. It was time.
"Thanks... Let's just hope we don't have your bad luck this time."
Seeing that the conversation had once again turned against him, Dageer was about to rebuke when the Laat shook, while the pilot tried to dodge the enemy fire.
"We got three Vultures on our tail! We have to destroy them or we won't be able to land!"
"On it! Dab, take the other beam!"
Dageer entered the c.o.c.kpit, and got into a ball made of glass that was hanging outside. It was a composite-beam turret. Each Laat had two of them, and they fired highly focused and unstable lasers. No matter what, be it Vulture droids, infantry, or even some of the lighter vehicles, once it was hit by it, it would be gone.