Chapter 266 - Perilous Escape

"Sir... Bzz... We detected a Republic ship approaching our... position. Should we... Bzz... Open fire?"

Mutyelee Ahing was a Troig, a tall, reptilian species, with two heads. He was also the prison director, responsible for the prisoners in Sull.u.s.t. And he wasn't in a good mood.

"What are you waiting for..."

"... You idiot?! Destroy..."

"... Them!!!"

Each head completed the other's sentence, and spat saliva on the poor B1 unit, before pushing it in anger. His honor and life depended on the prisoners being recaptured, and the invaders being destroyed. However, he was going to be disappointed.

"The systems are offline. Bzz... We can't control our turrets."

It didn't take long for Ahing to understand that it was all part of an elaborate plan. He would be an idiot if he failed to see that he had been played, and that the invaders, which he assumed were part of the Republic sc.u.m, were much better prepared than he thought. And that only made him even angrier.

"Send someone to take back the..."

"... Weapons systems! And send out the Vulture..."

"... Droids. That ship must be destroyed at all..."

"... Costs!"

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"Arghh!"

A clone screamed as two lasers hit him. The blaster in his hands fell to the ground, and the trooper behind him picked it up. Stepping over his brother's body, he fired at the clanckers.

That wasn't the first time this had happened, and, unfortunately, it was a normal occurrence for clones all over the galaxy. A battle didn't stop because a combatant died.

While the trooper was firing at the droids, a figure suddenly jumped out of a corner, and a green light flashed, aiming for his neck, and leaving no time for any kind of reaction. He was sure he was dead, but the light suddenly stopped, revealing itself to be a lightsaber, wielded by a young, female Togruta.

"Dogma? I thought you were dead."

The soldier, Dogma, took a second to realize who the familiar face was, and then went back to shooting at the clanckers.

"Commander Tano!"

"Sorry about that. I wasn't sure you were a friend. Now I see I was wrong. Where is Master Skywalker?"

"He should be coming right up. He went to free some others."

Just as Dogma said that, the main group of once prisoners appeared in the corridor, led by General Skywalker. His padawan nodded at him, and started running too, followed by Cell, Metal, and Tech.

"How was it on your end, Snips?"

"Their systems are down for now, master. However, we will have to hurry, before they can get it back on."

Master and padawan nodded to each other and ran forward, overtaking Dogma and the other clones who were in the front. The swung their weapons together, and the lightsabers cut the clanckers like they were nothing.

When the clones who had gone with Ahsoka saw Brain, they smiled under their helmets, and greeted him hurriedly. Cell slightly punched his shoulder, and the grenadier couldn't help but open a wide smile.

"Missed me?"

"We were in need of someone who knew how to throw things. Haha!"

Of course, even though they were talking, their eyes never left the enemy ahead, their fingers kept pressing the trigger, and they kept running.

Hearing the small interactions between his brothers, Dageer's thoughts went back to Ryloth, and to a promise he had made to Commander Keeli. The broken helmet that once belonged to the commander still sat on a shelf on his quarters in Coruscant, both as a treasure and a reminder. He knew he couldn't save all his brothers, but he would do his utmost to make sure the 303rd troopers lived, even if they were in other legions now.

Pushing those thoughts away, he concentrated on the present, and lifted his DC-15A, pressing the trigger three times, and each laser took a droid's life. Hell Squad was a deadly unit, even after they lost Brain. Now that the clone was with them again, no clancker could stand on their way.

"The hangar is just ahead, general. The cruiser is already there."

After turning a corner, Dageer informed General Skywalker, to which the Jedi answered with a nod.

The hangar had several scorched marks on the ground and walls, and at least two dozen clanckers - in pieces - were scattered around. Clearly, the seppies had tried to stop the Arquitens-class Republic cruiser, but they were no match to the turrets on the ship.

As soon as the clone captain saw the ex-prisoners arriving, he opened the lower ramp of the ship. Under the protection of the Jedis and those who had blasters, the troopers entered, hesitantly followed by the thirty or so insurgents that were also kept captive.

However, before everyone could get into the cruiser, an entire platoon of B1 droids appeared in the hangar, and gunned down many clones who still were outside. Over twenty troopers fell, cowardly shot in the back.

Unfortunately, Hell Squad and General Skywalker, as well as his padawan, were already inside the ship, and their path back was blocked by the prisoners they had rescued.

Noticing that, the few clones who outside the ship looked at each other, and nodded. Coincidentally led by Guard, they picked up the blasters on the ground, and started fighting back.

"You gotta leave, general! We will hold them back!"

"Negative, trooper! Get inside!"

Guard hesitated for a moment, but witnessing his defenseless brothers being slaughtered, he made up his mind. Hitting a panel next to the ramp, he made it close, leaving him and fifteen other clones locked outside.

It all happened too fast for General Skywalker to react. Before he knew it, the ramp had closed. As much as he wanted to open it again, he knew that by the time that happened, the brave soldiers outside would already be dead, and he would only expose more clones for the Separatist to kill.

Angry but powerless, he ordered the cruiser to take off, and glanced at the almost a thousand ex-prisoners with the corner of his eyes. They took the sacrifices of their brothers way better than him, mainly because they would have done the same if they swapped places with Guard.

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Putting down his blaster, Dageer started to do a headcount of the rescued prisoners, even as he felt the cruiser rock under the attacks of the Vulture Droids. He knew that only those seppies wouldn't be able to take down the shields.

In total, one thousand one hundred and four prisoners escaped. The rest had either been killed or captured again, and Dageer preferred not to think about it.

As the ship entered hyperspace, he sat down, and rested his head against the wall. That mission was over. Now, Hell Squad had to wait for their next assignment.

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"They were under the leadership of... Bzzz... Jedi Master Anakin... Skywalker, my lord."

"Uhmm..."

In a dark room, Count Dooku listened to the report, his expression unreadable. The attack, and the escape that followed it meant nothing to him. Neither did the young Skywalker. He was more interested in someone else.

"And who were the Republic dogs that accompanied him? Not just any clone can succeed in such daring plans."

"A special... Unit called Hell Squad. Bzz..."

"Hell Squad, hum? Get me a report of their previous actions, and send it to every commander. It isn't the first time I've heard that name."