Chapter 279 - The Price Of War

Several months went by, and the Clone Wars had already been raging on for over two years. The galaxy was in tatters, torn between a war that seemed to never end. Millions had died on both sides, and innocents suffered. Everything pointed out that this war was far from over.

For the people in the galaxy, it was a period of fear and terror. You never knew when your planet would be subjected to an invasion, no matter from which side. For the combatants, on the other hand, it was routine.

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Dageer hid behind a rock, trying to escape the onslaught of lasers leaving the Separatist's barricades. Next to him, a trooper screamed in pain and fell into a puddle of boiling water, which quickly started to melt his helmet. Luckily for him, he was already dead when that happened.

"How are we doing, Dageer?"

"Not too good, general. Their positions are holding strong, and anyone who gets close is killed."

"What do you think?"

"We should call for air support, sir. As long as we can get two Y-Wings to blast those Double-barrel repeating blasters, we will have a shot at entering their positions."

The Jedi Dageer was talking to looked over their cover for a second, then turned around and smiled.

"Let's do it."

...

"Down! Take cover!"

As soon as they heard the order, every clone ducked behind rocks, containers, or whatever they could find.

Two Y-Wings flew over their heads, low enough to create air currents, throwing some troopers off their feet. The lines of trenches and barricades that the clanckers had set up disappeared in an instant, leaving a scenery of destruction.

Boiling water and lava flew over ten meters high, and showered the few droids who were still alive, melting their bodies. Smoke and toxic gases filled the air, forcing the clones to activate the filters in their helmets - that was another innovation the Phase II armor had.

As soon as the ground stopped shaking, the clones left their hiding spots, and started advancing. The bombardment had killed most of the seppies in the area, but a few were still alive, and fighting.

Dageer and Brain took care of six clanckers, while Dab used his sniper to kill the ones farther away. Cell and Three-four advanced, entering what remained of the barricades, and made sure all the droids inside were dead. Meanwhile, Metal and Tech provided covering fire for them.

After that, Dageer stopped, and held his comlink, talking to Commander Cody. After a few seconds, he nodded to himself, and turned off the communicator.

"General! We have to move to quadrant EX-3! The seppies have a bunch of turrets there, and are wrecking our starfighters!"

"All right. Captain Orion, you heard him. Let's go!"

A clone wearing the 212th armor dodged a laser, and acknowledged his new orders.

"Roger that, General Ragout!"

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Jumping over a stream of flowing lava, Ragout arrived next to Dageer. The Commander was occupied giving orders to the troopers around them, so he only slightly nodded at the Jedi. They had known each other for a long time, and been through a lot together, so Dageer would only salute him when necessary.

The Jedi was very different from when he was a padawan. Togrutas had two protuberances on their heads, which went down to their shoulders, very much like hair. Ragout, however, had lost a third of his left protuberance in a battle against Asajj Ventress on Felucia. If Hell Squad hadn't emptied all their magazines on the Sith assassin, forcing him to flee, Ragout probably would be dead. Now, he had a vicious look all the time, quite weird when compared to his calm disposition as a Jedi.

Ragout wasn't the only one who changed. Hell Squad had been to almost every battlefield in the galaxy, and fought side by side with countless Jedis. Each one of them had become more ruthless, and didn't hesitate in battle. War changed everyone, mostly for the worst, and the Jedis were no exception.

After over two years, the Clone Wars were finally reaching it's peak, and anyone with a little bit of experience could see that. The battles were becoming increasingly brutal, and there wasn't a single corner of the galaxy that hadn't been burned by the flames of war.

Now, every little planet would be subjected to a merciless campaign, coming from both sides. It was normal for entire fleets to be destroyed, and bases to be annihilated. Hell Squad had taken part in more than one mission that resulted in dozens of thousands of casualties for the Separatist.

It was almost impossible to say who was winning. The Separatist would take over a planet, and the Republic would respond by taking it back. That cycle went on for months without end. Planets like Felucia, Mygeeto, Mon Cala, and Kashyyyk had been on constant battle for the entirety of the Clone Wars, and no side could claim superiority.

Sull.u.s.t, where Hell Squad and Ragout were now, was another example. Three weeks ago, the 212th and 501st fleets had destroyed the enemy blockade around the planet, and initiated the ground assault. However, almost a month had passed, and they hadn't even conquered a fourth of the planet.

The planet itself didn't help. Sull.u.s.t was full of extremely valuable minerals, used to make weapons and sh.i.p.s, however, the surface of the planet was a raging inferno. Lava flowed freely, volcanos erupted randomly, and toxic gases filled the atmosphere. For the Republic was worst, but that wasn't to say for the clanckers wasn't bad too. The heat and gases melt their bodies without them even noticing.

"How are we doing over here, Dageer?"

"As good as it can be, general. We took over quadrants EX-3 to JP-11, and lots of new troops arrived, but the tin cans also made a comeback in other quadrants. All in all, we are faring a little bit better than them, but if we continue like that, we will spend months here."

The Jedi shook his head helplessly. There was nothing they could do. Sull.u.s.t had a difficult terrain, and, while it favored the AT-TEs of the Republic over the AATs of the Separatist, it also meant that it was very easy to break the vehicles, leaving them defenseless against ambushes by the seppies.

Several natives had also joined the Separatist, giving the enemy very competent guides, who could point out the best defensive positions, the best places for ambushes, and what else. Of course, the Republic also had Sull.u.s.tans with them, but somehow the seppies still had an advantage.

"We will think of that later, Dageer. We have to try and take the next quadrant before the night comes."

"Understood, sir. I will tell the men to move."

"Not Hell Squad. I need you well-rested for tonight."

"Err... May I know why, general?"

"We will attack their advanced command center."

Hearing that, the clone almost stumbled. The target Ragout had in mind was one of the best defended in the Separatist frontlines. To try and attack it with just Hell Squad would be suicide. However, he knew Ragout well, and he was sure the Jedi wasn't that harsh padawan anymore, so he said nothing, and only hoped he had a backup plan.

"Got it, general."