Chapter 307 - I Was Waiting For You

Hunter walked quietly after Boss. Up till now, Bad Batch hadn't gotten the chance to experience any action. The two Jedis, General Kenobi, and General Skywalker, had been doing everything. Even if they understood that discretion was a must in this kind of mission, the four shinies - especially Wrecker - were starting to grow restless.

"Hey, sir! When are we gonna get to smash some droid heads?"

"Shush! Be quieter, Wrecker, or we are going to have their entire army after us."

"Sorry, general. I got excited."

"We won't be able to maintain our secrecy forever. Clone Force 99 will get their baptism of fire very soon. Now, follow me. We still have to get to the next factory."

After splitting up from the two sisters, and the clones from Doom Legion, they had started planting thermal detonators and explosive charges around the factory, being careful to dodge any patrols, or to destroy them quietly. In a droid factory, no one paid attention to a few more piles of droid pieces here and there.

When one of the giant machines, responsible for transporting materials from one factory to another, got close, the group jumped on it, quickly hiding beneath some piles of metal.

They were unaware, though, that a Probe Droid had been following their every move, and reporting it to Count Dooku, who, after knowing where they were headed, started preparing a 'reception'.

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"Yakal, Eight-Eight, you are up."

"Roger that, general."

"Understood."

Two clones, wearing dark green and yellow armor, sneaked forward, and started planting detonators behind a huge container, filled with liquid metal. Meanwhile, the two Jedis, and the other clones, kept watch for any sign of danger.

They too were being tailed by a Probe Droid. In a distant corner of the foundry, a group of MagnaGuards, Droidekas, and B2 super battle droids , were gathering.

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Hell Squad was having a more troubled experience than the other two groups. They had long left the droid assembly lines behind, and entered dark tunnels. If it wasn't for the small holes in the ceiling, here and there, they would be in complete darkness.

However, they didn't dare to turn on the flashlights on their helmets. It would be a dead giveaway to their location, and the fact that they weren't Geonosians.

As such, they kept advancing in the pitch-black tunnels. More than once they found Geonosians sleeping inside the walls. Unlike the Jedis, who wouldn't attack unless attacked first, the clones weren't so merciful. Dageer finished off every single bug they found, whether they were sleeping or not. Any of them could have killed a clone before, and none of them deserved to live.

It was dangerous to leave bodies behind like that, but the moment they rescued Ragout, alarms would go off anyway, and Hell Squad preferred to have fewer enemies after them.

The few times they encountered droids or awake Geonosians, they either let the seppies go without warning them, or killed them quietly.

Finally, after almost two hours, when Dageer was already starting to get worried, the tunnels and caves started to become metal corridors and hallways. Soon, they found a terminal from which Tech could access the internal network of the Separatist.

The clone started connecting cables from his datapad to it, and typing rapidly. However, before he could discover anything, the sound of metallic footsteps resounded. Exchanging glances, Dageer ordered Tech to keep doing what he was doing, and gestured for the others to take position as close to the walls as they could.

"Hey! What are you doing her... Ahhhh!"

When the six B1 units appeared, and saw Tech, they rushed towards him, not paying attention to what behind them. Hell Squad attacked them, trying to take them down silently, but one of the clanckers managed to fire a laser before being killed. Luckily, it didn't hit anyone.

"Sorry, commander. He was faster than I expected."

"We would be discovered sooner or later. Now, Tech, we need you to hurry up. Soon, they will send someone to investigate, and discover the patrol we just destroyed. The closer we are to the general when that happens, the better."

"I need another minute, sir. General Ragout is locked up in this facility, I just need to find out where."

Anxiously, the clones waited. At any moment, the Separatist could attack them. Meanwhile, Dageer warned the other two groups.

"They found us, generals. It won't be long before they send teams looking for you."

After discovering a Republic unit inside one of their main bases, the seppies wouldn't certainly send search parties to every factory around the planet, looking for any other enemies. Inevitably, they would find the Jedis and the other clones.

"Can you still go, Commander Dageer, or, do we have to abort?"

"Hell Squad is only leaving if General Ragout is with us, ma'am."

The Jedis gave a small grunt of acknowledgment, and turned off their comlinks. The less they talked, the smaller the chances they would be heard.

"I got it! Sector 12, eighth floor!"

"Good job. Come on, lads, let's not keep the general waiting!"

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Ragout was floating a few centimeters above the ground, in his cell. His eyes were closed, but he was paying attention to every sound outside.

At first, he didn't understand why the Separatist would let him untied, so he could use the Force if the wanted. After his first attempts to escape, however, he understood that, at least for now, it was pointless. Ray shields would be lowered as soon as the door of his cell was opened, and without his lightsaber, he couldn't get through them.

The fact that he understood his situation didn't mean he was happy with it. At every chance he had, he would destroy a few droids. It was nothing to the Separatist, and he knew what he was doing could barely be considered throwing a tantrum, but after a few sessions of torture and interrogation, he didn't care.

The last weeks had been spent in pain. Two times a day, he would be taken to a room where he was tied up, and commando droids would interrogate him until he fainted. Others would already have given up on life, or giving in to his captors, but not Ragout. He was part of a new generation of Jedis, one that had been raised up amidst death, and tempered in the flames of war. He would rather die than give the enemy anything.

Suddenly, his meditation was interrupted when he heard a commotion outside. Because of the thick doors and walls, he couldn't make out what was happening, but it was too much noise for a single change of guards. And he was pretty sure he could hear blasters being fired.

His first thought was that he was being rescued. Immediately after, he understood that whoever his to-be saviors were, they were walking into a trap. He didn't know why the Separatist hadn't executed him yet, but now he had an answer. He was bait.

Getting up, he put his ear close to the door, and heard a woman's voice. And a very familiar one.

"My dear clones. You have no idea how long I've waiting to kill you."