Prologue
A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far Far Away….
War has come to the galaxy. The Mandalorian Clans have united under one banner, forming a vast armada the likes of which has never been seen. For years they’ve been ravaging the outer rim worlds and are beginning to press toward the Galactic Core. Though the Republic braces itself for battle, their most trusted ally, the Jedi Order have decided not to participate in the fight. But as more worlds fall to savagery, fractures begin to appear in the Order's resolve.
As the conflict inevitably draws closer, Jedi Padawan Lyra Heartstrings sees a powerful vision. In it, she sees a golden opportunity and her only chance at unraveling the mystery of her species and homeland. However, this lead is merely a stepping stone. As more clues about the whereabouts of her homeland appear, Lyra is forced to take measures of her own…. by traveling across a galaxy torn apart by war.
Khal Dryll stared at the vast empty void of space. He sat in his ship’s cockpit, counting the stars that glimmered in the darkness. It was boring, sure, but it was the only entertainment he had. That, and his blaster pistol, which he used to twirl around with his left index finger.
For the past few days, he’d been alone with a squad of soldiers. They were on a mission, assigned by Mandalore the Ultimate himself. Venture into the Hydian Way hyperspace rout and search for any sign of the Republic fleet.
An exciting mission one would think; but so far, the fleet had found nothing.
Now, Khal wasn’t a person who’d disobey direct orders. Especially, from Mandalore himself. What kind of man would he be if he’d do something like that. But he wanted much more than this. He’s considered one of the best recruits from his clan. How could a great soldier like himself be assigned to this boring mission?
He gritted his teeth. Thinking about it made his head hurt. Perhaps it’d be best if he moved around a bit. But as he stood up, the door to the cockpit burst open.
“Khal? Are you here?” A tall middle-aged man wearing a set of heavy-duty battle armor stepped inside the room. “Boy, if you are in here, get your butt off the captain’s chair and report to the—”
Before the man could finish, Khal stopped twirling his pistol and gripped it with his left hand. He quickly snatched a nearby power-pack, loaded his weapon, pulled the safety off, and pointed the gun at the intruder. He stopped once he realized who the man was. It was his uncle, Korn Dryll. The acting commander of the entire ship.
“Pretty good moves there, boy,” said Commander Korn. “I’m impressed on how quick you were able to draw your gun like that. I can see why so many from our clan hold you in such a high regard.”
“C-commander! So sorry about that. I didn’t know it was you.” Khal quickly took the clip out of his weapon and placed it on top of a nearby chair. “Is there something you need, sir?”
“There’s no need to apologize, Khal. I would’ve done the same thing too if someone sneaked up on me like that.” The commander laughed. “Though to be frank, I’m surprised you’re here in the cockpit all alone. Just what are you doing here, boy?”
“N-nothing. Nothing at all, sir. Just relaxing on my chair, that’s all.”
“Really now?” The commander cocked an eyebrow. “Boy, were you playing around with your weapon again?”
Khal groaned. Now was not the good time for a scolding.
“Khal, you really shouldn’t be playing around with your weapons like that. You could really hurt yourself.”
“The safety was on, uncle!” Khal argued, dropping all formalities. “I know what I’m doing. So, can you please not lecture me right now!”
“Don’t you dare shout back at me, whelp. You’re our best soldier on this mission. Don’t you think it’d be a disgrace if you’d injure yourself by twirling around your weapon like a toy?”
“Well, I can’t help it, uncle. I’m completely bored out of my mind here!” Frustrated, Khal clenched his fist and slammed it into the wall, leaving a dent the size of his knuckle. He sighed. “Look, I’m sorry for the outburst, uncle. It’s that I didn’t expect this mission to be boring. I thought I’d be fighting out in the frontlines, fighting republic soldiers and Jedi alike. But instead, I’m stuck here waiting for a fleet that’s never going to show up.”
His uncle signed. “It’s frustrating, Khal, I know. But orders are orders. This mission is important. We must scour the Hydian Way, so that our forces can advance safely to the Mid-Rim. If we are to run into any resistance, it’d be best if our army knows in advance.” He paused. “Boy, did you say that you wanted to fight Jedi on the frontlines?”
“Yes, sir!” Khal stated, returning to formalities. “Fighting Jedi is what I anticipate the most in this war! What could be more glorifying than to face one in combat?”
“Really, now?” Commander Korn stared curiously at Khal. “I’ve heard from the squad that you seem to be obsessed with the Jedi. Looks like they were right. What makes you think those kinds of people would put up a good fight against us?”
“What?! Sir, I mean no offense, but are you joking?! Have you not seen the holo-records? We fought the Jedi in the last war two decades ago and they beat us! They’re great warriors. Don’t you look forward to facing them in combat?”
“Twenty years is a long time, Khal. Now, these same Jedi refuse to fight us,” countered the commander. “They prefer staying inside their precious temples, even when the Republic asked them for help.”
“That may be true, but at least some had decided to grow a spine! From what I heard, a splinter group had formed amongst them and are fighting alongside the Republic as we speak. Those warriors are willing to fight, unlike the ones who stayed behind.” Khal clenched his fists, showing every bit of excitement to his uncle. “There might be a handful of them fighting right now! Just who knows how much I’m missing!”
The commander chuckled. “Well, if that’s the case, won’t that justify our mission then? If Jedi have decided to fight back, our forces need to know what they and the Republic have in store. Am I wrong?”
Khal blinked. His excitement toned down a bit as his uncle’s words crept inside his head. “Damn, I…. I guess you’re right. Our mission might be boring, but if the Jedi joined the fight, we need to know.”
“That’s the spirit. Now come on. One of your squadmates got something to show us in the main hold. I suggest you follow me and see what it is.”
Khal nodded. Before he left the cockpit, he snatched his pistol off the chair and put the safety back on. He lifted his left leg on top of the chair and placed the weapon on a holder strapped to his heel.
“Boy, is it really necessary for you to put your weapon down there?” asked Commander Korn. “Don’t you think that’s a little too dangerous?”
“The safety is on, uncle. I’ll be fine. Besides, having a surprise weapon on my boot might prove useful someday.”
Commander Korn shrugged. “If you say so.” Together, the two walked down the ship’s main corridor to the main hold. Once they've arrived, they spotted the entire squad of Mandalorian troopers have gathered in one area.
“Hey, Khal,” said one of the soldiers. “What’s with all the shouting back there? We heard you all the way from here. What, did you get into an argument with our commander or something?”
“Wouldn’t be surprised if that happened,” said another soldier. “I mean, just look at his face! I bet the commander caught wind of him looking at some old Jedi holo-records or something. The kid’s obsessed with them I tell you.”
Khal scowled. He wanted to shout back but doing so would only get him in trouble. Instead, he grabbed a nearby chair and sat down in silence. As he got comfortable, his uncle slowly made his way to the far side of the room, garnering everyone’s attention. Commander Korn gazed at everyone present and—after a brief pause—clapped his hand together and began to shout.
“Alright, crusaders, listen up! All eyes on me now, enough chit-chat!” At once, every soldier in the room turned to face their commander. “Crusaders, when we assigned to this mission, I know many of you hoped for glory. You hoped that we’d might be involved in some big fight with the Republic Navy. So far, we’ve found no signs of any fleet. Nothing big has happened yet and you soldiers are starting to get frustrated.”
Khal looked around the room. Many soldiers had their heads down and their faces sullen. It appeared he wasn’t the only person who was upset with the mission.
“However, I have some good news for you all. Recently, our engineers picked up something not too long ago. Something worth looking into.”
Everyone’s heads jolted up. All eyes stared at their commander with curiosity. If anything, this piece of info had gotten everyone’s attention.
Ignoring the stares, Commander Korn looked to his side and eyeballed the nearby engineer.
“Sergeant Prick! Get over here this instant and show your squad what you’ve found!”
“Sir, yes sir! And, uh, not to be rude commander, my name is Price.”
“I don’t care, Prick! Get over here and show us the holo-recording now!”
Khal snickered at the pitiable Sergeant. Get used to the nicknames, Prick. My uncle isn’t one who takes formalities seriously. Just do what he says and move on.
“Y-yes, commander,” replied the Sergeant. He moved over to Commander Korn and pulled out a holoprojector from his pocket. Turning it on, the projector then showed an image of a well-dressed man. He quickly introduced himself and said that he worked for a large organization called, the Exchange.
Hearing this, Khal raised a brow. The Exchange? Aren’t they some criminal organization out here in the Mid-Rim? What’s this announcement got to do with those scumbags?
As the man continued to speak, the image flickered. The projection now showed a bunch of animals that Khal had never seen before. The Exchange lackey, whose voice still played in the background, introduced these creatures as a new alien species discovered by his organization.
Khal took a good look at the creatures. Physically, they all looked the same. Each had four legs and were rather small in terms of height and size. By his estimate, they’d probably reach his knees at best.
What had gotten his attention though is that each creature was unique. Some had a pointy horn on top of their foreheads, while others appeared to have wings on their backs. Some had neither of those features at all.
Pretty soon, the image flickered back to the Exchange lacky. He said again that these creatures were all for sale. If anyone is interested, they are to come to the planet, Ord Mantell. It’d be first come first serve.
As the Exchange lacky began his closing statements, the image flickered again back to the four-legged creatures. Khal stared at them, pondering why this new discovery is so important. But to his surprise, along with everyone else in the room, one of the animals with wings suddenly banged on the cage.
And to make things even more interesting, he understood it. The winged animal screamed in a language that he and all his crew mates could understand.
With the recording over, Commander Korn took the holoprojector from Sergeant Prick and turned to face the squad.
“Command has given us new orders,” he stated. “We are to go to Ord Mantell and learn more about his new species. Since the planet is already one of our big targets, we’ve been approved to go ahead and scout the area.”
The soldiers nodded. To Khal’s surprise, none dared to talk about their new orders or the new animal species. As soon everyone left the main hold, he approached his uncle once more.
“Uncle, why is command giving us these orders?” Khal asked, again dropping formalities. “I mean, I don’t mind this new mission and all, but why do we have to look into this new species?”
His uncle chuckled. “Well to be honest, I asked that same question to command after I showed them this holo-recording. I’d like to know their true intentions, but like I said earlier boy, orders are orders.”
“If you say so, uncle. But at least we’ll be able to do something now.” Khal smirked. “Plus, I’m kinda interested on what this new species is.”
Commander Korn smiled. “Now that’s the enthusiasm I want to see! Now get your arse back in the cockpit! We got a planet to go to!”
Stats
Page generated in 0.026 seconds
Total duration
1,007 users online
1,472,140 hits today, 2,004,447 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Well, an interesting start to this story in my opinion.
The only real complaint that I have, if any, is just the extreme specificity of this line.
That may be how you write but it just threw me off a bit.
Otherwise, I'll definitely be reading further as you put more chapters out.
A question ends with a question mark, not a period. Right?
10780392
Good call. It's been a while since I looked back at the older chapters, so I must've missed this. Thank you for that.
To be honest, I'm not familiar with the Old Republic Lore so a lot of info might go over my head.
That said, this story seems intriguing. More info is needed before having this world monitored.
11304431
I'm glad you're interested in it. I hope my work brings a modicum amount of enjoyment for you, despite it's flaws.