He wanted to believe he was a good person, but in the end he was much like everyone else. In a dangerous Galaxy, he was always going to do what he had to so he could survive and keep flying.
Anxiety led to inaction, and as the sandstorm below finally abated, Yetter eventually crawled into his cot, and fell into an uneasy sleep.
...
Because the Alliance had been the ones who declared war, they gained a very small advantage over the Trade Federation. Specifically, they knew the exact minute, hour and second it would start, so were already moving their fleets just as news was breaking across the Galaxy.
Ky Narec had absolutely no doubt in his mind that the Federation would have had their forces in a state of high alert.
When the war was declared they would be quick to dispatch their fleets, but they would still need at least some time to calculate their hyperjumps and send their orders down the chain of command to where their Captains, Commodores and Admirals would receive it.
Twenty minutes. Maybe Ky would be able to get to Ranroon twenty minutes ahead of the Trade Federation. The distance from Liana to Ranroon was greater than the distance from Zygerria to Ranroon, which would be crucial for him to achieve victory today.
Would the Force grant him more than twenty minutes? Or even less? He didn't know. What Ky was certain of was that failing to secure Ranroon would instantly doom the Temple on Indinoor.
The only way for the Federation located in the Corporate Sector to get into the Tion Cluster and Alliance space was through the Shaltin Tunnels, with Ranroon and Zygerria forming the two ends of a bottleneck in hyperspace.
If the Alliance from the Tion Cluster wanted to push north into the Corporate Sector, they would need to pass through the Zygerrian system, but the reverse was also true. If the Federation wanted to invade the Tion Cluster, they would need to pass through the Ranroon system. The Federation already held both of them, which meant the Alliance now had to secure Ranroon or the war was lost.
Ky breathed out once through his nose, long and slow, passing his feelings of nervousness into the Force and focussing his mind. Strangely, despite everything that had happened, he was feeling more at peace than he had in a long time. He was fighting to protect his home and his Jedi, and to help build a future for Asajj.
The system was coming up now, he could feel it. None of the Neimoidian fleet commanders would be strong enough in the Force for him to sense their minds from here, but at the very least Ky was certain there were no Sith among the enemy.
"All cruisers, arm weapons and raise shields." He ordered.
One of the technicians looked at him, surprise flaring in his mind because he had just been about to announce they were only a minute out.
"Focus." Ky chided him, with a smile.
The technician jumped and looked back to his console.
In just a few moments, the cone of light formed by the hyperspace tunnel disappeared with an ear splitting crash as they returned to normal speed. Inside the sector, there was already fighting under way as Jedi fighter bombers flew towards the edge of the system, chased by swarms of vulture droids. Ranroon had a security treaty with the Trade Federation, and already had a picket of Munificents in place. Currently, the Munificents and their accompanying fighter droids were chasing after the agile line of hyperspace capable Jedi bombers, who were making their way for the sector's southern edge.
Coordinating the initial bombing with the declaration of war would have been tricky, if not for their shared ability to communicate in the Force. Mere seconds after the war was declared, the Indinoor Jedi attacked. Now the Federation picket was stretched thin, a long line of ships growing further apart like a scattered herd of lumbering wilder beasts as they chased the stinging swarms of Jedi insects. They were sitting ducks, waiting to be picked off in isolation.
"All cruisers and battleships, open fire." Ky ordered. "Turn the Interdictor on as soon as all our ships are in system."
The Federation picket quickly realised they were outnumbered and out of position, and turned to run in a panicked and disordered way, acting independently of each other as they reoriented away from Ky's fleet while continually receiving turbo laser fire. The commodores of the Indinoor fleet carefully selected each of their targets, picking off one cruiser after another. The enemy's hyperdrives spooled up, and for a brief moment, it seemed as though a majority of the enemy fleet would escape, when the Interdictor thrummed to life.
The sudden appearance of an artificial gravity well that covered a large part of the star system cut off any hope of escape. All hyperspace travel out of the Ranroon sector became impossible in an instant. It took the Federation defence picket a few minutes to realise that, and by then it was too late. Their only hope to survive now was to surrender.
"Sir. The enemy flagship is broadcasting a general surrender."
"Good. Tell them to abandon ships and make for the surface of Ranroon." Narec glanced at his chronometer. He was conscious of the time they were taking. As quickly as they had won the initial fight, the Alliance fleet needed to rearm and reposition for the coming enemy attack. Soon the massive fleet the Federation had been gathering for months at Zygerria would be here, and that was going to be a significantly more potent force than this local security picket.
As soon as the two dozen Munificents were disabled, and scans confirmed that the enemy ships had no more life signs, he ordered the fleet to reorient towards the sector's northern edge.
"How are the Jedi fighters? They all make it back okay?"
"Only two of them were shot down, sir. Their pilots' rescue transponders are active."
Embarrassing for those pilots, but a little friendly ribbing would teach them not to do it again. Hopefully they wouldn't be injured, and soon be able to return to combat wiser for the experience. Ky searched for them in the Force, and felt his two wayward knights reply to him in kind, relieved that he was there.
"Go on, send out the rescue freighter."
In quick order the Munificents were scuttled, and their small crews were sent drifting into Ranroon's atmosphere in life pods. The planetary government tried to broadcast a message, but he didn't have time to receive it in person, instead ordering his men to reroute their call back to the Alliance's diplomats back on Raxus.
Again, he checked his holocom's chronometer. Twenty minutes had passed in the blink of an eye, but so far there was no sign of the enemy fleet approaching from the Corporate Sector. The fleet was on high alert and ready to receive the enemy, but still it seemed like they were far away. He reached out in the Force, searching as far as Zygerria for any signs of the enemy, but there were no Force sensitives in the sector who registered on his senses.
He pursed his lips, considering.
Taking out his holocom, he called ahead to the scouts he had on Zygerria.
"What's happening to the enemy fleet?"
"Sir. The order came through to muster for an invasion into Ranroon, but then it was belayed."
"Do you know why?"
"I can only speculate."
"Well, let's hear it."
"We've got a source near the Zygerrian sector command that says he's lost his nerve. Apparently he's hiding in his office, pacing."
"Huh." Narec frowned. "And you trust your source?"
The two of them looked at each other. "Yes, sir. The Zygerrian's have no love for the Federation out here, and our friend has been well paid."
...
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