Well, Alexi Garin's plan was clear. He feigned an attack through the Savarin sector, clearly indicating that he intended to attack the Arkanis sector and strike at Jabba the Hutt, whose subordinates were supposed to help "Luna" in this conflict. And he himself, using the spy's information, turned around and bypassed the Savarin sector, where his fleet was expected, and then headed for Ryloth. It was from Ryloth that the secret Twi'lek route began – the Corridor of Death Wind, which led to the planet Rune, where Gaven Hornly was holed up. Although everyone claimed that Gaven was on his "Dreadnought," not far from Rishi. But apparently, that was disinformation, if Laura's reaction is anything to go by. And it was genuine. It seems that all the commanders know where their commander-in-chief is...
Useful information. The planet Rune was located in the center of a region called the "Mantle of the Sith." It had many hyperspace anomalies, making it very difficult to pass to the planet Rune. Almost impossible for inexperienced navigators. And there were two paths to it – the Corridor of Death Wind, used by Twi'lek smugglers. Who were covered by Dengo Hutt, or in full, Dengo Desilijic Tiure, a distant relative of Jabba. But, as I understood, not everything is smooth in the Desilijic kajidic. At least Dengo does not share Jabba's desire to get involved in the conflict on Gaven Hornly's side. Or does he wish, on behalf of the Hutts, to bleed the PMC as much as possible? His motivation is unknown to me.
He could be a traitor, or acting "unofficially, so to speak," so that the Hutts could bleed PMC "Luna" dry and then absorb this structure without a trace. But motives are the last thing Laura would want to know. She sincerely wanted to move the fleet to Ryloth, meet the enemy on the approaches, not let him get away to Rune. I, on the other hand, perfectly understood that against Alexi's full-fledged grouping, we would not stand at Ryloth and we had to fly to Rune, to organize a defense there... Although, we would hardly have time. Yes, Garin decided to bypass the Savarin sector, he disappeared for us. But he has a head start. Which we don't.
So, in the best case, we will manage to intercept him before Ryloth, which, given the strength of Laura's squadron, consisting of the same "Dreadnought" and a good dozen "Gozanti," with a lot of various strike craft – is akin to suicide. Alexi's squadron, according to the Teneis' information, numbered about fifteen "Dreadnoughts" and many smaller ships. It seems Gaven seriously angered "Black Sun." According to Laura herself, their fleet barely matched the fleet that was sent with Alexi Garin. However, Gaven clearly counted on an agreement with Jabba. That the fat slug would help him in the confrontation. And also on the defense of the space station near Rune. In the first few hours, Laura contacted him and his commanders via a secure channel and reported the information, so they have already started gathering forces towards Rune.
It remains only to understand – will Alexi know that we have learned the essence of his plan. If Migella's mark, which she placed on Gunnos, signaled her when it activated, then she definitely knows that we reached the mandalorian and interrogated him. The mark activated when he blurted out certain information. Which is what happened.
"Well," I summarized, being in Laura's cabin, to which she kindly invited me. Sipping alcohol, I calmly watched the Chiss moving from side to side. "So, we won't make it to Ryloth and the entrance to the hyperspace route. Which means we'll have a chance to strike from the rear. Hmm... Your boss clearly isn't going to even try to catch Alexi at Ryloth. You barely match their group in power. Are you counting on Hutts and mercenaries? Interesting," I swirled the glass of wine in front of my eyes, and then slowly savored it. "Will your calculation pay off."
"Hutt damn you, along with all the aristocrats! How can you be so calm?" Laura asked angrily.
"With all the aristocrats? I don't know what family you belonged to, or your parents belonged to, but the phrase is funny. I'll remember it," I toasted the woman.
"And I understood. You are so calm because the deaths of my PMC don't concern you, right?"
"Hmm?" And this wine of hers is great.
"Get your stinky feet off my table!" she said too loudly.
"Well, why are you like that?" I said sadly, finishing the glass, sitting up properly, and starting to get myself a refill. "You yourself said: 'feel at home'. I was even surprised by your hospitality for a Jedi from someone who was raised as an orphan by mandalorians. But I took your invitation literally. Is that so bad? It demonstrated your hospitality. I've always believed that hospitality only beautifies women... No one would want to see a woman whose face is distorted by a vile grimace of rage and who occasionally shouts 'burn them all!'. Ugh, a disgusting sight. And smile more often, Laura. Nature itself has given women beautiful faces so that they smile more often."
"But not when my friends are threatened by the damn Alexi Garin from 'Black Sun', nicknamed the 'Executioner' of this organization!"
"Yes, perhaps the situation is not simple..."
"Perhaps?!"
"But... Shouting won't help. Didn't you understand? Everything we could do at this moment – we did, Laura. We can't offer anything else right now," except that I sent a message with news about everything to Tal. I'm sure the information is already in the Jedi Order. "And you'd better spend time thinking about what's next."
"I am thinking..."
"No, you're not thinking," I said calmly, finishing the second glass. "You're flailing around like a rabid gizka that has also smelled a rancor nearby. Sit down, calm down, and think. No matter how shitty the situation is, you won't help yourself by uselessly flailing around. Better to spend calories on thinking. You can shout elsewhere and under different circumstances."
"Okay," she gave me a furious look with scarlet eyes, "okay," sitting down on a chair near her desk, to which the computer was connected, she turned to me. "What else can we do?"
"Enjoy the beautiful, emerald wine from Alderaan," the emerald liquid touched my lips again. "I remember my friend from there treated me to it – Bail Antilles opened his father's collection in front of me – a wonderful drink. I recommend it."
"Are you serious? You emptied my buffet, took out the Alderaanian Emerald... MY ALDERAANIAN EMERALD and are offering it to me?!"
"'Feel at home', you told me?" I grinned. "If you came to my home, I would offer 'Tustran Wind', the best liqueur from the Sumitra sector. By the way, the sector where I come from – borders the one where you grew up."
"You... are infuriating..."
"Spend less nerves, fewer wrinkles you'll have by forty. Wrinkles don't scare me, I'm a sephi and should live at least four hundred years. So what? I'm offering you wine."
I levitated the bottle and a free glass to her.
"Ah," she sighed, picking up the bottle and pouring herself some emerald liquid. "Cursed be the day I first met you, Light."
"I liked you too back then, Lora," I smiled at her. "Alright, now seriously," I poured myself more wine. "Hmm... To Ryloth, we won't have time to stop Alexi Garyn's advance. Dengo Hutt, who controls the trade of slave Twi'leks and ryl for the Hutts, will definitely let Alexi through. Most likely, they'll stage a skirmish so as not to compromise Dengo too much with Jabba, unless, of course, it's a cunning plan by Jabba himself..."
"Fucking slugs," Lora spat.
"Hey, hey, there are worthy sentient beings among them. For example, Blotus Hutt, a fine representative of the Hutt race."
"Who?"
"How can you be proud warriors and not study history?" I asked Lora. "A warrior who doesn't know history is no more than a mercenary cutthroat."
"You know, in a shootout with pirates, knowing about some Hutt or other won't help much."
"Yes, in a shootout, a blaster will help you more, and a lightsaber will help me. But at the same time, knowledge about great politicians, their deeds, can help in management tasks. Only a fool would reject the knowledge of history's achievements and how they were achieved. Unfortunately, the Galaxy is full of ignorant idiots who underestimate the knowledge of previous generations too much," I said sadly. "And because of this, we constantly step on the same rake in all spheres of society. Although it would seem: look around – so many generations before you have shown what your path can lead to. And what's the result? Ignorant people who don't know repeat various obscenities with enviable regularity. Madness... For madness is repeating the same action, again and again, with the hope of change."
"Alright, alright," she gave up, "don't lecture anymore. I understood."
"Hmm. Then who is Canderous Ordo?"
"What does he have to do with it?" Lora asked.
"This girl wants to kill you," Revan said. "If she could kill with intent, you would have been dead for the three hundred and seventy-first time already."
"Well, we were talking about history..."
"Not about him."
"So you don't even want to talk about Mandalore, the legendary leader of your people?"
"Listen, Light! Enough. Mocking me!"
"But you react so beautifully," I grinned.
"Grrr," she almost started to growl.
"Okay, let's get back to current events. We can't stop Garyn, he'll pass through the corridor to the planet Run. We will follow him and intervene in the middle of the battle, striking him in the back. That's the whole tactic. Backstabs are so great that even unskilled commanders can win with them against the greatest, if they think a little," I pushed the holoterminal towards me and displayed an approximate diagram of the upcoming battle on it, using the task manager program that I had loaded onto Lora's computer. It could be obtained in a pirated version and in a licensed one if you graduated from the space fleet academy. "Hmm... So let's enter the parameters. The planet's defense consists of the 'Fire Star' station... And where did you even get it? Although they are no longer considered new. I know for sure that at 'Golan Arms' the design of a new orbital station has already started a couple of years ago. But that's not the point. In addition to the 'Fire Star', your organization will participate from the very beginning – ten 'Dreadnoughts' and twenty-three 'Gozanti'-class ships, as well as 'Laws' and CR70 project Corellian corvettes. From MRLs you have Z-95s, where would you be without them? And do you have bombers?" I asked Lora. "I see. Apparently, you didn't see much functionality in this class of MRLs, it's because bombers' attacks are mainly aimed at destroying ships. And since you are pirates, your goal is to immobilize the ship. No one wants to destroy a target they plan to board with an accidental hit. Thus, you will engage in battle... By the way, the enemy has fewer 'Gozanti'-class ships, but more 'Dreadnoughts'. From fifteen to twenty. So they will try to force a battle through their linear forces from the very beginning, if they are not complete idiots. First of all, I would try to destroy the defensive station. If they have MRL bombers, that's the first thing they'll do."
"Just like you did at Pakuuni," Lora said.
"Correct. The 'Fire Star' class orbital station has one hundred and forty-eight laser cannons and sixty torpedo launchers," I displayed the station's TTX. "Look – your station's effective firing range is seventy-five units. And the TTX of 'Dreadnoughts', even those of someone like 'Black Sun', doesn't differ much, at least in terms of weaponry. Plus or minus, their effective range is sixty-eighty units. Of course, they will come much closer. You have the advantage that you are defending. They need to attack. If your Commander-in-Chief is not an idiot, and you stubbornly claim he is almost a prophet of some God on the Outer Rim, then he will not move his forces in this battle until the very end. She will divide the ten 'Dreadnoughts' into two groups, placing five ships to the right and left of the 'Fire Star' station, making the station the central node of defense. I would also make the line concave, that is, during the battle, as Alexi's forces advance, I would move the flank ships slightly forward to increase the number of 'Dreadnought' cannons that will fire on enemy ships, gradually encircling their ships advancing towards the nodal station."
Gradually, the holoterminal demonstrated my words.
"This is if Garyn decides to attack the station with all his might..."
"He will, in any case. The point is, as I said, you are on the defensive. He is attacking. He needs to destroy you. He will have to break your fleet and begin storming the planet anyway. And in a pure, linear battle, not near the planet, he would have defeated you even with a simple exchange. Even if he has fewer 'Gozantis' and other classes of ships, he has an undeniable advantage in linear forces, which in a classic battle gives him more chances. But he will have to engage in a defensive battle, with a central defense node in the form of a station. And therefore, he will be in a not entirely convenient position from the very beginning. What to do in such a case? Allocate a central node around which the defense will be built. A variable that nullifies the advantage in the number of ships and provides an opportunity to implement a good formation, with the help of which, I am sure, he can be defeated. Alexi is not an idiot and will immediately notice this situation. Well, then he will try to do exactly what I described. He will attack the central node at maximum possible speed. Due to the abundance of weapons on the station itself, as well as your MRLs, their bombers will not be able to destroy the station immediately... They could, if you weren't expecting an attack. But now they will be intercepted. And the battle will become protracted... But even if Gawen Hornly catches my thoughts, arranges the ships in the order I showed here, placing the 'Gozantis' and other light ships in the upper and lower hemispheres – the advantage is still not on your side. Yes, you have more 'Gozantis', 'Laws', and CR70s, and I don't know where you got the 'Laws' from. But these are all light forces that are taken out by MRLs. 'Black Sun' bombers, since they cannot break through to the station, will attack these ships. As a result, their advantage will be felt. Little by little, they will gnaw through your defenses and the fleet will be defeated. Especially, I am sure of this, if Gawen simply scatters the ships without any logic, near the station. Like: they are still shooting, why do we need a formation? This will be a fatal mistake that will lead to defeat instantly."
"Where do you know all this from?" Lora asked. "Formations, tactics? You speak so confidently..."
"Because I graduated from Anaxis courses, didn't I tell you?" I asked the woman. "By rank, I am a combat starship captain. By diploma, I can command from one to three 'Dreadnoughts'. Although I took additional courses in tactical and strategic planning of battles and campaigns."
"That's why you commanded in the battle at Pakuuni. It was you, not Graves, who planned the operation."
"As for the battle – yes, true. I led it, from beginning to end. Your appearance there... Why did you think Graves did it? He, for a moment, was a traitor himself. I couldn't trust him with planning. Of course, it was beneficial for him to destroy Jarko Itari, but I didn't know his motives then, so I removed him from command and planned the attack myself. Let's continue... Since in a classic, even defensive battle, defeat awaits you, we must help your forces. So... We will go into Alexi's rear, passing through the Corridor of Death into the Sith Mantle. A stab in the back, he might expect it, considering the mess we made of his cell. And he has two options. Either he will post rear guards, weakening the attack, or he will concentrate on destroying your fleet. Our forces are insignificant, Lora, and he might know this, so I would post rear guards if I were him. I would deal with the rats that we are. According to calculations, we will be about forty minutes behind him. And after dealing with those attacking the rear, I would attack Gawen's fleet with full force."
"But how will Alexi act?" the Chiss asked me.
"Who knows," I shrugged. "His personality analysis is as follows: slightly arrogant, yet pragmatic and rational. Alexi's calculation can be based either on the desire to finish the job quickly, then he will concentrate all his forces on the defenders of Run, or to avoid unnecessary problems, then he will leave rear guards and engage us in battle. This is a two-front battle, but the chances will be equal for our side and his. Initially, PMC 'Luna' against 'Black Sun' has no chance, all because Alexi has large forces, both in MRLs and in linear ships, which can be conventionally called 'Dreadnoughts'. Your advantage in light ships is insignificant. However, our rear attack makes us equal opponents. Gonus couldn't deal with you, it seems they didn't suspect at all that you and your squadron would appear near Radnor. But this will help PMC equalize the chances. During an intense battle, when your squadron is tied up in combat, it's difficult to maneuver, sometimes even with a single starship. Therefore, in the battle at Pakuuni, I ordered your forces to do as we did. And it paid off. Jarko's forces didn't know what to do with a 'Dreadnought' in the lower hemisphere, plus your MRLs and other ships. This surprised them, an opponent's surprise is almost victory over him. Alexi can only assume that we are attacking from the rear, that's one. Two – we still don't know how he will act in case of our attack. Will he try to destroy the fleet at Run, or will he deploy some ships to intercept your squadron. In battle, use the following formation – bring light force ships forward. Let the MRLs try to break into Garyn's 'Dreadnoughts' rear and under no circumstances interfere with the battle between Garyn's and Hornly's MRLs. The task of your MRLs is to strike the rear. Even if Garyn deploys his ships to meet us, your MRLs will be able to break through to the enemy 'Dreadnoughts'. Next – light force ships, your 'Gozantis', 'Laws', and CR70s – and she had about eight such ships – let them cover your flagship from the enemy MRLs, some of which can turn and try to hit us. He may especially try to use bombers for this, which can cause problems. The relatively light turbolasers of your CR70s, as well as the cannons of the 'Laws' and 'Gozantis' – will cover from Garyn's MRLs, which also need to reach the 'Dreadnought'. Don't forget that they have to fly much further than ours."
"And you will take command of my forces?" Lora asked curiously. "Why did you tell me all this? Told me the tactics, how to act? Will you command?"
"No," I shook my head. Lora looked at me in surprise. "We have equal chances of victory. Even if he doesn't post guards, he can order his ships to maneuver, as I said. Of course, I can be on the bridge and direct your squadron's actions tactically. But it's better to use my other abilities – infiltration and elimination. I will use my ship, the 'Star Path'. Due to its stygium coating, a 'Star Courier' class ship costs sixty million credits. Do you know what's unique about stygium?"
"Stygium? It allows ships to be virtually invisible. Visually, or on sensors – your ship will disappear! But where did you get it?"
"Well, in my childhood, a saboteur working for the enemies of the Jedi tried to kidnap me. With his help, this enemy wanted to get me and train me. To put it simply, Lora, my talent for the Force is much higher than average. And for the gifted, the higher the talent, the easier the training. A weak gifted person, like Gawen, or Alexi – can achieve a lot through persistence. But if persistence is combined with someone who has immense talent..."
"So you are unique even among your own..."
"Unique?" I laughed. "Well, you could say that. With the help of the stygium coating, I will infiltrate Garyn's ship and kill him there – or refrain from killing him. I can try to force Garyn, in exchange for his life, to work for me. As one of the influential members of 'Black Sun' – he will gain access to information about the Sith. What then? Force Garyn to retreat from the planet Run. In that case, the leadership of 'Black Sun' might even make peace with Gawen Hornly. They won't fight further... Especially if Garyn retreats. In addition, there are the Hutts, who will immediately try to absorb PMC 'Luna'. PMC is known for a reason. It is a military company. Having warriors on your side is a good profit. In addition, Gawen still owns some of 'Black Sun's' production facilities in some places in the Galaxy, which he seized shortly before the conflict. This means the Hutts, by absorbing PMC, will strengthen themselves. No matter how you look at it, Gawen is a bargaining chip. For me, for the Hutts, for 'Black Sun', although for the latter – depending on the circumstances."
A signal from PMC 'Luna' systems arrived on the datapad. The virus, which the Jedi ice cutters supplied me with – is perfect for sabotage. Of course, along with viruses, antiviruses also evolve. But, the virus was working. With its help, I could even take out Gawen without descending to the planet. Just by overloading the reactor on his base. Or his ship. Having a common network for the entire connection is a good idea, but it has its downsides. Well... Interesting events await me, which may bring pleasant bonuses. All that remains is not to doze off during the events themselves and implement everything that is required. Lora carefully studied the task manager, on which I depicted all possible scenarios. And I plunged into light meditation and relaxed.
"But you know," Lora interrupted me, "I'm going with you."
"Mmm?" I looked at her in surprise. "I can handle it best alone. Although not alone, NK47 will go with me. You don't have to go, Lora. To be honest, you'll only get in my way, get underfoot."
"Do you consider me that much weaker than yourself?" Lora asked. "Has your Force made you arrogant?"
"It's not arrogance, it's a fact. To keep up with my pace, you'll have to try very hard. That's one. Two – 'Black Sun' fighters are not amateurs and can... No, they will give a lone Mandalorian a worthy fight, which might even lead you to the grave. I am confident in my abilities, NK47, despite being a relic from Revan's time, has received several new nodes in his body from me and is an excellent assassin droid that can still pose a threat to many sentient beings. But you, without a support squad – will only fall behind me and only get in the way," and I also don't want Lora to leave the ship because of the virus. If we deal with 'Luna', then with everyone at once. If she is with me, she will definitely survive, and if she is on her own ship, I can make her ship fly into a black hole, or a star, or explode like that. A quick and not particularly painful death. "In addition, I have revealed an effective tactic to you. And I am sure that you will be able to follow it. But whether your people can follow the plan – I am not sure. And this is important if we want to give Garyn a hard time. Do you understand me?"
"I understand," Lora informed me. "But we are not commander and subordinate, Light, but allies, equals. And I will do whatever I want. Thanks for the plan, I don't doubt my assistant. And whether you want it or not, I will go with you to Alexi Garyn's flagship!" – and she can be annoying. On the other hand... Maybe let her go. If anything – I'll kill her there.
"Fine," I said coldly, looking the Chiss in the eyes, which made her turn away. "But don't be ballast. I'm not hired as your defender. And not as a nanny either."