01.07 : The Light Begins to Dim

[22 BBY]

[Executive Security Solutions Lander-Gunship, approaching Orbit Geonosis, Arkanis Sector]

It was a gamble, and a dangerous one, but the opportunity was right there in front of me and I couldn't not attempt it due to cowardice or fear of defeat; press forward, show no mercy. The enemy leadership was vulnerable for but a moment....vulnerable and within my reach as our gunships burned hard for the atmosphere, then adjusting to descend with a shudder as fire flared around them. Hundreds of miles away other things descended, great burning wrecks screamed down from the heavens towards the great deserts of Geonosis where the enemy had foolishly parked their Core ships.

TIE star-fighters and Vulture droid-fighters descended with us, the lightly armoured and armed support freighter-carriers having come up with their tractor beams to adjust the shattered Lupus missile frigates to their fiery graves. Around them the rest of our flotilla assembled as the Mere and Lok forces fought the Sabbaoth Squadron and Trade Federation alongside the Republic's newly arrived force of Acclamators; brutal fighting, but the future Separatists were confused and disorganised with planetary defences done. Sensor feed even showed the Jedi starting a fight in a stone and brick arena under the future Separatist Council's noses...

'Because why just shoot an enemy when you can make a big giant song and dance about' I resisted muttering one hand gripping my rifle and the other the handhold as gunship buckled again and I felt death through the Force. Not that I wasn't relieved Count Dooku and Friends weren't showy inefficient imbeciles when Anakin's life was at stake, but it really was the sort of stuff you pulled where you were being fair.

You didn't just setup a deathtrap to give 'a fighting chance' when you wanted to execute them; Sith were such supervillains when it came to just taking out a blaster and blowing your enemies brains out when they were at your mercy. Show mercy or don't, but don't dick around. I pushed the irritation aside and focused on the task at hand we broke the 'flare zone' and we accelerated down through the clouds.

Moment of truth and all that, as Braika it seemed was almost bouncing on her armour booted heels as we raced ahead of the so-called Grand Army of the Republic; or Giant Clone Slave Army as I thought of it. Enemy capital airspace was clear of fighters....but that was a lot of droids on the ground...

"Okay boys and girls, time to kill some Feddie tin-men and rescue some Jedi. We secure a perimeter in the area, evac out the idiots there, and then get out. The other priority is killing as many of the higher ups up there with Dooku the Liberator. Last checks, three-twenty-one seconds to target! Prepare open doors!" I commanded as the alert signal blinked once, the twice, to ready position at the front of the spacious assault gunship. Personally I'd prefer to be in my TIE, but the ground assault needed support and my TIE needed rearming anyway...and I wanted this done right....

I blinked as the music started...then groaned. We really shouldn't have agreed to that 'cost effective' term in her contract to get our resident Mandalorian's Mandalore Uber Alles bullshit music came on the external speakers. You were supposed to do stuff like this with Ride of the Valkyries or something loud and energetic....Love Ballads about Unicorns, and Armour, and whatever the hell Mandalorians wanted in a relationship wasn't that..

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[22 BBY]

[Trade Federation Core Ship D/67Q9 Herald of Nute, Landed Geonosis]

"Uh...I'm detecting an atmospheric disturbance above the landing area? Should we....uh...do something about it?"

"Is it coming towards us?"

"Roger, Roger"

"That's....probably bad"

"Notifying High Command.....that's strange nobody's picking up"

"Continue primary programme; maintain loading of B1's and other units till organic officers arrive"

"Roger, Roger"

"Roger, Roger"

"Roger, Ro...."

CRRRRAAAAAAAAccccccccccccccccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkthhommmmmm

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[22 BBY]

[Coliseum, Geonosis, Arkanis Sector]

"Boba, get to the ship and prep for immediate take off"

"Dad?" came in a questioning tone from Bobs as Jango Fett ignored the urge to chase after the Jedi, or turn towards Dooku. Off distant he could see and hear what could only be orbital strikes in coming. There wasn't time if this was the Republic's plan, he found shooting with his blasters down into the large number of lightsaber wielding vermin and speaking in a tone that broke no further argument.

"Now Boba"

"Yes Dad" came back and he didn't even have to look as his boy raced off to do what was needed. Around him the civilians were bewildered, those wise already starting to flee the second the Jedi had appeared, and he could almost sense the unease from Count Dooku as the graybeard noticed the problem.

"Count"

"Yes I see it, I believe it is time to take our leave my friends and leave these...."

The rest of Dooku's words were drown out a moment as the horizon detonated in a flash of light, then the sky screamed with the not too distant blast-wave. Some absolute and utter lunatic had decided to hit the control ships on the ground....right beside a major population centre, and as he watched the skies as well as the battle in the area could make out shapes in the sky. Dooku was already striding away as the ground shuddered beneath them and Jango noticed a few of the pampered idiots lose their footing...

...Jango triggered his jetpack without a second though as LAAT's or Gunships screamed down from the heavens above, doors open, guns firing, and jetpack infantry jumping through those doors. One in heavy style Mandalorian armour, big gun zeroing in on the area where he was standing....

...and why was the ballad of Mand'alor the Uniter and his love of his armour and his wife playing in his ears?....

...the ground of the arena rose up to meet him as he braced, landed, dual wielding his blaster pistols as he beat a retreat for one of the smaller side entrances as black clad armoured infantry descended from the skies to shoot at the droids besieging the Jedi. Black with silver trim droids too as a droideka landed nearby him; he blasted into it before it could fully deploy, but others of its kind were already doing so as he triggered his boost again to get clear of heavy blaster fire sent his way.

Using the Droids sent in by Dooku and company as cover he landed, breaking into a run immediately as he continued firing at the enemies with one hand while sheathing the other weapon. That hand now free, and after five more steps inside the small pathway into, and out of, the warrens, he dropped the grenade behind him and dashed forward with the goal of reaching his son and Slave I...

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[22 BBY]

[Coliseum, Geonosis, Arkanis Sector]

My jump-infantry were doing their jobs, landing up on the stands and heights and pouring fire into the backs of the enemy droids. My own droids too, the modified droidekas rolling off the gunships to the ground, then unfolding into their shield bubbles and providing a crude circle of shields and support fire the gunships landed in the centre of the arena. So far, so good, I noted calmly stepping out of the gunship and taking aim at nearest droids and blasting its head off before ducking behind a 'pavise' mobile-shield after one of my troopers slammed it into the ground. Just a modified version of the droidekas one, but it gave nice mobile cover at a limited cost to us.

"Pour it on boys and girls....and gunship-nine please take out that Arena entrance the droids are coming through with reinforcements" I directed pointing at the area for pointless emphasis as dozens upon dozens of B-1 and Battle droids marched through it to join the battle. The ground shuddered beneath me....glancing up showing me the bright flash and blast of another enemy frigate crashing into ships not too far away. All neatly parked with their fuel reserves right out in the open; fucking perfect really as I noted turbo-laser fire starting to descend from the skies in that general direction.

'Good' I thought with a faint nod trying to keep track of the situation here. There were a significant number of droids pressing in on us, and I'd brought down about two hundred troopers with supporting droid units, and we were pushing them back. Largely because droids, Trade Federation more than Techno Union when they tried, were terribly programmed or just simple minded – get up some cover and use a few EMP grenades and they fell to pieces '...and even better I'm pretty sure got a few of Dooku's and Sidious's lackeys. That'll make things a little harder hopefully to stay in the information loop'

"Captain-General..." the comm-link from the Shining Breeze notified me "...we've got droid-tanks and large numbers of B-1's looks like emerging from bunkers near your position. ETA Five Minutes"

"Copy Shining Breeze" I replied then pressing down and speaking into the squad-link system "...move it folks, we've got enemy armour and large numbers of B-1's incoming. Get all the packages aboard the gunships and prep for immediate exac!"

I felt the Force presence before it touched my shoulder, but I allowed it as I finished speaking into the comms and glanced back at the form of my personal milestone and quasi-nemesis Jedi Master Mace 'Snakes on a Plane' Windu "We must go after Dooku"

"No we...." I started to reply before noting a continuing problem, turning my head and pressing down on the comms to the appropriate idiot to shout "Gunship-Nine, WHY IS THAT KRIFFING GATE STILL INTACT?"

"Sorry Captain-General, executing now"

"GET IT DONE NINE!" I growled back turning back to the....now there was more of them, great...Jedi Masters swinging about their lightsabers "Unto the gunships! We can chase down Dooku momentarially, but we need to get clear of this position immediately. We've large enemy forces inbound at this very minute and we need to get clear before they trap us!"

'Well, common-sense prevails, that's new' I thought as they did just that, Ki Al Mundi motioning them on as Windu appeared to have a flicker of recognition despite my suited and helmeted body and lack of Force signature even up close. At least he was going somewhere not beside me, and leaving the old Ceran male Master to act as my 'bodyguard' I guessed as I moved back towards the gunships thumbing the command circuit "Braika, hurry up would? You can have your fun later, this is a snatch and run, and we're ready to run"

"....muwhahahahahaha" greeted me a moment as I saw the big heavy repeating blaster of hers blazing away, then jetpack igniting so she could 'fly' and strafe more target. Bloody Mandalorians "BRAIKA! TIME TO BUG OUT!!"

"YEAH! YEAH! I hear ya! Pull back lads, funs over!" she muttered back as I noted her landing, and then taking off again towards us. I nodded stepping back into the gunship as the fire continued as the 'pavise' shields went down and were withdrawn as we screen with the droidekas. Nearby the enemy gate exploded, cutting off further reinforcements for the decimated enemy droid forces and concentered fire killed those survivors as the last of the Jedi got aboard their new rides.

"Droidekas withdraw, self-destruct any that aren't capable of doing so" I ordered as I noted Kenobi, with Anakin and the white clad Hippie the Chosen One liked, edging towards me as the droids shields dropped and they rolled back to their latch positions on the gunships "Thirty seconds people! Shining Breeze, how are we looking airborne"

"Clear Skies Captain-General, we're still firing on the ships trying to rise. Republic capital ships are arriving in orbit to support, they're about to launch a ground invasion I'm being told now"

"You must take us there, we must get to the forward headquarters" Master Al Mundi was saying to me, and I nodded after a moment's thought.

"Right, give me a moment" I replied as the engines of the gunship triggered and we began to ascend again "Shining Breeze direct us towards Republic Forward Field Headquarters, make them aware who we are and who we have with us! I want fighter escort there, escort not hunting is priority!"

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[22 BBY]

[Catacombs, Geonosis, Arkanis Sector]

Sev'rance Tann glared at the unfolding disaster before her on the screens one last time before stalking away alongside Count Dooku and that filthy cyborg General Grievous. Charges were being laid to destroy the secondary command bunker by the droids, but the priority now was to escape this world and rally other worlds to the cause. The fight here was over before it could even begin as the Jedi and Republic forces mercilessly struck the droid ships and armies from orbit while the remained helpless in the open desert landing zone.

Something she and the Cyborg had warned off as being a danger, but there was little to that now as even the original withdrawal routes had been destroyed when the Republic had crashed a ship into that particular military base. Even now they were being forced to pay the mercenary forces of Tolk to move in a provide cover so the disparate forces of the Separatist movement could escape into space. It wasn't supposed to go like this, and all they done was taken heavy losses for next to nothing to show for it....Count Dooku was not happy, but they'd just have to spin the dead leaders as martyrs to the cause or something like that.

"All remaining droid-fighters are to sortie on my command..." Dooku was growling 'calmly' into his wrist mounted communicator as they strode into the underground and secret Geonosian military base. Less droids here than usual, and alarms and alerts were blaring desperately recalling the military and civilian population to get underground and resist the Republic's invasion force "...I expected all command staff ready to depart in twelve minutes"

"We must strike back at this!" the Cyborg growled as their individual high performance star-fighters were prepared alongside an escort of the best pilots that Poggle had available "How DARE THEY! The Cowards!"

"Yes General we will, the Republic and the Jedi will not be allowed get away with this atrocity! This...treachery! Assassins in the night! Damn them!"

"They went after you in particular Master" she stated calmly "...it was clear to my eyes, and those of Fett when he reported in"

"Yes...and who would dare I wonder..." rage for a moment seemed to infuse Count Dooku before passing, a dark eerie calm as ever returning "...No matter. We will escape this trap and rally worlds to our cause by whatever means necessary. Come, let us depart..."