Jedi and Clone

Good Soldiers Follow Orders

Kashyyyk: 19 BBY
Kachirho Beach
Irel Kirsi

Irel stepped out of her tent, stretching briefly. The sun hadn't fully risen and already the air was warm and humid. The beach before her was still bustling with activity, preparing for the next droid assault. She glanced towards the sky, but there was no sign of any ships.

A hand snuck around her waist and pulled her close for a moment. Axe rested his chin on the top of her head, watching the men move along the beach. "Have the scouts reported in?" Irel asked.

"Not yet. We should be getting a transmission from Ziyah and Rigger soon."

"We'd better get to the compound, then."

Axe made no move towards the compound. She glanced up at him, smirking. "There will be time for this later, you know."

"I know." He kissed her. "But later isn't now."

Irel rolled her eyes and twisted out of his grasp. "Come on. I don't want Master Yoda to come looking for us."

He inclined his head and followed her across the beach. Veres and Patch ran past, falling in step with them for a few paces. "The barricades are all set up and we've got everyone briefed on where they need to be and when," Veres said to Axe.

Patch drew Irel aside for a moment, letting the two walk on ahead. "Have you told Axe yet?"

Irel shook her head. "We have enough to worry about right now. I don't need him getting distracted, especially now that I am."

Patch sighed. "All right, but you have to tell him soon."

"I will. I won't be able to hide it soon."

"And that's another thing. You have to be careful, especially now."

"I know and I will be."

Patch gave her a long look but nodded at last. He broke off and followed Veres away as they neared the compound. Axe watched them go, furrowing his brow. "Patch is becoming overly paranoid. Veres and I have tried to talk to him, but he won't tell us what's wrong."

    "I imagine it's a combination of things." They entered the compound and headed up towards the open command center. "Doing what he does everyday, fighting and then trying to fix up the wounded, just for some of them to die anyway? It's got to be hard."

    Axe nodded. "It is. Gizer told us some of what Patch had said."

    They fell silent as they entered the command center. Captain Womatka, General Tarfful, Chewbacca, and Master Yoda were already there waiting. A few clones stood behind Master Yoda. A light began flashing on the holotable and Chewbacca switched it on. Rigger, Ziyah, and Admiral Westley appeared.

    "Generals, Masters," Ziyah began. "We've managed to break through the Separatist Blockade and position our ships around the planet. The Separatists are regrouping and their reinforcements are still incoming."

    The hologram flickered some. "There's interference there somewhere," Axe noted. It cleared up and Ziyah resumed speaking.

    "We've been trying to monitor the Separatist's transmissions, using the algorithms that R3 has stored. We've managed to crack a few of them."

    The hologram flickered some more. At last, it resumed. The three of them looked off put. They swayed as something shuddered through their ship. "The Separatist fleet just dropped out of hyperspace," Admiral Westley called. "We'll delay them as long as we can, but you should expect company soon." The hologram winked out and didn't appear again.