Chapter 171 - Meeting Delta Squad Again

A tall man, with short brown hair and a scar very similar to Dageer's, entered the command bridge. General Skywalker and his padawan started bickering almost instantly, ignoring everyone in the room. Dageer could almost feel Captain Rex's frustration.

"Uhm... Master Skywalker. I believe we should be discussing battle plans."

General Di caught General Skywalker's attention, and the younger Jedi shamelessly ignored the fact that he didn't greet anyone properly. Dageer liked General Skywalker's fighting style, but he couldn't help but think that the Jedi wasn't very respectful.

"Of course, Master Di. There is nothing much to discuss. Our fleets are about the same size. I say we stay hidden as much as we can, and then attack."

While he was speaking, General Skywalker, showed some simulations on the hologram table. On it, General Skywalker's fleet, marked in blue, came from behind the moon, not giving the Separatist the chance to retaliate.

Dageer nodded when he saw it. If everything went well, they might not only take the supplies, but also destroy some enemy sh.i.p.s. General Skywalker might not be the most respectful Jedi, but he sure was a good strategist.

"What about the infiltration? How do you plan on doing it?"

"I think we got this covered, general."

Before the younger Jedi could answer, someone did it for him. The door of the command bridge opened, and four clones got in. Their armor was much thicker than normal, making they seen twice as big as other troopers, and was scarred with battle marks. Their helmets were also bigger and more round than the Phase II ones, and the 'T' shaped visor glowed with a blue light.

"Boss!"

"General Skywalker, General Di, Commander Tano, General Ragout."

The leader of Hell Squad saluted the Jedis present, and ignored the others. Dageer saw Cell and Metal swift uncomfortably next to him, but at least the two clones had enough common sense not to say anything, at least for now.

General Di looked at his men, but they stood as still as rocks, and he couldn't see their faces under the helmets. Of course, if he wanted he could have sensed their emotions through the Force, but he didn't. Instead, he eyed Delta Squad carefully. It was his first time meeting the best unit the Republic had.

"How do you plan on getting us into the cargo sh.i.p.s?"

Instead of answering, Boss motioned for another member of Delta Squad to walk forward. He had almost entirely black armor, with only the front of his helmet and chest being white. Golden stripes followed all his limbs. His name was Scorch, demolition and explosives expert.

"If we use two Y-Wing bombers, one for each ship, we can damage their ray shields. For a small window of time, about fifteen seconds, their lower hangar will have no defense, and then the emergency doors close. Using two Laats, we can board in that window."

General Skywalker nodded, showing his approval. General Di, however, more cautious than the younger Jedi, voiced his doubts.

"Won't that be too little time? The gunsh.i.p.s would have to be almost glued to the bombers to catch that moment."

"We've done it before, general, we can do it again."

Pride was evident on Scorch's voice, and General Di frowned. Too much confidence could lead to demise, and Jedis knew this better than anyone. Even General Skywalker raised an eyebrow at Scorch's statement. General Di looked at Dageer.

"What do you think, Dageer?"

Dageer stepped forward, knowing that everyone was staring at him, and wasn't bothered a bit. He was used to having eyes watching his every decision. He quickly analyzed the enemy fleet, and the resources that the Republic had at hand. Delta Squad's plan might be a close call, but it could very well work. Maybe.

"It is possible, general. However, we will need good pilots, not only for the Laats, but for the Y-Wings as well. If they take down the shields a tad too early or late, we crash on the ship."

General Di nodded. He had heard of Delta Squad's reputation, but he had never seen them in action. Hell Squad, on the other hand, he knew very well. If Dageer said it was possible, then he believed the clone.

"Leave the pilots to me. You will have the best of the best."

"You aren't talking about yourself, are you, master? Remember last time you piloted a fighter, on Christophsis? I don't think they have rebuilt all the buildings you took down when you crashed."

"I wouldn't have crashed if the droids weren't aiming especially at me!"

Master and padawan went on bickering. General Di decided to ignore them, and turned back to the table to go over their plans one last time.

"Group one will be composed of Delta Squad, Captain Rex, Master Skywalker and young Ahsoka. Group two will be Hell Squad, myself and Ragout. Any doubts?"

No one said anything, and one by one, left the command bridge. Dageer followed General Di and Ragout when they left. Delta Squad looked at them as they passed, and Dageer slightly nodded to Boss when they went by. The clone commando nodded back. Whatever conflicts they had before, the success of the mission depended on them. The troopers might not understand that, but the leaders of their respective squads did.

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"Every trooper to battle stations! Every trooper to battle stations! This is not a drill! This is not a drill!"

Red lights flashed as the scanners captured the photon signatures of the Separatist convoy. Dageer grabbed his helmet and his blasters, and assembled Hell Squad. In a matter of seconds, the entire squad was already running towards the hangar.

It was kind of weird for Dageer to watch other clones barking orders, since he usually was the one who did it.

Clones using the blue of the 501st Legion started getting into the new ship variant that was becoming one of the three principal starfighters of the Republic Navy, the V-Wing.

V-Wings were the evolution of the ARC-170, and although the old model was still being used, the new one was faster and nimbler.

Some clones also got into a few Y-Wings and ARC-170s, and two Laats were being prepared. The gunsh.i.p.s weren't made for space battles, but were perfect to board the enemy sh.i.p.s.

"Move, boys! Faster, let's go, go, go!!! Let's give those clanckers a betting their bucket heads won't forget!"

A voice stood out more than others as Captain Rex got up on a crate and started yelling. Seeing their commander made the clones work faster, and Dageer thought that he might try it sometime, when he was preparing the 303rd for a battle.

"To the gunship, Dageer."

"Yes, general."

Ragout, called Dageer, and Hell Squad moved to one of the gunsh.i.p.s. He saw Delta Squad boarding the other, and waved at one of them, who had orange armor on the top right of his chest and shoulder pad.

"Boss! We have to synchronize our entry, or they will focus fire on one of us. When you are near the target, ping us and count to ten, then make your entrance."

"Understood, Dageer. You do the same. And, Dageer... Good luck."

Dageer nodded, and closed the doors of their gunship. He heard the hangar doors opening, and the starfighters taking off. It soon was their turn. The battle had begun.