Bab 195: At Most We Will Die
The wall shook as another laser cannon shot hit it. The metal bent and broke, and a piece of the outpost's walls fell down. If this kept on for much longer, the whole wall would cave in, and the defenders would fall with it.
"Storge! Any idea on how we can take down those Tri-droids?"
"No, sir. Our RPS-6 Rocket Launchers are all used up. They didn't even scratch the armor of those things at this distance."
"Arghhh!!!"
In the short seconds when they were discussing, a trooper, who showed himself to fire at the incoming army, died, his helmet and chest armor almost melting due to the number of lasers that hit him. A Twi'lek freedom fighter soon suffered the same destiny.
"Sub-commander Dageer! We are being slaughtered!"
Apele ran over to him at the same time that Dageer was firing at the droids, which incited a heavy response by the clanckers. His body moved before his mind could even process the information, and he swiped his leg, throwing the Twi'lek on the ground. Red lasers missed her by millimeters, and she laid on the ground dumbstruck.
The clones ignored the surprised freedom fighter, and returned fire, but they were terribly outnumbered. Many troopers fell at the cost of just a few dozen droids. After several more minutes, the wall was impacted once more, and another huge hole appeared. Just a few more shots and it would break entirely. Dageer decided they had defended the outpost for long enough.
"Sergeant! Apele! Start the retreat. Fifty kilometers from here is another one of our bases. That will be our second line of defenses."
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, Dageer."
The defenders retreated quickly, and went to the south wall. From there, they would take speeders and flee.
But destiny wouldn't let the Republic forces get away so easily. A stray laser cannon shot hit the rock slopes that surrounded the outpost, and a large boulder fell on top of the speeders. The moment this happened, Hell Squad, Apele, and two other freedom fighters, as well as another four clones, were still inside the outpost.
As the dust settled, Dageer saw that the BARC speeders were destroyed. Unfortunately, even though they now had no means to escape, they could still be considered lucky. Under the rocks, boulders, and pieces of the wall, broken limbs and white armor could be seen.
"Storge! Storge! Are you there?!"
Several seconds trickled by when there was no response. But them, Dageer heard someone moaning. Quickly, he and the others pushed aside the rocks on the away, and found Sergeant Storge and two other clones still alive. They were lucky to have been on the outskirts of the rock slide.
As Dageer pushed another rock aside, Sergeant Storge groaned in pain. The armor on his right leg was broken, and a horrible wound appeared under it. Flesh and blood mangled together, and bones could be seen cutting through the skin. Dust and small rocks were on the wound, making it even more painful to move. The other two clones were also hurt, one of them with a broken arm, and the other had lost his helmet, and his head was bleeding profusely.
"Three-four!"
"On it!"
The medic knelt down near Sergeant Storge, and started cleaning and bandaging the wound. However, in the middle of a battle and without supplies, there was no way he could treat it properly. Meanwhile, Dageer ordered the others to pay attention to the north wall. Cracks and holes were appearing on it, and the Separatist army could be seen through them. Luckily for the Republic forces, the rockslide hadn't totally blocked their escape path.
"Sub-commander."
Dageer turned around and saw Lieutenant Fondor. The lieutenant had been one of the few lucky ones who weren't near the BARC speeders.
"Lieutenant."
"We have to move sir. But... I don't think Sergeant Storge and the others will make it."
Dageer looked at the lieutenant. As a soldier, he knew very well what Lieutenant Fondor meant. As a clone, he knew how painful it was for his brother to suggest it.
"The lieutenant is right, sir. We will only slow you down. Me and Torc here will hold the seppies for as long as we can."
A coarse voice interrupted Dageer and Lieutenant Fondor. Although they had been talking quietly, Sergeant Storge had heard them. The clone had taken off his helmet, revealing a familiar face. He gestured to the trooper with the head injury, Torc.
"Leave us here and go, sir. You can't let the clanckers win, and dying here won't help."
"No way, sergeant. I won't leave a brother behind."
Dageer looked around, and everyone nodded at him, even the Twi'leks. What difference did it make, dying here or in the next Republic base?
"The sub-commander is right, Storge. You know us better than to suggest that we flee. Ha! Let the seppies come. Is there anything for us to fear? At most we will die!"
All the troopers agreed with Metal. They had been through hundreds of battles together, and they had faced death countless times. For them, there was no place better to die than on a battlefield, side by side with their brothers.
"That is nonsense, Metal, and you know it. And you do too, sir."
While the two clones discussed, Dageer looked briefly at Three-four. The medic shook his head slightly. The sub-commander glanced at Sergeant Storge, and nodded.
"We are leaving. Brain, Fondor, get going. I need to talk to Storge and Torc."
"Yes, sir."
"Yes, sub-commander."
"Sir?"
...
Brain and the lieutenant immediately started moving, and after a small hesitation, the freedom fighters and the other troopers followed them out of the ruined outpost. There was no time to waste, since they didn't have their BARC speeders anymore.
Only Cell and Metal stood there dumbfounded. They never thought that Dageer would really leave the two clones to their deaths. Only after Dab and Tech pushed them did the two move.
"We have our orders, let's move."
"But... But..."
"Are you stupid, Cell? Torc can barely maintain consciousness, and Sergeant Storge lost too much blood. They will die no matter what we do, so at least let them choose how they want to go."
"This..."
Only after hearing Three-four explanation did the others understand why Dageer made such a decision. Still...
They all followed their orders as well-trained soldiers did, but that didn't mean they were happy with what they had to do. But none of them could blame Dageer. The sub-commander was surely the one who suffered the most for his decision, since it was the same as killing the two clones.
...
Dageer knelt beside Sergeant Storge and Torc. The trooper could barely maintain his eyes open. It was clear that his injury was far worse than it seemed at first. The sergeant, on the other hand, wasn't in a much better condition. The bottom half of his body and armor were dyed red with his blood.
"You should go too, sir. The clanckers will break the wall at any moment."
"I know. Storge, Torc... You will be avenged. You can be sure of that."
The two clones smiled, and Torc helped Sergeant Storge to get up. The two clones walked to behind a boulder, and prepared to make their last stand.
"We will kill as many of those bastards as we can, sir."
Dageer watched as the two of them laid their DC-15As on the boulder, and aimed at the wall. Nodding, he turned back and left the outpost through the south wall.
"Goodbye, brothers."
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone