บท 308: A Trap That Backfired
Without the need to be discreet anymore, Hell Squad threw all caution to the wind, and simply advanced towards Ragout's cell. Any enemies on their path, be it B1 or B2 units, Geonosians or Droidekas, were crushed.
Dageer and his men were good at everything, but what they were better at was destroying their enemies in open battle, without giving them any chance to fight back. In small corridors, where the seppies' number advantage became more of a hurdle, there was no one who could stand on their way. Especially when they had an objective as important as their general.
"This is too easy, sir. We are attacking the heart of the Separatist, and that is all they have for us?"
"Maybe we are lucky?"
"When did that ever happen?"
Making a pause to reload and check for wounds after destroying a small group of clanckers, Dageer looked at the hallway ahead. It was quiet, and he couldn't hear any droids, even after all the commotion Hell Squad was creating. His brothers were right. It was all going way too well. He wouldn't have survived as long as he had if he couldn't see something was very wrong.
"Dab is right, commander. This is a trap, for us. General Ragout is the bait."
"I know. That doesn't mean we are going to run and leave him."
"I never said that, sir. What do we do?"
Barin, Cell, Dab, Tech, Metal, and Three-four looked at him, waiting for his orders. The thought of retreating didn't cross their minds for a moment. Clones didn't run. Either they finished the job, or they died trying.
A small grin appeared in his face, under his helmet. His brothers couldn't see it, but they knew when their leader was about to come up with a bad idea. Curiously enough - or not so much, considering who they were - a smile also appeared on their faces.
"We fall in the trap."
...
"My dear clones. You have no idea how long I've been waiting to kill you."
Ventress waited for Hell Squad before Ragout's cell, her two lightsabers on her hand. Dageer wasn't surprised. He could feel his scar burning long before they saw her. It always happened whenever he got closer to the Sith responsible for it.
His six brothers were standing besides him, glaring coldly at the woman. They hated her as much as she hated them. Differently from a few minutes earlier, though, when they all had been standing straight, Brain was now holding his side, panting, and using the walls to hold himself open. Ventress' eyes flashed in pleasure as she saw the obvious pain the clone was in.
"One of you little dogs got hurt, sweetie?"
"You will pay for that too, Ventress."
"Oh, I don't think I will. Haha!"
With a small nod from his head, Dageer ordered Hell Squad to start surrounding the Separatist. Brain hang back because of his wound, while Tech started moving towards the cell's door, but Ventress didn't make any move to stop him.
"Free your master, clone. I will make things more interesting. Who will die first? You or him?"
Tech glanced at Dageer quickly, and received a positive answer. Ignoring Ventress, he knelt near the control panel, and started fiddling with it, but stopped when he heard Ragout's voice through the door.
"Don't open it! You will be trapped in here!"
"Don't worry, general. We are prepared."
Dageer didn't hesitate to answer, surprising Ventress. She knew the Jedi would warn them, and was prepared to attack, taking advantage of their surprise, but the clones weren't shaken. The cold mouths of their blasters kept aiming at her, the fingers on the triggers steady. That made her halt her offensive.
"So you knew it was a trap, Dageer? I knew I should have sent more units, but I was afraid they would kill you, and take my revenge from my hands. Still, what can you do, sweetie? The moment your brother opens that door, you will be locked in here with me."
"Or you will be locked with us."
"Haha! A lowly Republic scum like you thinks you are a threat to me? You are better than your brothers, clone, but none of you are a match for me. This time, I won't just give you a scar. I will kill you. No more games."
Hatred dripping on her words, Ventress jumped forward, trying to cut Metal in half. The clone, however, unleashed a torrent of blue lasers, forcing her to fall back, and hide behind a doorway.
Meanwhile, Tech finally opened the door, and Ragout stepped out. He was half-naked, and several bruises and scars adorned his upper body, many still red and swollen. However, he still seemed to be strong and full of energy.
"You are going to need that, sir."
Tech pulled a short metal stick from his belt, and gave it to the Jedi. It wasn't Ragout's lightsaber, but it was better than nothing.
At the same time, red energy shields blocked the corridor, trapping the seven clones, plus Ragout and Ventress.
"If you knew it was a trap, Dageer, why did you come?"
The clone didn't answer, and only kept firing at Ventress, forcing the Sith to deflect the lasers.
"All right. I hope you have a good plan to get us out of here, then."
"Not exactly a plan, general. But we have to deal with Ventress first. You need to keep her occupied for a while."
The Jedi didn't question. He trusted Dageer and Hell Squad, and the commander rarely made a bad decision. Spinning his new lightsaber to get used to it, he started clashing with Ventress.
"Are we ready?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Brain, hit it!"
Hearing Dageer yell, both Ragout and Ventress turned their attention to Brain, and found out that the clone had a detonator on his hand. He was now standing straight, and showed no signs of suffering any wound.
"Bastards! Dirty tricks!"
The Sith knew what was happening the moment she saw the detonator, and that Brain was faking his wound. It was, however, too late for her to do anything about it. The moment Brain pressed the trigger, an explosion brought down the ray shields.
The clones, followed by Ragout, fell back, and Three-four shot the panel of the nearest cell, making a new energy wall appear between them and Ventress. In anger, she slashed at it, but all she got was sparks, and she was unable to break through it.
"Let's go!"
Without giving Ventress another look, Ragout started running, and Hell Squad followed him. It was a pity they couldn't kill the assassin, but they had other problems now.
"How did you know that would work?"
"We didn't, General Ragout. We set it up so we could blow up any clanckers that came after us. It was only when we got closer that we saw Ventress was here. It was good thinking by Brain to stay back. The rest was improvisation."
"Good enough for me. What is the rest of the plan? Or did you rescue me just so we could die fighting?"
"It might be what happens, general. We didn't take into account that they were waiting for us. And that means they probably know about General Kenobi and the others. Cell, contact the first group, Metal, the second. Tell them what happened."
"Roger that."
"Understood."
"Clanckers incoming!"
Ragout spun his lightsaber, and a grin appeared in his face before he ran forward, to meet the patrol that was going towards them.
"You tell me everything latter. Now, it's time to fight."
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