Chương 353: The Final Battle
Dageer yelled until his throat got sore, and he couldn't make a sound anymore. His eyes were bloodshot, and he could still hear the voice urging him to kill.
Unable to find any other way to vent his feelings, he punched the ground. Now he understood everything. He had always known he was nothing but a pawn, but he never expected it to be like that. While the inhibitor chip inside his brain yelled that the Jedis were the traitors, he knew very well that the ones who betrayed the Republic were the clones.
He didn't know for how long he stared at Grey's corpse. At some moment, he had taken off his helmet and thrown it away. Behind him, Hell Squad seemed to have done the same. They were all on the floor, some crying, some silent.
After a few seconds of staring at nothing, Dageer took a deep breath, and got up. His fists were bleeding, and his scar was burning, but he couldn't care less. His mind was a mess.
Panting, he looked at Ragout. The Togruta had pity in his eyes, but said nothing. Dageer remembered that minutes ago, when he almost killed the general he had promised to protect, he had a calm look on his face, as if he had understood everything.
Syndulla and Gobi, on the other hand, were staring at him shocked. They had yet to understand what was happening.
"What... What can you feel, general?
Indescribable sadness and sorrow filled the Jedi's eyes. He lowered his head, and clenched his fists, trembling.
"The Dark Side took over. The Jedis... Are dead. Thousands of us. Was... Was it the Clone Army, Dageer?"
While helping his brothers get up, the commander nodded slowly. He was still having problems processing what had just happened. And the voice that kept screaming inside his head didn't help.
"Yes. We... I'm sorry, Ragout."
"It isn't your fault, Dageer. It was Chancellor Palpatine, wasn't it? I feel an immense growth of the Dark Side coming from him."
Dageer nodded, at the same time frowning as another wave of hatred assaulted his mind, and he almost grabbed his blaster again.
"We can talk about that later, general. Now, we need you to do some things for us. We have a chip inside our brain, which is what is causing all this. I knew it existed, but I didn't know what it would do. If only we had listened..."
"You want me to take it out?"
"A medical droid. It's too dangerous if you are not experienced. But first we need to get off Ryloth. When they find out you are alive, my brothers will hunt you... And us. Syndulla!"
The freedom fighter was paying close attention to everything they were saying. There was much he didn't understand, but he knew it was important.
"We need a ship, Syndulla. To get out of here. After that, you and Gobi need to disappear, together with the other freedom fighters. You will be hunted, and killed, if you don't."
"Hunted by who?"
"The Empire. That's what this entire war was about, but only now I understand it. It was all a preparation to destroy the Republic and create the Empire."
The dangerous glare Dageer gave him was enough to shut up Syndulla. He knew that if he asked any more questions, the commander would truly lose his mind.
"Brain, Tech, Metal... We have to go. Dab, Cell, Three-four, you too."
"What... What are we going to do, sir?"
"I don't know. For now, let's get the general to safety, and fix our heads."
---------------------------
Surprisingly enough, they managed to get out of Ryloth easily. After all, no one would have expected Hell Squad to resist Order 66.
Dageer still had the codes for the Clone Army channels on his comlink, so he was able to quickly gather news, and passed them all to Ragout before laying down on a bed.
He was the last one who had to have his inhibitor chip removed. Brain, Metal, Dab, Three-four, Tech, and Cell were sedated near him, with a bandage wrapped around their heads after a successful operation. For now, Dageer had pushed back all his thoughts, and focused on getting out of Ryloth. He would worry about the future later.
...
When he woke up, the first thing Dageer realized was that he hadn't dreamed. Not a single nightmare. Obviously, the chip was what caused the dreams, and he lamented not knowing of it earlier.
Looking around, he saw he wasn't on the same ship they had left Ryloth. That meant they must have met with some of the Jedi survivors that Ragout managed to contact. They were Ahsoka, General Kenobi, and General Yoda. Dageer also knew two or three padawans had survived, but he didn't know where they were.
"Sir..."
He turned to see his unit looking at him. All of them had despairing expressions on their faces. Now, their own brothers were hunting them, and they became traitors. There wasn't anything they could say or do that could change that. They had had the same chip on their brain as other clones, so they understood perfectly what they thought.
"It's useless to say anything now, Cell. What happened, happened. Now we can only follow through with it."
"But what are we going to do now?"
"You know the answer. Unless any of you have a different idea?"
They all shook their heads. From the moment Dageer killed Grey, they knew exactly where they were going to end.
"Then let's talk to the general. He needs to understand."
--------------------------
Hell Squad walked into the command bridge of the small shuttle with their helmets under their arms, and a determined look on their faces. They had already steeled their resolve.
Around the hologram table were Ragout, General Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano, and Captain Rex. They were looking at the hologram of General Yoda, who was somewhere in the galaxy.
Captain Rex was the first to see them. He and Dageer exchanged glances, and nodded at each other. Just by looking at his brother, the commander knew he had also taken out the inhibitor chip.
"Generals, Commander Tano."
"Generals, we are not, Dageer. Now, criminals is all there is to us."
"Yes... Unfortunately, Master Yoda is right. I trust you are all familiar with what happened?"
Several heads nodded. Ahsoka was especially quiet, sometimes throwing a glance at General Kenobi. Something he had said had unsettled her, probably.
"There is something else I need to tell you, however. These are Luke and Leia. Anakin's children. I believe they might be the key to ending the reign of terror Palpatine will ensure."
Only now Dageer and the others noticed the two human babies next to General Kenobi. On another occasion, they might be shocked that a Jedi had children, but now they couldn't care less.
"Generals, we have to make this quick, otherwise they will find us. We have a few hours, at most. You need to split up."
Dageer stepped forward, interrupting the conversation. Discipline and hierarchy didn't matter now.
"Hide, we have to. And wait for the right moment to strike, we will. The children, under your care will be, Obi-Wan."
"Yes, master."
For a long time, no one said anything. Then, Dageer broke the silence.
"It's time you go. Rex, you take care of Ahsoka, okay?"
The previous 501st leader nodded, already understanding what Dageer was going to do. As for Ahsoka, she bowed slightly to him. Slowly, she and the clone left the room.
"General Kenobi, General Yoda, you should get going too. We need to talk to Ragout."
They acknowledged his words - now it didn't matter who was a Jedi and who was a clone - and said farewells to Ragout. The Togruta, who knew Hell Squad too well, was already staring at them, resignation on his face.
After General Kenobi left with the babies, and General Yoda's projection disappeared, a long silence ensued. It was only broken by Ragout after a few minutes.
"You want to stay behind, don't you? To protect me... Again. You could come with me. There will be a lot to do, a lot to fight for."
Dageer shook his head with a sad smile. He looked at his shoulder pad, marked with a line for enemies he killed, and took it off.
"We are tired of fighting, Ragout. For four years, we never questioned orders. Look at where it got us. You know we can't run from this last fight, but it will be the last battle for us."
"I'm staying too, then."
The seven clones smiled, seeing tears in Ragout's eyes. Now, he wasn't a Jedi or a general. He was just the same kid they had gotten to know and respect. Still, Dageer denied his wish.
"No, you aren't. Remember when General Di and that lizard said that they could feel the Force around us, Ragout? That we wouldn't use, but influence it? I never understood that. But now I do."
His eyes were clouded with memories. There was so much he wanted to say, but he never was good with words.
"We were never the ones who would change anything. Force or not, our objective never changed. To protect you. That promise we made in Ryloth, to General Di, still stands. The galaxy needs you, kid. The Jedi are gone, that's true. But not all of them. If one day the Empire is to fall, it will be because you were there to guide the ones who fight against it."
The young Togruta wasn't holding back his tears. He didn't want to admit it, but Dageer was probably right. A Jedi was needed to defeat the Sith, and someone needed to train those Jedis.
"I understand..."
"We wouldn't be able to live, general, knowing we killed our own brothers. We wouldn't want to. You know that. Now, go. We will hold them for as long as we can."
The Jedi stared at them for a long time. There was determination, pain, and sadness in their eyes.
"Do you regret it? The war, the deaths... Everything?"
"For four years, all we did was follow orders blindly, general. Maybe... Maybe, if we had thought more, instead of just doing as we were told, things would have been different. I... We regret a lot of things we've done... But not this."
Ragout nodded, and wiped his tears. Looking at each of the members of Hell Squad, he shook their hands, and entered an escape pod, after destroying it's tracker.
"May the Force be with you, Hell Squad."
"And may it be with you, general."
------------------------
A few hours later, the shuttle shook as it was captured by a tractor beam, and pulled inside a Republic cruiser. By the colors, Dageer recognized the 212th.
Standing up, he looked at his brothers. Brain, Dab, Tech, Metal, Three-four, and Cell. They had been with him for as long as he remembered, and they had gone through a lot together. They just never imagined that their last battle would be against their own family.
"Ready?"
"Yeah."
"Let's do this."
"For the 303rd, and for Ragout."
The commander nodded to them, and put on his helmet just as the door was breached, and clone troopers ran in.
"For Ragout..."
--------------------------
Commander Cody stepped over the dead bodies of some of his best troopers to arrive in front of Dageer. He didn't know how many of his men Hell Squad had killed, and he didn't want to. One was already too many.
On his way, he found the fallen members of Hell Squad one by one, each of them surrounded by bodies. Metal, Tech, Dab, Three-four, Cell, and then Brain. Dageer's second-in-command was just a few meters away from him.
The commander was still standing, under the aim of three dozen troopers. He was wounded in several spots, but still holding his blaster.
Commander Cody walked until he was just two meters away from Dageer. His brother could kill him easily if he wanted, but he knew Dageer had had enough.
"They are not here, are they?"
"No. They left hours ago."
He stared at Dageer's visor, and saw his reflection on it. Suppressing a sigh, he looked at his brother.
"What now? Do you want to keep fighting?"
Dageer said nothing. Instead, he dropped his DC-15A, and then his pistol. Then, he unsheathed his vibroblade, and stared at it for a long time before putting it on the ground gently. Lastly, he took off his helmet, and looked at it. A single horn, painted a long time ago, and scarred by a thousand battles... His most treasured possession. Sighing, he put it back on.
"Was it worth it, Dageer? Killing so many of our brothers to protect a traitor?"
"Worth it? I don't know. I did what I had to do to protect my general, Cody. You did the same, otherwise Kenobi wouldn't be alive."
The 212th leader clenched his fists, before shaking his head as if to deny it. He followed through with Order 66, but he couldn't help but feel slightly relieved that General Kenobi was still alive.
"It's fitting, you know? That the one who puts an end to Hell Squad is you. We've been through it since the start. You know things are not as simple as you want them to be."
"I do. But... Good soldiers follow orders, Dageer. You know that. But I never wished to fight Hell Squad."
"I know. But there is nothing we can do. My fight... Our fight, is over. Yours is just beginning, Cody."
Having said that, Dageer gestured to the blaster in Commander Cody's hands.
"It's time. Do it."
He lifted the weapon, and aimed at Dageer. A single shot reverberated throughout the ship, signaling the end of the battle. Still, no one felt happy with the result.
--------------------------
Many, many years later, in one of the stone peaks of Ryloth.
An old Togruta sat down, legs crossed, and looked at the ball of flames in the sky. It was a sign that the Emperor was dead, and his reign of terror was over. The Empire was gone.
Ragout's eyes were calm as he heard the people of Ryloth celebrating. He knew better than anyone the price that the galaxy had to pay.
"Can you see it? Palpatine is gone. The galaxy will flourish once again. The hope that was born so many years ago will once again fill the heart of the innocents."
He looked at the air in front of him, and smiled. To anyone who looked, he was talking to himself.
"Should I tell them? That the freedom they now feel is all thanks to seven soldiers? No? Haha... You are right, they wouldn't want it."
Grinning, Ragout got up. He had lived until now, and taught everything he knew to the one who destroyed the Empire. Now, it was time he rested.
His body slowly started to become translucent, but he wasn't bothered by it. In front of him, three blue figures appeared. A small Jedi, holding a walking stick, an old Nikto, with a small smile, and a human with a scar over his right eye.
"So you are here too. It's good to see you again, old friend."
When Ragout disappeared, his robes fell to the floor. Besides it was an old, battered, and broken helmet. It had two brownish red horns painted on it, and a crack almost split it into two. But, at this moment, the helmet seemed to shine. It's journey had ended.
"May the Force be with you."
// AUTHOR'S FINAL THOUGHTS //
There is so much I have to say, but first and foremost, thank you. Thank you to all the 3.119 readers that believed in me, and followed me through this journey.
I started writing Broke: A Clone Wars Tale day 13 of May, 2018, and wrote the final chapter today, 25 of November of 2020. This is also the day I wrote this note, so, if there is anything outdated, that's the reason.
Now comes the part where I write a note almost as big as the chapter, so bear with me, please.
First of all, I have to say how much this novel influenced my life. It started as an idea, a wish to try something new. Now it has grown to the point were I can say with absolute certainty that this is the biggest, and probably the best, Star Wars fanfic in Webnovel. I say that not only as a brag, but also as a reason of pride to us all, because I couldn't have done it without you.
To that, I have to thank some especial readers. If I had space, I would write the names of everyone, but unfortunately, I can't. So, here are those who influenced me the most, be it by giving words of encouragement, ideas, or helping me through some difficult moments of my life.
Democratis, Immortal_Demon, pbtv, _Pingu_, 2nd_Mad_Lord, Spartens, Daolord_Silvermoon, Krunch_, potatoking4, Phema2241, A1451, Pied_piper, Azunyan, Radhorn1999, and nonoemi. Those are just some of the people, and I wish I could write everyone's name here. But since I can't, what I am saying to them is valid to everyone else. Without you, I would have given up after two or three chapters, like I did with my first novels. I would never have had the motivation to really take forward a project like this. So, thank you.
It's not the biggest of novels, and certainly not the best, when you consider the genre as a whole. There are many, many mistakes I made, and things I could have written better. But it's our novel. We embarked on this journey so, so long ago, all because you believed in me. And, without that trust, none of that would have happened. So, yeah, Broke belongs to all of you just as much as it belongs to me.
Now, let's talk about myself. I don't even need to say how much the quality got better, right? I'm not just talking about the novel, but my life as a role. For many people, including me, 2020 was a rough year. I lost a friend to covid, several others were hospitalized (they are all better now) and I had trouble with a lot of things in general.
Broke became a way for me to forget about all those troubles, and do something I really like, which is writing. It would have been a lot worse if I didn't have it.
Just so I don't get too emotional and start crying (too late), I will talk about something that's very exciting for me, which is my new project.
Iferes: Slaves Of The Gods, will be available here on Webnovel and at Royalroad. If any of you feel like putting it on your list, and giving it a try, I appreciate the hype.
I'm really excited for the new project for two reasons. Firstly, because I won't get (too) sad about not writing Broke anymore, and secondly because it will be my first real attempt at writing as a job.
For almost three years, Broke was a constant part of my life. We had our mishaps, that's for sure, but the happy memories are many more. This novel will always hold a special place in my heart. And, even if I'm not working on it anymore, I will always be checking it to read and answer comments, correct mistakes that people find, and such.
I guess I will stop here for now, before I start repeating myself (again). Once more, thank you to everyone who made it to the end, and I will see you soon, in another universe, in another novel, but always with the same passion for doing my best, for me and for you.
Stay safe, and may the Force be with you.
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