FORSAKEN II - Eternal Dawn

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

"The Exobogans were destroyed," said the Imperial Captain via hologram. "By the time we arrived, we received the signal that they had gone off-line and the culprits escaped. Although we couldn't confirm her identity with our scanners, visual identification suggests the starship involved might have been the Corellian YT-1300 light freighter known as the Outcast."

"And the Exobogans?" said Karabra, sitting at a round conference table along with the other members of Project Eternal Dawn.

"We were able to recover eleven of them, but one is missing. It is safe to assume the fugitives took it with them. The others appear to be damaged beyond repair. We are currently on our way back to Christophsis to deliver them."

"How can that be possible?" Jor Nath said. "We have tested them against a platoon of battle-hardened clones and three of them of them managed to annihilate them."

"We can't be sure at this point, but evidence suggests the culprits could be Jedi. I already filed a report with the Imperial Inquisitors. They're on their way to investigate as we speak."

"Why would you do that, when one of them is part of the project?" Dzargos said.

"Just following protocol. The standing order is to report any sign of activity that could be related to the Jedi. The cuts the Exobogans exhibit seem consistent with the ones done by their lightsabers."

Could it be them? Karabra thought. "Well done, Captain. We'll be waiting for your arrival."

"Yes, my lady." The Captain bowed and the communication ended.

"They failed again." Jor Nath tapped the tips of his clawed fingers in front of him. "After all this work, the Exobogans didn't stand a chance against the Jedi."

"Speak for yourself, Jor," Dr. Evazan said. "I'm a techflesh artist. The Exobogans are the epitome of my work. They do what they're told without a second thought and without regret. They're stone-cold killers if I ever saw one."

"Not when it comes to the Jedi. This is the second time they've faced them and failed. Your programable neuro-boxes were supposed to learn and adapt from their tactics."

"Don't blame this on me, Jor Nath. Maybe it's your implants that cannot measure up to the task."

Jor Nath scoffed at the comment. "My people have fought Jedi long before the Clone Wars. Out technology is more than a match for them."

"Remind me again how the Arkanian Revolution ended?"

"Perhaps we need to consider the materials used," Dzargos said. "I'm sure we can find something that can counteract their laser swords."

Dr. Evazan leaned on the table, toward the Christohsian. "Oh, so you think that because your worthless crystals got to work thanks to some kind of magic, you get to tell us how to fix our work?"

"The Exobogans are neither cheap nor easy to produce. We have lost fourteen of them so far, between the two encounters with the Jedi. How many more can we afford to sacrifice?"

"I told you, my lady, these field tests are premature," Jor Nath. "We just figure out the stabilization of the darksparks. We need more time to address all the possible issues."

Karabra continued to wonder about the identity of the Jedi. She said, "Which have been uncovered by these very trials. This project is about creating Force-sensitive clones, not cybernetic strandcasts to hunt down Jedi. The Exobogans are just a mediocre step in that direction. The fact that the military have found a useful purpose for these failures, is a side benefit. So, consider yourselves lucky, gentlemen.

"But this is a complete disaster," Dzardos said. "If those Jedi have an Exobogan in their possession, they're surely going to learn their secrets. Not to mention, the breach in security this poses for the project."