Frontier Jedi

Chapter 6: Begin the Attack

22 BBY Ryloth Space

Three days had passed since preparations began. Master Di and his men had sacrificed themselves to give the inhabitants time to flee. Now, Anakin and his small fleet arrived at the scene where a Separatist battleship and six star cruisers were waiting in blockade positions. They were clearly outgunned and outnumbered, but Anakin had a plan. The three Venators jumped to Ryloth, staying just outside the Separatists' firing range.

"As suspected. Admiral, launch the first flight of fighters to defend the ship, then another to escort our Y-Wings to hit the flagship," Anakin instructed.

"Commander, you're up," Yularen radioed to Ahsoka, who was in the hangar, launching her Jedi interceptor and a squadron of V-19 Torrents to escort the Y-wings.

"Copy that," Ahsoka replied, launching into space. Memories of James lecturing her surfaced. "Follow orders to succeed, or you'll end up like my original model."

"Ahsoka, what exactly did Major James teach you?" Anakin asked over the intercom.

"Well, besides beating me, he taught me proper tactics, following orders, and learning from past mistakes," Ahsoka replied as a wave of Vulture droid fighters approached.

"Alright, boys, here they come. Defend the Y-wings!" Ahsoka ordered. The V-19s engaged the enemy while the Y-wings raced towards the battleship. Anakin, Yularen, and Liah watched from the flagship.

"All according to plan," Anakin said.

"You said you're going to do something with the Reaper?" Liah asked.

"Of course, it's right there," Anakin replied, pointing to Liah's Reaper on the hangar roof, ready to aid the gunners.

"Incoming!" Liah yelled as the fighters began their attack. The V-19 squadron defended the ship, and the gunners opened fire. The Reaper shot down many Vulture fighters with its rapid-fire rockets, even intercepting a proton torpedo mid-air. Some Vulture starfighters engaged the Venators and V-19s, while others landed in front of the Reaper, cautiously advancing.

The Reaper fired off ticks, transforming into iconic exploding pilot killers. These devices launched themselves at the Vulture droids, destroying them in two hits. The resulting explosions were spectacular.

The Reaper charged at the Vulture droids, using its arms for an AOE attack, causing a droid to explode right in front of it. The Reaper then used its machine guns to mow down a diving Vulture droid. Anakin, Yularen, and Liah witnessed the entire scene unfold.

"Your droids are impressive, Commander," Anakin remarked.

"Eh, it's nothing special," Liah replied as the last of the enemy bombers were destroyed. The surviving Y-wings returned, but only half made it back. The attack had been somewhat successful, with some of the battleship's turrets destroyed, but no significant structural damage. However, the defenses were greatly reduced.

"Well, that went alright. We didn't destroy anything, but the flagship's defenses are weakened."

"Half of the squadron is gone. What happened?" Yularen questioned, looking at the returning Y-wings. Suddenly, a blur appeared beside them, followed by rapid explosions. One of their Venators exploded into pieces, and a lightning bolt struck the second Venator, turning it into a fireball.

"What the?!"

"Master, we have a situation. An unknown starfighter is wrecking my squadron!" Ahsoka reported as the unknown starship zoomed past and jumped to hyperspace.

"A Lethisk-class armed freighter? Impossible!" Yularen yelled as the blockade began opening fire on the weakened Venators.

"Pull back. Ahsoka, get back here," Anakin ordered as the rest of the squadron returned inside, and they jumped to light speed.