Star Wars The Clone Wars: Wolfpack Declassified "Prologue"

Chapter 8 - Major Escape Off A Miner Planet

---In the control room of the mining facility on Ajanti Prime---

Trooper Boost's POV

-------//\\-------

"Anybody?.....Nobody?.....Seriously?! No one here knows how to override the self-destruct?"

A trooper in the back of the room nods slowly and replies, "No, Sir. And those aren't things you'd want to go messing around with. Crossing the wrong wire might ignite the system. Destroying it might ignite the system. Disengaging the computer might-"

I growl loudly as precious seconds tick by. The screen above me reads 6:01.  I'm about ready for Mouser to just pop in and save the day. But something tells me that's not gonna be the case. Glancing over at Wolffe, I allow myself to admire him. I can tell he's thinking through our options, but his face is as blank as duracrete. Nothing distracts him.

Suddenly, a familiar voice is heard through our comms, "This is Sergeant Sinker, we have secured the Chrysis. I repeat, we have secured the Chrysis."

Wolffe jumps into action. "This is Commander Wolffe.  I read you loud and clear, Sergeant. Relay your coordinates to me. We will rendezvous with you in four minutes." Every trooper sprints out the room following Wolffe. I'm not the fastest of runners, so I lag behind and inform Sergeant Serious-Issues of a real serious issue.

"Oh, by the way Sergeant, there's a self-destruct set to go off in about five minutes. Better have the ship prepped for take-off when we get there." Chuckling to myself, I double-time and catch up to the rest of the group. The Sergeant doesn't respond, but I didn't expect him to.

Our combat boots stamp loudly through each corridor.  Wolffe heads up the pack, swiftly guiding us into sharp turns and around fallen debris. This area of the base looks very decrepit and dangerous. Chunks of the ceiling have fallen off in some parts. The walls have crumbled in other sections. Even the electrical system is malfunctioning, as the lights above us steadily flicker on and off.

As we navigate a corner, I nearly slam into the trooper in front of me. Peering around him, I see them a few meters ahead: Admiral Welschrader sitting against the wall, blaster in hand. Near his feet lies a trooper with a blaster hole marring his face. It takes a second, but I soon recognize the clone by the markings on his armor: it's Lieutenant Torr.

Commander Wolffe's POV

-------//\\-------

For the first time in many years, I freeze. Bile lodges itself in my throat. I blink. I blink again. But no matter what I do, the image remains.

I kneel beside Torr and place my hand on his still shoulder. I'm vaguely aware as one of my men crouches next to the Admiral. He is soon revived - groggy and incompetent - but alive. I whisper Torr's name, unable to say it any louder for fear of my voice breaking. My hand runs along the maroon notches on his shoulder pad - the ones denoting his rank. Anger swells inside of me. What happened? Who did this? Why did Torr leave his post?

A hand grips my shoulder. I whip around and come face-to-face with that trooper who took up point with me. Boost, I think his name is. His eyes meet mine, and we exchange a silent thought: now is not the time to mourn. I nod. Wiping the tumultuous emotions from my mind, I heave Torr's body over my shoulder as Boost does the same for the Admiral. My men and I book it to the hanger. We must have about a minute left now.

---On the aft ramp of the Chysis, inside the main hanger---

Trooper Nellis' POV

-------//\\-------

I spot the Commander and his men rounding the corner, charging full speed toward me. As soon as they hit the ramp, I step forward to relieve him of the injured trooper. The Chrysis begins to shudder, and I head for the med bay. I soon notice that another trooper is trailing me, carrying whom I believe to be the Admiral. Soldiers scurry past us to their stations, and I can feel the ship's engines engaging and fueling us away.

Within seconds I burst into the med bay, calling out: "Two severely injured, to an unknown exta-" Everyone is tossed sideways as the ship lurches off balance. The base must've self-destructed, and the Chrysis is caught in its wake. I snag a bed rail for support and slide the trooper onto the sheets. Sergeant Sinker, on the bed across from me, winces when he bangs his bandaged arm. The trooper who followed me in nearly topples over. Two clones race over to steady him and place the Admiral in a bed.

Appearing to be more conscious now, the Admiral sits up and allows himself to be examined by the med droid. He is badly bruised, missing a front tooth, and clutching his side where a few ribs must be cracked, among other injuries. But with nothing life-threatening to be concerned about, the med droid administers to him a few painkillers as the poor officer wails like a dying skeetrat.

Turning his attention, the med droid ambles up to me and asks politely, "What seems to be his condition?"

I don't reply at first. I'm too busy staring down at the man on the bed. I hadn't noticed it until now - the gaping hole between his eyes, the seared flesh surrounding the wound.

Looking up, I solemnly reply: "Dead."

-------//\\-------

Within a few hours, the Triumphant docked with the Chrysis. Admiral Welschrader made a full recovery and gave his report to Jedi General Plo Koon. In it, Welschrader detailed the capture of the Chrysis, his brutal torture for information by the Separatist forces, and his encounter with the clone tropper later identified as CT-3634, a.k.a. "Lieutenant Torr."

Admiral Welscrader explained that he had suspected a traitor was in his midst as the Chrysis' mission was labeled Top Secret, and high clearance was needed to access the flight plan. This traitor hacked into the files and fed the information to the awaiting Separatist ships, according to Welschrader. After the capture of the Chrysis, this traitor then downloaded very high clearance-requiring files - files, that Admiral Welschrader remarked, "even I did not have access to."

Welschrader continued by describing his escape from custody and his confrontation with CT-3634. The clone accused Welschrader of being the traitor and then proceeded to attack him. During the skirmish, Welschrader noticed a holodrive, most likely containing the decrypted version of the said files, was crushed and rendered useless. Welschrader then subdued and killed his opponent just before the remaining troopers, led by CC-3636, arrived. Together, they made it back to the Chrysis before the base blew up.

As "Lieutenant Torr" was last seen near a computer station with a trooper identified only as "Mouser," it has been assumed that both clones were traitors working together for the Separatist Alliance. Inner Intelligence has yet to comment on the matter. Admiral Welschrader made an inquiry to his superiors concerning the nature of the files which were stolen. He was denied any information concerning the files.

An honorable ceremony was given for the few men who had recently lost their lives serving the Republic. General Koon presided and spoke hopeful words to his new men. "Lieutenant Torr" and "Trooper Mouser" were not among those included in the ceremony.

The members of the 104th Battlion were then transitioned to General Koon's care and soon boarded the Triumphant. From there, a course for Abregado System was set and the mission to look for the Separatists' new mystery weapon began.