Chapter Text
Iden Versio had just finished the checklist for her TIE fighter, while Meeko and Hask began lauching out of the hangar.
Thrawn's orders were simple.
Fly into the enemy base, destroy the air defences, clear a path to the records room, and steal files about the enemy's war machines.
With superior technology, this seemed like a easy operation.
Iden took the lead, positioning herself in front of her agents.
-Agents. Let's review the plan one last time. Agent Meeko, you and I will land at the base, infiltrate the records and extract the files, while you, Agent Hask, are in charge of ensuring our air superiority.
-Yes, ma'am. - the two agents replied.
-Let's get to work.
The fighters screamed as Inferno Squad made its way to the base.
The night in Paris brought no clouds or fog to mask the approach of the special forces.
It didn't take long for the fighters to cut through the atmosphere, and were detected by ground-based radars:
-Watcher to Base. We are detecting three bogeys approaching at fifty thousand feet, and descending. Do you read?
-Base to Watcher. I don't know what to tell you, everything is clear. I don't see anything. Maybe it's interference?
-I don't know. They are moving too fast. It has to be contact. They should be upon you now.
-The sky is still clear.
Static took over the channel not long after that exchange.
-Watcher to Base, what is going on? Over!
-They are everywhere!
Explosions were heard on the inside of the air base.
Iden Versio began her attack, starting by eliminating the anti-air missile batteries that the probe droids had signalled. Meeko attacked the fuel depots in a blaze of golry, setting fire part of the barracks. Hask appeared from the shadows, flying low and fast with his TIE interceptor, strafing a group of soldiers running in panic.
The green lasers of the fighters dominated the night, shattering infrastructure and vehicles on the ground, as well as any kind of weaponry capable of contesting them.
Radio operators were desperately trying to call for reinforcements:
-We have three UFOs flying over us! They are tearing us apart! All the anti-aircraft batteries are destroyed! Scramble the jets! Now! -a soldier shouted desperately to the neighbouring air base. The transmission was cut off, when Agent Meeko dived in, destroying the control and radio tower, plunging the entire base into silence.
Iden and Meeko landed on the tarmac.
The fire that Meeko created had become a raging inferno, dominating the horizon as the Imperial soldiers climbed out of their fighters. The black armour marked them against the orange hues of the fire, their purpose reflected in their red lenses.
Some soldiers tried to prevent the commander and her agent from entering the building by opening fire on them. Hiding behind a pile of debris, the two returned fire with their blasters, hitting the position of the French troops.
The rain of red lasers was not enough to make the troops retreat, who in turn, responded with more bullets and gunfire.
Iden and Meeko were cornered. The sound of Hask's engines screamed louder and louder, releasing a burst of lasers over the entrance to the building, removing opposition to his team.
-Full speed ahead, Commander.
-Good job, Agent.
On the other side, the situation was desperate. The captain of the regiment tried to make sense of the attack, trying to mobilise his troops to prevent these unknown attackers from getting whatever they cam for:
-Where are they now? - he asked.
-Entering the records, sir. We lost contact with the team there.
The sound of the TIE/IN cut through the air, making some soldiers shudder.
-And what can we do about it?
-I don't know, sir. They destroyed our defences. We are sitting ducks out there.
-I think Louis managed to warn the other base. I think he managed to call for the Rafales.
-We can't count on that. We have to take back control of the records, that seems to be their target. - Captain Monroe adressed his troops, cutting the discussing short.
He walked out the barracks, followed by his team, crossing the asphalt of the base, while Hask rips through another section of the base, almost hitting the rooftops.
Miles away, the doomed request for support was received by another air base, Saint-Dizier-Robinson. Home of the formidable Dassault Rafale.
-This is Saint-Dizier-Robison, please repeat. What is your status. Over.
The line was still dead.
The Major entered the situation room, those present stood up in attention.
-At ease. Now, who can explain to me what is going on.
-Sir, at 20:37, three objects were reported, approaching the Air base number 4. Minutes later, we lost contact with the base. Eyewitnesses report a large-scale fire breaking out inside. Attempts to re-establish contact with the base were unsuccessful. The last communication hinted that the base was in fact, under attack.
The room fell silent.
-Deploy three fighters. Their orders are to search and destroy all unknown contacts, and report on the status of the base.
-Yes, sir.
Alarms rang out across Saint Dizier, while three Dassault Rafale fighter jets were prepared to take the skies.
Iden Versio walked through the corridors of the registry building with a sure step.
The soldiers still inside were not major obstacles for the two operators. The two went deeper into the building, finally reaching the records room. Iden and Meeko leaned against the wall, leaving the door between them.
Inside the room, two voices could be heard, frightened and discussing what to do.
-They look... restless. - Meeko noticed
-It seems that they were not expecting special forces.-Iden grinned.
-Usually, that's the goal, commander. - Meeko asked, slightly tired of his commanding officer's usual line.
Meeko kicked down the door, while Iden busted inside, firing at the soldiers, falling cold to the ground
Iden looked around. All she founf were dozens of boxes with files, neatly organised on metal shelves.
-The Grand Admiral can't expect us to look trough all this. It would take centuries. They don't have any consoles, a terminal, or a dataport for an Astromech. - Del Meeko complained
-Maybe they aren't that advanced, Del. -Iden replied, throwing a maintenance manual on the floor, indifferent.
-Well, we have to find something.
-Then I suggest you start looking.
-Yes, ma'am
The two operators began to rummage through the boxes, removing covers and dossiers, which quickly began to cover the floor.
-This is useless, commander. There's no way to bring all of this back to the Corvus.
-These are our orders. We will have to find a way to comply with them.
Iden removed another stack of papers. A gray rectangular object was underneath them.
-What is that? -Del asked
-I don't know.
Iden picked up the object, which to her surprise, opened through a fold in its middle.
It was a computer.... Iden Versio was holding a portable computer....
-It seems to be some kind of technology. - Del noted.
-Do you think your droid can get in? - Iden asked, still looking at it.
-There is only one way to find out, Iden.
-Droid. - ordered Iden.
The small probe droid broke free from the commander's armour, hovering over the foreign object.
Voices and hurried footsteps could be heard at the end of the hallway.
Captain Monroe's team eventually caught up with the invaders. Del and Iden hid among the boxes and the shelves, while the soldiers approached.
A group of five soldiers stopped at the door, pointing with their mounted flashlights to the seemingly empty room.
-What happened here? - one of them asked
-Why do they want to see our maintenance records, Captain?
-I don't know. Spread out, they should still be around.
Carefully, the soldiers began to advance trough the room, pointing their barrels into every corner, looking for the attackers.
Iden and Meeko manoeuvred around them, avoiding being discovered.
Nerves filed the room. The number of hiding spots was running out, and no sign of the attackers. Captain Monroe came across the computer Iden and Del where mesmerised about, noting the circular object attached to it.
He didn't have time to examine it well, as the sound of a falling gun ran through the air.
-What was that? - asked one soldier, turning around.
As the gun barrels turned towards it, only the rifle and the body were visible, laying on the ground.
A box fell to the ground close by, and immediately a rain of bullets came upon it.
The soldiers became increasingly restless, pointing their guns at every part of the room.
Iden and Del slowly raised their weapons, hidden among boxes and shelves. The two special agents opened fire, ending the soldier's anxieties for good.
Captain Monroe was the only one who survived, clinging to his stomach, trying to crawl closer to the computer, to prevent the enemies from getting what they wanted. Using the table to support himself, he tried to throw the computer to the ground, but a well-aimed shot to his leg caused him to fall.
Iden Versio kicked his pistol away. The good captain looked at the attackers. Black armour with red marks, a strange helmet with red lenses.
-Who are you? What do want from us. - he asked, spitting blood.
-We are Inferno Squadron. -Iden said, kneeling over him. - And the Empire thanks you for your cooperation. -She tanked the Captain, by firing two shots at the soldier's torso.
Iden's droid disconnected from the computer, announcing that it had extracted the files Thrawn requested.
-Commander Versio to Agent Hask. We have what we came for. We are leaving.
-Copy that, Commander...
Hask didn't get to finish his sentence when alarms on his fighter began to sound.
Proximity alerts, of all things.
-Commander, we have fighter jets on the way. - he warned
The roar of the fighters jets dominated the night, flying full speed at them.
-Dear God. - One of the pilots said, seeing fire rising in the air, and the control tower knocked down.
-Radar is picking up something. Coming straight at us. - the flight leader annouced.
-Trying to get a lock. - ordered a pilot.
-I got him! Fox-2! Fox-2! - announced another.
A missile broke free from the fighter's pylon, heading for Hask. Clutching his commands tightly, Hask quickly closed the distance, pointed his fighter straight up and executed a roll, descending on the pursuing Rafales. The aggressive manoeuvre threw the missile's lock. Hask kept descending on them, pressing the red buttons on his sticks, shredding one of the Rafales in bits.
Panic engulfed the French formation, with the two remaining fighters turning in opposite directions, trying to relocate Hask among the night sky.
-What was that. - Shouted a pilot on the radio.
-He's down! He's down! - one shouted, looking at the fireball he once called a wing man.
Hask returned for another pass, his lasers missing another jet by millimetres. Hask passed right trough them.
Determined not to let them get away, Hask cut off his engine, launching himself into a tight turn with no trhust, breaking the laws of physics, and turning around near instantaneously, pushing it back to maximum, now chasing directly behind the French Rafales. The green lasers cut through the air, scraping through the cockpit domes of the jets.
-Break right. - ordered the fighter out in front. - I'm turning left. He can't follow us both. Whic ever one is free, goes staright for him.
The two fighters split into a turn, with Hask flying past them.
-Interesting. It won't save you. - he said, committing to a tight turn, following the flight leader.
-He's in your six o'clock. - warned the wingman.
-I know. - the leader replied, slightly panicked
The wing man completed his turn first, lining up against Hask. A volley of bullets came out of his gun, piercing one of the TIE Interceptor's wings.
Alarms filled Hask's cockpit, having thrown his TIE out of control for a moment.
-That was your biggest mistake. - he sneered.
Grabbing the controls, Hask launched a missile at the fighter that took a poxy shot at him, recommitting his pursuit of the flight leader.
Under pressure, the leader tried to take the fight vertically, misjudging the capabilities of the TIE/IN. His Rafale was torn to pieces in a second, he barely managed to eject.
The remaining pilot managed to evade the missile using it flares, to his suprise.
Hask threw his Interceptor at the remaining enemy. The Rafale was trying to get away, trying to place some distance between himself and the strange fighter.
Hask's cockpit lit up with more warnings. The wing could not withstand the strain the chased placed upon it, threatening to break off from the fuselage.
But Hask was so obsessed with shooting down that last fighter, that he paid no attention to the warnings.
When the onboard computer locked onto the Rafale's signal, Hask unleashed a devastating barrage, ending the brave pilot in a fiery explosion.
Once the fighters were down, and Hask regainned control of the situation, he finally realised the state of his ship. The alarms became impossible to ignore. Hask frantically pressed buttons on his panels, but nothing could save him from his fate. The damaged wing broke loose, sending Hask into a violent spin, crashing into the ground.
Iden and Del had just arrived at their fighters when they heard Hask's engines sounding unruly. A fireball appeared out in front shortly after.
-Hask. Sit-rep. - shouted the commander on the radio.
-Do you think he...? -Del measured his words.
-Be quiet. I'm trying to contact you. -Hask, answer. That's an order!
Silence.
Hanging from their fighters, Iden and Del stared at each other, waiting for Hask to say something, to break the silence
The sound of bullets hitting their TIEs brought them back to reality.
-We have to go now, commander. Hask will return to Corvus. -Del said, a little too hopeful.
The two took off, strafing the forces that tried to prevent them from escaping. The TIEs' flight systems indicated that no other aircraft was airborne.
Once clear of the atmosphere, the Corvus reigned over the planet.
The members Inferno Squad entered the bridge, where Thrawn awaited them.
-I take it that you have succeeded, despite your losses. -Thrawn spoke, noting the absence.
-Yes, Grand Admiral. -Iden Versio's voice trembled a little, as she handed over the data that the droid managed to take hold.
-Don't be saddened. Agent Hask knew the risks. His loss is most unfortunate, but he helped us get what will guarantee our victory. He died a hero of the Empire, and we will honour his memory accordingly. By completing our mission.
-Grand Admiral, if you will allow me the intrusion. -Del Meeko asked. -But what exactly did you order us to steal?
-A sensible question. It's only fair that they know what you've risked for.
The Corvus tabble projector lit up.
-What I ordered you to steal were the maintenance records of the enemy vehicles. With this we will have a more in-depth look at their development and deployment philosophy. Something indispensable when the rest of our forces come.
-Is there anything else we can do, Grand Admiral? -Iden Versio asked.
-No, you have already done enough, and judging the costs, more operations are luxury that we cannot afford. You are dismissed.
The two agents abandoned the bridge, leaving Thrawn to his files.
-Plot a course to Exegol. You are allowed to jump as soon as it is set.
Within moments, Corvus entered Hyperspace, abandoning the planet and the havoc they caused.