First pass at number one. If you have significant comments or want to proof read I' appreciate a google doc/drop box etc.
Jason loved the smell of gun oil. The sounds of pieces of metal against each other soothed him, but not as much as falling into a well honed routine and allowing his hands to work on their own. Once finished he placed the rifle on the table beside him and started on another.
The group of Drall before him were watching intently. Each of them now cradled a rifle of their own and they would try and follow his method on this rifle. The camp now had thousands of Imperial sympathisers being trained and armed.
It was not the work of Jason's Arc squad that had put this kind of operation together. It was the culmination of years of subtle manipulation by Vast Empire Intelligence. Hitting social media hard, funding think tank reports that criticised current policy, and funding crime syndicates that the Empire promised to crack down on. That was a strong topic throughout the system, supporters of both the Republic and Empire claimed that the independent government was corrupt, but it was the Empire's low tolerance of criminal activity that resounded with a large portion of the population.
“Right, so we'll go through this one slowly. The E-11 is a reliable beast, if you get something wrong it won't fire, but it shouldn't go off in your face. Now...” Jason looked up from the rifle and immediately stopped talking. Instead of the array of pitch black eyes that had been fixed on him, he was now looking at backs of furry heads.
A Drall at the back of the tent was gibbering rapidly in the local language. Several of the drallish would-be soldiers of the revolution were skittering out of the exit. Jason slowly placed the rifle back on the table and pushed himself to his feet. He walked through the crowd, pushing Drall out of his way gently.
He raised his hand to shield himself from the sunlight. It was always bright up here in the mountains. His second-in-command approached him almost immediately. Dressed in hard-wearing civilian clothing, the other ARC stood out amongst the natives.
“Problem boss,”
“Yes?” he fell into step with his fellow soldier and they walked towards the crowd of Drall gathering around a tent. The colours of the imperial-supplied tent shifted subtly. The roof was a mimic cloth that ensured the thing was hard to spot from satellite imagery.
“The government is claiming they've activated Centrepoint Station. Apparently all hyperspace travel in and out of the system is now blocked.”
“We were supposed to be bugging out in two weeks. The fleet was to arrive in six.” Jason said. The other commando grunted in reply. Inside the tent a large screen was displaying one of the world's main news channels.
“We understand people's concerns are primarily for the economy, especially in these difficult times,” a man with a gruff voice and a neatly cropped beard was explaining.
“A strong Corellian system that does not have to rely on Republic hand outs has always been at the heart of our policies. We will provide for the people. We have been stockpiling resources for a great deal of time now and regular shipments of goods from outside the system will continue.
Whilst there may be a short term increase in living costs, we also expect a reduction in unemployment due to...”“This true?” Jason asked.
“We don't have the comms window to be sure til tomorrow, but been a hell of a fuss on the holonet.”
“People pissed?”
“Oh yeah. Though the die-hard independence activists realise this is a military move. He's shielding the core planets from a quick jump attack.”
“They either know we're coming, or are closer to finishing those Dreadnoughts faster than we thought.”
“Hmm mmm.”
“Travel time in and out of the system will not take a month. Our completed early warning system will keep citizen of the Corellian System safe during the secession from the Republic...” Diktat Thacken Sal Solo continued. The Drall soldiers in the tent were making what the Recon Commandos understood to be the equivalent of a 'boo'. There were many Drall bustling between the many tents nestled in the mountains. Between the scattered tents were automated anti aircraft guns. The military didn't know that revolutionary forces were gathering in such numbers, but there had been several attacks already.
Military drones were regularly combing the mountains. They wouldn' expect the high-tech VE-supplied weaponry that could down their aircraft with ease.
“How can they do this, they rely on the trade routes?”
“Sounds like they've put a trade station on the outskirts of the interdiction field.”
“Sounds like an easy target to me,”
“They're also claiming the Centrepoint's fields will be fine tuned and they'll open up limited traffic down a few routes. Guarded by interdiction cruisers and the home fleet of course.”
“Sounds problematic. The Republic fleet?” Jason asked. The Drall had switched off the screen now. They looked agitated, several were shaking their rifles in anger. They weren't ready to come down from the mountains yet and start hitting military outposts. The whole op might have to be delayed now, he knew. However, there were many groups like this holed up in the remote regions of the planet being trained. Even some local governments were supporting and training private armies.
The problem was there was limited communication between them. The plans had been set in motion in advance of the VE arrival. That arrival was certain to be delayed, and was possibly at risk of being cancelled.
“Nothing on the news. We know their ships were still in the system last week.”
“If they've been marooned here they'll be pissed – and twitchy.”
“That's for sure.”
Jason rubbed his stubbled chin for a few moments, considering this turn of events. “Besh, risk switching on the D6 comm unit now. There's a small chance they might be pushing a message now. If nothing is on turn it back off and wait for the designated time.”
“Sir,” the second-in-command acknowledged. “This is bad isn't it?”
“Bad for us, but we don't have sight of the whole picture. Might be those shaping the big picture can whip up a frenzy amongst the Imperial supporters in response to this. Far as I'm concerned Besh, this just means we might not be off this rock for a long while.”
“Been through worse sir.”
“That we have.”
