22 - Boomshanka
The news that warships from another power have appeared in orbit and are intent on conquest was taken quite calmly by the local members of the Terraforming Corps. After all, they were neutral in whatever conflict the system had found itself embroiled in. Their duty was to nurturing Neforaan itself,
"These newcomers have a quarrel with the Republic Leadership, not with us. They will ask the Neforaans to join this, this Confederacy and once they have their answer they will leave." says Master Zhalen to a gathering of most of the Jedi Terraformers and their families. There is a calm murmuring as the people take this onboard. What he is saying is right. It is what has been the norm on the Rim for thousands of years. The flag overhead may change, but no-one in their right mind would interfere with the improvement of the worlds out here.
"You are mistaken Master Zhalen. They are here for us. This is the beginning of a war bent to one purpose. The extermination of the Jedi. When they land their ships, they will come here. No doubt there will be some manufactured excuse, or it will be listed as an unfortunate mistake, but they will come. Anyone here will be destroyed or enslaved. I would prevent that tragedy." I say.
Not the best news to bring to a town meeting. Jedi Terraformers are serious people. They may laugh and joke but not like this. They begin talking, worriedly.
"Calm down. Calm down everybody. These are very troubling predictions Master Dee-Jay. How do you know this." asks Master Zhalen.
'Go on love. Tell the truth. It's the Jedi way, is it not.' whispers Abby in my ear.
"It has been revealed to me via the Force. After all, why else would I be called here?" I say and also true, technically. Somehow revealing which exact part of the Force, that is, a very cranky and petulant eldritch abomination is not part of a winning argument. It helps that it makes sense. Why else would I be here, really?
"What do you propose?" asks Zhalen.
"Those with families I suggest dispersing into the general population. You are all well liked and related to them besides. They should shelter you. As for the rest. The Jedi protect. I intend to defend this world. They picked what they think is an easy target. I will show them otherwise." I say.
"This is madness! You would have us disrupt our project, the work of generations on your interpretation of the Force alone? How come no one else feels as you do?" says Khalen.
Again, he makes a good point. While I wonder what to say Anakin walks over and fiddles with the holo projector until he find a news station.
'... Federation Battleship still in orbit. The Commander, Nute Gunray says he will patiently await the choice of Neforaan's citizens. Meanwhile, all attempts to contact Coruscant have failed although this is...' comes a summary from the reporter. The image switches from a picture of the vessel and Gunray.
"That is who is here. Nute Gunray. The Butcher of Naboo. That monster had everyone in the capital herded like animals into camps. People I know!" says Anakin as he paces back and forth.
"Be reasonable Skywalker. The Naboo Occupation was relatively bloodless. Thanks to the Queen's order to not resist, casualties were very light." comes a voice.
Anakin rounds on the one interrupting him.
"Light? You call almost twenty thousand dead, light? I live with those people, many of whom are missing a loved one. People who will never see a child grow up, their friends, lovers and relatives ever again. That's the fiend responsible. He now sits above this world, ready to do it all again. I, for one, will not let that happen." says Anakin.
I remember, that for all that he was an evil authoritarian maniac, Darth Vader was a charismatic evil authoritarian maniac.
"We're all Jedi here. Search your feelings. You can sense what is coming. We can prevent another tragedy. Who is with me?"
There is a moment of quiet as everyone able to do so concentrates, seeking an answer from the Force. Then someone raises their hand, then another and another. Soon the entire room is looking at Anakin. Anakin looks at me.
Jedi Master. That's what I am. Which means I am now in charge.
"Okay. We fight." I say.
"What will you fight with? We have no weapons!" says a man.
"Yes. Are we to fight armies with terraforming equipment?" says another.
I smile.
"In a word, yes. What say we beat some ploughshares into lightsabres." I say.
Someone raises a hand.
"Yes?"
"Wouldn't our plasma arcs be better suited to that?" they ask.
-----
"Dee-Jay?" asks Anakin once everyone is gone.
"Yes, Anakin?"
"What are we going to do? With that battleship in orbit. They have the high ground."
"Don't worry Anakin. I have an idea."
-----
A week passes and while the local Planetary Government debates on whether to accept the Confederacy's offer, we are busy. We shuttle a good number of people to the surrounding towns, mostly by loading them into the transports which routinely make the trips. They go stay with their extended families. To make sure the same number of life traces remain on base we move in the smeeps. It's not going to fool someone who really bothers to check but I have faith in the droid armies. Life signal numbers are staying the same. We also, as the wag pointed out convert plasma arcs into lightsabres. It's more for morale than anything. I have no intention of terraformers charging battledroids with deadly rave sticks. We also repurpose other equipment including a few special projects from my secret weapon.
-----
"Come on, you stupid things!" I yell at the smeeps as they bumble through the halls. "Dinner time! Into the mess hall. Which you can make a mess of."
I, of course, am wrangling the smeeps. While in charge, I am rather low on the needed and useful skills list. I keep them away from the workshops and moving about since even the dimmest droid may wonder why the occupants spend their time congregating in large clumps. It takes a while, but I get the current bunch into what used to be the mess and then close the doors. I then lean against them for a moment. Whose dumb idea was, oh right, mine.
"Master Dee-Jay!" comes a cry. Now what? I see Terris approaching.
"Yes?" I say.
"We lost Insolation Three! That Battleship just flew through it. Shattered against it's deflectors."
"Okay. That's, bad?" I say.
"We needed all four Insolators. It can't work with just three. It's just impossible." says Terris.
Impossible? I'll see about that.
"Anakin!" I call out and go looking for my charge. After a quick Force assisted search I find him, predictably with Amelia.
"Here. Now, if you contract the field like this, carefully, then the charge is contained within the shell." he says.
"Where did you learn this?" asks Amelia.
"On Naboo, from the Gungans. Everyone thinks they're primitives, but their technology is just different. Useful too." says Anakin.
Bonding over making boomas? Not my idea of a date, but still.
"Your adopted world sounds beautiful." says Amelia.
"It is." says Anakin.
The couple lock eyes and would share a moment if I didn't have a small matter.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we have a small problem. How do we do the thing with three mirrors?" I say.
Both young engineers look at me.
"Three?" says Amelia.
"How did this happen?" asks Anakin.
"The Confederacy accidentally destroyed Insolation Three." I say by way of explanation.
"But our plans." begins Anakin.
"Have been ruined by the enemy. Only to be expected, that's why we call them the enemy. Can we still do the thing?" I say.
Anakin thinks for a while.
"I guess so. But it will burn everything out. We won't get another shot." says Anakin after a while.
"We probably wouldn't have got a second shot anyways." I say.
"This won't be easy." says Anakin.
"We are Jedi. If you wanted easy, you picked the wrong destiny. Can I have that?" I say. The last pointing towards the new booma.
"Uh, sure." says Anakin.
"Thank you. As you were." I say and pick up the mostly stable plasma charge before leaving. I notice several smeep shuffling towards Vehicle Bay Two and hurry.
"Oi, you lot! Away from that." I yell.
Could always use plan B. Leave the droids to a smeep infested facility and see how long it takes for their logic circuits to all pop.
-----
Another few days sees us all in surrounding facilities, caves and other not so obvious places. The locals have decided not to join the Confederacy's new vision for the future. Everyone's old pal and patsy, Nute Gunray has declared Jedi interference in local affairs and things have gone downhill from there. It doesn't take too long for the good viceroy to declare sending in the troops to 'oversee' more 'fair' deliberations 'free' of meddling Jedi. That's okay, we have been busy too.
"Satellites in place?"
"Yes."
"Boreholes charged?"
"Yes."
I watch as the Trade Federation drop shuttles descend through the clouds.
"Commence primary ignition. You may fire when ready."
I have so always wanted to say that.
-----
As Anakin pushes the button several things happen. Three boreholes, which we had been blocking for a few hours, now release all that pent up energy. The magnetic shielding, normally used to keep the walls from melting and to efficiently disperse the heat into the atmosphere now is focusing all that power into a beam. Three beams lance straight up, each one directed at a very conveniently placed insolation mirror. Those normally redirect solar energy planetside to power, well everything really. They're amazing reflectors. In this case they reflect the beams briefly before being consumed. Those reflected beams converge at a focal point, said point being where the battleship is. Or, to be precise, was. Through the now cleared clouds there is briefly a new star in the sky.
None of which should have worked. Until you figure in the Chosen One, his extraordinary mechanical genius and better, his ability to twist space, time, fate and chance to his desires. What he desires right now is a battleship free sky.
Gotcha.
Undeterred, several droid carriers and hover tanks advance on the complex. Time for phase two. We observe from a ridge as the droid force hovers into the courtyard. A carrier unloads a company and it approaches the main doors. As the doors are opened the surprised droids are greated by a pack of smeeps. Predictably the smeep attempt to see whether these strange new things are edible or shagable. Equally predictably, the droids open fire.
"Now." I say.
Amelia pushes a detonator switch and there is a flash as several dozen ion charges, normally used for seismic survey go boom. The droids stumble about a bit and fall over.
"Let's go."
Anakin and I lead a team of terraformers armed with the Galactic equivalent of jumper cables to steal the droids and armour. Well, except for the ones that are currently the victims of amorous smeep.
No way am I cleaning that up.