Aldera

I spent the next hour rounding up the men I needed for this operation. I collected my friends and dad again. It turned out that Galen and my two IRL friends were getting along quite well. They had been questing together in the FOB these past few days and seemed to develop some chemistry.

On the other hand, my dad had attracted quite a bit of attention. When he arrived on Alderaan, he was a Corporal, which meant he had received enough honors for a promotion before even finishing boot camp. However, he had been promoted to Sergeant in the time that we had been here. Getting two promotions in the space of a couple of weeks was not normal in the slightest.

Another surprise was that Jeremiah and Tomas had both received professional certifications. Tomas was a Gunslinger, which meant that he was proficient with various weapons. He was currently using a pair of modified blaster pistols that had extra heat dispersion hardware to allow for rapid firing of the blasters. Jeremiah had become a combat engineer, which was quite fitting since he had just graduated with an engineering degree along with me.

For Galen, well… he was still a dipshit. Nothing more to it. Despite that fact, I couldn't deny his abilities. Given the correct instructions and tools, he could figure out and accomplish nearly anything given to him. With his instincts, I predicted that he would become an ace pilot.

The operation, from my knowledge and evaluation of it, would work best with a squad of ten. This would include Satele and myself. Thus, along with these guys, I picked up one more combat engineer, a sniper, a demolitionist, and a beast handler. This combat engineer was more capable when it came to hacking, while Jeremiah was better with mechanical things. The two of them together would be integral to this mission.

Two hours later, we were geared up and near the edge of the FOB. Satele and I were standing next to each other, examining the soldiers before us. They were lined up and standing at attention. Even the dog was sitting quietly, awaiting orders.

Satele patted me on the back and nodded. "This will do. I do have to ask, why the demolitionist?"

I shrugged. "It's a city. A flashy distraction could come in handy."

Satele nodded in understanding. "I see, very clever. That reminds me of a quote from a former Jedi Grandmaster. He once said that many paths will lead to the same destination. However, every living being will eventually come across a time where there is no path towards their goal. It is at this time that creativity is the only way."

I nodded, wearing a thoughtful expression. "That is a very wise statement."

Satele chuckled, turning towards the dense forest beyond the walls. "Indeed. It would seem that there is more wisdom within you than meets the eye. Let us depart."

I looked back towards the troopers and waved forwards. "Let's move."

-GE-

There were no walls surrounding Aldera. It was as if someone was playing a game of darts within the forest and just placed towering buildings wherever their dart landed. This comparison, however, is not to take away from its beauty.

I felt like beauty wasn't enough to describe this city in its prime. Each building was a clean and pure white, with no sharp edges. Their smooth designs with rounded edges rose above the surrounding trees, forming a breathtaking skyline.

Surrounding each building, as stated, were dense forests. The streets of Aldera ran through the trees and connected the city throughout. Aside from literally using wood as the building material and the trees themselves as the foundations like Ewoks, I doubted there was a better possible way to perfectly meld architecture with the natural environment.

Unfortunately, this city was nowhere near its prime. Plumes of smoke birthed from raging fires reached to the skies as the once pristine, white buildings were coated with ash. Their faces became dull and gray under the ashen cover.

An imperial cruiser sat in the air mere miles above the ground, its turbolaser cannons looming over the city like a guillotine, ready to strike down at any moment with lethal force.

Before us was a lake that bordered the city. Dotting the lake were floating chunks of debris, some of them in flames. This must have been what was left of Aldera's air defenses. Fortunately, for these ones at least, the pilots were able to avoid crashing into the city. I doubted that all of the pilots were as lucky.

We all stood there for about a minute, taking in the horrendous view. This destruction of what could be considered art was a travesty.

Satele broke the silence. "Commander, give your orders. Be careful, but keep in mind that the entire Corps is awaiting the completion of our mission before moving in. Let's not keep Captain Malcom waiting."

I nodded, glancing up towards the sky and then at my wrist computer. "The sun should start to set within the next 30 minutes. Since it will be setting behind us, it will be quite easy for us to avoid detection. Once the sun is fully to our back, we will move along the treeline next to the lake and take those two buildings."

I pointed at a large compound that was surrounded with dense foliage. There were two shorter buildings with about 4 to 6 floors each. "Once we secure the AO (Area of Operations), we'll start running intelligence missions. Rest up and get ready to move. I guarantee you that this will not be a smooth Op."

The eight troopers nodded and saluted. "Yes, sir."

I nodded, hiding a smile of satisfaction. "At ease. Form up at T minus 25."

-GE-

A short while later, my nerves were running as high as ever. I felt slightly jumpy and got spooked by the smallest noise. Unfortunately, it was time to move. I had to address the squad and lead them in.

As I was about to speak to them, Satele grabbed my shoulder gently. "Soryn, you must clear your head. Only with a calm mind will you be capable of choosing the best path forward."

I glanced at her and nodded, taking a deep breath. I repeated this a few times, feeling my heart slow as my nerves hardened into a cold steel. With my heart beating slow and my adrenaline running high, I felt more calculative and capable than I had ever thought possible. This made my confidence skyrocket. However, I quickly reeled my ego in. No one is invincible, not even a god.

Facing my men, I stood tall, exuding an aura of stability and determination. "The time is now, gentlemen…" I glanced at Satele and the demolitionist. "And ladies. I'm saying this for you guys just as much as I'm saying it for myself. This operation is key to the liberation of Alderaan. The people need their rulers and it's our job to free them. You all know the plan and the formation. Spread out evenly and protect our sniper. Let's move."

With that, all ten of us formed up. Our formation was built in a 2-3-3-2 arrangement. The front row consisted of Satele and myself. Next up was the first row of three. From left to right was Tomas, Santos the beast handler, and then Galen. The next row of three, from left to right, was Viktor, my father, then Khedira the sniper, and Leia the demolitionist. The last row of two consisted of Jeremiah and Tomer, our two combat engineers.

We started moving stealthily towards the outskirts of the city. Like I said, we followed the treeline next to the lake. We would have decent cover until we reached the city limits as there was a small suburban area between the edge of the treeline and the compound we were moving towards. The hardest part of our hike would be getting through this residential cluster.

These types of areas are filled with open spaces and a surplus of wide LOS (Line of Sight). It was almost guaranteed that there would be at least two patrols in this area that covered at least two square miles. With the amount of housing structures there, hiding places were plentiful.