Swarmed III

-2:15 AM, July 5th, 2054-

-Choke Point, Nakh'Tahli Mountain Caves, Kessel, Outer Rim-

Small bursts of light strode through the stale underground air. Everything was dyed blue under that light. While the lanterns provided plenty of light, each blaster bolt pushed back the darkness for a split second. Hundreds of them put together lit up that section of the cave entirely.

The fighting had only been going for just over a dozen minutes, but the recycling of troops and equipment had already begun. The first line would swap with the second line. The second line would swap with the third line. The third line would swap with the fourth line and so on until the cycle started again.

Fortunately, the enemy had yet to use explosive ordinance as of yet. They would be risking a cave in that would not only affect us but them as well.

*BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB*

The roar of an AB (Automatic Blaster) emplacement to my right was music to my ears. The field of enemies that lied before us was mowed down. Their herd continued to thin.

I stepped up on the HASCO wall that I had been behind, exposing myself to the hail of blaster bolts that flooded through the cave.

*PYUNG*

Swinging my lightsaber, a blaster bolt was deflected into the rock floor. The scorch mark was one of many that littered this previously uninhabited cave system.

I shifted my torso to the left, narrowly dodging another blaster bolt. Soon thereafter, I swung my saber once again.

*PYUNG*

This time, the blaster bolt was sent back towards the enemy. Unfortunately, it failed to hit anyone. I'm pretty shit at this, aren't I? Luck must have been the deciding factor on my near escape from that compound on Kashyyyk.

With my right foot up and my left foot down, I dodged and deflected countless blaster bolts as the seconds ticked by. "HOLD YOUR POSITION! DO NOT RETREAT!"

*PYUNG* *PYUNG* *PYUNG*

I still couldn't get any blaster bolts to return to their senders. There was too much going on. My focus was hampered.

Through the force, I felt the emotions of all those around me. So much pain, anger, despair, fear, death, I felt all of it from the people suffering in this conflict. It was cold. So cold. It slowed my impulses. It dulled my instincts. It clouded my mind.

It pulsed like a metronome, beating through my skin and into my soul. This chill began to encroach on my very being.

*CHHH*

I was snapped out of the darkness by a scorching feeling on the outside of my left thigh. Before I could think, I swung my lightsaber with all of my trust in the force.

*PYUNG*

A blaster bolt that was nearing my forehead was deflected harmlessly into the ground. I took a quick glance down and saw that my pants had been singed while a burn mark formed on my leg. I was grazed by a blaster bolt.

I barely felt it. The pain was quite underwhelming and that came as a surprise. Despite the low levels of pain, it was, without a doubt, a close call. I got distracted. This meant death in a place like this.

*Huuuuuu*

I sucked in a deep breath with haste. A new focus entered my eyes as my lungs reached capacity. My vision flashed blue as countless blaster bolts narrowly missed me by a hairs width. It was almost as if they were avoiding me.

The power flowing through me put me at peace. Nothing could cause my mind to falter. I felt invincible. I was at peace. More importantly, I was in tune with the force.

Without even thinking or focusing my blurry and tired eyes, I swung my lightsaber through the air. This was pure instinct. I was truly listening to the force.

*PYUNG*

The blue streak of light reflected like light off of a mirror, racing back to where it came from. It dissipated on the face of the shooter, his body going limp in an instant. He was, without a doubt, dead from his own pull of the trigger.

Am I not a bit too powerful? It's barely been 3 months since I became a Jedi. There's no way it's natural to improve this fast.

*PYUNG* *PYUNG*

I weaved my saber through the air like a snake. Two more blaster bolts were sent back to their source, putting my enemy to rest.

Maybe, just maybe, I'm a natural. More likely, trial by fire was truly the best way to learn. I've been in intense combat ever since I landed on Coruscant. There has been no proper rest. No true reprieve. I could count on my two hands the nights that I've slept uninterrupted.

*PYUNG* *PYUNG*

With one slash, two more bolts were sent back to whence they came. This state of mind was irreplicable. It was invaluable. I was untouchable.

I may not be an expert at this time. However, nothing is impossible with the force as my guide.

-2:27 AM-

*PPYUNGG*

Two blaster bolts struck my saber simultaneously. One of them landed between the eyes of its shooter while the other narrowly missed my target and scorched the wall a few dozen feet behind him.

"Tch."

I clicked my tongue as I missed. It was only the 87th deflection I had missed in the past however many minutes. Considering that I was a prime target due to my lightsaber, I was the recipient of at least a few shots every 5 seconds.

On the bright side, I felt amazing. Never in my life had I felt so energized. The force was flowing through me, electrifying my nerves, and turning my body into a machine.

*CHSH*

With both lightsabers out now, I swung my right saber. It sliced through my enemy like a well-oiled sawblade, bisecting him with little effort. His two halves fell to the ground with no life remaining.

"Hmph."

I grunted as I rolled to my right, dodging a heavy blaster bolt that would have most certainly melted my insides. Conveniently, there was an enemy right in front of where I got back to my feet. I tilted my lightsabers upwards while crossing them before swinging them outwards.

*CHSH*

Her head was launched off of her body. It anticlimactically hit the floor and rolled. She was just another number in the death count that resulted from this bloody battle.

I'd lost track of time at this point. With the constant onslaught, it felt as if hours were slowly ticking by as they turned into days. For how long can they maintain this offensive? All I knew was that time was, in fact, still passing since the enemy was slowly advancing one foot at a time.

Other than the slow advance, I had one other memorable observation. Almost all of the attackers, barring just a few, had the same logo on their chest. The logo was three green trees. A medium one on the left, a short one in the middle, and a tall one on the right.

Sadly, this didn't help at all. It was just a logo. We didn't even know all of the guilds that were out there. How would we be able to identify them via this.

All of a sudden, I narrowed my eyes. It was just an instinct. There was mortal danger approaching. My eyes darted around in attempt to find the source of the danger. Was it a Sith? Multiple Sith? Damn it!

Then, I heard it. "CLEAR BACK BLAST… CLEAR."

Two different voices called out through the torrent of blaster fire. While I didn't recognize the voices, I understood what it meant. I had only heard that line one time in my waking life.

*PSSHHHHHH*

Three sets of flames ignited in the dimly lit cave. It was obvious what they were. Three rockets were headed towards us.

After a quick observation, I found that none of the three would hit me. Unfortunately, them not hitting me was not much better than them hitting me. My allies were behind me. If these three rockets hit, our defense would be crippled.

I loosened a few of my fingers off of each lightsaber and pushed my hands forward. Through the force, I latched onto the rockets and swung my hands outwards.

*BOOOM*

Instantly, two of them slammed into the walls of the cave. Chunks of rock were thrown through the air from every direction in front of me. The shock wave reached me at the same time as the rocks did.

I was knocked off of my feet and flung backwards a couple of yards. The rock floor was hard and sent a wave of pain through my body as I hit into it. Nothing was broken but it still hurt.

With a flinch, I blinked and watched as the third rocket flew over my head. I wasn't able to stop that one. There was nothing more I could do.

*BOOM*

The rocket smashed into a bunker that was about 30 feet back from me. It somehow avoided the HASCO blocks and directly exploded inside of the bunker.

Within fractions of a second, I felt several of my guild members die. Their lives snuffed out like a candle in the wind.

Not only that, but I also felt our morale shift in that instant. From a mix of warmth and cold, a chill overcame the force. This wave of grief shot through me as I was impacted by the force. I couldn't stop the rocket.

The grief was fighting against the ringing in my ear from the explosion. I was so dizzy. Over and over again I tried pushing off of the ground but would only collapse before I could gain any balance.

I kept falling over and hitting the floor until I felt someone grab my arm. "Come on, man. I'll help you up."

My vision was blurry as I tried to get a look at them. As my eyes cleared a bit, I still couldn't recognize them. What mattered was that they were friendly, and I was now on my feet.

"RETREAT TO POINT BRAVO!"

Nausea was overtaking me, so I just closed my eyes. There was a ton of dust in the air anyways so closing my eyes at least helped with that.

*COUGH* *ChhhTU*

I coughed and felt thick phlegm in my throat. I spit it out, causing my head to pound. Was the exhaustion catching up with me? Maybe it was time to get some rest.

-3:42 AM-

*Tep*

One foot after the other, I made my way back towards the front lines. A good night's rest was yet to be upon me.

*Tep*

I rested for over an hour and even squeezed a nap in there. Before I slept, I took painkillers and a medical injection. Post-nap, I took more painkillers and a caffeine pill.

*Tep*

While my body may be battered and worn, my fighting spirit had yet to cease blazing. Too much was at stake. I would defend this position to my last breath.

*Tep*

All of my cuts from the explosion earlier had scabbed over. The pain was minimal with only a slight soreness and some aches as I walked. Luckily, none of my injuries inhibited my combat abilities.

*Tep*

Rest would come later. It couldn't be much longer that the fight would go on. There was no way they'd have the resources to support such an endless offensive.

*Tep*

With these thoughts accompanying my reaffirmed resolve, I walked back towards the front lines. Slowly but surely, one step at a time, I returned to support my comrades.