LOTF: Resurgence/Chapter 3

A week later, Cade found himself preparing for a mission he still barely understood.

Antimatter Squadron's new mission took them to a long-abandoned planet known as Quesh. Generations ago, Quesh had been a major source of adrenals for the Republic, but the near-inhospitable state of the planet had only worsened. Quesh's very atmosphere was capable of killing an unprotected human in mere seconds, and much of the planet was now covered in an ocean of various toxic wastes. The descent of the planet had been all but forgotten by most of the Republic; while there was indeed a lesson to be learned from the collapse of the planet's ecosystems, it was also quite an unnecessary stain on their reputation. There were, in fact, some scientists who theorized that life forms on Quesh could have evolved to live in the toxic ocean, but no substantial evidence had ever been presented. If not for the task at hand, Cade could've easily believed no one had been to the planet in millennia.

Their intel was located in a hidden Separatist base on the planet, though the team had been assured there would not be a horde of droids waiting for them this time. They just needed to get in, find whatever this thing was, and get it to the person their contact had said would meet them there. Meanwhile, Asura had begun working on decrypting the Manaan files, but it seemed that the process would be long and tedious. It figured; six years had passed and the team still understood little about the Brotherhood.

Cade hated that the truth behind his entire life had been hidden so far from his reach, and it felt like even now Dylan was reaching out from regions unknown and dragging it just a little farther way with each step he took towards finding it. Even now, all he really knew was that Dylan had definitely wanted Cade neutralized as a threat, spending years bringing Cade into the Brotherhood, manipulating him at every turn, and trying to eliminate him when all else had failed. What he didn't know was why. Everyone else in Antimatter Squadron had a very specific talent. Ranulph and Asura had been the hackers, Praxon and Hans had been the experienced mercenaries, Kev and Blaze had been the gunslingers, and DX-245 and Siri (deception aside, and Cade still didn't understand just how the plan to get her into the group fit into the rest of the events occurring at the time) had been the crack shots. Where did Cade fit in?

Returning back to the matter at hand, Cade activated his enviro-suit. The yellow suit covered his full body, with a small closable visor for sight. Inside the suit, Cade could also see a heads-up display on the visor that displayed his vital signs and environmental status. "About time," Asura teased him over his suit's comlink, "What took you so long?"

"Nothing," he replied. "ETA?"

"30 seconds. Get out here." Hans told him. Cade walked out of his room into the main area of the ship where the rest of the team was gathered, save for DX-245, who was piloting the ship. As Cade entered, Hans began pacing as he laid out the plan for the team one more time. "All right, let's make this quick. Bioscans were interfered with by the atmosphere, so we don't know for sure that there's nothing waiting for us down there. Be ready for anything." The ship's doors opened to reveal the ramp that lead to the surface of Quesh, a bright yellow bog. The group stepped out into the waste, and the ship took off into the sky. DX would watch from orbit to make sure the team had a heads up on any activity that occurred while they were in the base. Even now, Cade felt like the group was being observed from the shadows, by a figure just out of reach. He wanted to dismiss the feeling as pure paranoia, but past experiences had taught him better.

The team trudged through the toxic muck, blasters at the ready, towards the Separatist base. Looking at it, it seemed more like a warehouse than an actual base, and really just a large cubic building with lights shining off the corners down onto the surface below. The refined metal and lights sharply contrasted the monotony of the rest of the planet that Cade had seen so far, and stood out tall from the flat landscape. "That really it?" Cade asked, more to end the silence than anything.

"Guess so." Hans tersely replied.

They continued quietly once more towards the base. At last, Cade and the others reached the entrance, a large blast door with the Separatist insignia painted on. "Praxon, you do the honors," Hans said. Praxon placed several charges on the door and primed them before stepping away with the rest of the group. "Ready?" Hans asked.

"Ready." Cade replied. The others quickly followed suit.

"Do it."

The doors exploded, leaving a ringing in Cade's ears as the area quickly filled with smoke. Immediately, a thick smoke that obstructed his view of the inside of the building formed. He, along with the rest of the group, raised his blasters at the door as it cleared. It gave way to what for the most part appeared to indeed be an abandoned warehouse, filled with rows of unmarked crates. An alarm had been set off after the breach, but it didn't seem that anything inside was going to act on it. In between all the rows was a path leading directly towards a glowing blue tube surrounded by dark screens. Something was in it, though from this distance he couldn't see what.

"Praxon," Hans asked, "What's in there?" Thanks to his cybernetic eye, he could zoom in to see much farther than an average Rodian.

"A person." Praxon hesitantly informed them. They began making their way down the aisles, taking aim down each one as they passed it in case something was waiting for them. Slowly but surely, they made their way to the being. He was a well-aged Arcona, decorated with many scars over his body. He was unconscious, with his eyes closed as he breathed very slowly. Additionally, he was wearing very tattered robes, definitely resembling those of a Jedi.

Cade hadn't seen a Jedi since Ganner's funeral on Carlac, where he was reunited with his father, Galen, and met Yula Ardinn. He wasn't sure what to make of the woman Ganner had sacrificed himself for; she seemed to be barely holding it together. After the funeral, she lived with Galen and Vara, Cade's mother, for a few months before she set off on a quest of introspection.

Cade saw a screen near the bottom left corner of the tube displaying the Arcona's vital signs. He was definitely alive for the time being, but he was weak. "Who did this to you?" Asura whispered.

Behind the man, the screens all activated, each one displaying a man from the shoulders up. He was wearing red and white robes, and his face was adorned with tattoos that appeared to have been burned onto him, and his emerald green eyes gazed intently into Cade's, even over the screen.

"Atmospheric entry detected. One life form, heading towards your position." DX-245 reported.

"What the-- who are you lot? Do you know what you're dealing with?" the man asked.

"I could ask you the same question." Hans replied.

"Oh, trust me, you don't even want to know."

"Just like I suppose we don't want to know why you've trapped this man here?"

"He's not meant for you. Go home."

"Subject has landed and is approaching." DX-245 informed the group.

"Oh? Cade asked. "And who is he meant for, exactly?"

"Someone much more important than..."

Behind Cade, a lightsaber activated. He turned, as did the others, to see a hooded figure standing there with a yellow lightsaber drawn. She wore dark brown robes, but had gloves concealing her hands from the toxins of the planet. Her masked face was barely visible, but Cade knew immediately who it was. She spoke at the same time as the man on the screen did, and uttered the same word.

"You."

The man disappeared as the screen cut off, leaving Antimatter Squadron alone with the Jedi, who deactivated her lightsaber and clipped it to her belt. She pulled back her hood to reveal that she, like Asura, was a Zabrak. However, her skin was yellow, and she had four horns all on the front of her head, and three long threads of hair that stretched down her head. Her eyes were a dark orange, but this was not due to an affiliation in the Force, it was merely genetics. This was the Jedi Ganner had died for, the last known survivor of the Binding, the only person left who'd known Ganner before the conflict with the Shadow Assassins. This was Yula Ardinn.

"Yula." Hans greeted her.

"Hans," she replied, nodding towards him in acknowledgement. "Cade. It's good to see you." She eyed the others, who she had met at Ganner's funeral. "As it is to see the rest of you."

She then turned and walked towards the man in the tube. "And you, old friend..." She placed her hand on the tube and closed her eyes solemnly. "How did you even get here? I... I can sense he's still alive, but the pain he's in, it's unimaginable."

She looked back up, to Hans. "We need to get him out of here."

"Who is he?" Hans asked.

"This is Ganner's Master. Sen Qorbin."