The Clone Wars: Shadows of Darkness/Chapter 1

Dulgan Rethana looked up at the dark Felucian sky, droplets of water splashing onto his face. He looked ahead of himself again and continued to walk on the wet ground of Felucia, looking around him for any possibly prey that he could eat that night. He prowled silently, careful not to scare any beasts off. He had not expected it to rain today, and was therefore not wearing much - only a sleeveless vest and khaki-colored pants, and boots. In his hands was a spear that was stained with animal blood.

Dulgan thought he heard blaster fire in the distance not too long ago, but now all he heard was howling winds and the sound of rain hitting the ground. While he did want answers as to why he heard blaster fire, he also needed food, because his food supply was scarce. If he found nothing, then he would have to move out, and he had lived on his farm his whole life - moving away from it would be too much for him.

Suddenly, Dulgan saw a white figure lying on its back nearby. He rushed up to it and examined it, noticing that it was a clone trooper, seemingly a commander by the looks of it. He had dark blue paint throughout his armor, on his left shoulderpad was an antenna extending from it, and his lower body consisted of a black and blue skirt, which the clones called kamas, Dulgan knew. His helmet was different from normal clone helmets, and it had a fold-down rangefinder attached. The farmer bent down and took off the helmet, revealing the head of a clone, with shaved black hair and brown eyes - a scar went over his left eye.

The clone appeared to be injured, by the looks of it, although Dulgan did not have the time to help him. He needed to find food if he were to prevail, because his crops were slow at growing. He turned around and began to walk away, but once he was about ten yards away, he stopped and turned around again and looked at the clone. He sighed, saying, "I am going to regret this," in a low-pitched voice, and he returned to the clone commander. He took him and laid him over his shoulder, careful not to make him fall off, and then he started for his farm again. "I really am."

Boomdodger could see the skirmish on Felucia happening all over again. The battle droids came out of the jungles and ambushed the clones and their Jedi General, Viera Cacete. They swiftly shot down many of the 456th Legion's clone troopers, and it was at that moment that they finally were aware of their surroundings and returned fire. By that point, Boomdodger had already been attacked by a commando droid with a vibrosword, near the edge of the jungle, and he was beginning to crawl away as a group of battle droids pointed at him and began chasing after him. The last thing he remembered seeing of the battle was many clones being shot down, Viera calling out to him as he disappeared into the jungle...

The clone commander suddenly bolted upright, panting heavily. He looked around himself, realizing that he was in what appeared to be a hut on Felucia. He shook his head, a headache starting to stir, and tried to get out of the bed, but a pain in his side stopped him, and he gasped, falling back onto the pillow. It was at that moment that he heard a voice coming from outside the hut, saying, "So, the clone has finally awakened."

"Who are you?" Boomdodger immediately responded to the voice. A moment later, a human male that was wearing a short-sleeved green shirt and khaki pants and boots, walked into the hut and crossed his arms. Behind the man, Boomdodger could see what appeared to be tilled ground, with crops growing at it, and he said, "You're a farmer. Are you the one that took me here?"

The man nodded, "Yes, I am the one that saved you from death. Name's Dulgan Rethana."

Not the first time someone saved my life, Boomdodger thought to himself, thinking back to an attack on Carlac a few months back. Then he tried to sit up again, but the pain appeared again, and he proceeded still, this time slowly. Dulgan Rethana raised his hand and said, "Calm down. You were hit good, but I bandaged you up as best I could." It was at that moment that Boomdodger realized that bandages were wrapped just above his waist.

"Thanks, but I need to get back to the Republic. At least I could call for a gunship to pick me up and--" Boomdodger looked around the hut but could not find a communications system, other than the one in his armor, which would not be able to contact the orbital station or the Valiant above, but he could contact Fort Halonn... "Where is your communications system?"

"Don't have one," Rethana said, somewhat casually, raising an eyebrow.

"You what?" Boomdodger exclaimed. "How could someone in this darn galaxy not have a comm system? That just - it doesn't seem right, at all!"

Rethana grinned, "I am an independent man. And that means--"

"I know what it means." Boomdodger sighed. "That's fine, that's fine. I can just use the system in my helmet, and--"

Rethana raised his hand again, "No, that won't work." He lowered it, and continued to speak. "I tried calling for your Republic not too long ago using your helmet, it's broken. The only thing that you could try is sending not a message, but something more like a flare, you know?"

"Right," Boomdodger said. "I can do that now. Help me get out of this bed, will you? I want to get off this rock."

Suddenly, an explosion occurred outside. They both looked out the door, and they saw an AAT followed by several B1 battle droids coming into the clearing Rethana's farm was located in. "Battle droids!" Boomdodger cried out. He forced himself out of bed, the pain suddenly easing, and he ran to his armor. "Go defend your farm, I will be there in a sec."

"What?"

"Go!"

Rethana ran out the door as Boomdodger began to put on his armor, taking up his weapons. As Rethana ran out onto his farm, he took his spear and stopped just in front of the AAT. He watched as battle droids began to step on his crops as they approached him, and he suddenly growled.

"Stepping on one of my crops is like stepping on me, you rust bucket." He leaped at the droids and began attacking them with his spear, just as Boomdodger joined the fight as well, his DC-17 hand blasters making a loud sound. The droids began to fire back at the clone commander, but were quickly interrupted by Rethana's spear attacking them. "I didn't ask for any of this, but if I have to protect what is mine, then so be it!" Rethana called out.