Officially, we're part of the 44th.
"And un-officially?
"The one's who make Dooku cry himself to sleep.
—Phoenix and a Clone cadet on Kamino.
Nightingale Squad, also known by their fellow clones as the Nightingales was an elite squad consisting of four Clone troopers and a Jedi General, who were assigned with two major tasks: assisting the Jedi in any roles the Jedi Order needed filled and conducting special, covert operations behind enemy lines during the Clone Wars. Thought to be the best soldiers in the Republic military, the Squad was adored by the Republic and feared by the CIS.
Members[]
Nightingale Squad consisted of five members:
- Jedi Master Jeden Vesal, leader of the group and a General during the Clone Wars. It was from Jeden's personal attack cruiser the Phantom that the Squad operated from, and it was under his leadership that the group won many battles and conducted multiple missions.
- Commander Phoenix (CC-1450), the commanding Clone of the group and the best friend of Jeden. The best sniper in the Republic military, Phoenix was known for his sense of humour and optimism, though he was also an excellent soldier and leader.
- Wraith (CC-1451), a commander and a stealth expert. Wraith owned a stealth field generator, allowing him the ability to cloak himself at any time. Wraith saved the lives of the squad countless times with this ability, though this grew a cockyness and arrogance that hasn't gone away.
- Twenty (CC-1452), a commander and Wraith's best friend. Twenty was named after he took down twenty fellow Clones from a rival division in a Kamino mess hall with his bare hands. Both incredibly strong and quite nervous, Twenty was a gentle giant, not liking violence despite his great strength. He was also the supply carrier of the group, and while Jeden was the best healer, Twenty also carried medkits and knew basic first-aid.
- Sting (CC-1453), also a commander and a master of melee combat. Sting wielded two vibroblades, which were hidden in sockets on his wrists. Sting was very seclusive, and was very protective of his privacy, though he proved to be a vital team member, being an expert with acrobatics and two very dangerous vibroblades.
- Koses Lik-Har, a former member of the Grand Sith Order and Jeden's padawan. An incredibly powerful Force-user, Koses was also a talented pilot, even more so than Wraith, and shared a pacifistic attitude similar to Twenty's.
While this was the main squad, the group was also assisted by others, such as Master Liko Eil, a Zabrak Jedi archivist who often gave them intel involving Jedi artifacts, and Officer Fen, a Clone officer who was often the one to guide the mission through covert missions via radio.
Geonosis[]
First seeing action on Geonosis, Phoenix began as the only commander, the other three Clones being lieutenants. Meeting Jedi Knight Jeden Vesal amidst the battle, the squad and the Jedi hitched a ride on a scout LAAT/i gunship. Arriving near the staging area of multiple Techno Union ships, the squad turned the automated turrets of the Geonosians against the defenders, destroying the ships and hundreds of droid reinforcements, all while defending their position against innumerable odds.
Returning to Coruscant on the Venator-class cruiser that would later become the Phantom, Jeden and his new squad of Clones were personally rewarded for their efforts against the Techno Union by the Supreme Chancellor and the Jedi Council. Jeden rose to the rank of Jedi Master, while the three Clone lieutenants gained the ranks of Commanders, making them the highest-ranking squad in service for the Republic military. Above all of this, Twenty received the Medal of Valor from the Supreme Chancellor due to his work earlier in the battle, when he diverted the fire of over fifty droids to get a medical convoy away from the battle.
Clone Wars[]
The squad's first mission came early into the war. Liko Eil, a Jedi Consular and close friend of Jeden, was abducted by CIS forces on Mygeeto while the Jedi was researching the planet's climate for the Jedi archives. A Jedi Council meeting was held, which included non-Jedi members, Clone troopers (including Nightingale Squad) and even the Supreme Chancellor on holocom. After a six-hour long session on he next course of action, Jeden and his squad were chosen to rescue Liko from the mysterious figure who had contacted the Republic with a ransom demand.
Using the Phantom and it's stealth capabilities to get into enemy territory, the squad were dropped onto the roof of the CIS stronghold by a gunship. Making their way inside, they used stealth to disable numerous droids, before they discovered Liko in a small cell, bruised and cut. Before they made their escape, the squad found the mysterious threat: General Grievous.
While the Clones escorted Liko back to the roof to wait for extraction, Jeden dueled Grievous, who wielded lightsabers given to him by Count Dooku (though these would later be replaced by lightsaber Grievous stole from dead Jedi). Eventually slicing one of the cyborg's mechanical arms straight off with his duel sabers, Jeden fled, eventually reaching the gunship and escaping Mygeeto with Liko.
The Grand Sith Order[]
[]
By 20 BBY, Nightingale Squad was in the space surrounding the Core Worlds. Noticing a smugglers frigate, the Squad boarded it and found millons of credits worth of stolen goods. However, one of the smugglers, a Twilek thief named Nara Sa-el, stole an ancient Sith crystal and set the frigate to blow. The Squad escaped, but now the Jedi Council wanted to find the crystal, so the Squad and the Phantom pursued.
Eventually coming to Ord Mantell, the Squad learnt from Jeden what Nara was carrying and why it was so important, as the crystal was full of dark side energy which, if released, could cause an explosion the size of a moon. With this knowledge, Nightingale Squad went with around fourty Clones to Ord Mantell, making their ground HQ as Fort Garnik, an abandoned Republic fort once used in the era of Darth Revan. Nara was hiding in a nearby volcano, which had once been a Sith base, so the Squad travelled to the volcano during the night, learning that Nara had taken children from a nearby farming village as hostages.
Working their way inside, the group discovered that the three children were under Nara's control, and were not only Force-sensitive, but seemed to be adept in the dark side of the Force. Jeden lost contact with the rest of the group, and later duelled Nara, who revealed herself to be a self-titled Sith Lord called Darth Nelox. Just as Nelox was about to choke Jeden to death, Phoenix killed the Twi'lek, and the squad brought the crystal to the Fort, before it was taken to the Jedi Temple by Master Unduli. Master Mundi took the children to Coruscant also, while the Nightingales returned to the Phantom, where they were greeted by Masters Kit Fisto and Obi-wan Kenobi, who would be helping them investigate the new Sith threat.
Conversing on the bridge, it was decided that Korriban was a likely home for the rogue Sith order Nelox had herself founded. Coming out of hyperspace over Yavin 4, the Nightingales and their new Jedi friends took a Consular-class cruiser to Korriban themselves, eventually arriving in the planet's orbit.
TBC
Final mission[]
When the Battle of Coruscant began, the Jedi Temple was attacked, and though few Jedi perished, one Jedi Master was kidnapped: San-Ha-Vin, Jeden's former master. Using the Saviour to board the cruiser of Colonel Judra, the Separatist who kidnapped Master Vin, the squad eventually got to the bridge, saving Vin and arresting Judra with the help of the 501st Legion.
Returning to the hangar, Jeden and Vin were greeted by both an old face and a new one: Darth Krasor (now wearing a cyborg leg) and his apprentice, Xolem Jiskar. Jeden and Vin engaged the Sith, dueling for some time until Krasor was knocked down and badly injured. Xolem, in pure rage, unleashed a flurry of attacks on the Jedi, and it looked as though they were losing until Koses arrived in the hangar in Jeden's starfighter, ready to fight.
The two apprentices started a lengthy duel, which carried on for some time. Gaining the upper hand, Koses lunged at Xolem, impaling the Sith with his blade and killing him. Koses, realizing what he had done, broke into tears, sorrowful at the fact that he had taken a life. As Jeden comforted him, Twenty and Wraith stayed on the Saviour, discussing Koses' reaction to death and discussing what would happen to the Clones once the war was over, now that they had heard that Dooku was dead and Grievous was on the run.
Order 66[]
After the Battle of Coruscant, Jeden's fleet was assigned to scout the Tingel Arm for possible CIS strongholds and holdouts. While in deep space, Order 66 was given to Commander Phoenix. Before the Clones attacked him, Jeden disarmed them, before reminding them that they were not droids to be ordered around at every turn just because of 'some damn code'. It was then that something rare happened: the fleet, including Nightingale Squad and Admiral Anhal, disobeyed Order 66 and fled deeper into space, becoming defectors from the Empire.
First using the Phantom's stealth to return to Coruscant and assess the situation, Jeden and Koses were able to retrieve the body of San-Ha-Vin, who had passed of old age in an old smuggler's warehouse. Taking him to Mygeeto, the squad buried his body there before fleeing towards the Tingel Arm, beginning a six-year guerrilla campaign against Imperial starhips in the region.
Rebel Alliance[]
After finding Jeden's former love interest, Gini Reyall, on Ravin 4 as a Dark Jedi, the squad healed her back to the light side and she joined the crew of the Phantom, although she didn't join the squad, instead working on the Phantom. Eventually, Jeden was contacted by Bail Organa and was told of the plans to form an Alliance against the Empire. Jeden accepted the offer, and Nightingale Squad became members of the Rebel Alliance.
For many years, the fleet and the squad worked wonders for the Alliance, using their stealth to ruin Imperial convoys and launch devastating ground assaults. However, after the Battle of Hoth, things got bad. Jeden, recklessly launching the fleet into a random hyperspace jump, made the fleet arrive above Tatooine, where an enormous Imp fleet was stationed. Outnumbered and outmatched, the squad and Gini got to the Saviour, but Anhal and the rest of the remaining Clones stayed with their ships, wishing to go down with them. Anhal and the Clones were killed, making Nightingale Squad the last true Republic Clone troopers left alive in the galaxy.
New Republic[]
After the Empire was defeated and the Republic was reformed, the squad finally went their seperate ways. Jeden and Gini went back to work as teachers at the Jedi Temple, Koses began working as a combat-ready Jedi Master, R9 began work in the Senate Tower and it seemed the squad was done, except for the Clones, who became Generals in the Republic military. However, things went wrong for the Clones.
After surviving for years and still staying young, the advanced age cycles of the Clones finally caught up with them and they started ageing rapidly, their health deteriating. Eventually, all four Clones passed from old age. Jeden led their funeral and an enormous amount of mourners came, before Koses flew the Saviour with Jeden to Kamino, burying the Clone's bodies at sea. A few years later, Jeden passed away, and was also buried at sea on Kamino, the original squad finally reunited.
Images[]
Phoenix
Jeden Vesal
Koses Lik-Har
Sting
Twenty
Wraith