Dispatched from a star destroyer, a caspule fell through Hoth's atmosphere and plunged into the snow. White shot into the air from the impact and the heat that had built up around the capsule from its fall melted the surrounding cushion. As water trickled out of the crater, a black head rose from its grasps and mechanical arms fell from its bottom. A singular red light beamed on its front, showing its functionality, and the probe droid flew away from its capsule to scout the planet.
It was one of many probe droids that were dispatched from the Empire. Because of Hoth's difficult conditions, the search of the planet would first be swept by robots that weren't effected by the cold. With many at their disposal, the Empire would simply send more from its destroyer when one's circuits froze. Their infinite supply of droids would ensure that no Outer-Rim planet went by unsearched, and with Hoth being nearly unhabited, they assumed that they wouldn't be lingering too long on the wasteland.
The probe droid reached a series of mountains and ice walls. It appeared unassuming, but the droid continued its scan of the area, which was sent back to the mothership above. As it went to the left and peered into another pile of snow, the droid caught sight of metal material.
Four large disks protruded from the snow with their greater halves buried. The probe droid flew closer to the structures and made sure to show its finding in its camera lense. Whatever the structure was among the natural, supposedly uninhabited land, it was sent back to the star destroyer.
'Sir, we appear to have something,' a general arrived in the control room. With a grey cap to match the Imperial grey uniform, the tall woman approached the figure who stood with his gloved hands together.
Turning from a workman, Darth Vader faced the woman who appeared confident in her stance. But deep down, the general was nervous to be standing in front of the nearly seven-foot tall Sith apprentice. To reduce the amount of time she suffered underneath his eyeless stare, the woman pulled up the tablet that was clasped in her hand.
'A man-made structure near the equator,' she said, the transmission from one of the probe droids on the screen. Darth Vader took the tablet from her hands, relieving her of her service of standing too close. The Sith peered at the four disks in the snow and was immediately alerted to its unnatural shape and man-made material.
'Generators,' his voice rumbled through the mask, and he raised his head to the general. 'Powering the rebellion's base underneath. Prepare the AT-ATs, we attack at dusk.'
'Excellent, sir.'
The general rushed away with the tablet back in her hold. Vader was left on his lonesome, which most believed was spent in his thoughts that had become more prevalent in recent weeks, but the Sith was immersing himself in the Force. When he didn't see the white flame that he had searched for since its recent appearance, he resorted to the other channel of communication that he shared with only one other.
'We'll be together soon, Solaris. You don't know it yet, but the dark side is awaiting your potential. We will rule, and we won't need to hide anymore.'
---
Once Sol was made aware of Vader's attempts to contact her through the Force, she noticed the light itch at the back of her head. She didn't hear the words or voice of the man she almost longed to hear. Instead, she felt as if someone was lingering behind her. It was like someone was trying to get her attention without being able to speak or touch her. Sol knew when Satele was working to keep Vader at bay, because a shiver would run down her spine, and she felt the need to scratch at her scalp.
'You okay?' Ahsoka asked when Sol was seen with a grimace on her face. The Jedi and Padme were gathered in a room to discuss the rebellion's placements across the galaxy. While Revan was showing a hologram of the moons of Mandalore, Sol couldn't resist using her nail to scratch at her roots.
'Yeah, I'm fine,' Sol shrugged off the Togruta and yanked her hand away from the back of her head.
Ahsoka could see that Sol was indeed fine but still bothered by something. She eyed her friend who tried to appear as if she was listening to Revan's recollection of his travels in relation to the Resistance. Ahsoka watched as Sol's eyes would squint, and her cheeks would rise into a reoccurring grimace. Sol's arms sat crossed but her hands clenched at her elbows to prevent them from scratching at her itch.
'We need reports on the other Outer-Rim planets,' Padme said. She pressed a button on the projector and the map of Mandalore's moons widened to include the entire Outer-Rim.
'But we don't have enough men on the Outer-Rim,' Ahsoka spoke up as she turned from Sol's irritated fidgeting.
'But it seems to be where the Empire are sending their troops,' Revan followed. 'There were storm troopers everywhere. They're searching and they're leaving nothing untouched-'
A rumble rocked the planning room. The hologram that showed the Outer-Rim shivered in its projection and continued to buzz with instability. Crushed ice fell in small bursts from the ceiling and the dust landed on the shoulder of Padme's puffer vest. She went to brush it off, but paused when another rumble was felt underneath her boots. The captain looked around at the Jedi, who appeared to look to each other in unease and confusion, before they all rushed to head for the door.
The itch at the back of Sol's head ceased from the new happenings that didn't settle well in her stomach. The Force was on edge, and it was evident that Ahsoka and Revan felt the same waves from their Jedi instincts. When Sol had been stationed with the 336th legion at Hoth by the Order, they had encountered no Separatist activity. They were ultimately bored and disconnected from the core, and the stability of the ice base was never tested for battle. But when ice began to crumble from the hallway walls and the ground underneath Sol's feet vibrated, she feared that it was about to be investigated.
'What's going on, Commander?' Padme stopped a man who went to rush past. As Ahsoka took hold of Sol's arm to yank her out of the way of a falling ice chunk, Revan joined the two behind Padme and leaned forward to hear the status report.
'We're under attack, ma'am! The Empire have found us!'
Padme's face fell and she looked over her shoulder at the three Jedi. Ahsoka, Sol and Revan stuck close to the wall that was crumbling behind them and were wide-eyed. The base had remained hidden for years, yet just as Ahsoka returned with Sol onboard and with Revan's arrival with Serrina, the Empire had discovered their location. How could this be?
'Is it bombs? Are there troops breaching the hanger?'
'No, ma'am. They have AT-ATs!'
'Oh, kriff.'
Sol took it upon herself to pass Padme and the Resistance commander. She turned the corner and saw that people were rushing around everywhere with calls of an attack and for pilots to head to the hanger. Without waiting to hear if Revan or Ahsoka followed her, Sol collided with shoulders and shoved past people who were too occupied with their panic to say anything to her. To them, Sol was just someone who had arrived with Ahsoka and somehow knew Revan, the Jedi who had been missing from the Resistance for years.
She couldn't bring herself to think of how the Empire had found the base. It was possible that Ahsoka's T6 was followed, but maintenance men had checked the ship for any tracking devices. They found nothing and Revan was too careful to let him and Serrina be followed from Concordia. It appeared that the Empire's sieges of the Outer-Rim planets had reached Hoth, and their base was under threat.
'Sol! Miss Sol!'
'What is it, Threepio?!'
The protocol droid had been doing his best to avoid the bodies that rushed past him and caught sight of the Jedi in the hustle. With his stiff legs and hissing joints, C3-PO attempted to follow Sol through the halls while calling her name.
'I was inquiring where Captain Padme Amidala is, and I observed that Miss Serrina had made it to her-'
'That's great, Threepio!'
'-and that Miss Tano is looking for you with Mr Revan Shan.'
'Well, tell them I'm heading for the hanger!'
C3-PO calls for clarity faded as he was unable to keep up with her pace. Sol worked to unzip her coat that had been leant to her by Padme and she held it in her clenched fist. Clad in her Jedi robes, the chill hit Sol's bare arms. But in the heat of running and at the fear of the attack, Sol found that she barely felt the cold. Her fingerless gloves covered her hands, and she knew it wouldn't be long until she needed to reach for her lightsaber that was attached to her utility belt. It would be silly to continue hiding her Jedi status in the face of danger, and if the Resistance found out about her by her cyan blade, then it couldn't be helped.
Sol arrived in the hanger while stumbling from a particularly powerful rumble. The hanger was buzzing with pilots rushing to their starfighters and x-wings. Dust made of ice fell from the ceiling and R2-D2 was seen trying to avoid the chunks that fell into his path. The droid caught sight of Sol from the other side of hanger, and worked to meet her in pursuit to the rumble's origins.
'Sol! We're under attack-'
'Yes, I know, Artoo!'
The droid rolled after the woman who slinked her way through the ships that were powering to take off. Engines were hot as she ran past, and she was thankful for the snow boots that she wore to stop her from sliding on the ice. Sol approached the mouth of the hanger and stood to the side to survey the cause of the base's attack.
Ships shot out into battle and Sol's hair flew into her face at the speed at which they passed. She watched them rise into the air before leveling with their aim in front. X-wings and starfighters left the base and headed towards the red blasts that were colliding with the ice that shielded the Resistance inside. Sol struggled to see at first, but with a call to the Force, she was able to make out that the horizon was occupied with grey walkers; AT-ATs.
Slow moving and the height of small mountains, AT-ATs had four legs and a body with its head as the cockpit. Blasters shot from either side of the vessel's head and its hull was able to carry up to two-hundred men. Once an AT-AT was dispatched into battle, they would carry troops into the battlefield before releasing them to attack the already wounded opponent.
From what Sol could make out from the hanger, there were four AT-ATs on the horizon. She didn't know when the Empire started using the dangerous carriers, but to send a handful of AT-ATs to the suspected Resistance base was strange. Surely, they would send whatever they had at their disposal to take down the only group in the galaxy that threatened the Empire's rule.
'Look! They've already taken one down!' R2 beeped from beside Sol.
It was true. An x-wing had taken down one of the AT-ATs with sheer blasterfire. It was an accomplishment and the base had one less round of blasts attacking their walls. But something didn't sit right with Sol. The Empire were lethal, and if Darth Vader suspected that Sol was hiding with the Resistance, then why wasn't he putting all of his power into breaking into the base?
---
'Don't worry, Captain, I'll stay with you.' Serrina said as she headed to the control room with Padme.
'Thank you, Serrina.'
Padme looked with gratitude at the yellow helmet that looked back at her. The Mandalorian had prepared for battle as soon as she felt the rumble in the base and found Revan with the Resistance's captain. As Ahsoka and Revan grabbed their lightsabers, the Jedi left while fleetingly instructing Serrina to stay with Padme. She knew that they had an important role in the Resistance and didn't want to keep them from helping those who needed it most. Besides, Serrina was trained to be in combat and was skillful with a blaster. If it came down to it, she would do her part and make sure that Padme remained unharmed.
'We've already taken one down, ma'am,' a Quarren said in front of a screen. Padme looked over his shoulder to see that one of the AT-ATs had fallen into the snow, and the ships were now working on the last three.
'Have any ships entered the atmosphere?' Padme asked.
'No, ma'am.'
'We should contact Mothma about this. I'll send a transmission.'
Padme and Serrina turned to head out of the control room. As the captain rushed back through the halls, the Mandalorian followed the woman with her blaster at the ready. The halls had paused in their rumbles, and they hoped that it was from the fall of another AT-AT. If the Resistance continued in their fight and suceeded, they could begin their work on analysing the base's damage and articulating a counterattack on one of the Empire's star destroyers.
Much to their ignorance, Padme and Serrina were heading towards the back rooms of the base, where an entrance had been formed. Where rocks once sat in a pile, a cave entrance was now accessible. With only a small percentage of his power, the Sith apprentice lifted the rocks out of the cave entrance and made a clear path that led into the Resistance's base. And while everyone was distracted by the AT-AT attack on the hanger, Darth Vader and a squadron of storm troopers made their way into the base unnoticed.
Padme turned down the corridor that led to her transmitter, and went to walk its length when she was forced to pause. At the captain's sudden stop, Serrina looked over her shoulder and froze in a similar state.
Stood in the hallway, was the caped Sith. He too had paused at the arrival of the senator and Mandalorian and his squadron of storm troopers waited for their first command behind him. Padme hadn't seen Darth Vader since his appearance in her office on Naboo, but his intimidating aura hadn't ceased to frighten her. He occupied the entire hallway with his broad shoulders and set apart feet, and if one were to try to slip past him, they would be met with nothing but an unmoving rigid stance.
'Senator Amidala,' Darth Vader said, mist appearing from the vent on his mask. 'We meet again.'
Before Padme could answer, Serrina pushed past her captain and rose her blaster to the Sith and his armoured troopers. Her helmet covered her expression, but it held one of concentration and bravery. She knew of Darth Vader and his Empire and knew that he was a threat to the cause of the Resistance. But she didn't know the extent of his power, and that would be her downfall.
'Serrina, don't-'
Padme's words were useless when her blast left the cannister. But before it could even touch Darth Vader, the man raised one gloved hand and sent the blast into the icy wall beside him. The steam from the blast wafted beside Vader and Serrina was left gawking at his impossible ability. He had deflected her attack with nothing but his hand, and he wasn't harmed even in the slightest.
'I am looking for Sol,' Darth Vader said, his words slow so that the people he considered halfwits could understand him. 'I know that she is here.'
In response, Serrina let her blaster do the talking. She shot in all areas of the hallway in an attempt to at least land one blast on Darth Vader, but each one was deflected with rotations of his hands. It wasn't long until he began to take steps towards the yellow Mandalorian and his storm troopers followed close behind.
'Run, Serrina!' Padme called as she turned to head back the way they came. She knew what Vader was capable of and one Mandalorian with one blaster was no match for the sinister Sith apprentice.
Serrina was able to take a few steps back before she was lifted into the air. Her blaster fell from her hands and clattered against the ice-covered floor. She let out a cry at the pressure she felt around her neck, but it wasn't tight enough to block her airways. Serrina flailed her arms around to try and hit the entity that was holding her off the floor, but she was met with nothing. All she could see was Darth Vader's hand raised in her direction and his gloved fingers spread-wide.
'I can see in your mind,' Darth Vader said, his neck craned to look up at the irrelevant bounty hunter. 'You are no use to me. You know nothing about the Jedi I need.'
A pressure formed around Serrina's head, and it was quick to become unbearable. As Darth Vader's fingers slowly closed into a fist, the yellow helmet began to shrink. The sides of the beskar metal dented at Vader's will and the Force bent for his power. Screams sounded from beneath the helmet; distorted by the technical transmission of her voice. Serrina had no idea how, but her head was being crushed and her blood-curdling screams bounced off the walls. Her hands rose to try and stop the shrinking helmet, but it was no use when her skull started to split.
Vader's hand closed into a fist and the beskar gave in to the powerful pressure. The screams were cut short, and Serrina's arms went limp by her sides. The Force was released when Vader lowered his hand and the armoured body fell to the floor. A sickening thud was heard, and the group didn't waste time in stepping over the Mandalorian and heading after the Resistance's captain.
The storm trooper squadron were ordered to go ahead past Vader to eliminate any threat that came their way. With their blasters rasied, the men left their leader to follow behind him; his signature pulsating with power and his goal set on the Jedi within the base.
Blood seeped down Serrina's neck and pooled underneath her helmet. The beskar was ruined and the skull inside encased Serrina's brain in a broken prison. With her eyes unseeing, the Force accepted her spirit into its realm.
---
Revan paused in his pursuit towards the hanger. The Force burned with something awful and the lightsabers in his hands almost slipped from his grasp. He stood staring into nothing and tried to focus on the signature that had been on his mind since leaving Serrina with Padme. It was nothing more than a candle-flame, and it was filled with a lasting pain.
'Revan? What is it?!' Ahsoka had noticed her friends halt and walked back to be in front of him. But at the paling of his face and the tight grip around his sabers, Ahsoka knew that the feeling she also sensed in the Force meant the worst.
Revan said nothing and turned away from the Togruta. He walked at first, the corridors empty and echoing with the collisions of his boots on the icey floor. As Ahsoka went to follow him, Revan broke out into a sprint with murder on his mind.