If you can't defeat, you have to win. It was time to think about the future—so that all this bloodshed would not be in vain. Gradually, a plan began to take shape. And then the person I needed appeared in my field of vision.
"Puck?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Listen, I have an idea."
"I'm all ears, General."
"Do we have any backpack-mounted baradium charges in stock?"
I had already familiarized myself with the local assortment of explosives and knew what to look for. Baradium was one of the most effective substances available, apart from nuclear weapons. When detonated, a baradium device created a superheated sphere of energy, often burning everything inside it. The destructive force was based on a synthesis reaction, with most of the released energy manifesting as heat.
The second component of a baradium explosion was a particle field that formed on the outer surface of the explosion sphere and was sustained by the energy of the blast. The benefit of this field was to contain the explosive force within a certain perimeter. Although baradium was extraordinarily powerful explosive, it was also expensive and highly unstable: careless use could result in accidental detonation. These factors determine the restrictions on the use of baradium explosives. In particular, the thermal detonators used by the Republic clone commando contained only a couple of grams of the substance. Their blast radius was roughly three meters.
It wasn't difficult to imagine what a dozen kilograms of this hellish mixture could do…
"Yes, sir. I'll check right now… Yes, we have thirty units. Twenty weighing eight kilograms each, and ten weighing twelve kilograms each."
"Hm. Not enough."
"What, do you need to blow something up?"
I briefly outlined my plan to him.
"You know… we could use proton grenades or bombs. Put them together in blocks and we'll get the power we need. Do you have a map of the mines?"
"Just a general diagram. Look." I handed him the datapad. "At the core is a vertical shaft about ten meters in diameter. The walls are reinforced, and all the utilities run along them. There are two to four elevator lifts. The depth is about three hundred meters. Then there's a branched system of drifts and adits… tunnels in general," I clarified, noticing the clone's confusion.
"It seems we need to blow it up right here."
"Let's figure out how to organize it."
"We need… let's say, forty-five reliable guys—three troopers for the mines in the northern hemisphere, and five—for reliability—in the opposite one. Give them speeder bikes, equip them with explosives… Use baradium charges for nearby targets, and for those whose objectives are farther away, it's more practical to use the more stable proton charges. The optimal solution would be to destroy the surface complex. That will not only collapse the rock but also flood the mines."
"Isn't that too few people for such a job?" I asked doubtfully.
"Just right, General. Not too many, not too few. Although the guys will have to go to their deaths. After all, the charges will have to be delivered to great depth for the destruction to be fatal, and I doubt it will be possible to do so unnoticed. The mine's security and staff will raise the alarm immediately. The only option is to break through on speeders and then dive through the gates of the surface complex straight into the depths of the mine."
"We'll need volunteers."
"I'll select some excellent troopers, General. May I proceed?"
"Go."
Here are another fifty living beings I will send to their certain death.
"Puck!"
"Yes, General?" The clone stopped in the passageway and turned his head toward me.
"When they're ready… let me know. I… want to say a few words to them first."
"Certainly, sir."
***
A large detachment of clones, along with their equipment, slowly advanced through a small valley between two chains of hills covered with frail trees. In the predawn gloom—though the Padawans hadn't seen the sun in the last three weeks, and day differed from night only in slightly better lighting—they methodically made their way through soggy soil and muddy streams.
The clones walked wearily; there were many wounded, and there wasn't enough room for everyone in the medical transports. Some of the lightly wounded trudged alongside the combat-ready troopers, occasionally leaning on their comrades' shoulders. AT-XT walkers scurried around the column, guarding the troops from potential ambushes. For now, however, everything was quiet.
Aubrie Win looked back. One of the AT-AT walkers had gotten stuck in the mud again. The same type of combat vehicle following it tried to go around but became bogged down as well. The column of heavy equipment came to a halt.
"Mak, Windo! Get them moving!" Aubrie shouted. "We can't delay!"
Two figures in Jedi cloaks rushed to the stranded vehicles. At that moment, a message came over the comlink from one of the flank guards.
"Ma'am, Kass Tod and Vaabesh squads are here. They're back."
"Excellent. I'm in the middle of the column—have them come here," Aubrie replied, climbing onto a small boulder that offered a clear view over the marching troops.
Soon, a TH-130 repulsor tank pulled up beside her. The figure of a Zabrak girl jumped nimbly out of the turret hatch. A Gand dismounted from the speeder that had arrived with it. The girl sighed, quietly marveling at the Padawan's willpower. He had a harder time than the others, as the Gands were not from the familiar oxygen-based world but from a planet with an ammonia atmosphere. As a result, he had to constantly wear an airtight helmet-mask and carefully monitor the replacement of his ammonia cylinders.
"Obrí," the Gand bowed his head.
"Win, glad to see you," Kass smiled.
"Did you destroy the enemy's flanking force?"
"It was as easy as pie," Tod waved her off. "Any news?"
"No. We continue to advance toward the Cobalt base. There is still no contact with the other three strongholds, nor with the Knights or Masters. They are probably dead, and the bases are lost. If we don't hurry, we risk losing Cobalt as well."