Chapter 23: The Phantom Supplier
POV: Kael Vorn
The liberation of Lessu continued block by bloody block, each street corner won at the cost of lives that could never be replaced. Supplies ran dangerously low—medical equipment scarce, ammunition dwindling, rations stretched to the breaking point. The clone troopers made do with characteristic stoicism, but Kael could see the strain in their movements, the way they conserved every blaster shot and hoarded their remaining medical supplies.
Cham Syndulla's resistance fighters proved invaluable, their knowledge of every alley and hidden passage giving Republic forces crucial advantages against the mechanical precision of droid tactics. During a planning session in what had once been a school, Cham mentioned something that made Kael's Force Sense tingle with inexplicable familiarity.
"There's an abandoned warehouse in the industrial district," the Twi'lek resistance leader said, pointing to a holographic map. "Used to store supplies for the mining operations. If the Separatists left anything behind, it might be worth raiding."
"Why does that feel important? There's something..."
"I'll check it out," Kael volunteered, the words emerging before he'd fully processed the impulse.
Rex looked up from cleaning his blaster rifle. "I'll assign a small team. You, Commander Tano, the..." He paused, clearly struggling with how to refer to Ventress. "The asset. Plus three troopers for security."
[FORCE INTUITION: STRONG RESONANCE DETECTED]
[LOCATION SIGNIFICANCE: UNKNOWN]
[RECOMMENDATION: INVESTIGATE]
The warehouse squatted in Lessu's industrial district like a metal tumor, its exterior showing battle damage from the ongoing campaign. Blast marks scarred the walls, and debris littered the approach, suggesting the building had been abandoned for months.
Inside, darkness and dust reigned supreme. Emergency lighting cast red shadows through corridors lined with empty shelves and decaying shipping crates. But something pulled Kael deeper, past the obvious storage areas toward the building's rear.
His Force Sense guided him to a section where collapsed debris concealed what looked like a maintenance door. Rex's men cleared the rubble with military efficiency, revealing a passage that led to a hidden room beyond.
When they activated their lights, the space revealed itself as pristine—completely untouched by the war's devastation. Republic medical supplies lined the walls in perfect order. Weapons racks held blaster rifles still wrapped in factory packaging. Armor sets were arranged by size and function. Rations were stacked with military precision.
And on every single crate, painted in silver that seemed to catch light from impossible angles, was a gray handprint symbol.
"What is this?" Ahsoka breathed, her voice echoing in the sterile space.
Ventress examined the supplies with critical eyes, her experience as a Separatist operative lending authority to her assessment. "Fresh. Weeks old at most. Someone knew you'd be here."
Rex's paranoia kicked into overdrive. "Could be a trap. Trackers, explosives, surveillance equipment."
But when Kael touched one of the crates, his Force Echo ability activated involuntarily. Instead of the trauma and violence he'd grown accustomed to, he felt something entirely different—benevolence, purpose, hope. Someone had wanted him to find this cache, had prepared it specifically for his mission.
"Not a trap. A gift. But from who?"
[FORCE ECHO: POSITIVE EMOTIONAL RESONANCE]
[THREAT ASSESSMENT: MINIMAL]
[BENEFACTOR PRESENCE: CONFIRMED]
Buried among the supplies, Kael found a datapad that seemed deliberately placed for discovery. When he activated it, the device interfaced with his Codex in ways that should have been impossible—as if the encryption had been designed specifically for his unique neural patterns.
The message was brief but loaded with implications:
"You walk a difficult path, Gray Seeker. These supplies will aid your mission. Trust is earned through action. You are not alone in seeking balance. More will be revealed when you're ready. —A Friend in the Shadows."
No signature, no identifying information, no clues about the sender's identity or motivation. Kael's attempts to trace the encryption failed utterly—the technology was beyond anything in Republic or Separatist databases.
Ventress read the message over his shoulder, her yellow eyes narrowing with suspicion. "Someone's invested in keeping you alive. Question is: why?"
Ahsoka's concern was more immediate. "Could be someone trying to manipulate you. We should report this to the Council."
But something in Kael's gut told him this mysterious benefactor was genuinely allied to his goals. The emotional resonance he'd felt through Force Echo carried none of the darkness that accompanied Sith manipulation or the rigid certainty of Jedi dogma.
[PHANTOM SUPPLIER: CLASSIFICATION UNKNOWN]
[INTENT: APPARENTLY ALIGNED]
[TECHNOLOGY LEVEL: SUPERIOR]
They were loading the supplies onto repulsor sleds when Separatist commando droids assaulted the warehouse—elite units that moved with far more coordination than standard battle droids. Someone had tipped them off to the Republic operation.
The battle erupted in the warehouse's cramped confines, turning the space into a three-dimensional maze of deadly crossfire. Kael, Ahsoka, and Ventress instinctively formed a triangle formation, protecting each other's backs while Rex and his troopers provided covering fire from behind improvised barricades.
"Ventress, high left!" Kael called out, his Battle Meditation allowing him to perceive threats from multiple angles simultaneously. "Ahsoka, incoming center! Rex, suppression pattern gamma!"
They moved like components of a single organism, each anticipating the others' needs without conscious thought. Ventress's Makashi precision carved through commando droid armor while Ahsoka's Ataru aggression kept their attackers off-balance. Kael's Force abilities created openings that the others exploited with devastating efficiency.
When the last droid fell in a shower of sparks and twisted metal, they stood panting among the wreckage, covered in hydraulic fluid and battle damage but very much alive.
Rex removed his helmet, grudging respect visible in his scarred features. "Sir, whatever that thing you do—coordinating us through the Force—it works. The men want you leading operations."
It was the first time the clones had explicitly trusted Kael's judgment above standard Jedi tactical doctrine, a shift that carried profound implications for future campaigns.
[BATTLE MEDITATION: 89/200 USES]
[APPROACHING APPRENTICE RANK]
[CLONE LOYALTY: MAXIMUM]
[TEAM SYNERGY: 40% EFFECTIVENESS BONUS]
Back at the forward base, Mace Windu's interrogation was as intense as Kael had expected. The Jedi Master's presence radiated suspicion as he examined the supplies and read the mysterious message.
"Unknown benefactors don't provide aid without demanding payment in return. This concerns the Council deeply."
But even Mace couldn't deny that the supplies were desperately needed and completely authentic. Every item was genuine Republic equipment, untampered and ready for immediate use.
Yoda observed the proceedings with quiet contemplation, his ancient eyes holding depths of wisdom that made Kael feel like a child playing at adult games.
"Mysterious, these events are. Yet help they provide, undeniably. Trust the Force, we must, to reveal truth in time."
[COUNCIL SUSPICION: HIGH]
[PRACTICAL ACCEPTANCE: GRUDGING]
[YODA INSIGHT: SIGNIFICANT]
That night, Kael studied the datapad's message obsessively, searching for clues that might reveal his benefactor's identity. "A Friend in the Shadows"—someone who knew about his gray path, supported it, commanded resources beyond normal channels.
Was it another transmigrator who had found their way into this universe? A Force entity operating beyond the traditional Light-Dark dichotomy? Something else entirely?
The questions multiplied exponentially, but answers remained frustratingly distant. All Kael knew for certain was that someone out there wanted him to succeed, and for the first time since arriving in this timeline, he didn't feel completely alone in his mission.
It was a comfort and a terror in equal measure.
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