[M4-24 - Duel of the Fates] - Flank Juno vs. the Oshira-5 Squadron on Malastare

[CardinalBricks]

It is 21 BBY and the Clone Wars have engulfed the galaxy. Malastare, home world of the Dug species and a major chokepoint for the Republic due to its vast fuel reserves, is also being harvested for important artifacts by Gran colonizers, who enjoy complete governing power over the planet. Gran authorities, seeing an opportunity to capitalize on the growing interest in Malastare among Coruscant’s high society, are erecting a museum in the heart of Coruscant, which will exhibit elements of Dug culture—against the species’ wishes.

The curator, the traitorous Dug Minjei Binda, has succeeded in acquiring many artifacts for the exhibition; including, most consequentially of all, the Book Of The Doge Zalan Croy and the Ma’ar Emblem. But the remains of the ancient Scroll of Utaka, fortelling the prophecy of the final Zillo Beast, lie undisturbed, protected, for now, by the Dug elders. Knowing that Binda is after them, the elders have enlisted help from Dugs For Democracy, a Coruscant-based advocacy group who have a useful contact: an antique dealer who, with his Jedi Knight companion, can be found carrying out clandestine projects, performing acts of justice in the wake of the Republic’s tightening iron grip. The mission? To send Flank Juno, Jedi Knight, to retrieve the scrolls from Dug elder P’tu Kroznic and deliver them to the advocacy group, where they will be transported safely off-world…

Flank Juno arrives on a speeder with his droid companion, LP-33.

“You’re coming with me, LP. You know Luthen won’t be too happy if I don’t have you recording the intell.”

They enter the cave.

“Excuse me… hello?”

Kroznic appeared from the shadows.

“I am Flank Juno,” the Jedi stoically declared. “I am with your friends on Coruscant, Dugs for Democracy. And I have come to collect the scroll.”

Kroznic paused for a moment. “Get out, Jedi slime.”

“But it’s me, Flank Juno. I’m here to collect the scroll and deliver it promptly to your contact on Coruscant. You are P’tu Kroznic, are you not?”

“If I am P’tu Kroznic, then you are Bantha fodder!!”

Juno sensed footsteps outside. “Shhh! The troopers aren’t far, y’know.”

“What do I care, Jedi? You’re on the same side of this war. And neither side recognizes my people—”

“—And the problem of your people now is not whether to follow the rulebook of the Republic, but to think twice about spitting, or having a mynock roast, or walking out at night. I believe Luthen when he says that. I do not believe the Jedi council when they say we must all align ourselves with power.”

A somber expression washed over the brow of the stubborn quadruped. “We won’t be needing you, Jedi. We are not helpless, or strangers to terror… we have endured, and we will endure long after the Republic has fallen.”

Just then, a trooper of Oshira-5, a squadron in charge of patrolling the area during non-activity hours, stepped into the cave.

The Oshira-5 were involved in a chemical fire on Oshira while completing a mission at the start of the war, which left their bodies damaged and in need of highly specialized respirator devices to breathe. The lieutenant attempted to shield his army from the explosion and, naturally, endured the worst of it; his left arm, amputated, and his face, deformed and misshapen, no longer able to fit a helmet. That said, the squadron was thankful to be alive, because these days, the Republic would rarely use expenditures to rehabilitate its clone troopers.

The clone followed the mysterious voices, which, although they had halted, still carried through the shimmering red dust of the caves, and revealed the location of the meeting.

“Greetings, Jedi. Dug, leave us alone,” the trooper said. “This doesn’t concern you.”

As the trooper turned his back to signal to his lieutenant, the Elder promptly placed the scroll into the droid. “It’s coming soon,” he whispered in a gossamer-thin cadence. “The scroll says the last beast will rise very soon. Let them know it’s not safe here.” And P’tu Kroznic scurried away.

“You’re early, sir,” the lieutenant said. Juno looked at the clone bewildered, wondering what he could possibly be referring to. “But it's nice finally to meet you, Master Mundi. Thank you for agreeing to use your Jedi ways in service of acquiring this… valuable artifact. Curator Binda will compensate you generously. And of course, as part of the agreement, the Admiral will get you access into all the finest—”

“—That won’t be necessary, lieutenant” Juno said definitively. “In fact I was just on my way out. C’mon LP, let’s go.”

And the heroes hurried to the speeder, and the unstable troopers nodded assuredly at each other, and loaded their blasters.

And they shot at the Jedi as he escaped, and a shockwave gripped his synapses like iron, an omen from the future, a warning of the impending catastophe of which this was a microcosm, and the blaster noises echoed through the sand for miles into the night…

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Thanks for looking at my entry for the May the Fourth contest! I hope you enjoyed the MOC and the story I came up with.

I have a screenshot of the speeder bike design in stud.io, in white for better visibility. I also made the entire MOC in stud.io to ensure it was no more than 100 pieces; I ended up using all 100. 

[Mandalorianknight]

Love the story detail, and the massive bricks are a good way to make a full scene with that 100 part count. That jedi is great, as is the brutalized clone commander. Though to be honest, the speeder steals the show, it's a really solid design!

Edited May 22, 2024 by Mandalorianknight

[CardinalBricks]

5 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

Love the story detail, and the massive bricks are a good way to make a full scene with that 100 part count. That jedi is great, as is the brutalized clone commander. Though to be honest, the speeder steals the show, it's a really solid design!

Thanks! I liked your build a lot too. Designing the speeder was definitely my favorite part of this. It felt awkward building with the BURP pieces because I'm used to sculpting everything myself but trying to make a whole landscape with little more than 50 pieces was a fun challenge! 

[Sentinel_Brix]

Great story, cool build. First I boggled, cause the text was long, but who am I to judge .  It's is very well written and entertaining. It complements the depicted story perfectly. I wonder if it is a greater story arc of some kind? Fan fiction or RPG? Or just a cool snip for that scene? Was Flank attacked because of incoming Order 66, or was that because of the secret meeting? 

 

[CardinalBricks]

4 hours ago, Sentinel_Brix said:

Great story, cool build. First I boggled, cause the text was long, but who am I to judge .  It's is very well written and entertaining. It complements the depicted story perfectly. I wonder if it is a greater story arc of some kind? Fan fiction or RPG? Or just a cool snip for that scene? Was Flank attacked because of incoming Order 66, or was that because of the secret meeting? 

Basically the troopers knew something was up when Flank decided to get out of there, and they attempted to shoot him down so the details of the secret meeting don't get out (due to the accident, these troopers have more than a couple screws loose). The "admiral" made a deal with Ki-Adi Mundi (a notoriously scummy Jedi, if you know the ~lore~ haha) to procure the scroll in exchange for money and other perks. But the troopers had never met Mundi before, so when they saw Flank, for all they knew it was him, he just showed up earlier than scheduled. 

It is certainly fan fiction adjacent, and I did get a bit carried away with it haha. The story will be continued in my Coruscant build... only a month left so I'd better get going on that.