Mission to Ord Mantell (Clone Force 99)

The mission to Ord Mantell, also referred to as the mission to Old Ord Mantell City, was undertaken early in the Imperial Era when the fugitive Clone Force 99 rescued the rancor Muchi from Zygerrian enslavers on Ord Mantell. The "Bad Batch" agreed to carry out the rescue as part of a deal with the informant Ciddarin Scaleback, who they had asked for help identifying a bounty hunter they had recently encountered on Pantora. However, Scaleback claimed that Muchi was a child without clarifying her species, leading the squad to initially assume that a Falleen child being held captive by the slavers was their target. After defeating the Zygerrian leader Raney and the other slavers and freeing the slaves they had taken, the Batch managed to retrieve Muchi and return her to Cid's Parlor, where she was retrieved by representatives of Jabba the Hutt. Fulfilling her part of the deal, Scaleback gave Sergeant Hunter his cut of the credits for the job and what information she had acquired about the identity of the bounty hunter, Fennec Shand, and who she was working for.
==Prelude==
In 19 BBY, the galaxy-spanning Clone Wars ended with the reorganization of the Galactic Republic into the Galactic Empire after an alleged "Jedi rebellion" which led to the remaining Jedi being declared enemies of the state. In truth, the Republic's clone army had been brainwashed into killing their Jedi officers through implanted inhibitor chips which further made them mindlessly obedient to the Empire. Among the very few clones unaffected were most of the members of the Bad Batch, an irregular clone commando squad. The Batch quickly defected from the Empire, taking Omega, a young enhanced clone created by the Kaminoans, with them.
The Kaminoans were eager to retain the Empire's business, being highly concerned about the new government's stated intentions to stop ordering clone troopers in favor of recruited soldiers. To that end, Prime Minister Lama Su authorized Chief Medical Scientist Nala Se to continue experiments to create a brand new type of enhanced clone. However, the experiments required genetic material from clones who would not return to Kamino willingly.
While on a supply run to Pantora before intending to lie low for a time, the Bad Batch and Omega were accosted by the bounty hunter Fennec Shand, who had been hired to seize the child. After a chase through the city Ro Station, Sergeant Hunter managed to rescue Omega from Shand before the squad fled the moon. However, the incident led Hunter to change his plans, as he and the others deduced that Omega had clearly been the bounty hunter's target, and that it was imperative they find out who she was and who had hired her. Echo suggested they go to Ciddarin Scaleback, a former Jedi informant he had heard about who lived on Ord Mantell.
Scaleback, who also dealt with elements of the criminal underworld, had been approached by Bib Fortuna, the majordomo of the Hutt crime lord Jabba Desilijic Tiure, regarding the theft of Muchi, a young female rancor owned by Jabba. The thieves, a gang of Zygerrian enslavers led by Raney, were holed up in Old Ord Mantell City, and Jabba's people wanted the creature retrieved. When the Bad Batch showed up at Cid's Parlor in Ord Mantell City, they had some difficulty initially identifying Scaleback, as Echo had not known anything about her beyond her name. Once they had, they showed Scaleback a hologram of Shand and explained what information they were after. Scaleback struck them a deal in exchange for the intel, asking them to rescue Muchi, for which she would give them thirty percent of the credits. However, the Trandoshan referred to Muchi as a child in danger, giving the Batch an entirely different impression of what kind of job they were agreeing to.
==The rescue==
The Batch travelled to the ruins of the old city in their starship, the Marauder. After landing, the squad surveyed the plaza where the slavers were situated, spotting three prisoners taken by the slavers, two Falleen and a human. Tech further identified two dozen hostiles and minimal fortifications. As one of the Falleen was a child, the Batch assumed that was Muchi. Hunter ordered Omega back to the ship to wait, and she begrudgingly left.
The Batch approached through the ruins on foot. When they got close, Hunter sent Echo to the top of a nearby building to survey the area. However, Raney's brezak mount was skulking in the area, and the creature quickly ambushed Echo just after he realized there was something there, knocking him off of the tower into unconsciousness. The others attempted to fight the brezak, but the lizard knocked Wrecker out as well. Hunter and Tech were ambushed from behind by some of the slavers, one of whom was wielding an electrified net gun which he shot the sergeant with. The clones were relieved of their gear and chained up with the slavers' other prisoners in the courtyard.
Omega was sitting in her spot on the Marauder, the rear gunner's seat, painting a clone trooper doll she had acquired in the colours of the Bad Batch and talking to Gonky the droid, when two of the slavers located the ship. Hearing their voices, she told Gonky to hide while she did likewise. Inspecting the hold to see if there was anyone there, one of the Zygerrians assumed the Gonk droid was inactive. He looked in the gunner's seat, but Omega evaded him by going through an exit in the floor, which led outside to the ship's stern. She ran away from the Marauder and hid behind some nearby rocks, watching as the slavers departed the Marauder and headed back to the ruins on speeder bikes.
Omega attempted to contact Hunter and the others on her wrist comlink, but received no response. Returning to the vantage point the Batch had used earlier, she surveyed the scene with macrobinoculars and discovered the others' predicament. Omega stealthily entered the ruins to try and help. Wrecker was attempting to loosen the shock collar the Zygerrians had put on him, but his efforts were noticed and one of the slavers shocked him. Echo was subsequently shocked as well after threatening the Zygerrians about doing so. Talking about what to do next, Tech admitted he was not sure how they were going to get out of their situation because he had no information about anything this could be compared to, but that they had to signal Omega. Echo commented about their seized gear, but Tech spotted Omega watching from the top of a nearby building and stated their comms would not be necessary.
Hunter looked to Omega's position, before signaling her with a head movement to get down as Raney, the slaver leader, had just entered the courtyard. Surveying the captives, Raney noted the new additions to his "collection" were strong ones, suggesting that they would fetch a high price. While he was speaking, Omega crawled across a strung cable to another building. Taking note of Omega's exposed position, Echo drew Raney's attention to him by shouting that the Republic had outlawed slavery, to which Raney retorted that they were not in the Republic. Omega safely made it to the next building and back under cover. Tech drew Omega's attention to where the Batch's gear had been placed, but as the girl was climbing down the side of the structure, she accidentally knocked a rock loose, which made a noise as it fell to the ground.
Raney and his men noticed the sound, but Wrecker quickly kicked another rock into one of the slavers, making himself seem responsible. The slaver leader suggested that he did not need Wrecker as a captive, threatening his prisoners that the person next to them would pay if they acted up and speaking of how with the Republic gone, the Zygerrians would be able to regain what they had lost at Kadavo. Omega continued down the side of the building and dropped onto the top of the cage holding Muchi, quickly noticing the creature inside. Descending to the ground, the girl had an idea and moved to the cage's door, removing the bolt holding it shut. One of the slavers saw her and grabbed her, bringing her to Raney and explaining he had seen her sneaking around. Revealing the bolt, Omega retorted that she had not been sneaking but unlocking.
Raney panicked and he and several of his men rushed to the rancor cage in an attempt to secure it, but Muchi was able to break out easily, attacking the slavers. Tech quipped that he had not anticipated an adolescent rancor as a diversion. As the Zygerrians were distracted attempting to prevent the rancor's escape, Wrecker easily broke free of his restraints and freed the others. As Echo removed the shock collars from the slaves, Omega attempted to comfort the captive Falleen girl, who she assumed to be Muchi. However, the elder Falleen corrected the Batch that Muchi was in fact the rancor, to Echo's surprise. Unperturbed by blaster fire, Muchi attacked the slavers, tearing her way through them while attempting to escape the ruins. The Batch retrieved their gear, Hunter stating that they had to go after Muchi. Regarding the freed slaves, Echo stated that he and Omega would escort them to the southern entrance of the city, where some of the slavers' speeder bikes were kept, and Tech translated this into Falleen for them.
Echo and Omega led the three civilians through the ruins. Upon reaching the area where the bikes could be found, they were shot at by slavers, which Echo quickly took care of. As they approached the bikes, Omega spotted a Zygerrian energy bow left abandoned on the ground and picked it up, taking it with her. Echo and Omega saw the civilians off as they escaped on the speeder bikes, with the elder Falleen thanking Echo for the rescue while Omega waved goodbye to the other girl.
Hunter, Tech and Wrecker were on Muchi's trail when Raney's brezak, summoned by its master, attacked them again. The three clones opened fire on the creature, but it was shortly mounted by Raney. Hunter's blaster pistol was knocked out of his hand during the scuffle. The slaver pursued Muchi, drawing his electro-whip, but Hunter tackled him off of his mount as Tech and Wrecker continued to follow the rancor. Hunter drew his vibro-knife and faced down Raney, who swung at him with his whip. The sergeant caught the whip around his forearm, and Raney shocked him with it, which caused Hunter to drop his knife. However, Hunter was able to overpower the electricity and disarm Raney, before a brief hand-to-hand struggle in which the slaver was knocked unconscious.
Raney's brezak followed Muchi and confronted the rancor, resulting in a fight between the two animals. After being knocked back, Muchi injured the brezak by biting its tail, before slamming it into the ground and beating it around the head, which caused the brezak to flee. Tech and Wrecker caught up to Muchi at the tail end of the fight, and Wrecker asked how they were going to get Muchi to come with them. Consulting one of his devices, Tech noted that rancors adhered to a social hierarchy where they would submit to an alpha, which needed to be challenged for authority. In response, Wrecker engaged Muchi in a fight for dominance, managing to score several hits on the rancor, although she threw him off at least once.
Hunter arrived while the fight was ongoing, and the onlookers were soon joined by Echo and Omega. By that time, Wrecker and Muchi were both exhausted, and Echo asked how long the fight had been going on. Tech noted that it had been going on for too long, suggesting that Wrecker was losing his touch. Muchi eventually fell unconscious from exhaustion, and the equally tired Wrecker leaned on her and told her she was a good rancor.
==Aftermath==
The Bad Batch returned to Ord Mantell City with Muchi. Scaleback, in her office, received a visit from Bib Fortuna and some Gamorrean guards, as the majordomo was insistent that Muchi be returned as soon as possible. As the conversation was ongoing, Fortuna heard Muchi outside and rushed out of Cid's Parlor to find the rancor and her rescuers. Scaleback followed, and after reassuring Fortuna again, requested her payment. Fortuna had one of the guards hand over the credit chip containers before leaving with Muchi, as Omega and Wrecker said goodbye to the creature.
Scaleback had Hunter accompany her to her office, where she detailed the information she had been able to retrieve on the bounty hunter: her name, Fennec Shand, and that she was a relative newcomer to the bounty hunting scene who had already made something of a name for herself. However, Scaleback had been unable to identify Shand's employer. Her contacts in the Bounty Hunters' Guild had said that Shand was working on commission. Scaleback gave Hunter his team's share of the credits for the Muchi job, and suggested that if the Batch was going to survive in the galaxy, they would need friends and money, especially the latter. When Hunter noted that they were short on both, Scaleback remarked that it was a good thing he had met her, offering further mercenary work. Scaleback went on to note that the Batch was likely very valuable if Shand was after them, but that she was good with secrets.
The Batch remained on Ord Mantell afterwards, spending time at Cid's Parlor as Omega trained to use her energy bow. Scaleback, suggesting that the Batch working for her would be a mutually beneficial arrangement as they would earn money and she could protect them from Imperial attention, induced the squad to do more jobs for her, starting with a mission to Corellia.
==Appearances==
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==Sources==
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*Star Wars: Timelines
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==Notes and references==
Category:Battles of Ord Mantell
Category:Missions during the Imperial Era
Category:Missions of Clone Force 99
Category:Rescue missions