Leman Russ, also known as the "Wolf King" and the "Great Wolf" during his lifetime, is the currently missing Primarch of the Space Wolves Chapter of Space Marines. He led the Space Wolves Space Marine Legion during the Great Crusade and the Horus Heresy and is famed in Imperial history for his hatred of psychic powers and sorcery, whose use in battle he viewed as dishonourable and unworthy of true warriors. After receiving a disturbing vision in 211.M31, Leman Russ disappeared with the warriors of his bodyguard, his destination and fate unknown.
Russ, along with his brother Primarchs Angron and Vulkan, were considered to be the greatest warriors one-on-one amongst the Primarchs. Known for his fierce and sometimes barbaric personality, Leman Russ considered himself the Emperor of Mankind's most loyal son and executioner. he viewed his role as unquestionably carrying out the punishments requited by the Master of Mankind. Among the forces of Chaos he was known as "the Brawler."
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Rey would say nothing and nod as they continued on towards the Destroyer. All the while she couldn't help but feel somewhat anxious about this. Kylo Ren had been here, and recently by the sounds of it. What if he still was? What if he was at the outpost right now? She briefly concentrated, and realized that she couldn't sense his presence. Either they were in the clear, or perhaps he had found some way to shield himself from her.
The Jedi pushed this fear aside for now, as there was no use worrying about something that hadn't happened yet. As they made their way around the back of the Destroyer, Rey could tell that they were getting close. From here they could see a large opening on the back of the ship that they could use to sneak inside and catch the outpost off guard.
"There," Rey said, pointing to it. "That's our way in. Pedra, can your scanners pick up how many Troopers are inside?" she asked, as knowing this might help with forming a strategy.
"Of course," Rey said, nodding and calming herself down a little bit. "I just feel good about this, that's all. Hopefully we can get this done quickly and move onto the next mission." She would then turn to face Pedra and began to follow her in the direction of the base. As they left the outpost they travelled across a great dune. Although it was still terribly hot, the wind began to push in from the north. It was so strong it nearly knocked Rey off her feet a couple times, and she was used to it.
Soon the Starship graveyard was in sight, and they could see the massive outline of an Imperial Star Destroyer that was half-buried in the sand. Nowhere near as large as the Hrafnkel of course, but still enormous in its own right, like a great metal beast lying in wait.
Rey had been to this exact place many times before, picking the ships clean for any sellable parts. She wasn't sure why the First Order was still interested in Jakku, but after today it wouldn't matter. "Is that where the outpost is?" Rey asked, pointing to the Destroyer on the horizon and looking to Pedra to see if the coordinates were a match.
Even minutes after the encounter, Rey glanced at her free hand and realized it was shaking. She didn't realize how much this had truly affected her until now. Back in those days, she would have never had the power or the confidence to speak to him like that. Perhaps it was not such a bad thing they came here after all. Despite her trembling fingers, she had never felt so strong.
"He's a coward...not even worth the trouble," Rey muttered as she was still looking in the direction that Plutt had taken off to. Although perhaps he did deserve worse, that wasn't the kind of person she was, and it certainly wasn't the Jedi way. After hearing Russ's comment she would look up at him with a small smile. "Tell me about it. I feel like I could take on the whole First Order!" She gave both of her hands a shake before turning fully and looking to Pedra. "You said you had the exact coordinates? Lead the way."
"I wouldn't underestimate him, Russ..." Rey said flatly with a small shake of her head. "And I've seen what you're capable of. But for our sake, I do hope you're right," she said, wondering if there was a possibility that Russ could kill him easily. It occured to Rey that she never told him about the connection to Leia. She considered telling him but decided it might not have been appropriate. Leia knew the unfortunate reality of the situation better than anyone. If her son died, well, he wasn't really her son anymore...
Thinking about who this person might have been, Rey almost immediately thought of Unkar Plutt. "Oh, yes...I have an idea of who it could be. We should get out of here before he---"
"I thought I smelled a scavenger," came the low, grumpy voice of Unkar Plutt. Rey gasped and turned around, staring at him incredulously. It was obvious she had never expected to see him again, and perhaps the same could be said for the man who was, sadly, one of the closest things she had to a father figure in those days. "I'm not a scavenger anymore," Rey said defiantly, turning so that she was facing him dead on. Unkar Plutt was a ghastly figure, with a large, bolbous nose, a flabby neck and arms, and overall his appearance was quite harsh and difficult to look at.
"Hmph, so I've heard. You can dress in those clothes and pretend you're a Jedi all you like...but you'll always be one of us! You'll always be scum!" He took a strong step towards her and became enraged. Rey took a step back and became nervous, fearing that he was about to try and attack her, even though he had never done so before. "Did you honestly think I'd forgotten about the stunt you pulled the day you left? I was humiliated! I was ruined! You owe me for all the damage you caused, and for taking away my most prized possession!"
Now it was Rey's turn to be angry. "That ship belonged to Han Solo of the Rebellion! It was never yours to begin with! And I won't pay you a single credit, you monster!" Now Plutt was absolutely fuming, and this time he did step forward with the intention to strike her. Before he could, however, Rey had already ignited her saber and was now pointing it at his throat. "Get out of here...now!" she hissed. "You can't control me anymore."
His true colours showing, Plutt immediately became frightened and backed away. However his angry frown still remained as he slunk back towards the tent he came from. "Fine...have it your way...scavenger scum." He would then turn away and disappear behind the tent, no doubt going back to his workshop. Rey stood there for a moment, saber still lit. It was almost like she couldn't believe what had just occured. After all these years, she'd finally stood up to him. She then turned and looked back at Russ and Pedra. "Sorry about that..." she said, turning her saber off and clipping the hilt back onto her belt. "We should keep moving," she said, a renewed sense of confidence radiating from her.
When Rey saw Russ talking to the villagers, her fears were suddenly quelled for a brief moment. She was surprised at how invested they were in his stories, and how they didn't seem as afraid of him as they should have been. Whether he knew it or not she appreciated what he was doing for them, even if it never truly amounted to making their lives better. Rey smiled softly, watching the scene unfold until it was time for Russ to rejoin her.
After hearing the information, she nodded slowly with a solemn expression. "I heard the same. I believe it to be Kylo Ren, the Supreme Leader. If he was here at some point, he might still be. If that's the case, we need to be extra careful," she said, looking at Russ specifically as she had a feeling that he might underestimate her sworn enemy.
Rey tilted her head as she heard about someone looking for her. "Really? Who?" she inquired. "Did you get a name?"
Rey nodded in agreement before continuing to walk past the various tents and small shops scattered about. As the local people stared at Russ and Pedra, there was definitely some anxious whispers amongst them. Some people even took to going inside their homes and avoiding the situation altogether. Rey couldn't say she blamed them. They had never seen anything like this before, and Jakku was a rather small-minded planet.
"Excuse me...Eda?" Rey asked softly as she lifted a fold of the tent. Eda looked up from what she was doing, stared at Rey for a moment, and then smiled in surprise. "By the stars...Rey? Is that really you? I hardly recognized you in those pristine, white clothes!" Rey smiled and sat down across from her. "It's been a long time. I'm sorry I never properly said goodbye. I left in somewhat of a hurry, it's a long story." Her smile then faded as she leaned in. "Eda, I was wondering if you could help me. Has there been any Stormtrooper activity here lately?"
Eda paused and squinted in thought. She then began to nod. "Yes, I saw 'em yesterday...a whole squadron of 'em. They came into town looking for supplies and water, but as you can imagine, they didn't find much. Became rough with some civillians before leaving. I kept my nose out of it. I always do."
"I see..." Rey said, glancing downward. "Is there anything else you can tell me?" Eda crossed her arms and thought about it some more before raising a finger and exclaiming. "Oh, yes! I almost forgot. There was another fella with the Troopers. I think he was their leader. He wore all black and hardly said a word...but there was something about him, something dark and angry."
Rey's heart skipped a beat. It sounded like Kylo Ren. "I-I see...thank you, Eda," she said shakily before slowly standing up from the table and turning away, but not before saying goodbye. "Well, until next time," she said with a small smile. Eda returned it in kind before continuing to clean her scraps of metal. Heart still racing, Rey would make her way back over to Russ and Pedra to see if they had had any luck. She would wait a little longer before breaking the unfortunate news.
A soft smile grew on Rey's face as she found herself oddly comforted by Russ's words. Suddenly she wasn't nearly as afraid to go back to Jakku anymore. The anxiety still lingered, but in such a way that she knew she would be able to handle it. She had lived there for nearly 15 years, a short visit like this would be no hardship at all. Plus, ridding Jakku of the First Order would give her a personal level of satisfaction.
"Thank you," she said softly, her eyes nearly tearing up but she managed to stop herself in time. Rey didn't know why his words were impacting her so much; but besides Leia, Luke and a couple others...no one had ever really said something like that to her before. To be told that she was strong, that she could overcome anything; it was something she probably always knew but never truly believed until she heard it from someone else.
She thanked him again as the walkie-talkie was passed over, and as she clipped it to her belt she felt the rumble of the dropship land. Soon the intense light and heat from Jakku would work its way inside the ship, causing Rey and others to blink and squint their eyes. Taking a deep breath, Rey nodded and exited the ship. They were just outside Niima Outpost, a small village for vendors and scavengers to clean and sell their findings. Sandy tents dotted the outpost, along with a few wandering droids. Every human and creature looked absolutely miserable, as if they'd rather be anywhere else in the galaxy.
As she looked upon her old stomping grounds, Rey was amazed at how little it had changed. True, it had only been a couple years or so, but it really did look exactly as she left it. She'd have to be careful not to run into Unkarr Plutt, as he would no doubt still be mad at her for stealing "his ship", which was never really his to begin with. Rey would then turn to look back at Russ and Pedra, the heat seemingly unaffecting her as she was quite used to it. Despite her rough relationship with Jakku, she always felt more comfortable on desert planets. "Well, this is Niima Outpost, one of the few places where you can find a group of locals together. The ship graveyard is east of here, where the First Order will be. Do we want to ask around first or keep moving to the base?"
As Russ spoke, Rey listened intently and found herself smiling along with him as he recounted fond memories. All of her nerves seemed to slip away as she focused on his stories and she tried her best to imagine the world of Fenris from what he was telling her. The animals certainly seemed interesting. Rey had heard of the Krayt Dragons of Tatooine but had never seen one in person. Now that she thought about it, there were many things she hadn't seen for herself.
"In some ways, it's similar to Jakku..." Rey said with a nod. "Only the strong surviving, I mean. Especially the Scavengers. We had to work all day in the blistering heat, salvaging whatever we could find...just to go home with a single portion of food for our efforts." She lowered her head, reflecting on this. "Looking back on it, I'm not even sure if it was strength that got me through those days...I think it was hope. Hope that one day everything would change for the better, and that I needed to survive in order to see it. And I did." She smiled a little before exhaling and feeling the rumbling of the dropship moving.
"Jakku holds...many dark memories for me, Russ," she said, in a slightly quieter and more serious tone. "I'll do my best to push forward, but forgive me if I seem distracted at times. I never thought I would come here again."
"No, not at all," Rey said with a cheerful shake of her head. She couldn't help but smile at their playful banter before wobbling a little as the ship gave a sudden lurch. She could now see Jakku through the ship windows. The huge, beige orb made her stomach drop as she recalled painful memories once more. Her parents leaving...growing up alone..all manner of wicked people and animals attacking her on an almost daily basis.
Horrible as it was, Pedra's comment about torture managed to snap Rey out of these thoughts. She swallowed nervously as she silently disapproved. Torture was not the Jedi way, or the Resistance's for that matter. Her opinion of Pedra changed slightly upon hearing this, but she had to remember that they were a different people who lived a completely different way.
She was happy to hear that Russ agreed before they made their way over to the drop ships. Rey clenched her fists as she tried not to focus on the intense anxiety building in her stomach. On the way down, she was desperate for any kind of distraction and turned to look at Russ. "Tell me about your home world, my Lord. What was it like?"
[ All good! ]
Rey's gaze lowered in sympathy as Petra told the story of her world and being one of only a few survivors. Being one of the last remaining Jedi, Rey could relate to this to some degree; however she couldn't possibly imagine the horror of having lived through an experience like that. "I'm sorry," she would say simply, not really knowing what to say after that.
As they entered the bridge, Rey's jaw would drop as she was mezmorized by all the different sights that were available to her. Even the bridge on the Resistance's command ship, which was no small size, paled in comparison to what she was currently looking at. She had to dodge out of the way a couple times as different officers kept passing back and forth; clearly in the midst of urgent work. She could have stayed and explored this area forever, as she was so curious about everyone's job and what exactly they were doing.
However, when Rey saw the hologram of Jakku, she quickly remembered that time was of the essence. She joined alongside Leia with a smile and then turned her attention to Russ before laughing at his joke. "Sorry, my Lord...Petra and I were just getting to know each other," she would say before listening to his plan once they were down on the planet. Rey would nod slowly, agreeing with the idea. "I like the sound of that. The less people, the more likely to stay hidden for a surprise attack. We can try to talk to the vendors at Niima Outpost, but I'm not sure if we'll get any information of value," Rey concluded, with that being her only slight critique of the plan. "I'm ready to leave whenever."
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