Private So Much Paperwork

[Krenis Skirata]

YUMFLA, SUSEVFI
Noah Corek

The time had finally come for Krenis to give up his freelancing ways. He wasn't sure how many times he had tried, but it had been a few. He figured he'd tried to retire five or six times, but in the end, it never stuck. He'd even taken up privateering for a time, but gave that up. He was back in uniform, this time the Suarbi Republic Defense Forces as they piloted a program to redesign and expand their military capacities.

So he'd reach out to his old network of contacts. Noah Corek. Ex Republic Special Forces. Mandalorian. Helped run the Omega Protectorate in these region, if intel was accurate. Krenis knew him to be a good solider and manufactured excellent equipment through the various companies.

For now, he was in a small conference room at Point Rain, the temporary HQ for the Special Reconnaissance Regiment.

Not that the Regiment existed yet, except on paper and for a skeleton crew of officers to build up the program. Ostensibly, Krenis was in charge of the development and training, although not the regiment itself, but that didn't mean much at the moment.

Their prerogative was to create a regimental-sized unit of trained personnel capable of conducting special reconnaissance, direct action, foreign internal defense, unconventional warfare, and allied training operations across the League sectors and nearby sectors.

Essentially, a large-scale, formally trained special forces regiment. Of course, there were smaller special forces teams across the League, and the allied Sullustan Home Guard had theirs and the various elite Sevari bodyguard units, but this was different.

It was a new age for the League and Krenis wasn't sure how he felt about that. He was an Alpha-class ARC, of course, from the Clone Wars, extensively trained by the galaxy's best, but he couldn't pull together a regiment by himself.

"Your visitor has arrived," a droid said through the comlink and Krenis laid down the datapad with long sigh of relief.

"Send him in," he replied. "And is there any caf ready?"

"Of course!" The reply came back quickly.

"Please send some in. I'm going to need it." Krenis admitted, rubbing the aching scar across his forehead. It ached under the tension of what he was trying to develop, but he forced himself to stop and stood, ready to greet his visitor and get down to business.

They had recruitment and training NCOs across the entire League Defense Forces looking for qualified volunteers, to bring them in from all across the different units. It would take time though, and time was not one of their luxuries with the new Sith creeping up to the end of the Rimma Trade Route.

They needed external assistance to bring them up to speed rapidly as possible. That was where Corek came in.

 

[Noah Corek]

This was not an atypical type of job for Noah to take, quite the opposite in fact. His notoriety around these regions was pretty well known, having help the Omega Protectorate expand into and tame it over two decades ago helped with him being recommended for this job as well.

Even before his time as a mercenary, when he was still an upstanding officer in the Galactic Republic and the Army Commandos he was often called on foreign internal defense operations to help either strengthen planetary militias on worlds in the Republic's sphere of influence or on planets near the Imperial borders to provide a thorn in the side of the Republic millennia old enemy.

And while this job was typical for him it was also different in a way. Most of the other FID jobs had been simply training some locals in the proper ways to fire a weapon, basic small unit tactics, combat first aid and the basics of warfare. This however would heavily lean on his skills as a special forces veteran to create a force that would be dubbed the 'Special Reconnaissance Regiment' according to the material he had read on the journey to Susevfi.

Noah knew the Rimward Trade League pretty well already, having sold weapons to several of their component governments before as well as the Legion having been granted a letter of marque by the League as well to basically be privateers. But that was neither here nor there.

As soon as he landed on the planet he had slung the rucksack he had brought with him over his shoulder, straighten out his outfit, a simple pair of jeans and a button up long sleeve shirt, and had all but been bundled in a speeder and taken to Point Rain, a smile coming to his face when he recounted the history behind that name.

It didn't take long before he was brought to the office of the man who had contacted him, Krenis Skirata , a fellow Mandalorian and a relic of a long past war, not unlike how Noah thought of himself. When the door opened Noah stepped into the office and gave a curt nod of his head towards the man. "Greetings son of Clan Skirata, good to meet you." Noah spoke in Mando'a, attempting to bridge the gap of the two of them barely knowing each other.

 

[Krenis Skirata]

Noah Corek

Krenis stood as the door opened and Noah walked in, greeting him in Mando'a. "And good to meet you, son of house Corek," Krenis replied in the same language, gesturing to some empty chairs, before switching back to Basic.

"I'm glad you were able to make it to discuss the possibilities of the contract briefing we sent you," he continued, retaking a seat. "Care for some caf?" He held up a fresh pot and slid over another cup before pouring one for Noah, if desired, and one for himself, whose warmth he let soak into his hands for a few moments before speaking.

"It's going to be damned difficult," Krenis said at last, speaking directly to the point, already restless from the several moments' pause. It was one of the unfortunate side effects of being an unaltered Fett clone. He had only known his genetic father during the training period and Jango had never struck him as a good soldier. An excellent bounty hunter and fighter but not necessarily a soldier. "We have extensive skill sets and experiences to draw on, but those are primarily from irregulars."

Not that there was anything wrong with rebel partisans or guerilla fighters from the Outer Rim Coalition, but it wasn't what they needed for this sort of task. It gave them valuable starting clay for recruits and potential trainers, but turning them into professional soldiers would have its challenges. "I understand you were quite influential in establishing the Omega Pyre and, currently, the Galactic Foreign Legion, including its ARC detachments?"

He had appreciated seeing that the designation was still in use, even if they were a different kind of ARC than he was. At least some part of their legacy and their heritage were continuing.

Time was of the essence, and while some of him knew that in the grand scheme of things, the other part of him knew that every minute's delay was a minute of training that his future recruits wouldn't have when they got tossed onto the battlefield. He had been flash trained originally, but that took time, not to mention less efficiency when dealing with grown adults.

 

[Noah Corek]

He gave a nod to Krenis Skirata , a small smile gracing his face as he returned Noah's greeting in Mando'a. 'Good, not just a bounty hunter or mercenary pretending at being a Mandalorian to boost his reputation.' He thought to himself as he stepped into the room, taking a seat in the chair across from Krenis at his desk. He gave a small nod of his head in thanks at the offer of caf and grabbed the cup, positioning it below the caf pot so he could pour it.

When the contract briefing was mentioned Noah nodded. "The briefing was straight forward if not a little lacking in detail. From what I was able to gather you are looking to build a premier light infantry unit, similar to a ranger unit, with a wide degree of responsibilities. Not exactly a simple task but something I've had experience in before so it shouldn't be too difficult."

Noah sipped at his caf as ideas began to formulate in his mind, the first coming to mind was of course the structure of the unit in general, the building blocks of what the unit would consist of "Have you given any thought to the structure of the unit? I know the overall structure will be a regiment but what is going to be below that? Battalions? What are those battalions going to consist of? Rifle companies and a couple weapons companies or several mixed arms companies?"

 

[Krenis Skirata]

Noah Corek

"Lack of detail is the name of the game," Krenis agreed, with a slight grumble, glaring for a moment into his caf before letting out a low breath. "In better circumstances, we would have more time to create multiple smaller units, but the Sith appearance has accelerated our timeline dramatically. But for all intents and purposes, you are correct. Elite light infantry with multi-role capabilities, often behind enemy lines and without conventional support and working alongside local elements."

He chuckled softly. "Clearly written by politicians and not soldiers, but that's to be expected. We can make it work, though. I'm still not sure what the operational goal was when the Kaminoans created me and my brethren. But we did a fine job regardless."

At the question, he nodded, activating a holo-display. A series of potential organizational charts appeared above the table and he studied them carefully.

"Battalions are the plan, yes, with a regimental strength of approximately twenty-five hundred personnel." He pressed a button and one of the potential charts was highlighted and enlarged. "The first battalion will be a command and intelligence battalion of around five hundred."

Krenis paused and moved the pre-designated battalion away from the rest, readjusting the views of the other charts. "The rest of the battalions are left to our discretion." There was a certain grimness to the words as he studied the different displays.

"Judging by experience, the operational demands on the regiment will be far beyond what was listed in the regimental mandate and often widely separated. I never operated in a unit larger than ten during the Clone Wars." The last was almost an afterthought as he went through the math. "Detached missions are to be expected, likely across wide distances. I'm thinking perhaps a fractal organization, capable of highly flexible deployments across various unit sizes."

His eyes were sharp now, studying the display without actually looking at it. "Perhaps rather than starting from the top, we should start at the bottom and build up."

 

[Noah Corek]

Noah nodded along with Krenis Skirata as he spoke, listening and digesting every word that was spoken and internalizing it. When he spoke of better circumstances Noah chuckled and shook his head. "Usually in better circumstances there is no need for units like this to be stood up to fight but we are not in those times. As for the Sith? Nothing I haven't handled before, we'll be able to give the Regiment a pretty good education on how to fight them."

When he spoke about the exact nature of the people who had written the briefing Noah chuckled again. "Politicians often don't understand the complexities of military strategy or planning but pretend to...any often get many good people killed."

Noah observed the holo-display with scrutinizing eyes. The structure was pretty standard for this kind of unit, a command battalion that consisted of a headquarters company and intelligence company and then the actual combat units consisted of a few battalions.

When the operational mandate was brought up Noah nodded. "Yeah, units like this often have to adapt and overcome. Adapt to new situations they encounter and overcome any obstacles that they might encounter."

When the aspect of building of the bottom up was brought up Noah nodded in the affirmative and leaned back in his chair and took a sip of caf. "I think you're right on the money with that one." He leaned forward and tapped at the holo-display, bringing up the smallest units of the Regiment. "Way I see it we need two types of squads. First is the normal shoot and scoot rifle squad, only armed with small arms and being the primary maneuver unit. Second is a weapons squad armed with more heavy weapons needed for taking out things like tanks, fortifications and the like. Thoughts?"

 

[Krenis Skirata]

Noah Corek

Krenis nodded, shifting restless in the seat as he considered. Politicians were the ones who wielded the weapons of state, and in days past, that meant him. He was always keenly aware that had been the reason for his entire creation.

To be a weapon. But to be an individual? That was something new and he still hadn't gotten used to that. But he focused his mind back on the task at hand.

"Two types of squads," Krenis considered, studying the smallest units. "Almost a small hammer and anvil- one to maneuver around and the other to lay down heavy fire."

He made a few notes, sketching out team roles and skills possibilities. "Potentially with cross-trained skills between the two squads, with the skills essential of a small independent unit- intelligence, medical, demolitions, communications, slicing, with all personnel trained in reconnaissance."

 

[Noah Corek]

Noah nodded and smiled as his ideas were getting traction, being comforted by the thought that Krenis Skirata was willing to morph and evolved his thinking from what it had been originally ingrained into him. "Exactly, hammer and anvil describes it perfectly. The weapons squad uses their heavy firepower to keep the enemies head down while the rifle squad moves in for the kill."

Noah's eyes roamed over the table of organization in front of him as a idea began to further formulate into his head. "Okay...so we make the platoons consist of six squads, three of both squad types. Like you said all squads will be cross trained with one squad member being assigned to learn the skill of someone from the other squad to be able to plug gaps in manpower...twelve man squads should do well for that."

Noah's fingers drummed on the desk as another idea began formulating and he shifted the table of organization to the company level. "Another idea is that we make one company in a battalion into the main recon unit while the other ones act as a quick reaction light infantry, trained the same as the main recon unit, and these platoons shift responsibility every so often to keep skills fresh..."

 

[Krenis Skirata]

Noah Corek

Krenis activated a second holodisplay and rearranged the organizational tables, shifting the initial drafts into one and the modified version on the other, keying in the changes.

It had morphed the regiment quite a bit, and he leaned back to study it, especially the rotational option. It was a unique twist, to be certain. Not like anything he had seen in the Clone Wars or the previous Galactic Alliance.

He could see the merits, though. It combined the elements of a reconnaissance force with a quick-response infantry force. A bit of a bait and switch for any forces that might try and engage the recon elements. Instead of more recon units, a dedicated strike force.

And he knew the rigors of recon. The rotation would alleviate the tense strain of working behind enemy lines and being unsupported.

"That is an excellent idea," Krenis said slowly after a moment, studying the displays. "Especially if we develop the lines of weaponry. Alternating recon and ambush could make a significant impact on our tactics in that way. Recon elements to identify targets, initial small engagement..."

He considered, picturing the chain of events. "Use that engagement as a counter-ambush, perhaps. Comms will be critical for heavier support and coordination."

 

[Noah Corek]

Krenis Skirata

Noah gazed intently at the two organizational charts side by side now, the two of them having morphed and shifted completely from when him and Krenis had first started planning. It was indeed a unique force, something that the galaxy had never seen before, a mix of a elite force reconnaissance and light infantry unit.

He nodded to Krenis' idea about using the units in a sort of bait and switch tactic. "Could use that in some cases, on purpose or if the recon unit is compromised. Another idea is using the reconnaissance unit to gather intel on a target and then have the light infantry on standby swoop in and take out the target in quick succession."

Noah minimized the regimental chart and brought back up the squad chart. "With that decided I think we can move onto the squad composition. I'm thinking a twelve soldier squad, with a squad leader and assistant leader as the command element with the other ten soldiers being specialists in a certain field, such as medical or weapons."

 

[Krenis Skirata]

Noah Corek

Krenis tilted his head, considering the structure of the squads, his mind racing through the various implications of a twelve-person squad. After a few moments, he nodded slowly, tracing some shapes and elements on the table with his finger.

"And they'd be easily adaptable into smaller or larger groups if necessary," Krenis replied. "Down to teams of two, if need be, but also teams of threes, fours, or sixes."

That cross-training would take some challenging organizing, but it was a puzzle they could enjoy working out and tinkering with in the long run. "That would give squad leaders flexibility for just about anything I can picture, except perhaps espionage, but that's what the ORION Huntsmen are for."