Battle of Kelrodo-Ai

Following the conclusion of the Clone Wars and the subsequent proclamation of the New Order, remnants of the Separatists scattered to various locations. The newly established Galactic Empire then moved to subdue these holdouts, simultaneously forming alliances with pirate leaders and slavers. One such refuge for the Separatists was the Western Reaches, specifically the volcanic world of Kelrodo-Ai within the Steniplis sector. Numerous droids, formerly under Separatist control, were recovered and reprogrammed by their new masters on the planet. Due to these alliances, a considerable amount of military hardware was stored within the primary fortress of the Kelrodo-Ai people, the Citadel of Axes, which was also heavily reinforced with multiple shield systems.

By the time the battle commenced, the Empire, through the Western Reaches Operation, had re-established order and legal governance in eight sectors, successfully liberating 95 planets. While General Hurst Romodi commanded Imperial ground troops, the 77th Air Wing was deployed to disable the shield by destroying the generators concealed within the mountains dominating the plains. They rapidly established a forward airbase in the area beneath the shield. Throughout the battle, however, 15 pilots from the 77th Air Wing perished, leading the wing commander, Captain Shea Hublin, to harbor doubts about the mission. Nevertheless, he kept these reservations hidden during an interview with Eris Harro from the Eriadu News Service regarding the mission's progress.

Following their briefing and a review of their objectives, the 77th Air Wing, including the nine remaining pilots of Sword Squadron, along with Scimtar Flight, Blade Flight, and Dagger Flight, were dispatched to engage enemy fighters as they deployed near the Citadel. Shea reiterated their objective: to penetrate a nearly vertical, 25-meter pipeline with an 82% probability of leading to the main shield reactor, with Scimitar Flight taking the initial entry. Before they could enter at full speed, however, a squadron of 30 Separatist fighters, including modified Vulture droids piloted by organic beings, battered Z-95 Headhunters, and unidentified snubfighters, engaged them. Sword Squadron destroyed four enemy fighters during the initial pass, after which Blade Leader Hublin ordered Dagger Leader Starks to eliminate one of the enemy pilots while he and Blade Flight provided cover for Scimitar Flight's entry into the pipeline. As they approached the pipeline, five kilometers away, anti-aircraft guns opened fire, forcing Scimtar and Blade flights to descend close to the ground near the grass before ascending the mountain, passing the citadel, and initiating a corkscrew maneuver. Blade Flight also destroyed a shaft above the shaft, although Ahrens was shot down and killed after being struck by a heavy gun from one of the towers. Blade Flight then fired upon the defensive turrets to divert their attention while Scimitar Flight entered the pipeline. However, Scimitar Flight was stopped by an unknown substance that even prevented Separatist forces from following them. After determining that their disappearance was not a sensor malfunction and destroying a Vulture-class droid that ambushed him, Hublin ordered Blade Flight and Dagger Flight to abort the mission and analyze the situation.

An hour later, they discovered, through his last transmission and the Kelrodo-Ai chieftain, Fara, that the cause of their disappearance was a creature native to the planet—the same creature whose eggs Fara often used in his stew. They learned that they had to enter slowly to avoid awakening the creature and becoming entangled. Because they could not bomb or launch missiles down the shaft due to the need for visual confirmation of the generator and precision, nor could they deploy a ground force to destroy the shield due to time constraints, Shea Dublin, Amps, and Starks were to act as a combined unit to infiltrate the shaft at a slow speed, killing the throttle and applying the brakes, moving only at repulsorlift speeds to avoid awakening the creature, while Dibs and Rocket would distract any enemy forces outside. Upon entering and passing the creatures, they activated the accelerators to reach the hypermatter reactor. After destroying the reactor with proton torpedoes, they had to escape within 150 seconds before the reactor reached critical mass. The fighters were attacked by the creatures, and it was only in the final ten seconds that they engaged the throttle, narrowly escaping the creature's tentacles.

Following the battle's conclusion, Hublin personally thanked Fara for the mission's success and offered him the opportunity to travel the galaxy, or at least witness the remainder of the Western Reaches Operation. Similarly, Moff Tarkin sent a personal hologram communication congratulating Shea Hublin on the mission's success.

The Battle of Kelrodo-Ai and the subsequent Battle of Ord Vaug were documented by HoloNet News journalists, elevating General Romodi to fame, and the events of the battle were later adapted into the holodrama The Guns of Kelrodo-Ai, which also featured Hublin.