Rhodes and Gree stood at the entrance to the underground chambers beneath the temple.
"Looks like we have two possible routes," Rhodes observed, scanning both tunnel entrances.
"What do you think is down there?" Gree asked, his finger hovering over his blaster's trigger.
"Nightmares," Rhodes replied bluntly. "Because these tunnels definitely look like hell."
"How bad could it be?"
Suddenly there was a sound of beating wings, followed by the chittering and shrieking of Geonosian warriors erupting from both underground entrances and holes in the temple walls.
Luminara ignited her lightsaber while Gree began firing at the Geonosian attackers. Rhodes took to the air, engaging the aerial threats directly while his shoulder-mounted weapons systems opened fire at maximum rate.
It was a brief but intense skirmish. Although approximately two dozen Geonosians attacked, the three battle-tested warriors successfully repelled them.
"Stay close," Rhodes commanded, landing beside Gree as the three formed a defensive triangle.
The area fell silent except for the sandstorm howling around the partially collapsed structure outside, and now they were all on high alert.
Luminara held her lightsaber defensively while Gree swept his blaster between the wall openings and the underground entrance.
Rhodes extended his arms, hands open, with his weapon systems primed and rotating.
"Movement!"
"Here they come!" Gree shouted.
More Geonosian warriors poured out of their subterranean lairs.
The Clone Commander maintained suppressing fire while Rhodes and Luminara engaged the new wave of attackers. However, these Geonosians were noticeably different from the previous group. Rhodes found them significantly more resilient, requiring multiple hits to bring down, unlike Luminara's lightsaber which cut through them efficiently.
He didn't have time to analyze this further because he heard Commander Gree's desperate cry.
Turning, he saw the Clone Commander fighting these unusual Geonosians who seemed focused on capturing rather than killing him, much to Rhodes's alarm.
"Commander!" Luminara called out with concern as she moved to assist, with Rhodes charging forward and repulsing several Geonosian attackers.
Luminara was unable to evade completely, and her lightsaber wrist was seized by a Geonosian warrior.
She struggled momentarily, only to discover it was significantly stronger than expected, its grip crushing her wrist. She cried out in pain as her lightsaber deactivated and fell from her grasp.
Luminara was grabbed by several other Geonosians emerging from the underground complex and began being dragged deeper into the tunnels.
"General!" Gree shouted desperately.
"No!" Rhodes lunged forward, but a group of Geonosians from the cavern below grabbed his legs and attempted to pull him down.
Rhodes's repulsors fired at maximum power, and he quickly broke free from their grasp, flying over to help Gree eliminate the remaining Geonosians he was still battling.
Then both turned to look...
"Damn it!" Rhodes slammed his armored fist against the ground.
Luminara had been dragged away, carried off by the insectoid warriors. Only her lightsaber remained on the temple floor. Rhodes gritted his teeth and started toward the tunnel entrance, but Gree stopped him.
"Sir, wait—it's not wise to charge in recklessly," Gree attempted to reason with him.
"So what?" Rhodes countered. "She needs our assistance."
"I understand, sir, I do. But General Kenobi said these underground networks extend for kilometers. We just witnessed that those tunnels are still swarming with hostile Geonosians. We need to call for reinforcements—it's far better than charging in blind."
Rhodes clenched his jaw in frustration.
"I want to pursue immediately, Colonel," Gree said apologetically. "She's my commanding officer. But right now, she's being held captive in underground Geonosian territory. We might cause more harm than good if we rush in without backup."
Rhodes lowered his head in silence, knowing Gree was correct.
"I'll transmit a distress signal," Rhodes said, activating his Avengers communicator while muttering, "Hopefully this storm subsides soon."
Shortly after, a Republic gunship flew through the diminishing storm and landed outside the temple. The hatch opened and a squad of clone troopers emerged, followed by Steve, Anakin, and Obi-Wan.
"Are you certain Rhodes sent the distress signal from here?" Anakin asked.
"Affirmative," Steve confirmed.
Upon entering, they observed that the temple interior had sustained additional damage. Sitting on a stone formation near the underground entrance was Rhodes.
"What took you so long?" Rhodes asked as Gree stood guard near the tunnel entrance, blaster ready.
"Apologies, Rhodey. We wanted to arrive sooner, but the storm made navigation extremely difficult," Anakin explained.
"What happened to Luminara?" Obi-Wan inquired.
Rhodes retrieved her lightsaber and handed it to Obi-Wan. "Captured by those creatures. I wanted to pursue, but..."
"The Geonosians are present in overwhelming numbers, sir," Gree added, now slightly more relaxed but still monitoring the underground entrance.
Anakin approached the tunnel entrance, examining a particularly distinctive statue.
"That's one ugly insectoid," Cody commented.
"What is this?" Steve approached Anakin and asked.
"I've never encountered a statue like this before," Anakin said, clearly disturbed by its appearance.
Obi-Wan studied the statue momentarily before stating, "Likely the Geonosian Queen."
"Geonosis has a queen?" Anakin asked skeptically.
"A queen? You can't be serious. Like in that Alien movie?"
"Please, no more references to that film," Anakin said emphatically. "After Peter showed that movie to me, Ahsoka, and the 501st, we've all been eager to leave Geonosis as quickly as possible."
Obi-Wan simply rolled his eyes at the cultural reference. "There are legends of a Geonosian Queen, but no confirmed evidence of her existence."
"Unfortunately, today we may discover the truth," Steve said, securing his shield to his back.
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's proceed," Obi-Wan gestured as he and Anakin ignited their lightsabers. The two Jedi led the group directly into the dark underground complex, beginning their journey through the seemingly endless cavern system.
The clone troopers raised their weapons and activated their helmet illumination systems.
In the narrow corridors, the atmosphere was distinctly ominous. It grew darker as they advanced, strange odors seemed to intensify gradually, and the tracking beacon from Luminara's wrist communicator continued transmitting.
"This passage terminates here," Cody reported.
"You're certain?"
"Affirmative." Indicating the adjacent tunnel, the Clone Commander continued, "This passage extends further. I believe this is our optimal route."
"I'll take point," Obi-Wan entered the narrow passage, with the others following close behind.
"This is definitely reminding me of the Hive from that movie," Rhodes muttered.
"Rhodey... stop talking."