After Darkness (Firemane)

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

"Miss Elpsis, please! I'm on your side!"
She regarded the beaten, shackled Firemane pilot without pity. There was only serenity and absolute certainty in her eyes. "There is no Elpsis here, only Roxane, avenger of the Light," she said serenely and pulled the trigger. He died.
"She was a Sithspawn. You have freed yourself from the Darkness, Roxane," Lea spoke. "There is no emotion.."
"There is calm," Roxane finished.
"There is no ignorance."
"There is obedience."
"There is no passion."
"There is serenity."
"There is no chaos."
"There is order."
"There is no death."
"There is no light."
"And you have been reborn in it." Everything was as it should be. Lea looked so serene and compassionate. "You will be a great weapon of the Light. With you are our side, we shall defeat those who have brought war to our world. Do you pledge yourself to the Dominion and the Great Crusade?"

Something was wrong. She had been here before. "No!" she yelled shaking. "This isn't real. I didn't wan to murder her! I'm not your puppet!"" she turned and fired at the Inquisitior. She kept squeezing the trigger until the woman lay slumped against the wall, covered in blood. "I'm not Roxane. I'm Elpsis. I'm free. I'm not Roxane. I'm..."

"A traitor," she heard the voice of the Firemane pilot. Suddenly the woman was standing again. Her tattered, soiled uniform was stained with blood. The bullet hole was clearly visible. "It didn't take much for you to turn on your comrades, huh?"
"I didn't want this. It wasn't my choice! I was brainwashed!" she yelled angrily.
"Right. All they had to do was lock you up for a bit, make you hear voices, and the next thing you know you're an enthusiastic convert. I suppose it wasn't much of a switch of you, considering you already do whatever a voice in your head says. To think that thousands died for you."
"I fought for my freedom! You think this was easy? I went through hell."
"My name is Danita Barek. I had a wife and children. What will you tell them? 'I'm sorry, the voices made me do it?' Or perhaps it will all be swept under the rug? After all, your mothers could not possibly allow for their little princess to look like anything other than hero. Good thing you didn't murder anyone who's part of the brass."
"I'm sorry..."
"Sorry doesn't cut it."
"I didn't want any of this. I just wanted to save lives."
"Save? You're no saviour. Your talents lie elsewhere.
"This is just a dream. I'm not in the camp. And you're not real. You're just a voice."
"Maybe I'm your conscience talking. The part of you that knows you do not deserve to escape. Are you sure you really did?"
"Shut up!" she hissed and fired. She was certain she could hear her father's laughter.

xxx

Mezha inclined her head slightly. "Your Sergeant fights very well," she said. She was being matter-of-fact. "I accept your gifts. I have no requests for myself...other than that Firemane does not forget the struggle taking place on our world. If you cannot deploy your forces, we can use supplies. The war is not over. The Guard's not perfect. But we're fighting for our freedom," She stepped back.
"The freedom to replace Dominion and Sith chains with Vong ones," Phoebe muttered under her breath in her native tongue. There was clearly no love lost between the Nautolan and the Republican Guard.

"I've seen enough death down there. I want to get off this rock," Harald said. His aura was that of a man who wanted to get away as soon as possible.
"I have no family, ma'am. Not the way you would think of it," Mel addressed Tegaea. "No one in the Dominion does. No one who was born the proper way, at any rate. We have those who came from the same birthing pod. I would not mind seeing the stars. On my own terms. I would like to learn to fly."
"I must confer with my people," Phoebe spoke up. Her tone was authoritative. "And with the other prisoners. They all deserve a say and I will not abandon them. We need to know under what conditions you would take those of us on who wish to join you. We would not want to be broken up and dispersed across the stars. Or be treated as primitive hirelings. If we return home to bring the oppressors to justice, will Firemane give us any support?"

Rhea had remained silent till now. "I would study under Elpsis, if she would have me," she added the last part quickly. "But I cannot stay in the stars forever. My family was murdered by the Sith. The Jedi used me and taught me to revile my origins. They cannot go unpunished. I will have retribution."

"There's one thing I would ask for. The Guard gets many Dominion refugees. Many of them are sterile. We have clinics that try to restore their fertility, but our success is limited. Do you have technology that can help there?" Mezha asked. She was thinking of Synthia, among others. After a pause she added, "I imagine many prisoners have the same issue."
"Yes, that would be very helpful," Phoebe affirmed, as annoyed as she felt about finding herself in a position where she had to agree with a Vong. We've all been there.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tegaea took Mezha's words with a nod. "We have not forgotten. We will provide supplies if your leaders accept them...for a fair price."

To the prisoners she nodded. "All of this can be easily accommodated. However, if you take my offer and choose to return we will not give any special consideration. You may of course purchase weapons and equipment from us."

To Rhea she gestured. "We do indeed have technology which may help. I cannot guarantee anything, but if the Guard leaders allow it, we will sell the technology and maintenance of it also for a fair price. "

"The Dominion have utterly perverted their cause and so they must be punished. However, it is not the job of Firemane to remove people and reorder planets. We offered the hand in friendship and were betrayed. That betrayal has been punished, and whilst we will still offer support to those who fight we will not continue to fight with our forces on the ground. Air and space bombardment support however is certainly still possible. I have a holo meeting with General Aurruunzeb to discuss specifics."

It was an answer which would not please everyone, but Firemane was a company, and they had no investment in fighting and dying for this planet's issues, even if one side was pretty repugnant. Indeed, the main fleet would be looking to depart quite soon. If the Dominion's new leaders were smart - and Tegaea knew enough of Mahtara to know she was not stupid - they would know this and adjust accordingly.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

Siobhan would have strongly approved of Tegaea's realism. Firemane had certain humanitarian principles, but it was not a galactic cop. It lacked both the means and the interest to try and fix every broken planet. The Tephriki obviously did not. The response to her pronouncement was varying forms of disappointment. Some did a member better job of masking their disappointment. Even Xalda looked unhappy.

"So you're abandoning us. With all your might, you could crush the Dominion," Rhea muttered. She could feel the anger rising inside her. She clenched her fists to get control. "We served our purpose." Seeing this, Xalda's hand moved just a few inches closer to her sword, just in case the Rattataki turned into a threat. Whatever her feelings on the matter, she had sworn a blood oath. She only relaxed when she was certain the alien was not about to pounce.

"I'm glad you rescued us to save your daughter's life. What about the other daughters down there still imprisoned?" Phoebe declared fiercely.
"Phoebe," Mel interrupted.
"It's the truth. They don't get a spaceship to escape this hell on. Without us, that outsider would have died."
"Phoebe, cut it," Mel took her aside. "It's chit, but the world sucks. There's no justice...not unless we make it. We're getting a deal. Not the one we want...but without it we're back to square one. Think of those we could save. They need you now."
Slowly, Phoebe forced herself to calm down. "Yes. And those we will save," she swore. She turned her gaze back to Tegaea. Her expression was blank. "I will relay your offer to our people and consult with them. We will inform you of our decision soon," she said stiffly. With that she turned to leave the guest room.

"I understand. We can't expect you to fight our war for us. I am grateful for what you have done us," Harald said. Whether this represented his true feelings on the matter or he was just trying to distance himself from his comrades and seem more reasonable was up in the air.

Mezha had been quiet. It was better to let others speak first than say what she really thought. You did not trust them in the first place, an inner voice reminded her. Their ranks are filled with Force-users, another said. "I understand. I will report back to my superiors," she said. "Tephrike has ores," she added after a moment. "They may be of value to you."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tegaea held out a hand briefly to Xalda as a signal to relax.
“I know you are disappointed, all of you are. However, I did not want to give you false hope and insincere promises.”
She turned to go, but then stopped. She turned back. She did not have to give an explanation, but she decided to anyway.
“Firemane is a corporation. Our job is to make money for our stakeholders. That may sound cold and heartless, and perhaps it is, but trust me when I say that the galaxy is no utopia of freedom and joy. Fully half the galaxy is controlled by Sith and others who rule through fear and coercion no less than the Dominion or Vaderites – though perhaps a little less idiosyncratically. But the galaxy is composed of a million worlds, from mining outposts to cities covering the entire planet. Many of them are composed of dictatorships and cartels also. The whole galaxy seethes with oppression. However, there are brighter spots, and where we setup permanent bases we ensure order is kept. If I took it upon myself to crusade against the wicked I would very soon have nothing left. I do not have the resources, manpower or honestly the mandate to do that to Tephrike right now.”

She pointed out the window.
“Down there is Tephrike, your home. You have seen what our technology and weapons can do, but it does not mean I could snap my fingers and defeat the Dominion. Well…I probably could, but it would kill most of everything on the surface, your allies included. I came here to help, and I was betrayed. I will not force help onto a planet which will fight and scheme against us. Even the Republican Guard fears and mistrusts us because of bad experiences, expecting me to order mandated Force probing of all people. So no, I will be leaving as soon as all is settled here, deals are made and so on.”

“However, I will offer you two more little tokens. Consider it a donation, but the first shipment of weapons to the guard will be free. Subsequently, yes, the ores and natural materials will be most welcome. Secondly…I will see what I can do about punching the Sith from on high. I think we might be able to penetrate their shield and at least lay low their main fortress. I really, really don’t like Sith in any form, so I don’t need much incentive to hurt them.”

She turned to go. They would likely never agree with her. When one can only see the small picture the big picture matters little. Still, these people at least deserved a little insight into her mind.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

Rhea was not happy. Not at all. Tegaea had a broader perspective, but it was one the Rattataki could not see because their life experiences and horizons were so different. Tegaea, Siobhan and Firemane as a whole saw the world in galactic terms. Tephrike was one of many hellholes they had visited. Perhaps the worst of them all, but still one of many. And they were realistic enough to know that they could not wave a magic wand and make it all better. It was a lesson many a Jedi had yet to learn.

However, for Rhea Tephrike was all she knew. It was her home. She saw her father, butchered by Sith; her mother, riddled with slug rounds while falling on top of her daughter to shield her from murderous Stomtroopers; she saw the Grand Inquisitor, abusing and manipulating her. And now when justice was within her grasp, when it seemed like she could get a chance to atone, she was being denied.

It angered her. Immensely so. But she...held back. Her parents had not died for her throw it all away. She grabbed her anger tight. One thing she had learned under the Grand Inquisitor's yoke was to dissemble. He liked to think she was his broken plaything and accepted him as her master.

"Make them burn," was all she said. One way or another, she would have justice. She needed to figure out how. There were no lengths she would not be willing to go. She needed to see Elpsis.

"I'm happy to hear that," Mezha remarked. It fell far short of what she'd wanted, but she would soldier on. "I do not know the stars as you do. You are the first space people I've met and to be frank a lot of your culture seems strange to me." That was her trying to be diplomatic. "I have not seen even one of the million worlds you speak of. Or been in space until now," she said honestly.

"But with or without help, I shall fight. The Guard will free Tephrike and we will do all everything in our power to turn it away from this...darkness. And maybe one day we shall move into the stars ourselves and I shall see the worlds you have seen."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tegaea nodded her head to each in turn. There was no more to say for now.
“Thank you both. If you have any questions or requests speak to my aide here.”

As she headed from the room she glanced at Xalda. “We will go and see Elpsis now together. No one other than myself or Lady Tempest is to approach within arms reach of the tank which holds my daughter, understand? See that this command is followed to all in her presence until I say otherwise.”

Doubtless this might annoy Nyssa, but safety was paramount. Elpsis was at a delicate stage of recovery and could not have any possibility of danger accidental or deliberate.

She frowned. “Come. I have a bombardment to plan.”

First though she headed back to the medical centre, not knowing what she might find there….

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

"As the Blessed Consort commands. This one shall be vigilant," Xalda said obediently. One could not expect interesting or even remotely meaningful dialogue from a brainwashed Sio lackey. Slaves 'liberated' by Siobhan were about as free as Daenerys' Unsullied. Who knew, maybe in the next episode she would randomly massacre completely innocent civilians for the so-called 'Karishzar'. Perhaps then someone could stab Siobhan, too.

Regardless, they made their way to the medical centre. Nyssa and Mara were there. "You see, Elpsis, this is what happens when you just charge off like an idiot and play hero. You get maimed and end up in a bloody tank." Elpsis was asleep, but the Pureblood did not seem to care.
"Doctor Osway said not to be loud," Mara spoke up.
But the Sith ignored her. Instead she stepped towards the tank. "And when you get out, I'm not leaving you out of my sight."
"She also said to stay away from her tank. Otherwise we will not get access again."
Nyssa muttered something scatological in Sithese. "Better wake up soon," she grunted. "What are you looking at?"
"Nothing," Mara said a bit nervously. The Sith made her uneasy. "I'm sure she'll be fine. She's come this far. You just have to give her time and let her rest." There was an awkward pause. "You care about her."
"Don't get all sentimental."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tempest had been watching the exchange with the wary look of a museum guard seeing people approach a certain unique treasure.
There was an added layer to it because on a certain fundamental level her and Nyssa were…rivals? It seemed strange to put that word into the position it was because Elpsis was certainly no shrinking violet, and none of them were followers of strict monogamy anyway.

Regardless, before Tempest could speak Tegaea entered.
“Any change?” she asked.
“Nothing yet, she’s asleep.”
“Excellent. I believe your time to talk with her will come either tomorrow or the next day, Nyssa. She’s going to be taken out of the tank and given some time in bed whilst they monitor her condition. In the meantime I’m going to try and level the false Sith Citadel. Would you like to watch?”
Nyssa generally liked the cultural appropriators getting their just desserts after all.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

There were a few ways to Nyssa's heart: Sex, indulging her pontificating about how great Purebloods were and violence. Especially if that violence involved burning 'false' Sith. So she grinned wolfishly, showing sharp teeth. "Bring on the fireworks."

Mara did not quite get what Tegaea meant with 'false Sith', but did not argue the point. "I'd like to watch, too," she said instead. "The Vaderites deserve to burn. Their castle is a place of horrors."
"Ever seen it yourself?" Nyssa asked.
"No, not in person," Mara admitted. "But I know people who were brought there. If they came back at all, it was as monsters."
"What are the odds their 'Dark Lord' will be there?"
Mara thought for a moment. "I cannot say. We spent a lot of time trying to keep tabs on him, but his schedule was opaque even to us. The Bureau of Farsight believes that he uses illusions to mask himself and has several alchemically altered doppelgangers, who handle most public appearances."
"The mighty Dark Lord is scared of someone taking shots at him?"
"Well, he is a powerful Master of evil. But...he seems to have a very high-pitched voice. It's said to embarrass him." This caused Nyssa to roar with laughter. After a moment, Mara joined in.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

((Thanks to [member="Valiens Nantaris"] for the first half))

The only sound was Mahtara’s stick as she leaned on it for support as she walked into the Council Chambers. They were waiting for her, looking down on her both literally and probably figuratively. She showed no sign of concern. The reason for this was soon announced when there was the sound of marching feet and the clone troopers led by Jedi Kyrric entered, forming a circle around the Council. Finally one of the Jedi came forward. “Battlemaster, what is the meaning of this? It is forbidden to bring those without the Force into the chamber of the High Council.”
Mahtara looked up, head cocked slightly to the side. “We are at war, Master Jamal. If the Grandmaster, strong with the Light and with the Force can die suddenly, so might we all. One can never discount the threat from assassins and…traitors….” The last word accompanied by a glance around the room.

The stick tapping stopped at the centre of the chamber. “Masters, members of this revered council. I have been invited here by Jedi Cassius to assume full control of the military and government of the Dominion of Light for the duration of the emergency.”
That caused a stir. Several of the Council started to protest vigorously. Several pointed angrily at Cassius who shifted uneasily.
“Enough,” Mahtara said softly. When it was not heeded her cane struck the ground but with a sound like thunder. All heads turned to her. “Enough,” she repeated just as softly.

“Jedi Cassius did not invite me with no reason, but because he realised I am the only one who discerns the true threat, the true dangers posed in our situation. And what a situation it is, Masters. The Sith watch hungrily like starving hounds to pounce on our weakness. The Republican Guard are emboldened by their victory and look for more. Internally we are shackled to inefficient policies which must evolve if we are to survive. And above it all, in the skies where once we thought there were only demons are men and women. They come with their weapons and their ideals of a reality only I on all Tephrike remember. We are on the precipice of destruction, Masters, and if we do not act now we will be destroyed.”

One lone voice spoke up. “Jedi Mahtara, you seek to cow us with your soldiers and your speeches, but did not the Grandmaster denounce you as a traitor? Why for should we accept this imposition?”
Mahtara’s sleepy looking eyes opened wide for a moment. Then she shook her head wonderingly, as if unable to discern a complex problem.
“Have you not looked outside, Jedi Garron? The enemy is upon us. Why? Because the Grandmaster’s impulsive, prideful, arrogant and foolish actions forced it so. The ‘Guard’ are a rag-tag band of the envious and the maladjusted. They can nibble at us, but they could never have hurt us without some great ally. The Sith reside in the mountains in their wallowing ignorance and pride, speaking strong but acting weakness. No, it was this ‘Firemane’ who threw all of this into doubt. They came here for what they claim was benevolent reasons, to trade and make filthy profits from us who they would have called primitives and backwards. And what was our reaction? What was the considered and wise approach of this Council, the Grandmaster and the Inquisitor? Betrayal, oath-breaking. Stupidity. We provoked them and they in turn smote us, giving strength to an enemy who could barely master themselves and drove them to vengeance. That is the tale of your sainted Grandmaster.”
“I do not have to listen to this. There are those who follow the path of light,” Garron said, looking for allies as he moved to leave.
“Take a seat, young Garron,” Mahtara commanded, her voice suddenly like steel. Strictly speaking, Garron was not a young man, but by her standards everyone in the room was young. Either way, the Jedi found himself compelled to obey.

“Is this the view shared by this Council? That we were right to provoke the one group who could truly harm us and throw away any chance of making them peacefully leave? We should have been the ones they hailed as allies, with careful diplomacy. Rather we acted unwisely.”
She looked around.
“I see. Then I now understand the necessary course. There are those on this Council who have shown wisdom and strength, those who I would value the advice and guidance of in the days and weeks to come as we seek to restore order. However, this Council as an entity has served its purpose. For the duration of the emergency it is dismissed.”
“You cannot dismiss us!” Jamal called.
“You overstep yourself,” Garron growled. “The Council…” he began.
“The Council?” Mahtara suddenly thundered. “You are no Council! I say, you are no Council of the Light. You are a vile and corrupt body who has spread evil and darkness within and without. Though some of you attempted to restrain the vices it was not enough. Is there a single virtue now remaining amongst you? Is there one vice you do not possess? It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonoured by your contempt of all virtue, and defiled by your practice of every vice. Therefore I will end this Council, taking only the diamonds from this sordid muck. When peace and order returns to the Dominion I will summon a Council which is both righteous and wise, strong and just. For now…get you gone, in the name of the Light go!”
Lifting her hand she called on the Force to lift and shatter the great seal of the Dominion Jedi into pieces and throw it down at her feet.

“Jedi Kyrric. Consult the list. Take those with virtue and valour to the side so they might aide us. Dismiss the others.”
With that, the aged Jedi walked slowly from the hall as the troops moved in.

Karana and Varus had been watching the scene with trepidation. "This is a coup," Karana saw the need to state the obvious. "We have to..."
"Go along with it," Cassius interrupted her.
"You mean until we're next on the list?" she countered. "It is illegal."
"I say it was long overdue," Varus threw in.
Jedi training helped Cassius remain calm, despite a strong urge to be the exact opposite. "All has been discussed between Mahtara and me. She will direct foreign policy and the war effort, I will oversee the Order and domestic affairs. There will be a War Council. Smaller, more compact than the old one. She will chair it; I will be vice chairman. She can move her soldiers across the map and lead the battles. She cannot rule alone. Once the crisis has passed, we will set matters right," he said ambigously.
"I have concerns about this course of action," Karana began, "but if it is necessary..."
"It is important that we maintain a united front. We have not disposed of one dictator to replace him with another."
"We are all in this together. It is our duty as Jedi" Varus agreed piously.

Further conversation was cut off by the arrival of Jedi Kyrric. Behind him, clone troopers were leading Councillors out. In this moment, the Ke'ldor was grateful for the fact that he had to wear a mask. There were times when it bothered him. It set him apart from most Jedi. But it also meant he could mask his emotions. Going against his own comrades troubled him deeply, but he trusted his teacher. He inclined his head slightly when he approached the three. "Masters, Battlemaster Mahtara requests your presence," he said politely.
"'Requests'," Karana said. "Well, we shan't keep her waiting. Your Master made quite an impression, boy."
"She has a knack for it, Master. But her concern is only for the good of the Dominion."
"To which we all want to contribute," Cassius affirmed before anyone could say something foolish. "Lead on, Jedi Kyrric."

The gang of three was led to a small meditation chamber. There Mahtara sat on the floor. Her eyes remained closed, but though she made no motion, she was fully alert. "Please come inside, my friends," she said in a friendly, albeit somewhat tired tone. "That was unfortunate business earlier, but necessary. The Jedi cannot be led to their doom by fools and knaves."
"The rot runs deep," Cassius spoke. "It was the failing of all us that we did not extirpate it sooner."
"It is heartening to know that they are still Jedi strong in the Light. Once the crisis has passed, a new council will be convened and it will elect a Grandmaster who has actual merit. I have no desire for the title." She let those words sink in for a moment. There, now imagine yourselves as the new Yoda or Luke Skywalker, she thought.

One good thing about the Firemane bombardment was that the destruction of the Lord of Light's Palace had also destroyed his gaudy throne. She had felt sickened every time she saw a Grandmaster sit upon that ridiculous chair. "For the time being, we are under military government. But I cannot govern alone. I will look towards the three of you to help me lead us through these trying times. Jedi Cassius will be Master of the Order and my deputy on the Council of War. It will be smaller and more flexible than the old council. For you both, Jedi Varus and Jedi Karana, I entrust tasks of great importance."

Karana looked like she was about to say something out of tune, but she got a look from Cassius. "I wish to serve the Dominion and the Light in any way I can," she said instead.
Mahtara had her own thoughts, but kept them concealed."Nexus City is too exposed a location and our foes smell blood. It would send the wrong signal if we were to abandon the capital and the people who look to us for protection, but we must distribute our assets. A fortified redoubt shall be constructed to serve as a bastion for the Jedi. The Firemane's bombardment has displaced thousands of civilians. Master Karana, you will apply your organisational talents to relocating them to safe areas, constructing havens for them and putting them to work. You will have the authority to issue orders to the Followers of Light, the regional governors and prefects in this matter."
"I will...devote myself fully to this task," Karana said after a pause. "I believe the province of Paenoia would be suitable. It is one I know well. The area is sparsely populated and away from the frontlines."
"Good. My office will be constant contact with you. I name you Minister of Resettlement and Reunion. Our entire economy will be directed to the war effort. All major state-run enterprises will be inspected. Those found wanting will be closed and individuals not engaged in useful work will be conscripted for the army or labour force. All ministries will also be inspected. Master Varus, I name you Commandant of the Vigilant Border. I need a Jedi of strength and conviction in the borderlands to deter the Sith. Do not launch incursions into their territory, but make sure our fortifications remain strong and that any remaining sympathisers of the Grand Inquisitor are dealt with. I shall assign three legions to your command."
"Battlemaster, you honour me greatly..."
"Ensure you do not lose them. We cannot waste manpower now." I will make sure you choose'the right chief of staff, she thought, but did not voice this decision.

"If I may, Battlemaster, would our forces not be better utilised liberating Fortress Purity before the Sith have time to muster their legions or their kindred from the stars attack us again?" Karana asked. "Purity is like a dagger pointed at our heart. Across Tephrike our foes rejoice at its fall and predict our demise. The 'Guard' and the Sithspawn celebrate their victory. This will make them complacent. Rally the legions. Many of them are still fresh."
"Because it would have been a waste to let them charge an enemy who can destroy them from orbit. Let the rebels applaud themselves. They owe their victory to this 'Firemane', not their own strength. Our armies have suffered grave losses. They need time to recuperate and reorganise. Rashness is not courage, it is a temptation of the dark side. If we attack them now, it will just give them cause to unite anew."
"But what shall we do against this Firemane? They rain destruction upon our city unchecked. Thousands lie dead," Karana argued. "The hammers of light..."
"Are a weapon of last resort," Cassius interrupted with a look towards Mahtara, who nodded in agreement. "And no guarantee of success. If we launched them, we might destroy their large battleship. But what would we do when they send more ships? You know they would. They went to war for one girl. Moreover, I have my doubts that this 'Firemane' will be on our world for long. They are far from home. Even with their fleet, supplying such a large force will be difficult. And the Guard is no friend to them. Sooner or later, they will split."

"Cassius has the right of it," Mahtara affirmed. "The anarchists of the Guard cannot abide anyone's authority other than their own and loathes those sensitive to the Force. Firemane will be unable to accept allies it cannot control. They came here to find pawns and then wanted revenge because our Grandmaster foolishly antagonised them. You may note that they only deployed limited contingents to the planet. This tells me that they do not want to get bogged down fighting a long war. I suspect that they will make trade deals with the rebels and then pull out most of their forces. But we must still be vigilant against air strikes and spies infiltrating our society. However, this also presents us with an opportunity."
"How so?" Varus asked.
"This 'Firemane' cannot be the only group in the Galaxy. Others will come, and when they do, we will extend our hand in friendship so that we may partake in their technology and learn all we can. My friends, we live in a time of tribulations, but together we shall weather this storm and usher in a new beginning for the Dominion."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

Tegaea looked curiously to see if Mara was joking. It seemed not. The thought of someone cosplaying as Darth Vader with a reedy voice and none of the latter’s menace was an inherently funny thought. Little did she know that it had been played out long before by a certain ‘master’ of Ren.

“Tempest, care to come and watch?”
Tempest seemed interested, but looked back to the tank, shook her head. “Give me a feed from the cams. I’ll stay here.” She'd laid out a mattress on the floor so she could stay there as long as needed.
Tegaea nodded. “Come with me, you two. You can explain along the way about the defences and layout of the castle as you know it, Mara,” she invited.

When they reached the bridge all was prepared. Satellite scans had mapped the entire area around the castle.

“Ma’am, the fleet stands ready to open fire on your command,” the Captain said with a salute.
“Excellent. Mara will assist with the targeting. The enemy shield is old but still not weak. We must hit it hard and keep hitting it until it overloads. This may take some time, but we have all the time in the world, the Sith do not. Watch for any surprises such as hidden ground defences or secondary shields.”

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

Xalda had been quiet. She felt a bit ignored. Her eyes fell on the tank. "This one will stay," she said after Tegaea had spoken with Tempest. "If it pleases the Blessed Consort." The Sith were getting what they deserved, but somehow she felt like she had witnessed enough death today.

Mara looked at her a bit oddly. "She always talks like that," Nyssa filled her in took her by the arm. "Come on. So...the big bad dark lord sounds like a little girl? How does he pick up girls? I imagine his helmet has a modulator. Imagine their shock when he takes it off and suddenly his deep voice turns into that of a five-year old."
"I do not...see the meaning of this question," Mara said. "He may use his sorcery to alter his voice and appearance," she added after a moment.
"Oh, so he got some work done to be more manly. I wonder, is that the only place? Or did he have something else he needed to compensate for? Like below the waist and between his legs."
"This question is highly inappropriate..."
"Right, because back where you live no one ever has fun. Well, now that you've escaped the Burlap Brigade, you can cast off your shackles. Word of advice, malelings are fun for pleasure, but overall stupid and with an inflated sense of relevance. Make sure they have been tested and know who is in charge. And no matter how many times they whine about it, don't do this..." she leaned forward and whispered something highly inappropriate into Mara's ears.
Mara looked mortified. "Why would I...want to do that? It sounds unhygienic and disgusting."
"Exactly," Nyssa stated triumphantly. "Malelings always get uppity about it. Take them, use them, discard them. Then find yourself a pretty girl or two. Many of those around here. One of them may just sweep you off your feet and eat you up." She looked Mara up and down.
By now Mara was very red in the face. Her cheeks were burning. "I am not having this conversation. Now if you could focus on the task at hand and cease your insinuations, I would be most obliged," she declared in an unusually sharp tone. "What happens on my homeworld may be a cause of amusement and derision for you, but it is serious for me." She picked up the pace to get to the bridge.
Behind her Nyssa laughed. "Little mouse has claws, after all, who knew," she remarked, sounding rather satisfied with herself. "Now we just need to get you to show them more often and remove that stick from your arse." She then made a comment in Sithese that was too dirty for little kids to hear.

Regardless, Mara would proceed to fill Tegaea in on the Sith citadel. It was a rather typical medieval castle, located in the mountains. Mara did not know who had built it, though it seemed to have already been in place when the Sith made it their stronghold. There was a powerful shield and the Dominion suspected that it had an extensive tunnel system and a bunker. These had been built to resist a direct nuclear strike, but Mara was not sure how well they would hold up against orbital bombardment.

The castle was also home to slaves who were kept in horrid conditions. As far as she knew, the Sith did not have an equivalent to the Hammer of Light...because she suspected they would have used them by now. She warned that even if the Dark Lord was not there, several powerful Sith sorcerers would be present.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

That left Tempest with Xalda. It was an odd pairing. Tempest was wary of the Xioquo for reasons she did not fully understand. Perhaps it was that the fanaticism she saw in the Xio was something she reacted so negatively to. She felt worship of anyone and anything to leave one open to extremes of opinion, especially if ones faith was found to be misplaced somehow. Tempest preferred to view everyone as the people they were, not what myth said they were.
Perhaps a little unfair, but she could not comprehend anyone worshipping Siobhan, Tegaea or herself. She would obey them, fight and even possibly die beside or for them…but she would always remember they were human.
“So…you don’t have to stay. You can go and watch the Sith get blown up. I’ll stay and watch Elpsis,” Tempest said.

Meanwhile, on the bridge, Tegaea watched as the targeting information was entered and readied.
“Ma’am, we are prepared to fire on your command.”
There was a feeling of power, being able to strike an enemy with such power when they were helpless. She considered her thoughts a moment, deciding if it was a wise move. The Sith had not attacked her, and their weakening might make a power vacuum. And yet…she knew of the horrors the Sith she knew could wreck. She had seen the reports from Guard and Dominion which showed these Sith were just as vicious as their cousins in the galaxy.

It was therefore with a clear conscience that she nodded.
“Fire at will, Captain. Continue the bombardment until the shield is broken and their fortress is a crater of burning slag.”

To any Sith or unfortunate slave on the ground, through the shimmer of the shield it’d appear as though a hundred shooting stars were falling…towards them.
The shield trembled, having not faced an onslaught like this for centuries…if ever. It would not last long….

 

[Karrigan'Xalda]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

"I," Xalda paused. It still felt odd to refer to herself that way. A lot of time had passed since her liberation, but she could not entirely shake of the image of a cruel mistress looming over her with the whip and threats of being torn apart by wild beasts. She was a person. A free woman. She could do this. "I would like to stay," she finally said.

There was an awkward pause. "Does my presence offend you? The Karishzar has always spoken highly of you to me, and I have witnessed your bravery in the field," she said earnestly. It might come across as flattery, but that was not her intent. This was only her second time in space. Her first had, ironically, been with Tempest on that sun-cursed desert world. But she knew very little of her, other than that she was a great warrior and her lady's First Apprentice.

Meanwhile, Mara stood on the bridge. Her eyes were glued to the vastness of space, dotted with myriad celestial bodies. She had seen more of space than most Tephriki, but it was still quite an experience. And she had certainly not seen firepower of this magnitude until the star people had swooped down onto the moon and plucked her from it.

Scarlet beams lanced from the Scarlet's auto cannons, raining down upon Castle Maysaf. Mara was awed. For a moment, she felt bad for the many slaves trapped in the citadel. She could not help feeling guilty. She was safe and far away from danger. They, on the other hand, would die in the inferno. If they were lucky. At least they can't suffer anymore, she thought sadly.

She had to make it count. She could not simply retreat into safety and give up on her homeworld. Mara looked around. The Firemane crew members were going about their duties. Nyssa had taken up position, looking uncomfortably smug. A few of her fellow Tephriki had joined them on the bridge. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Rhea. There was a cold fire in the Rattataki woman's eye. The eyes of a woman who was finally getting some form of payback.

Down on the ground, the shield was being bombarded. It held...for now. But the ground trembled, as if struck by quakes. Inevitably, this caused quite a ruckus in the fortress. Castle Maysaf had never faced such an onslaught before, after all. Not even in the darkest days. True, the Dominion had access to the Hammers of Light, but the Vaderites had an arsenal of alchemical, biological and chemical weapons that enabled them to inflict enough damage on their enemy to make a first strike an ill-advised idea. But this was different.

"What is the meaning of this?" Darth Furcht demanded when he stormed into the command room. The Sith Lord was dressed in a pristine black uniform. His blonde hair was cropped short. His blue eyes conveyed fury.
"It is the Dominion. They have released a new weapon," Darth Zorn declared. "We must retaliate immediately and burn them to ash!"
Marshal Nikator, one of the few Non-Force-Users in the room, interjected, "This cannot be the Dominion, my Lord. The attack is coming from space. It must be connected to those objects we detected. You must get to the bunker right away...just in case."
"Know your place. A mundane like you does not command the Dark Lord of the Sith," Zorn thundered. "We must fire our missiles..."

Furcht silenced him with a wave of his hand. Suddenly Zorn was quiet because breathing had become difficult. "The Dominion has no weapons of this magnitude. I sense from where this attack is coming from. These must be the abominations that battled the Jedi filth. But they cannot withstand the power of the master race. Come to the bunker. We shall retaliate...with the power of the Dark God. Darkness shall consume them." He turned to a guard who was clad from head to toe in black armour. His face was concealed by a Vader replica mask. "Sergeant, grab some slaves. We shall need them. Make haste."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Karrigan'Xalda"]
Tempest pondered, frowned. “No, it doesn’t offend me. I know you’re loyal to the family, so it’s not that I don’t trust you. It’s just….”
She checked the tank. Elpsis was unconscious. That was good, she’d be mortified if the redhead heard what she’s say next.
“…I care a lot for Elpsis, and I’m just naturally protective of her when she’s like this. You can stay, just don’t touch the tank or controls.”
That was obvious, but she wanted to make it clear she was in charge.

The shield below held longer than might have been imagined. However, under the bombardment, its fate was sealed. Finally, when one of the massive blasts from the Harbinger cannon impacted, the shield broke, and Castle Maysaf fountained flame and dust into the air. Sensing blood, the bombardment continued, raking the mountains for any discovered buildings, equipment or installations. The cities were spared, but known military targets were struck without mercy….

As Tegaea watched the destruction with satisfaction she started to notice something odd occurring. Several of the Force Users in the room were starting to look distressed, like something was afflicting them.
“Cease fire,” Tegaea ordered. “Leonina, what’s going on?”

 

[Karrigan'Xalda]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

"I am no simpleton," Xalda said in a firm tone. "I know I do not understand all the...machinery of the sky people...yet. But I know not to idly press buttons." She gave the tank a look. Elpsis was in a deep sleep. Her eyes turned back to Tempest. "She is a very brave and beautiful. Your spirits are drawn to one another. You are a worthy life-mate for her."

However, before she could continue this train of thought and perhaps embarrass Tempest even more, her head was wracked with pain. She shook her head, as if trying to fight something off. Her expression was contorted in agony and fear. She opened her mouth, but no sound came. Then her eyes turned black. She screamed, but no one heard her. Now the Sith sorcerers could pinpoint a location for the ritual...

xxx

Everything had been going well on the bridge. Some of the Tephriki present cheered when Castle Maysaf was laid to waste. Others looked solemn, perhaps remembering the slaves who would perish as well. But the moment of triumph was not to last. Several of the Force-users started shaking and spasming, as if something malicious was afflicting them.

Rhea looked like she was in pain, and even Nyssa seemed distressed. Phoebe' hand trembled. Leonina felt a pressure building up in her skull, as if something was trying to pierce it with red-hot needles. She heard Tegaea's call, though her voice seemed distant. Remembering her mental exercises from her time as a Jedi, she imagined a wall, seeking to close off her mind.

"It's a mental attack, ma'am," she called out. "Sargord Nansal, get the Director to safety," she ordered. Strictly speaking she could not order Tegaea to leave the bridge, but it was the most prudent course. "Force-users, shield your minds! Saito, come to the bridge," she yelled the last part into her communicator. The Panathan would be an asset in shutting down this sorcery.

Reaching out with the Force, she tried to connect with those who needed help so that they could pool their powers to form a mental wall. Some seemed to stabilise. But then the eyes of several crew members turned black. All sensitive to it would feel a disturbance to the Force. For those who were as Force-Sensitive as a plank, it would still manifest in form of an unnatural, biting cold. Then spectral shapes started to manifest...

Inside her cell, Diona was pulled out of her meditation when she suddenly heard whispers. Deprived of the Force by her collar, she could not blot them out. They touched her mind, speaking of how she had been used, unjustly caged and betrayed. How she could reclaim her freedom if only she would only say yes...

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Karrigan'Xalda"]
Tempest nodded, a little chagrined. However, the next words made her cough slightly. “Yes, well, I hope so. Worthy doesn’t really come into it, mainly it’s how we…you know…get along,” she said with a vague wave.

It wasn’t a good thing that Sith tried to invade her mind and put her in mortal danger, but the distraction was quite welcome on some level.

Pressure gripped her mind and it felt like someone was trying to climb into her. Swiftly she moved to brace her mental defences from assault.

The Xio is conspiring against you. Deal with her.

Tempest scoffed as she focussed. “You…clearly…have not a clue how to do this,” she gritted out.

And then it was gone, replaced with biting cold and the manifestation of spirits. The orange lightsabre blazed.
“Xalda, focus your attacks with mine. Do not allow them to get close to the tank.”

XXX

Tegaea was no fool, and nor was she so prideful as to ignore such a command made in her best interest. She turned and headed for the exit. There was a small saferoom near the bridge. She wouldn’t get there though, as shapes started to manifest.

Several of the crew, possessed, turned on comrades or attacked the consoles. The spirits reached out to drain the life of those scattered around.

“Strike back!” Leonina called. She drew her lightsabre and gave one possessed crewer a blow to the head with the hilt to knock them out, then turned on one of the shadows. Her blade passed through it. The monster seemed to laugh and reach out towards her. Summoning her strength, Leonina held the tip of her lightsabre into the shadow’s face, the burning plasma starting to melt it away until she gave it a blast of telekinetic energy which seemed to scatter the dark shadows it was composed of.

Natalie meanwhile had pulled Mara down behind a console. “Stay down. Guns won’t do any use to this mystical stuff. But…” she looked across at a fallen guard’s stun baton. “Draw its attention, I’ve got an idea.”

 

[Karrigan'Xalda]

Xalda heard Tempest's words and yet did not. It was like the Dahomian was miles away, trying to reach someone far away. The Xioquo was trapped in her body. When she tried to move, it was with the awkward gait of a puppet whose strings were being pulled by a puppeteer who was having some trouble getting his toy to go in the direction he wanted.

Slay her. She is faithless, the voice commanded. She drew her sword. Her face was contorted in pain. Obey, the voice thundered. Her head hurt. Deep inside her mind, shame gripped Xalda. She was unworthy. Just a slave. She had let the abominations onto the ship. Her comrades would die because of her. She tried to scream, but no sound came. Her shame filled her with anger.

The spirit loomed large above her. The dark entity towered over both Tempest and Xalda. With each passing moment and each life that was lost on the ship, it grew more powerful. If you will not obey, you will feel us. She forced her mouth open and roared. A cloud of black smoke was expelled from her mouth. “I am no slave!“ Her body shook and she was forced to her knees. Xalda coughed. Violently enough to cause her throat pain.

xxx

Suddenly, demons! The bridge had erupted into chaos. Several crew members, possessed by the abominations Sith sorcery had summoned, turned on their comrades. Spirits reached out to drain the life or shatter the sanity of those scattered around the command deck.

Mara had taken refuge behind a console with Natalie. A deep fear filled her. She was no soldier or a warrior. She did not have of these special powers and now what was supposed to be a safe place had been filled with demons.

She felt a cold shiver run down her spine. Safe yourself. Run! Were these her thoughts or the whispers or demons, she did not know. Then she heard Natalie's voice. She forced herself to focus. She did not need to have superpowers.

She had spent all her life running and cowering, trying to keep her head down. That had been how the Dominion had controlled her. “How do you know that'll work?“ she asked, seeing where Natalie's eyes had drifted.
“Trust me.“
Mara took a deep breath. Blaster bolts whizzed through the air as she accessed the console. One got so close for comfort that it grazed her. She winced from pain and shock. Her hands moved over the consol and she quickly stripped it down „Go!“ she yelled. Then she triggered an electrical surge...

xxx

The bridge was in chaos. Blaster bolts and slugs flew everywhere. Possessed crew members clashed with their former comrades. The presence of the spectres was a crushing one. It bore down on her mind and body. Her limbs felt like lead. She winced when red-hot needles pierced her mind. The Rattataki raged against the invisible chains that seemed to hold her in place. Her bloodlust rose.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the Cathar Force Master confront the abominations. Mel had taken cover behind a console and was engaging hostiles with accurate salvoes from her twin blasters. Phoebe was in the fray, hewing down abominations with her sword. "Fight, Tephriki! Fight for your freedom!" the Nautolan called out while she struck with her blade, her voice so loud that it seemed to be warring with that of the demons.

An aura of the Force surrounded her, but it was a faint one. She drew upon it by instinct rather than formal training. Blood ran down one of her tentacles, as one of the shadows slashed at her and scored a cut. Still, the Nautolan rebel fought with an unrelenting fury.

Her impassioned words struck a word with the Rattataki. Her freedom was what she was fighting for. No orders, no masters, no hypocritical codes. With an angry roar, she broke her bonds. Rhea knocked a possessed guard out by hitting him with the pommel of her sword. A blast of lightning shrieked from her hand towards foes. It staggered them. A blaster bolt burnt her and she furiously slammed the shooter into a wall. Up ahead Nyssa had been overpowered and was being battered by its tendrils, her lightsabre having been ineffective against it. One of its tendrils sprouted claws, which it dug into the Pureblood. Hearing her cries of rage and pain, Rhea leapt, bypassing possession victims closing in on her.

The abomination turned. One large, shadowy tendril grabbed her by the throat. Mental talons sunk into her brain. One of its claws cut into her shoulder. The pain was terrible. Like being burnt alive. Her sword fell out of her hand, but as the creature moved to seize it with a tendril, she called upon the Force to make it soar straight into what passed for the beast's stomach. The demon howled in agony, roaring so loudly that her ears felt like a sonic grenade had just explosed in her midst. Then orange tendrils suddenly seized the demon. They came from Nyssa. The demon's howls grew louder, then it dissipated.

xxx

Mezha had not been on the bridge. Instead she had watched the bombardment from another viewing area. Satisfaction had been mixed with sadness about the fate of the slaves. There would have been Republican Guard members among them. Many innocents would have lost their lives.

But they died free, she thought. Perhaps the Yun'o would grant them peace in the great beyond. But then all hell broke loose. She was a child of Yun-Yuuzhan, the Cosmic Lord, and thus free from the curse some called the Force. Its manifestations could not deceive her or lead her to perdition. Thus she did not hear the whispers or feel cold. There was no pressure inside her skull. But she could witness the effects the Sith's perverse sorcery had. All of a sudden, fighting broke out in the room.

Black-eyed possession victims closed in. She found herself engaged in a furious melee. Talons sprouted from her hands. She gourged a man's eyes out. As she fought, she took a hard blow to the cheek bone, causing her to cry out. She plunged her claw into the attacker's throat as deeply as she could manage, ripping apart one of the major arteries and cutting a hole in his windpipe. Blood poured out and all he could do was clutch at his neck. His death followed shortly thereafter.

When she tore a gun out of a possessed marine's hands, he body-checked her. Falling, she pulled him down with her. Both tumbled to the ground, wrestling for control. She cut him with her claw and tried to fiddle with a mechanism around her neck. But he rammed forehead into her face. Pulling her close, he wrapped his thick arm around her neck. Blood started not to reach her brain and her vision dimmed. She drove her knee into the man's groin and bit into his arm. The grip loosened a bit and she rolled away. He came at her, slashing with a vibroknife, and she fired. The tip of the blade raked across her chest, and her holdout bolter's buckshot round blew his head away.


xxx

As befitting a warship of its size, the Scarlet had a large medbay. Saito had been making her rounds, checking up on wounded soldiers. Her broken arm was still in a sling. As a result, she was far away from the bridge when all hell broke loose. Suddenly pressure gripped her mind. Something foreign and malevolent tried to crawl inside. There were whispers and a biting cold. Luckily, she was an Epicanthix. Her mind had remained closed to the lies of the Sith tyrants who oppressed her people in the Pacanth Reach. It also remained closed to the mental manipulations of the demons summoned by the Sith. As she fought it off, nurse tried to sneak up on her, syringe in hand.

As the nurse tried to jab it into the Panathan's neck, her hand was suddenly seized by an unnatural power, paralysing it. While she struggled, Saito turned and shot her point-blank with a blaster pistol. It had been set on stun. The nurse staggered, but whatever was possessing her seemed to counter the effect of the stun bolt. She flung a glass at Saito. Glass shards cut into her cheek and forehead. Some of the hot tea got into her eyes. That hurt. She closed her eyes. Luckily, she could see without them.

Saito ducked under a savage punch and kicked the woman in the knee. Then she pistol-whipped her. As the woman lay on the ground, the Panathan reached out with the Force. Her skill set was a very particular one, namely Force suppression. She could perceive the tendrils ensnaring the woman's mind. Whatever was possessing the woman was a construct of the Force. Without the Force, it could not act. The woman hissed, her face contorted in pain. Then black smoke escaped her mouth and she was knocked out cold. "Restrain her," the Sergeant ordered another nurse, who had been hiding. "Saito to bridge...we have hostiles in the medbay," she spared the unconscious nurse a look. "I believe it's a mental attack," she added, hearing sounds of battle coming from outside. Quickly, she headed out, following the threads of the Force.


xxx

Diona was all alone in her cell. The collar around her neck kept her from using the Force. The same applied to the energy cage she had been put in. It did not blot out the whispers of the abomination trying to crawl into her head. Why do you let them chain you? You have been betrayed again and again. You owe these outsiders nothing. They have abandoned your world. Do you want their Vong allies to enslave your people? Reclaim your freedom. It hurt to try and blot them out. When she tried, her mind winced in pain. "No." The pain got worse.

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

[member="Karrigan'Xalda"]

The greatest of the entities loomed above Tempest and Xalda. Unlike the others it was not a possessed crewer or a manifestation of smoke but a giant of seemingly polished obsidian filled with the coiling shadows. It seemed to be an avatar or vessel for one individual in particular. However, their features were surely somewhat…embellished.

“There you are,” it said, looking at the tank. “Poor girl, kept here with a race traitor and a mudblood. Soon your time will come…once these vermin are exterminated.”

Tempest was not the sort to play games. She unleashed a full salvo of lightning at the monster…and saw it crackle and fade to nothingness against it.

“A pitiful attempt. Without your technology you are as useless as the Jedi below. Now feel the full power of the Dark Side!”
Tendrils of dark energy flowed from every poor and opening, seeking to ensnare Tempest. Swiftly she summoned a shield to protect herself, but she had rarely faced such a formidable onslaught. Swiftly her attempts at counter-attacking were being dismissed and she was forced to put all her efforts into defending herself.

Xalda meanwhile was receiving little of the giant’s attention. When she would cough and try and stand a blast of telekinetic energy would slam towards her like an invisible fist.
“But you are. A weak, useless slave. All of this is due to your failure. Now watch as your precious mudblood and race traitor friends are exterminated!”
The giant sure liked to hear himself talk….

XXX

Mara had a very good understanding of primitive technology, and in this case it was actually an asset. Knowing the basics allowed her to strip down a console quickly. With that in mind she was able to isolate and send out an arcing bolt of energy at one of the shadows. It stopped, stunned briefly. Enough time for Natalie to put her plan into action

Diving forward she scooped up the stun baton and rammed it into the shadow at full power. Convulsing, the shadow dissipated with a distant scream.

“Good work!” Natalie said, heading to Mara. “Now, break into that closet there. Stun blasters. Stun the possessed people.”

XXX

Wisely the shadows and possessed seemed to realise that Leonina and Rhea were their greatest threats, and so they attacked both. The possessed especially were sent at Leonina, as if knowing that she might not be willing to strike down her crew.

However, they had not figured on the powers of the former Jedi. Weaving the Force she reached out to break the possession, not through mental power, but through stunning their hosts. As each was stunned she could deliver a knockout blow to them, or leave them open to Natalie and Mara.

It was Nyssa’s appearance though that caused the oddest reaction. One of the shadows which had so far survived her onslaught seemed to look at her, staring, then pointedly moved away to attack others.

A voice would speak in her mind. “A red Sith working with these scum? You should join with us, you would be a queen….”

XXX

As Mezha quite literally tore through her opponents there suddenly entered a new figure. Freya Solveig had just been having fun watching Sith get blown up and now suddenly there were possessed people everywhere trying to attack her. This got Freya mad. As anyone in Firemane knew well...don't get Freya angry.
As one of them came to stab her she caught the blade and punched the woman so hard it shattered her jaw. She'd never liked that 'officer' anyway, so her punch was not held back in the slightest.
"You seem a specimin of human strength. Why do you toil with these cretins? Serve us instead and be rewarded."
"Let me think about it; how about you take your offer and insert it up your ass along with all your jackboots you frakking piece of poodoo."
Immediately a presence invaded her mind, but Freya was not having any of that. In the past some people counted cards in their heads to resist mental attacks or solved math puzzles. Freya invented and perfected insults under her breath constantly. Unfortunately, the curtain of PG-13 would instantly descend if any of these were listed here, but suffice to say it was enough to completely negate the mental attacks...and make the Sith sorcerers wince.

Then she went to help her buddy. Since killing the possessed would likely be a little too far - officers and bosses were dumb sometimes about stuff like that - she instead implied blunt force, stun bolts and shots to the leg. She would quite agree with a certain Terminator's assessment of 'they'll live' after shooting a possessed through the knee. They were weak enough to be turned, this was their punishment.

Finally, she bodily lifted the one nearest to Mezha into a chokehold so the Vong could get a strike in. When that was done she grinned. "Come on, Spikes, let's get some more of these assholes."

XXX

“Stay behind me, Lady,” Varkasa ordered. She fervently wished she had her powered armour…but alas she had not expected a battle on the warship. Still, she had her blade out and stood in front of Tegaea.

The shadows closed in, and sadly her blade passed through them like smoke without seemingly any harm. Desperately she backed away, but one of the shadows reached out and the Qadiri let out a cry as the tendrils started to choke her. However, she was lucky enough to have at her side a blaster. Desperately, she fired it blindly at the spiritual attacker, the stun rounds seeming to briefly stop its advance. Looking around she spied a fallen ion blaster.

Tegaea meanwhile looked around, and as possessed crew moved to grab her, perhaps as hostage or simply to murder, she growled. She’d been in the untender hands of a Sith before and she would not be so again. She was not a master of the Force, or even a user of it at all, but she kept herself fit and trained. Thus, when one jerkily grabbed at her she administered a powerful blow to their chest, then knee and then an elbow to the face.

Saito’s message came in as more closed in. “Saito, entrance two to bridge. Need help!” she said, breathing heavily.

Her enemies seemed to pause a moment. Why? For more gloating of course!

“What manner of queen are you? A squib with no power? A woman whose martial virtues are dulled by ease and luxury.”
“Exactly. But I’ve got a surprise for you.”
“Do tell.”
“Righteous Vanguard, concentrate full bombardment on the Sith ruins.”
“Your weapons cannot reach me. You have failed.”
“We’ll see. Open fire. Full apocalypse bombardment NOW!”

Time snapped back and they moved to grab her, and there was only so long she could hold them off.

XXX

The other ships in the fleet had mostly stopped firing. That is except the Righteous Vanguard whose main weapon was the formidable Vortex Macro Cannon. This weapon had a certain ammunition type called the Apocalypse round. It was a weapon which paid no heed to armour, ground or anything else in its path.

Lining up carefully, it fired. Right about now the Sith who were still alive down below would be getting some serious danger senses through the Force….

 

[Karrigan'Xalda]

[member="Tegaea Alcori"]

Tempest and Xalda would not know this, but the features of the avatar bore a strong resemblance to Darth Furcht, Dark Lord of the Sith, Vicar of The Vader and so on and so forth. They were just embellished. The apparition was even taller than its summoner. To the point where its long limbs looked plain creepy and resembled those of a spider.

Moreover, it had a dramatic, booming voice, as opposed to the high-pitched one of its creator. One could not appear menacing when one sounded like a little girl, after all. Regardless, as melodramatic as it was, the avatar was no slouch in combat. Tempest faced off against the abomination, but was soon forced on the defensive.

When Xalda rose to aid her, it casually summoned a powerful telekinetic blast. The wave slammed into her like an invisible fist, hitting her in the chest. It felt like someone had knocked the wind out of her. She soared towards the tank. Even in her pain, she had the presence of mind to push herself through the Force, so she hit the floor instead. Her ribs howled in pain, and she coughed up blood.

The abomination's words angered her. She wiped off the blood from her chin. A Xioquo curse escaped her lips. Her hate-filled green eyes fell upon the Force demon, then the blood on her hand. She smeared the blood over her blade and began to chant in a silent whisper, speaking in her native tongue. A cloak of darkness was wrapped around her body and her aura vanished.

While the abomination was engaging Tempest with a series of hammering blows, Xalda struck. The Dahomian would probably sense her presence shortly before the Xioquo appeared behind the demon and thrust her blade. There was a surge of energy when her blade cut into the abomination. Smoke rose from where her sword had struck. But then she suddenly screamed in pain when a clawed tendril sliced into her thigh. The wound looked sickly. As blood dripped out, her vision began to blur and she felt like the sun was burning her skin.

xxx

It was, as a matter of fact, difficult to make any headway for Saito. Having heard Tegaea's call, she tried to make haste to the bridge entrance, but the corridors were swarming with possessed crew members. Too many for her to sneak past. Saito had tried to get past them by obfuscating her aura, but it had not taken long for them to spot her. And once one of the shadows had seen you, all of the possessed had.

She and a few guards were quickly at risk of being overrun. Heedless of death or injury, the possessed advanced upon them, fighting them with guns, blades or simply their fists. Saito shot, punched, stunned, suppressed. There were too many. Weaving the Force she reached out to break possessions, stunning crew members before wrapping a metaphysical cold blanket around them when the demon tried to break through the paralysis.

Unable to act, the demon left its host. Suddenly the eyes of a soldier behind her turned black. The trooper struck her with the butt of his rifle. Saito fell to the ground. Rolling to avoid being shot, she kicked the rifle out of the trooper's grasp. Then she shot him in the leg with her holdout bolter. Despite getting his knee shot through the soldier still came at her, before being struck by lightning and knocked out by a Qadiri soldier.

The Qadiri helped Saito up. As more possessed marched forward, the two bolted. "There are too many of them. How are we supposed to beat these demons if they can jump from host to host?" the soldier exclaimed while blasting a charging possessed with more lightning.
"We can't - not like this. Pull back," Saito retorted.
Up ahead of them was a heavy blast door. It was starting to lower. "Come on!" one of the guards standing behind it roared as the possessed got closer and closer. Arms reached for Saito, trying to grab her. Her injured arm howled in pain. She kicked one and shot another. The Force surged through her, stunning some.
"Fire in the hole!" a trooper flung a concussion grenade into the fray. Saito ran. Boom. Throwing herself to the ground, she slid across it just before her path was blocked. Having reached the other side, she was relieved to find that the guards had equipped themselves with Neural Bands.
"Get yourself one of those," she ordered the trooper who had come with her. Her ears were ringing from the explosion. "Hold this area. Gas the corridor if you have to." She got up, legs a bit shaky. The Panathan breathed in deeply. Tegs' plea rang in her mind, but the Force conveyed another imperative with her. Guilt rose up inside her.
"Where are you going, Sergeant?" the soldier asked.
Her decision was made. "To the control unit. Nereus protect you," she said without any hint of sarcasm. "Ma'am," she spoke into her communicator. "The path to you is blocked. Possessed people everywhere. But...I think I know how to get rid of them. Hold on."

xxx

One moment the shadow loomed above her, then it was being electrocuted and Natalie put it down with a stun baton. Mara breathed in heavily. Sweat poured down her face and back. She got up a bit shakily and hastened towards the closet.

Naturally, access was guarded by an electronic interface. Fortunately, Mara knew all about stubborn computers that did not want to give her access. She had often been called upon to get the ancient cogitators working. So she quickly hotwired it. She barely had time to retrieve a blaster when one of the possessed charged her.

A loud, blood-curdling shriek emanated from the possessed woman. Mara felt an unnatural power grip her mind, trying to force entrance. Desperation and fear overwhelmed her, and she pulled the trigger, firing bolt after bolt into the possessed. Finally it registered that her foe had hit the ground. Mara stood there, seemingly frozen. Then a strong hand grabbed her shoulder pulled her down, just before she could be riddled with blaster bolts.

She found herself staring in Mel's eyes. "Learn to duck, Technician," the Mirialan said harshly, though not unkindly. "And get some situational awareness."
Despite herself, Mara felt a bit indignant. "Not all of us make a career out of shooting and being shot at."
"Get used to it," the Mirialan said dismissively, before raising her gun. Without bothering to peek out of cover, she fired her blaster blindly. Somehow, its bolts struck possessed with pinpoint accuracy. "You know, there's a silver lining to this."
Mara looked at her like she was mad. "I don't see what silver lining there could possibly be to the ship being overrun by bloodthirsty demons and half the crew being possessed."
Mel rolled her eyes. "This crap does not come cheap. It takes a lot of juice, especially if you're beaming from the planet into space. The star people just bombed their fancy castle to smithereens. This means they must have really pissed the pigs off. Which means," she paused to fire again.
"Tons of dead Sith," Mara finished.
"That's the spirit." The banter was interrupted by the need to put down possessed.

xxx

Mezha was not sensitive to the Force in any way. Indeed, she was even more deaf to it than a plank, and that said something. For this she was grateful. Leaving aside the fact that she could not be possessed, it meant she did not have to put up with annoying voices. Non-Force-Using comrades had told her what that was like. Sometimes she wondered whether Jedi and Sith sorcerers hoped that those afflicted would fling themselves to their doom to get the voices to shut up.

Regardless, there were plenty of cursed people. Mezha felt a bit sorry for them. It was not their fault that they were turned against their comrades. They were, after all, not blessed like her. Of course, her sympathy only went so far. It did not keep her from snapping the wrist of an officer as she twisted the blaster from the human. Or shooting her in the leg afterwards. She would survive it. Probably, though she might need a limb replacement. When the fallen officer tried to reach for a holdout blaster, Mezha rammed her boot into her face.

It also did not stop her from biting off the nose of a Firemane soldier after being headbutted. Despite the evident pain, her foe drew a vibroknife, stabbing and slashing through the air. The blade cut Mezha close to her eyebrow. Parrying her attacker's arm away, she raked her claws over her stomach. Her foe threw a furious punch, before being forced into a chokehold by Freya. Seizing her chance, Mezha, face bloody from being hit, broke her opponent's jaw.

For a moment, the two had a brief respite. “Lead the way, Blondie,“ she spoke, her bruised lips forming a grim smile. She had to admit that Freya was quite attractive for a human, even though Mezha found it strange that they all had so much hair.

“Should head the bridge. The Vaderites have used this sorcery before. They'll want to decapacitate your leadership. And gloat, I've been told.“ She grabbed a gun from one of the bodies.

Xxx

The bridge was a mess. Rhea, Leonina, Phoebe and others were locked in combat with possessed crewers and shadows. Phoebe was trying to fight her way towars Tegs and the Cataphract, but shadows and possessed blocked her path. Nyssa did not hold back. If the crewers let themselves be possessed, they were weak. If they survived, their injuries would be a lesson to them. Still, her focus was on the shadows.

She blinked when one of them pointedly ignored her after staring at her. The gall that creature had! She was True Sith. Then suddenly she heard a voice whisper inside her mind. Nyssa's ability to counter mentalism was not strong, so she could not just blot it out.

Nyssa heard its words and...laughed. “If I was your 'queen', I'd feed most of you sub-human, semi-sentient, thieving garbage to Tuk'ata, and then apologise for giving them sub-standard meat,“ she hissed through gritted teeth. She elbowed a possessed, then grappled her and threw her through the air.

However, then she winced when she felt a sharp pain in the back of her skull. With each moment that passed, the pain grew more intense. “Then you are even more of a degenerate than the mubdloods infesting this ship. You shame your race. Now you will experience the full power of the Sith'ari.“
The pain intensified. Red Lightning crawled over her body and drove her to her knees. “Your house is in ruins. Your own blood betrayed the Sith and you are the lackey of vermin.“ It felt like a sharp knife was carving through her brain.

Pain. She revelled in pain. “Words are wind,“ she spat, speaking haltingly. “Let me show you how a daughter of the Typhojem does things.“ And so she charged. Into the pain, into the storm of red lightning, eyes ablaze and sword in hand.

Xxx

She was already damned. In the greater scheme of things, her resistance might be meaningless. It would not improve her standing with her captors. Indeed, they would never know in the first place.

Just her.

Maybe that was all that mattered.

The demon was relentless in its wroth. The pain was agonising, like burning spines being inserted into her brain, like being burned and frozen all at once. She screamed.

The demon laughed. In between tormenting her and gloating, it tried to tempt her with the prospect of freedom.

Diona did not say yes.