Axed Anaxes

[Hoid Hallafax]

Anaxes - Crow's Nest

They'd sent out the call for help several weeks ago and it was only a few days ago they had recieved a reply.

"Help is on the way." Johnston could only imagine what this "help" was. The Crow's Nest might have been out in the middle of nowhere in the forest, but even they didn't live under a rock. Corellia was stretched thin between supporting colonies and re-organizing into whatever it was changing into. His comrades had told him that it was a waste of time hoping the Corellians would help, but he still held out hope. After all, these people were rebels at heart...They knew what it meant to throw off an oppressive government, and what it took.

He shielded his eyes from the sun as he looked up into the evening sky. Overhead in the distance he could see the wedges, like big slices of pie hanging in the sky...

Anaxes - Aboard the Mangler

Captain Deveron shifted in his boots in attempt to keep himself awake as the ensign delivered his report. They hadn't heard anything from high command in weeks. He knew things were essentially in chaos with the Grayson Emperium ousting the confused Imperial fleet from Coruscant. Deveron himself wasn't sure where the new base was but he had heard they held a great fleet.

But here he was...Aiding the rabble in keeping Annaxes under Imperial control. The Mangler had intercepted a rebel transmission a few weeks ago and another recently implying the Corellians were on their way, and that meant he and his ships needed to be in tip top form. But...

This report was dreadfully boring.

"Yes, yes alright," he said with a great sweeping motion. "I'll read the full report myself, now get back to your station ensign." The younger man scurried off and he wondered if this was what he had to look forward to now...Green behind the ears conscripts. He missed his clone crew, but they were the best the Empire had to offer and with their holdings in tatters they needed as many as possible to be serving in important support roles.

Though they were in the core Anaxes was essentially a backwater to the old Imperial Confederation...

By the Force he wished there was something he could command to be shot down...

 

[Percy Vaceldau]

Location: Anaxes Orbit,
Objective: Hope the Shroud and Fake IDs work, wait for a response from the big ship
Time: Just around dusk on world
Equipment: DL-44 Blaster Pistol, DE-10 Blaster Pistol, Sunglasses, Cigarettes
Chewing: Pen

As I exited hyperspace and engaged a shroud that would mask my ship as an Imperial Confederation supply ship, I lit a cigarette and put it in the corner of my mouth, allowing the small column of smoke to find its way to the ceiling of my cabin. I kicked my feet back and relaxed, spinning my DL-44 around my index finger as I waited for a response from the Destroyer that had the planet on lockdown. This would be a somewhat easy task, especially now that I had an astromech to accompany me and make my job significantly easier. I hated negotiating with droids, but owning my own was never a problem to me.

He provided a significant feeling of company, getting rid of my formerly lonesome lifestyle. It still wouldn't satisfy my longing for a best friend or some sort of partner in crime. But it would do for now.

"Hey droid, come up here and make sure the shroud is working fine. Once you start to pick up the activation of their communications, let me know and I'll be right back up here in a jiffy, got it?" I said, beckoning the droid to come connect its scomp link into the cockpit's main computer system, enhancing the efficiency of my shroud by not having to have me sit there and make sure it was functioning.

There wasn't much of a visual aid to being in a Star Destroyer, so they probably wouldn't notice that I was in a pretty suspicious freighter. Either way, they wouldn't question it because it was the appropriate supply ship. Probably.

The droid scooted into the cockpit of the ship and extended its scomp link, connecting it with the main computer, beeping with attitude.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." I said as I stood up and walked away from my seat, entering the cargo area where I was holding the supplies. It was good to be helping the faction of my own homeworld. It felt good.

I was, of course, being compensated greatly for this due to the danger of smuggling supplies in, but I would've done it even without pay. It was for my home. Whoever was down there in the Crow's nest needed it.

I awaited a response from the droid that the ship responded.

[member="Corellian Muse Fuel"]

 

[Konan Sunracer]

The Corellian military waaaas changing. Some thought for the better, some thought for the worse. Right now Konan was in the later camp. Why did high command think it was a good idea to send him of all people on a supply mission? Well, truthfully he was supposed to just blend in and call for back-up if things got...Too hairy.

He flicked a few switches on his dash and checked his scopes as the nondescript freighter dropped out of hyperspace. The hunk of junk shuddered loudly as it exited and hit turbulence, probably a small dust cloud or something similar. The planet was in his sights now and the mission com he and other pilots had been giving began to blink meaning he was in proximity to at least one. He picked up the secure communicator and thumbed the switch.

"This is Konan, Rusty Panther checking. Anyyyyone else make it to the blockade?" In front of him was no less than three Star Destroyers. Smaller than the ones he'd seen before, but there was no mistaking the shape. Passives were telling him they were one of the new KDY ships, Donnager-Class patrol cruisers. Four escort ships floated alongside them. Nothing bigger than a corvette though. Before he'd left he'd been assured that the freighter he was in was using some sort of stealth tech to make him nearly invisible on Imperial scopes and sensors, but he still didn't feel comfortable using a com like this, even if it was secured. His astromech rolled up from down the hallway and tweeted at him.

"Yeah, go wake him up. Hope its useful." He was another engineering droid. One of those Mandalorian hybrid astromechs. Usually they worked 'okay' for normal astromech tasks but these guys came with a shell that made them incredible load workers and engineers. DD-6 was still asleep in his charging pod however.

[member="Percy Vaceldau"]

 

[Percy Vaceldau]

Location: Entering Anaxes atmosphere
Objective: Land first
Time: Night on World
Equipment: Same as last post
Chewing: Nothing, smoking a cigarette

Just as I finished inspecting the cargo bay and all of the supplies that needed to get down to the crow's nest, I heard the droid yelling from the cabin. Sucks. I was going to take a 4 minute power nap just then too. Pushing myself up and grabbing my blaster, I headed towards the cabin and plopped myself down in a seat, slowly moving my freighter forward into the orbit of the planet.

"Set the navcomputer to wherever the hell they said the Crow's Nest is. Got it?" I said to the droid, holding the cigarette in between my two fingers.

The droid beeped back in response, this time with a hint of attitude. Droids droids droids. Almost like there personalities were too human sometimes. You couldn't trust them. That's why I never dealt with them in business. At that moment, another person patched through a private frequency issued to the smugglers that were operating on this mission.

"Annnnyone else make it to the blockade?" said the voice. It was a voice I liked because it meant there was some sort of personality behind it. Grabbing the comms device and putting out my cigarette at the same time, I pressed down the button and spoke.

"Yep. Made it through quite easier than I expected.. got my guard up because of that. Just used a shroud and they fell for it. Stash of fake IDs on me anyway, just in case. Got the cargo stowed away in the ship's panelling just for good measure." I said, looking down at the computer to ensure the comms were still encrypted. They were.

As I wrapped up my intro to the other assumed smuggler, I found myself in the atmosphere of Anaxes, heading towards the Crow's Nest. Would take maybe 15 minutes to get there, but I was fine with that.

[member="Konan Sunracer"]

 

[BB-4001A]

YTA-1300 Luck's Revenge
Crew: [member="Daiya"], [member="Mir Nehrahn"]
Exiting hyperspace

[ chore bot theme ]​

Corellian craftsmanship was a legend.

From hyperspace lanes through the Core, the Rim, and even Wild Space, fringers, senators, the extremely wealthy, and the most impoverished junker traversed a sea of stars on the trustworthiness of a brand that had come to represent the wanderlust and work ethic of an entire star system and its people. It was even in the name. When you flew a ship bearing the brand of the Corellian Engineering Corporation, you had a right to trust and believe in the quality of manufacturing that you were about to receive. And faith to anticipate that the journey to follow would be one hell of a ride.

...well, to be fair, it was one hell of a ride.

Smoke still clouded the interior of the cockpit, the evidence of a small electrical fire that had sparked when the hyperdrive controls had overloaded. Burns and soot marred the G2 repair droid, as it's stalk-like neck peered over the top of the console. The small extinguisher capsule was still releasing thin streams of vapor, adding to the fog.

Thankfully neither of them breathed, otherwise the cockpit would have likely been quite toxic.

"I see it!" the other droid exclaimed, answering the repair bot's earlier exclamation.

The other droid however seemed something of a misnomer. The G2 had bare plating covering most of it's obviously metal and artificial body. Bolts and servos made up it's joints, with exposed wires visible in-between the seams, fueling articulation with hydraulic fluid and circuitry which conveyed electrical impulses. In contrast, the other droid was nothing if not human. A dark mahogany tone permeated his flesh, which was warm and pliable to the touch. Padded with what felt like fat and muscle in all the places where one would have expected to find such soft tissues. His eyes, darting from one console to the next, were a golden brown that was eerily alive to behold.

"Great, when you're done solving that navi-link problem, we've also got an imbalance in the hyperdrive core," G2-M9 deadpanned. A loud clang echoed through the cockpit, as the droid chucked the extinguisher capsule so that it's arms were free to begin attempting some level of damage control. Or, if nothing else, at least damage mitigation.

The pair of droids were both starting to question the trustworthiness behind that Corellian Engineering Reputation.

"I know, I know!" the deceptively young-looking automaton spat, his own hands working in a blur as he multi-tasked piloting the space-going jalopy. "Next time we steal a ship, remind me to check that the navicomputer works before we take off." As he said the last bit, the boy's bright irises darted up as though contemplating the many and sundry inadequacies of this craft, which he was now laboring to address. "...and actually knows how to compute," the droid amended readily.

As he worked, the boy ran a series of 'what if's' through his own processors. Analysis of available options, statistical likelihood of success or other outcome with plausible actions and remedies. No, no, and no. No matter how he crunched the variables, this ship's navi-computer just had too much room for error. They'd need to come out of hyperspace earlier than projected. "Hang on, I'm taking us out of hyperspace."

"Shouldn't we ask the fleshlings before doing that?"

Drawing his legs up into the pilot's chair, the child-like droid stood on his knees as he reached up to toggle the overhead controls. "I don't need permission," the boy remarked, with an irritated click of his tongue at the suggestion. As he reached forward across the flight controls to grab the three trottle dials of the hyperdrive.

As the boy rocked the dials forward, the mottled space beyond the canopy became a stream of light and, then, the familiar backdrop of stars. Sitting cross-legged in the pilot's chair, the afro-headed youth turned to look at the G2. "And I don't see any of them up here trying to navigate this mess," the boy added pointedly.

The eye-stalk of the repair droid bobbed, as though to indicate his agreement with that sentiment. As the droid looked up, and out into the starry expanse, the droid asked, "So, are we at least in the same sector as Anaxes?"

Leaning to the left, even as the young droid worked to answer just that question, the young boy fired back, "Do I look like an astromech to you?"

"No," the swan-necked repair bot noted succinctly.

"Astromechs are taller."

Without comment, as he continued to re-calculate the navicomputer data, the dark-skinned droid simply kicked one leg out, catching the repair droid in the neck and toppling the droid over.

The boy's face was illuminated blue as something finally came up on the screen. "We're in the Axum System," the small droid stated, ignoring the strain of servos that marked G2's clumsy attempts at straightening himself up from the floor. "Near some planet called... Ichium."

Well, at least they were roughly where they'd intended to be. A little further out than intended, and behind schedule, but this was salvageable. Maybe. Probably.

Four broke blokes. A chick, a Wookiee, and two droids. In a stolen freighter, because what else did they have? Plus, the offer of a pardon by the Corellia Confederation seemed like it was retroactive after the job was done, so stealing one out of Coronet beforehand shouldn't be much of a problem.

...at least, not any more of a problem than the ship was already proving to be.

Shifting around in the oversized pilot chair, the small droid worked to navigate the Corellian ship toward a blue star in the night sky. A trio of triangular ships were visible on the com-scan read out.

Imperial star destroyers.

[member="Percy Vaceldau"] | [member="Konan Sunracer"] | [member="Corellian Muse Fuel"]​

 

[Daiya]

Location: Aboard the YTA-1300 Luck's Revenge
Objective: Win an argument
Crew: [member="BB-4001X"]

---

"It's totally not!" the words flew harsh from her mouth at the hairy beast sitting across from her at the table, uttered from a mouth under narrowed eyes. The owner of the features shook her mane of blonde hair, streaked with occasional strands dyed blue and pink, the untidied manner in which it arrayed out behind her matching the rest of the young teen's rumpled attire. On a ship with a Wookiee and a pair of droids, though, there wasn't much need to look nice.

It wasn't at all like being on [member="Loreena Arenais"]'s ship. The princess herself wasn't always primped and preened, but she did set a certain standard that Daiya found lacking among the company here. They should at least be glad she had showered.

"Look, the blaster is great and all, but the slugthrower offers plenty of different options when someone's using defenses," the girl opined, the passion carried clear on her high voice. It wouldn't have been surprising if she could be heard clear across ship. "But a blaster's shots are all just variations of the same PEW! Big pew, little pew, if someone can defend against your pew-pew, what'cha gonna do-do?"

The big Wookiee sitting across from her offered a pointed growl. To which Daiya just scoffed, trying hard to hold back a snort of laughter, and said, "That's easy for you to say, Tawrro."

Tawrrowaldr's eyes twinkled, and then Daiya couldn't hold back her giggle, throwing her head forward as she laughed at the subtle wit of the big alien. Too many beings out there didn't understand that Wookiees could be peaceful, much less funny. Even though the girl found it useful that Tawrro was intimidating to people, she wished they weren't always trapped by that fear. That kind of fear had ended more than one friendship for her over the past few years.

Maybe that was why she was on a ship filled with droids now.

She lurched forward involuntarily, feeling the ship rattle around them. Gripping the table to steady herself, Daiya glanced across at her Wookiee companion, who shared a far less troubled expression on his face. Undeterred from the worry that crossed her face, the girl stood from the small table in the ship's lounge, still bracing herself for fear that the deck under her feet would decide to shift again. For her sake, the ship seemed to be behaving itself again, and a tepid relief came over her. Daiya could not wait until they were back on real ground again.

Walking the short corridor into the ship's cramped cockpit, Daiya spied the first of the two droids handily. Its bulky frame was sprawled out across part of the floor rather than upright or seated somewhere. Weird. The girl edged around the goose-necked droid to step deeper into the cockpit, covering her nose and mouth as she coughed violently. Something harsh was in the air, accompanied by the acrid smell that she knew was the remains of a fire. "Ugh, BB, it stinks! What happened?" she said to the strange, human-looking droid in the pilot's chair, distinguishable only by the course, black afro that poked up over the top. Peering beyond him to the viewscreen, she could see a planet hanging in the void beyond. "Are we there? Is that Anaxes?"

 

[Hoid Hallafax]

Captain Deveron flipped through his datapad, scanning the report that the ensign had given him earlier. It detailed the terrorists' movements on Annaxes as well as projected fleet movements of the Grayson Imperium in an attempt to draw a correlation between the two. It was utterly boring and honestly most of it had been also covered in a briefing from his security department. He sighed an agitated sigh when the com light bleeped from his captain's chair.

"What is it?" The annoyance clear in his voice.

"Well sir...We just picked up two ships dropping out of hyperspace. One of them activated a shroud the minute he dropped so we couldn't get a-"

"He activated a Shroud and you didn't think that was suspicious enough to open fire straight away?!" This was what the Core Imperial Confederation was left with. Utter idiots. Idiots and the clones that followed them. He cursed. "Where is the ship now?" he barked, drawing the attention of several on the bridge.

"Its on a bearing headed toward the Southern continent."

"He's here for the rebels..." he muttered.

"Should I fire on it?"

"No, make a note of the ship's drive signature. Smuggler like that is bound to have false transponders but he can't fake a drive signature...Let's let him think he gave us the slip. He'll lead us straight to the rebels and we'll crush them once and for all. We'll handle it before the Commodore even returns to the system!"

 

[Konan Sunracer]

A shroud? Had the Imps tried to capture one of them already? He cursed under his breath.

"Make sure you take a roundabout way to get there, don't want the Imps following you right to the base. Remember we're here to help, not make things worse." His ship was also headed into the atmosphere now. The stars slowly faded and the inky black of space was replaced with white clouds as his ship entered the planet. It was night, just as planned. Even harder for their sensors to pierce the jungles of the Southern continent this time of night as the heat from the day began to rise up and coagulate at the canopy making it almost impossible to pierce with thermal scans.

He didn't bother using his ship's lights and relied on the sensor navigation data they'd received beforehand to lead him through the dark. He couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was coming...

Now that he was on the planet he could stop running dark. If any imps in the area pinged him he'd just lie about being from a local settlement. These transports were widespread enough among independent communities that it wouldn't be out of the ordinary to see.

@Daiya @BB-4001X @Percy Vaceldau

 

[BB-4001A]

YTA-1300 Luck's Revenge
Crew: [member="Daiya"], [member="Mir Nehrahn"]
Approaching blockade

[ chore bot theme ]​

"Ugh, BB, it stinks! What happened?"

Seriously? There was a fire extinguisher rolling around on the deck and smoke still fogging up the interior of the ship. The air scrubbers were going to be working overtime to clear that. More than likely, they'd have to just purge the ventilation and do a total air exchange once they were inside of Anaxes atmosphere.

Either case of which, it should have been more than obvious just what the source of the smell was. So why was the girl bothering to ask a question she already knew the answer for? "Minor electrical fire," the droid supplied succinctly, even as he shifted around on his knees in the pilot's seat. With his short arms and legs, it was quite comical to watch him have to stand on the chair as he reached to the various consoles to access the controls necessary to adjust the ship's trim.

"Are we there? Is that Anaxes?"

"We're moving out of the shadow of Ichium," the boy noted, dropping so that his backside smacked down against the seat proper. Reaching down, he flipped a toggled a few switches, transferring power from the hyperdrive core to the sublight engines. Then, looking back at her, gave a nod to indicate the cockpit canopy before them. "Anaxes is the blue light on the other side of those star destroyers."

Settling back into the pilot's chair, the afro crowned droid tucked his legs in so that he was seated cross-legged on the seat. Leaning forward, his faun brown ocular sensors peered outward, as though contemplating the three distant ships that formed the Imperial blockade.

The Imperials weren't stupid. They'd been looking for false transponders. Trying to pick apart the obvious lies.

So what was better than a lie? The answer that the droid had for that was a half-truth with just enough legitimacy to hopefully make it stick.

As if on cue, the communications terminal lit up, indicating that one of the Imperial ships was hailing them. "Hold onto your butts," the droid said, even as he picked up a headset and then reached forward to activate the transmit function.

"This is the freighter Luck's Revenge. We're carrying parts and equipment for the shipyards under contract with Offworlds Exports on Denon."

It was true. All of it.

They really were under contract with Offworld Exports. It was one of the money laundering outfits used to make the money from black market deals and shadowports appear to be legitimate. Which included those businesses running actual shipping and logistics operations in order to maintain the spectre of being a respectable, rather than just a pretty window store front for organized crime.

And they really did have parts and equipment for the Anaxes shipyard, in some of the crates anyway. The smuggling compartments had the other articles for delivery to the aptly named Crow's Nest.

All things being equal, the droid would prefer that they not have to run a complete dress rehearsal on the admittedly thin veneer dressing the lipstick on this pig. Even though he seriously doubted that Coronet Security shared its police reports with Imperial security agencies, getting pulled over by the Imperials in a stolen freighter wasn't his idea of a Taungsday night.

[member="Konan Sunracer"] | [member="Corellian Muse Fuel"] | [member="Percy Vaceldau"]​

 

[Cynthia Alucard]

Cynthia Alucard, Star Marshal of Imperial Remnant Navy
Location: Hanger Bay of The Tuatha De Danann
Starcraft: TIE/IN Mark IV Interceptor (Wing Compliment of Seventy-Two) The Tuatha De Danann (HQ)
Attire: Uniform

Cyn stretched forward her arms over her head, the hyperspace journey had been considerable but overall none too unpleasant for the young Alucard. The situation had grown quite dire and such was the reason Cyn had demanded a visit to Anaxes, while the Imperial Navy were scattered and held together only by threads of loyalty, something Cyn could not stand for were conscripts in her ships. The utter travesty to see such undignified method of recruiting nearly sent Cyn to an unrepentant rage lest if her second Lieutenant was not there ready to save the rest of the crew from her wrath. Honestly, the idea of conscription wasn’t terrible, especially should a planet be under sieged and every man, woman and child was needed to help defend said planet, but forcibly pressing unwilling civilians into the Imperial Navy spelled doom.

They didn't have the logistical support to acquire properly trained crewmen and whatever Imperial Quartermaster thinking that Conscripts could do the job was utterly mistaken. Maybe if they were the Imperial Army they could get away with improperly trained soldiers wielding blasters that only need to point their barrel towards those shooting at them, but in the Imperial Navy every ensign, technician and crewmen required much more training than learning how to simply pull down a trigger in a general direction. Cyn tapped along her chair rest, the hyperspace star-lines soon returned to their bright dots in the darkness of space and the planet of Anaxes laid before them only a couple hours away from orbit.

Their Star Destroyer The Tuatha De Danann continued forward its path as Cyn delicately danced her fingers across the Communication computer to set up a link with those damned fools of Anaxes. She had found the majority of her conscripts were from Anaxes and perhaps it was rather due time to give this certain Imperial Leader an earful. Her venom collecting beneath her tongue her awaited a moment for her Communication Officer to confirm the line was secured and ready for her.

“This is Star Marshal Cynthia Alucard. There has been reports that have gone unanswered of reported failings to meet the standard of the Imperial Remnant Fleet. Anaxes have fallen below the standards and thus are now under investigation under my purview. Expect my arrival within the hour to meet the Commanders present.” Cyn declared, her irritation grew as the whole situation was far too easily avoidable, with so much talk about Corellia encroaching on Imperial Territory and loss of direction by Imperial High Command, Cyn wanted it all to end.

Why can’t I just be part of a normal Imperial Government? The thoughts of her past governments she served seemed to show a rather distressing track record. From Imperial Remnant to another, from one Galactic Empire to another, From one new Order to another. . . Cyn hadn’t realized she was playing a game of Imperial Musical Chairs and the galaxy providing a soundtrack of laughter.

“Lieutenant, prepare my ship, we have some governors and commanders to engage with, and I want to leave Anaxes as soon as possible. . .” Cyn wearily ordered, this was one thing of her long list of systems to visit and monitor on her to-do list. Oh how the mighty have fallen. . .

​

​

[member="Konan Sunracer"] | [member="Corellian Muse Fuel"] | [member="Percy Vaceldau"] | [member="BB-4001X"]

 

[Percy Vaceldau]

Location: Landing at the Crow's Nest
Objective: Secure the ship, begin unloading cargo
Time: Night
Equipment: Holding DL-44 in hand now


As I approached the Crow's Nest and was speaking with the other pilot over the comlink.... I realized that something was wrong. This whole operation was about to be turned upside down. And it was the droid's fault. Of course I was the one that said "shroud" but I'd hope that the droid knew that I meant false transponder...

It didn't.

Now coasting just above the surface with my ship's lights off, I casually picked up the comlink and spoke on the same frequency once more.

"Well, it looks like things are about to get very complicated here. Might want to use that shroud AND a false transponder. I meant to tell my droid to enable a false transponder, but it enabled the shroud instead. I don't know why the destroyers let me pass, but they must have caught onto it by now.." I said, sighing in between my words before continuing, "Just.. be ready to get the cargo down here and dip ASAP unless you plan on staying for a fight." when I finished speaking, I dropped the comlink back on the dashboard of the cockpit and ran my hand through my hair, now extremely frustrated. ([member="Konan Sunracer"])

Once again, the astromech beeped and reported that we had arrived at our destination. Holding back my own anger, I turned and spoke to the droid.

"Land us right there, on the landing pad closest to the nest. Inform whoever is waiting for us that we've arrived and have 'em send some people to start unloading the shipment." I said, then kicking myself up from my seat and walking back to the cargo hold, removing the floor paneling and activating the repulsorlifted pallets.

[member="Cynthia Alucard"] | [member="BB-4001X"] | [member="Corellian Muse Fuel"] |

 

[Dorian Sevanar]

Location : On Route to Anaxes
Objective : Secure Anaxes
Forces : 1 Mandator-V Seige Battlecruiser , 1 Allegiance-IV Heavy Star Destroyer , 3 Imperial-IV Star Destroyers
Tags : [member="Corellian Muse Fuel"] | [member="Percy Vaceldau"] | [member="Konan Sunracer"] | [member="BB-4001X"] | [member="Cynthia Alucard"]

Since the Fall of the CIC , Chaos had dominated huge portions of the Core Worlds with many worlds descending into chaos with man Rebellions and Uprisings taking place and many Warlords emerging and trying to fill the power vacuum left by the CIC. Recently the Grayson Imperium had captured Coruscant and began expanding it’s influence to nearby worlds though many Warlords remained at large with many Planets still under the control of regional Warlords.

One such planet was Anaxes in which was under the control of Imperial Warlords who struggled to maintain control of the Planet as a Rebel Cell had begun to launch strikes against them. When the Directorate caught wind of the Corellian Confederation’s Smuggling Operation , it was decided to launch a full intervention and to strike against the Imperial Warlords on the planet so that the Anaxes Shipyards could be secured for the Directorate and a Collaborative Government could be installed in which would mean also defeated the Anaxes Rebels.

The Operation would be simple , Adam Versili who used to be a Grand Admiral of the Imperial Remnant would assemble a group of Imperial Officers who had been detained on Kuat and would use Warships from the CIC’s Mothball Fleet and would quickly move forth to launch an Assault on Anaxes while a platoon of Directorate Supercommandos led by Dion Pembell , a Commander within the Directorate Naval Forces would secure the Anaxes Shipyards.

Now everything was set. Adam Versili had managed to recruit High General Traavel Hux and Fleet Admiral Aridna Pryce and had assembled a Fleet composed of 1 Mandator V-Battlecruiser , 1 Allegiance IV Heavy Star Destroyer and 3 Imperial-IV Star Destroyers for the assault and had already set course for Anaxes. Soon the Grand Admiral would emerge Victorious and soon Anaxes would be placed within the sphere of the Imperium but most importantly under the indirect control of the Directorate and thus begins Operation Thunderstroke.

 

[Daiya]

Location: Aboard the YTA-1300 Luck's Revenge
Objective: Draw a picture
Crew: [member="BB-4001X"]

---

The girl nodded at the droid-boy's explanation over the smell, waving her hand across her face a few times to clear the sensation from her nostrils. After a tentative breath, she decided it wasn't so bad anymore and stepped deeper into the cockpit. The co-pilot's seat was vacant, so Daiya dropped down into it, giving the G2 repair droid a wry expression as it stared at the new occupant in its seat before moving off to work elsewhere in the cockpit. Daiya just shrugged and stared forward, enamored by BB's run down of their situation and she focused on finding the blue light he mentioned.

Her constant companion, even more so than Tawrro, was a weathered satchel that hung at her side. Daiya pulled it into her lap, withdrawing the datapad that served as her journal and sketchpad, and pulled out the stylus from its holder. Drawing her knees up, she balanced the datapad on them like a drafting board, perched high so she could reference the scene before them as she drew. BB was doing something on the comms, but the girl wasn't paying it much mind. Starships and their workings didn't really interest her.

Laid out before her eyes, the void of space was inky black, serving as the simplest of canvas for her depiction. The multitudes of the galaxy's denizens lived upon worlds that circled the pinpricks of light that dotted the canvas, and as Daiya marked them on the datapad, she wondered idly if she had ever drawn so many beings before. The angular star destroyers themselves, erupting onto her scene like wounds from a vibro-knife, represented thousands. It was hard to draw them without feeling angry, the harsh lines seemed to care little for the radial softness of the stellar objects they occluded, one they dared to violate with impunity.

The blue object behind them was a cradle of life, a heartbeat among the coldness of space. It was impossible to make out at the distance it hung among the real stars, but on her page, it swirled in a majesty of detail and color. At the clumsy hands of an artist like Daiya, the details looked more like squiggles, the clouds and shapes of land underneath like blobs of color, but the girl knew what they were meant to be. This was her rendering, after all, not a public mural to be gawked at or analyzed over.

As the stylus danced upon the screen of the datapad, the girl's hand moved as if on its own, her shut eyes unable to direct it. The scene was set in her mind now, Daiya didn't need mere sight to carry it out on the digital page. There was an entire world in the moment she was trying to capture, relying on such an imperfect instrument as her eyes to guide it would be an injustice. Her own talent was enough of an injustice, the girl knew she was a crappy artist, but that only meant that she insisted on contributing as little in the way of crappiness as she could manage.

When she was done, Daiya gazed upon the work with open eyes, letting out a bemused sound at the first reaction. The starscape was little more than a group of specks on the page, grouped in strange patterns that didn't align with the galactic neighborhood around them. The star destroyers looked like swarms of blasters firing, their shots each converging on a single point. Behind them, the blue swirl of Anaxes was blotched with whites and greys and browns, and looked comically like the melted remains of a child's crayon set. But what brought her the most distraught as she gazed at the results of her work, was the scene she had drawn in the foreground. A cockpit not unlike the one she found herself in, with beings not unlike the ones she now sat beside, facing scenery not unlike they were now, and yet so different as to elicit a gasp of shock from her mouth. She tasted bile in her mouth at the revulsion of the scene she saw, and quickly sent the illustration to the datapad's archives.

"It was a crappy picture, anyway," the girl muttered to herself, unable to dispel the unease it had generated. An unease she usually only felt after seeing one of her terrible visions, but the act of drawing it out was usually a form of relief in those cases. That her artwork was the source of disquiet to begin with was something entirely new, and Daiya couldn't stop her breath from quickening or her heart from fluttering in distress. She could, however, wrap her arms around her knees, pulling them close to her and resting her head on top.

Her gaze fell on the boy-droid next to her, the dark features of his face inscrutable, all at once a void and full of life. And in the moment, that contradiction was a blessing to think about. "Do droids ever dream?"

[member="Konan Sunracer"] | [member="Corellian Muse Fuel"] | [member="Percy Vaceldau"] | [member="Cynthia Alucard"] | [member="Adam Versili"]​

 

[Hoid Hallafax]

A single Core Imperial Star Destroyer dropped out of hyperspace near the planet's orbit and a shiver ran up his spine. He'd once served on a vessel like that. It felt like a lifetime ago when he was privileged enough to serve aboard a Venator, but now he was on this...It wasn't even an Imperial Design but purchased with some of the Warlord's own credits along with a hefty sum he managed to siphon when the Core Imperial Confederation succumbed to infighting and chaos.

"Sir," came the dreaded call from the communications cluster, "I-Its Star Marshal Alucard. She-she wants to speak with the you and the other commanders." He had two options, lie and tell her that none of them were in or tell a partial truth and tell her that the commanding officer is out along with the governor. She had been against splitting off from the CIC and had met a rather grisly end in the forests of Annaxes. As did any of the commanders that refused the Commodore's and the Admiral's will.

"Prepare my shuttle, and keep me informed on the situation below...I'll meet her."
[member="Adam Versili"] [member="Cynthia Alucard"]

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Imperial Escort Frigate: The Imperial Maple

It really was a skeleton crew here. These ships from Kuat were cheap, decent, and best of all they were slave rigged which meant Lieutenant Grey could sit back and relax as the Star Destroyers handled anything serious and he and his boys could sit around betting on bolo ball games and races. The communication cluster beeped indicating that an unknown ship had dropped out of hyperspace and that it had already hailed them. The wonders of slave rigging. With a grunt Grey stood from his captain's chair and gave his scruffy chin a scratch before pressing a thumb to the com switch.

"Freighter Luck's Revenge this is Imperial Escort Frigate Imperial Maple. Anaxes is currently on lockdown from free traders. Please transmit docking, company, and trading clearances or prepare to be boarded." He smirked. Not that he'd be doing the boarding. Sure the Maple could and would hold the freighter down kicking and screaming but with their troops being so stretched almost all boarding actions went through the Star Destroyers. They were supposed to be on the lookout anyways though and he wondered if he shot down these "traders" should they not have their clearance codes if he'd get a raise or promotion.

He salivated at the thought.
@Daiya @BB-4001X
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Crows Nest

Mya watched as the transports began to touch down. Two so far and she wondered if she'd been right and this really would go easy. The troopers around her shifted nervously side to side and Mya's hand never left her blaster as the ships touched down. Besides the troopers there were other volunteers ready and waiting to take those desperately needed supplies. Medicine, ammunition, weapons, tech, clothes...It was all supposed to be here. If this went well she'd have no reason to fear, but if not...As leader of the Annaxes Resistance she'd take full responsibility.

[member="Percy Vaceldau"]

 

[BB-4001A]

YTA-1300 Luck's Revenge
Crew: [member="Daiya"], [member="Mir Nehrahn"]
Approaching blockade

[ chore bot theme ]​

"It was a crappy picture, anyway."

The afro headed droid looked up from the pilot controls. Faun brown ocular sensors glanced over to the teenager in the navigator's chair. If someone looked close enough, they would see the miniature lenses and mirrors rotating inside of the human-looking iris. It caused the pupils of his eyes to dilate and contract in an unnatural manner, as his field of vision adjusted with mechanical precision.

A scan of the cockpit elements didn't supply any context for her comment, though he realized a half-second later that she was holding a datapad in her hand. A holojournal?

...a sketch pad?

"What are you dra..."

The chore bot was interrupted when the subspace radio lit up with another message from the Imperial ships. The boy grimaced, his eyes darting off to the side as the headband comlink he wore supplied the message directly to his auditory receptor. "...Please transmit docking, company, and trading clearances or prepare to be boarded."

"-tt-" the dark skinned droid uttered, a click of his tongue betraying what would have been irritation or annoyance in a human. "Who do they think they're dealing with? Some trash panda hooker chit?" the youth uttered, turning away from the girl. The droids movements were both deliberate and precise, keying in several entries on the com panel.

Say what you would about the patron of Offworld Exports, [member="Sankt Yora"] was a savage business professional. What she was paying them to do this delivery job to the Anaxes Shipyard didn't even cover the cost of the tolls from the hyperlane, let alone the fuel. Because she knew that it didn't have to. The Corellian Confederation was paying them for the clandestine part of this trip, including a stipend for fuel.

No, the crew of the freighter needed Offworld Exports more than she needed them, so she used that to her advantage -- paying them a mere pittance. Frack, this was practically volunteer work if the legitimate shipping was all that this trip was about.

But, being that they actually did have a commercial delivery for the shipyards that was part of Offworld Exports legitimate business interests, of course the Denon socialite had procured the proper licenses and clearances for the work. "This is freighter Luck's Revenge. We are transmitting code clearance," the droid supplied finally, reaching up to cradle the headset comlink with one hand as he spoke into it.

"Do droids ever dream?"

Do droids dream? Do organics? What is a dream? A chemical reaction in the cerebral cortex? A malfunction in short-to-long term memory transfer?

"Our minds are difference engines. We use past experiences to try and anticipate future events, so that we can queue up responses based on our behavioral modeling. It's why we seem to react so fast, because by the time we need to make a choice, we have a range of options pre-selected in our L2 cache," the droid answered, settling back into the pilot's seat. Now, they waited for the Imperials to either clear them or board them.

"Have you ever done something and there seemed like there was a delay before the droid responded?" the droid asked, turning his head to look over at the teen. "You did something we didn't expect, causing us to evaluate our actions and develop a behavioral model on the spot. But, it also means that we're always thinking two or three steps ahead. Envisioning the best and worst case scenarios, and then drawing on our precious memories to help us construct what that looks like."

Are droids nostalgic might have been the better question. Memories weren't just the sum of the droid's experiences, they helped the droid navigate the world around them. Provided a road map that translated behavioral modeling into action, with a series of examples the droid could rely upon when it encountered new situations.

That was why memory wipes were so violating. It didn't just clear a section of the onboard RAM or ROM, it erased some of the essence of who that droid was.

"In other words, we're always dreaming."

 

[Mazik Stazi]

COMMAND DECK // CDF CITY OF ASHES
CORELLIAN DEEP CORE PATROL
TYTHON SYSTEM // ANAXES JUMP RANGE
​

"Admiral on deck!"

"As you were," Mazik Stazi waved his bridge crew at ease.

There was a datapad in one hand and a cup of stimcaf in the other and the duros flag officer didn't bother to take his eyes off either. When he had accepted a commission from his homeworld in the greater Corellian Navy the old sailor assumed he'd be stamping out the last dregs of craven Imperial warlords from the Core Worlds. Life in exile may have been desperate times but at least he'd almost forgotten what it was like to serve under the heel of bureaucrats.

"Any word from the Valley of Royalty?" he asked finally, "What's the status on her deflector repairs?"

"The Valley reports shield efficiency at ninety three percent and rising."

Mazik blinked at the native corellian who delivered her report in a clipped professional tone. This must be what it was like to run a ship under Imperial standards. For the first time in his life the admiral was beginning to see tyranny's appeal. He waved her away and when she did not immediately scamper back to her post he raised a curious eyebrow verging on distaste.

"Is there something else?"

"Recent long range sensor telemetry," she handed him another datapad, "We're tracking a large hyperspatial disturbance vectoring in on the Azure system."

"Any specifics?" Stazi asked for her summary while reading over the telemetry himself.

"Negative sir," the young officer shook her head, "We're too far out."

"Keep an eye on it," he handed her back the datapad, "And keep me informed."


CORELLIAN TASK FORCE
CDF City of Ashes - Starhawk-class Battleship
CDF Gateway Traveler - Galleon-class Star Defender
CDF Valley of Royalty - Galleon-class Star Defender
CDF Event Horizon - Detainer-class Corellian Interdictor
CDF Resolute - Nebulon-A Escort Frigate
CDF Skywind - Nebulon-A Escort Frigate
CDF Avenger - Nebulon-A Escort Frigate

 

[Cynthia Alucard]

Cynthia Alucard, Star Marshal of Imperial Remnant Navy
Location: Hanger Bay of The Mangrel
Starcraft: TIE/IN Mark IV Interceptor (Wing Compliment of Seventy-Two) The Tuatha De Danann (HQ)
Attire: Uniform

Cyn calmly waited inside her shuttle, along with the rest of her escort, this whole situation was rather beneath her to fix. Conscription was, while not exactly illegal, greatly frowned upon in the Navy. Even in the most dire circumstances Cyn had always been of the opinion to either automate or make use of droids should they ever need more manpower. Forcibly recruiting unwilling civilians is so barbiac. They were the Navy and not the Army for that matter as well, and Cyn already began to rub her temple with her left hand to prepare for the incoming headache.

Her transport sailed across towards the Imperial Warship, flanked by two TIE squadrons, more so a show of authority than for a real protection. “Marshal Alucard, we are approaching The Mangler, currently transmitting and awaiting docking approval.” The pilot explained quickly.

Their shuttle continued forward, and the two TIE squadrons soon broke off and began a small patrol sweep of the surrounding area. Cyn monitored the movement on her data-slate, and while these pilots weren’t her own Pixies, she gave them an approving nod all the same for their discipline and excellent flight control. Moments later Cyn felt her shuttle enter through the bay-doors of the larger Imperial vessel and the pilot gave the green light that they had successfully landed.

The ramps lowered and the shuttle doors opened, Cyn walked out into the docking bay and flanked by four Imperial Marines and four Stormtroopers. She had wanted to go with only a pair of Marines but her Lieutenant had convinced her otherwise. Much less convinced and more so forced the extra troopers onto her escort detail. She noted several crewmen working around the docking bay and Cyn calmed waited for the arrival of the Commander of the vessel.

“Sergeant, keep an eye out for any strangeness with the crew, you know why we’re here and after all if this vessel is plagued with conscripts. . .well, I won’t be happy.” Cyn already wished she could simply time travel back to better days. This whole mess with the Imperial Navy and one of the greatest upheavals of the galaxy that collapsed The Confederation was simply mind numbing to even think or conjecture about.

​

Republic Muse

 

[Dorian Sevanar]

Location : Arbelas In Orbit of Anaxes
Objective : Assume Command of Imperial Forces present
Forces

• 1x Praetor Mark V-class Battlecruiser (Arbelas)
• 2x Victory IV Class Star Destroyers
• 5x Vindicator II Escort Cruisers

As Cynthia Alucard landed onboard of the Mangler , Adam Versili made his move as his Fleet jumped out of hyperspace encountering a small Imperial Force i orbit of Anaxes. Already notified of the presence of Cynthia Alucard , Adam Versili knew that there was the possibility of a possible skirmish between the opposing forces. The Star Marshal could be a useful ally for the planned Operation Vengeance though she could also become a potential threat to Adam Versili's plans.

"Captain , inform the Captain of the Mangler of my arrival and that i will be meeting with the Star Marshal shortly" Ordered Adam Versili. "Yes sir right away" the Captain replied as he moved forth to inform the Mangler of Adam Versili's presence. Already through his allies , Adam Versili was aware of a smuggling operation on the planet staged by the Corellians but decided to keep such information to himself intending to discredit the Commanding Officers present on Anaxes and seize control of their fleets.

As he left the Bridge and headed towards the Hanger towards his shuttle Adam Versili thought what Operation Vengence meant for the Imperial Remnant and for the future of what's left of the Core Imperial Confederation. However he remained confident that a Victory could be pulled off if ever thing went according to plan.

Tags : Republic Muse , Mazik Stazi