Back To The Old Grind

[Judas of Vahl]

Rattatak Military Academy, Rattatak​

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In a dark room, a single projector sat in the center. The nucleus of the room, the focus of all 50 students' attention. However, studious eyes were not trained on the machine itself, but rather the tantalizing images it sent flying about the room. Naval fleets, small and large, dotted the room. The holographic vessels and their complements flew about the room as if in actual space. At the students' tables sat a medium-sized terminal, various buttons peppered it along with a single speaker.

The grey-clad cadets of the famed Rattatak Military Academy sat at those such desks. Their eyes transfixed on their personal fleet projection, their fingers splayed across the desk module. Many of them tapped away endlessly, constantly keeping their forces on the move to discover new advantages and exploit the enemy's weakness. It was a constant battle of the mind, each cadet was paired with another in the class and they duked it out virtually.

A lone figure strolled around the room, yellow eyes glazed to a single battle before quickly averting to observe the next. Those eyes had seen everything from their own Academy days to intense warfare on the frontlines to political affairs operations. The eyes of Admiral Dranok Lussk. He was widely known across the galaxy as a brilliant strategist and unconventional thinker. His conquests ranged in the dozens, his exploits higher, and his kills even more so. He was a graduate of the old Imperial Academy at Carida, an Ex-Sith Lord, and now in service with the Lords of the Fringe.

Funny how fate ended up like this. His life began in a military academy and here he was years later holding a position of headmaster.

 

[Judas of Vahl]

Posting as: Jacen Cavill​

Clad in simple black robes, with his Iron Skin armor weave on underneath, the large man stood out still at the Military Academy. Having only recently joined with the Fringe, Ashin Varanin, going by a new name, had directed him to where he was at. For the man he was to meet was not only a fellow soldier for the newest faction in the galaxy, nor was it even the fact that they both shared high ranks in both the Force and the military. No, the truth of the matter ran much further than that. Jacen Cavill and Dranok Lussk both left the Sith Empire, something not easily done. Cavill himself could remember the High Fleet Commander during their many conquests together, what could possibly have made someone with such a position decide to leave? It was a thought that burned the back of his skull, Jacen had his reasons for no longer serving.

What were Dranok's?

It was a question he had come to ask, as well as try and find a new ally that was cut from the same old cloth. From what he had read during his time as the Emperor's Champion, Mr. Lussk was quite the brilliant mind and a skilled practitioner of the Force in his own right. That much was evidenced as the black boots he was wearing echoed softly off the tiled floor as he entered the classroom where the former Sith was. Holo-screens were everywhere, and students were typing away feverishly on their command consoles to try and keep up with each other. It was a reminder of all the years he had spent on Serenno in a military academy similar to this one. That had been for his training so that he could one day assume the mantle of count and rule his family.

Funny how events change people.

Briskly walking towards the man he sought, he made sure to stand tall and proud. His perfectly kept black locks of hair, and his (for the moment) blue eyes made him stand out. Perfectly formed facial features and a very powerful frame made it clear that he wasn't one to brawl with. Cavill knew enough about fleet warfare to know when he could win, and when he could lose. On the ground, where he could engage with his lightsaber, powers, and his raw ability...well he was an animal there. None of that would be needed now though, no, this was a friendly discussion to see if former loyalties could breed a new friendship in a new part of the galaxy.

Calmly, he walked right next to his fellow former Sith. "Glad to see one of us has a mind for such things. I myself prefer a much closer type of fight to the one your pupils are learning right now." A large hand extended out from behind where he had been holding them behind his back, and large shoulders turned to fully address the man before him. "Jacen Cavill, you may know me as Darth Kryptus. Former Champion of Voracitos...the fat one."

 

[Judas of Vahl]

The Admiral's eyes fixed themselves on one of his more promising students reigning down fire upon a helpless foe. He snapped his eyes to the victim's, watching with interest as a few beads of sweat collected as he furrowed his brow and tapped faster. The student's expression morphed into one of satisfaction as his smaller fleet began to pummel through the massive fighter and bomber screen that threatened to dismantle their opponent's entire fleet. Dranok smiled, the seemingly defenseless fleet utilized stutter-fire options on his Quad laser cannons. They would decrease the power rate, barely strong enough to damage shields. Then, as the attack craft neared, the virtual gunners shifted their settings to maximum and began to knock out craft with single blasts.

Once again, the underdog reigned supreme by using his brain.

Dranok was a man of the mind. He was nothing without his legions of soldiers or thousands of crewmen that stood behind him to support him all the way. Individually, he was a Jack of all Trades, a Master of none. He liked to be balanced like a good battleship, able to dish out and take blows. Fortitude, charisma, and intelligence were his weapons. His Force abilities rivaled that of Sith Lords of olden days, delving into the minds of others and bending them to his will or breaking their stature. As for saber combat, Dranok was a superior practitioner of the defensive art of Soresu. His two specialties worked in tandem during combat, hence his major successes on and off the battlefield.

His small grin disappeared as he turned away from the battle, both participants seemingly relaxed. The two drew closer and compared tactics and technical readouts, good. Those two would surely serve the Fringe well in times to come. This new generation of leaders and thinkers were part of Lussk's legacy. He wanted to mold these cadets into junior officers and only the exceptional would strive even further than officers and become great political or senior military leaders. This was where the galaxy would be changed from, this single academy on some forsaken world of the fringe.

Garbed in his pristine white Admiral's uniform, his boots clomped against the cold durasteel floor as he paced about the room. Hands clasped behind the small of his back, he turned to another sound of similar footsteps. Approaching was a man Dranok knew by sight. The Emperor's Champion, Darth Kryptus, privately known as Master Jacen Cavill. By the looks of it, he was wearing his signature ironweave armor, skintight to boast muscles and stature. Its intention was doing a good job as the large man strode forward to plant himself before Dranok, greeting and extending a friendly gesture. The white-clad Admiral shot out his own hand, just a little smaller than Kryptus' and shook it firmly. "Master Cavill, it's a pleasure." He paused to refer to an earlier statement, "Yes, I vividly remember Voractios. He was weak."