Brave The Whip And Brave The Stone [OS vs RA] [Coruscant Prison Break]

[Blane Nightfall]

Blane and his men were almost ready to move to the prison when suddenly few seemed to... fly? It was then when Blane saw Ferus with his hands in in the air clearly using the force "The sithy wants to play..." But he was about to play nice, he didn't said it, but he thought it. He was immune to his trick since his faithful ysalamari was not leaving him in moments like these. He then took his 2 FWG-5 and begun shooting at [member="Darth Ferus"]
The FWG-5 was smaller and easier to handle than the Golan Arms FC-1 flechette launcher, and had the stopping power of a heavy blaster pistol. It was loaded with flechette-filled pellets instead of heavy canisters, and featured a miniature laser tracking system that tagged targets with an electronic homing signature. This enabled the weapon's pellets to track and follow the target's movements, and make a course correction while in flight. Upon reaching a range of three meters from the target, the pellet would explode, releasing twelve millimeter long micro flechettes in a shotgun style method of attack.

It was excellent for a distracted enemy and perfect method of releasing his soldiers, after all Ferus would need to move quickly and would have no time to kill the soldiers, unless he wanted to die of course. Blane will surely thank the Benefactor for his new toys, he smirked almost pleased as he couldn't wait to reveal more tricks and prove the fact that the force is just a gift.

[member="Juwiela Melec"] [member="Thane Drexel"] [member="Sannika Brynn"] [member="Animus Malgus"] [member="Trystis Ray"]

 

[Sage Bane]

The suspicious Acolyte, now humbled at Sage's boots and reduced to a shell of his former self, gave himself over completely to the Sith Lord. The pain and illusions had ceased, for now. Sage crossed to the room, retrieved the Force containment collar and snapped it around Trystis neck. The bloodied Sith Lord held his reproving gaze for just a moment longer, savoring the other man's subjugation, then he used the Force to haul the man to his feet. Sage gripped the pommel of his lightsaber, but did not ignite. Instead he pressed it up against Trystis' side, using it to prod the man forward.

"Your first command is to march immediately to a cell," he said, pressing the metal hit against his captive's flesh. He stayed with the apprentice as he trundled down the corridor with two additional prison wardens, watching carefully as he was shoved roughly into the detention cell and fully secured inside. [member="Trystis Ray"] was put in a cell just down the corridor from from [member="Oddball"] himself. The Sith Lord turned to shout down the corridor towards Oddball's cell.

"I brought you a friend!" he called out, caring less about whether or not the Rebel cur heard him. Sage couldn't help notice that in front of Oddball's cell was a strange man in a suit, dark-tinted glasses shielding his eyes, hovering closely behind Matsu Xiangu. Everything about the man screamed "UNAUTHORIZED." With narrowed brown eyes, Sage whirled on his heel, his footfalls clacking ominously as he approached.

His brown eyes studied [member="Matthew Mar'Tin"]. Then, they turned a deep crimson color.

"Who the feth are you?"

[member="Juwiela Melec"] [member="Thane Drexel"] [member="Sannika Brynn"] [member="Animus Malgus"] [member="Reverance"] [member="Vrag"] [member="Matsu Xiangu"] [member="Darth Pyrrhus"] [member="Setzi Lunelle"] [member="Darth Ferus"] [member="Hal Terrano"]

 

[Reverance]

Life is tough when you are left to your own devices. Such was the case for Miles, browsing the Interwebz midst the attack by the...well, whoever they were.

Miles scanned through the wookieepedia on coruscant, unsure of how rebels were breaking through so easily. Seeing as though shields were obviously available, both on ground and planetary, he fired them babies up and sat back, sipping on an uber fancy cup of espresso and shrugging at the attempt to literally crash into one of the most heavily defended planets of the OS.

Miles was no poet, no scholar, but he did have an imagination. And from his perspective and the relay of shielding power above the temple, mixed with point defense cannons and rooftop turbo lasers - well, he pictured a giant shield nomming up all them incoming bombardments. And so it did, including return fire on the universes 'fastest' dropships. All was right again except one thing.

His espresso was absent any whipped cream. He rung the cow bell and waited to chastise his intern.

[member="Hal Terrano"] | [member="Vrag"] | [member="Sage Bane"] | [member="Sannika Brynn"] | [member="Oddball"] | [member="Trystis Ray"] | [member="Blane Nightfall"] | [member="Setzi Lunelle"] | [member="Animus Malgus"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Pyrrhus"] | [member="Greta Kohler"]

 

[Matthew Rei]

(I'm not green. I'm human. That picture just has mood lighting. :lol: )

Spoiler

Have you ever had that feeling when you KNOW that you didn't do anything wrong, but then your abusive dad comes in and you're anticipating immediate punishment? Well, that's the vibe Matthew was picking up off of this domineering newcomer. He was feeling the heat on the inside but, like any good lawyer, he had to play it cool. This left him feeling like a cornered animal. The only difference was that he was authorized to be here according to the law and order charters of Coruscant.

"My name is Michael Weston. I used to be a spy until... My name is Matthew Mar'Tin. I'm a lawyer here on duty. I was called and issued by the judicial court to be the mandatory lawyer for a man by the curious name of Oddball. According to Section 3, line 5 of the Prisoner of War act, Class 1 felons are to be tried in the highest court of law soon after capture. However, I'm required to meet with my client before the trial begins so that they are made aware of what's expected of him/her and to ask him/her important questions."

For the duration that he had been there, he was using Force Sense (without knowing it) to sense his surroundings. There seemed to be a quiet woman kneeling on the ground next to...something that, by the smell of it, was most likely being tortured.

Frell! This isn't going to help the Sith if the populace see him in this state, no matter how much they edit his words! he thought to himself.

On second perception, he noted with slight amount of distress that he was having a REALLY hard time perceiving the third one. It was as though nothing was there, but he could still hear and smell the person. Oh well. Some things were expected to go wrong when you were blind. There was an aura cocktail of negativity coming from these two, more so from the one who was speaking to him.

The two spare prison wardens still maintained close watch over Matthew until they were ordered away.

[member="Sage Bane"] | [member="Oddball"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Dhasias Vunumera]

The Rebels had committed a lot of Commandos to the upper levels of the Temple, Dhasias could make out at least two companies. She didn't understand why the Rebels were allowing some of their best troops to walk into a bloodbath, the only way it made any strategic sense to Dhasias was if it was some kind of diversion.

"Exterminating," Dhasias replied over her comm to [member="Darth Ferus"]. Whirling her saberstaff with malignant grace she deflected a barrage of oncoming blaster bolts and engaged a platoon of commandos that were about a hundred feet away and arrayed in defensive positions behind cover. Using the force to augment her sprint, Dhasias rushed toward her adversaries, dodging and deflecting blaster bolts. In the blink of an eye she was upon the hapless commandos. Spinning her saberstaff, she mowed through the commandos in a brilliant hail of violet death, contorting her body to deliver inhumna Juyo strikes that indiscriminately severed body parts and boasters into pieces. Leaning forward, she delivered a backwards kick to the jaw of a commando poised to strike with a vibroblade then spun like a ballerina, slicing a group of commandos through their midsections.

Reaching out through the force, Dhasias grabbed a large mangled and sharp piece of shrapnel and hurled it at another group of commandos that was situated to take aim at her.

"DUCK!" She heard a commando roar, but the shrapnel sliced through several rebels, creating a sickening bone crunching sound and sending fountains of blood flying in the air.

Dhasias didn't have time to relish in her kill though, because she saw several commandos with heavy weapons and supporting troops taking aim right at her. Hearing the sound of a rotary cannon charging up she leapt into the air, avoiding the stream of red lasers that graced the spot where she once stood. While airborne she unleashed a torrent of force lightning. Malignant purple arcs of electricity speed through the air and electrocuted the commandos, their sickening cries of pain was like a chorus of death.

Landing back on the ground, she rolled sideways to avoid an incoming rocket, and tried to shield herself with the force. The explosion however was too powerful, and launched her against an opposing wall. Blood dripped out from cuts and scrapes along her body, but she couldn't let that distract her. Calling upon the force, she hurled her saberstaff at the remaining commandos and guided the blade so there were none left standing.

Seeing another group of commandos touching down nearby, she rushed to engage them, she could make out Darth Ferus being shot at by what appeared to be an elite commando.

"Let's see if your any more of a challenge," Dhasias sadistically muttered to herself.

[member="Blane Nightfall"]

 

[Shaddi]

T'zanith had been helping along the way taking out those that his fellow acolyte missed in her veritable dance of death against the commandos. As she hurled her sabesstaff he lead the temple guards behind her as he deflected the shots aimed at the guards. A few commandos came charging at him but were met with red Lightning unleashed from T'zanith's fingertips before he sliced at those that survived the barrage.
Part of T'zanith's focus was on how captivating [member="Dhasias Vunumera"]'s display of martial prowess was, she was dancing through the enemy like they were nothing as he kept the temple guards marching and protected behind her. This distracted him long enough for a commando to com up at his side and hit him with the butt of his weapon before the temple guard shot him full of holes and then kept advancing towards T'zanith. The hit had knocked him back to reality and as he saw six commandos advance upon him, he also noticed a dead acolyte nearby holding his Lightsaber in his hands.
With the force he pulled the other Lightsaber to him and ran towards the commandos that all held vibroswords in their hands but were soon met with two beams of spinning red white cored and red black cored death. He had moved through their defences and used his blades to chop and slice through the commandos as best he could only to then jump back as he got the back of the group and threw the extra saber at them. As he landed he kept the extra saber spinning in the air as he directed it through a few of the commandos and ended up slicing the commando that had sent a rocket at Dhasias who then made short work of the rest of the commandos.
As T'zanith was about to say something he saw her sprint towards [member="Darth Ferus"]'s side further down the hallway. With a sigh T'zanith commanded the temple guard to follow him as he made them into a wall behind him as he came out of the hall way and pointed his saber at the rebels lead by [member="Blane Nightfall"] and the guards opened fire, raining a hail of blaster fire at them. He couldn't see Blane but he could see a bubble of absence in the force and his hunch was that that must be were the leader would be.
With effort T'zanith picked up a few boulders and hurtled them towards Blane as he knew that after he had thrown them there wouldn't be anything to stop them besides them landing, the boulders were then followed by a fallen column. "My Lord What are your orders!" T'zanith then shouted to Ferus as he was the highest ranking one of them and by default was then in charge.

 

[Marcus Itera]

Location: Lower Levels of Coruscant
Objective: Rally Cry
Allies: The Rebel Alliance (Urban Combat Specialists), and the Coruscanti Resistance
Foes: The One Sith, [member="Reverance"]'s intern

Much of the Alliance flyboys and gals had shown up later to the party than their ground teams had expected. Granted, it really was one of the most secure and heavily defended planets in the galaxy, as per their Wookieepedia page. However, the Alliance liked to keep a wide, tasteful assortment of wild cards in the mix. Criminals, smugglers, bounty hunters, and some of the most disgusting lowlife could find themselves in the service of their cause in an instant. Freedom and individualism usually meant a lot to those sorts of people and the resistance appealed to them.

Urban Combat Specialists was what most of the local operatives were trained for. Makeshift drop camps and training exercises had honed their skills in the massive cityscape of this world. Kilometer tall skyscrapers, deep urban chasms, and the mill of city life didn't faze them in the slightest and their network of smugglers and other underworld colleagues kept them supplied and informed as to what was happening. No planetary shield generator could stop them.

"Jak, Reece, and Finster, you guys are with me. I assume you three know the mission details already."

"Yeah, Vick filled us in earlier. When're we headin' out, boss?"

"Now."

 

[Mythos]

Animus headed in the direction of Ferus as he saw the Temple was trying to be invaded by Rebel Scum... The Beloved Sith Temple... Desecrated. Animus could not believe it, The Jewel of the One Sith is being Raped, Sacked, Looted! Animus made his mind up.
He dashed inside through the walkways of the temple, slashing at one rebel who was trying to get in, but when fired upon by the outside animus hit the deck hard, blaster shots ripping through his shoulder pinning him down behind a massive Stone pillar that was knocked over.
Animus grimaced in pain holding his shoulder, pulled out his blaster and fired back in their direction taking one Rebel Down but was forced to duck back quickly through suppression fire.
Animus communicated through his wrist com "Specter one taking heavy fire from north side of temple requesting Air Strike at Location Lat.343 Long.454 "

@T'zanith Zebron [member="Dhasias Vunumera"] [member="Sage Bane"] [member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Blane Nightfall]

Blane's troops were beginning to be attacked by more sith as it seemed, a number of 32 commandos were killed in total by the enemy, he couldn't count this, no, but he knew that it was time. "Wreak havoc!" He yelled in the communicator as the rebels begun to retreat? No it wasn't a retreat but more like a defensive position they took, every soldier took cover seeming to increase the fire at sith and the other soldiers. The rocket launcher begun to launch rockets all over the place with no real purpose but to kill the enemy while others begun to set charges to key structural points. The sith could be stronger, the sith could be incredibly powerful... But none could be as crazy as Blane, well that's what he thought at least, if he was not allowed to leave the temple because of some shield, then he was about to change that. He talked about this crazy idea with the other soldiers but for some reason he failed to mention to the benefactor...Well it wasn't that bad.. is it?
It didn't matter anyway, they had their orders and what stood between them was a shield, Blane was watching those men with a lot of care when he had time, what the sith seem to call power, freedome is exactly what changed him forever and as him the many more lives that he couldn't even think about. This power took everything from him, it was the time for him to take everything in return, to create fear into the very heart of darkness.

It was unexpected for him to be attacked since his presence would not be sensed different than the other soldiers at all, putting aside the fact that the ysalamari negates any kind force power even the sense, but it didn't matter, he managed to see everything in time and run away from that place. It was then when he saw Dhasias charging at... well from a second look it looked like she was charging at him, It made no sense... could she be already so close and throw those things with the column without being exhausted? No there had to be another sith around, the thought made Blane smirk as he seemed to create enough disaster for them to come to him, the remaining commandos where firing violently with their guns aswell as rocket launchers and Blane decided that it still wasn't the time to show all his surprises, but maybe some gifts? "Happy Birthday beautiful!" Then again begun to fire with his both FWG-5 at Dhasias, he didn't really knew how she was looking but it was one of his many jokes as usual, it seems he found someone to mock for a while or so he thought. "An angry sith, is a funny sith" He always said.

[member="Dhasias Vunumera"] [member="Animus Malgus"] [member="Thane Drexel"] [member="Darth Ferus"] [member="Reverance"] [member="T'zanith Zebron"]

 

[Sage Bane]

A dark brow creased. Sage was no lawyer, but Coruscant was currently under autocratic rule. There was probably some sort of legal system on the Queen's Core, but as Sage spent a good deal of his time on the battlefield, he certainly wasn't familiar with it. In Sage's experience, prisoner's fates were generally signed away by some underling of the Dark Lord. After that, the detainees either ended up at a Sithspawning laboratory or simply executed. The more useful ones had their minds wiped and implanted with unwavering loyalty to the Sith, and sometimes the Force sensitive ones became Acolytes. Either way, Sith Lords themselves generally did what they pleased with prisoners, legal or not. The phrase "above the law," came to mind.

Oddball was neither useful nor Force sensitive, so he was likely headed to a place where he would soon be saying hello to a second head. As far as the Hand was concerned, Mister Mar'tin was interfering in official One Sith business, and Sage was out of karks to give about the legal process. The bloodied Sith Lord was covered with tiny pieces of broken glass and needed a bacta bath. He had no time for these games.

"Oh, you'll get to meet with your client alright. You can have some quality time with him in the mouth of a Sarlaac pit."

A low growl bubbled out of his throat. Resplendent with the Dark Side, Sage outstretched his arm and reached out with an invisible hand of the Force. The ropey tendril swerved towards the lawyer and aimed to wrap around the man's windpipe. A legal defense would not suffice against this attack. If Matthew Mar'Tin was unable to thwart the Hand's assault, he would find it increasingly difficult to breathe as his windpipe was constricted from a good old fashioned Force choking.

[member="Matthew Mar'Tin"] [member="Oddball"] [member="Reverance"] [member="Vrag"] [member="Matsu Xiangu"] [member="Juwiela Melec"] [member="Animus Malgus"] [member="Pappy"] [member="Blane Nightfall"] [member="Trystis Ray"] [member="Darth Ferus"] [member="Setzi Lunelle"] [member="Darth Pyrrhus"] [member="Sannika Brynn"]

 

[Marcus Itera]

Location: Lower Levels of Coruscant, nearing prison
Objective: Get to prison
Allies: The Rebel Alliance (Urban Combat Specialists), and the Coruscanti Resistance. [member="Oddball"], [member="Matthew Mar'Tin"], [member="Juwiela Melec"]
Foes: The One Sith. [member="Sage Bane"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

Surely the One Sith hadn't erected an entire defense system over a few rebels. The Alliance and their Coruscanti friends down below hadn't even come in force. A few fighter jockeys sailed high above and dealt with whatever problems arose between them and even more ground commando teams moved in around the temple precinct and the prison itself.

For Pappy and his triad of trailing urban combat specialists, they looked wildly out of place on the streets. Marcus was adorned from head to toe in his armor while the rest of them sported simple-looking clothing but they carried enough weapons and explosives to wipe out the next city block. If worse came to worse, they could always resort to ending the poor prisoner's life if it came down to it.

Probably wouldn't, but options were options.

"I've tapped into the infrastructure system. We've got a few surveillance cameras generously donated by nearby businesses to use," Miranda's form danced across the corner of his HUD, "There doesn't seem to be many defenses around the prison. They've surely mobilized but they aren't there in strength."

"Sure is nice of the Sith to play a little fairly this time. Jak," the Dreadguard called out as he ran, "Get your tools ready. Gonna have to hit hard and hit fast."

The man behind him was carrying a HH-15 missile launcher on his shoulder. The UCS's weren't known for using heavy weaponry and participating in long, drawn-out battles, but this case was an exception to their standard protocol. Pappy just hoped no other obstacles jumped in their way - that'd be bad for business.

 

[Reverance]

Rebels. Like insects picking at the food. You let one persist, you get 18,000 more of them with the same notions of being great or righteous or whatever adjective was the buzz word for this week. Gabriel had seen enough of it to know, to understand the inclination to take on a mighty cause with what feeble weapons were available. Well, understand may be a strong word for his emotion involving those that were currently lighting up the CGT Array as well as the defenses of Coruscant, long standing and prevalent. Turbo lasers, point defense cannons, picket lines, planetary and ground side shields, ground forces as far as the eye could see.

In for a penny in for a pound, the One Sith don't play on chances. Yoda was right about one thing: Sith do deal in absolutes. And when one attacks the Capital of the One Sith domain, they attack the heart of the body. And the body will defend that at all costs, even from minuscule germs.

The One Sith had a number of planets that were fully prepared for an attack on both naval and grounding, Coruscant rested near the top. Attack the temple, attack a prison, it didn't matter where the attacks landed. The fact of the matter is that while the Sith didn't actively ingrain themselves into all the planets that were currently under their domain, they did at Coruscant. Even [member="Matsu Xiangu"], arguably one of the most powerful Sith Lords of the One Sith, took up active residence as warden of the planet. So at the end of the day, while the attackers may report the lack of defenses on any scale, they merely need open their eyes to realize that they are in fact wrong.

Gabriel lifted a smoking cigarra to his lips, nonchalantly resting in the bubbling hot tub of the Teleute Class Warship. An amenity provided by [member="Alric Kuhn"], from the once advantageous relationship with Titan Industries. Gabriel lifted a crystalline glass, filled with rocks and whiskey, and sipped as the good doctor strode in.

"They have that vile brain intercepting all gravitational fluctuations within the vicinity."
"What range...?"
"Sorry...too busy being disgusted to ask."
"Alset, you'll get over this issue soon enough I'm sure..."
"I'm...not as sure."

Gabriel held out his hand, waving over the datapad. With a sigh, the doctor handed it over and walked out, mildly disgusted with the relaxed composure of the Sith lord at a time like this. Gabriel scrolled through the active defenses that were firing off and laughed. A nuke to destroy an insect...will still destroy the insect. Opening up his inbox, he sent a holonet message to Miles.

::Put planet on full alert, divert attention to the prison where Matsu is currently...::

The message sent and within 2 minutes, a reply came back.

::Did that ten minutes ago sir, they should be there in full force now. Shielding allocated as well for groundside installation. We have issued a curfew for all Coruscant natives, anyone not currently in house will be getting a pretty hefty fine.::

Gabriel responded back with a smile.

::Good work, keep me up to date.::

He set the device down and chinked the rocks in the tumbler, smoking deeply of the cigarra. He wondered if [member="Vrag"] and [member="Matsu Xiangu"] would join him for a soak after this mild irritation was over.

[member="Hal Terrano"] | [member="Vrag"] | [member="Sage Bane"] | [member="Sannika Brynn"] | [member="Oddball"] | [member="Trystis Ray"] | [member="Blane Nightfall"] | [member="Setzi Lunelle"] | [member="Animus Malgus"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Pyrrhus"] | [member="Greta Kohler"] | [member="Pappy"]

 

[Marcus Itera]

Location: Lower Levels of Coruscant, nearing prison.
Objective: Change of plans
Allies: The Rebel Alliance (Urban Combat Specialists), and the Coruscanti Resistance. [member="Oddball"], [member="Matthew Mar'Tin"], [member="Juwiela Melec"]
Foes: The One Sith. [member="Sage Bane"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Reverance"]

"Marcus, the Sith have mobilized. Entire divisions of infantry and mechanized forces are moving in on that prison - an entire regiment is already shoring up defenses and clearing the perimeter. A curfew has also been set in place."

The Dreadguard would've spat but a helmet kept him from doing so. "Stang! Change of plans!" The man glanced at his map readout before moving down a nearby alleyway. The man stopped and let the three guerrillas catch up with him before he started laying down the new plans. "This operation is now botched. We're going to be hitting an auxiliary objective now. There's a financial trade center about two blocks from here. If you understand the domino effect, then you understand this plan."

"Many of the building's staff have gone home already due to the curfew , civilian casualties should be minimal when entering the building."

"Alright, let's move."

The four-man team sprinted with all of their might. Most of the civilians in the area had cleared out when the Imperial soldiers started moving in. However, small groups of criminals and other gang life found it to be ample time to settle scores in areas where the Sith troops hadn't been yet. Small arms fire in the adjacent city blocks rose in the distance as the small people settled differences.

The kilometer high skyscaper was sure imposing, but not to the Urban specialists who'd leapt from heights even greater. The little squad wasn't even planning on getting inside of the building. They just wanted the side facing the prison several blocks down.

"Jak and Finster, I want you boys to take the leftmost support columns. Thermal wells first and then stuff everything you have in there." The two men nodded and moved immediately. "Reece, me and you'll take the right side, same protocol."

Marcus sprinted to the right, dropping down with his armored rucksack before he began to plant his charges. First the thermal well, then stuff it with a concussion charge, and finally top all of it off with a sequencer charge.

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=10pt] She rolled her eyes when he mentioned her Mother again, backing away a step or two to the cart she’d ordered up to the cell. There was something to be said for obstinacy but at the moment it was just irritating her. Besides, she was the one wearing pink sweaters to council meetings – she was affronted by the implication that she was to be on the cover of the next Sisters Of Mercy album.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt] “Well, I don’t much care for those ugly helmets you’re all so fond of either, but I’m polite enough not to comment,” she returned, paying attention to the flare of anger she recognized as [member="Sage Bane"] somewhere outside the room. There were several presences she didn’t recognize right outside the door, but her former Apprentice would have them well in hand. With that in mind, she picked up a pair of shears, tapping them against the metal of her palms as she turned to walk back to the prisoner.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt] That the planet she loved was threatened was completely secondary to her. For the moment it was just her and this man and a pair of pruning shears.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt] There was little ceremony when she reached up towards his right hand, starting with his thumb and working her way towards the pinky as she snipped off his fingers*. She let them fall, making sharp sounds as they bounced off her arm before rolling at his feet. Backing away again, she tilted her head, studying him in reptilian fashion as she swiped his blood from the shears with her fingers, flicking it on the ground. [/SIZE][SIZE=10pt]This was a relatively small gesture considering her predilection for pain, but she had a sense of build-up. She liked to start on one end of the scale and work her way to something grand.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt] “Tell me what you know.”[/SIZE]

[member="Reverance"] | [member="Oddball"] | [member="Pappy"] | [member="Matthew Mar'Tin"] | [member="Vrag"] | [member="Juwiela Melec"]​

​

*

Spoiler

This was discussed with Oddball's writer prior to this post.

 

[Ras'kala'han]

Trystis receded inwards to the corner of his cell, curling up. The collar was like the weight of the world around his neck, filling him his head with a low, heavy static that drowned out the sensations of the Force.

"According to Section 3, Line 5 of the..." Even with the one thing that was keeping his damaged mind from drifting slowly to pieces, he knew what was going to happen to that poor man. No. Sith don't feel pity. And he didn't. But the mere thought of [member="Sage Bane"]'s punishments left him clutching his aching skull. And then he had to close his eyes tightly, focus on the static, don't start thinking again about the worms and the blood and broken glass...

"Absolute power." He whispered. "Fear leads to anger, anger to hate. Hate to suffering. And from absolute suffering comes absolute power... that is Sith." He kept thinking about that. He needed to. It was his only anchor. The Sith was the thin, thin wall between him and absolute tortured madness, endlessly, forever.

So he stood their in his cell, knees to his chest. Eyes shut, rocked by the irregular shuddering from the Rebel bombing raids. And, in the dark of his mind, he could still see the Hand's damnable smile.

[member="Pappy"], [member="Reverance"], [member="Blane Nightfall"], [member="Animus Malgus"], [member="Dhasias Vunumera"], [member="Matthew Mar'Tin"]

 

[Vrag]

It wasn't every day that she could get such quality entertainment virtually for free — well, save for the few lives that would be lost to the abominable punchlines of one [member="Oddball"], stormtrooper extraordinaire — and with the great view offered by the huge flat screen in her office, Vrag truly didn't have any complaints about the current situation.

Trained Sith forces, conditioned to the highest degree and disciplined to a T, would apprehend the disorganized members of whatever self-righteous group of would-be freedom fighters had come to scream their lungs out this time. They would gladly oblige their wish.

If anything, the sudden attack would only serve to draw out the members of the fabled Coruscanti resistance that had been so deftly avoiding detection in the heart of Sith territory, brave rebels who had taken up residence right under the Empress' nose; an idea that was surely a disastrous one when the overlords of the planet ordered a curfew. The least they would suffer was a crippling fine. The worst? The worst had arms of blackened phrik and eyes darker than the starless void of the Galaxy, and she certainly knew how to coax the most exquisite agony out of those who lived and breathed, and sometimes even those who didn't.

Vrag smirked and pushed her musings about [member="Matsu Xiangu"] to the side, shifting the camera feeds to a myriad of smaller frames as her eyes flickered from display to display. Multiple officers were connected directly to the screen, but the Hand was searching for a pair of very distinct individuals, and found them with a satisfied smack of her lips.

Business first, then pleasure, she reminded herself with mock sternness, cocking her head to the side as she contacted P-3 and P-7 once more, exchanging a few quick orders with the pair as she adjusted their target in conjunction to what showed up on her screen. Coruscant was a big place, but it was also wired, and as the Hand, Vrag had access to all that beautiful, combed data, delivered to her on a silver platter; from then on, the only thing for her to do was choose the manner of death that would befall the insurrectionists, sit back, and watch the show unfold.

It was simply her personal preference that led her to be more involved than strictly necessary, and after directing the Slayer and his Sith counterpart to another target site, Vrag hailed another individual of… particular talents through her oggzil.

Now, the firrerreo wasn't exactly the forgiving type, but she was nothing if not pragmatic, and practicality surpassed all personal misunderstandings their relationship might have suffered in the past.

Well. Relationship.

"[member="Tmoxin Temi"]," she spoke with a hint of blood-borne glee. "I dearly hope you're still in the death-dealing trade, because I have for you an offer you simply cannot refuse." Whether the implied threat was spoken with actual weight or merely to remind the Hapan of her past transgressions would be left up to the woman herself to decide; Vrag would merely relay to her the relevant coordinates and trust in the soldier's capabilities to do the rest.

Think of it as an welcome-back competence test of sorts.

"Oh, and... consider those two a show of goodwill on my part," she added almost as an afterthought, urging the blonde to turn around and be met with the cold gazes of P-3 and P-7. Such lovely creatures.

[member="Reverance"] | [member="Hal Terrano"] | [member="Sage Bane"] | [member="Pappy"] | [member="Sannika Brynn"] | [member="Trystis Ray"] | [member="Blane Nightfall"] | [member="Thane Drexel"] | [member="Setzi Lunelle"] | [member="Animus Malgus"] | [member="Darth Pyrrhus"] | [member="Greta Kohler"] | [member="Juwiela Melec"]​

 

[Cryax Bane]

Cryax Bane was not what you'd call a happy Chiss. Someone or something was interrupting his takeout lunch of Melanese Fodu noodles from his favorite place in all of the Coruscant Underworld. When he got the ping over his ARCs that somehow the channels of the One Sith hierarchy, encrypted with well over four layers of counter-slicing safeguards, had gotten compromised, he tossed his takeout box into the trash with a huff. This was no doubt related to the attacks on Coruscant that had also so rudely interrupted Cryax's action Holo right in the middle of the best speeder chase scene.

Soon, with his uneaten lunch gathering a few fruit flies, indigo transparent screens were haloed around his head as blue fingers swiped, tapped, and typed. A litany of grumbles came as Cryax worked on ousting the party crasher. It was fairly easy work for the One Sith elite slicer. It was really just a matter of slicing back into networks he himself was obviously familiar with, and chasing down the digital signature of the trespasser, who must have gotten in through a glitch. Human error was generally any network's biggest Achilles heel.

In a few clicks, "Miranda," would find her access to all One Sith military channels very, very much denied. With a casual shrug, red glowing eyes flickered back to his action holo, and his blue lips moved as he recited the dialogue along with the actors. This movie never got old.

[member="Pappy"] [member="Reverance"] [member="Vrag"] [member="Matsu Xiangu"] [member="Juwiela Melec"] [member="Thane Drexel"] [member="Sannika Brynn"] [member="Animus Malgus"] [member="Darth Pyrrhus"] [member="Setzi Lunelle"] [member="Darth Ferus"] [member="Hal Terrano"]

 

[Beowoof]

News reports could be heard emanating from the living quarters of the crowded citizenry lining the deep alleyways of Coruscant's mid levels. "Oh, the humanity! Billions of people have been killed on incoming and outgoing flights as some suspect the planetary shield was accidentally raised. One Sith officials are claiming local insurgents are responsible for the activation of the shields." It seemed someone had failed to stall traffic before putting up the shields. The already-nonexistent economy of the One Sith would plummet further into the negatives.

"Dear Force!" Suka profaned, confounded by the imbecilic destruction of innocent life in the pursuit of killing a pair of Rebel warbirds. However, the news also made it clear how vulnerable the public actually was if Sith could not stop people from sabotaging their shielding systems.

Oh, wait. Sith kill civilians all the time anyway. Just go look at a training thread or two.

"A curfew has been instated for all non-military persons to remain in their quarters until further notice." That was somewhat smart. Though it would be a miracle for anyone to be caught unless they lived on the upper levels. Life downstairs would most likely go on without a hitch. Monitoring and enforcing laws upon multiple trillions of people was a pipe dream in every sense. The people responsible for this must be smoking something.

The Resistance unit took to the shadows in another friendly's outpost, accessing another of the old-fashioned comms devices to get a new update on the goings-on. If it made the news down here, something must be cracking upstairs. Indeed, there was ecstatic activity being broadcast.

"We are getting reports of hostile movement planetwide towards the Forty-Second Prison. Mass movement. Sith forces in their near entirety have been recalled to protect it."

"This has been confirmed in Sectors 9, 11, 3... I'm getting 4, 5, 6, now. Seems they really value our guy."

"Action D-1. This is it, boys."

"D-1," Suka repeated, turning to her comrades. That meant that the Coruscanti Resistance was now setting up shot all along the travel routes the Sith forces would be taking. Being familiar with their sectors of the urban environment like the backs of their hands rather than subject to military routine and resorting to datapads for navigation, the Rebels would be able to outmaneuver and wreak havoc upon the traveling troops from unseen places. It was going to be a glorious field day for the Resistance! A bloody revolution! To hell with the Sith! "Kriff. I wish I was in on that." But they had their own job to do.

Having already arrived in the Forty-Second Prison district, Pozhaluysta's unit had little ground to clear in comparison to the marching and airlifted troops coming this way. And Red Rover's unit had also been given enough time to rendezvous. As soon as Little Birdy Blue hit the streets again, they had converged with the other Resistance unit--demolitions, their specialty--and were already lining the shield relays and blast doors with charges and Agent Cardinam. "Dets are set. Give 'em a greeting from the Benefactor for me."

"You got it." Both units then retracted into the darkness, taking shelter in various Resistance-friendly quarters overlooking the prison district. Now was just time to wait.

[member="Reverance"], [member="Vrag"], [member="Pappy"], [member="Oddball"]

 

[Juwiela Melec]

Engaging: [member="Setzi Lunelle"]

A warning made itself clear within the cockpit, one no pilot liked to hear: there were missiles on lock. By a visual aid, as far as Juwiela could guess, given the stealth capabilities of the Nevermores. But it was still a threat, and a rather imminent one at that, not something any of them needed to intrude on their lives. For Force's sake. It was at that moment an idea came to her, and she couldn't help but crack a smile, even with a firefight surrounding her on all sides and two torpedoes on her tail. "Follow my lead, Straw Hat. We're about to ruin their day."

With only those two sentences as a warning she dove low, the streamlined configuration of her bomber making such a movement nearly effortless. Unsurprisingly the torpedoes were still close at her heels, but she hadn't intended for them to lose their target quite so easily. In fact, what she was counting on was that tracking ability, and the minute faults that could be all too easily exploited. Because right now, her flightpath put her directly in line with a shield relay that was currently doing its job to keep a portion of the planetary shields above Coruscant functioning.

It was as easy as the flick of a switch, and her ship's throttle was silenced, replaced in the seconds afterwards by the airfans that afforded a much lower altitude, effectively dropping out of the line of sight of the missiles that had been tracking her within moments. With any luck, that would be all that was necessary to cause them to lose their lock and slam directly into the relays, effectively bringing down a portion of the planetary shields. Even if it wasn't effective, by some miracle, damage would be don otherwise. Not that any civilians would be killed, given the curfew that had been implemented.

As if to add insult to injury, the Sith pilot had spoken to her telepathically just before the disruptor torpedo was fired off. Begrudgingly she reached out across that same link, replying in kind, "Rebels don't surrender. Kark off." Alright, so it wasn't one of her most eloquent moments, but it was the truth regardless. A fact it seemed the Sith would have to learn the hard way before the day was done. "Feel free to see if you can keep up." A blatant challenge, and one she would back up. Sure, bombers weren't suited for a dogfight, but she couldn't care less. Now this was about getting even.

[member="Sannika Brynn"], [member="Reverance"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Blane Nightfall"], [member="Oddball"], [member="Vrag"], [member="Pappy"]

 

[Tmoxin Temi]

In the vicinity: [member="Pappy"]

The Hapan pharmaceutical executive walked out of the Intergalactic Bank of Manda in the Financial Trade Center of Coruscant, pleased that her business was finished a little earlier than expected. “How about a glass of wine, Beulah?” she asked. She normally didn’t treat her assistant to such luxuries, but Tmoxin was in a charitable mood.

“I don’t know if we can, Ms. Temi. All of the cantinas have closed.”

“Now Beulah, remember we don’t go to cantinas.”

“Right, wine bars. But all of the wine bars are closed.”

“But why?” the Hapan executive complained, her voice taking on an irritated tone, one that surfaced when cocktail hour was about to be thwarted by more business. Or a pesky rebellion. “There’s a curfew,” said Beulah in a meek voice as though she were the one who ordered the curfew.

Tmoxin said nothing, and only gave Beulah a withering gaze, knowing that the news of the day was an attack on one of the Sith Temples. All of these meager anarchists clogging up the airwaves and causing panic in the streets. It was truly an unseemly spectacle, but no matter, the Sovereign Stingray was close by, and the two women could raid Tmoxin’s infinite supply of Smuggler’s Red.

“Very well, Ms. Temi,” said Beulah with efficiency. “Your yacht is parked in a private docking bay right beside that tall skyscraper over there."

Tmoxin called to her eight Mirari Bodyguard droids to follow, and the two of them made their way to the docking bay. As she clicked down the street in impossibly high heels, her datapad bleeped with a message. [member="Vrag"], the Hand of the Dark Lord wanted to speak to her. With no hesitation whatsoever she said, "Patch me in." Of course you took a call from the Hand of the Dark Lord when you were once a traitor to the Sith and were just now building back up that trust. It was a miracle that Tmoxin could do business on Coruscant at all without her head somewhere on a spike, but here she was.

Beulah quickly made the connection, and she listened. “You have my assistance. In fact I’m close to the coordinates right now.” She swiftly ended the call and whipped around to see these P-3 and P7 individuals. Standing ominously behind the Hapan ex-officer were two Sith Slayers clad in Vonduun armor.

“Right then, let’s make a pit stop at the Stingray so I can get my armor on,” said Tmoxin. Beulah, her small army of droids and Slayers followed behind.