Faction Emergence of Heinite | The High Republic

[Aiden Porte]

Theed Square
Vade Taharin Vade Taharin Indirect: Monaray Dod Dominique Vexx
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Aiden's blue blade stayed tight to his body as he answered Kael without looking away from the automaton.

"Stun rounds," he said sharply. "Binder cuffs. Drop them, zip them, and move on. No hero work in alleys."

The BAF-120 tried to surge off the statue base, servos whining as it recalculated. Aiden did not give it the space. He stepped in and struck in a quick succession, two short cuts to the shoulder housing, a hard diagonal to the torso seam, then a precise snap at the knee actuator. Sparks burst in bright fans. The droid lurched, guard collapsing as its balance failed.

Aiden finished the sequence with a Force shove that pinned it down long enough for the next strike to bite through a critical joint. The automaton sagged, its movements stuttering into useless twitching.

His comlink chirped over the screams.

Aiden keyed it open mid-breath. "Chancellor, I'm in the thick of it. We're engaging an armed combat automaton and a mass of afflicted civilians."

Aiden's eyes tracked the riot's edge, feeling the jagged vacancy, the unnatural drive, but not the shape of a curse. "No. I do not sense a Force ailment. This reads biological."

He glanced to the guards struggling to hold a line. "Tell command to push stun munitions and restraints. I want a command center formulated quickly, triage, containment, and coordination. We need routes cleared and civilians funneled out of Theed Square now."

The channel crackled with acknowledgment as Aiden raised his blade again, scanning for the next threat in the chaos.

 

[Monaray Dod]

Hostages at the Royal Naboo Academy

As the High Republic began putting down the riots in the plaza with the help of the Jedi Order, the scarred man navigated through the crowd, cloaked in a brown robe marked with sandstone, allowing him to merge with the backdrop of the nearby structures.

The diversion of the serum-maddened crowd towards the Theed Royal Academy was proceeding as planned, designed to stretch the High Republic's forces to the breaking point. He looked down an unmarked alley before raising a silver disc in his hand, sending a signal to the incapacitated BAF-120 Combat Automaton that was currently encircled by Vade Taharin , Aiden Porte , and Kael Vayra .

Its eyes flickered open briefly, then it spoke a signal phrase. "Activation Gamma..." then a massive explosion erupted as it was fitted with a self-destruct mechanism to thwart any attempts at reengineering. Once he was confident that the droid could not reveal its secrets or those of the Heinite Plot, the man quickened his pace to leap over a nearby wall to the other side.

A transmission was received from a nearby group of Mummers, and the voice on the line sounded like a low grunt mixed with a growl. "The Chancellorss is strengthening her position within the city. We lack precise details, but it appears that the Republic will soon be organized again." The prolonged pronunciation of the letter S unmistakably identified the speaker as a Trandoshan.

"Forget about the blustering Chancellor; let her take charge while we capture those nobles for a hefty ransom." The man exhaled deeply, aware that each moment squandered was a loss of payment from the Senator of Toshara. Luckily, they had overlooked the diversion to the Royal Naboo Academy.

The Mummers' agents, posing as maintenance personnel and junior archivists, had been prepared for weeks. At the designated signal, they acted with a terrifying precision. Blaster shots, set to stun, incapacitated the two guards stationed at the Grand Lecture Hall's entrance.

"Remain seated. Compliance guarantees safety," the lead operative, a woman with cold, grey eyes, announced. Her blaster was pointed at the floor, but the threat was very much real. Panic was not so easy to contain as a young noble from House Pavan, fueled by more bravado than sense, leapt up and charged.

A stun bolt dropped him mid-stride, his body convulsing before lying still. The scream that followed was not from pain, but from terror. As his teams secured key choke points, the main entrance, the comms tower, the dormitory blocks, they deployed small, disc-shaped dispersers.

With a pneumatic hiss, canisters within released a concentrated, aerosolized version of the Heinite Serum.

React to what you deem important | Cynan Obaith Elian Abrantes Anja Rydder Verity Stuyveris Ayumi Pallopides Kinley Pryse | Dominique Vexx

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[Cynan Obaith]

Location: Theed
Outfit: Suit
Tags: OPEN | Monaray Dod

"Milord, there seems to be an effort to strike at the Royal Naboo Academy. They are attempting to take hostages it seems."

Cynan let out a frustrated sigh, he knew this was a situation growing worse and worse. "Take me there, continue to organise the efforts with the High Republic forces at the original site for medical aid and investigations into the causes for this." He knew that was going to be crucial in solving the issue but Cynan needed to get to the academy, his sister was meant to be learning there. Whether Gwen attended her classes for the day or not, Cynan dare not assume but he had to just accept there was a strong chance she could be one of the hostages there.

Arriving at the scene, Cynan dropped from the speeder and nodded his head to his guardsmen to head back to the primary site. This was something that he needed to handle on his own. Luckily enough, anyone attempting to get close enough to attack him would face a masterfully skilled shock boxer, whose aim was to knock out and not permanently maim. It was going to be the ones with blasters that were likely his trouble but Cynan checked and he still had his blaster pistol on his person. Ready to stun if that issue occurred.

Walking to the academy, he held his hands in the air, "looking for whoever is coordinating this hostage situation. I have a counter proposal for you." Cynan called out as he wandered forward. He needed to figure out a way to make sure the innocent students were able to get out of here safe and sound. "These students might seem a good value but let them go and you can ransom for me. My status and wealth will be far more lucrative." It was a bold move that he was aiming for but Cynan figured that he could attempt to give the High Republic less stress and more time to figure this situation out if there was one hostage than dealing with many families demanding a swift resolution so their children could come home safe.

He was also hoping this would mean his sister would be guaranteed to be safe from harm no matter what. Cynan was never going to allow his family to be endangered if there was anything he could do to prevent it.

 

[Aiden Porte]

Theed Square
Vade Taharin Kael Vayra Cynan Obaith Monaray Dod​

Aiden felt the detonation before it fully happened, an ugly spike in the air, heat and pressure surging outward like a wave meant to peel the plaza clean.

He moved on instinct.

The Force gathered at his outstretched hand, then expanded, an invisible wall snapping into place between the blast and the fleeing civilians. The barrier bowed under the impact, shimmering with strain as shrapnel and flame battered it. He held, jaw clenched, feet planted on sun-warmed stone while the shockwave roared past like a storm trying to rip the world apart.

When the worst of it broke, smoke rolled low across the square and embers drifted like fireflies.

Aiden lowered his hand slowly, scanning for bodies, for movement, for the living. His barrier eased, letting air and sound return in jagged pieces, screams, orders, the crackle of comms.

"Jedi Porte, Royal Academy is under attack," a voice burst through his comlink, tight with panic. "Hostages taken. They've released the agent into the air, repeat, airborne exposure."

Aiden's expression hardened. He glanced toward the academy spires rising over the rooftops, then shut his eyes for a single breath, feeling the city's fear expand, layered with that wrong, driven frenzy.

"Understood," he said, voice controlled.

He turned sharply to the Jedi nearest him, motioning them in with a short, decisive gesture. "Clear the injured and secure this plaza. Build a hard perimeter, no one in, no one out without screening. Watch for secondary devices and provocateurs. Coordinate with High Republic command."

He keyed a citywide channel, letting his voice carry through the net with a steadiness meant to anchor. "All personnel, masks on. Do not remove protective gear for any reason in open air. Treat this as biological, until further notice."

His gaze swept the crowd, citizens clustered in doorways and under archways, faces streaked with soot and fear. "Advise the Civilians to return to their homes immediately. Shelter in place and close doors and windows."

From the far avenues came a new sound, engines, disciplined cadence, the distant thunder of heavy transports. Republic forces were arriving in numbers, pouring into the city's arteries to reinforce breaking lines. Aiden watched the first formations crest a boulevard, armor glinting in the sun that had no right to still be shining.

"Naboo has suffered enough today," he murmured, more vow than observation.

Then he lifted his comlink again, voice turning razor-clean. "All units, confirm mask compliance and establish checkpoints. We hold Theed. We protect the hostages. And we end this."

 

[Elian Abrantes]

Sibylla Abrantes
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Elian found Jalen first.

He nearly did not recognize him at a glance, because the plaza had reduced everything to shapes and smoke and motion. Then his eyes caught on Jalen's jacket, on the familiar cut of it, and Elian's heart surged with desperate relief that died the instant he got close enough to see the stillness.

Jalen lay on his back, eyes open and unfocused, as if he had been interrupted mid-sentence. Elian's breath hitched, and his knees threatened to give out. He reached out automatically, as though touch could change the outcome, and then he stopped himself because his hands were already shaking.

"No," Elian whispered, but the word did nothing. It did not rewind time, and it did not soften what was true.

A few feet away, something pale caught his attention, and his gaze snapped to the side.

Ellema.

She was on her side near a broken stall frame, one arm folded awkwardly beneath her. Blood darkened the front of her clothes, and more streaked her cheek and the corner of her mouth. Her eyes were half-lidded, and the way her breath stuttered told Elian she was fading fast.

Elian surged to her without thinking. He dropped to his knees and gathered her up, careful and frantic all at once, as if gentleness alone could hold her together. Her body felt too light in his arms, and the sight of her like this hit him harder than the riot ever could.

"Hey, punk," he said, forcing the words out with a broken little laugh as tears blurred his vision. He tried to sound like himself, like this was just another moment he could talk his way through. "Stay with me, alright?"

Ellema's mouth moved, and she managed a faint smile that broke his heart. Blood gleamed at the corners of her lips.

Elian smiled back because he could not bear to do anything else. "You are going to be okay," he promised, even as fear clawed through him. "We have help coming. They will be here soon."

He pressed his forehead close to hers for a second, as if the contact could anchor her. He could feel her lip trembling against a shaky breath.

"Elian," she whispered, and the sound was so small it barely carried. "I'm scared."

His throat tightened until it hurt. He blinked hard, trying to keep his face steady for her, trying to be the person she believed in. "Don't be..." he said, voice cracking despite his effort. "I am right here. I am right here with you."

Her gaze tried to hold his, and then it slipped. The light in her eyes dimmed in a way that was immediate and unmistakable, and Elian felt her leave in his arms like a thread snapping.

He held her tighter anyway, because his body refused to accept the emptiness. His jaw clenched with anger so fierce it made his teeth ache, and his shoulders shook as he kept speaking to her as if words could still reach her.

"I am right here," he repeated, each syllable trembling. "You are not alone. I am right here."

The plaza continued to burn and scream around him, but Elian barely heard it anymore. He rocked slightly with Ellema in his arms, and grief finally broke through whatever numbness had kept him moving. He bowed his head over her and wept, silent at first, and then openly, because there was nothing left to hold back.

Thread Exit​

 

[Kael Vayra]

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Kael felt a sharp spike of panic as the droid began to overload. The shift in the air, the sudden pressure, the rising heat all screamed of imminent destruction. Instinct took over and he leapt backward, boots skidding against stone as he threw his weight away from the blast radius.

The explosion never fully came.

Aiden was there.

Kael felt the Force surge as Aiden raised a barrier, the invisible wall bowing under the strain as fire and shrapnel slammed against it. The shockwave rippled outward but lost its teeth, deflected and softened before it could claim lives. When the heat finally dissipated and the roar faded into ringing silence, Kael sucked in a breath he had not realized he was holding.

Relief came first.

Then guilt.

If Aiden had not reacted when he did, the plaza would have been a slaughter. Kael's hands trembled faintly at his sides as the realization settled in. He was a Jedi Knight now, trained, capable, entrusted with lives, and yet he had been a heartbeat too slow. The thought gnawed at him as he forced himself to breathe steadily, grounding himself while smoke drifted through the air and embers fell like dying sparks.

He watched Aiden without moving as the other Jedi stepped into command, voice cutting through the chaos with clarity and authority.

"Clear the injured and secure this plaza. Build a hard perimeter, no one in, no one out without screening. Watch for secondary devices and provocateurs. Coordinate with High Republic command."

The words struck Kael like a physical jolt. Purpose snapped back into place, washing away hesitation and self doubt.

"You got it," Kael answered immediately, his voice firm.

He turned and moved, momentum carrying him forward before doubt could return. His eyes flicked briefly toward the spires of the Royal Naboo Academy rising beyond the rooftops. For a fleeting moment, the urge to rush in burned bright. To charge headlong into danger. To be the hero who ended it all alone.

A scream cut through the thought.

Kael spun toward the sound and saw a woman clutching a baby to her chest, standing frozen beside a body on the ground. The child wailed, face red and tear streaked. Nearby soldiers hesitated, overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the situation.

Kael did not hesitate.

"You," he shouted, pointing sharply at a cluster of guards who stood stunned. "You heard your orders. Evacuate the civilians. Let's get moving. Time is a factor."

The authority in his voice snapped them out of it. The soldiers moved at once, ushering civilians away from the plaza and forming impromptu escort lines. Kael took off at a run, circling the Academy's perimeter, shouting directions, redirecting traffic, and pulling units into position.

He moved with growing confidence, panic fully replaced by purpose. His commands were clear. His movements efficient. One entrance after another was secured as guards took up firing positions, blasters trained on doors and windows. People rushed forward pleading, shouting names, begging to be let inside to reach loved ones. Each time, they were turned back, gently when possible, firmly when necessary.

Kael kept moving until the perimeter was as solid as circumstances allowed.

At last, he spotted Aiden through the smoke and crowd noise and jogged toward him, slowing only when he reached his side.

"Civvies are being evacuated and the perimeter is as secure as it's going to get," Kael reported, confidence steady in his voice.

Then his expression hardened.

"We need to get in there," he said flatly, certainty behind the words.


Aiden Porte Vade Taharin Monaray Dod Cynan Obaith