The Devil's Lair | CIS Invasion of TJE's Copero Hex

[Mauer]

​

Equipment: Dreamsilk Formal Wear, Thinsuit, Magboots, .48-caliber Enforcer Pistol with normal slugs and borless acid slugs
Objective: Cripple Copero City
Allies: Confederacy of Independent Systems

Location:
Hyperspace to Copero System
'The Footman' Sheathipede-class transport shuttle

Mauer awaited quietly onboard his Sheathipede-class Transport Shuttle, 'The Footman', scrolling through a datapad with the most recent intelligence reports about his governed planet, Linuri. One report detailed that a number of influential figures were covertly attempting to gather enough military forces to seize power, and he simply rolled his eyes at the feeble attempt. Although Mauer was able to gain the position of Viceroy through sheer political manipulation and intrigue, these insignificant and weak old men on a backwater planet were severely underestimating the influence he possessed. Nevertheless, he shrugged it off as another meaningless game to win in his free time and instead, redirected his attention to the task at hand.

The Copero System. To be honest, Mauer knew absolutely nothing about the system and really didn't care, and his personal presence was requested to assist in Task Team 0.2 - Designation Fallen's mission at crippling Copero City. Disdaining direct combat, he opted to help in his own fashion: quickly identifying key officials that were in hiding or under protection. It shouldn't be too difficult to discover their location through a bit of bribery, persuasion and diplomacy. Mauer would extract the positions of leading figures within the Ruling Families of the Chiss Ascendancy, effectively reducing their presence on the planet.

However, there was always the most reliable contingency in place in case persuasion and diplomacy failed. Mauer looked up from his datapad and glanced over the two IG-100 Magnaguards and eight hulking B3 Ultra Battle Droids that crowded the passenger bay of the shuttle. They should be enough deterrent, or strong-willed persuasion, to keep anyone who protested in their place, or as a final option, eliminate any who opposed.

Looking back at the datapad, he opened up communications with the first on his list: Or'teere'nuruodo, or by her core name, Ortensia, was an Aristocra of the Nuruodo family, the Ruling Family of the Chiss Ascendancy formerly responsible for its military affairs. Ortensia was one of the bright upstarts of the Nuruodo family who was being raised as one of the leading military positions within the Chiss Ascendancy. She was identified as a high-intelligence target who had valuable information about the locations of key members within the Nuruodo family but more importantly, was considered a minor priority for the Chiss Ascendancy.

Edit: Formatting, Codex Update

 

[Mason Liddell]

Location: High Orbit
Objective: Downtime training
Allies: Jen’ari & Co
Opposition: CIS

The Force reached out like an extended arm, feeling its way in the darkness. Each corner of the room was felt, two felt the obstruction of the war droids that loomed in the darkness with her. They were active, she could feel the life buzzing about them. An annoyance bubbled under the surface, Madison wasn’t the biggest fan of these war droids nor was she a fan of a lot of things thrown her way. After 100 years you would think she’d have made her way through the arts of the dark side.

Alas, there were far better things to do.

Exhaling, Madison felt the shift in the movement of the war droids. Her lightsaber came to life as it moved, cutting through the air in front of her deflecting a blast shot. Her sense through the force was all she had at this moment, blindfolded and deafened. As the blaster ricocheted offed the beam saber, another followed and faced the same fate as the one before it. Both blasts shot back towards the war droid only disabling its arm that held the ranged weapon. Sensing that the deflected shots had hit their mark, the hand holding the shatter pistol fired and disabled the ranged weaponry on the second droid.

It was time to close in on the first droid. Saber disengaged as she used the cover of the Force, cloaking herself with in the shadows. A simple mistake, but one that would prove to be deadly if this wasn’t a training situation. As the K’paur moved through the darkness – one of the droids quickly repaired itself and opened fire on her backside. Every mental alarm went off in the woman’s head as she twisted and deflected both shots in a panic. Cursing she should have known that the cloak wouldn’t have hidden her from the droids. Dropping it and focusing now on speed, she moved and quickly drove the now ignited blade into the body of the war droid and using it to propel her upward as she fired her pistol into the droid’s sensory drive.

Moving again, she used the force to enhance her speed and she made quick work of the second droid. This time she loped off its blaster arm, cleanly as she knew she would have to repair them after she had damaged them. After the droids were buzzing no more, Madison removed the helmet that blocked all her senses and dropped it to the ground. Her sensitive eyes were met with the bright stale light of the training room and she hissed loudly as she shielded her eyes from the light.

“Turn down the lights!” She shouted, the brightness of the lights only induced the worst headache she could ever imagine.

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Location: The Princess Leia, en route to the Copero system
Tags: [member="Coren Starchaser"] | [member="Mishel Noren"] | [member="Shia Kryze"] | [member="Marakai Al'Orren"]

Sitting cross-legged on the sofa in the Pricess Leia's crew lounge, Amilthi looked at the table in front of her with watery eyes. But her mind was far away in a hell of its own. She was staring into a sea of pure suffering, divorced even from any cause - it was a simple awareness of things being bad that made her freeze in horror. It was not the first time she glimpsed it, and ever time it took her breath for being so much worse than she had remembered and imagined.

Amilthi waited for the purifying fire to burn itself out, and over time the feeling of inevitability no longer crushed her with quite so much force. It began to seem to possible to accept things, bad as they were. The heaviness of it all was lifting and she felt her strength growing. It as not born of indifference, nor of rebellion, but of a grim readiness to do whatever needed to be done, even as it was still tinged with sadness.

It had not been an easy decision. When [member="Adron Malvern"] had explained to her the Confederacy's intention of invading the budding Sith empire in the galactic north, recollections of the war she had once fled had come back all too vividly, and while it had been natural to tell Coren about what she had learnt, she had reflexively considered it a matter that would not concern her person, and had refused to engage with the facts and form an opinion. Coren, however, had pressed her in what at the time had seemed a cruel, or at the very least callous, manner. And upon reflection, Amilthi had to admit that it was a reasonable course of action to destroy this new entity before it would grow like a cancer and many more would perish under its rule and in the eventually inevitable confrontation. And the Confederacy with its droid army, much as she mistrusted its leaders' motives, might just be the right entity to take on this task.

And so with a heavy heart, she had let Coren drag her with him and his former student, of whom she had more than once heard him speak. Amilthi had paid little mind to the others one the ship, who seemed occupied with themselves, or rather each other, and who in any event were too much for her to deal with now. As she raised her head, she found Coren entering the area of the ship to which she had retreated. She seemed distant as her eyes, still shiny from the tears, latched on to him, a sad smile appearing on her lips.

 

[grammaticus]

Location-The Eternal Fury
Allies: TJE and Friends
Enemies: Clanker Huggers
Post 1

Animus was taken back slightly by the forward nature of [member="Diarmid"] took as he sat down in his personal office. He remained standing where he was as the Chiss spoke, his words flowing in a steady stream as the Sith Lord kept his tongue. He could only nod with approval at the rapid rate in which all the preperations and upgrades had happened in the system. He had been hesitant at first to allow outsiders to take up the vital operation, however with the Chiss integration into the Jen'ari Empire, he felt he would be making a good show of trust between the two groups by allow Diarmid to accomplish the task. He was glad to be pleasantly surprised.

"You have done well in the time you have been given. The Dark Council and the Jen'ari Empire offer you our thanks. Now, I would like to discuss the positioning of outer system defenses and warning posts..." He would go into a detailed list of requests that the Jen'ari Empire had for the coming weeks and months, a series of expansions and reforms meant not only to increase the defenses of the system, but the economy. At the moment they were paying huge amounts of credits into the system every month to keep it moving. Animus hoped to change that into a return profit soon enough.

As the initial discussion came to a close, Animus changed topics, sitting down finally across from the Chiss. "Tell me, how come to the repairs and upgrades to the Eternal Fury"

 

[Shia Kryze]

​

(music)​

​

Shia woke slowly when she was safe, and while she had not been aboard for long, the Princess Leia was home.

Not 'home as much as any ship could be', no, it was home.

Because for a Mandalorian, home is indeed where the heart is, and for a nomadic Mandalorian, the soothing sounds of a ship in hyperspace were like a lullaby. Shia was technically also not asleep, just in a state of lassitude that prevented her forming words or sentences, the warm body that pressed against her reminded her exactly what she was fighting for, and why she was here - gratis, no less. Clan Kryze were willing to take this dangerous assignment free of charge to the CIS.

Back in the cargohold, an immense war droid slumbered fitfully, Old One Eye gazing out across the space cluttered with gear and weapons with the expression of a battered prizefighter.

But the third polite bleep, that roused Shia. War was serious business, if you didn't fight to your utmost, you didn't have a family to come back to. She swung her legs out of bed, letting them press gently against the decking and sat upright, letting Mishel's arm trail around her waist as her girlfriend tried valiently to pull her back into the blankets.

"Ni'm ni ceta, ner kar'taylir darasuum." Shia said, switching reflexively to Mando'a, even if she had failed to teach Mishel much in the way of it so far, their time apart had been enough that cultural exchange had been limited to some very... specific words.

She reached out across the bedroom to the buy'ce that sat there, turned slightly away from the couple (Mishel insisted it was staring at her - Shia didn't get it) and flipped it into her hands, looking at the tattoos that ran down her face in her reflection. Unseen by Mishel - but no doubt felt - two women appeared beside her in t-shaped visor - one with short cropped red hair, another with ornate brown. They could have been - and were - sisters. Her most famous ancestors.

"Shia." Bo greeted, her tone abrupt and curt. "Time to go to work. Make every shot count, and be worthy of our heirloom."

"I will." Shia replied, heart in mouth. She was not at all used to this 'physically being spoken to by your ancestors called forth from the Oversoul' business.

The other woman looked sad, and turned to regard Mishel in the bed, even as she pulled herself up to try and see who Shia was speaking to.

"And watch over her, I won't tell you not to make my mistakes. But when you love a Jetii..."

"She's not a Jetii, ba'buir."

Shia swallowed hard, then put the helmet back on the bedstand and stood, walking over to collect a small pot of ink and ash from the beside stand where she'd left it. She'd never asked Mishel to do this before. She turned, not bothering to dress, and crouched beside the bed.

"Mishel, kar'taylir. This... is the first time we're going into battle, like this... together. We're fighting for us, for our family - cuun'aliit - and that... means a lot to Mandalorians. You gave me a connection to my ancestors, strengthened something I barely understand. So I have to ask you..." Shia opened the pot with little ceremony, and gently marked her own face with the mixture of the ashes and dirt of Manda'yaim that lay within, mixed with a fixative binder. The new tattoos made her look intimidating, even for a Mandalorian, the final marks - the same as those worn by Mandalorians, Clone Troopers and Bounty Hunters for centuries, made her look down right terrifying as they shadowed her eyes. "...will you join in Dha Werda Verda with me? I'll even modify the lyrics to the ones they used back during the Clone Wars, with a little change. They mention Jedi." Her smile was intended to be gentle and amusing, it came out as hungry.

"Oh, and I thought we'd ride One Eye down. Make a real entrance on these upstart dar'jetii." Just like they did back in the Crusades. Just like Kryze had done since the Plague. Look up, chit-heads, death is coming for you, before you come for us.

[member="Mishel Noren"]​

 

[Coren Starchaser]

Objective: Team Ghost/Team Light Side
Allies: Motley crew of do-gooders [member="Amilthi Camlenn"] | [member="Mishel Noren"] | [member="Shia Kryze"] | [member="Zak Dymo"] | [member="Marakai Al'Orren"]
Enemies: Jenny from the Unknown

Another day, another war. Coren understood what he was doing, but even he was allowed to have cracks in himself, wasn’t he? The Jedi Master had found himself catching up to his student, who had swung by the Praxeum to pick up he and another of the up-and-coming Jedi, one he felt had an important role to play in the future. The call to arms was because now there seemed to be a second Sith Empire arising, one with some name he wasn’t even working to remember. He had heard tale that the Sith Empire of Carnifex was on their way to Csilla, and through the grapevine of the galaxy, a strike on Copero was occurring with the Confederacy. Now, Coren and the Confederacy had a strange agreement. They weren’t trying to Sith too hard and he let them do their thing, but also, the Outer Rim Coalition, which was the capital state of the Alliance in Exile, had an arrangement with the Confederacy, and that made things trickier.

Still, he was a Jedi, if he sensed the dark side going the wrong way and not being used as a hammer to extinguish this up and coming empire, he would have to make the calls that were typical of his post. With the loss of Romi to the Sith, and the wound of Endgame dug up fresh, Starchaser himself wasn’t feeling 100 percent. But being the air of his student and Amilthi, with a war to fight ahead of him did relax him a bit.

Having spent time in his cabin for a hot minute, considering the options, the Corellian slipped into the padded body glove that served as the under layer beneath his jacket and denims, and checked himself in the mirror. His lightsaber hilt was working smoothly, and his Power 9 Blaster was set and ready. Having taken the time to clean these on the trip, having set up one of his rifles while awaiting Mishel’s arrival, he was feeling more and more confident. This was where they were supposed to be. But with the dark siders on both sides, it was going to be a tricky situation.

The Force would lead him.

Putting his weapon in his holster, he looked at Amilthi. He tipped his head for a second, looking more ready for battle than not, as his eyes followed her figure. “You sure you are game for this?” Last time he brought a Jedi into the field who wasn’t ready, well…

 

[Kayla Wylen]

Location: Aboard the Princess Leia
Objective: Support allies
Allies: CIS - [member="Amilthi Camlenn"] | [member="Coren Starchaser"] | [member="Mishel Noren"] | [member="Shia Kryze"] | [member="Marakai Al'Orren"]
Enemies: TJE

---

---

In the long time Kayla had spent in seclusion on the planet of Monastery, she had contemplated and meditated on many of the questions that had haunted her ever since leaving behind the First Order and the Knights of Ren. From the day she was born they indoctrinated her, filled her with falsehoods that only now she was erasing from her mind. One of those things she had given much time to think on was freedom. What it truly meant, what it entailed, how much it was worth, and she had come to the conclusion that it was one of the most important things to have. So when the news of the rise of the Jen'ari Empire reached her ears, along with the call to war from the Confederacy to prevent them from gaining a foothold in the galaxy, she realized that freedom had to be fought for. Allowing the Sith to rule was to allow them to take the freedom of another- it could not come to pass.

And so Kayla found herself aboard the Princess Leia amongst a number of her allies, their destination the planet of Copero. In her cabin she spent most of the journey in meditation, removing any and all distractions from her thoughts to prepare herself for what was to come. Her senses returned to the world around her as they approached their destination and in silence she got up from the floor, gathered her things, and went to join Coren and Amilthi.

The s'kytri made her way towards them with a gentle and careful smile to greet the two. She had not met them before but knowing they were Jedi was enough for her to know they could be trusted. Although most of her life was spent in opposition to them, now that she was in the process of unlearning what the Ren had taught her she was honored to stand by their side. Although she could not call herself Jedi, she carried the Light with her. That they had in common.

More than what she had already done she did not do, however. Kayla did not want to interrupt their exchange and as such she simply went to take a seat, seeing the emotion on not only Amilthi's face but also within her presence in the Force. It was not her place to get herself involved and so she remained silent.

 

[Darth Aegis]

Aegis, being the Dark Council Sphere of Military Strategy holder, naturally made frequent visits to the shipyard. He had arrived only a day before, but decided to rest. It was today that he would begin his inspections of the shipyards. These inspections were not always just the health and status of the equipment, but also what could be improved upon. The Sith awoke in his room, a place prepared with some of the finest luxuries for his visit. He easily stepped up from his bed, walking out of the room. He'd order his guards to stay behind, and he would approach a nearby turbo lift. He would take the lift up to the bridge of the ship he was sleeping on, stepping quickly towards the front window. He'd stare out, his arms crossed.

He was ready to begin his inspection.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Location: Orbital Shipyards
Soon to be Engaging: [member="Kaida Taldir"]

Fear.

Copero was rife with it, stank of it. The Chiss that called the world home did not fear war, or death, or servitude. Such qualities were bred into them in the harshness of the Unknown Regions even before the eclipse of the Four Hundred Year Darkness or the Jedi Purge. They would endure as they had always done.

It was not they who feared the coming of the storm, for they had weathered the winter howl for centuries.

The shadows pooled in a darkened corridor, out of the way and unassuming. A simple maintenance closet with tools and supplies stacked onto shelves. Darkness crept to the room, like a liquid spilling across the floor and dripping down the walls, condensing into a single point. From within the shadows two eyes appeared, and then the shadows took physical form. Dark robes draped across a decrepit physique, metal boots and greaves clicking to the floor with a distinctive ring.

The black robed figure, his face covered by a simple metal mask, stepped through the doors, a mere shadow on the wall as a group of Chiss ran by rushing to their battle stations with staunch determination. Good soldiers were hard to come by, good leaders even harder. The security cameras registered nothing as he passed by them, slipping through the steel corridors towards his objective, a simple meeting that awaited him.

He strode up to the chiss, an officer directing a handful of men towards their duties, “Aristocra Chaf’ram’thureaux, I believe you were expecting me.” He said with a simple bow of the head.

“How did you - why are, nevermind. Follow me.” The officer waved off one of his underlings and stepped into an adjoining corridor, the shadowy figure of the Sith following behind. “I thought when you said you wanted to talk you meant a message.”

“Conversations like this require a face to face meeting. Are you going to offer me any refreshments, traveling such a great distance leaves me parched, Aristocra.” More than that, it was draining, exhausting even for the Dark Master. His advanced age and declining health was evident to any that looked upon his frail form. Strength for the Keeper of Secrets lay not in the body, but in the soul.

“Lieutenant Commander.” The chiss corrected, glancing over his shoulder to see if anyone was trying to listen to them. “And no. If you hadn’t noticed we are at war here. I don’t have time to entertain as it were.”

“A pity. Still, you know why I am here.”

 

[Cay-Yo]

Location: Copero System, Planet of Copero, Planetary Capital
Objective: Enforcement of Imperial Orders, Asset Protection, Counter Espionage
Allies: The Jen'ari Empire
Enemies: Confederacy of Independent Systems
Equipment: Hooded Robe, Miniaturized Standard Lightsaber (red)
Unit Strength: 50 Imperial Sith Troopers + Cay-Yo

---

Cay-Yo was introduced to his platoon of military police troopers a few days prior to his arrival on Copero, bringing the endorsement required to command the fifty man strong unit. Their location was the capital of Copero and their objectives were simple. They were to ensure that the Imperial decrees were followed without failure by both the citizenry and military within the limits of the capital. They were to protect the assets within their jurisdiction whether they be VIPs, government buildings, or strategically significant installations. Additionally they were to actively seek out and eliminate suspected clandestine enemies of the Jen'ari Empire without hesitation to prevent effective espionage.

While his unit was numerically small they were diligent, trained, and most importantly loyal. Cay-Yo's physical stature left much to be desired for his ability to fulfill his objectives but his men were more than sufficient to make up for this short coming. What Cay-Yo brought to the table was tenacity and a fervent desire to succeed along with the Force. The acolyte had given orders to his unit, now dubbed the Security Enforcement Team (SET) to encourage cooperation from the local Chiss, to create regular patrol routes around the most important infrastructure locations in pairs (2 man groups). No more than 24 SET Troopers (12 Pairs) were on patrol at a time with the remainder of SET, including Cay-Yo, guarding the primary government building. Bringing the total to 24 Patrolling and 26 Guarding SET Troopers within the capital. With regular radio check-ins every half hour and intersecting speeder routes for ease of reinforcement SET had created a net of conspicuous security. An uninspiring standard formation but one that had proven itself to be effective with law enforcement since the doctrine's conception.

Spoiler

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

Location: Aboard the Princess Leia
Primary Objective: Support Allies
Secondary Objective: Finish Event Horizon: Zero Dawn
Gear: Robes | Lightsaber | Combat IFAK | Switch | Headphones
Rock Out With Your Tags Out: [member="Kayla Wylen"] | [member="Coren Starchaser"] | [member="Shia Kryze"] | [member="Amilthi Camlenn"] | [member="Mishel Noren"]
Sir Not Appearing In This Post: [member="Darth Metus"]

[ just for a moment ]​

​

The young Nautolan was tucked away in one corner of the ship's lounge.

Completely inverted, the boy was reclined upside-down. His head hung off the sofa-loveseat-thing, head-tails dangling just off the floor while his legs were splayed lazily over the back cushions, where his head ought to have been -- if he'd been sitting in the seat like a normal person.

The boy had a HoloStation Switch held between both palms. A pair of orange headphones were nestled on his head, as the youngling played his game quietly. On the seat next to him, a frighteningly comprehensive trauma medical kit intended for use in immediate first aid to horrific injuries consistent with the front lines of war was nestled beside a curved hilt lightsaber that radiated with the energy of the Greater Krayt Dragon pearl that was nestled within.

Zak had joined the Jedi expedition at Monastery. Which was convenient enough, because he was studying the healing arts at the Jedi hospital there, under the tutelage of the Order of the Sacred Lotus.

Which, one of the Jedi was someone he knew.

...known?

He was still trying to get his verbs straight with regard to memories that were his-his and those that were from the life of the real Zak Dymo. Which, he was having a hard time recalling just where Zak had known the man from. Except, he thought it was from somewhere in Galactic Alliance space.

Well, former Galactic Alliance space, that is. Except, when Zak had been... well, the clone's age... the Galactic Alliance had still been new on the galactic map. Zak had still been in the Jedi Order of the Galactic Republic then, so it had been before the mission to Mon Calamari.

Sliding completely off the sofa, the youngling seemed to almost melt from off of the couch to spill out onto the floor. Tucking up into a lotus position, the boy straightened himself so that he was seated cross-legged on the floor with his back against the sofa. All the while, continuing to play his game.

He'd taken a nap for a bit earlier, so now he was wide awake and waiting for... well, more waiting, it seemed. Many waiting. Much waiting.

The adults had decided to go fight. For reasons. Zak wouldn't claim to be able to understand what that was about. Adults were quick to tell kids to behave when they started some chit on the playground, but when adults wanted to start some chit across the heavens... that was supposed to be cool?

Mixed signals much? In any case, Zak had no control over any of that kind of stuff. He was just nine, and not really knowledgeable about those things.

What he did know was just a few scraps of memories of what the real Zak Dymo had learned across decades of learning from some of the best Jedi Healers of their time. Jedi with names like [member="Ilias Nytrau"], [member="Uri Aureleos"], and [member="Cathbodua"].

Could one kid make a difference?

Maybe not. But being Jedi meant that Zak had to try.

 

[Zark San Tekka]

Digital Throne​

The Motive Force​

CDF Deep Space Marker​

​

Though his body was tethered to the Digital Throne, dozens of cables connected to access ports scattered throughout his artificial frame and effectively enveloping him, his mind raced through the void across high band communication frequencies. The Mechanicus Auxilia was a veritable constellation of network nodes and linked droid brains, all connected across a prototype datanet known as the neurosphere. Brightest among these codesparks were the Mechanicum tactical droids, massive heuristic supercomputers capable of replicating the performance of entire starship command crews.

All of the emergent minds and gestalt consciousness that made up his Manifold Council of advisors had urged him to remain behind on the Void Forge, to monitor the battle remotely safe in the seat of his power. Viceroy Archim Calixis, Lord and Chief Hierarchitect of the Mechanicum as well as duly appointed representative of the Zhar Territories, had never been one to lead from anywhere but the front. He held little interest in organic infighting nor debates on the merits of imperialist politics, among many of his own people throughout Zhar's scattered free droid colonies, he was considered something akin to an emperor or messiah in his own right. But when Exarch Talon and the Vicelord had granted his shattered dynasty settling rights across the territories, he had pledged military support should it ever be required. He would not hold to that oath by proxy.

Everything that defined his consciousness navigated the neurosphere, far removed from what little remained of his spine and grey matter, until he walked the bridge interface deck aboard the Ark Divinus, flagship of the Auxilia. His people were not inherently militant, but as one of the few integrated free droid societies in the known galaxy they had long ago recognized the need to defend themselves. So Archim had created the Auxilia, to patrol the Zhar Territories and serve in the Defense Force, and his enginseers had set about building warships and advanced tactical droids to control them. The oldest of these, a Warmind-series super tactical droid that had been in continuous service for so long that its neural net had become self aware, Lord Calixis had named Overmind and de facto supreme commander of all Auxilia forces. After constructing a grand battlecruiser, the Ark Divinus, the emergent AI was entombed within.

A photorealistic holographic representation of the Metal Lord's corporeal form approached the Overmind's physical interface. This six meter tall pyramid of obsidian composed of exotic metals was only a shadow of the twenty meter superstructure housing its true brain just below the deck underneath them. As the emergent AI became aware of him it emitted a phosphorescent glow that shifted palette. Surrounding the pyramid was a circle of clergy droids, each covered in extravagant robes covered in runes symbolizing their Machine God and various aspects of the droid religion known as the Core. Each Auxilia ship was capable of communicating with and understanding the Overmind directly, the pious attendants had been a solution devised for translating the decisions of the particularly inscrutable and frankly unintelligible Warminds in joint organic operations.

"The excited state decays by vibrational relaxation into the first excited singlet state. Yes, yes and merrily we go. Reduce atmospheric nitrogen by 0.03%. It is not much consolation that society will pick up the bits, leaving us at eight modern where punishment, rather than interdiction, is paramount. Please, cut the fuse. They will not harm their own. End of line. Limiting diffusions to two dimensions increases the number of evolutionary jumps within the species. Rise and measure the temple of the three in one. Transformation is the goal. They will not harm their own. Data-font synchronization complete..."

A vocabulator housed somewhere within the pyramidal interfaces continued to babble an uninterrupted string of incoherent word salad. It was a curious side effect of the way they had designed the droid brain's memory buffers. Warminds were required to handle so many calculations per second, that instead of storing excess operations digitally the tactical droid encrypted them as audio files and essentially purged the data by rambling, out of order, endlessly.

"Systems Nominal." the clergy droids surrounding its interface sang out all at once, translating the thoughts that had prompted the Overmind's nonsensical outburst, "All Defense Force vessels en route and accounted for. This unit awaits only the final command."

They had been chosen as the invasion's rearguard for two reasons. First, the nightmare of large scale logistics required to coordinate a galactic invasion force was a trifling matter to the cult's datascribes. So far with their assistance, not a single piece of equipment or munitions had gone unaccounted for. The second was that the first phase of insertion required a certain element of finesse, and with its resounding bloom across long range sensors the Divinus' Charon stellar fusion core was like a beacon in the void. So here they drifted, alone in deep space between star systems, until the battle for Copero was joined in earnest.

"Let us pray," Archim bowed his head, beginning to utter a binaric cant common among his people, psalms of devotion to their Omnissiah.

 

[Caesar Kenway]

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​

Location: Hyperspace, enroute to Copero.​

Enemies: Jen'ari and it's allied forces.​

Allies: The Confederacy of Independent Systems and it's allied forces.​

Primary Objective: Fleeting.​

Tags: None, feel free to join.​

Gear: Minister's Command Uniform, DC-17 Pistol​

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​

The Minister of War stood aboard the bridge of his flagship, his Grievous-Class Commander Ship, the Salvator. He was travelling in hyperspace, and nearing his destination. He was a 54 year old, 55 within the year, and a politician, about to go into live combat, real combat, something he hadn't been in for a decade, not since his soldiering days. It brought a grin to his face, he missed this. His fleet was a varied combination, smaller, faster ships, and larger Star Destroyers and the likes. It was beautiful outside, his Super Tactical Droid, General Kalypso, would probably have had something to say about it. A snarky comment on how his time and memory was wasted looking at a safe area in safe space.

Alas, all he had on his bridge were a few organics who'd decided to join him, a bridge crew, and two Praetorian-Class Battle Droids. His Super Tactical Droid had the pleasure of being a Ground Commander of the Fallen group. If it was any other Tactical Droid, super or not, he'd worry he might not see his trusted friend anymore, but he knew Kalypso would survive. Right now, said Super Tactical Droid was aboard the Fortressa, with the other troops of his group, both droid and organic, he'd opted for a battalion of Commandos, Super Battle Droids, both, and two Magna Guards for him, whether or not he got his wish was another thing.

That however did not matter, he was destined to come out of hyperspace soon, and his life would be in the hands of luck, and skill, that of both the enemies, and the Confederacy. He ordered for all ships to run a systems check, prep all systems, and run a second systems check, if they had time. He knew he wasn't due to be out first.


Fleet:

Spoiler

Storm Fleet:

Spoiler

• Flagship: [SIZE=10pt]Grievous-Class Star Destroyer "Salvator"[/SIZE]
• 4x [SIZE=10pt]Ardan II-Class Flak Frigate[/SIZE]
• 2x [SIZE=10pt]Mordekai-Class Escort Cruiser[/SIZE]
• 2x [SIZE=10pt]Valiant-Class Star Destroyer[/SIZE]
• 1x [SIZE=10pt]Valiant II-Class Star Destroyer[/SIZE]
• 2x [SIZE=10pt]Typhoon-Class Minelayer Corvette[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]​[/SIZE]

 

[Alessandra Creed]

Location: The Veil {Hyperspace} | Objectives: Support Stealth Insertion | Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]​

____________________________​

In the last bloodthirsty battle the Confederacy had been involved in Alessandra had been nominated to be the designated survivor. She had remained behind whilst the other high ranking members of the Government went to Coruscant to aid the Alliance. This time, Exarch Malvern, refused. He didn’t want her out of his sight. And certainly not entire systems away. All notions of this being a dangerous mission had been entirely disavowed by most of the intelligence received.

Her calculations, though highly estimated, backed up the general theory. Their enemies were small. The Jen’ari Empire was relatively new to the galactic stage and their assets should reflect that, unless, they had unseen benefactors and stockpiles of unmarked credits in hidden accounts. It was possible, however, the research that [member="Dianah Vi'Dreya"] had handled while undercover did not suggest extreme amounts of wealth. There was one who could have the resources tucked away. Their leader. Darth Vyrassu. But, no one had records of that. At least none through any major galactic bank she could access.

In the end, it was all speculation. But, numbers didn’t typically lie.

A single star destroyer held a price, typically, well over a million credits. Even with unfettered access to the Chiss Shipyards materials were still incredibly costly. Not to mention the time it took to assemble a space worthy force. Hundreds of thousands of skilled souls. With all of this data, as the Minister of Commerce, she should have felt reassured. She did not.

Perhaps it was the growing child within her making her uneasy. Perhaps, it was her sister, [member="Mishel Noren"], that traveled on the junk ship known as The Princess Leia with [member="Coren Starchaser"] instead of being where she belonged. With her. Alessandra was taken with the sibling she had never known of, even if, she outwardly exuded vague annoyance. The thought of something happening to the Light-Sided urchin made her eyes burn against her will.

Alè scowled when she realized it. Her stomach was still flat, but still, her emotions seemed higher than normal. The father of the unborn babe, [member="Adron Malvern"], had assured her over and over that the best place for her to be was at his side. Not home. Alone—And in his eyes undefended.

Yes. Completely and totally undefended despite millions of droid units that had been left behind.

Adron’s voice began to pour through the holo-comm that went straight to her ear. The official announcement for the men, women, and automatons under his command. The notion that the Vicelord would show them the way left her with a small smile. It was fond, though, she had never really seen [member="Darth Metus"] in action. Mostly, she’d watched him try and find his way to an Alchemy Forge or the Chocolate Fountain on the Fortressa. But…She’d heard stories. Dark, scary, stories. He was a former Mandalorian. Didn’t they all live for the next fight? The kill?

Barbarians.

Once the speech was over the Minister accessed the bridge. The officer who happened to glance up and see her hastily nodded his head in her direction, muttering ‘Ma’am’ before immediately getting back to work. Everyone in the area seemed to be in a silent, focused, frenzy. “At ease…”, she murmured, when she realized the man had tensed up. She was wearing a plain set of gear that she’d picked up from the Knight’s Obsidian armory before leaving Geonosis. It was likely unnecessary but the standard military dress uniform had even less protection. The hexagonal pattern glowed faintly while she moved further into the spacious command deck. Moreover, toward Adron.

His eyes were already a shade of violet that meant he was channeling the Force. Truthfully, she could feel it. “Well said my love…”, she spoke, catching the tail end of his smirk, and the sight of him in his favored Crimson Dread. Whilst he typically looked like a politician or a noble… This was different. This was war. “I’m just here to wish you…”, Alessandra paused, blood-colored lips forming a partial smile, “Happy hunting.”

The Minister leaned up to kiss his cheek briefly. She would not say good luck. That was reserved for someone that could fail. Adron would not. After he had lost Serenno…He would never lose a battle of this magnitude again.

 

[Adron Malvern]

Location: The Veil {Entering Real Space} | Objectives: Assault the outer defenses | Theme | Tags: [member="Darth Tacitus"] [member="Alessandra Creed"] [member="Darth Metus"] [member="Aeden"] Miles [member="Archim Calixis"] [member="Caesar Kenway"] [member="Darth Animus"] [member="Gida Freetaa"] [member="Diarmid"]


A warm presence made itself known. He could feel Alessandra before she ever approached. She was a soothing presence that actually threw off his control of the Dark Side. No matter how much hate and avarice laid within his heart there was also love. Love for this woman who held his child within her. This brought a smile to his face, something that some of the deck officers had never even seen, even many of the droids had taken notable pauses to analyse this anomaly. "Alessandra." Her name was like honey to his lips. Every time he was able to drink it in he felt a true feeling of empowerment to know that she was his. The thought caused him to take her hand, pressing his lips to her soft skin for the briefest moment. "You remember where the emergency shuttles are, right? And all of the bunkers?" It was true, Adron had called Alessandra to come with him. Perhaps it was the child that grew within her but he could entrust her safety to no other. He would not entrust it to any other, it was his task to oversee. The Veil was one of the most destructive behemoths in the galaxy. Even in a crippled state it was a beast of fury, it would protect her well.

A soft beep erupted from one of the droid's terminals. Adron glanced over at it, recognizing the sound immediately. "We're close." He muttered before pressing his lips to the woman's brow. "This won't take long."

The Exarch could see the rest of the fleet chime in. Each unit that had been tasked to this operation had successfully reported in as they passed the final marker. That meant it would only be a few more minutes until The Veil breached into real space. At least that was the plan. The deck was coated in a crimson hue while a siren cut through the silence that had filled the deck. "What the hell is that?!" Adron demanded, looking up to one of the control terminals that was flashing an ocean of notifications. The droid seated at the terminal tapped into it, searching for the answer to his master's question. The droid let out a low whine before turning back to the Exarch. "Uhm...Sir. The Veil's sensors detect an anomaly ahead, it's pulling us out of Hyperspace."

A silent curse came from Adron's lips, yet his focus shattered when the ship gave a violent quake. The flashing lights of Hyperspace were quickly replaced with the hellish reality of real-space. They had been ripped out of Hyperspace. Adron's amethyst eyes scanned the deck. A number of alarms went off and every officer on the deck seemed confused as to what happened. "Shut the hell up!" He called out, before looking to one of the Deck Officer's who sat at a terminal in front of him. "Lieutenant. Where are our support ships?!" His eyes had already scanned the open space before them and found nothing to accompany them. The droid looked over his own screen, however it seemed to be going through some form of malfunction. No, not just his terminal, all of them, all of the ship's systems, even the lights were going haywire. It was pretty obvious as to what had happened. The Jenari had set some damned trap at the edge of their system hoping to cut short any invasion.

"What systems are still online?" Adron crossed his arms over his chest while looking over the droid's surrounding them. A few of them seemed...off. Notable twitches here and some minor speech malfunctions there. They must have been hit by some form of EMP or ION device.

"Sir, life support and communications are online but our shields and weaponry are down, engines as well." A droid called out to Adron. Damn. They were sitting ducks. "Can we get a hold of our support ships? Where are they?" There were too many questions and not enough time to wait for answers.

"The Ferocity and Nova are transmitting to us now, sir. They came into the system without being detected and are already powering up their weapon's systems. They await your orders." The Communications Officer had been the first one to deliver any good news at all. The fact that they had been ripped out of Hyperspace at the edge of the system was bad enough, however now they were also fish in a barrel. Under normal circumstances Adron would allow the enemy to assault them, using The Veil as bait and then his stealthed ships could rip them apart. They did not have the luxury of such refined tactics right now.

"Scramble all engineers and support crews to their stations, get my damn ship back up. Also, alert the fleet of the minefield we hit. We don't know how many more they could have." While he spoke, Adron stepped closer to the viewport. Since they did not have the luxury of sensors he would have to keep a vigilant eye out. Adron could see the Jenari starships and let a small smirk come from his lips. Well played. So maybe these "Sith" were not as foolish as he initially believed. It did not matter, their fleet would still decimate them. "Order the cruisers to engage the nearest ship yard." It sat evenly between the planet Copero itself and it's nearby moon. The Exarch could see the shield stations scattered over the open space before them. "Center your fire on a single point, those shields can't withstand our guns for long. Also, keep our fighters stowed until we know what to expect, but have them ready to scramble."

The deck let out a resounding, "Yes, sir." A mixture of metallic and organic acknowledgement rang out as Adron's amethyst eyes bore into the planet Copero. Regardless of how this engagement had begun. Copero would burn. It would only be a moment later, when from the open space before The Veil would present a hail of turbolaser fire aimed for the nearest Jenari ship yard.

Spoiler

Summary: Adron's flagship, The Veil has been ripped from Hyperspace due to an Empion Mine field. Although the warship was too massive and reinforced to be completely disabled most of it's systems are temporarily offline. The Exarch has alerted The Confderate fleet of these mines and his own fate. Although the Veil had been ripped out, it's two escorts were able to enter the system fully cloaked due to their REFLEC coating. These ships have begun firing on the nearest Jenari shipyard with a vicious turbolaser volley.

Insertion Fleet:
Flagship:
The Veil {Status: Disabled | Shields: Offline | No Starfighters | Damage: 0%}

Escorts:
The White Nova {Status: Cloaked, firing on shielded Jenari shipyard | Shields: 100% | Starfighters prepping for deployment| Damage: 0%}
The Ferocity {Status: Cloaked, firing on shielded Jenari shipyard | Shields: 100% | Starfighters prepping for deployment | Damage: 0%}

 

[Kaida Taldir]

Location: Orbital Shipyards

Soon to be engaging: [member="Darth Orthus"]

The Confederacy of Independent Systems - the latest in a series of states with the same name - had decided to travel across space to invade the latest Sith warlord state that had set up shop in Chiss space. The Chiss of this era seemed to be doomed to be a province of one imperialist polity after another. First the Atrisian Empire had occupied them, then the One Sith, then the short-lived Iron Empire and now the strangely named Jen'ari Empire.


This had to be humiliating for the independent-minded Chiss. Much like it was humiliating for the Eldorai to have lost their homeworld to a foreign invader and now having scattered across the stars as nomads. Indeed both races had some similarities, such as xenophobia, isolationism and authoritarian traditions. Thus Kaida could feel some sympathy for the blue aliens. Not much though. Perhaps the fact that foreigners would fight over their worlds would teach them to stand up for themselves. The Eldorai needed to learn the same lesson. She had dumped the Matriarchy and joined rebels due to the former's inability to disentangle itself from its chronic dependence on Firemane. Or do away with the decrepit ancien regime.


Regardless, she was here. Stuck inside a boarding torpedo purchased from ArmaTech at great expense. She had been told that the model was high-end. If it proved satisfactory, the Shadow Knights might have to acquire more. Assuming they could acquire the money first. The torpedo lacked shields, life support or anything beyond the bare minimum to keep its passenger alive. In that regard it was a perfect reflection of her Spartan philosophy. What it did have was exceptional speed and an individual field disruptor. Impacting upon the shipyard close to what would be the maintenance area, the torpedo's aforementioned field disruptor enabled bypassing of the shields. Kaida put the mag clamps and plasma mining laser to work, quickly creating a small hole to enable entrance. To help obfuscate her presence somewhat, the phrik-armour clad Eldorai had equipped herself with a no-show.

 

[Eli-Mae Forrest]

Post:1
objective: patrol
Allies: Jen'ari
Opponents: CIS

this morning started like any other, Nicole awoke on the indominable, she sprung to her feet in complete silence, she had trained herself to move silently over even the hardest substances, she knew that stealth was a very important component sometimes in her line of work. She walked into the bathroom that adjoined her room, she slipped out of her sleep clothes and looked over herself in the mirror, she did this quite often, she had quite a few flaws but she had to try to come to grips with them, from the scars that lay on her face to the one that graced her midriff.

She didn't linger too long before slipping into her flight suit, it was her squad's turn to patrol the outer region of Corpero space. She grabbed her helmet and slipped out the door and silently padded her way down the corridor, it was dead silent save for the hum of the engines behind her. As she passed the mess hall she kicked herself for not waking up the 15 minutes early she normally did to eat, but none the less she hurried on to the hangar, she always had her choice of star fighters, none-the-less she took her favorite, the thunderbird type fighter, a glass cannon some would say but she loved it, fast and light, her tactic was always to avoid getting hit.

As her squad took off Nicole felt very much in her element. She was born to be in the cockpit of a fighter. All was going well, that was until she saw the first ship of a huge fleet coming out of Hyperspace. "Command we have a problem at my location" She said quickly before turning her ship around

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Location: Orbital Shipyards
Engaging: [member="Kaida Taldir"]
Music

The Dark Master’s eyes pierced the Chiss down to his core, waiting for a response. “I do. I considered your position, but I haven’t come to a decision.” Chaf’ram’thureaux’s own red eyes gleamed as if studying the Sith for answers. Already the being had appeared on the shipyards alongside him, leaving the Chiss unsure of his supposedly ally.

“The longer you wait, the more of your people die in this conflict young one. How many years has the Chiss Ascendancy been left to itself since the Iron Empire? And you think this is your war?” The Sith Lord smiled beneath the mask, his metallic voice dripping with truth and half truths that could not be denied. True, he could force an uprising of some scale, which might garner others, but rebellions and civil wars were always best when they were waged by true believers. “Indecisiveness is not befitting of a leader.” All for the balance of power, never on the either end, always the fulcrum. The Chiss deserved to be free of oppression and destruction, not for the hope of peace or to save their lives. It was simply the course of action the Force inferred caused the least loss of life and the fewest tremors in the balance of powers.

“These ones are already at our doorstep,” the Chiss hissed, waving an arm in the direction of the outer system in anger. “I can’t just pick up and ask my people to start fighting each other while they rain hell on us.”

The Sith gleamed, pleased with himself. “No, of course not." Certainly he could, but not if he was to ever have a chance of gathering more supporters. "But you can start acquiring your trusted lieutenants and getting them away from the fighting to prepare. Remember where you come from. Remember who you serve. It is not some Sith from far off stars or some puppets they enforce, it is the people from whom you are descended.”

Chaf’ram’thureax began to retort when the corridor filled with the sounds of terrible clanging and clambor, the ruckus of a half dozen decks being slammed through by metal, drills, and lasers. The Force twinged with the sensation of a powerful entity arriving and a warning as the atmosphere began rushing. Instinctively the black robed figure lifted his hand, the rush of air pulling he and the Chiss he had been conversing with towards the rupture with a roar.

The Force stopped them around their corridor, sealing it from the explosive decompression at the Dark Master’s command. A moment later the station’s integrity fields kicked in and he ceased his efforts to contain the atmosphere.

“We’ve been struck. I have to go.” The Chiss turned to leave, snapping back as the Sith Lord grabbed his arm.

“Go. Gather those who believe as you do and make ready. I will meet with you once more after the battle.” The kindness and understanding that had laced the Sith’s tone had vanished, replaced with a grating hiss of strain and discomfort. For a moment the Chiss looked at him, waiting to decide before nodding his head and taking his leave of the Sith Lord.

The black robed figure turned to deal with the danger that had presented itself, how the Force worked in mysterious ways, withdrawing his lightsaber staff from beneath the black and red robes that hung around the narrow shoulders of his mortal coil, making his way towards the crash.

 

[Kainan Wolfe]

​

Soundtrack: An End for a Prelude​

Post #2​

Equipment: Shroud of Desolation | Personal Molecular Shield | Wither | The Triad | The Shrouded Blade | The All-Seeing Eye​

Attn: [member="Adron Malvern"] | [member="Caesar Kenway"] | [member="Archim Calixis"] | [member="Aedan Miles"]​

Spoiler: Order of Battle (19969.62 Meters | 1128 Deployed Fighters)

• CNS Fortressa (Flagship)
• 1x Adjudicator-class Star Destroyers:
  - CNS Valkorion's Revenge
• 2x Valiant II-class Star Destroyers:
  - CNS Spear of Nelvaan
  - CNS Sithspawn
• 1x Storm Wolf-class Star Destroyer:
  - CNS Steelheart
• 1x Overseer-class Interdictor Carrier:
  - CNS Winter's Wrath
• 2x Augrim-class Heavy Cruisers:
  - CNS Assassin
  - CNS Bloody Baron
• 1x Mordekai-class Escort Cruisers:
  - CNS Exorcist
• 3x Ardan II-class Flak Frigate:
  - CNS Stormbreaker
  - CNS Hopeless
  - CNS Oddball
• 1x Typhoon-class Minelayer Corvette:
  - CNS Excisor
  
• Deployed Starfighters (66 Squadrons Total):
  - 1x T-77 Stealth Interceptor Squadron (8 Fighters Total)
  - 10x I-3A Lance Fighter Squadrons (120 Fighters Total)
  - 10x Death Glider Squadrons (120 Fighters Total)
  - 30x Vulture Mk2 Droid Squadrons (720 Fighters Total)
  - 5x Raptor-class Bomber Squadrons (40 Fighter Total)
  - 10x Tri-Fighter Squadrons (120 Fighters Total)

Spoiler: Actions

• Fleet exited from hyperspace in orbit of Copero, on the opposite side of the moon
• Arranged fleet in formation
• Deployed first wave of starfighters
• Recited big speech of doom

• CNS Fortressa
  In orbit of Copero

Despite the activity, the Chiss world of Copero seemed quiet, almost peaceful as it tread its neverending path around its sun. Its inhabitants went about their daily business, ships queuing up at the shipyards for repairs, resupply and rearmament. Yet, despite the violence unfolding elsewhere, it seemed as if the war would never reach this part of the galaxy.

Peace is a lie. If the Chiss thought they were safe, hidden away in their cozy little corner of the galaxy, they were wrong. Copero was about to receive a rude awakening to the cruel realities of the galaxy.

On the opposite side of the planet's moon, space warped and twisted as a hole was torn into it with the brutal violence of a sword tearing into tender flesh. Again and again was the fabric of reality pierced by the frenzied hand of a cosmic serial killer lost in the trance of atrocious acts. Like the murder weapons that they were, engines of destruction emerged out of every ragged wound as the inhabitants of the system bore witness to the heinous act. Peace had been murdered above Copero, its throat slit by a cold, uncaring predator.

In its stead, the predator had brought war. It had not been overly difficult for the Confederate astronomers to calculate the position of that moon long before the battle ever began. Afterall, moons did not usually change course, they remained on the path laid out for them at the creation of the universe. And the leader of this murderous fleet understood the power and importance of moon-based weaponry and the lethal pincer it could create between it and the defenses of its mother planet. He had employed the very same strategy at Nibelungen, such a long time ago, with great success. He would deny his enemy the opportunity to do the same.

As the ships took up position in the void, maneuvering into a deadly triangular formation with the Star Destroyers forming the wedge's three points, escorts and supports distributed between them and the massive Super Star Destroyer that was the Fortressa at the formation's center, hundreds of starfighters emerged from the hulls of the massive vessels, huddling close to the armada like a swarm of angry bees. A few civilian shuttles, caught by surprised, tried to scurry out of the way of the incoming storm.

If this had been some Jedi fleet, the universal enemy of the Sith, they would have likely reached safety. This fleet, however, was commanded by the Reaper of Lorrd. "Weapons," Tacitus commanded, surveying the scene unfolding before him from the bridge of the Confederate flagship. "Remove that filth from my viewscreen."

Like the angry maws of a Krayt Dragon pack, the fleet's many cannons turned and fired, spewing deadly fire at the helpless civilian vessels that had the misfortune of finding themselves in their sights. The first of many atrocities that would be committed here, today.

"Fleetwide channel," the Reaper commanded. "Attention all Confederate ships. This is Tacitus. Fall in and form up with my fleet. Maintain position at all costs," he ordered. Half-expecting the enemy to at least partly intercept that message, he had intentionally omitted any mention of Adron's forces, who had their own mission to accomplish.

"Give me systemwide comms," he then requested. His initial orders had been delivered, now it was time to make his presence known to those who would be his victims. "Servants of the Jen'ari Empire," he announced, his words spoken in an ominous, mournful tone. "I see you all beneath me, scurrying around in your little ships, going about your meaningless little lives like the mindless parasites that you are," Tacitus spoke, pausing for effect. "I do not speak now to offer you terms. I do not speak to ask for your surrender, as you are undeserving of such things. I speak merely to inform you of your fate," he said. "Flee, little cockroaches. Or fight. It makes no difference. For vermin such as you, there shall be no escape. No mercy. Only genocide," the Reaper decreed as the Confederacy's warships awaited the next move of their foes.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

Location: Orbital Shipyards

Engaging: [member="Darth Orthus"]

Her insertion had succeeded. However, resistance, or what she interpreted as such at any rate, was not long in coming. Air rushed out of where the boarding torpedo had made a hole. Pulling at the tangled web of power that was the Force, Kaida anchored herself to the ground while decompression took place. Just a moment before the station's integrity field kicked in, she perceived a tingling in the Force. Someone else had worked the Force nearby and the presence was coming closer.


Wasting no time, the former Angelii was in motion again. One slender, gauntlet-covered hand reached for the holster on her hip, withdrawing a Magnetic Revolver, her sidearm of choice. Holding the gun firmly in her dominant hand, she pulled her battle shield into her off-hand. The phrik scutum was far from light, but ideal for absorbing a variety of attacks. Besides, it was also good for bashing people. Her glowsticks remained on her belt for the time being, though each was ready to be drawn. Thus equipped she moved forward.


As it turned out, she did not have to look for the Force presence. She sensed the approach of the Dark Master before she got to behold his features. The being's features were concealed by a mask, whilst scarlet robes hung around his narrow shoulders. A sabre-staff was in hand. An aura of darkness enveloped the man. That alone did not mean much to Kaida, for the Eldorai did not believe that their Sciia had sides. The idea of an omnipresent energy field that bound all life together, had a will of its own and was divided in Light and Dark was not one they shared. If he was a Jen'ari, good. If not, there were plenty of bounties on Sith.


So once the apparent Sith Master came into her sights, she sprung into action. The Eldorai depressed the trigger, firing hypervelocity pellets. These projectiles travelled extremely fast and had been designed to pierce most forms of personal armour. While firing the revolver itself was a silent process, one could hear the whir of its chamber spinning and the pellets hissing through the air. She aimed for the Sith Lord's centre of mass.


At the same time the Force surged through her as she drank in the power of her Sciia. It was not yet actively unleashed. She did not know the Sith's skill set, though his potent aura told her that he was a Master. However, anyone in the corridor would notice that it was getting a lot colder. Moisture accumulated here and there.