His own breathing echoing uncomfortably loud in his helmet, Ayden ran as blaster fire sang past his head. A dozen other soldier ran alongside him as the overwhelming force of the Sith army broke the outer defenses. At the same time as he ran, dozens of other defense posts were overwhelmed as well. It was almost disheartening to see the same scene at every outpost. Yet, it was too clean. Each soldier ran, not out of fear, but with intent; purpose. As the Sith worked to secure the posts, the Protectorate soldiers that ran took shelter in buildings and secondary outposts. Ayden slide across the ground and rolled behind cover before he pulled a device from one magnetic strip on his thigh. The small black box had a single red button on the side, protected by a silver switch that swung down to prevent accidental pressing.
With a smile, Ayden flipped the switch and pressed the button. The Sith soldiers at the outpost he had been at moments before looked confused as a small chirping noise began. One of them looked around before stepping on a grate. He looked down and slowly nudged the grate aside, revealing a flashing red light that flashed ever faster as the chirping increased in urgency. He had only a second to comprehend what he was looking at before the device exploded. All along the edge of Sector 05, outposts that had been "overrun" erupted in fireballs one after another. Hundreds of Sith droids and troopers were flung helplessly into the air from the force of the bombs. Chaos and confusion ran rampant through the Sith while the Protectorate forces once in retreat turned as one and charged. At the same time, hidden reserves poured from buildings and floating platforms activated their guns. The skyline of Lareen City was suddenly a dazzling technicolor display.
Ayden fired as he ran, mowing down half-broken droids and stunned troopers who had yet to reclaim their bearings. He moved with purpose and experience. As one trooper rose to his feet and turned, Ayden brought the butt of his rifle around and struck the recovering Sith trooper along the jaw. The resounding crack of duraplast on durasteel mimicked the sound of bone snapping from overwhelming force, sending the Sith flipping through the air limp, dead. Moving past, Ayden fired his rifle once more, destroying a trio of droids before turning and gesturing for the squad behind him to press forward. There was no rest, no pause. His muscles sang in agony, displeased at such continued exertion. But the Corellian would not allow himself to stop. There was still too much to be done.
As they turned at an intersection, Ayden skidded to a halt as an AT-TT thundered into the city. For only a heartbeat did Ayden freeze before instinct and the Force screamed at him to move. Diving to one side, he could only watch in slow-motion as the Sith walker fired. Duracrete and fire blossomed from the ground at their feet. Several Protectorate soldiers disappeared in that blinding flash of light and heat. His world spun and shuddered as the force of the blast hurled him bodily against a building's wall. White stole his vision as pain shot up his spine. A taste of slippery copper filled his mouth as flecks of red spattered against the cracked visor of the helmet. It seemed a lifetime, but Ayden soon regained his bearings and staggered to his feet and struggled with broken clasps before he managed to tear the useless helmet away.
Crisp Valen air slapped his face and stung at a cut across his forehead formed from the impact. Ayden had to blink several times as blood tried to blind his vision. As his senses returned and the Force taking hold of his heart, Ayden saw the walker continue its march. With a resolute breathe, Ayden snatched the cylinder at his side at ran towards the walker. The sound of hurried feet caught the attention of a pair of Sith troopers, but not in time to stop the viridian blade from cutting them down. Others turned at the unmistakable sound of a lightsaber, but could not muster their defenses in time to stop him. The rest quickly fell to the ground, dead, before Ayden leapt atop the walker.
Lightsaber in hand, he swung it at the communications antennae first, sending a shower of sparks into the air with his first strike. His second strike tore at the ship's main drive motivator, halting the lumbering metal beast in mid-step. Confused sang from within the walker, but before they could figure out what had happened, Ayden deactivated his lightsaber and jumped away. As his feet touched the ground, his eyes fell half-lidded while his hands reached out. A low, ominous groan came from within the walker as its metal plates shuddered and rattled. Bolts flew out of their sockets as first the forward section of the walker crumpled under an unseen force. The rear legs buckled next, toppling the walker onto its side before a final screech of metal tore the walker's fuel cells apart. The sudden burst of energy was too much and the walker exploded and a white-and-blue blast.
Releasing his grip on the Force, Ayden turned back towards the sounds of fighting. There were more Sith to kill and drive off. Until his body gave out or the gods took him away, he was going to fight. He began to jog towards the fight before his vision blurred and he dropped to one knee. Indignant though he was about it, Ayden realized that he was more injured from the blast than he first though. His armor was blackened across the torso, and there were cracks along the back. He needed to get a new chestpiece and some basic medical attention before he'd be able to fight so more.
