The God of War (First Order)

[Evangeline Ovmar]

It had taken a great deal of time and effort as well as a sizable chunk of the Research and Development budget, but it would all pay off today. At least, that's what Ovmar told herself as she quietly listened to the chatter going back and forth within the command deck she stood upon.

She gazed out through the massive viewport that dominated the front of the platform and looked upon not stars, but a picturesque landscape. The facility had been specially built solely for this occasion, for this project of hers. Dug into the side of a mountainside and designed to house the latest artillery piece put forward by the First Order, the facility was reinforced to withstand both the weapon's firing and any potential catastrophic failure between weapon or power source. It had taken months of work, but things were finally set and with the weapon fully functional, it was time to test the fruit of their labor.

Unfortunately, testing had to wait for a short while longer. Reluctantly bowing to formality, protocol dictated that the Powers-That-Be required notification and, more frustratingly, an invitation to view the test itself. Despite her better judgement, she had sent out those invitations in the hope that both the politicians and her superiors would miraculously decline attendance and simply request holofeeds or reports.

Disappointment a constant companion, Ovmar now stood and waited for said officers and dignitaries to arrive. That is, they had arrived, but protocol being protocol a short, concise tour had been required. Thankfully, she'd managed to divert that task to her aide, a young female Ensign, who was currently leading them up to the command deck. For Eva, it was almost painful to watch the minutes tick by.

"Where are Ensign Statham and our guests?" she asked the petty officer nearby. The man glanced up from the security screens and gestured at a nearby panel.

"They're taking the elevator up now, Commodore," he replied, his tone and expression unchanging from the many times she'd already asked him so far. "I believe they're passing the reactor level now. Should be a nice view for the half dozen floors it takes up."

"Indeed," was her only response as she returned to waiting, the impatience she felt unreadable from her facial and body expressions. To an onlooker, she appeared as calm and collected as she always did, despite the intense urge to simply fire the blasted cannon and get the test done with.

[member="Natasi Fortan"] [member="Aram Kalast"] @the rest of the faction, I'm too lazy to tag everyone right now.

OOC:

Spoiler

The Dev thread for the Cataclysm Cannon posted in the back room. Looking for as many posts as we can get. Feel free to pop in, view the test fire, tinker with electronics, help out wherever... generally do what you want.

That said: DO NOT STAND DOWNRANGE. STANDING DOWNRANGE = CHARACTER DEATH.

Also, probably a good idea not to be outside when it fires. Just saying.

Oh, and have fun

 

[RIP Carlyle Rausgeber]

Carlyle Rausgeber, walked out of the bathroom, gagging. He cougjed some moe, his face going red. "Kark!" He groaned, standing back up and shaking his head. The bitterness of the tablets never ceased to amaze him, "Oh piss." He grunted, realizing he'd spilled some water on his goddamned uniform. The captain groaned, and approached a calm looking woman and tapped her on the back. "Hey, don't mean to be a drag here, you have some kind of towel or something here?" he asked, before realizing who she was. "Oh, oh piss. I-I'm really sorry for bothering you here, I didn't mean to, uh, I didn't mean to do that at all!"

[member="Evangeline Ovmar"]

 

[Viktor DuSang]

Avalonia - The Imperial Citadel

The young nobleman briskly walked through the Citadel, a panicked expression upon his face. He fumbled through his jacket, partially pulling out his datapad. He activated the screen, yellow eyes looking at the time. His shoulders dropped, his head snapping back. He put the datapad back in its pocket and began sprinting.

What a sight he must've been, the acolyte running through the halls of the Citadel. His designer shoes definitely not made for running. But he'd be damned before he was late. Punctuality was key. Even above appearance.

Slightly above appearance. Enough that it warranted this spectacle.

He ran past the door to [member="Natasi Fortan"]'s office, skidding to a stop as he backtracked, and made his way into the room. He looked to [member="Sioux Chambers"], putting a finger up as he caught his breath. He hunched over, resting a hand on his knee. Each gasp of air a delight. His shoes were scuffed, and his shoulders dropped even further. "Damnit..." he exclaimed, finding a nearby chair and pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket. He worked the scuffs out, satisfied with their appearance.

The moment allowed him to catch his breath proper, and he stood from the chair. He dusted off his black pants, his black silk shirt. Buttoning his black jacket, he adjusted his white tie. A hand moved through raven hair as it trailed down to his jacket pocket where he pulled out a jewelry box just enough for Sioux to see. He gave her a playful wink before walking up to the Grand Moff's door.

He gave a quick nap, opening the door to poke his head in. "My Lady, it's time to depart." Quickly, he closed the door, standing outside of it. Pulling out his handkerchief once more, he wiped the small amount of sweat that accumulated along his brow. He let out a rather relieved sigh. They were still very much ahead of schedule.

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi looked up at the knock on the door, and nodded at [member="Viktor DuSang"]. She cleared up her desk, locked her papers away, and collected her coat. As they walked towards the hangar bay, Sioux was giving Viktor a hard time about his outfit. "Black suit, black shirt, and white tie -- what is this, a senior prom on Cato Nemoidia?" Sioux asked playfully as she walked alongside the security man. Natasi, reading a briefing on her datapad, murmured something that sounded like an invitation for Sioux to behave herself.

The trip was rather short, and soon Natasi and her two faithful followers were joining [member="Evangeline Ovmar"] on the command deck. The Grand Moff approached. "Commodore," she said, offering a hand. "I'm very excited about what you'll be showing us today. May I present [member="Viktor DuSang"], my bodyguard, and [member="Sioux Chambers"], my Principal Private Secretary -- I believe you two became acquainted during what we laughingly refer to as the capital-B Budget, capital-D Discussion. Perhaps your office knows it as something else." Natasi smiled politely and then lofted her eyebrows. "Well, all's well that ends well, no?"

 

[Viktor DuSang]

"How sad the only time you've seen a well dressed man was at a formal school dance. Besides, I wore purple to my prom." he responded with a playful smirk to [member="Sioux Chambers"]. Natasi's gaze to her assistant shut the conversation down, but the young noble didn't mind. The Principle Private Secretary was a breath of fresh air at times. Her quick wit and n'er-do-well attitude made for a plethora of entertaining banter.

The trip was short, Viktor stood off in a corner smoking a Coruscanti clove. He pondered giving the Grand Moff her gift, but the timing just didn't seem right. Timing was, of course, everything.

Upon the command deck, [member="Natasi Fortan"] introduced him to [member="Evangeline Ovmar"]. He placed a hand on his shoulder, bowing to her. "Commodore." he said lightly. As the Grand Moff took center stage, yellow eyes landed on [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]. He pulled out a silk handkerchief, handing it to the man. "You have a bit of a spill on your jacket, sir."

 

[Sentiri]

The military loved their big guns. The bigger, the better. That included everything from oversized handheld weapons, to oversized power armor suits, to oversized artillery, to oversized ships and vehicles, to oversized latrines. In this case, it was an oversized cannon for an oversized ship that was sure to have numerous oversized bathroom suites aboard. Sentiri could hardly keep herself from rolling her eyes at the thought of how many oversized "throne rooms" would soon be in development. With all those thrones rooms, one would expect some kind of royalty treatment, but she doubted that the Supreme Leader would ever actually step foot on the capital ship. Instead the oversized toilets would be well used by stormtroopers in their oversized power suits. Her cynical imagining ended when she started to picture rocket launcher racks in every bathroom... and if that concept ever left her mind she knew that some zealous developer would find the idea plausible.

Regardless, keeping herself well informed was a duty she would never shirk. Upon receiving the invitation to view the test firing of the "Cataclysm" cannon, as the weapon was aptly named, the Deputy Director had done her homework and read up on the specifications available. Ridiculously oversized or not, the power boasted by the cannon was impressive. If the gun functioned as planned then the First Order would be armed with a truly fearful tool. If anything, that was the useful element to the weapon.

Fear.

The First Order was a symbolic organization. The colors streaming from every banner, the emblems, the oversized mechanisms, the propaganda, everything that the First Order society produced was a symbol of its power, unity, and ambition. A symbol that struck fear was representative of just how powerful the First Order was becoming.

As the elevator rose and the doors slid open with a depressurization of air, Sentiri stepped out and viewed the command deck and the gun beyond.

Power indeed.

[member="Evangeline Ovmar"] | [member="Natasi Fortan"] | [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"] | [member="Viktor DuSang"]​

 

[Julian Falkenberg]

Redacted

 

[Evangeline Ovmar]

Ovmar glanced at the man who'd disturbed her, her eyes flicking over the man's uniform and rank tabs a moment before lingering on the faint telltales of dampness on the man's front.

"Quite alright, Captain," she remarked politely, her tone neutral. "You might see if the details staff has a spare towel to use."

A moment later, the doors to the command bridge opened, revealing her arrived guests. Without an order, the crew staffing the bridge stood to attention as the Grand Moff entered. Ovmar followed suit for a moment despite the urge to hurry things along and, once she felt the formalities had been observed sufficiently, gestured for her staff to return to their duties.

"Ma'am," Ovmar shook the hand the Grand Moff offered in greeting before offering a hand to the other two as well. "Mr. DuSang, Ms. Chambers."

At the commentary about the budget used in the project, she kept her face neutral. It had been a small battle in and of itself just to get funding for such a machine, much less each budget expansion. She had often likened it to trying to pass a humanitarian bill through the Republic's Senate or, perhaps, teaching a Gammorean how to play professional harmonica.

"Yes, Ms. Chambers and I are fairly acquainted at this point," she said with what she hoped was a friendly tone. Her brother, Niklaus, often joked she had only two expressions: angry and stone faced. She tried to make up for that in tonal inflections, but true to form, that was even harder. "Thankfully, the budget was eventually hashed out and the project eventually finish roughly within time constrictions."

She gestured to the large, glasteel wall that dominated the forward section of the command bridge. Outside and ahead could be seen the beginnings of a mountain range, the largest of which dominated the landscape. Between the installation and the mountain itself one could see rolling hills and peaceful meadows. Below the windows, extending out into the view, was the massive barrel of the cannon itself.

"As you can see, all construction has been completed. We've double and triple checked all systems to ensure absolute safety for the weapon test and, just to be sure, cleared the firing area of all personnel as well as established a perimeter of the area to prevent anyone from wandering in the testing range. Would it be safe to assume you've had a chance to read over the dossier I sent to your office on the weapon itself?"

As she spoke, the elevators opened once more as another newcomer arrived. Ovmar glanced over, but waited for the Chiss to approach rather than interrupt the Grand Moff's response.

[member="Sentiri"] [member="Viktor DuSang"] [member="Natasi Fortan"] [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"] [member="Sioux Chambers"]

 

[Visser Chernykh]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTYXbFsWg-M

He had been ensconced deep within the Citadel. Into the shadowy recesses the message had come. He looked up to see the droid awaiting his reply. His eyes glowed a sulfurous yellow whilst he smiled from the darkness.

Yes, he would attend the test.

He dismissed the automaton with a gesture. He looked over to the masked helm beside him. Gloved hands took up the helm. His vision was dark for a brief moment.

Then the mask slid into place. Mael Ren stood....

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The disciple arrived on the command deck shortly after the Chiss. The elevator door opened with a hiss. He stepped out to find the test not yet begun. He saluted the Grand Moff [member="Natasi Fortan"] present with a sharp rap of fist to chest.

His gaze took in her bodyguards present. [member="Viktor DuSang"] he knew personally. [member="Sioux Chambers"] he knew only by a formidable reputation. The Moff had chosen her guard well.

Commodore [member="Evangeline Ovmar"] had been given charge over the test. He could feel her tension. She wasn't afraid but she remained carefully alert. Much would ride on the success of this weapon.

Mael Ren took up a position behind the others. He would let his superiors have pride of place. It was enough to be here and to take it in. He could already feel the wrongness.

The tremendous destructive potential seemed to resonate in the Force. He savored the feeling and drew it in deeply. His lips quirked into the ghost of a smile. He saw the Chiss [member="Sentiri"] who seemed to have arrived just prior.

There too was Captain [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]. By all appearances a hapless clown. Woe betide any ship's captain who truly believed that. Rausgeber was vicious on the command deck of a capital ship.

 

[Asharad Graush]

A'sharad Graush served within the First Order's military. Primarily with the 482nd Infantry Regiment within one of the many Legions the Imperial order boasted.

There were plenty of others within the room as the elevator opened up behind the person who had arrived immediately before him.

Nearly a minute later, the High Colonel's black overcoat was pushed out of the way as he offered a short salute to the Grand Moff, [member="Natasi Fortan"].

The testing of a gun. That's what this was right? Curious as to why a Grand Moff was there rather than a member of High Command. Oh well. Regardless, he was there. He figured he'd forget about this test by the end of the week and would continue to his day to day actions until an actual conflict broke out with their enemies.

The Young Graush lightly brushed the silver and black lightsabre hilt on his belt before he took up position close to one of the corners that were out of the way and crossed his arms. All he had to do was wait, right? He needn't bother anyone, and no one need bother him. Come. Watch. Leave. All there was to it.

 

[RIP Carlyle Rausgeber]

"Oh, piss, uh, thanks for that." he said to commodore Omvar, before turning away out of embarrassment. When he was approached by the newcomer, he looked at him with an air of suspicion. That was until he offered a hankercheif. "Cheers mate." The captain said, wiping some more of the water from his jacket. He passed the hankercheif back, "Thanks for that," he said with a small smile on his face, "Stupid pills for this tumor. Need to bloody take 'em with water." He paused, and grabbed a cocktail glass. "But enough about me, my benevolent acquaintance, who are you?" he asked, before extending his hand, "I'm Rausgeber, Captain Carlyle Rausgeber."

[member="Viktor DuSang"]

 

[Aldous Hofmann]

The ground floor of the project buzzed with fellows like himself. Lane Dogs. Fitters, welders, and Ironworkers of all stripes that bounced from system to system and job to job. They were the silent migrant workforce that actually made a fair amount of credits in their travels, plying their trades to whichever government or being they knew would pay them square. This had been the second time Aldous had dealt with those of the Imperial persuasion, and while their force users typically gave him a bad vibe, they always paid on time and with the correct amount of zeros on the end. The First Order had even been so gracious as to comp them a barracks while they stayed, avoiding the camping or hotel issue that often was a debate among such men.

Bucketheads were the only truly uncomfortable part of the experience. They were everywhere. Always marching and standing about with their weapons, intently eyeing the contractors to assure no one attempted to sabotage their "Compensation" Gun, as the workers had nicknamed it. The implication being they were similar to folk who bought oversized speeders for the hell of it.

Flags adorned every section of the walls. Screeching to the national pride of their employers. Aldous kept his commentary to himself when around those born within the First Order's borders. He hadn't bought into it during his tenner in the Republic Army and certainly wouldn't fall for it from exposure to it during a gig. The galaxy held more wonders than any one group could try to hold underneath their limited ideologies.

He flipped down his hood at his station and welded a small portion of durasteel plate to another plate beneath it, after tacking it he laid one smooth bead on the lap joint, zigging and filling in the gap with a practiced precision. As he finished the bead a loud bell sounded across the floor. An unlit cigarette found it's way into mouth almost instantaneously as he took off his hood and headed for the nearest exit. Lunch was his second favorite time of the workday.

Aldous exited into the windy landscape and lit up the cigarette while standing near a stoic buckethead. A grin developed on his scruffy unshaven chin as he smoked silently and continued his grand cultural criticism internally.

 

[Viktor DuSang]

The young nobleman gave the Captain a friendly nod. The handkerchief was placed back in his jacket pocket as he gave [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"] a firm handshake. "Viktor DuSang, member of the Order of Ren and chief bodyguard of Grand Moff [member="Natasi Fortan"]." he said, releasing his grip. "A pleasure to meet you, Captain."

He seemed a rather interesting fellow, though Viktor felt it'd be rude to pry into the man's personal life. So he refrained from asking about his medical condition. Yellow eyes danced around the room. He took an inventory of all of the faces, his attention going back to the Captain. "My father holds you in high regards. Says you're a very thorough commanding officer, and a valuable asset in the Supreme Leader's Navy."

 

[RIP Carlyle Rausgeber]

"Wait, you're Grand Moff Fortan's bodyguard?" Carlyle asked, his previously calm demeanour had given way to a pang of anxiety, "Oh, where is she now?" the captain asked, before snapping out of, "No, never mind sir, my apologies. I should focus on the things at hand." he said with a small smile, trying to relax his mood. His hand swirled around the cocktail in his hand.
"So, you said your father holds me in high regard? Who is your father again?"

[member="Viktor DuSang"]

 

[Viktor DuSang]

The young noble pointed casually in the direction of [member="Natasi Fortan"]. "Relax, Captain. You're among friends here." He smirked at [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]'s reaction. The Grand Moff carried herself like a queen, and the rest of the First Order seemed to follow that attitude. The mere whisper of her name caused officers to go rigid, making sure they had done nothing that went against protocol.

Yellow eyes rested on the officer's drink as his attention went back to the man. "Hmm? Oh. Fleet Admiral Avicus DuSang. I won't bother you with his other titles. I have other that take precedence over stroking his ego. Such as breathing." The young nobleman let out a light snicker at his own joke. A faux pas, perhaps.

But it still humored him.

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Being Grand Moff was a refreshing change of pace for Natasi Fortan, who rather enjoyed watching heads and bodies turn in her direction as she entered -- all the more because it did so for reasons having to do with her competence, hard work, and dedication rather than suspicion or -- Balance forbid -- celebrity. There was, to Natasi's taste, too much of that sort around as it was. She made eye contact with [member="Asharad Graush"] and inclined her head, then raised a finger as if to indicate that she would like to speak to him in a while. She didn't bother to wait for a response, as none was warranted, instead turning.

Natasi wandered over to where her wayward bodyguard [member="Viktor DuSang"] was standing, overhearing a bit of the conversation in her approach. She said nothing of it, though, pretending that she was occupied with other thoughts as she joined the conversation circle. "Have we any idea when the demonstration is to begin?" Natasi asked irritably, glancing down at her wristwatch. "I really haven't got time for all this. We're in the final stages of making sure the Concordia is fully stocked and ready to go." She looked up, catching sight of [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]. "Haven't we met before? Oh -- Rausgeber, isn't it? Hm." She looked around, eyebrows raising. "Who does one have to know to get a coffee around here?"

 

[Jaron Lesan]

Jaron had entered alone, and remained in the shadows. He was masked as he usually was since his promotion to Knight, however his presence had not been seen, nor felt, over the past several months. The dark Lesan had become disenfranchised with the Knights of Ren as their initial existence seemed to be a cult seeking after dark artifacts. Jaron was not looking to find treasures, he wanted to right a galaxy, and that was not something holocrons and relics could do. The time for action was upon them, and the Ren would strike from the shadows. While he was one to let the military be usually, Jaron was interested in this weapon.

Rumor had been swirling about that this could be a game changer. His ship, a one of a kind, was what he needed to remain hidden. He was hiding for now, the Knight deciding when to reveal himself. In the meantime he would watch this test, and observe those around. His aura was masked to avoid detection, and his use of force stealth was as natural as his dark hair. HE was a Lesan after all, and they knew how to stay hidden when they wanted to...

Dark eyes fell upon the woman who was running this test. She was a go getter, and seemed to be sure of what she wanted. This would be interesting to see how her career would advance. Jaron always had his eye out for potential allies. Those now holding high office had been with him when the First Order was looking to find their capitol. Jaron had scouted many worlds for them, and perhaps should they see his mask they would know him.

[member="Natasi Fortan"] [member="Viktor DuSang"] [member="Aldous Hofmann"] [member="Evangeline Ovmar"] [member="Sentiri"] [member="Asharad Graush"]

 

[Sara Lee Jones]

[member="Roderik von Brinkerhoff"]

It's already been about a week since she had just graduated and already was sent off...not to fly she was told that would come in time however her skills in maintenance and repair of fighters caused her to quickly go to work

So here she was in work clothing little grease on her as she was surrounded by parts and tools hat were neatly in order as she was on a tie fighter maintenancing those ionic twin ion engines not paying attention mostly around her as she focused at the task at hand

She stopped and looked out plenty of peo0le it seemed then again they were building something big didnt really pertain to her so she didn't care she was simply here to see if she could get into a squadron but in the meantime was in repair duty

[member="Natasi Fortan"][member="Viktor DuSang"][member="Carlyle Rausgeber"][member="Aldous Hofmann"][member="Asharad Graush"][member="Skjold Alexeyev"][member="Sentiri"]

 

[Roderik von Brinkerhoff]

[member="Sara Lee jones "], [member="Aldous Hofmann"]

Roderik had granted himself a small amount of walkabout time, internally scheduled inside the starfighter captain's mind. He liked to do impromptu - and regularly informal, hangar bay inspections. Both the flight side and ground crew side of the First Order's Starfighter Corps fascinated and impassioned the man, and he believed a good commander found a balance between understanding and interacting with both sides of the equation.

The hangar bay and overall flight maintenance facility was organized in the standard fashion of the First Order, but bore the unique characteristics that came from a planetary, land-based flight garrison.

Nothing stood out immediately to Roderik as he casually paced, stopping occasionally to render a salute or comment on the undertakings of a pilot or technician before moving on still.

His attention soon fell to a woman conducting engine maintenance. Not an unusual event by any stretch of the imagination, however what gained his interest and instant admiration was that she was in the duty uniform of a pilot officer not unlike his own, and not of a technician. A pilot willing to get their hands dirty above the call of duty was a hot commodity in the Starfighter Corps.

"Is that your craft, or did you lose a bet?" He inquired with good humor.

 

[Sara Lee Jones]

She had just finished installing part of the engine as she wiped her forehead with a huff and light smile, looked pretty everything seemed in place and perfect

"Is that your craft, or did you lose a bet?

She perked up and looked towards the noise turning her head as she observed him and noticed the rank on his uniform as she perked up and immediately got down and saluted "sir!, and no sir I've not been assigned to a ship yet fresh out of the Academy I was sent here temporary for my maintenence and repair skills till I am assigned to a squad"she said as she relaxed at his humor

The name is Sara Lee jones sir it is a pleasure to meet you" she said a tad but dirty from fixing the engine but still nice and tidy in her uniform...along with the he collection of parts setting by her


[member="Roderik von Brinkerhoff"]