The Silver Jedi Come (Dominion of Malachor V + Sith Order Rebellion)

[Gir Quee]

Location: Tercel-class Heavy Cruiser Paladin, in hyperspace en route to Ziost
Objective: Defend Ziost
Allies: [member="Reshmar"] | [member="Jerek Zenduu"] | [member="Aisha Marc"] | [member="Rozalyne Kurganova"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"]
Enemies: [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Niysha"]

Gir felt the slightest shudder under his feet as the Paladin reverted to realspace just outside of Ziost's gravity well. Light in the the tactical holo-tank immediately began to coalesce to form hazy images of the space around them. The harsh rocky orb of Ziost took up much of the immediate space, but Gir could also see what appeared to be several warships in the area. He eyed one of the pocket carriers, remembering how such a corvette had been his first command. But the presence of more unfamiliar ships running different transponder signals troubled him.

"Is that the local defense fleet?" pondered Gir, eying the heavily-armed Sadow-class Star Destroyer.

Cummolo glanced at a readout and shook his head, "Unknown party, though latest information suggests that they are warships under the command of a Sith."

"But there does not appear to be any fighting," mused Gir, "or any signs of fighting."

The communication's officer raised her voice.

"Sir, I've just received word that a ceasefire is under effect. The Silver Jedi are currently negotiating with a party of Sith aboard one of the friendly vessels."

Unusual. Gir had never seen a sith close up before, but from what he'd seen of them, many of them were rather quick to fight. Yet by all accounts those that didn't were the more dangerous in the long run. While Gir could not confirm that they were even plotting something, he had little doubt that one was coming. Why negotiate, especially if you appear to have superior numbers upon entrance into the system? Barring actual long-term negotiations, the only thing Gir could think of was some sort of political spin maneuver.

"Helm, take us in the general direction of their formation," decided Gir, "but keep us some dozen kilometers away just to give them some personal space. Sensors and communications, start recording and analyzing the local space, paying special attention to the negotiation ship and the Sith warships. If there is an errant comlink transmission or an unusual sensor ping, I want to know about it."

"What do you think they are up to?"

"I'm not sure," revealed Gir, "but I would assume that it is not good for us. We should begin preparing for a fight to break out."

"Their offensive weaponry appears to be powered down."

"Appears," emphasized Gir, "just because their turbolasers are offline doesn't mean that they don't have a concussion missile primed and ready to go...but we shall follow their lead for the moment..."

As the motley arrangement of warships edged through the black void, their crews prepared for battle. While their offensive weapons were powered down, their gunners remained on station, ready to man their weapons at a moment's notice. Shield operators took the time to optimize their shields against an expected attack from the sith warships while pilots loitered by their craft, waiting for the order that would scramble their unit into action. A sense of unease and alacrity permeated throughout the starship's crew that not even Gir was immune to. A thought came to mind as he watched the holographic Paladin cross past a highlighted navigational line.

"Weapons, have the rear general purpose launchers start laying down a mixed minefield here. Transfer control of the minefield to my personal console."

"Aye sir."

The half-dozen tubes on the cruiser's rear began to release a mixture of Starstreak and Cometburst space mines that drifted out of the vessel's stern. At his console, Gir began to orient the various mines so that half of them were roughly pointed at the current Sith starships while the other half were pointed at the main entry point into the system itself. Now to see what game they'll play...

Fleet

Spoiler

1 Tercel-class Heavy Cruiser Paladin
1 Delphin-class Frigate
1 Stormfire-class Assault Frigate
3 DP20 frigates
1 Alndys-class Patrol/Exploration craft
3 Circinus-class bulk cruisers

 

[Niysha]

Location: The hot seat of the Mirial Accord, wishing she was anywhere else
Objective: Don't crumple under pressure
Allies: [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Onley Xiangu"] | [member="Ansgar"] | [member="Nyra Mazul"] | RED! A world about to dawn!
Enemies: Specifically [member="Gir Quee"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"] | [member="Rozalyne Kurganova"] | [member="Mira Rekali"]

The shuttle was away. Niysha only knew because it showed up on one of the monitors in the room. She could See all of those monitors simultaneously, simply by focusing on them hard enough, but her mind couldn't make sense of everything around her at once. No mortal mind could. She was not a droid, and she had no real training to comprehend most of what she was seeing. The crew busied themselves with making up for her deficiencies as the captain of the ship (who honestly should have been commanding in Ignus' absence) stepped up beside Niysha's command chair.

"My lord," he began with all due humility. Which was way more humility than Niysha was due. She was an acolyte. She wasn't even an apprentice! Why was she here, and why was she in command?

Niysha took a deep breath and sat up straight, consciously turning her head to face the man she didn't have to look at. "Captain. You are infinitely more qualified for this than I am, but the wishes of our superiors need to be obeyed as best we can." The man nodded, seemingly with relief. The Miraluka continued. "So, what I'm going to need out of you is the biggest crash course primer on running a ship of the line that you've ever given during a pre-combat situation. What do we need to do, and why do we need to do it? What did Lord Ignus order us to do, and how sound were his decisions on the matter?" She noticed a bit of hesitation. "Don't worry, Captain. He's not my master. I take your comments to the grave."

The captain stood at ease, or thereabouts. It was perhaps clear to him that this was not an imperious, commanding Sith Lord he had been saddled with. "Our standing orders are to maintain shields and keep weapons powered down, my lord. This is to ensure that we do not present an antagonistic face to the enemy. We are not to spin up guns except in self defense, by Darth Ignus' command." He nodded towards the main consoles. "Should the worst come to pass, we will need to spin up the guns and load the mass drivers. These function best at a distance. It would also be best if we sent a distress beacon to the Sith Fleet waiting in the farther reaches of the Caldera to microjump in."

Niysha nodded. "And until then..." An alarm went off, and the image of a large ship was projected onto several nearby monitors. The captain immediately began shouting orders for a read on who it was and what was going on. Niysha allowed this to happen for several minutes, until something occurred to her. This plan - this ship - was devised by a sighted individual. They didn't think like she did. A Miraluka had constant awareness of everything around her, while a Mirialan, for instance, did not. Not once during that plan did she hear of sensors.

"I want an immediate and total scan of the area around us, and around that ship, to the maximum distance allowed by our scanners. Divert up to 20% of our power from shields if necessary." The Sithling stood as she gave her order, as if the extra height would give it gravity. After a moment, she turned to the captain. "And try to open a hailing frequency. We need to make sure they know the rules of this game before they start to play."

Spoiler

Just a reminder of what Niysha's got with her right now. Ignus' present fleet is comprised of:
1 Sadow-Class Star Destroyer, "Mirial Accord"
10 Sigma-Class Transports

He also mentioned something called the "black fleet" in his first post in this thread, but I don't know enough about that to include it. He can worry about it when he gets back at the helm.

 

[Connor Harrison]

LOCATION: Silver Jedi Outpost; Korriban
ALLIES: Silver Jedi on Korriban
ENEMIES: Sith on Korriban
ENGAGING: [member="Haytham Kaze"]

OOC:

Spoiler

Sorry if this is a bit of a weak post – feeling a bit under the weather so my focus isn’t 100% but want to keep going! 

The flash of the saber blade caught Connor’s eye the close proximity of it causing his muscle and eye to spasm and try to close. He shot a glance down as he held Haytham, but soon was wrestled to face him. The saber was lashing up to him in their close proximity and forced his hand; keep on Haytham and end up mortally wounded, or let go and push back.

Connor cursed and felt the burning sensation as the saber pushed up to his armour; immediately registering critical damage. He yelled out and swiped his hand down, thus releasing Haytham and moving to push back the blade as best he could away from him.

Through gritted teeth he fought back, and lashed out into the Sith’s mind once more in a wilder, more frenzied Force burst to amplify the voices, the noises, the lights, sounds and smells in his mind – an assault on the senses inside his skull with drill-like precision in order to break his concentration.

Elegance had all but gone from this fight; now it was nothing but barbaric.

 

[Haytham Kaze]

Silver Jedi Outpost; Korriban.
[member="Connor Harrison"]

What the Jedi Master didn't understand was that Athyssius' abilities were built upon his senses. From Kiskla Grayson's teachings on how to filter out noise, to his own self-taught on how to use his senses and to push them past their limits, the Jedi Master attempted to foil with something - someone, he didn't understand, couldn't even comprehend. He thought he knew the man he fought, he figured that he would use those memories against him, the love, hate, anger, passion, all of it.

He thought it would work, not when he could filter them out.

But filtering them out would've been a mistake.

Darth Athyssius released the wrist that had previously been sent to slam into his neck, his right hand released the dented wrist. That was all he needed.

His lightsabre was called to his right hand and away from the Jedi Master after nearly bisecting the Master. But what replaced his lightsabre? Rapidly moving crimson tendrils that threatened to wrangle tie and wrangle him up. Sure, his mind and senses were being attacked, but his mind was clear. A single purpose, one of the reasons why he had killed Orcus.

Pure and utter destruction.

The distance was short, and the tendrils were hungry. They opened up as if they were the gaping maw of a beast, threatening to wrap around the entirety of the Jedi, every passing moment another tendril was created to construct the Force net that drew closer. It moved as if it were organic, it was heading right for Connor.

Force net.

An exciting ability.

 

[Connor Harrison]

LOCATION: Silver Jedi Outpost; Korriban
ALLIES: Silver Jedi on Korriban
ENEMIES: Sith on Korriban
ENGAGING: [member="Haytham Kaze"]

The confidence in Connor soon vanished again as another neat trick was employed by the Sith and one he’d recently seen in the Sorceress Matsu Xiangu on Ruusan. Those Dark Side tendrils; vicious, unrelenting, lethal as sin.

Connor had no choice but to move, quick, to get distance between the pair. He shot out his hand, the hilt of the lightsaber returning to fit like a glove, but he didn’t activate it. He’d seen the tendrils in action; slicing through Rangers and reducing mortals to dust when incapacitated. Only he had been running from the tendrils to their Master, not backing off from the Master himself commanding them.

”Neat trick,” Connor mused.

Heavy footsteps crunched back over the other, the tendrils hungry from the power feeding them. He reached up to push in the com switch on the side of his helmet.

”Anyone got anything big and explosive then can throw down about now,” he said, hoping [member="Dune Rhur"] had his eyes and ears on the battlefield.

Connor pointed at the Sith.

”Pressure getting to you? A little tap in the mind and you got to create some distance, hm.”

He had to buy some time while he thought how to attack next; the resources this Sith had were lethal, and plus Connor’s armour was now not impenetrable.

 

[Haytham Kaze]

Silver Jedi Outpost; Korriban.
[member="Connor Harrison"].

The Jedi Master ran.

The Jedi Master taunted.

Athyssius could sense all he felt. From when his confidence had been drained out of him in a moment, to when he decided it was the best time for a smug comment. The Dark Lord of the Sith cared not. The Jedi was on the run. Too afraid to combat him for any longer.

All he had to do was walk towards him.

"Running." He held the ignited lightsabre at his side, the Force net died a moment later, no longer reaching, merely dissipating in the air as if it had been a figment of the imagination. "Talking." He kept following. "Ignorance." The Sith Lord shrugged his shoulders. He deactivated the lightsabre, hooking it to his belt as he continued to walk. "Where do you think you're going to go? Your Outpost is surrounded. Look upon it and see for yourself," Athyssius was aware of much beyond their own fight. "Even if you managed to get inside, the outcome would be the same; You dying. Better it be sooner, no?"

The Jedi would've felt the Force pull come violently, pulling him back towards the Sith Lord as if he were a magnet. He did that with his right hand, with his left, he ripped off the black cloak that had been covering his armour. From his back, he retrieved the Rifle. It was already on the shotgun setting, an aerial target? He fired. The recoil was counteracted by the Force. He fired again.

"I will break you for your lies. And then I will send you back to Voss," he said as he continued walking to him. "Torture breeds character."

 

[Connor Harrison]

LOCATION: Silver Jedi Outpost; Korriban
ALLIES: Silver Jedi on Korriban
ENEMIES: Sith on Korriban
ENGAGING: [member="Haytham Kaze"]

The words taunted Connor – he wasn’t running on this fight, not from this butcher; this coward.

As the Force pull came, it grabbed his person and dragged him back violently, and he was too late to counter the hidden rifle that span up from the armour. A shot rang out and slugged him full on, and it shook his body with pain, which signalled the armour was bearing up but wouldn’t take much more direct, brutal impacts.

The second shot came, for which he was ready for and pushed on the Force aura of the Sith holding the rifle, jarring it to send the last shot wild to the right.

Connor reached out and snatched the rifle barrel in his hand and pushed it back up as far as he could away from him.

”Now...you use a rifle? How far does your cowardice...go?” He’d never run. Never. The odds were against them across the Sith worlds, but Connor wasn't going to be one who fled in the face of adversity.

He pushed as hard as he could to use the barrel as a melee weapon to hit Haythem in the face if the angle was right.

”You think I’m lying? You know nothing! You have nothing.”

Connor quickly went for another hit in quick succession; a gauntleted wrist to the side of the head and a follow-up kick to the calf with his spiked boots.

 

[Lief]

PLANET: N/A - In Orbit of Elom
OBJECTIVE: Provide An Heir
PERSONAL OBJECTIVE: " "
TOTAL POSTS: 11/38
PERSONAL POSTS: 6/38

ALLIES: [member='Thurion Heavenshield'] [member='Thyrian Hearthfire']
ENEMIES: Her Past; Impending Danger of Sithlings; Child Incoming!

She knew that he was there before the doors opened. She could sense him, her Phoenix, and the moment that she felt his hand in hers a huge sigh of relief escaped her. While having Thurion there would have made the whole ordeal bearable, she knew that she would never forgive herself if their son had arrived without Thyrian's presence. Not that it was in her control, the babe seemed to have an agenda of his own given how late he was in the first place.

Maybe it had been foolish of her to join the Silvers, but the mention of Elom had left her with distant nightmarish echoes of a past she had locked away for so very long. She had needed to face it.

Still breathing in that ridiculous fashion, Kära couldn't so much as find an ounce of energy to speak and instead she tightened her grip on her beloved's hand and lifted her gaze to meet his. His presence engulfed her focus almost entirely. How had she thought she could live without him, without this?

Kära had faced a lot of pain and hardship. She had been ritualistically poisoned in order to boost immunity, brought to the very fringes of death on numerous occasions, fought fearsome foes, suffered grievous injuries, heck she had even been burned alive and experienced death. Yet despite all this she could not help but think that this was the most excruciating thing she had ever been through in her life. Lives.

But she knew that it was worth it.

She found herself moved from the chair to a stretcher and refused to let go of Thyrian's hand, worried that in doing so she might lose him. From stretcher to bed... And the rest came in a haze of laboured breathing, glaring lights, and muffled voices each telling her what to do which merged into one low hum.

In the end, however, none of that mattered. The pain, the fatigue, the pure mental and physical exhaustion. Because when all was said and done, Kära lay in the presence of the two kindest souls she knew, with a bundle of pure innocence set against her chest. Her mind retraced itself back to the words of her dearest friend, of redemption through the swaddling babe she could not keep her eyes off. It would be a start, a new path she would pave for not only herself but for the family she now had. The family she knew to be her own.

Scooting over on the bed, she made enough room for her beloved Phoenix to join her so that they could share this moment together. Her gaze finally tore away from the babe, to look upon Thurion with the utmost gratitude. Her hand reached out to take his, and while deep down she knew it was selfish - she knew that outside of the Judgement all hell was breaking loose - she was glad that in this moment she was able to share this with the two of them.

And she wanted to hold onto it for as long as she could.

 

[Darth Prazutis]

PLANET: En route to Korriban
OBJECTIVE: Bottleneck
ALLIES: [member="Velok the Younger"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"] | Sith on Korriban
ENEMIES: The Silver Sanctum Coalition
FLEET COMPOSITION:

Spoiler

• 1 x Xo'Xaan-Class Star Destroyer - 950 meters
• 1 x Sadow-Class Star Destroyer - 650 meters
• 1 x Dalek-Class Imperial Assault Frigate - 400 meters
  ​Total: 2000 meters

Home.

Whether you came from the wealthy core worlds closest to Coruscant, or a backwater planet in the Outer Rim all those who called themselves Sith felt some sort of homely tie to Korriban and the other Sith Worlds. Korriban was the birthplace of the Sith Order and the site of many great historic events in the galaxy. The Dark Lords who walked the earth of this historic capital of many Sith Empires is a who's who list of great and powerful Sith with each one shaping the order, and the galaxy forever leaving their mark long after they finally expired and faded away into the elemental chaos, becoming one with the oceans of the force. The dark side swelled like a nexus around Korriban even after many thousands of years of plundering its dark depths and forgotten tombs, Korriban was a skeleton of its former glory a desolate and unforgiving land marred with ruins and tombs of a long extinct people from a forgotten age. Even after all this time the Sith were much stronger on the surface of their so called 'home'.

If the Sith of old could pull themselves from netherworld to see what their home has come to now they would be outraged at what it's become. Korriban today was in the hands of the Silver Sanctum Coalition, a group of self righteous Jedi who stole the proud Sith world after the collapse of the Old Sith Empire. It was utterly disgraceful to see their banners on its surface, to hear about their exploits and to see Jedi desecrate such historic, and holy ground with their footsteps. It was insulting, a slap in the face to everyone who dared to call themselves a Sith to let one of their greatest enemies to stain the world with their presence. While the Sith of late were diverse and scattered across the galaxy following the fall of the great One Sith Empire that gripped the core worlds in an iron fist, this was one thing they agreed on. This was one thing all Sith simply could not let continue after hearing news of more campaigns by the Silver Sanctum Coalition to seize even more former Sith worlds. There was one battle cry that resonated through the galaxy, one rallying cry that brought them all running:

No more.

Darth Prazutis the Prime Designate of the Pacanth Reach, the appointed divine successor to the great God-King [member="Darth Carnifex"] and his second in command in all facets responded to these battle cries. The Dark Lord suited up for battle and boarded the Xo'Xaan-Class Star Destroyer acting as his temporary flagship, and immediately the small task force set out. Prazutis sat aboard a throne in the bridge overseeing everything. They were nearing Korriban and their exit from hyperspace was imminent. Preparations needed to be made for the complex plan that had been hatched in this massive rebellion the Sith had hatched. There was only one real route to reach these Sith worlds and that was through the capital of Korriban. If they could achieve naval supremacy even temporarily over Korriban the Sith could bottleneck their enemy and stop or delay reinforcements from coming, and the enemy from retreating. It was an important job and one of the many crucial in the success of this endeavor, something that needed a delicate touch to carry it out in just the right way.

Through his helm Prazutis was linked with the battlenet all the commanding Sith forces, and Sith Lords used to communicate with throughout the operation. It was crucial that he keep up to date with all the latest intelligence. Normally the Dark Titan would be down on the surface sowing blood and death through the forces of their enemy, knee deep in battle where his training and instincts formed under his mentor told him he should be. But it was more important for him to lead from the bridge of his task force. Prazutis opened up a private encrypted channel to his good friend and frequent partner Velok. "Velok I'm close to Korriban our arrival is imminent, once the bottleneck begins I expect that you'll feel a relief in pressure on your end. We'll hold it as long as we can." Prazutis said.

 

[Velok the Younger]

ASHAS REE SYSTEM -> KALSUNOR SYSTEM
PURSUED BY [member="Reshmar"]

Ashas Ree and the surrounding territory contained the following elements of interest:

• A hidden deep-space transceiver, monitoring the intersection. So far it had only picked up occasional movements, including an in/out imbalance that corresponded to...
• The standard assortment of OSJ Flower defense platforms, seed ships, and tinfoil monitoring stations. Velok found grim humour in the ease with which his long-range guns began sweeping the system, like Dromund and Bosthirda before it. There would most certainly be a change in military doctrine after his incursion.
• An unassuming freighter, arranged by [member="Tai Fa"], transmitted more in-depth scans of the system while (presumably) appearing to bug out in advance of the Sith flotilla. That sensor data aided Velok's gun crews in a more precise sweep of local Silver assets than otherwise possible, even some targets hidden by the planet's atmosphere and sensor background.
• One of Velok's ships was missing. To be precise, it was the Peregrine-class armed freighter, his pocket carrier. Like the Maw of Aeten, it mounted a Class Two hyperdrive. He'd have been more worried if the missing ship had been one of the two Azalus Mk1 flak frigates -- those had a Class One drive each, and could make up lost time with ease. After a few minutes, the Peregrine decanted. And things got interesting.

Peregrine-class freighters were downright ubiquitous in OSJ territory. They'd been the backbone of the Levantine Sanctum, and with Firemane's withdrawal brouhaha, the nimble, capacious ships represented some of the Silvers' only options for the moment. Peregrines didn't hit hard, but they moved like a vastly smaller ship and could be outfitted to carry a heavy fighter complement. As far as Velok was concerned, though, their main use lay in the aforementioned ubiquity.

Moments before its belated departure from Jaguada, the freighter had noted several sensor contacts: a fleet in pursuit. Peregrine sensors were nothing special, and the range hadn't been ideal. Mon Calamari ships, around four of them, the largest around the size of the Maw of Aeten. These weren't the Sasori ships that had been hunkered down in the Dromund system, either, which meant pursuit from Korriban. Raxis, it seemed, had fallen asleep on the job and let someone through.

Velok's comm panel blinked: a transmission from [member="Darth Prazutis"], an old associate.

"Excellent, Lord Prazutis. Hold as long as reasonable; rendezvous with myself or Lord Ignus as needed. Keep in touch. I expect Silver rabble reinforcements. Note that I believe a Mon Calamari task force is in pursuit of me, which makes one less flotilla you'll need to handle."

The Maw continued to shudder as the long-range guns fired. He could feel it in the comm panel, through his claws. The Maw was an old ship, but a strong one, part of the overhaul program that had turned all functional XoXaan-class ships into, effectively, a Mark Two of itself. Heavy armor, redundant shields, dated but serious guns. So far as his sources indicated, the Silvers had no ship that could match it one-on-one, not anymore. But the Mon Calamari...

"Set course for Kalsunor, Captain."

The Kamat Aegit was a dead end, an unlikely place to stumble into a trap. A pretty decent place to trap oneself, though, if one wasn't careful. Velok's jaw knotted as he pondered the maps.

 

[Atlas Kane]

Location: Korriban City Gate, Sith HQ
Allies: [member="Velok the Younger"], [member="Sirella Valkner"], [member="Haytham Kaze"], [member="Grimoire"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Darth Raxis"], [member="Enyo Typhos"], [member="Silas of Ossus"], [member="Vulkan"] and any other Sith in the vicinity
Enemies: [member="Dune Rhur"], [member="Auron Song"], [member="Jericho"], [member="Connor Harrison"] and any other Silver Jedi
Objective: Assist Sirella Valkner, Matsu Xiangu and Enyo Typhos

Fluff bit (feel free to skip):
Korriban, the once proud and mighty home to the Sith and their teachings. It had been the centre of a vast Empire once, the place where the most powerful Sith Lords had ruled from. A place where they had been laid to rest in lavish tombs, radiating Dark Side energies, even millennia after their deaths. It was home to many of the greatest Temples of the Dark Side, where Sith from all over the galaxy had studied the ways of the ancients, to become more powerful than any had dared dream about. The mere utterance of its name used to cause fear amongst the low-lives and those who thought themselves noble alike. It had been the ultimate symbol of the Dark Side of the Force, a drowning black abyss that choked out the Light, a place where the truly powerful could thrive and rise to greatness. Yet, it had been conquered in the past as well. The Jedi and their foolish Republic had defeated the Sith and their Empires before, destroying every temple, tomb, teaching or shrine to the Dark Side they could find, slaughtering man, woman, and child. They believed themselves righteous, that they were doing the galaxy a great favour, by exterminating those that had nearly come to dominate under their "tyrannical" rule. But they were wrong. Their slaughter of the Sith people only made them stronger. It gave them anger and fury far beyond what the Jedi had ever experienced. And when the Jedi thought themselves safe, the Sith struck back.

They struck from the shadows, eviscerating Republic fleets and butchering every Jedi they came across. The Sith obtained many victories, slaughtered countless enemies in the name of vengeance and once again, Korriban had served as the main place of power for the Sith, though their Emperor was seated on another world. The wrath that the Light Side of the Force felt during those years had been the culminating retribution for all the centuries of suffering the Sith and their people had to endure during their time in the furthest reaches of the galaxy. Yet, even as the Sith were at the peak of their power, they began to crumble. The followers of the Light gained more and more momentum against the Sith and their Empire. There were more and more losses during their battles, their soldiers were losing the fervour that had once propelled them to achieve victory, and ultimately the Sith started turning on themselves once again, destroying any chance of victory they might once have had. They too fell and more millennia dominated by the light ensued. The Sith would continue to resurface every now and then, amongst them the great Darth Bane, responsible for the Rule of Two and instigator of the plan that nearly eradicated the Jedi when it finally came to its full fruition in form of the Sith Lord Sidious under the tutelage of Plagueis the Wise.

Never again would Korriban rise to the glory it once had possessed. During the all the years that the Sith had spent in hiding, the Jedi had corrupted the place with their hypocrisy and tainted the once pure river of Dark Side energies with their Light. They had plundered the tombs and destroyed the rebuilt monuments and temples dedicated to the great Lords of the Sith over and over. This time had been no different. After many years of war with a resurgent Sith Empire, the Jedi had gained control of the planet once more and were further defiling the ruined purity of the Dark Side this place had once radiated. It was an endless cycle of destruction and revenge. The Sith would rise and wreak havoc amongst the servants of the Light, yet in turn the servants would manage to regain their strength and topple the Sith, forcing them into hiding once more, where they would rebuild their strength only to come back and begin the vicious cycle anew.

And here they stood again, striking from the shadows, reclaiming what was by right theirs. They stood here again, to unleash their wrath upon the Light Side, just like their ancestors had done before them and how their children would do in the future. One could raise the question, what was the point? What was the purpose of all this suffering and death? Why couldn't there ultimately be one victor in this eternal struggle for power, so that all of it can end and the galaxy could rejoice in peace? The answer was simple. Every light casts a shadow; Furthermore, there cannot be a shadow without light. One cannot exist without the other. Thus they are both locked in an eternal struggle, costing billions their lives. Causing catastrophic destruction all over the galaxy, resulting in unprecedented atrocities on unimaginable scales. Everyone had surely grown tired of the struggle between the Light and the Dark, including those caught in it. They had to have realised that their continued struggles for power would only ever end in the exact same outcomes. That their fates were forever interlocked in a cycle of death and destruction.

Yet here they stood again.

Important bit:
A black-robed figure walked slowly on the stone of the bridge. In front of him were the massive walls of Korriban City. They extended far above the ground, separating the bright and colourful city inside from the barren, red-orange wasteland of Korriban. The night gave the wasteland a certain eerie feeling, something that the Dark Side that was so prevalent throughout the lands of this planet only amplified, resulting in an unsettling yet beautiful landscape. The city, viewed from the outside, was like a perfectly smooth, geometrically anomalous crater. It had beams of light coming from inside it, shining into the night sky, illuminating parts of the otherwise pitch black depths of space, drowning out the faint starlight. The walls alone were impressive and the city itself only got better and better as it went on. It was truly a sight to behold.

The figure stopped and looked out into the wastes. With all its glory and beauty, the city was a modern echo of the past, its architecture paying homage to the temples of old. Out there in the wastes an explorer might yet find the tombs and temples of the Sith, but only husks of their former splendour remained. It was a shame, really. The magnificent sights that had once littered the landscapes of this now barren world were gone, destroyed by the Jedi and their ways. They would pay for this desecration of this most holy of Sith worlds.

The robed figure resumed his advance towards the gate of the walls, however at a brisker pace. He could sense that his allies were already there and he did not wish to be late and after several minutes of walking he finally arrived. He could see three figures surrounded by many more creatures at the gate of the city. The Dark Side was strong with them and the large amount of creatures matched what he had been told to expect, so he walked closer. The man kept his face hidden behind an ebony mask, one that appeared much like those worn by the Sith of old. It was a simple mask, covering his face and keeping his identity hidden from unwanted eyes, though it was clear to anyone capable of perceiving the Force that he was aligned with the Dark Side of the Force.

"Greetings, you must be the ones I was sent here to assist. I hope I am not late in my arrival."

 

[Jessica Med-Beq]

Location: Mateus-class fleet carrier - In orbit over Korriban
Objective: Reinforce SJ and provide cover for SJ ground reinforcements

Allies: [member="Gir Quee"] [member="Reshmar"] [member="Suravi Teigra"] [member="Thoja Arlos"] [member="Jerek Zenduu"] [member="Aisha Marc"]
Enemies: [member="Velok the Younger"] [member="Grimoire"] [member="Darth Raxis"] [member="Catalys Maijora"] [member="Darth Ignus"] [member="Darth Prazutis"]

Hangar (scrambling):

• 60 T-70 X-Wings
• 60 TIE/rv Reaver bombers

"Form up with any friendlies in the system"

"In the Stygian Caldera we can only jump one system at a time! Regardless of who we pursue we can be sure that this Sith Lord will pursue us in turn"

"New contacts entering the system: Admiral Reshmar has sent in reinforcements to Korriban!" the sensor technician told Charzon.

"Just cover [member="Reshmar"] while his payload on Korriban is deployed. All fighter units, scramble!"

And so the relief pilot would take the command of the Mateus' controls, while Julie, the fighter flight leader, had all fighter pilots prepare for takeoff. Because Julie would expect the bombers to provide air support for ground forces engaging the Sith on Korriban, she had the bombers descend to the surface, equipped with heavy Deathballs. Because the intelligence reports that led Charzon to depart Ringo Vinda with the Mateus in tow were concerned with heavy enemy presence on Korriban, which required heavy ordnance to be dropped. One bombing run or two would be better than no help from Charzon, Julie et al. Since they know that they're dealing with heavy resistance, they will have to load up the heavy Deathballs, knowing not all of them will come back. But while the relief pilot is there, Charzon has yet to see any signs of Darth Prazutis and, yet, only the ray shields are up around the ventral hangar. Particle shields must be lowered around the hangar area to allow them to take off.

"All units, prepare for takeoff in 3, 2, 1..." Julie told the rest of the crew.

"Roger"

"Bonber squadrons, once you have the friendly ground reinforcement on sensors, form up with them: we will stay here and act as the fighter screen of the mothership"

"Prepare for carpet bombing!"

 

[ADM. Reshmar]

Location: Resolute-class Medium Star Cruiser - Mon Jortan - Jaguada system
Objective: Reinforce SJO
Allies: [member="Gir Quee"] [member="Suravi Teigra"] [member="Thoja Arlos"]
Enemies: [member="Velok the Younger"] [member="Grimoire"] [member="Darth Raxis"] @Catalys Maijora

Battle Line 37
MC60a Resolute-class Medium Star Cruiser - Mon Jortan
MCL40 Valiant-class Light Star Cruiser - Cala Storm
MCL40 Valiant-class Light Star Cruiser - Rightious
MCE30 Nautilus-class Escort Frigate - Carisa

The combined vessels of the thirty seventh battle Line dropped out of hyperspace in the systems of Jaguada to a dry desert planet, a field of stars and not much else. The world was a crossroads of sorts in the Caldera and was used more as a turn around for course correction than anything else. Upon arriving the Mon Jortan had conducted several sweeps and scans to determine, if it was even possible, the direction the Sith force had gone.

"Captain, what have you found?" ask Reshmar. His executive officer looked over some data on his pad quietly for a moment then looked up

"Sir the sith only have two destinations they could have traveled to from this location. Or scans indicate the last and the largest group to jump from this system in the last six hours was moving towards Ashas Ree. If the information we are getting from our sources on Jaguada are correct that had to have been the sith group." said the man as he double checked his data. Reshmar turned and looked at the commander standing at the helm console, and spoke.

"Helm set a course for Ashas Ree, take us to hyperspace." ordered Reshmar. He looked over the map once again and the hyperlanes that snaked through the caldera. Hopefully they would get more answers once they arrived at Ashas Ree.

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

Zoist
New Adasta
Evening
On board the Buyon - Hangar Bay

Allies: [member="Solan Charr"] | [member="Rozalyne Kurganova"] | [member="Gir Quee"] | [member="Arisa Yune"]
Enemies: [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Onley Xiangu"] | [member="Niysha"] | [member="Ansgar"] | [member="Nyra Mazul"]


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

Although a slight smirk formed on her lips at Solan's comment of manners, she had had experience with Sith of all descriptions through the years. Fighting against the different groups that had formed in the galaxy, to continue the unending 'war' of the dark and light, and this experience informed her that not all Sith are the same. Although the majority of them she had encountered only possessed the need to kill for the sake of it, some she had met had purpose to their actions and these are the more dangerous ones. And so she wondered if the latter was true this evening. Time would tell of course. "Some Jedi I have met could do to learn some manners as well Solan", she stated quite frankly, as she watched to arrival of the Sith group.

She was not under the delusion that the Sith Lord formed any trust with them by entering the Ambassadors ship, or that he had no back-up plan should these talks turn more aggressive, after all Coci was here under the hospitality of the Ambassador as well, and so did not have command of this vessel nor the troops that had lined the hangar. However, she stood beside the Ambassador with her own set determination and purpose. Coci returned the curt bow as their eyes met, before she took in his associates.

"Lord Ignus", she stated as the bow ended. "I am Master Heavenshield and happy to hear what you have to say". The conflict he referred to she could only assume was directed toward the events of the region, as there is no conflict on Ziost at present, unless of course he was about to start one. "May I ask what is your position within your faction?", after all if they are to actually negotiate she wanted to know if he had authority or standing within his group, to be able to do so. It seemed he already knew hers.

 

[Tricia Kalamack]

Allies: [member="Solan Charr"] | [member="Rozalyne Kurganova"] | [member="Gir Quee"] | [member="Arisa Yune"] | [member="Coci Heavenshield"]

Enemies: [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Onley Xiangu"] | [member="Niysha"] | [member="Ansgar"] | [member="Nyra Mazul"]

Tricia was looking at the master and remainign there as she prepared, the old master raised an eyebrow though when the few people there with her handed some fo the reports. One of the relays was linked with the others and getting reports from different systems across the Caldera. The benefits of sending out ships early but she was feeling the master Coci with the force as she spoke into the comlink. "Are you certain about this?" She was curious and allowing the ears of experience to go into her decision when she was moving around with some of the people that were working around the area. Tricia hovered there working with some of the people to get a better look around the city as she moved with the one official she had been assigned to.

 

[Catalys Maijora]

Partisan-class - Arriving - Nfolgai

Catalys' Fleet dropped out of hyperspace, arriving near Nfolgai using the secret route established by his Sith benefactors.

A contingent of two Spewer-class assault ships, and a single Cathedral-class battleship supported the agent's tactical cruiser. "You better tell me we've arrived silently," an occasional fault in his modulator caused his words to resound with an airy hiss. The officers were hard at work ensuring the starship runs at full capacity.

"We've begun to disrupt enemy communications." One responded with confidence.

Unless the Silver Jedi had countermeasures, no distress signals should show up. As well, their own encryption should suffice against any standard decryption technology thanks to the advanced suites aboard the Partisan-class cruiser. "Connect me with the other fleets."

It didn't take long for his signal to travel between the various Sith fleets.

"I've arrived."

[member="Velok the Younger"] | [member="Reshmar"] | [member="Darth Raxis"] | [member="Gir Quee"] | [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Jerek Zenduu"] | [member="Aisha Marc"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz56aruweJY​

​

The Thurra System
Thule's Orbit

While the forces of the Blackblade Guard worked to mop up any civilian resistance and secure their newfound holdings against the new Commonwealth incursion, the fleet that had escorted them to Thule remained in orbit. Since the destruction of the Jedi scout ships they had formed a snug semi-circle blockade around the planet with the five Sadow-class Star Destroyers even spaced out while the flotilla of Subjugators filled in the gaps, their holds still engorged with fighters ready to be launched at the drop of a hat. Luckily for those eager pilots they didn't have to wait long, for not an hour after the invasion fleet had settled in another fleet burst through hyperspace hot on their heels.

"Enemy contact!" rang out across the bridge of the Goliath, the center most Star Destroyer in the blockade, rousing the attention of the commanding officer, Captain Janek Vesik. Once he had been the spitting image of the Imperial personification so frequently utilized in war-time propaganda posters dispersed by the now defunct One Sith, but his fall from grace during the Fall of Coruscant was brutal and swift. In the months following he had resorted to heavy drinking to assuage the pain of the Empire's fall and his own lost ambitions at imperium, and now his body had grown fleshy and fat with his hairline receding deeper and deeper with each passing galactic month. Still, the Dark Lord Carnifex saw usefulness in his former prestige and strategical mind, and had gifted him command of the Thule Invasion Fleet. It wasn't as prestigious as the massive war fleets he had at his beck and call back in the hey-day of the Empire, but it was better than wallowing in his own vainglorious filth till he choked to death on the liquor he consumed like a fish drank water.

He strode, although his portly figure turned that into an awkward waddle, over to the bridge's viewport to stare intently out at the foreign vessels assembling at the periphery of the system. This was what he needed to bolster his morale, a challenge! He turned as quickly as he could around and began to bark orders in an authoritative tone befitting a former Grand Admiral of the esteemed Imperial Navy, and in moments the entire blockade became alerted of this new threat and mobilized the counter it.

Now, they couldn't rightfully break up the blockade they had established to engage the enemy fleet, and so they would let their foes waltz right into their defensive lines and smash them apart piece-meal. The fighters were launched from the Sadows and Subjugators, their numbers filling the void like a swarm of locusts ready to devour a bountiful harvest. It wasn't long before the emptiness between the two fleets was bathed in incandescent streams of green and red, explosions bursting like twinkling stars as those shots found their mark.

The enemy squadrons seemed to be attempting a breakthrough, their guns blazing red hot as they blasted apart TIE after TIE to ensure the safety of the cumbersome transports that trailed behind them. Naturally the Imperial pilots would place those transports as their highest priority target, and while many would be obliterated by their trained accuracy many more would manage to slip through the blockade and slip through Thule's electrified atmosphere. A minor irritation, but they would be handled by the Dark Lord down on the planet below. Janek's only task was to uphold the blockade around Thule, and deny the enemy orbital superiority.

 

[Ellie Mors]

Hail To The King

Allies: Sith
Potential Enemies: [member="Solan Charr"]

New Adasta, Ziost

Silara crept into the city of New Adasta with little resistance and nearly no confrontation, or at least none that had made itself known as of yet. High rises, bustling streets, and still she could feel the cluster of anxiety oozing off of the populace like a pus oozing from an open sore. There was a quiet panic, a fear of sorts, that had attracted her to the city. The looming presence of the dark side far above, like a cloud in the sky, was likely to blame for the collective discomfort - but there was no feeling of death, no large pull in the dark side of the force that would have aided her endeavor any more than the subtle taste of fear that was carried from those unaware of her presence. But, still, she fed on even that meager portion that was left for her to consume.

Each of the Sith Lords that had taken their place as one of the five of the Dark Lord's voices at any given time were always those who had some kind of skill or specialty that set them aside from the others. Carach was a mentalist, a master of the White Current, and had often enjoyed merely toying with the minds of lesser Jedi. Vornskr eviscerated his foes with relentless strokes of a lightsaber and expert displays of Dun Moch. Junra's sheer presence in the dark side of the force spoke for itself, and her general skill was enough to force others to hesitate and give her the upper hand. Praelior, while not entirely combative in specialty, created leviathans and other beasts through the use of alchemy. Indeed Silara was a sorceress, a talent that ran through few of the already numbered ranks of the Sith, but her true talent was in her natural closeness to the dark side - her ability to feed off of its cold presence and grow with its growth. It was something that was rather useless when dealing with the likes of Corvus Raaf - someone she'd defeated handily in simple saber combat - or other so-called "beacons" of the light, but it was an invaluable asset when pushing her foes to the dark side or combating others who were already saturated by its corruption.

And in densely populated areas where negative emotions thrived on fear that was easily spread? Especially in her current state, it was a significant boon and an advantage that few of the opposing order had means of countering.

But the Sith's goal was not solely to infiltrate the city and bathe in the discomfort of its citizens, she was here for something far more important than a small increase in a handicapped power. Her spectral gaze swept over a main walkway, where few people now wandered across, in search of a suitable specimen. Those who were unable to touch the force, or lacked the necessary sensitivity to even begin to grasp the concept, were none of her concern - she sought someone with budding force potential, a body that was already able and willing to communicate with the force. Either a Jedi or someone entirely unrelated, it truly did not matter, only that she find a vessel capable of carrying her. Unlike the Dark Lord that had once been her master, Silara was not looking for a temporary body and a joint consciousness - as interesting as it might have been - but rather a healthy body that she could completely transfer her essence to as Darth Bane had once attempted on his apprentice, Darth Zannah.

-

Thalia was just a normal woman that tried to make ends meet in New Adasta. She'd moved to the city some time after the Primeval had collapsed and opened shop as a tailor on some busy little street corner. Today, of all days, was the worst for business. The auburn seamstress was standing outside the front door of her small store, broom in hand, glancing up to the sky and wondering what in blazes had caused the arrival of the hostile force in the local system. Every time she'd checked the holonet regarding the war with the Sith, that she had purposely moved away from, it was always about some group in the deep core - but they were supposed to be gone, for the most part, after the liberation of Coruscant. The woman shook her head, turning to reach out and grab the handle for the door with her left hand, when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. For some reason, maybe paranoia, Thalia turned her head, momentarily, to glance in the direction of what she thought was where she saw something, but it must have been a trick played on her eyes - nothing was there except an elongated shadow of a man that was loading a bag of trash into a large collection bin by an alleyway.

Her hand twisted the knob and she stepped back to open the door, head swiveling back to the colder air of the inside without any further concern for what might have caught her eye before. She stepped inside, none the wiser of her now slightly-larger shadow that followed her in.

 

[GhostOfProtocol]

Location: Hyperspace, Ebon Hawk en-route to Korriban
Allies: Silver Jedi, [member="Matsu Ike"]
Enemies: Sith
Potential Enemies: [member="Darth Praetorias"]

His fingers danced over the controls in front of him. [member="Matsu Ike"] had put the call out asking for help and it was [member="Noriko Ike"] who'd pushed him into it. He wasn't prepared to fight, especially not Sith like Matsu had warned. For starters his robes were new, and as such they were slightly tight, they hadn't adjusted to him, not yet. It was the same with all new clothes, they needed a period to adjust to a person. He shook his head, phrik chestplate and cotorsis bracers would only protect him for so long, he'd need to work from range with his blaster to do any damage. Even then, against a Sith he doubted a blaster would do much damage, yet it was all he had, all he could use for protection.

They hadn't quite finished his lightsaber.

He stood up slowly, nodding to T3 at his side. The little droid had been with him through everything, it only seemed right he joined him in battle. They had roughly a half hour before arrival, and Kei wanted a caf. Not because he was thirsty, he needed something to cure the nerves. Caf and Correllian Ale, mix them and drink it. It was Dutch Courage at it's finest. Kei needed courage, Dutch or not because he was terrified. He wasn't ready to fight, he was doing it for Noriko, no-one else. He was scared, scared of death and scared of what would happen if he survived.

 

[Olom Grihk]

Location: An angry mob on Elom
Objective: Wreck It!
Allies: [member="Neelig Waawat"] once he gets down from his ship
Enemies: Possibly [member="Thurion Heavenshield"], maybe others? Not certain, really.



Olom smiled as the mob moved like puppets on strings, armed to the teeth, running towards the base of the local constabulary and quickly decimating them. Civil order upheaved, governance disarmed, the humble, thing lies of laws that protect one man from another upended like a table in a room full of angry drunks.



The small Sith grinned, his teeth like rows of needles as he watched the mob move, practically hiding in the crowd to better tame the audience. Frankly, this was all theater. Crude acting and amateurish ploys, designing bits and pieces of each falsehood, weaving a net of lies and influences. Occasionally crafting a vision of the Jedi. Painting them in the minds of others as pompous, overbearing, fools. Naive aristocrats and wild-eyed mystics. Spoony, insufferable romantics who didn't understand the cost of business or war or bloodshed.


And frankly, painting this images was easy enough as the men and women he had armed seized the broadcast station. Eventually, a voice came on the holo-channels in the region. It wasn't his. It was the voice of Melian Dys'barrak--a charismatic, noble, and entirely expendable mouthpiece.


"Ladies and gentlemen of this world, my name is Melian Dys'barrak. I am the leader of the ELO--The Elom Liberation Order. For too long, we have suffered under the rule of tyrants and kings. The Primeval, the Jedi, the Sith, and now the Mandalorians threaten the autonomy of our world. Of our home. Tonight, people of this world, I beg, with honor and strength, that you rise up against your oppressors. That you ignore the Jedi's demands, and the Sith, and the Mandalorians. I implore the people of Elom to do as we have done, to take up arms in defense of their fellow men. There in, in the strength of our own people, will this world find a new order--one determined by the will of the people, by our vote and by our blood and by our steel. I implore you, Elomin and Elom alike, to stand for this world! Peace through power. That is our rallying cry."



Olom simply smiled, watching as the game was played. Now, the seeds of discontent had been sown. A terrorist organization now existed on Elom. It had a name. If it took the planet by storm, excellent. If it merely became a thorn in the Jedi's side, that would still be a sufficient matter. Maybe he'd get an amicable fascist government. Maybe he'd get a new terrorist cell to throw at other worlds that annoyed him. Either way, a decent gambit.