Location: Lower Atmosphere, Dagobah
Objective: Allied Operational Oversight
Allies: Galactic Alliance, [member="Aryn Teth"]
Enemies: Galactic Empire, [member="Anya Malvern"]
Equipment: In Signature
Command Deck, Alliance Mobile Air Command
Area of Operations, Dagobah
Aryn Teth said:
"Admiral, it seems we'll need to put a hold on our training exercises, Imperial ships have just shown up on long-range scanners, and the Mandalorian Empire is en-route to assist us." He gave Zark a moment to absorb that before he continued. "I'm deploying the 26th to the surface to secure the Dark Side Tree, I believe it may be their objective on the ground, they're under your command, Admiral - I will try to keep things organized up here." He turned his gaze to his comms officer then, clearing his throat. "Send a general alert through the fleet, order them to form up in defensive positions around the Shipyards, if the Imperials want a fight, they're going to need to come to us."
"Your transmission must be faulty, General. I could have sworn you said Imperial ships and...Mandalorians..." Zark trailed off as he looked up from the communications station, noticing for the first time the precipitous drop off in noise and activity on the previously swarming bridge of the Alliance repulsor-carrier. It did not take him long to follow Captain Stazi and his crew's collective gaze out the glasteel viewport, and when he did he realized he had not misheard Teth after all. At this range they appeared as little more than a distant rain of burning embers, but the vice admiral didn't need a pair of macrobinoculars to tell what they were seeing. Imperial drop pods.
"Understood," he managed at last over comms when he realized the General was still on the line passing along intel, "I'll take good care of the 26th, don't worry. You'll have your reinforcements in orbit, and may the Force be with you up there."
As they both ended the transmission on their respective end points, Zark had recovered from the shock of a real enemy incursion enough to appreciate the irony in their reversed roles. He, the naval tactician, was stuck here on the ground overseeing the planetary area of operations, while Aryn who was a skilled starship commander in his own right but one of the best generals they had, had taken charge of their defenses in orbit.
Already units across the surface were jamming Air Command's comm lines requesting a sit rep or new orders, and while Captain Stazi had already loudly reasserted his command of the senior officers around him in an effort to make their craft
truly combat ready, the admiral knew it would be down to him in the end to sort through that logistical nightmare. Taking a moment to recompose himself before setting about such a monumental task, the Jedi Master strode over to the forward viewport to fully take in his surroundings and center himself.
"What the feth is going on here now? Did you boys join up yesterday?!" Despite his meditation, the voice of Captain Stazi behind him was hard to fully block out, "Get these transports off my launch pad, or I'll shove my boot
so far up your-"
"Which transports, sir?" a terrified crewman asked, "We haven't cleared any landings!"
"Are you slow, son? These ones right
here on your surface deck readout!"
Zark's eyes snapped open.
As the Jedi wheeled around, he locked gazes with a wide eyed duros Captain who had put the pieces together just a few seconds later. If they hadn't cleared any landings, either there had been some sort of rare clerical error with the datawork, or...those weren't really
their transports.
"Flight Deck, what's the hold up?" a communications officer radioed the upper levels on his own initiative, before turning to them both and shaking his head, fear growing in his eyes, "No response."
"I'm on my way," Zark called over his shoulder, having begun a quick march towards the turbolift before the man had even finished, "Have a security team meet me in main operations."
Alone in the turbolift, the admiral drew his service weapon, an Alliance marine issue heavy blaster pistol from its shoulder holster, and checked the power settings. Before he had even reached main operations, another disturbance in the Force rocked him physically. This one was
much closer, and it was obvious that whoever had caused it was making no secret of their presence on a Jedi aligned world. Centering himself, his eyes went pure white as his Force Sight allowed him to see through the structure of the repulsor-carrier around him and at a pillar of malevolent energy that was the distant presence of High Inquisitor [member="Drakar"].
Rechecking the settings on his blaster, he toggled its custom paddle-beam setting.
"I am one with the Force," the Jedi mumbled to himself repeatedly, "and the Force is with me."