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Location: The 'Excubitor'. Primary Objective(s): Assassinate Admiral [member="Cathul Thuku"] Allies: The First Order | [member="Samka Derith"] | [member="Emilia Ravel"] | [member=Xenro] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] Enemies: [member="Asaraa Vaashe"] | The Galactic Alliance
As the Jedi spoke, Connor broke off and focused on the mind of @Cathul Thuke in the bridge beyond the sealed doors.
"If you do not break off the attack, the Silver Jedi will die and her blood will be on the Alliance’s hands that failed to protect her."
He then returned his gaze to the Togruta.
"I’ve stood where you have. I was a Silver Jedi Padawan too, like you. I said exactly what you said when I faced down Sith Lords and criminals across the galaxy. It’s noble, brave but foolish of you. And you know what? They still haven’t stopped lying."
Connor began walking towards her, closing the gap between the bridge doors and the Padawan.
"I have no friends, which makes me able to do my duty easier than you will ever know, because you’re holding on to something so desperate – so thin. The Silver Jedi won’t come to help you - " he pulled his lightsaber hilt from his side slowly, looking at it, before looking back to her, " – because I needed their help once, and they let me down. They cast me out and took everything from me. Everyone has a choice. I don’t want to kill you. I want to save you "
His cybernetic hand gripped the hilt tight, and he raised his good hand to her.
"Help me stop the poison of the Light before it consumes the galaxy forever."
The hull of dauntless rattles violently the bridge's running lights flicker wildly and crewmen are left clutching for durasteel guards and handles at their station for support with a fair few being thrown right from their chairs."Commander! Permission to abandon ship!?" The most senior NCO aboard the bridge asks prompting Dako to haul down the periscope in front of his eyes and intently inspecting the Remnants of the Red Fleet waiting before them; fatigued as their own Cruiser group and a battle that Commander Asturo has no doubt they shall win with the Cruiser's death rattles abating that could mean only one thing the "Therapy Command" Had finally broken their relentless onslaught and now the Alliance Fleet's lines had truly been broken to no doubt at cost to their own vessels and personnel. Buzz droids built to breach and disable starfighters would find the hulls of the Dauntless Cruiser group too hard a target to crack though the effectiveness of the other weapons is keenly felt. "Not yet Chief!"Glancing back from his Periscope aveiled from the sight of an approaching Carrier towards Onami who even for the Chiss' stalwart will appears obviously shocked, Dako's mad gaze finds its mark in the weapons control officer who had their own mass driver and proton torpedos loaded with what little ammunition remained for their launchers."Fire!"Taking a brief survey of their conspicuous lack of weapons fire from demoralized gunnery crews; Dako is forced to repeat himself."If our crews don't fire, we all die!"Dako shivers within the Phase II Clone Trooper armour that entombs his body, frightened of the Alliance small craft that now approached their shieldless and battered vessels. The laser weapons of Dauntless Illuminate the void with a conflagration filled with vibrant colours as weapons lance across the dark void of deep space from First Imperial Warships towards their loathed foes.
Wiping sweat from his clammy brow Onami provides an unsolicited albeit calmly delivered report with what is left of their gunnery crews valiantly fighting the First Order's enemies with what little morale, vessel power and strength remained."Commander Asturo! Port-side engine has seized with axis and starboard engines operating at approximately one-hundred megawatts each!" Dako shoots the faltering Chiss Officer a glare; he could hear the defeatism and he would not permit it to flow from the finest Group's executive officer without correction or reprimand."Then you push it until the Dauntless explodes Commander Onami! We shall not falter now Victory is in our grasp we shall not fail under the gaze of Admiral Tregessar or Rausgeber, I will not have it!" Pausing for a moment allowing himself a deep breath through the franatic battle still raging; finding a sense of calmness through moments of the Dauntless shivering and whining under continued battering from their enemies."Commander! Message from Admiral Rausgeber; He Congratulates you specifically and orders us to continue pressing the attack until Red Fleet neutralised, after this we are to provide fire on the Itsukusk." Dako gives an approving nod in the man's direction sitting with visible disconcertedness from his station hoping it would steady the man in some way. Looking to Onami with a smirk, though the Chiss could see it in Asturo's eyes through the Stoic facade and into his Commander's heart; Dako is afraid that after dealing with the Red Fleet Dauntless will have been spent and incapable of fighting any longer lest Dako be found leading an Iron Scrap flotilla filled with the Corpses of his subordinates, surely the Human Officer could divine this as certain. "Reduce group speed to 'Ahead slow' and Keep point-defence to the forward, Evacuate Non-Essential cruiser group personnel to escape craft though do not launch them without my order."Dako wants to avoid potential embarrassment for evacuating too early driven by cowardice though it would be easily to deduce this was due to his own self critical thinking. They would succeed in the appointed task bravely or perish attempting to fulfil it. The Dauntless itself has suffered extensive damage with large pieces of its hull shearing away under weapon fire exposing the skeletal truss beneath, easy to see the Group's precarious position in what was a largely heavyweight engagement the group's saving grace is without a doubt their numbers but Dako had begun to accept quietly after swallowing his pride that the upcoming brush with the Red Fleet might be their last to his already growing shame.
The clash of glaive on beskad ran in Er'in's ears as her body and blade made contact with the @Whisperer. She didn't know if she should curse or smile as her opponent expertly blocked the kad strike with an expert twist of the glaive. This was what she'd come here for, not to be blown up aboard some now worthless Star Destroyer.
She felt the pressure shift of the twist before it came, but given the force of her rush she didn't have much choice but to work with the shift of momentum, letting herself be spun and slammed into the the railing, her beskad still trapped against her opponents glaive. She couldn't see what that would gain her opponent, but it gave her a chance to retract the kad-blade and reach to her back to draw her handcannon, hidden in the swirl of motion.
Then she saw the hand come up. And time seemed to slow. This was her first real fight verses a Force User. But she came from a heritage that had been fighting for or against every type of force wielder, off and on, since the Sith War. Now she would find out if all those credits and black market purchases had been worth the money. Or she was going to look very stupid, and maybe very dead.
The blast of force came, both Er'in and Whisperer felt it grip her - but Whisperer had to know something was wrong, her opponent was slippery, had to grasp and the main force of the telekinetic thrust went round rather than into her. To Er'in, it was as if she had been shoved hard back against the railing, hard enough to knock some wind from her, but not hard enough to send her over.
"I came dressed for that dance." She said levelly as she brought the handcannon up to to chest height at point blank range and fired a three round burst into the Preatorian.
Location: 'The 'Excubitor.' -> Ventral Hangar Bay -> Central Access Corridor. Primary Objective(s): Board the "Excubitor" and Assassinate Admiral Cathul Thuku. Secondary Objective(s): Capture Alliance Personnel, Sabotage the Procurator X - Designate; "Excubitor." Allies: The First Order, The Golden Company, [member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Khonsu Amon"] Enemies: The Galactic Alliance Equipment: See Signature + [SIZE=12pt] G-11F Blaster Rifle[/SIZE]. Currently interacting with: [member="Eralam"]
Emilia's placid features shifted as the droid delivered its message. The Major? What did she have to do with a self-important automaton and his lighsaber weilding astromech? This was all very strange. Thankfully, her helmet effectively hid her confused expression, and after a moment's pause, she replied. "Sure, I know The Major. We've met. Did you just assume I'd know her?" That was the detail that bothered her the most. It was as if this Jedi seemingly knew everything about her, which made him a dangerous enemy. If she was in a position to deal with him, she would, but now it was wisest to be on her best behaviour.
"As for your message, I'll deliver it, but I respecfully decline the invite. As you can probably tell I am a very busy woman." That much was true, with her recent promotion any lick of spare time she'd had before had been buried in a seemingly endless tide of paperwork. The work was rewarding, though, so she couldn't really complain. She stood up to her full height -- which was not very tall -- and strectched, trying to get a crick out of her neck. "So..." She said, still stretching. "I'm going to backtrack, and follow this hangar around, because there's somewhere I really need to be. You go the way you're going, and do whatever it is you want to do. That way, your message gets delivered, and I end up where I need to be. Sound good?"
She spun on her heel, her cloak reactivating, allowing her to melt back into the shadows of the hangar. Emilia let out a pent-up breath. Hopefully, the Jedi would respect their deal. She expected him to, after all she'd promised to deliver his message. And deliver it should would, her better or worse. So, as she walked away, she felt the pent-up tension releasing from her shoulders, the panic that had been pushed down by a combination of willpower and the supernatural power of Battle Meditation began to dissolve. Emilia's mind was still working in overdrive, shifting away from the pair of droids and to her new obstacle, navigating back towards Khonsu Amon.
With the droids using the path she was going to take, some backtracking would be required to get to the right blast door. The only other way was to turn around, and then turn right, following the moon pool along, then another right turn and a straight run to the blast door. The problem was the first leg. That section of hangar ran straight past the Central Access Corridor, the same corridor where a force of angry Alliance marines steadily trickled out, engaged in a heated firefight with her allied mercs. She figured she was going to have to use the blaster again, a prospect she was not looking forward to, considering how well it'd gone with the droids.
She'd made it about five steps on her way before she turned. "Oh, and Jedi, if you do come back this way, just watch out for the zombies." Without a further pause, she was off running, she'd wasted too much time already.
For a moment, the briefest of seconds the Togruta’s eyes dropped to his hand before she shook her head, her lekku sliding across her shoulders as her blue eyes settled on the man’s face.
“Everything we hold onto is thin,” the Padawan countered, “hope by its very nature is something that’s elusive, ephemeral. That’s why we want it so desperately, will do anything to hold onto it." She pursed her lips for a moment before continuing, "You say you're past it, but I think you still haven’t given up on it. If you don’t just want to kill me, if you really want to save people then you still hold out hope that they can be saved. If you didn’t then you’d just have killed me and moved on, you want to connect, to form a bond with someone else.”
She swallowed as she saw him pull his lightsaber from his belt, her eyes flicking over to the unlit weapon in his hands before settling once more on his. Slowly, Asaraa mirrored Conner’s motions, pulling her lightsaber into a guard position, poised but not activated. She could feel a thrill of fear bubbling in the core of her being, the gut-wrenching panic of making another mistake, of letting someone else die. She reached out to the force, seeking its touch to steady her unsettled mind as she took a deep breath, feeling that calming comfortable touch wash over her
“What happened between you and them? Was it so bad that you couldn’t forgive them, that they couldn’t forgive you?” At the last question, there was an almost imperceptible catch in the young woman's voice, everything could be forgiven if you tried hard enough right?
Anything, even leaving your master, letting them die…if she tried hard enough, stood strong enough then even she could be forgiven for that. She had to believe it, for months that had been all that kept her going, that had led her to leave The Jedi Order and seek out the Silvers, an absolution through the battlefield. It’s why she threw herself into her training so hard, pushed herself to breaking…but if there were something that couldn’t be forgiven… Her guard dipped ever so slightly as she pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind, sealing them away, for now, this was what was important, stopping him from getting through to the bridge.
Her burst of lightning ceased, the sharp offensive smell of ozone lingering in its wake, the blinding intensity of the light briefly dazzling her eyes. As her vision cleared, it was replaced by a Mandalorian in full armour - undoubtedly made of their infamous iron, stronger than durasteel and far lighter - stepping out from cover, kneeling in that fashion that better allowed them to absorb the recoil of their shot. The weapon he carried was no simple standard-issue blaster rifle, either, but something that looked far nastier. She brought her pike around to bear, holding the weapon a little closer to the blade than usual, prepared to block whatever shot came her way.
The Force screamed a warning as the Mandalorian pulled the trigger, but as close as he was, it was near-impossible for her to respond to the sudden barrage of sensory input that the Force was offering. No, not a blaster, she realised. The young woman deactivated her lightsaber pike with a quick press of the activation stud, throwing herself into a roll to her left, the pauldron over her left shoulder being the first to hit the floor and allowing her to throw her momentum into a roll that carried her a few feet from where she had been stood.
It wasn't enough, however.
The stinging impact of the flechettes struck her across her hip as she moved into the roll - the spread of projectile fire tearing through the shadowsilk and rancor-leather that covered her. She heard, distantly, the sound of several pieces pinging off the much harder Charubah Steel plates that served to protect her left arm and shoulder, but these were but a passing consideration compared to the flash of agony that ripped through her hip. She could feel the wet contact of blood against her skin, the searing burn of hot metal fragments jaggedly held in place by vulnerable flesh, and knew well that they needed to be removed, but that she would not be afforded simple luxury now.
The second shot, after all, had proven well enough that her adversary wasn't done with her, even though her roll had taken her out of the way of their shocking impact, to strike against the metal plating of the wall behind her. Had I stayed where I was, perhaps I would be that which was now splattered against the wall. The Force wasn't always her ally, but in that moment, she owed it. A debt best repaid with the darkness you so crave.
The blonde came to her feet by pure reflex, an end to a maneuver long conditioned into her by years of training. The pain she felt was shocking, and the jagged metal edges dug into the flesh of her side in a fashion that brought tears involuntarily to her eyes. Pain was an old friend, though, and she knew it well. We'll spend more time together later, no doubt. But while the adrenaline flowed and she still had strength with which to fight...she had another to introduce to that old friend. Can hardly be discourteous when there are those who do not yet know the acquaintance of pain.
Her enemy approached, and closed the gap between them quickly, clearly preparing to finish her and move on. The distance between them was such that the shotgun might soon end up pressed against her chest and fired up once more, to leave her a bleeding sodden mess against the floor - she saw that end, and had no intention of allowing it. Taking a step of her own, the young woman lashed out with the lightsaber pike at full extension - holding the weapon by the pommel, the purple blade activated from the emitter at the tip and struck out towards the shotgun, fully intending to bisect it, so as to render it useless against her.
Then it shall simply be you and I, both offering the gifts of pain and death to the other, she reflected coldly, throwing her hip into her attack so as to get the maximum extension available to her, feeling the tearing of skin and muscle around her side as the metal shards dug deeper in. Though my strength may give out before we have chance to fully enjoy that pleasure together. All would depend on the Mandalorian, and whether he was prepared to go the distance, or simply intended to make a quick finish of it. How disappointing that would be.
Kyrel moved forward across the corridor, determination, and vengeance guiding his spirit as he stepped forward. Before he looked back at the hanger, to see a transport arrive and to see his daughter thrown across to the corridor by the Force User. Anger swelled within Kyrel at how anyone would harm his daughter. He would make sure the fool would pay, as he looked to his daughter kneeling, but not before she had established a Force Barrier showing her remarkable raw strength in the Force. He grinned underneath the helmet as he pulled her up ignoring her remark as the sirens blared and defenses were activated. "We must keep moving. they have activated defensive precautions. It may slow us down but we shall reach the enemy soon enough."
He was still empowered by both that of Decitus Ren and the Supreme Leader. The power of the darkness stronger than ever and thus fueling his resolve as he walked forward slowly through the winding maze of hallways and corridors. At first, it was empty, but the more they had stepped forward, the more he could sense his enemies. He could sense the fear that they carried with them even from a distance, and he would use that to his advantage but inside the back of his head, a voice called to him that he had not heard since Ossus. "You should at least show more compassion for you're daughter's well being." The voice inside of his own head was his own, the voice of Thomas Kyrel of who he had kept silenced but his own Consciousness manifested the weak fool every now and then. Kyrel spoke back at him his words were an icy tone within his own mind. "Her well being is nothing, the mission comes first the Supreme Leader will be most pleased when I kill all those on the bridge of this ship."
The voice that fired back sounded like he was shaking his head as he said in a disappointed tone. "You're rage and desire for vengeance will only lead to your destruction and that of Varas. Do you not love her, do you not care about her at all. Please, you can still turn back from this. Give up you're quest for vengeance now, please... Kyrel would have none of it, and even though the battle of wills was occurring within his own mind, he clenched his own gloved fists. This time when he spoke it became a yell of fury. "You! You think you know me. You forget I am you, you are me. I killed you or more specifically you killed yourself when that TIE Fighter became nothing more than a casket for a man who is nothing more than a figment of my imagination. Like I said before and I will say once more... Begone I know this path, and this path will lead me to satisfaction and to the good graces of the Supreme Leader. Begone weak fool."
And in that moment the voice stopped, and Kyrel relaxed for only a moment. Still, the Light tempted him constantly, but he would not give in. He had done far too much to be redeemed. He was past the point of no return as the darkness was all he had ever known. Perhaps there was hope for his daughter but for himself, it was too late. He had given everything he had to the Supreme Leader, to the dark side. But for now, such thoughts were meaningless. The only thing on his mind was death and how he would carry it out. He stepped forward occasionally coming across a blast door which took time to cut through with his saber, and then there it was. Alliance soldiers standing in his way.
The first Alliance soldier screamed to open fire, and so it had begun. Kyrel batted the blaster bolts with ease, his saber deflecting them left and right and even right back at them, as with his free hand he threw them against the bulkheads, and with his saber, he took limbs and had cut them to pieces. Some had what he assumed was bravery in their eyes. Others he had seen fear and relished in it before either his blade or the crushing power of the Force had brought them down. Until he had found one still alive. This one was defiant as he spoke to him. "You will give me the location of you're bridge and if you do I might let you live in your final moments." The man had spat out to him, taking a hand and rubbing the saliva from his mask the man spoke. "I won't give anything to you Sith!"
With this Kyrel let out a cruel laugh as he extended his hand out open palmed, and had replied in the same cruel manner as the laugh. "I believe you will." He said as he focused on the Force, going into the innermost depths of the man's mind seeing bits and pieces of his memories until he had found what he was looking for, the man had struggled at first but quickly could not hold much longer against the Ren's technique with his wound. He had found that through a turbolift he wasn't far at all. He grinned and said to the man as he was released. "Thank you for your cooperation."
He said before looking at his daughter. "Come Varas our enemies await." He said as he moved forward onto his objective occasionally encountering a blast door or a squad of soldiers here and there. Slowing him down but not stopping him till he reached his goal.
He finally reached the turbolift to the Bridge, the Jedi he sensed from before was not far behind as he activated the lift to take them to the bridge. He felt excitement swell within him as they would reach their objective, his goal in enacting his vengeance for all those that died during the Battles of Kaeshana and those after. The bridge was in his sights but what had stopped him was a massive blast door. He stepped forward knowing that now his goal was not that far behind.
With practiced precision the remainder of Ops Team Harpy waited patiently as the ring of metal burst outwards from the hull of the Itsukusk, air and several bodies following. *Bodies.* That's all they were to the Colonel. Empty or soon to be empty husks of frozen flesh and bone sent listlessly into the void of space. War was a bloody endeavor, at least conventionally. Maybe that's why he was so unperturbed out here - it was cold, quiet.. pristine. As the threshold cleared, Rolf and his men swooped in. The almost explosive decompression did most of the work for them, but those Alliance soldiers who hadn't died soon found themselves on the receiving end of the powerful G-11F. With unparalleled accuracy they dispatched the enemy before stacking up on the bulkhead, breaching another corridor with the aid of the Ren with them.
:: Keep your dispersion. Check your corners. Let's see if we can't find some where to deliver our payload. ::
Captain Mordain pressed his comm twice, two audible clicks the only acknowledgement Rolf looked for or needed. As the door was ripped from its hinges they waited a full half second before bursting forward into the corridor, lining up on any hostiles and eliminating them with quick and accurate fire. This wasn't a barrage assault by a complement of stormtroopers, these were precise and calculated shots - commandos.
Even the FOSB hadn't been able to get a hold of the Itsukusk's deck plans, it spoke towards the capability of the Galactic Alliance to keep secrets just that - secret. They had a storied history if it. Even so, it didn't make the Colonel feel better. They were aboard an enemy titan with no deck plans, and as of the moment, no escape plan. As their booted feet carried them down the corridor Rolf noticed the odd angles and intersecting corridors - he couldn't make sense of it. There was definitely a pattern to the madness, but what that pattern was escaped him. He could feel the deck shudder beneath his feet gently, the sensation of ships firing upon the Itsukusk a familiar one. This close to the outer hull it sounded like there was a hell of a fight going on outside. Pausing at a T intersection Rolf took a knee, rapidly paging through some data across his HUD.
They had a long way to go if they wanted to get to anything vital, but even looking at a localized projection of the ship's interior he couldn't guess which corridors actually ended up where they'd want to go. *It might as well be a labyrinth.*
:: Change of plans. Follow me, watch our six. ::
The corridors weren't by any means empty, all around Rolf could hear the echoes of booted feet running from area to area, shouts going up farther on. At least for the moment however they were clear. No doubt they wouldn't be soon, the breach as well as the loss of a turbolaser battery would definitely raise suspicions, especially because as far as Rolf could tell, their shields were still functional. There was no time to waste, they needed to separate themselves from their point of entry as quickly as possible. With a quiet motion of his hand, he raised his weapon and continued down the corridor, taking a right at the next intersection.
Equipment (All of Ops Team Harpy ( 12/20 + Rolf Amsel, Krayn Ren) ) :
"We have to do something about those boarding parties, and fast" the security officer assigned to the CIC's security complained.
"Vent the starboard auxiliary hangar, close the blast doors around the main boarding party and cut gravity in both areas"
The Butcher of Skor was just outside the bridge, about to start fighting the Togruta padawan to whom she taught to cook. She could feel that danger was fast approaching the precious bridge, and even if Connor made it to the bridge, he would realize that, unlike what some people would think among the Ren or the Sith, on the Excubitor, and, with it, the Procurator-X-class, the bridge was not the same as the CIC. He might then kill Captain Rajaion, the CO of the ship, or Commander Lok, its Mandalorian XO, but Cathul would not be on the bridge. Meanwhile, Kiyron was nowhere to be found, and the main boarding party would have a most unpleasant surprise: blast doors would close in on them, and once that was done, power to artificial gravity was cut in that area, at the same time as the air was being vented out of the area enclosed by the blast doors. The same scene was repeated in the starboard auxiliary hangar, threatening to vent [member="Vlannem Pox"] and [member="FN-6767"] out in space. With that said, Sefain would have a short window within which she would be able to enter the engineering section, because the blast door would close in behind her as soon as she entered, and that the enemy boarders would use every second to attempt re-establishing their footing.
"We're sustaining heavy damage; we can't hold much longer" Amica reported, with some distress in her voice.
"All Chiloon-I squadrons, return to the fleet, we need your assistance fending off the threats posed by enemy bombers closing in!"
The debris being torn off from the Harbinger, and also the remaining ships in the Seventh Fleet, were able to provide some respite from the barrage fired by Robogeber, but the last attack runs left the cruisers with gaping holes in their respective hulls, and no shields either. When outgunned, focus on one enemy, she thought, as the Velga and the Lujo came under heavy fire. Luckily, Amica had the presence of mind to keep up the jamming, causing a crescendo of misfiring missiles to detonate well before they could reach their targets, especially with the missile deactivation transmitters wreaking havoc on the enemy missiles, causing some of the bomber-mounted missiles to detonate very close to the bombers themselves at times. Especially with the Devastator, whose main guns' magazines were long exhausted, and the Chargers relying almost entirely on their missiles to attack. And the 96 enemy bombers were all too easy to pick off using point-defense guns of all varieties, because they were bigger and slower than the fighters in the fighter screen. Hundreds of point-defense guns and fighters were hard at work firing at the enemy bombers, but that was not enough to counter the volley of four lances of death hitting the picket corvette called S-1, which executed a Marg Sabl maneuver in an attempt to soak up as many turbolaser hits as was possible before exploding, knowing that, from the moment the first lance impacted, its three crew members were liable to get killed.
"Chiloon-II squadrons 1-6, drop your bomblets inside the exposed areas of the skeletal trusses!"
"Roger, roger"
With that order issued, the Chiloon-II squadrons broke off their attack on the Chargers, which was, by and large, rather ineffective, and, thanks to their heavy bomblet generators, dropped the equivalent of 48 proton bombs in energy bombs onto the more exposed areas of their shieldless targets' internal systems, with previously-fired misfiring discord missiles messing with the fighter screens, and, with 200 megawatts of propulsive power for each of the cruisers, they were basically inert, and the engines will likely explode in short order. Meanwhile, there were 360 turbolaser shots fired at each of the Inflictor and Firestorm, 168 each at the Interception and Restoration, 204 turbolasers at the Trepid and 200 at the Fury, with three 420mm HVC rounds being fired at the Reprisal and another three at the Conqueror. In a sense, they attempted to keep up the pressure on the Seventh Fleet but held back the heavy-hitting firepower. When the Concordia first arrived on scene, it was the unmistakable sign that the Grand Moff was somewhere in this battlefield with two, maybe three, of the five stations taking serious hits, and it opened fire at the Incandescent Truth.
"The Incandescent Truth is coming under fire from the Concordia!" the sensor technician screamed.
"This means the Grand Moff's ship is now within firing range of us. We're now facing a choice: either we fight Carlyle and his escorts or we fight the Concordia. The auto-immune maneuver may have taken its toll on the Supreme Leader's ship, it may have taken its toll on the Harbinger and its escorts, we may cause firepower kills on the Concordia! We can't fight the Seventh Fleet much longer, may we make a bold move, the Grand Moff's ship is a far greater value target than anything left in the Seventh Fleet. Open fire at the Concordia, on the double!"
The Grand Moff shall realize why she was causing so many problems to Central Command since Kaeshana, she thought, while the first volley of 350 proton torpedoes was fired, 100 of which were in MIRVs, followed by nearly 1200 turbolasers' worth of heavy turbolaser and ion cannon fire, fifteen 380mm HVC rounds, and, of course, three humongous, stealth MIRVs poised to unleash a total of 21 assault concussion missiles at the top of the command tower, arcing towards both the bridge and the shield generator. This time around, the HVC rounds fired at the Concordia were just regular APHE rounds. The horror continues, as the second wave of MIRVs, fired shortly after the 350 proton torpedoes, unleashed a total of 290 discord missiles, whose payload of over 2,000 buzz droids would, if they successfully land on the battlecruiser, begin their fell work on the Concordia's turrets, cutting barrels off the ship's weapons batteries. Speaking of buzz droids, those who penetrated the hulls of the Executioner and the Dauntless battlegroup began sabotaging these ships in an attempt to cause fires, especially close to the missile magazines. Finally, [member="Robogeber"] would find that, with the various means in use for jamming enemy missiles, slicer droids continue to attempt to cause his own missiles to detonate inside the hulls of his own destroyers, or to jettison them, using known FO missile guidance frequencies. If the latter, it was entirely possible that their detonations buffeted ships all around them.
Vented the air and cut the gravity in the main areas where boarders are detected [member="Khonsu Amon"] [member="Vlannem Pox"] [member="FN-6767"]
Started attempting to cause fires inside the missile magazines using buzz droids [member="Sieger Ren"] [member="Dako Asturo"]
Used the Providences' ECCM to counter the sensor jamming and target painting
Used the Providences' ECM to jam enemy sensors
Continued slicing [member="Robogeber"]'s missile magazines in an attempt to provoke premature explosions (FIV Reprisal and FIV Conqueror)
Fired heavy weapons at the Conqueror [member="Robogeber"]
Fired short-range, rapid-fire batteries at the screening ships [member="Robogeber"]
Fired proton torpedoes and then discord missiles at the Concordia [member="Natasi Fortan"]
Had several squadrons attack corvettes around [member="Zark"] (the bombers deployed by [member="Robogeber"])
Had six Chiloon-II squadrons dropping heavy energy bombs on the remaining cruisers[member="Dako Asturo"]
While Mandalorians may have been seen as little more than technologically protected barbarians, the Atrisian with them was nothing of the sort. Cut away the combat, the explosions and the tipping platforms, and what remained was an Engineer in her element. Not only because Baiko no Kaho was the assistant to the CEO of the Imperial Shipworks, before [member="Aditya Mantis"] was killed. Aditya before her death had literally owned the company which created the first star destroyers, and while they no longer did so, Baiko not only understood the inner workings of [member="Sieger Ren"]’s ship, but was intimately aware of how best to mess it up.
While somehow the platforms jiggled enough to make her grenades roll to non essential systems, as the whine of the reactors continued to threaten everyone’s ears, Baiko worked on. The Executioner’s systems expanded for the Atrisian Engineer. Both familiar and unfamiliar, the woman counted her blessings. “Let’s shut down some of these controls, shall we?”
Surrounded by stormtroopers, [member="Silas Mantis"] off with @Elensa Sari and [member="Shia Kryze"] with [member="Whisperer"], the Mandalorians needed a win. Baiko deflected blaster bolts with her katana, and dove into the wiring several panels down, and cut the connection between the blast doors and the Secondary Bridge. With several tugs and plucking in a few more control algorithms, Baiko began to activate the blast doors once again, to compartmentalize the storm troopers and slow down their ability to move. Blaster fire fizz-popped over her head, Baiko dove and pulled her MT-14 Blaster Pistol and fired at the stormtrooper who dared singe her borrowed armour.
It wasn’t going to happen. Not like that. Trusting [member="Aryn Spar"] and [member="Karsan Calnov"] to have her back, Baiko went back to work. While all major systems were now most likely thoroughly being guarded by the Secondary Bridge, Baiko doubled back to the systems where the origin points rested mechanically inside engineering. If a secondary bridge had access to the systems, great… cut that access, jam the signals between the bridge and engineering, and the ship systems were, for all intents, hers. Yes, she couldn’t take the time to figure out the weapons arrays, or lower the shields, but propulsion, environmental controls, blast doors, and artificial gravity?
Those were enough to cause havoc no matter which bridge or control panel one entered into. Baiko pulled out a signal jammer, and keyed it to the First Order frequencies she found in the ship’s console and between the stormtroopers. “Let’s see how you fair when you can’t communicate.”
The signal jammer amplified in the communications rigging Baiko found, shutting down, with any sense of realism, all the communications between First Order operatives. By tying the jammer into the patches between engineering and the Secondary Bridge, Baiko hoped to seize engineering long enough to make the Executioner dead in the vacuum.
With the jammer in place, Baiko moved to the artificial gravity. Stormtroopers everywhere, ducking blaster bolts and lightning, Baiko knew that patching into the artificial gravity controls was, by far, a waste of time. The commander on the secondary bridge would never let her get that far in a slicer’s hack.
“About time I acted like a Mandalorian…” Baiko grabbed Thermex Charges from her kit, and ducking under more fire, fixed them on the artificial gravity generators, dove several feet away, and triggered the explosions.
Boom.. Boom.. BOOM!!!
The explosions themselves had the capacity to rock engineering. Baiko slid against the ground, hitting hard on the corner of a console.
Items and people around her began to float. Destroying the artificial gravity generators should have caused gravity to cut out all across the ship.
Objective: Escort [member="Decker Willo"] to the bridge and await further commands Allies:Chubs[member="Morro"] Directly Engaging:Decker Willo
Aurora couldn't help but feel a little disappointed as she watched the pilot throw his pistol to the side. She'd been looking forward to her first encounter with a rebel and she'd hoped she'd get the chance to swing her saber around. Though she was still glad that Officer Morro wasn't hurt, at least not that she could see.
She deactivated her lightsaber, clipping it back on her belt and reached a hand out towards the discarded pistol, the gun flying into her hand.
"SE-14r... huh..." she murmured to herself, inspecting it "Well, I have been looking for a new blaster."
Aurora went to give Decker her usual cheeky grin but soon realised that her helmet was on, leaving an awkward silence.
After a moment, she tucked the blaster next to her saber and glanced over to Morro.
"I trust you can..." Her voice trailed off as she noted the sick that had piled up, fingers twitching as she thought through her possibilities; on one hand she could leave Morro to take him back to the bridge, but seeing as the officer was clearly struggling with her sickness, the pilot may use the advantage to escape...And his intel was far more important then an adrenaline boost.
"...I guess I'll assist in escorting the pilot with you then." She half sighed, agitated she couldn't run into the action just round the corner.
She stepped behind the pilot and gave him a gentle nudge forward, not wanting to cause any further unnecessary injury. As she touched him, Aurora's instincts kicked in, her mind reaching out with the force as she did a quick 'scan', checking for any other objects he might hold as well as any thoughts he may let slip, though part of her tensed as she felt a little push back, sensing a bit of force in him.
Finally she spoke again, addressing the pilot.
"Start moving. I'll tell you which way to go."
With that, she too began to walk. keeping her guard up for any other unexpected guests or any tricks the pilot may have up his sleeve. If she wasn't going to get the chance to fight, she certainly wasn't letting her prisoner escape.
Hex L-49 // The bridge aboard the Red Veil// Faction = First Order: [member="Therran Graush"] | [member="Asharad Graush"] | [member="Robogeber"] | [member="Cyrus Tregessar"] | [member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Sieger Ren"] | [member="Natasi Fortan"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] | [member="Emilia Ravel"] | [member="Morro"] | [member="Ara Zambrano"] | [member="Samka Derith"] Enemies: The Galactic Alliance: [member="Cathul Thuku"] | [member="Raph Thule"] Status: Moving the flagship of [member="Lily Kuhn"] at flank speed Friendly PCs in Vicinity: The Graush lads, wrecked and wrecking Summary of actions at bottom of post \\
There was a reason Asharad Graush was Supreme Commander of the First Order: superior breeding, tactics, training, and sacrificed had molded him into supernova styled presence -capable, even now bereft of one limb, of shaping the entire course of a battle. The Major could now safely say she was witness to his cruelty, his expertise, and reckless abandon. It would almost be the sort of death defying lead through example that would encourage and boost any one on under his command, but she felt it all as different stress. It was the stress of redundancy and expendability; the sort of realization that this man would stop at nothing to accomplish his goals. No pain would shorten his advance, and no distraction would compromise his drive.
Lord Graush was even astute enough to anticipate that the Major would of course have simply plotted a course for the Red Veil to guide itself and full speed to the First Order lines. Observing the proceedings from action to action she had lost track of Therran, the younger of the Graush line. Something had told her to draw her backup in case the battle continued, and now that revolver was ready in her left hand, darting to the last remaining supposed savior of Empress Kuhn. There was much the Fallanassi had to think on after seeing what exactly someone without hope does -but now was not the time for reflection. They had to survive this ordeal first, and that was still in the tentative category.
They had flown some distance from the alliance line, no doubt looking like a ship intent on going for a battering run upon the ranks of the First Order. Both lines were already in firing range, which meant the Red Veil was in a dangerous position of taking damage if the 6th Fleet decided to repurpose their attack upon this flagship.
There was some measure of talking upon the bridge but the Major couldn’t wait for orders. Fleet Admiral Robogeber could turn them into Shilian cheese -more importantly, the misuse of firepower might distract the First Order fleet into wasting valuable time. The Security Bureau Chief opened an emergency channel with a fellow signals intelligence agent stationed somewhere aboard the sixth fleet.
:: This is Major Shepard, Code: Lockbox Stuck in an Elevator. Task Force Crimson is in control of the Red Veil. Advise friendlies not to fire upon us. Out::
It might take a bit of time for the agent on the other side to get that up the chain to the fleet commanders. In the meantime, the Major punched in another set of commands and the ship began to pivot along its axis as it began to spin to more properly face the assembled Alliance forces.
-Witnessed more fighting
-Alerted FO commands of position
-Red Veil now 1/3rd the way to First Order main line
[SIZE=11pt]Allies: GA [member="Jyoti Nooran"] [member="Zark"] [member="Gir Quee"] [member="Aryn Teth"] [member="Zanza Hijikata"] [member="Coren Starchaser"] [member="Dagon Namadi"] [member="Yuroic Xeraic"] [member="Liuna Ondizi"] [member="Jairdain"] [member="Rick Kaloo"] [member="Cassius Droma"] [member="Asaraa Vaashe"] [member="Kiyron"] [member="Aryn Spar"] @Roth Tilian [member="Baiko no Kaho"] [member="Davon Karr"] [member="Shia Kryze"] [member="Adora Namadi"] [member="Listralli Namadi"] [member="Silas Mantis"] [member="Eralam"] [member="Ronin Wendigo"] [member="Sefain Gatholil"] [member="Cathul Thuku"][/SIZE] [SIZE=11pt]Enemies: FO [member="Sieger Ren"] [member="Cyrus Tregessar"] [member="Robogeber"] [member="Asharad Graush"] [member="Sieger Ren"] [member="Morro"] [member="Samka Derith"] [member="Emilia Ravel"] [member="Khonsu Amon"] [member="Natasi Fortan"] [member="Xenro"] [member="Connor Harrison"][/SIZE] [SIZE=11pt]Composition: Making up the First Fleet of the Tapani Sector was a Collateralhulk-class battlecruiser at 3 kilometers, the 1 kilometer Scythe-class heavy cruiser the Obulette, 6 Essex-class starfighter killers, and 6 Kalla-class missile corvettes, 5 Nebulon B7 escort frigates, and 5 Champion-class corvettes.[/SIZE] [SIZE=11pt]Starfighters: 190 starfighters in total, 5 already out, and countless more starting to stream from the vessels. 24 Sprite-class X-wings, 48 Dauntless-class X-wings, 57 elite X-83 Twintails, 4 Inimica-class heavy gunships, and 60 OS-62 Knight starfighters. 40 M47-class dropships[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]Somewhere in the Tapani Sector...[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]”We’re going to crush them, Tapani Squadron. I need you 4 to ready your weapons…” Ivlyn was in the cockpit of the Delilah, a Rassilon-class elite starfighter, and probably one of the best such vehicles in the galaxy. ”Admiral, we’re ready.” Ivlyn smirked, as her starfighter whirred to life, and so too did its class 0.4 hyperdrive.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]”This is Admiral Yerix.” A female Twi’lek with a metallic voice chimed over the communications. ”All vessels prepare to enter hyperspace. Ready armaments, ready starfighters for launch as soon as we arrive, prepare gunners and targeting systems. Shields up.” She sat in the chair of the Tapani, a Galactic-alliance Collateralhulk-class battlecruiser - one of the most vicious weapons in the hands of the Galactic Alliance, and the name-claiming ship of the Tapani Sector. Her legendary capabilities, everyone believed, were going to win the way.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]Making up the First Fleet of the Tapani Sector was a Collateralhulk-class battlecruiser at 3 kilometers, the 1 kilometer Scythe-class heavy cruiser the Obulette, 6 Essex-class starfighter killers, and 6 Kalla-class missile corvettes, 5 Nebulon B7 escort frigates, and 5 Champion-class corvettes. They had enough firepower to devastate massive swaths of an entire planet.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]”We go forth at the eleventh hour. Together, we are going to humiliate these silly little First Order foes for we are Tapani… and we are the Galactic Alliance.” Ivlyn spoke up over the system.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]”Thanatos, get ready, and don’t be afraid.” She thought, calling to her armor. Formed around her was a squadron of four X-83 twintails piloted by elites, and 5 Champion-class light corvettes piloted by Jedi, with another Jedi inside ready to deploy 5 more X-83 twintails with Jedi on-board.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]”This is the Admiral. Forward we go! Entering hyperspace, now.” The massive Twi’lek woman - standing at 7 feet tall and clad in heavy power armor - motioned forward with her hand, and thus… the fleet was away.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]… L-49, The First Fleet[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]The vessels had jumped somewhat inside of the interdiction field. They would have to head forward at sublight to get to their target.[/SIZE]
The ion bolt slammed into Raph's chest and spread out through his body's systems. Time seemed to slow. He turned, saw the gun in her hand.
Her? Why? Confusion and despair ripped through him like a hurricane.
I led my soldiers into a death trap.
She squeezed the trigger and a second blue bolt struck him. He stiffened, body frozen, systems fried and going haywire. The cyborg fell to the ground like a dead man, failing synthetic neural web sending him into a series of spasms.
The hydrastaff leapt atop him, but its fangs found poor purchase on his duraplast armor and the stiff gorget covering his neck.
Hex L-49 // ANS Red Veil // BRIDGE Faction: The First Order // Enemy: The Galactic Alliance and Mandalorians Notable PCs: [member="Asharad Graush"], [member="The Major"], [member="Lily Kuhn"], [member="Raph Thule"] Objective: Seize the ANS Red Veil, Eliminate Defenders.
Therran knew well of A'sharad's lethal capabilities in combat. Yet, he came surprised when he finally saw them a while since he last had seen them. The Supreme Commander dispatched the marine's comrades decisively without a hint of remorse. He'd taken a hit coming for Therran straight with his cybernetic arm remaining without a limb but not losing a drop of his abilities.
A'sharad had grown too dangerous.
He contemplated. Torn between what to do next. To strike his blood or to not.
Sulfur orbs behind the helmet danced from the marine to the cousin. Right fist tightened, the Force subjected under his will and-
Abruptly blue rings of stun fire took down their well-equipped foe rendering him useless while A'sharad went for the blow.
The chance was gone.
Therran's left hand went up at the Empress' direction pulling the gun from her hands.
His right clenched fist came forward like a spear jab pointing in the marine's direction and a computer terminal was hurled with the Force at the lying on the ground marine attempting to break bones and pin him with the massive object in which electric current still ran for a short time.
[SIZE=11pt]Location: Sith Meditation Sphere of the [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]FIV Concordia [/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]Allies: The First Order[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]Enemies: The Galactic Alliance [ [member="Jairdain"] ][/SIZE]
Words, words, words.
Usually, Samka liked words. A verbal spar could be so much more satisfying than a physical one but not when it was a distraction to other matters. The woman who opposed her had no desire to listen or to contemplate on her ills, it was all a distraction to sever her link to her allies. Her pride burned within her, not wishing to give the woman the last word, to fire a retort or counter but logic told her there would be nothing gained and everything risked. So she shut out what she could.
"Your help would have been appreciated," she snarled at the Sith Sphere.
Still it remained silent.
It infuriated her.
Could machines feel pain? Perhaps after this battle was done and its use fulfilled, she'd find out.
Again, she delved fully into the minds of her allies, steering their instincts to make victory. The crews of the ships under @Robogreber and [member="Morro"] receiving special attention as the primitive holo reading from the Sith Sphere told her of their struggle. Samka's abilities sharpened their senses, giving their ships even greater firepower and defence, hopefully enough to crush any foes who continued to oppose them.
The decisive blow in the naval battle must come soon and she would do her part to deliver it.
Been getting so many 504s lately it's been tough to post, so just a short one I threw up at 2am when the site seemed clear to keep the ball moving!
Location: Excubitor
Allies: Not zombies, that's for damn sure
Enemies: The First Order | [member="Xenro"] | Zombies?
Directly engaging: [member="Khonsu Amon"]
Objective: Break stuff
https://youtu.be/1QVXxZ_lJ_g
Eralam let the agent go without another word. Either she'd deliver the message or she wouldn't. If she tried to shoot him in the back, well, he wasn't a big fan of third chances. He'd tried being nice once. No more.
Meanwhile, he sprinted off towards the explody end of the hangar. His run wasn't any faster than an extremely fit human, though he could keep it up for much longer. It was, however, catastrophically loud. A couple of hundred kilograms of metal, powered by a noisy-ass hydraulic system, made for the sort of cacophony that only an industrial worker could love. Also, it was shiny. Songsteel usually is.
As the Shard ran, he tossed his trusty banjo to the side and drew his saber and revolver. The ancient single-action pistol, held in his left hand, was better suited for display in a museum than actual combat. The heavy .45 Long Colt rounds were enough to give a spiced up Wookiee pause, but there were only five of them, and reloading was not something that could be done in a hurry. Within the 20 meter bubble of his sensors, accuracy was phenomenal, but Eralam would have to be careful how he spent his lead.
His lightsaber wasn't anything to write home about. The hilt was styled after the ancient rapier, a sword designed almost exclusively for dueling. The argent blade hid no neat tricks or anything of that nature. The eralam crystal that focused it rendered the blade thin and clear. It was a precision instrument, not the crude club favored by most Force users. In a day and age where spastic flailing and acrobatics was the preferred means of dueling, it was every bit the anachronism that the revolver was.
The most potent weapon, however, was not merely physical. As he ran, Eralam opened himself fully to the Force, his presence blazing like a beacon in the darkness that permeated the spectral atmosphere. It was neither light nor dark, but rather, crystal clear, untainted by organic notions of what the Force should be. It was also old, impossibly ancient, and utterly implacable, a glacier that ground everything in its path to rubble. If there was anyone Force sensitive in that rabble, surely they'd notice.
The Iron Knight closed the distance rapidly. A part of him idly wondered how long it would take the mercenaries to notice and focus their fire on him. After all, surely someone there was paying attention to their rear, right?
Location: Exubitor
Objective: Stop Samka's abilities
Enemies: FO, their allies and [member="Samka Derith"]
Allies: GA, their allies
The focus of Samka was clear and Jairdain was determined to stop the meditation from reaching its intended targets. However, this was not meant to be and the reach was made by the First Order mentalist. If the girl didn't want to fight her, then that was fine with Jairdain. In her turn she could focus on bolstering her own allies. If a duel happened, then it would...if it didn't they each helped their own forces and still battled each other.
Instead of picking out certain people, Jairdain would focus on all. Each person of the Alliance fleet and her allies would feel her touch. A sense of bolster, strength, stamina and intelligence. The First Order and those allies would also feel her touch. A potential question of what they were doing might find them. Maybe the sense of confusion or a loss of focus. That is what Battle Meditation did when it was done right.
It would focus on the big picture of the battle and not just single entities that Samka picked on. Of course, there was a counter to Jairdain. She struggled to overcome those Samka had already touched, but the ones untouched by her should feel the touch of her meditation. Now to fully prevent her from effecting the battle in any form would be to take the fight to her and she waited.
