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Location: The 'Excubitor'. Primary Objective(s): Assassinate Admiral Cathul Thuku Allies: The First Order | [member="Emilia Ravel"] | [member="Xenro"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] Enemies: [member="Asaraa Vaashe"] | [member="Yuroic Xeraic"] | The Galactic Alliance
The fleeting distraction of the Lightning was enough for Connor to see the Jedi didn't want a fight. The weak ones never did. He raised his arm to speak to the open com to the First Order boarders down below.
"Focus on my position. I'm directly behind the bridge - either get fighters to lock in on my position and blow the bridge or you send explosives ripping through this ship at once. Don't waste any more time!"
With a rising hate swelling inside him, Connnor stepped forward, inches from the Togrutan, the lightsaber blade glowing between them; a barrier of light between the dark.
"The answer to where your path lies has already been spoken. You should know if you are on the right path, and since you don't, this is just a lie you're living and it will consume you. Another lesson you need to learn," he cast a sideways glance at the male Jedi, "is that there is much more beyond the evident black and white view of good and evil. The First Order. The Alliance. It's meaningless to me. A stepping stone on a path that has been walked for many years."
Connor turned to the Togrutan.
"If you want to understand the betrayal of the Jedi you serve, find out why Master [member="Coci Heavenshield"] has since abandoned the Order I saved and wanted to bring me down in the process."
The ship rumbled around them but he didn't look away.
"I will then show you what it means to understand your destiny with the Force. This is your last chance to escape."
Objective: Keep Asaraa and Jairdain safe
Location: Still on some ship
Allies: GA, [member="Asaraa Vaashe"] | [member="Jairdain"]
Enemies: FO and allies, [member="Connor Harrison"]
Yuroic looked at Asaraa. "Get out of here to Jairdain. Now. No arguements." He glanced back at the Dark Sider. He shook his head, this man was not listening to their words. Hearing only what he wanted and twisting what they meant. "I feared that you would not listen. I do not see in black and white, light and dark. I know there can be balance, it is not easy and you do not seek balance. You seek to manipulate it, twist the Force to pure darkness."
Spinning his saber readying himself for combat, Yuroic lunged forward as he stabbed at the Force User's right shoulder. His attack was fast and sudden, he wanted to catch him offguard with his attack. Yuroic moved from the shoulder strike to slash across his stomach. His lightsaber movements weren't as well practised as they should at his level, his left hand not able to move with the elegance or precision his right had.
Grunting, Yuroic waited to see if Connor would retaliate to his attack. "The Silver Jedi is more than one Jedi. Whatever Master Coci reasons were, we needed to change, become new and gain allies. Too long had we spent fighting wars on our one, distance from others. Now we are dedicated to being a spark of hope for those lost in darkness."
Location: Space Operations Center, Union-class Assault/Colony CarrierOcean Tide, docked at Station Hapspir Objective: Board Station Hapspir and suppress its defending forces: Move the makeshift bomb onto Hapshir Station Allies: Galactic Alliance & friends: [member="Cedric Grayson"] | [member="Mirax Eygan"] | [member="Tiland Kortun"] | [member="Alyson Halle"] | [member="Zanza Hijikata"] Enemies: [member="Cyrus Tregessar"] | First Order
Gir folded his arms as he watched the holo battle rage on unabated. Innumerable turbolaser bolts and countless other weapons flashed back and forth between the ships. Some smashed into his ship's shielding, but more and more were starting to impact the ships' hulls. The ill-fated Roldophe exploded under the Ravager's fire, taking hundreds of lives with in a brilliant flash. Gir briefly wondered how many years of life were snuffed out in that instance. He unfolded his arms to briefly tap out several more commands into the command console. A minute passed before he could see the results of orders, as the Tercels finally broke their overlapping shield formation. While it had made the cruisers much more durable against their imposing opponent, it had also made them less effective for their designated task. The heavy cruisers jetted forward to engulf the Ravager like an amoeba sucking in its microscopic prey. He had no doubt that his cruisers would take a heavier pounding at point-blank range, but he hoped to be able to crowd the Ravager's guns so that they couldn't fire on any other targets by the Tercels looming at the tip of their barrels. He briefly stroked his chin as the Tercels formed a something of a "v" around the dagger shape hull of the star destroyer before the cruisers started to tractor themselves to the star destroyer. That should help out with containing their maneuvers. He had no illusion that the Tercels would be able to crack open the impressive flagship, but they could at least keep the Ravager preoccupied as they entered the final stages of their mission. As the last of the First Order transports disappeared from the vicinity, his strikecraft complement whirled around the Tide's hull to maintain a close vigil around the assault carrier in case any more attempts were made to board the Tide. Hopkins cleared his throat.
"They've just moved the bomb onboard."
Gir turned his head to face the man, "Good news...but that doesn't mean our objective here is secured."
"We have them on the ropes though."
Gir considered the thought. The brief sitreps he had received from Panib and his subordinates had been encouraging. Enough so that he had briefly entertained the thought of capturing the mostly ruined station at Panib's suggestion. He didn't doubt the man's analysis, but he wondered if it truly would be worth the cost of the men and material, especially when there was no guarantee that they could hold the station with the nearby Ravager and the Tide's increasingly decrepit state. A frown briefly creased his face. Surely Hopkins understands that picture. He briefly tapped a few buttons on his console, bringing up the status of the Tide. The damage was worse than he had thought, though at a glance he was not sure if it was from the Ravager's weapons or the fierce fighting breaking out on the upper decks between the First Order infantry and the Directorate Marines and their motley groups of battle droids. At least the hyperdrive seems to be online again. He blinked.
"You want to withdraw?"
"Think about the amount of time and credits needed to repair what damage is already done the Tide. Minutes here means millions latter."
He cleared his throat, "Drake, I know you are here. Start plotting a course out of here."
The disembodied voice of the artificial intelligence came back dripping with irritation, "Understood."
"Once we scuttle the station, we'll jump," said Gir, "we can't leave here without the interdictor field down anyways."
Hopkins nodded, "Understood. I'll relay that order to the rest of the fleet then?"
Gir slowly nodded as he changed the channel on his headset comlink, "Panib, what is the status of the device?"
"It's onboard, we're currently moving it towards the station's Z-axis."
Gir nodded. By placing it at the station's center of mass, they had the best chance of structurally destroying the station, or more importantly, knocking out whatever was causing the interdiction field. Yet there remained the chance that even with the explosive's detonation, the interdiction field might still be up. That would likely have to cause them to use the proton beams one more time to destroy the gravity well projectors. He rapidly flipped through several flatscreens which showed his tactical intelligence team's work. Their detective work had not quite narrowed down the source of the gravity well, but if the explosion did not take down the gravity well projectors, it would at least eliminate possible candidates.
"Once it's in position," said Gir, "withdraw the marines. We'll keep the droids onboard to keep the garrison occupied until it detonates."
"Yes sir."
Gir closed the channel and turned his attention back to the battlefield at large. The Marauder and Draken cruisers appeared to be in a stalemate, which Gir was content with. But the arrival of the First Order's starfighters had shifted the balance of power in the light corvette's fight. The Libertés weren't designed to fight off strikecraft, though they boosted significant enough missile defenses that they wouldn't immediately be destroyed by massed missile fire. Nonetheless, there were simply too many starfighters for the light corvettes to handle, and Gir saw several disappear into incandescent balls of flaming gases and debris before dissipating into nothingness. He glanced at his wrist chrono. Seconds later, he received the first notification that the Directorate marines had begun their withdrawal from Hapshir Station. He grasped the cold railing once more. It's only a matter of time...
Impromptu Battle Group Ocean Tide
Union-class Assault/Colony CarrierOcean Tide Shield / Hull:105/930 Hangar: 6 Cyclone Squadrons, 4 Typhoon Squadrons, guarding Hapshir Station Actions: Boarding Hapshir Station; firing on Ravager; sublight engines stopped: Aegis Anticoncussion Field activated. half ground troop complement boarding Hapshir Station; Half defending Ocean Tide from enemy boarders: internal automated boarding defenses activated. Firing Revirement missiles at Hapshir station
Tercel-class Heavy CruiserBlack Sword Shield / Hull:660/880 Hangar: None Actions: Overlapped shields, attacking Ravager, placed between the Ocean Tide and Ravager Tercel-class Heavy CruiserWhite Mantle Shield / Hull:570/890 Hangar: None Actions: Overlapped shields, attacking Ravager, placed between the Ocean Tide and Ravager Tercel-class Heavy CruiserGreen Lance Shield / Hull:670/815 Hangar: None Actions: Overlapped shields, attacking Ravager, placed between the Ocean Tide and Ravager
Directorate / Law Enforcement Task Force Liberté-class Light Corvette Red One Shield / Hull:40/50 Hangar: None Actions: Run and gun with pursuers Liberté-class Light Corvette Red Three Shield / Hull:50/50 Hangar: None Actions: Run and gun with pursuers
-Tercels break formation and try to engulf the Ravager in a close 'V' formation as described in post
-Continued boarding assault on Hapshir Station: Droids press attack, Directorate marines begin withdrawal once bomb placed
-moved makeshift proton bomb onto Hapshir Station
-Drake begins to calculate hyperjump
-Frigate Rodolphe and several light corvettes destroyed by enemy fire
Objective: Take over Hyperdrive, engage enemy forces.
Assets: Ranger Special Tactics Unit, 'Radama Raiders'
First Ranger Infantry.
The team of rangers filed into the reactor room behind Jerit. Valkren led, with Harris to follow, then Plexico, and Lowder, and two others. Their assault rippers raised, they began shouting commands on either side of Jerit, telling the troopers to surrender their arms immediately.
"Drop your weapons now! On your knees! On your knees!"
"Get on your bloody knees and don't karkin' move!"
"Weapons down! Weapons down!"
"Even think about raising that blaster and I swear to whatever gods you believe in I'll put a slug right through your skull, pretty boy!"
As the soldiers and officers came forward, submitting to the group of soldiers and Jedi before him, Valkren would divert his gaze from them to the force user on the opposing side of them. This was who Jyoti has sensed..Things were about to get dicey.
"Plexico, Clark, Harris..Get these men out of here. Find any others that surrender on the way out and start gathering the men. Lowder, with me.." He'd pat Jerit on the back momentarily, letting the padawan know that he was still in the room with him, and wouldn't be leaving. Both himself and Lowder would begin to strafe to the side slowly, their rifles trained on the force user closely as they advanced to one of the panels on the side of the room.
As Valkren kept his weapon locked on the force user, Lowder's eyes would go wide from behind his visor as he looked over the reactors, and then the systems on the panels.
"Boss. We have a problem."
Valkren took his eyes away from his sights only for a moment, expecting to scold the specialist for not getting to work on slaving the hyperdrive to their systems immediately, before spotting the reason why almost right off the bat. Touching his communicator, he'd send out a transmission while Jerit hopefully began to deal with the force user.
"Raider One to Spectre One, we have a problem.. The hyperdrive has been sabotaged. It'll take a lot more than just my specialist to fix this thing up. Oh..And you were right about the force user." As he said this, he'd take Specialist Lowder's back once more, raising his weapon to the Ren's direction in an attempt to cover him incase she came at them.
After Jerit gave her a chance to surrender, he channeled through to Valkren on his helmet communications after everyone else except Lowder had taken the surrending First Order troops elsewhere. He felt his friend's hand on his back.
"Set your weapon to stun. We don't want to shoot that hyperdrive."
Jerit focused on the Sith Witch. He knew nothing of her ability in the force which was scary in itself. He had no inner knowledge of what she could possibly conjure, so the boy padawan had to be very careful at how he planned to take her down. He channeled the force through him and felt lighter and stronger, as if he could take on three Krayt Dragons at once. He took in a heavy amount of air, and breathed out slowly. Jerit lifted his saber below his chin, held it horizontally, and closed his eyes. He was using a technique called Center of Being. This technique allowed the boy to center himself and defend any sort of random attack involuntarily.
Before the boy could lunge towards the witch, he heard Lowder. The hyperdrive was damaged. What was the point now? Maybe they could repair it, but who knows what kind of damage had been done to it.
Jerit lifted his lightsaber, and charged at the Ren. He didn't want to stall anymore time. He felt his body tensing. He was ready.
As I am coming back in from my temporary LOA noted here, please forgive any missed details. I am doing my best to maintain consistency and will always welcome open communication should I be required to make an edit.
They three members of the Order of Ren whom had previously been instructed to provide reinforcement to the Engineering deck and the forces fighting to ensure the Executioners maintained status in health and operations had taken to their Orders most swiftly. Delengtha Ren, the armored former captain of the Stormtrooper legions had removed the FWMB-10 Repeating Blaster from it's tri-pod and carried it onward towards the turbo-lifts leading down towards the heart of the Resurgent; at his side followed his pair Force Practitioners, Nocturnus and Arkaos Ren, the brothers whom stood in silence and overpowered Delengtha in every sense where the Force was concerned, yet too followed his command within the chain of hierarchy as was placed upon him by that of Caehl Ren.
Their descendance unto the great Destroyer had gone uninterrupted, exiting the turbo-lifts to pass members of the maintainence crew fleeing from the on-going assault from their invaders. Ahead of them were their fellow members of the Order of Ren being aided by the Special Forces unit, yet this was a battle better fit for their kind. The Force in all it's might and destructive power would see these infectious pests removed of the host body, that they greet the cold vuccum of space with sundered helms and dying breaths.
Moving to enter the open floor of the main engineering deck, Delengtha Ren lit loose the roaring blaster fire of the FMWB-10 at the closest armed enemy personnal within sight, his two supporting Omega Ren igniting their lightsabers with a flash of crimson fire and moving to take to the left and right searching for their targets, not picky in their opposition, they would take on any who were willing to face the heat of battle against them.
Running and dropping to her knees, Alia Fedahkin slid across the floor dodging a hail of blasterfire before finding cover behind the shelter of one of the Engineering station's maintenance consoles. Her fellow troopers had moved to close off the exits that would lead their opposition further within the Resurgent, there they would be the last resistance should their mandalorian foes best the Knights of Ren here within Engineering and be successful in their attempts to cripple the FIV Executioner.
Leaning sideways to aim from cover with her F-11D blaster rifle, she let loose a volley of blaster-fire in retaliation, the shots arcing wide in the direction her attacker had fired from yet the battle was a frenzy, clashes of weapons, the light and sounds of lightsabers and blaster bolts ricocheting off of the metal hull of machinery and electrical equipment around them made it difficult to focus on any one person.
The console however that she once more pressed her back against in an attempt to remain out of the line of sights of their enemy, gave her the incentive to consider the Destroyers security protocols. With the right access, a security lockdown of the floor would work against their invaders and given their clearance by the First Order Security Bureau, their Special Operations access into high profile Military channels meant that she would likely have the command and authority to do exactly that.
"Cover me!" she turned to yell to her second in charge who had remained alongside her for the duration of the battle. Forever loyal and daring in his duty, Sergeant, Kulon Otheym moved to take to an adjacent cover, rising to take fire over the engineering floor against any whom might fire in their direction while Alia Fedahkin would turn her attention to the terminal and begin to incite a deck wide lockdown, intent on sealing all avenues into the rest of the ship and deactivate all secondary program's and unnecessary functions bar the obvious, engines, life support and etc.
Caehl Ren.
His Apprentice's were proving themselves to be invaluable to their cause, [member="Xiomar Ren"] for whom stood guard over the Supreme Leader of the First Order, [member="Sieger Ren"]. What an honor it would be for the Disciple were her life to be given in defense of their magnificent Visionary.
[member="Elensa Jari"] however stood within eyes sight of him, battling against their foes with her utmost dedication and influence over the Dark Side of the Force, she a reckonning example of the power that was the Force, dominating everything within it's path. The Knight of Ren would have smiled upon her, had he the moment to show his pride. He however had no such time to spare upon petty sentiment with the Galactic Alliance's criminal allies imposing upon their righteous declaration across the sector.
Against his armor, the impact of a blaster bolt slammed into his stomach and caused him to stumble back a step, the discharge not piercing his protective attire yet burning away at the tunic that sought to hide much of it, he was forced to pull the loose cloak from over him, tearing it away and dropping it to the floor beside him that he might be free to move in whichever this battle would require.
Staring down their foes through the black visor of his helm, his eyes narrowed darkly searching for which of these pest would become his first victim. There were many here and the vibrating thrum of power that coursed throughout the hilt of his lightsaber sought the blood of all of them, the darkside channeling through him, empowered through the battle meditation of both [member="Sieger Ren"] and [member="Samka Derith"]; the violence and death that their enemy had wrought upon the crew only further invoking a mass of hatred and emotion for which he would consume and use to revitalize his power and dominion across the floor.
"Who will be the first to die before my hand in the name of The Supreme Leader..."
When her weapon was torn from her grasp the Mandalorian felt a surge of excitement, like this dar'jetti would fall and die at the point of his blade, and then he would kill the others. It would've been a suitable metaphor, one representative of how no amount of magic could match the might of the Manda. The thought of his anger reaping the reward of a kill was appetizing to say the least, but it was not to be, not yet. The strike at her side was predictable, and with an all powerful force providing a warning, it was no wonder the beskad's blade swung through nothing but air.
Gritting his teeth he tried to adjust all too late. The kick finding purchase near his knee and sending him to the floor. The joint was already a weak area in most any anatomy, but Vila Sayne's beskad had weakened it further in the streets of Sundari. She'd died soon after, but she'd made her mark. Hitting the deck, Silas recovered quickly, his beskar'gam was designed for agility and mobility, which made the process all the more easy. Rolling quickly onto all fours, he hefted the tomahawk, a wolf baring its teeth.
Perhaps the Hapan would get a kick out of the display, crack it up to a pointless display of bravado so common in some of the galaxy's men. It wasn't.
He shot at her, the tomahawk swiping down at a shoulder, hoping to bury its way through flesh and bone alike, with mechanized strength giving it the power the smash its way down to the ribs. There was no pause, no time to think or recover, the Mantis was relentless. If he wanted to live he had to keep the woman unfocused and on her toes, the moment she could concentrate was the second she lifted him in the air with an invisible hand and crushed his windpipe.
::You once offered me balance and power. Now I offer the same. I give you the power to save them, even those you did not know needed it. Even yourself. One last chance.::
Her grip was powerful, fuel by the power that swirled around her. She truly had come into her own, a vile beast that Bryce had sought to help her avoid. Their was no compassion in her words no matter how the seductress in her tried to sweeten them. Submission meant worse then death, so a life in chain was one wasted. But as everyone did they underestimated him. This he heard it, a quick sigal from his ship, what he had been waiting for.
"Omega ready..." His faithful ship signaled.
As his ribs broke from the force of Ara's grip Bryce slapped the crystal on his Defender Bracelet. As the field appeared around the Marshal the power Ara exerted over Bryce suddenly vanished. Standing straight he fought through the pain as a large lump of blood came into his mouth from his injured lungs. Anger flared in Bryce's eyes before it faded away and a mocking rye smile replaced it. Bryce spit the blood in her general direction as he pulled his shotgun from his leg and racked the lever till he had ejected all the unspent shells in it and kicked them toward the trooper charging him. Seconds later the shields on Zero activated and Bryce still under her wing was suddenly surround by it.
"You never had be Ara, fifteen minutes was all I needed, time for the shield buffers to be changed out. All that mess and confusion, it was not to just buy time but to distract you from my final play..." Bryce said an a near mocking tone.
As he stopped one of his repair droids came from his ship with a large pack strapped to its back and stopped feet from Bryce still protected by the shield.
"You remember the Fisher King Ara? Our first night? Well I learned many things from that ship, one more interesting pieces being that every FO ship has scuttling charges build into them to prevent theft or looting of a damaged ship. I would recommend you find something to hold on to because I'm about to free my ship, and everything else in a two hundred meter radius."
As a Force cylinder surrounded Bryce he utter the final words to his ship... "Zero, omega protocol..."
A signal when out and mill second later ever charge within range detonated at once. Deck plating, hull, armor and system alike buckled and were torn apart. The charges around Zero exploded they had been strategically moved so they would tear a hole an the great destroyer that held her captive and push her from harms way. All went red and black around Bryce as Zero activated her engines and pull him into the safety of her aft air lock. As she did Bryce watched fire consume the hanger and the image of Ara fade from view.
Location: Hex L-49, Main Hangar of the Istukusk and the attached corridors Objective: A Golden Spear, A Cold Despair Allies: Galactic Alliance, [member="Zark"] (In ghost form), [member="Taeli Raaf"], Enemies: First Order, [member="Kyrel Ren"], [member="Varas Kyrel"], Equipment: Durasteel/Duranium Runic Khazund Heavy Mechanized Armor, Imbued Runic Duranium Vibro-longaxe, Collection of Duranium Throwing Axes, Anti-Force User Grenade, Heavy Magnetic Revolver, Blaster Pistol, combat lightsaber (blue blade), Heavy Bolter
The dwarf charged in, axe in hand, after his target, his form propelling itself through the dark grey smoke of the explosion and sprinting through the corridors of the Istukusk along with the rhythmic sound of his armored boots stomping against the metal floor, without the Force barrier in the way to stop him since it would disperse when the Rens abandoned keeping it up. He could hear their footsteps just out of his reach, just around the corner, almost able to catch them, however by the time the dwarf came upon the turbolift its doors were closed and the Rens were already up in the bridge.
It was at that point that the alarm blared out through the ship, letting them know there were only five minutes left to evacuate before the reactor went critical, causing the dwarf to turn back, looking between the elevator and the way to the hangar and whisper to himself,
"Ah, chite,"
He turned around, giving up the chase since, unlike Zark, he was not the one to put his life so clearly on the line for the cause of the Galactic Alliance, in the end this was not exactly his fight, just means to propagate the survival of his people, besides so far the Ren proved to be poor adversaries, doing more running away from the dwarf than fighting, and Ghor was not one to chase after an opponent that did not had the shebs to fight back but ignore and speed through a ship instead.
Running back towards the hangar the dwarf would holster his longaxe back onto the magnetic holster on his back, the mechanized device gripping the weapon and stashing it away neatly as the dwarf entered the large open space once more. Signs of battle still littered the hangar, along with the two TIE Silencers left in there by the Rens, however they seemingly went mostly ignored by the GA marines and crewmen, as they were currently too busy evacuating and boarding various dropships to jump ship before it went critical rather than stick around.
Moving closer towards the TIE Silencers the dwarf would climb upon the one left by Kyrel, it seemed to be in a fairly good shape outside of few scrapes underneath from the rough landing, and luckily the Khazund were one of those tricky technologically skilled races. Looking the small vessel over the dwarf made sure it was not booby trapped or rigged to self destruct, probably not having any issues with slicing the ship if it was so, considering Kyrel left in a hurry and the ship did not came with such precautions built in. Once Ghor decided it was safe to use he would grab one of his Anti-Force User Grenades and toss it over at the other TIE Silencer, the one left by Varas with the damaged left wing. The dwarf smirked watching the little orb bounce around before deflecting off of the pilot seat's backrest and landing within the cockpit,
"Still got it."
He chortled to himself before slipping into Kyrel's TIE Silencer and pulling the cockpit hatch down, pressing buttons and flicking switches, powering up the ship.
Before long the dwarf would lift off in the TIE Silencer and push on the throttle controls, evacuating out of the hangar of the sinking Istukusk as behind him a thermal detonator exploded within the cockpit of the other Silencer.
Location: Hex L-49 Objective: Something Like a Storm Allies: Galactic Alliance, [member="Cathul Thuku"] | [member="Lily Kuhn"] | [member="Rick Kaloo"] | [member="Sor-Jan Xantha"] | [member="Zanza Hijikata"] | [member="Gir Quee"] | [member="Jax Rhane"] | [member="Jarck Rabsch"] | [member="Liuna Ondizi"] | [member="Jyoti Nooran"] | [member="Dorn Skirata"] Enemies: First Order, [member="Sieger Ren"] | [member="Asharad Graush"] | [member="Cyrus Tregessar"] | [member="Robogeber"] | [member="Morro"] | [member="Dako Asturo"] | [member="Samka Derith"] | [member="Natasi Fortan"] In Proximity: [member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Ghorumgash Khazund-Veranum"] | [member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Rolf Amsel"] | [member="Krayn Ren"] | [member="Varas Kyrel"] Writer's Note: Events in this post are meant to align with the invasion's climax, any PCs still on board the Itsukusk are free to write exuents set prior to detonation, and of course other more personal plotlines are free to choose at which point to catch up.
Command Deck, Supercarrier The Itsukusk Collision Course with Station Triaxis, Hex L-49
"Divert all power to forward deflectors!" Nemo Ven roared, clinging to the battle altar in front of him just to stay upright.
"Sir, they're already at maximum!"
"What about life support?" the Alliance Supreme Commander asked grimly, blinking bulbous eyes as he took in frightened faces all around him, "Its not like we'll be needing it."
Practically the entire First Order battle line had redirected everything they had on the Itsukusk's position, and while interference from the debris cloud that was all that remained of the ANS Axiom briefly thwarted some of the Imperial's more guided ordinance, at five kilometers long the supercarrier was a difficult target to miss. Already their deflector array was strained beyond its limits, and power readouts were plummeting far faster than Nemo would have liked. The whole of the vast, cathedral-like command deck was now shuddering as though they were caught in the middle of some massive earthquake.
Even the additional juice provided by those systems it had only just occurred to his crew were no longer critical was a flash in the pan, readouts leveling out on the display in front of them only momentarily before they resumed sinking like a stone. Soon its state of the art Mon Cal systems would begin to prioritize, and things would get a whole lot worse, as enemy fire bled through first striking non-critical decks but soon after that the sustained First Order barrage would likely trigger secondary explosions that made them hurt.
"Supreme Commander, First Order attack vessels maneuvering to head us off!"
Ven had already seen it, his eyes now fixed on the massive holodisplay in the center of the command dais, struggling to maintain enough focus through all the shaking to see his enemy's positions clearly. This far out, in no man's land between both armadas, sensors were an absolute mess, but it looked as though not only were the Imperial wolf packs burning to intercept them, others were now laying what appeared to be mines along their trajectory. The Supreme Commander had no idea what kind of ordinance they were dealing with, only that he didn't want to find out.
"Maintain course and speed! All remaining squadrons converge on those mines!" the Mon Cal snapped, almost thrown bodily from the dais as he rode the aftershocks of an explosion somewhere within the ship, "If they seek to test our resolve, we will show them we are unbreakable! All hands, brace for impact!"
The holodisplay was beginning to flicker now, as power flow to even their tactical systems grew more and more intermittent, so in the end Nemo Ven had little time to prepare when they finally struck something. Whether it had been an enemy ship, or one of the First Order mines that whats left of their fighter squadrons couldn't get to in time, the Supreme Commander had no way of knowing. The force of the impact had thrown him clear off the dais, and first he was flying, then falling...
His eyes opened.
Vision clouded, the Mon Cal wiped blood from his brow, realizing in the process a dim agony he was feeling meant his right arm was broken. As his sight finally cleared, he found that he had awoken to every captain's nightmare. Entire tactical stations were engulfed in flames, junior officers flailing around then like burning marionettes while broken bodies lie scattered across the vast chamber, some crushed by fallen support beams or bulkhead plating while others had been thrown in the same manner as Nemo, now dead or dying from the force of impact.
In the back of his mind, Supreme Commander Ven understood that he too was dying. But even though he found that he could no longer move his legs, the Mon Cal used his one good arm to claw his way slowly, ponderously across the deck. There was nothing left of the bridge's sensor stations, and an ominous crack in the forward viewport that could mean loss of internal pressure at any second. Inertial dampeners were almost completely out, which meant making his way up back onto the command dais was as much a matter of riding the vibrations as crawling.
Struggling to make sense of the few still functioning panels before him through a likely concussion, Nemo eventually realized with relief that they still had sublight engine power, although how much the massive damage they had sustained had impacted their speed, he had no way to determine. At this point, the Supreme Commander realized there was little left to be done. The ship's course was locked in, and Ven had no frame of reference with which to make any manual corrections. There were now seconds left in the auto-destruct countdown, so instead with the last of his strength he reached for communications.
He tried to open a channel to the First Order fleet, not even knowing if there was still a comm array left with which to broadcast a signal, and simply said, "Consider this...our formal response."
The Mon Cal slid back down onto the command dais, leaning against the shattered remains of the large holodisplay projector as he counted the last few seconds down in his mind. This was a good death, he reasoned in the end. The warrior within him yearned of course to live and fight another day, but Nemo supposed this was better than going uselessly in his sleep. And if he dragged some Imperial scum and Darkside filth along with him, all the better. He thought of the Alliance, his adopted people, and of the waters of Dac.
I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me.
The Itsukusk exploded, a beacon of light raging against the vastness of the dark.
Allied Command
Ship Name: The Itsukusk Ship Class:Supercarrier (Flagship) Shield / Hull:0/0 Hangar: 42 Squadrons (7 Wings). 10 Sprite-class X-Wing Squadrons. 15 CF10 Crossfire Squadrons. 10 A-Wing Squadrons. 5 D-Wing Squadrons. 1 X-83 TwinTail Squadron. 1 Dauntless-class X-Wing Squadron. Actions: Explodes in close proximity to First Order battle line.
Ship Name: ANS Axiom Ship Class:Citadel-Class Star DefenderShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:3 Squadrons. 1 Sprite-class X-Wing Squadron. 1 A-Wing Squadron. 1 D-Wing Squadron. Actions:Destroyed by combined firepower of FIV Bombard, FIV Thunderbolt, FIV Fortuna, FIV Trepid, FIV Brigand.
Ship Name: ANS Remember Eriadu Ship Class:Essex-class Starfighter KillerShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:- Actions:Destroyed by combined firepower of FIV Goliath, Genesis, and Dishonor.
Ship Name: ANS Rivers of Arbra Ship Class:Essex-class Starfighter KillerShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:- Actions:Destroyed by combined firepower of FIV Cyclone, FIV Phalanx, FIV Infamy.
Ship Name: ANS Rancor Claw Ship Class:Dirigible-class CorvetteShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:- Actions:Destroyed by combined firepower of FIV Phalanx and Thunderbolt.
Ship Name: ANS Loth Cat Ship Class:Dirigible-class CorvetteShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:- Actions:Destroyed by FIV Javelin.
Ship Name: ANS Righteous Sword Ship Class:Dirigible-class CorvetteShield / Hull:10/50 Hangar:- Actions:Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course.
Ship Name: ANS Rebel Yell Ship Class:Dirigible-class CorvetteShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:- Actions:Destroyed by combined firepower of FIV Dishonor, FIV Javelin, FIV Avalanche.
Ship Name: ANS Inalienable Ship Class:Dirigible-class CorvetteShield / Hull:0/0 Hangar:- Actions:Destroyed by Darkshear. [member="Sieger Ren"]
Ship Name: ANS Nerfherder Ship Class:GR-90E TransportShield / Hull:0/40 Hangar:- Actions:Flanking Therapy Command. Counter ECM on Station Triaxis.
Attack Group Aurek
1 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadron
1 Dauntless-class X-Wing Elite Fighter Squadron
2 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
1 A-Wing Interceptor Squadron
1 D-Wing Fast Bomber Squadron Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 25%
Attack Group Besh
1 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadron
2 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
1 A-Wing Interceptor Squadron
2 D-Wing Fast Bomber Squadrons Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 20%
Attack Group Cresh
1 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadron
2 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
1 A-Wing Interceptor Squadron
1 D-Wing Fast Bomber Squadron Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 10%
Attack Group Dorn
1 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadron
2 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
1 A-Wing Interceptor Squadron
1 D-Wing Fast Bomber Squadron Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 18%
Attack Group Esk
1 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadron
2 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
1 A-Wing Interceptor Squadron
1 D-Wing Fast Bomber Squadron Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 5%
Intercept Group One
3 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadrons
2 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
3 A-Wing Interceptor Squadrons
1 X83 TwinTail Elite Fighter Squadron Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 25%
Intercept Group Two
3 Sprite-class X-Wing Fighter Squadrons
3 CF10 Crossfire Fighter Squadrons
3 A-Wing Interceptor Squadrons Actions: Disengaging and targeting First Order minefield along Itsukusk's final course. Status: 30%
Summary of Actions
ANS Righteous Sword disengages from current target and attempts to eliminate Imperial mines threatening the Itsukusk.
Attack Groups Aurek through Dorn disengage from all targets and attempts to eliminate Imperial mines threatening the Itsukusk.
Intercept Groups One and Two disengage from all targets and attempts to eliminate Imperial mines threatening the Itsukusk. [member="Morro"] The Itsukusk explodes in close proximity to First Order battle group. Any writers yet to respond are assumed to have targeted the Itsukusk until otherwise corrected. Positioning relative to the supercarrier's detonation and any appropriate damage taken are up to First Order writers to decide. Full extent of the damage to Station Triaxis will be determined after invasion judgment is rendered.
[member="Sieger Ren"] [member="Cyrus Tregessar"] [member="Robogeber"] [member="Morro"] [member="Dako Asturo"] [member="Samka Derith"] [member="Natasi Fortan"]
Now facing the Jedi he gazed momentarily upon their forms. Young. Full of life and vitality - strength. Boys they may have appeared at first glance, but the subtle shifting of the Force around them spoke otherwise. Great energy filled the bridge of the Executioner. Dark. Light. Hardly distinguishable in the moment when the energy surged, the body of one of the Jedi spurred to motion. In a fraction of a second Sieger's enemy was airborne, closing the distance with a rapidity even the Supreme Leader hadn't quite expected. Despite his initial surprise he had been ready for something. Too late was it to draw his own saber, at least in the moment, already the Jedi's leap had carried him halfway across the gap. No - this required something different.
Time seemed to almost slow, at least by Sieger's perception - the sound of the living Force throbbing in his ears. His hands unhindered rose a measure, the corners of his lips rising into a vicious sneer as he could feel the power of the Dark Side around him. First his feet, his legs, then the pit of his stomach. Expanding further, faster, even as the Jedi continued to close the distance Sieger knew it was time to act.
The dark well of energy, built up over years upon years of wallowing in its dark essence moved then, the very tips of Sieger's fingers bristled with raw energy. With a violent crackle of electricity, arcs of dark side energy sparked to life. The Jedi was close, his saber raised and beginning to descend in what Sieger imagined him to believe a coup de grâce. Unfortunately for the Jedi his assault had been brash. He would pay for his over eagerness. As the white hot arcs of electricity cut through the air towards the oncoming Jedi in midair, Sieger applied an equally violent pressure downwards, not merely projecting his own attack but attempting to rip the Jedi right out of the air and throw him directly into the port command pit at his right. As Sieger felt the power channeled through his body he let loose a feral snarl.
Secondary Bridge
On the Secondary Bridge, things were no less dangerous. Commander Lupus was directing more than one field of combat, both directing fire commands towards the GAS Incandescent Truth and maintaining a close eye on the damage control efforts. It was a harrowing task, and even as he carried out his tasks with a grim determination a part of him felt a sudden shift in momentum. Alerts were coming in across the board, an unknown number of buzz droids had breached the dorsal surface of the Executioner, and while damage control teams were dealing with them there was no telling how long they could stay in the fight. Already they were under the strain of too many damaged systems, not to mention the gaping hole in their starboard hull.
"Increase the troopers responding to the breaches in our prow. Hold position, what's that carrier doing?!"
The commander's eyes bulged as the hulk of the enemy vessel appeared to be trucking through the hellfire of weapons discharges creating a near never ending lightshow. If that vessel wasn't stopped.
"Sir, we're reading a rapid increase of power fluctuation off our forward prow, it looks like it's coming from.."
He didn't have time to finish. Commander Lupus didn't have time to respond before a violent flash of light eliminated the viewscreen. Simultaneously a cacophany of alarms sounded, sensors overloaded with data at a rate faster than it could process. The detonation of the ANS Itsukusk was little more than a flash of light and a sensor blackout for the secondary command bridge - at least at first, but what was to come would surely be harrowing at best.
"Brace for impact!"
Hangar Ventral, Hangar Starboard
In the ventral hangar, troopers had begun to round of those remaining of the Alliance captured, those who had submitted after seeing the fate of their friends when they resisted. Stuncuffs were carefully placed on each as the Praetorian and a squad of troopers forcefully dragged the enemy through the corridors, headed for the brig. They had just rounded a corner when the blast of the Itsukusk reached the Executioner.
The violent jarring threw several of the troopers off their feet, no doubt some of the Alliance captured feeling the same. Blasters clattered as they slipped free of the trooper's hands and though cuffed, a perfect opportunity presented itself to the prisoners. Even the Praetorian was caught off guard, his own body slammed forcefully into a bulkhead. He would recover much quicker than the others, but the vessel itself seemed to protest, awash with the detonation. It was with a creak of metal and a groan that the troopers began scrambling in an attempt to recover. Almost as if to add insult to injury another explosion rocked the Executioner as the Zero detonated in the starboard hangar. The explosion shook the entire vessel from front to rear with the secondary explosion, and yet it held together. At least for now.
Engineering
In Engineering, the situation wasn't faring much better. Countless individual combats broke out across Engineering but more importantly was the sudden loss of gravity in Engineering. As any vessel, each ship had a number of redundant systems and generators - gravity was one of them. Even so, the detonation the Mandalorians had perpetrated caused a significant halt in response teams, their feet suddenly thrown from their holdings - at least until they could activate their magboots. It was enough of a distraction however to cause them a half minute or so response time as they adjusted. Adding to the chaos was the limited jamming occurring near the Engineering department. Hard wired communication and control to the second bridge was in-tact but many of the crew and ship relied on local communication, now disrupted in and around the Engineering Department.
FIV Executioner 600/2904 Shields 24000/2904 Hull
Attacking: ANS Itsukusk with long range turbolaser batteries and ion batteries. Preparing to launch additional torpedoes. (@Zark) | TIE Raptors engaging Buzz Droids along the hull of the FIV Executioner with highly accurate Ion Cannon Fire ([member="Cathul Thuku"])
Actions:
3 Squadrons of TIE Raptors, Targeting buzz droids along FIV Executioner's hull with ion weaponry.
Additional Damage Control Teams Armed with Ion Carbines assessing and repairing Dorsal Bow Surface. Eliminating any Buzz Droids managing to breach.
Security Detachment closing in net pattern encircling the Engineering Section.
Praetorian Guard and Stormtroopers Escorting GA Prisoners to the Brig. Knocked off feet by explosion. ([member="Rick Kaloo"])
Port Hangar On Lockdown.
Engineering Lockdown.
Explosives detonation in Engineering creates loss of gravity in Engineering.
Wireless Communications in Engineering Jammed. Hard Lines and Control Lines remain intact.
Movement: Returned to Battle Line, Port of Concordia
Notes:
Keeper-class Platform Triaxis
Active Targeting Disruption Disable due to significant damage via Proton Beam ([member="Aryn Teth"])
Target Painting Disrupted due to massive explosion of ANS Itsukusk.
Hyperdrive System, Armory, and Active Jamming (Weapons and Targeting) Offline. Interdiction now fluctuating.
#TeamAlliance Intent: Get caught back up, be fashionably late to the party, and sell the First Order overpriced HoloNet access (actions continue from Post #481) Supporting: GA; [member="Zark"] [member="Ghorumgash Khazund-Veranum"] Opponents: FO; [member="Brennan Cabrol"] [member="Connor Harrison"] [member="Sieger Ren"] [member="Morro"] [member="Robogeber"]
approaching Galactic Alliance-First Order theater of hostilities
The explosion of the Alliance flagship was just a blip in the sky, but it got their attention.
The hour of their arrival was late, indeed.
"Have the Nadesico break formation," the young Anzat directed, as he mulled over the navigation outlook on the display at his station. "I want them running search and rescue ops for any survivors from the Alliance."
From off to one side, he could hear Captain Silthen delivering orders to the communications technician. "Inform the Alliance we have a medical frigate standing by to..."
Outside, the Venator's massive turbolaser batteries were moving as the firing crews cycled them through pre-fire checks. Throughout the ship, power from the ship's Colossus reactor was being channeled to the weapon. He imagined that the destroyers ahead were doing the same, as range to the First Order line continued to tick down. "Excelsior and Prometheus, launch one squadron each," Sor-Jan stated after another moment. "Provide any evacuating lifepods or transports some cover."
With that done, the boy surveyed the order of battle once more. The three star destroyers were in a 2+1 diamond configuration. Two forward, one aft. Each of the forward destroyers was supported by one Hammerhead cruiser and one Ruisto frigate. In the rear, the Venator was accompanied by the Jast corvette and the specialized electronic warfare ship. Droid starfighters provided a combat screen around the fleet as it moved into a firing position against the First Order.
"How's Serenity coming?"
The answer came from the pit. One of the analyst droids. "Still spinning up, sir."
The enemy reacted swiftly, the heavy cruisers moving into absorb fire and better focus on their target. It was a rapid reorganization of forces that indicated a commander with a careful eye, and a crew that was well trained and capable. It would have been something of a surprise, had this enemy been any Alliance officer, Cyrus remained of the impression that the GADF had peaked in their victory at Coruscant and had been on a steady downward spiral of decay ever since. But given who he faced, there were few surprises. With roughly equal forces, that meant stalemate. A good description for what the situation looked like now. How much longer could it go on, before both flagships were little more than ruined hulks, attended only by corpses? Would that satisfy him, in the end? He thought once again of Omega, where he had faced down the very organization he had helped to create and saw it demolished, picked apart piece by piece at his command.
Yet here he was, years later, still unfulfilled. Still seeking, though what for, he simply could not know. But he would see the battle through.
"Status of evacuating the station?"
The response was silent and immediate, bits of data flowing in to the command console. It took a moment to coalesce and be formed by the computer into a complete picture, and the image that formed threatened to throw Cyrus into another fit of rage. The station, heavily damaged by the initial attacks, was coming apart internally, and the safety interlocks that would normally be carefully disengaged one by one to trigger a reactor overload were currently undergoing a cascading catastrophic failure. Faced with a much more sudden and final destruction, the station commander had elected to sound the alarms and order a general evacuation, rather than the more subdued one ordered.
"Order the carriers to withdraw from the station, I won't risk my ship's needlessly. We'll move in afterwards to pick up escape pods. Start opening distance between us and the station, but keep our guns on the destroyer."
It would be a dead giveaway to the Directorate forces of course, but given that by now the marines were relaying the warning of the self-destruct sequence to their commanders anyway, that didn't seem to matter much. The real question was how much damage would be dealt to the Ocean Tide and its escorts, or would they get away in time. That was in a few minutes, for now he needed to deal with the Cruisers that were threatening to cripple his flagship.
"Now, direct the carriers to come alongside and shield the Ravager, we'll-"
A flare of light, visible on nearly every display, blinded all viewers. For a moment nobody saw anything, then the blur faded and Cyrus was drawn to the gaping hole that had once been a staggered battleline. As the CIC crew scrambled to try and assess what had just happened, Cyrus observed in silence, piecing together the puzzle on his own.
"Sir, we think that was the-"
"Itsukusk. Self destructed, nothing else has a reactor large enough to make a new star like that."Too bad, I would have liked to face Nemo Ven, was his first thought. But now he paused, considering his next move. He was one of only a few personnel who knew of the presence of the Supreme Leader with the fleet. Cyrus was no patriot, his loyalty was to war and conflict, but if the man who was the very soul of the First Order had perished in that blast...
"Confirm the status of the Executioner and the Concordia. Then all other flagships, but those are priority."
Suddenly the fate of Station Hapspir and the Ocean Tide seemed so very unimportant, and in a way there was little he could to influence things. If his boarding crews were able to cripple the drives of the destroyer, it would be damaged, hopefully severely so, and he could swat away the escorts and take it. If not, he would be outnumbered and outgunned.
No sooner had he finished the thought than a column of flame shot from the side of the station. A moment later a technician confirmed it as a plume of reactor exhaust burning through the hull. With the cascading failure the awesome power of the reactor would be released piecemeal, a chaotic, slow decay, the energy burning out at random. .
Station Hapspir had begun its death spiral.
Summary of Actions
Fleet actions etc. Status quo is maintained, for now.
Station Hapspir begins to die slowly but violently.
Keeper-Class Interdiction Stations
Station Hapspir Officer in Charge: Grand Admiral Cyrus Tregessar
Status: Interdiction Field Active, Relays at 76%. Integrity at -STATION INTEGRITY FAILING REACTOR CONTAINMENT SYSTEM OFFLINE-
Station Barrini Officer in Charge: Vice Admiral Uluc Keri Reis
Status: Interdiction Field Active, Relays at 80%. Integrity at 92% -BOARDERS DETECTED-
Station Corbolan Officer in Charge: Admiral Isano Sekerian
Status: Interdiction Field Active, Relays at 97%. Integrity at 96%
Station Triaxis Officer in Charge: Fleet Admiral Carlyle Rausgeber
Status: -UNKNOWN-
Station Wormturns Officer in Charge: Admiral Itsel Kahalen
Status: Interdiction Field Active, Relays at 100%. Integrity at 99%
A hail of blaster fire peppered the bulkhead behind where Cable had leaned out, and despite himself he gave a low whistle. They had been expecting to face GADF troopers, who were well trained and competent but not exactly an even match for veteran stormtroopers and especially not for Helldivers. Instead they were facing what someone had called 'Directorate' marines, who were clearly a cut above average. It had turned the whole boarding operation into a vicious melee, with any ground gained only at cost. Furthermore the vessel was absolutely riddled with built in weapons, defense systems, and emplacements. At Captain Zaro's direction the Helldiver's had taken to simply trashing every room they passed through, just as a precaution. One only needed to get ambushed by droids to the 'clear' rear once to learn that lesson.
The Stormtroopers were proving their worth as well, despite the derision of the Shadowline mercenaries. They had good equipment and excellent training, especially at operations like this, but it was increasingly clear there simply weren't enough of them to take the ship. That meant diverting to secondary objectives, which meant doing as much damage as possible to the hyperdrive and main propulsion.
That was why they were now down on the lower decks, facing a barricade manned by ship crew and armored marines, that had already seen a dozen stormtroopers shot down in attempts to breach. That had been before the Helldivers had arrived, though. Stormtrooper officer, now a young lieutenant (the company commander had been sawed in half by a volley of blaster fire on the second attack, his torso and head were the closest anybody had come to reaching the barriacade) had ceded tactical control of the scene to Zaro after a short debate. Zaro had been silent since then.
"Shike, how much AP do you have for the 15?"
A readout on the HUD gave him the info immediately, and it wasn't looking good. "Box and a half. Ish."
The Atrisian Captain nodded, then turned back to the white-armored officer and muttered something Cable couldn't hear. There was some equipment moved around (in a couple cases, it was literally tossed across the gap, usually followed up by a few bursts of blaster fire) and then Zaro was there with he plan ready to execute. "We'll pop smoke, make it seem like a charge. The troopers have one mobile shield generator left, we'll toss it up, switch to thermal, and unload with every shattergun we've got. Punch holes through that barricade and do as much damage as possible. The generator won't last long, they tried the first assault with four, but it should allow us to get some shots off. You keep that 15 on full auto and spray the entire line down. If it works we follow up with grenades and breach."
"If it doesn't?" Someone just had to ask.Cable could almost hear Zaro rolling his eyes beneath his armor.
"We'll strap a bunch of explosives to your queen ass and throw you down there. Shut up and get to position. Stormtroopers will provide covering fire and follow up the charge, but we're leading. Feet first motherfuckers."
"Straight into hell..." Cable muttered in response. The moto chant seemed to have lost its luster.
A small crack was the only cue that the smoke had launched, and then a moment later the portable generator was tossed into place. Inactive, it generated no heat and wouldn't show up on thermal that the enemy certainly had as well. Cable inhaled, closed his eyes, exhaled. Time seemed to slow. The shield went up, a flaring of shimmering blue cut through the smoke. Even before it had finished deployment the air lit up with blaster fire, but Cable was already moving. He dove, his heavy armor slamming into the deck and jarring something loose, but got the gun up anyway. Instinctively he began to shoot, tracing the course of incoming blaster fire as best he could. The Super 15 kicked as only a heavy shattergun could, but braced against the deck it was controllable, and the 15mm rounds were swept across the barricade again and again and again.
He felt more than saw the presence of the other Helldivers, snapping off shots where they could. Someone fired a blast from a SFOR carbine, and the very air rippled. Someone went down hard as a volley of shots traced a line up from their left to the shoulder, then the portable shield failed with a snap that made his toes burn.
Then the Stormtroopers were there, charging in headlong under the Helldiver's guns, grenades in hand. No sooner had they moved in than a succession of explosions echoed from the end of the passage.
And it was over. He caught himself holding his breath and exhaled, like it had all happened in the space of a moment. But he knew in fact several minutes had passed, and as he glanced to his right and left almost another dozen bodies had joined those from earlier, and not all wore white. Someone was standing in front him, he looked up, and saw the markings that indicated Zaro's armor, plus one new black pitted hole where he had taken a blaster shot. "Get up, Cable. It's not over yet."
“Noo!!” The Togruta reached out a hand, as if through her action she could restrain Yuroic, hold back the man as she felt a surge in the force, a premonition of what was to come. But her actions came too later, her hand pointing at empty air as she felt as much as saw Yuroic race forward, passing her in a blur of motion as his lightsaber flashed out, driving in towards the other man’s side.
The hum of the Jedi’s lightsaber cut through the air, the luminous blade slashing down in front of the girl’s eyes as he acted. Her lightsaber hung by her side, the metallic hilt clenched in her hands her blade wavering as she hung in the doorway. She was torn between following Yuroic’s command, returning to the bridge to protect Jairdain and staying, unsure if she wanted to help them, or stop them fighting.
She knew intuitively that as bad as Connor might be, and she wasn’t wholly convinced that he was all bad, that attacking him wasn’t going to do more than buy them a few moments, not if his radio call was heard. “Why…why sacrifice yourself like this?” The wavering lightsaber in her hands straightened, the young woman pushing doubt to the back of her mind as she threw her sense open, stretching herself in the force to reach out through the ship, the space around it to find just who had heard his call, where the next threat would come from.
Location: The 'Excubitor'. Primary Objective(s): Assassinate Admiral [member="Cathul Thuku"] Allies: The First Order | [member="Emilia Ravel"] | [member="Xenro"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] Enemies: [member="Asaraa Vaashe"] | [member="Yuroic Xeraic"] | The Galactic Alliance
The male Jedi struck first.
His blade crackled and flashed as it moved towards Connor, the crimson blade in his palm spitting to life to counter his attack, simply batting the blade from left to right with a sharp back-step to keep distance from the incoming agressor.
Connor looked to the Togrutan, hearing her cry.
"Now you see the true aggressors - the ones who drew the first blade. The Jedi!"
He snapped his head back to the male Jedi, and lurched forward with a strong backhand with his cybernetic arm and matched with a heavy footed kick to the stomach to send him hopefully sprawling back with enough pain to take the man down. It was time to end things, enough time had been wasted.
Connor ran forward to the bridge doors, spinning to get momentum and plunging the crimson blade through the metal, which began to glow molten orange as slag started to form from the intense heat of the plasma blade. He turned to the Togrutan.
"No orders from me - simply work with me to stop this war and help me get onto the bridge and detain the captain. Then we can ensure the Jedi don’t do this again."
The orange glow from the molten reflected off his face, and he looked on for her choice.
Shattered durasteel and scattered debris told Zodan all he needed to know. The enemy was here. Oh, he knew they were here, just not exactly that they were here. Brittle plastics and leftover crunched beneath his boots, his heavily armored form trudging through the corridor as he made his way towards the hyperdrive chamber. It was where Racoside, his fellow Ren had chosen to reside, something about the energy there - it sent a brief sneer snaking across his features. There was only one application of the Force Zodan deemed worthy of his endeavors and that was the enhancement and expansion of his physical power. But he would let the mystics mysticize, he far greater concerns.
Racosidae said:
:: Indeed. The hyperspace motivator was somehow disabled. ::
The Alliance presumably, or whomever had boarded the fated interdiction platform had left a wake of destruction behind them and only as he closed in on his fellow Ren did he finally begin to feel the quiet ebb and flow of others present in the Force. These were far from the usual run of the mill soldiers he'd encountered in the past - a strike team. At least that's what he imagined. Zodan rounded the corner, arm raised as he did so. The hyperdrive chamber was just beyond. The disturbances here were greater, an almost still amidst the chaos of the Force. That was his target.
Activating the shield shroud that would protect his head, he locked eyes on @Valkren Calderon as he approached from behind - no doubt his presence would be detected immediately. And so it was with a malevolent violence Zodan opened fire on the nearest enemy soldier with his wrist blaster, crimson bolts of plasma spewing forth with death intent.
First Order Ship Executioner
Allies: [member="Aryn Teth"], Galactic Alliance
Enemies: [member="Sieger Ren"], [member="Xiomar Ren"], First Order
He hungered for battle. Coren Starchaser was not the pinnacle of ‘who you should be’ when looking at the Jedi Order. He was trained by many groups, but one thing remained. He knew he was a weapon of the Light Side. A blade and spear into the dark, someone to defend those who couldn’t defend themselves. He was here to fight, and with the Ren, it was something different than the Sith, something more… He wasn’t sure. They fought for their Supreme Leader. Did they view the Force as they defined by that being?
Hopefully not. It created chaos. The Sith, they followed rules, a path. He wasn’t sure about the Knights of Ren. They were around before he left, but never to this prominence. Now he was here, fighting them. Looking off to Aryn Teth, he could feel the dark side in this place. He could feel the other Ren approach.
Give him hell, Teth.
A grin crept across his face. The sense of purpose in this other Force user, it was exciting. He was calling on the force, readying himself, falling deep into that part of the light side that allowed you to focus, and feel the world around you. To get that sense of purpose, and finesse. He was facing the fight, but the Force would betray him, that he was reaching around him, knowing something was out there. He released a breath and turned, putting a hand up, and pushing with the Force, sending a mixture of a push to hold the being in place, and a stasis inducing grip.
No words were spoken, and his lightsaber was in his uplifted hand. He was intending to slow this person, to stun then. Could they be turned? He doubted it, but they could be delayed.
Team Alliance
[member="Cyrus Tregessar"]
Objective: Eliminate Wormturns- launched missiles at two relays in previous post
Broken tags and mobile posting is awful
——————————
The freighter shuddered under the barrage of First Order weapon fire. Alarms screamed all over the command console and sparks began to fly from the wiring within the hull. Sweat poured down Aeshi’s forehead and she wiped it away with her sleeve. The third relay station was almost in range and her fingers were there on the trigger, ready to push down and send a barrage of lasers and missiles in its direction.
An explosion ripped through the cargo hold. Vacuum yanked the artisan woodworks into space and oxygen as well. Were they not strapped into the command chairs, Aeshi and her co-pilot would as well. But still, they were pulled from their seats, and barely restrained by the straps. Muttered, unheard curses tore from Aeshi’s lips until a bulkhead slammed shut. The cacophony ended.
“Weapons offline!” Her co-pilot commented. “Breach in ventral hull.”
“Get your suit on,” Aeshi said. The scanner readouts shone before her. Weapons disabled. SLAM dangerously close to overheating. Shields low. More and more weapon fire coming their way, hammering against the hull. Hyperdrive, fully functioning. An idea began to grown in her mind. One last, desperate gamble that could pull off a victory for the free peoples of the Alliance.
The stations were the goal and First Order priority. She couldn’t dream of tackling one of those, even if her weapons still functioned. But at light speed, the entire ship was a weapon. Or even close to lightspeed. The hyperdrive would work, as soon as she got out of range of the relays. The closest ones had taken missile hits. She nodded and stood, hurriedly stepping into her vacuum suit.
This wasn’t going to go well and her chances of surviving were slim, but what did it matter? She had died a long time ago already and was just waiting for it to finish. Suit in place, she resumed her seat at the controls.
The freighter came about and with the engines pulsing at full speed, blasted away from the battle. Shields were angled backwards. After some consideration, she pushed a button. With a burst of metal and frozen vapor, the tractor shroud hurtled away from the ship. Cannon fire and missiles slammed into it. The move had bought time, but she could only hope it was enough.
The battle raged small in the sensors behind her. The weapons pursued her, but grew less intense. On the sensors, the gravity well was ending. She shoved the throttle all the way open, but it made no difference. They couldn’t go any faster.
Minutes ticked by and she sat there, fingers white as she clenched them in the controls. Until finally, they were free.
She turned the ship around and adjusted its heading to be straight for the station ( Wormturns). Coordinates were set and the jump calculated. It was ready. The HIMS would carry them far enough into the interdiction field to hit the station. After that, as much as she hated to admit, the results were up to the Force.
She rose from her seat and headed to the bulkhead. With a command sent through the gauntlet on her wrist, it hissed open. Everything that wasn’t secured was sucked into space. Her mag boots kept the woman secured to the deck as she slowly made her way across the ruined cargo hold. It was scorched with what had once been flame and fragments of durasteel drifted around.
The escape pods were back here and she climbed into one. Her copilot stood by the other and clambered into his own. A thought flashed through her mind and Aeshi smiled. It was hardly more than a flicker, but she sent a quick message to @HK-36.
“Hope you have some cybernetics handy.”
That was all it said, but encoded within it were the information necessary to track her down, based on her suit’s distress beacon. As captain, she has one more command to give, even though it broke her heart in half and felt like a betrayal, an admittance of defeat.
“All crew,” she said through the ship comms. The next words hung heavy in her throat, but she forced them out. “Abandon ship.” It was like a knife had cut her open. The first escape pod jettisoned and then Aeshi launched hers. It shot out and she hit the final command on her gauntlet. Through the small window of the pod, the StarDream vanished as it launched into hyperspace. It elongated and then fired forward, in a direct line straight to the interdiction station.
She watched it as long as she could, until the millisecond before it made impact. The backwash and thrust finally caught up to her and engulfed the escape pod. She saw it for a moment and then after the pause between heartbeats, it consumes the pod. She almost screamed, but it never came out. After all, there was no sound in space
