Ascendancy: Assault on Bastion

[Poe]

​Despite my traning in the pits on Nal Hutta, I had no real formal Force training; and even this metallic cylinder called a lightsaber that rested in my hand seemed foreign to me, a lent weapon for just-in-case. So, naturally, I was not assigned to join in the initial assault on the planet, thus regulated to search and seizure. My mission, and I was more than happy to comply, was to go to the science labs and root around with the hopes of finding anything worthy of value. Disembarking the shuttle, I walked through the litter of chaos left in the aftermath of my comrade's attack. Bodies laid in ruin everywhere, and I was most pleased with myself that I had taken the liberty to eat beforehand; not that I would have gorged on this spoiled meat. I prefer fresh meat from fresh kills.

​I found my treasure trove without incident, and it seemed someone was kind enough to blast the doors open for me. I entered the establishment, on high alert, moving to the main desk; where what appeared to be the secretary droid rested in two pieces behind it. Reaching into my new set of clothes, black robes no less, retrieving both the datapad and the small slicer unit, I quickly plugged the slicer's plug into the desk's computer console. After a few painstaking seconds, I managed to download the schematics to the building, thus transferring that file to my datapad. Once the slicer was tucked away, I pulled up the file to formulate a less time consuming path for myself.

​"Not much here on the first floor," ​I muttered to myself. Opting to take the stairs over the turbolift, I headed up to the second floor where I was greeted by a macabre scene. ​"These Sith are rather thorough and creative." ​Ignoring the severed limbs and headless bodies strewn about, I entered the first office on my right. The only noteworthy item here was a massive glass tube with what appeared to be some sort of alien species encased within. I tapped the glass, while keeping my eyes on the thing. Nothing stirred inside. I examined the tube looking for any kind of information pertaining to what it's contents where. Nothing. I noted in my datapad to mention this to my superiors when I returned to the warship, perhaps they could decipher this mystery.

 

[Ignatius]

The ripping of flesh felt so good along my tongue. The coarse fibers of muscle still twitching as though they were alive. The man's screams had died down. He was whimpering with tears. I could hear him choking on them, as well as blood. Surprisingly he was surviving fairly well. Long enough that any other man should be dead. After already cutting his arm off, and eating it, as well as ripping armor off from his thighs to bite down, I looked at his thigh bone. Still bloody with the white peeking through as I slurped up the blood with my tongue.

Long and slender, I play it along his ripped open inner thigh. Lapping it up much like a feral dog. I smiled as his head was slowly turning to the side. His mind was gone. Body still feeling the pain, but he could no longer understand that the pain was killing him. His flesh was becoming more and more "rotten" Or to the extent that I wouldn't eat from it anymore. Considering that his entire right arm was just bones and tendons that were a little too hard for me to chew through, and almost all of his leg was gone. I felt as though I had my fill.

However, I could feel a presence nearing me. Standing up, I cocked my head towards the door way. Silently drawing my weapon and holding it out as a girl walked around the corner. She seemed to be looking deeply into her datapad. I smiled lightly as she was clearly Sith. I could tell. Just this feral instinct of wanting to either fight her, or run from her. However, I chose to speak.

"Are you a girl lost, or are you here for another purpose?"

I smiled a little through the bloody teeth as I used my own black robes to wipe my face. Lifting up a small hunk of flesh, I didn't care if she wanted it or not, I decided to be slightly hospitable, and offer it up.

"Or maybe you just want a snack?"

I smiled lightly as I put the crimson katana blade away. Letting the weapon hang from my sash. The girl was pale. She looked to wear some eye shadow, or she was greatly influenced by the dark side of the force. However, what I could tell, was that trying to feel her thoughts or her signature, she felt like a brick wall. Like I was unable to feel her. Epicanthix? Hellyni? Rare for anyone of that species to have snow white hair.

"So, what is your name Snow white?"

[member="Ignus"], [member="Krest"], [member="Darth Abyss"], [member="Darth Carnifex"] [member="Victor Mors"], [member="Abraxas"], [member="Otho Rendoro"] , [member="Emissary"], [member="Serenity Loveheart"], [member="Korogum"], [member="Satia"],

 

[Blackthorne]

Seconds after the first bolt went flying Loxa peeled forward from the wall, grabbing first the hand of the guard which held fast to the blaster grip and shoving it upwards. Her other arm came downwards into the man's elbow at the same time.

PEW PEW PEW

Three separate shots, one very narrowly missing Khal's head by inches, the other two pinging off into the ceiling. Loxa locked the man's arm in place, serving a knee to his gut and a headbutt to his temple. As he crumpled she cradled his figure long enough to fire two more shots off at the other two guards. All three dropped.

Loxa shook her hand in the air, releasing putrid smoke from burnt flesh as she turned to look over her shoulder at Khal.

<<Are your injured?>>

 

[Darth Athora]

Victor and his squad found themselves in a heated battle between Mandalorians and Imperial troopers. He could not resist. With both lightsaber hilts in his hands, he instantly ignited them both in a blaze of vicious red. His squadmates took cover and began unleashing blaster fire upon the Mandos. Victor took point and ran into the blaster fire without fear. He easily deflected any and all bolts that came his way. He could feel fear rising in the souls of the Mandos. A sly grin crawled onto his face as he came closer and closer to his prey. Once in range, Victor began tearing through the Mandos with his sabers. The sounds of screams and his lightsabers whipping filled the air and in an almost instance. There was silence. Victor stood there in the middle of a field of scattered bodies torn apart by his lightsabers. The Imperials pushed forward past Victor and deeper into the combat zone. Victor's squadmates came to his side. Victor stood silent. Only heavy breathing escaped his lips. He disengaged his lightsabers and walked forward. The Mantas followed close behind.

War was his domain. Where he truly felt free.

[member="Selene"] | [member="Satia"] | [member="Ignus"] |[member="Maleagant"] | [member="Etheriud Yvvera"] | [member="Darth Abyss"] | [member="Abraxas"] | [member="Krest"] |[member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Poe]

​The words echoing in the hallway broke me from my concentration. I hadn't felt any presence near me, and that made me angry with myself. It was for such a reason as failing detection of others that got me assigned to this particular outing. Mentally jotting this event down to my long-term memory, I planned to take great strides to learn more about 'feeling others' through the Force; especially in war zones where one mistake could unravel all my future plans. If this woman meant me harm, chances were I would have never seen the killing blow coming; only feeling the brief pain before dying in a state of confusion.

"Lost," ​I muttered mockingly whilst staring at the proffered meat; despite being sated, the stirrings in my stomach at the sight of dripping blood gave over to a feeling of ravenous hunger. However, I opted not to take the meat. It wasn't that I was concerned with it being tainted with poison, it was mainly because I didn't know this woman; and right now there was no bond of trust between us. ​"As appealing as the flesh is, I must deny your offering but your gratitude has not gone unnoticed."

​I was skeptical to reveal my name to her, because knowing one's name gave you power over them; but she did offer to share her kill with me, so I said, ​"It's not Snow White, but Satia. But if Snow White works for you, then I will be your Snow White." Shutting down the electronic device, I asked, ​​"And you are?" ​I knew she was a Sith, or at least danced religiously with the Darkside, but it didn't hurt to begin to form some bond with her. Especially since she was more versed in the Force than I, more aptly put, far more superior in it's training; and probably with that weapon that dangled at her side than I was with the one on mine.


[member="Selene"]

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Loxa Visl"]

Khal observed silently as Loxa made short work of the Mandalorians.

Sometimes the man forgot just how competent his partner was. Perhaps because she was so unassuming most of the times, so patient, so slow to rise and act, but times like these he was reminded she was a Master of her arts. Much the same as him, if not even more so in the greater scheme of things.

"No." The answer came and went, before he gestured for them to move.

Once again Malvern took the lead.

Simply, because it was natural instinct and that was a difficult thing to shake. The staircase winded up high, but eventually they stepped off it and into the belly of the structure. Farther down the road Khal could make out a long corridor ending in large doors, which had been gilded once.

But now defaced.

"Stop." One second before they could step into that corridor his mind echoed of warnings. "They set up a defense grid."

The afterimage of them being riddled by blaster bolts was still burned into his retina.

"Two in the corners right as we enter, several more hidden in the walls." A questioning look was flashed at Loxa - this was her mission at the end of the day, how did she want to handle this?

 

[Figure In White]

Leos entered the temple with a small measure of caution. He wrapped himself in the illusion of invisibility, merely projecting what was around him at the appropriate location such that someone looking at him would see what they expected to see if no one was there. The delightful thing? Since it worked on the mind, the helmets and scanner systems of the Mandalorians would be completely useless to them unless they had something that interfered with the Force. The chances of that? Slim. Considering he was soon moving past bodies, those chances continued to decrease as he went along. Whoever had come in was not a friend of the Mandalorian's or the locals.

He paused briefly to tap out a message on his datapad to send to the rest of their forces in regards to the intercepted message. He'd nearly forgotten to do so.

Continuing onward, he followed the trail left behind by [member="Loxa Visl"] and [member="Khaleel Malvern"]. It wasn't hard to do with the bodies. What they were after was beyond him, however. What could possess people to sneak onto a world that was besieged in such a fashion? He couldn't think of anything that was that valuable. Truthfully, had it been him, he'd have waited until the siege was over and then found a way to enter the system. But, it wasn't his choice. So then, who were they and why were they there? He continued inward, following them without any trouble whatsoever. Whoever it was, he was certain he would catch them soon, since they were taking care of the Mandalorians for him.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The Crestfallen sailed high above the mountain peaks, casting a dark shadow over the snow-blanketed land. Before it loomed a mighty fortress jutting from the highest peak in the land and around it swarmed a dozen different starfighters, all distinctly Mandalorian. Against every one of them the Crestfallen wouldn't stand a chance, it shields could only take so much before being broken.

Luckily it wouldn't have to weather such torment.

Deep inside the compound was a heavily defended chamber filled with augmented individuals who were plugged in to the castle's mainframe, all of them silently waiting for the return of their Lord. As the Crestfallen drew near, Carnifex released an encrypted signal into the airwaves which was swiftly decoded by security while leaving the Mandalorians in confusion as they tried to decipher it. Computers powered back on, information flooding into security as they wrestled control of every system away from the Mandalorians. The anti-air emplacements powered on and swiveled as they tracked their targets through the sky. And then, like a clap of thunder, they all fired upon the Mandalorian fighters.

By the time the Crestfallen reached the landing pad, all of the Mandalorian fighters had been neutralized and were now smoldering wrecks upon the mountainside. A few Mandalorian soldiers were still on the landing pad by the time the shuttle made its final descent, but several concentrated blasts by the ship's forward heavy laser cannons made quick work of them. The Crestfallen landed, its wings retracted in on themselves and the boarding ramp descended as Carnifex disembarked. A small squad of Crownguard trailed after him, their lightsaber pikes already lit and humming as the harsh wind howled through the canyons below.

The fighting was intense, the Mandalorians had no intention of relinquishing their hold on the estate. But they now fought a two-pronged war as the building itself seemed to rise up against them as doors and shields trapped them, crushed them, and siphoned the breath from their lungs. Those who did not fall to those traps were eviscerated by Carnifex and his Crownguard as they made their way through the structure and drove out the invaders floor by floor, hall by hall, room by room until none remained to challenge him.

 

[Blackthorne]

The Priestess came to a halt just a pace behind Khal, eyes peering over at him as he spoke. She said nothing for several moments while her mind attempted without much success to translate the words he'd spoken. Years spent fairly isolated on Wayland since the fall of the Primeval had given her little reason to continue using or practicing Basic, which left the woman to translate the more esoteric pieces of his communication. What she understood was the way forward held danger.

When it was enough to give the Criminal Underlord pause, it was enough to be concerned about.

A nod, then, as she reached into a pouch at her waist just beneath her outer robe and withdrew a handful of large red seeds. Fingers curled over her open palm as the woman uttered words under her breath. Following a flash of yellow light, glow catching in her eyes, the seeds began to sprout. Loxa leaned around Khal to throw them down the cooridor and with a final word unleashed the power of plant surge within the hall. The results were explosive in nature - fed by the undercurrent of her power, each seed discharged a monstrous growth of massive red vines that speared through walls, ensnared machinery, uprooted tech. The reaction of the defense grid was immediate, just as was intended, drawing the fire of both open turrets at the entry and those hidden within the walls.

Eyes burning a vibrant gold and hand held out, the Priestess continued her spellcasting. Aphotic powers of destruction rent by both the old Gods and the new fed a voracity into the vines the likes of which would see them spread beyond just the walls of the hallway, but deep into the foundation of the temple where they blasted through walls and floors. Only when the sounds of bolt fire died did the woman's words silence as well.

The furious writhing growth of the vines calmed, stilled.

Loxa released a slow breath, blinking the light of power from her eyes.

Sweat beaded on her brow, she lowered her hand and reached next for the lightsaber hilt at her opposite hip. Snaphiss. The saffron beam ignited and the Priestess pushed forward, slicing away at the crimson overgrowth to clear a path through the hall.

[member="Khaleel Malvern"]

 

[Ignatius]

Offering the flesh to her, I could see it within her eyes. She wanted it. She also craved the feeling of life rolling over her tongue. I smiled very briefly as she denied the offer. She couldn't trust me. And I was fine with that. I didn't really trust her either. I mean, I had been holding out a katana when she walked around a corner because I knew it wasn't anyone I felt the need to believe in. Shrugging my shoulders, and without a word, I popped the piece of flesh into my mouth and chewed on it with closed lips as the girl introduced herself as I asked of her.

Satia? That name seemed slightly familiar? Maybe a training session? Either way, she accepted the name of Snow White from me. After swallowing the bite, I folded my arms with one grabbing onto my chin as she shut off the device and asked for my name in return.

"Snow white is a little long. Snow will do fine though."

Unfolding my arms in silence as I didn't answer her question just yet, I pulled off a dead man's helmet. Blood was speckled over the visor a little. Using my left sleeve from my kimono to wipe it somewhat clean. I then placed it over my head. The Hud activating in a light blue, and green color. A few red markers were indicating that the armor was damaged from the neck down. Well duh, the helmet was removed, as well as the man's head. Either way, as I started to flip through the Hud systems to see if there was anything useful. I answered Snow.

​"Selene. Ascendancy I assume by the way you carry yourself. Or is it the fact that you seem new to all of this?"

Really a Rhetorial question, but I can't deny what could be there. I understood that even raw potential can be just as dangerous as a person who had been trained. Snow seemed to be almost a little... hesitant near me. Even though I could clearly see that she wanted the flesh I extended out to her. Either way, after I was done flipping through the Hud, I removed the helmet and let it drop onto the floor with a thunk.

"I know you are not entirely lost. Following a trail of bodies, and that Datapad could hold a map if necessary. No, I think you are trying to scout out this area."

Taking a moment to think, I thought I might be able to help out Snow here as long as she returned the favor later. I always loved favors. It allowed me to have an edge over people. Allowed me to keep an allowance. If I wanted to pull strings, then I could. But, part of me, as a cannibal, wanted to let her free just this once. Depends, on what happens I guess.

"How about this. I help you out a little, just don't go and die on me."

[member="Satia"],

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Loxa Visl"]

Head cocked as the seeds were thrown into the corridor.

Slow blink.

Power erupted next to him and farther down the hallway, until the smell of putrid magicks was all that Malvern could sense in the air and beyond. Power such as that was not easily given, not without a cost anyway. Her posture spoke of strength. But the sweat trickling softly past her forehead told him of different stories.

Yellow sun bathed them in colors and pushed the shadows further away.

Khal followed suit, but instead of a lightsaber - which he did not possess - the man simply flicked with his fingers. From it erupted razor thin sheets of focused air, cutting straight through ribbons of vines and plant-life.

They passed through the corridor without much hassle or trouble - at times Malvern could look straight through the rips and holes the veins had left in the walls. They went on for quite some time, usually exposing multiple other rooms and hallways in its wake, which only made him more impressed.

"Nice." Khal complimented gently, before they finally arrived at the doors. They seemed closed off. No controls to open them and a little push did not allow them to be budged.

A glance was exchanged with Loxa, before Khal shrugged.

"Step back, please."

He did the same thing and raised his hand, palm facing the door. A breath in and out as power build itself up, eyes closed to increase his focus. Then in a display of power - perhaps he had something to prove after her act or maybe Khal simply enjoyed the more straightforward solutions these days - kinetic force unleashed itself from him and slammed into the doors.

As they slammed open the view of the throne room opened up.

A staff still rigid and resting in the middle of the room. The throne collapsed and fallen to the side, but empty and devoid of life otherwise.

 

[Blackthorne]

"Step back, please."

She did as asked, lighsaber beam shrinking back into the hilt with a hiss. Loxa clipped it back to her hip and took the few moments of silence to center her own reserves while Khal channeled his. The blast of power sent a shockwave through her body that she thought might echo into the far reaches of the intangible ether.

Somewhere, far away on the planet Wayland at the other end of Braxant Run, Temple Yvarenthi gave a peculiar shudder.

When the dust settled the eastward view of the throne room sat before them, clear of people or guards. Her staff stood off to the left at the center of the room, directly before the throne where she remembered kneeling to the Host Lord.

I am not worthy.

You are more worthy than you think.

Driven by the images of her memories, Loxa quietly padded past Khal and out into the expansive open chamber. The air was stale and a layer of dust had settled across every surface. The throne sat in crumbled pieces, colored by tagged Mandalorian clan marks. As she neared the center and her staff the Priestess gave a curious glance to scorch marks on the floor; chipped and broken stone tiles. The damages seemed to be greater, carry more aggressiveness, the closer they got to the staff. Every sign pointed to the new regime attempting to remove all evidence of the old.

But some things were more resilient than even a Mandalorian's stubbornness and might. Things like the power and faith of the old Gods.

She approached, fingers reach out to trace along the symbols of the Morossi Aesirs emblazoned into the length of the staff. Made of solid Phrik and held fast by such esoteric powers it would not have budged for anything. "Ana'mey," a whispered word of release and the staff fell gently, willingly into the grasp of her hand. Loxa gripped it firmly, noticing finally that the amber orb within the top was shattered.

"I knew there was something strange about that Staff," a new voice entered the room following the sounds of heavy footfalls. From behind the broken throne of Anja Aj'Rou stepped a large, heavily armed and armored Mandalorian bearing the insignia of a Clan and carrying a container on his back that Loxa did not recognize.

"Figured it belonged to that Primeval whore Aj'Rou...but you're not Aj'Rou."

Loxa blinked after the man, watching his slow meander across the hall before glancing back at Khal with a questioning glance. She did not understand him, <<I am finished here. Tell him we will go in peace.>>

[member="Khaleel Malvern"] [member="Ignus"]

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Loxa Visl"]

The man was impressive even for a Mandalorian.

Large of stature. His armor was broken, brushed and ground by the usual wear and tear of age. Worn to battle with the marks of a thousand battlefields, it would not surprise Khal at all if this one's face was just as worn and scarred as his armor. But the tee-visor obscured any facial expressions whatsoever.

All that they had to work with was a voice modulated by external audiofeeds and a hand already brushing a gun on his belt.

"We merely came for the staff, we do not wish to fight." Malvern responded after Loxa's urging. His eyes did not leave the figure though, who seemed to think for a moment.

A brief one before short, dry laughter rang through the corridors and echoing against the walls.

Powerful laugh that welled up straight from the stomach, before vibrating past the lungs up the throat and into the world. But there was no humor in it, no real humor anyway. It was a violent laugh, that spoke more of intent than any gesture ever could. Already Khal knew how late it was.

Gently the Force tugged at Loxa's shoulder and she was pulled away to his side.

Just a few steps, because the Underlord had followed her walk towards the staff.

"You kill my men, steal what I paid for by blood and iron, and you think you may just go?" The Kelborn, because the half-wolf branded into the armored shoulder marked him as one, snorted again. The feedback recoiled and static sounded next in response to such a coarse sound.

"No. You will stay. You will fight. You will be killed... and I will take back my pretty target practice."

Khal frowned and his mind touched Loxa's - the Mandalorian had not yet stepped closer towards them and as such the field of anti-force did not yet reach them.

<<A man wishes to fight. We will oblige?>> His pacean was getting better and better, but it still sounded rough and broken in his mind.

 

[Figure In White]

Further and further he went. Eventually he came to a wall of plants that looked freshly grown, albeit recently cut through by a lightsaber or some other cauterizing blade. That was curious. He reached a hand out to touch it, and could feel that the plants were, in fact, still very alive despite the damage that had been done to them. It felt strange. Shaking his head, he continued onward, knowing that his study of the plant life would become a distraction if he lingered any longer. It wasn't the type of living thing he enjoyed spending time around. Speaking of which, he realized he'd forgotten to go and get Arus and Milan before heading down to the planet. Even that was strange.

As he descended further, he heard two voices in a tongue he was not familiar with, and made effort to keep himself concealed as he approached. Inside of what appeared to be a throne room, he saw a man and a woman facing off with a Mandalorian. Leos immediately recognized the structure on his back for what it was. He'd seen them before. Not in combat, but in other instances. Studying of old tape, meanderings through the galaxy. They were often employed by people that were extremely paranoid about the use of the Force on their minds. Other times they were employed by people who made it a habit of fighting those who used the Force, specifically to negate what they could do and subsequently kill them. He was assuming this Mandalorian was the latter.

"He's wearing a nutrient frame for an ysalamiri. I'd advise caution."

Though he spoke aloud, he didn't reveal himself within the Force. Either of them might be able to break through his illusion if they tried, but they truthfully had more pressing matters. Each had their own tinge of darkness to them, but he did not know either. The Mandalorian would be able to see him. The effects of the ysalamiri meant he would not be fooled by the illusion. That was fine. He'd counted on it the moment he saw the nutrient frame. For now he said nothing further, just watching to see what the two would do. This throne room must have belonged to the Primeval. Neither the Mandalorians nor the Imperial Remnant would have needed such, and it was too new to belong to regimes further back.

| [member="Khaleel Malvern"] | [member="Loxa Visl"] |​

 

[Otho Rendoro]

Emergency lights granted a sick, dim crimson light inside the military complex. Otho manually ejected the slicer chip, producing a datapad and inserting the chip into its port. The chip was loaded with scripts that would attempt to download any facility map information during network penetration and a dim glow illuminated Otho’s face as he reflected briefly upon his orders. He and the droid were to destroy the complex – explosives shifted in the satchel at his back and he grinned menacingly at the directives given. The datapad read the chip and Otho’s mechanical fingers scrolled through auto-generated files for the schematics of the complex. They were on the ground floor, with a subbasement beneath that looked to contain building maintenance, but there were several barracks and other computer banks on the next floor up. He studied the handheld computer for a moment as his mind’s eye traced a route through the facility and the Ithorian noted that he and his partner were close to the stairwell that would lead them to the objective.

He started down the hallway, Otho’s bulk muted slightly by caution, in a light jog for his massive frames, the impact of his feet a dull baritone in the facility. His legs carried him quickly to the open door and Otho felt a sense of urgency overwhelm him. His awareness was assaulted by an alteration to his vision, his eyes rolling as he gripped the handrail. There was a black room, dotted with glowing green orbs that floated like eyes in the dark. The orbs began to howl a rousing yell, a cry of battle in unison by a group of 40 orbs – ah-OOH! ahOOH! ahOOH!

They howled at Otho.

The darkness faded, the dull, soft illumination creeping back into his vision. The Mandalorians awaited them in the barracks up the stairs. Otho held up his left hand in a tight fist, his mouths curling into a resigned scowl. They required strategy to proceed.

"Crowd control," he intoned, a low tenor note from one of his stereophonic mouths.

| [member="Emissary"] |​

 

[Blackthorne]

With calm resolve the Priestess watched their quarry as he slowly approached, her own feet drawing back at the familiar tug of Khal's presence on her figure. There was derision to the Mandalorian's tone, a challenging cut to his voice. When Loxa looked askance for the translation she found herself unsurprised at the words uttered to her.

A sigh. Loxa glanced upwards at the shattered orb centerpiece of her staff. Though she couldn't claim to be sentimental, that orb of amber had come from her home planet of Aaris II. It would be quite difficult to replace it with another.

"Avera la-ren," said the woman with a faint gesture to the armored General. I accept what is, Khal knew the words to mean.

That was when the disembodied voice spoke from the entryway behind them. The Priestess glanced back while at the same time her free hand lifted to the hem of her outer robe and pulled it free from her shoulders, exposing the further layers of grey and brown robes beneath and the horns cresting the crown of her head that defined her zabrak heritage. Loxa gripped her staff and settled a gaze of molten gold upon the Mandalorian.

He made the first move, drawing a large blaster from his side and firing upon the pair. The Priestess peeled off to the left, swinging her staff to rebuff incoming blaster bolts.

[member="Khaleel Malvern"] [member="Ignus"]

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Loxa Visl"] | [member="Ignus"]​

​

A long time ago Khal had learned that the best way to treat a battle was to focus on it entirely.

Disembodied voice that was giving advice or not, they still had this large Mandalorian to deal with and it wouldn't be helpful to split his focus down the middle. They presumably could have run. But Loxa was not one to walk away from a fight - and Khal was not prepared to leave her to it, it did not seem to be all that... fair. To give her all of the fun in the matter.

He nodded in acknowledgement.

Both to the voice warning them and her own show of willingness to do battle.

She went to the left and he to the right, already his mind was focusing in the moment and his own blaster rested easily in his palm. One shot of him, one shot of the Mandalorian - they met in the middle and plasma clashed as Khal had called upon the Force. ...that same Force that left him when the Mandalorian came into view with an Ysalamiri.

It hurt when the Force was forcibly ripped from his grasp and Malvern could only just manage his balance in his walk. He ducked and the second blaster shot only brushed past him, leaving with singed hair tips.By that point the Mandalorian Commander was already in range and his other hand ripped out a grotesque beskad the size of a regular person's leg, rough cutting angles as he tried to chop Loxa's head off.

"Ib'tuur jatne tuur ash'ad kyr'amur!" The Kelborn shouted as he deflected the staff and tried to hook her legs, trying to sweep her off her feet... literally.

 

[Figure In White]

Leos tapped a button on his wrist and lifted it to his lips.

"Captain Tarz, triangulate my location and come to me. Leave the ship."

"On our way."

More guns would be good. He could enter the fray himself, but why should he? He didn't know these two, or why they'd ran through a battlefield to get into the old temple. Perhaps they were Primeval holdouts? If that was the case he had a particular bone to pick with them regarding what they'd done to Mirial. His soldiers would as well, if they found out the truth. Still, the Mandalorian was a threat as long as he was alive, and if these two couldn't take him down then he'd be there with his guys to finish him off. He wouldn't much enjoy facing off against a squad of troops armored as well as he was, and with precision technology to make them work better as a team.

Regardless, he drew his lightsaber up into his hand and let the illusion he'd wrapped around himself drop away. No sense in hiding since the Mandalorian could see him anyway. He was better off conserving his energy in case it became needed.

| [member="Khaleel Malvern"] | [member="Loxa Visl"] |​

 

[Poe]

​I observed this girl, listening as she spoke trying to gauge if she was a threat to me or not. I'm notorious for killing first, then inquiring second; usually the latter was pointless by then. But the offer to share her flesh relaxed me as much I was ever able to relax. When she mentioned Ascendancy, I nodded in agreement. She was not officially the enemy, but a future rival that I may or may not have to eradicate one day. Sith tested themselves through the trials of strength, rooting the weeds of weakness from their perfect garden.

​"I've been assigned to the Search and Seizure team here on Bastion," I said feeling my stomach rumble. Perhaps I should have taken the flesh. ​"I was sent here to this science building to find anything worth of importance and value to the Ascendancy. Outside that freakish encased alien in the room down the hall, I've found nothing."

​The sight of the blood and the helmet she carried with her was not lost on me that she had been part of the initial assault. I wasn't jealous, because if she was there and I was here it meant she was far more advanced in her training than I was. One day I would be in the mix of killing, murdering, and eating my enemies; but I was a very patient predator. For now, I will follow my orders.

"Selene," I said holding back my smile as I continued, ​"I am not easily dispatched of. Many back on Nal Hutta had tried, and if the dead could speak. Well, they would speak of the horrors I brought upon them. But I will accept your offer, two heads are better than one, even when it's dinner time. So, what did you have in mind?"


[member="Selene"]

 

[Blackthorne]

It was a wholly rattling sensation, feeling the power of the Force leave one's body so suddenly. Despite expecting it from the warning gleaned of the disembodied voice there was little one could do to truly prepare for the rupture of ethereal connection. Loxa ducked and raised her staff. Phrik met beskad with a sound that sent a shock clear down to the bone and it represented more than the simple clash of titans in the room.

This was more than blood and fire. More than a throne or a building.

The Priestess grit her teeth as her feet were swept out from beneath her, hitting the ground hard. The Commander gave a grunt and raised his beskad, swinging it down for a beheading chop. Loxa rolled aside and felt the blade's bite along her scalp. A small chunk of brown hair fell free from the braid holding it in place.

[member="Khaleel Malvern"] was but a blur within her peripheral as she swung her staff up to connect with the helmet of the Mandalorian, staggering the brute long enough to regain her footing.