Calm or War (Freedom Fighters of Alderaan)(ask for invite)

[Arianna Organa]

[SIZE=12pt]It was time to address all those that were of Alderaan, all those that had escaped, and all those that could still hear messages.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Arianna stood on Balmorra wishing for once that she had appointed a vizier that could be an alternate voice to what she thought. Someone to play the devil’s advocate, someone to give opinion without concern that they would offend her.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Perhaps in time someone would show. She needed to speak.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]She recorded the following message:[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]“Citizens of Alderaan, our world has been under Sith control now for some time. The Republic has done their best to free it, twice having taken on the task, and twice failing. I know that there are those that continue the fight to free our home from Sith control.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]One of our Senators, Faith Balor has made a motion to the Senate asking them to respond on three items.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]1. Will they help us find a new home[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]2. Will they go and rescue any that remain behind[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]3. Will they face the Sith once more to take back Alderaan.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]I know that most of these options sound like we are giving up. But if we can take back Alderaan and find a new home there is hope to put Alderaan back to her former beauty. I want us to fight, I want us to take back Alderaan even if we can’t live there. Alderaan has long been the symbol of freedom. I would see that symbol out of Sith hands[/SIZE][SIZE=12pt]”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Arianna knew she was asking the impossible. She knew her children were putting their lives in danger each time they went back to Alderaan. But they were all of a long line of fighters, it would be disappointing for them to be less.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]“Please respond to me, all members of the High Council, and all citizens of Alderaan. What say you to this?”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]

Spoiler

[member="Trevor Alde"] @Alyesa Praxom-Organa [member="Ordo"] @Theodosius [member="Lisbeth Panteer"] [member="Thalia Rist"] [member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Elaine Thul"] [member="Titus Zan Thul"] @all citizens of Alderaan

[/SIZE]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Arianna Organa"]

"My lady, you have a message."

Benedali looked up from her datapad. "Oh? From whom?" she asked the servant.

"I do not know. It's encrypted. The guards are working on it as we speak."

"Encrypted? But..." A look of realisation spread across her face as the possible identity of the sender dawned on her. Tossing the datapad to the side, she leapt up from her seat, gathering her dress in her hands. She hurried past the servant, who followed behind, and rushed down the hall. "Bring me [member="Maka Sumoto"],"she commanded. "And tell the guards to leave us and the message be once they decrypt it. No one is allowed to view it but the archer and I."

The servant sped off, and several minutes later the Duchess appeared outside of the small conference room where all messages were sent. Outside of the door, a lone guard stood. At her approach, the guard said, "My lady. The message has been left for you to review, and everyone is out."

"Good. Send Maka in as soon as he arrives."

Once inside, Benedali pulled up the message and played it.

As she suspected, it was none other than the rightful Queen of Alderaan. She listened closely to what her queen had to say, already formulating a response even before the final question was asked. Nonetheless, the Duchess wanted Maka to see it as well, especially since Arick was not back yet. There was a chance that the message was a trick by the Sith, but she was certain that was unlikely.

Never hurts to get a second opinion, she thought.

 

[Elaine Thul]

She would not respond in the open, as to do so would lead to her death. She would help them however, wherever she could as they treated her world like garbage, vong forming it. She hated the one sith for this, she had however prepared and kept seed store, on dna of animals that lived on the planet. This was so some day they could recover alderaan.

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka didn't know why Bennie's maid was waking him up at this time of the day. He'd been having phantom pains in his right shoulder, where he'd cut off his arm to save himself from a Vongformed toxin that might have killed him, otherwise. The temporary prosthetic he'd rigged to replace his severed arm wasn't the best, but at least he could still draw his bow. And hug Bennie. He wondered for a moment which would have bothered him more, and then shook himself to clear his head. She clearly needed him for something, and he was wasting time.

He threw on what he wore when he was training, or didn't have company. It wasn't like he had time for much else. Maka pulled on a sleeveless t-shirt, not even trying to hide the scar from his own lightsaber blade, a pair of dark jeans, and his usual boots over them. Striding out of his room, and up to the conference room, he grinned at the guard, who gestured to the door with a thumb. At least the guards were more relaxed with him than they'd been with Arick. Maybe the physical awe of a dude with giant wings hadn't been lost on them, after all.

When he saw Bennie standing over a holocom, he thought maybe somebody had sent her a message she wanted him to see. But what was it? Instead of asking directly, he put his left arm around her and dropped into a joking drawl.

"Odd place to snuggle, the boardroom..."

He made a face like it just occurred to him that they weren't there for that.

"... Unless there's something else you needed me for this early?"

[member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Arianna Organa"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Arianna Organa"]

Muttering under her breath, eyes looking up at the ceiling, Benedali slid out from under Maka's arm. "You've become bolder since Arick left." Pointing at the console, she added, "We received a message from our Queen."

She replayed it for him, and once it was done she said, "I don't think this is a trap, but I wanted your opinion in case. I already know our response, though." Her blue eyes watched him. "Maka, it's finally happening. We're going to begin taking back our world from the Sith!"

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka grinned and plopped down into a chair near Bennie after hearing the message. His expression turned slightly cynical, and he looked sidelong back at her.

"Arick wanted me to be bolder. I just wasn't until..."

He glanced at his metal prosthetic.

"...that happened. Anyway, it's absolutely a trap. Even if it's not intended as a trap, it's a trap. Perfect chance to get half the ruling class of the planet killed, along with a few thousand other minor insurgents and headhunters. You're not going in without armor, something blaster-proof. And I am taking half the armory with me. No chances, no openings, and we're gonna need something faster than horses to get there safe. Don't have anything like that here."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Maka Sumoto"]

Benedali tossed her head. "I know we lack warriors and soldiers; that's why we're not going to be part of the offensive. Didn't you ever stop to wonder why I've been hoarding medicine as of late? For a stand-in Security Chief, you aren't doing so well. And if it's a trap, well...Kark The Sith!"

She turned back to the console, punching a couple buttons. "I was going to send a reply, anyway, I just wanted you to see the message, too." The Duchess cleared her throat and began to speak.

"My Queen, House Serrus will be with you in the effort to reclaim Alderaan. Our household and our medicinal supplies are at your disposal." She bowed slightly before sending it back.

Turning towards Maka, she grinned. "See? Short, concise, and 100% guaranteed to infuriate the Sith."

 

[Maka Sumoto]

Maka rolled his eyes at Bennie's reply, and wiggled the fingers of his new prosthetic hand.

"I did have my hands, or rather hand full with this, and with trying to train sharpshooters. Arick just isn't all that good with guns, is he? Anyway, I've been trying to hoard whatever weapons I could get my hands on. Medicine wasn't exactly the first thing on my mind."

More eye-rolling at his duchess' grin, as well as a sigh of slight annoyance followed by a smile in return came from the archer, and he chuckled.

"You look cute when you're trying to piss people off. Honestly, though, I'd rather set out to find another Vong Shaper than keep sitting here, where we're a perfectly good target for any trigger-happy Thul or Sith that comes by. I'm a bit more worried about getting a knife in the back from those Sith-spitters than going out and shooting up actual Imps."

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

 

[Jorin]

Vongformed, crawling with Sith and their troops, and largely reduced to rubble. The last time Alderaan had been hit this bad was when it was erased from the map with a blast from the Death Star. The last time he'd seen something like this had been Metalorn. Getting on world hadn't been too hard for Typhus, neither was avoiding detection from One Sith screening. The hard part would be freeing this world.

Worlds formerly under Republic control, unlike those taken from the Sith, had a much higher rate of uprisings, which said something about either side in his mind. Thus why he'd been doing his best to assist said uprisings, not like he had some sort of pas connection to the Republic or anything like that. Anyway, down to business, insurrection and stuff.

In the largely burnt out forests of the planet, Typhus silently began assembling the trademark weapon of insurgents across every single plain of existence, improvised explosive devices. Lying at his feet were the disassembled components of rifles that had belonged to the patrol of One Sith troops who were all thrown into a heap of bodies. They hadn't been as easy to kill as he recalled, but they still died, and all was good.

Now he just had to wait and get in contact with other resistance members.

[member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Elaine Thul"]

 

[Arianna Organa]

[member="Typhus"] [member="Maka Sumoto"] [member="Benedali Serrus"] [member="Elaine Thul"]

One response from House Serrus, She had responses from a few of the other houses weak signals and among them all a plea for help. Arianna did not know how much more she could take knowing all of this.

"Duchess Serrus, you have my gratitude. Is there anything you need? Can you tell me the conditions there?" She knew that the signal could be intercepted at any time, but she had ot know.

 

[Benedali Serrus]

[member="Arianna Organa"]

Benedali wasted no time with the reply. Momentarily ignoring Maka, she said, "We do not require anything yet, though we do wish to function largely as a medical resource. " Throwing a quick glance at her Archer, she added, "We also request that you perhaps look into recruiting a Vong Shaper, to assist in reversing the terraforming. As for the conditions..."

The Duchess smoothed down her dress, giving the Queen an apologetic look. "I regret to inform you, my Queen, that I do not know much of what the other Houses are going through, nor many of the people. The Sith leave House Serrus be for the most part. However, I have heard rumours that the conditions are not very well." She paused to let that sink in. "If there was ever a time to act, it is in my humble opinion that we do so now."

 

[Arianna Organa]

[member="Benedali Serrus"]

Arianna listened oh my, "Faith is at this time appealing to the Republic and from what she tells me it does not go well. The Repubic is unable to commit to taking on the Sith once more, and even talks of rescue and evacuation are met with resistance."

Arianna could feel the weight of Alderaan on her shoulders, "A Vong Shaper, I will begin making requests." Arianna could not smile her voice reflected her sadness, "I'm afraid that we should have acted sooner, the longer we do not the harder it will be to get our home back."

Was it late maybe, just maybe. "Duchess, you keep your house safe, and let the others know we are working on something. If you can get word to the resistance, tell them to begin their operations. At the very least we should be able to undermine the Sith" She nodded, "Send word if you need something"

Arianna looked to her right, "I will be back in touch Duchess very soon, can you in the meantime find out how many are wiling to fight there at home?"

They needed to know.

[member="Benedali Serrus"]