Private Communion

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

At long last, the shuttle had emerged from the depths of hyperspace. Natalie steered the ship with caution, keeping engines low. It took a long while before the station even came into view. To her credit, Sano had started to focus instead of continuing to yap. This was fortunate, for Natalie might have had to silence her otherwise. What made the approach tricky was that all sorts of detritus was floating around in the void. The Essionian deftly avoided it as they steered closer and closer to the surface of the rock.

Elpsis stood in the cockpit, counting the seconds silently. Suddenly her senses flared in alarm. She felt like she had been jolted. "Natalie...danger!" she called out. Without responding, Natalie jerked the control stick. "Power to the engines," she ordered Sano crisply. With a brief burst of power, the engines were throwing into full throttle.

The shuttle veered to the right, banking sharply. The manoeuvre was so sudden that Elpsis was pushed into the bulkhead. She had the presence of mind to hold as Natalie sent the shuttle into a spin before righting it and sending it into a dive. "Ma'am...," Sano began, looking a bit ill and concerned at the speed at which they were descending.

"Thrusters," Natalie continued, undaunted. "On my mark...three...two...mark!" As the surface rushed closer, the Togruta hit the retro-thrusters. The shuttle dove from the void towards a crater. Then there was silence. "I love it when a plan comes together," the blonde said a bit smugly.
"You didn't plan for this," Elpsis grunted.
"Sweetie, I'm a terrorist and a squib. I got to plan because I don't have a voice telling me what to do." Without a further word, she removed her belt and got up. Sano wobbled to her feet. Luckily, her breakfast had been light.

Elpsis' Enlightenment pinged. Fortunately, it had some sort of fancy software that made Hasana's text message show up in braille. She quickly typed up a reply. "Likewise. Lifeweb surround you." Now they were on their own. Quickly, she took control of the situation. The squad was assembling in the crew compartment of the shuttle.
"Let's move. Make sure your suits are sealed and keep an eye on your pressure. Sano, Reverence, get a camouflage netting on the shuttle. Everyone, equip your no-shows. We'll activate them in the tunnels." Elpsis and a Firemane specops team had used them during a raid on a factory on Ession.
"Don't forget, that'll disrupt our scanners, too," Vagt pointed out. One of the downsides of a no-show was that it was double-blind.
Elpsis nodded to the Bothan Sergeant. "I know. That's why the Lifeweb will guide us. Nuroch, Shikoba, next to me you're the best at sensing things. We'll be the Force scanners. Rhea, Sienna, you're on point."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan
The two groups were out of sight which was likely for the best. If one was spotted the other might not be.
"No atmosphere out there, girls, so suit up, check your pressure," Hasana ordered her unit.
This was the most difficult part for the Qadiri to manage. In large part modern war was a difference of weapons and tactics, but you could always rely on breathing the air regardless of the weapon you used. Not so in the void. Hasana was introspective enough to know the first time she'd been in a confined space suit forced to rely on a tank of air she had panicked a little. She, and all her team, were well past that now of course, but it was still something less familiar.

With their suits prepared; every Qadiri checked another's. It helped that their combat armour doubled as space suits with only minor adjustments. Finally, they stood in the airlock and it cycled out. Airless, near weightless void opened before them. Fortunately they were able to counter both with their suits. Setting to work with the net and retrieving the equipment they headed towards an old hatch. It would be a tricky exercise to make sure they were not detected, so a probe down the hatch would recon for them.

XXX

Meanwhile Elpsis' team sprung into action. Reverence worked with Sano to get the net secured. Meanwhile Natalie ranged ahead somewhat, a shadow amongst the rocks with her rifle, spotting for any sign of detection.

Rhea meanwhile was the official advance guard with the Twi'lek. Ironically her experience of space, armour and suits was much the same as the Qadiri. Tephrike had space stations and ships...but she had never been in them. Now she gripped her rifle and marched ahead, looking side to side, trying not to let any hesitation show as she moved. The scanner Siena carried pinged, she indicated to the Rattataki who saw concealed an old venting system. Fumbling she released a probe, the signal of which would beam back to Elpsis' team.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

The Tephriki and the Tygarans came from very different worlds. Tygara, though more primitive, was a less hellish world. However, they had similar experiences when it came to space, travel in the void and suits. Of all the Tephriki nations, the Dominion of Light was the only one had a presence in space as well as ships that could go beyond atmospheric flight, but only a tiny fraction of its population had ever left the planet.

As she made her way onto the asteroid, Shikoba tried to put on a brave face. She was a Vashyada druidess. She had been tested in the Dark Heart. Fear was unbecoming of her. Yet sweat dripped down her forehead. She gripped her rifle tight, but her hands shook with every step she took. She could feel her heart thumping inside her chest. It was so loud she feared it might burst. I walk with the spirits, she repeated in her head like a mantra. But could the spirits reach her here on this cold, lifeless rock in the void?

She was reliant on...soulless machines. Frantically, she checked the device that was supposed to keep track of her oxygen supply. What if something was wrong? "You have enough," Diona said softly, having suddenly appeared at her side. "We'll be inside soon, and the void will not harm us."
Shikoba spun around to face the...thing. "I do not need or want your help...clone."
The soulless thing did not back off. Though she was now leashed and at the bottom of the pile, Diona had been an officer once. So she grabbed the Vashyada by the shoulder. "I do not care about your wants. You shall receive it nonetheless. We must advance, or the void will swallow us. So calm down. Remember, fear is the little death that brings total obliteration."
"Save your breath, Private, you'll need it when the stang hits the vent," Vagt ordered gruffly as he passed the two, his eyes on Shikoba. "Move."
The Vashyada removed the clone's hand from her shoulder, glaring at her. Yet her words did not leave as she took one step after the other, if only to deny the soulless thing the satisfaction of her needing her help. I walk with the spirits.

Meanwhile, Zhaleh had fallen in line with the group. She advanced not far from Rhea and Sienna. If need be, she could give them cover with her rifle. It was different from the bolt action and harpoon rifles she was used to on Tygara, but not that far off. She would defend her comrades and her people's honour, come what may. That was her vow.

She was surrounded by a fathomless void. The darkness was so strong that it made her wish for the darkvision of the Xio who had sometimes sought refuge in the arctic her tribe dwelt in. Then she would not have to rely on her ears and on the machines the humans had equipped her with. But this was not what truly bothered her.

It was the cold. As an ice mage, she was attuned to it. But there was nothing colder than the void. She felt like her senses were being flooded, as if the cold was swallowing her. Like it had during her trials as a huntress, when she had been sent to dive in freezing water and then expected to find her way out after the hole had been sealed.

"Settle down, Zhaleh, it's cold, but you need to stay focused," Celaena growled.
"Yes...I understand. Sorry."
"One slip and we're all in for it. So get it together, breathe slowly and steay ready."
The Qadiri took a slow breath, careful not to waste oxygen. "Fire and ice."
"That's the spirit. Come on, little cousin."
"I'm taller than you," Zhaleh pointed out, but advanced regardless.

Elpsis had reached the two point women. She examined the venting system, and gave the pair a nod. After breaching it, the team entered. "Watch your six, and keep your ears peeled," Elpsis said quietly but firmly. Like everyone else, she was only taking slow breaths. It came in handy that she could use the Force to control her breathing. "This is new for some of you. Scary, even. No shame in being afraid. Only in letting it dominate you. Think of those still in chains."

"It reeks of death." The Nautolan's eyes swept over the area. He clenched his jaw. "Men in white armour and grey uniforms toss victims in here. They watch them suffocate." An expression of revulsion crossed his face. "They laugh. Some make bets. No one can hear the victims scream"
"I see the shades," Shikoba suddenly spoke. She did knot whether the tentacled, green alien and the others could see the spectral shapes, but she could. The bodies were gone, but the murders had left an imprint. Each violent death left a mark on the location it had taken place in as well as on the killer. One she could not help but perceive. It was her gift and her curse. "The young, the old, the infirm. The otherworlds call for them, but they cannot go. They wail."
"Bastards. Still want to give the Firsties a comfortable cell and a warm meal?" Sienna asked Sano rhetorically.
Behind her helmet's faceplate, an expression of profound contempt was written across Nyssa's face. It was not borne out of moral outrage or fury, but disgust. Loss of life, even innocent one, did not faze her. What disgusted her was how...cowardly and unprofessional it was. Only a coward kills someone without looking them in the eye. And there's no glory in murdering the helpless, no profit in useless massacring, she thought.
Elpsis felt like she had been jolted. Her head hurt her. She lacked Nuroch's inherent aptitude for mental talents as well as Shikoba's connection to the dead, but she was an empath. "We'll avenge them." she said firmly. If she had had any intention of sparing a single Firsty, she would have abandoned it now. "Now move."

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan

Natalie listened to the discussion with indifference. Sure, killing innocents by asphyxiation was undoubtedly a bad thing but she'd seen too many of the 'good guys' stoop to atrocities too. Whether they justified it through expedience or need or were simply incompetent and so launched EMP strikes on a hospital they were protecting didn't really matter.

Instead she settled herself on the rim of a crater and watched, studying the patterns. She saw something interesting; ships were entering or leaving at a set time, almost to the second. One hauler came in and another left at the same time, then the dance was repeated exactly five minutes later. The same hauler left promptly after two cycles, and so it went. The precision of it was...odd.

"Red, heads up, I think there's something weird with the hangers. Exactly the same schedules for coming and going," she said in private comm channel to Elpsis. "Will need to get inside to know why."

Rhea meanwhile used the lightsabre she had been given and training with as an improvised plasma cutter. It worked better in many ways, and allowed them to remove the grating with ease. The white hot metal swiftly cooled in the icy void.
As she looked down to where the unfortunates had met their end she saw something which made her do a double take. Partway up the shaft, quite close to the top there were scratches on the metal. It looked like....
"Fingernails," she muttered.
"What?" Reverence asked, still hauling the metal aside.
"They...or one of them...tried to crawl and climb up here, desperate, but the grate stopped them." She glanced at the Dahomian. "The Vaderites would play such games with prisoners. They would fill chambers with poison gas and throw a single ventilator into the room to watch them fight over it. Often there was no air in it anyway so they laughed at their false hope."
Anger rose in her, but she held it. It seemed for all its advancement in technology the galaxy had not advanced beyond Tephrike in morals for some. Perhaps she had naively thought that the isolation of Tephrike was the sole source of the madness that filled her world. Now she knew better; the cruelty and hatred of sentient beings was not confined to one place or time, it was eternal.

Either way, the grate was open. The probe reported back that the tunnels below were clear and there were no visible sensors.

XXX

Just after Natalie's report Elpsis would receive a message via Enlightenment. "Entrance made, advancing. Keeping quiet."

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

Sano said nothing. A retort about not every single First Order soldier being a monster was on her tongue, but she swallowed it. Her eyes were drawn to the scratches Rhea had pointed out. She reeled back, an expression of something like horror crossed her face. Why did they do this? She knew Sith and the First Order were evil. It was why she had joined the army in the first place. She had read all about their deeds. But it was another thing to see it herself.

These are the type of men who did Vader's bidding, she thought silently. But the stories say he was redeemed. Do we even know whether he truly felt remorse? Does it even matter if he did? Or did he just kill the right person? Sano wondered what Luke and Shaak Ti would have done. They must have faced people as evil as this. But the stories were silent about that. Perhaps deliberately. "Princess, get your arse moving," she was shaken out of her musings by Nyssa's harsh grunt and hastened to keep up with the group.

Diona was silent as they made their way past the vents. She did not look at the scratch marks. She had been here before. Her mind had drifted elsewhere. To a village on far away Tephrike. "Anyone who defies the Dominion is a traitor to the Light. We have orders to decimate the village in case of noncompliance. We will carry out this order, unless the selectees step forward and you show us where you've hidden the grain," Knight Rikard barked. Some villagers threw bottles or other objects at the soldiers.
"I repeat, we will carry out this order." To empathise his point, he raised his gun into the air.
"What are we doing, sir?" a clone trooper asked nervously. Knight Rikard looked shocked and a bit helpless as their eyes met. His resolution wavered. Civilians struggled. Some tried to defend themselves. The air was filled with shouts.
Then Diona stepped forward. She removed her slugthrower pistol from her holster, took aim and shot a young woman in the head. Her brains were splattered and the woman fell backward into the ground, dead. Diona looked down at her hand that held the smoking gun. For a moment everyone seemed frozen in time. Then the soldiers fired. It was as if a leash had come off. The air was filled with the staccato of slugthrower fire. Nine more villagers were gunned down. Diona just stood there as if in trance, holding the smoking gun.

Then she was back. The villagers' bodies had been burnt. Likewise, the corpses of those who had been asphyxiated by this First Order had been taken away and probably spaced. But she felt like the dead were watching and judging her. Those who had done this were monsters, so she would kill them. It would not make the world better. Monsters ruled the world, both on and outside of Tephrike. It would not wipe away the red in her ledger. If I do this for hope of forgiveness, I am not doing it to atone, just to feel better about myself, she thought.

Elpsis received Natalie's report, frowned. "Weird. Check it out when we're in," she confirmed. Shortly thereafter, she got Hasana's message. "Acknowledged. Entering tunnels." Surreptitiously, the group made its entrance. Sienn took point alongside Rhea. Being in the tunnel was a lot more comfortable for the Twi'lek. It was dark, but it did not feel like she was being swallowed by the void.

She stalked deeper into the tunnels. Fortunately, both point women could communicate well enough via hand signals. But she could not wholly keep her anxiety at bay. Her fingers gripped her rifle tight as she made her advance. Her approach to an abrupt halt when she picked up on movement. Her scanner showed contact, displaying a fierce red light, and she heard a skittering sound. Quickly, she made a gesture with her hand. "Contact."

The soldiers hastened for cover, weapons at the ready. Sienna could feel her breathing intensifying as the skittering sound came closer and closer...until two mining droids stepped into view. For a while, the only sound was the soldiers' breathing and the skittering of the two big bots. As they came into view, Zhaleh raised her rifle, levelling at the machines.

As her finger moved to the trigger, Vagt took ahold of the rifle and quickly pulled it down. "Easy, soldier, they're just mining drones," he said gently but firmly. "They don't care we're here, and we shouldn't care they're here. As you were."
"Oh, sorry," Zhaleh responded, looking a bit embarrassed. Fortunately, her helmet's visor and the darkness hid that.
"We sneak past 'em. Go," Elpsis ordered quietly.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan
The mining drones paid no attention to the organics, but continued their task. It was dark and airless in these far tunnels. It was unclear whether the materials mined in these areas were actually useful or whether it was just for a secondary purpose of creating more space.

Natalie took the lead, falling in alongside Rhea. Both were very quiet and careful individuals. They did not communicate except by hand signals. At the rear Sienn and Reverence watched for any danger from behind.

Finally, Rhea, slightly ahead than Natalie, held up her hand, fist up. They had come to their first real sign of organic habitation; an airlock blocking access to these tunnels.
Rhea scanned it closely. She knew how they worked, she understood that the Republican Guard had similar doors - just to keep out water - in their underground bases. However, she suspected that there might be an alarm or sensor inside which might alert those inside.

She scribbled a note and passed it to the Sergeant.
'Send machine ahead to scout?'

Meanwhile Natalie had leaned her gun against the wall and was busy slicing into the door's controls and sensors. It would be easy for her to disable the sensor for a brief window so they could make their entrance....

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

Boots thumped on the ground as two Stormtroopers made their way through the tunnel. They were on patrol, but, as could be expected when one was compelled to do something so mundane, also thinking about other things. "So you think the Sabrecats have a shot at the championship?" one of them asked.
"Not after they kicked out Zare," the other said. "He's their best striker. All because some girl didn't like the way he was looking at her."
"She did say he groped her," the other pointed out.
"Her story changes with every interview. First it was just leecherous comments, then she claims he touched her. Besides, she's a Zeltron. If you ask me, she bewitched him and now wants to cash in."
"Maybe, but would you want your kids to look up to a guy who might have slept with a Zeltron?"

Before the other Stormtrooper could reply, things turned violent. While Natalie and Rhea were upfront, Sienn had been sent back to watch the rear with Zhaleh. The former Twi'lek slave and the Qadiri ice nomad were quiet and vigilant. It helped that as a Qadiri, albeit one who had grown up far from the deserts and savannahs her people were commonly associated with, Zhaleh had sensitive hearing.

"Wait, did you hear something?" the second stormtrooper asked his comrade. He raised his blaster, illuminating the tunnel with the flashlight mounted on it. Then the commlink he wore on his wrist was rapidly frozen. It sparked, then gave up the ghost as the ice rendered it useless. Then his armour's chest plate was smeared with blood as something slammed into his face with the sound of a crack. Coming from a shattergun, the shot was near-silent, only making noise upon impact. The projectile had hit his lung.

In almost the same moment, an ion blaster shot had struck his comrade. He was wearing sealed armour, so it did little against him per se, but it momentarily shorted out his comm link. His blaster rifle expelled scarlet bolts as he fired in the direction from where the attack seemed to have come from, while trying to reach some cover.

Then a grey flash of wire swept past his helmet-covered eyes and face. His mind registered what was happening and he struggled. The rifle dropped as he thrust his right hand up, but not fast enough. The garrote wrapped around his throat. Made of slicewire, was cutting through his plating. The vicious bite of the cord pinched his airways closed.

His attacker tightened her grip on him. As the fibre wire cut into his skin, he pushed back. He could not claw at it, lest it slice off his fingers. Frantically, he threw his skull backwards. He was rewarded with what he assumed was a cry of pain, and tried to propel them with a hard shove towards the wall. The two tumbled and fell, but his assailant's hold on him did not slacken. He thrust his free elbow at his attacker. Then the sliewire cut through his flesh and he stropped struggling.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan

Natalie barely looked up from her work as the takedown occurred. Instead, when the body hit the floor she merely continued her work.
Rhea too barely moved, though she had been covering the two other members of the team in case something went wrong. She had seen many people die...more than she had wanted. Still, she felt no sympathy for these people, despite their common talk of sport and games. They chose to be here, and they had paid the price.

Either way the incident was dealt with, and Natalie gestured for them to move in. The sensor was disabled, and so the group pushed into the airlock and waited for it to cycle. When it did so they could actually talk to each other now without tell-tale transmissions. However, they still had to be careful as there would be other cameras about.

Natalie as last to exit the airlock and she fell in beside Elpsis. "Junction ahead. Left is crew quarters and barracks, right leads to the foundry and manufacturing. Straight on is prisoner quarters...but the Qadiri are handling that."

Creeping ahead, Zhaleh took cover behind a bulkhead and peered around the corner. There was no sign of trouble from any direction...yet.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

Once thee team was inside, they wordlessly activated their no-shows. These would make them practically invisible to cameras and most sensor scans. However, the devices were double-blind and would mess with their own communications. Elpsis sent one last message to Hasania just before activating her device. Hopefully the Qadiri had not run into trouble.

As Sienn and Zhahleh rejoined the squad, Elpsis checked up on them. Fortunately, they were fine. She gave them silent nods of acknowledgement. A quick gesture, and Zhaleh crept ahead, rifle in hand to check for sign of trouble. Vagt joined her, holding a silenced pistol. His short stature worked to his advantage, as it meant he had a low profile and was thus harder to spot.

Natalie caught up with Elpsis. The pyromancer absorbed the information from the spy, and furrowed her brow in thought. "Need to split. Can't have anyone lounging in the barracks hit us in the rear when we break in. How to deal with them," she wondered quietly.
"Use toxic gas," Diona suddenly cut through her musings like a sharp blade. Her voice betrayed no emotion. With the former Jedi's face concealed by her helmet and Elpsis' own ability to see facial features, she could not see it was like stone.
"Of course you suggested that first," Rhea said grimly, whereupon Elpsis gave her a look.

"Can you do that?" Elpsis' white eyes focused on Natalie. "If you take Rhea and Sienn with you."
"My place is at your side, ma'am," Rhea stated in a low voice.
"I volunteer, ma'am," Nuroch spoke up eagerly.
"You're not quiet," Reverence said in a lightly teasing tone.
"Quieter than you," the Nautolan retorted bluntly. "And I can mess with their minds. They can't notice us when they're not in control of their faculties or off day-dreaming," he pointed out.
Elpsis thought for a moment. She was grateful for the helmet. It obfuscated how conflicted she was. Rhea is sneaky...but aggressive. He's good with mind frakking. He'll probably be a lot better than me one day if he keeps at it. And I could use Rhea here, she stopped at that thought. Or do I just want to keep her somewhere where I can watch? she wondered.

The moment she let personal feelings get in the way, everyone in the group would suffer for it. Something Vagt had told her came back to her. 'You're in command. Doesn't mean you have all the answers - or even half of them. But you gotta look like you do. Take advice, but make your decision and stick to it. If everyone yaps, everyone dies.' Finally, she shook her head. "Appreciate the enthusiasm, but denied. I need you for crowd control when we run into the mob. Rhea, this is a precision job. Go with Natalie."
"Make them choke on it," Celaena admonished them. Her tone was harsh and unyielding. With every fascist, as she knew, one got closer to Ashira's love.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan
Natalie looked over Rhea and Sienn. "Sure," she said with the most nonchalant expression possible. She was probably thinking she could handle it all on her own, but that she'd take the others along because it'd do them good.

They headed down the corridor cautiously. They were exposed in this corridor as it was straight with only slight protrusions from columns. And as they were just thinking of that there was the sound of voices.
"FK-318 didn't report back from his patrol."
"He's a lazy slob. I think he's got a toy knife-ear he likes to go play with. Give him a bit longer."
"Alright, we'd better do our run though. Don't want the boss to hear about us being sloppy."
Two troopers emerged from the distant barracks.
Desperately the three intruders took as much cover as they could behind a couple of stanchions. They were not seen as the troopers turned down a side passage before walking past them though.
Sienn, whose hand hand had gone to her dagger, relaxed slightly.
Natalie though was seemingly unphased. She looked around and spied what she was looking for. "Vent above your head, Rhea. We'll need to be quiet as we pass over. It'll take us to the vents over the barracks."

Meanwhile Elpsis' command would find that as they moved towards the Foundry the sound of machinery and rhythmic hammering increased....

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

Surreptitiously, Elpsis' somewhat reduced sqaud moved towards the Factory. The no-shows rendered them invisible to cameras and most sensors, but this did not mean they could afford to let down their guard. With Sienn, Natalie and Rhea having gone off on their own quest, Zhaleh had taken point. The Qadiri ice mage did not have specialised stealth training and was unfamiliar with gadgets, but she had hunted predators in the icy wastes in the far north of Tygara.

Thus her step was quiet as she made her way through the corridors. Each time she passed a bulkhead and rounded a corner, she stopped and listened, with her pointed ear to the wall. Peering around, she levelled her rifle at whichever foe might come their way, while exposing as little of her body as possible. Only when she was certain no one was coming did she give the all-clear signal. The sound of machinery and rhythmic hammering grew louder the closer they got. To a degree, this was beneficial, as it helped masked their approach. Her ears were not happy with her though.

However, this was not the only noise they heard. Loud noise droned out of the loudspeakers. For a moment Zhaleh feared they had been detected and she brought up her rifle, but it quickly turned out that this was something utterly unrelated to them, though vile in its own way. "Work sets you free! It is through honest toil that you find purpose!" a loud voice proclaimed. "Praise the Ren! Praise Him with great praise, for he has given your lives meaning! Rejoice, for whilst you toil for your betters you are given a reason and path to follow better than which you followed before!"

"Got hell," Sano growled. The Togruta felt anger rising inside her. An anger she had not felt in a long while...not since him. Her jaw tightened as she tried to banish the thought.
"Sounds like home," Nuroch grumbled to himself.
"Quiet," Varag said sharply, his voice cutting through the chatter like a knife.
Celaena said nothing. She balled a hand into a fist to quell a flame that threatened to form inside it. Her fury would be cold. Remember me, monkeigh bastards? Probably not. You just bombed my village and crucified my friends. Don't worry, I'll make you remember.
Nyssa, meanwhile, heard the speech with a look of profound, unadulterated boredom written across her features.

"Anything, Zhaleh?" Elpsis asked quietly, having crept forward to link up with the Qadiri.
The ice mage shook her head curtly. "No. Clear." Her green orbs remained focused on the path ahead. She took a quiet breath. It is another hunt, she told herself. A wyvern is fearsome, but a harpoon can slay it. Bait it to you, then when it feasts, strike swift and true.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan
Fortunately for all concerned the vent above them was not fixed in place. This only made sense since this asteroid was old and the ducting was as ramshackle as everything else.
Sienn being the lightest was boosted up to the ceiling and gently removed the grate. Putting it gently aside she hauled herself up. From there she was able to let down a rope to allow the others to join her. Fortunately the vent was tall enough to climb in, and besides the odd grates was solidly built into the wall.
Sliding along on their bellies, careful not to make any sound the trio moved through the vents until they were in the space above the barracks. They could look down and see there were numerous freshers, lockers and bunk rooms. Being a space station the whole barracks could be sealed off airtight in case the station was decompressed. However, this might work to their advantage.
It was as they tiptoed over the vents Rhea slipped on a greasy section of metal in the dark. Her foot contacted the grate below and sent it crashing down into the room below.
Slipping off to the side all three of them waited as two stormtroopers - one an officer - came over, weapons raised below them.

"What happened, FK-218?"
"Grate fell, ma'am. Third time it's happened this week."
"Was it reported to maintenance?"
"Yes, ma'am, but they just stuck it back up. This place is coming apart."
"That's enough, trooper, report it to maintenance immediately."
"Right away, ma'am!"
Below them the female officer, helmet off, peered up into the darkness, but after a moment she left.
Rhea let out a breath, cursing herself under her breath. She would make amends, she promised herself.

XXX

The rest of the party had reached a threshold where they could see below them was a series of conveyors, factories and facilities. Furnaces melted the ore so it could be stamped out and then assembled. Of key note though, even though it was not the main location for them, the unmistakable sight of some collared and shabbily dressed Qadiri could be seen performing duties, watched over by stormtroopers.

A ramp led down to the factory whilst the passage continued the other way towards the hanger bays.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

"One People, one Empire, one Leader! Remember Fortan, praise Ren!" Propaganda continued to blare out of the loudspeakers. Several of those seemed to have been set up to bombard both the work force and the stormtroopers. Elpsis was grateful for her helmet and its sonic dampeners. "Natasi Fortan sacrificed herself to save her people, single-handedly defeating the savage Ssi-Ruuvi. Be like the Mother, and do your part for the Order!"

Probably the one good thing she ever did was kill herself, Elpsis thought cynically, though no words left her lips. They had work to do. Vagt and Nyssa had been making sure all recruits kept up and were in position. White-clad, armed Stormtroopers were walking up down, watching over a collection of collared Qadiri dressed in rags. She could also hear some spider-like droids. Their skittering sound was unmistakeable. The same applied to the saws they had been equipped with. The machines would have to be taken out of commission.

"Could plant some detpacks, ma'am. Collapse the platform," Vagt said in a low voice. In the vocabulary of the NCO this meant 'I know what I'm doing, you should really let me do it, boss'.
Elpsis thought, nodded. "Go for it. Need backup?"
"Faster on my own." Without a further word, the Bothan had slipped away into the shadows.
Elpsis' eyes wandered to the 'indentured assets'. She could not see the bruises, but she could imagine them. Moreover, she could see the scars etched upon their soul. Her heart went out to them. Focus on the job, she chided herself. The job is helping people. "Nuroch," she said in a low voice.
"Ma'am." She could feel his eagerness.
"You're a telepath. Reach out to them. Tell them..." she furrowed her brow, "to find a place to hide when it goes bang. Mention Tygara and Shazora." Nuroch did not speak Zandri and Elpsis only knew a few words, but telepathy could hopefully transcend that.
"Aye, ma'am."
"Celaena...you and me are gonna create a fire. We're not going nova yet," she emphasised, just in case the Eldorai got the wrong idea. "Just make them think the bang's an accident. For now. Zhaleh, find a control panel to get wet. See if you can electrocute someone."

Now came the hardest part. Don't second-guess, act. "Reverence, Sano...the moment things go bang and the slaves flee, I want you to make a break for them." It was the right choice, she told herself. Those were the quickest. "Use the transceivers to deactivate the explosives."
"Don't get blown up," Celaena admonished them.
"Aw, you going soft on us, Cel?" Reverence asked innocently.
"No, but if you blow yourself up, it'll make us look bad."
"Don't set yourself on fire. It'll make you look even worse," Sano bit back. "We'll free them, ma'am."
"Get moving. Nyssa, Diona, find a good firing position that lets you cover the station. Deal with the guards when they come."
"Come on, Jedi. It's time for my favourite bath: a bloodbath."
Diona said nothing. Her silence said everything. Behind her helmet's faceplate lay a face carved out of stone. She merely gave Elpsis a nod and stalked off.
What for an act of heroism will I have to perform, I wonder? Shikoba soon got a response to her musings. "Be ready to screw with the minds of any guard who comes close. Nuroch, help her once the slaves got the message." Elpsis took a breath. Lifeweb, surround us. She felt like she could really need it.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan

After that heart stopping moment the trio soon reached a computer terminal used for maintenance. Natalie took charge and started slicing the terminal.

“When this starts off cover the lockers. They’ll try and get ventilators from there. Keep moving,” she whispered.

It took a moment, but she was soon into the settings for the atmosphere in this area of the base. The first thing to do was trigger an emergency event to cause lockdown of the barracks, then to draw out the air. The most important thing was to keep as many of the Ren from getting to their helmets and rebreathers as possible, but also not to strike the alarm too quickly. Therefore Natalie also planned to black out the barracks as well and then seal the equipment room.

Sienn and Rhea knelt close by, waiting. Things were about to get very interesting!



XXX



The tension would be slowly building on the rest of the team as preparations were made. People getting into position.

At this moment though there was a sound and coming from the hanger bay was a squad of stormtroopers in full armour marching along. A wrinkle in the plan, something would have to be done about them when the game started.



Elpsis at this moment would receive a ‘ding’ in her built in communicator which linked to the Enlightenment. It was from Hasana.

‘Spotted. Starting the fireworks in one minute.’

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

The anticipation was buildung up. Elpsis could imagine how her comrades were feeling. Internally, she was a mess of nervous tension. Soon the shooting would start. Had she prepared enough? Were her instructions sensible? Would her squad pull through? She did not fear for herself, but for them. She could not watch her squadmates over her HUD since she did not have one and would have been incapable of using it anyway, but she could sense then moving into position. Vagt was out there, keeping his head down and moving quietly as he snuck towards the platform overlooking the complex.

But then she heard the thump of marching boots. Immediately, her ears and the Force drew her to the hangar bay. A full squad of Stormtroopers was marching straight towards them. Each of them was clad from head to toe in white and had a rifle slung over their shoulder. Was this just a routine rotation or had they been spotted?

She reached out through the Force. Nyssa, a squad's approaching. In her haste, she did not register Hasana's message.
Hold your nerves, Red. They don't know we're here. Let them move in a good position before you let loose.
Ok, carry on. Elpsis took a breath as she snuck forward. No time to get wobbly. No time for doubts. Only time for action. Celaena was close by. Elpsis could her her breathing, feel her eagerness and the sheer heat rising inside her. Embrace the fire, she told herself. "On my mark, we let loose. Our first volley distracts them, the second burns them all."

Nyssa had her repeating blaster in hand as she moved into position. She hated this sneaking game. She was a warrior and lived for battle. Luckily, she would soon be able to let loose. The appearance of more stormtroopers did not concern her. All it meant was that she had more targets to fight. She brought out her macrobinoculars, scanning the area. Most of the trainees were annoying, but she did not want them to get slaughtered on their first mission. It would reflect poorly on her.

Well, unless the Jedi happened to be one of the casualties. She shot her a look, just to make sure was keeping up, and not sneaking away. "Once things go boom, we put those lads under fire. Make sure you point that sword in the right direction."
"I could ask the same of you, Sith," Diona said flatly. "I am no coward. If I were to strike you, I would do so face-to-first, instead of while your guard is down."
"Whatever, Jedi."

The slave workers, meanwhile, were toiling. Being slaves, they were given the most menial or dangerous tasks. "Get moving, 19. This quote is not gonna fulfil itself," a guard growled at a slave, who had been carrying some heavy pieces of equipment.
"I'm...I'm tired, sir. My back..it hurts. I...just need a moment," the shabbily dressed, painfully thin slave spoke. Even the act of speaking seemed to cause her pain.
"Please, sir, I can take over for her. I can work an extra shift," another slave hastily spoke up.
"What am I heating there? You're tired? You mean you want to laze around and mooch off the Order's benevolence? He who does not work, shall not eat. Are you a worker?" To drive the point home, he raised his baton. Electricity cackled around it.
"Y-yes, s-sir!"
"Then get on with it. Praise Ren. Say it, both of you!"
Something very scatological was on the second slave's tongue. Something that would doubtless get him in trouble. But just before the words could leave his lips, he felt something brush against his skull. He visibly winced. There was a feeling of discomfort when he heard a voice that was not his own. It felt strange...but also soothing. Tygara. Had his comrade heard it, too? "Praise Ren!" he said quickly. After the guard left, the two slaves exchanged glances...

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan

It all happened so fast. The best laid plans never survived contact with the enemy, but it at least gave a guide on how to act. Surprise helped, for a while.

Natalie tapped away, then gestured to her companions. It was time. With a final input a loud blaring sounded and the doors into the barracks, the vents, all of it suddenly slammed shut. Those inside the barracks would hear the hiss of air leaving the room. They knew what that meant. Some reached for their commlinks, others rushed for the armoury door, but it was sealed too! The lights went out, throwing the whole barracks into stygian darkness.
"Get a plasma cutter!" the female trooper officer ordered. She and a couple of others were in full armour and so could breathe. For the others though the air was running short. A couple of flashlights though was not enough to overcome the rising panic.
Sienn watched with her nightvision goggles. She carefully took out a shatter pistol from her belt and aimed at the officer. A silent shot, not heard over the uproar, struck the woman in the side of the head. She went down...and the panic became a stampede.

Suddenly there was a distant explosion and another alarm. Hasana had made her move.

The stormtroopers in the factory turned around, confused. This was the time for Elpsis' group to strike....

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

Things happened at a rapid pace. Even with her preternatural awareness, Elpsis had trouble keeping track the sequence of events. An explosion rumbled in the distance and klaxxons blared. The stormtroopers in the factory turned around, looking confused. An officer barked out orders, trying to take control of the situation...

Then there was a loud boom, as Vagt depressed the detonator. The factory was rocked by an explosion, and a metal platform came crashing down. Now, Elpsis ordered, and as screams and smoke filled the air, they were joined by the sound of a crackling flame as a machine was ignited. Working together, Elpsis and Celaena unleashed a jet of fire. It was not intended to consume all the Stormtroopers or even aimed at them directly, though it could burn them all the same.

Instead it was supposed to add to the confusion and help box them in. Bolter and heavy blaster fire fire came from the vantage point of Nyssa and Diona. Their plastoid body armour was smeared with blood as the projectiles tore through them. Amidst the confusion, the frightened slaves ducked and tried to make a break for it. "Saboteurs!" a stormtrooper yelled and raised his blaster rifle.

A slave fell to the ground as he shot him in the leg. But then the stormtrooper suddenly froze. His breathing intensified and he shook, as if he was suddenly seeing a ghost. "I never hurt you, but you killed me nonetheless," the apparition of a Qadiri child said. He fired, but the salvoe went right through it. Then ice-cold, spectral fingers wrapped around his throat. A comrade who gave pursuit found himself facing a roaring flame. In truth, while a fire had broken out, it was a good deal away from him and a lot less big. However, that was not what his eyes told him. His mind told him that he would be consumed.

Amidst the chaos, it went unnoticed that an electrical panel had experienced an unhealthy buildup of cold moisture. The subsequent electrical surge electrocuted a Stormtrooper coming to the aid of a wounded comrade. Wrapping her power around her to shield herself from the heat engulfing the facility, Zhaleh laid down covering fire with her rifle.

"Move," Elpsis called out, seeing that Sano and Reverence were dashing forward towards the slaves. The first round had gone to the Firemane squad, but they needed to keep the initiative and that meant going on the offence. So she arose from cover. Celaena followed her and fire burst from their hands. Blaster bolts splashed against Elpsis' armour as she charged, drawing Inferno. A shout was heard over the cacophony of sound. "Send in the droids!"

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan
In their nest above Natalie and her group watched the mad scramble and panic with something like satisfaction. Sienn especially enjoyed seeing the chaos and destruction they had sown. For Rhea though the hazy images and the panic to escape brought back memories, bad memories of her visit to the town of Productive Agriculture Commune #18. There the Vaderites had used nerve gas to bombard their 'enemies' before moving in to steal the produce. The nerve gas would not damage the grain like regular shells and explosives would. For Rhea in the aftermath the sight of the ghastly rictuses on the faces of the dead was horrifying.
Now the worm had turned, but she felt little joy or exultation. This was necessary.

Natalie jerked her out of her daze with an elbow. "They're out. Let's go. See if they have any stock in the armoury."
She fiddled with the controls and the armoury door opened. However, as they dropped down into the darkened room, stepping over the corpses, there was a flash of movement. From the armoury a trooper who had been hiding or otherwise not noticed appeared, armed. Natalie shouted a warning, bringing up her gun, but too late. There was a crack and Rhea instinctively ducked aside, but lines of burning fire shot between them and one of the shards from the Reaper Shotgun scored across her armour. She felt pain in her side.
Blade out she advanced with a snarl, and the Force imbued blade slashed aside the gun, then stabbed up into the throat, through the joint. The trooper gagged a moment and slid to the ground.
"You hurt bad, Bones?" Natalie asked.
"I'm fine."
"Patch her, Sienn. I'll set the charges in here. Take the shotgun though, you might find it useful."

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Tegaea Alcori

Like many a battlefield, it was utter chaos. Tracers, blaster bolts and slug rounds straked across the factory hall, while explosions thundered. The huddled, frightened slaves were so close, yet so far. For Sano, the distance seemed epic. The high-pitched whine of blaster fire filled the air, amid shouts and wails of wounded. As she and Reverence dashed forward, bolts streaked past them. One missed her by a hair's breadth. Stormtroopers, armoured in their trademark white suits of armour, advanced.

"Down!" she heard Reverence shout and she hit the dirt. Crawling along the floor, she hid behind some machine. Her breath quickened and her heart raced as targets came into view. You were trained for this. Remember, sight alignment and trigger control. Raising the electronic sights of her rifle to her right eye, she fired.

There was a flash, and smoke coiled from the Stormtrooper's chest. Her first kill. Her stomach tightened in a cold knot. It had been...justified. There was no time for philosophising. A response was not long in coming as the Imperials put them under fire. Sano responded in kind. Alongside her, Reverence fired as well, shouting furiously. A heavy repeater roared, and they quickly bent their heads. "We can't stay here. They're closing in," Sano declared. Sweat was dripping down her headtails.
"Ok, once that arsehole has to cool down, we throw a grenade at their feet, alright?" Reverence had to yell to make herself heard amidst the cacophony of fire. "Then you make a break for it. I'll cover you."
"You sound confident."
"I'm just making it up as I go along," Reverence responded not too reassuringly.
"Make it ion and frag," Sano suggested. With shaking hands, she retrieved an ion grenade, and activated it. The Force surged through her arm as she hurled the ball towards the enemy. When it landed, there was an ionic impulse. A second later, Reverence's grenade landed, bringing with it shrapnel, blast and heat.
The air was thick with the smell of burnt flesh and electronics. Acrid smoke rose up, and the wounded cried. "Go!" Reverence yelled, and Sano dashed forward, into the billowing smoke. She was grateful for the fact that her helmet kept out the smell. If only I had my sabre, she thought to herself as she unleashed her fire upon stunned Stormtroopers. Behind her, Reverence laid down a base of fire with her light repeater.

The slaves were close, so close. Then the Force screamed a warning inside her mind, and she dashed for cover. The sonic wave hit her with tremendous force, akin to a hammer. Her vision was swimming and her head hurt as it erupted inside her skull. It was deafening. Her rifle fell out of her hand. Stay calm, fight like you're trained.

With effort she summoned a telekinetic push as Stormtroopers came forward, sending two flying. She grabbed her rifle. Then she heard an explosion and saw the machine she and her comrade had been hiding behind go up in flames. "Rev?" In her moment of distraction, a shot grazed her helmet and she felt a sharp sting. Angrily, she lifted a Stormtrooper and smashed him into the floor.

"Here! Fast Flame, remember?" Such was her agitation that she almost levelled her rifle at the intruder before realising it was Reverence. If she had been able to pay attention, she would have heard that the Dahomian's heart was racing as fast as hers. Neither could stop their heart from pounding. Reverence's helmet was damaged from shrapnel.
"This isn't working. There's too many of them," Sano declared.
"And if we don't get to them now, the slaves will die!" Reverence yelled.
"Frak, I know," the Togruta cursed. Her mother would have had words with her about bad language. It all seemed so absurd now. She took a deep breath. "You go. I'll draw their fire."
"Don't be stupid."
"Do it." Before Reverence could respond or hold her back, Sano had emerged from cover. With a Togruta war cry on her lips, she dashed forward. She had dropped her rifle in favour of a compact pistol and her sword. It was no lightsabre, but still a Force Imbued Blade. Her energy shield glowed as a blaster bolt splashed against her armour, then another. A third was deflected by her blade. She fired her blaster and, pouring the Force into her limbs, leapt into the fray.

As she landed, she clove through the helmet of a Stormtrooper. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Reverence was running. Grinning, she sidestepped a thrust from a Stormtrooper who had drawn his vibrosword and riposted, cutting his hand at the wrist before she drove her blade through the soldier's throat. She was a warrior, like her ancestors, like her mother before she had traded the sword for a stylus. This was who she was meant to be. There was a shout. Perhaps it was from Reverence, but either way Sano did not hear it. Then there was a sharp pain in her montrals and she fell. More shots came.

Reverence saw her Togruta comrade stumble, and heard her cry of pain, even amidst all the chaos. She should go to ter. She should help her. Her legs were already pulling her in that direction. Then she remembered the slaves. They were huddled in a corner. There was a body not far from her. Blood had streamed out of her skull.

Blaster bolts sailed towards her, and the Dahomian ran. The Force flooded her muscles and she ran faster than she ever had. To the Stormtroopers firing, she was like a blur. The slaves had hidden in between some large containers. She slowed down as she got closer, trying to control her breathing. She could hear wailing.

As she rounded a container, she saw a Stormtrooper loom over a slave. Reacting quickly, she raised her rifle and fired the underbarrel shotgun. The twelve gauge shell ripped through his plastoid armour and sent him flying. But another Stormtrooper had snuck up from behind her and clubbed her with the butt of his rifle. She tumbled from the pain and he kicked her. Reverence hit the ground, but as her enemy levelled his rifle at her to fire, one of the slaves threw one of their tools at him. As it hit home, his rifle was knocked off course and the bolt struck the ground rather than the Dahomian. Still dazed, Reverence swept his legs out from under him. He hit the hard ground.

Quickly she drew her sidearm, but before she could get a shot off her enemy had rallied and slashed at her with a vibroknife while trying to tear her gun from her grasp. Both wrestled for control amidst a flurry of kicks, stabs and punches. She took a thrust to her armpit, where the plating was weaker. She grit her teeth as blood dripped out. As they wrestled for control of the gun, it went off and a stray bolt hit the ceiling. She grabbed the hand trying to wrest the pistol from her. Her grip was iron and Force-enhanced. There was the sweet snap of fingers breaking. The pressure receded for but a moment, she seized control and fired - again and again.

He stopped moving, and she yanked the bloody vibroknife out of her armpit. Panting, she got up. With blood still dripping from her wound, she approached the slaves. "I'm with Firemane. I'm here to help," she declared in what she hoped was a reassuring tone. With her free hand she grabbed the signal transceiver Natalie and Mara had given her team. Hopefully this would work.

Sano's montral had exploded in pain. Unlike a certain Jedi child soldier who had been illegally sent into combat many centuries ago by child-snatching Jedi Masters, she wore a helmet, but it did not cover her entire montrals. More blaster bolts splashed against her armour, and her energy shield collapsed under the strain. She felt a searing burn in her shoulder.

Shikoba came up from the side. While all the shooting was going on, the Vashyada had kept her head down and sought to maintain a low profile. She saw Sano was down and in trouble. She heard the psychic wails of the Stormtroopers whose lives had been extinquished moments ago. Their spectral hands clung to the injured Togruta. Not today, she thought.

No one had heard the psychic screams of the slaves who had been asphyxiated in the void. No one except Shikoba. But she willed that the Imperials would hear them, projecting them into their skulls. So loud that they could not focus on anything as they drowned in the suffering of those whose lives had been so cruelly taken from them. "Move, fool!"

xxx

Nyssa could see that Elpsis and the Eldorai fire girl were going on the offensive. Elsewhere, the squad was trading heavy fire with the Stormtroopers. Vagt was providing fire support and ice blasts emanated from Zhaleh. She would, of course, not sit back. It was not the way of the Sith - the True Sith, not the deluded, deracinated fools who desecrated the holy worlds of her people. Her lightsabre ignited with a snap-hiss, producing a brilliant crimson blade. The Dark Side was her tool and a powerful tool it was. "Make sure you keep up, Jedi," she growled to Diona. Her lightsabre cut blaster bolts out of the air. Some went wide, others were reflected back to the shooters. Sizzling bolts struck metal walls and armoured men. When the salvoes grew too intense, she fired her wrist-worn Aerosolblaster. The blasterfire passed through the blue mist, and glances off her armour, for the aerosol weakened them to the point where a direct hit felt like a slap.

She intensified her pace, charging. But then there was a percussive thoomp as a Stormtrooper fired a boltgun knockoff. This one was less powerful than the original, but still potent enough. The floor was rocked by the explosion. Nyssa had raised a small container to take the shot. It was torn apart. Caught at the edge of the blast, she was brought down and struck by shrapnel. She felt white-hot pain - and rage. Reaching out with her power, she crushed the offending gun.

Blade out, she charged and literally rammed the shooter. As the Stormtrooper fell, she stabbed down and let a jet of flame spring from her the flamer worn in her left wrist. Enemies flailed, screamed and burnt. She swung her blade at another enemy, and then icy cold seized her as a cryoban grenade detonated. Misunderstanding its nature, she tried to push it away with the Force, but that only triggered a special fuse that made it explode on impact. Cryoban was vicious stuff and she was frozen solid, with an ice-like layer wrapping around her.

Trapped in the ice, she could not put up a struggle. Blood started to stop reaching her brain and as it froze, the water in her body expanded. Her vision had turned very dark. One of the Stormtroopers surrounding was suddenly lifted off his feet and thrown into Nyssa's icy encasement with such force it broke. Two more were paralysed. With a powerful cut, Diona clove one trooper across the chest. As the other came to, she thrust her blade into his throat.

xxx

Nuroch hurried along after Lieutenant Alcori and Celaena, pistol in hand. The factory complex was in a state of utter chaos. Machines had caught fire, or been blown up outright. The wailing of the wounded echoed across the hall. Flashes of crimson and sapphire beams flew across the factory hall. It was, in short, pandaemonium. The Lieutenant seemed to revel in it.

When he looked upon her, what he saw was not so much a human being as an inferno that walked and talked, projecting fire upon anything that was clad in Imperial white or black. The intensity was such that he could feel the heat surging through her. The fire she summoned did not just ignite Stormtroopers; it cooked them inside their armour. Celaena was her mirror image. What she lacked in raw power, she made up for in zeal as she summoned scalding flame.

Being a Nautolan and empath, he felt the Stormtroopers' pain more keenly than a human would have. He could not help feel a pang of envy. He was not blessed with great feats of swordsmanship or an affinity to call upon the destructive aspects of the Force. Their cries were so loud that he almost missed the auto-blaster that had suddenly sprouted from the ceiling and sent streaks of light shooting towards them.

The Lieutenant roughly forced him into cover. He saw her energy shield flicker as a bolt splashed against it, and heard a grunt. "Don't daydream, Private," she chided him.
"Sorry, ma'am. You al..."
He never got to finish the sentence. "We gotta take out the turrets. Give us some cover," she cut him off, nodding to Celaena.
"I can handle one," he insisted.
"Leave it to us, squid boy," Celaena retorted dismissively. Then she was off, dashing forward. As a turret trained on her, she cart wheeled and leapt. Elpsis came from the other side, all fire and fury. Nuroch wriggled into a firing position, and unloaded his blaster into the turret. It did next to nothing. The turret rotated and its muzzle barked. With molten plasma spitting his way, he was forced to duck for cover. A moment later, smoke burst from the sphere as the turret erupted in flame.

The other turret was still in play. Nuroch got off some shots towards a Stormtrooper to give his comrades some cover, his suddenly his Force Senses prickled. The call of the Force pulled him towards a catwalk. Just as the thermic lance was hurled, a series of silenced shots. They were invisible, leaving no muzzle flash to follow. Alcori was struck and staggered, while Celaena ducked. Alcori just about raised a barrier to absorb a salvoe.

The sniper was concealed from sight and the shots had been near-silent. But he was not hidden from Nuroch's mind. There, he spoke into the minds of his comrades, pointing them to what he had sensed. Exacting his will upon the shooter, he projected an image into his mind. Suddenly the sharpshooter dropped his rifle, feeling as if his hands were burning.

 

[Tegaea Alcori]

Elpsis Kerrigan

Sirens were now howling everywhere as Natalie, Rhea and Sienn emerged from the barracks.
"Terrorists are assaulting to the station! All arms to fight the criminals!" a voice boomed over the loudspeaker.
"Sounds like we're getting their attention," Sienn said.
"Yeah, too much. Come on."
"You there! Stand where you are!" Two troopers were advancing on them. However, they'd made the fatal mistake the 'good' guys never did, which is not shooting first. Ironic that.
Rhea's new shotgun blazed and a trooper went down, the other got two slugs to the chest from Natalie's revolvers. Her hands had moved in a blur which seemed almost Force enhanced to Rhea's eyes, but the human seemingly was blind to the Force. Perhaps she was just that skilled with them?

They moved on until they came to the original crossways. Sienn and Natalie started to head towards the factory but Rhea stopped.
"What is it?"
There was fighting coming from the direction of the cells and command centre. "It must be the Qadiri. Should we not help them?"
"They can look after themselves, I'm sure. Come on."
Yet something in the Force was pressing Rhea. "Permission to assist and then rejoin?"
Natalie raised an eyebrow. "I'm not your boss, Bones. You want to do that, your choice, but you better be right or the LT will give you a roasting. Maybe literally."
Rhea hesitated. "The Force...do you feel it, Sienn?"
"I don't sense anything except the struggles and deaths," the Twi'lek admitted.
Natalie sighed. "You go on, kid, do what the magic voice tells you. Make sure you come back though. Come on, Sienn."

Left alone, Rhea hesitated. Her side hurt and she had no idea if this was the right thing to do. She almost wavered and ran after the other two...but she took a deep breath. It was time to take the stand for what was important to her...and accept the consequences if necessary. That was the burden of choice, a choice she'd not had on Tephrike. It was a gift...but also sometimes a curse.