Junction CRISIS ON KUAT II | GA & NIO Junction of Korbin & Anzat

[Spirit of Judgement]

CRISIS ON KUAT
A Second Great Hyperspace War Story​

Julius Loghain, senator and despot of Kuat, has declared his government's independence from the Galactic Alliance and announced Kuat's secession from the Alliance.

This act, motivated by a secret agreement between Loghain and Rurik Fel's representatives, is a strategic manoeuvre by the New Imperials to seize assets inside Alliance space that were left stranded by their Iron Decree. As the fires of secession burn on Kuat, the New Imperial Fleet mobilizes along the Hydian Way to execute the next step in the NIO's plan to strike a blow against the GA and simultaneously build up their fleet by reclaiming the warships still docked at the Kuat Drive Yard Rings.

The Alliance, kept in the loop by the SIA's intelligence work, had diverted a section of the GADF in case of a worst-case scenario. That scenario has come to pass. A combined task force of GADF Army, Navy, and Jedi is dispatched as a Peacekeeping Force to prevent the Civil War from escalating to a dangerous point. With the goal of saving as many lives as possible, the fleet arrives in the system, declaring martial law, and moves to secure the Ring and Kuat's major cities.

Meanwhile, the galaxy watches as the tense conflict continues to develop. New Imperial Forces also arrive in-system shortly after and move towards their docked assets. The Alliance Fleet responds by blockading the Rings, but not before NIO transports make it onto the station. A brief stand-off ensues but is quickly broken by the Extremist's desperation. Both fleets are thrown into chaos.

GADF evacuation efforts secure civilian workers still trapped on the Rings, but are stalled as soldiers are forced into a tense stand-off with Secessionist Extremists and New Imperial Stormtroopers. The situation only gets worse as the Secessionists put a match to the powder keg.

On the planet, the flames of Civil War between Loghain's supporters and democratic loyalists are stoked by New Imperial agents. GA Peacekeeping forces crackdown on the critical leaders among the Extremists, working with intelligence the SIA provided. Their mission is to carry out surgical strikes to remove Loghain's fanatical militia and military supporters from the picture with minimal casualties, while, at the Palace, a small detachment of Rebels are tasked with replacing Julius with his exiled sister, Elaine. Among the Extremists, and in the Palace, the New Imperials must keep the flames of war from being smothered too early by capitalizing on the field work of their agents.

A THIN LINE
Objective 1 [Politics]
Political Intrigue to prevent the war from going Hot​

It's green light on the operation to prevent the Kuat secession from degenerating into a complete mess. The GA Peacekeeping Force arrives in-system and begins to carry out its directives to restore peace. The New Imperials arrive, claiming self-interest to protect their assets. Both sides are caught in a deadlock while the GA tends to Kuat itself.

Then a nightmare becomes realized. Reports of exchanged fire above the Ring of Kuat. The conflict has gone hot. Both fleets, under the belief they are protecting their own, have begun engaging each other. It's a military and political clusterfeth neither side can afford at the height of the Brotherhood War.

The standoff at Kuat Drive Yards has driven political tension between the New Imperial Order and the Galactic Alliance to a breaking point. The Iron Comlink is dialled and a direct line between the Chancellor and the Imperator opens up the political field to posturing and confrontation. Tithe and the Senators in the room discuss their next move, while Rurik Fel and his advisors do the same.

Neither side wants a war, neither side wants to back down. What can be done to maintain peace in the face of such blatant provocation?

SITREP: FUBAR
Objective 2 [Space & Shipyards]
Fleet and Military Action in/around the Kuat Drive Yard Ring​

(two tabs)

[ INSIDE THE SHIPYARDS (GROUND COMBAT) ] [ THE SHIPYARD BLOCKADE (FLEETING) ]

• The Drive Yards are split. On one side, the Secessionist Extremists are helping the New Imperial Order secure the ships they claim are rightfully the property of the NIO Military. On the other, workers are caught in the standoff as GADF Forces work double-time to evacuate them before things turn ugly between them and the Stormtroopers.
  
  Amidst the confusion, a sect of the Secessionist Extremists go forward with a desperate plan. Hellbent on creating an independent Kuat, they rig a bomb to explode, plunging the station and the fleets into chaos. The Secessionists, fearing for their lives, open fire.
  
  With no other choice but to defend themselves and the workers, GADF troops are forced to return fire. At the same time, the New Imperial Stormtroopers follow orders and do everything to protect their assets.
  
  Bloodshed ensues as blaster fire lights up the corridors of KDY.
• The Alliance Emergency Response Fleet has formed a blockade in front of the Drive Yards, preventing the New Imperials from further accessing the ships they claim are theirs. With orders not to fire unless fired upon, the two fleets find themselves in a deadlock, where neither side is willing to give any ground.
  
  Tension rises in the fleets as the riots on the surface keep growing worse, and then, tragedy strikes. An explosion rocks the Drive Yards amidst the Alliance's fleet as a docked Star Destroyer goes up in flames.
  
  An attack by the New Imperials? An attempt by the Alliance to sabotage New Imperial assets?
  
  Neither side ever finds the answers as laser bolts begin to slash through the void of space, and both fleets open fire believing they are defending themselves from the other.

PEACE WALKER
Objective 3 [Cities & Palace]
Surgical Strikes, Urban Combat, and a Palace Assault on Kuat​

The moment the senator and despot of Kuat, Loghain, declared independence from the Alliance, the people of Kuat flooded the streets in massive riots

Pro-secessionist propaganda blares through the streets of Kuat's major cities, over the cries of its people, as a violent uprising ensues when Loghain's followers take to the streets with New Imperial weapons. Covertly, they are supported by NIO Agents intent on destabilizing the planet with covert operations aimed at fanning the flames of war.

Pro-democracy forces march on the capital demanding the reinstatement of Elane of Kuat, Loghain's predecessor who's been flown in to Kuat by the SIA. Supported by officially unaffiliated Rebel Alliance elements, the protestors openly challenge Loghain's authority to lead their world and call for Kuat to sever its ties with the New Imperial Order. Loghain and his New Imperial allies must prevent the Iron Lady from ascending her throne again.

The Galactic Alliance Peacekeeping Force at Kuat spreads out across the planet and targets Secessionist demagogues and leaders in order to stabilize the world. Martial Law is enacted, and GADF troopers and Jedi alike are tasked with restoring peace to protect the innocent citizens of Kuat from falling victim to the megalomaniac ambitions of their leader. Among it all, the New Imperial Agents, deep inside enemy territory, race against the clock to keep the flames of war alive.

Spoiler: tags

Madelyn Lowe Auteme Aerarii Tithe The Arbiter Jaeger Harrsk (RIP) RIP Carlyle Rausgeber Traden Avarice Keiran Varn Cordé Sabo Karissa Saitel Iseri Tanaka Julius Loghain Rurik Fel Dracken Pryce Jon Kovacs CH3 Monos Albrecht F. Herlock Liedran Kathause Hiram Voss Sol Stazi Jordi Massad Kolson Vrask Arage Bao IVI Dagon Kaze

​

 

[Hal Vaiken]

S A R G E
INSIDE THE SHIPYARDS
501st LEGION, IMPERIAL SPECIAL FORCES
SCAR SQUADRON

SCAR Squadron had been deployed on the Kuati shipyards to protect Imperial assets since the proclamation of secession by the Lord-Regent. With each day, each minute even, that passed, the air grew thicker and thicker with tension till you could cut it with a knife.

First, it was the surface that became engulfed in the flames of an uprising. The smokes of war billowed way up into orbit and thickened when the Alliance and Imperial fleets converged over the world. The standoff between stormtroopers and alliance soldiers, each partitioning zones of control over the shipyards they reached first, were a ticking bomb.

And it ticked and it ticked.

Palms turned sweaty.

And it ticked.

Fingers itched over the triggers.

And it ticked...

...until a massive explosion of a docked vessel broke all hell loose.

The time for dialogue had long been crossed.

Blaster fire filled the shipyards.

"GRENAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA--"

A stormtrooper's final words trailed off into the loud explosion that rattled floors.

"Who the hell--?"

"I don't know, Sarge, it's a damn mess up ahead!! Secessionists firing blindly everywhere."

"G.A troops got a barricade set on the junction ahead."

"Yeah, I can see that, Cat."

"We've got to push through that barricade or that ISD's off our hands."

"Yeah, I can see that too, Hoax. You two find another way around, the rest of us - Reaper, Mauler, Draco - will try to breakthrough here. KEEP your magboots linked to your vacuum emergency sensor. All of you."

"Roger, Sir. We're moving! Let's go, Cat."

As the two scurried back from where they had came from, Sarge peeked over the cover. Straight up ahead secessionists were exchanging fire with GADF soldiers that had entrenched themselves on a junction vital to get the SCARs to the nearby docked ISD's point of entry. Their mission hadn't changed since their deployment on the shipyards - protect the Imperial assets by any means. SDs were top priority. The staff sergeant reckoned command was far too busy dealing with the fleet battle ensuing to issue new orders.

For some reason, he thought Kuat would be the last world over which the former allies finally came to blows.

He ducked back behind cover and eyed the remainder of his unit. Reaper was a sniper, you want someone's head blown from a mile away - call her.

Mauler, on the other hand... well, the name's self-explanatory.

Both him and Knight-Colonel Draco carried the firepower potential to breakthrough the lock. Get them an opening through.

"Colonel, Mauler - that blockade needs to go."

SCAR SQUADRON: Atticus Draco | Lily Stevens | Volgin Alto
WAR HOGS: Traden Avarice | Monos | Phaineve Halseigh | Zav Traros | @IKYOUHAVEMOREPEOPLE

 

[Liedran Kathause]

SITREP: FUBAR

[3rd Expeditionary Carrier Line]
[ANV Cadence - Internalized C.I.C]
[Alliance Friendlies: Dracken Pryce , Kathryn Foster ]
[SJO Allies: Sol'yan , Finley Dawson ]
[Imperial Baddies: Albrecht F. Herlock , Hiram Voss ]
[This is going to be fun.]​

The swirling doors of hyperspace finally parted for the grand entrance of the 3rd Expeditionary. In that instant, the low klaxons that ordered the crew of the Cadence to battlestations came to a tapering halt, and left the bridge silent with suspense. The sight of Kuat and its mighty ring emerging on the view screens kept Liedran’s lips deathly still, each suspended a mere half-centimeter from the other. Finally she swallowed, curled her bottom lip backward and set the tips of her teeth on its surface.

An hour prior, a grim announcement had arrived to haunt the commodore: the friendship between the Galactic Alliance and New Imperial Order had been toppled at last. A bleak addition to the fleetwide broadcast, the 3rd Expeditionary was redirected from its patrol route to Kuat, in hope that they could salvage anything from the rotting corpse of the Bastion Accords.

And if that didn’t produce desirable results, they’d have to settle for getting their civilians out of the rings, and out of the grasp of Kuat’s mutinous regency. It appeared too late to do much else– Senator Loghaine had been hauntingly clear in his proclamation of Kuati secession.

And now he’d brought his Imperial buddies, with no time allotted to the Alliance to extract civilians. Her fingers retracted into painful fists, the tips of her nails digging into her skin with unrelenting force.

“Launch the air group. Mount a defensive formation- I don’t want a single shot fired. Put us up to Condition 2. Have the marines and jedi proceed for the ring. And…” she paused for a moment; Liedran took a deep breath with closed eyes, trying to recover a diminishing tone, “And… Put out a broadcast. Let the station and Imperial fleet know that we’re just getting our people. We won’t tolerate resistance.” The commodore turned her gaze to the viewscreen; in time for her dreading heart to sink further into darkness, the wedged bows of an NIO formation began their approach, setting their squadrons of transports free from their hangers.

“Dammit!” The commodore’s tightened fist finally came crashing down on the surface of the situation table. The holograms suspended above it flickered and distorted as her hand flew past.

“Admiral wants us to proceed to cordon the shipyards, ma’am.” A Corellian lieutenant tilted his head toward her, seemingly unfazed by the commodore’s outburst.

“Then take us the kark forward!” Now that elicited a reaction; the captain at her side sent a grim glance Liedran’s way. She continued, nonetheless, struggling to keep her voice from erupting again. “Bring the Sacheens ahead. Dauntless too. Cadence– Yaw axis. Port ninety degrees. Prep the broadside array.” She shivered, hopelessly praying it wouldn’t come to- that.

Cadence threw her engines into gear, blinding plumes of ion flame bursting from her drives and RCS thrusters while the carrier spun its portside turbolasers to face the encroaching New Imperial task force. Amidst the grandiose display of motion, four frigates and a heavy cruiser from the line began a hasty crawl forward; they too spun their weapons in anticipation, hoping to ward off the Imperial transports that converged on the shipyards.

It was no use. The swarm of boxy silhouettes jolted through a closing gap, the Alliance fleet’s vanguard left helpless but to watch the dropships maneuver through the ring’s gates. The color drained from Liedran’s face, then reemerged… a bright shade of crimson. Teeth gritted in boiling frustration, she asked, “How many?”

“It’s hard to tell, ma’am.”

Karking… “Are our teams aboard the shipyard?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Her eyes pressed shut; Liedran begged herself to feel any semblance of security in that response, only to find nothing despite her efforts. “Caution them to be on high alert. Send a confirmation to the admiral and station our fighters outside the hangar entrance.” The commodore’s eyes flickered open, and once more found their lock on the forward viewscreen.

---

The deadlock continued to drive her down a relentless tunnel of frustration, trudging through the murky depths of her mind in desperate search of some light– some end to the vicious undertaking.

When light did finally gleam from somewhere down the tunnel it appeared as a bright ball of flame, a speck of blinding blue expanding from its center, flickering like lightning in a storm of- antimatter… The unintelligible glimmer of light expanded into a legible image: a motionless star destroyer churned under the force of a violent implosion, cracking apart at every seam and shooting flame from every fresh scar- then disappeared.

“Report!” she screeched as klaxons erupted around her, sending their panicked rings crashing against the plating of the walls, ricocheting in an awful symphony of sirens.

“Reading an explosion aboard one of the docked star destroyers. Looks like Nova took a glancing blow from some debris- She’s venting atmosphere. Damage control responding...” The crewman’s fingers danced furiously along the surface of a monitor. “None of our ships have reported firing, but-”

A clang of metal echoed from within the adjacent corridor, the ferocious sound of a turbolaser splattering against the Cadence’s hull, then another. Hot needles of compressed flame began to dart between the two fleets in quickening succession, driving into Alliance and Imperial ship alike.

The commodore jolted upward, feet taking a sturdy root in the durasteel beneath her. “Alert the line to activate shields– Open fire! Fighters– stand by for interception! Get me an update from the other captains; and get me a karking line open to the admiral!”

 

[Monos]

SITREP: FUBAR

Inside one of the hangars of the Kuat Drive Yards.

Intro.

SCAR SQUADRON: Atticus Draco Hal Vaiken Lily Stevens Volgin Alto
WARHOGS: Traden Avarice Phaineve Halseigh Zav Traros Keiran Varn

​

– WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING!? – Howls a young Galactic Alliance Defense Force trooper over the violent sounds of ongoing blaster fire. The crimson projectiles flying overhead or impacting into nearby durasteel crates illuminate the airborne saliva escaping the private's mouth after each shouted word. Time itself appears to slow down as the most peculiar of sights presents itself in one of the gargantuan hangar bays of the Kuatian Drive Yards. What the confused trooper sees is the 31 cm tall [~12 inches] Anzellan technovagabond and assassin, Mox Murgle. The small creature darts lightning-fast around the hangar with a rudimentary jetpack on his back – a black trail of smoke follows him as he flies, spins and somersaults around the place, occasionally shooting his Baleful Bantha at the Kuatian extremists. Although the rifle is retrofitted for his size, its damage output remains the same.

– Follow light-flashing on ground! Stay low! – Mox shrieks toward the panicked civilians stranded on the station as he provides suppressing fire. – Guide them, to safety! – He shouts again in his broken basic, now at the Alliance troopers that are rightly baffled by the absurd scene. Orders received from a roughly six-kilo [~13 lbs] creature that looks like a loth-cat stuck in a sock. – NOW, POODOOS!

With his war face on, Mox spins out of cover, shoots a barrage of searing-hot plasma at a group of hostiles in cover, and immediately after, grapples on top of a tall service tower for some tactical advantage – he does not see the danger dawning yet. Not a second later he had already arrived at the elevated position and slid into cover. – Warhogs! Where are you guys? – Mox asks through their shared frequency. The diminutive assassin takes a quick look around as he tosses a used energy cell aside and reloads his rifle.

The spent red-hot cell slides down the edge of the service tower and falls straight down, eventually bouncing off of a half-built fighter below; one of several stationed in the great hangar Mox is in. At one end of the hangar, a laser gate wide enough for to fighters to depart at the same time. At the other, two durasteel gates; one large, one small. About a dozen extremists are holding the gates that lead deeper into the station, and a single military ship is in place to evacuate the refugees from this hangar – yet they cannot depart until the hostile group is neutralized.

Above each ship is a heavy-duty crane. As luck would have it, an operating console is just in front of the small Anzellan, but out of cover. Still under fire, the Anzellan turns back toward the troopers under him and once again shouts with all he's got. – Focus fire soldiers on right! ON RIGHT!

Following a short, but understandable delay they eventually catch on and begin providing suppressive fire for Mox, who wastes no time and rounds the boxes he was hiding behind to then climb on top of the crane controls. Occasional blaster bolts still whizz by him, but so far he's managing to stay clear. He presses the largest red button he finds, which, at first, initiates the fire suppression system – but at least boots up the display. From then on, it's cake for the Anzellan techno-assassin. The crane closest to the hostiles soon screeches to life. The colossal arm begins to turn, its sluggish momentum sweeping everything away in its path, even the hostiles.

But not before they could launch a rocket toward the service tower Mox is standing on. The Anzellan's gaze snaps at the incoming warhead mere moments before impact. – Phrik.​

 

[Isla Draellix-Kobitana]

SITREP: FUBAR​

Location: approaching Kuat Drive Yards
Objective: return ships to Ashlan hands
Tags: Liedran Kathause open

Spoiler: Fleet elements

Command Vessel
Noble Crusader class battlecruiser
Avenging Saint

2 x Templar Class Star Destroyers
Staff of Majesty
Pillar of Spring

4 x Dominion Class Escort Frigates

4 x Principality Class Corvettes

Even split complements of
Pegasus Interceptor Starfighters
Phoenix Multirole Starfighter
Knave Transports

Numerous
Ashla's Mercy orbital insertion shield generators

Infantry available
Ashlan Marines

Spoiler: Isla's Personal Gear

Admiral's Sabre
Ashlan Rosary
Viper Skin Suit under uniform
Personal guard of Ashlan Praetorian droids
Overseer Biochip OPBC-01a

The relatively small fleet brought by Isla Draellix to Kuat dropped out of hyperspace within long range of the Kuat Drive Yards. Why was she here? She should not be having to rescue assets she saw the already present battlecruiser of her friend Hanaya Enzar , The Paragon receiving the last of her technicians that has been allowed to leave by the Galactic Alliance.

Not long ago, Isla had received a very confusing message from Senator Tiresh Kobitana-Draellix regards plans for the NIO to try and capture Kuat and the risk to her assets here, she had warned her that the Galactic Alliance was mobilising to blockade the station to prevent ships being removed. Isla had tried to communicate back to Tiresh but her responses had come back undelivered, she had not been able to raise her for days and her concern was growing.

It had taken too long for the Ashlan Fleet to arrive, and the GADF were already blockading, she would have liked to be able to cleanly tow her damaged battlecruiser and pair of battlecarriers out of system before the GADF or NIO arrived, but it was not to be, it was just too far. The turn of events was unfortunate, the ships were only here because Archangel did not have the facilities to carry out the major repairs on damage sustained fighting the Maw.

The Grand Admiral stepped forward to broadcast to the Grand Alliance.

"This is Grand Admiral Isla Draellix, Prime Minister of The Ashlan Crusade. We are in this system on a mission of peace.

We are aware of the deteriorating situation between the Grand Alliance and the New Imperial Order. This issue would not otherwise involve the Ashlans, however, several of our Capital Vessels are currently undergoing repairs and refits in privately operated Dock Yards on the ring.

By the terms of our treaty as an Allied Power, I wish my fleet to be treated as such and be allowed to cross your blockade and retrieve our rightfully owned assets, as detailed in the data packet you should be receiving now. We will tow these vessels out of your Area of Operations and leave the systems as soon as the vessels can be made safe for hyperspace tow.

Please confirm receipt of my request and allow me to proceed."

The Galactic Alliance, and also the NIO were her allies, she did not wish to fight either, if this war heated up, it could cause significant headaches for the Ashlans. She decided to make another offer, this one had not already been sanctioned by her Lord but there was no question of its validity.

"If you wish, to hold negotiations with the NIO, I offer my flagship as neutral territory, I am certain that nobody present wishes for violence."

She ended the transmission and waited. Her fighter bombers and interceptors were launching in preparation, she wasn't sure what she was preparing for, but having them ready gave her options.

 

[Dracken Pryce]

SITREP: FUBAR
Objective 2 [Space & Shipyards]​

Allies: Liedran Kathause | Isla Draellix-Kobitana
Enemies: Caarlyle Rausgeber | Hiram Voss | @Albrecht F. Herloc

Galactic Alliance Common Soldier Corps - Kyprin Renegades
Location: Kuat Sector - Kuat System
Aboard the Kyprin Renegade

The Kyprin Renegade's bridge was buzzing with activity. The explosion had sent the fleets into chaos as reports from the ring flooded com officers. Originally brought in as part of the Alliance Emergency Response Fleet due to their proximity to Kuat, Pryce and his Renegades had been on their first shakedown run along the Corellian Trade Spine. He'd fought with the New Imperial Order throughout the Sith-Imperial Civil War. He had a lot of respect for most of the commanders and Admirals, but deep down he knew that once Irveric Tavlar died it would all come apart and the scum would rise to the surface. This was the product. This was the result.

"And now we're here," He muttered to himself as he stood over the command table. The bridge shook as the Kyprin Renegade's deflectors swallowed up the energy from a direct turbolaser blast from an Imperial vessel.

"What sir?" The holographic form of the ship's Virtual Intelligence blinked its cartoonishly large eyes at him before bouncing and taking human form.

"Nothing Miles." It had been so long since he was in the captain's chair of a warship. Was he getting cold feet? "What's the status of the fleet?"

"Pale Dawn and Here Be Dragons are both out of the fight. Engines gone, Pale Dawn only has one functional hangar left. They were taken out by some of the first volleys of fire." Pryce sucked his teeth as his eyes followed the blue and red triangles as ships moved positions. The opening stages of the battle had nearly led to a brawl. Only quick action from Pryce had pulled the Alliance vessels back into proper formations.

"Launch Swords one through four, have one and two dispatched to those carriers. See if any of the gunships can be pulled for extra screening duties. We're going to need those three hangars if this fight is anything like I think it'll be." The Kyprin Renegades were a numerous group. Over a dozen collective vessels. The only one that even came close to the firepower of a New Imperial Star Destroyer though was the Kyprin Renegade herself. They were a patrol group, a pacifying force. They were the stopgap the Alliance needed here at Kuat, but it wouldn't be long before the New Imperials started ripping through his fleet.

"Prep Fireteam Seabird and the Armored Cavalry. They might be seeing action after all. See if the Commodore needs additional support."

​

Galactic Alliance Common Soldier Corps - Kyprin Renegades
Location: Kuat Sector - Kuat System
Halcyon Launch Pod Bay 12 - Fireteam Seabird

"Listen, all's I'm saying is I wouldn't get with a Jedi!" Almerra rolled her eyes as the armorer spun her around and clamped the chest piece of her armor over her bodysuit. The other two on her team groaned as Lee began his age old defense of his dislike for Jedi women.

"They just get to caught up in the moment ya know? Most of 'em are celibate- Old religious tradition, so when you get one of 'em in bed they start sayin' the craziest shit. 'I love you' or 'thank you'" Lee cringed, as the helmet was slipped over his head and he was released. "And when you don't reciprocate they get angry. You ever seen a Jedi angry? Its a lot scarier than any Sithspawn." Almerra wondered if he knew how ill-informed he sounded. The Jedi had been breeding like rabbits since God knew when.

​

"We get it Lee, you pissed off some Jedi and she threw you out the window!" Lee snapped his head over at Chavez who'd cast the first stone.

"Then you get it!"

"No," Almerra said as she stepped down next to him, "That's just what happens when you try to use a lightsaber to-"

"OKAY! That's enough," said their commander. She'd just stepped off the armorer herself, but she'd taken her helmet off to speak to them all. That was one thing she liked about Gedri. Not looking at her face, definitely not that, though she'd heard some of the crew saying otherwise. No, it was the fierceness in her eyes before a battle, they all called it her Maul Face.

"We'll be dropping onto the ring soon. Not in, on. Likely to help GADF Army from getting blasted by the walkers and any other karking tricks the Imps have up their sleeves. We'll be running Rancor X-2." Lee whooped and Almerra couldn't help but keep back a smile. Rancor X-2 meant they were dropping with Colossus war droids which meant...

"Curb your enthusiasm Lee. Yes, we'll be going Rancor, but we're running defense this time. Nothing crazy, no heroics. At least not until we can confirm the civies are off our section of the ring. Brass up top's already not jizzed about fighting on the ring again so soon after it's been repaired. With the Maw out there and the other fleets still recovering from the War they'll need this ring running at full capacity." Gedri pressed a thumb to a weapons locker and the doors hissed, displaying the deadly weapons cache. Gedri smirked and picked up a heavy chain blaster and tossed it to Lee. He caught it with one hand and grunted.

"To make sure you remember that, you'll be humpin' that. Keep the pressure on when we land." With that the briefing was apparently over because Gedri snatched up a more compact heavy blaster rifle, stepped into her pod, and closed the door. Chavez ran by and slapped Lee on the shoulder.

"Thanks for that bud! I did it last time. Hope you have fun!" Almerra chuckled as she entered her own pod.

​

Galactic Alliance Common Soldier Corps - Kyprin Renegades
Location: Kuat Sector - Kuat System
Kyprin Reneagde Hangar 12
Aboard Nimbus-Class Gunship: Kakarot

​

Captain Morgan hummed and tapped a pair of drumsticks against the console as the Kakarot was loaded with fresh power cells and a couple of proton torpedoes. The music blared in his ears as the chaos of battle played out just outside of the containment field of the Kyprin Renegade's gunship hangar.

"No time to question my moves~ I stick to the path that I choohoose~!" His jam session was interrupted as he began to run a systems check for combat. "Hey!"

"It Launch Time," said a large four-armed cyborg holding his headset between two thick, red fingers. He was new to the crew and the big circular photoreceptor that the thing wore for an eye on its helmet always disturbed him. But he was a hell of a shot on the turret. A twi'lek squeezed by and plopped her ample bottom into the seat beside him.

"Ready cap'n?" Morgan shrugged and sighed before inputting the launch command. The Kakarot rumbled as its aging engines powered up and it flew into the stars. Captain Morgan lived for this. He was the captain of his very own ship. Had gone private after he retired from the GADF Navy and joined up with the Renegades just before the battle after a patrol stint in the Deep Core. If he could survive that hellhole of black holes and imploding stars he could do another battle with Imps.

 

[IVI]

-

-----BEGIN ENCRYPTION---
UGx1ZyuufEfPG+?P*>2F>
-----END ENCRYPTION-----

....displaying_transmission_OPERATION_HEARTSEEKER

:// O P E R A T I O N MUNDET: IRON_LADY
OUTGOING ENCRYPTED MESSAGE TO ALL SIA AGENTS INSTALLED ON KUAT
FWD REPORT FILE SIA/OPERATION/MUNDET_LOGHAIN/IRON_LADY

Lady Elane has been reintroduced from her exile to stake her rightful claim to Kuat. She has the Alliance's full endorsement to retake what was once hers.
Intelligence reports indicate that there are Loghain sympathizers and operatives intent on seeing that the Iron Lady does not have the chance to re-establish the Kuat of yore.

Ensure the rightful Lady of Kuat is protected. Keep her from the harm of the insurgents whatever the cost.

If you fail in your mission to protect the rightful heir to Kuat, inform IVI immediately.
License to Kill: Granted.​

Spoiler: SIA AGENTS TAG

Saul Colsan | Lyrrin | Boluc Laar

 

[Jordi Massad]

1st post
SCIMITAR
Objective 3: PEACE WALKER
COMPNOR

NIO: Kolson Vrask Don Belkora Rika Hiro Hal Vaiken
Nuruodo'kal'brast

Opposition: IVI

Jordi's Loadout
Rucksack
Disruptor Pistol
Kandaran-Durasteel Switchblade
Garotte Wire
Camcorder
Wall-Piercing Vocoder
Burner Datapad
Surveillance-Camera Jammer
Cigarettes
X3 Bacta-Patches

Briefcase
High-Powered Slug Sniper-Rifle
Adjustable Bipod
X4 Ammunition Clips
Long-Distance Binoculars
Night-vision/Thermal Goggles
X8 Sticky-Charges
X8 Detonators

PROLOGUE

Two Hours Before Pulsar's Arrival....​

In the Muntar basement-pub again, though Massad's entrance and welcome would be much warmer on his second visit, with a few faces from his first nodding with approachable smirks in complete contrast to the events that led to his established links with the namesake cartel who regularly met and gathered there. The atmosphere was completely different this time around, and with the obvious change in the tide in their favour considered, the greatly-anticipated return of Scimitar was proving to be yet another factor in the general excitement erupting all around the Kandaran in the moments following his quiet entry. All it took was a simply exclaimed,'Atrisian!', with a friendly wave in the old barman's direction, and the whole place began reverberating with cheers and outcries of,"Imperial!", and,"Scimitar!", alike; setting the tone for the rest of Jordi's visit, and by the way things were looking on the streets, setting the tone for the rest of his time on Kuat also.

'Its a genuine pleasure to see you again, you crazy bastard! Honestly, I have no idea how you managed it, but the Sorannis have splintered into separate factions since your,"Little", raid, by the way.... And since the media's been trying like bears to keep the details from surfacing, we know, and through that fact alone, that you did somethin' big over there. So spill it - that is, if it doesn't make you squeamish to recall it or nothin'!'

With hands up in playful surrender as they shared a kindly chuckle together, Jordi then leaned into the inside pocket of his leather jacket, pulling out a display-pad containing some of the footage COMPNOR had been able to pull from the Sorannis compound raid, then sliding it over to the old,"Barkeep", the Kandaran would begin to sip away at a glass of water that was slid his way almost an instant later. 'I think - the pleasure would be all mine on this occasion. Though I'll be the one to ponder over another's squeamishness this time, I'm sure you'll understand before long.', Jordi started, pausing to drink from his glass of ice-cold water and to the Half-Atrisian watch a few of the footage-snippets before proceeding again. Seeing the puffed lips of amazement and horror combined on his host's face, Scimitar continued,'Was a busy night, friend. Busier than what I normally work with, but no doubt something I would do again a thousand times over.', as his eyes briefly traced to the door as others were in that moment.

Sirens, but passing by in pursuit of someone else.

'Eeh, probably some street-gang shit... No consequence to us anyway! KEEP DRINKIN', WHATS THE MATTER WITH YOU PEOPLE?!?!? TOO SKITTISH TO RISE SLOW LIKE MEN, YA FAWKKIN' ASSWIPES?!?!?!'

Shouting at the other patrons with posture facing off to Jordi's right, it was clear to the Imperial that old gangsters were white-knuckling their luck as much as their younger street-thug counterparts, only they appeared to be doing so with a sense of style. Pulling personalized, custom-made blaster-pistols, sawn-off slug shotguns and disruptor-SMGs from under their seats in anticipation as the authorities sprinted past the Muntar basement pub with no regard to the place whatsoever in that moment. In the process of appraising the weapons he had caught a glimpse of, Massad leaned a little close to say,'Can't really give them flak for it, Taro. Cartels aren't ideally-equipped for the means to defy authority, only for the means to work their ways around it. Fighting is usually kept for the other gangs, remember? Besides, I've learned that the authorities are on Imperial payroll, so you're safe as long as you stick with me.', finishing his drink and sliding it over, receiving the display-pad soon after.

Good man! Anyway, Jordi.... It's not every day an Imperial shows up to turn the tide in our favour like that, even rarer knowing you're probably gonna do it again. So what I'm wondering now is, quite simply, how much your interference in our latest turf-war is going to cost us for this - both in monetary contributions and in warm bodies.'

'No-no, we still pay - but only if you declare for the Empire. That's all.', Jordi replied warmly, despite the harsh toning of his demand, hoping for a means to keep the Muntar as valuable, lasting playing-pieces to wage his own sort of war on the SIA. He knew this part of the ingratiation process would be the most difficult of all in most circumstances, but Jordi still had hope his acquaintance would see reason, and opportunity as he had before. Continuing on from his previous point, Massad advised,'Listen, as much as you hear about COMPNOR and the Empire - it is only ever the halfwits and the ingrates who suffer such ire. The Sorannis declared against us, outright declared they'd given the green-light on my colleagues.... You, however, did not - so do the right thing and take your place on my side of the line in the sand. At least on my side, you'll have every resource you could ever need for your gang-war and the rest of it.' trying one last time to bring the Muntar under Imperial influence.

'Oh, right! Shit, I forgot - I need to show you a little something I sent to the leaders of all the Former-Sorannis cartels.... Here, and read it out for the ladies and gents to hear. It's all news to them too.'

To the Leaders of the Scurrying Rats,
With regards From the Muntar,

It is with warmth in my heart that I announce this to you now, while the striking iron is still red-hot, that as soon as the Empire returns - I intend to declare fealty to the Empire.

The Muntar Cartel, as of tomorrow, will be an Imperial-aligned syndicate.

Your complete opposite, the other side of the balance you tried to set between us first. And never forget that fact, not while we still hunt you scumbags down like wild game. Your anti-Imperial sentiments painted targets on everyone's backs, and for your stupidity, your need to rail against authority, will be punished by the same streets that made you.

I am no target, I am thee target.

And the real target's an Imperial.​

With hatred, and spite,

From Toyotaro Muntar,
Landlord of the Namesake-Pub,
Leader of the Pub's Namesake-Cartel,

PS - Say your prayers, for I intend to go on the offensive as soon as confirmation of allegiance is given.

Good luck out there, it's obvious you're gonna need it.

Politely handing back Taro's datapad, Jordi would taste something different instead of water, but it was sweet enough to tell that it wasn't anything alcoholic, so the Kandaran kept drinking without complaint, but placed his glass back on the bar-counter and grimaced at the late realisation of what it was that the Half-Atrisian had actually done. The mention of painting targets on their back was making it worse, as the irony was appearing to be utterly lost on Taro in that moment, and such stupidity almost always enraged Massad to varying degrees of volatility. Jordi couldn't imagine why anyone would write about painting target's people's backs, especially not when Muntar himself was fully intending to paint one on his own in the end anyway, and this almost dismayed the Kandaran in that moment, but Jordi was point-blank refusing to let it affect him.

No point by then, not when gold could still be mined from the proverbial manure-pile that had been dumped on his lap.

'Well, I guess that answers that.... YOU IDIOT!!!!'

PART ONE

45 Minutes Before Pulsar's Arrival....​

'-SO, LONG STORY SHORT - YOU JUST INVOLVED EVERYONE WHEN QUIET ALLEGIANCE COULD'VE ASSURED YOUR VICTORY WITHOUT EVEN LIFTING A SINGLE MUSCLE!!!! WE HAD IT COVERED, YOU HALF-WIT!!!!'

After raging and arguing back and forth with a cartel leader, and with seeming impunity that none present would ever even dream of testing in that manner, the fizzling-out part of the arguments was finally underway - much to everyone's relief.

Everyone believed that Scimitar was capable of slaughtering everyone present, though even with everyone armed to the teeth, it wouldn't take long for the higher rungs of the Muntar gang to suffer severe, perhaps even irreparably-numerous losses before the bar's patrons could kill him properly. Otherwise, the Kandaran would've had every firearm on site pointing towards his head, and in the heat of his rage towards the Half-Atrisian, Jordi was almost completely unaware of it; at least, until tempers eventually simmered down between them, and only then did the risk of his raised temper register in his mind. Holding to his stance, though making sure to relax his posture and sit back down, Massad kept his eye-contact with the cartel leader and concluded,'Honestly, you have no idea how much work you've dumped on me because of this. I could've made this quiet, I could've raided their compounds when they were fully occupied and slaughtered every last one of them like before. None of them know what happened yet, I could've done this again and again and again.', appealing to Taro by then, relenting in plain sight of everyone.

'Fiiiine, fine.... But if it's any consolation - knowing the authorities are stayin' off our backs makes it all the easier to get involved.'

'Heh! Not much, but it helps.', Jordi said in kindly response, finishing yet another glass of watered berry-cordial as he weighed his words. However, something else sprung to mind when Massad was thinking of ways to make the day ahead a little easier for himself, remembering the Chiss operative who was meant to be meeting him there, checking his watch as the gangsters relaxed their postures all around him. Eye widening with relief, the Kandaran wheezed with mirth as he slammed on the bar-counter with an open palmed slap, continuing,'Besides, help is on the way.... I was deployed to the Ravelin Slums on Bastion after my first visit here, encountered this one under strenuous circumstances, and she certainly proved her merit then. An actual operator - one we need right now, I'm not joking.', after the laughter died off. It was time to consider all the playing-pieces by then, and this realisation was the cue the Kandaran needed to start making plans that fully involved the Muntar to his own great chagrin, vexed by the unavoidable but still willing to work with what he had.

'I can help too if ya want! My boys ain't no slouches when it comes to firefights, hitjobs and all the likes.'

The shadowy Zabrak's mob, roughly thirty in number (and all loyal to the Half-Atrisian) and armed to the teeth, were walking in with the wise-cracking bouncer in tow, with the scarred old Zabrak leading the procession of ultraviolent goons with an air of jesting grandeur.

'Could hear you from the parking-lot, Scimitar! Balls of steel, balls - of - steel! But I like your style, and I understand.'

Looking up to see what was going on, Taro would make almost instant eye-contact with his best underling, exclaiming,'Ah, finally here! Late as ever, you ugly fuck!', with the widest smile that Jordi had seen on him yet. The old cartel leader had hope in his heart, but the Imperial still wasn't there with his hopes yet, just another one of those things that would serve as fuel in the planning process; for which, Massad was already snatching up napkins and the notepad behind the bar to start contextualising the sheer weight of intel he had to strategize with this time around, all of which was both in the memory-banks of his brain and on the datapad he had brought with him. There were four or five cartel-compounds that were to be raided if the Kandaran had any hopes of assuring the Muntar's and his colleagues' safety, but if this was to paint a target on Taro's back as Jordi suspected, there were possible additions to expect as the day progressed.

'I appreciate it, Briis. I could use some competence around here, so any and all killers are welcome at the moment. I think your mob are better served sticking with me, we're raiding together - with help we're waiting on now.... An operator, one I can easily vouch for.'

 

[Don Belkora]

DON BELKORA
COMPNOR
KUAT OP

​

Far away from the urban chaos of unrest, a Tetan fellow made himself comfortable in a bar overlooking the turbulent capital of Kuat, which beheld itself to a never-ending cycle of violent upheaval and riots, owed in part to the radical Senator Longhain and some outside 'interference'. Elements and assets had been deployed piecemeal in the weeks before and during the start of the violence, now with the Alliance deploying measures to protect the peace and attempting to reinstate Longhains predecessor, Elane of Kuat. But Belkora and his colleagues had other plans in mind.


"One more for me."

Belkora signalled the bartender, swivelling in his seat and leaning against the bar as he watched the views below. He was flicking the ash of his cigarra into his ashtray before taking another drag, exhaling smoke out from his nose as he kept himself to himself in the bar. All he had to do was wait; time was his ally, it always had been; time was a cruel mistress to some and a saviour to others. Imperial assets were in place to remove Elane, and he only had to wait until the confirmation that the act was done, and then his men would pull the operatives out.

Easily done.

Hit jobs were an art form within itself, if you rushed the piece, it was bound to fail and be imperfect, but just the right amount of time and dedication and the end result would always be just right.
Hal Vaiken Jordi Massad

 

[Volgin Alto]

M A U L E R
NEW IMPERIAL ORDER
501st STORMTROOPER LEGION
SCAR SQUADRON
Armor [Modified] | Heavy Repeater | Pistol
NIO | Hal Vaiken | Atticus Draco | Lily Stevens
GA | Traden Avarice | Monos | Phaineve Halseigh | Zav Traros | Keiran Varn

EASY PREY
​

The tension weighed heavy in the air. All the lesser experienced big army troopers barking orders at one another and scrambling from patrol point to another were all clearly letting it get to them. It was a different fight, one somehow more stressful than the crusade they waged against the Maw. Any wrong move made here could brew consequences far past their imagining.

None of the stress seemed to weigh a damn thing on Alto. He'd been at the razor's edge several times before, scraping too close to death in his developing years to sway when he looked it in the eyes now. For all his gargantuan stature in his modified Tenebrae armor, he was within the calm before the storm. He was after all, a warfighter and more often than not, a leader and able to keep his cool when he needed to.

And drop the hammer when the time came all the same.

That time was going to be soon, an explosion rocked the dock. This was it.

He immediately knew it didn't matter who or what was responsible, lives were going to be lost if they weren't already.

Good.

Time to maul.

He was back to being a subordinate again, plucked from the 8th Airborne 'All-Imperial' and his position as a team leader to serve in the experimental unit. He didn't mind the demotion of duties, it was easier to be point and led than to follow, especially with how Mauler conducted himself.

"Colonel, Mauler - that blockade needs to go."

He nodded once, wordlessly and pulled the heavy repeater from the sling across his back, taking the weapon into his hands, cracking open the breach to check the ammo count of the gun's power back before closing it up again with the hum of the weapon priming back to life and readiness once more. He then broke from cover, the man's profile immediately drawing fire from GADF troopers as blaster bolts splashed against his thickened, Beskar reinforced hide.

A silence gasp ripped the air before it cracked into a rip of blaster fire from the business end of the repeater, golden projectiles shrieking out as he fanned the weapon at his hip like a reaper's scythe only to leave five of them dead and the rest of those began to retreat down the corridor with Volgin's slow advance, each heavy footfall sending a metallic thud in his wake before he was able to snatch ahold of a marine, the visor peering back toward the mauler in different defiance as he pulled a blaster pistol to Mauler's face and began to fire.

Letting the heavy repeater hand loose by its sling, Volgin took the man up by the face and proceeded to slam him repeatedly into the wall behind him, his strength modified by both the Adekon nano gene and his armor's power-armored servos allowing for the feat as the once defiant marine's heady and armor was brought to the metal wall with a violent crack...again...and again before screams of pain turned to nothingness and blood trickled from the marine's helmet, the Mauler dropping him to the floor before taking the heavy repeater into his hands again.

 

[CH3]

REBEL RISING
ALLIANCE SAFE HOUSE - KUAT CITY

Rebel Alliance | IVI
Jordi Massad | Don Belkora | Kolson Vrask | NIO

__ INITIATIVE SYSTEM BOOT __

A dark monocle photoreceptor came online and immediately adjusted to the ambient light. The physical environment was translated into digital information and transferred to a processor for analysis. The results were conclusive - a dark and shabby residential unit occupied by a number of armed sentients. Maps and diagrams on the walls matched those on record of Kuat City.

Aural sensors came online next and calibrated themselves to the acoustic environment. The Kuati dialect was dominant in the inhabitants of the domicile, corroborating the location as Kuat. Other voices attributed to humans and a variety of other species were registered. Their main topic of discussion - the ascension of Elane of Kuat to the thrown of Kuat.

The results of a physical diagnostic were added to the processing queue. Electrons fired through circuits and wires with carefully curated test data, which was compared against the baseline on returning to the central unit. No loss of data was detected. All systems were fully operational, with consumables and power cells at full capacity.

With no critical faults detected, the processor loaded its purpose for being, the hardwired reason for its existence.

__ PRIMARY DIRECTIVE: COMPLETE ALL ASSIGNED LOGISTICAL TASKS __

The droid attempted to connect to the master control network to receive its tasking schedule. The list of duties would continually refresh throughout the day as new taskings were assigned and priorities changed. The network connected and a single data packet was downloaded and executed. Rather than provide a job to complete, the line of code activated a dormant subroutine buried in the droid's processor.

__ NEW DIRECTIVE: DESTABILISE THE NEW IMPERIAL ORDER __

A data stream quickly followed, providing background details on the Cold War between the Galactic Alliance and the New Imperial Order, the history of Kuat’s regency with emphasis on Elane and Loghain, and the charter of an organisation known as the Rebel Alliance, which was secretly funded and publicly disavowed by the Alliance.

__ UP TIME: 0.0034 SECONDS __

CH3 was fully operational faster than it took the standard human to blink.

The modified worker droid crossed the room toward Elane of Kuat and the members of the Rebel Alliance. “We must depart,” CH3 explained, its vocabulator glitching slightly as it self-tuned during its first use since manufacture. Details of the mission downloaded off the Rebel holonet - Elane must speak at a rally for her supporters within the hour, encouraging them to march on the capital to overthrow Julius Loghain. “Law enforcement reports indicate heightened civil disobedience near the rally.”

CH3 grabbed a carbine from atop a crate of weapons and checked the blaster's charge. The droid snapped the blaster up into the firing position to test its servos before lowering the weapon. “Extreme caution must be exercised.”

“Failure is not an acceptable mission parameter.”

 

[Kolson Vrask]

G R U N G E
NEW IMPERIAL ORDER
IMPERIAL ARMY SPECIAL FORCES 'STORM COMMANDOS'
1st GROUP | OPERATIONAL DETACHMENT ALPHA 'VANDAL'
ODA ATTACHED TO | IMPMAG in support of KPF
Armor | Rifle | Pistol | Grenades
NIO | Jordi Massad | Don Belkora | Rika Hiro | Karissa Saitel | Iseri Tanaka
RA | CH3 | IVI

DEATH SQUAD
COMPNOR-IMPAF JOINT OPERATION 'RIGHTEOUS CLAIM'
KUAT '74
​

The doomsday clock was nearing midnight. The great union of the Galaxy was threatening to unravel it all once more on Kuat. It was back to the core of the Imperial Army's Special Forces unit's primary mission.

Unconventional warfare. The Stormtrooper Corps were the best grunts around, the sledgehammer on the neck. But Kuat was a far more delicate operation. The Iron Sun couldn't be so easily flashed with the backing of the heavy metal of Imperial Armor in an all out assault of the world. They had to drop into the heart of the Alliance, minimal support and resources, no nine-line to pull them from the shit at a moments notice and no dispersion of accountability back unto High Command. All eyes were on them. They were alone in the Wolf's Den and had to flip one planet against the might of a Galactic Superpower- and win. Many would make excuses, many would choke and yelp at the prospect of such an operation.

To Grunge?

Finally a good fucking mission.

The Storm Commandos had gotten far too used to being shock troops, force multipliers embedded into Stormtrooper Battalions as they went about conventional operations. As effective and lethal as ever, it wasn't why they were the best. They relished the opportunity.

Vandal was back to being a fully capable force of pipefitters once again following a well-needed rebuild and reload after their unit was all but KIA on Nirauan save for the very man who would lead them into the fray once more. They'd been in Kuat City, evading SIA surveilence as they armed and trained militants of the Kuati Patriotic Front for the Night of the Gullotine and for when the moment came of Loghain's succession.

He finally began to sing the song- now the orchestra had to play their music.

As he looked over the mission intel, it all aligned into conditions far too ideal to let slip away, Kolson thought. The Alliance- in all their folly loved a good symbolic victory. Thus, they needed the optics of the Queen in-exile of Kuat returning to claim her throne by force. It was something the Empire was familiar with. Irveric Tavlar kicked down the doors to Fortress Carnifex, Lucien Dooku raised the Iron Sun over Serenno and Rurik Fel broke the siege of Ravelin all themselves leading the charge.

But there was a crucial difference to Vrask. They were men among men. Warrior Kings, killers in their own right. That was who rose to power in the Empire, those who'd gotten their hands dirty before and would do it again. The Alliance? The Galactic Elite did everything in their power to keep their hands clean and glad-hand their way into popularity and power- preying on insecurities, false virtues and fabricated divisions to draw their troglodyte electorate out to the polls so they could better sell themselves to the right private interests.

Maybe it was the constant war, the burning of most all personal attachment that jaded him so much to be politically vehement on the side of the nation he killed for- or maybe it was all a round about justification to place himself in someone else's home to nudge the scales in deciding how they live their lives.

In the end, he didn't care. He wanted the rush of combat again.

​

Vandal was in position, donning the generic 'Defiance' pattern combat dress dolled out to the KPF upon their arrival, fitted with special heads up display goggles that matched the uplink of the Storm Commando helmets they were well used to donning in operation. To the untrained eye, they were just a better cut of KPF's paramilitary force. In truth, battle-hardened Imperial Army operators fresh from the meatgrinder of the Second Hyperspace War. Soon enough, Elane Kuat was due to give a speech before the masses, to announce her return as rightful sovereign of Kuat.

Her claim to the throne wouldn't survive the night.

KPF had stirred the masses into civil unrest, making it a difficult task for the Rebel Alliance or whatever law enforcement entities they could rally to ensure each protection was in place for the Queen.

In the end, they were within eyesight of the venue holed up in the third floor of a building adjacent to where Kuat was supposed to take the stage. But they were supposedly 'B-Team' for a plot mainsailed by COMPNOR Agents, particularly 'Lady Silence', Asa Yubari.

He didn't like the dynamic, much preferred when they were the ones pipehitting but worst comes to worst, they could take the shot themselves.

A fireteam of them, Grunge, Priest and Salvo were ready and waiting before Grunge patched through to their COMPNOR assets to touch base and insure the aces were in their places. But of course, though the actions of Iseri Tanaka prior to the Night of the Guillotine meant they had reins over Kuat's comm network, Grunge was veiled in his communications.

<"Rook in position, the Queen will be taking the stage shortly- t-minus five minutes. Assume positions by then. Soon as she starts to sing, Silence needs to get a move and hell needs to break loose."> Grunge said, referring to his fireteam by their unmarked operation designation.

 

[Madelyn Lowe]

​

Undisclosed Offices,
Kuat

Aerarii Tithe | The Arbiter | Auteme | Rurik Fel | RIP Carlyle Rausgeber​

Had she not warned them? Had she not said exactly what would happen if the Alliance used a heavy hand? Things were playing out exactly as she had predicted, and Madelyn was dragged along with them for another stage, going in to clean up the mess.

Madelyn missed when people used to listen to her.

Unlike her last meeting, Madelyn was early, having made travel arrangements to the Kuat system the moment the disastrous senate committee was dismissed.

And so here they were. The senate delegation was to meet over commlink with New Imperial representatives, so far slated to be Carlyle Rausgeber and Emperor Rurik Fel, and attempt to negotiate a de-escalation on Kuat. From the reports she had heard, it was probably too late for that. Things were already unravelling.

The question of the day, then, was whether or not they could do anything to prevent outright war. Their situation was all the more precarious since the declaration of independence and the Alliance's intervention. Madelyn was sure neither side wanted war just yet, but if the New Imperials overplayed their hand, if the Alliance dug in their heels a little too much, war was what they'd have.

She had dressed modestly for the occasion, with a dark and heavy coat accentuated by Castell's crest on a silver lapel pin. Her hair was tied behind her head, and a series of screens and documents were arrayed in front of her. The conference room, set within a block of offices on Kuat, had been arranged for senators arriving in person, with holoprojectors set up for both the New Imperial delegates and senators calling in to give the illusion of an in-person meeting.

For the moment, however, Madelyn sat alone. An aide stood at the door, with soldiers patrolling the outer corridors. She rubbed her eyes. Her first week had supposed to be speeches, commemorations and cabinet meetings, not this unmitigated disaster.

As one, the holoprojectors turned out, glowing with a faint blue hue, signalling that the meeting was mere minutes away. Madelyn fiddled with the equipment on her desk, entirely sure what, or who, to expect.

 

[Hiram Voss]

The Veteran
NIV Imperatores Pax
Task Force Brutus
Kuat System
Dracken Pryce | Kathryn Foster
Albrecht F. Herlock ​

Hiram's foot tapped impertinently against the deck plating. His mind wandered to what needed to be done. What further objectives and preparation had to be formed before what Hiram conceived to be the beginnings of the New Imperial occupation of Kuat. His eyes wandered around the deck, to the scores of technicians on deck, working to secure orbit. The gargantuan Rampart-Class Dreadnought, NIV Imperatores Pax stood as the flagship of a large fleet formation. The first of which to arrive to Kuat, for the sole purpose of establishing a cordon. Of course, the Galactic Alliance had cobbled together a strike force to abate the New Imperial invasion. But, should COMPNOR and ISB do their work, as far as the Vice-Admiral was concerned, Kuat would be theirs before the day was out. "Cigarette sir?" Hiram's incessant tapping stopped, as he turned to assess his Executive Officer, Commodore Hadrian Boars. Who bore on his face a chit eating grin. Of course he was trying to quit, and this prick. Knew he wanted to quit, and kept flaunting it. Arrogant sunuvabitch. Boars retracted the pack having taken a roll, "I think you need to calm down sir. All due respect." Boars lit up, and eyed the man. "It's the Alliance. They're a pack of pussies. They do anything, we'll crush them. Wouldn't be surprised if Loghain's already close to victory."

Hiram huffed, which sounded more like the growling of a lothcat. "Talking like that gets a man killed." Hiram drawled, crossing his arms. "These Alliance types are crafty." Voss mused, "Insidious, even. With how when you think you have them against a wall, choking out, they'll find a way to surprise you." The Vice-Admiral turned to the crewpit, "Ensure we keep a loose perimeter. Make sure our flyboys don't stray too close to their guns." Voss commanded, his voice tired. Haggard even. He sneered as Boars took a drag, until something shook the vessel. A single quaking. Hiram turned to the viewport and watched as a Star Destroyer detonated. "Those fucking assholes...." He grunted. He knew there were loose cannons among Alliance types. Simple farmboys and farmgirls who took themselves a little too seriously. But this? This was a slight. This was a declaration. There was no way anyone on his side would have ordered this.

"Activate the KriegsGeist!" Voss barked, as the alarms began blarring, and fire began to peter against the Rampart-Class. "Raise shields. Call back the fighters, and move into defensive positions!" The Vice Admiral ordered, sending the bridge into a flurry, "Begin Comms Disruption! I don't want them talking to anyone!" The Vice-Admiral ordered. Technicians sprung into action as the TIE fighters were recalled back to defensive range. Voss looked to Boars, who had moved to set himself at the gunnery station. "Hold, Commodore!" Voss barked, "I am not, I repeat not, going to repeat Kaeshana!" Hiram licked his lips, "We can't just, shoot yet." Voss paused, "Get me a comm line, set out to the enemy flag."

There was a nod, and the comms table opened, allowing for Voss to key in the access codes, "Hold the comms block, till I get a line on what happened!" He then took a step back, and waited for the green light to click. He was on. "Listen, this is Vice-Admiral Hiram Voss, of the New Imperial Navy," Voss began, "I don't know who did this. Who decided to be the freak who did that, but, I think we should talk a little about this." Voss licked his lips. He was a short, stocky man. Aged, and bald. With a grizzled white beard. And cold eyes. "I am not a rash man. And what happens today, will change the course of history." Voss proclaimed in a tense, and even voice. "I have my orders to ensure the safety of Kuat and its people today, with no intention of starting a war." Hiram continued, glaring at the camera, "But if what happened down there is yours. And you firing at us is a follow up, than that is what it is. A declaration of war." He could feel his foot begin to tap, and his fingers begin to fiddle once more. "So be prepared to bear that burden of thousands dead."

It was one helluva week to try to quit smoking.

 

[The Arbiter]

OBJECTIVE 1: A THIN LINE
Aerarii Tithe Madelyn Lowe Auteme Jaeger Harrsk RIP Carlyle Rausgeber

The doors slid open as The Arbiter drifted into the meeting room, accompanied by a squad of four Elite Guardians which remained at the door. Her eyes glowed white as she corresponded with the Lujian military as well as various vendors and companies which had been negotiating their fleet's development from the now volatile Kuat. It was a complete mess for the Alliance as well as for Lujo's interests.

She stoically glanced over at the only other member currently in the room, Madelyn Lowe , giving her a curt nod.

"Ms. Lowe…" Her voice was deeper and more monotoned in its nature.

She pulled one of the chairs to the side, sitting down and then brought herself to the table.

"Unfortunate…" she stated plainly regarding their current predicament and all that had transpired so incredibly poorly.

The Arbiter was worried about Tiresh Kobitana-Draellix as she had not heard from the Senator in a few days. Ever since the escalation of events, she would have assumed for it to have been the Senator herself sitting at this table, not her. She decided to send a discrete message to Isla Draellix-Kobitana in the moment, as she knew the two had been in ongoing conversations regarding the Kobitana Foundation and that Tiresh considered her to be a good friend. The communication simply and politely inquired to as whether the Prime Minister had received any contact from the senator recently, or if perhaps she might know of the Senator's whereabouts.

 

[Prefsbelt Commander]

THE INQUISITOR
Special Agent Andreas Beckett
NIV Imperatores Pax
Kalie Alverez

​

Andreas Beckett starred at the datapad with some trepidation. His tired eyes glossing too and fro as he examined the data. Flipping through the photos and wincing. “How can something so small, cause so much damage?” Beckett mused, before then physically cringing at the image of Rausgeber’s face. He looked up, “That’s the Admiral Regent?” There was a slow nod from the Stossjaegers.

Andreas shook his head. Unbelievable. “I don’t see why you called me,” Beckett drawled, putting the datapad down opposite him. The waiting room, if you could even call it that, was cold and sterile. Only the droll sound of the air filtering ducts filled the emptiness. He then hoisted his caf mug up from the metallic table, and eyed his fellow occupants. Two Stossjaegers. Members of Rausgeber’s private division. “If the Admiral wants this thing dead, he should do it himself. Not call me.” His gaze then turned to the third man, Technical Officer Luis Carreda, “Couldn’t you just shoot it, and if you’re right, scan the data banks?”

Carreda, leaning against the caf machine shook his head. “No can do sir. With droids like this. The way they’re programmed, is for deep cover.” Carreda explained, “Most of the time, without even knowing they are a droid. If we were to say…” He paused, “Blast. Cut. Try to extract components from circuitry, algorithms inside might delete anything. Brick the whole system.”

Beckett sighed. He’d been woken up at 0300 Bastion Eastern Standard time, and shuffled onto a shuttle. Bound for an oncoming warzone for this. It wasn’t exactly panning out to be the best day for him. “Why are we so gungho on the droid theory?” Beckett inquired, “She could be a cyborg? Implants? Whose to say she isn’t some super soldier the Alliance had watching Loghain?” He inquired, “Some poor girl, more machine than woman?” He offered.

One of the soldiers spoke up, the junior of the three. Private Parvati Mor’shah. “Medic told us otherwise. Said when she tried to sanitize the wound around the eye, there was a lotta metal.” Mor’Shah explained, as Beckett took a sip from his mug. “It’s too dense for alloys used, unless we’re talking total reconstructive surgery.” The Pa’Deshi born soldier explained. “Kind of surgery that would rule out someone from military duty.” Andreas nodded, and made note of it.

“And I’m assuming, you’ve done blood work, to indicate she’s no Jedi?” Another nod to Beckett’s questions. He sighed, taking another sip from his caf, before placing it down. “So, you need me to talk this thing, into knowing it’s a droid, without performing too much damage?” There was a murmur of agreement, followed by sheepish nods. “Great.” Andreas sardonically sighed, “Are ISB in on this? Does COMPNOR know what happened?” There was a pause, and the chief Stossjaeger spoke up.

“No sir.” The Stossjaeger stepped in. Major Kragan Hess, a thirty year veteran of the corps. “We took aside SCAR, swore them to secrecy. COMPNOR has no clue about this.” He then paused, and glanced at the others, “Grand Admiral doesn’t know either.” Beckett quirked a brow, and starred at the older man. “He’s livid over this thing and what it did to ‘im. If he doesn’t know it feels pain. Doesn’t know suffering, then, he’ll find another outlet.” Hess assessed, “And that typically is not a pretty thing to see.”

Beckett then put the mug down, and straightened his tie. “So basically, you want me to get inside this things head. Make sure it doesn’t delete anything pertinent. And then also avoid the risky proposition of having an irate sadist turn his attentions to you?” Another cautious nod from the assembled soldiers. “Well, as I explained before, when I give the signal, you come in. Do your business.” He paused, “But until then, get the syringe, and we’ll go see this thing.” Andreas stood up, straightened his tie, and ran his hands down his suit. All in a days work.

The cell door opened with a hiss, letting some lighting in. Before then a click, followed by the flickering and lighting. Kallie Alverez was strapped to a chair, at an interrogation table. In a spartan room, with only one chair opposite her. Andreas stepped into the fold, followed by the Stossjaegers. “Miss Alvarez,” Andreas began, “I am Special Agent Andreas Beckett. Naval Intelligence.” He began. “But for the purposes of this investigation I am Supervising Investigative Agent. Fellow SIA if you will.” He offered with a wry smile, before settling opposite her. He was dressed like a businessman. Black suit. Beige and brown tie. With a New Imperial pin on the left lapel.

The Stossjaegers circled the table, and stood behind Alverez. Before jabbing the syringe into her neck, “I do apologize Miss Alverez, but I rather prefer my subjects not to be in extreme pain while talking. My associates here have just injected you with a revolutionary painkiller. Developed by Prefsbelt Command. Once saw a man have his leg amputated while wide awake with this.” Beckett chortled, “Not that I am sadistic enough to fall to such matters, no.” He shook his head and paused, allowing for the two Stossjaegers to depart the cell, “Look, I’m not the one to lie to you.” Beckett informed her, “The Admiral Regent, the man you hideously disfigured, he wants you dead. Dead as dead can be.” Beckett paused, “And there’s honestly very little we can do to abate that. He is the sort of man, whom if he wants you dead, you will die. Except, for one thing, which maybe I can spin to sate his rage.”

“If you, Miss Alverez, are forthcoming in answering my questions, I think case can be made to have your imminent death sentence commuted.” He pursed his lips, “Perhaps even, a swap of some kind.” Beckett then shrugged, "But that, Miss Alverez, is all up to you."

 

[Kalie Alverez]

Prefsbelt Commander​

The metal chair felt cold against her body. All she could do was stare up at the ceiling through her one good eye, her face scrunched in a deeply perplexed expression. She had found a discolored spot up there through the darkness as her eyesight had adjusted to the pitch black room, and her gaze had not shifted for at least an hour as she sat there and waited, her mind replaying the events of the day over and over again in her head like a broken record.

The more she concentrated on what had happened, the more confused she felt. The more upset she became. How come nothing is making sense? Why were all the pieces just a heaped up mess on the floor? What had that awful man… Caarlyle Rausgeber … done to her? She couldn't see out of the damaged eye. Her body told her that she was in pain, but she couldn't shake that moment of complete disconnection that she had experienced.

"I want to be…. Your river… You're ever after…." She sang the words quietly to herself from a song she had written years ago as a teenager. Her voice quivered as a tear rolled down her cheek,

"Drink of me… I won't taste bitter… We'll bathe in laughter…" She sniffed as all the emotions of fear, confusion, and hopelessness mixed together with a deep longing for all of her cousins… her aunts… uncles…

She missed her mother terribly… Her father as well… It had been… 15 years?

"For ever after… We'll be together…" her voice was now barely audible as she muttered out the final words to the chorus, her eyes still focused intently on that spot on the ceiling. Her thoughts drifted to Isla Draellix-Kobitana , hoping she had gotten her assets from the planet in time before everything went to chit. Hoping by some miracle she would come to her rescue against all odds. Knowing that, most likely, the Calvary wasn't coming.

She was alone.

She heard the door open. Suddenly bright light flickered on in the room, forcing Kalie to slam her eyes shut from the brightness. She did not attempt to look to see who was in the room with her. Part of her expected at any moment for the light to go to dark… for a shot of Lazer fire to ring out and end her life. She clenched her teeth tightly together, staring at the back of her eyelids… awaiting whatever was about to happen next.

But to her surprise, a rather collected voice introduced himself to her. He was apart of their intelligence agency… which was not good at all. If she wasn't dead already, it meant they wanted something from her. Her teeth continued to grind together as she started to gently hum the melody of the song again.

Bring on the torture.

Fuck.

She felt the presence of soldiers moving in behind her, which caused her to close her eyes even tighter and brace herself for the imminent pain soon to come. But all that she felt was the jab of a needle and the commentary about how it was some kind of pain reliever. She breathed in sharply, keeping her eyes closed. The pain did seem to reside slowly, especially around her eye. She finally opened her eye, blinking to try to adjust to the light. She looked at the man who was seated in front of her, trying to place him from a database in her mind, but nothing registered. She stared blankly at the man as he reassured her that he would not attempt to saw her limbs off… emphasizing that he was not the sadistic type.

In Kalie's experience, the sadistic type were always the ones to claim that they were not the sadistic type.

She rolled her eyes.

"Look, I'm not the one to lie to you." Beckett informed her, "The Admiral Regent, the man you hideously disfigured, he wants you dead. Dead as dead can be." Beckett paused, "And there's honestly very little we can do to abate that. He is the sort of man, whom if he wants you dead, you will die. Except, for one thing, which maybe I can spin to sate his rage."

Ok… that was confusing… I mean, she did shoot him in the face… so she could relate to the whole… being upset part… but if he wanted her dead he should have just killed her in the first place. Why did he go through all the trouble of making her into some kind of superhuman… unless it wasn't him…

But if it wasn't him… and it wasn't the NIO… then who did this to her??

"If you, Miss Alverez, are forthcoming in answering my questions, I think case can be made to have your imminent death sentence commuted." He pursed his lips, "Perhaps even, a swap of some kind." Beckett then shrugged, "But that, Miss Alverez, is all up to you."

"Lets be honest with each other… since you are not one to lie, then let's cut the bullchit. There is no way I am leaving NIO custody alive."

Her tone was sharp and venomous. She had been an agent long enough to know how these scenarios played out. Something was off about this whole thing. This wasn't some standard interrogation… they needed something from her… or they wanted something...

"I give you what you want, you kill me. I don't, you torture me. I know the drill, so let's just get on with it. No need for charades."

 

[Aerarii Tithe]

SUNK COSTS
CHANCELLOR’S SUITE // CORUSCANT

ASSETS: Auteme | Madelyn Lowe | The Arbiter | GA
LIABILITIES: Rurik Fel | Caarlyle Rausgeber | Konrad Harrsk | NIO

An otherwise unremarkable briefing room was slowly filled by a delegation of Galactic Alliance Senators, selected for their experience, knowledge, and negotiating experience. A trio of Strategic Intelligence Agency technicians made the final adjustments to a piece of technology that was placed in the centre of the table, a device that few outside the Chancellor’s inner circle even knew about, let alone had seen.

The Iron Comlink.

A direct line of communication between the two most powerful governments in the galaxy. A means for the Chancellor and Imperator to steer the course of history. An unholy union between the SIA and COMPNOR to build a device unable to be sliced by anyone in the galaxy, themselves included. A simple tool that had toppled old empires and built new ones, averted economic disasters and reformed the galaxy to their will.

An instrument that would again avert open war between the Starbird and the Iron Sun.

“Please hold for the Chancellor,” explained Rieki into the device. Tithe’s astute human-replica droid had taken over running his office, the position of senior chief of staff suddenly becoming vacant the day after the vote on the SILK Trade Route Bill. Sources blamed the unannounced outing on a failure to sure up the expected support for the proposal.

“Let them have the first spike, or, whatever the ahh, sporting analogy is,” Tithe explained. “Not really my forte. Yes, now Kuat. Kuat is an Alliance world, first and foremost. See what Fel is willing to give for his precious ships.” Strategists from across the Core has been flown in to devie a negotiating strategy, a surefire way for the Alliance to bargain exactly what it wanted.

But Tithe had been in enough hostile takeovers to know that even the best-laid plan went out the door the moment your competitors started talking. “And no matter happens - and I want you to remember this - stick together. I can’t emphasise that enough. If they split us up, if they drive us apart… it’ll be over before it starts.”

Thankfully, the Iron Comlink was not the only channel of communication the Chancellor was engaged in.

“This position is unenviable.” Text appeared on the inside of Tithe’s data goggles, invisible to outside observers. The Aargauun’s eyes darted back and forth, translating into text by the goggles then beamed out via the Trade Federation Holonet to his fellow Directors, Gat Tambor key among them. If he could resolve this unfortunate situation through back channels, the posturing at Kuat may be avoidable. “Our mandate in the Senate has proved profitable. Losing the Core is not sustainable longterm.”

 

[Atticus Draco]

INSIDE THE SHIPYARDS
KNIGHT-COLONEL | 501st ATTACHE
IMP.KNIGHT PATTERN ARMOUR | LIGHTSABERS
SCAR SQUADRON: Hal Vaiken Volgin Alto Lily Stevens
WAR HOGS: Traden Avarice Phaineve Halseigh Zav Traros Monos

The Emperor willed it and so he would obey.

Wordlessly taking in minute changes as soon as they appeared, Draco watched impassively as Secessionists engaged with the Defense Forces. Rebellious entities backed by the Empire's own munitions. So boldly standing against their federal government, it made the events of infiltrating almost pointless.

Left with only their previous orders, the devolution of the situation allowed for some leeway, and Atticus' head snapped in the direction of Vaiken, the special operative that re-focused the unit to the task at hand.

Volgin leapt over, but the Knight lingered. "The Destroyer's systems will have to be slaved after its undocked." He had no illusions that with the escalation of battle on the Shipyards, the Imperials had the choice of winning, or death and capture. Securing Kuat was a losing fight the Force and common sense suggested, but succeeding in their objective was an entirely different matter. "Secure the entry point once the redoubt is broken."

The White Cloak leapt over the barricade, following in the wake of the silent Mauler, his palmed saber was clenched tightly.

In a second, he was further ahead, plunging his saber through the sternum of a Marine. A three centimeter wide hole burned through his chest plate, protruding out the other side, and with a shift and pivot, Atticus' saber chopped down. Flicking out of the body of his first victim before cleaving through the arm of the next, and arced back in to bisect them at the midsection. Hands released their weapons, grasping at themselves, at him, but he stepped past the corpses as he shot a hand out.

For a moment, he stared at the retreating backs of the troopers, before his digits curled into his palm. At his actions, the Force obeyed. First, gripping them in place, a breathtaking hush expanding around them as once fleeing troopers froze. And then the screams of pain as the Knight's fist balled them up in similar fashion. As force was applied, the armour bent beneath the overwhelming pressure, crushing inwards on its occupants. The weakest of them contorted and collapsed without a word. Others lasted longer, screaming as blood seeped through the gaps of their bodysuits and plates before they too were silenced.

A mess of pulpy blood, bone, and whatever-plast.

"We'll push them to the next Redoubt," he said to no one in particular. But, in his proximity was Mauler. And he knew the trooper would follow.

Now, it was all a matter of buying time, he suspected.

For the Empire.

 

[Karissa Saitel]

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/916099948024565781/929705073519493140/Kuat_3.jpg

OBJECTIVE: PEACEWALKER
CODENAME: SHIV
IMPERIAL SECURITY BUREAU
EQUIPMENT: SBG-01x Bodyglove | civilian clothes | ACS-208 Wrist Ion Beamer |
BH-Specter Slicer Vibroknife | BH-Durin Charric Blaster Pistol

NIO | Jordi Massad | Don Belkora | Rika Hiro | Kolson Vrask | Iseri Tanaka
RA/GA | CH3 | IVI

​

She had been eyes and ears for weeks. It had been imperative that Karissa appear nothing more than a citizen caught in the crossfire. While COMPNOR agents fomented dissent, others served as sabatuers, the First Order agent-turned ISB operative code named Shiv was the innocuous observer, keeping a finger on the pulse of the populace, identifying pro-democracy influencers, and trying to discern the Alliance's machinations. Such work was inglorious and chafingly boring, but nonetheless vital to the Imperator. Eventually, things heated up. The "Peacekeepers" came to begin their campaign against secession and then the fleets came. It was all coming to a fiery nexus as Elaine was delivered by the Alliance to usurp leadership.

Now that chaos had ensued and the political crisis threatened war, Karissa, along with Iseri Tanaka , had been temporarily assigned to assist an IMPAF team. Their target, Elaine, the "Iron Lady". Her establishment as ruler over Kuat would solidify the GA's claim over the system, and the loss of NIO assets.

Iseri had hacked the comm network the night before to gain control over communications. Karissa had kept a close eye on Elaine and her entourage, feeding intel to the IMPMAG squad leader, Grunge. She had, of course, never made direct contact with the team since their arrival, though she had kept an eye on them as well, from afar.

It was not difficult to remain inconspicuous anymore, not with the streets teaming with agitated citizens, at least those strong political types throwing fervent support behind one side or the other. Karissa leaned against the corner of an ally. She was dressed as a working class soul, simple, clothing with little color, her hair down, pretending to drink a bottle of cheap ale and watching the shenanigans. A small earpiece hidden by dirty blonde hair transmitted surprisingly clear audio of a conversation. Across the street and down a ways, a micro-droid hovered silently by the outer wall of a building. A hypersensitive sensor probe pressed against the duracrete. Inside, Elaine of Kuat was being prepped for her appearance at the rally.

She heard the unmistakable voice of the worker droid, the suspiciously unassuming cyclops-eyed droid that accompanied the woman. They were preparing to leave. As far as the rest of her companions, cursory investigation had found none had official ties to the GA. Deeper searching revealed they were, indeed, covertly tied to the intentions of the Alliance, if not officially sanctioned by them.

"They're getting ready to move out." Karissa murmured into her comm to Kolson Vrask . "Confirmation, destination is the rally." The ISB agent reported before moving from her spot and working her way across the street. The small spy droid whizzed away to a per-determined, out of the way spot where it self-destructed in a little flash and puff of smoke.