Escalation Protocol | CIS Dominion of Manda (Y,46)

[Ascendant Muse]

M A N D A​

It is staggering how quickly fire spreads.

When fanned by even the slightest breeze...when prompted by even the smallest spark...the most insignificant ember can level a city. Such was the reality of the cataclysm which now befell the planet Manda. Throughout modern history, the world had been a center of knowledge, exploration, and wealth in the region. Scholars and bright minds flocked to the distant planet in order to indulge their thirst for adventure - and they were satisfied within the walls of its University. Yet, change arrived in the form of an Iron Fist. In time, the Southern Systems came to be dominated by a remnant of Imperial philosophy. Freedoms were sacrificed for “order.” Wealth was “donated” for the greater good.

Yet Manda survived, for its rulers were not daft. They would never raise a hand or voice in opposition to such a behemoth. And so, while some gladly pledged themselves to the Empire, others did so...grudgingly. The planet came to support the nation financially, providing ample taxes to the Imperial warmachine. But, surprisingly, the supposed bastion of order disappeared overnight. Their assets pulled offworld. Their garrisons emptied. Only the memory of the Galactic Empire remained. A memory and a vacuum. In the post-Imperial world, the ruling council was immediately divided. The closest adversary to their former liege was the ever-growing Confederacy - and now an opportunity arose for them to peacefully assimilate into the fold.

Those who had gladly pledged their support to the Empire balked at the notion. Those who pledged out of necessity leapt at the chance. Overnight, the Baobab Complex - where the Council would formerly deliberate in peace - erupted as it had never before. The stewards of Manda argued for days on end, until it became clear that either side would gladly fight for their convictions. The spark had been lit.

Though they had no Empire to back them, the Loyalists determined that they would bring their adversaries to heel. And their methods were the very same employed by the warmachine they so adored. Every spare credit and resource was pooled to amass a fighting force. Mercenaries flocked to their banner. Archaic tools of the ancient Empire were restored for the imminent clash. And, while their adversaries were unaware, the capital city fell under siege. An Iron Wall of Imperial Walkers circled the gilded walls. Capital vessels and starfighter patrols locked the planet down. Communications were thoroughly jammed. There were only two options for the councilors and their civilian supporters trapped inside: Surrender or Starve. They chose neither option.

At the cost of many lives, they bit back at their aggressors. They managed to get a communication through - a single plea for aid from that ever-expanding neighbor. Now, the Confederacy had a race against time: for this act of defiance was more than enough to spurn the Loyalists into further action.

As the sun rose to usher in a new day, the sound of blaster fire cracked through the skies. The walkers groaned as their mammoth servos began to move. The order to advance had been given: the Capital was to be leveled to the dirt.

And all the resistance trampled underfoot.

Spoiler: Objectives

As a prelude to the imminent slaughter, the Loyalist forces have dispatched a kill squad to infiltrate the capital city. Their objective is simple: Breach the Baobab Complex, locate the resistant councilors and put them to death. We must intercept this squad and ensure that the councilors live to see another day.

As the Confederate Armada struggles against the Loyalist blockade, we must quell the threat on the ground. To this end, a number of drop pods and landing craft have broken through the enemy lines and are barreling towards the surface. An impressive fighting force has been amassed by the opposition: several walkers are bearing down upon the capital, backed by a contingent of mercenaries garbed in Stormtrooper regalia. The enemy force must be eliminated by any means necessary. The capital and her people must survive.

Spoiler: Tag

[member="A'Runda"]
[member="Akabane"]
[member="Alexandrite"]
[member="Alora Fae"]
[member="Alvarex Zambrano"]
[member="Alwine Lechner"]
[member="Amarant deWinter"]
[member="Amaya Cardei"]
[member="Amethyst Atreides"]
[member=”Amethyst Sovereign”]
[member="Andi Americus"]
[member="Anya Malvern"]
[member="Arabella Darkhold"]
[member="Archim Calixis"]
[member="Ari Zanareth"]
[member="Arlox"]
[member="Aston Jacobs"]
[member="Aya Clarke"]
[member="Azmodan"]
[member="Betty Americus"]
[member="Billy"] Americus
[member="Braan Kell"]
[member="Bandit Six"]
[member="Caid Centurion"]
[member="Cardinal Vi'dreya"]
[member="Carith Thelcar"]
[member="Chikako Liona"]
[member="Cim Salro"]
[member="Corvus Dravere"]
[member="Daisy Americus"]
[member="Danger Arceneau"]
[member="Daniel Americus"]
[member="Dalton Kenway"]
@Darth Rixas
[member="Darth Tacitus"]
[member="Darth Zurvan"]
[member="Daxton Bane"]
[member="Derek Dib"]
[member="Dhakarta"]
[member="Drauchir"]
[member="Ella Nova"]
[member="Erin Tenel"]
[member="Fawn Alzi"]
[member="Gerwald Lechner"]
[member="Hadashah Vi'dreya"]
[member="Isarn Apis"]
[member="Ithiel Verd"]
[member="Jade Isara"]
[member="Jamie Pyne"]
[member="Jennifer Blanchard"]
[member="Jorge"]
[member="Jyoti Nooran"]
[member="Kalee Bladesworn"]
[member="Kaptan Americus"]
[member="Karlie Lynn Destat"]
[member="Kasca Fen"]
[member="Katria Vekarr"]
[member="Katrine Van-Derveld"]
[member="Kayla Wylen"]
[member="Kilia"]
[member="Kingsley"]
[member="Kip Ridel"]
[member="Kurayami Bloodborn"]
[member="Kurenai Yumi"]
[member="Kyber"]
[member="Kyle Naktis"]
[member="Lady Psyona"]
[member="Luna Terrik"]
[member="Luna Vega"]
[member="Lyla Quinn"]
[member="Maple Harte"]
[member="Marek Starchaser"]
[member="Minerva Vessia"]
[member="Muad Dib"]
[member="Natasha Darkstar"]
[member="Nine Lives"]
[member="Petra Cavataio"]
@Popara the Great
[member="Qaarssk Roark"]
[member="Razelle Breuner"]
[member="Roy Americus"]
[member="Rylan Kordel"]
[member="Samantha Jade"]
[member="Sander Europa"]
[member="Scherezade deWinter"]
[member="Sola Marr"]
[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"]
[member="Srina Talon"]
[member="Tex Americus"]
[member="Teyla Ee'everwest"]
[member="Thalira Kiing"]
[member="Tmoxin Temi"]
[member="Traveler"]
[member="Varick Lechner"]
[member="Veronika Fleischer"]
[member="Vyra Silara"]
[member="Xenro"]
[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]
[member="Zephyr Carrick"]
[member="Zhai'ellev"]

 

[Genesis Rostu]

Location: Plaza, Manda Capital - En Route to Complex
Objective: Eliminate Baobab Merchant Council
Post: 2

We always chant before battle.

We hollar in that old, Mandalorian tongue. Praising gods that we never knew. Talking about places we’d never been. Sometimes...I wonder what’s the point of it all? Is it just to get the blood boiling...or is there really something out there, watching out for us expendables?

The helmet slid into place with minimal fanfare. The mechanisms clicked as it gingerly touched the plastoid plating occupying the Clone’s form. Slowly. Surely. The interfaces and systems within the helm began to power on. Scanners. A feed of information. Comm. The standard tools of the trade for any soldier. For CC-0308 “Maverick”, this was no different than slipping on a pair of pants in the morning. He was simply getting “dressed for success” as it were. Surrounding him were bodies - some living, some...very close to not living...and many that were very much dead. If he were a younger Clone, maybe he would have felt something about seeing the civilians stewn out like they were.

But the gray that muddied his beard told a story. He had seen far too many battles to care. Shot too many people - innocent or otherwise, to bat an eye at their demise. He had grown callous over time. Some might wonder then, why he continued to ply the mercenary craft? His bank accounts certainly weren’t hurting. And there certainly wasn’t a shortage of work in the private sector. Hell, security jobs paid more and were a lot less brutal than this line of work. Well, truth be told, Maverick stuck around because he didn’t know anything else. It was what he was born to do. Conditioned to do. And it was what he’d die doing.

In this particular instance, the Clone and a pair of his siblings had been hired to put a few bolts into a few noble skulls. Apparently there was a schism on this world, Manda, and the employers had grown weary of reasoning. Even today, they had placed the capital under siege in the hopes of breaking their spirit to resist. Something changed though - the civilians had backup of some sort inbound. So, time was certainly on their side. Phase One of the plan, fortunately, had gone on without much of a hitch. The fireteam managed to infiltrate the capital via the sewer system and breached in civilian clothes. Their weapons and armor were carried in densely packed shoulder bags.

When they first emerged, reeking of death, they were mistaken for looters. Which was a helluva lot better than the truth. In the interest of preserving the mission, Maverick and his brothers: CC-0307 “Goose” and CC-0666 “Diablo”, left no witnesses. Now, they made haste in getting geared up for the next phase of the operation. According to their report, the Councilors had holed themselves up inside the Baobab Complex: a rather imposing structure on the far side of town. There, they had armed security, cameras, and other assets to make their assassination…challenging. Maverick turned his blaster over in his hands and gave the weapon a final inspection before rising from his knelt position. A signal to his siblings gave them the order to move.

This gaggle around them wouldn’t be the last to die on the way. He could almost guarantee it.

 

[Prazutis]

Allies
[member="Kylo Kyr'am"]

Post
1

Several Legion Troopers and Prudii Kyr'am Mandalorian clan members walked around the lobby of the baobab complex as A'den and Kylo were sitting in chairs awaiting the storm coming their way. A'den's thoughts dwelled on the mission ahead, protect the council. Both men wearing their respectable Beskar'gam. A'den's Beskar'gam and Kylo's Beskar'gam both custom to their style and colored to represent what they honor.

A'den looked and to the small army that him and his Son Kylo had with them. A'den looked to Kylo who was doing a weapons check preparing for the coming attack. A'den then spoke to his son. A'den Kyr'am's voice This will be the first time we've been in battle together, I hope you are ready my son. Blood will be shed here today. So let's do this. A'den activated his scanners to watch for enemies and begun checking his Custom EE-3 Carbine Blaster Rifle. A'den hasn't been in a fight in a while, but he was focused. Hidden behind his Buy'ce was a face filled with the emotion of anger, but a calm anger. He was ready, he was willing to lay down his life for his Aliit who was part of the CIS. And if today was the day he had to die for what he believed in, he was ready to do so. A'den looked up and out the front doors of the complex awaiting.

​

 

[EmKay]

Post 1​

​

Dalvas sat on the stairs of the Baobab complex. He'd take a more intelligent position for ambush later, but for now he wanted to witness the coming storm. It was beautiful in its own way. These men and machines working together in their approach and promise of death. Beautiful... if a little brutish. He huffed as he got to his feet, slid his helmet on, and started back up the staircase into the guarded complex. It was about that time.

A soft chime in his right ear drew the hunter's attention to that direction. His eyes narrowed and he leaned toward where an odd sound was echoing from. He pulled his coat tighter around his body, gripped his pistol, and darted for the nearest shadow. A nearby guardsman noticed this unusual behavior and called up some backup. Shortly after, two soldiers representative of this Council took positions behind Dalvas (one of which nearly got pistol-whipped). He didn't much like company, but he accepted that they'd been assigned to investigate and he was their 'leader'.

With little troopers in tow, he skulked through the city streets into more shadows and better cover. Whatever was creeping through the streets would soon be found; and hopefully it was no diversion.

 

[Saraya Arenais]

Location: Inside the City Walls - Manda Capital ​

Objective: Eliminate the threat to the Merchant Council.​

[member=Lirka Ka] | [member=Rylan Kordel]​

Post One​

​

The rumbling and shaking of the drop pod was something Alora did not want to experience again. If it weren't for the orders coming directly from the Devil himself she would have flat out refused to get on the thing in the first place. She couldn't even bring herself to look out of the small porthole at the Capital below but there was a familiar fiery orange glow piercing through it. Whether that was from the drop pod itself or the sieged city they were aiming for remained to be seen.

By the time they reached the ground all of her organs felt like they been tied together in impossible knots. She was out of the drop pod before the door could even open properly. Save from her rush to exit there was no indication of anything amiss. Her dead pan expression did its job well by hiding the overwhelming relief she felt to be free.

Red leather creaked against her frame as she stretched away the stiffness from the journey. Most of the others she had seen hurrying to drop pods of their own were dressed in heavier stuff, shining metal that weighed them down and drained their potential energy. When it came to that type of armor there was the added benefit of extra protection, but if you knew you didn't need it, why bother? Her own armor, on the other hand, was light and relatively flexible. Each piece was bound tightly to her torso, legs and arms with thick belts of the same crimson color.

Attached to her hip by a similar style belt was a long sword, encased in a stiff brown scabbard. There had been some debate about bringing a lightsaber, she wasn't used to the weight yet and it caused some life threatening mistakes. Of course, those mistakes were made in training but what they were about to do was far from training. Alora felt more comfortable with the heavy weapon that rested against her thigh.

Light green eyes scanned her surroundings quickly. For a city, the place seemed rather dead. It came as a surprise to Alora considering the CIS were raining down drop ships on their city. Then she remembered, it was probably down to the fact a vicious enemy lay just on their doorstep. A flew lights flickering in the windows of tall buildings were the only indication anyone lived there at all and just over the walls, floating in on a stiff breeze, the loud rumble of colossal machinery coming to life cut through the silent dawn.

In the distance she could make out the Baobab Complex, about a mile away from where the drop ship had thrown her. Just before she had left Metus had put her in touch with some other members of the CIS. They would be here shortly, she just had to wait.

 

[Curupira Hawk]

#1​

People tended to have fear before dropping into a battlefield. Curupira Hawk acknowledged this was a normal human condition as she adjusted the leather at her wrists of her armor, also knowing she didn't recognize fear as a normal humanoid. Instead, she believed in excitement, in living, in protecting the ones she loved. It had been two years since she had last seen her daughters, same amount of time since she'd last see her mate. A recent conversation with a very drunken broken girl had made her look up family. One of them was in the very center of the Confederacy, on Ryloth, no less. The Nightmother of the Mandragora, whatever that was. She had heard of the order in the recent conversations but public records seemed scarce. Chloe had seemed to fall off the face of the galaxy. Seren was a name that didn't exist in the records anywhere. She knew the name, Katrine had mentioned it many times over, same as Wolfram but neither of the two seemed to make appearances anywhere to be noticed.

Curupira had feared, admittedly but they weren't for her or about her. She didn't fear dying today, she would live for decades to come, she would have children, she would become a wolf though she didn't know yet how exactly that would come to be, she knew she wouldn't be human forever. She knew she would live to the days when both of her daughters disappeared, later no doubt experience the loss of all her children. Those were the fears she had. Same as she feared she wasn't going to be a good mother. Not now, maybe not later either. Does it matter? A little voice inside her head wondered.

Maybe it didn't, not in the slightest.

Once her armor was secure, Curupira checked the systems again. The Kestrelsong's cloaking device was up and working as the ship hovered just above the city. Within moments, she was walking towards the cargo bay, checking her weapons in place, manually opening the cargo bay doors before she jumped, enjoying the freefall for a few seconds before slowly turning, concentrating briefly, getting the cargo bay closed behind her before she spun back around, grinning like a fool at the drop.

The Force, as fickle as it had been for the last couple of years had begun responding to her lately. Not quite the way it used to, ever since the Netherworlds had opened but she was getting there, which she knew as very dependant on her current training which was far from what it used to. Her other Masters had guided her in the direction but had never quite kept her going the way Darth Tacitus did now.

Coming up towards the ground, she began to slow her body down, feeling the rush die out. She would have loved not to do it but even she, in all oddness and madness, knew pancake shape wasn't the least bit good idea. Not good at all.

So Curupira slowed down, feet touching against the ground first before she crouched down, one hand raising to check the fabric against half of her face. Only her golden gaze shinned bright, blonde hair hidden behind the hoodie as she stood and marched forward. Everything would occur at the Baobab Complex, that much she knew, in her head having a clear route memorized.

 

[Kurayami Bloodborn]

Location: Arrival/Heading towards city airspace
Craft: 'Ankou' Multirole starfighter
Post:1

After the events of Krant, Kurayami had taken a bit of a break from the craziness of everything, focusing on simple tasks at Nubia StarDrives and its day-to-day operation. While Samira was impressed in the change and thankful for some downtime, she knew it wouldn't last too long. How true that was. He was still most likely to be found in his private hangar constantly working on something with one of the many ships there. The time away from conflict was needed by him, some time to clear his head and reflect on the strange meeting at the lakeside. While finishing up some basic maintenance on the 'Ankou' fighter, he recieved a private comm from Samira, an odd occurrence to say the least.

[[::Hey boss just wanted to inform you that we have been contacted on a CIS frequency about a distress signal. Origin point determined to be the planet of Manda. Loyalist forces are fighting against what is left of Imperial forces in the capital. Imperial forces are known to have sizable and well equipped ground forces, exact numbers and composition yet to be determined. Further attempts at contact met with dead air. Suggest you get out there and show the Loyalists that the Imperials are far less intimidating than they like to present themselves.::]]

Well, that was interesting. Normally she would try to get him to attend to his duties as CEO, but now she was telling him to go? Eh, who was he to argue? He would need a bit to finish outfitting the fighter for the conflict, but it sounded like a combined fight was going to be the order of the day here. Now to figure out a good loadout. Five modular hardpoints to work with, centerline could hold the most weight, R9X heavy laser it was then, inner wing pylons each fitted an Ls 9.3 cannon and the outer pylons mounted another set of Gyrhil 72 autoblasters. The warhead launchers carried their standard loadout of 4 homing concussion missiles each. More than enough firepower to deal with air or ground targets. Now just to get there...

Kurayami hadn't bothered keeping track of time during the jump over to Manda. No that had been spent sipping from the flask of Namana nectar. Once he heard the tone that let him know to prepare for reversion, he capped the flask and placed it securely back in the inner pocket of his flightsuit jacket and zipped it back up. As the ship reverted to realspace the data started to flood his display. He did all he could to keep an eye on the IFF tags but it was difficult to say the least. The comms blackout made getting such data an arduous task. He could easily ID the Confederate forces, just as they could easily tag his ship as one of their own. The rest was a bit more complicated, especially given that he had no idea if the Loyalists had any fighters of their own in the airspace nearby. Either way he angled down towards the city from his arrival point in orbit, hoping that there was still time to deal with the ever annoying Imperials.

 

[Lirka Ka]

[member="Alora Fae"]

Lirka probably would’ve laughed at the other woman had she not learned that laughing at potential allies was not usually something that flew within the Confederacy. In her own limited experiences with the group at least, run of the mill nonsense to her. Not just because the vast majority of her Confederate experiences had to do with these battles of all those different sorts but also because all the work she had done prior in her old life as a Mercenary. The Confederacy should be flattered, she gave up the mercenary life to fight them.

She’d gladly laugh at her if she knew her thoughts on the armor though, Lirka probably had the heaviest of it all. To those who weren’t exactly like her of course, she was incredibly strong from her varying professions. Not counting her Force Enhance to simply dash her away along even easier, not counting that it had saved her life over three dozen times.

“Are we going to get moving?”

She seemed, very content, with the current situation. To say the least.

 

[Genesis Rostu]

Location: En Route to Complex
Engaging: [member="Lirka Ka"] | [member="Alora Fae"]
Post: 3

Experience.

The word, at least to the plastoid-clad trio, meant more than something bluffed about on an application. It meant every ache when they rolled out of their bunks in the morning. It meant every scar they witnessed when looking in the mirror. It meant the phantom pains whenever the weather changed. For the members of the first Dreadguard, experience was a hard-fought playbook earned through years of fighting. And that playbook told them that there were two ways of this operation going down. First and foremost, everything could go according to Plan A: get to the Complex, divert, distract, decimate. That was the optimistic, naive path that only happened in the most boring of holovids.

The most likely outcome was that chit will hit the fan. As it almost always did. Now, the Dreadguard hadn't been briefed on what sort of backup would be arriving, but they had an inkling that the Siege was about to get very interesting. What Maverick didn't anticipate was the thunderous boom as drop pods began to streak across the skies and drive into the city. He looked skywards, blinking once to have his helm zoom in on the approaching adversaries. There was lots of them. So many in fact that the three of them wouldn't have a chance if they all rushed the Complex. And, to make matters worse, there was quite a bit of ground to cover and not a ton of time to do so.

Maverick inhaled a deep breath, thinking.

At face value, three troopers were far from an army. But in his mind, their small number was an advantage. Hell, who they were was an advantage - what with being Force Dead and all. But even immunity to tracking in that way did not mean they'd be able to move about freely. They needed... "We're splitting at the Square up ahead. Diablo, need you take the long way round and make as much noise as possible." As the "Heavy" of their ensemble, making a lot of noise meant spraying down everything in sight with his rotary cannon, flamethrowers, and rockets. Draw the enemy to his location so that the others could get to the Complex unscathed.

It was a play he would, most likely, die doing. But they had been there before. All of them had. And one of the things about being clones? They never balked at orders because obedience was part of the conditioning. They were born to get the job done.

So, with that said, Diablo immediately doubled back, heading towards some of the more recent drop pods. Maverick and Goose broke into a run at that point and relied upon the data provided beforehand to make the most efficient trek to the Complex. Though it was almost a mile away and they were armored, this was the sort of rigorous activity they had become accustomed to over the years. By now, they could run for at least a couple miles and still be fit to fight - albeit sweaty at the end.

Meanwhile, Diablo lived up to his name very well. After some time booking it in the opposite direction as his brothers, he quickly assembled grenade launcher and took a knee. His HUD only required three seconds to lock onto the most obvious target: a pretty young thing wearing leather on leather. If he were a less obedient soldier, he might have even entertained the thought of what he'd do if they weren't on opposing sides.

But he wasn't.

He pulled the trigger and the roar of a rocket-propelled grenade filled the plaza. It was locked onto the Pod from which the woman and her teammates were emerging. Though, at a glance, it seemed no one else was inside, he hoped there was a straggler who took too long to disembark. If not, no matter, he'd spray down the remains just the same.

3.

2.

1.

I M P A C T​

 

[Rylan Kordel]

​

Location: Inside the City Walls - Manda Capital
Objective: Eliminate the threat to the Merchant Council.
Lirka Kahttp://starwarsrp.net/user/18907-lirka-ka/ | [member="Alora Fae"]
Post One

Drop podding into the city, Rylan just leaned back against the seating in the pod and relaxed, it was the moments like these that he actually felt the most relaxed, the little moments between the action, it was when he was the most gathered. Perhaps it had something to do with the possibility of dying at any time, or maybe it was just the fact he was born and bred for war, he didn't know, didn't care, it just felt right and natural though.

The pod screamed like a banshee as it tore through the sky, moving rapidly for it's final destination, and when it made it there, it landed with a thunderous crash, blowing dust and debris in all directions, then there was silence, and the dust starting to settle, when the door finally let out a snap-hiss sound as it released and opened slowly, allowing the entity inside to step back out in to the open. Gazing around the landing area, he knew what he had to do next, and so Rylan waded through the area, with no care, which was proven by his lack of armor and weapons, all he wore aside from his normal street clothes where shin guards, gauntlets and two blackened lightsaber hilts sitting comfortably crossed over in their loops. It had taken some time, and some patience by the clone of the once Sith Lord known as Darth Xaraxas had started to come to terms with both himself, the spirits in his head, and the legacy forged in blood and anarchy he had been apart of, and so now, he returned to the field of combat a Sith warrior, and a weapon of the Confederacy.

With a deep breath, Rylan's eyes closed and he reached out through the force, sensing for those he called ally, once presence came back to him... A woman he had met and had drinks with some time in recent history, sometime before he embraced his true path and calling, what was her name again... he thought and thought and thought, then it came to him, Alora. He'd have to find her and hook up, for this operation.

The force also told him of the presence of three rather hostile individuals. No doubt the assassin's the Knights Obsidian had been sent to dispatch before they could harm the council.

 

[4ND-R0]

Location: Manda Capital
Objective: Protect the Capital from "Stormtroopers"​

Her personal landing craft had broken through the lines. Yellow photorecptors looked unblinkingly as her craft began descent to the surface. Heavy cannon fire and explosives were recieved in her audio sensors. The was the droid's first on-the-ground assignment since joining the Confederacy. The craft shook as it took a scraping hit, forcing it to land just barely inside of the city.

"Epsilon Squad, move out." She gave commands to her entourage.

She grabbed her A180 pistol from the holster on her hip, hurriedly motioning her fellow droids. A small squad of about fifteen, stark-white B1 battle droids. Her personal touch, as well as the cosmetic modification she did on their vocabulators. She motioned to the pilot of the craft to go back, in the hopes the craft could make a return trip for more troops. She pressed the button on her communicator, focusing it on a CIS only frequency.

"CIS forces. This is Harmony. I have made landfall in the northwest quadrant. Moving to better vantage point. Harmony out." She droned, before returning to her squad. "Theta formation. Objective Aurek."

Her squad formed a defensive formation, and with Harmony leading them, began heading in the direction of the nearest tall building. If she was to be useful as a tactical droid, she would need to find a point where she could overlook and process the incoming force of Imperial loyalists. As she moved about, she gripped her pistol in anticipation, awaiting the moment when she would meet any hostile ground forces. So far, so quiet....

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

---

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maDD1sP6q7Y​

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​

...Location: Drop Pod Entering Atmosphere behind Enemy Lines
...Objective: Neutralize Enemy Armored ATAT Units

Wind howled and roared as a ship came into orbit, quickly dropping a black cylindrical object before hightailing away, for the most part avoiding detection. As gravity took hold said pod fell like a missile, small fins on the side controlling it's direction, on the inside? an agent or solider which ever once people chose, a person with untold year of experience in warfare. A fact many did not yet know, or cared but in this case was needed, said person being a woman calling herself Kurenai Yumi, code named Crimson Shadow.

The familiar ringing of a incoming call echoed through Kurenai's left ear as she sat in a reclined position within the drop pod, one of those last minute briefs before everything was ago. "Here is the situation once more Yumi, the enemy fleet is putting up stiff resistance to our own armada, as such we have not been able to provide enough ground support to deal with the loyalist attacking the capital city". "What is more many of the 'specialized' members have been put on the mission to prevent the assassination of the council members and avoid any more internal strife". "It is due to this that only the regulars are available to deal with the enemy walkers for the time being,". Before the officer could continue Kurenai perked up, completing his sentence, "I know, and they are not fully equipped to take on such a threat, which is were I come in no"?

The officer gave a small cough before continuing, "Well yes, on the ball like always, you mission will begin once this new droid called [member="Harmony"] and their squad engage the enemy units, hopefully that will stall them enough to halt the push from their walkers". "During the time period you are to infiltrate their back lines and take out as many walkers as you can, by any means necessary". "Hmmm, so a regular field day, anything else I should know about? does the enemy army have any froce users on their side"? Last thing she needed was a wannabe Sith slowing her down. "No, not yet anyways, but if you are worried about that I suggest using stealth to your advantage, keep your signature invisible like you are good at, though in the end is your call Yumi, from here on your on your own". "Roger that, resealing from drop pod in 3, 2, 1".

Once the countdown ended the drop pod split apart, the two sections going off in several directions, a large smoke cloud making it seem to have exploded, all just another part of the ruse. A second moment later a small dot could be see falling from the cloud, hard to not with the naked eye and of no real importance to most, not with the current battle in front of them. Though such was the payload itself the heavily armored Obsidian Knight diving towards the grounds surface like a missile, pulling up once close to the ground, using a force push to ease her fall. Hitting the side of a flat slope, metal boots skidding against the grave like surface, surfing down the side of the cliff until coming to a stop in a small ditch. In the distance the Imperial forces pushing towards the capital.

"Command this is Crimson, landing successful", grasping her silenced pistol the force using solider looked around, scouting feeling to make sure no one had see her, after a few minutes her focuses turning back to the lumbering walkers in the distance. "Commencing operation Titan Fall... now"

 

[A'Runda]

​

"War is Peace."​

​

"The object of war is to not die for your country, but to make the other poor bastard die for his."​

​

"To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace."​

​

"Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge. It brings out all that is best; it removes all that is base. All men are afraid in battle. The coward is the one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty. Duty is the essence of manhood."​

​

​

Rising out from the top of the half submerged drop pod, motion sick, and dizzy. The Tusken shambled a couple feet away from it before falling onto his hands and knees. A'Runda had never had such a rough ride, then again in the middle of his landing something had gone terribly wrong. After letting his eyes settle from spinning around int their sockets he looked back at the half blasted pod, confirming his suspicion. Some kind of land to air projectile or laser had hit his pod mid flight. It was more then surprising to seeing almost half the pod blown off before touching ground. Fortunately he wasn't too high up to burn, or freeze to death in the sky. But certainly high enough to knock him aside form the rest of the group. Now he didn't know where he was.

Over on the horizon A'Rinda could seeing the tall figures of walkers in the distance. With a deep breath he'd begin heading in the direction of them, hopefully reaching them before they reached the city. He also wasn't fully informed on the last minute briefing since his pod sustained critical damage during the middle of it. Perhaps command had already assumed he was KIA. (Killed In Action)

Personally A'Runda was against the idea of intervening in this whole planetary affair. The planet hadn't yet become part of the Confederacy so he didn't believe in sending such military force to deal with the loyalists. In fact he thought of it was kind of unnecessary for a galactic super power to be getting involved with a planets dirty war, even if one side of it consisted of Imperial loyalists. He believed this should be an issue the planet ought to deal with, and if the Loyalists were to win it without outside influence then perhaps it deserved to win. The local population doesn't lie about what it wants.

All the Tusken really knew on who else was on the some objective as him was a veteran called [member="Kurenai Yumi"] and a new droid known as [member=Harmony]. Which he knew neither.

 

[Maple Harte]

Wearing: HH Sniper Armor (http://starwarsrp.net/topic/103868-hh-sniper-armor/)

Armed with: Maple's Staff (http://starwarsrp.net/topic/125349-maples-staff-custom-conversion/)

Ranger Sniper Rifle (http://starwarsrp.net/topic/67065-rangers-sniper-rifle/)

Emissary Revolver (Marksman Variant) (http://starwarsrp.net/topic/92565-emissary-revolver/)

Character Theme Song: "Goldeneye" by Tina Turner

Spoiler

https://youtu.be/mOgFS6AYoVc

Maple breathed as calm as she could as the drop pod descended.

She'd done drop pods before. But she hated them.

A drop pod is a coffin someone drops from a ship praying it doesn't break on impact. Fancy heat shields, best inertial dampening and safety features that could be stuffed in and it was still a coffin. All it took was one of the damn fins going during the drop and you'd die. They might as well not even take you out if it crashed, just roll you into the grave, wreckage and all.

She hated drop pods. Give her a first generation TIE over a drop pod any day. But she'd still use them in a pinch. There was no way to get behind enemy lines other wise. She'd never been to Manda...none of her old assignments had even taken her any where near the place.

But apparantly, some imperial supporting scum
thought they could pull this crap when they were in spitting distance of the CIS. Maple, or rather, the Assassin buried in the snow of her mind, wouldn't think much of killing a usurper heralding tyranny. Skip. Maple was a puppy! Everyone was a puppy! The universe was made of puppies. It had been that way for a thousand years. Also, her skin was at the same time also made of wookiees. Skip. Falling through the atmosphere, her deranged mind fast forwarding and occasionally rewinding the drop, only to skip again when she hit ground side.

I'm so glad you're not dead, one of the snakes that had moved into a vacancy in her brain five minutes ago thirty seconds prior muttered. Bring us Candy! Candy Candy Candy!

"Shhhhh...not now...I'm on a super important mission!" she hissed in her drop pod before kicking it open and taking out her trusty staff, its red tips glistening with the power of, as Maple's warped brain put it, awesomeness. She was not clad in her usual gear, the assignment requiring stuff a tad more specialized. She'd acquired this armor months back but had not had a chance to wear it until now, and this nifty rifle she'd bought from Sasori had only seen test fires, but Maple was already wanting to ask it on a date. She never wanted to ask her guns on a date...usually.

Her nineteen inch barrel revolver, also something that had seen only test firings, but she knew it would serve as a good back up, not to mention getting to ask punks if they felt lucky, often in a really gritty voice. (Maple was excellent at those.)

She began moving through the city. It wasn't long before she spotted @A'Runda. She had not even landed where she was supposed to...something had malfunctioned. She was on siege duty it seemed.

She was here to snipe. She headed up to the man she thought she had seen on Krant looking like he'd had an even rougher time than she had with that lake. She w had not spotted the walkers yet, nor the trooper wannabes, as they were still outside the city. But she would have to find a good vantage point before long in order to harrass the enemy and keep her away from heavy fire. She immediately began scanning the area she had landed in and beyond for good positions, spotting a good tall building in the distance, where a good number of troops might try to get through.

"Hi there. Maple Harte, bounty hunter..." she said, catching up to the Tusken. "Whew! Looks like you got lucky with your pod! I'm here to stop those walkers with you. Are you injured from the drop?" she asked the Tusken. "I don't know much about healing, but I can get to a wound or two. Light bruises, stuff like that."

Maple thought about contacting [member="Kurenai Yumi"] but she had likely already gone comm silent. No plan survives the enemy.

 

[Djonas Vile]

Hidden within the shadows of Manda was an underground market of heinous and illegal dealings, hidden beneath the righteousness of the Baobab Merchant Fleet and Merchant Council. Most of them had no idea of this market beneath them. The ones who knew were smart enough to keep it so secured and hidden that the only way someone could possibly know about it, was with a certified background check to ensure no connections to competitors.

That or the right kind of persuasion.

"Look, man. If I tell you they'll bag and tag me for this. I got kids and a family man. Come on!"

"I don't really see how that's my problem. My only problem is getting my hands on that ark. Now, once you give me the info I need, you walk. Not a soul outside of me, you, and my boys here, will know about this."

Two large men held a smaller, dirty manby his ankles over the ledge of a building. If they loosened their grips, he'd plummet several stories to a gruesome death. A man stood before them, dark skin and wearing a fine suit. It was Djonas Vile, the current kingpin of the Black Glove Society. With the Confederacy gaining control over Naboo once again, Djonas was able to reconnect with old contacts in their organization. One particular one had put Djonas onto the current CIS operation on Manda. It was the perfect cover for his plan: The Baobab Archive Heist.

"Please, let me go, man. I'll tell you everything. Just let me go."

"Not yet. Tell me what I want to hear."

"Alright, I'll talk! Every 3 hours, the Archive guards do turnover. During that time is when you'll be able to get in. There, I told you! Now, let me go!"

"Tsk, poor choice of words. You heard the man, boys. Let 'im go."

The meatheads let the man's ankles loose. His screams echoed harshly as he fell to his death. Djonas walked back inside the building, smirk on his face. Phase One had begun.

 

[Azmodan]

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​

​

Wind whistling as the drop pod broke through the skies, falling at an incredible speed and quickly going faster. Metal scraped up against Xarixi armor as General Azmodan descended onto the planet of Manda. The general wwas growing hungry for combat. Times like this, where he could see the combat but was unable to participate, made him irritated and aggravated. The longer lull before battle, the more angered the Xarix would be. The angrier he was before battle, the more effective he would be. Anger was his fuel and he was nearing his point of overflow.

And then ... the pod touched down, embedding itself into the dirt. The canopy popped open and General Azmodan jumped out, blasters in all four of his hands. Bolts came at him. He fired back. Bodies all around him began to drop at General Azmodan's feet, unable to fight against the Xarix's assault. Around the General's position, more drop pods came down, crashing into the surrounding area around him. From the pods came out several Gerosians and Xarix, all forming up with their commander.

"Xarixi ma Gerosi, sheda hu'et shada godo bora!" At the general's command, his forces pushed further into the capital.

The battle had begun.

 

[Saraya Arenais]

Location: Inside the City Walls - Manda Capital ​

Objective: Eliminate the threat to the Merchant Council.​

[member=Lirka Ka] | [member=Rylan Kordel]​

Post Two​

The sound of heavy armor followed by the voice of one of her companions disturbed her exploratory gaze. Alora nodded slowly at her question, but her head wasn't really in it. Through the growing noise of the enemy outside her ears had picked up the sound of something strikingly familiar. The click clack of weighty boots against stone. There was no telling how far away they were but whoever the footsteps belonged to, they were heading in their direction and fast. Dark ropes of force lashed out from her body as she raised a single finger to signal for complete silence.

There was no denying she was probably the weakest in the force out of everyone on this entire mission, but she had been working solidly on her force sight for days now. The Devil had insisted. It took a lot of concentration and often forced her to be ignorant of things outside her focus, but the soft tingling sensation of a life force drawing ever nearer held her the entirety of attention anyway.

Unfortunately her skill was seriously lacking. The first inkling that she had got her estimated distance wrong was the soft boom of an explosive being fired. The next indication was the high pitched whistle as it cut through the air toward the drop ship. It was probably more than just a coincidence herself and [member=Lirka Ka] were standing right by it. There was no time to waste and, as she couldn't see which way it had originally come from, Alora scrambled for cover behind the nearest structure.

Her thin frame slipped behind the safety of a wall just as the explosion lashed out to give chase. Deathly sharp shards of metal and debris from the now destroyed drop pod cut through the air and embedded themselves into whatever they could find, be it a building or a body. The heat from the blaze of fire was dangerously close to Alora's skin. It licked against the stone wall she had taken refuge behind and warmed the bricks till they were too hot to the touch.

Funnily enough, the best way Alora learnt was by putting herself into an unavoidable situation. A situation where she couldn't progress until she overcame the obstacles in her way. The first obstacle was finding out where and who the grenade had come from. The dark side came again, made easier than the first time she had tried by the dire need to defend her life. Her vision snaked through the flaming tongues to seek out their target.

It seemed pressure was the best way to learn as she found him easily. Her amber eyed Master would be pleased. Every thump of the soon to be dead man's heart felt like a wave of victory, even if it was just a small one.

Now the only obstacle remaining was to find a way to get to him.

 

[Kyrinov]

Location: Manda Capital
Objective: Protect the Capital from Imperial Forces
[member="Harmony"]
Post 1


That was the first and last time he would ever ride down in a drop pod.

It was a very... unpleasant situation. While he did often thrive in those conditions, the combined factors that played and danced around in his body during the fall were horrendous, even by his standards. The drop summoning his stomach to his throat, his heart pounding from the rush of it. The air getting caught in his throat and forcing him to breath through his nose or take the alternative and pass out in the small confined space. The impact of the pod on ground seemed to jolt everything back into its proper place, albeit leaving him momentarily dazed.

His head spun and a pale hand touched the exterior of the pod as he climbed out of it and positioned himself on the blind side of the incoming Imperials. He had to keep moving and group with the others on the ground assault. For the first half mile, his armor made the trek difficult to manage. His sword and saber didn't help either. But, after that portion of the journey, his version of normality resumed.

A beep as he rounded the corner of a deserted block. It was on the Confederacy Only frequency. A twist of the button to tune into he channeled and the message could be heard:

"CIS forces. This is Harmony. I have made landfall in the northwest quadrant. Moving to better vantage point. Harmony out."

Northwest quadrant... he was there already. The Knight could hear the thunder of synchronized footfall advancing in his direction, the earthquake caused by the stomp of the metallic feet of Imperial walkers. They were drawing near and he needed to somehow get to Harmony's position.

Over the noise of advancement, he could hear a robotic voice which he'd later identify as General @Amozdan barking orders and giving their enemy a run for their money. A twitch of a grin broke through the casing of his stoic expression for the briefest of moments as he placed one foot in front of the other in a jog. He had to run a few blocks down before he quickly ducked into a narrow sidestreet. As the siege around him erupted and spewed out drop pods and overflowed with "troops", he recovered his comm and sent out a message, hoping that Harmony would still be on the Confederate frequency.

"This is Kyrinov. Harmony, what is your approximate location?"

His body pressed back against the building, cloaked by the shadow of the steel behemoth that loomed over this section of the Capital. He could wait for now, bid his time while he anticipated a swift reply from Harmony. For a moment, his delicate digits brushed over the leather hilt of his sword. It had been too long since she'd tasted the tang of blood. Far too long since he'd felt metal cut through flesh and bone. Unfortunately, if he rushed out now, he'd be meant with an overwhelming force that he wouldn't be able to fend off alone.

For now, he'd have to be content to wait silently, in the cloak of a Capital being liberated.

 

[Kylo Kyr'am]

Allies
@A'den Kyr'am

Post
1

Kylo's Beskar'gam

Kylo sat there, doing repeated checks to his weapons and gauntlets. He was ready for war, he longed for it. He wanted to fight. All he could do was think about this moment. Behind him locked away was a council. A council he was to protect along side his Legion troopers and his Aliit and his father. Kylo wore the face filled with mixed emotions hidden behind his Buy'ce. Kylo was focused on this, but his emotions were not. He gave up being a mercenary to return to the life of the Mandalorians, to sign with the CIS. Today was the day he showed the CIS that signing him wasn't a mistake. Today he would fight, fight for his Aliit, fight for the CIS, fight for his father, fight for Honor. If he died today, he would be okay with it, he would die with honor, he would give them hell as he went down, he would go down swinging, and Kylo wouldn't have it any other way. Kylo thought of all the possibilities on this mission would or could go down. It ended in war, that was fine with him. People were going to die. Kylo took a deep breath breathing in the fresh air that his Buy'ce filtered in. He exhaled as he looked around the lobby. This waiting was horrible, but it is what it is. In order to protect someone you have to sometimes wait and Kylo knew this. Kylo examined his surroundings, it was a big place, one long hall with pillars on each side, a long red carpet down the hallway, behind the pillars is where various tables were for people to socialize, that's where Kylo was. At the end of the hallway Kylo noticed the massive grand staircase leading up to the higher levels, to the people he had to protect. Kylo nodded to himself, the enemies were not getting in the building, they'd have to kill him, A'den and the small army they had first. It wasn't going to happen.

Kylo then heard the blast in the court yards. Kylo quickly rose to his feet alerted. The Mandalorian clan members and the Legion soldiers quickly rushed to the door and front steps blasters aimed and loaded ready to go. Kylo also noticed A'den rise to his feet and drew his EE-3. Kylo drew his blaster a look of readiness on his face hidden under that Buy'ce. Kylo could only hope his father was ready for this fight. Kylo's scanners picked up the blast from the plaza across town, still a very short distance between them and the blast. Kylo walked to the front opening of the complex where the legion and his Aliit stood guard. Kylo looked out into the horizon waiting. This was it, it was time to fight. He could see the troops of the Empire coming directly at them. Kylo looked down at the base of the stairs and saw [member="Dalvas Stone"]. Kylo gave him a nod and then picked his gaze up to watch the Empire ever coming close. Kylo readied his BR-81 Blaster Rifle ready to fire, Kylo was simply just waiting, he had to wait until they were in firing range then the assault would begin. Show no mercy, do what must be done, kill all that dare to bring harm to the council. Kylo gave one last look back to his father A'den who had now moved beside him and had his EE-3 Pointed out and he was looking down the scope. Kylo nodded and then turned back to watch the ever coming Empire, coming to fight, coming to kill, coming to claim a target but would never be achievable for them.

​

 

[Kurayami Bloodborn]

​

Location: Airspace over the city
Craft: 'Ankou' Multirole starfighter
Post:2

The strikingly painted fighter streaked towards the city, clearly intent on causing havoc for any that thought opposing it was a good idea. As he approached the outskirts the crafts signature would suddenly drop off of Imperial sensors and they would find their sensors scrambled. Kurayami smiled beneath his helm, Phantom 4x jammers really were a beautiful thing. Opening an encrypted comms channel to nearby CIS forces he informed them of his arrival.

[[::CIS forces this is Kurayami Bloodborn, callsign 'Yellow 13,' on station for close air support. Emphasis on armored ground targets. ETA to target area 15 seconds. If you know of some cover nearby use it, coming in hot. Enjoy the light show.::]]

Making a slice turn to the left as the wings angled back towards the body at their maximum sweep, he made sure all energy weapons were set to fire in unison. Maximum impact for maximum carnage. As he level out and passed over the target area he caught sight of two small dots, one at his five and the other at his seven. Well this was going to be fun. A quick check of altitude told him a split-s was out of the question, no problem, just improvise to get a good guns solution on the soldiers that were now behind him. In fact if these guys managed to follow him, they would likely end up hitting some Imperials as well, all the better then.

He pulled his fighter into a rocketing vertical climb, giving a few seconds for the enemy to follow and gain the necessary altitude. Once he mentally his one on the countdown, he kicked hard left on the rudder pedal, sliding the tail around in a textbook wingover. This wasn't meant to lose the pursuers, nah, the molecular shields would handle the shots they managed to get on target. This was meant to put him in lag pursuit of the ground forces, keeping his guns behind the targets while still providing enough room to keep strafing as he pulled out of the dive.

Some of the Imperial ground forces and their hired guns looked up as they heard the roar of the closing fighter. A few even turned their weapons on the craft and opened fire. Then all hell broke lose. four twin autoblasters, two Ls 9.3 laser cannons, and an R9X heavy cannon opened up, showering the area in hot plasma. The fact that two TIE Interceptors were taking shots at the attacker when they could only added to the hellacious barrage.

[[::Yellow 13 here. That should clear a nice path. Once I can clear these two annoyances off my tail, I'll start hunting down the heavy armor.::]]

As soon as he closed the channel on his side he turned to engage the two interceptors. They may have had a turn rate advantage, but all he needed was one good shot. This would indeed be fun.