Pirate Base | CIS Dominion of Epica

[Kiff Brayde]

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TAG: [member="Amelia von Sorenn"] [member="Kathryn Foster"] [member="Subject 73 Red"] [member="Cypher Rage"]​

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Alakatha had been, in Kiff's opinion, the perfect mission to get him back into the game of fleet action. In other words, it had been quite uneventful. Sure, thwarting some nasty pirates had been fun, but at the end of the day it had almost been easy for the massive Confederacy fleet to neutralize the small flotilla of mercenary ships that had been terrorizing Alakatha. In that sense, Kiff hoped that this pirate base would prove to be more of a challenge.

On that, at least, Kiff could be reasonably sure that the pirates would deliver. Although this asteroid-base was somewhat ramshackle, intelligence had stressed that it was armed to the brim with anti-capital emplacements and defensive weapons, and had a sizable Pirate Armada floating around it as well. That didn't even include the fact that the mission would require troops to be landed on the station in a zero-gravity environment in order to destabilize the reactor and shut down the pirate's base of operation. To do so efficiently would require careful planning and meticulous review of operations, in order to calculate the right combination of forces that would be optimal for this operation.

And so naturally, in full Brayde style, Kiff had jumped the gun and arrived in the Epica system with almost zero forethought or preparation. In his defense, he had at the very least prepared a somewhat-competent fleet composition; the 514th Battle Line, the 522nd Fighter Line and 543rd Artillery Group, two battle lines that had been apart of his larger Task Force during the battle of Tanaab. The High Marshal had learned through his experience that not every ship was perfect for a certain situation, and so he had geared his small task force towards that very principle; the Artillery Group and Battle Line would have enough firepower to counter that of the Pirate fleet, while the Fighter Line would prove apt in deploying dropships and escort squadrons to assault the base.

But of course, everything was always perfect when it was on a datapad. Winning this engagement would depend on how Kiff utilized his forces, and how the Confederates around him acted. There were two other commanding officers present; High Marshal Amelia von Sorenn, someone who he had seen on several occasions but never personally interacted with, and Fleet Marshal Cypher Rage, someone who Kiff unfortunately had interacted with multiple times. At the very least, the three of them would be competent at the task, or so Kiff hoped.

"Commander Ellin, inform High Marshal Sorenn that we've arrived and inquire after any further intelligence that she might've gathered so far. Meanwhile, I want the 514th to move to the front of the position, with the Artillery Group and Fighter Line behind in that order. Inform the triad of Artillery Battlecruisers to begin charging their autocannons, but wait to lock on a target. Have the Masked Glory and Pantora scan the area. We need to know where these pirates are and what we're up against." Kiff said in his traditional tangent of orders. Although he was technically captain of the CNS Masked Glory, Commander Bergi Ellin became second-in-command when a High Marshal was on deck, which applied to this situation. Although the Geonosis's Pride, the battlecarrier in the rear of the formation, seemed to be the obvious choice for a seat of command, Kiff was hoping that the pirates were thinking the same thing. Instead, the High Marshal had chosen the Valiant II Star Destroyer as his command ship. The move was risky, at the very least, but it could also potentially throw the pirates off of the scent.

FORCES

Spoiler

514th Battle Line

• x2 Valiant II-class Star Destroyers
  - CNS Masked Glory
  - CNS Pantora
• x4 Saboath II-class Assault Cruisers
  - CNS Everlis
  - CNS Remembrant
  - CNS Corsair's Bane
  - CNS Balax
• x4 Frikto-class Escort Frigates
  - CNS Galarr
  - CNS Zalma
  - CNS Resilient
  - CNS Blunthead

523rd Fighter Line

• x1 Lucrehulk II-class Battlecarrier
  - CNS Geonosis's Pride
• x2 Providence II-class Carrier Destroyers
  - CNS Herald
  - CNS New Dawn
• x2 Ardan II-class Flak Frigates
  - CNS Anticipation
  - CNS Lothor

543rd Artillery Line

• x3 Thoros-class Artillery Battlecruisers
  - CNS Starshine
  - CNS Starfall
  - CNS Starbound
• x2 Mordekai-class Escort Cruisers
  - CNS Balazar
  - CNS Harper

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

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Objective: Arrgh! Matey!
Equipment: Lightsaber, Faceless Armor
Mental State: Focused
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"] | [member="Ardasz Verd"] | [member="Haastal Verd"]
Post: #2

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This place was much more expansive and winding that Xobos had originally thought it would be. Not that it should’ve surprised her too much, with how crazily built this place would be. Though going into it, she assumed that the command tower at least would be somewhat created in a logical way. That was quickly disproved the moment that the group ran straight into a dead end. And then another. And then back into the first one. Just progressing up this karking tower was proving a maze all in itself.

Yet, eventually the group began to get its footing, and it seemed like progress was being made. It started with find a set of stairs that did head upward, which led into another long hallway. According to the commando droid leader’s scans, they were about the third of the way up the tower by now. That was good enough for the apprentice, who nodded and started down the hallway with the rest of the droids following her. It wasn’t until they were halfway down the corridor that that a group of pirates, obviously having been laying in wait for the group, jumped out and began firing in their direction. Xobos was quick to deflect a few shots away from her as she slid behind a pillow, a few shots lucky enough, or unlucky enough depending on their point of view, to find homes in the bodies of the pirates.

“Cut them down!” Her order to the droids echoed slightly through in the corridor, who all turned their blasters toward the ambushing group of pirates. If there was one thing that really impressed Xobos about these droids, it was how ruthless and accurate they were. She barely had time to turn around the pillar, ready to get into the fight herself before more than half the group either had a blaster hole in them or were bisected by a sword. These things were certainly imposing. “We should work with these droids more often. They make our job must easier.” Lagos’s voice resonated through her mind, mirroring the thoughts of the apprentice as she fought her way forward.

With a final slice across the body of the last survive, whom now laid dead with the rest of his comrades, the group had successfully fought off the ambushers. Even if the commando droids had seemingly taken a few hits, they were resilient enough to continue fighting and acting like nothing had happened. Certainly a much more enjoyable ally to fight alongside than those typical droids. Xobos turned her head back down the hall to start that way, until she saw an elevator opening on the side of the hall, where the pirates had emerged from. Striding up to it, the Miraluka turned to the commando droid leader, pointing to the elevator. “Analysis. Where does this elevator lead to.”

The droid strode into the elevator, pulling a wire from it’s wrist computer to the elevator console, plugging it in. Just a moment later, and after some interesting flashing in the droid’s eyes, it turned back to the apprentice and gave it’s answer in that monotone voice. “This elevator leads to one floor underneath the command center, ma’am.” Xobos’s head tilted to the side as she considered the words, smirking lightly at the implications. With a nod and wave to the rest of the droids, she walked into the elevator and motioned for the others to follow. “How convenient. Let’s do this then.”

 

[Jorah zos Darnus]

Objective: Infiltrate pirate base. Wreck chit.
Equipment: NEXU Strike Armor | Obsidian Lightsaber
Companion: BB-3J
Tags: Open

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The young squire slid down the inside of the drainage tunnel.

A steady trickle of water ran down the center of shaft, as moisture gathered from condensation collected as the draining ran along a maintenance shaft that seemed to arrive at a junction near where he imagined the large chamber to have been located. Climbing up a rusted maintenance ladder, the youngling crawled up to peer from behind the grating that was recessed into the floor of whatever was above. Through the metal slats, the boy could make out tanks filled with some kind of red chemical.

Gently, the boy pushed up against the grate. There was a quiet scraping sound as it lifted out of the way, allowing the boy's head to poke out as he started to ease his way from out of the drainage pipe.

The cigarette smoking man was at a computer terminal toward one side of the vaulted chamber. Bringing two fingers up to his lips, the young Dathomiri boy softly whispered an incantation. Haunting, the chant was as a whisper, traveling forth in a trail of spirit ichor that slowly tricked outward from the boy's lips until, like an ethereal tendril of eldritch light, it coiled around the figure at the computer terminal.

The cigarette dropped to the floor. The man slumped forward as the spell took hold, drawing the man into a deep slumber as the boy pushed himself up from out of the drain. As the black garbed youth arrived at the terminal, the man's body was pushed over, tumbling to the floor as the boy started to look over the displays. The HUD overlay on his vision supplied a few suggestions and tips from the onboard computer systems.

There was not a lot of information available that made much sense to him. A lot of engineering equations and math that was recognizable only for a handful of the symbols in use. Turning his head, the boy looked around. There had to be a hundred canisters in this chamber. From what little he understood, he was able to glean that this was not the reactor that he had been sent to disable. However, it may yet have held value to his assignment. Because one word that he was able to decipher was coolant.

The question was, was that coolant for the reactor? Or some other system on the station?

There was one theory, and only one way to go about testing it.

 

[Subject 73 Red]

Objective: Drive away the fleet
[member="Kathryn Foster"] [member="Amelia von Sorenn"]

Red slightly turned his head to glance at the newcomer, and, next to him, stood [member="Kathryn Foster"] . Red slightly smiled, just the smallest and almost imperceptible smile, but he still smiled none the less.

"Major." Red nodded back and replied in response. He then turned his attention back to the High Marshal.

Truth be told, Red actually liked the Major, despite what others might think that he hated everyone. She was one of the few people he felt comfortable around. He thought that she was a god officer, she seemed like the kind that cared about the troops under her, and that she seemed like a good leader. Also, she was good company to have. Despite the fact that she seemed nervous around him, like she thought that Red would suddenly rip off her head, Red liked having her around. It was fun to see how she would react whenever he made some sort of vague threat to someone or something, even if it was a joke to Red. Often times, people couldn't tell when Red was joking, he was too serious.

 

[Kiandra Ceryss]

Objective: Recover Client; Keep Team safe​

Location: Surface of Epica​

Tag(s): [member="Imperia von Sorenn"]​

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Inspecting the flight controls of her assigned gunship was how she had been spending her time when the call came through of a Mythra Service client in need. Prior to being called back to Confederate space after a trek out into the unclaimed Wild Space, Kia had been serving a different role behind the controls of her personal A-Wing. The gunship used by MedCorps was a different matter compared to her fighter. Though she wasn't used to having a co-pilot, her wingman had always felt like one in a way. With their first call arriving and the danger of the environment, Kia took the time to discuss things with her co-pilot. When she had been assigned Aceso Team, she took time to learn who the members of her team were. If she had learned anything in past experiences, it would be to know who it is at your back.

"Aceso Team! Gear up and load up! Can't leave 'em waiting!" Her voice rang out over the comms as she stepped out of the gunship, leaving her partner to finish the pre-flight prep. Upon spotting the director herself, her head tilted, almost feeling the uneasiness around her as she paced. Helmet in hand, the young pilot observed the director for a moment, relaxing her own feelings as a sense of eagerness had lingered within since the arrival of the first alert.

Distracting herself momentarily with the location of the client, she was brought back to the moment by the director's question.

"Aceso Team won't let you down, director." Head nodding with her words and reassurance, she believed her own words. If things went wrong, she'd do all she could to ensure the team, director, and client, would make it out. Though the client wasn't critical, the growing situation with the pirates would always pose a possible issue.

Taking a deep breath, Kia pulled her helmet on and stepped back into the gunship, taking her seat before flipping the switches to bring the vessel's systems to life. As the engines came to life, she monitored the status of the rest of her team and the director, pulling the ship into the air once all were on board and turning toward the direction of the client.

 

[Gerwald Lechner]

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wearing: xxx | [member="Maani"]​

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Maani was an interesting character. She was the kind of woman that usually spelled trouble for Gerwald. He was determined to avoid the trap he usually fell into when it came to thinking with the wrong brain. It was what his sister accused him of on occasion. The wolf was more concerned about the mission, and keeping Manni's rear end safe was a large part of that mission. Of course it did mean working close with her, which was not going to be a problem for Gerwald provided everyone stayed focused on the task at hand.

Stopped at the corner, Gerwald looked down the left. The map on his datapad had indicated this was the way they needed to go. It was too quiet, too empty, and that was unnerving. The warrior inside Gerwald told him they should have run into some opposition at least. Even back entrances were guarded. A soft sigh escaped Gerwald as he rounded the corner. He might as well voice his opinion to his partner for this mission.

"Keep your eyes open. It is too quiet, and make sure to watch our flank, hmm?"

He led them down the hall, keeping his hand ready to grab his lightsaber hilt if needed. There was knot in his gut telling him they were headed toward a trap, but Gerwald knew they had to push ahead. The pair reached another corner, another fork in the hall. This time they had to head right. Gerwald stopped abruptly. A giant blast door was in their way. He pointed to the panel.

"Can you hack that?"

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

Objective: Arrgh! Matey!
Equipment: Lightsaber, Faceless Armor
Mental State: Focused
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"] | [member="Ardasz Verd"] | [member="Haastal Verd"]
Post: #3

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The elevator ride was quiet enough. A soft bumping that rarely caught Xobos or any of the droids hard enough to knock them off balance. And although it was quiet, she could look out the glass back of the machine to see the battle still ranging in the asteroid field. If she hadn’t been going after this captain, she might just have been commanding a few ships in that battle. Perhaps that might’ve been more fun. It wasn’t like she got the opportunity to work with the Confederate navy much, having really only done so during that battle at Taanab.

Though, that was long ago, and it was time to keep her mind on the present. That meant looking away from the battle. At least, it did until the sight of a flaming hunk of metal could be seen coming straight toward them. Xobos barely had the time to yell out a quick, “Get down!” The sound of the metal block, probably the majority of a destroyed starfighter, slamming into the elevator shaft above them was defining, and the screaming sound of the elevator coming to a stop only added to that. For a few moments, Xobos thought they were going to be ok. Trapped for the time being, but alright.

Until she felt something hit the top of the elevator and cause it to jump downward a few feet before the brakes kicked in. It knocked her off balance, but a quick, “We must leave this metal box of death,” from lagos was enough to snap her into action. Her lightsabers were ignited within a moment, and the door of the elevator was cut to shreds soon after. It appeared as though they were right at the entrance to another floor, with it’s door open. Another piece of debris hit the top of the elevator, causing it to fall a few feet, with the ledge to climb onto the open floor now at halfway up the elevator door.

The apprentice knew they didn’t have much time now, quickly climbing up and onto the floor, motioning for the droids to follow her as quickly as they could. She took a quick glance down the hallway, seeing that they were thankfully alone. By the time she turned back around, three of the droids were safely up onto the floor from the elevator. But just as the fourth droid was starting to climb up, a loud screeching sound was heard just moments before the last of the debris hit the top of the elevator, sending it careening back down the shaft. The unfortunate droid that was halfway out of the elevator was severed in half, its top half hanging onto the floor for just a moment before following the rest of the debris down the shaft to its doom.

And with that, it was just xobos and three commando droids left. Thankfully, the droid leader was one of the survivors, whom the apprentice turned to after a few seconds. “Can you tell what floor we’re on?” She asked, hoping for a good answer. The answer came swiftly, and it was decently good news. “We are two floors below the main control room.” With a nod, she started toward down the corridor, knowing that they were close the objective. They were in the home stretch now.

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Faye Malvern"] | [member="Alden Akaran"]​

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The Exarch's eyes had been reviewing the ledger for the fleet sent to Epica. His amethyst pearls flashed over the listings before handing the device back to a Tactical droid that had been tasked with fulfilling his needs. "We have too many ships. At this rate it will take days to complete this mess. Have the fleet begin landing modular landing pads and start rerouting people to those new points. Have the third Defense Team take up security for those landing zones." His tone was militant and sharp as it always was, yet it had a regal sound to it none the less. The Exarch parted a stray hair from his vision as the Tactical droid turned from his view. "Yes, Exarch."

Adron's hand rested upon the blade on his waist. He could feel the Force erupting off the Sith Blade in waves that brought him some manner of focus. Another of the Droid's approached him, speaking to the Exarch and only causing the man's headache to grow. "Exarch. The regional governor would like to speak with you. Also, he requests a banquet in honor of The Confederacy after the operation has concluded." Adron scoffed, the discontent dripping from him as he spoke. "I'll meet with him soon enough, for now just be sure the government remains in tact. Provide them with a security escort and take them aboard my ship."

The droid acknowledged the command and turned away from the Exarch. Even before he heard the metallic impact of metal upon the surface of the world, the Exarch could feel the soft wave in the Force.

His usually still face curled into a content smile when he saw the bright expression of [member="Faye Malvern"]. She ran forward and wrapped her arms around him, embracing him in the warmest of hugs. He would normally have pulled her from him and told her to compose herself, however in this case he merely chuckled a bit, wrapping his arms around her. "Francesca." He said, happily sounding out her name and pressing his lips to her brow.

"Will this do?" He asked, gesturing towards the fleet that flew overhead. Still, there was something else to be felt in the sea of the Force. The man was yet a Dark Lord of the Sith and he had left his mark all over the galaxy. He could feel them and all they were tethered to. This particular mark that the man felt caused his eyes to raise, he recognized [member="Alden Akaran"] and offered the man a rather unreadable gaze. Still, there was no cause for the man to question why he was here, he had been tasked to this operation and was likely one of the fleet's commanding officers. "High Marshal. I thought I had sensed your presence." He said, before looking to Faye, still cradling her in his arms. He finally parted from his sister and then looked between the two. He could sense...an unease that came from them. It was a similar unease that caused his eyes to go from one to the other.

 

[McKenna Rory]

Objective: Protect the fleet​

Star Fighters: 8x Wraith Starfighters (2 squads)​

Tags: Open​

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[SIZE=9pt]McKenna knew the fight ahead would not be an easy one. The small redhead had been assigned to the Fleet that had been deployed to the Epica System, as the Commander of Wraith Squadron she was expected to be prepared for every situation that may present itself to them. On this day in particular McKenna had spent the morning cleaning her slug thrower and making sure her squadrons Wraith Class Fighters were completely maintained and loaded with ordinance.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]It was at that point that the command came down from the Admiral herself. McKenna was to scramble her whole squadron to keep their Carriers and Cruisers safe if pirate fighters were scrambled to strafe their fleet, however their orders were to stay in formation if engaged.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Within a moment of the order coming down the whole of Wraith Squadron was assembled in the hangar. Once there each member stood at attention as McKenna gave a briefing “Our objective is to screen our fleets movement as well as to intercept all enemy fighters, however we are not to break formation. I’m on point, you all know the drill. Lets get a move on”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]As McKenna finished all the pilots made their way to their ships and began their take off sequences before leaving the Hangar flying in a diamond formation.[/SIZE]

 

[Jorah zos Darnus]

Objective: Infiltrate pirate base. Wreck chit.
Equipment: NEXU Strike Armor | Obsidian Lightsaber
Companion: BB-3J
Tags: Open

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A muffled explosion sent tremors through the pirate base.

Alarms began to echo through the hallways, as hoarse shouting and the rapid stucco of sprinting footsteps could be heard. Fluid rushed from under the doorways that led into the coolant chamber, as deuterium spilled out from the reservoir and retaining tanks that maintained pressure on the reactor sub-system.

Mercenaries responded, but stood aside as engineers and technicians rushed past. The limp, still unconscious body of the cigarette smoking man was dragged out by paramedics -- assumed to be a casualty of whatever mechanical failure had resulted in the rupture of the coolant tank.

Distracted by the present emergency, the young Dathomiri kept to the shadows as the harried pirates scrambled to try and assess the state of the reactor coolant.

Noting the direction that the engineers and technicians had come from, the shadowy form of the youth slipped along the peripheral. Tracing back the steps, until he came to a power transfer junction of some kind.

Perhaps this would supply the key to bringing the pirate's defenses low.

 

[Ettiene Kharne]

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[member="Adron Malvern"] | [member="Faye Malvern"]​

The High Marshal would have been lying had he said he was expecting a run in with his master, [member="Adron Malvern"], here. However, it seemed the Force, and life, had a way of bringing about unpredictable scenarios. And well . . . this was quickly developing into one that carried with it an unwelcome tension and displeasure. He’d known this moment would come to pass eventually, but not now and not in this place, but perhaps [member="Faye Malvern"]’s presence here would lesson the overwhelming discomfort that wrenched and churned in his gut.

He carried himself in a stiff and rigid, militaristic fashion as the Minister of Influence lunged to embrace the only family she really had left in this galaxy. His hands were clasped behind his back and his gaze shifting back and forth from the ever increasing swathes of desperate people and the only two people in this galaxy he, himself, shared a bond with. Months, if not years before, Adron had placed a mark - more of a brand - upon his flesh. It was a mark the signified the initial steps in his training in the Force under the Exarch. It had been a mark, that with time, he’d grown accustomed to, even managing to make it vanish from visual perception, until he’d lost the arm where the mark had been placed. Where he would have thought the mark gone forever, it seemed that just wouldn’t be so for instead of vanishing when that flesh was stripped away, it simply reappeared elsewhere. Instead of his right, now, the mark was placed upon the underside of his left forearm, it’s runic imprinting just as painful and overbearing as it had been the first time he’d received it. This Mark of Malphas seemed to flare with anguished existence as a curious gaze cast itself upon Alden, a look that the man simply could not discern the intent of as it shown eerily of his position.

Overhead, more and more ships bearing the mark of the Confederacy seemed to arrive by the minute. As their number increased, they were gradually forced into a tedious holding pattern with nowhere left to land to deliver their cargo. It was something the Confederacy hadn’t fully anticipated when this plan had come about, and instead chose to run on the assumption that Epica would have more than the single functioning port it had now. That wasn’t to say, however, that the Confederacy was not well equipped to overcome such a tumultuous circumstance. With but an ordered spoken from the lips of the Exarch, the Confederacy would truly shine for mere moments later, a different kind of fleet would appear and quickly descend to designated areas in and around the city. Areas that would quickly see the construction of new, mobile ports. Pads, that once erected, would allow for many of the ships currently locked in their holding patterns above to break and approach those various drop zones and deliver their respective cargo. A glorious site, really, and one that Alden felt a great swell of pride for simply being a part of the operation. Thankful that the Minister has specially requested his aid.

Behind him, Alden would notice the grumblings of a restless crowd which still grew in number. And then he would feel their distress and emotional turmoil as he allowed himself to drift into the tethers of the Force. To embrace it and see if there was any particular guidance it would offer in the possible actions to be taken by the citizens of this world. Would they be aggressive? Hostile? Peaceful? Panicked? Really only time would tell, but he had an unease about something. He turned to the nearest droid and gathered its attention. “Begin directing the crowd towards the delivery points.”

The droid offered an attempt at a knod, acknowledging the High Marshal’s command. “Roger. Roger.” It’s voice was the iconic mechanical tone which its model was known for, even sharing that same colloquialism. It turned and began into the crowd, another two B1 units taking to its flanks in an attempt to split the crowd toward the other landing zones that were now beginning to be established to allow for the increased rate of delivery these people so desperately needed.

Alden pulled his cybernetic arm in front of him and began to give it a few commands. It was a communications function integrated into the prosthetic, and one that was proving to be quite useful in the time since his procedure to have the arm installed in place of the one that had been incidentally amputated from him during training. The arm was something his was still growing accustomed to having, however his allergy to both koltohttps://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Kolto and bacta made it difficult for him to respond well to most treatment.

Almost instantly after his commands were sent, a security attache made its way from one of the grounded shuttles and was soon followed by an additional two teams. Quickly, they moved to start fortifying a perimeter around the ships in the landing zone and further play crowd control. If it could be helped, Alden wouldn’t allow there to be civil disobedience to erupt here. He wouldn’t allow this act of humanitarianism to fall to complete anarchy and chaos. And so far so good in that regard.

As his attention turned back to the family reunion, Alden couldn’t help but to allow a smile to once again carve its way across his face. There was a joy and a relief that he felt about the two having what they shared in that moment. And even though he’d come to develop an intensely strong bond with Faye, there just something about the familial bond that held a special place in anyone’s heart. After all, blood is thicker than water, as they say, and this was certainly the first time the High Marshal had ever seen the Exarch with a smile on his face. Alden had had little time to dwell on his own family since coming to the southern systems and perhaps that was for the better. There really was no telling where his dwelling on such things might lead him. His twin brother, Cam, was all he had left of that past. And at this point, with the dissolution of the New Republic, there was no telling what would have become of the man. Whether or not he even lived anymore was unbeknownst to him. It was a sad fact, but it was true. His thoughts would linger here only until the words thrown in his direction from the Exarch would brush passed the man’s lips.

Snapping to attention, Alden once again assumed a rigid stance, only this time with his hands pinned along the seams of the trousers to his service dress uniform. His metallic right hand then snapped to his brow in a salute to his superior. He would lower his salute upon the Exarch’s return or acknowledgment of the formal greeting military customs and courtesies demanded.

“And I, your, Sir.” The words would break from his lips after his salute had fallen. “This certainly isn’t the place I would have believed our paths would next cross,” he said, somewhat awkwardly, his glance momentarily shifting to Faye, before immediately returning to her older brother. “ But then again, Sir; it is not my place to question it.” Words were not forming so well as he would have hoped, but this was the first time he, the Exarch, and Faye had been in the same area since he and Faye had actually become a thing. And even at that, no one outside of Herahttps://starwarsrp.net/topic/148652-hera/ knew anything about it. And there was certainly no way she was going to be telling anyone anything about it.

 

[Amelia von Sorenn]

Objective: Drive away the Pirate Fleet​

Location: Moving to the Right Flank​

Tags: [member="Subject 73 Red"] | [member="Kathryn Foster"] | [member="Cypher Rage"] | [member="Kiff Brayde"] | [member="McKenna Rory"]​

Post: 2​

A heavy sigh - one loud enough for those around her to hear - slipped from the woman as she peered out across the void. She hadn’t had the displeasure of working with him just yet, though she had certainly heard things about this particular CDF commander. Though she meant it as a whisper, it was still loud enough for those nearest her to hear as she growled softly through gritted teeth.

“That damn fool is going to get his crews killed.”

Taking a step forward, she looked towards the fleet that was pushing towards the station, her fists clenching behind her back as she brought her arms forward.

“Ma’am, the Fleet Marshal is sending nineteen vessels to reinforce our task group.”

Nodding quietly, she took a moment to think, knowing that she couldn’t afford to be so brash and willing to throw away lives. She wanted to remove the threat of this pirate fleet, though she wasn’t going to do so in a means that would allow them an upper hand. No, she wanted to ensure that they had a means to escape - or at least the illusion of one - to ensure that the pirates wouldn’t fight like a cornered animal; as though they had nothing to lose.

Of course with the Fleet Marshal so willingly to rush towards the Pirate Station and its anti-capital ship weaponry, she had a more difficult decision to make. Though it seemed like forever, she finally nodded quietly before giving her command.

“Task four of the new carriers to remain on standby with two cruisers as additional cover. Their shuttle compliments are to be ready to recover escape pods from the Fleet Marshal’s vessels.”

Turning on the bridge, she focused upon those that stood there, waiting for orders before.

“Major Foster, as of this moment you are an acting Colonel of the Capital Armada, you’ll be commanding all Starfighter Elements including Horizon Squadron. Link up with Wraith Squadron and formulate a plan with Lieutenant Rory. If you see an opening that you can exploit, take it, however; do not waste lives.”

Turning her attention to the Special Operations, a soft smirk grew across her lips though the helm ensured it was not seen. Taking a moment, she knew the perfect placement for this individual.

“Colonel Foster, see if we can’t get an opening to get Agent Red on one of their vessels, preferably a lead ship. I want him to do as much damage as possible from the inside.”

Once more she turned back towards the view screen before her, eyes peering across the void at the moving vessels.

“Ma’am, High Marshal Brayde is requesting any information we’ve gathered, as well as moving in to begin the attack.”

Nodding, she motioned slightly.

“Send the information we have, allow the High Marshal to take point on this. Our forces will shift to the right flank and push the pirates from there. With a bit of luck, we’ll be able to push their forces into one another.”

Keeping her attention forward, she looked over her shoulder before a moment before nodding once more.

“You have your orders.”

She spoke simply to those on the bridge before her attention was once more focused on the enemy fleet’s movements. A soft sigh slipping out as she lowered her head for a moment, as if she were praying or otherwise understanding that lives were about to be lost today.

 

[Eternal Ardor]

​

[member="Amelia von Sorenn"] | [member="Subject 73 Red"] | [member="Kathryn Foster"] | [member="Cypher Rage"] | [member="Kiff Brayde"] | [member="McKenna Rory"] | [member="Jorah zos Darnus"]​

Turbulent times approached as the Pirate Base readied for the swiftly approaching onslaught of the Confederate forces that continued to gather in strength and in number. Sirens and alarms flashed and sounded off in a chaotic cacophony from within, soon followed the tell-tell signs that would accompany the powering up and engaging of station emplacements and defenses. From within a far hangar, a number of starfighters flushed out from the base, their models and designs dated, yet in a larger capacity than would have originally been anticipated by initial Confederate intel.

From within, orders were heaved about in as organized a fashion as the base’s operations leads could manage, though their coherence would pale to anything the Confederates would muster as their numbers and abilities continued to increase.

A few moments would pass before the base’s defenses would begin to fire off. The emplacements found themselves trained to the capital ships of the largest dimensions while the four squadrons of twelve fighters each that had come forth from the belly of the beast sought a path to engage the fighters the Confederacy offered in opposition.

As for the inner dwellings, the pirates and the crucible cultists alike would find themselves unaware of any such infiltration by the Confederacy, the young Dathomiri leaving no trace of his presence there. That was until an explosion from within rose alarms of a different nature. With the coolant reservoir to the reactor in utter disarray, the base was thrust into a particular panic, though for many it would fuel their drive further. Driven with a will and a passion to not go down without a fight, the pirates, and the Crucible, pressed their way into the fray.

And so the fight began . . .

​

[member="Xobos Yakieer"] | [member="Ardasz Verd"] | [member="Haastal Verd"]​

Black Sam paced in his private quarter with unease. This was not how this day was supposed to go! There lay a bag pulled undone with a few articles of clothing thrown hastily into it. A large cannon of some variant tossed aimlessly on the bed at the center. A barbaric blade placed crudely upon his back and armor, whose beskar plate didn’t exactly fit his figure, draped over his large, husky form. Smoke from the burning end of a cigara lofted leisurely into the air around him as muffled tones escaped past his lips. This was not how today was supposed to go at all!

A moment passed before the hefty man was forced to a knee amidst the entire place being shaken by the impact of something along the base. Returning to his stance again, he pulled a communications device from a pocket and began to speak to someone unknown on the other end. “Ready my shuttle and prepare my team. We’re leaving.” The command was short but blatant and within a few minutes, a contingent of pirates and advanced Crucible enforcers found their way to him. All heavily armed, the crucible personnel were easily distinguishable, toting more armored forms and carrying themselves with battle-hardened gusto. Nineteen personnel in all - 8 crucible, 10 pirates and Black Sam himself, they forged their ranks and made their way out and toward the private hangar of the boss, intent on leaving to survive another day. Or perhaps to return with a much larger force to repel the advancing Confederates.

 

[Cypher Rage]

Objective: Drive away the Fleet
Location: Edge of Epica System
Wearing: Dress Uniform
Tags: Amelia von Sorenn, Subject 73 Red,

Current Fleet: (Following the Lead of High Marshal von Sorenn)


Interdictor Fleet

• (7) Interdictor II class Cruiser (Battleline Leviathan)
• (12) Interdictor II class Carrier (Battleline Apollo)

Main Line:
CNS Salvatore (Flagship)
CNS Star Talon (Carrier)
CNS Archchild
CNS Whirlwind
CNS Authoritarian


Cypher paced the bridge silently as officers rushed passed him, each one directing some type of offense of defense aspect of the battle. Cypher himself was worried his plan wouldn't work however, if he was able to use the Salvatore's advanced Ion Weapon to his advantage he might be able to immobilize the station without having to send body bags home.

"Prepare to fire the cannon at the station. Move the ship into firing range of the station. The Fleet is not to follow. " he ordered. He calculated a 75% chance this tactic would work however, the Cruicible was adaptive and as such was most likely familiar with his tactics.

"Yes, Fleet Marshal. Engines ahead full. Divert Power to the Ion Cannon" Nade ordered. The flurry of activity on the bridge just seemed to increase as the order ranged out.

"Vice Marshal, Hail High Marshal [member="Kiff Brayde"]. " Cypher ordered. There was a slight chance the plan could be 100% efficient however it demanded the approval of Cypher's supioer. Upon which he wasn't entirely sure [member="Kiff Brayde"] would give due to home viewing Cypher as a eccentric. Or more favorable to his comrades, a kook.

[member="Kiff Brayde"], @Amelia Con Sorren, [member="Subject 73 Red"], [member="Kathryn Foster"]

 

[Tess Valnora]

Gear: Shadow's Sting | Norris Trench coat | PD-00 | Utility Belt​

(Contents: SOAR | Suppressor | Smoke Grenades (2) | Medi-kit)​

Weapons: Oathkeeper | SPG-12 | Phrik Knife | Shotosaber
Location: Pirate Base​

Tag: [member="Gerwald Lechner"] | [member="Maani"] | [member="Jari Valnora"]​

Tess had been crawling around the air ducts for what felt like an hour, but in all reality, it was more like ten minutes. These pirates were sloppy, for the most part, their security was focused more on manpower than closing up all the holes in their station. She removed a grate and looked down into the hallway, two pirates next to the door. Taking them both out without a shot being fired would be simple enough, if they discharged a round on death then that was another can of worms she would have to deal with when the time came. She had to make this quick. Lifting herself above the hole she paused a second then, she was weightless for a half second before landing on the duracreet floor, rolling to absorb the impact put her right where she wanted. The pirates looked at her in surprise before raising their blasters to fire at her. That second of surprise was all she needed as they both simultaneously felt the shock of her gauntlets, immediately incapacitating them.

Both pirates dropped heavily to the floor, muscles stiff as a board. Tess wasn’t sure if her brother had followed her in the vent or if he had decided to go the longer way and wait outside the door. The Crow dragged both pirates to the side of the hallway with a little bit of a struggle, “Nothing personal.” She quietly said drawing her knife. Without looking into the faces of her victims she proceeded to quickly end both of their lives.

After wiping her blade on one of the corpses she put it back in its sheath and made her way to the console. The door was locked from this side and made opening it a press of a button. The blast doors slid open, quite loudly. She then walked into the opening created by the door where she said, "You ready?"

 

[Faye Malvern]

[member=Alden Akaran] | [member=Adron Malvern]​

Though she most despised her true, full name, she didn’t much mind it coming from Adron. His voice was not too dissimilar from their Fathers and hearing it from him was a painful but welcome reminder of him. Her deepest regret was the lack of time either sibling got to spend with each other, but it simply made the times they did more precious than ever.

‘This is more than enough, thank you. You’ve made me look rather good.’ She wore a smirk on her face that could only be described as playful. The two siblings were in good standing with the Confederacy, and both made a point of using their connections and each other to gain more. Respect and power were the pinnacles of the Malvern household, and together the two siblings had done well to see it stayed that way. Faye pulled away from their embrace and found her hand taking her brothers gently. As he addressed Adron, most unknowingly, her hand seemed to tense around Adron’s. No matter how hard they both tried to hide it now, Adron would discover the true nature of their relationship sooner or later. The Minister made a quick decision that it was best that the news came from the two of them as a pose to through the grapevine, and…

There was no time like the present.

‘Well...’ Faye spoke after the two had shared their greeting. Whether or not Alden was agreeable, Faye knew what was best when it came to Adron. Perhaps, being his apprentice, he had gained some notion of what the man was like. Yet, somehow Faye could imagine that Adron did his best to hide his true self from any who he felt would abuse it, and that meant his apprentices too. So, she made an executive decision. ‘...actually. We have something to tell you.’ Her sun-kissed hand released her brothers, and she took a dainty step back to stand next to Alden, side by side. ‘We, uh...' Uh was a very rare and strange thing for the Minister to say. She was usually incredibly elegant with words, her Mother had blessed her with a penchant for fine speech, so the fact that it had come from her mouth surprised even Faye.

‘Now, please don’t be mad…’ There was no better way to say it. ‘He’s here with me, to help me, and… Well, we’ve been seeing each other for a good while now.’ Ebony eyes glanced quickly up to Alden, perhaps to gauge his reaction, or perhaps to comfort him, but either way, the secret was out. 'We are a couple.' Whatever he did they couldn’t take the words back, Faye just hoped that the crowds surrounding the square would force Adron to take the news gracefully.

 

[Kiff Brayde]

​

TAG: [member="Amelia von Sorenn"] [member="Kathryn Foster"] [member="Subject 73 Red"] [member="Cypher Rage"] [member="McKenna Rory"]​

​

"High Marshal, Fleet Marshal Rage's flagship is hailing. He requests to use his ion cannon to disable the station's defenses," one of the communication droids on the ship recited in a monotonous tone. While Kiff could appreciate the economic efficiency of employing droids, rather than organics, to do the more menial tasks that came with running a ship. Despite that, Kiff did miss the creativity, and slight release from boredom, that organic crews brought to the table. Nevertheless, there were still a few beings made of meat besides Kiff on the Masked Glory. Thus, he shrugged his discomfort aside and continued to command.

While it had it's merits, there were potential problems to the plan proposed by the Fleet Marshal, most of them concerning his Ion Cannon. Kiff had gone over the schematics of the Ion Cannon, and the Subjugator II-class Battlecruiser to which it was attached too, and although the power of the massive armament looked good on paper, Kiff had ultimately decided not to include the ship in his task force over Tanaab due to the flaws of the cannon. Most importantly, the Ion Cannon took up a lot of energy and time to charge up, during which a ship would be extra-vulnerable due to weakened shields and power towards engines for maneuvers and other armaments for defense. Especially with the Fleet Marshal's ship in an easily-exploitable position, charging his Ion Cannons could mean suicide for him and his crew. More importantly, if [member="Cypher Rage"]'s ships got any closer, than they could easily pose as a liability for the long-range cannons of Kiff's fleet.

"Fleet Marshal, you need to pull your forces back to the Confederacy Line, and do not charge up your Ion Cannon. Once the batteries of the Pirate Base are online, they will tear your ship to shreds before you have a chance to fully charge your weapon. I repeat, pull back your forces." Kiff said over the tightbeam transmission between the three command ships of the joint Confederacy task force. He hoped that High Marshal Sorenn would give some assent; in his previous experiences with the Fleet Marshal, Kiff had found the man to be rather brash, something ironic to be coming from Kiff himself.

Turning back to his own command and ships, Kiff pulled up a holographic diagram of the current battle as it were. He noticed that the pirates seemed to favor a swarm of faster, lighter ships rather than a battlecruiser-heavy fleet composition. While Kiff had anticipated this formation, the sheer number of ships that the pirates were fielding still managed to surprise him. Moments like these made Kiff appreciate his Carrier Group a little more than he did previously. "Tell the 523rd to release their fighters, but wait on my command to advance. I want all droid-brain fighters to begin processing their envelope-formation procedure, and have them ready for my command to initiate. In addition to that, tell all ships of the fleet to shift their firing solutions to a defensive bubble. In this stage, our first priority is to contain the pirate fleet before we begin an advance at the base."

"Acknowledged," a communications droid replied as it relayed the commands to the rest of Kiff's fleet. "The Artillery Group is requesting direction."

"Tell them to continue charging their autocannons; we will save that for our grand finale. Otherwise, inform them to use their other long-range capabilities to pick off larger enemy cruisers," Kiff replied after short deliberation. Before they would be able to move to landing troops on the pirate base -- another reason for the Fleet Marshal not to his ion cannon, as Kiff wanted for the life support systems of the base to be very much working when he stepped in it.

FORCES

Spoiler

514th Battle Line

• x2 Valiant II-class Star Destroyers
  - CNS Masked Glory
  - CNS Pantora
• x4 Saboath II-class Assault Cruisers
  - CNS Everlis
  - CNS Remembrant
  - CNS Corsair's Bane
  - CNS Balax
• x4 Frikto-class Escort Frigates
  - CNS Galarr
  - CNS Zalma
  - CNS Resilient
  - CNS Blunthead

523rd Fighter Line

• x1 Lucrehulk II-class Battlecarrier
  - CNS Geonosis's Pride
• x2 Providence II-class Carrier Destroyers
  - CNS Herald
  - CNS New Dawn
• x2 Ardan II-class Flak Frigates
  - CNS Anticipation
  - CNS Lothor

543rd Artillery Line

• x3 Thoros-class Artillery Battlecruisers
  - CNS Starshine
  - CNS Starfall
  - CNS Starbound
• x2 Mordekai-class Escort Cruisers
  - CNS Balazar
  - CNS Harper

 

[Kathryn Foster]

Objective: Drive away the Fleet
Location: Edge of Epica System
Wearing: Flightsuit, helmet under arm.
Tags: [member="Amelia von Sorenn"], [member="Subject 73 Red"], [member="McKenna Rory"], Open​

​

That imperceptible smile from that crazy red haired special forces operative did not go unnoticed by her keen blue eyes. She might not have had the ability to get into peoples minds, as Red did, but she were quite good to sense what mood people was in and perceive even the slightest facial change. Crazy. Yeah, he was kind of crazy in alot of ways. Psychologically, she had fought herself bloody with him back on Geonosis. If you could put a funny comparison to it, it had been kind of like teaching your new puppy the ways around, only times houndred and much much worse.

Had he succeeded to 'teach' her whatever he wanted to teach a superior officer? To some degree maybe, yes. He sure had gave her something to think about back at the barracks.

With a slight headtilt to the side, she peered suspiciously at him before breaking out in soft heartily smile in response. He definately needed to improve that smile of his.

Correcting her attention to high marshal von Sorenn, she listened attentively and seriously to the orders.

''... acting Colonel of the Capital Armada...''

Whoa! Back up! C-colonel...?

She did not show it, but she felt an instant pressure flow over her. Pressure, along with a choking feeling of hesitation to accept the sudden promotion. Names of other able candidates went through her mind, but she also had to listen up to the orders. There was realy no time to discuss the matter, either. She could make it. She had to make it. Kath drew possibly the deepest internal sigh in her career, before nodding and saluting the high marshal when she dismissed them both to carry on their orders.

''Yes, ma'am!'' she confirmed shortly and then turned to Red.

''You heard the High Marshal. Follow me and we'll get you on a ship!'' she stated and nodded for the exit of the bridge, awaiting him before taking the lead out of it.

 

[Subject 73 Red]

Objective: Drive away the fleet
[member="Amelia von Sorenn"] [member="Kathryn Foster"]

Red nodded and saluted, having received his orders. Hmm, Colonel Foster seems to have been put off guard by the sudden change of rank. Funny, she seems to be bewildered by it. She seemed to be handling it... moderately well, but she seemed nervous by the amount of pressure on her.

"Yes, ma'am." Red turned and followed [member="Kathryn Foster"] out of the bridge.

 

[McKenna Rory]

Objective: Drive away the fleet​

Location: Edge of Epica system​

Tags: [member="Amelia von Sorenn"], [member="Kathryn Foster"]​

[SIZE=9pt]McKenna’s mind was clear as the squads under her command began their patrol, the small redhead took pride knowing that they were the fleets first line of defense against the enemy. As the squads make their second pass around the fleet the high marshal patched into her comms. She heard as [member="Kathryn Foster"], was named as an acting Colonel. McKenna did not have any problem with others being promoted in fact it gave her joy to have such a capable officer be promoted. As the newest Colonel was given her briefing McKenna’s ears perked up as she heard that part of those orders included linking up with Wraith Squadron. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]As all of these things went through the pilot’s head she almost missed the ping on her radar. 14 blips behind her squadron. As she saw this she spoke for the first time breaking radio silence with her Squad “We’ve got incoming bandits on our six, bug out use the larger ships for cover watch each others backs and regroup when clear Wraith 1-1 out” As soon as the small redhead finished speaking she would pull back on her throttle and slam the stick to the left sending her ship into a tight turn.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]She would shoot under the capital ship closest to her using it to cover her from the 4 bandits that were on her tail. She would pull a trick on the less experienced pilots, she would come up upon the starboard side of the nearest carrier, using the advanced speed and steering of her ship she would flip 180 degrees so her head was toward the carrier before rolling over coming around behind the bandits. Once behind them she would unleash the fury of her guns. The ships fell in quick succession. “Horizon Leader this is Wraith Leader multiple Bandits spotted and engaged requesting reinforcements. How copy?”[/SIZE]