Radio Free Coruscant Presents Underground Revival

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

THE PLANET
C O R U S C A N T
CORE WORLDS | THE GALACTIC ALLIANCE

It was several months ago when [member="Mara D'Lessio Merrill"] had contracted Corellia Digital to help with the reconstruction of Coruscant.

It hadn't all been parts and equipment either. [member="Astarii Saren"] had even pressed the company's ships into helping fend off an impromptu raid on the wreckage of One Sith vessels in orbit. It was everything you'd expect from cleaning up after the invasion of such a major Sith holding. There were problems of every kind.

Equipment shortages.

Problems getting personnel, parts, or supplies through Galactic Alliance checkpoints, or even adapting to a changing security environment with the Galactic Alliance as their victory settled into a long and drawn out road of recovery and reconstruction. Even with it's Venator-class floating factory, supported by the Ruisto-class explorers, and the ingenuity of Mandalorian designed construction craft, it had taken weeks for the subspace communications infrastructure to be restored.

Even then, it had been patchwork held together by spacer's tape, spit, and a lot of prayers to the Force above.

But, no more. With Corellia Digital's CD-9J satellites deployed across the system, orbital and ground stations using state-of-the-art CD-9 subspace wave transmitters, and signal repeaters seeded in the asteroids and sky hooks, Coruscant was once more connected to the galactic community. From emergency services relying on 9-1-1 comlink centers to people making that subspace radio transmission to neighboring sectors, or even home HoloNet access... this was just one small piece of normalcy that Corellia Digital was able to give back to the galactic community.

And what better way to celebrate such a victory than with the broadcast of galactic event from Coruscant itself?

Many months ago, the Radio Free Coruscant movement had envisioned a free Coruscant. That vision had come true, at great cost. But, at the end of the long and winding road, here they were.

On the steps of the historic Monument Plaza.

"Ladies and gentlebeings, aliens of all species, Radio Free Coruscant and Corellia Digital presents for your enjoyment... Underground Revival!"

​

[member="Kytra Odran"] | [member="Bryce Bantam"] | [member="Nawago"] | [member="Veino Garn"] | [member="Zak Dymo"]​

 

[Veino Garn]

Last time Veino had been here, he had been wearing combat armor, carrying heavy weaponry and sneaking through the sewers. It had been the Alliance's first strike on Coruscant and had been a major success from a morale standpoint. They had destroyed the Sith temple and punched a major hole in the One Sith capital's defenses. It had rocked the galaxy as its ripples spread from the center of the galaxy to the farthest reaches of the Outer Rim.

The One Sith weren't invincible. After years of their relentless battering of the Republic, someone had stepped up, a young contender to the field, thrown together out of need, desperation, and stubborn hope, born from the Outer Rim fires of Sullust and insane Imperial fringe groups. And you know what? They had broken the Sith's nose, shattering their dark visage of omnipotence. It had been a nightmare, that battle, with thousands dead in a few short hours. Yet here they now stood, on Monument Plaza itself, in a free world.

What he had helped start on that day so many years ago had been brought to fruition and it was time for a new beginning. That was what brought him here now, although he wished he could have been there at the liberation.

He stood, in his performance outfit, first debuted on the beaches of Zeltros, looking at his keyboard. Strange how the Force carried him to different tides. The big war had ended, now another began. One for healing and peace, to rebuild and restore what was lost. It would be a long journey, but he'd died and come back twice now. What was a journey compared to that?

Not a big deal. He smiled and played a quick riff. It was time to rock and roll.

 

[Bryce Bantam]

Bryce waited for [member="Kytra Odran"] to take the stage and grant them voice so that they might fill the hearts of those listening with joy and the night with the most excellent sounds of rock. For as it was with each performance the force surrounded Bryce, penetrated him, and filled him with the most mighty power of life-affirming metal.

As he closed his eyes he could feel the crowd rising to their feet, ready to lose themselves in a night of fun and musical mayhem. As he took in the spirit of rock his mind wandered back to his first performance. To a most exhilarating night of music and to one [member="Joza Perl"]. Would one such as her present herself as Bryce's muse today, would it matter?

No today was not about beauty of the eye, but rather, beauty of the soul, and as the energy built around them Bryce prepared for the magic that was yet to come.

 

[Micah tol Powl]

[member="Veino Garn"] played a quick riff, and that was all it took for the Nautolan on bass to be ready to jam.

The green-skinned teen was set-up, his electric bass mando plugged into an amplifyer and ready for a sound check. He could see [member="Bryce Bantam"] getting ready and anticipated [member="Kyta Odran"] appearing to kick off what was certain to be one hell of show.

In the meantime, it was time for a quick sound check of his own.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IPeuqcLxmo​

​

Coaxing the melody with the gentle administrations of his fingers, the boy carefully tested the sound of the chords. It was a timeless melody, one that he knew he'd heard before - perhaps a dozen times - but couldn't be certain the first time he'd heard it. Something about it made him think of [member="Théodred Heavenshield"], and he wondered if the scuffy nerf herder might not be in the audience somewhere.

In the meantime, here was a little something to get the audience ready while the band warmed up for its first set.

 

[TC-91]

Coruscant. A set of drums was the last reason he thought of that could bring him there, yet it was. He had heard stories about the planet, but seeing it for the first time was no comparison to that. The towering buildings seemed smaller to him than to most people, but it was still astounding. To think that he was one of the few of his species that had ever been there in this time period to adore the sights. Willing, at least. He knew how much a difference in circumstance could change one's view, though now wasn't the time to think about that. It was a time of happiness, and rock and roll.

Time had passed since that show back at Zeltros, and Nawago was glad that he actually practiced the drums for once. No more sheet music for this wampa. Despite the short amount of time between shows, he felt that mastery already granted itself to him. It was odd how he managed to store all of this info regarding the band into his head, since he would always find himself forgetting various things. Approaching the location he was given, Nawago spotted most of his band mates already. He really needed to improve on his time management, but he made it so he should've been fine.

Setting up wasn't much of a problem, even with the weight of the drums that normal people would consider heavy. A few others practiced before the show, and Nawago felt that he definitely could play a bit in preparation. The night before, he faced slight struggles with a certain segment of one of their songs, so it would have been to prevent an embarrassing mistake while on the stage. The rhythm felt like natural instinct, and he knew that he was ready by that point. Now was time for the show, nothing stopping it now.

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"] | [member="Veino Garn"] | [member="Bryce Bantam"] | [member="Zak Dymo"] | [member="Kytra Odran"]

 

[Leos Palle]

The cast was assembled. This wasn't their first gig, but this one had a much bigger audience. It was a celebration. A celebration of Coruscant's freedom from the oppression of the One Sith. Yes, this was a momentous thing, and here they had been asked to perform on the steps at Monument Plaza. She wasn't the first to arrive, she was the last. Sometimes it was nice to be fashionably late! Considering she'd also spent some time recently in a bacta tank, she had a little bit of an excuse. Veino was in the know about that one.

Out she walked, dressed in a different outfit from her last performance. She moved to her synthesizer and did a quick sound check, which left her satisfied. They were announced by their gracious host, and she turned and smiled at the crowd before turning to the others.

"I think we should honor our host with a little Digital World."

She grinned and moved to her synthesizer, queuing up the various digital noise sounds, and the overlay voice, which would be the cue for the others. Nawago got a lot of airtime in this particular song. She liked it when the others got front time too.

'There are, of course, those who do not want us to speak.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6PYAkXO-bU

[member="Sor-Jan Xantha"] [member="Veino Garn"] [member="Bryce Bantam"] [member="Zak Dymo"] [member="Nawago"]

 

[HK-36]

Meanwhile,
In Coruscant's orbit,

A large super-carrier was orbiting the planet, a relic from war many years ago, the vessel's original Horde markings were covered up by Protectorate insignias, which in turn were now replaced with Galactic Alliance symbols, it seems the ship changed hands quite a few times over its lifetime. On the helm of its bridge stood a lone armored figure, clad in grey Phrik armor and a black cloak. He watched the city-planet from orbit, as radio played through the bridge's speakers in the background,

"Ladies and gentlebeings, aliens of all species, Radio Free Coruscant and Corellia Digital presents for your enjoyment... Underground Revival!"

The music begun to play, serenading the machine, stuck with patrol around the galactic capitol, and the crew of the ship as they busied themselves on their stations, keeping check on engines, weapon systems, shields, the chatter filling communications, all of the by now mundane chores one would expect on a spaceship.

As music would begin to play through the radio the droid looking over the planet would start to nod his head in the rhythm, a sentiment many of his officers expressed as well,

"These are some crunch-tastic tunes."

The aged war-droid muttered, one of his comm officers, safely hidden behind a console, raised his hand to touch his temples, hiding his face within his palm.

That's right, there was a new sheriff in town and he knew neither the meaning of mercy nor "crunch-tastic"

 

[Joza Perl]

Out in the crowd, a Zeltron woman was perched atop a man’s shoulders. The two didn’t actually know eachother, but the tall stranger seemed to have no problem with his passenger. They both were fans of Underground Revival, hence their matching T-shirts for the event.

With her premium seat, Joza could easily spot some of the more familiar members of the band. She immediately recognized [member="Zak Dymo"]—and balked for a moment at how grown up the Nautolan was. She still remembered him as the hyperactive little boy on their expedition to the jungle, only today she wasn’t hungover. She hadn’t been hungover for like, a month. Still, it was hard to believe that Zak was growing up to the point where he’d be considered an adult kinda. Ish.

Next, her eyes caught the sight of ginger locks belonging to none other than [member="Bryce Bantam"]. He too, had grown from the teenager she’d first met him as—drunk, of course. There was sort of a pattern here. Grinning eagerly, she waved towards the band, unperturbed if they noticed her or not. Zeltrons loved art in all its forms, music included. And this was music made by some of her friends. Why wouldn’t she be here to support them and enjoy this?

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

"I think we should honor our host with a little Digital World."

The small Jedi looked up with a smile at the verbal nod from the band.

The little engineer was in the main communications hub for Galactic City, monitoring the subspace radio network. "Signal wave propagation looks good," the boy noted, vaguely conscious of the vocals supplied by Bryce and Kytra as he observed the technical details of how their song was demonstrating the breadth of everything Corellia Digital had worked. Not just around Coruscant, but also in the neighboring sectors. Corellia. Chandrila. Druckenwell. Mhaeli.

One by one, those sectors were lighting up now.

Transmissions carrying the digital characteristics of the soundwaves produced by the band and carrying them beyond the atmosphere. Communication satellites in orbit picked up the signal, bounced it off a signal repeater in the asteroid belt, and then it spread outward from there.

"We've got a point-oh-three second delay to Corellia," the technician synchronizing the satellites remarked from beside him.

"I can live with that," the boy opined aloud.

Hello from Coruscant, galaxy. We're back.

​

[member="Kytra Odran"] | [member="Bryce Bantam"] | [member="Nawago"] | [member="Veino Garn"] | [member="Zak Dymo"]​

​

[member="Joza Perl"] | [member="HK-36"]​

 

[Veino Garn]

[member="Kytra Odran"] [member="Sor-Jan Xantha"] [member="Joza Perl"] @HK-36 @Nawago @Zak Dymo [member="Bryce Bantam"]

----------------------------------

Funny thing about being an empath- it made things difficult. No getting around that fact. Unless he consciously built his mental barriers he would be flooded by waves of thoughts and emotions. Most Jedi had to deliberately use the Force to read people's feelings to only get glimpses of images. Veino got all of it all the time. It was like well... like being in a rock concert. Lights flashed across the stadium, pulsing to the music as the band played.

His hands darted up and down the keyboard, setting down the rhythm and harmony. His fingers, long and strong, moved with confidence from key to key, tapping each one. The notes soared loud and strong through through the speaker system, tying themselves effortlessly in with the rest of the instruments. Music was not unlike the Force in that manner. It was woven together by countless individuals working in harmony and done properly, tied them together and became something more. Part of something larger.

He let his mental barriers fall, feeling the emotions of the crowd pour into his mind. It was a constant stream of excitement and energy that poured into his mind and through his body. He let himself surf those feelings, letting it carry his hands as he began to improvise a new harmony. Minor key to start with, slow and thoughtful, full of sorrow and regret from the price these wars had wrung from Coruscant in blood. But then it changed, still in minor key, to something strong and stately. It was the strength its inhabitants had revealed under Sith occupation and how they survived, even through the pain. Then it changed once more- major key - of song triumphant and bursting joy. Freedom and what it meant to not fear being murdered by soldiers in the street.

This improvisation tied into the rest of the song, dancing with the main music as a reflective backdrop.

Empathy had its uses sometimes.

 

[Micah tol Powl]

He could the feet were stompin, and Underground Revival had the jam pumping.

The young Nautolan looked out and saw the crowd was jumping, so he pumped it up a little more to get the party started on the dance floor.

His fingers moved up and down the bridge of the electric bass, keeping pace with the rhythm of Kytra's vocals as the song jumped into a full-on rush of sound and experience. The teen's head-tails were slinging back and fro with the motion of his head. He wasn't just playing the guitar, he was a whirlwind of motion alive on the chords.

[member="Kytra Odran"] | [member="Nawago"] | [member="Veino Garn"] | [member="Bryce Bantam"] | [member="Joza Perl"] | [member="HK-36"]​

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

"We've got solar activity in the vicinity of Chandrila."

Turning his attention away from the concert for a moment, the small Anzat was presented by a graph depicting the progress and stability of the broadcast signal across the HoloNet. Electromagnetic interference from within the Chandrila system was creating feedback among the relay stations that normally provided communications coverage to that region.

"Try broadcasting on a different frequency," the boy remarked, looking down at the technician as the man made the inputs to the computer.

"Negative results, sir," the technician reported a moment later. As the boy looked up, he could see the indicators around Chandrila switching from green to red. "The interference is occurring across a spectrum of subspace radio frequencies."

Damn.

...well, nothing's perfect. Not even in this century. "Keep at it," the child remarked, before turning his attention back to the concert.

Chandrila was off the grid, temporarily anyway, but at least they were still showing good fidelity in broadcasting to all other sectors. Even people in Voss ought to have been enjoying the concert feed.