The Battle of Ciutric IV [ TSE Dominion of Ciutric IV / Toprawa Hex ]

[Ao Xian]

"Friends?"

Ao turned her head slightly, watching him. Clearly weighing.

"Allies, yes, certainly," she said finally, turning back to watch the battle. It would be over soon, there was no doubt of that.

"No one out there is your friend, however," she murmured and smiled. There was no joy in the smile, only the slow show of teeth. "Not yet anyway. Potentially? Certainly yes. But do not mistake allies for friends, Jyn. The Sith are powerful, rising stars in the galaxy. But never forget just who and what we are. You have two choices- to be the predator.... or the prey. Sith choose the path of the predator, in one fashion or another."

Her tone was self satisfied at the last part. Ao was a predator by her nature, not by choice of philosophy. In her opinion, it meant that she was better suited to understanding that aspect of the Sith than someone from the background of a different species.

If Ao suffered from any of the deadly sins, it would be pride.

"Assuming friendship without earning it is weakness, human. And the weak are preyed upon."

She glanced at him out of the corner of those sapphire eyes.

"Reach out with the Force," she instructed. It was the first opportunity to teach, and she deigned to take it. "It's there at your fingertips if you have the true talent to take it. Close your eyes if it helps," an oddly gentle tone in her voice for a moment as she breathed in, the force of her breath out enough to stir the hair on the back of his neck. "Just beyond this ship, hundreds of lives are being snuffed out of existence. Some are prey. Some are predators. Death does not distinguish because it is the greatest predator of all. Find them. The sensation of them. Feel them die- we all do, all will. Even Gods, after all, die, simply not in the same way as you or I."

For now, Ao thought. For now.

"Touch those deaths. Let them wash over you. There is power in death. There is also power in life. And in that split moment, that heartbeat in between? There lies the greatest power of all. Try to find one in that moment. You do not have the strength yet to take it, to claim it for yourself." She said it matter of factly, no insult meant, simply truth. "But practice the sensing of it. Know what it feels like."

Not everyone could handle that, she knew.

This here was the true test of if he was worth her time. Her attention. Would he feel that moment of death watch over him and falter? Or would he touch it and want more?

[member="Jyn Cvetkovic"]

 

[Darth Athora]

Objective - Engage the League's fleet
Location - Ciutric IV's orbit

Ship - Sable Scar - Imperator-class Battlecruiser
Engaging - Freedom Wing, Cerulean Saber - Liberation-class Star Cruisers


The battle between the Sable Scar and the two Star Cruisers droned on as the three ships fought with all their might for survival and victory. The Sable Scar had cruisers on both sides of it, splitting it's firepower between the two enemy ships. "Now is the time. Unleash the bombers." Zahori commanded. And, in that instance, fighters and bombers roared from the hangar and took the cruisers by surprise. In swift and deadly runs, the bombers ripped through the shields and began pelting the hull of each cruiser.

"Admiral Denko. I've some news. A pair of Jedi have managed to infiltrate the ship and are roaming through the corridors." an officer reported.

"Yes. I am already aware. I felt their presence since they boarded my ship." Zahori replied. The knight turned and looked at the officer. Suddenly, the officer's throat felt tight as if someone was crushing her neck. A sharp snap from the officer's neck signaling her neck breaking was the end of it. Her body fell to the ground as she instantly died. "Get this cretin off my bridge. I'll deal with the Jedi." Zahori stepped over the body as she walked off the bridge, lightsaber hilt in hand.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Move, move, move!"

A group of soldiers thundered down a corridor, their weapons held firmly in their hands as they rounded the corner into another hall. At their head was Commander Stukim, a young but eager soldier who had readily volunteered to lead the attack on the dockyard. His lack of experience was countered by his willing determination to do whatever was necessary for the cause, and had resigned himself to the life of a martyr ever since he had joined.

Now was time to make that decision a reality.

He'd just received his orders from the Admiral. The Empire was stronger than they realized, and they had made a grave error in overstepping their reach this far from home. Now they were paying the price, and the outlook didn't look good for the whole fleet. But if there was any solace to be had about this whole tragedy, it was that they were capable of at least getting in one good shot right to the Empire's crown jewels before they became one with oblivion. Undoubtedly the Empire would soon covet this dockyard when the fleet was reduced to rubble, so there was only one sensible course of action Commander Stukim and his men could take.

Blow it to hell and back.

Wrapped around each of the soldier's bodies were makeshift explosive vests, each one primed and ready to detonate at the push of a button. Their primary objective was to make a beeline to the dockyard's power station, and detonated their charges to send the whole station plummeting down into Ciutric IV's orbit.

The sound of battle drew near, and from the periphery glances Stukim made out whatever viewport was closest it didn't look like the fleet was faring any better.

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Indeed, things were not going swimmingly for the League.

The Endeavor's shields had taken a pounding from not only the Empire's grand battlecruiser, but from the other ships in the system. The warship's shields were practically spent, and fires had broken out where the stress overwhelmed the defenses and caused hull damage. The bridge was awash in the red glow of the emergency lights, and several officers were slumped over their consoles; dead. A missile had slipped through the failing shields and detonated right under the bridge, causing major damage to the entire structure and killing several of Oottall's men in the process.

Oottall himself had lost an eye when the control console next to him exploded, thick shards of shrapnel slicing through the soft tissue of his bulbous left eye. He knew that his end had finally come at last, there would be no triumphant victory against the Sith this day. The Empire had proved too vast, too powerful for any part of this ill-fated scheme to work.

The engines of the Endeavor malfunctioned mid-maneuver, and the ship slowly started to list to the right without any guidance.

It was practically a sitting duck.

[member="Darth Prazutis"] | [member="Vanessa Vantai"] | [member="Ordo"] | [member="Scipio Alta"]​

 

[Malikar]

Location: SKULL SQUADRON TRANSPORT ---> SHIPYARD HANGAR
Objective: TAKE CONTROL OF SHIPYARD'S DEFENSES
Unit: STILETTO COMPANY, 42nd AIRBOURNE COMPANY
Allies: [member="Scipio Alta"], [member="Darth Prazutis"] Elsewhere on the Station: [member="Bo Lin"], [member="Kogra"], [member="Orion Darkstar"], [member="Vihaan Sloan"], [member="Kazmai"]
Enemies: [member="The League of Voss"]

They were transported through Space, death and pain filling the distance between the Sith-Imperial Fleet and the Voss League's defended checkpoint.

When they entered the shipyard hangar however, they were almost immediately under fire, and the young Sith Pureblood's blaster fired as fast as it could. And while they took cover from the machine gun nests, Malikar swapped out the standard rounds that were loaded into his rifle, and produced the explosive rounds from the pouch on his waist. He was taller than almost everyone, and he slightly poked out above some destroyed fighter.

And then the order came, and the machine gun nests were dealt with, blasters, slugs, and even rocket launchers blowing them to kingdom come.

A beautiful death.

And as he rose up, comms supplying the information that said the hangar was secured, the Force washed over the former Gladiator.

Jidai.

And he immediately began firing.

Come and meet us.

 

[Bo Lin]

He crashed into the enemy defenses like a wave of fur and laser sword. His huge muscles wirked visibly beneath his fur and fat as he swung at the little pink defenders. The made squishing noises beneath his feet as he walked over the bodies and made his way to a blastdoor.

He looked at the door with big green eyes and lifted his screaming saber. He balled a meaty fist and did the unthinkable. He knocked.

The door didn't move so the large pandyn knocked again and waited for the beings inside the command center to ipen up. After a moment the door slowly opened and Bo rolled inside. The big creature rolled over a droid as he went and came up swinging. This would be the end of the Voss defenders. Once they took the stations command ce ter they could turn the defenses on the defenders. Wouldn't that be fun.

 

[Onrai]

"Captain, we're reading almost total shield loss on the Endeavor​!" A crewman said.

"Excellent... All batteries, open fire on the second cruiser!"

The Scrapmetal swarm, slightly under ninety drones strong thanks to the cruiser's anti-fighter weapons, impacted across the entire broadside of the ship. Their shields superheated for a moment as they penetrated modestly into the hull before their explosive charges detonated, several dozen explosions rippling the massive vessel. Its death throes were silent - one Scrapmetal had hit the ship's bridge, while another two had impacted the ship's main reactor, damaging it beyond functional use. With so many holes torn in the side of the ship's hull - and without the main reactor to seal the bulkheads - breathable air was vented out, crewmembers and droids following suit as the vessel's crew was swiftly, sickeningly depleted.

The LRHHVels of the well-worn battleship opened fire on the other Liberation-class Star Cruiser - they were intensely powerful weapons, designed to almost certainly contrast with some of the smaller proton beam cannon designs. The focused energy of the hypervelocity guns, aimed at a single point roughly amidships, resulted in rippling explosions through the cruiser in question as it swiftly blew itself apart amidships. The Pluton had proven its worth for the first time - its guns had never actually been fired in anger before today, only in testing, and their capabilities had proven to be... more than Vanessa had ever expected of them. The Scrapmetals too had been successfully deployed - how silly the Omegas had been in not utilizing them...

"Captain, we've got a failure in Engine 5."

​"Cut power to the engine for the time being. We don't have the time to repair it now."

​Yes, there was work to be done.

[member="The League of Voss"]

 

[Nan'eth'illa]

"Preparations complete. Release in T minus three seconds."

Toprawa Relay Station​

Repair team​

"Repair team is ready. Awaiting launch."

The Chiss looked at the other engineers and let out a quiet sigh before the hangar bay opened. The team jumped out, air rushing past their bodies and tugging on their pressure suits as they fell freely through the wind and clouds down towards the forested surface of Toprawa. It would have been easier to shuttle them down, sure. However, the area around the relay station had become unstable and crowded with trees.

There was a genuine risk of crashing.

So instead, a team of engineers equipped with jetpacks had been dispatched. They would approach and secure the relay's structural integrity before getting it up and running again. However, there was something bugging Darth Filiae; it was a sensation of unease. She felt as though something was waiting for them on the relay station, something bad.

This was why she had insisted they come armed.

Upon breaking the cloud-cover, a beep was sent out across the coms. In a reasonably synchronised motion, the team reoriented themselves in the air, making sure they would not crash or break themselves in the sudden stop. Then, they engaged their jetpacks. Even with the reorientation, it was a sudden and uncomfortable jerk, but Filiae knew it was preferable to crashing into the ground like molten ice-sweets. The group spread out and began their controlled descent down onto the forested planet of Toprawa, and the Relay Station. Filiae, Akito (securely placed in Filiae's pocket) and one of the Engineers - Whose name Filiae could not be bothered to remember - descended on the rusted dish. The remaining team of five would secure the structure underneath.

Filiae's landing was uncomfortable, as she slipped along the edge of the angled dish. Her engineer companion was far more eloquent in his use of the jetpack, and made it look easy. Yet, both made landfall on the dish and engaged their magboots.

"Weapon on hand, we don't know if anyone's squatting here." She rested a hand near the blaster on her hip while Akito climbed out of her jacket pocket.

"Nethil, that was a shit landing. Next time, let me fly." "Don't be ridiculous. Go do the thing." "Yes, yes, Ms. Specific"

 

[Darth Athora]

Objective - No Stowaways
Location - Ciutric IV's orbit

Ship - Sable Scar - Imperator-class Battlecruiser
Engaging - Freedom Wing, Cerulean Saber - Liberation-class Star Cruisers

The corridors of the Sable Scar were dimly lit as power began to fluctuate. Likely the Jedi's doing. She needed this bit of excitement or else she'd just be stuck on the bridge barking orders. Although, she did like the feel of commanding others to do her bidding, the rush of slaying Jedi was twice as good.

She approached the wide doors leading to the engine room. A detachment of the Shadow Fist stood at the doors, awaiting orders from Zahori. "Ma'am, they're in there. Awaiting your orders." one of the Shadow Fist said.

"Remain out here. I will deal with this myself." she replied. As she stepped to the door, a commando pressed the button adjacent tot he entrance, causing the doors to slide open. Zahori stepped in and the doors shut behind her. In the distance, the Jedi were currently tearing apart at the subsystems of Zahori's ship. Zahori removed her cloak and ignited her lightsabers. The sound of her lightsabers igniting halted the Jedi in their tracks. They turned around to see Zahori standing atop the stairwell. In a near instant, Zahori leaped from her position down to where the Jedi stood and clashed her lightsabers with theirs.

 

[Zef Halo]

LOCATION: SKULL SQUADRON TRANSPORT -> SHIPYARD HANGAR
OBJECTIVE: TAKE CONTROL OF SHIPYARD'S DEFENCES
UNIT: STILETTO COMPANY, 42nd AIRBORNE DIVISION
ALLIES: NEARBY: [member="Malikar"] SOON NOT TO BE NEARBY: [member="Darth Prazutis"] ELSEWHERE ON THE SHIPYARD: [member="Bo Lin"] | [member="Kogra"] | [member="Orion Darkstar"] | [member="Vihaan Sloan"] | [member="Kazmai"]
ENEMIES: [member="The League of Voss"]

---

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The recklessness demonstrated by the insurgent soldiers storming the hangar, charging Sith-Imperial positions of cover with no regard of their own life meant one thing.

They knew their end was coming. This was their Last Stand.

For Scipio that did not matter. He couldn't care less in their belief system, nor their reasoning, nor their morale. Only their decisions to pull triggers at the Sith Empire and his soldiers is what mattered to him. The lieutenant would make sure they received ten fold the casualties report the Sith-Imperial forces would receive.

:: Focus, soldiers! They're like fethin' ducks waitin' to be shot. :: LT Alta shot through the comms.

Easier said than done with the Jedi covering their insane charges into Legion positions.

A reminder of his troops' manifest for today's mission popped up in his head. That's right. A Sith.

He opened a private channel to Pvt. Malikar.

:: Soldier, that Jedi is yours. I need him taken down ASAP!! ::

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Bo Lin"] | [member="Kogra"] | [member="Orion Darkstar"] | [member="Vihaan Sloan"]

The battle went well and Kazmai felt the anger turn into grim satisfaction as he smashed another human into the wall, the crunch playing like music against his ears and pulling him away from the killing haze brushing his vision. The red receded enough to see Bo... knock? At first Kaz assumed that he was just seeing things.

But no, the door slowly whirred open and the Pandyn rushed inside.

This was not the time to wonder about the panda's seductive wiles. Instead Kaz roared once more and gestured with his bloody hammer towards the opened blast-door.

As one they charged inside.

The slaughter was absolute, droids and humans and other sentients smashed like an anvil on their hammer. They were swept aside like rag-dolls in the face of their onslaught. It felt like hours that the Simian was swinging his hammer, up and down, to the tune of the song of their screams. But eventually the fight was truly over.

Some of the squad were going along the corpses, ensuring that each and every one of them was dead.

Kaz?

Kaz collapsed on the Captain's Chair. Too small for him for comfort and it groaned against his weight, but managed to hold for now. His fur was wet, slick with their crimson life-water. "Kaz?" One of his brothers asked, this one a Herglic. "Get me the Dark Lord, I have a station to deliver to him." From here Kazmai's squad made short work of the station's defenses.

They were either shut down or turned against the League's soldiers.

"You have done well today, brothers." Kaz finally rumbled after relaying the status of the station to whoever was in charge of the Sith's operation here. "Tonight we celebrate."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The writing on the wall could never be clearer.

Both support fleets had been thoroughly decimated, only a couple frigates, corvettes, and fighters remained to brave the onslaught. Oottall's flagship was beyond repair, its midsection gutted and its engines completely destroyed. The command bridge had been evacuated as the crew hurried off to the escape pods, as if that could save them from the Empire. TIE Fighters strafed the wreckage, opening fire on any escape pod they came across with unfettered ruthlessness.

"Retreat, the battle is lost! Take with you the spark of defiance, and live to fight another day!"

Oottall's words rung clear and true across the League's emergency channel, and as one the surviving elements of the fleet broke off their last ditch attack to escape. A couple dozen fighters and corvettes managed to jump into hyperspace before suddenly...

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A single Ascendancy-class Star Destroyer micro-jumped in to cut off their escape, one of the League's corvettes smashing into its dagger-like hull before careening away as a smoldering ruin. The Star Destroyer opened fire as the noose was firmly tightened around the other League frigates, and they were massacred to the last ship.

The Battle of Ciutric IV, as it would soon be named, was more of a slaughter than it was an actual military engagement.

And in the end the Empire prevailed in its first encounter with the League of Voss, smashing their fleet and preventing the dockyards from being scuttled by the wicked terrorists. The victory was broadcast across the Empire, and the words of the Empire rung out in united jubilation.

Empire! Emperor! Loyalty!​

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Imperius Unitada ober Totallex!​