Skirmish The Black Nest Crisis: Mission to Draemidus Prime

[Loske Treicolt]

SABER SQUADRON XO | KNIGHT OF THE NEW JEDI ORDER
DRAEMIDUS PRIME
FLIGHT SUIT | LIGHTSABER | X-02 Saber Class
MIGHTY WINGS

​

The briefing concluded with a few hand squeezes, hugs and nods to her friends to bid good luck, before sauntering in the direction of the deployment hangar. Everything after that was a well-practiced routine. Umbilicals into ships, ensuring all systems were online and green, and weapons checks. Frank interfaced with R2 readily enough, indicating they were ready to party just before belching into the vacuum above Draemidus Prime. The loyal astromech would patch through the flight commands from Saber’s XO, while the rest of the team fell into place. It wasn’t the full squadron –– but a few that had flown against the Bryn’adul before on Yurb.

Within the shared flightpath was the basic strategic operations: Fly close, fly light and have scanners on full. Pulling the navigational sequences from a massive, bioengineered attack cruiser would have them in tight quarters.

Once they were active, comms were limited between the ships. Despite their acute encryption abilities, any sort of sensorial data passed through waves could be detected; a luxury the premiere strike team could not afford. Especially with their stealth modes activated and thrummed up.

Leaning forward on the stick to nose her fighter forward and lead the formation, she thumbed the pendant Quill had given out earlier and murmured a silent promise: “Not today.” She’d flown against the Bryn at least twice, and met them on foot three other times. Each time she’d pulled through, stronger than the last. The sixth time just doubles the charm.

<Approaching target.> Frank informed, updating the targeting readouts on Loske’s navidisplay. Amid the glowing lines, and randomized debris and sequences, a large, pulsing red dot stood out with meterage scrolling down as the Sabers and others approached in formation.

No instruction was relayed through the comms –– as anticipated. Instead, Loske thumbed to the right to roll in a breakaway sequence. Part of her squadron peeled port, while the other split to starboard and side the wider vessel. Like minnows surrounding a shark.

When the Hapes Consortium's fleet arrived, they'd be an excellent distraction with more relevant firepower.

WINGMATES | Samatharis | Lady Rowan Vale
ALLIES | Dagon Kaze | Romi Jade | Zaavik Perl | Vexander Graves | Viers Connory | Ala Quin | Aaran Tafo | Kaska Arden | Starlin Rand | Jend-Ro Quill
ENEMIES | Bryn'adul | Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma

 

[Zaavik Perl]

ORBIT // DRAEMIDUS PRIME

「 IT'S A DIRTY JOB BUT SOMEONE'S GOTTA DO IT 」​

The Knight's head darted quickly to the sudden barrage of sternutations. He made an odd face, giving a once-over to the vaguely familiar woman behind him.

“I’m sorry.”​

"No worries," he assured flatly.

His brow raised, gaze lingering on the padawan for a moment. The Zeltron's eyes had an intensity like he was trying to place her face on a lost memory. A blink snapped him out of the focused contemplation. He turned back toward the projection, a tight shake of his head brushing up whatever curious attempts at recollection had come over him.

"That planet has four times standard gravity."
"There's a very good chance of death, so please wear Testament Pendants. Forgive my bluntness - but you're all adults, you can handle the truth."​

"Four times gravity?" Zaavik stifled his surprised outburst to a near-whisper, eyes turning down to give the illusion that he was considering. Four times gravity, he repeated aghast in his head. Resigned to only conservative use of the force to avoid detection, there was no telling if he could even walk in four times gravity. He hadn't been so naive as to think any part of this would be easy, but the more he learned, the less confident he became.

He took a Testament Pendant, holding it up with a fist clenched around the chain. Looking at his reflection the centered kyber crystal, he winced. A face that wouldn't let him forget 'you're probably going to die here' staring back at him. At the very least, if captured, his hypothetical death might ensure no one else makes his mistakes in the future, right? That, or it ends up as a snuff-clip on Hololeak. After a shudder, Zaavik slipped it over his head and let it dangle.

"Zaavik will be putting us on route once we touch down."​

Both eyes widened, a wry, feigned grin expanding over his face. As if his confidence wasn't already faltering enough, now they were placing this much trust in him. Great, just fucking incredible. Despite his internal reservations, he wouldn't refuse. A sharp nod, feigning confidence, would regard Romi's order.

"Alright, everyone take a talisman and we'll board up."

No point dreading the likely inevitable.

When they ask how Knight Dagoth died, tell them: inconvenienced.

DRAEYDE CAVES // DRAEMIDUS PRIME
​

In some ways, four times gravity was worse than he thought, and in others, not as bad. He couldn't ever recall a time up to this point where his ears felt heavy. He slogged forward with pained determination, forcing himself to remain upright over Draemidus Prime's overbearing downward pull. Even the talisman was on the verge of feeling like a burden.

Zaavik turned around to do a quick count of the team before the mouth of the cave. He glanced to Aaran Tafo and returned a nod to his bandmate. "Alright, no one got stuck to the floor. Fantastic," he quipped absently once confirming the presence of each Jedi. "Remember, like Romi said, avoid or be as conservative as possible with your Force-use unless absolutely necessary. The further we get without their shamans sniffing us out, the better our chances."

Another glance to Aaran, his eyes speaking tortured volumes of his uncertainty. Emerald plasma hissed to life from his hilt. Held overhead like a torch, he stalked into the mouth of the cave, making a 'follow' gesture over his shoulder with his free hand. Viridescent light illuminated the cave with a greenish-tinge, taking nothing away from their inexplicable sinister appearance.

Referencing the image of the caverns he'd committed in his mind, he led the team through labyrinthian tunnels.

Beyond the mouth, and into the bowels of hell.

ALLIES: Aaran Tafo | Dagon Kaze | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Vexander Graves | Viers Connory | Ala Quin | Kaska Arden | Starlin Rand | Samatharis | Lady Rowan Vale
SCARY BOYS: Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma

 

[Jend-Ro Quill]

GROUND
THE TUNNELS

Filthy, grand, stinking of alien bat dung - this was nothing like the caves he'd loved on Hoth. Quill soldiered on grimly.

The gravitic modulation backpacks cut G from 4x to 1.5x standard. That meant, however, that the backpacks themselves weighed half again what they'd weighed back on the ship. Quill adjusted his pack's straps for the dozenth time. Beefy laborers used this gear on high-gravity worlds like this one. As a hermit in his mid-fifties, Quill struggled. If they encountered Draelvasier, he might need to let the young warriors take the lead, and offer support from the back ranks.

Though he didn't know this world in the Force, he did his best to blend their collective presence into the background ambience. It might limit the Drael shamans' ability to notice the Jedi - even a delay would help significantly.

 

[Tom Kovack]

GROUND
THE TUNNELS

Tom followed the others into the caves, his nose wrinkling at the stench of guano. Yuck. Coupled with the gravity-compensating backpack putting pressure on his body, this promised to be an unpleasant suicide mission.

Following along with the green light of Zaavik up ahead, Tom tried not to think of the idiot currently burning fuel up there with Samatharis and Loske Treicolt . Starlin had been in one space battle prior to this. One. And this was considered a suicide mission. D'oh.

Granted, Tom was just as likely to die here. In fact, he was more likely to die, seeing as he was the suckier Padawan. But hey, at least he'd die fighting for the galaxy against the Bryn.

It wasn't long before he heard a rustling sound somewhere high up above. Tom dared to tip his head back. He saw dark silhouettes writhing along the ceiling. Bats. Lots and lots of bats. So far they didn't seem to have noticed the Jedi below. Let's keep it that way.

ALLIES: Zaavik Perl | Aaran Tafo | Dagon Kaze | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Vexander Graves | Viers Connory | Ala Quin | Kaska Arden
LOBSTERS: Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma

 

[Ala Quin]

GROUND
THE TUNNELS

All the way to the surface, the stench of morbidity had already begun to permeate the group. By the time Ala walked out into the caverns of Draemidus Prime she almost hurled not from the smell of the bat crap, not that it helped, but from the stench of fatalism. There was one older Jedi, that seemed not to have his mind focused on the inevitibility of their demise, and that gave Ala a spark of life. Yeah, it was not the best place to go if you wanted to live to see another cup of cold Bantha milk, but they weren't dead yet. Which meant, they were alive. And Ala intended to act as though she would continue to do so.

The grav pack weighed a tonne on her slender frame when she was in normal gravity. Now it weighed just a tad more. It sunk to the small of her back, and no matter how often she fiddled with the straps, she knew she was just not the size person that was intended to wear the devise. she also knew her back would be killing her by the end of this.

Following up the rear of the group, she flicked the switch on her loan-saber, and with a fwzzzshoom the cerulean blade ignited. She almost wished she hadn't put light on her steps. It would have been easier knowing what she inevitably had to walk through.

"We got your back, Zaavik," she whispered, "the light shines brightest in the darkest of places."

Perhaps it was her words, or just poor timing, but the bats above started to make some noise. She wasn't the only one to glance upwards.

Blasted fragnabbits.

That wasn't a pleasant sight.

| Zaavik Perl | Aaran Tafo | Dagon Kaze | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Vexander Graves | Viers Connory | Tom Kovack | Kaska Arden Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma |​

 

[Vexander Graves]

Objective 2: Ground / Tunnels
| Zaavik Perl | Aaran Tafo | Dagon Kaze | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Viers Connory | Tom Kovack | Kaska Arden | Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma
​

As the team walked through the tunnels, Vexander remained to the back of the team... he was quite certain that they had a few knights and a couple of Padawans in the fold and it actually made sense to have someone experienced to cover the rear. Dwelling with the gravity despide the packs that helped them withstand some of it was quite a pain, and the lurking silhouettes above didn't provide good omens.

Despite the grim situation at hand, Vexander tried to remain as positive as possible, there had to be a balance that leveled the odds in their favor and if he could just provide some help to tip that balance in their favor at least 1%... it was quite worth it.

Vexander knewquite a lot of Force Concealment techniques, how to turn off their presence in the Force and even cloak the alignment imprint that each force sensitive being would turn them in to the shamans Master Quill had spoken off before, and covering such a large group was quite difficult.

Still, the bearded Jedi could feel how Master Quill was doing his best to keep them all shielded and, as soon as he felt that; he joined the efforts to cloak them. Perhaps on his own it would have been a daunting task that would have drained his Force reserves along his physical energy due to the demanding task they were enduring, but both would just lift this burden and they would remain conceal and with enough energy left to carry on on what everyone kept calling a suicide mission.

 

[Dagon Kaze]

​

"There's a very good chance of death, so please wear Testament Pendants. Forgive my bluntness - but you're all adults, you can handle the truth."

Master Quill's bluntness was as renowned as his wisdom among the Jedi circles. Dagon took the pendant and gazed at the cross for a long minute. Its ominous presence loosening his grip over it. Dread ran across his spine as he set it around his neck. There is no death, there is the Force. The words of the dogma did not sound as reassuring here, at the twilight zone, as they did behind the walls of the Jedi Temple.

"...they will swarm us first chance they get and be glad for the opportunity."

The Jedi listened intently as Kaska elaborated further on the plan. Her confidence sipped into him, and a momentary glance from her made him steel his nerves. The tension formed a crevice in the form of a determined frown on his face as he analyzed the data projected - it indicated an inevitable predicament; the pendant felt heavier.

Yet, someone had to do something about this menace.

Someone had to take a stand. To protect, even at the cost of their life. It was the Jedi's way.

--

The boarding torpedo rattled and shook; vibrations of all sorts rampaging across its hull. Trembling fear, steeled dedication, righteous vengeance, painful sorrow - the feelings of the boarders around him stormed his Force senses. Like a rancorous tide, it deluged his mind. Resistance was futile. Dagon struggled to maintain his exposure to the currents of the ethereal to a minimum but failed miserably. He rode the wave, almost drowning in its wake before the torpedo came to an abrupt stop.

The belts snapped open with a rattle, as the mining laser sizzled procuring an opening for the boarders. It stopped but nothing changed. Only an eerie silence and frantic looks shared among the troopers. Metallic squeak split the ears of the crew as the rear of the torpedo began peeling off like a can. The sudden change of pressure sucked in one, two, three of the troopers closest. Magnetic boots be damned.

"KASKA!!" Dagon roared, eyes widened in shock as the maw grew larger. He called the Force instinctively and his hand jolted at the hull splitting open. Fists clenched till they bled, teeth gritted till they were dust as he struggled to slow telekinetically the forced opening. "hold--"

Kaska Arden | Loske Treicolt | OBJ1 OK

Krarolk T'manu | space bryn

 

[Krarolk T'manu]

POST: I
ALLIES: Byrn | In vicinity: TBD
ENEMIES: SJC | Open to engagement with any boarders of the Butcher Attack Cruiser
EQUIPMENT: In Signature
COMPLEMENT: Zealot Elite Squad (Krarolk, Abvor, & Zealot Commander)

BUTCHER ATTACK CRUISER - Glorious Zeal
​

The vast cruiser easily sliced through the surrounding asteroid fields, a sharp arrowhead keeping watch over the jewel of the Draelvasier species. Its Shipmaster kept the vessel in steady orbit, but was otherwise lulled by secure conditions that had marked the previous few weeks. With no exterior foes detected, a majority of the vessel's crew was left to their own devices.

In a large training room, Zealot Elite Krarolk T'manu and Zealot Elite Abvor Vengata dueled under the watchful eye of their Zealot Commander. Aside from their dulled blades, all of their equipment was arranged as it would be in a real battle, with both combatants in full armor. The two fought in a miniature circular coliseum with space for about a hundred onlookers, a space that was occupied solely by the Commander. She silently observed their struggle on the circular stone arena, empty aside from the pair of determined duelists.

The fight was intense and unreadable, with neither Elite securing a notable advantage over each other. Krarolk rushed to and fro, thrusting his imbued glaive at Abvor from every possible angle. Abvor dodged or parried every blow with his much larger battle axe, cracking the ground with his own strikes as he attempted to land a blow on the blindingly fast Krarolk. They both used the strengths of their subspecies to their fullest extent, with Krarolk using his superior Aeravalin agility and elegance to weave around and between Abvor's heavy blows, while Abvor used his superior Baedurin strength and resilience to keep Krarolk constantly moving, threatening the other Elite with an unending series of powerful strikes that were nearly unblockable when launched vertically. The red blur continued to encircle the imposing tank, both combatants looking for any opening in the other's guard.

Abvor launched three successive strikes at Krarolk, utilizing a vertical ground slam followed by two side strikes. Krarolk slid to the right to evade the first strike and ducked underneath the second, but his footing became uneven as he slid across an area of ground cracked from a previous strike. Krarolk caught the third swing with the blade of his glaive, but was launched three meters to the right by the remaining momentum. He rolled and smoothly rose to his feet to face Abvor, who had suddenly closed the distance between the two and readied another vertical strike.

As Krarolk realized that his blunder had made him lose his concentration and enhancement of his glaive, he came up with an idea. He altered the flow of his spiritual energy, sending it back to his core before propelling it outwards, into the air between the two Elites. Krarolk channeled it further, sending the green mist into Abvor's arms, artificially enhancing their strength. When Abvor swung his axe down, the added power in the thrust resulted in it landing a meter behind Krarolk, leaving nothing between him and a wide-eyed Abvor. Caught up in the thrill of victory, Krarolk thrust his glaive directly at Abvor's exposed neck.

"Stop."

At his Commander's order, Krarolk was thrust back into reality and halted his momentum millimeters away from Abvor.

"This round was a victory for Elite Krarolk. Prepare for the nex-"

An alarm went off, the room immediately consumed by the noise of its loud siren. The Commander pulled out her communication stone, her face going pale as she received a transmission.

"Something artificial made contact with our hull. Sharpen your weapons and then come with me, we've likely got boarders to throw back into the void."

 

[Keldothera]

Location: Topside security outpost one-two-four
Tags: Romi Jade | Vexander Graves | Jend-Ro Quill | Ala Quin | Tom Kovack | Zaavik Perl | Aaran Tafo | Kaska Arden |

Keldothera had been assigned to guard duty, an insult to be sure. But perhaps one with a modicum of respect, Tathra had been spending a lot of time back on the homeworld preparing their armies. He had entrusted her with the safe guarding of their home whilst he was on it. At least that was how she chose to look at it, under Warlord Galak's leadership she had become a well known General in the twelfth.

In fact, Tathra had called Krarolk, Ostak, Hrajlmak, Galak and even the Primarch all home and away from their borders. He was consolidating power, tightening his grip on the core to apply pressure to the Ish'makra no doubt. It infuriated her that after all this time they still did not trust the Titan.

The Juggernauts respected her, but homeward bound life and Draelvasier were a life apart from the roaming lifestyle of a Juggernaut living and breathing destruction aboard a Conquester class ship. She was moving past the security deck when one of the Baedurin Artificer officers called her over to one of the influx reports. Data recovery from the Draeyde nests came in constantly, the Shamans constantly monitored the Draeyde to ensure the safety of patrolling forces.

One such overview reported unrest in a particular sector, it seemed something was irritating the Draeyde. More than usual, but unusual things could happen. No one would dare travel down there alone. Nobody had been reported missing on patrol duty.

"What do you think, General?"

"Probably the drilling above. All those leviathans stomping around might be annoying them. Report it, low priority." Keldothera shrugged.

"Yes General."

 

[Kaska Arden]

T H EㅤB E L L YㅤO FㅤT H EㅤB E A S T
B U T C H E RㅤA T T A C KㅤC R U I S E R
O B J E C T I V EㅤI I

Dagon Kaze | Loske Treicolt | Lady Rowan Vale | Samatharis

Krarolk T'manu

As any sane sentient being might have reasonably expected, the novelty of hurtling blindly through the great cosmic void inside converted torpedo worn thin fairly quickly into the adventure. On the upside, after the bone jarring, teeth rattling, no comfort thrill ride from the seven Corellian hells, the prospect of fighting a genocidal death cult didn't seem nearly as bad.

The impact of the torpedo hitting the side of the cruiser threw her forward, testing the durability of her seat's harness to the limits as it tried to prevent her armored form smearing her across the opposite side of the death machine. The sizzling hiss of the mining lasers the only sound for what seemed like an eternity...

And then there was just a rushing scream as the void opened up from behind and attempted to swallow them whole.

"ON IT!" Kaska was already moving before Dagon had even yelled her name, uncoupling from her harness and falling reflexively behind the padawan as the hull began to buckle and creak behind them. Having seen his potential on Manaan, she didn't even waiver for a second before turning her attention focused in the opposite direction, trusting him implicitly to handle his end of the burden. Instead she brought her hands up, pulling them in close to her sides until her fists were inline with her hips, a harsh breath of recycled oxygen filling her lungs until they felt like they were about to explode....

Only then did she thrust her hands forward.

As if on cue, an invisible wall of force surged out from the movement and crashed into the side of the hull with a reckless abandon, the Jedi's finesse giving away to pure brute strength in the face of desperation. There was no sound; the hungry clamor of the void behind her seemed to drown it out. She could feel the vessel's hull, the strange and alieny dense verikast metal, scored and weakened by the boarding torpedo's impact and cutting lasers, bend and buckle beneath the strain, however. Micro-factures widened into larger cracks, spiderwebbing outwards from the source of impact.

She relented, caught her breath, and hit it again. Sharper this time, more focused. Another blow hitting it a split second later, followed by a second and then a third in quick succession. Her naturally sensitive eyes picking out the tiny slivers of light that began to shine through the section of the hull she abused.

Almost there, another hit...

"HOLD ON!" She yelled, summoning forth every ounce of strength she had. Her body seeming to shimmer as she tried to replicate what she had learnt on Manaan. Channeling, focusing, feeling the environment. Feeling the fear, panic and desperation of those around her. Focusing past it until it was just white noise. There was just her, the hull and the void between them. She just had to remove the latter from the equation.

With a deafening roar the the hull burst inwards. A dented, misshapen oval section crashing heavily into the opposite wall of the corridor they had broken into. The metal cutting a swath half way through before it's momentum was arrested and it became jammed. The Nyriaanan sagged, half-stumbling, half-rushing forward through the opening. Already feeling worn thin before the battle had even started. Fortunately the corridor was empty for now. Clearly the attackers were as surprised by their arrival as they were by their forced entry.

"Clear!"

 

[Primarch Drek'ma]

DRAEMIDUS PRIME
ALLIES: Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Keldothera |
ENEMIES: Romi Jade | Zaavik Perl | Vexander Graves | Jend-Ro Quill | Ala Quin | Tom Kovack | Aaran Tafo |

It pained the Shaman to hear, nearly doubt in the Titan's voice. So powerful, so grand yet even still the cowardice of the Ish'makra still crept into his mind.

"Sire, you have led us to such heights. I am humbled, to be in your presence." Some way have shared similar sentiments, sycophants at best. But in his heart of hearts, he meant it.

Truly, if Tathra did not see it yet he was blind to his own majesty. He was as much a celestial, a God as any other. The Primarch, stepped to the side of the Titan - placing his Staff between them as he knelt down onto a knee.

"No creature has had the might, nor nobility to accomplish what you have. We will follow in your footsteps, to the very end." Nothing more needed to be said.

He believed in Tathra.

 

[Ostak Cl'mana]

POST: III
ALLIES: Bryn | Tathra Khaeus | Keldothera | Primarch Drek'ma
ENEMIES: SJC | Aaran Tafo | Ala Quin | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Tom Kovack | Vexander Graves | Zaavik Perl | Open to ground engagement within or just outside the caves
EQUIPMENT: Ceremonial Shaman robes | Spitter Utility Bow (10x explosive arrows, 1x grappling hook)
COMPLEMENT: 2x Rhivaks, 50x Draeyde Bats acquired in the cave system

DRAMEDIUS PRIME - XAELDRASK OUTSKIRTS

Several ripples of energy from scouting bats hit Ostak at the same time.

There was something in the caves that wasn't Ostak, a Rhivak, or a Draeyde Bat.
​

Ostak halted, bringing his Rhivaks closer to himself and straining his ears for any signs of nearby movement. After a few seconds, he hastily pulled out his communication stone and modified its setup to fit the city security channel. Then, he spoke.

[This is Shaman Beast Master Ostak Cl'mana. There's something foreign in the caves, something that isn't us or the bats.]

[Beast Master, we received a similar report less than a minute ago from a higher authority and marked it as low priority.]

[Raise it to medium. Some bats sent out by me signaled the presence of something else down there, I'm willing to prove it if necessary. If we're dealing with hostiles, I'll keep them in place for as long as possible until reinforcements arrive.]

[Very well. Thank you, Beast Master.]

The bats that had detected the foreign presence clung to the nearby roof, faintly glowing the signature purple of Ostak's spiritual energy as they continued to send ripples to their host. Ostak and his Rhivaks began to follow the new physical presence of the ripples, bracing for an unknown encounter.

 

[Lady Rowan Vale]

Location: Bridge of Bane of Lorell
Objective: I and possible II if the strike team needs reinforcements
Commanding: Bane of Lorell, 2 x Nova Cruisers, 24 x Torn'ikiir space superiority fighters, 48 x Miy'til Interceptors, approximately 90 Royal Hapan Marines standing by in dropships aboard the Bane

"Five minutes out, Ma'am." Came the calm reply of the Bane of Lorell's helmswoman.

Rowan sat in her command chair, looking and feeling pensive as the battle dragon moved ever closer to the Draemidus system. She had always hated waiting, but today she hated it even more. People were already out there, risking their lives and she was late. A faulty hyperdrive motivator, of all the damned things had slowed her task force's progress just enough to put them several minutes behind schedule. That might not seem like much, but in the span of a battle, a minute was a long time and a lot could happen.

"Understood," She replied crisply before turning her head to the starfighter control section. "Scramble the Torn'ikiir fighter squadrons for launch and have the marines begin boarding their dropships. I want fighters in my sky as soon as we re-orient to realspace. Communications, the same goes for Destiny and Fate."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Yes, ma'am."

Rowan's hastily put together task force included three ships. Her flagship, the Battle Dragon Bane of Lorell and a pair of Nova Cruisers, the Fate and the Destiny. It wasn't much when you put it against the massive forces of the Bryn'adul, but it didn't have to be. It just had to be big enough and cause noise enough to get the Bryn'adul looking at them and not for the strike team.

When Master Romi Jade had asked for her support for this mission, Rowan had not been able to refuse. With the Queen Mother still in critical condition following her collapse at the Fountain Palace on Hapes, just moments after delivering a royal proclamation promising military aid to the Silver Concord, the royal court was still uneasy about committing to the cause. They needed to see a win for the Concord, one in which Hapan forces were involved to be truly convinced that this was anything other than suicide.

So it was that three ships of Terephon's Duchal defense fleet would enter realspace over Draemidus Prime, not long after Master Jade's strike force had begun to make landfall.

"Translation to realspace complete Ma'am, coming about to face target." The target was a Bryn'adul Butcher Cruiser.

"Scrambling fighters now, ma'am."

From the Bane's hangars, twenty-four heavily armed and armored Torn'ikiir space superiority fighters launched. They would be joined by several squadrons of Miy'til Interceptors coming from each of the Nova Cruisers and begin heading toward the Bryn'adul ship. Their job was to engage the ship and try to overwhelm any starfighter screen it had.

As Rowan watched, the massive Bryn'adul ship came into view through the main bridge viewing port. It dwarfed the Bane by several hundred meters and outweighed it by hundreds of tons. It was truly a terrifying and awesome sight to behold.

"Begin charging the MACs, I want them ready to fire as soon as the boarding party has the nav-data and is on their way back out. Also get firing solutions for our turbolaser batteries and have the crews fire at will once in range.

"Aye!" Came the reply of the chief weapons officer.

"Communications, I want Fate and Destiny to break off to port and starboard respectively. Order their Captains to pepper that Behemoth with as much fire as possible."

"Yes, ma'am!"

"Then get me a secure channel to the Jade's Triumph." Once the channel was established, Rowan spoke. "Apologies for the late arrival, but the Calvary is here. We're engaging the Bryn'adul ship as planned. I have a company of marines standing by on drop ships if either team needs reinforcements, just tell me how to direct our forces. Commodore Vale, out."

(OOC: So sorry to everyone for my late arrival, but I'm here! )

 

[Krarolk T'manu]

POST: II
ALLIES: Byrn | In vicinity: TBD
ENEMIES: SJC | Engaging boarders: Dagon Kaze / Kaska Arden / Loske Treicolt / Samatharis | Engaging fleeters: Lady Rowan Vale
EQUIPMENT (Krarolk): In Signature
COMPLEMENT: Zealot Elite Squad (Krarolk, Abvor, & Zealot Commander)

BUTCHER ATTACK CRUISER - Glorious Zeal
Armor = 98%, Sentinel Battery Charge = 0 53%, pointed at Bane Of Lorell
Phedrak Complement: 40/40 (engaging hostile air divisions)

"Open a channel to the surface. Dramedius Prime is under assault."
​

The veteran Shipmaster watched from the command chamber as three capital ships exited out of hyperspace at close range, further compounding his dilemma with the boarders. He knew that no faction would send a single boarding vessel to a Butcher cruiser without deploying elite troops that could deal serious damage to the vessel, potentially leaving an opening for other operatives to descend to the planet itself.

Utilizing an abundance of caution, the Shipmaster sent a sizable task force to intercept the boarders. They would be met by ten Juggernaut Grenadiers supported by twenty Drones, the Juggernauts firing their Byrn Shots while the Drones used their cover to rush in, teeth and claws bared.

"Shipmaster, the channel has been connected. You can speak now."

"Thank you."

[Xaeldrask Command, this is Shipmaster Meldera. The planetary defense perimeter is under attack by several capital ships, faction of origin to be determined. They are light enough that they will likely not be able to destroy any of our warships, but they may be able to send agents planetside via fighter craft. I would recommend initiating a temporary lockdown.]

The Shipmaster then closed the channel. With the planet given sufficient warning, he moved his focus to the fleet in front of him. It consisted of three ships that he estimated to be about half a kilometer long, dwarfed by his own vessel. They would likely be easy pickings for its Sentinel cannon once the ship was properly angled, leaving the starfighter wings of the vessels as the next largest threat. Since his Butcher lacked point-defense armaments, he would have to rely solely on his own screen of fourty Phedrak Fighters. Against the numerous and likely qualitatively superior hostile fighters, space superiority would likely be lost by the Shipmaster very easily. However, they did have one useful purpose.

"Deploy our full Phedrak complement in defensive formation surrounding the Sentinel battery. If enough bombs hit it, we could risk catastrophic mechanical failure. If the Phedraks can survive for long enough to allow the Sentinel to safely fire once, then our reinforcements should be able to handle the rest. In the meantime, maneuver the Sentinel battery to fire on their largest vessel."

The entire Butcher suddenly lurched to the side, its engines repositioning itself so its large axial cannon pointed directly at the ship in question. Then, it began to charge, a yellow glow rapidly spreading across the front of the Butcher. At the same time, fourty Phedrak Fighters propelled themselves out of the flanks of the cruiser at high speed, swarming around the glow. As the hostile fighters and interceptors closed the distance, the Phedraks shot outwards in four-ship swarms and threw several barrages of cannonfire their way.

In the meantime, three Conquestors were on their way to relieve the Butcher, having relayed part of the Shipmaster's transmission. It was his hope that they would be able to arrive within the next fifteen minutes, considering their slight delay due to having to maneuver through the asteroid field. Once they arrived, the naval battle would inevitably swing in the favor of the Draelvasier, leaving the Shipmaster to focus entirely on the boarders.

Within the halls of the cruiser, a certain squad of Zealot Elites rushed forwards, seeking to reinforce their bretheren and share in their glory as they beat back the incoming boarders.

 

[Dagon Kaze]

​

Pain split his head in half as he channeled all of his energy into one single task - holding the damn torpedo from peeling open. Whatever was pulling it apart was showing no hesitance and lacked no determination in trying to open up the cold void's maw to the boarders. Another three troopers clawed at the steel floor, their cries silent but their faces forever imprinted in his mind as death snatched them into its frigid embrace.

"HOLD ON!" Kaska's cry cracked through the static. He wanted to snap back at her to hurry. His grasp was slipping and soon his own turn on the queue to meet the abyss would come. It pulled him but he pulled back. A life-and-death tug o' war. He--

From behind him, a thunderous roar reverberated. Kaska had made it. The light at the end of the tunnel she had provided them illuminated in a flash across the faces of the remaining troopers. They dug in their heels hard and pushed in behind her with all their strength and all their will.

Dagon staggered inside the belly of the beast last. He nearly toppled on his knees when he finally let go. Panting, the padawan licked his dry lips - iron. A small streak of blood ran down from his nose. Shit. Soreness slithered into his muscles, the headache intensified, he felt older by at least four decades and the real battle hadn't yet begun.

Out of the frying pan into the fire.

"Close call." Dagon muttered coarsely at Kaska, while the sergeant of the troopers bellowed orders. He swallowed hard, before adding, "Let's move."

They had no time to waste.

The strike team on Draemidus Prime relied on their success.

The weight of the cross on his neck pulled even harder.

He barely caught his breath when from the corner of the passageway a mob of monsters appeared bringing hell with them.

Thud, thud, thud.

"SHIT!" Dagon raised his arms just in time to conjure a dome of energy to stop the explosions of the lobbed grenades. He held the barrier even as another streak of blood rushed down his nose. He was expending energy far too fast.

The troopers opened rapid fire on the charging drones. He kept the wall of energy up but couldn't do anything about the wave of rushing fiends.

Kaska Arden | Loske Treicolt | Samatharis | Lady Rowan Vale
Krarolk T'manu

 

[Starlin Rand]

OBJECTIVE 1
SPACE

"That doesn't look too good," Starlin remarked, observing the boarding torpedo in action and feeling the distress of the troops inside. However, he had no clue what he could do to help the boarders, at least not from his starfighter.

He could indirectly help them by doing what starfighters do best, which is pick off the other starfighters that inevitably show up to play. Circling around the hull-breaching can opener, he fired at the Phedrak Fighters, letting the Force guide his aim. He felt that they were unmanned and showed no mercy in his attempts to destroy them.

His attention shifted as he noticed the fighters gathering around one particular section of the Butcher Cruiser, clearly trying to protect something. A yellowish glow was visible through the cracks between them. Starlin veered the Steward around, firing upon the group, though he was forced to constantly maneuver out of the way to avoid his shields being overwhelmed and couldn't get too many shots in. He was hoping the others would back him up in that regard, unless they had other things to worry about...

ALLIES: Loske Treicolt | Samatharis | Dagon Kaze | Kaska Arden
SPACE LOBSTER: Krarolk T'manu​

 

[Samatharis]

Obj: 1 Wings P3
Loske Treicolt | Lady Rowan Vale | Starlin Rand | Krarolk T'manu | Dagon Kaze | Kaska Arden
​

Loske was flying Stealth Tech on her Sabers. Which left Sam hesitant to uncouple her fighter and join her wing. After all, Sam's interceptor wasn't stealth and she'd just give away their approach vector immediately. Even in an asteroid field. So the brunette woman cursed the air with her fist and decided to wait for the Hapans. On the up side? Loske would have full advantage to approach the enemy cruiser without being detected. Giving her a great advantage to pick and scan her targets before they even knew she was there.

The Hapan Flotilla exited Lightspeed in battle formation and launched fighters. Yes! And when they did, Sam unparked her starfighter from the Triumph, kicked the engines to max, and rushed to join them. Dumping shields to push her speed to the very limit her inerial dampeners could bear.

She joined the battle alongside the 48 Hapan Miy'til Interceptors and slammed into the enemy Phedrak formations like a bat out of hell. Dusting enemy fighters as fast her the tip of her nose could bother to spin and face them. She couldn't even be bothered to use her missiles because the lock-on time took too long between kills. She even had to slow-the-ryv-down and reposition power from engines to shields, she was going so damn hard. Ha! And look at R2! Even her poor droid's head was spinning and he could do calculations at the speed of light! Haha! Yeehaa!

Yeah. Starlin Rand would have his backup and then some. Fifteen minutes until Lobster reinforcements? Pfft. Peachy. Poor me another vodka tonic R2. We're on vacation now baby.

Alas. Somebody should probably tell the Hapans about what happ'ens when a Lob cruiser fires it's main gun? Cause it ain't pretty. But. Then again. Something told Sam that every single turbolaser on those Hapan ship's could handle a single target firing scenario at this range.

Erm.

Ya know. On second thought.

Maybe Sam should get the frell out of their way...

~ "All fighters be advised. Friendly fire against that cannon is incoming. Clear the lane. Clear the lane." ~

 

[Zaavik Perl]

DRAEYDE CAVES // DRAEMIDUS PRIME

「 IT'S A DIRTY JOB BUT SOMEONE'S GOTTA DO IT 」
​

Zaavik halted, straining against the overbearing gravity, he looked up alongside Ala Quin at the stirring bats. A finger came up to his lips as he continued to stalk forward. Freezing wouldn't do them any favors, they had to keep moving. A gesture with his hand defied the unnatural weight he felt in his arm, indicating everyone to keep moving. A cautious eye remained toward the cave ceiling, hoping to eliminate the possibility the bats got the jump on them.

Then, he felt it. Some invisible phantasm of energy leaving one point, the bats, and slithering somewhere far beyond. Of course, he had no way of knowing it was the Shaman Ostak Cl'mana and his beasts, but a subtle tinge of danger assaulted the precognitive receptacle of his psyche nonetheless. A lump formed in his throat that no amount of silent gulps could remedy.

Master Quill? A vague impression of words emanated his consciousness to the nearby old master. Wordless communication lending itself to keep the suspicions under wraps from the rest of the team. No reason to alarm everyone unless it was necessary. Better to counsel with the more experienced among them. Another vague message came through the force at Jend-Ro Quill from the Knight:

Did you feel that too?

ALLIES: Aaran Tafo | Dagon Kaze | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Vexander Graves | Viers Connory | Ala Quin | Kaska Arden | Starlin Rand | Samatharis | Lady Rowan Vale
SCARY BOYS: Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma | Krarolk T'manu

 

[Ala Quin]

​

GROUND
TUNNELS

She had been right, the small of her back was starting to hurt. Given that it was so early on in the misison, Ala was ruing not getting the smaller size. It had felt snug! But alas, that was in normal Gs. She would surely be having a long hot soak when she inevitably returned.

The group had grown silent after the bats above had taken to flight. There seemed to be a collective sense that they might just have been made. The good thing was though, there was no real way for their senses to be heightened any further. They were in a cave system on a Bryn'adul world, I mean, how much more alert could you be?

There was a dip in the cave, causing Ala to cautiously make her way down, before seeing a fork in their path come into view. This was a cave system after all. They were expecting choices such as this. Standing before the right most choice of path, Ala outstretched her blade and narrowed her eye to try and make anything out more than just darkness. She could just barely trace out the edges of the cave narrowing to the point where it faded into utter darkness. It seemed logical to her, that if this path narrowed, it would be a much more sensible place to run from any chasing Draelvasier if they had less room to maneauver. Their hulking frames were horrifingly fast in the open country, she had experienced this first hand. Perhaps, she wondered, a smaller cavern would mean an easier time for them should things go belly up.

| Zaavik Perl | Aaran Tafo | Dagon Kaze | Jend-Ro Quill | Romi Jade | Vexander Graves | Viers Connory | Tom Kovack | Kaska Arden Tathra Khaeus | Ostak Cl'mana | Primarch Drek'ma |​

 

[Kaska Arden]

T H EㅤB E L L YㅤO FㅤT H EㅤB E A S T
B U T C H E RㅤA T T A C KㅤC R U I S E R
O B J E C T I V EㅤI I

Lightsaber | Belmont's Resolve | JSTP Armour | Pendant

Dagon Kaze | Loske Treicolt | Lady Rowan Vale | Samatharis

Krarolk T'manu

There was no time for hesitation. If Dagon was the shield, then Kaska would have to be the spear.

Her lightsaber snap-hissed as she charged into the oncoming horde, the blade held in a low, single, reverse handed grip variant of a Niman opening stance, her other hand buying her a split second of reprieve from the first grunt's attack with a simple force push.

To the creature's credit, it was quick to recover from the attack, barely falling back half a pace before attempting to rally. A savage, frustrated roar bellowing forth from behind a jagged set of wicked looking teeth. The momentary slip in guard was enough, however. The first slash of light separating the grunt's leg at the knee, the return swing stabbing it through the chest as it fell, turning that roar into an ugly gurbling sound as it was cooked from the inside out by the intensity of the blade.

A second attacker was already on her before she could fully recover, clawed hands clenched tightly together in a hammer like blow in attempt to cave her skull in. Coming from a creature comprised of a solid eight feet of gangly, corded muscle, even as a supposed lesser specimen of the species, she didn't even entertain the thought of trying to block the attack head on. Instead she fell back on her most trusted ally, using another buffeting blow of telekinesis to catch the creature flat flooted mid-swing, forcing its attack to miss crushing her like a bug by a matter of inches. Its head joining the body of its companion before it could even register it's surprise.

"Dagon," Her voice crackled across the commlink as she intercepted another, the troopers pushing up from behind to secure the ground they were earning the hard way, inch by inch by blood inch, the air thick with blaster bolts and the sound of the strange weapons the Bryn used. Her weapon a a green blur, carving a swath in those that attempted to recapture the lost ground. "The grenadiers!"

Normally, grenades were a double edged sword in a enclosed space like this. Too deadly for both sides to use effectively. When you belonged to a fanatical death cult with little regard for life, however, the prospect of killing your own troops was simply collateral damage. As the troopers and Kaska began to turn the tide against the intercepting force, it would only be a matter of time before they decided it was a price worth paying.

"Use their weapons against them!"