The Crusade Has Come [Moross Dominion of Kinooine]

[Soliath Devin Talith]

Soliael stood on the bridge of his flagship staring down at the planet below. Just ahead of them in a rag tag assembly of broken and nearly broken ships. The false god watched with a careful eye as the ships moved about to try and engage the Moross fleet, a slight smile curled on his lips as he saw the Pirates move through the nothingness of space. Secretly the god wondered if the Pirates knew who they were facing, what they were facing, he wondered if they knew that aboard these starships were thousands of Zealots ready to slit their throats.

It was true of course that all soldiers were terrifying in some form, but with the soldiers of Moross it was a different story. Every warrior, every soldier, every Crusdaer within the Moross army was devoutly following the word of their gods. They fought harder than any soldiers Soliael had ever seen, Zealots always did.

“Ithari. Are you ready?” Soliael spoke over an intercom at his side, he knew that the blood god would be looking forward to this. This was the Dawn of the Great Crusade, it was the beginning of the spread of Moross, it was the start of something grand. Today, thousands of pirates would either join them, or lose their lives.

Kinooine itself of course was rather worthless. The Pirates that had been holding it had not added to the bases here, nor had they found anything of note. It was what was left here before that had attracted the eye of Moross. A once powerful Sith known as Lumyia had once held this world as a base, it was within this base that the Pirates now dwell. It was this base that interested Soliael and his fellow gods. The prospect of long lost Sith artifacts was...enticing.

The Pirates simply had to be removed before they could get to the base, which was of course what they were preparing to do now.

As he waited for an answer from his fellow god Soliael smiled slightly. He waved his hand and activated the long range transmitter. His voice shifted slightly as he began to speak, the threat of his words carrying across the stars. “Attention pirates of Kinooine. Lay down your arms and allow us to board your ships. We are the Gods of Moross, and we have come for what is ours. Join us or be obliterated. The Crusade has come.”

 

[Teagan Jarhn]

Dressed in the armor given to her by her God, Teagan stood silently just behind him with her hands held behind her back. The girl whom had once been a waitress was steadily growing into her role of personal guard, though, she still had much to learn. The feel of a gun or blade in her hand was still unnerving, but with time it would become an extension of her body. Soft brown eyes watched Soliael, her face impassive as eventually her gaze moved to the battle taking place before her Lord's ship.

@[member="Soliael Devin Talith"]

 

[Kelik Corinthus]

@[member="Soliael Devin Talith"] | @[member="Teagan Jarhn"]

"Pity." the low-toned voice said. "So many lives actually stupid enough o take up arms against us. They're clearly not worthy to follow the gods of Moross. If I had any say in the matter, they would all die a slow, painful death. Sadly, I am but a grunt. A small piece of the Moross Crusade pie. Let's just get this show on the road, hm?" the glaucus had stepped away from the starboard viewport of the ship he, and his squad, hitched a ride on. Kelik Corinthus had yet to see true battle under the Moross banner but he was truly eager to prove to Ithari that he was worthy of his eyes.

Crusaders throughout the fleet readied their weapons, for they were about to shed the blood of many heretics. Once aboard the gunship, Kelik scanned his squadron before speaking to them. "Alright, boys. We do this by the book. I don't want any sloppiness. Keep the kill count high and collateral damage low. The Gods wish to keep the structures of the planet as intact as possible. May Ithari and Kalee watch over us all." Kelik barked at his squad. His attempts at keeping the morale at a peak were greatly effective. There'd be plenty of blood on the ground of Kinooine. Heretic blood.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

Ivy had yet to make it to Kal'Shebbol, but as it turned out she had no need for going. In exchange for her skills as a Mercenary, Neth had promised her a ship.

And what a ship it was.

The VCX-820 Escort Freighter had been fitted with all the means to start a war. It was defensible, agile, and strong, capable of punching a hole straight through the Pirate's meager fleet of ships. Ivy stood back from it in the hangar bay of the Morssian Flagship, admiring her new space-bound home. She loved everything about it ... except for the fact that it was brand new. Hadn't even taken its maiden voyage yet.

"You don't like it?" as her attending Mechanic as he wiped oil from his hands.

Ivy raised her brows, glancing at him, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves here. I like it..."

"...but?" the man inquired.

"I'd hate to scratch the finish." The hull of the ship before her gleamed in the dim light of the hangar.

The mechanic laughed, "I'd hate to see it scratched. Thought of a name for it yet?"

"Not yet-"

An announcement over the Flagship's comm rattled through the bay, commanding ship pilots to their marks. The invasion was about to begin.

Ivy thanked the Mechanic before boarding, several Morossian soldiers assigned to her retinue in tow. She wouldn't have much time to become acquainted, but she was a fast learner and being able to pilot the ship was all that really mattered.

"To your stations, gentlemen," the Mercenary called to her crew before taking a seat in the pilot's chair.

Alright Seph, anytime now... Ivy had sent a summons to her sister the day she'd received the assignment from Neth. The woman wasn't much for murdering, but her sister - well, Seph enjoyed those sorts of things.

@[member="Sephoria Lasranae"]

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

Soliael stood watching and waiting on the bridge of his flagship. There was an almost lazy look in his eye, one of complete dejection and slight sadness. He would much rather have the Pirates join him than destroy them. Moross was peaceful at its very core, it was not meant to expand and destroy, it was meant to subjugate and peacefully survive. Such was the nature of most Empires...albeit a few actually enjoyed the killing.

For a few more seconds Soliael said nothing, and then suddenly a voice popped over the radio.

“Kark off.”

A smile graced the God's lips. Of course that would be the responses he got. Pirates weren't generally known for their intelligence, or for their want to work together with others. After all why become a pirate if you didn't get to be free.

“Let loose the dogs of war.” Soliael whispered to himself as he signaled the nearest officer. The Invasion of Kinooine would begin.

 

[Garza]

Pirates. Despicable things that pillaged planets and ships like they owned the Galaxy. Coming here was not of just accident. The Moross Crusade was here to take the planet in the name of the gods. Sitting here. I was one of the thousands of followers of the three gods. Though I supported the Sword. I was a fighter that was willing to end the life of a few pirates for the living God Neth that stood at the bridge. Seeing that most of the fleet on the pirates terms were freighters that were supped up, a few fighters, and a few larger capitol ships, I decided that instead of facing all of them. I would aim for the big guy himself that told over thousands of people to Kark off.

Standing behind the God on the bridge. I carried only my shield, beskad and Exoskeleton II body armor. I had taken it from my fathers home after he had died and as such, it was now mine. It was rather form fitting letting the curves of my body apparent, and leaving no hanging clothing. The glowed a blue solid color to let me know that it was on and active. "I believe I will take a small group of men to infiltrate the the command vessels?" I said to the god. Though he was ready for battle, I didn't know if he was going to lead the charge himself, or command people from the top of he bridge. As much, Taking care of my own roles was something that I needed to learn.

If I don't learn fast with groups of men, then I will never learn alone. That much I knew.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

Soliael looked at the pink haired girl, he recognized her from Manpha. He simply gave her a nod in response. He liked that she decided to take the initiative in this, it would prevent Soliael from having to do quite literally everything. Still he frowned slightly beneath his mask. This would not be as easy as they all thought. Pirates usually fought until the bitter end, they clung to their freedom and like many other men would die for it if pressed. Today would be no different, the pirates would fight and die for what they perceived to be theirs.

They would remember later that Soliael ahd given them a way out, that he had offered them their freedom, their chance to leave this place and never return. They had denied him however, and now they would face the consequences.

“Begin the attack. Ground forces will be able to make it to their base under the cover of our fire.” Soliael said simply, and then turned to one of his commanders. “If they need support...Tell them to ask”

He smiled mischievously at his officer who took on a confused look. Soliael let out a slight chuckle and then returned his gaze to the viewport

 

[Sephoria Lasranae]

Let slip the dogs of war ...

A tall woman in black lightweight covert ops armor made her way into the hanger where Ivy Lasranae was inspecting her ship. She took in her surroundings while slowly walking to the vessel that the mechanic and her sister had been discussing just prior.

The female Garhoon reached up to run a finger over some of the finish on Ivy's new toy. It was a rather impressive ship but Sephoria didn't really have a taste for such things. Either way it was new, which made Sephoria wonder what her sister had done to acquire it.

It was then that the view outside of the hanger's force field caught her attention. Through that hazy mist of energy you could see the ragtag enemy fleet lining up in the distance to try and defend against the onslaught that was to come. After a moment Sephoria shrugged and started to make her way up the ship's ramp.

She passed many of the Morossian soldiers on the way to the cockpit. Sephoria couldn't help but to notice their eager faces. They were longing to enter the battle with what they considered to be heretics. This was looking up to be quite a bit of fun.

"I'm glad you called Big Sister. Still why a Crusade? That's not your style. Crusades are bloody," added the woman as she entered the cockpit where Ivy was. She knew her sister had been one for ideologies, but this seemed a bit far fetched for her. Ivy wasn't afriad of blood, but she didn't seek it out. This was running straight into it.

"Is that why you called?" The grin that the Garhoon gave Ivy as she took the next pilot's seat was an eager one.

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Kelik Corinthus]

And they were off.

The covering fire was provided by the capital ships while the dropships seized the opportunity to head planetside. Kelik and his squad were prepped and ready for a fight. Starfighters wizzed past the dropship as they left the safety of the capital ship to head into battle. "Listen up boys," Kelik began, "we're going straight into hell down there. There's gonna be plenty of pirates refusing our beliefs so you know what we must do." Kelik paused as his men nodded to him. "Lord Ithari may not be with us, but he watches over us. And he calls for blood. Under my command, all of my men must bring me fifty pirate scalps. And I want my scalps." Kelik stated before being replied to with a hearty cheer. Eon squad was prepared for the battle to come and they were going to be ruthless as can be.

@[member="Soliael Devin Talith"] | @[member="Zoey Marix"] | @[member="Ivy Lasranae"] |@[member="Teagan Jarhn"]

 

[Garza]

I watched as the God Neth had given me the nod of approval. And that was all that I needed. Walking out I could hear the words of Neth ring out in the Bridge to ask if they need support. Seeing as that was not information that I didn't need at this time. I moved it to the back of my head. Walking quietly to only hear the taps of my boots on the pristine floor as I walked A group of men that manned the ship were standing around. Ether they were on break or simple didn't feel like joining in the battle of the Crusades. Walking up to both of them, I was clearly shorter than them, but only my alittle.

"Tell a squad of men to meet me in the hangar, and a drop ship with fighters to suppress fire upon it. If they aren't there by the time that I am, Neth will have a field day with you and them." Truly, I did not know if the God like to punish people that obeyed his orders, but saying that a god would have a field day got them moving none the less. I moved with some speed, but nothing that would look like I was rushing. Walking to the armory of the ship I picked up a Communications link that would be placed on my head. The mike was on my left, and the band that went across my forehead kept if from moving when in battle.

Simple in design, I moved on to the hangar. I saw it filled with groups of men each setting tasks for one another. I looked to see that a man was waving at me. I only smirked as I had forgotten to give him my name. Still he remembered my face. And thats all that mattered. I was still learning. Walking over some of the men gave me dirty look and rolled their eyes. That was until I started talking.

"Neth has given you the task of infiltrating the command vessels of the Pirates. I will lead this expedition. If we fail, I will not deal with you, but my blade will. Fighters, I want you to keep all the pirates off of us at all costs, The squad that is in the drop ship will be taking out systems in the ship all the way from the hangar to the bridge. Most of all, We want the engines down. If they can't fly they will be a fish in a barrel." Seeing as how that was my first war speech I thought of it rather good. The men nodded their head and looked back at me for more info. "Move out!" Giving that single command they moved like roaches in the light. Walking onto the drop ship I grabbed ahold of the railing and held on as we sped off out of the Flagship, into space, and on to the pirates hail of blaster fire.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"It's just a means to an end," Ivy replied as her fingers trailed across the control panel before her, "namely, a ship. I just figured you'd enjoy the ride," she suppressed a smirk, though it showed briefly in the levity of her face.

Having Seph working at her side was going to be difficult, especially once everything was said and done. For now, with the mission at hand, Ivy didn't have much time to think on things like the past. The woman closed up the ship and engaged the engines. A deep rumbling resulted, like thunder through a mountain range, as Ivy engaged the thrusters that would lift them from the floor of the hangar bay. With a jolt they entered the line of fighters spewing forth from the gates.

Ivy buckled herself into her seat and glanced to her sister, "Haven't lost your taste for blood, have you?"

 

[Sephoria Lasranae]

Sephoria proceeded to buckle herself in as Ivy engaged the ship in flight.

"Lost my taste? I'm parched," was the simple response from the Garhoon who's skin seemed to pale even more than normal. It wasn't a secret that she wasn't overly fond of riding shotgun.

Still Sephora said nothing more and seemed to compose herself well enough given the situation. Granted composing herself seemed to come in the form of tensing up and being silent.

Did pirates taste good? They tended to be pretty filthy and she didn't have a good way to wash them off first. Perhaps it couldn't be helped. Still even if they didn't taste good, they'd still make beautiful art on the walls when she worked her way through them. Those were the big girl thoughts Sephoria decided to turn her mind to to take it off of the turbo lasers and explosions that began to light up the sky.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

Soliael didn't move from his post on the command deck. There was no point. His soldiers would come forth for him, they would fight and die for him. It was that simple, that easy. He wondered why no one had done this before, why other Sith had chosen to go with forceful subjugation, why they held the need for slaves. This was so much easier. Making a populace believe in you, truly believe in you. It inspired them to do things that slaves never would.

The Soldiers of Moross would fight to the bitter end, and they would do it without him even asking. The Sith smiled beneath his mask. He felt the rumble of the engines through the deck of the ship.

His fleet began to move forward in earnest. Fighters launched from hangar bays, bombers followed behind them, and dropships flew in an arc. Soon the pirates would be in the red zone, and all hell would break loose. Soliael was by no means a fleet commander. He had as of yet no experience in commanding vast armies or ships. He had studied the subject of course, and knew of the basics...but this was something new even to him.

He didn't show this of course, instead he remained tall and confident, watching through the eyes of his mask as the battle began. Green streaks of turbolaser swooshing by the viewport.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"Oh good," Ivy replied as the ship curled out into open space. They were but a single blip on the radar of the Pirate Fleet, but only one of several hundred blips. This wouldn't be an invasion, it would be a holocaust.

"Less murder for me then," continued the Captain as she punched the engines to clear the cloud of Moross fighters and headed straight for the Pirate Fleet. Linked in, Ivy could just make out the orders of Crusader @[member="Zoey Marix"], now headed for one of the enemy flagships. The pink haired woman would have her work cut out for her, but Ivy wasn't about to intervene. After all, this wasn't her party.

"Let's punch a hole through that swarm heading towards us, help the drop ships with some cover-" she depressed the button for the ship comm then so her next words would issue to her crew, "strap in boys, we're going in hot."

The torrent of the eight autoblasters loosing fire roared through open space and into the shields of enemy ships was music to her ears.

 

[Garza]

With all of these numbers of ships coming from the hangar bays that the Flagship had, It seemed nearly impossible, yet it was so. With the men that I had with me in the current Drop ship, Each one of them were putting the finishing touches on their armor, and loading their weapons, checking the barrels to see if they were clear and could be used, A few passed around mags and grenades. I looked to them to see that just small grenades would probably not take out a ship's engine. For what I intended to do was set a group of men at the Engine room. Taking it over and a few rooms around there. We wanted to keep them from fleeing.

Though I knew that a few ships may pass our grasp, I wanted to keep the larger ones here. With the engine down, They may send troops towards the Engine room. Leaving my path clear for the Pirate leader. Ether I can try and convince him again to join us, Or I will be forced to kill him. Ether way, We would be defeating him. As the travel was there, Men spoke back and forth with eachother. Telling what side ships were coming from and where to hit so they could protect the Dropships. Getting a call over from the Pilot, I had to smile. "We have a group of Fighters clearing a path for us, M'am." I knew that this would help so much with the travel there.

"Speed up with them. Fighters, Once dropships make it to the Flagship, return the favor and keep the skies clear for them." Traveling there would be maybe not be harder than I had thought. Praying in my mind to my God. Kalee The Sword. "Kalee, Goddess of warriors, Bless my men that their shots my fly true, their hands may be steady, the Ships will be fast, and my sword to be sharp for the blood that you crave."

 

[Sephoria Lasranae]

Ivy's evasive maneuvers as she got into the battle managed to rock Sephoria in her chair. The red headed sister that was piloting the ship seemed to act as if nothing was going on. Sephoria on the other hand decided to clench her eyes shut. Cursed ships and their damned unreliability. Perhaps she'd save up for a Yacht. Those likely didn't throw you around to show you just how little your life meant in space.

"We're heading for the ground? Not going to board a ship?" It was a question, but there did seem to be some degree of eagerness in it.

 

[Soliath Devin Talith]

The Sith lord stood on the bridge of his flagship. The Swarm Frigates were an interesting design. Soliael along with his grandmothers engineers had specifically designed them to be physically imposing. They all looked like massive squids, and their turbo-laser emplacements poured from certain areas to make them looking equally as imposing. They of course were built for function rather than appearance, but appearance played a key role in that function.

The Swarm frigates were meant to intimidate foes, to make them think they were fighting living breathing creatures, to make the enemy think that massive mythological beasts were fighting alongside the men and women of Moross. It had been effective on most backwater worlds, though he doubted that the Pirates would be so scared.

As the two small fleets converged on one another Soliael stretched out his mind using the force. He began to take in the feel of his troops, and the thoughts of the enemy. He could influence none of it, his gifts did not extend that far, but he could see it all.

He formed a map within his mind, and slowly using this map he began to direct his fleet.

 

[Kelik Corinthus]

From inside the dropship, Kelik could hear the space battle brewing up like a witch's kettle. laser after laser whizzed past the ship at incredible speeds. There were plenty of dropships headed for the planet's surface; enough to deal with whatever the pirate's numbers could have been. The ride was bumpy but no amount of turbulence would halt the Crusade. Kelik's mind was set on the mission and his guns were set to kill. The young glaucus would finally be deployed alongside his fellow crusaders and, with great valor and tenacity, would prove to his god that he is worthy.

"Ithari, I hope you're watching you son of a schlutta." Kelik said to himself as the dropship approached the ground. Kinooine. Mountains as far as the eye could see. Eon squad had jumped from the dropship and marched up the path in between two mountain ranges that led up to the stronghold. The skies were clear and the path was quiet. In a kilometer or so, the stronghold would be visible and the battle would begin.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"Ground, Doll," Ivy replied as she throttled the ship through a chaotic mass of enemy fighters, watching the fireworks crash and boom on either side of the duraglass viewport.

A short glance was given to her sister followed by a fleeting hint of concern.

Funny how such a beastly thing could be rendered imobile by something as simple as space travel. They all had their weaknesses. Ivy patted the woman on the thigh before returning her full attention to the issue at hand, "Hold tight. One more pass to mow down these yuppies and then we'll get your feet on solid ground."

@[member="Sephoria Lasranae"]

 

[Sephoria Lasranae]

Solid ground ...

The words were comforting and Sephoria released a sigh as she tried to lower her breathing and pulse as adrenalin flowed through her. Then suddenly it occurred to her that a capital ship would have been much more effective than a yacht. They probably didn't feel a fething thing when one of those used evasive maneuvers.

Then Seph couldn't help but to think of an old memory that she hadn't pulled out in many years. Her brother had always looked to the sky fondly whenever a ship flew over. She never really cared one way or the other. After all it wasn't like dirty street urchins were going to ever ride on one. Best to keep one's mind in the present. Then again the Garhoon was doing the exact opposite of that in the moment. Ships certainly did things to people.

"Samson would have enjoyed this I think. He always looked up at these things fondly. You know it's funny how I wanted to bleed you dry for so many years, Ivy. Then we become in-laws! If I die in your ship, make sure to rearrange my corpse into a dignified position. I'd gleefully haunt you otherwise," added the woman with a toothy smile.

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]