The Darkest Day

[Actakos]

As he approached the base he turned on his comlink. "Bombers, target the military base. We will take it first." As the base came into sight, as did the fighters attacking it. Large plumes of smoke were pillaring up from inside the fortress and the Geonosian transports were preparing to land. He flew straight into the center of the base and closed his glider. His squad wasn't very far behind and they instantly starting shooting at soldiers.

Actakos drew his vibro blade and quickly began decapitating and mutilating soldiers that stood in his path. The defenses were prepared, but he was confident it wouldn't be enough to hold off the overwhelming amount of Geonosians that were coming. Not to mention the Geonosians could call for reinforcements from home if necessary.

@Skrekkor @Xil Nevin [member="Alexander Ontonas"] @Finger @Strask Ak'lya

 

[Coric Adromak]

Coric stepped off the transport and onto the blasted planet. At his sides were two heavy repeating blaster pistols, he was ready for a fight. A Condottiero, Coric had come to Zenith Prime looking for two things, a fortune and a fight. Word was that the Geonosians were moving in on the planet, several warlords and other mercenary types were preparing a defense against the invasion. A last ditch effort to save the world from being turned into some kind bug colony. Air raid sirens were going off in the distance, the Geonosian fleet would likely be entering high orbit.

The transport had dropped him off near a military base, with the sirens going off the soldiers were scrambling to their combat stations. Coric decided if he would offer his services now would be the time. "Someone's gonna need a grave." He said to himself.

 

[Laman Ress]

Laman started heading out as the raid sirens started sounding. Making his way outside he called for the cities garrison, calling them immediately to action. He stopped by the armory to armor up and equip. He grabbed a slugthrower assault rifle, and a blaster pistol.

He made his way outside as he saw the soliders moving around to their stations, manning the guns and getting into their respective units for the coming battle. Though he saw a strange sight, a barabel walking down the street while apparently inebriated. Laman collected a squad of soliders and went over to the lizard man.

"Sir I would highly have to recommend you get out of the street, we are currently under attack, so unless you are prepared to fight, i would suggest you get to your home, or a air raid shelter." He said to the lizard man

[member="Skrekkor"]

 

[Finger]

As the situation quickly escalates, Finger found himself standing in place, mind racing as the others kicked into action. He was not expecting to have to fight as a cohesive force so soon, the others needed more regimental training, discipline on the larger scale. He had commanded in mock battles before, the word 'mock' used because they involved many a man killing the other for the entertainment their audience, but what was occurring now was of a different scale all together, at the very least he was glad that he had organized the men into a roughly battalion-sized force, a bit larger than a conventional one. The battalion was divided into smaller companies around three-hundred to four-hundred men strong, representative of the different groups of slaves that had worked together in the past on different parts of the planet that they had come from, the companies had leaders, but there was no way for him to be sure each had selected their own men to lead smaller platoons and squads. The man would shake his head violently after a few seconds, "Screw it." He would simply say. It was better to keep things as they were and rely on momentum rather than overly complex coordination, lest he confuse the men. Or worse yet, himself. Finger turns to Ross, "Tell Kelt and his men to get armed with the Zygerrian weapons and come to us, the others are going to head for this armory and get equipped, and to grab more armaments for us as well."

Ross looks to Finger and then nods, "Understood." He'd say before turning off and running towards the ships they came in. They only had enough arms for Kelt's company as things were, but with three-hundred men armed, he was confident that they would be able to both protect Xil Nevin and cover the others as they made way for the armory. He just hoped that they had enough time to get everyone armed before things, well, escalated.

Hundreds of men streamed out of the vessels that they had arrived in as soon as Ross had stepped inside. Men and women of all shapes and sizes, expressions as hardened as their bodies were. There were children in those vessels as well, protecting the planet had just become as important to them as it was to the people living there. They made their way across to the mustering grounds, lining up in order to get armed with whatever could be offered. Finger directs Kelt to split his company in half, moving them to take position about the mustering grounds, whilst the rest are entirely dedicated to guarding Xil Nevin. Finger hoped the muun felt reassured, with well over one-hundred bodies between him and any of the enemy, with the other half of the company covering their movements, and protecting the ships that yet held their non-combatants, at least until they could organize getting them somewhere safer.

As the battle reaches the ground, the former slaves rain fire upon their enemies, most all of them more than proficient enough with their weaponry to do what needed to be done. Finger feared giving them orders that may confuse them, each man was a trained warrior, but by no means were they all soldiers yet. There was a difference.

Finger himself remained close to Xil Nevin, trailing behind Alexander. He takes a vibroblade and a blaster pistol as they are handed to him by one of his men that runs up. He offers his thanks before turning back to focus on the battle. He wasn't needed at the forefront as things were, it was more important that they fulfill their objectives of protecting the muun, their loved ones, and following Alexander. More and more slaves get armed as they are processed by the armory, gradually joining the battle. Soon everyone would be armed, but not yet, until they were Finger would make no more directives. It was simply time to fight, and protect.

He'd begin to organize an escort for the children and elderly to the nearest shelter, keeping a focused eye on the situation as more of his comrades join the fray.

[member="Xil Nevin"] [member="Alexander Ontonas"] [member="Actakos"] [member="Laman Ress"]

 

[Thew Vullen]

I run over to the nearby fortress. I draw my two oversized Relby-K23 pistols and prepare for a fight. I want to get paid for this job this time. Doesn't matter who or what. This planet and this war makes little difference however. It won't change anything tomorrow. But this planet needs defending and they paid me to do it.

I burst through the door and shoot two Geonosian soldiers. Easy. Their guns can't hurt me, but I can hurt them. This time my armor has a flamethrower on the right arm and a rocket on the left. I may hate fire, but these bugs hate it more. I run through the next door, ducking as I go since I'm eight feet tall, and spot a group of soldiers hunkered down. "You guys! Get behind there and there!" I yell pointing to a durasteel container and an unused thick armor plate. "Stay there and shoot anything that comes through that door!" I say while pointing to a door that leads to a open room, possibly a cafeteria, but has been destroyed by something. I stand near the door, drawing my two vibroswords and pocketing my guns. I am ready for anything.

 

[Actakos]

Actakos keeps cutting through more and more soldiers. They are nothing to him and the swarms of Geonosian soldiers had begun to overwhelm the outer part of the fortress. He decided he was going to go ahead and head inside. He cut through the guards and busted down the main door. He storms through the building and finds himself inside a cafeteria, with five blasters pointed at him. They open fire, but his armor merely deflects it. He walks straight in and once he's in range, activates the flamethrower on his wrist and turns them all to a crisp. With the room clear, and with his squadron close behind him, he makes for a nearby open door and readies his vibrosword.

[member="Thew Vullen"] [member="Laman Ress"] @Finger @Coric Adromak [member="Alexander Ontonas"] [member="Xil Nevin"]

 

[Thew Vullen]

I see Actakos take down the men. I'm enraged now. I cut down the soldiers coming through the door and use my flamethrower to hold the rest off. I face Actakos and with a roar I swing my blades down towards his head. This figure won't last long against me.

 

[Actakos]

Actakos blocks the swing and pushes the warrior back. He's surprised to see someone who is actually a capable fighter considering what had taken place so far. He swings multiple times at his opponent as his fingers on his right hand peel back and reveal a large cannon built into his arm. He uses it to blow a larger hole in the door and allow more Geonosians to swarm in as he continues to duel with [member="Thew Vullen"]

 

[Placeholder 0133]

The Muun was a pleasant surprise. Alex eyed the weapon in Mister Nevin's hand and nodded. If the hypermatter-trafficker could take care of himself, then all the better. Alex always fought better when he wasn't holding one of his men on a pedestal over the others. He stuffed his DC-15 back into its custom holster pulled at the straps of his shacklebolt rifle. The weapon was a monster; it could punch through a meter of durasteel without a problem. The only real drawback the rifle had was that finding ammunition for it was a pain. He'd have to make his shots count.

"I don't know how big the bug fleet is, but I doubt they'll be able to break through anytime soon. Finger, once your men are armed we'll need to move your noncombatants to the underground bunkers to the south of here. I sent some of my boys to escort them. You should concentrate on keeping the armory from falling into Geonosian hands. There are plenty of places for your soldiers to dig in there, and you can keep Mister Nevin secured." Alex half-promised, half-ordered. The plain truth of it was that Finger's men, while formidable, we not trained for this sort of conflict. Holding a fortified position did not require much experience, only a trained eye and the knowledge required to operate a weapon.

He clapped a hand on Finger's shoulder as they arrived at the entrance of the armory. Alex clapped a hand on Finger's shoulder. "You need to hold this place son. We lose this, we lose our guns." He transfixed the younger man with his intense gaze. "I'm trusting this to you. I know you won't let me down," he turned his gaze to the Muun. "Mister Nevin, I'd recommend heading toward the central control station inside. I know you're not a warrior, but I don't think Finger's men will know how to turn on the armory's outer turrets. I figure you're smart enough to figure it out."

Alex turned toward the outer gates and breathed a heavy sigh. It seemed his previous guesses had been wrong. A number of shuttles were sailing down toward the outer walls. Some of the bugs had already managed to land. The majority of the shuttles were ripped apart by the torrent of cannon fire coming from the various turrets dotting the fortress-city. A tiny handful managed to land unscathed. From them poured Geonosian warriors, and just as their shuttles were ripped apart, so were they. They fell in droves from the concentrated cannon fire.

But for every one that fell twelve more poured from the shuttles. Alex watched with worry as a number of the bug-warriors, armed with war spears and hypersonic rifles, soared over the walls. Their spears cut through the unarmored men and women that had been wandering near the gates with ease. They killed without care, slaughtering anything that was not of their own species unlucky enough to cross their paths.

In response, teams of soldiers poured out from the various buildings and took up defensive positions along the mustering grounds. E-Web lasers laid down heavy fire on the Geonosians, and the alien advance was suddenly halted. The Geonosians turned their attentions to the nearest buildings they could find and began to plunder. Warriors within these buildings rose to meet them.

Down the way he caught sight of [member="Laman Ress"] and [member="Skrekkor"]. Cursing, Alex opened a comm to the Colonel.

"Hold the central command center Colonel. We need to repel the bugs until the fleet can drive back their ships. I'm going to rally the men down by the barracks."

One of the bugs came for him. Its spear was held high, and its chitinous maw open with a bloodcurdling screech. The former commander pitched a hard roll and narrowly avoided the tip of the spear. The alien had already rounded on him by the time he'd risen to his feet. Before he could raise his rifle, the bug lunged. The spear bit into the side of his arm and a splash of his blood poured out to coat the blade. Growling, Alex rode the blow and slammed his shoulder into the Geonosian. It stumbled back long enough for him to raise his rifle and pull the trigger. The alien's chest exploded in a pulpy mass of chitin and yellow blood.

"You," he huffed toward the closest man he could find ([member="Coric Adromak"]). "Come with me. The men in the barracks are on their side of the line. They're going to need help." Figuring that to be explanation enough, Alex jogged down the grounds toward the back entrance of the barracks. He could hear the distinct clang of gun fire from inside. Without a moment's hesitation, he marched into the building.

It didn't take long for him to find Zenithian men. A firing line had been made at the end of the cafeteria. In the middle was a sea of gore and viscera. Dozens of the Zenthian soldiers had been caught unawares, killed whilst finishing their meals or clambering for weapons. Judging by the alien corpses dotting the other side of the cafeteria, Alex surmised the invaders had paid for those death. He caught sight of two figures in the center, each dissimilar to the line soldiers. One fought against the other; one with Geonosian soldiers at his back, the other defending the Zenithian warriors.

Alex fell to a knee and propped up one of the dining tables for cover. Three other men joined him. "Kill the bugs while they're coming through the doors," he snapped, "And you," he gestured toward Coric, "See those men down there?" He gestured toward a group of soldiers of various species huddled behind a mass of tables. They were unarmed and clad in downtime fatigues -- men who had been eating their lunch caught unawares. "Take two of these boys and get them out. Can I trust you to do that?"

His gaze fell to the combatants as he asked the question. A Geonosian popped out from behind [member="Actakos"] as [member="Thew Vullen"] attempted to bathe him in flames. A click from Alex's rifle and the bug's head became yellow stain on the wall.

[member="Xil Nevin"], [member="Finger"], [member="Strask Ak'lya"]

 

[Thew Vullen]

I swing at Actakos with my swords crossed at an X over my head. However, I only bring one down at his head and use the other to chop away at Actakos's cannon arm. I call into my com for a little assistance with the bug problem. I hope they can at least pick them off from afar like someone (Alexander) did.

 

[Actakos]

He blocked the overhead strike from [member="Thew Vullen"] and dodges the swing at his arm. He then spun around and fired his jetpack in an attempt to blow him backwards. He then moved to deal with several of the soldiers that were giving the Geonosians trouble. He used his cannon to blow holes through their cover and expose them to the oncoming Geonosian attacks.

Then his com came to life. "The enemy turrets are giving us too much trouble. We can't land everything while they are operational."

"I'll handle it. Just keep as many of their soldiers occupied as possible." Actakos fired his jetpack and flew off down the hall, headed straight for the command center. He just flew past many of the soldiers trying to stop them, not paying them any attention.

 

[Thew Vullen]

The jetpack fires right in front of me, but I pay it no attention. Instead, I turn and use my flamethrower to set fire to the many swarming Geonosians. I sheath my swords and draw my guns. I shoot the Geonosians as I walk (backwards) to the command center where [member="Actakos"] went. I pull two nearby chunks of metal to block the hallway I travel down. "HQ! You have some type of cyborg coming down the east hallway! Be ready! He is armed with swords, a flamethrower, and a cannon. Be careful!" I march down the hallway and order soldiers to take up positions.

 

[Kairus]

Xil Nevin nods in affirmation. "I will engage the turrets." The Muun turns to the men that Finger assigned to him. "Arm yourselves and defend the armory with your lives. Do not let them breach the central control station." He then shifts on his heels and weaves through the military personnel scurrying about frantically in the armory, making his way to the doors leading to Control Station.

The doors open immediately upon running a biometric scan on Xil's face. One of the perks of being a generous patron to the Zenithians was extended access to otherwise restricted locations, as well as a certain degree of impunity. The doors immediately sealed shut and bolted down once the Muun and both his bodyguards stepped through them.

Xil Nevin slides into the chair where the main operator would sit, his bodyguards sitting to his left and right taking control of the auxillary consoles as well as the turrets. He logged into the central console, typing away at the command line for a few moments before being granted full access to the armory's turrets.

"Men, take control of the turrets and gun down the Geonosians. Minimize civilian casualties." He ordered to his guards. The guards immediately began to fire, laying waste to a large sum of Geonosians before they even knew what hit them. Xil Nevin accessed the cameras surrounding the armory. The Geonosians were making haste towards the armory. Xil turned on the intercomms within the Armory. "Geonosians inbound. Gather your weapons quickly and escort the civilians into the tunnels." He instructed to the men firmly.

[member="Actakos"] [member="Alexander Ontonas"] [member="Finger"] [member="Strask Ak'lya"] [member="Laman Ress"] [member="Skrekkor"] [member="Coric Adromak"] [member="Thew Vullen"]

 

[Ak'lya]

Strask barely paused as canonfire ripped through the skies. Ships were landing. So much for stealth. He holstered the needler. No way that would work on the bugs. Sliding his hand to his hip, he pulled out the old CZ-836. Fifteen years old and still worked fine. He fired at the approaching warriors. Aquire, double tap, move on. He barely slowed at the pair of bugs. There was a way in through the back. He knew it well enough. When you work in a place long enough, especially in his job, you learned these things. The entrance was well hidden and near unhackable. He reached into his pocket, quickly swiped a key card, and slipped it. He loved Spynet overrides.

The meeting room was empty. As he quietly picked his way through it, he pulled the needler into his other palm. If the Ulgo kid was here, he needed to knock him out.

He slid open the door to see the noble hunched over the console. He fired the dart into his neck, watching the man turn, take a lunge at him, and fall. He smiled before hearing the call that there was an enemy on the way. "Then stop him before he gets here!" he called into the comm, and then set to work. The prep this time would be crude, but it should work. He'd have it ready when the intruder stepped in.

[member="Actakos"] [member="Thew Vullen"]

 

[Actakos]

There were too many soldiers in the hall. Actakos stopped flying and sent fire everywhere from his flamethrower. The Geonosians were way too far behind him to keep up and the control center wasn't far away. If he could just get inside the blasted room then the invasion would be so much easier. Without the turrets, the enter base would be almost defenseless.

Several soldiers jumped on his back from behind and he shut off the flamethrower. "Gah!" He spun, sending four of the five soldiers off him. The fifth refused to get off, so he reached back and grabbed his throat. He flipped him forward and then brought his knee up into his back, snapping it. He then spun around and was met by two soldiers with vibro swords. Instead of drawing his own, he kicked one in the chest, sending him backward. He then used his cannon to incinerate the other. The other soldiers was getting up and Actakos was now bored of hand to hand. He grabbed a grenade off of one of the dead guards and primed it. He then simply dropped it and flew down the hall, quickly approaching the command center.

[member="Strask Ak'lya"] [member="Xil Nevin"] [member="Thew Vullen"] [member="Alexander Ontonas"] @Finger @Laman Ress [member="Coric Adromak"] [member="Skrekkor"]

 

[Skrekkor]

.

 

[Skrekkor]

Skrekkor lazily bobbed his head left to right, swaying in the wind. Skrekkor wouldn't raise his sword the man approached, "Too groggy," he though, as he made his way down. Skrekkor would look to the skies, as he listened to the man, ships nearly blocking out the sky, or at least it seemed that way to the Barabel. "Bounties on them?" Skrekkor would attempt to ask in the common tongue, but it mostly came out in grunts and groans with the only coherent word that came out was 'bounties'. The lizard would lower his head, focusing on Laman, his eyes narrowing.

[member="Laman Ress"]

 

[Laman Ress]

Laman got a confused expression on his face as the lizard grunted "Bounties". Laman just assumed sicne the lizard was looking up that he wanted to know if there were bounties on the invaders.

"Yes there is." He said, hopefully to get the lizard on his side.

"Come with me." He said to the Lizard.

He then heard a voice through his comms, the voice of [member="Alexander Ontonas"], telling him to defend the command center, this probably was not a bad plan, if they lost the control center they lost the planetary defences.

'Come on men! We must protect the command center! FOR ZENITH PRIME!" He said as he started moving the squad towards the defensive line.

[member="Skrekkor"]

 

[Skrekkor]

Skrekkor shrugged, his bottle was empty, and his stomach began to grumble again. He'd join the man, walking behind as the human charged off into the background, unsheathing his sword and pistol as he strode. The sky was indeed darkened, there was no doubt about it, but another fight meant more blood, something the lizard hadn't had steam on his skin for far too long.

He unclipped his antique iron helmet he'd found from a run down museum, and with sword and pistol in hand, Skrekkor felt a smile grace his face. A new battle, a bounty to collect, and hopefully food fueled the barabel out of his drunken state, his feet picking up in rhythm to catch up to his newly formed ally.

 

[Finger]

Watching Alexander move off, Finger nods firmly as he'd turn back towards the armory, looking over the area. His men stream into the armory, arming themselves with blaster rifles, thermal detonators and EMP grenades before moving off to fight the Geonosians whilst the rest hold position on the mustering grounds. Finger sends a number of men to follow Xil Nevin to cover him, shouting out a simple "Cover him!" Before he hears the buzzing of wings overhead, instinctively rolling aside as a blaster fire explodes upon the ground where he once stood. He whips his blaster pistol about, taking in a calming breath as he aims at the squad of Geonosians overhead, he fires off three shots, each one sending another tumbling to the ground, the rest falling to the fire of his comrades. Besides him, however, lay the fresh corpses of some of his comrades that had been too slow to react. He grits his teeth, hissing air through them for a moment before standing up tall and shouting out to his men, voice tearing through the area even among all of the noise. "Parlo, Makken! Set up on opposite sides of the grounds, watch the skies and provide cover for the armory and civilians!" He'd sound off, before turning to face the nearby Ross, "Find Kelt, tell him to prioritize escorting civilians, and our family to these shelters. Every innocent that dies is a failure on our part." He'd say, taking one more breath in as he raises his blaster pistol once more off to the side, firing a single time into an encroaching Geonosian, putting him down. "Now your men, Ross, are here to defend the armory. Do or die, you know the drill. Get moving." Finger finishes, watching Ross nod once and sprint off to relay the orders. After a few moments, the remainder of the men finish getting armored, and with their orders relayed, they each head off to find their respective company leaders, splitting the mass of slaves into four groups, each with their own dedicated tasks. Parlo and Makken each take their quarter of the men, finding positions of overwatch, fighting their way through the masses of Geonosians until they find themselves in the surrounding buildings, clearing them one by one and then getting themselves to vantage points, and provide cover for their allies from every direction, drawing attention away from any of the civilians still in the area.

Kelt's men get busy helping with the escort of the civilian populace into the underground shelters, ensuring that none come to harm, putting their own bodies between them and enemy fire, their own people among those that they guide to shelter. They pause as they hear the screams of people trapped under rubble, working together to push it aside even as fire rains down upon them, some of them stumbling and coming to a final rest as those under the family under the rubble are pulled free and hustled along into the line, the ones that cannot stand finding themselves carried.

Meanwhile, Ross finds every vantage point he can about and within the armory, having each and every of the two-hundred or so men under him find a place with good cover and good views of what he wanted them to defend. And then they began to fire, downing every Geonosian that came into their view. They would defend it with life and limb, the Geonosians would be climbing over their corpses if they wanted the armory. Finger assists with the positioning of the men outside the armory, covering flanks and making sure that each group of men is covering the other simply by the graces of their positioning. And then, he takes a detachment and throws himself into battle, firing off his blaster pistol at every opponent that comes before him as his comrades rain blaster fire upon them, in sync with the base's turrets and the Zenithian soldiers that fought alongside them.

Suddenly, a spear pierces through Finger's shoulder from behind, barely missing his vitals simply due to his constant movement. He drops to a knee, eyes widening in shock as he loses his grip on his blaster pistol. And then he roars, twisting about and slicing sidelong towards the Geonosian that yet held the spear that was imbedded in his body. He cuts through both of its legs, it loses its grip on the spear, allowing Finger the freedom of movement the bury the blade into its skull, and then through the ground beneath it.

Shaking, Finger rises to his feet, pulling the spear from his back after dropping his blade. He gasps out from the pain, but the shock was numbing most of it. Looking up for a moment towards an encroaching swarm, he tilted his head to the side almost inquisitively. He had a few minutes before he wouldn't be able to hold onto a weapon anymore from the loss of blood. Best he make use of that time. With another roar, he slides a foot forwards, lifting his good arm up and then throwing the spear towards the flying towards the enemy, sending one tumbling to the ground, where it meets its final rest with a splat. "Grab that vibroblade for me." He'd comment towards one of the men alongside him, not bothering to see if they follow his command. He leans down and picks up the blaster he dropped, and then pushes himself aside as blaster fire flies towards him, it narrowly misses him and slams into the man behind him. Finger lets out a quiet 'tch', lifting the blaster up and training his aim on the Geonosian's. They were going to pay for that. He opened fire.

[member="Xil Nevin"]
[member="Alexander Ontonas"]