The Founder: Part 1

[Sheff Zee]

The moment he burst through the door of the bridge the fleet leapt into hyperspace. Twenty minutes ago was when he had gotten the cry for help from his own people. It was a Sith Pureblood, someone who had assigned to be the Captain of his carrier ships. Now that he was captured or dead wasn't going to help and further the cause of the One Sith.

"How far away was the shipment intercepted?" While on his way between space in his shuttle he had briefed Norduin on the situation.

"A few minutes away, my Lord."

"Prepare dropships, starfighters, and prepare for reversion to real space."

There certainly was no time to waste. He had a shipment to catch.

 

[Soeht]

Once Velkoz had sent the information related to the theft of the focusing lens to Daella, she looked over it extensively. The last message from the ship carrying it said that they were brought out of hyperspace by a mass shadow. This meant that either the ship foolishly took a popular route through unprotected space or that whoever stole the focusing lens had some way of knowing where the One Sith’s shpping routes would be.

Daella was pointed in a possible direction for beginning her search, though. It was a small planet near where the focusing lens had been stolen. The One Sith suspected that this may be a base of operations for a gang of pirates. Daella somewhat hoped that it was indeed pirates that took the focusing lens as they would have no idea what it was for and be unlikely to tell the Republic of it.

 

[Soeht]

In a rush, Daella made her way to a shuttle to take her to this little planetoid. She had requested that her personal bodyguard would come to her on this journey.

During the journey, Daella mediated on the dark side of the Force. She used this to commune with her Master even at interstellar distances. For over half a decade of her rather short life, Daella had been out of touch with her Dark Lord. Ever since revealing her true allegiance to be that of a Sith, Daella had seemed to be spending a lot of time in contact with the Dark Lord. She believed that this helped her growth in the dark side and allowed her to better know her Master.

Eventually, Daella reached the planetoid with her shuttle. She met up with her bodyguards at the rendezvous point. They all bowed to their Master, having great respect for her.

 

[Sheff Zee]

The ship reverted back to real space and there were several unidentified ships in the premises.

"My Lord, sensors are telling us that our ship is in a tractor beam!"

Darth Acarus's gaze regarded the ensign at the long-range sensors in a certain glare. His concealed facial features told a story of wanting to end the man's life, but inside he didn't want to. He was annoyed that his shipment had been itnercepted so close to home, in fact it was still in One Sith Space, and that pushed him even harder.

"Have the Skarr Ro'ik start up it's gravity well. Charge the hypervelocity gun. No one is leaving here. Fire everything on the rest of the unidentified fleet. Block communications, the fleet has it's orders."

And then they began.

 

[Soeht]

Each of the four bodyguards were highly experienced lieutenants. Of course, Daella had more that were dedicated to her protection, yet they remained on Coruscant in order to convince Republic spies that Daella remained on Coruscant. The only indication that she would have been elsewhere would be that these elite four had left Coruscant for their own assignment.

Of the elite four, one was a tall, brutish looking man named Graves. He had a strong sense of discipline despite having been just a Dark Jedi for most of his life. It was only recently that he found Daella and followed her in her vision of a united galaxy. He was also regarded as one of the strongest fighters of the group when it came to physical, close-combat ability. This was heavily attributed to his immense size and boisterous personality.

Graves greeted Daella with, “I am glad you have need of us, Master.”

 

[Soeht]

The second of Daella’s bodyguards was a spry young man. It was quite apparent with the way that he carried his body and paid attention to his wristcomm that he was far more adept with technology than the Force. Still, he was a Dark Jedi and had experience with the dark side. He used his ability in the Force to quicken his mind and reaction times. This allowed him to adequately use the vast arsenal of weapons that he had under his sleeve.

“Pity I didn’t have time to get all of my toys,” said the man, whose name was Ezreal, “Yet I don’t think they will be a challenge anyway.”

A third man was among the group of four. Where Graves had extreme strength, this man had excellent skill and dexterity. Had Daella not been in the group, he would have been the most skilled blademan.

 

[Soeht]

The third man continued to bow to Daella as the others slowly rised. In a way, he loved Daella as an idol. He saw her as a shining example for all Force-users to follow: using the power of the dark side for a vision of galactic prosperity. He had certainly drank the koolaid after he turned from his ways as a Dark Jedi to a Sith.

“Lady Junra,” began the man, who was named Hecarim, “I am yours to command.”

The final of the four was a woman that was actually roughly the same height as Daella. Her name was Tristana and she was among the most gifted in the Force among the group. Daella was the only one that rivaled her in the ability to manipulate the Dark Side. Since joining the Sith after spending her time as a Dark Jedi, her skills had grown immensely.

 

[Soeht]

Tristana liked to thing that she was the only one that knew Daella on a personal level. She thought of her as a sister - much like Diana Moridena had. Daella never showed any particular care for Tristana in such a way, though.

“What fools dared cross your path this time?” asked Tristana as she began to observe the pirate compound before them.

“I have been involved in the creation of a superweapon,” claimed Daella to her group, “And one of the most vital components of it has been stolen.”

Jerking her head back to the compound behind her, Daella then said, “This compound is a suspected pirate breeding ground. The theft occurred not too far from here. We are to use any means necessary to get this component back before the Republic has any time to find it and analyze it themselves.”

Each of the Elite Four smiled. They would that there would be a plethora of carnage today.

 

[J3C0]

Things moved quickly once Mierins command was given, they shifted and moved in mere seconds. The troops boarded their dropship, the pilots entered their ships, and everyone readied themselves for the coming assault.

The last to board the ships were the Sith Acolytes, each one waiting for Mierin to move. The Sith Lord stared at them, there was twelve of them in all, twelve Acolytes, each one eager to please and do as she commanded. This was a simple fact of being a Sith, one had to rise through the ranks slowly, start from the bottom. To Mierin the Acolytes were little less than trash. She had her favorites of course, and those were exempt from this little...suicide run.

She knew that this would take many lives.

The Acolytes were well trained, but they were by no means true Sith. They were fools, eager to please and eager to do as they were told, little more than highly skilled soldiers at this point, though each carried a lightsaber.

Mierin frowned slightly, peering at them.

 

[J3C0]

“Many of you will die.” She said addressing the gathered rubbish. “You will fight your way through dissidents, rebels, and droids. You will get injured, you will fall, and you will die.”

Many of them looked at her, they feared her, they watched her with earnest.

A few of them looked to her with ambition, they peered as her as though she was the answer to their every problem. In a way she was, she could save them all, or she could be their doom. Every issue that troubled them, their yearning for power, their fear of the unknown. Mierin held the answers, though she did not lightly give it. Perhaps in time she would allow some of them to rise, give them what they so badly craved.

Yet for now they would be tested.

She would throw them into the fires of battle, she would toss them into the wars of the One Sith and force them to see what they were truly made of. This was only the beginning for many of them. Those that survived would find themselves tested again and again, until Mierin was done with them.

 

[J3C0]

A few of the Acolytes seemed to take her speech to heart. They stiffened, their eyes fading slightly and their gazes becoming more blank. They gave themselves to death, signed over their lives to the hurt and harm that they would have to endure. A smile crossed her face as she realized this, those that accepted death, those were the ones that she wanted most to survive.

Within the void of death, one found strength.

“Board your ships.” She commanded. “You are the first of the line.”

They would be the first to fight, the first to die, the first to take on the Rebelling Chiss. It was the way of things. She mused slightly on what had happened in her age. During the Great Hyperspace war she had lead thousands upon thousands of Massassi to their death. She had been the head of armies, the leader of fleets, and she would be once again.

“Go!” She screeched at them, and quickly the Acolytes scrambled.

 

[J3C0]

They scrambled, rushing into the ships around them and moving to be the vanguard when each one landed. As soon as the final acolyte boarded the last ship Mierin motioned over to the only trooper that remained standing outside any of the transport vessels. She regarded him with a warm smile, giving him a nod of greeting as soon as he arrived at her side.

“Ma'am?”

Orlin said In his usually gruff voice, as though he were chewing gravel.

“The Acolytes will go first, hold back your troops until they enter the main facility.” His eyes opened wide, as if her announcement shocked him.

“Ma'am, if I do that they'll likely die.”

Mierin turned to him fully, letting her eyes linger on the last acolyte for only a second before turning to Orlin fully. She gave him that same warm smile she always gave him, and then reached up to pat him on the cheek. It was so nice of him to worry.

“Yes.” She said as motherly as she could. “They will.”

His head turned slightly, but he did not ask her anymore questions. He knew better than to ask, Orlin had been with Mierin for nearly fifteen years now. When he had first come aboard the Crimson Wraith he had been a simply private, and now he was a Commander. Over the years he had learned that Mierin knew best, and to question her was a folly one committed only once.

 

[J3C0]

Orlin turned away from Mierin, boarding a nearby ship without further word.

The Sith Lord watched as several transports raised themselves from the Hangar bay floor, eying them as they drifted off into the abyss of space. Glowing yellow peered into pure blackness, until finally Mierin turned to regard the nearby Infiltrator craft that lay neatly nestled in the corner of the Hangar. There in front of it stood her pilot, a young Chiss dressed in a flight suit.

Mierin walked towards the man, stepping onto the ramp of her ship and signaling for him to follow.

“Take us to the southern Hangar.” Mierin told him quietly.

“Ma'am? The troops are landing in the nor-”

She turned to him, stopping where she was on the ramp with a scowl. The young man was unfortunately new to being her pilot, the last one being killed in an unfortunate...accident that had to do with disobedience. This one would have to learn or else he would end up suffering the same unfortunate fate.

 

[J3C0]

“Yes, I am aware of that.” Mierin said interrupting him. “I do not want to go with the troops. I do not need to go with the troops. I want to go to the southern Hangar.”

She paused for a moment, watching as the man became more and more pale, his face whitening in absolute fear.

“Now. If you don't mind, you will take me there.” The pilot nodded eagerly.

Mierin let out a sigh, her face growing back to its impassive state. Then quickly she moved into the ship. The Daisya Infiltrator was a ship designed exactly for what its name implied, infiltration. The ship was meant to slip behind enemy lines and catch them unaware. Of course, this was unnecessary here as the enemy was well aware they were here. However, Mierins purpose was not catching the enemy by surprise.

What she wanted was their attention to be elsewhere.

 

[J3C0]

Her troops would take the Chiss by force, fight their way through the halls inch by bloody inch. They would take all of their attention, allowing Mierin to slip in unseen. The purpose of this was not assassination or even killing, bu the capture of the leaders of this little...operation. She had often been told that Chiss lead from the front, but she doubted this would be the case with these terrorists.

It was unlikely to her that the leaders of the rebellion would throw their lives away, especially when there was a massacre coming.

Sitting herself down on one of the acceleration couches, Mierin began to contemplate what she was about to do.

She was a Sith Lord of course, so getting to these men was not an issue, capturing them was not an issue, but their men would be an issue. Eventually, when she managed to capture the leaders of the Rebellion their men on the Front lines would find out, at that point she would have to hope that Orlin and his troops...or perhaps even the acolytes, could overwhelm them before they turned on Mierin.

She could fight, but she could not fight an army.

 

[J3C0]

Her lips pursed in thought as she felt the infiltrator lift off from the deck of the ship, the Daisya rumbled, and immediately she could feel the next shake of the engines as it pushed out into the Abyss of space. I an instant, the Manta like infiltrator disappeared from sight.

The Stygium cloaking device that was built into the ship activated almost instantly, and the ship disappeared.

The pilot was an expert of course, and he guided the craft around the asteroid with small twitches of the hand and slight pushes of the controls. Mierin felt nothing as they flipped, zoomed, and dashed towards the southern reaches of the asteroid. The Daisya's speed made the journey quick, and within only a few blinks of the eye, the ship passed through the threshold of the southern hangar bays.

She shifted slightly on the acceleration couch, waiting for the pilots call.

 

[J3C0]

“Ma'am. The bay...its...its...There's no way we can land.”

Mierin let out a loud unsatisfied sigh, turning towards the direction of the cockpit and standing from her comfortable position on the acceleration couch. She quickly made her way towards the cockpit, leaning over the pilots chair and observing through the viewport.

She was aghast as to what she found there. The Hangar bay had been filled almost entirely with massive containers, each one marked with the symbol for explosives.

There were hundreds of containers, dozens upon dozens of massive steel boxes each one presumably filled with a healthy dosage of explosive material. There was enough here to destroy four or five star destroyers with ease, enough to destroy the entire Shipyards of Copero. The Sith Purebloods lips thinned, and she turned to the pilot.

His face was pale.

 

[J3C0]

Mierin looked at the man for a moment, then back to the Hangar bay filled with explosives. The intent behind the stockpile here was very clear to her. This had all been meant for Copero, and the thing that was going to be built there by the One Sith. She frowned slightly, her lips turning down as they flickered across the mass of crates.

“Keep the ship still.” She ordered quietly. “Then leave as soon as I’m clear. Stay within radio contact.”

The man nodded to her, holding the control steady as the Pureblood disappeared.

Quickly the Sith Lord dipped into the cargo hold, she moved into one of the off rooms and quickly donned one of the Yuuzhan Vong bio-suits that had been created for her. The infiltrator armor screwed itself to her body, stitching itself onto her nerves and fusing with her in an expulsion of utter pain. For a moment her entire body screamed, yet she remained utterly silent save for a gasp that escaped her lips.

She shook, and then turned back to the center of the ship.

Mierin made her way towards the airlock, opening up the ships doors and stepping inside with quick hurried steps. The infiltrator armor grew over her face, gathering over her and sealing herself into the armor. The Sith Pureblood took a deep breath, smiling slightly as she inspected the armor. The organic nature still scared her somewhat, but the warmth it provided was almost...comforting.

The Sith Lord pressed a button on the side of the wall, and the door slammed shut behind her.

 

[J3C0]

The airlock slid open before her with a swishing noise, the air already pumped out moments ago. Gravity disappeared almost instantly, and from her position within the ship Mierin jumped out into the hangar bay. For a moment she floated about the room, trying her hardest not to come into contact with any of the contained within.

She doubted that any of them would explode, but with rebels, one could never be too careful.

With an almost gentle ease she drifted through the Hangar bay, floating and pushing herself along by the use of small metal struts and or floating rubble that bounced around. It took her nearly ten minutes, but she managed to reach the door for the hangar bay, grasping ontoa hard metal bar and pulling herself onto an adjacent platform.

A smile crossed Mierins lips.

She had always enjoyed floating about without gravity, the feeling of weightlessness. Some found it unnerving, though to her it had an almost...calming effect. The Pureblood had often thought about meditating in a chamber with no gravity, though perhaps it would be a tad too distracting.

Pulling herself against the door, Mierin pressed the console beside it.

 

[J3C0]

With another loud swish the door pulled itself apart, disappearing into the walls to reveal another airlock.

She stepped inside this time, the pull of artificial gravity hitting her as she crossed the threshold of the airlock. As soon as she was inside the doors behind her slammed shut, sensors detecting her within. The smile disappeared from her face and the hissing of oxygen could be heard as the airlock filled itself almost in an instant.

Her hand reached for her lightsaber, drawing it from her belt.

Mierin was unsure if they would have this part of the facility guarded. She knew that by now her troops were already assaulting the “front” of the facility, and she also knew that there were only a finite number of Chiss aboard, however with this many explosives stored here, it would be foolish to leave it completely alone.

The door to the airlock slid open, only to reveal two Chiss guards.