Operation: Swift Justice

The Quaestors came together, eyeing each other carefully as they entered the Consul’s office. Slightly dimmed, they still saw the green-haired man seated behind the large desk, his Proconsul standing just behind his right shoulder.

Halcyon pointed at the two empty chairs, Vladet and Hel-Pa each taking one as Chaos pushed a pad in front of each.

“We have just been attacked”, Rokir announced, shock appearing in the eyes of both men. “A large pirate force has taken over the Rybanloth system. A daily supply run found the system overrun and sent us what information it acquired before it managed to escape. Chaos will be in charge of the operation, but this will be primarily a military operation”.

Pointing at the pads, the Consul continued, “You will find specific information for each of your Houses. We have some very sensitive objects and information in the System, and have overlooked it for far too long. Battlegroup Vanguard will be charged with this Operation. Dinaari shall be based from the Compulsor while Ektrosis shall be on the Honor. Neither of you are rookies. Look over your orders, get your House together and go”.

The Quaestors quickly took their pads and left, the Exarch nodding at the Consul and followed the two other leaders out of the office.

Vodo knew his friend well enough to know something was bothering him. The two had bonded over their time, sharing the command of the Great House they both loved and had sacrificed much for. It was not something the Twi'lek Archpriest even needed to see to know. He cold feel it. Hel-Pa Sklib was troubled by a great burden.
Vodo had retreated after stepping down as Aedile to the Unknown Regions, for reasons known only to himself and the current and reigning Queastor of the house, but made haste in returning.

You did not have to return...

The Tarasin's voice echoed in the Force, filling the empty cabin of the Mare Nostrum, Vodo's personal ship, as he descended into the thick atmosphere of Taruma.

How could I remain?

No more was said until they met in person, and the datapad was given to him, "Does your Aedile know of this?"

The reptilian alien scratched an irritated patch of scaly hide, "I just sent this information his way. I'm assembling the House Summit and Elders this evening to discuss our plans."

Vodo waited for the verbal invitation to the meeting that never came. The Twi'lek's lekku dropped subtly, a sign of his disappointment. Sklib had something else in mind however, "I would like you to attempt something for me."

"What are we waiting for, anyway?" Vardar said with ever-fleeting patience.
"You just asked me that five minutes ago. I don't know. I didn't know then, I don't know now, and I still won't know when you ask me again in another five minutes." Ace replied also on edge.
"..right. I'm just curious as to why we're forced to waste our time here while the summit convenes. They could have just told us to meet after they were done with their meetings."
"That would've been nice, wouldn't it? Not much we can do, though. Go socialize or something."
Vardar chuckled. "Right."

The young battlemaster looked around the room at the near members of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse Battle Team and at the others spread around the room who were either arriving or already waiting for their leaders. Hex and Phoenix were still missing a few members but someone arrived every other minute. The room would soon be full, Vardar speculated. No one knew for sure what was going on but all knew there was battle stirring somewhere in the near-future as well as near-space.

Corvinus looked around and was relieved to see so many familiar faces. Members of his current Battle Team as well as his old command, Phoenix and it’s ally Hex.
He felt somewhat lost, right now. A time in his life where he had no clear objective, no sense of what lay in his own future. There was something prickling beneath the surface of the serene waves on the beach of his calm mind. But it was still to far submerged to recognise.

The Knight suspected that all would be made clear, in time. He would soon know what lay beneath and also whether it would only be the tip of a much larger ice berg.
He rested his left hand on the warm, wooden hilt of his Mormegill and closed his eyes.
Answers were coming, he could feel it!

Nekaka walked in with his cloak on carrying his duel DL-44's his nightstinger, his Lightsaber, and his usally assortment of daggers. Including his Eagle dagger his father left him. It was only less then a year ago he manged to return to Anzat to discover his home was under lock and key of the New republic. It was good that he took back what was rightfully his.

Nekaka looked around, a few members of Hex were there as well as the other battle teams. He noticed Lokasena, the Jedi he had help save a while back while on a hunt. Nekaka bowed, "How are lokasena?" Hey looked at Nekaka and Grinned, "I am good Nekaka. Are you ready for war?" Nekaka thought for a moment, "Always" was his answer.

Nekaka took a seat while waiting for the rest of the teams to arrive. War was coming, Nekaka was ready. He had served as BTL before and he had Battle Experance, Most of it with Plaguies but still. Nekaka Grabbed his left shoulder, it hurt slightly to remember how he had to kill the one true love, for she would not give up the Crimson tide clan. ~"Her husband, was a tide Officer! I can not leave, they will kill me!"~ is all that she said, Nekaka thought ~ Why didn't i spare her and take her under my wing like before? Why must i lose love to survive?~ Lokasena looked over to Nekaka and Said, "Let the anger fuel you, you will need it my friend." Nekaka nodded and tried to harness the power of the dark side as he thought over and over of the outcome and the pain he felt, The same pain he felt when his Mother sold him off to slavers, the same pain when the ones who took him in were killed. Nekaka Felt the rage as his eyes turned Dark Coal black.

He Ignited his lightsaber and in one swift movment Cut a Statue in half. It stayed still for a total of thirty seconds before it slide off to one side.

Lokasena smiled and said, "Good my young hunter, now you are ready for war." Nekaka deactivated his Lightsaber as more members stared and gathered around. Nekaka sit back down and contunied to Medate, waiting for the word to go......

"So here we are. Once leaders of opposing battle teams now working our way through life in the service of another battle team none of us originated from. Seems sort of.. ironic, doesn't it?" Vardar said to Lokasena.
"I guess. Life is much like the clicks in a hyperdrive. If one click chappens a bit sooner than expected others will fall into place with it continuing the chain with but one glitch that seemed to do nothing." Lokasena said contemplating the horizon.
"....ooooooooookay...... man you have to lighten up. If what you mean is that a minor action can have great consequences, I agree with you on 100%.. that's what you meant right?"
"What is meaning but that which we interp-" Lokasena started.
"Ok, you know, let's just not talk until we get to kill things." Vardar said.

They both stood there leaning on the table, saying nothing.

"I wonder what the hold up is." Lokasena said turning slightly towards Vardar.
"You know.. a hold up is much like a... a... thing that... just.. ok I can't do it like you, sorry." Vardar said getting right back to just leaning and waiting.
Lokasena chuckled lightly.

The Halls echoed of hard leather boots as Sidarace marched down the corridor leading to the destination he had been told to meet at. Turning a corner, his vision was flooded with the members of Ektrosis. Most all of them he knew, but as it suddenly got quiet, he realized he was not as much a familiar face as he thought he was.

He stood in silence for a moment, surveying everyone, stiff as a bored. He stood this way, not because he was nervous, but because he still had not warn into his new Dark Jedi Knight robes. Limply, he rested his hand on his saber hilt and slouched some what awkwardly.

If it were not for Sena and Vardar approaching, arms extended, Sidarace felt he would not make It through the night. “Welcome, brother! Thought you wouldn't show!” Were the words that erupted from Lokasena's mouth “Come, join in the action!” He ended with a smirk at Vardar further ushered the newly appointed Knight forward. “Hex, Phonix, Horsemen of the Apocalypse, meet one of Ektrosis's newest members! Strait from Dinaari itself mind you-” Corvinus ended abruptly as Vardar cut him off “Yes, now let's all pitch in and help the weakling out if he trips or something while on this mission!” At this everyone began to chuckle and laugh.

“Seriously, loosen up Sid,” Vardar spoke with earnestness “You will be great, just try not to slow us down alright?” Var then smirked again and turned to the doors and waited, as if they were going to open anytime soon.

“So, what are we waiting for?” Sidarace said to Lokasena, who was now also watching the doors “Waiting for the Summit to 'Advance the Plot' and give us the run down of how everything is going to pan out.” He ended on an agitated note, clearly he had already told this to more than one member.

Vardar looked around the room again after sitting back down. Most people were conversing, still, as others just sat and waited alone. Vardar turned to his leader, though younger, Vardar trusted him.
"I've been thinking." Vardar started.
"Surely you're joking. Should I prepare for the apocalypse?" Ace retorted sarcastically.
"You know, I can detect that note of sarcasm on your voice." Vardar quickly replied.
"Really?! You can?" Ace continued.
To which Vardar replied "Yes, I can. And let me tell you something. You're not funny."
"Ok, now that's not fair." Ace said grinning.
"Life is unfair. So. I have a feeling some bad mojo is going down." Vardar said, his voice had grown more serious.
"Yes, I can feel it in the Force as well." Ace said closing his eyes for a moment.
"In the Force, huh? Don't you ever get a feeling in your gut?"
"Yes, mainly when I need to use the bathroom."
"That...is so not what I meant."

As they continued talking, Lokasena approached.

"Oh great. Another hasbeen here to teach the 'young kid' a thing or two about leading a Battle Team." Ace muttered, annoyed.
"Hey!" Vardar and Lokasena exclaimed at once.
"You...heard that?"
"Yes, well you said it out loud." Vardar said looking at Sena to check they were on the same page.
"Oh.. sorry. Anyway.. what do you think is going to happen?" Ace said turning to both Vardar and Lokasena.
"History." Sena proclaimed with a slight look of satisfaction.
"Battle and bloodshed" Vardar said with a grin, a greater look of satisfaction and a chuckle at the end, which left the other two staring at him. "What? I'm a Sith Battlemaster. This is what I love doing! The rush of battle, my friends. That's what makes life so beautiful."
Leaving both his leader and Sena perplexed, Vardar moved towards a nearby window to take a last glance at the setting sun.

Sidarace sat, studying his new saber, running his fingers up and down the hilt, into the little grooves and notches. Standing a few feet away, Erinyes studied him, watching his every move. Slowly, she strolled over to the rookie Knight.

As she neared him, Sidarace looked up, almost startled at the presence of the Adept neared, then eased up as he realized who it was. “Ready for the battle,” She said, looking Sidarace up and down as she did so. “I am,” Sidarace was not known to talk much, due to having... Well, not much to say. He was, however, about to say something else when a loud noise erupted from the left corner of the room. Looking in the direction of the noise, Sid was found staring at Te Me' slicing another statue in half with his armory saber as Vardar cackled at what Sidarace thought was him imagining it to be a live person.

Standing up, the Miraluka took a better glance around the room, and recognized a good amount of the members. He saw Zasati, who was standing next to Narad apparently talking about something important, for they both had grim faces on. But before Sidarace could turn his head, Narad caught his gaze and put on a smile, ushering him to come forward. “Sid!” He shouted “Good to see you here. Ready for some blood shed, Ekky style?” He continued gloating “We will cream the place before Dinaari even sets foot on the ground, for we will have had the victory long before they get there!” He was about to continue but Zasati cut him short as she saw the sour look on the Knight's face. “Great to have you abord Sid. Want a cookie?” Brightening up, he took one “To bad there isn't any cookies.”

“Cookies and bloodshed…” Sena muttered to himself. The Knight missed the old days, when it was just long conversation over buckets of Ice-cream, mostly supplied by Bubbles.

Ace’s “has been” remark hadn’t bothered him too much. Sena had stepped down in favour for growth within the House. There were times he regretted that decision, but he always realised that it served the common good.

The Krath noticed that his fingers had started to fumble with the black, steel pommel of Mormegill. “Nervous?” Zasati asked as she noticed him. Corvinus looked out a window and sighed a little. “Not really… More like flooded with anticipation.”
“Yeah, well try to keep you anticipation to your self. This is a new carpet, you know!” Vardar said with a grin.
“I just wish they would tell us something! It’s terrible to wait in front of closed doors, while behind a few inches of wood decisions are being made that concern our future.” Corvinus tried to calm himself. “Then again, ours is not to wonder why…”

Looking outside the window, Sena thought he saw a familiar sight. He opened the window to much protest of some other members and made a peculiar sound with his mouth. Within seconds, a small, black bird came flying in. The Jackdaw perched on Sena’s left shoulder and crowed at the gathered crowd. For a moment Sena seemed to whisper something to the animal, just before he closed the window again. To everybody’s amazement, the bird seemed to turn it’s beak toward Corvinus’ earn and make some soft sounds that resembled the purring of a cat. As Lokasena suddenly granted himself a content expression on his visage, everyone wondered if the Krath had finally gone round the bend or if the little bird had actually told him something.

At this, Lokasena had began in a pressed march out of the room, bird still perched on his shoulder. Everyone merely looked at the fleeting Krath, only to continue on at what they were doing previous to this little incident.

Sidarace watched his friend exit the room then turned to find Narad standing right behind him, grinning something fierce. “Hello Narad-” Sidarace began, but was cut off by the much shorter Krath jumping him with a hug and shouting “You look so cute with your Knight robes on! I just had to tell you!” He ended by letting go of the Obelisk, and continued giggling, pressing his heel into the ground while swiveling his body slightly. “Good to see you are eager for battle as well. But let me just ask this one thing, don't EVER do that again.” He ended in a harsh tone but then realized he was becoming more and more like a grouch as the seconds went by. Trying to strike up another conversation, the Miraluka' unclipped his light saber and looked towards Vardar, who turned away from the window at the sense of being watched “Care to show a new dog some tricks?” He ended in a smirk and then Vardar took a quick glance at the new, never used light saber, and continued with a snort “Naw, I'd kill you”. He started laughing to himself, then looked at his own light saber hilt and with a long sigh, realized he had nothing to lose, unclipped his own saber and followed Sidarace into an empty corner.

“This will just be for sparing purposes ONLY,” Stated Rathden “I don't want to be fighting with a missing limb, and visa versa I am sure.” “No, I could take it. A bit of a challenge actually,” said Vardar who ended in a smile. Both the Knight and the Battlemaster ignited their sabers and began to practice as the violent red and calm blue sabers clashed together, spreading sparks over the secluded area.

"So there you have it", Sklib put his datapad down onto the Fogwood table around which the assembled dark Jedi sat.

Their expressions ranged from contemplative to gruff. Alanna Taldrya, the house's most senior member, folded her arms into her spacious sleeves, "I recommend a decidedly lethal response."

"Agreed Master Taldrya, but specifically what?" Hel-Pa leaned back in his ornate chair, "The Consul has given us command of the Vanguard Battlegroup, so unless you have some greater purpose, we will be forced to use this option."

Vodo sensed a great anxiety within the Elder Krath, "Let her speak, I believe Mistress Alanna has something she'd like to share with us."

"Thank you Archpriest. I am aware of an ancient Sith spell once used against opposing fleets. I came across it sometime ago, but I've been hesitant to try it in combat mainly due to the fact I do not wish the lesser clans to see that we have rediscovered this technique. Seeing as though we would be within our own territory, with no prying eyes from another source, I would feel confident sharing my knowledge with those Krath of sufficient rank so that we could employ it against these lowly Pirates."

"Krath!?" Andan was upon his feet, "Why only Krath? Do you not believe a Sith worthy of such knowledge?"

"Silence Andan, let Lady Alanna speak. I'm sure there is a better reason than mere guarded order secrecy..." Hel-Pa regained the calm of the room, using the force to exude peace.

"I say Krath because from the moment the join this Brotherhood, they are taught and instructed in the practice of these sorts of rites, whereas the other noble orders have decidedly different and righteous pursuits."

There was a murmur of general agreement among the House Summit and Elders. It was easily understandable that the mere power of the Vanguard Battle Group could overwhelm the meager forces of the Peace Brigade, so many believed a less traditional response to aggression was called for; something that would send a clear and dangerous message to all who received it: Do not tangle with us.

"Any objections?" The Quaestor looked over the table and found no disagreements, "So this is how we will proceed then..."


----------------

Vodo came marching out of the Summit chambers in a flash, moving with purpose. Those Journeymen in his way were moved out of it through the force. He passed a group of familiar faces, among them his chosen Apprentice Zasati.

"Tryezsh, with me!" he barked

Behind Vodo, the remaining members of the meeting filed out into the hall and began to explain to the various members gathered what was going to happen.

An hour later...

Dark Adept Seraine Ténama rolled the stiffness out of her neck as she left the small conference room. She'd just overheard the full explanation of Alanna's ritual - despite her current allegiance to the Sith, she had been a Krath ritualist for many years. It seemed that whatever dark energies they would summon would be more than enough to deal with the small fleet the Peace Brigade had assembled, and the pilots of the Taldryan Navy would clean up anything that was left. The other matter to deal with was that of the forces on the ground in the Rybanloth system, a task left to the Dark Jedi members of Ektrosis.

During the meeting, Sklib had asked Erinyes to act as the commander of the ground forces, while he and Taigikori shuttled back and forth between battlegrounds as needed. The Kalus mining operation had been occupied by the Peace Brigade. It would be a relatively simple matter for the Ektrosians to take it back, so long as they were properly coordinated. For Erinyes, as she was known to the House, it was something of a refresher in field leadership - her year away in the Unknown Regions had allowed her skills to rust slightly, and she was determined to shake that away.

Erinyes pulled a comlink from her belt and keyed it to the ship's intercom system. "All Ektrosian Jedi, make your way to the main hangar bay for field briefing and immediate departure."

----------

Twenty minutes later, the Dark Jedi were assembled to one side of the main hangar, standing in a rough horseshoe. Erinyes was at the centre as she addressed the group, ignoring the slightly stunned looks that her fire-haired beauty inspired from some of the male Ektrosians. "I am Dark Adept Seraine Ténama. Within the House, I go by Erinyes. Some of you have met me before," she said, with a brief nod to Vardar. "Our House Summit has asked me to lead our operation on the ground. Our mission, as you all know, is to eradicate the pirates that have attempted to take over this system."

Erinyes reached into a pouch on her belt and pulled out a small holoprojector, thumbing it to life. The display showed the layout of the Kalus mining facility. "The Peace Brigade is holed up here. Our orders are to go in and flush them out. We'll be gathering any helpful intellgence we can as we go, but as you can guess, the goal is to send the message that Taldryan is not to be crossed. I expect this rabble to be slaughtered to the last man."

"One other thing: The Rybanloth system has not been fully explored. Be careful of any dangers we may not have seen yet. Overconfidence can kill more easily than any lightsaber." Erinyes shut off the holoprojector and tucked it back into her belt. "Our transport is waiting," she said, gesturing to the stormtrooper transport sitting on a landing pad. "Let's go."

Sidarace stood, holding onto the guard rail that rested horizontally across the transports main hatchway. His grip fluctuated as the ship was dodging another volley of anti-aircraft coming its way as they prepared to land on the surface of their destination. With a muffled voice, Erinyes spoke over the hyperdrive “We land in five minutes.” Her voice was calm and cool, she was the perfect person for the job of leading Taldryan to victory. Another volley of anti-aircraft came sailing through the atmosphere and with a large flash red light, hit its target. A violent shaking erupted through the ships frame as it took it's tole of damage, pressure caps bursting with a sharp hiss. Within seconds Erinyes spoke, but not through tongue of mouth, but through the force “Prepare for immediate emergency landing!” This warning however was not fast enough for before Sidarace could reach the guard rail.--
--Lights flashed on and off as the ship shook with uncanny strength as the pilot struggled to regain the controls of the shuttle, that it sent all the Jedi to the floor besides the number of Equites and Elders aboard. Packs and bags went zooming across the deck along with various weapons and other items that were discarded at impact. Using the force to sustain his balance, Sidarace stood up, along with many other Ektrosians, but were thrown once more to the ground as the ship took its toll. The violent rocking continued for about 30 seconds before one final jerk as the ship hit the surface of the planet, a few people shouting over the loud hum of the engine overdrive, parts clanking left and right and red hull lights blinking off and on.--
--It was dark. Through the Knights pounding head, he could hear a females voice which Sidarace recognized as Erinyes's, shouting “Repeat, we are down! Repeat, we are down, approximately 50-100 meters away from known destination. Doing count down of casualty's now. Will com back when all are accounted for.” She ended promptly, setting aside her com-link and standing up. Sidarace heard various movements of the other Ektrosians as they became conscious of their surroundings. With a few snaps, glow rods illuminated the shuttle, and Sidarace could see everything clearly now. The ship had, oddly enough, landed completely on its belly, resuming the position of a proper landing.

As Sidarace arose, he was greeted by the stern growl as Erinyes neared him “You, start a sounds off and help get everyone out of the shuttle, there isn't much time before they are upon us.” And with a wisp of her cloak, she was out of the hatchway and outside. Rathden looked around for only a second, then went through with his orders “Alright,” he started, grabbing a roster with the various names of Jedi on it, and started calling them out “Lokasena Corvinus?”

Nekaka had his hood pulled over his head as he listened to Erinyes. As a Dark Adept, she had quite a repatation to be a Great leader and a even more better Intel Collector. Nekaka grined slightly. She noticed, "YOU! NAME RANK AND ORDER!" Nekaka took one step forward, removed his hood and said, "I am Te Me Nekaka, Obliesk order, Jedi Hunter." She got a small smirk on her face and said, "you think you can protect me against a lot of Pirates?"

Nekaka noded and drew his Blue bladed Light saber and took a stance. He waved it around a little to show her he could control it.

"Impressive, but can you use it in battle?" Nekaka deactivated the Lightsaber, secured it to his belt and pulled his vibro blade from the middle of his back, from its seath. "Well if not, i know how to fight with this. I guess well find out."

"I see you have a lot of weapons and such on you, just don't slow us down." Nekaka secured his blade and repulled his cloaks hood and said, "Don't worry about me ma'am, i can take care of my self." Nekaka then followed as Erinyes told everyone to get aboard the transport. Where they went from here, was beyond Nekaka's knowledge. Battlegroup Vanguard. Nekaka remembered that name from Plaguies. However no one ever wanted to talk about its forces.

Nekaka took his seat on the Transport as he waited to go. ~Good thing i have experiance~

-----------------------------------------------

On the transport Nekaka heard Siderace start calling out names, He waited to here his name......

Vardar stood with the rest of the Horsemen as Sidarace finished calling out the names of all those yet unaccounted for. It didn't take long for a clamor to arise from the ranks. Every single person on the mission had turned to the one next to them and had started discussing and hypothesizing about what had just happened. The young battlemaster glanced over at Erinyes, knowing beforehand she would not put up with indiscipline among her soldiers. Her faced showed defenite anger, as he predicted. He knew it wouldn't be long, now.. Vardar stepped away from Erinyes and the rest of the men. Some of the other members of the Horsemen asked what was wrong.

"You'll step back if you don't want to get charred." Vardar said with a look of slight antecipation. "It will be grand."

Vardar knew Erinyes would not restrain herself from using her power over the elements. And sure enough, less than thirty seconds later, the skies darkened as a huge bolt of positive lightning came down between her and the clansmen, leaving but a flaming crater. All turned silent as the eerie light of the red fire remained lit for a few more seconds before dying and the skies clearing up. Erinyes broke the silence and spoke with a loud and clear voice.

"Our destination is just over that hill. If I so much as hear someone humming out of turn, I shall personally deal with them. Company, move out!"

Vardar separated himself from the Horsemen and approached the commander. "Long time no see. It is good to have you back Mistress Erinyes."
"It's good to be back, Vardar." she said as they all kept moving forward.
"I can't help but wonder how come- wait.." he paused for a second looking over the hill. "There's.. a scouting force right there!"
"Strange that I could not feel them. You'd best get back to your Battle team leader. I'll handle things from here."
"As you wish." he said retreating back to his fellow Horsemen.

Erinyes then spoke to all soldiers through the Force so as to not alarm the scouting force ahead.

Our enemies keep watch over these hills. There is a small force just ahead. Your orders are as follows. Everyone is to take cover so as to not reveal our true numbers to the enemy. Me and the left flank will deal with them.

She then stood up to her full height, and as the Peace Brigade spotted her, she yelled "Hex! Horsemen! TO ME!".
As the two battle teams and their commander charged, Vardar felt his blood boil with the heat of battle. As the rush completely took him over, the dark jedi force attacked the peace brigade. Vardar's attacks were brutal, calculated yet vicious. Erinyes stroke with precision and grace. All fought with passion. Soon the battle would be over and they would be on their way to the main Peace Brigade complex.

Ten Peace Brigade troops were no match for the Dark Jedi that fell upon them. Erinyes seemed to be in a trance as she moved through the chaos of the battle, her cloak flowing around her like liquid night as the amethyst blade of her lightsaber carved through her opponents. Predictably, the battle didn't last long, leaving the patrol in shambles on the ground beneath them.

Inwardly, Erinyes was troubled. Sensing the approach of ten hostile soldiers should have been child's play for her. She half-closed her eyes, reaching out to the Force for answers. The response she got was unexpected. Rather than the feeling of being immersed in stillness she normally experienced, the energies of the Force seemed chaotic, roiling and bubbling like a pot of boiling water. Erinyes concentrated, and after a moment the energies around her settled, but the amount of effort it took to do so was far more than she would've liked. If I'm having this much trouble, she thought, will the younger ones be able to touch the Force at all?

Erinyes deactivated her lightsaber and clipped it to her belt. Wordlessly, she turned and started making her way to the mining facility with the group of Ektrosian Dark Jedi in tow.

The silent march of the dark Jedi was something to be feared, even Sidarace shuddered at the thought of 30 plus Jedi sneaking upon any number of non force-sensitives, let alone ones of Taldryans caliber. As they neared the ridge of the small mountain face, Sidarace heard the clanking of armor and weapons charging. Before the Knight could react, he saw everyone leap to the ground, leaving him erect and stranded for the oncoming fire. “Rathden, get down!” Was the cry that emerged from Sena's mouth, but he was to late.

The flash of the red DC-15x blaster bolt came protruding from thin air and with a thud, the blaster bolt collided with Sidarace's shoulder, sending him strait to the ground. The sent of burning flesh and fabric erupted from the gaping wound that adorned Sidarace's left arm.

“Why didn't anyone warn me?!” Was the cry that came through the Knight's clenched teeth. “Rathden, we did warn you! I, along with a few others warned everyone through the force. How could you not hear it, !?” The voice now of Erinyes who spoke with a calm and cool tone that erupted from her powerful voice.

“I don't know! Just let me alone for a moment, I need to heal myself.” But before he could reach his hand upward, he was interrupted but Erinyes, “No, let someone else do it for you,” She demanded “You have already lost a great amount of your strength. Corvinus, lend your powers to aid Rathden. Everyone else, follow my lead, and stay down.”

The Krath acknowledged the command with a nod, then knelled beside the Miralukan as he placed his hand over the wound. He remained in the same place for a moment, then lifted his hand, a confused look on his face. He placed his hand over the wound once more, this time, he closed his eyes. A bubbling feeling erupted from the gash in his shoulder, down through his legs, as the healing spread the pain throughout the body, so as not to be in one concentrated location. The Obelisk watched as the his wound was slowly mended together the various muscles that had been shattered by the heat of the blaster bolt.

Sena ended, gasping for a breath of air just as Sidarace did. Lokasena saw the Miraluka looking at him strangely as he struggled to catch his breath, then hastily got up “Come on, we've got to get going.” He ended on a warmer note, but Sidarace could tell there was something wrong with the situation. The Krath helped him up with one strong hand, and ushered for them to continue.

Why Had I not heard Erinyes's call for cover? And why did it take Sena two tries to heal me, and when he did, why was he out of breath? Sidarace strode along, contemplating these things. His thoughts were interrupted by someones voice yelling “Keep your heads down!”

...

22 Galactic Standard Hours Earlier

Vice-Admiral Raif Slaxton paced the command deck of the CSD Justice. It wasn't that he didn't like the Dark Jedi for whom he served, it was just that he didn't like it when they began to dictate the way he would run his ship, and his fleet. He did admit to himself however that since the fleet reset, and the Consul's edict, they had been more respectful of those non-Jedi officers whose job it was to run and operate the ships they relied upon.

Vodo Biask, and his Apprentice, the young and spirited Hapan Guardian Zasati Tryezsh were watching the man, both with their eyes, but also through the force. It was a subtle exercise in sensitivity, something the excitable journey-woman desperately needed, "Notice how his body language, though rigid and disciplined still displays his innate aggression?"

Zasati made a show of examining the man before she carefully shared her opinion, "I think he needs to pluck his eye brows. And maybe with a new uniform, he might actually be somewhat handsome..."

"Biask, are you prepared?", Lady Alanna moved up quietly behind the Krath Archpriest and his Obelisk Apprentice.

"Yes m'Lady."

Alanna nodded smoothly, "Admiral Slaxton, you may proceed."

"Acknowledged Master Taldrya. Helm, prepare for jump., notify the fleet of intent."

Various beings about the Bridge began to shuffle and do their jobs. One by one, each station gave their thumbs-up signal, showing go status for hyperspace jump. Raif moved to his Command Chair and once seated activated his fleet com, "Prepare for jump on my mark."

Space was calm one moment above Karufr, the home planet of Clan Taldryan. Battle Group Vanguard sat motionless just outside the gravity well of the planet, and the next, engines flared to life as they accelerated up to speed. Within seconds the fleet vanished in a flash of light.


----------

The battleteams were arranged on the flight deck of the Justice, going over their basic goals and objectives. The Peace brigade had not been in the system for long, but had used the brief amount of time they'd been there to erect several imperial-era pre-fabricated fortresses and bases of operation. This set up wold prove little effective against the combined forces of the Dark Jedi led teams of the Taldryan Ground Forces, as well as a sustained orbital bombardment.

"I realize orders have been dictated that we are not to deploy until after Lady Alanna's fireowrks display, but where's the fun in that?", Vardar Fen'Amar Ordo, one of the more reckless members of the house interrupted the groups discussion.

Sidarace Rathden, the House's newest member smiled, "What did you have in mind Battlemaster?"

Vardar smiled fiendishly, "Who's up for a premature sprint to the ground? We could have most of those Pirate bastards decapitated by the time the Grunts show up... What do you guys say?"

Surprisingly, the answer came from the eldest among the assembled Dark Jedi, Dark Side Adept Seraine Ténama, "I would enjoy a nice joyride through enemy held airspace, I think. Volunteers to pilot?"

------------

20 Galactic Standard Hours Earlier

"Prepare to decant from Hyperspace, all weapons, on standby. This is your show once we revert to real-space Lady Alanna."

"Understood Admiral, May the force be with you."

"And you."

Vodo Biask stood next to Adept Betja Jun, Master Alanna Taldrya, Pontifex Dark sabre Taldrya, and Epis Bubbles Taldrya, and his two fellow Archpriests, Nexusmage and Raistline Majere. Together, they represented the House's strongest Krath adherents, and therefore the ones most prepared to assist the Dark Jedi master and former High Priestess in her latest spell.

"Fleet Decanting from Hyperspace Admiral Slaxton. Three contacts, two Bothan Assault Cruisers and one Majestic. Multiple Fighter contacts."

Alanna's awarness expanded, aided by the six other krath, until she could feel the entire enemy force. The darkness within her, which she normally held in reserve, checked by a need for civility among peers, boiled to the surface. Vodo, no stranger to such dangerous feats, felt the rising Dark side within her, and it scared him, it touched something primal within him. The others experianced something similar, and let their own power flow into her, granting her the power it would take to preform this most spectacular feat of Force prowess.

Through the viewplates of the Taldryan Ships, a storm began to form from empty space, and swirled and fumed until it was a angered and whirling mass of electrically charged pulses and strikes. battle group vanguard remained singly poised to strike, but did not make a single move, while on the other hand, the enemy fleet scrambled to battle stations, ready to deal some lethal damage.

They would not have a chance however.

The storm began to march in their direction, and overtook the three capital ships, though they attempted to flee. The dark cloud hung over the ships for mere seconds until it subsided and disappeared. All that remained of the enemy fleet were the blackened and twisted husks that had once been the armored hulls of the massive warships. orphaned fighters and shuttles flew to and from, unsure of what had just happened.

Alanna gradually restored each of the six Krath's powers back to them. Vodo was weak, drained from his ordeal.

22 Standard Galactic Hours Earlier

As the Battle Teams and other members of the ground force were agreeing on their early strike Andryan spoke out.

“Count me out, there is no way I am going down there before we are suppose to.” The Knight announced.

“But if you don’t come with us then who will lead the battle team?” Vardar asked in a serious manner.

Andryan had plenty of experience as a Battle Team Leader, back in Archanis he spent a year in the position, and even though it had been a while it was all coming back to him. “You can lead the battle team, Vardar.”

Andryan left the flight deck before he could here the Battlemaster’s response, he didn’t care. With most of the Jedi on board going into battle The Sith knew that he would have his hands full with what would be left the Pirates.

-------------

20 Galactic Standard Hours Earlier

The Knight looked out of the view port as the force produced storm destroyed most of the Pirate’s flee only leaving some stray fighters and shuttles.. Now that is power, though Andryan. Queldom started walking towards the flight deck, the rest of the Pirates needed to be taken care of.

Andryan walked over the glassy floor to one of the commanders, “What is the situation?”

“Almost all of the Pirates are dead, only a handful of fighters remain”

“I will lead Dagger squad.” The Sith announced.

The Commander nodded, and spoke into his communicator. “Everything is set up for you," he said a couple of moments later.

The Knight walked over to the group of Tie Defenders, the squad was huddled together being briefed. The members of Dagger looked up as the Dark Jedi approached, all of the other pilots were non-Jedi.

“Sir, we are ready deploy.” One of the pilots said.

“Then lets go.”

Sena quickly placed a hand on the back of Rathden’s head and pushed it down as he fell to his knees himself. Within seconds a barrage of energy bolts flew over their heads.
Both Knights were laying on the ground, with their faces in the dirt. Sena was the first to lift his face with a snap. “What the HELL is wrong with you, Sid?” The Miralukan seemed confused. “I… I’m…” “Save it! Get up and get your act together, our people need us.”

Corvinus helped Rathden up but the latter only fell to his knees again. “Our… our people?” Sid stuttered. “I’m not sure… I…” Lokasena’s irritation was soon replaced with sincere concern. He grabbed Sid’s face, looking into his eyes. Sena saw his friend’s mouth open as he watched it. Rathden began to breath heavily and shake… Convulsions were moving up his spine and as they reached his neck, he simply fell back on to the ground.

With a clear tone of panic in his voice, Sena hovered above Sidarace and tried to analyse what was wrong. As Lokasena put two fingers on his friend’s neck to feel his pulse, but he got more than he bargained for. The very spot he touched started to bleed immediately. “By the Gods, NO!” With horror in his eyes Corvinus pulled back his hand. With a powerful blow from the Force he flung the blood, that besmeared his fingers, away.

As Lokasena grabbed his communicator, he could hear Sid starting to cough loudly. Quickly pressing the button, the Krath bellowed over the noise of battle around him. “This is Knight Corvinus, to any transports in the area. Man down! I repeat, man down! I need immediate evacuation at these coordinates. Hurry!”
Corvinus only barely waited for a confirmation from the other side of the line before he hid his communicator in his robes and concentrated on his friend. Rathden’s coughing had gotten a lot worse during Sena’s brief cry for help. Corvinus was even pretty sure he could hear a gurgling sound develop, which only meant one thing, fluid in Sid’s lungs. “Damn you, Sid. Don’t you die on me, buddy!” Corvinus was not sure how this could have happened, but there was a clarity in his mind about what was causing his friend’s sudden deterioration.

He started to fumble in his robes, desperately searching for the communicator he had just put away. His fingers grabbed the first piece of metal they felt. As he pulled it out, Sena was relieved it was the device he was looking for. As fast as he could he pressed the correct switches. “Knight Corvinus to Mistress Erinyes, please respond.” There was some static before a familiar voice replied. “We’re a little busy here, Corvinus. What is it?” Erinyes asked slightly annoyed. “Mistress, I have reason to believe that there is a bio-agent active in the atmosphere. You should warn all troops to consciously protect themselves with the Force. As soon as they become symptomatic, they must be evacuated.”
There was an odd silence. “Bio-agent? How do you know-” “Rathden’s showing symptoms already!” Sena interrupted. Erinyes obviously forgave him this, since her voice now held a more concerned tone. “Symptoms? I thought he was shot.” “He was. I healed it at your request. But there is something else…” Sena looked down at his friend and saw how thin streams of blood were coming from under the Miralukan’s eye cover. “Please Mistress, hurry. We don’t have much time!” Luckily Sena could already sense the rescue transport coming.

In the heat of battle, not a voice was heard but the dying screams and the occasional cry for mercy from the opposing force's soldiers. Vardar was right on the front when, suddenly, he heard his commander's voice.
"Vardar!" Erinyes said looking at him, yet fighting at the same time.
"Yes?" Vardar replied doing the same. He was no longer striking in passion. The fire of battle had died down in him now that no side was charging. One side was being overpowered. There was nothing more to it.
"I need you to fall back." She said ducking a strike from an opponent.
"You're.. you're kidding! ..right?" He replied fending multiple strikes from his side.
"No, I'm not. I want the youngins to learn something from this fight. You have enough experience. Go back and help Corvinus and Rathden." She said quickly.
"Help? Sid is with Lokasena! I know you haven't been around but Lokasena isn't exactly defenseless anymore!" He said with some confusion.
"Look. Sid is down. If they decide to go around with a small force Lokasena won't be able to keep him alive and defend himself at the same time. Now do as I say and GO BACK!" she said getting angrier as her slashes turned brutal.
"Fine. You're the boss.. ACE! Take over for me." He yelled forgetting for a moment Ace was his commander.
"Sure thing, 'boss'". Just go back and help those two." Ace said moving to cover Vardar.

-----

"What is keeping that damn transport? Hold on, Sid, it'll be here soon." Lokasena said impatiently.
The fire was getting closer to the two jedi on the ground.
"Get down!" Vardar yelled running towards them, igniting his saber. The red glow of his weapon quickly illuminating his path as he jumped over them and started deflecting blaster shots back at the opposing force. "What is wrong with Rathden, any--what the hell is that??"
"I'm not sure. All I know is if we don't get some Krath over here Sid is in a lot of trouble." Lokasena said feeling the transport getting closer.
Vardar looked down at Sidarace and knew he didn't have a lot of time. "Lokasena, you best hope that transport get here in the next 30 seconds or Rathden will actually be in no trouble at all. He'll be dead."
Lokasena looked up "You know what? You really are a great help in times like these, Vardar."
"I'm entitled to cracking jokes when I'm putting myself in the very much literal line of fire for you." He said moving closer to the attackers at a somewhat fast pace.
"Erinyes told me to defend them. Well.. a good offense is a great defense. So let's get to offending." He thought as he bellowed a war cry and broke the enemy line.

Nekaka stood at the top of the hill as he watched the enemy fire on the two downed Jedi. Te stood up pulled off his cloak, folded it up and stuck it in his pocket. Te pulled his Lightsaber and jumped down from his spot and started running to the enemy, he ignited his saber and proceeded to cut down the soliders and finally when it was all done the Anzat stood there with a smile on his face.

"And thats for hurting my friend." Nekaka deactviated his saber and ran towards Sena.

"It's about time you showed up!" Nekaka looked at Sena and asked, "Is there anything i can do to help." Sena shook his head.

"don't move!" Nekaka felt the man behind him. He called upon the force to help with speed. In a flash he spun around, pulled his Eagle Dagger from his belt and cut the man standing behind him's head off in just a flash.

The Body hit the ground. About that time a Transport came down and Two Medics from the force that came with the Jedi came to help Sena. Nekaka was told to Head down and meet up with the leaders. So Nekaka took off with his saber in Hand....

Another figure walked off the transport and quickly took off after Nekaka useing the Force he dashed into a quick sprent to catch up to the man. Nekaka quickly ignighted his saber and was getting ready to kill the robed fellow when another saber came up to block the deadly strike.
"Have no fear fellow Hunter I am on your side!" laughed the man as he took off his hood only to show the face of a teenager around the age of 17.

"Who are you?" questioned Nekaka as he wonder who and where this kid had come from.

"Oh sorry I did not introduce myself my name is Light Yagami its nice to meet you." the teen flashed a smile but as quickly as it showed it vanished,

" Now take me to the other leaders I'm here to help out." stated Light as the two began to head out once more.

“What the hell is this?” One of the medics yelped as he saw Rathden’s bloody face.
“I suspect a bio-agent. You must protect yourself from exposure. If I am correct, this infection is highly contagious.” Lokasena answered.
“No, I’m not touching him with a ten foot pole until you tell me what you think this is. I mean have you ever seen such a thing?” The two men looked at Sena with fear in their eyes, and wasn’t because of the battle that was going on all around them.

Corvinus took a deep breath. “I’ve read reports of such a thing, connected to a mutant strain of the Marburg Virus.”
Whether consciously or not, both medics immediately took a step back, away from Sid, horror in their eyes.
“Gentlemen, as you know weapons grade anthrax takes approximately eight thousand microscopic spores to introduce an infection. If this is the Marburg variant PRP, it will only take three!” Corvinus was loosing his patience, something he almost never did. But at the sight of his friend’s face, he suddenly bellowed at the two medics. “If we don’t help him now, HE WILL DIE!” “Perhaps,” one of the medics replied. “but I don’t want to join him.”

In a single fluid move, Sena unsheathed Mormegill and placed it’s tip underneath the man’s chin. “If you don’t help him, I can guarantee that you WILL join him!”
With extreme caution and severe reluctance, the medical personal carried Rathden to the transport. Sena’s first instinct was to go with his friend, but there was still a lot to do here.
He sheathed Mormegill and activated his Lightsaber again. “Time for some payment in blood!”

After holding the line near where Lokasena and Sidarace were down, Vardar had pushed the enemy forces almost all the way back to where Erinyes fought.
"I'm going to need to tap the Force on this one. This is turning out to be a hard battle after all. Not because of the enemy's strength, but because of their position. If I'm going to make this line retreating to the vicinity of the primary strike team I'm going to have to work myself." he thought as he kept on fighting. As he looked back for just a moment, he felt some relief. He wasn't going to need to use the Force after all, Lokasena was running towards his position. As Vardar's red blade cut through the troops surrounding him, Lokasena, sword raised above his left shoulder, jumped in to strike and kill a cluster of three soldiers all at once.
Vardar grinned at Lokasena who was less than two meters from him. "You know.. I didn't actually need your help, but that, my friend, was pretty cool."
"Yes, I know." he replied with a faint smile "I also know you don't like to use the Force in battle, so I figured I'd come along and give you a hand pushing these fools back to Erinyes."
"Since we're fighting, I won't even ask how you know that. Let's just do this and hope they take good care of Rathden." he said starting to move fast to strike a nearby sniper squad.
"Agreed." Lokasena said as he let out a warcry and broke through the enemy soldiers.
Over the dying screams of the squad, Vardar could hear Erinyes fighting in the distance along with the rest of the jedi strike force. The battle wouldn't take much longer.

---

Lokasena and Vardar were but a mere 20 meters away from their commander, the enemy was encircling her. As Lokasena fought through the last men standing between them, Vardar noticed a few men fleeing the battle field. Vardar started looking around in his robes and grabbed a circular device.
"Force, don't fail me now." he thought as he concentrated and flinged the device in the direction of the fleeing men. As it hit its mark, the device stuck to one of the soldiers' boots with its four spikes. Vardar used the Force to make the soldier oblivious to what had happened and to make him continue fleeing. Lokasena had noticed what had happened.
"What was that?" he said looking at the running soldiers, now, in the distance.
"Tracking device." Vardar replied preparing to turn to Erinyes.
"Tracking device? Why would we need that? We have the Force!" Lokasena exclaimed, bewildered.
"Actually... that might not be true." Vardar looked up to Erinyes "Isn't that right, commander? You did say your use of the Force did not allow you to detect this scouting force. I'm quite sure it won't let us find their headquarters as well. Here." he said unpacking a small device with a screen "This will allow us to track them to their base."
"I see nothing gets by you." Erinyes said with some satisfaction.
"Well, not this, at least." Vardar replied with a grin.
"In case you haven't noticed." Ace said clearing his throat "We're still fighting a battle here. So do you mind helping out and then we can worry about finding their headwhatsas?"
"Dark Jedi! Charge!" Erinyes shouted, running towards Ace's position. All followed to end this battle once and for all.

With his strength returning after a days rest, Vodo had emerged from his private quarters aboard the Honor. His legs were stiff, having spent the majority of that time crossed, so that he could sit and meditate serenely. Vodo had begun exploring his abilities in omniscience, or the ability to see in places where he was not. His awareness of the area around him was comparable to any other 2nd tier Equite, but drawing upon the lessons he'd read in several tomes of knowledge, had begun to attempt to reach outward. With a small battle raging on the ground, it seemed the perfect opportunity to use a singular event as a focal point. He'd spent hours attempting to discern the blurry images and static information he saw and received until it had begun to clear up.

What he'd seen had worried him however. There was a something affecting several members of his house to varying degrees, but had only just begun to manifest itself through the new-comer, Sidarace Rathden. He could sense the vaguest of causes, but nothing that stuck out and screamed for attention.

Traveling down the corridor to the bridge of the Honor, the tall and muscular Twi'lek nearly toppled several senior officers in his haste. The captain of the ship, Commodore Saiff Hessen, an aged and tried officer, sat in his command chair, sharing information with Rear-Admiral Slaxton, the Battle Group's executive.

"Commodore..."

The Dark Jedi's rasp brought Saiff's attention to Vodo. He finished his quick conference and closed the com line, "How may I serve you Master Biask?"

"I'm sure you've heard the reports by now of a Biochemical agent at work."

"Admiral Slaxton just informed me of this, yes."

"I'm going to require a shuttle to the Justice. I plan on dealing with this new development head on."

The Commodore was temporarily puzzled, "I already prepared a shuttle at your Apprentice's request on your behalf Master Biask, do you require another?"

Vodo paused and reached out in the force, comforted to find the presence of his eager Apprentice still aboard the ship. Relax, I merely anticipated your departure, Master. He could hear her playful voice through the Force.

"No, that won't be necessary Commodore, thank you."


---------------------

Aboard the Cotelin-class Dreadnought Justice which served as the flagship of the Battle Group, as well as the Clan's Fleet, Vodo strode swiftly from the Hangar to the command bridge, tailed closely by Zasati. Her short strides clanked doubly fast on the polished floors, when compared with his own commanding steps. They clipped through the superstructure and the deepest parts of the ship to the turbolifts which would take them to the bridge swiftly.

Biask, wait for me, I sense the danger as well. We'll deal with this problem together. Lady Alanna's voice echoed in his head.

We await you Master Taldrya upon the Command Deck.

Nekaka and Light ran up the hell just behind two retreating soliders. Nekaka happened to see the leaders pass by as they ran. "Light, we can not let these two get away!!!" Light shook he's head. Nekaka pulled off his Nightstinger rifle and Took aim. "BOOM!!!" One went down, the other stopped. Big mistake. Nekaka took aim, "Uh i think we need to leave." Nekaka wipped the sweat from his eye and fired. Nailing the last one, but just as he did, what looked like a platoon came over the hill.

Nekaka gulped and said, "Fall back to the leaders!!". Nekaka re shouldered his rifle and took off towards Vader and the rest with Light just behind him. When they arrived Erinyes had just ordered a charge. Nekaka and Light both ignited there lightsabers and turned around. " Erinyes!!! We have Company!!!!" Nekaka Started chopping at the soliders that came up over the hill as the rest ran away towards the Enemy that were already abroad.

"Light! Looks like were on our own!" Light grunted and Nekaka happen to see the other hunter fall down. "NO!!!!" Nekaka said as he threw one of the daggers and hit the solider who was aiming for his friend in the neck. The human fell. Nekaka Keep fighting as Light backed up behind them and the two hunters were encircled. "Well light, this could be the end. Lets go out with a bang."

Light shook his head, "Agreed." Nekaka pulled out a Thermal and turned it on, threw it in the air, jumped and kicked it into the surrounding group. They took cover as it went off and came up fighting with their sabers......

Not a second had passed from Erinyes' charge when she saw Nekaka's thermal detonator go sailing over her head. The Dark Adept surged forward, amethyst lightsaber blazing in front of her as she cut a path away from the blast. Idiot. He's going to kill us all if he keeps that up. The flash of light and searing air from the explosion was enough to make Erinyes' eyes water, but those who had been trapped behind her fared far worse, suffering severe burns and having portions of their limbs vaporized.

Erinyes was less than 10 metres away from Vardar and Ace, now, and there were only a handful of enemy soldiers to be seen. Rather than waste time trying to down them each in close combat, Erinyes used the Force to yank a blaster rifle away from a fallen enemy. Orange-white bolts flew through the air with eerie accuracy, dropping the troopers still furthest away. The last were easily finished off by the pair of Dark Jedi Erinyes approached. Finally faced with a quiet moment, Erinyes tossed the blaster away with a grumble as she approached Vardar and Ace.

"Vardar, get me coords on the headquarters. At the rate we're going we'll have the entire pirate army coming down on our heads."
"Give me a second." Vardar fiddled with a few buttons on his sensor pack, which beeped softly. After a moment, he spoke up again. "Five thousand metres southwest of here. Looks like it's in the middle of a huge clearing."
Erinyes nodded. "Let's get moving, then. We're running out of time."
"Uh, one thing, boss..." Vardar raised an eyebrow at the display. "I'm getting all sorts of energy readings coming from there. It looks like they have ground defences set up, turrets or something."
"Nothing we can't knock down as long as Nekaka remembers to throw those thermals away from his squadmates." Erinyes slipped a comlink out of her belt and thumbed it on. "Taldryan strike team, form up on me. Our target is five kilometres southwest. Stay together as much as possible, and no more explosives until we reach the target site." With that, Erinyes replaced her comlink and began moving, Vardar and Ace following close. She could see Nekaka and Yagami on the crest of the hill, running to come alongside.

Lokasena wanted to follow his comrades immediately, but was encircled by four enemy troops. One of them was run through, not long after he took an offensive position in front of Sena. The other three stormed at the Krath, who managed to slice through one of his attackers necks. The one behind him managed to grab Sena’s arms and pull him to the ground. Both soldiers stood over the Dark Jedi Knight, weapons raised, ready to strike.

At that moment a loud crow could be heard and a black bird flew at one of the soldiers faces, talons clawing for skin and beak pecking for eyes. While one was screaming while the other simply stood there, trying to find out what was happening. Making good use of this diversion, Sena jumped up, decapitated the stunned soldier and stabbed the other in his abdomen. The bird crowed and perched on Lokasena’s shoulder. Making soft muttering sounds in Sena’s ear, Corvus must have told the Krath something he needed to hear. Sena allowed himself a slight smile and then ran towards his comrades who were already engaged in a heavy struggle with the remaining enemy forces.

Mormegill held high and Corvus in his wake, Lokasena flung himself at the nearest pirate. The man was dead before he hit the ground.
“What kept you?” Vardar asked under his heavy breath. “Good news, Sid’s transport got of the surface safely.” Sena answered. “How did you find that out?” Vardar yelled as he bashed in another head or two. “A little bird told me!” Corvinus winked at his friend as he sliced upwards to cut one of the pirates vertically in half. Vardar’s brow furrowed and his jaw clenched. “One of these days, Sena… I’ll learn your secret.” “Hardly a secret, my friend. I just doubt you would believe me.” Corvinus smiled again as both warriors dispatched another pirate each.

After nearly twenty minutes of marching, they were almost half-way to the clearing. Vardar was getting restless. He didn't like crowds unless he was fighting them. He had been marching close to Erinyes for about five minutes, trying to convince her that killing Nekaka would be a positive experience for all the men.
"Please!"
"No."
"Oh, come on!"
"No."
"He ruined the lower part of my robes! Look at them! The cape-like thing is all burnt! At least let me sever one of his arms!"
"I said no, Vardar. Despite his lack of accuracy he's still a part of this mission, and I won't have my men killing each other." Erinyes said calmly.
"In all seriousness, Mistress, I don't like him. He endangers the mission, as far as I can see. We may be able to shield ourselves from shocks with the Force, but he could end up killing other people, he's already dismembered a couple of our support foot soldiers! If he blows himself up it's one thing, if he takes other young members with him, it's another." Vardar said with a note of seriousness and some anger that astounded Erinyes for a moment.
"You make a weird sense sometimes. And while I would usually endorse a murder, I can't allow it this time, I'm sorry." she replied with equal seriousness.

Vardar retreated to the company of his squad mates. Looking back at Nekaka for a moment, contemplating all the possibilities of a beating.
"Why are you smiling?" Ace said, interrupting Vardar's line of thought.
"Huh?"
"I asked why you were smiling."
"Oh, I remembered a joke someone told me the other day." Vardar said surprising himself at how quickly he could come up with a lie.
"Really? Tell me."
"It's really mundane.."
"We're going to be marching for a while, just lighten the mood for us a bit, ok?"
"Ok.. so these two Twi'Leks are pole-dancing, and this guy comes up.. and you're not going to believe this.. "

The soldiers proceded with their marching. As the Horsemen of the Apocalypse began trading jokes among themselves a slight disorder went on among the ranks. Commander Erinyes allowed it, since she knew they were going to be marching for a while longer. Boredom and the beating sun would put the soldiers on edge if she didn't allow them a few distractions.

The sudden discharge from the Justice made Taigikori’s lungs buckle. He gazed out of the gunship’s port window. The particle dust being jettisoned into space was lit up by the rays of Sarmus’ sun. The Ebon Aybara had served the Knight for only a few months, upon his appointment to Aedile, but has since been his largest form of companionship. The droid pilot was murmuring numbers to itself ahead in the cockpit as Taig’s eyes watched the planet grow in size. It had taken him some time to get leave from the Consul to partake in this battle. The sudden departure of Hel-Pa made somewhat of a crisis erupt in the House itself. Being his right hand, Taigikori’s duties were to stabilize the home front. Now that this was under control, he could focus on his dying brethren below.

Too long had he been parted with them. For nights he would wake mid dream, sweat drenching his chest; a bittersweet taste of what they were feeling. Now, with the world vastly approaching, he could feel his brothers-in-arms calling to him. The sudden jolt of orbital entry shook Taigikori back to reality, looking out the window once more. He could feel the pressure on the hull as they rocketed towards the surface. Lushes green foliage filled his brown eyes with every meter they came closer to sea level. The planet was much different from what he was kin to. Fields and forests against mountains of buildings.

Not twenty seconds went by before the ship was struck with a thunderous clap, sending them off trajectory. Smoke and ash filled his lungs as he stumbled over pipes and wires that were dancing to the tune of chaos. Sparks of electricity flared up, ignited several small fires in the bay.

“G9, report!” Taig exclaimed.
“It appears sir, that we have been hit by an anti-air concussive missile. Life support and engine systems currently going offline.” The droid retorted.

Lovely, Taig thought to himself, stammering back to the deploying bay. He slammed his fist hard against an emergency valve, the bay doors meant for sliding ejected, sending all forms of cargo and burning material alike out into the roaring atmosphere. Taig held firmly to the bar at the edge of the port side, staring down as the gunship spiraled downwards. The distance closed in on him much too quickly than he would have liked.

“Damn, she’s got a fat ass!” Taig yelled over the howling air being surged in. The canopy was seconds away, and he knew this was the last he would see of his ship. He gave it one last look before leaping out of the side, feet first. The first crunch was the least painful. He had made the jump twenty meters from the canopy ceiling. He heard his ribs crack as a branch broke his fall, the Ebon Aybara a fiery rocket that he heard soaring over him. His mouth was full of leaves as he tumbled downwards, clutching at his broken side. Ten seconds seemed like ten minutes as he struck the forest floor with an awry thud. And there was nothing but darkness.

It was nighttime by the time Taig regained came to consciousness. His blood caked eyes slowly opened, though not without difficulty. He felt his eye lids rip open, a scream escaping from his crusted and dry lips. He grasped his side to feel for his severely broken ribs, only finding more troubled news. His robes were torn open, and several gashes marked across his side. He turned on his stomach, then rising to his knees slowly. He looked at where he must have struck. A large circular
imprint was left in the soil. A wonder his entire body wasn't bleeding out at this very moment he chuckled to himself. Pain was something he never had an easy time controlling. But the Knight focused inward. Healing was also not one of his strong suits, but he let his anger pierce his flesh, mending what could be mended. He finished and looked around, feeling drained from his usage of the force. He could now stand upright, but felt as if someone had beaten him continuously with a quarterstaff.

His right hand found his saber belted to him. At least he had that. He had not been as lucky with his other equipment. He had to leave all of his other gear behind in the craft, not having time for them. He fumbled around his wrist for a moment, detaching a pesky little gadget he scored. It was fastened to a band around his wrist, and on it he placed whatever would fit, inside of the rectangular fastenings. A few clicks later, and a small hologram appeared in his palm. His position gave him clearance directly from the Clan summit. On the map, were the beacons of the Ektrosis members that were currently on the surface. He turned on his heels, looking south. Hel-Pa was this way.

Several branches snapped behind him, causing him to crouch down. His eyes now adjusted to the light, he peered through several ferns. Several black clad figures moved through the night, following a line through the canopy that could only be the fiery trail of the Ebon Aybara. He heard muffled voiced and gear being shifted from one shoulder to the next.

"The Captain will be here by morning. Let's not make him disappointed boys." the loudest of the trio spoke up.

Pirates. Time to get to work, Taig smirked to himself. He emerged from the foliage and stood, standing directly in their path. The closest to him stopped in his tracks, then smiling as he raised his rifle. Taigikori's right hand flew upwards, calling to him his saber hilt. With a crackle and hum, the crimson blade sprung to life, his stance deadly and accurate. His fists grasped his hilt, flowing in sync with each other as he leaped forward. The first downwards stroke caught the scout directly in the cranium, causing his rifle to hit the forest floor and his limp body soon after. The other two scrambling for grenades at their sides. Taig rolled forward, thrust his blade outwards to catch the second in the lower stomach. He yelped as Taig twitched his wrists, causing his entrails to spill everywhere. The third turned to run, but not fast enough. He flicked his wrist and let loose his saber. The blade caught the coward at the base of his neck, severing his head. To Taig's satisfaction, his blade returned to his palm as the corpse fell.

He quickly rummaged through the leader's corpse, prying seared garb away from flesh as he stumbled upon a datapad. He opened the interface and began reading. His eyes widened, as he placed his saber back on his belt.

"An antidote...for what?", he said to the darkness. His right thumb hit enter, to see the next page. A vaporise gas shot out of the receptacle, filling Taig's nose and breathing passageways. His right hand clenched his throat as he tapped his wrist, sending out a distress beacon. With his closing thoughts, he wrapped his lungs and breathing tube in a force bubble, once more as the darkness took him.

Meanwhile, the Ektrosis force was nearing the Peace Brigade's compound. They had been cutting through forest for a while and were now at the foot of a hill, when suddenly Erin yelled "Stop! There's a perimeter-defense turret ahead. It has no connection to the base, we can probably take it out without the Brigade noticing."
No sooner had Erin spoken, the turret started shooting in her direction with an almost deafening sound, hitting only the hill behind which she was standing.
"Mistress, the turret is sound-activated, I believe." Vardar said in a loud voice as the turret instantly shot at the hill again. "While normally I'd recommed a quick and violent solution, I think it would be best for one of us to circle around it and deactivate it. Muffling our steps with the Force shouldn't be too hard."
"That is a sound plan, Vardar." Erinyes said with approval. The turret shots were heard all throughout the conversation.
"Plan shman! I know how to take care of this!" Nekaka said starting to rummage in his grenade pouch. The men that had heard him now had a look of panic in their faces, this included Erinyes.
As the turret started its shooting accompanied with near-deafening noise, Vardar knew it was his chance and seized it instantly as he pulled out his heavy repeater and shot Nekaka in the foot twice, concealing his weapon instantly as well.
"MAN DOWN, MAN DOWN!" Vardar yelled. "The turret got Nekaka!"
"I-I think I'm ok, it barely hit me!" Nekaka said starting to get up. From under Vardar's robes came another shot that made Nekaka hit the ground again with a howl.
"Mistress Erinyes, I recommend we send Ace on this mission to deactivate the turret." Vardar said calmly as Nekaka's screams for medical attention echoed in the forest.
"I agree. Ace, you're up." Erinyes said with a gesture and look of great amusement as Vardar winked at her.

“Come here, let me see that.” Sena said as he turned to Nekaka. After seeing that the damage to his foot was a little more serious, Sena shot Vardar a glance as if to say, “Was that really necessary?” Vardar returned his glance with a broad smile. “Maybe not, but it was fun!”

“Oh, oh no… how bad is it?” Nekaka asked as his face tried to conceal the pain he felt. Corvinus looked up at him. “Don’t worry, you’ll live to fight again. It’s nothing your own healing powers can’t fix. Oh and by the way, a pedicure wouldn’t kill you…” This brought a smile to most of the team, even Nekaka. For all his flaws, he had a good sense of humour.

When Corvinus straightened himself again, to analyse the situation, Ace was already preparing for his engagement with the turret. “Don’t worry Ace,” Sena mused. “that thing has even less brains that you.” Ace was not amused. “Hey, if want to go_” “Oh no…” Sena interrupted him. “That’s no job for a ‘has been’. Now go get ‘m, captain my captain.”

((OOC Note: This post was written with Ace's permission. Nobody complain about me pwning him. ))

Erinyes carefully surveyed the surroundings as Ace started to move forward, dampening his footsteps with the Force. Ace took his care to move slowly, giving the turret a wide berth in order to sneak around behind it. A few minutes later, he was crouched beside the weapon, studying the control panel intently to find a way to shut it off.

Something felt wrong, however. Despite the maddening effect the planet had on the Force, Erinyes could sense a trickle of danger coming from nearby. Pausing for a deep breath, she reached out and traced it to its source, the technique taking far more effort than normal to perform. Finally, she was able to grasp the threads fo the Force leading to the source of the suffering. It was a human, male, and in rough physical shape - injuries, plus some kind of toxic agent in his blood. It was a moment later that Erinyes realized the identity of the victim. Taigikori.

"Wait here," Erinyes whispered to Vardar, who looked at her with a curiously raised eyebrow. Taigikori's signature was no more than a few hundred metres away, just inside the edge of a forest to the left of the assault group. With some effort, Erinyes cloaked herself in the Force before sprinting for the edge of the trees. , keeping her senses sharp for any sign of her Aedile's presence. A few minutes later, she found him, past a trail of bloodied Peace Brigade corpses.

It didn't take Erinyes long to figure out what had happened. A datapad laid on the ground beside Taigikori, and the Dark Adept could sense the presence of the biotoxin in the Aedile's bloodstream. The datapad, she thought, must contain some kind of useful information - and a trap. Fortunately, Taikigori had helpfully sprung the trap for her already. Erinyes picked up the datapad and skimmed the contents. It looked like the antidote for the bio-weapon was hidden deep inside the facility, heavily guarded. It would make for a difficult target to get to, considering their mission to wipe out the Peace Brigade troops - the Taldryanites would likely have to split their forces to accomplish both objectives, or at least waste time finding the antidote. Unfortunately, it looked like Taigikori - and Sidarace, and anyone else who stayed on this planet too long - didn't have the luxury of time.

Erinyes slid the datapad into her belt and knelt down to pick Taigikori up, hoisting him over her shoulder. She began her trek through the forest to return to the main group. Just outside the trees, she paused, waiting to see if the turret had been deactivated. Ace was still at the control panel, but offered a thumbs-up and a wave, assuring the Taldryan forces it was safe to proceed.

"Ace, look out!" The Dark Adept heard Vardar's shout too late. She watched as several Peace Brigade troops sprung out from behind a thicket of trees, blasters blazing. Two of the bolts caught Ace in the back, dropping him like a sack of rocks. Cursing, Vardar jumped up and charged, his lightsaber cutting crimson lines through the air as the deflected the troopers' fire. Lokasena was right behind him while Yagami watched over Nekaka, and by the time Erinyes was able to make it back to the disabled Nekaka with Taigikori over her shoulder, the Peace Brigade patrol was no more. Vardar and Sena lifted Ace between them, making their way bach to Erinyes as quickly as they could.

Erinyes surveyed the remains of the assault team, shaking her head. "The good news is, Taigikori's mishap has given us the location of the antidote to whatever they're pumping into the atmosphere."

"We can hardly assault an entire base with three people," Vardar said, gesturing to himself and Yagami, the only members of the team besides Erinyes still unscathed.

"True." Erinyes knelt beside where Vardar and Sena had set Ace down. The blaster bolts had scarred his back, charring the flesh and exposing the muscle underneath. Fortunately, the pain and shock had already knocked him out. "His wounds are too severe for me to fix in the field. With the way the blaster bolts hit, his spine might be injured, and I don't want to risk him being paralyzed if he tries to move again. He needs to go back to a medbay." Erinyes turned to Taikigori. "Of course, our fearless leader seems to be relatively unharmed besides the toxin. Everybody back away."

The other Dark Jedi gave Erinyes some space, partly to allow her to work but also for fear of the toxin contaminating Taigikori. With a deep breath, Erinyes focused, finding each of the spores trapped within her Aedile and neutralizing them one by one. Repairing the injuries he'd suffered in the crash was a far simpler matter. After a few moments, Taigikori was breathing again, but his heart seemed to be beating erratically. Erinyes stood up, grinning wickedly.

"Uh, something wrong, boss?" Vardar had spotted the grin, and knew that it rarely meant good fortune.

"Nothing I can't fix." Erinyes reached one hand out toward Taigikori, fingers outstretched. Suddenly, blue-white bolts leapt from her fingertips and struck Taigikori in the chest. The Aedile bolted upright, howling in pain for a moment before Erinyes broke the link.

"What the HELL was that for?!"

"Your heart wasn't working properly. I fixed it." Erinyes smirked. "Thanks for finding the antidote for us. We've only got a couple of hours before the toxins are going to be enough to kill anyone left on the planet. Shall we?"

The forest lay silent for a moment as everyone contemplated the fashion in which the peace brigade force was decimated. Vardar and Lokasena allowed themselves a moment to congratulate each other on a job well done. Not two minutes later, as everyone started to move out, Vardar couldn't help but to let Erinyes know just how much she had made his day.

"That was the most brilliant thing I've seen ever since joining Taldryan, mistress." Vardar said with a look of complicity.
"I have to say. My only regret is that I didn't yell out 'Clear' before doing it." Erinyes replied leading the way of the Ektrosis expedition.
"Why are you not with the rest of the Horsemen, soldier?" Taigikori said turning to both him and Erinyes, clearly annoyed but pretending not to have heard what they said.
"Well, first, because I'm the one in charge of the tracking equipment. And second because I wouldn't want to miss a second of our storming the peace brigade's base. It should be quite fun to raid a base with but a handful of soldiers. How many of us are in top shape? Five?" Vardar said with a cynical smirk.
"You seem to forget that we are Force users." the Aedile replied moving a branch out of the way with the Force to prove his point.
"Perhaps." Vardar said ducking as the branch whiplashed into place hitting one of the jedi behind him. "But you seem to forget that our use of the Force is impaired. And that they are at a numerical advantage. Although I must say I do enjoy a challenge."
"You will die on a battle field a very happy man, won't you? Besides, we have people here who have seen a lot of combat." Taigikori said now looking at the path ahead.
"Yes, three people is a fantastic number for a raid. Everyone set for operation Forest Drizzle?" Vardar joked.
"Vardar, just go check on Ace for a while. Keep him from kicking the bucket. I'm going to feed our Aedile on what we have done and found since we arrived." Erinyes said gesturing for Vardar to go back.
"Fair enough. I guess the least I could do after injuring a soldier is helping another one stay alive." he said starting to turn away.
"You did what now?" Taigikori asked with disbelief, turning around.
"Who did what, what?" Vardar continued, looking at Erinyes for help.
"I'll explain it. Vardar, you just go back." Erinyes said calmly. "You see, back in the battle there were clusters of enemies, which made grenades and easy choice in taking them out. Now.." And as they marched towards the peace brigade's main base through thick forest, Erinyes briefed Taigikori on all that happened up to that point.

Nekaka was trying to self heal as Vader and Sena watched him. Vader sighed and offered his hand. Nekaka brushed it off, the pain was bareable. He stood up but with a limp. He walked up to Tag and the rest with Vader and Sena behind him. "Mistress, i apoligize for my Gernade accident. I didn't mean to hurt any of our troops. I was simplely tryin to clear the path." The Leader Nodded and said, "Next time Throw further. And in the RIGHT direction." Nekaka nodded, unfolded his cloak and threw up his hood again.

Vader shook his head. "Nekaka, the Next time you....." Tag cut him off, "Hey cool it you two. Right now we need to get these pirates." .......


((OOC: i know short post, sorry, ive been somewhat out of town. I might be with out a com for the next few days. So if you all could write me in till then, that would be great.))

posting.


DO NOT POST!!!!!!!

Rybanloth System
Aboard VIN Honor
1900 Galactic Standard Hours


“I agree Mistress. I will begin making the preparations now.”
The Elder Krath nodded to the Twi’lek Archpriest, “And I’ll gather our forces. Meet me on the Justice in an hour.”

Vodo turned briskly and strode off the bridge of the Honor, bound for a communications station near the shuttle bay. The stubborn resistance of the Peace Brigadiers on the planet, as well as the slow advance of the rogue Dark Jedi had prolonged the operation far longer than would have been expected. Upset with their progress, Quaestor Hel-Pa Sklib had charged Alanna Taldrya, the House’s resident elder-in-chief, with the complete destruction of the Peace Brigade camp and installation on the planet.
The Dark Jedi Master had confided in Vodo, a capable leader in whom she had great trust, with her plan and the execution of its statutes. His legs carried him to a communications station was he was able to arrange for the conglomeration of the forces needed, and preceded to his Shuttle.
The Shuttle Courage III carried him to the main hangar of the CSD Justice where he was met by Lady Alanna and the first of the forces he’d requisitioned for the mission. Standing ten rows deep, by thirty wide, the Clan’s Battle Droids stood at rapt attention, unmoving. Eight officer units paced the sides mechanically, awaiting their initial orders. Within a minute of stepping off his craft, the hangar was flooded with the sound of the arriving transports.

--------------

The Skies of Sarma
2130 Galactic Standard Hours


If the battle teams hadn’t run off preemptively, the orbiting fleet would have had the time to bombard the planet, soften the enemy forces up, and send in a minimal sized force to clean up the rest. But with so many of the House’s precious Dark Jedi so near the target, it would be impossible to lay waste from high above planet without being assured completely the safety of their own personnel. Vodo reminded himself however that it wasn’t just that those Dark Jedi had run off, but also that they’d had no leadership. With Sklib locked in his Cabin, meditating, and his Aedile no where to be found until moments before his crash, the House had been left with little direction.
The black of space was gradually replaced by the light blue that characterized more habitable worlds. The two Sentinel Landing craft, four Lambda-class shuttles, and four LAAT/I escorts descended from high orbit in a hard burn. G-forces pulled at Vodo’s stomach hard, the inertial compensators unable to keep up with the forces of gravity at work. Beside him, his young Apprentice looked as though she would throw up the contents of her stomach, if she hadn’t already done so. The few elite Taldryan soldiers sitting in the cabin with them looked queasy, but this is what they had trained for, and showed nothing under their black face shields.

The worst of it came with little more warning than, “Taking evasive action, hold on!”

The ten craft juked and banked hard, avoiding the first line of Anti-Air defenses. Clenching his jaw, managing to keep his own stomach down, Vodo looked out a nearby viewport, and saw the dark blue blur of Spectre Squadron racing past at a high angle. They raced ahead of the landing force and began laying waste to the ground defenses ahead of the invasion.


--------------

On Sarmus – Outside Peace Brigade Compound
2130 Galactic Standard Hours


Erinyes’ senses were dulled, but not blinded. She could feel something approaching, and looked skyward instinctively. Her eyes went wide as she screamed, “Find Cover!”

Her voice was drowned out by two simultaneous blasts, proton bombs exploding on contact with their targets, followed by the sonic booms of a low flying Scimitar Bomber as it screamed by. Dirt was thrown high into air and began to rain down on the Dark Jedi. Te Me Nakaka bit his tongue as Vardar grabbed his arm and began to drag the group away from where they were. The bombing was only coming closer, and if they didn’t get out of the way, there would be no way they’d see the sun rise the next day.
With the local sun setting behind a distant hill range, the bright flashes of the bomb explosions silhouetted the features of the now pitted landscape. Overhead, Vardar could sense the approaching forces of Ektrosis, among them some ten more Dark Jedi, battle droids, and living soldiers.

About time they decided to crash the party…

“We’ve got to those transports”, Erin shouted over the sounds of war erupting from behind them.
“See if you can signal them, we need to get Aybara, Nekaka, and Queldom to a Med-Faciltiy”, Vardar responded, almost dragging his Aedile who’s arm was drapped over his shoulder.
Erinyes paused briefly, “Does this mean you’re giving up on the assault?”
The Sith Battlemaster stopped as well, and took a sharp breath, “I suppose it does. These guys need help more than I need to kill those bastards…”
“I’m impressed my Apprentice…” Erin continued, carrying Ace over her shoulder.

--------------


“We’ve picked up a signal from the south-west, its got a Taldryan sub-code.”
“Thank you Captain, its likely our people who got themselves stranded.”
The pilot of the LAAT/i looked over his shoulder at the Krath Dark Jedi Master directing his course in the battle, “Permission to investigate?”
Alanna Taldrya nodded, “Once we drop the droids, you are cleared to proceed.”

Acknowledging, the Captain dipped is craft down. The side mounted weapons ripped through the bunkered positions beneath them as they flew past, skating the landscape at such a low level, Alanna could have reached out from the spacious passenger cabin and grab a passing branch. The LAAT/i settled to a rest, a mere meter over the ground, and took off once the entire compliment of Battle Droids had jumped from the deck and began attacking the enemy.
It took only a mere few seconds for the gunship to approach the small ragged band of Dark Jedi. Alanna could sense the presence of her pupils, though she felt as though the edges of her awareness were a bit fuzzy, a side affect, it seemed, of the planet itself. She helped take the wounded aboard and nodded to Erinyes in greeting.

--------------

Spectre Squadron had decimated the entire network of AA defenses, and earthwork bunkers the Peace Brigade had established, so that when the forces of Taldryan landed, resistance was slow and weak. Vodo lead the initial charge himself, followed by a small force of Elite Taldryan Soldiers, and a wave of battle droids. His apprentice Zasati Tryezsh ran with him at his side, deflecting blaster bolts with her sapphire blade, in stark contrast to his own violet blade.
He launched himself high into the air, cart-wheeling freehanded as he landed, so that he was free to swing and decapitate a Rodan in the same movement. His saber danced around him, reflecting bolts back at their origin, while several more Dark Jedi carried the fight into the heart of the Peace Brigade complex. The fight was over before it had begun apparently.

Four shapes rolled up his position and unfolded mechanically, “Droid Control, this is Master Biask. New command initiative: Pursue and Engage. Leave no survivors.”

The four droids flashed an affirmative, and folded back into their mobile mode, and rolled off in search of Peace Brigadiers still remaining or on the run. Vodo had no interest in taking prisoners, and the droids would ensure that none would be taken.


--------------

Kr’Tal System
Planet Karfr – Taldryan HQ
300 Galactic Standard Hours

Four Days Later –

Halcyon Rokir paced behind his large oaken desk quietly. The power of his fury could be felt by those in attendance. His Proconsul, Chaos Taldrya, sat idly on the corner of the desk, smirking in a way that suggested he’d rather be somewhere else. After a moment, Rokir stopped, took a deep breath and placed both of his hands on the edge of his work place.

“What went wrong, and how can we prevent it from ever happening again?”
Hel-Pa Sklib had folded his arms into his sleeves and cautiously offered his assessment, “A lack of communication between leadership and membership lead to an element of the Battleteams launching to the planet before the enemy fleet had even been engaged. Furthermore, a lack of initiative on my part to commit forces until we knew what the situation on the planet looked like lead to the injury of several of my Dark Jedi. A biological element, introduced by the Peace Brigade, has affected all those who set foot on Sarmus. Luckily, my Aedile chanced upon the antidote. We’ve distributed it those soldiers who survived and the Dark Jedi who landed.”
The Consul sat in his spacious throne-like chair and gripped the bridge of his nose, “And how do we keep this from happening again Quaestor Sklib?”
The Ektrosian Quaestor swallowed a lump in his throat before speaking, “We need to work on communication down the chain of command, from House Summit through the Battleteam Leaders, to the average members.”
“52 Battle Droids, 4 Commandos, 2 Officer Droids, and five TIE Interceptors lost to a lack of communication? You may return to Taruma while I decide how to deal with this. In the mean time, I’ll inform the Clan of your success. Consider this a warning however Battlemaster: I will tolerate no more failure.”
“Understood my liege.”
“You are dismissed.”


END Operation Swift Justice