Jedi Council Forums - 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Updated May 9th, 2008

Jedi Council Forums » Fan Fiction » Before the Saga »

Post Reply | Active Topic Notification | Previous Active Topic | Next Active Topic

« 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 - Previous | Next | Reload

Author	Topic: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Updated May 9th, 2008
ArgenPalos Registered: Apr '04	Date Posted: 1/30/06 5:17pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!!
	this is progressing very well.... excellent writing too, may I add. kudos JW. keep it up! -----signature----- Proud member of the Jedi Technician Crew (JTC) ***Palmam qui meruit ferat**** USC Trojans - 2008 Rose Bowl Champs and CFB Team of the Decade
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
JediStretch Registered: Dec '04	Date Posted: 1/31/06 6:37am Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!!
	Keep up the good work. Like the suspense that keeps us hanging in for the next post.
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Baby_Death_Star Registered: Aug '04	Date Posted: 1/31/06 7:00am Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!! - Date Edited: 1/31/06 7:02am (1 edits total) Edited By: Baby_Death_Star
	The new chapter (including new illustration) in an updated pdf: "The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores" by J.W. Titus, pdf, 126pg, 2.2MB, 9 chapters including (new) illustrations I hope to be able to shrink the file down to around 1MB again at the end of this week, when I'll have access to a different "pdf-izizer". Titus, may I ask who was the artist responsible for drawing the Jawas? I didn't find a "copyright note" this time, so was it yourself? I too wasn't able to find the "Arts of The Sith Wars" board again, has there been a change in the url? -thanks. EDIT: fixed wrong url -----signature----- Class of Aug 04! TFC-JTC-SDO Forever! "I know a thing or two about the force." G'Kar:"The universe is driven by the complex interaction between three ingredients:matter, energy & enlightened self-interest." Remember, no matter where you go, there you are.
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
LordDarthUmbrus Registered: Sep '04	Date Posted: 1/31/06 8:10am Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!!
	I liked that! I could hear the Star Wars action music in the background on that one! -----signature----- "Great Spirit, Maker of All Life. A warrior goes to you swift and straight as an arrow shot into the sun. Welcome him and let him take his place at the council fire of my people. Tell them to be patient and ask death for speed." - Chingachgook ~~~ SDO
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Dark_Jedi_Kenobi Title: Manager: • SFF Films & TV • Prequel Trilogy Registered: Oct '04	Date Posted: 1/31/06 12:46pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!!
	Another great chapter JW, excellent work as always! -----signature----- *Host of the PT Trivia Challenge Game 12: Question 10 Posted!* http://boards.theforce.net/prequel_trilogy/b10669/23314477/p4/?184
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
SKYWALKER_INC Registered: Aug '04	Date Posted: 1/31/06 6:13pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!!
	JW: OUTSTANDING!!! Thanks for two (2) AWESOME updates - I enjoyed them both VERY much!!! Lord Darth Deceptious -----signature----- At last we will have REVENGE... Wipe them out... ALL OF THEM!!! * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Darth Deceptious Sith Lord
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
JW-Titus Registered: May '04	Date Posted: 1/31/06 9:27pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!! - Date Edited: 1/31/06 9:28pm (1 edits total) Edited By: JW-Titus
	Thank you all very much for your kind words and comments!! The Next Update Will Be Friday, No Later Than 5:00 p.m. Central Standard Time. Stay Tuned!!! p.s. BDS--the artist that did that drawing was "Anima Mia" Cooper. Didn't she do a great job? -----signature----- Now in the 'Before The Saga' Fan Fiction Forum: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Baby_Death_Star Registered: Aug '04	Date Posted: 2/1/06 5:30am Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!!
	Thanks for the info, dear Titus! I updated the pdf with her name (link/file name remains the same) - "Ehre, wem Ehre gebührt!" ("Honors to those who deserve it"). Anima Mia Cooper's pic is really great, she should do graphic novels! Or does she already? Man, I'm getting used to it again ... mere days between updates! Like in the good ol' days! Keep up the good work, JW (and hopefully this speed! )! We will spread the word, be sure about that! -----signature----- Class of Aug 04! TFC-JTC-SDO Forever! "I know a thing or two about the force." G'Kar:"The universe is driven by the complex interaction between three ingredients:matter, energy & enlightened self-interest." Remember, no matter where you go, there you are.
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
JW-Titus Registered: May '04	Date Posted: 2/3/06 2:27pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 1-30-06!!!!! - Date Edited: 2/17/06 12:04pm (1 edits total) Edited By: JW-Titus
	Chapter Ten, Part One “He actually jumped!” one of the guards said in disbelief as the two of them raced for the window. When they reached it they immediately looked down, shinning their lights on the ground below. Both expected to find the crumpled, broken bodies of their quarry, but as they searched back and forth across the duracrete below all they saw was broken glass. They exchanged confused looks, not believing what they were seeing. Raising his comm. link to his mouth, one guard said, “Search the east side of the warehouse. Target still on the run. We’ll remain put and serve as lookout until you arrive.” “Roger that,” a soldier replied through the comm.. “Backup?” “Alerting them now,” the soldier said, shaking his head in frustration. He thumbed in the proper channel and waited for the connection to be made. The lights of the other guards running around the corner from the front of the warehouse came into view. Trying to explain how they’d lost the diminutive fugitives and the need for backup, the two guards turned and walked away from the window. Logan watched the two soldiers from behind an air circulation unit on the roof of the building next to the warehouse. He was pleased to see that his plan had worked. No even considering that someone could have made the ten meter jump from the window to the roof of the building next door, the soldiers were focusing their search on the ground below. This gave him some much needed time to figure out his next move. After the two soldiers left the window he turned to regard his two small companions laying on the roof behind him. They had fainted during the jump, so he’d just set them down while he watched the soldiers. Now, they were waking up and getting to their wobbly feet, their glowing, yellows eyes searching as they tried to figure out what had happened. “You guys okay?” Logan asked. They peered up at him for a handful of seconds, not saying anything. Then, at the same time, they both erupted into a diatribe; pointing at the window, then at him, in anger and shaking their heads as they stalked back and forth in a fury. Logan allowed them to vent, knowing that it had indeed been frightening for them. He couldn’t understand a word, but got the gist of what was being said. Yet after several moments went by and their tempers showed no signs of lessening he decided there were much more important issues at hand. “Okay, okay,” he urged, raising his hands. “I get it. You didn’t like what I did. Now can we please get moving? I doubt we have very long before…,” he trailed off as, all of a sudden, this entire section of the base sprang to life. The sounds of speeders and tanks approaching filled the night. The shouts and footfalls of many more soldiers reached their ears. Several alarms sounded nearby. “Great,” Logan breathed, seeing a pair of starfighters crest the hills off to the left and heading right towards them, searchlights affixed to the bottoms of their hulls. He looked across the roof and saw a door leading down into the building on the far side. “Come on,” he said, then ran for the door. He’d hoped the door would just open when he reached it, but it remained closed. Judging by the red light on the panel it was locked. He turned to see how close the fighters were—close enough that his lightsaber would serve as a beacon alerting them to their location should he use it. Damn, he thought, eyeing the door. He rushed at it, plowing into it with his shoulder. “Owwwwww!” he exclaimed under his breath, clasping his throbbing shoulder, rotating his arm to try to work out the stiffness. His small companions chuckled at his pain. Logan turned to gauge the progress of the fighters. They were closing in fast and would be upon them in a matter of seconds! He turned back to the door, having decided on a different method to open it. Yet before he could even try to use a Force Push, the shorter, chubby alien produced something from inside his robes and walked to the panel. The whine of the fighters’ engines could now be heard, and they were growing louder by the second. Out of time for games, Logan reached out to shove the small being out of the way when the door slid open with a hiss. Logan stood, gawking. The pudgy being turned and pretended to ram into an invisible door, then grabbed at its shoulder in an over exaggerated reenactment of Logan’s pain. Afterwards, he laughed hysterically, doubling over and pointing at Logan. His brother was quick join in the fun-making. They continued to laugh even as they ran through the doorway and down the darkened stairs within. “Cute,” Logan said dryly, then dashed inside after them just before the fighters zipped by overhead. The stairway inside was dark, but the light from his companions’ eyes was sufficient enough to light the way. As they descended the short stairway Logan reached out with the Force to see if anyone else was in the building, but, luckily, found it to be deserted. At the end of the stairs was another door, but this time it wasn't locked. They walked through the door and quickly headed down the long, unlit hallway beyond. At the end of the hall was another flight of stairs, this one going down the other two flights to the main floor. As they emerged from the door at the end of the stairway, they entered into a lobby with the front doors not twenty meters away. They all hurried toward the doors when, all of a sudden, Logan's danger senses flared up. He stopped, reaching out and placing a halting hand on the chest of the two robed beings. Not a second later they saw lights approaching, then heard the sound of a speeder. “Get behind that desk over there,” Logan said, pointing. They did as he said. He ducked behind another nearby desk just as the lights of the landspeeder pulling up to the building illuminated the lobby. From behind the desk, Logan watched as four of those armored, T-visored troops spilled out of the speeder and hurried to the front doors. The trooper in the lead punched a code into the panel next to the front doors, and when it opened they all dashed into the darkened foyer with blaster rifles raised and ready, alert and professional. Logan was impressed, not to mention worried, by their well-trained movements. His muscles tensed as the quartet neared his hiding place. He knew he would have to be at his best to catch them off guard. With the Force aiding his muscles and his speed, Logan grabbed the metal desk he was under and flung it at the four Shocktroopers. He was amazed by the speed of their response. The two on the right turned and opened fire on the airborne desk, sparks spraying all over as the lobby was suddenly filled with blinding flashes of light, while the two on the left dove clear. The desk slammed into the firing troops on the right, smashing them backwards into a wall, then pinning their unconscious bodies to the floor. The other two rolled up out of their dives and opened fire on Logan. Yet, by the time they realized they were hitting nothing but the far wall and stopped shooting to scan the room for their target, Logan came up from behind them. He grabbed both in a very specific spot on their necks. They flinched and tried to turn to face him, but were both unconscious and falling to the floor before they even could. The two robed beings rose slowly from behind the desk they had hidden under, staring at Logan in wonder, a newfound respect in their shinning, yellow eyes. They went across the room to the two soldiers pinned under the desk. Working together, they heaved the desk off of the unconscious pair. Then, just to make certain they were still out cold, they each gave a soldier a swift kick in the side, watching for any reaction. Satisfied that the troopers would not be waking up any time soon, they bent over the pair and went to work. The chubby one began rummaging through the various pouches of the utility belt wrapped around the first guard’s waist, producing several small tools and back-up blaster charges. Most things he just discarded over his shoulder as junk, but occasionally he found something of interest and stuffed it into the confines of his robes. Meanwhile, his brother first removed any weapons from the second trooper, then removed the helmet—turning it over in his hands, inspecting it. Logan watched the pair, baffled by their strange behavior. But then, as he watched the tall one inspect the helmet, an idea hit him. Shrugging off his maroon robe, he turned to the unconscious Shocktroopers behind him and began stripping the closest of the two—the one that appeared nearest his own size. It took him awhile to find out where all of the clasping connections of the different pieces were, but after he had figured it out on a couple it went a lot faster. He just hoped he could remember how it all went together later. After removing the armor he took off the man’s jumpsuit, then dressed himself in the stolen uniform. Piecing it all back together wasn’t as hard as he’d feared. He was surprised to discover how light the armor was and how form-fitted it felt. He moved his arms in circles and bent his elbows, testing the range of motion of the suit. He was amazed at how easily he could move, how the suit didn’t impede him at all. Then, he put on the only remaining part of the outfit—the helmet—and found himself immersed in a totally different world. Looking through the t-shaped visor, he saw the lobby as if it was fully lit. There were no shadows, no dark corners for anyone to hide in. He saw it all clear as day and in perfect focus. He peered out the large windows on the front of the building and, once again, saw the streets and grassy slopes beyond nearly as well as if it were midday. A small group of tan-uniformed soldiers ran by in the distance outside. Logan was amazed as the visor surrounded each soldier with flashing, yellow boxes, which quickly turned to green. He looked at the lower left corner of the inside of the visor and saw the word FRIENDLY flashing in green. In the upper left corner, the words search and threat-assessment mode were displayed. He removed the helmet, stunned as he turned it over in his hands. He ran a finger along the thin shaft of metal sticking up above the right side, figuring that the rotating box at its end must be the sensor scanner. He placed the helmet back on his head and continued scanning the area in front of the building. Shaking his head, he thought of the advantages this technology would give these soldiers. He had known that Mandalorian technology was more advanced than the Jardon Kingdom’s, but he had no idea that it was this advanced! Someone wearing this gear would be able to assess an entire battlefield with minimal energy expenditure and with maximum results. This, accompanied by their superior training, would make these soldiers super warriors! And then there was the weaponry built into the suit itself! There was the small blaster built into the top of one forearm, while the other gauntlet had a dart gun and something else with a lot of hoses. Not to mention the other gadgets and buttons on the forearm mini-computer. He was stunned by the capabilities of the suit because this was almost the same as being able to use the Force. Almost, because machines could break down or malfunction, and the Force was eternal. Also, someone with the Force could distort the mind of a person using this gear so that what they perceived, or thought that they had perceived, was something totally different. But the gear was still very impressive. And terrifying. A red flashing in the lower left of the visor appeared: WARNING!!! UNIDENTIFIED ENTITIES AT REAR! Logan watched down in the lower left corner as the search mode showed a small image of his two robed companions surrounded by red, flashing boxes. The activity was beginning to give Logan a headache. Remembering the various buttons in the mini-computer on his right forearm, he began pushing buttons. After a few buttons he was able to stop the flashing and returned the search and threat assessment mode back to normal. “Amazing,” he breathed, once more stunned by the technology. Then, deciding they had lingered far longer than they should have, he turned to his companions and said, “Alright. Let's get moving.” His voice sounded metallic and synthesized through the audio receptors. It didn’t sound like his own. It also startled the robed pair, because they jumped into the air and, upon seeing him standing there dressed in the suit of armor, the taller of the pair grabbed up one of the soldier’s blaster rifles. “No! No! No!” Logan screamed, waving frantically. But the terrified midget fired anyway, hitting him square in the chest and sending sparks flying all over. The force of the blow sent him stumbling backwards and into the wall. After having slid down to his backside and coming out of the shock of the blast, Logan realized that he wasn't dead. Wondering why, he reached up with an armored hand and felt for the gaping hole the blast bolt surely had ripped through his chest, …but found nothing. Looking down he saw there was no hole, only the armor with a small, black, scorch-mark. This is different..., Logan thought. Standing back up, he reached out with the Force and plucked the blaster from the small hands of the tall, skinny one to prevent a repeat of events. The two robed beings went ballistic—running in circles, screaming and flailing their arms in the air. Removing the helmet again, Logan said, “Hey. Hey! It’s just me!” They stopped their scrambling upon hearing his voice, peering at him in confusion. Logan moved over to the desk where he’d laid his robe and lightsaber. Setting down the helmet and picking up his lightsaber, he ignited the blade. The hum of the black-silver blade filled the lobby as Logan stood there. Then, slowly, he cut down at the helmet with the blade. A brilliant flash—followed by a spray of sparks—followed. But the helmet was unscathed. Amazed, Logan repeated the experiment a second time hoping with his whole being that the first try was just a fluke. The exact same thing happened again. Picking up the helmet, Logan examined the area that he had tried to cut with the lightsaber, searching for any signs of damage. All he found were small black scorch-lines. “How in the…?” he breathed, his mouth agape. “This is not good,” he said as he studied this seemingly indestructible Mandalorian metal. Hearing his companions approaching as they chattered away at each other, Logan turned and said, “Come on. We've got to find a way off of this rock.” He handed the trigger-happy, taller one back the blaster he had taken from him and put the helmet back on. [If I were him, I'd never let you touch another blaster for as long as I lived!] Logan heard a metallic, synthesized voice say into his ear. [Shut it! How was I supposed to know that it was him in that suit? It was an accident! We both know that you've had your share of them, too. Remember the time when we were trying to get away from those crazy Toydarian Pirates and stupid you lit your old robe on fire with that torch!] [Only because you were the idiot that broke our glowrod! You know that I never handled fire well!] Logan couldn't believe his ears. He was actually able to understand what they were saying to each other! Noticing a flashing icon in the lower left part of the visor, he read the yellow words translation mode on: sub dialect—unknown variation. The suit also had a built in translator! Unknown variation? Logan thought. The language that these two used must be unidentified by the translation unit, but it was still similar enough to another language for it to make some sense out of it. This was going to make things a lot easier for all of them. Hopefully, it was able to translate everything that he said back to them in their own language. Only one way to find out... "Who are you guys?" Logan asked. He heard the words reverberate through the inside of his helmet and in his mind in Basic, but through the audio receptors he heard the words in the language of his troublesome companions. Four yellow, glowing eyes stared up at him in utter shock. Nothing was said for a few seconds and none of them moved. Logan couldn't help but smile behind the black visor at the reaction of two robed midgets. For once they were speechless. After a few more seconds of silence, the shorter, pudgy one took a half step forward. In the helmet, Logan heard the electronic voice say, [What did you say?] “I asked who you guys were.” The small pair nearly jumped in surprise as, once again, they heard their own language coming from the voice amplifier of the helmet. “What are your names? Mine’s Logan. And what species are you? I've never seen your kind before.” After another brief pause the chubby one raised his hand to his chest and said, [My name is Tadoo.] Then gesturing to his right, he said, [This is my brother, Ping. We're Jawas.] [Older brother Ping,] the other chimmed in quite matter-of-factly as he held the large blaster across his chest. [Only by a few minutes!] said Tadoo, spinning on Ping. [Hey, older is older,] Ping said. Then, looking up at Logan, [That means I decide what is best for us, and I say that we should stick with you. You seem to know how to take care of yourself, and we need to get out of here before they kill us!] [Hey! It was my idea to stay with him—not yours! You’re the one who shot him, remember?] Tadoo said, anger growing in his voice. [And I told you that it was an accident!] Ping retorted, rage brewing in his tone. Then, lowering the blaster to point at Tadoo, he added, [Keep it up, and I'll shoot you too. Only this time it will be on purpose!] [You couldn't hit the broad side of a Dewback!] Tadoo said, stepping forward challengingly. [Oh yeah?] Ping said, dropping the blaster and hitting his brother across the face. Logan watched them wrestle around on the floor for a while until he decided that he'd had enough. Reaching out with the Force, he grabbed them by the back of their robes in an invisible grip. He pulled them apart from one another and lifted them a few feet off of the ground. Although the two were suspended in mid-air, they continued to struggle against the Force Hold Logan had on them, attempting to kick or claw or punch at one another. Their struggling only resulted in their twisting around in circles as if they were lying on a slow-spinning top. After a few more seconds of spinning, Ping realized it was useless and stopped struggling, while Tadoo continued to try and get at his brother like a wild animal to food. “Tadoo!” Logan yelled, finally bringing the small being to a halt. Seeing that they were in trouble, the small pair sulked as they looked up at Logan. He wanted to give them a really good tongue lashing and tell them that if they did this once more he would leave without them, but they looked so miserable that he couldn’t bring himself to do it. So he just lowered them back to the ground. “Wait in here!” he finally said. “I’ll signal when it’s clear for you to join me. Okay?” They nodded. Logan crept out of the front of the building, trying to be cautious yet attempting to look like he knew where he was going and what he was doing just in case anyone happened to be watching. He turned the scan and threat assessment program back on so that he wouldn’t have to expend any energy in locating threats. By doing this, he could focus all of his energy on concealing himself through the Force so that he went unseen. He walked around to the driver’s side of the hoverspeeder, peered around to see if anyone was nearby, then signaled for the other two to join him. As the two rushed from the doors for the speeder, he jumped in and started it up. Its high pitched whine intensified as Logan fed power to the throttle, turned around and sped off on a road heading away from the base and towards his ship. The exciting conclusion to this chapter TOMORROW NIGHT!!! Stay Tuned!!! -----signature----- Now in the 'Before The Saga' Fan Fiction Forum: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
sdhfs Registered: May '04	Date Posted: 2/3/06 6:22pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 2-03-06!!!!!
	great post. -----signature----- http://boards.theforce.net/The_Saga/b10476/16229314/?30 Up is obidala at it's best love chooses you you don 't choose it. Death is but death why are you afraid of it ?
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
FalconFan Registered: Jul '04	Date Posted: 2/4/06 11:30am Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 2-03-06!!!!!
	Things just get more and more tense here! A sobering discovery for Logan, that the Mandalorian armor resists not only blaster fire but lightsabers, as well... I'd be worried, too. I love the descriptions of how the sensors work inside the helmet, too--like a "heads-up" display. Very cool! Can't wait to read more! FF -----signature----- "Hear me, Baby? Hold together..." Han Solo, ANH "And then we just float away--" Han Solo, ESB "--with the rest of the garbage." Leia Organa, ESB
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
JW-Titus Registered: May '04	Date Posted: 2/4/06 3:29pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 2-03-06!!!!! - Date Edited: 2/5/06 1:01pm (1 edits total) Edited By: JW-Titus
	Thanks everyone for your comments!! I'm going to delay tonight's post until MONDAY so I can make it a little longer. Thanks! Stay Tuned!!! -----signature----- Now in the 'Before The Saga' Fan Fiction Forum: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
MASTER-OF-EVIL Registered: Nov '04	Date Posted: 2/6/06 4:52pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 2-03-06!!!!!
	Can't wait Jw-Titus its just as thrilling as your Ep3 novel. MASTER-OF-EVIL -----signature----- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pCaOcv6OOQ Best New Star Wars RPG Winner Summer 2007 - War of the Sith Part IV: The Invasion of the Cha'ala
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
ArgenPalos Registered: Apr '04	Date Posted: 2/6/06 4:54pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 2-03-06!!!!!
	excellent again on your last post JW - keep it up! can't wait for tonight's post.... -----signature----- Proud member of the Jedi Technician Crew (JTC) ***Palmam qui meruit ferat**** USC Trojans - 2008 Rose Bowl Champs and CFB Team of the Decade
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
JW-Titus Registered: May '04	Date Posted: 2/6/06 8:16pm Subject: RE: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'--NEW Chapter Update 2-03-06!!!!!
	Chapter Ten, Part Two “Duck down! Here—cover up with my robe,” Logan said. Nervous, the Jawas obliged without hesitation. The base was a bustle of troops and buzzing starfighters scouring the area for the fugitives, but between the speeder and the armor Logan was wearing they were paid little mind as they turned up a road leading away from the base and into the surrounding hills. They had gone a ways away from the base and it looked as if they would get to the ship without a hitch when, up ahead, Logan spotted a roadblock. Blocking the road were two heavily-armored speeders with large, rear-mounted blaster cannons. One of those deadly-looking tanks sat in the grass off to the right of the road, its long barrel pointed directly at their speeder--communicating its message loud and clear. Standing in front of the speeders were four of the armor-clad guards, one of whom was waving for them to stop. “We’ve got company. Stay under the robe,” Logan said to the Jawas. The frightened pair nodded their agreement, then ducked under the cover of the maroon robe at the foot of the passenger’s seat. As he slowed the speeder to a stop a few meters from the intimidating guards, Logan wedged his lightsaber next to the seat for quick and easy access. The guard who had waved him down headed directly to the driver’s side of the speeder. The other three circled the vehicle slowly, all business with blasters at the ready. “Where are you going all alone, Shocktrooper? What’s your business in this sector?” the guard demanded, his blaster poised for any sudden movement. Here goes nothing, Logan thought as he drew upon as much of the Force as he could, then projected its influencing energy into the four guards’ minds. “You will let this vehicle pass,” he said, waving his left hand out at the guard. Nothing happened. All four of the guards stopped and stared—their blank, visor-helmeted faces revealing nothing. These guards were not weak-minded. They were difficult to manipulate, and Logan had to strain to keep contact with their minds. He could feel his influence waning, so he dug deeper into the Force, drawing more of it into himself and projecting it into the guards. The guard who had spoken to Logan began to lower his blaster. “Move your vehicles out of the way,” Logan said with another wave of the hand. Two of the rear guards moved over to the speeders, walking as if in a trance. They started up the speeders and moved them out of the middle of the road clearing the way for him to pass. Logan breathed an internal sigh of relief. He began raising his hand to the throttle when a beeping erupted from the passenger’s side. The Jawas gave a yelp of alarm, then sprang up from underneath the robe, blowing their cover. Tadoo, bobbling a saucer-shaped object with flashing yellow lights on it as if it were on fire, jumped up onto the passenger seat and flung the saucer as far from their speeder as his little arms would allow. Logan watched the saucer tumble through the air, then skid across the grass and underneath the hovertank. His grasp on the minds of the four armored guards evaporated instantly. Not wasting any more time with mind control tricks, Logan thrust his left arm out at the guard next to his door—sending the armor-clad figure flying backwards though the air. He slammed the throttle forward and the speeder lurched ahead. As it did, the guard standing behind their speeder opened fire. Bolt after bolt whizzed past Logan’s head, some burning fist sized holes in the windshield. He looked back as they sped off to see the guard getting into one of the speeders, both of which were now moving back onto the road and giving chase. Even more worrisome, he noted that the barrel of that tank was spinning around to face toward them. One shot from that thing could end it all for them. “What were you thinking?!” Logan demanded of Tadoo. But before the Jawa could defend himself, an explosion split the night behind them. Logan spun to look, thinking the tank had fired at them, but instead saw the tank engulfed by flames. His brow furrowed in confusion, but then he remembered the disc Tadoo had flung under the tank. He didn’t know how the Jawas had figured out that it was an explosive device, but he was sure glad they’d gotten rid of it. Both Jawas sprang up on the passenger’s seat, watching the tank burn and erupt in secondary explosions, cheering all along. The pursuing speeders opened fire as they closed the gap in their faster vehicles. Logan knew their pursuers were probably radioing in their location to the rest of the base at that very moment, so he searched the speeder’s console for the frequency jamming controls. He found the switch and activated it. When he did harsh static filled his helmet, nearly blasting his ears out. He flung the helmet off of his head to save his hearing, then looked at the buttons of the small mini-computer affixed to his right forearm. One button was flashing red. He pushed it, then replaced the helmet to find the feedback gone. Just as he did a searing hot blaster bolt shot past his head, blasting the windshield completely off. Logan ducked as debris from the windshield shot everywhere, swerving as well to avoid another barrage from the heavy blaster cannons. He veered off of the road, driving through the grass and for the hills in a more direct route to his ship. The uneven ground caused the repulsor engines quite a bit of trouble, and the speeder jostled up and down, slowing considerably. The heavy speeders, better equipped for such terrain, were hardly slowed at all and closed in even more, their shots growing more and more precise. “Do you have any more of those things?” Logan asked the Jawas, hunched low in his seat to avoid having his head shot off. Sitting in the passenger’s seat, the Jawas nodded vigorously that they did, reaching into their dirty, brown robes and placing several in their laps. One at a time, they activated the explosives, then tossed them over their shoulders and out of the speeder. As if they had strayed into a mine field, explosion after brilliant explosion erupted all around the heavy speeders, causing them to halt their fire and careen wildly to avoid being struck. But none hit their mark, Logan noted in disappointment. He grabbed one of the saucer detonators out of Tadoo’s lap. Depressing the activation switch, he closed his eyes to slits and stretched out with the Force. He carried the detonator through the air—directing it straight at the nearest of the two pursuing craft. Once it reached the speeder, he held it in place with the Force on the hood. BOOM! Peering over his shoulder he saw an armored figure silhouetted within the expanding fireball being launched into the air. The Jawas, now standing up in their seat, whooped and hollered as they watched the remains of the speeder tumble through the air then come crashing back to the ground. [Did you see that?] Ping said. [That one was mine!] [No way!] yelled Tadoo. [I threw that one!] [Yeah, right, and Banthas don’t have fleas!] “We still have another speeder to worry about!” Logan reminded them as he saw the other speeder rush through the smoke and smoldering remains after them. Deadly lances of light spat out from the rear-mounted blaster cannon, pummeling the back of their speeder, melting whatever metal or circuitry it came in contact with. “Give me another detonator!” Logan said. [All gone!] Tadoo replied, holding forth his empty hands. Another blast struck the speeder’s backside—this one causing a small, secondary explosion inside the speeder. The craft suddenly lurched down on the left, accompanied by an increase in pitch and loudness from the engine on the right side. They had just lost the rear-left repulsors; and if they didn’t do something fast, they would also lose the one on the right, along with their lives. “Ping, can you drive?” Logan asked, reaching down to his right for his lightsaber. [Yeah…,] the Jawa said, looking up at him in confusion. “Do it then,” he ordered, then stood up on the driver’s seat and jumped onto the back of the speeder. Ping jumped into the driver’s seat and took the controls. [Tadoo—take the pedals!] he ordered. Noting their rapid deceleration, Tadoo complied without argument. Letting the Force flow through him, Logan jumped high into the air. Double-flipping, he landed on the hood of the pursuing speeder. He could sense the surprise of the driver and gunner at him having done so. That surprise was doubled when he ignited his lightsaber. He used that momentary instant of shock to his advantage. Leaping over the windshield he landed on the gunnery platform on the back of the speeder. With one quick, downward slice he cut the mounted blaster cannon’s barrel in two with an explosion of sparks. The armored trooper standing on the gunner platform raised an arm to use one of his forearm weapons, but Logan gave him a quick kick in the gut and sent him flying off of the back of the speeder. Turning with lightsaber held ready, he saw the driver had turned around in his seat and had a pistol aimed up at him. Logan deflected two bolts, then chopped down into a gap in the suit of armor, slicing the warrior’s extended arm off at the bicep. He jumped into the passenger’s seat while the man grasped his new stump in howls of pain. Using a Force Push, Logan launched the armored trooper out of the driver’s side door and skidding across the grassy plain. Deactivating his lightsaber as he lowered himself into the driver’s seat, he took control of the heavily-armored speeder and increased the throttle. It didn’t take long for him to catch up with the other, limping speeder. Taking off his helmet to reassure the Jawas of his identity, he told them to stop. After they transferred over to the heavy speeder they continued through the grass and the hills towards Logan’s waiting ship. The speeder crested a hill and the Silver Shadow came into view in the small valley below. Logan made all speed for it, anxious to get out of there before they ran into any more problems. Pulling up next to the ship, Logan shut the engines down and jumped out. His robe slung over one arm, he dashed to the ship, the Jawas right behind him. Pushing in a long code in the keypad, he opened the hatch with a hiss of venting gases. As the ramp came down Tadoo began jumping up and down, pointing at the hills and shouting. Logan turned to see yet another speeder bearing down on them. The speeder opened fire, and blast bolts began slamming into the side of the ship all around them. Logan ignited his blade in a flurry, jumping in front of Ping and Tadoo to protect them as he deflected the bolts back into the hillside. “Get inside the ship!” he called over his shoulder. The Jawas were more than eager to comply. They darted up the hatch. Logan continued deflecting laser fire as the speeder barreled down on him. It was less than twenty meters away now. All of a sudden, two trails of flame shot up from within the speeder’s cockpit. Thinking them missiles, he chanced a quick look up and was stunned by what he saw—two Shocktroopers wearing jetpacks. The Shocktroopers hovered in midair, fanning out to Logan’s left and right while the speeder came to an abrupt halt just a few meters away. The Shocktroopers opened fire with their blaster rifles. Logan dove to the side to avoid the shots, them came up out of the roll and swung his humming blade from side to side, slapping a handful more into the dirt. Meanwhile, a woman in black—the Marauder from that dark temple—rushed out of the speeder and sprinted towards him with a long spear in hand. Five meters away she jumped high into the air, coming down with every intention of skewering Logan head-to-toe with her long spear. He did a backwards flip at the last second to avoid both woman and spear. His eyes widened in surprise as soon as he landed, for the dark woman was already upon him once more and stabbing for his chest. Logan gave a quick swing of his lightsaber to cut the shinning, half-meter long tip from the shaft of the spear, but no such thing happened. Sparks sprayed off of the spear, but the tip remained intact! His eyes once again wide with shock, Logan spun out to his right to avoid another stab. The spear’s made from the same metal as the Shocktrooper armor! He realized. The woman smirked, amused by his surprise, then attacked again and again. With a fluid grace she continued coming at him with that spear—twisting and bending her body, stabbing with such speed it was nearly a blur. Were it not for the aid of the Force, Logan was certain he would have been killed by now. But he held fast, parrying her moves as he spun and twisted himself, sparks erupting between their blades. At the edge of his focus Logan noted that the two Shocktroopers had landed and were circling them a safe distance away, blasters held ready for an opening. Every few seconds they took a shot. Logan had to move quickly to deflect the blast bolts, then bring his blade back around to defend against another furious onslaught from the Marauder. He spun out wide as he blocked another series of stabs from that spear, then twisted his wrist just right to deflect a blast bolt off of his lightsaber and right at the Marauder’s face. Her eyes widened as the bolt came at her, but she spun her spear as if it were a staff at the last second, deflecting the blast away. Circling in more cautiously, she eyed him with renewed anger. She gave quick glances at the nearby, circling Shocktroopers, then gave a quick hand-signal. The armored warriors began tightening their circle, blasters raised. Closing his eyes to slits, Logan drew upon the Force for extra strength and clearer concentration. As he did, he felt the dark anger and rage emanating from the woman. Just as with that dark priestess, it pummeled his senses and threatened to disrupt his concentration. It wrapped around him in long, sharp fingers and his head began to buzz. As he tracked the movements of both Shocktroopers and woman he attempted to drive the buzzing out of his head, but with little success. It held fast. “You are weak, Jedi!” the woman said, a blaze of satisfaction in her eyes. She came at him in a flash. His lip curling in frustration, Logan dodged to the side at the very last instant, then came across and hit her as hard as he could in the ribs. There was a loud cracking of bones, and the Marauder stumbled backwards in shock. Logan then thrust out his left hand, hitting her with a powerful Force Push square in the chest. Caught off guard by his sudden burst of power, the Marauder flew backwards through the air, flipping head over heels. But, with the skill of an acrobat, she brought her tumble under control and landed softly in a crouching position several meters away, grasping her ribs in pain with one hand. A stream of red-orange flame suddenly lanced out from the forearm of the Shocktrooper on his right. Logan dove and rolled forward to escape the deadly flames, and then barely had time to raise his lightsaber to his face to deflect a blast bolt from the other Shocktrooper. Knowing now what the device on the left forearm of his armor suit with all the hoses was, Logan let loose a blast of flame of his own. The nearest Shocktrooper was caught completely unawares. The flames caught the man’s jumpsuit on fire—sending him scrambling in circles, then rolling on the ground. Behind him, Logan heard the engines of his ship coming to life. What the…? He thought, spinning to look up at the cockpit. How’d they get it started? I’m the only one that knows the code sequence! His surprise was doubled as the engines increased in pitch and his ship began rising a few feet off of the ground. “Hey! That’s my ship!” he called after them, enraged that the Jawas, after all he’d done for them, would even consider leaving him behind. His anger giving him added power, he picked up the flaming Shocktrooper’s blaster from the ground with the Force and flung it at the other. It zipped through the air with tremendous speed, hitting the Shocktrooper square in the throat, sending him to his knees gasping for air. With an opening now Logan ran for the rising ship. Tadoo was standing at the top of the ramp, waving for him to hurry with one hand while holding a blaster much too big for him in the other. Just before he could jump up to the ramp, Logan’s danger senses flashed a warning. He spun to see the Marauder, still crouched in pain several meters away, throw a dagger. He swung his lightsaber to bat the missile away, sending it spinning through the air, then clanging into the ground. Something over the tops of the hills beyond the woman caught Logan’s eye, and he looked up to see several crescent-shaped starfighters approaching. He turned and jumped up onto the ramp, deactivating his lightsaber and walking up into the ship as it steadily rose into the night sky. Tadoo let out a yell and raised his blaster to fire. Worried that Tadoo was going to blast him, Logan raised his lightsaber to activate it. But then he realized Tadoo wasn’t aiming at him—he was aiming at something just behind him. Logan ducked and spun just as Tadoo fired, finding the marauder standing at the edge of the ship’s ramp. She blocked the blast bolts with an incredibly fast spin of her spear, the metal staff a blur of motion. Logan thumbed on his lightsaber and came at the woman. He knew he needed to end this quickly. Those fighters were coming in fast and they’d be sitting ducks against their blaster cannons. Tadoo was forced to stop firing lest he hit Logan in the back, but he remained where he was, watching the fight. The marauder reacted quickly to Logan’s advance, blocking his first swipe, then bringing the end of the spear around like a staff to catch him off guard. Logan blocked the attack easily, but was nearly sliced across the cheek by the long tip of the spear as the Marauder, displaying incredible handling of the weapon, spun it around her back, then thrust it forward at his face. Logan bent his upper body backwards to avoid the stab, batting across his body with his lightsaber to knock the spear out wide. Straightening, he ducked under yet another swipe, then came up out of it with a powerful backhanded swipe that sent the Marauder stumbling back half a step. “Tadoo—get to the cockpit! Help Ping get us out of here before those fighters tear us apart!” Logan shouted. The Jawa nodded, then ran off to help his brother. Having a slight opening, Logan raised his left hand to hit the Marauder with a Force Push and knock her off the ramp, but, knowing what he was about to do, she pulled yet another dagger from her belt and flung it at him. Forced to bat the dagger away, he lost his opening as the woman came back in at him. He ducked under another straight thrust of the spear, then spun around to sweep the Marauder’s feet out from under her. But the Marauder was too quick. She jumped over his sweeping foot, hitting Logan in the middle of the back with the butt of the spear and knocking him onto his face, sending his lightsaber skidding across the floor to deactivate several meters away within the passenger’s area of the ship. The Marauder landed, sneering with contempt while twirling her spear to bring the blade to bear, then raised it over her head in both hands. She was just about to stab down through Logan’s back when the ship was suddenly and violently shaken. The impact of the laser bolts fired from the fighters rocked the ship, sending the Marauder careening from side to side, and Logan bouncing on his stomach towards the woman and the edge of the ramp. As if this wasn’t bad enough, both of their balance was thrown off even more as the ship banked hard to the right in order to steer away from the attacking fighters. The Marauder was forced to drop her spear and grab the hydraulic piston of the ramp to keep from falling out of the ship. The weapon clanged along the ramp as it slid towards the edge, then became wedge between the hydraulic strut on the other side of the ramp and the retracting arm. Eyes wide in terror, Logan slid right past the lodged spear and all the way to the edge of the ramp. He grabbed onto the lip at the last second, hanging on for dear life as the rushing wind buffeted him, causing him to lose his grip with his right hand. The Marauder watched as her spear became more and more dislodged from between the retracting arm and piston, sliding closer to the edge with each bank of the ship, every blast bolt that struck the shields. She chanced reaching out with one hand to try to grab it, while holding onto the hydraulic piston with the other. She could almost reach it. Her fingers were mere centimeters away, then her fingertips brushed it ever-so-slightly. Just a few centimeters more and she would have it…. Logan pulled himself up and half-way over the edge of the ramp when he saw the Marauder reaching for the spear. He couldn’t allow her to get it back. He stretched out his right hand, using the Force to call the spear towards him. At first it only twitched. The Marauder’s fingers had reached it now, and she nearly had it! He reached out with the mystical energy field again, and this time the shaft twitched a little more, nearly free. Before he could dislodge it completely and call it to him another blast bolt rocked the ship hard, jarring the spear free, but also sending Logan sliding back over that edge to dangle by one arm. The Marauder screamed in rage as she watched the spear tumble over the edge. Her eyes ablaze, she redirected her fury elsewhere. Letting go of the hydraulic piston, she let herself slide on her knees towards the edge—towards Logan’s straining hand there. Holding onto the retractor arm at the edge of the ramp with one hand so she wouldn’t slide off, she peered down at Logan as he dangled below by a single arm. With her free hand, the Marauder once again drew a small dagger from her utility belt. “Weak!” she scoffed, staring at Logan. Holding onto the ledge with only one hand, his shoulder burning as his muscles threatened to tear free from his bones, Logan locked his own with those burning eyes. They didn’t move from hers even as she raised that blade high above her head, the moonlight reflecting off of it in a brilliant shimmer—even as she began driving that blade down towards his hand, towards his certain doom. The Marauder’s gasp was both one of surprise, and one beyond her physical control, as, in the blink of an eye, Logan raised his free, right arm from below the edge of the ramp and stabbed her straight through the chest with her own spear. The dagger slipped harmlessly from her hand and was lost to the wind as, slowly, she reached down with a weak hand to finger the shaft sticking out of her chest. Her eyes followed, peering down in disbelief at what lie there, then further down at Logan. Her strength and life fading fast, she lost hold of the retractor arm and slid off the edge of the ramp into the dark night below. Straining against the wind and the terrible pain in his shoulder, Logan heaved himself up over the edge and onto the ramp. He crawled up the ramp and into the ship, slapping the button on the wall to seal the hatch behind him, then falling to the floor. He laid there on his back for several seconds, regaining his breath and his strength. Finally, when yet another barrage of laser fire battered and shook the ship—this one feeling much more serious than any that had come before it—he got up and stumbled to the cockpit to take the controls from the Jawas. For he knew that, even in his current state, he could fly better than those two were right now. * * * The Silver Shadow cut through space as it sped away from the dark side of the planet. The crescent-shaped fighters, still hot on its tail, blasted away as the ship spun and twisted to avoid the deadly lances. Three much larger battlecruisers closed in quickly at top speed from the other side of the planet, trying to cut off the escaping ship. “I want full batteries from all three battlecruisers!” the hooded figure screamed from the lead battlecruiser’s wide dais. “Blast them into space dust! They cannot be allowed to escape!” “But, My Lord—we’ll hit our own fighters,” a young man said from a console nearby. Darth Siv froze, then turned slowly to face the technician. The young man flinched once those sickly, yellow eyes, filled with barely-controlled anger, fell upon him. “If that ship isn’t destroyed, you’ll wish you were already dead once I start with you!” Darth Siv seethed, his pasty lips curling over his yellow teeth, pointing at the trembling technician. “Yes, My Lord,” the young man said, then turned back to his station. Darth Siv turned back to looking out of the large viewports at the chase outside, hands clenched in rage. His ashen face was contorted into a look of near madness, his eyes fixed on the escaping ship as if his stare alone could draw it in. He watched with satisfaction as the three battlecruisers opened fire with full forward batteries. The space between the escaping ship and the cruisers was filled with brilliant streaks of deadly green light. The Mandalorian starfighters chasing the escaping ship tried desperately to get out of the path of the barrage, but were struck numerous times, eventually exploding into rolling fireballs. “How long until the craft is out of the planet’s gravity well and can achieve hyperspace?” Darth Siv asked. The question was directed at no one in particular, but he knew that it would be answered nonetheless. “Less than a minute, Lord Siv,” someone answered from nearby. Siv watched as, all of a sudden, the Silver Shadow stopped all evasive maneuvers as full power was put into its thrusters, gunning for open space. “Why aren't our lasers doing more damage?” he demanded. No one dared to give a response to such a question from such a person, for they all knew that no explanation would suffice. “Target the shield generators! And hurry!” Streak after green streak from the pursuing battlecruisers pummeled the Silver Shadow, jostling it from side to side. But its shields held fast. “How long ‘till it can achieve light speed?” Siv said, an edge of panic in his tone. “Thirty seconds, My Lord!!" one of the crew screamed, terror in his voice. “Destroy them! NOW!!!" Siv boomed, his voice crashing like a thunderclap across the bridge, reverberating off the walls. Seething with the dark side, his blood began to boil. He stomped across the bridge, stopping directly behind one of the crewman in charge of directing the turbo laser assault. Destroy that ship now, or you die…,” he bit out through his yellow teeth. "Y...y-y-y...yes My Lord," answered the young man, trembling as he moved dials, voice shaking as he gave orders. Darth Siv opened his robe and removed his lightsaber from its place on his belt. He held it in his hand, waiting. “Fifteen seconds, My Lord!” came a shout from across the bridge. In one swift, violent motion, Darth Siv activated his lightsaber and lopped off the head of the young man. The head rolled across the floor, then stopped with a dull thud! as it stopped against a console. “Launch an MTD! Launch all our MTD’s! We cannot lose that ship!" he screamed. “MTD’s launched, sir,” a shaky voice said. Darth Siv watched the blue-white flames of the torpedoes speeding toward the escaping ship, mouthing curses under his breath. He walked over behind the young man at the tracking consol and waited with his lightsaber held ready. The cluster of torpedoes gained on the Silver Shadow as it continued to speed away from the battlecruisers and the planet's gravity well. All eyes were locked on the rockets, the bridge’s crew watching with wordless prayers. Only meters away from the freighter now, the closest of the torpedoes exploded, releasing several smaller projectiles that glittered as they raced towards the ship. Less than a second later the freighter vanished into hyperspace. The rest of the MTDs exploded in its wake. The entire bridge was still. The only sounds were the soft beeping of consoles and the hum of Darth Siv's lightsaber. Barely containing his anger, Darth Siv bit out, “Did the MTD successfully attach to the hull of the ship?” The man seated at the console pushed buttons as fast as his hands could move. Then, with a great sigh of relief, he said, “Yes, My Lord. And we have a strong lock on the signal.” Darth Siv deactivated his lightsaber. “Be sure we don't lose it,” he bit out. Turning, he walked to the aft elevator. “Contact Darth Shi’Dow. Tell him I wish to speak to speak with him. I will take the transmission in my chambers. Captain Levardy—you have the com." “Yes, Darth Siv,” Captain Levardy said, springing from his chair and clicking his heels as he bowed to the Dark Lord. Darth Siv fixed the middle-aged captain with a sharp look as the doors to the elevator closed. -----signature----- Now in the 'Before The Saga' Fan Fiction Forum: 'The Sith Wars: Book One: Invasion of the Mandalores'
	Post Reply \| Quote Reply \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History

« 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 - Previous | Next | Reload

Jedi Council Forums » Fan Fiction » Before the Saga »