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Topic:
Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT 5/7/08
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Danni_Quee_Solo
Registered:
Oct '03
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Date Posted:
10/1/06 5:44pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 27 Up 9/27
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We'll just see how the Zekk/Danni angle plays out in the future.
 THE FUTURE!?!? They have a future?!?!?!? 
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Ah, Ah, Ah, Ah, Staying alive, Staying alive  Proud Shipper of J/D K/D 
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rebel_cheese
Registered:
Jul '06
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Date Posted:
10/4/06 5:39pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 27 Up 9/27
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Danni_Quee_Solo posted:
We'll just see how the Zekk/Danni angle plays out in the future.
THE FUTURE!?!? They have a future?!?!?!?
 I said, we'll see how it plays out. Just be patient, please.
Post shortly! It's a bit of a strange one . . .
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Padawan of princess_of_naboo E-married to the amazing padawanlost  Member of Charon_Force Beginning's End: http://boards.theforce.net/Message.aspx?topic=28450077&brd=10477&replies=1
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rebel_cheese
Registered:
Jul '06
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Date Posted:
10/4/06 5:46pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 27 Up 9/27
- Date Edited:
10/4/06 5:56pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
rebel_cheese
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CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Hope is a dangerous thing to lose. When all hope is lost, survival becomes a trivial thing; there is nothing halting the soul from sacrificing itself or murdering itself. Because there is no point to its existence, or because it is going to perish anyway.
And in this battle, hope means virtually nothing. The invaders don't need hopes and prayers, they already know they will be victorious. The defenders need only look at the impressive array of ships and firepower arrayed against them to realize that they stood little chance of even conceiving repulsion of the enemy force. In all likelihood, every defender was fighting his or last battle right here, and their final moments will be in metallic coffins or massive funeral pyres.
The invaders thrust further. Their coralskippers, like burrowing insects, fly through the defending blockade, bringing with them landing ships-and a dovin basal. This kind of living black hole has ended the life of dozens of planets across the galaxy. Bakura was just another planet to be added to that total, its special designation was because it was essentially the last planet remaining. The last bastion of resistence to the new heirarchy of the galaxy.
Once this bastion falls, any other resisting worlds will crumble quickly. The attackers know this, and eagerly thrust at any opening the defenders give them, however miniscule. They lust for the power to kill more of the infidels – to send some more condemned souls in front of their gods. In the eyes of the attackers, there is no greater, nor more important work. They have been conditioned by their society to believe nothing else.
The defenders fight on as they always gallantly have. They have been presented with little other choice. It is either die in fire or being thrown into the infamous sacrifical pits. Most have chosen the death in fire. And so the brave soldiers charge like bulls towards the Yuuzhan Vong, engaging them point blank. Fleets go up against entire groups at once, battering the invaders' front lines, but at the cost of annhiliation.
Soon, wreckage clogs the attack routes of the invaders. But this does not slow them down. They simply send ships inside the mess of burnt metal and molten coral to blast the debris away. Many warriors die clearing the mess away, but they make worthy sacrifices-they clear the way for their brothers and sisters, so they can finish the infidels off. The invaders have come too far to risk any discord at all. They move as one massive pincer, and now they have surrounded their enemy.
And now is when they begin their inevitable victory.
Johnarath Ducaris knew he was in trouble the moment he saw the massive Yuuzhan Vong fleet approach the outer front lines of his fleet group. Even as he planned manuevers, pilots, dockworkers, captains, officers, civilians, were all dying in front of him. Distant flames erupted in the distance as ruptures appeared all over his frontal ships. Starfighters vanished into miniature yellow-red mushroom explosions, eerily, disturbingly, beautiful to those who dared not realize what those explosions meant.
The Holonet would be having a field day with this defeat, Ducaris knew. No, that was considering that there had once been a Holonet. Everything pre-war had vanished now. There was nothing left of the old galaxy, and the barest remnant was on the precipice, about to tip over and finally join its brethren at the bottom of the void.
Ducaris looked at the holodisplay in front of him, and saw that the ship identified as the Sunslayer, along with a substantial group, was not moving. Good. The last thing he needed right now was that group moving in and slaughtering all of them.
But the enemy was breaking through. He was reminded of that a moment later, as coralskippers suddenly rushed across his bridge, frantically pursued by X-wings. The shapes of the starfighters vanished a moment later, except for a spiraling yellow trail slowly turning red, then grey, then black at the tips behind a bulbous explosion. He had no time to wonder whether the explosion was friendly or enemy, all he knew was that the battle plan was collapsing, and fast.
But what could he do? If he had chosen to move the civilians earlier, they would have wound up on the front lines! In the firing lanes! Chased into the mines! But Ducaris' precaution hadn't mattered. The civilians had already panicked as scattered coralskippers swarmed around the allied fleet – they were already trying to flee, only to rush headlong into certain death. If there had been time to cry over this waste Ducaris certainly would have. But he couldn't. He had a job to do. He had to win this battle, or at least buy enough time for as many people to escape as possible.
He sighed as he stared at the holodisplay. What he was going to do was suicidial for thousands of crewmen, but it was the only way to buy time. Besides, one of them might get a lucky shot and knock the charging group in the middle, believed to be Yun-Yammka. He switched on his com, hoping his orders were being heard by living commanding officers. "Fleets Two and Six link together and charge out ahead and assault the Yun-Yammka Battle Group. Give them what they're doing to us. Fleet Seven, fall back and regroup with my fleet. Fleet One, hold your ground and base around the Requiem. Let them come to you and blow 'em up. Everyone else manuever as they see fit."
The Requiem was rumored to be as powerful as the mighty Sunslayer, if not more. This battle was more than a test for her, but according to his subordinates, the Requiem had already knocked six enemy ships out of the battle in the first fifteen minutes. That did approach a Sunslayer-like total. The bristling weaponry was as good as it was said to be. For once.
It was unfortunate the other ships being constructed were incomplete, worthless. At least they had found a place to hide them until they were needed. If they had an opportunity to be needed. Even the best ship needed a crew. And from the looks of this battle, the possibility of there even being a scratch crew for the Requiem-class ship besides the Requiem itself was painfully low.
Fleets Two and Six, a Hapan fleet and a Mon Calamarian group, rushed forwards, the beautiful Battle Dragons and cruisers launching and tearing into the Yun-Yammka Battle Group in front of Ducaris. Civilian ships were already cascading throughout his vision, as panicked captains and ordinary people desperately looked for a way out, if one was possible. An X-wing spun out of control in the distance and slammed into a freighter, overwhelming its shields and blowing the ship in two smoking, gnarled black pieces.
Sorry. Ducaris thought, closing his eyes for the moment. He hoped those who had died would find better lives, wherever they were. Everyone here deserved one after this living hell.
"Sir! Fleet Three is crumbling! They can't hold the rear, they're falling back towards Fleet One!" shouted a young ensign crouched over his readings at a station to Ducaris' left.
"Tell them to perform a fighting retreat! Make them pay for each kilometer they get in blood." Ducaris ordered. He was finding it difficult to keep his temper restrained, with all of this stress and an sudden, overwhelming urge to scream. How long, he wondered. How long until everyone here would die?
Would it even matter if the Yuuzhan Vong lost even more than three-quarters of their fleet taking Bakura? Was this battle just a formality? Was this just a way to achieve an honorable end as soldiers for the allied side?
Ducaris was beginning to think so. But before he could ponder this further, he saw blue ships from Fleets Two and Six vanish from his display as they immolated themselves. An equal amount of red was vanishing as well, but there was a lot more red than blue.
Somehow, somewhere, Ducaris would need to eliminate a lot more than this. He would have to beat the odds. He wished now that he was Corellian, because they [ i]always[/i] beat the odds.
A Corellian corvette in front of him, its engines failing as coralskippers surrounded it like hornets, began to become enflamed. Ducaris instantly shouted "Gunners! Pick 'em off!"
"We're on it." Green flak suddenly swarmed out of Ducaris' ship, the [ i]Imperius[/i], and began to home in and slam into the coralskippers. Pockets of flame appeared around the corvette, as the ship continued to crawl across Ducaris', and the bridge's vision. But then, a coralskippers, partially on fire itself, pulled high, out of sight, and suddenly slammed down on the corvette.
An erupting, self-destructing volcano appeared where a Corellian ship had once been. And then, out of those flames, came more coralskippers, fresh, fully equipped, and firing their magma trails directly at the [ i]Imperius[/i]. Ducaris' sorrow at his failure to save the ship instantly vanished as he saw the incessant green flak turn towards the coralskippers and hit several, knocking three into unstoppable, uncontrollable blazing tailspins and incinerating two more.
The shields flashed briefly as the fiery red trails imploded upon impact. But Ducaris knew the shields would not last forever. It would not be long before the Vong brought their shield-stripping weapons along, and then Ducaris knew that an already difficult battle would become impossible, complete suicide.
"Sir, Fleet Eight has lost all shields! They're dropping like flies, sir!" a petty officer wailed, his young voice having lost all maturity in his panic.
Fleet Eight had been one of the outer fleets, like Fleet One. But if Eight was losing its shields . . .
"Tell Eight to accelerate up to ramming speed. Fleet Nine will back them up and take the shield-strippers out." Ducaris said, his voice unshaken, authorative. There was nothing else he could do. If they tried to retreat, Eight would be utterly annhiliated, without doing any damage in return. At least if they rammed . . . some of them might actually blunt the assault somewhat. At least they might buy just another minute for Bakura . . .
Alarms went off in the cabin. Ducaris shouted for them to be switched off, and they were a second later. "What was that? What is going on?" he asked. Please don't let it be what I think it is. Please . . . too many things have gone wrong already. he thought, half-wishing that he was anywhere but here right now. Another one of these situations and the battle would be beyond hopeless.
"Sir, we've got a problem!" an ensign yelled, looking back towards Ducaris away from his instruments.
"What?" Ducaris asked.
"One of the dovin basals got through. It went through what's left of Fleet Seven. It's landing on Bakura as we speak, sir." the ensign said in an empty voice.
Ducaris sighed. It was bound to happen at some time, he supposed. "Where's the moon's positioning? If it's on the other side of the planet we've got nearly a day to hold out." he asked.
"It'll be range of the basal's suction in a half hour. We're already losing our defense platforms, they're being pulled into the atmosphere." the ensign said, his voice shaking, barely coherent enough to be above a stammer.
Ducaris frowned. The only thing that had gone right was that neither headquarters or the Imperius was not in the basal's path. But then again, that eliminated a possible escape path for billions of people, essentially dooming them to Bakura's moon. And then there was that half-hour.
And there was nothing he could do about it. Bakura was going to fall.
But he could open up a path for the civilians to escape, at least. That was something he could do.
And so Ducaris set about on doing exactly that.
Anakin Solo walked cautiously through the wrecked building, blaster raised in front of him, both hands gripping the blaster pistol tightly, so tightly that his hands were sweating. He wasn't sure what was going to suddenly jump at him in the corner, whether Bakuran or Yuuzhan Vong, or nothing. The fact that he sensed nothing through the Force did not reassure him. With the invasion of Bakura, anything could be on this planet, and the Yuuzhan Vong were not the only creatures who had no Force presence at all.
Behind him was Dominick Yeris, who still wielded a rifle, he still had a couple of spare battery packs. Malinza, her clothes torn but was otherwise healthy and unscathed, followed him, her own rifle raised. Valin was in the rear, walking backwards, looking for pursuers with his pistol.
Engines and laser shots softly complimented the cackle of the flames inside the building. As Anakin examined the room, he saw a smashed kitchen, cupboards thrown open, doors slammed off their hinges. The living room had several small flames cooking the carpet, soon, they would explode into a full blown blaze. And, Anakin saw, there weren't any extinguishers to put the flames out.
The cracking noises faded as the group passed through. It appeared that the building had been unoccupied upon the invasion. A loud roaring sound filled the air, and Anakin turned his pistol in nearly every direction, only to hear it vanish in a sonic boom. Then more of them passed by.
While there was definitely a war on the ground, there was a much larger war in the air happening this moment. If if they had any goal of escaping, Anakin knew, they would have to go through those air and space battles above.
A battered wooden door with pockmarks on the surface beckoned to them. Anakin looked around, his ears training to if there were sounds behind that door. He did not dare open himself to the Force. He knew if he did the Vong would find him, with the voxyn they had undoubtedly brought along. Any advantage the Force could give him was thoroughly outclassed by the penalties.
Then suddenly, a high-pitched screech echoed from behind the door. Then a gruff baritone growled "Jeedai."
"Crap." Anakin muttered and raised his blaster at whatever lay behind that door. "Get away from the door!" he yelled, looking at his three companions. He looked back in time to see the door blow open right in front of him.
Anakin instinctively raised his arm to cover his face, but the moment he heard the scampering he knew he had no choice. Dropping the pistol with his left hand, the right immediately reached for the cool metal handle looked onto his belt. Then, as he brought the handle up he saw a voxyn charging right for him, its teeth gleaming white in the bright light of the sunlight reflecting on it.
Ignition. Then Anakin raised his blade upwards, and, in an upwards slash, sliced the voxyn's head in half right between the eyes. Then, leaping in the air in a somersault, he came down upon the voxyn's master, a Yuuzhan Vong male who appeared to be in his mid-thirties. The man saw Anakin's movements and brought up his amphistaff, and one of the heads took Anakin's strike at the cost of itself.
Blasterfire from Malinza hit the crab armor twice, but then razor-sharp thud bugs tore through the window, shattering the glass. Valin and Dominick ducked, as the bugs immediately buried themselves in the grey-white wall behind them, still buzzing faintly.
Anakin aimed a hard right sideways cut at the Vong's head, but the warrior was clearly a veteran, for the amphistaff took the slice easily.
But Anakin saw a flaw in the warrior's defense, and he planned on exploiting it for all to see. For the warrior was not guarding his right leg hard enough. And as the blade deflected off of the amphistaff, Anakin immediately brought the blade back up and quickly thrusted with the tip of the lightsaber, right into the thigh of the warrior.
A grizzled, distorted, hideous scream punctured Anakin's ears a moment later. Ignoring the pain to his ears, Anakin rushed forward, and stabbed above the crab armor, right into the warrior's throat. There was a choking noise as the warrior desperately held on for life, and dark blood trickled out of his mouth. Then, as Anakin removed the blade, the warrior collapsed backwards, and slumped against the entrance, behind his voxyn.
"Anakin!" Malinza's voice shouted. Anakin looked up, to find another warrior aiming a strike with his amphistaff's snake-like head, but then red bolts suddenly tore into the warrior's head. A brief flame appeared on the warrior's head, and he fell backwards, outside onto the duracrete walk.
There was no time to thank Malinza, although Anakin made a mental note to himself to do so. Instead, he rushed outside, right in time to see a voxyn leap through the window, right for Valin and Dominick. The master was about to join his voxyn, but Anakin rushed forward, his footsteps and sudden presence jarring the master out of such a plan. His amphistaff was barely able to reach up in time to block Anakin's strike.
Another lightsaber was ignited in the distance, from the sounds of it it was Valin's. Knowing that his friend had at last realized the true threat of this group, Anakin tore through the master's defenses as fast as he could, bating away the warrior's parries. A brief yelp was heard, and Anakin knew that Valin had downed the voxyn.
Elated, Anakin parried a desperate strike aimed at his right hip, and instead used the lightsaber to lift the amphistaff into the air, above the warrior's head. Before the master of the dead voxyn could bring his weapon back down, Anakin stabbed forward, and his forceful cut incinerated layers upon layers of armor. Then he felt the crunchy resistance fade and felt a sudden giving-in. Anakin then cut upwards, slashing through the warrior's vitals. The warrior fell backwards, and Anakin relaxed, confident he had won at last.
Then he saw a sudden shadow on the ground. Whirling around, he was about to aim a slice at the figure's head-only to find Malinza's shocked face staring at him. Anakin's blade stopped mere inches from Malinza's neck, as her face winced at the blow that was sure to come.
But it never did. And then Malinza dared to open her eyes. "Anakin, you all right?' she asked.
"I'm fine. Just don't-don't sneak up on me like that." Anakin said, feeling his face, already burning like a furnace, heating up even more. He had very nearly killed his friend-just minutes after saving her life. Putting the blade down, he searched around for any more foes around him, he saw nothing moving, although shouts of both Yuuzhan Vong and allied, plus repetitive sounds of lasers firing again and again and again echoed in the distance.
Malinza simply stared at him sadly and walked by, holding her rifle in a casual, yet ready position. Staring out across from the alley they now stood in, looking at the burning wreckage in the main street, Malinza said "I'll be more careful.", her voice breaking and almost uncontrolled.
"Don't beat yourself up over this. It's my fault." Anakin switched the lightsaber off and walked over to Malinza, his free left hand resting on Malinza's shoulder. She jumped slightly but quickly relaxed. "Thank you for saving me back there," Anakin managed to say. Something was different in Malinza's eyes, something . . .
Her eyes shone in the sunlight like brilliant jewels. "No problem. Just paying you back." she said.
"What's wrong?" Anakin asked softly. Malinza was now facing him, looking up towards him, her eyes glistening now. She sensed his rejection somehow, even without the Force, and she was trying hard to fight the tears.
Malinza's lips quivered. Then suddenly, she looked away, and said "Never mind." and walked towards the brick wall, raising her rifle, and then peeking beyond the wall, at some nearby rubble, a spire that had crashed upon the skywalk.
Okay, what was that about? Anakin thought, his face showing as much puzzlement as he felt. That had been strange, yet surreal. Malinza, for those few seconds, had reminded him of Tahiri . . .
No. he thought, slamming those thoughts of infidelity down. I can't fall for Malinza. Not when there's Tahiri . . . who is sitting on the Archangel right now, carrying my kids, worrying about me. I can't betray her trust. he thought.
He hoped that Tahiri had not felt those five seconds . . . of that temptation. If she did, he hoped she knew that he had resisted. For all three of their sakes. Although it seemed that Malinza had played a role in that as well, considering she had backed off before either of them had gotten too close.
Anakin heard footsteps and turned around, ready to draw his lightsaber. But it proved to only be Valin and Dominick, who looked surprised at Anakin's reaction to them. "Shavit, Jedi, it's just us." Dominick said, holding up his hands, and then walked by with a sigh, heading towards Malinza.
Calm down, Anakin. Not everyone here is trying to kill you. Anakin thought, forcing himself to take a deep breath, and slowly exhale. The Bakurans had a lot more to worry about now besides a few fugitives, so most everyone who wanted to kill him were preoccupied. However, they had been replaced by the Yuuzhan Vong, who wanted to kill everybody. Not a major improvement, and Anakin was a prominent target of the Yuuzhan Vong, being one of the last Jedi alive.
No, it made the problem worse.
Malinza suddenly whispered "There might be a working airspeeder behind that rubble. It looks like only dust hit it, nothing else."
"Then that's where we're going." Anakin said. "Be on your guard," he warned. "Voxyn teams always travel in four, and we've only encountered two."
That not-so-encouraging thought accompanied the group as they ran out into the street, and immediately found a massive pile of rubble to crouch behind. It was a hill of duracrete and brick, Anakin saw. It was possible to actually walk upon this stone hill, and as they did so, they saw that the vehicle Malinza had seen was indeed undamaged . . . in the back. The front had been completely sheared off.
And then Anakin sensed a familiar, ravenous presence in the Force directly behind them. Drawing his lightsaber, he turned around, and saw bodies of shredded Bakuran soldiers behind him. Scattered, and laying down in bent, twisted positions, the bloodied soldiers had clearly encountered the voxyn.
And that was when the other pair of voxyn struck from above.
"Get back!" Anakin shoved Dominick out of the way of a pouncing voxyn and ignited his lightsaber. Anakin quickly saw he would be killed by the weight if he stood still, and jumped backwards, and the voxyn's claws only touched pavement. The scratching claws ingrated into Anakin's ears, and he fought not to wince as the massive creature sprung again, heading directly for Anakin.
Anakin leapt into the air once more, and flipped himself one-hundred-eighty degrees in the air. Now with the voxyn's rear facing him, he cut downwards as he landed on the ground, severing a large chunk of the voxyn's tail.
The voxyn screeched as loud as a banshee's shriek. Gritting his teeth against the pulsing cry, Anakin rushed forward as the voxyn painfully lurched around, its teeth opening wide, trying to swallow the one that wounded him. Blasterfire was all around him, but Anakin could not tell who the shooters were, whether they were Malinza and Dominick or someone else. He wasn't sure he cared, as long as the fire wasn't directed against him or his allies, whoever they may be.
Anakin turned his blade sideways, and rushed forward. He would need to jump immediately after doing this, lest he face the gigantic claws of this vornskyr-like creature. Charging, his blade slammed into the creature's mouth, and then sliced upwards and Anakin jumped over the paw of the voxyn, flipping midair and landing on his feet. Turning around, he saw his voxyn slice into a bent beam, knocking it over. The beam's collapse signaled a significant portion of the ceiling's disintegration, but thankfully not everything had come crashing down upon them.
He turned around, to see the handlers down, their bodies burned by frequent and overkilling blasterfire. The last voxyn was still thrashing on the ground in the distance, its tail slamming the ground forcefully, like a dog's. Valin, his lightsaber also ignited, aimed his blade at the voxyn's neck and promptly severed the connection between the voxyn's head and body. The life in the voxyn's eyes faded within a few seconds.
The body was still twitching as Anakin walked over to Valin. "Nice job." Anakin congratulated soberly. Looking at the destruction and death all around him, he said "Too bad we weren't here in time to save these people."
"This explains what happened to Squad Three." a new, unfamiliar voice said. Anakin turned to see a tall, well-muscled man walk over to them, a sergeant's chevrons on his collar.
"Sergeant Helio Dascartes at your service, Jedi." the man said, sticking his hand out. Behind him was a mixed group of humans and P'w'ecks, clutching their weapons nervously at the two souls in front of them, still holding activated lightsabers..
"Anakin Solo." Anakin, deactivating the blade, shook the man's hand, and Helio smiled.
"Your parents were good people." he said simply, and the grin faded a moment later, and the handshake was released right afterwards.
"Yeah. They were." Anakin managed to say. Looking away, he saw that Malinza and Dominick were still alive, they had crouched behind the smoke-black remains of another wrecked airspeeder.
Leaving their cover for a moment, Malinza walked in front of them. "Planning on arresting them?" she asked suspiciously, her eyes glowering dangerously at Dascartes.
"No. We got a lot more concerns than Jedi now. As long as they're killing scarheads I don't really care who or what they are." Helio said matter-of-factly, and then turned his attention towards Anakin then. "Thank you. That voxyn team has mauled about a third of my platoon's men since they landed. They got a bunch of P'w'ecks too, and my lieutenant."
"I'm sorry." Anakin said, not meeting Helio's gaze. "We gotta get out of here. We need to get to Landing Bay BF-009, if that's all right with you. Our ship's there and we've got information that can win us the war."
Dascartes sighed. "I don't know what can be done at this stage but . . ." Helio snapped his fingers and pointed at a couple of bodies thrown aside in the parking lot's corner, " . . . if you have something that can help I guess we can help get you there. We got vehicles outside, and we'll get you over there. I suppose there's no point in defendin' Bakura." he said, his voice low and accepting.
"Then we might as well all get out of here, don't we?" Malinza said, a strange smile appearing on her face. It quickly faded as she faced Dascartes. "I'm Commander Malinza Thanas and I'll take control of things now. I assure you, Sergeant, that I'll get your troops out of here." she said.
"Figures I'd stumble upon a pilot . . ." Dascartes grumbled, but then he saw his men bringing rifles towards the circle, and Dascartes grinned. Taking the rifles, he handed them out to the Jedi and the two pilots.
"Welcome to the army, you four. I know the way to BF-009. My family's supposed to be evacuating from there."
"I'll do what I can to make sure you are reunited with your family, Sergeant." Malinza said confidently, but it was an empty promise and everyone knew it. No one cared much, either.
"We're wasting time." Valin reminded everyone.
"Right, right." Anakin said, and he looked as Dascartes. "You say you know the way to Bay BF-009, right? Then take us there."
Dascartes nodded. "Follow me," he said, and the Jedi followed them up the stairs in the back wall of the lot, and vanished from the lot, leaving it for the dead.
Interesting. the figure thought as he witnessed this. Most interesting. Artran Kharran switched off the listening devices he had 'procured' for this operation. Unlike his brethren, he actually saw a use for these devices, and here was just one. Tossing them away, he smiled. The fools had just told him their destination.
And if the destination was BF-009 for this group, then . . . the others had to go there as well. And so his grin grows wider. He could cut them off right at their destination, and kill all of them there. And as long as his emitter remained engaged, he would seem to be just another civilian, running for his life . . . they wouldn't know the truth unless it was too late.
Artran loved the way timing worked. If he arrived there early, before the Jedi could ever hope of making it, he would make all of their efforts too late. With just one movement, he suddenly changed time. It was a power he adored, yet not abuse. For he could be too late as well. He almost had been for Riina.
Solo, you will regret the day you came to Bakura for the final moments of your life. Artran promised, and then took off from his perch on the roof. Leaping the gap to another building, he ran down the rooftops, rushing towards BF-009. He knew exactly where it was, he had memorized every area of this pathetic, polluted planet before stepping on foot here. Once again, his attention to details would make him survive, and win, while all the others would die.
In the distance, Bakura's moon seemed to get larger. Artran stopped and stared at the white, cratered moon for a moment. So, time was ticking down for him as well. It would not be long before Bakura's moon would come crashing down on its planet, turning everything into asteroids and dust.
That was a fate that Artran had not planned, either for himself or for Riina. And he would make sure it didn't happen. Running again, he rushed towards the hangar. It was time he finally finished this war once and for all, so he could begin what he truly wanted.
The dawn he was so patiently waiting for was finally about to rise.
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Padawan of princess_of_naboo E-married to the amazing padawanlost Member of Charon_Force Beginning's End: http://boards.theforce.net/Message.aspx?topic=28450077&brd=10477&replies=1
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G__Anakin
Registered:
Apr '06
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Date Posted:
10/4/06 5:51pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 27 Up 9/27
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 Great Chapter 
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whiskers
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May '05
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Date Posted:
10/4/06 6:10pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Voxyn! I hate voxyn (in the way we the entertained are supposed to hate the bad guys)!
Great chapter, good to see Anakin kicking some butt.
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R.I.P. E. Gary Gygax
Thank you for D&D
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nikjo88
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Sep '05
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Date Posted:
10/5/06 12:30am
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Wow! that as better than I expected!
good job...What a mess there are in!
lookin forward for more!
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SilSolo
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Mar '04
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Date Posted:
10/5/06 3:07pm
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RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Reporting in to say that I'm still interested in this fic.
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jasa
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Feb '05
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Date Posted:
10/5/06 5:12pm
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RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Anakin! That was interesting 
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J/J, J/TK, H/L, and L/M Senior year at American University!!! Job searches are fun! --Ambassador Taps
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jaina_clan_solo
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Dec '05
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Date Posted:
10/6/06 6:03pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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I have a bad feeling about this. 
Things are not looking good for anyone... well the Yuuzhan Vong maybe.... but things aren't looking good for the good guys. 
This chapter was really well written (again  ) and I'm looking forward to the next part!
jcs
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princess_of_naboo
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Nov '00
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Date Posted:
10/7/06 1:09pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Nice update. Time restrains keep me from saying more. I'll hopefully have some time to PM you (and beta) over my fall break (12-15th of Oct).
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rebel_cheese
Registered:
Jul '06
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Date Posted:
10/7/06 8:49pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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G_Anakin:
Great Chapter
Thanks, G.
whiskers:
Voxyn! I hate voxyn (in the way we the entertained are supposed to hate the bad guys)!
Thanks for making it clear. I hate voxyn too, that's why I took the time to kill some.
Great chapter, good to see Anakin kicking some butt.
It's always nice to see Anakin kick butt. Thanks for reading.
nikjo88:
Wow! that as better than I expected!
good job...What a mess there are in!
lookin forward for more!
Thank you! Yes, it's a mighty big mess everyone's in right now . . . except the Vong, unfortunately.
Silsolo:
Reporting in to say that I'm still interested in this fic.
I hope you remain interested. I've tried to make the story exciting and faithful to Draco's version, but I put my own spin on things.
jasa:
Anakin! That was interesting
That sure was. Thanks for reading. Glad the slight weirdness didn't turn you off.
jaina_clan_solo:
I have a bad feeling about this.
It's not just you. Everyone's been nervous for the last several chapters, as I'm clearly leading up to a climax . . . or am I? 
Things are not looking good for anyone... well the Yuuzhan Vong maybe.... but things aren't looking good for the good guys.
Right on the mark. 
This chapter was really well written (again ) and I'm looking forward to the next part!
I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I hope the next chapter doesn't disappoint you. Thanks for reading.
princess_of_naboo:
Nice update. Time restrains keep me from saying more. I'll hopefully have some time to PM you (and beta) over my fall break (12-15th of Oct).
Thanks. Don't worry, I actually think The Lost Sword needs the break right now, while I fix some things in one of the chapters. So I'm willing to let posting be delayed for a while.
Thank you all for reading and showing interest.  Post next week, likely on Wednesday.
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Padawan of princess_of_naboo E-married to the amazing padawanlost Member of Charon_Force Beginning's End: http://boards.theforce.net/Message.aspx?topic=28450077&brd=10477&replies=1
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Danni_Quee_Solo
Registered:
Oct '03
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Date Posted:
10/16/06 5:25pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Anakin and Malinza?? *thinks* THAT WOULD BE SOO CUTE! But i still luv Tahiri so it could never be. 
Can't wait for more!
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Ah, Ah, Ah, Ah, Staying alive, Staying alive Proud Shipper of J/D K/D
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jasa
Registered:
Feb '05
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Date Posted:
10/16/06 6:19pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
- Date Edited:
10/16/06 6:22pm (1 edits total)
Edited By:
jasa
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rebel_cheese posted:
jasa:
Anakin! That was interesting
That sure was. Thanks for reading. Glad the slight weirdness didn't turn you off.
Of course it wouldn't!
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J/J, J/TK, H/L, and L/M Senior year at American University!!! Job searches are fun! --Ambassador Taps
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rebel_cheese
Registered:
Jul '06
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Date Posted:
10/18/06 5:17pm
Subject:
RE: Shattered Mirror (Post-TUF, Major AU, J/J, A/T, Kyle, Danni) Chapter 28 Up 10/4
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Danni_Quee_Solo: Really? Maybe it would be . . . but I agree, we all love Tahiri way too much to have Anakin fall for someone else. But maybe for crack!ship roulette . . .
jasa: Glad it didn't. I hope you enjoy the next chapter. Not as strange, I promise.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
It is beginning. The moon is starting to crash into Bakura. The dovin basal has begun calling to it, its silent cry punctuated by its flirting, seducing suction. No object, not even one as large as a moon, can resist the power of the basal.
Ships crumple up by the dozens, the hundreds, as the basal pulls them into Bakura's atmosphere. A gigantic black hole has formed on the surface of Bakura, and it grows every second. More and more is pulled in every second. Ships, aflamed because of a lack of inadequate planetary-entry shielding, crash into the surface, their mushroom clouds enveloping all near them. It is not just the defenders who die, but also the invaders, as they make their sacrifices bloody, almost wasteful.
A dead area is created. Anything of substance foolishly wandering inbetween the moon and the basal are yanked like magnets towards the basal. Because the ships are puny, insignificant things compared to a majestic moon, they surrender much quicker, easier. And when they crash in flaming, indescribable and random shapes, they fall upon the hapless, the unlucky. Anyone who by chance happened to be in the ship's landing path and explosion area.
But even without the basal pulling the moon in, the invaders raze and pillage. Given time, they could get their desired results just with their tactics, without the help of a basal. Buildings topple like trees to an ax. Airfighters, incapable of facing coralskippers head-on, are blown apart and fall to earth in flaming shards. Civilian ships in space, desperately looking for an escape, instead accelerate their own death as they wander into crossfire. It is not long before the panicking civilians become a screen, a shield which both sides fire into and destroy as they try to eliminate each other.
Some wiser captains have their ships hang back and watch, but they are instead swarmed by coralskippers. And still others wander into the suction of the basal and are pulled into Bakura to die.
Soon, Bakura is surrounded by a field of flame, debris, mesh, metal, and the living. And more is added to that field with each passing second. Defender fleets charge into the invaders, ramming, shooting at point blank, in their sacrifice annhiliating some of the invaders. But such bravery is wasted. They do not buy a second of time. They do not open up escape. All they do is kill invaders, invaders that are replaced moments later.
The invaders can keep replacing. The defenders cannot. That is pure simplicity at its most direct. And that will win the day for the invaders.
A Yuuzhan Vong watches proudly as he prepares to register his greatest victory. He sees blue blaze bugs darken and fall away from the map as the ships they represent are slaughtered. His reds also perish, but there are far more of them, there is, in fact, so many that he had almost run out of bugs before he had started his battle.
A beleaguered admiral issues orders, orders he knows he has no authority over. Desperation claims him, and he is forced to order more men and women to die for the sake of trying for victory. As ship-to-ship battle come closer to him, he ponders whether all of this is for naught.
A brave captain orders her ship to keep firing. She lives in the moment, as as more and more of the enemy falls to her weaponry she turns her attention to another, and then another. The process never stops, but she doesn't let it exhaust her. Keeping her ship mobile, she moves her young, yet immensely powerful, vessel slashing and striking at any enemy that dares to approach her. She knows she will draw notice by standing out like this. But she doesn't mind. In her growing confidence, she feels she is ready to even face the mighty Sunslayer.
And then, as the madness approaches the apex that all alive know will come, a lone ship arrives insystem, behind the invader's lines, with three squadrons of fighters . . .
The white of hyperspace had just faded. Jagged Fel flew his Scorcher through the rapidly dwindling light, and ordered, "All fighters report in."
As the roll call went down to "Angel Twelve, standing by," Jag looked across his display, and out of his canopy as they completely reverted to realspace. And then all he could see was them. The Yuuzhan Vong were massacring the allied fleet. And he quickly saw several of the enemy's fighters take notice. A sea of red, punctuated by blues, few and far between, grew on the display as Angel, Halo, and Scarlet Squadrons approached.
Holy crap, is the only scared or surprised thought he allows himself to think. Scarlet Squadron, leading the way in front of him and to his right roughly 30 degrees, stays calmly in formation, as Angel, and then Halo, follow as they approach the battle. In the distance, an Corellian Corvette vanished in a puff of fire, its survival thus far being a mere miracle.
And this is when the coralskippers came. The Archangel's cannons fired over the squadrons' heads, and blasted apart a destroyer-sized Yuuzhan Vong vessel, splitting it in half. As it fell away in pieces, as yorik coral accelerated past them, coralskippers zoomed upwards, towards them.
"Get ready, guys. Split into pairs. Remember, we must get the Raven's Claw to the surface." Inyri warned over the com. Jag closed his eyes once, knowing he will not be able to close them again throughout this battle, and breathes. This was the last moment of safety, that last veil of invulnerability, the last possible second he could pull back without losses-
"Scarlet Squadron! Watch yourselves! They're coming directly for you!" Hobbie Klivian shouted over the squadrons' shared com.
"I see them! We'll have to fly through them!" Scarlet Leader's feminine voice greeted them, and that was when Jag saw yellow-red streaks of light shoot out from the coralskippers.
"Open fire!"
"Scatter, scatter!"
"There's too many-"
"Halo Three, where are you?"
"Scarlet Four, break out-"
"AAAAAAGH-"
Suddenly, as the scream pierced Jag's ears, making him want to wince, a Scarlet Squadron Scorcher blew a coralskipper apart, only to be cleaved in half by a remnant. The Scorcher's right wing flew off safely below Jag, but the larger half, complete with the canopy of the undoubtedly wailing pilot, came spiraling right for him-
Jag dove high and to the left, and the Scorcher barely missed him, instead continuing to be left behind as Angel Squadron spiraled through the enemy force. Coralskippers swarmed Jag's vision, and Jag, seeing one heading directly towards him and not pulling away from its course, squeezed the trigger multiple times, and the lasers triggered. A fireball greeted his eyes a moment later, and surely would have blinded him if not for the tinted canopy and helmet visor.
"Two, you still with me?" Jag asked a moment later, as he shot another coralskipper into a flaming tailspin. The coralskipper smashed into the dying frontal half of the annihilated destroyer, adding more flame to the burning husk the larger ship was becoming. No lifeboats flew out out the ship. The Yuuzhan Vong were souls who willingly went down with their vessel, no matter how important they were or how much they internally wanted to live.
"I'm right behind you, Lead." Inyri's voice said, her tone stressed but hard.
"Good. Follow me, I think I see a way through-" Jag had to cut himself off again, as a fighter in Halo's green-and-black colors in front of him exploded into fire and sharpnel, and Jag dove low, and saw the coralskipper that did this heading upwards. Jag tilted his fighter the opposite direction, trying to ignore the G-forces pressing him deeper into his chair, and fired first. The coralskipper broke into several melted, flaming pieces in all directions, and Jag flew below most of it, although a small piece vaporized on his shields.
There, below him, was a completely entangled mess. Some surviving capital ships of an allied fleet remained, their guns shooting at every angle, at every direction. Starfighters and coralskippers criss-crossed below, flying in vaguely curled patterns. An Golan III Orbital Defense Platform was shrouded in massive flames that threatened to cloak the entire platform. It was falling out of orbit, Jag saw, and was likely to crash into Bakura in a matter of minutes, maybe an hour if Bakura was lucky.
"Oh no, you did not just shoot your lava rocks at me." Jag heard Hobbie growl as he surveyed this scene, and a moment later Klivian's Scorcher and wingman Yakown Reth both flew by below, trying to evade four coralskippers. Jag made a short, jerky manuever, in an attempt to chase after the coralskippers, but quickly realized that by the time he was behind the coralskippers he would be too far behind. Stopping the motion, he searched for any way to reorganize, to find his way towards friendly lines-
Then the Raven's Claw passed below him, guns ablaze, firing nuisance shots at a Vong destroyer nearby. The destroyer did not react in time, and the Raven's Claw passed by the bow, and accelerated forward, heading directly where, Jag hoped, Jaina would be.
"Angel Squadron follow me! Inyri, stay on my right!" Jag ordered, and as the Raven's Claw flew towards the battle almost 180 degrees below them on the y-axis, Jag followed, putting his fighter into a steady spiral before righting it. Passing over the top of the Raven's Claw, he heard Kyle's voice.
"That you, Jag?" he asked as they sailed lower, as Bakura slowly became even larger in their vision.
"Yeah, it is. I told the Angels to follow but-" Jag cut himself off as he saw an entire squadron of coralskippers heading their way almost directly. Immediately forcing his trembling, sweaty arm to pull the stick to the right, Jag shouted for Inyri to follow him, and she obediently did so, and the Claw immediately fired back, its modified guns firing seeking green lasers that tore through the squadron immediately.
"Lead, watch out! In front of us!" Inyri warned. Jag looked in front of him then, and saw that the two of them, in their effort to escape from the coralskippers, had ended up flying into the middle of a Yuuzhan Vong boarding of an allied Star Destroyer.
Flying between the two slowly-joining ships, Jag stepped on the engines, and flew through, barely dodging a shot by the Vong ship, which had detonated on the Destroyer's hull scarcely 15 meters in front of him. Diving low, the two pilots barely dodged the ensuing yellow-red explosion, and a moment later both of them escaped the scene.
"Angel Squadron! Where are you?" Jag called out. He really hoped at least some of those younglings had survived this so far . . . if only he and Inyri had survived he would be a failure as a leader. As a commander, a teacher.
"I don't know!" a panicked voice Jag knew as Angel Five wailed.
"They're all over the place!" another Angel voice shouted.
"Home in on my signal and follow me! We're gonna guard the Raven's Claw!" Jag ordered his squadron. The safest they'd be would be with Jagged and Inyri, and he knew it. Realizing about another responsibility of the squadrons, Jag asked "Halo Leader, you have any idea how the Archangel is doing?"
"I think Yannik's just sniping!" Hobbie responded, his voice harried and a shout itself. Jag noticed some gray noise in the comm – he sincerely hoped the Vong hadn't found a way to weaken or destroy allied communications . . .
"Keep an eye on them, please! I'm going to guard the Raven's Claw!" Then suddenly, a thought struck him as he flew behind the Claw, his squadron slowly forming up behind him in pairs. Inyri matched every movement of his perfectly, her veteran prowess overshadowing her unfamiliarity with her commander.
Eight Angels were left, it seemed. Jag would have checked to make it certain, but another thought struck him. "Has anyone seen the Scarlets?" he asked over the open channel.
"I don't know." Hobbie said, his voice strained, a warning that he was extremely busy. Jag decided he's bother Kyle with these sort of issues from now on. Thankfully, it was Kyle who answered next.
"They got shredded up. Whatever's left of them is hung up by the Archangel." Kyle gritted out. Jag felt his heart fall just a little more at this news. The Scarlets were a squadron of rookies, but they were promising pilots, of much higher quality than some of whom Jag had . . . but they had been ripped apart, while Jag's, while depleted, remained organized and somewhat intact. How this had come about would forever be a mystery to Jag's mind, but he became thankful for it a moment later, as he saw what was coming towards his squadron.
A platform had just exploded, its shards spreading apart, but that was not what concerned Jag. Rather, it was coralskippers, the ones that had blown the defense platform. Heading their way. Chasing and downing a few fleeing Y-wings, their pathetic speed dooming them to fiery deaths. And then Jag mentally felt them sighting him, and his pilots.
"C'mon!" he roared at them, venting his frustration, anger, and hatred of the Yuuzhan Vong at those coralskippers. Turning on his com, he ordered "Angel Squadron, engage. Follow me." Then he increased his speed, aiming to fly directly through them.
And so the killing cycle began once again, and the dance with death pilots dealt with daily restarted. Jag could only hope, as he squeezed his trigger, firing out red bolts at the coralskippers, that he would be allowed to survive here, just so he could return home, with Jaina at his side . . .
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Triumph was rising within Sharrvon Kharran. As he watched the infidiels, represented by the blue blaze bugs, run into themselves and cut into each other's way, they were only accelerating their own downfall. The blaze bugs hovered in the air in front of him, all around him, and a large cluster of brown-tipped bugs clustered together into a humming orb, representing Bakura. The abdomens of these wondrous, beautiful creatures flashed colorfully, and the pitch of their wings described both the ship's status and ferocity.
Wild joy rose within him as he saw another enemy fleet destroy itself. The civilian ships, revealed to the diminutive size of the blaze bugs and lack of droning pitch, had panicked now. They were interfering with their protectors' abilities to fight, bring their demises upon them faster than they would have if they had remained still.
"We're almost there, Brother." Sharrvon said, a feral smile slicing his face in half. "Do you know yet?" There was no way to communicate with Brother Kharran right now, but he knew that the warmaster of the Yuuzhan Vong had to know. His tactics had worked once again. And the assurance that the majority of the ships were civilian, and were virtually defenseless, had turned out to be true.
The Yuuzhan Vong had hounded these forces all across the galaxy. Always, a few escaped. Just a few. But this time, Sharrvon knew, the infidels had nowhere left to run. The infidels had been chased from Belkadan all the way to Bakura. They had lost nearly all of their worlds in what they called the Core. Yuuzhan'tar had not been fought over since the inital conquering. There wasn't any place for them to go anymore. With both arms secured, the remaining infidels would be surrounded in what would be, to them, an alien galaxy, the war completely lost.
Perhaps this was why the infidel military fought so hard. Sharrvon could see the effort, if not the tactical brillance needed to break out. The infidels, he grudgingly admitted, were giving a good effort. But the Yuuzhan Vong were giving a better one. It would only be a matter of time, until the infidels would finally make a pure error and lose whatever chance they had at a temporary escape.
Another enemy fleet fell apart, and the blaze bugs turned black and fell away from the three-dimensional orb in front of Sharrvon Kharran. Complete, unfettered success couldn't be much longer. And Brother would see that Sharrvon did not need pampering in the field of battle, that he could fight a war too. And win, unanimously.
That was before he noticed that one of the battle groups, Yun_Harla, was struggling. It hadn't garnered Sharrvon's attention immediately, for he had been obsessed with the successful enveloping and Yammka's assault up the middle. The dovin basal had been implanted, and it would only be a matter of time before the moon, represented by a smaller orb of pale white-grey blaze bugs, flashing only sparingly, would begin to fall out of orbit.
But that was before he saw so many Yun-Harla ships turning black and dropping away from the battle, representing the ship's death, as well as so many hardened, brave warriors. Sharrvon's smile immediately shrunk to a curled frown, and Sharrvon stared at the scene suspiciously. Nas Choka was a far better commander than this. Why would he only be breaking even with the infidels? Choka was not an incompetent, a fool, or one of Brother's pawns who would be lost without Brother's influence and orders.
Then what would be-
There. That was when he saw it. The pure beauty of it.
A gloriously bright blue blaze bug, shaped more exquisitely than most of her infidel brethren. Almost like a Yuuzhan Vong vessel, only identified by her blue coloring. And the pitch was so loud, and so fast, almost like a bird's song, not wings whirring. And then the brilliant bright neon blue that flashed with the ship's wings.
The infidels did bring something useful in this fight. And from what Sharrvon was seeing, it was single-handedly annhilating three or four Vong vessels at once every few minutes. No, this was not Choka's fault. He had never seen a weapon like this before, at least not one that was not on his side. And then, finally, Sharrvon saw a flaw in Brother's strategy. Brother had only made one mistake, one oversight.
He had never thought that the infidels would dare to construct a new ship that could actually compare to the magnificent Sunslayer.
Sharrvon immediately activated Choka's villip and vehemently roared "What is this ship, Commander Choka? It can't be destroying you like this!"
"I do not know, my lord. All I know is that every few ticks they fire these white-yellow fire streams directly at our ships. Two streams can eliminate four or five vessels with each shot. I can't get close." Choka explained as calmly as he could, knowing that Sharrvon's patience was already at an end.
Sharrvon muttered a Yuuzhan Vong curse, and growled "Don't engage it directly. Try to manuever around it and assault it from every direction."
"I've tried that already, my lord. But it simply changes direction and fires again. And its escorts are not giving way long enough before we're shredded by those fire streams." Choka responded.
Sharrvon slammed his clawed hand into is face, and scratched his forehead so sharply that his forehead began to bleed. How could this be happening? Why now, when he could prove himself to his Brother, did something like this happen? Why didn't Brother have to deal with a ship this powerful in his battles?
But self-pity and whining would not win the battle, and Sharrvon knew that as well as anyone. In absence of a better strategy, Sharrvon decided to commit to an alternate plan. "I will be leading there myself, Commander. Pull away out to what you decide to be a sufficient distance away from these 'fire streams'. The Battle Group of Yun-Yuuzhan will move to this pocket and annihilate this vessel, whatever it could be. All other groups will hold their current positions and keep the infidels boxed in. We can't allow a single ship to escape, not this time."
The Groups acknowledged their orders, and continued to move. Yammka had nearly sliced the enemy fleet in half. Txiin and Q'aah were still attempting their envelopment. Harla was hanging on for dear life. It would not be long before even the incompetent infidel commander would notice and concentrate his ships against Harla and try to break through.
That is why Yun-Yuuzhan had to move. Especially the Sunslayer. Intimidation worked nearly as well as actual reinforcements. The mere message that the Sunslayer was moving towards Harla's direction would terrify the infidels to their cores, send lightning-cold chills down their pathetic spines. Even the bravest commander would think twice before staring the Sunslayer down. Only the fools would strike the Sunslayer, and during the course of this war, all real fools were either dead or marginalized. Incompetents were another matter, but they had been whittled down as well . . . except in the infidel ranks, it seemed.
As the Battle Group of Yun-Yuuzhan began to move, Sharrvon forced himself to relax, and calm down. This was nothing. In fact, Brother would reward him for this. For improvising in a situation like this. By combining Yuuzhan with Harla he would smash this pocket of resistence and then turn left, and hammer what was left of the center with Yammka. As the blaze bugs whined faster, louder, and moved as Yun-Yuuzhan complied with his orders, Sharrvon knew that he would still win. All he needed to do was hammer any escapee`s and hem them in close to the planet.
The infidels didn't have any time at all. And that allowed Sharrvon to remain confident the closer he drew to his prey.
He would hammer this pretender and then finish the infidels off. And then, he and Brother could concentrate on what they really wanted. And the glory that the Kharrans had always wanted would finally be there, at their disposal. And Sharrvon would get what his deepest, darkest desire. At long last.
The Prime Minister and his reluctant lackey, Grell Panib, ran up the stairs as fast as they could. The residence had a small bay right on top of the skyscraper. As long as the building didn't topple to the ground, a likeihood growing more possible with each passing second, they would at least make it into the air.
Then they would worry about how long they could last until they were shot down.
This would be anything but a pleasant journey to the stars and Panib knew it. They were going to run, but where? Was there a place for refugees to go anymore? They had all crowded into Bakura. Panib knew as well as anyone that ships were choking the sky right now, there were so many craft afloat that it would be difficult just fo fly without being rammed into. Panib knew his chances of survival were minimal, perhaps so slim it couldn't be classified as a chance. There were trillions of people on this choked, poisoned planet. Perhaps a billion would escape.
A billion. Out of three, or maybe six trillion.
That was all that would survive. This small fraction, Panib knew, was extremely generous, and gave the military far more credit than they deserved.
The more likely number was one hundred million.
One. Hundred. Million.
And those were mere survivors. Not everyone would escape the disaster.
Subtract half. Fifty million.
Wait, there would be a rearguard. And as ships in that rearguard, civilian and military fell, more would have to take their places. And die too. It would be a never-ending cycle until the ships were far out enough from the system.
Subtract a third. Thirty-three million, give or take five hundred thousand.
Out of three trillion.
This was not so much as a battle as a massacre. A final slaughter in the Vong's compaign of systematic extermination.
And we're the foremost pests. Panib realized. It had been a surprise that the Yuuzhan Vong had not sent some of their warriors down here to make sure that the few leaders left in the resistence would perish on this soon-to-be pyre.
Maybe they already did and the Bakurans had just been fortunate enough not to encounter them yet. There would never be a way to know for certain, not unless the Vong did attack. And for everyone's sake here Panib hoped there was no attack, or one far too late to mean a difference.
Suddenly, the woman at the front, a bodyguard Panib knew only as Mesel turned around at them all. "We're almost there. They're unloading the shuttle and fueling it right now. Once we're up there I don't want us exposed for more than a minute. Got it, people?"
"Yeah, yeah, we got it, Mesel. Now let us get outta here. Last thing I need is to become a burnt piece of ash." Blaine Harris said, folding his arms and giving Mesel a look of utmost impatience. Panib tried his best to remain calm, and he leaned back against the hall, trying to shut out the muffled noises of engines and the sudden smell of smoke.
Mesel opened it slightly, and then immediately ducked back in. "The smoke from the crash is billowing up to the roof. It'll obscure us somewhat. With any luck the Vong will think everyone on the upper floors is dead or trapped." Turning back to the group, her eyes alert, she opened up a compartment nearby and yanked out several flimsy-looking gas masks.
"Here. Put these on. Hurry. The building will crumble any minute." Mesel said, passing them out down the line. Panib frantically snatched one from her semi-shaking hands and threw it over his head. A strange, flower-like scent wafted through his nostrils, but it felt so plastic, so artificial, that he wanted to throw up. Then he realized he was breathing through the mask's filter. The logic eased his abdomen's cramps somewhat, but it sure didn't make him breath easier. The scent was strong. Whatever smoke was rising out there had to be thick, serious.
Then Mesel opened the door. Harris tried to rush out, but Mesel held him back. "You two!" she pointed at two of the bodyguards. "Go first! Sir, you're coming with me personally. The rest of you surround us and the Deputy Prime Minister. Let's go, let's go!"
The door opened, and all Panib could see was a black cloud whooshing into the tight, cramped space, blinding him. He heard shouting, and he saw the man in front of him vanish in the smoke. Suddenly, he felt himself being shoved forward, and his feet climbed up the steps. The noise outside became so much louder, with crack-boom explosions penetrating his ears so hard he could barely hear himself, much less his bodyguards, or even Harris.
"Go, go!" he was able to make out, and suddenly, he felt the stairs end and he stumbled forward, only just stayed on his feet. Before he completely recovered from swaying back and forth, he felt strong, meaty hands clasp his back and shove him forward. "There's no time, Mr. Deputy! We're getting you to that shuttle!" one of them shouted.
The smoke thinned out somewhat the farther away they came from the door, and suddenly, Panib found himself in the clear. He heard the shuttle's humming engines, and cracking thunders as airfighters chased coralskippers around this planet. And the artificial flower scent that was rapidly fading as the filter grew progressively overwhelmed.
Hearing a long wail from above, Panib looked up. And instantly wished he hadn't. Stopping, he looked up, and saw an 'Aegis' airfighter streak a fiery stream across the sky, spiraling, and completely out of control. The coralskippers that had shredded it apart flew by it as the 'Aegis' spun over the Prime Minister's residence, and crashed into the midsection of a skyscraper miles ahead of them. A swirling red fireball was created, only to become black soot and the fire dissipated, and smoke blew out from the building and into the sky, joining the other flaming, smoking spires of buildings in Bakura's skyline.
"Move it, Mr. Deputy!" the bodyguard behind him urged, pushing Panib even harder towards the shuttle, which Panib could finally see. White and bulky, Panib realized this thing could not manuever well enough to dodge a Y-wing, much less a coralskipper. The only way this shuttle would survive was by dumb luck. And luck had been down on the Bakurans lately.
Crewmen were busy stocking the shuttle full of fuel. A gas tank was hooked up to the shuttle . . . and Harris was walking up to the crewmen to yell at them. Mesel kept trying to drag him back towards the shuttle, but Harris shoved her back, and continued berating the crewmen and telling them to move faster. The glances that the crewmen gave Harris told Panib they were already moving as fast as they possibly could.
Leave it to the Prime Minister to go out of his way to do absolutely nothing. Panib thought as Mesel finally yanked him away from the already-harassed crewmen and back towards the shuttle.
That was when it happened. When a peculiar roar came closer, its proximity and power overwhelming all of the other noises in the air. It was unlike all of the mechanical-sounding engines and guns in the air, more like . . . it was alive.
Then there was fire from the sky. Panib covered his eyes with his arm as blinding explosions struck the fueling station. By pure luck they were changing tanks and was not filling the fuel pods full of Tibranna gas. The explosion that rose into the air, and spread fire along all the trails where gas had leaked, did not reach the shuttle, rather, all that impacted the shuttle was the ash and smoke from the remnants of the fireball.
The ship that had done this circled around the building once, as Panib and his stunned guards looked on. As the ship turned around and prepared for a landing, | |