Star Wars Star Wars: Episode IV: Twilight of the Force: A Father’s Legacy - Game is now OVER!

IC: Grandmaster Yoda
Naboo

The Billaba took time to reach Naboo, and as it did Yoda wrinkled his nose at the notion of coming with Mace. ‘A personal mission for you, an element to this. Necessary for you, it is, to see Skywalker. Not me. Alderaan is where I shall be needed.’

He prodded one of the two meditating with him. ‘Take Imwe and Malbus, you should. Guardians they are; protect your light, they will.’

‘The disturbance, concerns me, it does.’ Yoda frowned, and the Force stirred. ‘But the dark side obscures matters.’

Vos called out from the cockpit. ‘I’m not sensing anything untoward.’

A sniff from K’Kruhk. ‘Master Yoda knows the currents, Master Vos.’ Sure enough, as they arrived, an interrogation from the Palace, and from Captain Typho, rang out. The code allowed them passage, and Vos grinned, looking back.

‘Master Windu, we’re right above the Palace. I assumed that you wanted to drop in dramatically through the skylight?’ The side hatch opened, and Malbus shouted into the wind.

‘What about us?’

‘I’ll put you down where Captain Typho asked be too. I gather the Queen is coming to greet you.’

‘Brilliant,’ muttered Malbus.

Imwe frowned, a willowy limb extending. ‘There are men with evil intents atop the Palace...’ Sure enough, a man in black was evident on balcony, with a quartet of black armoured Darktroopers. He say on the balcony edge, hands linked, brooding darkly as he stared at them. The man’s countenance suddenly filled the Force with darkness, and he stood, stiffly, slowly, surely.



A small Imperial transport de-cloaked, and Vos hissed as he spun the shuttle away briefly, tucking over and under to reach the balcony. ‘You’re up, Master Windu. I expected maybe a lone assassin, not a team.’



Master Saa shook her head. ‘Always two there are...’

‘A Hand, and an Inquisitor,’ K’Kruhk echoed ruefully. The Ysanna Padawan’s among them tensed, and the Rangers began passing out emergency instructions.

Vos veered close to the balcony and Imwe leapt forward, landing and ducking the crimson lightsaber as it swung. He tucked his staff forward, deflected a rifle upwards so the bolt flew away from the hold, and Malbus swore, heavily leaping and rolling to the balcony. Two of the Darktroopers abruptly turned away from the above battle and blew in the windows - to a bedroom?

The Dark Jedi adopted a stiff expression as he turned to reflect bolts, he was clad in black almost entirely, save for his pale face, going through the motions as his eyes sought the Jedi. Yoda muttered. ‘The technique of Vo’ren Faalo, this one knows, Master Windu.’

Vos cut across.

‘Go!’

The Billaba swung away, the Imperial ship in hot pursuit.

Mara Jade stalked around Luke Skywalker. She was no infant to the Force, and so lazily allowed him to tug at the chair. Her green hours narrowed as Skywalker pontificated. It had occurred to her more than once that sending herself and Brandl to kill the son of the Chosen One was a risk, and not for anyone else - just her. But power was just that; nothing more.

Her senses drew, keenly, reading to leap the chair and carry its momentum forward at Luke with a push of her own when the upper levels became full of movement. Power was projected into the Force as Brandl released the concealment of the rest of his team, and Mara hissed.

Wait, she had caught something from Luke - some, malice? Then the windows to his room blew inwards and two Darktroopers rappelled down, opening fire with blaster rifles. Mara gestured her hand, reaching for his lightsaber hilt and forgetting the chair, which knocked her over with a snarl.

Sweeping it apart with a slash as she came back to her feet, she paid no heed to the troopers save for to keep her blade between her and Luke for the inevitable deflection at her, and with her free hand hurled his bed at him.

The fight was on; they had moments before Naboo Security was on them. What in the Nine Corellian Hells was Brandl doing?

—
Aboard the Aurora, in orbit above Coruscant - with part supplied by QueenSabe7

Qi’ra paced softly, not because of nerves but rather to stretch her legs; it had been a long and tedious journey. She understood the necessity of it and while arriving sooner would have only given her more opportunity to prepare and sort through the gathered intel from her many hidden eyes, she would just have to make the most of the lesser time she had.

After all, she understood the payoff of being made to wait.

Dressed in a black satin tank with similarly colored trousers and boots, she moved to a nearby chaise to grab the blood-red suit jacket that had been placed there for her to wear. Pulling it on, she habitually touched the necklace and ring that was hidden beneath her top before moving to the outer room of her personal chambers. As the hidden panel door to her bedroom slid shut behind her, she eyed Arb who had been waiting for her. In turn, she had been waiting for the man they were to meet with shortly - she was rather looking forward to speaking with him.

‘Sentan Moor to see you, Lady Qi’ra,’ Arb announced a moment later, just as her expected guest appeared through the main door.

She eyed him while he revealed his face, previously shrouded in shadow beneath a hood. Sentan Moor was a valuable asset, even more so now considering the recent movements of the Empire and the proposed “peace talks”. As the very public assistant to Aryan Graul, the need to keep his identity secret was of the utmost importance, and the only way for any exchange of information was in person. The danger in doing so was carefully, and cautiously, ignored.

“Mr. Moor,” Qi’ra began, one brow raised curiously as she clasped her hands in front of her. “I expect you have news for me…”

Sentan bowed over his hand. ‘I do, my Lady.’

A datapad appeared. ‘The names of most of the Imperial Senators who will be heading to Alderaan for the peace talks; the Committee accounts, showing a payoff trough four shell companies to security at the Republic 500 to allow Aryan’s mistress to visit; the recordings of a proposal from the Nubian Chancellor to offer Nubia as the capital of the united government, which has yet to reach Aryan’s eyes.’

A quiver to his voice emerged as he spoke. He was afraid. Of course he was, in the circumstances. He had told a lie of omission, and would continue to do so. Lady Qi’ra was talented at figuring out his lies. She always had been.

It was why he was here.

The moment was interrupted by Arb. ‘We’re getting some interesting chatter around the Imperial District.’ He brought up a display showing an Imperial shuttle being fired upon by the Palace guns. In a short moment the shuttle erupted, but not before a single figure with a red lightsaber leapt free. Royal Stormtroopers converged on the man, and shot him down.

‘A new Order 66, but on the Dark Jedi?’ Arb wondered aloud.

Sentan nodded slowly. ‘We wondered how the Jedi and Dark Jedi would co-exist in a peace accord - I guess they forced the issue or Amedda struck first.’

A hologram cut across local channels. Emperor Amedda appeared, stooping somewhat as he held his staff of office in two hands, almost clinging to it. ”This is the Emperor. The Dark Jedi enforcers known as the Hands and Inquisitors have attempted to seize control of the Empire. High Inquisitor Jerec, Supreme Prophet Kadann and Emperor’s Hand Cronal have been killed after an attempt on my life. Other Dark Jedi are on the run, and should be considered highly dangerous.”

An alarm echoed out. ‘We’ve action near here, an Inquisitors TIE under attack by two Strikers.’ An image showed the TIE Advanced v1, the latest TIE to come out of Seinar. ‘The other yachts and Skyhook’s are detaching from their moors and moving off. We could assist, or move off as well.’



Sentan drew himself up. ‘I should get back to Aryan. The peace accords are going to be damaged by this coup attempt. The Senate may renege if we’re not careful.’ He bit his lip. ‘I was going to tell Aryan that I was reviewing applicants to be aides, but I’ll need someone to corroborate that, in the circumstances. Is there any woman you trust in your organisation on short notice? Aryan is always a sucker for a pretty lady.’ His eyes found Qi’ra and then he lowered them. ‘Especially a red head.’

‘I should shoot you just for that, making our Lady into mere eye candy.’ Arb drew his blaster, pointed it. ‘What do you know?’

Sentan paused, and it was evident that there were a dozen answers he could give. ‘Cronal asked me to accept an applicant as a personal favour to him - I could hardly say no.’

‘What was her name?’

‘Elan Colla.‘

Back in 500 Republica, said woman had just now handed to Aryan the call from his wife. She also allowed her hand to linger on his, her skin warm on his. Elan was even lovelier up-close, but she faded away and returned to her work.

Lyzia‘s image became certain after a moment. She was flushed, that much was evident by the image, but focused. ‘Aryan, thanks for taking the call. Everything’s fine, work and all, but I know you’re busy. You’ve not been home for a few days with the Committee work and somebody,’ she said with an exaggerated, amused air, ‘wanted to speak to you.’ It managed to take the implied criticism that work was overtaking family life again.

Arek joined the hologram. ‘Hello, Dad,’ he said with a little, uncertain wave. Young for his age, Arek was just as prone to infantile moments as he was to sink into the brooding melancholy of teenagehood. He was lanky, but the likeness to Aryan was unmistakable, save for him having his mother’s eyes. ‘I just wondered if you thought you’d be free before you head off to Alderaan.’

With a soft firmness, Lyzia answered for Aryan; clearly Arek had deviated from his stated reason to call. ‘Dad is busy getting the Senate to agree to peace, Arek. That’s important. When it’s done we’ll be able to vacation on worlds like Chandrila and Naboo, like Dad and I used to when we were dating.’

‘I know, but -‘

‘But it’s down to his schedule, and what Dad and Sentan can work out with the Emperor and the Chancellor.’ She turned an eye to Aryan. ‘Though if the peace talks drag I would not object to meeting Dad on Alderaan. It’s been years since we last went. Dad was posted there before the Clone Wars, back when we were closer to your age, remember?’

‘Yeah, Mum, I remember what you told me,’ Arek‘s chin dipped. ‘I was mainly calling to thank you for my vocorder key, it’s really stellar, Dad. I’ll love learning new songs from them.’ That was a gift that Aryan would be unaware of, but Sentan often dipped into Aryan’s accessible private funds to buy things for his family, so as to free him up for work. Sentan’s private affairs had never really came up in conversation, save for to cause him to flush in embarrassment.

A noise outside the room however would rapidly gain Aryan’s attention. One of the aides was shouting, and there was a gruff bark of order. Lyzia looked concerned - ‘Aryan, what is that -‘

Suddenly the door blew in as someone dove through it - the pretty redhead from a moment ago. Blaster fire cut through the air and where Lyzia and Arek had been projected. The aide smashed through the table and cut the signal, the comlink flying into the air, rolling and grabbing a chair and throwing it at the red-armoured Stormtrooper emerging through the door. Just as abruptly the wall blew into the suite, upturning the various couches, throwing dust and smoke into the room, and allowing four troopers to draw a bead on the aide -



But not before all four lost their heads to a hissing string of light, no, multiple strings - whip - a lightwhip. More voices rang out in the apartment. ‘Emperor’s Hand! You’re under arrest! Everyone get down!’

Elan stood in the centre of the ruined room, snarling. ‘No, you.’ She threw out her free hand and a sound of crashing consoles and furniture echoed, out of sight to any save for the person standing in the centre of the suite.

A tinny voice called out into the silence; the comlink, disconnected from the holoprojector but still active.

‘Aryan? Are you okay?’

‘Dad!’

—-
Alderaan

The shock of the shuttle smashing into the cruiser blew out the cloaking shield, which would have been redundant anyway what with the debris falling into space. ISB Officer Blaise snarled.

‘Guns! Shields up!’

The one hundred and fifty metre cruiser became very apparent, and began to fill local space with fire. ‘Focus on the yacht! It’s what Skywalker will be protecting!’

Weapons began to orient towards Leia, Padme and Obi-Wan.

Panaka opened a channel to her husband and Alderaan, and Padme spoke to the planet. ‘Palace Control, where are your orbital defenders?’

‘This is the Sanctuary spaceport - the capital is under jamming. We think there is an attack on the Royal family on-going, to coincide with your arrival -‘

‘Sir! Incoming hyperspace disturbance!’

An Imperial Star Destroyer arrived; angled entirely incorrectly to the cruiser but instead focused on the planet, though the skirmish had carried them closer to Aldera, the capital city. The capital ship opened a hailing channel to Leia, missing the smaller fighter carrying Anakin. But the pennant code for the Destroyer was clearly broadcasted.

It was the Devastator; the Imperial flagship. A squadron of TIE Interceptors burst free from the hangar, angling for them.

‘We’re raising shields in ten seconds, with or without royal approval,’ Control snapped. There was no question of the yacht making for the planet by then, but Anakin’s X-Wing might. Something rippled in the Force; a darksider in the Palace.

Within the said Palace, Bail handed her a small blaster from his boot. ‘Fire when they track me.’ Without giving her another choice, he grabbed one of the datapads and cocked his arm back, jumping up as he threw it at the troopers. The ‘pad was shot out of the air but Bail threw himself forward, skidding across the floor as the troopers tracked him with fire, the Prince Consort coming up behind one of the over-sized potted plants and cowering.

At least two Darktroopers were firing at Bail, which left two either guarding the rear or... what? Feyna had the moment to be decisive, or lose everything.

TAG: @LordTroepfchen, @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha, @DarkLordoftheFins, @JediMasterAnne, @HanSolo29, @Lawbreaker. @BobaMatt, @QueenSabe7
—-
IC: Captain Drusan
Mimban orbit, a few days ago

What a disaster. The Chimaera’s engines were fully repaired but his turbolaser assault had not just blown up the corvette but also a tenth of the Imperial forces on the ground. General Covell was livid, but his command crew seemed to be being surgically targeted so he was busy staying alive. The corvette had managed to drop off all manner of supplies and then a shuttle had exploded, blowing a chunk in the frontline which the Coway were exploiting.

Drusan took a deep breath. ‘We’re going on. We’ll have to risk the engagement proper, and any ground-based batteries.’ In a particularly embarrassing moment a year ago the Coway had downed a Venator and the Empire had been forced to pull its capital ships out of low orbit. But that had been a glorified carrier - this was an Imperial II-class Star Destroyer. It could shrug off some ground fire. ‘All shields focused on the ventral.’ There, that would ensure he was particularly defended.

As such, within minutes there would be a mile-long battleship pressing through cloud cover, ready to force the Coway back to their defensible positions. Little did the Imperials know that they had a more technological city underground, which was dead centre to the besieged area.

Realities were, however, that the Coway had supplies to get to the sole turbolaser battery they had powerful enough to drive the Destroyer away - supplies which were now mired in the mess of an outbreak attempt and a war in earnest. All of this drama would play out independently of the majority of the surviving smuggler crews, save for two, who were in the middle of a rapidly collapsing encirclement ring.

One was the crew of the Osik, which was suddenly Ka’rta negotiating with the leading Triumvirs. They clicked among themselves and returned to the discussion. ‘You need only deliver our warriors. We expect there is a single infidel - a Black Sun agent known as Rouser. He will be forced to settle outside the Cave of the Beloved Mother, but we know another way to the Temple of Pomojema - the Way of the God of Death. You may deliver our warriors there. They will take several days to make the journey, but so too will the heretic.’

One spoke; the others were silent, before the second spoke up. ‘The Heart of Kaiburr must not leave Mimban. The Father will be displeased, and Canu will not stand before the Father.’

Ven chimed in, across the open link. ‘We need to go. The Destroyer is pushing for low orbit. It’ll be here in under half an hour.’

The Coway speakers chattered, and named a price - as much as she was being paid for the original mission, the extra share she had haggled for, and the secret extra share of one of her comrades - all combined. ‘The Heart is that important, Sky-Walker.

A smothered snort; Ven. ‘Do you accept,’ pressed the Coway.

The second party within the rapidly collapsing ring of death was Zey and Madelyn. Zey had agreed with his Padawan, who naturally began issuing orders to the slave fighters and to the Coway. The one who had spoken to Zey grinned. ‘Smart girl, dat one.’

Zey had grabbed Madelyn with the Force and dragged her away, triggering the self-destruct with a push. Debris blew apart the Imperial-Coway line, and the Walker tipped into the sudden hole before it, vanishing into the crater.

FirstFist, the Coway speaker, pointed his spear at a Stormtrooper, and an energy bolt stabbed out and through the mans neck. He gave them a carnivorous look. ‘Savages, we may be, but technology, we understand. War, too.’

‘Come, come, the Triumvirs will want you to come.’

A few moments of rushing through mud and dodging fire which was never aimed at them but nearly caught them in a crossfire and they were at a freighter - one of the Mandalorian’s was evident at the top of the ramp.

They interrupted what seemed to be a plea from three skull-wearing Coway, who were appealing to as woman. FirstFist spat something in their native language, and the Triumvirs wheeled on Zey and Linnett, jabbering and then just as quickly turning back to the woman. ‘Sky-Walker, we would consider it part of our fee that you take these two representatives from the Pyke syndicate. They intend to offer us counsel on war, but we require them to prove themselves by defending the sanctity of the Temple from this Black Sun thief.’

Zey went to speak, but just as suddenly put his finger to his lips to remind Madelyn of her place. Blasterfire was beginning to become louder behind them, and sure enough Mudtroopers were coming into range, taking advantage of the chaos to advance into the Coway lines. There were nine, no, thirteen, all dropping into the mud and vanishing into it as part of cover, obscuring their true numbers. The six warriors - including FirstFist - began returning fire with their energy lances. Zey nodded to Madelyn to assist, and stepped in. ‘Sky-Walker, I would be grateful if you would accept us so we may prove ourselves to the Coway.’

Ven was pretty quiet, considering that they were getting entangled in a fight between the Pyke’s and Black Sun. But it was just a drop-off. What could go wrong?

Then the clanking sounded out; the smog parted for a moment to reveal the AT-ST walker that Zey had thought destroyed in the crater their shuttle had left. ‘Linnet!’ He shouted, pouring into the Force two words.

No lightsabers!

Outside the ring of death was the aforementioned Rouser, who indeed was about to find the entrance - the aforementioned Cave of the Beloved Mother. The mountain entrance was visible with a decent sensor, and an archaeologist had all manner of ground-based sensors to hand. The Imperials may have missed it, but the fact that the Coway had not even risked it was a large enough statement of how important this was to them.

Rouser had, likely, hit pay-dirt. However, his sensors would tell him that it was a matter of days travel into the cave to reach a wider location within the mountain. He would have to provision himself, and go to lengths to hide his yacht in the surrounding forestry. There were plenty of natural gaps in the foliage, but a yacht was still a yacht. Whether Rouser had any tricks up his proverbial sleeves was another thing.

However, these considerations were about to become relevant to the Millennium Falcon. A light dutifully told Chewbacca that the hyperdrive had shutdown. It also announced this face with a coruscating line of electricity rippling across the relevant console; some kind of feedback loop. Smoke, and not the ‘well this is relatively normal’ kind flooded the rear corridors to the ship, and the Wookiee cut power to the relevant parts of the YT-1300 with swift aplomb.

Sensors also let them know of the impending arrival of the Chimaera, which would be on them in a matter of minutes. They knew, from personal experience, that there were very, very, very few spots on Mimban which were not swamp or a mud-hell. And being as most of the planet had been torn by this Force-forsaken war, much of it was covered by the Empire.

Chewbacca echoed annoyance with the Falcon. They could not hold orbit for too long, and they were either opting to head back into the Ring of Death with a Star Destroyer on its way, or following Rouser. Who had seemed a nice enough sort but he was likely as deep with the Five Families as they themselves. Which one? They were Hutt liaisons. Crimson Dawn was not on their side, and if the Pyke’s recognised them as the ones who wrecked Kessel nearly a decade ago... not that Black Sun or Crymorah were any better.

The Wookiee had just confirmed that the Black Sun reps had not made it to ground, the Crymorah one had been lost in orbit, and most of the Pyke’s, though the Pyke’s had managed their supply run, and so, too, had the Mandalorians reached the surface. Roughly half of the group had made it past the blockade. But now what to do?

Chewbacca nearly had his hand on the comm to reach out for Pascale, when he threw a quizzical look back at Han. Well?

This was in the middle of another drama, but bereft of witnesses. While Horus responded, artfully so, to destroy the droid, the door to the cabin opened and the two Darktroopers strode in. The Hand stepped over, growling. ‘How dare you interrupt -‘

Sheyvan said nothing more as the troopers shot him. They turned their guns towards the Inquisitor, but Jerec was busy with somebody offscreen. ‘What do you mean? I did as you ordered -‘

His lightsaber ignited but a red beam caught him cleanly through the forehead. The channel cut as Jerec dropped to the floor. Behind the two troopers Horus would spy a pair of red Royal Guards, their phrik pikes ready. A purge, now?



Or, rather, a purge, starting outward and working inward to Coruscant, began days before in secret?

—
En route

Volta rolled her eyes. ‘I knew he wouldn’t fall for it.’ She hefted her rifle and shot an IG droid clear through the neck, removing its head. She was already drawing a bead on the second bodyguard before the armoured Dark Jedi ignited her yellow blade and moved forward, intending to run her blade through the first distracted droid. Volta’s second shot crossed over the Saarai-Kaar’s location but through training, timing and the Force, the blow arced by her neck with no harm caused.

Baron Cirvan gestured with the Force, intending to drive back Greivous while his comrades handled the bodyguards. Then, they would use their numbers to overwhelm the General. Another bolt shot out the door controls; they were trapped within.

A mere second had passed in the fight.

—
Separatist Space

Nute Gunray fiddled with the controls to the transmitter, sweating. A moment passed, and the blue image swam into focus, the Neimodian serving a cowled man again.

‘My Lord. The General is en route to Mimban as you requested.’

The Dark Man smiled, a grimace of a grin.

‘Goooood.’

TAG: @galactic_vagabond422, @RachelTyrell, @Jerjerrod Lennox, @MASTER Vo’Un’Var, @TheSilentInfluence, @Kaleesh-Cyborg


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IC: Senator Aryan Graul
Private Senatorial Apartment, 500 Republica, Coruscant

In those first few seconds, the tension seemed to deplete all oxygen from the room, making it difficult to breathe. Despite a relaxed demeanor that conveyed a sense of calm across the live Holonet feed, Aryan remained restive as he waited for his wife to answer his inquiry. It was highly unusual for her to contact him directly in the midst of an important Senate alteration, and so he was naturally wary of her intentions – did something terrible happen at home that required his immediate attention, or did it pertain to his more…promiscuous activities?

Fortunately, Lyz did not keep him in suspense for very long; she quickly alleviated his fears with a simple greeting before devolving into the same banal dialogue that he had come to define as ‘marital bliss’. In this case, she made the implied accusation that he was spending far too much time at work and neglecting the needs of the family. Aryan visibly stiffened at this notion, his hand coming up to rub slowly along his jaw with rising indignation. She had called him out of a crucial meeting for this?

As Aryan parted his lips to protest, his son stepped into the display, his unexpected appearance tempering his anger before things could escalate further. A wide grin instantly spread over the Senator’s features, replacing the impassive exterior that had been in place only moments ago. Arek was young and impetuous; a typical seventeen-year-old who was eager to come into his own and find his calling in such a rich and expansive galaxy. The kid meant everything to him...but sometimes it was easy to lose sight of the important things, especially when more selfish ambitions got in the way.

That was why when Arek pressed him about his free time and asked whether they could meet before he left for Alderaan, Aryan froze, clearly taken aback by the bold comment. He felt somewhat responsible for even allowing things to reach this point, prompting his eyes to dart precipitously toward the desktop. Luckily, Lyz recognized the awkward gesture and quickly jumped in to carry the rest of the conversation.

Pursing his lips together, Aryan lifted his gaze marginally to meet hers and afforded a silent, thank you. For the moment, he was content to leave mother and son to hash out the situation, feeling it was only necessary for him to contribute once Arek turned his attention back to him and expressed appreciation for some electronic device he apparently sent him as a gift. No doubt it had been another offering provided by Sentan Moor. The man was notorious for dipping into his accessible funds and sending gifts to his family when things got particularly burdensome at work. It helped keep the peace.

“You’re welcome, kiddo,” Aryan beamed with an easy smile, never missing a beat. “I thought you might like--”

A commotion coming from the outer chamber of the suite stopped Aryan short and drew his gaze away from his wife and son. With furrowed brow, he planted his palms flat against the desk and began to rise to his feet in an attempt to get a better view of what was going on. The shouting intensified before the door to his study blew in with the force of someone’s forward momentum. A lone figure staggered into the room, and Aryan gaped when he recognized the intruder as the pretty redhead he had shared a quiet moment with only a short time ago.

His expression turned stern, but before he could berate the aide for barging in on him, she propelled herself forward and smashed into the desk, cutting the holo connection to his family and sending the comlink tumbling away from the display.

Aryan did not wait around to see what would happen next; years of military discipline took over as he instinctively threw himself to the floor and took cover just as a flurry of blaster bolts tore through the space he had recently occupied. An explosion rocked the suite a second later, taking down one of the far walls and granting access to a group of Imperial troopers. They immediately drew a bead on the woman and began to fire, identifying her as an Emperor’s Hand.

The Senator cursed at that revelation and exhaled heavily, coughing lightly on the dust accumulation that had tainted the air from the blast. It was obvious now what this was – she had purposely infiltrated his inner circle to get as close to him as possible...and he had been foolish to fall for it. Someone did not want the peace talks to succeed, and as the Committee Chairman, Aryan had become a prime target.

But was this a concentrated effort, or were more good people at risk?

Reaching into his jacket to retrieve his blaster from the hidden shoulder holster, Aryan knew what he had to do. While he had no real chance against a powerful Force user, he could make a difference by simply finding a way to escape and raising the alarm. Thankfully, most high-end apartments on this side of 500 Republica were equipped with a safe room and an alternate exit. If he could just reach it…

With the woman currently engaged with the advancing troopers – was that a lightwhip? – Aryan took advantage of the distraction to shuffle toward the distant wall of the study on his hands and knees, angling for a display case that contained various military accolades and personal trinkets. Behind this elaborate showcase was the reinforced room he was seeking.

Before reaching his goal, however, he was sidetracked by two small voices calling to him from somewhere nearby.

“Aryan? Are you okay?”

“Dad!”

At first, he thought he was only imagining it; perhaps the stress from the past few days were having a bigger impact on his emotional state than he realized. Of course, the lack of sleep probably wasn’t helping matters either. But once he actually stopped to allow his eyes to trace the source of the sound, he discovered that the comlink had survived the initial attack and it was still active – Lyzia and Arek had witnessed the entire thing.

Relief flooded his body as Aryan scrambled for the comm and clenched it in his grip, taking a moment to simply breathe and press the small device against his chest in a protective embrace. He then clipped it to his lapel to facilitate his escape.

“Shh...I’m fine,” he answered hurriedly into the device, his voice a gravelly whisper. “Listen, Lyz, there’s a...situation, if I don’t--” He inwardly winced, thinking better of his words and started again. “If this doesn’t end well, I need you to save this transmission and get it to the proper authorities, both here and with the Republic. Someone is trying to sabotage the peace talks, and I have no idea how far it goes.”

Aryan pushed away from his hiding place and continued forward, finally reaching the display case and pressing himself against the wall adjacent to a computer panel. “There’s probably more of them...Emperor’s Hands. She was masquerading as one of my aides. I haven’t seen Sentan since this morning, so he may already be compromised.”

Inhaling deeply, he paused for the retina scan and began to type the access code into the panel. An indicator light beside the pad soon turned green. “I’ll stay with you for as long as I can…or until I get out of here. I’m at the ‘bunker’ now.”

Hopefully it’s not already too late, he thought as the door slid aside.

TAG: @Sinrebirth

 

IC: ISB Officer Blaise
Skirmish above Alderaan

The HWK and yacht had proven irritating, and comm chatter indicated that he had Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Leia Skywalker here, which probably explained why his fighter screen was gone and he had a hole in his ship.

And then the Devastator arrived, and ISB Officer Blaise grinned behind his scout trooper helmet. He wore it to blend in all the better with the armed forces, and to conceal himself beneath the implied derision applied to scouts by officers and Stormtroopers both. Blaise opened a channel to the Jedi and Senator, and to the Star Destroyer, noting the TIEs, and the rapidly closing space between the planet and the two Jedi ships. Ah yes; the planetary shields. Alderaan had a bank of defences strong enough to withstand a fleet, and was self-sufficient enough to survive a siege.

Blaise knew distances however and they were going to be in range of the Destroyer’s weapons and tractor beams long enough they made it to the shield envelope, and nobody would risk Aldera City itself for two ships. Other ships, including the Alderaanian fighters had been coming up and around the planet to supply aid, dove beneath the projected shield perimeter.

Savouring his triumph, Blaise spoke to the ships and Destroyer. ‘You’re not going to make it, Skywalker; Kenobi.’

‘This is Grand Admiral Gentis,’ came a stiff voice across the comms. ‘No, you’re not.’



A moment later turbolaser fire converged on and destroyed the Carrion Spike, and Blaise had about enough time to register his surprise before he was gone. The TIEs held their position out of range of the HWK and yacht, and the Destroyer immediately began to manoeuvre away from the planet, pulling into a higher orbit.

‘My apologies, General Skywalker, General Kenobi, Senator Amidala,’ said the Imperial, sharply. ‘The Hands, Prophets and Inquisitors have gone rogue, and along with them portions of the Intelligence apparatus. The peace accords have generally been unpopular in those circles, but we had not expected them to put together such a coordinated response so quickly.’ The Destroyer continued to pull back, and Alderaan Control announced an extension to the shield being raised to enable them to head beneath.

‘We shall withdraw to a support position, out of the traversed lanes of approach. If you require anything, let us know. I have a shuttle of the 501st prepared to launch, if you require any assistance.’

Padme reached over her daughters shoulder to open a channel. ‘Thank you, Grand Admiral. In the circumstances, please stand-off, and when we have dealt with the intruders in the Palace we will get back in touch.’

As if on cue, a Mon Calamari cruiser arrived in-system, it’s graceful bumps a countermeasure to the angular Imperial Star Destroyer. It was the Home One, the Republic flagship, and it immediately shifted itself between the planet and the Destroyer, the line of TIE fighters fleeing back to the Devastator. Padme addressed the cruiser. ‘Admiral Ackbar, hold fire - Grand Admiral Gentis was assisting us in resolving a situation in orbit, but we’re heading down to the Palace - there is a rogue Imperial commando team and the Palace is out of contact.’ Padme eyed her daughter, and then Kenobi. ‘Keep your men clear, there is a Dark Jedi in the Palace, probably two, knowing how they operate nowadays. I have General Kenobi with me and he and my husband will arrest them.’

A slight pause. ‘Acknowledged, Senator Amidala. May the Force be with you all.’

She ended the transmission, and Captain Panaka went to speak. Cutting him off swiftly, Padme spoke up. ‘We don’t have time. We have two of the most accomplished Jedi in the galaxy here. We’re best placed to deal with this.’

Now they were beneath the shield envelope, the dark side had two defined points. Both were in the Royal wing, but one was holding the entrance from the centre of the Palace, and the other was stalking towards a commotion in the Force in the area known as the planning salon on their drawings. Jamming overlapped across the Palace - the Imperials must have brought a generator for a ground based jammer, rather than rely upon the Spike.

‘Coming, husband of mine?’ Padme nudged her daughter to head to Palace. ‘The galaxy may as well know that you’re back with your typical mission - saving royalty.’ In spite of how scared and shaken she was, Padme was smiling, and she knew that as long as she had her husband and Kenobi beside her - a pairing that had triumphed the Clone Wars - that they could get through this.

On the surface, of course, the selfsame story was also evident. Feyna threw the blaster to Bail, who swiftly fired at the two other troopers; all four were downed, though the room was looking worse for wear. Bail rushed over to her, crouching down beneath the desk, whispering in spite of himself. ‘That was some quick thinking, daughter. Good work. Now all we need to do is find your mother and then we can move to secure the Palace -‘

A noise like a rush of movement sounded out, and the desk whirled away, an invisible fist slamming between the two of them and splitting them apart. Bail slid across the ground, dropping his blaster, while another invisible hand swept Feyna up and threw her into the far wall. A man in black leathers was walking down the corridor to the planning salon, looking amused.



‘The newly christened Senator Organa, and her father, architect of Rebellion and chaos.’ Bail scrabbled to his knees, pointedly looking at the blaster that Feyna had dropped in the scuffle, and lunging for his rifle. The Dark Jedi - what else could he be? - flicked his finger and the rifle leapt into the air, away from Bail, but he did nothing to Feyna’s weapon. Bail glanced for the other dropped rifles, and the one levitating abruptly reversed course and smashed into his forehead, sending him backwards with a grunt.

A second hand rose, and the two gloves hands clawed, parting, and the rifle ripped in two. ‘I am Qaga Lok, and sickened to say that I am Alderaanian by descent. Perhaps I have some royal blood in me. Perhaps not. But nobility is a something that my family abandoned years ago... but not the Force.’

He turned his hand, and the table made a loud splintering noise, a shard of wood becoming free-floating. His attention was entirely upon Bail, and then, split even further as his comlink. ‘Lok, this is Azrakel.’



‘You’ve lifted the jamming?’ Lok‘s voice was accusatory.

‘Just between our comlinks, of course.’ The other speaker sounded irritated. ‘The Spike is gone, and we will have incoming soon. The central hall is clear.’

‘We knew this was a quick in and out, idiot, was that worth interrupting my fun with the Prince Consort?’

‘Whatever, Lok. I’m just letting you know that I’m going for the Queen. Which means that the guards can reach your position. Don’t enjoy yourself too much.’

The line loudly clicked silent, and Lok sighed. ‘I suppose I should just be done with it.’

You see, this little Dark Jedi Rebellion, as it would be known, reflected events some nineteen years ago on Coruscant, where Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu and three Jedi Masters attempted to arrest Chancellor Palpatine, resulting in the Dark Lord of the Sith’s death. Mas Amedda had taken up the reins and enacted Order 66, and inherited control of a mass of Dark Jedi that Palpatine had been secretly been training. His first Hands, being young infants, his first Inquisitors, corrupted during the Clone Wars, and the Prophets of the Dark Side, who he had struck up an alliance with in the early years after he had taken Darth Tyranus as his apprentice.

Mas Amedda had managed to play the Grand Inquisitor, High Inquisitor Jerec, Supreme Prophet Kadann and Emperor’s Hand Cronal against each other, with him as the pliable and weak politician - the front man of the Empire. Now, however, with peace ahead, the Dark Jedi had no place in the future, and so, they had struck. Some of these attacks had begun days ago, secretly. Now they were spreading to Alderaan, Naboo, and Coruscant. The Dark Jedi Rebellion had been fought in the shadows between the Empire and its Dark Jedi, and now it was to reach its climax.

And not just on Alderaan, but above the room of Luke Skywalker, the Jedi team darted into high orbit, abandoning Mace and Chirrut and Baze to a duel to the death. Luke sought to use the Dark Troopers against Mara Jade, but they were not droids as he assumed, but in-fact humans, trained to an inch of their life’s. They paused the crossfire, but Mara would be blocking their path of fire so stopped between them. The troopers held fire, rifles ready, and she had her weapon ignited, prepared.

‘If I charge now, you’re going to be so busy deflecting shots that you’re going to be overwhelmed right up to the point when I cut you down.’ She paid no heed to the fight on the upper balcony. Brandl could handle himself, even if there was a Jedi up there.

Mara made a mental note of the hole in the glass; if Luke leapt for it, she would be able to stop him, but at the same point, if she charged him he would be able to jump free unless she was fast enough. Arguably they were at an impasse.

As long as she did not slowly walk forward, and close the space between them. Mara stepped forward, glass momentarily crunching under her boot.

This was going to be a quick end.

Not just on Naboo, but in the offices of Aryan Graul. The head of the Imperial Peace Committee, the so-called ‘Imperial face of peace.’

Shira Brie twirled, and spun, her lightwhip ill-equipped to deflect blasters and so she launched herself into the fray, spinning in the air and weaving the weapon around her. Energy met armour met flesh met bone, screams echoing out in the office, permeating the walls of the Senators safe room, the echo of gun fire causing a staccato drumming and the beat of fleeing civilian aides a thrum to the floor.

Eventually, silence.

His wife and son had listened with him, whispering to him sweet lines. His comlink vibrated with an incoming call - Chancellor Mon Mothma, on their most secure line. To talk to her was to mute his wife and son. Sentan Moor was hailing him on another line, repeatedly, but one would imagine it was easier to ignore the aide who had inadvertently hired an Emperor’s Hand.

Lyz spoke up. “It’s gone quiet, Arek. We can hang up now, it’s all over.”

“No, I want to know Dad is okay. Dad? Is it alright?”

A melodious chuckle rippled through the apartment, a kind of amusement which was almost as if a wind chime. “Senator Graul, I have an appointment, I am afraid. You would not want to be late for the most important HoloNet address of your life, would you?”

It was Shira Brie.

She had survived.

TAG: @LordTroepfchen, @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha (updated tag), @DarkLordoftheFins, @JediMasterAnne, @HanSolo29, @Lawbreaker, @BobaMatt (tag response pending), @QueenSabe7 (tag response pending)
—-
IC: Chewbacca
Mimban, settling in the mouth of the cave route to the Temple of Pomojema

The Wookiee settled the Falcon with Han, regarding the vicinity. They were under cover, but Chewbacca intended to take no risks. While Han dug into the ships guts, Chewbacca headed outside the YT-1300 and threw camouflage nets over the upper hull of the ship. The cave was massive, deep, even, and seemed to have been carved out of the mountain by something large, and, if the denuding was any evidence, natural. Chewbacca knew of such borrowing creatures on his homeworld, but not to this scale. As he regarded the walls of the cave, he knew that his eyes could not pierce deep into the depths, such was the distance.

It was while embracing his animal nature that he saw it. One of the portions of stone dropped from the upper wall, detaching and falling to the floor. Chewbacca, some distance away, had expected a loud crash, but instead the stone fell, impossibly, lightly, making very little noise.

It shortly shook itself free of its rocky exterior, and as it did so Chewbacca barely made out the glint of a black hide before it vanished into the shadow. The Wookiee held still, attuning himself to the dark, to the noise.

Nothing.

Conscious that he needed to get back inside before Han electrocuted himself, Chewbacca turned, and suddenly a thought occurred to him. Rushing up the ramp, he ignored whatever Han was saying and tapped into the sensors, ignoring that, if he was not careful, using such detection would reveal where they were hid. He growled.

Sure enough, that human, Rouser, had headed into the depths. He was going wandering, jauntily, and had no idea of what was coming his way. Chewbacca had not paid much attention to Mimbanese animals, having zero desire to return to the world after having been imprisoned here a good decade before, and he found no immediate references that matched the creature he had seen -

No, wait.

A click lead to an obscure unverified scientific report, on an aborted expedition to the Temple of Pomojema in the Republic era. The entry was one from Chewbacca’s old, old, old Wookiee network. It was pre-Clone Wars, and passed to friends of the Jedi Order, as the Council had intended to investigate the report.

A hsiss.

A dark side dragon.

Native to Korriban, homeworld of the Sith species, otherwise known as Moraband, Pesegam, and a host of other names for a Bad Place.



Chewbacca roared for Han’s attention, grabbing his bowcaster and letting the Corellian know that they had to go, that Rouser was in danger. That they would be in danger, unless they hunted the creature down.

For Rouser himself, mind you, the deeper he would enter the cave the problem of illumination would not be one that troubled him. The murals actually glowed. Impossibly so, actually. The golden paint seemed to have a life of its own, and it was, the script suggested, telling a creation myth.

When one birthed seven,
One birthed four,
And those four birthed many,
All blighted and poor.

In our skies the Destructors met the Protectors,
In our skies the Heart fell,
In our skies Pomojema died,
In our skies, the Coway tell.

The Protector was defeated,
Canu reined over all,
The Five became Three,
The Darkness, undisturbed and full,

Trespass not,
Unless on deaths door,
Supplicate to the triumphant Old,
Or you will be dead for sure.

A jaunty premonition, arguably. But centre to that little parable was a single image of the local, minor, deity which held the Kaiburr crystal - the first reference confirming that Rouser, was, indeed on the right path.



Such as it was.

Back at the Circle of Hell, prominently thanks to AT-ATs corralling Coway warriors, but without much guidance from a rapidly disintegrating command structure, Linnett and Zey were trading fire with innumerable Mudtroopers alongside Ka’rta and the Coway. The triumvirate faded into the swamps, vanishing with their honour guard, while the AT-ST marched forward.

‘Get down!’ Goran shouted access the Mandalorian’s comms, and he dove into the fray, blasting the AT-ST walker and pulling up, his shields peeling back as a distant AT-AT drew a bead on him. Van swapped in, taking shots on his forward shields to protect Goran, and then they were out of range. As the walker dropped, it caused a mass of slaves, warriors and troopers crying out as its burning corpse exploded, adding even more confusion to the retreat.

But their charmed luck did not follow through for Linnett. A Mudtrooper, assault rifle levelled, stitched a powerful shot across her forehead, hurtling her partially up the ramp to the Osik. Linnett would be conscious, but lucid was another thing. It was a bad head wound, and she had been thrown bodily to the ramp, skull-first. A concussion was the least of their worries.

Zey cried out, rushing up the ramp. ‘Linnett!’ The violence was reaching an uproar, but the Coway were up the ramp as Ven, blaster in each hand, covered them from the top of the ramp. ‘Ka’rta, I’ve got this. Get us into orbit before the AT-ATs catch up.’

Another Coway, a woman adorned in human skeletons, lifted a pair of goggles from her eyes. ‘I am Bladeborn in your tongue. I can show you the way, Sky-Walker.’ The Coway headed towards the cockpit, as her comrades fired shots from their spears or stolen rifles.

Ven chuckled to himself, and Zey, a Jedi Master undercover, would have wondered about that name, but he was too focused on his Padawan. ‘Mandalorian,’ he snapped at Ka’rta. ‘Where is your medbay!’

Ven sniggered. Ka’rta was not going to like that. Most of the Coway were bare foot, too, traipsing mud through her ship. What a day. ‘AT-AT has turned towards you,’ shouted Goran, ‘Get up!’

Ven winced in spite of himself. Not at the AT-AT, but at Goran. ‘There’s no need to shout over comms!’

‘Guys, I have someone claiming to be a Sun Guard on the line,’ said Van, suspiciously. ‘Demanding to be put through to Ka’rta. Calling himself Owen? He’s the yellow armoured di’kut trying to outrun that AT-AT.’

‘When it rains, it pours, eh?’ Ven joked to himself as he looked down the ramp, using the sight in his blaster to pick out the Sun Guard. A rival mercenary group at the best of days, or the reminder of a four millennia old feud which a Sith had ended abruptly. Either way, Ven was ready to shoot the guy.

TAG: @galactic_vagabond422, @RachelTyrell, @Jerjerrod Lennox, @TheSilentInfluence, @Kaleesh-Cyborg (outstanding tag), @MASTER Vo’Un’Var (outstanding tag)


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