Leaderboard

Mordecai returned the nod, motioning for the Mandalorian to follow him through the ship. "If you will follow me, there is much to discuss, and not all of it is suited for outside ears." He plugged the holodisk into a handheld projector, inspecting the designs as they walked. They were smaller than the Mark VIs that filled his hangars, and had access to a torpedo launcher. It did, however, lack the two extra lasers and shield system that had made the Mark VIs an ideal retrofit candidate. it seemed to be a return to the Empire's mass production of cheaply made fighters at a time where every use of resources was critical. He rubbed the stubble on his chin. The benefit was that these were produced by the Mandalorian worlds, not their own. "In future rollouts, it may be worthwhile to include shield generators. Other than that, I see no reason why I cannot retrieve your squadrons after my resupply at Geonosis." They arrived at the command center shortly after. He had not returned here since Naboo had burned beneath his armada. There was a brief hesitation, and then he entered. It was mostly empty, the few low level officers that were present working on their duties snapping to attention as he entered. He waved them off, letting them return to their work. He took his position at the head of the holographic display, the shattered board not yet repaired from his actions over Trulalis. He sighed as that moment rushed back to him. The grief, the rage, both threatening to once more take hold of him. He pushed them down, bottling them up. Those would serve him well in a fight, but right now, he needed to focus. "As you likely know, Tros, I have been instructed by the Dark Lord to carry out the vital task of slaying the Rebel Empress. She has hidden on her base of Nar Shaadaa since her attempted assassination by Quela Darksong over Borleais, only leaving on her flagship of the Misercordia. That said, my sources do not believe she will flee the system when we attack. Whether she takes to the battle aboard the Misercordia, or remains at the Rebel Headquarters, she will be heavily defended. My power is great, but this is a fight I cannot win alone. I need to strike fast, and strike surgically. While I could take the vessel or headquarters with a legion of our Marines, it would be a long and costly endeavor, with a high likelyhood of her escape. This is unacceptable." He looked up to Tros, his eyes glowing with the faintest traces of rage and a lust for vengeance. "I hear that Mandalorians are the best fighters in the galaxy aside from those who wield the Force. I would like to put that to the test. Give me three squads of your best to assist myself and my personal guard in the attack, and my hangar is yours for your three squadrons."

Lok squatted as the group stopped, running her fingers through the sands as he looked toward the cliff facing, letting the moment of dread and unease climb his spin. Everything he knew as a Jedi, as an Imperial Knight, was thrown to the wind in the case of this world. It was saturated in the Darkside, even the small pebble like shards of glass that made up its sands and dirt. It felt as if every molecule and atom was drenched in its unnatural divide. And yet, there was life. There was flora and fauna all across this world, and even the Force that flowed from its core and across its surface tinged with it, as dark as it may be. There was life, but it was corrupted. And a world such as this, even all the exorcists within the Remnant would question their combined ability to cleanse such a saturation. Replacing his glove, Lok stood and averted his gaze toward the others as one by one, they dove into the murky depths below. "Water. Why is it always water?" Lok questioned as he made the short trek to catch up with the group. It wasn't to say that Lok feared water. Nor that he lacked the power to course it. That wasn't the case. It was simply a primal fear that had always plagued him, a simple fear of darkness, the unseen, that set his nerves tingling. A few feet, he was okay, as light could penetrate. Even a few meters, and visually, things could be still be made out. Any deeper than that, and only the cold blanket of darkness would be all one could know. Shaking, he approached the lunge. Grabbing his blade in hand, unactivated, he took a few deep breaths and followed the others into the cold abyss.

Kadi's frown dissipated as the cats bounded up to her, and she returned their affection with her own, rubbing them softly as she and Telperien spoke. It was nice to let her guard down- It had felt like the last few months had been spent going from one gruelling battle of attrition to another, with her only respite being the time it took to get from place to place, and the time it took for her to heal between each fight. She glanced up- the canopy was nearly bare, the burned branches holding few leaves now. One day, the trees would recover. This village would either be repopulated, or be reclaimed by the surrounding nature. Still, there was nothing wrong with mourning for what had been. She scratched behind one of the cats' ears, looking back at Telperien. "I'm glad you found me. It'll be nice to talk outside of an active warzone..." How did one apologize for killing someone? Hey, sorry I murdered you, it was for the greater good? No, maybe it was best left unsaid. But how their last meeting had ended certainly didn't help with the awkwardness of meeting someone who normally, she'd be dutybound to fight. It concerned her- was this awkwardness just a matter of past hostilities, or because she had unintentionally separated herself from the act of killing someone? She didn't know, but it wasn't an introspective moment she wanted to have right now. "Sorry, I don't really know what to talk about. The weather?"

Telperien likewise sat, pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on top of them. She lifted a hand and pointed to the creatures in turn. Her thin finger pointed to one of the saber cats, who bore a thin white stripe from the muzzle to the tip of its long tail. Then to the one with a matching black stripe. “This is Hono, and Kai.” She waved the finger again and released the two cats from the subtle control she kept on them. They reacted instantly to the Jedi’s use of the force. Bounding up to the woman to give her gentle but persistent head butts until she petted them. They were animals originally bred for war in the ancient pre human era of Naboo. But they also deeply desired the loving contact of others. They were a little too human in that way. “I followed the force, hoping that it would lead me back to you.” The Jedi woman was an enigma, it was undoubted that Telperien was attracted to her, but she also found herself just desiring someone like Kadi to talk to. To ponder the meaning of this brutal and short life.

The Prism appeared in the appropriate shipping late, at an appropriate time, with no inappropriate red flags to Taris Flight Control. Completely inoffensive in every way. Unobtrusively, the YT freighter fell into a stable orbit and would stay there for an appropriate amount of time. Tobias had deactivated the personality subroutines on the PIT Droids- so they were finally behaving. If they, the collective they of all organic and the three droids on board, got in a fight he had a macroprogram to reactivate the droids personality. Ni was stationed in the cockpit, Tobias gathered @Kota Ni and @The Architect in the main hold on the YT as Apprentice Kel (@karyu128) flew in formation next to them. Idly, Tobias wanted to get a bigger ship so that he could collect the Kel'Dor, but he had made this his home- this ship. To abandon it like his old N1 was unthinkable. Besides, with the Peregrine Cirlce starting back up, and the Order's increasing hostile stance on the Sith and Black Sun, with the Mandalorians on the rise- the communication capabilities of this craft would be invaluable. "Kota, I'd like for you to meditate for a moment- do you sense your sister here?" Tobias questioned his apprentice. "Clear your mind, and try to feel for something familiar." While they all had come into the system with no remarkable maneuvers or eye catching classifications, Tobias would burn their way to the slavers that took youngling female Ni.

Celteo smiled at her words. She was more kind than he has suspected, her reputation proceeding her as ruthless and devilish as the Sith of old. But what he saw was much like himself, ruthless when the need arose, but gentle if there was no need for the other side to be shown. Either that, or perhaps she saw something of herself in him, perhaps a kindred spirit as Celteo was beginning to notice in her. If only he had met her a little over a decade ago, perhaps they could have been more than just partners. "Indeed we do mi'lady." Celteo spoke with a chipper tone, graciously grasping her fingers as he kissed the top of her hand before returning to his desk and quickly grabbing his comm. As a young female voice responded, Celteo spoke but a few words. "Katelynn, Operation Muur is a go." "Are you sure Father?" She questioned with hesitation, even the Nekghoul within the room motioning with perplexed looks upon their grotesque faces. He smiled. " Yes darling. It's time." Placing the comm unit aside, Celteo shifted his gaze back toward Zalis with a grin, his fingers crossed as numerous ships left Taris's underbelly with destinations spread across the Outer Rim, all plotted with separate coordinates that would prevent their original placement being tracked back to Taris aside from the Rakghoul in which they carried. "Lady Zalis, it begins. Soon every planet in the Outer Rim will be plagued with the Rakghoul disease of Taris with no way of being traced back to us, and my company holds the only cure thanks to the synthetic antidote we rediscovered from the Muur Talisman I gave Ason Antilles. Lachlan Incorporated will become heroes, and all the while, Czerka grows richer as the foolish wish to rid themselves of the plague that has haunted us for centuries. Now it's their turn to know our plight."