Qaela

Ğ̴̺̻̠͎͊͛̀̃̅̊͘͘̕ͅḻ̶̡̳̞͉̣͔̹̯͐̿̒̏́͘ͅǫ̶̣͎̤͎̈̉̃̄͌̕̕͠r̷͔͙̩̱̝̦̓̑ͅͅi̶̳͍̍̓̌͛̑̃o̴̧͈͕͎̦͈͔͕̰̐ų̴͌̽̋̀ṣ̴̢͕̲̼̞͊̚ ̷̧̡̘̤̭͍̟̞͕̘͊̍̓́̈͊͘͝Ċ̷͖̰͙̖̝̝̟̘̯̙͌̿â̴̡͈̹͔̖̥͔̤̣͋́̄͒͋͛̔̓̐ṙ̴̻͎̬̥̖͇̭̦̈́̒̊͗̇ͅn̶͈̠͍͎̘̂̎͝a̵̱̹̪̘̲͖͚̪̯̙̓͛͗ǧ̸̨̨̛͓̣̩̝̳̍̎̊̔͋͘ě̶̛̹̜̖͇̤͓̟̓̌̔͂ͅ The impact of precision fire against the hull of her Herløv caused the deck plates to tremble slightly, but Qaela paid them no mind. Damage was fairly minor, but they had managed to destroy the last of the pesky corvettes. She smiled slightly as she saw one of the enemy cruisers erupt in flames and begin breaking apart, but the enemy reinforcements brought with them some significant firepower that needed to be dealt with. There would be a great deal of hard questions asked in the next few days as to how such a large Rebel force could ambush a Sith stronghold such as Kuat and pose such a significant threat. She noticed the heavy fire that the Black Bracer was experiencing and wanted to get them some relief. Even then, it would be difficult with so many enemy ships firing on them, but they would have to do so. The constant threat of determined focused fire against their ranks could quickly turn one of their heavy destroyers into nothing but a brilliant beacon of death and carnage. Giving more orders and redirecting the fleet's firepower, she waited with carefully restrained enthusiasm as the battle continued to unfold.

Sith Results, End Round 3 Sith Fleet under Command of Qaela Sith Empire Destroyer Group [Turbolasers]: Focus Fire Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 2XP Assigned Callsign: Herløv Kyber class Star Destroyer Herløv (16/17) Sith Empire Destroyer Group [Missiles]: Focus Fire Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Assigned Callsign: Lightsbane Imperial II class Star Destroyer Lightsbane (8/20) Sith Empire Rapid Intervention Escort: Deadly Response Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Assigned Callsign: Glutton's Shadow Neutron Star-Class Bulk Cruiser Shadow's Sleight (8/9) Gladiator II-Class Star Destroyer Gleeful Glutton (0/0) Sith Fleet under Command of Nok Heavy Brawler Escort: Hammer and Anvil Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Bulwark Mark II Black Bracer (8/30) Destroyer Group (Missiles): Focus Fire Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Captor-class Heavy Munitions Cruiser Moon Beetle (9/9) Captor-class Heavy Munitions Cruiser The Broken Bullet (9/9) Covert Strike Force: Silent Hunters Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Nova-class Battle Cruiser Our Velvet Ire (9/9) Sith Fleet under Command of Mordecai Asset Denial Force: Surgical Strike Assigned PC: Mordecai Valar Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Victory II Cruiser Wyvern (9/9) Lancer Frigate Dark Hand (3/3) Tartan Corvette TC-64523 (2/1) Tartan Corvette TC-64524 (2/1) Tartan Corvette TC-64525 (2/1) Tartan Corvette TC-64526 (2/1) Electronic Warfare Pod: Information Control Assigned PC: Mordecai Valar Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Acclamator II Cruiser Shroud of Darkness (9/9) Pelta Class Frigate Deceiver (0/0) Thranta Corvette TH-78143 (0/1) Thranta Corvette TH-78144 (2/1) Thranta Corvette TH-78145 (2/1) Thranta Corvette TH-78146 (2/1) Covert Strike Force: Silent Hunters Assigned PC: Mordecai Valar Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Strike Class Cruiser Coalescent Fury (9/9)

Ḿ̷̛͇͎̣̔̈́͒̍̃̓̚͘o̴̙̥͚̖̖͋̏̇̓r̵͍͐̀̈́e̴̛̪̥̐̑̍́̇̇͜ͅ ̴̪̀̆̋̈́̅̈́̓̕̚t̵̖͈̦̑͒̑̂͐̑o̸͕̿ ̸̗̖̙̠̅t̴̡̢̡̛̖̂̏h̷̡̻̺͔̤̬̬͈̮́̉̄̚ę̸̛̛̛̭͍̮̈́̈́͛͗̓̇̕ ̷͙̣͆̾̄Ṣ̷̨̹̲̱̦̳̭̫̓͋͆͐l̴̡̧̲͍̰̮̩̝̆a̷̡̢̨̦̹̜͔̝̲͋̽͝u̵̢̖͇̹̎̓̓ġ̸̢͉̖͚̪̉͋̌̑͘͘͘͜͝h̵̬̞͍̦̣͋́͗̓̏̀͑̀̿͝t̸͚̣̯͔̬̩͕͓̭̫͛̓̍̅ě̸̢̤̫͙͖ṙ̷̮̦̼͙͇̎ͅ Sith Fleet under Command of Qaela Sith Empire Destroyer Group [Turbolasers]: Focus Fire Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 2XP Assigned Callsign: Herløv Kyber class Star Destroyer Herløv (20/20) Sith Empire Destroyer Group [Missiles]: Focus Fire Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Assigned Callsign: Lightsbane Imperial II class Star Destroyer Lightsbane (8/20) Sith Empire Rapid Intervention Escort: Deadly Response Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Assigned Callsign: Glutton's Shadow Neutron Star-Class Bulk Cruiser Shadow's Sleight (8/9) Gladiator II-Class Star Destroyer Gleeful Glutton (0/0) Sith Fleet under Command of Nok Heavy Brawler Escort: Hammer and Anvil Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Bulwark Mark II Black Bracer (20/30) Destroyer Group (Missiles): Focus Fire Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Captor-class Heavy Munitions Cruiser Moon Beetle (9/9) Captor-class Heavy Munitions Cruiser The Broken Bullet (9/9) Covert Strike Force: Silent Hunters Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Nova-class Battle Cruiser Our Velvet Ire (9/9) Sith Fleet under Command of Mordecai Asset Denial Force: Surgical Strike Assigned PC: Mordecai Valar Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Victory II Cruiser Wyvern (9/9) Lancer Frigate Dark Hand (3/3) Tartan Corvette TC-64523 (2/1) Tartan Corvette TC-64524 (2/1) Tartan Corvette TC-64525 (2/1) Tartan Corvette TC-64526 (2/1) Electronic Warfare Pod: Information Control Assigned PC: Mordecai Valar Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Acclamator II Cruiser Shroud of Darkness (9/9) Pelta Class Frigate Deceiver (3/3) Thranta Corvette TH-78143 (2/1) Thranta Corvette TH-78144 (2/1) Thranta Corvette TH-78145 (2/1) Thranta Corvette TH-78146 (2/1) Covert Strike Force: Silent Hunters Assigned PC: Mordecai Valar Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Strike Class Cruiser Coalescent Fury (9/9) A massive, brilliant explosion briefly lit up the holos in the bridge of the Herløv. Qaela frowned as the Gleeful Glutton took the brunt of heavy fire and erupted into a fireball of metal and shrapnel. Numerous of the pesky corvettes also perished in the exchange, but not enough and the loss of one of her ships greatly displeased her. It was battle, but those were here shield to protect her own forces. The losses didn't concern her so much as it showed that the enemy was capable of inflicting damage on larger ships. The worst part of it was the sudden influx of enemy ships joining the fray. While reinforcements of their own began to stream in, looking at the makeup, Qaela realized they were in some potential trouble with the enemy firepower now displayed against them. Before, they had the advantage in terms of destructive potential, now, that had shifted slightly to the Rebels. At least one of the enemy's cruisers was belching flame and so full of holes, it amazed her the ship hadn't broken up yet. One thing she did like was that it seemed these Rebels were focused heavily on simply unleashing damage, not in protecting themselves. That meant more damage output, true, but it also meant less protection for their own ships. It was a curious move from a group of people that claimed to value their own lives, but perhaps these were the old Imperials still in command.

S̸̛̲͈̟̜͉̟̮̳̖̖̃̌̈́͑̉͝h̴̭͇̥̣̜̥̱͔̟͚̎̃̀̓̿̀̅̚é̴̙̙̳̭̪̼͖̥͉̊̏̎͊͌͒ͅe̸̛͓̥̒͊͒̒̊͜͝p̷̼̼̳͙̗̹̝̭̈́͛̄̍̿̒ͅ ̴̧͔̗̘̎̋̇̽͘B̴̞͉̿͌̓̕͜ȅ̵̥̱̫͖̠̼͙͐̈́̎̉͗ͅf̴̹̤̪͓̘̤̠͑̓̉̍͛̌͘͜͠͠o̵͍̓̈́̀̋r̷̨̨̢̢̲̩̟̤͎͖̀̓͋̈̋͑̊̚ȩ̷̺͚̘͎̌̈̂̈̄͆͑͘͠͝ͅ ̴̨̛͎̦͇̰̗͖͆̾̈́̔̌W̶̜̃̿͘͠ȍ̴͇̜́̏̑̏̀̉͝ļ̵͇̬̻̼͔͙͓̜̇̈́̚ͅv̶̗̘̗̲̋͑̍͋̓̋̑̍͒͆ͅẻ̵̡̪͓̗̹̮̫̖̻̓̍̐͗̏͗̐̿͝s̴̬̘͈̮̀̎̋̅̓ Sith Fleet under Command of Qaela Sith Empire Destroyer Group [Turbolasers]: Focus Fire Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 2XP Assigned Callsign: Herløv Kyber class Star Destroyer Herløv (20/20) Sith Empire Destroyer Group [Missiles]: Focus Fire Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Assigned Callsign: Lightsbane Imperial II class Star Destroyer Lightsbane (14/20) Sith Empire Rapid Intervention Escort: Deadly Response Assigned PC: Qaela Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Assigned Callsign: Glutton's Shadow Neutron Star-Class Bulk Cruiser Shadow's Sleight (9/9) Gladiator II-Class Star Destroyer Gleeful Glutton (1/9) Sith Fleet under Command of Nok Heavy Brawler Escort: Hammer and Anvil Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Bulwark Mark II Black Bracer (20/30) Destroyer Group (Missiles): Focus Fire Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Captor-class Heavy Munitions Cruiser Moon Beetle (9/9) Captor-class Heavy Munitions Cruiser The Broken Bullet (9/9) Covert Strike Force: Silent Hunters Assigned PC: Nok Morliss (commanded by NPC Jaden Jorus) Task Force Experience: Green, 1XP Nova-class Battle Cruiser Our Velvet Ire (9/9) * * * * * Qaela's Fleet, In Battle War was a glorious thing. It culled the weak and honed the strong. While war could sometimes be wasteful, in the right hands, it was the conflict necessary for life to continue and to account for nature's predator and prey mentality that being sentient had largely eliminated from the equation. Seeing the enemy corvettes explode before her as they tried to attack her flagship was a thing of beauty. Feeling the deaths of those scores upon scores of beings was but a trickle of the greater flood of carnage that was soon to come. She was pleased to see none of her own ships explode, though the Gleeful Glutton's shields took so much fire they were on the verge of collapse. The smaller destroyer had a purpose, and it was in shielding her own flagship from the focused enemy fire that lit up space between their two fleets. It might be callous, but she understood that even among the strong, the pawns had to fall so that the queen could continue to direct the larger fight. News of enemy raiders landing among the shipyards was of concern to her, so she ordered the assault shuttles from her own fleet to launch with their compliments to aid in the defense of the Sith Empire's future fleet. The army that was planning on invading the Corellian System wasn't with them, but rather had remained in deep space safely out of the way. Attempting to call them would be difficult with the jamming, but she also didn't want them jumping to Kuat in the middle of a fight where they could take tremendous losses. Losing troops in ground combat against other enemy soldiers was honorable and glorious, but losing a defenseless ship full of troops in space was shameful and humiliating. It was best to defeat this fleet and then deal with whatever the Rebels were planning on the Shipyards, so she gave further orders and her mighty ships adapted and continued the battle in earnest.

Ö̸̠̖̳̘͈͙̹̖̬́͑p̶̡̪̺̲͕̖̘͎̣̏͒ȇ̸̲̪̭̳̜̟̦̖̭̈́̀̽͘ņ̸̲̺̹̭͈͍̪̭̌̒̎̉ͅi̴̛̺̭n̷̟̪̰͓̯̣̖̺̝̈́g̴͓̳̜̜̲͗̓̈́̀ ̸̠͇͕͊͋̐͋S̴͍̬̦̹̓͌͆̿͗̀̌̕͠h̴̩̱̩̑͌̚ọ̷̧͕̲̩͕̯̐̾̿ț̵̛͉̣̤̉͑̕s̷̺̬̣̠̱͕͚͙̽̌̋̍̈́ Qaela's Fleet, entering battle Qaela's crew was quick to get into action now that they had been able to take in more of the situation around them. Still, it was frustrating how long it took to establish line of sight communications with infrared lasers, but it was better than nothing with the jamming going on. The Sith's engineers and comms specialists would soon be able to connect with an orbiting comms array to serve as a proxy hub for communications, but until then, this would have to work. Qaela saw the fleet arrayed against them and was eager to fight. The enemy would certainly be going to attack the Shipyards, and that was something that she didn't want. It was crucial that the Sith fleet continue to grow. They needed to cut through the enemy fleet as quickly as possible and try to cut them off from their boarding parties attacking the Shipyards. At least there, they may be able to trap the enemy where the constantly increasing number of Sith reinforcements could wipe them out and save the Shipyards. She saw the enemy fleets forming to attack the new arrivals and quickly selected her targets. Issuing a stream of orders, she began to mentally prepare for the battle ahead. Opening up to the Force, she prepared to feel the delicious taste of hundreds or thousands of deaths to stream over her like a savory waterfall. She also reached out and began searching for any particularly strong Force signatures indicating either fellow Sith or rival Light Side sycophants in the nearby area. Shipyard Zone 24 [[For Vox]] Sith Shipyard forces, while initially overwhelmed by the sudden onslaught of the Trandoshan led attack, were not entirely incompetent. Since they were not prepared for an attack, there were only a few troopers and a scattering of lightly armed Shipyard Security Forces (SSF) on hand to repel the initial attack. They did what they could, but it was clearly not sufficient. Instead of trying to completely drive off the attack, those in the area focused on slowing down the Rebel incursion. They weren't suicidal in making their stand, but they also weren't going to give up too much ground without a fight. Quick, makeshift traps were laid in key corridors with laser tripwires attached to shape charges. Troopers or SSF officers positioned themselves in fire zones to ambush the advancing enemy as well. Finally, security continually monitored the enemy as they advanced in, guiding and coordinating the responding forces even if they were outnumbered and mostly focusing on harassing. Their ultimate goal was to wait until further reinforcements could continue to stream in and Sith troop transports from Kuat's surface could pour hundreds of heavily armed, battle hardened soldiers into the fray. On board the various ships in Zone 24, Sith forces were still struggling against the insurgency. They took a lot of losses from the sudden revolt, but were quickly regrouping and preparing to sabotage the ships to prevent their escape. The Rebel insurgents had taken the engine rooms, reactor, and bridges of the Destroyers, but were constantly at risk of counterattack from the Sith loyalists.

S̶̀͆͠ͅî̵̡̖̫̣͖̝̬́̋͒́͝ͅt̵̥͈͎͚̃ȟ̴͖̣̮͇̺̻͙̰̱̈́̋͊̀̀̈́̈̀̓ ̵̧̦̤̣̃̓̈́̒̔̄̂͆͆̽F̴͚͙͚̿̉̾͐͘͝o̸̹͗̓͝r̵̼̰͔̰͓̤͊̈̀̔̽͊ç̸̛̻̫̰͙̯̠̰̂́͜͝è̴̡̧̡̛̛͇̟͔̳̪͇͐͒̄̊͛ş̷͕͔͈̤̃̂̓̓͌̌̌ͅ Sith Fleet under Command of Qaela Sith Fleet under Command of Nok

C̵̝͖̠̺͕͛̊̿̕ȯ̶̢̡̗̳͎̝͖̰͔̩̿̅̀̅̽̒̕͘ṃ̷̩̈́͌̌̂̽ę̶̰̳͇̩̜̝͍͖̙͂̌̓̈́ś̵̯̙̗̹̯̺̲̀͌͋̋̚͝͠ ̷̛͎̼̦̠̲̩̰͈̠̄̓̍F̷̧̛̤̯̺͇͚͇͖̀̒̌̃̃̈́̕o̸̡̺̹̦̹̺̙͆͛̄̈́͐̋r̷̛̼t̶̤̲̟́̅͗̾ͅh̶̡̧̟͎̹͍̜͔͈̫̓͋͛̈́͝ ̸͉͎͈̙̺̟̺͔̝̇͌̚̚͠F̶̢̲̜͚̔r̷͉̓͐̿ơ̵̝̒͗͐̽̈́͐̐̕m̴̨̲͚̘̗̈́̔̍͆ ̴̡͙̠̟̻̱͒͛͗̑̃D̴̩̫͕̺̱̪̳̳͛ͅa̴͙̲̞͇̅̒̈r̴͔̼͖̣̋ḳ̴͙̘͇̘̣̪̏̒̒̔͊̔̾̾͒͘ṋ̵̞̀̊̏̆ě̴̢̧͔̜͓͙̗͋̃͂s̴̤͕̣̟̦͙͈̫̒̈̎̅̽̋͜s̶̜̲͖̼͔̰̥͕͑̔́̔̏͗ͅ Qaela's Fleet, edge of battle Four large ships reverted from hyperspace in close formation, only to find themselves in the middle of a sensor jamming blanket. Qaela stood on board the Herløv and frowned in displeasure at this fact, even as her ships began attempting to scan the region and get an idea of what was going on. The tactical holos on the bridge remained a distorted static as their sensors were unable to properly identify the hundreds of ships, stations, shipyards, and other structures in their immediate vicinity. She could see small specs of light on her viewscreen, but not identify yet what they were and what it was she was here to destroy. This jamming would partially explain why Governor Ornkala had given such a poor showing so far, but not entirely. His failure to have already rallied a defense or even to have allowed such an attack so close to the shipyards was unforgivable. Unless he proved himself in the next few minutes, it was likely that his time among the living was quite short. Perhaps, given the Spider's blessing, she would be able to rive his soul. "Start working on punching through that jamming," she ordered. This wasn't exactly an Outer Rim planet, there were thousands of various comm and sensor satellites and relays in the area, so the jamming would only hold for so long before at least some communications could start punching through and she could begin rallying the Sith garrison to the defense. Until then, she would have to content herself on waiting until her ships could break through the jamming or at least get in close enough to visually identify and fire upon targets. * * * * * * Golan Defense Station Major Hogorens was in the command center of the Golan Defense Station Echo-Two when everything went off at once. Alarms were blaring and klaxons were pounding into his skull like drums. To his complete and utter shock, ships began pouring into the space around his station and began launching scores upon scores of fighters. It didn't take a genius to figure out these were not Sith Imperial forces which meant they had to be Rebels. Despite the surprise of the audacity and close range in which the Rebels had managed to jump in, he began barking orders out and summoning the crew to general quarters. Shields struggled to go up, but enemy shots hit their station and blasted holes into it including where the shield generators had been housed. With a grimace of frustration, Hogorens watched as the unprepared and partially staffed gunnery crews began opening fire at the incoming ships, but their efforts were hampered by the sudden jamming that was scattering their range finders. More gunners would start getting to position, but that would take some time as they struggled to get into their turrets. Until then, he could only stand by as he saw landing craft head towards him. Running to the small weapons locker in the command center, he used his authorization code to open it and began distributing weapons and sidearms to the crew there. If the enemy wanted to come on board, he would do his best to make sure they had a hot welcome. * * * * * * * Shipyard Zone 24 The Sith, upon capturing Kuat, had immediately ordered massive production of war materiel and ships. The Kuati elite, more loyal to credits than politics, was generally more than eager to accept the Sith contracts and begin building mighty Star Destroyers and smaller supporting ships for the Empire's war effort. Even though some of the rank and file workers might have had some qualms about serving new masters, the Sith were providing jobs and money to put food on their family's table. There had been some early issues of sabotage of some of the Sith efforts, but those had been brutally punished and generally, the workers had shaped up and did their jobs as required. That didn't mean that those workers had forgotten or changed their beliefs. There were some among the population of Kuat who were still loyal to the Imperial Remnant and bitterly opposed the invading Sith. While the most vocal of opponents had quickly been identified and rounded up by the Inquisition, there were still many who were smart enough to keep their opinions very close to the chest. As with almost any occupied planet, underground resistance formed to oppose the Sith Empire and, after months and months of planning, had managed to get people into the right place at the right time to make a stand. In Shipyard Zone 24, the Sith had been building up more of its Kyber class Star Destroyers. Three were now almost complete, waiting for its crews to embark. In addition to those three, there were also two Victory II Star Destroyers also all but ready to be christened, and another six Kyber Destroyers in various late stages of construction, but not yet ready for deployment. Rebel sympathizers had altered schedules and falsified reports to where these ships were all but empty of any but Rebels and a handful of Sith loyalists. When the Rebels had arrived as planned, their allies within the shipyards were ready, but they still needed help overwhelming the small number of Sith troopers and crew that they had not been able to get removed from the schedule. Seeing the Rebel attack, hundreds of Rebel resistance members went to action attacking and killing or detaining those that they could and beginning the process of detaching the five ships that were ready so they could depart. Even so, their risk was tremendous as it didn't take long for the rest of the Shipyard Security forces to realize what was going on and start sending dozens and hundreds of Sith troopers to these ships to attempt to quell the insurrection. Without reinforcements from the Rebel fleet, the resistance members would quickly be overrun and slaughtered without mercy.

Qaela's eyes lit up in anticipation when the enemy dropping out of hyperspace before the Sith forces. This would be a glorious battle sending many to their deaths. As both sides began squaring up for battle, a high priority message flashed across her command console. Normally, she would ignore incoming messages at the start of battle, but this was of such urgent priority that she read it, fearing it was the Emperor himself. To her dismay, it was not the Spider, but rather the panicked governor of Kuat indicating a sizable Rebel incursion into the shipyards of that planet begging for help from any nearby Sith forces. With much of the Sith fleet dedicated to expanding the Empire, the defenses at Kuat itself had been slightly lower than normal with the thoughts that the Rebels would never dare be so audacious as to strike such a fortified location. Even some of her own fleet here had been taken from Kuat, so she was quite angered at this report. For a few moments, she debated what to do: it was frustrating to see the enemy present and battle ready to commence, but she knew that she must do what was best for the Empire. As much as she wanted to draw blood and conquer Corellia, it was far more important to the Empire to protect Kuat. Since they were relatively close, it was critical that they answer the call for help. With gritted teeth, she called out new orders to the fleet. "Kuat is under attack by the Rebels, we must answer the call for help and protect our hard won shipyards. Corellia will have to wait, it will have its day, but we must withdraw and go to Kuat to deal with the Rebels there." Even if it meant losing the beachhead on Centerpoint, they needed to withdraw and with every ship available. With a fleet like what was now facing them, they couldn't risk leaving a portion of their forces behind. Giving the order and coordinates to Commander Jorus, her ships immediately began pulling back, recalling their fighters and bombers, and preparing for the jump to Kuat. She looked back at the enemy forces arrayed against them with a small shake of her head in sorrow. The Rebels might think they won a victory here, but she knew what the ultimate result of this disruption of her plan would be. The Empire could not lose face to this attack and would return to take Corellia. Instead of the methodical, tactical, step by step approach she had planned, they would come in overwhelming numbers without any thought to holding back the destruction they would unleash. Corellia would be devastated and left in ruin as a symbol to those who would resist the Empire's might. Many more would die than would otherwise had and while Qaela didn't care about loss of life, she did care about wasting good resources and upsetting the Balance. Her fleet would jump momentarily and soon, they would face battle over Kuat.

T̸̲̺̰͔̔͝h̵̛̻̉͊̍́͑è̶̹̰̦̖̫͔͇̝͇̊ ̷̣̗̝̥̘̩̗̎͆S̸̠͓̠̯̈́̃̀h̴̡͚̪̫̭̤̯͓̓͜͝͝͝͝ā̶̘̘̜͓d̵̠̦̮͈̭͙̤̼͈̬͒̀̅͊̋̏̕o̷̧̹̣͙͒͌́̾͊̓̿̐͠w̶̢̭̟̮̍̅̚͜ ̶̻̗͆̒̂̈́̕G̵̨̥̫͍̲̫͈͈̒́͂͂́̓̃͜ͅr̶̨̐͋̊͊̈͗͊́̈́̊ͅo̶̲̻͔̗̐̃ẅ̴̭͍̱̬̬̦̥͍́̍̏͒͋ͅs̸̢̨̰͙̥͉̺̾͒́̚ ̶̝̫̹̲̺͒́̂́̇͌D̵͉͌e̴͖̙͝ĕ̵̡̼͚͓̻̩͕̯̆͌͛͋͘͝͝ͅp̷̜̼͇͖̳̤̻̪̦̞̃̽̂̊̎̃̊̂̅ȩ̶̛̫̬̲̔͘̚͝r̶̡̫̦̫̤̲̕ With reinforcements having arrived and repairs to her own Herløv complete, Qaela was ready for the Sith to move to their next target: the Twin Worlds. The two worlds orbited each other almost like equal moons while also orbiting Corell. Centerpoint, their stronghold, was firmly between the two planets thus making the two worlds the next logical move simply due to proximity. While their first skirmish was just that, a skirmish, this time she would be attacking with a much larger force designed to do significant damage if needed. With barely over three million inhabitants, Talus didn't have a large population, especially compared to Corellia itself, but Qaela was determined to take it as part of the Sith's overall objective of taking this system. Her goal was to occupy one of the two worlds then swiftly take the other all in one fell swoop. The ship manufacturing on these two planets wasn't huge, but it was still worthy of occupying. Leaving Mordecai and his task force to protect Centerpoint, she and the substantial reinforcements that had recently arrived began its steady sublight advance towards Talus. Assault shuttles and massive landing craft followed, waiting for their opportunity to land and claim the planet in the name of their glorious Emperor. Qaela stood on the bridge of the Herløv, watching and waiting to see what the enemy response would be. Sith Empire Forces Assigned PC: Qaela

Even as Sith forces marched down the main streets of Hollowtown and took control of the mayor's office and the control centers, ships began flowing into the newly formed Sith beachhead. The Imperial II Star Destroyer Lightsbane was first to arrive, adding its own firepower to that of the Herløv. That ship was soon joined by two more smaller but still impressive warships, the Neutron Star-Class Bulk Cruiser Shadow's Sleight and the Gladiator II Star Destroyer Gleeful Glutton bringing the armada under Qaela to four. Though she lacked smaller escorting ships, she preferred the sheer strength of the heavy destroyers while her smaller two cruisers would be there to help mitigate and divert any incoming enemy fire. While the Herløv underwent quick repairs for the moderate damage done to her hull in their previous engagement, Qaela turned her attention elsewhere. For now, while she waited for further Sith reinforcements, she was content to sit back and watch as the Rebel forces arrayed against her grew. This pleased her because it meant that her plan for drawing in enemy ships to be destroyed was working. Plus, the greater the numbers against her, the more glory would be found within the victory. As long as the Rebels hesitated to attack, she was content to wait until the right time presented itself. For now, she contented her officers and warriors by further securing Centerpoint Station and sending out probes and scouts to investigate the Corellian System. The system had long been a center of trade and manufacturing, so there was plenty of activity even in the war torn Core. Though the Sith held many of Corellia's neighbors there was still plenty of trade to be had. One of the early thoughts she had possessed was to blockade the trade routes with mines and interdictors. She elected against it for psychological reasons: she didn't want to come upon the system too harshly and fan the flames of resistance against the Sith Empire even greater than they might otherwise be. Crushing the trade routes were an option, but one she would use only if other avenues failed. Until then, she would watch, wait, and gain as much information about the system as possible before moving against the planets. While she was waiting, she kept pushing herself to higher and higher levels. She constantly trained in personal combat, especially with a lightsaber, against the Sith allies she had summoned from Korriban's Academy. Even more so, she delved into some of her own Nightsister teachings and worked on new ways to marry them to Sith practices and usage. It was that latter part that occupied her attention now. Swathed in her favored black Krath leathers, she entered a moderately sized room that was once an officer's mess that she had taken over and converted to her own needs. There were four figures within the room lit by self contained torches emitting raw firelight. Two wore the black robes and lightsabers showing themselves to be Sith Lords, but their role here was to simply observe and constrain should it be needed. Right now, Qaela's needs and attention were centered on the two individuals sitting in the middle about three meters apart. Both were quite different in almost every way and the duality struck her own personal fancy giving her a small amount of pleasure. The first individual was a young woman, perhaps barely even two standard decades old. She sat quietly in her chair, looking by all appearances to be slightly nervous as though before a job interview or first date. She fidgeted a little and her head darted from side to side at various minor noises, but she remained in her chair without any further prompting. However, to Qaela's Force enhanced senses, she radiated anxiety and nervousness like a trapped animal readying itself for flight. The other was an middle aged man, human or near human. Unlike the woman, he was calm and controlled, staring forward at the blank wall across from him, but not in the manner of one in a drug induced haze, but rather of deep contemplation. Also contrasting from the woman was how he appeared through the Force: his outward appearance was bolstered by an internal resolve and determination his companion purely lacked. A casual observer would pick the woman to be the one most likely to bolt from their chair, at least, until they saw the short chains and shackles constraining the man. With a predatory smile, Qaela evaluated both individuals before setting to work. The woman, though frightened, was here by her own choice, though Qaela would be honest in saying the poor woman's choices were not very desirable from the start. She was from Onderon, one of the most poor and helpless of the Empire. Through a most unfortunate series of events, her parents had been killed leaving her and her four younger siblings with little to support themselves with. Some within the Sith Empire enjoyed preying upon these desperate people because they were willing to do extreme things to survive. For this one, Qaela's aides had picked her from a long list of "applicants" and offered her a choice: give herself and her soul over to the Sith Empire and her siblings would be provided for. The woman wasn't ignorant, she knew what that likely entailed, but she loved her family and with the choice of sacrificing herself or watching the young ones starve to death or slave away in dangerous menial labor was not really a choice. The man, on the other hand, was a Rebel prisoner, an officer of middling rank who knew what was likely to happen to him, but believed himself able to resist. He had been kept alive for a purpose similar to this as the Sith had a constant need for live victims of various dark and sometimes profane rituals. His own stoicism did him credit, but would not spare him for what was about to come. He had served the Rebel Alliance, then the Galactic Alliance, and now the Rebels once more and had no regrets for his service. He believed that he did what was right and knew that his life would be sacrificed as soon as he was captured. Obviously, the Rebel officer was not here of his own free will, but that was what was needed for this experiment: Qaela needed a volunteer who had regrets over their life situation, and a prisoner who had no regrets yet was not here of their own accord. Both spirits were different, both were key for her next test. The strength of a spirit was affected by many things ranging from deeply held convictions to even the concept of a free will choice, no matter how reluctant. She wanted to test her new method on a weak volunteer as well as a resolute enemy. What needed to be done had to be accomplished quickly to be of practical use. Qaela could rive their spirits quite easily, but the key for now was to be able to do it quickly rather than needing the long, drawn out rituals she normally practiced. For months, bit by bit, Qaela and five of her most trusted aides whom she had exclusively cross trained in the Nightsister arts had been working and practicing on taking that Nightsister template and shortening it using Sith methods. It wasn't an easy task and many hapless spirits had been needed before they had come to this point where a practical demonstration was possible. With a nod to herself, Qaela began. Delving quickly into the old Nightsister spells she learned as a child and perfected as an adult, Qaela began by opening a small tear into the spirit world. She tempered the rough, almost primal primitive nature of these spells with the refined, almost smooth flowing practices of the Sith's way of using the Force and, within moments, reached out to the two hapless victims before her and slipped an invisible knife deep into their very being. That knife cut and tore, but not at the flesh. This knife was there to cut away the spirit from the body, drawing it further into the spirit world with each slice until the natural attraction of the spirit world was stronger than the body's pull to retain it. Qaela ignored the horrific, blood curdling sounds coming from her victims, instead focusing on riving their spirits apart until they were completely free after which the sounds abruptly stopped. The spirits, now free of their corporeal bodies, were quickly absorbed into the spirit world where they vanished among the countless others that already inhabited that void. Only thirteen seconds had passed from the moment she started until the point the bodies stopped moving. It was longer than she had hoped, but still much quicker than her previous attempts. She noted, wryly, that the young woman had actually made it out of her chair and was now sprawled lifelessly a meter from the door. Qaela briefly wondered if the girl knew the door was locked, or if she had actually harbored some hope of escape, but those musings faded in less than a second. "Clean up the mess," she ordered. "We will evaluate and resume at a later point." With that, she stalked out of the room to return to the bridge and see if any new information had been uncovered in her absence.

Qaela was almost saddened to see the enemy fleet already retreating. She had hoped to be able to destroy some of the enemy in their first confrontation, but seeing one of their cruisers take heavy damage as it limped away was at least somewhat enjoyable. Even though she wasn't able to destroy anything, she had ultimately achieved her objective of securing the space around Centerpoint opening it up to the boarding force. The Sith would have their beachhead and would be able to expand their influence in this system until it was entirely under the rule of the Dark Lord. She ordered repairs to begin on the damage her ship had suffered while making sure the mighty Star Destroyer's guns were able to cover the assault craft as they landed and began securing Hollowtown and the station itself. They anticipated enemy saboteurs so a large number of small hovering drones were dispersed throughout the titanic station to track heat, movement, and sound and relay the information to strike forces that could neutralize the intruders. It would take some time, but soon, there would be nowhere for the enemy to hide. The number of cargo ships landed on the surface of Centerpoint and began opening up to reveal their contents. Each one had a twin heavy turbolaser cannon that would serve as a sort of "planetary" defense network thus turning the previously unarmed Centerpoint into a weapon platform capable of assisting the Sith should the Rebels attempt to retake the station. Sith Troopers secured the hull around these ships to prevent sabotage from within. Reinforcements began flowing into the system, too, joining the small Sith initial fleet in preparation for striking against the nearby Twin Worlds.

F̸̬̰͆̓ì̴̞̪̼̱̩̙͊̐̌̈́̃̕r̶͓̤̘̺̯̀̋͌̑͐̑͜͠ś̴̡̢̒̅̃͆̐̑͝t̵̳͖̮̽̈́̅̇͂̈́̔̕͝ ̷̢̡̛̱̠̺̻͍̳̯̟̔͒̋̂B̸̛͚͗͌̃́̈́̊̑̎ḻ̵̟͙̤̩̙̑̾o̵̧͓͈̮̗̬͖̒̿͜͝o̸̡̳̦͍̯͚͓̙̺͖̍̉̓̆͠ḓ̸̡͍͍̟̈́ͅ ̴̟̠̰͐D̵̻̱͖̺̈́̈́͐̉͐̆͆͜r̷̪̅̇͜a̷̰̒̈́́̈́̑̊͘̚͝͝w̶̛̠̆̅̾̏̑͛̿͂͌n̷̯͖̫͈̙͓̳̣͕͑ͅ Near Centerpoint Station With a feral smile of satisfaction on her face, Qaela relished the combat going on around her. Even as her own ship took heavy fire from a massive wave of bombers launched from the enemy, she could sense the deaths and fierce determination of her crew. Enemy turbolasers lit up her shields while bombs blasted apart hull armor killing some of those here, causing their deaths to ripple throughout the Force like tiny grains of sand on a still pond. The feeling of those handfuls of deaths were nothing compared to the steeled determination and fervor of the rest of her crew and it was that delectable nectar she fed upon. As her bombers returned after their successful bombing run, she realized with some sense of regret that it was time to switch to defense. Only a complete fool would fail to recognize the effectiveness of the enemy's own bombing runs. As powerful as her ship was, it would not last long against the amount of enemy firepower being unleashed against her. With a few intricate dance moves of her fingers over her command console, she ordered her fighters to keep an eye out for returning enemy bombers and destroy anything that approached. As much as she wanted to destroy her enemy, she also didn't want to lose the ship entrusted to her by the Spider. She had to console herself knowing that there was still a massive amount of firepower being unleashed against the enemy cruiser. ((2))

F̷͙͖̝̏̓̇̉̽̋̚i̴̡̩͖̓̄͒͜r̶̠̺̙̉͒̍̇͌̀̏͠ş̵̺͈̖̻̚͜ṯ̷̨̫̮̙̦̻̹̻̀̿̇̈́̄́̀ ̸̧̥̥̘͋͜S̶̱͓͑ḧ̵̤̼̜̯̤̥͉͓͙͎͆̑̽̉̄̃͠o̶̧̨͔̖̗͚̥̲͍͛ẗ̸̰̺s̵̢̨͔͔͎̮̯̝̝̍̅́̌̎̏̉̀̾͘ͅ Near Centerpoint Station Paying the Rebel threats no heed, the Sith combat fleet continued a controlled advance towards Centerpoint Station while the troop transports and cargo ships remained back away from the upcoming fight. There was a sense of focus and primal anticipation that permeated the ship which delighted Qaela. She loved the way all sentient beings felt when going into combat where they had to kill or be killed. It was primitive, base, and yet, so very natural to all no matter what their background or beliefs. Jedi or Sith, Force sensitive or blind to its call: it didn't matter. All felt it. Somewhere out there, across the rapidly decreasing distance of cold lifeless space, were thousands of beings feeling the exact same thing. It was a rare point of unity that bonded both sides, just as Nature intended. It didn't matter if one wore the uniform of a Rebel or of the Sith: they were all feeling a variation of anticipation, fear, eagerness, or even a desire to kill. Those feelings saturated the Force if one was open to it and Qaela was definitely open to it. She drank it in and used it to focus herself to the task at hand. She had always loved and cherished subtlety when it came to personal interactions, politics, and duels, but when it came to fleet tactics she preferred to be excessively blunt and direct. When it came to selecting a ship of her own to command, she immediately went about ensuring the crew was well trained in intensely focused fire against a particular target she wanted dead. The Kyber Class Star Destroyers that the Sith enjoyed producing and fielding excelled at such blunt tactics and for good reason. In her experience, there was little that inspired fear in one's enemy more than an exceedingly large and expertly focused fire that sent streams of highly charged energy straight into a singular target. With a cruel smile as she look at the tactical holograms on the bridge, she selected the target that she wanted to see disappear first with a casually raised finger, silently dooming the crew of that ship to be the next sacrifices on the alter of the glorious Sith Empire. Captain Geratos nodded and immediately began relaying orders to the gunners and the squadrons of bombers. As soon as they got into range, an intense, blinding tidal wave of turbolaser, blaster, and ion cannon fire would flow over the hapless Rebel ship. The bomber squadrons would dip "below" the field of fire giving the gunners a clear shot before darting into range to fire the first barrage in their payload against the same target further adding to the terrible toll of damage being inflicted. This might be but the first shots of this campaign, but Qaela wanted them to be as memorable as they were brutal. ((1))

Ợ̸̺̓̈́̋̽̿̿̕p̷̯͑̅͛̌̒̂ȩ̷̝̫̯̳͙͓͎͐n̵̢̜̼̙̝͐̈́̀͒ȉ̶̲̹̤̪̪̐̌n̴̼͉̫̠͊̿͌̒̍̕͠g̶̢̩͍̫͇̻͈̱̪͌̔͛̄̅̾̌̕ ̴͍͙̖̭̲̞͈̯́́̏M̶̡̛̹̤̦͉̥͔̺̠̣̐͗ơ̷̧̱̭̖̲̙̣̪̥͐͋͒͜v̴̗͆̂͗̄̀̏̚͠e̸̛͉̟̺͇̦̞̰̔s̷̩̓̏̅̈́̀̎̏͘͝ Near Centerpoint Station Sith Empire Destroyer Group: Turbolaser Focus Fire Taskforce Experience Green - Assigned PC Qaela Kyber Class Star Destroyer Herløv |20/20| Sith Empire Asset Denial Group: Surgical Strike* Taskforce Experience Green - Assigned PC Mordecai Victory II Class Star Destroyer Wyvern |9/9| Lancer Frigate |3/3| Tartan Corvette (1) |2/1| Tartan Corvette (2) |2/1| Tartan Corvette (3) |2/1| Tartan Corvette (4) |2/1| *Ship Names forthcoming _______________________ Qaela heard the voice Imperial Knight ordering them to withdraw with a good deal of bemusement. It was almost as though he was unaware of the fact that there was a war going on and that the Sith Empire could be stopped by merely demanding in a stern voice. Even with a probe as small as what she was bringing, it should be clear that the Sith weren't just visiting. She and the ships with her now were but the tip of a very large spear that was about to lance deep into the heart of the Corellian System and claim it for the glory of the Sith Empire and nothing here could stop it. Win or lose this initial skirmish, more ships were coming until the skies above Coronet City were filled with the sight of the glorious Sith fleet. Considering the enemy before her with a mix of consideration and disdain, she quickly realized that this initial force would need to be dealt with in order to secure her primary objective. Should that fail, she would have to resort to the secondary objective which wasn't quite as appealing, but still doable. She opened a secured and encrypted comm to Mordecai. "We engage them here, but not to suicide. This is but the first stroke: there is no point in throwing everything at them so early when there is so much more to come." To their Rebel foes, she said nothing for such pointless comments did not warrant a response.

T̵̢̛͍̥̼̰̱͈̭̤̽̈́̀̈̚h̵͎̔͊̀è̸̘̯̺̭̦̘͍̦̀̎͌͑̀͛̏̕ ̶̝̰̗̳̭̭̏̓͑͂͗̈͂̏̔̕R̴̭̱̦͒͐́͋̀̃̑̅̏̕ę̸͍̂́̀̏͂̑̕͝c̸̘̉͒̿̈́̃̑̀̌k̵̳̻̦̲̞̠̺̽͋̍̌͛̊͜͝ò̴͕̘̼̞̭͓̳̣̓͜ǹ̴̡͇̻̇͂ǐ̶̧̛̼͙͕̬̜̭̋̄̉̈̌͘̕͝n̴̡̻̪̟̲̪͂͒̆͛͘g̴͓̟͚͍̓̒̇̏̍̕͝ ̴̡̨̞̰̱̒͋͌̑̀̾̆̅ḩ̷͓͎̓̋̾͛͗̓̐̿̚a̷̡̩̠̬͑́̄s̵̟̤͚̟̫̙̱̭̄͊̑́̌̍ ̵̛̭̙̜̾́̀͛͝c̸̗̣̼̠̳̼͖͇̒͑̈̌ò̶͙͋͘͝m̴̗̌̇̇́̇͒e̵̠̳͗͊̉̃̓̓̔͑̚͜.̴̪̠̩̃̏̉̎ With minimal warning, the dark mass that was the Kyber class Star Destroyer Herløv and a small cluster of ships proudly bearing the symbol of the glorious Sith Empire on their hulls shot out of hyperspace and into the blackness of realspace. Despite the size of her ship, Qaela's eyes quickly fixated on the truly titanic mass of ancient durasteel that hovered before her fleet. Centerpoint didn't truly hold any direct tactical importance in the grand scheme of things, but it was central to the Twin Worlds of Tralus and Talus which were the weaker of the defended worlds within the Corellian System and would serve as a good launching point to invade the rest of the system. Immediately after reverting from hyperspace, the squadrons of bombers and heavy interceptors began to stream out of the Herløv's launch bay and form up to prepare for their missions. A mixture of dozens of assault shuttles loaded with troops and three score medium sized cargo transports reverted out of hyperspace behind the main fleet moments later and began orienting themselves for a run against Centerpoint Station once the way was determined to be clear. Qaela didn't expect there to be a tremendous amount of resistance on the Station itself, but it needed to be claimed nonetheless because she had a purpose for it. Her troops would blitz the station and its meager defenders, secure its civilian population in Hollowtown, and then use the Station as a rally and launch point for invasions throughout the Corellian System's Five Worlds. The Twins would first fall in one swift action, then the rest. Probes were shot out all around the fleet and Centerpoint Station itself to both scan for hostiles while also coordinating fire control at enemy ships. Qaela wasn't completely experienced in naval combat, but the officers onboard her ship under the command of Captain Geratos were and she wasn't so prideful as to demand control over how the battle proceeded. She had long ago learned what her strengths and weaknesses were and how to use others to fill in the gaps in her ability. When Corellia fell to the Sith, she would receive glory enough to share with those who helped her do so, far more than if she allowed her pride to get in her way and cost the Empire troops, ships, and pride. This was the first move of a strategy she had put together with her commanders. As was more akin to her personal style, it wouldn't rely just on blunt firepower and force as was the wont of the Sith Empire, but rather on deception, guile, and misdirection to keep her enemies at bay and guide them into the slaughter. The Sith would claim the Corellian System one way or another: it would be far better for them if its conqueror was Qaela Darksong rather than the far heavier hand of other Sith Lords. "Take the Station," she ordered calmly. "Slay only those who resist, preserve as much as you can. We are here to add to the Glory of the Empire, not to create pointless destruction. Our Dark Lord wishes a prize to build his Imperial Might, not a pile of molten rubble and ash." Those who fought under her command were carefully selected. The most brutal of the soldiers in the Empire were excluded: she wanted only those who shared her own vision of building a mighty empire under the confines and philosophy of The Balance and who could restrain themselves. There was no glory hunting among her officers: all was for the Empire and the greater good of the Sith Order. She stood calmly on the bridge of her ship waiting the results of the scans and probes as to what she would be facing.

Orders had come forth, and Qaela was ready for them. The Dark Lord wished to add the Corellian System to his Empire and it was now her task to accomplish this. She had been ordered to take her current force to establish a beachhead in the system then to await further reinforcements once mopping up on Coruscant was completed. By this time, she had fully recovered from her injuries and was eager to strike out. While her previous mission had been fairly simple, this would be vastly more challenging and ultimately, more important to the Empire as a whole. She sent in summons to those back on Korriban to ready a new crop of Sith Lords and Apprentices worthy of joining the war. It would take some time for a full bounty to be trained and harvested, but several who had been on the cusp of readiness during the last summons were now prepared and would come. By the time they were needed, she would have several dozen more worthy and loyal Sith to carry out the Emperor's will through her. With deliberate malice and steady drive, she directed her fleet into hyperspace.

Qaela was glad to see the young Mordecai waking within the bacta tank. The Dark Lord had expressed his desire for Mordecai to survive and Qaela was not keen on disappointing the True Emperor. She was in the medical ward herself, though with a less invasive treatment of bacta patches on her shoulder and arm. The black medical droids swirled around the tank scanning their patient and evaluating his recovery. The burns would definitely heal and, if the young apprentice was smart, might not even show any scaring. Hair might take a bit more time to return, though it seemed most of his scalp was intact. Qaela knew he could talk through his breather mask and had made sure that her voice could be projected through the bacta with small speakers. "You survive, Mordecai," she said matter of factly. "We both survived, though the Dark Lord desired for the Rebels to be released rather than destroyed. Regardless, we carried out the will of our Master and, though you were struck down, you were left to rise once more. Perhaps this time, you will find yourself under the training of one who can teach you how to use your emotions rather than letting them get the best of you. I lost two of my entourage, unless the Spider has other plans for you, I might just conscript you to replace one of those losses."

The Herløv and its escorts reverted from hyperspace over the still burning sphere that was Coruscant. After receiving instructions from Imperial Central Command, it fell into the appropriate formation and powered down its active situation functions and went to a standby mode appropriate for a warship in friendly space. The journey from Borleias had not been a long one so Qaela had not had the time she needed to properly heal from her injuries. The burn on her forearm was easy enough to deal with, but the lightsaber stab on her upper shoulder was a good bit more painful. She didn't spend the energy to heal herself with the old Nightsister spells because of how taxing that was on her. She wanted to be fully alert when she reported back to the Dark Emperor so she would be ready for his next mission. Until then, she would allow the pain to continue to fuel her and keep her alert. She made arrangements for her two fallen escorts to receive a proper funeral and pyre while she waited for the Spider to be ready to receive any supplicants. Though the Sith sometimes didn't care for any but the most noble and powerful of their fallen, Qaela believed that all who faithfully served the Sith Order were worthy of recognition. While she oversaw the academy on Korriban, any student or instructor who died in good standing was given a proper funeral and a pyre upon a stone or metal altar. No outside material was used to burn: only the body of the fallen and their attire were ignited with the fury of the Dark Side and consumed. The remaining ashes were gathered and ritually compressed without removing any impurities into a smoky diamond with their name laser etched into its face. That diamond was then given to Qaela so she could place it within a shrine she kept secured by magicks and technology on Korriban. The shrine itself was arranged into rows with Masters at the top, Lords below, Apprentices on the bottom. Even Aspirants who were deemed worthy had a place here on the lowest rung of the shrine. She made arrangements for the captured Rebel shuttle to be fully secured and scoured for any useful tech. The navicomputer and most of the bridge had been destroyed by its crew before they were slaughtered, but there was always more to be had. The ship itself would be taken to the Black Scarab for further study. Until the Emperor was ready for her, she would wait and recover while taking care of minor business back on Korriban.

Qaela and her two remaining bodyguards escorted the Rebels along with a hefty escort of Sith Troopers to the escape pod. The pod, double checked and scrubbed of any potential intel, was then jettisoned into the void between systems around 30 lightyears from Borleias that the Herløv had reverted from hyperspace to. They had enough food and water for a few days as well as a Holocomm distress beacon. Though the thought of how ironic it would be if the escape pod emitted the default Sith Imperial emergency signal and summoned another Sith ship filled Qaela's fancy, she did gruffly remind the Rebels to alter the signal. While the Rebels were being prepared for their departure, medical and repair crews descended upon the communications center to both take care of the wounded and begin dealing with the damage from the fight that had taken place there. As soon as they were off her ship, Qaela ordered the Star Destroyer and its escorting fleet to return to Coruscant and the True Emperor. While the quick preparations were being made, she went to the medical ward where Mordecai was being tended. There wasn't much for her to do on the ship while it was in hyperspace, so she would see to Mordecai's care.

While the Sith were often accused (and frequently correctly) of running on nothing but emotion and anger, that was not true for all Sith. Qaela used her emotions, pain, and rage when it suited her, but outside of combat, she was typically cool and collected. She had made enough mistakes as a young woman to need to make any more now. As frustrating as it might be to not watch the Imperial Knights battle the option to kill themselves in exchange for their master, she herself ultimately served her own Dark Master and, just as she sprang into action when ordered to kill, she returned to inaction when he commanded it. She wouldn't waste her words bantering uselessly with underlings, but she would address the pretender. "We shall see," she said enigmatically. It was possible, though next time they met she hoped to finish her opponent. Even though she wasn't able to finish off her foes, she wasn't entirely disappointed. The good graces of the Spider were worth more than enemy blood on her blade. Speaking of blades, though, she was going to correct at least one thing. With a gesture of her hand, she summoned Zinthos' lightsaber to her palm and attached it to her belt. "The True Emperor gave you your lives, but you will not leave with a weapon that was made for the Sith." Her eyes, now a mixture of orange and purple as they returned to normalcy, dared any of the Rebels to challenge her and give her the excuse to kill. To her troopers, she said coldly, "Take them to an escape pod, their shuttle is in no state to leave."

At the sight of the Imperial Knight trying to hold an apprentice hostage, Qaela could only shrug and smirk. She gestured for the troopers to stop firing simply so she could be heard and the Imperial Knights could focus on her as she took a few steps towards the fallen Zinthos. Her own red lightsaber found itself at the woman's neck in a mimicry of her opponent's move. "Yes, more can die, but there only two in this room with any real importance and I must admit to you that neither of them are on your side of the room." With the brief pause in the fighting, Qaela's two surviving bodyguards had taken to each edge of the room, slowly walking back towards their master and waiting to launch a coordinated attack with her. There was a soft rumble of deck plates as the Herløv finished its initial short hyperspace jump and was now back in realspace. More Troopers streamed towards the combat zone in the heart of their ship, now taking up positions on the other side of the jammed door as well as above and below the holocomms room in case their foes tried to cut to a different deck. With the ship now out of hyperspace, Holonet access was restored. It took the ship a few moments to reestablish contact with the True Emperor, though with the main holoprojector destroyed in the fight, it did take a few more seconds to reestablish a link in one of the smaller secondary projectors. "The Dark Lord did say that the Child Empress had the option to leave alive," Qaela continued contemptuously as more Troopers began to arrive, some with weapons better suited to fighting the Imperial Knight threat. "While you two and Zinthos will most certainly die if we continue this, it would be annoying and cost me some additional damage and men. Instead, it would be far more amusing to offer a trade. You two release the boy, then kill yourselves with your own lightsabers and I will return the woman you swore to protect to your comrades with no further harm to her. Otherwise, I kill her now and then finish you two off."

Even as Qaela landed after blowing up the holoprojector, she could feel the white hot sting of a lightsaber extended out against her. Pain flared up from her upper left shoulder where the False Empress' lightsaber met resistance from, but eventually overcame the Krath leathers and dug into her body just below her collarbone. She silently thanked Sheog the Glorious for his gift as she had little doubt that without the Force imbued leathers protecting her body, the blow would have been fatal. Despite scoring the blow, the extension proved to be far more costly to Zinthos as it left her unprotected against the storm of Force energy and flames from the blast that Qaela unleashed. The combined blast flung the woman across the room preventing her from pressing the advantage of her lunge. Caught in the fury of the explosion, she was hurled back and slammed into the wall. Force enhanced shrapnel was slowed by her armor, but even the Imperial Knight armor she wore couldn't stop all of it and the impact against the wall sent the Pretender into the blackness of unconsciousness. It was generally immaterial that the first two troopers to enter the room were also caught in the storm and suffered horrible wounds from the same attack: there were always more troopers to replace them. Despite the pain coming from her wounds, Qaela refused to allow them to slow her down. She stalked over to the her unconscious opponent, intent on coming to a quick solution to this particular situation.

There was a beauty to combat well fought and Qaela was quite fond of beauty in all its forms. She loved to watch her students duel because of the intricate ebb and flow of how the fight unfolded. There was a time and a place for everything in battle and opportunities constantly presented themselves and faded away into irrelevance. Take the right opportunities and victory was yours, miss too many and defeat was surely coming. Though one of the two doors had been ripped open, the first group of Troopers had been knocked off balance by the Imperial Knight's telekinetic wave. While fending off Zinthos' latest wave of attacks, Qaela saw opportunities come and go with blinding speeds, taking some and missing on others. For the briefest of flashes, she saw a risky opportunity and decided to take it despite the cost. Again intentionally giving ground to her opponent's aggression, Qaela backed closer to the holoprojector, keeping it to her side with her back still facing the unoccupied benches at the edge of the room. As soon as the ship had entered hyperspace, the imposing image of the Supremely Dark Lord had been cut off leaving only a muted static. She focused her energy elsewhere for a brief moment to tap into the elemental Force and begin a buildup of energy within herself. That moment of inattention allowed one of Zinthos' blows to rake across the Krath leathers she wore and slice into her offhand forearm sending blinding white hot pain that ravaged her entire nervous system. Pain was not always something to be embraced, but Qaela was now a Sith and the Sith thrived upon pain and suffering, even their own. She hissed in pain, but did not cry out. Instead of trying to shunt that pain away, Qaela used it to fuel both her own rising fury and the increasing buildup of the Force that she was managing within her. For a moment, Qaela's own violet eyes met her opponent's similarly pigmented eyes before they morphed into the fiery red and orange hue that frequented a Sith using the raw power of the Dark Side. Though she was quite aware of the potential threat at her flank, she relied on the presence of her five allies to keep the Knights occupied. Her bodyguards would make good use of their superior numbers to keep their opponents contained. Even then, they just needed to handle it for a few moments, after that, it wouldn't matter. The Troopers in the corridor had recovered themselves by now and were filing cautiously into the room to offer supporting fire. While there was a small chance of hitting Qaela or one of her own allies, they weren't able to unleash a true torrent of energy. Even then, they could take careful shots and there mere presence was a threat enough to divide all three Rebel's attention. Qaela used her pain fueled rage to keep her opponent occupied with their lightsaber duel while she continued to build up her own new counter. The occasional blaster shot aimed at Zinthos gave her some additional relief to complete the conjuring. It didn't take long considering the relatively small scale of the storm she was conjuring. She, along with other Nightsisters, were masters at manipulating the primal elemental forces of nature and creating massive storms. In here, it wouldn't take nearly the same energy or focus to accomplish her task. Sensing the next layer of opportunity nearing fruition, Qaela gave a wicked smile devoid of any humor then leaped back two meters, slashing at the holoprojector as she did. By the time she landed and unleashed the pressure that had built up within her, the active projector had already began exploding. Rather than trying to unleash a broadly devastating storm within this contained room, Qaela directed her energy to creating a torrent of wind tinged with telekinesis to guide the explosion from the projector straight at Raven, not particularly caring if there was some small amount of blowback against the armored Troopers several meters behind her. Shrapnel and explosive energy from the projector coupled with Qaela's own Force powers to direct a wave of death at the False Empress. ((3))

For a moment, Zinthos allowed a decidedly non-Jedi like flood of emotions flow over her which gave Qaela a small bit of satisfaction for reasons she herself didn't quite know nor had time to contemplate. Qaela smiled at her opponent's highly aggressive opening moves. Clearly, the Pretender didn't just wear a lightsaber for show but had a semblance of how to use it. Though she had originally opted for an aggressive approach, she quickly switched tactics in light of her opponent's own frenzied assault. Adrenaline and the Force flowed through the Nightsister as the two began the intricately violent dance with matching red blades. Qaela adopted a more defensive posture, keeping her lightsaber more centered in closer to her body where it could deflect attacks at the cost of being able to lash out. She had fought a great many of duels, most were in training with students at Pelko Bastion though some had been lethal as she had to put down hopelessly errant students or even teachers who challenged her rule there. She often enjoyed allowing her opponent to burn off energy and exhaust themselves some while she defended and waited for an opportunity. She was impressed that Zinthos was able to wield her lightsaber and stand more than a few blows. Clearly, she had been trained at some point, though Qaela wasn't sure if she had been keeping up with it after the horrible physical toll her incarceration and torture had inflicted. While it was known that the False Empress was sensitive in the Force and had worked with a Sith in the past, there had been no recent reports of her fighting as a Force user. Still, Qaela quickly decided to consider her opponent as a vastly larger threat than before and treat her accordingly. She allowed herself to give a few steps back to the center of the room, though closer to the door that the two of them were closer to and opposite of the rest of the fight. She kept her distance from the holoprojector, using it as an obstacle for attacks on her flank. She didn't want to get tangled up there allowing one of the Imperial Knights to attack her from behind. After allowing Zinthos to spend some energy in her furious attack, Qaela decided it was enough for now and put a little more strength into her most recent parry driving Zinthos' blade back a little. Qaela used that split second to gesture with her free hand at the door they were nearest to. The doors to the comms room weren't major bulkheads nor were they made of heavy materials designed to ward off attack, not this far into the center of the ship. Qaela closed her hand into a fist and the door crumpled and snapped apart. Qaela pulled the same hand back quickly and those doors flung themselves into the room directly at Zinthos. Qaela wanted those reinforcements and would use the opportunity to attack while clearing the way for them. ((2)) In the hangar, the two platoons of troopers breached the shuttle and began slaughtering any crew they came across with lethal efficiency.

Qaela, had dealt with the Sith enough to get a gauge on where things were headed and was prepared for her Emperor's lethal command. As soon as he uttered the words "Kill them" she pressed a button on her comms that set into motion one of several contingencies. That signal sent a quick two word message to all Sith ships on a short range radius: Zerek Alert. Within two seconds after that message went out, all comms and communications signals were automatically jammed and the Sith ships started aligning themselves for a pre-programmed jump to hyperspace. Ten seconds after the message, the Sith fleet jumped into hyperspace to a point thirty lightyears away in the void of space between stars and began orienting themselves for a second jump back to Coruscant. Any pursuit reverting from hyperspace would initiate that second jump, as would the confirmed death or incapacitation of Qaela herself. In the hangar bay, two TIE Defenders detached from their collars, rotated using their repulsors, then opened fire on the Rebel shuttle with their ion cannons. As soon as she shuttle was disabled, two platoons of armored Sith Troopers would enter the hangar and permanently neutralize anyone on the shuttle itself. Qaela knew from what she had read and sensed of the False Empress that she would never stand by idly while her comrades were slaughtered and that she would fight. While she had no problem with the Spider's offer to let Zinthos leave, she also interpreted the "if she chooses" portion gave her leeway to use lethal force were it warranted. The Dark Lord might chastise her for giving no opportunity for Zinthos to comply peacefully with the execution of her escorts, but Qaela had not survived this long by taking chances or giving enemies the opportunity to make the first move. [[See Attachment for more detail]] The room they were in was moderately large as it was designed to host dozens of Sith officers at once. The room was an almost oval design with three rows of benches along the long sides of the room. On each of the shorter sides were large doors. The center of the room housed the holoprojector array. The middle of the room was mostly open to allow for larger holoprojections or for officers to mill about and make presentations. The movement of her hand that activated the comms alert concluded with Qaela's lightsaber in her grip. It joined the snap-hissing chorus of five red lightsabers igniting as her four bodyguards joined her. With a thought, her bodyguards turned to engage the Imperial Knights. The two doors to the comm's room opened and those four were joined by the twenty Sith Troopers who had been waiting in the two corridors outside. Qaela wasted no time in long winded or elaborate setups, nor did she frivolously give away the initiative with conversation. Instead, she opted for a brute strength attack to start off with. Two seconds after the Dark Lord gave his order, Qaela sprung into action. With a gesture of her free hand backed by a healthy dose of the Force, she swept aside the two Imperial Knights throwing them across the room so that Mordecai, her bodyguards, and the troopers could deal with them. She then advanced quickly at her primary target, attacking with a flurry of lightsaber strikes. Her entire intent was to hit hard and with enough speed to keep her opponent off guard and on the defensive while testing the Pretender's abilities. [[Duel between Qaela and Raven]] ((1))