Almas

[saberforce]

Lurching forward into the Almas system was about as satisfying as a mynock hissing as it was cooked- at least to the veteran Mandalorian soldier. Vulios smiled as he looked over the planet from the cockpit of The Trident. Amidst the darkness of the system, the Tyrant Adventure along with the imperial cruiser that accompanied them for this little playground assault looked far less menacing than he would have hoped for. Another chance for a later time. He leaned in and tapped Buya Strarr on the shoulder. “Open a comm to Major General Dul and Kami.” After he said it, he stood upright and looked out the viewport. 

 

“Alright, we’re going to go in quickly. I want the TIE’s and bombers to make a single run on the main city. Have them panicked as we land. Upon landing, deploy the AT-ST’s on the outskirts of the city of Forard. Kami, land mid city in a good deployment area. Make a show of force and meet up with us at the capitol building. Bann, Upon the walkers entering the city, flood the city perimeter with troops. I want this to be quick.” 

 

****Twenty minutes later in the City of Forard ****

 

Without much notice, the TIE’s came roaring through the skyline towards Forard with aggressive motivations. The only true warning of their intentions came through the very first blast from the TIE’s making their primary shots at whatever looked like a potential target. It took about two minutes from their first sighting for them to pass through the city, taking a few shots here and there. The TIE Bombers that came after them dropped a single blast, enough to cause a commotion in the streets. Vulios watched clear panic in the streets as The Trident landed right before the capitol building. As he walked down the ramp, screaming and panic took over the general sounds, almost drowning out the TIE’s roaring overhead as they made a few passes through the city. Stepping into the main light, the burning smell took over his nostrils even with his buy’ce. A few shots from blasters could be heard from Kami and her team, who improvised a bit and she dropped them off over a few buildings to help spread the fire arc range. 

 

“Kami, damp down your power core. We’re not here to kill everyone. Some of these people could become a part of our culture.” As he finished, he walked towards the main entrance of the capitol building, Buya Strarr and two others whom he didn’t know their exact name finally made their way down the landing ramp and joined him, weapons up and at the ready. As they got to the doors, four men armed came out along with a single woman who stood behind them. "What are your intentions here Mandalorian? To show up on our doorstep with a show of force and Sith Empire tools and weapons of war." Vulios let out a sigh and lowered his own weapon. "We are here to take possession of this planet. The show of force is to make sure that you hand it over. Otherwise things will get messy. I'd rather not start building everything up from scratch." The woman gave a clear scorn and placed her hands upon her hips in defiance. "You seem to be mistaken. You can't have something that isn't yours. And I doubt that-" "You may open fire Clan Larkin." Without another word spoken, loud fire erupted and the four armed men fell to the ground with at least two or three burn holes in their chests. Vulios pu this weapon away and stepped forward, grabbing the woman by her hair and began to pull her inside the building. "And now we will begin to discuss the terms of your complete surrender to us."

 

((House Solus Invasion Post))

[saberforce]

Vulios now sat in a chair, a few of the key personnel of the city were standing awkwardly within the room looking back and forth to each other as talleys were being made of stock of what the city of Forard actually held. Conversations were being made by Kami towards a few of the officials over building redesign while the others were on their knees whimpering slightly as they were the ones who were still in refusal of accepting new control over the planet. Vulios watched the unwilling ones from his chair behind a desk with his own buy'ce on the table. He was currently the only Mandalorian who had his face exposed. After a few seconds passed by, he stood up and pulled out his beskad. 

 

"The terms of surrender have been made very clear. Kami, take these few with you into the war room and initiate gai bal manda. Then begin the process of rebuilding the city up to our needs. For the rest of the population... it is time for them to understand what is before them." Vulios walked up and took a woman by the hair, the same one who resisted him upon arrival. "And you are the tool that is to be used to show the way." With one hand on his beskad, the other on her hair, he dragged her along as the two 'walked' up to the roof of the main capitol building which would soon be the palace known as Dralaloriya. Once the two reached the top, Vulios moved her into a position near the edge and made sure she was on her knees. Before them was the rest of the population, enclosed by the Mandalorians and Sith Empire troopers who accompanied them to Almas. Vulios stepped forward without his buy'ce and began to shout loudly so that all would hear. The team had already setup a few droids to amplify his voice to reach the entire group gathered. 

 

"People of Almas, in the great city of Forard. You have a great opportunity that lays before you. Here is the beginning of a new power rising. You get to not only witness the rebirth and rising of a new era of Mandalorians, but you are given the chance to join in this rising power. Your choice is given is this; Join us and become vod within our aliit- or to use your simple words. Brothers and sisters within our family. For this great city will be remade into the perfect city for our rising power, turning this building into Dralaloriya. Simple words for you, Strong Capital. For those who don't wish to be apart of this great rising power, your example is right here!" Vulios put his beskad on the woman's chest. "She has chosen to never become one of us, nor to ally herself with us. She is your example of what your fate is."

 

Vulios spun himself around and had the blade cut the head clean off. The body and part of her hair fell backwards onto the building almost instantly. Her head rolled off and fell down the building and into the street before the people. Vulios then lifted his beskad into the air. "You have an hour to decide. Join the rising power and pledge yourself to the Mandalorian way and to your new Alor, Trosolus Ardell and the House of Solus... Or take your fate." Vulios lowered his beskad and put it away. Giving a look out towards his fellow vod, he gave a nod to them and then turned to walk back into the building. They would soon have their final numbers and complete control over the planet.

 

((Invasion Posts Complete))

Edited June 17, 2021 by saberforce
Color consistency

[saberforce]

Vulios oversaw a majority of the rebuilding of Forard. The spaceport was redesigned to host a Keldabe-class Battleship if it was ever needed, along with the ability to host ten light freighters. Gronn Lerr, a local man who pledged himself to the House was quick to repurpose some useless buildings into comm arrays and training facilities. He was standing in the main audience hall of Dralaoriya, the capitol building discussing things with Kami Larkin and himself when Major General Bann Dul walked in along with a few other stormtroopers. The man respected the building process of the city from afar, only putting in small and slight inputs here and there, but otherwise let the Mandaloirians build the city how they wanted. He stood for a moment on the outskirts of the conversation until Vulios signaled him to come closer. 

 

The Sith officer approached the table, which was midway between the door and the throne looking chair. It held a holoprojector that was currently displaying the main city and highlighted a few spots here and there. He stood there for a moment as Gronn finished up his report over a new dish being installed. Only once he finished did Vulios speak. “Yes Dul, what news do you bring?” “Empire news. Reports have started to circle in the smallest of ways, but there are some sources that can confirm that the Dark Lord title has passed to someone new.” The news cut through the air for a moment and every Mandalorian held their breath and looked at Vulios, who was now supposed to speak for Tros. The older Mandalorian did not hesitate for long. 

 

“Thank you Gronn. Finish up what you think is best. Kami, have your clan support Gronn in this. I think that overall, the quick formation of this city has slowly turned it from a backwater world with not much to offer the galaxy into a central hub for us Mandalorians to slowly increase in numbers. We are on the path to greatness. Let our work here be a testament to all. Everyone but Kami and Major General Bann Dul are dismissed.” Vulios walked back towards the main chair of the hall and sat himself in it as he awaited for the main chamber doors to close, leaving only Kami, Dul and himself in the room. As he sat, he pulled out his beskad and looked it over for a second. "What do you know Bann of this new Dark Lord?" The Sith officer paused for a moment. "Reputation only. She is a warrior, if the claims of rumors are true. She will look to have everyone prove themselves. I can't say for sure if she will honor what the prior Dark Lord has offered your people."

 

The words broke a tension that Kami was waiting for. "Vulios, do we really need to stay aligned to them than? We don't have time to continue to prove our salt over and over again to new people. Least of all dar'jetii. I may not have been a Mando for long, but I do know this saying well. Haatyc or'arue jate'shya ori'sol aru'ike nuhaatyc." Vulios held his hand up and looked Kami in the eye. "Kami, I like your spirit, but there are some other things to consider here. Such as the opportunity to become something that all others who claimed to lead us as a people have failed... " Vulios held up his beskad to admire it before putting it in its sheath. "True warriors on a warpath. Let's all have a glass of morning glory to discuss what is the best next move until our Alor returns from the hunt."

[saberforce]

Tros piloted the Swift Justice into the Cularin system, slowly making its way towards Almas. He pushed through his own pain for the moment, while Kot’dral sat in the back, treating his own wounds more than what the jetii did back on the jungle planet. As he made his way towards the planet’s atmosphere, he discussed details with Vulios on the comms. 

 

“In short, the rumor mill seems to be stirring a lot amongst the Sith. Bann Dul seems to think that such rumors hold enough weight to be true if they spread as much as they have.” Both men had their buy’ce off as they talked to each other. “We may want to seek out a way to further cement ourselves then with this new leader of the Sith. Maybe our rally can help support them in some way.” Vulios leaned back a bit and opened both arms as if he was presenting something to Tros. “You may be in luck then. Naboo was a targeted planet in a conquest campaign of an up and coming Sith. It’s a short jump for us if we wanted to join in.”

 

Tros face was lit up with flashing lights as he passed through the atmosphere on the way to the surface. He was thoughtful as he thought through the options on the table before him. “Tell Kami she’s in charge as we’re away until Kot’dral can fully cover. Vulios, I want the Swift Justice, The Trident, and Bloodlust fully loaded with whomever is able to go. We will begin our rally point at Naboo. Bring me a few weapons to reload. I lost a good deal of equipment on Felucia.” Tros cut the transmission to let Vulios rally the House into action. 

 

Landing fairly quickly after getting done with his conversation with Vulios, Tros had no time to fully take in the new capital planet of his House. Instead he watched as the three ships were prepared and loaded with crews. Three pilots for the ships and six Mandalorians for each ship outside of Vulios and himself. “23 Mandalorians. Not a lot.” Vulios only shrugged his shoulders as he handed over a few items to Tros. “We’ve begun the training process of a good 140 new recruits. My guess of when they’re ready… two weeks. By then we should be able to gain more numbers through our rally campaign.” 

 

As Vulios talked, Tros looked through the items handed to him. There were 2 WESTAR-35 blaster pistols, a modified MK VI Paladin blaster rifle that had scope option to fire stronger rounds or could be switched to a more rapid fire three round burst. There was also an electro-dart and a poison dart to replace in his dart launcher. As he loaded them, he was also handed a Z-6 jetpack equipped with a rocket. He replaced all of his gear and then he and Vulios boarded their ships and House Solus was off towards Naboo, ready to begin their rally campaign. Tros would spent the time on the trip applying bacta and preparing for a second round of fighting with a few stimpacks to help him get through this campaign. 

 

((Equipment has been updated here and on the character sheet to reflect these changes. ))

[saberforce]

Kot'dral stood at the large war planning table in the main hall Dralaloriya. Kami stood next to him observing the holodisplay of the preparations taking place at the spaceport of Forard. Another, Atola stood opposite of them finishing up the report. "The Tyrant Adventure has now been loaded with the requested items from our Alor. Kage and Wuka are both preparing the armor for those less prepared. Without and beskar, the smiths have utilized a mix of duraplast, polyfibe and ciridium. Not the strongest, but I believe that the smiths are saving the Neuranium and Sarrassian for more special projects." Kot'dral lifted his hand to dismiss the audience and simultaneously looked over at Kami. "While you're slightly looped in with them, it's hard to teach these new tal'din the ways of being Mando." Kami did not have her own buy'ce on, so her expression was more obvious and open. With the eyes that widened and brows that lifted up, it gave a lot away. "Grurt has taken more time to learn the ways. Tros has been focused on his war and starting things fresh that my own time has been devoted to training decent warriors up,- Yes, I am aware that there is more to being a Mandalorian then being a warrior."

 

Kot'dral looked her over, as he almost did jump in to say what she anticipated from him. He paused for about ten seconds before looking down at the holodisplay before them. "Strength is life. It's apart of our creed here in House Solus. You are doing your part. And you've been with us for a while now. You have honor in fulfilling your current task of training the Huntsmen. Honor is life." Taking a moment to fix his kama, as he was now enforcing all of the Zealots to wear, Kami put her buy'ce back on. "Loyalty is life Kot'dral. You are the most loyal person I know, especially when it comes to Alor. You and your zealots will always fulfill your missions." She gave a slight nod and then turned and walked out of the room, leaving Kot'dral to his thoughts. He looked at the holodisplay, taking a mental picture to lock it within his own mind before turning it off. Gron Lerr walked in and stood within the doorframe to the main audience hall. "They're ready for you." Kot'dral let out a long heavy breath before walking towards the door to speak to his zealots. 

 

As he walked in, there before him stood fourteen others, Gron included. All of them with beskar'gam similar to his in design alone. All with kama's and all with the t-shape visors on their buy'ces cut off in some fashion before the base. He looked them over longer than what he was expecting, as he wasn't sure what to say. He wasn't one to normally give words. But somehow, the situation required it. "We're being tasked with a special assignment from Alor, Tros. House Solus stakes are big. When we get to the battlefield, it's expected to have us over Nal Hutta. Our objective is to get to the surface of Nar Shaddaa at all costs. We've been tasked with a prize to bring back. Let me make this clear, as Zealots for House Solus, we do not fail. Death or victory are the only options we have. We are zealots, Jatnese be te jatnese. We will not fail House Solus. The galaxy will know of House Solus after this battle. And while we bring the fear of Mandalorians back to the galaxy, they will also learn something else... Ke nu'jurkadir sha Zealots!" As he finished, all fourteen Zealot's lifted a vibrodager into the air in agreement. It was something else that marked zealots apart. We all know our weapons and how to use them. 

 

Alor : Leader

tal'din : Bloodline

Mando : Mandalorian (noun)

buy'ce : Helmet

beskar'gam ; Mandalorian armor

Jatnese be te jatnese : The best of the best

Ke nu'jurkadir sha : Don't mess with 

 

[saberforce]

The pain that shot through his upper shoulder as Grurt sealed the wound shut made Tros turn and look at the man with an annoyed face. The look was ignored for the most part, as Kot’dral, Sarpo and Kami finished up their reports on the battle of Nar Shaddaa. They had arrived back home on Almas around two days ago, and only now that everyone was able to either sit or stand, gave their reports on the whole situation. Even with the pain in his shoulder, which oozed and leaked every few hours, he was able to be present enough to hear what everyone had to say. He stood instead of sitting down within the throne behind him, only because he felt it was needed for everyone else to see him stand. As of right now, he turned his attention back to Kami, who was finishing up her report. The pain he felt could wait. 

 

“...The loss of Fangs were high, but the damage they dealt was sufficient enough. I would say the sooner we finish up the beskad-starfighters the better. Not enough armor or fire power on the Fangs. They have a lot of speed though. Of our forces that went, less than half returned.” She turned and looked at Sarpo, keeping her own buy’ce tucked under her arm as she did. In fact, Sarpo was the only one present still with his own buy'ce on. “I doubt we’ll have anything other than the Fangs ready within the next four months. Priorities have been shifted entirely at Qat. But on that note, we do have two Crusader-class corvettes lined up in production and should be space worthy within the next four weeks. There is also a Keldabe-class Battleship being produced upon your request, Alor. That one may take another four before it’s ready. Given that our numbers dwindled for that emergence at Nar Shaddaa. But speaking of that…” 

 

Tros adjusted slightly under the pain to look at Kot’dral. His jetblack hair kept short, locked eyes with Tros for a flicker of a moment before looking at the rest of the group. “Datafiles on Nar Shaddaa were nowhere near as guarded as we thought they’d be. They were in fact being emptied by the time we got there, but what we needed was still there. Minor, almost insignificant opposition.” He withdrew three datachips and placed them upon a table that all of the clan leaders and heads gathered around. “All three contain some sort of information relevant to what we were seeking on Terra. With the chaos outside, we were fairly unchallenged. A few did try, but were little then training practice for the Zealots. Maybe we should hire them out for future training if we get bored... although, the rumors around what transpired during this is something we need to deal with Alor…” Kot’dral’s eyes locked on his. THe black eyes meet the brown eyes of Tros, who in turned had his mind replaying the events within his own head.

 

“I'm assuming everyone wants to fully know what happened in the duel between me and Terra." He looked around to get a slow confirmation of everyone's head nods to indicate that was indeed what they were wanting to hear. He then let out a sigh and looked at the table as his own memory replayed everything for him. "...Terra.. Withdrew. The battle began quickly, yet when all was said and done, she had beat me. But she choose a different option. She left her circelt within my hands and discarded her beskar’gam before me and left. It was the last thing I saw before I passed out... She has forsaken the ways of the Mandalorian and is now dar’manda.” His own eyes didn’t look up as he told them. It stung deeply for him, to have one he followed once to leave everything behind. Sure he’s had them die before, but never willingly walking away. This was new to him. He wasn't sure if it would ever leave his memory.

 

“Already there are others now wondering where she went. On all of the channels I’m hearing is that you flat out killed her and took her armor as your prize. Many are starting to search for House Solus to pledge themselves to you Tros… Do we make sure that they know?” The words that came from Sarpo had his own mind swirling around. What would he want to do? Surely taking the title under these circumstances was far from ideal. Yet, to openly declare to everyone what had transpired would cause more damage to their entire culture and history. Many who followed Terra had been lifelong Mandalorians. What did former Mand’alors do? Were they ever in such a situation? This was uncharted territory for them. And now all of the pressure of this falls upon me, another thing I did not want to have. Kami spoke up, interrupting his thoughts.

 

“The numbers from the other clans would strengthen us. We could easily scout out the ruins of Nar Shaddaa where the Blood Prince plunged the Scarab into the planet to see if her armor survived… display it?” “But it would be dishonest. Building upon a lie. Remember the creed of House Solus Kami Larkin- it would ser-” Tros held up a hand to halt Kot’dral’s speech. As he did, a pained face took over. This time not from his shoulder, but rather where he took the slugs from Terra, but lower gut and upper thigh. He took the time to sit back down in a chair that was a little bit further away from the rest of them, if only to rest.

 

“A lie we must protect though. Others have followed Mand’alor the Bloody into long and weary wars, myself included with those. The pain to know she walked away from it all… it hurts. I’m certain that others would question their own path if they knew the truth. Others would begin to doubt this House if they learned the truth. It is something that no one else outside of this room can know.” He fully leaned back within the chair that was now acting as a throne. He purposely looked slowly at each member present before him. “Let the rumors stand. Kami, send a team within a week to scout the ruins and find her beskar’gam and bring it back. Kot’dral, take over public addressing until her beskar’gam is brought here. Sarpo, send word to Avao to continue to build the ships and you are to search for a title for me. Within two weeks, I will address all of House Solus as Mand’alor.”

 

The room slowly gave slight bows and left, all except for Kot’dral, who picked up the datachips and walked closer to Tros on the throne chair. Upon reaching him, he dropped the datachips into the now extended hand of the Alor, soon to be declared Mand’alor. “Whatever happened to Hades?” Tros slowly accepted the datachips and looked at Kot’dral. Neither had their buy’ce on, allowing for both to look eye to eye. “She sent it away upon me opening fire on her. I didn’t mean to cause her any doubt. I was content to lead separately from here. My own House, not all Mandalorians. She took something upon the battle starting that was not there.” The jetblack haired Mandalorian looked at the floor for a moment. “I know you don’t believe in the gods… but perhaps they were instrumental in the outcome and everything that has transpired since you formed this House.” He then looked up and both locked eyes again. 

 

“Many things have transpired indeed. Perhaps soon after the oath of Mand’alor is taken, we should visit our Sith friends to see what is going on with them.” Almost as soon as he finished, he closed his hand that was holding the datachips into a fist and moved to stand very slowly. “But enough of that. Help me get back to our room. We need to look over these files and have some time to just ourselves.” Kot’dral smiled and got on one side of Tros to aid him towards the back quarters. This would be about the only time when the two of them could rest easily together before more things arose that would take them away from each other yet again. 

[saberforce]

Hidden behind his buy’ce, Tros winced in pain as he shuffled himself to sit more upright before Clan Larkin’s leaders, as they began to lay out plans for recovery of objects. Meroro Crir and Buya Strarr gave reports of movement still on Nar Shaddaa, along with rumors. “... And while movement is still happening there, I doubt there will be much of any resistance if we showed up with a squad of Fangs to search the area.” Kot’dral turned his head to look at Tros, not being as subtle as he would have thought in his own opinion. Lucky for him, Kami also gave a loud grunting cough to let her speaker, Buya know that she may have overstepped a line. 

 

“Fangs would telegraph us being there, and draw unwanted attention. No one knows all that went down. I trust the Huntsmen of Clan Larkin know this…” Kami stepped forward to take center stage. “We do Mand’alor. We would be using smaller shuttles, from a local world to draw less attention. For this purpose of recovering the beskar’gam would fall to only two teams. I do not have the faith in all of the clan members to handle this yet.” There was some movement from the others within the clan to make it clear they were disappointed with the words used. Kami didn’t acknowledge them, but instead kept her head forward. It was a move that Tros respected from her. 

 

“I have word that one of our Crusader-class corvettes will be ready for movement. You may use it, but keep it out of sight. Do not engage unless you are certain to leave no survivors. Go.” The dismissal was quick and all of Clan Larkin knew what they had to do, leaving the room quickly to get their job done. Upon them fully leaving the room, Kot’dral turned to face Tros. “Forgive me, but I think that maybe there is too much faith in that Clan. What has been proven outside of Kami?” Tros leaned in heavily to one side of the chair and looked up. Kot’dral echoed what many thought. He knew this from the whispers of others around the throne. Letting out a heavy sigh, he kept his eyes locked on Kot’dral from behind his buy’ce. 

 

“Many clans form House Solus. Many Houses form Mandalorians. One House is not better than another. Battle in combat against them if you wish to prove something. Otherwise I will not have Clans bickering like little children. I place my trust in all of the Clans, as I am only as strong as the weakest Clan that I lead. To be declared Mand’alor, I must be able to trust every Clan, every House. Every vod. And they must trust me.” Tros now took the time to stand up and get directly eye level with Kot’dral. “To grow in numbers, we must be willing to let others have a trial by fire experience…”

 

He then slowly began to talk down the small platform of stairs and towards the main war table in the middle of the room. “Speaking of experience… Have we heard anything from our Sith allies?” Kot’dral delayed himself in moving towards his leader. The words stung slightly, but even he knew the truth behind them. He let out a breath before starting to walk down the stairs to join the Mand’alor. “No word. I know that they felt slightly defeated after Nar Shaddaa, however successful individual missions may have gone. Lord Mavanger did as he was supposed to, our own reported that. Rumor has it the remaining of their forces have gathered on an ancient Sith world… No clue as to what that is though…” A slight head turn was all Kot’dral got from Tros. Mand’alor kept his own head in the position looking slightly back at his second in command for a long moment.

 

“Reach out and make contact. Then gather your best Zealots and a few Pathfinders. I have something brewing within my mind…”

[saberforce]

The Revenant pulled out of hyperspace above the planet Almas, home of the Mandalorians of House Solus; where the current throne for Mand'alor sat in Forard. Tros stood on the bridge, looking at the planet that he now called home, longing so desperately to gain traction that he felt his crew had lost since the battle of Nar Shaddaa. He stood surrounded by the Zealots, the class of warriors of Clan Ardell pledged to protect and place all honor upon their banner. They were the best of the best, more skilled than even himself. He knew this because he trained with Kot'dral, their leader. He always held an upper hand against Tros, but held back because of the riduurok the two held. If his better half ever decided to challenge him for the title, he would lose. He knew that for a fact. But the very fact that he would rather stand side by side with him and train others to be as strong, if not stronger allowed for him to always feel comfort in knowing his last day would not come at his hands. 

 

Even as he stood, he awaited comms from the surface, which began to come in. Clan Larkin, lead by Kami had reported that they were a few hours out from making planetside. Reports were that Gronn with the Pathfinders sent to seek out evidence of Terra's travels on Concord Dawn had yet to report in. Avao was currently with them, but he knew better than to question if she would be present. She took on much of Vulios' responsibility and how he presented himself. She would have her weaponsmiths ready. She had already stated that the Beskad Starfighters were in full production, along with the Keldabe-class Battleship. He also knew that she was secretly working on a new line of Westar Carbines that she hoped to have fully deployed within the near future. 

 

"Sir, the Clan leaders are all prepared with the few exceptions, should we proceed to the landing pad?" It was Kot'dral who asked him, behind his black and gold buy'ce with the singular eyeline visor that was now almost fully expected with every Zealot. Turning his head ever so slightly to look at him, he lingered upon his stance longer than what he intended or even wanted. Attempting to break to awkwardness, he turned his head back to the viewport. "Yes. Make all speed. We will address everyone soon." It didn’t take long after that for the Crusader-class corvette to begin its descent towards the planet below. It would be the first time a ship of this size landed on the massive landing pad outside of the city. It was designed to hold even bigger. A grand display of what was to come for the Mandalorians. They had a long way to go if they were to ever begin another crusade, but the signs they held now showed great promise. 

 

**************************************************************

 

Now on the surface, Tro’solus sat upon the throne chair in Dralaloryia. The building, which was designed to not be the tallest in Forard, was a strong fortress; a tribute to the history of every Mandlorian that came before them. It was the home that could rival Keldabe in sight of power. However, nowhere near as big, but just as formidable if an invasion was ever to strike at it. If Tros never got the chance to begin a crusade, this city would be legacy enough for him. He sat as a good majority of the Clan leaders filled the room, all of which took turns reporting on the progress of their own individual missions that had been assigned to them. As the last one finished up, Kot’dral stepped forward, who was standing next to the throne, as were a few other Zealots. It was a way of letting the room know that Mand’alor was going to speak. Letting the cue be recognized, he then stood up before the room. 

 

“Our future is building. Our time is brewing. The glory that we all seek has been laid upon a path that it would be impossible for us to deter from. Many of you have already done much to help secure our path forward. But many roads still need to be walked, many items still need to be procured in order for our future to come to daylight. For that to happen, we must all make sure that our clans are ready and on point. Pathfinders and Huntsmen must be ready to journey. Planets like Nal Hutta, Foy, Selvaris and Raxus Prime all have items to be retrieved. Our Weaponsmiths must continue to build our fleet and weapons for the upcoming battlefield. Supercommandos and Paladins must train. Zealots must protect the House and every banner under House Solus. If our crusade is to happen, we must commit to these things in the shadows. At our time, we can catch the galaxy off hand. We can prove our strength and vigor in battle against the Jedi.”

 

Tros withdrew his beskad and held it high. “Strength is life. Honor is life. Loyalty is life. Death is life. We are Mandalorians, and we will have our great crusade when the time is right.” Upon his final word leaving his mouth, the entire room erupted in a loud chant. "STRENGTH, HONOR, LOYALTY, DEATH! STRENGTH, HONOR, LOYALTY, DEATH! STRENGTH, HONOR, LOYALTY, DEATH! STRENGTH, HONOR, LOYALTY, DEATH!" Tros continued to hold up the beskad as he looked at the room. He knew that the time would come when everyone in the galaxy would remember why Mandalorians were so feared. The remembrance would be brought by everyone in this room. 

[saberforce]

A light breeze blew through an open window at Dralaloriya. It brought with it a scent of both plasma and fuel. The sound of blasters and other weapons being used filled the throne room as many around the city were training. Tros stood looking over a map of the galaxy with a few of his trusted advisors. Atin Skol, Kami Larkin, Sutu Skoss and Kot’dral Duvul. They were all very instrumental in getting the Mandalorians of House Solus to where they are now, the dominant House and lightning rod for all others to join in their cause. But now the group had plenty to work on and look to build and protect- a topic of which was the present reason that all were present. 

 

Kami was the main one speaking, her Huntsmen were scattered throughout the galaxy, probing and taking in information and relaying it back as often as they could. “The very fact that there is a strong Jedi presence on Falleen and Naboo right now, could mean we could come under a strong hit.” “There is no reason for any of the major factions to touch Almas. It holds no history in their last few wars, and therefore should remain a pass over.” Atin then looked at Tros directly. “The main concern should be on this new faction emerging. This… Sovereignty. A complete hybrid of the Alliance and Imperial Remnant. Sources are saying its setup would allow for much quicker responses and judgment calls. A special session is about to take place on Coruscant soon over this entire matter.”

 

Sutu then interjected. He was go-to Pathfinder. The one whom Tros could trust with difficult tasks. “All of this talk is hypothetical. The Sovereignty hasn’t shown up in any force yet, outside of the newly called Sovereign Knights who joined the Jedi on Falleen. And the presence of Jedi is nothing new. They’ve always been around. Much like the Sith, whom you may have realized have gone quiet as well. Outside of Falleen, they’re attempting to stay hidden. Something I’m pretty sure we are able to do as well. Hell, even Black Sun has taken to more behind the scene tactics and movement.” 

 

Tros tilted his head as he looked over the map again. Much of the news and movements of others were to be expected. Him and Kot’dral held a few conversations about the Sith and the newly formed government that was arising. While he didn’t hold much stock in either being as big of players against them right now, Kot’dral did believe heavily that the Jedi and the Knights would be their bigger oppositions in quietly building up their own empire of sorts. He took a moment to glance over at Kot’dral, who held his own gaze for a moment before returning it to center. While he knew the man had a lot to say on things brought up, he had chosen to remain silent, leaving all other words for Tros to speak. 

 

“... Sutu is right. The mere presence of Jedi and these Knights don’t truly alarm danger. A squad of Mandalorians should be enough to handle them. Regardless of the nearby presence of outsiders, Avao has requested a few supplies. Our scouts have tracked down a few Kom’rk transports on Foy, along with the supplies needed at Qat Chrystac for the forging of our Keldabe-class Battleship.” Tros took a moment to look everyone in the eyes. “She is also near to completing our second Crusader-class corvette. Sutu and Kami, gather a few of your best and take the Adventure to Foy. Gather the supplies and the Kom’rk transports and bring them home. Destroy the Adventure while you’re there. We’re going to start abandoning the individual transports.” Kami and Sutu both turned and headed out upon receiving their orders. 

 

He now turned towards Atin. “I want you to take a team and travel to the Hapes Cluster. Terra traveled there, and I want clues as to what she did while she was there. Take Bloodlust and bring back clues.” Atin simply nodded his head and turned and left the room. Which then left Kot’dral only. “No Zealot deployment?” Tros turned and locked eyes with him. “No. Zealots protect and engage in House affairs only. None of these assignments I would consider House affairs. Supplies maybe, but it's not a super need. Therefore no deployment.” He then picked up his buy’ce and began to walk towards the stairs that lead outside. Kot’dral followed without any prompting. He almost immediately matched foot steps and followed exactly two steps behind him, as he somehow always did. 

 

“Two more groups of Mandalorians arrived last night. Seven in total. Claim to be of clans Lone and Spar.” “I thought Spar died out?” “I did too, but it would seem that there were some foundlings, and they have been rogue for some time. The rumor mill of Nar Shaddaa still stirs and is rallying many of those who are lost and without purpose.” Tros slowly nodded his head and then placed his buy’ce on. “Alright, let's go and meet with them then.”

[saberforce]

Tros stood looking out the window Dralaloriya, his buy'ce still upon his head as he held one of his Wester 75 heavy blasters, cleaning it without looking at it. Behind him stood many of the leaders of the clans that have come to support him in his claim of Mand'alor. The discussion was centered around the battle plan, the path forward if it were. The different targets and movements along the way, but they all pointed and held a single destination. Mandalore. He decided that such debate was not worth his time at the moment. Egos were still at play and many would default out to him and whatever he decided to do. The main uproar seemed to be around the very fact that they now had a very small fleet beginning. Two Crusader-class corvettes, the Revenant and Zillo's Rage. They were about four days from the Keldabe-class Battleship, Colossus being ready for full deployment into action. He allowed for his clan leaders to suggest and debate such starting points of their war path towards Mandalore. He already knew where he was going to strike first. They weren't ready for it yet. Maybe two or three months away. Training and supplies were still being gathered. 

 

When a pause hit the debates, Tros put his blaster down rather heavily onto his throne chair that was erected for him. The movement stopped many from speaking until he did. He used the gap to move towards the center of the group. "We are not ready for any first step into our war path. For now, we need to pay a visit to our allies. We have pledged to help the Sith in their goals as well. A mutual agreement of working together. We have not seen them in awhile. You all have two months to prepare your clans for our great crusade. Until then, we do nothing. Kot'dral, prepare the Revenant for deployment to Ziost with a full host of those within Clan Solus. We leave within the next three hours. Everyone, dismissed."

 

Tros then turned around and walked to his throne chair, picking back up his blaster and putting it within his holster. Upon doing so, he then turned and walked back to his quarters. He would visit Mavanger and see what sort of support he could lend until they were ready for their own crusade to retake Mandalore.