A massive cataclysm has struck the universe, and destroyed most everything in its wake. The survivors are now trying to pick up the pieces, and figure out exactly what has befallen them. Gather together, lightsiders!! The darkness has shattered the peace and calm of the galaxy...and they will do anything to stop anyone from finding out exactly what has been done! This is our first sitewide RP plotline. Lightsiders, you are looking for the source of this massive event. Clues must be found, lackeys tracked down, and bits of memory discovered. Darksiders, you guys don't want that to happen....because of the one behind the whole thing is furthering his ultimate goal. Mandalorians, and non-force users, you guys can decide where you stand on this line....do you side with the Jedi, and try to discover the reasons behind the ruined universe, or will you side with the darkness, and protect those secrets. Will the secret of the cataclysmic reaping be kept under wraps? Or will the Jedi and their allies find out the truth? Your RP and writing will decide the outcome!
BATTLE ARENA
Welcome to The Saga Continues. We have a section called the Battle Arena. Here you can use your characters to fight other characters. Hone your skills and see what you are made of. Don't worry, anything that happens here, does not effect your characters in posts, so if your character dies, you can still use them over and over. Have fun and check it out!
The Saga Continues is the product of the mind of ADMIN ADI; all contents are copyright their original owners. All characters belong to their original creators, and may not be used or replicated without permission. All images are copyright their original owners. This skin Operation Mindcrime was made by pharaoh leap of Pixel Perfect and put together by ADMIN KRYSTAL
The troopers exchanged a quick look as Rai turned away, obviously emotional. Their own expressions were hidden behind tinted transparisteel, and they went to work without exchanging a word. While Loman dug through the rubble blocking the corridor, secreting the charges deep within the mounds of crushed duracrete in a standard breaching pattern, the other two stood guard, rifles raised. The concussion grenades would do the trick- the sapper's only concern was giving the blast too much oomph and bringing the damn academy down on their heads. 'Be one hell of a way to go, after making it through all that Sithspit in Coronet', he thought grimly, and secreted the last concussion grenade behind a slab of the fallen ceiling.
Then he closed his eyes. Despite the Jedi's efforts he was still exhausted, his nerves frayed and his instincts shot. His shaking hands closed into fists, but it did no good. 'Please let this work...' Rumbling explosions shook the Academy, rolling in from the direction they'd come.
"Loman-" Rhyn croaked.
"It's ready." The sapper stood and jogged back toward where Candace and the sergeant were waiting, just around the corner. "What about him?" he asked, jerking a thumb toward the Jedi.
"You heard him. Blow it."
The sapper nodded and pulled the electromagnetic detonator from the pouch on his belt.
'Here we go.'
***
The heat from the approaching flamethrowers was unbearable- a shimmering, intolerable wave that sucked the air out of the corridor and threatened to blister Miras' skin. Now their approach made sense- it didn't matter if they weren't in range of the flames. In this confined space, the heat would kill them just as surely. And if it didn't, it would sap their strength and will to fight, along with the very air out of their lungs. 'Kriffing bastards.If I die, you're coming with me-'
"For the Republic!"
The battle cry cut through the roar of the flamethrowers as a lithe figure suddenly came streaking through their ranks at a dead sprint. In the same instant the hallway exploded, tossing Imperials like rag-dolls and collapsing the ceiling.
"Private Makoto?" the knight asked dumbly, shining sword and blazing saber hanging limply at his sides as he struggled to comprehend what was happening.
The soldier flitted past him. Miras blinked, and realized he'd been left behind- the Academy was coming down. He cursed, turned on his heel, and fled, pulling force energy from the air around him desperately. The power flooded his muscles and within moments he'd taken the lead, his cloak fluttering rapidly as he slowed to a normal speed, jogging alongside the troopers of Dogma's squad that had survived.
A chunk of the ceiling gave way and crashed down just feet away from the Jedi, exploding into stone shards that peppered him with micro-cuts. Gritting his teeth, he glanced over, only to see the wall give way beneath a wave of Infected, their grasping hands and gnashing teeth tearing through the crumbling structure, reaching out for them, hungry and insane.
He swept his lightsaber out to the side, bisecting one of the creatures as it leapt at him, and behind him he could hear Makoto's blaster firing a dull, unending litany.
It was a beautiful sword. The three foot blade shone beneath the flickering lights of the Academy, and even to Miras' untrained eye, the glitter of songsteel was obvious. A cruciform-style guard of the same material separated the blade from a long hilt that looked to be made of wroshyr wood. It was wrapped in some type of cording, and capped with a large, disc shaped pommel. The weapon was a pinnacle of craftsmanship, ancient, and obviously imbued with the force.
Miras' hand extended hesitantly, hardly believing the Jedi was parting with such a weapon so easily. He locked eyes with the Cerean, studying the solemn orbs for a long moment, and then his fingers tightened around the sword's hilt. "Well," the knight sighed, "fitting that it should help defend its home, I suppose. Thank you, Knight Rai....
Now go."
The empath watched the surviving members of the garrison usher Rai around the corner and out of sight just as the sound of booted footsteps reached his ears. Dogma's soldiers seemed to swirl around him in slow motion as he turned, the force surging through him, almost agonizing in its clarion call. In his right hand, the sword glittered dangerously. In his left, the viridian blade of his lightsaber snarled and spat. Gray eyes watched the end of the corridor, hard as stone, and Miras released himself into the ebb and flow of it all.
'There is no death,' the Jedi thought, and reached out with his mind, seizing the first trooper to round the corner in a Telekinetic vice grip. With a vicious tug he drew his target toward him, the armored figure hurtling through the air. When he was close Miras spun out of the way, thrusting the blade of his saber through the man's eye socket and turning in a swift pirouette. 'There is the Force'.
***
"We need to move." Rhyn's strained voice echoed through his helm's vocalizer as the group jogged down the corridor. The sergeant led the way, the Jedi right behind him, while Loman and Cassandra came in the rear. His eyes swept through every doorway as they passed by, looking for the tell-tale signs of the infected, but so far it seemed they hadn't reached this deep into the academy yet- there weren't any signs of bloodshed or violence to suggest they had been driven back, either.
At least, not yet.
Behind them, shouts and the sound of blasterfire began to finally fade away, leaving only the rumble of the ships overhead, and the occasional shudder as the shelling of the academy continued. In a way, the quiet was worse. Rhyn found himself straining in vain to hear sounds of the battle they'd left behind. Now, isolated from it all, they had no clue if their allies had been overrun, if the Imperial soldiers were right behind them, if their friends were still alive. Not knowing was worse, the sergeant decided.
"The rubble is just up ahead, right Jedi?" he asked, looking over his shoulder at the Cerean.
Loman's voice called out from the rear. "When we get there, I'll set the timers on the last of our thermal detonators and place them in a breaching pattern. It's going to be overkill, but as long as you can keep the ceiling from collapsing on us, we'll definitely have a way through."
"I resent that." The Echani replied to Dogma's quip, though her voice sounded more weary than angry, and no one bothered with a rebuttal as the dwindling group of survivors moved through the hallways.
Miras was in the rear and didn't bother responding, either. Despite the Cerean's efforts his head was still pounding. His body felt rejuvenated, rested and ready to fight, but nothing could erase the horrors of the last few days or the constant stress of fighting for his life. Fending off these creatures was nothing like fighting Sith. Though corrupted, dark siders were sentient beings with motives that could be anticipated, weaknesses that could be exploited, and goals that could be stopped. The infected were nothing but a seething horde of unending rage, never stopping, never resting until everything they touched was ripped apart and bathed in blood.
Sometimes being an empath wasn't all that great.
Snapping out of his reverie, the knight caught the tail end of the sergeant's reply:
"We used almost our entire supply getting here. Loman has what's left- two thermal detonators and a handful of concussion grenades. With those Imperials shelling the academy, I don't think it's safe to be setting off any more explosives-"
"Knight Rai said he can hold the ceiling," Miras cut in. "And Raven squad can't hold them off alone. If we're both occupied trying to move the rubble they'll gun as all down before we're finished." The Jedi's bitter gray gaze swept across the troopers one last time, making up his mind once and for all. "I'll stay with Dogma and his men while the rest of you clear the way to the hangar. As soon as it's clear, give us the word and we'll catch up...Knight Rai has to make it to Honoghr. That's all that matters now."
'And even if I die, at least the garrison has a shot at making it off this rock.'
"Come on," Miras said, slapping a hand on Dogma's shoulder and smiling coldly. "You can show me how real men fight."
To the soldiers in the room, Dogma's anger would be almost like a palpable thing. To Rai, it was no doubt something akin to a concussive flare. To Miras, feet away and with force energy humming through his entire body thanks to the Cerean Jedi's efforts, it was like a raging inferno, to the point he could feel its heat on his face. Desperation, the empath decided, not without sympathy. Coupled with a feeling of impotence. Understandable, if misplaced.
"The greater good." the Jedi echoed, after Rai and Dogma had both had a chance to say their piece, and then shook his head. "If you weren't up for the job, you shouldn't have volunteered for it. Your men died because of your call, not mine. Get the kriff out of my face." He pushed past the soldier and stepped out into the hall, his burnt cloak rustling as he fumbled a cigarra from one of the inner pockets and lit it. Watching the direction the Imperial's would be coming from and smoking, the knight tapped one finger against the hilt of his lightsaber, and waited.
In the silence that followed, Rhyn threw down the headset in disgust. "No response. Either the bastards overran their defenses, or their comm array is down, just like CorSec's." The sergeant stood and turned to face Rai and Dogma. "We've been on this planet for too long. Lost too many men. Knight Tinup has done more than his share of fighting, soldier, and we're on the same side." He paused long enough to be sure his message got across, then finally sighed in resignation. "And of the same mind as well, it seems. Retreat and evacuation are our only options. Knight Rai, if you lead the way, we'll escort you to the hangar and offworld. We can take you as far as Honoghr- after that, we have to proceed to the rally point on Carida.
I'm not the praying sort, but I hope to Ashla this cure of yours really works. The entire galaxy is counting on it."
Outside, Miras dropped the butt of his cigarra and crushed it under his heel. His voice was soft as the emerald blade of his lightsaber hissed to life. "They're coming."
Corellia's garrison made no reply to the other group of soldiers as they volunteered to hold the entrance, and headed off. It didn't need said aloud: each of them knew it a was a suicide mission. The Imperial that had arrived on world easily outnumbered them several times over. They were heavily armed and armored, and had access to an obviously advanced level of technology, not to mention a clear line of communications and air support.
Running was their only chance, and as Dogma's squad left to give them time to do just that, none of them even offered a thanks. 'It's their duty, after all,' Miras thought to himself as he fell in line with the groiup heading for the communication center. Loman took point, marching a few paces ahead of the them with his light repeater shouldered. Infected had obviously compromised the Academy; there was no telling where they might encounter the feral creatures.
The empath quietly moved to walk beside Rai. "Have you been able to contact any other members of the Order? I've sent out messages, but..." He left his concerns unsaid, but they would be obvious enough. Was it possible the Order had been destroyed? Surely the rest of the galaxy hadn't fared as bad as Corellia- the garrison here was small, as was the Academy. They hadn't had the manpower to respond effectively when the infection had begun to spread, but other worlds- Coruscant, Honoghr- had to have survived.
The sound of explosions suddenly rang out again, closer this time, and a different timber. The roof above their heads creaked, and Miras felt crushed duracrete raining down on his shoulders.
"They must've breached the entrance." The sergeant's voice rang out, tense and strained. "Double time, people."
They all knew what he wasn't saying: if the Imperials had made it inside, it would only take them seconds to slaughter the Republic soldiers that had volunteered to defend the entrance. It only took them a few more minutes to make it to the comm station, a modest office just off the main hallway leading from the medical bay. Loman, the sapper, ducked inside, along with Rhyn. The rest of the squad huddled just outside the doorway.
"We've got a link to the estate!" Miras heard Loman shout from inside.
"Attention, this is Sergeant Rhyn, with the Republic garrison of Corellia. We have orders to evacuate the Senator and his staff to a safe location offworld. Do you read me?"
And then, running footsteps. Miras turned to see the squad from earlier approaching. Their leader stormed past, his face dark with anger, and, heaving a sigh, the knight followed him into the office. Normally this would be the sergeant's mess to deal with, but he was a little occupied at the moment.
"We're not leaving without the Senator," Miras replied softly, standing close enough to the soldier to make it obvious it wasn't debatable. "And neither are you. You abandoned your post at the entrance at first contact with the enemy?" He snorted humorlessly, gray eyes flashing with a burgeoning anger of their own. "Some Republic troopers you turned out to be."
A thick blanket of dust swallowed the sound of his footsteps as Miras made his way down one of the prison's narrow corridors. Cells lined both walls, energy fields deactivated and walls beginning to crumble. The occupants they once housed were long gone, but the echo of their torment remained. The empath could feel it bleeding from each empty room, saturating the force with wails of lament. The suffering that occurred here was like a wound, weeping and infected with wrongs never righted.
The urge to reach out and touch it was irresistible and repulsive all at once- like the inability to look away from a speeder crash or a murder victim. His stomach churned at the mere thought of what he might find if he stuck his nose into the horrors of what once transpired here. But he was here for a reason. The Sith Empire had loosed an army of corpses and twisted, ruined creatures against the Republic. Horrors with gaping maws that hungered for sentient flesh and hide that repelled heavy laser fire. Entire garrisons reduced to feeding frenzies, infirmaries full of mauled victims...it had to end, and Republic Intelligence suggested there might be information here that could fend them off. Knowledge born of heinous experiments carried out by the Emperor's apprentices, but perhaps of use after all these years.
Pulling his tattered, blaster-singed cloak a little tighter around himself, Miras reached out to touch the force...
..and recoiled. The residual agony of the place was splashed across his pallid features.
"He could be lying," Loman sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose with his forefinger and thumb. "Trying to get a military escort off-world."
The sapper stood between Miras and Rhyn, just outside the door to the medical bay. Within, two more troopers kept watch over the Jedi, though whether for his protection or theirs, no one had said.
"He's not lying. I'd have sensed it if he was."
Rhyn scoffed. "Give me a break. I know forcefuls can hide their motives from each other. That's how we ended up with the damn Empire. He could be playing you, too."
"Not me." The knight shook his head. "I'm an Empath, sergeant. Probably the most powerful one still alive today. He's not lying."
"Fine, say he really does have the cure. That still doesn't release us from our orders. We can't abandon the senator."
Miras bit his lip, but said nothing. Technically, he was under no obligation, to the senator or to the Republic military. In all truth, his number one priority absolutely should be getting Rai offworld, and the mission be damned. But he had made his choice when he'd been prepared to kill the Jedi in defense of the soldiers. There was no backing out now, and deep down, the knight knew he could never abandon these people.
"...the comm booster." Loman was saying. "We need to try to get a message to the estate. If it's been overrun, then we can start looking at our options."
'And if not, attempting a rescue will be a suicide mission.' Miras finished for him, but didn't say. It didn't matter either way. His path had been set.
Inside the medical bay, one of the troopers removed her helmet, revealing a shock of white hair and wide silver eyes. Kneeling, she placed it on the floor, and then gestured. "She was close to you, wasn't she? Can I help you get her up on the bed?"
And then the steady thwump, thump, thump of cannon-fire shook the academy's foundations. Miras could feel them, circling, advancing, hunting. Hatred and malice boiling from numerous life forms. Not the mindless rage of the infected, no. This was cold, calculated cruelty, and it was getting closer.
"We need to move. Now."
"Looks like those Imperials got the Jedi's message, too." Rhyn agreed, slapping open the door to the medical bay. "Alright, Jedi, let's go: take us to the facility's comm station, now."
"Hold!" The sergeant made a halting gesture to the troopers, who had all shouldered their rifles the moment the scream ripped through the air. "Sounds like we've got company. Look sharp."
"I don't think that was an infected." Miras said from the rear, frowning. Something prickled along the edge of his senses, tugging at his attention. Focusing on it took everything he had- he was exhausted- but after a moment, it began to take shape, solidifying into a presence.
"Then what the kriff was it?" Loman rumbled without lowering his rifle.
"Maybe our Jedi. I think he's this way."
He started off down the hallway, the dumbfounded troopers following in his wake. The force acted as his guide, urging him to turn down intersections and through doorways without the need for Miras to think. 'Hope we don't need to find our way back out in a hurry,' the Jedi thought with a smirk. 'Cause I have no idea where I'm going.'
The battered troop rounded a corner, and there he was, huddled on the floor and clutching a corpse. Rhyn moved to approach, but Miras threw up an arm to ward him back. His gaze was fixated ahead, a stony expression on his face. "Wait," he said, then called out. "Did she bite you? Did you get her blood on you? Are you infected?"
He waited tensely for an answer, his thumb resting on the activation stud of his lightsaber. The thought of tracking down the only other Jedi on the planet only to have to put him down left a sour taste the Knight's mouth, but if it came down to it, he would keep these soldiers safe.
They made swift progress after breaking through to the fringes of the city. The shoreline was clear of the infected, and though red eyes watched their journey from just beyond the tree line, none sought to accost them. 'Probably due to those Imperials wreaking havoc in the city,' Miras mused from his place in the rear of the squad. Sweat beaded on his brow as he watched the trees nonetheless, and his hand never left the hilt of his lightsaber. He noticed the rest of the squad- what was left of it, anyway- kept their fingers on the triggers of their rifles, and he couldn't blame them. All of them had seen a stray infected break from the crowd and charge, only for the entire mob to take its cue and follow.
"Just keep moving." Rhyn called from the front of the group. "We're less than a quarter of a klick away from the academy."
"Yeah, sanctuary." said the trooper in front of him. Miras could almost hear her eyes roll beneath her helmet. He couldn't resist the chuckle that rose up within him. After a moment, Loman joined in.
Minutes later, the ancient structure loomed before them.
All five of them stopped dead in their tracks, surveying the carnage.
"Sithspit..." the Jedi breathed.
"Alright," Rhyn snapped, bringing one arm up and gesturing forward. "Weapons ready, and cut the chatter."
The Jedi watched as the troopers shouldered their rifles and began a forward march up the crumbling steps. One by one they were swallowed by the inky black interior, until finally it was his turn.
The dead littered the hallways. Most were dressed in nondescript garb, but scattered among them Miras could see the telltale brown robes of the Jedi. He hadn't worked closely with the Academy here, preferring to spend his time in the city, but each pair of sightless eyes that met his gaze as the squad made their way further inside felt like a blow to the stomach. A stark reminder of his own mortality- that even Jedi could fall.
He shook it off and looked up just in time to avoid ramming into the back of the woman in front of him. Rhyn had called a halt.
"Attention!" The sergeant called, the amplifiers in his helmet carrying his voice through the winding hallways. "This is Sergeant Rhyn with the Republic Garrison. If you can hear me, we received your distress call. We're here to help."
"That's an order, damn it!" Rhyn snarled, but the soldier was already running past. The sergeant reached out, grasping for a handhold on the stranger, but Loman's hand on his shoulder stopped him short.
"Sir," the big Corellian's voice rumbled. "We don't have time for this."
Fuming, Rhyn watched him cut around the corner and disappear. Finally, he shook his head. "One man securing the estate and rescuing the senator. Idiot. What about the squad he left behind?"
Miras shrugged. "We really don't have time to rendezvous with them, either. Cutting our way through the infected to get them and then doubling back for the Jedi isn't an option; we need to use the distraction of those soldiers and move on the Academy."
"Didn't that private say they weren't friendlies?" Loman asked.
"Doesn't really matter, does it? The infected are too distracted by those soldiers, and they're too busy fighting off the infected to notice us. All we need to do is avoid getting strafed by those fighters."
"But who are they?"
"Enough." Rhyn's voice was quiet, but both men fell silent. "The Jedi is right. We can't fight our way to that squad and then double back for the Jedi. Our objective remains unchanged. Loman, take point. Don't engage anyone or anything if you can help it, we're not exactly combat ready. If any of the infected stray from the pack to make a move on us, let Knight Tinup handle them. We don't want the blaster fire to draw attention to us. Fall out."
The sapper nodded, and the three surviving soldiers followed him out toward the street. Miras moved to follow them, but felt a hand grip his shoulder. He turned to see the sergeant's bloodshot eyes boring into his.
"This better be worth it, Knight. If your Jedi friend is lying, these men will die for nothing."
Calmly, he removed Rhyn's hand from his robes. "We need to focus, sergeant. Come on."
Slowly, his breathing returned to normal, and his eyesight returned. He waited a moment longer before attempting to stand, and immediately wished he'd waited longer. Blinking back the dizzying waves of nausea, Miras tilted his face upward, studying the figure atop the rooftop. It was clear he was Republic military, but his colors were different than those worn by Rhyn's squad. Not part of the garrison, then. 'Does that mean the cavalry has arrived?' the Jedi mused sarcastically.
Still, his covering fire was more than enough to pick off the stragglers that broke away from the crowd- nearly all of the infected were streaming toward the center plaza, drawn by the commotion. A handful of soldiers and a smattering of small arms fire wasn't enough to draw their attention, and Miras was grateful for the reprieve.
He found his lightsaber wedged beneath the torso of an infected corpse, the pommel glittering in a pool of dark blood. Grimacing, he rolled the body over with the toe of his boot and wiped the hilt off on his cloak, which was already covered in a mixture of mud and gore. Nearby, Loman was shaking his head at the disassembled barrel of his rotary cannon.
"Carbon build-up," he said when the Jedi approached. "It's toast. Gonna have to take Rogan's light repeater...poor bastard." The big Corellian gestured toward the disemboweled trooper sprawled out a few meters away. "I only took my eyes off him for a second to cover our flank."
"We knew the odds weren't good."
He shook his head. "You know what they say about telling Corellians the odds, don't you?"
Miras only nodded and walked away. The pain emanating from the sapper was too much for him to bear, so he made his way over to where the sargeant was gesturing to the figure on the rooftop.
"Thanks for the cover, but that's a negative on the evacuation." Rhyn paused, listening, but Miras couldn't hear the other end of the com. "Our objective is the Jedi Academy a few clicks from here; we have a high-value target slated for extraction.
Congratulations, private, you and your squad have just been placed under my command. Get down here."
They had scrambled madly to gather up their gear and muster inside the front entrance of the CorSec station. Ammunition counts, armor checks, and last minute weapon repairs were completed with grim haste, no one speaking. Despite this Miras had sensed the burgeoning of hope coming from the soldiers, much to his dismay. In reality, there was little chance they would make it to the Academy alive.
"Two." the sergeant looked first at the Jedi, then aroforefinger tapping rapidly against the hilt of his saber as his gaze flitted restlessly between the expressionless visors of the soldiers around him. 'One last push,' he told himself. Then it will be over, one way or another. He could only hope his strength didn't falter before they got it done.
Rhyn slipped his helmet over his head, hiding his sternund at the rest of his men, huddled in the short corridor with their rifles at the ready. In the back, Loman's rotary cannon whirred as the barrel spun idly, waiting for the power cells to be engaged so it could rain a hail of death.
He'd volunteered to take point- they would need his lightsaber to clear a path so the rest of the soldiers could get out into the open, where they could concentrate their fire and maneuver effectively. His exhaustion battled a nervous energy, features behind an expressionless mask. The seal clicked decisively. "Go."
Miras slapped his palm against the activation switch and ducked through the door before it had finished sliding open. The emerald blade of his lightsaber flared to life, its vibrant hum drown out by snarls and roars as the two infected wandering just outside the station turned their crimson gazes on him. He met the first with a horizontal slash that bisected the rabid Duros, taking a wide step past the as it toppled and meeting the second head on. It slammed into him, wrapping its arms tight around the Jedi before his blade pierced its midsection, then ripped to the side, severing its spine.
Freeing himself from the infected as it slid down to the duracrete, Miras scanned the parking lot, looking for his next target. They were everywhere, surging forward from all directions, a sea of grasping hands and gnashing teeth. Behind him, the soldiers poured out of the station, and the infected began to fall. Above the scattered blaster fire, the steady thwump of Loman's cannon set the tempo as they fought for their lives.
He was surrounded in seconds. Every time he managed to cut a hole in the crowd around him it would fill with another pair of red eyes. He could feel himself slowing, arms burning from the exertion. To his left, a soldier screamed as three infected broke through his breastplate and began pawing through his abdomen, stringing gore around them.
Suddenly, the sky was filled with the roar of repulsorlifts as drop ships and star fighters screamed overhead, one after another. Within moments, the sound of explosions and the chatter of heavy blaster fire had reached them, and the outer fringes of the infected crowd began to drift away in search of bigger fish. The Jedi hacked and slashed in every direction, and suddenly, he was free.
Panting, covered in superheated gore, Miras let go of his saber and dropped to his hands and knees. Black crept in around the edges of his vision, threatening to pull him under.
"Report!" Rhyn's familiar voice rose above the clamor. "Did anyone get an ID on those ships?"
Only four of the troopers were left- another lay in a crumpled heap a few yards from Miras, his helmet caved in where the infected had bashed his head against the duracrete. None of them spoke up until Loman strode forward, dropping his rotary cannon and bandoleer in a heap on the ground. "No markings, sergeant. No I.F.F. transponders, either. But they weren't Republic, I know that much."
"Well, whoever they are, they just saved our asses." the sergeant spat, ejecting the clip from his blaster rifle and inserting a fresh one. "Anyway, we don't have the luxury of investigating. Our objective remains the same. Reload and regroup, we're leaving in five minutes."
The urgent beeping of the comms array startled him awake. It was a sound they hadn't heard since they'd first fortified the CorSec station and hunkered down; the lone sapper in the squad, a native Corellian, had spent the better part of two days repairing it, and insisted it was in perfect working order. Their transmissions were going out...but there was no one to reply. Now, the entire array was lit up, the screen bathing he room in a pale glow.
Miras joined the troopers huddled around the array and strained to hear the message:
"Attention, to whoever can hear me. My name is Jedi Knight Rai Darkwater and I am broadcasting on all emergency frequencies. I am at the Jedi Academy and am in need of immediate assistance. I have important cargo that must be escorted off-world. I repeat, I have important cargo that must be escorted off-world. If you can hear me, please respond."
The message repeated itself twice before Sergeant Rhyn stepped forward and clicked it off. Miras heard him heave a heavy sigh before slowly turning to face them. His blue eyes were bloodshot. his tanned face haggard. The Padawan noticed the gray in his stubble for the first time. 'It's the weight of these men's lives,' he thought to himself. 'They're all resting on his shoulders, and it's crushing him.'
"Alright," Rhyn barked, his eyes scanning his men. When his gaze found Miras, the Jedi felt a wave of grief and frustration boil of the man, but his voice betrayed nothing. "I don't need to tell you that this changes thing, people. If there's another Jedi on the planet, we have a duty to at least make contact with him."
"Your priority is the Senator, Sergeant." Miras said quietly. His gray eyes met the sergeant's, and neither man looked away.
"We're cut off from Republic Command and the red-eyes have the Senator's estate completely surrounded. I decide what our priority is, Knight Tinup, and until the landscape changes we're not going to be able to complete our objective. If this Jedi has something that will help the Republic, it's our duty to get it safely offworld. Maybe it's something that will help us reach the Senator, maybe not. Either way, I'm done sitting in this station waiting for a miracle."
After a long moment, Miras shrugged and looked away. It was true they weren't doing any good here. Supplies were running low and despite daily skirmishes, they hadn't even made a dent in the number of infected civilians still roaming the city. They could only survive another week at best. If they hadn't been torn apart by then, they'd begin the long road of starvation.
"How did this Jedi even get a signal out to us? I thought the communication relays were destroyed during the outbreak?" the trooper next to Miras asked, his voice distorted by the vocalizer in his helmet.
Loman, the sapper, answered before Rhyn had a chance: "Most of the Academy's are on separate grids from the planetary comm systems and have their own signal boosters in case they need to get a broadcast out in...well, in a situation like this."
"In other words, we can hear him, but he can't hear us." Miras stated flatly.
"Right," the sapper replied, "but if we were to scavenge that booster, we could use it to make contact with the Senator's estate. It isn't much, but at least we'd be able to coordinate with them."
"Will it be enough of a boost to get a signal offworld?" Rhyn asked. The silence that followed was all the answer any of them needed. The sergeant looked around again and nodded. "Alright then, that settles it. Gear up people, I want weapon and ammo checks done and everyone ready to move in fifteen minutes.
You already know I'm in, but I figure I'll post here and make it official.
My plan is to have Miras move through the ranks through in-universe achievements and become a major player in the Republic military, but if we need NPC's to act as politicians, I can carry some of that load as well.
Miras swung wildly, his curses muffled by his respirator and drowned out by the thrum of his lightsaber. Both of the infected Humans fell back, one now missing its left arm, and he stepped in to his follow-through, blocking the doorway and forcing them back another step. Ducking beneath their outstretched arms, he drove his lightsaber through one's breast. Superheated blood spattered against his robes as the red-eye shrieked and clawed at his robes. Grimacing, the Knight released the hilt with one hand and thrust it out, fingers splayed. Telekinetic energy hammered into its chest and threw it backward just as blaster fire erupted from behind him, crumpling the other infected before it could turn on him.
His shoulders slumped, Miras studied the two bodies for a long moment, waiting. He'd learned a hard lesson about turning your back on these creatures, but eventually his shoulders slumped and his lightsaber died with a gentle 'woosh'. Breathing hard, he turned to see two soldiers in the doorway, waiting. From the other end of the hall, footsteps. Screaming. He hung his head as he trudged back inside the perimeter. The clang of the door being shut and sealed failed to register.
They'd been holed up in the lower levels of the Peace and Security Station for nearly a week now, subsisting off waning field rations and sleeping in shifts. The infected harassed them constantly, never giving them a chance to rest, and every foray out into the city was met with disaster and forced retreat. Out of the ten man squad, only six remained, one of which was currently bleeding out on one of the makeshift cots shoved against the wall.
He was spent- his arms alternated between numbness and burning, and even simple Telekinesis caused splitting headaches. Yet the fight was never finished. The infected were an endless, teeming horde, constantly throwing themselves against the perimeter, ravenous and insatiable. Grimacing, he pulled his soiled robes off and sat down heavily on his cot. For the tenth time in as many hours he pulled out his personal commlink and checked for a response from the Jedi Order, and for the tenth time he heaved a bitter sigh and scrolled through to his music. 'Mad About Me' by the Modal Nodes began blaring from the device, eliciting a series of groans from the soldiers nearby.
"For kriff's sake kid, again?"
He managed a humorless smile. "Better than listening to the infected scratching at our door though, right?"
"At this point," the trooper replied in a deadpan, "I think I'd rather listen to the red-eyes' music than yours."
Miras increased the volume, hugged his knees to his chest, and shut his eyes.