Haunting Chorus: The Battle for Coruscant

[Kit]

Here it was then. All four sections of the fleet had signed in, and were ready for the jump.

One minute left.

Rogal's hand quivered slightly, the anticipation beginning to get to him slightly. He firmly gripped the arm of his chair, to stop it being visible. Thirty seconds now.

Despite his firm grip, he could still feel his hand tremble. It was all down to this now, this final moment of truth. Soon, they would be able to tell whether their crusade would go down in flames, or whether they would light a fire that would burn in the heart of the Republic, and every free sentient.

Ten seconds left.

All Ships! Maintain formation, and begin the jump to hyperspace... NOW!

Rogal's issue of the order was largely irrelevant, as it coincided exactly with the countdown timer hitting zero on every ship in the fleet in unison. Most captain's had already begun the acceleration before he had finished speaking. As such, the fleet jumped to hyperspace as in unison as it's possible for a fleet of that size to be.

Due to the nature of the route Rogal had planned, and their destination, it wouldn't be long at all before they reached Coruscant, and became either heroes, or martyrs. Time ticked past silently, no-one wanted to break the tense silence that was an almost physical presence aboard his ship. Rogal expected a similar scene was playing out on the other ships in the fleet.

Two minutes to destination; All ships to full alert!

Once more, his voice broadcast to the entire fleet, then just to his own ship, he added,

Remember, we don't know what they'll have waiting. I want as much power to the shields as is possible. I know she's tough, but...

He trailed off. He knew that the bridge staff knew what they were doing.

"Beginning deceleration!" broke the silence, the cry coming from the nav station.

And as the blue lines faded back into stars, there it was, right before his eyes. Coruscant. Homeworld of the Republic, the very heart of democracy. The embodiment of freedom, of justice. Home...

Sensors! I want to know exactly what's out there! Everything! No matter how insignificant!

"Sir! Sensors report... Nine, ten... no, twelve... Twelve contacts! With minimal support, Sir! We've got the sun at our backs, and they don't seem to have been expecting us."

Rogal smiled, they outnumbered their foe almost four to one!

"Sir...?"

Rogal's smile faded, that tone of voice was never good.

"There seems to be some heavy anti-air weaponry on the ground... Ion cannons, Sir. I can't tell how many, but I'm sure they're there."

Rogal nodded, and tapped a button on his command console; opening the secure channel to the Crimson Blade,

This is the Behemoth to the Blade. I want you to drop as many men as you can right on top of those cannons. Take them out, as quickly as possible.

Then, with a press of a second button, he opened communication to the rest of the fleet;

All ships, ALL AHEAD FULL! I want us all over that planet, right now! Land as many troops as possible, concentrate your deployments! We need to hit their defenses before they know they're even under attack!

Once more, the Fleet rumbled forwards, the v shaped formation with the Behemoth at the fore was formidable indeed. The Sith ships didn't seem to be in battle formation, or have any formation, other than a somewhat basic patrol/defense set up.

It would be easy to pick off the enemy ships, especially with their numerical advantage, but the plan had to be held to, though it risked large casualties, if it paid off...

He broke from his reverie, and watched what appeared to be the Sith flagship through the long range viewfinder. He routed the view to his command panel, so he could scan the battlefield in detail at his own accord.

Weapons officer, I want all ordnance loaded and ready to fire, plot a targeting solution to hit their flagship, then broadcast that data to the rest of the fleet. I want that ship dead before it has the chance to fire a single weapon. Wait for my command.

"Aye, Sir!"

His hand gripped his seats chair even tighter. If it all went to plan in the skies, then soon he would be on the ground. Something told him that he would be in even more danger there than up here. At least he wouldn't be responsible for the entire thing failing anymore.

He swallowed, and waited as the Fleet raced ever closer to Coruscant.

 

[Will]

Vàli smiled as his mighty, bladelike ship slipped out of hyperspace. He received the report, nodded to Captain Heinrich, and left the bridge. He set his commlink to broadcast over the whole ship. ''Looks like our Job's changed! Everyone to the TIP's! We're taking the ground based ion cannons, to clear it for the big boys up here! Once you have an Ion cannon, disable and hold it! Revel in the bloodshed of the night!'' he roared, and felt the corridoors vibrate with the mighty roar in reply. He bared his fangs, entering his quarters. He slipped out of his regular clothes, looking over his trophies. He picked up a shortsword from a rack, and opened a secret footlocker. He plucked the hallucinogenic grenades from the recesses, and replacing the lid. He ran to his TIP, chacking over his teammates', whilst they did the same for his. He waited for Captain Von Poppleopacus to give the green light, when they would be in range for the drop.

 

[Green Ranger]

'Admiral, large amounts of Cronau radiation have been detected within ten kilometers of our position. Judging by the coordination and sheer amount, we can estimate the Republic is moving against us.'

'Be not so quick to gamble away all of your credits, Captain,' Krakana murmured, her eyes narrowed to icy slits as she concentrated on the new arrivals, 'No, these are not Republic warships, they do not stink of their decaying government, and they lack standard Republic hyperspace maneuvres. They also seem to be inexperienced - the Republic staggers their jumps for a reason; the Cronau radiation left behind from even a single vessel leaving hyperspace is barely traceable, but together, it is a beacon screaming, 'We are over here!'...'

Krakana went silent for barely half a second, before her icy blue eyes snapped wide open again, her head turning to the Captain.

'Well? Shields up, turn all our vessels to broadside the eenemy. I want all power from the port turbolaser batteries to be diverted to the starboard batteries. Furthermore, scramble all fighters and alert all other warships in the system to assemble at this point and engage the enemy.

'Coruscant will not fall while Admiral Krakana stands...' The woman murmured, half to herself, as she watched the numerous fighter squadrons soar out from the launching ramps. Numerous other Sith vessels, already close by, were already managing to approach their positions, quickly forming a defensive line in front of the flagship.

'Captain, signal ground control, and inform them of the situation - we are under attack, but the vessels carry not the insignia of the Republic. Also, once the enemy forces enter range, I want our bomber and multirole starfighter to focus on any landing craft or shuttles immediately. Interceptors are to remain in formation around the capital line for now - they will deal with any bombers the enemy has to use against us.'

For now, the Admiral returned to her commanding chair, allowing herself a moment of pleasure as her fingers stroked the lightsaber hilt hanging on her uniform. She remembered back when she didn't stand on the bridge of a comman vessel, and fought with the saber and the Force...those were the days...there was nothing quite like killing up close.

 

[Kit]

Naturally...

He half mumbled to himself. He hadn't expected them to just roll over and die. And you didn't need to be a five star general to know that they weren't going to go down without a fight.

He had to wonder though, had this general ever defended a planet before? Something told him that he, or she, had not. A static line didn't work where an enemy could, and most likely would attack from all directions.

Apologising to Skyu in his head, it seemed like he was going to be putting the slies first. Besides, right now, there was no advantage to diverting their attentions. It was possible to utterly annihilate the Sith fleet, and he had every intention of doing so.

The way the Sith were forming their defensive lines put them directly between the Crusade and Coruscant. And the Crusade had, as yet, no orders to change direction or speed.

He considered giving the command to launch all fighters.

That command would herald the coming of a swarm of thousands of fighters, that would billow out of hundreds of holds like a swarm of metallic locusts, intent on devouring the enemy fleet.

Not yet. They needed to be closer, to maximise the numerical advantage. In the meantime...

All ships, maintain this heading, and cut pace to three quarters, divert all remaining power to shields, and load all ordnance.

Not yet...

The Crusade silently roared closer, and Rogal called for a specific firing solution. The officer on the weapons station rapidly made the calculations, and the data appeared on his command interface. He transmitted the data to all the ships of the fleet, timing was important here.

Not yet...

Launch all fighters!

Thousands of fighters, of a myriad of different design tore out into space, like clouds of black dust around their parent ship, and those nearby. These would make life very difficult for the Sith's corresponding craft, simply because of the sheer weight of numbers. There were at least a thousand already out, with more to come. A lot more.

Not... yet...

The data that appeared on every weapons station, and captains readout was a map of converging lines, and a timer, that slowly ticked away seconds. Every readout was slightly different, showing exactly which ship exactly what to fire, when and at which enemy ship.

The sheer volume of fire that the Crusade could put out, even just ordnance alone, would be ridiculous. The Behemoth alone was capable of launching over a hundred missiles and torpedoes in a single salvo, before having to reload. They were slower, and had less range than a conventional laser based weapon, and had thusly fallen from favour, but their power and the amount that could be fired simultaneously could destroy ships at a time.

The firing solution had been carefully worked out so as to have a constant barrage of hits on the enemy ships, and to blow the center out of the Sith's line. It would take time for the ordnance to reach their targets, another disadvantage, but Rogal already had the next three moves planned out, like event he most basic chess player.

Timer's started hitting zero. Rogal could see hundreds, thousands, maybe tens of thousands even, on his readout, showing them all converging on the center of the Sith line.

The fighters milled around the Crusader ships. Normally they would follow the ordnance, to protect the various projectiles in flight and to capitalize on any damage done. However, the first salvo could be allowed to be shot down. In fact, Rogal would prefer it if it was.

Once more broadcasting to all ships, his next order flew out;

Charge all batteries! Divert power from the engines if need be, just get those turbolasers ready! Hit them in the center, and hit them hard!

Rogal intended to break their line, and drive for the heart. Remove the head, and the body dies. Removing the head was always a costly move... It would be worth it, however.

Involuntarily, he leaned forwards in his chair, praying silently. It was true he had never done this before, not on this scale. This was a very big step up from single ship engagements. The Behemoth could overpower any other single ship. But there were twelve enemies, and he wasn't used to commanding forty ships.

The Crusade roared ever closer to the Sith fleet, though outpaced by it's ordnance. Rogal wondered what the enemy commander would do? Fire at the ordnance, to try and cut damage down, or fire at Rogal's ships?

It wouldn't be long before he found out, regardless.

 

[Green Ranger]

'All ships, thrusters at full power for five seconds, then cut the engines again. Divert all power to the starboard shields and turn in that direction to a thirty degree angle from your origin.'

It was risky, but against the slower weaponry, Krakana felt it could be pulled off. It would cause the torpedos to have to double back, cause them to come in at the ships from a curve. That's where the turn came in - providing a broadside to the torpedos would allow maximum shield and point defence from the salvo. Additionally, the commander sought to take out the centre of the line, but had not kept the flanks engaged. Spouting red energy like flames, the flanking vessels put up a screen of defensive fire across the front of the vessels. Torpedo after torpedo was shot down, detonating in front of the enemy flagship - and, at the same time, killing their sensors from the visual and energy loads from the detonating weaponry. The enemy was blinded by their own attack, and, due to their forward momentum, would be unknowing of screen of energy until they had basically charged right into it. Krakana silently signaled to her captain, who nodded. The Precedence shuddered as her own torpedo tubes launched powerful proton torpedos. At the same time, the other eleven capital ships launched simultaneously, sending a barrage of blue energy at the flagship of the enemy.

 

[Sovereign]

Immediately as the enemy fleet came in range, the massive ion cannons that sprouted from the planet's monotonous cityscape sprang to life. Huge blasts of devastating energy were shot out from Coruscant's atmosphere and sent to dwell directly within the enemy's formation. Hundreds of these bolts were sent, in an almost continuous stream.

The General sat quietly within the Command Centre, examining with utmost scrutiny the holographic map of the planet that hung before him. Knowing the importance of the ion cannons, he gave orders for the garrison to set up a large minefield in a huge ring around the them. These anti-personnel mines could be quickly set up and could easily prevent any kind of direct assault. Then, he turned around to face the two Sith that stood idly before him. "Defend the ion cannons at all cost. If they should fall to the enemy, the entire planet falls with them."

 

[Solus]

:: Yes my lord:: Salak said with a slight bow of his head before he turned at began making his way outside, where Es directed them to the quickest route to the ion canons. It wasn't long before what looked like fireworks began to fill a portion of the sky, deadly fireworks. They could not reach out that far unless they had to, and they felt no need yet.

Their advantageous spot kept them in touch with all of the ion canons and at the same time they were station at such a point as to see the area around the canons well. Now, at the moment, they had to wait.

 

[Dexington]

ooc: I had a lot to catch up on, someone tell me if I went wrong somewhere.

*After the ships had gone through hyperspace, the dropships that had left began circling around in a wide radius to get around where Coruscant was. With minimal speed capabilities in a curve, it would take quite a long time. Unexpectedly, Skyu had taken one of the dropships himself and intended on getting in secretly from the other side. Using everything he had with the force, he sent a message to the city planet to those that he knew wanted to hear it.*

"Let operation La Commedia commence."

*Meanwhile, the capital ships released their fighters under Rogal's command broadcasted alliance wide. Not even half of the fighters were released, however, since that would have caused havoc with everyone else. Then, following more orders, Dak and Aras, in seperate ships charged their turbolasers and fired heavily upon the enemy fleet, which was moving quickly in one direction.*

 

[The Agriculturist]

"And so it shall." Rhine said, not caring whether Skyu had heard him or not. They would meet in the end regardless.

The sith had made several mistakes as far as La Commedia was concerned. They did not fear an attack coming from Coruscant itself, and nor did they secure themselves assistance on Coruscant itself. Arrogance was a weakness, and now would be the fatal bite.

The buildings surrounding the Sith Ion cannons and barracks were not filled with civilians as the sith has thought. La Commedia operatives has taken their position long ago, patiently waiting for their signal. Their new weapons, perfected by Rhine himself, had been with them.

These mounted cannons had peeked through the windows, and were warming up, so that very shortly, they would rip through the sith defenses, clearning up the areas for the republic ships to land.

 

[Enishi]

When sith forces had been filed close to the Ion cannons, Lukor was forced into the group; unable to scout areas of interest. Cramped with many sith troopers, Lukor was hit with something sharp; a pain that racked at his brain and sent his instincts into a frenzy. The force was telling him something was wrong.

Pushing his way past troopers, Lukor saught out the source of the disturbance in the force. He found his fear guided at the Ion cannons; the last place for an expected attack. What was forcing him to worry? He had the nerve to open comm and make an attempt to stall the cannons until the source of the problem could be found, yet he feared his voice would be shut out; ignored of the comeing danger.

However, the force seemed to control his actions as he used his personal comm in an attempt to call up the High General. A low-ranked sith would not get attention from the General, but it was worth a try.

"General Septimus, this is Lukor Haulder; Sith Acoyte of the Korriban Academy. Permission to speak, sir."

 

[Kit]

Rogal couldn't help but smile. The enemy had chose to evade, and attack the torpedoes. That was as expected. Huge numbers of torpedoes missed their targets, and even more exploded before impact. In fact, the Sith had dealt with them all perfectly, exactly as Rogal would, minus the unnecessary evasive maneuver.

The sensors were suffering, the massive output of energy from the exploding torpedoes caused a fairly large blind spot, right in front of the enemy fleet. All wasnt lost, as the sensors began to adapt. By creating a frequency of equal amplitude, they could cancel out the energy readings from the explosion. Rogal wasn't sure exactly how it worked, but the image slowly began to clear. This wasn't some old rust bucket of a ship, after all, this was once the second greatest ship of the Sith navy.

The clearing effect left an odd ghost like outline of the ships. IT wasn't a perfect science after all, but it was better than nothing at all. There were a huge number of curious readings on the new scans. Rogal was still wondering what they were when his weapons officer finally yelled;

"Proton torpedoes inbound! Sir, impact in ten!"

This was the retaliation. Rogal was actually slightly disappointed.

Engage emergency thrusters one hundred through to two hundred, on my count. Alert the rest of the fleet, order them to follow our path. Three... Two... One... NOW!

The ensign at the nav station hit the equivalent of the big red button, and all along the bottom of the Behemoth, man sized pods blasted a one off jet, throwing the entire ship upwards. As the rest of the fleet followed the path, only one or two ships were in the path of the blue barrage for more than a few hits. Not enough to do any real damage to shields.

The Crusade was rapidly closing on the Sith line at this point, having continued to power forwards constantly, ever closer to their foes. There were scant few kilometer's between the two forces, and the Sith ships were at almost a complete halt.

Like fish in a barrel. He muttered. Weapons station, report!

"Sir, 60% of ordnance reloaded, all turbolasers ready to fire. Shields at 94%. Everything else is green."

Rogal nodded, clearly a few torpedoes had clipped the shields. He had no fear, 94% of the Behemoth's shielding, as well as the armour plating was more than enough for this engagement.

There was less than the length of the Behemoth between it's prow and the ship at the center of the Sith line, and at the speed the Crusade was traveling at, that distance would close rapidly indeed.

All ships to maintain heading and pace. Fire all weapon's as we pass through their line. Carve a bloody hole in whatever presents itself.

He intended to use a very old tactic; akin to a cavalry charge of old. The Crusade would smash through the enemy line, ripping the very heart out, and double back to pick up the separated stragglers. And on top of that...

The Behemoth was a huge ship. Technically, it was beyond classification. It was a unique design, created in every stage on Korriban. It was built to cause fear in the enemy, in it's very appearance, and it was built to last. The Behemoth was capable of crushing three capitol ships alone, such was the genius of it's design. Incredibly resistant to damage, both in it's shield, and unique structural design, and ludicrously powerful. It bristled with offensive weaponry, and was powered by a pair of reactors that would have been at home on a very large space station. And on top of all that, it had a flat nose, and was reinforced internally throughout it's entire structure

And it was being piloted directly towards a capitol ship in the center of the Sith line. A ship less than half it's size. It would be like swatting a fly with a sledgehammer.

All Ships! Fire Everything you have, NOW! Keep speed, and shields up, but don't let the rain of fire halt for even an instant.

Even if the Sith got the first shot off, at best, they would down a few ships, the smaller ships immediately following the Behemoth in the formation. It would take a lot more than the turbolaser fire of a handful of ships to bring the Behemoth to it's knees. Which was not the case for the Sith ships, that would be subjected to a potential forty three ships worth of fire. Not to mention the fighters that swarmed like black clouds around their parent ships.

"Impact in just over on minute, Sir!"

Maintain this heading, seal all bulkheads and give whatever power you can to the shields!

Rogal doubted anyone had ever engaged such unconventional tactic when they possessed the numerical advantage he did. Then again, that was what made the plan so hideously strong, it was plain insane.

And the next moves were all ready to go in his mind...

Check.

Edit: I've changed that bit, it should work now. Ish. And make me look not quite so stupid.

 

[Will]

Captain Heinrich Von Poppleopacus guided the Crimson Blade expertly, keeping behind the Behemoth. He was charging the two huge railcannons on the ship, when he heard the order to release fighters. The Captain nodded, and all fighter sized ships were released. He kept the slightly larger ships in reserve. He watched as they swarmed around their parent ship, half going on offensive duties, whilst the other half formed a defensive network. He began to prime his close defense grid, whilst also giving any scrap of power to the shields. He would need the two turbolasers he had ready for firing port and starboard side when they passed through.

 

[Cyril Khan]

The moment of battle had come. Smailliw stood on the bridge of his jewel, The Hotspur. He had wanted to end the lives of the Sith for many years since he lived under occupation on Sullust. Now was his chance; however, he was not yet happy. The fleet had come out in a fairly poor way for the greatest effect of Omega Cell stealth. This battle would have little use of stealth regardless; the close quarters would make such tactics useless. However the camouflage of the ships was removed; the black hulls were a blur against the starry background, but with a sun in their rear, the ships stood out as black spots to the eye. Only the brightness of the sun gave any form of visual hiding.

The situation did not any longer call for stealth. It was unnecessary to maintain it. The jamming device drained power; with it on it could mean sever damage. Instantly he gave orders to disengage the stealth device once the first shot was fired, by either side. When the fire began to fly, the Omega Cell ships were primed for battle. Fighters sped out of the hangers, guns stood ready to fire, and shields gleamed with the power to protect.

Instantly he ordered the sent his message to his favored man, Martien Delphey. “Delphey,” he ordered, “Begin landing your troops”

* * *​

​

On receiving the order, the Shadow Master turned to his communication unit. He knew that the shields of each dropship could take a significant beating, but he didn’t want to be undefended. He was not the type to take any chances. Shields worked only as long as they were up, and they didn’t take our swarms of fighters and turrets. He needed to make sure the action of getting to the planet surface was done at the utmost skill. Also, an escort would be necessary to divert and protect against other vessels of war. Instantly he began to send his orders to the ships around him.

“Dropship captains, transfer all power to engines and shields. You have been sent your landing coordinates. This is the moment we have been training for. There can be no mistakes or failures.”

He then transferred to Deven Jarmain alone. He had a special job for the Force sensitive Order of Rage. “Deven, organize Rage Squadron to guard us on our journey down. Defend us by any means necessary! I trust your men’s skill, and I have witnessed your own. Do not let me down.” He knew well that the members of the Order of Rage were more than fit to hold off fighters, bombers, and explosive projectiles. The members of the Order were not afraid of using emotions to destroy; they did not fear battle as Jedi did. However, they did not thirst for battle and blood as the Sith. They favored extreme balance; Darkside use must always equal that of the Lightside. The mixture of the two allowed for these men to be a lethal force for those that attempted to challenge them.

* * *​

​

Smalls nodded as the transports moved off to their destination. He knew that Martien was well set for leading such a mission. He was willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. If a weakness presented itself, he would strike it without warning or hesitation. He was pleased with his Executive of Intelligence; he named him the greatest of the Omega Cell warriors for this reason. Smalls’ only lament was the fact the Delphey was ruthless, and would not show mercy to anyone in battle. Also, if it called for destroying civilian lives to finish a mission, there would be no hesitation. Delphey fought with the heart of an assassin.

The troopships were on there journey, and were no longer the Sullustan strategist’s duty. He now turned towards the battle before him. He followed the command of Rogal and his ship, The Behemoth. Now was not the time for him to differentiate orders. His was to command the used of power in shields and weapons. He respected the lead ship and the judgments made by its commander.

Finally a severe call to assault was called. A charge was to be made at their foes ahead. Omega Cell ships were notably small in size compared to other larger factions, but each were well equipped. Regardless of being well loaded, they did not have the ability to survive that the Behemoth did. However, this was a known fact since the first ship was brought to the faction. It was tactical usage and division of power that made the small ships so destructive in battle. In sheer numbers, the small ships were devastating in a charge. The ships would speed at the larger ships and dump ordinance and lovely bright energy onto the ships.

Smalls quickly shouted out orders to all Omega Cell ships. He knew the risks of his strategy, but he knew also what damage it would do. “Omega Cell fleet, prepare for charge set Phi-Phi-Gamma-Beta.” Phi-Phi-Gamma-Beta was a charge order that was dangerous if done improperly and extremely effective if done properly. The act did not put fear into the Sullustan’s eyes. He knew that if he was to die, he would have taken others with him. However, he was certain this would be extremely effective.

And thus began the charge. Immediately into the thrust forward Phi-Phi-Gamma-Beta was implemented. Omega Cells ships took designated ships. The military vessels sped forward in an angle that appeared to be a collision course. Each one charged directly towards the bow of the Sith ships; the target of choice was the bridge. Shields were focused to the front; ordinance and weapons fire was the least worry. The ability to pull up in time would be the factor. All weaponry of the Omega Cell ships lay in wait of the moment the command would be given. All gunners knew when the moment would come. All at once, all firepower would be released onto the top of the ship and the bridge. Phi-Phi-Gamma-Beta was a terror attack, but it required extreme coordination of crew members. Helmsmen would have to pull up in time to miss smashing the bridge of their targets. Gunners would have to work at extreme speeds to do the utmost damage. Crew members would have to be ready to fix any damage and mechanics would need to be ready to divert power at a seconds notice. This all was something that Smailliw did not fear in the least. Each Omega Cell member present had gone through meticulous training for this day. He doubted that a single one would waste their efforts only to fail.

And now the only thing that remained was the impact. Smalls stared out at the enlarging vessels. This was the day that the Sith would fear the use of the smaller and faster vessels of destruction. Time only remained before the rush would begin.

 

[Green Ranger]

OOC: Will edit post once Kupo fixes the infra-red blunder.

The Sith were not without their own capabilities of battle. Years of tempering their skills on small renegade groups, pirate and smugglers fleets, as well as numerous resistance cells, both air and ground-borne, had given Krakana all she needed to be able to estimate tactics. Though her guess was wrong, it required the same action as that of the correct answer, and so her mistake was moot and forgiven.

'Admiral, the enemy flagship seems to be blinded by our responce, but other vessels have appeared on our scanners - small vessels en route to engage with us. Dropships have also been deployed to head for the surface.'

She pursed her lips...she did not have the forces to defend her own vessels and take out the dropships...rubbing her temples momentarily, her head snapped up once more, proud and in control once again.

"All turbolaser batteries are to resume bombardment of that flagship immediately - we cannot track these smaller vessels with our heavier guns. However, all anti-fighter and lighter cannon turrets are to fire on these targets immediately. Launch another volley of torpedoes at the enemy flagship, as well - perhaps dealing a critical blow will break morale for the enemy. Fighters already have their orders - give them the order to engage."

The captain nodded, then returned to his post as the Admiral watched the various hordes of starfighters split apart to engage their respective targets. Numerous interceptors soared out at incredible speeds to engage the dropships from their flank, seeking to cut directly through the mass of slower vessels and break them apart in a single fell swoop. At the same time, the mass of bomber and multirole starfighters engaged the comparatively larger Omega Cell vessels, easily identifiable by their signature black paint, in a headlong assault, seeking to cause as much damage to the enemy forces with the heavier ordinance of the bombers and multirole fighters as possible before it could be delivered in return. Following the first swoop on the forces, a bombardment of faster-tracking weaponry locked on to the blackened vessels, spewing out their deadly bursts of energy to meet the forces of Omega Cell.

Finally, the heaviest weaponry of the Sith fleets began firing upon the flagship of the enemy forced, now identified as Behemoth. KRakana silently cringed at the choice of name, but smiled with satisfaction as waves of energy and tropedo salvoes spewed out to cripple the horribly named flagship of this rag-tag fleet the Republic had to offer.

 

[Wildcard]

Jryis Hailon was busy warming up the engines of the light freighter known as the Kutlass when a blue ion bolt rocketed up into the sky about three klicks from where he and the Sith Knight, Kylina Solo, were parked. The young pilot bit his lip as he watched the blast fly, then spoke in a soft voice to the woman seated next to him.

"My guess is that that blast didn't come from the Republic." He sighed to himself, his fingers nimbly working the controls of the freighter. "Those ion blasts are rather dangerous. They can knock out a ship's shields with a grazing hit, and a direct hit will destroy most capital ships. I don't even want to think about how many of those things the Sith are using in this battle." He paused for a couple of seconds, staring up at the sky.

"Then again," he said slowly, "I don't know how far apart the ion cannons are spaced, but if they're spaced too close together, I think that they drain energy like a mynock on a fighter. So if we can knock out even one of them, we might be able to open up a space for the Republic forces to land on the planet and begin a ground assault. It's the least that we can do for them, since I really don't want to get involved in that space battle that's going on right now. This should be easier for us to do, since we're closer and they won't expect you to be coming."

Jyris turned and flashed a grin at Kylina as the Kutlass rose smoothly from the ground. "Ready?"

 

[The Agriculturist]

With a simple press on his datapad, hundreds of la comedia operatives, spread in areas surrounding the sith's ground to air defenses began their attack, using the devastating weapon that Rhine himself had created. The cannons fired beams of energy with the same strength as the beam of a lightsaber blade, easily tearing through the armor of the turbo laser complexes. Their firing would continue without pause until the turbo lasers were disabled so that the ground forces could land safely.
Of course, the Cannons La comedia had a flaw; they were mountable, but it took time to move them...But the society had other weapons if the sith came to their door...

 

[Emma Lou]

Kylina strapped into the seat and looked over at Jyris. She wasn’t too pleased with his plan, but she knew that she would have to separate herself from the Sith at some point. She also didn’t like the fact that she was being placed into a fight that wouldn’t have concerned her if they would have just stayed off Coruscant.

She shrugged in his general direction then spoke softly, “Yes”

 

[Wildcard]

Jyris paused and gently touched her arm to get her attention. "Relax. We'll be fine, don't worry. We have the element of surprise on our side, and I'll be with you every step of the way." A slight smile flashed across the pilot's face. "I promise."

With that, the Kutless flew slowly through the Coruscanti atmosphere, as if it was trying to avoid notice by any means possible. Although they did indeed have the element of surprise on their side, Jyris couldn't help but think that everyone was a Sith spy in disguise, and once or twice he had to keep his hand from jumping to the blaster controls when he felt a person was flying too close to them. After he caught himself the second time, he closed his eyes for a split-second and took a deep breath. "Easy, Jyris," he muttered to himself. "Just play this through and you can get this over with...."

After a couple of minutes of dodging and weaving through the traffic, he approached a large structure that he figured was an ion gun. He had never seen a cannon as massive as a planetary gun, and the sheer size of the weapon was stunning. Gulping slightly, Jyris quickly keyed into the Sith frequency and was very careful to keep his voice steady. "This is Sith scout Jyris Hailon with Sith Knight Kylina Solo. We are requesting permission to land."

 

[Cyril Khan]

Thus had the midnight of battle fallen true to the determined warriors. The Omega Cell ships rushed with ultimate courage and ruthlessness to the larger Sith warships. The actions of the blackened ships left both sides with the possibility of extreme losses. All it would require was for one small mistake on either side at the moment of truth. The crew of each Omega Cell vessel had trained too long for such a mistake to occur; all members stood alert to make any change that would be necessary. It was doubtful that this motion of aggression would be the bane of the midnight fleet.

One thing happened that Smailliw had barely suspected. He did not fully expect the Sith to maintain only minimal fire on what appeared to be suicidal ships running directly at your bridge. Without doubt, if any Omega Cell ship malfunction or hesitated and failed to pull up in time, the Sith Warship would be eradicated. This was either a motion of complete stupidity or a diversion for a secondary force. Regarding the Sith mainly as cowards who feast off of other’s deaths, but not idiots, Smalls instantly suspected a more agile swarm was headed to attempt to take out the fleet.

Instantly the Sullustan began to shout out orders. It was the utmost importance that any major damage was avoided. The Omega Cell fleet was not to yet unload their payloads for any other reason than to rip apart the Sith vessels of war. Thus, a quick change of position was an order. Smalls quickly called for a change in shield positioning. The majority was set to the front to hold off against the larger guns of the Sith ships. The remainder was to offer enough protection to last long enough against the swarms of fighters and bombers to reach the impact zone. However, shielding was not the only change in procedure. The Omega Cell fighters swarmed as guardians and weapon diversions for the larger vessels. Now, the agile fighters suddenly organized for a imperative call of action. The fighters were not to guard the larger Omega Cell ships directly; they were sent to aggress against the incoming swarm. The Sith bombers and multirole fighters now had to worry about highly training Omega Cell pilots targeting to destroy. These pilots were extensively trained to charge superior numbers and maintain courage, and thus gain victory. In the current battle, these pilots did not exactly face superior numbers in their targets, and their ferocity would not differ.

The Omega Cell fleet was at that moment of change charging at maximum speed towards their target ships. By now each ship was mere seconds away for impacting. If any vessel was to be lost, it would maintain heading and make their final breaths be a devastating impact. Alarms went off on the bridge. Fighters had impacted on the side shielding; the power at the position registered 25%. However, the forward shields remained nicely protective at 81%. Had the superior weapons of the larger Sith ships been fired, the damage to the shields would have been greater; now it was too late. Smalls zoned in on his target ship; the Flagship of the Sith. The Hotspur had not released a single load as of yet, but it would. Each group of Omega Cell ships had a leading vessel to coordinate the launch of weaponry; Smalls lead the largest group to obliterate the Grandest of the Sith.

Warnings rose alerting of forward shield loss; the shields had dropped exponentially to 73% in mere seconds. This was not a worry; the impact of the charge was about to commence. “Steady,” Smalls ordered. Seconds waited before a collision. The Sullustan stared endlessly at the target; to all crew members the wait seemed hours. Finally the call came. “Release all firepower!” In one fell load, the ordinance and turbolasers of the Omega Cell ships flew out at point blank range. In conjunction the ships instantly changed course to avoid collision. The moment of truth had arrived; Smalls held his breath hoping he had not waited too long. The wait did not take long; the Omega Cell vessels slipped by the bridge view ports with few meters to spare. The ships had made it; but they had suffered minor damage from their own attack and had fighters to worry about finishing. The order changed for shield balance to be restored. Smalls bellowed out his final order for the moment, “Get a maintenance crew to the shield and reactor. I want as much shielding restored as possible.” In a quick scan, the Omega Cell fleet had survived the charge with minimal causalities. All those that were lost attributed to the damage of their target ship.

* * *​

​

Martien stood aboard the dropships. His only worry was maintain the course to a safe landing site created so by mutual friends on the surface. His was not to worry about a conflict with incoming fighters. It was this job that he had recruited Deven Jarmain and his Order of Rage members. They would see to the survival of the dropships by doing any confrontation in the stead of the slower vessels.

Deven sat steady in his fighter. He despised space warfare and would do what was necessary to extend battle to the ground. He was by no means incapable in a fighter, but he was more determined to arrive of the ground than to conduct space warfare. However, various other members did not share this hatred of such warfare. Thus was the protection of the dropships secured. Some members were intent on keeping close contact to the troopships and insure a safe landing, while the others would engage in battle to divert fighters away from the landing ships.

In one twitch in the Force, Deven saw the mob of fighters coming to rain down destruction. However, the Sith intentions would not be so. It was not long before the minor disturbance was known to all the members of the Order. With enhanced reflexes, each fighter waited carefully. The fighters approached with speed and determination, but it would be their end. Without a seconds notice, Rage Squadron shifted direction and charges the incoming vessels. The maneuver was intended to be a surprise and catch the aggressive Sith fighters off guard. This tactic was most likely to succeed.

 

[Enishi]

His fears had come to fruition; there were forces on the ground.

Activating his com-link, Lukor alerted the current commander.

"High General! The enemy has forces on the ground! Sleeper cells, I would guess!"

La Commedia might have their forces on the ground, but what they didn't count on was the force-users.