Pit Stop

[Darth Inheris]

​

No matter what the leadership of Centares might have thought, no defence was impenetrable. There was always a back door, always a weak point. And when the hammer was taken to the crack, it blew it wide open.

Such had been the way as Imperial forces had touched down on Centares, such would be the way as Saorise Kallig and Darh Victress, at the head of a great deployment of Imperial troops, burnt through the sky on troop transports that touched down on the outskirts of the Old Town Fuel Refinery.

Centares had held much of its forces in reserve right here, one of the planets most valuable resources, and the things their enemies needed the most to carry on the fight. They were well entrenched and ready to hold the place.

Or so they told themselves, anyhow. They hadn't faced the might of the Empire fully just yet,

"About time we were fighting side by side I should think" Saorise said, glancing across at Darth Victress as their forces hit the boundary line of the refinery,

"Tell me, are you still as good as you were back on Hutta?" she finished with a sly smile, her lightsaber flaring to life in her hand,

"Shall you give the order, or shall I?"

@Faded Truth

 

[Darth Victress]

.

Imperial Warships were always an intimidating sight, though not nearly as much as the men and women who worn the Imperial insignia into combat. A battalion of ground soldiers including heavy troopers as well as numerous Sith acolytes and Crusaders touched upon the soil, advancing steadfast towards the Oil depots.
Star fighters were prepared in area for defensive assistance as necessary; anti-air turrets and heavy laser cannons were rolled onto the soil towards the fortified depots. Resistance was heavy and anticipated, an expectation when one led a military assault onto neutral territory. Disembarking from the Imperial transport, was the armored figure of the military councilor. Darth Victress was grabbed in her usual combat armor, Black Hades reflecting a silhouette of darkness that matched the unholy affinity that its wearer frequently preferred.

Fallen blade ignited into her right fast and she drew back her force energies into the palm of her free left, channeling the darkness around her as it swole and whirled, focusing into an epicenter the width of her hand. She smirked towards the Sith Lord; it was true that Arianna and Saorise had fought against one another long ago during the Imperial Civil war. They were equals then, but Saorise would be able to identify the immense power that Darth Victress possessed, the Dark Councilor nearly doubled in power while Saorise had remained rather stagnant. It wasn't something Darth Victress would hold against her, perhaps she thought the woman had left on an extended vacation.

Though rivals, there was always a bit of friendly banter between the two, a gesture that continued even on this day. "Indeed, destiny had always meant for our blades to align in an unified cause.." She said, chuckling darkly as her golden eyes shifted onto the legions of enemy combatants in front of them. "If you wish to rise to Dark Council some day, your leadership skills shall be judged accordingly." Darth Victress spoke, motioning for Soarise to give the command. The Dark Councilor was somewhat interested in seeing what the Sith Lord was capable of, or to see if she had grown a bit rusty in her inactivity.

@Nightfall @Sabrina

 

[Darth Inheris]

Ah, a challenge it seemed.

Not that she could judge the Dark Councilor, it was just the sort of thing one should expect when in their presence, and given the Empires slow reforming she could imagine they were on the lookout for potential. But when was the Sith Empire not looking for potential?

"Dominus squad, Primaris squad, split the flanks" Saorise buzzed into her comm unit as she glanced back from Victress and looked over her shoulder at her soldiers. They'd seen dark days, but were equally battle hardened and ready to break through enemy lines, splitting off and rushing forwards into the facility,

"Vaykaris Squad, on point with me!" She called out as blaster fire began to ring out across the depot, driving her lightsaber forwards as she began the charge with her team. Time to show a bit of the strength she had, as she and the Empires finest drove across the field and assaulted the first barricade.

As blaster bolts struck the durasteel blockade, Saorise reached out with the force and tore off a chunk of metal from its body, opening it wide for Vaykaris squad to penetrate the enemy lines, as she deflected returning fire right back at their upstart Centarian shooters.

@Sabrina @Faded Truth

 

[Sarla Malvern]

Sarla was here with a personal squad of forty troops, with the intent of doing whatever was asked of her. She did not want to fail in front of a dark council member, as that would not look good for her, or her house. She listened to the orders given by @Darth Victress, to her though she was just part of the nameless mass soldier and acolytes and crusaders. This was a chance to be noticed by her, and a sith lord by the name of @Saorise Kallig. She moved forward, with her men into the fray, her men fired at the enemy as they moved forward. She hung at the back of her squad, she did not want to die from a stray blaster bolt, her lightsaber was ignited and she kept on her guard, as her troops moved forward.

She did not say much, as that would be a waste of breath. Her men followed up behind Vaykaris squad and were the second to assault the barricades. As they did them came under heavy attack, the defenders were not going to go down without a fight. She saw them poor fire on to her men, killing ten of them within a matter of moments. They fell down, she reached out with the force, and then pulled one of them firing a Dakka at her men, and made him turn and whilst firing, his fired ripped through his own ranks, cutting them down. At that moment the rest of her squad plowed on, firing at the now disarray defenders, they shot into the ranks of the enemy and started to jump the first of the barricades. She began moving forward herself now, shooting her quickdraw blaster, at some of them. As have battle was knowing what to do, the other was always violence.

@Faded Truth @Nightfall

 

[Darth Victress]

.

Darth Victress smirked and allowed the two women accompanying her to seemingly begin their motions, commanding the legions into action as the imperial troopers rained down and exchanged blaster fire with hostile combatants. The facility was well guarded as were the oil depots scattered inside of it; brigades forming a fortified barrier between them as both of Lord Kallig's forces tore holes into their defenses.

Dark energies continued to swirl in her left palm as she focused and channeled her rage into a manifestation of an unholy spear, the shimmering physical weapon summoned out of thin air and cackled with green dathomiri magics. Wicked grin concealed by the visage of her armored helm, she rotated the left hand onto an overhanded grip and hurled the weapon through the air. Velocity backed by force telekinesis, it seared through atmosphere almost imperceivable in nature and bore itself into the chest of the opposing ground commander. Catares' legionnaire spurted out blood from the nostrils of his helm, before crumpling over to the ground in a blood heap. Soon, restless legs grew silent and all motion ceased as his soul vanished into afterlife.

"Battalion, on me!" Darth Victress commanded, the fallen blade hissing to life in her right fist as it cast a ghastly crimson hue over the battlefield. Soldiers flanked around as she summoned more force energies and tore apart the physical barriers standing between her and the facility walls. Stone and rocks crumpled around her advance, as her own forces soon followed in tow after Saorise.

@Nightfall @Sabrina

 

[Darth Inheris]

And with that, the front lines of the Centares defence was broken. Troops began flooding into the complex, and Saorise maintained her place at the head, pausing only to see as Sarla and Victress pressed on with her, bringing their own abilities to bear in the conflict.

A great deal had changed in the galaxy in her absence, she knew that much for certain. Politically, economically, the lines of power in the universe had shifted dramatically, and not always in the Empires favour. But it was the smaller things that reminded her most of that. There was a time where she had found herself one of the most capable Sith in the galaxy, or so it seemed, anyhow. But the wars that had raged while she had spent time trying to steady her home planet had forged many of the Empire into stronger peoples, the two with her were a testament to that. Victress herself had grown ever stronger it seemed since their last encounter, no doubt reflected by her position on the Dark Council.

But, should this campaign prove successful, there was a way yet to climb back, higher than before, change this Empire like she'd long meant to.

That meant defending what existed of it yet though, the great expansion onwards. She could scarcely fail today then,

"Rockets, twelve o'clock!" she called out to Vaykaris squad, directing their attention to a set of troops up across the gangways, taking aim. Splaying her fingers as the troops barked back with covering fire, Saorise leveled a great blast of lightning from her fingers, lighting up the walkway and electrocuting the attackers within an inch of their lives. Still, one managed to fire, their aim totally lost. The rocket soared across the chaos and plunged into the base of a towering communications tower to her flank that began to tumble and fall as its base exploded beneath it.

@Sabrina @Faded Truth

 

[Sarla Malvern]

Then an order came from @Darth Victress she wanted all the troops on her. She turned what remained of her squad towards that point, she was fearful of amassing on one point. As that meant they were an easier target, as they had concentrated in one place. Though she was the dark council member, so despite her judgment on the matter, she complied and moved towards her position. They came under increasing fire as they did, she used her saberstaff, to deflect the shots back at them. Then a rocket attack was aimed at them, but fortunately, some were taken out by @Saorise Kallig bar one. She used the force to alter its direction, so as not to hit her squad. Then with a menacing determination, she ran forward as fast as she could, as quickly as she could and then from nowhere screamed at them, the force was enhancing this scream. The men holding the breach dropped the weapons and clutched their ears as they did. Then she thrust her lightsaber up and began to advance at the head of the sith forces.

She hoped this got her noticed, she hoped to move this might be her moment. She then charged into the enemy compound....

@Faded Truth @Nightfall

 

[Darth Victress]

.

Rockets, blaster bolts, projectiles, fire...these mortal weapons grew dull and boring. After contesting two of the greatest mandalorian fighters single-handedly with relative ease, the Dark Councilor had now believed this warfront was stale and uninteresting. It was probably true, but as the leader of the military sphere, it was her sole duty to see this operation succeed. Soldiers underneath her command bent to the will of her dark force, obedience displayed in entirety as they clashed with the enemy combatants. As Sarla and Darth Inheris occupied the forces outside of the compound, Darth Victress had already managed to make her way inside. Two armored warriors intercepted her path on the catwalk, decorated in what appeared as golden military garments and brandishing thermal scope enhanced rifles. They snarled at the presence of the dark lord, igniting their jetpacks and flying immediately into the air in attempts at sweeping in counter-clockwise and opposite angles to flank the Darth.

Darth Victress was however well adjusted to these combat dynamics, having fought both Leandros and Burkhart on Corellia. As their firepower was concentrated in full towards a singular point, she merely backpedaled out of the criss-crossing trajectories and utilized the defensive maneuvers of her lightsaber and placed it in an horizontal angle across her torso. Deflecting the bolts away, vile energies crackled across the palm of her free hand and reached out to grab a hold of one of her adversary's helmets, a simple gesture of clenching her fist echoed in ripples of the force and commanded a powerful telekinetic crush to break the helm upon his skull.

Blood, bone, and brain innards splashed as his carcass came crashing to the ground in a frenzied heap; As Darth Victress snarled and engaged the other, her battalion remained outside, arranging into a single file crouching position as they provided heavy suppressor fire towards the targets of the other Sith Lord.

@Sabrina @Nightfall

 

[Darth Inheris]

Her ears rang momentarily as the rockets had slammed in around her, her senses regaining their composure in time to see Sarla scream, one she was glad to be behind of.

Watching the soldiers clutch their ears in pain, she took for a moment a look, a pause that by any other might have been interpreted as sympathy. While she didn't enjoy cruelty, this wasn't that either. It was an acknowledgement, of the things their talents as Sith allowed them to do. It had been so long out of the fight that she had forgotten the full extent. Today was certainly a reminder,

"Vaykaris, indoors with me, supporting Victress" she called out, trying to rally the surviving troops of her squad. The battle was bloody, chaotic, few were anything but. To be a Sith was to feel, to live, and storm around her only fueled that, pure thought of the present that grounded her, kept her eyes forward and her mind focused.

To do anything else was to risk death. And she would not allow her death to be in the trenches of some backwater world like this.

Passing through the breach, her squad were saved any further casualties from the covering fire of Victress' battalion. Vaykaris had been with her ever since Corellia, in the heat of battle they were as much a part of her as anything. Strange, how bloodshed formed bonds like that, stronger than any she'd formed with what usually had passed for 'blood', fathers, mothers. They were all gone now, and she was still here.

And she meant to make that fact known,

"This should be the command. Cut off the head..." she left the words hanging, the others would know what she meant. This was their final goal. And between the three of them, they'd make short work of the Centarian military leadership, settle this first leg of the campaign in one swift move.

@Sabrina @Faded Truth

 

[Sarla Malvern]

She had charged into the compound, with what was left of her squad. Here things where quieter, she did not have to worry about defense as much. Though she still needed to be on her guard, as death awaits around every corner. She headed into the command post, still deflecting shots back at her enemies. She wanted to get the commanders of this force to surrender, not for the sake, but the sake of everyone here. As it means more troops would survive the battle, and their troops could add to their number. Though without that order, they could keep fighting longer than needed, more would die, and that would be a waste of resources.

She was hoping to beat them to command center, to give them a chance to surrender, as it was the most efficient thing to do. AS she did not trust the others, not to just answer to their blood lust, as most sith like to do. She raced ahead as fast as she could, she soon faced an enemy directly. He was taller than her and was wearing some heavy armour, he had vibro axe in one hand, and a frag grenade in the other. He threw the grenade at her, as she got to the stairs. She managed to push it out of a window, but the blast came back in. It cut two more of her men up, and then blast threw her to one side. The man then charged down the stairs at her, whilst she was prone. She screamed at him, and that scream was also enhanced by the force, the force bellows, hit hard. He fell to the ground, and rolled down the stairs, on top off.

@Faded Truth @Nightfall

 

[Darth Victress]

.

Darth Victress was somewhat oblivious to the carnage that was occurring outside the facility, her soldiers had moved to intercept the second wave of reinforcements and provided much needed cover fire for Darth Inheris' forces. As the first of her adversaries fell, his skull crushed inwards like squeezing a melon, blood and bone spurting from the edges of the helmet. Yellow eyes settled their corrupted sights on the second warrior, vile force energies pulsating in the palm of her left hand while the fallen blade's crimson light burned brightly through the room.

It was a darkened abyss where the Centares leader had decided to square off against the Dark Councilor, ghastly light of her light saber and the color of his blaster bolts were the only distinguishing marks of visibility. It was enough though, and they continued their brawl; the warrior sprung in the air with his jetpack, unleashing another volley of bolts with his dual wielded Quickdraws. Darth Victress sprinted to her side, bringing the saber into a defensive position as the first two bolts smashed against the distal tip of her weapon while the others deflected off the center shaft. A snarl came to her face, grunting as she extended the left hand and made a simple squeezing gesture with her fingertips. Translating into an echo of force ability, she sent a telekinetic grasp on the jetpack and slowly began to crush the item.

As the jetpack's velocity dwindled, so did her opponent's vertical height as he came crashing to the ground as the thrusters could no longer support his weight. De-activating the pack, he detached it from the armored pauldrons and extended what appeared as an electromagnetic knife, concealed from his wrist and sprang forth about 7 inches. A battle cry which he roared before charging towards the Sith Lord. Darth Victress was poised and ready, melee combat granting her a definite advantage as she ushered forth a casting of force slow. Telekinesis hampered down his movements, almost a snail through a field of molassess as his intended strike took nearly thrice the time anticipated and left him completely vulnerable for a counter. The fierce Sith was one to take advantage of opportunities and her nimble figure shot forward and with a clean slash, bisected the man into two unequal halves.

Darth Victress stood, hovering over his slain torsos and spoke into her comm-link. "The commanders have been dealt with...status from outside?" She asked, wondering if her two comrades were having equal success.

@Nightfall @Sabrina

 

[Darth Inheris]

Saorise caught a final glimpse of of Victress blistering through the jetpacking enemy commander, capably finishing off the last of the Centarean commanders as she stalked the halls. Inheris's support was not needed, clearly.

And she was more than fine with that outcome. And noted Victress' powers in her mind, she would not be one to cross.

Sarla seemed similarly formidable , having moved ahead and clearing enemies out, breaking the enemy resolve. And as Saorise passed back out to the fuel depot's exterior, she watched as the Imperial forces consolidated their hold upon the network of steel and rockrete buildings,

"Depot is secured. Enemy combatants scattering" she relayed back to Victress "The day," she finished "is ours"

A vast resource, now under their control. The first leg of the Empires latest campaign had launched itself into a fiery success on this planet, one she knew would only gain momentum and be not only a success for the Empire, but a success for herself as well. She meant to claim her stake once again upon the Empire, and with the deep anxiety and tension that ran through Imperial society currently, it needed guiding hands. And as much as she admired the Emperor, no one could do that alone.

And nor had they today. Watching Vaykaris, Dominus, and Primaris squads form up on her position as they completed their sweeps of the area, clearing out the area, it was good to know the force of the Empire alongside.

They would claim this galaxy.

They would bring it peace.

@Faded Truth @Sabrina


/EndThread