Time To Step Up - Preservation

[The Storyteller]

Soldiers were quickly being outmatched by Jedi. They knew it was numbers that made them superior and so far the numbers we lacking. Those outside were being delayed too much for them to overwhelm the Jedi alone. This was perhaps a losing battle for the squad, but they knew more would be coming in great numbers. No Jedi could last forever. Squad Leader was willing to die if it meant holding these Jedi back long enough to end them, or for his mean to burn down the books.

One soldier got knocked out cold by Azar's force attack, taking him out for the rest of the fight and only cementing the permanent damage to his face. The Jedi was under no threat quite yet. The rest of the soldiers were a bit busy at the moment and he was free to flee or fight further. @Phoenix

Overwhelming force met the unfortunate trooper who came face to face with the small Jedi Master. His attempts were met with fast and powerful strikes. His panicked attempt at a punch meant he had no real defense ready for the quick strikes. Death would be painful and he would luckily pass out before death gripped him fully. The Jedi Master had just finished cutting up this trooper when a pair of additional troops pushed through the door block, angry that their comrade was cut down before they could help. The table was to thank for that. One aimed for the small Jedi's center of mass and fired two shots from the rifle while the other drew his vibroblade and charged ahead with the point also aimed for center mass. The hope was to distract the cute little fuzzy guy with multiple attacks and attack types to either impale or blast him. @Loco

A real showdown was happening between the confident squad leader and the Jedi Master Guleya. When the master revealed himself from the depleting cover, a plan was launched. His left wrist was already aimed at the Jedi due to holding the rifle, so all the soldier had to do was click the activation with his other hand the moment the Jedi popped out to send a fast moving line towards Bruce's crotch. It would either be a painful distraction or a good way to wrap up the legs of the Jedi to stop him from attacking at all. At the same time, he pulled the trigger two more times aimed first to left of center mass, then to the right. Blocking both attacks with the lightsaber and getting the push out before they would be coming in would be a tough feat. It certainly would stop the Jedi from taking a free shot at the other troop trying to cause a fire though. @Zigara

Starting a fire was not difficult and luckily the squad leader had unknowingly saved the troop working on it once while a new pair had saved her again. A few had considered stopping her from her work, but only one managed to get close enough. The Hutt was not an expected opposition and suddenly the woman had her rifle being stolen. A small fire was started as the soldier refused to stop her mission despite an attack. Her enemy was upon her as she turned around, but surrender was never an option. The pistol at her hip was pulled out quickly out of instinct. Death before defeat was pummeled into her mind and she would live it out. The 4-C pistol would fire rounds until it was empty or until someone stopped her from filling the Hutt with holes. Even if the Hutt itself cut her down, she would die with pride. @Xorism

Another female officer was engaging the blue Jedi in a hot battle. While the trooper missed her first shot and had a Jedi deflecting shots, it is exactly what she was prepared to dodge when she fired. It was no sweat to simply take a step forwards and to the left to avoid the deflected blast. Now the Jedi was charging, and she remembered her training. Just before the Jedi was striking, she thrust the large rifle towards the Jedi while pulling out her vibroblade on her left hip into her left hand. The female officer then plunged the vibroblade towards the sternum on the charging Jedi, hoping the distraction and incoming blade would make the Jedi rethink, or they'd both likely die together. The trooper was willing to die for her cause. Was the Jedi? @Faded Truth

Last but not least, Dune found his creature being targeted by the enemy. His passionate attack to the creature he loved would have pleased many Sith to watch, but these soldiers did not care. The table only arrived in time to stop the trooper after having fired one shot. It wouldn't kill the beast but it would be hurting, badly. Unaware, the enemy soldier was knocked out hard. Not killed by a table but easily knocked out of the fight as the back of his head hit a pillar before landing. The Varactyl would be unable to fight right now, but would not die to this wound. @Fantasy Liver

 

[Azar Torsin]

Azar took the moments he had as his trooper lost consciousness and his eyes swept over the battlefield. The world seemed to slow down around him and he saw everything. There were targets to attack and he'd gained himself an advantage by not being attacked, which meant he needed to make the most of this opportunity.

One of the troopers was beginning a fire and being assaulted by a Hutt Jedi. The Jedi reached out with the Force, gripping the flame and pulling it away from the books. Instead, he ripped it away from the books and let its tendrils reach out and leapt to the soldier. It probably wouldn't kill her, but it would be terrifying and distracting. All creatures feared fire, after all, and the Hutt Jedi at 5 meters away wouldn't be in danger from it.

All the while, Azar was alert in case someone else turned their attention to him, but at the moment, everyone had opted to leave him alone. @Cazar @Xorism

 

[Thrash]

.

Her adversary was well trained but Thrash never stopped moving during any of this, making herself a difficult and unpredictable opponent. Eyes focused on the target and ready to react quickly to a change in circumstance. As the rifle was flung towards her, her lithe figure side-stepped to the left, however not quick enough. The rifle smacked against her right shoulder and she tumbled towards her left, missing the attempted stab at her sternum. The pantoran rolled into a crouch and slashed with her right saber hand from left to right towards the trooper's outside (right) leg. Since the soldier had already been committed to an attack with her left, she should have little ability to defend against an attack from an outside and opposite angle. Depiction of events were quick and chaotic, mimicking the mesmerizing style that was inherent to the young jedi emissary. @Cazar

 

[Jubba the Mutt]

Jubba pressed forward, his immense size being daunting on its own although he could command the Imperial for her bravery, it was far too important that she be stopped as he weighed up his commitment to pacifism against the requirements of a Jedi to defend one's self and ones home. Hoping to avoid having to kill this little one, he attempted to push her back with the force that she might fall and allow him to close the gap without taking too many shots in his direction. Any shots that were fired at him, he would try to deflect with his own lightsaber defensively away from anyone.

If he could reach her, he would try to disable the pistol with his lightsaber striking it before demanding her surrender, although if she physically attacked him he would be forced to swing his weapon once more.

@Cazar

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

This was exactly the sort of follow up attack Fennex had expected and been prepared for after striking down his last opponent. As soon as the next two troopers set foot through the door, Fennex let loose a powerful Force blast that would fling them, tumbling, backwards until they struck something- either a wall, the floor, or their unfortunate comrades- hard enough to crack bones and put them out of the fight. They wouldn't even have the chance to engage him before they were dealt with.

It was working to the Jedi's advantage that the Sith were bottlenecked into a single opening for the moment. Fennex decided to continue holding the door to give his fellow Jedi time to clean up the Sith who had already made entry- he and Bruce were the most powerful Masters here, and the Bardottan seemed to have his hands full. Sabers held before him defensively, ready to swat back any shots coming around the corners of the door frame, Fennex braced himself and squared up with the entry. He gathered the Force too him and watched closely. Anyone unfortunate enough to set foot across the threshold would be met with a nasty surprise. Fennex could toss these fools about with the Force all day long... or, at least for awhile.

 

[Dune Tarn]

“Gab Gab!” Dune cried out, feeling great sympathetic pangs of energy as his faithful steed let out a cry of pain from the shot. The table did its job and Dune had to give himself to the light side of the Force completely to stop from killing the Sith trooper who had messed with poor Gab Gab. While he was content with not killing the trooper needlessly, that didn’t mean Dune didn’t still want to teach him a lesson. Just to make sure the man was knocked out cold, the Devaronian Jedi punched the helmet less trooper in the face. He then sliced the mans pulse rifle in half with his saber and grabbed his pistol to make sure that he had no weapons to use once he woke up. Deactivating his shoto lightsaber and clipping it to his belt, Dune now held the Sith trooper’s stolen pistol in his off hand and his regular saber in the other. He stood by Gab Gab and petted the wounded beast but he made sure to blast any Sith that was within his line of sight, especially if they were attacking Jedi.

 

[Bruce Guleya]

With Bruce exposed to the enemy, it was inevitable that the enemy would have a plan. The Jedi Master was also foolish enough to simply expose himself… but Bruce wasn't a hardened warrior after all. A gentleman, a scholar, a book worm. His ally was the mystical energies of the Force, unlike his companions within who all seemed to be warriors. The fight was carrying on a lot longer than he had wanted but they were buying time to clear out as much as they could. While the Knights and the Masters fought, the support temple staff was trying to move as much as they could, they'd have been out of the way now if not already evacuating the section.


As the foolish master presented himself as a target, the Sith Officer had taken action, a little unconventional but the Bardottan certainly knew something would come his way, it's why his saber was already in a defensive position when he had stepped out. The iconic golden blade shimmered and became a flurry as he leapt himself straight up, forward and over, avoiding the grappling hook and the shots to the left and right - Bruce was a consular, he had no need for lightsaber tricks and feats. Most opponents think to defend against lightsabers and so few are prepared to face off again the Force; and the squad leader hadn't expected an upward trend, it was a perk of the high ceilings.


When Bruce hit the ground gracefully, he immediately grappled the squad leader with the Force, doing so before even hitting the ground he had begun to summon his energies. He ensured to land far enough away from the entrance that he wouldn't have to engage others in melee combat, and the remaining troopers had all been preoccupied with the other members of the Jedi protectors. Bardottan Master gripped hard on the squad leader attempting to build pressure but that wasn't the goal, he had only done it for a second because his real goal was the pull the squad leader directly at his lightsaber in waiting, the goal to impale the leader directly through the heart, or at least the center mass. The Jedi Master had suspected that the pure energy and plasma blade of a lightsaber would penetrate the armor with little difficulty.


The Bardottan Master would hold for a moment and would maneuver the blade subtly to ensure a quick if not instant death, if he successfully impaled the leader. “May your spirit find true rest.”


He would also maneuver himself to not be in the direct line of fire, and should the troopers try to fire upon him and his opponent, he'd use his opponent as a shield.

@Cazar

 

[The Storyteller]

"Forward Squad 3, your position in the library is being considered for artillery strike. Tanks are taking aim. Clear the building to prepare for demolition." Came the transmission to the Squad Leader's helmet, which Bruce would easily overhear. "You have twenty seconds."

The alarming message aside, the Squad Leader would feel his life fade away knowing his mission would ultimately be a success. That was all he lived for anymore. The Empire had to succeed and he had to perform his job to provide for the future. The Jedi had managed to avoid his array of attacks. Truly this was a stronger Jedi than most as the soldier was overwhelmed. He was helpless to resist being pulled into the blade, but ultimately satisfied with his work holding out in battle before his death.

Rather than continue entering, the remaining troops outside the front steps backed away while keeping rifles ready in case the Jedi fled that direction. Only a handful of them were outside still but they would at least survive the bombardment by the tanks while the building and any inside when they fired would not.

Dune's efforts helped save his pet. The trooper would be out cold and ultimately killed by the Tank Bombardment if not pulled away from the scene. It was doubtful he would survive but thus was the life of a shock trooper. No other attacks came his way yet, and Dune would be open to easily flee or help fight more.

The miniature Jedi Master had been a bigger threat than the soldiers could really anticipate. The one with the rifle managed a single shot before feeling his bones crack and his mind blur against the wall. The other one who went for the blade would find himself pretty useful real quickly. No one else came through the door after the transmission, but it was up to Bruce to tell the other Jedi to get out before it was too late.

Thrash was working hard against the trooper, but the trooper learned something that the Jedi wouldn't hear for herself. An incoming bombardment of tank fire would bring this library to dust. All the trooper wanted to do was escape. When the Jedi came for a leg slash she jumped to one side and abandoned the now useless stab attempt. Lucking the momentum would carry her forwards enough to avoid the full slash. A side glance would nick the armor but keep her uninjured for now. Selfishness took over as she decided to run to the nearest door to escape. She no longer attempted to fight this Jedi over a building soon to be kaboomed.

The Hutt Jedi and Azar found their opponent quickly in a panic. His shots being blocked and sudden fire covering his body made it difficult to do much beyond try to run. He heard the transmission but didn't comprehend it over his own panic. He ran away from the Hutt before he could be disabled but he was aimless. He would crash into the table blocking the entry as he fell over, freaking out and forgetting any training. He would die here if not saved by a Jedi, which seemed unlikely.

Outside the Library, two large Imperial Main Battle Tanks took aim at the building and would begin firing as soon as the 20 second time limit was up. Support staff had cleared many of the books, but not all of them. The Jedi would have little time to escape but it would be enough if the Master warned them. More troops guarded the tanks, making an assault forward rather than fleeing foolish.

 

[Bruce Guleya]

Bruce's eyes light up the moment he heard the announcement. This battle was by far lost and there was no salvaging the case anymore. He withdrew his saber from the impaled squad leader and extinguished it, he could see the remaining troops backing off and he knew why - because he was so close to the leader. He turned inward to the rest of the Library, twenty seconds was not a long time; the Jedi were spread out and the secret passages were at the back of the library, a small amount of panic rose in the Jedi as he began to worry if his comrades would be able to get out in time, "Everyone! To the back now! Get out of this library immediately! Secure what we've taken and follow the passageways to the shuttles waiting for our arrival. I will hold them for as long as I can. MOVE and if you are so inclined, THAT'S AN ORDER KNIGHTS!" ( @Phoenix @Faded Truth @Fantasy Liver @Xorism )

Bruce scurried to the center of the room and he looked up at the high ceilings, he looked around at the remaining books. Time was up and the Jedi Order would suffer a great loss in a matter of seconds. With his lightsaber extinguished he gathered a large amount of Force Energies to him and used the granted strength to push a Force Barrier around the room to buy the precious amount of seconds that the rest of the defenders would need.

Bruce would be adamant in telling all of the Jedi to leave him there and to save themselves as the shuttles were waiting. He assured his fellow Jedi that he would be fine, he would sacrifice himself if he needed to but his only goal right now was to shield his comrades as they escaped; he would close the distance with them as they retreated - he didn't intend to die. "Master Fennex! I need you!" (@Loco) Bruce called out to the other Master. They two of them were the strongest out of the six in attendance, Bruce couldn't hold a barrier under the intense fire mission about to bombard the section of the library. The barrier might not extent to the exterior but it would certainly shield any debris or explosions to buy the time they needed.

 

[Azar Torsin]

Azar's enemy began to flee, which left Azar with no one who was particularly threatening to him. That combined with the fact that the Jedi were now being called to retreat was a huge red flag and Azar didn't bother to continue sticking around. That wasn't to say that he didn't want to, though. He hated the idea of retreating and his eyes quickly ran over all that was here that would burn under the Sith and the Empire's reign. So much lost, and all for what? The expansion of the Empire? It was disgusting, but there was nothing to do.

He began to move toward the rear as the two Jedi Masters moved forward. His saber flashed out and returned to his belt as he shoved the cart of books to the back exit. The canon fire would come and the books would be lost, but they would survive. The Jedi would survive. They would continue onward despite the worst that the world had to offer and in the face of whatever the Empire threw at them.

With a creaking sound, the cart steered to the exit and shoved through the back door. It was clear out the back side and he turned to the other Jedi. Come on! The exit is open! Live to fight another day! he said, hoping the two Jedi Masters wouldn't throw away their lives for nothing.

 

[Dune Tarn]

“Come, Gab Gab!” Dune hurriedly led his faithful steed to the passageway. It would be a tight squeeze but if it could fit a Hutt then a varactyl hopefully wouldn’t be too much different. He might have to use the Force a bit to make Gab Gab fit but hell, he’d managed to get his pet inside the building in the first place. While he wanted to get many more volumes than he’d seized, Dune was still happy that he was there. He feared other Jedi might not have focused so much on books about botany and natural history. They might not be militarily significant or give the Order a tactical advantage but damn it, those things were important to Dune. Ordinarily, he’d try and get the unconscious Sith troopers to safety but given the time limit and the fact that one of them had tried to murder Gab Gab, he left them to their fate. It was time to leave.

 

[Jubba the Mutt]

Jubba was torn between wanting to leave toward safety and helping the poor helpless Sith trooper, who likely was just a young boy lost in a world of hate and evil but not deserving of what was about to happen to him. Jubba had not worked for over one hundred years to finally gain acceptance into the Jedi order to flee at the first sign of danger. His robes gathered dust as the temple shook and orders were being barked out but Jubba knew he had to at least try.

Using the force to assist his movement Jubba quickly raced toward the frightened trooper and grabbed him by the back of his uniform and begun dragging him out toward the exit. It didn't matter to Jubba who he was or what he had done, Jubba wished to save his life if the young one would let him, otherwise, Jubba would make for the exit with the others alone.

 

[Fennex Zeerda]

"Empress' underpants, you'd better have a plan Bruce!" Fennex shouted as he leaped to the center of the room alongside his much taller counterpart, batting aside the one stray blaster bolt coming his way.

He was panting and his fur was wet from exertion from throwing the Sith troopers out of the library as fast as they entered, but he was still in fighting shape and he wasn't about to leave the Bardottan hanging. Fen stood at Bruces side, saber's still lit to defend against any last ditch efforts to fight back against the two Masters, ready to add his power to Master Guleya's. Ossus was lost. Fen knew it, and he suspected Bruce and the others knew it too. He'd arrived with Councilor Shivaaga to try to evacuate the places knowledge before the worst could happen, but it seemed they had either arrived too late or just in time, depending on how you looked at things. But Fennex would be damned if the JEdi didn't die fighting, clawing for every last inch of ground and word of knowledge.

Just as well, really, since Fennex wasn't sure the two of them could hold off what he felt coming. The Sith bombardment was going to be heavy. Something must have happened up above in the main battle or with the Counselor, for the hammer of Sith artillery to come down like this. Fen braced himself, taking a deep breath, calming and centering his mind to the task at hand, pushing out all external thoughts. The other Jedi needed all of him right now.

@Zigara

 

[Thrash]

.

Thrash ended up slashing through thin air, the soldier more qualified than the young Jedi had given her credit for. She glanced at the trooper as she quickly attempted to make an exit, the Pantoran appeared baffled but yet made no attempt to pursue her. Reverting her focus back upon the Jedi Masters, she took heed to Bruce's command and shifted attention upon the other knights. Seeing as Jubba and Azar moved towards the rear of the library, she quickly leaped towards into that general direction. Utilizing the force to carry her with haste, she leaned forwards as she came upon near the Hutt Jedi, lending a hand to carry the injured soldier along with making her own exit to safety.

 

[Bruce Guleya]

Bruce would have smiled or smirked at the little Jedi Master who was by his side - if the bardottan didn't have to focus his attention in it's entirety to maintain the Force Barrier he had thrown up. "A Plan? No." The Jedi Master had a habit of this, pushing himself to his limits for the betterment of his fellow Jedi; could be considered reckless but the surprising thing was that Bruce seemed to know his limits and wouldn't exhaust himself completely, or rather push him well beyond capabilities. It seemed to work, but it wouldn't prevent him from burning his stamina down, and this bombardment was no simple parlor trick. "We just...GAH!... need to hold...nrggh... it until everyone gets out."

The Tanks had unleashed their bombardment, true to the timer. The explosions tore through the structure but he had hoped his barrier could hold, but with every explosion he could feel the barrier shrinking bit by bit. Bruce looked around the room has he held the shrinking barrier, the sweat had begun to drip from his forehead, his body ached and with each blast it took another piece of of him. He could see the group was clearing out, Knight by Knight and as they began to clear out, Bruce began stepping backward toward the exit holding on the best he could. He did what he could to get Fennex's (@Loco) attention to indicate that they needed to start with the exit. It was a slow retreat but he could feel the exit was near.

Another explosion ripped through the structure and the barrier began to flicker but the bardottan held it still, as him and his fellow master had made it closer to the exit he yelled out to the Amaran master, "NOW! GO!" he suspected that Fennex wouldn't put up much of a fight, once Fennex was a fraction closer and Bruce could confidently say that everyone was out he took one last look at the falling library, a sense of loss and sadness plagued him as he accepted the finale; it was lost but at least he - they - did what they could.

Bruce summoned one final wind of energy and pushed it outward and into the barrier with no intended purpose, with the final burst of energy Bruce jumped back and into the passageway in hopes that Knight Torsin (@Phoenix) would slam the passage shut.

The Bardottan was spent, but he had a little bit of strength in him but he knew that the barrier was going to, and had tapped him mostly out. He looked around the room, everyone, had gotten out - and that was a victory to the bardottan, and though he knew it wasn't the time or place, he threw himself onto his back looking up at the ceiling with the passage way - exhaling deeply and catching his breath, if only for a moment.

If anyone spoke to him, he would answer. They were almost free, it was just a short run to the shuttles waiting for them - he hoped they were still there - he had hoped the collections had already been loaded or started to be loaded into them.

@Cazar

 

[The Storyteller]

A library was no military fortification. Two powerful tanks made short work of the building as blasts continued to tear it apart. The Jedi inside would all be lucky enough to escape the blasts but most of the troops had not been so lucky. Whether killed by the Jedi or knocked out, most of the squad found itself dead in the rubble of the building. One trooper had decided to make a run for the exit and managed to get out to live another day. She was the only one to witness battle and escape by her own power. Another was dragged out by the Jedi in some act of mercy, but would be very afraid for his life.

Shuttles would be waiting for the Jedi and the books to make an escape, but much knowledge was still lost. The temple was still a loss. Sith troops would overwhelm any who were not so lucky to get away. Those remaining in the squad would return to the tanks to report their losses. Their master would be displeased with their lack of a victory, but they would live to continue to serve the Empire. A pureblood Sith female would stand atop one of the tanks as she scowled at launching Jedi shuttles in the distance. Her report to Master Aeron would be one of success, but she had hoped to deliver better news.

"Forward Squad 3, you are dismissed. Go home and recover. New assignments will be sent to you in the morning." Was all Wizu would say to the troops before moving on to continue the battle for her Master.

 

[The Storyteller]

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