STGOD: The Phoenix Wars (Chapter IV)

[Robert Walper]

I command all participants to continue our glorious saga of death and destruction...here.

Thread name changed to show this is pretty much no longer a TGOD but a STGOD. Will change the archives to show this also. - Dark Silver

Title corrected. 'Twas driving me nuts. ARGH.

[Destructionator XV]

"One last thing before we all go home... how do you intend to make the Phoenix change hosts? What if it doesn't want to go?"

[Ra]

Galadriel looked over. "That is indeed a problem, Lady of A'millian. I do not have the power to remove such evil, and neither does Amiwen. One person alone cannot remove the Being of Fire. But we shall find a way."

"We'll have to work together," the Lady answered.

"Even united, we would face great difficulty. The Phoenix would not sit idly by as it was forcibly moved into a host that would subdue it."

"One of us would have to fight it," indicated Ra.

"Difficult is the road ahead, my friends. Even now, the dark minions of the Empire seek to stop our quest. The fools cannot see what darkness they are aiding. The one known as Number Two whispers lies interlaced in the truths of my quest, to rally his country to war. They ready ships to come and raze this realm to the ground. If we are to end this menace, it must be now."

[Destructionator XV]

"An Imperial organazation? Interesting..."

"If this Number Two guy is such a hassle, perhaps we should assassinate him next time we are in the area?"

"Don't be a simpleton. He can surely do something about a simple assassination plan."

"Are you certain? They are a secret group. Killing them would probably go unnoticed and would halt their plans."

"A team of crack marines could infiltrate their base, once we find it, and quickly lay waste to them. What do you think?" She turns to the direction of Galadriel.

[Ra]

"It entales great risk, and the possibility of open war. If you are successful, the organization will fall, and our task will be much easier. Yet if you fail, the enemy's retribution will be swift. The choice is yours."

Khardem listened to the Firstborn's words, and formulated a plan of his own. Whether or not his ally's plan worked, it would be to his advantage. "If you would excuse me?"

The Lady nodded her approval. After Khardem left, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, we should be getting ready to do this thing. The Avenger II is due at Corellia tomorrow."

Back aboard the A'millian command ship, Khardem materialized, and walked down various corridors, finally coming to his personal quarters. There, he closed his eyes, and meditated. Another figure appeared in his vision, a female figure with dark eyes and hair.

"What do you command, Lord Khardem?"

"The time is ripe. The mortals, led by the Firstborn, are going to try and find a Lightsider to host the Condemned One. They seek to save his host."

"Indeed?"

"They will fail. I have seen this. Deploy every holy ship you can spare! We ride to war. And VICTORY."

"To victory..."

[KANdem, extra safe]

As if heeding Khardem's calls, Guardian vessels are amassing in large number, while large A'millan fleet is formed near the border of Galactic Empire.

The Ancient Guardians were overwhelmed in horror knowing Galadriel's solution of hosting the Phoenix in a Jedi; an effort they have tried before, and costed them so much thanks to the deceitful Jedi Knights and their master, Lord Sidious aka Palpatine.

Unlike sporadic assaults like before, now the Guardians are preparing for the real war; a total war that aims for a total annihilation of the loser, that will take so many innocent, uninvolved lives in process.

The real war has just begun.


OOC: of course the in-universe characters (Ra, Galadriel, etc) doesn't have any idea yet why Khardem was so pissed off by the idea of hosting the Phoenix in a Jedi. Don't enlarge the following texts if you don't want spoilers. See, anyone remember Lilith who is chained and tormented in The Organization's Bee Farm on Naboo?

[Ra]

Aboard the Avenger II, the Lady Galadriel was proceeding down the ship's spacious corridors, flanked by Amy Lee. "Do you think our plan to clone a Jedi has any merit?"

"No... Something tells me that will be our clone will not be enough."

"The Imperials will be indeed unhappy if I am caught in their realm once again."

Lee turned suddenly, looking the timeless Eldar queen in the eye. "You aren't going?"

Galadriel warmly smiled. "My Task is a different one, Amiwen. You must go, and find the Jedi with the Lady. We have discussed this."

Amiwen paused in deep thought, then looked up. "I understand."

Galadriel placed a hand on the Istari's shoulder. "May the stars shine upon your journey."

*Moments later, the Avenger II zipped off into hyperspace, leaving Ra's Ha'tak behind. Galadriel examined both ships as her own Asgard shuttle opened a hyperspace window, and itself zipped away. The destination: A'millian Prime.*

"The Avenger II and Asgard ship have departed, m'lord," First Prime Srenn reported.

Ra paced around the bridge, uneasy that he had the most difficult job of all; defending the Goa'uld realm from Imperial, and possibly, Guardian attack. "Very well. Set course for the capital."

*Finally, the large Goa'uld ship entered hyperspace, leaving the rendezvous point behind. Many lightyears away, a literal cloud of dark, organic vessels were assembled in a formation. The storm was gathering...*

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

Meanwhile, aboard Executor-Class Command Battleship Ares....

Grand Admiral Thorne is unhappy; he was just attending a holo-conference with Prime Minister Sate Pestage and Secretary of Defense Matthew Dahlman, and what he heard is pretty much disheartenining; the Imperial Council has put a veto on his proposal to put Darth Kreshna's private fleet under his command.

Thorne, after all, is the Commander-In-Chief of the Imperial Forces for the Guardians war; or the operation 'Galactic Shield', as officially designated by the top brasses. Even after the destruction of Ibizan, most population still do not realize how serious this war is; and their opinion is reflected by the Council's decision. Everybody seems to be overconfident that the massive Imperial military forces can deal with the Guardian's threat easily.

But the Grand Admiral doesn't see it that way; although they have always been successful in repelling Guardians attacks throughout Imperial territorry, he knows that the Empire is not winning; a war would never be won by defense alone. The Guardians is unlike other enemies they have faced before; they do not have bases to bombard, supply lines to cut, territory to occupy, population to demoralize, central government to be paralyzed, or infrastructure to be eliminated. The Five Rings Doctrine simply does not work in this war. Fighting the Guardians is more like fighting against an underground terrorist organization; although the Empire can anticipate and handle their attacks, there is nothing they can do to disable the Guardian's ability to perform such attack to on the first place. Nobody knows where the Guardians territory is in order to make an offensive move; their ships simply pop up out of nowhere.

And Darth Kreshna's personal fleet only makes it worse; so far the fleet has been fighting on its own, in a pattern that nothing resembles a war strategy whatsoever. Sometimes they just bombard some lifeless planet in a foreign territory, sometimes they will order an Imperial planet to evacuate before bombarding certain geographical area, and sometimes they will just destroy a particular celestial bodies for no reason. And the worst of it, even their officers have no idea why they have been destroying those 'targets'; they just blindingly follow the command of the Sith Inquisitor.

To be frank, Thorne's instinct keeps telling him that those 'targets' actually have something to do with the Guardians, but still, this is not the way a war campaign should be done. If Darth Kreshna knows that destroying the targets would weaken the Guardians, he should share it with the rest of the Imperial Navy. In contrary, he never explain the reason, let alone the further plan, of his attacks, even to his own officers! That is not right; a war needs proper co-ordination, combined efforts, clear goals within certain timeframe, and synergy among the fighting forces. That's why the Grand Admiral proposed to dissolve Darth Kreshna's fleet and integrate it into the rest of the Imperial Navy; at least until the war is over. From his latest conversation with Admiral Hauser, Thorne knows that the Admiral is not happy either. Alas, being the Fleet Admiral of Darth Kreshna's personal fleet only means that Hauser can only take orders from the Sith Inquisitor himself.


And what's more pressing is Imperial sensors have detected a large presence of Guardian and A'millan ships, amassing near the A'millan border. Grand Admiral Thorne has sent 7th and 354th fleet to deal with them, consisting of a total of two Executor-Class Command Battleships, four Eclipse-Class Star Battleships, five AEGIS-capable Sovereign-Class Star Battlecruisers, fifteen Allegiance-Class Star Destroyers, and twenty Imperial-Class Star Destroyers. That should be sufficient to deal with the upcoming threat, and the fleet has been equppied with the 'psychic nullifier device' that resulted in a joint development with their former ally, the Goa'ulds. However, Thorne believes the Guardian/A'millan's first major offensive is nothing but a start of a larger war.

He hopes those doves in the government will change their mind soon.



OOC:

(1) The Allegiance is 2.2km-long. It is a more dedicated fleet destroyer, operating in concert with complimentary warship designs in full-scale naval engagement (unlike the ISD which IMO is more designed to stand on its own in small engagement against inferior ships). Size comparison of Imperial warships can be seen here

(2) Alright, who wants to play as the Guardians? Allen? Anyone?

(3) Would Lord Adam approve the A'millan involvement in Khardem's offensive? Although I imagine General Shep would be more than happy to attack the Empire.

(4) Would Ra be overwhelmed by his personal grudges against Darth Kreshna and decide to join the attack against the Empire, or Galadriel would cool off his head again?

(5) Where's the Trolls? Although they have alliance with the Goa'ulds and Captain McKenzie's secret renegade movement, and they are also a good guy trying to stop the war, they are still officially at war with the Empire. What are they gonna' do?

(6) Where's the Borg? Still busy conquering Sauron? But remember; the Borg is still vulnerable to the Guardian's song because they don't have the psychic nullifier device yet. It is not that the Empire is unwilling to share it with their ally, but the Borg had been disappeared for quite some time so the Empire was unable to contact them until very recently. However, the nullifier device forms certain 'anti-psychic field' to its surrounding, so as long as Borg cubes are fighting in close proximity with the Imperials, they should be safe.



(7) Again, the Guardian is powerful. A Guardian Bioship equals two Imperial Star Destroyers. In order to estimate how many Guardian vessels needed to breach an Executor's bridge shield, I guess we can use Battle of Endor as yardstick (where Ackbar's fleet of MC-80s eventually breached the Executor's bridge shield after heavy concentration of bombardment). I have laid my numbers; so I guess we can make a reasonable estimation of how many ships would be involved to create an exciting battle!




(8) Also, it would be nice to see some significant plot development during the battle. Perhaps more clues? Major implications? Or a major character getting killed? I have no idea yet, but I hope it would develop naturally during the battle.

Note: there will be Sovereign-Class Battlecruisers named Ticonderoga and Bunker Hill in the battle. How about Executor-Class Command Battleship Nimitz? ;)

[Robert Walper]

Sauron's axe fell, and the last tactical drone, standing it's ground till the end, was split in two. It crumpled into a heap, surrounded by it's fallen comrades. Bodies littered the soil around him, thousands upon thousands of them. Most of them were the dead of Sauron's own army, but once again he was the undefeated and unchallenged master of Middle-Earth. His rule of Darkness would not be undone.

The One Ring, it's glow having faded once the majority of drones had lost their defenses, brightened again. It spoke it's magic into Sauron's mind, and he listened.

Another was coming. One far more powerful than the cybernetic creatures he had slaughtered.

As if a giant hand was at work, a portion of the Orc army parted and revealed a figure materializing from a greenish glow of energy. Sauron's will demanded his troops close upon the newcomer, but their efforts at reaching him proved fruitless. The Orc's and Uruk-Hai could not move towards the character, as if held at bay by an invisible wall. The figure walked towards Sauron.

Lord Walper nodded, a rare and interesting show of respect.

"Lord Sauron. A magnificent display of power and control. Your troops are...interesting. Primitive, weak and no match for the Borg. But impressive nonetheless."

Sauron gazed at the relatively smaller figure before him. He sensed great power in this individual, but what kind he could not tell. The One Ring glowed, ready to obey it's master's bidding.

Walper glanced at the golden ring which Sauron wore, nodding.

"The source of your power, the One Ring." Walper said. "I need your help, Sauron. There are forces far greater than yourself at work in this universe. I need to use your planet and it's distinctiveness to further my goals."

"No." Sauron replied. And with that, he raised his mace, swinging it down upon the being who dared to suggest to use him.

But as fast a Sauron moved, Walper moved far faster. His hands came together at the sides of the montrous mace, stopping it cold a mere foot from his head. To the Dark Lord's surprise, his mace was pulled from his hand. The Borg leader possessed supernatural strength.

Robert flipped the weapon, it's handle landing squarely in his grip. He swung it upwards, the flat side of the blade connecting to Sauron's lower helmet. The force of the hit lifted Sauron into the air, sending him reeling into the ground. He landed in a sitting position, arms bracing himself against the ground. The surrounding army looked on in awe and fear. No being had ever done such a thing to the Dark Lord before.

Robert spoke.

"You are strong and powerful, Sauron. But I am stronger. You are beaten, it is useless to resist. Don't let yourself be destroyed as Saruman did..."

Sauron rose to his feet, his dark aura making his anger clear. The scream of a Nazgul dragon filled the air. The mighty beast swooped down at behest of it's dark rider, ready to tear apart the being that threatened the might of Sauron.

Walper's hand rose up, and greenish Force lightening leapt from his fingers, slamming into the dragon. The rider was knocked off his perch, landing with a thud into the nearby Orcs. The dragon screamed in rage and pain as the energy of the blast pushed it into the sky. Wounded and in pain, it fled the area. Walper directed his gaze at Sauron.

"Don't make me destroy you."

Sauron glared at the Borg figure, but said nothing.

"Sauron, you do not yet realize your importance. You have only begun to discover true power. Join me, and I will benefit your domain. With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict, and bring order to the galaxies."

"I'll never serve you." Sauron stated with finality.

Lord Walper shook his head. "If you only knew the power of the Force and Dark Side. Melkor never told you what happened to your father."

Sauron was taken aback. How could this creature know of Melkor, or his father? "My father...died at the hands of his enemies."

"No." Robert replied. "Melkor...killed your father."

Sauron said nothing, his helmet betraying no expression. But inside he was tormented and unnerved. Such knowledge of the past he had suppressed and forgotten...yet this cybernetic creature forced him to face it.

"No..." Sauron hissed. "No. That's not true. That's impossible!"

Walper continued. "Search your feelings, you know it to be true!"

"NO!!" Sauron roared. The One Ring flashed brilliant white, a white aura of energy expanding around the Lord, knocking all around him to the ground. Only the Borg leader remained standing.

"Sauron...you can tip the balance of power. I have foreseen this. It is your destiny. Join me, and together, we can rule the galaxies as Gods without end!"

Robert held out Sauron's mace, the handle within the Dark Lord's reach. Sauron looked at his weapon being offered back to him.

"Come with me." Robert continued. "It is the only way."

Slowly, the gloved hand of Sauron reached out, grasping the handle of his weapon. His rage and anger at his revealed past now tempered, he nodded ever so slightly. He would work with this being...for now.

[SirNitram]

The Force distended; both Living and Universal aspects warped in unimaginable pain. The disturbance was on par with planetary destruction, as some unthinkable perversion of the powers of Sith and Jedi pulled the mystical connections to the breaking point, sucking up power greedily.

A portal between realities tore itself open. A blue robe wrapped around the figure. A straw hat, hiding the nature of it's wearer, obscured the face. But the mage within flexed it's connections to the vast stores of power just beyond the mortal's eye view.

Escaping the Demiplane of Dread had been difficult, but Vecna had... Seen reason and revealed the ways out. Now the Survivor was once again loose in the multiverse.

[Robert Walper]

Lord Walper sat in his viewing chamber, surrounded by the void of space. Information scrolled by at a leisure pace, displaying his holdings, fleet formations and production rates. He notice Ra had yet to take advantage of the cube fleet he had sent forth. I may have to recall them if he continues to let them sit there Robert though.

Nonetheless, all seemed to be going well. Robert smiled to himself. His deception of Sauron seemed to work. The Dark Lord had succumbed to his manipulation of his mind. Normally such mind tricks could only have worked on the weak minded. But Walper's unique powers came from the trillions of Borg he tapped for Force power. The Collective's strength was well attuned to conquering the will of billions of minds at once. One will, even one as powerful as Sauron's, could also be conquered.

Suddenly, Robert's surroundings became murky, darkened and forbidding. His Force perception became unclear, his mind unfocused. He glanced around his chamber. His surroundings were distorted and warped, the information he had been viewing so clearly before unreadable. Despite his impaired senses, he felt someone watching him from behind.

YOU CANNOT LIE.

Walper turned, and faced the presence. Before him was the great eye of Sauron, it's size dwarfing him, it's gaze unflinching. Despite himself, Robert backed away from the glowing orb. But it continued to grow.

I SEE YOU.

Robert realized his deception of Sauron was no longer in effect. The Dark Lord had broken his hold.

THERE IS NO FORCE IN THE VOID. ONLY...DEATH.

Robert lashed out with the Force. His abilities were dampened, but not lost. The great eye disappeared, his surroundings snapping back into focus. Walper fell to the floor, the normally minor effort taxing his inner strength. Once again in full contact with the Collective's strength, he quickly rose, anger burning in his eyes. He would not be caught off guard by Sauron again. Despite his anger and rage at the intrusion and loss of control, he couldn't help but respect the Dark Lord's move. Sauron was no mere pawn. Robert realized his foolishness and arrogance could've cost him a lot more than this unexpected visit had Sauron's reach not been so stretched.

Lord Walper paused, hearing Sauron's voice speak to his mind. Our alliance will continue. Your monopoly will not.

So be it. Walper sent back. Images of hundreds of Borg cubes pummeling the surface of Mordor appeared, the planet of Middle-Earth cracked opened, revealing the red mantle below the surface. Just remember your power has it's limits...mine does not.

The mind of Sauron hissed. The armies of Mordor will be at your command.

[Ra]

*In a far-off star system, the cloud of dark Guardian ships had assembled, gathered around a huge vessel. Once it had moved into position, a telepathic image of Khardem appeared.*

"You are the sacred warriors of the Guardians. You are our finest. You shall scatter the puny mortals across the four winds! Bring the Fiery Enemy before our elders, so that he may be brought to justice! Long have we toiled to see this hour. Long have we suffered and worked in vain. Again, we will do our holy duty to the universe, and restore the order. Go now, and let not mortal man, nor parasite, nor troll, nor elf stop you."

Then, in a frightening cascade of light, the entire fleet engaged their interphase drives. They reappeared in Imperial space, right in front of a small Imperial taskforce that had been en route to Admiral Thorne's fleet, ripping them out of hyperspace.

Within moments, the huge, dark device expanded and enveloped the fleet with a shadow, desipe the Imperials' heavy bombardment. Then slowly, darkly, it devoured them. The people inside the ships were rotted alive, and consumed by the hideous device. Bioships also joined in on the slaughter, blowing open star destroyers with ease due to their numbers.

Satisfied the enemy was routed, the Guardians jumped away. A vast field of wreckage and crewless ships drifted through the dark, a fleet of eleven ships wiped out. But one ship, an Allegiance-class star destroyer, had survived, however narrowly that was. The HIMS Fearless was still intact, and reignited her engines.

"Is our hyperdrive still online?" Captain Garin demanded.

"Yes, sir, but the navcomp is down. We'd have to make a blind jump, and who knows where we would end up?"

"We couldn't simply jump toward our previous heading? In another two hours we would have arrived."

"It's risky, Captain, but we can navigate by paper charts."

"Do it."

The Fearless then flashed away into hyperspace, leaving the carnage of the Guardian ambush behind...

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

Aboard Executor-Class Command Battleship Ares....

The report on Guardian ambush has been received by top-brass. Grand Admiral Thorne reacts swiftly; AEGIS network, installed on warships and listening posts alike, is working twenty-four hours to scan and track the Guardian vessels.

Eventually they find the realspace co-ordinates of the Guardian vessel, but the location just gives more complicated problem; the Guardians are hiding in Goa'uld space, alongside with several A'millan supply ships.

Aware of this fact, the Empire orders its ambassador to have an audience with Ra; requesting permission for Imperial ships to enter the Goa'uldian space. Unfortunately, the System Lord is currently not present at that time.

The Grand Admiral quickly arranges a holo-conference with the Prime Minister, the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Foreign Affairs. After long hours of meeting, the decision eventually made; the Guardian threat must be eliminated at all cost. An urgent decision that may be perceived as yet another Galactic Empire's arrogance as superpower nation. Despite the fact that the Goa'uld nation has not yet answered their request, the 7th fleet and 354th fleet hyperspace through Goa'uldian space; heading to the location of Guardian vessel.

Upon their arrival, they find nothing more than A'millan supply ships, but the Empire has anticipated this. The Eclipses quickly activate their gravity well projectors, while other ships aim their tractor beams at certain co-ordinates being fed by AEGIS system. All hell breaks loose as Guardian vessels are being yanked to the real space while the Imperial ships are opening fire. Guardian ships are powerul but the Empire has their warships well-placed; two Executor-Class Command Battleships, four Eclipse-Class Star Battleships, Five Sovereign-Class Star Battlecruiser, fifteen Allegiance-Class Star Destroyers, twenty Imperator-Class Star Destroyers; each has been strategically positioned to deliver maximum payloads to the Guardian vessels.

Aboard His Imperial Majesty Ship (HIMS) Dauntless, the leading Executor Command Ship, an officer is reporting, "Sir, we are detecting some Goa'uld civilian ships heading here through hyperspace. According to sensor's prediction, they will jump out of hyperspace right in the middle of our field of fire."

Admiral Channing Capwell, the commander of the task force, replies, "open hailing frequency. Tell them to stay away from this location and jump out somewhere else. It is too dangerous for any civilian ships to be around."

The Admiral massages his face. This is not going to be easy; the battle happens to be on the orbit of a Goa'uld planet, which is surely the destination of the civilian ships; a colony planet, lightly armed and heavily populated by civilians. So far the Guardians have been caught by surprise, but they start returning fire very even now. If the Guardians fight back fiercely, as the Admiral has been anticipated, there will be more innocent casualties in this war. Goa'uld casualties.




OOC: Alright, Dark Silver is going to play as the Guardians, so Ra, you don't have to play as the Guardians anymore. But you can play as Goa'uld civilians and defense forces in the proximity of the battle. What are you gonna' do?

And Adam can play as well as the A'millan. Would the A'millan send reinforcements to help their Guardian ally?

[Ra]

The Guardians vanished away, just as the civilians exited their jump, and were massacred wholesale. News quickly reached the fleet, and the planet below began firing defense turrets and deploying Death Gliders in order to hold off the attackers.

The Imperials began bombarding the surface, just as a large fleet of Ha'taks showed up. The battle lasted for minutes, but the result was one-sided. For the loss of two ships, the Imperials wiped out the defending fleet.

The Imperials then jumped on, following the shadows of Guardian ships. Another Goa'uld fleet arrived to stop the Imperials, or at least slow their advance. They too were eradicated to little loss for the Imperials.

Back aboard Ra's Ha'tak, he hasn't even returned deep into his space yet. Srenn looks up from a console.

"My Lord! The Imperials have invaded. They wiped out a frontier fleet, and are moving right for the capital. Multiple Executors and Eclipses, and countless star destroyers. In fact it would appear two sector fleets have invaded."

Ra was for the first time since his early fighting with Baal, and his first meeting of Galadriel, deeply afraid. He sat on the bridge-throne, literally shaking.

"My Lord!"

"All the ships in our fleet cannot stop them," Ra muttered. "That bastard tried to kill me, that bastard had the gaul to invade once before, but now he comes to destroy us all. Here comes the true death of the Goa'uld, and the end of us all!"

The panic in Ra's voice shocked Srenn, and even Captain Kar'm. But Srenn was in no mood to wait for even his god's command.

"Deploy all available ships! NOW!"

Ra fell to his feet, and began whispering in terror.

"Lady Galadriel, Lady of Light, please hear me! We are at the mercy of the Imperials! Please..."

Indeed enough, Galadriel heard Ra's cry aboard her Asgard shuttle. However, it was too late for her to come. She appeared in his mind.

"I am not able to help you now, Ra of the Goa'uld. But do not despair. For you have yet more powerful allies than one lone Elf."

She then placed something else in his mind, sweetly smiled, and faded away from his vision. Ra then lowered his head, and started speaking in Elvish.

Meanwhile, more ships were arriving peacemeal to challenge the Empire, and were being butchered before doing any damage.

As Ra whispered the words, he began to feel uplifted and hopeful. He then opened his eyes. They were filled with a pure light. He then looked up, and gazed upon none other than Melian the Maia, the ancient and wise Queen of Doriath and teacher of Galadriel. She took his hand, and raised Ra to his feet.

"I answer your call, young mortal," she said with a smile. "As Galadriel said, do not despair."

She then began to chant in an ancient tongue, and stretched out her arms. In the Imperial invasion fleet, all the people aboard those ships, officer, enlisted, soldier, and technician, all were struck with a terror and deep fear. Many began to scream out at their posts, and cling to others in their fright. Then, the fearful images became one of anger and wrath. Not even the Smiths aboard several of the ships could cope with Melian's wrath unleashed.

Then, a dark wave passed over the fleet, seeming to have no effect at first. It then stopped clear at the boarders of Goa'uld space. The Viel of Melian had been placed around Ra's empire, an invisible cloak of protection.

It was then that the effect of the Viel on the Imperials was shown; they all dropped dead at their posts, and their deadly ships were left untouched. However, Melian then turned to Ra.

"Those ships are cursed. Do not approach them, exept to place forth a warning for all that travel hither through the heavens."

Ra nodded, and looked up into Melian's powerful but at the same time majestic and kind eyes. "Thank you. I never thought that I warranted such sweet salvation."

"Your task is not yet complete. The Valar bless your quest, if not always your actions. Go now. Go now and complete it, so that such torment and despair may end. The Veil of Melian does now protect your lands, as long as I will it. No dark power can undo it."

Ra was still frightened at what happened, but Melian placed a hand on his shoulder. "Dark power shall never defeat light, and unless you turn from that path... even the mighty Empire cannot cause you to waiver. Farewell for now."

At with that, one of the fairest and most powerful beings faded seemingly into thin air. Had she even been there, or was it a more convincing form of telepathy? Ra did not know. But he then breathed easy, and sat back on his throne.

"Order all ships to stay away from the Imperials. They have been defeated."

Srenn, who was utterly shaken by what he saw, nodded. "Transmitting now, m'lord."

"In fact, place a beacon on their flagship, warning no one to go near the wreckage again."

[Destructionator XV]

Back at the starbase

"Mr. Khardem. You bring me here saying the Borg are a threat. You bring me here to fight this threat. Then you suddenly assualt the Empire. I frankly am growing tired of your bullshit. Whom do you intend to fight?"

The Lady, who is also in the room, presses a button.

"Recall all ships."

With that command, all A'millian ships in this galaxy are ordered to return to starbase and regroup.

"Well? Which enemy will you fight?"

[Ra]

It was just then that one of Khardem's aides walked in.

"Lord Khardem, the Imperials have invaded Goa'uld space. They were de-" The woman hushed upon seeing the Lord and Lady.

"Do not stop, please go on!"

"The Goa'uld were being massacred. However, some wave went out from the capital world, and killed all the ships' crews. None survived. There is a very powerful being with the Goa'uld."

"Melian the Maia!" Khardem said delightfully. "I haven't heard of her in many ages."

The Lady then glared over. "Your perfect opportunity to strike, Khardem. Tell me now; which enemy will you fight?"

Khardem's eyes glowed in rage. "The time is NOW! Do you not see it! Fools. The Empire is most vulnerable, and we can destroy the Phoenix-Incarnate! We can end this right now."

"We know what you have done, and what you are doing," a deep female voice called. Everyone in the room turned to see the Lady Galadriel, shimmering in white, standing before them. "Khardem, do you not see the folly of this plan? The Phoenix will be defeated, yes! But it will tarry long, and it will find a new host, only to rise again. But now, the time has come for you to answer for what you have done to this country."

Just then, soldiers began pouring into the room. Two siezed Galadriel by her arms, while others surrounded Khardem like a shield, all pointing their phasers at the Lord and Lady.

"You are all fools. You think yourself to be among the Wise, Lady Galadriel, but you have not wisdom. This kindgom answers to me. This army answers to me. This people answers to me!"

"We will see about that," the Lady replies as she fingers a hilt under her coat.

[Destructionator XV]

"Gentlemen, stand down."

The men are clearly unsure, but they hold their ground.

"Stand down." He says again, this time with a special pitch in his voice.

Many of them now lower their weapons.

"Kill them."

The men are still confused. The Guardians mind control was strong, but so was their loyalty to their Lord. And his mind influencing skills.

"Do it!"

Normally, Khardem has the influence of the Guardians to help him, but all his ships were away on an attack.

"You men go home."

Khardem suddenly draws a hand biolaser and fires. But even more quickly, the Lady draws her lightsabre and absorbs the blast. But the suddenness of the firing excited the men around him and the evil aura of a firing biolaser brought their aggressive sides to the surface.

Lord Adam waves his arm and a compression wave is shot to Khardem and those surronding him, bringing them all to the floor.

The Lady holds her lightsabre, ready to deflect any more fire.

"Please. You are no match for our power."

"Computer. Intruder alert."

At that command, the base goes into lockdown and security teams rush to every intersection.

"Surrender. You cannot defeat us and no word of this action will get out of this base, save what I want to get through."

"You bastard!" He tries to raise his weapon again, but at a flick of the Lady's hand it is thrown out of his reach.

"Men, place him under arrest. And take these people's weapons."

"And this occurance is top secret."

[Ra]

In the meantime, Galadriel had broken the grip of the two soldiers, sending them to the floor. With the soldiers down and Khardem cornered, she went to stand beside the rulers of the A'millian Empire.

"Stop this now. Enough blood has been spilled."

"I will not call off the attack."

"Search him for other weapons."

A soldier stands glaring at her, the looks to the Lady.

"Do as she says."

Two soldiers began frisking Khardem, removing a biolaser and two knives. Galadriel then looked over at the aide, who had been hiding as the chaos erupted earlier. She then noticed Khardem give the aide a look.

"Do not attempt it."

"Arrest her as well."

Then, the two Guardians were escorted out.

Galadriel turned to the Lord and Lady. "The corruption of Khardem is being swept away."

Indeed, the very air seemed to change, as if a heavy veil had been lifted from the planet. The population began to wake up from their control, and began abandoning their shrines and religious items centered around Khardem's worship.

"On behalf of the A'millian government, and ourselves, I thank you, Galadriel."

"The popular revolution Khardem promised isn't materializing."

"His power has ended."

"All that's left now is to get rid of the Guardians and their junk."

"Indeed. Now the final leg of this Quest stands before us. The greatest danger now lies ahead. Both sides have suffered a major blow. The Phoenix has lost much of its forces already to the Guardians' invasion, and to their foolish errand in Ra's kingdom. The Guardians have lost their grip here, and have lost their captain. Both sides grow more desperate."

[Ra]

Back at Per-Ra, the Supreme System Lord was furious.

"Obviously, we should declare war," Srenn stated.

"Oh, and fight with what? You saw how many Ha'taks they were able to mow through and escape virtually unscathed," Ra snapped. "But they will pay for this."

"If Ha'taks are no longer viable, perhaps we should reconstruct the Supership?"

"I have a better idea. We'll use available technology, as well as that of the Ancients, to build a new class of Ha'tak. I want a ship with enough firepower to threaten the Imperials!"

Several Jaffa in charge of shipbuilding took note.

"It should be about the size of a Ha'tak, perhaps larger. Make the pyramid have a square base again, like my old ship. In fact, make the pyramid core detachable, so the rest of the ship can remain in orbit as a defense satellite."

At Ra's command, Jaffa went to work on designing the next-generation Ha'tak. Also, the Eldar brought with Galadriel helped out, eliminating bad design decisions and overall making the design more practical. Within mere days hurried construction began on the first of these new ships. Ra watched with quiet satisfaction as the vessel began to take shape...

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

Meanwhile, on Coruscant...

The Imperial Navy is busy defending their home Galaxy from the Guardian's massive attacks. Although the mighty Imperial war machines have been successful in standing up against the mystical aliens, the recent battles have been taking noticeable casualties on the superpower nation, particularly on civilians whose ships or planets were targeted by the Guardian's bombardments. Of course the Empire has planetary shielding technology; a marvelous result of human's ingenuity that should be able to resist a Guardian Planet Killer, let alone mere Biolaser blasts. IF the shield was activated on the first place, of course.

The problem is that the Imperial government has been simply overconfident and unprepared for a massive Guardian attack. And how wouldn't they? Save the destruction of Ibizan, Guardian attacks had been mostly sporadic and minor.............

...........until recently, of course.



But the worst of it, Darth Kreshna's personal fleet has not been contributing at all to the Imperial defense; still engaging in wild goose chase around the galaxies. Moreover, it is Kreshna's feudal territory that suffers the least from the recent Guardian attacks; stirring public antipathy further. Even Darth Kreshna's supporters in the Imperial Council are not actively defending him anymore. Suddenly, Grand Admiral Thorne's proposal to dissolve the Sith Inquisitor's personal fleet into the Imperial Navy. After all, Kreshna is the only remaining Imperial Warlord, while new liberal opinions have been scorning the 'warlord culture' for long time; insisting that feudal nobility is a thing from the past and should be kept strictly in ceremonial basis.




In fact, the Sith Inquisitor is being called by the Council for a hearing. A hearing that will determine the future of his own personal fleet, and perhaps, his effective power as a feudal noble. Will Darth Kreshna keep his political power as the Sith Inquisitor, or will it be reduced to a mere ceremonial status?

Ironically, Kreshna does not seem to be disturbed too much by the recent political development. In fact, he is not even thinking about it at all while waiting for the limousine to pick him up at some local Starbuck's in Coruscant.





OOC: Alright, who want to play as the Congress? Er, I mean, the Imperial Senate? Of course there will also be the Prime Minister Sate Pestage; and the Secretary of Defense Matthew Dahlman as well.

You will attack my position as a Sith Inquisitor, questioning the lack of involvement of my personal fleet in defending the Empire against the massive Guardian attacks that has been happening, while I, of course, will defend my position and try to keep that fleet under my personal belonging. Let's play a political STGOD, people!

(by the way, perhaps you may want to post as 'Guest' to maintain the 'NPC' status.)

Here's the premise:

(1) By the Constitution, a Sith Inquisitor is considered a rightful feudal noble and has the right to keep his own fleet under his full command. You can blame Palpatine on that!

(2) However, Darth Kreshna's fleet has not been making any noticeable contributions in the Guardian War; save some wild goose chase and bombarding planets around the galaxies.

(3) Considering National Interest (and military standpoint), Grand Admiral Thorne has proposed to temporary dissolve Darth Kreshna's personal fleet into the Imperial Navy during the war.

(4) Although Darth Kreshna's fleet is not really large compared to the rest of the Imperial Navy, he has the Death Star, which would be a nice addition to the Empire's existing two Death Stars.

(5) However, Darth Kreshna's political enemies has been stirring further sentiments to strip down the Sith Inquisitor of all his powers; to the point that his feudal nobility should be no more than ceremonial status. This is also supported by popular, liberal views that the 'warlord culture' is obsolete and not needed anymore. So they are striving for an Amandment in the Constitution to strip down Darth Kreshna's power.

(6) On the other hand, removing Darth Kreshna's political power does not really benefit the Empire; it is nothing but political sentiments. Thorne just wants the ships, that's all.



(7) Imperial politicians and general population are rational people, and they generally do NOT believe in the Phoenix legend and such, so it is not like they will blame Darth Kreshna for the hostility with the Guardians. Even though the 'yellow journalism' has been exploiting the rumors derived from Kreshna's fleet battles against the Guardians ('fiery aura' and such), most people don't take it too seriously. Think the 20th century United States.

All they care is that Darth Kreshna is the one who encountered the Guardians on the first place, and now the Guardians is attacking the Empire....

....and instead of working in synergy with the Imperial Navy, Darth Kreshna's personal fleet has been in wild goose chase and not making any apparent contributions in the war. Of course Kreshna's fleet has been destroying many Guardian ships while doing so, BUT like Admiral Hauser said, a war need proper co-ordination and combined efforts.

On the other hand, since the public don't believe in Phoenix legend and such, they don't realize how important Darth Kreshna is in facing the Guardians (Phoenix UNLIMITED power!). They don't blame him, but they don't realize his importance either.



(8) The Organization, being used to 'magical' and irrational things (although they tend to rationalize them and exploiting them for profit), knows better than the general population. In fact, The Organization is THE conspirator, isn't it? Many people don't believe in UFO or Roswell incident, but the conspirators knows better!

So consequentially, The Organization seeks to defend Darth Kreshna's position, because they know the Empire needs the Phoenix's unlimited power against the Guardians (although they still need to lure Darth Kreshna to actually fight the Guardians in a cosmic battle). But of course, The Organization know they are swimming against the tides (because the popular opinion, incited by Kreshna's political enemies, seek to strip down the Sith Inquisitor's political power), so they have to find a way to defend Kreshna.



Alright, you guys can play as various sides. For example, Ra can play as Kreshna's political enemies in Congress... I mean in Imperial Senate that will attack him during the hearing.

Meanwhile, Allen, for example, can play as Imperial Congressman or Senator which is secretly backed by The Organization and try to defend Darth Kreshna.

And Adam can play as Sate Pestage, or the Secretary of Defense, or both.

Well everybody is free to assume their position in the hearing. Come on, let's play a political STGOD! ('virtual' debates, 'virtual' reasoning, etc, which happen during the hearing.) :D

[Senator Darren]

*The Imperial Senate, Coruscant*

It was a busy day at the Imperial Senate; the galactic body was convening for an emergency session. Being proposed in the middle of an increasingly bloody Guardian invasion was a motion to disolve the personal star fleet of the Sith Inquisitor, Darth Kreshna. Many of the gathered Senators were chatting amongst themselves, and hovering cameras zipped around the podium.

"Order! Here convenes the 47th New Imperial Senate. All rise for Supreme Chancellor Saan."

The gathered senators and their aides stood as the Twi'lek leader of the Imperial Senate stood, and gave her opening address.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. This emergency session is hereby convened to adress the current war efforts between our State and the extragalactic invaders, known only as the Guardians. We are here to consider Grand Admiral Thorne's proposal, Resolution 20-8374, the formal dissolving of the Sith Inquisitor's private star navy, and its immediate incorporation into the Imperial Navy, as well as the immediate formal stripping of political powers from the Sith Inquisitor, due to accusations of insanity and dereliction of duty. The Chair recognizes the Senator of Correllia."

"Thank you, Madame Chancellor," Senator Ri Darren of Corellia replied. "Esteemed collegues, Grand Admiral Thorne had proposed this measure for the safety and security of the Empire. Darth Kreshna, the mad Sith Inquisitor, has abandoned his duties to the Empire, going on what appears to be personal joy rides with his fleet, attacking insignificant targets far from the front lines, while our Fleet has shed much blood to hold back the Guardian menace!"

"Surely, ladies and gentlemen, this is clear enough to you? Such activity has been going forth for seven months. And it was Darth Kreshna, who invaded the Goa'uld empire in the Milky Way galaxy, to go on a personal mission, allegedly to rescue his consort! He sent an armed taskforce to do this mission, almost plunging us into war with another power!"

"Furthermore, his consort then allegedly died under mysterious circumstances, which some Imperial Intelligence sources say that he was responsible! It could very well be that he went on that mission to assassinate the woman in question, in order to protect Imperial military secrets, yes! But this has not been proven. With his continuing incompetence, Darth Kreshna only continues to endanger our peoples and our Empire!"

OOC: All posters should begin with Chancellor Saan saying "The Chair recognizes Senator (insert name)."
- Ra

[Dark Silver]

"Highlord...The time to strike them is now! They are not expecting..."

Enough Servant. We are hard pressed in our current war, much less to battle against the Go'uld and Amllians. You propose to lead us into slaughter

But!

But nothing. Destruction shall follow soon, the Empire shall be laid at our feet. Coruscant is our next target.

Khardem bowed as the Guardians dismissed him. He growled as the Guardians had turned down his plan, an assault on the Go'uld or the Amilians would sow disruption and chaos amoungst the Army of Light


"So anxious Mr Khardem....to obtain your revenge?"

Khadem spun at the unexpected voice, the source of it detaching itself from the shadows, clothed in heavy black velvet robes, only the eyes, those cold, penetrating ice blue eyes, could be seen in the shadows of the hood, "You wish vengence against the Go'uld and Amilians? It shall be arranged...."

Khardem could not protest or ask a question, before the figure disappeared, and Khardem left to his own ship.

[SirNitram]

Mordor, not long since the titanic struggle between Collective and Sauron, was once again under siege. The Black Gate sat quietly, as the lone figure approached it.

Nitram's mind studied the huge obstacle. A lesser mage might try disintigration or fireballs, but the Borg were already augmenting the structure. It would be more resistant to mortal-level magics. Even the Eldar, at their height, would have trouble. But the song of reality was open to him.

He grasped several kilograms of the structure, and focused his attention. It seemed so obvious now. Like a magnet inverting, he switched the charges of the matter he had grasped. And forced it together with the material around it. The resulting matter/antimatter detonation destroyed the Black Gate, those working on it, and a sufficiently large chunk around it as to intimidate most.

Faced with the remnants of Mordor's armies and the Borg Drones, the mage crossed his hands. His voice carried impossibly. "Sauron. I have come for your throne. This Middle-Earth shall be my castle-world from which I shall extend my hand. Kneel or flee. All else is obliteration."

[Councilman William Kane]

OOC: Well I imagine the Imperial Council in our STGOD universe is bicameral like US Congress. So there is the Senate, and the House of Representatives. While the title 'Senator' is often used, the tittle Congressman, er, 'Councilman' can also be used to address both Senate members and House members.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"The Chair recognizes Councilman William Lowell Kane from Bosstan."

Councilman Kane feels uneasy. He knows he is swimming against the tides by defending Darth Kreshna, yet he knows there are hard-line conservatives that are against radical changes, like stripping a Sith of his powers.

"Thank you, Madame Chancellor," Councilman Kane speaks with frown, "my colleague Councilman Darren has elaborated his arguments, and from his point of view, it seems that Darth Kreshna is guilty of all the accusations made by our good Senator here."

He paused for an effect, and continues, "but Darth Kreshna's deeds, no matter how atrocious they seem, as my good friend Darren has spent so much effort to describe, are constutional."

The audience starts to hum, and Supreme Chancellor Saan is thumping his hammer, "Ladies and gentlemen, please let Senator Kane continue his arguments."

Kane inhales a little, then continues with more booming voice, "that is correct, ladies and gentlemen. Imperial Constitution warrants a Sith Lord's rights to do anything he wants within his noble authority, as long as his action does not harm the Empire and its subjects. As far as the Constitution is concerned, Darth Kreshna's fleet is his personal properties. Call it 'personal joyride', call it 'wildgoose chase', but he has all the rights to do so. Now, ladies and gentlemen, what if YOUR personal properties are confiscated with no good reason?"

"I'd also like to emphasizes that Darth Kreshna's actions have caused no harm to the Empire and the subject. So far, the only one suffered by his actions are the Goa'ulds. The Goa'uds, for crying out loud! The same nation who sponsored a recent terrorist activities on Coruscant, and the good Senator Darren spoke for THEM???" Kane's expression radiates a disbelief, "should not Senator Darren speak for the citizens of the Empire instead of a foreign nation?"

"As for the dissolvement of Darth Kreshna's fleet, I beg you a question: how large the fleet really is? The Sith's personal fleet is no larger than one-tenth of the entire Imperial Navy! In fact, there is only one Executor-Class Command Battleship in tghe said fleet. What benefit would we get by dissolving the fleet? And how much is the cost compared to the insignificant benefits we would seize? Remember, while it seems to help the Empire by exercising Senator Darren's proposal, basically we are talking about violation of property rights here, as well as breaking the constitution."

"Yes, I do aware that the needs of many outweights the few, and confiscation of personal properties of Imperial citizens can happen during wartime; but even such action is only exercised as desperate measures; not because some politician is unpleasant with what Darth Kreshna is doing with his own properties!"

"Fine, then. Confiscate Darth Kreshna's fleet if you want; but what next? Confiscating every citizen's bank account, because we need the money for war? Banning private ownership of spaceship, because the Navy desperately needs each and every ship in this galaxy? Ladies and gentlemen, the Empire is still far from such desperation! Doing such horrendous act would be an insult to our mighty Empire. It is true that the intensity of this war has been increasing recently, but our industrial and military might are still standing tall against the alien invasion, and we should not disgrace the Empire by resorting to Communism!!"

Kane takes a breath, and continues with lower, but no less powerful voice, "and here, our good Senator Darren are suggesting to violate the property rights of Darth Kreshna, an Imperial citizen, because the Senator is concerned with what happened to the Goa'ulds!"

The audience is affected by William Kane's words; hardline conservatives start to find their courage to defend the Sith Inquisitor...





OOC: if you notice, Kane's argument is full of debating fallacies. But hey, this is politics after all!

[Senator Darren]

OOC: Why should there be a house? I happen to like a unicameral system. It's so efficient!
------------------------------
"The Chair recognizes the Senator from Corellia."

"Thank you, Madame Chancellor. Yes, Darth Kreshna's activities are supported by the Imperial Constitution, an amendment stuck the Past. And modifying the Consititution for modern times is... what we are suggesting."

Then Darren's voice grew loud. Anger was in his eyes. "And on the subject of the Goa'uld, it does not matter who the people in question is, the Sith Inquisitor invaded a sovereign foreign state to rescue his consort, as I said. And how dare you accuse me of sympathizing with the Snakes, Mister Kane!" Kane would pay for accusing him of treason before the Imperial Senate and basically the entire galaxy, which was watching over the HoloNet.

"Also, the recent 'terrorist activities' on Coruscant were so minor as to garter little public attention. The incident in question was more likely a spy mission gone horribly wrong, and the Goa'uld infiltrators were all killed. Furthermore, this great Body itself declined a motion to declare war on the Goa'uld state over that incident. That leaves Darth Kreshna's actions..." He paused to let it seep in. "Unjustified!"

There is murmuring in the crowd.

"Order!"

"Do continue, Mister Darren."

Darren then clears his throat, and examines a note. "You say... Mister Kane... that we would use this act to justify taking away of people's bank accounts and personal starcraft. Indeed? Tell me that personal property rights is a Constitutional amendment that can be voted to be rescended, just like the one in question that gives a Sith Inquisitor the right to own a personal battle fleet! That's right, you cannot! Personal property rights are a basic guarantee of our Constitution, one that cannot be overturned. Our government does not have the right to take people's posessions without probable cause, meaning that they are criminals. And personal property rights hardly allow for military-grade weapons and superweapons, both of which are illegal for civilians to posess! And the Sith Inquisitor is allowed to posess both in this outmoded ammendment."

Darren's rebuttal rallies the centrists and liberals of the galactic body, and they begin to murmur again. They were already wanting to bring the matter to a vote. Other liberals were itching to add their part.

"Order! Order!"