Phoenix War III

[Destructionator XV]

"What the hell?" Admiral Wise asked looking at the Trollish fleet's bizarre movements.

"They are going to FTL sir, they might be withdrawing."

"Keep your eyes peeled, it could be a trick."

"All ships maintaining defensive posture, sir."

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

OOC: if anyone of you wonder why the hell am I writing this, I re-watched The Mask of Zorro last weekend. Oh, and this post is also to address the Zerg attack on an Imperial colony mentioned many, many post ago which we all have ignored.


========================================


Imperial Mandate of Milky Way, Califania sector, Beta Quadrant of Milky Way galaxy.....

Dubbed 'the New World' by the Imperials, the largely unexplored Milky Way galaxy had probably been the most promising land since Darth Kreshna started Imperial colonization of the Milky Way galaxy shortly before the beginning of the Guardian War. While the Sith Inquisitor started on the Sol System, the Galactic Empire --on Darth Kreshna's suggestion-- gave opportunity for Imperial citizens and private entities to claim and colonize other parts of the Milky Way on behalf of the Galactic Empire. Of course any systems claimed by those individuals did not become their private posession --they became the territory of the Imperial Mandate instead. However, the individuals who claimed the system wer given certain economic privileges to exploit it by any means they saw fit. At first, the Imperial Senate was concerned that such policy would lead to crony capitalism, but Darth Kreshna had ensured fair and equal opportunity for any enterprising Imperial citizens who were eager to try their chances in the new world.

At first, it was indeed only large corporations like Kuat Drive Yards and Tagge Mining Corporation that largely participated in the Milky Way colonization, but the Guardian War had been actually a blessing to small-time business and enterprising individuals. Worrying about collateral damage, the large corporations temporarily ceased their activity during the Guardian War, giving opportunities to smaller ventures that were willing to take the risk.

And the result was astounding. During the course of the Guardian War, the Imperial Mandate of Milky Way had been actually growing to about a thousand systems. The Sol System and its surroundings in Alpha Quadrant were actually nothing but a small portion of the Imperial Mandate --albeit the most established. Outside, there were hundreds of star systems being ran by small businesses and enterprising individuals.

However, that could pose some problems; there was only a small portion of Darth Kreshna's Sith Guard Corps being stationed in the Milky Way Galaxy, while the majority of the Corps was being left as 'reserve' in the Imperial Galaxy. While the Milky Way fleets of Sith Guard Corps were sufficient to safely protect the Imperial colonies, it was not sufficient for offensive purpose. The A'milan 'cold war' was an example; should Darth Kreshna decide to invade the A'millan Star Empire with his Milky Way fleets, the rest of Imperial Mandate would be left unguarded. That was also why the Sith always emphasized the importance of peace and stability, since the Imperial Mandate actually needed such things to grow and prosper. In contrary to Lord Adam's harsh accussation, Darth Kreshna wished no war.

Of course, things would be different if the Sith Nobleman decided to bring his reserve from the home galaxy, but of course, there was no guarantee that such thing would happen. Since the middle of the Guardian War, Private Mercenary Corporations and Security Consultants had probably become the fastest growing enterprises in the Imperial Mandate of Milky Way Galaxy. Of course, 'old players' like Rendili Security Consulting still dominated the scene, but newcomers like Sandline Space Defense and Merco Arms had been enjoying a strong growth ever since. In fact, Sandline Space Defense had purchased another twenty Acclamator-Class Transports. Outdated and cheap, their 200 Gigatons of firepower was more than sufficient to protect their clients from less advanced nations like the A'millan Star Empire or the Zerg Swarm.

And one of the clients badly needed it.

Lando Calrissian was certainly not as rich as Sandra Kuat or Alexander Xizor, but possessing more than sixty planets were quite a change of fortune indeed compared to Bespin. Shortly after Darth Kreshna and Sate Pestage reformed the Galactic Empire, Lando was offered a Premiership Pardon --alongside with many Rebel Leaders during that time. While Princess Leia and General Solo rejected the offer --and continued the Rebellion until the Guardian War, Lando accepted. He, however, almost financially broke at that time, so when Darth Kreshna colonized the Milky Way galaxy, Lando was among the brave and enterprising Imperials seeking their fortune in the New World. A shrewd enterpreneur he was, his fortune started to rise after he dried up the ocean of four Milky Way planets to build Darth Kreshna's Death Star Three. Now people were calling him 'Don Lando', and he was often invited to the Viceroy's parties aboard the Diplomatic Battle station.

Nonetheless, something worried him.

Having possessed several fertile planets, 'Don Lando' was also an accomplished landlords. There were probably millions of farmers and farming droids working on his lands, producing agriculture products to feed the Imperial Mandate. And unlike most other 'Dons', Lando actually cared about his workers --including the droids.

Several months ago, his farming colonies were attacked by aliens.

Several of the systems they invaded had held small colonies of settlers; only now did Namtaru know that they were from Imperial space, which explained their technology. It wasn't up to military grade, but their shields, weapons, and hyperdrive all gave the Zerg a head start to gaining the ground that stood between them and the Empire, something the Empire wouldn't be expecting and the source of one of the only advantages the Zerg would have when they began their "expansion".

Only after recently Lando realized that those aliens were the Zergs. He was about to escalate the issue to Darth Kreshna, but the last thing he heard about the Sith was that he went to Coruscant to meet the President. What it was all about, Lando had no idea. But being cautious as usual, he just hired Sandline Space Defense to secure his territory. Had the Zerg appeared again, he already prepared for them. Those Acclamators were outdated, but their firepower was more than enough to shred the invading Zergs to pieces.

Little did Lando know that a recent President's decision would have a great impact on him and the other Dons...


=======================================

Coruscant, several days ago...

The President looked supremely smug, as he stared Darth Kreshna in the eye, "And it gives me GREAT happiness, to tell you this. As of this moment, your vessal is under confine, and you are under arrest. You will submit yourself to my authority...at such time I will have you escorted back to your ship, and then taken back to the border of the Galaxy. Where you go from there, I will not care. We will not bother you, Lord Kreshna, I will even ceeded to you, the Imperial holdings in that galaxy, all bases and colonies, to your authority. It will be up to you, to keep them running. We will allow any voleenteers to stay there, but all Imperial Personel will return to us."

The President's smug grin told volumes, as he leaned back in his chair, steepled his fingers, "You are dismissed Lord Kreshna...enjoy your new little empire. Now get the hell out of my office."

With that, the President's chair turned away, and he looked out the window, as red robed Royal Guards stepped up to either side of the Sith Lord.

"You couldn't be serious...."

Darth Kreshna was totally baffled by President Steelmore's non-sensical decision; so surprised that he almost did not notice the Presidential Royal Guards flanking him. One of the guards hesitantly tugged the Sith's arms --he was still a Sith Noble after all-- and stammered slightly, "sir, p- please follow us...."

Kreshna ignored him, and bursted out. "WITH ALL RESPECT, MR. PRESIDENT, YOU ARE INSANE. BILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF IMPERIAL CITIZENS IN THE MILKY WAY AND YOU JUST ABANDONED THEM...."

The President kept staring at the window. Darth Kreshna was baffled again. The President ignoring him? He was a Sith Noble, and one of the founding fathers of the Reformed Galactic Empire. Furthermore, the safety of Imperial citizens was on stake, and the President had just dropped the ball. The Sith still couldn't believe the President's decision.

The Presidential Royal Guards tugged his arm again. "Hands off me!" The Sith then stormed out of the President's Oval Office with rage.

The next few days were like a dream --a bad dream-- to Darth Kreshna. The President had ordered him to be arrested and escorted to the Phoenix, and leave immediately, but sometimes orders were easier to issue than to execute. Even the Imperial Security Staff was baffled by the President's order, and it was not easy for them to arrest a prominent noble.

So Darth Kreshna --despite the President's order-- was still free roaming Coruscant for the next few days, looking for political support. The Sith, after all, still had a lot of supporters in the Senate, the Sith Guard Corps, as well as popular support. Many Senators were outraged by the President's decision, and some of them had been trying to persuade the President to change his decision. Tried as they might, President Steelmore was unmoved.

In just few days, the Imperial Capital of Coruscant already suffered the worst political crisis since Palpatine took up the throne after the Clone Wars.

Some Senators proposed to impeach President Steelmore for his decision, but of course the President had political supporters of his own. Darth Kreshna himself was holding meetings aboard his Executor-Class Command Ship Phoenix; conferences with Senators supporting him. And while they were holding the meetings, people were protesting on the streets of Coruscant to support the Sith Inquisitor.

The situation was getting worse. The President eventually ordered Eclipse-Class Star Battleships Eviscerator, Praetor, and Judicator to drive the Phoenix away from Coruscant's orbit; to escort it back to Imperial Mandate of Milky Way galaxy. Meanwhile, Darth Kreshna's supporters did not stand still either. Grand Admiral Stern had proposed to mobilize the Sith Guard Corps reserve to besiege Coruscant, to strongarm the President to change his decision --or resign. With 20,000 Star Destroyers and a proportional amount of Star Cruisers and Star Battleships, the Sith Guard Corps reserve was actually nothing compared to the 100,000 Star Destroyers owned by the Imperial Navy, but if the whole corps besieged the Imperial Capital...

Basically, the Grand Admiral had proposed a coup d' etat.

The Galactic Empire almost plunged into a civil war.

Fortunately, before Grand Admiral Stern actually made his offer official, there was something on Coruscant that influenced Darth Kreshna's decision.

It was actually Kreshna's last straw. Despite political ambitions surrounding him, the Sith was nonetheless loyal to his country. He loved the Galactic Empire and its people. His only concern was the safety of Imperial civilians in the Imperial Mandate of the Milky Way galaxy, and all he wanted was the Empire protecting them from foreign threats like the A'millan Star Empire. He hated the fact that President Steelmore dropped the ball on that issue, but he hated more to see the lives of Imperial citizens being sacrificed in a political bloodshet, let alone a civil war.

Furthermore, Darth Kreshna actually knew that not all his political supporters had sincere intention. Most of them were just political enemies of the President, and were merely taking advantage of the situation. As the meetings went by, the Sith Inquisitor was getting more and more disgusted by the Senators who tried to use him against the President.

And eventually, there came his last straw.

Many Coruscant population actually supported Darth Kreshna, and they had been protesting since President Steelmore's decision was leaked to the public. But of course, there were also the President's supporters. Both opposing sides were getting more and more violent each day, until it broke into riot. Masses of both sides were fighting against each other on the streets, while the Stormtroopers tried to did the best as they could. But of course, Stormtroopers sided with the President's masses, so nobody could expect that the handling would be fair. Darth Kreshna's supporters were being slaughtered on the street while the President's supporters --despite being less numerous-- enjoyed the Stormies at their side. The riot was broadcasted by Xizor News Network, and Kreshna was informed while having another meeting with the Senators.

It was definitely Darth Kreshna's last straw.

As everyone with the meeting room were watching the news, Kreshna was disgusted by the fact that only so few of the Senators actually horrified by the scene. In fact, many others actually grinned with satisfaction; knowing that they could take advantage of the riot to exercise their political ambitions to topple the President.

Eventually, the Sith spoke loudly, "this madness must be stopped RIGHT NOW!" He punched the table.

"Indeed," Senator Blair, a long-time political opponnents of the President, replied, "in fact, this riot just gives us more reason to impeach the President and...."

"No!" Darth Kreshna stared at the Senator without trying to hide his disgust, "enough! My concern is the safety of Imperial civilians in the Milky Way galaxy, not politics! I don't want to see Imperials dying on my behalf. This must stop!!"

The Senator frowned, looking at the Sith disapprovingly, "Lord Kreshna, should I remind you that we are all here in your support. We, as you know, also disagree with President Steelmore. In fact, if you plan to run election against him, we all will...."

Kreshna cut in, "but we don't need innocent citizens protesting on the street on our behalf." He pointed at the Holo-TV, showing a Stormtrooper firing at the protesters, "yes, President Steelmore is wrong, but we don't need riot on the street where people being slaughtered by the riot police!"

Senator Carl coughed slightly, "actually, it was I who mobilized the masses."

"YOU DID WHAT???"

"We need them, Darth Kreshna," Carl replied calmly, "we need them to put more pressure on the President. The riot was broadcasted on national scale, and I bet the popularity of President Steelmore will drop significantly in many Imperial States. Who knows we can force him to resign and....."

Darth Kreshna was surprised now, "we don't seek to dethrone the President! Our concern is the safety of the Imperial citizens in the Milky Way galaxy, and all we need from the President is changing his decision and provide sufficient forces in the Milky Way, and...."

All Senators went silent. Eventually Senator Blair spoke again. "You're always an idealist, aren't you, Darth Kreshna?"

"You mean?"

"Perhaps we don't need you after all. Perhaps you are too naive to understand how things work in politics."

The Sith realized now. They did not care about the Imperial civilians in Milky Way; they could care less even if A'millan terrorists were slaughtering innocent Imperial citizens en masse. They were just political enemies of President Steelmore, and trying to use him against the President.

But the people on the street.... They were innocent. They were civilians, fighting for what they believe. They cared about the fellow Imperials on Milky Way, and it was the reason they protested for.

The Sith rose from his chair, swept the Senators with his eyes, "get off of my ship. All of you.

"This is a mistake, Darth Kreshna," Senator Carl spoke softly, but with a veiled threat in his voice, "you need us."

One by one, the Senators rose from their chair and left the conference room.

Moments later, two Imperial shuttles departed from the hangar of the Phoenix. One was carrying the Senators, no doubt, but another actually headed to the planet. The shuttle continued to descend until it hovered right above the riot.

The rioting masses and the Stormtroopers was stopped for a while, wondered about the shuttle floating above their head. The shuttle's ramp opened while it still hovered mid-air, and a familiar figure stepped down until he reached the end of the ramp. The figure wore a scarlet military uniform, with a Lightsaber dangling from his waist. Everyone knew who he is; it was Darth Kreshna, the Sith Inquisitor.

Standing on the edge of the ramp, the Sith spoke. His voice was amplified by a mini-microphone pinned on the chest of his uniform.

"People of the Empire,"

The rioting masses completely stopped now. Even the Stormtroppers stopped as well. They were all held in awe as the Sith continued to speak. Meanwhile, a soprano rendition of Don't Cry For Me Argentina ambiently played in the background.

"I believe we all have known about President Steelmore decision. I'm here to let you know that I still stand by my opinion that the decision is wrong, as we need to protect our fellow citizens in the Milky Way galaxy from A'millan terrorism, and other threats that may follow."

"But make no mistake;" the Sith continued, "I respect the President as much as I respect the system of democracy that made him our elected leader. We have strived to reform the Galactic Empire, and democracy was the very system that had been keeping us proud, prosper, and ultimately, free. It was the very reason that we can stand up against totalitarian nations like the A'millan Star Empire and proudly say, 'we are free people, citizens of Galactic Empire'."

"And as much as I disagree with the President's decision, I also hate to see civilian blood being spilled on my behalf." Darth Kreshna spreaded his arms now while pleading, "please stop this, fellow citizens. This is wrong. Please, go back to your home." He then turned to the Stormtroopers, "Stormtroopers, I understand that you merely carried your orders, but do you have the heart to shoot at fellow Imperials? At the citizens you are supposed to protect?"

The ambient, soprano rendition of Don't Cry For Me Argentina still continued in the background.

"I beg you, fellow citizens, do not shed your blood on my behalf. I am Darth Kreshna of the Sith; my job is to protect you, and not the other way around." He then turned his head to the direction of the Imperial Grand Palace, "and President Steelmore, I know you are watching this, so let it be known that I wish no further casualties. No innocent civilians should be sacrificed in pointless political bickering. No innocent blood should be spilled on my behalf. Thereby, let it be known that I concede," he paused for a a moment, "I, Darth Kreshna of the Sith, thereby submit to your authority, and accept my banishment to the Milky Way galaxy."

The masses were surprised. Some of them started to weep. They realized this would be the last time they would see the Sith Lord.


He turned to the masses again, "and don't cry for me, Imperials. The truth is I never let you. I promise that I will protect the lives of Imperial civilians --your fellow citizens-- in the Milky Way galaxy with anything I have, or allowed to have. I'll keep my promise."

With those last words, the Sith stepped backward a little, and the ramp slowly closed again while the masses calling Darth Kreshna in adoration. Don't Cry For Me Argentina ended with a melody of orchestral strings.

Few hours later, the Executor-Class Command Ship Phoenix --followed with thousands of ship belonged to the Sith Guard Corps-- left the Imperial Galaxy.


=========================================


Death Star Three, present day....

The Kubika Lounge was closing, but Darth Kreshna still sat alone. He still could not believe he was just expelled from the Empire --his very own nation. He was not drunk this time, however. With billions and billions of Imperial colonists on his shoulder, he decided he should not waste his time being drunk.

He contemplated. He already took the Sith Guard Corps reserve with him to the Milky Way, and 20,000 Star Destroyers were more than enough to subdue the A'millan Star Empire. However, it was not conventional warfare that concerned him; it was the enemy's cowardly tactics of terrorism. Imperial lives were on his hands, now. It was his responsibility, alone, as President Steelmore had decided so.

And he missed Irene.

The burden being put on his shoulders; he really needed someone to talk to.

Little did he notice the light steps of a woman entering the lounge....


OOC: alright, Jon. I guess it's time for Madar to step in. Maybe Madar should remind DK as well? You know, something like, 'you're a fool, Darth Kreshna. Don't you realize that now you have an Empire of your own?' or such thing.

Your long ass lines of === broke the formatting, hard, so I shortened them.
~Adam

[Ra]

A dark shadow grew alongside the wall of the Kubika Lounge as Madar walked inexorably toward the one thing that she had obsessed over for far too long. She had waited, and she had timed her arrival on DS III to perfectly coincide the arrival of one Darth Kreshna; whose return to the backwater Milky Way she had forseen.

Madar was now dressed in a battle outfit, consisting of form-fitting black pants and a black tunic, over which she had a cloak. The hood obscured her face as the Dark Jedi stalked toward the Sith Lord, the Phoenix-Incarnate, and at no time did she doubt herself. She walked right up to his table, stopping at a safe distance.

Madar's face was completely cold and impassive, almost detached, as she lowered her hood, and with the swoop of her arm tore the cloak away, the item falling onto a table as her lightsaber flew into that same outstretched hand.

"Darth Kreshna," called the Dark Jedi. She then added with that same cold expression, "Let's dance."

With a kick and loud hiss, a crimson blade of pure energy extended from Madar's weapon.

[Destructionator XV]

Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer
Five minutes out of Starbase 242
Under cloak at low warp speed

"What the frak were those things," Captain Roland Barr asked.

"Imperial Star Destroyers," Khardem said, stepping out of the shadows to reveal a fully healed human body, "they have more than 200 gigatons of firepower."

"Is that supposed to impress me?" the captain shot back.

"Not at all." Khardem answered smugly, "It certainly didn't impress me. However, we are but a single ship."

"Yes, that will have to be remedied. Where was that meeting we saw on the tele, the one with their Adam and that silent Elite Knight?"

"Planet Vulcan, we have the coordinates from their PDN." a man said.

"That is because their Adam is their emperor, and the other was his... stunning... wife." Khardem informed them, "They often travel without escort." he then hinted.

"I like you, xeno," Barr said, earning a contemptful look from Ulteer, then addressed his navigator: "Rick, determine the most likely course for a light ship from Vulcan back to that base, and plot an search-intercept course."

"Yes, sir," the navigator said and quickly went to work.

Moments later, he spoke again: "got it, sir."

"Helm, best speed to intercept," he ordered and the ship changed direction and sped up.

[Destructionator XV]

"So you know what would pwn those imp nublets?" Adam said while flying the little shuttle back toward the base.

"Is it maxed out gol-i-aths?" the Lady answered from the co-pilot seat.

"No, nublarino, it is maxed out b-cs."

"That's because they pwn all."

"Nuh uh, not maxed out cloaked wraiths."

"Comsat station, noob."

"NOT ENOUGH ENERGY!"

"Uh oh I got pwned."

"gg nooblar."

"So you ever wonder what sex would be like?" she suddenly changed the subject.

"That was out of nowhere."

"Answer the question" she said, using the Voice.

"Yea," he said instinctively. "SON OF A BITCH!" he yelled shortly after realizing what she just did.

"Heh. You could have said so."

"So could you."

"I just did."

"Indeed," he said and they unbuckled their seat belts and weightlessly flipped backward over the chairs, slightly twisting while unstrapping their capes.

And the proximity alarm sounds.

"Gods damn it." they say in unison, then bounce off the wall and flip back into their seats, restrapping their capes and seat belts as they go.

"I'm reading what looks like a Falcon ahead of us," Adam reads off his instruments.

"Yeah, but, transponder reg query answered DE-1432." Leila adds.

"We have no 14 series DE if memory serves..."

"It serves," she confirms.

Realizing that their little shuttle was no match for a destroyer escort, ships designed to do battle under warp speeds, or for that matter, anything that could have sent a fake registration signal, Adam dropped to sublight into a near star system and quickly popped the ship behind a planet to hide. Realizing what he was doing, the Lady adjusted the ship for silent running.

* * *

Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer
Uninhabited system in deep space

"Where did they go?" a shocked Khardem asked.

"Exactly what I would have done," Captain Barr answered, "probably silently sitting in a bubble shield in high orbit over a small planet; hiding."

"FTL scans showing seven major planets around a dwarf star, no sign of them thus far, skipper," one of the sensor operators reported.

"Optical reports star is class K, sir. Examining planets now," another sensor operator said.

"Broadcast on SLC and radio, audio: 'you have no reason to hide, we are on your side', over." the Captain ordered.

"Yes, sir," the communications officer responded and went to work.

* * *

"Two second forward burn in five, four, three, two, one, mark" Lady Leila's voice seems to boom in the tiny cockpit.

"Executing," Adam says working the pilot controls, "success, burn complete."

"That's it, we have HSO." she said.

"Spinning up for bubble shield."

".....and SLS is dark, power down systems."

"Unnecessary systems powering down." Adam says unemotionally as he flips a series of switches.

He then turns to her and speaks: "what do you think this is, old friend?"

"I don't know. A misset transponder maybe, but why didn't they hail before a close approach?"

"Aye, this is damn peculiar."

"Help me plot a jump with these engines." she says, not wanting to speculate further, and he proceeds to start crunching the numbers.

About five seconds later, a weak audio message comes through on the radio, getting their attention: 'you have no reason to hide, we are on your side, over'.

"That sounded like a eastern Jkillian accent," Adam noted.

"Yes it did, and the grammar was impeccable. Weird," Leila agreed and checked the comm board for a vector: "Directional receiver shows bearing zero-niner-five mark naught-seven-one."

Adam works a few controls to open and move the shuttle's optical camera to point in that direction and increases to maximum magnification.

"There she is," he said pointing at a tiny dot in the composite image, "closing" he adds after computing the Doppler shift.

"Plot for a lower orbit, I am going to see about bouncing a response off that far moon with the DA," the Lady says.

"Right."

* * *

Five minutes after sending their message, the communications officer received a weak audio response on radio: "Prove it."

"It appears to have come from a low orbit of the satellite of the third planet, sir," the communication officer reports to the captain.

"We have them," Khardem says.

"Never underestimate an A'millian Elite Knight, xeno. Many an enemy of us have been swiftly destroyed for such a mistake." Roland Barr told him.

Khardem noticed the irony in that statement: Captain Barr had no idea of his past nor of the Guardians.

"Launch the fighter to the second planet," the captain ordered, "Helm, start toward the far side of the third planet, SIA, twenty five seconds then coast."

"Yes, sir," the helmsman acknowledges as a tiny fighter craft emerges from out the bay.

* * *
5 seconds later...

"Hmm," Adam says, noticing the Doppler shift change on the dot as it starts to move off, "Looks like we are good" he said after watching it for about ten seconds.

"Let's go ahead and adjust the orbit." she tells him, and he turns the switches for the thrusters back on and fires a short retro burst to begin the procedure.


EDIT: I went ahead and concatenated my two related posts here.

[Destructionator XV]

Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer
Uninhabited system in deep space
50 minutes later

"Lightbringer, Noble Beast," a voice over the superluminal communication system emerged from the speakers, "I'll be there in six minutes; no sign of them yet."

"What if they were on the third planet?," cried Khardem, "Or even farther out? You might have just let them go!"

"They came out of warp in this vicinity," Barr told him, "so it is one of these two. And if they were around the third planet, it is small enough that we would still have about another three centons before they could jump or we would see them."

"Maybe that's just what they want you to think."

"Then they win, but their warp vector made it unlikely."

"How unlikely? You said yourself not to underestimate them."

"Some things just aren't really possible in a shuttle like that. Now, look, I'm not going to spell this out for you, xeno. I'm sticking with my plan."

"Velocity readiness in thirty seconds," one of the men reported.

"Very good." the Captain said.

* * *

"One hour left," Adam thought out loud.

"If their commander is smart, their type A should be coming up on the other side of the planet pretty soon." the Lady said, looking out the window, her view obscured by a rock they are sitting behind.

"And if he is really smart, we never had a chance."

"Yup."

* * *

"Lightbringer, Noble Beast, I'm in position, but still can't see them."

"Have him move far side and go to active scans."

"Noble Beast, Lightbringer, move to following coordinates and begin active scans."

"Wilco, Lightbringer, estimate three minutes."

...

"Lightbringer, Noble Beast. The atmosphere looks unforgiving, and all I'm seeing are NPOs in orbit."

"Roger that, Noble Beast, keep at it."

...Thirty minutes later

"Lightbringer, Noble Beast. Still have nothing, and I'm running out of fuel here."

"Have him keep going, we'll get him up in a few," the Captain said.

"Noble Beast, Lightbringer, continue your search, we'll pick you up."

"Copy that, Lightbringer."

"All hands prepare for variable gravity jump," Captain Barr ordered.

* * *

"If there is a type A out there, she should be out of fuel by now," Adam says from the dark, and now getting cold, cockpit.

"Yeah, almost time to get on the other side of this rock."

"I'll give it a couple more minutes."

"Uh oh," the Lady says, "I think we just got radar pinged."

Outside the window, the Lightbringer could easily be seen jumping in opposite the planet.

"Cunning son of a bitch."

"And they are asking us to dock and go aboard."

"Asking?"

"Yup, that same Jkillian sounding guy, using the regal address."

"Well, we can't really say no, can we?"

"We try to go to warp and they simply shoot out the nacelles; they can't miss at this range."

"And there goes their fighter." Adam says looking out the window.

"We might as well talk to them. Beside, I want to know where this guy leaned his grammar, and what ship that is."

"All right, ask them for docking instructions." Adam says turning off the warp bubble shield and turning thrusters, the transceiver, sensors, the heat and lights back on.

[Ra]

Ra's Capital

"WHAT?!" the Goa'uld shouted. He was beyond angry; not only had Kerrigan not contacted him during the journey home, but now Ra discovered that most of his nuclear arsenal was gone. Not only that, Baal was dead (as far as he knew), meaning he would be the sole target of what was...

Darth Kreshna's personal nation now?!

"This is unbelievable," Ra muttered. "We have no firepower to fend off the Imperials now, and-"

The Goa'uld frowned, and added, "It was Madar, wasn't it?"

"It was, m'lord," a lone messenger Jaffa shivered. "Madar struck rather quickly. Apparently she had commandeered a major portion of the Lucien Alliance's forces, and-"

Ra held up a hand. "I've heard enough. Order what's left of my fleet to gather in orbit."

"All of them?!"

"All," Ra glared. "That will be all I need of you. Go now."

The messenger hurred away.

[Destructionator XV]

Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer
Uninhabited system in deep space
Low orbit over second planet

The pressure light turns green after the pumps at the airlock turn off, then one of the spacemen open the door and Lord Adam and Lady Leila step through, their dress uniforms straightened and fastened, the Lady's long yellow hair bunched up around her ears, almost Princess Leia [ OOC: weird coincidence with the names ] style. They still wore body shields from the meeting on Vulcan, but they were not activated, and now wore hand phasers as well.

They are pulled to the floor as they enter Lightbringer's artificial gravity and are greeted by a woman in the white cape of the A'millian Knights wearing a sword with a man in CQB gear flanking her.

The woman had a flat, featureless body and long, slender fingers, and the other Marine was a short fellow with long, pointed ears.

Noticing these features, the Lord and Lady exchange a glance, with it sharing a single, powerful word: 'fascinating'.

"Welcome aboard the Lightbringer. I am Lady Terry," the white caped woman greeted them, placing her thumb and forefinger together under her chin, tilting her head slightly to the right: the traditional A'millian Knight's greeting for an equal.

Adam and his wife both respond with a tilt of the head, keeping their hands down: the traditional greeting of one of whom's status you are unsure, a gesture which was met with satisfaction by the female, who then finished her greeting and spoke: "Come with us, excellent sirs," pointing down the corridor.

They stand still, quickly looking into the eyes of the short Marine, then back at Terry, who acknowledged this with a nod then walked out in front of them. They followed, and the Marine followed behind them.

They soon came up on the door to the Commander's cabin, and stepped inside, the Marine closing the door and waiting outside. Lady Terry gestures for them to continue inside and she waited inside the door.

They go inside and see a man standing in a Starfleet captain's uniform, his long fingers extended toward chairs opposite his own at the desk.

"Welcome aboard the Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer," he said, "I am Captain Roland Barr, commander of this vessel, and I am sure you have many questions."



OOC: These posts take me assloads of time to write properly, and I am pretty tired tonight, so I will leave this one here, with a few messages from our sponsors. To be finished tomorrow.

ADVERTISEMENT: Are you tired of traditional warp* driven starships? All the maintenance, all the hassles; who has time for that?

Show a few dunderheads with broken down ships

Well, those days are over! Introducing the revolutionary new AUTO-SHIP(tm)! It's so easy, it is completely hassle-free! The ship flys itself, without a needy AI!

Show a clip from DS9 of Jake and Nog in the runabout doing evasive manuevors just by talking

You thought it was science fiction, but now thanks to TV-SHIPS International Ltd., it is science fact! How much would you be willing to pay for an automatic starship? $50M? $70M? How about just $19.95M? BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! Call within the next ten minutes and we will double your order! That's right, you get two AUTO-SHIPs (tm) for the low low price of just $19.95M! That's not all, pay by TV-CARD and we'll throw in one of our patented SONIC SCREWDRIVERS (tm) and your first load of Edge Fuel(tm) absolutely free! With one of these, you will never be locked out of your AUTO-SHIP (tm) again! Throw away your old Tricorder (tm), the SONIC SCREWDRIVER does everything it can, and more! That's a $1.5M value, yours aboslutely free!

So you get not one, but two AUTO-SHIPs (tm), a load of Edge Fuel(tm) and our patented SONIC SCREWDRIVER (tm), a over $145M value, all for the low low price of just $19.95M. What are you waiting for? Call now! That's Planet Code 31, number 415-926-5358. That's 3.14159265358. Call now.

Tricorder is a trademark of Trek Scanning Devices, Inc.
Edge Fuel is a registered trademark if Oputa Automotive Industries, Inc., in the A'millian Star Empire and the Federation of Koreallia.
*Warp is a registered trademark of Williams, Ashtermann, Ryerski, and Pattison FTL Research, Inc., in the A'millian Star Empire and other countries. Used with permission.
TV-SHIPS International, Ltd., cannot be held responsible or be liable for any damages caused by any supernovas our ships may fly into after purchase.

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

Madar's face was completely cold and impassive, almost detached, as she lowered her hood, and with the swoop of her arm tore the cloak away, the item falling onto a table as her lightsaber flew into that same outstretched hand.

"Darth Kreshna," called the Dark Jedi. She then added with that same cold expression, "Let's dance."

With a kick and loud hiss, a crimson blade of pure energy extended from Madar's weapon.

The Sith noticed Ra's bodyguard who came before him. Still sitting on his stool, Darth Kreshna lazily flicked its finger. His lightsaber -which had previously been hanging from his waist- now lurched to the air as if guided by invisible hand.

Now floating in front of Madar, Darth Kreshna's lightsaber ignited itself, showing a scarlet blade. The Sith spoke, "Commissar Petrosjko of the Imperium of Man taught me that trick some years ago. Now, Madar, defend yourself against my lightsaber. EN GARDE!!"

Mentally controling his lightsaber while conveniently sitting on the bar stool, Darth Kreshna sipped his drink as the lightsaber danced by its own, slashing and cutting at Madar's direction. The lightsaber floated and hovered on midair as if being held by invisible hands. The power of its stroke, however, was so immense as if it was held by hands of a powerful giant.

Darth Kreshna continued sipping his drink.

[Ra]

Madar parried the levitated blade and twirled in mid-air, miraculously landing atop a table without it falling over.

"Nice trick, Sith," she smirked. "You have no sense of chivalry, not wanting to get in your opponent's face and dicing her to bits. I like you already."

She then dodged and swatted the weapon aside several times, Madar channeling superhuman strength of her own, and suddenly reached out a barstool, the object flying from its place and flying several circles around Madar before it zoomed toward Darth Kreshna at impossible speed. The Dark Jedi expected the attack to be repulsed - even the most junior Apprentices could deflect simple objects - but she wanted to test his resolve.

Deflecting the hovering blade of doom a few more times, she waited and already planned her next move.

[Destructionator XV]

Commander's cabin
Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer
Uninhabited system in deep space
Low orbit over second planet

"Indeed," Adam said.

"But first, I would like to congradulate you two on an excellent hunt," Barr said.

"You caught us." Adam responded, matter-of-factly.

"Yes," Barr said with a smile, "well, allow me to clear a few things up here. As I said, this is ASV Lightbringer, we are attached to the thirteenth Imperial Military Starfleet, part of the Third Outer Command, under Admiral Kevin P. Quail, currently on special assignment from the Joint Special Operations Command under Grand Admiral Lee E. Roberts."

"Get to the meat of it: why are you here, and from where did you come?"

"In AW 4005, we found a mysterious starship on a routine patrol in the area around the system catalogued as PWE-306, a system of minor importance close to Wivillia. This ship appeared to be a long range explorer of similar design heritage to our own vessels, however not of our design. Her transponder pinged back SV-2459, a-"

"ASV Argo," Adam interrupted, "a science ship of ours went missing in that area three years ago, and we have heard nothing since. At first, we suspected the Guardians, either she was destroyed or fled to Wivillia, but the evidence didn't add up."

"Guardians?" Captain Barr asked.

"We'll talk about that later. Go on."

"We approached the ship, and they tried to just blend in, but it was obvious that they weren't from around here. I wanted to keep an eye on them, but I didn't want to be too imposing of them, so I sent one of my officers and one of my Knights over to their ship. With that information, we learned they were from a parallel universe, apparently one formed by a split about one thousand, six hundred yahren in the past."

"That explains quite a few things, but why are you here, now?"

"Soon, my officer returned, but the Knight, a Sir Ericson, remained aboard the Argo as work proceeded to find a way to get them home. It was not until recently that they found a way to reopen the bridge, but instead of cooperating with us, they attacked us, stealing technology and killing our personnel. Among those murdered was our... you, sir. We are here to ask you to help us bring these murderers to justice. We are willing to let you make all the decisions for those responsible on the Argo, but we want the traitor Ericson, who went back to this universe with them, to be returned to us."

"You have evidence of this?"

"We do."

"Then answer me this, why did you break procedure in contacting me?"

"Your caution was too quick; you went into hiding before we could confirm it was you to hail."

"Why did you not make your request through proper channels and wait on A'millian Prime?"

"It is our goal to interact with as few people as possible in this universe. We don't want any... complications to arise."

"What kind of complications?" Adam kept drilling.

"We are not sure, but better to side with caution then be bit later."

"I see."

"Will you assist us?"

"We'll need to examine your evidence."

"Of course, we will have the tapes packed shortly."

"Then we shall see."

"Now sir, about those Guardians: we saw large triangular ships besieging your base near here as we passed through, was that them?" Captain Barr decided to ask.

TO BE CONTINUED

[Ra]

"It was a nice trick of hers, really," Baal frowned over the holo. "My nuclear arsenal is all but completely lost, and virtually half of my fleet has sided with this bodyguard of yours!"

"That bodyguard also happened to be a Dark Jedi of over a decade's experience, which is the reason I hired her in the first damned place, though I digress," Ra sighed. "But for all her cunning, Madar didn't realize you have clones of yourself coming out the wazoo."

"Thus vindicating that little idea I had," Baal smirked. "Well, you shot yourself in the foot with the Imperials. Who are your allies now, pray tell? The A'millians? Pfaw. The Zerg have withdrawn from all contact, seemingly going into strict isolation."

"Kerrigan is unpredictable, to say the least. She wanted an alliance with me, and then held me out to dry."

"Poor baby."

"Shaddap, Baal. The point is that the Imperials are the only real power left - and now the Senate has left them out to dry. I don't know whether to celebrate, or hide under my bed."

"It depends, doesn't it, 'buddy'?" Baal smirked. "On the one hand, if Darth Kreshna continues to be rather... un-Sith, as you put it at the end of the War, we'll have him grasping at peace straws until the day he dies. But what if he were to wake up... Realize what he had, what he was? What if..."

"Oh my fucking god," Ra muttered.

"What?!"

"Madar..."

Baal suddenly got what he was getting at. "Shit. If Madar were to reawaken Darth Kreshna..."

"We would be his bitches, plain and simple. We can't let that happen."

"Well, we can hardly kill Madar. What options do we have?"

"Madar took them away from us. Much of our ships, all of our nukes... Damn clever little human, isn't she?"

"Too clever. I might have some ideas, however."

Ra listened intently.

[Destructionator XV]

Commander's cabin
Imperial A'millian Warship Lightbringer
Uninhabited system in deep space
Low orbit over second planet

"No, those would have been filthy Imperial xenos from another galaxy," Adam answered, "the Guardians were something else we dealt with in AW 4005 but not before they caused massive damage."

"The same xenos to whom you were speaking on the tele?"

"Yes, that's right. You saw it?"

"And some of their near instant responses. It is obvious their minds were made up beforehand. Why do you not simply crush them?"

"They masturbate to giant, phallic shaped planet killers."

Roland Barr let out a deep laugh at the thought of it.

"But, we are not defenseless," Adam continued. "We can take them in smaller numbers, our planetary defense systems are effective, and we have some level of insurance that they will not attempt a full scale attack, assuming some rationality on their part."

"Insurance?"



"When we first encountered these xenos, I proclaimed that we would have whatever it took to kill 50 trillion Imperials. I truly believe that one does not light-heartedly attack people who are able to kill 50 trillion Imperials, even if one can kill 500 trillion A'millians, supposing that there were 500 trillion A'millians." Adam said, adapting a speech given by the great French general Charles De Gaulle on Earth.



"We now have what it takes," Adam finished, "but of course, you understand those details are classified. However, if they come for us, we will demonstrate this power. But, I suggest that while you are here, you avoid them, and when you go home, we seal that bridge well."

"I see. Sir," Captain Barr said, standing, "it has been an honour. The evidence should be ready for your review presently, and here is how you can contact us," he passed him a paper, "as soon as you have made your decision. We ask that you be quick, no offense, but we do not wish to remain in this universe any longer than we have to. That will be all."

Adam takes the paper and he and Leila are escorted back out of the room by the knight, Lady Terry, and start walking back toward the airlock.

TO BE CONTINUED

[Destructionator XV]

Starbase 242

The last hour has been tense for everyone. After performing their bizarre jump maneuver, the Trollish and Imperial ships came to a relative full-stop, and have been sitting there, not responding to any attempts to communicate, not withdrawing, not advancing.

It is nearing 1am local time, all personnel at condition 1: enemy attack imminent. Everyone waits anxiously at their battlestations, tired and hungry. It seemed almost as if these invaders wanted to just keep them on their toes until they slipped up, until someone became lax.

And finally the silence was broken: "Sir, they are coming, FTR in three minutes!" the sensor operator said.

"All batteries commence fire as soon as they are in range," Admiral Wise ordered, "target the lead Star Destroyer."

Shortly later, the planet's planetary shield system lit up as it blocked its first turbolaser bolts and the ground ion cannons began their magnificent display of power in response.

In space, the defender's Holtzmann shields shined brilliantly as they protected the ships from the enemy fire while their particle beam cannons delievered their wonderous power to oncoming Trollish attackers, causing its armour to superheat, then explode violently, as point defense lasers made mincemeat out of TIE fighters who dared get in effective range.

From one side's fleet, the other side looked like nothing more than tiny flashes of light as weapons connected and damaged ships jumped away against the vast emptiness of space.

It didn't take long for the dazzling light of a hypermatter explosion to shine amidst the chaos as energy the Genator's cannons emerged from the mess of battered hulls to knock out the lead Star Destroyer's generator right after the ground ion cannons rendered its electronics temporarily disabled. The high velocity debris from the explosion ripped through a number of near by vessels, taking them with it.

The loss of their lead caused the remaining attackers to refocus on the Genator, now paying more heed to the incredibly potent ground defenses seen again for the first time since the Guardian invasion, where they ate Guardian bioships for breakfast and puked them back out for lunch, all while defacating on their book of beliefs for the fun of it.

More minor enemy ships fell to the defenders as they pressed on, Genator's shield shining brightly on three sides as she took heavy bombardment. The battlestars Colossus and Pacifica turn their massive guns on the assaulting vessels, lessening the punishment for mere moments. Genator took advantage of the situation and spun up her FTL drive to jump away.

But as she jumped, she found herself in the tractor beams of two Imperial interdicters.

One of them caught the ugly end of ion cannon fire and was quickly disabled, allowing Genator's cannons to eat through its armor like it is paper to cause another brilliant hypermatter explosion, but the other then dragged her into hyperspace.


With their mission a success, the surviving Trollish ships begin to withdraw to join the Interdicter in subduing the battered Genator II.

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

Madar channeling superhuman strength of her own, and suddenly reached out a barstool, the object flying from its place and flying several circles around Madar before it zoomed toward Darth Kreshna at impossible speed. The Dark Jedi expected the attack to be repulsed

Unfortunately, Madar should have realized that she was badly outclassed here. After all, it was the Phoenix she was facing. Granted Darth Kreshna was not the 'Dark Phoenix' anymore since the Force was totally stripped off of him, but he was still the strongest of all Phoenix Incarnates. His power level still enabled him to defeat the likes of Thanos or Galactus at any day. As the stool and other objects touched Kreshna's Phoenix Aura, they were vaporized in an instant.

Deflecting the hovering blade of doom a few more times, she waited and already planned her next move.

The Sith rose from his stool while extending his arm, and the levitating, dancing Lightsaber flew back to his hand. He doused off his Phoenix Aura --a sign that he was now about to face Madar in more chivalric manner. Striking playfully, he deliberately reduced his own power level to match Madar's own, making it a pure battle of swordmanship.

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

It didn't take long for the dazzling light of a hypermatter explosion to shine amidst the chaos as energy the Genator's cannons emerged from the mess of battered hulls to knock out the lead Star Destroyer's generator right after the ground ion cannons rendered its electronics temporarily disabled. The high velocity debris from the explosion ripped through a number of near by vessels, taking them with it.

"Guardian Biolaser!"

Captain Claudius Marsalla of Venator-Class Star Destroyer Mighty watched with horror as the Imperator-Class Star Destroyer Warhammer exploded in a brilliant explosion. Without its shield, the reactor bubble was unprotected against enemy fire, and that was what precisely the Genator II had aimed at.

However, it was the Empire the A'millans were facing. The A'millan Star Empire barely held its own against the Borg, making them probably on par with a mysterious species on the Borg's databank called 'Species 8472'. The Empire, however, was far more powerful. A'millans, Goa'ulds, Borg; they were all 'younger races'. Only the Empire had the firepower and shield strength capable to stand against the Guardians. Only because the Guardians had no starbases to destroy, no industrial center to cripple, no headquarters to neutralize, that the Galactic Empire suffered a prolonged war of attrition during the Empire/Guardian War, but otherwise, the Empire was the Titan of the Universe that stood up against the other one.

The Mighty --who now took the lead after the Warhammer was destroyed, now ordered all vessels to return fire. They had been ordered to keep a holding back stance to capture the Genator II intact

The battlestars Colossus and Pacifica turn their massive guns on the assaulting vessels, lessening the punishment for mere moments. Genator took advantage of the situation and spun up her FTL drive to jump away.

But now, the Genator II out of their way, the Venator-Class Star Destroyers were now free to unleash their full power against the A'millan defenses. The Collosus, the Pacifica, and several other A'millan ships soon exploded after their shields buckled against the thunderous pounding of the mighty Turbolasers, while the Starbase 242 itself lost its arrays of Ion Cannons and Particle Beams to a hailstorm of HTL bolts. It was the HTL --the 200 Gigatons of firepower that had easily reduced a planet to slag, now unleashed against the Starbase 242 as the station rocked under such overwhelming fire. Meanwhile, TIE Bombers were systematically destroying the A'millan Transwarp Conduit with their heavy space bombs.

"The starbase has suffered heavy damage, Sir. Shall we launch the Stormtrooper transports?"

"No," Captain Marsalla replied calmly, "our target is the Genator II. Today, the A'millans shall live.... Today."

Leaving the crippled Starbase, the Venators headed towards their prey; the elusive A'millan Battlestar Genator II.

But as she jumped, she found herself in the tractor beams of two Imperial interdicters.

One of them caught the ugly end of ion cannon fire and was quickly disabled, allowing Genator's cannons to eat through its armor like it is paper to cause another brilliant hypermatter explosion, but the other then dragged her into hyperspace.

With their mission a success, the surviving Trollish ships begin to withdraw to join the Interdicter in subduing the battered Genator II.

A contingent of Trollish Golems and Imperial Stormtroopers just breached the Genator II airlock, trading fire with A'millan Marines. Overwhelming the defenses, the invaders were making their advance. Behind them, a huge, muscular Trollish Warrior (OOC: pay attention, Dartzap. This is Commander Flotsam I'm describing.) stepped through the airlock. The Warrior smoked a large cigar, and carried a huge Pulsar Chaingun on his right arm.

[Destructionator XV]

Defenders fall back and the enemy boarders advanced, and then they started to face something different: all the bulkheads closed, reinforced by forcefields, and the atmosphere was evacuated from the sections where they were and artificial gravity turned off.

Luckily, Imperial Stormtroopers wear suits with magic seals that are self contained and Trolls can deal with it somehow, but it never the less made things that much more dangerous and uncomfortable.

They float in the 0 gees to advance and turn a corner, where they are met by deadly automatic machine guns which made short work of the guys at point, spheres of blood filling the corridor.

[Ra]

Madar took up a proper fighting stance, the edge of her crimson blade caressing the edge of Darth Kreshna's with a series of sparks and crackles.

"Ah, I see how this battle goes," said Madar. "A pure battle of skill, rather than a reckless display of power. We shall duel as a proper lady and gentleman would, like the great Sith of lost millenia past."

She then took a calculated swing.

OOC: Heh, let's just do this move by move. That'd be awesome.

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

OOC: alright, where's Dartzap? He'll miss the battle!

=============================================

Defenders fall back and the enemy boarders advanced, and then they started to face something different: all the bulkheads closed, reinforced by forcefields, and the atmosphere was evacuated from the sections where they were and artificial gravity turned off.

Luckily, Imperial Stormtroopers wear suits with magic seals that are self contained and Trolls can deal with it somehow, but it never the less made things that much more dangerous and uncomfortable.

They float in the 0 gees to advance and turn a corner, where they are met by deadly automatic machine guns which made short work of the guys at point, spheres of blood filling the corridor.

Stormtrooper Sergeant Leonard "Rock" Simpson barely managed to dodge the machine gun onslaught. Several glancing blows just bounced off of his armor, but some of his comrades were not that lucky. Taking direct hit, their armor was compromised and they ended up wounded from enemy gunfire.

They were ordinary Stormtroopers instead of Zero-G Stormtroopers, but basic maneuvering in zero gravity was pretty much their standard training. Taking cover, Sergeant Rock managed to knock down few defense gun emplacements while Trollish Golems handled some others. There were quite many fixed gun emplacements, though, and the invaders were pinned down.

"Venator Mighty, this is Six-Four. We're being pinned down. Gravity and atmosphere gone. Request Zero-G reinforcement. Say again. Request Zero-G reinforcement."

Aboard the Venator-Class Star Destroyer Mighty, the communication officer replied. "Negative, Six Four. Zero-G unavailable. Will restore the gravity."

The Interdictor-Class Picket Ship Captor diverted one of its gravity well generator to restore artificial gravity aboard the Genator II, while the Venators were strenghtening their tractor beams on the target ship. Sergeant Rock sighed with relief as the gravity was restored, but the Stormtroopers were still on the clock as the oxygen supply within their suit was limited.

Aiming at another fixed gun emplacement, Sergeant Rock couldn't help but wonder: where's Commander Flotsam and his heavy Chaingun? And how will they restore the oxygen supply?

Madar took up a proper fighting stance, the edge of her crimson blade caressing the edge of Darth Kreshna's with a series of sparks and crackles.

"Ah, I see how this battle goes," said Madar. "A pure battle of skill, rather than a reckless display of power. We shall duel as a proper lady and gentleman would, like the great Sith of lost millenia past."

She then took a calculated swing.

OOC: Heh, let's just do this move by move. That'd be awesome.

Darth Kreshna blocked the swing easily, then stroked back. The Lightsaber touched Madar's left shoulder, carefully torn her shirt without injuring her. "Watch your guard!" The Sith spoke playfully as Madar's smooth, beautiful skin were exposed as the result.

OOC: anyone remember The Mask of Zorro?

[Destructionator XV]

After the Mighty turned on their artificial gravity systems, the Genator II's gravity turned back on, causing everyone and everything in that section's weight to double.

It turns out boarding this ship is going to be a real pain in the ass.

[Ra]

Madar ignored the blatant attempt to distract and/or embarass her, and would make damn well sure not other attacks came through. She studied each move the Sith's body made, like a fencer, without ever taking her eyes off his face. He wouldn't be so successful in insulting her honor by getting through again.

In a way, Madar reflected, she might make a bad Sith. Though probably no worse than the man she was trying to defeat. She believed in using passion, anger, and pure rage to fuel her power, but only in calculated amounts. Very angry people did very stupid things, as one Darth Vader did on a small world known as Mustafar. Madar controlled her rage, only unleashing it when needed.

But that didn't mean everyone had to follow her example, did it? Remaining in her calm stance, ensuring no move would be unparried, she spat, "Come on, old man. Is that all you've got?"

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

After the Mighty turned on their artificial gravity systems, the Genator II's gravity turned back on, causing everyone and everything in that section's weight to double.

It turns out boarding this ship is going to be a real pain in the ass.

Aboard the Venator-Class Star Destroyer Mighty......

"The A'millans don't give up easily, do they?" The first officer remarked.

"Not for long," Captain Marsalla replied calmly, "help is on the way."

A Venator-Class Star Destroyer didn't carry Ion Cannons, but an Imperator did. Captain Marsalla nodded with anticipation as Crusader, an Imperator-II Star Destroyer, dropped out of hyperspace near the formation of Imperial Mandate's ships.

"Mighty, this is Captain Robert Wilco of the Crusader. We're going to disable that A'millan Battlestar."

"Positive, Crusader. Please commence the strike."

Genator II rocked heavily as it was being hit by Ion Cannon Bolts. Soon, the elusive A'millan ship was totally disabled. Meanwhile, more Stormtrooper Transports were being launch from the Star Destroyer, inserting Zero-G Stormtroopers as well as extracting the regular Stromtrooper squad.

"Life support aboard the Genator II has failed."

"Then we must be quick. Trollish Golems don't need to breathe, but we want the A'millans alive, don't we?"

=============================================

OOC: alright, where is Dartzap????

[Destructionator XV]

Soon, the elusive A'millan ship was totally disabled.

While it did knock out central power, individual systems, such as the chemical reaction powered machine guns were individually powered with batteries in each of them and remained functioning.

The gravity systems that were already activated remained active, and those already inactive remained inactive. (Consequence of conservation of energy)

Moreover, the blast doors which were already closed, remained closed, but the forcefields backing them up failed.

Also, with main power down, all the lights were turned off. Not a big deal for Stormtroopers though, since their helmets compensate for it.

"Life support aboard the Genator II has failed."

Air would not be recycled, and the heat is turned off, but there would be enough left for a while still. A portion of the crew was android, and the ship was undermanned, meaning it had far more air than it actually needed.



Unbeknownst to the Imperial attackers, as the power failed, crews were finishing their job of scuttling the ship. Anything that may have been of value is destroyed. All datastores, incinerated. All classified technology, vapourized.

Sensitive OSI personnel, including the Destructionators, have their suicide pills / bombs ready to be used, set to go off automatically if conciousness is lost and destroy their brains.

[Kreshna Aryaguna Nurzaman]

OOC: aw, come on, Jon. Didn't you watch The Mask of Zorro, where Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones had a duel? You know, flirting and mouth-kissing and such during their fencing.

===============================================

But that didn't mean everyone had to follow her example, did it? Remaining in her calm stance, ensuring no move would be unparried, she spat, "Come on, old man. Is that all you've got?"

Darth Kreshna noticed Madar's stance. She would make a very promising apprentice. he thought while trying to hide his smile. The more they fought, the more he saw Madar's potential. Just like an uncut diamond, this former Ra's bodyguard needed more polishing to show her true shine.

The Lightsaber was a very dangerous weapon to use without the Force, most notably because the energy blade itself was massless, so its center of gravity was actually somewhere around the middle of the hilt. Careless use of Lightsaber could injure --or kill-- its own wielder. That's why both Jedi and Sith always relied on the Force to wield the Lightsaber properly.

But this one Sith Lord was an exception.

Commissar Petrosjko was a Commissar of the Imperium of Man, an 'expatriate apprentice' of Palpatine, and ultimately, the former Master of Lord Walper. And it was from the Commissar that Kreshna learned the dangerous art of practicing Lightsaber without the Force.

And as result, Darth Kreshna had mastered some techniques of swordmanship that any Sith or Jedi could only hope to defend against.

In a swing that looked like odd to a 'normal' Jedi or Sith, Darth Kreshna penetrated Madar's defense, then make another scratch on her thigh. Again, it did not injure her skin whatsoever, only torn off her trouser and exposing her skin.

The Sith Lord said flirtatiously to Madar, "thy techniques are excellent as thy face is beauteous. Alas, all is for naught, for thy opponent is the one whom hath mastered the art of Lightsaber with and without the Force."

But despite Madar's increasing rage as Kreshna was sensing, he also sensed something else. Something that....

Could it be possible that Madar was blushing?

[Ra]

OOC: Forgive my lack of culturedness, but I haven't seen the movie. But nevertheless, I'll play along.

============

"I wonder if I should have challenged you to a match of strip sabaac instead," Madar scowled. She then thought with a mental laugh, After all he seems obsessed with getting in my pants.

"In that case, I still would win!" Madar snickered. "How did I survive for years between various 'jobs', you ask? I was a gambler. A damned good one, at that. You continue to flout your skill, and you must think me quite the fool, facing you. But I wouldn't have come here if I didn't think there was a good chance of me drawing the winning hand. I wouldn't have come here at all if there hadn't been a chance of me gaining something from it."

She took another swing, locking their blades together.