I don't own Star Wars or any of the characters.
It has been a year since the Rakata Infinite Empire first set its sights on Tython. They scavenged the outpost at Furies Gate, then took the giants—Obri and Mawr and their moons—before the attack on Tython was blunted itself. They fell back to Ska Gora, making their base there. On every world this enemy has attacked they enslaved the population and left ruin in their wake.
With the Rakata growing ever closer and closer to Tython, the Je'daii were forced to use the forcesabers, the weapon of the Rakata Force Hound. Xesh, a former Force Hound and slave of the Rakata, taught the Je'daii how to wield the energy blades channeled by the Dark Side of the Force.
Daegen Lok was brought back from Bogan, the Je'daii finally accepting his vision as the truth. Master Rajivari headed the combined forces of the settled worlds and the Je'daii, but Lok led the Je'daii. Then there were the seers—Je'daii who perceived the Force in dreams and visions sharing their images and impressions for the Je'daii to interpret, in order to divine where the enemy will strike next.
XXX
On Shikaakwa, the Je'daii lied in waiting. Movement came from the swamp. On Xesh's signal, the Je'daii attacked. Xesh led the attack, cutting down three Flesh Raiders with one sweep of his saber. Xesh had forgotten most of his life as a Force Hound of the Rakata. But he had never forgotten the Flesh Raiders—mutated lower caste Rakata. Bred in the thousands as soldiers, as weapons, hungering to kill, hungering to eat.
Xesh knew the Flesh Raiders well. As a Force Hound, he had once led them. He knows what they can do—and that is why they had to die. Living among the Je'daii, Xesh has begun to see there is more to the Force than just darkness. There is a balance and in the balance, a Light Side. But here the light will not serve him. The dark is what he knows. It is what he was bred for.
Concentrating on the Dark Side of the Force, Xesh pushed back the Flesh Raiders. The other Je'daii followed suit, attacking the Flesh Raiders without mercy.
High above the swamp, riding on the back of a winged Rancor, Shae Koda, a female Je'daii warrior, charged an aerial mounted Force Hound. Clad in black armour, red hair blowing wildly in the wind, green eyes ignited with rage, forcesaber at the ready, Shae was a force to be reckoned with. The seventeen-year-old raised her saber, activating it with a scream as she called on the power of the Dark Side.
Shae Koda felt a connection with Xesh before his Master's ship crash landed on Tython. Even now, in the smoke and carnage of battle, she can feel Xesh bellow—a dark brilliance in the Force.
The mounted Force Hound charged her. She felt its challenge through the Force. Shae will not yield. She urges her Rancor, Butch, onward. Butch dived bellow the Force Hound's mount, her actions guided by her rider. Shae sliced the underside of Force Hound's mount, blood and guts oozing out of the beast as it spiraled towards the ground.
Xesh felt Shae in the Force. For a moment, she is a bright beacon that draws him towards the Light…a dangerous moment in the midst of battle.
The Force Hound had survived the death of its mount. The armour clad Force Hound spotted Xesh. The enemy warrior charged the former Force Hound, forcesaber drawn.
"Traitor!" shouted the Force Hound.
Xesh impaled the Force Hound. The body fell into the murky water, blood pooling from the wound in its chest.
Daegen Lok came running towards Xesh, a fleet of Rakata annihilators on the Je'daii's tail. The Je'daii's dark hair and goatee were sweat soaked, his armour damaged, cape burned, and blood trailed down his face, over his already existing eye scar. The Rakata annihilators began shooting lasers at the Je'daii.
"Xesh! Run!" shouted Lok.
"Rakata annihilators. Lok, you've found the main Rakata position. You need to call down an airstrike." told Xesh.
"But their position is now our position! Too much fog—too much smoke! Our fighters will never be able to tell friend from foe!" exclaimed Lok.
"No. They won't. But without it we stand no chance. Do you know what the Rakata do to enemy captives?" asked Xesh.
"Enslave." assumed Lok.
"Wrong. They eat you. Oh, they will cook you first. Alive." stated Xesh.
Lok reluctantly called in the air force, sending them the coordinates of the Rakata annihilators.
XXX
The Twi'lek Je'daii Ranger Hawk Ryo was commanding the Je'daii air strike. The blue skinned Twi'lek's dark brows knit together when he heard the command come in from Lok over the comm.
"…strafe your position, Daegen? You're ordering us to shoot you?" disbelieved Hawk.
"Our position is being overrun! That happens, the battle's over anyway. Execute my order now, Ryo." commanded Lok.
Hawk sighed, quickly relaying the order.
"Red Squadron, fix on General Lok's signal and prepare strafing run. On my lead. Blue Squadron, keep these Rakata fighters off our tails!" relayed Hawk.
The Je'daii send down a rain of laser fire on the Rakata annihilators. Row upon row of the enemy's vehicles was destroyed. Flesh Raiders were shot down by aerial attackers. Sadly, the Je'daii on the ground were shot down alongside the enemy forces. Many Je'daii tried to avoid the cannon fire, but not all were lucky.
XXX
A young Sith Je'daii named Sek'nos Rath dodged an incoming cannon blast. The Sith's armour was dented, drying blood blended against his red skin, the tips of his long dark hair was singed from the heat of the cannon fire, and his yellow eyes were blood shot. The seventeen-year-old Sith swung his forcesaber, cutting down a Flesh Raider. Another Flesh Raider snuck up behind Sek'nos. The Flesh Raider was struck down by a blaster shot to the head, saving the young Je'daii's life.
Sek'nos looked at the one who had saved him. It was Trill, the former thief and Sek'nos' current girlfriend. Trill was just in as bad a shape as Sek'nos, if not worse. Her ghostly white skin and hair were covered in mud, blank white eyes bloodshot, red and black armour scratched, and red cape singed from the blasts of laser cannon fire.
"Sek'nos! Run!" called out Trill.
Explosions shook the battlefield to its core. Flames from the explosion set the swamp ablaze. Rocks ricocheted through the air as the ground began to quake.
"Got you, Trill." said Sek'nos.
Sek'nos picked up Trill bridal style. The battlefield had become too dangerous even for a Je'daii. It was time for a hasty retreat. The Flesh Raiders and those few Je'daii who did not get away in time were vaporized by the cannon fire.
XXX
At Ryo Fortress, Je'daii Master Rajivari was in conference with his old student Temple Master Ketu, leader of the Je'daii Council. The ancient Je'daii Master shook his bald head, dark eyes teeming with worry. The holographic image of Ketu looked at his old master. The leader of the Je'daii Council ran a hand through his long dark hair, unsure of what to say next. After a while, Ketu decided to ask on the progress of the battle. Master Rajivari's answer was not as he had hoped.
"No, Master Ketu. The battle is far from certain! Although the seers predicted the direction of the attack, they couldn't predict the numbers. Win or lose, we will have a high number of casualties." gravely reported Rajivari.
"Keep me apprised of the situation there, Master Rajivari. Tython is massing forces for defense should Shikaakwa be captured. Ketu out." responded Ketu.
The holographic image of Ketu disappeared. As the holo-projector was turning off, a massive blue skinned Twi'lek walked into the room. The Twi'lek was clad in dark robes and had one lekku draped over his shoulder. It only took master Rajivari a moment to identify the Twi'lek as Volnos Ryo, the baron of Ryo Fortress. One did not have to be Force-sensitive to sense the anger rolling off the baron in waves. Without even using the Force, Rajivari had to only look at leader of Ryo Fortress' face to tell the baron not in a pleasurable mood.
"My generals report that the battle is not going well. Know this, Rajivari—if Ryo Fortress falls, so will Shikaakwa!" angrily exclaimed Volnos.
"Lord Ryo, we repelled the Rakatan attack on Tython—and we will prevail here." insisted Rajivari.
"You Je'daii couldn't prevent the fall of Ska Gora!" reminisced Volnos.
"No—and many Je'daii fell in that battle. But that was before the settled worlds took the Rakatan threat seriously. Now, all the settled worlds have united with the Je'daii. Force willing, we will defeat the enemy here." confidently stated Rajivari.
A distress call came in over the comm. system. Rajivari turned on the comm. system to let the message play for him and the baron.
"Zzzkkkktt! Rajivari! This is general Lok! Zzzkkkktt! ...Repeat! Encountered main Rakatan army Zzzkkkktt! ...Blunted their attack! Zzzkkkktt! All units converge on me! Now! Acknowledged! Zzzkkkktt!" commed Lok.
"Acknowledged. Masters Thok, Quan-Jang, Madog—bring your units to Master Lok's position! We will determine the battle's outcome there!" sent out Rajivari.
XXX
The Cathar Temple Master, Tem Madog, responded immediately to Master Rajivari's orders.
"Acknowledged! Master Quan-Jang, summon your beasts! All units—attack!" yelled Madog.
Madog charged the Flesh Raiders, at the lead of his unit. The Cathar Je'daii let out a bellowing roar, shaking back his mane like an enraged animal as he struck down all those who got in his way. The Je'daii followed suit, cutting down any Flesh Raider that dared to cross their path.
XXX
Aboard the Rakata flagship of sub-Predor General Ceh'let, things were not going any better than they were on the ground. The female blue skinned Rakata shouted orders to her troops while conversing with her superior, Predor Skal'nas. Ceh'let turned to face the viewing screen, facing the scarred red face that was Predor Skal'nas.
"Our attack was broken before it began, Predor Skal'nas! Our supposed 'victims' knew about it before we arrived—and penned us in the accursed camp!" exclaimed Ceh'let.
"The Infinite Empire knows only victory, sub-Predor Ceh'let." snarled Skal'nas.
"Half our troops are dead, and the attack is stalled! I defy you to get a victory with that!" responded Ceh'let.
"You defy me, little sub? Do you indeed? There are all kind of victories, Ceh'let. In a war of attrition, we will ultimately win. Pull our troops back to our main base on Ska Gora. Let the Flesh Raiders cover the withdrawal. You and I, we will talk more on your return." ordered Skal'nas.
XXX
The Je'daii did not notice the withdrawal of the main Rakata fleet. They were being overwhelmed by Flesh Raiders. All the Je'daii units had merged, killing off the Flesh Raiders one by one. At the front of the charge was Madog, Sek'nos and Xesh, to name only a few.
"Chasm take them! These creatures won't surrender." growled Madog.
"Flesh Raiders are bred for the kill, master Madog—they don't surrender. Kill them all. No mercy. No exceptions." exclaimed Xesh.
With opponents on all sides, the Je'daii fought on. With riders exhausted, their beasts recoiling from the heat and smoke of the swamps burning bellow, they fought on. The swamp was filled with the sickly, bitter stench of Flesh Raider blood and flesh. The forcesabers burned the air around them. The darkness it took to power such a weapon overwhelmed the Je'daii's senses. The balance was gone.
Daegen Lok knows he was born for this battle. This war is his destiny. He shall command the Je'daii to victory, or die trying. Whatever the sacrifice.
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