Note: Honestly I found myself in a bit of a dilemna in this chapter. I had everything for this chapter planned months and months ago, but it took ages to get to this point. I despise having to wait to actually do chapters before the chapter I wanna do. I mean, I WANNA JUMP AHEAD LIKE 20 CHAPTERS! Get to some juicy crap! Also the next chapter is juicy! And the ending is like a rollercoaster! And some stuff in between is juicy! Why can't I just skip the pointless-transition chapters and leave everyone confused as to what da heck is going on because screw it! No explanation needed! Just epicness!
All that aside, the dilemna was choosing a song. It came down to either: 'Legend' by The Score, 'Hail to the King' by A7X, and 'Seven Nation Army' by The White Stripes. I love Hail to the King most, but it just didn't fit the vision. So between Seven Nation Army and Legend, I was stuck for a week. I spent a week just listening to these songs over and over, in various remixes, nightcores, and the originals stuck on which fit! Not just the moment but which song is more Varus! (You will understand.)
I chose 'Legend' by The Score. I like the Nightcore version most.
But I also do highly recommend Hail to the King and Seven Nation Army. It was close. So close.
So to truly understand this chapter, pull up on youtube "Nightcore - Legend". You should see a picture of a kid with two guns and a knife in his mouth. ;)
Episode 4 Part 2- Beachhead
Son and Daughter flew as a giant bat and a gryphon, respectively, onto a ledge overlooking the Sith city. Before them was a skyscraper. The skyscraper acted as the personal fortress home of one of the Sith Lords.
Their target.
Son ruffled his wings to get the water off. It had been raining since the day they arrived, and wouldn't surprise him if it had been raining before then. Daughter preened her feathers a moment. The two walked into a bit of cover before transforming back into their human shapes.
Son leaned against the wall. "You know… despite how annoying the rain is, this place isn't half bad."
"It has purple lightning, the skyscrapers look like sharp teeth, everything is black, and the Dark Side energy saturates the planet like a mist." Sister commented.
"I know, it's great." Son grinned. "Reminds me of home."
"It would." She smiled. "I can't wait to get away, but then the ship isn't much better. Technology isn't my thing. I like plants."
"There are plenty around here."
"Fascinating as they are, it's like trying to relax in a bed of slugs."
"And that's bad because…?"
Daughter raised an eyebrow at him, while he just smirked. He teased and he knew his sister loved it. She was just in a… well… a less good mood with all the Dark Side there. Son felt it. The planet was not just tipped toward the Dark Side, it bathed in it. It was carefully crafted and nurtured like a dark plant to thrive on nothing else, until it was practically a node of the Force itself that acted as a Dark beacon to all the galaxy… yet oddly hidden.
Son might just take a vacation here the next time Father lets them out.
"This is Light's Bane, over." A man's voice entered their ears. They both wore transceivers. His voice was unnaturally filled with bravado. "Molten Fist, do you copy?"
"I copy, over!" A teenage girl's voice replied cheerfully.
Son rolled his eyes. Daughter just smiled.
"Are you in position, over?"
"I am in position, over."
"Good. Wet Blanket, do you copy, over?" Light's Bane asked.
Son said nothing. His eye twitched. Daughter grinned wider and watched him. Son shot her a glare as if to silently say 'I refuse.'
"Wet Blanket?... Weeeet Blaaanket. Wet Blanket! Over! Hey, dipshit!" There was a pause. Followed by the sound of a deep breath. He sang, "~THIS IS THE SONG THAT NEVER EN-" (Half way into the it, Molten Fist joined in the song.)
"I will murder you and everyone you love!" Son bellowed into the transmitter.
"Great, you're here! Sweet!" Light's Bane greeted as if he hadn't just been given a death threat from a Dark Side demigod. "Are you in position, Wet Blanket, over?"
"I refuse to play this game, Varus. Take this seriously." Son replied.
"And you wonder why he calls you 'Wet Blanket'." Daughter giggled. Son glared at her out of the corner of his eye as he brooded.
"Ah! Queen Elizabeth!" Light's Bane/Varus said, trying and failing to have a fake noble accent of some sort. It made him sound either like an Australian pirate or an Irish with a stuffy nose. Either way it makes no sense. "I am so pleased to hear from you. Are you in position?"
"Queen Elizabeth is in position." Daughter answered.
"Does Queen Elizabeth have sights on Wet Blanket, over?"
Son's glare intensified on her ten-fold. Somewhere something keeled over and died from a heart attack. Daughter met his death-glare with a smile and said, "Queen Elizabeth has sights on Wet Blanket. Over. Can confirm he is in position. Over."
"Why do you amuse them?" Son whispered.
"Because it's fun."
"It's retarded."
"Aaaaand that's why I call you, Wet Blanket." Varus said.
Son sighed. Being involved in these matters the last few months had truly tested the limits of his patience. It was a wonder he hadn't killed them yet. Daughter had to physically and spiritually restrain him. He knew if he messed this up, Father would never let him out again.
"J-just get on with it." Son pleaded.
Daughter's smile dimmed just slightly, and she said, "Light's Bane, I fear Wet Blanket is nearing his limit. Let us commence."
Varus' accent returned. "The Queen has spoken! Everyone, ready yourselves. We commence in five-"
"Thanks." Son sighed, stretched, and turned into a bat again. Daughter just nodded and transformed as well.
Light's Bane continued to count down. "Four. Three."
"Go!" Molten Fist yelled. You could hear blaster fire in your ear at the same time there was plasma rounds flying through a window in the skyscraper.
"Two- What the-" Varus blurted out. "Okay, go!"
Lightning struck the skyscraper and pierced it from top to bottom. The building shook and a crack broke down its side, windows blew. The air gave way around it like a wave as it pierced the sound barrier, and the sound of a whip smack them in the face. Son and Daughter rose into the air, as the nearby fighters on patrol had already taken notice something was going on. Son grabbed one with his hind feet and threw it into another fighter. Daughter chased another and tore at its engine.
The Sith had probably never seen a gryphon and giant bat outta hell before.
Varus sat crouched in front of Cahj from where he had landed. Lightning poured off of him, and in his right hand was a Sith's head he had shoved into the ground. With but a thought he poured his lightning into the man, the man spassed, and froze as his body stiffened. His brain, if one could cut it open to inspect, would be nice and crispy.
The Sith soldiers of the non-Force variety scrambled to their feet as best they could and struggled further to be able to come to any sort of sobriety. Between the shockwave, the sound, and the sight of their team leader dead in front of them, and lightning pouring off a black robed man before them in waves… it was a wonder they hadn't fallen into shock. Stun grenades are no joke. Lightning strikes tend to do that.
A team of clones, Mandalorians, Republicans, and Alliance soldiers appeared behind cover. They turned off their invisibility cloaks and opened up fire on the Sith. If their cover was blown, might as well go with the loud option.
"Damnit, Cahj, I said to stay hidden. Invisibility means you can't be seen so long as you don't do something stupid, like bump into them." Varus hissed.
"I was! The guy sensed me." Cahj defended herself.
Varus sensed she was right. The man he had slammed into the ground after literally shooting himself down through two hundred flights of stairs in an instant, had been a Force user. Probably shouldn't have tasked her to work with the infiltration squad. Sith Force users can sense her through the cloak.
"Fair 'nough. Stay behind me. Gonna have to improvise." Varus stood, unleashed two lightning blades from his hands and turned to face the incoming reinforcements.
"When do we not?"
"My lord." A Sith bent a knee and bowed. Scourge turned his head ever so slightly. He refused to truly look at the man behind him. It was too dangerous. He made sure there were no mirrors, and the glass was clear so he could not see his reflection. The rain struck the windows relentlessly and purple lightning rained down on constructed lightning rods scattered through the city.
"Our men are in position."
"Good." Scourge answered. He breathed out. Here they were, on the pinnacle of eons. This would decide the fate of the Sith. "Give them the order. May their bonds be broken."
"May their bonds be broken." The Sith repeated. The Sith left, leaving Scourge alone in his thoughts.
You amuse me, so much. I feel you squirm and writhe against the cage, but your resistance is for nothing.
Scourge felt a compulsion come over his right hand. It rose without his bidding and clenched in front of him.
You are mine.
The compulsion was released, and his hand was his once more. Scourge clenched the fist and angrily hit it into the iron tight glass cage.
Cage… truly that was what he was in. He was a loyal Sith. He obeyed the commands of the master to the letter. Any attempt he might make to resist was removed from his ability, so even as much as he tried to resist, it was impossible. But there were still… loopholes… he could exploit. Even his cage had rules, and he had spent many long years learning the rules.
The Sith Emperor knew. The Master knew of Scourge's small attempts to find ways of bending the rules of the spell to resist. Scourge knew it explicitly. The Master made sure he knew it always. He taunted him. Pushed him to try for his amusement. Perhaps that was all Scourge was to Him. An insect trying to find cracks in the walls that entrapped him.
Scourge knew it was for naught. He was a worm in the master's sight. He was living on borrowed time. He was like a man who had a snake wrapped around his heart, a snake that was patient so long as it was amused. He had no future. He had no hope. He resisted out of nothing but stubbornness now. The moment his resistance merited any fruit or became more than a source of comedy to Him, then he was as good as dead.
The Master made him. The Master could unmake him just as easily…
The building shook, and Scourge fell to his knees. The same instant Scourge felt an immense Dark Side energy nearby, and soon after an even stronger source of it appeared outside the building. Scourge looked at the source of this immense power, and his eyes widened as he saw it. A giant bat, unlike anything he had ever seen.
Scourge jumped to his feet and looked as well as he could. He could sense battle. He could sense death. But he saw no army. There was no invasion on the ground and there was no battlecruiser in low orbit.
So why did he sense so many life forms disappearing?
Scourge knew the answer. He had just hoped it wasn't this soon. Only one person could make a monster like that. Only one person would come after him, a Champion of the Eternal Emperor.
The lights went out, leaving Scourge in darkness. A moment later they flickered back on again.
A man in black robes was in the room. Lightning poured from his fists and wrapped themselves into blades. Scourge turned to look him in the eye. He called his lightsaber to him.
"You are Scourge, yes?"
"I am. And you are a Galen Marek clone. I must admit, I am surprised. I believed there were no more, but then He is a lord of secrets... Nice touch with the lights. Very ominous." Scourge complimented.
The assassin smiled wide, "Thanks. I try."
"But it has cost you the element of surprise."
"Yeah... Its kinda my thing." He shrugged. Galen cleared his throat and said, "Nu declare zo Kaggath, zo contest iv mutual ardytifaus pitting powerbase priaet powerbase, kuris visaz sheds tave beze kraujas wins. Kia tave pergali eternal aureole, kia tave loser mirtis ir shame."
Scourge's eyes widened briefly. So this was how He wished it done. A Kaggath Sith challenge. His challenger even spoke fluent Sith, as per tradition. If Scourge lost, he would die in humiliation and all he owned would be handed to the challenger, or would if this was public. If Scourge won, then he would gain nothing, as this was no more than an empty clone, a pawn.
Scourge could refuse. The challenger had no standing to depend on, yet nor could he refuse, as the challenger was here on His behalf.
It was His way, to entrap, corner His foes in impossible situations, to encircle and manipulate all things to His dance. Scourge had tried to resist... but this was how far he could go. He could feel his men through the force disappearing into the portal or dieing to the assassin's companions.
Scourge said, "So… this is how His game ends. I had thought it would be something less dramatic. More sudden." Scourge breathed in, and he breathed out. He activated his red lightsaber. "I accept the duel. If I am going to be executed, I intend to die on my feet."
Galen swept into the room in a burst of lightning and Force energy. At the same time Scourge charged at him, calling on the Force to fuel him, to bring him rage. He could sense it, the carefully controlled anger that fueled the assassin's Dark Side power, and it fueled him in turn. While Galen was chaotic and his aura emitted lightning in every direction, Scourge's was as solid as a large boulder slamming into him.
Galen was knocked back into the wall. He landed on his feet and leaped high. At the same moment Scourge slammed a Force Push into where he was. The impact left a large dent in the solid metal wall.
"Okay. Tougher than expected." Galen breathed. Lightning extended from his fingers and he clung to the ceiling like a spider.
"I am a champion of the Eternal Emperor. Do not tease me with such a pitiful display." Scourge growled. It chaffed to be underestimated.
More than that, something about the situation felt wrong. Why would the masters assassin be ignorant to his potential? Why would the Master not strip him of his power to leave him as a lamb to the slaughter? Was this a game? Or was this something more?
Scourge did not have long to ponder. Galen leaped from the ceiling at him. As expected, Galen knew he could not face him in a duel of raw strength, so he opted for dexterity and evasion and speed. Unfortunately for him, Scourge had many long years of practice. Scourge swiped wide and strong. He could not keep up with Galen's speed or dexterity, but he could still easily know where he was in the Force and force him to be on the defensive. Galen could not afford to do an attack of his own when he had to put all of his focus into evasion.
Scourge roared and felt the Force continue to make him stronger. He raised his lightsaber high then swept it down so fast it nearly took off Galen's nose as he leaped backwards. Scourge pressed it on him, continuing to do wide, fast, powerful swings to which Galen could only respond with leaping back. Everything in his way was cut down. Galen leaped backwards over a table and with the Force pushed it at Scourge.
Scourge stopped the table with his bare hands and threw it to the side. It clattered and screeched across the floor. Scourge drew his lightsaber again and steadily walked towards Galen.
"Damn…" Galen cursed to himself. Scourge was not just strong in the Force, he amplified his body with it fluently. "Okay, plan 'e'."
Galen shot lightning out of his hands at Scourge. This drew Scourge's attention. He wasn't very good at techniques like that, mostly physical amplification or drains. Lightning, fire, void, and the like with an elemental attribute were not his strong suit.
Scourge blocked the lightning with his lightsaber and pressed forward, but found his feet could not. The lightning was not a mere trickle, it was akin to a river being thrown at him. Scourge braced himself against it and struggled to not be forced back. Yet it was not as if he did not take advantage of it. He could feel the power being thrown at him, he could feel it was great, and like the master Sith he was, he used it. Pain trickled across his body as the lightning bypassed his lightsaber, pain that he used to focus his mind, make himself angry, anger to draw on the Dark Side. For every second of lightning Galen used on him, Scourge felt his inner strength grow. As a master of draining, he shot out red lightning of his own, a form of lightning that only sucked in the power and life and energy it touched, similar in nature to Void perhaps, were he to consider its source.
The two energies met and conflicted. One pulling in and the other pushing against. Until the lightning stopped in a flash and Scourge's lightning, having nothing left to feed on, shot across the room shattering the glass wall in an explosion. Wind sucked on him, but his stance was steady.
Galen was gone.
"What th-" Scourge gasped in pain, his body stiffened as electricity struck it, a sickening crunching sound entered his ears, and claws of lightning pierced his chest from behind.
"Gotcha." Galen breathed.
Scourge could do nothing. His arms and legs open wide and stiff. He couldn't breathe between the lightning filling his body and the claws piercing his chest. He could barely gurgle.
Galen panted a bit, having exerted himself but was nowhere near his limit yet. He pulled the claws from his body. Scourge fell flat on his face. Blood erupted from all over his body and sprayed Galen and the room around them, before lessening in pressure and settling for pooling on the floor. Galen spit it out. "Damn, shoulda kept my mouth closed."
'So this is the end.' Scourge thought. It was a welcome reprieve to die at last, to be free of the mortal shell and to ascend to the Force, but as he closed his eyes and waited… nothing happened. He did not feel weakness come over him. In fact, the opposite. He felt strengthened.
The Master had left abandoned him.
This realization confused Scourge greatly. He was being killed, yet the master was not letting him die. But that can't be unless they aren-
Unless this isn't Galen Marek, and isn't an agent of the Eternal Emperor.
Scourge grit his teeth angrily and braced himself. He picked himself up from the ground. Blood covered him, but he knew his body was replenishing it quickly. The numbness in his chest gave way as the holes patched themselves.
Oh… come on! That's not fair! That's just cheating! I call hacks!
I back up, shocked. Scourge rises to his knees, puts a hand on a knee, and pushes himself to a standing position. Even as I watch, the holes in his back begin to seal themselves with renewed flesh.
Of course, the bastard can heal. This has officially gone a bit beyond my pay grade! "Wet Blanket," I say into the transmitter. I am met with silence, but I know he can hear me. "I need some backup here! The guy can't die!"
"Pardon?" The Dark Side demi-god asks in my ear. I can just hear the dripping skepticism.
"Well I stabbed him in the heart, lungs, spine, and who knows what else at least ten times! And he is getting back up!"
Scourge stands fully healed and turns toward me. And from the amount of power flowing from him, he is even stronger than before… I doubt that trick will work twice. I ignite lightning from my hands as two words. On second thought, I need a stronger defense. I channel the lightning swords together into a rod. It immediately comes in handy as he swings at me with a quick, wide swipe. I try to evade, but he predicts my movement. I block it, but the blow still hits me hard enough to lift me off the ground and across the room. I roll across the floor and onto my feet. Scourge roars from the air, and I leap away in time to avoid him. He slams his lightsaber into the ground where I was, and the room shakes violently from it.
"Intriguing." Son replied sarcastically.
"Don't 'intriguing' me, this isn't a well-dressed high-class mystery for the rich and lazy! Get your ass in here!"
"Brother, you really should help him. When was the last time he asked for help?" Daughter said into the transmitter.
"Never." Son replied.
"Then it only shows how pr-"
I don't catch the rest as I continue to evade for my life. I try to get an attack in, but Scourge just shrugs it off and pressed on me. I swear! His skin was as tough as a rhino and he has all the single minded aggression of one! I shoot lightning at him, but he shrugs it off like its nothing. He lunges at me, and I leap back to get away, but he is even faster than before. His power had only grown over the course of the battle. Speed is my speciality, and I can't evade him! What steroids did he Force-shove into himself?! I want some!
Gonna have to use 'it'. Thanks for the idea, Falcon. I spin lightning around my fist.
Faster.
Faster!
Scourge is ontop of me. No more time! I drive the lightning drill into his chest. Blood erupts everywhere like a fountain. He hesit- No. He doesn't hesitate. He should have, but immortality has taken away that sense of fear. Despite the fatality of the wound, he continues to come at me like the overwhelmingly zealous Sith he is. He pushes himself into the drill. My arm erupts out of his back and the whole room is splattered in his blood, but in turn he grabs me in a bear hug.
His wound heals itself around my arm so that my limb becomes encased inside his body, and he squeezes me tightly into the embrace. He is taller, so he lifts me off the ground. I only have one arm left. I am pinned.
At first I am unsure what he is doing, I have never been in this position before, but I receive my answer as his embrace becomes tighter, and tighter. I find myself unable to breathe, and yet it continues to become tighter.
Oh. He's crushing me. Shit!
I let the full force of my electricity out of every orifice of my body. It manages to make him flinch and lessen the hold, but he doesn't release me. Instead, the damage I do to him only seems to fuel him further and the embrace becomes tighter than ever. I form claws out of my good hand and stab him repeatedly, but the only thing I receive for my trouble is the sound, and pain, of my ribs popping out of place.
I gasp painfully. Before long I feel something crack, I feel stabbed, and blood vomits out of my mouth. That could be bad. Brain! Status report!
'…'
I'm screwed.
A moment later a bat straight outta hell slams through the ceiling and lands behind Scourge. At the same moment Wet Blanket lands, Scourge's arms fall off and I fall to the floor. Scourge roars in pain. Son grabs Scourge in his legs flaps up briefly before slamming him again into the floor. He spins in the air, tosses him aside, transforms into a humanoid shape.
Son disappears and reappears in front of Scourge and swipes at him with his extended claws. Scourge's rapidly regrowing fist shoots out, slams into his open palm, and stops his hand short. Son's eyes widen. I gape.
Just how immortal is this guy!?
Scourge glares up at Son. Blood drips from his mouth and his eyes are defiant, "For a demigod… you aren't that strong. I've fought Him, and you are nothing in comparison."
Son's anger flares and his swipes at him with his other hand. Scourge's bravado proved to be a bluff. He doesn't stop it and blood splatters across the room as Son tears open his chest. Scourge collapses against the wall. He may be immortal, but the battle still took a toll on him. He no longer has the strength to fight a top-tier Dark Side assassin and a Dark Side demigod.
Son isn't satisfied and goes to town on his chest, repeatedly clawing at him. It really isn't a pretty sight. Not that I haven't spilled a great deal of the bastard's blood myself. So I'm not particularly bothered. But there is something about the sheer savagry of it that makes me think I would not want anyone else to see.
"Dang, Son. Think ya got-?" I ask, trying, and failing to have some accent that fits the phrase. But pain cuts my humor off short. Yeah, that feels like a rib is stabbing a lung. Blood flows uncomfortably from my mouth and I find I can't breath again.
Scourge groans painfully from where he lays. Daughter flies into the room and gently lands next to me. It doesn't take a detective to see I am in bad shape. How was I supposed to know the dingbat was immortal?! I call hacks! He would have died long ago were it not for him cheating…
Daughter may not have the power to heal, but she still gets me into a comfortable position.
"You're right. He refuses to die." Son states. "We can't just let him go. If we can't kill him, might as well take him. Mandalore's prisons should hold him."
"M-mandalore?" Scourge whispers.
I ignore the Sith and tap my transmitter. I gasp for breath. Damn, breathing hurts. I whisper, "Commander, how did it go?"
"The operation was a success, captain. We have the files and have deleted the rest. The invasion is going nowhere fast without it."
"And Squirt?"
"She was instrumental in helping us gain access to the archives. You would be proud. She is learning well. A few scratches and burns, but nothing to write home about."
I smile widely, pride warming my chest. Squirt is doing well. She is safe. There are many aspects of Force theory she cannot seem to get, but practical things she grasps quickly and easily. She learns hands-on.
"You… You fools!" Scourge breathes angrily. He struggles to have a voice with his chest ripped open like a savage animal had gotten to him. One did. "You have no idea… What you have done. You have ruined everything!"
Scourge struggles to his feet, but Son knocks him out. I stare up at the Sith. He seemed unusually angry for some reason, and not just because Son kicked his ass.
Oh well. He will cough it up when the interrogator gets to him. Might as well take him with us.
"Can we get out of the rain now?" Son asks. Daughter giggles at his annoyance.
I look up from where I lay. I had completely missed the fact it was raining on us. "Yeah, let's get out of here before reinforcements show up."
A field medic gets to me on the transport. After being jabbed with medigel syringes, having my ribs popped back into place, and told to take it easy for a day in a medigel bath, I feel beat up more than I already was.
We arrive back on the Ravager. Immediately an attended is in my face giving me an update of everything: who did what, where what is, who slept with who, blah blah blah. I tune out the soldier.
"Put him in the brig." I gesture to Scourge. The Sith is in chains designed to restrain Force users. His lightsaber is in my posession. The tough bastard put up a fight since waking up, but it was nothing we couldnt handle.
He may prove to be problematic though. A powerful Sith lord, a champion of the Eternal Emperor, with the uncanny ability to heal from any wound... death and the threat of death would placate most prisoners. Take that away as a factor and you have a regular player in an Escape the Room game, complete with restart buttons.
"Captain..." my assistant persists.
"Order the crew to continue with battle stations. Order the pilot to get us out of the system and back into deep space." I order a ranking officer. He salutes. I continue, "And tell him if he gets us caught again, I'm taking the leash off the Ravager and letting her pilot herself. Mandalore's orders be damned." Again he salutes. He turns to leave.
"Captain."
"AND!" I continue. The officer I'm talking to stops again. "Get a hold of the geek squad and see if they managed to crack into the transmission channels. AND tell them we have more goodies for them."
The officer stands there staring at me.
"Yes?" I ask.
"Is that everything, captain?"
"Actually, no. Tell them to fix my datapad. The battery exploded again."
"Captain."
"Another?... Captain, if I may, you really shouldnt be running it on your own electricity. The batteries are not designed for it."
"I know, but there are no energy cores that are designed for it in a Sith city when I'm out in the field."
"Perhaps bring extra batteries?"
I nod. "Fair thought. Regardless, that is all."
"Captain!"
I sigh, "You know you are as annoying as my last assistants?"
"Part of the job, captain. We have orders." He passes to me a datapad and taps the screen to show me something. I read it quickly. "A lot of deep cover agents had to blow their cover to get this to us." The assistant/soldier says grimly. I nod gravely.
"Lieutenant!" I bark.
The officer drops his head, groans, turns, and salutes. I yell, "Disregard all of that, we have orders from Mandalore and we are going to be late as it is. Except for the geek squad, I still want to them working to hack transmission channels." I grin widely. I have a plan.
"But first, you are seeing the medical ward." The field medic reminds me.
I groan. Have I mentioned how much I hate hospitals?
While Varus had received word of the battle, it would still take time to meet up. He would miss out on the first day, only to arrive on the second.
Nihilus observed the battle as it played out. Everything was going as scheduled. He positioned himself perilously close to the battle to be able to help push back against the Dread Lord's influence.
The battlefield was carefully controlled chaos. The full might of both fleets was on full display. There were starting to be losses beyond the scope of what he wished, and Nihilus found himself annoyed. He had planned for some losses. But he had also planned for Galen Marek arriving by now.
Ah, well. Nihilus had a backup.
"Send a message to the Forge to begin." Nihilus commanded. A soldier relayed the message in a transmission to HK-47/Forge.
The effect was instant. The wonders of a highly advanced machine hive-mind resulted in the entire miniature fleet of Forge ships moving as one. Nothing short of a swarm of many thousands of miniature ships flew out of the larger ones into the Sith fleet.
"H-how can it have so many fighters in those things?" Skywalker breathed in wonder.
Nihilus also found himself staring at it. He knew HK could be a powerful force, but this? "I believe… HK has no need for the same commodities or needs our ship designs take into account. Take away the need for brigs, living quarters, living support modules, and all such matters…"
Skywalker felt a chill go down his spine. Many of the fighters HK was using were similar in design to other ships. He saw the Forge snakes from long ago flying through the air like eels. He saw ships comparable to Confederacy fighters with its crab-like design. He saw piercing fast ships like an A-wing. All in all it was mixed and HK did not seem to mind stealing designs from other nations.
The fleet of Forge ships inserted itself into the battle smoothly as water. With a single mind, with a single purpose, HK reached out as if with claws deep into the Sith fleet.
Nihilis smirked. He was impressed. The plan was for HK to take advantage of the opening he had made, but the agility HK had both on a massive scale and individual level made his heart skip a beat. Almost. Hard to tell when the body was almost dead.
HK would be a fearsome power when all of this was over. If HK continued to evolve, then the galaxy would shudder under its weight. HK would become a walking disaster, a sheer force of nature. All the nations would either seek to claim it for themselves, or seek to destroy it out of fear.
He hoped to see it when the galaxy realized the potential of HK.
"Care to bet whether or not HK can contend with a Dread Lord?" Nihilus looked to Skywalker.
"I would be surprised if it didn't." Skywalker replied. "I will pass on the bet."
The minutes ticked by. Every moment the invasion fleet was closer to taking losses it could not afford. Nihilus watched HK's progress as it slithered its way closer to its prey. Nihilus slowly lifted his hand. The timing had to be crucial. HK's swarm reached the ship where one of the Dread Lords commanded, and seemingly wrapped itself around it.
Nihilus lifted his hand, and said-
Here we go, here we go
It's about time that we set it off
The whole room fell silent as music blasted the room.
Here we go, here we go
Red lights, I could never stop
"What the!" Skywalker exclaimed. "Is that music?!"
Nihilus was uncharacteristically characteristically speechless. While being silent was his common fall-back, being stunned into it was not. If he wasn't wearing a helmet he would be slack jawed.
A dreamer with the fever to be great was all I ever want, was all I ever wanted
A finder with the fever for the fame was all I ever want, was all I ever wanted
Got me singin' like
Bang, bang
Bang, bang
Bang, bang
This fire's the weapon
Bang, bang
Bang, bang
Bang, bang
Won't stop till we're legend
"Find another channel!" Skywalker demanded. "Get a message out for the fleet to retreat."
"Sir! The music is transmitting on every channel!" An officer said. "We can't get a word out!"
"Every channel?!" Skywalker repeated.
"Yes, sir… Even the Sith ones we haven't been able to access."
"Wha…" Skywalker gasped. Even the Sith channels?! But they hadn't been able to figure out how! "What idiot would be transmitting… on… every… channel…" Realization dawned over his face and he fell equally slack jawed as Nihilus. Nihilus secretly appreciated the helmet keeping his reputation intact.
Skywalker's datapad dinged with a message from Ahsoka. It read: "ITS HIM ITS HIM ITS HIM ITS HIM! :D" Not that he read it, he was too busy staring dumbly out at where a Warp fissure was opening and a very familiar shape appeared.
Here we go, here we go
It's my turn to make history
Here we go, here we go
When I'm gone they'll remember me, yeah
"Sir! A ship is coming out of Warp!.. It-It's the Ravager!"
Nihilus and Skywalker both groaned and slapped their hands to their faces in sync.
I sit on my throne beating my head to the music. Out of the corner of my eye I see Squirt beating her head to the music as well, and Son merely taps his foot. (Pretty sure his favourite music genre would be 'scream'.) I feel Ahsoka excitedly, persistently, poking my mind now that I am near enough to sense her and I respond in the Force with a poke back. I want to reform the bond, I ache for it, even if it's just for a little while, but I don't draw attention to her for the Sith to sense as they sense the bond itself.
We have waited months. We can wait a few hours… if I can last that long. I haven't felt her skin and mind in forever.
"YOU REVEALED OUR HAND AT FIGURING OUT THE SITH FLEET CHANNEL FREQUENCIES TO BLAST MUSIC ACROSS AN ENTIRE BATTLEFIELD?!" My second in command exclaims. He has to yell incredibly loudly to be heard over the music.
I stop beating my head to the music long enough to stare at him. and at the same time I sense a great deal of confusion and anger across the entire system. Two major sources of confusion, anger, and unsettled I feel familiarity to as Tree-Hugger and Nihilus. Daughter has her face in her hand, ashamed.
I answer, "You make that sound like it's a bad thing."