Chapter Seventeen

After Tyber's orders came down, Kiara was somewhat disappointed that she was told to more or less stay put. Silver lining, she was ordered to free and arm the dissenters, and if she could, turn Lord Cytharat, but primary orders were to hold position and keep any Sith or Jiralhanae from entering through the Forerunner Structure she and her team now resided in. But it wasn't all bad - she heard Tyber's speech to the family, and heard his orders to the others. Kion was coming down with the ODSTs, and Vitani was following with two flights of Pelican Drop Ships. Kiara just had to hold out until they got there.

So, if only to have extra backup to hold out until the cavalry did arrive, Kiara, Briana, Timon and Pumba started heading down toward the armory. It was very lightly guarded; just a pair of Sith troopers chatting with a Jiralhanae. The Sith Guards went down before they realized they had intruders; the Jiralhanae, however, didn't have to be killed - not by Kiara and her team. Some invisible force kept him from shouting the alert, and a flying crimson lightsaber came from behind and decapitated him. The weapon then flew back into the hand of a man with red skin and fleshy tendrils dangling from his face. Kiara immediately recognized him.

"I trust your message was received?" he spoke.

"Lord Cytharat, I presume?" Kiara asked.

"You presume correctly, Princess Kiara," the red-skinned man responded.

"How did you know my name?" Kiara asked.

"It's a long story," Cytharat answered. "Suffice to say, I was waiting for you and yours to arrive before turning my back on Phospho. Until now, I had to... keep up appearances."

"Can you at least tell us why you are joining our side?" Briana queried.

"There are many reasons - not the least of which is the fact that Phospho has become a madman - but the most pressing issue is that there are dangers to the technologies and worlds the Forerunners left behind that Phospho either doesn't or won't admit, and will spell doom to everything, everywhere," Cytharat said. He extinguished his lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. "I only need one of you to help me release the dissenters; the rest can keep this armory secure until we can get them here."

"I'll go," Kiara volunteered. "Bri, Timon, Pumba, keep out of sight and keep the armory secure until we get back." As the aforementioned three ducked into cover, Kiara ventured deeper into the facility with Cytharat, intent on freeing the prisoners...

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In the quiet of orbit over the Ark, the Pridelander Fleet appeared from a jumble of Slipspace Portals. Two of the vessels were immediately recognizable; one was the Predator-class Star Dreadnought Iron Dragon, Lord-Admiral Tyber's flagship; the other was a CAS-class Assault Carrier colored in three shades of blue in a camouflage pattern called Indigo Sun, Admiral Zira's new Flagship, constructed well in advance of this battle at the command of the Lord-Admiral himself. The rest of the fleet consisted of ships of varying design, and armed with a wide variety of different weapons. The instant the fleet was secured from Slipspace, they all immediately went shields-up and weapons-hot.

The inside of the CAS had a number of departures from the original Covenant design, with hallways of teal blue and bulkheads of navy, designed to allow for navigation without making the halls too bright. The bridge, much like the Covenant design, was buried deep inside the core of the vessel, making it highly resilient to anything less than a mortal blow. Admiral Zira sat at the center of the command platform, surrounded by a crew of mobile, sentient holograms. The ensign at the sensor station read his readout, then spoke: "Enemy ships, staggered line!" he turned to Zira. "Admiral, they outnumber us three-to-one!"

A grin split Zira's muzzle from ear to ear. "Then it is an even fight," she chuckled.

"All warships, select your targets and prepare to engage - we'll burn these mongrels' hides!" commanded Tyber over the Pridelander channel.

"You heard the Lord-Admiral - target the port-most Jiralhanae ship, ready on the Disruptors!" Zira barked. The Indigo Sun hummed subtly as power was diverted to the Disruptor Turrets - devastating weapons known for disintegrating nearly anything. The Sith and Jiralhanae ships wasted no time in closing the distance, and the Jiralhanae ships opened fire first, launching a volley of plasma torpedoes, which splashed against the Pridelanders' shields. Undeterred, the Jiralhanae ships pushed ahead of the Sith ships.

Bad mistake. The instant they came in range, the Pridelander ships opened up on them with Turbolasers, Ion Cannons, Plasma Cannons, and Disruptor Cannons. Their shields lit up bright orange as they were bombarded, and yet they continued their charge. Half of them had gone up in flames by the time the Pridelander fleet had closed the distance. Fighting full broadside, the Jiralhanae ships didn't have a prayer, they succumbed left and right. The few that managed to pass through came around for another pass as the Pridelander fleet closed on the Sith ships.

The Sith fleet consisted of primarily of Harrower-class Battlecruisers and Terminus-class Destroyers, with some Enforcer-class Cruisers and Loronar-class Strike Cruisers thrown in the mix. They weren't stupid enough to charge headlong at the Pridelander Fleet. The few Jiralhanae ships that survived the charge formed up with the Sith and fired another volley of Plasma Torpedoes.

"Admiral, we are over the target site!" one of Zira's crewmen reported.

"Launch the ODSTs!" Zira commanded.

Down in the belly of the Indigo Sun, Kion sat in a Orbital Drop Pod, armored up and armed with a BR77A2 Combat Assault Rifle. The pod was closed, and awaiting the order to drop. Clutched in Kion's hand was a picture of a brown-furred, brown-eyed lioness. "I'm coming home, Rani. We're gonna get married. I promise," Kion quietly said.

"All ODSTs, prepare to drop!" came the announcement Kion was waiting for. Kion was quick to kiss and then stuff the picture of Rani into a pocket as he readied himself for the inevitable feeling of rushing velocity as he dropped literally like a rock down to the Ark. No sooner than he had done so did he feel the pod lurch, then drop. Through the reinforced Transparent metal view port in front of him, he could see the battle raging as he dropped from the belly of the Indigo Sun. Before long, the black and blue of space gave way to white clouds as Kion's pod descended through the Ark's atmosphere. He could see multiple pods as they all dropped. At the halfway point, the pod lurched and jerked, making Kion grit his teeth as the air brake deployed, slowing Kion's descent. When the brake snapped off, Kion continued his fall, and it was during this time that someone decided to start the Helljumper Cadence over an open channel: "Helljumper, Helljumper, where ya been?"

Kion immediately joined, to raise the troops' morale: "Feet first into hell and back again!"

The rest of those in the drop pods joined in the cadence: "When I die, please bury me deep! Place an MA5 down by my feet! Don't cry for me, don't shed no tear! Just pack my box with PT gear! 'Cause one early morning, 'bout zero-five, the ground will rumble, there'll be lightning in the sky! Don't you worry, don't come undone! It's just my ghost on a PT run!"

"Helljumpers for life!" Kion shouted. He smiled when the whole group responded with a resounding "Ooh-ah!" over the radio, followed by a single, simultaneous rap of armored fists against the pods' walls. Kion couldn't help but feel his spirit soar. And that was good - he was gonna need it. They all were.

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There was no resistance to Kiara and Cytharat freeing the prisoners. No guards. Weak security measures. Getting them to the armory was just as easy. They all were happy to have a part in Phospho's fall. Then they set up defenses just shy of the entrance and made ready to hold off the Sith while they waited for reinforcements from orbit. And just in time; no sooner than when they were ready, weapons trained on the only way the Sith forces could come at them, they got word that the Fleet had arrived. Now the Sith and their Jiralhanae allies were completely flabbergasted - they hadn't expected an attack so soon, let alone with this kind of ferocity. All indications were that they had no idea the Pridelands had a fleet like this.

In truth, the fleet had been hiding behind the moon waiting for the Sith Fleet to open the portal. It was part of Zira's plan - make the Pridelands seem vulnerable, make them seem complacent, make them look like they were unable to match their navy. And then hammer them hard once they took the bait. And that wasn't the only thing; given what Kiara heard of Tyber's orders, she knew her brother, Kion, would be arriving soon with a platoon of ODSTs, with Vitani coming in with two flights of Pelicans loaded with troops. Phospho was in deep shit, now.

As for Lord Cytharat... well, he stood by the Prideland and Dissenter forces, but he refused to take up a rifle, instead relying on his Lightsaber and the Force to help him combat the enemy. He took up position by Kiara as he asked, "This Lord-Admiral of yours... will he be accepting of my defection?"

"Absolutely," Kiara responded. "And he's a force-sensitive, himself, so he would doubly appreciate you in the fleet."

"And your brother?" Cytharat inquired.

"Kion's harder to convince, but still amicable," Kiara admitted. "You're doing the right thing, Cytharat."

Cytharat paused, then nodded. "Thank you, Princess. I think I just needed to hear that from someone other than me."

"I'll vouch for you, if needs be," Kiara assured him.

"I appreciate that," Cytharat said. He then drew and activated his lightsaber, the crimson blade ready for combat. "The enemy approaches."

Kiara didn't need to be told. She and everyone there was ready to fire. As expected, the Sith forces came charging into the facility, and Kiara and the forces under her command opened fire when they did. She knew they didn't need to decimate them - just keep them from getting past. The first wave didn't last long; they were evidently surprised by the size of the force arrayed against them, and retreated to regroup not long after the wave started. The second wave was more organized, but still failed to breach Kiara's line. Cytharat pummeled the enemy with lightning, whatever objects happened to be lying around, and occasional throws of his lightsaber, using it like a flying shuriken before it always returned to his hand. The third wave was much tougher, as it had a contingent of Jiralhanae in it, requiring Cytharat to leap into the fray and fight with his lightsaber in his hand. Kiara and her force concentrated on the Sith around the Jiralhanae and occasionally on one or two Jiralhanae that strayed away from the group. It was during this wave that the enemy suddenly upped and retreated for seemingly no reason - after which Kiara could hear the sound of what seemed like meteors falling from the sky - a shrill shriek of velocity accompanied by a resounding crash! Not long after, gunfire was heard from outside, along with shouts of surprise and dismay that were all so jumbled, Kiara had a hard time making out most of it.

Kion had arrived.

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Kion knew the ground was fast approaching. Just before impact, the visor of his helmet polarized, providing protection to his vision against the "sun" of the Ark. Then came the jarring landing - the pod smashed against the ground, and basically embedded itself there. Kion had just grabbed his rifle when the door opened, and he jumped down and into the battle. Orbital drop pods were dropping all over, and ODSTs armed with a variety of weapons were emerging and engaging the Sith and Jiralhanae troops. There weren't nearly as many in the outer areas of the enemy encampment as there were closer to the entrance to the Forerunner Facility. But boy, were they unprepared; half of them were armed with Blaster Pistols and light weapons, not nearly enough to penetrate the personal energy shields of Kion and his ODSTs; the Jiralhanae packs were the most potent threat. And they packed explosive weapons, grenade launchers - of a sort - and Spike-firing weapons. They seemed somewhat effective, but still not quite enough to slow down the ODSTs.

The enemy troops closer to the facility were another matter - packing high-powered Blaster Rifles, Rapid-Fire Plasma weapons, Fuel Rod Cannons, and weapons more a threat to Kion. While his ODSTs had succeeded in pushing the enemy back toward the facility, he didn't have the numbers to assault the enemy lines at the bridge into the Forerunner facility. But he didn't need to assault them - not yet. Just keep the enemy trapped. His sister was on the other side of the enemy lines, keeping them from getting into the facility, presumably to keep Darth Phospho trapped at the Citadel on the other end. He looked to the squad radioman, and asked, "What's the status of the assault?"

"Orbit's gone haywire," the radioman answered. "Admiral Zira and Lord-Admiral Tyber are beating the tar out of the enemy... Lieutenant Boyd is leading the assault on Site B. So far, she's encountered less resistance than we have."

Kion scoffed. "Lucky fuck..." He paused to drill a Sith Soldier that rose from cover. "Where's Vitani?"

"Miss me already?" came Vitani's voice, as though to answer Kion's question. Kion cast a look behind him and saw the Pelican drop ships landing in the area he'd fought through, and fresh Marine forces getting off. Vitani was among them.

"Reinforcements are here!" Kion shouted. "Let's hit the bastards! O-D-S-T!" The troops shouted their approval, and they all engaged the now badly-outnumbered forces between them and the facility. The whole firefight lasted no more than ten minutes. Those that had survived retreated into the facility, where they were evidently either gunned down or hacked to pieces by a strange man Kion had never seen before. He assumed it was Lord Cytharat. When Kion approached them, his weapon was leveled and ready to fire when Kiara shook her head at him. "Lord Cytharat, I presume?"

"That's right, Prince Kion," the red-skinned man affirmed as he extinguished his lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. Kion nodded, and lowered his weapon. He then approached his sister. "Not bad, for the family pacifist," he told her.

Kiara smiled as she took off her helmet. "Who ever said I was a pacifist?" she jabbed back. "Outside secure?"

"As secure as it gets," Vitani responded. Before anything else could be said, there was a reverberating thrum that echoed through the halls that caused everyone to jump.

"Phospho may have found a way to activate the Ark!" Cytharat speculated. "We need to stop him - now!"

"Which way to get to him?" Vitani demanded.

"I'll lead the way - we must hurry!" Cytharat answered. As Cytharat turned and ran deeper into the facility, Vitani, Kion and Kiara were quick to follow, hoping they weren't already too late...

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As the battle raged in orbit, and the Sith and Jiralhanae numbers quickly dwindled, no one could miss the signal that emanated from the Ark. Especially not Tyber.

"Report!" he barked.

"Unidentified power surge coming from the Ark, Lord-Admiral! Readings suggest it's powering up!" responded one of his crewmen.

"That can't be!" Tyber commented. "Damn it! We're out of time! Break off! Begin descent protocol! Admiral Zira, take command in orbit!"

"Yes, sir!" Zira shouted. As the Iron Dragon started descending into the atmosphere of the Ark, Tyber hoped and prayed he could stop the Ark from activating the Array in time. He lost one home and family. He'd be damned if he lost another. Tense seconds ticked by as the warship drove through the atmosphere, and, at last, to the site where the enemy camps were. While he delegated to his subordinates the task of landing the vessel, Tyber immediately went down to one of the transporter rooms, and was beamed down to the camp that had been secured by Pridelander forces, and went into a full-on sprint toward the facility.

Not another home. Not another family. Never again, he thought over and over.

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The thrumming had gotten louder, and then quieter, by the time Vitani and her company reached the bridge leading to the control platform for the Ark's systems. The last of Phospho's forces stood between them and the Dark Lord. Vitani looked to Kion, Kiara and Lord Cytharat. They all nodded. This was it. The final push.

One final effort. That's all that remained. Vitani slung her rifle and drew her beam katana. Bellowing a war cry, she charged into the enemy formation, and started swinging her blade in speedy arcs, cutting down her foes one after another. Cytharat was close behind, his own lightsaber cutting into the enemy; Kiara and Kion brought up the rear, downing enemies with their rifles as the four of them charged down the bridge. By the time they reached the light bridge that went to the control platform, there was no one left to oppose them. No one but him.

Phospho stood defiant, facing them with his lightsaber already drawn. "Surprising," he commented. "I half-expected Kovu to be here to finish what he started all those years ago."

"It's over, Nuka," Vitani said clearly. "This doesn't have to end with your death. We can end this peacefully, right now."

"Peacefully?" Phospho scoffed. He paused, then said, "Peace is a lie, there is only passion; through passion, I gain strength; through strength, power; through power..." he raised his blade to point at Vitani. "... Victory!"

"You're not thinking clearly, Nuka - the Dark Side has clouded your mind!" Vitani countered. "The Dark Side is power, but no longevity - it will consume you over time! But you can fight it! I know, deep inside you, Nuka still lives! Cast aside the Dark Side, stop this madness!"

"And why would I do that?" Phospho sneered. "Even if I did, I'd spend the rest of my life in prison or worse! And why would I surrender to you? To that golden brat, Kiara? The family traitors, you and Kovu? That overly-militant, woe-is-me jackass, Tyber? Why should I surrender to the family that treated me like shit and then left me for dead at the earliest opportunity?!"

"I won't deny we did horrible things to you, Nuka," Vitani told him, "But we can put it all behind us! You can be family again!"

"You are not my family anymore," Phospho hissed as his face contorted with anger. "The Dark Side is all I need!"

Vitani sighed wearily. "Then you leave me no choice, Nuka - I cannot let you stain our family's honor any longer!" They both twirled blades, and the duel began. Phospho was clearly no stranger to this kind of fighting. Vitani started off with one of the forms she gleaned from Jeff - Soresu. This was effective in fending off Phospho's attacks, keeping him at bay, letting him wear himself out. Which he apparently did, at which point Vitani switched to another form, one Tyber had taught her - Ataru. Very acrobatic and mobile, Vitani was a blur, attacking Phospho from every possible direction while at the same time flipping and cartwheeling to avoid his attacks. Just when she thought she had him, Phospho went into a form she recognized as Shien form, a very powerful and aggressive form that relied on brute strength combined with wide, powerful strikes and parries. Several times, she had to move quick to avoid Phospho's attacks - two of those times, she nearly wasn't fast enough. But Phospho was getting angrier with each swing. She could feel it. She immediately capitalized on this, going into the deadliest form of all, one even Tyber was surprised she could master - Vaapad. She turned Phospho's own anger to her strength, feeding off it as she furiously dueled him, until at last, she swung an arc so fast and so powerful, she knocked Phospho's lightsaber out of his hand. But she didn't stop there; she quickly jabbed his knees and his shoulders, and he dropped to the deck.

Looking up at her, panting, tired and evidently shocked at his own defeat, he asked between ragged breaths, "H-how? How were you able to stand against me?"

"The Force is with me," Vitani panted, keeping her blade pointed at Phospho. Phospho managed a weak chuckle as Tyber arrived at the scene.

"So it wasn't just me... of course it wasn't," he said. "Kovu was the chosen one, but you and me? We were always something more."

"What are you talking about?" Vitani asked.

"The Force flows through you, just as it does your lover," Phospho said. He got up off his hands, but not his knees. He looked over to Tyber, who approached the control panel on the platform. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Shutting down the Ark's link to the Halo Array," Tyber replied. "So no one can ever use this installation again."

"Even I couldn't get the controls working - what makes you think you can-" Phospho started. He was cut off when the sounds of a massive machine powering down reverberated through the halls.

"The Ark, like the rest of the Forerunner technologies, can only be accessed by the Forerunners... or their Reclaimers. Humans," Tyber told Phospho. "I didn't know for certain until I got here."

"So... this is it, then," Phospho said, returning his gaze to Vitani. "I will not be contained, I cannot be redeemed - death is all that remains; strike me down now, and the power of the Dark Side will be yours."

"I do not want the power of the Dark Side," Vitani stated, "and I do not kill defenseless opponents."

"Then I shall make it easy for you," Phospho growled. In an instant, he called his lightsaber to his hand, activated it, and lunged for Vitani. There was no time to think, only time to act; Vitani deflected the blow, spun counter-clockwise, and drive the blade of her weapon into Nuka's heart. His expression was pained, as he slumped onto her. "Our family's legacy with the Force... now lies with you, sister," was the last thing he said. Vitani could feel the life leave him. Then she felt a surge of energy, as though she had gained his power. It felt cold, like a river, but it warmed up almost immediately. She gently set her brother down, tears in her eyes, and closed his eyes.

"Goodbye, Nuka," she told him. She picked up his lightsaber, extinguished it, then looked to Tyber. "Is he right?" she asked.

Tyber shook his head as he answered, "He wasn't lying. The Force has awakened in you." Vitani looked down at the body of her brother, then went over and hugged Tyber. She didn't have to say anything. Tyber embraced her tightly. "It's alright, now. It's over. The war is won."

"So, what now?" Kiara asked.

"We head for the Portal... and we all go home," Tyber said.

Home, Vitani thought. Where this all began. She started this journey trying to soothe a tormented human with a past far worse than anyone in the family, and now she was ending this leg of the journey knowing she now carried her family's legacy in the Force. And who better to show her the mysteries of the Force than her dearest, beautiful, human love?

So, even if at a much slower pace, they all headed back the way they came. On reaching the entrance to the facility, they learned that Zira had performed admirably, smashing the enemy fleet to the last ship. They outright refused to surrender, but when word got around that Phospho was dead, everyone was cheering. Of course, Zira mourned losing Nuka a second time, but she still soldiered forth, knowing Vitani gave him more than once chance to end this peacefully. Cytharat was welcomed - if cautiously - into the ranks, along with the dissenters, and took charge on the Ark until Zira could return after a well-earned rest.

And with the Ark secure, the family could return to the Pridelands, to what was sure to become a victory celebration and a long vacation. The war had been brief, but destructive, but now, the Pridelands had something they didn't have before - a path to the Stars...