Chapter Twenty-Seven
When Hyperion called, Dantius was recovering from what felt like a wrenching of his stomach, usually an indication that someone from his past had reemerged. But there was something different about this instance of the sensation, something that indicated it should never have happened yet it somehow did. So when Hyperion confirmed his worst fears, that Crassus had taken the body of a powerful Sith Lord no less, he knew exactly why it felt that way. "Our worst fear is now realized. Flesh has been given once more to a man who doesn't know when to die already," was all he could when he had breath.
"But our cousin proved that he isn't invincible! He's been killed once before and he's only ever survived to that point in time because there was a weak-willed host in his proximity for the ceremony of essence transfer. If we could somehow trick him into doing as our cousin had tricked him to doing before, we may yet defeat him. He's no longer inside my head so I can cook up a plan of attack that may stop him," Hyperion explained, chattering on like a monkey with hopeful talk. But Dantius shook his head and raised a hand to stop his brother before he continued onward.
"No, the time inside your head will only allow him to anticipate any plan you make. Any plan we Jedi make on the other hand? We in the Republic still have the element of surprise on him where you don't. How do Sith forces look now that the Kaggaths are over?" Dantius replied glumly.
"If you get the move on now, they'll have no time to make a recovery. This is the best chance the Jedi are ever going to have if they want to make a move on destroying the Sith. Any operations you got planned, do it now: their attempt to seize Mandalore has been botched by infighting and it'll be years before they have a sizable enough force to try again. Gotta go now, Crassus knows of our communications and if I'm gone too long, he may decide to report me for treason," Hyperion said. He may already have done that when you ducked out, should it suit his plans to do so Dantius thought though he nodded and wished his brother the best.
Fortunately, it didn't take long to garner approval from the Chancellor as well as a Republic pardon, forgiving him for any war crimes he may be forced to commit. Of course, there was just one more person he wished to join him, one perfectly suited for the aquatic stage of the attack he planned for Dathomir. "Inoy, good to see you. At the approval of the Council, I invite you to join the Sentience on a mission to destroy the Sith, once and for all," Dantius said, comming his younger friend.
"I accept your invitation and humbly thank you, I have heard of the Sentience but have never known how to join. What can I do for you?" Inoy said when he arrived to the war council chambers on Dantooine.
"According to intel gathered by my double agent in the Sith Empire, the perfect time to strike the champions of darkness is upon us now. We'll start with an attack on Dathomir, a world known to empower the Force-sensitives of the Imperial ranks in the early stages of their training. I've planned and coordinated a three-pronged attack that needs each prong to be executed successfully and decisively. The first is a space attack and not to worry, Commander Jace Malcom will see to that one himself at the Chancellor's behest. What I need you for is the second prong: an amphibious crossing to be undertaken to the Sith temple from one of the great lakes on Dathomir; I'll supply your comm with the coordinates of the temple and the launch point," Dantius explained. He typed in the coordinates and when Inoy's comm blinked a green light, he nodded to Dantius in assurance that he had acquired them.
"With due respect sir, why are we attacking lake side? Wouldn't be easier to march across the plains?" Inoy inquired.
"You'd think so but the security systems the temple has on the front side makes it impossible for us to get close enough for such an attack to be successful. If we hit them from the lake on the other hand, that's an entire flank of the temple left vulnerable to penetration by concentrated firepower," Dantius explained. Inoy's eyes scanned the portion of the planet he was supposed to cover, including the landing coordinates, the launch point, and the size of the lake. Then he noticed a potential discrepancy he couldn't help but point out to the senior human about the plan.
"The lake looks too big for oxygen tanks to last, my troops would be gasping for breath long before we arrived. Particularly if we're supposed to walk along the lake as I suspect may be the case," said the Nautolan.
"I was wondering if you'd notice that," Dantius admitted with a smile, "fortunately, we got even that covered. The battalion you'll be going with won't have need for oxygen tanks: like you they'll be amphibians we've recruited into the Republic army. Finding enough troops of that nature wasn't easy so I recruited from among Nautolans, Selkath, Quarren, and Mon Cala. All four of those species, as you know, can survive virtually any amount of hydraulic pressure and live both on land and in the water. You're leading the first ever battalion of strictly amphibious species into Sith territory, striking them almost from behind and bringing down their forces. Meanwhile, Ashlynn will coordinate the land attack designed to distract their remaining forces long enough for you to ambush them without any risk of detection."
"And when we've taken Dathomir, what's our approach for Balmorra?" asked Inoy.
"Your new battalion will be joined by mine on the surface while Ashlynn and Jace lead the space forces. She and I are taking turns helping out in space or on land and we agreed I would be better suited to the space front during the Dathomir attack. I'll brief you on the details of the Balmorra attack once we've successfully taken Dathomir for the Republic. Get some rest and ready yourself, it'll still be about three or four standard weeks before the full force is up to speed for this task," Dantius answered.
"May the Force bless this attack with success," Inoy said, bowing before his departure from the briefing room. Dantius returned the salutation but in truth, he wasn't sure if it would succeed. With Crassus back, it was entirely possible that even if they won the battles, they wouldn't eradicate the Sith. He wouldn't be certain until he saw the old windbag fall himself.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
For the first little while following his resurrection, Crassus couldn't help but look over his new body. "Impressive stature and his skills with a lightsaber are without parallel to what I was able to do. Hm, it seems like you have nearly doubled my Force potential in giving me this body, Hyperion. I am truly gratified to be alive again, thanks to you," he said at one point.
"The Pau'an species are known for exceptionally long lives, unparalleled by virtually any species. Provided you take good care of yourself, you have another six and a half centuries of life before you need to worry about finding another host body," Hyperion replied. That fact had surprised Crassus and the old man seemed to think he would be needing at least one more Pau'an body, closer to when he would need a host again.
"With such lifespans as that, I can expect to outlive Lords Andeddu and Vitiate with even one more host. The former will already be outlived when this body's life is done with a fresh one allowing me to outlive the great Darth Vitiate. Hm, makes one think about what to do with virtual immortality," Crassus said.
"To be explored when we are no longer at risk of being destroyed by the Jedi, perhaps. For now, we need to think about how we're going to suppress the dissident voices sure to be coming from the Dark Council and perhaps Lord Jadus. As the Emperor's Voice, Jadus is entitled to the same legitimacy to the throne in the absence of a strong heir that I am," Hyperion told him.
"If Jadus is even half as cunning as I suspect, our first task will be cutting his support down to size and ensuring that he either does not lay claim to the title or hold it for long if he has staked his claim. Should he be even more cunning than I anticipated of him, he will have already made his bid during the infighting, being the only one who has yet to dispense his forces for war. This would be the perfect time and when the warring is over, he'd be the only strong figure likely to emerge even if the Council combined its military might and Force powers together," Crassus replied.
"What makes you so certain that Jadus will have laid claim to the throne by now?" Hyperion asked.
"Every monarchy of dictatorial nature is dependent for its continuity on a strong line of heirs. In the absence of that, the system begins to expose its weaknesses through the vying and warring of the head monarch's subordinates for the power once wielded by the monarch themselves. Those who are both smart and patient will wait out the conflict, taking no active part until they are sure they could win with the most minimal bloodshed possible if they fought. Jadus, if what I suspect is true of him, should turn out to be one such person by the time we return to Balmorra," Crassus answered.
"I'm not even sure I want to know where you learned that from," Hyperion admitted.
"When I was Crown Prince, I used that to tear the resistance of enemy clans apart. While they were divided and weak, their royals challenging each other for power, I swept through to unify the peoples of Algethiius into what'd become the Empire you were born to. And all because I patiently waited to deploy assassins at the right times, maximizing the damage done before I even expended a single soldier," Crassus explained.
"I was wrong, I didn't want to know that," Hyperion retorted.
"Yet now you do. No matter, the more humanoid species of this galaxy are a divisive lot by nature. The only unifications expected to last more than a couple centuries can be found among the hive-minded species like the Killiks or the Calicoids. But even they have one fundamental weakness: kill the birthing unit of such insectoids and you may the entire ecosystem collapse as the subordinates lose their sense of identity to the madness losing leadership. The only arguable benefit to living under the Republic is the false assurance that there is an intergalactic force that gives all species an equal opportunity to prosper and thrive, the capability of exercising an artificial power to elect and remove leaders an enticing illusion. Inherent in the Republic and governments like it is the weakness that its citizens must be thoroughly educated in their rights, their powers, and when they must exercise them lest they become complacent and weak in the face of tyranny," Crassus told him.
"Is that why you enslaved billions across the Unknown Regions?" Hyperion snarled.
"That is why I liberated the peoples I conquered from themselves. I saved them from the langor suffered by all prosperous democracies and republics, introducing a purpose to all those people whether they had needed one or not. In plain basic, I not only saved them from themselves but also brought them the kind of fulfillment a government that allowed for voting never could. For in democratic governments, tyrants rise like flowers in a garden through the idiocy of its people but in monarchies, rulers rise because they have the strongest will for unifying divided cultures," Crassus calmly explained.
"You killed thousands then masqueraded salvation to the survivors," Hyperion countered.
"A small price to pay for the salvation from starvation, stupidity, and purposelessness that my forces promised. Even you wanted for nothing when you were a child and now look at you, are you any freer for having lived your life without my influence? Or have the deeds of your life enchained you to worse masters than I ever was?" Crassus asked back. Hyperion didn't want to answer that one, knowing that he would either open his grandfather up to another one of his philosophical rants or (just as likely) allow him another chance to gaze deeper into his soul.
"Your silence is answer enough, child. Anyway, we are nearing Balmorra: I suggest you ready yourself for anything when we get there. If the Council is as decadent as we both suspect, there will be much more blood still left to shed before we can claim any real power," Crassus ordered. Not that it'll matter when the Jedi find the planets held by the Sith and exterminate them. Or do you not know that, now that you're outside of my head for a change? Hyperion thought angrily as he marched away.
After the attack on Imperius' forces, Hyperion had ordered his men to remove the logo of Zavakon's soldiery before they jumped into hyperspace for Balmorra. Stopping halfway between Mandalore and Dathomir, they had cleaned off the filth of framing Zavakon then restored the logo of the Emperor's Wrath. Upon arriving to Dathomir, Crassus had called his grandson for a conference to discuss the plans of attack that they would take if and when they were forced to face the Dark Council. And now that Balmorra was approaching them in their scopes, the drop from hyperspace left them wondering what they would face when they arrived. Was Crassus right that the Council would be fighting amongst themselves when they returned, their ships restored to mint condition and the men of Hyperion's battalions both rested and healed?
Jumping out of hyperspace on the edge of Balmorran space, they saw the wreckages of several ships, none of which bore the crest of Lord Jadus. Hyperion then concluded that Crassus had been right and that Jadus had bided his time until he felt confident to secure his claim to the throne. Most likely, Jadus had believed that Imperius and Hyperion's forces would be too weak to mount a successful attack against him alone and had left just enough forces to secure an interest on Dathomir without weakening his hold on Balmorra. The ships belonging to Ravage, Nox, Zavakon, and even Vowrawn could be found among the ruins. Hyperion even observed the charred body of Ravage out the window though he instinctively knew the older Dark Councilor was dead.
From what scouts gathered, Zavakon and Vowrawn had suffered the same fate, the latter's death inciting a slight pang to Hyperion's heart. The Pureblood had been the first to vouch for Hyperion's induction to the Sith and now Hyperion couldn't count on his support anymore. Naturally, there was only one thing left to do now that Minshuto, Imperius, Ravage, Zavakon, and Vowrawn were dead. Find out if Nox and any other Dark Councilors still lived then launch an assault against Jadus' forces, provided they were given that chance. Scouts were able to land past the defenses that the Emperor's Voice had set up in space to find out if Nox was still alive.
Fortunately, she was but beyond her power, she couldn't offer anything in the way of help. Hyperion ordered his scouts to work on a way that she could be recovered and allowed to lead one of the charges toward Jadus. However, Crassus decided she would be better used in preventing any reinforcements that the Voice of the Emperor might call upon to help him survive. Meanwhile, Hyperion would lead the troops and Crassus would sweep through the destruction to fight and destroy Jadus, as the only one who even remotely had a chance against him.
"Jadus seems to favor quick strikes, much like wielding the lightsaber form Makashi in combat. A strong defense against such jabs of his forces could be used to ensnare a good chunk of his soldiers through a combination of the slingshot defense form and the pincer flanking maneuver along with a wedge formation toward the Palace steps. We'll also need to set up lines of war droids to flank the palace turrets along with our heaviest personal weaponry hitting the snipers," Crassus told them. Hyperion couldn't think of anything better so he and Nox went along with the strategy with the latter watching their space channels for reinforcements while the former led the land attack against Jadus.
He almost found himself hoping he'd perish on this mission, this way his betrayal wouldn't come too late to be used on him. He knew Crassus was just waiting for the perfect time.
