Have no fear, Grubkiller is here.
Hey folks, here's part 4 of 'Clash of the Sith Lords'.
The New Sith War is in full swing as the forces of the old sith order and the new sith order go head to head.
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Clone Wars theme plays
AN EMPIRE IN EXILE! AFTER TRAVELING INTO THE UNKNOWN REGIONS TO EXECUTE TALZIN'S PLAN, DARTH MAUL'S FLEET DISCOVERS A REMNANT 0F THE SITH EMPIRE, WHICH HAS BEEN IN EXILE FOR NEARLY ONE THOUSAND YEARS.
AFTER A SKIRMISH BREAKS OUT BETWEEN THE SITH FLEET, AND THE PURSUING DROID FLEET, AN ALLIANCE IS FORMED BETWEEN DARTH MUAL'S SYNDICATE AND EMPRESS ACINA'S SITH EMPIRE.
NOW, BOTH OF THESE RENEGADE SITH PREPARE FOR THE ATTACK THAT IS ABOUT TO COME FROM DARTH SIDIOUS' MINIONS...
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Invisible Hand's observation Deck Dromend Kaas' moon.
High above one of Dromund Kaas' moons, a massive Separatist armada of Munificent-class star frigates, Recusant-class destroyers, DH-Omni Support Vessels, and a Providence-class Dreadnought, hovered above the planet. They were preparing for battle against a civilization that was long thought to be lost.
In Count Dooku's temporary quarters in the observation deck at the top of the ship's aft conning tower, the supreme commander of the Separatist droid forces, General Grievous, stepped into the room.
His metal taloned feet clanked against the floor as he stalked across the room, which was filled with Commando Droids. He walked up until he was about ten feet in front of Dooku, who stood up to look down at him.
Grievous kneeled before his master, who stood on the steps to his rotating chair.
"You summoned me, my lord?" The cyborg General asked.
"The time has come at last to take revenge on the Sith traitors who deserted us so many years ago, and to kill their false Empress, Darth Acina." Dooku explained. Grievous looked up at him when he explained the mission. "I have learned recently that these Sith exiles have taken refuge on the planet Dromund Kaas, deep in the unknown regions. We will go there... and wipe the exiles out. All of them," Dooku said. "There refusal to follow the True Lord of the Sith will not go unpunished."
Grievous bowed his head.
"Yes, master," the cyborg general said before he went to go gather the fleet and army for battle.
Meanwhile, Dooku went to take his personal shuttle down to the planet's surface.
Grievous stalked across the deck to get back onto the bridge. A battle droid carrying a data-pad was struggling to keep up with the general's incredibly long strides.
"Assemble the fleet. The time has come to destroy our enemies. We go to Dromund Kaas... to battle".
The general met a pair of magna guards, and they followed him into the command deck.
When Grievous was on the bridge, looking out the viewport, he could see a massive field below, which housed a massive fleet of C-9979 landing craft. Their engines emitted a loud hum that buzzed and rumbled across the field. They were being loaded up with tanks and infantry. Those that were loaded up closed up their doors and headed straight for orbit. Vulture droids walked across the field before they began to take off only by one, before escorting the 'H'-shaped transports to their rendezvous with the fleet. This was going to be a large battle.
This wasn't even half of the fleet. They were linking up with several battle groups that were about to exit hyperspace near Dromund Kaas.
The battle to come was no ordinary battle.
It was going to be a battle for the ages.
A battle that caused two totally different eras to meet face to bloody face.
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Command Bunker, Imperial Citadel, Kaas City.
Deep underneath the Imperial Citadel, Darth Maul giving a briefing to the assembled Sith Lords and Imperial Officers. He stood in front of an orange hologram of the city, which was surrounded by a thick jungle.
When holograms of Empress Acina and her apprentice, a pureblood Sith named Darth Vowrawn, appeared in the room, Maul began to speak, pointing at the city and the space above.
"Their Attack will begin by air. Ground forces will be committed once they believe the battle is won." Maul pointed to several narrow streets on the edge of the city. "We'll lure them into the chokepoints, here, here, and here. Use their numbers against them. Once we draw them in, Lord Vowrawn will lead our forces in a full scale counter-attack. What we lack in numbers, we will make up for in superior skill and mastery of the terrain."
Acina nodded. But her heir and apprentice had reservations.
"And where will you and your Mandalorians... Maul?" Vowrawn said, deliberately ignoring the 'Darth' in front of Maul's name.
Maul looked at Vowrawn's hologram and sized him up, before speaking in his cool, yet frightening voice. "My warriors will be carrying out our part of the plan that is most important... Vowrawn," Maul said, addressing the Sith master the same way he addressed Maul.
They both stared at each other from across the room, scowling.
But then the Empress stepped in with all the tact of a school teacher disciplining her students. "Put aside your petty rivalry, apprentice. Lord Maul will follow the plan just as I expect you to."
Vowrawn nodded, but made sure to give one last stink-eyed glance at Maul before keeping his bitterness in check. Then he looked to his master again.
"Master, how do you plan to face the Count?" He asked.
An armored figure stepped into the hologram next to the Empress. He wore bulky armor that was all black. "The newest unit of soldiers in our Empire... A platoon of Force-sensitive Dark troopers."
That's when they all looked to the ceiling as a dark feeling surrounded them all.
"I can feel it too..." Maul said as he looked up, "...The Separatists are advancing."
He turned to Rook Kast. "Kast, contact our warriors. Tell them we need to be in position for when the counter-attack."
She nodded and followed him out of the bunker, while Acina and Vowrawn's holograms disappeared, going on to direct their forces into battle.
Behind the great wall protecting Kaas City, Imperial forces were preparing for battle. Soldiers rushed back and forth to get to their defensive stations on top of the outer wall, and outside of it on the jungle floor.
Anti-ship cannons were loaded up, and their barrels were pointed up at the sky.
"Move, move! We are under attack. Get to your positions and prepare for war!" One officer shouted.
As Sith Troopers with bulky onyx armor, and red stripes, rushed to their positions, Darth Vowrawne, apprentice to Empress Acina and heir to her throne, stood on weapons crates to give an inspiring speech to his men.
"Your Empress has decreed that not a single step shall be taken backwards. We will stop the False Sith, and their pathetic army at the walls of our great city. On this day, as the enemy fleet descends upon us, we will defend our glorious civilization against the false Sith. Your families demand that you rise to the occasion to fight for the glory of our Empire. For too long, we suffered our crippling, humiliating defeat at the hands of the Jedi, and the Republic. We've suffered countless, unbearable hardships. We were left by our enemies to die from disease and famine. But that time has passed. For years, we've endured nothing but struggle and suffering, slowly rebuilding our strength, our pride, and our Empire. Once the false Sith have been defeated, we will emerge the shadows and show the galaxy our true power. For The Empire!"
The assembled troopers pumped their fists into the air and cut loose with a vicious battle cry.
"FOR THE EMPIRE!"
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Dooku turned to Grievous. "General, you may proceed with the operation," Dooku said before he sat back down in the command chair.
Grievous bowed his head before answering. "Yes master." He turned around and began to take long clanking strides across the deck with his metal feet. "All ahead full. Load the batteries and raise the forward shields. Prepare to fire on my command."
The droids all snapped to attention and sounded off a crisp 'Roger, Roger' in almost perfect unison.
They turned back to their stations and got the ship moving. The Invisible Hand rumbled forward at the head of the fleet. The frigates, destroyers, and supply ships followed her at flank speed.
Imperial warships maintained their defensive blockade over Dromund Kaas. These old Star-Destroyers have never seen action before. And they were heavily modified. They were at a slight disadvantage in the face of the modern day warships of the Separatist Alliance. But that didn't matter to the warriors of the Sith Empire. Their ancestors carved their way into the unknown, and built a civilization from less than nothing. This attitude made them undaunted in the face of adversary. They were fighting for their History, their Empress, and for their Empire.
When both sides were within range of one another, Grievous barked out an order to his fleet.
"Fire!"
And so they did.
Red plasma bolts from the Confederate side flew across the void between them. Seconds later, the Sith responded in kind. Their shields absorbed most of their blasts, but some got through. Pieces of durasteel were blasted off from the hulls of ships from both sides.
It was very clear that the Empire had better armor and firepower. But the Separatists had better shields, engines, and numbers.
Especially numbers.
The Separatist's overwhelming numbers began to whittle away at the Sith armor. Hundreds of red laser bolts slammed into the Imperial Warships and eventually wore them down. Holes were melted into their armor, and their critical systems were speared with hot plasma, causing them to ignite and create explosions that ripped them apart.
Fighters from both sides began to buzz around the ships like angry bee hives. Vulture and Tri-fighter droids zipped around and engaged in dogfights with the Sith Star-fighters. Literally thousands of fighters were caught in a dance of death for control of the skies.
But those skies were swiftly being put under control. The Sith warships began to pull away from the battle line and move towards a new position.
"Sir, the enemy fleet is falling back. The way to the surface is clear!" One droid called out.
"Begin landing our troops!" Grievous ordered while pointing to the planet below. "We'll deploy at this open field three klicks from the outer wall and attack the city directly".
All across the fleet, Separatist fighters and landing craft, their wings packed to the brim with AAT and MTT tanks and battle droids of all kinds, began to fly to the surface, while the two fleets continued to hammer away at each other from a distance that was decreasing rapidly.
Dooku stood up from the command chair and began to walk out the door. He turned to Grievous. "General, I want you to stay up here and deal with the enemy naval forces, and direct the ground forces from up here. I will go to the surface... and deal with these 'exiles'," Dooku said as he stepped off of the bridge with several Magnaguards following him.
"Yes, my lord," Grievous said before Dooku stepped off of the bridge.
Grievous turned just in time to see an Imperial Star-Destroyer ram straight into a Separatist frigate, cleaving it in two before causing a powerful explosion.
Fighting the Empire was going to become harder the closer to defeat it got.
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Outer wall of Kaas City.
Hundreds of Imperial Troopers lined up on the wall, and waited.
It was the calm before the storm. Quite possibly the worst part of war. Sith warriors and Stormtroopers of the Ancient Sith Empire looked out and watched the dark gray storm clouds forming over the landscape. A landscape that their ancestors conquered, tamed, and exploited for the creation of the Empire's great cities and fleets, which were all over the system. They would all die before that glorious legacy was quashed by a Sith Lord wannabe.
Suddenly, the storm clouds began to crackle with purple lighting. Thundering booms rumbled across the region. That's when they saw tiny shapes coming down from the sky. Hundreds of droid fighters and bombers flew towards the city.
Heavy cannons began to cut loose with a barrage of heavy fire. Thick clouds of ged glowing flak filled the skies. Many Separatist fighters were blasted out of the Sky, where they spun out of control and crashed into the jungle below. Smoke columns rose up over the tree tops. Several more vultures crashed into the wall. A group of soldiers were knocked off of the top of the wall by a vulture that plowed into the them, before crashing behind the wall and exploding.
But them the hyena bombers flew by. Proton bombs were fired from their bomb bay doors, before they slammed into the hardened bunkers on top of, and at the base of the wall. Explosions rooted the wall.
Sith Star-fighters and AA guns tried to stop the swarm of fighters. But despite their valiant efforts, many Separatist fighters and bombers got through. Explosions blossomed from the city streets, and many buildings were blasted open. Fires continued to rage and belch columns of smoke up into the air, darkening the city's skyline.
But despite the damage inflicted on the Sith, they all held firm.
They had too, as the Separatist landing craft began to land in a field a couple miles from the outer wall.
It wouldn't be too long now.
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Separatist Landing Zone, outside Kaas City.
Heavy cannon fire from the city cut loose and sent red bolts of pure energy down range in the direction of the Separatist landing craft. The droid passengers felt the ship vibrating beneath their feet, as heavy flak made the ship shake from the nearby bangs.
One CIS ship was hit in the wing. It wasn't blasted off, but it was damaged to the point where the wind caused it to wobble. The wing was then sheared off and it crashed into the wing behind it. The unbalanced ship then spun out of control and crashed into the jungle below, causing a huggable of fire to lick across the jungle floor. Hundreds of birds flew up all at once as their ecosystem was disturbed by the ensuing battle, which still had yet to begin.
Hyena bombers continued to fly overhead and drop their payload on the capital city, while Vulture Droids and Sith Star-fighters zipped back and forth over the skyscrapers, trying to get an advantage over the other.
The ships all eventually touched down with thud. A loud hiss was caused by decompressed air, as the large doors began to open up, causing a beam of light to shine into the dark staging area. When the door was completely open, the ramp extended and angled down into the soil. That's when the thousands of droids and hundreds of tanks emptied out the ship.
They began to march onto the city, their metal feet clanking menacingly in perfect unison.
PLECK, PLOOCK! PLECK, PLOOCK! PLECK, PLOOCK!
Invisible Hand.
Grievous watched as holographic landing craft touched down on the map in front of him.
Tey-Zuka walked up to Grievous to give his latest report.
"Enemy naval forces are scattering. And our 2nd wave has landed. They're pushing into the city as we speak."
"Good, Tey-Zuka. We have them on the run. Continue the bombardment. One our troops take control of the city, the Imperials will be insects under our heels!"
As the droid army marched into the city, through the forest, a Geonosian ship, painted tan and brown, was coming in for a landing, amidst the explosions that blossomed across the city due to the bombardment from orbit.
It was being piloted by a gray bearded man with a black uniform and a brown cape. He was on a mission to kill the Empress, and ensure his master's position as the True Lord of the Sith.
"Find Maul and Empress Acina - no other targets matter." Dooku directed his guards. "level this city until they are found."
Dooku and his guards walked into the burning city, on their way to hunt down the fugitive Maul, and the exiles.
He would not fail.
He was all too familiar with that price.
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Throne Room, Imperial Citadel.
Darth Acina looked out over her glorious Empire.
She was clad in her form fitting skinsuit, with light armor, and draped in a cloak.
A hologram of her apprentice, a pure-blood Sith named Darth Vowrawn, was on his knees behind her with his head bowed. Acina turned around and looked down on her apprentice.
"My master, the Separatists are upon us. They are marching through the jungle right now and will soon be upon us," he said before raising his head.
"Draw them in. Call in close bombing runs to make it look like a desperate fight. Just keep them distracted. We will soon wipe these mindless creations, and their masters, off the face of our planet, and then out of the system," she said.
He lowered his head again. "Yes, my master," he said before the hologram flickered out and disappeared.
Darth Acina looked back at the battle that was within view of her throne room. More Separatist landing craft continued to land while under heavy fire from her army. A trio of Star-fighters from the Empire shrieked overhead and fired on a group of Hyena bombers, who were trying to bomb her Citadel directly. She smiled when she saw them get hit, before trailing smoke and spinning put of control. That's when a volley of missiles exploded near them, releasing swarms of small droids with tiny buzz saws. The Sith fighters were ripped apart and destroyed.
One stray buzz droid handed on her balcony. It unfolded and made a threatening stance as hit extended its buzzsaws. But she wasn't amused. When the droid jumped at her, she merely lifted her hand, and an invisible force surrounded the small droid, before it floated in midair, and collapsed inward like a tin can. Then she flung it down to the streets below before looking back out over the field.
Her army was already engaged in the field.
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Imperial Citadel, Main foyer.
After trekking through the city for about an hour, Count Dooku and a pair of Magnaguards made it to the main palace, which was the tallest building in the city. On the entire planet for that matter.
They walked across the main courtyard, which was in smoking ruins thanks to the Separatist bombardment. Corpses lay in pieces or were sprawled out on the floor. Some were hanging from ledges above them. They didn't meet any resistance as they walked through the ruins. They walked up to the door, and Count Dooku used the force to push it open.
He and his guards walked through. As they stood at attention, Dooku crouched down as if inspecting the damaged flooring. But he was actually reaching out with the force, trying to look for his prey.
"Maul was here, but I cannot locate him." He said before he looked up at the ceiling. "But I do sense a powerful presence above us. It must be Acina in the throne room. Let's move out and-"
Dooku was cut off by a violent slashing noise that made his two body guards open up like tin cans, sparks flying and wires swinging. Dooku looked back to see them being impaled.
He turned around just in time to see a dozen figures de-cloak out of no where. They were Elite Imperial guardsmen, who he could tell were force sensitive. They were armed with electro-staffs, which sparked red on both ends.
"Welcome, Count. Empress Acina sends her regards." The lead guard said. "We have come to deal with you, for your transgressions against the Sith Empire."
As the guards surrounded Dooku, he activated his lightsaber and prepared to defend himself.
"You will find that task beyond your abilities."
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Invisible Hand, In Orbit above Dromund Kaas.
General Grievous' fleet hung in orbit above Dromund Kaas, blockading the planet. A debris field of warship husks floated nearby, a testament to the Separatist Navy's capabilities, both in its leadership and its raw power.
The fleet's main batteries were aimed at the planet below. Streaks of red plasma flew down to the planet below, slamming into the capital city, gutting skyscrapers and demolishing smaller buildings. The fleet made sure to walk the bombardment ahead of their army, giving the army continuous covering fire. Sections of the outer wall were reported to have been destroyed, and droids were already pouring through and marching into the city.
Tey-Zuka walked up to the General. "All gunnery decks are reloaded and recharged, Sir." He reported. "The fleet is ready to resume the bombardment on your order."
"Not yet..." Grievous said as he looked around at the debris field, "...Something isn't right." All he saw were destroyed ships. He looked at a display that showed an overlay of the Invisible Hand. It only had it's forward shields raised, just like the rest of the fleet.
He turned to his neimodian captain "Is this all of the ships that they had in orbit?" Grievous asked.
"According to intel from our probe droids," the captain answered.
Grievous looked back around at the debris field. In his gut - what was left of it anyway - he felt that there was more to this image than was currently visible.
"We know that they have early warning systems, and more battle groups spread across the system... and yet, we've only encountered their home fleet. Why would they leave their throne world with no reserves?" Grievous asked. "Where are they?" He asked himself as he studied the wreckages around him. Then, the memory of his defeat at Bothawui hit him.
"RAISE THE REAR SHIELDS!" He shouted. "And direct the fleet to do the same."
A droid pilot did as Grievous ordered and put up an extra layer of protection around the aft section of the Dreadnought.
Just as this happened, dozens of objects materialized out of no where. They in front of Grievous' ships, in the debris field. More were behind the CIS ships, who still had yet to raise their rear shields.
Sith warships and space stations of some kind had de-cloaked and surrounded the Separatists.
That's when they opened fire. Red laser bolts exploded from the barrels of the Sith cannons. They struck the CIS ships in their protected flanks. The small space stations were armed with anti-ship cannons and missiles. They added to the destructive power of the Sith navy, and made short work of any fighters that tried to break through.
The engines of several Confederate warships exploded. They were caught in the planet's gravity and began to lose altitude. One Munificent-class frigate that lost altitude did so right over a supply ship. It cleaved right through the part of the ship that connected the two massive semicircles. It caused a brilliant explosion that made the frigate disappear, and the supply ship sections fall towards the surface, and burn up in the atmosphere.
Many CIS ships were able to raise their shields and survive this deadly blow. But many weren't so fortunate.
A heavy blast rocked the ship. Several terminals sparked, and droids were sent crashing to the deck. Grievous, Tey-Zuka, and several crew members struggled to hold onto something and maintain their footing.
Grievous stared at this devastating blow and growled. He turned to the captain. "Captain. Redirect our cannons. Target those Imperial scumbags and return fire!" Grievous barked.
"They were just waiting for us. It's a trap!" The captain exclaimed.
Grievous walked up in front of the captain's chair and slammed his fist down on the armrests, crippling them. The captain looked up in terror at Grievous' faceplate and gasped.
"Relay my orders, or I will find someone who will," Grievous threatened.
The trembling captain nodded his head nervously and tapped a button on his command console. "All batteries, fire. Fire!"
Nightbrother, Darth Maul's personal spacecraft.
Leading the charge against the Separatist fleet was the fleet of Mandalorian warships that Maul brought with him.
"Hit the enemy fleet while their cannons are still aimed at the surface. Focus on the unshielded ships before you swarm the rest of the fleet. Then we'll close in on Grievous' flagship." Maulsaid over the comm to the rest of the fleet. "Once the skies are clear, the Droid armies will be nothing but target practice for our guns."
The Sith and Mandalorian fighters swarmed over the Separatist fleet, dealing critical damage to several warships.
The heavier warships were right behind them, receiving cover from several orbital defense platforms, ready to unleash their fury and might against the invaders. They closed in and started hammering away at the Confederate fleet at close range, blasting them into fiery chunks that floated out into space, or burned up in the atmosphere.
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Imperial Citadel, Main Foyer.
Back in the Imperial palace, Dooku was fighting off a score of Imperial commandoes.
They attacked in waves, trying to swarm him. But Dooku kept moving, using his blade to expertly parry their strikes, and counter-attacking when he saw an opportunity. This tactic forced the commandoes to try and keep up. It also forced them to only attack one at a time, allowing Dooku to simply slash away at their numbers.
Several commandoes laid on the ground, their bodies smoking from where Dooku slashed open their armor. The head of Dooku's latest kill rolled around on the floor. Despite their dwindling numbers, they continued to pursue Dooku through the doorway, leading into an adjacent hallway.
One Sith commando tried to swing his staff at him, only to have both of his arms cut off above the elbows. The trooper screamed in pain and dropped to his knees, just as his comrades blew past him to swarm Dooku. In this wider space, the remaining commandoes fanned out to attack from several directions.
But Dooku had different plans. He raised one hand in their direction, fanned out his fingers, and shot out an array of lightning bolts that enveloped all of the commandoes. They screamed in pain as energy coarse through them, locking up their muscles and cooking their skin and organs.
When Dooku was done, he lowered his hand, and all of the commandoes dropped to the ground.
Except one: the leader.
Enraged by the loss of his comrades, the Force sensitive spec-ops commander used the force to leap through the air, using lighting to amplify his staff. He jumped towards the Count with his staff raised over his head.
"Now you die!" He shouted.
He struck at the Count, and both combatants parried each other's strikes. Then the spec-ops commander began to jump around Dooku, striking from all directions, trying to keep Dooku on his toes. He even managed to graze the Count's shoulders.
Dooku growled, frustrated by this soldier's stubborn fighting style.
"You are formidable, Count." The commando said. "This will be a victory well earned."
"Know this, commander," Dooku said before his opponent tried to jump over him again. He raised his hand towards the commando. But before he could land a blow, he was suddenly floating in mid air above Dooku. He was surprised. "I will destroy you..." Dooku said before he used the force started to crush his opponent's neck, choking the life out of him. Then he tried to raise his hands to strike at Dooku with the force, only to be slammed into the ground by Dooku. "...Then Maul," he said said before he used the force to make him grind against the floor, which was ripped apart by Dooku's power. "...and finally, your Empress." Dooku walked up to the injured commando, who was covered in bruises and had blood running down his face. Dooku pointed his blade at the commando. "Your failed empire will be but a memory."
Then he slashed his blade across the trooper's torso, cutting him in half.
When he was done, he dusted himself off, as if this all took no effort whatsoever. He looked around him at the corpses strewn out across the hallway. Then he looked up at the ceiling. he could feel a powerful presence above him. It wasn't Maul, so it had to be Acina.
He walked into the nearest elevator and pressed the button for that floor.
It was time to pay the false empress a visit.
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Outer Wall.
Darth Vowrawn used his red lightsaber to deflect hundreds of Separatist laser blasts. Droids fell before his redirected firepower. Troopers and Sith Acolytes all around him were fighting as well.
The droid army came out of the jungle and their tanks began to fire on the wall. The trenches at the bottom were filled with Sith Troopers, who fired on the droids coming out of the forest. Many Sith acolytes used their sabers and abilities to keep the droid army at bay. Several acolytes rushed up and dried to cut several dozen droids apart. But they were overwhelmed with blaster fire, forcing them to scream in pain and drop their sabers.
Imperial tanks that were dug into the trenches in a reverse slope position, fired on the droids. Their heavy cannons ripped files of droids away like a fiery eraser. Separatist tanks that got to close were punished for their transgressions with a healthy dose of artillery fire. The tanks were gutted and began to belch fire and smoke. But the Imperial tanks began to be knocked out one by one, their turrets being blasted off before pillars of smoke rose from the turret housings.
Separatist battle droids began to march into the trenches. The Imperial stormtroopers began to fight with the droids in hand to hand combat. But they were being overrun. Droids started to plant charges on the wall below them.
Several explosions shook the wall, causing Sith troopers on top to fall over the side, plunging to their deaths.
"They've overrun the trenches. They are about to breach the wall." One Imperial officer called out.
"Get down into the streets. Draw them into the kill-zone!" Vowrawn said as he twirled his lightsaber around in his hand and jumped over the wall, and above the trenches. The heir to the Imperial throne summoned a powerful force push that sent a wave of droids flying back.
Two stormtroopers gunners in the trench, directly behind Vowrawn, stood in awe. They looked to their left and right, and saw Sith acolytes and troopers coming down from the wall to try and push the CIS back. They exited the trenches and went to join the battle One of them ripped their repeating blaster off of its tripod and began to use it to mow down several droids.
The Sith acolytes, led by Lord Vowrawn, began to chop their way through dozens of droids. The troopers were close behind, laying down murderous fire onto the droids.
Vowrawn looked back and saw charges the CIS placed on unexploded sections of the wall. He used the force to grab the charges and throw them at an advancing MTT. The charging were tossed into the opening hatch. That's when they detonated, causing the droid to be ripped open by an explosion.
As Vowrawn led the counter-attack, Imperial artillery from the city began to fall from the above and crash into the forward echelons of the droid army.
"Retreat, retreat!" One droid officer yelled out as more plasma balls slammed into his forces.
The droid turned back into the forest to get away from the Sith forces.
"They're falling back! Victory is ours!" One Sith warrior shouted.
The troopers pumped their fists into the air and began cry out in victory.
But Vowrawn turned back towards them. "STOP!" He shouted. Everyone stopped. "This is just the beginning. Dig in and prepare for another wave. We have our work cut out for us". He said.
The troopers fell back into the trenches, or onto the wall. But most of the acolytes stayed on the ground with Lord Vowrawn. They all stood there, facing the jungle. For the longest time, noting happened. They just stared at an unwelcoming jungle.
That's when they began to hear the faint sounds of clanking coming from the forest. The sound got louder and louder, which only meant one thing.
Vowrawn placed his button on the activation switch. When the droids came into view, he activated his saber. His acolytes did the same. The Imperial troopers were ready to jump out of their trenches. Vowrawn raised his blade in the air and then pointed it to the advancing droids.
"ATTACK!"
Darth Acina stood on her balcony, with her hands on the railing. She saw the explosions getting bigger and bigger. She could feel the booms vibrating beneath her hands and feet.
'It looks like my apprentice is giving them trouble'.
But then she saw several laser bolts slam into the streets below. Buildings were blasted part. Pieces of stone and shrapnel were blasted off of the sides of the skyscrapers, before they rained down into the streets below.
She heard painful groans behind her. Several blasters discharged. Then she heard bodies dropping. But despite the commotion, she ignored it, and continued to look out over her city.
"Your little kingdom is falling apart, Empress," a voice said behind her. "The time of your short-lived ambitions are over".
Acina cracked a small smile, but didn't turn to face the new voice. "Hm. I see that Sidious sent you to kill me. It's a coward's tactic".
"Hm, charmed," Dooku said as he walked into the room and came to a stop. "But I'm afraid that I must inform you that your Empire's time has come."
Acina thought about that for a second. Then she allowed her cloak to fall off of her shoulders, and be reduced to a puddle of fabric on the floor. "You're right," she said before she turned around to face him, and pulled her lightsaber hilt from her belt. "The Sith Empire's time has come".
Dooku raised one eyebrow, while maintaining his stoic frown. He pointed his lightsaber at her.
Acina activated her double bladed purple lightsaber and spun it like a propeller around her shoulders.
Both combatants faced each other. Then they began to circle each other around the throne room, stepping over the bodies of Acina's fallen guardsmen. They stared at each other, as if daring the other to make the first move.
That's when she twirled her doubled bladed sword around and growled. Then she exploded from her position and pounced towards Dooku. He assumed a defensive stance and let him come to her. He fired an arc of lightning from his fingertips. Acina raised her blade to block the lightning as she charged. When she was close enough to Dooku, she swung her blade at him. Dooku stopped firing lightning and raised his blade to defend himself. Their blades clashed, and blue lightning crackled off of their blades, making their faces sting slightly.
The duel began.
Dooku was a defensive fighter. He chose to withdraw and allow his opponent to exert energy trying to wear him down. And then when his opponent had exhausted themselves, he would unleash a tidal wave of lightsaber strikes.
But Acina was a more aggressive fighter, both quick and light on her feet. It would be difficult for him to pin her down.
Their duel was vicious.
Whatever was the outcome, it was going to decide the future of the Sith, whether they stick to the old ways, are embrace change. Either way, it was just another example of the Sith always turning on one another. But that was the way of the Sith as decreed by their code.
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Outer Wall.
Darth Vowrawn and his forces tried their best to hold the wall, but droids continued to pour our of the jungles. Someone looked up and could barely make out the shapes of the CIS ships in low orbit. Red muzzle flashes dotted the ships. Seconds later, bolts of red plasma slammed into the outer wall, blasting holes into it.
"Retreat!" Vowrawn shouted. "Everyone, move into the streets. We'll hold them at the checkpoints". He said as he deflected another laser bolts away from him.
What was left of the outer wall's garrison abandoned their posts and retreated deeper into the city. The Droid army began to pour through the breaches in the wall, flooding the area with metal bodies.
The Droid army was winning. or so they thought.
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Nightbrother, leading the counterattack against Grievous' fleet.
The Invisible Hand's weapons redirected from the planet's surface and began to fire back on the Sith fleet. The remaining Separatist warships fired back as well, targeting muzzle flashes and critical systems with incredible success. Several Imperial battlecruisers were dead in the water, but there were many more left. They continued to pound the Separatist warships into oblivion. One by one they either shut down or they exploded in a brilliant flame.
Some Separatist warships launched all of their fighters to keep the fight going. Others decided to crash into the Sith ships on suicide runs. The Sith and the CIS were in a fight that no one seemed to want to back away from.
As Maul's ship continued to lead the charge against Grievous' flagship, the remaining CIS warships started to close ranks around the flagship, creating a protective screen that keep the Invisible Hand safe. The ships in front were lead by a massive Lucrehulk-class battleship. It was a giant monster, with a core ship surrounded by two giant-curved arms for hanger bays. It was blistering with guns and droid fighters, which started to swarm Maul's fleet.
Hundreds of Sith fighters, and several Mandalorian ones, were ripped apart. Maul watched as a Mandalorian corvette was caught in a tractor beam between the lucre hulk's two massive hanger arms. The ship was ripped apart by the tractor beam alone.
That's when the CIS' heavy guns unleashed a wall of turbo-laser fire, that ripped apart several cruisers and frigates on his side of the fight.
"We need to take out that battleship. All fighters, take out their tractor beams, so that our cruisers can get in closer." Maul ordered.
On his order, every fighter that was available attacked the devices that were outside of each hanger. Several dozens fighters, and a couple cruisers, were wiped out when they got too close. But then, he Shadow Collective Gauntlet fighters were able to unleash their payload onto the tractor beams. The two devices were destroyed in a brilliant explosion.
"Excellent. Now, target their critical systems. We need to get our cruisers into this fight before Grievous can reorganize his forces."
As the Mandalorian and Sith fighters held back the fighters, Maul's gauntlet fighters continued to target the ship's critical systems. They bombed the antenna array at the rear of the ship above the engine section, cutting off the ship's ability to co-ordinate it's defenses and call for help.
Then, the Death Watch bombers attacked the command tower located on top of the core section. The towers exploded. Without their command center, the ship was just one giant paper weight with guns and uncoordinated fighters.
But despite this success from Maul's ships, hundreds of more fighters began to swarm over the battle.
"The enemy fleet is trying to push back. We need to take this monster out if we want to cripple their fleet!" Maul said over the comm.
"But how, Lord Maul?" The co-pilot asked. "That battleship is one giant fortress. It just absorbs everything we throw at it."
"Lord Maul," Rook Kast, Maul's lieutenant and pilot, said. "There's an opening in the core ship. It looks like the power generator."
Maul looked at the core ship at the center of the ship and saw that Kast was right. The ship's outer hull began to open up, and a blue glowing power core was visible.
"The ship must've taken too much damage. The power core is overheating. It's trying to vent the excess heat into space. All fighters, fly down there and destroy it." Maul ordered over the comm.
Kast nodded, and flew towards the power core. Every Mandalorian fighter in the fleet began to fly towards the core ship. That' when a sudden wall of flak slammed right into the fighters. Several were ripped apart and began to spin out of control. One fighter ahead of Maul's ship disintegrated. A second one had its wing clipped, causing the ship to spin out of control and crash into another fighter, destroying both.
Maul leaned over the seat that Kast was piloting from. He pointed towards the ship. "Get below their fire." Maul ordered, just as a blaster bolt grazed their wing.
Kast obeyed, and flew the ship below their guns. Several Separatist fighters swooped down and strafed the flight of Mandalorian ships, destroying a few. Most of the remaining fighters broke off and engaged in a dogfight.
That's when Maul's ship, and two others, flew towards the core. They flew into the opening, followed by several tri-droid fighters. They fired, destroying one Mando ship.
They saw the generator now. It was two power conduits. One one the ceiling, and one on the bottom. They were both connected by a blue energy fielding. As they flew past, the co-pilot dropped the Nightbrother's payload of proton bombs, which detonated against the core. The second ship did the same just before it was vaporized by the pursuing droid fighters.
The reactor detonated, and secondary explosions began to go off across the rest of the ship. The outer hull began to close up.
"Get us out of here, or we'll be trapped in here!" Maul ordered.
Kast gunned the engines, the Nightbrother accelerated out of the opening in the hull, just as flames shot out of every opening in the core ship. As Maul's ship escaped, the core ship went up in a massive explosion that ripped the rest of the ship apart. The massive arms broke up and were launched in several directions, smashing into several separatist ships.
"Excellent. Now we can bring the fight to Grievous." Maul said over the comm. "All ships, attack."
Every Sith battlecruiser that was being held off by the Lucrehulk's battle group bega to advance again, firing on the Separatist warships that were in their system. The way to Grievous' ship was open, and the Sith began to close in. The noose was becoming ever tighter around Grievous' neck.
Grievous looked out over the space battle. The Invisible Hand was now out in the open, surrounded by debris that used to be its escorts, which were still being torn apart by Sith warships. The rest of the fleet was behind the ship, but too far to protect it from the Sith's wrath
"GRRRrrrr! Contact the rest of the fleet. Get us out of here!" He ordered.
The bridge crew powered up the engines and they began to maneuver the ship through the debris field. With the lucrehulk destroyed, the Sith were beginning to advance unopposed. So that meant more and more ships would soon run down the Invisible Hand and destroy it before it could link up with what was left of the Confederate Navy, get away from the battle.
One Harrower-class battle cruiser tried to intercept the retreating flagship. It blocked the warship's path and started to fire away at it with its broadsides. The Invisible Hand began to take fire from the Imperial cannons.
The ship began to shake violently. Droids were forced to the ground. Tey-Zuka was destroyed when a terminal exploded next to him. The neimoidian captain struggled to stay in his chair by gripping the damaged armrests that Grievous crumpled earlier. Blood dripped out of his hands from the sharpened metal.
Grievous clenched his taloned feet, keeping himself rooted into the deck. That's when he felt the ship slow down and change coarse.
"HOLD YOUR COURSE! We're getting out of this system, and we'll do it even if we have to fight our way out." Grievous ordered.
"General! Shields are at 40% and dropping rapidly." One droid called out.
"General, the last of our ships have jumped out of the system. We're on our own now!" Another called out.
"Re-route all power to the forward guns and thrusters!" He shouted before pointing at the cruiser. "Full speed ahead!"
"But sir..." one droid that was next to Grievous said. "...that's suicide".
Grievous swatted his hand at the droid, knocking its head off. He then looked around at the terrified crew members. "Any further objections?" He asked.
The droids looked at each other and began to respond to the query.
"Uhm, no".
"I don't think so".
"Nope".
"That's what I thought!" Grievous said before he looked back out the viewport. "Now ram this warship straight into the heart of that battlecruiser!"
The Invisible Hand's forward guns unleashed a hailstorm onto the cruiser that was less than half it's length, whittling the shields away, before powering on towards the battlecruiser, which stubbornly held its ground, but desperately fired its weapons.
That's when the separatist dreadnought cleaved right through the much smaller 2,500 foot cruiser. A massive explosion enveloped the cruiser and the dreadnought's bow. The Invisible Hand flew through the explosion and flew away at top sub-light speed, just as they started to take fire from the Imperial fleet behind it.
"Divert all power to the engines and rear shields. We'll link up with what's left of the fleet, and plan our next move," Grievous said.
A terminal began to chime and flash rapidly. Grievous looked down at it.
"Sir, incoming message from Darth Sidious," the captain said.
Grievous froze. Half of the fleet was demolished, and the other half was thrown out of the system. Communications with the surface just went out, the droid army was probably about to be destroyed, and Count Dooku was stranded behind enemy lines.
This was, quite possibly, the worst time to get a message from Darth Sidious.
"Put it through".
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Kaas City, outer districts, near the wall.
Darth Vowrawn and what remained of the Sith forces in the city were nearly surrounded. His remaining troops were cut off and surrounded. He was helpless to do anything as the droid army began to march throughout the city, crushing all of the last pockets of resistance.
The Sith troopers were being encircled, and the droids were marching towards them. Sith tanks burned, and barriers were covered in dead sith troopers that had died defending them, and fires raged all around them.
The city was engulfed in smoke.
Sith troops continued to hold on, firing their blaster rifles in every direction that the droids were coming from, while shouting encouraging one-liners.
"Stand you ground!"
"For the Empire!"
"Send these junk piles straight back to the scrap heap!"
Vowrawn and his fellow sith warriors continued to deflect blaster fire back into the droid army, while slashing away at any droid that got too close. But the droids continued to advance, blanketing the Imperial positions in heavy blaster fire.
"What do we do with them if they surrender?" One battle droid asked another.
"Our orders are to take no prisoners." The droid replied to his counterpart.
As Vowrawn continued to fight for the Empire that he was supposed to inherit one day, he looked round at the men he was fighting with, and then realized that the situation was becoming hopeless.
"You all fought hard. I'm proud to call you warriors of the Empire!" He called out to his men, who all looked somber.
That's when a loud whooshing sound echoed across the city, causing everyone to look up in curiosity. That's when red turbo laser bolts began to slam into the streets all around them.
One trooper said aloud that he thought it was the Separatists, finishing them off from orbit.
But when Vowrawn saw that the blasts were hitting the CIS landing zones outside the city, and the enemy formations all around them, he realized that it wasn't the separatists at all.
"Our comrades in orbit have dealt with the Separatist Navy. We have naval support!" He called out to his warriors. Then he pointed his blade at the battered droid units that survived the bombardment. "Push forward, men. Tear them apart!"
The Imperial forces, and the Sith warriors that led them, let out a massive battle cry that shook the foundations of every building in the city, before they charged into the Separatist lines, tearing down every droid in their way.
Victory was near.
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Imperial Citadel, Throne room.
High above the embattled surface, Count Dooku and Empress Acina were both fighting a duel to the finish. One was fighting to preserve the Sith Empire, while the other was destroying what his master perceived to be a rival.
They continued their vicious duel. That's when they were caught in a saber lock. Then they tried to use the force on each other, but ended up blasting each other across the room.
Both combatants struggled to get up and then dusted themselves off.
A light began to blink and chirp on Acina's wrist comm. She looked at it and began to cackle.
Dooku was confused. "What is it that you find so amusing, witch?"
She looked up at him with a sinister smile. Then gestured to the holo-table on the side of the room. "Take a look for yourself," she said. Dooku did, just as it turned on.
He saw images of a debris field. They had separatist ascetics and insignias. Then he saw destroyed battle droids all over the place, being piled up by the Sith troopers and acolytes that towered over them triumphantly.
"As you can see, Count Dooku, my forces have laid waste to your own." She said as Dooku continued to look at the screen with his ever stoic expression. "And now I will destroy you" she said as she charged at him.
As she swung her dual ended blade at him, he swiftly turned to her and slashed his blade through her's, cutting it into two halves, before he pushed her back across the room while using force lighting on her. She screamed in pain and skidded across the throne room floor.
She struggled and strained to get up. She got up, while trembling all the way. Acina used the force to summon her lightsaber halves. They flew into there hand and she activated both of them.
"You have impressed me, witch. You've proven to be a worthy adversary. I may not destroy your Empire today... but I can destroy you," he said as he walked over to her.
She began to cackle. "Don't be so sure," she said as a score of cloaked figures appeared out of no where. They were Sith acolytes, and force-sensitive Dark Troopers armed with blasters. Elite Warriors who would protect their Empress to their last breath. They activated their lightsabers. "Take him!" Acina ordered while pointing at Dooku, who prepared himself for what was inevitably going to happen next.
He twirled his sword in his hands and took a defensive posture. The troopers charged at him guns blazing. He deflected every shot that came his way back into the troopers, killing several of them. Some got too close and were chopped to pieces. The Dark Lord then raised his hand and fired an arc of lightning that enveloped all of the remaining troopers. They all screamed as their armor was cooked with themselves still inside, before dropping to the ground. Some were dead, while a few were still alive.
The Sith warriors charged at Dooku, stepping over their fallen troopers. They all surrounded him, readying their lightsabers to strike at Dooku.
"I am about to show you how powerful the Rule of Two has made us," Dooku said before he swiftly jumped forward and somersaulted towards one Sith warrior.
He struck at him with his saber, forcing the warrior to raise his blade to defend himself. He then began to strike back, but Dooku parried the successive strikes. Then, out the corner of his eye, he saw another Sith warrior trying to flank him. He struck at her and forced her to point her blade into the ground with his own and pushed her back. Another warrior charged from behind with his blade raised. He lifted him up with the force and threw him hard against the wall. He continued dueling another warrior and sidestepped the blow of another. He then began to parry both of their strikes at the same time. That's when he struck one across the chest and electrocuted the other one, charring her skin.
Two warriors down, two to go.
Empress Acina got back up to get back into the fight. She took her two purple lightsabers and began to strike viciously at Dooku. They got into a saber lock, but Acina kept using all of her strength to push him back. But she exhausted herself, and Dooku sent her flying back. She got up on her knees and crossed her blades in front of herself just in time to block an arc of Dooku's lightning.
He continued the lightning barrage until Acina's two remaining Sith warriors both tried to strike at him at once. They raised their blades over their heads and prepares to deliver a killing blow. Dooku then raised his hands to both of them and used lightning on them before they could strike. They screamed in pain before falling to their knees. That's when a few of Acina's remaining troopers were able to wake up and start firing stun blasts at him. He began to block them before he charged at them. Dooku slashed his blade through the neck of one trooper, and was about to deal with the rest.
But then, a battle cry caused him to turn around. It was Empress Acina. She came at him while swinging both blades at him wildly. She used her fury and might to juice up her strikes. She combined her lightning with her sword attacks, making her swords crackle. The strikes caused energy to splash passed Dooku's defenses. He dropped his sword and fell back onto the ground.
Acina smiled and walked closer to the Count. He tried to reach for his saber, but she used the force to slide the blade across the floor. Her two remaining warriors got behind Dooku. The Imperial troopers moved to surround him.
the Count was exhausted.
Acina gestured to her men to subdue him. But when two of the eight remaining troopers went to cuff him, Dooku shot up from the ground and fired an arc of lightning in front of him and behind him. The two troopers screamed as they were cooked alive, but the remaining troopers were safe behind Acina and the two warriors, who were blocking the lightning.
When he was too exhausted to keep it up, Acina's blade crackled with force lightning. She slashed her blades in an 'X' shape and launched an arc of Dooku's own lightning back at him. He was electrocuted and flown into a wall, before he hit it hard and dropped back down to the floor, finally unconscious.
Acina dropped to her knees before breathing hard.
"Your Majesty," the lead trooper said before he kneeled down to see if he could help her.
"I'm fine!" She exclaimed and waved him away. Then she pointed to Dooku. "Restrain him".
One trooper went to put special binders on Dooku.
"He's too dangerous to be kept alive!" One warrior said before he activated his blade and raised it above his head. "I say we kill him!"
Before he could drop the blade on Dooku's body, Acina force pushed him and sent him flying into a nearby wall.
The other warrior bowed. "Your Majesty, perhaps my comrade is right. He is too dangerous."
"The invaders have been defeated this time. But Sidious will be back with another invasion." Then she looked down at Dooku's shackled and unconscious body. "But right now, we have the means to bargain from a position of strength... all thanks to our new ally."
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Darth Maul's quarters, aboard the Nightbrother.
Later, with the battle over, Maul went into his quarters to meditate. He was about to seek advice from someone who could give it to him.
"It is done, Mother." He said before a green mist began to fill the room. It then took the form of his mother, Talzin. He kneeled before her and bowed his head. Dooku has been captured. And Grievous was forced to flee the system. Their forces suffered greatly. And we now have a new alliance with an exiled action of the Sith Empire."
"You have done well my son. Soon, Sidious will follow..." she said as she leaned down and reached for her son's cheek, making him look up at her, "...and together we will have our revenge."
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Well folks, that's part 4.
Hope ya'll enjoyed.
Please leave your thoughts down in the review section.
Until next time, This is Grubkiller, over and out.