"Set course for Telos," The order came from the Captain of the Hammerhead class vessel Harbinger, Lasek, as soon as he marched onto the bridge. The situation on Eriadu had taken longer than the naval officer had expected and with an exceedingly tight timetable, delays were unacceptable.
The navigation officer acknowledged the order. Not wanting to waste the Captain's time by waiting for a confirmation he knew his superior would give, however, he activated the hyperdrive and sent the warship travelling at faster than light sped. "Estimated time of arrival is ten days Captain."
"That shouldn't be too much of a delay then," Lasek said, more to himself than anybody else, though it did nothing to quell the frustration inside him.
It was a feeling shared by many officers in the navy. Their numbers had been severely weakened during the Jedi Civil War and, by the war's end, the devastation inflicted in the conflict ensured that the number of calls each vessel responded to had grown exponentially. Ships normally rotated between dry-dock stationing and deep-space operations, a practise the Republic could no longer afford. Every single ship was constantly moving through the Republic, patrolling systems to provide the illusion that the galactic government was still capable of maintaining security for its member star systems. With the Republic as weak as it was, many of those at High Command, and in the Senate, knew that the coalition's infrastructure depended on every single planet.
Then again, Lasek thought, his gaze fixated on the familiar blue funnel associated with Hyperspace, sometimes even that doesn't feel like enough. The Harbinger had originally been dispatched to Onderon, to attempt to ease the growing tensions between the disputing factions. The planet was positioned on the edges of Republic controlled space, providing the galactic government with a distant outpost to warn against outside incursions. It was for these reasons that Lasek's original assignment had been extremely important, but the distress call from Eriadu could not have been ignored. Having been settled by Republic citizens, the planets was one of the exceedingly few worlds in the galaxy's outer-rim, making it important from the start. What made High Command designate Eriadu as a priority for the Harbinger was its economic worth.
Since its settlement, Eriadu had made rapid progress in such a short time. With the goal of the settlers to make the world the galaxy's second Coruscant, it was no wonder its mining operations generated a revenue far greater than most planets at such development could produce, and there was great potential for it to be able to continue developing even further. The general conception was that Eriadu would be able to reach a level of economic importance Taris had once been centuries before its destruction.
Even with Eriadu's importance to the Republic, Captain Lasek felt the diversion from Onderon to be too risky. It wasn't until the request to bring to bring an additional passenger onboard had made the new assignment's value clear. As was standard procedure for those wishing to book passage on Republic ships, intergalactic databanks were consulted to perform a background check. The Harbinger's Captain had been surprised when his Commander informed him that there was no data available on a 'Kaelan Nalto' and so he had transmitted the name to Coruscant. Lasek hadn't expected any information, as he suspected it was a false name. Instead he not only received a reply, but direct orders from High Command, with a Priority One tag, to pickup the passenger and proceed to Telos as expediently as possible. No further explanation had been provided, something which irked the naval officer and only added to his frustration. Still, orders were orders.
The steady clacking of metal striking metal made Lasek turned away from the bridge's central viewport to regard the mechanical form approaching. Standing just under two metres in height with yellow photoreceptors and a grey coloured frame, the HK protocol droids were a valuable asset to the fleet and the Captain was glad to let it take care of both trivial and delicate matters on the Harbinger.
"Query: You summoned me Captain?"
"Yes," Lasek responded, "I need you to check on the passengers again and make sure they're comfortable, particularly the one we discussed earlier, his safety is paramount." The Captain moved to turn back to the viewport but stopped and added, "Try not to be too obvious about it though."
"Statement: I shall use the utmost discretion Captain." With that the protocol droid walked out of the bridge and toward the crew quarters of the Hammerhead class ship.
()()()
Kaelan sat in one of the chairs in his quarters, one of his Vericon disruptors lay disassembled on the table. A micro-extractor, guided by the exile's hand, ran through the upper and lower assembly of the weapon, collection trace amounts of particle build-up in the chamber of the disruptor, a build-up caused by the firing process of a discharging blaster. When a blaster bolt was formed, three important components were used in the process; blaster gas, a power pack, and an actuating module. Once a blaster's trigger was depressed, blaster gas moved to the power pack, allowing it to be energized. From there, it passed on to the actuating module where it was magnetically compressed, a process that forcibly rearranged the energized gaseous atoms into a linear patterns, creating a compressed beam of energy particles commonly known as a 'blaster bolt.' Over time, this resulted in a steady increase of heat in the blaster's barrel and a slow build-up of waste particles in the chamber. Heat absorbent alloys lining the barrel of the blaster kept the thermal levels under control and weekly use of the micro-extractor kept the weapon at optimum performance.
It was something Kaelan had neglected for four days past the recommended time allotment, though he actually appreciated his absentmindedness now as it gave him something to do onboard the Harbinger, if only for a few hours. The sound of a knock on the door made Kaelan stop what he was doing and drop his right hand to its respective side, his fingers brushing against the pistol grip of his holstered disruptor while he called for the unknown party to enter. The wide elliptical shaped door opened and the same and the same protocol droid that escorted him to his room marched in. The mechanical's photoreceptors focused on the outcast and he took a few steps closer.
"Greeting: I see that you have already made adequate use of your living arrangements. Do you require anything else?"
"No," The former General said with a shake of his head, "I have everything I need."
"Departing statement: Very well, if you have any further need of my assistance, do not hesitate to call." The HK protocol droid looked at him a moment longer, shot a glance around the room, then withdrew to the entrance and out into the corridor.
Kaelan watched it go, puzzled at the droid's odd behaviour but shrugging it off as he continued cleaning his disruptor. Realizing his right hand was still hovering near his holstered blaster, the exile moved his hand away. The reaction was a purely instinctual movement born from years of wandering in the Outer-Rim. Trust was not something easily earned in such regions of the galaxy, a feeling Kaelan had absorbed all too well.
()()()
Four days passed, with the outcast spending most of his time wandering around the cruiser. Security concerns, however, meant that the HK unit had to be his escort at all times. The droids constantly described areas of the ship, added his own personal observations, and posed questions every few minutes about Kaelan himself. Despite the annoyance permeating through his senses, the ex-Jedi was slightly suspicious of the mechanical escort. It was as though the droid were trying to trick him into answering questions through the enticement of sheer exasperation. If that were the case, it had been unsuccessful; he had revealed nothing about a past he kept closely guarded.
Of all the areas of the ship, the lower sections were of particular interest to Kaelan. Despite his efforts to learn about every part of the Devastator during the Mandalorian Wars, he had never really had time. It was part of the reason he was so interested in the HK unit's explanation of the operations conducted on the lower decks. The protocol droids gestured toward the various conduits lining the walls above the terminals in the narrow spaced hallway.
"Observation: Org- I mean crewmen in this area are responsible for monitoring power distribution, nearby systems, and affected sections of the ship's reactor."
The exile nodded in understanding, the section was one of those he'd rarely visited during his time as a Republic General. It was one of the few regrets he had from back then, particularly since the ventral area of his ship seemed to take the most damage during engagements. Having not paid attention to those responsible for maintaining ship functionality was something he believed every Captain was guilty of. "Which conduits run through this section?"
"Supposition: I believe these are conduits E1-F3."
Kaelan glanced at the protocol droid, raising an eyebrow at the mechanical's terse tone. "Is there a problem?"
"Clarification: Of course not."
He glanced at the HK unit a moment longer before turning back to the crewmen. The droid was proving to be a strange unit, whether it was a defection of the individual or the series itself was unclear, but the protocol droid was prone to bouts of unpredictability unbecoming of a stable model. Many times it had replied with strange tones or replaced words in the middle of a sentence. Still, he knew he had been away from the Republic for some time and the thought of the galactic government testing prototype droids did not escape him.
Taking one last cursory inspection of the lower deck, he decided he'd seen enough of the ship for the day and promptly asked the droid to take him back to his quarters. An eager agreement from the HK unit and a lift ride later brought the exile back to his temporary dwelling.
()()()
"Captain?' The query resounded from the Lieutenant stationed at the ship's operations console, his voice mixed with confusion and surprise.
"What is it?" Lasek asked, breaking off the conversation with his executive officer as he moved toward the front of the bridge.
"I'm picking up a distress signal on the lower COM frequencies," The OPS officer responded, his brow knitted in concentration while his fingers rapidly inputted commands on his console. "The transmission is very weak sir."
The Captain nodded absently, "Play it."
Static filled with bridge intercom, a noise eventually punctuated by the voice of an old woman. "This is…freighter……under atta-….Sith Warship…."
The words were quiet and hard to comprehend, but it was clear a vessel was under heavy fire. Lasek thought about the ramifications of responding to the plea for assistance. While it was Republic protocol to offer any and all available assistance to those in distress, the naval officer wondered whether the Republic could realistically continue to offer such assistance. At its weakened stage, every single scrap of resources was vital to the Republic. Not to mention that he had direct orders from High Command to proceed without delay to Telos. Despite his personal feelings on protocol, he knew it was his duty to follow them, or at least attempt to.
"Lieutenant, can you get the ship's ID signature?"
"Affirmative sir," The OPS officer replied, "It doesn't match anything in the registry though."
"Strange," Lasek murmured, a ship without a registered ID signature was a very rare occurrence. All ships in the Republic, from the simplest starfighter to the navy's capital ships, were required to have their signatures transmitted to the galactic registry, even if that ship only made occasionally trade runs through Republic space. To encounter a ship without a listed registry meant the vessel was either making its first run inside the borders of the galactic government, a virtual impossibility, or it was involved in something very illegal.
"What to do you want to do sir?"
Knowing the question was posed by the Harbinger's executive officer, Lasek turned to his second in command, Commander Nire. She looked at her superior a moment longer as he remained silent. Just before she was about to speak, Lasek beat her to it. "I'll need to check with Command. In the meantime, assume we are following protocol." The Captain let his gaze wander away from the port viewport back to his executive officer, "Take us within 10,000 kilometres and bring the ship to combat alert level blue. I'll be in the COM room," The naval officer called as he moved toward the closest exit. "You have the bridge Commander."
"Aye sir," Nire acknowledged just before the Captain left the command centre.
Lasek hadn't taken more than five steps out of the bridge before the voice of his executive officer resounded throughout the Republic cruiser. "Attention all hands, this is Command Nire, we are dropping out of hyperspace and investigating the presence of an enemy warship. All stations to code blue, stand by for further orders."
The Captain of the Harbinger made the short trek to the COM station thirty metres away from the bridge, an area which doubled as a briefing room. Crewmen and soldiers passed by the naval officer at a brisk pace, some of them wearing civilian clothing, as they moved to fulfill the duties they had only recently been relieved from. It didn't take long before the Captain reached his destination, the standard elliptical doors barring entry to the long-range transmitter aboard the Republic cruiser. A lone table with eight chairs around it were the sole contents of the rectangular room, but the naval officer was only interested in the large interface embedded into the side of the table.
The transceiver was able to send transmissions to any place in the galaxy, by having enough range to reach the closest communication centre. From there, the outpost would rout the signal across a lattice work of other facilities, each station automatically routing the communication until it reached its intended destination. For Lasek, that destination was the Hammerhead class vessel Sojourn, a ship on patrol near the inner rim world of Selvaris. He sent a Priority Two tag along with the message, an action that sped his transmission through the routing process, ensuring he was speaking the commanding officer of the Republic flagship in less than thirty seconds. "Captain," The holographic form of Admiral Carth Onasi spoke in greeting as it flickered on the opposite side of the table. "No troubles with your assignment I hope."
Carth had been given a complete commission to the rank of Admiral for his contribution in ending the Jedi Civil War. Having been promoted from Commander, it was one of the biggest leaps in the ranks in Republic history and it made Lasek more than a little nervous to be in his presence, if only through holographic means.
"Uh…not so much trouble sir, as complications."
The Admiral raised an eyebrow, clearly expecting an explanation. With a small sigh, Lasek provided one. "Since I've received explicit orders, I wanted to check with you sir, before diverting course from Telos. We've received a distress signal from a freighter under attack by Sith forces and I'm requesting permission to respond."
"You have permission to divert course Captain. If there's a Sith presence in the region, I want you to investigate. The Admiral paused for a moment, clearly thinking something over. "Were you able to get the ID signature from the ship?"
"Yes sir, its signature doesn't match anything in the registry. I have it in the ship's relay system and I'm transmitting to you now Admiral." The cruiser's commander inputted the same tag to the information and sent it on its way.
Seconds of silence were interrupted as Carth looked to someone to the right of his holographic form. "One moment Captain," He called before his form disappeared.
Believing the Admiral would likely have to confer with the resources available on the galactic capital of Coruscant, Lasek sat in one of the chairs. Barely seconds after he had sat down, however, the Admiral's holographic form returned, sending the naval officer bolting to his feet. Luckily for him, Carth was too distracted by his own thoughts to lecture the Captain on proper protocol. "Are you sure this is the ship's codes? Have you confirmed it?"
"It is the freighter's signature," Lasek said, wondering what the sudden concern was for. "I'm absolutely sure on that sir."
"Then listen to me carefully Captian," Carth replied in a serious tone that demanded full attention as he leaned forward, "I want that ship recovered. I don't care if it is just wreckage or pieces of debris."
"I understand sir," The Harbinger Captain replied with a curt nod.
"Good, as soon as you're done, resume on your previous heading. It is of the highest importance that the passenger reach Telos."
"You can count on me Admiral."
A small smile played across Carth's face, "I don't doubt that. Good hunting Captian. Admiral Onasi out."
Carth's holographic form flickered out leaving Lasek with an abundance of both curiosity and questions. Pushing those to the back of his mind for now, he tapped a button on the interface for the bridge COM. "Commander this is Lasek, report."
"We're holding position at the specified distance Captain." Nire replied, her voiced emitting from the interface's speakers. "One freighter, heavily damaged with not life signs and a Sith frigate, Valiant class. Its systems look to be operational but there's no life signs either. For all intents and purposes, its adrift sir."
Lasek's eyes widened in a combination of surprise and disbelief, no warship could have been automated, which left the question of what happened to the crew. A question the Captain wanted answered. "Bring us within docking distance, then inform Major Varn that he may commence boarding operations, the warship first. I'll join you on the bridge shortly."
"Understood sir."
()()()
"All hands prepare to board!" The barked command from Major Varn resounded in the corridor just outside the armoury. A platoon of soldiers formed a line outside the ordnance storage room, accepting the rifles and grenades handed out. Extra power packs, first-aid kits, and thermal charges were secured on the red and orange coloured tactical vests that lay over similar coloured plate armour. Their actions were carried out with a speed and efficiency heightened by repetition and strengthened by the task at hand, ensuring that the group of twenty-one was armed and heading to the airlock in less than two minutes, with Varn at the front. "Step to it gentlemen!"
The main airlock was stationed near the ship's bridge, it ran off a branching corridor and was embedded five metres in. The platoon took up firing positions on the access hatch, the Major moving to the side of the door while the rest formed up along the side of the wall, each with their weapons primed and at the ready. Varn listened as the sound of the airlock's magnetic interlocked could be heard locking on the enemy ship's hull. The veteran officer knew the process was complete when the hatch opened and the airlock itself was exposed.
The Republic soldiers tensed at the door's opening, each one half-expecting a wave of enemy forces to converge on their position. When no such response was forthcoming, Varn was quick to order an advance. The platoon leader took point in the widely spaced double-column formation, the spaces composed of one metre intervals in-between pairs of soldiers referred to as fire-teams. Each fire-team was responsible for scanning for hostiles, whether it be directly to their front or the side. Since the group was going through the airlock, each soldier pointed their weapons forward as they ran to the sealed hatch of the enemy warship.
"Ready to set a charge sir," One of the Sergeant next to the Major suggested eagerly.
With the only options available being to either slice the door's interface or blow it open, Varn opted for the more dramatic approach. He sent a grin towards the Sergeant, "Do it."
The non-com responded by withdrawing a thermal charge from his tac-vest and attaching it to the middle of the door. Little larger than three grenades, the charge carried a thermal output strong enough to burn through the entry way's locking mechanism, effectively breaking the seal. The device was triggered by either remote or a specified time. The sergeants set the time for the standard five seconds, an interval long enough for him to retake his place in the formation and shout the precautionary, "Clear!"
The explosive was triggered right on schedule, the area ahead couldn't be seen through the smoke, but the Major moved ahead regardless. The rest of the platoon followed their commanding officer's lead, blaster rifles at the ready as they stormed through the airlock, emerging onto a completely deserted corridor. The only noises to be heard were that of the Republic soldiers, the sounds of their gear clinking against their armour as they brought their rifles around to scan for threats. There was no sign of damage in the immediate area, nearby electronic interfaces within the hallway were intact, and there was no sign of damage in the immediate area, nearby electronic interfaces within the hallway were intact, and there was no carbon scoring to suggest an internal strife. One of the soldiers let out a small shiver as he took in the seemingly abandoned vessel, "This place gives me the creeps."
"Stow it Corporal," Varn snapped, not needing to turn around to know who was speaking. Though he shared his suborinate's musings, he wasn't about to show it. "We'll split up by squads," He ordered, pointing to two of his best. "Terius, take your group to the engine room. Sol, you head to the fire control centre; my group has the bridge. Status reports every ten minutes."
The designated squad leaders, holding the ranks of Lieutenant and Warrant Officer respectively, motioned to their teams and proceeded towards their assigned areas, their formation adapting accordingly. Varn watched them go before motioning to his own squad and heading toward the vessel's command centre. All of them were familiar with the schematics of Valiant-class frigates and it didn't take long for the Major and his group to arrive at the entrance to the bridge. A square shaped door barred the team's entry and it was one the squad leader decided to breach too. The same Sergeant who had broken the seal on the enemy airlock was in his squad and Varn decided to make use of his talents once again. He pointed to the non-com, then the door, and then flashed five fingers, signalling for a five seconds breach.
A firm nod was the only response as the Sergeant withdrew another thermal charge and attached it to the entry way. The soldier keyed for a five second delay, side-stepping to the door frame while he silently counted down to zero. On one he shouted, "Clear!"
The last letter had barely been enunciated when the charge exploded, kicking smoke into the narrow hallway. Varn charged, moving in a crouched position, his blaster rifle firmly placed in his shoulder as he emerged from the dissipating haze and scanned the command centre, his finger hovering near the weapon's trigger.
The bridge was a small, circular area composed of rings of declining platforms, each with consoles and terminals devoted to control specific aspects of the ship. Large, rectangular viewports exposed the sight of the familiar black void of space. Varn's peripheral vision registered a form on the command chair of the frigate and he quickly brought his blaster around, focusing on the target as he approached at a cautious pace. The rest of his squad followed, though they all recoiled when the sight of what, essentially looked to be a corpse, greeted their vision.
Cracked and scarred flesh composed the visible sections of the body, that being anything above the waist, the rest was covered by loose fitting black pants and boots. The Major had seen a lot of corpses in his years of service, but this level of damaged flesh surpassed anything he'd ever seen on the battlefield. Opening a channel on the COM unit installed on his armour's left wrist plate, Varn signalled the other team leaders. "Two-One, this is One-One, report."
"Engine room is clear," Terius said, "We've made a thorough search of the area. Everything is still operating at standard parameters, nothing in this section looks damaged."
"Move onto the escape pods, we've got some corpse here and it is possible the rest of the crew jumped ship."
"Understood," Terius responded after a brief pause, "Two-One out."
"Three-One," Varn said once Terius disconnected their link, "What have you got?"
"Absolutely nothing sir," Sol replied, a tinge of disappointment in his voice. "No life-forms or any discernible damage detected."
Varn was beginning to wonder what the hell was going on. The ship had clearly bore a full crew complement, as evidenced by the frigate's fully functional systems. Yet they seemed to have vanished, they clearly had no desire to protect their ship's critical systems. Then again, the Major supposed they could have abandoned ship. Still, Varn was uneasy, one glance to the corpse in the command chair made him think there was far more to this than it seemed.
"Sol, contact the Harbinger and tell them we have a corpse for medical retrieval, and escort the recovery team to the bridge. I don't want to take any chances."
"On it sir, Three-One out."
()()()
Investigating reported presence of an enemy warship. The words refused to leave Kaelan's minds since he had heard the general announcement from the bridge. The exile had considered asking either the ship's commander or passing crewmen on what the situation was, but quickly decided against it. As a former General, Kaelan knew how annoyed he would be if a civilian passenger onboard his ship were demanding status reports. So he had settled for pacing in his quarters, but thirty minutes with no shakes to indicate the ship was under attack had made him anxious, so he had started roaming the corridors of the ship, gauging the reactions of the crewmen and officers he encountered. Their movements suggested an anxiety to be expected of a crew on cod blue readiness and, after spending an hour moving around the cruiser, Kaelan realized that the current incident was isolated to the bridge and whatever specific sections had been advised. Taking some comfort from the fact a ship to ship engagement was highly unlikely, the former Jedi moved back to his quarters. The sight of a datapad on the table caught his eyes and he quickly picked it up. A frown adored the outcast's expression once he had finished reading it. He was to undergo a general medical examination.
It was a standard procedure for any of those transferring onto a Republic vessel, be they military or civilian. What was strange was that such an examination was normally conducted within the first few hours of the newcomer's arrival, not a few days later. That being said, Kaelan knew such a command could not be disobeyed. Not wanting to alarm or needlessly hassle the medical personnel, he removed his weapons ad stripped off his armour and cloak, placing both within the footlocker in his room. The former Jedi made his way to the medical bay, garbed only in a light green jumpsuit. For once he found himself grateful that the medical centre was close to his quarters.
Stepping in, he found the area completely vacant, save for a small medical droid in the centre of the room. The droid's carapace resembled that of a teardrop, four photoreceptors in the centre glowed a fierce red. Six spindly appendages sprouted from the top of the carapace, forming a circular overhang around the droid's main body, each was fitted with some type of medical instrument. Navigating his way through the various medical beds, kolto tanks, and storage containers clustered around the large, rectangular room, Kaelan moved toward the central terminal. The station was the main interface for the medical bay and the former General inserted the datapad with his examination orders into the receptacle port.
Text scrolling across the terminal's display told him to remain where he was, a command the exile obeyed while he watched the medical droid move towards him. The mechanical healers were rarely constructed with vocabulators, a fact Kaelan had never found more irksome, particularly since he would've liked to question the droid on why he was only now being assessed for medical conditions. Were he to actually carry a disease, the Republic ship's entire crew would be infected by now. He found it hard to believe a ship's chief medical officer could be so incompetent and it made him think there was something wrong with the medical bay being so deserted.
A sharp pain in the outcast's neck made him snap around to look at the droid, only to see the arm with a needle attachment extended outward, a vial of an unknown substance decreasing from its container, as it entered his system. His eyes widened at the sight and he moved to push it away, only to be overcome with a strong sense of drowsiness. Blackness crept along the sides of his vision and Kaelan realized he had been injected with a sedative. The veteran tried to fight off the effects as he took tentative steps toward a nearby canister. Either the dose was too strong or he was too weak, in the end he only managed to take a few steps before he crumpled to the ground. The sound of distant footsteps drawing closer was the last thing he heard before he surrendered himself to the darkness.
()()()
Captain Lasek stood on the bridge, hands clasped behind his back, while he gazed at the hull of the Sith frigate, a sight that took up the entire view of the starboard viewport. It was a sight that brought up memories of the Jedi Civil War at a time when the Valiant-class frigates were widely in use by Revan's Empire. Like all of the ships under the Dark Lord's command, the model had been one created by the Republic. Its shortened dagger shaped design enabled it to achieve a greater amount of speed and manoeuvrability, as did the lack of any fighters, excessive crew, and ground assault vehicles. This also allowed the placement of more turbolaser batteries, though the engineers had been careful to find a balance between firepower and speed. During the reign of Darth Revan and Darth Malak, its primary tasking was to engage enemy ships of the same class, intercept boarding craft, and perform strafing runs on capital ships. All of which were carried out with terrifying efficiency.
But this frigate was adrift, no life-signs had been detected anywhere in the ship, turning the formidable vessel into just another piece of debris in space. It was a sight that beset a degree of both relief and worry. Relief because the frigate was not actively engaging the Harbinger, Valiant-class ships had a history of being able to all but nullify a capital ship's shielding while they remained safe as they constantly shifted to areas outside their target's firing arcs. The worry came from the absence of a crew, it had been two hours since a recovery team had brought a Sith corpse onboard after Warrant Officer Sol had contacted the bridge. In that time, the chief medical officer had reported that, as far as she was concerned, the individual should have literally fallen apart a long time ago.
Now the naval officer was waiting for Major Varn to make his report, initial information had provided few answers to swarms of questions. As if on cue, the starboard bridge door opened and the platoon leader in question marched onto the command centre. Spotting Lasek, Varn moved towards him, the gear he wore during the boarding operation still on his person. Stopping only a few metres away, the veteran stood at attention and snapped off a crisp salute to his superior, "Sir, Major Varn reporting as ordered."
"Your report Major?" Lasek asked once he had returned the salute.
"We've thoroughly searched both vessels sir, nothing onboard either except that corpse from the frigate and a badly damaged T3 astromech from the freighter."
"There was no-one onboard?" Lasek repeated in disbelief, he had expected a report of at least a trace of activity or something to indicate the ship had clearly been abandoned. "Then who was firing at the freighter?"
Varn wasn't sure if the Captain was asking him or not but he decided to answer anyway, "We don't know sir. All the escape pods are still in their berths, the only evidence to suggest the frigate even had a crew is the condition of the ship itself. If I didn't know any better I'd say it was a derelict."
"You're sure of this?"
"With all due respect sir, my men are the best. If they didn't find anything after two thorough searches, then there's nothing to find."
The naval officer nodded, either too pre-occupied with his own thoughts to have noticed the Major's defensive tone or else just not wanting to press the issue. He became silent as he mulled over the information he'd just received, trying to decipher the next logical course of action.
"Do you want to tractor the freighter over here now sir?" Varn asked, his voice betraying some of the fatigue he was starting to feel. Though the veteran officer wasn't required to be involved in the process itself, he and his squad would need to be standing by in the cruiser's hangar bay, as protocol dictated when any ships were brought aboard a Republic vessel.
Whatever Lasek's response was going to be was cut off by a frantic shout from Commander Nire, "Sir, you better listen to this!"
The Captain quickly crossed over to the other side of the bridge, where his executive officer was hunched over the ship's internal communications console. One look at his second in command made a knot form in his stomach, "What is it?"
Nire hit a single button on the terminal, the sound of breaking glass along with the scream of the medical officer filled the speakers, a noise quickly accompanied by a deep voice that sent chills down Lasek's spine. "I have come for the Jedi."
"What the hell was that?!" The Harbinger Captain demanded, his tone on the verge of panic.
"Sir, I don't know. Nearby sections aren't responding to calls."
"Varn, get a squad down there now!"
"On it sir," The acknowledgement barely spoken before the Major sprinted out of the room, a channel on his wrist-COM open" Terius, this is Varn." The veteran's pace slowed to a jog when no response was forthcoming, "Terius, respond." He halted entirely when silence continued to be the only transmission on the channel. "Damn it Lieutenant, I need a sit-rep!"
Further transmissions revealed no contact from Sol either, Varn was now running to the medical centre an open COM channel broadcasting to every wrist-COM on the ship. "This is Major Varn to any available units, respond!"
"Sergeant Akana here sir."
The squad leader took notice of the fear in the non-com's voice and he couldn't help but cringe at the thought of what the current situation was on the Hammerhead class cruiser. Even if the situation was dire, he wasn't about to discuss it over an open COM channel, "Switch to encryption protocol theta two-two-four."
"Un…understood," There was a pause as both parties switched to the designated encryption, the Sergeant's voice returning shortly after. "We're holding position in section two-zero."
Varn breathed a sigh of relief, he had feared they would be near one of the aft stations but was pleased to note they were only a deck away from the crew quarters. "Converge on the medical bay; we have reason to believe the prisoner has escaped."
Akana's voice returned, hesitancy clear in her tone. "Is that wise sir? I haven't been able to hear from anyone else, it's possible they're—"
"No time for that type of talk," The Major said sharply, cutting off the soldier mid-sentence. While it was a distinct possibility that Akana was right, it wasn't something he was willing to consider, because of both a refusal to believe his friends were dead and because the prospect itself was more than a little unnerving. That didn't mean he was going to blindly ignore such a potential danger, as he planned to keep his guard up at all times, he just wasn't going to think about it. "Rendezvous outside the medical bay," He repeated the command firmly, his tone discouraging any further objections.
"We're on our way sir," The Sergeant responded, closing the channel shortly after.
Varn did the same, shouldering his blaster rifle and moving forward once more. The fast pace he initially brokered with had left him far from the Harbinger's command centre. He had been too distracted with attempting to make contact with his platoon that he didn't realize that there was no-one around him. An area normally bustling with activity, as crewmen monitored the status of ship systems, was nothing but a ghostly husk, devoid of any signs of life. Such a sight should be impossible, the vessel was still at standby alert and it made the Major realize that the situation on the Hammerhead ship was clearly as bad as Akana feared. The revelation sparked a desire to spread a warning throughout the ship, the prisoner they picked up may have been extremely dangerous by himself but it was clear that there were more problems on the Harbinger than one escaped Sith Lord.
The officer's hand flew to his wrist-COM, but a sudden transmission made him check his movements. "Sir, we've got contacts!" Akana's voice shouted on the COM, a sound accompanied by the warnings and screams of his other squadmates. "Too close," The Sergeant shouted, "Switch to blades! Blades!"
The accompanying sounds made Varn realize that the squad's defeat was never in any doubt. The noise of clashing blades only resounded for a handful seconds before they were overpowered by pained grunts and screams. The other end of the COM fell silent soon after, with the squad leader about to double back to the bridge when he caught the sight of faint shimmers in the hull around him, as though parts of the deck plating were distorted. It didn't take him long to realize he had been surrounded by enemies with stealth generators. On impulse he tried to contact the bridge one last time, only to find that his wrist-COM was being jammed. Knowing they could have done the same to Akana's group, he didn't need to have an officer's commission to know that his unknown adversaries had wanted him to hear the Sergeant's transmission. The realization made him snarl in anger, his hand reaching for the vibro-blade holstered at his side.
No move was made against the squad leader, they simply stood there. Their stealth generators deactivated when Varn drew his blade, making it look as though they appeared out of thin air. The Major expected an attack, but they still stood with held combat stances. They knew he was isolated from any remaining soldiers and that he had no way to spread a warning or call for help, so they were content to let him make the first move. Varn promptly did so, charging forward with his blade held high. It was a movement he'd often done when forced into melee engagements. The sheer lack of any discernible technique often made enemies underestimate Varn. When he was close enough to strike at the mysterious assassins, instead of bringing his blade down in a haphazard vertical chop, he quickly brought the vibroblade around in a horizontal swing.
To his surprise, his strike was deflected by the one of edges of his opponent's double-bladed sword. Recognizing the skills of his enemy, Varn switched for more aggressive thrusts, hoping to catch the assassin off guard, or at least force the intruder into a retreat long enough for him to slip away. Quick flourishes and an unwillingness to move on the assassin's part ensured that Varn's plan failed. His attacks became more desperate as the others started to converge on him, their double-bladed weapons moving in rapid flurries too fast for the Major's eyes to track. He settled less for an attack and more for evasion, ducking and weaving in-between the blades. The assassins formed a tighter circle around him in response and Varn knew he wouldn't be walking away from the battle alive. In the end the Republic officer only managed to include a few more strikes and slashes before he fell, a combination of slashes of stabs being the cause.
Major Varn's last thoughts were a desire to have warned the bridge earlier, then, perhaps, the Harbinger wouldn't have fallen.