A/N 1: I do not own Harry Potter nor do I own Star Wars.
Chapter 26: The End or the Beginning pt. 2
December 1st, 2007
Diagon Alley, London UK
James and Revan resumed their run to the entrance of Diagon Alley. The sounds of battle were deafening and they were coming not just from the alley but from overhead as fighters exploded or crashed into London. Small groups of Sith fighters had broken away from the dog fight and were on a strafing run, raining laser fire and photon charges down onto the city. London was ablaze, vast swathes of the city were burning. A rumble and billowing cloud of dust signaled the collapse of another skyscraper. The fighters continued to dance in the sky.
Revan forced himself to ignore the skies; he needed to focus on the battle against Voldemort and his Death Eaters. He didn't come all this way, defeat a pair of Sith, retake the Star Forge, and capture his betrayer just to fall now.
They were now at the entrance to Diagon Alley; a number of Unspeakable Agents were arriving at the same time. James took a moment to take stock of the situation. It appeared that Voldemort and no more than 7 Death Eaters were laying waste to the alley. Blasting curses seemed to be the spell of choice as walls and shop fronts exploded. James ordered "You" pointing to the agents on hand "take out the Death Eaters. I'm not interested in arrests. This ends today. Revan and I will take Voldemort."
Revan was fully prepared to face Voldemort. While he doubted the validity of the prophecy, he had no real fear of the man. He was more worried about James fighting with him "Are you sure about this? I can take Voldemort on my own."
James nodded grimly "I lost you for 25 years because of Voldemort. Today he pays for that." At James' signal, the agents advanced on the Death Eaters following a volley of spells. James and Revan moved ahead as well to take on Voldemort.
Decimator, High Earth Orbit
The ship rocked back in space as another torpedo slammed into the hull. "Order fighter squadrons 5 through 9 to form up on us and focus their attack on the lead dreadnaught." Halcyon ordered. He wiped blood off his face from where he had been knocked to floor by an earlier strike. A glance over to his right showed him that the Americans were ok, shaken up but otherwise unharmed. If the situation weren't so serious, he would have laughed they were definitely getting the full tour.
Malak was standing by another display watching as the second battle group from their fleet swung into position from behind the moon. 4 Battleships, 8 cruisers, and 10 destroyers accelerated into position and closed on the rear of the Sith fleet. Fighters began pouring out of the ships and opened fire on the enemy.
"Squad B give the fighters time to get clear than open fire with everything you have, we can't let those capital ships get in range of the planet." Malak ordered. He growled as the ship rocked again, more violently this time, secondary explosions could be heard in the bridge and a few of the stations blew apart in a shower of sparks and fire.
Outside in the cold of space, more than a hundred fighters from squad B shot forward at attack speed. Within seconds, they were within range of the capital ships and a massive wave of glowing proton torpedoes launched towards the rear of the Sith fleet. As soon as the torpedoes were away, the fighters broke off and prepared to engage the enemy fighters. Squadrons broke apart and fighters began going head to head, red laser fire lighting up the dark of space with explosions from both sides.
The commander of squad B waited until the fighters had broken off before ordering all ships to open fire. Turbo lasers and bow mounted anti-ship cannons roared to life. Torpedoes exploded against the enemy tearing into armor, destroying engines and opening up wide sections to the vacuum of space. Engines flickered and went dark as power was lost and a handful of the ships detonated before they could be hit again. Other ships were left as nothing more than flaming husks. The laser fire from squad B littered space with small explosions when Sith fighters swerved in protecting their capital ships from fire.
2 of the lumbering dreadnaughts put their remaining power into the engines and surged forward towards the main defensive line. Their weapons off line and fighters launched, the Sith targeted two clusters of ships primarily composed of cruisers and destroyers. Laser fire burned into their hulls as they got closer but nothing was strong enough to destroy them.
New alarms started to ring on the Decimator. "Two Sith dreadnaughts are on a collision course with our ship." The voice of the distraught officer rang out over the din.
"Evasive maneuvers get us out of the way." Halcyon ordered but he knew they would not likely escape entirely.
Malak instead ordered "Squads C & D, move into the path of those ships we can't lose this ship." He knew that he was ordering those men to their deaths, but he didn't particularly care.
Both squads were comprised of fast moving destroyers and cruisers. Like a well oiled machine they prepared themselves to stand in the path of the massive ships. In less than 2 minutes the dreadnaughts sheared through 3 destroyers taking massive damage in the process. Another 4 destroyers accelerated and rammed themselves into the dreadnaughts. All four destroyers detonated tearing gaping holes in one dreadnaught and ripping the second apart. Space was filled with a massive explosion as the fuel and weapons ammunition detonated blinding fighter pilots and jamming equipment with the discharge. The remaining dreadnaught was forced off course and through a hole in the defensive line. Their engines flared once more before fading and the ship lost all power as it entered Earth's atmosphere in an uncontrolled descent.
Before a strike could be ordered against the ship, the remaining Sith fleet attacked in force, pulling attention away from the doomed vessel.
Skies over London
Overhead, sleek silver fighters were weaving and rolling amidst black needle like fighters. Laser fire and explosions lit up the horizon, the remains of crippled ships falling from the sky to spread destruction on the ground.
Then a third player joined the battle. Their engines louder than anything already in the air, squadrons of British jets roared in following a wave of missiles. The combatants were unprepared for the new player as missiles detonated against silver and black fighters alike.
The silver fighters were protected by some sort of shield that seemed to absorb the brunt of the explosion. It did not protect them from the kinetic energy of the blast though and the pilots found themselves struggling to control their ships in its wake. A handful of fighters collided with other members of their squadron shearing off wings or simply exploding on contact. The fighters that lost wings became out of control missiles ramming into buildings and homes as they crashed to the ground.
The black fighters didn't have any shields and simply disappeared in a bright orange explosions.
The British jets roared in pushing their engines to the max to match the speeds of the enemy. Vulcan cannons were firing non-stop peppering the enemy hulls with holes and disabling or destroying many of the black fighters. The cannons were not effective against the other fighters and the British broke off to launch another wave of missiles.
Sith fighters targeted the less maneuverable fighters. Blood red laser fire blossomed from the ships burning holes and gashes into the British fighters. Smoke started to pour out of the damaged jets as the dodged and swerved trying to get away from the deadly weapons fire.
Revan's forces saw an opportunity and began swarming over the Sith, picking them off before they could break away from the British. Just as the first wave was destroyed, the British broke away and prepared to engage when another swarm of Sith fighters descended and began to attack.
Diagon Alley, London UK
James and Revan peeled off from the Unspeakables and engaged Voldemort. Revan had his light saber in one hand and his other hand was clenched into a fist with lightning flaring around it. James snapped off a spell at the same time that lightning arced out from Revan's outstretched hand.
Voldemort heard James' spell and turned his attention towards the two men. A bright shield flared to life around him. James' spell splashed harmlessly against it while the lightning surged and crackled along the edges but was unable to penetrate the shield. Remembering his last encounter with Revan, Voldemort threw a blasting curse at Revan's feet.
Revan saw the spell flying towards him and dove out of the way only to see another spell flying towards him. Unable to dodge again, Revan swung his light saber up and did his best to shield himself from the explosion even as his back slammed into the wall behind him taking his breath away with the impact.
James saw this with mounting horror but couldn't spare time to focus on Revan right now. Spells poured from his wand in an almost continual stream, distracting Voldemort from Revan. Nothing got through Voldemort's defenses. The shield had shattered after the initial onslaught but now Voldemort was deflecting his spells and returning with his own combination of flesh decay, entrails rupturing, and killing curses.
James was forced to do his own dance, spinning and dodging out of the path of Voldemort's spells, deflecting those he could and avoiding the one's he couldn't. There was an expression of sadistic glee on Voldemort's face as buildings crumbled and people screamed in pain and terror. He had barely noticed the battle going on overhead and assumed it was simply the muggles waging war for some reason.
While Voldemort was focused on James, Revan struggled back to his feet and regained his breath. Using the force, he accelerated his speed until he was nothing but a blur and ran towards Voldemort. The glow from his light saber attracted Voldemort's attention though and another string of blasting curses soared towards him. This time, he was able to dodge the spells using his speed. He felt small pieces of stone and wood bite into his skin from the explosions echoing around him.
Revan slowed his approach, concentrated again and piles of debris and rubble floated into the air and moved in Voldemort's direction at incredible speeds. Voldemort tried to conjure another shield but the rubble passed through it like it was tissue paper and embedded itself into his body. His scream of rage and pain echoed off the walls.
James was tiring; he wasn't sure how much longer he could last. He knew it would come down to Revan and Voldemort but he wanted to give his son every possible advantage. It took his remaining magic but James cast one final spell. His eyes began to glow, emitting a soft golden light and his floated around his hand as power emanated from his body. The sky opened up and a winged figure man appeared formed out of pure magic. He hovered over Diagon Alley for a moment before the same golden glow radiated out from his wings. Normally the spell was not very useful, it took a tremendous amount of magic and would not cause any harm to most wizards or witches. The light inspired and invigorated the Unspeakables who were slowly encircling the Death Eaters. James had passed out from the power drain but even unconscious, James' face lost some its tension. Revan and the Death Eaters felt nothing, but Voldemort screamed in pain again as the light raised burns and blisters on his face and exposed skin. Only the darkest of wizards and witches would suffer from the light. The magic spent, the figure faded from view.
Revan shot forward and took Voldemort on hand to hand. At the last moment, Voldemort conjured a sword and parried Revan's strike. His blade held but came away from nicked and smoking from where it connected with the light saber. Voldemort's movements were slower than before, hampered by the burns and blisters covering his arms and face.
Revan again opened himself to the force, letting it flow through him augmenting his speed and reflexes once again. His attacks blurred together as the light saber spun in his grasp slamming into Voldemort's hastily raised defenses over and over again. Without warning, Revan dropped to his knee and swung his leg forward seeping Voldemort's legs out from underneath him.
Voldemort crashed to ground with a grunt and saw the Revan's light saber descending towards his chest. In desperation, he conjured a solid silver shield. The shield formed around the light saber stopping it from sinking into his heart but it wasn't quick enough to stop it from burning into his sternum leaving a blackened gaping hole. The metal around the light saber began to glow a dull red from the heat being put off by the light saber.
Using what little physical strength he had left, Voldemort forced the shield away from him, dragging Revan's light saber with it. Unfortunately, the light saber burned a trench through Voldemort's chest as it was dragged off him.
His reflexes still enhanced by the force, Revan reacted before Voldemort could do more than roll to the side. He gathered the force around his fist and punched it into and through Voldemort's back. Blood splattered when his fist, surrounded by the force, ripped through the muscle and tendon of Voldemort's body. With his fist buried in Voldemort's torso, he sent lightning arcing through Voldemort's body stopping his heart and frying his brain. Voldemort took one last gurgling breath and then stopped breathing entirely.
Panting from the exertion, Revan withdrew his hand and retrieved his light saber. For good measure, he removed Voldemort's head before moving to find James. It took him a few minutes but he found James partially buried under some rubble, unconscious but otherwise he appeared to be relatively uninjured.
Another explosion overhead reminded him of the battle going on above the planet. He couldn't help but wonder if this was all just a temporary victory.
Decimator, High Earth Orbit
The Sith were putting their last forces into the battle against Revan's fleet. Fighters were being blown away by the intense cannon fire between the capital ships. Squad B had pulled within range once again and bow mounted cannons on the 4 remaining battleships fired again. The energy discharge from the cannons melted weakened hulls and punched through interior support struts and bulkheads. The remaining two Sith dreadnaughts didn't explode so much as they collapsed in on themselves
Mirroring the death of the final two dreadnaughts, the last destroyers and cruisers from squads C & D were destroyed by a hail of torpedoes that came from the dying Sith vessels. With the last of their dreadnaughts destroyed, the smaller Sith vessels were picked off easily. Like the dreadnaughts, they did not go down without a fight. All remaining torpedoes were launched targeting the nearest ship.
The Decimator was hit by three torpedoes simultaneously. Power flickered on before the engineers got the systems stabilized. Whole sections of the ship had been opened to space. Hyper drive engines were destroyed and most of their launch bays were nonoperational. But it was the parting shot of the dying Sith fleet.
The guns were silenced. The space around Earth was filled with debris. Disabled fighters spun out of control, some spinning into Earth's atmosphere to burn up. Others collided with wreckage destroying themselves. The dreadnaught had continued its uncontrolled descent into the atmosphere and impacted somewhere in France.
Halcyon called out "Recall all remaining fighters and get me update on the fleet status. And get those gravity well generators on line." It was too late for this battle but until they came up with a way to detect incoming Sith vessels, they would need to leave the gravity well generators running at all times. It would add a minimal amount of time to transit to and from the system but they wouldn't be caught by surprise again.
Malak was standing next to him waiting for the report; most of their sensors had been knocked off line by the last barrage of torpedoes. Still they were alive and that was something given the surprise attack of a force that had been close to equal their number. He turned to address the Americans and noted that both men were pale and very nearly in shock "That is the enemy you are facing. Today, we were the only thing that stood between the Earth and slavery or destruction."
Malak was interrupted by the incoming status report. "Sirs, Squad A is down to 50, there is only one other battleship in addition to the Decimator, 4 cruisers and 5 destroyers. Squad B is at nearly full strength, they report the loss of two cruisers and a destroyer. They are reporting that squads C& D are totally destroyed."
"How far away are your other fleets?" Halcyon asked in a tired voice. He knew that Kalia had already dispatched the first wave of ships from the Star Forge but it would be a couple of weeks yet before they arrived. Not that Malak knew any of this; Revan would reveal the information to him when he was ready.
"Most are a minimum of three weeks away but I will send out a recall signal. We need as many ships here as possible. With the gravity well generators active, we can reinforce the defensive emplacements in the asteroid belt."
Both Martin and Powell were listening surreptitiously. They shared a concerned look between them. By the sounds of the discussion between Halcyon and Malak, they were planning on staying long term and building reinforced defensive positions in the asteroid belt. Both men couldn't help but wonder what would happen if they weren't able to come to a peaceful agreement with Lord Revan. Would he simply impose his will on the Earth? Would there be anything they could to stop them?
Clearing his throat to gain the attention of Halcyon and Malak, Powell asked "Commander Halcyon, when would you be able to return us to the planet, we need to discuss this development with the President?"
"Our hanger bays are damaged; we should be able have a shuttle for you early tomorrow." Halcyon answered.
"Where was Lord Revan during the attack? Did his ship survive?" General Martin asked, both men had been surprised that Revan wasn't on hand for their tour or apparently for the battle.
Not sure of the answer but unwilling to acknowledge that to these men, Malak answered "Revan was on an inspection of squad B so he was unable to return to the ship, but as you heard that squad took virtually no damage so he will be able to return once the damage to the hanger bays has been repaired."
Halcyon left the bridge. Once away he attempted to contact Revan. "Lord Revan…Lord Revan this Commander Halcyon, please respond."
A crackling reply came a few moments later "Commander Halcyon, what do you have to report?"
Halcyon repeated the fleet status he had just received minutes before. "The Sith fleet has been destroyed. Malak has issued commands to his other fleets; the earliest should be here within 3 to 4 weeks. By that time, the first squads of ships General Kalia dispatched from the Star Forge will have arrived."
Revan sighed, rubbing a hand tiredly across his eyes "It's the best we can expect at this time. Did the American's cause any trouble?"
"No, they were shaken by the battle but neither man was injured. They did ask about your condition, we led them to believe you had been detained on another ship."
"Very good Commander, get them back planet side as soon as possible. I will contact the President we need to meet and its time we began discussing the future of the Earth."