AN: Hello, dear readers, and I invite you to read the next chapter of this story, of which I have the honor to be the author. It is also an honor to be able to provide such content to people like you.
Thank you from this place for answering my... well, it can best only be described as some kind of pain in the ass. But can you be surprised that a person is angry when he sees his hard work being overshadowed by a simple and not yet fully formed child? Nevertheless, and despite the fact that I consider my regret to be fully justified, let's move on to more relevant content.
I cordially invite you to read the next chapter and I sincerely hope that you will like this one too. If I can ask you for something else, please write in your reviews what specific elements of 'For New And Better Empire' do you like the most? What do you think is the element or elements that most encourage you to continue reading and that make it stand out from my other works?
Once again, I wish you pleasant experiences.
With their engines roaring, the TIE phantom piloted by Lanz and the remaining two by his wingmen moved ever closer to their new target: the Star Destroyer Tector, whose shields had been severely weakened by concentrated fire from the ion cannons of the 3 ISDs-II and 2 VSDs-II. Now, all that was needed was to start concentrated fire, and that's what happened. The 1st Phantom Squadron concentrated its fire on the Tector's bridge, and given the aid, this destruction was only a formality.
The target, a small target - at least from the point of view of the overall size of the ship - was very quickly penetrated by the laser cannon fire of all three Phantoms. Which led to an explosion and the elimination of command of the ship, at least until control of the ship was transferred to a second command center. Further shots from the ion cannons of the Scarlet Fleet's Star Destroyers completely incapacitated the great star machine.
As for Lanzo and his wingmen, immediately after lifting off and thus off their collision course with the Star Destroyer, they began to turn back while the battle continued to rage around them. Just a few minutes ago, Lanz received a message that no more waves of starfighters were launching from enemy ships or star bombers, which only confirmed the Lord Regent's belief that Moff Tardir thus offering him to join him on the defense platform, which Lanz himself was eager to accept and soon.
With virtually no or marginally small numbers of enemy starfighters, the TIE bombers of the Scarlet Fleet were able to operate without major hindrance and many enemy ships had already been disabled, that said, Lanz connected with the Hope of Empire as quickly as possible to speak with Commodore Stahl . A few moments later, a hologram image of the man appeared in the cockpit and he immediately saluted.
"Report." Lanz requested briefly and didn't have to wait long.
"My lord, only two Star Destroyers still have the potential to threaten our transports. If our tactical analysts are correct, these are the Unyielding and the flagship of the defense fleet,'Eternal Fury'. Personally, I propose that we concentrate our fire and, at the same time, send some bombers with ion torpedoes, and then send transports to Golan III, the remaining bombers will also attack this defensive platform with ion torpedoes, so that no one will interfere with your landing."
"We will do as you suggest, Commodore." At this point, Lanz saw no point on which he could disagree on any of the issues. "Have Captain Yang and his company get ready, they can bring with them a few reinforcements from the regular stormtrooper legion aboard the Hope of Empire."
"I will convey the order immediately, my lord." With those words, the hologram faded away, and Lanz could focus on watching the battle, which had long since determined a clear winner.
The only question that remained unresolved so far was: how much loss would I ultimately suffer in this battle? Although I'm not sure it could be called a real, large-scale battle. Nevertheless, I never intended to devote too many resources to this fight and considering that the decisive battles are yet to come, perhaps even sooner than planned. After all, taking over all these ships, defensive structures and keeping the administrative apparatus as intact as possible is an additional bonus and the opportunity to avoid problems with maintaining order and access to factories or natural resources. To survive, they will need an extensive administrative apparatus to maintain order on the conquered planets, on the one hand, to be able to supervise and influence the economy, and on the other hand, to effectively redirect resources to the most important projects. I will not achieve this and I will never be able to exploit at least 50% of the conquered planets if I eliminate officials, especially those from low and middle levels, who are the absolute basis for the planetary administrations. I hope that the seizure of this defense platform will be perceived as a desire to occupy this sector, without causing unnecessary destruction at this critical moment.
His thoughts were interrupted as he passed one of the disabled and ion cannon-damaged Star Destroyers, which seemed like a stunned rich man in the middle of a slum, just waiting to be robbed. However, a moment later six squadrons of TIE bombers flew past the disabled ship, all of them heading for the last Star Destroyers that were clearly in the way of the main defense platform and which could shoot down the transports.
It didn't take long for the TIE bombers - although slow - to fire ion missiles, threatened at best by suspiciously weak and sluggish battery fire turbolaser. Only one of the green bolts hit one of the TIEs, but it was easily dispersed by the mounted shield deflector, causing no major damage. Ultimately, the torpedoes flew and hit their targets, permanently putting both Star Destroyers out of combat, at least until necessary repairs could be made.
In the category of losses, this can simply be classified as incapacitating the machine.Lanz vaguely recalled part of the topic he had become interested in shortly before his reincarnation, which was battlefield losses, specifically the largest conflict in the history of human civilization from his old world.I must remember to include in all operations and actions and projects undertaken by me the creation of an algorithm that could very precisely, so with a small margin of error, determine losses in the battle. The odds of winning don't matter much if 1-10,000 can be considered more than enough to achieve complete or at least partial success.
What jolted him from his thoughts was the sight of a Star Destroyer falling limply, one of two falling 50 or more degrees down from its original position. There was not the slightest doubt that all these ion torpedoes had proven to be more than effective, or that it might even have been a slight exaggeration.
Regardless, the next 6 squadrons of TIE bombers moved towards the central defense platform where the Governor's office was located. In this case, however, the fire from the point defense turbolasers was much more concentrated and it became clear that Moff did not want the defense platform to be weakened so much. These efforts proved to be ineffective, as only three bombers lost cover, of which one was destroyed, while the remaining two were damaged and forced to return. The remaining ones, after just a few dozen seconds, fired as many ion torpedoes as possible, and numerous blue-white sparks flashed across the Golan III's hull, some smaller, some larger. However, the best evidence of the effect was the interruption of fire on the defense platform.
Perfect, now just land in one of the hangars and start taking over the station. After a few seconds of maneuvering, staring, and analyzing, he connected with Galak and Yang. "Commodore, Captain, is everything ready for boarding?"
"Yes, my lord." Galak was the one to respond first and then proceeded to explain. "Captain Yang and I decided it would be best to send five Sentinel-class dropships, each with a maximum capacity of 75 passengers. Thus, each death trooper company will have 22 soldiers and support from 53 standard stormtroopers. I consider this to be the best solution, giving us the opportunity to make a landing with only 375 people, not counting the pilots."
"If you think this is enough, then I trust your judgment as officers much more experienced in this matter than I am." Lanz leaned back as comfortably as the cockpit and the purely utilitarian seat would allow. "Captain, take off as soon as you are ready and before landing in the hangar of the enemy defense structure, try to shoot the hangar. I have a feeling they'll be waiting for us there."
"As you wish, my lord, but honestly, if I were you, I wouldn't worry about naval troopers." Yang replied dismissively, as if the military formation he was talking about was not a major problem and did not even deserve to be included in the calculations. "To be honest, the regular Imperial Army is already a big enough joke. Meanwhile, Imperial Navy troopers are, and always have been, a complete waste of resources. They don't have even a fraction of the combat capability of the Stormtrooper Corps."
Lanz was not convinced enough and vaguely remembered that the members of the Stormtrooper Corps had quite a general disdain for the army, and their attitude towards the soldiers of the Imperial Navy was already one of pure contempt, as being much inferior to themselves. After all, Naval Troopers were not something to be taken lightly, or so Lanz thought. However, the Lord Regent did not have much time for a proper reprimand, so he limited himself to the bare minimum. "Captains, naval troopers can and often do not equal the skill level of the Stormtrooper Corps. This is more than certain. Nevertheless, and regardless of your assessment, they still have weapons, combat training, and if they have competent NCOs and officers commanding them, they are an absolute threat to be reckoned with. Please remember this if you want to keep your soldiers alive, and if you want to remain among the living."
The rather long silence made it more than clear to Lanz that he was able to reason with the commander of his death troopers. Nevertheless, there was no time for longer conversations, every second mattered.And we've wasted enough of it already! Way too much!
Thinking about this, Lanz couldn't help but mentally sigh a little as he remembered another of the many traits he had acquired from the previous owner of this body.Never in my previous life was I ever in such a hurry and I always had the feeling that there would be time for everything. Now, however, I feel how necessary it is... Rational and economical management of an extremely valuable capital, which is time. Especially in a galactic war the likes of which had not been seen since the Clone Wars. In addition, my presence and actions have already significantly changed the future. First of all, the warlords are not leaving the inner territories of the galaxy, at least at this point, but the chaos resulting from the death of the Emperor and the incompetence of the MasAmeddy, is by no means less deplorable in its consequences than in the canon.
Lanz lowered his head a little as he began his thoughts.In Legends, the empire - although undoubtedly weakened by the loss of the emperor and leadership - at least had a ruling council, and only year by year it began to sink more and more into chaos, caused by the breakdown of central power and, in part, by Ysanne Isard, who wanted to take over all power for herself. Here, however, and after the declaration of the Alignment of Powers, more and more high-ranking officials and governors oversectors will create their own galactic states. As long as some of them can be called states rather than chaotic dictatorships with a military junta as the main center of central power. One thing is certain, Rax will have a very simplified task of destroying the old Galactic Empire, but building a new one in the Unknown Regions will be much more difficult. Because of the limited resources available to him. Very limited resources.
He was pulled out of his thoughts by the sight of five transports flying, to which he had given the order to take off just a few moments earlier. With his phantom's cloaking device disabled, he approached the sentinels formation as quickly as possible.
"Tash, Ishan, I'm leaving the squadron for a while." Lanz announced on their communication channel. "I intend to join the attack on the defense platform, and personally meet with the governor of this sector."
"Is that wise?" The ever sensible Ishan asked the question. "Captain Yang and his men are more than capable of handling…."
"Come on." Tash snorted with what could best be described as a dismissive snort, with an air of friendly banter to it. "The Inquisitor is more than capable of dealing with this rabble, especially with the considerable support of our brave stormtroopers."
"It's not a matter of lack of faith in their abilities, fool." Ishan hissed venomously but quite calmly, a commendable balance between the two. "Just a matter of pure caution."
"Silent." Lanz raised his voice slightly as his phantom was at the head of the 5 transports. "I don't like to abuse my power unless absolutely necessary or prevent my subordinates from expressing their opinion. Nevertheless, I have already made my decisions and I am more than sure that it is the right one. Ultimately, someone of great authority must extend an offer to them to join us after Moff Tardir's death."
Ishan immediately understood his innuendo and recognized a certain level of annoyance in his tone. For this reason, she decided to maintain a submissive-passive attitude at this point. "Yes, my lord."
Lanz nodded, then turned to his other wingman. "And you, Tash, better not overestimate our abilities. A sober judgment of the situation and using it wisely can sometimes be much more valuable than the most powerful fleet in the galaxy. Especially if this most powerful fleet is used without any sensible idea."
"Yes, my lord." Tash responded rather uncharacteristically for this loud brawler, with an almost contemplative tone in his tone.
"That's all I have to tell you for now. Out."
When this communication ended, the six ships were practically several hundred meters away from the hangar, and a few moments later, they landed. Of course, the Sentinels and, on this occasion, the TIE Phantom Lanza, began to fire rather lightly at the equipment located centrally in front of their landing zone, in order to eliminate any potentially lurking enemies there. However, no one was there, and the transports and Phantom landed without incident.
Lanz was the first to leave his ship, and after many minutes of fighting, he finally stretched his legs, keeping his lightsaber and disc at his belt, his hand on it, ready to grab the deactivated blade just in case and start fighting or simply deflect the incoming bolts .
Captain Yang's companies of death troopers, and the standard stormtroopers accompanying him, began to pour out of the transports after a while, but at the same moment the doors to the hangar opened, and a flood of armed human women and men in black uniforms, black helmets with long necked, in black armor matching their uniforms, and armed with blasters, some with light ones, others with heavier ones. It didn't take long for them to start firing massively at the stormtroopers and the Lord Inquisitor.
As if that wasn't enough, soon more and more stormtroopers began to appear among the approaching Naval troopers, and not just any ones. Elite Imperial Marines, mostly equipped with standard E-11s, but some of them also wielded - and what shocked the Lord Regent when he noticed - proton torpedo launchers. A combat tool so powerful in such a small area that even all those Scarlet Fleet stormtroopers would have no chance in such a fight.
It wasn't long before both sides began firing at each other, and a hail of crimson bolts illuminated the metallic hangar of the defense platform. The Death Troopers who had already left the transports immediately showed great accuracy, killing or wounding many Naval Troopers and several enemy stormtroopers. Nevertheless, the outcome of the fight was uncertain.
Lanz moved to the front line, in front of the fighting soldiers, immediately deflecting the bolts fired at him, sending them accurately towards those firing from him. Several were killed and wounded. Thus, several hours of training using a lightsaber were worth it. Although Lanz may have inherited knowledge and memory from the body's previous owner, it was theoretical knowledge that, without practical support, was basically meaningless. Some things came easier for the Lord Inquisitor to learn, such as mind manipulation and mind tricks using the Force, training in swordsmanship and lightsaber combat also came quite easily to him, despite the fact that in his previous life his exposure to melee weapons was limited to childhood , when he played with wooden swords, but without using styles or techniques. However, he handled it surprisingly well. Meditation - which was an absolute surprise for him - also came quite easily to him and he had no problems opening his connection to the Force with a clear mind and focusing on his emotions. Apparently, he was able to be honest with himself, as evidenced by his repeated and seamless focus on fear, the will to survive, and the desire for power, although it was definitely not an obsessive desire for power.
On this occasion, he definitely realized that no matter what he did, he simply never had the will or the personality or the conviction to follow either the Jedi code of discipline or the liberation of himself from all limitations. According to the Sith code .However, as an organic being, with a mentality created in another, prosperous world, I am apparently unable to establish any clear and unambiguous line with the dark or light side of the Force. I do not have unbridled ambition, nor the discipline and desire to serve something greater than myself.
However, that wasn't his biggest problem. His biggest problem at this point was the enormous difficulties that arose in the two areas that Lanz was trying to master or at least have some basic understanding of. That said, he wasn't very good at learning to knock down blaster bolts with a lightsaber, and he had great difficulty with telekinesis. In the latter case, starting with throwing objects or throwing a lightsaber, and ending with pushing several objects. The only consolation he could take in this regard was that at least he was able to lift one object at a time, as he had done in the caseSour, as he demonstrated his power to him, but any other progress in this area was just slow and unencouraging. Fortunately for him, although he initially had so much trouble deflecting blaster bolts, it was mainly because he had difficulty feeling the bolts coming.
It was somewhat of a paradox that someone so good in one area of the Force, mind manipulation and mind tricks, turned out to be so weak in several other areas. However, his memories made it clear that his Second Brother did not put much emphasis on this and focused more on the art of swordsmanship than on hitting incoming bolts.
The first exercises gave him many unpleasant experiences and memories from this learning. However, although the first 2 weeks of learning the art of deflecting blaster bolts were painful and unpleasant, by the end of the 3rd week he was finally making progress. After all, if someone - especially now - asked him for an honest opinion, he would answer that his skills in this area were mediocre at best.
This mediocrity manifested itself after the first few great shots bounced towards the shooters, the next ones were either sideways, or missed the wall behind the crowd of enemies, or hit other Naval Troopers or Imperial Marines. Nevertheless, while his telekinesis and ability to deflect projectiles may have been slight, he successfully sensed an approaching threat and was at least able to dodge.
However, Lanz realized that it could not last long, so he quickly moved forward, avoiding or deflecting subsequent bolts flying towards him, and quickly reached the line of enemies who were at the same time desperately trying to take up firing positions behind the scattered or destroyed crates. Still, they didn't have that luxury, especially with the presence of a rather dangerous Force user.
They were not helped, especially by the fact that the destruction in space above the planet, the fear and death it all caused, meant that Lanz could freely draw on the energy of the dark side of the Force. Therefore, he reached for this power, which not only gave him the strength to fight the enemy, but also made him no longer pay attention to the enemies he killed and did not even have the slightest reflection about it.
When he reached the first line of enemies in his field of view, he didn't even hesitate as with one slash he decapitated three Naval Troopers who watched in horror as the Force user approached them, and who easily deflected or dodged all the bolts sent his way . However, their fear gave way to dull shock as their helmeted heads detached themselves from the rest while their bodies went to the ground, releasing E-10 or E-11 blasters from their hands. The only remnants of their necks that connected their bodies to their heads were fried, black and disgustingly stinking pieces of meat, which, however, thanks to the filters in the Lord Inquisitor's helmet, never reached him.
Lanzo's next target were two Imperial Marines standing right next to him, who turned their attention to him and tried to frantically shoot at him, but the results were unproductive and even grotesque. One of the bolts hit the head of a Naval Trooper who was focused on shooting at the attackers opposite him and who was holding a DH-17 blaster pistol in both hands, which he did not release even after instantly dying and falling inertly to the ground. Even his finger remained on the trigger, as a result of which the blaster continued to fire but without causing any damage to the attackers or defenders.
Lanz approached the pair quite quickly and without wasting a moment of looking around and charging in like some pure, primal and unstoppable force that would sweep away everything in its path. The first of the two was unceremoniously cut across the chest, from the right shoulder to the hip bone. The second one was cut straight and clean at the waist. The effect of this was to split the bodies of both unfortunates, who had the misfortune to stand in front of a warrior with a lightsaber, for whom they could only pose a threat to the group.
Although both of their bodies and severed pieces fell to the ground and a disgusting burning stench emanated from them, this was not the end. Although usually body parts severed by a lightsaber are cooked so badly that they do not even leave blood, this was not the case here. In fact, the quick cuts caused the blackened fragments of viscera to be effectively torn apart under the pressure of the weight of the internal organs, which literally poured out of . In the first case, in the case of a cut across the chest, a lot of blood flowed out very quickly and with it the cut piece of the small intestine, or it was the turn of part of the large intestine and pancreas. In the second case, the entire large and small intestines spilled out along with the blood, but without the pancreas, which somehow managed to stay in place.
Lanz was no longer paying attention to that, only to the next target. It was clear that he did not have to be afraid of fire from the side, because then it would mean that the defenders would completely surrender the initiative to the attackers. They could not afford this and could only hope that their comrades in the rear could deal with this threat.
Well, in theory there were quite good chances for this, because opposite Lanz and behind the barricade, there was an entire unit of 10 Imperial Marines, of which as many as 2 were armed with proton torpedo launchers. Additionally, immediately upon seeing the warrior with the scarlet lightsaber, they began intense fire, but he was already moving forward, deflecting or dodging everything.
Everything until one of the marines sent a torpedo towards him, which although he managed to avoid, it hit the Sentinel landing craft behind him, in the central cockpit. Without a doubt, killing the pilots, the officer commanding them, permanently damaging the ship and, as Lanz quickly realized, fortunately only knocking down the stormtroopers and death troopers gathered near the cockpit.
Things started to get much worse for Lanz when the second of the two Marines armed with proton torpedo tubes aimed directly at him, then pulled the trigger and the missile fired.
The Lord Regent had no choice but to take the risk and extended his open hand towards the torpedo coming towards him. By focusing the energy of the dark side and acting almost instinctively, he was able to successfully stop the flying bullet, which stopped for a few moments approximately halfway until it collided with Lanz and killed him.
This state of affairs continued for several moments, amidst the raging battle and flying bolts, and as surprised as the disoriented Marines and several Naval Troopers who at the same time approached the position they had occupied. Everything until Lanz concentrated on telekinesis probably like never before and sent the torpedo back towards the one who wanted to kill him. It didn't even take a few seconds until the gift was returned to the sender and the entire hangar was lit up with explosions, but it didn't last more than a fraction of a moment.
The result was numerous limbs, blood and internal organs so deformed, scattered throughout the attacked hangar, that sometimes recognition was simply impossible and such a piece could only be described as a bloody pulp.
At the same time, stormtroopers from the Scarlet Fleet were charging forward and conducting intense fire, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy, but losing dozens of men, killed, wounded, and even those whose limbs were torn off by the blaster. Because at one point the Imperial Marines used heavy equipment, but not torpedo launchers, but instead cannon blaster weapons, which, despite the impossibility of long and constant fire, turned out to be an extremely difficult obstacle for the attackers.
Specifically, there were two blaster cannons placed behind heavily makeshift shields made of crates scattered throughout the hangar, quite a few of which were basically torn up debris. It seemed that this heavy equipment could prove to be a very effective obstacle that would prevent further advances, and Lanz himself was about to reach this position as quickly as possible, but then the commander of the death troopers company stepped into action.
Captain Yang, in a daring and somewhat desperate move, decided to sprint forward, avoiding the fire and without his blaster, and at the same time grabbed the extremely powerful tool of destruction attached to his belt. It was a thermal detonator that every stormtrooper and death trooper had at their disposal. The captain showed incredible efficiency and improvisation skills, as he managed to arm the detonator while running, then threw it forward in such a way that it bounced off one of the cannons and fell at the feet of the cannon operators, their companions and the ammunition placed nearby. They didn't have time to react properly, because the device exploded a few moments later and they were all dead.
These particular ones were so lucky that they weren't torn apart so much. There was blood and pieces of their flesh, but the vast majority of their bodies had evaporated. Only three and far enough away from the explosion site were simply knocked to the ground and stunned. However, the proximity of the ammunition to the epicenter of the detonation resulted in several more explosions that interrupted the fight, drawing the attention of all the combatants.
Even the dark side energy within the Lord Regent and the associated aggression that had driven him into battle for the past few minutes had given way to curiosity and a desire to know the fate of those affected by the explosion. Lanz quickly realized what had happened when he noticed the captain lying on the ground, and he realized thanks to his recognition of his presence in the Force.
However, there was no time to think about his fate, especially since some Naval Troopers began to simply give up due to inexperience in real combat and shock of recent events. Meanwhile, the marines began to flee deeper into the defense platform, seeing that their chance of stopping the attackers was severely reduced again and again, to essentially 0.
"Forward!" Lanz gave a loud command that echoed throughout the hangar, where the blasters still hadn't fired up again.
He didn't have to wait long, because all the surviving and able-bodied stormtroopers moved forward with shouts, starting fire on those opponents who tried to retreat, resulting in several wounded and dead. Not even a few dozen seconds passed before all the defenders were pushed out of the hangar, and those who remained were the dead, dying and prisoners.
Lanz then turned to Yang, who had already stood up and retrieved his blaster rifle. "Captain, I will take Lieutenant Horta and 5 death troopers with me to pay a personal visit to the governor of this sector."
"Yes, my lord." The captain nodded. "In the meantime, me and the others will work on securing the rest of the defense platform and its most important segments."
"So let's not waste time, every second of delay means more victims of this fratricidal fight." Lanz told him goodbye. "Lieutenant, follow me."
The above-mentioned officer of the death troopers division followed him, choosing 5 people to accompany them whom he considered most worthy of accompanying the the Regent, and then all seven men went to the corridor directly leading out of the hangar, where a mixture of standard stormtroopers and death troopers had already poured out.
As for the latter, their armor and weapons have changed somewhat. First of all, it was a cosmetic issue, although the armor was still black, the visors and all electronics - at least the external ones - generated red light or were given this color. Additionally, on the armor itself, specifically on the breastplates and their seeds, there was an imperial coat of arms, in a blood-red color, which stood out quite well from the rest and went well with the black. As for the armament, it was still the good old E-11D blaster rifle, which was simply good and did not require a replacement or a more modern variant. One accessory was a black and medium-length vibroblade with a blood-red handle, finished with a bright metallic pommel in the shape of an imperial crest.
Lanz looked at the stormtroopers following him with one specific question. "Do any of you know which way to the defense platform command center?"
Lieutenant Hort spoke immediately and first. "My lord, I know, I served on this type of station for several months before being transferred to the death troop division. Please follow me and we should get there without any problems."
Overall, their march through the corridors lasted several minutes, during which they occasionally encountered groups of scattered and disorganized opponents, or even individual marines. In most cases, their enemies either surrendered or were incapacitated. Lanz was no longer affected by the energy of the dark side of the Force, so he either stunned his enemies, or slashed at their weapons, or simply ordered his stormtroopers to simply set their blasters to stun mode and incapacitate them that way. There was no need to kill enemies now that all organized resistance from the defenders had ceased, and the Alignment of Powers - despite having military academies in every sector - could not afford to kill opponents and waste their lives when they could simply kill their leaders and try to get them on your side.
With that said, the group finally reached the large, automatically opening doors located three stories or so above the hangar, behind which the personnel manning this entire defensive structure were undoubtedly located. However, before Lanz could get close enough, a trapdoor opened in front of him and the group, at the bottom of which was an elevator and a group of 10 extremely advanced droids that none of them expected.
The elevator, carrying the command center guards and - undoubtedly - Moff Tardir's personal guard, began to rise, and 10 pure steel droids with black cloaks and the white Imperial emblem were activated. Their eyes glowed a dark green while held by each of them electrostaffs, were activated and their tips glowed with yellow beams of electricity.
"Guard droids?" The lieutenant asked, completely surprised by this fact. "I heard about…"
"No one cares, Lieutenant." Lanz interrupted him, then took a defensive position in Form III. "I advise you to take out your vibroblades and prepare."
If Hort was offended, he did not express it verbally, and Lanz had neither the time nor the inclination to analyze his mind with the Force. Instead, he seamlessly transitioned from Form III to Form IV, attacking while holding the blade with both hands vertically on the right side of his body, cutting the first two in at such an angle that both guard droids were knocked out of the fight.
After this move, Lanz suddenly fell back, while the stormtroopers with him had already drawn their vibroblades and prepared for close combat. This was useful because the remaining 8 droids moved forward and attacked.
Meeting machines practically from a previous conflict is not unusual, especially when that conflict took place over 20 years ago.Lanz thought when 2MagnaGuards they targeted him and tried to attack him, but he transitioned seamlessly into Form III and seamlessly blocked attack after attack.After all, in the world I originally came from, weapons from the Second Great War could appear on the fields of various conflicts even 40 years after the end of that war.
His thoughts were interrupted when two people focused on himMagnaGuards They tried to push at the same time, using their own electrostaffs. However, Lanz decided to use one of Ataru's techniques, Hawk-Bat Swoop. Although he was learning it quite reluctantly, despite his talent for fencing, he still managed to do it so correctly that, as a result of the attack, one of the twoMagnaGuards he was cut straight and in half, while the other didn't have much time to react. Because Lanz cut off his head with an efficient and quick movement, it was not enough.
Sithspit, I completely forgot that these protection droids can function even after losing their heads, which is basically impossible or limited in other models, as is the case with the T-series tactical battle droids.Lanz cursed in his mind, then took a rather strong shove to his chest, and considering that he was used for this electrostaff, an electric shock passed through him and he was pushed back several meters. Well, I should have known better, but it's a little too late.
He got up quite quickly, but with a groan, so quickly that he noticed MagnaGuard approaching him at a fast pace, clearly preparing for another attack, or rather for a whole series.
Lanz activated his lightsaber once more, but this time he activated not only one single blade, but also a second one, and began to deflect blow after blow, adopting a Form III stance. The droid pressed on and seemed to have no intention whatsoever - at least as far as it went - to let go or give Lanz even the slightest opportunity to regain the initiative. So he had no choice but to step back abruptly a meter until he reached a wall shining with a metallic sheen. He then tried to concentrate the Force energy in his left hand and pushed forward.
Considering his meager telekinesis skills, then MagnaGuard he was only pushed back half a meter, and then he landed firmly on his feet, ready to continue marching and attacking.
No damn it, why doesn't it work!His thoughts boiled with irritation mixed with rage and the desire to destroy his durastell opponent. No longer defeated, but completely destroyed.
The anger and desire to destroy he generated naturally attracted the energy of the dark side of the Force. Thanks to this, on the next push,MagnaGuard he was knocked onto his back and pushed several meters away. Lanz gained space and opportunity, so he turned off one of the blades and moved forward, smoothly transitioning to Form IV. Blow after blow, the droid only retreated until Lanz, empowered by the dark side of the Force, managed to hit the red spot in the center of the machine's chest with his crimson blade. As a result, the droid finally fell to the ground and let go of electrostaff from mechanical hands.
When the fight was over, Lanz was able to clear himself of all emotions and looked around, seeing that his comrades had also managed to deal with their opponents. Giving them training in vibroblade combat and lightsaber combat produced results. This was especially visible when the last of the 10thMagnaGuards fell to the ground.
Lan didn't say anything, he just moved towards the door and after opening it, he stepped inside, where he was greeted by an unsurprising sight.
Apart from the technicians at the consoles and a few officers supervising them, in the very center and in front of the wall of portholes there was a large, swivel chair with backrests with consoles and communicators built into them.
"Faster than I expected." Moff's uninteresting and unattractive voice came from the side of the chair. "To tell you the truth, I was counting on 2 companies of Marines with the support of Naval Troopers guarding the station to be more than enough to kill you, Inquisitor."
"You miscalculated very much, Governor." Came the Lord Regent's response, although no one outside the death troopers here was aware of the Second Brother's true political status and the fact that Lanz and the inquisitor were one and the same person. "Surrender now and save your people from unnecessary deaths or even an escalation of a battle that has already been going on for too long."
"You miscalculated, stupid." Was the Moff's response, and at that moment he turned his chair towards the attackers, revealing that the situation was not as clear-cut as they might have expected a moment ago. "While you were busy fighting and tearing apart all these Marines and regular Navy troops, as at the same time - and in fact before you landed in the hangars of this defense platform - I gave the order that the reactor be mined with as many bombs as possible so that its destruction was certain at the moment of detonation."
The man was sitting slouched in a chair with a calm look, his legs dangling sloppily, and a rather large belt hanging around his stomach, with numerous thermal detonators, thermal detonators of various classes and power, and small fuel bombs. To top it all off, he was holding a remote igniter with a rather large and telling red button.
"One step and we all die." He continued, seeing that the inquisitor had deactivated his lightsaber while the death troopers had lowered their blaster rifles. "Now, if you are wise, you will retreat with your men to the transports and you will return to your fleet, but not before you swear to leave this system and not return."
What should I do?Lanz was more grateful than ever that he was wearing his trademark helmet with a scarlet visor that hid his panic and wide eyes.I didn't expect something like this, but... Okay, calm down, the situation isn't that bad, but it's undoubtedly not good either. I'd say it's a stalemate. So there is no need to give in to his short-sighted demands, which are too late and would never be fulfilled by me. That said...
Lanz once again could not control his emotions, but this time he expressed them in a more expressive way, and to put it bluntly, he started laughing loudly, which brought almost immediately noticeable and easily predictable effects. His death troopers looked at him like he was crazy or out of touch with reality. All officers and technicians present here had similar feelings as the stormtroopers, and they looked at the enemy leader with similar expressions. However, the least expressive was the reaction of Moff Tardir, who only narrowed his eyes and a few drops of sweat rolled down his forehead, because he knew perfectly well how weak his situation actually was and that he had failed to scare the inquisitor.
"What's so funny to you, traitor?" He asked in a voice that, although supposed to be calm, sounded more venomous and hostile.
"Due to your short sightedness and illusions!" Lanz shouted mockingly, then laughed even louder, until after a few seconds he finally controlled his emotions so as not to look like a madman. "Not to mention how willing you are to sacrifice all these brave men and women just because of your desire to maintain power over this sector."
Some of the officers or technicians glanced at Moff, and then their eyes moved back to the inquisitor, over and over again, waiting for further developments.
The silence was actually an encouragement for Lanzo to continue, which he did with great satisfaction that bubbled up from his tone of voice. "Do you really think that draping yourself with bombs and mining the reactor is a move that will make me fear or make me withdraw? No, I'm not one of those weak-willed, cowardly people who aren't really worth much. So I will repeat my offer once again, either you surrender now and end this senseless fight, or it will escalate."
Moff Tardir He got over his nervousness at this point and spoke to him with obvious venom in his voice, which he didn't even try to mask anymore. "The only one who led to this escalation and this unnecessary spilling of Imperial blood is you. You, Second Brother, and that whole bunch of traitors who proudly call themselves the Alignment General Staff."
"Who is your traitor, Moff Tardir, the real traitor?" Lanz asked him, now completely calm. "Someone who decided to oppose the weak and crumbling power structure in order to save the imperial ideal? Or is it someone stuck in the existing hierarchy with the belief that idiots and unforward-looking bureaucrats with no leadership skills can salvage anything from a crumbling empire?"
"It is the duty of every soldier, loyalty to his superiors." Moff replied, not even having the slightest intention of letting up. "I don't know what he was thinkingTags, when he created this idiotic narrative and the Alignment of Powers, or when he decided to choose some non-existent figurehead as leader. However, I know that both he and you are traitors who should die for betraying the Galactic Empire!"
His last words were like the furious roar of a rancor, but Lanz only laughed in response.
"So you really consider yourself loyal to people who are not even remotely worthy of other people's loyalty." He said briefly, then turned to the rest of the people gathered here. "Do you really think that someone likeGrand Moff Frax Fritzener deserves to be considered worthy of your loyalty? A man so hungry for power that he puts the security of his own borders at risk oversector, has decided to reinforce fleets located closer to the center of Northern Dependencies?"
He then attached his lightsaber to his belt and moved closer to the members of the defense platform staff looking at him in fascination. "I'm asking you again! Does such a man, who is about to throw himself into battle for what's left of the Galactic Empire, deserve the loyalty of brave men and women like you?!"
His question aroused a more than obvious contemplation among those gathered, who seemed to be conferring among themselves like some wild and untamed natives at their primitive gatherings. Only Tardir remained focused on him.
"You are undermining our unity and loyalty with these beautiful and smooth words!" The governor accused him. "You dare to justify starting a civil war in the Galactic Empire in such a brazen way?"
"It was difficult for me to start a civil war since direct or behind-the-scenes fighting, and even attempts on the life of some officials or military men, began shortly after the emperor's death." Lanz waved his hand decisively and then decided on a bold and risky move. "I and other representatives of the Alignment of Powers were only the first to make the move to build a new and better one on the corpse of the old Galactic Empire!"
He was more than surprised by the boldness and the fact that he raised his voice towards the end, but quickly composed himself, despite some chaotic thoughts.What am I saying?! I don't believe in all this, and yet I speak as if I were some sort of fanatic. Well, I suspect this is my best bet for survival at this point. Survival is my biggest priority now, not some pathetic ideology! I must be strong and unyielding in my entire behavior, even the smallest part of it!
The Moff seemed fascinated by his words, so he decided to ask. "What exactly do you mean that you and the other representatives of the Alignment of Powers have only just made the first move?"
But before Lanz could say anything, another question came out of Moff's mouth almost immediately. "Who exactly are you?"
Seeing no point in continuing to cover his face, Lanz simply took off his helmet, fully revealing his ruby eyes and blond hair, which had not been shortened in all the time since the Emperor's death, so it was allowed to grow quite freely, and now fell to the left and right side of the Lord Inquisitor's head.
"I was once known as Second Brother, Imperial Inquisitor and servant of the old, at this point, order, but that's over!" He raised his voice, although he was not shouting, and it seemed as if his language and gestures were guided by some invisible force. "I refuse to serve anyone other than our late Emperor or Lord Vader, for none of the leaders on Coruscant have the will or vision to once again bring peace, order and prosperity to this galaxy! So if you believe that loyalty to such disgusting individuals as the Grand Moff and the governor of this oversector is a priority, and you are willing to sacrifice your own people for this stupidity, then you can detonate the explosives!"
As if to emphasize his own words, Lanz spread his arms wide, which was met with sighs from absolutely everyone, even the death troopers accompanying him.Everything or nothing! Taking a stand, especially in the face of death or potential death, can be more than intimidating. However, it may very well have the opposite effect, although…
Lanz then noticed a rather interesting change of emotions among one of the defense platform crew members, but he had no intention of interfering with it. Especially since his attention was now redirected to the surprised and clearly internally conflicted governor.
"You really believe what you say." He was clearly fooled by his sincere declaration. "Well…"
He was not allowed to finish, because the general sound of computers and consoles working everywhere was interrupted by a blaster shot that hit the left side of Moff Tardir's head. This left a black mark in the area of impact and resulted in the governor's death and the bomb activator falling from his hand.
Lanz barely managed to grab the detonator with the Force, but despite all his telekinesis difficulties, he was once again able to overcome his weaknesses. Then he clumsily pulled it to his hand and used his lightsaber to destroy it.
Lanz then turned to the officer who fired, a not very tall and rather inconspicuous man of the rank of senior lieutenant, who was still holding the blaster pistol in both hands, clearly shaking and seemingly unable to perform any action.
"You made the right decision, Lieutenant." Lanz said before putting his helmet back on with its scarlet visor. "Since he does not register any objections, he assumes that in the face of the death of your commander, you are joining the Alignment of Powers. So my first order is for you to prepare a communications system for the entire sector as soon as possible."
Virtually no one moved, as if everyone was still stunned, only the young officer who shot the governor put away his gun and made any movement.
"I won't repeat myself, gentlemen." Lanz added, with a menacing edge to his voice. "And sir."
Indeed, there was no shortage of women - despite certain standards and prejudices in force in the empire - and if Lanz himself were to estimate, here in the command room, they constituted at least ⅓ of the staff.
His words were enough to galvanize everyone into action.
"Yes, my lord." The officer who shot the governor was the first to take action and apparently recovered from his emotions quite quickly. "I'm the communications officer and it should be ready in a few moments."
After his words, all the remaining technicians and junior officers went to work. As a result, after only 5 minutes, the Lord Regent was able to speak unimpeded to the staff, to officers, soldiers, Imperial citizens, and the vast majority of everyone else who was in the Deadalis sector. Including the inhabitants of the planet Dorin.
"Attention, this is Lord Regent Lanz, I speak on behalf of the Alignment of Powers to all who hear me!" It's high time to end the masquerade that has been going on for far too long and is unlikely to work anymore. "The Governor of the Deadalis Sector is dead, killed not by me or one of my brave stormtroopers, but at the hands of a man committed to imperial ideal and who is more than determined in his resolve to fight for this ideal. So I am making an offer to you now, to join the Alignment of Powers. Join us as we fight for order, peace and prosperity. Become the first from outside the New Territories oversector to join this noble endeavor and help us oppose the anarchy and chaos that will soon spread across the galaxy!
I improvised, but once again he is more than capable of it and it didn't cause me much difficulty.He thought, and he didn't have to wait too long for the effects of the speech.
"My lord, we are receiving transmissions from the flagship of the Dorin Defense Fleet, the Star Destroyer 'Eternal Fury'." The officer in charge of communications reported.
"Show us at once." Lanz replied briefly, unaware that communication to the entire sector was still open.
In front of him, a hologram of a woman with the rank of rear admiral appeared, standing straight, with her arms crossed behind her back. However, despite her military and stiff posture, the fatigue was very clearly visible in her eyes. "This is the Commander of the Dorin Defense Fleet, Rear Admiral Calra Qel. "On behalf of myself, all military and civil authorities, and with the safety of our citizens in mind, and in the fight for peace, order and prosperity, we announce our joining the Alignment of Powers with immediate effect."
"I accept it and a heavy stone falls from my heart at the thought that, at least in this sector, the senseless fight has now come to an end." He replied, then raised his voice to give it all a punchline. "Long live the Empire!"
"Long live the Empire!" Everyone on the bridge responded, including the rear admiral, and Lanz could imagine many others doing the same.
And now it's time to deal with the natives, who apparently have too high an opinion of their own abilities. Lanz thought as he turned his train of thought to a completely different topic that required his involvement as quickly as possible with the least bloody result possible.
AN: Well, this is the end of this chapter, this is where Episode III of this story has come to an end. Next comes Episode IV and the Scarlet Fleet's journey to the goal of the first campaign.
As for the presented fight using a lightsaber, I wanted to present it in a more extensive way than what has been presented to us so far. Typically, if a hero or his antagonist loses a limb, everything is sterile and there is no blood. However, we have probably never been shown in depth what can happen when the chest is cut diagonally or at the waist. I wanted to present it all in such detail and so disgusting that you would never think about using a lightsaber in combat and cutting through organic matter with it in the same way. I hope I succeeded, if not you should read that it not work and I will stop.
In terms of the future Imperial warlords presented, I already have a general outline of their factions and what they will be characterized by. First of all, it will be a mix of legends and canon, just like their staffs. For more information, I advise you to wait until the first Interlude. However, I don't think about taking the easy way and I will try to add some originality in a way that, on the one hand, gives you fun and leaves as much unpredictability as possible.
For those unfamiliar, I have already given you some unpredictability regarding the fate of the main character. Will he overcome his doubts and become a Sith Lord and plunge the galaxy into chaos once again? Will he become emperor or die trying? Or will he ultimately fail and abandon everything he has worked for? I won't give you easy answers to this question. What I can tell you at this point is that within the scope of this fanfiction I am sticking to the original division of the Force that Lucas created in the original trilogy, into the Force and the dark side of the Force, not the light side of the Force and the dark side. I know this may seem like a trivial and contradictory difference given Lanz's perspective, but this issue will be developed in the next arc, which will touch on the issue of the Force a bit towards the end. Especially when - SPOILER ALERT - Lanz finds his first holocron. However, I will not say whose holocron it will be, but I will tell you that it is a creation created by a quite significant person from the period of the Clone Wars and the Separatist Crisis.
On this occasion, I will tell you that initially I planned for Lanz to track down Star Forge and search for it. In this scenario, although Star Forge was destroyed during the Jedi Civil War, it was rebuilt by properly programmed and prepared droids. Over the millennia, this stellar structure would only be increasingly restored to a state of operability and former glory. By the time Lanza found it, it was already about 99% complete and required only a year to become fully operational. However, I gave up on this concept because at this point the Alignment of Powers would become an essentially unstoppable force and it would remove much of the unpredictable nature of THIS Galactic Civil War scenario that I had created. Also, don't expect any super weapons or super structures in this story that can magically change the fate of the war. If anything, expect at most innovative or single-aspect weapons or machines that can at most slightly improve - after mass implementation - the local situation on the battlefield, but only as a relatively coherent element of the system can they change anything on an operational scale.
I think it will be quite a refreshing look at Star Wars on my part, in which I choose to take a very realistic look at the aspect of war as a system, in which a given system works only as efficiently as its weakest element. I will try not to disappoint your expectations in this matter.
I hope that this chapter was a nice time for you, and that you are satisfied or hungry to read even more.
One more piece of news for 'Hated Brother' readers. Basically, I have a completed plan for the rest of the events, and I also have Chapter XXII completely ready. Nevertheless, I am currently focused on 'For New And Better Empire', and I just feel inspired to continue working. Nevertheless, sooner or later - as I made you understand in the announcement - I will return to this project to complete it, as I announced.
Thanks again for reading and have a nice day or night, and see you next time in the future.