[20 BBY]
[Tower of the Order of the Terrible Glare, Ruins, Surface of Garn, Garn System, Cadma Sector, Outer Rim Territories]
The moment two of droids went down, even if could not see them, at the rear of our little column I triggered the 'relief force' protocols for those units waiting outside in case something like this happened. Not a moment too soon it seemed, as almost the second I began to voice that situation the borders of reality began to break down around me and...something horrible...began to skitter, and creepy, and ooze into this dimension as my senses burned. I didn't even have to think as my armoured hand moved, blaster lowering and firing as my finger pressed on the trigger and the creature of night and chaos was blasted from this realm.
My free hand pulled out my other blaster as I fired the first blaster again and again even lightsabers ignited behind and in front of me. It was a decent ambush spot, the corridor wide enough for perhaps three or four people to walk shoulder to shoulder, and our merry band had spread out in a one by one column with droids in pairs ahead and behind. Other than me at least as my bodyguard droids Aaron and Abigail hovered close enough to support me; gungan energy riot-shield one arm activating as the rapid-fire blaster weapon in the other came alive in flashes of light in the darkness. The inbuilt display in my helmet was freaking out, and the sudden blast of the Dark Side shivered my edges of my soul.
Protection from Chaos, Protection from Evil, burned out without notice as the Night assaulted me. Flashy powers meant over-thinking, and that meant death as there was no time to think through such complex things as I focused on enhancing my body. Strength, Agility, Speed, were mine as the Light burned ever more deeply from me as my blasters spat on either side of me; my boot stomping down and crushing one bug-horror-thing with serenity filling my mind. Calm, control, and Order; those were the things needed now to survive this assault as lightsabers flashed behind and in front of me in a frenetic dance of light interspersed with blaster flashes.
"Flamer Units; Initiate Burn Rear and Forward! Ten Second Delay! Avoid Friendly Fire!" I commanded moving frantically yet still remaining largely in place as there was nowhere to go; Tano was ahead of me with two more past her, and Stass just behind with Knight Siri Tachi at the rear. Droids in between were helping hold back the sudden tide of insect-squid-horrors, but they also held us back in these initial seconds as I used telekinesis to press down the button on my wrist to activate my communicator to the others "Flamer units firing in nine seconds! Reserve deploying towards us now"
Thankfully these were Jedi, and despite fighting the nightmare...things...squirming into existence around them I could feel the subtle readjustment of bodies to handle it. It wasn't hard as all they had to do was *not* manage to jump in front of the flamethrowers as they activated and were ignited; something that could happen unfortunately, hence the warning to the others. Another of my droids went down, torn apart as I blasted apart the things as quickly as I could and the flamers ignited fore and aft of our column. Thankfully we all had out own internal air-supply through our suits, so the flames burning up the air in the corridor as the doors ahead of us slammed closed shouldn't be a problem...
...the world was screaming hateful whispers at us...
...well beyond the doors trapping us in the corridor of course my mind noted in a strange sea of calm. Staying here was a poor tactical option, and Padawan Tano was clearly faltering as she screamed, one hand pressing to her head even as the one holding her lightsaber lashed out at the abominations assaulting her. Without conscious thought I adjusted my footing, my droids reacting to my movements as they were trained and designed, so my weapons could be brought to bear on the creatures on her exposed rear. Abigail and Aaron moved to my flanks as I did so, a graceful dance despite their weight and bulk; metal feet thudding on the stone floors as their systems hit Omega and started to Overclock.
"We need to push forward before we are overwhelmed, we must open those doors!" Kenobi's voice announced through my helmet's communicator. A command, but one I happened to agree with "Luminara help get them open! Everyone else cover us!"
"Understood..." I muttered back in absolute calm, serenely blasting away despite the increasing desperateness of the scenario "...Support Units protection and support protocols. Stormcrow Actual ensure they support our advance"
That was one advantage of having a highly advanced starship in orbit, and using droid units, I found as Kenobi said other things and I allowed myself to follow the guidance of our mini-Force river. Or at least as I thought of the push and pull of the Force abilities of the others as they unconsciously gave them off. Such as the fact Ahsoka Tan wobbled, and then collapsed in front of me; I grabbed her with the Force as much as I stop firing my right hand blaster and grasping her around the waist. A scream, hers maybe, and I had to drop a blaster and grab the hilt of the lightsaber as it swung towards me as she started to convulse; I healed her, drinking deeply of the Light and pushing out the *wrongness* that attempted to enter her ...
Through a cracked faceplate as black filth exited her mouth and she gasped for breath in the air depleted environment...my gazed tilted upwards for but a moment "Attackers above! The ceiling! Daron seal Tano's faceplate!"
I slung her over my shoulder as I felt one of the bodyguard droids arms separate into two, one holding the shield and the 'new' limb extending backwards even as used my remaining blaster to shoot the ceiling. Something...somethings...fell on my armour, but unlike her hazmat suit mine was thick, and tough, and powered, so I ignored the sudden restrictions on my vision as I focused all my powers into combat abilities; something once called Tenser's Transformation. More hands separated from my droids, three in totals, reaching behind them and grabbing at the things as my hands were rather busy wielding blaster and captured lightsaber; all while balancing the unconscious girl.
Knight Tachi went down as we pushed forward desperate, Kenobi and Unduli driving their blades into the strange stone doors and cutting at the...hinges?...as my former Master and Bariss Force pushed at the creatures and the flames. Someone then Force slammed the doors, flinging them back onto the ground ahead of us, as I watched Bariss reach under and help up the screaming Knight as the...
...the world was screaming hateful whispers at us...
...something pressed at my mental barriers strongly. On the others as well it seemed, but we were still pressing forward, and getting through the doors only cost us all but three of my B-1R's, as well as Aaron and Abigail despite losing their riot shields to tentacles. Thankfully one of those B-1R's was a Heavy Flamer unit, and I ordered it to immediately go full burn as the last of us retreated out of the corridor and moved to form a defensive circle. More things were squelching into existence, but this room was massive, with another set of locked doors ahead, and this time there was room to actually fight. Fight and inspect the two injured as I lowered Tano to the ground beside as Kenobi asked of me so he could check them.
"Encountering heavy resistance, being forced to clear with flamers and explosives" echoed in my helmet, explaining the faint shudders I'd felt, as Gardan's voice came down from the Stormcrow. For the moment I deactivated Tano's lightsaber, attaching it my belt along with my blaster as I reached over my shoulder and pulled out the slug-thrower with explosive rounds magnetically secured there. I glanced upwards as I did so...there was nothing there in the darkness, but now I had seconds to consider there were those odd little indentations burning with energy...
Runes maybe?
Faint, but humming with energy. Light and Dark burning in the Force. This whole place reeked of power...
'Ah...I'm in a Wizard's Sanctum' I thought far more calm and serene than I should have been as my rifle lowered and I pulled the trigger. Slug throwers had big disadvantages, limited ammunition being one of them, but this one had the advantage in that it fire powerful explosive shells mixed with an alchemical admixture of my own creation. One that exploded in a beautiful sickly green flare as the first shell impacted the floor in front of the abominations coming through the walls there; and, more importantly, burned in a long lasting blaze that clung and seared all it touched.
"Laying a field of fire to our left" I stated firing in quick, perfect, shots to drive back the creatures on our left flank and create a 'half-circle/wall' of fire on the ground. Something that caused a screaming noise amongst the whispers as the floor took flame, and the pulsing scream-whispers weakened as behind me Stass and Master Luminara danced with blades of light and Force to drive back the hateful horrors. Flames on my right drove back the things towards the doorway, and on my right my bodyguard droids had draw shock staves and were spinning them at speeds likely past organic ability off the floors.
On my HUD I could see the dots moving forward, and being lost, as the large relief force of droids I'd brought with us pressed forward with flamer, blaster, and grenade launcher. Whatever it was here seemed to be weakening as it was struck from all angles, and it was clearly geared for dealing with organic threats judging from the constant assaults of Will based powers. Thankfully the key there with droids was to dumb them down so they couldn't feel existential dread; a nice lesson from the Tactical Droid taken when we struck that organic Confederate Base/Monster.
Thumbing a grenade into hand I flung it, guiding it with the Force, to land amongst a clump of the chitter-skittering creatures as they began to edge back from the green flames burning at their not-flesh. Using my high end abilities now would be dangerous, not with so many Jedi, and I doubt I could do much to persuade them I wasn't being mind-bend by this place. Brute force though seemed to be working at least, and I merely focused on counteracting the mental assaults upon us, and creating a defensive perimeter on this side till our reinforcements arrived. No, the grenade killed a number of things, as did the next, and whatever it was pulsing with power was just beyond those large doors...
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