New Beginning

The crimson blade spun in a web of fury, deflecting the blue blade at every turn with flashes of white hot light.
"You are powerful Malerna...but you were never a duellest, not like me."
Out of his peripheral vision he watched Seshmira evacuate the Council members that would leave, and saw the light of four other lightsaber activating. Saris was deflecting his lighting, and three other Jedi had risen to confront him. He brought his blade up again to lock Malerna's in front of him, before a prickling sensation in the back of his neck alerted him to impending danger.
He spun then, his boot coming around to knock Malerna down before the black attack ship outside exploded in a fiery ball of concussive force. He managed to hold his ground with a bit of pressure from the Force; keeping the glass from cutting him to ribbons. He grit his teeth at the exertion, and was entirely unprepared when the second detonation went off.

He flew backwards, yelling with pain and shattered breath as he hammered into the steel doors of the chamber. His lightsaber to the ground as he steadied himself. With hate filled eyes he watched as the smoke cleared, and the lines of the Raven's Fold became visible. He sneered as the cannons swivelled and aimed right for him, and with a snatching gesture the lightsaber flew back to his hand and the blade activated just in time to intercept the bolts. With several spinning motions he was able to deflect them with pinpoint precision into two of the stunned Jedi Masters who had risen to face him...confused as they were by the sudden explosions. They fell soundless...the third realized his plight and was able to raise his blade to deflect the beams back, but this effort prevented him from stopping the black robed figure spinning above the blaster fire and landing to his side. The man made a short yell before his arm went flying away from his body, and he collapsed in pain.

Anattar looked up as the Fold stopped her bombardment, watching as two figures emerged. One was the Cathar Jedi...Ereth. The other...Anattar was very surprised to see. The Sith Lord's intelligence had reported that the man was broken, hidden...and unlikely to be a threat. Here, Malesyn looked to be the opposite of broken. The Dark Lord's fury was broken by the sound of another explosion...and he turned to see Republic Spec Ops...clearly under the control of Nozomi...storming the Temple. He frowned; a few had escaped the weeding out, apparently. That would have to be remedied.

His own troops stormed the chamber and created a firing line around him, engaging the fresh soldiers in a fierce firefight that Ereth waded into alongside Nozomi and the similar one Xeo was in far below. Anattar noted with a grimace that Saris was in coverage behind Ereth...and his black gloved fist clenched.

"No. Months of planning, and you won't stop this now."
He leapt over the heads of his own men and right into the ranks of the Republic troops. The screams started as the dark figure began dismembering and killing. A soldier fired a pin point blast at him, but the lightsaber came up I'm a quick jab, deflecting the bolt into another soldier. The Sith Lord's glove came up and the man who had fired's neck snapped around 180°, spinning to look right at Malesyn. The same gloved hand fired a bolt of lightning right at the Commander as the body cleared the line of fire.
He spun just in time to deflect another bolt as it came at him, and the unfortunate soldier that had fired it flew screaming out the shattered window. Anattar flew then, back flipping to land before Ereth. His blade rose up then to deflect the skilled Jedi blade, before he smiled. It was truly vicious.
"Look what the cat dragged in..."
The two blades wove back and forth at intense speeds before they came to a lock again, and the Sith Lord looked right into the Feline eyes of his opponent.
"You must think I'm a fool...attack Coruscant like this...the seat of Jedi power...with no escape plan." He growled, spinning to block the Cathar's break thrust. He answered with a few skilled Makashi strikes before hammering home with a Djem So overhead strike.
"Malesyn! Nozomi! You were both militar. Malesyn...you're a physical wreck...but surely you remember teaching me your favorite phrase..."
The black soldiers in the room immediately stopped firing as his fist came up.
"Never begin a war until your enemy is already beaten."
The soldiers reached up to remove their visored helmets...and there would be faces that Nozomi and Malesyn would recognize among them. Soldiers pulled from dozens of Republic regiments.
His blade flashed to point at Ereth and Saris.
"Did any of you think to wonder why main Republic forces, or emergency services haven't answered a massive attack on the Temple?" He smiled as the sky darkened...and Republic cruisers began descending from orbit.
"Because I ordered them not to...until somebody played their hand."

She was glad...Seshmira had pulled through with her plan, and Nozomi followed suit.  Ereth had followed her orders down to every finest detail...much as she had expected out of him.  Their loyalty had been unwavering, lucky for her.  They had mostly agreed when she had asked to set up fail safes...the bad feeling that had been bothering her for a time not letting her rest until she had evacuation measures up to par, the routes updated....She had internalized, but she had done so for the greater benefit.  Only the Jedi closest to her would know the full extent...and they were the ones here leading the missions around her.
The shattering of glass made her wince, crouching to one knee for a moment as she knew what their favorite means of protection typically entailed....And she was not disappointed.

Saris held her ground, keeping her mind stable as she saw the other Masters attack him...and fall, one by one.  She stayed down as the second missile hit, though the ringing in her ears was almost deafening.  The blaster fire from the ship rang out, and her lips pursed a bit...She was back up almost instantly as the chamber stopped shaking around her, And found herself shoulder-to-shoulder with her fuzzy friend.  

"A bit?  You missed the meeting entirely, Fuzzbutt."  She spoke nonchalantly, despite her racing heart.  Blocking blaster fire from the soldiers with quick saber motions, she could have laughed if not in the severe situation.  Before he had left, he had been teaching her to hone her battle abilities.  It had been a long road, but with the help of Seshmira, Ereth, and her own sheer will power they had continued that training...

She almost didn't know what to think when the bolts stopped, before her frown deepened...Of course this would be the case...Not everything could go right, no matter how careful you were.  
"Get the others back.  I will follow." She spoke low, stepping ahead of Ereth.  She had been adamant in setting this up...She would not leave without knowing the rest were taken back to safety first.
 
She could hear the incoming reinforcements...and she knew they were not friendly.  They had no time to keep fighting...but getting Mal and Sesh to back up was probably the bigger challenge.  

"We are out of time Ereth, so no arguing with me." She didn't wait for him to respond, moving forward a few steps to meet Anaatar face to face.  Only mere feet separated them, the hum of their sabers resonating louder then anything else she could hear.  The fighting below, the ringing from the blasts...
"So this is what you want?  Our blood for standing with the light?  For protecting what we are?  We have always stood for the freedom of others, for peace..."  She didn't attack, keeping herself grounded...ready for whatever he may do.  "Then come."
She knew he could very well simply have her shot down as she attempted to keep his attention long enough for Ereth to help the others, knowing she could trust in her abilities should it happen...but then, she also knew Corrin and he was far more likely to take the saber then the easy way out.

Xeo's message came through clear on his end. He just sat on one of the roofs of the temple waiting for an answer back. Nothing was mention for a few minutes. The corellian thought to himself of giving her a few more minutes until he knew he should make his next move. In his line of work, Xeo's thoughts were prone towards more stealth operations to make any 'gun ho' forces to take care of heavy ground garrisons easily. A piece of him also remember his Jedi ways of protecting lives over all other things...and The Jedi would need such an ally now in the mist of an invasion force starting to sweep the whole temple. Every few moments a trike of lost of Jedi went under Xeo's skin and into his sub-conscious...and of those a few he trained became one with The Force from Annatar's black armored troopers. All he could do now was wait for an answer back before Xeo would have to go on doing his next task before leaving Coruscant for a long time. “Come on firecracker...answer back,” he said calling her by her nickname given so long ago during her Jedi trainings before his rank of Jedi Master and Battlemaster...before everything changed now.

Soon his message was answered back by Nozami saying, “This is Jedi Master Nozomi Angelicus. If you boys are looking to bloody your hands I suggest you get on the ground floor. We have people to save and skulls to crack.”

Xeo got up and cracked an eyebrow but tried to answer back. “Isn't that a bit much for a Jedi Master to say, Ms Angelicus? Hey...are you even going to speak to me after all this time!? I know I ditch you back when I had to figure things out myself and...hey are you even going to stop me from my rants? AM I TALKING TO MYSELF HERE WOMAN!?” Xeo took a look at his holo call on his datapad with the sign flashing 'disconnected'. “Huh...thought I fixed that problem...well did I make myself a nerf herder...well in this case for me, it's nerf or nothing now...not that I am with The Jedi Order other wise the Repubic would send there own to help us out like Mal and Ereth I spoke to before,” he said but a few moments later Xeo took a slow look up to see his speech coming to life in front of him. “AHHH The Republic! Finally some back was needed!” Xeo had a grand smile knowing swift justices was coming to Annatar and knowing his answer was shown through the holo panels around The Jedi Temple and outward...until Xeo felt a ripple in The Force. A sicking feeling something was not right with this happy of moments for him. The Republic were in a blockade formation making sure crafts were unable to leave the airspace over The Jedi Temple. Then a quick hot stinging feeling shot through Xeo's mind as some of the low orbit crafts powered up there primary canons for capital craft attacks...pointed towards the temple. Flashes of red flack lasers and large yield power lasers gave not just the temple but any holo panels of Corrin being mocked a good broad side. They fired on there own kind as Xeo witness this horror. “BY THE FORCE! MASTER! TO THE NINE CIRCLES!” Xeo cursed out his ex-master. His emotions were getting the best of him...knowing The Dark Side might claim him at any moment from these outburst...and his self training of holding it back was failing. Xeo was better then before on this matter; however, in this moment of absolute devastation...he was welcoming it into his body.

After a few volleys of capital ship craft attacks. Missiles were fired on to the temple. Xeo tried to get his mind set. Unknown to him on how Nozami, Mal, and Ereth were doing within the temple...Xeo was the only outside defense against this. He had no means of engaging The Republic fleet of this magnitude on his own...but he had to start somewhere for his rebellion...and the lives willing to leave this place of lies now. Xeo saw the missiles being hard shell casing types and not the energy base ones against shielded craft or soft metal hulls. “If I know how they're firing these units...it wouldn't be long before they send in the small fries...oh...look...” Xeo said with a tone scratched up from what is happening within his mind of both Light and Dark fighting over his body. Off in the distance Xeo was able to take note of attack squadrons of Republic fighters coming in. Simple bi-laser cannon systems with some shields to take blasted from normal Sith fighters of the same. They were fast but not able to take much hits. Xeo had to wait for the right time as he stood among the chaos in the sky. There was no resistance from other crafts from Mal's or Nozami's forces...yet. Xeo got his lightsaber in hand and waited. A squad of fighters were going towards Xeo's location blasting a spread pattern of laser fire against the temple walls. Xeo made his move. One of the fighters was breaking formation too soon from the group...for a missile was coming into there way and right at Xeo's location. Xeo quickly ignited his lightsaber...and then with a flip of the switch, which had to be done with great focus, his lightsaber engaged into its Dual Phase mode. Giving him eight feet of blade power Xeo focus and had his lightsaber ready into a draw cut stance. The missile was just about to hit him. Quick as a flash...not even Force Speed needed...his blade smack the missile out of it's trajectory. It was still going but not into the temple itself, but nearly going down the wall side of the temple's acute angle walls. Xeo took off and started running down the wall after it. Soon one of the Republic fighters notice Xeo chasing it and reported to his commander spotting a Jedi on the roof. Orders were given to terminate him...and it went after Xeo...as planned. Xeo kept his speed until the craft was just in distance range. The battlemaster Force Leap onto the missile and started putting his weight down on the weapon to 'control it' with ease. The pilot couldn't believe what he was seeing but took shots at Xeo. A few rapid fire lasers were heard, but Xeo did not care as he was controlling this whole situation at this moment. Once he got enough air he Force Jumps off of it while making sure he slammed the missile into another fighter craft. In the air he took his lightsaber blade pointed away from the craft and landed on the fighter. Once he hit the hull and looked at the pilot, which he was still in a state of awe of what Xeo had done, Xeo waved his hand giving him a moment of weakness to his Jedi Mind Trick. “I need to fix my craft on the commander's ship. I need to land...now.” The pilot repeated his words and did just that; however, other fighters knew Xeo was not hard to be seen with his lightsaber showing on the craft. A few fighters flew by trying to take him or the craft out. Course they're fire was hitting the ship than Xeo...and knowing Xeo...he had to make sure to stay alive. Once the craft was shot down, he Force Jumps towards another craft only this time he took his lightsaber, still in Dual Phase mode, and slice it down the middle with ease. Force Jumping towards another while making the pieces of the craft able to be slammed into other fighters turning on Xeo. At one point he took just a wing off with the blaster canons still linked to the ship and it kept miss firing...able to score a few more ships blown up before Xeo took the wing off completely and Force Telekinesis it into another craft. Leaving the starfighter for dead he did the same 'leap frog' attacks for a few more times until he had a break in the fighter squadron. He found a lone craft and jump towards it. Using The Force to open the cockpit he just simple asked one question to the pilot. “Where is he?” Xeo said knowing what he was looking for. The pilot just pointed to the commander's ship in the airspace. Xeo simple smile...and Force Pulled the man out of the craft, which landed on another craft. He didn't kill him on purpose that time it was his own fate after that. Xeo got into the craft and started to take flight towards the commander's craft.

A few minutes later and some radio com chats on where the next temple attacks were coming in Xeo flew the craft...full speed into the hanger bay of the commander's craft among The Republic's fleet. He 'landed' the craft carefully into the hanger bay deck station that was deep within the craft's hanger section. Xeo had already jump out of the craft and onto the deck of the ship...disabling the hanger's effectors to function right for the craft. All troopers on deck started to come down on Xeo's location. A simple cracked of his smile was seen. Xeo has his lightsaber back to his normal 3 meter length and looked all around. All he could think about was the fury within his will now. The means of going into his Juyo hybrid style. All guns were pointed at him. Xeo took his stance.

“Ready...?”

Seshmira eyed every soldier and now her eyes locked on Corrin's. He could now clearly see the crimson blood red rings that sat on the edges of her irises. They were beginning to bleed in to the dark unearthly forest green like rivers culminating in a unfathomable ocean of sorrows and pain. A psychotic smile crossed her lips. “Well well Saris you owe me 250 credits. I was right all along.” Saris knew that smile. Had become all to familiar with it in recent years. It spelled trouble for everyone in the room if she lost it. She pulled out her staff and ignited it. The amethyst blades hummed and threatened. She drew a line in the ground. The sparks almost blinding as blade met stone and metal and hissed with menace. “Some call me the Twisted Banshee. I trust you boys have heard a few things.” Her limbs began to contort a bit as they heard the snaps. Making her look inhuman as she took a odd stance. She cocked her head to the one side and the other rapidly like a curious bird sizing them all up. She could be terrifying to look at. She laughed low in her chest odd clicks within the laughter like an deadly animal sizing up its prey. She grinned her sharp white teeth adding to her menace. “Now gentlemen I strongly suggest you back away from your Master if you will before I show you the reason I earned my name. I would hate to drain the life of any one of you needlessly for simply following orders. Or shall I cry for you?” Corrin knew all to well one of his wife's specialties was the Force scream. At this range it would do more then leave one incapacitated.  However he would have to wonder what in the name of the Force happened to her to twist her like this since he had been gone. She was always fearsome in battle, but she looked more like the crazed wild woman he found on Dagobah filled with all the screams, pain and sorrows of all living things crying out in the Force and unable to filter it. “Say the word Saris and I clear house.” She twirled her saber staff all around her in unfathomable ways at a pace that was near impossible to follow and all at once stopped so quickly it felt like the air was sucked out of the room right around her. A deep feeling of cold began to creep across the skins of each of the Republic troops as if fingers were moving across them threatening to steal the breath from their lungs and freeze the blood. She moved back next to Saris, but at the same time more appeared to glide. Her footfalls were soundless and almost didn't seem to touch the ground at all. “Your orders?” Saris knew Seshmira was teetering between sanity and madness. The dangerous dance her mind had played for some time, but they always found a way to bring her round again. The fact that she hadn't just taken off and left nothing but pools of blood in her wake was proof enough that she still retained her mind. It had been a long time at least two years since this side of her emerged. She had well a cap on it. Yet the stress of being forced to be in the middle of a fight between her friends and sworn allies and the very other half of her being her husband was becoming a great deal of stress on her.

Malerna gripped her scythe tightly as she heard the drop ships enter around the temple. She could see Seshmira's being through the Force twisting. Threatening. Yet still retaining some semblance of the woman she had come to know over the years. She dare not speak for fear of setting the woman off in the wrong direction. Saris was the only one that could leash her if she went to far. She reached out feeling each and everyone of these soldiers. Seshmira certainly had inspired some true fears. She  looked to Ereth and Saris. “You don't tell her what to do and we may have another problem on our hands.” Malerna said in low whispers.

Nozomi was outside the council chambers when everything went to hell as she listened to warnings coming from her troops. She knew Xeo was on the roof. She could feel him. When Corrin addressed her directly. “Oh eat shit and go jump in to the nine circles Corrin. You did this. Made Sesh crazy looking for you too far out in the Force. Seriously that ain't normal!” As she waves her hand towards Seshmira who was standing still as stone and seemed not to be breathing next to Saris waiting for the Grand Master to decide the fate of those before them. “Now you call us the criminals. The Republic and the Jedi have stood together fighting back the Sith and now they let one command them. Damn bureaucratic hypocritical fools! Can't blame the soldiers. They are just following orders. They don't choose the war they fight in. We maintain peace. The peace you so fought for and here you are bringing blood and suffering all back because its not the peace YOU wanted.... You are disgusting. A angry child  who had his toy taken away and when he comes back to get it he has to break it because its not how he left it and wanted it to be. Damn fool. You bring this madness on all of us.” She said through gritted teeth as she ran and phased through a wall out the window in to one of her own drop ships. Jumping out just as she reached the hanger bay finding herself shoulder to shoulder with Xeo. “Hey Z. Figured you could use an extra hand.” She smiled at him her flaming red hair blowing in the wind as her sapphire eyes glittered at him. “Just like old times” She pulled out her two sabers and the yellow blades snapped to life.

The ear splitting screams of flickering lightning drove past, Malesyn as he dove.  The strike of Corrin's vicious force attack bounced upward and into the ship's hull, sparks exploding off the Raven Fold's hull in all directions before it finally dispersed. The floor split as he landed heavily, having been forced to leap off the ship, but without hesitation he hastened for the nearest cover; making sure to maintain his position near Aran's ship. His face was locked in the expression of fury as he expelled the magazine from his weapon and replaced it with another, his face leaning out just far enough to see, Corrin sweep himself across the room and reap the lives of Nazomi's forces, on a blood-lust driven  path for Ereth.

Ereth had his focus on Saris as she shifted her footing, her blade activated and humming at the ready by her side. His eyes diverted to Malerna as she spoke of Seshmira, but before he could comment, Corrin's blood-red blade zig-zagged through Nazomi's forces, and right past Saris. The Cathar's eyes darted, his body shifting forward as his golden blade awoke just in time to slam against his, the impact drove his heels into the floor. Together they slid across the broken tiles before Ereth finally halted his advance, just as Corrin's venomous grin filled his view.

"Look what the cat dragged in..." The words he heard were laced with malicious intent, his focus drawn to him it seemed, despite the others comments, but the Cathar gave him a rather unimpressed look in return.

"Hmph," he gave him nothing more than a casual sigh before he forced, Corrin's blade away, they traded blows before blades locked again, and during the pause, Ereth emboldened to respond to his last comment with wiser words. "Attack? Has your lust for the dark side already blinded you? If you recall it was not we, who struck first."

He was cut off as, Corrin broke blade-lock, sending skillful displays of Makashi with an even more skillful djem so finish... but the Cathar's speed was remarkable, and managed to orient himself to parry and dodge these attacks with relative ease. With Ereth on the defensive it seemed, Corrin managed to continue dialogue with Malesyn, which he noted diligently. He knew of Corrin's skill with a blade, he was the best of all of them in that regard. To face him down in close combat, even with the Cathar's hybrid style was fool-hardy.

Malesyn heard Corrin's voice echo through the shattered chambers as he hammered down on Ereth. Twisted and disconcerted, paying no heed to their past endeavors. From the tone in his voice he would've thought the Commander dead, and relatively pleased for it. It wasn't until the soldiers that followed, Corrin revealed their allegiances that Malesyn truly brought his mind back to the present.

"Why..." he said under his breath as he peered as best he could from out of cover, a reply that begged for an answer to all his previous thoughts. "What the hell is the matter with you!?" he yelled from behind cover.

"Now is not the time, to revel on it... Commander... complete our mission... I will keep, Corrin's attention for as long as I can... but you must see to the Council's safety."

The voice that filled Malesyn's mind was, Ereth's. The Commander glanced over at the towering Cathar as he maneuvered around Corrin. The crackling blades echoing like thunderous bellows of lightning; the elegant weapons flashing about in resplendent streams between the two practitioners that wielded them. After a moment of revelation, he keyed up his comms.

"Nazomi, Xeo, this is Malesyn... My ship's Captain is in a bad spot, if you have any forces outside I'd greatly appreciate it if you can cover down on the Raven's Fold", if anything it'll buy us some time." As Malesyn finished, the echoes of an explosion outside reached his ears.

As he peered out beyond the Raven's Fold he could see the fading glint of blazing light speeding through the skies before it dispersed, watching as the ship fell from where it had began previously. He couldn't doubt that it was the man he spoke with earlier, the Jedi Master who referred to himself as Xeo, timing it perfectly it seemed, as Malesyn finished hailing them. At the very least, he could rely on him to direct the Corrin's forces away from Aran.

Aran's voice cut in as he finished, "Starting to get rough out here, Commander..." From within the Raven's Fold, Aran winced as the ship rocked, he watched his monitors as the shield-register bar continued to deplete, as if to make things worse, sparks shot out from various areas of the cockpit, and warning lights began to pan his overlay. "My ship's not going to hold together once they've completely recovered, Malesyn! Best we be getting a move on, like... oh I don't know... NOW!" he said as his hands frantically orchestrated the panels in front of him.

Malesyn looked back at, Ereth with a furrowed look on his face "Stay alive, Ereth...That's an order."

The Commander pulled himself from cover, carbon streams of light whistling over his head and around him as he sent his own rounds down range. His shot's clipped legs and arms, non-vital and disabling areas. He couldn't bring himself to intentionally kill his own, not until he got to the bottom of what this was. He cleared a path as best he could while he maneuvered his way to the remaining Council members, and anyone else who was unfortunate to be a part of this mess. "Let's go, don't dawdle!" As he barked, the others filed through, making their way up to the ramp of the Raven's Fold.

Ereth's form in Ataru was relentless, and the feline showed no sense of taxation as he spun around the towering dark figure of, Corrin... the vibrant golden hues of his blade matching his skillful strikes. To display such formidable defense in the form of Ataru was commendable; but even the Cathar was wise enough to know it would not last. Corrin's powerful strikes hit like a 1-ton-hammer, and his Mastered mobility and deflection were all that he offered to dilute his blows. Even then, Corrin matched him in the same regard. Corrin's blade hammered down once again. The Cathar drove his blade upward to catch it, only instead it passed through... dispersing only to re-ignite after the fact, aiming to clip Corrin's jaw-line. He spun on his own momentum, leaping back to find distance... Corrin was too skilled to have fallen for his wonderful portrayal of trakata, but the surprise gave him grounds for reprieve as he withdrew from his opponent.

"Although your new title bodes you ill, Master Illessar... I'm delighted to see your elegance in the mastery of light saber combat has not diminished." The Cathar spoke calmly as he rose from his lowered posture. "I'd often thought an audience with you in the past for a friendly spar..." he expelled a breath of air, as he steadied his breathing, calling upon the force to level his risen anxieties. "You wound us all brother, and there is no denying the scars run deep, both physically and in our hearts. When the visions came to me of your betrayal, even I neglected to believe it, at first."

His eyes lowered, but kept their focus on him. In them, Corrin could see the disappointment they gave him. "But you needn't worry, Master Illessar... I will not chastise you with words that might sway you to come to your senses. Even I know you're too set in your ways to listen to reason."

Ereth revoked his blade, dispersing it's yellow hues into nothingness; but he held the handle firmly in his hands as he drew his foot back and faced Corrin with his side. To be so confident as to begin a formal battle, without first bringing his blade to life, did much to show his unwavering confidence. He exuberated calmness, his mind so clear he could register a pin-drop from miles away. His mastery in the art of Altus Sopor, produced such an unwavering bond with the force that even, Corrin may have well braced himself.

"You may have embraced the dark side, Corrin... But you have yet to brave the shadows." Ereth, now tied to the force, waited solemnly for Corrin to close the distance between them. From within the room he tied his focus in with the Grand Master's, and even sought to make himself aware of Seshmira. Her stubborness was well known to him. As mentioned by the Grand Master herself. Truth be told they both were, he wouldn't be surprised in the least if they retaliated and took up, Ereth's flanks to fight along side. He would've hoped they wouldn't do as such. As the Grand Master, it was her responsibility to lead the Order, especially after the devastation, Corrin brought down upon their organization. Regardless of his revelations on the matter, his eyes remained on, Corrin. His blade absent and silent, his posture unwavering and tall. He did not seek to move from his position. The classic Jedi that he was, he would wait for his opponent to make the first move. Ready for, Corrin. And passively aware of what Saris and Sheshmira may have up their sleeve.

The Republic troopers all aimed their weapons at Xeo, taking careful aim, before a stern voice echoed through the hangar.
"Enough!"
A man in a well pressed and starched uniform moved through the ranks of the soldiers, standing a few meters away from Xeo. His eyes looked the Jedi up and down for a moment, before he sighed.
"He said you would come. He also said to remind you that he trained you...and most likely knows you better than most. Kill or mind trick me into calling off the attack..."
He shook his head.
"My name is Admiral Mullen, and it won't work...many of the men on this ship are fanatically loyal to him, and the Supreme Chancellor. The others...the others who aren't are being led into ambushes all over the galaxy as we speak. I am not so blind as to what is happening...but I have no choice in the matter."
His grey eyes met Xeo's, and they were filled with fierce pride...but also terrible fear and sorrow.
"He had my family...and if I call off this attack or do anything disloyal to him...they will die. So you understand...if I must stubbornly refuse to do so. I am the only one who could call this off besides him...and if you insist upon trying..." He pulled his blaster pistol...and put it under his chin "I won't die for him...but I will die for my children. So don't move a hand...and get off of my ship. Please..."




As Ereth weaved back into him with his masterful Ataru work, the Sith Lord switched footing and tactics very suddenly, very surprisingly. His weapon spun a net of defense, his footwork matching it closely. For every blow Ereth drove home there was a counterblow, and a following strike to level against the next offensive maneuver of the golden blade...but there was no follow up attack. Soresu, and a very masterful display of it. The form was perfection against forms like Ataru, but even then, the lack of offensive follow up and aggression for a Sith Lord was shocking. In the Force, Anattar was peaceful, determined, and very Jedi like in his demeanor. The red blade came up one last time to deflect the final blow, and Anattar's blue eyes fell on the Cathar's own.
"Your bladework is impressive, if a bit underdone for Ataru." The blades shrieked against one another and Anattar pushed, falling back with his blade parallel to his face. A moment later, even with the chaos raining around them his blade deactivated, and he held the hilt to his side.
"I am no fool, Ereth. To attack you now would be a mistake that I would most likely walk away from...but not before everyone else was gone..." He paused for a moment as a bolt streaked past his head, and almost seemed truly removed from it all.
"You had a vision in the Force of my betrayal?" He nodded "Just so. The will of the Force is myriad and evolved, and may be impossible for us to interpret perfectly. We are but players in the larger game...and some of us must play roles better than others..."
He looked to Seshmira then, his blue eyes looking deep into hers. "I never wanted to see you this way, or bring you to this. I can't and won't ask you to join me, because my way leads to a path for you that you cannot tread down. The woman I love is a child of the Light, and must remain so...lest she become someone else. No matter what happens, I love you and our son, and that is something that will not change no matter what my title may be...so go to him. He's terrified, and he needs his mother more than than the Grand Master of the Jedi Order"
He brought the hilt of the lightsaber up to his belt and clipped it there. "Have you heard of Sabaac, Ereth? Brilliant new card game. There's a maneuver on Corellia called the Kobayashi Maneuver. It deals with no win scenarios. You let a strong opponent think he has all the cards, and you wait...first you make sure all the right players are up against him too...then you sneak up on him and stab him in the back right on the cusp of his victory..."
He snapped his hand forward and several troopers fired as a massive Force push screamed at Ereth. The Sith Lord was very quickly in the air...a black blur of movement that landed right in front of Saris herself. The red lightsaber shrieked to life in time to slam against her blade before his black gloved hand grabbed the front of her blouse...and yanked them both out of the massive window.

Saris backed away from their fighting, keeping her blade ready should she be dragged in...but seeing Seshmira losing herself so easily...it gave Saris pause. The Woman had worried her ever since he had left them behind...and this only made her worry further.
"My Orders...are to back down and call the retreat." She said sternly, diverting her eyes quickly and back to their opponents "Seshmira. You know better then this."
Malerna. Get her out of here, now. Saris' voice would echo in Mals ears...She had known there would be a point where the loyalty would fade and personal feelings would anchor themselves so deeply...and Saris's brow furrowed as she saw something shift for the briefest moment in him...
She knew better then to relax..but she wasn't expecting quite the intensity of attack Corrin threw at them. As he came near in a flash she steeled her blade...but against him, any defense would be almost useless. Her blade jerking back, she let a yell as she was grabbed and jerked as her equilibrium was thrown off. She had no time to fight back before they were flung out the window, but she did in the air...this close her saber was near useless, so she struggled as the wind screamed in her ears, gritting her teeth as she pushed to put just a little bit of distance between them and aim a sharp kick to his abdomen with both feet, aiming to break away from him before landing on the taxi just a short distance beneath them. She didn't see where he had gone, if he had continued down or landed on another speeder...As she pushed herself to look around, ignoring the angry taxi driver in the cab she looked for Corrin...and a sobering thought crossed her mind.
No matter how far gone he seemed, she knew there had to be a way, she had to believe...
After all, Kain and Corrin had been the only ones to believe in her from the beginning.
After her last chance to pass a Tournament went terribly awry causing her to not be chosen by a master yet again, Saris had been informed she would be sent to join the Corps...it had crushed her. She had stood her ground, asking for another chance. She had studied far too hard, trained with her Friends despite not having a Master...But The Council of Reassignment assured her she would still do good...just not as a Knight. She had only a day to say her good byes before she would be reassigned, most probably to the Medicorps.
The first people she had called were her two closest friends. Kain had been on a mission, out of Com range, while Corrin had arrived the day before for some research. A newly appointed knight himself, When she told him he had been more shocked then even she had been...
Then he promptly went to his old Master, a member of the Council.
She didn't know the details of what Corrin had said or done to plead her case, but the Master had come to her and offered one single chance to become a knight. She would have one week to pass the trials under his observation. No room for mistakes. It was her only shot...
As Luck would have it, that was all she had needed.
To this day she still believed that to be one of, if not her greatest accomplishment...yet if not for the now Sith Lord before her, she would never gotten that chance. She would have never gotten the help sparring, the guidance...She would have been either sent to the corp or have left the order long before ever reaching that point.
Even after the trials, he had continued to help her in saber fighting here and there, all the way up to the week before his disappearance...He had been the one to bring her back from a mind clouded in dark clouds....
Everything she had become was because of him.
It reminded her of her resolve, of her purpose, and As she crouched, looking around with a steeled blue gaze, She brought her emerald saber up to be horizontal before her...and she turned the blade around in a reverse grip and brought her arm in just before a hiss rang from behind her, the familiar vibrant orange blade coming to life from her right hand. She stood slow as the taxi driver refused to move despite her ignoring him, and she held her blade strait out to her side opposing the direction of her green blade. Corrin was alive. There was no way a little fall would kill him.
She could only hope to the Force they were obeying her orders to retreat...

Ereth was not a man of ignorance. Even before Corrin cast forth his hand in the force, his feline eyes diverted. His body lowered to the point where he was on all fours, his traditional robes licking at the air which washed over him... indicating that the shock wave of his devilish force push was nearly upon him. His eyes slivered as he pulled the force in around him, his Altus Sopor technique allowed him to gain insight beyond the 3-dimensions his primitive eyes were capable of seeing. An ominous howl, like that of a spear-headed hawk, whistled around as shards of wind drew up from his being, and in a flash he disappeared into nothingness, no trace of his presence in the force or in reality. The destructive force push washed over where he once had been, but the aftermath revealed no beaten and broken Cathar. Now standing without Command and without a target, Corrin's forces could only look around in a myriad of bewilderment.

Malesyn watched as the last of the group of members made their way up the ramp and into the Raven's Fold. he peered out into the Council room, holding onto one of the hyrdraulic pistons that held the ramp, as the ship rocked from Corrin's recovering fleet of forces. He could see Seshmira and another standing amidst Corrin's forces.

"Let's go!" he shouted as loud as he could, his voice projecting over the sounds of battle going on within and outside the Jedi Temple. Unable to stay and wait, as explosions began to bounce off the ship's hull near his position, he forced his way back into the belly of the ship.

Malesyn came up behind Tarth as he flipped at switches over his head and monitored his overlays with a look of distain on his face. "How was the reunion?" he chastised.

"Later, we're waiting on two. Did we have a plan for getting out of here?" Malesyn sat in the co-pilot seat as he spoke.

"Of sorts... but you probably won't like it."

"Let's just hope that this, Seshmira has enough sense to join us. Keep the ramp into the cargo bay down, how much longer can we sit."

"Not gonna risk another 30 seconds, Commander or we won't have a ship to escape in."

Ereth interfered with their conversation, "They will be here before then, make your preparations, Aran."

Malesyn was shocked to see him already aboard the ship. "I had half a mind to figure you were planning on staying behind, Master Jedi."

"Plans have changed, get us out of here, Tarth," he commanded as he sat in a seat behind the two of them.

"Don't have to tell me twice." Aran began to flicker his hands across the controls that locked in the coordinates on his navi-computer. Malesyn was smart enough to realize what he was up to.

"Are you insane!? A hyperspace jump in atmosphere will fry your hyperdrive before we even break the outer hemisphere!"

"Way too late to complain, Commander. You can berate me all you like, after we've made it to safety." Aran said as he positioned the ship.

The Raven's Fold, suffering under a salvo of fire now, steadied itself as best it could as it processed the Smuggler's manual computations he had made before their mission had started. Within the cockpit, and with prayer in mind, Aran pushed forward on the throttle.

The ship's rear thrusters brightened and the ship stretched, along with a portion of the temple and the reality that surrounded them. As the ship's exterior thinned out, it lurched... firing forward. The velocity of the jump sheered through nearby ship's... nearly obliterating a few as it disappeared.

Malesyn was flung forward almost immediately as they dropped out of hyper-speed, the entire ship somersaulted in the void of space, he could watch as Coruscant disappeared and reappeard. Aran pulled on the ship's controls in order to steady her out. The ship's Navi-computer took over once again and oriented itself, and in another display of stretching stars, the ship jumped again.

Aran cried out in laughter, "WOOOO! It worked!"

Malesyn looked at him in disbelief. "How did you--"

Aran gave him a gloat-filled grin and patted his shoulder, "Smuggler, remember... We aren't the type to fly stock."

Malesyn waited for a moment before he was sure they were safely away before he unstrapped himself from his seat after Aran did. Ignoring his bewilderment, he made his way to the cargo bay while Aran went straight for the hyperdrive. Ereth had already made his way down there the moment they jumped out of hyperspace.

When he entered, his expression sunk... "This is all of them?"

Ereth realized his entry and made his way up to greet him. "I'm afraid so, Commander."

Ereth turned to see the few who stood before them, bloodied and distraught from the devestation Corrin brought down upon them. Among them he couldn't see Seshmira or the other known as Malerna, yet and he feared he'd left them behind. The ship's perseverance systems kicked in as it registered the members they had extracted, directing them to med bay. Malesyn placed a hand on the Jedi's shoulder to regain his attention. "What happened, what did he say to you."

Ereth gave him a passive glance, as his mind wandered somewhere else, "I don't know, something tells me I need to do a bit more meditating on the matter, however. In the mean time we should continue as we've discussed. Have Aran set a course for, Ardru as soon as we've settled. Get in contact with Nazomi, and Xeo and let them know what we're doing. As it stands they're the only people we can rely on for the moment."

Malesyn watched as the Jedi Master slowly walked off. It didn't take any kind of empathy with the force to realize he was bothered.

Ereth made his way to a quiet place within the ship. After observing the area for a moment he found a seat. Sighing heavily as the soft contours of it's frame lifted his weight away from his feet. He rose a hand to his temple and rubbed it as he recalled, the last event he witnessed before his escape.

"Whatever it is you think you're doing, Illessar... it cost us lives today. I hope you remember that."

Xeo, with Nozami at his backside, still armed with lightsabers waiting for the first fire to be shot. Still trying to be a Jedi at heart...but also making examples of those who are tied to The Dark Side either by clouded mind or infected by Annatar's taint of seduction. Knowing the firey red head general would never back down from those betraying The Republic without a simple trial by fire...as Xeo would happy follow by example; however, killing those brainwashed by a cult leader of the dark arts would make them no better to vaporized there blood. The Battlemaster knew taking up Sorecu can be his only means just to start his opening defense before entering a counter attack of his own suggestion. Nozami might follow after a few shots were ranged out...but it was hailed after a voice was echoed. All troops were at a hip fire position without taking aim down there sights. Xeo was able to look around and see the man of many metals and tours of duty. Decorative and a will just as commanding as Nozami, which with her next to Xeo could prove more diplomatic resolve can play out.

"My name is Admiral Mullen, and it won't work...many of the men on this ship are fanatically loyal to him, and the Supreme Chancellor. The others...the others who aren't are being led into ambushes all over the galaxy as we speak. I am not so blind as to what is happening...but I have no choice in the matter. He had my family...and if I call off this attack or do anything disloyal to him...they will die. So you understand...if I must stubbornly refuse to do so. I am the only one who could call this off besides him...and if you insist upon trying..." He pulled his blaster pistol...and put it under his chin "I won't die for him...but I will die for my children. So don't move a hand...and get off of my ship. Please..."

“Decision decision, I don't have time for these speeches...” Xeo said in his mind as he looked all around the troopers knowing hip fire stance would only give them a good 5 rounds of bolt plasma before landing a hit on two Jedi Masters...and only if a stray shot won't be defected back at them by there lightsabers. So far the Admiral has them at bay and would only listen to him...as Xeo would need him to listen to both Jedi on the craft. In Xeo's mind...time to strike a deal. “Ambushes you say? I'm a walking example of many in a holo file of such things,” he said while un-ignited his lightsaber to show peaceful resolution is be done, which of course, Xeo would make sure he was without a reason to just blast him out right. Noazmi with lightsaber still armed and ready could help Xeo get one shot off back at anyone with enough focus. A simple Force Pull of the admrial's gun as quick as he could just to disarmed him...and get him to listen; because, every trooper now aimed at both Jedi as the admiral could give the order. “Now now everyone here hasn't been quite having a great day on the capital world of The Republic. So much drama with chaos, and betrayal, and ambushes, and an unarmed admiral with someone from Corellia waving it around like some drunkin fool willing to find who is see who SHOT FIRST!? HUH!?” Just a slight pause afterward as Xeo and the blaster pistol still at the admiral willing to see if all troopers would sight up at the Jedi. Nothing...obedience by the rank in command. A simple discharge of the power cell pack in the gun was all needed. Xeo threw the disable blaster back at him while speaking his speech of 'peace'. “...But I am still holding up with my moral codes of...whatever Jedi is left now from our 'leader' these days. The Jedi Order his been shattered at this point with chaos ensuing down below and now taking to the skies. It was hard for me to even consider running...well...flying my self up here by taking lives of The Republic. I would never dare kill them unless it's self defense...I am in my right to do so on such a scale of survival. Right now that's the name of the new Jedi ways. With Corrin...sorry Darth Annatar being in charge of new orders and laws to root out such 'troubled' Jedi against Sith ways we all be dead. You said it yourself...I live...everyone you know is dead. I wouldn't have second thoughts on the matter now if I had to give into survival. I am not that dark. Gray but not that far gone. Seeing how you're in a predictable issue with your own family members being on the slab by Annatar's wishes, if you should fail...you have nothing left. At your age it would be the only link to this galaxy of your own history after you become one with The Force. Annatar will make sure they don't. I can't let that happen to ANYONE! Plus...I can't letting my 'master' down if I haven't learn anything about being proper Jedi. Violence shouldn't be in my nature as much as whole ship should be blown out of the sky by my personal skills...bbbuuuttttt I am having second thoughts.” Xeo slowly starts walking towards the admiral knowing any moment he could have snipers take him down even in a disable hanger bay. “Listen. If your family is on this world I can get them out of here with ease. Nozami is still a general of The Republic, which you have leverage to at least getting yourself out of here with family and belongings. I have a few of my own lower class crafts and ships that can escort you to neutral space where we can set up a new base of operations. Darth Annatar will be in full control within 24 hours after this deceleration of new rule and will cleanse all Jedi against him...Republic forces too. Sith rule will be indoctrinated...no hope for the weak of any kind. It would be strong willing to outweigh the lowest. Nozami can break thought com channels while our Jedi Council can confused Annatar long enough to see you're out of his sights and family. You'll never come back until he is removed or redeemed. Rather not removed...I like where his head is...” Xeo snickers trying to get a jest out of Mullin. “You'll have my word that I will get your family out of Courscant, if they are here, and we can put a massive opening gap on the air space for Annatar to see any remaining forces escape. Nozami can give you advice on how to go about this. Make your choice...”

No mind trick was needed for this as he just simply talked it out. Nozmai could chime in for any help as Xeo was getting a ping on his holo coms from his datapad. “Popular one I am today...I got to take this...” It was from Ereth. Xeo tried his best to talk to him without having conflicting issues with Mullin's conclusion on this outcome. “::Ereth. I'm trying to gain friendship with an admiral of The Republic. If I get this through I might need you to just do escorting of either the main craft I am on from fighters and warheads, which afterwords the air space will be wide open for evade operations. Just need a little more time. Nozami is next to me too she can hear also. The Jedi Council need to stall a bit more time. Annatar...I can't believe I am saying this...toy with our Jedi so his mind is on conflicting Jedi ideals.::”

Seshmira in a moment of absolute clarity seemed to snap back to reality. Her mind had become lost again in the Force after so long. She realized in moments that more had occurred whilst she was out of herself. It was the brief showing of who Corrin really is before things seemed to spiral out more when he took Saris out the window. She became all business. “Malerna follow Malesyn and Ereth to the ship. Time for me to take care of things.” She looked at the woman who was slack jawed looking deeply in to Seshmira's being. A pure white light that even Malerna had to shield herself from it.

“How? What?” Malerna stammered as she seemed so baffled by the Force aura coming from Seshmira. For five years it had been so muddy and hard to read. This was someone she had no idea existed anymore.

Seshmira laughed despite the war zone. “Because for the first time in a long time I'm awake. You all haven't fully had me back in a long time. I haven't truly been myself in ages. Hard to say who you really have been dealing with all this time. Maybe a ghost of Dagobah before My Hero came and found me so long ago with those sapphire eyes of his.” She dropped her black robes off her shoulders and it hit the ground so hard it cracked it. Her robes were heavily weighted to slow her down. If shock could manage to show anymore on Malerna's face it wasn't possible. She stood in fitted black pants with a silver belt holding the two sabers. Yet strapped to her legs were two blasters. She had on a black crop top her back still baring the two long scars that looked like once she had wings that were torn off, but truly the story was far more sad. Surprising a half Anzati could scar at all. Yet on the back of her belt were two daggers which she unsheathed. “Go now Mal and run. Take care and I'll catch up.” She ran out of the room right in to the fray. As blaster fire flew passed her head she moved with blinding speed. No Force power used at all. Her heritage and continual training had gifted her with such holding out the two double edged black blades that were near the length of her forearms cutting through blaster riffles spinning like a hurricane not a drop of blood spilled leaving most in shock as to what the white and black blur was that left their weapons in pieces. She ducked and weaved through the halls at times using secret passages yet being met with another barrage of Republic forces she slid down leaning back on to her knees just narrowly missing being shot in the face spinning about to scramble to her feet twisting her body in a almost total one eighty turn launching herself up doing a wall run to avoid the tight space. She wasn't sure how to keep avoiding killing any of them, but she damn well sure was going to try. She made it outside only to be shot at by Republic ships. She sighed summoning up a Force shiled to protect herself and then slammed her foot down using Force Quake to at least disrupt the troops now rushing her which left whirlwinds in its wake headed right for the ships firing at her. Using the confusion she ran and jumped on the nearest speeder as it sailed through the air and the driver cursing at her. She sighed as she jumped down to the ground trying to get to her own speeder bike that was hidden not to far from there. Finally making the choice to use Force Speed to give her just a short burst to put her ahead. It was only be the sheer grace of the Force she made it to her bike and wasted no time. She need to get to Eldarion before the others found him. She got on her wrist com as she moved at break neck speeds having updated the speeder herself. “I am trying to get a lock on Saris. Malesyn and Ereth I may be going off radar. Once you two get Saris she will know where to go to find me. Once I get a lock of her homing device I will send it to you. Just hope she hasn't shut it off again. Xeo and Noe the second you get the chance get on to Malesyn's ship. You two are worth more alive then dead you two hot heads. Seshmira Illessar over and out.” Seshmira kept trying to reach out to Saris but she knew Saris was stubborn she would try to do this on her own and not endanger any one else. “Damn it woman I am going to beat you with your own mechanical arm if you don't answer me.”

Malerna didn't waste time as she followed behind Seshmira getting to Ereth and Malesyn. She was still slightly uneasy around Ereth due to him being Cathar. As a Cathar Sith Mistress was the cause of her blindness when she was a young pleasure slave in the Hutts pleasure palace. Still she put that to the side. “We should take off as soon as we are able to. Have Nozomi and Xeo arrived yet?” She asked concerned for the two younger Jedi Masters.

Nozomi turned off her sabers and attached them to her hip. “Z this man needs our help and I am sure we can do so. Killing each other solves nothing. “ She looked to Admiral Mullen. “If we help you Mullen and rescue your family will you stand with us again? Just as the Republic has always done? I know none of you wish to hurt innocent people. Neither do we. It's not what we Jedi stand for and I know its not in the hearts of the soldiers who fight for the Republic to do the same. You have my word as a former Captain in the Republic Military and as a Jedi Master we will help you and then you will be free to decide what it is you truly wish to fight for.”

One of the soldiers, that stood in the formation led by Admiral Mullin, pushed his way up until he stood nearly in front of him. His towering figure shadowed the rest of the soldiers, it seemed. The rigid mo-hawk gave him a brutish-look. And his furrow-driven eyes settled themselves on Nazomi and Xeo, ignoring the Admiral's speech.

"I know that name." his voice was deep and burly. "Jedi Master, Ereth Rylos. You seem to be in contact with him. If that's the case... Major Naydo Malesyn should be with him as well,  correct?" He ignored any harrowing look the Admiral may have given him for the interruption.

"Orders, Sergeant?"

He did not look at the Admiral in the least when he asked... Instead, his head turned back slightly, eyes toward the rear of the formation.

"I'm still having a hard time believing, that bastard's still alive!" A voice called out of the formation, cheery and incondescent to the situation they were currently facing. "Blew himself up, shoulda left that job to you, Grizz!"

The burly man closed his eyes, his mouth frowned, and when he turned, his voice roared. "God dammit you little, piss-ant, keep your mouth shut! How are we supposed to blend in with your running mouth!"

As he finished, the sound of charges filled the room... from within the formation and at various magnitudes. From out of the formation a silver blaster planted the end of it's barrel firmly behind the Admiral's head.

"You said you've got a family. I understand where you're coming from, sir... I really do." The voice was cold and indifferent, even as every other soldier in the Admiral's formation flagged him down with their weapons. "A man would do anything for his family, wouldn't he. Slaughter his own even. When it comes to family, any notion of being civilized goes right out the window. When our family is threatened, we give in to our most primal natures. Isn't that right, Admiral?"

From behind Mullin, the man tilted his head just far enough to make eye contact with, Xeo and Nazomi, before he reached over and placed his hand on his, the one that held the blaster under his chin. "I got family, sir. I got family out there... And when I look around, I see them... On the floor... ripped apart by blaster fire... torn away by warfare... bleeding because they trusted you. You think a man bold enough to order you to do this is gonna give any thought to your family?" He leaned in a little closer.

"I'd take the offer, sir. You won't get a better one if you refuse."

Three more soldiers removed themselves from the formation. Each one holding a blaster in one hand, and a belt of thermal detenators in the other, one already charged and at the ready.

The man behind the Admiral kept his position, but drew his attention more fully toward the two Jedi Masters. "Malesyn received a transmission from the one who calls herself Seshmira. Said you two should beat feat outta here. Seeing as how the Major's already jumped out of this sector, we've been ordered to accommodate you... wouldn't want to leave anyone behind, now."

"Sergeant Conner...  Malesyn's clear... they're heading toward the next objective as we speak."

"You tell that bastard he owes me one," his gaze fell back on, Admiral Mullin. "As for you... sir... You can sit here and pout about your family, or grow a pair and help us, so we can help you. I'd choose your next words wisely. We're not in a very good mood at the moment." One of the soldiers in formation shuttered as he held his position.

"W-Who are you?" he stammered.

"Sergeant First Class Carnel Conner of the 273rd Special Forces Division, and if your Admiral here doesn't make a decision, we'll be commandeering this ship... or destroying it..." he gave the Admiral a sly glance.

"Orders... sir?"

----

Malesyn gave a frusterated sigh as he thrust off his head set and fell into the co-pilot's seat. His hands rubbed at his face as the events only moments prior swept through his brain like a storm. It was bad enough he had to leave when he did. Any other second and they've been shot down by Corrin's forces, or worse... eliminated en-route. They got out by the skin of their teeth. If it weren't for Aran Tarth's impossible jump into Hyperspace he would've kissed his promising life as a fugitive of the Republic, goodbye.

Seshmira's radio transmission had come in after they were already en-route to, Ardru. Being so far from where they once were would've been impossible. He couldn't ask that of Aran and the survivors of the Council. Not after what they'd all been through. His only chance had to have been his old team... His hands slid off his face and into his lap as his eyes stared out at the swirling aurora's of HyperSpace. When he had gotten in contact with, Conner. He was surprised to learn that they were still in the Republic Military. All 4 of them. When the 273rd SPECOPS Division was relieved, their senior officers had their records expunged. Each one of them were promoted and placed in an orbital drop unit under the command of Admiral Mullin. Their records didn't reveal any prior allegiance to the 273rd, merely that they had served honorably under various Republic units in the past, to which... technically they had, whether they knew it or not. Regardless of having learned this, it was Conners last transmission that he'd secured a ship and were negotiating with the Admiral, that he truly felt relieved. Not so much for himself, but for Ereth. He'd seen the look on his face, the look Jedi usually get when one of their own goes. They always say they're celebrating their passing to the force or some such other, but the Cathar couldn't hide his grief. Malesyn was good at reading faces. He had enough soldiers under his command to tell when someone was bluffing. More than anything he was happy Conner accepted even though he hadn't made contact since his disappearance.
He tied his com-link into the ship's communication arrays so that he could receive any updates they had post-mission while he was away from the cockpit. Rising from his seat, he shuffled his way through the Raven Fold's corridors on his way over to med-bay. Ereth was there, conversing with members of the council while others mumbled about the devastation on the Jedi Temple. He approached just as one of the women, a blind one at that. Spoke on behalf of Xeo and Nazomi.

"I really can't say what thei--" Malesyn made his presence known and offered her a hand in greeting. "Naydo Malesyn, Ma'am. Jedi Master Xeniro, and Nazomi, are still at the Temple, but I can assure you they are in safe hands. My former squad is currently rendezvousing with them."

The Cathar nodded approvingly before he replied, "What's the sit-rep, Commander?"

"Not any better than it was when we were there. Conner and the rest of my team are attempting to negotiate with one, Admiral Mullin. Needless to say, they needed to get aggressive in order to level the playing field enough for it to transpire. As it stands we can't trust the Republic Military anymore than we can various members of the Council."

The Cathar rubbed his chin in thought, "Any Republic Military action needs Political Approval. I doubt, Corrin could get the Republic Military on his side without significant help from the Senate."

"You want to get us in the loop, Master Jedi?" Malesyn insisted.

"Something, Corrin spoke of just before we... er... went our seperate ways... I can't elaborate on it though, at the moment. Something of that nature requires a quiet place and time alone. Time which we currently do not have. Malerna, was it? Seshmira was adamant that we ensure Xeo and Nazomi's extraction... but we haven't been able to communicate with them for more than a few minutes. It seems obvious that you're close to Jedi Master Seshmira. And I've heard from Xeo, plans to extradite ourselves from the Republic for the time being until we can recuperate and establish a place of operations. Malesyn and I are of the same mind set, however as I must continue to follow the Jedi Code I couldn't go along with Master Xeniro's plans." He shifted for a moment before he continued, "Still, we would not pass up an opportunity for more aid. Of one thing we do have in common, Corrin has portrayed himself as a threat. And the Republic is being conspired to use their resources in an effort to destroy the Jedi. It is my proposal  that it is integral we maintain fluid communications between each other and form an alliance, even if it is only to be for the time being." The Cathar was formal and kind in his words. Ereth's finesse charmed many, even if he didn't realize it, his gaze though sharp and primal, had a glow and calmness to them. "Should you be of like mind, Malerna... I and Malesyn will do our best to set up a rendezvous point for us to regroup and discuss it further. As well as give you more details of our situation on, Ardru, which is our current heading."

"If anything we are very glad you made on board. And I'm going to make sure I can do everything in my power to see the rest of the people you care for returned safely." Malesyn bowed slightly.

"We got a problem!" Aran blurted as he burst into the med-bay. "Major hyper-drive leakage, at this rate we're not going to even get into, Ardu's airspace before we run dry. We're gonna have to make a pit stop for repairs."

"Where's the nearest nuetral zone?" Malesyn asked.

"Columus isn't nuetral, but the Columni keep to themselves. We can stop there at the very least, it shouldn't take long to fix the leakage." Aran replied as he leaned on the door frame.
Malesyn looked back over to Conner and Mal, "I'll send a ping over to Xeo and Nazomi. Colomus' trees are large enough to give us a variety of hiding places while we repair the hyperdrive, and should give us ample time for everyone else to catch up while we lick our wounds."

The Admiral kept his dignity and calm. He had commanded Special Forces before, and some small part of him had been almost expecting something like this. Anyone disloyal to what was happening was being systematically weeded out of the military, and it made sense for the spec ops soldiers, some of the more self preserving men, to conceal themselves for when the time came. Surprisingly though, when they offered to help his family, he started laughing. It was a croaking, ugly thing without mirth; hollow and cold. It was the laugh of a condemned man.
"Really? Sergeant, Jedi Masters...I am absolutely ashamed and appalled at your lack of foresight and attention to detail." He calmly and slowly set the blaster down on the ground and slid it towards Conner.
"Think, for a moment, please. Corrin Illessar is a powerful man, beloved by many in the armed forces and the people of the Republic...but even he couldn't have managed to gather enough support for this. Only the most powerful and loved man in the Republic could have organized the Republic to fight its own, especially the Jedi. Someone with a silver tongue and fingers in more pies than a baker has to sell. A man who could turn Corrin Illessar to the Dark Side could certainly sway the Senate, if he has the place to do so. Did it occur to any of you that Illessar...Anattar...isn't the Master, but the Apprentice?" He shook his head "You're up against forces you can't imagine, so even if you did try to save my family...you would never find them in time. You are right, though. On my honor...I will do what needs to be done. I will order them down" He closed his eyes "Forgive me...little ones."
He slowly reached into his breast pocket and pulled his comlink. "All forces, this is Admiral Mullin." He paused and sighed "I HAVE BEEN COMPROMISED. BEGIN SATURATION BOMBARDMENT AND FIRE ON MY LOCATION!"

...

The taxi driver stared at Saris still, apparently unable to cope with the idea of a beautiful woman falling out of the sky, especially one that nailed the landing and happened to have two lightsabers. His mouth opened and closed much like a fish out of water. His stunned revelry turned to screaming terror when the crimson beam of a lightsaber erupted out of the hull, right through the engine column, sending a shower of sparks and flame into the air.
Anattar clung to the bottom of the craft as it began to spiral out of control, plummeting downwards. He scanned buildings nearby and with a push of the Force, the craft moved slightly to the right. He let go just as the taxi floated over a flat topped skyscraper, landing on the building with a roll. He rose to his feet, lightsaber snapping to life as Saris also landed not far away. He smiled as her twin blades hissed to life again.

He had always been an admirer of beauty, and right then she looked the very image of a legendary warrior goddess. She was looking right into him, eyes burning with something he found hard to place. Not hate, anger...but determination. For him. He couldn't help but smile.
"Ah...I know that look." He said softly "The determination to find out what went wrong. To bring me back. Saris...there is no back...and I am right where I need to be"
He dashed forward, blade shrieking against the ground as he drew a flash of sparks along it. His saber screamed up, to be immediately deflected by the emerald sword. A few more novel clashes and he let loose, piling forward in pure Form VII. Juyo was controlled chaos, the hardest form to master, and among the most difficult to defend against...but Saris' defense didn't budge. Indeed, the Sith lord was shocked as his blade was suddenly knocked down by the orange blade, and the green beam screamed for his midsection. He was barely able to raise his blade to block it in time, and only escaped the follow up slice to his arm by the orange. He fell back before her, desperately switching to Soresu to weave enough of a defensive web to keep her at bay, but even then he wasn't able to strike back. She slammed both blades down then in a strike that, even blocking, drove him to his knees, before her boot collided with his face. He used that to create an opening; powering the reverse inertia with the Force and turning the stumble into a backflip that bought him valuable time. She didn't follow, going into a low stoop.

He reached up and pinched his throbbing, burning nose, and wasn't startled to see blood on the black leather of his gloves. He rubbed it between his fingers for a moment before studying her. His face was a proud grin, and his entire essense was lit up with a fierce pride, entirely out of moment and character.
"I told them you were ready...that you would not disappoint or let them down. I was right then, and I am more right now. You have grown far more than I could ever have expected. When I left you were a powerful but conflicted Jedi Master. Now the woman before me is every bit deserving of her current title." He bowed his head.

"I couldn't ask for a better opponent to face me in this war...my beloved sister." His eyes found hers...and they weren't red, hateful and mocking...but blue, honest and sincere. He then shot forward, crimson blade flashing in the morning sun.

Now it was her turn to be pushed back. Now he came forward at nothing but his best. He was possibly the finest swordsman in the Order in his time, and now he came forward with his favored form. Djem So was his, and with it he became a nightmare. He had toppled Darth Orexis with this very form, and now it wasn't passively powered by the Light, but aggressively powered by the Dark Side. His blade was the hammer blow of a god each time it fell, and it clashed with both of her blades in a searing lock.
"Letalis didn't fight anywhere near as well as you before she died..." He whispered "Yes...I killed her en route to the talks...and I can answer that deep, burning question of yours. You would have beaten her, Saris...but then, you could beat anyone you if you put your heart to it. "
"Where will you go?" He asked as their blades entered a fury of motion again, and he pursued her "I know every Temple, even the secret ones. There is nowhere in the Republic I can't find you..."
"Without allies...the Jedi will fall."

Xeo waited for Mullin to speak on his mind to see if his words of wisdom. Nozami spoke on her behalf and wanted to give the word of any Jedi...any means of hope to this man as Xeo would. Soon as the fiery redhead was done with her speech a trooper stand forward against the order of the admiral.

"I know that name." his voice was deep and burly. "Jedi Master, Ereth Rylos. You seem to be in contact with him. If that's the case... Major Naydo Malesyn should be with him as well,  correct?" Xeo could see Malesyn had ignored any harrowing look the Admiral may have given him for the interruption. He cocked and eyebrow and looked at Nozami speaking within The Force to her saying, “I do believe this bit of a gamble might as paid off. Let's hope the rest of this craft is easily to be persuaded.” Major Malesyn started to speak on the coms over some foul moments in both Mal and Ereth's carrier paths. Xeo just kept his eyes and senses out on anything distrusting. After a few minutes of both men yelling at each other, Malesyn wanted to get the admiral’s attention. Xeo began to smile seeing a few other troopers going towards Mal's cause and joining up with Xeo's little rebellion group now. Soon Xeo heard another solider speak the BIG 5 out towards everyone in the room. “Sergeant First Class Carnel Conner of the 273rd Special Forces Division,” Conner said as Xeo had a bigger grin on his face. “Special Forces...Zoe...it's my old kind of crew. I think we struck big here! Now we just get the admiral’s side and were good to go...”

It didn't go as planned.

"Really? Sergeant, Jedi Masters...I am absolutely ashamed and appalled at your lack of foresight and attention to detail." He calmly and slowly set the blaster down on the ground and slid it towards Conner. Xeo knew a simple ripple of his intentions could be felt easily, which he started to look towards Nozami saying, “Firecracker...might get ready to jump ship. I got this sick feeling of The Dark Side about to kill this plan now...”

"Think, for a moment, please. Corrin Illessar is a powerful man, beloved by many in the armed forces and the people of the Republic...but even he couldn't have managed to gather enough support for this. Only the most powerful and loved man in the Republic could have organized the Republic to fight its own, especially the Jedi. Someone with a silver tongue and fingers in more pies than a baker has to sell. A man who could turn Corrin Illessar to the Dark Side could certainly sway the Senate, if he has the place to do so. Did it occur to any of you that Illessar...Anattar...isn't the Master, but the Apprentice?"

“Aaahhh Mullin's...I know the man better than you and believe me...Apprentice of the Dark Side itself is quite him, if this untimely event would ever happen. Rank or not you don't know whom is seeing on a throne of lies down there on Coruscant. Well if he ever tries to take all seats in the Senate then he had played quite a game of thrones on all of us...even you....” Xeo tried to explain but fear was setting in...Mullin had made his choice.

He shook his head "You're up against forces you can't imagine, so even if you did try to save my family...you would never find them in time. You are right, though. On my honor...I will do what needs to be done. I will order them down" He closed his eyes "Forgive me...little ones."
He slowly reached into his breast pocket and pulled his comlink. "All forces, this is Admiral Mullin." He paused and sighed "I HAVE BEEN COMPROMISED. BEGIN SATURATION BOMBARDMENT AND FIRE ON MY LOCATION!"

Xeo knew this to be too true...and it was a completely lie and a waste of time. It didn't take more than a minute for the other crafts to start giving both the ship's broadsides a good hull crushing. “Course! Shields down under his orders. Conner! Grab all men that you can and find a means of getting off now! Nozami...do what you can with Conner or stay with me...this craft was meant to be out of commissioned...” Xeo still trying to finished his sentence...but his intentions found himself between Light and Dark. As soon as Mullin's fears filled his mind with doubt on his order. He was going to forfeit his life for the wrong reasons, in Xeo's mind at the time, then he had to make sure the ship he was on was put to good use. He Force Pulls Mullin's body, and knocks him out. “...SO BE IT! Zoe take the admiral. He shouldn't see the decor changes I have in mind.” Xeo readies himself for what was going to be complete destruction with men willing to die under the admiral’s fall. It didn't take long before the explosions were starting to happen on the outer hull plating from missile banks being fired. There was no means of saving this craft even with hostile troopers inside. Not enough man power to run all decks and functions of the ship. The craft had to be put to another good use.

Now blaster fire was starting to resonate within the craft as Xeo's mint green saber started to go into Shien form. He had to advance as he was on a strict time crunch from the outer hull being taken out too soon. The inner hull had to stay in tack before it was too late for his...improvised plan B to work. Many ship troopers in Republic armoer open fired at Xeo but the bolts were sent back either to there heads or chests. He had to make his hits count now. Getting into more of the tight corridors Xeo switched off to more of a Djem-So on troopers his same height to Juyo on more staggering troopers. Dismemberment was heard all over the hallways as Xeo started to become more into a 'hunger' for combat. Force Fury was being evoked just to run in and take down anyone that stands in his way. “Out of my way...I have no time when your epitaph is being blasted by your own men and women!” Xeo yelled out as soon as he got near the command deck. Just a simple flip of his emitter lens and the Dual Phase fuction came out to cut through the door and those troopers standing in position near the door...only to get vaporized. Xeo's blade goes back to normal as he Force Pushes the door panels out into any crew men within the room. Going through the fire as his Dual Phase blade becomes normal again...he looks around to find the command panel terminal system. “Nozami, Conner...now is the time to get off this death trap. I'll see you in a moment.” Xeo could feel the flack cannons and projectiles crashing against what was left of the outer hull. The stress of durlsteel was now buckling under pressure. Xeo had only one choice in the matter but Seshmira and Saris, at the time Xeo left the temple, were still fighting Annatar...he would do the right thing and open more air space. After a few holo button waves of his hands the craft's engines were set to overload and taking towards the craft close to his left side...ramming speed. Xeo had to stay on board while the craft was sent on it's intercept course, which other crew men came by with any weapons to kill Xeo. Sorecu style was called on as Xeo took to the ground to stand in a horse stance and holding his position. About 30 troopers were taken down by there own shots until Xeo saw the crew men runnning away from him. “Ya you better leave! You're leader is just throwing you into the batha meat grinder of death! I'm the blade of the so called Jedi Order! Unless you have something to give me a challenge them...do...so...”

Xeo just had to turn around to see out of the corner of his eye almost white hot plasma firing into the commanded. He ducked and let the energy hit the walls of the other room. Peaking up Xeo was able to see a small, but heavily plated armor chicken walker of sorts...on the outside of the hull of the craft. “Well...now this is more like it!” Xeo said sarcastic to himself. With Force Speed aiding him he goes outside the craft and on the outer hull to meet the walker first hand. Blaster fire ensue as Xeo dip and dodge around the fire blasting effects. Zig and Zag as he did until he got a moment to have his lightsaber do a Force Saber Throw... only to slash at the legs plating to weaken it. Xeo runs towards the walker as it started to fire missiles, which he evaded all of them until he got his lightsaber right where he wanted. A surge into his feet came from a Force Jump. Going far above the chicken walker he commands his lightsaber to go into Dual Phase...cutting it right up the middle in two! Xeo started to decent from his jump he could see two capital ship missiles going towards his position.  Getting right in the middle of the dead walker he Force Pushes both halves off and into the weapons to buy him enough time. “Buy one...get one free...I'll cash out now!” Xeo yelled out at the near by craft as the inner hull now started to break apart. By now Xeo had to trust Nozami and Conner to get off the craft as he, himself, ran towards the front of the craft and took a dive...and started diving down towards a friendly craft near by. Behind Xeo was a torrent of fire and durasteel crashing one against another. Both the commander's craft and another capital ship colliding against one another. The engines on the craft being fired on by Republic forces had just blown its safety limits. Chain reaction of detonations under 10 seconds could be seen taking out Mullin's ship and soon the near by one Xeo plotted to crash into.

As he was falling to might be his death, which mostly he laughs out these days, Xeo kept trying to get into another fighter to just 'take for a spin'; however, after a few failed attempts...mostly due to them blasting the craft Xeo was trying to get on, the corellian was able to find himself landing on the hull on one personal ship. "Heh...Sesh's Silver Phoenix..." His face made a good indentation on the hull.

Saris took in slow, deep breaths as they fought against one another. He seemed to be even stronger then before...but then, so was she. Five years was a long time, and it wasn't as though she had sat still and looked pretty. she had grown, become stronger and faster in combat which showed in her motions against him.

Fighting him was an odd feeling, not quite nostalgia but close. Saris had never won a sparring match against him, no matter how hard she had tried...but then, he was strong. That she could hold her own against him was well enough, she even felt she might have over done it for a moment...But she had to contain her surprise when she got a hit on him. A small grimace to the blood

As she fell back while he spoke, Part of her attention went to the wreckage of the taxi...in the attack she had been unable to get the poor driver out...and now she felt no life within the twisted metal. A shame...this sort of thing was something she had worked so hard to avoid with her plans...unnecessary death of those unattached to their war, the innocents...But as her eyes went back to his, a simple black brow raised a little as her own blue eyes almost mirrored his... "You have always been a good opponent...but this only makes a war that much more bitter, my brother." simple pet names that brought back old fond memories

Her lips drew into a tight line as she went on the defensive, blocking his attacks swiftly. She felt the heat of his blade as she pushed, alternating her blades to deflect his and block with a smooth grace found only in saber combat.
"They didn't have to die" She said firmly as he attacked her with a strong side blow that nearly knocked her off balance yet she kept herself going. As she defended, her arms shook slightly from the strength of his attacks. She knew her own stamina wouldn't last forever, and she kept taking steps back until she reached the edge of the roof top she noticed where her com was flashing...she was being pinged...and she let a curse under her breath. There was only one person who would be running after her like this, and it wouldn't be long at this rate. If they faced head to head in this, there was really no telling what might happen. She bounced two direct jabs to her sides only for him to redirect one in at her abdomen and she took one step back, feeling her heel go half off the edge and smelling burnt fabric and hair before he brought his saber back. As Saris blocked a hard downward strike and held his blade in place with both of hers, she shook her head slightly despite the burning she felt from across her stomach.

"I don't have to beat anyone....and No one has to die. I've seen it...we can have peace. No matter where we go, what we do...There is always a way for us to live together." She remembered when she had been cuffed to a bed, raving at this man about a similar topic...How in the galaxy it had come to this Saris had yet to figure out. Seeing the blood on his face from her boot, even as his appearance was otherwise returned...it was a harsh reminder that she would have to take the Jedi as far from him as she could, take his family that had just learned of his continued life from him.
"I'm sorry" it was soft, almost distant, before She pushed back against his blade. She grit her teeth as she remembered the years she had focused all her energy in utilizing just the force, after she had lost her arm but before she had gained her prosthetic...Taking a quick breath she used the force to Push at his midsection with only the slightest of motion of her head and deactivated her blades while also stepping back over the edge of the roof top. There would be no good byes in something like this...and she knew if she continued to fight, the few Jedi left would search for her against her wishes.

In her fall, She had just a few short seconds to think before she would land with Sesh "Perfect timing."

The force of explosions washed over Conner, his crew, and every soldier under the Admiral's command near enough to get caught in it's wake. From outside the ship's hull buckled under the impact, a trail of fire that chained it's way up into one of it's ion engines, igniting it in kind. Another giant explosion blossomed from it's frame before it began to fall out of the sky.

Smoldering piles of fire surrounded Conner as he gestured to his men, "We've overstayed our welcome here." As he finished he nearly lost his balance. After another ferocious quake from the exploding ship, the floor began to angle swiftly, an observation realized as one of the Admiral's soldiers grabbed helplessly at the floor as he slid away screaming. Others followed suit. Without a thought, Conner's hand grabbed Mullin by the shoulder, just as he began following suite with the rest of his men. He used his arms to bring him to his feet before throwing the Admiral over his shoulder, he locked Mullin's arm and leg in with one arm, leaving one free to keep a hold of his blaster. Just as, Nazomi approached. "I'll take care of him, ma'am. Go on ahead, we'll be right behind you."

He threw his arm forward, motioning his men to fall in on him and push forward. Aracles moved past to take up point man and they all began their sprint out of the room and into the ship's corridors. Steam hissed out of pipes as the ship's integrity began to disintegrate all around them. Fire licked at their backs as they struggled onward. Whatever men who spotted Conner and his crew didn't have long to react before being eaten up by an explosion or struck down by a piece of debris. Others outright ignored them, fearing for their own lives as the Admiral's ship was gunned down by the forces surrounding them.

Aracles pried open a door into the cargo deck, Conner looking at the raging explosions behind them as they swiftly approached, once Aracles moved through he followed suite, ducking immediately to the right. Grizz and the rest of them followed the same path out of the door just before the fire erupted from it. They ran down the length of the cargo deck, making their way for the nearest hangar opening. The ground beneath them began to crack open as they sprinted, webbing it's way across the entire floor way. Conner didn't look back, they were nearly out... just a little further...

A giant blast sent him and his men flying out of the hangar opening. Conner held onto the Admiral as best he could while they fell, he hit something solid with his shoulder and yelped, losing his grip on, Mullin. He tucked and rolled across the rough surface until his hands grabbed onto something. With gritted teeth and a grim face he looked up to see the Admiral sliding off, and he reached out to grab at his arm just before he went over. Pain shot into his arm but he ignored it, he held onto Mullin as best he could until Aracles finally slid up to his side to help reel him in.

"Right mess, that was. Can never have a polite conversation, can ya, Sergeant?" It was Grizz, cheery bastard as always.

Conner gave him a slight smirk as he glanced ahead, seeing the figure of a woman-- no doubt, Nazomi-- as she cracked open a hatch just below her feet. He quickly realized where they had ended up, and rose solemnly to make his way toward the same location, after throwing Mullin's arm around his neck and dragging him onward. As he approached he stopped and chuckled as he realized, Xeo had made it on board as well, and had been rubbing his face achingly. "And here I thought all Jedi, landed on their feet." His smile never left him as he shook his head and continued forward. He waited until his men went down the hatch into the interior of the ship before passing Mullin over so they can drag him down with. After everyone had made it in Conner finally stepped down the ladder, closing the hatch and saying goodbye to the hell they left behind.

---

"Mission accomplished, Helios1... all assets accounted for, plus one P.O.W."

"Roger, Reaper-One, sending encrypted data via secure channels on next rendezvous. Switch to alternate Net channel, and monitor radio connection by the hour until I see you in person, how copy?"

"Lima Charlie, Helios1... I'll be expecting a solid explanation the next time I see your face, out."

Malesyn pursed his lips and furrowed his brows as he dragged the headset off of his head and leaned back in the co-pilot's seat. The Commander had finished assessing the amount of success they had in their extraction. A good majority of important officials and members of the Jedi Order had managed to find their way onto the Raven's Fold, with the exception of one in particular. Grand Master, Saris wasn't someone Malesyn had frequent run ins with, but it was obvious from Ereth's take on the matter that she was a close friend of his. Regardless of their failure to secure her safety, Ereth, iterated her stubbornness on the matter.

Their travel route to Colomus was quiet, and that quiet gave the traumatized people reprieve enough to sleep, with the exception of a few, who droned on in silent whispers. Malesyn himself now felt the calmness of space, finally feeling the weight lifted off his shoulders, if only but for a moment, as Conner's mission success sunk in. Aran sought to break that silence early as he made his presence known within the cockpit.

"I take it we got good news, then?" Tarth said as he maneuvered his way up to his seat.

"How's your ship, Aran." Malesyn nodded as the Smuggler fell into his chair.

"Leakage is steady, but we should be able to make it to Colomus without any issues, provided we don't run into any trouble along the way." Aran replied as he placed his hands behind his head and leaned into the seat. "Should be making it there in less than 5 minutes I'd say."

"We've had enough luck for one day, still dumbfounded as to how you managed to make a jump into hyperspace in atmosphere."

"We didn't necessarily jump, Malesyn, can I call you that? Commander doesn't sit well with me."

Malesyn gave him a wry smirk, "Suits me, not really a Commander anymore anyway. So you were saying we didn't jump?"

"Nope, bounced is the more appropriate term. Attempting to jump while in atmosphere is impossible, wouldn't get but a mere 5 minutes ahead, and it over taxes the hyper drive, however. My ship's navi-computer is capable of calculating two jumps instead of one. So it already had coordinates in mind for another jump as soon as we broke atmosphere."

Malesyn gave him an astonished look, "Huh... That's pretty handy."

"Still has it's kinks, mind you," Aran nodded, "Hyper Drive hasn't caught up with the Navi-Computer yet, so any gravity well can still damage it, hence, why we're leaking currently. Also the second destination isn't always properly calculated, so "bouncing" as I like to call it, always poses a risk. Either I'm gonna damage my ship, or I'm gonna end up somewhere I didn't want to be."

Malesyn's gaze went from, Aran back to the viewport, "Well let's be glad we ended up with a proper heading then. And you were right, I did get good news. My contact with Conner paid off, we've got two more people safe, and a prisoner of war no less."

"Oh yeah? You got plans for this prisoner of war?"

Malesyn nodded quietly, "Hopefully he'll see things from our perspective. Ereth investigated the Republic way before even the Civil war. Someone's been planning on destroying the Republic from the inside out. It didn't start here, it started with the Separatists, former Republic allies, who use to have close ties with the Republic. I fought the wars following, but now... Corrin, turning to the dark side is one thing, but even I know he doesn't have any political pull with the Senate, he couldn't have gotten the Republic soldiers working at his side unless someone within the senate had the authority to do so."

"You're not thinking..." Aran gave him an ostentatious look.

"That's exactly what I'm thinking, which is why we're going to, Adru as soon as our affairs on Columus are finished."

---

Ereth had waited patiently until the majority of the people in med bay fell to their own fatigue. he found their quiet snoring peaceful, despite many who would argue otherwise. He carried himself into an adjacent room that had been vacant, and removed his robes, tattered and ragged from the battle which they had left in the distance. He brought himself to sit cross-legged along the floor and clear his mind. He did not call out to the force yet, instead letting his emotions and fresh memories settle, the heated flashes of battle, which were so vivid, slowly floundered until all became a steady stream of information within his mind. It was when he regained full control of these events that the force intervened, allowing him to investigate them from past to present. Corrin's words were among the tide of memories both recent and long before, cascaded by memories of the deaths his pull to the dark side caused. He struggled to push past it, but he could not. Ereth slowly opened his eyes, his slivered pupils staring at the floor he sat on.

"Too much pain you've caused, Corrin... too much death... whatever it is you were trying to tell me, before... the lives lost today by your hand prevent me from seeing it properly..."

His eyes rose and he stared at the ceiling, letting the silence draw in again.

"Master, Noah... if ever I needed your guidance... it would be today."

As Saris landed behind Seshmira the woman didn't seemed startled. She had such a different feel to her. She even appeared to look different then Saris had seen her in years. There was a bright light to her center being. One not seen in years. As if she had woken from a long sleep. “I always seem to time things well these days. Now hold on this speeder bike moves a lot faster then anything you will find on the market. My personal project. “ She kicked it in to high gear as the engines roared louder then most small ships in the area. Taking off from the area before there was time to even so much as think let alone speak. She wasted no time taking alternative routes. Back allies doing her best to keep from being followed. They quickly moved from the nicer areas of town to the slums where few dare go even in what was once peace time. She drove in to a garage that closed behind them. Finally taking a breath as she turned off the engines letting Saris get off first before she let go. Her knuckles whiter then usual from gripping so tightly. She got off without saying much and indicating for Saris to follow her. They entered a night club. Music going at just loud enough that conversations could be heard but at the same time you could lose yourself in music and drink. Most didn't seem to notice them. Too involved in their own matters to pay them any mind. She lead Saris to the back room where they could sit in quiet. “This is the Lunar Fest. Belonged to my Mother's ex husband Alexander Kane. He and my half brother Aurelius were arrested not long after I became a Padawan. Alexander on attempted murder charges for trying to kill me when he abandoned me to die on Dagobah when I was four and my brother for basically using this place as a privet hunting ground for as the Anzati call it soup. That and trying to kill me again when I arrived and attacked Corrin. It seems like a life time ago now. I was informed some years back that due to going so long without the soup my half brother and Alexander went mad and then died in solitary. Azati once having tasted soup don't do well when they go to long without it. In a sense I'm glad I'm only half and was born without the tentacles of my people so I could never feed in the traditional sense. Its like draining the life and Force from someone. The stronger the Force user the more appealing to an Anzati. Doesn't matter. So when they died technically Alexander's name is on my birth certificate so this place passed to me. I gave it to my Mother to run and set it up as a safe house should things ever come to this. Its not much but until we can join up with the others and get off world its safer to be here. Eldarion will be here too, but I don't want to trouble the boy yet. Getting his Father back in his life only to see with a word that he commanded both the death and destruction of the only home he has ever known and the only people that have ever cared for him is a lot on a young man.” She twisted the wedding band on her finger a bit as if seeming to remember something she could not yet place. A vision perhaps, but it came and went before she could grasp it long enough to see it clearly. “We'll have to contact the Raven's Fold soon and let them know of the situation and see where we can move the remaining Jedi. “ She seemed so different. So focused and yet removed from the emotional aspect of all things. She leaned back in her chair putting her boots up on the table her hand deftly moving to the fridge as she pulled out a Corellian ale and popped the top and took a slow drink from the cold bottle. In all the years Saris had known her she had never seen Seshmira so much as touch a drop of alcohol. Seshmira realized how the image must seem and laughed lightly. “I know I look too relaxed for my own good. You could say I woke up. I haven't been back to my own body in a long time. When I woke up from a coma I still felt in a fog. Who you dealt with all these years I don't really know. Perhaps a ghost from my darkest days growing up wild fighting for my life on Dagobah when everything that moved tried to eat me and I was so filled with all the pain and suffering of every living thing that cried out for a hero and was silenced for it was never to come. Dark whispers only filling my mind then. Hard to believe now that my husband. The man who I always called My Hero that saved me from all that is now the hand that leads to our destruction. Sorta thought that the Freak” she pointed to herself. “Would be the one to go completely bat shit crazy, but there are things not even the most powerful seers can see or predict.” She took another slow drink off her ale. “But knowing Corrin as well as I do I know well enough that things aren't exactly as they appear. They never are. If he wanted you, me or any of the people close to him dead. Well we wouldn't have made it out of there and even with all your skill that you have gained over the years you wouldn't have made it on to my speeder bike. Blade and Force alone aren't his only methods. He is a brilliant tactician with a mind for battle and war. Also for diplomacy. Yet I strongly doubt he is the one pulling all the strings. We are likely dealing with something much darker and far more powerful then even Corrin has led us to believe. For him to get total control over the Republic military under a Sith banner it is certainly someone very high up in the senate that is helping him. I can't say with all certainty yet, but I have my suspicions. “ She looked her over. “I'm not as talented as Malerna, but I do have some Force healing ability and medical knowledge. I can help you if you want.”

Nozomi didn't waste any time when all were on board. She got in to the cockpit and placed her hand on the orb over head. The computer flashed DNA sample accepted and the once dark cockpit came to life and the holographic controls appeared. “Hang on to something. “ She took off at full speed weaving with expert ease through the other ships. She knew her troops had pulled out by now receiving updates on the extraction regularly and relaying them to the Raven's Fold. Once she cleared the air space of Coruscant and got to open space she sent a communication to the Raven's Fold. “Raven's Fold this is the Silver Phoenix. Maleysn, Malerna and Ereth its Nozomi. I have Xeo with me and some apparent friends of yours Malesyn and a bit of extra baggage. Admiral Mullin is unconscious but on board. Requesting a heading when you are able and we will meet you there. “ She sighed as she traveled further sending a message to Seshmira that she had made it off world. “I hope she made it out ok.....”

Malerna had found her way to the medical bay. As the Jedi temple's head surgeon and healer along with a member of the Jedi Council she was more then well versed with such injuries. She dove right in doing what she could to help the men and women taking to all to familiar roles. Surprising many of the medical staff as her hands moved with expert precision better then that of any droid. They became all too aware that she did not need working eyes to do a far better job that most of them could dare dream given the circumstances. Especially with her powerful gift of Force Healing it only expedited the process that much more so. She was no soldier, but here she knew she could do some good.

Anattar watched from the edge of the building as Saris plummeted, and landed perfectly on the speeder bike. The Sith Lord's eyes studied them...mostly the raven haired pilot. Her hair flowing in the wind...the curves of her body, and the smooth lines of her back. His hand came up slightly in a reaching movement, before it fell. The red blade slid back into the hilt with a disapproving hiss, and he turned.

The towers of the Jedi Temple were in flames, smoke billowing from dozens of places. His eyes glanced upwards to the slowly falling Admiral's cruiser as the other Republic ships ceased their merciless destruction of it and focussed their firepower on other sectors of the city. Barracks where the soldiers that had been weeded out were stationed...criminal dens...and more Jedi safe houses. They were, to him, almost an afterthought. His eyes fell back on the Temple...his former life...in smoke and ruin. He could feel the death, the fear and the betrayal. His hand gripped the hilt of his blade in a death grip, and he pressed the emitter to the bottom of his chin...

What seemed like ages passed...and he clipped the lightaber to his belt with a simple "No"
He turned to the wreckage of the taxi, and let his senses stretch out. He knew Saris had done it as well...but she had also had to contend with readying herself for combat. As he searched, he found the smallest spark of life holding on. He moved his hand and the burning, twisted metal parted to reveal the driver. He knelt, and pulled the man from the cab.

He was badly hurt, broken bones, concussion...and worse of all, internal bleeding. The Sith Lord placed his hand on the man, and with a slow pulsing of the Force...the hemmorhaging stopped as veins and arteries knitted back together. Anattar stood at the sound of droning engines, turning to find one of the black assault craft landing behind him. He boarded as the soldiers, now in normal Republic armour, saluted him.

In five minutes they were back at the Temple. Prisoners, mainly staff and droids, were being led away in lines to transports, bound for the prison camps recently erected on Korriban. They were to aid in the excavation of artifacts, and anything else to help the war effort. A man in a slightly more decorated set of armour walked up to him with a group of Jedi...and the Sith Lord was immediately on alert, though his face remained passive. The sergeant saluted.

"My Lord...the mission went well. All holocrons and prisoners are being loaded for transport, and the Temple communication network has been knocked out."
"Good work, Commander." Anattar favored the Jedi with a withering look, studying the padawan braids hanging from their hair. "And these...prisoners?"
"My lord...when we reaches strong resistance in the library, these Padawans heard who was leading the attack and...helped us."
The three Jedi bowed "We are loyal to the Republic..." One said, a young woman with violet eyes. "And we wish nothing more than to learn the true nature of the Force from the true Grand Master. Today has left no doubt of which side of the Force is strongest..."
Anattar nodded "Is that so? Well...let me commence your lessons now..."
The first two were dead before they knew what had happened. The woman was able to bring her lightaber alive in time to watch her sword hand fly away with it. She collapsed in pain, staring up at the crimson eyed Sith Lord in terror.
"First lesson: betrayal begets betrayal. Treacherous leeches will always join the winning side. I have no use for cowards who aren't willing to die for what they believe in".
Her mouth was still forming a reply as her head rolled away into the shadows.
" Commander, from this moment forth any Jedi who attempts to join is us to be shot on sight. I won't pollute our cause with men who would stab their brothers in the back.
The Commander stammered a reply as Anattar stalked into the Temple.

He ignored it all...the bodies, the blood...all of it. He made his way at haste, as fast as he could to his old quarters. With a swipe of his hand on the keypad, the old display cabinet of Sith Lightsaber opened. Many names, lives, and deaths laid before him, and like the Temple around him, he could feel each one. He shook his head...the room was pristine. It would make a good home. He hasn't shared it with her like their apartment...and it wouldn't feel like her. He could stay focussed on his mission here...feeling every death and ounce of despair, reminding him of his purpose...his peace.

The door slid open behind him...a man in a simple black uniform marching in and saluting him crisply with clicking heels.
"Report, General..."
"All of your orders were fulfilled to the letter sir..." The man nodded smugly.
"The priority targets?"
"The search continues for Master Kain. Jedi Grand Master Saris Amalia, Jedi Master Seshmira Ilessar....Masters Nozomi and Xeniro, Chiron, the Youngling Illessar and his grandmother...all forces were suitably diverted from them, and they have been allowed to escape. Master Ereth Khal has been tracked and is apparently heading to Columnus...but also as per your instruction, he has yet to be pursued. We believe he has the remaining Council members with him."
"Good. You have performed your duties admirably."
"I am CorSec, sir. It's my specialty"
"And you are certain you are the only man who knows of the orders I have given?"
"Yes, m'lord. The agents that fulfilled them have no knowledge of the origin of....urrkkkkkk!"
The man grasped desperately at his neck, cords snapping to sharp relief beneath his skin. Bulging eyes stared at Anattar in shock as his fingernails dragged bloodlines along his neck. Soon he gave a whisper and went limp in the air...and when Anattar dropped his hand, the General fell as a heap of bones.

"Report accepted, General..."
His comlink beeped. He held out his hand, the disc flat against his palm. A blue armoured guard lit up from the small device.
"His Excellency wishes to speak with you. Now"

...

The Senate building as cold and austentacious as ever...but this room had a special aura to it. Dark, powerful...but comforting. It was a warm pool at night. You wanted to sink into it, comforting and assuring as it was. The red carpeting and the smooth steel desk added to this sensation: it was so normal as to be the pinnacle of normality. Anattar watched over the desk at the back of a tall chair, searching for any emotion. He found none but that feeling.

"Chancellor...the Jedi Temple has fallen. They were not...willing to negotiate, despite my wishes. Exactly as you predicted" he continued "Several priority targets escaped by sheer luck and will...but I will find them myself if I have to. With your permission...I can begin the assault on the Separatist worlds. Their treachery will be punished before they can aid the Jedi. So far...my Lord Caduceus...all is proceeding as planned."

He went down on one knee, resting his hand on his leg, and bowing his head.

"What is thy bidding...my Master?"

There was a long moment of silence in the room. Through the large bay window behind the wide desk, smoke and flames surrounding the Jedi Temple could be seen in the distance as more Republic ships poured into the atmosphere to hover above important buildings and district of the Galactic City.

In the streets on the surface, a never-ending flow of soldiers wearing black armor, but also regular Republic armor, emerged from the underground levels where they had been patiently waiting for months, maybe even years. They were setting up perimeters and check points, rounding up the population tightly and keeping them “out of harm’s way” while the events throughout the whole city occurred. The attack on the Jedi Temple had been only one of many, albeit one of the most important plays in the game that was being revealed.

As Anattar was taking over the Jedi Temple and taking care of the Council, troops had stormed the Senate building, arresting every single senator and bringing all legislations to an abrupt end. With both the Senate and the Jedi Order neutralized in the same move, the Republic –and the whole Galaxy- was now at a standstill. It was time to proceed with the next part of the plan.

“You have done well, my friend.”

The tall chair turned on itself slowly, revealing Supreme Chancellor Asklepios as he was sitting confidently, an elbow on the arm of the chair, a gloved hand under his bearded chin. He stood up slowly, his fiery yellow eyes on the man who was kneeling a few feet away on the lush deep red carpet. He walked around the desk, holding his trademark cane in his hand only this time he wasn’t using it to walk, and he wasn’t limping at all. He gestured for the man to rise as he placed himself in front of him.

“It is unfortunate that some of them escaped, but predictable. It is only a matter of time until they are brought to justice for their incompetence. It is a priority that they are found and brought to me though. Or destroyed if they can’t be reasoned with. The result will be the same anyway.”

He moved away from Anattar, towards the large window again to stare are the chaos underneath. By now, most Senators were being pushed into armored cars ready to bring them to some facilities very few knew about. The remaining Jedi at the Temple were going through the same ordeal, being gathered and stripped of their modest belongings while being tied by force fields and other devices even force sensitive creatures couldn’t escape from.

“What a lovely day, isn’t it?” Asklepios said with a crooked smile on his face. “Time to bring real peace back to our Galaxy, my friend.”

He snapped his fingers as he turned around once more and two of his personal guards walked in the room, one of them holding a dark cloak in his hands. They both saluted and the garment was presented to the Chancellor who took it without ceremony and dismissed the men with a simple gesture.
Asklepios stood in front of the large window and a device came to life on his desk. Suddenly every screen on Coruscant and allied systems showed the familiar intertwined logos of the Galactic Senate and of the Republic. As the logos faded, they were replaced by the image of the Supreme Chancellor wearing his black robe, standing in front of his window with smoke and fire coming out of the Jedi Temple in the distance.
Asklepios’s face seemed dark, almost pained as he took a breath before talking with a heavy tone.

“My fellow Republic citizens. It is with a heavy heart and terrible news that I come to you today. As many of you must know by now, chaos and fear is spreading through the streets of Coruscant. Fortunately, thanks to the bravery and hard work of our Coruscant Forces and Security, the threat has been eliminated and our enemies are now on the run.”
He paused almost dramatically, taking a deep breath.
“It is with great sadness that I must inform you all good citizens of our beloved Republic that our forces have just stopped a plot by the Jedi Order and several members of the Senate to take power and control of our Republic, possibly in coalition with some remaining Sith leaders who have been allowed to roam our galaxy freely.”
He looked straight at the camera.
“But their attempt at a coup was stopped in time thanks to the devotion and loyalty of our intelligence as well as some deserving Jedi who risked their lives to stand up against their Order. Jedi Master Illessar is with me today and is one of the few remaining Jedi still loyal and dedicated to our Republic.”

He turned around to look at the scene behind him as various military vehicles swooped by. He pointed his hand at the scene.

“This… This is what the Jedi and our own Senate have done. Those we trusted with keeping peace and order in our Galaxy. They did this to your homes here to take control, and they will do the same to every Republic systems if they are not stopped.”

As he spoke, images of various raids started to play on the screen, showing scenes of firefights around the Jedi Temples, showing many Jedi fighting and killing Republic armed forces. One of the scenes showed a soldier trying to help a youngling get up in the middle of fire and smoke before being taken down mercilessly by another Jedi. A still shot showed the Jedi’s anger on his face as he was shown screaming, his face twisted in rage. The images switched back to the Chancellor, now standing still in front of the large window, using his famous cane to support himself.

“While we wait for the traitors among the Senate to be brought to justice, I have no choice but to assume all executive and legislative power until a new Senate can be trusted. As of today, All Jedi who do not report to my office within the next standard day to reaffirm their loyalty to our Republic will be considered an outlaw and will be subject to arrest and trial. Anybody helping such person will be subject to the same sanctions. All Senators who have been associated with the Jedi Order’s coup will be tried and punished to the full extent of the law.”
He paused again, the expression on his face suddenly becoming more grave.
“We will not stand for the destruction of our Republic, and we are not afraid of the Jedi. They have proved that they are no better than the Sith who brought a long and painful war to our doorsteps, and their actions show that they even might have brought that war to us themselves by associating with the Sith, or by allowing them to go free when they could have ended all conflicts. Join me in our fight to bring real peace to our Galaxy by keeping the corrupt Jedi out of your systems, or by reporting them to the authorities. Let us show them that their powers are nothing compared to the will of a whole Galaxy!”

The image of Asklepios faded to show the logos of the Republic and Galactic Senate once again, only this time they merged into a single logo taking elements of both. All screens then went black for an instant before resuming their regular programming.

Asklepios turned to Anattar with a smile and spread his arms.

“How was that? Pretty good, hmm?” He said laughing before bringing the hood of his cloak over his head.
He waved his hand in front of his face and some of his traits changed, morphed into what they really were. His white beard darkened and his skin became paler as scars became visible.

“You have done very well, my friend. But we still have a lot of work to do. You will do as you said. Bring the separatists back to our cause, and bring the law to anyone who tries to aid the Jedi. Those who have escaped must be found. Kill them if you have to, or bring them to me if you feel they can be helpful. Use the Abel twins to either destroy or recruit all those weaklings of Sith that are still following Renetka and Agrona. Kill the girls if they oppose you, they’re of no use to me anymore.”

He walked around for a few seconds, as though he was pondering something. Without looking at Anattar, he spoke again.

“Beware of whatever feelings you have left for your wife, child, or sister. They are a danger to you, and an obstacle to true peace in this galaxy. If you do not destroy them next time you meet them, I will do it myself.”

He gripped his cane from the top and a click sound could be heard as the longer part of the cane fell to the ground, leaving only the top part in his hand in what now appeared to be a lightsaber hilt. With an aggressive hiss, the crimson blade came to life and he brought it in front of his face. It made his skin glow as a twisted smile came on his lips and his eyes seemed like they were burning with a deep fire.
He was Darth Caduceus, the true Dark Lord of the Sith, the one who had brought the Republic to its knees.


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Saris was quiet as she held tight to the speeder. There were no words to share, and she let Seshmira talk all she wanted when they got to their destination...Her eyes narrowed slightly as they entered the night club. She hated places like this, but it was great cover...at least for the moment.
She sat down, her motions seemed so stiff as she was deep in thought. There was no time to just sit and relax...She leaned back, rubbing her temples as she did with a wince. She almost forgot about the burn across her stomach from Corrins saber...she took a slow breath before she peeled back the hole surrounded in burnt fabric "Any closer and this would have been bad..." She whispered. As it was, it was pretty superficial. She rested her hand over the wound and focused a little.
"Seshmira...You know I love you like family...and I am always willing to listen to your stories...But please keep in mind...I have known Corrin since we were both younglings. You do not have to tell me of his demeanor." Saris took a couple slow breaths "...and becoming Grand Master did not take away my own healing abilities. Please...I need for it to be quiet. Go to your son if you want, or not...Just...Let me rest. We don't have long. They have soldiers going through the streets trying to weed us out...You need to comfort him and prepare him to leave within the next...ten minutes."
She stopped cold as the sound of the Grand Chancellors speech came through from the various screens around the club "...I knew I didn't like him for a reason." She whispered simply, shaking her head.
With that she grew quiet, reflecting over all that happened over the last few hours...to think, so much had happened in just a short amount of time. Letting herself relax, She felt the crushing weight on her mind...all the death, the destruction...The loss...How much had been destroyed?...Could she have prevented it?...No...She couldn't have known...she had done all she could to set up protective measures within the temple...She wouldn't know of the success or failure until they made contact with Ereth again...something she would not do until they were en route.
She thought over the words traded with Corrin...Part of her was glad to see him alive...but it was sad. She had hoped for so much more on their reunion. Where would the Jedi go? Who would they turn to, in this time of need?...The entire galaxy would hate them, would try to kill them. It wasn't something she could change...
One thing that stood out in her mind...in the fight with Corrin, he had praised her. She had held her own, forcing him to resort to his strongest form...And she had still held her own even after that. How after all his lessons, she had to use them against him...yet he praised her for it. "I told them you were ready...that you would not disappoint or let them down. I was right then, and I am more right now. You have grown far more than I could ever have expected. When I left you were a powerful but conflicted Jedi Master. Now the woman before me is every bit deserving of her current title." She heard it clearly, and for some reason it saddened her even more. It made the weight that much worse... "I couldn't ask for a better opponent to face me in this war...my beloved sister."
Shaking her head to clear the thoughts, she thought of the Jedi that were left...the Council was nearly gone...She, Mal...Sesh, Ereth....how many others were left?...They would have to regroup, redirect...and they couldn't waste time. She lifted her hand, pursing her lips to the burn mark across her stomach...it was healed over, but it stung still. It would be a slight scar...but nothing serious. As she pushed herself up, she released her hair from its bun and let it flow down her back in black waves. She checked the map of her com and nodded. She only hoped she had given the woman enough time while she had meditated to clear her mind. "Sesh. We need to go."

"Soldiers of the 273rd, There will never be a time that you go to war without my blade ignited next to your raised blasters..."

Malesyn's eyes opened slowly from his brief slumber. The waning words in his mind a final conclusion to a memory of his time with Corrin just before their incursion on Ardru. He took in his surroundings after lifting his head from the panels in front of the ship's view-port. The serene sound of jungle-themed and natured song filled his ears. They had long since landed on Colomus, in a birth filled with the never ending green canvas of trees, intertwined so tightly that they provided floors from which the Raven Fold had set itself upon.

His eyes set upon Aran and Ereth, who were watching the holo-video feedback that over-layed their view of the outside world of the planet. It was the chancellor himself encroaching faults to the public about the Jedi Order and their horrid deeds. Deeds of which made the Cathar himself furrow his brow in disbelief.

"It's as we feared... Our traitor lies in the heart of the Senate itself." Ereth said with a frown. "If I had to chance a guess, it was the Chancellor who issued the order against the Temple."

"That video of the Jedi killing younglings, that can't be real..." Tarth proclaimed as he watched the feed cut out and begin it's regular programming.

"If it was we did not bear any ties to the Jedi who did it, any who withdraw from the Order or commit such hainous acts are automatically docked from our register and declared rogue. We Sentinels would've been responsible for tracking them down. What concerns me more is the fact that Corrin himself carried out the Chancellor's order. That fact, and the fact that he now follows the Dark Side of the Force."

"Follow being the key word." Malesyn stepped in, rubbing his good eye slightly.

The Cathar's eyes fell on Malesyn, his posture tall and his arms crossed as he acknowledged the fact that he woke up, "I hope you got decent rest, Commander. We need you at a hundred percent."

"It'll do, for what's to come. Have the others been contacted?"

Aran leaned on the wall as he responded, "Sent an encrypted ping to the Silver Phoenix and to the Grand Masters personal com-link. Not only did we encrypt it but we used the picture cipher Saris had taught us all just in case we ever found ourselves in this situation, used holo-net back channels so they can't trace the ping back to Colomus. Though I doubt we'll be safe here for long as it is."

"We aren't planning on staying more than we need to in order to repair your ship." Malesyn said as he stood upright in his seat.

"So then what's the plan?" Aran inquired.

Malesyn's eyes shifted from Tarth to Ereth. "I don't want to risk venturing into Colomus and involving them in our affairs. The Columni pride themselves in being neutral, and I don't want to disturb that political standing. We don't need to drag any peaceful planets in to this if we don't have to. We'll wait for the Silver Phoenix, see if Nazomi has any spare parts to get us tactically operational again. If she doesn't we'll see about scouting for parts in a nearby city. In the mean time... I want to make preparations for our guest."

"I highly doubt we're going to be able to sway this, Admiral Mullin to our cause, Malesyn." Tarth said with a disapproving expression.

"All I want is insight, Tarth. One thing you learn about war, is that the enemy you  face has more in common with you than you realize. We are all at the mercy of the orders we're given, that doesn't make us bad men." Malesyn rose from his seat and tapped on the communications panel, bringing up the appropriate overlays.

"Make sure we continue to ping the comms on the Silver Phoenix for hourly check ins. Confirm their E.T.A. and report it to me as needed."

"Will do." Tarth didn't argue with that logic.

Ereth followed Malesyn through the Corridors of the ship as they made their way down to the cargo bay. The Cathar noted the troubled look on his face, but Malesyn shocked him when he spoke.

"You don't need to worry about me, Master Jedi. It was just a dream." Malesyn said as he kept his eyes focused forward.

"That remains to be seen, was it a memory?"

Malesyn's lips curled into a frown, and he quickened his pace, "No... just another lie."

Ereth stopped Malesyn, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Perhaps, but you do feel it do you not?".

"I feel many things, Jedi. I feel anger, I feel frustration, disappointment. Most of all, betrayed. I am not you, I cannot simply shut out these feelings. My people, my family, the people I've devoted my life to, are being used to destroy their own way of life. The very thing they are supposed to be fighting to protect. There are people we turned our back on that knew it from the start, and I'm not going to abandon them. Right now, more than ever, the only thing I want is to free the military of the Republic from that bastard who sits on his mantle in the Senate, spewing out lies about who we are and what we do."

"I understand, Comman--"

"STOP." Malesyn smacked Ereth's hand off his shoulder, "That title has ever been the bane that has led my friends to the slaughterhouse. I've lost it, don't you see? I am no longer a Commander, no longer a soldier. My own people will hunt me down and destroy me. Whatever credibility I had was lost the moment the Chancellor slandered our name across the galaxy." he pointed a burly finger at the Cathar, "And don't even get me started on that bastard, Corrin. He, of all the people I could've ever placed my trust in, betrayed us... ALL OF US. He went back on his word... and everything he told me and my men he stood for, and for what?" he opened his arms, looking around the ship. "We are on the run, from the very people we promised to look after and protect."

"Then why are you here?" Ereth folded his arm with a furrowed look on his face.

"YOU BROUGHT ME HERE!" he roared.

Ereth took a stern step forward, "Do you honestly think, Malesyn. That had I not, and you saw that holo-news broadcast while you were still wallowing in the festering hotel I found you in, that you would've stood there and let it happen?" Ereth's eyes pierced his, "You wouldn't have, Malesyn. Out of all the men and women in the service, I know, you wouldn't have let it stand. You would not leave the Republic to it's fate... You would not, under any circumstances betray them." Ereth's face softened.

"You are strong of will, capable of leading men who have lost all will to go on. You give them hope, Malesyn. And we need that. Even the Jedi... Even myself."

Malesyn's angered look dispersed and he lowered his gaze, "What will do you think I have to willfully go against a man I thought a brother... everything Corrin ever promised us was a lie. I once dreamed of a time where we would see peace. And I almost thought it realized. When I heard you say he had returned I thought then and there, peace would be realized. And we'd have it." He shook his head, "How sadly I was mistaken."

"Think about it, Malesyn." Ereth consoled him, "What makes you think any of that has changed?"

Malesyn gave him a dull look.

"Corrin had said something to me before we parted, something that ires in my mind even now. Something that makes me question what he's actually up to."

Malesyn shook his head, "No, Ereth. No." he pointed another finger at his chest, "When that thought comes up, you remember all the people that had to die for it. Good people, Ereth. People who should have lived." With that he turned on his heel, forcing his way through the corridor and into the cargo bay, his comlink flickered and he keyed it. "Report."

"The Silver Phoenix has breached Colomus atmosphere and will be here shortly." Tarth replied.

"Good, once she's landed you coordinate with, Nazomi. Have Conner meet me with the Admiral on the Raven's Fold."

Ereth slowly walked in after he'd finished. "I do not deny Corrin's crimes, Malesyn. In fact it is the very thing that hinders from me understanding the validity of the situation. I've tried to meditate on it, but too many deaths have obscurred my vision. Whatever Corrin is, it cannot let us hinder our cause. We must unite the Separatists, bring them back to the Republic. If we cannot do that, then there is no hope of surviving the coming storm."

Malesyn moved a few boxes away from a barred cage and threw a chair in it before he turned to face Ereth with a sigh, "We will... Master Jedi. I will do everything in my power to see that we bring this thing around, but I will have my answers. And it starts with Admiral Mullin. I need answers, more than anything right now. And as sad as it is for me to say I'm not going to be able to get it from you. The only way I get it is soldier to soldier... Admiral Mullin and I are gonna pick at eachothers minds and I'm gonna get to the bottom of this."

------

Conner placed a hand on the co-pilot's seat, the one Xeo had sat in as Nazomi piloted the ship into Colomus' atmosphere. He brought his other hand away from his ear. "Look's like we're going to be bringing our guest onto the Raven's Fold. Nazomi, Aran Tarth would like to coordinate with you on possible repairs to his hyper drive, see if you have anything you might have for spare parts to get him in the air again. I've also confirmed that Malerna is safely on board and has been doing an excellent job tending to the wounded they've recovered. No doubt she'd like to see you two with her own eyes, make sure you're safe."His voice was soft and reassuring, surprising with all the combat gear he had been wearing. He kept his eyes on the view-port as the surface of the planet closed in on them, realizing they were nearing their landing sequence he stepped off with parting words, "I'll go prep our prisoner, we'll be ready by the time you land. You've got me on the comms, don't hesitate to call if you need me or any of my men."

Xeo could only take the trip in an isolated room away from everyone else on board the craft. He didn't bother with Nozami or Conner on any council of sorts. A storm of confusing and distrust among The Jedi Order was peeking at every turn of his thoughts. Corrin was dead to him...at least what transpired at The Jedi Temple was sure evidence enough to consider him dead. Xeo knew from Mullin's speech that he would have a Sith Master of his own, which indeed might be an Emperor entitlement figure among The Sith Empire. Many blademasters of different aspects of The Dark Side were slain down with effort put forth by Xeo's skills; however, he couldn't bring himself to cut down his own 'brother of Light' in Xeo's eyes...nor take his master down with his current understanding of The Force. The only aspect of The Light Side to be used at any true tainted Dark Sider would be Force Light at the tail end of Corrin's presence with Xeo years ago. Still...Xeo would find the means to keep himself from slipping more into darkness.

Yet nearing the Colomus system the Battlemaster was starting to question his own thoughts of fighting against the darkness with his own.

“What is it he seeks with peace. The Jedi...always basking in The Light of The Force. Answering the call of duty for when ever darkness pools into the galaxy for threats unknown to normal sentient lifeforms. So much training and effort goes into our Padawans and Knights to combat such evils...well...what I was evil in a form I can't never forget nor forgive. At least this Annatar remains alive through Corrin. Just the idea of him coming back with such...of this darkness willing to just come in knowing we were unable to see his actions beforehand. I have felt this before...even in my own, brother...where ever he is. Annatar's means of clouding the minds felt like weights being dragged into the abyss of sorts I can only see just specs of light left in him. Other will follow and be misguided by this power. Even one to The Light Side can't really fight against a level of Corrin without purely being stripped of all emotion...only True Jedi can become that. I can't nor anyone at this stage of the game. I have to take matters into my own hands regardless of what Saris's title of Grand Master. If The Jedi ever hope to come back into this galaxy...balance must be attained.” Xeo said to himself while The Sliver Phoenix and Raven's Fold were kissing the atmosphere. Looking out one of the view ports with a grizzle look upon his emotion distrusted face, Xeo could only begin to see just from nature looking down on to the world. The dancing of fire and ice against the hull of the craft. The near by star's rays kissing all life and yet...can't reach it all. It was how the way The Force was in nature...living aspects; however, Xeo didn't think just the living aspect could be an answer. With a slow movement he dusted off his datapad now stripped away of all Jedi related IP addresses so not to get tracked by any of Annatar's slicers. All signals and encryption lines had been secured to just a local network for Xeo and Nozmai to have access unless Corrner and anyone else in Ereth's wing would join up with Xeo...for his idea of combating The Sith Empire now at Coruscant. It had to do with some old holo recordings of the early days of The Force Wars taking place on Tython and other worlds. Before lightsabers were even common and the Force Saber was brought into the galaxy. The times where even pureblood Sith were among The Light...before all were set into motion from the two ex Jedi to Korriban. Xeo knew what he was getting himself into...but his deceleration of rebellion had to be in trusted to those among him before the idea even comes to life.

Soon the ships were docked at Colomus and Xeo had to get himself out of his coma of reliving Corrin's actions. He was able to get to the docking pad section off both Silver Phoenix and Raven's Fold to find Conner, Nozami, Mullan, and anyone else that heard Xeo's speech on the commander's craft before the order was given by Mullan. “Everyone here, with the expectation of Mullan now being a POW, we all have seen what transpired on Coruscant. You know and I know you all...it's relevant on what our thoughts of Corrin now. He is dead until reborn back into the light. Annatar...this servant to The Emperor of The Sith Empire...is in his place. For his power was outmatch for all of us to fight together. Even with all of our hope in The Light Side...his power is deep within darkness that our power can't even go against the current oceans of The Dark Side. His master has truly won him over with only one shred of Light left in him...none of us have the pureness in our hearts to win him back. Quite honestly the only means of getting Corrin to come back is to kill Annatar from within. A feat we can't do at this level of our skills of The Force. Saris will mostly be against the idea of what I am going to say...which Ereth and Mal had heard beforehand...I'll must state this out: I will not be among Jedi in The Jedi Order or what's left of it at this rate. As long as Annatar reminds empower I will not know 'any' Jedi Order from this point on. I am on my own. Sith...or even Jedi should stand out of my way for I have to save this galaxy...in my own aspect of The Force. Our Light can't be at its fullest until we are stripped of all ties to emotion. After today none of us are True Jedi even to get even with Annatar. And so...” he said with a deep sigh from his breath knowing what had to be told even to Nozami. “I am at war with both Sith and Jedi whom ever get's in my way. I am declaring what own means of training Force Sensitives to combat this new war. Light and Dark to coexists. More so than Jedi Shadows like Seshmira...shades of both side. Gray you say. We would be our own independent nation and star system from which I will establish a new order that will not heed to Jedi or Sith traditions so long as Annatar is empowered and Corrin can have the Return of The Jedi. (<---See what I did there =P) I have been trained enough for if other council members of the old Jedi Order had failed I can step in for Grand Master entitlement...in this case I'll be that one for my own order. My code. My rules. My governing body to which will be the balance between Light and Dark...together.” Xeo pulls out of his datapad with known star systems not touched by war of both side of Light and Dark, which even included 3rd party interference. A flashing of known systems were going by as Xeo kept on speaking till he landed on one star system in general...but was blocked off its name for 'trust' reasons. “This is where you all are needed...yes even you to POW! After what you did it's either my way or Nozami's. You choice...” Xeo then looked back to his crew in front of him. “You all can choose. I am not going to be among you much longer so long as Saris believes we can win this through The Light. Seshmira is a shadow but we need something more than just shades of darkness that is controlled. I'll give you all an hour to think this over. Even you Nozami...” Xeo walked over to her and landed one solid hard kiss on her lips and patted her cheek. “I'll forget about you if you choose not to follow. I'll return once Corrin is back empower by Jedi understanding...and whatever punishment comes afterward. I know even if he is Jedi once again...any deaths by my hand of Jedi nobility...is on me alone. Beside...if you choose to follow...wounds of the past will come back to test your honor and understanding of being that much of a Jedi.”

Xeo pulled out a holo image Nozami would know of...which Xeo knew any emotions hidden under her training would show or not.

“He is coming too, if I can convince...Dreazin...”

Seshmira sighed as she put her drink down. She knew full well where all of Saris's reactions were coming from and she stood up hitting a few buttons on a key pad next to them. It opened to another room to reveal her Father and Eldarion. The boy ran to her trembling. “Hey El. I know its scary, but don't worry. We are just going to have to go for now till we can figure this all out. “

“But Mommy the Chancellor he...I thought.” Eldarion was so confused. The man had always been good to him. In many ways acting as a surrogate Father due to the absence of his own. He didn't know what to think of this. The man he was always told was good and kind. His true Father had been the harbinger of the destruction of all he knew and loved. Now the Chancellor a man he believed his friend declared them all evil. The young six year old's heart was breaking.

Seshmira kneeled down and looked Eldarion in the eyes. “Listen to me Eldarion Illessar. Nothing is ever as it appears to be. There is more then your Father is ready to really admit to what is going on right now. I feel it in my bones. Light side or Dark side he is still your Father and he loves you. If he didn't none of us would be here right now. Here take this. Your training saber won't due anymore. “ She took Corrin's saber off her hip and placed it in to Eldarion's hands. “ This is An'duril. It was your Father's lightsaber. The crystal inside it was one I wore around my neck for many years in a locket. A Corellian Sapphire. When his lightsaber before this broke on a mission and he went looking for a new one sure as the Force this one took alight. Just as when I built my saber staff Hope the amethyst he wore lit up for me. These sabers are part of who we are. The crystal our hearts. They are our family. Forever joined as one. Your Father and I are bonded through the Force and through that bond it gave us you. I'm sure he would have helped you build your own in time. For now An'duril will serve you well. “

Eldarion took it and felt the weight of it. Yet he also felt the light and goodness inside of the crystal itself. A feeling of the man that once bore it. “It's so heavy Mommy. Are you sure I can wield it?”

Seshmira smiled at him. “You are your Father's son and its only right his saber come to you. Remember the man that bore that saber. The feeling you get from that crystal. That is who he really is, but do not let that cloud you. He strikes at you or anyone else you raise that saber and you defend yourself. Am I clear?”

Eldarion nodded as he clipped his Father's saber to his belt. He felt a great weight had been passed on to him. One he had yet to foresee.

Seshmira looked to Saris. “Ready when you are.”

Nozomi listened to every word Xeo had to say. Allowed him to kiss her and finish his peace and yet without so much as a warning with lightning speed and full force she punched him square in the face. “You shame Hicktorale and Cintrella with what you say to me right now. You sound EXACTLY as Dreazin did before he killed them both in front of us and burned our home! You think you are the only one hurt by Corrin's betrayal!” She was screaming at him. Her voice filled with both pain and rage. Her eyes alight with it and threatening tears she refused to shed. “The day Dreazin came forth in his madness and took everything from us I was right there with you. I went through it all with you. Then Corrin who we both called brother. Who convinced me I would do better to serve as a Jedi. Who along with Seshmira helped train me. Worked with me side by side just as Dreazin did. He then kills people we know and care about. Burns our home and declares us outlaws. He took from us everything. Our purpose and the only life we had left. Yet you act as if you are the only one burned! Corrin has a six year old son. What about Eldarion huh? Who was always told his Father was an absolute good. That boy just watched his Father kill people he cared about and take away his home. How do you think he feels? How do you think Seshmira feels? That's her husband. The man she is Force bonded to and gave all that she is for. He comes back and destroys the peace they all fought for and then forces her to run telling her not to join him. How about Saris? She grew up with him. They have been friends since they were children and now she has to go through this with him. I swear to you Z I will break every damn bone in your body before I let you become what Dreazin is now and allow you to go off on some imagined hero crusade. You aren't some imagined savior meant to bring balance to the Force. You are Xeo Xeniro. The only real family I have left and my truest love. Even though right forbids me to act on it. Though I don't know where we stand on any of this as the Order has been disbanded. I simply know you are everything to me and I won't see you throw your life away. Stay here with us where you can do some good and we can all work to bring things back to what is good and light. Please Z........I can't lose you too.....” a single tear escaped her sapphire eyes and she tried hard to wipe it away before it could fall.

Annatar watched the holovideos, almost surprised at how well the video doctoring was working. The Jedi in question attacking the soldier was nothing more than a psychopath tortured beyond reasoning and handed a lightsaber replica. The trooper was an actor, as was the youngling. Shortly after the vid the so called Jedi was executed mercilessly by dozens of real blasters. Caduceus had plotted and planned this well. Every detail filled, every contingency thought out and every escape plan cut off. It was a thing of strategic beauty.

"Of course my Lord. I will hunt them down wherever they hide. I won't let them endanger what we plan on creating." Annattar replied to Caduceus' statement about escaped Jedi. When the Sith Lord spoke of the Separatists, his apprentice could only nod again. "Of course. All assault forces will be ready to deploy within thirty-six standard hours, and we will arrive in system after that within 12. We have targets selected."

When Caduceus halted in front of him and began speaking of his wife, and son...Annattar's demeanor changed once more. He seemed to pull in on himself. The room was colder for a moment as his muscles tensed and his red eyes burned into his Master, before he sighed. It hadn't been what he wanted...but the Dark Lord of the Sith would demand no less. The boy and his wife were a danger to them both; to Caduceus' reign due to their effect over his apprentice. As long as they lived, his connection to the Light would never go away, and his true power in the Darkness would be hindered by the path of so called redemption. They had to die if he was to reach the peak of his power...a power to make his eventual rise to Dark Lord of the Sith possible, and to cement his worth as the true heir to rulership over the Order.

"Yes, my Master." He said, his voice ice. "They will die by my hand, and mine alone. Now...I have an attack to oversee. I will return with the heads of the Separatist leaders and their families...then no one will stand against us." He bowed and left the room, black cloak billowing in the absent air. If anything, the power of darkness around him seemed more powerful, more absolute...a dark from which no light shone, and which no light could penetrate.

"All forces, prepare for attack. We depart in two days. We kill every man, woman and child we find." He looked sideways at a uniformed officer "Never leave a child behind you who can learn how to wield a sword."

...


As Xeo and Nozomi were arguing, Seshmira and Saris were preparing to leave, and Malesyn and Ereth and the others were watching...all of their comlinks activated as one without them activating. The holoscreen lit up with several beeps, and the form of a man lit up on it. He was a Chiss, tall and broad, dressed in a simple black military uniform with no markings. He held up his hand to them all.

"Don't attempt to shut off your comlinks, Masters and friends. Your system has been well and truly hacked...but trust me. You are safe in my hands. Nobody tied to the self announced Sith Emperor knows anything about your whereabouts, and if you follow my directions, none of them will until you are ready..." He reached up and stroked his long beard "Manners...then. I'm afraid I'm short on them, so forgive me and allow me to start over. My name is Mith'thrawn'dir, operative of CorSec intelligence services." He gave a short bow.

"I'm afraid, Master...Xeniro...you're making a very bad mistake. Separation of target strength is exactly what the Dark Lord is looking for in this instance, and you're walking right into his hands. The attack on the Jedi Temple was meant to do exactly what you're doing...to cast such doubt internally that what was left of the Jedi would split into several, much easier to handle forces."

"Masters Saris and Seshmira. I know you greatly care for the man known as Darth Annattar. He is the husband of one, and the brother of the other  of you in more than just emotions and Force ties. You're both determined, however long it will take, no matter what atrocities he has committed....to bring him back. You must stop this now if you are to survive. The Dark Lord of the Sith has realized the threat of Corrin's wife and son to his Apprentice...and has ordered him to kill you. Annattar has agreed to do so with his own hands. If this happens, he will be truly unstoppable as his immersion in the Dark Side will be so complete that even the deepest depths of its power will be open to him. He will kill you, Seshmira...and your son. There is no saving him...but you can save your child. The next time you see your husband...you must think of your child...and fight with everything you have. You as well Saris, as much as spilling the blood of your own veins will rankle with you..."
He shook his head
"I have little time to speak of much more at this time,  but you must be warned; Annattar moves to strike at the Separatists. He will be there in two days with overwhelming force...and unless they have help, they will be destroyed. Now, I know you think yourselves scattered and alone...but...as Masters Ereth and Malerna will attest to if they close their eyes and search the Force...you have actually been far more fortunate than you think."
"The attack on the Jedi Temple, terrible though it was, happened at the best possible moment it could have. The Jedi Order was at 72% Operational Involvement...which means the casualty rate of the Order not including what survivors you have with you is only...about 20%. Whoever planned this attack was a fool who revealed himself far too quickly. Of 9000 Jedi in the galaxy...you still have at least 6500-7000. You are still very much strong, and very much a part of this. All that needs to happen to unite this Order is for their Grand Master to call on them...they will come. Save the Separatists...and the Jedi will have an army behind them to take the Republic back. Have heart, my friends...for their is a commander in your midst as well who could match minds with Annattar's best....Major Malesyn. Make the Separatists your army, and the Jedi your allies, and there is hope."
He nodded his head once more "I will be in contact again. Think of this as a game of cards, my friends. Right now, Caduceus holds them all...the trick to this is to get him to play every one he has...so somebody he least expects can trump him. He least expects those he thinks he has defeated. May the Force be with you...and us all..." The link went dead.

Saris was waiting for Sesh and El, and offered a comforting smile to the boy. She also gave a quick nod to Chiron before she pulled up her hood. All of them were pretty well known, but with her two tone hair colour Saris knew how easy she was to pick out of a crowd. "Be ready. We aren't going far but we must be safe. As soon as we are free of Coruscant air space, we will have to contact Ereth--"
She stopped all at once right in front of the door as her holocom turned on of its own accord. Her eyes narrowed as the man spoke to them...all of them. It was disconcerting that someone was able to get into the protected channels of their comlinks and speak so calmly to a group of now fugitives. She watched Seshmiras face as he spoke to them directly but she did a double take to her com. "Blood of my own veins?..." she whispered to herself, confused for just a moment. They had always referred to each other as brother and sister out of friendship, a silly connection. She took just a moment to process all that the man had said. Something told her she could believe what he said, not just to the two of them specifically but to Xeo and then that last bit...They had no where, and no real time to decide anything. The remains of the council scattered, She had to make a decision...something she would do upon getting the boy and his mother to safety.

She was quick and quiet, ducking out the back door into an alley way and leading through the winding maze of alleys to the nearest hanger...approaching the man in charge, she waved her hand before the human who seemed to stare off into space and she stepped around him, waiting for a moment to make sure they were ahead of her "...last ship"

She hadn't spoken to anyone about purchasing the light cruiser, left as simple as possible to easily hide in the stream of generic ships. She had never wanted one, instead using the ones available to all Jedi...so she had hidden this in the most unassuming and out of the way hanger she could find under a fake name. Quick hitting the hatch to lower the ramp, she waited to the side. It was small but it was stocked and ready to go
"We don't have much time...." she paused as she saw soldiers entering the hanger bay and she cursed. That would be just her luck...

Malesyn hadn't even stepped off the ramp of the Raven's Fold before his ears had their fill of the argument unfolding before them all. Doubt filled the air, and only he and his men were quiet as the rest quarreled amongst themselves. Conner's eyes were upon the man, his mouth agape in quiet awe at how changed Malesyn was from the last time he saw the Arcanian Soldier. But Malesyn didn't pay any head to him, at least not for the moment.

The communications-tap brought his attention away from the fued before him. And all of them went silent as they listened. When it finished Malesyn's head swiveled to set eyes upon them all.

When he looked upon them, he saw some faces filled with doubt, others filled with confusion, and others on the verge of tears. With a reprieved sigh he stepped off the Raven's Fold.

"Master Xeniro. I do not know what train of thought you were under when you let those words sputter out of your mouth, but let me be clear... We're all in this, together. I don't know who that blue bastard was, but he was right about one thing in particular. We don't survive this if we go our seperate ways, we don't survive this if you choose to make enemies here and now. The moment you do, we've already lost. All of us." Malesyn looked over to, Conner. "We're set up inside, take our asset into the cargo bay." he watched as Conner closed his mouth and nodded firmly before him and the rest of his old crew dragged the Admiral with them and moved out.

Malesyn returned his focus to the rest of them. "We've all been traumatized by what has occurred at the Jedi Temple, but we do not have the luxury, nor the time to deal with it. Right now, all of you need to pull yourselves together and get your head in the game. Right now our focus should be getting the Raven's Fold functional again. Nazomi, Xeo... our ship has suffered a Hyper-Drive leakage, I'd like you to link up with Aran to figure it out... see if you have any parts that might fix the problem, even if it's temporary. We don't want to risk having to go find parts out in the city if we don't have to. Ereth, Malerna, I'd like you to come with me, see if we can learn anything from the Admiral while we wait for information on the Grandmaster's arrival."

The jungle went silent, for what seemed like long moments. Malesyn looked upon them all and he couldn't help but smile slightly. His face went from stricken to stern, an eery expression of determination and new found confidence as he recalled what it meant to serve under the Republic Military.

"Out of every one hundred men, ten shouldn't even be here..." he began as he addressed them. "Eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters... and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle." He paused as he eyed them all steadily...

"But one... one is a warrior, and he will bring all the others back. Be that warrior, follow me against the odds and we'll show our enemies what it means to be a part of a truly united Republic. Let no failure set you back, learn from it, grow from it, become stronger for it. Our enemies have taken much from you... you've been weakened in spirit, bloodied in battle, beat down and dragged down by unforseen odds... you've lost an Order. But do not fret, nor fear, nor cower... for you stand among family now. Believe in that... hold on to that... and there is nothing in this galaxy that will ever defeat you..." He gave them all a proud look, "With that being said..." he clasped his hands together and nodded to them all.

"Let's go bring the rest of our family home."

--- Ardu, Iseno Sector, Inner Rim ---

A  stark figure towered over the holo-grid as he watched the Chancellor of the Republic spit his poison. With a scoff he flicked his wrist driving his hand across the panels in order to shut them off before he turned, as he did so, thousands of soldiers were below, moving in and out of vasts ships of Imperial design, the only difference among them being the fact that they bore a modified Republic symbol.

"Commander, Wryln... We recieved a signal not too long ago, Republic in nature. Someone's pinging us with an encrypted message."

"What did it say."

"A Major, Naydo Malesyn has offered to turn himself into your custody in the hopes of a parley."

Nate Wryln frowned, he knew the face that belonged to that name. "Prepare the War vessels, have our men fully operational in the next 12 to 24 hours. And give me the encryption... I'll hail that bastard myself."

"But, sir... it's only one man."

"We aren't preparing for that, Captain... go, be quick about it..."Wryln ordered, his eyes focused on the panels before him, a look of wariness on his face, "We're running out of time."