Chapter 44
Minutes after the meeting was adjourned, Vice Admiral Virkean settled into a seat on a shuttle bound for the Shadow Redeemer and pulled out his datapad. A few keystrokes brought up the mission plan General Vega had requested input on so the mission could be launched as soon as possible. Focussing, all sounds around the man seemed to drift away as he began to read the brief.
Operation Reticent Wisdom
Location: Kiffex (Grid Square: L-14)
Alternate: Kiffu
Personnel: Special Commander Joash, Lieutenant-Commander Barnes, HK-47, four commandos
Objective: Acquire data related to enemy strength, movements, strategies, and plans. Technological data shall be secured, if able.
Details: Recent military action was taken by the Eternal Empire in the vicinity of Kiffex and Kiffu. Republic forces suffered heavy losses despite the small enemy fleet. However, they were able to down multiple enemy vessels during the skirmish. Ground combat continues on the surface of both planets. Stealth systems will be used to descend to the planet in order to make contact with Warden Uthgar Vos. Data on enemy positions will be acquired from the Warden to determine appropriate locations to infiltrate. Extraction to be completed using stealth systems from the selected salvage site.
Alternate planet of Kiffu to be utilized if live information indicates chances of success are greater.
Virkean’s expression remains neutral as he mulls over the details, thinking to himself “The details are somewhat lacking, but that is likely as much as is available at the moment.” He ponders another moment before making a few entries on the brief directed to the General, “I will provide a specialized slicing program developed by Sith technicians based on what little Eternal Empire technology we were able to interact with. Much of this mission’s details will be left to the Special Commander’s discretion in the moment. I trust we can place our faith in his decision making.”
Aboard the Nephilim, Rend reads the notes from the Vice Admiral as they come in. Once finished, he keys on his comm to the bridge, “Commander, contact the following individuals and have them report to the Nephilim immediately.” The list of all but Joash comes through to the Commander’s datapad before he responds, “Right away, General.”
Two hours pass before the small strike group assembles in the hangar of the Nephilim. The commandos, HK-47 and Lieutenant-Commander Barnes stand in a line as Joash walks in front of them. “Soldiers, our task is simple. Establish contact with a warden on the planet Kiffex and identify potential sites to acquire data on our enemies. Lieutenant-Commander Barnes is our technical expert on this mission. HK-47 is assigned as her personal guard while on the ground. The rest will act as the first line of defense. If she receives so much as a scratch, I will personally hold each of you responsible.” The commandos snap off a crisp salute and call out in unison, “Ad Bellum!” With a short nod, Joash responds, “Ad Victorium. Now let’s get to it. We leave as soon as the engines are warmed.” The group, including Y'ssane, march with purpose towards Mirr’s XB-70; their faces focused.
HK settles into the pilot seat and begins flipping switches while simultaneously beginning to program their intended hyperspace route. The stealth ship's engines flare to life, drowning out the hiss of the closing ramp. Inside, the commandos store their gear and strap into seats in the main cabin. The most senior of them, a Sergeant not quite as old as Joash, leans over to his right and takes the buckle from Y'ssane’s hands that were struggling to make the connection. He quickly seats the connectors and pulls the straps so they are snug over the young woman’s chest and lap. Y’ssane nods in thanks which the man returns without much of an expression, stating simply “Ma’am.” before facing forward. The young officer exhales deeply in an attempt to control her nerves, embarrassed by her inability to handle a harness. Jov’aine’s words from her last mission surfaced within her mind, “It is ok to be nervous…use it to heighten your senses.” Determined, she closes her eyes and focuses on her feelings, allowing them to flow but in a more controlled manner. Slowly it becomes easier and she remains this way as the ship lifts off from the deck until after the jump to Hyperspace is made.
After entering Hyperspace, the small squad set about checking gear and reviewing what information was available regarding their destination. Y’ssane ran some simulations with the slicing algorithm provided by Virkaen against the code acquired months prior when boarding an enemy vessel. Lines of code stream across the portable monitor that rested on a table before her as Joash comes to take a seat next to her. Having not noticed his approach due to her focus, the Lieutenant-Commander hops up to attention, “Sir, my apologies. I did not see you approach.” Joash waves a dismissive hand, “Sit, Y’ssane. For the most part my rank is symbolic. You do not need to act in such a manner for me.” With a nod, Y’sanne sits back down as Joash continues, “What are you working on?” She turns the screen and describes the lists of code “I am testing the slicing algorithm provided by the Vice Admiral. It appears to be functioning as intended with what little enemy data I happened to have on hand.” Understanding none of what he saw, Joash asked a question, “So you are confident it will help us acquire what we need?” “Yes Sir. I may need to do some modifications on the fly but it will definitely help us.” With a smile, Joash claps the young woman on the shoulder as he rises, “I am glad to hear that. I will leave you to it. I need to speak with our…pilot.”
A minute later, the old Jedi stepped into the cockpit and addressed the droid pilot gruffly, “Droid, when we drop from hyperspace start scanning for encrypted communications immediately.” HK-40 responded, “Ten-four, Special Commander… Because I was told you were in charge… I don’t know what makes you special… You are just another meat bag to me.” Joash raises his left eyebrow and slowly turns his head to respond when the arrival indicator begins to blink. The droid interjects, “We have arrived at Kiffex. Dropping from hyperspace now.”
Kiffex and her sister planet Kiffu snap into view as Mirr’s stealth fighter drops from hyperspace. HK-40 begins the scanning sequence while engaging the ship’s stealth protocol. Joash gruffs, “Take us between the planets, kill all non-vital systems and lets listen.” The droid buzzes in obligatory resistance but he follows the elder Jedi’s orders, making several inputs on the control panel while simultaneously maneuvering the ship into position.
About an hour passes without any recognizable communication traffic when HK’s head slightly tilts. “Special-Commander… There is some broken communication at an unusual frequency.” Joash quickly responds, “Can you amplify it and decrypt it?” The droid opens his thigh compartment, grabs his scomp link and inserts it into the ship's port. Several moments pass before HK-40 responds, “Decryption completed. It is a distress signal stemming from the northern hemisphere of Kiffex. Message is now displayed on the main console.”
Joash steps forward and begins reading the message aloud, to which HK gives a quizzical and irritated expression despite his inability to manipulate facial features. “This is Warden Vos. We are under siege in Tenga outpost. Critical supplies have been exhausted and we require immediate assistance. If anyone receives this message, reply on a mid-frequency with the appropriate response. We will be listening.” Joash leans back and crosses his arms with his right hand rubbing his scar as he finishes reading the transmission, “Friend or foe prompt: Even death could not take me for I bear this name.” Perplexed, the old Jedi stares at the screen as he mulls over the prompt, pondering a reply deeply enough that he did not notice Y’ssane’s approach. In a soft voice, she adds without thinking, “Lazarus”. Joash sat upright, caught off-guard which caused HK to release what appeared to be a droids version of a laugh. Joash turns to face the engineer after giving a particularly nasty glare to the droid, “What was that, Lieutenant-Commander?” Y’ssane fidgets with her hands as she responds, “The correct response is Lazarus. It means ‘God has helped’. It is an ancient Republic prompt and response but I am sure that is the answer.” Joash nods shortly, thinking a few more moments before stating, “He seems to be in a precarious situation. Droid, send the reply that we will be assisting and we need a landing pad. Request coordinates and include the response Lazarus.” HK-40 reluctantly sends the message through his scomp link before replying, “Message sent.”
About ten standard minutes pass before a response is received which HK decrypts before delivering a summary of the message, “Coordinates received, Special Commander. We are requested to land in the courtyard of the outpost.” Joash nods in agreement. HK brings the ship to life once more and makes for the outpost; the stealth systems render the ship invisible as it glides silently towards the planet. As the team descends through the atmosphere thick clouds swirl around the stealthed ship but the elder Jedi does not sense a raging battle below. He alerts the pilot, “Droid, the battle that occurred here is over. I wonder who has the warden under siege.” HK does not reply as he continues towards the outpost. Joash stands from his seat and barks at HK, “We need a vertical descent into the outpost. Once we break the cloud cover, open the rear hatch. We will provide cover fire if any is needed and try not to throw anyone out.” HK-40 aggravatedly replies, “Aye Aye, Special Meatbag.”
Two heavily armed commandos are strapped to the inside of the ship's exit ramp as it extends. Once fully opened, they lean out, focused on finding any movement on the ground surrounding the outpost. When the ship gets within one hundred meters of the planet’s surface, blaster bolts pour out from the surrounding forest line on the port side. Many bolts strike the shields of the ship but because of the synthetic piloting the ship there is no reaction as he had instantly corrected for the strikes. The starboard side commando returns fire, alternating between rapid pulse bolts and overcharged single shots when enemy placement becomes more apparent. Joash screams in the cockpit, “Descend faster, we need to get below the walls of the outpost!” Before the sentence finished, the rate of descent doubles and they reach the ground harder than the typical landing, causing the landing struts to hiss as if angry. HK completes the shutdown sequence and quickly moves to retrieve his firearms as though nothing was amiss. As the droid departed, the Jedi Master swore he saw a grin on the mouthless and expressionless droid's face.
Less than a minute later Joash steps off the stealth vessel. His hooded overcoat is pulled over his head and his saber is held tightly in his right hand as he strides forward. Just before exiting, he had commanded everyone to remain on the ship until he signals. A line of guards rush out to meet the man after only a handful of steps, blasters aimed directly at him. The man from the center barks, “Even death could not take me for I bear this name.” Joash slowly removes his hood and replies, “Lazarus. We received your message. I need to speak to the warden Vos.” The leading guard steps forward and signals the other to lower their weapons before replying, “My apologies, we were not expecting a Sith ship after receiving your response so we had to confirm. Warden Vos is in the tower. Do you have medical supplies?” Joash raises his brow as he responds, “Nothing substantial. Why? Is he injured?” The guard of similar age nods and signals for Joash to follow.
With a wave of his left hand, Joash commands those aboard to disembark. After the first two commandos exit, Y’ssane steps off the ramp closely escorted by HK-40 who shoulders a long heavy rifle. His appearance startles the remaining guards who immediately raise blasters in response. Before Joash could halt them the droid sparks a response, “Inefficient organics! If I wanted you dead, you would already be dead… I want to show you…” With a slight turn of the head, HK looks towards Joash and asks “Special Commander?” Somewhat annoyed, Joash responds with his face in his hand “What is it?”, to which the droid replies, “May I make them dead?” Now beyond annoyed the Master barks back, “No! Your mission is to protect the Lieutenant-Commander. You only get to kill things that try to kill her! Got it?” HK retorts slightly disappointed, “Ten- four Special Commander scar-face.” before turning to the guards and adding, “I recommend that you target this particular meatbag.” With the long rifle, the droid gestures towards Y’ssane before adding, “That way I may educate you on your inferiority.” Shaking his head, Joash follows the lead guard towards the nearby lift as the rest of the team follows behind.
After several awkward moments in the tower lift the team, led by the elder guard, steps into the command center. Several portable consoles linked together by various power and communication cables crowd the perimeter of the room. Joash scans the scene slowly, stopping at a large chair near the large display hologram. He approaches the chair and finds a grossly overweight, pale man with a tourniquet around his right calf where his ankle and foot should be. “Warden Vos?”Joash asks. The older man doesn’t lift his slumped head. Instead his eyeballs rolled up to their limit in order for him to see who had spoken to him. He lets out a low grunt in response. Joash waves over one of the commandos and signals him to examine the unknown injured man. The stumpy soldier drops his weapon and opens his rook sack to reveal the team's medical cache which he rummages through for a few moments before pulling out a scanning device.
Joash turns to their previous escort and reacts, “This man is nearly dead. Do you not have a medic among you?” The man replies, “No sir, we believe them to all be dead.” The Jedi continues his query, “What happened here? You are held up in this tower with no supplies and are massively outgunned.” The guard looks at his dying leader before answering, “This is a penal planet, as you know. Approximately one week ago we were attacked by hordes of soldiers brandishing shields and long staffs. First they took out our main communication towers. Next they bombed the main complex near the equator. That is where the warden was injured. The bombs triggered an evacuation sequence releasing all the prisoners including the maximum security ones. We escaped to this location and set up what we could to get a message out and attempted to treat the wounded as best as we could.”
Joash looks toward the warden to witness the field medic administering some fluids and pain killers. He speaks bluntly to the guard, “Our purpose for being here is not solely to provide aid. We are in search of some items that our intel says could be on the planet's surface. In particular, we are looking for a downed enemy vessel.” The guard replies with a disappointed tone, “The turbo laser turrets at the main complex shot down a large vessel. I do not know how you will be able to take advantage of this wreck. Our scans show that the entire complex and surrounding areas are overrun with armed prisoners.” Before Joash could respond, a crackling voice is heard from behind them, “Are you blind? He is a Jedi. He doesn’t fear blasters or criminals.” The elder Jedi turns and smirks at the now coherent warden before responding, “What gave me away? The robes?” The weary man replies after clearing his throat, “You are not carrying a blaster. Those who come to such a place without a blaster are either fools, or Jedi.” Joash responds with a slight bow, “Warden Uthgar Vos, I am Jedi Master Ca’ JoasichuBana’kaeda. We were sent here to acquire intel and data on our common enemy known as the Eternal Empire. They are a most formidable opponent and your help could be the key to stopping them.”
Several deep breaths are taken by the Warden before he replies, “Alright, Master Jedi, I am in no shape to negotiate. However, I will ask that you help us take back the main complex so we can have a chance at gaining control of the planet once more. Do this, and you will have all the support we can offer to acquire whatever you require.” Joash nods and replies with a stern face, “Very well, we will take this complex within the day.” Large gasps are heard across the room as the statement fell on everyone’s ears. The Jedi Master continues, “I need topographical images and a schematic with the most direct path to the main control room. I will leave two commandos from my team with you and the remainder will be with me.” Y’ssane swallows loudly as she didn’t hear that she would be left behind. She cautiously raises her hand before being called on, “Yes, Lieutenant-Commander?” Joash responds without looking in her direction. She replies, “Sir? Where will I be during this attack?” Joash chuckles a bit before responding, “Your file was very clear that your mid to long range accuracy is among the best on record.” With a smirk, he turns to face the young woman, “You and HK will provide cover. Force willing, you two are as good as I hope. Otherwise, the rest of us will be dead before sunrise.”
Roughly an hour after studying the surrounding areas of the complex, The grizzled Jedi stands up straight and stretches his back before calling the team to gather around the holo-projector. “We will be divided into three groups, Alpha team will consist of the Lieutenant-commander and HK-40. You will be positioned atop of this small alcove here.” His callused finger points to the tallest peak within effective firing range of the northern entrance. Joash continues, “There you will provide long range cover fire for Lemma team and myself. Next is the Lemma team, Consisting of lieutenants Derite and Wes accompanied by the guards who will be restoring power. You will move from the rear drop zone approximately 3 kilometers north of Alpha team after we have established entry to the facility. From there land west of the northern gate in this agricultural field. Use the irrigation trench as cover if you are fired upon. After the signal and all have made entrance, Alpha team will move to the gate and provide a deterrent until we have regained control of the complex.” Yessane timidly raises her hand. Joash acknowledges, “Speak freely please.” Y’ssane asks, “And where is the third team?” Joash brandeshes a rare wide smile while answering, “I am the third team. Once your team is in place, I will draw the bulk of the blaster fire. This should provide you and the droid enough time to eliminate threats that I cannot.” Y’ssane gulps loudly in disbelief that she was being counted on in actual combat. Joash commands again, “Is everyone clear?” The commandos reply in unison, “Crystal! Sir!” Joash replies, “Good, suit up, we leave in ten!”
A little more than half hour later, Y’ssane and her counterpart settle in just behind some thick stemmed bushes and begin to set up their long range rifles. Y’ssane starts spotting potential targets through a rangefinder while HK comfirms the distances. “The large ship hull near the gate is four hundred and eighty-two meter.” The droid replies, “four hundred and eighty-two point three meters to be exact.”
Y’ssane does not reply; she only makes a slight adjustment to the rangefinder and selects another target. “The largest rock ten degrees south west is one hundred and twenty-three point 7 meters.” HK buzzes with annoyance, “Afirmative.” Next she shoulders her rifle and makes the appropriate adjustments for those distances. As she is making the final adjustments her com opens and the Jedi puts the plan into motion.
Several agonizing minutes of silence occur before Joash strides into view. He is moving at a brisk pace towards the gate as Alpha team scans the complex for movement. Y’sanne whispers instinctively, “There, along the small tree line I count seven armed bogies.” With a droid’s version of surprise HK confirms the count, “You may actually be of some use after all.”
When the elder Jedi reached the two hundred meter mark all seven assailants opened fire on his position. A snap-hiss of the ancient saber igniting instantly is muffled by the sound of shots as he repels the bolts within his proximity while moving to avoid others. The Lieutenant-Commander exhales deeply and gently squeezes the trigger with her right index finger, placing the first bolt into the hand of the prisoner who was more accurately placing shots on the Jedi. He drops his weapon and lets out a loud scream, causing his companions to turn their attention without thinking. The lapse in fire allowed Joash to recover and pinpoint their location which he moved towards immediately. A few moments later, the shots began again with less efficiency while the Jedi was better able to anticipate their attacks.
A second shot rings out, now from HK’s rifle which penetrates the base of the neck of the most aggressive shooter, dropping them instantly. Y’ssane, without breaking focus acknowledges the droid, “Great shot.” As though insulted, the droid responds, “Admiration from one who misses such an easy kill is an insult.” Once more, the young woman squeezes the trigger and drops an enemy that was still standing back in the treeline. Without looking away from her scope, she adds in a foreign tone, “I don’t miss. Killing him would have been easy. But wounding him caused more of their focus to shift for longer. In the end, we are able to use him as a distraction to more efficiently remove the remainder of his comrades.” Despite the conviction in the woman’s words, her face carried a look of disgust mixed with shame as she continued to look through the scope of her weapon.
The Jedi has now closed the gap between him and the remaining prisoners, using the trees to provide cover as blaster fire is narrowing on his position. A quick stab ends the closest prisoner then Joash ducks the next bolt. In a fluid motion, he quickly extends his left arm, sending a blast through the Force that pushes the assailant into a tree, impaling them on a severed branch. With a flick of his right wrist, the blue saber spins through the air, decapitating a prisoner who thought they were safe behind a dense evergreen bush a dozen meters away.
During the close combat skirmish another group of ten armed prisoners exit the northern gate making their way towards the elder Jedi. Y’ssane jumps up and steps to the other side of HK-40 and speaks, “Stay on the Commander, I will handle the new arrivals.” HK acknowledges by sending a bolt through the skull of another prisoner that peaked from around a thick tree. The Lieutenant-Commander settles her firearm on the ground as she lays prone behind it. In a few brief moments she settles back into her firing position and exhales deeply while squeezing the trigger, sending a bolt through the chest of the last prisoner running towards the tree line. With a micro adjustment, she switches targets to the lead of a pair coming up a slight hill behind Joash. The red bolt of light flashes through the air until it catches two prisoners; one through their right eye socket and the other center mass of their chest due to their proximity and height difference. HK servos begin to whine in excitement as he is witnessing the efficiency of the meatbag he was tasked with protecting. The droid lets the elder Jedi finish the final prisoner in the small thicket and instead changes his angle to begin alternating shots with Y’ssane. He places a shot in the shoulder of one of the prisoners and the follow-up shot from Y’ssane dispatches him. Those few remaining at the base of the hill turn to begin running back towards the compound behind them.
Joash fells the final prisoner then turns to make for the gate when a large explosion knocks him into the open field. Y’ssane exclaims while scanning the wall of the compound through her scope, “Where did that explosion come from?” HK-40 pulls out of his scope and scans the area with integrated optics before replying, “Movement identified in gate turret window.” He picks his rifle up to get the correct angle and waits for his opponent to make a vital error. A bolt erupts from the rifle but glances off of the stone material of the window opening. The prisoner within ducks behind as pieces of plasma spray through the opening erratically. Y’ssane, while still sending suppressing shots towards the members of the second group to push them back to the compound gates, asked “Did you get them?” The silence is all she needed to hear and she focuses for several heartbeats now that Joash was safe to recover. A gentle squeeze sends off a final shot which collides with the base of the last visible prisoner’s skull just before they rounded the corner to safety. In a single movement, the marksman rolls onto her back and props her barrel onto a slender branch to achieve the appropriate angle and finds her mark hesitantly peering out the window only exposing one eye. The last thing they ever saw was overwhelming redness as the bolt strikes the eye socket and the armed prisoner falls within the turret.
On the ground, the battered Jedi breathes heavily as he pushes himself off the ground, groggy and slightly disoriented. He reaches into his small storage pouch affixed to his utility belt and pulls a small vial of blue liquid. It bears an equally small label with handwritten words in a precise penmanship, “When feeling faint or defeated take this and your weary heart shall be set ablaze. — Thea” Joash pops the seal and drinks the liquid with a pair of gulps. A warming sensation follows the liquid down his esophagus before it spreads out to fill his being. In an instant, the old Jedi straightens up and holds his arms out to each side, slightly bent as every muscle in his body flexes just before he lets out a long roar that seemed to be amplified as it hit the ears of those hunkering within the compound. His right hand reaches out and summons his fallen weapon to his palm. Upon making contact, the saber ignites and the Jedi races to the gate with a renewed sense of purpose. As he approaches the gate entrance he clicks the mic button on his communicator twice, ordering the teams to move into position as he enters the gate left open by the disorganized prisoners.
Lemma team arrives at the gate entrance. While they had fired upon some guards along the western wall in an attempt to draw some attention, none attempted to impede their progress once cover was broken. After taking positions and clearing around the corners just within the gate, they enter and follow the direct path that had been laid out in the planning room. To the commando’s surprise, the path was easily identifiable by the lifeless bodies that formed a bread trail in the wake of the Jedi Commander. They quickly jog along the path until they reach the central building and stack up on the door. With a nod from the lead, they enter with blaster rifles raised, scanning the corridors and carefully checking around corners at each doorway or intersection they came across. En route, they only encounter small groups which are easily dealt with due to the lack of coordination from their opponents. They reach the main control center to find the Jedi Master on the far side of the battered room facing them with his blade ignited waiting for any unfriendly blaster fire. His robes are heavily scorched and he breathed heavily but an uncharacteristic look of glee coats his features.
Just after the commandos entered the main building, HK-40 and the Lieutenant-Commander reached the gate and climbed up a ladder just inside to set up their defensive positions. Y’ssane looks out on the open ground outside the compound, scanning for other prisoners hiding amongst the trees while the droid watches her blind spot by scanning the main courtyard.
The technicians rapidly begin pulling panels apart and diverting power to the control systems of the main console. Now that the room is under control and the potion has begun to wear off, Joash pulls his T’bac pipe out for a quick smoke. He moves his sore muscles as he inhales when the main console lets out an array of sounds due to the power being restored. One of the technicians verbalizes his next intentions, “Alright, now we are going to run a condensed diagnostic on the prisoner control system only. Once that is complete we should have no problem moving about the planet.” The sore Jedi replies, “Prisoner control system?” The technician explains, “You cannot have this many prisoners without some sort of control system. They are here to farm produce for entire systems. The prisoners do not do this willingly. They are implanted upon incarceration with a control around the base of their neck. If anyone gets out of line or attempts anything rash they are disabled by electrical pulses that immobilize them.”
A handful of minutes pass as diagnostics are run until a call comes out from the other tech, “We are back online sir. Initiating control sequence.” A loud sound permeates the planet's surface from the remaining announcement devices, “Prisoner control sequence active. Return to inspection stations for processing.” At first, it appears as though nothing has changed for many minutes until Y’ssane pivots her weapon on a new target that exited the treeline. She watches quietly as several more follow, all walking dejectedly without weapons and their hands raised towards the southern gate. Y’ssane notifies HK, “Looks as if it’s over. We can relax.” The droid hisses, “And I was just beginning to enjoy myself. I should take one more for good measure.” The young woman retorts, “No! We are done here.” She stands up and walks past HK-40 towards the command center while the droid adds, “They are meatbags…and prisoner ones at that. How one can be so efficient at exterminating them but still show mercy only proves the weakness of organics.” Although the droid cannot see it, the statement regarding Y’ssane’s proficiency causes her to grimace and she shakes her head in an attempt to rid herself of the feelings before she arrives in front of Joash.
Nearly a half hour passes during which the technicians restore other vital systems while Joash continues to smoke his pipe. Y’ssane had reported in and requested a place to rest for an hour or two, leaving the droid on watch now that the situation was under control. Activities continued steadily for nearly two more hours after other key systems were restored when the warden was escorted in heavily assisted by a guard and one of the commandos. A fallen chair is picked up by an assistant and the large man is settled down onto it where he exhales deeply from the exertion. After catching his breath, he chuckles and calls out to the guard who was somewhat skeptical during their first encounter with Joash and his team “See? Didn’t I tell you? No Jedi fears such rabble. Five combatants is all they required to retake that which we lost.” The guard looks apologetic towards Joash who offers a brief smile and a chuckle, “You honor me with your words, Warden Vos. But vanity has been the downfall of many Jedi. Despite my advanced years, even I have learned much in recent times. What you see here is a product of my Grandmaster’s teachings despite her younger age and…” His voice trails off for a moment as Y’ssane had entered the room, still looking somewhat down. Joash gazed at her silently until she noticed and looked up, only then did he finish the statement, “and her uncanny ability to gather those with potential they may not even realize they have.” The Warden chuckles with more energy and glee than he had possessed since Joash’s arrival, “Then I wish to meet this woman one day so I may thank her personally and witness what must be an exquisite warrior spirit.”
Joash inclines his head in acknowledgement, indicating he would communicate the desire to Anhiel without saying it outloud. The Warden continues in an energetic tone, “You have done as promised, Master Jedi and so I will honor my word. I believe you will find what you seek on the enemy vessel we were able to down. I estimate it is a destroyer class and it came to rest on the planet in a deep ravine a hundred clicks south west of this compound. Reports indicated there were some survivors but the prisoners from the nearby holding facility overran it initially.” With a wave of his hand, he gestures for his main guard to pull up a holo map. As he does, the Warden adds in a more concerned tone, “During the initial fight, there were several enemy transports descending to the planet but they did not retake the fallen vessel from the prisoners.” Perplexed, Joash thinks quietly as he looks at the holomap. Vos adds a final thought, “The prisoners were only able to overwhelm the survivors due to the chaos of the crash. I suspect they did not take it back because they did not believe the prisoners were of any threat. Instead of wasting the lives of soldiers to retake and hold the position, they let the prisoners hold it. But if I am right, this Eternal Empire has already taken full control of the site now that the prisoners have been recalled.” Joash keeps his expression neutral as he looks at the crashed ship nestled at the base of the deep ravine, deep in thought.