Chapter 50
“My Lord, we shall exit hyperspace in five minutes.” Vice-Admiral Virkaen addresses Anhiel aboard the Shadow Redeemer’s bridge as she looks over the strategy report from Joash. She nods slightly after a few moments, “We made very good time. Pass my compliments on to Lieutenant-Commander Barnes.” After Virkaen nods, Anhiel continues, “Upon arrival, establish direct communication with Darth Atroxa and prepare troop transports for departure. They shall head for the surface once formalities are complete. With luck, she will give us a place to set up command planetside.” The Vice-Admiral interacts with the nearby console, preparing the link to be made once the vessel exits hyperspace. Anhiel takes several steps towards the center of the bridge and settles into the lone seat meant for the commanding officer, moving her cape to the side as she does. Her eyes face out towards the viewport as each arm moves to rest on the arms of the metallic high back seat; the purple blue light of Hyperspace reflecting on her crystal irises. The few remaining minutes pass by until the countdown sounds out from the Helmsman and the light slows until Korriban snaps into view.
Many beeps fill the bridge until Virkaen looks up towards the High Admiral, “Ma’am, link has been established.” Anhiel remains silent, continually gazing forward until the Darth on the other end of the connection speaks with an indignant tone, “Is this the stray Jedi I was told to look out for?” The steady exhale is heard over the link, eliciting a disgusted face from the red-skinned Twi’lek Sith which was only exacerbated by the unperturbed voice that answered, “I am your salvation, Darth Atroxa. Rejoice that my forces and I have found you worthy enough to lend our assistance in the upcoming conflict.” Anhiel pauses long enough to allow the other woman to begin to retort, but she interrupts “Spare me the bleatings of one who seeks to give the impression they are greater than they are. I know your superiors advised you of our coming. They would not have done so if your need was not great and my ability was not equally great.” Darth Atroxa begins to growl, her pride injured nearly beyond repair as she flies into a tirade, “A Jedi who dares to speak to me with such insolence? Yes, you may come to the planet so I may Ki….” The rest of the words are drowned out as Anhiel rises, waving a dismissive hand and infusing her voice with the Force so much so that the weight is felt by all those on the Bridge and Darth Atroxa, “Vice-Admiral, I do not have time to deal with this. Secure us a place to set up operations and begin deployment immediately. I shall be meditating.” With that, she strides towards the exit while Virkaen salutes across his chest and bows his head, “As you command, my Lord.”
The tirade continues behind her as she crosses the threshold, the voice of Darth Atroxa beginning to fade away as Virkaen interjects, “Ma’am, while I understand it is not the Sith way to accept help from the Jedi, I can assure you my Lord is not a typical Jedi. I suggest we get down to business, for Korriban’s sake, as every minute we have to prepare is precious. It would be far more efficient than my Lord Dulcinae coming down and assuming command by force, and make no mistake, she will do so if she must. I am sure Darth Acina can confirm as much, as well as your chances at resisting.” The silence that hangs in the air is heavy and continues for many moments until Darth Atroxa offers one final growl before acquiescing, “I won’t forget this slight. But if it is necessary to preserve Korriban, so be it. I will send coordinates within the hour for you to set up operations.” The Vice-Admiral exhales a quiet sigh of relief then adds, “Thank you, Darth Atroxa. We shall see you soon.” With that, the link is cut and Virkaen surveys the bridge for a moment, “I am going to speak with the Special-Commander regarding preparations. Notify me when coordinates are received.” All personnel on the bridge respond in unison as Virkaen departs, heading for the main hangar.
In the hangar is a symphony of movement as shuttle wings extend, engines begin to warm up, and Sith soldiers clad in various versions of dark armor move into neat ranks. Virkaen strides towards the Miraluka Jedi standing just at the end of the stairs leading up onto a raised landing. Athin turns and inclines his head gently before addressing the Vice-Admiral, “Greetings, Vice-Admiral.” Virkaen returns the gesture and extends a hand to Athin, which is clasped tightly in greeting, “Greetings Master Athin. I came to speak with the Special-Commander but he seems to be occupied.” Athin chuckles, turning to look up towards where Joash stood before the battalion of soldiers arranged before him, “That is wise, Vice-Admiral. Joash does love his speeches.” As the sentence finishes, Joash steps forward to the sound of armor on metal as all those gathered straighten to attention simultaneously. His face is stony as he surveys the soldiers before him for several moments until he folds his hands behind his back and begins to walk back and forth slowly. “Korriban. Homeworld to those that are the antithesis for all that I have stood for. Yet my Grandmaster has tasked me with defending it as though it were my own homeworld.” He pauses, the sound of his footsteps bouncing through the hangar until he continues, “I trust in my Master’s wisdom as she has opened my eyes to the true nature of the Force. And so, I now consider Korriban my home and will do all that I can to defend it. Now I ask you, brothers and sisters, will you join me? Will you follow me to fight for the soil that makes up your land?” Joash pauses for the briefest of moments then continues before the soldiers can respond, “Before you answer, know that I only accept continuous advance, unwavering strength, and ultimate victory from all those that follow me, for I will not stop moving forward until our foes have been vanquished or I have returned to the Force.” Silence would fall if not for the steady rumble of troop transport engines from all around. In unison, the Sith soldiers salute and call out for the first time, “Ad Bellum!” The snap hiss of the Jedi’s saber igniting is pure and Joash holds the blade out before him, angled high, “Advance, for your home! Ad Victoriam!” The chorus of “Ad Bellum” accentuated by simultaneous salutes across the chest clatters against the durasteel walls of the hangar while Joash turns to walk off down the nearby stairs towards Athin and the Vice-Admiral.
Virkaen inclines his head in greeting, “I was not aware that speechcraft was amongst your arsenal of talents, Special Commander.” Joash chuckled, “It has been ages since I have needed to do such a thing. I take it that your presence here means you were successful in securing us permission to land?” The single grunt is answer enough, though the younger man continues, “It is not as if Lord Dulcinae left Darth Atroxa much of an option. Though I am glad we do not have to proceed by force; we cannot afford unnecessary losses.” All three gathered simply nod quietly until Virkaen queries, “Were you able to finalize deployment plans, Special-Commander?” A datapad is produced from within the tan robes of the elder Jedi, which he hands over, “It is hard to finalize without seeing how the enemy is going to be deployed, but I feel these points in particular are essential to hold. The remainder of our forces will be held in reserve to respond as needed to enemy movements.” Virkaen reviews the screen quietly, noting the Sith archives are not marked for initial deployment. His brow furrows, “The archives will be left undefended from the start. There are countless items of great importance that should be defended.” The smirk he received in response unsettled him until Joash spoke, “You are correct, Vice-Admiral. From what I have seen, the Eternal Empire crushes all those they face, and the quicker they break their foe's spirit, the quicker their victory comes. A revered site such as this, left undefended, should draw their attention.” Joash turns to look over the forces once more as they funnel into the transports, “And once they do…” His right fist collides with the palm of his left hand and he finishes with a serious tone, “We bring our full might down upon them and make them regret their decision.” Surprised, Virkaen thinks to himself as he watches Joash stride towards the nearest transport, “The Jedi are far stronger and more decisive than I ever knew.” Any follow up thoughts are interrupted by Athin clearing his throat as he appears to gaze at a nearby wall, “Anhiel approaches, Vice-Admiral.” Despite his lack of Force sensitivity, the weight of power wielded by the woman who strode through the halls is palpable. He nods once and smiles at Athin, “Thank you, Master Athin. Do you mind checking with Captain Stynn? I suspect she will want to depart immediately.” Athin bows, “Of course, Vice-Admiral.”
Minutes later, Mirr stands up from the pilot's seat aboard his vessel and straights. Athin waves his hand dismissively, chuckling awkwardly, “Please, Mr. Stynn. I am not an official member of this military, you do not need to address me in such a manner.” While his expression is hidden beneath his helmet, Mirr’s features contort into an expression of disagreement, “While I understand your stance, Master Athin, I must disagree. I have pledged my life to Master Dulcinae and you are her mate, meaning my pledge extends to you as well as any other members of your family that may come.” The Miraluka sighs, but smiles, “Very well, Captain. Are we prepared to depart for the coordinates provided by Darth Atroxa? Anhiel is on her way now.” Mirr sits once more, perusing the panel before him for a few moments before nodding, “Yes, we are ready to depart once she is aboard.” “That is good to hear, Captain. I shall return with her shortly then.” With that, Athin departed the stealth vessel and waited just outside of the ramp for his armored lover that approached. The angular mask of white, silver and black gave her an air of greater power and control than that which she carried regularly. Athin bowed gently and smiled, “We are ready to depart for the surface.” Anhiel stopped just before him, remaining silent, staring from behind her mask. Moments pass until she speaks, “Thank you, Athin. Come, I wish to discuss something with you en route.” The man nods while swallowing with mild nerves and follows Anhiel up the ramp. A long hiss fills the area and the ramp begins to rise and once fully closed, the dark vessel rises gently from the deck and begins to move towards the void of space.
Athin steps into the galley, moving to sit across from Anhiel at the small holotable. He clears his throat to announce his presence to the woman who stared intently at a datapad. She swipes her hand across the screen a handful of times, changing the reports that appeared until she stopped and slid the datapad across the table to him. Despite his Miraluka sight, the words are visible to him and he takes them in for many quiet moments before looking up with a look of confusion forming. Anhiel answers the question before it could form in his throat, “There is no mistake, General.” Her final word is heavily emphasized and she leans forward, pulling up a topographical map of Korriban. She zooms into a particular section with a raised ridge overlooking a wide open area, “Your skills will be necessary in the upcoming struggle. Based on the time you have spent with us, I consider you a full-fledged member of this enclave. Your history and experience demands you be appointed to the station of Master, which subsequently gives you the rank of General as you will be commanding troops.” Anhiel rotates the map and continues to speak before Athin can answer, “After evaluating Korriban’s topography and key holdings, I believe holding this point will be crucial to stalling the invasion.” Athin moves to voice a followup question but it leaves his mind when he fixates on part of the woman’s statement, “What do you mean by stalling?” Anhiel sighs, leaning back “I do not expect us to win. We will likely only be able to slow them. There is something, or someone coming that I am bound to face. It is for that moment that we must delay them.” Before Athin could process the information, the Admiral continued, “And to do that we must hold this position. Your Miraluka sight makes you uniquely qualified to lead the forces that will be stationed here. With the vantage point I suspect you will be able to see the enemy forces’ strategies as they are forming even before they enter the atmosphere.” She doesn’t voice the thought that follows as she stands up, ending the conversation, “And it will allow me to focus on what must be done, my love.” As she steps away, she states plainly, “I must prepare for my meeting with Darth Atroxa. Less than pleased would be drastic understatement for how she must be feeling now. Once we arrive, see the armorer to get fitted for armor befitting one of my Generals.” Still stunned, Athin merely nods once and finally closes his jaw.
The remainder of the journey to the surface is uneventful until the XB-70 swoops in and settles gently on a landing pad fixed upon a raised outcropping adjacent to a metal structure built into the red rock. A contingent of Sith soldiers move to position themselves in rank on either side of the ramp of the stealth vessel; twenty soldiers, with a single officer standing front and center, his captain’s emblem pristinely polished upon his shoulders as he watches the ramp lower. The newly appointed Miraluka General and Mandalorian guard descend the ramp ahead of their Admiral, the middle-aged officer straightens somewhat reluctantly, speaking with a forced authority, “I have been instructed to bring the Jedi before Darth Atroxa.” His eyes rest on Athin in his standard tan robes and the Miraluka merely clears his throat, stepping to the side for Anhiel to step forward. Her expression is hidden beneath the metal mask as she stands up straight, the weight of her appraising gaze still palpable from within her mask. Her voice is haunting as she addresses the Captain and those gathered, “You are mistaken, Captain. Darth Atroxa shall be brought before me. If she were capable enough, my forces and I would not be here.” She waves her right hand slightly, causing Mirr, Athin and a handful of officers and communications specialists to move from the vessel. ”Now run along Captain and prepare your master. While you are at it, show my men to where they may begin to set up operations. Our forces are beginning to deploy as we speak and we have no time to waste.” As though possessed, the man only bows, turns, and begins to lead the way. The remaining soldiers follow behind the new arrivals, albeit bewildered by the Captain’s sudden change.
Within the metallic structure is a central atrium, a large holomap of the planet at the center with many consoles along the periphery. A red skin Twi’lek gazes at the map as she waves away a young Ensign. She addresses the Captain without turning around, “Captain, where is that damned Jedi?” He clears his throat, straightening to attention and as he begins to speak, Anhiel cuts him off, “She is here, ready to do what you cannot.” Atroxa spins around, scowling deeply at the masked woman, “You have some nerve coming here, Jedi.” Anhiel chuckles mildly, “The Jedi are known for coming to the aid of the weak. Based on that, your surprise at my presence here is most intriguing and at the same time…very troubling.” A loud laugh fills the space as Atroxa bends over, taking several moments to recover her composure. “An enemy that instills fear in the Jedi is hardly something that is unheard of. Nor is it something the Sith should even consider taking seriously.” Unperturbed, Anhiel waves to Mirr, who pulls out a datapad and sends data to the large holomap which quickly begins to display enemy force numbers, data on the vessels, and live footage from recent battles. Atroxa turns to look over the images, disbelief on her face while Anhiel speaks, “This is the Eternal Empire, an enemy of currently unknown origin. Their forces are overwhelming. In particular, their vessels are primarily controlled by an AI vastly superior to any I have ever seen, making their coordination superior to any traditional tactic. Our forces have struggled even while being augmented by battle mediation.”
The steps of personnel moving about their duties and electronics beeping fills the break in speech until Atroxa chuckles once more, turning to look at Anhiel directly. Her presence extends to the Jedi and evaluates the strength within. Unimpressed, Atroxa admonishes, “Battle Meditation from one as weak in the Force as you is hardly a significant comparison. I doubt this enemy is as strong as you perceive them to be with your lack of….” The final word catches in the Twi’lek’s throat as her eyes widen greatly. From Athin’s sight, Anhiel’s presence swells from greatly suppressed as she had intended to an unleashed form that filled his vision with white light. Her battle mediation extends rapidly to all the Sith soldiers gathered but it is not the usual feeling of vigor, focus and ability that followed. Instead, all those gathered began to feel a wave of anxiety and fear waft over them, including Darth Atroxa though she was slightly less affected. Though the icy words that penetrated her mind from within froze her in place, “I warned you, Atroxa. You can either benefit from my goodwill, or I can end you and all others delusional enough to think I bring false information and am easily defeated.” Anhiel’s voice pauses and she removes her mask, stepping within a step from Atroxa, letting her now vibrant yellow irises with a hint of her icy blue bleeding through to lock with the Sith’s. “Look into the abyss, my delusional Darth and tell me once more of the weakness of the Jedi.” Atroxa swallows deeply then grimaces, “You have made your point…I shall at least listen to what you have to say.” Anhiel let’s her eyes linger on the other woman until she affixes the mask to her face once more. She exhales deeply, adopting a mildly amused tone now, “Very good, miss Atroxa. Shall we?” She lifts her arm in a beckoning fashion eliciting an exaggerated glare then eye roll from the Darth before she walks off, leading the way to the war room. Before Anhiel follows, she turns to Mirr, “Captain, contact Special-Commander Joash and Vice-Admiral Virkaen, have them join us as soon as possible. We have much planning to do and I require their expertise.” Mirr salutes briskly, “As you command, Admiral.” while Anhiel turns her gaze towards Athin, “General, gather a survey crew and proceed to the area I told you about while en-route. I want you to be familiar with every square micrometer of that area that your gifted sight can see.” The displeasure felt is apparent on the Miraluka’s face and after a moment, he bows, reluctantly, “As you command, High Admiral.” The young Sith Officer just behind the man was unaware as he reviewed a datapad until it dropped to the floor as the Miraluka turned and pushed past him without a loss of momentum.
Several minutes later, the remaining group enters a dark room of black metal with red and white lights arranged along the perimeter. All ornaments are angular in nature and several armored soldiers stand around the perimeter and snap to attention as the group enters. Mirr follows Anhiel into the room and moves to stand just behind her on the right as she settles into the seat just besides the head of the long table, allowing Atroxa to take her typical place at the head. All sit in relative silence for what seems like an eternity until Joash and Virkaen enter, guided by the same Sith officer from before. They both appear to feel awkward as they incline their heads and move to sit at the two empty spaces to the right of Anhiel. Apprehension hangs in the air as Joash and Virkaen glance at each other. The Vice-Admiral exhales deeply and speaks, “Darth Atroxa, what is the current standing of the Korriban fleet?” A dismissive wave of the hand causes the nearby officer to make several keystrokes which brings up holograms of the fleet. “Much of the fleet is deployed. Only a single capital ship remains, a handful of corvettes, two dreadnaughts, and a complete accompaniment of fighters and bombers. The nearest fleet has been recalled, they may arrive just before the anticipated arrival of the enemy. Double our current forces, with a pair of heavy destroyers. With your forces, I anticipate that we will stand a solid chance at repelling the enemy.”
Anhiel clears her throat, folding her hands atop the metallic table. After all the gathered eyes turn to look upon her, she speaks, “Our fleet shall not remain. They will be returning before the fight begins. All ground forces will be deployed prior to their departure.” Atroxa rises from her seat, bewildered, “I was informed your forces would be assisting in the defense of Korriban. What is the meaning of this?” The angular features of Anhiel’s metallic mask reveal nothing, yet the cool voice from within is clear, “You know nothing of the Eternal Empire’s skill in naval combat. We have only achieved a convincing victory once and that required extreme surprise along with my battle meditation. After the destruction of their initial invasion fleet, I can only suspect that these princes will bring an overwhelming force to bear in retaliation for our victory. My battle meditation will not be enough to hold them off for long and so we must look to hold the planet’s surface. Sacrificing more lives in a lost battle in space would only hurt us all in the long run. Our only choice is to prepare surface defenses to the best of our ability.” Anhiel beckons to Joash who had allowed his gaze and thoughts to drift towards a red, pyramid shaped holocron along the wall high up.
The quiet unnerved him until he realized he was being addressed. With a cough and clearing of his throat, the elder Jedi sits up. “Uh, apologies ma’am. I do concur that a planetside defense would best suit our current situation. The ferocity of the enemies’ vessels is difficult to deal with, to say the least.” Joash messes with the console before him for several seconds before growling at which point Virkaen leans over and makes a couple keystrokes to bring up a holomap of Korriban. The Special-Commander nods once in thanks before pointing at five highlighted areas, “Based on the topography of the planet and key facilities I believe these are the primary areas we should fortify and hold at all costs.” Atroxa looks over the model, frowning, “This leaves the archives completely unprotected. There are priceless items for the Sith here. Not to mention data of significant strategic value as well.” Joash’s smirk brought some energy to Anhiel, though it remained hidden as the elder man spoke, “That is the beauty of it, Miss Atroxa. Only a fool would not strike at such a ripe target. But those that strike in such a fashion are the true fools. Once they commit, we shall collapse with a ferocity they have never seen.” The response puts the Darth on the backfoot and she leans back in her seat, thinking quietly before she states, “It seems you Jedi are full of surprises. I can’t say I am fully aligned with this plan but I wish to hear more, Master Jedi.” Joash nods once, maintaining his smirk while Virkaen stares forward blankly, Anhiel’s words of his fleet being sent away ringing loudly in his ears as the remaining discussions go by in a blur.
A handful of hours had passed since the meeting adjourned and Virkaen found himself staring at a smooth black door amongst a few others in a hall on the periphery of the facility. A sudden snap hiss of the door opening makes the man jump to attention as Darth Atroxa exits the room. The red-skinned Twi’lek tilts her head to the left slightly as she appraises the man curiously, “Vice-Admiral Virkaen, correct?” After clearing his throat, he responds, “Yes Ma’am. My apologies for not introducing myself sooner. Our arrival was…hurried.” Atroxa’s expression is flat and remains as such for many moments until she shrugs, “Your Lord is a tough one, I'll give you that, so I am not surprised. I suspect she is expecting you so I won’t keep you. Should you need anything, you need only ask.” Before Virkaen could respond, Atroxa strides past him, her dark robe flowing gently with each step. Exhaling deeply, Virkaen steps across the threshold and allows the door to close behind him. Sitting in a high back lounge chair is Anhiel, still wearing her white robes but the hood is down and the metallic mask rests on the nearby table. Her eyes flit across the datapad screen she holds until they glance up towards the man without moving her head. “I know why you are here, Vice-Admiral.” Anhiel allows her eyes to linger on the man before looking away, “Speak plainly, Virkaen.” Clearing his throat, the Vice-Admiral straightens, “Ma’am, I do not believe sending the fleet away before the battle is the correct course of action.”
Anhiel sighs deeply, setting the datapad down and locking her gaze on her Admiral, “You are correct, Vice-Admiral. It is not the most strategic choice from a standard point of view. However, you fail to weigh the value of the lives of our enclave. We must secure as many as possible so we may shelter and weather this storm. You and every other member of Darth Vyrrid’s forces are a member of my enclave now. You are entitled to the same rights, the same trust, and the same care.” She pauses, letting the words sink in for a moment before continuing, “I have not been completely honest, Virkaen. I do not anticipate that we will win this fight. However, it is clear to me that we must be here to play our part. But that does not mean that I must throw away lives unnecessarily.” Her eyes now look off to the side solemnly as she exhales deeply once more, “It is very possible that I do not survive. If it is the will of the Force, so be it. As I said before, it is clear we are not to bring about the end of this conflict but we still have our roles to play. So I ask you, Vice-Admiral Virkaen, do you trust in my judgment?” Stony features offer the initial response though the man straightens and salutes, “I do, Ma’am. I beg your pardon for the initial doubt as I do not understand this Force you wield so effectively to make such decisions. But as I have said before, you promised to show me tactics I could never dream of and you have done no less than that. Despite my feelings on this particular matter, I will trust your judgment until the end of time, my Lord.” As his words finish, Virkaen bows low, holding the position for many seconds before adding solemnly, “Thank you for sharing your thoughts, my Lord. Rest assured, I shall carry out your orders until my dying breath. None of your enclave shall be harmed so long as I breathe.” The briefest of smiles crosses Anhiel's features as she rises from her seat and strides towards the man. Gently she lifts his head so their eyes lock, where they linger until she states confidently, “I have no doubt, Vice-Admiral. Go forth and carry my will forward knowing I have never known a more honorable Admiral in my life.”