Star Wars: Episode VIII: The New Threat

Jedi Master D'Rack Fran'tok

"Master, the Star Destroyer Messiah has been lost it's deflector sheilds. She's open for attack, awaiting orders?"

D'Ra ck, had lost ov er half of his force. How? He didn't know, though he did know that he needed to take out the head of the attack. "Aim our fire on the bridge of the Messiah, all Ties to defend us." "We can't be taken out, if so, the entire force I have will be overwelmend."

The Ties moved in to protect the Avenger, as it started to fire on the Messiah.

"This will be a day long remembered.
 
Caiben Raille

I was aching for someone to come along and discover us, but I knew it would only lead to trouble.
"Where are we headed?" I whispered.
"Several places," he returned. "But first, we're headed toward the lower decks. If this Destroyer is designed like most of the others, we'll find the electrical operating systems there."
"Electrical...?"
"We'll be able to dismantle the vessel weapons capabilities first, then we'll move on the thier lifesupport systems," Balle explained.
We were lucky, I should have felt, that the personel were mostly at thier battlestations, leaving the halls we crept through nearly empty. Now and again, we had to slip to the side and hide while troops moved past us, but the travel was easy enough, as we were quickly moving toward the turbolift at the end of the cooridor.
"A little excitement wouldn't hurt," I complained, still whispering.
"Patience. When you're my age, you'll have had to much excitement."
We slipped into the turbolift and headed downward, stopping sooner than I'd expected. I looked to Balle in protest.
He raised one hand, silencing me.
"If we go directly there, the security officers on board will know something is suspicious," he explained. "So we sidetrack."
We slipped into the hall, moving carefully, assisted slightly in the Force to keep our movements fast-paced.
At the end of this cooridor, we took another turbolift three levels down and exited it into another cooridor. Halfway down this last one, we turned into a small storage room, eased our way to the back and entered a ventillation shaft.
"This'll take us where we need to be," Balle said. "Chances are, my padawan, that excitement you've been asking for is awaiting us there."
I smiled slightly, following him as he moved quickly downward again.
After a few minutes, he stopped, listening near another vent. I moved closer and did the same, overhearing half of a conversation on the other side.
"Sir," a voice announced. "Understood, sir. Two unidentified individuals roaming the vessel. My men'll be on the lookout."
Silence.
"Yes, sir, I'll have them on alert right away, sir. Out."
Balle grabbed his lightsaber, igniting it and slashing away the supports holding the vent into place, then leaped out, slicing the man down before he knew what was happening. I followed, igniting my own but finding no one there to fend off.
"Quickly," Balle instructed, "others are being given the same orders as we speak. We must get to the power controls for the shields and the weaponry."
He rushed into the hallway, and I followed.
 
Master Duu'Raan

His eyes snapped open from his meditation, and his long, forked tongue tasted the air. There was something greatly wrong, as if the fortunes of the galaxy had just changed for the worse. Much worse. But what?

He rose to his feet, and dressed quickly, pulling on his green robe last, before heading through the door. Je wasn't sure where he was headed, or why. He just wanted to be outside of the temple.

Slowly, and surely, he found himself standing under the morning sky, staring upward. The feeling had only grown.

Something was coming... something terrible.
 
Aela

"I'm with you, Jedi."

Where else was she going? Her ship was damaged, she had no credits, and the hold was full of refugees.

And someone needed to know what the hell was going on in the Unknown Regions before it was too late.

She punched the coordinates into her navicomputer.

"After you..." she transmitted to the Jedi woman.
 
Raine

I waited as the others made thier choices and was pleased to hear that the Twi'lek girl intedned to join me on Yavin. The armored girl was quiet as we spoke, and afterward stated, "I will join you there as well, for the lack of anywhere else to be just now. But my stay will be a short one, and I don't wish to be bothered much."
"That shouldn't be much difficulty," I responded. "Master Binx, will you be joining us?"
"Meesa will be getting back to Coruscant," he explained. "Very soon, these Jedi Councils must meet."
"I'll pass along the message, Master binx. Be warned," I added. "I sense great danger near Coruscant."
"Hmm," he returned, agreeing but not making any particular comment.
"Those of you coming with me, punch in these coordinates. The rest of you, Master Binx will lead the way." I stated, sending them each the coordinates.
"Master Binx," I began, as I prepared to jump back into hyperspace. "May the Force be with you."
"Indeed." He returned.
The stars again became lines. Soon, we were falling out of hyperspace again, then looking down on Yavin. Peaceful from the looks of it, but I sense something of note had happened there recently.
"Unidentified vessels, please announce yourselves," a voice requested through the communications link.
"Jedi Master Raine DuVall," I responded. "Returning from the Mached System, as well as other places. The other vessels are looking for the diplomatic protection of the Replublic."
"You're free to dock, Master DuVall, as are your guests. Please advise them to remain in the hangar until security has inspected thier persons and vessels."
"Thank you," I replied, then passed the message on to the seven vessels that still remained with me.
How many have we lost? I wondered, but let the question go. The answer wasn't one I wished to know anyway.
Once docked, I left the others in the hangar while I went in search of Master Du'raan. This information was too important to sit on for even a second longer.
 
Tynan

He watched the rag tag group of ships land, and was pleased to see Raine's ship among them. He smiled, and bowed as he saw her climb out of her X-wing.

"What's all this," he asked, gesturing to the other ships in her 'squad.'

He felt another presence behind him, and turned to see Master Duu'Raan enter the hangar, and walk purposefully toward them.

They both reached him nearly simultaneously.

"Welcome home, Masssster DuVall," Duu'Raan stated.
 
Raine

I bowed to Master Duu'Raan, then to Tynan.
"Thank you both for your kind greetings. I'm afraid I bring bad news to Yavin. A new enemy waits us, and they are dangerously near. I fear we may be outnumbered, and terribly outpowered," I explained. "Members of your very own kind are now headed in this direction. I'm uncertain if they know of this base, but they have so far overtaken many worlds, possibly even entire systems. I fear they may threaten us even more so than the Sith have. Perhaps a meeting of the Counicl, or both, is in order."
 
Near Coruscant

The vessels came out of hyperspace, less than twelve in all, and none prepared to fight in the battle that had ensued. They slowed to a near stop as they saw the battle before them.
"Coruscant base," a Gungan voice requested over the comm-unit. "Request permission to dock. Meesa thinks Master Fran'tok will wish to speak with me very soon."
 
Tynan

Duu'Raan's people? The old Jedi Master had never spoken much about his origins to anyone.

Tynan looked at Duu'Raan, and noticed the expression on his face. He seemed... concerned.

"Thisss isss grave information, you have brought with you Massster DuVall. Very grave. I think a council meeting issss indeed needed."

"What's this about," Tynan asked. "Your people... how dangerous are they?"

"I have not been there in ssssome time... I would imagine Massster DuVall would be better at giving you the information you ssseek."

That made no sense to Tynan. He got the impression Master DuVall was much more concerned then he was letting on.

"I will be awaiting you and the other Council Members in the Council Chambersssss. Meet me there, pleassse." The Jedi Master turned abruptly, and walked away.

Tynan watched him go, concerned. he had never seen the old Master so worried before, not even when faced with the threat of the Sith. What had him so worried?

"What happened out there, Raine?"
 
Raine

"A battle, and a fierce one. We were lucky to escape alive, and many of us didn't. No sense in repeating things once we get in there when we can explain to all at once," I stated.
"The Queen can explain it much better than I can, anyway. She was there for the destruction of her people, and the enslavement that followed," I added. "Come, let us meet Duu'Raan and get this over with. Hopefully, Master Binx is doing the same on Coruscant."
I led the Queen and Makkern, requesting with my eyes that the Twi'lek girl follow, from the hangar and to the Council chamber. Once there, we lined up outside, waiting for the Council members to file in and hear our testimonies.
 
The Bloodhawk

The starfield streaked by, then wrenched into normal space, dotting the skies with millions of pinpricks of light.
" Merrick, were here."
" OK Arden, the cloak is working fine, and I am attempting to get a lock on Tholin. He should have cleared us to land, but I am not in a trusting mood for some reason. I'll be up at the helm shortly, I just want to crunch some last minute numbers."
Anyone out in the outer reaches of the Yavin system might have noticed the stars ripple around the modigfied frieghter, had they been looking in the right plave, but space was cold and empty here, so the passage went unnoticed by all but those with special senses.a
In about an hour, the freighter was orbiting Yavin 4, Cloaked and hovering above the new Jedi Temple. Two men waited for the sensors to do their work, and eventually they did find what they were looking for.
"Got him! He's almost directly below us. I see a landing pad down there, with a few craft on deck. Some frieghters, and a few fighters. I'm transmiting the coordinates to your station, so take us down there when you get them."

It took the freighter 15 minutes to enter the atmosphere and make it's way in, but eventually, in a cloud of dust & debries, the freighter came in for alanding. New Republic troops came rushing in as the cloaking field dissolved and the black ship was revealed, landing next to the phoenix .



In the quarters provided to him, Darth Azraiel stood, and made his way to the landing docks. Destiny awaited.
 
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Master Duu'Raan

He nodded to the other Jedi present, as he entered the Council chamber, and took his place at one end of the room. The other members of the Council who were present, each took their places as well.

Duu'Raan's thought, for once, were a bit of a jumble. He had long feared that his people would make their move outsdie the Unknown Regions, but had felt the day was still a long way off.

There were too many races to conquer in the region for them to have moved so quickly, and yet, here they were.

It was troubling, especially now, with so much upheaval in the galaxy already.

He bowed and began the meeting.

"Massster DuVall, hasss returned to usss with troubling newsss. Newsss of an enemy potentially more dangerous than the Empire itself. Newssss of my people."

He watched as the Jedi in the room looked at each other curiosly. He had never spoken much about his people, beyond explaining why he had left. He had been a slave among his people. A member of one of the lower castes, whose only future, according to his peoples beliefs, were to serve the higher castes in physical labor, and to die at their whim. They were given no freedoms, and had no opportunities. He had been bought and sold a half a dozen times throughout his youth, and had no knowledge of family.

His people believed themselves the rightful rulers of the galaxy, and that all other lifeforms existed to only serve them, and like all reptillian species, they reproduced at an increased rate, with some families bearing dozens of children. Only their own violent tendencies kept the population in check. More or less.

What they wanted now... the possibilities gave him chills.

"Massster DuVall, would you tell the Council what you've told me?"
 
Coruscant

The Star Destroyer Missiah had been destroyed, and the attacking Imperial force had broken down into 2 groups.

The tide, had been changed, and it looked as D'Rack's armada was going to be the victor... But at a cost.

Over half ouf his Armada was destroyed, and the I mperials still had 3 capatial ships, 2 Star Destroyers, and a Super Star Destroyer... Which had 2 spies onboared, set to destroy the ship, they are Jedis...
 
Raiine DuVall

As the Council, the few members that it was comprised of, listened, I explained the events leading to our arrival, making a point to introduce the Queen and Makkern and the Twi'lek girl who'd fought and flown so well to help get the two here safely.
After a moment's thought, I mentioned the odd girl in body armor, feeling it necessary for the Council to understand the mistrust I felt toward her, especially with her here on Yavin.
The Council listened quietly, respectfully, as I spoke. Once finished, I waited for thier response.
 
Caiben Raille

We were moving quickly through the lower levels, dispensing of whatever opponents we came across. This was my way of doing things, fight it out and whoever's left standing takes home the prize.
We were moving faster than I had expected. Balle was usually more careful, but it seemed that speed was a virtue when necessary, and moving slowly would take too long. There was a battle going on outside, afterall.
"Here," he whispered, turning into a corridor where the walls were lined with yellow lines, broken by black slashes.
"How much further?"
"Not much," he replied, and less than a minute later, we were entering a room with a long console, and three men manning it, unexpecting.
They turned in time to be struck down. That done, I turned to Balle.
"Now?"
"Stay here, and keep anyone from entering the room," he explained.
"What are you going to do?"
"Make certain that the backup power is unavailable before we shutdown the main power being supplied through here. I should only be a minute."
I nodded, impatient.
I wanted to get things moving, not sit here and wait for the eemy to come to me, but my master had given me an order.
"May the Force be with you, Master," I said.
He nodded, then ducked into another ventillation shaft.
 
Jedi Master D'Rack Fran'tok

" Master, Tie-Rae Binx is requesting promission to dock?"

"Tie-Rae? I thought he was...[/]" "Promission grantered! We could use the help." D'Rack had turned the tides of the battle, but it wasn't over yet.

The Imperial force had started to lose the punch, which it had when the attack had started. It was clear that the Messiah had been the command ship.

But, the cost of this battle will be much greater then D'Rack could imagine...
 
Caiben Raille

When Balle returned, I looked to him.
"Success?" I asked.
He nodded, then said, "We've got a short time to get out of here. I've set the generators to stop operations within three minutes, and with the back-up generators down..."
I nodded.
We'd succeeded, in short.
"Once life-support shuts down, and they realize they can't reinstate it, they'll try to evacuate, which we can't stop them from doing, at least not all of them. So I've added an extra touch."
"Touch?" I asked.
"I allowed one generators to continue operating."
I raised my eyebrows.
"It operates the self-destruct unit, which I managed to set for ten minutes. Time is short, my padawan. Let's move."
We exited into the cooridor, being met by several security officers at once. Not enough to keep us from getting by however, they lasted a half-minute, then we were moving past dead and mortally wounded bodies toward the turbolift at the end.
Now I was beginning to feel it. Battle. We weren't sneaking now, but moving in the open, where we could engage the enemy head-on. No time to be careful. Fight your way through. This was my element.
At the top of the turboshaft, we were met again, this time by more than before, almost twice as many. Blurs of turning lightsabers, bolts reflecting down the corridor and these men fell as well.
We moved ahead, heading directly toward the bridge. I thought to question his motives, but decided it best not to. If he wanted the commander dead, so be it. I was willing to shed the blood.
"The guards will be waiting for us ahead," he instructed. "We'll have to be careful."
"Yes, Master," I said, smiling to myself, looking forward to the challenge.
 
Near Coruscant

"Master Binx, you are permitted to dock. An escort will be with you shortly. Any help you could offer would be greatly appreciated."
"Meesa thanks you," Binx replied. "Preparing to dock."
A small group of B-Wing fighters moved quickly to them, surrounding them and leading the group of vessels to Coruscant's surface.
Once they docked, he led the refugees out of the way of the fighter vessels and pilots that needed to use the dock to both join and escape the battle.
"Meesa needs to speak with Master Fran'tok, soon. Much depends of it," he told the first officer he came across.
The man nodded, as most did to the Jedi, and hurried away to relay the message.
 
Jedi Master D'Rack Fran'tok

The life of a Jedi was to keep peace, and to protect the innocent. But yet, here he was, leading his follow Jedi in a long battle. A battle, which has cost a lot of lives. "Even one death is to much."

The old Jedi was growing sick of fighting. He just wanted to go back to a normal life. But no real life was not the way of the Jedi. D'Rack, could only remember being a very young Padwan, nothing before e that.

As far as he knew, a normal life was being ignorant to one’s surroundings and pays no mind to issues that did not concern them. Which in truth, summed up a lot of the people living on Coruscant.

"What impact will th is battle bring?" D'Rack thought as he looked out at the battle scene. Now, not much was left of either side, but still enough to fight.

The Imperials weren't retreating. Even after the command ship was out of the picture. D'Rack couldn’t put a finger on it.

"Master, one of the Star Destroyers is moving."

"Retreating?"

"No, it appears to be heading for the Death Star!" The captain stated in puzzle.

Then, it hit D'Rack "Suicide run!"
 
Tynan

He felt Luke's Force signature... tense would be the best word... at the mention of the armored woman, but Tynan dismissed it. The more pressing concerns were, by far, the Draacuurians.

"And you believe they mean to invade?" Tynan asked.

Raine nodded, once, in response.

Tynan looked to Master Duu'Raan.

The old Jedi Master spoke.

"If my people are, indeed, looking to invade, then thissss would be the gravesssst threat ssince the Empire ssplintered..."

Tynan frowned, slightly, but said nothing. He didn't doubt their belief in the threat, but could it be that bad? Duu'Raan was a formidable Jedi, even with his relatively average strength in the Force. But even so, Tynan knew he would defeat the Jedi master, if it ever came to it. It wasn't a boast, just a fact, and one that Duu'Raan would agree with. If his people were not Force sensitive...

"The warrior castessss agility and ssstrength far surpassses my own, even in my youth," Duu'Raan said, as if in answer to Tynan's unspoken question. "If they have sssome how consssolidated the worldsss in the Unknown Regionssss..." He shook his large, reptillian head, slowly. "Then the threat issss dire."

"We should let the Republic know." Tynan said.

"Agreed," Duu'Raan said. He then turned his head toward the only non-Jedi in the room. "Your Highnessss, we regret that we cannot return you to your people asss of yet, but you have my word, we will do all in our power to help you, and your people. Isss there anything you would like to add to thissss dissscussion?"

Tynan turned his head toward the young girl, and waited for her response...
 
Raine

The Queen stepped forward, her face scared, as though speaking before others for the first time. In a manner of speaking, she was probably unused to this sort of behavior. Speaking before a Jedi Council was no small matter to most of the galaxy.
"Master Jedi," she began, er voice small, but audible, wavering slightly. "I am Princess...pardon, Queen, Meryn Tobe Staben of Daytin. I cannot return to my people as they are currently enslaved and our planet overtaken. I request a place for myself and my companions to stay, hopefully in your graces, at least until we can find an idea of what to do next."
Once the girl had finished, she lowered her head in a bow to Master Duu'Raan.
"Master," I began, not allowing him time to respond. "Others have gone on to Coruscant, among them Master Tie-Rae Binx. Perhaps ensuring thier safe arrival there might be beneficial."
 
Caiben Raille

The guards were waiting, but not so many as I'd suspected. Most likely, they'd gone to find us elsewhere, not believing we'd come to the bridge of the vessel after our lower levels expedition.
A minute's battle and they were defeated, though others were gradually working thier way back to fight us from behind.
Had many had we killed so far? Did it matter? We were in battle, and winning in a way of thinking. I was almost euphoric, my body working without my mind's intereference, without its judgment or scrutiny, training without effort.
Only in battle could I be at peace, I learned then.
"Caiben," Balle's voice.
I turned, a 360 degree turn in which I eyed the area around me.
No guards or enemy soldiers. Just Balle and I.
I glanced to my master.
"Stay alert," he said. "I'll work on the blast doors."
Burn your way through them, I thought. Use your saber and melt your way thorugh the door.
But Balle began to tinker with the control switch instead, slashing his way into its inner workings and then using the heat from his blade to melt the coatings of a few wires.
Wasting time, I thought, but did not dispute my master's actions.
A few more guards rounded a corner, entering the coordior Balle and I had taken control of, and began to fire. I stepped to my left, standing between the attackers and my master and making short work of them, deflecting thier attacks back at them and leaving them laying on the floor among the other fallen guards. The floor here was littered with bodies.
Waiting patiently, thinking, the door would have been open in mere minutes had you tried to cut your way through, Balle, but now...
As if in answer, less than a single minute after he'd begun his tinkering, the blast doors rolled open and Balle shouted to me, "Come, padawan."
Blaster bolts came from inside the room as well, but not so many. Blast doors are usually the only defense required of the bridge, and inside, the few remains of armed command personel were all the responded to our invasion.
Within seconds, the vessels leader was all that still stood.
I turned to face out into the cooridor, ready in case any guards or soldiers should come up behind us, as Balle moved closer in on the commanders remaining, two of them, both unarmed, now at any rate.
"We've taken your vessel," he stated. "You've lost."
"We won't call our fighters back," the commander insisted, though he was frightened, I believed him. He felt we would kill him regardless, and I wondered if he was right.
"I wouldn't ask that," Balle stated. "Our fighters will make short work of them at any rate. But I do have one request before my padawan and I leave..."
 
Tynan

Master Duu'Raan nodded his serpentine head, agreeing with Raine. "I fear all Jedi musssst be united in thisss, or there iss no hope."

"I'll contact the Republic on the secure channel Admiral Thandor gave us," Tynan added.

Master Duu'Raan nodded again. He looked tired. And for the first time that Tynan could remember, old. The Master was over 120 years old, he knew... but somehow, he never looked so. He realised then, that he had no idea as to the life expectancy of the Dracuurians. He pushed the thought aside, and turned toward the Twi'lek woman. "Do you have anything to add?"

She shook her head, her lekku swinging slowly from side to side. "Only that you'd be fools to underestimate the leathernecks..." she winced, and glanced at Master Duu'Raan, but didn't apologise. She looked back at him. "If you do, they'll cut you to pieces, just like the Sith fleet."

"You are so sure they defeated the Sith?" he asked. "Master DuVall says you were not there to see the outcome of the battle."

"I'm sure," Aela said, a small smile forming on her face. "The Sith fleet was nothing to them. Neither is this planet, even with you Jedi here. If they want it, they will take it. There's just too many of them. They breed like..." she waved a hand, grasping for a word that fit, "...like nothing I've ever seen. They will come, because they must. Because they need the new resources. And when they come, they'll come in force."

Tynan studied the woman, but could sense no deceit in her. He nodded.

"Then it issss decided," Master Duu'Rann said. "Our alliess musst be contacted, and we musst be united againssst thisss new threat."

The meeting ended, and Tynan rose, turning to Luke. "I'll be contacting the Admiral immediately. Your time is yours until I am done."

Luke bowed. "Yes, Master."

Tynan bowed and turned toward the communications center.
 
Luke

He watched his Master go, and then he turned toward master DuVall, and walked over, bowing before her.

"Excuse me, Master DuVall," he looked at her with questioning eyes. "Could you tell me more about the woman in the armor? She seems quite interesting..."
 
Raine DuVall

I listened as the meeting concluded, thinking that, while the fleet may have been defeated, I had felt no shift in the Force. Hence, whatever Sith had led that fleet, and he'd felt familiar, though his exact identity was one I couldn't truly identify (my body and mind were too tired; even if it had been Marlik himself, I'd have been incapable of identifying him), I knew he was alive still.
I hardly noticed Luke approaching me, until he spoke my name.
"Could you tell me more about the woman in the armor? She seems quite interesting..."
I looked to the boy...to the young man. I was forgetting how far he'd come in the years he'd been here. He was becoming a man, and too quickly it seemed, just as Marius had.
"THe woman in the armor. All I can say that would be good news is...well, she'll probably be leaving soon. Why do you ask, Luke? Have you feelings about her we should be aware of?"
I wondered what he might have sensed, my own senses now seeming useless.
 
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