Villains of a War

[Flamehart]

Strider blinked. "This is way more than I expected," he muttered. He opened the comm channel to all of them and spoke to aall the squads at once. "This isn't going to be a 'cover me while I do the work thing,' I need all of you. Follow me single file. Let's go," he ordered.

 

The Ragnarok took off in a burst, veering to the left, what seemed to be away from the fight. The Dominion fighters followed suit, single file.

 

"This seems suicide, but trust me. Dodge what fire you can if you must, just stay with the group. When I give the signal, spread out and open fire with your first load on my mark. The simultaneous strike will knock out their shield system if only temporarily, but it will be enough for us to u-turn around and make a second run on the bridge. Return to single file during the u-turn, then upon approaching the bridge, branch out again. They won't expect such an aggressive attack," Strider ordered. With that, he veered to the right, coming now at the Alliance army from their unguarded flank.

 

The fleet of fighters soared at the Galactic Alliance capital ship rapidly, just as they neared turret range, which began to open fire. The initial shots pounded into the Ragnarok, but left no damage to the strong Hunter starship. Finally, Strider gave the order for them to spread out. The Dominion ships spread to his side, flanking him and creating a a scattered formation around him. They flew directly at the vessel, when Strider called over the intercom.

 

"Let em loose! Fire!"

 

The Dominion ships and the Ragnarok dropped their first payload into the ship, the sudden blast rocked the Alliance capital ship, sending the crew inside to the floor from the sudden strike. The Dominion fighters singled up behind Strider again, following him closely as he weaved in and out of the heavy fire of the capital ship, which from what they noticed, had been briefly disarrayed by the sudden strike. They reached a safe distance before Strider u-turned. He gave the order, and the ships spread out again, all targetting the bridge. The Dominion ships came close and once again Strider ordered over the intercom.

 

"Fire at will!"

 

The Dominion ships fired, as well as the Ragnarok, and unloaded on the bridge of the capital ship. The focused attack crippled the bridge, rendering the capital ship inactive. The Ragnarok swerved away, as did the Dominion fighters, and returned to the cover of the Phasma, where Strider sent another intercom.

 

"Lord Tepe, it was quite an experience to fly with your men. They are talented fighters, though that was far more than I bargained for. Where else would you like the Sith Hunters to aid with?" he asked. He felt really weird taking orders from Tepe, but right now, it was about fighting back the Alliance force.

[Grace]

Charna's Eagle's Fire joined the fight as well, taking its orders by instinct, as Charna had taught them she would lead them when she used Battle Meditation. Jahara's fighter flew close by, using a little of the battlecruiser's arms as cover for her split concentration.

 

"Thought you wanted some action, Jahara," Reibe remarked dryly. "Turns out you just want to follow a bigger shadow?"

 

"Speak not of things beyond your comprehension, Big Sister," Jahara quipped in return. Reibe laughed, sharing her adrenaline rush through the Force.

 

"I think we mis-named ourselves again, Brother," she said to Strider. "At the start, we were called Jedi Hunters. Then, we betrayed the Sith and became Sith Hunters. What are we now? Hunters. Just 'Hunters'. And it's the last name change we'll ever need, for while our prey may change, we shall always hunt."

[Black Knight of Keno]

The Ragnarok recieved a small hologram of the flagship of the entire Alliance fleet. The Executor-class Super Star Destroyer was slowy rumbling to meet Phasma and vice versa. It would be one heck of a duel if it would ever come to place. Of course, the Dominion ship was only to distract most of the large Super Star Destroyer's weapons away from the fighters.

"Stay behind Phasma until we open fire on the ship. After that, it's your turn to take out the shields. After that, you can enter Hangar 17-G" the Admiral continued in the message and turned to more important situations he needed to address.

 

As the two giants collided, exchanging lasers and missiles, the command was sent to Strider to start their attack run. As people started dying on boths ships, a strong force-sensitive being could feel a pulse emitting from ontop of Phasma's bridge. There Tepe meditated in silence, harvesting the force energy left behind by the dead and using it in return to cause explosions around the Super Star Destroyer, dealing it's hull some major damage. The Colonel watched quietly as Tepe's breathing came much more heavier than it usually was when in meditation, yet he could do nothing to help the man. Reports came throught that the Super Star Destroyer's shields were down and the starighters were summoned to return to Phasma with the Sith Hunters. The Dungeon Ship redirected all it's power to weapons, continuously firing upon the weak spots in the hull of the other giant next to it. The Super Star Destroyer was soon taken care of and the Alliance fleet went into a state of confusion. They didn't know exactly who was in command now, so they started slowly to withdraw, some admirals ordering their forces off the planet where they were being overrun by the garrison and the reinorcements sent by the Dominion fleets.

[Flamehart]

Strider laughed as he finished his attack run.

 

"I don't believe the name change is necessary. The name Sith Hunters is far more intimidating, regardless of whether or not who we are sided with. The idea that we seek the darkness give us a far more daring look," Strider remarked back. "I will still carry the Sith Hunter name. I like it more," he said preferrably. He brought the Ragnarok to land in the hangar, waiting by the docking door for the others to land.

[Grace]

Reibe chuckled, bringing her unique fighter around beside the Ragnarok. "Perhaps you're right," she agreed. "Intimidation is an important part of our image. We'll keep it the way it is."

 

She brought her fighter into the hangar alongside Strider's ship and set it down. The other Hunters were not far behind. Jahara was the most visibly tired, having focused more of her mind on the battle than anyone else. Reibe was, on the other hand, full of energy. It seemed strange to Jahara that one who had seen as much in life as Reibe had could be so full of... life, and yet Reibe seemed to be so full of energy she might explode.

 

"Shall we run up to see what our Sith friends had in mind?" she asked in a surprisingly subdued tone of voice considering the fact that she looked as if she ought to be hopping and skipping around like a little child. But without waiting for an answer, for she knew what the answer would be, she turned and headed for the door from the hangar into the rest of the ship.

[Black Knight of Keno]

The Colonel stepped in the way with two of Tepe's Guards. He waited until the Hunters had gathered around and then gave a silent sign for them to follow him. The two guards stayed behind them. All three were silent as they escorted the Hunters into a large turbolift designated as NOTB-666 with big red letters on the floor. After everyone was ready, the Colonel pressed a fifteen-digit code into a small datapad inside the lift. The doors closed when he was finished and they were raced up at a speed that caused enought Gs for them to slump down slightly. As it started to slow down, the Colonel coughted, straightened his uniform and then waited for the doors to open. when they did open, they saw a lush garden with dozens of waterfalls and fountains around. It resembled much like the garden once located within the Jedi Temple of Coruscant. Throught the large transparisteel dome they could see the battle still raging. At the very top of the dome was a small artificial sun keeping the plants alive. The place was also equipped with a stealth generator,which was why nobody saw the place from outside, even if it should be shining out as a good target like a group of sitting ducks infront of a hungry rancor.

 

The Colonel led the Hunters further inside while the guards stepped outside the turbolift and guarded it. The group found Tepe in the middle of the garden, meditating next to a waterfall. It had been a year and a half since they had seen each others and Tepe had changed a lot since. His hair was getting gray, his face was wrinkled and eyes slightly retracted. Even if they saw an older man, they could still feel the strong connection to Force, a young man's spirit and the mind of a veyr sharp 20-something. What they didn't see was hidden by his clothes. He was still as fit as he had been when they last saw him, maybe even put on some more muscle. The Colonel cleared his throat in an attempt to wake the Lord from the meditation, even if he knew that the man had senced them the minute they had stepped into the little sanctuary. Tepe smiled before opening his eyes.

 

"Ah, you have finally arrived. Very well. Colonel, you may leave us. Contact Lady Charna and tell her to come here with the Jedi. We can continue our discussion here" Tepe said and the Colonel bowed before scurrying off. The Sith Lord stood up and looked at his guests.

"How are you old friends. Or should I say enemies who have something to gain by siding with me?"

[Grace]

"What you decide to call us is entirely up to you," Reibe answered, not unkindly. "But as Strider said, we have much to discuss. Shall we wait for Charna and the Jedi?"

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

Even before the Colonel's message came in, Charna was preparing herself to join her master and the Sith Hunters. "Go get Skywalker," she told Kyle. "We're making a trip up to the Phasma. The meeting will continue there."

 

Kyle was about to ask how she knew, when a young Jedi entered with the Colonel's message. Kyle grinned. "How could you sense that from down here?"

 

"Practice and power," Charna answered. "Let us go."

[Black Knight of Keno]

Tepe looked at Reibe and slightly raised an eyebrow. He continued to sit in the meditative position while watching them. He took a sharp breath in and raised his hands. From the bushed, several stones lifted, carved into the shape of a chair similiar to the ones the Jedi Council of the Old Order sat upon. The stones even had the padding. Tepe had prepared for visitors, it seemed. He let the air out slowly and set the chairs in a half-circle. There were enought for the Hunters as well some left empty waiting for Charna and the Jedi.

"There is no need to wait for them. What I must say to you is better left between us to wait for the right time to be revealed. I can feel the doubt in some of you" he said and looked especially at the new generation of Sith Hunters.

 

"I'm getting old and death will come to me due time. I know what you are planning and I won't have any of it. You will not choose the next Lord of the Sith Dominion, nor will you start murdering my higher ranking officers because they are oppressive towards the civilians. I have my people for that. But taking that you seem to wish to monitor my doings, ignoring whatever I tell you or try to make you trust me, I should at least make it easy for you. Strider Flameart, I dub thee as the Ambassador of the Sith Hunters within the Sith Dominion government. You will have free access to all the reports and records of unreported activities within the Dominion. Once peace has been signed with the Galactic Alliance, I will gift you any building on any planet under Dominion rule for your base of operations" The Lord said and sat into a more comfortable position on the large stone hehad been meditating on. The man smirked. Something was different with him. Something genetical that had altered him for good. He had gone throught treatment which once had been only for the Sith Hunters. He had gone throught pain for a slowed down lifecycle. Tepe took out a comlink and opened it.

 

"Colonel, bring in the refreshments and the entertainment" he said and shortly afterwards several repulsorlift droids and other, more humanoid droids entered. The humanoid droids, which resembled the Sith species down to the red synthflesh, were carrying instruments and set themselves behind Tepe, starting to play a quiet music as the repulsorlift droids served drinks. Tepe took his glass of water and sipped it quietly when the Colonel himself arrived to inform of Charna and the Jedi's arrival. As the second group entered, Tepe nodded his welcome as Charna and the Jedi took their seats. The battle was already won.

 

------

 

Finally, Emukiel got his admittance with the Head of State. The two went immediately into business as the losses were great on both sides. Both sides would need the peace as soon as possible. After hours of talks and examination of the treaty, peace was signed with the terms the Dominion had set and word was sent to Tepe and High Command, which would forward it to the lower ranking officers so all military activities would cease between the two factions. All this to take place would be well after the meeting was over, however

[Flamehart]

Strider looked at Tepe with a stern look. They were now allies, and he decided it was time to be perfectly honest with the Lord.

 

"On the contrary, we have no desire to choose the next ascendant to the rule of the Dominion. We do have a desire to ensure that the next ruler rules as...efficiently, as you have, but we do have a desire to intervene should the Dominion fall towards the path Senator Palpatine once tread. As for your higher ranking officers, the present ruler is responsible for their actions, so we will not have to worry about that," Strider clarified. "I will accept the position you offer me, however. I wish to be able to help ensure that the civilians remain peaceful and content as they are," Strider explained.

[Black Knight of Keno]

"You don't have to worry about Kaoin taking over. He is too aggressive to lead an interstellar nation. Besides, if my men have done their duty, Kaoin should be gone to the netherworld of the Force by now" Tepe said and took another sip of his water before looking at Charna.

"When I decide to step down, she will be the one to take the throne" he added and nodded towards Charna. As the people had gathered and sat down, the Sith Lord cleared his throat while giving the glass back to the droid.

 

"The battle is won once again. I believe Emukiel has been invited to discuss of the terms of peace right now. I originally came to Ossus because I wish to know of the Jedi's decision on if they wish independence or continue as a part of the Sith Dominion, but now that you, Sith Hunters, have arrived also, there is now also the decision to make on what do you exactly wish to do and where from" The Dark Lord said as the droids continued to play a soft, quiet score on their instruments.

[Black Knight of Keno]

((Someone should take control of the Jedi, maybe?))

[Black Knight of Keno]

((Hello? Why is this dying? This RP hasn't ended, you fools! It shall continue for at least four more pages!))

[Grace]

Reibe seemed pleased when Tepe appointed Strider as the ambassador, but still said nothing as the conversation turned more toward what they and the Jedi intended to do since the war was ending. She turned her eyes to Luke as Tepe asked the question, also curious to know the answer.

 

"Whether the galaxy has two governments or one, our mission is to keep the peace," Luke answered. "Given the present standing of tentative peace between the two governments, it would still be inadvisable for us to relocate. And the more things settle, the more the Jedi of Coruscant will return to their old ways of defense there. Lord Dantes, we are not going anywhere."

 

"As to the location the Hunters work from," Reibe said, finally breaking her silence, "location matters but little to us. And I feel you misunderstand my fears, Lord Tepe. Our concern is not for who will take the throne when you are gone. Charna is a worthy successor. However, our length of life forces us to look further into the future. What of a hundred years from now? What of a thousand? What of a hundred thousand? Even if each successive ruler chooses their own heir, there will come a day when that rule is challenged. We want to ensure that the challenge does not succeed."

[Black Knight of Keno]

"My friends..." Tepe started with a mysterious smiled and stood up, extending his arms to the sides.

"Where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise" he finished and laughted, letting himself go. His full force potential was released, sending ripples throughout the Galaxy. Everyone present could feel it the most purely. It was a mix of balance between dark and light, good and evil as well as the side of him brought by the Sith Hunter Machine. Tepe stepped towards the group just as the Colonel stepped inside.

"My Lord, Emukiel reports that he is signing the treaty as we speak. We got the LiMerge Power building as well as the other conditions throught" the young man said and Tepe nodded.

"This day is proving to be good for the Galaxy. Withdraw all attacking forces. We'll let the Alliance have the planets"

 

------

 

On Ruun, beyond the Cloak of the Sith, the Sith Council senced the ripple caused by Tepe. They went into a full emergency meeting to decide if it would be correct to have Tepe as the Dark Lord anymore.

"Tepe has proven himself as too light to be a Dark Lord. His Lorrdian heritage of slavery has made him weak"

"Indeed... We should act now while we still can. But we should find someone to take his place as the Lord of the Sith Dominion"

"Our spies tell us that Lord Kaoin has proven himself to be what we need to gain power within the Dominion. However, there has been a recent attempt on his life and we have not heard if it has failed or not. Tepe does not trust him"

"Even better. Those loyal to Kaoin will be the tool for us to gain power. We should engage the defenses"

"Indeed. The defences and our droid armies should be activated as soon as possible. We should also block all hyperspace routes leading here. We do not want Tepe to destroy us before we can engage our plans"

"It has been decided. But we must wait for the right moment before telling Tepe that he has been exiled"

 

------

 

Somewhere beyond the Galactic disk, a group of ancient ships gathered together. The leaders of these ships gathered within a dim room, dressed in dark robes with expensive embroideries on them. The smaller red leaders as well as the larger more brown-ish leaders massed in the room for a gathering. Speaking an ancient tongue, they spoke of the ripple in the Force.

"It is time, brothers"

"Indeed. Both Revan and the Exile came to us with news of the galaxy being unprepared for our arrival, and now we have been called by the Force"

"This someone who has become a True Sith without learning our teachings is calling us subcontiously. Our fleets should be ready to leave for the Galaxy immediately"

"If this is the one who our legends have spoken of, we, the Massassi, shall pledge our allegiance with this great Commander of a True Sith Nation"

"Yes, brothers! Let us leave!"

So the large fleet jumped into hyperspace, heading for the Galaxy's edge to find out where and who was this ripple emitting from.

[Flamehart]

Strider almost cringed at the immense Force energy being sent out, but not because of its strength. He could almost too well remember how his own strong signature had been like a vacuum for attention from the True Sith when in the Unknown Region, and made him an easily identifiable target by his pursuers. Since then, Strider's true ability with the Force was always kept suppressed, regardless of how much stronger his foe was than him, he would not draw entirely on his energy should his old enemies find him. He began to wonder now if Tepe's dispersal of energy would attract attention, and if so, if he knew this and intended for it to be so, to bring out anyone from the dark and deal with them in one fell swoop. He looked to the other Hunters, few of which probably shared his thoughts, and began to wonder whether or not his fears would be realized.

[Black Knight of Keno]

"Colonel, prepare the Jedi a shuttle and prepare the Dominion HoloNet for a speech. Also, send word to the generals and admirals attacking the Hutts. Tell them to stand down and withdraw to the nearest already conquered planet." Tepe said as he walked back to the stone and jumped on it, sitting down. It was clear that the meeting was over. As the sith Hunters and Jedi were guided out, the Sith Lord turned around to see Charna.

 

"You'll be the first to hear this and to make a decision if you wish to follow me. I am renouncing my position as a Sith Lord and the Dark Lord. The Sith Order is going to betray me and so is Kaoin. There will be a war ahead of us once again in mere months, maybe only weeks. I have become something more by going throught the Machine and I can feel my kind drawing near. The True Sith are coming" Tepe said and looked at his apprentice closely.

"You have become more than an apprentice to me, Danni, and I wish you will join me in my quest for a better Galaxy, but it will mean that you must free yourself from the Sith Order as well as the Jedi Order. I shall leave you to meditate this" Tepe said to her and left the garden.

 

As he stepped out of the turbolift, he found himself facing Strider with the Colonel next to him. The Colonel had read tepe's body language correctly and asked for Strider to stay behind for a moment.

"Strider... We have gone throught many things back at Welmin's, and now a new era is beginning. I am no longer a Sith, my friend. I am renouncing the Order. I have a feeling that by the time we meet next, I have changed quite a bit. The Galaxy and the nature of the Force is changing. I see much death in the near future, but after that Peace shall reign" Tepe said with a smile and bowed to Strider

[Flamehart]

Strider could only nod in agreement. Though instead of bowing in his response, he smiled kindly at the former Dark Lord.

 

"Such formalities shouldn't be commonplace among friends, now should they?" Strider said, instead offering his hand to Tepe. "Much has changed, and of course there will always be conflict, but with the right power in the right place, the conflict is worth it if those fighting fight for a real cause. Besides, you've got the Sith Hunters on your side, what can go wrong?" Strider said with a smile.

[Black Knight of Keno]

"Right... What could go wrong?" Tepe chuckled and looked at Strider.

"Except for the fact that Kaoin is going to betray me and that there are a whole lot of Sith coming from beyong the Galactic disk" he continued and looked at the hangar doors briefly. A quartermaster entered throught a small door with a large holopad in one hand, eading throught several reports shown on the screen. Right now he was coming from supervising the Jedi shuttle's launch and heading to supervise the fueling of the Sith Hunter ships. It was a boring job, but it had to be done by someone. The Lord looked back at Strider and nodded quietly.

 

"Your ship is being fueled as we speak. I'll prepare one of the floors in the LiMerge Power building for you to use. You'll have full access to it's computer database and a view to the Works that I have promised to clean up. It'll be a much safer place for you, especially when the True Sith arrive. There are rumours about that you've had some rought times beyond the Galactic disk" the man told Strider as he walked him into the hangar. As they stopped by the hangar door, the Colonel was contacted by someone. The Colonel whispered something into Tepe's ear and Tepe turned to look Strider into the eyes as a response to it.

"It seems one of our deep-space scanners has noticed Ruun starting to isolate itself. My friend, as you have probably guessed, I didn't destroy the machine that caused your long life. I know your ships are capable of near miracles, so this is what I'm asking of you. Go to Ruun and destroy the machine for good. The Sith Order should not be allowed to control such a machine"

[Sigundr]

((Sorry I haven't been posting guys. I was in England.))

 

The guards stood around him, their weapons raised, ready to fire at the slightest hint of retaliation. There was a metallic click and the whole room filled with 200 decibals of sound and 1 million candlepower of light. Kaoin's personal guards loyal to him opened fire on the traitorous guards. He took out his lightsaber and made a large arc, cutting open a guard. As he was about to decapitate another one, a blaster bolt hit him in the right shoulder, throwing himself back.

 

As the last guard fell, Kaoin stood up, clutching his shoulder. Hatred burned in his eyes. "Purge all those who stand against me! Kill them all!!" Kaoin screamed.

[Black Knight of Keno]

As those loyal to Kaoin fired the first shots of the purge, many commanders fell. The Dark Jedi trained by Tepe rallied up those loyal to the Lord and fought back within ships, bases, battlefields and space battles. The sudden strike by Kaoin caused a slaughter. Those ships that were taken over by Tepe's men fought valiantly and some launched suicidal attacks so others could escape and notify Tepe of the betrayal. The Dark Jedi caused the most of the destruction in Kaoin's forces, even if at least half of them were killed in the initial strikes. It was pure madness until Kaoin's forces washed over the troops and a tense silence fell within the ships and planets, interrupted only by the clacking of armors.

[Flamehart]

"I'm not too worried about coming to face with the True Sith, I am far more powerful now than when I first encountered them, and I will stand with you when they arrive," Strider said confidently.

 

Upon hearing this news, Strider nodded. "Consider it done. I will leave immediately," he assured, turning to leave. He stopped and turned, looking at Tepe and appealing to the side of him that was still a Jedi. "May the Force be with you, always, Tepe. I look forward to the coming peace, and many a drinks at Welmin afterwards," he said with a smirk on his face, then with the turn of his cloak, left the room for the hangars, rounding up the other Sith Hunters.

[Black Knight of Keno]

As Strider walked off, Tepe grinned and looked as the door closed.

"The Force is irrelevant at this point" he mumbled before turning to the Colonel who was recieving news of the betrayal.

"Kaoin is alive. How many systems?"

"Only five this far, my lord, but some other garrisons are starting to get rowdy"

"Withdraw everyone loyal to me to reinforce weaker and important systems. Get my armies and fleets ready around the capitol. Declare martial law on all planets and tell the planetary police forces to keep an eye ou for Kaoin's agents. Everyone loyal to Kaoin in the higher chain of command will be executed of treason. All battlefield troopers loyal to Kaoin will be dishonorably discharged"

"Yes, my lord"

"Tell the Admiral to take this ship to the capital and prepare a large amount of both soldiers and workers to be sent to Coruscant. I want to clear the Works of all the mutations and whatever is down there by the end of this month. Send as many Dark Jedi you think is needed. I also want to see the LiMerge Power building occupied and running as an embassy by the end of this week"

"Yes, my lord. and Charna?"

"She will accompany me to the capital. Tell her fleet to meet her there for a briefing. Even her fleets and armies are to be purged of rebels. From now on, every single supporter of Kaoin is an enemy of the Dominion" Tepe said and drew a hood on, leaving for his quarters as the Colonel proceeded to bring his commands into fruitition.

 

------

 

Several Rebel-class Assault Frigates came throught the atmosphere of Kamino, half-full of machinery provided by the Rothana Heavy Engineering with half of the room reserved for a secret bunch of clones provided by a Kaminoan version of the Spaarti cloning cylinder. They were two divisions of elite soldiers that would eventually be pitted against Kaoin. Their armors were changed only cmodified on the helmet part. Due to them being clones, their visors were darkened so their faces could not be seen as well as there was unique markings on each soldier's let temple. This was both for keeping the prime clone's identity a secred as well as to avoid confusion on which was which.

[Sigundr]

Captain Jaik Ri'klu crouched behind a large crate loaded with chest plates. The soldiers in the barracks on Ruun had rioted and killed all the guards and officers in the building loyal to Tepe. Now the battalion was advancing on the capital building, but was under fire.

 

"Grenadiers!" Ri'klu yelled into his comm. "Fire!" There were nine muffled thumps and explosions to go on with them. The battalion, fighting spirit boosted by this, poured over their covers and opened fire on the resistance. Jaik walked onto the battlefield as the slaughter had stopped, and took in a good look around him. "Men! Let's move out!" The battalion formed into a parade line and marched into the capital building...

[Black Knight of Keno]

((Actually, Ruun isn't much more than a Sith Order sanctuary, so there's not much civilian population, which would mean there ain't no cities either))

 

As Tepe stepped onto the bridge later on, the Colonel turned to see him and saluted.

"Lord Tepe, there are reports coming in of several more systems lost. We can safely say that Kaoin has many followers within his own troops"

"How much territory?"

"What have been reported is pretty much wherever his troops are garrisoned, sir"

"Order any spare armies to take as many of those planets back while Kaoin still has his command chain in the blender. Relieve any surplus defences into attacking and try to coordinate the attacks into the more industrial planets. If we take out his resources and manufacturing plants, this should be an easy war. Change all communications channels to Emergency Channel 91 and give command to all assassins and mercenaries that I want Kaoin dead"

"Yes, Lord Tepe. What about the fleet approaching our territories from the Unknown Territories?"

"Let it come throught. If it starts to wage war, send a couple of fleets to keep a hold on it"

"Yes, sir!"

 

Tepe walked to his seat and sat down with the Colonel following him. Word had come throught from Emukiel that peace had been signed. This left the Dominion with several veteran armies and fleets ready for combat again after they would just get reinforced and nutrinioned. The Lord gave the command to jump into hyperspace with coordinates set for the capital.

 

------

 

The few armies already set for assaulting several of Kaoin's planets were played a recording of their Lord giving the final boost of courage and confidence in them.

"Gentlemen, the Dominion has split. But even if the other side were more ruthless, the Dominion shall conquer. You are in the Dominion Armed Forces. Act like it, fight like it and never give up. Make us proud out there and come home to your families safe and sound" the image of Tepe said as the fleets jumped out of hyperspace. The assault ships rushed for the planet while the more ship-to-ship combat aligned ships covered them by engaging Kaoin's fleets. All fighters were launched as well with the target of getting rid of Kaoin's fleets or forcing them to retreat so they could land all forces on the battlefield. The planets had been chosen by the amount of garrisoned troops, so these planets that were being assaulted were more weakly garrisoned. Victory was always a boost of morale. Especially early on in the war.

[Flamehart]

The Ragnarok, as well as the other Sith Hunter vessels, arrived promptly overhead on Ruun. The ships dashed by any planetary defenses, heading straight for the Sith Ruins where the old Sith Hunter machines were still resting. The Ragnarok landed, and Strider exited, ready to hold their landing against any opposition that might come their way had they spotted the incoming craft.

 

Strider had his own plan in mind - to take the remaining working machine they had constructed, and to remove the rest. Though it seemed unlikely, it was a tool he wouldn't mind having should the Sith Hunters ever recruit again. He ignited his blue lightsaber, waiting for the other ships to land and the Hunters to gather.