Fiction Gallery

Chaos distilled in Guardians in the Temple hall Spectres roamed in

Spectres lurking in the shadow Chaos instilled in the minds of fellow Peace was nowhere to found below Dead Tarenti and Naga Sadow

Magik waited eagerly on his ship docked in near space with his fello Tarenti. They were waiting to hear news of the Temple incursion from members of Naga Sadow. At last the com links were ringing, members of both houses had taken on the mission to descend the Temple, not knowing the outcome. The wait was over, news was abound. Magik waited for the conversation to end, with a smile on his face as his fellow Tarenti discussed the outcome with members of Naga Sadow. The conversation ended fifteen minutes later. The air was quiet, Magik could feel the disturbance. He braced himself, for the bad news. Not knowing what to expect next. Had our plans gone to hell, he griped his teeth. He felt pain and death.

"Magik", the expedition has gone out of control, people are dead. The bad news had just hit his ears. Nothing enexpected he thought to himself."The expedition has been ambushed, the Temple was not secure", Saitou repeated as sweat dripped down his forehead, "we must make our way down to the Temple and secure our allies". The whole mission had gone south, people were dead. Magik, set forth plans to leave his post in near by space with other fellow Tarenti, to come to the aid of the other members down at the Temple. "We must go now, they need us, fire up your cruiser, we are going to the Temple, see down below", Magik commanded with dreadful thoughts.The Tarenti fleet of cruisers left the near by station en route to the Temple.

As the cruiser fleet landed upon the Temple, there were only a couple of survivors in the clearing. Magik didn't know what to expect, his mind was clear, but ready for the worst. "Magik, thank god you came to our rescue", cried Frosty. He was one of the only survivors of the failed mission. The bad news was yet to come. "Ok Frosty, explain to me what had happend here", Magik was in a state of surprise and shock.

Frosty tried to explain what had happend inside, but he was trembbling with fear and agony. "Magik, the Temple was guarded by ghost and the others have been possesed and they turned onto us", Frosty repeated with tears in his eyes. "My brothers are dead", he sceamed unto me as I clinched my teeth in discust. "Frosty explain to me what had happend inside, I must know", Magik spoke to Frosty calmly, yet worried and fearful. Frost had calmed himself and wad ready to talk.

"Magik, members from both Tarenti and Naga Sadow have been possesed by the ghost of the Temple, their minds have been corrupted and manipulated by the ghost of the Temple, they are gone now, dead to us, turned against us in battle, our own friends", Frosty was shaking with fear as spoke. "Exploring inside the Temple, their mind turned and chaos broke out, blasters rang out like hell, it was a nightmare, no one is alive, they turned into ghost and started attacking everybody. I barely made it out with my lightsaber", Frosty was panicked as told his story. "There are no survivors just me", Frosty reiterrated. Magik was stupified, he didn't know what to do. He tried to calm himself as much as he could, knowing that members of his clan had died in the Temple. The Guardians had killed them all. The Temple was guarded heavily, it was time to retreat.

It should have been mine, She lied about the helmet, What should I believe?

You better not run you better watch out, There's a ghost over there so you better not shout, Shoot it in the face and it doesn't work, What do you expect, It's a ghost you birk!

I see and feel them turn in to something else. Now fear takes over.

Evil surrounds me, Fear nurtures my power. We must keep fighting.

The spirits arise. The Force will not help you here. You will all perish.

There is an evil devouring me, and nothing I do can set me free. As allies cower and try to flee, I embrace the spirit inside of me.

The heat is rising, The odds are turning, While they turn in to them, I'll be no longer me, Possessed by pure evil.

Balance and beauty Lethal or defensive use Yours be the choice

If Jax would've been able to feel the Force, he might have shivered at the emotions that would then have coursed through his mind. As he could not, all he felt was slightly damp stone as he ran his hands across the walls of the tunnel through which the Sadowan forces wandered.

Multiple status reports came in through the commlinks, as teams of 3 or 4 spread throughout the superstructure. They had chosen the largest of the ruins to explore for what the Force-gifted members called 'a disturbance'. It was unclear to many, including Jax, what this disturbance actually was, but according to the Elders, they'd know it when they see it.

Suddenly one of the status reports was interrupted by triumphant yelling and screaming, followed by a sudden comms blackout. Curiosity getting the better of them, both Sanguinius and Jax agreed to send in a vanguard group which would be armed to the teeth in both scanning equipment, weapons, and experience.

What happened next was pure chaos. The encrypted communication channel with the party remained active, though there was a lot of interference. Screaming, panicked yells, and even weapon's fire translated through the communication devices disturbing the people in charge of the expedition.

With a simple gesture of his hands, Sanguinius ordered a group of Elders to investigate, but they too never returned. Until they emerged from the tombs, attacking their own friends and even family. It was time for a new solution, to call for aid from friends.

Raikou examined the stone door blocking entry to the chamber where the spectre incident happened. The party, himself included, had tried everything to get past it, from blaster fire to thermal detonators. Not a scratch. The Raider didn’t care much for the Sith whore that was trapped behind the door, but being appointed as the new Quaestor of House Shar Dakhan meant losing her would disturb the state his Clan was finally in, ordered and disciplined.

The sound of hastened footsteps coming from behind him broke the silence. The Keibatsu turned his attention toward the sound, only to see an enormous Dashade, whom he immediately recognized as the Consul of Clan Tarentum, making his way toward him alongside a handful of troops.

“I believe there is a situation here?” The Warlord’s presence was ominous. “Would you mind if we gave it a shot?”

“Knock yourself out,” Raikou replied, stepping out of the way. “We’ve tried everything, it won’t budge.”

Frosty Romanae Tarentae stood two meters tall in front of the stone barrier, his eyes closed, his arms wide open, and his lips moving as he muttered something silently under his breath. All of a sudden, he let out a deep, loud cry that made the atrium tremble and started running at his target. With a loud crack, his clenched fist made contact with the door, leaving a deep dent in it.

The Tarentae turned toward Raikou, blood running from his knuckles. "I suppose you haven’t tried that yet?"

"We are here live at the Ruins on Qirool VI. Your fearless reporter, Anna Tanaka, will bring you the events and exploits of Clan Naga Sadow as they happen. Unfortunately, due to the structure and our equipment, we cannot broadcast a full holovid, just audio only. So bare with me folks, I will try to describe everything in detail!"

"Now Peter, as far as we can tell there hasn't been anyone here in quite a long time. Dust coats everything. If you... wait. We are hearing that the Quaestor of Shar Dakhan has found some type of ghosts in a room nearby!" The reporter moves several rooms over towards the Quaestor, Evelyenn Wrym.

"As we converge on the Shar Dakhan Quaestor, we see spectral...Oh, my! There's a screech of some... wait. THEY'RE attacking!" Heavy breathing is heard as the reporter is running for her life. "The ghosts are attacking everyone.. I'm trying to find safety! I'm not sure if you can hear me, Peter, but this is a disaster! I'm trying find a.. wait. NO! STAY AWAY! NO! AAHHHHHH!!!" Ghastly screams can be heard for several more seconds before the comm unit cuts out.

"Anna? Anna? Apparently Clan Naga Sadow's first run in with the Temple isn't going well. Uhh, we'll be right back folks."

The sun scorched the sandy surface of the planet, creating a haze that blurred the ruins below them. As the transport approached the landing site, the newly appointed Quaestor of House Shar Dakhan stood up to debrief her fellow Sadowans. She had demanded leadership of the expedition, and Sanguinius had given her the opportunity to prove herself. Who better to lead an artifact hunt than the power hungry Human Sorceress?

The plan was simple: get in, extract the artifacts, get out. It was so simple that most of the Clan was puzzled as to why we needed half of the warhost present, but Evelynn knew better. Years of solitude had twisted the evil that lies beneath those ruins, creating a power unimaginable by any Sadowan. One wrong step and the whole endeavor could be compromised.

As the transport landed, the Battlemaster stepped onto the hot sand and made her way toward the entrance, closely followed by her clanmates. The stairs led down to a vast open chamber. Pillars with ancient Sith markings prevented the ceiling from collapsing upon them. Evelynn had no idea what they meant, nor did anyone present, but she was sure they would soon find out.

"Flashlights out, we're splitting up," she told the group as she made her way to the left-most doorway. "Keep your comms at the ready, you see anything weird - you report immediately."

With that, she took a step into the darkness ahead, not knowing whether she herself could withstand what lies ahead.

The black VT-49 Decimator dropped into orbit over the planet where the Temple resided.

“VT-49, identify yourself,” an eerily pleasant voice came over the speaker.

“Tell your Consul, Sanguinius, that the shadow that has become death; haunts him still,” Etah’s answered somewhat quizzically.

“Lower shields and prepare to be boarded VT-49,” the chirpy voice replied with a little more resolve.

“That would be a mistake,” Etah informed them casually.

Before the fleet of Naga Sadow could respond to the developing situation, a new line entered the conversation.

“This is the Consul, authorization code 11 Alpha, stand down; VT-49 is clear for landing,” Sang’s voice rang over the line. “What can I do for you old friend?” the Entar continued.

“You know why I am here; terror always follows death just as misfortune must always follow fortune,” the Sith Battlelord replied cryptically.

“Beef said you had started acting strange, I didn’t actually believe you were stranger than you were within the Shadesworn,” Sang said half concerned and half joking.

“Things change friend, nothing in fact remains the same. Even when we think it does. It will be interesting working on you over this matter,” Etah replied.

A hologram of Dark Jedi Master Bloodfyre appeared on the deck, Etah nodded his head briefly toward the hologram acknowledging his mentor but much less dramatically than some other Tarenti would have.

“I’m glad you made it, for there is much work to be done” Bloodfyre said to Etah through the homogram.

Fear was the feeling the crept through the assembled servants of Sadow as they stared at the spectral visages dancing just outside of their collective vision.

Fear was particularly terrifying to the assembled group of stoic Dark Jedi because it’s not a feeling that came naturally to the heirs of Darth Sadow. When you can jump through the air, read people’s minds, move things through the air and block the shot of a laser beam at it races toward you at the speed of light; there are not many things that can surprise you. When few things can kill you, there is only one thing left to fear: the unknown.

The ghost like beings, with blank faces, that floated nearby; looked physically present but in some kind of haze. The rational mind wanted to dismiss them as mere apparitions created by their collective imaginations. Had not this same collection of people laughed in the past when speaking of the Tarentis weird spirit superstitions? How could they be real? How could they be standing in front of them?

‘What, if any, were their capabilities to harm a Dark Jedi’ the Clone Archon thought to himself as the astral choir began to shout. A panic rose as the attack began.

Etah, a Harbinger of terror and a servant of death, smelled their fear from far away. He didn’t know any form of ghosts were involved, he was a reaper; not a sorcerer.

“Prepare the ship,” Etah said into his hologram relay device.

Low Orbit Aboard the Endor's Revenge Glee Anselm

Talis sat in quiet contemplation. His wounds that he sustained during the Polyphemous Operation had completely healed. Currently his ship was on its final approach to a set of coordinates he had obtained from a long time contact. They were coordinates to a small island on the planet Glee Anselm. The home world of the Nautolans. His contact was extremely excited when he gave him the coordinates but would not divulge his reasoning. He just told him. “You will know when you get there brother.”

“Captain,” A voice broke through the silence of his cabin.

“Yes, what is it?” Talis replied dazed.

“We are coming into optical range and will be landing shortly.”

“Roger that I will make my way to the landing ramp.”

The Jedi Knight rose and adjusted his armor. He didn't know if he was walking into a trap or not so he decided to be cautious about it.

The Miralukan arrived at the foyer of his ship where the entryway was and waited. He could hear the engines rev and felt the steel around him lurch a little before it lightly set down. The door's locks could be heard clanking open and the pressurized hiss of the door pistons activating echoed in the seemingly empty vessel. An R2 unit rolled up next to him before stopping just shy and beeping at him.

“I will call for you Beenine when I know it is safe.” The astromech's depressed response cascaded back at the Sentinel. He placed his hand on the droid's dome and offered an apologetic smile.

Talis exited his ship and entered the warm humid air of the planet. He made his way down the ramp of his ship and up the causeway of the landing pad to the island. Four beings well armed waited for him. All of the men were Nautolans. They wore matching armor with blaster rifles in their arms and a vibrosword on each of their hips. The leader of the security detail stepped forward and presented his hand.

“Your lightsaber please.”

“Not until I know what this is.” Talis readied himself as the security detail raised their weapons an waited for him to comply.

“That is enough Captain Altre!” A voice erupted from behind the group. One of the security detail flinched hard and accidentally squeezed off a shot. Talis reacted on instinct, spinning away from the shot and drew his lightsaber before igniting it and holding the point up to the throat of the captain.

“Everyone weapons away!” A second voice could be heard. This time a woman. Her voice was strong yet nurturing. Something about it felt welcoming.

Two hooded figures approached Talis. Something about them made him calmer and safer. He waited a few moments before he put away his lightsaber.

“Who are you and why am I here?”

“I am Anillan,” The male robed figure replied.

“And I am Sablis,” The female robed figure followed suit.

“Why are you wearing hoods in this muggy weather?”

“Our people have grown accustom to the humidity and today is quite cold in comparison to our normal days here.” The male replied.

"I do not usually do business with people who hide their identities under a hood." Talis shifted uncomfortably.

“It is only fair that you remove your helmet as a show of faith, if we are to remove our hoods.” The woman's voice was smooth.

“Sure.” Talis removed the phase two clone trooper helmet revealing his eye wrappings to the group. The feelings of shock and embarrassment from the four sentries made the current altercation even more confusing.

“I knew I sensed someone new in our enclave.” The woman pulled back her robe revealing a regally designed eye cover and Anillan removed his to reveal a simpler eye covering. The Miralukan stood in shock. “You must have many questions for us.” The woman's excitement could hardly be contained.

“That's an understatement.” The Jedi snapped back unintentionally. For some reason Talis felt ashamed of that and apologized to the woman. “Sorry ma'am.”

“It is nothing to have taken offense to,” Sablis replied with a smile, “I can only imagine the shock new comers get from meeting us here.”

The trio made their way through a wall of trees and into a clearing. On the other side of the clearing a small town became visible. They spent the walk in silence as the young Knights mind raced. He had thought his people were wiped out by the Brotherhood after Grand Master Pravus took over.

'How could there be a city of Miralukans? What had happened to lead them to Glee Anselm?' the young man thought to himself.

The trio entered town and people turned and looked in awe at the imposing figure of the armored Miralukan Jedi. More people poked their heads out of their homes and the trio grew into a small mob of inquisitive faces.

They came upon a temple structure that had the planet and twin moons emblem of the Luka Sene. A group of force sensitive Miralukan not unlike the Jedi. Their emblem was of Tython and its two moons, Ashla and Bogan. Talis spent countless hours researching his peoples history in the Jedi archives on New Tython. He had never lived with his people so he only knew what the holorecords told about it. The crowd stopped short of the base of the stairs leaving the trio alone in the opening created by the vacuum. The Odanite tossed a gaze back over his shoulder at the group. Who all stared up at the temple entrance in awe.

Three figures stood at the top of the stairs. Their power in the force was awe inspiring even at the distance they stood from him.

“We wish for an audience with the Grand Master of the Luka Sene.” Sablis bowed deep and held it. Talis turned to Anillan who was also bent over at the waste in a bow to the three. The Gray Jedi stood there like a statue, unmoving and emotionless, staring up at the three white haired beings above him. He would not bow to these men. He had never bowed to any being and he was not about to break that ongoing record.

“Why do you not supplicate yourself before us,” The figure on the right motioned to the other two, “the Masters of this temple.”

“When I broke my bonds of slavery I swore to never bow to another person.” Talis never turned his gaze away from the man in the center. “I do not plan on breaking that oath.”

“If you do not supplicate.” The figure on the right was silenced by a fourth being who had emerged from the temple behind him. A weathered old man meandered up next to the man in the center. His aura was blinding but soft. Talis relaxed a bit upon seeing him. He had no clue who the man was but he felt that he could trust him. The old man didn't say anything he just waved the young man forward. The collective feelings of awe and confusion swirled around those in attendance. The Odanite followed the old man into the temple.

They walked for some time before coming out into a cave. Creeper vines clung to the walls and a small spring sat in the center. It fed into a small creek that dug its way out of the cave through one of its walls. A stone tablet was set into the wall across from the entrance. On it was engraved the emblem of the Luka Sene. Instead of just being stone the two moons were large gems. Both about the size of a mans chest and perfectly round and smooth. One was red and black swirling together, representing Bogan. The other was a opalescent white with no other colors, representing Ashla. On the floor sat two pillows a few feet apart. The Old man took the seat under the Bogan stone and motioned for the Jedi to sit under the Ashla stone.

The two sat in silence staring at one another. The old man broke the silence when he reached into his cloak. This caused the wary visitor to rest his hand on his lightsaber hilt. The man pulled out a bag and pulled some rock candy out and tossed it into his mouth. He smiled at the tense warrior sitting across from him before reaching out and offering him some. Talis reached forward and took a few and tossed one in his mouth. They were surprisingly delicious for something so simple.

“Miralukan are a lot like these candies. Not always inviting to the eye but once you try them you fall in love.” The old man's voice was soft like a pillow but stern with wisdom. “I am sure you have many questions. Feel free to ask all of them.”

“Okay.” Talis eyed the old man. “After Pravus took over the brotherhood I heard they bombarded the planet of Alpheridies and slaughtered the survivors. If that is true, then how are you all here?”

“This temple has been here as an enclave for centuries. It was only known of within the upper leadership of the Luka Sene. We sent out an invitation to all of the survivors.” The old man demeanor changed to sadness. “We were not quick enough to get to them all. Our Luka Seekers were sent out and brought in who they could find and freed others that were in slavery. Every soul counted. Our race is on the verge of extinction.”

“So the Luka Sene have been pretty active across the galaxy?”

“Yes. We have Miralukans from all over the galaxy here from all walks of life.” The old man paused and smiled. “Sablis was a Jedi like you. She never completed her training but she has been an immeasurable help to us here at the temple.”

“Why isn't Sablis a member of the Luka Sene?” The Odanite leveled his gaze at the man.

“Well,” the old seer sighed, “those who are not strong enough in the force to avoid the temptation of the darkside have their force sensitivity suppressed for their own good.”

“For their own good?” the Jedi's tone darkened, “and how exactly do you make that decision.”

“We don't, she made it for herself.”

“Fair enough.” Talis ate another one of the rock candies and mulled over the answer a little. “Why have you not attempted to contact the Jedi order. Clan Odan Urr could use your help. We are still in this fight.”

“And you may be.” The old man crunched down another candy. “But we are not.”

“I saw your city. There are at least a thousand strong fighters here.”

“What you saw where men and woman who fled here from the persecution of the Grand Master of the Order your Clan followed.” The old man's gaze stabbed through the younger man. “They would not fight for or with you. They wish to be left alone.”

“I.” Talis stopped and thought about it. “Thats fair.”

“Any other questions?” the Grand Master's cheery tone returned.

“I was wondering if you wouldn't mind if I stayed around and learned more about my people.”

“Ah an inquisitive sort, are we?”

“I have just never been around my own kind. There are other Miralukans among the Jedi but they don't really know that much either. I would like to learn more about the Luka Sene and the Ashla and Bogan if you would give me leave to study.”

“You are welcome to learn as much as you would like. We would have to find a place for you to stay.”

“I have my ship and its comfortable and will keep my up to date with the Jedi and the current war effort.”

“That works, makes my day easier, keeps me from having to talk to much to those wet blankets.”

“Wet blankets?”

“The three masters.” The old man offered Talis another candy but he politely refused. “Suit yourself, and do not worry. They are not mentors. Think of them as the deans, they are more a political group of pains in my joints.” The two shared a hearty laugh before Talis made his way back to his ship.

It wasn't until he returned to the ship that the realization of what he had found hit him. He would have to buy his contact a couple rounds after this.

The Odanite made his way to his comm and sent a message to Junazee. He kept his real meaning to himself but sent her the coordinates hidden among the Garza Cipher that their unit used.

Chaos had erupted on-site, with the scientists running away screaming and the warriors and more resilient members attempting to combat the unholy menace that had erupted from the digs. Several troopers that got separated were now surrounded by ghostly apparitions and quickly disappeared from sight only to emerge moments later to attack their former brethren.

"Fall back! Fall back!" came the call from somewhere within the fray. "They're possessed!"

The chaos was the detriment to the speed in which the Sadowans complied with the order, moving much slower than they had trained for and with far more casualties to the possessive spirits.

Suddenly, a roar erupted overhead and Tarentum assault ships emptied their bellies onto the dig site. Warrior and scholarly Tarenti alike rushed the onslaught of possessed soldiers and ghostly apparitions, while the Tarenti medical corp quickly reinforced the Sadowans treating the wounded.

As the ghostly apparitions and their possessed minions were driven back, using the techniques that had been developed by the Clan of Life and Death, there fell a calm across the field of ruins that the Sadowans had decided to start their expeditions. It would be up to these two clans to work together if they were to uncover the world's secrets, and utilize them for the struggles that the future held for the both of them.

Only time would tell if these two unlikely allies would succeed or if they would end up stabbing one another in the back like enemies of times gone by.

Jade stretched as the Sadowians reached the temple. Her legs slightly stiff from the ride there. A couple of the troopers watched her graceful cat like stretches, their eyes scanning the power and feminine control behind them. The predator in her made her claws itch to play with them like toys, but they were on her side, and she did not attack those who fought on the side of Clan Naga Sadow.

She followed the others into the temple, the force tingling around her. It was a clear warning, that if they kept going they would run into something. But no one seemed to care. Everyone was after the prize. The force users just seemed to take the waves of the force and use it to enhance their abilities.

As they came up upon the main atrium the ghostly blue spectral's seemed to look through their very bodies. One of the troopers sweeped the spectre with his rifle. When there was no response they walked through them. One trooper elbowed another and pointed towards her. The blue holo image lights reflecting in her predatory eyes. Jade smiled showing the tips of her fangs. Though it would have given them some fear, she believed it also gave them some sense of comfort that she was fighting with them, not against them. Her glance moved towards the platform as Evelynn moved onto it. The force screamed a single warning before the cries of the trooper filled the atrium.

The collective atmosphere from the Tarentum members heading to the ruins of Qirool VI could be felt by any possible passing lifeform or ship. The tales of ghosts attacking the Naga Shadow teams seemed more like the Clan was crying wolf. Though they were obligated by the prospect of getting the Sith artifacts and saying they would help, each member had mixed feelings. Feelings that all generally lead to some form of mistrust. But as each member looked across to the next in their shuttles, no one dared to say it out loud.

The sound of boots on metal was soon drowned out by agonizing screams coming nearby. The soldiers and force users took a moment to look at each other once more. The looks in their eyes now clouded with emotions. If the screams were a trick by Naga Shadow, they were putting on a good show. But if the screams were true to the pain and fear in them, then they were in for a fight, and would be truly committed to teaming up with Naga Shadow.

Aliso Plains Outside of Aliso City

A cool afternoon breeze played with the loose edges of Kul’s cloak as he tried to place himself distant from his immediate surroundings. With legs crossed in traditional K’thri style, and eyes closed, he instead focused solely on the vibrant echoes of the Force as it embraced the plains around him. He was still close to the main city in case he was given a mission, but during his downtime often found himself enjoying the solitude with his faithful Massiffs. They were currently lounging about, but every so often would poke and prod at each other when bored. The bare ecology of Aliso left much to be desired in terms of hunting. Regardless, Kul still found this time to bond with his pets to be amicable and good reinforcement for his training.

Trying to ignore the incessant snapping of fabric being pulled too and fro, Kul finally sighed and opened his eyes. His pets noticed the agitation riding at the edge of his thoughts and glanced over. He waved a reassuring hand.

Assurance. Follow. We return.

Kul rose to his feet and threw his hood back over his horns. He noticed one of his Massiffs perk up with his short ears prickling and turn towards Aliso City. Thinking they were excited to return to the hustle and bustle of Willing at work, the Zabrak chuckled inwardly.

Patience. We return now.

Shar’kala, the female, came up to him and nudged at his legs.

Correction. Warning. Scent of smoke. Direction of masters’ caves.

The Massiffs had never really understood the term “building,” instead labeling them all as caves. They also had no terms for the many races of the galaxy, instead referring to them as masters, while emphasizing his own role as Master through their mental speech patterns. Their nned to simplify most things made more complex statements difficult, but emotions worked just as well, most times.

Kul shifted his gaze to Aliso City, and saw that his pet was indeed correct. The city was burning. Or at least part of it. He thought he could hear the sound of rumbling coming from that direction, as well. He was not sure exactly what the cause was, but the scale seemed to indicate an attack of sometime. He quickly snatched up his gear he’d set to the side and began running towards his waiting Delta-class T-3c shuttle.

“Shar’kala, Shor’kir, follow.”

Within the folds of his paraphernalia, a sharp beeping was emanating with the vigor, and annoying habit, of a klaxon. Still moving, Kul struggled with the mess of items until he pulled out his comlink and activated it.

“Drol here.”

“Ah, lord Drol. We’ve been trying to reach you. The Dread Lord has called for full mobilization of Plagueis’ forces. Aliso City is under attack from a droid army of unknown origin.”

“Lieutenant Grifen? I am pleased to see the attack has not claimed you. Tell HQ I’m on my way.”

“Thank you milord. I was hoping to find you alive and well. Actually, we have a set of coordinates ready for you. Apparently, the Quaestor of Ajunta Pall is in need of assistance.”

Kul frowned.

“Uscot? Copy that, send me the coords and I’ll head over.”

“Affirmative, Commander. Good luck.”

As Kul arrived at his shuttle, he huffed loudly.

“This battle won’t be decided by luck.”

Aliso Aliso City

Another droid fell its chest sizzling as it melted away. Laren quickly shifted his aim, never slowing, in order to maximize his firing rate. His mind clocked slightly on overdrive with the aid of adrenaline, his eyes swiftly determined friend or foe and he pulled the trigger accordingly. What had once been a strong front holding the line had deteriorated into madness as droids emerged from places behind the defensive lines. His casualties had shot up since then, with only a handful of squads operating at effective levels. What wounded they could grab they had stashed within a small complex near one of the intersections of the street, along with a multitude of civilians. He’d received word that reinforcements were inbound, but with the seemingly never-ending tide of droids threatening to wash them all away, he wasn’t sure it would matter.

Another eruption pelted his group with shrapnel and dust, forcing them down. One of the buildings down the street suddenly began to creak. A rumbling shook the ground, and finally the building gave way and tumbled down. The screams of the civilians left inside pierced the air even as the raucous scene threatened to deafen them all. Laren turned away, remembering his focus was on the task at hand. He threw a few rounds of hot plasma in the general direction of the droids, but the thick dust had yet to settle and his vision was too impaired to pick a specific target.

How had it come to this? Surprised by an army of relics from a time long past. How did they slip past our sensors and defenses?

He was pulled out of his reverie when a hand clasped itself on his shoulder. He turned to find a soldier standing at attention, having removed his hand and snapped it to salute.

“Quaestor, we have a problem!”

The soldier was clearly trying not to panic, but having a hard time fighting the emotion. The mercenary waved the man down behind cover.

“Down man, do you want to die?! Now spit it out, what’s the problem?”

The soldier never had time to respond as a spray of bolts peppered the area from the direction the building had gone down. One of the bolts struck his back and the soldier fell dead. A few of the more seasoned soldiers saw the new threat and began to engage. Laren’s eyes grew wide as he realized the new threat was another wave of droids came clambering out from below the building’s foundation. So that was it! They were using tunnels under the city. But droids did not dig of their own accord, so who commanded them to? Those were thoughts better left to a more luxurious moment, however. Laren quickly sprinted, bent over to lessen the chance of the crossfire clipping him, and joined the new defense. He quickly gazed over their makeshift barrier of debris and enemy corpses (and some allied here and there, gazing pleadingly for vengeance with their open-eyed stares) and counted as many as he could in a short span.

One...five...yep. There’s a kriffton.

With the lines buckling on all sides, Laren needed to make a decision: hold until help arrived, or try and move to a more established defense. He could not be certain there was a more established defense, though. The assault had surprised the entire Plagueis military. What hope was left was dwindling with the defender’s numbers.

The dull hum of a shuttle’s boosters roared overhead. Laren looked up to see a shadow cross over the thinning dust cloud. What appeared to be a black shuttle opened its rear hatch, and a squad of jump troopers began to rocket down, raining blaster fire into the droids’ advancing lines. The shuttle itself began to rotate and its laser cannons opened fire, obliterating the frontline of droids advancing from the collapsed building. It passed over Laren’s position while continuously pelting what droids it could find. It began to lower and on the ramp Laren could make out a familiar form. Kul dropped from the hatch and landed on bent knees. He surveyed the wreckage around him while pulling his lightsaber from its clip and approaching the Quaestor.

“Fine mess, you’ve made here, Uscot.”

“When they told me they were sending reinforcements, I didn’t think they meant trash cleanup. Best get to work then.”

Kul huffed and activated his saber. Without waiting for Laren he leaped over the barricade and waded into the debris, slicing anything metallic that came near him. The shuttle passed over again, and this time two medium sized furballs came charging out quickly trying to catch up with their Master. They hit the ground rolling, but fixed themselves and dove for the combat. Using their weight they could crash into the droids’ knee joints and topple them over, then remove their weapons by snatching them with jaws. The squad of troopers that arrived with Kul formed up and finished off ones that had fallen or picked off any from their shuffling formation. Laren gave out orders to his remaining squads, and they reformed on the flanks to strengthen the line. Not as many droids were left in the open street, so the original attackers must have broken off from a different emergence tunnel and made their way here originally. Their main focus would be to keep that new tunnel contained.

Sweeping his saber side to side, Kul deflected bolts with his saber as he advanced. The droids had realized their predicament now, and so they had begun to retreat slightly to get behind cover. Behind their lines, Kul noticed a small insect-like creature hopping about. As his men pushed forward, it suddenly dived in the tunnel. It flapped some kind of translucent wings and had a bulbous head that stuck out weightily. Kul thought he knew the creature, but it would have been impossible for one to be here on Aliso of all places. Or was it? The Confederacy of Independent Systems had utilized this planet for some time. It wasn’t too far of a stretch to imagine they had brought others. But for what purpose?

“Uscot. Did you see that?”

“See what, Drol? The teeming scores of droids I’ve been dealing with for the past hour or so?”

“No...it was...A Geonosian, I think.”

Laren paused at that, a perplexed look shadowing his face.

“A Geonosian? They’re extinct aren’t they? Killed off by the Empire.”

Kul pointed his left hand towards the tunnel entrance.

“Apparently not all of them. They must be the one’s controlling the droids. I just don’t know why.”

Laren blasted a droid off to the side as it emerged from a building. Then tossed a thermal detonator in when a few more popped their heads out. Their group pushed on and eventually reached the tunnel itself. Kul and Laren both peered into the gaping hole before glancing at one another. Laren shook his head as a wide grin began to spread across Kul’s face.

“Ohhhh no. I don’t need mind reading powers to know what you’re thinking, Drol. I am not going down there until we have a full grasp of the situation. We need to report to HQ and let them know what we’ve found, there are civilians and wounded left to escort…”

“Like that’s stopped you before, Uscot. Your caring attitude isn’t exactly one of your strong points. Besides, I didn’t give you a choice in the matter really.”

With that Kul pushed the Pantoran into the hole. As a string of life-threatening curses followed him down, Kul and his Massiffs joined him.

The sound of armor plates moving against each other echoed slightly as he walked, but it did little to mask the sound of the blood pounding in his ear. Kerro shuffled his E-11 Blastech blaster from hand to hand as his visor adjusted to the darker lighting in the passage. While the weathered exterior had appeared to be made of crumbling stone, the passage appeared to be constructed of marble, strangely untouched by time.

“Llook at those carvings,” a woman behind the soldier breathed, “it reminds me of the Ragnos Cathedral.”

“Warhost Command-” snaps and crackle of static cut off words in his comm earpiece, “ -have lost visual contact. Report.”

“Didn’t catch that, Command.”

“Cap….eras…..an’t...ar...epeat…?” An increased level of static buzzed over the commlink.

“Captain Keras here, Team Bantha is inside a large structure. We are going to move in to investigate.” Clicking the As his eyes scanned the walls, Keras noticed an indentation in the wall. The object was a bit larger than his fist. As he shuffled toward the item, the other soldiers seemed to relax slightly. The female soldier, the Captain couldn’t recall her first name, stepped forward as she stretched a hand out slowly to allow her fingers to brush the orb.

“Be careful Omakor. Touching strange objects can be bad around-” the words died in the man’s mouth as the orb began to glow. A scream filled the passage, drowning out all thought.

Tarentum had been called in by Grand Master Muz to assist Naga Sadow with the ghost issue in the temple on Qirool VI. They have a history of dealing with things like ghosts and zombies. It wasn’t long ago that Battle Team Grey Wolf had helped Shadow Guard of Scholae with a zombie problem of their own on Judecca, the now dead world. Now Tarentum would come to help with the ghost problem on this new world.

Jurdan watched as Tarenti troops, and Sith, began landing on the surface of the planet just outside the temple. He watched as some of the Sith approached the entrance of the temple and he could hear them start chanting something. It was foreign and gibberish to him. He walked up to one of the members of the clan closest to him, it was Frosty.

“What are they doing?”Jurdan inquired quietly as to not disturb the ceremony.

“They are performing a binding ritual. They mean to bind whatever spirits remain and send them away to where ghosts are supposed to go.” Frosty explained. “This is something the sorcerers have learned based on research they have uncovered in dealing with similar issues in the past.”

Jurdan nodded and watched as the Tarenti sorcerers walked into the mouth of the temple atrium.

Jurdan Krennel had just arrived on the planet Qirool VI. He had recently transferred from Scholae Palatinae to Clan Naga Sadow out of respect for someone who had saved his life. Evelynn Wyrm had found Jurdan stranded in space, his ship adrift but salvageable. He had been in a firefight on behalf of Scholae and had been left behind. Wyrm picked up his beacon and picked him up. Out of respect for his rescuer he offered his skills as Shar Dahkan Aedile. Jurdan walked into the massive temple that sat before him. He was leading a group of his newest soldiers in an attempt to uncover the secrets of the temple.

Jurdan led the men and women under him into the temple entrance. It was a large atrium that he was walking into. He saw old statues of figures that he didn’t know. Some were fully formed and some were rubble and sand. Jurdan could feel something out of place in this temple. It felt like the Force but strangely odd. Jurdan could hear something coming from inside the temple. It was a moaning. Suddenly he saw it. There were translucent forms coming toward him. They weren’t floating in the air but they seemed to drift over the ground quickly. They came towards him and changed as they got closer. They seemed to transform into a more aggressive form and they started to attack.