This whole damn day had been kriffing madness. For every time that he thought the Clan was able to gain ground against their betrayers, the Palatinae had pushed them back. Each rumor of artifacts to be recovered had been followed but more often than not his team has been beaten to the punch.

He appreciated the efforts of the Stormwinds, Raistlin and Darkhawk but he wanted a little something more. He wanted to bring something home for his team or barring that he wanted something he could bring home. He was sure that he was making his team nervous walking so deep into the midst of battle The Force had led them here, it would lead him home if he only had faith.

Crouching down, the Corellian planted a hand down so he could slip down to one knee. With much of the base in ruins, some pieces had been pinned in between bits of fallen ceiling and broken debris. Most of the pieces discovered had been damaged or utterly broken. The odds were not in his favor.
As he examined a gap in the wall, he took a breath. Trying to surpress a feeling of dread, he poked his head into the gap. A number of structures had collapsed under their own weight after sustaining damage. Every attempt was a gamble.

At first, he saw nothing within the opening. However as his eyes adjusted , the man saw a dim patch of light reflecting off an object. It was an ornate looking gauntlet.

Zachary imagined tracing a finger along the gauntlet for a moment. Even from this distance, he could sense the power exuding from it. Each step brought him closer. While the pirates routed and his comrades fought off the Palatinae he would just simply swoop in and grab it.

With it he would sweep aside the darkness from his dreams, push back the betrayers and finally prove his worth to Sonjie. It was only a small step along a long path. Reaching out, he imagined the sensation of the cold surface brushing against his skin as he coaxed it upward through the Force. Slowly the object floated toward his open hands.

Suddenly, the gauntlet came to a dead stop. Stretching out in the Force, O’Maille imagined closing his fingers around it, and pulled his hand back hard. The glove jerked in the air toward him slightly, but as soon as he relaxed, it began to float sideways.

As he did so, he heard something whistle through the air. Twisting his body, he saw something small and short fly just past him, clattering against the wall beside him. His concentration on the gauntlet was broken. The glove shot into a shadowed spot off to his right, where a barely visible figure was crouched.

“Who is there?” The question was harsh, the Savant’s voice laced with barely-contained anger. His eyes darted back and forth wildly. As his pupils focused, they came to rest upon the figure of the Zeltron as she palmed the gauntlet. He felt his heart flutter for the briefest of moments, as she was every bit as lovely as many others of her species. He quashed the response very quickly, however.

Instead, he ignited his lightsaber with a crackle. He raised the weapon to a point parallel to the ground and level with his chest, pointing it at the woman. “Identify yourself immediately or I will be forced to deal with you like I would any Palatinae or pirate scum.” The Corellian’s tone was low, and he hoped came across menacing.

“Is this what I get for letting Lilith go- threats and menacing?” The Zeltron raised her lightsaber and ignited it, casting a red light in contrast with the green light cast by her opponent's lightsaber.

“So you are Blade?” Zachary drew back his lightsaber slightly, shifting his stance so his weight was leaned forward on his left foot. “I have read a little about you after your wretched lot tried to kill ours.” The man rolled his shoulders back as he spoke. “I will try to end things quickly and be on my way.”

Manually added by Augur Sanguinius Tsucyra Entar

Manually added by Augur Sanguinius Tsucyra Entar

Manually added by Augur Sanguinius Tsucyra Entar

Alright Janos, I am glad that you decided to join me on this errand." Bentre smiled at the older man.

The Knight gave a respectful nod to his former master in response. "'M jus' glad you felt ye needed me, Master." As the shuttle rocked, he extended a hand to stabilize himself.

"Our mission is very simple, at least in concept. It looks like the island might have cushioned the ship enough that the enemy Force user was not killed. Our job is to investigate the wreckage, and to contain the Force user. Locke says they have been using Battle Meditation, so if we can disrupt them the Warhost and our accomplices should be able to push the tide of this conflict back in our favor. If the Force is with us today, we may be able to realize the Consul's vision and wipe out the Dominion for good." Bentre looked out the shuttle's port window, seeing the form of the ship quickly growing larger.

"Just a few more moments and we will strike." Bentre cleared his throat, and rested a hand on his lightsaber, watching the spartan troop transport's entrance intently. As soon as the sound of the landing gear engaging could be heard, the Equite ignited his lightsaber. Stormwind followed suit, his glow of his purple beam mingling with the icey hue emanating from Stahoes' weapon. Janos looked forward grimly as the ramp descended, a feeling of dread settling in his stomach. Behind them was an injured-looking Trandoshan, bracketed on either side by another two Trandoshans.

His fears were realized as his eyes beheld the seemingly hundreds of yellow eyes staring back at him. "This is our time to strike. Together now!" As the Sith charged forward, the Journeyman stepped forward just behind him. As the Dominion foot soldiers charged forward in kind, the Sadowans brought their weapons up in retaliation. The two warriors turned their weapons about, cutting through the conventional weapons of the bloodthirsty lizards and cleaving into flesh. As blasters turned on the pair, Bentre threw out a hand, splaying his fingers. About two heartbeats later, white-blue tendrils arched from his fingers, striking the nearest of the Kaleesh and causing it to shriek in pain.

"Flee before your betters, common worms!" The Equite bellowed as his left eye began to glow. Shaking his hand quickly, the Corellian took a swipe with his lighsaber, cleaving through another Kaleesh. His vision seemed to narrow as the smell of blood hit his nose.

*Revel in the destruction, Benny. Just give in to the hunter you are, take your fill of the carnage.* The familiar, dark thoughts came back to mind. It was like his own voice, but not. Hard to explain, but for once he did not rebuke it. Now was the time to bring death.

Together, the two began to cut their way toward the trio of Trandoshans. As the crowd of Kaleesh began to fall away beneath their assault, the Shadow rmanaged to lock eyes with the injured alien. His fellows began to close in, to block the Corellian's path. Without hesitation, the Equite pulled back his arm below flinging his lightsaber forward in a tight arc. Using the Force to guide its trajectory, he watched as the weapon cleaved into the Trandoshan's chest. The creature let out a sharp cry of pain.

"Pull back, Janos!" He barked, reaching into his jacket. His fingers closed around a spherical object located where his blaster would normally have rested. Reaching back, the Sith flung the object between the trio. The grenade exploded in a flash of blue light and cold as Bentre called his lightsaber back to his fingers through the Force.

"Without their special boy, we need to hold them off long enough for the others to land. Maybe they can manage to keep the thing alive for questioning." Bentre growled and struck out with his reclaimed weapon, driving its blade into the eye socket of a particularly foolish Kaleesh who had gotten a little too close to his former apprentice. "We must make our stand here. Now, for the glory of Sadow!" Stahoes' raised his weapon in salute for a moment before twirling it around and drawing his feet back to square up his shoulders. This might test his application of Shii-Cho.

In a weird way, Bentre was looking forward to it.

"If we don't fight, the field is lost." Bentre looked down from his office in th e Lion's Tooth. Even from here, he could see the Iron Throne's loyal landing. Compressing the button on his commlink, he cleared his throat before speaking in a grave tone. "Alright Shar Dakhan, this is it. Looks like that worm Pravus won't let our people stand against his corruption much longer. So let's repel these intruders. We are at war. To arms! For Naga Sadow!"

As though on cue, several Warhost starfighters circled in on the landing shuttles. Doubtlessly Aexod would be among them. Two green lances of energy shot from the TIEs, striking the ground soundly. Stahoes could not hear their screams, but the sight brought him a smile. He wouldn't normally take this kind of initiative, but with Darkblade hiding away on the Sadowan ISD, *Covenant* he could not afford to stand on tradition. In the absence of the Quaestor, the responsibility fell to him. "Push these kriffing idiots back. Show them that we are not going to be conquered. I do not care where your loyalties lie, Dakhani. Stand up and defend your home."

The scene below was quickly becoming a bloodbath. Two shuttles, one bearing the colors of Marka Ragnos and the other bearing the colors of Shar Dakhan, landed about a hundred feet away from the large transport from which the soliders of the Iron Throne were actively disembarking. Lightsabers were alight, and his fellows were charging headlong toward the invaders.

There were those in the Clan who stood alongside the Grand Master in his genocide of those labeled as Undesirable. There were those who stood with Sanguinius in protest of the slaughter of the Jedi. There were those who stood on the sidelines, being tied up in their own affairs, caring not either way. Bentre was sure there was even some in the Clan who stood aside because they merely feared the Grand Master’s wrath. Sometimes he even thought that Locke might be among them.

In that moment, it did not matter. They were standing together as a House, as a family to stand against this attack on their home. The commlink on his desk crackled. “Master,” the voice of his old friend hissed over the worn speaker, “the hands of the Iron Throne are pushing us back hard. What are you orders?”

“I need you all to hold on a little longer, Janos. Aexod and the others are vectoring in on your position to provide some support from above.” Three fighters screamed past the office window, flying in tight formation. Two black TIE - Interceptors came in from above the Lion’s Tooth, following quickly on the Warhost pilots.

They way they were flying was akin to a raptor on the hunt, with all the skill and grace of a Tarchalian gazelle. This battle was going to get more ugly quickly. Bentre turned from the window, clutching his personal commlink in hand. “All Dakhani and Warhost, this is Aedile Stahoes. I am on my way down, immediately.” The Sith drew a breath, blinking as he tried to settle the butterflies in his stomach. “We are going to put the screws to these vermin, teach them to try to invade Sepros.

“Master!” The voice of Janos answered back, panic evident in his tone. “Another shuttle has landed. It looks like Atra is leading the Inquisitorius into the field.”

Bentre had to choke back a gasp. This fight was not going to go well. Now brother was plotted against brother, a Sadowan against his fellow Sadowans. The ties of blood would be stressed. Anger burned in his blood at the thought. This was going to be bad. He just hoped that this would not shake loose the close moorings of the Clan.