Two ships slowly glided side by side through the watery abyss of the deep ocean, the cold silence enveloping both the ships, and the facility that held the target of which the ships crews were there to contain and eliminate if necessary.
“Alright, lets go over the plan again,” Tahiri stood in front of her ships holo-table, it’s display showing the primary Central Nexus where a now rogue AI system named S.T.A.R. was wreaking havoc, and where a Collective spec ops team had infiltrated. Glancing to her apprentice, Livia Mariquita Daffel, and then to the glowing holograms of her long time friend and now Aedile, Blackhawk with his crew aboard their ship.
“Livia and I will go in through this secondary service hatch at the north end of the facility, since it’s closest to one that the Collective Strikeforce Senth Six team went through,” the petite Togruta pointed to the location. “That way we can make sure there is no way for spec ops team to get out the same way they came in.”
“Blackhawk, you and your team will head to the southern external hatch to get into the facility. We’ll meet up as close to the center of the Nexus as possible, eliminating any Collective members we find. Brotherhood soldiers, restrain, but try not to kill if you can’t help it. We want to minimize as many casualties on our side as possible.”
Pausing for a moment, she waited for at least some confirming nods, before continuing.
“As for this new S.T.A.R. AI system, we’ll need to assess how badly corrupted it is and then decide whether or not this thing needs to totally shut down. Or simply put into a safety reboot, or whatever it is called.” The Elders eyes were like a smoldering fire, and yet had a stark coldness to them, her jaw set in a stern and serious expression as she let an exasperated sigh, “In honesty though, I’d prefer if we’d just let this entire facility explode down here in the deep ocean, but the council has deemed that this facility has too much importance to make it that simple.”
A small growl escaped from her lips as she glanced again at her datapad, it’s display showing all the info the Brotherhood had on the Collective team.
“Is everyone clear on what they need to do?”
<@743329861481005098> <@280930981983289345>
As her master Tahiri was going over the plan one last time, Livia couldn’t help but feel exasperated for the group had already gone over the plan over a dozen times at this point and each time they did, it seemed like her master became increasingly more irritated. But since we had to go over it again, Livia took this opportunity to check her equipment to make sure that everything was ready. She especially wanted to make sure that her code replicator and voice emulator were tuned and in working order. As Tahiri near the end of the mission briefing she stowed her equipment safely so that none of it would not get damaged during the initial infiltration. After the briefing as the two teams split up to head to their designated inflation position, Livia turned to her master and reported to her “all of my gear has been tuned and is ready to go.”
As they made their approach, Blackhawk turned to the pilot he’d voluntold for this particular part of the mission.
“You know the plan. Back off once we’re gone. If I call you, bombard this place with ion cannon fire. Got it?”
“Yes, sir.” the pilot replied.
“Good. Tazi, question for you. I have an idea. Think you can pull it off?”
He explained what he was thinking.
Tazi grinned mischievously. “That’s horrible. I love it. And yes, I’ll try it. There’s another target in there that might work on too, if you and the others can keep him distracted long enough.”
“Done.” Blackhawk stated. “Is it who I think it is?”
“Who else in there would it be worth trying it on?” she questioned sarcastically.
“True. We ready?”
Not that he needed them to say so, but both of Blackhawk’s companions replied in the affirmative. With that, they boarded the underwater station.
After confirmation and Blackhawk’s ship, the Ghost of Tarentum peeled off to head towards their destination, the Elder studied the map one last time. A flash of light from an explosion… seen through the porthole… no sound till the shockwave hit the vessels shields… the sound was there, booming and some crackling… but the only sounds she heard were those of the creature’s piercing wails as they fled the castle’s refuge… the cries of Tarentums soldiers over the comms before going dark… her mind reaching out, trying to see if there was a way she could help… all her mind caught were memories… of lives that weren’t hers, lived and then snuffed out…
Livia’s voice cut through her memory like a knife, tearing her back to the present.
“Hmmm,” the Elder glanced over, and seeing her well prepared apprentice had done her due diligence, she gave the Ryn a nod and small smile. “Good, this mission needs to done with the utmost precision. I honestly don’t understand much about this A.I. and what makes it so great. But the Council wants this done.”
Tapping a few buttons the holo-table went dark and white noise like hum it had been giving off was silenced, giving in to the cold underwater stillness, the only noise now coming from the low thrum of the engine. She had noticed the consistent twitch of her apprentices tail, sensing the Ryn’s irritation. She went over to the window and leaned against the cool metal with her right arm, letting out a small sigh.
“Livia, I…” she hadn’t told Livia very much about the final days of her first Clan, Tarentum, only that they besieged upon and were destroyed by the Collective forces. However, Tahiri felt the familiar stirrings of the dark rage, the voice of vengeance in the back of her mind.
“I want to warn you,” with a grim expression, and eyes that were no longer gray, but sulfuric yellow now, the Togruta continued. “You may see me do some things here that will be unsightly. I taught you both codes for a reason, but here you may see the full meaning of the Sith code. There is still an angry ravenous part of me, that wants to rip the world apart.”
Catching Livia’s bright eyes, she continued, “Be aware and be careful. Don’t get in my way, unless you absolutely have to, and even then leave it to Blackhawk to calm me down. I just want to have every member of our team make it out alive. I promise I will tell you in time why, just trust me. Alright?”
Livia sensed the conflicting tension of concern and smoldering anger in her master’s voice. But she knew that from the moment she followed Tahiri into the brotherhood that her master had secrets that she probably wouldn’t know unless she needed too. As she replied to her master, her voice was bright while also being eerily calm at the same time. “Don’t worry I trust you and I will have your back, whether it is fighting by your side or covering you from a distance, and you know that no matter if it’s a simple job or the most dangerous that I’m always careful.“ She paused, the sparkle in her eyes fading for a moment then added in a slightly sterner tone, “and don’t worry about me seeing something unsightly I grew up on ships moving from place to place I’ve seen violence that was either petty, calculated, or a frenzied brutality, sometimes all at the same time, so I know that everyone has the potential.” Then just as quickly as it faded the light returned to her eyes as she continued “but I also know that a few violent acts doesn’t mean that someone has a bad heart, so let’s get this job done so we can go home and out of the ocean.”
If this was supposed to be the deadliest strike stream The Collective had to offer, Blackhawk failed to to understand how they had survived this long. Sure, he’d encountered less able foes, but Senth Six didn’t seem to offer much in terms of beings that were more particularly difficult to deal with, at least not with any consistency. Occasionally, he’d run into one that resisted electrocution, but telekinesis did the job, as did the good old fashioned lightsaber. The target awaiting them in the next room however, would prove to be one of the few that actually had some tricks up his sleeve that would make life a bit more difficult.
A smile flickered across the Togruta’s face, “Alright. Sounds like a plan. Max, how much further?”
“Not much further Mistress. Only a few moments before we are over the hatch,” her pilot droid immediately responded. “I will signal when the seal is good.”
“Good. And then back off till you hear me call you. Total radio silence, we don’t need to alert the Collective scum that we’re here,” grabbing her Envoy bag she headed for the ships hatch. “Let’s get this over with.”
A few more minutes passed and both passengers felt the ship lock on and lurch a little as it sealed the hatch for them to get in. A light turned on and a voice crackled through the ships intercom.
“Mistress, we have arrived.”
With Livia’s help, she quickly unsealed the ships hatch, opening it, and then opened the facilities hatch. Both women quickly jumped down, and the Elder looked back up and motioned to Max, who closed the hatches.
After entering the facility, Livia and Tahiri carefully made their way through the hallways. When they came to an area that was restricted, Livia used her code replicator to get through the doors to each section so they could move undetected by the security system. But as they continued deeper into the facility Livia got a strong sense of foreboding, they hadn’t run into any serious patrols that they weren’t able to avoid and it felt like things were moving almost too smoothly as they moved towards the rendezvous point. Acting on this feeling she whispered to her master “ it may be nothing but something doesn’t feel right we need to be on guard.” As she said that Livia double checked the sensors on her weapons to make sure nothing was off in their immediate surroundings.
Gral was not enjoying this mission. Not one bit. His people were getting destroyed. Despite their training, he was getting continuous updates regarding casualties being caused by what sounded like three enemy operatives. Apparently, their training wasn’t providing much help.
Fine. I’ll handle this myself.
The Kaleesh doubted very much he could take three evidently well trained For e users at once, but he could probably deal with at least one of them.
What came through the door… That can’t be possible! Gral’s eyes went wide. He thought he’d killed them all years ago. And yet, somehow, a Tarenti stood before him, and one that had held a leadership position.
“You should be dead!* the Kaleesh exclaimed. The Clawdite gave him a level stare. "You and your people think that of every Force user.” he growled.
“No! Well, okay, yes, but you should have been killed years ago. We wiped out the entire clan!” The Clawdite went wide eyed. “What?” “One of the first things we did! Made ourselves known! I was there. There were no survivors!” For a moment, nothing happened. Then the Clawdite s eyes went from wide to angry. Gral felt the temperature in the room drop.
“You two. Out. Find any other patrols this scumbag may have around, and wipe them out.” The Togruta and the Hatch hesitated only for a moment before leaving. Surprisingly, Blackhawk didn’t draw lightsabers. He raised a hand, and suddenly, Kyth found himself pinned to the ceiling. A pressure began to pull on his arm.
“Tarentum was never completely destroyed.” Blackhawk growled. “And for your part in it’s destruction, I will deliver it’s vengeance.”
The Togruta and Ryn had just finished off one Collective agaent and knocked out several compromised Brotherhood soldiers, when Livia had told Tahiri, that she sensed something bad was going to happen in the next room, a central point where several corridors met at.
“I saw Blackhawk involved.”
The moment that name fell from her apprentices lips, she didn’t hesitate and raced down the corridor, reaching the door, it opening just as she got there. Livia was fast with her tech.
Inside the room she met with a far different site than what she had feared. The Kaleesh back hit the ceiling, and Blackhawk’s words, along with his deep growl was what she heard.
Her own rage bubbled up, she motioned for Livia to stay back and then walked forward.
“Tarentum lives on,” a growl emanated from her throat as she spoke. “A Clan that will never die.”
Gral felt his blood run cold at the sound of another voice. He found his head could still move, and so looked. No! Tahiri Drakon? Here? Evidently, The Collective had not been as thorough in their extermination as advertised. He let out a pained grunt as his arm tore itself free. His other arm did something similar a moment later. He fell to the ground with a hard thunk. “Ordinarily, I’d finish tearing you apart,” the Clawdite spat, “but I’m sure my friend here has a poison to finish you off with. Or a pet she needs to feed.”
With that, a lightsaber ignited and slashed through his knees.
“Either way, you are going to pay for what you did.”
“I would love to have watched Zuska rip your throat out, sadly my pets aren’t here.” Tahiri nodded to Blackhawk, before pulling four of her throwing knives from their hidden placements. “But I know a way to make your end just as painful as the pain you made us feel.”
With precise flicks of her wrist, she threw each blade into a specific part of the man’s anatomy. Two blades sank deep into his upper thighs, one cracked the bone as it pierced the center of his chest, and the drove half into his abdomin.
“I’d also tear you apart. But that seems like too quick of an end for you,” Tahiri’s voice was low and calm. A small crackle could be heard in the stillness that followed her words, before a strong current of lightning sprang from her fingertips and hit the first blade in his body. The electrical torrent jumped from one blade to another, causing the Kaleesh to scream in agony, while his body convulsed and spasmed on the floor. A few minutes passed, as the screaming finally stopped and the Elder lowered her hand, watching the charred body still twitching even though his hearts had already stopped beating moments before.
Tahiri took a beep breath, and walked closer, retrieving her blades. Then gripping the handle of her shoto lightsaber, she ignited the howling blade and carved two holes in his chest, making sure his hearts were fully destroyed.
“There. Let’s go finish the rest of these bastards off, Brother,” looking to Blackhawk. “Take out and contain any resource the AI might use against us, and get the frack out of here. Let the Arx scientists deal with the AI. I’m tired of cleaning up these messes.”
Blackhawk pinged his communicator.
“Pick us up, ion this place, and fire every damned buzz droid missile we have at this facility. They want us to keep cleaning up their cark ups, they can learn to live with the consequences.”
He turned to Tahiri, I can take you and your apprentice as well if you’d like.“
Tahiri turned and looked to Livia. The Ryn simply nodded.
“Aye, let’s go.”