A Knight Lost, an Order Reborn

[TAC]

Chaos had fallen.

The war was over.

And it all ended with the final stand of the Galactic Alliance, the Battle of Coruscant.

Since before history, some of the greatest of civilizations had risen to power and come crashing down around this planet. It had seen every type of government, thousands of species, tens of thousands of languages, and hundreds of thousands of sects and creeds. It saw the Republics of Old, the Sith ruled empire, a changing of hands of republics and alliances, and once again the jewel of the core would fall in to the hands of the Sith Order.

Merely minutes ago, the entire world had echoed with the words of a dying man. For those who kept up with events would recognize the voice of the Chief of State was broken, the strength that had been associated with their leader now non-existent. “This is Nathanaeu Bastele. A Sith warship… descending… Jedi Temple. I don’t know… planning but... If you can hear… evacuate or head underground… all costs. Coruscant… gone. The Alliance is falling. Save yourselves and… Force… with you.”

A few blocks from the Galactic Congress Hall, a now crumbling and ravaged landmark on the city landscape, a redhead woman danced between several combatants. Several feet her ship sat, running, and thus far untouched. In the final minutes of Coruscant, however, there was no mistaking that she needed to move. Quickly. As the final ships went up into a retreat, the Sith would be swarming the stragglers.

The bright rapier of the woman flashed back and forth, blocking and parrying the three Crusaders that swarmed her. Her breath was ragged, having been in combat for the entirety of the day. The woman's name was Siennaa. Most people knew her more formally, however, as the Duchess of Arabanth, and a member of the royal Hapan family. An important diplomat, for sure, but she was not here for that today.

She had come to Coruscant to witness the final fall, and to aid in whatever way she could. She was here, incognito, on behalf of the Imperial Knights. The secret organization she was a member of, however, was not open about its existence. She wore, instead, Hapan armour and her Hapan rapier, her Imperial Knight equipment locked up tight in a footlocker on her ship. But she had completed her work, and had a report to make to her superiors. While she was tied down by these three Sith, however, she was in increasingly grave danger.

With a quick flick, she slit one of the three Crusader's throats, suddenly attacked fiercely by the other two and being pushed away from her ship. The female Crusader she killed was the less skilled of the three, but she was glad to only have to deal with only the two of them.

The Hapan flipped backwards, deflecting one final attack as she gave herself space between the two skilled Sith and herself. "Gentlemen," she said, her sword up as she struggled to catch her breath. "I do believe I have places to go, if you would be so obliged as to remove yourselves from my way." She was met with laughter from one of them, as they tried to regain their own breath. "I should think not, Jedi."

A small smile crossed the woman's face. "Hardly a Jedi," she admitted.

 

[Jaqen H'ghar]

Merlin was in a state of panic, not the kind that takes away all sense, but the kind one feels when they realize they're on a planet being taken over by the most evil force in the galaxy and they have no ship. He was still in his Imperial Knight armor, and had his lightsaber clipped to his belt. As he flew in his stolen speeder, he scanned the area for any ships capable of entering space that seemed abandoned. If he were trapped here, it wouldn't be long before he was caught and he couldn't have that. Quietly he focused on the force, trying to ease away the aches and pains and ignore the wounds he received from the battle. While doing so he could feel the force pulling him in one direction, perhaps answering his call to find an abandoned ship. He wasn't sure, until he came around and saw amidst the planetary chaos a ship that was certainly not abandoned. He saw a flash of red hair, and the death of a Sith. A woman was being assaulted...or by the looks of it assaulting three Sith and she managed to take one down. It was impressive to say the least.

Assessing the situation, the Sith pushed her back, closing in until the one had died, at that they moved back some. A jedi might've dropped down, attempted to sneak up on them and kill them with their ligthsaber, elegant and the like. Merlin wasn't sure what was going on, but he was sure he couldn't fight for long, or sneak very well in his current state. Luckily, he wasn't a jedi. He aimed his speeder at the two, and plunged full speed at them, cutting the engine at a downward decent so that the natural momentum would do the job as he silently plummeted directly into the two remaining attackers. One managed to get out of the way in time, the other met with a sickening noise, crushed between the speeder and the duracreet that dragged his body underneath it a good 15 yards, stopping near the edge of a precipice.

Without missing a beat, Merlin hopped out of the speeder, activated his silver lightsaber and stared the shocked and understandably pissed off sith down. "Well, that's two down...I suppose this makes up for the three on one earlier." At this the Sith charged, utterly consumed by his anger. Merlin reflected in the split second he had that he must have looked entirely to similar fighting in the Congress Hall. It was now with a renewed sense of calm he engaged his enemy, fighting smarter rather than harder. When the Sith was in range Merlin dropped down, laying on his back brought his hands up and grasped his enemy with the force, using his charge against him and flinging him over the edge, presumably to his death...which was good, because it was nice to lay there on the duracrete. It felt cool to his sweet soaked flesh, a nice respite from the over all trouble of the day. The shock was slowly wearing off, which meant his adrenaline was fading and his focus as well. After a moment, he stood up as his lightsaber closed with a snap-hiss.

"I ah...don't suppose that was enough to buy a ticket off world in that ship of yours?" he asked hopefully. It was at this point he saw it, there were huge storms filled with the darkside on the horizon. He hoped with all hope that her answer was yes.

 

[Ten10dix]

Leroy had been walking for what seemed like hours. The distress signal they had followed turned out to be a dead end. Quite literally. The men who had accompanied him were dead, most from the Imperial ambush, though the rest had been picked up one by one by whatever was happening to Coruscant.

What was happening? He felt exhausted, lightning was falling from the skies, and it was raining... Ice? Ice? On Coruscant? The temperature seemed to drop as time went by, and soon Leroy was shivering. He spotted some sort of tornado in the distance, tearing buildings apart as if they were nothing. How the hell was he supposed to get off this planet? It was as if hell itself decided to open its gates and cause as much death and chaos as it possibly could.

He stopped walking. This was just pointless. He had been walking for nearly three hours now. What was the point? Maybe he should just lie down and rest, go to sleep? When he died, he wouldn't even realize it. Painless. Calm. He liked it.

Then he heard something. Something different from the falling buildings, from the laser blasts in the distance, from the lightning an rain. A ship? Could it be a ship? He turned around, watching as something flew through the sky. His heart just stopped, hope surging through his system as it came closer. He started shouting, jumping up and down, waving his hands, using hope to fuel his actions. As it got closer, he noticed it was far too small to be a ship. It was a speeder. Leroy stopped, his mood dampening even more. He glanced in its direction one more time. That wasn't just a speeder. That was a falling speeder. It was on a direct course with the ground. If the pilot survived, maybe they could help each other out? Leroy started running towards the speeder, heard it as it crashed into the ground. He turned a corner, saw the flames and also saw some people fighting. A few dead bodies were lying about. The person in the speeder must of seen the ship and decided to help out the owner.

The owner in question was a women, fairly attractive with strong red hair. She wore armor traditionally worn by the Hapans, Leroy remembered seeing it in one of his books. He was about to ask himself why a Hapan would be on Coruscant, but then he saw the man.

An Imperial Knight. An actual Imperial Knight. Leroy grinned, something which he had not done in a long time. He ran towards them, arms up in the air, hoping they wouldn't shoot him on sight.

He approached them, breathing heavily and regretting his run over here. He really very tired, exhausted even.. He tried his best to do an official salute, and spoke, his tone firm.

"Captain Jonas Leroy, my Lord. Formerly of the Imperial Navy and now a former Captain of the Alliance Navy. I deserted to them after the Emperor was murdered. I live to serve."

He had never had the honor of meeting an Imperial Knight, and didn't know what to do. Was a salute enough? Should he bow? Kneel down? Would the Knight even care what he did? Was he even supposed to call him "My Lord?"

The Alliance had fallen, Coruscant had been torn apart by who knows what and now Leroy was meeting a member of an apparently dead group who also happened to be the group he most respected in the entire Galaxy. What a day this was turning out to be...

 

[TAC]

Before the Duchess could reengage the two Sith, something quite dramatic happened. On most occurrences, when dramatic things happened, it had a negative outcome for the redheaded warrior. But today, more than that she might even realize, fortune was smiling upon her. The two Crusaders were undoubtedly something she could handle, but his aid was appreciated nonetheless.

At the same time, however, this man was an immense problem. Standing there, dressed in the full figure of an Imperial Knight for every Sith and their evil minion to see. She was ecstatic, and yet perplexed and worried, all at the same time. She was, then, a little dubious about this man. She would have no time to articulate her questions, though, at least not yet. His nonchalant question was asked, when suddenly the woman was gripped with fear and cold.

Her sword came up, pointing to the man, for only a split second before she realized he was not the cause of this feeling. Something, involving all of Coruscant, was making her feel this way. She nodded to the man, "It shall. I am Sienaa," she replied simply. She nodded towards her ship, more interested in vacating the area than exchanging pleasantries quite yet. Storms were rolling in- contrary to what ALWAYS happened on Coruscant- and electricity unnaturally licked the air.

As they made their way to the ramp, however, they were further delayed. Out of nowhere, a tattered Naval officer ran up out of nowhere. On any other day, all of these oddities would be too much for the Duchess to handle, but on this day there was no reaction. He approached the other Imperial Knight and bowed to him. She was glad neither of them knew who she was, for the moment, but she could not stop her eyebrows from rising on her head.

"Please, we need to leave now," she said. She walked up the ramp, waiting for the other two to board before she set the ship into motion. The last stragglers were fleeing, many being shot down by the Sith as they sought to destroy the Galactic Alliance. It was silent as they stayed close to a majority of the fleeing ships, not becoming a target anyone could single out. One fighter got too close, and the automatic weapons systems made quick work of the Imperial perpetrator. Setting a course, the ship jumped into hyper space, along with millions of other refugees.

Once they were well on their way, the woman swiveled in her chair to face the other two. She extended a hand, in turn, to each of them. "My apologies for my shortness. My name is Sienaa, glad to have you both aboard. Who, might I ask, are you?" Quite purposefully, that she was the sister of the Queen Mother and an Imperial Knight were two facts she did not mention.

 

[Jaqen H'ghar]

When the woman raised her sword he sighed inwardly, and began to raise his lightsaber, but then she quit. It must have been the oncoming storm. He could feel it edging away, draining his last reserves of strength. He nodded, and started to speak but was cut off shortly by an Imperial soldier heading their way. No no, he stood corrected, an Imperial Officer. When he was called Lord, it made him chuckle wearily. "No need for that sort of talk now. I serve the Empire, I don't lord over it like the usurping bastards...if you're a deserter though, you're welcome to come with us if it's alright with the Lady..." He paused, not sure of how much to trust the man, but agreeing with moving to the ship. Lightening and ice were falling, hell had frozen over and found its way to Coruscant it seemed.

He walked, slowly. His pride kept him from limping, but his wounds were obviously taking their toll none the less. As they boarded the ship, he disengaged his lightsaber, and clipped it in place. He sighed, almost collapsing in the chair and nearly falling asleep as they took off, till he was brought back to wakefulness by Sienaa's voice. Right, he just realized he hadn't introduced himself. From his seat, he spoke "You'll forgive me for not standing. The Senate Hall took its toll, though I took my own fair share." He smiled genuinely at that, it was a thought that would bring him warmth in the coming years, he knew.

"Knight Marshal Merlin Ambrosius. Or at least, I was anyway. Not any left of my order that I've found yet...though I've got to admit, it felt damn good being back in armor today." He could feel a little of his strength returning, having left whatever was happening on Coruscant. As it turned out though, most of his weariness was purely his own. "Don't suppose you have a good dark lager on this vessel Madame?" He gave her a smile before turning serious as his gaze looked over at the captain. "And you, if your story is true, I like you. If I sense a single inch of deception and feel you're endangering myself or this beautiful woman however, I will have no compunction with cutting you down. I don't mean it as a threat, it's a matter of course. You sound like an Imperial, and while I love my Empire dearly, she has fallen far from grace." Years of hiding and paranoia and loss shown on his face, to tired was the Marshal to hide his feelings at the moment.

 

[Ten10dix]

Leroy followed the two onto the ship. He sat down on the chair, and simply looked out. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of ships of different sizes, shape and origins joined to form one of the largest convoys he had ever seen. Imperial fighters tried to disrupt the formation, but they all helped each other out, ganging up on the largely outnumbered Imperials until they were safely away from most of the danger. The women turned around, and shook hands with the Imperial Knight. She then extended her own hand towards him, and he took it and shook.

The Imperial Knight, a Marshall, was not what Leroy expected him to be. Very outgoing. Leroy didn't mind, and when the Marshall issued the warning to him, Leroy responded very calmly.

"Understandable, sir."

He then began to tell his own story.

"I deserted from the Empire a couple of years back, and secured command of one of their Heroic-class Star Destroyers. I heard the Sith were making their move on Coruscant, and came just in time to participate in the battle. The Sith have brought the full might of the Imperial Navy to bear here, I thought we would only hold out for a few hours. We managed to hold the line for around five, maybe six. My ship, the Justicar, managed to down around a dozen or two of their own, hard to say, but we were surrounded and cut off from the rest of the fleet. I would of tried a last stand, but a lucky shot blew the bridge open, killing the majority of my command crew. I was lucky to have survived..."

Leroy hesitated. He only now realized, looking back at it, that he actually ran from a fight.

"I ordered my men to abandon ship. I don't think many made it out. We escaped minutes after the ship was destroyed. Some good soldiers died that day. Damn Sith."

He looked up at the women.

"If you don't mind me asking, what is a Hapan doing this far out? I figured you lot would stay far away from all this fighting. No offence."

He then turned to the Marshall.

"And you, sir? I thought the Imperial Knights had all been killed off. If I'd of known you were still active, I would of sought you out. Working with the Alliance wasn't exactly fun, they have no real grasp of Imperial professionalism."

 

[TAC]

The woman listened carefully to what the man, who gave Merlin Ambrosius as his name, had to say. An interesting thought, that a Imperial Knight Marshall had been running around all of these years. She was slightly relieved in hearing what she could assume meant that the man had not often worn the Imperial armour. It was a signature, and a threat to the Sith- one the Imperial Knights had worked hard to keep hidden over the last few years.

They were dead to the galaxy.

And for now, that was what they needed.

The Duchess had other thoughts, but at this moment, with the Galactic Alliance falling and the Sith on a rampage, she appreciated the screen to hide behind. Eventually, she felt that the Imperial Knights would need to make a move and retake their identity, but she realized the necessity of the times. She shook her head with a smile at the question of alcohol, and again raised an eyebrow at the man's comment towards the naval captain. She was quite capable of handling herself. But she wasn't on Hapes- she was on a ship with two strange men.

Finally the other man- one Captain Jonas LeRoy- posed a question to her. "I am a diplomat," she replied, "and am in service to the Queen Mother, which brought me here." She quietly then waited for the Imperial Knight to respond to LeRoy's question for him, as his response very much interested her.

 

[Jaqen H'ghar]

He sighed outwardly at the lack of drinks aboard. Well he was safe, it was obviously to much to ask for safety and strong drink. "Far as I know, they were. I've been in a self imposed exile for the last...decade? Maybe." He paused rubbing his eyes. "I felt a pull to Coruscant in the force, so I followed it to see what was happening. I found myself in the Senate Halls, and helped several senators escape. I figure our best chance for a resistance is to get out as many planetary leaders as was possible. The Chief of State...he fought bravely, I don't know if he lives still. We were separated in the battle after the Dark Lord showed up. There were grenades, part of the building collapsed. I killed maybe...six or seven sith, and even caused a good portion to retreat with one of their false lords." All mention of the Sith were spoken like curses, as though acid were forming at the tongue as Merlin spoke of them.

"In the end though, they had superior numbers. If the Jedi had stayed...bloody cowards, the lot of them. Ill disciplined peace loving idiots." Those words too were laced with similar spite. The Imperial in the Knight shown through at this point, a shadow of who he used to be when he served long ago. He replayed the battle through his mind, freeing the senators held captive by the Sith, helping them escape, fighitng along side the Chief of State and his duel with a Sith Lord by the name of Geist Weiss. He explained it all a bit more, up until he saw the Hapan woman slice the throat of one of the Sith and he crashed the speeder into the group...At this his eyes grew slightly wide with realization.

"Madame, with all due respect. If you're a diplomat I'm the bloody Emperor. You defended yourself from three sith, killed one and gave the other two a bit of shock. No diplomat can do that."

 

[Ten10dix]

Leroy raised his eyebrow when the Hapan not only refused to state her name, but said she was a diplomat. He felt an urge to point out she was in full battle armor, carrying what looked like some sort of sword which wasn't the most effective weapon for someone of her status. Leroy didn't ask, though. His job wasn't to ask such questions, only to fight. So instead of commenting on that, he simply smiled and spoke.

"Interesting, ma'am. An honor to be in the presence of one sent by the Queen Mother herself."

He didn't know much about Hapan culture, but he knew to show respect when respect was needed. He then listened to the Marshall as he told his own story.

He knew Imperial Knights were the best, but even knowing that he was very impressed by his story. Six or seven Sith, not including the Sith Lord? Leroy was glad the Imperial Knights lived up to their reputation.

He saw the Marshall's eyes widen, as he too realized that the Hapan was lying. Would this get ugly? He hoped not. Leroy stayed quiet, however, not wanting to speak out of place.

 

[TAC]

The woman grinned from ear to ear as she regarded the Imperial Knight. Perceptive, skilled, she wondered what this Merlin fellow was all about. She did not doubt that she would find out, however. An Imperial Knight like this would be someone they would remember, and undoubtedly an asset to the team. His story was impressive, and she was glad that he caught on that the full truth wasn't disclosed.

Siennaa, as she had in fact introduced herself as such, smiled at the man as she sat back in the seat. "I am indeed a diplomat and envoy in the service of the Queen Mother, Knight Marshal Ambrosius." The smile widened, then, as she regarded the two. "And one in service to the Queen Mother is never without protection. As you see I have no bodyguards." The woman simply shrugged.

"Regardless, I never said that I was only a diplomat." Her smile was warm, and she nodded at the comment from the Naval Captain. He was a simply officer, didn't question things. Good in most circumstances, but the Imperial Knights lived to ask questions. It was their identity, and it was how they constantly maintained the line between Dark and Light.

It wasn't all that the woman had to say, but she was rather enjoying the conversation. It was giving her powerful insight into both of the men now traveling with her, and she thrived on information.

 

[Jaqen H'ghar]

"No you're missing my point or being obtuse. In order to do what you did one would need strength in the force, and training. You're obviously not a Sith, or I'd have killed you by now. If you were a Jedi you'd be using a lightsaber, not a sword. Though the sword type you're carrying is the lightest, and fastest alternative when one can't use a lightsaber." He was at this point thinking aloud, having kicked into the investigative mode an Imperial Knight is called upon to do...or was called upon to do, he reminded himself. It had been a long, long time since that part of his training had been called upon. He opened himself up to the force, feeling her out more, looking for deception, for strength in the force and watched her for any body language that might betray her otherwise friendly demeanor.

"Which means you fight those who wield lightsabers on a semi regular basis at least, or that you're used to using one yourself." He finished his thought process, looking at her more curiously as the seconds ticked by. She was far to different to be a Jedi, the Hapan didn't train force sensatives as far as he was aware and she certainly wasn't a Sith, but she had training from somewhere. It was a long shot, an extremely long shot, but one he had to look into or he may just go mad. The force had drawn him to that planet for a reason, and he had thought that it was to protect those on the planet, but what if he was mistaken...what if it was something more?

"If you were faced with a task in service to your Queen Mother, being a diplomat, and you were attacked and left for dead would you want a gentleman medical physician who was well trained but would only help you for credits that you would not get back, or a woman who went by seemingly innocuously enough but would require more time to help? and why. or why not?" The question seemed simple enough, but it was a standard situational question asked to many imperial knights that was not philosophical in the slightest. Unlike the Jedi, the Imperial Knights were interested in what got the best results in their mission. Her answer and her reasoning behind it would perhaps reveal much. Most Hapan would chose the woman, he knew, but her reasoning behind it was what was of the most import to Merlin. His grey eyes looked into hers, not allowing hope to enter them just yet.

 

[Ten10dix]

Leroy listened intently, though he admitted to himself this was too far out of his league. He liked to think of himself as an intelligent man, but he had never liked to think too much. As a soldier, questioning orders in the field could get you killed and he prided himself on his ability to react instinctively whenever he was ordered to do something.

Instead he got up, asking them both if they wanted any coffee, and asking the Hapan for directions to the kitchen area. He walked out of the room. He knew some people didn't like revealing secrets to strangers, but the Hapan seemed interested in Marshall Ambrosius. He figured he would give them some alone time to discuss whatever they had to discuss, no point in getting in the way. He dearly hoped that he would be able to join the Imperial Knight in his fight against the Sith, but knew such a thing was merely a dream, a wish. The Imperial Knights had only ever recruited Force Sensitives, and he knew he would be dropped off somewhere and never see them again. Leroy was a practical man, and the less he knew the better for them it would be.

He sighed as he waited for the water to boil. He looked around. Typical diplomatic ship, very clean and neat. He was a bit jealous, his quarters had never been as luxurious as this, and this was simply her kitchen.

A few moments passed, and he came back with the coffee, sitting back in his chair as he took a sip. His mind wondered what they had been talking about, but soon dismissed it. He sighed. If only he had been force sensitive, then he might of been able to serve the Imperial Knights to their fullest. He looked out into space, admiring the view. He wondered when he would be able to resume his naval career. He took another sip of coffee. Soon, he hoped. Soon.

 

[TAC]

Smiles.

She enjoyed this. The woman's small smile- perhaps more a smirk- was quite evident as Merlin started to get excited. This was obviously very interesting to him, and it struck the Duchess's fancy to play along. He posed his question, just as the naval officer excused himself. She shook her head when he asked if she wanted anything to drink, instead keeping eye contact with Merlin.

As soon as the man had vacated the room, however, the door firmly closed behind him, she stood up. She walked over to a footlocker, bending down over it and keying in a code, so that Merlin could not see it. "I think, Knight Marshall, it would be much more straightforward to explain this way." She knew he had caught on, and she felt like making the point of who she was in her own way.

The footlocker popped open, and she carefully reached in, pulling out a long silver tube. A similar one- identical, actually- hung at the hip of the male Imperial Knight. She turned to him, her smile now genuine and wide. "You are not the last, Merlin," she said simply. She tossed her own lightsaber to the fellow Imperial Knight, so he could see that it was, indeed, exactly what it was now assumed it was.

"I am indeed Siennaa," she started, taking her seat one more. "To many more I am known as the Duchess of Arabanth, the sister of the Queen Mother of the Hapes Consortium. You also inquire concerning where my heart lies, which I assume is the reason for your riddle." She paused for a moment, looking into his eyes from where she sat. "I am a member of the Imperial Knights, in full connection and communication with my peers and our order." There was another pause, as her eyes studied him. "And you are here, whether you realized it or not, because we need all the help we can get."

Glancing back at the door, Siennaa did not assume they had very long before they were rejoined. This was a conversation that required privacy, however. "A lot has changed since you were, as you said, self-exiled. We have been crushed time and time again, thus the lesson has been learned. We keep up the facade that we are gone now and the Imperial Knights are but a legend to most people. The Sith are most likely aware of our existence, but we stay to the shadows, and strike in obscure and too specific of locations for them to react against us." She looked again into the eyes of the man. What was he thinking? Who was he really? Why had he been gone? What would he do now?