Ask Dance the Dance of Blood

[Katherine Stargazer]

As Kat lounged against a boulder, waiting for the coming battle, she mused that everyone she had met on Rattatak had been... small. Celeste is small, Stetti is small, and none of the Rattataki she had met were of a height with her. It was curious to Kat because did that not make her the strange one? She was still growing; she had put on an inch at least since crashing on the planet, so was it her that was abnormal?

No... it's everyone else who is strange!

Kat was the perfect size and only getting more perfect. Everyone else could do with some growing up. She took a swig from a canteen and scratched the back of her head. This was boring! Kat was no stranger to waiting around, whether for supplies needed for completing construction or otherwise, but when she ordered everyone out here, she had expected things to happen in an hour at most!

She checked her watch, only to remember she couldn't read the Rattataki numbers or any numbers for that matter. So she nudged one of her soldiers and asked him in halting Rattataki for the time as she pointed at her watch. He looked at her like she had grown a second head and mentioned that it had only been twenty minutes.

Kat sighed.

Hours later, during a refreshing nap in the dirt, Kat jerked awake as the communicators crackled to life. The enemy had been spotted, less than half an hour out of range. Kat trusted the scouts and their leader to keep safe and relay what information they needed and remained silent on the line save for an acknowledgment. Her orders stood, retreat if needed, but that's up to their discretion.

Silently, Kat gestured for the officers to wake up and ready the men, and they nodded, stealthily crouching through the paths of the mountain. Kat gathered her remote detonator, and now that she knew when the enemy was coming, she patiently waited for the scouts to feed her more information.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

Just like always, Celeste had a hard time with sitting down and waiting patiently. First she was pacing from A to B, then she was checking the holomaps again. Once she was done, she had checked on their communication system just to make sure that all scouts could reach them.

In the end she had been patrolling not just the cells, but also parts of the city. Everett was with her the whole time, following her around while staying at her heels. He was watchful and attentive just like she was, but he seemed to be even more on edge than her. The waiting was terrible and Celeste was growing a little impatient, but then the scouts finally spotted the enemy.

Celeste immediately hurried back to Kat who was already on her way. So it was about to begin afterwards. The actual battle was there. The lightsaber was clipped to her side while she quickly made her way over to her friend. The action had still not arrived, but it could start any minute now and so Celeste went into a crouched, ready position next to Kat who already had the detonater readied. She shot her one last glance before one of the scouts was actually calling over. The enemy was there. Right in front of them. Celeste's gaze went back to Kat and she gave her a last, approving nod.

@Shax

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

More information on the enemy trickled in. They looked fresh despite having traveled back home with all due haste, so they must have only recently rested before continuing their march against Kat and her people. The greatest concentration was following a particular path through the mountains and quite clearly the most traveled route in the area.

Quite conveniently, it was also where they had laid a majority of their traps. Kat didn't expect to get the entire enemy force in one blow, and she had no doubt they were beginning to scatter the closer they got to where they would assume the opposition would be. Still, they would take one hell of a wound if they kept up their formation.

The minutes ticked by in tense anticipation before the officer's com line crackled with a quick 'Hit it!' From her lead scout, Kat promptly pressed the button. Explosives boomed in the distance, followed by the sound of collapsing rocks and crumbling ground and the wounded screaming. There was relative silence as the enemy reassessed their position, the scouts reporting them changing formation to check for traps.

Some were set off harmlessly, and others were clever enough to take out the enemy swiftly, slowing them down even more. It was almost another two hours of collaborative work between Kat, her explosives squad, and her scouts slowing the enemy before they finally came into view, battered and angry. Still, their numbers were far greater than Kat wanted, but she and her forces had a better chance now than they did before. "When they come within fifty meters, fire at will," Kat muttered into her com. She didn't know how long a meter was, but everyone else seemed to.

Ten more minutes of careful advance, and before any of her forces could get off a shot, an enemy sharpshooter placed a laser through one of her men's heads, making it explode like a fruit. "Fire!" Kat barked, "Someone kill that sniper!" She commanded, and the battle had begun.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

The air around them was thick with anticipation and maybe even a hint of impatience. They had waited for this day and now that the final minutes were about to begin, the Cauldron's troops were ready to fight. Unfortunately, the enemy wasn't as worn out as expected, but they still had a little march behind them and so Celeste was confidence that they would outmatch their endurance.

Celeste slightly flinched when the time had come for Kat to activate the traps as she had been involved in a hushed conversation with one of the Commanders so that she hadn't seen it coming. The sound of explosions echoed through the rocky desert as she directed her gaze towards the dusty cloud of debris that raised in the distance.


Her muscles while tense while she stayed close to Kat who was busy managing the process of slowing and thinning the numbers of foes down. Admittedly, the different groups collaborated well and orderly, which surpised Celeste positively and so her hopes were still high even though the enemy forces were still large.

When the first enemy line cams into sight, she automatically readied her blaster and her lightsaber while she observed the scenery in front of them, her watchful eyes looking out for sharpshooters, but right as her attentive gaze spotted something, or better someone in the distance, it had been too late and the first bolt already went right through one of their men's head.

While Kat ordered someone to take him out, Celeste sprang forward with a outstretched hand, stopping a laser bolt mid air, merely two meters away from where Kat standing by catching the laser in a stasis. She wasn't sure whether it would have hit her, but even if it hadn't reached Kat, someone would have been hit and so she hurled it back angrily.

The one handling the sniper was too far away to reach him with her own blaster or even with a redirected bolt, but she was hoping that one of their own sharpshooters would deal with him while she would try to stop any more bolts from hitting their own men. She knew that the actual battle was now about to commence and that they were close to the point from which chaos would spread in the midst of a heated battle, but she tried to fully keep her cool.

@Shax

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

Kat paid no more mind to the sniper, glancing around rapidly as bright flashes of blaster fire started beaming around the canyon. She watched as her men lay an unholy amount of fire down on the enemy sharpshooters' position, keeping him pinned down if only for a moment. Maybe a lucky shot will take them out.

Not for the first time, she craved the security of wielding explosives. She wanted to feel the danger in the palm of her hand and reshape man and mountain with it. She wanted to charge in and support her men by firing alongside them, but she was also the commander, which had to be her priority. She wanted to kill but would be content to kill by proxy.

"Hit their back line while we hold their attention!" Kat barked into her communicator to her scouts, and promptly bright flashes and yells could be heard from their enemy. "Bring some ships around and strafe the canyon, starting-" Kat stopped one second and received the distance from an aid. "Starting at twenty meters ahead of our position!" She finished after flicking the communications to her pilot's channel. She didn't like having to do the commands herself, but it was good to show that she was in control.

She got prompt confirmation from her pilots, and two ships with nose cannons came screaming down the canyon and started blasting the ground, almost too close for comfort. The enemy scattered, and her forces hit the deck, finding cover after warnings issued by their officers.

Disaster struck, however, when three missiles flew from the rocks towards the strafing ships. They managed to dodge one, but two others crashed into one of the ships, throwing it careening into one of the jutting blades of the canyon, which fell almost in slow motion onto friend and foe alike.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

They were literally surrounded by a bloodshed already. The enemy numbers were greater than expected and so Celeste was also recalculation the estimated number of their own supposed losses. She bit her lip as she watched their own sharpshooters fire rather wildly while she only hoped that they would hit, but after some wild firing they did indeed and at least one sniper was dealt with.

However, it didn't took long until the second fired to their right in the distance and this time she was putting more effort in helping her men with taking them out. She pointed at his position and instructed the sniper close to her to fire at her signal and once he did, she used the Force to slightly adjust the laser bolts flying curve so that the brain of the second sniper would be melted instantaneously.

After that she was focusing on what actually mattered: Keeping an eye on Kat, their Commander. She kept the ignited lightsaber in her hand while she attentively watched her surroundings. She wouldn't let any bolt or anyone near her. What soon, however, caught her attention was the ship that was by a missile and she watched it crash in horror, realizing that the next missile could also be directed at them.

"We should have the scouts find the source of those missiles and take them out asap. We can't risk having them launch them again" she remarked a little, critically searching for Kat's eyes. She was in command after all, but she would not refuse counseling her. Some of the scouts were still in strategically clever positions and if they could make out the missile launcher, they would have one less thing to worry about...The heated battle kept raging on while Celeste grew a little restless. They were losing numbers fast and she began to worry a little.

@Shax

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

Kat watched the battle with a studious eye, trying to find mistakes in her battle plan and the enemies. At the moment, the fighting had ground into a slow, methodical thing, with squads of fighters popping out of cover to blast some unlucky fool before scuttling off somewhere else. Even though this canyon is the most traveled path through the region, it still has its unstable parts.

Sinkholes littered the ground, and dust choked the air, muffling the sounds of death and war. Friend and foe alike were just as likely to find themselves buried if they weren't careful with their footing, and some intrepid squads even herded their enemies into places with poor integrity to trap them like fish in a barrel.

Kat saw this all from the top of a large boulder, standing proudly in contrast to the bloody fighting. From there, she coordinated with a pair of binoculars as what few aids she has brought her updates on different fields of the action. Occasionally, an enemy sharpshooter or enterprising raider would take a pot-shot at her, only for the bolt to be stopped - in which case Kat would calmly step to the side - or deflected by her Warlock friend. She nodded to Celeste and relayed her suggestion in the form of a command for the scouts to harass the enemy backline but made it clear that a few should stay hidden and watch for reinforcements.

The battle ground on for a good two hours before it became apparent that they were being pushed out of the canyon and into open ground. They would be easy pickings if they didn't retreat, so that's exactly what Kat commanded. "Pull back to the ships! We regroup in Barterus!" Her words reached the squad leaders in due time, and soon enough, they were retreating to the city.

"Damn good fight!" Kat exclaimed to her exhausted but still bloodthirsty forces as they entrenched themselves in the defenses of Barterus. "We gave them one hell of a bloody nose; now all we need to do is hold on a little longer before our army arrives!" There was a ragged cheer; whether that was because they were exuberant or if the Rattataki felt obligated to cheer for her was up for debate.

The squads had their orders, so Kat moved to take up a proper position in the defense. There was no way she could hold back and study the fighting now; it was all or nothing. Barterus provided good stable ground, so she expected this last leg of the battle to turn into a fierce melee. Another two hours later, the enemy was in sight once again. Kat looked at Celeste and smiled. "I'm glad to have known you." That was all she said. She was confident in their victory and absolutely certain she would survive this day, yet she wasn't sure if Celeste would survive. Kat wanted her to, but she wanted many things, so it's best to make things clear now.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

The vicious yet somehow slowed down battle went on and on and Celeste grew a little impatient on top of the huge rock as things had slightly gotten out of hand because it was not all how it had been planned. She was still convinced that they would win, but seeing so many people of her own but also of the enemy forces die was painful to watch.

This was by far the most intense battle she had ever witnessed and she was secretively hoping that the enemy forces would surrender sooner or later. She had seen enough bloodshed and they were sentient, reasonable humanoid beings after all, so that she was hoping they would maybe decide to retreat, but then she remembered that she was talking about the Rattataki and that their warrior nature prevented them from doing such a thing and she also knew that Kat wound never yield...not now, not after she had come this far.

In the worst case scenario, they would be forced to retreat to Barterus and the enemy forces would overrun them before their own Force would arrive. Celeste didn't want to calculate with this possibility, but she had to at least consider it. What would they do then? She was certain that she would do anything to protect Kat, but she was sincerely hoping that it would not come this far.

However after another while they indeed had to retreat and Celeste's inner tension rose severely while her whole body was on edge and her mind racing. As they were flying back she forced herself to breathe through in keep her cool, but there were a thousand scenarios in her head and she didn't like any of them.

Their own forces were drained, but still eager to prevail. Their spirits were still unbroken and this gave her more hope, but they were racing against time. As Kat approached her a warm smile crossed her lips while she patted the young woman on her tall shoulders. "I'm glad to have known you as well, but this is not a goodbye" she answered her friend softly, yet confidently while she was realizing that they were forced to go into melee. She was not afraid to fight, but she hadn't wanted to be the one causing even more blood to taint the streets but they did not have another choice.

Remembering one of Kat's earliest statements Celeste chuckled slighlty as she said "Let's kick some ass". She had ensured that no one but Kat heard her not so formal, serious statement, but she was hoping that Kat remembered while the smile turned into a little smirk before she still let out a sigh. This battle would end soon and they would either win or lose it all.

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

Kat watched with anticipation as the enemy approached. They were cautious, probing her defenses to try and find weak points in the entrenchment. For a little under an hour, blaster fire splattered sporadically across the sparse forest, striking Kat's defenses only to receive return fire in turn.

She was getting anxious. She had expected a full frontal assault, not this caution. The enemy had to know they were working against the clock, and yet they didn't seem to be in any particular hurry. Just as she was about to vocalize her thoughts, a war horn sounded in the distance, blasting across the landscape and sending a shiver up Kat's spine. Silence rang out in the horn's wake before the trees ahead of them briefly glowed red before exploding as an enormous laser blasted through them.

Kat screamed as the laser struck her lines, diving to the dusty ground as the air took on a red, super-heated tinge. Her breath was ragged as she frantically called into her comms to her pilots, "TAKE OUT THAT DAMNED GUN!" She waited a moment, absently noting the war cries of her enemy's screaming horde. She stood up just as her ships flew overhead in a blur, and the war horn sounded again.

She looked around frantically, seeing instantly the glowing trench carved into the city and its defenses, not to mention the loss of those unlucky souls holding that section. She dropped to the ground again, screaming out for her men to keep their heads down, and hoped her pilots could pull through with all her heart.

A tree exploded not too far away, showering her with splinters as she squeezed her eyes shut against the horrific light of the plasma bolt. Another trench was carved in her lines and a hole in her army. Twice more, the cannon fired before the ships reported their success. The enemy had acquired a turbo-laser, which is supposed to fit on big warships.

Kat didn't have time to consider how they could have acquired such a weapon, as the enemy's cries for blood became her most pressing concern. Already, the enemy forces charged Kat's disorganized forces, and only a quickly barked 'open fire!' from one of her officers let them soften them up at all.

Kat only got two blasts off before the enemy was on her, and she was fighting for her life.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

The smirk had gradually started to fade as the enemies got closer. She attentively studied their movements while her gaze was already a half worried, half critical frown. She could feel her friend's anticipation growing and she sensed that Kat wasn't happy with how things were going.

She was still gripping the lightsaber's hilt tightly, but the blade was deactivated in this moment as Celeste was patiently waiting for them to approach, but as the war horn was blown in the distance the blood seemed to freeze in her veins. She immediately directed her gaze into the direction of the dreadful sound as the looming threat became apparent. She sensed the immense power behind the imcoming laser beam and managed to shout "GET DOWN" while simultaneously coiling the Force around her before the red aura striked. She had managed to dive to the ground, the impact of her body and the laser sending debris and dirt into the air while she hastily glanced around. This was a problem...a huge one...

She had her eyes closed for a moment before she glanced around for Kat. Fortunately, everything seemed to be alright with her but she still extended her Force aura, hoping to be able to react if needed while she was hoping that the pilots would deal with this laser immediately. Her heart was still pounding on her chest while the next laser was shot, barely missing them this time, but unfortunately it didn't take much longer until their men had them down.

As soon as the laser was dealt with, she pushed herself back to her feet, igniting her lightsabee in an instance before the first foes were already at them. The battle was reaching it's heated phase and Kat and Celeste both found themselves in the very midth after a few moments. Battle cries rang through the atmosphere while weapons clashed, blaster bolts zoomed through the air and blood was spilled everywhere. This was not what Celeste had expected and not what she had wanted, but they had no choice. This was a matter of life and death and it was upon them to decide their fate, so with an upboiling ferocity she fought for her life, even though she was intending to look out for her friend as well, but the incoming waves of enemies kept her indeed rather busy.

@Shax

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

Kat dodged and dived; two enemies of a species she didn't know attacked her ferociously. One wielded a large club, complementing his hulking lizard frame, and the other bore a rickety rifle upon which was strapped a bayonet, which the small creature used as a spear. Kat blasted one in the chest, melting its armor-less insides before bringing her beam tube to the side to deflect the rushing club. The wide barrel of her rifle crumpled but protected her from the worst damage.

Just as the lizard was about to take another swing, Kat threw her ruined weapon at her enemy before quickly pulling her short-handled shovel from its strap on her waist. She dodged her opponent's wild attack and replied with a vicious chop, removing the lizard man's jaw in its entirety, letting broken teeth spray into the small trench Kat had taken cover in.

The fighting continued, increasingly violent as the two exhausted forces gave their all in what could be the final true battle of Rattatak's history. Some stubborn squads on both sides fought to the last man, each activating grenades and explosives on their person before death, trying to take as many with them as they could. Blood turned the sand and dirt into a muddy slurry, and splintered bone made the prospect of falling ill-advised.

Kat was covered head to toe in viscera after a particularly close grenade annihilated one of her nearby soldiers, and still, through whole body shakes and aching muscles, she swung her chipped shovel at any who came too close. Her wild eyes and snarling visage intimidated many lesser foes into fleeing. Through the bloody haze, Kat absently noted the sounds of frantic blaster fire coming from behind the enemy lines, but she had long since lost her communicator, so she didn't know whether that was good or bad.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

She had not missed it. If truth be told she hated it and yet it was necessary. The enemies were the aggressors as all Kat and Celeste wanted to achieve was holding the strategically important city of Barterus...

How long would it take for their own army to finally reach the battlefield and assist them? Celeste prayed that the reinforcement would arrive soon, but it was hard to tell. They were nowhere to be seen on the horizon yet, but her attention was caught elsewhere anyway.

The battle was in full swing, heated noises of war echoed through the atmosphere while bodies went down to the ground on her left and on her right. It was pure chaos, a convoluted clash of clans with major losses on both sides. Why didn't they yield? If they would know what was coming for them, maybe they would reconsider their usual attitude, even though if she was thinking about it twice, there would be no compromise today...

She ducked and dodged incoming laser bolts while simultaneously dismembering foes that approached her too closely. She swung and rotated her own blade to stop enemies from gracing her skin with any of their weapon while she deflected blaster bolts every now and then.

The occasional grenades made it harder to predict the next moves and waves of adversaries, but Celeste made it rather unscathed until something detonated much closer to her than she had wished for. She found herself yanked off the ground and pushed away by the impact wave that sent debris in the air. A high pitched ringing noise was all she perceived for a few seconds while her vision had grown slightly blurry and she found herself on the ground. Just right in time, however, she came back to her senses and rolled away as one attacker tried to stab down on her horizontally from above, but the dizziness remained. By her very nature she was no one that happily found herself in the midst of a battlefield, but she was starting to get furious with all of this going downhill just like this.

@Shax

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

For what seemed like an eternity, Kat swung and chopped and punched her way through an increasingly frantic enemy, relentless but inevitably, flagging against the onslaught. She couldn't keep it up forever for all of her strength, speed, tenacity, and ferocity. Eventually, she stumbled over the corpse of a dead friend, narrowly avoiding a wild swipe as she wobbled and slid her way back to her feet.

Her opponent died to a blaster shot to the back, and his face was a rictus of shock as he fell over dead. The sounds of shouting silenced the sounds of battle, and though she slipped in the mud again, Kat caught a glimpse of one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen.

She could see Stetti and hundreds of other Rattataki disarming a disheartened enemy. They had done it! Everything they had just fought and died for wasn't for nothing. Still, no matter how hard she tried, Kat couldn't seem to get her feet under her again. Even as her exhausted soldiers let out little cries of triumph, she could barely lift her arms to join in.

It had been a big day, and she didn't think she was injured too badly. So, she resolved to rest amongst the bodies of enemies and friends. Still, nothing could keep the broad, smug grin from her face. Exhausted though she may be, the rush of success, the thrill of history settled in her bones as a feeling like no other.

They had won.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

This was war, actual war. An actual battle that cost the lives of plenty. And yet bloodshed couldn't have been avoided. The realization hit her hard, but she knew that she had to accept it somehow. However, the good thing about this whole situation was that they finally managed to win after what felt like an eternity.

The losses were undeniable on both sides, yet she felt at least a little triumphant as some enemy soldiers laid down their arms in the end, accepting their defeat with dignity instead of trying to achieve the impossible of trying to turn this around. In the end, it had all been worth it. They had officially conquered Barterus, not only the capital but also the most important strategic position on Rattatak with all the important factories.

Celeste was drenched in sweat and crusted blood, but fortunately the red liquid wasn't her own. She had a few scratches and her skin was deeply bruised in several areas, but she was rather well in general for just having won such a heated battle. Her lightsaber had saved her skin just as the Force and she was overly happy that Kat seemed to have made it out rather unscathed well.

She approached her tall friend was a genuinely relived, but exhausted smile, flinging an arm around her shoulder. "We've made it" she sighed softly, wiping her face with the back of her other hand as she let her gaze wander across the now desolate surroundings that were packed with dead bodies and wounded soldiers.

@Shax

 

[Katherine Stargazer]

Kat panted, calming down after the fight of her life. She was so unfocused she hardly noticed as someone wrapped their arm around her. Before she even realized it, she swung her opposite fist to strike whoever dared to touch her, only to stop just before contact once she realized who it was holding her.

She smiled apologetically and lowered her fist. It took some effort to loosen up enough to unclench her hands, making her stumble rather bonelessly, forcing her to lean on her friend for support. She nodded, her head flopping just a little more than expected, and let out a tired "Hooray!" Her voice carried only to her friend.

She was happy to be alive and even more pleased that Celeste was not dead yet. Her day would have been ruined if her friend had perished. "Hold me up," Kat commanded her friend, trying to straighten herself. She lumbered over to the top of the defenses, looking over the milling Rattataki starting the cleanup in the aftermath.

"HEY!" She screamed out, causing heads to whip around to face her. "WE WON!" She yelled again, "Barterus is conquered, and for the first time, Rattatak has peace! Be proud, for when we build this place bigger and better than ever, your children will know you had a place in history! They'll know you built them the best future of all time!"

Kat was loopy with exhaustion, but she still smiled when her people screamed for her. There would be lots to do in the future, but for now, there was only one thing on her mind.

"Celeste, find me somewhere to sleep." She muttered just as her legs went out from under her. This shouldn't happen; her cybernetics must be acting up.

That's no good.

@LadyRen

[END THREAD]