Open Invasion Malastare Force of Nature

[Darth Malicia]

Demolly leaned against a building close to her cults base. She'd been able to take over most of the area around it. People were either fearful of or joined the Children of Alkis.

She was waiting for Asminys to arrive. Although she'd have to keep a close eye on the man, she was secretly looking forward to pushing his boundaries. She'd always enjoyed the competition between them. Between all Cadre. That was one of the few solaces during her upbringing.

They were going to focus on cultivating more power on the planet. Inch closer and closer to takeover or invasion. This was one step in many; another seed planted for the finale.

She was wearing her usual. Her mask. Her Cadre gear. Two cult members stood by her side. She hadn't ordered it, but they tended to follow her when they were allowed to, or when she didn't vanish before they could. It was both a benefit and annoyance. She was their god... so they were obsessed with her.

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Amsinys had received Demolly's communication. It seemed that she needed him for something yet again. He had thought about blowing her off, leaving her standing to wait for him while he didn't show. Ultimately he had decided against it however, he had yet to call in his favor with her and he would hate to lose that favor just to annoy his Cadre-sister.

Instead he had chose to be late. He had shown up early, suppressing his presence within the force as he watched from a building across the way. She had arrived at the meeting place earlier, with two of her new pets. After making her stand around for an appropriate amount of time, he exited the building from the rear and did a loop around the block.

Allowing his presence to be known as he approached, he casually approached the woman and her two lackeys. Wearing his usual simple garb, black pants and a sleeveless shirt with an also black blast vest layered over it, he walked up to the woman.

"You still wearing that thing?" He asked with a mean smile, looking at the garb that she had word during their time with the Cadre. The two cultists to her side bristled at his casual tone but he glared them down with hateful eyes. He held no reverence for the woman unlike them. "I hope you've been washing it," He said, giving a small sniff in her direction and a grimace as if he smelled something foul before nodding to the pair of cultists flanking her. "I see you brought your pets."

@Dread

 

[Ulysses Reed]

Malastare had been the last place they had intended to end up, yet here they where. Having touched down a few hours previously, Ulysses Reed and his entirely legitimate business partner Mallister Keynion in a Rambler Class Frieghter which they had been commissioned to pilot on behalf of the vessels owner, Crimson Dawn. It was, naturally, stocked to the gunnels with Spice, and having made multiple jumps already in the pursuit of their mission, Ulysses and Mallister needed to refuel.

And where better to stop than Malastare?

Leaning against the side of one of the landing gears, stim hanging lazily from his mouth, Ulysses was twirling a RSKF-44 blaster idly as he waited for the vessel to be refuelled, an all to arduous process. Bored, he shouted over to his compatriot "Why do you always take me to the worst places?" he laughed, before gesturing to the valley below in which a selection of hooded figures could be seen "And I mean, it's hardly a party town is it?" he remarked "I mean look at their dress sense, seems to be robes, robes and...you guessed it, robes."

@Die Shize

 

[Mallister Keynion]

Music OOC

Spoiler

He stood staring up at the black dome with its purple clouds like they were hiding and holding something from him, imprisoning him beneath and making him wonder how he ever got to be on this side of it. Those clouds, they shrouded the stars beyond, ever beckoning his name like a wife yearning for her husband to come back to bed. Still he stared, a firm breeze slipping across his coat and his shaven features, drifting through his hair like a woman’s fingers. Her touch was warm and cold all at once, like a blaster bolt to the heart.

So many years it had been. So much dirt kicked and dust bitten. So many dust mites squashed, a mite later than I might have hoped. Did I eat dirt once? He thought about that as he licked his lips. Nope. Not unless you count now. Yep. That’s dirt I’m tasting. Definitely dirt. Spitting out what the wind had kicked up, Mal turned around to the call of his compadre, a man whom he could equally wonder as to how he ever ended up with. Well, he wears his hair prettier than I do, I guess. There’s that.

“That a question against my character?” He called across the dirt and dust with hardly a hint of severity in his tone while walking over toward Ulysses. “If I reckon I recollect correctly, the last party town we went to ended up with one of us wearing a dress and a bonnet.” He blinked. Was that you or was that me? Tabling that, Mal came to stand beside his partner to stare in the same direction.

“Speaking of, yep, them be robes all right. Though, that guy in the vest looks more like he’s getting ready to breakdance any moment now.” He squinted into the distance. From their position, it took little imagination to wonder what kind of folk these boys and girls in black were but, whatever the case, Mal stood with thumbs dipped into his belt where a pistol hung from.

“Now just what do you wager these fine people are here for? Fuel? Fury? Fun? Or a fabulous fashion statement in the same vein as robes, dresses and bonnets?”


@Nor'baal

 

[Darth Malicia]

Now, Demolly wasn't that impatient. A lot of her life growing up had been spent on waiting between training. However... she had a feeling, a very strong one, that Asminys was purposefully late. He was not a sloppy man. She knew that for certain, so it irritated her.

When he did show up he gave her sass on top of it all. At first she frowned and felt a bubbling of anger, but then there was a moment of pause. She pushed off the building and got closer to the man, looking up at him. "Me? Smell?" she said, tipping her head as if to present herself as innocent. "Nah, but you've always smelled like a bantha, which probably explains the lack of action."

She smiled. Now she felt better.

They didn't have much time to waste, though she noticed her cultists begin to stir when one of them mentioned spotting an unknown ship refueling. Demolly took note. "Keep an eye on them," she ordered.

The nearby refueling station was in the direction she was headed, though she'd be passing it to get to the edge of her cults 'territory'. As she started walking she put her senses out for a surprise attack or something along that vein.

Malastar's higher up military personnel were having a party today, and though neither Demolly or Asminys planned to crash it, they were going to snatch something while everyone was busy.

@Arclight @Nor'baal @Die Shize

 

[Arctus Friers]

Arctus was stoked.

It was not the first time he'd ever set foot on Malastare, nor would it be his last. The planet had become one of his (questionably) favorite planets, despite harboring a dislike towards the species that inhabited the place. Maybe it was the overall atmosphere the planet possessed, or even the mix of forest and rocky terrains. It didn't matter. Best leave the reason vague and continue liking the planet chock-full of toxic fuel.

He had been here in the planet for two days, taking a brief break from smuggling to just simply enjoy the reason for his continued existence. A flash of grey beskar and an amused feminine voice drifted in his mind, the corners of his lips tugging upwards in a smile as he lounged on his seat in the cockpit of his 3-Z Light Freighter – devoid, for once, of any illegal stuff he was usually hired to smuggle.

Someday soon, babe, he thought to himself as he watched a Rambler Class Freighter land on a refuelling station from a distance. Looked like someone's making a pit stop. I'll get to see that cute helmet again.

Arctus then stretched his arms lazily, getting up from his seat with a grin and making his way out of the ship. He watched the ramp go up for a second before walking towards the direction of the other freighter, two DL-18 Blaster Pistols hanging on either side of his hips. He left his A280 Blaster Rifle in the weapons locker in his ship, feeling that it would be a little overkill to bring it alongside his pistols. And besides, there's always his trusty vibroblade tucked to his utility belt. Made for a good knife fight, eh?

It was a little of a long walk, but he didn't bother. Got too much energy to spend at the moment. Approaching the freighter, he caught sight of two men standing by the ship. Yep, refuelling, indeed. Arctus rubbed his hands together, knowing smugglers when he saw one, then raised a hand amicably in greeting.

"Hey there, fellas!" the smuggler prefaced, grinning like an awestruck kid on Life Day. "Having a field trip in this lovely place–" he cut himself off, gaze following where the other two were looking down yonder. "–hoho, what do we have over there? A black parade or something?"

Something felt off about the individuals in dark clothing, but Arctus calmed his intuition down. He was here to spend some quality vacation, not actively look for trouble. Shaking his head, he looked back at the two men whose auras alone screamed criminal to him. And competent ones, it looked like. Way more than he ever would be.

"The name's Arctus. Nice ship you have here. Lots of room to put stuff in."

@Nor'baal @Die Shize @Arclight @Dread

 

[Asminys]

Asminys could feel the anger that his comments caused in Demolly, drawing a small smirk inside of him behind the impassive mask that he held. There was little better entertainment than annoying his Cadre-sister, a well practiced tradition.

Sniffing once again as she pushed off the wall and got close to him, his face curled. "Yep, definitely not washed." He said as he grabbed a corner of her robe and gave it a small tug. "You're just jealous." He said with a finality.

Walking alongside Demolly as they approached the mystery ship that she had her cultist's watching, his gaze passed over the pair who had brought it down before dismissing them as a third approached the two. Demolly told her cultists to keep an eye on the mystery men and Asminys wasn't concerned with their presence. If they posed to be a threat he had no worry that he could eliminate said threat.

"So tell me, what did you have in mind for this date?" He asked, half teasing half serious. She had contacted him for assistance once more and he knew she wouldn't ask unless she needed him. Which meant that it was probably something big.

@Dread @Nor'baal @Die Shize @Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Ulysses Reed]

"Well," he dropped his stim and stamped it out with his brushed leather boot "I'm just saying," Ulysses continued as he walked around the side of the ship to stand with Mal "...we do end up in some shady places, an awful lot of the time." he laughed, before nudging Mal and gesturing to the newcomer. A heavyset and well-built man by the looks of him, who went on to introduce himself as Acturus, Ulysses found himself suddenly rather cautious of the newcomer.

"Eyes up buddy," he said quietly to Mal, before turning to face Acturus, a wide smile appearing on his face as he did so. "Nice ship you have here. Lots of room to put stuff in." Acturus began, before Ulysses responded, somewhat cautiously "Normally a pretty important factor to keep your eye out for when buying a ship yeah," he raised an eyebrow "...y'know, being able to 'put stuff in'," he made a floating speech marks gesture with his hands.

Ulysses gave the man a once over, and finally said "Can I help you?"

 

[Darth Malicia]

Demolly frowned at first when he tugged at her clothing. Jealous? She smiled while leaning a little bit closer. "Touch me again and I'll cut off your hand," she whispered, leaning back after. "Or, return the favor."

Both were threats.

When he followed her and asked the question, she answered plainly, "There's a military gathering tonight—a party. We're going to snatch the General's kid while he's making merry, then use it to make him amenable to a Sith take over."

Perhaps an invasion of a planet was a little... ahead of herself, considering she wasn't even a Lord in the Order yet. Still, she'd seen an opportunity and chosen to seize it.

Along the path dust kicked up, just as she found herself closer to the unknown ship. Not close enough to hear one another yell, but closer. She wasn't planning to stop at the refuel station, but the two cultists she'd ordered to watch the ship decided to take her order to heart. Both of her cultists simply walked closer to the ship, stopped and started staring at the three men outside it. Now, these cultists had no weapons on them but it was maybe, probably, a little bit suspicious looking to the smugglers.

@Arclight @Nor'baal @Die Shize

 

[Mallister Keynion]

Music OOC [Recurring]

Spoiler

Amid a nudging elbow, there was a cocked brow that tugged Mal’s eyes in the direction of the alien voice, spotting the man heading his way like he might just be there to sell the pair some death sticks. He wouldn’t have put it past the fella as he waltzed on up to share their line of view as though this were just one giant opera house and tickets were free. Only them black shirts over there surely ain’t singin’, unless it’s a note low enough to make a black hole bleed.

This newcomer who was nobody that Mal had ever seen before seemed chipper enough, though it was too early to tell if that was a good thing or not. Early... Mal recalled the name as Ulysses returned the stranger’s greeting with some witty dialogue. Early, yeah, he was as chipper enough a character—even while he hunted my crew, of course.

“He ain’t kiddin’,” Mal piggybacked off his partner’s statement on interior capacity. “Once fit a herd of banthas in this rig. Cleaning up after them was a rather tragic endeavor but here we are.” Ulysses had asked how the two of them could help the one. Mal might have wondered. Though, at the moment, he had something else to wonder about.

Two becomes three, three becomes five...odds were never my thing. He thought about that as he stood staring at two scary souls who stood staring back. They were very clearly a part of the grim and dismal group who hailed from the tragic troupe of black black black black black black—

“Ahem,” Mal cleared his throat, thoughts too, looking between the two latest guests after the latest one. They didn’t appear to be associated with Sir Grinsalot and just might have overheard Mal talk about bantha herds. “Can I help you?” He repeated his partner’s question, and now either of them would be waiting on the answer to come from two different directions.


@Dread @Arclight @Nor'baal @Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Arctus Friers]

There's hidden caution behind the smile, Arctus' intuition told him, prompting him to take a step back to show that he didn't want any trouble. Still grinning, though, and hoping that it was friendly enough to placate the owners of the freighter and its seemingly splendid storage capacity.

The smuggler let out an impressed whistle, lifting a hand as if to caress the metal. "Didn't exactly peg you two to be a pair of transporters," he muttered under his breath with a barely-there sarcasm and eyes still glued at the ship. "But this girl right here? Just... wow."

Before he could crack another sparkling remark, Arctus felt a sharp mental tug somewhere from the back of his mind. It heralded the approach of two of the Black Parade Squad, and the pair looked more like your regular henchmen – a creepy duo, what with all the staring they were doing. A light frown replaced the boyish grin on his face, and Arctus turned to regard the other newcomers with narrowed eyes.

Send them away, warned his intuition in an all-too familiar voice he longed to hear. You wouldn't want to hang around this lot, trust me.

"Nothing you can help me with, maybe except to fill the silence... make new friends, perhaps? It gets rather lonely here, and I think we'd have much to talk about other than this beauty–" he gestured at the freighter "–here."

Blue Eyes and Mustache did not feel off except for the warranted wariness, but the two creeps in black definitely did. Felt as if they were doused in something cloying but dark. Arctus' hands itched to just whip out his blasters and put a bolt each between their beady eyes, but he stayed the urge.

"If anything, I think it's these two right here are in need of something. Am I right, lads?"

@Arclight @Die Shize @Dread @Nor'baal

 

[Ulysses Reed]

"Tell you what," Ulysses said to Mal and his apparently new found compatriot, Acturus, "...creepy hooded guys, strange planet, middle of nowhere. I reckon we might have bigger problems." his face grew concerned as he moved slightly to face the hooded figures, turning back briefly to Acturus "Help us out with this and let's say, we get you off this rock?" he did not wait for an answer, and walked over to the two cultists, staying out of close-combat range, and looked them up and down.

"I think it best if you two," Ulysses jerked his head away from the refuelling area "Kept on back the way you came." he dropped his hand to the butt of his blaster, ready to draw at the slightest sign of trouble.

 

[Asminys]

Asminys ignored Demolly's threats, shuddering mentally at the threat of her touching him back. He knew his Cadre-Sister was quite mad, and growing madder by the day. He could see the madness crowding in her aura, the stench of the darkside that diffused from her carrying a sickening quality of decay.

She explained the mission and he nodded. Snatching more kids. It wasn't the first time he had done as such. "Grab the kid, kill everyone else." It was simple and straightforward. He may have added the bit about killing everyone else.

The pair of them passed the dock as he spoke, and he turned his eyes on the pair, or trio of shady looking spacers. His burning red-gold eyes laid on each of them in turn, his gaze like a predator debating what prey to take from the herd.

And then he moved on, ignoring them. They were nothing to him. Nothing to the goals of the mission they had planned.

@Forsythe Crowholde @Die Shize @Nor'baal @Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

Her cultists looked at one another for a handful of seconds, then looked back at the smuggles.There was clearly hesitation there before one of them spoke, "Mother said to watch you three." The other one instantly got an angry look on his face and turned back to his partner. "But she did not say to speak to them!" he snapped.

Demolly walked beside Asminys, peering at the small group of smugglers as they passed by. If none of them turned to shoot them or do anything stupid, she'd continue on with Asminys. The building the party was taking place at and the building the children were being taken care of in weren't too far apart, so it was best for them not to go straight in the front door.

Assuming there was no reason to stop, she'd soon lead Asminys to an alleyway. There was a small group of of thug-looking men at the end of it, so she was ready to kill any that decided they wanted to get in the way.

@Arclight @Nor'baal @Die Shize @Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Arctus Friers]

Arctus nodded in acknowledgement of (he really needed to start asking names right now) Mustache's words, hazel grey eyes narrowed with much suspicion at the two hoodlums before them. The continued staring was becoming annoying, and if they did not state their business soon the smuggler wouldn't mind putting a blaster hole to their skulls.

Before he could respond about having his own ship, however, the dark-haired gentleman had already made his way towards the two goons. Words were quickly exchanged, and the grin returned on Arctus' face at the wonder duo in black's blunder. Don't they paint a sorry picture – even a stomping and yelling bantha would've been more subtle than these two creeps. He tried to catch Blue Eyes' gaze and would shake his head in pity for the poor sods.

He wouldn't deny the fact that the word Mother caught his interest, however.

Arctus opened his mouth for another wisecrack but all that came out of his throat was a sudden choking noise. His intuition screamed at him without further warning unlike earlier, and the smuggler was overwhelmed with the feeling of eyes gazing at him and his companions. He looked away from the henchmen just in time to see two of the Black Parade Squad passing by the dock. One man, tattooed, with red-gold eyes locked in their direction. The other was a small woman, also peering at them.

The Darkness will free you, the Dark Side of the Force told him seductively, perverting the voice of the one who had saved him on Tatooine two years ago. Just as much as it freed them. Why don't you join those two, cyare?

A tempting thought pervaded in the edges of his consciousness, but Arctus couldn't quite make out what was being said. It was like listening to someone speak while he was submerged underwater: muddled, garbled, quite incoherent to be understood – beyond comprehending, if the speaker would not offer a hand to pull him out of the depths.

Arctus frowned, concentrating... attempting to decipher what was being said. While he did so, the smuggler returned the tattooed man's gaze, then the woman's.

The ForceHis intuition screeched, the feeling of danger and fear boiling down into a single word that left his mouth:

"Trouble."

It was already established by Mustache earlier, but the way Arctus – mind still clouded with sudden fear unknowingly projecting his feelings and latent sensitivity to the Force – spoke the word cemented the fact. He was afraid, yes. But given that he was being offered a ride off this planet (despite having a ship) simply meant that he would not abandon Blue Eyes and Mustache, that staying with them ensured their safety.

@Arclight @Nor'baal @Die Shize @Dread

 

[Asminys]

The pair of Sith continued on their way, leaving the cultists to stare eerily at the trio of spacers. Walking mostly in silence past the spaceport and to the inner districts of the city, their progress would only be stopped by a low wall that separated the more affluent inner sections of the city from the dregs that lived in the outskirts. Dregs like that cult that belonged to Asminys' Cadre-sister.

"After you." Asminys would gesture to the wall while watching for any sort of patrols. If a patrol did come there way, well he would hate to be in their position. Because they would be dead.

Once Demolly was over the wall, he would follow, leaping up over it and landing in a quiet crouch on the other side. So far so good. From inside the wall it was probably a short walk to the location of the party.

@Dread

 

[Darth Malicia]

Her two cultists continued to stare at the three smugglers. Since they'd gotten little reply they weren't even sure what to add. They simply continued to follow their mothers orders.

Demolly didn't stop for even a second before jumping up onto the wall. She ended in front of a sleeping guard. The man grunted and tried to scamper to his feet. The small Sith didn't give him a chance, taking out her saber and igniting it into him. She extinguished her saber after and stood there for a handful of seconds to let Asminys catch up.

"How about we play a game?" she started, pointing to the body in front of her. "One," she continued, and assumed he understood what she meant. "Whoever gets the highest number is owed a favour." She liked a bet, plus Asminys had added the 'and kill the rest' comment earlier. Well, they were going to kill the rest and there was no reason not to try to benefit from it.


@Arclight @Forsythe Crowholde

 

[Asminys]

Demolly had wasted no time with the "kill the rest" idea. When he reached the other side of the wall he found her standing over a freshly made corpse. A small grin broke his scowling demeanor at her proposition. "Careful sister, you already owe me one favor." He said. The game she proposed was not one he intended to lose after all.

"Agreed." He said over his shoulder as he stalked off into the shadows. Once free from her sight he broke into a run towards the palace. His senses stretched out, seeking out the most concentrated den of life forms for him to carry out their cruel game.

Approaching a guardhouse quietly, he moved like a shadow along the wall. Peeking up into an open window, he counted seven guards inside. A quick bump to put him at the top of the scoreboard was just what he needed. Climbing up into the guardhouse window, one of the guards dropped his coffee as he spotted Asminys in the frame.

The room froze for a second.

A second was all he needed.

He launched himself into the room and his crimson blade ignited in his fist with a violent snap-hiss. "Two." He muttered as he swept the heads off of two guards enjoying a meal at the table as he passed them by on his way to the coffee dropper.

"Three." He stabbed the man, letting him fall into the pool of dark brown liquid that he had let fall to the floor.

"Four. five. six." He spun and whipped his blade out for it to fly through the room in an arc, cleaving through three guards on its path back to his hand.

"Seven." He muttered with finality as the last guard made for the door only to be dragged bodily by an invisible force as Asminys pulled him back into the saber as it returned to his hand.

He stood there for a moment, deactivating his saber as he surveyed the carnage he had strewn in such short time, a small grin on his face. He was definitely going to win.

@Dread

 

[Arctus Friers]

Arctus wanted to throw up.

It had been a terribly long time since his intuition screamed so loudly at him.

His good for nothing old man, hurting a defenceless child.

Young Arctus, unable to stop the assault and could only raise a hand to make him stop, Dad, please, it hurts–!

And then came the blessed (or cursed?) aid from the Force.

There was a loud ringing in his ears and before comprehension could reach the consciousness trapped within the sudden turmoil of fear and danger, Arctus' body had gone on autopilot and stepped forward.

The smuggler would walk past the dark-haired gentleman and straight towards the two weird henchmen. Arctus would shove the pair out of his way unceremoniously, and should he be met with resistance he would answer with a quick draw of one of his blaster pistols and put a bolt each on the goons' heads.

With the initial obstacle hopefully out of the way, Arctus would let the Force his intuition guide him to the path where the two lead Black Parade Squad headed off to.

That's right, the Dark Side of the Force would whisper to him. Claim the path to your destiny, your freedom: Forward!

@Arclight @Dread @Die Shize @Nor'baal

 

[Darth Malicia]

Malicia growled when Asminys ran off towards a guard tower. What a cheating bastard. Though as much as it annoyed her, she didn't want to dwell on it for too long. He'd probably feel her angry and take joy in it, besides it was easier to go ahead while Asminys slaughtered the majority of the guards.

She jumped off the wall and went into the building, cutting down the few guards in her path. "Two, three, four..." she counted, until she heard sobbing in a room. Malicia stopped, turning on her heels while the rooms door hissed open. It was finally then that she could sense the child clutched in his nannies arms.

The boy was Force sensitive, something that opened the doors to more opportunities. Malicia grabbed the nanny by the throat with the Force, tossing her to the side. The boy cried out even louder. Malicia looked down, her yellow eyes linger distantly on the boy. "One day, you will use this memory to give you power," she said, grabbing his arm. "Now come."

@Arclight