God of War

[Leandros Solus]

He sat aboard the Purity of Purpose for what felt like hours, turning the object around in his hands over and over again, scrutinizing every detail. It was surreal, humbling, even, to be holding it now; the mask of his people, previously thought lost to time. He recovered it some time ago before the glassing of his home and intended to give it to his wife as a gift. Now Raz would never wear the Mand’alor’s mask, and the new sole ruler of their people sat aboard his flagship, alone in his quarters save for his daughter. Ahead of him was a wall-length transparisteel window showing the scorched surface of his home, Mandalore, reduced to ruin by the Sith.

The more he stared into the mask, the more he heard its whispers; its tantalizing offers of glory if he only put it on. It was his right – he was the Mand’alor. Something in him felt unworthy of the honor, though, and so he withheld from donning it. His gaze turned upwards to regard his once-beautiful home and he bared his teeth, anger and betrayal coursing through his veins with every second. Abruptly, he rose to his feet and gave the mask one last look as an outsider. Slowly, he raised it to his head, his hands nearly trembling from the act, though he was unsure if it was from fear, anger, or pride. He slipped the mask on and affixed it to his armor, becoming the first Mandalorian to wear the mask in over five hundred years.

Leandros raised his hand for the droids across from him to begin recording. Having control of Nar Shaddaa meant that one had unparalleled access to the HoloNet, and he would use it to deliver a message today.

To the rest of the galaxy, their screens would be interrupted with the sight of a mask unseen for so long. Perhaps its importance would be lost on them, but not to the Mandalorians. This was the first time Leandros had ever shown himself on the HoloNet, but the symbolism behind the mask he wore would carry him through this and focus his mind for the message he was about to deliver. Behind him rotated the ashen remains of Mandalore, a burning backdrop for his announcement.

”Citizens of the galaxy,” he began, his voice low, rumbling, ”The time has come.”

He gestured towards Mandalore behind him, ”Look upon the ruins of my home. Look upon its barren surface and see what the Sith have done to it, to the millions living on it. Look upon the despair and tyranny of their Empire, and how it has become nothing but dust in the face of the people of Mandalore.” His tone was vengeful, and it was difficult to keep his voice from raising to its height as he grew angrier and angrier. ”And what are the achievements of this fragile Sith Empire? It is a corpse rotting slowly from within while maggots writhe in its belly. It was built with the toil of legends and giants, and now it is inhabited by frightened weaklings to whom the glories of those times are half-forgotten legends. The Emperor knows only cowardice and has abandoned his worlds for his own self-preservation.”

He gave a curt laugh and shook his head once.

”The shadow of death and oppression has swept over this galaxy for too long. Your worlds, your homes, need a protector. Do not look to the Sith, for they are tainted by sin. Do not look to the Jedi, for the fear of their foe has kept them in hiding for centuries, even as we beat back the darkness. Do not look for those corrupted by the absolute power of the Force, for you have seen its vile effects. For five centuries this galaxy has seen nothing but tyranny and doom under the iron fist of the Sith.”

He paused for a moment before continuing, inhaling and exhaling slowly as he did so.

”And what led to the rise of the Sith? The weakness of the so-called defenders of the light, the very people who once swore to defend you, the citizens of the galaxy. I speak of the Jedi, who are all but absent from our lives. They choose to hide in dark places like rats, clutching the dogma of their dead ancestors in the hopes a true savior would bring them purpose. They do not walk in the light for their Grandmaster fears the dark. They are not the torch, but the moths drawn to its flame. My meeting with the Grandmaster ended only in disappointment; the only chance the Jedi had to prove themselves ended in failure.” He hated the Jedi for their fear. Ever since his meeting with the Grandmaster, he believed the Jedi were nothing more than cowards and appeasers, unfit for an alliance under their lax leadership.

His chest rose and fell evenly as he spoke, his words venomous and filled with disdain.

”Do not look to the Jedi for hope, for they do not bring the light. They will fall to darkness, just as they once did and just as they will continue to do. Look to those who have fought and bled and died for your freedom so that you may throw off the shackles of oppression. Look to the Mandalorians for vengeance and hope. Those corrupted by the Force seek only power and domination. We seek a galaxy rid of this scum. A galaxy free of the Force and its profane teachings. A galaxy where none will fear the fist of the Sith or the inaction of the Jedi.” He looked directly into the camera, his gaze seemingly boring into the eyes of the viewers. He looked for those Jedi and Sith who watched his message, speaking to them personally.

”As of now, the Mandalorian people will include the Jedi in their Great Crusade against the Sith. Jedi, Sith; there is no difference. Both will fall to darkness, and it is our sublime duty to destroy these wretches before they can destroy your homes like they did mine. Only the Jedi and Sith shall be targeted – the people of their worlds will come to no harm unless they stand in our way. Their temples will burn, their streets will run with blood, their false idols shattered, their warriors slaughtered by the hundreds, their very planets torn apart… and only the barest fraction of justice will be satisfied. Grandmaster Breaux is to blame for the sloth of the Jedi, and it is her hands that will be drenched in their blood in the end.” He drew his beskad and pointed it at the camera ahead of him, his arm stiff and straight.

”The Mando'ade cannot be killed. Join us and be given the freedom you never had. Stand against us and accept your fate. Our wrath is limitless, our reach is infinite, and our vengeance is inevitable.”

With that, the cameras would cut off. Leandros would immediately drop to his knees in supplication to the gods, whispering prayers to them for the destruction of their enemies. This war would never end so long as a single Force user lived, he would see to that. On his bed, Lily sat and watched her father, her eyes twinkling with curiosity.

Spoiler: OOC

Open to reactions only.

 

[Davis Jan]

Davis sat in the common area of one of the Galactic Alliance ships, its windows looking out towards what was their entire fleet. On the large HoloNet screens was an episode of the Real Housewives of Alderaan, interupted every other ten minutes by reports from the Battle of Tython and the ship's intercom summoning maintenance personnel to various engine rooms. These were the only moments of peace that he was allowed and reminded him of his pirate days, growing up amongst the stars and ignorant of the greater galactic conflicts.

Then, just as Marie Ulgos was about to throw her fine glass of Commenor brandy at Sandra Organa the screens all went black amd suddenly there he stood. The Mand'Alor spoke well and had a terrific presence, which the mask only served to amplify, but it was the words that Davis at first admired for seeming to echo his own sentiments and then went to frighten him to his very core.

His Bantha sandwich fell from his hands and his jaw stood open in shock. The Mandalorians would include the Galactic Alliance in their crusade? But then.. the fleet would be its first target. The common area suddenly engulfed in red lights while the Mand'Alor was still speaking and all around Davis people rose from their seats and rushed out, either to send holo-farewells to loved ones or prematurely man their battle stations. Davis just sat there until he was the sole occupant of a room that usually held fifty rebels on their break. He couldn't think. He couldn't believe.

Why? That was the question that lingered. Why had the Mandalorians just announced the end of the Galactic Alliance?

 

[Omnis Waszylla]

Omnis was in the middle of preparing for his next mission, doing maintenance on his ship, when the broadcast played in the hangar. It only took a bit for him to get the gist of the message, though it didn't change his demeanor much. It was another enemy they would have to fight, if it came to that, in order to restore the galaxy to peace and balance. It meant more work, sure, and the Mandalorians were a fierce opponent, but that didn't mean he had the right to just stop when he was in the middle of helping those he had sworn to protect. If he died in the fight, that was the path he'd chosen. The Waszylla family always had headstrong and free-willed members, with Omnis no different. He would fight if he had to, die if he had to, but that didn't mean he'd go down with a whimper. If it was his time to go, he'd go down swinging and doing what he believed in. The broadcast over, he went back to work with renewed fervor. He'd gotten rid of his fear of death years ago. His only fear was of failing to be true to himself, and this broadcast only made firm his convictions.

 

[Teran Atrix]

The entire time that Teran had been a Jedi, they hadn't had it easy. Their work had been cut out for them as they tried to tear down the Sith Empire, but at least during that time they had had a semi-ally. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say an "enemy of my enemy." Teran hadn't been a Jedi when they had a proper alliance with the Mandalorians, but he'd heard the stories. There had always been a hope in his mind that they would find themselves allied once again.

As Teran watched the holonet address play, his stomach churned and his heart raced, pounding like a drum. Fighting the Sith and the Empire were long enough odds, but being actively hunted by the Mandalorians as well? He forced himself to take deeper breaths as he ran a hand over his face, trying to make sense of it all. He knew he should trust in the Force, but that was often easier said than done when you'd just been handed another death sentence.

He tried to tell himself it was just more of the same. He tried to tell himself that he'd been hunted since the minute he came into the order. He tried to tell himself it wasn't different, but it was a lie. This was different and so much worse. It was... a betrayal. At least that was how it felt to the Knight who had never done anything against the Mandalorians. Why had this happened? Why did they want to wipe out the Jedi? It just didn't make sense.

He sat heavily in a chair nearby and put his face in his hands. It was simple proof that things could always get worse.

 

[Zex Vric]

Zex was simply relaxing on a bar inIthor when Leandros appeared in every screen of the galaxy, drinking a glass of whiskey on a place he was very fond of after everything he went through in it. The Nautolan listened to the words of the Mandalore with certain wariness, the Mandalorians fought alongside the GA once, and Zex respected them for what they did, but they were...unpredictable, and since the bombing of their home planet, they were on a violent warpath.

That's why, when Leandros started talking about the jedi, Zex expected it, of course he did, but that didn't mean his heart raced any slower, it didn't mean sweat didn't drop from his face. This was a huge, changing, horrific new. "Force dammit..." The Nautolan muttered, utter defeat in his voice as he put his hands on his head. What were they going to do now? What would he do now? He didn't sign up to fight Mandalorians, he just wanted to get rid of the empire and the sith who kriffed over his life twice "Wait...I joined just to give the imperials the middle finger...but they are all gone, what's left of them will also be crushed by the Mandalorians" The Nautolan looked at the bottom of his glass of whiskey, his hand trembling because of the situation "I could just...leave the GA...leave the jedi behind, this doesn't have to do anything with me" He thought.

But, for a moment, the Nautolan looked around, watching the faces of fellow GA members go pale, the worried looks of the Ithorians he protected a long time ago alongside the jedi, this was enough to make his mind. Zex let out a sigh before finishing his drink in one go and hitting the bar counter with his fist before standing up "To hell with that!" Determination in his voice as he shouted, he fought alongside jedi multiple times now, he couldn't turn his back on them, now now! People like Arda that just wanted to help the galaxy didn't deserve to be hunted down mercilessly by some warmongers, and he couldn't just betray his new people, a desserter is not something he wanted to be, it was not the way he was teached by the man who basically raised him, his previous boss, a man who the Nautolan now knew was once a force sensitive and planned on joining the jedi before the imperial tracked him down. He couldn't dishonor his memory, and he wouldn't let the Mandalorians just insult it by saying such horrible things about the people he was a part of! Zex exited the bar, there was much to do.

 

[Hugo Ion]

Sitting on the side of his bunk Hugo Ion shirtless and wearing on brown pants held a holopad, watching the recent boardcast being played out. Alliance Commander Arda had already messaged him earlier about this earlier but still. All those years ago, he never imagined it would’ve come to this point.

Throughout the speech Hugo’s face was like that of a stone statue. Underneath was a storm of emotions. Slowly his neutral expression faded away into a bitter scowl and his hands began to shake not with fear but of fury.

This bastard always had it out for us. I imagine he had been waiting for an excuse to do something like this for a long time.

Hugo remembered Raz Solus the previous Mand'alor, they didn’t always see eye to eye and their coalition broke off eventually. Even so the rebel veteran had always respected the warlord for her amazing achievement in uniting the clans and success against the Empire. Now her death in the Mandalorian genocide gave way to a force hating zealot who just foolishly condemned the whole galaxy to further chaos and suffering.

The rebel general sighed and thought. Though I wonder if Raz would’ve been any different after what happen to her world if she had survived and not him? Doesn't matter anymore, the Mandalorians want blood so we must prepare.

Getting up to his feet and placing the holopad Hugo quickly began to dress. His eyes blazed with renewed determination.

 

[Kyi Wavestrider]

For once, Kyi had some down time to relax back in his quarters at the Jedi Temple on Jedha but that would all come crashing around him when he saw the news on the HoloNet. Mand'alor the Crusador, Leandros Solus, he'd had heard a lot about him and his reputation and to be frank, the Mandalorian scared the daylights out of him and the Jedi Knight prayed he'd never meet him on the battlefield. After hearing so many stories about the Mandalorians and their conquests growing up, how battle hardened they were and their ability to handle or even kill Jedi - his heart dropped at the Mandalorian's declaration of his war against the Jedi.

The Jedi Knight felt his hands begin to shake uncontrollably, Kyi had had his fair share of close calls as a Jedi but he knew it was all luck, or the Force, but now things had gotten more dangerous to be a Jedi. Kyi exhaled deeply, he hated the idea of now being at odds with both the Sith and the Mandalorians but...he was a Jedi, a peacekeeper and he'd do whatever he could to keep the peace, even if he was scared out of his mind.

 

[Alton Hawkes]

Well... the Senator of Chandrila watched Leandros' message. The new Mand'alor was wearing some sort of ancient mask, he didn't recognize exactly what the mask was, but it was imposing nontheless. And viewers were granted a look at the devestation of Mandalore after the Sith attack. The message's contents were... very concerning to say the least. He was puzzled as to why the Mandalorians were declaring war on the Jedi. Alton knew that while Mandalorians weren't fond of force users and had no love for Jedi, he thought that even if they weren't allies they were still looking to thwart the Sith in their own ways, but things changed he suppose. He can only wonder what development inspired this proclamation. The new Mand'alor said it was the sloth of the current Grandmaster, but why now?

What does this mean for the future though? The Mandalorians were credited with exterminating the Jedi centuries ago and the Mandalorians still have an empire in their own right. Will history repeat itself, will the Mandalorian revolution come full circle, with the Mandalorians merely trading places with the Sith if they are vanquished? Those are possibilities.

Alton remembers voicing support for Jedi working for the Republic during the secession at Tirahnn. Wrong move in hindsight, perhaps he shouldn't have been so hasty in support and he understands why a lot of the other senators were ready to keep them away from arm's length.

Jedi are an endangered species as it is and if the Mandalorians had their way, the Order would die a second time, for good. The Chandrilian senator could only help but wonder if the Mand'alore eally does have people's freedoms in mind, or if the Crusader will just conqueror the galaxy in the name of holy war.

Things to reflect on.

 

[Mida Zebb]

Mida found himself to be slouching in his chair and feeling winded. The aging Abednedo senator of Commenor had just witnessed what he had been so afraid of back on Tirahnn. Perhaps the fledging new Republic just dodged a blaster bolt why not incorporating the Jedi into their manifest destiny, but this no doubt made the job of being the first Chancellor of the Republic a thousand times harder. There were no more neutral parties and no protectorates.

Mida barely noticed his closest aide enter his office, "Senator, what is our-" he stopped when Mida lifted his hand, "Get me the security chiefs on holo. We cannot stand by a Republic if our planet is scorched by Mandalorians looking for Jedi."

He needed to ensure the safety of those he was responsible for, even if that meant making sure no Jedi uses his planet as a safehouse. He would reach out to his son, Sander, who worked as a Sector Ranger, and the chiefs to make sure his planet could remain absolutely neutral. His hands would be tied on Commenor for weeks to come and he could only hope that their new Chancellor was better at multi-tasking and moving mountains than he was...

 

[Wade Jamieson]

Wade loaded his blaster as he watched the screen,”Yup it’s time to strike back.” He laughed to himself before leaving a burning hole in the middle of his screen ,”then it’s time for liberation.”

 

[Keira Zale]

As newly appointed acting Chancellor, Keira was more than a little disturbed to see such a declaration. She sat in her office, watching Leandros appear on screen. She had met the man before, and he had been more than kind to her. However, the man on the screen was someone she had never met before. He was angry, distraught and hellbent on revenge. She couldn’t blame him, watching the devastated remains of his home.

Keira sighed deeply when he finished, closing her eyes and mulling over the declaration. She thought back to every word he said, her mind lingering especially on the meeting with the Grandmaster of the Jedi. What had he said? What had she said? There was something in that meeting that caused such a breakdown, as Leandros did not seem the type to set on this path without something pushing him.

She thought about the ramifications of this war to come and the damage it would wreak across the galaxy. Now that the Republic was forming, many worlds would come under its jurisdiction, and that meant it fell on her to ensure the wellbeing of these worlds.

After what was done to Mandalore, it was obvious the people would pay the favor back in kind. How many civilians would die? How much burning and death would come from this? Keira could not stand by and watch the war against targeted groups lead to considerable amounts of collateral damage.

Keira’s eyes opened as she reached towards her comlink. She would need to find a way to meet with Leandros himself. She only hoped he would be in a state of mind to entertain the notion, banking on the fact that they had met under positive circumstances before.