Ask This Is Not A Drill

[Nicolae Zamfir]

The rest of the trip towards the base was uneventful, no rebel group trying to ambush them, just Nicolae leading the rest of the men towards the base. The Anzat vampire found a nice spot for his squad to observe the base without being properly spotted, foliage and different rock formations hiding them from the base ahead as he took a better look at it...There seemed to not be many people in there, the rebel group was either low on numbers or had sent too many people to engage them outside, people that were now dead, of course, either way, it was good for them.

"We are doing fine" Nicolae whispered into the comlink after he pulled it, his eyes still fixated on the base ahead "We were ambushed by a rebel group, but I managed to take care of it with minimal casualties" Obviously he took most of the credit for that one, his voice full of pride that could be noticed even through the commlink.

But then he paused himself from boasting for a moment before his mind actually thought of someone else for a change "What about the other two and their squads, are both of them still alive?" Nicolae asked partly because even he was slightly worried about not hearing about them and partly because, if they were indeed alive, that meant there were more people to fight and throw against the base, four sith were better than one or two after all, however...

"So, the entrance is well defended because of the turret that they've set up...But I don't see many people around, chances are most of them were outside trying to pick us apart and the turret is their last ace in a lost hand" The Anzat explained, pondering for a moment before opening communications once again "However, it wouldn't surprise me if there were more rebel groups outside that came back to strengthen their defences in the time it takes for you to make your way here, so I'd like to ask permission to engage unless the other two squads are healthy enough to make a big difference" Was it pride and confidence that made him ask for such a thing? Certainly, but he also believed that it was a logical conclusion to make. However, he wasn't confident enough to go in without asking for approval, the champion probably knew better, after all.

@Sreeya @Braden @LouJoVi

 

[Wodan]

The explosion from the fuel canister shattered the smoke haze that hung over the battlefield. For the first time Wodan could see each of his men’s faces, none rested in the quiet release of death. They were all locked in the anguish and pain of their passing, perhaps only the first, the one who had no knowledge of his death died without pain, his head pulverised by the blaster shot. Wodan felt a jolt in his stomach, it was alien, yet so familiar as he looked about the gore, the smell of burning flesh intertwined with grass and fuel avoiding the filter in his mask and filling his nostrils with its stench. The jolt came again and he knew what it was, the Acolyte quickly reached up, unfastening the clasps of his helmet and ripping it free just in time as he curled over and threw up.

It wasn’t pretty, heroic or brave; it was something that would never reach the official records only the few men around him would see it. Perhaps judge him for it? There wasn’t much in his stomach for him to release so after only two heaves it was just bile, a few more convulsions and he could bring himself under control. He heard footsteps approaching through the mud, a quick glance at the armoured feet told him it was Altair. He wiped the back of his mouth with his right hand, his eyes wet from the convulsions and his destroyed pride were dried with his left just as the Champion reached him.

The horned Sith reached out his hand to pull Wodan to his feet, the Acolyte rose with the man’s tug. He was breathing deeply, the odour of vomit thick on his breath, his eyes were red and empty as the Champion spoke to him. Wodan watched as Altair went from man to man collecting the dog tags, though what he was saying at that moment he couldn’t hear, the screams of the burning men still echoing around his head. His hand was spun over and ten dog tags slapped into his grip, the collection of metal filling his palm.

Wodan looked up at the man as he spoke, ‘Never forget’. Those words, only those two got through the screams in his head. They were words his mother had whispered to him every day for four years, ones he had whispered to himself for the past three. ‘Never forget. Never forget Firrerre. Never forget your Father. Never forget Raze. Never forget Revenge.’ Altair clapped him on the shoulder and turned away, for a moment those empty eyes flashed gold with anger and rage. His left hand closed tightly on the dog tags digging into the soft flesh of his untested hands. He held his right out, the emotion now freely flowing back inside tapping into The Force around him. His spear ten metres back at the bottom of the hill snapped into his hand with enough force to split the skin on his palm.

“Never Forget.” He said under his breath, these ten lives he would add to the tally Raze would one day pay for. Wodan had jumped into this mission hoping to step closer to his goal of revenge against the Dark Lord, it was foolish he wasn’t ready for command but his anger had blinded him and caused their deaths. Wodan would carry their souls on his shoulders for the rest of his days, but he wouldn’t carry them alone.

The rage had left his eyes by the time he reached the top of the rise and Altair turned to face the remaining soldiers. The dog tags had been placed inside a pocket on the armour he would do something proper with them after. He returned Altair’s gaze for the first time without his helmet. “Yes Sir.”

@Sreeya @LouJoVi @Versok

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

While Caerllion threw the rebel away from Altair with the Force, the Tiefling caused the flamethrower of the other one to explode. Once these two were dealt with, the Acolyte was able to turn his attention back to what was happening around them. His men were able to deal with the rest of the enemy and now they could have a moment to rest before continuing their march toward the base.

A smile appeared at Caerllion’s lips when Altair praised his actions and the idea of using mud to protect against the flamethrower. If the Tiefling knew that he was only covered by it because he ended up bogged down in a swamp. Of course, he wasn’t going to tell it to him. His men, however, were making faces that showed that they weren’t so happy with the praises that the Annfyn’s “good thinking” was receiving. The young man had noticed it.

“Thank you, sir. But my men also helped with this idea.” Caerllion said, giving the soldiers some credit before they could tell the Champion about his 15 falls in the mud. After hearing it, the troops seemed more satisfied. “Manuel was especially helpful in helping me organize the soldiers.” a voice screamed that his name was Maxwell, but the Acolyte once again ignored it.

The Acolyte watched Altair talking with Wodan. The Firrerreo seemed to be destroyed. He was covered in blood and in pieces of what the Annfyn suspected was guts or something similar. This image made Caerllion feel nauseous and grateful for not being at the other Sith place. He would have preferred to stay bathing in the swamp forever, to be in the state that Wodan was.

“Yes, sir!” Caerllion said in unison with Wodan after Altair finished his speech. He was wrong about the Champion, he wasn’t an idiot after all. Perhaps under his leadership, their team could really bring down the rebel base.

When they started to follow Altair, Caerllion would approach Wodan. The Firrerreo’s presence was still nauseous, but the Annfyn would need to deal with it until the end of the mission. “Are you hurt? Do you want some help?” the Acolyte gestured to the patches of blood in his body. Perhaps he could have a wound.

While he offered help to Wodan, the Annfyn heard the Champion making contact with Nicolae. He silently lamented that the Anzat didn’t explode and was killed by a random blaster shot. Caerllion hoped that at least something bad had happened to him. It would be humiliating with only he and the Firrerreo had trouble in this mission.

@Sreeya @Braden @Versok

 

[Altair Din]

Altair considered Zamfir’s request for a moment. It was risky - especially given the rotten luck the rest of them had. However, this was also an opportunity for the acolytes to make calls and decisions for themselves and see them play out. After a moment of pause, the tiefling’s voice came in through the channel, “Granted. Engage as needed,” He said before he kept walking. Mercifully, the rest of the terrain wasn’t riddled with mines and likely any patrols were sent towards Zamfir or back to base.

After a bit of walking, the base came into view, along with the turret perched atop. There were five men around it and the cannon was panning over the landscape as the soldiers looked through the scope. Altair glanced over at Cyfnos and his men - they were the best camouflaged at this point, “Start inching closer. Once within range, have your men fire at the soldiers manning the turret. That will give the rest of us the chance to charge the base.”

He glanced back at Wodan who had no men left, “Stay with me. Conserve your Force energy because we will need it.”

This last push would take all of them working together. Zamfir would have to take care of any ground forces coming his way, Cyfnos would have to try and have his men shoot down the turret soldiers and Altair and Wodan would have to lead the storm into the base itself to finally take it. He only hoped this leg of the mission could play out without too much disaster…

@Braden @LouJoVi @Versok

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

If Wodan accepted or needed his help, Caerllion would help him take care of any possible wound that the Firrerreo could have. The Annfyn wasn’t the type to have sympathy or pity for others, but he wasn’t going to leave the weakest team member hurt. It could turn the entire mission into a failure. He didn’t nearly sink in a mud hole to end needing to retreat because one of them was too wounded to fight.

During his exchange of words with the Firrerreo, Caerllion heard Altair give authorization to Nicolae to start attacking the rebels. Even knowing that the loss of a member would make this mission more difficult, he still hoped that the Vampire would find his demise. While the Annfyn had offered help to Wodan, if it was the Anzat here, he would probably try to finish what the rebels couldn’t do.
After walking for some time, the three finally were close enough of the base to see it. Caerllion felt as if he could jump of happiness and give praise to the Force due to the lack of swamps and landmines on their path. Of course, there was still the turret, but it was less terrible than the shame of falling in another hole full of mud.

“Yes, sir.” Caerllion said to Altair, after the Tiefling gave his orders. “Michael, tell the others that we are going to get closer to the turret and kill the men working there.” Maxwell, who by this time stopped trying to correct the Annfyn, went to inform the others about what they were going to do. The Acolyte turned to look at the turret, hoping that his time the camouflage would work better.

This time the Force seemed to be smiling at him, because the rebels only saw him and the troops when they already opened fire over them. Caerllion couldn’t believe that this time they got close enough without any problem. “We were successful in approaching them without being noticed and opened fire.” said to Altair through the channel. “You can proceed with the rest of the plan.”

@Sreeya @Braden @Versok

 

[Wodan]

His jaw was stiff, his eyes focused as Carellion approached him, small droplets of blood formed around the shaft of the spear as he walked. Considering the hell he just walked through it was surprisingly the only physical wound the Sith Acolyte had received, the rest was all in his head, something he doubted the Annfyn could cure. He declined the other Acolyte’s offer to access the broken skin on his palm, it was nothing really, it would heal in a few days. But the constant slither of pain whenever he shifted the spears shaft in his hand kept him alert and The Force within touching distance.

Wodan’s eyes darted all over as they walked, the fear of being caught by surprise again keeping all of his senses on edge as they made the final approach towards the base. Reaching the summit of a small rise they viewed the base and Altair gave out his final orders, Nicolae would assault and drive most of the enemy forces towards him, whilst Carellion would deal with the turret emplacement. Wodan’s job was to charge headlong into the base, hoping to not become another dog tag in Altair’s hands.

The horned Champion turned to face him, Wodan was tired, the emotional drain as well as the physical one had taken most of the Acolyte's energy. The Force was the only pool he had not yet drained. He gave Altair a stiff nod in reply before positioning himself towards Altair’s right.

Carellion disappeared off to begin his attack on the turret as the remaining Sith prepared for their final advance. The slightly hilly terrain allowed the pair to get into a closer position whilst they waited for the others to begin their attack. Kneeling down behind a small rise, Wodan pulled tight any buckles or straps for his armour and readied himself. The sound of blaster fire was quickly followed by Carellion confirming they had the turret almost dealt with. That was the signal for them to make their approach, Wodan quickly moved into a fast run across the small gap between their rise and the base proper.

They were perhaps half way across the distance, when in response to the incoming fire on the turret a pair of troopers exited the main base doors, their intention to attack Carellion’s group. But the pair quickly spotted the advancing Wodan and levelled their blasters at the charging Sith Acolyte. Blaster bolts began flying in his direction, the spear in his hand he didn’t have time to reach down for his saber before one crashed into the right side of his chest sending Wodan spinning to the ground. All the wind knocked from his lungs, a burning heat in his chest as blood rushed to the sight of the impact.

The armour had done its job and kept him alive, but now he was stuck in no man’s land. Luckily the enemy soldier had turned his attention to his compatriots as the Firrerrian tried to recover.

@Sreeya @LouJoVi @Versok

 

[Nicolae Zamfir]

Nicolae nodded to himself after Altair gave him permission to start the fight, turning his head towards his men before silently gesturing them to advance, like he had done so far, the Anzat sith would be the one to lead the fight...This was his chance to shine, after all, the Tiefling had given him the spotlight and everything that would happen to his squad from this point onwards would be because of his own suggestion, he had to take this seriously and give his all.

Nicolae and his troops would take cover as far away from the turret as possible, ready to engage by drowning the turret in blaster fire before they had a chance to fire back...Unfortunately they spotted the rebel troops that were coming back to the base, troops that also spotted them and began firing at them, the battle unfortunately starting on unfavorable terms as the turret also started to open fire.

Nicolae tried his best as he was forced to act defensively, using his lightsaber to deflect shots and giving the troopers some cover to fire back without being instantly killed by the turret. That being said, it was impossible to save everyone and, as the main forces left the base to engage his troops as well, the Anzat ended up taking part of the biggest conflict so far. Many would die from both sides, but Nicolae and his forces were holding on, slowly but surely trying to gain the upper hand in a fight that seemed to be very even "Slaughter these rebel dogs, for the empire!" Nicolae exclaimed, trying to bolster morale as he deflected blaster bolts, his soldiers were dying, but they weren't being slaughtered, their morale was high thanks to their successes so far so they fought until their bitter end, Nicolae hoped they respected him by the end of this, force knows he had newfound respect for the common soldier after this.

@Sreeya @LouJoVi @Braden

 

[Altair Din]

“Excellent work,” Altair commed back to Caer when it was reported that the men around the turrets were taken care of. While there was some heavy fire for a moment, Caer and his men effectively took the turret entirely out of the equation. However, this didn’t mean that every soldier was wiped out. A small group engaged Zamfir, but that only meant the base was left largely unguarded.

The tiefling sprang into action, charging with Wodan towards the base. However, he could see the enemy beginning to line up fire. He coiled the Force around Wodan to yank him out of the way, and it saved him from certain death but wouldn’t avoid a shot. Altair cursed to himself, rushing over and crouching down to scoop the other man up to his feet, “Come on, no time for a nap right now,” He said urgently, putting one of Wodan’s arms around his own shoulders to start dragging the man across. While Woden almost weighed as much as Altair, the latter had been doing the Thorne routine and was arguably far stronger.

Altair used the Force to coil around a row of soldiers, flinging them clear to the side and into line of fire from Zamfir’s men. He didn’t slow down in his advance, rushing across till they reached the base. There was a bit of climbing to do, but he would support Wodan through it till both men came across the base entrance. Without hesitation, Altair channeled the Force to his fist as a Matukai practice, slamming an open palm into the stone door to make it crumble apart.

He barged in and finally released Wodan, the immediate area around them empty. He spoke into his commlink, “Keep an eye out for fleeing rebels,” He told the other acolytes still out on the field, “We’re gonna flush them out. We take the command center, we have this base.”

Altair clapped Wodan on the shoulder, “Come on, we gotta keep moving,” He led the way towards the upper levels. The lights were flickering on and off inside the base, “Keep alert, they could take us by surprise,” He whispered quietly to Wodan.

@Versok @Braden @LouJoVi

 

[Wodan]

As he tried to pull himself from the floor, all the emotion he had tried to hold down rushed to the surface. Could nothing go right today, wherever the Firrerian Prince turned he was met with failure, he was only alive right now because he hated the long flowy robes his contemporaries wore and preferred the practicality of armour. His eyes were locked on the men ahead of him causing Altair’s arrival to surprise him and for a second he pulled himself away from the Champion before realising who he was and what he was doing.

His pride fading away with every second of this mission he allowed the man to help him up and the pair moved as quickly as possible across the no man's land, the treacherous run ending in a small hill. Wodan clambered up its slope as Altair cleared the way with The Force before smashing his way into the base. Wodan could not be more impressed by the aptitude, strength and force of will on the Champion. They would all be long dead by now if it wasn’t for the Tiefling keeping them together and alive.

Stepping into the base Altair let go of Wodan who stumbled slightly not expecting the bigger man to let go. Moving off to the side out of sight of the door behind and corridor ahead the Firrerian gave his chest piece a once over, the duraplast had melted and was constricting his breathing slightly. Reaching around Wodan unclasped the latch which kept the chest piece and backplate together and pulled it over his head just in time for Altair to finish giving the Order and lead the pair ahead.

The corridor’s flashing lights were an annoyance more than a hindrance to the Firrerrian as the pair advanced on what they expected was the control centre of the base. As they approached a corner Wodan heard the sound of boots running towards them. Holding his hand out to stop the Champion, Wodan then positioned himself against the wall near the edge of the corner.

Wodan primed his body for action, adrenaline and The Force coursed through his body. As soon as the first soldier appeared Wodan struck, like a viper his Spear jolted out the blade piercing clean through the man’s neck, severing muscle, cartilage and bone. Although it did not decapitate the man, the soldier had died as soon as he struck blood splattered across the wall behind him as the razor sharp edge cut itself clean as Wodan pulled the blade out.

Everything was raging now inside of Wodan, his anger, his frustration, his shattered pride all fueling the Dark Side as it flowed into the Sith Acolyte finally giving him success on this forsaken mission. A scream from down the hall signalled the dead soldier was not alone. In a smooth single motion Wodan continued pulling the spear free, switching his grip from palm down to palm up as he moved out from the cover of the corner. The soldier was seemingly panicking, the sight of his colleague's head drooping off to one side, blood spurting out of his neck like a fountain.

Shifting his body weight back, Wodan pulled The Force through his body, enhancing his physical strength. Picking his spot just above the heart Wodan threw the spear, in a blink of an eye it struck home, the blade sliced clean through the light armour of the soldier, both front and back. As it pinned the enemy to the ground behind him, it took him a few seconds to die, blood spluttered from his mouth as he tried to call out. Wodan pulled his spear free as the soldier took his dying breath.

@Sreeya @LouJoVi @Versok

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

”Thank you, sir.” Caerllion said through the comm link, before turning to the scene in front of him. His troops were finishing some of the last rebels that remained near the turret. During their surprise attack, most of them were killed. The Annfyn was able to cut some down with his lightsaber, after having used Korriban magick to stun them.

When the last of the rebels was killed, the men under his command regrouped near him. “What are we going to do now?” Maxwell asked, waiting for Caerllion to give their next Orders. “We should go help the with the invasion! These traitors must pay for having killed the others.” a trooper said. He was furious with the death of soldiers that were under Wodan command. “We can’t leave the turret without no one, the rebels could return here and take control of it!” Maxwell had a good point. They were at an impasse that the Annfyn would need to solve.

After thinking sometime about what they should do next, Caerllion decided that what both of the soldiers said were good ideas and together they would be even better. “We are going to split. Half of you will stay here, guarding the turret, the rest will go with me to help with the invasion.” this decision seemed to please the troopers.

Before they went to the base, Caerllion contacted Altair through the comm link. “Sir, we finished here and are going to help you with the invasion. I left some of the soldiers to guard the turret in the case of rebels appearing here. Do you give permission for us to use it to fire against them if they appear or try to escape?”

The turret was in a place where they could see if someone was trying to flee the base. Its capture meant that they could also use it to fire on rebels that were trying to escape or that were trying to give reinforcements for those inside the base.

@Sreeya @Braden @Versok

 

[Nicolae Zamfir]

As the battle raged on Nicolae tried his best to keep on going, blaster bolts getting dangerously close to overwhelming him as both the turret and the enemy fired at him and his troops. The vampire acolyte tried to be cautious, using the lightsaber mostly to defend himself and protect his squad and it seemed to be paying off, the enemy slowly but surely losing more and more men even though they had an advantage.

That being said, as Nicolae took cover from a moment, his eyes set on something that had landed not too far away from him: A grenade. His eyes widened for a moment before thinking quick and decided to protect his face by using the force, knowing that the rest of his body was protected from the shrapnel thanks to his acolyte robes. However, even if the many tiny fragments pierced his robes but didn't get to him, the blast of the grenade itself would.

Nicolae would fall on his back after the grenade exploded, pain coursing through his whole body as he gritted his teeth in a desperate attempt to not scream or curse out loud. Just breathing was enough to cause even more pain and getting up was something that would need some time so, unfortunately, finishing the fight would be up to his troops, who would now suffer more casualties than before because the acolyte couldn't help them, not turning into a loss because the turret had conveniently stopped taking shots at them from afar.

After the last rebel fighter outside the base fell, Nicolae's forces finally got out of cover, making sure no one else was about to shoot them first, of course "Are you all right sir?" His second in command said, helping Nicolae get up as the Anzat weakly protested with "ows" in response to the pain of merely moving "Everything hurts and I think I've got bruised ribs, but I'll manage" The acolyte looked around, counting the soldiers that were still alive and ready to fight. What he gathered is that they had certainly suffered some losses but they were probably doing better than the others (If only because he had the biggest squad out of all of them).

"Sir, we've dealt with what I hope were the last squads outside the base, what are your orders?" Nicolae asked, hoping for once that it was not "get in the base and lead the fight". He didn't want to admit to the other siths or his troops that the rebels had actually managed to really injure him, but he didn't know how well he could fight now that he felt as if a Wookiee had slammed a hammer directly into his chest.

@Sreeya @LouJoVi @Braden

 

[Altair Din]

Altair purposely stayed back as Wodan took charge in taking out the soldiers. This was necessary. The acolyte needed this after the series of failures that could demoralize anyone. The tiefling strode behind him, prepared to jump in where needed. Otherwise, he looked around the corridors before crouching down to take a badge off a dead soldier. He glanced over at Wodan when the soldiers were cleared.

“Excellent work,” He said with a smile, “Let’s keep moving. I think the rest of the way is empty.”

The badge got them the necessary access to the upper levels. As expected, the fortress was largely abandoned except for the command center. Altair could hear some commotion on the other side of the door. He glanced over at Wodan, “Prepare to engage as soon as I open this,” He said quietly. He swiped the badge and the doors hissed open. Almost at once, a series of bolts erupted from the other side of the room. There were only three individuals, but they had their blasters trained for an intrusion.

Altair wasted no time in unleashing a concussive wave of the Force, sending them flying in different directions. One of them charged at him, but the tiefling channeled the Force to his fist and slammed it directly into the man’s face. Wodan would witness how the face of the man completely shattered as if it were made of glass. Bones snapped and cracked from the blow and the man fell into a heap. It was a clear demonstration of what happened when anyone got within close quarters of the tiefling.

Altair would let Wodan finish off the others as he pulled up his comlink again, “Gents, we’ve secured the fortress. If it looks quiet out there, I think we’ve won the day!”

@LouJoVi @Braden @Versok