Corellia
Kyle Iblis sat at the head of the conference table and almost put his head in his hands. Before him sat his various advisors and military leaders who were in the midst of offering options, arguing over courses of action and generally letting their fears overwhelm their judgment.
Still, he could not blame them for things were bleaker now than ever.
The Corellian System had been shut down by Centerpoint stranding the few remaining Imperial naval units. Some units were heading to the closest port while others were attempting to leave the system. Of those that reach port, he wondered which would surrender and which would fight.
The planetary batteries could blow them from space but even if the ships rained down fire reducing the planets themselves to ash, Centerpoint ensured those naval warships would starve before they reached anywhere else.
Also trapped were various merchant ships and civilian craft and there were hundreds of petitions from the families and friends of those stranded vessels. The one thing that Centerpoint did not do was jam the holonet transmissions and every night, some civilian freighter spoke to their families planetside for the final time before their rations ran out.
Now, Corellia was becoming a graveyard of dead ships....fully functional, just with dead operators at the helm.
It was ironic that the cementing of his position from an angry public outcry over his actions (or inaction) came at the hands of Corellia's former Governor, Lupercus Darksword. If fortuitous was a word that could be used to describe the situation, then it was fortuitous that the Empire was made up of bastards and that they saw fit to saddle Corellia with not only a bastard but a sadistic Sith bastard.
His group had finally entered the Sith's former Palace and found sights and records that would haunt he and his people till the day they die. It was the public release of these that enflamed the public and shattered those pockets of Imperial resistance. Base commanders had surrendered in the face of such atrocities.
It gave Iblis his victory but it was a bittersweet victory as a special commission was set up to identify the hundreds (if not more) of victims of Darksword's madness. CorSec was gutted and those officers who cooperated with Darksword were immediately arrested pending a trial that may or may not come given the situation developing around the system.
Coruscant had fallen and, while the timing of his action to shake off the Empire's chains was near perfect, it was not without consequence.
A new Emperor, from a new Imperial Palace on a new Imperial Center had decreed that the Corellians answer for their insurrection with death.
On the holonet system, Corellia lit up like a bright light in a dark room attracting something that might yet prove more horrific than even Lupercus Darksword.
Reavers.
Their early elements had been detected in the outskirts of the system but even as they too were hampered by the mass shadow of Centerpoint, it did nothing to dampen their attempt.
Even if it took them a century or more to reach Corellia or any of her sister worlds, they were coming.
It was perverse how Centerpoint could slow things down leaving sensors and holo-signals untouched so they could experience the horrors of what was happening to the stranded and what was coming in real time even if years away now.
A fleeing Imperial cruiser that had dropped out at Centerpoint's activation close to the far edge of the mass shadow field was nearly traversed when it ran into what Kyle could only describe as a "Reaver" unit. He had heard rumors and news bits but the Borderlands were so far away as to be merely a figment of imagination. Now, the Borderland's new owners were on their doorstep bringing that cursed space closer to the Corellian’s imagination and fear.
As the Reaver 'devoured' and 'disgourged' the cruiser, several Imperial ships signaled their intent to surrender. Whether they did so or not was another matter. In any event, an additional Reaver-cruiser was now headed their way. And for the life of him, Kyle Iblis, the architect of Corellia's independence did not know what to do.
The protectors of freedom such as the Coalition or the Confederation were too far away and too busy with their own Reaver incursions to even offer help. The Rebel Alliance (such as it was) seemed intent on liberating Sullust and so here, Kyle sat, giving half an ear to the outrageous 'plans' his desperate people were throwing around.
"What about the offer from the Cree Ar, Artanis?" ventured a voice that cut through Kyle's reverie.
"What about it?" a newly minted, yet unknown Corellian General snapped.
"Well, with the Reavers being drawn here and the former Governor's own treatment of us, we know where the Imperials stand on the Corellian question. We know where the Reavers stand if rumors are to be believed and we have no reason to doubt their truthfulness. These forces are being arrayed and the only government seemingly with the power to be of any aid to us are the Cree Ar."
"What about the report from the Coalition and Cooperative indicating that the Cree Ar are responsible for the Reavers?"
Instant pandemonium broke out as people argued back and forth but after a while even that drifted into the realm of half-hearted debate.
What good was debating the moral superiority of something when death stared you in the face?
Kyle Iblis looked at the group as they turned their eyes to him one half urging him to make a decision and remove the burden from their hearts and the other half hating him for making it in the first place.
He looked at his people and commented quietly, "Our enemies are heading our way slowly. If we lower the Centerpoint field, all it takes is a single jump and they will be here. In orbit. Over our heads.
Are the Cree Ar responsible for the Reavers? I do not know. What I do know is that they butchered quite a few people on Coruscant and then apologized as if their only offense was trespassing in space that was not theirs."
"Being in this galaxy is a trespassing offense," growled a Captain at the rear of the table bring back the backbone of the group he had served with as the Sons of Liberty.
"What I also know," Iblis continued, "is that Prime Minister Regrad has never lied to us and I would trust his word over any Imperial. So Centerpoint will remain activated and we will prepare as best we can for any attack that may happen in the immediate future. The Reaver threat, while coming, is still distant as long as Centerpoint remains operational. Let's get our Imperials situated and sorted first before taking on the problems of the galaxy."
"Here, Here!" someone shouted and several comrades were banging their fists on the table in a rare display of solidarity.
"And you thought it'd be a mistak..." Kyle's voice drifted off finding that his Second-in-Command was no longer there among the group. He would have to twit him later.
The revolutionary leader grinned as he started to get up, enjoying the brief moment and knocked down a bag.
Thracken left his bag...
*
The explosion was miraculously contained and several Imperial prisoners were executed in response to this heinous act of terrorism.
Thracken Sal Solo, Second in Command to Kyle Iblis, a hero of the Corellian Liberation in his own right reluctantly and with great sadness took the reigns of power and vowed to ensure the continued safety of all Corellians.
In fact, he made that his first act as First Councillor.
The transmission was private and aimed straight at the ruins of Coruscant.
"To Artanis Daz’Da’Mar, leader of the Cree Ar people. My name is Thracken Sal Solo, First Councillor and Protector of the Corellian System. Your message of peace is one that resonates with myself and the hearts of my people and we would like to take those first steps toward a more lasting and better galactic union.
I would like to be the first to extend a hand of friendship to the Cree Ar by offering to you members of the Jedi Corps being held within our prisons. They are weak force-users but I doubt even these will escape their just due from your great power.
Like you, I am but a man and as a man, I naturally look to those interest that are benefit to myself personally and those of my people. If you were to cast your eye towards our direction, you will note an incursion of beings we only know as "Reavers".
We require your assitance in ridding this menace from our space. What would be the immediate advantage to you and your mighty fleet?
You have impressed even the Empire with your might and your starships are exceptional in technological capabilities as evidenced by your complete dominance over the region. But the fact is, they are still merely starships, vulnerable to the same dangers that afflict those inferior.
You have an exposed and most powerful armada. Yet, it is still exposed and needlessly so. In every corner of the galaxy you may search for no safer place than right here, in the Corellian System. This is because no other place can boast of projecting a system wide mass shadow effect rendering the galactic government's mode of travel useless. But not yours, I would imagine.
With your gravitic wormhole technology, you could probably punch right through the interference and arrive anywhere within the system of the Five Worlds.
And that makes our offer of an alliance a good one for both of us.
I extend my hand and gladly pay the tribute of the Jedi Corps. Almost any price is worth the safety of Corellia and the dream of Galactic Peace.
I await your response."
Kyle Iblis sat at the head of the conference table and almost put his head in his hands. Before him sat his various advisors and military leaders who were in the midst of offering options, arguing over courses of action and generally letting their fears overwhelm their judgment.
Still, he could not blame them for things were bleaker now than ever.
The Corellian System had been shut down by Centerpoint stranding the few remaining Imperial naval units. Some units were heading to the closest port while others were attempting to leave the system. Of those that reach port, he wondered which would surrender and which would fight.
The planetary batteries could blow them from space but even if the ships rained down fire reducing the planets themselves to ash, Centerpoint ensured those naval warships would starve before they reached anywhere else.
Also trapped were various merchant ships and civilian craft and there were hundreds of petitions from the families and friends of those stranded vessels. The one thing that Centerpoint did not do was jam the holonet transmissions and every night, some civilian freighter spoke to their families planetside for the final time before their rations ran out.
Now, Corellia was becoming a graveyard of dead ships....fully functional, just with dead operators at the helm.
It was ironic that the cementing of his position from an angry public outcry over his actions (or inaction) came at the hands of Corellia's former Governor, Lupercus Darksword. If fortuitous was a word that could be used to describe the situation, then it was fortuitous that the Empire was made up of bastards and that they saw fit to saddle Corellia with not only a bastard but a sadistic Sith bastard.
His group had finally entered the Sith's former Palace and found sights and records that would haunt he and his people till the day they die. It was the public release of these that enflamed the public and shattered those pockets of Imperial resistance. Base commanders had surrendered in the face of such atrocities.
It gave Iblis his victory but it was a bittersweet victory as a special commission was set up to identify the hundreds (if not more) of victims of Darksword's madness. CorSec was gutted and those officers who cooperated with Darksword were immediately arrested pending a trial that may or may not come given the situation developing around the system.
Coruscant had fallen and, while the timing of his action to shake off the Empire's chains was near perfect, it was not without consequence.
A new Emperor, from a new Imperial Palace on a new Imperial Center had decreed that the Corellians answer for their insurrection with death.
On the holonet system, Corellia lit up like a bright light in a dark room attracting something that might yet prove more horrific than even Lupercus Darksword.
Reavers.
Their early elements had been detected in the outskirts of the system but even as they too were hampered by the mass shadow of Centerpoint, it did nothing to dampen their attempt.
Even if it took them a century or more to reach Corellia or any of her sister worlds, they were coming.
It was perverse how Centerpoint could slow things down leaving sensors and holo-signals untouched so they could experience the horrors of what was happening to the stranded and what was coming in real time even if years away now.
A fleeing Imperial cruiser that had dropped out at Centerpoint's activation close to the far edge of the mass shadow field was nearly traversed when it ran into what Kyle could only describe as a "Reaver" unit. He had heard rumors and news bits but the Borderlands were so far away as to be merely a figment of imagination. Now, the Borderland's new owners were on their doorstep bringing that cursed space closer to the Corellian’s imagination and fear.
As the Reaver 'devoured' and 'disgourged' the cruiser, several Imperial ships signaled their intent to surrender. Whether they did so or not was another matter. In any event, an additional Reaver-cruiser was now headed their way. And for the life of him, Kyle Iblis, the architect of Corellia's independence did not know what to do.
The protectors of freedom such as the Coalition or the Confederation were too far away and too busy with their own Reaver incursions to even offer help. The Rebel Alliance (such as it was) seemed intent on liberating Sullust and so here, Kyle sat, giving half an ear to the outrageous 'plans' his desperate people were throwing around.
"What about the offer from the Cree Ar, Artanis?" ventured a voice that cut through Kyle's reverie.
"What about it?" a newly minted, yet unknown Corellian General snapped.
"Well, with the Reavers being drawn here and the former Governor's own treatment of us, we know where the Imperials stand on the Corellian question. We know where the Reavers stand if rumors are to be believed and we have no reason to doubt their truthfulness. These forces are being arrayed and the only government seemingly with the power to be of any aid to us are the Cree Ar."
"What about the report from the Coalition and Cooperative indicating that the Cree Ar are responsible for the Reavers?"
Instant pandemonium broke out as people argued back and forth but after a while even that drifted into the realm of half-hearted debate.
What good was debating the moral superiority of something when death stared you in the face?
Kyle Iblis looked at the group as they turned their eyes to him one half urging him to make a decision and remove the burden from their hearts and the other half hating him for making it in the first place.
He looked at his people and commented quietly, "Our enemies are heading our way slowly. If we lower the Centerpoint field, all it takes is a single jump and they will be here. In orbit. Over our heads.
Are the Cree Ar responsible for the Reavers? I do not know. What I do know is that they butchered quite a few people on Coruscant and then apologized as if their only offense was trespassing in space that was not theirs."
"Being in this galaxy is a trespassing offense," growled a Captain at the rear of the table bring back the backbone of the group he had served with as the Sons of Liberty.
"What I also know," Iblis continued, "is that Prime Minister Regrad has never lied to us and I would trust his word over any Imperial. So Centerpoint will remain activated and we will prepare as best we can for any attack that may happen in the immediate future. The Reaver threat, while coming, is still distant as long as Centerpoint remains operational. Let's get our Imperials situated and sorted first before taking on the problems of the galaxy."
"Here, Here!" someone shouted and several comrades were banging their fists on the table in a rare display of solidarity.
"And you thought it'd be a mistak..." Kyle's voice drifted off finding that his Second-in-Command was no longer there among the group. He would have to twit him later.
The revolutionary leader grinned as he started to get up, enjoying the brief moment and knocked down a bag.
Thracken left his bag...
*
The explosion was miraculously contained and several Imperial prisoners were executed in response to this heinous act of terrorism.
Thracken Sal Solo, Second in Command to Kyle Iblis, a hero of the Corellian Liberation in his own right reluctantly and with great sadness took the reigns of power and vowed to ensure the continued safety of all Corellians.
In fact, he made that his first act as First Councillor.
The transmission was private and aimed straight at the ruins of Coruscant.
"To Artanis Daz’Da’Mar, leader of the Cree Ar people. My name is Thracken Sal Solo, First Councillor and Protector of the Corellian System. Your message of peace is one that resonates with myself and the hearts of my people and we would like to take those first steps toward a more lasting and better galactic union.
I would like to be the first to extend a hand of friendship to the Cree Ar by offering to you members of the Jedi Corps being held within our prisons. They are weak force-users but I doubt even these will escape their just due from your great power.
Like you, I am but a man and as a man, I naturally look to those interest that are benefit to myself personally and those of my people. If you were to cast your eye towards our direction, you will note an incursion of beings we only know as "Reavers".
We require your assitance in ridding this menace from our space. What would be the immediate advantage to you and your mighty fleet?
You have impressed even the Empire with your might and your starships are exceptional in technological capabilities as evidenced by your complete dominance over the region. But the fact is, they are still merely starships, vulnerable to the same dangers that afflict those inferior.
You have an exposed and most powerful armada. Yet, it is still exposed and needlessly so. In every corner of the galaxy you may search for no safer place than right here, in the Corellian System. This is because no other place can boast of projecting a system wide mass shadow effect rendering the galactic government's mode of travel useless. But not yours, I would imagine.
With your gravitic wormhole technology, you could probably punch right through the interference and arrive anywhere within the system of the Five Worlds.
And that makes our offer of an alliance a good one for both of us.
I extend my hand and gladly pay the tribute of the Jedi Corps. Almost any price is worth the safety of Corellia and the dream of Galactic Peace.
I await your response."
