(Thread takes place at the same time as Trojan's Gift)

In an exclusive interview with INS, Admiral Drayson said this, "I truly believe that these events are proof of the New Order's righteousness. Many have tried -- and failed -- to bring about the end of the Empire. The fact that the Tholatin Republic was so entirely defeated here is assurance to me that we are indeed the destined rulers of this galaxy."

Excert, INS Exclusive

Now...
Tholatin Space


The fleet hovered at station-keeping near the edge of Tholatin space, the distant orb of the Republic's capital a tin prick of light in the distance.

Out here, in the darkness, there was nothing. Nothing but the silent black shapes of the Imperial warships.

The sensors of the smaller, wedge-shaped scouts reached out from time to time into the void, scanning nearby space for the passage of Tholatin ships.

The Battle of Carida was only a handful of hours old, and this force had been deployed at the outset from Yaga Minor to monitor the Republic's homeworld.

The transmission from Carida had come only minutes ago, telling them that the battle was ended and that Tholatin ships might soon be passing, on their return to the capital.

That was of little concern. The force was small, not meant to fight, but to monitor. The enemy was ever-moving, and it would do the Empire good to keep an eye fixed on them.

Or, where possible, two eyes.

The bridge doors of the Shroud slid open, breaking the deep silence that the vessel had settled into. It had been many hours since anything had happened, and even the trained and motivated crew were becoming restless.

Captain Jiren turned his head to look. By order of the group commander, all lights were off, and the new arrival was visible only as a shadowy figure.

"Anything?" General Farlander asked in a whisper. The slumber of the group was beginning to have an effect even on him, he noticed.

"No, sir. The enemy isn't doing much of anything."

Farlander sighed.

"Not much of an assignment, is it?" He asked.

The other shrugged.

"The Admiral seems to think it's important."

Farlander did not respond, staring instead at the sensor display from the Inquisitor, showing the enlarged image of Tholatin's orbits.

The twenty three starships dropped from Hyperspace one after the other, stacking up behind one another in a typical convoy line, led by the Argosy.

Each of the three Enforcer's in the line were intersperced by a group of corvettes, ten at the front, five in the middle, then the final five at the end.

"Is that a fleet...?" Jiren asked, also looking now at the display.

"No. A convoy." The General said. "Look at their positioning, it suggests trade vessels. But look here." He input a command (the computer was slaved to the one aboard the other ship, allowing for instant commands to be exchanged) and the image changed.

"Cloaked ships." Jiren said slowly. Farlander nodded.

"It seems there is more here than meets the eye."

The bridge was silent for a moment, both men watching the display. There was the expected response from the Tholatin defenders -- a mad rush to show the enemy that they were very able to kill them, no doubt accompanied with vieled threats. The Imperial fleet had not tapped into enemy communications (though they certainly had the ability).

The sensor unit bleeted, shattering the silence, and both men instantly locked onto it.

The warheads, in groups of four, quickly close the space between themselves and their prey, and in the process, speed through the battle-group designated TR Formation... The three Enforcer warships sitting, awaiting their demise. Though fired from one point, their course is by no means perfectly straight, but rather their arc deviates low, almost behind the horizon of other, non-hostile, fleet. They carry low below the apex before breaking high, streaming to full speed, and moving on to their prey.

What Jiren and Farlander saw was much different from what the crews of the convoy would have seen.

"Get me communications." Farlander said. There was a risk, in trying to listen in. But this was important... or so the General judged.

The message was sent to the Inquisitor via direct line-of-sight; there was no way the enemy could detect it.

There was a moment's hesitation, in which the extent of the Corvettes' damage became clear, and then,

"Tholatin forces . . ." his breathe heaved under the weight of a single functioning lung. "We came before you today today, in peace . . .


. . .And you blatantly spit on that peace!!


You murder my crew, in cold blood . . .that act will not be forgotten.


You murdered my Son!!!!

I may not live to tell of your treachery, but . . .


I will make you pay, for what you @#%$ have done . . ."

"They're broadcasting in the clear." Jiren said, checking another display. "Everyone within a parsec can hear this."

Farlander just nodded. From their vantage point, it was obvious what had happened. The cloaked ships, detected by the larger Imperial cruiser, had hidden themselves in the midst of the Tholatin fleet and then fired on the convoy.

The end result was, from where the convoy was sitting, it appeared that the Tholatin forces had done the shooting.

Captain Jiren almost laughed at the coldness of it all. The Corvettes were damaged, but they were throwing themselves against the Tholatin fleet.

And everyone on the planet was watching!

"Tholatin forces . . .we are spinning out of control . . .if you have any mercy, any at all, please, spare us from this slaughter.

Spare my crew . . .

Prince Kamon. . .please I need your help . . .my bridge is collapsing around me . . .I fear . . .i may not have much. Please, if you are the man of honour I have heard you are . . .you yourself will come to our aide, if not, then let you be sided with the terrorist filth that stagnates this galaxy."

And Jiren's eyes widened.

"Perhaps," Farlander said slowly, "this is more important than the Admiral thought."




From Empire Ascendent: Shadow Puppets

The small group was introduced to one another relitively quickly, each person present stating, in brief, their name and rank and position within the Empire.

Bhindi knew each of these people, most from the reports she had recieved and read over in great detail before the meeting, but some personally, as well.

She rose from her seated position, her gaze going around the table quickly. All of the others were looking back at her, and all of their eyes betrayed their curiousity. It was not, after all, every day that such a number of ranking members of the Holy Empire were brought together. And in what was only a few days ago enemy territory, too!

"Gentlemen, ladies," Bhindi said, resting her hands on the table. A datapad lay there with information on it, but she ignored it. "As of this moment, the Holy Demosthesian Empire has jointly declared war on the Jutraalian Empire and the Tholatin Republic." She paused for a second as a couple of those present laughed at that. "The Tholatin Republic's threat has been all but eliminated. Operation: Sinner's Tribulation was a complete success, and the elimination of one of the Jutraalian Empire's lineships only made that victory more powerful in the eyes of our supporters."

"Intelligence Reports indicate that the Jutraalian Empire will attempt to attack Thyferra and Bespin simultaniously-"

"Rediculous!" One of the Admirals, an older man with greying hair, spat out. "The Jutraalians lack the resources or abilities to launch such an offensive against the Holy Empire. They do not have the resources."

Bhindi nodded slowly, a thin smile appearing on her youthful face.

"You are correct, Admiral Leven. The Jutraalians naval precidence is a level far below our own. Defensive fleets have already been dispatched to Thyferra and Bespin to head off the Jutraalian offensive. And once those fleets are wiped out..."

"Jutraal will be left defencless." Level finished her statement, nodding exciteadly. "They will leave themsleves open for a full frontal assault."

"Righteous Fury." Bhindi said. "The Holy Demosthesian Empire will smash the Jutraalians abroad and at home."

There was some surprise in the room at that. Righteous Fury, a spin off the Operation: Righteous Destiny that had succeeded some time ago, was the highest level of Alert for the Empire. Righteous Fury would bring the full weight of the Black Fleet, and those of their allies, to bare against Jutraal.

And the first part of Righteous Fury...

Bhindi tapped a key on her datapad, and sent a small information packet to the others present.

"I have transmitted to you the details of Operation: Steel Rain. This information is, of course, For Your Eyes Only. It shall not leave this room until such time as High Command authorizes the mission."

All of the others activated their datapads, and their screens were filled with information about the impending operation.

"Where?" One of the younger members, a Commodore with Bhindi's own Godshammer Division, asked.

The Admiral smiled.

"The target is unknown as of yet. Jutraal is the only Jutraalian world worthy of a defensive shield, and as such is out of the question."

There was silence following that statement, as each of those present considered the effects that Steel Rain would have. It was difficult to choose a world to which to do this. Such a catastrophe...

"I think... I think I know of a place..." One of the younger officers said, somewhat nervously. "The old Jutraalian capital... they called it Despayre, or something like that..."

Bhindi gave him a short, almost evil, smile.

"Despayre is far to remote to make an effective demonstration."



Meanwhile...
Unknown Location


In a way, that state of war had never entirely disappeared. But in the wake of the Demosthesian and Jutraalian destruction, it had been forgotten.

Until recently.

In an ironic twist of fate, it was Admiral Bhindi Drayson (formerly of the HDE), the officer responsible for the ambush of those Tholatin forces outside Commenor, who was charged with the defence of Carida. Bhindi Drayson was a leading figure with the Demosthesians before their fall, and was well known for her anti-Tholatin stance.

The room was dark, as she preferred.

On the table before her, a two dimensional representation of this quarter of the galaxy hovered.

From her position, it looked like a great chess board, the pieces the fleets of the Empire and the Coalition, ORS and the Tholatin Republic.

In Chess,she thought, White always moves first.

And so indeed it had. Communication had been lost with Corellia, only hours had passed sice the defeat of the Tholatins at Carida.

It was interesting, she mused, how the Coalition was seen as White and the Empire as Dark. As if each was entirely bathed in one colour, one representation.

“So, Marshall, you claim that the Empire is good?”

"No. I don't. Listen to me carefully because I do not want there to be any confusion to my response. I do not consider the Empire good.. nor do I consider the Empire evil. Those are religious distinctions that have no place on a government level.”

In Bhindi Drayson's experiance, there was no Good and Evil. No Black and White.

Everything existed in shades of grey.

That's only the first move. What will come next?

Her eyes travelled to Abregado-rae. The planet had fallen only recently, but fallen it had. "White" had made the first move, but "Black" had drawn first blood.

She set her gaze on the Tholatin throneworld.

Winning in Chess requires a checkmate. She knew. But how to secure it?

Right now, the Empire was more focused on defence that offence. If they smashed the enemy in their advances, then perhaps an offence would not even be needed.

The chamber doors opened, spilling light into the room.

"Deusvult." She said, not turning. The doors closed, and the young Commander's voice sounded idley ammused.

"You know me to well."

Bhindi shrugged.

"Perhaps. It's only been a year, though. Hasn't it?"

Godridge nodded.

"If that. How long ago was Bilbringi?"

"I don't remember anymore. It seems a long time ago. Securing the galaxy against the aliens is no easy task, Deusvult."

The Commander did not respond, but directed his gaze to the holomap.

"Tholatin?" He asked, though he knew the answer.

"It has to fall. Vondirananch must be taught a lesson."

During the Duel of the Fates campaign, a number of cells had been established on Tholatin by the Holy Demosthesian Empire. Even then, it was accepted that the world would probably be lost. But to keep it under the grip of the Empire of the time, the Shadow Hand had overseen several installations into the planet's infastructure.

Installations so subtle that they could not be discovered. Not without risking the planet, and indeed the Tholatin Republic itself.

Godridge nodded. He understood full well what the Admiral was getting at.

"I'll send the message within the hour."



Tholatin Space

The message arrived from the Black Fleet following a tangled web of relay stations and loops. It could not be detected, nor traced to the sender or recipient.

It included a broadcast code labelled "Shadowcast", which Farlander was ordered to broadcast at the soonest moment possible, but when it would be least noticed by the Tholatins.

He smiled and keyed the code into the com unit. It would be sent via a small hypercom capsule, which would broadcast for thirty seconds (long enough for the enemy to detect it, but not to intercept it) before detonating.

Today would be a glorious day for the Empire.

Excerpt from Trojan’s Gift

The fleet moved into a now deactivated minefield. Kamon directed the guns of the command vessel to fire towards the cloaked ships and drive them off. Hopefully they'd get something done.

“Why is it always us that get left behind. It’s always the Gunships that get left with defense duty. You’d think maybe one of these days we’d get to do something.”

“We don’t always get left with defense duty, Lieutenant Sanders. There are times where we get to fight. Like at Carida. The Gunships got to fight. Granted it wasn’t a whole lot of fighting, but still.”

“Yeah I guess. But I’d rather be out there doing something.”

“We are doing something. We’re making sure nothing happens to Tholatin while the fleet is out. Now that’s enough. Get back to your post.”

“Yes, sir.”

The captain of the Merant sat back down in his command chair to look around the busy bridge. Being in charge of the defense of the planet while the fleet was out on the edge, the Merant was circling directly above the Capital. Captain Argosy looked to the ensign at helm.

“Status Ensign?”

“Same as always, sir. Engines performing at optimal levels. Shields are performing as always. Weapons are powered down as per orders. Everything is stable.”

“Good. Let’s keep it that way. I don’t particularly want anything terrible to happen.”

“Yes, sir.”

Tholatin, Mercury Sector

Laser fire filled the air as RPGC commando’s attacked a holdout of HDE troops from the time TTR lost Tholatin to their enemy. A detonator flew through the air and landed inside the cave the holdouts were using. The resounding explosion blasted through the mountains and could be heard as far away as the castle. As the explosion ended, so did the blaster fire.

“Are they finished, Commander?”

“I believe so, yes. Send a couple men up to check it out.”

“Yes, sir. Broly, Anderson, go check it out.”

“Yes, sir.”

The duo scaled up the side of the mountain until they reached a ledge just below the cave entrance. There they stopped and drew out their blasters. Popping them over the edge before their heads, they looked around. They couldn’t see anyone alive so they climbed the rest of the way up the cliff.

Walking inside, they looked around. All they could see were a handful of bodies lying on the ground, unmoving. They looked around and, as they did, one of the bodies stirred enough to pull his blaster forward. Broly saw the weapon pointed at her partner and she jumped in front of him as the blaster fired. The bolt caught her in the chest, killing her almost instantly.

Anderson fired three times into the head of the HDE operative. Dropping to his knee, he lifted Broly up off the ground and held her in his arms as he walked out of the cave. Looking down, he could see everyone looking up at him. As they realized what had happened their heads dropped.

Just Outside Minefield

Kamon looked around at the bridge crew as the ships prepared for a micro-jump. He had no idea that the TNO vessel was there. He had no idea what they were planning to do as no one did. All he knew was that Trojan’s ship was in trouble and they needed to get to it as soon as possible.

“Sir, we don’t need to jump. The ship is drawing closer every minute. It’s almost here now.”

“Well, let’s ju…”

“Contacts bearing 0040. Friendlies, sir.”

“The replacement ships are here. Good. Have them form up. And, as I was saying, Let’s just wait here for the ship to get here. No use in wasting fuel.”

“Yes, sir.”

From Maginot Lines

"Undermine the authority of the local government." He said into the darkened room. "Destroy the people's faith in that authority figure, and they'll welcome your liberators with open arms." The figure pasued, smiling into the darkness. "Uueg Tching once said, 'There are three ways to defeat your enemy. The first, and most obvious, is to better him a trial of force. The best way is to have him destroy himself... The middle way is to destroy your enemy from within. Judicious application of the middle way shall make your blows more effective if you later take the way of force. From the middle way it is also possible to push your enemy onto the path of self destruction.'"

"What the hell are you talking about, Drev?" The other replied, irritated. Setting the datapad aside, Drev leaned back in the chair and turned to the other man.
"Standard pre-invasion school of thought. We're here to break the foundation of the Rishi government, right? We do so by undermining the authority they have, breaking the people's faith in them. By the time the Admiral gets here with the fleet, they'll practically be begging us to come and save them."

"Not if the government does something about it. They must have armed forces, something, to quell an uprising. Something like this could never happen on an Imperial world."

Drev smiled.

"Exactly. That's because the Empire has the strength to go against the will of the people, for their own good. The collective masses are foolish, at times, Tek. They call it mob mentality - when a group becomes so absorbed in whatever they're doing that they loose sight of what they're doing, why they're there.

"But the government here is weak. This is a democracy, they have to follow the will of the people. And if the people want the Empire to take control here..."

Tek nodded.

"Then they have no choice. Their own constitution prevents them from taking action." He said, understanding.
"And if they did, then it would be all the excuse the Empire needs to round them up and ship them off to some God-forskaen penal colony for the next hundred years."
"Thank god for alien government policies, eh Drev?"
"I wouldn't say alien so much, Tek. The New Republic had a history of human leaders - Mon Mothma, Leia Organa Solo, and they all followed the same leadership style."

The other man laughed.

"Well, we all know where the New Republic is now, don't we?"
"Exactly. The dynamics of Republic and Democratic sociology simply do not work. The Old Republic fell because of it, and the New one went likewise.
"And all the while, the New Order, the Empire, held strong. Because they do not follow such pitiful examples of mob mentality in leaders."



Now...
Sleeper Cell H-161xx


It was always the waiting that got to them.

War had been described, at some point in the far distant past, as boredom interspaced with moments of sheer terror. And thus far, the statement had held to be true.

Thus far.

The room was dark by neccessity. Most inhabitants of Tholatin's capital city were asleep at this hour. The only ones awake were the perverts who frequented the Red Light District and its plethora of porno houses, running from building to building and cowering in the shadows like rats.

The only light was provided by the flat screen both men watched. The image was low quality, but then that was to be expected of these industrial holocams.

What they were seeing was no different from what they had been seeing for the last six hours. Aside from the shift change, taken at exactly 12:10, there had been no activity within the complex.

The "Shadowcast" key had been recieved some days prior, instantly alerting each of the cells on Tholatin's surface.

Each cell was independent of the others, and none knew exactly how many were present on the planet.

Dozens?

Hundreds?

Thousands?

"Nothing?" One of the agents - he was known on Tholatin as Zion - asked, taking a swig from a cheap crystal glass and wincing as the fire liquid therein burned down his throat.

"Of course not." One of the others - Caare - replied, rising from the uncomfortable plastic seat and stretching.

"Your turn to watch for a while."

"Where are you going?"

Caare gestured to the glass in Zion's hand.

"I need something to keep me awake."

With a grin, Zion slipped into the chair and adjusted the monitor.

"Don't be long. Something big's about to go down." He said, saluting with his glass.

"Don't I know it?" Caare returned, heading towards the kitchen unit.



Now...
Sleeper Cell Z-545ur


Zed slipped a glance out of the cave entrance and swore. The appearence of his head -- even for a split second -- was met with a hailstrom of laser fire.

"I think," he said, slipping a new powerpack into his blaster rifle, "that we're in trouble."

The other agent did not reply, but was busily rewiring the generator that supplied the cave with power.

Knowing what it meant, and grimacing, Zed turned his glanced over the edge again and squeezed the trigger. He was rewarded with seeing one of the enemy soldiers fall -- the shot had hit him in the throat, and he collapsed even as the rest of his group surged forward, trying to get under the agent's fire.

From somewhere below, Zed heard the word "Detonator!", and instinctivly he ducked.

A detonator flew through the air and landed inside the cave the holdouts were using.

"An?" He asked through gritted teeth, glancing at the other agent. He gave a small thumbs up -- it was ready.

With a final shot over the edge, Zed saw the tiny silver orb blow.

The resounding explosion blasted through the mountains and could be heard as far away as the castle.

Zed felt as if his entire body was on fire. The explosion had done less to destroy the cave, than to obliterate it. There was a ringing in his ears, and he could hear and smell something burning.

He became aware that he was still alive, and (what's more) that he still held his blaster rifle.

He also heard voices, coming up the side of the mountain. With his final strength, he pulled the weapon around and aimed it towards the cave opening.

Broly saw the weapon pointed at her partner,

"...from hell's heart, I stab at thee..."

and she jumped in front of him as the blaster fired. The bolt caught her in the chest, killing her almost instantly.

As soon as the act was done, Zed collapsed. When the other Tholatin soldier fired three shots into his head, he was already gone.

Dropping to his knee, he lifted Broly up off the ground and held her in his arms as he walked out of the cave. Looking down, he could see everyone looking up at him. As they realized what had happened their heads dropped.

And at that moment, the generator exploded. The device's reinforced case had withstood the blast of the thermal detonator, but the wiring An had done before his death was not without purpose.

The force of the explosion was channelled upward, tearing a portion of rock from the "roof" of the cave and producing a fireball that pushed Anderson (still holding Broly's body) out of the cave, where he fell three hundred meters to his own death.

The blast pushed a hundred tonnes of rock after him, scattering the Tholatin troops and killing nearly a dozen.

The cave was gone, any record of its existance burned away by the million-degree explosion and the collapse of the mountain on top of it.

The blast was large enough to be detected by the Tholatin fleet in orbit, and was felt by everyone within a ten kilometre radius of the mountain.

Mercury Sector

The force of the explosion was channelled upward, tearing a portion of rock from the "roof" of the cave and producing a fireball that pushed Anderson (still holding Broly's body) out of the cave, where he fell three hundred meters to his own death.The blast pushed a hundred tonnes of rock after him, scattering the Tholatin troops and killing nearly a dozen.

The only person to survive the blast from the generator and the falling debris was Commander Harrison. He picked himself up after the blast had finished and looked around at the carnage displayed by the show of the Terrorists. His people were dead and he was the only survivor from the whole endeavor. His stomach got queasy and he threw up in a nearby bush.

“How could anyone do that?”

He started walking away from the sight and headed towards the military complex. His comlink had been destroyed and he had nothing to contact the military with. All he could do was walk and hope that someone would come to find out what had happened. If they were quick to react a larger attack could be stopped.

The Merant

“Sir explosion on the planet!”

“I see it ensign. Find out what it is.”

“Already speaking with RPGC command, sir.”

Captain Argosy shifted in his seat and kept his eyes glued to the planet where the explosion had occurred. It had to be a terrorist cell and he knew it. But what was their overall scheme? There had to be something bigger they had planned. If they didn’t they weren’t very good.

”They say one of the mountains in Mercury Sector blew up. Suspected terrorist activity.”

“Go to red alert. Get fighters in the air on the planet.”

“Yes, sir.”

Hidden Underground Delta Military Complex

“Send out the Corp. The terrorists have forced our hand.”

A gate opened out of the ground just enough to expel thousands of RPGC troopers but not enough to be spotted. No one would know where the troops came from as they left the complex. They were followed by BLAV’s that quickly moved towards the city. It was a sure sign that something was wrong.

"Why is it, " Caare asked, "that they always resort to the same methods?"

Zion did not respond for a moment, but smiled slightly at the question.

"Tried and tested tactic?"

"I don't think so. It's expected -- the first rule of intelligence is to not do what is expected of you."

At this, Zion laughed.

"No one ever accused the Tholatin Republic of being intelligent."

And Caare had to agree.

They sat in the same apartment, looking out from the high balcony to the street below. It was morning, and it was not unusual for people to sit on their balconies and oberve the early traffic.

But their focus, this morning, was not on the passage of hovercars.

"RPGC?" Caare asked, taking a sip from her mug of cafe and nearly gagging as the hot liquid burnt her tounge.

"I see no altnernative." Zion replied. "The Tholatins seem to place great faith in their soldiers."

Caare simply nodded. Faith was a given. But would it be enough?

"How do we proceed?"

"As we had planned. They acted faster than I had thought, but it is perhaps for the best."

"So you believe that the explosion was the work of an agent cell?"

Zion nodded,

"There is no other explanation. A compromised agent cell would act in such a manner, I do not doubt."

"Then our actions will have a greater impact."

"The public will believe that they cannot protect them. Their will to serve will fail."

Both men smiled thinly. The RPGC on the corner below did not sense their gazes, simply continued to stand and stare into the distance.

Tholatin, Capital City

As the terrorists talked in the blacony, three BLAV's ran by in formation towards the town center. A commander stepped around the side of one building and walked up to the crew on the corner. He stopped in front of them and looked at the buidling behind them in which the the terrorists were staying.

"Search the buildings. Ask for papers. Everything. Look for weapons of any kind. The terrorists must be stopped."

"Yes, sir."

The crew walked into the building and up the first flight of stairs to the housing floors. They began going through homes upon homes, searching for weapons, checking papers, everything to make sure the people were legal citizens. They made their way to the room the terrorists were using and knocked on the door.

"RPGC. Open up."

Merant

"The RPGC is scowering every city for more cells."

"Where there is one cell, there are more. The only thing they can do other than what they are doing is sit and wait for another attack. I seriously believe what they are doing is the right thing. They have no real choice."

"Should we tell the Prince?"

"No. For now it is not necessary that he know. We will keep this to ourselves for now."

(I'm assuming Merant is Tholatin's capital city...?)

Merant City -- Tholatin

"Looks like they're searching the city." Zion said with an air of ammusement. Indeed, far below the RPGC were spreading into the surrounding buildings, moving into them and (evidently) going from door to door.

"Not exactly the most efficient method of trying to find their quarry. How many people live on this planet, anyway?" Caare said, smirking and adjusting the blaster on his hip.

"Four billion, give or take." Zion said, closing the blinds and blocking out the morning sun.

"Beauty." The other man, content that his blaster was in fine working order, moved to the doorway and opened it. Their floor was clear, for the moment. But the sound of feet was evident... on the floor below.

"What do you think they'll do if there's nobody home?" Zion asked, closing the door behind him and Caare and moving towards the set of stairs.

"If they're not the fucking Secret Police, they'll move on. If they try to get in..." The man shrugged.

They had arrived now on the rooftop landing pad, and both men climbed into a medium-sized freighter; a battered Corellian YT4400. The thing was old and unarmed, but it would serve their purposes adequetly enough.

"You're ready?" Zion asked, strapping into the pilots seat and lifting the ramp.

"As ever." The respons came back. They both nodded, and the ship lifted off from the deck.

"RPGC. Open up."

But there was no answer...

OOC: No. Merant is the name of the ship orbitting the planet. I forget the capital cities name. I need to look it up. Will post later.

IC:

Tholatin Capital City

The RPGC men waited a few moments before deciding that either no one was going to answer or no one was home. They looked around to see if anyone was watching from a ways away. They couldn't see anyone but that didn't mean they weren't there. The leader of the group looked to the other two.

"Weren't their people on the balcony to this room only a little bit ago?"

"I think so sir. If I have the right room."

"Ok. Let's bust this door down. I think we have a situation."

One of the trio pulled a ram from his back and handed it to the leader. Taking the ram, the leader positioned it against the door of the room and nodded to the other two. They pulled their blaster's up and aimed straight at the door, ready to shoot if necessary. The captain swung the ram back then forward, busting the door down. The other two ran into the room.

Merant

"There's an unauthorized ship flying over the planet, sir. Should we alert the flight corp?"

"Yeah, get a few fighters up. Two Rapyirs should be enough."

"Yes sir."

Tholatin Air Space

"Unauthorized vessel this is TTR flight control officer Maddox. You will be escorted to a landing pad immediately. You will shut any and all shields down."

The two Rapyir starfighters pulled up behind the ship and slowed down to tail it. They could easily outfly the personnel vessel, but tailing it was the best thing.

"They're paranoid." Zion said, watching as the Tholatin starfighters settled into a tailing position. Theirs was not the only freighter in the sky, but it was the only one with a pair of ships following it.

"Comes with the territory, I suppose." Caare replied evenly, putting the ship into a steep dive. "Tell me if they open fire."

The pilot began putting the freighter through a series of mid-air manouvers, each time trying to throw the Tholatin fighters off course.

Both men grinned.

Maddox rolled his eyes.

"Fools. Alright, bro. Let's tke them down with the old one two. You know what I mean."

"Right boss."

Maddox put his target reticle on the ship and waited for it to go red before launching a single proton torpedo at it. A few seconds later, the other fighter opened up with it's lasers, aiming to take out the engines.

"Unidentified freighter. You were warned and chose to ignore the warning. You will now face the consequences of your decision."