| abstract
| - (OOC Note: before the scene, a Willpower check was done by all participants. Anyone who failed the check (rolled less than 15) was under the Emperor's thrall.) ________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________ Another ordinary day in New Alderaan. It is light out; a clear day with a gentle breeze. The Avenue of the Righteous is as busy as ever, flowing with the usual traffic. There is nothing to suggest of what is about to occur... A voice. It whispers in your mind. "The Jedi Temple." The voice is suggestive, and to many, authoritative. Listen to the voice... "Go to the Jedi Temple. They are your enemy. Destroy the Temple.... raze it... kill every last Jedi. They are evil and justice must be dealt." Darkness has once again settled upon New Alderaan. It spreads across the entire planet, engulfing it in hate, in fear, in anger. The dark side is strong and it works quickly. Many are simply incapable of resisting its temptation; the words in their minds are not mere suggestions, they are commands, and their minds simply cannot resist. In minutes the Avenue of the Righteous is busier than ever. Crowds of people begin to form up, marching towards the Jedi Temple, hate in their hearts, their minds set on fulfilling the desire of the voice inside their head. "Kill the Jedi!" The beings now in the thrall of the dark side approach the temple... the crowd starts small. Thirty people. But every passing moment it grows larger and larger. Hundreds of people... and they seek to kill the Jedi. But there are those whose mind resists the temptations. They hear the voice, as does everyone; a curiosity, at best. But they will not be tempted in such ways. All they can do is look on in horror as their friends or loved ones march on towards the Jedi Temple to fulfill their master's desires... a master who is angry, vengeful, and seeks to punish those who have harmed him. It is not hard for the blue skinned Aruzan to agree with that voice that pries at her thoughts. Ysanne's cerulean gaze seizes over to the Jedi Temple, a few others brushing past her to head in that direction, moving to the call of whatever speaks to them. Her booted feet soon follow suit, though she carries no weapons, her hands form into fists. ROlling one shoulder, her dark blue braid sways down her back. A clean pair of pants, tank and short jacket leave the brawler a bit of easing room for the tensing muscles she feels build. She steps up to the opening to the Promenade, as her head looks up towards the spires, tilting slowly as the crowd around her grows. All across Ord Mantell, a voice enters your mind... "To the Jedi Temple... they are your enemy. Destroy the Temple... raze it... kill every last Jedi." The Corellian was in the bar ... not precisely getting drunk, but definitely enjoying a few drinks after a hard day of work. His thoughts, per usual, were cycling around the unexpected turns that his life has taken, struggling between what he thought would be and what is. The turn of his thoughts is subtle, but insidious, from 'I wish we had more time with just us' to 'if she and Sabine were dead, then I would be free'. Paul doesn't even realize the change that has come over him as he places credits upon the bar and checks his blaster, one hand resting lightly upon it as he makes his way toward home. Only in his mind it is no longer home to him, merely home to the enemy. Axel had only recently landed on Ord Mantell. He was barely out of his ship, sticking to the shadowy parts of town when the 'call' came through. It was not the first time he had felt the call of the Dark side, nor was it the first time he did not pay heed. "Oh hell," the man says as he runs back towards his ship. All hell was going to break loose and he wasn't gonna go in unarmed. Of course, any sane man would get in his ship and fly off, but then again, Axel was never one to be considered sane. He was just ill-equipped for what was going to happen. The man runs back to the Doppelganger II and arms himself, heavy stun weapons and grenades. "Poodoo like this is why I hate the damned Emperor," he says while gearring up and then heading back out, breaking into a run as he heads towards the Jedi temple. He knew of only two men who might have this kind of ability, and he knew the voice did not belong to Darth Malign. (speaking in Basic) Another blue-skinned woman albeit with silver hair, a Wroonian with a New Republic military uniform on, seems to be joining the swelling crowd. Her face is hard, the expression one of hate. Not really trying to get out of the flow of traffic, she moves in time with the people around her, muttering a couple of anti-Jedi epithets under her breath, although not as loud as some of the others around her. Catriona doesn't even say anything about the large man next to her who bumps into her rather forcefully, caroming off and melding into the crowd. Shopping! That's why she's here, however she stops dead in her thoughts as she hears the whisper. "What the...?" she trails off. She brings herself to a calm as she closes her eyes focuses on pushing aside the thoughts. "My will is my own," she says stubbornly. Opening her eyes, Ash looks around herself, upon the airtram as it stops. She moves out for the door as like a flood the people disembark, some angry some confused. Moving swiftly, Ash looks for her friends who had come here for a spur of the moment shopping spree. She calls out their names, wanting to find them, uncertain if they are as stubborn as she is. Walking casually down the avenue, Tal'sin's mind seems to be heavy with his own thoughts, unconcerned with most of what goes on around him. However, it's not for nothing that the green twi'lek is considered highly perceptive, and his head cocks up with a brow raised as the haunting voice enters his mind. More confused than anything else, Tal'sin stops in his tracks and looks around. The idea of obeying the words does not once enter in his mind, but he can tell it does for others. Cursing, he looks around to see how the call effects those closest to him. Ariana was shopping with Ash, an emphasis on the was. Her hands go down to the hold out blaster she has at one hip, and the vibroblade she has on the other. She ignores Ash's calls for the moment as she begins her march towards the Jedi temple, well not march, but she is walking that way. Thoughts of kitty eating are finally pushed from her brain. Jek had been Ash and her shopping expedition. A look of boredom across his face. The Echani had allowed himself to day dreaming as Ash and Ariana are clothes shopping. That's how he was got. The Echani swiftly and agilely makes his way past his captain to join in along with Ariana. His hands haven't went to his vibro blade yet. Lyra, the swoop-girl, sits on a bench at some eatery, looking curiousily out of place as she flips through some book, and not just some book, but some book that looks quite old, made of parchment, with cracked leather covers and moldy pages. The appearance of a swoop-girl looking through such an odd item draws no few curious glances. However, at least she isn't marking in this particular book, instead having secured a datapad from somewhere, she occasionally notes to for her purposes. The redhead looks up at a voice that is unfortunately familiar in her head, putting the swoop-girl into a cold sweat immediately, her hand going to her blaster first. Only then does she look at the throngs of people moving towards the Jedi Temple, "This isn't right," Lyra mutters to herself. But first things first, the swooper packs up her book and ensures it's safely tucked away before standing up. Standing amongst the crowd is Maethor, rather unassuming in his civilian attire, looking just like any other spacer, but there is something deeper, as there always is. The older man glances about for a moment, smirking. Having served in the Emperor's Royal Guard, stood beside the Emperor for a time, the call is hardly questioned, and needs not be explained. It had been some time since the Legionnaire had heard any such orders, but old habits die fast, as they used to say. A glance is given to those marching towards the temple, shaking his head. With a spin of his heel, the Legionnaire begins walking towards the Temple, a little less zombie-like than the others perhaps. Like the shadow that she has been portraying, Chez'na continues to follow within the trek of Tal'sin in silence. The eyelids half-casted across the steel-blue orbs beneath as her attention is mainly on her thoughts and not what this 'going out' would do. That is until there's voice within her head (and this time she's not imagining it). The boot falls come to fall slower onto the ground, drawing distant from Tal'sin. Lekku squirm, twitching though their meaning is of nothing particular. The tension rises across her mandible, gritting her teeth harshly against one another. Right hand cuts across her physique, fingers coiling around the hilt of the newly acquired Corellian rapier at her side. A single fluid movement pulls forth the blade from its sheath, coming with its tip to be pointed to the ground. Face contorts into features of confusion and anger as she drifts from Tal'sin --- heading towards the crowd and ultimately the Jedi temple.. Meanwhile, back at the Jedi Temple... A group of Younglings is being led through their paces by a young Togruta Knight. Each of the children holds a training saber as they follow the motions that Idris Orona shows them, a little ritualistic dance with graceful movements that teaches them the first of their defensive maneuvers. They are standing on the grounds of the Temple, in front of the great stair steps that lead up to the building proper, about a dozen youngsters who all look to be under ten standard years of age or so. But as that voice passes over the city and the sky darkens, Idris lifts her head and squints at the sky, her three lekku twitching as she senses the Dark Side closing in on them. The children cry out in dismay, sensing but not understanding what's happening. "Inside, younglings," rasps the Jedi, herding them toward the steps. They turn and follow her, despite looks of confusion and sobbing from some of the smaller ones, and a moment later another Jedi comes rushing down the steps. Jessalyn spots Orona and moves toward her, a frantic expression on her face. "Hurry, get them inside," she says, only now managing to calm herself down enough so she doesn't send the children into a panic with her own fear. One of them is Kiri, her own son, and she snatches him up against her before turning to find the steps again, leading the group back inside. There are two Jedi Knights standing guard at the Jedi Temple's entrance. The guardsmen rotate, of course, and rarely ever have to intervene with any would-be troublemakers. The ground floor, after all, is open to the public. As the crowd begins to grow, the guardsmen turn and look at each other with foreboding expressions. They'd heard the voice too. In tandem, they turn back toward the crowd and take a couple of steps forward. One stays back a step, reaching for a comlink. He mutters into it while the other makes to address the growing crowd. "Do not come any closer!" he calls out. Finding one person at the front of the crowd, he focuses on the woman and waves his hand through the air, addressing her directly. "You will walk away now!" The woman blinks, falters, and then turns and walks off, seeming confused. Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker is up within the Tower of Wisdom when he hears the Emperor's call. It has no affect on him, save for telling him exactly how the Emperor plans on having his revenge for losing both arms to Paul Nighman. Luke frowns, rises, and walks over to the window, where he can see the crowds gathering below. HIs hand retrieves the comlink at his belt slowly, and he raises the emergency channel so that every Jedi Knight, Master and Padawan will hear his voice. "A mob is coming upon the temple. They are innocent people, under control by the Sith Lord. Destroy every weapon. Free their minds. Those you can't, subdue them, but kill /nobody/ and cause /no/ permanent injury. May the Force be with us." Turning away from the window, Luke makes a rush for the turbolift. - Axel was moving quickly towards the Temple, taking sidestreets here and there as needed. The large Suppressor Riot Rifle was bulky, but it was the best he could gather, that and the lone stun grenade. There were other weapons stowed away on the Helix, but he had no desire to slaughter everyone in his path. To him, the majority of people were innocents, wrongfully sent to their deaths by a power-mad Sith. Oh the irony of it all.... Blue rings of stun energy are shot forth towards a small group of swoopers, all obviously armed with weapons ranging from clubs to blaster pistols. The stun bolt is then followed up with a shot from the chemical sprayer under the main barrel of the weapon. Those hit would likely not be getting up any time soon. It was a dangerous game Axel was playing, but hopefully he'd be able to come out on top. (speaking in Basic) The Temple is where they are going, her thoughts race, as her feet move. "Ariana! Jek!" there they are, but Jek isn't right. The Echani's movements aren't correct. "Frell this slag," she curses as she starts to move, her hands digging into the pockets of her jacket, pulling out a pair of fingerless gloves. These she slips on as she bolts to get ahead. If they are going to storm the Jedi Temple, perhaps she can reason with the Jedi to let her help: her crew was in amongst these crazed beings. Her hands do not go for the blades secreted or in obvious sight upon her. Shopping forgotten now, all she can focus upon is how to free her crew, they were her responsibility, and someone needs to pay for intruding upon their will. Who that was, she hasn't met yet. Getting closer, she flicks on the gloves, and looks around her, and sets the stunning damage to moderate. "Be enough," she intones, as she starts to slow down to make it clear that she's not one of the zombie-like mob bent on killing innocence within. Innocence used. She growls and launches a punch to one of the flock, aiming to knock him out as she moves to get closer. As he draws closer to the grounds, Paul draws his blaster and starts looking around, frowning as his anger and rage starts to grow. She /trapped/ him. She /used/ him. She was probably working /with/ Malign to make him dependant upon her, to infect him with the Force like a virus. He has an advantage over many of the other members of the populace, familiar as he is with many of the Jedi. An oath escapes his lips as they shut the doors and lifting his eyes upwards, Paul takes aim at one of the windows, waiting for someone to foolishly pass too close, his finger resting on the trigger. The call reaches far and wide across Ord Mantell... even as far as hundreds of miles from the Temple the call is heard and obeyed. People simply leave their homes, their offices, the bars, the gyms... they drop everything and march out, regardless of distance, all together in their unified cause: kill Jedi. It has become hard to move down the Avenue of the Righteous... the swarm of drones fill the avenue, all piling together as they descend upon the Temple. The people at the front, at the entrance to the Temple, look upon the two guards with pure hate - while one of their own is sent off confused by the Jedi mind tricks, there are simply too many of the drones to be individually taken care of. So as the woman is sent off by the guard, four more take her place... two of them brandish kitchen knives, something they likely pulled from their own kitchen before coming here. "Jedi pig! DIE!" the four men charge forward at the two Jedi guards, the two knife wielders lunging forward with their weapons in an attempt to gut the Jedi, while the other two simply throw themselves at the Jedi, without regard to their own being; they are driven by primal instinct, a base desire to kill. The crowd continues to grow. Many begin to climb up walls, seeking alternative entrances into the Temple grounds, climbing atop rooftops near the Temple. Then things begin to heat up; two molotov cocktails find their way shooting up from the crowd and towards the Jedi Temple, landing down on the Temple grounds with small explosions that quickly set fire to small patches of grass in the grounds. As Axel approaches the crowd of hundreds of angry rioters, firing his stun weapon, the nearest rioters react viciously - "JEDI!" they shout. Perhaps they somehow sensed his latent Force powers, or perhaps it's because he's wielding a large gun and taking out their fellow drones. But ten rioters back off from their approach to the Temple and rush at Axel, their eyes yellow as the dark side fuels them in their charge on Axel. Ariana continues her somewhat mindless, even if she doesn't know it, walk towards the Jedi. They've never really hurt her before, nor really done much in her life that she can say she hate. All she knows is that for the moment she is feeling an overwhelming hatred for the Jedi and that she must act out on her hate. A smile spreading across her lips as homocidal instincts come to the fore, her eyes shining with anticipation for a fight as she looks for a Jedi to test her skills against. As the crowd moves forth, Ysanne moves to the side and heads inward through the manicured lawn. She skirts away from the rest, keeping to the edge of he sea of people. Her dark braid bounces with her movements and the Aruzan has no need of words as the shouts become thick and soon draw to a roar. Her blue eyes change that murky yellow, her lips parting as she is overtaken and she moves forward, suddenly rushing for the entrance and the Promenade of the Temple. Ysanne's feet dig into the ground and her fists ball, slowing only as she gets closer to navigate the people about her. Across Ord Mantell, the voice continues: "The Jedi are your enemy... they have lied, deceived, used you... even now, they control your Republic... it was the Jedi who let the madman Kreldin escape... they serve their purposes and theirs alone. Save your Republic and kill the Jedi! Kill them -all-!" Maethor glances as Axel begins blasting away. "Fool..." he muses, "He will run out of ammunition soon." the Legionnaire says, mostly to himself as he himself turns and begins idly walking towards the lonewolf, merely flexing his fingers as he draws nearer the shooter, using the bulk of the drone-crowd to shield him from attack as he nears. With a groan, Tal'sin watches Chez'na change her angle to move in the direction of the Jedi Temple. Stopping where he is, he moves towards her, unsure of how to handle the situation. Taking stock of his personal inventory, he silently curses. Syntherope, combat gloves, magnacuffs and a knife. What he would give for a simple blaster. Blinking suddenly, he realizes the other twi'lek has unsheathed her sword. Stepping up to her quickly, too close for her to use the blade effectively, he swiftly wrenches it free from her grasp, holding it in his off hand. Quickly assessing his surroundings, Tal'sin realizes Chez'na is obeying the voice. With his good hand, the green twi'lek quickly pull out his magnacuffs and snaps one around Chez'na's wrist. Looking up and around, Tal'sin looks for something to attach her to. The gazebos along the Avenue are often taken with beings enjoying the weather. Today is no different. Kaley sits catching up on some reading. But with the voice she puts away her datapad and starts to focus her attention on the actions of those nearby. She's knows very well whose voice it isn't, and she has no intention of following the call. Slowly, she rises from the bench and stands at the entrance to her chosen gazebo, from there she can see the Temple. She had chosen this location on purpose due to close proximity to the Tower as a test to her skills and to the unknowing Jedi that have been walking past on their way throughout the city. Now, she is certain she is the last being to draw the attention of the Jedi as an angry mob bears down on the Temple. Although with her location being so close to the Temple, she decides it might be best to watch this event from farther away. And being as discrete as possible, Kaley moves backwards from the mob. Jek continues his trudge. His features contorted as a portion of him longs for a physical fight and a part deep down knows this is wrong. He lets out a roar before yelling out towards the temple, "You'll burn tonight you sithspawn jedi." Then he catches sight of the guards of the temple and he press forward. He would find a good fight there. Sandwiched between more and more people, Catriona keeps a hand on her military-issue blaster, moving quite zombielike toward the Jedi Temple. The crush of people are too much for her to draw the weapon, despite her attempts to gain her said space with a few well-placed shoves and a shout of, "Get the bloody hell off of me, you freak," to a tousle-haired youth that has pimples on his face and an almost comical look of hatred twisting the otherwise decent features. Lyra casts a single glance up the path towards the Temple, and then back towards the enormous crowds. She finds one large shirtless character complete with a shaved head, scars, and self-done tattoos from some military unit or perhaps prison. Compared to her, the lothario is so large she has to hop to wave her hand in front of his face. "Hey! Hey you! It's the Jedi Temple, not a Twi'lek exotic dancer!" she shouts at the man, trying to get his attention, "Hey, Mister Jump-To-Lightspeed?" she says. Then the man, perhaps not such a zombie after all, looks down at Lyra. "You know that voice? You're mani--MMMF!" The large man isn't interested in Lyra's attempts at reason (as they were) and his hands are large enough to simply palm the swoop-girl's face, picking her up and throwing her aside like those ever throwable ragdolls. Then he simply continues to walk on. Lyra, not only lands on her butt, but slides at least a meter, then bumps her head on a janitorial droid (which beeps it's annoyance at her), stands up, rubbing the back of her head, "You could have just said 'not interested, I like men or womprats' or something," she mutters under her breath as she looks around, "Bad idea. Time for another plan." Breath begins to become even more ragged as the boots fall onto the ground. The thoughts pulsating through her head sending the very tips of her lekku to curl upwards then out in an aggrvated manner. It all comes within a flash to Chez'na whom's full attention was paid onto the task at hand, and not in the defense that she usually is within. Fingers unlaced around the rapier as it is snatched from her grasp, yet it does not subsdue her to merely stop. Instead, the blue-hued Twi'lek attempts to move around Tal'sin to continue forward until there's something latching onto her wrist -- making it impossible for her to move forward with the new attachment. A blood curdling scream of fustration rises from the Twi'lek as her arm jerks harshly against the cuff. - Axel curses as the crowd keeps growing. He had an extra energy clip for the stun weapon, but he only had 9 shots left of the chemical spray underneath. Seeing the mass of mob forming near the entrance to the temple, he makes a decision. Pulling the small orb from a pocket, he thumbs the marker and hail-mary's the stun grenade towards the thickest part of the crowd. As he does so, a man rushes him, only to be thrown more than a meter back by the powerful blast of the repulse-hand cybernetic of Axel's left arm. "Why the hell did I leave my ship?" he mutters to himself. (speaking in Basic) As Idris brings up the rear, the class of young Jedi Initiates is herded past the doors, where Jessalyn stands waiting to watch them all pass, and she glances at one of the guards as he halts the progress of one of the first crazed citizens. Setting Kiri on his feet, she crouches beside him, and frames his round face in her hands. "Go with Idris, you'll be safe. Find Elosha and your sister, they're already downstairs. Be brave. It will be all right. The Force is with you." She kisses him, and the serious little boy nods his head follows the rest of the children. "Get them to the sub-levels, stay with them," Jessalyn orders Idris, and the Togruta nods grimly, holding the hands of two of the youngest students as they head upstairs for the turbolifts. Jessa turns back to the guards, back to the closed doorways, and looks up at the sound of Skywalker's voice. Her hands itch to brandish her lightsaber, but she calms herself, calling on the Force and putting her frantic, motherly panic aside. She's a Jedi. These are innocent people, and the blood they want to spill might be hers, but it's not their will at work. But when she opens her eyes, it's almost shocking to see how many people are now flooding across the grounds, the sudden howl of their anger palpable through the Force. And yet one of those mental voices is unerringly familiar. Jessalyn looks over to see Paul as he draws his blaster and aims for a window, and abruptly all that careful control she'd mustered disappears and her heart lurches to the pit of her stomach. Fortunately, she and the two guards are not long alone; more Jedi arrive to thwart the people at the doors. But others have found ways inside, breaking through windows to charge into the Temple, and she can hear explosions going off all around them. "There are too many," she rasps, sending that message through the Force to Skywalker, hoping for better instructions than the ones he's been giving. She turns to face an intruder who comes at her with what looks like the steak knife he'd been using to eat his dinner, grabbing him by the wrist and looking into his eyes, and a moment later he sinks to the floor, as sleepy as a baby. The Jedi Guardsmen are quick. Moving rapidly, the kitchen knives are ripped free and thrown back against the Temple wall, clattering to the ground. Then, a couple of well-placed punches later, the four citizens are on the ground, unconscious. They are joined by a dozen Jedi who rush out from the front door. Some of them ignite lightsabers, used to deflect blaster bolts into the sky, or to slice apart weapons or objects that are thrown at them. The others use their telekinetic powers, whipping their hands around to interject projectiles with the Force, and redirecting them to less harmful places. They are quickly joined by other Jedi who rush out, and the group pushes forward into the fray. They follow Luke's orders to the letter, but with such large numbers, collateral damage is going to get ugly, fast. Luke hits a bypass button on the lift, causing it to open near the Temple's roof. He climbs out and through an access duct, emerging on the Temple's roof. He rushes over to the edge, comlink in hand. "Raise the Temple Shield," he says with regret. There's a thrum of energy as the Temple's shield generators come to life, and a shimmering of purple energy appears for a moment, surrounding the Temple's structure. Where it strikes people, they might feel a buzz of static electricity, but it will serve well to keep blaster bolts and flying projectiles at bay. Luke lowers the comlink, and begins focusing on the crowd below, seeking out with the Force to gather together the ripples that each angry mind makes in the Force. A figure goes by, and Paul is ready and waiting, his blaster firing, the shot flying clear and true. There is a crash of glass, a sharp cry of pain, and the figure drops from sight. In reaction there is a loud cry from the people below as one Jedi goes down, and many hands clap the Corellian on the back. Man or woman, Jedi or just some innocent, none of them actually know, but it's the first one to go down before the shields come up. While the scream issued forth from Chez'na's lungs isn't entirely unexpected, it's still almost directly in Tal'sin's ear. Cursing loudly, aggravation sweeping his body, the green twi'lek lifts the other off her feet and over his shoulder, carrying her swifty to the nearest street pole. Just short of slamming the woman into it, Tal'sin attempts to twist her to face the pole, throwing both of her arms around to meet each other on the other side. Should he be successful, Tal'sin would then cuff both of Chez'na's hands together, keeping her from harming herself or anyone else. The voice continues throughout Ord Mantell... "All the wars in this galaxy can be summed up as Jedi fighting Jedi... Jedi going bad... think of all the good that can come from there being -no- more Jedi... do what must be done, my friends... destroy the Temple... kill the Jedi..."
* Luke checks his Control skill. The results are: 4 6 5 5 3 5 4 4 1 5 1 6. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 53
* Luke checks his Sense skill. The results are: 1 1 1 3 4 4 3 1 5 5. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 23
* Luke checks his Alter skill. The results are: 2 5 5 5 5 5 3 2 6. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 50 Ash growls, nearly ferally as a hand comes up behind her, after her assualt on the first in her path is successful. Perhaps she shouldn't have given away the fact that she's still free minded. Alas. She mules kicks to get out of the grasp but there's more crying out for Jedi blood. She would laugh, if it wasn't so severe. Suddenly the group is shoved aside by an unseen force. Turning about, she nods her head to a Jedi who just helped her as he raises his lightsaber in slight salute then parries a blaster bolt. Moving quick, the scrapper Captain, will have to make introductions later. Watching his back, she notes that her shirt in her scuffle ended up slightly torn. "Now, that's just great," she mutters as she scorpion kicks another being that decided to grab her. As the front of the Temple is engaged and people pour inward, Ysanne slips past and strides swiftly. Her dark braid sways along her back and she rolls her shoulders. Anger builds, something so fierce that it curdles in the pit of her stomach. Pale blue fingers curl again into fists, readying herself as the woman sees red. Literally. Jessalyn's full head of hair is not missed by the Aruzan and she does a few sliding steps forward and launches a sudden punch at the Jedi Healer's side, her lips parting as she grunts and forces her anger in through that punch. The woman shudders and reels with the voice in her head, growing more determined with its insistent call for blood.
* Ysanne checks her Brawling skill. The results are: 2 6 2 4. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 18 Maethor sees one of the less well-dressed spacers fall, blaster in hand. Frowning, the older man bends and picks it up. Gingerly inspecting it, he recognizes the model, flipping to selector switch to stun. "I wonder how the mob treats the helpless Jedi..." he inquires of himself, raising the blaster and aiming it at Axel, his hand flexing somewhat as the stun grenade resonates nearby, knocking his aim a bit as he fires, the harsh-blue bolt arcing as it flies towards Mr. Vichten. The total is: 27 Ariana looks and sees her Captain who is not under the mind control fighting off those who are. Ariana's grin widens even has the saner part of her mind tells her not to attack, the majority is lost in a suicidal haze as she walks towards her Captain, the sound of her vibrosword being unsheathed audible as she walks, pointing it at her Captain as she gets steadily nearer. Once the field has gone up, protecting those inside from any further blaster shots or projectiles, a number of Jedi rush to the windows, leaning out as much as they dare, working on concert with eyes closed as they try not to counter the words of the Emperor - they're not strong enough for that - but to make the people before them tired and sleepy, urging them to lie down and sleep. And it works too, several people stopping in their tracks with looks of confusion and weariness. Some of them slump down to the ground and fall asleep, others simply kneel or sit, resting and wobbling from side to side as they try to muster up the ability to fight. But so .... sleeeeeeepy! Yaaaaaawn! The total is: 23 It's time for a piggy back ride! Up and over the shoulder of Tal'sin does Chez'na go though not in silence as she thrashes and screams in fustration and anger. The voice continuing to echo within her head, driving her mad with being drawn away from the ultimate cause. The struggle remains as both feet meet onto the ground, as she's twisted around. Lithe arms twining around the pole by force, and now.. Well, she's stuck btu that's not keepign her silent nor still as she continues to thrash around.
* Jessalyn checks her Brawling parry skill. The results are: 4 5 5. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 9
* Ysanne checks her Strength skill. The results are: 1 3 4. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 3
* Jessalyn checks her Control skill. The results are: 5 3 6 2 1 1 2 4 6. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 37 Hearing Jessalyn's call, Luke's eyes flutter closed. There were too many of them... he couldn't do this on his own. /Jessalyn. Ver-tak. Uklaih. Alika./ He speaks the name of each Jedi Master who sits on the Jedi Council, and as he does, his mind singles out their souls as they rush to the Temple's defenses. By sheer will, he calls upon them to halt and join him in something called Force Harmony - a talent they all knew and understood well. /Your hearts to my heart. My soul to your souls. Our spirits will work together. Lend me your strength./ Luke feels a sudden burst of lucidity. His back straightens as, through the Force, he feels the combined strength of each Jedi Master joining his own. He begins to see the world around him with something much clearer than his two eyes could show. The angry minds around the Temple start to become clear to him, like pinpricks of anger upon a canvas of ice. His head jerks a bit as his senses seem to widen. He raises his hands, palms spread out toward the people below. Slowly, he becomes less aware of himself... his very soul, and the souls in tandem with him, sink into the power of the Force and begin to glow bright against the dark side. One would hope that Lord Reismark Orlando of the House of Shaw had a stiff upper lip to go with his snooty mannerisms, but the only real thing that the voice generates is irritation. Here he had been, enjoying his rotgut and bandying talk of customization of blasters before said gentleman becomes all boorish and chattery about killing Jedi. "Uh, yez, kill ze Jedi, kill zem..." He utters halfheartedly, raising his foot in some sort of halfhearted lip service. When one is in the midst of zombies, one must do the best they can to act like one. Note, however, that while excellent gearheads and cavalry, no Shaw has ever won an award for acting. Orders to disperse or be rode down work much better than feigning a desire to kill a bunch of serfs with Lightsabers. Paul's moment of triumph is shortlived once the shields rise up and glowering he screams out, "Cowards!! Manipulators! You Jedi and your Holier Than Thou attitudes! Sitting up there thinking you're Gods?!" He starts shooting at random, his blaster bolts simply being swallowed up into the energy field that surrounds the tower. Cursing under his breath, he pushes his way through, shifting away from the rest of the crowds. He knows another entrance ... perhaps it is less well guarded ... Jek catches sight of Ariana and Ash beginning to fight. But his eyes narrow and he turns away from them and to those in the robes. He moves to emerge from the crowd. His eyes on one of the jedi guards. He moves to run towards one of the guards a foot lashing out for the jedi's head. Forcing himself to ignore the voice infiltrating his mind, Tal'sin can partially thank Chez'na for his fortitude. The voice screaming in his ear makes it difficult to hear the one in his mind. Not above humor in sticky situations, Tal'sin merely smiles as the cuffs click together. "Sorry love, gotta do it." Turning round, he sets the rapier to rest on his left shoulder, somehow wrestling both his combat gloves onto his hands. Gripping the sword tightly, he turns to pluck the DY-255 from Chez'na holster, deftly switching it to stun as he studies the scene before him. The Jedi seem to be safe enough with the barrier, so the twi'lek's attention is brought towards Axel, currently barraged by several large men. His good hand holding the blaster, he aims a quick shot at the back of one before moving forward. More people are coming inside, and Jessalyn is forced to give up ground. She's lost sight of those outside who are cheering on the Corellian's successful hit, and for the moment she closes her eyes, hearing Luke's call through the Force. Adding her strength to the other Masters, she is nonetheless distracted as a ranging woman with blue hair and skin comes flying towards her seemingly out of nowhere. The Jedi turns nimbly, reaching to catch the foot of the near human in an effort to sling her to the ground. The look on Jessalyn's face is surprisingly calm as she regards her attacker as if they are both moving in slow motion.
* Maethor rolls 4D+0. The results are: 1 1 2. The wild die is: 2. The total is: 6
* Axel checks his Strength skill and modifies it by +1D+2. The results are: 2 2. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 16 "FOR THE REPUBLIC!" That is the voice of one Captain Jarx Billo, captain of a tramp freighter hauling some food stuffs from Dantooine. The freighter accelerates at full-speed towards the Jedi Temple... and crashes, dead-on, impacting the shields and erupting in a brilliant explosion. The debris falls down upon the earth below, littering the Temple grounds... the freighter is gone, its pilot dead, a victim of the Emperor and the dark side. From the nearby military base - directly across from the Jedi Temple - shots begin to ring out... they are not focused on the drones, but rather, on the Jedi! Not all soldiers were immune to the dark side's call. While many soldiers hurry to mobilize and defend the Temple, others work to kill the Jedi, bringing their military equipment and hardware to bear upon the Temple... it is chaos, pure and simple, a battle of light and dark. As Ash begins to attack the drones near the Temple, four other drones jump at her - they bear no weapons, just using their fists to assault her. They surround her like savages, taking turns lunging and attempting to tackle her. More molotov cocktails are thrown, adding to the chaos... but the Jedi are on the defensive. The drones are blown back by Force pushes or put to sleep, but despite their best efforts, they are simply outnumbered. Give another ten minutes, and the entire city will be here! There were some perks to working for the powerful, access to the best armors, weapons, and ships were one such perk in particular. As the stun bolt impacts against Axel's body, the majority of it is absorbed by the Dark Combat Jumpsuit allowing him to take minimal effects from the bolt of energy as it hit. His hair was standing on end, and there was some tingling where his cybernetic arm attached to what was left of his organic one. Cringing a little bit and realizing how lucky he was, Axel spins around, the riot-gun leveled towards the man who had shot him. He pulls the trigger on large weapon and a moment later he is flung from his feet. The explosion of the freighter sending him toppling over along with quite a few others gathered nearby. (speaking in Basic) Sense is not something that Chez'na has currently or else this wouldn't be happening. She wouldn't be cuffed to a pole and having Tal'sin apologize to her in the manner that he does. Fingers coil inwards forming into fists as she continues to thrash against the pole -- beating herself up really in the process or more so the pole beating her up. The boots lift from the ground as she kicks at the pole with all her effort to attempt to break free, but even that isn't enough. Those screams continue to wail from her as she fights, ignoring the fact that her weapons are being plucked off her.
* Axel checks his Blaster skill. The results are: 1 1 5 1 5. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 22 Someone's brand-new, expensive speeder (naturally in racing red), parked on a path provides a for Lyra to look over the heads of the crowd. No doubt the swoop-girl's heavy boots are scuffing up the polish on the vehicle, and there's a good chance she might be leaving scratches in the paintjob. Not that any of that matters. She feels helpless against this scale of mob mentality. Even if she knows the cause and for whatever reason, it didn't prey on her, she finds herself more or less helpless. Again. Just watching. Even as she watches standing on the vehicle, watching the rapidly swelling crowds flow around the vehicle, she sees sporadic blaster fire. Most of it flies off into the air harmlessly, but in one case she sees it catch some Jedi. She follows the blaster bolt back, which is easy enough, cheers and back-patting that follow. "Hey...isn't that..." the swoop-girl only begins before she has a feeling as to who it is. In an instant, slides off the vehicle and back into the crowds, hoping she can somehow eel through the crowds to reach where she saw the shooter.
* Maethor checks his Dodge skill. The results are: 2 3 3 3 3. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 22
* Axel rolls 5D+0. The results are: 1 5 3 5. The wild die is: 4. The total is: 18
* Luke checks his Sense skill and modifies it by 3D+0. The results are: 6 6 4 3 1 1 5 6 5 2 6 3 4. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 56
* Luke checks his Control skill and modifies it by 3D+0. The results are: 2 2 2 6 6 4 2 2 3 1 2 4 6 2 5. The wild die is: 4. The total is: 54
* Luke checks his Alter skill and modifies it by 3D+0. The results are: 1 4 2 6 3 6 3 1 6 1 4 1. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 48 As the ship crashes into the temple and debris rains down, many on both sides are injured, the sleeping, the attacking, the controlled and the defending. There are terrible cries of pain, bodies trapped under rock and rubble, and horrifically enough no one really stops to notice. The afflicted are too obsessed with killing the Jedi to care about their fallen comrades. As he draws closer, one rock clips Paul's brow and for a moment he staggers, dizzied, wiping blood from his eyes before seeing an opportunity, an unprotected door, and rushing toward it, forcing his way inside. Another down, she casts a glance over her shoulder to the Jedi at her back. It's strange to be fighting along side them. But then, the cause is the same. She looks back and catches sight of Ariana and curses. "Not now, Air!" she commands to the woman as four more come on. She punches one, and knees the second. The Jedi at her back interfers to help her but takes a blaster bolt grazing his shoulder for it. "Behind," Ash nods to someone bearing down another blaster towards him. Shaking her head, she rolls onto her back to kick the first one that just won't stay down. "Okay, how about severe? Hmmm? You want this?" she says as she flips back onto her feet, ready to back another command at Ariana. "Stand down, helmsman!"
* Maethor checks his Strength skill. The results are: 6 3 1. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 3 Ysanne breathes in, releasing the kick towards the redheaded Jedi Master. Her anger wells up, nearly choking her as her eyes gleam that unearthly yellow. The Aruzan's foot sinks into Jessalyn's hand and stops, slowing before it hits her. The blues kinned female twists her body with ease, trying to pull herself free and loose before something worse happens to her. Drawing a long breath, she pushes off with her other foot and twists in the air, trying to unlock herself from the Jedi's grip.
* Ysanne checks her Brawling skill. The results are: 2 3 6 6. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 11 The freighter slammed into the shields so close to Luke that a blast of heat envelopes him, and had his eyes been open, he'd have seen a ball of fire envelop the shields. If they had flickered or failed, he'd have been incinerated instantly. As it is, his hair and robes are blown back by the singing heat, but he's alive... and undistracted. Luke breathes in a deep breath, and then heaves forward with the will of peace and the power of the Force, aided by the binded minds of his fellow Masters. A ripple spills out into the Force, tearing through the otherwise invisible energy field and ripping the Emperor's influence to shreds. One by one, the people nearest to the temple are suddenly freed from the Emperor's influence. The insanity is torn free, peeled back like the skin of a banana, and sensibility restored. Luke breathes in deeply, mustering his soul and mind for another barrage against the Emperor's manipulations. "Grrrrraaaahh!" cries Luke, his arms shaking as he bucks forth, pitting the full weight of his aided powers against the dark cloud cast by the Emperor. Maethor is standing there a moment, the next he is flying back into the ground. Thudding against a zombie-drone, he slides to the ground, seeming to have forgotten his armor today. The man is out cold, lying on the ground, a mere figure in civilian clothes, lying on the ground with the rest, unconcious.
* The_Emperor checks his Control skill. The results are: 4 2 4 4 5 2 4 5 1 3 2 2 4 3. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 48
* The_Emperor checks his Alter skill. The results are: 1 4 4 2 3 5 4 5 2 5 5 2 1 2. The wild die is: 4. The total is: 49
* The_Emperor checks his Sense skill. The results are: 3 3 2 6 4 5 5 4 5 1 1 2 1 3 4. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 53 From another part of the base comes a sound. It's a sound that any military force will recognize- any soldier, any warrior, anyone who's spent a day in the military. It's the sound of a cadence. It's the sound of a hundred- maybe more- voices raised in rough harmony. Male, female, human, not- moving in near-perfect parade step. Two humans march at the forefront of the formation which snakes back a great distance, growing longer by the minute. Two men, one a thick-set man wearing Lt. Colonel's rank on a smart black beret, the other a lean, hard-faced fellow who is marching off to the side, Sergeant Major's stripes on his sleeves. The group is mostly Marines, with Army, Fleet, and even a few Star Ops in the mix. Many of them wear riot gear, but others are armed with improvised clubs and shields ranging from pool cues to trash can lids. The cadence is something peculiar to the military. It is part conditioning, part motivation- and from anyone who's been in the military for any length of time, it is an undeniable urge to join in the formation and join in with the song. "WALKING DOWN THE ROAD ONE DAY," comes a thunderous reply to the Sergeant Major's barrel-chested vocal cues. "I RAN INTO A STRAN-GER. HE SAID HE'D MAKE A MARINE OF ME! IT WAS A LIFE OF DAN-GER." "FOR THE CORPS, FOR THE CORPS, HE SAID IT'S FOR THE CORPS. THOUGH BLASTERS FLY AND WE MAY DIE, WE MARCH ON FOR THE CORPS!" "For the Corps!" shouts the Sergeant. "FOR THE CORPS!" shouts the formation. "AND IF I DIE BEFORE I REST, PUT A SHIELD UPON MY BREAST, AND LET THEM SAY IT JUST ONCE MORE, I DID MY DUTY FOR THE CORPS!" The formation keeps marching, singing and moving as a shielded unit straight towards the Temple and THROUGH the crowd, batons and shields buffering them out of the way. The Marines lead the way, carving a space out around the Temple- then, turning outwards, they create a physical barrier around the Temple, with the Colonel and the Sergeant Major at the top of the steps, helping to direct their motion. Every Marine, Soldier, Sailor, Pilot, and Warrior keeps singing, their voices rising high enough that even in the high levels of the Spire, Luke himself should be able to hear them singing as they launch into the Republic's Anthem, a harmony made even richer for the hundreds of untrained voices rising in unison. Though many from the post have been driven mad by the Emperor's demands, there are enough who can resist.
* Ariana checks her Willpower skill. The results are: 4. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 11 Ariana shakes her head as she hears Ash's command, groaning faintly before she looks at the sword in her hand, then to Ash. "Uh... yes, Ash," she says as she sheathes the sword. Her head looking up as the ship crashes into the Jedi temple and she winces. "This isn't fun," she murmers, before she moves towards her Captain, and gets into a defense stance near her, "What're you're orders, Captain," she asks. The freighter blowing into the side of the building causes quite the spectacular explosion, chunks of it raining down on everyone. Cursing loudly as one particularly large one takes out a swoop just to his right, Tal'sin does a somersault to keep himself clear of the debris. Standing up, blaster firing, the ex-marine quickly drops two drones, every sense he posseses telling him when to shoot, when to dodge, when to move, when to charge. Charging another drone, Tal'sin leaps up in a flying missile kick, only to realize halfway through that his particular target has regained his senses. Cursing for maybe the fourth time in several seconds, Tal'sin manages to lay off the attack, falling to the ground about a foot before his target. Groaning slightly, he pulls himself to his feet, glancing around as he does so. Sheathing the rapier in his sword, Tal'sin knows better than to stow the blaster, waiting to see how the rest of the crowd reacts before taking another step. Freighter? What frieghter? Ash had just given her command to Ariana, was finishing boot stomping some mind drone into submission, to then suddenly hear some sort of screeching sound. Now this is a first for the Nagai. She looks up. What are your orders? "Get down!" She shouts at the woman, her reason over ruling her instinct to grab Ariana. The shocking gloves are on. Doing what she does, Ash dives instead for a woman, and grabs her and uses her as cover. Zappity, zappity, go nighty night. Clambering over a fallen body, his blaster out and at the ready, Paul's teeth flash in a feral smile as he espies the very Jedi he had been hoping to find. That he had been hoping to kill. The redhead 'fights' with Ysanne, using her powers to slow and entrap the woman like the Jedi coward that she is. Snarling he doesn't hesitate, lifting up his weapon, taking aim, and then firing. And then time suddenly slows down, each fraction of a second painfully clear in Paul's mind. His finger pulls the trigger, the weapon fires, a wash of warm and comfort flows over his mind washing away the Emperor's influencing thoughts like a gentle stream breaking up ice, realization dawns slowly and painfully, and with a horrified scream Paul lunges forward, calling out Jessalyn's name, his hand scrabbling at the air as if he could somehow pull the blaster bolt back physically, his body airborne for a moment before crashing heavily to the ground in his horror and folly.
* Nighman checks his Blaster skill. The results are: 5 5 1 6. The wild die is: 2. The total is: 19
* Jessalyn checks her Lightsaber skill. The results are: 2 6 1 6 4 4 1. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 28 Jek watches the jedi in front of him get distracted with something else. A frighter, the mob, and something. He catches sight of Ash and her helping the hated jedi. He fills hatred for his captain and her choosing to help the jedi over him. The freighter hits and he's knocked off his feet. Then he lays there for a moment. He looks up at Ash and Ariana with murder in his eyes. Jessalyn's hands are shaking. Then she realizes her whole body is shaking, the whole tower is shaking, and an explosion can be heard that makes the windows rattle. As she draws back her hands and Ysanne is dropped to the floor, she blinks and stares at the blue woman, the Force tingling up along her arms and her body as her mind is held in the grip of Luke's Battle Meditation far above her in the spire. She can feel the power of his will joining with hers and the other Masters, blanketing the mob surrounding the Temple and lifting the veil from their eyes en masse. And still, there's a funny tickle in the back of her mind, a sudden alert of danger that becomes a blaze of warning she can't ignore. Without even realizing who it is or what is happening, she draws her lightsaber in an arc of blue-green light and deflects a blaster shot that was aimed for her back. The bolt is sent harmlessly into the floor, and Jessalyn gasps as she looks up to see who is holding the weapon, all the color draining from her face. "YOU WILL NOT HAVE THEM SKYWALKER." The voice rips through the Force as Luke enacts his battle meditation to free many of the nearby drones... but the Emperor is not about to give in so easily. He redoubles his efforts, calling further upon his own rage - intensified so by Jessalyn and Nighman - to bring the souls back to his camp. "Kill them all!" the voice is heard throughout Ord Mantell, and half of the drones who had been temporarily freed are once again back under his control. It is a battle of the Force - good and evil - Luke and the Emperor, for total control of the minds of these civilians. Thousands of rioters continue to clammer down the Avenue, besieging the Jedi Temple, and while some are freed, it does not seem enough... rioters continue to ransack through the Jedi Temple, charging Jedi, even though it is ultimately futile - knocked unconcious or "put to sleep." But they keep coming, a never ending wave of fodder. As the Marines finally arrive - the soldiers free of the dark side's call - the air throughout Ord Mantell changes. The sky above turns red as the visible spectrum itself changes, warped by the clash of light and dark. The air distorts, feels heavy upon the people, weighing down on them as the energies collide; the Emperor will not let Luke take them back so easily. The rioters do not hesitate to assault the recently arrived riot troops, attacking them without regard to their own being. - Axel focuses on picking himself up. There was a bit of blood coming down his face from a cut on his scalp, and he was going to have a rather nasty bruise on his backside from landing on a large stone, but he was otherwise alright. The bulky riot-gun was still intact at least, but the pilot's ears were ringing severely. It was not so severe that he could not hear the incoming footsteps of the marines, singing their silly songs as they marched. He levels the stun weapon towards a group of angry dissidents and unleashes several jets of the chemical spray, watching as those in its path fall unconscious. It hadn't been as effective as his stun grenade, but area of effect stun was on his side for the moment. That's when the sense of peace washed over him. He had fealt the draw of the Dark Side, had felt it and resisted it. It was why he was shooting stun weapons instead of blaster bolts. Raising his weapon up over his head, the man started walking towards the line of conscripted peace keepers who were forming the barricade around the temple. The man had planned on seeking refuge amongst their ranks, a wolf among sheep. His cloak was in shambles, and only the chaos of the scene shielding his identity, and that wouldn't last for too long. Axel had almost felt as if things would be over soon, then the Emperor chimes in again. "Great," he says, spinning on his heels and spraying everyone behind him with the chemical spray from the heavy stun weapon. Back-peddling as he shoots, Axel continues on his path towards the Temple, trying to drop as many as he can in his wake. (speaking in Basic) Catriona finds herself in fisticuffs with one of her own fellow soldiers, someone who'd gotten a whiff of trouble and had enough presence of mind to not get pulled in by that insidious voice in everyone's heads. "Cadet, put the blaster down, that's an order!" the human shouts, grabbing her gun hand and forcing the blaster's muzzle down by brute strength despite the Wroonian's struggling. She wrenches free, with blaster still in a death grip, and falls against a red speeder, just as debris starts raining upon the scene, and a chunk of the shrapnel clonks her on the head, leaving a trail of red in her silver hair, and she pauses, obviously dazed and pushed by the force of the crowd toward the Temple some more, until she stumbles into the forefront, near the shield, both energy and physical, and things change. Shaking her woozy head (a mistake on a good day, moreso now), she felt the wavering of her will, first lifting and being free again, so much so that she had begun singing along with the soldiers and others in the meat shield, but then when the Emperor reasserts his will, her actions become not her own, and she decks the singing fleet officer standing next to her, pulling her blaster up once more and firing along the lines of singers, somehow aiming at the ones that are off-key the most. Air, in lungs. Too hot, too hot, and the sound is muffled. She curses loudly. Tossing the twitching woman aside, Ash kneels and looks about, finding Ariana. "Air!" She shuts the left glove off and pulls out her ir-5, "Catch! Stun setting." The woman wanted orders, and by cracky, Ash is willing to give them. She doesn't yet see Jek, but instead pulls some hair back in the momentary lull, not wanting ithe loose ends in her face. She can hear the shouts of some voice, a voice that she will need someone to ident for her later. Then she turns the shock glove back on and proceeds to work with Ariana and the Jedi, she looks to his direction, yup, he's alive, and bleeding, "form up with the Jedi," she orders Ariana, and starts moving that way. Perhaps that is why she's not scorched. She'll have to buy this one a drink later. Or a kitty. "ALL RIGHT, REPUBLICANS!" bellows Katar. The Colonel stands with his riot baton in one hand, shield in the other, voice ripping through every speaker system in the local network. "Now hear this!" He raises his baton as if in salute to the crowd below. "I plege allegience to the Republic!" he shouts. "And the Senate that is her voice! And to the worlds for which she stands- one Republic, United, with liberty and freedom for all!" The Marine Colonel lets loose with the Republic's Pledge- words that every young citizen hears as a youth in school. The Marines are the hard-eyed backbone of the crowd. Some flee in terror for the safety of the temple- others join the mob. Some simple cringe. But even as the mob's anger crescendoes, the Marines stand fast, a living testament to raw stubborness and discipline. The song that rises next is no cadence. It is the Hymn of the Republic- an anthem sung at every ceremony, every sporting event. The Hymn is more than just words. It's ideals. It's sacrifice and courage, embodied in the hundreds of rough voices that sing it more passionately than any professional artist ever has. These are Marines. These are the men and women who have lost their brothers and sisters in arms. They have placed their lives on the altar of freedom- paid their sacrifices many times over. They take to the Anthem with every spare breath they can, even while they push the crowds back, fighting physically against the Emperor's dark influence. All the while, Katar and the Sergeant Major stand at the entrance to the Temple, defiance written on their faces. They are resolute. They will die here before they surrender, and their voices are raised just as high as the lowest of privates, joined together in common cause as they do what they can to help Skywalker turn the tide of the Emperor's corrupting influence on the crowd. The echani man is moving with a his normal grace and elegance while not wasting his movements. Though there's something else there now he's letting hatred power his movement. Jek moves aggressively through the crowd towards his crew members that are helping the evil jedi. He rushes forward and lashes out with a flying kick aimed at Ash's face.
* Jek checks his Brawling skill. The results are: 5 6 2 1. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 18
* Ash checks her Brawling parry skill. The results are: 3 4 4 5 6. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 15 Looking around, Tal'sin turns his back on the man he almost missile kicked, just in time for the voice to start up again, never giving up. Sighing, the twi'lek barely has time to check his ammo before a meaty fist slams into the back of his head. Reeling for several steps, the twi'lek groans and turns to see the man he spared. Growling, he brings Chez'na's blaster to bare and fires a single shot, dropping the would-be opponent. Believing there is some safety in numbers, Tal'sin runs to intercept Axel on his way towards the temple. While the human protects the back-trail, Tal'sin shoots in front, giving the two as clear a trail as possible.
* Jek checks his Strength skill. The results are: 5 4. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 12
* Ash checks her Strength skill. The results are: 2 5. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 10 Ash boosts with a character point and increases the total to 13! Ariana nods her head as she catches the gun, and smiles. Ah... technology, much better than those damn vibroblades, throw backs to an age long gone. Flipping the weapon to stun, she holds the pistol out at arm's length as she becomes familiar with the weight of it, letting the pistol become an extension of her arm. She swirls with the jedi, making sure to keep his back secure as she begins to stun the drones of the dark side. Her pistol waving back and forth as shoots can be heard being made from it. As she catches sight of Jek coming in, she yells out to Ash, "Watch out!" - "Nice seeing you again, Tal," Axel says as the Twi'lek sniper begins covering his back. "She alright?" he asks, nodding his head towards Chez while he continues to blast away at the crowd. The Chemical spray was empty and he was going to need to change energy cells pretty soon in order to keep firing the stun blaster. "Let's just get behind some cover," Axel says blasting away until there's a click as the trigger depresses and nothing pours out. Using the repulse-hand to shove a charging man away, he thumbs the magazine release, dropping the spent e-clip to the ground and then slapping a new one in. (speaking in Basic) He is free of the influence ... for now. On his knees Paul stares back at Jessalyn with an expression of horror on his face intermingled with a strange sort of relief. His hair is wet with blood with trails over his brow and cheek, his eyes a little wild, still confused, and utterly mortified. It's not like he can't remember, doesn't know, what he's done, but that look of shock on Jessalyn's face undoes him. Hands trembling he gets up to his feet before he sways and a little and then runs for the turbolift. For one, he can't bring himself to face Jessalyn right now, for another, this fight isn't over yet if the sounds from outside are any indication, and last but not least, he shot someone. Maker, he may have even killed someone. He has to find out. He needs to know and, if he can, he needs to help. Ash catches a glimmer of movement in the corner of her eye and turns to face it. A flying kick with a heavy booted foot. Lovely. She raises from kneeling and steps back then to the side, bumping into a drone that was backing up. Unable to fully block or parry it, she instead gets the foot upon the hip and growls away the pain that will leave a bruise. "Damnit Jek," she snarls, moving along side the foot and punching him, aiming for the chest, "Never strike me," she growls at him.
* Ash checks her Brawling skill. The results are: 5 4 2 2 5. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 12
* Jek checks his Brawling parry skill. The results are: 2 3 5 4. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 17 Feeling the Emperor pushing back with renewed rage, Luke winces and rears back as the hatred pushes against him. But then he hears the chanting cadence of the approaching marines. They are with him! Bearing his teeth for a moment, Luke takes a step forward, bracing himself. Then, he pours his will against that of the Emperor unseen. His fingers arch and curl. The air between his fingers distorts as if it were bending, and then, waves of invisible power pour out, further distorting the air in a visible arc off the roof of the Temple and over the city. Crackling green energy fills the space between Luke's fingers as the Force rips into the carnal world. It's almost as if he were about to use Force lightning, save for the fact that the energy remains on his own fingers, a visible outlet of the Force's power. Luke's head goes to the sky, and he lets forth a ripping shout. "YOUR POWER IS BROKEN!" Then, his voice begins to echo into the minds of those who are still influenced, a chorus of voices joining his by the power of the four Jedi Masters in harmony with him. "His power is broken. You are free." The chorus of voices fill the minds of those as they are freed from the Emperor's influence. Jek twists out of the way of the punch from Ash. His side step taking him out of the way to her punch. His silver eyes are shinning gold at the moment and he's lost in his rage, betrayal, and fighting. A quick jab of a flat palm strike snakes out with all his strength behind it and aimed at Ash's midsection.
* Jek checks his Brawling skill. The results are: 5 2 4 4. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 19
* Ash checks her Brawling parry skill. The results are: 2 1 2 1 5. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 5 Ariana winces as she sees her Captain taking Jek's flying kick. "Oh... that just isn't right," she murmers as she looks to the Jedi whose back she's been watching. "I'll be back, just remember I ain't back here no more," she nods her head, before she adds as an afterthought, "May the good juju of the Force be with you." She grins, satisfied that she didn't wish him harm by just saying the force. Gotta be specific on things. Why else do you think you say, may the force be with you, and all hell breaks loose on the people you just said it to? Zipping, doding, and spinning her way towards her Captain, she makes her way until she has her shot lined up on Jek before squeezing the trigger.
* Jek checks his Strength skill. The results are: 5 6. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 14
* Ash checks her Strength skill and modifies it by +1D+0. The results are: 4 4 3. The wild die is: 1. The total is: 6
* Ariana checks her Blaster skill. The results are: 5 5 5 4 6. The wild die is: 4. The total is: 31 "Evening, Axel." Looking up to the sky, Tal'sin lets out a low sigh as he runs, shooting down yet another drone. "Some patchy weather we're having, don't ya think?" Shoulder charging a woman out of the way, the twi'lek uses the time to check his magazine. Cursing once again, Tal'sin glares at the two shots left for an instant before looking back up. "Don't happen to have an extra power pack do ya? I'm running low." A particularly malevolent-looking man takes a charge at the twi'lek, but Tal'sin meets him halfway with the butt of his pistol... to the dome-piece.
* Jek checks his Dodge skill. The results are: 4 5 4. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 35 - "Left hip," Axel says levelling the riot-gun at another drone and pulling the trigger. "No extra pack, but my blaster is loaded. Just switch it to stun," he says pulling off another pop shot towards a group of runners. He then hears Luke's voice, "hopefully though, this crap will be over soon, damn jedi and sith, my god we'd all be better off without the both of them, but can't let one go down without the other," he says almost calmly as he was forced to send another person who got too close flying with a discharge of the repulse-hand. (speaking in Basic) And up Ash goes with the palm attack, and then down and on the ground she lies. She focuses upon herself, trying to get breath into her lungs. Being winded isn't fun and now she relies on Airana to keep the Echani away till she can draw breath. Fortunately, she doesn't think that anything is broken, but the pain is enough to drive her feral. "Ari! Shoot Him," she orders, though her voice is naught more than a whisper as she tries to get more air in. Almost at once, Jessalyn deactivates her lightsaber and returns it to her belt, but her gaze doesn't shift from her lover's face as awareness, confusion and embarrassment are suddenly scrawled across his rugged expression. She gasps as he rises and runs to the turbolift, and she starts after him, afraid that the Emperor's influence might return, and Paul will held for the children. For their daughter. But after just a couple of steps, she doubles over as Luke gathers up more power, drawing on more of Jessalyn's reserves, and she cries out in anguish as she holds her head between her hands. The energy that is so soothing to the masses is almost too powerful and sweet to bear with in her awareness, and she sags against a wall, breathless and giving herself up to the Battle Meditation until Skywalker has succeeded in fighting back the Emperor's machination of the masses. The light side of the Force shines brighter than the darkness. A beastly roar descends upon New Alderaan... every being under the thrall of the Emperor falls down unconscious, their link to their dark master cut off violently and suddenly, the shock too much for them to handle; they are not hurt, but they will wake up in a few hours with a terrible headache. An explosion of the Force - sheer energy resulting from the fight between Luke and the Emperor - rips through New Alderaan, shattering windows in a two mile radius from the Jedi Temple. The Emperor has lost this fight, and the blowback of the encounter sends the Emperor reeling over from his throne on Imperial Center, exhausted, weakened, having exerted far too much energy in maintaining his control. He will need time to recover and regain strength... slowly, the Emperor stands back up and moves over to the view port that looks out across the city scape of Coruscant. Back on New Alderaan, fires rage along the Avenue and at the Temple grounds, the debris from the freighter littered about, along with the bodies of the fallen and the unconscious. The Temple itself stands strong, but the results of the attack are clear; small fires have broken out inside the Temple, and bodies litter the floor (although none are dead). It is a mess, but the people of Ord Mantell have survived... the dark side has been defeated, for now. Chuckling, even at a time like this, Tal'sin looks down and pulls the blaster from Axel's left hip. "Couldn't agree more, mate. Not a force-damned soul in this whole war knows what they're doing." His tone is similar to Axel's, cool, calm and collected. Switching the gun to stun, the twi'lek looks for a target. Even moving as he his, he can spot someone in trouble. Watching Ash hit the ground, Tal'sin pulls up quickly, aiming the DY-255 in his right hand at Jek, pulling the trigger once.
* Tal'sin rolls 7D. The results are: 1 5 1 6 6 2. The wild die is: 4. The total is: 25
* Jek checks his Dodge skill. The results are: 4 1 6. The wild die is: 3. The total is: 14
* Tal'sin rolls 5D. The results are: 5 2 4 1. The wild die is: 6. The total is: 19 The call of the dark side subsides over Ord Mantell... the light has prevailed over the dark, and the drones under the thrall of the Emperor have been released... albeit unconscious for two hours. A terrifying roar escapes throughout the city as windows shatter and bodies fall over unconscious... New Alderaan and the Avenue of the Righteous is a mess, but the light has prevailed over the dark, for now...
* Jek checks his Strength skill and modifies it by +1. The results are: 4 3. The wild die is: 2. The total is: 10 Jumping into the turbolift, Paul gives Jessalyn one last stricken look before he seems to get the same idea that she did and hastily he throws his blaster away from hismelf and toward her. He won't keep it on his person, he won't risk shooting anyone else. The door slide shut just as Jessalyn doubles over, the Corellian at least spared the sight of that. The Marines work quickly to subdue the stragglers, helping to ease some into consciousness- or back out, temperament depending. Calls for support go out to the nearby Marine battallions, calling for every spare hand that's on deck to help get the injured to the hospitals and the city back under control. Mass riots aren't something the Marines prepare for specifically, but when it arrives, they take it on like any other mission- calmly, collectedly, and professionally. Only Katar looks back at the Citadel. One hand comes up in a salute at the distant Master, high in his tower, and then the Colonel turns and goes to work, helping to restore order to the city. Jek dodges Ariana's blaster attack with lighting fast reflexes. He swirls around on his crew mate. That's when his connection to the Emperor is severed. His eyes turn back to silver as they roll up in his head. At that moment Tal'sin's blast strikes him and finishes off the job of making him unconscious. He falls to the ground out like a light. Like a puppet whose strings are cut, the Wroonian pilot firing rather poorly toward the Marines and others who were singing collapses to the ground, her silver hair barely pillowing her head from the sudden fall. Still, however, the blaster she'd held is still clutched in her hand, not easily lootable by anyone of a mind to filch a military-issue blaster. Catriona's face is finally cleared of the hatred she'd had before, and she's already got a gash on her head and blood swiftly clotting in her hair, but other than that, she could be taking a simple nap. All that fighting against that pole that decided to beat her up comes to an end, Chez'na's body falls limp as it comes to drape rather akwardly onto the ground. The arms continued to be held in that hugging formation around the pole due to the cuffs that have kept her in place. - "So, how ya been, old friend?" Axel asks, keeping the riot-gun leveled even though things finally seem to be subsiding. It was still a moment of chaos. "Hang onto that blaster," he says. "I'll pick it up from you later. Can't have you guarding her unarmed and all that." As he speaks, his eyes scan the area looking for anyone else who might wish to test their luck. (speaking in Basic) Ariana walks over to Ash, offering a hand to get up as she says softly, "Sorry, Captain." She offers an apologetic smile as she offers the blaster back to her Captain. Wether the Captain takes it or not, after that is done, Ariana walks over to Jek and kicks him. "Dodge my fuggin' shoots will you." She kicks him again for good measure, before she figures he has atoned for dodging her shot, and she walks back to her Captain like nothing ever happened. Bending down, Jessalyn takes the blaster as it skids across the floor into her hands, and glances toward the turbolift as the door closes and carries Paul away. Then the Emperor severs his link with the city, and the rush of energy that shatters windows makes her ears ring out loud enough that she can't hear anything for a few moments afterward. She swallows hard and straightens up, her hair and clothes dusty with debris and pieces of broken glass and transparisteel, and makes her way shakily to the exit where she stands and looks out at the mass of fallen people, the blockade of marines whose anthem she can start to hear again now. As so many people simply sink to the ground, a new group of Jedi emerges from the Temple: the Jedi Healers, who emerge to help with the other emergency medical personnel who will soon be arriving. Though still stricken, Jessalyn musters up her courage and follows them, committed to helping where she can as well, and she moves to help triage the people who seem to be injured, shoving the thoughts of what just happened into the back of her mind when she can deal with it in private. And all at once, the fighting seems to be over. Watching his distant target go down, Tal'sin moves back to Axel, stopped short of giving it back to Axel by the other man's words. "Guess I didn't need it after all." However, he holds onto it, Looking around, he assesses the damage done to the avenue, a heavy sigh passing through him. War, chaos, destruction. He is a minister of all three, but oh, how he loathes them. "Oh, I suppose I've been better." Moving towards the limp form of Chez'na, his brows furrow and he tucks the DY-255 back into her holster, keeping loaded Westfar-34 in his hand. Using his free hand to pull out the cuff keys, he quickly unlocks them and puts them back into a pocket. Crouched low, he heaves her up and over his shoulder, not unlike a large sack of potatos. Stepping back to Axel, the tall twi'lek doesn't seem to especially mind the extra weight. "What've you been up to, Vichten?" - "Playing the odds," Axel says. "You know me, can't stick around one place too damned long before I get bored," he adds. "Anyway, there's a lot of people on this planet that wouldn't be happy to see me, most of them in there," he says pointing towards the temple. "Which is exactly why I'm gonna take a stroll through the gardens." Axel motions towards the limp form of Chez, "Get her someplace safe, and make sure she keeps that blade near her, damn thing cost me a fortune." (speaking in Basic) Nodding at the human, Tal'sin smiles, a light chuckle spilling out. "Sounds about right." Glancing up to the temple as Axel gestures towards it, the twi'lek nods again, a look of understanding crossing his face. "You get somewhere safe as well. Galaxy ain't no place to be if Axel Vichten is rotting in jail." Offering a casual, make-shift salute with the blaster still in his hand, Tal'sin turns away, Chez'na still limp over his shoulder. As he walks away, he calls out to Axel without turning around, "Enjoy those flowers."
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