Star Wars Rogue Knight

Part 7

Meinuan City

Atrisia

The eternal hunger could not be satiated. However, sustenance could calm the hunger-pangs that were its constant companion. Finally being able to feast cleared up its vast mind. The additional biomass and especially neural networks it could use helped too. Finally it could think beyond its next meal. It no longer was a slave to its instincts.

Even then, it paused. Savored fresh tastes on its many tongues, felt tender flesh being torn apart from still living food by dozens of jaws, gorged itself on bone marrow and sinew.

The feeding frenzy slowed down. Basic combat forms looked around and surveyed their surroundings with their many eyes and enhanced ears. The infected breathed deeply and sorted through thousands of scents. Only then did it allow itself to use the Force and seek prime biomass.

The intelligence paused in confusion. The world it had landed on was densely populated – it could feel the siren song of at least a trillion beings. However, those touched by the Force were few and far between. Even those few felt wrong, weaker.

The combat forms directly touched by the sickness bristled at the very thought. The lack of prime biomass was going to slow it down and already its spread was sub-optimal. It planned to land at a spaceport and spread before anyone was the wiser. Instead it was blinded by the feeling of so much food concentrated on the planet. In its ravenous dash towards sustenance it didn't react in time and was shot down short of the optimal target.

No matter. The food's response was less severe than feared. It could feel it – their confusion, determination. The food had no idea what it was dealing with. If it understood the concept, the entity would have smiled. A small demonstration of power to sow chaos, a few tiny custom made organisms attached to shuttles busy removing sustenance from its immediate reach and all attempts for containing it were for naught.

It didn't understand smiling, though it could feel satisfaction at a job well done. The food was gathering around the sustenance center it infected. It would be coming for it, trying to purge it. The food was fighting, even achieving some successes though more than a few were just because it allowed them to happen.

The entity was playing for time. Already multiple nerve clusters were approaching maturation. They were less powerful than it dėsɨrėd, with smaller range. The prime biomass was infected with strange organisms that resisted repurposing and weakened the ensuring clusters.

It was a setback, but it wasn't going to matter. The hunger could not be denied!

The hours needed for the clusters to properly grow up were spent in feasting, studying the local food and tailoring combat forms. From consumed soldiers it found out what their Rakghout protocols were. It examined them and felt amusement. Eating those morsels once it got away from this world would be a treat.

=RK=

It felt all consuming rage. That emotion was so potent that it even silenced the ever present hunger. The Force boiled and became ripe with anticipation when a new entity arrived in system. The sickness remembered it. It was the same poisoned food that denied it the last time. The same one that ensured it would hunger for eons!

Tens of thousands of combat forms roared their fury to the heavens. A million infected went into a killing frenzy. The nerve clusters shook and the first one awoke.

The hunger could not be denied! It wouldn't be consigned to oblivion once more!

The rage grew. It burned hotter than the heart of a star. Infected people shook as their will was stripped from them by the boundless hunger. Combat forms and simple thralls surged from their hiding places. The entity screamed its rage through the Force and it resonated through every infected within the city.

Battle hardened veterans froze in their tracks. Vehicle crews clutched their ears in a futile attempt to make the noise stop. Pilots blacked out and every single vehicle flying above Meinuan crashed.

Only then did the infected fall upon the helpless defenders and tear them apart. The Force scream lasted four minutes and by the time it ended, the only surviving soldiers were the ones high in skyscrapers and a lucky few squads too far away from infected.

It was only the beginning. The one who denied it was still out of range. However the same couldn't be said for the food circling the city. A million throats snarled and turned towards the forces ensuring the quarantine. The entity focused most of its attention on them, though it didn't forget to sent more infected to spread it through everyone still left in the city. Others homed on the few remaining nest of resistance and one in particular was singled with a special attention. It was the only site which was lucky enough to have landed shuttles during the scream.

=RK=

Flag Bridge

Corellian Cruiser Freedom

High orbit over Atrisia

"This is going to be ugly. I need an armor brigade and at least an infantry division for what's all but guaranteed to be a suicide mission." I snarled.

The second time we were ready and had multiple Sith on each ship. We still had to land and take out the shield generators the hard way. We never stopped cursing the bastards who thought it was a great idea to have our primary bio-warfare division labs and the planetary shield research complex housed on the same world along with a Sith academy so Crimson could have a ready supply of Force Adepts to consume and strengthen itself.

Seeing Atrisia's planetary shields come online before we could get into effective range brought back memories I thought suppressed. Fighting twisted monsters in a desperate bid to reach and disable the generators. Being one of a handful of Sith who managed to use the Force well enough to keep ourselves healthy. Barely making it out as the planet was burned down to the crust behind us.

It was a decade later, and largely thanks to Ashara, that the nightmares stopped. I almost laughed at that thought. By that point in my life I believed myself immune to fear. I was a thing other people had nightmares of.

Crimson proved me wrong. It weakened the Empire and came close to bringing its downfall in the aftermath.

And now the kriffing thing was unleashed again! If I could go back in time, I would murder the kriff out of the Dark Council for this!

"General Veil, I'll appreciate if you don't break my Flag Bridge." Admiral Holt's concerned voice brought me back to the present.

I looked around and winced. The deck bellow my feet was twisted and I was surrounded by a corona of wild angry manifestation of the Dark Side, which was lashing around me. Thankfully everyone had the presence of mind to keep themselves far away of me.

"Dully noted, admiral. Crimson brought back some memories I believed I'd handled." I bit off.

"That bad?" Halcyon asked.

"That bad." I deadpanned after reinforcing my mental shields. "Get me my volunteers and take out those shields." I ordered before plunging deeply in the Dark Side and infusing myself with its essence. "I'll do my best to keep our ships and ground troops shielded, but I won't be able to do that for long." I added and began preparing myself for another round of Battle Meditation.

"Admiral Holt, we have Prime Minister Huan and Empress Fei on the comm. They demand explanation for our actions."

"Tell them to check with what's left of their troops at the quarantine zone. That should be an explanation enough." I looked at Holt. "Admiral, no matter what happens, no ship can leave this planet. Bring the Freedom above the shield generator complex. It will make it easier for me to protect our troops on the ground. You have tactical command." I closed my eyes and let my consciousness expand.

First my mind touched the people on the Flag Bridge. I felt Halcyon flinch at the contact, though after a few seconds he accepted the connection. It was communication with concepts, ideas and images. The Green Jedi saw a glimpse of what Crimson could become. The man flinched once more, but then his heart flared up with determination. He gave me a grim nod and headed toward the closest hangar bay.

My awareness spread and now I was connected with everyone on the ship. A thought was all it took and their will was bolstered. They would do their duty and wouldn't falter.

Then it was the turn for the other ships. We were already on the edge of the gravity well and soon would be in Crimson's range. I frowned and felt like slapping myself.

I couldn't protect everyone, not without killing myself. However, I didn't need to. I carefully pulled out from most of the crew until I was touching only those on the bridge, CIC and engineering. The rest would have to fend for themselves. Only then did I return to seeking the minds of the command crews of the rest of the fleet as well as every engineering crew.

=RK=

Part 8

Ming valley

Atrisia

Jedi Master Halcyon had read the records. He knew, intellectually, what an advantage large scale Battle Meditation could be. Despite that, experiencing it firsthand was an eye opener.

By all rights, the attack should have been a disaster. There was merely ten hours to plan it in case taking out the shields the hard way was necessary. The only good news was the inordinately good intelligence about the target provided by the Atrisians themselves in case the CIS attacked and the GAR came to reinforce them.

That shouldn't have been enough. An armored brigade and a mechanized infantry division with a bit of air support were simply insufficient to take the complex before they could be hit by overwhelming reinforcements – not when they had to tangle with four dug in Atrisian Assault Corps – a mix of heavy infantry and armor augmented by extensive minefields and multiple heavy weapon emplacements.

That's what conventional wisdom claimed. Halcyon's experience in the war so far agreed.

They were proven wrong.

A whole fighter and bomber squadron suffered failures while passing through the shield. A third of the transports either crash landed or had to land short of the target due to the same kind of damage.

The portion of the task force under the Jedi Master's command should have been easy pickings for the defenders. The locals knew what they were fighting for – the survival of their very world, the people they loved, their families. Nejaa knew that he'd be facing fanatical resistance and neither he or the Clones under his command would be as determined to win as the enemy, even if he knew that the plague had to be stopped at any cost.

The reality of the situation was quite different. He could feel the touch of Veil's mind upon his own. It bolstered his courage, connected him with every man under his command and made them all act with unparalleled coordination.

That was not all. Halcyon could sense the enemy's intentions, could anticipate their actions, their positions, even before he used the Force to do so and when he accessed it, his capabilities were further bolstered.

What should have been meticulously planned and well executed defense was anything but. Atrisian veterans faltered, fought as individuals instead of members of a single unit. Halcyon could feel their courage faltering even before his soldiers entered effective range.

Every Atrisian fought as an individual. The experienced veterans did better – they didn't break despite an overwhelming feeling of fear and despair. They fought and died alone.

The same couldn't be said for the inexperienced soldiers among them. Many froze, flinched and some threw away their weapons and ran away in the face of seemingly invincible enemy.

Here and there small knots of Atrisians with exceptional willpower made last stands. A squad dug in around multiple automated blaster cannons held out against two companies with tank support until Halcyon entered the fray himself.

A tank platoon led a valiant last ditch defense at the gates of the complex that halted a whole battalion until infantry swarmed them with missiles and thermal detonators.

The rest of the Atrisians simply broke or died under withering barrages of impossibly coordinated fire.

Halcyon stared at the carnage and found it hard to believe his eyes. Most of the defenders were gone – dead, surrendered or running. There was a battalion dug in within the complex itself and the only reason they were still holding was because the Jedi was waiting for enough infantry to reach the entrance so they could eliminate the remaining resistance with minimal losses.

It was less than an hour since the attack began. By all accounts, Nejaa just commanded one of the greatest victories in the war to date, yet he felt anything but joy. He knew it was necessary, that failure could see the galaxy die screaming. Yet that knowledge was cold comfort, as his success meant the dead of billions anyway.

"General, we've got unknown craft heading our way. The CAP is experiencing technical failures when attempting to intercept them!" A confused voice came over the comm and it chilled Nejaa's blood.

The Jedi Master closed his eyes so he could concentrate better and searched the Force. Despite the Battle Mediation making his courage unwavering, Halcyon felt a pang of fear and revulsion. A wave of fury and hunger was approaching upon a dozen speeders and atmospheric shuttles.

"Commander Roy, take a regiment and get that building secured and the shields disabled, now!" Halcyon ordered. "All armor is to ȧssume defensive positions. Infantry is to dig in and prepare for imminent attack. Check your armor seals. We're about to be attacked by infected. Everyone with compromised armor is to pull back to the complex!"

=RK=

Downtown

Meinuan City

Atrisia

Wei found himself on the ground, clutching his aching head. There was something sticky on his face and on both sides of his neck. For a moment he thought that he was back at the school yard and everything had been a particularly realistic and nasty nightmare.

The Detective cracked his eyes open and ġrȯȧnėd. No such luck. He recognized the damn office. He touched his face and examined the sticky stuff – it was blood.

The pounding in his head increased and he remembered. One moment Teng was talking with the sergeant, hoping to arrange evacuation for Kim, then he heard screaming. Not with his ears, but in his mind. That's all he remembered before awakening on the floor. Wei ġrȯȧnėd and gingerly got up, which was quite difficult thanks to a sudden bout of vertigo.

Teng dry heaved, before the dizziness subdued and the headache lessened a bit. He looked around and cursed. Half the people were lying in pools of their own blood. Some had clawed out their eyes and had torn large chunks of their faces. Other laid dead with blood leaking from their eye, nose and ears.

Whatever that Sithspit was, it killed off a lot of people. Wei was one of the lucky ones – along with the sergeant who was still trying to get up and a couple of soldiers mȯȧning on the ground.

Wei went to the NCO and helped the man up.

"Sarge, we need to go. If that Sithspawn plague hit the whole city with whatever this kriffery was, we're dead if we stay here!" The Detective said.

"Kriff it, you're right. Get whoever's still alive in here together. I'll go see if we still got a shuttle or two ready to leave." The sergeant ġrȯȧnėd and tapped his comm.

Teng nodded and went to check on Kim. Her head was covered in blood, she was unconscious but at least the rookie was still breathing. Wei carefully picked her up and headed towards the CEO's personal hangars that were appropriated by the military. He would be seeking other survivors once Kim was secured in the first flight out.

=RK=

Quarantine perimeter

Meinuan City

Atrisia

The entity's rage knew no bounds. It had come so close to destruction it still couldn't believe its luck in surviving. If it wasn't for the food raising a shield over the planet, the ships in orbit would have burned it, worse – prevented it from feeding.

It could feel the danger was far from over. The being that denied it the last time was here. It was trying to deny the hunger, to rob it of sustenance. That could not be borne!

A million strong infected, thousands of speeders carrying combat forms and tens of thousands of the latter surged at the food digging it around the city. The entity screamed its fury and frustration at them. Channeled its fear through the Force and used all those emotions to fuel its powers.

The food screamed. Some began tearing at their eyes. Other shot at anything that moved. Yet more either ran in panic or curled into catatonic balls until they could be consumed.

Those strong enough to resist were singed out. Artillery positions were engulfed in self-destructive madness with the crews turning against each other. Others bombarded friendly positions without even realizing it.

The Atrisians unfortunate enough to possess sufficient willpower to resist were focused upon. Soldier were crushed by invisible force. Tanks failed and became tombs for the crews able to resist the mental attacks, and they were the most lucky – most of them lived long enough for monsters to peel away the armor surrounding them before they were consumed alive and aware.

Bomber flights shattered as they entered effective range. Some escorting fighters opened fire on their charges and had to be put down.

Only then did the wave of twisted people and custom built combat forms slammed into the shattered perimeter and drowned it into a sea of snapping jaws and clawed tentacles.

More nerve clusters mȧturėd. The entity's command of the Force, its awareness and reach increased. It wasn't long before it comprehended the nature of the danger. The thin energy barrier keeping it safe from the ships in orbit was in mortal danger. It commandeered every speeder, shuttle and suborned fighter it could, loaded them with combat forms and sent them to counter the threat.

Then it concentrated its massive mind on the food threatening its very existence. They were more than a thousand kilometers away – farther than some of the ships in orbit, however they were the threat that mattered right now.

The plague channeled its emotions through the nerve clusters on Atrisia. It sent fear, rage and hunger at the food trying to disable the shields. It felt them flicker with unease, yet their courage was not broken. Instead the mental attack bounced off from the other's will.

The entity's fury rose to a crescendo. It was being denied again! That could not be borne! It searched for its adversary and struck at it directly.

The Force shook in exaltation. The hive-mind slammed into the bound wills of more than hundred thousand men and women. They recoiled by the strike, yet held. Fury bright enough to match its own blazed above Atrisia. It struck again and this time the attack was met head on. Infected staggered, combat forms screeched in pain, Clones fell to their knees as mind blinding headache split their heads.

A million twisted maws snarled in fury. The entity was evenly matched by that other hive-mind. The rage burned, yet it felt satisfaction. It could sense the limits of the other. It could match it, for now. Soon enough there would be more nerve clusters to draw on and then the hunger won't be denied.

It shifted its focus and began gathering power. It felt the other preparing for the inevitable attack and felt amusement. The other would be ready. However, it wasn't the target.

The shields would fall soon, but not before the combat forms could reach them. The entity examined the food defying it. Focused its power and struck. The fighters flying to meet the infected began falling from the sky. While the other could protect their pilots, the same could not be said for the machines themselves and they were small – even relatively minor damage could bring them down.

Its attention went into the combat forms ready to engage the food from the stars. It would lead the attack with everything it was and it would ensure that the hunger would not be denied.

=RK=

Shield generator complex

Ming valley

Atrisia

Nejaa was on the front, surrounded by a rank of hastily dug in tanks and a regiment of infantry. Only the Battle Meditation kept him and his men ready for the coming onslaught. He felt the plague strike at their minds. Most of the Clones were brought to their knees despite Veil doing his best to shield them.

He could sense their headaches, the treacherous tendrils of fear and boundless rage that tried to worm their way in the soldiers minds, yet slammed into the fused will of every man and women bound by the Battle Meditation and failed to find purchase.

Halcyon could feel it. The hunger was here. It wanted nothing more than to consume the whole galaxy in one endless feast. Nejaa gripped the hilt of his lightsaber and glared at the approaching shuttles, aircars and speeders.

"We will hold this position, no matter what comes our way!" He opened a line to all his troops. Halcyon laced his voice with the Force, made it ring with the conviction he felt. Nejaa thought about his Scerra, his wife back on Corellia, about his son. "We will not flinch in the face of slobbering monsters! We will hold this line and won't take a single step back!"

Tank and walkers raised their guns. Missile crews shouldered their weapons and took aim. The approaching swarm showed no inclination of slowing down. Thanks to the Battle Mediation there was no need of a spoken command. When the infected entered range, the first row of vehicles opened fire. Shuttles and aircars shattered under rail rounds and blaster bolts. Missiles streaked in the air and blew apart their targets. There were no mistake, no two men targeted the same enemy.

The skies were filled with explosions and the front of the swarm vanished behind a wall of fire and shrapnel. Yet the plague was not deterred. It had no trouble sacrificing as many of its minions as it needed.

Halcyon felt it when it struck. The first line of armor began failing. Gun barrels twisted, power plants malfunctioned. Here and there the odd man screamed and slumped with their minds shattered. Missiles began missing their targets despite solid target locks. Large enemy vehicles headed straight at dug in armor and did their best to ram them at supersonic speeds. Monsters jumped off them and were slowed down to survivable velocities by the Force.

The infantry opened fire for all they were worth. Halcyon activated his saber and jumped to meet a large monster that still wore the tattered armor of an Atrisian soldier.

The thing roared in fury and sent a telekinetic blast at Nejaa. The Jedi countered and was buffered by a small shock-wave produced by the attacks colliding. Blasterfire racked the side of the monster and made it stagger. Halcyon ducked under a slashing tentacle, cut through another and then rolled past a third, while keeping his blade extended to the left. The lightsaber amputated the monster's leg just above the knee and made it fall. Its tentacles slashed wildly in an attempt to catch the Jedi, but Nejaa used the Force to push them away. He dashed at the twisted being and took a pair of tentacles in as many swings before getting close enough to cut the large monster apart. Yet, even in its death throes it managed to strike back and a clawed tentacle glanced off the Jedi's ċhėst plate.

Halcyon felt danger and jumped away just in time to avoid another monster landing next to the dismembered one. The thing roared and sent a telekinetic shock-wave at the Jedi. Nejaa responded in kind and the resulting explosion pelted him with dirt. The monster charged him only to be torn apart by the concentrated fire of two heavy troopers.

An airbus chock-full with pulsating tumors slammed into a nearby walker and both disappeared in the heart of a fiery explosion. The shock-wave picked up Halcyon and threw him away despite the desperate telekinetic shield he erected to protect himself. Luckily he landed on relatively soft grass and soil, thus avoiding serious injuries. Still the blast dazed him.

By the time Halcyon was on his feet the infected had either landed or flown past the forward defense lines. There was half a regiment waiting for them further in the valley and the Jedi knew that at least a battalion would act as a rearguard at the complex's entrance while the rest of that regiment stormed the generators.

He just had to stop the bulk of the infected that landed among his lines and prevent any more reinforcements from breaking through. However that was easier said than done.

Nejaa could feel at least a thousand of the infected, spread all over the place. A significant amount of his armor was either destroyed or disabled and that left him and the infantry to deal with the majority of the enemy.

That was easier said than done. Each of those things could use the Force and could sustain a significant amount of punishment. Further, the infected had as good a coordination as the Clones in the sway of the Battle Meditation.

What followed was pure hell. Whole squads or even companies concentrated their fire on single targets. Some of the monsters went down relatively easy, others roared and formed invisible shields that took unreal amount of firepower to breach. Clones were raised in the air and crushed or thrown away like dolls. Others got peeled out of their armor and savaged. Monsters were burned by concentrated blaster fire, others were blown apart by grenades, thermal detonators or missiles. Some ran afoul of the still operational armor and were either vaporized or crushed.

Halcyon found himself facing three monsters who worked in tandem to dismantle a walker and the platoon supporting it. The last remaining squad was desperately firing everything they had at the advancing infected when Nejaa entered the fray. He used the crushed remains of the walker as a battering ram to split the monsters then engaged the closet one. The Jedi Master shielded himself with the Force against everything that thing threw his way and got close enough to dismantle it.

He wasn't fast enough. Before he could dispatch his opponent, Nejaa felt the squad he came to save being torn apart by the other two monsters. They tore the last Clone in two before jumping his way. Halcyon met them halfway and released the biggest telekinetic push he could. One of the monsters was unable to protect itself and flew away like a rocket.

The other roared in triumph. It was unaffected by the Jedi's attack and slammed into him. Halcyon managed to cut off an arm and a tentacle before they hit the ground hard, but that didn't even slow down the monster. It slammed its fist in Nejaa's ċhėst and that strike was enhanced with the Force.

The Jedi Master felt his ribs shatter like twigs and coughed blood that stained the inside of his helmet. The monster used its remaining tentacles to grab him before he could use his saber and then it raised a fist for another strike. Halcyon glared at the infected. It took all his training, and the Battle Meditation helping him, to fight through the pain to concentrate enough to catch the coming punch into a telekinetic grip.

The monster let out a Force enhanced scream that rattled Nejaa. It made his broken ribs shift and the bone edges dug into his flesh. The Jedi screamed in pain, then howled in agony when the monster slammed its fist in his brėȧstplate. The shock shattered another rib and caused even more damage.

All Halcyon knew was pain. He could hear a distant triumphant roar before the agony increased as the monster began tearing away his armor.

A foreign mind pressed through the red haze. Another will chased the delirium away and the pain became a distant thing. A tentacle bit in Nejaa's side and took a chunk of flesh away.

Halcyon saw his Scerra's face, her soft smile, his son. The reasons why he fought today. A rage not entirely his own pulsed through his very being and the Jedi screamed back at the monster. The Force answered his desperation, it was fueled by his anger and Halcyon found that he had a bit of strength left after all.

The Jedi glared at the monster and released a telekinetic pulse that shredded the tentacles holding him in place. He threw his lightsaber and guided it with his will alone as it cut the monster to pieces.

That was all Nejaa had to give. His telekinetic grip wavered and his lightsaber fell to the ground. Because of the Battle Meditation still touching his mind, Halcyon could feel his men still fighting, still holding the line.

The world was growing darker. The Jedi could feel the sickness invading his body and he lacked the strength to resist. Nejaa's mind drifted back to home. To Corellia and his family. He needed to know that they would be safe. That all this horror wasn't for nothing.

As if in answer to his dying wish, Nejaa's perspective shifted. He could feel he was looking through commander Roy's eyes. The Clone nodded to one of his brothers who pressed his thumb on a detonator. The world shook and the soldiers were all but deafened by the roar of a titanic explosion. They were engulfed by a wave of flames coming from a nearby corridor. Only their heavy armor and shields kept them relatively safe.

Roy pointed forward and a squad of heavy troopers sprinted down the corridor and then left before the commander followed. They were met by a punishing torrent of fire and answered in kind. The point man fell, then another. A third Clone was immolated before the incoming fire lessened – suppressed by a spread of grenades. Only one man of the leading squad was still alive when Roy reached a twisted, jagged hole in a massive armored door. The trooper in front of him charged through, and made just a few steps in before being torn apart.

Roy emptied the magazine of his grenade launcher through the breach, then threw it away, drew his blaster and charged in. He emerged into a large room chock full with smoke and didn't even slow down.

Nejaa though he saw him pass by abandoned terminals and corpses. The commander vaulted over a barricade and shot a defender in the face, then continued his charge.

Roy emerged in cavernous room. Catwalks led to a massive reactor suspended in a cooling liquid. Roy continued to sprint towards the objective. Blaster bolts began chasing him. His shield flared, then popped and the Clone was staggered.

Nejaa felt the man's determination. Roy grabbed something from his belt – a detonator, and pressed the buŧŧon.

Halcyon's awareness was wrenched away, back to his body. He could feel the plague spreading through his veins and laughed. It was too late.

The sickness agreed. He could feel its bottomless hunger, its impotent rage as it was voiced by every single infected – even Halcyon's throat roared in fury, despite the agony it caused to his ruined ċhėst.

Darkness fell, then it was torn asunder by a new star and a wave of heat. All Nejaa could see was Scerra's smile and then there was only light.

=RK=

Evacuation flight D-46-F

Atrisia

It was a very close call, but Wei and some of the survivors made it out of Meinuan before the city was overrun. For a few minutes, Teng allowed himself to believe that it was all over. That the Republic would burn the plague and that everyone who managed to escape was safe.

It was not to be.

The Republic wasn't here to help after all. They had either disabled or destroyed the navy and had landed a force to take out the shield generator, a force that by all accounts was busy simply destroying the defenses.

General evacuation plans were in effect and anyone with a hyper-capable vessel was bid to get as many people out of Atrisia as possible. Starfighters rose to challenge the Republic blockade in a suicidal bid to protect at least a few of the evacuating vessels.

Cruisers equipped with Guardian systems, frigates and swarm of fighters met everyone trying to leave the atmosphere and blew them to pieces. That didn't stop people from trying – the shields were going to fall soon and then everyone was going to die.

The panic gripping everyone wasn't helping either. All Wei could feel was a dull sense of resignation and failure. He managed to somehow get Kim on an evacuation craft with other young people and got back to watch it run the blockade.

The small freighter rose on its repulsors, then ignited its main engine and shot towards the heavens. It was followed by a squadron of fighters – the last ones remaining in the area.

The sky was lit in azure fire and Wei felt a wash of static pass through him. Teng fell to his knees and screamed in denial. The shield was gone.

The small dot that was Kim's transport flashed as the sky caught fire. Wei heard a distant rolling thunder and knew it was all over. He felt heat all over his left side and then knew nothing at all.

=RK=

Meinuan City

Atrisia

THE HUNGER COULD NOT BE DENIED! That overriding thought was all the entity could think about. Trying to comprehend its failure was too much. It felt the Force giving it a warning that doom was coming. It sensed the shield generator being destroyed and the barrier faltering.

There was only fury. Transports with a few infected were just lifting out! It needed a tiny amount of time to ensure it would not be denied!

It was too late. The shield was gone. Death was igniting the skies. All it could do was lash against those that denied it! It pushed every neuron in its nerve clusters until they burned out, used the nervous systems of every single infected to fuel its vengeance. The ships right above it shook. Equipment failed. Food was turned into paste. It tore a cruiser away from orbit and hurled it towards the ground. Nerve clusters began dying. The one who denied it tried to protect the ships the entity was attacking and it used that opportunity to strike against its nemesis. It channeled every bit of power it could gather, shoved even its death itself in that attack.

The other hive-mind screamed under the onslaught. Even as it burned, the entity could experience joy at the pain it caused its enemy. It sensed the one who denied it unravel. The beings in its hive-mind breaking, going insane, dying.

A wave of plasma buried Meinuan under the fires of an unbound star and the entity's dying screams echoed through the Force.

=RK=

Flag Bridge

Corellian Cruiser Freedom

High orbit over Atrisia

I felt Crimson strike at me with everything it had. A titanic lance made of its fury, hunger, sheer loathing and desperation struck at me. Only the Battle Meditation connecting me with everyone in my fleet allowed me to survive. The attack didn't land squarely on me, but was divided among everyone I was touching.

I felt thousands die, even more go temporarily or irrevocably insane. My mental shields were flayed open and I screamed as the backslash of so many people connected to me dying. It was sheer agony. It was ecstasy. My concentration shattered and the Battle Meditation slipped through my fingers. I felt the connection unravel, more power struck me as it began concentrating on less and less targets.

Below us Atrisia was lit on fire as barrages sent just as the shield was falling struck the surface. Crimson's onslaught vanished and was replaced by a scream that reverberated through the Force.

I let out a chocked shout of mixed pain and relief. The Battle Meditation broke and before losing consciousness I sensed everyone in the fleet being hit by the backslash.