Log:Resistance: Take Out That Relay

Resistance: Take Out That Relay

OOC Date: February 1, 2020
Location: Exterior Hull of the Steadfast
Participants: Hex, Rey, Poe Dameron, Jessika Pava, Finn, Greeson Rais, Ambrosia Greystorm, Merek, Percy, Borias Temerian, Sapphira Solari, Yuun, K-5Z9, Lofty, Sajin, Sar Yavok, Chewbacca, Wedge Antilles, Aryn Cole, Resistance, Jedi Order

This is the exterior of the Resurgent-Class Star Destroyer /Steadfast/, the flagship of the Final Order/First Order presently under the command of Allegiant General Enric Pryde.

WAR!

The battle has begun, and it rages all around the flag ship of this new Final Order fleet, the /Steadfast/. Fighters of the Resistance and the FO streak by, emitting massive blasts of laser cannon fire at one another while this group of transports magnetically clamp to the exterior hull of the flagship.

This is the final battle, and everything hinges on reaching the center of the ship to blow the relay that controls the fleet up. Inside the transports, Resistance allies rally around General Finn and Brigadier General Ambrosia Greystorm for what might be their last charge.

The ship rocks, and the herd of Orbak inside grunt and whinney in fear as the sounds of the battle are loud and devastating enough to be heard through the armor platting of their transport ship. A red lighting inside casts an eerie hue over everyone, the color indicative of the landing status and when it's safe to charge.

The Jedi and New Alderaan's Princess, Aryn Cole looks for Finn. She wears the green tunic of her Order with a cape that's been fastened over her shoulders, her ornate lightsaber in hand.

<<"We're locked onto the surface, Generals. Give the order and the hatch will come down!">> The hatch being the only way off this ship and into the battle for their charge.

You bet your sittin' muscles that Sapphira isn't going on one of those beasts. She spends most of the ride down and then up again looking various shades of green and giving the nearest Orbak a side eye of distrust. So when they land, Sapphira slips the visor of her helemt down over her eyes and unslings her bowcaster, happy to be free of the tin box that is the trooper transport the moment the hatch is open. She exits the hatch and hits the ground at a run (where are you now Ektor, with your Sapphira-can't-walk-through-a-hatch-jokes?!). She has no eyes on an enemy yet. It'll be there. For now, get to the transmitter.

Kayfive stands ready to one side of the main ramp, not wanting to get run over and trampled. Her feet are maglocked to the deckplates, heavy T-21 held by the pistol grip, other hand locked around a grab rail. All the checks are done, T-21 is full of gas and power, stun rifle has a full gas cannister, internal power cells at full. She's as ready as she's ever going to be. Given the fact that she's a combat droid, not a jockey, she'll be advancing across the hull at a loping run.

Finn lets out a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment and trying to seek out that focus - the intense concentration that had gotten him through all manner of training simulations when he was the First Order. Come to think of it, it had helped him since he defected to the Resistance, too. But usually it was just him looking out for himself (sometimes Rey, though she didn't need it), never a whole group looking to him for guidance. Poe was up there fighting in space, and so it was on Finn to help lead the attack on the 'ground'.

He looks down at the Orbak he rides on, shuffling its hooves nervously in the unfamiliar surroundings of a freighter's hold. He reaches down to run his fingers through its mane, muttering something soothing and peaceful into its ears before rising up straight again to look towards Amber. He says nothing, then glances back towards Princess Aryn.

<<"Alright,">> he announces at the top of his voice, jerking his head sharply to one side to fire himself up, <<"We know what we're here to do, and the whole Galaxy is counting on us to do it! Open the hatch! May the Force be with you, everybody!>>

Ride? Riding was for the peasantry. Plus it got Greeson in close and personal and Greeson, being the sort of person who loathed any sort of contact with people but that the same time craved constant emotional validation, preferred to just stay back on the ship kthx. Emphasis on /on/. When the hatch fell, Gree wasn't going forward. He was going /up/, like an angel that was sick and tired of being asked whether or not they were an angel by some poor sand-dwelling chap. Metaphor! "Oh... bollocks!" As Greeson ascended the side of the hull like a spider-monkey in heat, a tube of something slipped from his harnessing and clattered off the freighter hull, off the destroyer hull, and into the abyss. "My tea!" Greeson spent far too long staring at the fallen nectar, stopping him from reaching the top of the freighter for some happy happy snipey snipey this round. Good work buddy!

Lofty has modified a massive six-foot-long RB-407 'Pig' medium repeater for single crewman gunnery. The woolly white Talz is big enough to carry such a weapon, but it is still heavy and awkward, and so he elects to not ride an Orbak. He is dressed in a few pieces of rebel trooper armor, including a helmet, breastplate, and arm and leg greaves, but most parts are strapped on and barely fit. A few extra guns dangle from his bandolier just in case. "For Resistance! For Princess!" he warbles with excitement.

As the shuttle begins to prepare to launch the soldiers up into the fight, Merek is seated about upon an Orbak with his white-black armor, glaive upon the back like a longspear, while he takes a moment to nod to his rider, while they line up next to Finn, a pistol lifted up while he takes his spear, lifting that in the free hand with a spin. <<"FOR THE REPUBLIC! FOR FREEDOM!">>

Borias waits to the side of the mass of....horned horses? He's not sure what they're called exactly, o-something, but horn horses works. Right now, he wants to avoid being run down by said horned horses, his beefy form pressed to the side as they go charging past..not quite far enough ,as it happens, as when he moves to run after thenm one of the stragglers bounces off him, sending him back into the wall and throwing him off his run, before he recovers, swearing and following everyone else out.

What with the giant belt-fed cannon and the heavy suit of armor, Sar has foregone the riding of the space horse as to not be bucked off and shot unceremoniously as he wiggles around on his back like so many upturned turtles. Lifting his blaster and checking the charge level, the Colonel turns to the others and offers them a nod through his crimson visor.

This is easily one of the most dangerous (and potentially dumbest?) things Percy has ever done. He's still not quite sure how he ended up in this position of descending with a bunch of courageous troopers and soldiers onto the deck of some other ship, but here he is nonetheless. Gripping one of the straps on the interior of the ship for dear life, what colour he normally has in his face has receded, leaving him to look positively ghostly. Or, well, ghastly. He has no weapon on him, though having one would do no good regardless. His job isn't to rush with all the others. It's actually to stay behind to act as an anchor point for others. Should people get injured and retreat, he will be there to apply emergency aid until they are picked up by the drop ships later.

When the hatch opens, the Doctor is the last one out. The soldiers have emptied in their dash, the Orbak have also exited. Taking a big breath and summoning his courage, he sets foot on the ship with a quivering step. And then? Promptly takes cover behind some external ship machiner to make sure he's not picked off by some stray blaster fire.

There is a pernicious rumor floating around that Hex Ashkuri was an infantryman once. It was years ago now, but it was for this very same General Greystorm, in circumstances that were always dire. Rattling around in some gods-forsaken troop transport, ready to get spilled out into the fray and raise some hell. Maybe run into an ambush or two. He had more body parts then, and there were fewer Orbaks.

There were so many fewer Orbaks.

Hex is in fact awkwardly perched on an Orbak now as they await, and soon begin the charge! He's not alone, a rider has the reins, waiting with the amped-up beast for Finn's order to open the hatch. "Ryma'at, I hope you know what you're doing," the big Twi'lek warns his riding partner, and then the order is given! The hatch opens! Hooves thunder forth, leaving no time for regrets, or for wondering where one's life took such a damn strange course.

Sajin standing with a single arm in a sling that hangs from the hull to steady humaelf is the King Of Drik. Sajin Kovo Kah-Vernni of the ruling house Vernni. He is surrounded by a gamorian, a faleen, and two humans wearing medium armor and armed with blaster rifles. Grey tabbards with yellow trim. The king himself sports a grey cape with a yellow inseam over his grey power armor. The Drikish forces were here. They Royal Soecial corps answere the call with Yellow flight in the air and the commandoes down here. As the hatch opened, his majesty brought his bow caster up and ready to deliver cursed high charged quarrels at at troopers.

So this is it. This is the big one. The fight to end all fights? Probably not - Ambrosia Greystorm's lived that illusion before and decades later it's same old...different players. Time and experience has graced the aging soldier with jaded expectations, but that's no reason not to give this round in the ring her all.

Leia Organa is dead and the leash tethering her out to pasture is severed. The old Ice Queen is eager to stretch her muscles and lend support to these youth-faced 'Generals' calling the shots. Finn's look her way earns a solemn nod and she lets him make the call. From the sound footing of her own two feet. NO WAY is she saddling up here. Maybe later. Not on an Orbak. When the hatch opens and the furious wind experienced at this terrible, terrible elevation threatens to suck them into oblivyn, she brings up the rear, pistol drawn and grim face set. It's been a /long/ time since she's set foot on a Destroyer. Frankly, she'd never suspected this would be the way she and the iconic ships were reacquainted. But here goes nothing. Greystorm takes the leap of faith and when boots hit hull, she hauls ass. Roaring.

Aryn is helped onto the back of Finn's Orbak, and she settles behind him, brushing her cape back and drawing dropping its hood back. Her free, off-hand wraps around his midsection while her other, the one holding the lightsaber, activates the weapon of the Jedi Knights.

The SNAP-HISS of the weapon is distinctive, but lost over the sounds of the battle abov--ALL AROUND THEM. Finn's Orbak is maked by this though, as the sapphire blue blade raises up with a subtle hum, shading both she and Finn in the hue of blue light in contrast to the red of the personnel hold.

AT THE CALL TO CHARGE, the personnel hold goes GREEN, and the hatch unclaps and depressurizes with a LOUD HYDRAULIC hissing noise. The ramp falls, and those with at the front release a crying war call as Orbaks are ushered into a charge

Personnel from all the transports pour out at once, and its a shadowed wave that can be seen from the sky as fighters roar by overhead and missed shots combust against the carbon scored hull of the Steadfast.

The ride forward is not just comprised of Orbaks, but of ground troopers too! They make it roughly a kilometer when the faint glow of jet-troopers appear in the air. Airlocks open all along the sides, and elite stormtroopers (in distinctive Red armor) and standard Stormtroopers in White armor begin to pour out. Blaster fire erupts, and this line of Resistance Army is met by a hasty defense.

Those wearing helmets see a waypoint marked 2 Kilometers away from their present position on their HUD. Between this waypoint and our current spot, troopers fill the gap taking cover on outcroppings and crashed fighter debris. Turrets engaged in the space battle noisily turn and fire streaming green bolts at fighter passing by, the noise, AT TIMES, devastating!

Sapphira is running, hefting the Bowcaster against her arm as she first off the first shot. It was totally meant to be suppressing fire, right? Right.

The ramp drops, and Kayfive sprints out across the hull. She's more firing from the hip, arms stabilizing the T-21 as it sprays blaster bolts. Hopefully she'll at least get people to keep their heads down

The doors come down, and Finn jolts out of the hold ahead of the throng seated in the saddle of an Orbak. The stormtroopers pouring out from all quarters don't go unnoticed, and he shoulders the carbine and takes several careful shots. Despite the roaring wind and the bounce of the animal beneath him, he strikes one of the red-armored troopers in the legs and sends them toppling to the deck before rolling down and off the sloped side of the destroyer.

Finally! Off go those merry riders and up goes Greeson Rais, complaining the whole time about lost tea and how he shouldn't have wasted the entire flight flipping through a catalogue that he only just realised was from last year's fall collection. Bollocks, et al. He hit the top of the freighter and threw himself prone, readying the EZ-Snap and levelling it at the first thing he saw. Oooop that was Sapphira. Second thing. Oh that bloke's flying!

BANG!

Good hit, snap shot, and Gree was feeling his ego bubbling up. "Get down from there! Haw haw haw!"

Lofty charges out the door once the hatch of the transport drops. He even shoulders an Orbak's flank out of the way, since the Talz is a very large alien and won't be shoved around. He continues to charge with his massive turret weapon until he sees Sith troopers begin to disgorge from their brick-like dropships on the hull of the destroyer. He lowers his repeater and starts firing off bursts, laying down covering fire with loud THUP THUP THUP sounds but not hitting anything. YET.

Borias grunts, his boots slamming against the deck as the attack force charges forward, the ponies rapidly leaving him behind as he makes it to the first bit of a crashed TIE, tucking out from behind the crumpled wing to draw a bead on one of the jetpack troopers....only for the wing to start toppling over on top of him, the shot going wild as he leaps out of the way, forced to leave cover to do so.

Marching out of the opened door, Sar's heavy repeater is hefted and the trigger is pulled. The blaster bucks and barks, sending a fusillade of red bolts flying towards the enemy line. Big dakka. This wouldn't be a bad place to die. Not a bad place at all.

Merek lifts up the pistol of his, while he charges from that ramp into the fray, then he's firing upon those elite troopers, one shot up in the stomach and leg and rolling into the top of the starship while he begins to slide up his spear along the hull, orange faceplate looking to targets while he spins his weapon.

Aiming for a target takes a little getting used to from Orbak-back, but Hex takes a moment to consider the strange motion, roll with it, aim... Fire! Fire! Fire! It's a credit to the Orbak's temperament and training that it's going through all this chaos, including rifle fire right from its back, without bucking or spooking. The big Twi'lek drops two jetpack-troopers, and then yells around the general vicinity in some confusion, "Why do they crottin' FLY now? How long have I been gone?!"

"Oh my giddy Aunt..." Percy mumbles, his blue eyes looking up at the sky and all around him. Laser fire through the air is a constant, fired from various fighters that slash through the sky with expert prevision. For the longest moment he just struggles to take it all in, his concentration wavered by the nothing but the spectacle in front of him. "Wait until I tell Wallace about this," Regaining his composure, the Doctor dares to take a peek out from his cover, squinting to try and get a better read on what the hell is happening.

As brave men and women charge for their waypoint, some are naturally taken by the spread of fire from the elite stormtroopers. The blaster fire strikes limbs and torsos alike, sending some stumbling to the ground in agony, while others are fortunate enough to be granted a swift death. It's grim, man. Super grim.

Sajin storms across the Stardestroyers deck, his royal cape... royaly flowing behind him. The boots of his power armor thud against the metal, his bowxaster coming up at the sight of jetpacks. "Get the airborn!" He orders his commandos and the whole lot of them open fire on the high ground unit.

"A LONG, BLOODY TIME!" Ambrosia shouts back at her former Corporal, somehow gravitating toward the green disaster, against better judgement. She's seeing red - figuratively and litterally - she that's what she blasts away at first. Destroyed shoulder, melted lung. One of the troopers in red drops under her advancing fire and does not get back up. The other is still moving, trying to crawl on belly to more suitable cover, but she's on its trail and means to finish the kill. By now, those on Orbak back are well beyond her reach but still trackable via HUD.

<<Let us know if you get in too deep, Big Deal,>> she hollers into comm over the deafening noise. <<I'll try to keep the road home clear.>>

Yuun is ALWAYS late nearly to most engagements, still he manages to be dropped off through the chaos of battle, and as he drops from the ship that brought him, he sees those on Orbak's racing towards the enemy, he didn't need one and so channeling the force through his body and he begins running quite damn fast. Moving through the Orbak, keeping himself hidden until he moves in on a group of standard storm troopers.

He rolls under a passing Orbak and as he does his lightsaber ignites and as Yuun makes it to his feet, his blade cuts through a storm trooper. Spinning in towards his partners, and his blade takes his or hers head off and the head hits the other trooper next to their partner and Yuun uses the distraction to finish the last trooper in a uppercut motion bisecting the trooper. He closes his eyes, "Rest in the Force." he offers a small prayer as he quickly moves going towards the enemy.

The charge has slowed to a grinding halt as Orbak riders leap over cover and their riders blast into the troopers. There's injuries on all sides, deaths for both factions, and the chaos of battle, the fog of war is palpable. Nearby a T-85 X Wing smashes into the hull, exploding brilliantly into a display of orange and white as shrapnel whistles by planting into the hull. Troopers leap into the air, suspended by their jetpacks and fire into the massive army of the Resistance.

Aryn rides with Finn, her saber bouncing slightly by her side as he blasts a trooper in their path. She manages to kick them out of the way with a pathetic sounding grunt and nearly falls off the back of the animal doing so. She grips onto Finn and roots herself again. "We can't get holed up here, General." She calls, her voice drowned out by the roar of starfighter engines as the crafts pass by overhead.

The Resistance is giving as good as it gets, and Finn's group pushes ahead of the others, piercing the first line of defense. The Jetpack trooper numbers hang in the balance, many of them the primary target of charging soldiers.

Sapphira twists to one side, evenly and cleanly sidestepping some flying bolts. Another squeeze of the bowcaster, and then Red is off running again. It's a far cry from her first clash with the first order, some years ago, dressed in a club dress on Takonda as an air battle raged up above. She was barefoot and disarming explosives, then, still a novice fighter. From the looks of the damage she's doing tonight, or lack thereof, perhaps not so much has changed after all.

Kayfive slides into cover as incoming fire increases. Bracing the heavy cooling sleeve of the T-21 on her other arm she opens up, the heavy bolts punching straight through one of the charging stormtrooper's armor and removing most of his torso

"We keep moving!" Finn calls back over his shoulder to Aryn, blaster coiling acrid smoke up into the air about them. He turns his attention to the way before them, spurring the Orbak on as he fires once again - two blasts that catch a pair of red-armored Sith Troopers in the breastplate and send them crumpling to the deck.

<<"Don't get caught up!">> he shouts into his comm, turning his head to try and view the rest of the assault group, <<"We've got a job to do! Push forward! We're gonna be surrounded anyway, might as well be surrounded at the objective!">>

Greeson Rais cycled the charging bolt on the Very Big Rifle. One down, time for some more. It was like turkey shoot day in the Niorde Ampitheatre, formerly called the Niorde Sewage Network Intersection. The next shot hits centre mass of one of the fliers. The great thing about having a jetpack, Gree reasoned, is that it made you a wonderfully big and easy target for anyone with a sniper rifle.

Borias curses, scrambling up to his feet as he starts pelting towards the front lines of the fight, raising his carbine to snap off a quick shot at another jetpack trooper soaring overhead. "Shoulda practiced shooting more mynocks back home..." he grunts, continuing to move. One thing he knows about most gun fights like this...you stop moving, you better be behind cover. Or you're a big target.

Lofty the Talz keeps advancing, holding onto his six-foot-long repeater turret with one paw on the trigger and another paw on the overhand kettlebell grip. THUP THUP THUP it goes, spitting massive bolts of plasma in bursts and suppressing the advancing Sith troopers. One is caught in the fierce crossfire and his arm is blown off - it goes flying into the atmosphere like a bright red Darellian fire crab leg.

Merek keeps lifting his pistol while he shoots at the foe from place to place, his spear spinning while he places that back onto the sheath he keeps upon the back. Then he lifts his weapon while he begins to fire, a bolt coming to him, that streaking crimson then striking into his stomach, while he makes a noise, then he's trying his best to keep with the fight.

That rider brings them to cover, so that they can settle in a moment. The soldier manages to call to Percy, "MEDIC!" He settles back while he takes a moment to unsnap with a hiss that armor on the place where a blaster bolt hit. The skin there is scorched in black with a nice orange-like glow from the plate melting into it.

Percy's modus operandi today isn't so much getting people back into tip top shape - it's just to get them up and going again. Leapfrogging forward behind bits of cover to try and keep up with everyone yet still not get shot in the face, he's fortunately not far from Merek when he gets injured. Despite being behind the front lines, the threat still feels incredible real. Goosebumps ripple across the Doctor-playing-medic as he joins Merek's place of cover. How did he get here so fast? Maybe he made an educated guess that he would be first to be injured? He didn't exactly get all those cybernetic extensions for cosmetic reasons, after all.

"Stay still." Percy orders in a stern voice, the battle at large suddenly fading from his attention as he swings his shoulder-pack around to dig in for supplies. Applying bacta to the wound and patching it up as quick as a crew will treat a car in the Grand Prix, Merek even gets the tap once done to signal that he's 'good-to-go'.

Knowing what they know of the First Order's recruitment, it's sometime hard to pull the trigger against the soldiers they fight. But these guys are different. These are folk who, for the most part, were like 'yeah, that Palpatine's got some good ideas'. Sar doesn't have a problem gunning them down, as evidenced by the quartet of Sith Troopers that hit the deck under the weight of the Colonel's assault.

Hex has ended up near Amber! How fitting! The X-wing crash at alarmingly close proximity didn't rattle the Orbak, but it did dislodge Hex, who hits the deck with a hefty THUD-n-roll. There's an "oof" for the landing, but he's back up to his feet, rifle lifted to take aim again. It's got to be all that training from Ajan Kloss, right! Physical FITNESS! "Tcha, you missed me though, General," Hex accuses, firing at the crafty Jetpack troopers. Misses --- calibration --- a hit and another pesky gnat that won't be getting up to sting the brave Resistance comrades. "It's alright, you can admit it! I won't tell!" All of this yelled at top volume of course, given the sounds of battle.

Sajin and his unit remain together but soread out enough to acoid any area of effect attacks. Sajin releases one last bolt before his wookiee weapon is spent. He lets its drop to his chest resting in the quick responce sling it is attached to. Then he moves his caoe aside and draws his dl44 from his hip. "For the Queen! For freedom!" His unit gives a cheer and they press forward now.

"DID I, THOUGH?" Ambrosia's gravelly drill sergeant scream cuts through the shriek of rent metal and fightercraft destruction. Her flinch away from the resulting flash means that an ill-placed streak of stormie fire misses her by miles. C'mere," Ambrosia growls on the prowl after the wounded enemy, seemingly fixated on this ONE body. *PEW* A sudden shot from under her other arm to the next attacker to pop up their helmet of WHITE proves otherwise. It's a miss, but immediately followed by a second to make useless their firing arm. When that armor-clad meatsack drops their weapon, her pistol swings forward and adjusts aim to finish what she started. By planting one between the shoulder blades of her escapee. You fight dirty, you survive. In this hairy a situation, she's got no regrets to feel. Once more, the galaxy's worst grandmother (top ten, maybe) pounds 'ground' forward toward their real target here.

Yuun moves fast trying to move to the more troubled areas of the attack, wanting to make sure he is able to help those around him. MOving to assist anyone who is getting pinned down. As he moves through allies, he brings his blade up to deflect an incoming shot at him by storm troopers. The laser bolt is sent off to hit against the deck of the star destroyer as Yuun bats it away from him.

Hearing on his com-link problems with a group of Resistance fighters and the new red storm troopers. The dark skinned Jedi vaults up into the air, as he looks down he sees a trio of Elite Troopers harrying the Resitance members who called for help. He falls forward almost like a dive and flips sticking a three point landing though as he lands the three troopers collapse as they are cut down. He motions ot the Resistance members to keep moving as he quickly catches up with the leaders of this raid.

The battle above looks bad, the number of Resistance ships hang in the balance, and only a handful of fighters follow an X-Wing overhead. That does not last though, because off the starboard side of the Steadfast, a YT-1300 appears in a sudden flash, followed by a brilliant lightshow of other vessels that streak into place behind them. Soon, there is an overwhelming presence of 'civilian' like ships of all shapes, makes, designs, and sizes. The battle intensifies as the skies above are FILLED with different hues of laser bolts.

Sparks of errant shots pepper the exterior hull of the Steadfast, one unlucky flank of Stormtroopers AND Resistance go up when a torpedo impacts. The concussive wave sweeps outward as a violent gust of wind, and all sound cuts out for a moment replaced by the sudden ringing of ears as a purple explosion climbs skyward in a mushroom cloud like state. Bits of debris and orange hot shrapnel pepper the hull, spiking upward.

Aryn is still with Finn, and as they press forward at his insistance, Aryn leans to one side and cuts down a pair of stormtroopers in passing. Both strikes are made in quick succession, cutting deep enough to kill a target without maiming. Two troopers spiral to the deck with their plastoid chestpiece smoking, and a third ducks as the sapphire blade WHMMMPHS overhead. He looks at Aryn who looks back at them, but Finn is urging his creature onward.

Jetpack trooper numbers dwindle to ten, while more elites and white plastoid troopers emerge. The army has 500m left to reach the waypoint, then they must defend that position.

Sapphira's red hair is no longer a target, at least not for the moment. Perhaps that's because, to these stormtroopers, she's no threat. She's firing like their forefathers, and doing them proud no doubt. At least this one was closer?

After a bit more suppressing fire Kayfive leaps over and charges again, firing accurately from the hip as onlly a droid could. She hoses down the white armored horde, bolts chewing straight through one armored figure and into the one behind him.

Finn lowers the carbine to his side for the moment, grasping the reins in both hands and lowering his body to present wind resistance. He urges the Orbak on, spurring the creature to run faster along the hull of the Star Destroyer and towards their objective. He brings up the carbine with one hand to let loose two shots at the jetpack troopers above, but both shots fly wide. He hisses frustration through his teeth but remains focused, the objective square in his sights despite not wearing any sort of HUD.

He just knows.

Once the Orbak reaches the objective, he leaps from its back without so much of a warning. Scrambling across the deck, he looks for the hatch and the familiar round shape of his borrowed droid companion.

"BB-8! Over here!"

Ah yes, the fun part about war was that people got shot. Like Greeson! He hadn't considered that maybe, this time, he was going to be the one getting shot. Because he was busy saving it for other people. But no, when the shot from on high landed in his back and reminded him what PAIN felt like, oooooooooh he was nettled. Super nettled. So thus, with rage in his heart and burning in his backside, he pivoted the cannon to the poor sap who shot him and shot him straight back. Centre mass... "You're gonna need a new stomach plug!" grunted Greeson.

"The backup is here!" Percy calls, noticing the sudden influx of... well, not fighters, but /people/. Feeling his motivation recharge in an instant, the Doctor dares to peek out from his cover to look up ahead. The surge of adrenaline almost forces him to smile, before a stray baster bolt zips past his head. He quickly ducks back around with a frown. "...I must be losing my marbles." More mutterings, before he just remains there, crouched behind some exhaust fan upon the star destroyer. Meanwhile, the fight of the millennium is happening just above his head.

This is fine.

The battle has fully devolved into melee, with the Sith stormtroopers shooting all directions as the horses roar past and those on foot arrive, with Jedi cutting things in half and people with heavy weapons annhilating them back and forth.

Sadly Borias doesn't have a huge gun, but he snaps off another shot at the bobbing jetpack troopers swarming above, before catching a blaster bolt in his left shoulder that leaves a blackened, glowing hole in his armor as he staggers to the side, then takes cover for a moment to catch his breath.

Lofty takes cover behind one of the hull struts and continues firing with his massive medium repeater. The red-armored Sith Troopers are difficult to suppress because of their fanatical training and flash-imprinting. One in particular becomes too bold and turns around to fire at an Orbak riding by. He is burned through the right buttock with a series of DAKKA-DAKKA-DAKKA laser bursts, shattering his pelvis and nearly cutting the Sith Trooper in half. His fellows become more cautious after seeing their comrade bisected.

Merek nods a bit in thanks to Percy, while he takes a moment to mount up onto that Orbak, with a lift of his pistol. He calls to the troops, "We need to find prime targets! We need to tag them!" Which, no one likely can even manage hearing him, between his smoky voice along with the fact that blast just strikes the ship, a wave pushing them back upon that creature. He does fire two shots, one hitting and taking another of the white troopers to the hull of the ship. He checks on the faceplate while he looks to the HUD. He follows up with Finn!

"They made it," Sar says, his visor taking in the life-changing view of a fleet of civilian ships warping into the system to save their necks. A grin forms beneath his helmet for a moment before he hefts his repeater back up and aims it towards some of the jetpack troopers. Boom boom boom!

"Ryma'at, am I glad to see that," Hex breathes out at the sight of reinforcements, the cavalry arrived. "Tcha, might have to live through this after all, that was never the plan." He hefts the rifle again and presses forward with Ambrosia, toward the objective... so near and yet so far! Rifle reports light up and drop a pair of Elite Troopers, and he encourages, "VATAK'ULTUKA!" No one knows Ryl, Hex. Does he ever care about that?! Nah. But a translation follows, encouragingly, "Fight on, fight on!"

Sajin moves with his commandos to take a defensive position near Finn in order to keep fire off him as BB8 goes to work. With combined fire they manage to take down two more jetpack troopers. "Keep it up! The flight line is thining!"

<<Gettin clo--AHH>> the concussive wave reaches Ambrosia the Grey and knocks the old bird off her feet. After bouncing and rolling knee-over-belly, she lands on her back, helmet slamming down last with a resolute SMACK. But that's why we wear helmets, kids. It's from this newfound perspective that she can take a heartbeat or three to appreciate the altered scene above, around, beneath....everywhere.

She might be concussed, because she could swear that an old T-65b has just buzzed overhead. With her husband at the tiny helm of that oldschool X-Wing. Also...a Wayward Phantom. Jax?

Mixed feeling churn around as Ambrosia cracks a smile and clambers to her feet, firing a spray of coverfire for self overhead when the telltale FOOF of thrusters casts its rider's shadow nearby.

Yuun drops back a step as he sees that they are still being fired upon from the air, shaking his head and looking to his lightsaber. "I've never done this before." he says as eh looks at the nearest Jetpack Trooper. "Here goes nothing." he says as he focuses and throws his lightsaber towards the incoming Jet Troopers. The blade spins like a frisbe and strikes one of the troopers just barely, but finding it a bit odd trying to control the spinning blade, he misses the other two troopers. He does manage to have the blade come back to his hand. "O. K. that didn't go well." he says to himself.

The fight in space is spectacular, and more debris is falling all around the battle 'field'. Smoke and the smell of burned ozone is everywhere, and the sounds of the dying are lost to the trembling impacts of laser bolts.

The fight on the stardestroyer Steadfast is not going so well. Resistance Army are held up by pockets of troopers spread out all over the hull. Those in Finn/Amber's group are caught entirely by the ire of the flight corps of Jetpack troopers which begin to pick apart the Resistance one by one!

Finn and Aryn arrive at the waypoint via Orbak, and Finn is nimble enough to append himself and land firmly. Aryn is slower, favoring one side to slide down, she slaps the animal on the butt to spook it from them and to safety, and jogs to join Finn, the wind kicking her cape back while her weapon is kept at her side in a duelist-like style.

When they are set upon by a squad of red Elite troopers, Aryn engages, cutting down three in quick succession by firmly slashing across their mid-sections. The final cut of her blade concludes when the sapphire blue hue of its length emerges from the troopers side, expelling a small wave of ashing embers. She cannot hear very well, but she can see that the battle is in full tilt all around them.

Sapphira has been able to move freely, unhindered by Stormtrooper blaster fire or by taking the time to aim. She's stepped up on Aryn and Finn's flank now, dropping to a knee to aim the large Bowcaster ... and to take a breath. Then two. Finally, she seems to have her breathing under control enough to squeeze the tight trigger. This time at hit!

Okay, the jet troopers are tearing the Resistance squads apart. Letting the T-21 hang from its sling, Kayive lifts her left arm, tracking one of the airborne annoyances. The mounted stun rifle spits a blue bolt that smacks into the trooper's chest, armor there already bearing some scars. The jet trooper wobbles and arcs over, nose diving into the hull plates headfirst with a visceral crunch.

Finn glances up as the Sith Troopers approach, only to watch the Princess tear through them with her lightsaber. His eyebrows raise a moment before he turns his attention fully back to the hatch, spotting the lock mechanism. He turns quickly, just in time for the orange-and-white BB-8 to roll up alongside him and beep-whistle urgently.

"We need to get control of those guns," Finn urges, pointing down at the hatch. He's about to open his mouth to say something else when his attention lifts to the jetpack troopers above, "These guys."

He fires up, red blasterfire lancing through the air and sending one spinning wildly through the air before his jetpack explodes along with the rest of him!

The thing about sniping is, you tend to be pretty high up, but people higher than you can turn you into paste with impunity.

Private Greeson Rais, the six-foot-five fussy bitch who really didn't have patience for anyone other than close acquaintances, suddenly found himself staring down the barrels of three angry jetpackers who either didn't like that Gree had shot their friends, or hated his one-liners.

To be fair, everyone hated his one liners.

Before he could process that he was in terrible terrible danger, before he could curse or scream or bitch or do whatever it was he was about to do, before he could do anything but regard the three floating troopers with an expression of 'uh oh', blasterfire tore him apart. The first shot not only tore off his leg, it removed his foothold on the top of the freighter. The next two were just formalities, mangling his remaining limbs and removing what adherence he had left. The sniper had achieved half of his goal, to have bits and pieces removed in preparation for becoming a portable man cannon. The problem is, he had no way to hold on to his perch.

Greeson Rais fell to Exegol, dead before the storm below tore him to pieces.

Lofty drops his turret cannon on the ground with a heavy THUD. "<<The jet troopers! Shoot them!>>" He takes a carbine that was dangling from his breastplate and aims it in the sky, firing with some precision at the hovering jetpack troopers. One of them is taken down with a red blaster bolt.

Merek shifts a bit from the side of the soldier riding the two along, then he lifts up his pistol to take two shots, though neither of the two strike. He does call on his comlink, <"We can win this, we have reinforcement---"> Then he sees what happens to Greeson. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He then listens to the comlink. Above them, pilots he met, taken to Exegol, this planet. This place. Then he lifts up his weapon, <"ALL UNITS! THIS IS CORPORAL BLACK! We rally! Mark your targets with smoke, set prime targets for air strike!"

The soldier lifts up his weapon, while he speaks, <"Formation! We will win the day! No matter the cost! For all our family back at home, for all of the galaxy! Move forward! For the Republic! For freedom! The Empire will fall once again! TIL' ALL STARS ARE ONE! REMEMBER WHAT YOU FIGHT FOR! CHARGE THROUGH COVER, air strike, light them up!">

Borias hunkers down as the jetpack troopers send a blaze of fire down at those on the ground, the nearby Greeson getting blown to bloody chunks as he ducks out trying to snap off another shot...and earning a blaster bolt to the lower torso that sends him spinning down to the ground with a grunt, before he tries to push himself up, his fingers scrabbling for his carbine.

"K-5! Here!" Sar shouts, slinging the Staccato Lightning off of his back and setting it down on the ground. "Cover u-Rais!" He shouts, watching the sniper tumble into the storm below.

"You sorry..." the Colonel begins, sliding the EE-3 out of its holster and spinning it once for good measure. A tap on his wrist computer and the jets on his back bark to life, spitting black smoke as he begin to lift him off of the ground.

No rest for the wicked! Percy powers his spindly, white-boi legs up to where Borias is crunched under cover. Daring the rain of laser that falls beside him with a trip and near-stumble, he manages to get there in the end. Just as he does, a huge chunk of debris from above falls down. "Hell's bells!" He cries, eyes scanning over his comrade as if he were a complicated puzzle to solve. "You can survive without the arm." The Doctor assesses simply, once again swinging his pack around. "You can't survive without the torso. Now stay still."

Like Merek before him, the wound is clened, bacta'd and patched. All while the hell storm is raging around him.

Hex is pinned down with Ambrosia under the assault of the Jetpack Troopers, gunning two out of the sky with reports from the rifle he's had since his Resistance days -- a weapon given to him by none other than that salty old Colonel about to lay waste with an EE-3. It's fitting! "Little hotter than I like out here, General," he admits to Amber, "We're almost clear, take out the rest of these sa'sinaku so we can move, ok ka!"

The tumbling death of Greeson does catch his eye and startles Hex into missing a third shot; he's seen his share of broken bodies in this war but sometimes... sometimes a man dies in a way that haunts you. "Oh, goddess -- szu'tak," he curses, then sighs and lifts the weapon, "Ryma gesu'tak allesh, boy." Mother give you safety. "And the rest of us, too..."

Sajin watches Captain Pleiwood and Major Kloona ripped apart by the heavy blaster fire from the jetpack troopers. It causes him pause as he watches them fall along with the mangled for of greeson to the depths of exagol. "Noooo... focus fire" He shouts pouring his own bilts into the triopers. As the force users reinforce them. He holsters his dl 44 and pulls the massive evon ryyk blade from his back. Shiiink. "VENGEANCE!" And the the kitchen ng of drik... charges. His cape fluttering with him

<<Think our eyes in the sky might be a bit busy, Corporal, but it doesn't hurt to try.>> Or it might! Either way, the odds are horribly stacked against them here on this hull, as illustrated gruesomely(beautifully) by wrecked Greeson, Pleiwood, and Kloona parts tumbling down and off into the abyss. Did her soldiers' deaths even register with the brig gen? Hard to say. Greystorm skids a couple steps to the left, to the right, dancing to her own health by avoiding the enemy rain and returning the favor. "KA!" Amber pops three rapid rounds off at those infuriating flies buzzing around overhead. Only one strikes home, but it's a square shot to the gut and the jetpacker drops like lead.

Yuun continues moving to the next heavist area but those pesky flying Jet Troopers are being a pain in the kriff. He notices a few of the Resistance members are firing on them. He nods and reaches his left hand out into the air, exerting himself calmly through the force opening himself up to it, not making it do what he wants, but allowing it fill him and guide his movements. He feels two of the Jet Troopers within the force, using it to grip one, Yuun slams that trooper into his partner and as he does he opens his eyes and sees both troopers slamming into the ground. He sighs a little and again he bows his head offering a small prayer before moving on.

The combat effectiveness of the Stormtroopers is beginning to bleed through and the Resistance is feeling the overwhelming numbers begin to corner them. Those of General Finn's group have created a defensive perimeter around the waypoint, and BB-8 is near Finn, hacking into the turret controls per the former Stormtrooper's orders.

The turret comes under control of the Resistance and BB-8 issues a triumphrate series of warbles that are covered by the sudden impact tremors and screeching noise of a Black and Orange X-Wing flying overhead. Massive red concussive blasts pepper the marked zones ordered by Corporal Merek, and the result is devastating. Stormtroopers take to the air as they're caught in the trio of explosions before the X-Wing, accompanied by others of its design, streak over kicking up trails of dust while blue-scoped lights pass over the hull. Captain Pava's voice is heard over comms. <<"Nice shot, Black Leader-- Ground teams, let us know if we're needed we'll try to help where we can. Black Three out!">> The fighters angle out of view, being chased by TIEs.

The dust is settling and everyone can start to hear again. Resistance lines have pushed past the battered portions of the FO, and the engagement is now centered upon General Finn's area of operations. Resistance troopers reinforce the position and begin to hold their ground.

Aryn, in conjunction with Yuun, uses her influence of the force to take hold of one of the two troopers in the air. A gesture with her free hand has the trooper defy physics and smash into the hull full force before his jetpack, still sputtering, takes him over the edge, out of control. Now we're surrounded, and everywhere the Resistance shoots they're hitting an enemy!

"On it, Colonel!" Kayfive snags the heavy weapon, slinging the power unit and firmly gripping the blaster itself. A bolt smacks into her torso armor, and she opens up. An almost solid line of red connects the droid and the onrushing troopers, one sent to the ground smoking, another staggering from a leg hit.

Lofty the Talz is struck in the breastplate by a rifle round and tumbles onto the vessel's hull. He slowly gets back up, groaning through his snoot. A defensive position is taken up around Finn's turret and this is where they hold. His massive turret-gun is long since discarded and he fires from what meager cover there is with a carbine, gunning down a small squad of three Sith Troopers. He doesn't have 'ears' per se but his auditory organs are still ringing from the X-Wing strafing run nearby.

As the starfighters streak down from above to lay a hail of cannonfire across the hull of the Star Destroyer, Finn ducks down and instinctively covers his ears. When the ear-shattering explosions have passed, he gets to his feet and holds the carbine aloft in celebration.

"Woo!" then, turning to BB-8, he looks down towards the hatch, "Okay, we need to get that relay offline, buddy!" He thrusts out his hand in a thumbs up, only to be mimicked by BB-8 with his miniature lighter. Ahh, memories.

Even with the smoke and dust still thick, Finn fires into the fog with his carbine. As the dust settles, two of the red-armored troopers lie motionless on the ground. Shooting without seeing, not that it is much noticeable through the din of battle.

His voice rough with pain, Borias pants a bit as Percy runs over to pull out a medpack, spraying into the hole in his armor and trying to bind the torso wound at least. "Thanks doc, think I've...got more holes than I need in me..." Which is where he leans out to snap off a shot at one of the staggered FO troopers...misses...and collects a shot to his OTHER arm for his trouble, dropping his carbine as his arm spasms. "Argh!"

Soaring through the air over the ship, Sar holds his EE-3 ready, the carbine prepped for some old-timey frontier justice. Four bolts are fired and two of them burn fist-sized holes through the guts of a pair of stormtroopers, sending them stumbling and tumbling into the stormy abyss below.

Incoming fire! Everywhere! Blaster bolts are burning toward all of them, shrapnel and debris falls from the sky! It's hell out here, and through the smoke Hex sees a familiar face --- Borias Temerian, not far, pinned down by fire. A nice man, one of the galaxy's few /good/ men...

And a man Hex once told, from the safety of a bar on Nar Shaddaa, to consider joining the Resistance. Join the cause. Fight for something bigger than yourself... make a difference... He told Borias that. Him!

"Borias! BORIAS! Ah! Ai'jou, I'm on my way!" the big Twi'lek yells in his general direction, hustling over just in time to take a hard blaster bolt to the gut. It's a sizable target, right. "Ah, a'kei ka schutta," he curses in Ryl, taking a moment to look back to his companion. "Are you okay? Where's Percy? PERCY! HELP BORS, OK KA!"

Hex himself is lifting the G8 rifle again to fire at the troopers, but he is injured, and it's clearly played hell with his ability to focus, fire, attack. It's little more than some cover fire for the unrelenting First Order to dodge.

Merek looks to the foe as their forces surround what people are fighting. Then he takes a moment to look to the laser cannon blasts that swing into the troopers. There's a nod, while he motions that rider for someplace he can speak. He then calls to the troops, comlink and with a voice which will lift with the husky smoky tone of his.

"Stand! Our foe encircles all, we will break the formation, take the cover and terrain, link with your sisters, and brothers!" There's a nod to Finn, while he calls a chant. Merek speaks, bringing people together while they keep Finn protected while that Relay is worked upon. He takes two nice clean strikes upon two of the white troopers, "WE. ARE. HOPE!" He lifts up his spear with the free hand, while he cleans the blade upon the hull, then he begins to lift it up, "WE ARE HOPE!" He begins bringing that morale from people while he guides them to tactical advantage.

Of course, just as Percy patches up Borias? HE GETS SHOT IN THE OTHER ARM! The Doctor flinches visibly, as watching someone get so clearly wounded when so close would naturally do. "Like I said," The Doctor quips. "You can survive without your arms. It's the torso that's the concern. That said," The grizzly arm was looking a bit... er, grizzled. "Hold still again. And for the love of all that is the Force, try NOT to get shot a second after I just hit you with bacta." More healing is applied, as the Doctor, already present when Hex bounds over, just grimaces. "I'm helping as best I can! Just shut up and shoot them back!"

Sajin strikes first at a trooper, his massive blade cleaving through his neck and popping off his head. Blood spurts out as the body drops. His blade severs a leg of another. Despite The Colonel being injured, rhe pridful faleen fallows his king into battle as do s Capatain Ororo, drawing their own intricate designed blades and rushing into the melee. The king dodge nit one, but two close calls and his remaining two commandos, bloodied and dirty, still stand despite an enemy reprisal. He was there, a tall, massive armored demon... seemingly untouchable even for the most elite trooper. A terror in all rights. "You will all DIE." his only regret... Grom wasn't here to murder with him.

<<WELL DONE!>> Greystorm praises in the same bellowing tone reserved for discipline, albeit a /strained/ bellow. She is feeling a touch hoarse. The old rebel takes a knee, breathing hard with back to her comrades and barrel facing their recovering swarm of enemies. She's in defensive position now, protecting her brood so they can do their thing. The pistol remains weapon of choice for now, but when that amunition runs out, her blade may taste its share of the action. <<Status Report!>> she barks between rounds of blasterfire and puts one of the red-plated troopers down.

With the objective taken, Yuun moves to where Aryn is, "Nice seeing you here." he says to her than moves to the opposite side of the Objective, he knows they have to hold this and hold they will. Yuun brings his lightsaber up in a salute and brings it down into a guard. Looking to the Resistance members near him, "We can do this, we will make it out of here and complete our mission." he says to them and offers the men and women a smiles. He than moves forward to engage a group of Elite Sith Troopers. The red armor not frightening him at all. Engaging them, Yuun side steps one of the troopers s they try to hit him with the butt of their rifle. He swings his blade backwards cutting through his side. He quickly rush the remainig two deflecting blaster shots as they try to overwhelm him.

Yuun is able to close with them as he weaves through their melee attacks and upon seeing an opening his blade flashes up twice, once cutting the arm off one trooper, and cutting down at an angle to the other, both troopers drop to the ground.

Smoke and fog is everywhere around the Rebels who are holding their ground despite the overwhelming fire. Everything seems desperate in these moments, and every few seconds another resistance soldier hits the ground and screams "MEDIC!," or.. they don't scream at all.

The fight overhead appears to be going as distant explosions spell the doom for several Star Destroyers. Even on the surface of one, so far away, the gust of concussive energy from the resulting blast that consumed those ships could be felt by everyone, including the capes that rustled upon their wearers!

Elite trooper numbers begin to thin out now despite their assault. The Resistance opened fire, cutting many of the brave crimson troopers down, yet those who were hunkered down replace those that fell.

When BB-8 admits to having control of the turret, a green pair of blasts emit from the cannon's barrels, kicking up dust and shaking everyone to their foundation. The green contrail of the turret's blast connect with the relay above the bridge and it goes up in a massive explosion that begins to rain down debris.

This victory is short lived though, as the skies are suddenly filled by a wave of tendril electricity that's purple in nature. It spans outward into the sky, hitting ships of all sizes and rendering them inoperable. Fighters begin to fall out of the sky, impacting the surface of the Steadfast and other vessels. Those who can feel the Force, can feel an overwhelming sense of darkness all around them. It's sickening!

Another bolt slams into Kayfive, but the droid keeps up her punishing fire into the crowd of troopers. More of her allies are going down. She has to... She has to keep going.

Finn raises up his blaster carbine again, pointing it towards the oncoming Sith Troopers even as the massive turbolaser battery above them blasts the relay to pieces. But as he looks down the sight and lines up his shot, there's a wave of something welling up from the planet below. The lightning that arcs through the sky and the fleet of ships doesn't strike him, but his eyes nevertheless widen and his blaster drops from his hands.

In that moment, one of the red-armored troopers uses the distraction as an excuse to draw a bead on him. The blaster fire clips him, striking his side, tearing through his shirt, and leaving a burn mark behind. Finn winces in pain, collapsing to the deck for a moment but managing to keep himself on his knees while supporting much of his wait on one hand.

His eyes widen, turning his head to look towards Princess Aryn and her flashing lightsaber: "What - did you feel - ?!"

Borias tilts his head as Hex makes it over, blinking behind the lenses in his helmet. "Hex...you're shot...me too." He winces as Percy works at patching what he can. "Gotta say...didn't get shot so much as a cop...." He tries to pick up his carbine, then realizes he doesn't have enough arm strength left to fire it one han ded and draws the pistol from his side holster, snapping off a shot at the remaining troopers, then covers his head as the relay explodes, debris flying all over and bouncing off the hull around them. "Kriff!" The lightning storm doesn't help as he looks around a bit wildly. "...what...what the kriff is that?!"

"What the hell?" Sar asks, his boots touching back on kinda solid ground near the commandeered turret. His attention is fully resting on the tower of dark energy coursing through the atmosphere, and he reaches up to slide his helmet from his head, so he can look at this unholy terror with his own two eyes. "How...what do...how can we stand against /that/?" he asks, lifting his blaster to fire a volley towards the still-impending troopers.

Lofty's white woolly fur stands on end as lightning envelops the sky. The sudden increase in static electricity in the atmosphere makes him look even puffier than usual. "Get to transport!" he says, firing wildly at the remaining ansi(#AF0000,Troo)]pers as he begins to withdraw. The wounded Talz pauses to tear off one of their red helmets, wanting to examine the data contained within after this fight. If they survive.

Merek looks to that relay when it begins to explode, all the ships begin raining upon them, the molten slag. Then the Force is shimmering upon the skies while that lightning begins to take on the whole fleet of Resistance with Civilians. The soldier reloads a pack into the white-black EL-718, while he lifts up his weapon, "When you break the formation, find a place to have the shuttles sweep by to pick us all up! We need to keep fighting while we wait for extraction!"

The man comlinks, <"This is Corporal Black, Steadfast Relay has been taken care of, we need extraction and support from the shuttles!" Then he lifts up his pistol, while he speaks to the troops, "We still have Rey, and Ben! We have hope!"

Lofty's white woolly fur stands on end as lightning envelops the sky. The sudden increase in static electricity in the atmosphere makes him look even puffier than usual. "Get to transport!" he says, firing wildly at the remaining Sith Troopers as he begins to withdraw. The wounded Talz pauses to tear off one of their red helmets, wanting to examine the data contained within after this fight. If they survive.

"So'cha ka, Borias, just a little bit shot. Not too bad. Just a little bit. Hang in there," Hex encourages Borias, or tries to. "We're going to be okay, ai'jou, though if you want to be a cop again I won't blame..." His voice trails off right after shooting a pair of advancing white-armored troopers, because... dark energy. Dark energy is shooting up into the sky, source unknown, effects nightmarish. Hex's lekku coil around his shoulders like frightened snakes, and he gasps when he remembers to breathe. "Ka, okay maybe you should be a cop," he tells Borias, swallowing hard. "We should have all just... been cops."

Sajin cleaves through the guts of a sith trioper, pulling his blade from the man as he staggers back bleeding and literally loosing his bowels in the process. Mikel and Ororo catch another too, one their king missed as he swung for a second time. He looked towards the lightning and the explosions above. "Alright... time to fall back."

"The ships..." Ambrosia murmurs, raising her head after the initial blast and shakedown. She can't /feel/ the situation or the source like the Jedi can, but what she sees is instinctively known to NOT be good. Or natural. Probably. She's no meteorology expert. A terrible, sinking feeling brings bile into her throat. The ships. Her son. His father. Inumerable other lives, now in free fall. Nononononono...she's lost one baby already to the Order's fleet. <<Do we HAVE a transport??>> she inquires over comm, finding her voice while pounding two deathbolts into a pair of locals.

The explosion rocks the foundation of what Percy stands upon, causing him to wobble and fall over with an audible grunt. Landing on his rump, the Doctor gapes at the extreme weather event that seems to be just targeting friendly ships. Laser fire erupts all over the sky as the allies begin to just drop out of the sky, seemingly powerless to gear up on their own accord. "What the hell is happening?" Percy murmurs, slowly getting to his feet. Just in time for another round of fire to rain down upon them all.

Soldiers everywhere are confused in what they should do. Return to the shuttles? Are there even shuttles there to pick them up?

"Lofty! You okay? You big goof." The words are called out to the hulking Talz, not far from where he stands.

Feeling a disturbance in the force, Yuun stumbles a little as he feels the pressures of the dark side emanating from below them, what ever it is, it's dark and it runs a shiver up through him. He shudders slightly but at the same time he bows his head, his eyes close, and he begins chanting in his head.

There is no emotion, there is peace.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.

There is no passion, there is serenity.

There is no chaos, there is harmony.

There is no death, there is the Force.

Yuun comes to himself, and quickly moves in, "Focus fire on the regular troopers." he calls to the group of fighters with him. Exuding the force to help steady the troops near him as they continue to hold their postiion.

The Dark Citadel far below has been wrecked by an structural collapse. It's main central tower has begun to crumble around it's skeletal insides.

As the lightning pours out from within the peak of that broken central spire, the winds whip about the planet and with them the Force flows powerfully around it. Light and Dark, sweeping and waving through the misty gray clouds that envelop the ancient temple.

The fleet-damaging lightning continues to radiate into the bleak skies of Exegol, through the strong gravitational anomalies and out into the darkness of space around the once well hidden world where a massive battle is culminating in the fate of the galaxy's future!

An eerie, and morbidly beautiful, display of disabled ships begin to fall from the sky from the wrath of the lightning tower. An absolution can be felt through the Force, an outburst of great darkness...

Followed by a spark of light.

"Be with me..." A soft voice speaks amongst the madness. Its whispered through the essence of the Force. Living. Unifying. All aspects of the energy that binds the galaxy together are reached by the soft, calm, but very desperate plea. "Be with me..."

Followed by a lingering silence. The galaxy, at its core, quiets.

"These are your final steps..."

The response to the plea is whispered on the winds of the Force, and soon followed by more joining voices that all come together with words of wisdom, encouragement, guidance and a sense of calming peace. To bolster, to build, to counter and to bring Rise.

To counter the dark.

"Restore the Balance, as I once did..."

From inside the dark citadel, the lightning storm comes to an end. But what follows is a growing storm within the broken tower. A building of intense power, an indication of an impending detonation that hints a deadly release!

Flashes of lightning tendrils lick around the edges of the entire citadel, swirling down around toward the base of the structure lost and hidden beneath the veil of wildly flowing cloud cover.

And then the energy DETONATES!

Pieces of the building go spiraling out in all directions! A wave of Force energy sweeps across the globe of Exegol and in its wake... the spire... the Dark Citadel, are left in ruins!

Aryn cuts down another elite, but misses two that backtrack to take cover. She turns from the front line at hearing General Finn's call. Her weapon is brought to her side, held in the duelist's way, and she offers a gloved hand to help the soldier up. "The battle below takes its toll on all of us! Find your feet, General. Victory is within grasp now, but we need you to show us the way." She emphasizes by spreading her fingers to pull him up, then nods before calling Finn's weapon from the ground using the Force, catching it, and handing it back to him. "We fight." A slight smile, before she pivots to rejoin the line and resume defending Finn and the amiable droid, BB-8.

The lightning has stopped, the ships above regain control, and a voice communication comes over the open channels. <<"We got one chance at this!-- Let's take 'em down for good!">

The fight continues, and the Resistance warriors blast the remaining Elites! Leaving only the damnable white Stormtroopers in small pockets. The Resistance is falling back now, heading to their transports.

Everything goes to hell for a moment, and then suddenly there's a massive explosion from below. Kayfive maglocks her feet to the hull again to ride the shockwave, before opening up some more. However, her arms shake and the stream of fire droops and chews into the hull. The droid looks down at one of the holes punched into her internals, which is dribbling a steady stream of blue-green fluid. "...Oh." <<"I'm losing hydraulic pressure, Have to fall back! Going to try to make it to the shuttle!">> She turns and starts to hobble back towards the craft they'd arrived in, gait wobbly, sending the occasional suppressing ifre back behind her.

Just as Finn felt the wellspring of evil from the planet below, so too does he feel is washed away by something good. Something familiar. Even amidst the strange wash of voices he feels it - a presence he knows. A smile crosses his face despite the chaos that surrounds them. She's alive. She's alive and she did it.

Helped to his feet by Aryn, Finn takes his carbine again and shoulders it. A nod is given to her, and he level it once more at the on-rushing troopers.

"We fight," he agrees with the Princess, before raising his voice for all those around them to hear, "We fight!"

Bringing down two of the stormtroopers, he turns to look at BB-8 and then towards the bridge: "We've got to make sure they don't bring that signal online again - BB-8, blast the bridge with that cannon!"

Lofty takes another blaster bolt, this time to his left arm. Enraged, he fires his blaster carbine at a gaggle of encroaching stormtroopers, gunning them down as they approach. He puts his large Talz foot on one of their chests and blows the trooper's skull open with a final shot. "To transport!" The large Talz starts to limp toward the extraction point, a red helmet dangling from his bandolier.

Merek nods a bit to the people with him, while he lifts up his pistol, then fires three clean towards the troopers. Two of them take the hit with an expert aim, taking them to the hull, while the next will fire into space. He then watches as the planet Exegol becomes that wave. What he might know of that, what he might feel, it isn't known. There's no evidence he's Force Sensitive. Though, within, he would like to believe that there was a victory won. It's the only way to think. He backs up with the team to the shuttles as well.

For a moment Borias rolls his head back, seeing the reinforcement fleet, the Resistance, all of it starting to fall out of the sky. Maybe it's the blast of dark energy eating at him, or just the injuries starting to take their toll.

Then the explosion of energy comes from below as the black citadel explodes, the shock seeming to almost snap him awake as he refocuses on Hex, then his arm smoothly snaps up, sighting past him as he pulls the trigger, a blaster bolt screaming past Hex to punch through the helmet of one of the sith troopers taking aim at the twi'lek's back. "Maybe we will be..." the big man rumbles, pushing himself up unsteadily. "But I think..now might be a good time to be leaving first...." He testures to the gun emplacement rotating around to face the bridge. "Becaused I think this crate isn't staying in the air for long..."

Tucking his helmet against his body like a space football, Sar begins the retreat back to the transport, offering a wink over to his Twi'lek buddy as he does so. He knows that Hex would love to fistfight him right now. His EE-3 hoisted up, four more stormtroopers end up dead on the exterior of the ship, holes placed in various uncomfortable spots on their bodies.

"Ryma'at," Hex breathes the name of his people's goddess, mopping sweat off his brow with a bloodied, gloved hand before he raises his rifle again to fire into the troopers, buying some space and time to stow the rifle, and reach to help Borias up! "I'm glad you got my six, Borias, now sahak chir, ok ka? That means 'don't die,' and I mean it." Together, they can start gimping back toward the transport at top gimp speed, bloodied but unbroken. Fighting for the cause. For something bigger than the self.

Although busy at the moment, he does catch Sar's gaze, meaningfully. Hex would love to fistfight him right now. It is known.

While Sajin doesn't Dual wield and never will (because he lacks the proper feat to do as such) he still draws his Pistol with his free hand while his Ryyk blade remains in his off hand unused. It raises and blasts down two of the standard FO troopers firing into their retreating line. Captain Ororo takes a hard hit in the reprisal but they both take down two troopers of their own. "Come on!" He shouts to them.

Colonel Battu however, takes a hit. One too many with his previous wound. He died, of all things, saving the Human, lowly Captain Ororo the soul survivor of the Royal Special Corps attack unit. "Just you and me now Captain..." That said somberly. "You don't die on me either, Hex... who's floors am I going to mop?"

Sajin says, "Ryma'at," Hex breathes the name of his people's goddess, mopping sweat off his brow with a bloodied, gloved hand before he raises his rifle again to fire into the troopers, buying some space and time to stow the rifle, and reach to help Borias up! "I'm glad you got my six, Borias, now sahak chir, ok ka? That means 'don't die,' and I mean it." Together, they can start gimping back toward the transport at top gimp speed, bloodied but unbroken. Fighting for the cause. For something bigger than the self."

With everything that's happening, Percy is starting to hit the end of his tether. To put it simply? He is just not built for this. At all. He can handle fourteen hour surgeries better than this! On his way back to the transport, he trips a couple of times, the fatigue and lactic acid filling his legs and slowing him down. He hadn't run this much since his days on Coruscant in school. He came last then as well. "Damnit," He mutters, getting to his feet and stumbling forward.

Indeed, they fight. <<Greystorm to pickup crew - we're on our way. Maybe you can shorten the distance?>> One can hope. Ambrosia's getting tired but she'll be damned before she shows her age in front of these kids. Right? RIGHT? Right. Bodies in motion stay in motion, weathered joints warm up their fluid, keeps limbs moving. While no longer in her prime, Ambrosia is barreling along, undeterred by the surrounding chaos, doing her best to match pace with the rest of the surviving crew. She's guarding their right flank on the move and two more bucketheads crumple.

Feeling the force flow through him, and guiding him, Yuun moves with a fluidity that belies what he had been doing previously. His steps are true and he weaves in and out of blaster fire, moving to deflect bolts away from the relay and the resistance troopers he's with. He is able to move into melee range of a group of stormtroopers and his right hand wields his lightsaber with a flourish. The bright blue blade spins about him in a figure eight weaving a basket of color.

Pushign the troopers back, he steps in to the lead trooper spinning around and thrusting his blade backwards as his back is to the stormtrooper and his blade stabs through the trooper. THe other two try to move to strike him. Yuun moves dancing away from them before bringing his blade across the trooper on his right cutting him down and spinning in towards the remaining trooper, and as he moves past him he delivers a backhand strike taking the trooper head off. "You fought well. Find peace." he says.

Princess Aryn stands by General Finn, and she does not leave his side. He shoots, and she cuts down those that mean to separate the pair from the droid that is working the controls of the turret. The battle is dying down as pockets of Stormtroopers try to pick off the Resistance, but the Resistance is used to running and gunning and find their trooper numbers dwindling as a result.

BB-8 warbles and Aryn glances back. "He means to fire, Finn. Find cover!" The Jedi lowers her weapon and wraps and arm about him to move. No sooner had they found cover does a series of blaster bolts spark off the appended and bent bits of hull they slide behind. At this proximity, the humming of her lightsaber can be heard just before BB-8 triggers the discharge.

A pair of green bolts discharge with a jaw-clenching, earth trembling trigger that kicks up dust around the hardpoint. The green contrail of laser bolts connect with the bridge and it caves in before an explosion expands out, casting out bodies of officers and troopers alike. The ship tilts as a result.

Those retreating have made it to the transports, but the Resistance is still spread out over the 2km stretch. Magnetic clamps keep the transports in place, but those who (Finn and Aryn) remain near the turret will not be able to safely return to the ships now. The Steadfast is going DOWN.

Kayive staggers up the transport ramp, motions growing more and more erratic, before finally collapsing in a tangle of heavy weaponry and limbs a few meters inside. A pool of mixed droid fluids starts to form on the deck underneath her. "Yeah... I can't really move anything other than my head any more. Can someone at least turn me over so I can see?"

They've done it! The bridge explodes, and the signal dies untransmitted. The Galaxy is safe, and somewhere down below Finn knows - or hopes - Rey has saved them all just like he knew she would. But now the battle becomes the least of their problems, as they find themselves standing atop a rapidly-tilting Star Destroyer.

Finn's first glance is to find BB-8 and make sure the droid is safe. He likes the little guy, and Poe would probably be mad if he said he let him roll off the ship. Spotting the droid, he looks now to Aryn and then to the rapidly tilting deck beneath them. He reorients himself so one of the upraised bulkheads of the ship is now a platform, standing on it and reaching out a hand to help the Princess find her footing there, too.

He stands there with his back pressed against the deck, hand pressed against the wound in his side. It's painful, and the situation is dangerous but he can't help but smile a little to himself. If this is the end, then what an end it is ...

It's as quick a gimping walk as Borias can manage, leaning on Hex as the two heads toward sthe shuttle, his left hand gripping the strap for his Tracker as he makes for the nearest boarding ramp side by side with Hex. "C'mon old man, not too much farther....hell, you've only been shot once, you should be winning this marathon..." he quips, his voice filled with stiff pain as he pushes himself, until he can sort of mostly collapse inisde the shuttle bay's jump seats, wincing as he lets out a groan of pain, holding his side and just dropping his rifle as he leans back. "...ouch..."

Merek makes his way to the shuttle, while he motions people into it, then he looks from the distance to where Finn and Aryn look to be. He lifts up his comlink, <"Can anyone hear me? Please, we have people in need of extraction from the Steadfast."> Then he nods to them. If they are saved, it will be pretty nice, either way. His duty is to see what men he can back onto the shuttle. <"I've called for extraction, if... Either way, General, Princess. Been an honor. Stay safe. I'll get what people I can back to the fleet.">

The soldier takes the wounded as well as those bringing them, while he uses all he can to pull them to the ship. When it looks like he has as many that he can, he lifts up a hand, while he takes that railing. Percy positively collapses aboard the transport. He's one the last ones on amid hoarse coughs and gasps for air. Once on he just lays there, sprawled out upon the floor of the transport. "Bleeaahhh. I hate flying. I hate it so much. Someone take me back to Tatooine please."

Miraculously unharmed, Sar makes his way back to the relative safety of the transport, tossing his helmet down to the floor and running a gloved hand through his hair. His pistol is slid back into its holster and he turns to look out the door, giving K5's head a little kick so she can do the same. The Old Man's breath slows as watches the ships outside fighting the good fight. A puff of breath is exhaled sharply through his nose and he shakes his head, reaching up to wipe some sweat from his face. There's still plenty of fighting to do, but they succeeded in their mission, and that's what matters right now.

So close. So far. The ramp. They just need the ramp. Is Hex bleeding? Yeah, he's bleeding. Is Borias bleeding? Yes, definitely, despite Percy's ministrations. "Tcha, I am winning! I just - don't want you to have your pride injured, that's all, ai'jou!" The ship is tilting. The ship is BREAKING. A body just rained down from the bridge and hit the deck with a wet, broken thud, like burst fruits. Like Greeson! It's best not to think of it. They crossed this distance before at a dead run, on a stable ship, with their mounts... now they're half broken, limping back.

Hoping they make it.

But maybe they don't.

A journey of a thousand miles can still end on the next-to-last step, wrong and unfinished.

Hex frantically chases these thoughts out of his mind as he and Borias continue, as fast as they can manage, and just in the last shreds of seconds to spare, they do make it. Up. On. Now they can breathe again.

Hex flops down near his human comrade, breathes, and then looks over again in a grin broad enough to show his pointy canine teeth. "So that Resistance thing is working out pretty good, ka?"

Sajin pushes Captain Ororo onto the Shuttle and thunks his own power armored self onto it as well. <<"Medic!">> He shouts, indicating that the Captain needs tending to. THe Hapan sits the man down before turning, looking towards those still left out there. He starts to move to get off the ship and head back onto the field but the ship is already taking off. He slumps back against the bulkhead and looks over towards Hex... and just starts to laugh.

Ambrosia holds position at the entry hatch after Percy sprawls on its floor, having slowed her sprint to safeguard the man who's able to piece them all back together. "Buck up, doc, you're alive." She settles into a crouch, prepared to offer what cover fire she can for the stragglers. Except...

<<Dr COLE? GENERAL?>> So many generals. Like Merek, she's concerned. A twist around sees her yelling fore-ward at the pilot to MOVE and GET THEM. You can see those veins pulsing in her temples from a klik away.

The scene is that of destruction. Glorious destruction. The Final Order is in shambles and smoke fills the air as Star Destroyers plummet into the gravity wells of the unstable planet. Fire is everywhere.

Resistance shuttles collect all that are left alive and running, even going so far as to sweep the nearest vicinities while airborne before finally angling away. <<"We can't fly any closer, General. There's too much debris and we won't reach them in time!">> The pilot informs, but a familiar voice comes over the comms.

<<"Roooowwwrll Rrr ROWWWRRRR!">> It's Chewbacca! For those closest to the view ports of the transports, they see the YT-1300 fly by overhead, its bright blue engines dimming as it slows over a location. <<"We got them!">> Yells Wedge over comms as Finn and Aryn are pulled inside the ship to safety.

The Civilian fleet and what remains of the Resistance begin to streak into hyperspace in quick succession. The last of the ships to leave is the Falcon, which lingers in the sky for a moment longer and finally zips away.