Distant Victory

[Ryan Pode]

Thaere Privo

He walked the steel deck heavily, along with his crew he had just recently heard of the Emperors death. Such a terrible day for those that once followed him. First he dies, then Lord Vader dies and the mighty battle station that was to instill fear--the Death Star--is nearly in ruins above what would be a lush grave for such a desolate weapon. What made the situation worse was that the entire Thaere system had found out about the news all at once, thanks to the holo-net. Now, not even the Imperial rulers could at least keep peace. Already riots had begun to break out on the surface.

"Give me an update of the surface, Commander." He was speaking to his Lieutenant Commander and first mate, Zugren Rusch.

"Well sir, they've made a push for our third garrison in Elta Vuto but the base commander reassures us that he can handle the generally weaponless crowds. " He said with a flicker of a smile. Zugren had been in the Imperial Navy longer than probably anyone else on the ship. He was a rare case of hardwork and determination rewarded in the Navy. He had enlisted about thirty-five years ago as a crewman and worked his way up. Eventually he had been rewarded with NCO ranks and eventually been good enough to make officer ranks.

"Let's hope for the best then, that's all we can do." The Captain of the ship replied, he was not a warmongerer at all. He was a peaceful man who had joined the ranks of the Emperor to help support his family who had been hit in the depression of lower Couruscant following the end of the Clone Wars. He also had a wife and several kids waiting for him back on Couruscant.

"SIR! Inbound ships following vector two-eight nine-seven. Eight bougeys running hot." Shouted out a crewman monitoring sensors. At that moment Zugren and the Captain exchanged a look and the Captain made a small nod. "They're beginning to make a run on the
Drear

"SIR! Inbound ships following vector two-eight nine-seven. Eight bougeys running hot." Shouted out a crewman monitoring sensors. At that moment Zugren and the Captain exchanged a look and the Captain made a small nod. "They're beginning to make a run on the
Drear."

The Drear was a Victory I class Star Destroyer assigned ."

The Drear was a Victory I class Star Destroyer assigned as the flagship of the battle group including the Strike cruiser Cheerless Rancor. The rest of the battle group including a Lancer frigate named Imperial Fight and two Imperial escort cruisers.

"The Vie and Dementia," the two escort cruisers, "are launching fighters... What the--The Imperial Fight has opened fire on the TIEs. They're traitors!"

"No they're not." The Captain cooly said, "Bring weapons about on the Drear , Imperial intelligence has informed us that the Drear along with the commanders of the Vie and Dementia are rebels. This was a trap."

"You lying rebel scum!" Errupted the Intelligence officer on the deck. he began to draw his blaster when he was cut down by a duet of crimson bolts from Commander Rusch's sidearm. In the next instant he cut down the two Stormtroopers stationed as guards at the door.

"Now, open fire on the Drear." Rusch ordered the officer stationed at weapons control.

"Yes sir," he said reluctantly, "All available weapons lock onto target "Niner-six delta. Fire on my command."

What the Captain nor the Commander realized was that the target at nine-six delta was the Lancer frigate and in a matter of seconds their rebellion would be quashed. The Imperial Fight had managed to take out most of the TIE's and thus had allowed the rebel fighters to begin harassing the ancient Star Destroyer which was far to antiquated to deal with the snubfighters effectively. Hence why the Lancer was brought. But for right now, the surprise would be all that was needed by the Weapons officer.

[Ryan Pode]

It didn't take long. In fact, it was anything but. The complete and utter destruction of the Imperial Fight was just about trashed by the Cheerless Rancor and it was just then when one of the Sensor crewmen decided to inform the captain that the Fight had been destroyed. It was just then that the Weapons officer, a Lieutenant Commander named Ryan Pode drew his pistol and opened fire upon Rusch. The first shot went wide right but the second shot was more accurate as his grazed his head right along his right eye, searing the flesh in an instant.

"AHHH!! MY EYE!!" The Commander had dropped to the ground and continued to scream. As the Captain was distracted by his screaming friend a crewman tackled him from behind and began to wrestle with him. Pode got up to go help but Rusch blindly began to fire in the direction of the weapons officer. Ryan now had no choice but to seek cover behind a console. "I'LL KILL YOU!!"

The Commander managed to get up, clutching his burned out eye-socket. He placed one shot into the back of the Captain's assailant and reached into his pocket to pull something out. Pain shot through his eyes and he fell to his knees--not before dropping what was in his hands--then to the ground. He Captain caught the object than flicked his eyes from the object, to who killed his friend. It was the Weapon's officer; staring down the Captain.

"You die too." The Captain said woefully. He moved his thumb on the object and it began to flash and beep. It was a thermal detonator. The last resort in the coup. Kill everything. Pode just shook his head looking at the Captain, then shot him squarely in the chest. His bodly crumpled up and fell to the ground. The end of the coup. But the beeping got quicker.

"RUN!!" Screamed the Commander as the tempo of the beeping got faster and the noise got louder. Like a bunch of rats scampering out of a burning building, the deck officers and crewmen began to push violently their way out of the bridge.

[Ryan Pode]

The thermal detonator did as expected and created a violent scene of havoc on the ship. What was once the bridge of the ship waqs now a floating collection of metals, glass, body parts and liquid fire drifting about as its still being fueled by the precious oxygen from the ship. Without control the ship slowly began to be yanked towards the planet in a almost a wearisome fashion. The ship was all but lost.

Ryan Pode felt someone crush his face with their boot as they ran over him while trying to escape. He was slightly dizzy and very dazed after being thrown forward about ten yards into a bulkhead from the blast. Chaos, utter chaos is what he saw. In the small corridor he saw about a dozen grown men fighting and shoving to move forward and on the ground he saw a several dead sailors; some torched, some not. Then, he began to slide back towards the bridge--slowly. Still he was too dazed to actually realize what was going on. Then it clicked.

"Crap." Thats all he said when he realized the ship had lost control of its stabilizers from Thaere Privo's vicious gravity and soon, very soon, the ship would begin an irrevocable free fall into the cities or worse yet the garrisons on the surface. He stuggled to pull himself off the ground and visibly stumbled when he found his footing once he was fully off the ground. Gripping the wall for support he began to hobble his way forwards. Deep down inside he knew the ship didn't have much time but he also knew that this ship had to be salvaged--if the reports were true about the mass hysteria that has engulfed the galaxy then every available ship would be needed to combat insurgents.

The Commander managed to get himself next to a wall panel that had access to the ships public announcement channel. Now if only he could remember the password to access it, after all it had been told to him once briefly as part of the senior crew training he had recieved when he began a member of the senior crew fifteen months ago. After a minute of so of toiling with various combinations of numbers he got it and finally had access to tell the crew its time to go. "Attention. This is Lieutenant Commander Ryan Pode, I have assumed command of the ship after the treacherous actions performed by the Captain and First Officer Rusch. I am authorizing the order to abandon ship. I repeat, ABANDON SHIP. "

After giving that order Pode felt like he had done the right thing, he knew he had. So, along with the dozen or so men with him in that neck of the ship they began to hastily proceed to the nearest escape pod bay. They were joined by others who had heard the message as well. But, little did Ryan know that the Drear was in fact defecting the Rebel cause and had begun to open fire upon the Rancor blowing apart its lower sections.

[Ryan Pode]

Hell. I'm in hell. There is no better term to describe this new world I--we've been thrust into. Ryan Pode thought quietly to himself as he stared out the lone viewport in the escape pod. Everything that had once stood in his life had come tumbling down and it came down fast. People he thought were traitors may not have been and people he thought were loyal might have been traitors. Everything was upisde down and inside out. At least he had his two new best friends.

The first one was a Sergeant in the ships security force. His name was Vindin Sardokincloph. He was a well built man, great frame very generously filled out with muscle. Ryan knew from various conversations with this soldier that he was a defender in Wegsphere and was supposedly very good. The other man was a lanky man who was also in the security force, Ryan wasn't too sure what rank the soldier was or even his name as they were often assigned to opposite shifts.

"So here we are," Pode trailed off, in a matter of seconds the escape pod would begin entering the atmosphere and he knew that plans had to be made, before it was too late, "We need to be prepared to leave the pod landing site as soon as possible."

"Don't you mean crash site?" Vindin responded.

"Obviously." Quipped in the lanky fellow.

"Crash, landing, whichever. Just get out the emergency packs and try and stuff the essentials from the others into the ones your carrying." The two nodded to the Lieutenant Commander and began taking out useless items such as oxygen masks and spare air tanks as well as water and purifying tablets and replacing it with food, light sticks, blaster charges, grenades and the likes.

Within minutes, the small pod began to rock violently and spin uncontrollably. Final descent began. Soon the pod would crash on the surface--if it made it to the surface--and then hopefully the trio would be able to get out and away from the pod before the locals arrived. Considering how displeased they were with Imperial rule Ryan had severe doubts as to if they would survive being captured by the ravenous inhabitants of Thaere Privo.

"Brace yourself, we're gonna hit!" Shouted Vindin over the rumbling of the pod as the once distant marble in space came rushing at them with the speed of sound and then some.