[CNS] Below Zero - Event Fiction

Terra Do Gelo base Camp
Southern Continent
Tarthos

The wind ripped through the base camp; blowing up snow that chilled the sentries to the bone. Warhost troops huddled around their heaters or buried themselves in dugouts hoping to avoid the worst of the chill. Nihilgenia stood guard around the main camp, they appeared to show no discomfort but given the Keibatsu funds, it left little doubt that the clones would be well insulated and kept warm inside their armour.

Another gust of wind tore open the flaps of one of the tents and a stifled curse escaped from within. The sound of hurried footsteps across the floor and a hand shot out from within, groped around for the loosened material and dragged it shut with as much force as the figure inside could muster.

“Blasted weather, I’m freezin’ ma bal…” a loud thump from somewhere nearby as one of the lights illuminating the camp toppled into the snow with a crunch. “…ls off. What blasted place is this?” The disgruntled Sadowan turned away from the tent flap, it now tightly secured, and moved his way back to his cot. “This is nae the place for us lass. There’s nothing oot there but snow and monsters, or so I hear.”

Firith traipsed back across the tent and dragged himself into bed. Cosying up to the body of his wife. Though they were both dressed from head to foot in warm clothing the bitter chill of the wasteland still left its mark. The Black Guard received a swift shove as he attempted to curl himself into Lilith.

“Get your cold everything off me, I had just gotten comfortable. Also watch your language, this is an official war camp. We have to appear professional for the others.” She pulled herself further into the layer of blankets and shivered. “As professional as you can get when you’re freezing your…well everything off.” Husband flashed wife a grin and the two settled down, for one last attempt at rest. The operation would begin tomorrow and neither felt keeling over into the snow. Lilith yawned and rolled her shoulders as she adjusted her position to tolerate the frozen body of her spouse. “As for why we’re here, I don’t know much but apparently it’s something to do with these bases. They belonged to Dlarit. All I know is we’re here to take them back, for the betterment of Sadow.You know the usual stuff. Now shut up, I want to sleep.”

That was that she turned herself around and faced the tent wall. Before she closed her eyes she could see the frost on the tent wall and then something tore through the night, something layered on the wind and she was positive it wasn’t the wind.

The Fallen Spear
Tarthos Orbit

“Are you sure about this? I mean the plan could work easily enough, it’s just I’ve not tested the Fangs in these conditions,” Selvaria pulled herself out from under the cockpit, her face splattered with much and her tool belt sitting haphazardly across her chest. “I mean we can do it sweets, but…it’s unknown factors. Constant darkness, that wind and snow. Hell, it looks like Hoth out down there.”

Kojiro reached down and dragged his partner up by the wrist and looked from her to the fighter and back again. The Keibatsu reached out and gently rubbed an oil stain from the woman’s nose, making it worse than it had been before. “We need your help, the Warhost has it’s own Forces but we need a quick hit and run manoeuvre to weaken the outer defences before the main host moves into secured the three locations. It’ll be fine, you’ll have Warhost support and I’ve asked the tree to support the manoeuvre,” the Umbaran/Mandalorian hybrid raised an eyebrow before remembering the discussion on Malik. “Plus I’ll be flying with you. So everything will be fine.”

Sel had moved to turn away then spun back on her heel with a start. “You are not, there’s no way you are ready for this type of action. You can stay up here or down there and coordinate this thing. I am not taking you out there if even I’m unsure if I’ll make it, never mind you.”

The Questor stared at her, she hated that stare it unnerved her but she knew he wouldn’t hurt her. “The operation is fine. Sanguinius has field command, Malik will assist the Air Forces. Bentre, Armad and Jurden are leading the strike teams. We already have scout Forces and machines giving us a rundown of these places,” the clone placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed tenderly. “It’s all in order, plus I’m not asking to join you. I’m telling. We leave at six in the morning.”

With that, he turned on his heel and marched across the hanger exit leaving Selvaria to sigh, look at the other fighters on board then head back to work getting them ready.

Dlarit Military and weapon Research Base Bravo**
Terra Do Gelo
Tarthos

Feet silently met the ground as the Warhost scout team finished their descent through the crevice and into the base. It was warmer here, at least by some degrees but the team still shivered as they moved from their landing point down the corridors and throughout the base.

The crevice had been a stroke of luck. A recon droid had gotten lost in a storm and gone way off track, only upon recalling it and rewatching its footage.

The team moved like ghosts through one corridor and the next. They figured they were behind the main areas likely to be inhabited but they still were taking no chances and if reports were to be believed the enemy had moved further back into the cavern system to secure their location. Minutes passed but nothing met the team but silence and the ominous feeling they weren’t entirely alone, however, each moment that passed simply led to another empty room or corridor and they were beginning to wonder exactly where these reported enemy combatants had vanished too.

They entered one of the larger caverns and proceeded across it. The light from their helmets illuminating their path but the distance they could see was extremely limited. All was silent until a noise from the back of the group had them halt and all turn as one. Nothing.

The squad Sergeant did a quick head count and quickly realised nothing was exactly what was there. One of his team was missing. A noise from his left had him spin just in time to see something large and looming lunge at him from the darkness and the world as he knew it went black.

Central War Chamber
Terra Do Gelo Warcamp
Tarthos

The feed from the scouts, or at least what they managed to get due to the interference, went dead and those gathered in the room shuffled uncomfortably. A figure at the back moved forward and took a position at the rooms table, seating himself and laying his hands on the metal in front of him. Thick gloves covered the hands of Sanguinius, Consul of Naga Sadow, and he could still feel the coldness of the metal resonate through to his skin.

“So that’s the last team gone quiet. The mining complexes, Alpha and now Bravo. The mines I understand was….rogue droids, Alpha the enemy were too well prepared and now some unknown things in the dark at Bravo,” he raised a hand and gently massaged his temple in annoyance. “This planet has seen far too much crap happen to it and I agreed to help lead this effort, as did all of us gathered around this table. I just am not a fan of leading men in blind but it appears we really have no other choice.”

His eyes roamed those who had joined him at the table. Jurden was here representing Shar Dakhan and Armad was here for Ragnos, though why the Techweaver was chosen was beyond the Consul’s knowledge. Kojiro had insisted and so Sanguinis had agreed. Malik was safely being shuttled up to one of the cruisers in low orbit to organise the fighter screen and bombardment and that left Bentre and himself.

“You all have your orders. Lead your strike teams against the locations, neutralise the targets alongside the Warhost and members of the Nihilgenia and secure all property with minimal damage,” the Consul stared at each, in turn, to ensure the last point was put across. “You will have support from the air as well as the main bulk of the Warhost’s forces. However, these conditions are less than ideal and I can’t guarantee what you will find once you’re inside. All I know for sure is we have rogue machines and the remnants of the enemy forces from the Cathedral assault. If you wish to back out now I understand,” no one replied to that and he sighed. “Then I suggest you all leave, get some rest. Gather your wits and your teams and let’s go to war.”

They all rose and each in turn nodded. They hadn’t said anything since the second scout team had gone down. This whole venture was more than they had bargained for and with unknown enemy forces holding three key locations to the further development of not just Tarthos and Ragnos, but potentially the entire clan. Well, this wasn’t a venture they could afford to lose.

Dlarit Base A
Southern Continent
Tarthos

Footsteps resounded down the hallway somewhere to the north as the party wove their way past broken debris, crackling machinery and the odd blood stain or fallen body that had yet to be removed. The air in front of them frosted their breath and each footstep allowed the chill of the air to catch in their throats and make the process even more arduous than walking was meant to be. They rounded another corner and came across a rather gruesome scene, warhost troops lay scattered around the enormous corpse of what appeared to be a Wampa though as they neared they could make out the alchemical alterations that had been done to the beast. Relief workings were heading towards the party, making their own way through the winding corridors towards the fallen, removing any identification from the corpses before removing the nearly frozen bodies. Taking them away from the corridors to awaiting transports to be shuttled home for a proper burial by their families and loved ones.

“Was this all worth it?” Sanguinius thought out loud as he watched another body placed onto a repulsor sledge. “All this…carnage, and for what?”

The rest of the party said nothing. All had their own thoughts about what lay around them. Bentre walked somewhere off to the side, lost in his own head. The Proconsul had been quiet since his return from the frozen tomb. Aul and Jurdan walked somewhere behind, whispering to one another, they had stopped a few times as they recognised their own House’s insignia on some of the fallen soldiers.

The party advanced until they came upon two large blast doors, one of which had fallen to the floor, wherever this was due to the conflict or some past action by the previous tenants wasn’t evident. The other was marked by blaster scores and scattered weaponry lay about it. This had been the place of the last stand and the fighting had been the toughest here. They passed through the doorway and into the vast chamber beyond.

The chamber was, or at least had once been, the main manufacturing area for the base. Figures bustled around, inspecting machinery, repairing pieces of broken equipment and taking notes of what worked and what was needing to be replaced. Warhost and Nihilgenia kept guard and somewhere off to the side the unfamiliar armour of a group of Mandalorians, surrounded by what appeared to be large wolf-like beasts stood. This is where the party headed, towards the loud and raucous war party. Each of the warriors had their helms free and each reminded Sang of savages from old stories. Braided hair and beards, shaved scalps, cybernetics upon most of them, some wore pelts around their shoulders, others strange talismans and all sported the same armour and the same emblems; The one eyed wolf.

The Ulfhednar, if Sang recalled and as they approached the group he made out the form of Selvaria and he didn’t have to look far for the Quaestor of Marka Ragnos. Kojiro turned away from the group and stalked towards the approaching part. Selvaria was close at his elbow as she always was and near by her wolf padded up behind them. The rest of the warriors moved away from the group and headed off to the edge of a pit where some disconcerting noises emanated from within. A few of them through semi disgusted looks towards the Sith and Jedi approaching before turning back to whatever was so interesting in the pit.

“Ahh Sanguinius, I was wondering when you would grace us with your presence. This is what the fruits of our labour achieved. Another continent back under our control, and all this,” he gestured around him. “This is ours.The future of warfare.”

“It’s…impressive, but I’ve been wondering if the cost was worth it? We lost good men to take this place and for what? A load of broken machines and outdated software?” He gazed around the room and winced as a piece of machinery was dragged to the ground from its perch on a shelf. “The body count is still being taken, but I understand….”

“Don’t concern yourself with the cost, my dear Consul. We soldiers know what the potential cost of our occupation is. Your Force users survived and I’m sure you’ll be happy to hear that,” the sarcasm dripped from the Quaestor’s voice but before any of the party could respond he had already moved over to a technician who handed him a datapad. “This is worth it. Worth the cost. Schematics to upgrade our armour, weapons and even plans to alter our war machines and ships to work better, to keep our men alive and in the fight. Yes, this was worth it. All of it was worth it. These fools were sitting on a treasure trove of information and did nothing with it.”

Kojiro threw the datapad to Bentre who caught it and started scrolling through the information provided when he was satisfied it was passed around the party who all took their turn reading the data.

“This seems…fascinating. The Clan would be strengthened I’m sure,” Sanguinius cut into the murmur that had started, studiously ignoring Kojiro’s barbs, that would be a matter for another day. “But how long will it take to put together, to fit everything out and restore it all to working order?”

Kojiro shrugged and Selvaria sidled up to his side and whispered something in his ear. When she was done she moved away over to the pit and pushed to the front as an excited murmur rose. The technician that handed Kojiro the datapad grimaced before returning to her work.

“I don’t have the details on time. If you like, I can send one of the scientists to your office later with all that. But for now, I think that’s the official part over. There’s some entertainment over in the pit I want to enjoy,” a loud roar escaped from the pit and Kojiro had already turned and was moving over quickly to the edges. Curious, some of the party followed and even Sang’s interest was peaked. As he moved up to the Quaestor’s side he wished it hadn’t. There in the pit stood one of the Wampa creatures, and across from it were what appeared to be men and women, dressed and bedraggled in scraps. The beast was leashed but even now the Consul could see these bindings were being loosened.

“What is this? You aren’t going to…” before he could even finish the monster was loosed and the following spectacle had him turn as his stomach twisted. The Ulfhednar whooped and jeered at the bloodletting below, even some of the Warhost were watching with glee. “Kojiro, what is this? Are those prisoners?”

“Yes, dear Sanguinius. I decided to give the men some entertainment and try out the monsters we found. They are quite effective don’t you think? Don’t worry though, some of the prisoners have survived. Those that do we let go, give them rations and release them into the wastes. Now if there’s nothing left, my new Aedile will escort you wherever you want to go,” he gestured and a figure moved towards the party. “Armad, or as I’ve just appointed him to head up the Dlarit operation here, Director Armad will take you where you need to go. Good day Consul.” With that, he turned his back to the sport below and left the group alone with the new Aedile.

Terra Do Gelo Mining Complex
Southern Continent
Tarthos

Tasha’s footsteps struck against the hard ground and she looked up from the ledge she had just dropped from. The Twi’lek had been granted the rights to map out the complex along with a select few. The team moved cautiously through the chambers of the mine, broken machines and rogue droids littered the ground and it was her job to ensure the area was safe for the main teams to move in and fully secure the location.

As they advanced something skittered in front of them and the click of raised weaponry resounded. The light lit up the area and the skittering noise retreated into the shadows, as the light hit it Tasha could just make out the shape of some form of rodent vanishing. It’s tail whipping behind it.

The group relaxed and moved on. Carnage lay everywhere, choke points were littered with more remains of warhost troops and the carcasses of droids. This was a tomb and the thought of it made the Battlemaster shiver. She missed the sky and this was the furthest from where she wanted to be but Kojiro had asked her so nicely. Right after appointing her to Battle Team leader of the Night Hawks, how could she refuse after that?

The Twi’lek sighed and gestured and with her team vanished into the shadows of the complex to finish her mission. As she did she wondered what the future held and where this will all take them. After all was Tarthos truly free? Or was there more to come before their home could truly be reclaimed. Hopefully before someone decided to blow it up again.

Temple of Blood
Sepros

Sanguinius paced the room, as Bentre looked on, “His insults have no place in Naga Sadow, Bentre.”

“I know, I know,” Bentre replied soothingly, placating his superior.

“They were unarmed prisoners and I’ll be damned if his mercenary hoodlums get to murder and kill those who bloody well surrendered to them.”

Bentre cast his glance at the datapad in his grip, “His actions aside, this data may be of some use.”

“Data be damned, Bentre. Do you think the Dark Council will allow us to blatantly improve our military might? Why else do you think they struck at us in the past?” Sanguinius stopped pacing and lent against his desk. “No, the real issue is close at hand. Kojiro’s arrogance will lead to him making a mistake…”

“…and mistakes are deadly.” Bentre finished the sentence, well aware of his Consul’s favourite sayings. The Correllian smiled as he thought of the adventures ahead.