• Published 9th Oct 2013
  • 15,516 Views, 3,181 Comments

The Dragon and the Force - FenrisianBrony



Spike disappears from Equestria, and ends up surrounded by Jedi

  • ...
65
 3,181
 15,516

PreviousChapters Next
The Star Forge

Exiting hyperspace was normally a calm affair, drifting out at the edge of a system, ships systems re-adapting to their return to normalcy after the comparatively alien environment of hyperspace. Crew too would have time to readjust, to raise blast shields over external viewports, to retool the engines for realspace flying and bring the shields back online. It was a busy time, but it was almost always peaceful.

There was nothing peaceful on the bridge now.

Harmony rocked as a series of heavy turbo-laser shots slammed into the hull, the shields flaring into life a second later to absorb the next volley. Crewmen were thrown from their seats if they had not yet activated their restraints, Spike only remaining upright as he dug his claws into the metal beneath him, anchoring himself to the floor.

“Redirect aft shield power to the stabilisers and bring us to bear,” a voice rang out, cutting through the din of battle, others immediately moving to their order, the ship righting itself moments later as internal dampener fields came online.

“Looks like this is going to be one hell of a fight,” Spike muttered, more to himself and Moonstone than anyone else, before linking his helmet to the ship's comm systems to deliver his next words.

“All hands, all hands, Sith forces have us engaged at the system's edge, signal the remainder of the Fireshot fleet to disperse throughout the Republic Battle Sphere, we do not present our fleet as a singular entity to be targeted. Bring the big guns into range and fire on their capital ships, leave the station to the Hammerheads and Harmony.

The link went dead as Spike finished speaking, looking around the bridge as the crew moved to follow his orders. All of the Fireshot fleet were well trained, at least by the standards of informal militia’s and pirates, the Harmony crew was well trained beyond even that, putting many Republic crews to shame, and yet there was something off about them, small as it was. Actions ever so slightly sluggish, prompts needed where in truth Spike knew they knew what to do. It was worrying, but he had seen warriors come undone under fire before, especially in such knife-fights after coming out of Hyperspace.

Pushing the thoughts to one side, Spike sat down in the command throne, linking his helmet to the ships systems and reaching out with his own magic, feeling the ship around him and closing his eyes. When he opened them, he was no longer merely in his own body, he was Harmony, Harmony was him, his vision now streaming in from dozens of internal and external cameras and subspace sensor arrays, his skin was that of plasteel kissed by the frozen void, his magic already strengthening the ships own shields.

It was not something Spike had done for some time, not since the Mandalorian Wars, the need simply not being there in the raids he had led, such tight reactions weighed against the energy he expended doing this simply made it a liability. Here though, they needed every advantage they could get.

The Republic fleet arrayed here was huge, ships bearing the colourations of every fleet in republic service standing alongside one another. This muster would have bled the Republic dry across a dozen sectors, if the Sith launched an assault of their own they would break through, there was no denying that. And yet for all the power shown here, they paled compared to the Sith Armada facing them.

Hundreds, possibly thousands of warships were arrayed before them, some in range and firing already, others moving in to assist their kin, disgorging hundreds of fighters that were already dueling with those launched from Republic ships. The Aurek’s were vastly superior to those fighters fielded by the Sith, faster, more agile, better armed and equipped with shields, but the Sith outnumbered them ten to one, boxing in and cutting down the fighters with comparative ease. Yet more warships laid at rest in the distance, holding position around what both sides knew to be the core of this battle, what could only be the mysterious Star Forge.

The station was massive, held in stationary orbit above the systems star, drawing energy upwards into itself using what could only be some great plasma syphon, though the scale of it boggled the mind. Even as Spike watched, a warship slipped from an aperture on the stations side, the hanger quickly sealing itself, but before it did, Spike caught a glimpse of what lay beyond. A shipyard, no workers assisting any of the machines, fully automated and ready to churn out ship after ship after ship, using the power of a star to fuel an empire. Spike felt a pit open up in his stomach, if the Sith had such technology, they were formidable. If they had found this station then that was bad enough, but if Revan, and now Malak, had the knowledge required to build such machines and bend them to their will, if this was not the only Star Forge...

“Snap out of it,” Moonstone ordered, flooding Spike’s mind with white noise for a second, temporarily blinding him before he returned to his senses, within his own body once more.

“Moonstone, I...” Spike’s voice was groggy, setting off alarm bells as he shook his head, standing and advancing towards the frontal viewport of the bridge. “Signal Admiral Dodonna, find out if her crews are showing out of character lapses in concentration, and if this Bastila is here, tell her to get her battle meditation working because there’s a Sith doing it right back to us.”

A response was called back, but Spike now recognised the sluggishness in the voice. This was no battle stress or the result of a short nights rest, this was a malicious attack on the mind, one powerful enough to dominate at least an entire bridge crew, and yet subtle enough to affect Spike without his knowledge. If it hadn’t been for Moonstone, Spike likely still wouldn’t have noticed.

“Good job I’m hear then,” Moonstone laughed as an explosion rocked the ship.

“Communications array is hit!” a crewman called out, Spike not seeing who it was.

“Status?” Spike snapped, his temper rising before he forced it back under control, the battle meditation’s insidious influence now clear to him, Spike forcing himself to repeat the word with far less venom. “Status?”

“Internal communications are operational, anything beyond that and we’ll struggle with just hearing the other side, let alone being heard, and you can forget sending a holo-transmission.”

“Get crews on it now,” Spike ordered. “Please tell me the message to the Admiral got through?”

As if on queue, a voice crackled into life, static lacing the words but it was understandable, if barely.

“I can’t even move our capital ships into position to bombard the Star Forge, it’s like they can guess out every move, counter every strategy.”

Admiral Dodonna’s voice was instantly recognisable, even with the tinny tone of the communicator malfunctions, but the next voice was one Spike didn’t recognise, nor did he like the content of what the man had said.

“It’s because of Bastila, Admiral. She turned to the dark side and became Malak’s apprentice. We suspect she is somewhere on that station right now, using her battle meditation against you and your fleet.”

Spike cursed, the word coming out as a hiss. If Bastila was as powerful as Zule had mentioned when her name had first come up, then her loss was a blow against the Republic, potentially a fatal one. Seeming to sense what Spike was thinking, Dodonna spoke again.

“This is Master Vandar, a number of Jedi knights have joined our fleet under his command.”

“If Bastila is using her power to augment the Sith, then Malak’s fleet is invincible. Our only hope is to somehow stop Bastila from using her battle meditation.”

Spike didn’t bother speaking, still unable to be heard, instead relegating himself to listening to the unfolding conversation. With a thought he opened a link to Seugtai’s helmet, a pulse reply signalling the Mandalorian was listening, though no words were said, evidently he was far too busy to devote his full attention to the conversation.

“How can we do that if she’s on the space station?” Admiral Dodonna asked, Vandar almost instantly replying.

“I will send a squadron of Jedi Knights to the Star Forge to find Bastila. Their small ships will be able to fly through the Sith blockade and dock on the space station. If they can find Bastila, they may be able to distract her attention from the battle overhead. That should allow you to move your capital ships into position for a final assault on the Star Forge itself.

It was a bold move, no doubt there, even fighters would struggle to get through this many fighters without battle meditation, with such a skilled user working against them the death toll would be high, but if that was the reality of the situation then what other choice was left?

“I hate to ask this after all you’ve done, Carth, but the Jedi may need all the help they can get.”

“Don’t worry, admiral. The Ebon hawk and her crew are going to see this through to the end.”

“And may the force be with you.”

As Vandar finished speaking, the line went dead, Spike listening for any sign of more to follow, before resigning himself to the fact they were on their own and raising his voice to give new orders.

“Prepare the ship for an assault, we’re going to lead a diversionary attack and try and punch through, give the Jedi some breathing room. Signal the rest of our ships and have them do the same. I don’t care if you have to wave out a window, just get it done.”

Spikes orders were met with a flurry of movement, the dragon pressing a claw to his helmet.

“Seugtai, do you copy, our comms are down, any chance you can send the message?”

Still Spike was met with silence, his brow furrowing.

“Helmsman, bring up Seugtai’s ship on screen, I want to see it.”

In an instant, the viewscreen at the front of the bridge shimmered, displaying a single camera view of an ancient battleship. The design had long since been obsolete in the Republic, retrofitted shield generators dotting its sides rather than the newer integrated shielding technology, and yet even now it was a formidable weapon. Many times the size of Hammerheads, drawing even the Sith Cruisers and Centurion Battlecruisers fielded by Malak’s armada. Despite its age, it was still a potent weapon.

Clearly the Sith had seen its potency too.

A dozen Sith cruisers surrounded the vessel, pouring volley after punishing volley into its failing shields, fightings darting around beneath the shield cover, targeting the external generators with dogged viciousness. It was not looking good, Spike could tell that in an instant.

“Bring Harmony around and support that ship!” Spike roared, but it was too late. As Spike watched in horror, the shields finally failed, hundreds of turbolaser shots turning the ship to little more than slag, an explosion ripping through the superstructure and instant later, consuming the ship in seconds.

“SEUGTAI!” Spike roared, his voice breaking as the word tore from his throat. The fireball was quickly snuffed out by the void, but the after-image was seared into Spike’s mind, his eyes locked to where the ship had just been.

No one moved on the bridge, a strange calm came over the ship even as shots still slammed into the shields. Finally, a voice spoke up, nervous and yet determined.

“Communication array restored, Spike.”

“Wide scan, all distress frequencies,” Spike snapped. “If there are any lifepods from that ship I want them found, now!”

Again, the bridge lapsed into silence, static filling the speakers as the frequencies were scanned. The seconds ticked by, Spike’s hearts dropping with each passing moment, before finally, a crackle in the static.

S...ke...lost...dead...still alive.

“Clear it up,” Spike snarled, rounding on the comms officer, Moonstone appearing before him, a wordless glare stopping him advancing further, the officer hurrying to follows Spike’s command.

I say again, Spike, the ship was lost with most hands dead, some survivors are in saviour pods, I heard the message from the admiral, I will link up with Harmony. Switching to helmet frequency epison rancor.

Without skipping a beat, Spike switched his helmets comms array to the specified channel, Seugti’s voice instantly crackling over the link.

“Thought I lost you,” Spike fought to keep his voice level as he spoke. “Did you hear the Admiral’s message?”

“About Bastila? Yes,” Seugtai replied. “It’s got to be one hell of a strike team to take on the entire station and kill one of the Siths newest toys.”

“Or capture,” Spike added, though without much optimism, sharing Seugtai’s bleak outlook on the likely reality of the unfolding situation. “Regardless, They’ll need all the help they can get. Are you in a life pod?”

“No, managed to get to my Basilisk before the shields dropped. Coming up alongside Harmony now.”

As he spoke, a small shape darted past the viewport, Spike briefly catching a glimpse of the rider before he sped out of view once more, wheeling around the other fighters with contemptuous ease. The Republic Aurek’s may have outclassed the Sith’s own fighters, but a Basilisk War Droid was something else entirely, standing alone in a higher class than any mere fighter could ever hope to attain.

“Signal the fleet,” Spike repeated himself. “All vessels to reform around us if able to do so and follow us in. “Helmsman has command, all vessels with available boarding teams are to prepare for departure. If the Jedi are landing on that station we are sure as hell not letting them do it alone.”

The ship surged forward mere seconds after Spike had finished talking, a series of other vessels following after it, though many more were unable to respond, tied down in capital ship duals throughout the battlesphere.

As the ship moved, Spike closed his eyes, allowing his magic to swim out from his corporeal form, reaching to touch the minds of the crews currently following his vessel. He wasn’t skilled in Battle Meditation, it wasn’t something he had ever practised and he certainly couldn’t go toe-to-toe with a supposed master of the craft, but magic afforded him certain advantages the force did not. If he couldn’t counter Bastila, he could at least block her influences over a small number of his crew, and give the Republic a fighting chance to break through the Sith blockade.

Time ceased to have any meaning as Spike touched the minds of hundreds under his command. Each of them had a life, hopes, dreams, fear and regrets, and for a moment, Spike was part of all of them. Were he stronger, he may have been able to delve deeper, but such an act would surely only lead to damnation and pain, for all those involved.

Removed from the battle, Spike did not see the unfolding push, but rather felt it from a hundred angles, the fear of an engineer as his reactor pushed into the red, the stoic calm of a gunnery officer, and of course, countless lives being snuffed out one by one. When that happened, Spike severed the connection, and yet even the flashes weighed on his mind, compartmentalised and pushed aside by Moonstone to be worked through later.

Suddenly, all the feelings began to shift, elation spreading through the fleet, Spike risking a return to his own body, unsure of whether he’d be able to regain control if he fully relinquished it, but as he opened his eyes he realised there was no further need, the Star Forge looming ahead, Harmony streaking forward with a near perfectly unblocked view, a mere handful of fighters still in their way.

“Signal the Admiral,” Spike ordered. “Fireshot is sending borders to assist the Jedi push. All ships deploy raiding parties and fall back, full command passes to Republic captains, listen to them.”

With that, Spike turned, striding down towards the hanger bay. Harmony was a small ship, no crew could be spared for boarding actions, at least not en-masse, but a single individual would be more than sufficient from the vessel. As he entered the hanger, his eyes fell upon his own Basilisk War Droid he and the Special Forces had captured so long ago.

Leaping atop the droid, Spike entered the activation sequence, integrity fields flaring into life around him. A split second later, the aperture beneath the droid opened with a thump that was almost instantly torn away, decompression blowing Spike and the War Droid into the freezing void beyond.

PreviousChapters Next