CHAPTER XXVIII: THE TEMPLE BATTLE

The Deviant Alliance Systems D.A.S. Enforcer was a supreme combat fighter and an ominous black “bird” at that. It was much smaller than Syrenia’s previous D.A.S. Evasor at only twenty-three feet long and possessing a single delta wingspan of twenty-six feet, but its improvements were startling.

The deadly star fighter had a large gaping open launch tube at the nose able to fire an internal rotary launcher of  twenty-four Black Hammer missiles and twin mini M-Packs were mounted right above them. Attached to the open nose were two downward-pointing canard powered winglets for maneuverability and to the rear a split-V tail. The Enforcer’s cockpit was not centered but located asymetriacally to the left,  forward of the tails on the left side of the large delta wing with turned-down wingtips. This off-center cockpit gave Syrenia superior visibility. The star fighter also had a newly-improved Rekurium-T reactor of immense power with just one large red ion plasma thruster and a modified hyperdrive unit installed. The whole star fighter was finished in dark gloss black finish, its obsidian hyper plating augmented with proximity Dark Matter shield generators. Two other lower internal bays held two powerful graviton bombs.

Syrenia loved her new star fighter and equally her modified Kyrie combat suit which protected her within its obsidian shell. At Horath every conceivable weapon was tested on the new suit and it was truly invincible. Nothing could stop Syrenia now. She was on a mission of revenge and eager to spill Whill blood. Her male Kyrie Dark Commando escort were there only as a token reinforcement, not really necessary now that the aerial view from her cockpit revealed the devastation that was once Jeranu.

Through the thick smoke she could see that the capital was truly shattered and in ruins. Bodies lined the streets where there were streets to be found. Entire other sections of the city had been completely destroyed. Immense craters dotted the cityscape.

The Jeranu skyline was severely altered by the absence of the Crystal Towers and only a giant hole existed where once the Royal Palace of Light had stood for seven hundred years.

Syrenia was delighted. The Queen and the Royals had perished. Now only the Seers remain and that cursed wretch Lady Kaliah. I will hunt them down and kill every one of them. They shall all die by my hand.

The Enforcer was now engaging braking thrusters as the close support Military Airlyter set down a few blocks from where the Main Wall of the Sacred Temple had been. Its rubble littered the streets along with thousands of bodies and massive piles of burning debris. The Sacred Temple itself was dimly lit after suffering power degradation and several of the external columns, walls, monuments, and statues were fallen, lying on the scorched Outer Courtyard- shattered to pieces.

Advancing to the where the Main Gate had once stood, Syrenia and her ten escorts spread out. The ten were ordered to stand guard while Syrenia desecrated the burning Whill Sacred Temple- alone.

Walking up the broken gilded whitestone Sacred Steps Syrenia stopped and looked back, distracted by a pair of shining lights approaching from the west. It was a two-man scout party of Amber Commandos riding on chromium-plated mechanical hursas- what the Whills called Mechquin.

The Dark Commandos raised their Hailstorms but were cut down by fire from the Vukans’ twin protruding photon dischargers located on both sides of the Vulkan’s armored view plate. The Amber Commandos attacked with a fury, killing five of the ten instantly and then dismounting, ignited their light sabers.

This was the first time Syrenia had seen this weapon and marveled that the Whills had discovered how to make them. She stood by and watched the remaining five Dark Commandos attempt to fight the Amber Commandos.

As the scouts approached, sabers raised for attack, two of the male Kyries activated their nose spinners which locked onto the scouts and fired a blistering volley of mini-pulser bolts at them. The scouts’ sabers deflected the bolts easily and then they charged for attack, decapitating the two with lightning speed and then slashing the other three into bloody pieces. Their light sabers were just as advanced as Syrenia’s fire blade, maybe even more so.

I’ll put them to the test.

Syenia jumped into combat with a rage, igniting her swinging Fire Blade which was at maximum pulse modulation. The crackling and sizzling sword struck back at the two scout Sabers and sparks flew as Syrenia pressed her attack.

The lead scout tried to slash the female Kyrie across her mid-section, but she sharply deflected his blade and swinging it backwards with brute force sent his head flying, blood spraying everywhere. The second scout circled and nervously tried to thrust forward with all his might; but Syrenia had anticipated that move, and lunged forward with equal force meeting the scout’s saber with her own fire blade. A struggle ensued, but the female Kyrie was filled with anger and continued to force the scout back, his grip on his saber loosening as she jumped up and swung her right leg around, knocking the weapon from his grasp.

In vain, the scout tried to reach the weapon, but Syrenia struck him repeatedly with her whip blade which was on targeting mode. Her new powered rotary helmet ball mount whipped the serrated-edged blade across the scout’s stomach and stabbed him repeatedly in the arms, legs, and finally his neck. As he gasped for air and tried to stand up, Syrenia grabbed his neck and rammed her fire blade forcefully right through his heart. The scout stared into the Kyrie’s red view port in shock, let out a muffled cry, and then went limp. She dropped the dead scout and retrieved his weapon, analyzing its construction. Whill blood was already dripping from her obsidian armor…

Removing the light saber’s lower module and unlocking a side hinge plate, she saw that this weapon was very close to hers, although it had supremely aligned pure amber crystals and more advanced photon generators and beam intensifiers instead of the blood crystal pulse ignition modulators and light emission rectifiers. Still, Syrenia did not fear the weapon and discarded it in the street with disdain.

No weapon fashioned by a Whill can defeat me, I am invincible. The Whill light is fading fast and soon will be overcome by darkness. Now to spill the Seers’ blood and destroy their precious Holy Book- their Journal of Hope. They won’t be needing it anymore for all their hope is gone forever. The Sith shall rule this galaxy alone.

Syrenia returned to the broken Sacred Steps with a blood trail forming from the dangling whip blade. To avoid dragging the whip blade Syrenia activated her magbelt and the maglocks on her powered whip cord, which coiled around Syrenia’s waist as she stepped over the rubble. Fires continued to sweep through the Temple Complex, but the Gathering of Twelve were on their knees in prayer before the Sacred Pillar and Holy Journal of Hope.

Boman had heard the landing of the Sith forces and witnessed the fighting from the halls. Seeing the female Kyrie again struck fear into his heart but then the anger welled up inside of him until he wanted to explode in fury. The Kyrie would be here soon. Someone must make a stand. Boman needed all the help he could get. Summoning the Twelve to their feet, Boman asked them how they intended to guard the Holy Book and Holochron. They answered, each of them, “with our lives.”

Boman didn’t understand them. They were Seers who were unarmed. Although they all stood in the Sacred Temple, prayer alone would not save them. This kind of evil could only be defeated by force and the Kyrie was invincible. They should flee at once. Boman would face the Kyrie alone. But the Twelve remained next to the Sacred Pillar, ready to perish defending the Holy Book. Boman stared at them with disbelief.

“With WHAT?” Boman cried out.

Lady Divinia answered for the Twelve, “Even in the darkest times light has always triumphed over darkness in the end. We Seers know that we will perish to protect this Holy Book but the Light of All Life will provide a pathway to defeat the evil of the Sith. We cannot question that. The Journal of Hope is the living record of light’s ultimate victory and so it cannot be destroyed. Hope always survives. You must believe that. We do not foresee your death Boman so it is possible that you shall be our deliverance, as a people. If not, the Light will provide some other way.”

Boman knew in his heart that what Lady Divinia had said was true. It was the same message of hope that Kali had announced to the galaxy under torture. She endured incredible suffering at the hands of darkness yet light had prevailed. Even now, as death and destruction surrounded Boman, he knew in his heart Kali was alive and that she would be here soon. But when? Boman doubted that he could take on the Kyrie alone and win.

Just then, the Kyrie’s approach was heard as her obsidian clad boots entered the Main Hall and through the flames Boman and the Twelve could see her coming, her red visor lit up as if it were burning internally with hatred.

Syrenia had spotted them too and slowly advanced upon them. She would kill each of them slowly and painfully, but save Boman Braggs for Lady Kaliah’s coming. Syrenia was already having a vision of Lady Kaliah delayed by a great obstacle so she decided not to kill these Whills yet. Perhaps she would “toy” with them until her obsession arrived. She wanted Lady Kaliah to witness Boman’s death personally.  Syrenia had something special in mind for her… after that.

Just a mile away at the High Gate Defense Bridge, over the White Water River,  Lady Kaliah and Dark Beauty were halted by Royal engineers of the Red Army trying to repair the fifty foot bridge that a Gretch had knocked out in a diving attack. On both banks of the river the Gretch had destroyed both defense towers as well as a forty feet section of the bridge. The Red Army engineers were trying to use improvised interlocking levitator slabs to extend the bridge for light infantry crossing into the ruined capital. Twenty thousand Red Army troops were camped out in the surrounding hills awaiting completion, but Lady Kaliah would not wait.

She addressed the Senior Engineer Commander Rian, “Commander, how long until this section of the bridge is temporarily restored?” Commander Rian recognized Lady Kaliah but nevertheless answered her strictly in military terms, “My Lady, this bridge crossing is for Red Army troops alone. The levitators will be firmly  in place within thirty minutes if all goes right, and then  Field Commander Decklar’s troops will slowly make their way across it. You may cross AFTER the bridge is reinforced with armor plating as the levitators will never support the weight of that hursa and you together.”

“Commander Rian, I MUST get across that bridge as soon as possible or else the Sacred Temple will be desecrated, “ Lady Kaliah begged. But Commander Rian was obstinate. “You cannot cross the levitators, they will not support your weight and that of the hursa. In case anyone hasn’t informed you the capital is in ruins. The Temple was hit a short time ago, and the entire Amber Commando unit sent to protect it was destroyed. Not even the Main Wall is standing, and you can clearly see for yourself  in the distance that it is currently on fire.” Lady Kaliah defiantly moved forward on her hursa, but was quickly stopped by two armed Red soldiers at the Commander’s signal.

Lady Kaliah turned Dark Beauty around and dismounted. Pulling on its impulse reigns, the Lady walked the hursa into the nearby hills and unloaded the Admantium case from the load carrier. This was going to be the beginning of the test.

Back at the Sacred Temple, Syrenia strode down the Main Hall slowly tipping over the Heroes of Light statues one-by-one with her released whip knife, sending them crashing into the cracked gilded whitestone flooring. Boman already had his Admantium covered light saber ignited, but remained steadfast near the Sacred Pillar where the Seers tried in vain to pierce the darkness that blocked their visions. Sir Artor held the Sacred Holochron in his hands, but there was no light emanating from it.

Syrenia was taunting Boman by not looking at him nor the Twelve. She was agitating him and making him nervous. She could sense it. Still, she slowly advanced,  mockingly cutting into the ancient gilded whitestone walls with her fire blade- scorching the ancient writings of the Whill Seers down through the generations. As she passed each holy curtain and hanging holy cloth she touched the tip of the fire blade to it and set it on fire. Syrenia was desecrating the Whill Sacred Temple systematically, waiting for her rival Seer to show up.

But where was she? Syrenia had lost her image for the time being.

Fifteen minutes had gone by as Lady Kaliah had secretly undressed and put on the blessed white Sula suit. The monks of Algoria had done a magnificent job as well as the technodroids that helped fashion the crested Admantium battle helmet, knee-high repulsar boots, armored breastplate, shoulder guards, wrist guards, and hinged armor skirting. The Terachnid interlaced fiber mesh suit felt light and comfortable. Lady Kaliah was now a Sula battle maiden and quickly added her custom Royal State Industries battle belt, aural camouflage light burst projector, and her custom light saber.

Unlike the Kyrie, however, Lady Kaliah chose to protect her long blonde hair with an Admantium fixed neck guard with the rest of her bundled hair tucked neatly into a sloped back armored compartment.

Ready for battle, Lady Kaliah emerged from the hills after twenty minutes on Dark Beauty with her light saber raised.

The Royal Engineers were just completing setting up the final four fragile levitator units. Commander Rian was shocked to see Our Lady outfitted as a Sula warrior who was armed and quickly approaching the bridge.

The two soldiers that had pushed her back before now moved away as Lady Kaliah pushed the impulse control throttles all the way down as Dark Beauty swept past Commander Rian in a flash and bolted across the levitator units which swayed and dipped as the weight of hursa and rider threatened to drop them into the White Water River. But Lady Kaliah was filled with light and quickly crossed to the other bank with a final jump of twenty feet to reach the other side as the last four levitators swung wildly out of alignment. Commander Rian was amazed, but quickly returned back to his duties. “Come along now boys, he commanded, if Our Lady can cross the levitators so can we. Move along.”

Now the time had come. Syrenia was tired of waiting and she boldly approached the Inner Sanctuary with her Fire Blade ready to kill the Seers. Boman stood in her way, in front of the Sacred Pillar which displayed the Holy Journal. His light saber was raised in defiance and Syrenia lowered her head to challenge. Boman took the opportunity and struck down at the Kyrie’s head only to be met by Syrenia’s fire blade in a brilliant flash of heat and light.

Boman was filled with anger just as strong as Syrenia, and this time he only felt darkness in his heart- a supreme hatred for the Sith and especially this Kyrie.

Boman used his body weight and strength to try to push the Kyrie back, but Syrenia only laughed through her throat microphone and unleashed her fury with striking blow-after-blow to Boman’s light saber. Boman was only lightly protected by his Amber Commando Admantium helmet, breastplate, and guards which were being scorched by the Kyrie’s fire blade.

Boman  thrust and parried, but the Kyrie was too strong. She was forcing him back away from the Sacred Pillar and then with one swift move deeply sliced him along his left leg and right arm, forcing him to drop his light saber. With her Fire Blade at his heart, she forced him back ever further before swinging around and bringing the fire blade down on the Holy Journal which instantly caught fire and burned. Boman screamed out, NO!!!” but it was too late. Holomorphic page after holomorphic page burned as the Journal came apart.

Boman was bleeding badly and fell to the floor as the Twelve rised to their feet in a circle around the Sacred Holochron. Boman had been severely lacerated with his right arm cut to the bone. Blood gushed out of his wounds as Boman lay in intense pain.

The Kyrie was overjoyed at destroying the Holy Book, but then grabbed one of its burning pages. On it was laser inscribed over and over: THE SITH ARE DESTINED TO PERISH. With a rage she tore out another burning page:
THE SITH ARE DESTINED TO PERISH. Line after line, the same sentence repeated and projected over and over.

This was NOT the Holy Journal, but a fake display copy. The Seers would never allow anyone to simply come into the Sacred Temple and destroy it so easily. Obviously, they had it hidden somewhere… but where? It HAD to be nearby, someplace where they could all reach it in an emergency.

Activating her battle helmet, Syrenia again used her voice commands to find the hidden book, “Search mode, find hidden items, engage”. The Twelve all stood in the Inner Sanctuary in silence as the frustrated Kyrie scanned the surroundings slowly. The scanner was targeting everything and finding nothing resembling the book. Holy instruments, ceremonial objects, and light burners were found, but the book remained hidden. Syrenia disengaged the search mode and went back to targeting mode.

If the Seers will not speak, I will force them.

Inside her helmet the rotary ball whip blade mechanism activated. Boman lay helpless, bleeding to death on the floor, his light saber out of reach. Frantically, he begged the Seers to grab it and defend themselves against the Kyrie, but they remained silent in concentrated thought. Syrenia could hear their prayers in her mind and it drove her to madness. They were praying to the Light of All Life to send them a deliverer. Yet, none of them had revealed the location of the Holy Book. Time to end the visions of the Whill Seers forever.

The whip cord dropped and then it locked onto Sir Artor. In one slicing movement the whip blade cut his throat wide open. Sir Artor gasped for air and grabbed at his throat as his blood soaked his white pleated pure lanium garment. He fell to the floor covered in his own blood.

The other eleven remained motionless as the Kyrie circled them, deciding who would fall next.