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In the heart of Gog, the massive gloss white craneship Scaffaw had sat as a permanent display for five years. She had been maintained for all those years, so her appearance was quite immaculate as Bassam Omenga laid eyes on her. Bassam was overjoyed at seeing her, but then reflected on all the destruction he had caused the Grynds and how despised he and Scaffaw truly were. The Mourners Shrine had been almost unbearable to relive. Crowds were still in awe that work was being done on the hated ship. Hundreds of technicians, systems operators, fueling crews, and astro-mechanoids were busy preparing the mighty ship for flight once again and the general populace of Gog was bewildered at the sight. Those that had survived the Day of Destruction could not understand the meaning of all of this. Dandau Prison had just been destroyed and now Scaffaw was being fully restored. The Great Mandras knew that the Grynds would not take the release of the former terrorist Bassam Omenga lightly and therefore he had to convince them otherwise. As he prepared to make a speech at a podium in front of the large 200 ft long ship Ligris had secretly led a disguised Bassam Omenga back into his ship to inspect her before she took off. Scaffaw was immense with wide corridors and fantastic views of the crane operating system which was being tested by technodroids for functionality and efficiency. Ligris inquired of the Gog Historical Preservation Society project leader Jorgi Pentah, “Is she ready for flight?” Jorgi looked at Ligris with disdain and merely replied, “Yes, the technodroids and maintenance crews all confirm that the ship can attain flight once more… but why in heavens is this necessary?” Ligris was about to speak when Bassam cast off his disguise and looked straight into Jorgi’s eyes. “The Sith are coming to destroy Elysia with a World Destroyer and inevitably your world will fall too if this is not stopped. The Whills have no defense against this weapon, but I believe that with Scaffaw and a suitable Thumper I may be able to stop them. I sadly regret the loss of life I have caused the people of Grynd and of the other worlds. I ask for your forgiveness, but if you choose not to forgive me. I will prove my repentance by saving your world from the Sith.” Jorgi was astounded that she had come face to face with Bassam Omenga himself and had the urge to strike out at him; but seeing him bow his head in shame, she thought about how ruthless and evil the Sith were. Bassam struck at random and then fled. The Sith struck out in the open and then garrisoned troops for a never-ending occupation. Jorgi didn’t care for either the Buras nor the Sith, but for now Bassam was the lesser of the two evils. With great personal courage and integrity Jorgi raised Bassam’s head and looking him straight in his one eye said, “What you have done to Gog is unspeakable but not unforgivable… as a Grynd I will forgive you, but do not betray us Bassam. If the Whills truly need your help then it has become your sacred duty to protect them and defeat the Sith. May your sacred Orban guide your path.” Bassam was shocked by those words coming from a Grynd, the very people he tried to destroy using the sacred Orban as an excuse. Tearfully, Bassam looked into the face of Jorgi and promised, “I will not fail you, as the sacred Orban is my witness”. “The soul that mourns in wrong doing is truly repentant” At the podium in front of the giant craneship the Great Mandras composed himself before an amassed angry crowd of thousands. It was as if the entire city had ceased to operate and everyone had come out to witness some form of notorious event taking place. Even the masses of Grynd Gog Patrol Deputies protecting Mandras looked agitated. But at last Mandras cleared his voice and said these first few words, “Citizens of Gog, witness history in the making. The last time the Scaffaw was operational was just shortly after the Day of Destruction. Hundreds of thousands of Grynds had perished on that fateful day all due to one man, the Bura, Bassam Omenga.” At the mere mention of his name the crowd reacted violently and surged forwards only to be pushed back by the Gog PD. “My friends, not a day has gone by in all these five years that I have not forgotten the pain and suffering Bassam Omenga has brought to our world and this city. Not one Grynd I know of has not lost someone dear to them in the aftermath of that attack. But today, I ask you to apply the lessons learned here in Gog- of great pain and suffering, great injustice, and great destruction- to our faithful neighbors in the Inner Rim, the Whills of Elysia. It is they that now face their own Day of Destruction at the hands of the murderous Sith.” The crowd became silent as Mandras paused to let those words of truth sink in. “As I speak, every world including Elysia is in danger of being destroyed by the evil Sith. They have constructed in secret a giant Superweapon of mass destruction a million times greater than the Scaffaw that stands behind me. And it is not designed to strike cities, but entire worlds. Right now, it is past the MidRim point and heading for the Inner Rim Markers on its dark path of destruction towards Elysia. Once there it will unleash a mighty bomb of a magnitude unheard of to ignite the Founders of Light world into flames.” “Fellow citizens of Gog, fellow Grynds from all over our world, shall we just sit by and ignore the fate of the Whills? Shall we let the Sith pass over our world knowing that Sith troops will soon follow to rape and pillage our planet after the Whills are destroyed?” The angry mob exclaimed in unison, “NO!!!” “You’re right, we Grynds cannot allow evil to advance that is why I have pardoned the former terrorist Bassam Omenga on condition that he redeem himself universally by using this great ship Scaffaw to stop that Sith vessel before it can destroy Elysia. Our Great Hero Ligris has spoken with Bassam and is confident that the Bura can break through that ship and lead an assault team to stop that bomb before all hope is lost. Bassam Omenga is our only hope of stopping the Sith.” The crowd was displeased and some scoffed at the idea of releasing the murderer of millions. But the Great Mandras used this to his advantage. “Who better to destroy the Sith than Bassam Omenga?… or do we Grynds prefer to be occupied? Shall we build another Mourners Shrine after the Sith come?” The crowd was in a frenzy now and shouted, “Send Bassam, Send Bassam!” The Great Mandras smiled and said, “Yes, WE will send Bassam and HE will deal with the Sith. What was meant for evil will now be made good.” With that, the Great Mandras looked up towards the large view screen of the Scaffaw and raised the flag of Gog high in the air. Mandras ended his speech by re-dedicating Scaffaw. “I proudly present to you the White Phoenix, risen from the ashes of destruction to wreak havoc on the Sith.” Onboard, Bassam Omenga was overjoyed and studying his massive control arrays lit the four huge Itorah pulsars as powerful lift thrusters shook the pavement, the giant white bird shaped like a hursa slowly lifting off the ground and ascending. At Gog’s spaceport a few blocks away Ligris was tending his chest wounds with the Gussam bio form as he too started to lift off in his Illustra for a quick run with Scaffaw back to Elysia. A multitude of Grynds lined the broad avenues and cheered with flags waving as the two gleaming starships departed. The Great Mandras only wished he was going with them! He would mourn no longer. Life was for the living and now there was a fighting chance that the Sith would be destroyed. Let them mourn their own dead…
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