Begeren. Once a prosperous Sith world, it has been the site of numerous battles throughout the millennia. Grand halls and monuments were torn down and re-purposed by looting Republic forces thousands of years ago, before they were driven from the planet. Isolated settlements still dot the planet's surface, but the inhospitable, craggy, and desert-like terrain, along with the beasts common to many desert and Sith worlds, have kept most humanoids from colonizing. Occasional skirmishes have left debris scattered throughout the desert, and battles were fought here as recently as the Galactic Civil War. The planet is now under the control of the One Sith and is rumored to be full of all manner of priceless, ancient Sith artifacts.

Begeren’s plunder has been rich, and the Clans and Houses have been bolstered, both by the favor they are currying with the Grand Master, and with their own triumphs against rivals. More fighting seems to have occurred between the Clans and Houses than against the One Sith, and the stream of priceless artifacts has slowed to a trickle as of late. The invasion of Begeren has now entered a wholly different phase, and though the end goal of capturing the world’s precious secrets remains the same, the methods of achieving it have changed. At least for now. The Dark Council has identified several settlements and key military objectives to seize, both for use as staging grounds, and to quell any revolts against Brotherhood authority before they begin. It has fallen to the Clans and Houses to seize these objectives, with large accolades and bounties to those willing to undertake dangerous missions, alone, into hostile territory. Despite the recent inter-clan aggressions, the Dark Council has made it clear that the bounties for taking objectives cannot be shared between units.

One such objective, a V-150 Planet Defender ion cannon, lies nestled in one of Begeren’s northern mountain ranges. The inhospitable and semi-arid region is known for its relatively cooler temperatures compared to the rest of the planet, and is home to one of the only active spaceports on Begeren. Though most of the region is patrolled by local militias, a sizable One Sith presence is thought to be in the area. An enormous feminine stone face, carved into the side of a towering cliff side, overlooks both the ion cannon and the neighboring spaceport, paying homage to a long-dead female Sith Lord.

You stand in a massive scree field beneath the adorned cliff side. The dark side is almost palpable here beneath the monument, but your true goal is the installation and the massive ion cannon immediately to your west. The installation is lightly guarded, and can be accessed by a natural, mountainous tunnel entrance. The entrance is well-lit and quite large for a tunnel access shaft, big enough for the heavy machinery needed to construct and maintain the massive ion cannon. The tunnel itself splits a few hundred yards in, leading to two separate objectives.

There are two main objectives: the fire control and targeting room, and the main power generators. Intelligence reports indicate that the fire control and targeting room is manned by two gunners and two-to-three militiamen from the local settlement. Intelligence also reports a light contingent of three guards and a slew of power droids around the power generators. Which objective you choose depends, in part, on whether you wish to take or destroy the ion cannon. A barracks is not far from the ion cannon, and it’s possible that the One Sith could be lurking closeby should you arouse suspicion.

The sound of shifting rocks and falling boulders alerts you to the presence of another not far from the tunnel entrance, as well. You head quickly into the tunnel, knowing your opponent may be upon you at any time.

Come on, you bastard. Hurry up.

The thought jabbed itself into his mind as his impatience grew. Silently counting, while holding his breath and tucking his head back against the wall, the Nautolan waited on the casual pacing to reach him. Yet, as time quickly passed it felt like this idiot wasn’t taking his patrol duty seriously; pausing every few steps and playing with a datapad in his hand. The man lacked more than just a military uniform, but the Nautolan knew from experience it was hard to teach militia true military discipline.

Impatience finally took charge in the Nautolan when the militia paused once again, just on the other side of the crate he was hiding behind. The large black eyes of the creature narrowed as the Nautolan’s focus reached out for the militia man, his mind poking and probing the man’s until they slipped together. Distracted already, there was no use in a passive suggestion; so the Nautolan gave a forceful prod instead - as if someone had just ran past the corridor’s opening far past the Nautolan.

The man did nothing. In truth, the militia did look up for a moment acknowledging the suggestion had worked but quickly dismissed it and went back to the datapad, tucking his weapon under his arm so he could grip it with both hands before a funny little tune sounded from the device as if he just started a game.

“Oh don’t mind me, didn’t mean to interrupt!” The Nautolan finally bellowed with disgust. The voice sounding through the hall was enough to shake the man to his senses, and the datapad dropped to the ground with an awful clang. An annoyed sigh slipped from the Nautolan’s mouth as he untucked and stood, after the man stood there for a few moments looking around to find the source of the voice. “I’m right here you idiot.”

Upon standing and announcing his location, several piercing screeches rang from the man’s weapon. The discharges sprayed the corridor in sloppy formation, blackening spots on the panels behind the Nautolan as each failed to connect with their target. Panic had gripped the man. The brows of the Nautolan deepened, slightly with anger and mostly concentration. Suddenly the weapon leapt from the man’s hand and skidded across the steel floor with a painful sound. Disbelief registered in the man’s face as he stared down the Sith Battlemaster with a dropped jaw and a disgustingly sweat soaked face. Minutes seemed to pass as the pair gazed upon one another, and finally the Nautolan flinched forward as if he were about to charge but halted - just as the man whaled in fear and turned to run.

“Enemy sighted-” The man screamed into the comm on his shoulder, but his words were cut down by the echoing ring of a single blaster bolt discharged through the corridor. Looking down his sight, the Nautolan watched as the bolt disappeared into the man’s back and a small fire ignited in his clothes were the shot connected. A painful gasp accompanied the man to the ground and when it ran out the man had stopped flinching.

Seething, the Nautolan proceeded forward. He couldn’t afford to waste any more time like this, he knew he had heard something on his way into the base - despite what his doubts told him. He wasn’t about to go without reward on this annoyance. Yet, while he walked passed the downed man, the Nautolan heard the commlink crackle to life.

“SG6, are you reporting sight of a second intruder?....SG6?”

Scoping up the commlink and turning down its volume so it would just be a whisper, the Nautolan gritted his teeth at the intel. Darting forward, the Nautolan made his way quickly down the corridor. When he smashed the activation button on the door at the end, he seemed to have released the apocalypse.

Bloodcurdling screams filled the corridor before the door has fully retracted. Pain, fear, grief and a single feeling of excitement were heavy emotions in the air when the Nautolan stepped into the chamber. The door had opened to a large warehouse of repair materials and equipment for the Ion Cannon, and brought the Nautolan to a deck overlooking the scene. From his position, he could see militia lining the rails of the deck and targeting something down below, but the landscape beneath them was a lot less organized. Crates and equipment were scattered across the warehouse floor, some on fire from contact with blaster bolts, and the source could be witnessed as another heavy crate soared through the air and mowed down a fleeing militia. Cries of retreat followed, and a half dozen figures could be seen fleeing to the edges of the warehouse; all in the same direction away from one figure in the circle.

Recognition of the man brought the Nautolan to his knees, ducking behind a metal panel on the rails. There could be only one old man with the stones to charge into a fight like that, and the graying beard rejected any doubts or arguments.

Keirdagh Taldrya Cantor.

The Nautolan was screwed if he was sighted. There were plenty of reasons the two wouldn’t get along; Taldryan vs Tarentum, Cantor vs Entar - even though the Sith Battlemaster discarded the name long ago, and not to mention the distasteful reputation the Nautolan had in Taldryan. However, these weren’t the key concerns. The last time he had seen Keirdagh was in his escape from Taldryan, when he denounced the dark side and fled to House Odan-Urr. Admittedly, it had been a feat of luck that had allowed the Nautolan to leave with either untouched when he faced the Dark Jedi Master but he doubted he could survive a second encounter with the Dark Jedi Master, even if the old man tired from his blunt assault in the warehouse. He would have to avoid the Cantor, and if he was to claim the bounty here the Ion Cannon would need to be destroyed; he couldn’t help to hold it against the Dark Jedi Master.

Waiting for his break in the combat, the Nautolan drew out his lightsaber hilt in preparation. The panicked screams below had lessened, but another crate soared through the air and smashed into the railing by a trio of militia on the deck. It wouldn’t be long until the Cantor had the untalented fools cleared. He had to go now. Racing towards the other door on the balcony, the Nautolan’s heart hammered as he prayed not to be noticed.