Star Wars: The Old Republic - "Shroud of Darkness"

Chapter II

Shola's red-orange landscape sizzled with the volcanic heat in the atmosphere. Small volcanoes were billowing all across the planet. On a large patch of land relatively unaffected by the harsh terrain, a Republic mining base was built into a small ravine. On one side of the base was the ravine, which was very narrow but went down several dozen meters. At the far end of the base was a lava river. That side of the base was built atop a cliff overlooking the lava river. Just below the cliff, built into the rocks, was a heavy-duty shield generator that kept the entire base protected from the lava and ash.

In the mining base's control center, Master Sykon stood watching the lava river flow downstream. He wore white armor plates underneath a traditional brown Jedi robe. His robe's sleeves only came down to just above his elbows, revealing the white armor plates on his forearms, completed by brown gloves on his hands. The robe was also open-chested, showing the armored chestplate, legplates, and heavy boots. His twin lightsaber hilts dangled from his belt, resting on his hips. His wavy hair was a dusty brown. Master Sykon's hood was down.

Standing behind Master Sykon was Tylin, his Padawan. Tylin wore vibrant white robes with a yellow-gold trim. His saberstaff hung from his belt. His hair seemed messy; it was long and voluminous. Tylin watched his master intently, as if waiting for something.

Master Sykon looked up out the window. In the sky, a Republic capital ship hovered several kilometers above the surface. The Vindicator was a very sleek battle cruiser. Its massive engines jutted out below the ship, and its oval-shaped top was covered in turbolaser cannons and other assorted weapons. A small tower stuck out on the top of the ship, which was the bridge.

Master Sykon watched the Vindicator floating aimlessly in the sky. He suddenly tensed up, looking around the other parts of the sky, frantically searching for something.

"Is everything alright, Master?" asked Tylin.

"...He's coming," Master Sykon replied.

Suddenly, a beeping noise came from the rectangular holoterminal behind them. Master Sykon's attention seemed to shift back to reality. He stepped over to the holoterminal, and turned it on. A hologram of a man in a Republic trooper's uniform appeared, with his helmet in his hands.

"Commander Cravern to Master Sykon," said the man. "We're detecting an unidentified vessel coming out of hyperspace. Our long-range scans suggest it's an Imperial dreadnaught, but the power readings are off the charts."

"It's the Shadow's Fist," replied Master Sykon. "Commander, raise the Vindicator's forward deflector shields to full power, and scramble your fighters. This is Darth Savek we're dealing with. I'm on my way up there now. Master Sykon out."

Commander Cravern gave a salute, and the hologram disappeared.

Master Sykon turned to Tylin. "I need you to stay here," he said. "Coordinate our ground forces in case the enemy manages to land any troops. Increase the base shields in case any stray flak comes down."

Tylin nodded. Pointing at some of the officers in the room, he called, "Man your battlestations! AA guns at full power!" Master Sykon left the room, heading for the hangar. In the hangar was a Republic NovaDive series starfighter. It was a relatively small ship, armed only with two light blaster cannons and two proton torpedo launchers. The fighter was white with a vibrant blue paint job on top. The blue covered the entire cockpit, and stretched to the ship's nose and halfway out to the wings, curving back towards the engines. As of now, the fighter's wings were folded inwards to the cockpit.

Master Sykon jumped into the cockpit of his starfighter. Closing the cockpit, he primed the engines. The bright orange thrusters roared to life, and the ship began to lift off. The hangar doors opened, and Master Sykon streaked out into the open air. He flew straight upwards, heading past the Vindicator. Dozens of other starfighters had left the Vindicator, heading where Master Sykon was going.