Hey guys. I know it has been a while between chapter III and this one. I had a major writer's block so I decided to take a break. I would rather hold off from writing it than make the quality plummet. I will be taking the advice of Waxman (I believe) and am going to try to add more as to the thoughts of Sato. As always, I appreciate feedback, positive and negative. If you enjoyed it, feel free to toss me a light side point, or 30.
Anyway, as I'm sure you're all just Russian to read this, I'll quit Stalin. (Sorry for that bit Rina
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3,956 3 months 2 weeks 3 days after bombardment of Taris
The Sentinel Part I Chapter IV
As the group traversed the jungles, Sato was deep in thought. 'What do the visions mean? Where are they coming from?' He ran it over and over in his mind. He would rather have it figured out sooner than later. He feared that if these visions manifested themselves again during a confrontation, more people may be killed. He did his best to clear his mind but the faces kept appearing. His head was pounding from the screams he heard.
About three hours after they left the cave, they came upon another transport ship. It was a mangled wreck of twisted metal and giant splinters from the trees it collided with. As they got closer Sato sensed a disturbance in the Force, one he hadn't sensed since the Mandalorian War. 'No... It can't be...' He thought, 'It is..... He's here...' His thoughts were interrupted by Cordik's report on the crash. “Sir. I checked the perimeter of the crash... Er.... Everyone's accounted for sir. They're all dead.” “Be on guard Sgt. We aren't alone out here. I sense a strong disturbance here.” Sato said, “I also sense doubt. What is it?” “Well sir...” The Sgt. replied, “This man here. I've never seen a blaster that shot straight through someone.” Sato intrigued, bent down next to the man and put his hand on the soldier's chest. He inspected the would for himself. A wound like this could only come from one thing... “A lightsaber.” Sato whispered. “Come again, sir?” Cordik said. Sato answered more loudly, “This man was killed by a lightsaber.” He felt chills running up his spine, his hands shaking. He hadn't felt this sensation since the last war and now, it was back. “There's no doubt anymore.” Sato said, loud enough for the group to hear. “He's here..” “Who is, sir?” Von asked, not having served against the Mandalorians. “It's Malak. He's here.” Sato replied, “I can sense him. We have to keep going. There's nothing we can do for them.”
As they continued to the rendezvous, the came across two other transports. Their mangled hulls and smoking fuselages we reminiscent of their own ship. These crashes were different though, almost alike. It was as if they were ripped apart together. Upon examination, the ships collided when one was hit. They became twisted together and fell to the ground like two giant birds, only breaking apart on contact with the hard jungle floor. “It looks like they all died on impact.” Sato told the Sgt. “Guess they had the worst luck of all, sir.” he replied. Sato thought about the last crash they saw. He went back to the battle on the Aigaion. His mind then traveled to the brutal tactics of Revan and Malak, slaughtering without mercy. 'No...' He thought to himself. 'They're the lucky ones. We, like the soldiers at the last crash, are the ones damned to suffer their wrath...' “This mission is doomed to fail. Raise the captain.” Sato barked, “We need to leave, now!” “But what about the other ship, sir?” Skark asked, voice trembling. “We can't just leave them to die!” “We have no way of knowing where they are. We need to leave now.” Sato replied. “We can't leave them sir!” The Cpl. demanded, “We need to go and find them!” “I know how you feel Cpl.” Sato replied calmly, placing his hand on Skark's shoulder. “But for the benefit of the Republic, we need to leave so we can report his presence here.” Cpl. Skark bowed his head, trying desperately to fight back tears but failing. He looked around, his dark brown eyes turning red with emotion. His eyes were pouring tears down his cheeks like a waterfall. He tried to compose himself as Von raised the captain on her comlink.
“Greeting Sato.” The captain said, “I trust the mission goes well.” “The mission is a failure Captain.” he answered, “We need a transport for the survivors.” “How many survivors are there Master Jedi?” the captain asked, raising a brow. “Myself and three others.” he said grudgingly, “I also have to report that Darth Malak is here. I have to get to the sanctuary to report this.” “I'm sorry Sato, but I can't risk the lives of more of my men to save four people.” the captain replied coldly, “I wish you luck.” “No!! Wa-” Sato tried to reason with the captain, but he disconnected. He turned to look at the soldiers, the look of shock from the betrayal on their faces. “Well... What now sir?” Cordik asked with a look of fear in his eyes, “What do we do?” Sato thought for a minute, running all the possibilities through his head. “All we can do now Sgt., is band together to overcome.” he said hesitantly, “Starting with finding that other ship.” And with that, the survivors headed off.
It took the group around six hours, but they finally found the last ship. As they came out of the clearing they could see that, for the most part, the ship was in tact and the soldiers and pilot were unharmed. “Look sir, they're all okay.” Skark said, overjoyed that they stood a chance now. “You were right Cpl.” Sato replied, “I'm sorry for having doubted you.” As they got closer to the ship, Sato sensed something wrong, something dark. “Get down!” he whispered as loud as he dared, “Hide in the shrubs.” The other soldiers, trusting his senses did as he said. A few moments after taking cover, a single blast from a sniper flew through the trees and struck the leader of the group. He let out a scream of terror and pain as he fell to the ground. As the group became alert and grabbed their weapons, a barrage of blaster fire tore through the trees.
As the firefight ensued, two Republic soldiers attempted futilely to grab the commander with the hope that he was still alive. As they dragged his lifeless body towards the ship, the only cover they had, one of the soldiers grabbed his neck. He was struggling as his face was turning red and then blue, trying desperately to stop the air from leaving his body. As he was gripping his neck, all his comrade could do was watch in horror as his friend was having his life gripped away. The crack of his neck made Sato flinch as his lifeless body was thrown into the other soldier.
As the firefight died down, a tall figure entered into the open. He activated his lightsaber revealing a red, pulsating blade. As the Republic soldiers focused on the dark figure, he unleashed his fury. Any blast that came towards the figure was sent back to the attackers. 'It's him.' Sato thought, looking at the figure's jaw. 'That's Darth Malak.' Sato looked around him, seeing each of his followers' faces. He could see the shock and fear as they watched their friends beg for mercy, only to be cut down by the ruthless Sith lord. He could sense the anger and fear coursing through the three of them. 'If nothing else, now they know why they have to fight.' Sato thought. 'Still, this fight is un-winnable. There are too few of us...'
As the last of the Republic soldiers were killed, the Sith troopers, realizing that the ship was still able to be flown, took to setting a charge on the hull. Malak stowed his lightsaber as he left the scene followed by his soldiers. In mere minutes, they had appeared, slaughtered, and were gone. The charges exploded and the ship, along with all the fallen soldiers, were engulfed in a ball of fire. “That was our only ticket out of here.” Cordik pointed out. “What are we going to do now?” Von asked, fear and terror streaming through her eyes. “Well...” Sato answered hesitantly, “We could always steal one of their ships.” “Are you crazy!?” Skark barked, his fear and anger clearly taking over, “There are four of us and an entire legion of them. You actually expect us to steal a ship from them?” “Well Skark..” Von retorted, “Do you have any other ideas or would you rather learn Wookie? I say we go for it.” “And you, Cordik?” Sato asked, “What do you think?” “Well, sir..” Cordik said softly, “I plan to get home to my family one way or another. This seems like the best chance. I'm in..” “Alright then, it's settled.” Von said, almost unable to hide her excitement, “We're stealing a ship.” As the group began to trail the Sith back to their camp, Sato couldn't help but worry. 'Cordik is battle hardened,' he thought, 'but Skark and Von are fresh recruits. They've never been in a battle before.' The possibilities kept running through his mind, each more horrible than the last. As the outcomes became worse, he started to hear the screams of the dead once more, their echos surrounding him. He tried his best to silence them and keep moving. Soon the voices began taunting him again, he saw the soldier that was strangled by Malak. He was face to face with Sato, holding up his neck with his hands. “Why didn't you help me!?” the soldier shrieked, “You could have saved us!” The other soldiers soon surrounded him. They reached and ripped at his robes as the world around him darkened. Von, Skark, and Cordik all faded away as his vision faded to black. All he could see is the faces of those that were gone. As Sato desperately tried to regain control, he could feel gripping around his neck. He tried to plead with the dead to leave, but he couldn't speak let alone breathe. Soon the voices and figures faded along with his senses. All he could see was black as he felt his body hit the ground...
