Low Orbit – Feron-4 Upper Thermosphere
The Talon's Edge transitioned out of hyperspace with its sister ship, the Verdict's Silence, both running under Jedi stealth protocols.
Knight Davin Thule stood at the helm, cloaked in confidence—but not arrogance. His three fellow Jedi, along with a squad of elite Republic scouts, gathered in the aft drop bay. Their objective was simple:
"Recon. Capture if possible. Confirm the scope of this 'Obsidian' threat. Jedi Council protocol: No lethal action unless engaged."
But Kael had known about their arrival five hours ago.
Kael's Command Chamber – Obsidian Core
Through a floating holomap, Kael tracked the slow descent of the Jedi corvettes as they pierced the upper atmosphere in low-thrust vector.
To his side stood Echo-1 and Echo-2, fully suited, their weapons magnetized to their backs. Awaiting release.
"They believe they've come undetected," Kael said without inflection. "Their first mistake."
He turned to the nearby command console and activated two orbital rail-scrambler satellites, aligning their magnetic harmonics.
"Let's begin with a welcome. No survivors."
System Activation: Orbital Scrambler Grid Online
Field strength: 64%
Effect: Disrupts incoming craft navigation and weakens hull shielding
Bonus: Diminishes Jedi Force foresight during high-speed entry
Aboard the Verdict's Silence – Seconds Before Impact
The pilot twitched.
"Sir… our instruments just went blind—altitude stabilizers offline. External magnetic pressure is spiking!"
Davin Thule's eyes went wide. He reached into the Force—
And felt nothing.
Not darkness. Emptiness.
The Verdict's Silence rocked hard as something struck its hull—sharp and silent. Then again.
"They're on the hull!" someone screamed.
And then the airlock blew.
Engagement Log – Operation Black Lance
Echo-1 and Echo-2 breached the Verdict's Silence manually using magnetic anchor gauntlets and plasma lances.
No alarms triggered. They entered through the forward venting grid.
The first kill was the communications officer—silent neck-snap. The second, a Jedi padawan trying to ignite his saber. A well-timed blink strike through the torso rendered that moot.
Inside 40 seconds, the command deck was under Black Echo control.
Meanwhile, Talon's Edge, Port Hangar
Jedi Knight Thule and his companions prepared for emergency launch.
"Verdict's gone dark," one muttered.
But before they could act, a proximity alarm screamed—multiple impacts across the hull.
Then came the Force spike—distorted, like sonar underwater.
"Ascendants," Thule whispered, recognizing the energy signature. "He's weaponized the Force… without light or dark."
The port wall exploded inward.
Three Obsidian Ascendants entered. They did not speak. They did not posture. Their attack was precision incarnate—Entropy Surges crashed against Jedi barriers. Phase Pulses disoriented movement. Vibro-weapons met lightsabers in a flurry of sparks and distorted echo-fields.
Thule tried to push forward—and was greeted by a Force Suppressant Grenade, now at maximum effectiveness. He choked on the static.
The last thing he saw was an Ascendant impaling his fellow Jedi through the gut.
Casualty Report – Jedi Task Force Recon Team
Jedi Knights: 3 confirmed KIA
Republic Scouts: 12 KIA
One Jedi (Davin Thule): MIA (captured)
Talon's Edge: Disabled, orbiting wreck
Verdict's Silence: Scuttled
Back on Feron-4 – Experimentation Chamber
Kael stared down at Padawan Jael Vont, now sedated, suspended in a containment field woven with null-matter lattice.
He opened the interrogation file.
"Subject is Force-sensitive. Responsive to stress-based memory probes. Begin imprint resonance scan."
Probes activated, and Kael observed as Jael's memories were peeled open. Combat sequences. Jedi mind-conditioning. Holocron training protocols.
"Pause," Kael ordered. One fragment flickered.
It was a vision—an unrecorded moment. Master Yoda speaking privately to a council of three.
"Interesting," Kael murmured. "He was closer to their center than they believed."
He tapped into his system's biometric interface and extracted the neural map. Already, Kael's engineers were feeding it into the Ascendant Imprinting Core.
"We will create the next Ascendant from this one's mind," Kael said. "A Jedi's instincts. But loyal to me."
System Update – Research Division Progress
Project: Cognitive Mirror – 27%
Objective: Extract and reprogram Jedi muscle memory + combat foresight
Project: Orbital Blindstorm Grid – 49%
Objective: Full orbital stealth suppression across Feron-4
Project: Ascendant Wave 3 – 16 recruits processing
Kael leaned back in the throne, his fingers tented.
Everything was proceeding as calculated. The Jedi now knew he was real—but did not yet know how far he had planned.
"Send the Jedi's lightsaber to the armory," he said coldly. "I'll forge something… fitting."