EliteCommander

Coruscant Sacked: Aftermath

~|Interstellar Space, near the Y’Toub System|~

~|Day 3, 7^th Hour|~
Fa-Val-Kuul

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"One of the very few things that Jedi and Sith agree upon is that there is no such thing as luck." Fa answered back, crossing her arms as she looked down upon the Twi'lek. "Either it was the will of the force, you made a mistake, or my friend here is better than you think. Perhaps all of the above. In any case, you should not deny your shortcomings; it is quite a terrible habit to develop."

Fa let out a rather long, soft sigh, then leaned down, her face mere inches from Zora's. Her expression was suddenly much more intense as she stared into her eyes. "Do you know how many times I have been through this song and dance? How many Sith I have interrogated. All of you think you are special, exceptional even. You think you can last through anything that anyone can do to you. You all have that pride that you are the strongest or are going to be the strongest, that nothing can get to you. But ultimately, you are just another Sith. You are not the strongest, nor the fastest, nor the smartest. You have skills that place you above the average citizen, but you ultimately not that important. You do have information I want, and I would like to have it, but you are far from the only lead that exists. I have already captured and interrogated other Sith who did not have the information I needed, and you may end up being just another one of those. I may end up talking or yelling at you for a while, you say nothing useful, and I send you off for the rest of your life to a Republic prison. I keep on hunting Nyiss and never think about you again, much like the rest of the galaxy. Or, you accept my offer and perhaps get a chance to make yourself as important as you think you are. I can offer you nothing that proves I am being honest. But, you truly have no better choice. We...may or may not let the information leak to the Sith that you shared some valuable information, even if you do not. That, of course, would mark you for death by the Sith. Your only chance at having any life at all after this is that I am not lying."

Fa leaned back somewhat from Zora. "Now, I reason that it is probably about the time that you are preparing to carry out your daring escape attempt, so go ahead. I would like to get that out of the way sooner rather than later."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei nodded briefly. "Certainly. I think I shall head to the kitchens and grab something for all of us. We can have a meal before starting. After...that meeting, I could use some time to relax as well."

The trio went their separate ways for a time, with Meesei going to get their meal. She was sure that the stress of what they had recently learned was weighing on her pack just as much as it was on her, or perhaps even moreso. As such, she decided that she would give them a nicer meal than they were perhaps expecting. A good portion of their diet in Blackreach consisted of chaurus meat, mushrooms, and anything else that was relatively easy to obtain. But, as Champion, Meesei had full access to all of their stocks. She grabbed an assortment of foods like mammoth steaks that were hunted from the surface, pumpkin bread, assorted vegetables, bottles of wine and ale, and even some preserved ash yams that had been traded from Morrowind.

When it was time for everyone to meet up again, Meesei had already set up everything in the clearing that Sabine had speken of. She had set up a fire and, this time, had decided to cook up their meal with a set of spices she had taken. Ahnasha, having heard their earlier conversation outside the meeting chamber, had decided to come along with Fendros as a spectator, and was rather glad to have done so.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I understand your concerns, and you have my word that I will not agree to anything that will bring harm to the clans." Meesei answered.

Saras had been writing notes throughout Meesei's explanation of events. Like Darahil, he normally had an impenetrable expression, but even he was showing some concern about the plan's reliance on Molag Bal. Had Darahil not spoken up, he likely would have. Regardless, he had no better plan to offer, at least at the moment, so they had other matters to tend to aside from worrying about the Daedra.

"If I may, I believe we are getting ahead of ourselves." Saras interjected. "We still need to find the axe before we can empower it, and it will be no simple task to locate a unique Daedric artifact. If you would give me Areldril's notes, Champion, I will have them copied and brief my best agents on the situation to assist you in your search. We should take the time now to clarify and discuss all of the details of this plan."

Given the multitude of issues they would need to deal with moving forward, the meeting lasted another several hours. They dealt with how to go about the search for the axe, the sigil stones, how to inform the clans and support their soldiers, and much more. By the end of it, even Meesei was feeling tired of having to deal with logistics.

After the meeting was finally adjourned and as everyone was leaving the chamber, Meesei kept alongside Fendros. Regardless of how long the meeting had lasted, she still intended to keep her word to Fendros. In fact, she felt that some training would be a nice change of pace from planning. "Will you be ready for your next training session soon, Fendros?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei certainly understood Oswall's fears, but she did have a good answer for him. "Fortunately, there will be nothing to fear if we are successful against Vile. The Oblivion Crisis, for all the turmoil it gave to the world, also gave scholars ample time to research the nature of Oblivion. Sigil stones give a connection between two planes of existence, and if one is destabilized, or the stone is destroyed or removed, then everything that came through the portal will be returned to where it came from. During the Oblivion Crisis, when soldiers managed to remove the sigil stones from their towers, all of them were immediately returned to Tamriel in an apparent flash of light. According to Areldril, if we successfully destroy Vile's form, the ripples it will send through his realm will disrupt the connection of the sigil stones and send us all back to the Hunting Grounds. It will also give Hircine the chance to reclaim the lycan souls that are rightfully his for his own realm."

"As for Molag Bal.." Meesei continued. It was clear that she was not quite as certain on the topic as on the sigil stones, but neither was she making uninformed guesses. Their relationship with Molag Bal over the years was best described as distant. They mostly coordinated only enough to make sure they did not accidentally harm each other, but Meesei was still well-informed enough about the actions of Molag Bal's followers to get a sense of the Daedra's disposition. "His followers have been fighting this war as well. They are not as close to it as us, of course, but Molag Bal has been offended by Vile, and he is a far more...emotional Daedra than Hircine. He has been offended, angered, and will want revenge. The cost may not be as great as you fear."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"There is no way of knowing for sure." Meesei answered. "We have leads, but I cannot say if they will pan out. We know the axe made its way to Hammerfell, and it is has some distinctive properties, so we may be able to use that to narrow our search. I and my pack will see to the axe personally. There are other resources we will need to gather, so we will need to have other teams working on them. Most notably, we are going to need a fair collection of sigil stones. The barriers between Tamriel and Oblivion prevent even sigil stones from creating portals directly between the two realms. However, there is one exception of which we can take advantage. A portal can be created from Tamriel to Oblivion if the Daedric Prince invites and allows the portal. Obviously, we cannot ask Vile to invite us into his realm, but Hircine can allow a portal to his Hunting Grounds. The barriers between two realms of Oblivion are not nearly as strong as those between Mundus and Oblivion, so from the Hunting Grounds, we can use the sigil stones to stage our invasion."

The scale of what Meesei was proposing was certainly greater than anything they had done before, and would involve making a journey to what would essentially be their afterlife while they were still alive. However, Meesei had a feeling that the next part of the plan would be somewhat more worrisome for them. "The Rueful Axe is going to need to be empowered by a Daedric Prince, but if Hircine empowers it, he will be weakened for his fight against Vile. We will need another Daedra to empower it, so after we acquire the axe, I am going to request our...ally, Molag Bal, infuse some of his power into the axe."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

More than I can count. Some prominent ones are Tinker's Construct, Galacticraft, Thermal Expansion, Buildcraft, Minefactory Reloaded, and other mods that add and expand machinery. They've also added things like Thaumcraft, Mystcraft, and Witchery, though I haven't done much with magic yet. I've been focusing on machines, energy, and mass producing better alloys.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Sorry for the delay today. I've been playing modded minecraft. Some of my friends set up a server; it's great.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Though she remained mostly stoic in her expression, perhaps visibly determined, Meesei was inwardly relieved. The hardest part of the meeting was over; she now simply had to explain more of the details of her plan. "When it is time, we will need everything. Every clan, every single soldier and hunter we can gather from all of Tamriel. Every ally, every weapon and tool. To invade Oblivion will require nothing less. But for now, we require patience and preparation. We are going to need to inform the other clans, but we will need to do so delicately. Saras, I need you to inform the other clan alphas discretely. It is vital that nothing we say leave this room until the appropriate time. At the very least, our intentions are bold enough that Vile will not expect them. When we attack, we will have the element of surprise, so as long as we do not reveal our intentions early. If Vile is allowed to learn of our plans, then he will prepare, and we will have failed before we began.”

Meesei turned her attention to Darahil. “To answer your question, I should mention again that it is only the leadership of the Thalmor that are aware of their ultimate goals. The majority of the Dominion are ignorant of what they are working towards. We have at least one ally in the Dominion who does not wish to see Tamriel destroyed. But it is a delicate situation. We still have the Thalmor’s support in stopping Vile, and it would not be wise to risk that advantage. Once we have stopped Vile, we can work to end the Thalmor’s plans, hopefully without another large-scale war. Without widespread chaos that would harm our Dominion clans. Trust me when I say that I do not wish to drag us into another war. We can take on that issue without troops and battles.”

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei remained just as respectful as she usually was with her council, but she was uncompromising both in tone and posture. If there was anything in this war that she needed to convince them of, it was this. "All I need is for you to understand the vital importance of this. This is not simply a discussion of battle plans or strategies. We can refine those aspects of this plan as we move forward. What I am saying is an explanation of what has to be done, not only for us to survive, but for every man, woman, and child in Tamriel to survive. We cannot just be safe and stay uninvolved. If invade his realm and fail, our souls will be claimed by Vile. But if we are too apprehensive, too frightened to do what needs to be done, then our souls will still be claimed by Vile, along with everyone else."

Leaning forward, Meesei placed her hands down on the table and cast her intense gaze across the room. "And not only will we be protecting those still alive, but we can finally have a chance to help those that Vile has already killed. Think about every lycan that has been killed by the soul tearing gas. Every single one is now trapped in Vile's realm. Everyone you have known that was a victim of the gas is now a prisoner of Vile: a tool to further his power. But if we invade his realm, if Hircine can destroy his form and destabilize him, then all off them will be freed. All of them will go to their rightful place in the Hunting Grounds. We have a responsibility to our fallen brothers and sisters we failed to protect, and I am not going to be too afraid to help them."

Ri'vashi had been silent thusfar, contemplating every word that Meesei spoke. Out of everyone in the council, she had lost more friends and family to the gas that anyone. The majority of her clan had been wiped out, so the fate of their souls had weighed on her mind for years. The prospect of being able to help them, despite the obvious, almost insane dangers, was not something she could ignore. "We could help them...save them from Vile." She commented before looking around at the others. "Then why is this a debate?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"The Thalmor are not going to be informed of what we have learned. They will hear of this mission as a failure." Meesei said, firmly and decisively. She did not wish to speak too in-depth about Lunise, but there would likely be no way to avoid informing them that they had an ally within the Dominion. Fortunately, everyone in the room was someone whom Meesei trusted completely.

"With the information Areldril gave us, we were able to develop an...ambitious plan. It will be dangerous beyond question, will likely sound insane, but it is the only way to ensure that Vile will not be able to threaten Tamriel in any capacity for centuries to come, at least. We are going to invade his realm of Oblivion and...kill him, in a sense. As much as one can kill a Daedric Prince. Hircine can attack him directly, disrupt his form, and cause him to lose most of his power. Our role will be to help close the gap in power between Hircine and Vile, and ensure that it is Hircine that emerges victorious. To that end, Areldril offered some help. We can use the blood of Clavicus Vile, in the form of one of his artifacts, infused with the power of another Daedra, to hurt him. There is an artifact known as the Rueful Axe that was created by Vile; Areldril was able to place its last known location in Hammerfell. We need to find it." Meesei explained, though she was sure that her council would have plenty to say of her audacious plan.