SWTOR Character Tales: Rise of Mamine KOTET 1-3

Welcome back, my beautiful freaks, to the Assassin's Den!

So, I just did the math, and I will obviously not get all the chapters released before December, since I've only started on KOTET for Mamine.  However, since 5.10 isn't supposed drop until December 4th, according to Reddit, I'll be dropping the Traitor Saga on release day. However, that does not mean that Ragdat's Darkest Days and Rise of Mamine will continue right away. No, this will go on hiatus until after 6.0 is dropped.  These two will never be a priority in my mind again; they'll be a "when I have time" thing. With that out of the way, on to KOTET!

Time had passed between the defeat of Arcann and the rise of Vaylin.  She was causing a path of destruction while searching for her brother and mother, wanting to be rid of them for their betrayal once and for all.

Her search led her to Voss, which was under the protection of the Alliance thanks to Sana-Rae and Anstrisil's friendship with the mystic Gaden Ko. Theron Shan and Sana-Rae happened to be on Voss meeting a contact and were caught in the attack, signaling the Alliance to scramble the fleet. The Alliance fleet moved to intercept and engage the Eternal Fleet, while Lana piloted a Zakuulan shuttle carrying Mamine, her Padawan Suthazi and Torian Cadera with a squad of Mandalorian warriors down to the planet surface to break the siege of the capital city of Voss-Ka. Upon landing, Mamine got notification that Brosra was there for reasons of her own, and she'd aid in the defense of the Shrine of Healing, where she currently was for reasons she wasn't ready to tell her Commander at this moment in time.

Mamine's people engaged Skytroopers throughout the burning city before meeting at the Tower of Prophecy, where Theron and Sana-Rae had been waiting for them. However, just before entering the tower, Valkorian froze time for Mamine, and said, in so many words, "you need to kill Vaylin". After time was unfrozen, Mamine helped in defending their position from Vaylin's Horizon Guards, and afterward, they received a holotransmission from Senya, who was at the Shrine of Healing, in a completely different area that Brosra was at, it turned out. She was hoping that the Voss Mystics could heal her son's body and spirit and pleaded for the Alliance's aid, believing Arcann would join their fight. Lana believed that Arcann had to be neutralized one way or another, and she led Torian's Mandalorians towards the Shrine, while Mamine, Suthazi and Theron took a different route, and rode the Mandalorian walker Storm Rider through the Old Paths.

Upon reaching the Shrine of Healing, Theron, Suthazi and Mamine met with Senya, who again pleaded them to let Arcann be healed, while Vaylin, learning that her family was all in one place, ordered the Eternal Fleet to bombard the Shrine. Again, Valkorian told Mamine to kill his son, and this gave Mamine all the reason she needed to order Lana and the Mandalorians to protect the Shrine to buy Senya time, and also ordered Brosra to converge on Senya's location and defend her at all costs, and collapsed a tunnel behind them to stop the pursuing Skytroopers. Mamine, Suthazi and Theron remained near the entrance of the healer's chamber to hold off the Skytroopers, and once they finally reached Senya's position, they found that she had already ordered the Mystics to use her strength to heal her son in a Voss healing ritual, which left her comatose, which got a "foolishness" comment out of Brosra. Theron stayed to tend to Senya, while Mamine, Suthazi and Lana chased the escaping Arcann to his shuttle, but were too late to stop his departure. However, Mamine could feel Arcann's new presence in the Force, and could just barely see his eyes; while not as light as Anstrisil or her Padawan, his presence was FAR lighter than it was, and his eyes had turned from the sickly yellow of a slave to the Dark Side to a much brighter blue. Mamine knew she didn't have much time to talk, so she said only four words; "Your Mother is alive."

By this point Vaylin has ordered the Eternal Fleet to burn her family regardless of casualties on Voss, but the battle was turned by the arrival of the Imperial fleet, which turned the Eternal Fleet away. Valkorian again stopped time and urged Mamine to pursue and kill Arcann, kill Valyin and claim the Eternal Throne, but Mamine was having none of it; she said she knew Valkorian saw his son's eyes. She knew he could tell that his son was free from Valkorian's corruption, so he was no longer a threat to anyone anymore. When Valkorian unfroze time, Sith Empress Acina contacted Mamine over holo, greeting Mamine and invited the Alliance to Dromund Kaas to discuss a potential alliance against Vaylin. It was this point when they heard Brosra's voice come up behind them, shouting curses and profanities in an ancient tongue at Acina. When she calmed down slightly, she reminded Mamine of what Acina had done to her, her family; she brought a force to her ancestral home on Jaguada's moon, slaughtering her troops, butchering her family, and had captured and tortured her for years in a dungeon.  The only reason Brosra was alive was because Acina underestimated her unique ability to pull ancient knowledge from her species' blood to assist in her escape.

Mamine did what she could to calm the situation, and said that she couldn't turn away potential allies without talking to them first, and agreed that he'd at least talk to Acina before making a decision, with a caveat that she was not going to abandon the Republic even if she did ally with Acina.

Mamine traveled to Dromund Kaas with Lana, Suthazi and Theron, making the probably wise decisions to leave the volatile Brosra on Voss, arriving to Kaas City, where Valkorian froze time to lamented that he spend too long on this world that was not worth saving. Mamine wrinkled her nose in disgust, and reminded Valkorian that she killed him here before, and she'll do it again as soon as her people figured out how. Valkorian just chuckled and unfroze time just in time for the group to be greeted by Gelmid Lorman, who introduced himself as the new Minister of Logistics when Lana addressed him by his old title of Moff. Lorman escorted them to Acina, who greeted Mamine warmly. Mamine acted diplomatically, though Lorman interrupted a few times with a tone that said "we don't need to ally with anyone else", forcing Acina to insist on speaking with Mamine privately on her personal shuttle. Mamine agreed, leaving Lana and Theron behind to keep an eye on Lorman, though Suthazi was openly concerned, saying she should come along. Mamine assured Suthazi that this was just something a leader had to do, and that she'd come back safely before following Acina to her shuttle.

In flight and away from prying eyes, Acina stated that traditionalist Sith would not approve of the alliance she was offering and recognized Vaylin as the true threat. She assured Mamine that her offer of partnership was genuine and that she had no intention of taking the Eternal Throne for herself, and Mamine said the same, but added that she'd found very few Sith that were trustworthy, and that she'd never let her guard down around Acina. Their conversation was interrupted by a sudden engine failure, requiring Acina to crash land the shuttle and abandon ship. Now stuck in the wilderness of Dromund Kaas with their comms mysteriously jammed, Acina suspected someone sabotaged her shuttle, and Mamine suggested Lorman as the culprit, though Acina shot down the idea. Lorman didn't have the courage to do so, she said, and this caused Mamine to add that was the exact reason he was the prime suspect; Acina underestimated him.

Acina and Mamine were forced to contend with the planet's dangerous wildlife and lightning storms, traversing the terrain to the crashed shuttle in hopes of recovering the emergency beacon. A group was already waiting for them there and identified as the GenoHaradan, whom the Empress had always assumed to be a myth. The "legendary" assassins proved no match for the Alliance Commander and the Empress of the Sith, however, as the pair swiftly dealt with the assassins and continued their search for the GenoHaradan camp.

They continued into the jungle, eventually finding their way to the GenoHaradan main camp, and after clearing it, Mamine discovered a holorecording from former Republic Supreme Chancellor Leontyne Saresh. Saresh was revealed as the one who ordered the hit, and Acina remarked on the treachery of the Republic leadership, Mamine added that the Empire isn't without treachery either, before a gunship appeared and opened fire, forcing the pair to take shelter in a nearby Sith tomb, where the entrance was collapsed by the barrage.Valkorian again froze time, and again remarked how these ancient resting placed of Sith Lords never truly held the secret of immortality, causing Mamine to shake her head at this, saying that it was a privilege to become one with the Force, not something to be feared. Valkorian unfroze time, and Mamine focused on the task at hand; getting out of the tomb and getting back to Kaas City.

As the pair descended further into the tomb's depths, they found exactly what Mamine had been saying the entire time; the traitorous Minister Lorman, who was behind the shuttle sabotage, and a GenoHaradan strike team seeking to finish their job. They quickly and easily dispatched the GenoHaradan, and Lorman panicked, claiming to have Lana, Suthazi and Theron hostage. He attempted attempted to call his men, only to discover that his so-called hostages had dispatched them. Acina offered the Commander to decide Lorman's fate, and Mamine calmly stated that Jedi don't kill their prisoners, causing Acina to frown. Mamine said that Acina could do with him what she wished after due process had been gone through, but the fact remained that Jedi don't kill their prisoners.

Theron informed them that Saresh was coming to Odessen in a bid to take over the Alliance after she had earlier proclaimed that Mamine was dead along with Acina. The four quickly returned to Odessen, where Saresh was making a speech in front of the Alliance personnel. Upon seeking Mamine, she panicked and tried to flee, but Lana cut off her way of escaping. Saresh, in so many words, called Mamine weak, saying that she'd have ended the Sith Empire AND the Eternal Empire months ago if she were in charge. Suthazi said that Mamine had been waging war since before Saresh took governorship of Taris thirteen years ago, causing Saresh to glare at her, and flatly said "So, what, are you going to kill me, Commander? That's what I'd do." And Mamine  again calmly said that "Jedi don't kill their prisoners.You'll be given due process, but don't expect it to go your way." before sending Theron and Lana to escort Saresh to a prison cell, to Theron's approval.

A little while later, Acina then contacted Odessen with a formal offer for an alliance, which Mamine denied, saying that, while she had exhibited that she was trustworthy in this instance, she also illustrated a level of tactical blindness that Mamine couldn't risk getting in the Alliance's way. Acina accepted this, and simply stated that she hoped they'd never end up on the opposite side of a battlefield. Theron, who was standing nearby with Lana, Suthazi and Brosra, asked why she chose not to ally with Acina, and Mamine simply stated that, outside Yokonari, Casek and Lana, she could never fully trust a Sith. She explained Yokonari  and Casek's honor code and Lana's pragmatism and sense of loyalty to those that had proven themselves made them unique among the Sith, and Acina lacked both. Brosra, who had taken no offense to her being called untrustworthy, simply stated that she hoped the curses she had spouted at Acina on Voss would take root, something that bothered Mamine in the moment, but knowing she could do nothing about it at that time. Lana, however, was placated, though her pragmatism forced her to say that she hoped the wouldn't need Acina's reinforcements in the future.  Mamine assured her that they had the strongest fighters and best equipment in the galaxy now, and that she shouldn't worry.

It was this moment when Mamine pulled Brosra aside and asked her why she had been on Voss in the first place.  Brosra thought about lying, but decided that telling the truth wouldn't hurt her path to power, and told Mamine that she had been there for the Voss Ritual of Mind Healing.  She explained that her ability to draw on knowledge inherent in her blood was making it difficult for her to separate what where her actual memories from the memories of the ancestors she gained these powers from.  It made her sense of self difficult to maintain, and she was afraid she might go insane before she came of age. So she had spoken to Sana-Rae about it, and was told about the ritual that she had just undergone shortly before Vaylin's attack; the fact that her head was clear was very much the only reason she chose to help Senya defend her son; she was feeling that good, and didn't need the rage or hate to focus that she'd have gained by trying to kill Arcann. Mamine thanked the young Sith girl, and went off to perform her own meditations.

About an hour later, Casek came into the command center and stated that he had managed to convince his apprentice, Ashara Zavros, to join the Alliance after their efforts on Voss, who had also happened to be there at the time of the invasion, and Mamine recognized the name; the Togruta Jedi who followed Casek during his journey toward power, but resisted the corruption of the Dark Side while still accepting some of the Sith philosophy into her being.  Mamine thanked Casek, though Casek had to sadly mention that his relationship with Ashara had been forced to end. He said that Ashara recognized that Casek wasn't the man she fell in love with anymore, and he had gone to place that she couldn't follow thanks to his experiences over the last 6 years.  Casek said he understood, but was saddened all the same. Mamine did her best to console him, but when she got a notification of a distress call, she told the Zabrak she had to go.

As it turned out, the distress call was from Koth Vortena on the Gravestone; Vaylin had attacked and taken the ship. Koth, who had evaded capture, provided the Alliance with his coordinates, which gave Mamine what she needed what he needed to mobilize the Alliance fleet moving to intercept. However, before she could leave, Anstrisil came up to Mamine with a request for a team to rescue a former companion of his; apparently, the Alliance had found Felix Iresso's location, and he wanted to free him. Mamine gave the okay as she was boarding a shuttle with Lana and Suthazi.

Once the fleet got within the space around the Gravestone, Mamine, Suthazi and Lana infiltrated the Gravestone in a boarding pod and dispatched several Skytrooper patrols along their way to Koth. Upon greeting each other, Koth revealed to them that Vaylin's forces risked triggering the quantum bomb that he installed as a precaution against SCORPIO, which shocked Mamine; between the personnel and equipment that a quantum bomb could destroy, this action would be grounds for treason charges based on the on the potential credit loss along. And that wasn't even counting the fact that Koth went behind his Commanding Officer's back knowing full well that Mamine wouldn't approve of this. Mamine told Koth that he was in trouble for this, joining Koth in disabling the fuses, while Lana and Suthazi provided distraction. Koth was elated that they defused his bomb and prevented his mistake from costing lives, but Mamine said that after this, Koth was never setting foot on the Gravestone again. Koth said "I'd like to see you try to replace me", and Mamine said "Would you rather I put you on trial for treason? Because the consequences for that will be FAR worse than simply banning you from a vessel." Koth was shocked at Mamine's words,  and sheepishly agreed to just ban him from the Gravestone. He also agreed to help reach the bridge, only to be surprised to find it empty of Vaylin and her forces.

Koth disabled the bomb from the bridge console and told his crew to evacuate in escape pods. SCORPIO then contacted them and revealed that she knew about the quantum bomb and manipulated Vaylin into leaving the bridge so that Koth could disable it. SCORPIO also informed Mamine that Lana and Suthazi were cornered by Vaylin in the Dark Sanctuary, where the bomb was hidden. Mamine and Koth rushed down to the Dark Sanctuary to save them, arriving in time stop Vaylin from striking down Suthazi, but their fighting still triggered the bomb's countdown. Mamine dueled Vaylin, but she realized just how much more powerful the real Vaylin was over the one in her vision. But before the battle could continue any further, Valkorian intervened and stopped the time as he often did before, although this time, Vaylin was able to overcome his restraint. She used the Force to throw Mamine against the wall, which Mamine assumed she was able to do due to Valkorian shutting down her TK Barrier, as Mamine had put in extensive efforts to strengthen it,  Valkorian uttered the phrase "Kneel before the Dragon of Zakuul", triggering Vaylin's secret conditioning and making her powerless to strike.

Unable to fight, Vaylin turned and fled, giving Koth the chance to disarm the bomb while Mamine disabled the power relays to prevent its early detonation. As things calmed slightly, Mamine told Lana and Suthazi to not forget that Koth was banned from the Gravestone once all this was said and done.

A few moments later, Theron brought a team of Yokonari, Casek, Aric Jorgan, Torian Cadera and Vette as reinforcements by landing an Alliance shuttle inside the hangar. However, SCORPIO took over control of the Gravestone, sending it towards an unknown location and locking the hyperdrive.  The Alliance converged on the bridge, however, their fleet were forced to witness as the Gravestone jumped out of hyperspace in an unknown system, surrounded by the entirety of the Eternal Fleet.

SCORPIO left the ship in her shuttle and contacted Mamine again, revealing that the GEMINI droids were not imitations of her technology, but were related to her, as well as the Eternal Fleet and the Gravestone. SCORPIO uncovered their point of origin in the Gravestone and brought them all there, thanking Mamine for assisting their journey and warning them that Vaylin and her remaining forces were sabotaging everything on the Gravestone. Mamine rushed to the omnicannon, but in er absence, Vaylin returned to the bridge and overpowered her team. She threatened to kill Torian and Vette before settling on Suthazi, but was unable to hurt anyone before a blinding white light engulfed the ship.

And that's it for the first KOTET post. I'll run 4-6 tomorrow, 7-9 on Sunday, Iokath on Monday, and the Traitor Saga in the currently scheduled release day of 5.10.   For now, look forward to the reason I'm bringing along Yokonari and Casek on the first visit to Iokath, and stay beautiful beautiful freaks!