Star People
Chapter 7
Invasion
August 1st, 11 AE…
The Yorktown and the Missouri left New Pearl Harbor at dawn and immediately took to the air. They were followed by the Yorktown’s defense fleet, and the ten Vanguard-destroyers that had accompanied the Missouri during the mission to destroy the Black Dragon Fleet. Twelve Nova-class heavy cruisers also came along, as well as four Battle-Mech transports, each carrying 40 Battle-Mechs for a total of 160. There were also infantry, supply and support vessels as well, but they stayed at the rear of the formation.
At their current speed, the invasion force would cross the ocean between the Alder and Merdov continents in less than two hours. The Yorktown would launch 200 of its starfighters to destroy any opposing ships and shore batteries, as well as establish air superiority. Once the skies over the coast were firmly under their control, the Missouri, the destroyers and cruisers would obliterate whatever Sath coastal defenses that were left, before the infantry and the Battle-Mechs would make their landings. From there, they would bulldoze whatever enemy forces stood in their way en route to the capital of the Empire.
It was a straightforward and simple enough operation, but General Kurdo was confident that the invasion forces had sufficient firepower and equipment to do the job.
The Empire of Sath didn’t stand a chance.
When they were about halfway across the ocean, Admiral Tarhesse gave the order for the starfighters to launch. First the Star Hawks were sent into the air, a total of fifty of them. They were soon followed by one hundred and fifty Byatta fighters. Again they were armed with six proton missiles each. All two hundred starfighters made a beeline toward the northern coast of the Merdov continent, with the full intention of raining Hell upon their enemies.
On the bridge of the Yorktown, Tarhesse received a report from her navigator.
“Admiral, satellite and drone surveillance has confirmed the presence of the so-called Blue Dragon Fleet, which is stationed about 10 miles from the coast. We have also confirmed the presence of over 300 wyverns patrolling over the area, in which we intend to make our landings, near the port city of Grevel. The cliffs overlooking the beaches are heavily fortified and armed with what appears to be coastal guns. It seems they have anticipated us.”
“Well, I suppose we can give the Empire military some credit. Not enough though.” She then turned to her communications officer, who happened to be a Nemonian. “Send word to the wing commanders. They are to split into two groups. One group will conduct anti-ship operations and neutralize the Blue Dragon Fleet. The other group will engage the shore batteries and establish air superiority over the landing zones.”
“Acknowledged.” The communications officer replied and began relaying her orders to the starfighter pilots.
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High in the skies some 300 miles from the Merdov coast, the wing commanders received their orders and began instructing the pilots under their command.
“Byatta Prime to Hawk Prime, do you copy?”
“I copy Byatta Prime. Half of my fighters will accompany Byatta squadrons Scarlet, Emerald and Gold on the anti-ship mission. The rest, including myself will accompany squadrons Silver and Diamond to clear the coastline.”
“Roger that. Once we’ve finished with the Blue Dragon Fleet, we’ll come to reinforce you. Though I doubt you’ll need any help.”
“We’d appreciate it all the same. Hawk Prime out.”
Captain Wittens made his Star Hawk peel away toward the coastline, followed by 24 other Star Hawk fighters and fifty Kyteeri heavy fighters. His wife, Commander Miriyo, led twenty-five Star Hawks and 99 Kyteeri ships toward the unsuspecting Blue Dragon Fleet.
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“Admiral, the starfighter group heading toward the Blue Dragon Fleet will be within firing range in two minutes.” The Catian navigator, Lieutenant Farros, announced the readouts on his monitor. “The group that is being led by Captain Wittens will be within striking distance of the coastline thirty seconds after Commander Miriyo’s group launches its attack.”
Tarhesse nodded as she watched the tactical display on the main monitor.
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The four hundred and seventy ships of the Blue Dragon Fleet patrolled the waters near the Merdov north coast and were in a state of constant readiness. On the flagship, the 100-gun warship, the Wrath of Garres, Admiral Herto Fulcus scanned the horizon through a telescope. Like his former comrades from the Red and Black Dragon Fleets, he was arrogant and prideful.
“Admiral?” His First Mate Riger Faust walked up to him.
“Yes, what is it?” Herto acknowledged without putting his spyglass down.
“All ships have reported in. There has been no sign of the enemy thus far. Perhaps they won’t come today?”
“They’re out there, Riger. Make no mistake about that. And today would be the most ideal time for them to invade.”
“Why do you say that?”
“The weather is clear and it is the season for the seas to be calm enough to quickly sail between the Alder and Merdov continents. I could think of no better time than now, to begin the invasion, if I was commanding the enemy fleet.”
Incidentally, the Star Alliance had the ability to start the invasion at any time, regardless of the condition of the weather and oceans. It was just by pure coincidence that Admiral Fulcus had guessed correctly that today was the start of the invasion.
“What if that giant metal ship appears?” The First Mate asked.
“I will not make the same mistakes the Green Dragon Fleet made. They tried to encircle that ship too late, and had fewer ships. I have already planned for when that metal monster appears. This time, it will be the Empire that emerges victorious! This will be a battle that the bards will sing for generations!”
Unfortunately for the admiral and the crews of the Blue Dragon Fleet, there would be no titanic battle between them and the Missouri. They had already been picked up by the long-range sensors of Miriyo’s starfighter group and were locked on target.
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“Scarlet Prime to Byatta Prime. We have confirmation of the enemy vessels. We are locking on target.”
“Emerald Prime to Byatta Prime. We are also locked on target.”
“Gold Prime to Byatta Prime. We have locked on. Awaiting orders.”
“Star Hawk Two to Byatta Prime. We’re only picking up a dozen or so wyverns, most likely scouts and they seem to be heading back to their carriers. Looks like we didn’t need to escort you to the target.”
“I appreciate the company all the same, Star Hawk Two. Byatta Prime to strike force. Begin a ten second countdown on my mark and launch missiles. Once we’ve confirmed the destruction of the fleet, we will join Star Hawk Prime and the others in assaulting the coastline.”
“Roger that.”
“Acknowledged.”
“Roger.”
“Let’s do this.”
“Countdown from my mark… 10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… FIRE!”
Miriyo launched four of her six proton missiles, which streaked off over the horizon. The other Byatta fighters followed suit and launched either four or all six of their missiles. A total of four hundred and seventy missiles became distant dots and quickly vanished from visual sight.
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Standing on the deck of his flagship, Admiral Fulcus lowered his spyglass and nodded. “Yes, today will be the day that Free Land will attack and I shall defeat their strongest warship. Today we shall…”
At that moment, the lookouts started shouting out that something was appearing over the horizon. A great many things in fact. As they approached, some were able to see them as metallic arrows. As they streaked toward them, Fulcus and all the other commanding officers began ordering evasive maneuvers. However, the wooden ships were far too slow and the missiles simply corrected their courses and homed in on their targets. In seconds, seven ships were engulfed in huge fireballs and were blown to bits. Several more ships followed suit. Yet more were destroyed in rapid succession as the mighty fleet of warships was reduced to flaming scraps.
Admiral Fulcus saw his life flash before him as a proton missile aimed for the center of his ship. His consciousness and that of his crews’ faded into nothingness as the missile practically vaporized his vessel. As he perished, so did the hopes and dreams of the sailors of four hundred and seventy ships. In less than a minute, the Blue Dragon Fleet was completely annihilated.
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“Byatta Prime to all squadrons. Primary mission has been accomplished.” Miriyo announced as her monitor confirmed the obliteration of the enemy fleet. “All ships set course for the Merdov coastline.”
“Do you think Captain Wittens will leave anything for us to shoot at?” One of her subordinates asked.
The Kyteeri commander chuckled a bit before replying. “I think it would be best to get there as fast as we can. If I know Wittens, which I do, he’s probably racking up his tenth kill already.”
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In actuality, James was lining up his fifteenth kill. A quick burst from his kinetic-accelerator guns shredded the wyvern and its rider into bloody chunks. As they fell lifelessly down to the ground, he looked over his shoulder and caught a glimpse of two Star Hawks and three Byatta fighters making an assault run on a nearby cliff, aiming to take out a trio of magic cannons. The Star Hawks used their particle beam guns to cause the enemy troops to scatter. They immediately pulled up, allowing the three Byatta fighters to fire their proton missiles at the magic cannons, reducing the entire area to rubble.
“We can’t stop them!” One wyvern rider shouted, just seconds before he was blown to pieces.
“Fast! They’re too fast!” Another rider screamed before he was obliterated by a missile.
The entire operation had only started a minute ago and the wyverns forces were already down to less than 25% of their original number. They simply could not match the speed, agility and firepower of the Star Alliance fighters. The magic cannons and ground troops were being systematically destroyed, so when Miriyo and her squadrons arrived, the mission was already 90% complete.
“Honey! You didn’t save much for us!” Byatta Prime playfully pouted. As with the Missouri’s bridge crew, the fighter squadrons didn’t mind or complain whenever one officer occasionally broke normal protocol or discipline. After all, there were many husband-wife couples among the fighter wings.
“Sorry sweetheart, I got greedy. Here, you can have this one!” James casually allowed one wyvern rider to fly close to his fighter. As soon the wyvern powered up to shoot a fireball, he simply put his Star Hawk into an Immelman loop and gave his spouse an opportunity to shoot the enemy down.
The Byatta fighter’s positron cannons literally flattened the wyvern and its rider into goo. Her wingmates peeled off to finish the remaining troops and magic cannon emplacements. In another minute, the skies above the coastline were clear of all wyvern riders and the magic cannon shore batteries had been neutralized. At that point, the invasion force came into view from the distant horizon.
All fighters began moving out of the line of fire as the destroyers, cruisers and the Missouri began swiveling their gun turrets toward the coast. Even though the beaches were clear of enemy troops and shore batteries, they still needed to clear a bit more territory inland before landing their ground forces on the continent.
On the bridge of the Missouri, Captain Mark Delan got the report that all ships were locked onto their primary targets. They were all just waiting for his ship to fire its first salvo.
“Captain!” Navigator Taichen said. “We have locked onto the large military base on the northern sector. Awaiting your orders.”
“Open fire.” Mark said simply.
The three main turrets of the Missouri let loose with 9 shells that were used for large-scale bombardment. Despite being over 300 miles from the coast, the large Sath base was still within range. The cruisers and destroyers aimed for outposts and fortresses that were closer to the coast and opened fire as well. All would be leveled to the ground.
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The Royal Palace…
“Your highness!”
A messenger broke into the War Conference chambers, getting the attention of all those present.
“What is it?” Emperor Garres demanded.
“My liege, the Free Land Invasion has begun! The enemy has been seen at the northern coast near the Port City of Grevel!”
Garres gave his generals an arrogant and smug expression. “You see? Just as I had predicted! Never doubt the military prowess of your emperor!” He turned back to the messenger. “So have our mighty forces already turned them back? Did the Blue Dragon Fleet sink their ships? Did our invincible Wyvern Air Force maintain supremacy in the skies?”
“No sire. The Blue Dragon Fleet… and the Wyvern Air Force… they… have all been… destroyed.”
“WHAT?!” Everyone exclaimed at once.
“We lost complete contact with the Blue Dragon Fleet.” The messenger explained. “There were calls from the coastal defense forces that they were being overwhelmed and that their wyvern knights were being decimated!”
“Impossible!”
“They’re all gone?!”
“How could have they have defeated over 300 wyverns?!”
“We have lost three of our five Dragon Fleets!”
“How can this be happening?!”
“SILENCE!”
All the generals and high-ranking officers immediately stopped talking after the Emperor shouted. All eyes turned toward him and the crown prince. They in turn addressed the messenger.
“Tell us, are all these reports true?” Prince Vexor asked. “If this is some kind of sick joke, I will have you drawn and quartered!”
“I swear my prince, I am not lying! These reports were just sent to us via magic communications and have been verified!”
There was a long and deadly silence as the messenger’s words sunk in. Then suddenly, the doors to the conference room opened up and a second messenger came in.
“My liege! It is terrible! The Main Northern Base has been destroyed! All the fortresses and outposts near that region have also suffered heavy damage!”
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Two minutes earlier…
General Marten Vilgar looked out from the observation deck of the main HQ building. He had already ordered nearly half of the troops stationed at the base to begin mobilizing and head for the coastal region in order to reinforce the defense line there. After hearing word that the magic cannon emplacements and wyvern air forces were being wiped out, he had put the entire base on high alert, as well as send messages to the other forts and outposts.
Unfortunately for him and all those other forces, they would never see combat against Free Land. Nine shells that had been fired by the Missouri were heading toward them. All the men at the base heard was an ominous whistling noise, followed by a massive wave of explosions as the shells arrived at their target and detonated. Each shell had the equivalent explosive force of a GBU-43/B MOAB. The entire base and the surrounding areas were practically leveled. Vilgar and his men were instantly vaporized. All buildings and equipment were reduced to rubble.
Near the coastline, smaller outposts and fortresses met similar fates as they too were hit by cruiser and destroyer barrages. The Sath troops couldn’t believe that they were being attacked from such long range. When it was all over, the northern coastline of the Merdov continent, with the exception of the Port City of Grevel, was completely clear of all of the Empire’s military.
Then the Battle-Mech transports were cleared to deploy their forces, along with the infantry and supply transports. A Battle-Mech transport, sometimes nicknamed as a “Bot-Hauler” was a large craft that had a boxlike module on its underside. As they got to the beaches, they flew very low and dropped their modules onto the sand. The front hatch dropped down, forming a ramp for the Battle-Mechs to exit. Using their g-nullifier systems and their maneuvering thrusters, each Battle-Mech smoothly moved down the ramp and onto the beach. From there, they simply walked off and headed inland. A total of forty Battle-Mechs were sent, while the rest stationed themselves at the landing sites to be deployed later.
A small group of Sath soldiers who had been taken prisoner during the operation all looked up in shock and awe as a Battle-Mech strode past them. It was followed by several Star Alliance infantry transports and support vehicles.
“They have giant, iron golems on their side?!”
“We can’t fight against those!”
“Our Empire… is finished!”
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August 2nd, 11 AE…
The Royal Palace…
“WHAT?! THEY’RE GONE?! THEY’RE ALL GONE?!” The emperor cried out as he received the latest reports.
“Yes, Sire!” The messenger replied as he read the latest reports. “The Main Northern Base has been completely destroyed. Our wyvern scouts indicate that there were no survivors. They found nothing but total devastation. The frontier fortresses near the northern coast have either been wiped out or too badly damaged that they had to be abandoned. The surviving ground troops have pulled back south towards the Kilori Plains and are forming a defensive perimeter.”
“And the forces we had stationed in Grevel?”
“General Vargos had decided to withdraw from Grevel to avoid being encircled by the enemy.”
“That coward!” Prince Vexor growled.
“Begging the prince’s pardon…” One of the officers pointed out. He was a young major named Garle Fendor. “General Vargos made the correct decision. If he had the air cover of Wyverns and the support of the magic cannon emplacements, then he could have held Grevel without issue. However, they have been confirmed to be destroyed, our troops have been pushed back, and the enemy vastly outnumbers his forces. He had no other choice but to pull out or risk having his troops destroyed or captured.”
The other generals and high-ranking officer nodded in agreement, giving Vexor no valid debate. The arrogant prince fumed in silence.
“Since the enemy has succeeded in landing on the coast, our goal is clear!” Emperor Garres stated. “The Eastern and Western Main Bases are still are still at full strength, are they not?”
“Yes, my Liege!” General Minoska stated.
“Take about 5-6 divisions of our troops stationed from each base and have them mobilize to the defensive perimeter at the Kilori Plains. As I recall, the fifth army is also stationed near the Kilori Plains. We WILL push the enemy back into the sea!”
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The vassal state of Ardelous…
Mirona grumbled a bit as she stood up from the bed and put on a robe. Snoring loudly on the bed was the Sath officer she had been ‘entertaining.’
As much as she wanted to slit that bastard’s throat, the act would only jeopardize her position as a member of the Ardelous Underground Resistance Army. It was her job to pose as a common whore and subtlety collect information from the Sath soldiers and officers. Information such as troop movements, troop strength and secret codes and plans were considered as vital if Ardelous were to have any chance of breaking free of the Empire’s rule.
It had been about 5 years since the Kingdom of Ardelous had been forcibly annexed and made a vassal state of the Empire, due to its rich veins of magic ore and fertile farmlands. Mirona had joined the resistance 2 years after the annexation, after her older sister had been taken by some Sath soldiers and brutally raped to death. Since that event, she had been engaging in secret acts of sabotage and even murdering a high-ranking officer at one time.
Today, she had picked up some very vital information. Due to the invasion of Free Land, the Sath officer had admitted that the forces under his command were being stretched thin. Though he didn’t give exact numbers as to how many men he had left at his post, he did say that many departments were undermanned or had just a skeleton crew.
She would have to confirm with the other operatives if this information was true. If it was, then there may soon be a reckoning.
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The Port City of Grevel…
“Good to see you again, Captain.” Mark said as he shook hands with the port master.
“Likewise.” Macus Vern replied. “You and your folks will always be welcome in Grevel.” He gazed at the Missouri, which was again moored at the main dock.
After bombarding the enemy positions the day before, Captain Delan had taken his ship to Grevel in order to liberate it from the Sath occupiers. He had been expecting some resistance, but to his pleasant surprise, the Empire’s forces had gotten wind of what was happening on the coast, and the forces in Grevel beat a hasty retreat overnight. In fact, the last of the Sath forces had left the city only an hour before the Missouri had been spotted over the horizon.
As they walked along the dockside, the two conversed about the events that had occurred since the Missouri had last visited.
“I hear that you had to play host to some unwelcomed guests.” Mark commented.
“Hah! Since when was the Sath EVER welcomed?” Macus growled. “Yeah, they came in a few days ago and declared that the whole kingdom of Vereles had been annexed, and that we were now serving the Empire. Of course, we couldn’t do anything against them, and those who complained or tried to resist were executed on the spot. The soldiers took whatever they wanted without paying, a lot of women got raped and a lot of innocent people were hurt or killed just for amusement. It was Hell I tell you!”
“I’m very sorry that we didn’t come sooner.”
“Hey, the fact that you came for us at all, shows just how much you cared. The moment they heard that the giant metal ship was coming, along with several more, that Sath General crapped in his pants and told his troops to pack up and leave!”
“Most likely he learned about the landings and made a strategic withdrawal.”
“Nope!” Macus chuckled a bit. “It was because he heard that you were coming back! I was there in his office when he got the wyvern scout report about a giant metal ship heading toward Grevel. They know how you tore apart the Green Dragon Fleet and they wanted nothing to do with you.”
“The stories of our encounter with the Green Dragon Fleet are a little exaggerated.”
“Exaggerated or not, you still beat them and it does my heart good to know that the loss really sticks in their craws. Speaking of craw, I hate to be imposing on a guest… especially one that I actually welcome… but you wouldn’t happen to have more of those… what did you call them? Oh yeah, Instant Rashin’ Packs?”
“The Instant Ration Packs? Yes, we’ve got enough on the Missouri to feed the whole crew for about 10 years or so.”
“Could I trouble you to give us some? Those Sath sons o’ bitches took every morsel of food in the whole city when they left. Cleaned out all of our storage warehouses and ransacked every family’s homes. Said it was the property of the Empire. Thievin’ bastards even took both crates of my Rashin’ packs!”
“Of course Captain. Not a problem.” Mark tapped the communicator on his collar. “Delan to Missouri.”
“Reelan here. Go ahead Captain.” The First officer replied.
“Instruct the Quartermaster Corps to have 200 storage units of rations to be delivered to the port HQ. Also have the Medical Corps stand by to receive a lot of incoming patients. We are going to be treating this as a disaster relief mission. Understood?”
“Understood Captain.”
“Delan out.” Mark nodded as he addressed the port master. “Please inform the residents that food and medical aid is on their way and they should wait at your headquarters.”
“We are greatly beholden to you.”
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Royal Palace of the Kingdom of Vereles…
King Valza was depressed as he sat in his room with his gaze looking out the balcony. It had just been a few days since the Empire of Sath had annexed his kingdom and he had been unable to stop it. Under the threat of immediate execution of the king and the higher members of the government, the arrogant Prince Vexor had just strutted in and declared that the Kingdom of Vereles was now territory of the Sath. It didn’t take long for Sath troops to occupy the streets of the capital city. And since Vereles’ military forces were not the equal of the Empire’s, preventing the occupation was all but impossible.
Valza had always known that this day would come eventually. The only reason why the Empire had not taken his country sooner was the fact that it had very little to offer. However, now that the Empire was at war with Free Land, Vereles was considered a strategic location to defend against the invasion. The king knew that the Empire would take whatever they wanted from his nation and squander what precious few resources it had. Judging by how the other vassal states under their control were treated, Vereles would fall into decline in just a few short years, if not sooner.
“Your majesty!”
The king turned to the door to his room as his Prime Minister Tarkot appeared.
“What is it Vills? Another ludicrous and impossible demand of the Empire?”
“No Sire! Quite the opposite! We’ve just received reports that the Sath forces have retreated from the port city of Grevel!”
“Retreated? That doesn’t sound like the Empire. What could have forced them to give up such a vital port?”
“It’s the Free Landers! They’ve started their invasion and have taken the northern coastline near Grevel! That cowardly Sath general realized that he couldn’t fight them and pulled out of the city!”
“But what about the Blue Dragon Fleet and the immense coastal defenses?”
“They’ve all been wiped out! Our scouts report that the Blue Dragon Fleet has been sunk! Over three hundred wyvern riders have been shot down and their mighty magic cannon artillery have been devastated! The forts and outposts near the northern coasts have been decimated as well! We’ve lost over 200,000 men so far! The Empire can do virtually nothing to stop the Free Landers from advancing inland! It looks like they will have a major confrontation on the Kilori Plains!”
Lurat could hardly believe his ears. The Empire had been pushed back? They had actually abandoned the port city of Grevel? Did Free Land have the power to defeat a superpower?
When word that Empire’s forces have been defeated began to spread, nations that were under the control of the Sath, began to feel the fires of rebellion being stoked. The nation of Ardelous in particular, began a secret buildup of their underground forces.
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A bar in the nation of Archesi…
“Did you hear? The Empire has now lost three of their Dragon Fleets!”
“I didn’t believe it myself, but I saw only five ships of the Red Dragon Fleet return and none of the Black and Blue Dragon ships! It must be true!”
“So what do you think? Is that new nation called Free Land really that strong?”
“I heard they had these giant metal soldiers in their army!”
“Ah, you’ve been drinking too much!”
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The forests near the Great Plains of Kilori…
Though it would have been easier to use the main roads, the Battle-Mech squad and its supporting infantry had decided to cut through the forests to shorten the distance and to conduct a flanking assault on the defensive line of the Sath.
Riding inside his Battle-Mech, Commander Jerry Vandelin nodded as he studied his main viewscreen. Unlike the regular Hunter Battle-Mechs that his men operated, his machine was a Star-Gladiator Mark II. It had white highlights and sported a heavy-grade particle cannon on its right shoulder. His Battle-Mech was currently on autopilot as it walked through the forest, leading the platoon and infantry toward the battlefield.
“Commander?”
One of the Battle-Mechs that was under his command signaled from his position in the formation.
“Yes Lieutenant Gracs?”
“We’ll be reaching the battle zone in 2 minutes. Orders?”
“According to surveillance footage, we’ll be facing off against an enemy that is about 40,000 strong in terms of infantry. They’ve set up a defensive line on the plains and intend to drive us back. Our objective is simple. Break through and take their positions. We’re to show the Sath that fighting against us is futile.”
To be continued…
