Chapter 1 - Revan
The Coalition was a small fighting force founded partly by two former Sith, Revan and Rex, as well as a group known as Future Foundation. Rex, having seen visions of a threat to the multiverse as a whole in a Force vision, had sought to create a group to combat this threat. The two Force users had used a temporary allegiance with the United Federation to travel to new worlds and accrue a small force, which eventually brought them right to Kyosuke Munakata, the leader of Future Foundation.
Future Foundation had its own plans, though they were not deaf to Rex’s pleas. They had given a fraction of their group to help lead the new allegiance known as the Coalition. Their missions so far had only been minor affairs as their fighting force was still so meager. So meager in fact, that one of their first missions had been botched, resulting in the loss of the Coalition’s first leader, Kyoko Kirigiri, who had originally been a part of Future Foundation.
Given this setback, Kyosuke himself had been leading the Coalition in the immediate aftermath of their loss. Revan knew that this was necessary for the future he envisioned, but still he did not look forward to Kyosuke’s behavior. The man was a more wary sort than Kyoko, which made for their meeting with a new group they had come into contact with a tense affair. As long as everything went as Revan wanted, he did not care about the means to get there.
The meeting was to be in a neutral location, where the Coalition and a group known as the Brotherhood of Steel could talk. Through means unknown to the others, though known secretly to Revan, the Brotherhood had acquired the means to travel to other worlds, coming across the Coalition in the process. One could say that Revan himself had made this meeting come to pass.
On an abandoned world, inside an old stone chapel, Revan, Rex, and Kyosuke stood waiting for the Brotherhood leader to arrive. Rvan could hear the man approach before he was visible, heavy footsteps echoing far through stone corridors and reverberating into the large, open room they stood. A dim light broke through the clouds outside and entered through a large gap in the wall, illuminating Elder Maxson’s face as he entered the chamber.
Arthur Maxson was a tall, well-built man with an intimidating presence. His dark heavy beard that partly obscured a few deep-set scars and a haunted, stoney expression would make most men wary. His outfit bore the telltale signs of a life lived in harsh conditions, though still the man seemed immaculately kept, his clothes and hair tidy and controlled. Maxson was not a man who suffered fools as far as Revan could tell from appearances alone.
“Thank you for agreeing to this location, sir,” Rex said, giving Maxson a small bow. The other man nodded in response, his eyes examining Kyosuke and Revan intently. He had no doubt the man would be put off by the fact that Revan concealed his face.
“Not that I had much of a choice in the matter,” Maxson said gruffly. “My Brothers and Sisters have been made desperate by the setbacks in our world. That we have used technology I would consider too dangerous to allow normally to reach your people is evidence enough of our need.”
“And your need?” Kyosuke questioned. Revan turned to look at him slightly. To Revan, he seemed an odd man. Very proud to say the least. He wore an immaculate grey suit, even to a more run-down world such as this one, and casually carried around a sword. It was an odd sight unto itself, though Revan still had a bit to learn still about the customs of other worlds.
Maxson had crossed his arms while considering Kyosuke’s question. It seemed he wanted to find the right words. “I would rather not bear Brotherhood secrets to men I barely know,” he said eventually, nodding his head. “Secrets I would not even share with my closest comrades unless necessary. However, given my belief that our means to visit other worlds is limited and you are the only ones to heed our pleas, I have no other option. There is a group known as the Institute in my world. They have burrowed into the ground in a land known as the Commonwealth, studying dangerous technologies. My world has been ravaged once already by man-made technologies and it is the Brotherhood of Steel’s duty to protect humanity from yet another technological threat.”
“You wish to destroy this group?” Rex asked, sounding concerned. “I’m afraid the Coalition has no interest in destruction if we are not assured of its necessity to the greater good.”
Maxson narrowed his eyes on Rex. “Maybe you do not understand, having not witnessed the destruction that I have. You have not seen the folly of man like I have. If you only saw, then you would understand our need.”
Despite how desperate this man seemed to be, Revan could tell he was holding something back. He did not need to know the future to discern that. Perhaps Kyosuke could sense it as well, for he shook his head at Maxson.
“I am in agreement with Rex,” Kyosuke said. “We have not proposed an alliance in order to fight your battles. As we have made clear to you, we also have our own despairing threat on the horizon and little firepower to combat it. Your Brothers and Sisters as you call them, their fighting prowess and combat technology is necessary for the Coalition’s success. Perhaps you should consider what it will mean to your world if we lose.”
Rex nodded. “Trust us, the enemy we face will threaten you as well, whether you help us or not.”
“Then you do not know the meaning of an alliance,” Maxson said, some fire in his voice. Kyosuke gripped his sword tighter as Maxson continued to speak. “I can not send my people to join your armies if you do not wish to help us in turn. I do not send men and women to the slaughter without purpose. I have united the Brotherhood and I will not have them broken again fighting for you.”
“I have a proposal,” Revan said, causing Maxson to turn on him quickly. It was the first time the other man had heard him speak. “We still have time to deliberate. I suggest we send one of our own back with you, Elder Maxson, and you send one of yours to us. Our chosen people can observe and report on our respective groups and ascertain if the threats are as dire as we both speak of.”
Kyosuke and Rex both seemed to consider it for just a moment. Rex seemed more unsure though he did not outwardly disagree. Revan could see that Maxson too was in favor of the idea just in his expression alone.
Of course, Revan already knew his proposal would work.
“That is acceptable,” Maxson replied. “I have a Brother in mind. Do you have someone?”
“We are on the brink of recruiting a number of men and women to our cause,” Kyosuke replied. “In a few days, we will choose one to send to you. I trust that is an acceptable amount of time?”
Maxson, for all his earlier bluster, politely bowed his head. “Farewell then. I hope to hear from you soon. Ad Victoriam.”
As Maxson left, the three men who remained stood in silence. Rex seemed to be considering the conversation, eventually breaking the silence.
“I hope letting these people into our ranks will not be unwise,” he said. “And of course, I hope we make the right decision on who we choose.”
Kyosuke responded by simply turning around and leaving the opposite way Maxson left, toward a low archway. Revan watched Rex a moment before turning to join the other man.
In the end, it did not matter. Revan knew who the choices would be.
Chapter 2 - The Photojournalist - Coming Soon
The Coalition was a small fighting force founded partly by two former Sith, Revan and Rex, as well as a group known as Future Foundation. Rex, having seen visions of a threat to the multiverse as a whole in a Force vision, had sought to create a group to combat this threat. The two Force users had used a temporary allegiance with the United Federation to travel to new worlds and accrue a small force, which eventually brought them right to Kyosuke Munakata, the leader of Future Foundation.
Future Foundation had its own plans, though they were not deaf to Rex’s pleas. They had given a fraction of their group to help lead the new allegiance known as the Coalition. Their missions so far had only been minor affairs as their fighting force was still so meager. So meager in fact, that one of their first missions had been botched, resulting in the loss of the Coalition’s first leader, Kyoko Kirigiri, who had originally been a part of Future Foundation.
Given this setback, Kyosuke himself had been leading the Coalition in the immediate aftermath of their loss. Revan knew that this was necessary for the future he envisioned, but still he did not look forward to Kyosuke’s behavior. The man was a more wary sort than Kyoko, which made for their meeting with a new group they had come into contact with a tense affair. As long as everything went as Revan wanted, he did not care about the means to get there.
The meeting was to be in a neutral location, where the Coalition and a group known as the Brotherhood of Steel could talk. Through means unknown to the others, though known secretly to Revan, the Brotherhood had acquired the means to travel to other worlds, coming across the Coalition in the process. One could say that Revan himself had made this meeting come to pass.
On an abandoned world, inside an old stone chapel, Revan, Rex, and Kyosuke stood waiting for the Brotherhood leader to arrive. Rvan could hear the man approach before he was visible, heavy footsteps echoing far through stone corridors and reverberating into the large, open room they stood. A dim light broke through the clouds outside and entered through a large gap in the wall, illuminating Elder Maxson’s face as he entered the chamber.
Arthur Maxson was a tall, well-built man with an intimidating presence. His dark heavy beard that partly obscured a few deep-set scars and a haunted, stoney expression would make most men wary. His outfit bore the telltale signs of a life lived in harsh conditions, though still the man seemed immaculately kept, his clothes and hair tidy and controlled. Maxson was not a man who suffered fools as far as Revan could tell from appearances alone.
“Thank you for agreeing to this location, sir,” Rex said, giving Maxson a small bow. The other man nodded in response, his eyes examining Kyosuke and Revan intently. He had no doubt the man would be put off by the fact that Revan concealed his face.
“Not that I had much of a choice in the matter,” Maxson said gruffly. “My Brothers and Sisters have been made desperate by the setbacks in our world. That we have used technology I would consider too dangerous to allow normally to reach your people is evidence enough of our need.”
“And your need?” Kyosuke questioned. Revan turned to look at him slightly. To Revan, he seemed an odd man. Very proud to say the least. He wore an immaculate grey suit, even to a more run-down world such as this one, and casually carried around a sword. It was an odd sight unto itself, though Revan still had a bit to learn still about the customs of other worlds.
Maxson had crossed his arms while considering Kyosuke’s question. It seemed he wanted to find the right words. “I would rather not bear Brotherhood secrets to men I barely know,” he said eventually, nodding his head. “Secrets I would not even share with my closest comrades unless necessary. However, given my belief that our means to visit other worlds is limited and you are the only ones to heed our pleas, I have no other option. There is a group known as the Institute in my world. They have burrowed into the ground in a land known as the Commonwealth, studying dangerous technologies. My world has been ravaged once already by man-made technologies and it is the Brotherhood of Steel’s duty to protect humanity from yet another technological threat.”
“You wish to destroy this group?” Rex asked, sounding concerned. “I’m afraid the Coalition has no interest in destruction if we are not assured of its necessity to the greater good.”
Maxson narrowed his eyes on Rex. “Maybe you do not understand, having not witnessed the destruction that I have. You have not seen the folly of man like I have. If you only saw, then you would understand our need.”
Despite how desperate this man seemed to be, Revan could tell he was holding something back. He did not need to know the future to discern that. Perhaps Kyosuke could sense it as well, for he shook his head at Maxson.
“I am in agreement with Rex,” Kyosuke said. “We have not proposed an alliance in order to fight your battles. As we have made clear to you, we also have our own despairing threat on the horizon and little firepower to combat it. Your Brothers and Sisters as you call them, their fighting prowess and combat technology is necessary for the Coalition’s success. Perhaps you should consider what it will mean to your world if we lose.”
Rex nodded. “Trust us, the enemy we face will threaten you as well, whether you help us or not.”
“Then you do not know the meaning of an alliance,” Maxson said, some fire in his voice. Kyosuke gripped his sword tighter as Maxson continued to speak. “I can not send my people to join your armies if you do not wish to help us in turn. I do not send men and women to the slaughter without purpose. I have united the Brotherhood and I will not have them broken again fighting for you.”
“I have a proposal,” Revan said, causing Maxson to turn on him quickly. It was the first time the other man had heard him speak. “We still have time to deliberate. I suggest we send one of our own back with you, Elder Maxson, and you send one of yours to us. Our chosen people can observe and report on our respective groups and ascertain if the threats are as dire as we both speak of.”
Kyosuke and Rex both seemed to consider it for just a moment. Rex seemed more unsure though he did not outwardly disagree. Revan could see that Maxson too was in favor of the idea just in his expression alone.
Of course, Revan already knew his proposal would work.
“That is acceptable,” Maxson replied. “I have a Brother in mind. Do you have someone?”
“We are on the brink of recruiting a number of men and women to our cause,” Kyosuke replied. “In a few days, we will choose one to send to you. I trust that is an acceptable amount of time?”
Maxson, for all his earlier bluster, politely bowed his head. “Farewell then. I hope to hear from you soon. Ad Victoriam.”
As Maxson left, the three men who remained stood in silence. Rex seemed to be considering the conversation, eventually breaking the silence.
“I hope letting these people into our ranks will not be unwise,” he said. “And of course, I hope we make the right decision on who we choose.”
Kyosuke responded by simply turning around and leaving the opposite way Maxson left, toward a low archway. Revan watched Rex a moment before turning to join the other man.
In the end, it did not matter. Revan knew who the choices would be.
Chapter 2 - The Photojournalist - Coming Soon
Last edited: