**Chapter 441**
**Despair and a Handful of Hope**
**Scene 1**
The *Gray Wolf* dropped out of hyperspace on the edge of the 12th Sector. Lantilles hung in the distance — a familiar jewel of industry and defense. Dagon stood on the bridge, hands clasped behind his back, and quietly reopened the bonds he had kept carefully muted during the Ryloth campaign.
At first, there was only silence.
Too quiet.
Then the itch started — a sharp prickling at the back of his skull. It rapidly blossomed into searing pain, waves of fear, suffering, and raw terror flooding through the connections.
*Stella.*
*Kayla.*
*Flare.*
*Visenya.*
*Ahsoka.*
*Zule.*
They were scared. Hurting. Some of the bonds flickered weakly, as if their owners were barely conscious.
Dagon staggered, gripping the railing as his vision blurred. A low groan escaped his throat. The pain was so intense it felt like his skull was splitting open.
Strong arms caught him before he could fall. Shin Wren pressed against his side, her white hair brushing his shoulder as she steadied him with surprising strength.
"Dagon!" she gasped. "What happened?"
He clenched his jaw, forcing the agony down through sheer will. "There is a disturbance… something terrible has happened on Lantilles."
Erictia moved to his other side, amber eyes wide with worry. "The girls?"
Dagon nodded grimly. "They're in danger. All of them."
**Scene 2**
"Sir!" the comm officer called urgently. "Emergency transmission from Moff Terbon. Priority Alpha."
"Put it through," Dagon ordered, still leaning slightly on Shin for support.
Moff Terbon's haggard face appeared on the main holoscreen. The usually composed officer looked exhausted and shaken.
"Ah, General — thank the stars you're back. We've been attacked."
"By who?" Dagon demanded.
Terbon's expression darkened. "It's… better if you see for yourself, sir."
The feed switched to recorded security footage from the restricted training sector where Nox and Ashara had been working with the girls.
**Scene 3**
The moment the shuttle ramp lowered in the devastated training complex, the stench of death hit them.
Over fifty clone troopers lay scattered across the training grounds and corridors — brutally cut down. Many bore clean lightsaber wounds. Others showed horrific injuries consistent with Yuuzhan Vong weaponry — jagged amphistaff strikes, coufee slashes, and the unmistakable pattern of vonduun crab armor impacts.
In the central courtyard, Dagon found Ntor Ragnos — his first true friend in this galaxy, the commander of the *Terminus* — slumped against a wall. A lightsaber had burned straight through his chest. His eyes were still open, frozen in defiance.
There was no sign of the girls. No sign of Nox. No sign of Ashara.
Dagon's hands clenched into fists so tightly that his beskar gauntlets creaked.
A surviving security hologram activated as they approached the central command chamber. The recording showed a slender, avian-featured female figure walking calmly through the carnage. A Fosh. Elegant, dangerous, radiating dark side corruption.
"Vergere," Shin Wren whispered, recognition flashing across her face. "Former Jedi Knight. She disappeared decades ago. Turned to the Sith… and lived among the Yuuzhan Vong for fifty years."
Dagon stared at the frozen image of the Fosh, his red-and-black eyes burning with cold fury.
"We must contact the Council immediately," Shin said.
"No." Dagon's voice was steel. "If we contact the Council, the girls will already be dead. It's *me* they want. And they know exactly how to get my attention."
He turned to Moff Terbon, who had accompanied them planetside.
"Moff, I'm giving you a message. If I have not returned in three days, you are to send it. Understood?"
Terbon saluted sharply. "Yes, General."
Dagon looked at Shin and Erictia. Both women stood ready, determination etched on their faces despite the fear he could feel through their fresh bonds.
"You once said you were okay with me sacrificing myself for the greater good," he said quietly.
Shin stepped forward, placing a hand on his armored chest. "We meant it."
Erictia nodded, amber eyes steady. "We're with you. Whatever it takes."
Dagon exhaled slowly, the weight of the galaxy pressing down on his shoulders once more. Yet in the middle of all this despair, a small handful of hope remained — the two women standing beside him, and the unbreakable will to save those he loved.
He looked out across the bloodstained training grounds, toward the stars beyond.
"Then let's go save the galaxy."
**End Chapter**
*(The Yuuzhan Vong Incursion Arc – Chapter 1 of 10)*