2. The City of Theed
===Brother Maximus===
Maximus had been walking for hours, and as he crested a large hill he saw a massive city sprawled out before him.
Using the magnifying capabilities of his helmet, he saw the city clearly, and saw massive cylindrical buildings, all leading to one massive structure that looked like a capital building for some sort of royalty, or some kind of leader.
He had to admit, the city was beautiful. It sat atop a cliff that overlooked a wide floodplain, and had all manner of green foliage growing around the city.
Ships of all sizes flew to and from the city, and Maximus assumed it was some sort of trading hub for the planet.
He said nothing as he began to walk once more, deciding to meet with whomever led this part of the planet, and find out where, or when, he was.
About an hour or so later, he finally walked into the city, drawing all eyes towards him as he too stared back at the inhabitants.
Xenos walked the city streets freely, which took him by surprise. But then again, if this was a planet that had yet to be conquered in the name of the Imperium, it would make sense.
He decided the best course of action was to not make a scene and start killing the Xenos. Not out of fear of the natives of this luscious world, but out of necessity.
If he started killing every Xeno he saw, it might hamper his objective to reconnect to the Imperium.
Walking through the city, everyone stopped and stared at the giant of muscle and metal walking their streets with a massive crate of his left shoulder, but he paid it no mind as he walked towards what he thought was the capital building.
The streets were lined with shops and merchants, peddling their wares for any and everyone who would stop and listen.
Beautiful architecture, music filling the streets, picturesque gardens, waterfalls, and all manner of things made his eyes wonder, and for a moment, he had to stop and take in the beauty of the city.
As he walked however, the moment was shattered as his helmet drew his attention to the sky, and he watched as massive circular ships appeared above the planet's atmosphere.
The people around him began to panic, and ran towards their shops or homes before slamming their doors closed, fearful and confused at what was happening.
Maximus just stood there, and watched as massive fleets began to descend from the battleships in orbit.
"Mr. Droid! Over here!" A young voice called out to Maximus.
He turned, and saw a small human girl with raven black hair, holding her hand out towards him, motioning him towards her.
He didn't pay her any mind, only looking back towards the sky to watch the ships descend before landing.
He then felt a small tugging on his right leg, and when he looked down, he saw the child trying to pull him towards the alley way she had come from.
"Come on you pile of rusty bolts, they'll scrap you!" She said as she strained against his weight.
He made no sounds, but chose to go with her.
When he finally moved, she fell over onto the ground, but quickly got up before running towards the narrow alleyway, disappearing into the shadows.
He saw her clearly however, thanks to his enhanced eyesight, and walked after her. His massive frame barely fit in between the buildings, and after a while of following the young girl through what felt like a maze, they finally made it to what looked like the slums of the city.
The little girl ran into a disheveled circular building that looked to be on the verge of collapse.
Maximum didn't enter the building, fearful of damaging any of the internal structures, so he just stayed outside for a moment before the child came back to the doorway with a young woman who had soot and dirt on her face.
She stopped as she took in his massive frame, and he could see the color drain from her face.
"See, i told you i found a big Droid!" The child said to whom Maximus assumed was her mother, though the woman couldn't have been more than twenty years old. She was extremely skinny, and her face was sunken from weeks of hunger, and her raven black hair, like her daughter's, had lost most of its luster. It was knotted and disheveled, and looked as if it hadn't been washed in a week.
The young woman shifted the little girl behind her back and slightly bowed her head towards Maximus in fear.
"I- I'm sorry if my d- daughter has caused you any problems. P- please don't be angry with her." She said fearfully, stuttering over her words.
The woman knew this was no Droid, as no Droid was this big, and she also saw the armor move as if breathing.
Maximus just looked down at the woman, having had this interaction thousands of times before.
"What planet is this?" He asked, his distorted voice catching the two off guard. Maximus then set the massive crate down on the ground before standing tall, his red optics causing the woman to slowly back into her home.
"N- Naboo sir." She said, her voice shaking.
He nodded at the unfamiliar name before a massive drop ship flew overhead and landed about a hundred meters away. It landed, and opened up to drop its occupants.
It dropped hundreds of robots that were folded in on themselves, but a moment later they started to change.
The droids stood from a crouched position before reaching to their backs and grabbing their weapons.
They formed into lines before starting to walk towards the city, and the house he was currently standing in front of.
The woman let out a shuddering breath, having not noticed the massive ships in the sky until that moment. She suddenly turned around and picked her daughter up before running out of the house.
She had no doubt that if she stayed, they would certainly be cut down.
Her only goal was to get to the Queen's palace, as that was the only place that would be truly safe.
"Mama, what about the Droid!?" The child asked as she watched Maximus over her mothers shoulder as the young woman ran.
Her mother didn't say anything as she breathed heavily, having no energy from the days of hunger she had endured the past weeks.
Maximus watched them go, and as his helmet zoomed into the little girl's frightened features, he knew what he needed to do.
He watched the mechanical droids enter the city, and began the subjugation of people in their homes.
Subjugating the future citizens of the Imperium.
He had no doubt that in time this planet would come under the control of the Imperium of Man, and he thought he could start the process of saving the city he was in.
"In the name of the Emperor. I will not fail." He said as he grabbed one of the massive bolt rifles. He slammed a magazine into the gun before racking a round and looking towards where the woman had fled.
He pushed the crate holding his weapons into her home before walking towards the alleyway, preparing to destroy the droids.
===Lyra===
Lyra held her daughter close to her chest as she ran, feeling like she was about to collapse. She was so weak, having not eaten anything for the past two days so her daughter could.
"Mama, the Droid! We can't just leave him!" Her daughter Nira said as she clung to her neck.
She couldn't say anything to calm the girl, feeling like if she used any effort to speak, she would pass out.
She kept running, a mothers instinct taking over her mind as she ran with only one goal in mind.
Droids filled the streets, and in her panic, she didn't notice the mass of droids catching up to her and her daughter.
She made it out of the alleyways and started to run towards the main citadel where the Queen's Guards were ushering people past the massive pillars into the equally massive doors leading inside.
She was so close, but a blaster bolt ripped through her right thigh, causing her to scream out in pain before collapsing on the ground.
She twisted as she fell, making sure her daughter was uninjured in the fall. She however, hit the ground hard, a dull 'CRACK' coming from her head as it struck the ground.
She couldn't move, her body not responding to her attempts to get back up.
Her daughter was calling for her to get up and keep going, but everything was hazy as she looked up towards the sky.
She then felt her daughter cling to her chest out of fear as the droids came closer, red bolts of energy and gas flying over their heads.
"Run," She said weakly to her daughter.
"Nira, RUN!" She almost screamed as she felt her daughter cling to her even tighter.
"Get to the palace!" She said as she used all her strength to push her daughter off of her towards safety.
"Mama, No!" Nira screamed as the sound of hundreds of droids grew louder by the second.
"RUN!" She screamed one last time at her daughter, seeing the fear in her face. Nira reluctantly got to her feet, and began running towards the palace, but as Lyra rolled from her back to her stomach to watch her daughter, her worst nightmare came to life.
A massive AAT came around the corner of the street, and pointed one of its secondary cannons at Nira, the girl faltered for a split moment as her fearful eyes looked at the laser guns.
"NO!" Lyra screamed as she saw the secondary cannons light up with red.
In that moment, she wished for nothing more than her daughter's safety, praying to any God who would listen to her.
But unbeknownst to her, a being comparable to all the Gods she knew of was listening, and one of his angels was nearby.
The massive man her daughter had brought to their home stepped from the alleyway to Nira's left to stand in front of the girl, and as the tank fired its secondary cannon, it seemed to bounce off the armor of his thigh.
Maximus felt the impact and reacted in a split moment, raising his bolter rifle, and firing it once.
One shot right down the main cannon was all it took to destroy the AAT, not because of the firepower, but because when he had tanked the first shot, the droids inside had decided to fire the main cannon at him, which met the bolter round that had been fired down its barrel.
The two met, and the incomplete discharge made the barrel, and laser charge battery explode, which caused the rest of the tank to follow.
Maximus looked around, taking in everything before moving at inhuman speed.
In a matter of seconds he had emptied his bolter into the surrounding droids, causing them to explode in violent fashion before slamming another magazine in, and going about his deadly work.
He moved with such speed that in a matter of moments he had wiped out a chunk of the droids surrounding Lyra and Nira, using his gun to take out those who were out of range while he used his fists to shatter any nearby.
He then placed his bolt rifle on the small of his back between his waist and pack before pulling his chainsword from his left hip while pulling his bolt pistol from his left thigh, firing it into the mass of droids before running full force into them. He swung his sword wildly, cutting anything in his way down.
He swept his chainsword through a pact of droids before his visor caught a droid of different color amongst the ranks. He raised his bolt pistol, and with one shot, sent the battalion into chaos.
Lyra watched as Maximus walked past her, destroying any bots who would do her and her daughter harm.
He raised his left foot, and brought it down with such force, it cracked the ground beneath him, and shattered the windows of the buildings nearby.
The droids around him were obliterated, giving him a moment to look around him. He had culled their ranks to a minimum in mere moments, and as her vision began to flicker in and out, she suddenly felt his massive cold metal hands wrap around her body.
He lifted her into his arms, and began to walk towards the Guards that were running towards them from the palace.
As she went in and out of consciousness, the last thing she saw was the golden wings encasing a skull on the man's chest.
"An Angel." She quietly whispered before everything went black.