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Post by Jensaar on Feb 2, 2014 19:29:01 GMT -8
Fanfiction written by Dark Watch councilor Jensaar over the past fall while on SWTOR hiatus involving my toons from the game.
Prologue
Setting: The planet Asation in the Veragi Sector of the outer rim territories
The planet Asation, a once active gateway world to the Gree Enclave, has now grown silent due to the recent events instigated by the Dread Masters. Since the crisis, the Gree have declared the planet to be on quarantine until the last remnants from the hypergates’ previous activation have been eradicated. Above the planet, eight ships appear out of light speed and make their way towards the surface. What this could mean for the planet, one can only guess….
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Post by Jensaar on Feb 2, 2014 19:32:55 GMT -8
Chapter 1
Dark, thunderous clouds cover the landscape of Asation, with the wind whipping across the ground as various creatures of unknown origins scramble for what bits of food remain in this near lifeless plateau. Across the land, the remnants of Gree architecture dot the landscape as they are slowly being reclaimed by nature, save for the ancient hyper gate. Towering on the lone island, it begins to crackle with power once again, as if trying to come back online. The stirring from the tower causes the nearby creatures to flee from the base of the portal. A crack of sound causes the creatures to stop and orient on the place where the sound originated as several ships begin to slowly land nearby.
Along the path leading to the gate, a lone man walks stalwartly towards an all too familiar place. As he passes through the main door, he looks upon the now cold corpse of Kephis and with a smirk chuckles as small creatures fight over the remains. “A fitting grave for that abomination,” Tas’meel thinks to himself before heading past the body. The creatures appear to give him a wide berth as if knowing it was he who delivered the killing stroke. Upon arriving at the base of the gate, he finds himself alone and begins to relax but then senses two more people approaching. As they become visible, he grasps his light saber hilt to be on guard. The two men, one fully clad in armor and one hooded in light cloths, walk side by side towards Tas’meel’s position. Their cautious pace showing that they are less familiar with this planet than is the Sith. The nearby beasts pick up on this and begin to show aggression towards the newcomers. The armored soldier draws his pistol to defend himself but is stopped abruptly by the hooded figure. “Calm, Major…These creatures can sense your fear. You must mind your emotions” says the hooded figure before waving his hand, causing the creatures to relax. The soldier looks back, slowly dropping his weapon; “You use your Jedi tricks, and I’ll keep my weapons primed with or without fear.” The Jedi nods quietly to the soldier as they progress towards the gate and now notice the man standing alone at its base. After approaching the island, they keep their distance from the lone man clearly staying cautious. They all look at each other, without speaking, as the air grows thick with anticipation of who will make the first move. Tas’meel looks between the two men and says, “Only two of you? I’m surprised you made it this far.” The trooper pulls down his assault cannon at the comment saying, “How bout I show you what I can do, Sith.” Tas’meel smiles before drawing his light saber, “Bravery of fools is better than no bravery at all.” The consular prepares himself for a fight as well but just as it is about to begin another sound from the sky draws their attention upwards. Another ship flies in low altitude at high speed overhead before returning to space. As the three men find their attention drawn overhead, they notice a glint of light as a small object comes flying towards them. As they ready themselves to take cover, the object takes shape in the form of another armored person streaking towards the gate. Activating his jet pack to guide his approach, he flies towards the gathering at high speed. As the group watches, he tucks and spins around to slow his decent coming to a dead stop a few feet above the ground. He shuts off his pack to land in the middle of the group. Tas’meel looks at the new addition and speaks first, “You couldn’t arrive like a normal person and walk here Arlack?” The mercenary looks back and responds, “Where’s the fun in that? Nothing beats a good high altitude jump. Now then…” He draws his dual pistols and points them at the major. “What’s going on here?” The consular steps forward, “Why don’t we all drop our weapons. We weren’t summoned here to fight each other. Major, I ask you to stand down for now.” “Fine” the major responds, “but I’ve got my eyes on that Sith. I’ve had more than my fair share of their *hospitality* in my life.” Tas’meel decides he is now fed up with this soldier’s attitude and dashes towards him with his saber drawn. In response, the major fires several bolt shots towards Tas’meel hoping to slow him down. Deflecting the bolts effortlessly, Tas’meel passes through the hail and stops just shy of his opponent. He jumps over his shoulders with a spin and lands directly behind the trooper. Placing his saber at the man’s neck he says, “This isn’t why I came here, but I’ll gladly show you my *hospitality* if you insist.” The major turns to the Jedi, “Uhhh, Master Alak… a little help?” The Jedi has already drawn his saber drawn has gathered an orb of force power in his palm is distracted as Arlack moves between them with his pistols drawn. “So…How do you want this to play out?” the hunter asks. Everyone freezes as a new voice speaks from behind Tas’meel. “You get one chance.”
The new man, wearing a crisp jacket, appears with a distinct flicker as a stealth field generator is deactivated. He holds a scatter shotgun directed at point blank range at Tas’meel’s back. Tas’meel turns his head to see the new arrival but keeps his position. “That’s not a very safe place to be standing.”
The smuggler, clearly not fazed by the threat responds, “You don’t seem to be in a position to say otherwise.” The bounty hunter, keeping his gaze on Master Alak addresses the group behind him. “He’s not the one you have to worry about…” Suddenly a high speed bolt lands a few centimeters from the smuggler’s foot scaring him back a step. The bounty hunter raises his head in the direction of the gate console drawing their attention to a man laying prone with a rifle aimed in their direction. As they watch, the man stands but keeps his weapon trained on them as he crosses over to the island. “Our orders were to not engage, my Lord Tas’meel,” he says. “Everyone lower their weapons and proceed to opposite sides no less than 10 paces apart until the rest arrive.” Tas’meel refutes this claim, “I will do whatever I wish with a man who believes he can take on a Sith.” Each person in the group begins shouting at the others in a way that becomes incoherent when suddenly there is a bright flash of light in the middle of them all and a burst of flames shoots outward. As the men blink in the aftereffects of the bright light, they see two figures standing at the place where the flames originated. Stepping out of the flames are two men with similar faces both of whom are well known by their respective allies. Tas’meel calls out to the man cloaked in deep read, “Darth Stryks.” While at the same time Alak calls the man cloaked in armored Jedi robes, “Master Stryks.” Standing in front of the group, Darth Stryks commands, “Back away. Now!” The Jedi nods towards the others and says, “Do it.” The consular then drops his guard as well. Slowly everyone begins to back away. Clearly, the leaders of each group have finally arrived.
Darth Stryks speaks first, “Now that we are all acquainted, let us begin. We all know why we are here. The Force has shown us that this gate is opening again and in order to stop it, we are to go through it. We don’t have to like each other and I couldn’t care less, but you will follow this through if you don’t want me and my men to leave you behind. As much as I loathe it, I’ve been forced to work with my Jedi brother here so we all have to swallow a distasteful idea.” The brother then steps forward, “Perhaps we should make introductions. That should help ease some of this tension. While I am not a fan of working with the Sith, this is for the greater good of the galaxy and so we should be able to put our personal issues on hold.” He pauses briefly, then continues, “I am Jedi Master Leo Stryks. For the sake of avoiding confusion, you may call me Master Leo.” He then walks over to the other Republic members. Following suit, Darth Stryks crosses his arms and says, “I am Darth Gian Stryks. Some of you may know of me as the Sith Dragon. Call me whatever you want. I don’t care so long as you do what you’re told, and don’t bother me.” Holstering his lightsaber finally the other Sith says, “Darth Tas’meel; friends call me Tas but you republic people can stick with Tas’meel or my lord…whichever you prefer.” Next the consular quietly nods to greet everyone more formally and says, “Like my fellow Jedi, I am Master Alak.” The soldier steps back and takes a moment to regain his composure before removing his helmet. His expression reveals a large degree of disgust towards the Sith. He grunts, “Major Dervis, and I want the record to show I’m here out of allegiance to Master Alak and Master Leo, not for you imperial vermin.” Gian looks over quickly, “Noted…” There is a brief silence and then the smuggler speaks up; “Captain Tannek. I hope that won’t be a problem with the bounty hunter since I’ve got a few guys who’d pay a good price for me…” The bounty hunter laughs before removing his helmet and shaking his head, “Not this time, Captain. This mission will net me twenty times what I’d get from dragging your ass back to Nar Shaddaa. Name’s Arlack.” After watching everyone else’s introductions the agent speaks up last; “Agent Jensaar, ID code: 2492511.” Lowering his arms, Gian says, “Now that that is settled. Let’s get to the reason we all came here. Jensaar, would you like to review the mission?” Jensaar nods and steps forward, activating a hologram screen. “Data shows that this portal is reactivating. As this console has not been touched, the only conclusion is that it is being activated from the other side. Our mission is to activate this portal ahead of schedule, journey through to the other side, deactivate the console by any means and make our way back here before the portal reaches critical mass and collapses on itself.” As he concludes, the hologram deactivates and he nods to Arlack who uses his jet packs to approach the console and starts activating the keys. The mercenary says, “This will only take a few minutes. I hope you all settled your affairs ‘cause once this opens, we will have two minutes to get in before it resets.” After a few moments the gate pylons begin to pulsate and arc electricity. A great maw opens in the center, drawing the air nearby towards a single point. Arlack jets back into the lineup and replaces his helmet. As they all stare into the portal, Leo addresses the group. “We have all come from different parts of this galaxy and regardless how we think of each other, our best hope is if we stick together. Beyond this portal is an unknowable evil and if we don’t work together then we are destined to fail. So here and now I ask that we swallow our pride and fight for the greater good…May the Force be with us all.” Everyone looks at each other and one by one they nod, now set on continuing this path. As they do so, eight tassels from the portal pour forth and wrap around each of them, pulling them all towards the portal. As the currents of hyperspace itself tug at their bodies, they feel themselves being flung into spaces unknown.
Flying through the vortex, Gian and his team head helplessly towards their destination. They stay in formation and look ahead to a bright light which they assume to be the exit. "Remember, whatever we encounter, we must stick together." Leo says as they draw closer to the light. Passing through the light, they feel a sudden and violent turbulence which throws them apart. Losing track of each other’s location, they become struck with fear that they may not make it through alive. Tossing and turning in the violent currents, each member of the team flies towards the exit without any idea where they might arrive or what awaits them on the other side...
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Post by Jensaar on Feb 2, 2014 19:52:47 GMT -8
Chapter 2
On an unknown world, deep within a dense forest, the sounds of native creatures can be heard as they forage for food. High above the tree tops, the air grows cold as lightning begins to arc towards a single point. As the discharges increase, space itself appears to warp until a hole tears open and spews out a bright light. Shortly before the hole closes again, a small figure appears.
Feeling the breath of air brush against his face, Darth Gian Stryks falls towards the trees below relieved to finally be out of that hell-hole of a portal. Still a little loopy from the turbulence, he doesn't react quickly enough to the trees as he falls towards the forest floor. He hits branches and tries to slow his descent before finally crashing to the ground with a heavy thunk.
Opening his eyes once again, Gian rises slowly to a sitting position and examines his surroundings.
"Ugh, that was not expected. Jensaar? Tas? Anyone of you republic guys?"
After listening for a moment, he focuses to detect where his teammates might have landed. Not sensing their location he moves to stand and discover where he might be. As he dusts off his pants, he notices several cuts caused by the branches during his fall and ignores them as minor scrapes.
Looking around Gian ponders, "What caused that transit? Those Gree will have much to fear if they left out a few details on gate travel."
His thoughts are interrupted by the growl of several beasts that approach slowly into the moonlight of the clearing where he landed. Reaching for his lightsaber but finding nothing there he groans, "Damn, it must've fallen on my way down."
He can sense the aggression from the beasts as they circle him, waiting for the right moment to pounce. "One...two...three...", he counts them as he prepares for the attack. After a moment, Gian sparks a small amount of lightning across his hand and the beasts move in for the kill.
Charging forward on all six legs, mouths open wide to show their razor sharp teeth, the beasts roar at their supposed prey. Letting out a loud shout, Gian calls on the Force to throw back two of the beasts in front of him. He then turns towards the beast behind him. Just as it reaches him, he grasps it in mid-air around the throat and tightens his grip. Snapping the beast’s neck, he spins around and hurls the limp body towards one of the others which are now rising again.
Returning his attention to the third beast, he unleashes a stream of lightning at it. It collapses, writhing in pain as more and more lightning is channeled into it. Gian is too focused on the creature to notice the last beast until it descends upon him. As the final beast dives towards him with its claws extended, ready to strike, Gian jumps back and avoids the razors by a hairs width.
Having missed its target, the beast charges forward another step and head-butts Gian, knocking him back several feet into a nearby tree. After recovering from the hit, Gian quickly looks up to see a small metallic object between him and the creatures. Realizing it is his lightsaber, he rises to his feet and pulls the hilt to his hand using the Force. As his grasp closes on the grip, he ignites the dual bladed hilt to reveal a crimson blade with a distinct black core. With fury in his eyes, as the blade dimly lights his face, he channels a bit more power through his body.
Now ready to end this little fight, he launches towards the beasts. Dodging under the first creature’s swipe, he rises and slices off several of its arms. He then turns to the second beast which is clearly surprised by the new weapon. Dashing towards the beast, Gian sends forth a wave of electricity channeled from his blade before getting underneath the creature and launching it into the air with a small burst of the force. Gripping it in mid-air, he forms a ball of flames in his hand and uses it to ignite the creature in a blaze of fire and light. Hurling the dying creature to the ground, he watches as the final, wounded beast limps back into the shadows.
Gian returns his lightsaber to his hip and looks around to be certain that there are no more creatures to fight.
"Why can nothing ever go as planned. Guess I'll go find the rest; otherwise everything we've done to get here was for nothing."
Thinking for a moment, he looks at one of the trees and says, "First I need to find where I am and get out of this jungle."
Suddenly a bright light shines down on top of Gian from a ship above.
"Oh, What now?” he asks himself irritated.
As he looks up at the light, he is surprised to feel a slight prick on his neck. He touches the spot only to discover a small dart. As he slowly loses consciousness, he thinks to himself, "What the...?" and collapses on the ground.
Shortly afterwards several lines drop down from above and men in identical black armor rappel in and collect the Sith Lord and his weapon. One walks out of the shadows of the trees and looks between the groups before speaking.
"Call command. Tell them we found something at the first anomaly."
As they lift the now bound Darth into the waiting ship, another looks back and asks, "What shall we do with him sir?"
"Orders are to bring whatever we find to the citadel. After that, it's above my pay grade. Perhaps the other teams will know better..."
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Jensaar flies through the portal after having lost track of the other members of the team. The constant turning and spinning threatens to cause him to black out. His training is the only thing preventing him from losing consciousness. He suddenly feels his body thrown from the turbulent currents of hyperspace and out into a snowcapped mountain range. He lands abruptly face first in the snow, but feels relieved to finally be out of that hyperspace typhoon. He slowly rises, giving his body time to adapt to the light and air around him. Still, sitting, Jensaar checks his gear for any issues that may have arisen.
"Communicator, check. Survival ration, check. Extra ammo packs, check."
After his checks are completed, Jensaar proceeds to access his comm unit in an attempt to find his teammates.
"This is agent Jensaar calling Asation team. Can anybody read me? Over." As he repeats the distress call several times, he notices the wind increasing. Jensaar begins to feel the cold closing in around him. Moving briskly down the slopes, Jensaar observes his surroundings to find the best path. He makes his way towards a low land that appears to have a river bed.
After descending for several hours, Jensaar is surprised to hear the sound of ion engines approaching his location. He decides to take cover behind some rocks to see what the purpose of the ship is. Adjusting his comm, he intercepts a transmission and listens carefully.
"...ess the situation around the detected anomaly and report back to command. Guard the techs while they take their readings. Lethal force has been authorized."
Hearing this, Jensaar decides to take out his pair of macro-binoculars and aims them towards the ship. He inspects the shape of the ship for familiar markings.
"This makes no sense,” he thinks, “We traveled through the portal, but the men in that transmission were speaking basic although that ship’s design is not familiar."
He watches the ship settle above the area where he landed. It starts to drop several men, clad in identical black armor complete with face masks. These men move in a military-like pattern. One of the troops stands out as along with the armor he wears a hood and cloak while carrying a long barreled sniper rifle.
"Standard sweep pattern, three infantry, two specialists and one recon." Jensaar thinks to himself.
As the team continues its deployment, Jensaar focuses most on the recon trooper who is moving in a distinct and methodical manner. Looking through his binoculars, Jensaar sees the recon trooper look up and direct a rifle in his direction. Lowering his binoculars, he hides behind the rock and thinks.
"He tracked my movements..."
Looking back briefly, he spots three of the troops now moving towards him and the ship flying overhead.
Acting quickly, Jensaar heads down further approaching a cliff side just as the ship arrives overhead. A spotlight catches him and a voice on a speaker says, "Attention unidentified agent, remain where you are or you will be fired upon."
Turning abruptly, Jensaar slides off the cliff, descending to the river bed below just as the ship opens fire. Rolling into the river bed, he takes cover under a rock face as the ship begins a search pattern. Jensaar remains in cover as he ponders who these men could be and also what he should do next now that they've opened fire on him.
"The ship seems to have twin guns with a single torpedo launcher. The troops were carrying what appeared to be a standard pack. I only have to worry about the recon soldier with the long range rifle."
Stepping into a small outlet, he lays down his rifle to cover the entrance and begin selecting his targets.
Three soldiers walk towards the gap in the rocks. The recon troop raises a hand.
"Hold up,” he says steadily, “This is a good bottleneck area to set up at."
One of the other soldiers approaches.
"How can you be certain?"
"Because it's what I'd do. I'll move up to the bushes on our left and provide cover while you both advance."
Nodding they wait for the signal.
Jensaar patiently waits inside his cover and analyses his options. As time passes, a single drop of sweat slowly runs down the side of his face. Believing that the time is now right and that the soldiers should be moving in, Jensaar decides to take a chance and gain the upper hand. Ducking low, he takes out a mirror and sets it up pointing in the direction of the entrance to the river bed before slowly moving off into the shadows of the rocks.
As the soldiers wait outside the entrance, they are alerted on their comms.
"In position, move forward and keep your eyes open."
They proceed into the direction of their last sighting of Jensaar. The sound of a few rocks falling from the side attracts their attention just as a blaster shot rings out. One of the troopers drops to the ground struck through his head.
Jensaar chambers another power cell and rises from his hiding place only to move closer to the entrance. He is now positioned behind the troops who entered along the sides of the cliffs.
"These men entered a killing field. They should know that any soldier with any training would never stay there."
Seeing that one soldier stays down in the valley, Jensaar circles around to locate the recon trooper who was obviously hanging behind. As he studies the outskirts of the rocks, Jensaar sees a flash in his rifle scope just as a bolter shot is fired from the valley,
"Target located."
His expression does not change. It remains straight and emotionless as he moves in that direction, focused on where the rifle shot originated. After several minutes of maneuvering, Jensaar reaches a small clearing where a man covered in a cloth tarp is laying against the rocks. Quietly, he approaches the sniper and with a quick motion chokes the man unconscious. Jensaar leaves his body on the side, removing the comm unit from his ear. Using the newly acquired device, he calls the man in the valley.
"No movement from where I fired,” he says. “I believe the target is down. I will cover you."
Jensaar watches as trooper gets up and slowly approaches the spot where he had positioned the mirror.
"They always think that's my scope reflecting in the sunlight."
The trooper peers into the alcove.
"There's nothing here but broken glass... What's going on?"
Jensaar responds, "I win".
Pulling back steadily on his trigger he fires a shot downrange hitting the trooper in the back of his head and dropping him where he stood. Then turning back to the recon soldier whom he had knocked out, Jensaar silently moves down and begins to strip the man’s gear.
Several minutes pass. There is a radio call to the waiting ship.
"Target eliminated” a voice states. “We have recovered the body and are ready for extraction. Unfortunately, he took out two of us."
The ship pilot responds, "Understood...On route now."
In the clearing just at the lip of the river bed, there stands the recon troop with a body at his feet. He is slowly cleaning off a dagger. The ship lands and the crew start to move the body onto the ship.
The recon troop asks, "What's our destination now, sir?"
The commander looks at him then back at the body, "Orders were orders... take the body to the citadel. After that, who cares?"
The trooper nods and walks forward into the ship. He takes a seat away from the rest of the men and slowly removes his mask. It is Jensaar under the trooper gear, having swapped outfits with the recon soldier.
Leaning back he considers his next move. As he ponders what to do next, he sees the ship leave the planet and head towards an orbiting space station...
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Post by Jensaar on Feb 5, 2014 16:48:20 GMT -8
Chapter 3
As rain falls onto the city streets, Master Leo Stryks walks silently down a vacant sidewalk completely bewildered by his surroundings after exiting the hypergate portal. His mind races with possibilities, wondering could have happened.
"What is this place?” he asks himself. “These signs are written in familiar languages. This shouldn't exist on the other side of the portal... What's going on here?"
He continues to walk down the street calmly and briskly. As he does, he hears various sounds from the back alleys of the city and becomes distraught by the vast amount of negative emotions he senses all around him. From within the storm, he hears a sudden cry for help down coming from a narrow gap across the street.
Leo instinctively turns towards the cry. He is not willing to turn a blind eye to another in need even in this unfamiliar place. Calling on the Force, he leaps across the street filled with speeding vehicles and runs down the alley in the direction of the scream. He turns a corner and is surprised to see a twi'lek woman running for her life from a Rodian man. A brief moment of confusion runs through his mind at the sight of the familiar species, but he quickly returns his thoughts to the moment at hand as the Rodian draws a pistol and fires at the fleeing woman.
Immediately, Leo runs towards the woman, but upon seeing the hooded Jedi emerge from the shadows, she stops believing he is another of her pursuers. Leo leaps over her, drawing his blade while in the air and deflects the bolt just as it's about to make contact. The Rodian, having seen the lightsaber, drops his gun and begins to shake with fear at the sight of the hooded man who now stands between him and his target. The Rodian falls to his knees before Leo and speaks in his tongue.
"Please forgive me for shooting,” he begs, “but this woman has been given to me by her family to pay off a debt. I ask that you let me take her."
Leo looks at the Rodian with half his face covered and the low light of his cyan-blue blade illuminating the alley and considers.
"I will not allow you to harm this woman. Leave now and do not come near her again."
The Rodian looks up at the Jedi and nods, then with a sigh of relief, he turns around and runs away quickly. Completely stumped by what just happened, Leo turns back to the woman whom he sees cowering behind one of the dumpster bins.
"It's okay; I'm not going to hurt you." Leo says as he extinguishes his lightsaber.
The twi’lek stares at the Jedi with fear visible in her eyes. She approaches cautiously, saying, "You... you carry one of their weapons. You're not going to kill me?"
Leo stares at her.
"Of course not. I wouldn't have saved you if I wished you harm. I could not stand by while an innocent was gunned down like that. Although I must confess, I am a little lost. Do you know where we are?"
She continues to watch him and responds still hesitantly, "A—Asation, sir. In the capital city’s lower entertainment sector"
She walks a little closer to the man who stands, arms crossed with his head down.
"Who are you, mister?"
Leo looks down. He is completely bewildered by her reply. His hood falls forward, dripping with water and concealing his face.
"How could this be Asation?!?” he thinks. “That is where we came from and there were no cities across the planet. And we have Rodians, Twi'leks… they speak basic... What is this?"
The woman approaches now clearly curious and asks, "Did I offend you?"
Belatedly, he realizes she's speaking to him.
"Sorry, what did you say?"
The woman, steps back slightly. "I... I was asking who you are, so I know who saved me."
The Jedi blinks a few times then lowers his hood to reveal his face.
"My name is Master Leo Stryks. Might I ask you your..." He stops, seeing the expression of terror that appears on her face. She has gone completely pale.
"Is something wrong, miss?"
The Twi’lek turns and flees, screaming as she does so.
"I'm sorry! Please don't take me!!!"
Before he can respond, she vanishes down the alleyway. Leo starts to follow. As he turns the corner again, he sees her run out into the middle of the street and be struck by an oncoming speeder car. Looking down, he clenches his hand in frustration. He wonders, "Why did she do that?" Then, in order to avoid, attention he slides back into the shadows of the alley. He turns to leave as a crowd begins to gather around the woman.
As Leo continues walking he ponders what took place. Above the noise of the city, he senses a familiar presence located within a cantina down the street.
"Thank the Force. I think I've finally found someone."
As he enters the cantina, Leo confirms his senses. He sighs with relief as he discerns the distinctive pilot’s jacket of the smuggler Tannek. The man appears engrossed in flirting with a few ladies at the bar. Leo starts towards him, but is intercepted the bouncer.
"Who are you?" demands the Gamorrean, placing one hand on Leo's armor-plated chest.
Leo looks up and lowers his hood once again, but before he can speak, he hears the music stop. The bouncer backs away abruptly.
"Apologies,” he mutters, “I had no idea."
Before Leo can ask what he means, he notices that all of the bars patrons are now looking directly at him. He becomes overwhelmed with the amount of fear he senses lying in their hearts.
Not wishing to cause an incident he speaks calmly.
"Go back to your drinks. I'm just here to see someone."
He then strolls over to the bar and taps his finger on Tannek's shoulder. This causes one of the women to move quickly out of the way. Tannek protests her departure.
"Okay, so it's not a star cruiser, but it's got plenty of space for you and me..."
He looks around to see who now wants his attention and his eyes widen in surprise.
"Master Stryks?...What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing, Tannek." Leo responds calmly, "We need to speak privately."
Tannek nods in understanding and the Jedi looks over at the bartender who is watching them cautiously.
"Do you have a room we could use to speak privately?"
The bartender nods quickly and waves to one of the assistants to take over the counter before guiding the two men to the back.
He leads them to an empty room.
"Is there anything you need?” the bartender asks, adding hurriedly “No charge at all..."
The Jedi looks at the bartender and shakes his head.
"No, that'll be all."
After the bartender closes the door, Leo looks back at Tannek.
"Now...Where were we?"
"You were in the middle of ruining my first chance with a Zeltron.” Tannek responds with a degree of annoyance in his voice. “You realize what that would've meant? The stories, about them, alone could turn a boy into a man..."
Looking slightly irritated Leo says, "Asation... Gree hypergate... going through the portal. Does any of that ring a bell to you?"
Tannek stares at him, "That was real? I woke up in the cellar of this cantina so I assumed that I just had a bit too much to drink."
Leo shakes his head with disappointment.
"So...we actually did that?"
"Yes,” Leo responds, “and I sense that something is not right with this world. Did you not notice the fear people displayed when they saw me? It is not the first time."
He closes his eyes as he recalls the event that took place in the alley.
"A woman was getting chased and I saved her. She said that this place is the capital city of Asation. After I told her my name and showed my face, she ran away with such fear that she went into traffic and was hit."
Tannek lowers his head.
"Sorry to hear that... But that doesn't explain why you had to ruin it for me. I had it in the bag."
Leo looks at him sternly and snaps his fingers saying, "Focus..."
Sighing Tannek replies, "Fine... If that all happened, then where in a Hutt's backside are we?"
Looking up to the ceiling and closing his eyes, Leo says, "I'm not sure, but I sense a darkness across this world. We must trust in the Force and believe that we will find the others as well as figuring out the truth of this."
Back in the main room of the cantina, the music has begun playing again. Five men, hooded in black cloth and face masks enter from the rain. Everyone grows silent and gives the men a wide berth. The bartender approaches them and bows.
"How may I serve you, my lords?" he asks.
The leader of the group casually raises his hand. He grips the bartender by the throat and begins to choke him with the Force.
"A man entered here,” he grates from under his mask, “where is he?"
"B...Ba...Back room. Please, forgive me."
The man struggles to speak. He stains against the invisible grip which holds him several inches off the floor.
The mysterious man nods, satisfied.
"You are forgiven..." he says and closes his fist, breaking the bartender’s neck.
He discards the body and the group walks silently towards the back room where Leo and Tannek are speaking.
Leo is now speculating about how they might find their team.
"So, you go find a ship for us. I'll see if I can sense Master Alak first. From there, we can find the rest easier."
Tannek nods. "Works for me, there's no ship I can't fly and I'll make sure she's a beauty."
Leo agrees.
"Good, now once you've got a ship, call me and we'll..."
He stops speaking and turns towards the door igniting his saber.
"We've got company." He warns.
Tannek quickly takes his feet off the table and looks towards the door just as it bursts open and the five men enter with bright red lightsabers active in their hands.
The leader glances around then speaks.
"So it's true. A Jedi is here. Our masters thought they felt a change. Now, you will be coming with us."
Leo and Tannek although completely surprised by the strangeness of this situation reply in unison, "Never."
Tannek moves first, lobbing a two grenades at the group before overturning the table to create cover. The first grenade creates a blinding flash intended to distract the group. Unfortunately, the attackers’ masks prevent the light from stopping them. Four of the men jump forward as the fifth is flung from the room by the explosion of the second grenade. Leo jumps forward and takes one of the remaining four down in mid-air with a straight slash through the man’s waist. Two of the attackers break off and engage Leo in a flurry of lightsaber flashes, while the third turns his attention to Tannek.
Tannek looks over the table and fires a series of shots which are deflected effortlessly by his foe. The man then brings his saber straight down through the table, ruining its cover. Tannek rolls clear. As he does so, he places a small mine on the floor. The man jumps towards Tannek who fires at the mine itself causing a fireball to envelope his attacker. As the man hits the ground, Tannek draws his scatter-shot and puts it pointblank against the man’s head. He is about to pull the trigger when he is sent flying back against the wall by a push from the Force. The man who was knocked aside by the original frag grenade has now returned to the fray.
Leo who is engrossed in holding off two of the attackers, sees Tannek strike the wall. He leaps over the two men and lands next to Tannek just in time to stop the attacker’s killing blow. Drawing on the Force, Leo shapes a wave that knocks the group towards the entrance. He then looks back at Tannek.
"This doesn't look good. There's not enough room to move. Tannek, I'll make an opening for you. You'll have to make a run for it. Find the others..."
Even as he speaks, Leo turns his attention back towards the attackers. Before Tannek can argue, Leo readies himself. The attackers renew their assault now jumping forward to attack from different angles. In the moment before they act, Leo draws on the Force focusing on his movements. Time seems to slow, as he brings himself into a more and more calm state. Feeling his inner peace grow and willing to do what is necessary, Leo opens his eyes and moves to attack.
After blocking the first man’s attack, Leo twirls around with a flying kick to knock the second behind him back. Moving with a fluidity and speed that Tannek could barely track, he uses his free arm to back-fist another man to his left knocking him to the ground. Finally, seeing an opportunity, he directs his remaining energy and focus to the fourth man who is blocking the door. Channeling his power into his saber, he makes a downward slash which sends a sharp wave of force energy towards the fourth man. Unprepared for such an attack, the man tries to raise his saber to block, but his response is too slow and he is cut in two from head to toe, as the wave passes through him.
Tannek is completely stunned by such a move and remains frozen in place until he hears Leo shout.
"Tannek... Now!".
Following the order, Tannek drops a smoke bomb and activates his stealth generator as he heads towards the door.
Leo yells, "Find the others!" as he continues to fight defensively. He deflects strike after strike with the Force guiding his every move. But with every attack, his already ebbing energy is further depleted. Eventually, a saber breaks through his defenses and pierces his shoulder. Not looking back, Tannek sneaks through the now empty bar and hides in a dark alley.
Tannek watches the cantina until he sees an armored carrier land near the entrance and start disgorging armed troops from the back. Afraid for Master Leo's fate, he continues to observe carefully from a distance. As the men exit slowly, he realizes that Leo lost the fight but nonetheless sighs with relief when he sees them carrying the unconscious Jedi, now cuffed, out of the bar. They take him into the carrier.
Tannek is about to leave when he overhears the men speaking.
"Tell the masters that they were right and they won't believe who we've captured..."
Turning, Tannek moves deeper into the city. He fears for Master Leo, but is more concerned that they will look for him. He takes only a few steps before slamming into an armored chest plate. He falls back on his butt. Expecting it to be another trooper, he draws his pistol only to stop as he realizes it is Arlack who stands before him. Arlack looks down at Tannek his expression hidden by his helmet.
"Don't even think about running,” he says. “Now, get off your ass and let’s grab a ship before we lose them. Otherwise, the guilt from being a coward will be the most peaceful thoughts you can think of after I'm done with you."
Arlack extends a hand and Tannek looks at it hesitantly before gripping it and allowing Arlack to pull him to his feet.
"Right..."
Arlack looks at the shuttle as it's preparing to take off and fires a small object from his wrist launcher.
"I put a tracker on their hull,” he tells Tannek. “If we hurry, we can follow them."
The two men turn and head further into the city, hoping to find the spaceport and, if luck was on their side, a ship to be used.
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Post by Jensaar on Feb 5, 2014 17:10:16 GMT -8
Chapter 4
The space port is flooded with the sound of arrivals and departures as crowds of various alien species wander the halls. In the midst of the commotion, Tannek and Arlack walk into the main gathering room quietly and briskly.
Looking over, Arlack says, "We need to find a ship and fast. There's a terminal over to our left. You try and pull up the ship manifests and I'll be lookout..."
Tannek nods and they both walk over to the console.
"Ok it's been a while since I've done this, but just whistle if someone sees." Tannek says as he starts typing quickly.
After a few moments, the console dings and Tannek says, "Got it... Now let's see. Most of these ships couldn't outrun a planet. This one seems good -- wait never mind, it doesn't have any living quarters."
"Who gives a damn about the quarters? Is it fast?"
Tannek continues reading, "Yeah, but I don't want to fly in some garbage truck, we need a ship that has the look too."
At that moment, another chime sounds and Tannek looks cheered.
"Found it. KDY design, good looks and – wow! Verpine hyperdrive with a rating of zero point six. We've got a winner. It's in hangar B12."
"I had a ship with a Verpine drive once, very high-end and very rare. Who is the owner?"
"Unlisted... Seems the guy didn't want to be known."
"Well then, we'll thank him for his ship later. Now, let’s go."
After shutting down the console, they head towards the lift for hanger B12 and their target ship. As the lift doors open, they both look upon the ship sitting peacefully in the hangar. Tannek starts to run towards the loading bay as Arlack stands back simply looking on. Tannek turns around at the ramp and sees Arlack frozen.
"What're you doing? We gotta go. Who knows when the owner might come back."
Arlack tilts his head to the side asking, "What was the ID tag of this ship?"
"D5M6CH11 -- who cares?" Tannek responds, looking confused and slightly annoyed.
Arlack looks around through his helmet, plainly perplexed.
"That's the tags of the ship I had with a Verpine drive... The same ship I remote crashed into an asteroid to get pursuers off my back. This isn't possible."
Tannek’s eyes widen as he considers how difficult it is to copy ID tags and the similarities of his discovery to the ship Arlack describes.
"Maybe you've got a fan. I'll check the logs and see what I can dig up, but for now, let’s GO!"
He turns around and enters the ship.
Shaking his head, Arlack starts to run towards the ship’s entrance when suddenly he hears voices from behind him. Turning, he sees a group of men approaching accompanied by a detachment of port security.
As the men draw closer, the one in the lead speaks.
"Pleasure doing business, commander. By this time next week, you'll have everything you need to bring the Mandalorians in. -- Who the hell are you?!"
The man draws his gun as he sees the stranger standing near his ship and runs to stop him. Arlack responds by drawing his own weapons and points them at the armored man.
"As much as I appreciate the flattery of copying my ship, I think I'll be taking it back. And if what I heard about the Mandalorians is true, then all the better."
As he takes a few steps back towards the ramp, he gets and eerie feeling about the man who claimed to own the ship.
The owner looks at the troopers behind him.
"He has another man powering up the ship. Get in there and shoot him. I'll drop this guy."
In that instant a rocket launches from the vessel and lands on the ground between the men. An alarm sounds and a voice can be heard over the intercom.
"Stop having lunch with the locals and get in here! We have to take off before they lockdown the hangar."
Arlack turns to head for the entrance when suddenly the armored man jumps forward with his jetpack assisting him and drives a punch across Arlack’s helmet, cracking the visor. Arlack drives his knee into the assailant’s stomach and pushes him back before firing a volley of blaster shots.
The man dodges the shots, then pulls Arlack towards him with a grappling hook. The fist fight resumes. After a few more punches and kicks, it seems that the two men are evenly matched, exchanging punch for punch. Realizing this would last too long, Arlack fires his flame thrower at the man who jumps back to avoid the blast.
The ship begins to rise, preparing for take-off, and Arlack sees that his time is running out. He activates his jetpack and launches a barrage of rockets at the target as he lifts. After landing on the loading ramp, Arlack looks back to see that the man has survived with only a cracked helmet. This he now removes in order to see his opponent and return fire. Arlack is shocked to see an exact twin of himself save that this one has more cybernetic enhancements. Arlack removes his helmet as well and sees the same surprise reflected in the other man’s face. They take one last look before the ramp closes and Arlack and Tannek fly off in the stolen ship.
Entering the cock pit, Arlack sits down. He is still shocked by what he saw.
"Ok I'm officially confused,” he says. “That guy looked just like me."
"No kidding. I took a look at the log book. It's definitely you... only different. It said that you were a member of a group of sith called Seekers. Never heard of that before."
Arlack shakes his head, "Me neither." After a moment he sighs and says, "Let’s just find the others. I'm sure they can shed some light on this and it's giving me a headache."
Tannek turns back to the controls.
"Ok... well, we have two choices. Master Leo was taken up to a station orbiting the planet and it hasn't moved from there, but the logs also said that this guy was sent to track down two others on the outskirts. Those two resemble our friends Major Dervis and Master Vis. Which should we go to first?"
Arlack looks down.
"If your Jedi friend isn't going anywhere, then we should pick up the others first. These guys are looking for them, so they're bound to run into trouble."
Tannek nods, "That's true. Okay, plotting a coarse now. It shouldn't take too long. In the meantime, man the guns in case we have any bogies on our tail." He then pulls back on the throttle and flies the ship off into the distance where the storm continues to rage.
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As thunder and lightning crack in the distance, two men approach a dark and quiet town with feelings of dread and woe. The men walk closer to the town hoping to find shelter with the locals but upon entering find the town vacant and dead. Houses are crumpling due to disrepair and the ravages of time.
Stopping on the outskirts of the town, the first man places his hand on his wrist band and after a few moments says, "No life signs... Seems this town was abandoned long ago. I don't like it. If there were any other choice, I'd say we move on from here."
He looks at the hooded man next to him as he continues to check his wrist readout for the surrounding area.
After a few more moments, the hooded man proceeds to enter the town.
"We should find shelter for the night. The storm will be upon us soon... I need a place to sit and find my center. Major, I would suggest you start with finding some kindling to start a fire."
Nodding, the major points to the tallest building in the town.
"That one gives us the advantage of height and the best view. I'd recommend we camp there for the night." He then turns around and heads down towards the trees, soon vanishing into the night.
Sitting quietly in the watchtower, Master Alak gathers his thoughts and tries to center his mind. As a Miraluka, Alak has always struggled to clear his mind outside the Jedi temple. His species' ability to see through the Force always placed him in close connection with parts of the world that few share, and the war torn parts of the world affected him more than most. His feelings become clouded and he is distracted by the sound of approaching thunder.
"I wonder what could have caused such anguish. The Force echoes through this place with memories of pain and suffering."
Meditating he begins to glow brightly, the Force warming his body from within. Suddenly, he senses a strong disturbance in the Force.
Five men in black cloaks walk down the main street of the town towards Alak’s position.
The leader looks up and says, "We've found him."
Advancing ahead of the rest, the man leaps up to the overlook where Alak sits. He approaches from behind, but the Jedi master does not stir. Stopping just behind him, the leader speaks.
"You should've made it harder to find you. The thrill of the hunt is where the fun comes from."
Gazing calmly into the distance the Jedi says, "You are mistaken to believe that I wished to hide. Or that I was not expecting you."
Suddenly the room begins to buckle and the man feels a great weight in his chest before being flung through the entrance by a heavy push through the Force. Landing on his back, the man looks up to see Master Alak standing on the edge of the overlook. Glowing green with the light of his now activated saber, he looks down at the group and speaks coolly.
"I see the Darkside all around you. The echoes in this village resonate with all of you. You cannot hide where you stand from my eyes. Turn back now, and I will not pursue you."
Activating their deep red lightsabers, the men begin to spread out around the building. Together, they leap forward, ready to kill the Jedi. Master Alak leaps from the platform above the men and sends a wide wave of Force Energy towards them. This sends them tumbling back to the ground. He lands lightly behind them.
"Never attack the man with the high ground." He observes.
As his opponents struggle to regain their feet, Alak quickly closes the intervening distance. He slashes his first target across the chest and sends the second one flying back with another Force Push. After blocking a saber attack, Alak kicks the man away only to be pushed back by another who attacks with unexpected skill and fluidity.
Alak had never focused as much on saber combat as on his other abilities with the Force, so is not fully prepared for the ferocity he now faces. After defending for a brief moment, he tries to attack, but his lightsaber is knocked from his hand. The man moves to deal the finishing blow, but his saber suddenly stops just before striking Alak, held by an invisible force.
"A true Jedi is never without a weapon."
The barrier of force energy which stopped the saber now becomes visible around Alak. He gathers more of the energy in his hands then flings it towards the man’s chest at point plank range. This impact sends the man flying backwards into a nearby building. The man screams as the roof collapses and he is buried under weight of the building.
Looking back at the remaining three men, the Jedi speaks again.
"My life is for the Force, and in return the Force protects and guides me."
Using the Force to pull his lightsaber back to himself, the Jedi prepares for another engagement. The men charge forward all at once, two of them scaling the walls from either side as the last one heads down the middle. Suddenly, a rapid series of bolter shots and explosives go off across the alley, landing a direct hit on one of the men and putting him down.
From behind Master Alak, the major runs up quickly.
"I heard the fighting from the distance. Who the hell are these guys?"
Alak turns around.
"Agents of the Darkside. If we wish to find out more, we will have to capture one of them."
The leader in the middle laughs loudly. "If you think we're going to let you two go that easily you're mistaken. We are Seekers. We are not the only ones here."
Pressing a button on his wrist, the leader looks up to the sky as drop pods fall all around them, releasing squads of armored troops and a few more Sith. "Now you can either come the easy way, or the fun way. I really hope you choose the fun way."
Master Alak looks at Major Dervis .
"Major, suggestions?"
Major Dervis responds, "We're heavily outnumbered. I suggest we fall back and use the buildings for cover, but without help, there's not much else we can do but stall."
Loading a fresh energy cell into his assault cannon the major prepares for the attack. Master Alak nods.
"I'll protect us until we get away, then you lay down cover until I can counter."
Extending his hands, he forms renewed barriers around both of them and creates a pool of rejuvenating energy that refreshes both men’s fatigue.
"Ready?"
"Ready..."
Dervis sweeps his cannon across the street firing at all the men standing on the rooftops to disrupt their formations. The enemies take cover from the barrage and the Seekers deflect the bolts with their lightsabers only to watch as the two men turn and run towards a series of buildings for cover. They return fire, but the bolts are deflected by invisible barriers. The two men dodge as best they can while running. Just as they round the corner, a rocket lands at Dervis’ feet. It explodes, flinging him into a wall with a thud. Master Alak runs up to him and erects a large barrier in front of them while checking the major for injuries.
"Your armor absorbed the hit but you've got some burns. Here, I'll heal you."
Placing his hands on top of the soldier, he directs a wave of healing Force Energy to the burns causing them to heal quickly. A second rocket strikes the new barrier, causing it to collapse. The major returns fire, using a loaded gravity round. He hits the man with the rocket launcher and the round begins to warp the localized space. It crushes the man into nothing.
Chuckling the major says, "That'll teach him.” Then, he frowns, “Master Jedi, we can't keep this up for long."
The two begin to run again with men hot on their tails when Master Alak suddenly stops.
"You are correct. We can't keep running."
They round a corner to find themselves face to face with the large group of men.
"I am Vis Alak, Master of the Jedi Order and Keeper of Healing.” He states firmly. “You will go no further. I warned you that the Force would protect me, but it will also defeat you..."
As the soldiers launch a series of small mortars at the Jedi, he crosses his hands and then pushes them forward, channeling the Force. As he does so, he sends forth two powerful waves of Force Energy which cause the mortars to rebound towards the men who fired them. Some manage to take cover, but others are hit causing large scale explosions across the town.
At the same time, Major Dervis returns fire, picking off one trooper at a time and providing covering fire for Master Alak.
"Now you will feel the power of the Force and what healing can teach."
Clasping his hands together, Alak builds up energy then slams his hands into the ground. Suddenly the ground starts to shake. The men look around wondering what is happening, but the leader of the Seekers yells scornfully.
"Is that the best you've got? A little rumble?"
Master Alak smiles, "It's not the rumble you should worry about... but rather what's causing it."
Immediately the ground opens and from it sprout dozens of large roots from the nearby trees. These surround and entangle the troopers, completely immobilizing them.
Alak sighs with exhaustion as he regards them.
"You have underestimated me."
Behind him Major Dervis approaches.
"Excellent work.” he proclaims. “Now we can just pick them off one by one."
"No, Alak responded firmly, “We will not kill defenseless people."
The men continue to squirm inside the mess of vines and several of the Seekers begin to break free using the Force to enhance their strength beyond its normal limits. The leader is one of the first to emerge. He and several Seekers near him land on their feet and charge straight forward with sabers drawn. Major Dervis looks up and opens fire hoping to slow the six men now converging on their position.
The Seekers deflect his bolts. They continue closing the distance and the leader yells, "Just lay down and die!"
Suddenly, from the side of the street, a seventh blood-red lightsaber flies forward and decapitates one of the Seekers before retracing its arc towards the alleyway. The men turn to face this new threat, wondering who it could be. In the silence that follows, a man clad in deep blue and black armor leaps out from the darkness moving at blinding speed towards the group of Seekers.
Landing just in front of the first man, this new figure spins around while raising his saber in an upward slash, slicing the nearest Seeker in two. The rest react by charging forward. But the man is prepared. He sends forth a heavy roar through the Force which throws three of the remaining four Seekers backward. The fourth one tries to land a blow from above but is cut short as a swift, invisible grip closes around his neck. He gasps for breath, struggling in midair as the remaining Seekers try to regain their composure.
The armored man walks forward almost casually and reaches for the choking Seeker’s throat with his actual hand. He turns and addresses their quarry.
"If anyone is going to kill you two, it'll be me,” he informs them. “Master Alak, if you can't handle a simple team like this, then you are a disgrace to the Jedi. And don't get me started with you, trooper."
Major Dervis recognizes the voice and shouts in reply.
"Tas'meel... If you spent half as much time helping as trying to insult us, you'd have been here long ago. Now, shut up and help us out."
Tas’meel regards the major with an annoyed expression. He throws the man he is holding into the group of foes, then steps forward and crushes his face under the weight of his boot and killing him.
"I wouldn't have joined in the fun if I wasn't going to..."
Looking back at the three remaining Seekers he adds, "Unlike this Jedi, I've no problem killing you all and I am not giving you a chance to leave..."
Jumping forward, he slams his fist into the ground with enough force to create a shockwave. He then throws his lightsaber at one of the men who deflects it and tries to counter attack. Tas steps forward and grabs the man’s arm, then flips him over one shoulder, snapping the man’s arm and claiming the Seeker’s lightsaber for his own. Using this new blade to block another attack from the leader, he pushes him back and calls his own lightsaber to his hand. Discarding the one he just took, he turns to face another opponent.
Tas'meel crouches down, directs the blade of his saber behind him and channels a large amount of Force energy into his legs and the vacant space. Letting the Force explode, Tas dashes forward at such a speed he almost seems to vanish. He moves towards one of the last two Seekers who is unable to track his movements and thus unaware until Tas' saber connects with his stomach and slices straight through. Continuing past the man he had just bisected, Tas doesn't turn until after the Seekers body explodes due to the force that hits him after the initial slice.
Tas’meel turns with a smile to regard the last Seeker.
"And then there was one..."
The leader who has finally regained his feet after being knocked back yells in reply.
"You may have killed them, but they are meaningless. I will kill you all!"
He presses a few buttons on his wrist and everyone hears the sound of engines as two ships arrive to assume positions above the town. "I will raze this town to the ground if I have to."
Tas'meel chuckles and dashes forward once again, but stops a few feet in front of the Seeker leader. He raises his saber and slices off the man’s arm then leaps over his head. As he does so, Tas flips and spins in mid-air removing other arm before landing behind his opponent.
"Let’s see you raze shit now..." Tas chuckles and holds his saber at the man’s neck.
As the ships above start to take aim, they are rocked by a series of missiles and lasers. Another ship, this one piloted by Tannek and the hunter Arlack arrives. The Seekers ships are destroyed and crash into the nearby buildings.
A voice is then heard over the ship’s speaker.
"Major, get Master Alak on board. We've gotta get out of here before we stir up the rest of the planet!"
Moving in closely, the ship settles just above the men keeping its weapons trained on the tangled troops and crashed ships.
As the loading ramp lowers, Arlack steps out to offer assistance. He flies over to the many troops still entangled and sets the small jungle of vines on fire with his flamethrower. After returning to the ramp, he watches as Dervis helps Master Alak into the ship. He turns back to Tas'meel who is still standing by the downed Seeker leader and chuckles.
"You always like torturing your enemies?"
Tas'meel looks back at Arlack and nods.
"Well, don't kill him just yet,” the hunter advises. “We have some questions. If he doesn't give any good answers, then you can kill him to your heart’s content."
Laughing Tas'meel strikes the man in the back of the head and knocks him out. He then hoists the body over his shoulder and walks up the ramp, following Master Alak and Major Dervis.
As he passes Arlack, Tas'meel says "Clean up for us. No traces..."
Nodding Arlack turns back to the scene below. He throws several thermal detonators into the remains of the troopers. In seconds, they are consumed by light as the explosions leave nothing but a smoldering crater of what used to be the abandoned town.
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Post by Jensaar on Mar 18, 2014 8:08:09 GMT -8
Chapter 5
Footsteps echo as uniformed troops walk through the many halls of the Space Station Citadel in orbit above the planet Asation. As speakers announce arrivals and departures, a single hangar bay is cleared for a shuttle which arrives abruptly from the planet. After docking procedures are completed, the loading ramp lowers and several soldiers exit alongside a black wrapped body bag. Agent Jensaar, still in the disguise of a recon soldier, exits and follows silently with the rest so as to not have his cover compromised.
"Trooper," says an officer who meets the group, "Go with these men to Storage C and deposit this body for inspection. Then, report to Observation Deck B for debrief."
Nodding, Jensaar replies under his mask, "Yes sir." and proceeds to follow the group with the body. He is glad that he has them to follow or else he would be lost.
After walking through several halls and different floors, the group arrives in a vacant morgue. There they lay the body on an empty table.
One of the troopers unzips the body-bag. He then looks at Jensaar.
"Do you confirm that this is the man you eliminated?"
Removing his helmet, Jensaar says, "Affirmative, that is the man we engaged."
Writing on a piece of paper the trooper says, "Nice and clean, now we can go get some lunch. Just have to sign this paperwork and we'll be done."
Suddenly one of the other troops says, "Hold up sir, I know this man..." He looks closely at the body. "We went to the academy together." He then looks suspiciously at Jensaar.
There is a pause of several seconds as the men stare at one another. One directs his eyes briefly towards the alarm button on the wall, but before he can react Jensaar kicks the body from the table. The dead body is flung into two of the soldiers who fall to the ground. The second man begins to draw his pistol, but Jensaar closes with him.
He uses a series of fast punches, finishing with a blow to the throat which brings the man to his knees. Jumping over the table, Jensaar lands between the two men, draws two knives from his gear and stabs each of the two men in the chest. Rising, Jensaar walks around the table to where the final man struggles for breath. Jensaar stops behind him and effortlessly breaks his neck.
Thinking to himself, "No traces." Jensaar begins by locking the door and proceeds to place each body in an empty morgue chamber. "I didn't expect any of them to recognize that man. A calculated risk, but at least my cover is secure for now."
After cleaning up the mess and placing the body of the man he has replaced in storage, Jensaar slowly leaves the morgue. He heads down the halls looking for a computer terminal. Eventually, after traversing several corridors, Jensaar comes across an unused terminal and begins to look through its numerous functions.
"Everything so far is exactly the same as our home, so assuming that continues, then the computer functions should be similar."
After a few moments, he accesses various databanks containing information about the military and this station. As he reads the files, his eyes widen with emotional signs he normally hides. He continues reading faster and faster thinking, "This makes no sense..."
He is interrupted abruptly by an alert on the computer stating that another team has returned with a Jedi in custody. After briefly memorizing the schematics of the station, Jensaar rushes to the docking bay designated for the inbound shuttle.
Arriving in the bay just as the shuttle lands, Jensaar stops in time to see several black cloaked men depart the ship with Master Leo still bound and unconscious. Debating whether he should attempt a rescue Jensaar thinks, "No... too many people and father would likely want me to leave him here. The least he deserves after nearly taking my arm off."
He then overhears the cloaked men speaking to a commander, "Caught another one I see,” the commander says. “The last one who arrived was in a body bag. We have the other one in Cell Block A. Put them together. Someone from higher up will handle them personally."
The cloaked men silently walk past without any visual acknowledgement and proceed down a dark corridor.
Quickly returning to the computer terminal, Jensaar resumes his reading, now looking for any entries concerning recent captives. After a few moments, he discovers a report that a Sith was also captured. The description of this man is similar Darth Gian. Digging a little deeper, Jensaar learns that both men were captured after being found near a hyperspace anomaly. This is similar to how the agent himself arrived.
"New objective: Rescue the captives and escape to find the rest." He thinks to himself. He locates a route to the cell blocks where they are being held and begins walking quickly in that direction.
Deep inside the station in an unmarked room, two men are held prisoner. They are bound by metal clamps and a dozen battle droids stand idle around the room. As one of the men stirs from his sleep, his eyes adjust slowly to the darkness. Looking around carefully, he sees the other man who is secured beside him.
"Even bound next to you, I find it very humorous to see you tied up like that." Gian says out loud directing his comment to Leo.
The sound of Gian’s voice causes the other man to stir from his slumber.
"Brother... I am relieved to see you are well too. Perhaps we can think of a way out of here first, before you try to kill me again?"
Gian laughs loudly. He then looks around at the many droids and turns serious again, "Tell me you learned something before being captured and I may hold off on that till we return home..."
Leo nods and begins to recount his experiences in this new world and all that he learned until the men in the cantina took him captive. As he speaks, Gian remains ominously silent and doesn't interrupt not even to chuckle when he hears of the fight and Leo being knocked unconscious.
"And that is a much as I know,” Leo concludes. “I was hoping perhaps you knew more."
Shaking his head silently Gian says nothing out of shame for his capture. He stops suddenly, his attention drawn to the entrance to the room.
"Someone is coming..."
As he speaks, the door opens and a hooded figure slowly enters. It approaches quietly and every step sends a chilling tingle along both Leo and Gian's spines. It stops in front of them and utters two words: "At last."
The figure pauses, gloating. Its voice is a hiss. "We were told to expect you but both... I am quite pleased." The man then approaches Leo and places two fingers on his forehead. In that instant his body begins to convulse in pain before the man breaks contact and chuckles. "Your turn."
He turns next to Gian and repeats the gesture sending a jolt of Force Energy into his mind. Immediately everything Gian knows about the Empire, the Republic, Jedi and Sith floods to the forefront of his thoughts. Recognizing the similarities to his own interrogation techniques, Gian hastily throws up barriers and denies the man his knowledge. Knowing that doors to the mind open from both sides, Gian immediately goes on the offensive. He pushes forward into the invader’s mind, but before anything can be seen, the interrogator breaks the connection. Unspeaking, the man raises one hand and sends a constant stream of lightning into Gian who screams in pain.
"Stop!” Leo yells, “If you want to punish someone, then try me."
The interrogator stops for a moment, turns around and walks to a table.
"Jedi scum,” he replies with a sneer. “I will do as I please with whomever I want."
The interrogator returns to Leo with a syringe in hand. He injects the serum into the Jedi’s arm.
"While this one is unconscious,” he tells Gian, “we can speak some more, Sith to Sith."
The man reaches up and slowly lowers his hood. The features thus revealed are an exact copy of Gian’s own, save that they are marked with more prominent signs of the Darkside and his retinas are bright gold.
Gain’s eyes open wide open in shock and he asks, "What the hell is this? Who are you?
The man laughs wickedly. "I am you... only stronger and more competent. I'm sure you have many questions."
"If you are me,” Gain barks, “then you wouldn't give any true answers. Why not just kill me?"
The man gives him a look filled with disgust. "It is because you will die that I will explain things. I'm not afraid of divulging the truth, so that you will suffer and be haunted by the thoughts of what is to come right up until the end."
Gain remains silent as he glares back at his mirror image. After a pause, the man begins his tale.
"Our Empire conquered the Republic and since then the only conflict has been between lower Sith as it has always been. But we demand challenge and war. The Jedi Order no longer exists and the Mandalorians are all but forgotten."
"So began the search for new enemies until we came across the Gree Hypergate. Many went through in search of enemies beyond known space and none ever returned until one -- a lowly Sith returned saying that he had encountered alternate versions of himself, and so we attempted to find out how."
The man pulls up a hologram on the computer he continues his lecture.
"Gravity. Hyperdrives all have fail safes to exit hyperspace when encountering a large gravity well so as to not be ripped apart by turbulence, but it turns out the hypergates do not do that. If the well is strong enough, it curves space upon itself and propels one to an alternate dimension. So we devised a plan to stabilize the opening and begin war anew."
Gian studies the hologram silently as the story continues.
"We sent images through the Force to bring someone from this alternate dimension to see if it worked, but we expected another. We anticipated your Revan coming through, not you. But since you're here, I must say I'm extremely pleased as I can find out how you compare with me. And so far I'm not impressed. Soon you will die and your death will usher in the invasion of your world and all others. Once the war is completed, the galaxy will be stripped of all resources and the Force will be drained. When your galaxy has been stripped bare and left barren, we shall return here to start the cycle again."
The interrogator stops speaking and looks at Gian.
"Now... Before I continue with my little experiments, I will afford you one question."
Gian considers a moment. What he asks is almost academic. "How did you connect the dimensions? It could not be by chance nor could it be done openly..."
The man grins. "I see being perceptive is similar. Good, makes it more challenging. Thanks to Revan, we have a surplus of Rakata technology. We uprooted the Hypergate and placed it in a location that passed the hyperspace tunnel -- through the black hole in the galactic center. The singularity caused a large enough tear in space to allow the tunnel to traverse between dimensions."
Gian contemplates this. "And you plan to use the Rakata tech to also drain the Force -- to power it without having your own drained..."
The interrogator laughs at Gian’s comment then turns quickly towards the main console as it begins to beep loudly.
He approaches the console and activates the hologram.
"You've got five seconds,” he growls, “to tell me why you're interrupting me."
On the other line is the sound of a whimpering man who then squeaks out, "M...My...My Lord, another team captured a sniper by the anomaly. His body was brought to Storage C and they wanted me to alert you."
"Excellent,” the interrogator hisses, “but it still won't save you..." He raises his hand and the frightened man in the holocom begins to convulse and moan in pain. After a few moments of listening to the man’s suffering, the interrogator clenches his fist causing the man's chest to explode violently outward.
Gian’s temper flares as the interrogator laughs.
"Seems one of your team members wasn't as good as you thought. I'll let you soak in the thought of me dissecting him until I return."
Still gloating, the Dark Gian turns to leave, but as he reaches the door, an explosion blows it open and throws him back towards the two captives. The interrogator does a backflip and lands on his feet. He is facing the door as a series of blaster bolts streak through the smoke. Using the Force to deflect the bolts with his hand, Dark Gian watches as Jensaar enters the room.
"You're the sniper? What an interesting development." Dark Gian says as he sends a stream of lightning towards Jensaar.
Jensaar ducks behind the console and begins tossing grenades from its cover. They explode, but Dark Gian is untouched. He stands mockingly in the debris with a Force Barrier around himself.
"I'll let the droids deal with you. The others will want to hear about this."
He uses the Force to flip a switch on the wall which activates the surrounding security droids.
Jensaar takes the chance and fires a shot straight at the man’s head, but just before it connects, Dark Gian vanishes in a cloud of dark smoke. Immediately afterwards, the droids activate and begin to fire at Jensaar who takes cover again behind the console.
Looking at the Jedi and Sith who are still in their binders, Jensaar pulls out a small EMP device and activates it. This causes the console to overload and shut down. After a few moments, the field which has been keeping Gian and Leo in their bonds, also shuts down along with the lights.
Gian seizes the opportunity and builds up all the rage inside himself. This in turn begins to wear on the binders. Finally, with a massive yell, he sends out a shockwave, ripping the metal bindings and sending them flying across the room in shreds. Landing on his hands and knees, he looks at the guard droids as they begin to respond and direct their weapons towards him. Still steaming with rage, he summons the Force and raising both hands he starts to lifts all twelve droids off the ground. Gian then sends a shower of lighting in all directions and overloads all the droids simultaneously before slamming the metallic remains into the floor.
Leo, having been roused from his slumber by Gian’s display of power, breaks out of his bindings and slowly approaches Gian who still radiates anger and rage.
"Gian?..."
Leo places his hand on the Sith's shoulder to try and calm him, but Gian brushes the hand aside as he rises.
"Well done Jensaar, but you were a little slow on the execution."
Gain keeps his tone bland, hiding his relief that the agent is safe from everyone.
Jensaar nods and responds: "Apologies. Now, we must leave before this station enters lockdown procedures."
Pulling out Gian’s double bladed lightsaber and Leos' single blade, he tosses them to the two men so that they are armed and ready.
Gian looks at his blade and then back at Jensaar.
"You two will go to the hangar and secure a ship. I have business to attend to with that man who was interrogating us."
Leo grabs his brother. "We do not have time for this,” he insists. “Put your pride aside and let’s regroup with the others before we attack."
Any further debate is forestalled by the sounds of soldiers approaching from outside. The three men finish readying themselves just as their opponents arrive. Briefly, they stare down the barrels of a firing line as the troops prepare to open fire. Gian immediately summons a barrier to block the bolts and protect the two others.
Leo sighs and steps to the front. "Arguing with you won't get us anywhere. You know what to do... Jensaar, throw a smoke grenade at them."
He then crouches down and builds up energy in his legs while Jensaar follows suit and lobs a grenade in between the two groups to block their vision. As the smoke fills the corridor around them, the men suddenly hear through the fog the ignition of a lightsaber. Before they can react, Leo leaps forward through the smoke and descends upon them, cutting down the men one by one. Sensing the men through the Force, Leo is able to find them effortlessly despite the thick smoke. In moments, only a single soldier remains. He turns and runs for the exit.
Sensing that the man is fleeing, Leo flips his blade around so that he is holding the hilt with the blade facing backwards and leaps into the air in the direction of the man. The fleeing soldier turns and fires wildly at Leo, but he deflects the bolts easily. While still in the air, Leo decides to close the gap quickly and channels the Force beneath his feet to form an invisible step he can stand on. Releasing the energy all at once, Leo propels himself towards the soldier so fast that he leaves a blurry afterimage trailing behind. Slicing through the trooper, Leo lands behind him and stands up before the man’s body can finish falling to the floor.
The two others quickly approach through the now dissipating smoke screen.
Gian says, "I see your blade skills haven't waned since we last dueled. Jensaar, take my brother and secure a shuttle. I've spent enough time near him and I don't need anymore."
"I see there's no stopping you,” Leo replies, “and we don't have time to argue. Agent, you take point."
Jensaar nods, clearly uncomfortable with fighting next to a Jedi but follows Gian’s earlier orders and goes forward.
"After analyzing the layout of this station, I believe the hangar is three levels down."
As Gian walks past the Jedi, Leo says, "I know you have always despised me, but be careful. You brought us here for a purpose so keep that in mind and don't do anything stupid. Don't let your emotions control you."
Gian looks at him darkly, "I swear, if I got a credit for every time you've said that, I could buy a planet. Just shut up and guard Jensaar while I deal with that other guy."
Running down the hall, Gian heads off in the direction where he senses that Dark Gian awaits. As he does, he considers brother’s words, the need to beat this other one and how he might do so.
Leo sighs, hoping that his brother will return safely. He turns down the other end of the hall and heads in the direction Jensaar has indicated where heavy resistance likely awaits.
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Post by Jensaar on Mar 18, 2014 8:20:16 GMT -8
Chapter 6
Hidden under the shadow of a crater on Asation’s orbiting moon, a familiar ship waits quietly in anticipation as its passengers debate their next move. As Tannek looks at the readings from the cockpit, he sighs quietly before shutting down all non-essential systems to lower their sensor readings before leaning back and looking out into the stars twinkling in the sky.
"Boy, when this is done I'm going to Port Nowhere and taking the finest woman there back to my place." Tannek thinks to himself while still looking out the window. After a moment he gets up and starts to head into the common area where Major Dervis and the bounty hunter Arlack are waiting.
Arlack asks, "We in a safe spot?"
Tannek says, "Did you doubt me? I've outrun far worse in crappier ships than this. Nobody is finding us unless we invite them here for dinner."
Dervis looks up from the table where he is working and says, "That's good, but we can't stay here forever. We need to figure out what to do next. I'm looking through our guests’ equipment, but I can't make heads or tails of these encryptions."
"Let me take a look at it,” Arlack says. “Tas'meel is down in the hold keeping the captive company while Master Alak tries to sense the location of the Stryks brothers. If nothing else, it gives us a break from their constant bickering."
Taking the radio equipment, Arlack begins to tinker with the settings and hooks them up to the ships computer system.
After several minutes pass in silence, the sound of footsteps breaks everyone’s concentration as Tas'meel returns and approaches the group. His demeanor is calm.
"That guys not talking anytime soon..." Tas'meel says. "What have you three been doing?"
Tannek gets off the wall and heads towards Tas'meel, "I'll go check on that guy and make sure you didn't kill him.”
Tas'meel chuckles, "I didn't touch the guy. I may have taunted him a little, but he doesn't have permission to die till after we find Gian. His brother I don't care about."
Tannek continues walking past him and heads down to the hold just as Master Alak returns.
"I have not been able to detect either of them.” Alak says. “It is possible that they are no longer in this system, in which case we should begin asking our prisoner where they might be taken."
Tas'meel does not even look at Alak.
"Fat chance at that,” he mutters, “He keeps saying the same stuff about how we're all marked for death."
Alak steps a little closer, "I thought we agreed not to address him until we knew what to say."
Tas'meel turns to face him directly. "And I said I'd deal with him on my own accord. Your job is to find the others, and if you can't, then you have no purpose here.”
Alak stands his ground as the Sith activates his blade. Tas’meel stops and looks around at the sound of an energy clip locking into a gun. Dervis levels his weapon at Tas'meel.
"He's the one trying to get this finished properly so that we can all get together,” the major says. “Stop worrying about your damn pride and listen for once."
Tas'meel flares, "You have no idea why I'm here or what pushes me forward. I came here to do a job and all you have to do is stay out of my way, but all you seem to want to do is shout orders." He twitches his hand the soldier begins to feel the grip of the Force as Tas continues, "News flash: you're not in charge of me!"
Further conversation is interrupted by Tannak’s voice on the intercom.
"Hate to break up the lover’s quarrel,” he says sarcastically, “but this sucker is dead..."
"What happened?" asks Alak, speaking into the comm.
Tannek shrugs. "My guess is he had a suicide pill and took it when nobody was in here."
Tas'meel grunts, "At least now he can stop spouting that stupid fanatic BS. It's not like we'd get anything else."
The arguing begins again and is soon escalating out of control. Arlack draws a pistol and fires it straight up into the ceiling.
"Everybody shut up and listen!"
When he has their attention, he puts the radio equipment on the middle console and presses a few keys. After a few moments, a repeating message starts echoing throughout the ship.
"Alert. The Citadel has entered lockdown proceedings. Prisoners have escaped. Consider them armed and very dangerous. All special operations troops in the system are to be recalled for containment and recapture. This is a level one directive."
Tannek hearing the message, returns to the common room and says, "Arlack, that name is the same one used by the guys who took Master Leo..."
"Exactly,” the hunter replies, nodding “perhaps he broke out. This message is going throughout the entire system, if we want to rescue him, we have to move fast."
"The message also says prisoners,” Dervis notes, “as in multiple escaped so perhaps your Darth friend is there as well.”
"Is there any way we can trace the signal to the station?" Alak asks.
"Already, done.” Arlack responds. “We've got coordinates and heading. It's on the other side of the planet, so it should take about 10 minutes. If we go, we need to go now."
Tannek says, "I can fly us there, but there is no guarantee we'll be able to dock."
Thinking quietly for a moment Dervis speaks up, "Hunter... this ship was the property of that ‘copy’ of yours right? If you impersonate him, it’s possible they'll let us in when we arrive."
Master Alak says, "Good idea, and if we know exactly what station they're on, I can find their presence easier. Darth Tas'meel... perhaps you can take out your frustrations on the station rather than those who have agreed to work with you."
"Let’s go,” Tas'meel says. “The sooner we finish this, the sooner I never have to see your Jedi face again and the sooner I get to see my son."
Dervis chuckles at the thought of the Sith having a son, but shuts up quickly and nods.
"Then lets head out,” he says. “Arlack, you stay hooked into their comms and we'll find out where is best to land. Master Alak, you keep meditating and see if you can find the escapees. Tas'meel, when we land, you and I will take point on the loading ramp. I'll provide covering fire while you engage at close range. Is there anything else we can use?"
Tas'meel grunts at the orders being given but simply walks away.
Master Alak responds, "After I have found the escapees, I'll turn over and use Battle Mediation to assist however I can. I'm not an expert in it, but I have training enough to help against foot soldiers."
Having come to an agreement, the men return to their stations and prepare to assault the space station. Tannek runs forward to the cockpit of the ship to take off. From the outside, the ship powers up, dislodges from the rocky surface and begins to head towards the far side of the planet where as they get closer the faint sight of a space station draws nearer.
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Standing amidst several bodies, Gian suspends the last survivor in the air while pressing him against the wall using the Force.
"If you don't tell me what I want to know, then pretty soon the pressure will cave your chest in. That should make it pretty tough to breath... wouldn't you say?"
The man gasps, "Two halls over… big metal door… can't miss."
Smirking the Sith responds, "Good..."
He pulls the trooper off the wall then spins around and hurls him to the opposite side of the metal corridor knocking him unconscious. As he begins walking in the indicated direction, he starts to sense a darkness that grows stronger with every step. Knowing this as confirmation that he is moving in the right direction, Gian turns the corner to see a locked door. Darkside energies seep through from the other side of the barrier.
As he approaches, he notices that the locks begin to disengage. The door opens revealing a large oval shaped room with tall pillars around the edges. Inside, are many lab tables and equipment scattered about with alchemic formulas written across various boards. Looking beyond the laboratory, Gian sees his target sitting quietly on a chair near a large window which shows the planet Asation in the background.
"I had a feeling you'd find your way here." The dark figure hisses regarding Gian as he stands in the open area. "You must know you can't defeat me -- in here of all places."
Gian glares.
"I have my own reasons to be here. Nobody scans my mind and walks away alive."
"Oh?” his darker self replies, “So it's all about keeping your dirty secrets to yourself. They won't matter once I've done to you as I have to so many before you... Many of whom you know."
"What are you talking about?"
"The true difference between us is where we get our power. You rely too much on your so called allies. You are inadequate without them, whereas I have taken their power for my own. Some of them I saw you are close to in your world. Do the names Katanyia, Rathor, Inig and Rikor sound familiar?"
Gain’s eyes widen and he grips his hands tightly.
"What did you do?" he demands.
"It's hard to say simply but... they were more useful to me dead than alive." Dark Gain smiles wickedly as he continues. "So I took their power for my own. If someone stands in the way of power, you take it by force, and that is what I did."
Gian draws his lightsaber and sends a surge of electricity through his own body,
"Before I just wanted you dead, now I've got a reason to be here."
Crouching, he dashes, towards his dark counterpart, using the lightning power to increase his speed. He slashes at the man missing by only an inch as his enemy dodges out of the way. He responds by sending a stream of lightning straight at Gain who turns and blocks with a bubble of Force Energy before vanishing into the shadows.
"So you learned to be both a sorcerer and assassin at the same time. I'm afraid it won't help you as my teacher..." spinning around Dark Gian ignites his deep purple saber and swings at what appears to be an empty space only to have his blow deflected by a now visible Gian before continuing, "...was A'thena as well.”
Gian looks up and only grunts before noticing the lightsaber that his enemy uses.
Seeing the direction of his adversary’s attention, Dark Gian grins and says, "You recognize this? I took it as a prize after I slit her throat while she slept next to me. She let her guard down one time and it proved I was better."
Unable to hold back his rage, Gian recklessly channels power into his hands and sends forth a thunderous blast towards the dark version of himself. The blast creates an explosion of bright light. As the light dies, Gian looks around, but is surprised to find that he is unable to sense the man’s dark energies.
Suddenly, behind him he hears a snarl. "You're gonna have to do better than that."
He turns just as Dark Gian moves to grab his throat and jumps backward. It is only a few feet, but it is enough that the man only manages to grab Gian's arm. Almost immediately the arm experiences a searing pain as if someone just dipped it in liquid nitrogen. Unable to do anything else, Gain summons a ball of flames in his free hand and fires it at the man who teleports away.
Reappearing in the middle of the room Dark Gian says, "Fire huh... it needs a bit of work."
Gian breaths deeply as the feeling in his arm goes away, Looking at it, he sees that his entire right arm is completely withered and drained as if all the fluids had been sucked out of it.
"What the hell is this?"
Dark Gian responds almost cheerfully, "Death field -- but focused on contact. You saved yourself by losing only an arm. Think you can do that again?"
He strips off his gloves to expose his bare hands, laughing maniacally.
Gian draws on the rest of his strength. He summons his lightning cloak and bolts towards his enemy. From across the room, sounds of lightsaber collisions and Force Lightning shots can be heard and seen. As the two men exchange blow for blow, Gian realizes that this man seems to not lose any energy. Suddenly, Dark Gian switches from lightning and starts sending waves of black fire. Dodging the waves and sending his own red flames back in kind, Gain sees the room begin to turn into a sea of fire across its entire length.
As the fight continues, Gian grows more and more exhausted while his darker half still maintains his composure. Having employed both sides of his double bladed saber and still gained no ground, Gian wonders what to do next and what the source of this man’s power may be. Jumping back to disengage, Gian sends a stream of fire towards the man but follows up by jumping through the stream in hopes of distracting his foe. His ploy fails. While still in mid-air, he feels a great push which knocks him back against the far wall.
Landing on the floor, he looks up barely in time to see a swath of tables from around the room crash down on top of him. He hears the faint laughter of his darker counterpart filling his ears.
"I... I can't beat this man. What if he's right and I have weakened myself by seeking help of others?"
Suddenly he senses two additional presences in the room.
"There's something different about these. Why am I just sensing them now?" He wonders even as he reaches out to make contact with these mysterious people. Gain hears a voice in his mind.
"Let go..." it says, and suddenly he realizes what needs to be done and how to end this fight.
Walking slowly towards his prey, Dark Gian anticipates how it'll be to absorb the energies of one who is identical to him. Before he can do that, he decides that he'll finish the fight by charging a large ball of fire in his hands.
"Don't worry; soon your brother and that Jensaar will join you and everyone else you know. Maybe when we invade your world, I'll pay your friends a visit personally and have my fun with them."
Focused on sending the large wave towards the pile of tables and furnishings, he is caught off-guard as the heap erupts outward. The strength of the push stops the fire blast and sends it back towards its creator.
Standing in the cleared space where the tables used to be, Gian glares menacingly at Dark Gian. "You want to know why I use others?” he asks rhetorically. “There are benefits to having others fight with you."
He sends another large wave toward Dark Gian. His adversary blocks it but is still pushed back a good distance.
Gian advances with eyes glowing. "Having allies is obviously something you have foresworn completely..." He sends a jolt of electricity under the overlook to reveal a secret container with Inig and Katanyia held in stasis.
"You leech off of them like a parasite,” he continues, “while they stay in vegetative states. You are everything in the Sith I despise." Gian's eyes turn red with rage as he gathers all of his remaining energy for what he perceives as the final push.
Dark Gian, clearly angered by his counterpart’s realization, lets out a great roar and sends a stream of lightning towards Gian, who responds in kind. As the lightening streams from the two Sith collide, the excess energy begins to pool in the middle, growing larger and larger as the two men converge.
Channeling the full weight of his power, Gian lets out a loud shout just as the collection of power between them erupts in a brilliant flash of light. The force of the explosion rocks the foundation of the room itself, sending the two men tumbling in different directions. Gian lands and slides towards the entrance to the room, while his counterpart crashes against the large window.
Rising slowly, Gian looks up to see his dark counterpart more quickly regain his feet.
"That's better than I thought you were capable of,” Dark Gain admits, “but you're now very weak. Did you think that would kill me?"
Gian looks beyond him and laughs for the first time.
"Not at all” he says, “but THAT will."
He pulls his lightsaber towards himself and motions to something behind his foe.
Suddenly, a loud cracking sound is heard and both of the men look towards a break that has formed in the room’s window, leading to the vacuum of space. But even as they watch, the crack stops spreading and an eerie quiet fills the room.
"If that was your final plan, then you failed more miserably than the old republic senate." Dark Gian mocks.
He sends a large stream of black flames directly at Gian who is gripping his drained arm in pain. Just as the flames reach him, Gian dashes to the side and in a final effort sprints forward towards his adversary. A few feet from being immolated, Gian drops to the floor and slides under the flames taking his enemy by surprise. He rises and forcefully plants his hand on the man’s chest launching him into the air with a concentrated Force Push. Without pause, Gian leaps into the air to grab his foe’s black cloak before spinning and using a Force empowered kick to knock the man into the already cracked window.
"I learned that move from one of my useless allies -- Jensaar." Gian proclaims. His voice is weak, but he chuckles as if mocking Dark Gian for his shortsightedness.
As Dark Gian rises from the floor, he hears the crack expanding more and more. Gian grips a railing with his one good arm just as the window breaks completely sucking all things into the void of space. Dark Gian tries to grab hold, but is too slow. He starts to scream as he falls through. Gian turns to watch his enemy die, but in that instant he sees the dark figure phase walk out of the danger and to an unknown location.
After several seconds, the emergency shutters activate and seal off the breach. Gian finally begins to relax after the hard fight. Sitting for a moment, he tries to regain his energy.
"He'll be back” he thinks, “but now I know how to fight him, at least. Bastard is nothing but a parasite and that will be his undoing."
Rising, Gian begins to feel the pain in his arm returning as the adrenaline of the fight fades.
"Time to get out of here..." he says to himself. Then he pauses. He turns to see the bodies of Inig and Katanyia still stuck in the pods. After a moment he mutters, "They don't deserve that." and sends what little energy he has remaining into the containers. This causes them to short out and consumes the canisters with fire. "At least now they aren't his tools." he thinks to himself.
He turns and makes his way towards the exit after wrapping his arm in a sling. In the corridor, he heads in the direction where he senses Leo and Jensaar. He senses their distress when suddenly the station starts to shake violently. This causes him to start running.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 13:32:55 GMT -8
Chapter 7
Heading down the corridors towards the hangar, Agent Jensaar and Master Leo run together in hopes of procuring transport before they are captured again. Jensaar takes point since he knows the direction and remains completely silent, using hand signals to dictate whether Leo should move or not.
As they near a corner, they hear two soldiers approaching from another direction. Jensaar holsters his rifle and pulls a knife from his belt. Precisely when the troops reach the corner to turn, Jensaar moves out and effortlessly makes contact with one trooper’s throat. Stepping smoothly towards the second man, he brushes the lowered weapon aside and lands a quick series of punches and elbows to the man’s head. He flips the trooper over his shoulder and incapacitates the man.
Leo walks up to Jensaar and says, "Good job. Ask him if there are any ships docked.”
Jensaar draws his pistol and puts it to the man’s temple.
"Hanger 2G. What ships are docked and what are the authorization codes?"
The trooper looks up at the two men before spitting in Jensaar’s face.
"I don't know,” the trooper says “and even if I did I wouldn't say. I fear my commanders more than your gun."
Not speaking Jensaar simply pulls the trigger, immediately ending the man’s life.
Leo see's this and grabs the agent’s shoulder.
"He was unarmed and helpless.” he protests. “You didn't have to kill him.”
"Either he knew what we needed and wasn't going to say or he didn't.” Jensaar responds. “If we let him go, his superiors would track us sooner and make our mission more difficult."
Shaking off the Jedi's hand Jensaar turns and continues walking. "Given our history, we have nothing to say other than getting the job done."
Leo sighs shaking his head, and continues to follow the agent.
After descending a few levels, they reach a heavy door. Jensaar signals to prepare.
"The hangar is on the other side of this. We need to find a ship quickly to take position while father is away."
Leo nods approvingly, "Agreed, you take cover and use your rifle. I'll keep a buffer and engage in close quarters."
Jensaar presses the key and the door slides open to disclose a large, open room with several rafters overlooking the main floor. Inside, are numerous soldiers and engineers who appear to be working frantically as the alarm blares loudly. As the two men enter the hangar, they look around for any potential ships.
Suddenly, they hear a single man across the rafters scream out, "They're here! Seal off the hangar!"
Jensaar turns, trains his rifle immediately on the man, and takes him out with a single shot. As the sound of the blaster bolt rings out across the hangar, it alerts all the other men to what is happening. Immediately, the ray shields on the hangar entrance activate, effectively sealing off their escape.
Leo walks forward saying, "Find the controls” he tells Jensaar. “I'll keep these guys busy, but please, hurry."
He jumps off the ledge and down onto the main floor. The gathering troops look to see a cloaked Jedi staring back at them with an activated lightsaber.
As the sounds of battle continue from below, Jensaar moves quickly towards the control room across the way. Heading along the outer walkway, he draws his rifle to provide what support he can for the Jedi who is fighting amidst the crowd of troops. After picking off a few heavy gunners, Jensaar notices a group of snipers gathering on the rafters and fires at them before they can get into position. Running towards them, he lobs a grenade over their cover to flush them out.
The grenade explodes, but one of the snipers manages to roll out of the way in time. He rises and is met by Jensaar who proceeds to engage him in hand to hand combat. As they exchange blows, Jensaar manages to grapple the trooper by the arm. Sweeping his leg from behind, he then trips the man sending him to the ground while maintaining a solid grip. This dislocates the man’s shoulder with a loud pop. As he writes in pain, Jensaar leans down and grabs the man by the shirt before throwing him off the ledge. The man falls twenty feet before he hits the floor below and then Jensaar turns towards the control room once again.
When he reaches the controls, Jensaar considers. "The hangar is on lockdown. Ships are in storage. We need launch codes and the doors open. Doors first."
Typing on the console, Jensaar starts to find a route through the computer’s security.
"Doing an emergency shutdown will open the doors, but will put the system on reset, preventing all launches for five minutes."
He glances out the window to see Leo starting to be a crowded by troops and he decides that's the only option.
Initiating the shutdown, he watches the ventilation systems close up and the lights go out. He unslings his rifle and moves to the rafter’s edge. He activates the night vision setting on his rifle scope. Next, he begins to take out targets one by one with Leo still fighting down below.
When the lights go out, Leo immediately deactivates his lightsaber and vanishes in the darkness. Reaching out with his senses, he locates those enemies nearest to him. He moves among them, activating his lightsaber only long enough to take out his target before extinguishing it once again. As he continues to do this, the troopers begin to fire blindly, more frequently and in all directions. Sensing the troopers distress Leo alters his tactics and begins to knockout his opponents, one by one, with a series of well-placed kicks and holds rather than killing them.
Eventually, Leo locates a lieutenant who is trying to gather his troops together and grips the man from behind just as the lights come back on. Immediately, the confused troops direct all their gun barrels at Leo who stands behind the officer.
"Tell your men to stand down, officer. We only wish to borrow one of your ships." Leo says commandingly.
As the soldiers close in the officer says, "Wait, wait... Lower your weapons men."
At this order, the troopers slowly begin to lower their weapons. The officer begins to relax as well now that he is less likely to be killed.
"Get a ship prepped." Leo shouts at Jensaar.
He watches as the agent turns and starts using the controls again to get one of the hangar ships prepared for takeoff.
While he is distracted, he is surprised by the sense of danger and turns around just in time to see a crimson lightsaber heading straight towards him. Leo jumps away, but the officer has no time to react before the lightsaber slices through his chest. Leo lands several feet from his previous position and looks up to see a group of fully armored troops now in the rafters. One of them pulls uses the Force to call the lightsaber from the officer’s chest back into an open hand.
"Anyone who surrenders will suffer the same fate.” says the distorted voice of the one who threw the lightsaber. “Now kill them!"
At that order, the Seekers leap forward to join the combat. The leader stays aloft to deal with Jensaar.
Jensaar presses the final buttons on the console to start the last sequence of the ship’s prep system and turns to face the leader.
"The commander, I presume,” he observes as he readies his rifle. “Eliminating you will demoralize the rest and increase our chances."
Jensaar fires a series of shots at the commander, who deflects them effortlessly. He moves backward trying to maintain the distance between the two of them as best he can. The commander retaliates by leaping forward and tries to engage the agent in close quarters. Jensaar draws his vibroknife. He does his best to deflect or evade the lightsaber slashes.
Tossing his rifle backwards over his head, Jensaar dodges the saber attacks and tries throwing a few punches himself. An attempt to grapple his opponent proves unwise as the enemy is stronger than expected and is able to push Jensaar back. Following through with a horizontal slash, the commander tries for Jensaar's chest. Jensaar bends backwards under the blade then continues the motion to do a backward handstand and flip a few feet away. Placing his hands directly on the rifle, which now lies on the ground behind him, he uses this as a brace and begins to flip just as the commander returns for a vertical slash. As the lightsaber comes down, Jensaar uses a flip kick to knock the hilt out of his opponent’s hand.
Jensaar, having taken a winning gamble, rolls back onto his feet and brings his rifle to bare on the commander. He fires a well-placed shot directly at the figure’s head. Unable to comprehend how this happened and still surprised at being momentarily disarmed, the commander is struck square in the face by the sniper’s shot and flies back several feet onto the ground.
As the lightsaber lands on the walkway, Jensaar lets out a sigh of relief that the fight is finished. He notices that his vibroknife is being worn by all the saber strikes he has parried.
A quick glance shows him that Leo is now struggling with the crowd of troops below. He starts to line up shots once again when suddenly he hears a loud scream.
Turning, he sees the commander rising and realizes that his shot had only damaged the helmet and broken its voice modulator. The unaltered voice is a woman’s. Jensaar spins to fire another shot, but is stopped when the commander sends a wave of Force Energy that pushes him against the railing. She draws a second lightsaber from under her commander’s cape. Jensaar can hear the steaming breath from the woman who clearly is embarrassed to have been shot.
"You bastard. You think I'm going to let you get away that easily? You will suffer greatly for that..." She says loudly while walking towards the staggered Jensaar.
Grabbing her first lightsaber as well, she approaches the agent and swings. Jensaar blocks with his rifle. The impact is enough to save his life, but not enough to save the rifle which buckles and falls apart as the sabers cut right through.
Jensaar draws his pistol and throws a flash-bang using its cover to roll away from the edge in order to get some space to move. He turns and fires a few shots, which are effortlessly blocked by the woman who then jumps forward to bring her blades down upon him. Jensaar seeing nothing else to do, dives forward as well and grabs the woman’s wrists just as she is bringing the blades down over her head. Being pushed back by her superior strength, Jensaar looks into the one eye that is visible through the shattered helmet as they struggle against each other.
"Why won't you just lie down and die?" she snarls.
Hearing the woman’s voice clearly for the first time, his eyes grow wide. It sounds very familiar.
"It can't be..." He thinks to himself.
The woman, reverses her strength and pulls Jensaar closer to knee him in the stomach and then proceeds to kick him off the ledge. Stunned, Jensaar looks up to see the commander remove her broken helmet to reveal Ari'adain under the armor with flowing blonde hair and a scar running across her face. Immediately, she leaps over the edge to slam down on top of Jensaar. Confused, he is unable to move out of the way.
Suddenly he is swept to the side by Leo who and lands several meters away just as Ari slams into the metal surface where he was lying, causing a small crater to form in the floor.
Leo takes cover behind some crates before putting the agent down.
"I didn't think I was gonna make it in time.” he says, “Are you ok?"
Jensaar stands up and peers around the crates.
"Affirmative,” he responds. “Slightly taken back by my wife showing up here though. What is going on?"
Leo shakes his head. "I'm not entirely sure, but I do know nothing is as it seems. Perhaps Gian can fill us in when he gets back."
Jensaar looks over his shoulder.
"The ship is fueled and ready. I managed to get the access codes but we still have to get through this crowd."
As the soldiers regroup into better positions around and the Seekers, Ari steps to the front.
"Save that sniper for me,” she commands. “I've been waiting a long time to wring his neck. Kill the other one."
Leo looks back at Jensaar.
"Sounds like you made an impression."
"We were happily married when I came here."
They look over the cover in time to see one of the troopers fire a high powered rocket at the shuttle. It explodes and burning debris rain down across the hanger.
"Dammit, that was our only exit." Leo says. "What now?"
"I don't know.” Jensaar says condescendingly, “Why don't you think of something. You always seemed to get in the way of Gian's objectives."
"Jensaar, I only ever did my job, as you did. Believe it or not, I've never once wanted harm to come to you." Leo says to him.
"Tell that to my shoulder, which you put a bolt through on Coruscant." Jensaar answers without even looking at him. "And so much for not having connections to others."
"We don't have time to argue about this.” Leo responds. “I have never gone back on my oath or my duty to the Jedi, but I always gave you a way out regardless."
Jensaar glances at him briefly before prepping his pistol to engage.
"Focus on your part and I'll focus on mine... But, I appreciate catching me." Jensaar says
Just as the troopers finish getting into position, the ray shield containing the atmosphere begins to fluctuate. This draws their attention towards the entrance. As they watch, a ship enters the hangar bay. It hovers over the troops.
"Arlack!” commander Ari exclaims, “What are you doing here? I gave you explicit orders to stay planet-side until you were called."
A moment later the voice of Tannek comes over the ship’s speaker.
"Uhhh… the pilot you are trying to reach is unavailable,” he says “If you'd like to leave a message, please stand still and wait for the beep..."
This is followed by a loud beep which comes over the intercom followed by a computer voice saying, "Targets locked on."
Immediately a cluster of rockets are launched towards the crowd below. The resulting explosion scatters their formations and takes out a large number of the troopers in the area.
The loading ramp of the ship opens to reveal Tas'meel and Major Dervis disembarking.
"Now this is more like it!" Tas'meel says
He jumps to the group below while Major Dervis stays on the ramp and fires his assault cannon, forcing his targets to remain under cover.
At the sight of Dervis and Tas'meel, Jensaar and Leo emerge from their hiding place.
"Head for the ship, Leo. I'll be right behind you." Jensaar says as he dashes away towards another area of the hanger.
Leo turns back to find that he is now blocked by two of the surviving Seekers who have managed to dodge the missiles.
Drawing his saber Leo thinks, "Time to have a fair fight."
He charges forward and exchanges a flurry of saber strikes with the two men. After a series of attacks, Leo summons a bit of energy and releases it in a blinding flash as he jumps over the men in front of him. Spinning to survey the area, he realizes that there are no additional troops to fire blasters at him. This allows him to switch off his shield generator and focus more fully on the men in front of him.
Changing from his previous Soresu stance, Leo prepares for a serious fight using the Shien technique to focus more on attack rather than defending constantly.
"Now that I don't have to worry about protecting someone else, we'll see how strong you guys really are." Leo says.
Chuckling a little bit, Leo finds his inner peace once again and charges towards the troops who are now recovering from the flash. Positioning himself between the two men, Leo goes immediately on the offense and starts to push them back step after step. Jumping up, he does a spinning kick to knock one of the men away, only to follow through with a powerful downward slash at the second man. The power of his attack is strong enough to knock the man to his knees. Leo, seeing an opportunity, follows up by gouging his saber into the floor kicking up a shower of molten metal into the man’s face.
The man screams in pain. Leo spins and stabs him through the chest from behind, ending it quickly. The second man turns in time to see his companion fall. He hesitates and looks at Leo who stands confidently in front of him. Leo smiles recognizing this feeling of strength. He realizes that Master Alak is near and is using his Battle Mediation. He prepares to engage the final opponent, expecting to finish it quickly.
"I will give you one chance,” Leo says to the man. “Walk away and you may live."
Trembling man shakes his head. He turns around and begins to run in the direction of a pack of explosives dropped by a heavy trooper. Realizing his intention, Leo crouches and channels a large amount of power into his legs. Dashing forward with blinding speed, he waves his saber in a rapid succession of movements before landing behind the man. Looking back, he watches as the man falls into several pieces. Leo closes his eyes for a moment of silence acknowledging the man’s choice.
He is interrupted by Tas'meel. "Hey dumbass, meditate on someone else’s time!" As he speaks, the Sith effortlessly snaps a troopers neck.
Leo regards him. "Lord Tas’meel? I'm surprised you didn't attack me yourself. Now, let’s get out of here before a fleet arrives."
The two men swiftly return to the loading ramp where Dervis stands with his cannon aimed across the ruined hangar, scanning for enemies.
"Master Leo, it's good to see you are well, sir.” the major says. “I'm also glad you're back cause this Darth is impossible to deal with."
Leo chuckles. "That I don't doubt from the times we've fought.” He glances around. “Where is Jensaar?" He asks.
"He vanished behind the rubble,” Dervis says confused, “I thought you two had your eyes on him."
All three peer into the distance. As they do so, they hear a crash and see Jensaar hurled into the air. He flies over the burning shuttle and lands on some metal debris. Next, they see Commander Ari leap forward with sabers in hand ready to kill Jensaar.
Leo and Tas'meel run to help, but are unable to make it in time. Jensaar looks up just as the woman comes crashing down. He hastily picks up a nearby metal panel using it to block. Deflecting the blades to one side, Jensaar closes using his much battered vibroknife. He knocks one of the hilts from her hand.
Ari responds by gripping Jensaar's throat and switches her remaining saber to her other hand in order to stab him through the chest. She looks at him seething hatred.
"I've been waiting for this moment all my life." she says.
She then drops her hand clearly intending to end Jensaar's life. The Agent seeing no possible escape is just as shocked as Leo and Tas'meel, who are running up, to see Gian arrive just in time to grab her arm and stop Ari from killing Jensaar.
Gain immediately sends a surge of electricity from his good hand into Ari. He stands momentarily motionless with one arm still in a sling as the commander screams in pain. He then spins her in front of him with a strong kick to her stomach sends her flying towards Leo and Tas'meel.
"You'll be waiting much longer as long as I'm alive." Gian says to the unconscious Ari. He then turns to Jensaar and asks, "You okay?"
Nodding, Jensaar extends his hand so that Gian can help him up. "You arrived just in time.” As he regains his feet, Jensaar turns to look at Ari. "Bring her with us.” he says. “I need some answers."
Leo lifts the unconscious commander and carries her back to the ship with the rest following them onboard. Leaving the hangar, the ship drops a neutron mine from the back as it makes its escape. The mine detonates beginning a chain reaction which spreads through the entire station. In a spectacular explosion, the entire structure ceases to exist.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 13:51:58 GMT -8
Chapter 8
After the daring raid, which resulted in the destruction of Citadel Station, the eight man team that set out from Asation so long ago has finally been reunited for the first time since their journey through the Gree Hypergate. Now, as the ship flies through space, Tannek confidently sits in the pilot seat with the bounty hunter Arlack co-piloting.
"So...That went well I think." Tannek says addressing Arlack in order to break the silence.
Arlack nods, "I guess word hasn't reached everyone that we stole my copy’s ship. Lucky us, but it probably won't work next time. We did just turn that entire station into stardust."
Tannek laughs., "Yeah but it was worth it. I took a still-shot picture of all their faces when they saw the missiles. Might make it into a wall paper."
Arlack looks over with a raised eyebrow before turning back to the controls. "Well regardless of what you do, we need to find a place to lay low. I doubt using the moon will work again since they could be tracking us."
"How good are the radiation and heat shields on this ship?" Tannek asks, smiling.
"Top of the line. Why?"
"Plotting a course for the systems star.” the smuggler says. “It's an old trick I've used a few times in the past to hide from bounty hunters like you. The high levels of interference make it impossible to detect anything."
Arlack looks at the pilot in disbelief., "That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard. If you get hit by a stray flare, then your systems are fried and then you're sitting in a huge oven."
"Yeah, which is why you never do it, but if there's no other option, it's a good effort. We only need to stay near it for a little while, until we figure out what to do next."
Arlack plainly hesitant at the proposal finally turns and starts working on the controls, "You better pray you're as lucky as you claim to be..."
"I'd rather face the fires of the star than walk into the hellstorm that is brewing in our common room." Tannek says.
As if on cue, they are interrupted by a holo of Gian. The Sith scowls and says, "Get your asses in the common room now. It's time we all talked about a few things."
Tannek sighs and places the ship on autopilot, "It's almost like he knew somehow..."
Arlack rises and walks towards the door with Tannek following to where the rest of the team has already gathered in the main section of the ship.
Out in the common room, tensions have risen to a peak. After the rescue from the station, the adrenaline rush from the heat of combat has pushed the men’s senses to higher levels. They stand silently while Tannek and Arlack enter the room. Then, as if on cue, the whole group moves forward and gathers around the central holotable.
Gian, looks around the table at all the faces.
"Now that we've found everyone,” he says, “we can finally get back to why we're here."
"By all means, don't thank us for the rescue or anything." Tannek says, jokingly.
Before Gian can silence the smuggler, Leo moves his hand in front of the Sith’s path and speaks, "We appreciate the help, Tannek. Your arrival was just in the nick of time. I am glad you managed to find your way to the others after leaving the cantina."
Tannek nods and turns to the others.
After a moment Master Alak continues, "Perhaps being the first time we are gathered, we can exchange what we have learned of this strange world."
"Agreed,” Jensaar says speaking up abruptly, “I for one am ignorant of what is occurring. And I am also confused about how it is that Ari is downstairs in a cell..."
Gian lets out an exhaustive breath and with a flick of his hand pulls a collection of chairs towards everyone.
"Might as well get comfortable." he says.
Each member of the team shares with the group their experiences since leaving the portal. One by one their stories are told and whatever they may have learned is added to notes which are being recorded in great detail by Jensaar. Gian waits to speak last so that he may divulge the plan he learned from Dark Gian while still held captive. When the story ends, the Sith leans back on his chair and takes a heavy breath.
Letting the air out slowly, he looks at the rest and says, "Now that we know what we are up against, you should all understand why we must finish this."
Tas'meel nods in approval before taking the lead and asking, "So...What do we do then? Cause I don't recall learning where the portal is located."
Major Dervis grunts to get everyone’s attention, "We do have a commanding officer in a cell. I'm sure with the right push we could convince her to give up what she knows."
"In case your memory is as thick as your helmet,” Tas'meel responds quickly, “The last guy we had bit down on a suicide pill the moment he woke up."
"It shouldn’t be hard to find it while she's unconscious.” Arlack comments. “There's only so many places it can be hidden."
Jensaar rises from his seat, "I request permission to interrogate and guard her."
Everyone looks at Jensaar.
"No offense, Agent,” Tas'meel says, “but you're not the best among us to question her. Gian was an interrogator long ago, so my vote goes to him."
The two Jedi begin to rise in protest of the idea of torturing a prisoner. They are surprised by Gian’s answer.
"No,” he says, “Jensaar will handle the prisoner. He may not be able to probe someone’s mind like I can, but he was trained by Intelligence on interrogation. And while she may be from this different reality, I'd wager there is some level of similarities that Jensaar can exploit."
Leo looks at his brother shocked that he has actually turned down the chance to play with a person’s mind. He then looks back at Jensaar.
Finally, Leo turns to Tannek asks, "I understand we cannot stay in this location forever. How much longer till we must find a new place to hide?"
Arlack clicks a few buttons on his wristband and says, "The heat shields will hold up for another 10 hours so let’s say eight hours before we have to figure it out."
The rest of the team members rise to their feet.
Gian nods. "Fine. We have eight hours to figure something out. Jensaar will deal with the prisoner, Tannek you stay in the pilot’s seat just in case. Dervis and Arlack will make sure supplies and weapons are still good. Leo, I want you to continue searching this guy’s records and see if there's anything we can use. Tas... I want you to look at our medical stocks."
Tas smirks, "Can I make some poisons?" he says, looking pointedly at Leo.
The group begins to disburse with each heading in the direction of their new assignments. As they do, Gian halts Master Alak who is about to return to meditating.
"I need to speak with you alone." he says quietly to the Jedi.
"For what purpose Sith?" Alak asks confused.
"Just meet me upstairs." Gian says, turning and heading towards the living quarters, and away from everyone else.
(The following scenes take place at the same time but in different locations throughout the ship.)
========================================================
Major Dervis paces quietly around the armory and inspects the various weapons and armors that are situated throughout the room. Sticking with the job he was given, he checks off a list of equipment that he anticipates will be necessary for the next phase of their mission. With an almost obsessive attention to detail, he catalogues all the pieces of gear into their respective classes and takes note of how much they have of each.
Suddenly, he hears a voice say, "Major, got a minute?"
Turning around quickly, he sees Arlack standing in the doorway.
"No thanks, Bounty Hunter."
Arlack, however, is undeterred. He continues to approach the major, "You've been aggressive to me and everyone else since we started this mission. What is your malfunction?" he asks directly Slamming his tools down on the table, Dervis rises and looks Arlack in the eye, "I don't like you or any of you Imperials. I don't trust any of you and if you expect me to put my life on the line for you four, then you're sorely mistaken. Personally, I'd like to shoot that Sith Tas'meel myself. He is arrogant, greedy, always looking for a fight and cares nothing for anyone but himself. If he were to die here, the galaxy would be better off. At least then, those he enjoys torturing will get a reprieve."
Arlack clenches his fist and swings at Dervis' face. Dervis responds quickly by leaning back and reaching for his pistol. Arlack steps forward and with his other hand grabs the pistol in its holster before delivering a solid head-butt to Dervis. As the Major stumbles back, he realizes that Arlack now holds his pistol and points it directly at his head.
"I've worked with many Sith in the past” Arlack states. “But if you ever compare these two Sith again with the common, low-level bantha fodder you find on the battlefield, then next time, I will pull the trigger."
"You think these guys just did this for kicks?” he continues, “I've worked with Darth Gian for a long time and I've gotten to work with Tas'meel too. You wanna know why he's always angry and rushing to finish this?"
Deciding it is wiser to comply, Dervis asks, "Why is that?"
Arlack barks back, "Because his wife and newborn son are what he's trying to get back to."
Wide-eyed Dervis has no response as Arlack continues, "Yeah... Gian told me before we left. That man has a wife who gave birth to a son only a couple weeks before we set off. He wants nothing more than to go back to them, but he chose to come here after seeing them dying in the vision that brought us all here. You may have seen your dumb republic burning down, but he saw his family. He'd sooner raze the entire galaxy, than lose them. Some would call that selfish, but that's what a father does."
Spinning the gun around and tossing it to the major, Arlack finishes, "Perhaps if you tried to see past him being a Sith and realize that he still has a bit of human left, you'd find some common ground."
Dervis looks up, "I'm never gonna be friends with a Sith..."
"I'm not saying be friends with him,” Arlack says. “ I'm saying, get your head on straight and at least learn to fight together without adding him as a target. These Sith, unlike most, have a respect for warriors’ honor, and that's why I'm still with them. Now, get your head out your ass and man up."
Dervis stands quietly. He looks on as Arlack walks up and grabs a few grenades from the rack before turning around and leaving the major alone with the thoughts that now fill his mind.
==============
Darth Gian and Master Alak silently enter a vacant room in the living quarters section of the ship. As the lights come on, Master Alak faces Gian and lowers his hood to expose his face clearly. Gian remains motionless with his head covered, watching carefully to see what the Jedi plans to do.
After a brief time of intent silence Alak speaks first, "Why did you want to see me Darth Gian? I highly doubt we have anything to speak about."
Gian looks at the Jedi and calmly says, "As much as I hate to admit it, I need your help with something. You are a healer correct?"
Alak looks at the Sith curiously and says, "Yes I am... I've in the past had the chance to treat some of your past prisoners. Your methods are much less mutilating than most Sith I've encountered."
Gian looks at him and grunts, "I'm not here to talk about my methods to anyone; let alone you. I need some healing done. Will you help or not?"
Alak lets out a deep breath before looking up at him, "Is this about your arm?"
"How did you know my arm was injured?" Gian asks, surprised.
"One of the benefits of being a Miraluka” the Jedi replies. “I saw your arm was wounded the moment you arrived. You can hide it from others, but you can't hide that it's been drained of Force Energy from me. I just see a black limb where your arm should be."
Acknowledging the point and sliding his withered arm out of his robes Gian says, "Well then, will you heal my arm or not?"
Alak crosses his arms and responds, "Yes I will. Master Leo asked me to join specifically because of my healing skills. I am pleased to see that you swallowed your pride to ask for help."
"It's not pride,” Gian says sarcastically, “when there is a skilled medic to treat a wound. Now, let’s get this over with."
As the two men approach each other, Alak takes the Sith’s withered and pale arm and begins to channel a wave of healing energy into the damaged limb.
Gian groans in pain as his arm starts to swell with new life and yells as more energy is channeled. Straining to channel more healing energy into the arm, Alak accidentally breaks through the Sith’s weakened mental blocks and sees a bit into his consciousness. Catching a brief glimpse into his mind, Alak is surprised to feel far less Darkside energy than he expected of the Sith. Immediately, he sees a perfect balance of light and dark within the man before being shoved out by the Sith who knows what has happened.
Gian barks at the man with a surge of purple lightning arcing across his arm, "If you ever do that again...No questions, no hesitation. I will burn your insides until there is nothing left but ashes. Do you understand?!"
Alak looks up at the Sith and says, "I apologize for that. It was not intentional but... I now understand why your brother never gave up hope. You are..."
Gain sends stream of lightning mere inches by the Jedi's head.
"Finish that sentence,” he grates. “I dare you."
Sighing, Master Alak rises.
"I guess my treatment worked,” he says. “It's not completely healed, but I reconnected your arm to the flow of the Force. Given a little more time, it'll be good as new.” He pauses. “ May I ask you something, Darth?"
Pulling his hood back up, Gian turns and walks to the door.
"No, you may not. Now, stay away from me."
Walking out of the door, he leaves Master Alak alone with his thoughts after having seen into the mind of Gian.
As the door closes the Jedi wonders to himself, "Perhaps there is hope..."
===============
Jensaar stands silently outside the door of the cell which holds this universe’s Ari'adain. As he moves to open the door, his feels conflicted; his mind torn between his training in prisoner interrogation and his thoughts on seeing a copy of his wife sitting in shackles. Opening the door slowly, he enters the room determined to do his job and get as much information as he can.
Upon entering the room the agent is met with a piercing gaze from the prisoner which sends a sharp tingle up his spine. Immediately, the woman addresses Jensaar, "Took you long enough. Have you been debating how to kill me? Or should we just get this over with quickly?"
Jensaar responds directly, "Negative. I wish only to talk. You possibly have information that is vital to our mission."
Laughing loudly Ari looks back at Jensaar and responds, "And why would I tell you anything? We've been sworn enemies ever since you tried to murder me on our first mission, or have you forgotten that already?"
Before Jensaar can respond Ari continues, "Or how about, when you personally tortured me after I failed a mission? You are a disgrace to the Imperial Army and the Empire at large. And mark my words... before this is done, I will see you dead, Agent."
Jensaar having heard the entire rant sits down on the opposite side of the room. He finds himself unable to hold back his emotions.
"I am not the man you think I am, Ari,” he says. “The man you direct your hatred to is someone else. I, and the team I am with, came through the Gree Hypergate on Asation. Through unforeseen conditions, we were kicked into a different reality where people are not the same."
Ari is completely unconvinced, "You do realize how stupid you sound, right?” she asks mockingly. “Do you honestly think I'll believe a word of that?"
Jensaar shakes his head..
"No,” he says, “But I wanted you to know the truth. I am telling you this because where I come from you and I are married..."
Screaming, Ari rises and uses her rage to increase her strength enough to break the metal bonds that held her to the seat. With her hands still bound together, she dashes forward and pins Jensaar against the wall with a heavy thud.
As she presses her arm against the agent’s throat, a small smile appears across her face.
"I've waited a long time for this..."
Jensaar gasps for air. He looks up and out of the corner of his eye and is shocked to see a second, hazy form of Ari standing on the side of the room holding tightly to a necklace. He recognizes the necklace as the crystal that she gave him before his departure. He remembers that the necklace is connected with Ari's particular Force Energies and also allows her to sense him.
As he starts to run out of air, he slowly takes out his necklace and is surprised to see that it is glowing. Realizing what to do from the vision, he takes the necklace and presses it firmly against the chest of the woman in front of him.
Immediately, the crystal shines brightly and they both see the memories of Jensaar with his Ari. The memories show different moments in their lives. The woman backs off and lets Jensaar have a fresh breath. She continues to look through the memories from the crystal as a tear falls down her face.
Jensaar holds his throat and takes a heavy breath. He looks up at the woman and turns to the phantom Ari standing next to her. Jensaar then realizes that it's his Ari who is seeing him through the necklace. Just then the vision starts to smile before fading away once again.
After a moment of silence the alternate Ari tosses the necklace back to Jensaar.
"I saw,” she says. “I saw your life with that other me. You two seem happy. But I am not her."
Still gasping, but grasping the necklace carefully Jensaar responds, "I am aware. But now you realize that I am not the man your hatred is directed to. I wish to return to her safely. If there is any bit of you that is like my Ari, then you would help us to get back to our world. Help us to do this, and perhaps you will run into the agent that you hate so much.
Dark Ari looks surprised and asks, "How do you know that?"
Jensaar says, "During our journey so far, we have engaged the alternates of others on our team. The probability is high that we will encounter the one you hate."
The prisoner looks at him and groans, "I'm not going to compromise the Empire in any way, but I can give you the location of where the portal is. Several Sith had it moved to a base on one of Asation’s mountain ranges."
"How do you know this?" Jensaar asks.
"I am the commander of this system,” she says. “Nothing happens without my knowing about it."
Jensaar nods, "Thank you Ari... Your assistance is appreciated."
Immediately, she rebukes him, "I'm not doing it for you. I want you out of my world. One Agent Jensaar is more than enough for me. Just get out of here and don't come back."
Jensaar turns and opens the door, "Farewell, Ari,” he says. “For your assistance, I will see about releasing you."
Laughing in disbelief the woman sits back down and watches as the agent exits the room. She contemplates the memories and feelings that she experienced when the necklace connected with her mind.
==============
Master Leo sits quietly at a computer terminal and types in various searches as he continues to look deeper into the levels of encrypted files and journals of the previous owner of the ship. As he continues reading and gaining a glimpse into the mind of the alternate Arlack from his private journal logs, he hears a low grunt from behind him near the entrance. Without turning around, Leo recognizes the voice and asks, "What is it Tas'meel?"
"Address me by my title Jedi.” Darth Tas'meel says to Leo in a solid voice. “We are not friends."
Leo turns to look at him, "Then why are you here?” he asks. “I'm trying to learn about our enemy here."
Tas’meel crosses his arms, "We know they die,” he responds, “so that's all that needs to be known. I wanted to say your skills are lacking. Half the enemies you fought on the station were still alive when we got there. You are too soft."
"Those men did not need to die. A Jedi never kills unless forced to. Had I been on this ship, I would've stopped you all from blowing the station up after we left. It is not weak to value life, Darth Tas'meel."
"Then show me your *kindness* is strong. Stop playing with those files and fight me. I still owe you for when you attacked me on Belsavis and nearly killed me."
Leo raises his hand in protest, "I will not fight you, Sith. I am tempted to, as it is my duty as a Jedi, but either of us injured will not help the situation we are in."
Tas'meel rages, "Too bad... It's time we settled this."
Drawing his lightsaber, he runs towards the Jedi who quickly draws his own lightsaber in defense. Blocking the first slash, Leo locks hilts with Tas'meel. Leo then calls upon the Force to send a small wave forward to push the Sith back.
"This is not the time or the place Tas'meel! Stand down..." he yells.
Shrugging off the push, Tas'meel responds, "Why don't I put you in the same pain you put me through? You did this to me and now it's your turn.."
Tas'meel crouches down and directs his lightsaber in a stance that is all too familiar to Leo.
Surprised, Leo protests, "You can't do that..."
"After you nearly killed me with it,” Tas'meel says, “I spent my entire time afterwards recreating it. Now, I'll get my revenge finally."
Leo seeing no other option takes an identical stance, "I implore you, Tas'meel,” he says one last time, “Don't do this."
Tas'meel doesn't say a word. Instead he dashes straight forward at blinding speed towards Leo. Leo responds just as rapidly.
As the two men meet in the middle, their lightsabers connect with a brilliant flash. The instant this happens, a massive pocket of air is pushed away and the shockwave from the impact causes the entire ship to buck and shake. The force is so great that when the air comes rushing back into the pocket that was made, it explodes outward and sends the two men flying back in opposite directions. Leo goes crashing into the computer monitors and Tas'meel is sent flying out the doorway into an adjacent room.
After a few minutes, Leo rises slowly. He groans and watches as Tas'meel comes stumbling back into the room. The Sith is holding his head after having banged it against the wall in the next room. Leo readies himself for another exchange.
"Oh get over yourself,” Tas’meel says, “I just wanted to see how well you fought."
Leo looking confused asks, "What?"
Tas'meel shrugs, "I was bored, so I needed something to pass the time and felt like fighting."
"We could have killed each other,” Leo says loudly, “This mission is too important for us to be injured.” Shaking his head in disgust, he starts to turn away. “Now leave me alone so that I can help us get back home. Otherwise, how will you see Serea or Baltor again?
Tas’meel’s eyes widen. He grips the metal door frame so hard that he inadvertently puts a small indention in it, "How dare you say their names..."
"We all have reasons to return, Tas'meel,” Leo responds, “You have your family. I may not have given myself into attachments, but I would not rob a newborn of his father if I can help it."
Tas'meel turns around and goes to the door but before he can leave, the consoles that are still working begin to beep as a search that Leo placed is completed.
Looking at the data, Leo says, "Gather everyone. We may have a way to get through the fleet that arrived at the space station shortly after it was destroyed."
Tas'meel turns and speaks into the intercom, "Master Leo has found something that he says we all should hear. Meet up in the common room."
========================================================
As everyone gathers once again into the common room, Tannek arrives from the cockpit.
He immediately asks, "Who among you were the ones who rocked the ship so hard you nearly kicked us out of a stable orbit around the star..."
"That was me and Tas'meel,” Leo replies. “I apologize for that. It could not be stopped. But that's not why I've called you all..."
He opens a few encrypted files and continues, "Now... from the journals, it appears that the Arlack of this world is known to the surviving Mandalorians as *Aruetii* or traitor.
He has helped the Empire systematically eliminate all Mandalorian holdouts and bases now that they are of no more use. The Empire here doesn't wish to have opposing independent countries either.”
Pressing the console to zoom in on a recent log Leo says, "It seems that he managed to acquire the defense codes for the last fleet base of Mandalore."
Arlack slams his hand on the console, "Haar'chak! Damn that man, how can he betray his own people..."
Leo raises his hand, "Calm Arlack, we cannot let emotion blind us. I have a plan."
As everyone listens quietly Leo explains, "Also in this ship’s records, are the codes to enter and exit this system without being attacked by the automated defenses. If we give those codes to the Mandalorian fleet, we can try to convince them to bring the fight here. This would give them at least a chance at living, and also give us an opening to sneak back down to the planet without attracting too much attention."
"There is no way they'd listen to me.” Arlack protests. “They would think I've lost my mind and hang up. And two fleets shooting it out over space is your way of not attracting attention?"
"I'm certain the alternate versions we've encountered will see through it,” Leo replies confidently, “but the main fleet, which is likely looking for us, will be too busy to come for us."
"The prisoner Ari has revealed that the gate is at a mountain range on Asation.” Jensaar interjects. “If she were to give us the coordinates, we could give the Mandalorian fleet the codes and they would cover our descent to the planet."
Arlack scowls. "You would take advantage of Mandalorian honor to reach your goals..." He sighs. "Fine... I'll call them and try to convince them, but no promises."
Gian crosses both of his arms, pleased that he can do so once again now that he was healed, "Well done,” he says. “Now, we have a plan of action. The clock says we have five hours left. We can't make the call until after we clear the radiation, so everyone has four hours of rest and then we'll leave."
Master Leo agrees and everyone turns around to head to their rooms for some much needed rest and recuperation.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 14:08:09 GMT -8
Chapter 9
The team waits in the common room as Arlack speaks privately to the Mandalore of this world in the main communication room. Most sit quietly. Major Dervis and Tannek play a game of chess. Jensaar stands alert near the exit towards the cells.
As Tas'meel paces back and forth impatiently, he starts to groan. All the while, Master Leo and Alak sit in meditative positions next to each other in one corner. Gian sits comfortably on the stairs to the upper deck. Each man wonders what is being said in the other room, and each tries to cope with the wait in his own manner.
Suddenly, Tas'meel breaks the silence, "I can't take this sitting around anymore. I say we go in and tell Mandalore to do what we want or else they can sit back and get slaughtered by the Imperial Fleet."
"Tas, that's not going to work with them,” Gain responds. “We don't know how they are in this reality, but even the other Mandalore wouldn't take that attitude from the Emperor himself."
Tas'meel scowls, "Then we make them obey. I'm tired of sitting around."
The two Jedi exchange a look, preparing to intervene, but Gain beats them to the point. Letting loose his usual reserve, he rises to his feet.
"SIT DOWN before I make you!" he yells.
Energy surges from him; lightning arcing across his body and an aura of flames emanates from him.
Tas'meel’s hand twitches as he considers reaching for his lightsaber.
"Do you really want to test my patience right now?" Gain asks.
Realizing he's at a disadvantage, Tas'meel backs off slowly and turns towards an unoccupied corner. Seeing this, Gian slowly releases his power. His appearance returns to normal and he sits back down.
The silence returns. It is interrupted briefly when Tannek bursts out swearing after being beaten again by Dervis. The team awaits the results of the negotiations. Finally, Arlack appears in the doorway. The sweat on his brow is obvious to them all.
All eyes turn to him and Arlack meets their gazes, "You're all welcome,” he says. “I showed them the evidence and after all that, they have agreed. If they are to die, then they will die in a way that people will remember them. The fleet is being gathered and will arrive within the hour. I transmitted the fleet codes, so they can bypass the point defenses. That should buy us enough time to slip through without difficulty."
Dervis stands up and regards the bounty hunter, "Excellent work, Hunter. I honestly didn't think you could pull it off."
"He doesn't like being known as the last Mandalore,” Arlack responds. “But anything is better than being killed in your sleep."
Leo rises, "So when the fleet arrives,” he asks, “where do we go from there?"
It is Jensaar who answers, "Ari'adain in the hold has provided us with coordinates that correspond to a base known to be used by this world’s Gian and associates. After the situation, she almost guarantees all of our opposites will be there."
Master Alak, looks up at this as if awakening from a trance, "I sense there is more than just our copies at this place,” he says. “We must be careful, and stick together."
Gian then rises. He waves his hands motioning everyone to gather around the central holo-console and begins giving instructions.
"Major, you are best with coordinating troops. Outline a plausible formation for teams for when we land."
Dervis dumbfounded by a Sith asking his opinion nods, "Well obviously Master Leo and Darth Tas'meel will be up front” he says, quickly recovering his composure. “They will stay in close quarters to soak up damage and disrupt the enemy ranks. I and Arlack will be at the rear for suppressive fire and also to respond in case anyone attacks from behind. Master Alak and Darth Gian will be in the middle. Master Alak will focus on healing while Darth Gian uses lightning. Jensaar, you will be the scout off to the side to provide eyes on enemy movements and sniper cover. Tannek, you're the pilot, so keep the skies clear for us."
Everyone considers and all find themselves in agreement.
"Impressive,” Tas'meel comments, “for a Republic soldier..."
Dervis looks up at the Sith but before responding decides to just accept it.
"Look at it this way,” he returns, “without me in the way, you can cause mass slaughter till your arms fall off."
Tas'meel chuckles, "It's a miracle,” he informs the others, “he has developed a sense of humor.”
Tannek looks at the two and says jokingly, "Look everyone, they're in love. All we're missing is cake and jawa juice."
Tas'meel glares at the pilot and raises his hand. He flicks a finger sending concentrated Force Energy towards Tannek which knocks him back a few feet and leaves him with a bloody nose.
Tannek groans and spouts back, "Sorry to have outed you two before you were ready. I'm going back to the pilot’s seat. Holler when you're all ready to move out."
As the team prepares for the battle, they all spend some time in the armory, checking on their ammo and equipment and seeing if they can modify their gear with any of the extras. Leo compliments his robes with knee and shin guards as well as with a metal breastplate and shoulder pads for added protection. Tas'meel has replaced his standard gloves with a set that have bladed claws along the forearms for extra damage. Jensaar grabs extra ammo packs and also distributes comm units to all of the team members so they can keep in contact. As Dervis finishes arming, the comm unit starts beeping.
Arlack hastens to the communications room to answer and returns shortly to say that the fleet has moved and they will arrive in minutes. At that notion, Tannek engages the engines and starts heading towards Asation.
High above the planet's surface, a large fleet sits in formation around a series of defense stations. Five lumbering, capital ships comprise the core of the fleet with the flag ship in the center. All are escorted by smaller cruisers with compliments of fighters and bombers.
As the fleet inspects the wreckage of the one mighty space station, the tranquility of the space around is suddenly and violently shattered as a second massive fleet jumps out of hyperspace in close proximity to the Imperial vessels. Almost immediately, several small cruisers are obliterated by the sheer sudden mass of turbo laser fire and proton torpedoes. As the fleet tries to recover from the surprise, entire squadrons of fighters and bombers sweep in and begin to strafe the point defense turrets that appear to have shut down.
As a familiar ship enters the fray, Tannek still at the controls looks at Arlack.
"Damn! These guys aren't messing around." he observes.
"Not at all,” Arlack responds. “This is their entire fleet. These Imps won't survive, but eventually, they will get reinforcements that will likely overwhelm our friends, so we need to get this done soon."
The ship swoops into the formations of a nearby fighter squadron and Tannek gives a loud yell as he opens up the turrets and starts firing at on-coming fighters. Targets erupt in fire all around them as they fly through the debris, now heading towards a separate squadron of bombers that are being pursued by attacking fighters.
Flying straight towards the new squadron, Arlack controls the missile bays and locks on to all the outer fighters as Tannek fires full-auto down the middle while the friendly bombers sweep by. Just as the bombers pass the location that Tannek and Arlack targeted, the fighters are caught in the path and are consumed by laser and missile fire. Tannek, focused on watching the bombers as they proceed to take out another cruiser, is shocked from his seat as the back of the ship is shaken by blaster fire.
Arlack check the scanners, "Three behind us. Closing fast." he reports
"No problem,” Tannek responds, “just keep me updated."
As he performs evasive maneuvers to avoid losing their shields, Tannek is alerted by the alarm saying that they have missile lock on them. Wondering what can be done to avoid it, Tannek finds the debris of a destroyed cruiser floating in front of them. As the missiles are fired and start closing in on their ship, Tannek makes a split-second decision and heads straight towards the debris. Just as the missiles close in on their target, Tannek uses a sudden burst of the thrusters and launches the ship up and over the debris only to send another burst of thrust back down immediately. The ship disappears behind the debris just as the missiles reach them and collide with the chunk of hull-plating causing a large explosion behind them. The force of this explosion knocks the ship forward and Tannek uses that impetus to propel the ship into a full 180 degree turn in an instant. As they come about to face the oncoming ships, Tannek lets loose the turrets and fires. His opponents are obviously unprepared and almost instantly vaporized in a stream of turret fire.
Finally free of any immediate pursuers, Tannek turns the ship towards the planet. As he does so, Gian’s voice comes over the intercom.
"Tannek, fly this ship straight or don't bother flying it at all!" he screams.
Tannek dodges another batch of debris, "I don't tell you how to do your Sith stuff,” he responds, “so don't tell me how to fly a ship. Just sit down and strap in!"
Immediately, he shuts off the intercom, preventing any further comments from a clearly irritated Sith.
Arlack who is busy launching countermeasures glances back at him, "He's not going to like that response."
"He can bill me later,” Tannek says, “when we're not dead."
He then throws the ship into a barrel-roll and spins through another passing squadron. They catch a glimpse of the Imperial flagship as it is assaulted and destroyed by Mandalorian ships on both sides. Tannek sees an opening and dives forward, towards the planet’s surface below.
He then presses the intercom connected to the hold and addresses Jensaar.
Agent,” he asks, “What are the coordinates for this base?"
"Transmitting now..." Jensaar replies. He then recites a series of longitude and latitude coordinates which Arlack types into navigation as he and plots a course. Shortly, they enter the atmosphere and Tannek tells Arlack to get everyone ready. The sensors are picking up activity over their destination.
Arlack checks the scanner.
"Anti-air turrets,” he says. “We're going to have to go in hard and fast."
"I know what to do,” Tannek reassures him, “But you guys need to be by the hangar door when I do it."
Arlack nods and gets up go alert the others.
As the team assembles in the cargo hold, they receive an alert over the intercom from Tannek.
"You guys may want to grab some extra jet packs or something,” the pilot says. “We're not gonna have time to land so I'm going to have to drop you guys..."
They move to follow this suggestion, only to discover that they have only two extras on the rack. Gian and Leo agree that Dervis and Jensaar will take the extra packs, while those who can use the Force will rely on that.
Suddenly, they are shaken violently by the shockwaves of anti-air turrets and notice that the cargo doors are beginning to open.
"Get ready to drop!" Tannek yells.
He pulls up on the controls and sends the ship into a climb straight into the sky, letting the men fall directly towards the base below.
As the seven men dive down to the surface below, Dervis and Arlack dart forward first and activate their packs just before hitting the ground. They start firing wildly at the troops outside the base entrance.
Shortly afterwards, Gian and Alak land using the Force to slow their descent. One of them summons a Force Barrier and interlocks both just as a series of mortars are about to strike Arlack and Dervis. From inside the barrier, the four men watch as Leo and Tas'meel forego slowing their dive. Instead, these two choose to enter the fight immediately by crashing into the group of soldiers who are firing at in the barrier. Landing with a massive thud and rising a dust cloud, Leo and Tas'meel create a shockwave which hurls a number of troops away from them. Through the dust, a sharp blade of Force Energy flies outward towards a stationary turret and slices off the barrels. This causes the terrified gunner to leap away. Immediately, a loud shout is heard followed by a bubble of energy striking the gunner in the face and causing him to fly back into a nearby rock.
As the dust settles, the rest of the team joins together in formation. The soldiers look on perplexed by the group that has arrived so unexpectedly in front of them. The troopers begin to regroup but are caught off-guard when a neighboring anti-air turret erupts in a giant fireball.
Jensaar speaks calmly to Gain via his earpiece.
"Anti-air turret eliminated. In position and ready for orders."
Gian smiles and cracks his knuckles.
"I'll deal with the remaining scraps..." he comments, channeling power into his hands. Gian summons lightning from the clouds above. Hundreds of bolts rain down onto the men below. After a minute of the Lightning Storm, all that remains are the charred remnants of the soldiers who guarded the door.
Dervis glances up to see Tannek pass overhead and shoot down a few stray fighter planes.
"Tannek,” the major calls, “Lay down some fire on the door. It's sealed shut."
Tannek moves into position and fires a volley of rockets at the door. Almost immediately, he is knocked off course by another ship who's pilot can be heard over all their intercoms.
"You know, it's not very polite to steal a man’s ship.” The voice which is speaking sounds just like Tannek. “Especially, a Bounty Hunter’s,” he adds. “Now, as much as I'd like to see myself in person, I'm afraid orders are orders."
With that, the new ship opens fire on Tannek's. Both soar into the sky to engage in a dogfight.
Jensaar regroups with the team and they see that the door was blasted open and they can now enter the base. As they start to do so, they feel a heavy rumble coming from the ground and Master Alak yells for everyone to get back. The ground beneath them begins to crack and give way. Boulders from all around rise and start to move towards them. Most of the team jump out of the way, but Alak remains still. The rocks all appear to converge on him. Turning back, Leo calls Alak’s name fearing that he has been crushed.
Through the sounds of battle above, they all hear wicked laughter echoing from beyond the door. The Force Users all sense a heavy Darkside presence drawing near. Gian initially believes it to be his opposite and so is surprised when different figure appears. The man is fully cloaked and wears a black mask which conceals his face from all others.
Still laughing, the man says, "I guess he wasn't as strong as I'd hoped. Pity. Now, I must have my fun with you people." His voice is oddly distorted.
Everyone prepares to engage when suddenly the rocks behind them start to shake. They are pushed away to reveal Alak; safe and alive.
Leo is filled with joy that his fellow Jedi has survived. He turns back to the new arrival just as Alak speaks, "Leave him to me. He is mine."
"Master Alak,” Dervis protests, “You are the healer of our group. If we leave you behind, it'll affect us all! We're not leaving you to fight alone."
Alak begins channeling power into his arms as he did when he and Dervis fought the Seekers before.
"Go,” Master Alak says, “I'll be right behind you. This man I must face alone."
Gian finally understands who the enemy in front of them must be.
"If he chooses to fight alone, then let him,” he says to the rest. “Now get to the door!"
"None of you are going anywhere.” The masked man replies. “This battle ends now."
Raising his hands, he sends a wave of Darkside energy straight towards the group. It is intercepted by a stone wall that rises up from the ground summoned by Master Alak.
Recognizing that the energy he has blocked was a Death Field Wave, Alak realizes that his enemy is willing to extinguish life just for the sake of pleasure. Allowing his wall to collapse, Alak turns to the rest of the team.
"That one attack told me everything I need to know,” he says. “He is willing to drain life itself from others. As a Jedi, I cannot let him continue. Once I make an opening, all of you run through.
Nodding they all agree.
"Be careful,” Leo says to Alak, “This man will not hesitate to kill you."
Alak agrees. He closes his hands together and builds a large amount of energy in his palms. After a few seconds, he reaches the point he seeks and sends forth all the energy in a single heavy wave towards the door. The wave expands outward to cover a wide area. This surprises the masked man who jumps aside in an attempt to avoid it. He evades the main force, but is still hit by the sides of the attack. This sends him even further from their intended path. As the masked man recovers, he sees the team dashing through the door and into the base.
He begins to run back through the door, when a string of vines and roots erupt from the ground and dart towards him. Raising his hand, the masked man stops the vines causing them to almost immediately wither and die. He looks back at Master Alak.
"I am your enemy, Vis,” Alak says, remaining stalwart. “Let us see which one of us is stronger."
The masked man draws a crimson lightsaber.
"Then, let’s see if you can provide some entertainment, Jedi!" he exclaims as the two dash towards each other with sabers ready to clash.
The rest of the team runs down a corridor with Leo and Tas'meel in the lead until they come to a large door. There are strong presences waiting just beyond it. Arlack hacks the door and they all enter together ready to face whatever awaits them.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 14:18:52 GMT -8
Chapter 10
The lights of battle fill the skies above the surface of Asation. Debris from ships can be seen streaking across the sky as they burn up on entering the atmosphere. Down on the surface, a battle marks the landscape as two men fight to see who may enter the doors of a nearby base. Master Alak clashes with his dark version in order to give the rest of the team time to move through the base. As the two men battle, each tries to gain the upper hand in whatever way he can.
Master Alak faces the mask of his enemy. Due to his Miraluka Force Vision, he sees the darkness radiating from the man. He perceives that there is no light in him whatsoever. As he sees this, he thinks about the rest of the team and what they might face within the base.
Dark Alak senses his distraction, "Stop focusing on the future as you have none!" he sneers and pulls back his saber to throw Alak off balance. He punches him in the face before spinning around and following through with a point-blank Force Push.
Alak flies back and tries to regain his feet but staggers and hits the ground hard. Rising slowly, the Jedi sees a barrage of boulders falling towards him from above. He dives out of the way at the last minute. As he regains his footing, more boulders descend, but this time, Alak is able to stop them in midair. He sends the boulders back towards his enemy, but Dark Alak merely laughs and jumps out of the way.
Alak sees his enemy moving and decides to shield himself in a rejuvenating bubble to heal his minor cuts and scrapes.
Dark Alak rebukes him, "Healing won't save you."
He gathers a large sphere of power between his hands before sending it all in a concentrated ball towards Alak. The power is enough to cause the ground beneath it to crack as it streaks towards the Jedi. Alak is distracted from the healing process as the orb collides with his barrier. The barrier begins to buckle and then collapses. The sphere of energy strikes Alak and sends him flying back through the nearby trees and out of sight.
Alak lands beyond the trees near a small stream. Sprawled on the ground, he notices a small flower next to him and smiles, "Even in a place like this,” he thinks, “life still grows."
Realizing that he now has a moment, before his enemy arrives, Alak begins meditating in order to heal his wounds.
"What should I do?" he wonders. "He can counter my attacks and kills whatever vines I attack him with."
Then, as he senses his enemy approaching, Alak stands and turns to face his foe, "The Force will show me the answer..." he vows.
As the enemy walks confidently into the clearing, he says disgustedly, "Of course you'd think to fight me here. These surroundings won't protect you."
Extending his hands, the man sends a wave of dark energy out to the surrounding plants. Almost immediately, the plants and insects lose their color, wither and die. After a few seconds, there is nothing but death all around the masked man. He laughs having absorbed the life of all the plants. Alak quickly responds by summoning a pool of healing energy centered around him. This serves to save a small portion of the local plants from the Death Field.
Alak is saddened by seeing the callous way his opponent extinguishes life. He lets out a loud yell and launches a heavy wave of energy towards Dark Alak to try to stop him. But, the masked man brushes aside the wave.
The masked man laughs again only to be silenced as he sees Alak channeling energy into the ground itself. This causes the ground beneath them to vibrate violently, creating cracks and breaks all around. Alak follows this action by sending a barrage of pebbles towards the masked man at deadly speeds. Dark Alak is pleased that he got an emotional response and his foe is finally on the offensive. He reacts by showering hundreds of rocks back at the Jedi. Alak dashes through the rock shower and tries to use his lightsaber.
As they exchange lightsaber blows, both men also combine the combat with Force Pushes and nearby rocks. Alak, trying to gain an opening, jumps back into the air and sends several Force Orbs towards his enemy below. As the masked man dashes to the side, the orbs land causing even more damage to the ground and leaving small craters where each hit. When Alak lands once again, he feels the surface give. It has apparently been softened by water from the stream that has seeped into the cracks of the landscape around them.
With his Force Sight, Alak watches as life echoes beneath their feet within the cracks in the ground. Looking up, he realizes how he might finally defeat his opponent.
Both men now breath heavily due to their extensive Force Use, "Well. This was certainly entertaining,” Dark Alak comments, “but you seem to be out of attacks." Channeling lightning into his hands, the masked man continues, "Life itself fuels me. You cannot hope to match my reserves."
Alak looks up and replies, "You are wrong. We merely borrow from life, and one day we must give it back." Rising, Alak regains his composure while staring at the man before him. "Your time is up,” he says, “and I will make you give back what you took."
The masked man yells, "Try me!" as he sends a dense stream of lighting towards Alak.
But the Jedi is ready. He raises his hand and absorbs the lightning in an orb between his palms. Looking at the ground, he sees that the cracks from the battle are now saturated by the stream’s water. Alak kicks the ground hard and launches high into the air. He hurls the orb of lightning back at the masked man, while using the Force to slow his descent.
Dark Alak, seeing his own attack returned to him, dives out of the way. He chuckles that his enemy is still trying the same thing. He lands in a puddle of thick mud and looks down startled that the land had been watered that much. Before he can jump out of the way, the lightning orb strikes the ground, sending a powerful surge of electricity throughout the watery soil. Dark Alak screams in pain as the electricity surges through his body from the ground water. Master Alak lands safely after the lightning surge dies down. He sees his opponent crumple to the ground.
Dashing quickly to his foe, Alak calls a shining orb of energy into his palm. Dark Alak tries to rise quickly, but slips on the mud and falls. Stopping above his opponent, Alak slams the golden, glowing orb into his enemy’s stomach. The masked man screams in pain, but forces himself to stand.
With a groan Dark Alak says, "You'll have to do better than that to kill me."
Alak nods. "I know..." he replies, clasping his hands together.
The ground begins to shake as dozens of roots swiftly emerge surrounding Dark Alak and wrap all around him. The roots continue to grow and meld until a fully grown tree is formed with only Dark Alak’s head exposed from the trunk. The Jedi lets out a deep sigh of exhaustion.
"Where did this come from?” Dark Alak asks curiously, “I killed all the plant life."
"I preserved a small amount with my own Life Force.” Alak responds. “You shouldn't have carelessly loosened the ground around us, it allowed the few plants left to be watered and to grow."
"You were planning this from the beginning!"
Nodding silently Alak continues to regard his trapped opponent.
"Then you should know this won't hold me..." Dark Alak says. He starts to groan for a moment but then stops in shock. "What? I can't absorb it!"
"I blocked your connection to the Force temporarily,” Alak replies. “You won't be able to break out."
"This won't hold me forever and when I get out, you will be too weak to stop me. I know how you are. You can't kill a helpless man." Dark Alak says wickedly to the Jedi Master.
Alak stands firm, "I have no intention of letting you get out,” he answers. “This tree will be your prison."
"What do you mean?"
“You are never helpless nor will you ever change your ways..." Alak clasps his hands together and channels a bit more energy into the tree now containing his enemy, "You will give back the life you stole and become nourishment for the soil."
As he sees the tree start to move again, Master Alak does the best he can to not watch what he is about to do. He can, however, do nothing to avoid hearing as Dark Alak screams in pain before being silenced by a loud crunch as the tree crushes his body within the trunk itself.
Alak looks up at the tree and sees only a trickle of blood falling from where his enemy’s face used to be. Studying the single growth amid the withered surroundings of the battle field, Alak approaches the tree and places his hand on its trunk.
Feeling the shape of the life within the tree, he sees that it will never bear fruit or even leaves and thinks to himself, "A fitting monument and a reminder to others of where the road ends when they walk the path of death and destruction."
Turning away from the battlefield, the Jedi master heads back to the base, seeking the rest of the team and hoping that they have fared better than he did.
========================================================
Within the base corridors, the rest of the team stands facing a closed door. Leo, Gian and Tas'meel all sense enemies behind the door a fact which Jensaar and Dervis can understand from their expressions. As Arlack finishes unlocking the door, the team prepares for what is on the other side.
As the door slides open, they all rush inside only to find themselves staring down the barrels of dozens of rifles carried by soldiers who in turn surround a heavily armed tank.
A commander yells, "Open fire!" and the room suddenly erupts.
Dervis, Jensaar and Arlack dive out of the way while Leo, Tas'meel and Gian deflect the incoming shots. Then, they too are forced to jump out of the way, as bolts from the tank start landing near them.
As the team takes cover behind pillars on opposite sides of the room, Dervis fires blindly from around the corner. This causes the soldiers to concentrate their fire. The troopers begin to advance, moving steadily closer and closer to their prey.
Gian yells, "Jensaar! Scan them!"
Upon hearing this order, the agent quickly extracts a grenade-sized orb and tosses it around the corner. The device sends out a sonic pulse. Using an instrument mounted on his wrist, Jensaar quickly uploads the resulting data to Dervis’ and Arlack’s helmets with every enemy position clearly marked. Both men, now knowing where the enemies are, start throwing grenades from cover to disrupt the soldiers’ formation.
Tas'meel, too impatient to remain waiting in cover, yells, "Enough of this!" and leaps towards the crowd of soldiers.
Landing in their midst, he begins to quickly and viciously plowing through the men. One by one, they fall to his blade. Losing himself in the fight, Tas'meel becomes increasingly detached and impatient as he continues to kill soldier after soldier.
Seeing several soldiers who are lining up to fire he yells, "Get out of my way!" and throws his lightsaber at the group. One dies as the others open fire. Tas’meel dashes through the bolts, ignoring the ones that strike him until he collides with the center of the line. He uses the blades on the backs of his gauntlets to carve through the soldiers until he Force Grips the last one and crushes his neck.
Arlack yells, "Watch out!" and Tas'meel looks up to see the tank barrel aiming right at him. It fires. The next thing Tas'meel realizes is that he's flying through the air backwards. He lands on the ground next to Gian, who had pulled him back at the last second. The tank, having missed its intended target, starts to rotate its barrel to fire again.
The others again take cover, but Leo notices that Jensaar is no longer with the group. Looking towards the tank, he sees the agent scale its side and land on top of the pilot’s hatch.
Jensaar had used the Sith's slaughter of the troops as a distraction to approach the tank. He unlocks the pilot’s hatch but is surprised to see a man rise up with a pistol ready to fire. Jensaar, knocks the blaster aside and draws his own, leveling it at the man’s head and pulling the trigger.
Immediately, he pulls out a grenade and drops it into the hatch before turning to jump clear. As he does so, the grenade explodes turning the tank into a massive fireball and sending the agent flying at high speeds. Leo leaps and intercepts him in midair. Tucking and spinning, he manages to land both of them safely on the ground.
The team regroups in the center of the room, and Gian looks at Jensaar.
"Well done,” he says, “That tank was starting to annoy me."
Jensaar nods and replies, "Thank you, sir."
Leo watches the two and then turns to Tas'meel saying, "You shouldn't charge headfirst like that. You're injured now."
"Don't tell me how to fight,” Tas'meel scoffs. “You weren't doing anything cowering behind cover."
As the men start to calm down after the small skirmish, they suddenly hear a voice from within the base.
"Such a shame,” it comments drily, “and here I thought that defense would actually work. The lords are going to give me hell for that."
All turn to see who has spoken and are shocked when a group of ray shields activate around them. They are cut them off from each other. Dervis, Tas'meel and Arlack stand in one cage while Gian, Leo and Jensaar are in another.
The man on the intercom speaks again.
"Now, while it makes tactical sense to just kill you all now, I've been ordered to let my superiors have a bit of fun with you all. Two doors exit this room, so I'm going to split you up. If you don't go through the door I tell you, then I gas the room and deal with the consequences later."
Suddenly a door on the side opens and the ray shield holding Leo, Gian and Jensaar releases.
"It is unwise to separate,” Jensaar observes, “They undoubtedly will use this to weaken our chances."
"Let us play along for a bit,” Gain says. “If there is anyone who would relish this game, it's the one I faced before."
"Then let's see what they have in store and let the Force guide us." Leo adds.
"Don't you ever shut up?” Gain asks. “If they don't kill you, I might, just to stop hearing you constantly say that."
Then, turning to the other team he says, "You all know the deal. Get this done and meet us at the gate."
Tas'meel nods.
"Kill them all," he replies.
Turning down the corridor, the three men proceed through the opened door which slides shut behind them. The second ray shield falls, releasing Tas'meel, Dervis and Arlack from their cage and a second door opens.
"Why'd I have to get stuck with you, Major?" Tas'meel asks mockingly.
Dervis reloads his gun before responding.
"Because somebody’s got to keep an eye on you. Now, let’s move."
"Keep ordering me around,” Tas'meel sneers, “and the people in this base won't be your only enemy."
The three men head off down the hallway with no idea what awaits them on the other end.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 14:46:32 GMT -8
Chapter 11
Leo, Gian and Jensaar run quietly down their hallway until they see an open door which leads into a dimly lit room.
"Enemies?" Jensaar asks.
Leo and Gian nod at the same time and Leo adds, "I sense two men waiting -- one of whom feels very familiar..." He turns to look at Gian.
"He's here,” Gian replies. “Leave him to me; I have a score to settle..."
Leo steps forward and grabs his shoulder to stops him.
"Gian.... “ he says, “You can't do this alone. We have to work together."
Throwing off the man’s hand the Sith replies, "You are here out of necessity; not because I want you here. Stay out of my way, or else you're just like them."
Jensaar interrupts, "With respect, Father, the odds of succeeding are higher if we work with him. Jedi or not; he is here, so we should use him."
"I have always thought there was hope for you, Brother,” Leo says, striding past them. “You are the one attachment I never could ignore. But if being near this enemy causes you to lose yourself so much, then I have only one choice to make..."
Gian stares at him coldly and is taken completely by surprised when Leo turns around and sends a wave of Force Energy that pushes Gian and Jensaar back. Before they can recover, Leo dashes ahead and they see him enter the room and the door begin to close behind him. Leo is smiling.
Gian jumps up and runs towards the door screaming, "Oh no, you don't!" but he is not able to reach it before it closes.
Jensaar walks up and inspects the door.
"Magnetically sealed,” he observes, “with a twenty-five digit lock. Lightsaber can't cut through and I can't decrypt this in time."
Gian scowls. Steaming with anger, he backs away.
"That won't stop me,” he snarls. “Get away from the door."
Jensaar baffled, nonetheless moves back behind the Sith and watches.
Gian closes his hands together and forms a shining ball of fire between them. As the ball grows hotter and hotter, it starts to blaze brighter and brighter. Gian struggles at first, but then groans as he pours Darkside energy into his hands. This causes the bright flame to become pitch black and forces Jensaar to retreat a few steps from the increased heat. Jensaar wonders how his father is able to withstand the temperature.
Gian yells as he sends the stream of black flames towards the door. As they strike the center, Jensaar is shocked to see the metal of the door beginning to glow and give way under the intense heat. Now realizing what Gian is trying to do, Jensaar stands back, knowing that anything he might attempt anything would only get in the way.
On the other side of the door, Leo enters the room ahead only to find himself face to face with two men. Both are cloaked in black and hold crimson sabers. Looking upon them, he realizes exactly who they are and says, "Your fight is with me."
Dark Gian looks up with a smile.
"Brave,” he says, “but foolish. You cannot protect them anymore than you can protect yourself in this place."
He looks to the other man and asks, "Do you wish to make the first move?"
Dark Leo smirks and says, "With pleasure."
He leaps towards Leo with murderous intent and brings his saber down from above. The Jedi blocks with his saber but is caught off guard by how much force is behind the blow. He is forced down to one knee.
Deflecting his opponent’s blade so that it glances off to one side, Leo rises and spins hoping to catch his opponent off-guard. Instead, Leo is countered by his opponent who flips forward and kicks his lightsaber out of his hand. Leo, left with only his fists now, grabs the man’s hilt and the two men each struggle to break the other’s grip.
Leo twists his hips and flips his opponent over his shoulder, throwing him to the ground. He follows this with a swift kick to the stomach which sends his opponent flying back towards the center of the room. Leo turns and pulls his lightsaber back towards him. Just before the saber reaches him, however, Leo is sent flying back by a burst of lightning to his chest from Dark Gian.
Both enemies stand unharmed and laugh as Leo lands against the wall.
"That was an interesting warm-up,” Dark Leo says, “But really, if that's the extent of your skills, you're worse than I expected."
Dark Gian looks at his ally.
"Remember our deal, Brother..."
"Yeah yeah,” Dark Leo responds, “After he is defeated, you get to take what's left of his life. This isn't the first time we've agreed to this."
Leo stares at his alternate version.
"How can you go along with this?" he demands.
"Why not?” scoffs the other, “It has been this way for centuries. When we go through, I'm going to take your place and be the one who helps bring down your pathetic Jedi Order from the inside -- starting with your council."
He laughs and points at the door, "And when my job is done, our Alak will go throughout the order and kill every single padawan -- down to the youngest infant."
Horrified by this, Leo takes his lightsaber and leaps towards the two. Thinking of what would happen should he fail, he removes all inhibitions as he fights both at the same time.
Moving back and forth between the two men, Leo feels himself slip into an eternal calm. This utter peace that he feels radiates with every step, moving him faster and faster. The two enemies fight harder and harder, but are unable to find an opening. To them, it is as if Leo is not even there. He acts without even thinking; he feels a Oneness with the Force that he'd never felt before, spurred on only by the wish to protect those who are threatened.
Kicking the two enemies away, Leo dives towards his counterpart at blinding speeds. Dark Leo tries to stop him with a Force Push, but only manages to slow him down. This slowing however is enough for him to block the attack that otherwise would have ended him. Looking into Leo's eyes, his enemy sees an emptiness.
Leo had passed beyond the fear of death and had embraced the Force completely. Dark Leo pushes the Jedi back and sends a sharp wave of Force Energy towards him. Leo jumps over the attack and flips forward, sending his own wave back at his enemy. This in turn is blocked by Dark Gian who then sends the wave back at the Jedi. Blocking once more, Leo is surprised to see his counterpart diving within the wave itself. His opponent then kicks the Jedi hard, sending him to the ground. Dark Leo follows through by falling atop him with his knee connecting with the Jedi's stomach.
Laying on the ground, his energy exhausted, Leo looks up at the two men standing above him and smiling.
"Well that was certainly interesting,” his counterpart says. “You proved to be a good fight after all. I daresay I've never seen something like that."
Dark Gian puts down his lightsaber before removing his gloves and grabbing the Jedi by his throat. "Now that you've had your fun, it's my turn." Lifting the beaten Jedi off the floor, Dark Gian laughs wickedly as he is about to start draining his life force. Suddenly, he is distracted by a flash of fire burning through the door behind them.
Both enemies look towards the door and thus both are caught off guard as Gian appears out of nowhere between the three men. He drives a flying knee into Dark Gian’s face, sending him flying across the room. Before landing, the newly arrived Sith spins in midair and sends a wave of Force Power into Dark Leo who then flies in the opposite direction.
Landing next to Leo he shouts, "If anybody is going to kill this man, it'll be me!"
Igniting his double-bladed saber, he points to Dark Gian.
"I believe you and I have unfinished business.".
Dark Gian rises. "How did you phase walk into here without a marker?" he asks. Gian points to his brother without saying a word and the answer comes to him. "You marked him before he arrived."
"I originally intended to use it on him when we next fought,” Gian responds, “but this was just as satisfying." Turning to his brother, Gian sends a stream of energy into Leo which brings him back to consciousness. As Leo rises to his feet Gain remarks, "I may need you to fight these two, but pull that stunt again, and I don't care who we're fighting -- I'm going to let them kill you."
Leo responds, "I couldn't risk you losing yourself as well..."
"Just take care of your man,” Gian grunts, “I'll handle mine."
"Where is Jensaar?" the Jedi asks.
"I sent him on ahead. This fight was not his."
As the two enemies prepare to fight again Leo whispers, "They fight in coordination. We need to stick together."
"Look who's talking” Gain replies in a low voice. “So… do you have any plans?"
Leo responds, "Remember when we first fought on Taris and got ambushed by that giant Rakghoul?"
The Sith smirks as he remembers and agrees. "I'll set the stage. Just hold off your man long enough."
Standing back to back the two brothers ready themselves to face their opposites. Gian activates both blades of his lightsaber while Leo takes a stance to defend from any type of attack. Their darker halves also prepare and draw closer as if circling prey, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Dark Gian summons a wave and sends it towards the brothers with a thundering clap. Gian responds with his own attack to cancel them both and dashes forward in the wake, to keep his opponent at bay.
Leo turns his attention to his own opponent who leaps towards him ready to fight. As the two men exchange strikes, they match each other blow for blow. Twirling their sabers in extreme attempts to break through each other’s defenses, they move around the center of the room almost as if in a choreographed dance.
Leo after deflecting several attacks, starts adding in martial arts with his swordplay by doing leg sweeps and elbow strikes. These don't affect the scales in any way as Dark Leo starts doing the same thing.
As their fight continues, the power behind each hit increases and they start leaving cracks in the ground. The two men begin to resort to Force amplified attacks with each hit combining their saber strikes with waves of Force Energy. With each exchange, sharp waves radiate in several directions leaving cuts in the walls, floors and sometimes even their armor. They connect one last time and a wave of energy flies out behind them leaving more marks on the walls before rebounding.
Dark Leo, angry that he can't get anywhere near his opponent now, lowers his stance and prepares his blade in a manner that Leo knows all too well. The Jedi assumes the same stance, mirroring his opponent.
"It appears we are evenly matched…” Leo observes.
His counterpart rebukes the claim saying, "We merely have similar skills. This will show who's the stronger!"
"Then let us see who will connect first." Leo answers mildly.
As they continue to stare each other down, Leo shouts, "Do it now!" and immediately channels all of his power to his feet. Simultaneously, his counterpart does the same and both explode towards each other at such speeds they seem to vanish briefly.
Gian who has been fighting off his darker self, quickly phase shifts away from his opponent and lands directly behind his brother. He slams his hand into the ground just as Leo and his counterpart dash towards each other. Immediately, the floor begins to crack and rise under Dark Leo by a few inches. Leo responds by dropping to the floor. He slides towards his opponent while Dark Leo, having swung his blade instead, misses his target because of the sudden rise. The resulting swing however sends out a wave which hits Gian and sends him flying back.
Leo having slid under the attack which was aimed at him, sees an opening. He also notices the fear in his enemy’s eyes as he realizes what has happened. Following through, Leo sends a heavy kick into his opponents chin, sending him flying straight up.
Leo regains his footing quickly and jumps upwards towards his dazed opponent. Striking his opponent across his chest in an upward slash, Leo finally connects to his target. Finishing his assault, the Jedi grabs Dark Leo by the collar and, after spinning around, hurls his enemy straight down into the floor below. The impact leaves hundreds of cracks on the slab. The man also has a gaping wound across his chest from the lightsaber.
Leo lands and lets out a sigh of relief as he sees his defeated opponent. He watches as Gian rises to his feet.
"Are you ok?" Leo asks.
Gian stands saying, "Hardly a scratch. Like an idiot, he put more energy into the swing than the aftershock."
Dark Gian walks slowly towards his defeated brother, who groans in pain. He looks down at Dark Leo who clutches his robes.
Speaking weakly, Dark Leo says, "Brother...Heal me."
Dark Gian's only glares. His eyes glow with Darkside power as he says, "Pathetic..." He then slams his hand onto his fallen ally’s chest.
Dark Leo screams in pain as his life force is slowly sucked away causing him to look older and older until all that remains is a withered husk, drained of all life and energy.
"How could you?” Leo yells in disgust yells to Dark Gian. “He was your family!"
Cracking his neck Dark Gian shrugs. "He promised me a body to drain...He didn't say it couldn't be his body. If he couldn't handle you, then he was no longer useful to me."
Gian appears unaffected by the death of one of his opponents.
"Snap out of it,” he tells Leo. “He was dead anyways, so get over it and focus on this guy."
Dark Gian smiles sinisterly.
"Even with the two of you, there is no hope." he says and starts spinning around rapidly. Using the Force to accelerate, Dark Gian spins faster and faster all the while laughing at his new reserves of power. The spinning causes the air to form a vortex and its suction starts pulling Gian and Leo towards the middle. As they feel themselves begin to move, Gian sends a sudden jolt of lightning towards the center. Dark Gian halts the vortex just in time to grab the bolt and redirect to towards Gian. Unable to counter in time, Gian is struck in the chest and flies backwards, hitting the wall hard.
Leo quickly regains his footing. He glances towards his brother before leaping forward to attack their opponent. Dark Gian sees Leo coming. He deflects the Jedi's lightsaber then grabs him by the throat and holds him above the ground.
Looking at the Jedi who struggles in his grasp and then back at Gian, he says, "It would be an insult to simply drain the same man twice. Instead, I say you should suffer a bit..."
Releasing Leo, Dark Gian waits for the Jedi to fall to his knees. Then, he drives his lightsaber through the man’s stomach. Leo gasps as the hot blade protrudes from his back and looks up at Dark Gian.
“A little reward for defeating my brother," Dark Gian hisses. He withdraws his blade and uses the Force to hurl Leo across the room where he lands next to Gian. Mockingly he addresses the latter. "A little present for you,” he says. “How does that make you feel?" He laughs as he finishes speaking.
Gian watches his brother and longtime rival fall beside him. He feels a strong surge of distress. The Sith approaches his brother more closely and looks at him.
"Idiot,” Gain says to Leo, “you knew you couldn't take him alone. Why did you do that?"
He looks at Dark Gian who stands silently in the middle of the room, then back at his brother struggling to breathe. Gian reaches for his brother, deciding to try to heal his wound, but Leo swipes his hand away.
"Stop and let me do this,” Gian insists. “It's my job to kill you -- not this bastard."
Tears start welling up within Gian much to his surprise. He never expected to weep at this moment. He'd played it out countless times in his head.
Leo grasps Gian's robes, pulling him closer. "Funny,” he says, “after all these years, it's only now that I realize that I've never once defended my only brother. I broke my oath to defeat the Sith..." Gian tries to stop him, but Leo continues speaking. "All these years, I never once helped the council take you down, or a fellow Jedi, hunt you. I protected you the only way I knew how. That's what brothers do..."
"Shut up!” Gian orders. “It's always my job to beat you. You can't die yet!"
"Guess I should've not spent so much time meditating then,” Leo jokes. “Make... Make this worth it." As he finishes, he slowly loses his grip and falls back.
Dark Gian has been growing impatient. "Awww” he blurts, “Did he die? What a shame; I actually found him entertaining."
Gian feels a great surge of anger and sorrow rises up within him. He turns and starts walking slowly towards his enemy. As he does, he allows his passions to fuel his power. Flames and surging lightning fill his body. His eyes glow red and his voice deepens. "His life,” Gian says, “live or die, was mine to decide. I am going to send you to a deep, dark place and I'm going to have fun doing it."
Dark Gian smiles. "Then, let's see what you've got, Sith!"
Using the lightning to increase his speed, Gian dashes towards his enemy and engages with his lightsaber. The two men clash blades and begin fighting ferociously. Gian's rage having reached a tipping point, his inhibitions are thrown aside, and all he cares about is tearing his enemy apart.
Dark Gian, using the vast reserves from his now drained brother, holds his own against the onslaught. Powering through each exchange, the flurry of lightsaber hits increases until they strike with such force that both lightsabers are thrown from their hands.
Not stopping, the two men simply switch to throwing close quarter lightning strikes at each other. Moving in and out of position, they dodge these point-blank strikes until Gian drops down, creates a concentrated blade of lightning in his hand and strikes for the other man’s chest. Simultaneously, Dark Gian spins and tries to do the same thing to his opponent. Gian dives forward and out of reach before turning and looking back at his enemy.
"Is that the best your rage can provide?” Dark Gian mocks. “You are no Sith. Your passions are weak and fragile."
Gian grinds his teeth.
"If I am so weak,” he counters, “then come at me and prove me wrong."
At the sound of the taunt, Dark Gian launches himself towards his enemy.
Gian pulls a small knife from his coat and imbues it with his own power before throwing it at the oncoming enemy. In the same motion, he charges forward himself with another lightning powered hand. Thinking that Gian intends to knock him off balance by throwing the knife first, Dark Gian drops under the blade while still moving forward.
Gian seeing this smiles as he immediately phase walks to his power imbued knife, directly above his exposed opponent.
Dark Gian, not having not anticipated this move, turns too slowly to try to counter it. Gian connects with his mark driving his hand through the enemy’s shoulder. He pushes the man hard into the ground below him.
As Gian pulls his hand out of the man’s shoulder, his counterpart screams in pain. He moves to drive the next blow through the man’s heart, but Dark Gian stops the death blow using a Force Scream which knocks Gian off and to the side of the room.
Rising to his feet Dark Gian proclaims, "Impressive attack, but your trump card failed to deliver the blow. I'll be sure to let your friends across the hypergate know that you died begging for your life." He summons a ball of flames into his hands and looks at Gian. "Let’s see who will win this time."
Gian rises swiftly, still flaring from his rage. He turns and immediately sends a stream of black flames towards his enemy. Dark Gian counters by sending his own stream of black flames.
"I see you're using these flames. I'd be disappointed if you used anything less..." Dark Gian says at the streams meet.
Pushing back and forth, they appear initially to be equally matched, but as the seconds tick by, the energy aura around Gian begins to fade and his stream slowly but surely reverts back to the normal inferno of red and orange. Dark Gian seizes the opportunity, presses the attack and slowly gains ground.
Dark Gian taunts his prey as he closes in. "How does it feel? Knowing that all your struggles will amount to nothing in a few moments... and how that worthless Jedi's sacrifice amounted to nothing."
Gian struggling to hold back the black flames looks at his opponent and snarls, "Why don't I show you!"
With that Gian discards all reason and uses the Force to engulf himself in what remains of his own attack. He then dives through the stream of black flames towards his opponent. With every inch his fire shield is worn away by the black torrent. Dark Gian’s eyes grow wide at what he is seeing. Reaching up, the Sith grabs his opponent’s hands and clasps them together causing a large eruption of black flames all around the room.
The two men are thrown apart and fall on opposite sides of the room. They rise slowly. Gian sees that his cloak has been set ablaze, as has his enemy’s on the other side of the room. Suddenly, he sees Dark Gian rise and begin to laugh.
"Nice try,” Dark Gian says, “but you're still too weak to stop me, even with my own attack."
He wipes a small flicker of black flames casually from his shoulder but is shocked to see the flame spread to his glove. Wiping it quickly with his other hand only continues to spread it elsewhere. Frantically he tries to quench the flames, but his efforts prove to be of no avail. His body begins to burn as it is covered by the black flames.
Screaming the man says, "Get it off!!"
Gian watches with zero sympathy in his eyes. He stands with the black flames around him, but is not burned at all.
"How are you not burning?!?" his opponent begs, incredulous.
"People have always wondered,” Gian says to him, “why it is I maintain a balance with light and dark. Before I developed Force Fire, it was only because I didn't want to leave behind only a legacy of hatred, but rather one that actually contributed.
“These black flames though, while powerful, feed off of the Darkside of the Force." As he speaks, the flames rise higher. "They will continue to burn until all of it is consumed, and if nothing remains, it takes the body. You have more power than me, but you have nothing but Darkness in you. I keep this storage of Light within me to drown these Dark Flames. That is how I gain true mastery over it, while you..." He pauses and watches intensely as the other man frantically rolls around in front of him, then finishes simply, "…burn."
Drawing upon a small amount of Lightside energy, Gian sends forth a wave around himself. It extinguishes the black flames from his body as his enemy writhes in pain before him.
Dark Gian reaches out.
"I can bring your brother back.” he offers, “Stop this burning and I'll give what life I took from my Leo to him. He'll be even stronger than he was before."
Gian is angered by the insult of such an offer. He turns away and mimics Dark Gian’s earlier comment.
"A little reward for defeating my brother." he says and walks away towards the exit of the room.
Glancing at Leo's body as he reaches the door Gian feels a tear fall down his cheek.
"I'm going to tear this whole damn mountain to the ground..." he thinks to himself.
Pulling his lightsaber hilt to him through the Force, Gian departs from the room as the dying screams of Dark Gian echo through the halls.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 15:05:46 GMT -8
Chapter 12
As the battle still rages over head and alarms sound through the halls, Arlack, Tas'meel and Dervis continue down their path towards whatever awaits. Turning a corner, they all come face to face with five men with weapons ready to fire. Tas'meel hurls his lightsaber down the hall, guided by the Force, and watches as it cuts down each man before returning to his hand. As the last man turns to run, Arlack jets forward using his pack and lands directly in front of the frightened trooper. Pointing his pistol at the man’s face, he fires a single bolt, dropping the man where he stood.
Twirling his pistol before holstering it, Arlack glances over his shoulder.
"I'd say that was a go…" he begins, but before he can finish the sentence a sudden burst of sound echoes from a second hallway on his left. He begins to turn towards the noise, when a huge object rams into Arlack and sends him through the metal wall, leaving a hole where he was moments before.
Arlack crashes through the wall and flies across an open room past several towers of crates. He lands on the floor, rolling for several feet. Looking up to see what hit him, he finds himself face to face with someone dressed in armor which is very similar to his.
The armored man shouts, "I want my ship back!" before firing a series of blaster bolts from his pistol.
Arlack springs to the side, using his jet pack as a boost and fires back using both of his pistols. He lands and then moves straight towards his opponent. They meet head on and collide.
Breathing into the man’s face Arlack says, "Aruetii... I read your records on that ship. You don't deserve her."
Both men simultaneously fire wrist missiles up at the ceiling. This causes the roof to start falling. Seeing what is coming, both jump back to avoid the rubble crashing down. Thinking only of his hatred for his opponent, Arlack jets high in the air and launches a barrage of rockets to the other side of rubble.
As the smoke clears, Arlack double checks to see if his opponent is dead. Suddenly, he feels the air grow cold and his body turn rigid. In seconds, his armor is completely frozen in carbonite, leaving only his helmet exposed.
As he struggles to break free, Arlack sees his enemy walk up from behind him. "I don't care what you think, you know,” he says. “I've got skills and the Empire offered me a job with the added benefit of getting the Hutts off my back." The man circles around in front of Arlack and continues, "There is no place for honor. It's just good business..."
As he finishes speaking, he puts the tip of his blaster barrel against Arlack’s head. "And now,” he adds, “there is one less to deal with."
His finger tightens on the trigger, but before he can pull it his body is suddenly lifted off the ground and he grabs his throat as if choking. Arlack looks beyond his opponent to see Tas'meel standing in the hole which was made when his body first crashed through the wall. The Sith has his hand out-stretched.
"For shit’s sake, Arlack,” Tas’meel shouts at the frozen bounty hunter, “I would've thought you'd have this fight wrapped up by now!"
Arlack scowls at him. He then breaks free of the incasing carbonite with the help of his armor’s emergency hydraulics. "Let him go,” Arlack shouts to the Sith. “This one is my prey. Just head on further and I'll be along shortly."
Tas'meel chuckles and nods. He releases the hunter before turning around. As the man falls to the ground near him, Arlack drops and drives his knee into his enemy’s helmet. He then jets back and raises his blaster. Simultaneously, the traitor draws his gun and they open fire.
As the shots erupt behind him, Tas'meel steps casually out of the hole.
Dervis rushes forward. "Typical Sith,” he shouts, “to leave a fellow teammate behind. I'm going to help."
Tas'meel turns and grabs the back of Dervis' collar. He flings the other man down the hall, then strolls towards him. Looking down, Tas’meel regards the major’s drawn blaster. "That barrel is starting to become familiar to me.” Tas’meel observes. “He wants to fight alone, so let him. We have to keep going. If he wants to risk dying, that's his choice, but I'm not going to let some Mandalorian honor crap stop me from getting home."
Dervis, hesitates, hearing the fight behind him. He sighs and holsters his blaster before getting to his feet. As he moves forward, past the sounds of conflict, he grunts. "I might as well go with you. At least I'll stop you from simply getting shot."
Arlack takes cover behind one of the crate towers as it is hit by a small rocket. Jumping clear, he spins around and marks his target with a tracking laser before firing three heat seeking missiles. As his target runs through the maze of crates seeking to avoid the missiles, Arlack follows him as well. Staying out of his target’s attention, he watches for the right time to follow up and attack.
Just as the missiles are about to reach their mark, the traitor jumps over a fallen crate and releases several high intensity flares. He then drops back into cover as the missiles lock in on the new heat source. They collide with the orbs of light and explode above their intended target.
As the man starts to rise, he hears Arlack’s voice. "Gotcha..."
The man glances towards the source of the sound. He sees Arlack crouched over as he fires a heavy missile in his direction. Arlack then activates his jet pack and darts backwards but is snagged by a grapple. This causes his intended target to be pulled in his wake. The missile lands where Arlack’s target used to be and erupts in a large explosion, leaving behind a small mushroom cloud. As the shockwave spreads, it pushes the two men closer together, eventually causing them to collide and then strike the back wall.
The traitor groans. "A mini nuke? Are you serious?" He reaches for his weapon when Arlack speaks.
"Looking for this?" he quips, holding out a familiar pistol.
Arlack rises to his feet and levels the weapon at his opponent to fire the killing shot. The man reacts faster and jets towards Arlack before he can pull the trigger. Both engage each other in hand to hand combat.
As blow for blow is exchanged, the two men start trying to just break down each other’s defenses. Arlack, being out of missiles, sees that there is only one thing left to do. Leaning closer, he rams the man with his shoulder and pushes him away. His opponent immediately jets back again, giving him no time to try to catch his breath. Arlack, however, has anticipated this maneuver. He waits for the exact moment to counter and with his own jet pack launches straight up and drives his fist into the oncoming man’s gut.
Stopped in place Arlack watches as his opponent coughs up blood inside his helmet.
The man chocks out, "Go to hell!"
Suddenly, his back is blown open as Arlack’s wrist rail gun fires. The stream of hot metal reaches the wall behind them. Arlack backs away as his opponent drops to his knees. Running back and retrieving his pistols, Arlack turns to see his opponent crawling towards his dropped pistol.
Pointing his own weapon at the man’s head, Arlack concentrates and allows the charge on his blaster to build. "Hey, guess what!" he shouts.
The wounded man turns and looks in time to see Arlack’s charged pistol fire a single bolt which passes straight through the man’s helmet, ending his life.
Arlack sighs before turning and heading back to catch up to his other teammates.
========================================================
Tas'meel and Dervis continue without Arlack until they reach a large door at the end of the hall. Dervis readies his cannon as the door slides open, revealing a wide open area on the other side of the mountain with the Gree hypergate sitting in front of them. Looking up as the sky burns bright with the remains of the Mandalorian fleet, the two men realize that another fleet has joined the battle.
"How is it we didn't see this?” Dervis asks. “Our sensors should've picked up on this gate easily."
Suddenly across the way they hear a voice respond.
"Those Rakata really were masterful in their cloaking technology, wouldn't you say?"
Looking towards the source of the voice, they see a black cloaked figure seated on a comfortable couch as if enjoying a holo-vid. As the two men inch closer, a bright light appears in the sky as a large dreadnaught falls from space. Blazing from entering the atmosphere, the ship crashes violently into the ground off in the distance. From the crash site, a large dust cloud can be seen traveling across the land before passing over the gate. This cloud reveals a previously invisible dome which blocks the force of the impact, protecting the people inside it.
Dervis turns to Tas'meel.
"Energy shield also. If it can stop the force of that explosion, then we don't have anything that can break it. We need to find the generator."
"We wouldn't make it two steps back to the door,” Tas’meel replies. “I can sense the power from the person up there..."
The cloaked figured continues to sit and watch the battle. Another armored man approaches and stops next to the couch.
"Master, what do you intend to do with these intruders?"
Without turning around, the other answers. "They are beneath me. I leave you to clean up these pests apprentice."
The armored man bows silently, then leaps from the height where he has been standing and lands in front of Dervis and Tas'meel. He draws his crimson blade as Dervis immediately fires a fiery mortar directly at this new opponent. Without hesitation, the man knocks the mortar away with the back of his hand. Pushing his hand forward, he sends a concentrated ball of Force Energy towards the Major who is hurled backward into the far wall.
Tas'meel hears the Major grunt as he collides with the solid surface. He chuckles without taking his eyes off the newcomer.
"He's always been dumb,” he comments, “but that was by far the worst move he's ever made." Drawing his lightsaber, Tas'meel faces his enemy and continues, "At least, it leaves one less body to get in my way. Now, be a good man and let me end it quickly or else this will be a very long and painful process..."
Leaping towards his opponent, Tas'meel begins a furious assault. Exchanging blow for blow in a flurry of lightsaber slashes, the two men fight for the advantage. As both deliver blows, each discovers that his opponent’s armor is capable of shrugging off light contact with their sabers. Tas'meel decides to use more than just his lightsaber, and moves in closer to disarm his opponent. With one hand, he deflects his opponent’s weapon and moves in with his other bladed gauntlet to strike. Ducking underneath the blow, the enemy twirls around and gets behind Tas'meel. Before the Sith can react, his opponent grabs him around the waist and flips backwards to the ground.
Tas’meel strikes the ground with a heavy thud, and is dazed slightly.
"Pathetic,” he hears his opponent say. “I'll be sure to let everyone know you died begging for your life."
Tas'meel’s opponent raises his lightsaber, point downwards, intending to end the fight by stabbing him as he lay on the ground.
As he looks up at the red blade, Tas'meel is suddenly bathed in a feeling of warmth until all around him grows white.
Startled, he sees the figure of his wife standing before him. He hears Serea's voice asking, "Tas...What are you doing?"
"Fighting. Seems like I'm losing though..."
"That's not like you at all,” Serea chuckles, “to give up so easily. You remember what you promised me and Bal'tor?"
Tas'meel thinks for a moment,
"That no matter what got in my way, I'd return to see you two," he says
The woman smiles. "Then get up and kick his ass,” she says. “Your son is waiting..."
She fades and Tas'meel is brought back to the real world. Looking up at his opponent once more, he sees that the killing blow is about to be delivered. Suddenly, before the final blow can fall, Dervis runs shoulder first into the side of the armored foe, knocking the man aside.
Dervis continues his attack, trying to punch his opponent, who grabs his arms and halts him laughing. Holding the major, their opponent sneers, "Engaging me in close quarters. You have a death wish."
"I guess so..." Dervis replies as he reveals a grenade clasped in his hand. He presses the detonator and both are blown back by the explosion. Dervis, however, is caught in mid-air by Tas'meel who saves him from hitting the wall.
"Stay out of my fight, Major” Tas’meel says, “but you've got more guts than most."
He places the unconscious soldier on the ground and turns back to his opponent.
Tas’meel watches as the enemy regains his feet.
"Now, that the warm-up is finished… Ready to get started?"
His opponent, clearly angry, charges forward as Tas'meel does the same. The two meet in mid-air and clash sabers once again, both moving much faster and harder than before. Landing, they enter a wild exchange of lightsaber blows. As their armor becomes more and more scarred by deflected and glancing blows, they push themselves harder and harder. Tas'meel finally sees a small opening in the man’s defenses and with a swift fist delivers an powerful punch to the man’s helmet. The force of the punch causes the helmet to collapse, but simultaneously Tas'meel is thrown back by another powerful blow which causes a portion of his chest plate to crack open.
Tas’meel looks down at his damaged armor and hears his enemy laugh.
"A good punch,” the man says, “but I let you have that one, so I could strike back. Shatterpoints are very useful for such heavy armor."
The man then removes his helmet revealing that the enemy Tas'meel has been facing is his own darker alternate. Tas'meel having suspected this based on the similarity of their fighting style rises slowly. He ignores the damage to his armor and prepares for his retaliation.
"So what makes us different?” his opponent asks. “Why are you here?"
"I'm selfish,” Tas’meel answers. “I came here ‘cause our vision said my wife and son would die. I'd destroy anything to stop that."
The other laughs loudly.
"That explains it. I care nothing for their lives and will gladly stab them in the back if it were to please my master. It'll be fun..."
Tas'meel is consumed by rage and anger and dashes towards his opponent with blinding speed. He swings his blade sideways. His opponent blocks the attack but is shocked by the power behind it. Jumping up and driving a kick into his opponents face, Tas'meel sends his enemy several meters back. He prepares for his finish by crouching down and channeling all his hatred and rage into his feet and legs. His opponent spits out a mouthful of blood as he recovers from the kick and glares angrily at Tas'meel.
Before he can counter, Tas'meel bolts towards him at blinding speed. His enemy reacts just in time and parries the attack to one side. Tas'meel, while initially surprised by the parry, lets out a smile before catching himself and starting to spin around again. His enemy begins to attack his defenseless opponent but becomes confused as he feels the air around him pull him forward, throwing him off balance. Unable to stop moving towards Tas'meel, he can do nothing but watch as Tas completes his spin and drives his blade, hard, across the man’s chest plate.
The figure reels backward and crashes to the ground.
Tas’meel walks slowly towards him.
"How do you like that?” he asks. “Ironically, I learned it from a Jedi when he used it on me."
Struggling slowly to his feet, the wounded man spits out a bit more blood.
"Master!” he gasps, “Forgive me."
The hooded figure, who has been watching the fight eagerly raises one hand into the air.
"Must I do everything myself..."
Before Tas'meel can deliver the final blow, he is lifted into the air and then slammed back to the ground several times. After the third repetition, he is hurled through the air to land next to Dervis, who is now regaining consciousness.
As the two men rise, soldiers run forward and encircle them with rifles pointed at their heads.
The wounded dark Tas'meel approaches his master and kneels saying, "Forgive me, master."
"I will deal with your failure later, apprentice.” the master replies. “Soldiers, get this filth out of my sight."
The captain nods.
"Yes, my lord. Men...Open fire."
Instead of the expected sound of blaster shots, there is silence. The soldiers stand unmoving.
"What is taking so long?" demands the master.
"I...I can't..." the captain stammers.
Suddenly, all the soldiers are lifted slammed back into the ground before being drawn together into a single group. As they all collide, the soldiers burst into flame and start to scream in agony. As the group is flung away from Tas'meel and Dervis, the two men look towards the entrance to see Darth Gian and Arlack walk together into the opening. Arlack jets forward to check on the two as Gian advances steadily.
“So this is the leader of all this,” Gain says. “I'm going to enjoy killing you..."
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 15:19:56 GMT -8
Chapter 13
Having entered the fray, Darth Gian has rescued Dervis and Tas'meel from the firing squad and disrupted the plans of the master.
Standing near the team Gian says, "Get off the ground. Now."
Tas'meel and Dervis both notice Gain’s darker demeanor, but remain quiet as they turn towards their enemy who is the more pressing matter. As another ship crashes in the background, the barrier once again protects the group from the outside explosion. Off in the distance, there are two familiar ships dogfighting in the skies over the mountains.
Dervis glances up and notices this.
"Well at least Tannek is still alright,” he says. “We have to get this shield down or else he can't help us."
"Jensaar is off dealing with that,” Gain responds. “He noticed power fluctuations while trying to slice a door. Now, stop worrying about them and deal with the fight at hand or get out of the way."
Immediately, a large storm of lightning comes crashing down on top of all the members, bringing them to their knees. Looking up with smoke still rising from their clothing, they see the master walking towards them.
"Your little band has been enough of an annoyance,” the master says coldly. “While it was entertaining at first, it is time this little journey is brought to an end."
The team struggles to rise, but are all weighed down by a heavy force pinning them to the ground.
"Did you think you really had a chance?” the master continues. “I've been preparing for years-- was prepared for every outcome. Your pathetic attempt is nothing compared to my power. We will do what we please. You have survived this long because I allow it, and you will now die because I demand it."
Gian looks up and struggles to speak
"You're forgetting one thing..."
The master's hand extends, placing more force onto the Sith’s body.
"And what is that?" he asks.
Gian flares, "My son."
As he speaks, a large explosion rocks the base. It causes a massive fluctuation in the energy field protecting the hypergate and area around it. As the field slowly drops, a massive gust of air rushes into the arena and exposes all the members to the elements around them.
Jensaar speaks over the intercom.
"Power source located. Energy field has been lowered."
Gian chuckles.
"Get in touch with Tannek."
The master snarls in anger and pushes even more power into the Force Crush. Gian struggles unsuccessfully to rise. As several voices begin to scream from the crushing pain, one sounds over the rest. Looking to the side, the others see Tas'meel slowly rising his feet despite the pressure using all his power to amplify his strength. His armor presses down upon him with several times its already considerable weight.
Glaring at his enemy, Tas'meel tries to take a single step. His leg starts to wobble. Taking a deep breath, Tas'meel lets out a Force Scream. The wave strikes and sends the master back several meters, also removing the effect of the Force Crush from the whole team.
As they rise to their feet, Dervis and Arlack call out.
"Good job Darth Tas'meel."
"Just hold him off till I regain my strength." Tas’meel pants.
Dark Tas'meel approaches his master.
"Are you alright, my master?" he asks.
"As if that would harm me.” The master says. “I leave that one to you. This is your chance to regain some dignity."
Nodding Dark Tas'meel turns to glare at his alternate version. The air gets thick the two teams stare fixedly at one another, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Overhead, the sound of battle still rages as two ships continue to maneuver, their pilots trying to gain the upper hand.
==============================================
The ships swerve and twist as they dodge laser fire and torpedoes. Each succeeds in landing a hit on the other and both start to experience fire and sparking due to the wear of a long and heated ship-to-ship battle. Tannek pilots his vessel skillfully between the mountain peaks to avoid damage as much as possible. As the warning lights start blaring that his shields are almost depleted, Tannek makes a last effort to end this fight. Activating the afterburner, the smuggler darts forward at extremely high speeds before hitting the breaks and twisting into a rapid 180 degree turn to meet his opponent head on.
The other ship initially continues flying forward but begins to fire a continual stream of blaster bolts at its intended target. Tannek sets all of his remaining shield power to the front and launches his final torpedo. As the torpedo streaks towards his foe, the smuggler is cheerful to see it make contact. There is a pause and he wonders why it didn't detonate immediately on impact. A glance at the controls confirms that his only remaining missile was on a time delay.
Tannek hastily straps himself into the seat as the enemy ship passes overhead. It detonates directly above him and several bits of debris collide with the outer hull of his ship. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he looks at his sensors which now detect a new anomaly near the mountains. Through the window, the smuggler sees the glowing light of the Gree Hypergate and the nearby base.
"Where the hell did that come from?” Tannek wonders. “Pretty sure we should've seen that when we first got here."
Tannek starts heading towards the gate.
Before he can arrive, another alarm sounds throughout his ship informing him that one of the outer doors has been opened. Setting the ship to hover, the smuggler draws his blaster and goes cautiously to ascertain what has occurred. Slowly walking through the ship’s halls, Tannek checks to see if anyone else is there before he reaches the door from which the alert came.
As he checks the door, he sees that it was wedged open from the outside. Just as he is turning, he hears the sound of a blaster fire behind him. A bolt strikes the wall inches from his head and Tannek jumps to the side and fires blindly around the corner.
Tannek then activates his stealth generator. Peering around the corner, he sees his opponent waiting, with pistol drawn, dressed in a full imperial pilot’s suit. Tannek runs out, but is caught under fire as he jump over one of the chairs and takes cover on the other side.
As he returns fire Tannek asks, "Can't we just talk about this like adults?"
"I've got orders, and besides you blew up my ship!" the other shouts as he fires another volley of shots in Tannek’s direction.
"I'll buy you a new one,” Tannek responds. “Why don't we just put our guns down and talk about this over some Corellian ale?"
The shooting stops for a few seconds before the attacker says, "Sorry. Not a fan of that. If you'd say Nightcap Lager from Nar Shaddaa, then we'd talk."
Disgusted, Tannek pops his head out and shouts, "You can't be serious?!?" He then ducks again quickly as another shot goes right past his head. "Why don't you just ask for a glass of Hutt piss while you're at it."
A grenade falls behind the couch and Tannek jumps through a doorway, slamming the hatch before it detonates. Activating his stealth field again now that it has cooled down, he opens the door just as a hail of bolts fly through. Rolling under the stream, Tannek sneaks around the side and tosses a flash-bang grenade before drawing his scattershot to take the man out. Just as he fires, the man jumps to the side. He suffers only a graze along his shoulder before disappearing down a hall.
Tannek follows, but is surprised when the man jumps out from a small inlet and attacks in close quarters. As the two men throw punches, they target every perceptible weak spot. Tannek goes for the throat; his opponent attacks the groin. Any advantage that can be had, they take. Eventually, the attacker gets the upper hand and slams Tannek into the side of the metal corridor. As the smuggler stumbles trying to regain his feet, he uses the wall to support himself.
As his vision clears, he finds himself staring down the barrel of his opponent’s blaster. Certain the trigger is about to be pulled, Tannek draws a sharp breath as his fingers brush a familiar panel on the wall.
"The airlock...” He thinks to himself, “My luck’s not run out yet."
Tannek slams his hand on the airlock panel and dives to the side just as it opens sending a rush of air out of the pressurized cabin to the sky beyond. His opponent is startled by the change in pressure and misses, but continues to trace his movements and fires a second shot into Tannek’s shoulder. Ignoring the searing pain that results, Tannek charges towards the attacker and body slams into him. This sends both men sliding towards the open door. Tannek grabs hold of the side railing with his one good arm while the attacker ends hanging out the edge with a grip on Tannek’s ammo belt. The attacker tries to pull himself back inside as he dangles thousands of feet above the ground below.
Tannek looks at his opponent and yells, "Get off my ship!" He lifts his feet off the floor and while clinging with his good arm, drives both soles into the man’s face mask. This breaks the man’s grip and he falls screaming. Tannek closes the door. He heads back to the pilot’s seat breathing a sigh of relief. Checking the monitors, he sees an in-coming radio transmission which he answers.
"Tannek here.” he says a bit out of breath. “What's going on down there, guys?"
Jensaar responds, "Tannek, we have located the hypergate but are engaged with enemy combatants. I will mark their locations with a guiding laser. Are you armed for a strafing run?"
Looking at his ammo counter Tannek sees that he is sadly empty of all weapons.
"Uhhh… afraid not. I used them all in the dogfight."
"Understood. We will have to figure something else out."
"How's the fighting going?" Tannek asks.
"Not well,” the agent responds, “Heavy resistance and two powerful Force Users are left. One of whom is holding back the rest. I am currently moving to a proper vantage point to get a clear shot."
Tannek looks at his shoulder and then says, "I got an idea. Get ready." before ending the transmission.
========================================================
Meanwhile back in the base, inside a familiar dueling room. The bodies of two men lie motionless across form one another as several tongues of black flames continue to shed the only light. One body is complete charred from constant burning.
Master Alak enters. He has been trying to catch up with the team and has sensed the Force down that particular corridor. He pauses as he senses the pain, fear and anger that erupted from this room as a result of Gian and Leo's fight. Strangely though he senses something else. As he ventures further into the room, he feels what seems to be the calm of Lightside energy.
Gazing around the room, Alak notices the motionless body of Master Leo leaning against the wall. He hurries to Leo's side and reaches out to see if the man is still alive. Using all his power to see through the Force, Master Alak delves deeply into the Jedi searching for even a spark of life remaining. Saddened by the shape of his fellow Jedi, Master Alak glows with healing energies of the Light which radiate down the halls of the base in silence.
========================================================
Back at the hypergate, the team is just about to re-engage the Master and Dark Tas'meel when Jensaar alerts everyone on their earpieces.
"Tannek is coming in from the ship. Take cover."
They all look up to see the ship approaching, moving at dangerous speeds before they turn dive for cover near the mountain door. The Master also looks skyward. He sends a wave of Force energy towards the ship to slow its descent. As the ship slows and comes to a halt in the air, its thrusters activate at full power and push forward once again.
Gian seeing an opportunity tells Jensaar, "Fire on the one stopping that ship."
"Acknowledged." Jensaar replies.
Shortly, a laser dot can be seen on the master’s cloak and a second later a high powered bolt strikes his body knocking him back. As the master stumbles, the ship is released from his hold and screams towards the ground.
Suddenly, Tannek’s voice is heard over the comm.
"Hey, Fire Sith, mind giving me a hand?"
"With what?" Gain asks.
Tannek replies urgently, "Look up, look up!"
Gain does so in time to see the smuggler jump from the side door hundreds of feet in the air without anything to slow his fall. The ship streaks in and collides with the ground in a huge fireball, completely blocking the Master and Dark Tas'meel from view. The resulting shockwave shakes the foundation near the hypergate and causes slight fluctuations in the portal itself.
Gian watches as the smuggler falls faster and faster. Crossing his arms, Gian appears to consider letting the smuggler simply hit the ground as if enjoying the man’s fatal drop.
Arlack speaks up quickly and says, "My lord?!?"
Gian grunts, "Just making him sweat a bit..." Extending his hand, he slows then stops the smuggler’s descent, releasing him just a few feet above the ground.
"I suppose that was payback for shaking the ship around?" The smuggler comments as he approaches.
"Take a wild guess," Gian responds.
Tannek says nothing, but turns to looks at the hypergate and the waiting enemy.
Tas'meel moves away, separating himself from the rest of the group. His eyes are locked on his dark self whom he intends to face while leaving the others to deal with the obviously more powerful master.
Jensaar high above decides it is time to regroup with the team. He readies a rappel cable in his belt., but just as he is about to make the jump, a blaster bolt snaps the cable. Looking quickly for the source of the shot, Jensaar sees an image of himself but with non-traditional gear as if denoting a renegade. As each man directs his rifle at the other, both realize who they are facing.
Jensaar addresses his counterpart. "I was curious if I'd encounter you. Commander Ari'adain claimed that you were a traitor to the Empire and personally responsible for many acts of terrorism."
His alternate glares back.
"Not entirely,” the man says. “I am responsible for the deaths of many Sith; and Commander Ari is insane."
Jensaar and his opposite fire directly at each other’s rifle, causing both to lose their grasp on their weapons. Diving forward, Jensaar tries to close the gap and finish his opponent quickly. The two agents exchange several blows with extensive martial arts precision. Both agents then pull out daggers and block each other. Unfortunately, it appears as though Jensaar’s enemy trained in close quarters more than he did, so soon he gains the upper hand.
Drawing a stun knife, the renegade agent manages to bypass Jensaar's defense and plant the blade in his shoulder. Following the surge of electricity, Jensaar is then knocked back by a swift kick to his stomach. As the knife releases its electrical charge, Jensaar regains use of his body to find himself staring down the barrel of a pistol.
Before the bolt can be fired, however, a red lightsaber flies forward and severs the agent’s hand. Jensaar looks past his opponent who screams in pain to see Commander Ari'adain leaping towards them. Seizing the opportunity, Jensaar dives towards his sniper rifle. Spinning around, he fires two rounds at the man’s feet to prevent him from moving. Ari’adain lands in front of the enemy. With a wicked smile, she knees the man in the face, knocking him to the ground.
"I have waited a long time for this moment." Ari tells the wounded agent.
"How did you survive the ship crash?" Jensaar asks
Turning towards him, she replies.
"That pilot unlocked all doors for some reason, when he was fighting a guy who boarded the ship."
Jensaar steps in front of her, momentarily blocking her from their foe.
"May I ask him a question first? Then, you may kill this traitor."
Smirking, the commander nods.
"Why,” Jensaar asks his wounded opposite, “if you hate the Sith, were you helping them with this plan?"
"Orders. Military command dictated that this was the best chance to remove the Sith threat from the galaxy."
Jensaar asks curiously, "How so?"
"If they go through with this invasion,” the man says, “then within the first year over 70% of all Sith, save those in political positions, will go through seeking battle. Orders were that when this took place, we'd remove those few left in power then destroy the portal; sealing them away and returning the galaxy to peace without the Sith to constantly create chaos."
"And that is where we conflict,” Jensaar replies. “I cannot permit that course of action."
“Then why team up with Commander Ari?” his alternate asks. “She will be leading teams to eliminate high ranking members of the military and..." Before he can finish his sentence, he is silenced through the chest by one of Ari'adain’s lightsabers.
She turns to face Jensaar.
"It's true,” she says, “Those are my orders and I intended to kill you as well..."
There is a pause then putting her hand on her chest she continues, "But when your necklace hit me, it transferred some of that other Ari's emotions to myself. I feel for you what she feels. The other Ari you know is too weak however. She is too soft. But I am strong and willing to shelter you from the storm if you will join me. How does that sound? I am still Ari, so it is like nothing will have changed."
She steps forward and hugs the speechless agent as he tries to sort out what was just offered to him. As the seconds pass, Jensaar senses a fleeting glimpse of Ari off in the distance wearing the ring he gave her and rubbing it gently.
Jensaar puts one hand around this Dark Ari’adain.
"You are indeed Ari..." he says. Then smoothly, before she can react, he presses his blaster pistol into her gut and pulls the trigger.
She gasps and falls down to the ground. Dark Ari looks up speechless as the agent stands above her and points the barrel towards her head.
Jensaar looks at the commander one last time
"...But you are not MY Ari." he adds, just before he fires once again, sending a bolt straight through her forehead, ending the Sith commander’s life.
Holstering his blaster Jensaar looks down to the rest of the team seeing that the fight is about to start again. Moving decisively, he takes the rappel cable from the body of the dead alternate and begins his descent. He rejoins his father and the rest of the team before the gate.
Staring down the two final enemies who stand between them and their goal, Gian, Tas'meel, Jensaar, Tannek, Arlack and Dervis prepare for what they believe will be the final battle.
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Post by Jensaar on Apr 28, 2014 15:41:52 GMT -8
Chapter 14: Finale
The air between the two groups grows heavy with tension. The distant sounds of the battle above are interrupted only by the occasional lightning strike from the active hypergate. As the wind whips past the team, they exchange looks, silently signifying that they are indeed ready to proceed.
Major Dervis looks around and says, "We can't all get caught in the fight. Someone needs to deal with the gate. I don't like the way it's been acting."
They all turn to eye the now active gate.
"Agreed,” Gian says. “Jensaar...You and Tannek go and see if you can figure out how to stop it. Arlack and Dervis will stay to provide support. Tas'meel, I assume you want to deal with your copy yourself?"
Tas'meel glares at his fellow Sith and says, "Of course. None of you interfere. This is my fight. But there is a more important question..."
Tas'meel looks at Gian and asks, "Where the hell are the two Jedi?"
Gian pulses with the power of his rage, his body arcing with electricity as thoughts of his brother fill his mind.
"Alak I don't know,” he says, “but Leo won't be joining us..."
The others look towards Gian with shock.
Dervis says, "Don't tell me..."
"He was an idiot,” Gain responds, “He jumped in the way and got hit. The Jedi code does nothing but kill you in the end."
Jensaar looks into his father’s eyes and perceives that this rage is merely the surface of his emotions. Turning away, he readies his rifle.
Jensaar positions himself next to Tannek.
"We stick together,” he says, “and use your stealth generator to pass by during the battle. Understood?"
Tannek nods. "Just don't get too close or else you'll have to buy me dinner after."
Across the field the master looks at Dark Tas'meel and orders, "Eliminate your copy. If you do, then you have regained my favor. Fail and you'll beg for death as I will not be so kind."
Bowing Dark Tas'meel says, "Yes, Master."
(The following scenes take place simultaneously)
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Both Sith warriors separate themselves from the rest of the group and regard each other intently. In their peripheral vision, they can see the remains of a Basilisk war droid screeching towards the ground. Upon impact, the droid explodes, as though signaling for the battle to begin.
Immediately the two Sith dive towards each other and collide with a loud clash. The force of the impact creates a small shockwave with can be felt by the rest. In a flurry of lightsaber moves, each Sith tries desperately to break through the other’s guard. Tas'meel, being a defensive fighter, relies on his blocks and parries, while his opponent seems to be more offensive in nature.
As Tas'meel continues to block the man’s attacks, he waits for a break in his opponent’s assault. Dark Tas'meel swings upwards to create an opening and follows through with a small Force Push towards his opponent. Tas'meel is hit by the push and stumbles back a few steps. He watches as his opponent leaps into the air to attack with a downward slash.
Smiling, Tas'meel uses the Force pushing him back to twist into a spin turning his back towards his opponent. With the added force, Tas'meel then steps back and moves within his enemies reach. Dark Tas'meel, is caught off guard by this move, and being in the air, is unable to move out of the way. Tas'meel directs his lightsaber behind him and lets out a happy chuckle as his blade meets its intended target and glides through his enemies gut.
Hearing his enemy gasp, Tas'meel withdraws his blade and then kicks his enemy away. He smiles and says, "Enjoy death, you piece of shit."
Tas'meel begins to walk back towards the group, but after taking a only few steps, he senses danger. He spins around just in time to see his opponent diving towards him. Shocked by this, Tas'meel is unable to react quickly enough to properly defend. His opponent drives forward and knocks Tas’meel’s lightsaber from his hand before gripping his throat through the Force.
Staring at his opponent, Tas'meel is surprised to see a fully healed patch of skin where his lightsaber had just passed. His opponent laughs.
"I'm not worried about attacking,” he says, “because as you see, I can't be killed." He tightens his grip and continues, "I heal too quickly and even organs are regrown. You were doomed to fail before we started. Now, my face will be the last thing you ever see..."
Tas'meel pulls from his reserves all the power he can muster and with a single burst sends out a large wave of Force Energy in all directions. This eruption causes his opponent to stumble back enough to break his concentration. Being released from the Force Grip, Tas'meel drops to his feet before charging towards his staggered opponent. Swinging his saber from the side, he makes contact with his opponent’s neck believing that while the man may heal quickly, removing his head should end him. However, as the blade slides through the man’s throat, Tas'meel is dumbfounded to see his lightsaber extinguished halfway through the swing. He jumps back and watches as Dark Tas'meel holds onto his head. In moments his neck is completely healed again.
Laughing loudly Dark Tas'meel says, "Cortosis plates woven into my spine. Any lightsaber that touches it will short out... So basically, you can't take my head as your trophy. I am immortal."
Cursing to himself Tas'meel replies, "I've heard countless men make that claim; each one having tasted death by my hand."
"None like me!" Dark Tas'meel counters before charging forward.
Tas'meel quickly attempts activate his lightsaber again but is only met with the sound of electrical shorts as his lightsaber hasn't yet recovered from contact with the cortosis metal. Seeing that his saber will be of no use, Tas'meel clips it to his belt and jumps back to avoid his enemy’s blade. As his opponent engages in a vicious assault intended to kill the disarmed Sith, he is met only with the occasional punch or kick. Tas'meel puts up a good defense even without his lightsaber but after a bit of dodging he is unable to maintain it. He is struck across the front of his chest by his opponent’s blade.
Tas’meel falls to the ground. His opponent points the tip of his blade at him and prepares to stab and to end his life. Desperate, Tas'meel does the only thing left for him. He rises to his knees while reaching up towards the tip of the blade. As his hand screams in pain, the lightsaber sears through his palm and burns a hole through the back of it.
Refusing to succumb, Tas'meel pushes forward until his hand meets the hilt of his opponent’s blade. Gripping it tightly, he yells aloud as he rips it apart, destroying the emitter and the blade it generated. Tas'meel then follows through by taking the gauntlet blade from his other hand. He drives it into the man’s head with a powerful upper cut.
The man collapses to his knees, conscious but unable to speak.
"If I can't take your head, then I'll take your spine with it!" Tas'meel says.
Using the last of his strength, he pulls up sharply and after a few seconds he feels the resistance loosen as Dark Tas'meel’s head and spine are both ripped from his body. Tas'meel regards his dead opponent still dangling from his gauntlet before removing the head and throwing it to the ground.
Examining the blood on his hands Tas'meel says, "Try coming back from that."
He then falls to his knees as the effects of his chest and hand wound return now that the adrenaline rush has passed. Looking up at the sky, he feels himself fading away. But just as his sight starts to slip, he feels a rush of vitality renewed in him and a tingle as his wounds begin to mend themselves.
From behind him a familiar voice says, "I'm not letting you die yet, Sith."
"Only one person,” Tas’meel observes, “can have such an annoyingly calm voice."
He focuses on Master Alak now standing nearby as a wave of healing energy pass towards him.
"Don't give up yet.” Alak says, “The others could use your help."
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After Tas'meel separates himself from the group, Gian waits no longer. He sends a stream of lightning towards the cloaked master. Raising one hand, the master deflects the lightning and watches as Gian dashes forward with his speed amplified by the surge of lightning coursing through his body.
Drawing his dual-sided blade, Gian closes in and meets the master’s saber. They exchange several strikes. The master moves with a fluidity that Gian has never seen before as if his own skills are mere child's play. Channeling the remainder of his lightning cloak into his blade, the Sith sends a wave of electricity from his blade towards his opponent. The master dives down and evades the attack before rising up to strike Gian. Unable to recover in time, Gian tries to dodge but is caught by a strike across his lightsaber’s hilt. As the grip is sliced in half, he is shocked to see that only one side is left functional.
Before the master can press this advantage, he is forced to jump back and enter a defensive stance as a series of blaster bolts interrupt the two Siths’ exchange. Looking towards the source, the master finds Major Dervis hiding behind some rubble that is all that remains of their ship while firing his cannon. The master begins to retaliate, but before he can attack the major, he is distracted by Arlack who can be heard flying above and raining several rockets down upon their enemy.
Rather than dodge, the master uses the Force to redirect the rockets towards Dervis’ position. Jumping up towards Arlack, who now fires his flame thrower, the master uses the Force to create a shield for protection and dives through the flames. Emerging on the other side, he grabs the bounty hunter’s throat and sends a wave of electricity through the man’s metal armor. After a few seconds, the master throws Arlack to the ground where he lies with his jetpack completely fried. He looks up as their opponent drops down for the kill.
Just as the final blow descends, a bubble appears around the hunter and stops the blade from connecting. Gian follows through with a heavy Force Push wave which sends both Arlack and their opponent away at high speeds. Immediately following, Gian grabs Arlack with the Force and pulls him back towards himself, and away from the master.
Arlack lands heavily next to Gian.
"Thanks” he says, still on the ground, “but that pull wasn't exactly pleasant."
"Suck it up. We don't have time for pleasant." Gain retorts.
Arlack watches as Dervis appears with scorch marks on his armor.
"You two need to coordinate better." he says.
"Coordinate all you want,” another voice interjects. “It won't save you from the oncoming storm."
The master walks slowly back towards them without even a scratch after that exchange.
"I expected more of a challenge from you.” and continues saying, “Such a disappointment."
Gian responds by forming a large fireball in both hands and sending it towards their opponent. As the fireball approaches, the master uses the Force to grab and redirect it back at the group of fighters. Gian wedges his hands forward and splits the ball down the middle, sending the flames around them on both sides.
"I knew all of your copies abilities.” The master says mockingly, “Those will be of no use to you!"
Rising slowly into the air, the master summons a large storm of lightning. As the Force Storm’s power increases, a tornado begins to form around him which starts pulling them in. Dervis grabs hold of a heavy piece of debris, but Gian and Arlack are not near anything solid. Unable to fly away, Arlack tries to shoot his opponent who is now in the heart of the tornado, but is amazed to see the bolts twist and circle in the vortex rather than passing through it. Gian tries the same thing with a jolt of lightning but to no avail.
As the two men are drawn into the cyclone, they are bombarded by large objects and debris from around the battlefield. Trying their best to avoid the objects they both twist and turn. Arlack, being unable to correct with his jetpack, shoots his blasters to divert oncoming rubble while Gian slices with his saber and pushes away bits with the Force.
On the outside, Dervis sees there is little he can do but watch. Willing to consider any solution, he thinks of trying to overpower the storm with speed and so loads a single high-velocity slug and fires it at the center of the storm. His shot breaks through the outer shell, and clears a path to make the master visible but is unable to connect before being redirected.
Dervis calls Gian and Arlack on the comm and says, "We need to concentrate on a single point!"
Gian and Arlack hear him barely, but are unable to respond as they tumble uncontrollably through the storm while being pummeled by debris. Just as they begin to believe that the large rocks are destroyed, they start to see more lightning within the cyclone. Gian once again pulls Arlack towards him and using intense concentration manages to teleport out of the storm to a location near Dervis.
Grabbing hold of the debris Gian asks Dervis, "What were you saying?"
Dervis quickly explains what happened and Gian responds, "You and Arlack fire at the same time. I'll follow behind!"
Immediately, Dervis locks on and loads another slug of the same type as Arlack readies his wrist rail gun. Just before the two fire, Gian lets go of the debris and dives towards the storm. The two men fire simultaneously and the two rounds pass through the cyclone and expose the master inside. Now able to perceive his target, Gian channels a large amount of energy into his hands and fires an extremely large blast which leaves a crack of thunder in its wake. The blast passes through the opening and connects with its target, causing the Force Storm to erupt in a large explosion as it collapses.
Landing back on his feet, Gian is unable to see or sense the body of their opponent and believes that perhaps it was vaporized in the blast. Then Dervis and Arlack scream as they are lifted off the ground and sent flying back into the mountainside. Gian's' eyes shoot open as the shadows part to reveal the master directly in front of him. Firing a concentrated blast upward, Gian is sent several meters into the air and has the wind knocked out of him. Thus, he is unable to counter as the master jumps over him only to send another blast which rockets the Sith into the ground below. The master lands on top of Gian and drives a knee into his stomach.
Gain lets out a loud scream. He lays under the master’s boot as his adversary draws his saber to finish the Sith.
"Nobody has ever broken that storm,” the master says, “so you are to be commended for that. But I'm afraid this dance has gone on long enough."
As the blade begins to descend, Gian sees only the crimson color and is overwhelmed with a feeling of dread that he has come so far only to fail. Then, just before the blade meets its mark, Gian sees a flash of light collide with the master’s mask. As the light takes shape, a man with tan robes, green armor plating and a blue lightsaber can be seen driving his foot into the master’s head. The master sails back and lands amidst a pile of rubble which collapses on top of him. Shards of his mask can be seen flying everywhere.
Speaking calmly but directly the newcomer says, "Hands off..."
Gain stares, not believing what he is seeing as Leo turns around and with a smile extends his hand to help Gian rise.
Gian regains his feet without taking the offered hand.
"You died..." he says.
Leo smirks, "Only partially... After I was hit, I put myself in a deep meditative state to preserve myself. To all others, it would appear like I died, but I knew Master Alak would arrive soon to heal me."
"Why?"
“We weren't going to win as we were,” Leo states, “Your other self was too powerful and we'd end up getting in each other’s way. So, I took the fall and expected you to lash out unimpeded. I'm glad my gamble worked."
Gian punches his brother in the face.
"That was a stupid decision. Now, I wish you had died."
Leo continues to regard his brother with the same calm.
"We can argue about my motives later,” he says, “But it worked. Now, let’s finish this fight and get home."
He lifts his shirt to reveal his stomach which is not yet fully healed. "I need to get back to the Temple soon. It was just a field dressing Alak could do."
Suddenly, the pile of rubble which fell on top of the master begins the shake. It erupts outwards as their enemy shouts in rage. As the master emerges and begins walking towards the team, they all see a face that they have all seen time and again in their history books...The face of Revan.
"Enough!” Revan shouts, “I've had enough of you insects. You are all of you beneath me!"
Rising off the ground, Revan channels an unbelievably large amount of energy which forms a protective barrier before unleashing an enormous torrent of lightning towards the team. Seeing that there is no way to withstand it, the team scatters to avoid being vaporized. As the lightning passes, they see it strike nearby debris of a ship’s hull and disintegrate them.
Alak picks up a large piece of metal from the field and sends it hurtling towards Revan. The barrier unfortunately knocks the debris aside and Revan is only pushed back about a foot, taking no damage at all.
Alak shouts to everyone, "It's impenetrable. We have to wait for it to run out!"
Revan spreads his hands and the torrent splits into two streams now aimed at both groups.
"I am unending!" the enraged enemy cries as one stream heads towards Alak and the other towards Gian.
Gian sees half of the stream coming directly towards him and uses all of his power to send a stream back to stop the oncoming attack. Unfortunately, he is only able to slow it. As Gian struggles to hold back the torrent, Leo dashes towards Revan in hopes of breaking through. At the same time, Alak makes contact with his half of the torrent. Thinking quickly, the Jedi sends a surge of energy to the ground beneath him and summons a large growth of plants. This causes the floor to be lifted upwards to form a solid wall which momentarily halts the barrage of lightning.
As the torrent collides with the new wall, it slowly begins to wear through. With the two streams slowed, Leo and Tas'meel see a chance to counter and dash towards their enemy with great speed. Meeting on opposites sides, the two warriors collide with Revan’s barrier and attempt to drive their lightsabers through it. Unfortunately, they are knocked away and succeed only in pushing the floating figure back a little further and disrupting the attack.
Looking down at the two, Revan says, "Now you die!"
He resumes his attack now aimed directly at the these two.
Tas'meel channels all of his hatred and rage for this enemy into himself and roots his feet to the ground. As the stream makes contact, Tas'meel feels a surge of lightning course through his body but is able to remain alive as he has hardened his body in order to immensely decrease the damage done. Leo simultaneously reaches deep within himself and finds a calm similar to what he felt while facing his opposite. Having achieved this oneness, once more, he responds at the perfect time and is able to use the power of his enemy’s attack to reflect it back.
As the wave is deflected towards their enemy, Revan stops the attack and builds a stronger barrier. This stops the torrent, but it pushes Revan back several feet and eventually spreads around him and continues behind. The torrent continues until it collides with the hypergate itself and causes the once stable vortex to shudder and rupture.
Jensaar and Tannek who are at the console try to bring the gate back under control but are unable to adjust for the attack. They are forced to jump away as the platform is sucked into the vortex. As this occurs, Dervis notices that the entire console and station is ripped apart by the forces now unleashed.
Calling Gian on his comm he says, "Darth Gian... Did you see that?"
Grunting Gian responds, "The whole planet probably saw that."
"If we can get this person close to the vortex,” Dervis says, “perhaps it can break through that barrier."
Gian agrees and relays the plan to everyone else. They all try to think of a means to implement it.
Revan continues to regard them and laughs.
"It's only a matter of time,” he says. “You can't touch me in here and I will never tire. I say... Just lay down and accept your fate."
With that, he resumes his attack.
The team members move with apparently practiced coordination to take cover behind the wall which Alak made.
Gian looks at Arlack.
"Call them,” he instructs, “and Tannek will mark the target."
Nodding Arlack uses his communicator and starts talking to Mandalore. As he does, the rest wait patiently while Tannek peers around the corner with a laser tracker pointed at Revan.
The wall begins to disintegrate. The team glimpse a shiny speck from above before a series of large turbo laser shots pound the ground where Revan hovers. The shots end and the torrent of lightning ceases, but the barrier has only been made stronger in order to defend against the heavy attack.
Revan appears angry. He gathers his power to begin another attack.
Gian shouts, "Now!"
Immediately, Leo and Tas'meel dash towards Revan. Before they can reach him, however, Alak sends a fuel container towards Revan. It collides and erupts into a ball of flame. Leo and Tas'meel follow this up by dashing at blinding speed and striking the same point in order to combine their attacks. The force of this combined effort sends their enemy back several feet and closer to the gate vortex.
The barrier remains intact and their enemy continues to focus on channeling the next attack. Dervis and Arlack fire high powered mortars and rockets straight at the barrier. The results push their target closer still, but fail to break Revan’s concentration. A large orb of shadowy, Darkside energy continues to build.
Jensaar runs past his team and dives towards the target. Landing mere inches away, he charges a high powered shot through his rifle. As his rifle begins to steam from the built-up energy he releases it in a single concentrated shot which pushes his target back even further. Jensaar looks into Revan’s eyes as the master finishes channeling his attack.
"A valiant effort,” Revan tells the team, “but your time is up."
With a massive roar the wave of shadowy energy pours forth with Jensaar directly in the line of fire. The agent stabs a knife into the ground and dives to the side. As the wave snakes its way towards the team members, they are forced to jump out of the way to avoid being consumed. Alak who senses the power of the oncoming attack uses the Force to increase his speed enough to get out of the way just in time. Looking back, he sees the shadow wave collide with the wall and burst through it almost effortlessly. He also realizes that Gian has remained behind the wall when it crashed down.
Leo shouts, “Gian!”
His first impulse is to dash towards his brother but he is prevented by the large wall of shadow energy now heading towards the rest of the team.
Revan laughs, turning to direct the wave at the rest of the team. He looks down and is surprised to see Gian appear in front of the knife which Jensaar stabbed into the ground. Having spent the entire time he was behind the barrier channeling an attack of his own, Gian Phase Walked towards the knife he had marked in order to get close to his target. With a loud yell, Gian unleashes a thundering blast of power which collides with Revan’s barrier and rockets his enemy back towards the hypergate.
The barrier again withstands the attack.
Revan looks at the team and says, "It is pointless... Nothing you do can harm me."
"We're not trying to harm you," Gian counters and smirks wickedly at his target.
Revan groans and curses before firing another Shadow Wave directly at Gian. Standing defiantly, Gian refuses to dodge or defend against the guaranteed fatal attack. Jensaar looks on in horror knowing that his father wouldn't survive, but just as the wave is about to reach the Sith Lord, it stops and begins to shake as if pulling by something else.
"What is this?!?" Revan shouts.
"It's your death.” Gian replies. “Enjoy it while it lasts for you won't get another one."
The wave then ebbs and surges straight into the center of the disrupted vortex of the damaged hypergate. Several tendrils reach forth and penetrate the barrier grabbing Revan’s arms, legs and neck. Revan screams and struggles to break free as the tendrils start pulling him towards the mouth of the vortex. The tidal forces increase and the men look on as their enemy is slowly but surely ripped apart and sucked into the gaping maw, never to be seen again.
There is a moment of silence and then Tannek speaks.
"Well...now what? I'm sure as shit not going through that now."
"We did kill this world’s versions of us,” Arlack says. “We could always take their place and live here."
"No chance. I'm going home." Tas'meel says.
"The console was destroyed,” Jensaar states, “unless we get the Gree to recreate it, there's no chance of stabilizing the vortex. At the present rate of decay, I calculate the vortex will reach critical mass within minutes...The power unleashed will wipe out this entire planet."
All are silent for a moment considering this.
"We have two options,” Gian says. “Either we die here, or die through that portal. Which will you attempt?"
"I'm not one to go down quietly,” Leo says. “What's the plan?"
"Everyone group together. I always knew one person would have to stay behind to shut down the portal from this side. Seems that's not the case now. This thing is going to blow on its own. Now, grab hold."
"What did you do?" Dervis asks.
"I set up several runes in places across our galaxy,” Gian responds, “for a large Phase Walk location. I generally use them for easy transport, but if we combine them all together, maybe phasing through the portal will protect us from the instability."
All the men agree that they'd rather make the attempt, then stand and wait for death. They proceed to grab hold and to tie themselves together with tethers.
Gian begins to concentrate. As their surroundings begin to slowly fade, he adds, "If you get lost along the way, I'm not responsible for where you end up!"
Together, the team darts towards the open maw of the hypergate. They vanish through it just as the portal collapses and erupts in a brilliant flash of light. The explosion spreads quickly to engulf the entire planet and the now shattered fleets still battling in orbit, leaving no survivors in any of the nearby space. The team has completed its mission. They now travel through the portal with hopes that they will arrive home and intact.
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