Adalia:
"You make a sound and it will be your last." Terra hissed at the child clinging to her hip.
She nodded silently even though she could feel Mical's anger begin to bubble at her words, she knew that Terra could kill her and lose no sleep over it, so she did as she was told.
"It feels so dark in here…" Atton muttered from beside them as they passed through the hallway, "But there seems to be a disturbance, like someone has tainted its dark power."
"Not important," Terra snarled and continued down the hallway to stop at a grand, marble staircase.
They were all silent for a moment, Adalia could feel the thoughts whizzing past her head as Terra spun them into the group's minds. Adalia felt a complete moment of terror when she remembered Terra's words from a few days before, "Slit her little mistake's throat…"
She swallowed hard, if this was what was supposed to happen, she would suffer through it if it meant that her family would be okay…
Atton gave an agreeing nod to Terra, "we're ready, Master."
"Then let's go," she ignored Mandalore's annoyed grunt and ascended up the staircase.
Dustil:
Pain, so much pain… Can't help her, have to save her…
"Dustil, you're scaring me!" Mission yelled at him as his eyes were rolled into the back of his head, his body jerking violently as he sat on the transportation unit's bench.
"Something bad is about to happen," Jolee's deep voice whispered as he sat across from them with his eyes closed, he had shown up at Mission's home on Kashyyyk soon after Dustil had his episode and insisted to come along with them. "I can't feel Carth or Adalia here on Telos, there is so much distress left behind…"
"Will one of you stop with the jedi mystical crap, I don't know what the hell either of you are saying!" Mission snapped then grabbed Dustil firmly by the shoulders to keep him in his seat.
"I know they're not here," Dustil muttered, completely ignoring Mission, "but they will be, and we need to be here when they do get back."
"Mr. Onasi," their heads all turned to the small group of TSF officers that opened the shuttle's doors. "We think that we need your help, something terrible has happened to the Admiral." The petite male in the front of the group said worriedly.
"Then let's get to work…"
Adalia:
The couple that stood no more than twenty feet in front of her looked like a fairy tale, they were both so beautiful and perfect that it should have been a crime that they were not smiling.
She sighed in relief to see that her father was alive, but her attention was on the woman that held her father's hand.
She wasn't very tall, she looked like a child standing next to Carth. But her beauty was breathtaking, her raven black hair flowed down her back and rested over her shoulders.
But the thing that made Adalia shiver was the woman's piercingly bright, blue eyes…
She barely noticed the screaming pain in her thigh from Terra's nails digging into her supple flesh.
"Mommy." Adalia whimpered quietly, she couldn't contain the small, hopeful smile on her lips at the sight of her mother.
"I told you to be silent, you brat!" Terra hissed and held the child's jaw firmly in her hand, tearing her gaze away from her parents.
It had begun.
Anger boiled from either side of the grand room, but the fury that Scarrlet was masking was showing on Carth's face.
"Get your sith-slimed hands off of my daughter, you god-damn bitch!" The Admiral yelled at the top of his lungs, his hands diving for his blasters.
Everyone besides Terra and Scarrlet armed themselves, prepared to fight, defend and murder…
"Carth," Scarrlet gasped then calmed herself, pressing her hand against Carth's chest to stop him from pointing his blasters at Terra's head.
Scarrlet cleared her throat then held her palms out to Terra, "I do not want there to be unnecessary blood-shed," peace immediately covered the room, shoulders slumped and light-sabers were turned off. "I only want a peaceful resolution from this encounter, Terra. Now please," she couldn't keep the essence of longing out of her clear, blue eyes as she looked at Adalia, "give me my daughter so we can move on. So we can help you."
Adalia felt pride in that moment, her mother was so strong in the force, she was so brave, so loyal… She knew in that moment that she wanted to be like her, to be a good person just like her mother.
A deep throated cackle shook Adalia to her core, "You really think that peace is my goal here, Revan?"
"Terra, please," Scarrlet said firmly, "you have been deceived! This is not what is meant for the universe," her hands gestured to the room around them, "this is not how it was meant to be, this was a mistake, a mistake made by someone who feels nothing but regret for what she has done."
Adalia could see clear shock on her father's face, but he kept himself silent.
"I know your past, Revan. Kreia has told me everything." Terra said darkly, Adalia was lost, she had no idea what they were talking about anymore.
All she wanted in that moment was to run to her mother, to be held by her and have all of her questions answered.
"Lord Traya is the source of your pain, Terra. She is the most deceiving, twisted sith of them all, who has made you believe what is not true." Scarrlet tried to convince her.
"Terra," Atton whispered quietly, his hands were shaking as he lowered his sabers toward his belt.
"Believe in me, Atton." Her voice had melted to a sweet sounding person's, but Adalia couldn't be more afraid of her in that moment as Terra dropped Adalia to her feet in front of her and held her close to her stomach, her fingers clawing into her shoulder.
"This is the only way for us to remain in command," she whispered, Adalia heard the sound of a light-saber turning on and flinched when she felt the intense heat from the orange saber no more than three inches away from her slender neck.
A strangled terrified scream burst from her throat, as she held back tears.
"Terra, listen to her, dammit!" Mical had broken free from Terra's will and stepped towards her, his hand on his saber.
"Get back, traitor." Atton snarled and Mical was thrown forward towards Carth and Scarrlet, his body spiraling through the air.
"Mical!" Adalia cried as he landed on his knees with a grunt.
He caught himself and dropped to a defending stance as he stood in-between the two groups, "the dark side has consumed your judgment!" He continued, not giving in, "do not let it consume the rest of you." His eyes were fixed on Terra's.
"I knew that I should have shoved you out of the garbage chute during hyper drive." Terra snarled, her grip tightening on Adalia's shirt. "You won't be hard to get out of the way though-"
"Terra, this is messed up." Mira spoke up, she walked past them to stand next to Mical. "You're not the woman I want to follow anymore, you've destroyed so many of our own… I just know that I'll eventually be next."
Her dark eyes narrowed at Terra, "What you did to Bao-Dur, to Viasis…" Her voice cracked, her brows furrowing, "It's just unforgivable."
"Fine, I don't care!" Terra yelled, "I don't need you."
Adalia heard the sound of guns being cocked behind them, Atton and Terra flinched.
"My loyalty is and always will be to Revan," Canderous scoffed, aiming his machine gun at Terra's back.
"Threat: I do believe that you should listen to my master, meat-bags." HK-47 growled at them, his assassin pistols pointed at Atton.
"I don't need you, I don't need any of you!" Terra screamed, her saber inching closer to Adalia's neck.
Weapons were back out now, "I don't need any of you." Terra repeated and pressed her saber closer to Adalia, cutting away some of the dark hair that was between the saber and Adalia's skin.
"Mommy!" Adalia screamed loudly, pushing out with the force to knock the saber out of Terra's hand.
There was split second of freedom from Terra's clutches and Adalia took advantage of it, she ran, she ran as fast as her short legs would carry her.
The fighting immediately began when Terra retrieved her light-saber, Atton: plunging forward to take out Mical and Mira, Terra: blocking the on-coming bullets from Hk-47, Canderous and Carth.
Adalia didn't care anymore what was happening around her, she felt like she was in one of her dreams again as she ran to her mother and as she ran for her.
"Adalia," Scarrlet whispered, holding her arms out for Adalia.
They were so close, but their moment of ruination was interrupted by a searing pain scorching into Adalia's back, all she could see what bright, white nothingness. Her legs gave out and she collapsed onto the floor for Scarrlet to finally reach her and hold her limp body.
"ADALIA!" Her mother's scream pierced through the room, and was the last thing Adalia heard.
Carth:
"Mommy!" The orange saber flew out of Terra's hands, it was time to attack.
Carth focused on distracting Terra enough that she wouldn't have time to go after Adalia again, and he could tell that was what the others had in mind too.
He looked for Scarrlet and he realized that she was in the middle of the battle field, running for their daughter, so he did all he could to make sure Terra couldn't lay a finger on either of them.
"Watch it!" Carth yelled to Canderous and HK-47 as he threw a stasis grenade at Terra, which she easily split in two with her saber.
"ADALIA!" The horrified scream silenced them all, Carth looked down to see Scarrlet huddled over Adalia, she wasn't moving.
He looked up, Atton Rand had caught his returning light-saber, his face was completely expressionless as he stared at the small girl he had just possibly murdered.
"You bastard!" Carth yelled at him and ran to stand in front of Scarrlet and Adalia. "You son-of-a-bitch, how dare you!" He shot at him rapidly only for the man to block the bullets with his saber.
Mical:
"You son-of-a-bitch, how dare you!" It took a moment for Mical to realize what had happened.
"Adalia?" He gasped, she was lying on the floor motionless, Scarrlet covering her small torso and face with her own body.
There was no jedi, let alone sith alive that could ever have been as mad as he was in that moment as he force ran his way to Atton.
His anger was boiling to his flesh as his fist came up to punch Atton square on the jaw, all jedi lessons, techniques and forms were forgotten as he savagely attacked Atton.
He had caught him by surprise, their sabers falling to the floor as they began to fight like the young men that they were, fists being thrown, faces being smashed against the marble floor and ribs being cracked.
Mical had his knee on Atton's back and his hands captured his wrists, bending his arms backwards waiting for a snap.
"Let's haul ass!" Mandalore yelled, Mical looked up to see that he wouldn't want to argue with his suggestion…
Carth:
"Carth, take her…" Her whisper was so quiet that he barely heard her.
His body went numb when he felt his wife slide their daughter's cold, limp body into his arms, she never looked more fragile. Her face was so pale that Carth would have believed she was dead if it weren't for the gentle beat of her heart against his palm…
"Scarrlet, her back!" Carth gasped, his eyes widened.
Her clothing was torn diagonally from her left shoulder down to her right hip, and there was blood, lots of blood.
"Leave, now." There was a sudden shift of electricity through the room, the hair on the back of Carth's neck stood up as the ground beneath his feet began to shake.
"Scarrlet," Carth gasped, he looked up to see that her feet were no longer touching the ground and her eyes had rolled into the back of her head, she raised her hand towards Terra and Atton.
She had never looked stronger, her power had grown immensely over the few years they were apart. She didn't look like Scarrlet anymore, her body was a vessel to the forces' will…
"Now!" She yelled to him, her voice was filled with multiple whispering voices that he couldn't pick any out as her own.
The others took notice to the change as well…
"Let's haul ass!" He heard Canderous yell from across the room.
Carth looked around to see Canderous, Mira and Hk run for the exit, Mical had Atton pinned to the ground and if it were a better time, he would have ran over to give the bastard a kick in the gut as well.
Terra was unshaken all the while, she had a wicked, soulless grin plastered to her face, her light-saber twirling between her hands then called out. "It's about time things started getting good, Rev!"
Carth was about to pull out his blasters again until he felt a hand on his back, "Carth, our daughter needs you." Her voice was gentle, he looked down at their baby girl and whispered quietly.
"I'll be back," he ran for the door that they came in and found Mical right on his heels as he retreated.
"She will be alright," Mical said to him confidently as they made their way down the stair-case.
There was a loud thud that sounded like a mountain caving in, Scarrlet had blocked the exit to the room, keeping the two sith from escaping.
Carth stopped in his tracks.
"What are you doing, we have to get Adalia out of here!" Mical yelled, his hands reaching for the small girl.
Carth was about to question his concern for his daughter until he heard the unmistakable sound of light-saber battle. "I can't leave her, I won't lose her again!" Carth yelled back to him, the stair-case began to crumble beneath them.
Mical grabbed onto Carth's wrist, "If you go back in there, you will die." Mical tried to pull him closer to the exit.
"I won't lose her again!" Carth repeated, and put Adalia into Mical's arms, he leaned down to kiss his daughter's cheek. "We'll be back," then looked up at Mical, "get to the Hawk, we'll be along shortly."
He ran down the hall towards the sound of battle, leaving Adalia and Mical alone to escape the crumbling building.
Scarrlet:
As soon as the last of them retreated the room, she pushed out with the force to make the large pillar by the entrance crumble and collapse in front of the door.
They will live, they will be safe…
Adalia flooded into her mind, her daughter had been broken, but she could never feel more whole as she held her baby in her arms again, so small, so beautiful… So much like her father, the man she loved.
"There is no turning back now." Scarrlet said calmly.
Terra helped Atton off of the floor from where Mical had left him, "not giving up so easily, Revan!" She sneered at her, her dark eyes echoing all of her thoughts and feeling, Scarrlet could see right through her.
She was dead on the inside, Lord Treya had consumed her will and turned her into a vessel of the dark side. She was good at that.
"I know you won't," she smiled at her sadly and let the force leave her finger tips, and flood through the room, letting it do as it pleased to destroy the darkness inside.
Adalia:
The air whipped at her face and stung the bared flesh of her back, she felt as if her body would finally cave in and die, but she knew that she had to hold on.
"Adalia, we're almost there, just keep fighting. You're going to be okay." Mical's voice was full of distress and fear, but she couldn't understand what he was afraid of.
Her pain was slowly leaving her body along with every other sense of the place around her, all she saw was the bright light, a bright light that welcomed her with opened arms.
Mical:
She had to be okay, he couldn't continue if Adalia's life were to end.
She still wasn't responding to the kolto-shock treatment, her body was still as her dark brown eyes stared up at the ceiling vacantly.
"You're okay, you're okay." Mical repeated to himself over and over again as his hands worked over her frantically.
"Her heart…" Mira whispered quietly as she stood in the door-way, giving Mical room.
"I know," he barked at her not looking up, her heart had gone silent for almost a minute now.
"She's alright, she'll be okay," he choked out, his nose was broken and he had a dislocated elbow, but none of that mattered.
"That's not going to work, Mical. She's too far gone now." Mira said quietly as Mical pumped his palms over Adalia's heart, forcing a pulse back into her small body while using his force healing abilities along with the CPR.
"Shut up, leave us!" Mical yelled at Mira, continuing the steady rhythm.
"You're okay, Adalia." He thought to her as he put his mouth over hers and filled her lungs with air.
"You have to be okay, Adalia, please. Please, you're going to be okay." His hands continued to work over her, pushing his healing abilities as far as they could go.
Carth:
The thermal detonator went off with a thunderous bang and the marble crumbled away from the entrance.
He clawed his way over the fallen debris to find the room in front of him in the heat of battle, there was no notice taken to him as Terra and Atton's bodies flung through the air to attack Scarrlet.
Carth stared in awe at his wife, she was sitting cross legged, hovering over the middle of the crumbling floor in a position that looked like battle meditation as an invisible force flung large chunks of marble and stone at her opponents.
He stood out of the way and watched as the battle continued, he knew that Scarrlet didn't need him, but he knew that he couldn't take the chance of losing her again.
His eyes fell to his hands, they were covered in blood, Adalia's blood.
Guilt ate at him for not being with his daughter, but somehow he had a feeling that she was alright.
Mical:
"It's been five minutes, Disciple." Mira stated blankly.
Mical ignored her as he covered Adalia's mouth with his to fill her lungs with air again, he forced another kolto-shock treatment into her leg, still no response.
"Breath, dammit!" He begged looking into her blank eyes.
Her body remained motionless, she had lost too much blood...
Carth:
"No!" Terra screamed as she dropped to catch Atton before his head could smack against the floor, he had taken a deadly blow and Carth had to keep himself from cheering at the sight of Scarrlet nearly crushing the man who attacked his daughter with a fallen pillar.
"You killed him, you killed him!" Terra screamed at Scarrlet, she cradled the man's body against her chest.
Carth could tell by just looking at her that she had been dead inside for a long time, she just needed a little push to end her completely, but Scarrlet didn't attack her.
Instead she stopped completely, the building had stopped shaking and Scarrlet stood to walk over to Terra.
Carth stared wide eyed, it wasn't Scarrlet, she had transformed into a different person, her hair had turned to a glowing silver color, her face was covered with dry, ugly scars.
He was looking at Darth Revan.
"Scarrlet!" Carth yelled, but there was still no notice taken to him.
"You have been following down my path, but you could never follow me truthfully when your will isn't really your own." Revan said, her voice was filled with many different echo's, none of the voices Scarrlet's.
"I'm stronger than you!" Terra screeched, her blood covered face looked like an upset child's who refused to listen.
A smile decorated Revan's face, and she leaned down to pick Terra up by her throat and hold her above the ground.
"Strength was once yours, but now it is dead to you." There was no resistance in Terra as she hung in the air, Revan frowned then stared blankly at her. "Just like how I will soon be dead."
Without the slightest hesitation there was a sudden charge in the room that centered at Revan and Terra, a strangled scream erupted from Terra's throat.
Everything was engulfed by a bright, blinding light, Carth fell to his knees to cover his head and waited for the outcome of this force storm.