Chapter 37: Powers of Evil
The force Darth Bandon and Trask Ulgo brought with them wasn't as large as one would expect. Honestly, I'd of brought a force of over a dozen Dark Jedi, back them up with a team of Sith Assault Troops to provide fire support with grenades and perhaps even a team of Wookies as front line Shock Troops. Darth Bandon however, thinks differently. His force was entirely of Dark Jedi, most of them looking like average rank-and-file, no Masters. There were a total of 8 of them, 10 if you include Trask and Bandon himself. While true that we were outnumbered, having numbers was not a substitute for having ability.
I raise my own blade and charge at the front lines of Sith, headed straight for Bandon as he swung his duel-hilted blade around, probably trying to show off or intimidate me, either way, it failed. I swing my right arm out, before flicking my wrist back so my lightsaber would cut straight into his side. Seeing my attack, Bandon moved his blades to intercept the blow, locking out blades as I stare straight into his brown eyes, feeling my brow dip into a frown as I just to force my blade past his. In this momentary lapse in battle, I let my eyes roam to what my fight my allies were engaged with.
Jax has his blade crossed against Trask, the blue and red classing against each other with force beyond simple strength. Even from here, I can feel the ranging emotions that Jax is feeling and trying to control, anger at the betrayal of Trask as the realization hit him of what really occurred all those months ago. Jax broke the stall, taking the aggression with several slices. Nearby, Bastilia was using both her blades to fend off an unrelenting assault from a duel blade wielding Sith who kept on his attack, swing after swing, always on the offensive. Juhanni and Jolee seemed to be engaged as a pair against a single sith, a double-hilted user who was using both sides of his weapon to fend off and engage on the pair of Jedi. Standing behind us all, I can hear the blaster shots of Canderous' Heavy Repeater, though what he was shooting at, I would have to assume it's whatever Sith he could get a clean shot off at. Finally, there was Katarina, she'd actually lead the charge in some manner, and she was duelling 2 Sith with her double-hilted blade, skirmishing around them, trying to find an opening in which she would ram her blade inside of them.
I return to looking at my own opponent, Darth Bandon. I know little, to nothing at all, about his technique of fighting, all I know is he has a double-hilted blade and like most Sith, arrogance beyond his ability. I shove my blade against him harder, trying to win the stalemate we'd place ourselves in. If I gave way, it would open up the window of aggression, and a duel-hilted user excel in those situations. No, I can't budge!
"What's wrong pup?" I hear him ask, his lips tensed up along with the rest of his face "Scared?" he taunts.
"Scared?" I reply, I can feel my own face scrunched up, my every ounce put into keeping his blade where it is now "I'm going to kill you, you're the one who should be scared"
I hear him make a sound similar to a snort of contempt "You kill me? What's Revan's pet gunna do to me?" I raise an eyebrow at him at this statement, what did he mean Revan's pet? "That's right, I know all about your pet" he says the word pet like it is the most disgusting word, like thinking it makes him throw up, yet alone having to say it.
"You know nothing about me" I say back simply, concentrating more of my efforts into our lock of power than to try break his conviction, knowing already that is a wasted effort, and whatever he was trying to do, would fail. I am loyal to a single force, my master, and he was fighting against his old friend.
"Nothing?" A small smirk forms on Bandon's face, and being so close to him, I can see it as clear as day. This is the moment, he would try to use words against me, and in this moment where he is too concentrated on breaking me, I will break him! "How about…"
He doesn't get any more words in before I take an aggressive step forwards, forcing my lightsaber forwards, getting close to his face before he is forced to swing his blades to batter my own away, taking a step backwards to disengage us. However, this step backwards is all I need. I cannot afford to let him take the aggression, the moment I let him do that, I will die. I charge forwards, swinging my blade with an aim towards his left side, his weaker hand, meaning he has to put more effort into his defensive moves than preparing a counter attack with his second blade, which is how a duel-hilted blade user likes to use, something I learnt from watching Katarina fight and our spars.
"Didn't except that, did you ya bastard?" I taunt him, keeping up my offensive, refusing to give an inch. Continually swinging at him, forcing his weaker hand to be the most active, one step forwards at a time, continue to press the advantage I was building up.
"You…You little shit!" He roars back "I won't be up stood by some little daddies' boy!" He side-steps my next attack to the left, as I realize with horror that in my aggression, I'd completely lowered my defences. Now since I'd taken another step forwards, excepting him to have backed up, my entire right arm which was extended because of my most recent attack, was completely open for a counter attack. I start pulling my arm back, but even I know it's too late! One of his blades starts swinging at my elbow, aiming to remove my arm before murdering me!
"Don't you touch him!" I hear a yell, a high pitched one at that, as something enters the side of my vision. I can't tell what it is fully, but Bandon seemed to notice it and deem it enough of a threat to stop his attack on me and shift his aims to defending himself, as I hear the clash of lightsabers.
I pull my weapon back to myself, before being able to concentrate entirely upon my saviour. I had expected to see a red head in black robes assaulting Darth Bandon, but who stood there, trading blows against the Sith was probably one of the last people I expected. Juhanni! The Cathar's green blade was dancing backwards and forwards, clashing against Bandon's red blades, almost a graceful dance if it was not a fight to the death. I tighten the grip on my weapon, before charging back into the fight. I quickly reach the pair, and throw my own blade into the fray.
My blade connects against Darth Bandon's as the pair of us, me and Juhanni, attack and force Darth Bandon onto the full defensive. In our combined assault, I glance over at Juhanni as she takes a step forwards to press our advantage against him. Why had she come to my aid, how had she even noticed I was about to die and able to react in time to save me. I thought, after the situation involving us on the Hawk, I'd of thought that her selfish side would have let her die. If she hated me, which surely she would after what occurred, then why did she save me? I take two steps forwards, following up her attack with one of my own, once again force Bandon back.
"Who is this?" I hear Bandon ask, somehow mustering the courage to talk shit while being attacked by two people and keep his defences up "Some bitch you've been screwing?" If Juhanni and I were a thing, perhaps I would be more offended by that comment, but it passed over me like weak waves at the beach.
"Feeling lonely?" I reply "Don't worry, I'll make sure to leave your hand attached to your body when we're finished with you"
Juhanni's next attack was the opening I needed. Instead of trying to cut his arm off, her attack focussed on his blade, meaning he was tilting to the left to hold her weapon in place. That meant, his entire right side of his body was wide open for a counter attack! We'd done it! I take two small steps forwards to close the gap as I extend my right arm, blade leading the charge to end this Sith! Bandon surely knew his number was up.
But the stubborn prick tried to resist his fate. Seeing the final attack, he took a step...forwards?! He willingly stepped towards my blade as his own hands started to twist his blade, sliding Juhanni's weapon off it and forcing her to take a step back, as one end of the blade comes swinging down then up, headed straight towards me! And with my blade in a full attack position, a cold horror dawns on me. Bandon had no intention of surviving this fight, but he had every intention of taking me down with him!
I feel something push me, it isn't the first time, in fact, it's an oddly familiar situation. It occurred today, however, I was the one pushing instead of being pushed. I quickly move my feet, but I'm unable to keep my balance and fall over, quickly turning to see who had pushed me. In my place, with her right arm outstretched, a look of fear on her face. Time seems to slow down as I can do nothing but watch as Bandon's blade continues its original route, ending by entering Juhanni's stomach. Juhanni's face doesn't change, not until the Sith Lord withdraws his weapon, then the look on the Cathar's face contorts into that of pain, dropping her weapon, her legs struggling to hold her up as she falls over onto the ground near me. I glance up at Darth Bandon, who takes a step back, either trying to gloat in his victory, or shocked of what had just occurred.
I pick myself up and quickly find my way to Juhanni, grabbing her right hand tightly. I feel the force in her sliding away, slowly, but it is leaving her body. I can feel it leaving her, and there is nothing I can do to stop it! Lightsaber wounds are complicated, but if we had a medical bay nearby, then maybe… But we don't, we're in the middle of the Kashyyyk forest, on the surface of the planet. We could not be further away from a medical facility or resources that are capable of healing a Lightsaber wound.
I turn to face Darth Bandon, who is just standing there, watching. Why didn't he attack? Honestly, he had a perfect opening to strike me down when I was just lying here. I get up onto my knees before I feel something pulling against my left hand! Juhanni! I turn to face the Jedi, her yellow eyes looking straight at him.
"Jason… I'm so sorry" she says, the tiniest of smiles fighting its way onto her face "I thought, I could at least save you… my masters would forgive me"
"Save me? But, I'm a Sith…" I reply, doing my best to keep a calm tone despite the anger burning within me "Your masters would have probably approved of my death…"
"No, not a Sith" she says catching me off guard, what did she mean by that? "A Sith lets their anger, their hatred fully control them until the last bit of goodness is burnt out of them. But you, you control it, you use the force as your tool, not your master…y-you're..a paradox, in some ways. A paradox in the teachings of the Jedi and the Sith. Not one of either, y-yet, a little bit...of both. I found that inspirational, I tried…to teach myself how to become, like you…."
"And that's why….You did what you did, back on the Hawk?"
She slowly nods her head "Yes, I, I lost myself to temptation, I was weak…now, go Jason, kill that sith…Show him what a paradox is capable of doing…" her smile had fought its way onto her face, a burning determination in her eyes "I'll be here…w-watching"
I nod my head, making sure she is still alive as I standing up fully, before holding out my left arm and calling upon the force to pull a certain metallic device to my hand, Juhanni's Lightsaber. Its hilt feels string in my hand, rough around the edges, but with some level of simplicity to its design. I activate the weapon, a green glow consuming the left hand side of my face as my right continues to glow of red.
"Finished talking to your girlfriend? It just didn't seem fair killing something as pathetic as you were right then" he says as the anger within me burns more. How dare he taunt after that, a kill he didn't even deserve, a kill where we would have died, changed by someone else, and he has the balls to make smart comments about it!? I WILL MAKE HIM PAY FOR THIS!
I let out a yell, though, hearing it makes me think of a roar of a wild beast more than a man, as I charge with both blades swinging. I've never learnt how to fight the duel-wielded style, all of my training being revolved around the force, my actual lightsaber combat experience emerging from my sword combat training from the Mandalorian Wars. But I will avenge Juhanni, and I will use her own blade to do it!
I clash blades with Bandon once again, but this time, I am forcing him back instead of being stuck in a statement against him. The force must be empowering me, or more specifically, the hatred I feel for Bandon is pushing me forwards, making me stronger! I break through his defences, forcing him to take several steps back as I charge towards him.
"W-what the…What is this?" He asks, seemingly shocked "I studied you! I know everything there is to know about you! Where you grew up, your service in the Republic Military and every battle you took part in. I know every squad you fought in, every instructor you had! Every training type you had, what weapons you were trained to use. Never in your life have you duel-wielded a sword…"
I bare my teeth as I take an almighty swing against his blade, but he tries to hold them back, causing another temporary stalemate. I look deep at his face, seeing the anger, the rage on it in his dark eyes. Obviously he sees me as a null-threat, and now, with me kicking his ass, the only thing he is probably capable of feeling is rage and danger as his own level of incompetence.
"T-there are things t-that are, impossible to learn in the classroom!" I take a slow breath, before I raise my left foot, kicking him in the stomach. He takes a mandatory step backwards, one of his hands leaving his lightsabers in order to place a hand over his stomach, the location where my kick had landed. I use that as my opening to force him back, forcing blades backwards. With then advantage won, I now need to press it!
I swing my arms towards him, my blade acting as an extension of my own arm as I press my unrelenting assault. His defensive blocks are lazy and weak, I doubt he has practised them much, or at all honestly, given his, and all Siths', particular love for offense. This will lead to their death, as it will Darth Bandon! Continuing my assault, I see the opening I am looking for, his grip on his weapon by his left hand is faltering. That's my opening. I bring my blade around so it nearly clips his left arm, and he drops his weapon onto the ground, standing still like a womber in speeder light. I raise my blade, looking him dead in his brown eyes.
"You…You wouldn't dare...J-jedi don't kill unharmed prisoners, r-remember? A-and you're with the jedi! You can't kill me" he protests, raising his hands in a surrender-like posture. I take a deep breath, looking him straight in the eyes.
I let a chuckle escape my throat, a smirk forcing its way onto my face as I do "You know Bandon, for all your talk of power, and having Darth Malek select you as his student, it makes perfect sense why I, the student of Darth Revan, came out victorious. I would never give up, never grovel to my enemies, and when death comes to claim me…" I glare at him feeling the sweat on her forehead, the damp skin against the cold metallic hilt of my weapon coming into focus only now, I can feel Juhanni's blade in my other hand, her hilt is warm, a small comfort as I know the Cathar will die on his planets' surface, and there is nothing I can do to stop it.
"Death will never say I came willingly…" I say, before with an almighty thrust, ramming the Green Lightsaber of Juhanni into the Siths' chest, before letting it go simply watching the weapon stick into him as the Sith dropped to his knees, gasping and grasping at the weapon, somehow still alive. Without watching the satisfaction of Bandon's death, I turn and sprint to where I had left Juhanni, sliding onto the ground as I can hear the battle around me, the constant clash of lightsaber, though what is happening around me fades away as I grab Juhanni's hand, her own grip weak as her yellow eyes lock onto me.
"He's dead…." She says, almost a smile on her face "N-never…let your anger...Consume you...p-paradox" she managed to get out, each word looking like it had to be forced out of her painfully. I deactivate my weapon, shuffling her head under my left hand, my right hand refusing to release her own hand.
"I won't…Don't you dare die on me, alright? I'll teach you the balance…" I say, my breath being stolen away, cold ice consuming my skin despite the battle raging around. I honestly barely knew this Cathar, yet, she can't die yet. She was a member of the Hawk, a crew member. Even if I didn't know her too well, and the most interaction before was her trying to get sexy in the Engine Room, I want her to survive. I've already seen so much pointless death and destruction, seeing someone who I know my allies treat so highly is always painful.
The Cathar nods her head slowly "Y-yeah" she managed to squeeze out, her infectious smile being stolen onto my face, before her face contorts with shock, her eyes widening as a gasp sucking in the air around her, before her eyes roll, her entire body going limp in my arms, her head rolling away and resting on the ground. I feel a cold shock scream over my body as I'm hit with the realization. Juhanni, Jedi Knight of the Jedi Order, courageous warrior of the Cathar people, and crew member of the Ebon Hawk, is dead. I turn my head, the warm corpse still in my hands as I look across the battlefield, seeing the retreating Sith. At the head, Trask Ulgo, staring right at me, blaster pistol in hand.
It clicks, the shocked look on her face, he'd shot her! He couldn't just let her die gently in my arms thinking everything was ok, dying with someone to comfort her in the last moments of her life! No, in typical Sith Fashion…He had to deal pain and evil to every living, and dying creature they can see. I feel a hand on my shoulder, glancing to see Bastilia attached to the hand.
"Jason…" she says, her voice filled with something "…your fault..." her voice is blurry, but her words are clear enough to me "…your fault she's dead…" I can hear only snippets of Bastilia's voice now, my own heartbeat actually managing to beat her voice as it consumed my entire system. My anger crashing against me like a tsumnia against a barrier, and like a tsunami, unstoppable destructive force of nature. Standing up, I turn to where I'd last seen Trask, leaving my lightsaber on the ground as pain starts leaping from my fingers. I know full well without looking that force lightning was leaping from finger to finger, the pain escalating my anger.
"Bastilia..." says another female voice, so distorted I can't tell who it is "Step back from him"
"Look at his eyes"
"Feral"
"Dangerous"
"Run"
I grit my teeth as the facts became clear in my enraged mind, Trask Ulgo had refused to let Juhanni die in peace, making the last few moments of her life agony. Now, I find myself walking forwards, completely unaware of doing it with a single goal in mind. To make the rest of Trask Ulgo's miserable life as painful as possible. Calling upon the force, I leap up into the air and land into the tree, leaping again before spotting my victims. Trask Ulgo was running away, a scared pup with his tail between his legs. Beside him, a single Sith Knight was fleeing for his life. Calling upon the force, I use it to leap into the air, twisting my body in the air, before starting to come down.
Landing hard on the ground, using my hand to soften the land, my head towards the ground, I hear a gasp, before standing up. Before me, Trask Ulgo and the other surviving Sith stood, knowing full well they cannot outrun vengeance.
"W-what the hell do you want?" asks the unnamed, and honestly, insignificant Sith, his voice consumed by fear. Reaching my right hand up, I grasp at his throat, before throwing him away somewhere, hearing a distinct crack as the body hits a tree with great force. My eyes set dead on Trask as the Sith draws his lightsaber, the red beam glowing in the dark forest.
"You killed her" I say, my voice sounding distant and void of all emotion "She was already dead, on borrowed time. So she wouldn't die alone, I held her. No one deserves to die alone, and in those final moments, she was happy"
Trask raising his blade, but I can see the shaking of his arm "S-so what? What bitch had it coming, you said it yourself, she was as good as dead…"
"But in those last few seconds, you shot her" my voice comes out again, still monotone, still cold and still devoid of all emotions, flat like a soft drink left for days open "Her last moment alive wasn't of happiness or clarity. It was of pain, agony. Now, because you felt the need to cause her pain…" I glare up at Trask, even from this distance, I can see fear in his eyes. Fear of the unknown, fear of me, and most importantly, fear of the horrors I will inflict upon him "I will make the remaining of your pathetic life agony!"
I raise my hands firing endless streams of burning Force Lightning at Trask, who raises his blade and tries to block the endless waves crashing against him. Feeling a burning feeling, pain on my fingers, I use it to spur more power into my attacks, like Katarina had advised, using my anger as a tool and the pain to spur on my power. I feel the force within me weakening, the prolonged use draining me, as I feel the darkness of the Force, or more correctly, the Star Map's corruption in the forest, and calling upon it, feed from the darkness around me. Feeling the power flow through me, I refocus my full attention on Trask who seems to be holding off my current assault, for now.
"Witness the Power!" I declare loudly, before unleashing the darkness I'd empowered myself, feeling a retching pain in my fingers and hands from the power I'm releasing upon Trask, watching as then now abundance of Lightning starts working around his blade, scaring his hands and face, before hearing a cry of pain from him, music to my ears. Spurred on by this call of pain, I start advancing towards him, watching his attempts to protect himself as the lighting now almost goes through his blade, the air around him glowing from the simple force of my power!
"Yes!" I hear myself say as I continue pacing towards him, the hunter towards his prey "Cry out! Beg for mercy! T-tell me! Who are you seeing, your mother, or your lover?!" my voice breaks from its' monotone chant into one of pure glee "You're probably seeing your childhood flash before your eyes! Knowing now that darkness isn't something you can stop, something you can't hope to touch!" I start laughing seeing Trask drop his weapon, now curling up on the ground with lightning consuming his body with its unrelenting lashes, before I cut them off entirely. Taking a deep breath through my nose, I can smell burnt flesh, before looking at my fingers and hands.
They were charred! Completely charred, my fingertips completely black with damaged skin, and the palm of my hands were black-burnt, the only recognisable part of my skin being on my wrist, as the waves of pain crash into me, crippling me onto my knees, unable to ever grasp anything from the burning, my eyes jamming shut as I bend over while on my knees, gasping for breath to keep conscious, seeing black spots in my vision.
"W-weak…." Says a weak voice, making me look up. Trask is looking at me, his face beyond recognition, only his eyes seemingly untouched "You claim…not to be a sith…yet to give into darkness so quickly..."
I let out a gasp, shame shoving the pain out of my heart. He was right, in that moment of Juhanni's death, I'd fallen. Anger, Revenge, Pain and a desire to destroy everything had consumed me, and I had let it. The corruption of the Force, and after Juhanni had put her faith in me to be the paradox, the equality between darkness and light.
"Your right…" I pass out, my voice weak and croaky "and...I won't happen again. S-she…trusted me, to be different…a paradox…darkness and light…as one"
I hear Trask chuckle, but I feel no anger at him now, no desire to murder him for Juhanni. I realize, it isn't what she'd want, isn't how she'd want me to react. She'd expect the light in me to keep me safe, not allow the darkness to consume me like I'd let it "She…is that important? I t-thought the other…red head..."
"I don't know anymore" I reply weakly. Normally I'd never talk to an enemy like this, but he is as good as he is dead so it doesn't matter much "Sure, Kat's important to me…But she's an ally, a friend. I've been thinking more and more about her, but..Heh, doubt we can be a thing"
"So you and the Cathar were an item" he says, as I shake my head even though I doubt he cares to see it.
"No, she…well..it doesn't matter now. Just tell her I said hi" I say, reaching into my back and grabbing the blaster pistol there, a blistering pain erupting up my arm is a take hold of the pistol, and raise it towards Trask. He doesn't seem to react, perhaps he knows he is dead, and has embraced the fact.
"You expecting to die here?" he asks simply as I laugh weakly from it, the black spots in my vision growing as the pain in my heads grows. I feel my mind slipping, I doubt I'll stay conscious for much longer, I just hope...the others, find me before something else does.
"I will die, but…I won't go quietly into that goodnight" I say, pulling the trigger, pain streaming up my arm as the red bolt hits Trask in the chest as darkness consumes me eyes and I feel myself crash into the wet damp grass under me, pounding pain from my hands weakening before vanishing entirely as my vision vanishes.