Chapter 42
The Hammer Falls
A/N- Well, orientation started today, but I managed to get a chapter during it (you'll have to wait a few days for the next one, since orientation might take a while). I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter as well, mainly because I couldn't make up my mind about some of the details. When I finally figured it out, I knew I had to write it before orientation or I'd go crazy from excitement.
Anyways, this is longer because it's getting close to the wrapping up of the Yuuzhan Vong war. Just a matter of chapters- funny how I managed to write the entire war into less than seventy chapters when it took the SW writers nineteen books to write theirs- to each her/his own. I like long stuff, but I felt like the books were dragging a bit after Star by Star. But that's just me. Although I did like Traitor quite a bit, it was well written.
So, enjoy as the turmoil of the war turns for the strange (yes, strange, I didn't say worse- but you could probably say it is worse).
If you haven't already noticed I like strange things, and things that make you scratch your head and go "huh?" (both in a confused way and in a thoughtful way- like "huh, I didn't think about it that way. Cool).
Okay, enough of my babbling. Thanks to JediBettyBug for your reviews! Reviews give me bursts of inspiration to write, so if you feel so inclined, hit the button at the bottom of the page and let me know what you think- ^_^ (But if you're going to give criticism, say why and please refrain from flaming- nobody likes that stuff).
Thanks!
-Don "QuixoticQuest"
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Anakin's hand moved across the surface the skeleton of what would become the laser cannon. As he placed another plate in place, his head throbbed. Something was definitely wrong. Anakin reached out in the force, touching the presences of all his family members. His mother and father were sound asleep and peacefully so. Jaina was moving around, but unharmed. Then Anakin felt Jacen's presence. It wasn't responding to him, but it wasn't for the same reason as before. Jacen was hurt and badly. Anakin's mind flashed with the image of Jacen after his near fatal blow on Mykyr, and his nearly fatal almost murder on Kashyyk. Now Jacen was in even more danger. Anakin stretched out his mind, his body almost wanting to travel with it to where Jacen was.
Tahiri glanced over at him. "Anakin, what's wrong?" She came over, touching his shoulder. Anakin's face contorted. The pain was increasing further, and for some reason Anakin couldn't even feel the hand he saw on his shoulder. His blue eyes widened as his surroundings changed.
Tenel Ka started to go back, she wasn't about to leave Jacen behind, he was under the house. She turned on her heel to step over.
"Tenel Ka!" A voice screamed over the sounds of the crackling flames and crumbling buildings. Tenel Ka turned to see Jaina leaping off the side of a ship that had landed nearby, as soon as Jaina's feet touched the ground, the warriors screamed at the metal, one of the many items the Yuuzhan Vong considered 'abominations.' With a loud cry, the warriors then set upon the ship with their staffs, bashing the hull and then smashing the glass. Jaina jumped over to cut down a few warriors, but seeing it as a lost cause, backed away to stand beside Tenel Ka.
"Tenel Ka, I felt Jacen get hurt, where is he?" Jaina asked. Tenel Ka pointed over at the collapsed remains of the building, which was completely surrounded by flames and warriors. Jaina's face became stony.
She had felt Jacen's presence recognize hers, even if only for a moment before she felt Jacen pass out. So she knew he'd remembered who he was. But now he was in danger of being gone for good. Jaina couldn't help but feel like someone or something really had it in for Jacen. It seemed every time he got out of one situation, he was thrust into another that threatened to take his life. Jaina was sick of it. She was tired of the constant worry of losing her twin, of losing either of her brothers for that matter. Hadn't the force taken enough from her? Wasn't Zekk enough? Or did everyone who mattered in Jaina's life have to die and leave her behind? Jaina began to push towards the building, her hand flicking to fire her blaster and her other hand drove her lightsaber into the chests, necks, and armpits of the warriors around her.
Bang. Jaina's head jerked around as she cast her gaze upwards, a Yuuzhan Vong carrier's firepower hit just at the top of the village. Then she heard Lowie's roar from behind, telling Jaina to move. She turned around, just a downpour of water slammed into the level of the village just above them. Jaina jogged away as another wave of water smashed the space where she'd just been standing.
"Friend Lowbacca, what's happening?" Tenel Ka asked, turning to Lowie. The wookiee let out a low growl filled with his own concern about the situation.
"Broken dam?" The only thing Jaina could think in a situation like this was, Shit, we really don't have any luck. Jacen, me, or any of us, would it kill the force to be with us for once?
Lowie barked his affirmation and shifted to alleviate some of the weight from Tenel Ka's shoulders. She assured him it was fine, but Lowie protested at being a burden. The warrior girl wouldn't let Lowie, who had saved her life on a few occasions, push away her help. They were also long time friends. It was about time Tenel Ka helped Lowie.
"Friend Lowie, you are not a burden. Now, we must find a way out of here." Lowie growled a comment about moving out of the direction of the water. As if on cue another burst of water from the broken dam sent several warriors and the ruins of a building flying over the edge of the cliff the village was built on. Jaina quickly moved over to where Tenel Ka and Lowie were, draping Lowie's other arm over her neck. Then the three of them started away when the dam burst completely, causing the buildings on all the levels to be smashed to bits and sent over the edge, the water cascading down through the forest, a rampant river, crashing into anything in its path.
The water was up to her ankles now, and Jaina felt the cold of the liquid seeping through her pants. She clung to the closest tree for support as the water slammed continually into them. Jaina then looked up as the building Tenel Ka had pointed out as the one Jacen was under gave way under the water pressure and crunched as it sunk into the waves. Jaina saw an arm sticking out from under some of the floating pieces and immediately let go of Lowie to wade out and then dive into the wild current. She reached out to grab the arm but the water whipped into her and knocked Jaina off balance. Jaina's brandy eyes widened in horror as she glimpsed Jacen's face just above the water as it was dragged over the ledge into the already flooded forest below.
Jaina fought hard to keep her head above water. Part of her swam the other way, trying to get to the edge, wanting to pull back what couldn't be undone. Jacen was gone. He'd been swept away by a flood that the Yuuzhan Vong caused. Jaina's teeth chattered and she searched for something to hold on to. Jaina's arms worked like a clock, pressing against the water, kicking the other direction. She gasped as another wave smacked her at waist height, knocking her underwater for a minute.
She then used the force to push herself out of the way of the edge, and then felt a strong grip fold around her arm, dragging her upwards.
"Jaina, reach up!" she turned to see the last person she expected to find come to her rescue. "Jaina, come on!" Jag's voice strained. He was on his ship as it hovered just feet above the water. Tenel Ka and Lowie were already on board, watching from behind as Jag stretched out his arms and pulled Jaina up. She glanced back at where Jacen had gone over the edge, wondering if she should try to go after her twin. Jag's firm grip on her wouldn't let Jaina let go.
"Jaina, we've got to go." Jag shouted and then with a final jerk, heaved Jaina onto the ship. The door closed, taking Jaina away from Kashyyk and from her twin brother.
Jaina shivered, drawing her knees up to her chest. Tenel Ka sat in another corner of the ship's cockpit, still too stunned to say anything. They both had just lost an important person in their lives. Even if they hadn't felt Jacen die, his force presence was so faint now, it seemed like only time would tell when Jacen was completely dead. Jag went into the storage cabinet to get warm blankets for the three survivors. He handed the blanket to Tenel Ka who nodded her thanks, then placed it around the half conscious Lowie. Then he draped the last blanket around Jaina's shoulders. His green eyes were unusually soft, and Jaina briefly wondered if the cold Chiss man pitied her.
"If any of you need anything just tell me," Jag said, then went to take his seat in the pilot's chair. Jaina pressed her forehead to her knees. The world was truly a cruel place. It played with your emotions, giving you hope then snatching it away. Giving you a gift and brief moment of joy then immense sadness when something horrible overwhelmed the good. Jaina sighed. Why do I even believe in the force when it doesn't give two siths about me?
Jacen's mind went blank as soon as he felt his body being crushed. All feeling went out of him and his being was suspended in a numb state of unconsciousness. He could hear some voices in his ears but his vision, when he occasionally returned to consciousness was almost completely blurry. That was why when he managed to get a clear view of his situation as he was swept down the rapids of the flooding forest floor of Kashyyk, smacking into occasional trees and cutting his limbs on rocks, which he hardly felt, he couldn't believe his eyes. Jacen didn't feel the hands pulling him out of the water. But when he saw the face staring at him, suddenly remembering that the person in front of him was still on Coruscant, Jacen could hardly speak.
The force surrounded Anakin's body in such a strange way that Jacen was almost sure that it wasn't his brother. But it looked just like Anakin. The blue eyes, the brown hair and all the details were exactly the same as Anakin Solo's physical appearance. Only Jacen could feel, and knew that Anakin Solo was on Coruscant.
Jacen couldn't sit up, his ribs were all broken, and his body was almost completely smashed. Jacen coughed, blood trickling from his mouth. If Jacen could feel, he'd know his body was also freezing cold and possibly weakened from hypothermia as well as other problems. A violent cough shook Jacen and he nearly blacked out from it. He blinked, thinking Anakin would disappear, but Anakin simply stared at him for a minute.
"I don't get it, how are you here and at Coruscant?" Jacen murmured. Anakin shook his head then his body wavered, showing that it was slightly transparent.
Jacen leaned back onto the ground. The bank the "Anakin" had pulled Jacen onto was away from the raging water and somehow hidden from the Yuuzhan Vong ships overhead. Anakin then reached out to touch Jacen's body, sending energy straight into Jacen's body. Then the Anakin Jacen was seeing wavered again then vanished. Jacen felt the feeling return to his body, as well as some of his strength. Just what had happened? It seemed like Anakin had come to rescue Jacen but it couldn't have been Anakin, since Jacen could feel Anakin's presence elsewhere. Something was going on.
But right now wasn't the time for Jacen to deal with it. He was alone on Kashyyk and the Yuuzhan Vong, if they found him, would kill, torture, or use Jacen as a slave. Not necessarily in that order, but Jacen didn't want to find out. He pushed himself to his feet, his knees wobbling. A blinding pain then shot through Jacen's body and he fell back against the ground.
When Jacen reopened his eyes, he couldn't feel anyone in the force, nor could he even sense the force inside of himself. It was beyond strange. Just like the energy form of Anakin Jacen had just seen. Jacen got up for the second time, then started walking slowly across the one slim piece of dry land that remained on Kashyyk. Without the force Jacen couldn't call for help and therefore had no way of getting off Kashyyk any time soon. He was stuck.
With a growling stomach, Jacen felt a lump at his side. His lightsaber! He still had it. Jacen quickly pulled out his lightsaber and decided it was a good choice as any to cut a spear out of a tree branch to fashion a spear. Jacen set to work on that, and in minutes he had a makeshift spear. It was strange that he, a Jedi, had no other option right now than to make a spear and fish. Jacen also had no supplies to treat his already severely damaged body, though the energy form of Anakin had given Jacen some strength. Just enough for Jacen to treat himself, but how long that treatment would last, Jacen could only guess it wasn't long.
Anakin's hand went to his face, feeling the fierce ear splitting pains that shot through it. Then in a second they left. Anakin opened his eyes to look up at Tahiri. He was sitting on the ground. Anakin let out a low moan then stood up, his knees threatening to buckle. All the feeling was back in his limbs. Tahiri looked at him with a pale face. Something had happened. Something that Anakin had no control over.
"What happened?" Anakin asked.
"You collapsed, you weren't unconscious but you wouldn't respond to anything I said or did, I tried hitting your face to get you to refocus, but you weren't responding to that either. I don't know what just happened." She stared at Anakin who seemed just as confused as she was.
"I don't know either. I suddenly lost all control and feeling of my body. I kind of feel weaker too." He placed a hand on his chest, feeling the queasiness that had been there before he lost all feeling, return.
"Anakin-" She began, but not before the docking bay filled with noise as Wedge Antilles himself walked in, coming straight over to Anakin.
"Anakin, how soon will the cannon be ready?" Wedge asked. Anakin's mind calculated briefly, considering the pace he'd been working at and the pace of the rest of the workers, including Tahiri, then replied.
"Another three or four days at least to get the cannon built, but the actual power to fire will take another week." Anakin replied. Wedge frowned at this. "Why?"
"Because, the Yuuzhan Vong have just launched an attack on Coruscant." Wedge replied. His expression was one of severe seriousness. "It was a reconnaissance unit but they did a fair amount of damage to the fleet and I'm sure they'll be back soon. I need you to finish this cannon by tomorrow night and pass the diagram on to the fleet mechanics. We need to equip the ships with the cannon."
Anakin's brow furrowed, "I'll need more people to help. I can't work that fast on my own." As much as Anakin knew how to do and his speed would impress any mechanic, there was no way he could get the cannon finished by tomorrow night alone. Even with help it was going to be a full time job for two nights in a row.
"We'll provide the workers. You just get the cannon finished. It may just be the only way to give us the upper hand." Wedge said, and then turned on his heel, pivoted and strode back down the hallway. Anakin sighed. Tahiri looked at him. Anakin already had deep shadows under his eyes from lack of sleep and he was feeling sick the past few days. He then went back to work, with Tahiri watching him.
"Are you okay, Anakin?" She asked. It was becoming a routine question and each time she guessed the answer wasn't yes.
"For the most part, no, I'm not. But this cannon will help win the war, so I can miss a few days of sleep for this." He shifted to start wiring the next part of the cannon's core. Tahiri grabbed his hand. "What?"
"I'm worried about you, Anakin." She said, "You've been overworking yourself and not to mention what happened a few minutes ago when you collapsed. I think you need a break."
Anakin smiled at her, knowing she was only trying to help. "I know I'm not feeling my best, but this is important. Not just for me, but for everyone else too. If I can do something right then it makes all the difference to right the things I've done wrong."
"Anakin…" She groaned. "For once, I actually think you're just saying that to say that." He blinked in shock at her. Tahiri fixed Anakin with a harder stare, her green eyes glowing. "Stop saying you've screwed up every time something goes wrong. Not everything in and under the force is your fault. If it was you'd be the force itself and you're not," She noticed his eyes hardening and scowled at him, "What? You think I'm lying?"
Anakin remained silent throughout her ramble. Then he opened his mouth, shut it, then shook his head. "No, you're right, Tahiri. I do blame myself for a lot of things. Some of them are my fault but I can't take the credit for everything. How about we give some of it to the Vong?"
"That's better?" She blurted. Anakin burst out laughing, then kissed Tahiri lightly on her cheek.
"You want me to blame you?" Anakin asked, "I can do that too." Anakin dodged a punch from Tahiri's fist then smirked at her.
"Come back here and get yours, Hero Boy!" Tahiri called as Anakin jogged around to the other side of the docking bay to work on the other side of the cannon. Tahiri came over and joined him. Anakin's eyes were out of focus.
"Anakin?" She looked at him intently, trying to figure out what had stopped him.
"Jacen." He said.
"What?"
"I can't feel him." Anakin shut his eyes, reaching out, and then reopened them. "At all. He's not dead, but just gone."
Tahiri's face contorted. "Just like when you were gone after the incident at the Yuuzhan Vong base." She said. Anakin nodded.
"But I don't know if it's the Sytars this time. Something weird happened." Anakin sighed. Why was it that when one problem came up, one more came up on top of the other? "Well, we need to finish this for Wedge, otherwise we won't have any place left where we can consider solving the other problems." Tahiri nodded.
"Think it'll turn out okay?" She asked.
"The cannon?" Anakin asked, not entirely sure where her thoughts lay.
"The war, the aftermath, all of it," Tahiri said, gesturing around the docking bay. Anakin shrugged.
"We can only hope it will, and try to work things out as best we can." Anakin sighed, "I'm worried too." He reached out and gave Tahiri's hand a squeeze. She returned it. Though neither of them felt much comfort, they would at least stand through the rest of the conflict together. For better or for worse.
Lowie rested in the med-center while Jaina sat outside, unsure of what to do or think. Tenel Ka had gone off to visit Mara again. Jaina was sure Tenel Ka was feeling the crushing guilt of having left Jacen behind then losing the feeling of him through the force. It dogged Jaina as well.
"Jaina?" She turned to see Jag coming over. She couldn't even find it in herself to retort at him. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't even yell at him for making her leave Jacen behind. "Mind if I sit?" She shrugged. Jag sat down beside Jaina.
"I'm sorry I made you leave your brother behind." He said, surprising Jaina with his straightforward apology. She shook her head.
"It's okay." Jaina replied, though not feeling in the least bit that way.
"I butt into something else that wasn't my business. I seem to only be able to do that around you." Jag said, looking away. Jaina felt puzzled at his sudden change in tone. This didn't sound like the cocky overly stiff and rigid Chiss Colonel Jagged Fel.
"If you keep acting like that, Jag, I'm going to slug you into next month." Jaina said, her brandy eyes flaring. Jag straightened.
"Well, if you hadn't flown off when you were supposed to be resting-"
"Would you have left you siblings behind?" Jaina snapped, finding her regularly snappy tone again.
"I already did." Jag said without even taking a pause to consider what he was telling Jaina. She stopped.
"I'm sorry, Jag."
"What are you sorry for?" Jag asked, roughly but not harshly, "My older brother and sister died when I was younger, I was useless to help them. Such is the way with war. Both of them made me want to be tougher."
Jaina stared at Jag. She had no idea he had a past like that. It was almost as though she didn't think Jag had a sentimental piece of him, though now she knew he did. The worst part was that the sentimental part was crushed by loss in the past. Is that what I sound like when I gripe about Zekk? Jaina wished she hadn't been so brutal to anyone who even mentioned Zekk. Especially Anakin. She'd been outright brutal to her younger brother.
In a way Jaina felt the same. She too wanted to be tough. Though she seemed to be failing because part of her would always be soft for the people she cared about. Jaina didn't talk for the rest of the time she sat next to Jag until he got up, after getting a call to duty from Wedge. Jaina then went herself.
Tenel Ka knew finally what she wanted to name her son. No, Jacen and her son, even if Jacen was dead, the baby was still their son, together. Tenel Ka looked up as Mara entered the room Tenel Ka had been staying in for her past visits as well as this one.
Mara took a seat on the bed, looking curiously at the younger woman. "You seem to have been doing a lot of thinking."
"How can you tell?" Tenel Ka asked, not really considering the most obvious answer, which Mara did not give in response.
"Because you have the same look on your face that Luke gets when he's considering something deeply," Mara smiled gently at Tenel Ka. "I feel badly that you and Jacen didn't get as much time together as you both rightly deserved."
"I do not feel that our time was short, only that it was not well spent." Tenel Ka straightened further. "If we'd been spending time together like we were supposed to, this never would have happened. Even if Jacen was not himself, I should have been at his side. Like he was at mine," Tenel Ka's stomach tensed, partly because of how large it was now, and also because it was tied in knots over what had happened in the recent months. Tenel Ka envied Tahiri, who was determinedly stubborn and would never leave Anakin's side no matter what. Tenel Ka wanted to be like that. Always next to Jacen, but her demeanor as well as her personality prevented her from being able to be that openly clear about her feelings. At least she had one answer left. "I have decided on a name for our son." Tenel Ka stated. Mara nodded, inviting Tenel Ka to tell Mara.
"Because of the loss at Yavin 4, I felt this was right, and because he is a child of Hapes and the Jedi, this name seemed right: Valin Jacen Djo Solo." Tenel Ka said, her throat almost keeping the words down. Mara noted that Tenel Ka had chosen Solo as the child's last name and not Djo, the name of the royal family on Hapes. Tenel Ka was, and always would be a Jedi over the identity she held with her family on Hapes.
"It's a beautiful name, Tenel Ka. I think it suits him." Mara said. Tenel Ka noticed that Mara had been feeling for the child through the force as she made the statement. Slowly but surely the babies in both their wombs would grow into strong Jedi and more importantly, people.
"I-" Tenel Ka began, her voice cracking a little, "I want Jacen back. It's… hard." She lowered her gaze. Mara nodded, knowing well how hard that one statement must have been for Tenel Ka to say.
"Loss isn't easy and it never heals completely. You always miss that person, knowing you can never speak to them again, never hear them laugh, cry, sleep, or breathe is all hard." Mara reached out and wiped the small amount of tears that had begun to slip down Tenel Ka's face. "But no matter what, you have to try and be happy. Because I know that's what Jacen would want you to be."
Tenel Ka smiled, "This is a fact." She ran her hand over her stomach. It was almost three months since she became pregnant and she could feel the body forming inside. Everything about it was amazing. The thought that she could create a person, one that she and Jacen had created together was incredible, the strength it took to carry the baby even now was sapping but worth every minute. Tenel Ka spoke softly to the small baby, "Valin, you will not be alone." Tenel Ka closed her eyes and bent over, bringing her face as close to her stomach as possible.
"I'll make us some tea." Mara said, getting up. Before doing so, Mara stopped in Ben's bedroom, kissing her sleeping son. Mara knew the truth Tenel Ka had spoken a moment ago: that she would not allow her son to be alone, that she would always be there as much as possible.
Mara understood that she could never allow Ben to be on his own, even when he was older. That was what it meant to her to be a parent, to be there for the child, to support them and show them the better side of the world, so that shaped the person Ben would as someone strong willed and determined to find out ways to hold together what was important and precious in the world he lived in. For each person, that precious thing was different. For Tenel Ka it was Jacen and now it was Valin. Mara treasured everyone in her life, and she was sure Tenel Ka did too. The bond in that fact alone was precious and it always would be.
As the battle-cruiser Hawk's Eye drifted out on its patrol, the captain on the bridge watched the frontal viewport with a casual eye. It was a quiet night. His view cast over towards the left side and for a moment took in what he was seeing. It took a minute for his words to escape his mouth, but by then the blast was already sinking its teeth into the hull of Hawk's Eye. The blast went right through the ship, and in an instant the ship exploded.
As the flames and debris cleared, three hundred carriers came through the front line of Coruscant's defense followed by the thousands of coral skippers remaining in the Yuuzhan Vong fleet. Each coral skipper opened fire immediately on each X-Wing attempting to stop them. As the second line fell, a new squad composed of odd ships, Sytar, Chiss, a few wookiee, and X-Wings, approached out of hyperspace. They returned the fire, stalling the approach of the few coral skippers trying to breach the third line of defense.
The carriers pulled up closer, unloading more coral skippers and the carriers with warriors in them drifted behind the coral skippers, waiting to slip past the small squadron that stood between Coruscant and the Yuuzhan Vong.
Anakin felt the disturbance long before he hear the emergency alarm calling all reinforcements to the docking bay and all the troops to rally to stand and defend the ground of Coruscant. Anakin looked up at the cannon, it was just finished a few minutes ago and now soldiers were coming to collect it. He blinked the sleep from his eyes. He then gripped his lightsaber and went to join the ground forces gathering in the far end of the docking bay. Tahiri went with him. Anakin felt Jaina's presence in space, and he knew she was in the frontline of defense, standing between the Yuuzhan Vong and Coruscant. He hated the feeling rising in his stomach. The misgivings were worse than the reality. That was mainly because Anakin's mind was so much more inventive.
Anakin looked up as several Sytars entered the docking bay followed by Vua Rapuung, Kirk, James, Luke, and a stern and stony looking Corran Horn. The man was overshadowed by the random bouts of anger he felt over the approaching enemy forces. Corran barely noticed the mayhem of the troops around him as everyone scrambled to their ships or to put on body armor for defending the ground.
"Fourth unit, cover the third level…" the commander of the ground forces was saying. Anakin knew he belonged at the front, just like Jaina was at the front of the battlefield in space. He wouldn't settle for any less. Anakin followed the group heading to the first level of Coruscant's ground defense. Tahiri ran after him.
"Anakin, wait."
"What? I'm not going to stay in the back." He said fiercely, then stopped as he saw her face become oddly disconcerted. "What's wrong?"
"You should be the one to take the cannon to the frontlines and manage it. It's your project, Anakin." She lowered her gaze a little, "And I don't think it's a good idea to stay on the frontlines if we're pushed back."
"I'll keep my promise. No risks." He smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder as he walked onwards, reaching out to push the cart the cannon was on with the help of the other soldiers. Tahiri strode with them. Twenty minutes later they were on the front lines, and could make out the lasers just beyond the surface of Coruscant and the explosions. Two carriers shot through the atmosphere and as they landed on the first level a hundred warriors jumped out and charged Anakin, who waved for the cannon to fire. A bluish purple beam shot out, its thickness beyond that of double-laser and took a third of the first wave of the warriors. The rest continued to charge, only to be blasted by the Sytar blasters standing in line beside Anakin, who fired his own Sytar made blaster. He watched as more warriors came out and another carrier arrived, having blasted its way into Coruscant's surface. Anakin drew his lightsaber, and put his blaster back into his belt. He leapt forward, locking blades with the first warrior he met. He pushed hard with the force, knocking the warrior off balance, then without a second thought, and sadness in his gut, Anakin shot a flame from his fingers, engulfing the warrior, who fell, setting another warrior on fire in the process.
Then one of the buildings exploded in flames, crumbling as blast after blast from the carriers struck Coruscant's cityscape. Anakin bashed a warrior's head in with the sheer power of the force and his lightsaber combined. Then he drove the blade into another warrior. He pivoted right into the path of a warrior whose ampistaph was brandished. It caught in Anakin's leg, but didn't stop him from force shoving the warrior backwards then shot a larger blaze of flame at the three warriors in front of him.
Kirk watched out of the corner of his eye the antics of the young Jedi. Anakin was using force fire, something Kirk had never seen. Sure he'd seen force lightning but force fire was new. He wasn't sure if it was dark or light force use, but Kirk could only guess why Anakin was using it willingly. Kirk felled a warrior, and then flicked his wrist to cut another in the same stroke. He lowered his blade and thrust it forward, and then quickly pulled it out to slash backwards. Then a large group of warriors broke the line of soldiers standing to Kirk's right. They then began to make a dent into the central most defense line. Kirk was glad that Luke wasn't here to see this happening or to see his nephew using what could be forbidden force power. Anakin could get kicked out of the Order for this and Luke wouldn't be able to stop the other members from considering the possibility of Anakin being removed.
Kirk raised his hand to force block an ampistaph when he felt a sharp pain in his side. An ampistaph was sinking its way through his abdomen and out the other side. Kirk gritted his teeth then kicked the warrior with his foot alone, catching it off balance, and then sliced its head off. Kirk then crouched down and removed the legs of the warrior to his left.
Tahiri saw Anakin get hit but was too busy handling her own warriors to help him. She felt herself being pushed back and several warriors slashed at her at once. Tahiri gritted her teeth and a sudden burst of energy entered her along with a string of words that sounded not too unlike the cries of the warriors around her. She went at them, slashing and slicing ruthlessly, cutting limbs and stabbing through chests. Tahiri slowed only to see the perplexed looks on the faces of the warriors as Vua Rapuung brought his ampistaph into the chests of the warriors around him. Then his sudden winces at the pain caused but the cuts he received in return made many warriors scowl in the way Yuuzhan Vong did when regarding an inferior. They knew Vua Rapuung was a Shamed One, and he acted the part. Vua Rapuung thrust himself into the heart of the battle, taking little note of the wounds he received, and pausing only to remove his ampistaph from the bodies of his opponents.
He let out a cry matched by Tahiri and the two stood back to back, raging against the warriors around them. Then a blast shattered the ground, sending warriors sprawling, dead from the friendly fire happening from above. A coral skipper was firing wildly at the defenders, and not watching out for its own allies. Vua Rapuung spat, a very uncharacteristic action for the Yuuzhan Vong then bashed aside another warrior. He yelled something at the coral skipper, and pushed the soldier aside who was firing the cannon. With quick succession he fired at the coral skipper and in seconds it was descending and smashed into the ground, sending more warriors, soldiers and a few Sytars across the ground with their bodies burned fatally. Anakin had managed to dodge the crash of the ship, but his leg had still been burned because it was keeping him behind. The damage to their defense was done and more warriors swarmed the first level of the defense of Coruscant. Anakin charged again, hacking away at the endless warriors, and then caught a blow in the side of his face. He ignored it and ran the warrior who had hit him through.
Jaina fired at the coral skippers surrounding her ship. They had lost most of their squadron and many carriers had gotten through to Coruscant. She hoped the defenses were already up. She felt Anakin get hurt and forced herself to focusing on shooting down as many coral skippers as possible. A blast struck her ship, and she returned the blast, but hers struck home, sending the coral skipper into a spiral. She smiled.
But only for a moment as another Republic battle-cruiser exploded, and a large blast from a carrier sunk its way onto Coruscant and from space Jaina could feel the damage it caused from the many presences that left the force. She winced, then her ship shook violently, she glanced up to see a coral skipper approaching her without stop, she saw the smoke issuing from its tail and reached to turn her ship away but it only moved slightly before the impact.
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