"The Jedi Order fell once before," The Huntress called out. "Thousands of them were wiped out at once. What do you hope to accomplish alone?"
Her words seemed to fall on deaf ears. The man at the top of the steps still held onto his lightsaber and stared down at her.
"Pompous nerf-herder," she whispered, quietly enough that the troopers on her left and right couldn't hear her.
If she could buy her troops enough time to set up their E-Webs at the bottom of the steps and inside the nearby buildings, even a Jedi wouldn't be able to deflect all of that firepower.
At least, that was what she hoped.
"I'll give you one chance to surrender." The Huntress stretched out her blade with one hand, while the other rested on one of her pistols. "After that, what comes-"
Her words were cut off by his blade snapping to life. The sound made every trooper around her take a step back.
"You blasted cowards!" she called out, though moments later she regretted showing weakness. She could see the heads of Shilrakaen's defenders still watching from the windows. "Jedi, put that away. This is your last chance."
"No, this is yours." The voice coming from behind the mask was booming and mechanical. "As long as I am standing, your destruction will not continue."
"Then we'll cut you down."
The E-Web turrets hummed as they were brought to life, their heavy energy cells hauled across the city for this exact purpose.
"Open fire!"
In a moment, hundreds of blasters were leveled at Teller, but just as quickly they fell.
The Jedi took one step forward, ready to rush headlong into the fire, but paused when the whole building shook beneath his feet.
Before the Blood Battalion could react, the front doors of the High Council Chambers burst open and the defenders of Shilrakaen poured down the stone steps, following in the footsteps of the Jedi.
A volley of 800-UT rifle fire erupted from the windows, striking the energy cell of one of the E-Web turrets and forcing the other's crew into cover.
Teller was nearly as surprised as the Huntress, but couldn't take a moment to celebrate. He quickly deflected a three-round burst from her pistol, relying on the instincts Thayla had helped him hone, and charged toward the enemy line.
Their sabers clashed in midair, as the steps erupted into a frenzied melee between the Blood Battalion and the police.
Turrets opened fire from the buildings above. Green-eyed battle droids sprinted from the side doors and picked off troopers on the fringes. Civilians peeked out from cover to chuck bricks and rubble at anything wearing red, and all the while the sound of clashing lightsabers rang out above all.
The Huntress kept herself on the defensive, parrying his strikes and backing away to fire with her pistols. but the adept son of a smuggler knew the top fire rate of her twin blasters and could still swing his blade in time to be ready for the next round.
Teller swung low and the Huntress leapt into the air, her crimson coat billowing around her as she landed on a nearby statue. Before she could even take a shot from the high ground, the Jedi had already carved the stonework into pieces, which sent her falling to the ground.
The High Council's battle droids pushed forward, taking losses, but successfully demoralizing the Bloods by simply hammering their flanks over and over, as they tried to hold the line at the bottom of the steps.
The Huntress reached out with the force and Teller felt her unexpected grip on the handle of his blade. It was wrenched from his hands before he could react.
However, rather than using the two blades to end him, she instinctively reached for a pistol, closing her lightsaber and shoving it into a pocket on her hip in one quick motion.
Teller took advantage of her bad decision, crossing his fingers and praying the force would be with him as he reached out. The lightsaber flew from her pocket and toward the Jedi, who blocked another handful of shots from her pistol, this time with her own red blade on a gnarled metal hilt.
The Huntress cried out in frustration and attacked him with the dim golden lightsaber.
When their line broke apart, the troopers took cover behind every piece of rock and rubble they could find, but the defenders were well aware that the incoming fire from the turrets above them was only being held at bay by their proximity to the enemy line.
They never bunkered down, but instead pursued the invaders across Grand Avenue, with some wielding their rifles as clubs when the Tibanna gas cartridge ran dry.
The two lightsabers clashed once more, flooding their air around them with brilliant and blinding light.
"You're in over your head, kid," she told Teller. "You should have given up when you had the chance."
"A Jedi never gives up."
He pushed back with every ounce of energy he could summon. The Huntress did the same, sending both combattants sprawling in either direction.
They both leapt to their feet in seconds, grabbing their rightful lightsabers through the force and snapping them open.
"It is over," Teller said, under the light of his bright golden lightsaber. "You have lost."
She looked behind him and saw the police slapping binders onto the surviving troopers, while droids swarmed into the buildings nearby.
Blasters were being trained on her from every direction.
"I've been in tighter spots."
In a last ditch effort, she spun her lightsaber around herself and fell down into the underworks, the mess of tunnels, cables and supports that ran through Shilrakaen's central disk.
Teller looked over his shoulder to make sure the battle was handily over, before leaping down after her.