Nar Shaddaa, Darth Vader's Residence, Corellian Sector, 31 BBY
Darkness. Pitch black nothingness.
Not a sliver of light could penetrated the modified helmet that Darth Vader was wearing as he took his place in the center of his personal Dojo. The large, bulky fighting droids had been replaced by a group of four hovering spheres. They were full of small holes, each one containing a small blaster. Assembled by a variety of scrap that he had gathered or bought around the Smuggler's Moon, these training spheres were similar to those that the Jedi Initiates used when training in their Temple on Coruscant. He had made extensive modification to their initial design, especially when it came to the power of the bolts that the blasters would produce. Instead of using a lower power configuration which meant that an undeflected bolt lead only to mild irritation, Darth Vader's training spheres could cause real pain, even leave a scar behind if it hit in the wrong place. Vader didn't fear those consequences.
Pain is no enemy to a Sith. It's fuel, a learning opportunity.
He had increased the amount of anti-bolt exercises after his brush with the Nightsisters. He knew that he wouldn't always have the advantage of an armorweave cloak or the element of surprise. Vader had decided to be better prepared for the next engagement. And thus, here he was, listening to the Force, trying to visualize the room around him and the floating orbs that kept their distance from him, before they released the first bolt his way.
Later, his muscles burning with the familiar exertion of training and carrying a pair of fresh burn marks on his back and left shoulder, Darth Vader left the Dojo in search of his droid. The whirring of machines and the steady, constant beep of the heart beat monitor welcomed him to the small medical room that he maintained in his residence. No, this might be my home but this is truly 11-4D's domain, he thought. It had started its existence as an medical droid, with its multiple hands and robotic manipulator arms serving to give it an edge when it came to difficult and complicated surgeries, carrying within its memory banks unparalleled knowledge of the healing sciences. 11-4D was now working above the Nightsister, as it carried a needle before the droid inserted it into her hand, drawing another blood sample. He observed the vial as the droid manipulated it with its appendages, carefully placing it in an analyzer.
Darth Vader didn't have any particular knowledge into the medical sciences but he knew how blood looked like and this sample was clearly peculiar. It was definitively blood red but it was also darker, muddled somehow, as if somebody had thrown dirt into the vial. 11-4D had denied to make an assessment before he completed more of his tests.
"How is our guest, droid?", Vader asked as he was approaching the bed. The Nightsister was covered by a white sheet which made her look paler that she was. Her long, toned arms were parallel to her body and punctered by 11-4D's equipment. She breathed slowly but steadily, her chest rising and falling with predictable regularity. Vader was next to her now, studying the tatoos on her face.
"Vital signs are within normal parameters for a female in hibernation. I have placed her leg in a cast and she is mending well. Other minimal injuries reported and completely dealt with. I have to commend you on your restraint, Master", the droid finished its reply in its usual manner before it shambled to the analyzer to complete the final tests on the Nightsister's blood.
Vader nodded, his eyes shifting to a small table next to the bed where the Nightsister's personal items had been neatly stacked by 11-4D. The two pieces of her energy bow, her pants and top made from a red leather-like fabric with velvety details and adorned with markings and small jewelry and finally a small round pendant. Approaching the table, Vader runned his hands over the items, examining each one as if he was examining a new droid or device. He held the bow in his hand, trying to fit his grip into the handle before his attention was grabbed by the device that was used to draw it. What would it take to repair it?, he thought. Vader placed it back down carefully and turned his attention to the pendant.
It was made from a blue-ish stone with wavy patterns etched on it, probably through the use of a precision tool. As his hand reached close to it, Vader felt drawn to it. It was an interesting artifact. She had displayed it prominently around her neck, visible to all, so it must have carried so importance. Vader touched it and felt a sudden cold rise through his back. He could hear a voice, a whisper in a raspy voice. It was a female voice, wearing the same heavy accent as the other women that had attacked him.
"…th your sister. He has defiled her body with machines. Quick…"
He jerked his hand away from the trinket. They are watching, he thought as his eyes widened in realization. They are watching and they are looking fo…
The sound of the Residence's main entrance being blown off its hinges, sending Vader into a reflexive guard stance. Lights and electronics were deactivated a few seconds later, leaving only dim emergency lights to guide them out. Calling his lightsaber to his hand, Vader ignited it and walked towards the door of the medical room. He carefully peeked through into the corridor, looking to his left and then to his right, met only with emptiness. The Sith Lord looked back towards 11-4D and the woman that was on the bed. He hadn't expected that the Witches would be able to track him down and now he was paying for it. He had shown the casual contempt of his older peers for the Dathomirians, underestimating the primitive practices of those that they considered their lesser counterparts.
And now they are in my home.
The thought angered him, both because of the ease of their intrusion and the fact that they could masquerade their presence so easily around him. But then, remembering his training, he quickly brought that anger under control, using it to sharpen his decision-making. Now, he strode purposefully towards the table with the Nightsisters items and raised the lightsaber up above his head, before he brought it down to the stone, reducing it into a burning red sludge.
"Terminate the Witch…", Vader ordered 11-4D, who at once retrieved a needle filled with a clear, transparent liquid and pressed it to the woman's skin, "…and initiate the Ziost protocol", he concluded.
"Acknowledged, Master. Till we meet again", the droid responded before its photo-receptors whirred for the last time. 11-4D's body was merely a husk of metal now, an empty vessel that would reveal nothing of interest to anybody that might want to look into it. Miles away, within an unnamed and unmarked berth, the instruments of the Infiltrator came to life as the operating system of Vader's loyal companion was securely transmitted within the vessel's computers. It had full control over its systems now but as soon as the self-diagnostic was complete and the integrity of his files was confirmed, the vessel powered down once again. Its orders were to remain here, flying away only in the case of an emergency or its discovery. If none of those things came to pass, the vessel and the droid within it would wait for the signal of its Master.
Vader was now truly on his own, surrounded by enemies unseen. He knew that he couldn't stay here and after three deep breaths, he began walking towards the main area of his Residence. The minimal emergency lighting on the walls was drowned out by the luminescence of his lightsaber as he moved silently, the only sound being the low hum of his weapon's plasma. His eyes flew around to every nook and cranny that someone could hide in by he came up empty. As soon as he turned to his left, towards the living room and the exit, Vader heard an energy bow powering up behind him. He rolled out of the way and turned towards the sound after landing, ready to deflect anything coming his way. Only darkness faced him.
They are mocking me. They are actually mocking me!
"Are you in no hurry to meet your sisters?", he shouted out. Two can play this game, he thought while walking into the high ceiling living room. "I can still remember how scared they were", he continued, attempting to mock them in an attempt to draw them out as he moved towards the room's center, treating the rectangular room as an enlarged version of his Dojo. "My droid killed the last one. With a needle no less. A needle."
He saw the bolt a second before it came hurtling towards him, enough time to safely deflect it away from him with a flicker of his lightsaber. He saw the bolt but not the Witch or the weapon. Some kind of hex or hedge magic surely, he thought. Another bolt came his way and he deflected it with the same ease, as he fixed his footing and brought the lightsaber to bear.
It would be the last easy deflection.
More bolts came at him, three at time from different directions as the Witches were probably whizzing around the room, trying to find the perfect corner from which to breach his defenses. Vader began moving once again himself, leaving his central position as he raced for cover. After a slew of acrobatics, he found himself behind the cover of the large, granite kitchen table, a stylish choice according to 11-4D. It was quite handy now, blocking the bolts of the attacking Nightsisters, offering him a few seconds of reprieve.
What can I do?, he thought, his mind racing to find a solution, a way to gain the upper hand. The Nightsisters, three at the very least had come quite prepared, taking no chances this time. They wouldn't fall for the same tricks that he had used before. Assaulting them face on would be suicidal, he couldn't jump off the windows without risking death.
The problem was their magic, their ability to mask themselves both in the Force and around him. They were like the womp rats that sneaked into the hangars of spacers back on Tatooine. The rodents had the uncanny ability to sneak in anywhere, passing unseen and eating at the electronics of dock…
Just like womp rats, yes!, he thought as a smile crept on his face. The womp rats were difficult to track down until a new exterminator came into town with a new method. Spraying pheromones that stuck on the sneaky rodents, the exterminator's droids locked on the smell. And then none could hide. Vader realized that he had the exact same problem.
He closed his eyes, trying to filter the whirring of the bolts flying over his head and reached out through the force to the Master Fire Suppression switch. With a curt move of his right hand, Vader activated it. Fire suppression foam came flooding down into the living room like an avalanche, covering almost every surface and hanging in the air like a fine mist. Vader opened his eyes as he heard the Nightsisters coughing and pushed forward. They still remained invisible to the naked eye but the foam hang on their forms, outlining them. And thus they were vulnerable. Just like the womp rats.
The one furthest away from him was the first to react, arming her bow and sending a bolt against him. He deflected it easily, hurling it back at her rather than throwing it somewhere harmlessly. She fell to the floor as the other women tried putting some space between them and him. Vader threw his lightsaber, aiming upwards to compensate for his shorter stature. The red blade flew through the room, cutting through the air before it severed the hand of the second sister. Her pained screams filled the room and Vader started feeling the unseen balance of the duel turning towards his favor. He called the lightsaber back to his hand as the Nightsister had reverted to a fetal position, trying to nurse her hand back to existence and the weapon flew back, barely missing the last Witch that remained standing.
As he began closing on the last Nightsister, she threw her bow to the ground. "Surrendering are we? It will do you no good", Vader warned her, drunk with his own success. The Witch remained silent, reaching with one hand around her back, retrieving a cylinder that looked very much like the hilt of lightsaber. "Do you even know how to handle that?", he asked mockingly.
The Nightsister activated her weapon in response and Vader froze in his tracks. He reflexively took a few steps back in response, a routine maneuver when met with an unknown style, form or weapon. Instead of the meter long blade that most standard lightsabers emitted, this one had a long, flexible beam. It wasn't straight either, falling all around her like a whip, meters of plasma as red and deadly as his own weapon. Wherever it touched the floor it left red marks, belying its killing power.
"I do. Do you?" It was the Nightsisters time to speak, a deep, grumbled voice just like the others, her heavy accent being unmistakable. And then she twirled her weapon, just like a whip and launched it at him. Vader didn't have time to think, swerving out of the way as quickly as he could and then lifting his lightsaber to protect himself from the returning arc of her weapon. The Nightsister gave him no time to compose himself, following the first two hits with two more. The Sith Lord deflected as clumsily as before, sighing in relief that he had survived the latest onslaught unhurt. At least that's what he thought before the smell of burning fabric reached his nose, emanating from a small spot on the left side of his ribcage where the lightwhip had made contact his training attire.
With a backflip, Vader put some much needed space between himself and his opponent, trying to analyze her moves, perhaps devise a counterattack. He found himself wanting. He had no experience against such a weapon, no prior knowledge to draw from. The Nightsister's weapon gave her unmatched range and agility, attributes that he would have to overcome if he…
"Ahh…", he whimpered helplessly as the Nightsister's whip came his way, a shameful display for a Baneite Sith. Vader moved once again to deflect but found himself unable to move his lightsaber. It took him a second to realize why.
"Dank Ferric!", Vader shouted at the image of the Lightwhip's blade hugging his own. The Witch's weapon had immobilized his and by extension himself. A sudden and powerful tug later and Vader was face first into the ground, his lightsaber rolling in front of him and out of his reach. Vader extended his hand forward to reach out with the Force but the only thing he received for his trouble was a searing pain on the top of his hands as the Nightsister moved quickly to put a stop to his attempt at regaining control.
Vader could hear the heels of her boots clicking on the floor, followed by the crack of her whip in front and around him. He looked up, searching for a way out and finding it as he saw a small, puffy stool. With a quick, snapping move of his fingers, he willed the Force to push it at her. The Nightsister was quick to react, cutting it down with a move of her lightwhip but it gave Vader the opening that he desired. Bringing his lightsaber to him, he run for dear life towards the door of his Residence.
Just a little closer… Just a little closer!
A sharp, deep pain began spreading from the back of his neck to the fore and from there, downwards, aiming for his heart. It was successful at stopping him on his tracks. What the…, he thought as he reached behind his neck to find a small dart. Vader took it in his hand and turned back to find the Nightsister whose hand he had taken. She was holding a blowpipe with the other hand. Undone by a handless Witch, he thought as blackness began clouding his vision.
"GIVE ME A CLEAN DEATH!", he shouted. Or at least that was what he wanted to say, as his voice came out as incoherent nonsense.
"GIVE ME A…", he tried repeating before his legs gave way and nothingness claimed him.
Author's notes:
-Back in Rising from his Shadow, Darth Plagueis spoke of undeserving pride. It seems that Vader either wasn't listening or was more attentive to the Muun's claims of him being the Sith chosen one.
-If I could describe this Chapter in one phrase, that phrase would be Experience outranks everything.Rex's wisdom applies to all timelines and to everybody.
-I always enjoy dealing out a reality check to my subjects. I don't know if it shows :)
-As always, I welcome any and all feedback.
-Till we meet again.