Chapter 27: Retribution
Something was wrong.
Avaryss could sense it even as she made her way to the comm room of the House Thul estate. The Force churned within her as she answered the summons. It had not taken long for Darth Feer to respond after she sent her mission accomplish message home.
She could have tried to leave before this, to return to Dromund Kaas, but the Alderaani port authority would not give her ship permission to leave, she could have forced the issue she supposed, but to be honest, she had preferred the wait, it had given her a chance to get to know Elana and her allies better, it had given her time to get them to see her as one of them.
Lady Elana now walked at her side, it was she who now served as both her host and her chaperone, officially she was here as the Lady's guest so it fell to her to make sure that Avaryss' needs were tended to. Emperor knew; she got nothing else from the rest of the house. The other members of House Thul seemed to give her a wide berth, either because they were aware of how Elana's father felt about the Empire, or they did not wish to provoke any response from Duke Kendoh and his many Sith allies.
Let them worry, Avaryss thought, she did not intend to leave without settling accounts with Kendoh, he had brought Darth Terrog into her business, such an insult could not, and would not be easily forgiven.
She would deal with him, both for the Empire and her own Sith pride.
She could not simply sit back and allow an enemy to cross her so openly.
Another Sith might see that as weakness, and weakness was the one thing she could not show.
Of course, she would need her master's permission to do so; the Duke still had powerful allies. She would need authorization from an equally powerful ally to make the whole thing legal in the eyes of her fellow Sith.
"You need not be here," she told the noble woman, "I will make sure that my master acknowledges your accomplishments in this matter."
"That I do not doubt, my lord," the girl replied, "Just the same, I would prefer that your master see me. Let him get a good look at his new ally, so that we may interact on a more equal basis in the future."
Avaryss almost laughed at that. Feer saw no one as an equal; however it might be useful for her master to interact with someone who could be such a useful tool as they moved forward in their endeavors.
Plus, by allowing this, it ensured that when the time came that she took over, Elana would hold no grudge or insecurity when it came to dealing with her new master. Avaryss needed the girl to see her as Feer's one true heir, and letting her sit in meeting might go a long way in assuring that.
Avaryss ordered the comm room cleared of any Thul personnel when they arrived, House Feer had enough leaks right now, and she had no wish to add to them. The sense of foreboding she had been feeling since the call first came in remained.
The young Sith frowned.
I need to be both mindful of my thoughts and careful of my words. If her master was displeased in some way, he may decide to take out his anger and frustration on her.
She needed to make sure that did not happen. She needed to keep his displeasure focused on external threats.
It was the best way to ensure her continued survival.
She was not sure what her master would be angry about, so far she had managed to accomplish every task he had set at her feet.
Be careful, she thought to herself…
…and be mindful.
"The hyper-comm was beeping as the last of the Thul servants cleared out, the connection to Dromund Kaas was fully established and coming in loud and clear.
Avaryss dropped to one knee, and motioned for Lady Elana to do the same.
"You are about to be addressed by a Darth of the Sith Empire," she reminded the woman, "Bending the knee to such lord is never a bad idea."
Elana nodded and followed her example.
When they were both in position Avaryss gestured to the hyper-comm with the Force. The hazy blue tinged projection of Darth Feer appeared before them.
Avaryss only just managed to suppress a gasp.
Her master did not look well.
Lord Feer was slouched over in a chair, probably the one in his office in the estate. A black cloak and cowl hid most of his form, but where it did not Avaryss could make out signs of injury, red marks on his hands, a long crimson scar ran from her master's chin up the left side of his jaw.
I can feel his pain even from here, she thought, She was not sure what had happened but…
Lord Feer laughed; it was an ominous croaking sound. She could just make out the glow of his golden eyes beneath the black hood, they burned like molten gold.
Injured her master may be, but that made him no less dangerous. In fact he was likely more dangerous now. The pain he was in was fueling his powers.
Yes, she would need to be extra careful this time.
"You are hurt," she said flatly, a statement not a question.
"Yess," Feer hissed, "there has been a…incident; a matter involving what was likely one of Darth Terrog's minions."
Her master laughed again, a septic wheeze that foretold just how bad the…incident he had referred was
Feer pulled his hood up farther, hiding his damaged features.
"As you can see, I did not come through it entirely unscathed."
Fury bloomed in Avaryss' heart.
How dare someone strike at her master, she thought, only I have the right to do that, and only at a time of my choosing.
She realized what a mistake that thought was almost immediately; their time studying together had strengthened the ties between master and pupil.
He might not have been able to read her thoughts, but he could sense her emotions.
Feer frowned. His eyes burned into hers, a cold shiver ran down her spine.
Fear of punishment!
No, she thought, not that!
Never again.
"My wounds are not life threatening," he informed her, "the medical droids say I will make a full recovery."
His grin returned.
"Have no fear, my child; I will be around for many, many more years."
She strengthened her mental walls, trying her best to hide her true emotions.
She smiled.
"I am pleased to hear that, my lord," she said bowing her head submissively, "If I may be so bold, may I inquire on the health of your lady wife and the young master?"
Her master snorted with amusement.
"Synestra and Bael are both fine," he informed her.
His smile turned cold.
"Try not to be too relieved, my dear," he growled.
Avaryss did her best to hide her emotions, not wishing to provoke her lord, and injured Tukata could be far more lethal than a healthy one.
"You wound me, master," she said, "My loyalties are to our house, always to our house, and the Empire. I am…"
Avaryss coughed, she shook her head. Her hand drifting to her throat, it felt like…like she had just walked through cobwebs, she could felt something touching her throat. She…
She coughed again.
Her master's eyes glittered evilly beneath his hood.
It was all Avaryss could do to keep from panicking!
Impossible, she thought.
It…it isn't possible!
He can't be choking me, not when I'm here and he is there, he…"
She felt the pressure around her throat tighten.
She fell silent and bowed her head deeper.
"I wound you?" he asked dryly, "Is that what you think young one? You have no idea what I could do to you if I was motivated to do so."
He sat up straighter in his chair.
"I will hear your mission report now, or you will find out exactly how much I can wound you."
She felt the pressure on her neck tighten, but she did not beg or claw at her throat.
She would not give him the satisfaction of seeing that.
"Yes…yes, my lord," she said nodding, resisting the urge to try and pry the invisible fingers off, it would have been useless, after all.
"Noldan Alde is dead, my master," she said, "and the name of the one who hired him is now in my possession."
She smiled.
"The mission was a complete success."
Her master paused; she felt the tightness around her neck loosen.
"Really?" he said.
"It is true, my lord," she said quickly.
"Hm," her master snorted, "that is not what I've heard from Duke Kendoh. He contacted me this morning, saying that you had fled his holdings without leave and lost yourself in the pleasures of Alderaan, that you were ignoring my commands."
"I think you know me better than that," she said, "My loyalty to our house is absolute, and besides…Kendoh has proven to be…unreliable."
"So you claim," he said, she was still in danger, but…through the Force, she felt his temper starting to cool, he was thinking with his head again, not his heart,
If he believed that she had betrayed him, there were few places in the galaxy that she could hide. She certainly would not be able to escape his vengeance.
I'm not strong enough for that, she knew, not yet…
…not yet.
"One of Darth Terrog's thugs was waiting at Kendoh's estate when I arrived. I believe the man intended to play you and Terrog off against each other, to see which of you would offer him the biggest reward for the information we sought."
Avaryss sneered.
"It is true that I left his estate, I found another Thul willing to aid us, and as for enjoying the pleasures of Alderaan, well…"
She shrugged.
"I did attend a gathering last night, but only after my main mission was completed, to make contacts here, for our house, of course."
"Of course," Feer said, thought she could not tell if he approved of her choice, or he was being sarcastic.
All she knew for certain was that the tightness in her throat finally ceased.
It seemed she had earned her way back into her master's good graces, at least, for now.
"So," he said, "Noldan Alde is dead?"
"Yes."
"You are sure?"
"Yes."
"So you killed him?"
Avaryss chuckled.
Word of Alde's death had reached her while she was attending Lady Elana's salon. He had only just left the Rist compound that morning, and in a "tragic" turn of events, his luxury air speeder had gone down in the mountains. The body had been recovered and identified by servants of House Rist.
The news had put a smile on Avaryss' face.
"He was killed, that is all that matters, he took what he told me to his grave."
Her master nodded thoughtfully.
"Then everything is as it should be," he murmured, "Though I do have another question. You arranged the arms we confiscated to be sent to Alderaan. Why?"
"To advance Sith interests, of course."
"Explain," he master ordered.
She did her best to do so.
The death of Noldan Alde had set off an interesting turn of events. House Alde complained to House Organa, who blamed House Ulgo for the death, citing…suspicious circumstances.
It was a tense situation to be sure, made even more so by House Organa's newly armed status.
Captain Brandei and his crew had come through for her.
Giselle Organa, now calling herself General Giselle Organa was said to be arming her newly formed militia as they spoke. The Ulgo took it for saber rattling, which is what it was. Tensions continued to increase between the two houses. Alde blamed the Ulgo for the death of their brother, thinking his death was retaliation for acquiring the arms that House Organa had received, an idea that Elana Thul's agents had provided proof for, anonymously of course, evidence that was true, from a certain point of view.
The whole thing amused Avaryss.
Lord Feer was not so impressed.
"You realize that your actions have armed an enemy of the Empire?"
"And at the same time given an edge to our Thul friends," She replied, "Organa will fight Ulgo, weakening both, and if Organa should become a problem well…"
She grinned savagely.
"Ensign Holli took care of that."
Feer laughed a laugh that turned into a coughing fit. Avaryss waited for her master to regain his composure before continuing.
"Holli made some…alterations to their newly acquired shield generators while they were being searched. She replaced the power coils on them with some of our own, coils that can be deactivated with the proper clearance code broadcast over the precise frequency."
Hearing that made her master sit up, his eyes widened.
"We can disable their shields?"
If that is our desire," Avaryss said.
"Surely the Organa will do a thorough inspection of the devices. They will find the changes that your engineer made."
"All the more reason to provoke House Ulgo," Avaryss replied, "Organa does not have the time to leisurely take apart their shield generators, not with the Ulgo threat on their doorstep, and even if they did, the coils are not easy to come by, hard to replace, even in peace time."
Avaryss chuckled.
"If the Empire needs to, we can handle the Organa, but for now, we should do what we can to make sure they do what we need them to do against Ulgo."
Darth Feer sneered; his lips curling beneath the shadow of his cowl.
"And we are the only ones that have both the code and frequency. Excellent!"
"If I may make a suggestion, we should provide my new Thul friend with the code as well. They may find it useful should the Empire choose to support their claim to the Alderaani throne."
"Hm," Feer glanced over at Elana Thul; Avaryss extended the viewing field of the holo-signal to include her as well."
Her master noticed the girl for the first time.
Darth Feer nodded.
"My master, may I present the Lady Elana of House Thul, the one who helped me find Noldan Alde. Lady Thul, may I present my master Darth Feer, Lord of the Sith and master of the Itae and Zahn systems."
"Greetings, my lord," Elana Thul said bowing deeply.
Pleasure radiated from Avaryss' master.
The Dark Lord smiled.
"Your aid in this matter is most appreciated, my lady," he said, "House Feer can be most generous to its friends, as you will see."
"Why else would I seek to aid you, my lord," Elana said grinning slyly, "that and my desire to become the new head of my house."
Feer laughed at her reply.
He turned to his apprentice.
"I like this one, my child," he said, "Brash and ambitious, we shall do what is needed to see her rise."
"An excellent idea, my lord," Avaryss said.
Her master's demeanor had changed, he had been in pain and looking for someone to blame when their conversation had begun, now he almost seemed jovial, more than pleased with her efforts on his behalf.
"You should return to Dromund Kaas, apprentice," he ordered, "We have much to do."
Avaryss frowned.
"What of Duke Kendoh, my master? Should he go unpunished for his arrogance?"
"For now, he remains untouchable," her master said with a flicker of his earlier anger, "He enjoys the protection of several powerful lords, Darth Vengean of the Dark Council among them."
Avaryss bristled.
She did not like leaving Kendoh unpunished, especially after this incident on Dromund Kaas, still there was little she could do. If her master advised caution, then it was wise to follow his orders.
Duke Kendoh's luck would run out eventually, hopefully she would be there to see it, to savor his destruction.
The mere thought of that excited her.
"You should give me the name you acquired," her master suggested, "I will get the Warmaster's people started on finding out what they can."
Avaryss frowned.
"I think it wiser to bring the name home in person, master. Terrog's servant here suggests we have a leak somewhere in House Feer."
Her crimson eyes narrowed.
"We will need to clean house, and find the rat."
For a moment anger flashed in her master's eyes, anger at her denial, but then…his wisdom took over.
He nodded.
"A wise idea, my child," he agreed, "You will bring it back to the estate, and we shall seek the next step on this journey together."
He grinned.
"We are getting closer, my dear. Soon we shall reach the end of this journey, and then…retribution will be ours."
"I eagerly await that moment, my lord." Avaryss said bowing.
"As do I," he agreed, "Return to me swiftly, my apprentice, we have much to do."
She nodded again.
"I will return shortly."
"Excellent," her master said, "Feer out."
The hologram faded.
At her side, Elana Thul giggled, pleased that she had made a new contact.
Avaryss smiled.
Feer out, he had said at the end.
She chuckled.
One day…he would be.
IOI
Avaryss was in good spirits as she and her team made their way back to the Thul controlled space port. Alderaan security had finished its investigation of the previous attack and had given the Sith ship clearance to leave.
To be honest, Avaryss would be sorry to put Alderaan behind her, this world had proven an interesting diversion.
Perhaps she would even holiday here someday.
Their successes of the last few days had brought their little crew together in a way their previous missions had not. Rink and Beric had seemingly buried whatever issues they had, and Holli had come respected by both for both her skill and humor.
The unity that they had found would serve them well, especially as their investigation turned towards the Jedi Order.
Avaryss grinned.
She was quite interested in finding this Jedi Master, the Cathar that had brought Noldan Alde into the plot.
Was he the mastermind behind it all? If he was, then ending his life would be a top priority. Of course, she doubted it; it was unlikely that anyone who masterminded such a scheme would unveil himself to such an untrustworthy ally.
No, she suspected a more subtle hand in this. Perhaps the Jedi Master would have the name of that man. If he did, he would give it to her, whether we wanted to, or not.
Tread lightly, the dark side warned, you have yet to face a true Jedi Master in combat. Such a battle will not be easy, you must gird yourself, prepare for when that time comes.
She nodded thoughtfully.
A Jedi Maser would be a challenge, but she welcomed it.
Defeating a Jedi Master would be her next great challenge, the next step in her evolution, and her growth towards absolute and unlimited power. She could not expect to ever challenge her own master until she had defeated another master of the Force.
She would rise to the occasion, and defeat this Jedi, it did not matter how powerful he was.
The dark side was stronger than the light!
She would not be denied.
The speeder finally arrived at the spaceport, Avaryss leapt from the vehicle like a child going on her first space voyage. She was eager to get back to Dromund Kaas, to continue the hunt.
The hangar door hissed open as they approached, revealing their ship…their ship…and Hezzan!
Hooded and cloaked the Sith warrior radiated both rage and malice. Her crew began to draw their weapons; she heard the sound of blasters leaving their holsters…
Avaryss stopped her crew with a raised hand.
Hezzan may have been an arrogant fool, but he was a skilled arrogant fool. He knew the Shien form and any blaster bolts fired at him would likely go right back at the one who fired them.
She was unprepared and unwilling to sacrifice any of her crew, at least for now.
If they had to die, it would be to serve her greater glory, not because they tried to deal with a problem that she was more than capable of handling herself.
She grinned savagely, reaching up she let her cloak fall away from her shoulders, it would only slow her down when the their lightsabers started spinning.
Darth Terrog's thug stood between them and the ship, the massive Sith raised his head, his golden eyes shining beneath his hood.
"Farm Girl," he spat, "You go no further!"
Avaryss sneered.
We'll see about that shutta, she thought.
We shall see.
"Stay here," she ordered her crew.
"I'll handle this."
Hezzan laughed.
"It is nice to see that somethings don't change," he cackled, "You are still an arrogant sleemo, Avaryss."
"Look who's talking," she replied dryly, drawing her blade from her belt, she did not ignite it, not yet, but the threat was there.
She found herself thinking back to their first encounter, she had been wounded then, still recovering from her interrogation, cut off from the Force, and reliant on a respirator mask to survive.
It had been Hezzan who allowed her to come back from that, it had been her anger and hatred of him that gave her the fuel to escape that prison and find her power again. She had owed him for that, and for that reason she had spared his life, true she had left him crippled, but at least she had lead him continue to draw breath.
Her crimson eyes glittered dangerously.
This time, she would not be so forgiving.
She tried to draw him away from the ship, perhaps even get him to chase her. If her crew managed to make it to the ship they could get it prepped for take-off. Once they were air born Hezzan would not be able to stop them.
That was one way she could handle this, if she outsmarted him here, who was to say that Darth Terrog would let him live with that failure, the Dark Lord might just do her job for her…she…
Do not waste your time on what ifs, the dark voice inside her murmured.
Kill him…Now!
He body ached with a hunger to draw blood, but at the same time…
Fighting him was a risk…if she lost…
What she knew had to reach her master, but as the same time, her blood was up, she had no desire to have this fool dogging her every move.
No, she would end this now.
"You learned something from Noldan Alde," Hezzan snarled, "You will tell me what it was…NOW!"
"I've learned many things," she shrugged, "Including how to deal with an enemy who simply will not get out of my way."
Terrog's pawn sneered at her.
"It will not be that easy this time, Farm Girl. Lord Terrog gifts have doubled my powers, perhaps even tripled them."
She chuckled.
Triple the pride, triple the fall.
"Change is coming to the Empire, Avaryss. A new war is on the horizon. It shall fall to the truly great among us to lead the Empire into a new era."
He smiled slyly.
"Give me the name and I will be merciful, I'll only take one of your hands as payment for what you did to me, but you will get to live, and when your master falls, Darth Terrog may allow you to live, after you have been properly reconditioned you may even get to serve as one of his lesser apprentices, under me of course."
"What an enticing offer," she said dryly, "You will forgive me if I respectfully decline."
Hezzan growled in the back of his throat, his eyes flashing like an angry tukata.
"You still think you are better than me? ME?! Know that I'm only the first of many, even if you destroy me; Darth Terrog's first apprentice will end you. Even now the dark lord is continuing to alter him, improve him; soon, not even your master will be a match for that one."
"Is this the one you are planning on replacing? You think killing me will make the dark lord abandon his pet project?
She shook her head.
"You may be bigger than the last we met, but you are the same small-minded fool."
She laughed.
"You were never meant to be an apprentice. You are a test, your master wanted to see my abilities, maybe even try to tailor his work on his real apprentice, give him an edge when we finally meet."
"I'll have to make sure that there is nothing left for him to examine. It will be better that way, in the long run."
Hezzan growled and let his cloak fall away from his massive shoulders, He drew his lightsaber, the hilt was a massive heavy thing; Avaryss would likely have had trouble lifting it with both hands.
He ignited the blade; the hangar was suddenly bathed in crimson light. Avaryss followed suit, igniting her own weapon.
The two faced each other, silently, waiting to see who would make the first move.
"I've waited a long time for this," Hezzan growled, "You have made me very happy."
Avaryss snarled, her rage boiling to the service.
"I will make you dead, fool! Your time has come."
The two Sith lunged at each other.
Avaryss only barely escaped their first exchange with her life.
Hezzan moved with almost blinding speed, he deflected her first strike, and nearly took her head off with his riposte. Avaryss cartwheeled out of the way, only to have the massive Sith fall upon her like an avalanche. Her blade whirled as she turned back his powerful strikes with Soresu, but with each strike he seemed to be growing faster, she could not tell if it was the cybernetics or some genetic enhancement that Darth Terrog had given him, in the end did it really matter?
It seemed that Hezzan had not lied.
He was stronger, but unfortunately for him, so was she.
She fell back, lashing out with Force lightning, even as she reached out with the Force, she seized several large cargo containers behind Hezzan, she flung those containers like missiles.
Both attacks proved ineffective. Hezzan caught her lightning with his lightsaber, and the cargo containers striking him did nothing, they hit with enough force to shatter his spine, but thanks to Terrog's experiments, Hezzan barely flinched.
He lunged at her again, raining blows on her over taxed defense. Soresu was keeping her alive, for the moment, but it did not change the fact that Hezzan was far faster than he had been in their previous encounter, he was perhaps the faster opponent she had faced up to this point. Of course, a lightsaber and telekinesis were not her only weapons.
She managed to roll away from his strikes, and spoke quickly, gesturing with her off hand. The air rippled before her, large insects formed of living shadow flew from her fingertips.
The spell should have been enough to leave Hezzan writhing in pain, set him up for the killing blow, but again he proved himself stronger, he sent a wave of pure Force energy rippling towards her, the sheer power of the attack disrupted her spell, and sent her tumbling back, and once again Hezzan leapt at her, whirling his blade as he tried to break through her defenses.
"Magic tricks," he spat, "they are no match for the power of the dark side!"
Again she found herself on the defensive, again she found herself falling back.
It was not a situation she enjoyed.
He is strong, she thought, she was barely keeping up with him, only barely blocking his attacks, for the first time her near infinite confidence faltered, she found herself feeling a sense of worry.
She frowned.
Perhaps he is too strong!
A frisson of fear passed through her, but she did not let it paralyze her, she had been trained well, and knew how to turn fear into anger and hate.
She lashed out, feeding off those emotions; she struck out with her lightsaber, her blade moving just quick enough that she managed to strike at both of Hezzan's wrists. His mechanical hands should have fallen away, the spot on his arm where they connected should have been nothing but molten slag, but instead her blade simply deflected off
Energy resistant plating she realized, cortosis weave plates.
She hated to admit it, but…
…Terrog work was impressive.
Hezzan laughed.
"Behold the mighty Avaryss," he crowed, "Sorceress and would be Dark Lord of the Sith!"
He sneered.
"You are nothing Farm Girl, do you hear me?!"
"You are nothing!"
He cackled, reveling in her troubles.
"Fehl would have been so disappointed in you, or perhaps he wouldn't."
He enemy chuckled.
"You poisoned him after all, how truly powerful could you be?"
Avaryss' crimson eyes narrowed.
He had thought to throw her off balance by mentioning Fehl, but in doing so, he once again proved that he had not truly changed, his new powers and enhancements were impressive, but he remained the same arrogant ass he had always been."
In her mind's eye, she saw Fehl, the way he had looked after Nass' poison had ended his life. She thought of the pain she had been forced to endure while being interrogated. How Hezzan had looked after he had claimed her lover's cloak.
It was enough to reignite the fires within her.
Hezzan knew nothing.
The dark side coursed through her veins, she felt rejuvenated, while mere moments ago she had been on the edge of exhaustion.
Hezzan was a pawn, no more, no less.
She would not be defeated by a mere pawn.
She was Avaryss, Avaryss of the Sith.
She would not be denied.
She renewed her assault; distantly she heard the rumble of the ship's engines come to life. She could have broken off the attack and tried to flee, but she would not.
She would not run away from Hezzan.
She would not spend her time being pursued like some common criminal by a bounty hunter.
She would end this rivalry, here and now.
She tried to get inside his guard. He missed a powerful overhead strike, and she moved in for the kill. Before she could take advantage he raised his left hand, she expected a telekinetic push or pull, but that is not what happened.
His left hand split open a second lightsaber emerged, igniting and coming up in a wicked arc.
She fell back but the blade caught a glancing blow on her shoulder, again she felt the frigid kiss of a lightsaber.
The pain woke her up, fueling her hatred.
She reached out with the Force. The outer parts of Hezzan's cyborg hands were shielded.
As it turns out, the internals weren't
She sent a blast of lightning at the exposed cybernetics; the plates had yet to complete sliding back into place.
Hezzan convulsed as the blue violet lightning lit his skeleton like a glow rod.
Avaryss sliced through the cyborg's exposed left hand the trick lightsaber fell away in a shower of sparks, it was not completely gone, the shielding had prevented that, but it was no longer functioning as seamlessly as it had a few moments ago. Hezzan's damaged hand sparked, his fingers twitched, she had clearly cut through something important.
He howled and brought his blade down hard; she danced out of the way, but moved in again quickly.
Hezzan had preferred the powerful two handed grip of Djem So, so the damage done to his mechanical parts had limited him slightly. He was still extremely strong, but now he had a breach in his armor.
She exploited that breach to the fullest.
She stopped thinking; she let the Force guide her hand, her lightsaber. Hezzan fought on, his speed and strength still impressive, but the slight damage she had done made him hesitant, he was thinking when he should have been letting his emotions flow.
"Come, my lord," she heard Holli call out distantly, she ignored the engineer.
I'm not running, she thought.
I will not.
"You are nothing," Hezzan howled as he tried to reclaim the advantage, "You will be nothing! I will…"
When it happened, it took only a few seconds, yet to Avaryss it seemed like an eternity.
Something in Hezzan's left hand popped. The plates slid back, forcing him to lose his full grip on his lightsaber, his blade was out of position for barely half a second.
It was all the time that Avaryss needed.
She did not bother trying to chop through his cybernetics this time; she brought her blade up and took his right arm slicing his right arm off at the shoulder.
The massive warrior gasped, as his weapon, and sword arm fell away.
He gulped, his eyes wide with shock in horror, he looked up at Avaryss, his lips starting to form words.
She did not give him the chance.
She had grown tired of his mewling voice, his arrogant taunts.
She whirled striking her enemy twice. The first blow took Hezzan's jaw, his face caught fire as he spun around, a straggled cry escaped him, but even that was cut short.
Avaryss's second strike took his head, it bounced away smoking, the smell of burnt meat and metal filled Avaryss nostrils. Hezzan's body stood rigid for a few seconds before finally toppling over.
She did not let it fall, choosing to hit it with one last force push, she sent it flying hard into the wall, she had hoped to hear the sound of bones snapping, but again she was disappointed.
Terrog's enhancements held, at least against mere impact.
Avaryss sneered.
A lightsaber was another story, lucky her.
She retrieved his lightsaber. It was a trophy she would not leave behind. She considered taking his head too, presenting it to her master…
Not just the head, the darkness whispered in her ear, the whole body. Warmaster Feore's scientists my might find something useful in studying the enhancements, we could…
The body began to twitch and sizzle.
She stepped back, wrapping herself in the Force. She had feared some kind of self-destruct, perhaps a bomb planted on the body.
As she watched the body crumbled away, the damaged metal parts of Hezzan's cybernetics smoked and glowed hot.
It took almost no time at all.
Soon she stood over a pile of ash and scorched metal. Hezzan's head was barely half a skull, his severed arm less than that.
Avaryss frowned.
So, Darth Terrog did not want anyone getting a good look at his work. She was not surprised.
An autopsy could have revealed much, still…what did it matter. She was victorious!
"Good bye, Hezzan," she said sweetly, before spitting on his ashes.
"Rot in hell."
She left without another backward glance, as it had been on Korriban so was it here.
Only victory mattered, if you died you were forgotten.
Hezzan deserved to be forgotten.
Yet, she still remembered that final look of surprise on his face; that one defining moment when he realized that all his fancy enhancements meant nothing, the brief sweet moment when her blade bit through his neck and ended his life.
That memory was worth savoring.
Delicious!
Beric gave her a cool look as she entered the ship. No doubt he thought she should have run when she had the chance; that she owed it to the Empire to preserve what she had gotten from Noldan Alde.
No matter, he was not Sith; he did not feel the dark side singing triumphantly through his veins.
It had been a risk, yes, but it had been worth it.
Defeating her old enemy, seeing him end, it had put a smile on her face.
That is what mattered, and in that sweet moment…
…it was the only thing that had.