CHAPTER 6: A WATEREY GRAVE
About mid-way through the vent, at about the time he had been sliding down the vent for about a minute and a half, Xanatos realized that his pursuit of the Sith Lord might be a bad idea. When the vent ended and shot him into the middle of a river, he was sure it was a bad idea. The river current was strong. Xanatos had to struggle to get to the bank.
He took a moment to catch his breath and then looked to the opposite bank. He saw the Sith he had been chasing, who was just as drenched as he was, talking to a man in a black cloak. A large, dark object lay at their feet. The Sith and the cloaked man were already staring at him. Xanatos was sure his splash attracted their attention.
"Ready the ship," Maul spoke to the man next to him but kept his gaze squarely on Xanatos. "I'll take care of pretty-boy."
"What about this?" The man asked, indicating the large object at their feet.
"Leave it; it will distract them." The Sith said.
The man nodded then disappeared into the nearby woods. The Sith began to wade in the river. Xanatos went out into the river to meet him but stopped when the water reached his midsection. He didn't want to go too deeply and he figured he could gain the advantage if the Sith were somewhat fatigued by the time he reached him.
Darth Maul had one side of his lightsaber ignited and raised above his head by the time he could hold his chin above water. The water was up to his armpits when he first took a swing at Xanatos.
Xanatos blocked and held his ground. He didn't want to move much. The footing on this river bottom was almost impossible. Xanatos also wanted to keep the Sith at a disadvantage by keeping him deeper in the water.
The Sith did not allow himself to be at a disadvantage for long. With each swing he took at Xanatos, Darth Maul took a half step to his left to try and level himself with his opponent.
Finally the two opponents were both waist-deep. Xanatos noticed that it was not only difficult to find footing but also it was nearly impossible to do anything which involved the lower half of his body.
Fighting merely with his upper body seemed so primitive to Xanatos. It reminded him of his training-probe days at the Temple. The two opponents fought with great intensity to compensate for their lack of mobility.
All of the Sith's moves were fairly predictable. Xanatos figured this was because of the lack of possibilities in such a condition. But then, the Sith did something Xanatos did not expect: after swiping at Xanatos' head only to be blocked, the Sith then ignited the other side of his lightsaber and swung at his head from the opposite direction.
Xanatos had to fall backward, submersing himself in water in order to avoid decapitation. Upon submersion, his lightsaber shorted out. He had been told ever since he was able to pick up a lightsaber: if your blade is submersed, it will short out; yet still, he made the mistake.
Still, it was better to be without a lightsaber than without a head. Xanatos put his breathing device in his mouth and began to swim away from the Sith. He knew if he were to put any part of his body above the surface, the Sith would slice it off.
When he felt he had put enough distance between them, Xanatos headed for the shore. The Sith was already on land, waiting to charge him. Xanatos stood and the Sith Lord ran straight at him, ready to cut the defenseless Jedi in half.
Darth Maul swung at Xanatos, who in one motion, rolled out of the way of the attack, ignited the red bladed lightsaber that was on his belt and slashed at Darth Maul's leg.
A cry of pain escaped the Sith's mouth through gritted teeth. And in the moment Maul was stunned from the cut, Xanatos sprang out of his roll and kicked the stunned Sith right in the face.
An unconscious Darth Maul fell back into the water and began to float down the river. Xanatos tried to wade out and detain the Sith for questioning, but the current was too fast and the Sith was gone. Xanatos never saw him again.
Then the curious Jedi Knight swam across to the other side. He headed for the object that the Sith and his friend had left behind. As he got closer, Xanatos suddenly realized what it was. It was a body, wrapped in black cloth.
He headed over to the body and uncovered the head. He recognized the face. It was Jedi master Sypho-Dias.
He would have to contact the council immediately. It was customary for a Jedi's funeral to be held on the planet they died on. The force was everywhere, so there was no point in transporting them back to Courascant.
Soon, most of the members of the council, not to mention several other Jedi, would be on Naboo to pay their respects. Xanatos wondered how they'd respond to he and Qui-Gon's fight with the Sith. More importantly he wondered how they'd respond to Obi-Wan.
About mid-way through the vent, at about the time he had been sliding down the vent for about a minute and a half, Xanatos realized that his pursuit of the Sith Lord might be a bad idea. When the vent ended and shot him into the middle of a river, he was sure it was a bad idea. The river current was strong. Xanatos had to struggle to get to the bank.
He took a moment to catch his breath and then looked to the opposite bank. He saw the Sith he had been chasing, who was just as drenched as he was, talking to a man in a black cloak. A large, dark object lay at their feet. The Sith and the cloaked man were already staring at him. Xanatos was sure his splash attracted their attention.
"Ready the ship," Maul spoke to the man next to him but kept his gaze squarely on Xanatos. "I'll take care of pretty-boy."
"What about this?" The man asked, indicating the large object at their feet.
"Leave it; it will distract them." The Sith said.
The man nodded then disappeared into the nearby woods. The Sith began to wade in the river. Xanatos went out into the river to meet him but stopped when the water reached his midsection. He didn't want to go too deeply and he figured he could gain the advantage if the Sith were somewhat fatigued by the time he reached him.
Darth Maul had one side of his lightsaber ignited and raised above his head by the time he could hold his chin above water. The water was up to his armpits when he first took a swing at Xanatos.
Xanatos blocked and held his ground. He didn't want to move much. The footing on this river bottom was almost impossible. Xanatos also wanted to keep the Sith at a disadvantage by keeping him deeper in the water.
The Sith did not allow himself to be at a disadvantage for long. With each swing he took at Xanatos, Darth Maul took a half step to his left to try and level himself with his opponent.
Finally the two opponents were both waist-deep. Xanatos noticed that it was not only difficult to find footing but also it was nearly impossible to do anything which involved the lower half of his body.
Fighting merely with his upper body seemed so primitive to Xanatos. It reminded him of his training-probe days at the Temple. The two opponents fought with great intensity to compensate for their lack of mobility.
All of the Sith's moves were fairly predictable. Xanatos figured this was because of the lack of possibilities in such a condition. But then, the Sith did something Xanatos did not expect: after swiping at Xanatos' head only to be blocked, the Sith then ignited the other side of his lightsaber and swung at his head from the opposite direction.
Xanatos had to fall backward, submersing himself in water in order to avoid decapitation. Upon submersion, his lightsaber shorted out. He had been told ever since he was able to pick up a lightsaber: if your blade is submersed, it will short out; yet still, he made the mistake.
Still, it was better to be without a lightsaber than without a head. Xanatos put his breathing device in his mouth and began to swim away from the Sith. He knew if he were to put any part of his body above the surface, the Sith would slice it off.
When he felt he had put enough distance between them, Xanatos headed for the shore. The Sith was already on land, waiting to charge him. Xanatos stood and the Sith Lord ran straight at him, ready to cut the defenseless Jedi in half.
Darth Maul swung at Xanatos, who in one motion, rolled out of the way of the attack, ignited the red bladed lightsaber that was on his belt and slashed at Darth Maul's leg.
A cry of pain escaped the Sith's mouth through gritted teeth. And in the moment Maul was stunned from the cut, Xanatos sprang out of his roll and kicked the stunned Sith right in the face.
An unconscious Darth Maul fell back into the water and began to float down the river. Xanatos tried to wade out and detain the Sith for questioning, but the current was too fast and the Sith was gone. Xanatos never saw him again.
Then the curious Jedi Knight swam across to the other side. He headed for the object that the Sith and his friend had left behind. As he got closer, Xanatos suddenly realized what it was. It was a body, wrapped in black cloth.
He headed over to the body and uncovered the head. He recognized the face. It was Jedi master Sypho-Dias.
He would have to contact the council immediately. It was customary for a Jedi's funeral to be held on the planet they died on. The force was everywhere, so there was no point in transporting them back to Courascant.
Soon, most of the members of the council, not to mention several other Jedi, would be on Naboo to pay their respects. Xanatos wondered how they'd respond to he and Qui-Gon's fight with the Sith. More importantly he wondered how they'd respond to Obi-Wan.