The Dogs of War

Dante and Rin made their way through the caverns, the silence filled with the background noise of the indigenous life throughout the planet. They carefully fondled their lightsabers, eager to withdraw it if something hostile appeared. At this point, in the dark rocky caverns, anything that was not Dante or Rin qualified as hostile. Somewhere, the sound of dripping water joined the background noise.

Dante paused suddenly. Something moved through the shadows. The Force seemed to no avail at this point, especially since the planet somehow was immersed in the Dark Side. He withdrew his lightsaber, thumbing the activation plate on the cylindrical weapon.

"What is it?" Rin couldn't feel the presence either.

"This place is fraught with danger. Be wary, I can't sense it, but there is something out there." He continued to peer out at the shadows. Something had moved, but right now it stood still, somewhere.

"Perhaps there is another way—" Rin was cut short when all the air exploded out of her lungs as she was sent flying towards the rocky walls. She slammed against the wall, only to fall to the ground, unconscious and unwary of the danger that now presented itself to Dante.

Igniting his blade, Dante leapt into action, striking out at the invisible opponent, who revealed himself in armour shrouded in ebony. He had no face, only a helm that seemed to resemble the last person Dante fought against—his brother Xavier.

"No…" he whispered as his thrust was parried by a crimson blade made entirely of light.

The faceless warrior said nothing as he attempted to decapitate the young Jedi.

Leaping back, Dante avoided the arced slice as he brought his blade to lock with the dark warrior's crimson blade, shoving the warrior away from him. The young Jedi continued, forcing himself to stave off his growing rage at the betrayal of his own brother. He swung his blade wildly, forcing the shadowed Sith to continue backing away while defending each blow that came his way.

He found his rage unbearable, the betrayal continuing to play itself out in the Jedi's mind. In a primal growl, Dante continued to push the Sith back, while the Sith continued to successfully parry and deflect each blow.

In one sudden movement, Dante spun around, kicking out at the chest of the shadowed Sith Lord, sending the Sith back once more. In that one movement, the Knight continued his 360 degree spin, unhindered, as his blade cleanly sliced Darth Seth's head off.

Dante looked on as the Sith's head bounced and rolled to the side. As he gazed at the head, the helmet tore off without any aid. The face that returned the gaze, turned the stomach of the Jedi. It was his face. He couldn't believe it, as his own face was contorted in a mix of surprise, disgust and fear—fear he would ultimately join the Dark Side.

After a few more moments, the body and head of the dark Dante dissipated, joining the fog and the shadows. Dante could only gape at the sight that had previously lain in front of him. Realizing that Rin was knocked unconscious, the Jedi rushed to meet her, eager to see how she was and much more eager to leave the cave as soon as possible.

"Rin, are you all right?" He asked her, holding her close to him as she rubbed her head while her lekku twitched a bit.

"I'm fine," she said, shaking her head a bit. "How are you? What happened?"

"It was… some sort of Force presence."

"That must be some powerful Force presence." She attempted to smile, lightly amused at the weak joke. Her smile faltered as Dante had a grim expression on his face. Clearly he was disturbed. "Are you all right?"

He continued to replay the incident in his head, eager to understand why that had happened and why he was in Seth's armour. After a moment, realizing that he didn't answer Rin's question, he looked up at her and smiled casually. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Nothing to worry about. Can you walk?"

She nodded her head, and the two Jedi rose and continued through the caves.

"This place must be a tomb." She gazed about the rock face, noticing how the jagged rough edges began to smooth out and seem more like it was engineered to be a room.

"I think you're right," Dante answered, his gaze focused on what stood in front of both Jedi. "I think that is what we're looking for." He pointed towards the sarcophagus that stood in front of both Jedi, as well as three pedestals right behind the sarcophagus. He entered the antechamber, looking at both sides only to see two statues facing each other, with both Rin and Dante in between.

The stone statues both appeared to wield swords that were raised upwards at one another. Whatever other features both statues once held were now gone, as erosion took its toll on the centuries' old statues.

Dante walked towards the sarcophagus while Rin continued to look at the statues and the rest of their surrounds. He rested his hand on top of the lid, wiping away cobwebs and blowing away the dust that had eventually settled within the tomb and its prize. As the dust blew away, Dante's eyes went wide.

"It can't be!" He exclaimed.

"What is it?"

"It was Val's apprentice… Dosheo." He lifted his head to return the wide eyed stare that Rin had on her face.

"What does it say?"

"It says… Here lies Dosheo, Jedi Knight seeking the lost artifact and who gave his life to protect that which needed to be protected…"

"Is that it?"

"There appears to be nothing more. I don't understand, who could have buried him there and leave his quest unsolved?" Once more he looked up at his companion.

"Wait, there are pedestals… we should see if there are holocrons or anything," Rin offered to Dante.

As he moved to the pedestals, he found nothing except for a small holopad that he could use on a holovid terminal. He turned around to look at the sarcophagus, hoping not to defile the former Knight's remains, but eager to see if there was anything that could aid his own quest to find that which had failed to be found for centuries.

Dante lifted open the lid, to see the bones of the Jedi, holding his lightsaber close as well as a cloth wrapped around something lying at the bottom of the sarcophagus, just below Dosheo's feet. Taking the blade and clipping it to his belt, Dante picked up the cloth.

Unwrapping the cloth, he found two things which made him gasp. The first object was a holocron that appeared to be virtually untouched and not phased from the years of erosion. The second object appeared to be a near cylindrical object that was made of a type of stone. It had intricately designed runes of a sort—a language that had disappeared over time--, but it was surely the key they had sought. The cylindrical stone flattened out at one end, forming a variety of wedged shapes on both sides of the flat space.

He gazed at Rin, who appeared as pleasantly surprised as him. "Looks like we'll be going home soon enough."

She rushed to him and kissed him softly, holding herself close to him, speaking softly. "This will soon be over, Dante. We can live out our lives far away from this. We can live again."

He kissed her forehead. "I know, Rin. We'll leave far, far away."

She held him tighter.

A cough interrupted the two. "Sorry to ruin your moment, Dante, but I think you'll be going nowhere."

Turning around, Dante saw Dierak Hessian standing in front of the exit, with 6 Sith Soldiers behind him. "Do we have to do this, Hessian?"

"You know I do. You stopped me from fighting at Malachor."

"Perhaps, but I did you a favour." His eyes and voice were both venomous, promising the Mandalorian insurmountable pain.

"Maybe, but all the same, I'd like to repay the gesture." The cold, remorseless voice that had normally been associated with Mandalorians certainly failed now. Dierak's voice held rising rage against the young Jedi, remembering when his certain victory was snatched from him.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You're only a pawn where things are concerned right now. My brother will kill you once he gets what he wants."

"I've dealt with Jedi before." Raising his disruptor at the Jedi who stole it all from him.

"I was a Padawan when I defeated you," Dante replied somewhat smugly. He planted his feet in a stance akin to many Jedi fighting styles. His lightsaber was in his hand, as was Dosheo's blade. I certainly hope Dosheo's blade still works, he silently prayed.

"The Jedi have become Relics," the Mandalorian continued to say.

"Just like the Mandalorians?"

"The Mandalorians will rise again. The Jedi, however, shall not. I'll be making sure of that." Behind the mask, Dierak smiled, eager to fight Dante and see who would emerge victorious. He had the advantage, but he counted on the young Jedi's resourcefulness. It had proven to be to the young Jedi's penchant.

With that, Dante ignited both lightsabers, a sapphire blade in his right hand and an emerald blade in his left, while he leapt at the Mandalorian. He felt a ripple through the Force, understanding that Rin had done the same, igniting her own sapphire blades.

The veteran strafed to his left, squeezing the trigger of his rifle, only to hear the sputter of energy as one of the blades cleaved the weapon in half. To his dismay, he dropped his rifle and extended his wristblades, eager to meet his quarry head on.

Immediately, the soldiers opened fired, causing Rin to deflect the bolts that flew at both Jedi. She deflected three bolts, two of which went wide while the other smashed across the face plate of an unfortunate Sith. She ran towards the other Sith, slicing through three of the hapless soldiers in their torsos, as she passed through, deflecting the blaster bolts and shearing blaster rifles in half. She continued to rampage unchecked as helpless Sith were torn asunder.

"You're not going to win this time!" Dierak screamed as his blades matched the Jedi's own ferocity and skill.

"It's not about winning, Hessian. I thought you of all people would have known that!" Dante spun about, arcing one of the blades around into the stomach of the Mandalorian, only to be strike against a cortosis blade. His second blade reached over his back and locked against the second blade of the warrior, both fighters were locked in a stalemate.

"It's about the glory of battle, Dante. And I know that you enjoy the thrill of the fight, just like a Mandalorian," he hissed as he threw his weight on his left leg and spun around, pivoting his left leg while his right leg kicked out, knocking the Jedi backwards.

"I'm not like you! Nothing likeyou!" Dante screamed as he brought both of his blades to strike out at the head of the Mandalorian, only to have the warrior duck and roll to his left, striking out and slicing across the calf muscle of the Jedi.

"You're getting sloppy." The Mandalorian continued to assail the Jedi, pushing the Knight back on his heels while trying to find an opening to drive his blade into the chest of the Jedi.

Dante continued to block and parry each thrust and slash from his opponent, taking care not to exploit another weakness as he found the pain in his leg catching up with him. The slash had forced his blood to flow, ever so slightly, causing the Jedi to stumble and stagger back as he was slowly being bested by the Mandalorian. He knew that the Mandalorian might have sliced through quite a bit of muscle for his movement had become sluggish in his right leg.

In a surprising blur, Dierak Hessian retracted his blade and extended his right arm, while his left hand tapped a key on his wrist. A dull blast of sonic energy discharged from the gauntlet, shoving the Jedi back against the wall, forcing all air from his lungs and loosening Dante's grip on his blades.

Dante could only watch in agony as his energy blades retracted and felt thousands of miles away from him. He could barely move; the Force seemed to be further away from him each passing moment. In time, his death would come. But not now. It couldn't be now. Trying as hard as he might, the young Knight urged every fiber of his being to let him rise now and end his fight with Dierak. Slowly, but surely, the Jedi began to rise, regaining some mastery over his own body again, though his ears were still thrumming loudly from the impact of the sonic weapon.

Ignoring the futile attempts from Dante, Hessian turned around and quickly withdrew his blasters and opened fire on the Twi'lek Jedi.

She dodged and deflected every blaster bolt that flew at her, as she raced towards the Mandalorian. Through gritted teeth, she yelled, "you—will—die!" She spun about, slicing through one of the heavy pistols while her other blade sought the head of the man who had attempted to kill her beloved.

Dodging the slash to his head, Dierak crouched and swept Rin's feet out from her, causing the Jedi to fall. He rose, with his one good blaster left in his hand, he aimed at the Jedi, only to feel an invisible fist send him into the air, towards the other side of the room. The Mandalorian grunted as his body collided against the wall of the antechamber.

Slowly but surely, Dante had risen and now made his way to Rin, hoping that he was not too late. As he kneeled, feeling his joints ache even more, he caressed her cheek and felt her life through the Force. She was not dead. She wouldn't die. He would not let any more of his loved ones be taken away from him.

Rising once more, Dante gazed at the dazed Mandalorian. "This ends now, Hessian." The urge to strike down the Mandalorian with the Force was too great. The power to kill, to crush the very essence of this man, was what enticed the Jedi. He wanted to taste the death, feel the fear and life squirm from the Mandalorian's very being, as the Force would hold him high into the air and then rip his life from right out of his body.

No, he thought. This isn't the way of the Jedi.

Jedi be damned. He nearly killed Rin, he nearly took her away from you.

Dante paused for a moment, listening to the voice that rang in his head, conflicting with his own rationality.

Kill the Mandalorian. You know he will not hesitate to strike you down, Dante.

That voice… it sounded so…wise, so powerful, so tempting.

The Jedi continued to rage his own mental war at the unknown voice, unaware of the slowly rising—and very, very angry—Dierak Hessian.

I will not strike him down in anger!

It will only be a matter of time until he kills you and everyone you love. Alec is gone. Nathaniel and Xavier are gone. Do you want Rin to leave you?

"No…" the young Jedi whispered.

Hessian rose, his rustic crimson armour now dusty, the silver plating was marked and scorched. His helmet was damaged. The Mandalorian wanted to finish this fight with the Jedi. Removing his helmet, he noticed that the helmet would be irreparable now. It was dented and all systems were destroyed as well as the fact that there was now a missing visor. He looked down to his weapon gauntlet only to see a damaged console. Under his breath, the Mandalorian cursed.

Sweat glistened on the face of the older man, his peppery messy hair was now soaked in sweat. His breathing was heavy, and one thought came to mind. Why wasn't he dead yet?

Turning around, the Mandalorian saw his answer before his very eyes. The Twi'lek was unconscious and Dante was caught up in a mental battle between Jedi semantics. Grimly smiling, knowing that Dante would very much kill him without a hesitation, the Mandalorian extended his blades and began to walk towards the hapless Jedi.

He is coming towards you. He is eager to relish in the kill, Dante. Kill him. You have to. The voice began to shift from heavenly tempting, to dark, sinister and angry. Kill him, crush the very life from the man and you can have her all to yourself.

Eyes widening in horror, the stalwart defender shook his head, pushing thoughts aside and lunged at the Mandalorian, catching Hessian with something akin to surprise.

Knocking the blades aside, the Jedi smashed his fist against the face of the Mandalorian, eager to render him unconscious.

The Mandalorian, however, had no such plans. He pulled the Jedi and flipped Dante over him while attempting to pin the Jedi and embed his blade into the base of Dante's skull.

Feeling a renewed surge of strength from a combination of the adrenaline and the connection to the Force, Dante used the Force to shove the Mandalorian high into the air, while rolling away from under Hessian.

As the Mandalorian plummeted back to the ground, Dante reached for the nearest lightsaber. Dante found himself tackled into the ground again as the blade flew to him, only to clang against the sarcophagus. His head smacked against the rocky surface, dazing the Jedi as the Mandalorian grabbed him by the shirt.

Swirls of black encompassed his vision. He found himself falling into the darkness as he listened to the last words of Dierak Hessian.

"Now," Dierak breathed, "you will die." Hovering over the Jedi, he extended both of his blades as he began to drive them towards the chest of Dante, eager to impale the unfortunate guardian of peace and justice.

He stopped suddenly, letting out a gasp as a familiar snap-hiss found its way buried in his chest. A glowing emerald light extended from the Mandalorian's chest.

"Oh…" Hessian said, as he found he could no longer breathe and found the impending darkness welcoming.

"No…" she whispered softly as she looked in shock at Dante, lying on the floor with an opened wound on his chest, close to his heart. Shoving the Mandalorian's body aside, Rin deactivated the blade and dropped closer to Dante, holding him close to her breast as she pressed her hand against his chest, forcing the midichlorians to encourage his cells to regenerate and repair the slits in his chest.

She felt his life slowly ebbing away, edging closer to the comfort of eternal sleep. She knew Dante was drifting into unconsciousness as his life was drifting away. She continued to focus her will on keep her love alive, as thoughts of losing him flooded into her mind. She began to drip tears of sorrow at the impending truth she was beginning to face: Dante was going to die.