Chapter 19
They rounded another corner and were in a junction of another corridor only to run into more battle droids coming from the direction they were headed. They changed direction to run down the adjacent hall with the growing number of droids pursuing them.
Kyp blocked another stun blast and said frustrated, "Didn't Ghent tell us the shut down should happen soon after the download?"
Jaina batted away another blast sending it back at the droid who shot it, "Not really, he only said it would happen. I don't know much about that sort of thing, but I guess it depends on how often the virus needs to mutate to work through any changes to the system." She finished just in time to swat at two more blasts and to stop in her tracks as another squad of droids were coming from the direction they were headed.
"Stang! The vapin' things have us surrounded," Kyp stopped and swore. They were standing in the middle of a large open room with nowhere to go. Suddenly though, the shooting stopped and Kyp watched as the new arrivals parted and another group of larger droids came forward. Jaina who had been facing the other direction gasped as the squads before her also parted to allow the sturdier droids to come through.
As the point droids moved closer to the Jedi, Jaina recognized the nutrient frames and the creatures attached to them at the same time the Force seemed to be cut off from her. Kyp turned towards her and their eyes met momentarily; they knew they were in trouble. The trap indeed had been sprung, they were able to do the download, but they still had a fight ahead of them.
"Well," a rich, deep voice sounded.
Jaina gasped as they both turned towards the sound.
"Marolosa," Kyp stiffened as the cyborg stepped even closer.
Jaina felt frozen as she found herself staring the hideous face of the half machine, half human with one bright blue eye that gleamed with insanity that had haunted her sleep for over the past month. She reached over and grabbed Kyp's arm. "Kyp," her voice shook from the icy fear and was barely above a whisper, "it's him."
Marolosa raised the fleshy corner of his upper lip baring his teeth. It was the most terrifying expression she had ever seen. "Well, well, Master Jedi Kyp Durron, I see you survived the Vong invasion." His blue eye turned towards Jaina, and he stepped even closer. Jaina shuddered as he stepped before her, "I'm actually impressed, Durron, Jaina Solo? And from the interaction I was privy to; I'm assuming you're more than just her Jedi master."
"Leave her out of this, Marolosa. Your grudge is with me." Kyp slowly moved away from Jaina and began to make small circular motions with his ignited lightsaber.
Marolosa looked from Jaina to Kyp and stepped back again. He was fingering some type of small weapon in his hand. Jaina suddenly felt even colder. Then the cyborg said menacingly, "Wrong, Durron. I want you to suffer as much as I have before you die." The weapon suddenly came up and before Jaina even realized what was happening, Marolosa pulled the trigger. Kyp was hit in the shoulder with a dart that instantly rendered him paralyzed. He lost the grip on his saber and it deactivated before hitting the stone floor about the same time its owner did.
"Kyp!" Jaina moved to go to him but was immediately restrained from behind by droids and by the others who had their blasters all trained on her. Another of the droids took her lightsaber from her stunned hand. She stared at the man she loved and more plaintively cried, "Kyp!"
Marolosa continued as if Jaina never interfered in his tirade, "So, I intend for you to watch as I destroy something you love."
Kyp tried to move but couldn't, Jaina looked from his crumpled body to Marolosa, "What did you do to him?" Suddenly anger and anguish began to replace some of the fear.
"Oh, not to worry, my dear, the toxin is quick to paralyze the victim but kills very slowly. He will live long enough to watch me destroy you. Then he will die a very painful and slow death." The cyborg said as nonchalantly as one discusses the weather.
Jaina watched as a droid handed Marolosa Kyp's lightsaber. He turned it over and over in his hand as he inspected it. Then he hit the activation stud and made that hideous expression that passed as his smile as he watched the lavender blade come to life with the familiar snap-hiss.
"I have become quite a student of history," he said as he began moving the saber in an experimental way, watching the blade as it cut through the air with its gentle thrum. "One being in particular has impressed me, a cyborg by the name of General Grievous. He was the Supreme Commander of the droid army of the Separatists during the Clone Wars." He then made a wide slashing motion with the saber and went on, "He would collect the lightsabers of the Jedi who fell to him in battle. He had quite a collection by the time he was hunted down and killed." He stopped in his exaggerated slashes and wide circles and looked at Jaina and she shuddered at its intensity, "He was supposedly destroyed by Obi-Wan Kenobi only days before another cyborg came to into being—Darth Vader."
Jaina gaped at him and tried to keep recognition from her face but it was useless. Marolosa laughed mirthlessly and feigned surprise, "Oh, I forgot. Obi-Wan was your uncle's first master and of course, Darth Vader was your grandfather. And now you will be destroyed by a cyborg."
"Let—her—go—" Kyp breathed.
"No, I think not." Marolosa made another circle around Jaina. She turned her head and watched him as she struggled against the droid who held her upper arms but it only increased its grip on her. The droid that had taken her saber handed it to the cyborg. She watched as he ignited it and held it up before him. He smiled again as he compared the sabers, "Interesting, they are so similar. Their color is nearly identical." He then deactivated both sabers and weighed and studied them. "I do think I like your lightsaber better, Miss Solo," he looked again at her.
She was wondering what he had in mind for her. He then handed the droid Kyp's saber and began brandishing hers as he had Kyp's. But suddenly his motions stopped being exaggerated and experimental and became very expert. "What do you want with me?" Jaina seethed as the droid holding her pushed her forward.
He looked from the saber to her again and then looked at the prone Kyp and said, "Well, I was sincerely hoping that someday I'd put all of that sword training and extra programming I've had done to good use."
Jaina looked around at the droids hoping that they would soon shut down. Marolosa must have caught her sweep of the room; he responded, "Oh, and your pitiful computer virus scheme." Jaina snapped her attention back to him and he laughted, "Yes, I know about that. There isn't much that happens in GFFA Intel that I don't know about. I was even expecting a visit from nosy Jedi someday. But I have to admit I never in my wildest dreams could have hoped for Kyp Durron to be among them." Then he went on to explain, "Don't worry your pathetic virus may effect the computer that controls the factories but as long as I'm alive my army will live. And as soon as I'm finished with my entertainment I can easily fix whatever you think you may have done to the control system." Jaina instantly felt defeated. The mission may have been a complete failure and worse there was spy in the Intelligence branch.
X
Kyp was helpless; all he could do was lay there and watch the events unfold in ever growing haze. He could feel a sharp pain in his chest as his heart was affected by the poison and his breathing was becoming difficult due to the excruciating pain in his lungs. Every muscle in his body felt as if it was on fire while his skin felt like he was laying naked on Hoth. His brain wanted him to shiver but his ridged skin was not able to. Kyp was in complete agony but he was not concerned about himself, he was frightened for his Goddess.
His mind, however, seemed to be perfectly clear as he watched Marolosa's droids push Jaina into the center of the Force repelling bubble produced by the four ysalamiri. Marolosa handed a waiting droid Kyp's saber and Kyp watched in growing dread as it handed the saber back to a frightened Jaina whose hand shook as she took it and stared at it. Kyp could only imagine what was going through Jaina's mind.
"How fitting to be killed by your own weapon," Marolosa snickered.
Jaina though swallowed her some of her fear and defiantly looked up at the cyborg. She said through gritted teeth as she gripped the hilt of Kyp's lightsaber so hard her knuckles were white, "That's what you think, Marolosa."
"Oh, we shall see if you truly have skill or what makes you good is the Force." Marolosa suddenly became a whirlwind of lavender light as he moved Jaina's saber through a complicated sequence that was nearly too fast to see.
Jaina's face blanched as she watched. Kyp silently prayed that she did not let her fear paralyze her. Jaina was no novice at swordsmanship but she never had to over come so much fear before without drawing on the Force. Marolosa didn't need the Force, Kyp reflected, he had enhanced movements and a computer processor for a brain to calculate every one of Jaina's hesitant moves.
Kyp watched in agony as Jaina awkwardly parried a wicked lunge. He found himself reflecting on the past month and felt a great unending sorrow, because even if Jaina beat Marolosa there wasn't a certainty that he could be saved. If he could have, he would have cried. After nearly twelve years of loving a woman who he thought didn't love him, and finally now having her, he may never live to see their love grow into the beautiful thing he knew it could be. Maybe the Force did punish those who used it to do terrible deeds?
Another of Jaina's strikes brought him out of his self-pity and he witnessed Jaina become the Sword of the Jedi.
X
Jaina was being pushed further and further into making mistakes, wild and poorly timed parries. Her defenses were beginning to crumble. She was a good swordsman but she was having difficulty predicting the cyborg without the Force. She suddenly wished she had practiced more without using it when she had sparred with Kyp.
Kyp—
The thought that he could die instantly brought anger and determination to her. She couldn't use the anger to bring on the Dark Side power she suddenly wished she could but she used it to bring clarity of thinking. She immediately began to think of a way to turn the battle around.
She parried another of Marolosa's perfect strikes, but this time the parry was well placed and forceful. She was able to hold the enemy's sword long enough to leap away from him and outside of the circle he had her confined to. Even without the Force, she realized she still had her athletic ability and years of training. She then lunged. She must have surprised the cyborg. Because, although, he parried her strike; his furious flurry of thrusts and lunges stopped momentarily.
Jaina nearly smiled; her unpredicted move confused him. She immediately made another leap, this time she landed next to one of the droids that held an ysalamir. She feinted a high lunge but in the last second she slashed low throwing him off. He jumped back to prevent having his legs being cut from under him. That was the move she was hoping for, it gave her enough advantage to allow her to twist and bring the saber down through the ysalamri and the droid that held it.
Instantly, droids trained their blasters on her. Marolosa moved around waving her saber point down; his eyes never left her as he said, "At ease, she is mine."
Jaina was breathing hard as she used the moment to regroup and calculate her next move. She knew he would not fall for that again. He moved towards her again and she turned so that her back was towards one of the other ysalamiri holding droids. Her thrust was easily parried and he immediately lunged. She parried and twisted away from him, he followed and slashed low causing her to leap above it and parry. She used another leap to get further away and as she parried yet another trust, she back flipped away from him and right in front of the droid. She came up with an upward slash and cut the droid into two smoking halves along with the creature on the frame it was holding.
Marolosa rushed her and she suddenly realized she was surprising him with her skill. That encouraged her. She matched his thrusts, lunges, slashes and parries as she began to push him towards the opposite side of the fighting area. She needed to get to the other ysalamiri. She side stepped to get around him and once there she did another back flip. She didn't think she would be able to trick him again but it would get her closer to the droid. But luck must have been shining on her at that instant, because as the droid tried to move away from her it became top heavy and fell. She parried a lunge and twisted away from the cyborg. Before the droid could regain its feet, she stabbed the animal on the frame. The Force filled her senses like water through a dam break. She immediately used it to shove the droid to the floor and to leap into the circle of the remaining ysalamiri that was moving towards her.
The Force was stripped from her so fast that it caused her to gasp. Marolosa watched her and she knew by the smile that twisted his face that she had just played into his hands. The pause was nearly fatal as Marolosa struck again. She nearly missed his downward slash and it would have cut her in half if she hadn't fallen to the floor and rolled away. As it was, the saber connected with her shoulder nearly knocking Kyp's lightsaber from her hand leaving a blackened painful gash.
Marolosa laughed as he raised her lightsaber above her. Suddenly, it all became clear. She had been a fool, it wasn't Kyp the cyborg of her vision was raising the lightsaber above, it was her. She was to come here so that both she and Kyp could be killed.
Nooo—Her very being screamed at her. She was not going to die here. I'm the Sword of the Jedi…
As Marolosa began to bring down the lightsaber she had built so many years ago, she gripped the hilt of the saber of the man she loved and brought it up with a determination born from her love, anger, anguish and desperation. Kyp's lavender blade burned through the chest plate of the cyborg. He stumbled back a surprised look in the blue eye. Then as he fell forward, he smiled. He was dead by the time he hit the floor, the saber turning his human heart into a blackened piece of charcoal.
She shakily regained her feet and picked up the lightsabers. She moved out of the Force-less bubble and readied herself to repel the blasts from the droids when suddenly the droids began to shut down. After realizing what was happening she killed the forth and final ysalamir and immediately ran to Kyp.