Stronger Together
It all happened so fast, Rey could barely keep up with what was happening. She and Kylo had spun around, back to back, as half of the 8 Praetorian guards rushed Rey, while the others advanced towards Kylo. Her saber was humming in her hands in anticipation, and she could hear Kylo's saber spitting and crackling. She could feel his adrenaline rush from the oncoming fight, and her own thrill coupled with his.
The red faceplates of Praetorian guards shone brightly in the presence of their weapons which hummed with electricity and power. A silent signal passed through their Bond before they swung their sabers with full force.
Rey swung Luke's lightsaber to block a strike from one of the guard's vibro-voulge, a long staff with a blade on the end. She expected the lightsaber to cleave the weapon in two, but her arm came to a jarring halt and painful vibrations jolted through her arm. She realized their weapons had an ultrasonic generator with a plasma filament, allowing them to deflect their lightsabers. She quickly shoved the guard away and felt the next guard approaching before she saw him. She reached out to the Force to support her attacks.
Kylo brought his crackling saber down on one guard with such an intense ferocity that the guards shrank back for a moment. His saber met one of the guard's vibro-voulge, similar to a staff with an energized blade. They collided with a resounding thud and a flurry of sparks burst into the air. He shoved his saber upwards to throw the guards away from him. He felt a ripple in the Force and ducked just before the blade of one of the guard's electro-bisento staff swept through the space his head had been. He straightened and spun his saber to block the other guard coming from his left. He could hear Rey as she battled the other guards. He slammed his saber into the ground, and sparks flew as he slashed upward towards the guard.
Rey slashed her blade to deflect the weapons coming towards her. She was shouting from the effort. She went low and spun her saber on the ground, forcing the guards to back away. She turned to look behind her to see a guard advancing towards Kylo while he was occupied with another. She quickly stabbed the guard in the chest, her lightsaber cutting through his armor. She yanked her saber free and turned to face the three guards that were rushing her all at once, weapons raised. With barely a glance, she brought her saber up to block the oncoming blows and simultaneously reached behind her. She grabbed hold of Kylo's thigh and turned to meet her attackers. As he slashed downwards to deliver a killing blow, she leaned against his back as his momentum helped her kick the three guards away.
Eventually, Kylo and Rey got separated as the battle moved them in different directions. Kylo threw his elbow back to strike one of the guards in the face and then grabbed the back of his neck and threw him forwards as he kicked another guard. He grunted from effort as he turned behind him. His face was sweaty and his eyes quickly scanned the room until they landed on Rey.
Two of the guards rushed Rey, one wielded a dual vibro-abrir bladed staff, and the other wielded a Bilari electro-chain whip. The guard swung it towards her as she deflected a stroke from the other. Rey nimbly danced away to avoid the weapon and turned to see the other red-armored guard raise his staff over his head, leaving his torso exposed. With a shout, she brought her saber down viciously across his chest and the body fell limply to the ground.
She turned to face the remaining guard but the whip caught her saber and she couldn't yank it free. The guard slowly pulled her forwards as Rey struggled to free her blade. Sparks flew between them, the blue blade contrasting sharply with the red hue of the whip. Rey yelled as the guard grabbed her throat and forced the deadly blade closer to her neck. Rey strained against his grasp, but then realizing that she couldn't pull her saber free, she slipped under his arm and twisted her saber and delivered an upwards blow that split the guard's armor. Fiery, angry, yellow sparks flew as she yanked her saber free and with it threw the whip towards the wall. It exploded against the wall and burst into flames, right above another guard's head. Rey stared at him defiantly. The guard stood and then split his dual vibro-abrir blades in two to wield them like daggers. Rey spun her saber and roared fiercely as she went to meet his challenge.
Two of the guards' electro-bistentos struck Kylo's lightsaber, crossing each other and locking them in place. Kylo forced his saber down and rotated the hilt so that the blades struck his cross blades and not his hand. They forced him backward before he gave an angry shout and forced his saber upwards causing the guards to stumble backward and stabbed the one that had been coming towards him through the chest, the blade crackling and hissing. He shoved the body off the blade and it fell into a pit. Bolts of electricity came from it and red shards of the guard's armor exploded from the entrance.
He held his saber in front of him, his arm was rigid as he watched the remaining guards slowly circling him, weapons ready. Strands of his black hair fell into his face and stuck to the sweat on his forehead. He eyed the guards circling him as they slowly advanced towards him. A cry caught his attention and he turned to see Rey battling the other guard. She blocked one of the guard's blades, but the other one clipped her in the arm and she cried out in pain as the hot blade cut into her skin. The sight of that only angered Kylo more and when he heard the guard behind him activate his whip, his face become one of determination. He spun around to meet that guard's attack and twisted his blade to the side to meet another's. Whilst keeping one at bay, he brought his saber down on another guard's weapon, his saber hitting the ground in a burst of sparks. Kylo grabbed one of the guard's staff and dipped underneath it to behead the guard behind him. He turned around, shouting aggressively to face the other two guards.
A great deal of the room was on fire right now and it was becoming unbearably hot. Rey brought her saber up to meet her adversary's blade but the guard kicked her in the stomach. Rey fell to the ground with a grunt of pain, and narrowly missed hitting her face on the ground. Her arm burned from the blow she'd received earlier but she quickly got to her feet and shouted as she swung her saber.
Kylo dodged a piece of burning metal as it passed by. He cut down the guard in front of him viciously and grabbed the electro-bisento from his hand. He swung it simultaneously with his lightsaber as he engaged the guard behind him. In a flurry of blows, almost too quick to follow, he shoved the guard to the ground and swung his saber to cut into the guard behind him and then stabbed him in the back with the electro-bisento. He shoved the body down with his lightsaber with a shout.
He looked up and was forced to drop his lightsaber. He leaned backward quickly to avoid the blade of the remaining guard. He quickly moved away and dodged a second blow. He grappled with the guard for a moment trying to yank the vibro-voulge from him before the guard spun and suddenly Kylo was pinned underneath the weapon. He desperately grasped the weapon in an attempt to dislodge it from the guard's grasp, but the guard's grip only tightened as he brought the weapon closer to his throat and forced Kylo down to his knees.
Rey was also in a similar situation. The guard had pinned her arm and was forcing his blade closer and closer to her face. Rey shouted defiantly as she desperately tried to free herself. Kylo's eyes flitted to the side to see Rey trapped and struggling. His stomach dropped and he tried harder to dislodge the staff against his throat.
Rey knew that the guard was stronger than her, so she couldn't win this by brute strength. She glared at the guard but then glanced at her lightsaber. Trusting the Force and her instinct, she did something completely unexpected. She let go of her lightsaber. The guard loosened his grasp in surprise, allowing Rey to drop down to catch her saber mid-fall with her other hand. With a shout, she cut through the guard's legs and then stood to deliver the killing blow to his neck. His body fell to the ground and she turned around triumphantly. Then her eyes widened and she panicked when she saw Kylo struggling with the last guard.
"BEN!" she shouted. She switched off her lightsaber and threw it towards him with all of her strength. The saber flew directly into Kylo's hand and he ignited the Skywalker lightsaber and just as quickly switched it off. He paused for a moment, the guard's grip on his neck loosening. He lowered his hand to reveal a smoking hole through the guard's helmet. As the body fell to the floor, Kylo freed himself from his grasp and stood, tossing the guard's weapon to the side. His eyes never left Rey the entire time. Their gazes locked and they both seemed to exhale in relief. Rey's eyes were filled with happiness as she looked at Kylo. Their relief was short-lived though, as the throne room burned around them.