Many thanks to those who've reviewed! Man, it feels like its been forever since I touch any fanfiction, even though I know for a fact its only been a week since I started working on project: Raven's Flight. progress is very different when working on an original novel rather than fanfiction… much slower to be specific. But still, on another topic, enjoy the next chapter! ~F
Chapter Twenty Seven
Cleaning House
Veneficus sensed something odd as he made final preparations to depart from Coruscant. There was a hasty movement in the stars, as though many tiny ants were swarming in frantic fury. The Rebels had been ousted from hiding and were fighting against his forces.
He smirked. This was good. By the time he was done with his ritual, and forever set as the leader of the Galaxy, having defeated even death itself, he would be able to venture forth and crush them at long last, in person.
With Luna Lovegood defeated, tormented and stranded, there would be no amount of resistance that could stop him. And this time, he had prepared. Dathomir was blockaded, locked down and completely monitored. Nothing was allowed onto or off of the planet, even if the woman managed to survive yet again.
He would return there eventually, just to make sure that she indeed was dead, or else devastate the entire planet in honor of his final victory over the past, the Jedi, and everything else that stood in his way.
Still, it was amusing to sense the fools that thought they could truly stop him. Let them come, and battle over an empty palace. Anything of worth was well protected, and even then he had memorized every scrap of knowledge that would be of use to them. Let the fools throw their lives away trying to defeat him, he would endure their attacks, and destroy them utterly, rising from the ashes like a glorious bird of prey.
He turned away, boarding the shuttle and setting the scepter of Ragnos at his side, before signaling the pilot to take off. Ruusaan would be the location of his greatest achievement, the triumph of the Sith in all that they ever desired: unlimited life and power; a perfect being at last ruling the Galaxy singlehanded as a perfect Emperor who could not submit to the deficits of time, injury, or the Dark Side itself.
None would oppose him ever again, not even Diábolis. The very being he had set in a position to be capable of defeating him, and it would no longer matter. The line of the Sith was to end. From now on there was the Rule of Veneficus, and none other.
Smiling to himself as the shuttle departed the atmosphere, Veneficus felt the warmth of the Philosopher's stone on his breast. He would dispose of that hollow crutch once he overcame the degeneration of his power, and therefore the secret would reside in him alone to produce such powerful restorative.
Idly, he thought of future plans. Perhaps he wouldn't destroy the stone, but use it and the elixir to subjugate the Galaxy further. Offer them healing and life at price, and only their loyalty to his rule and his Empire would permit a system access to the life giving Veneficus, the glorious Emperor who would give life and health to all who bent the knee.
His echoing laughter chilled the entire shuttle.
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Diábolis waited impatiently for news of his prisoner's well-being once the shuttle of assassins returned. It was a pity about Kelrek, but the foolish Sorcerer had been far too trusting of the wrong people. Had he truly listened to his longtime companions, he might have realized that the Sith Lord had no need for him whatsoever. But that was in the past now, and with him dead, Diábolis hoped to circumvent anyone that attempted to follow after their beloved rebel leader.
Once the shuttle was docked properly, he sent the signal for them to start the jump to Coruscant. The quicker that this executed this part of the plan, the sooner he would get rid of the woman and move on.
An assassin came, presenting the woman's wand to him, and Diábolis took the slender foci of wood, twirling it gently in hand as he made his way to the prison block. Bypassing the guards for the woman, he entered her cell, and paused. She already had a panel off one of the walls and was messing with the wiring within, likely to try and make her own escape.
She had frozen however when she spotted him, although Diábolis found it more amusing than anything. "I see you've wasted no time getting comfortable," he said jokingly, even as she backed away from the panel and a trooper went in to set it right.
The manacles that she had been wearing were discarded on the ground, and Diábolis glanced at them, before looking back at the expectant woman, who clearly thought that she would be placed back in them. "We won't need those, I think," he said, beckoning for the woman, "walk with me," he said, and the troopers that entered gave the rebel no choice but to comply.
"I refuse to be given as a prize back to that monster." She said quickly, defiantly even, and Diábolis laughed.
"I had heard much regarding your intelligence, Director Granger of the former Magi-tech industries, and currently commander-in-chief of the rebellion," Diábolis retorted, "but I hardly would have thought you would be so quick to misjudge the circumstances."
She glanced at him as he drew her wand, "I have need of your skills, not with technology, but with this… all in an effort to destroy my Master: the Emperor…" Diábolis explained briefly.
She huffed in irritation, but Diábolis knew that the woman was listening intently. "We are en route to Coruscant, and the Imperial Palace there. You would know it better as the former Jedi Temple." The Devaronian enjoyed the twinge of anger that sparked in the human at that, and continued, "On one of the lowest floors of the Archive there, he has a room sealed with your power of the Wild Force. I need you to break that seal, so I can see just what it is that my Master is hiding from me, and hopefully it will be something that I can use in destroying him."
"What makes you think I will help you dispose of one madman Emperor and set up another?" Granger shot back, almost snarling in her indignation.
"Simple," Diábolis countered, smirking, "You hate Veneficus nearly as much as I do, and scarcely know or care about me… how could I possibly be worse than the man that destroyed your home world, used your creations to wreak havoc across the Galaxy, and then destroyed the home that he had you build to replace the first one."
The temptation was there, even as they arrived at one of the large viewing lounges, less of a cell than on the detention block, but still very easily guarded. "You'll have all the comforts you could desire here," Diábolis explained, "while you think over my proposal…"
"A gilded cage is still just that…" Granger said, but allowed the guards to escort her inside nonetheless, "And I want something to read…" she added. Diábolis smirked as the door closed. There was a fire in that one, which burned for one singular thing. Defeating Veneficus… just like Diábolis himself desired it. And he knew that she would aid him in the end, even if he was forced to make her do so…"
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Severus had not expected for them to be taking excessive prisoners from the operation to capture an Imperial cruiser. Granted, he had also not expected for Ms. Granger to be captured by the Empire either, or the desperate situation that they were placed in.
Hurrying to Bakura to meet with the returning Filius and his remaining troops, Severus gladly took custody of the several prisoners, primarily foot soldiers of the Empire who would know little and be of even less use to them.
However, there was one that would be able to tell Severus what he wanted to know. They had captured a Dark Adept. The powerful woman was struggling madly against the heavy chains that she had been placed in, reinforced by magic and unbreakable with her strength in the Force.
"Well, well," Severus said as she was wheeled into his makeshift lab on Bakura. It was not nearly as stocked as he would like, but for the intent that they had for this interrogation, it had all he needed. "You are quite the strong one…"
"Don't try to placate me, fool!" the woman spat back, "I know you: the Emperor's prisoner from the war. You're the man who designed poisons and other methods of death that we used to great effect on the pathetic Republic."
"Then you know what peril you are in, being in my presence," Severus retorted coldly, and the woman drew still. "Your allies captured a dear friend of mine," Severus continued, "and I need to know what their plan is. Typically I would have restraint forced upon me by her, but she is not here to protect you from all that I can do…"
He took out a small injector, and filled it with veritaserum. He knew that the threat alone would not be sufficient, and the potion may not work alone either, but if he weakened her will enough for the potion to take effect, they would have all they wanted and more.
The woman struggled, but was not able to prevent Severus from stabbing the needle of the injector into her neck. She snarled and thrashed, but the Potion Master's hands were steady, despite his age, and he removed the needle without causing any harm to his victim. Quickly discarding the injector and moving in front of his guest, and drew his wand.
"Your magic will have no effect on me…" the woman sneered.
Severus just smirked, "You have not experienced even half of what our power is capable of…" pointing the wand between the woman's eyes, he swiftly muttered, "Legilimens."
Severus was not surprised that the woman had significantly strong mental shielding. Force users seemed to have naturally forming defenses in part of the protection from the abilities of their kind, but Severus was ready. The weaknesses in the mental shielding were already present from the potion, and Severus was all too eager to pressure those weaknesses and pierce into the memories of the Dark Adept.
Countless atrocities, granted at such a low scale compared to what Severus had experienced, or even committed in his worst days, flowed freely from the mind he tore open. Delving deeper, Severus started his search for the information he sought. Looking for any image of Ms. Granger, Severus quickly homed in on the battle recently.
The women had not gotten a good look at the exact moment when Granger was taken, but connected to that memory was a great deal regarding one Sorcerer named Kelrek. The man triggered many memories, especially recently concerning their plans, and foreknowledge regarding the rebel operation.
Severus was frustrated at that knowledge. They had done exactly what Ms. Granger had warned them against. They had admitted a traitor unknowingly and it had cost them. But he set that emotion aside, and refocused on siphoning where they might have taken Granger.
The scene shifted to several meetings with this man Kelrek, and constant references to Potter's apprentice, a Devaronian Sith Lord who was second to none but the Emperor himself.
That made sense, Granger would be wanted by the Sith for her mind, and releasing the spell Severus was sure that he knew exactly where they had taken her. "Your cooperation is most appreciated," Severus said congenially, "We will now be able to stop your friend and recover our ally from the Sith Lord's hands…"
Marauder Jenah snarled back, and Severus just shook his head. She would survive, but whether they could take more information in future would be useful to understand.
"Sit tight, I'll return swiftly for our next session…" Severus said coldly, turning and leaving to inform Filius that they needed to go to Coruscant. Hopefully they could intercept Granger and her abductor before they landed on the planet. If the Emperor was still there, they'd have no chance of recovering her once she entered the Palace.
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Hermione sat for a long time in the lounge room, the small stack of datapads that had been provided for her set aside. Oh, she had read them, and they had been quite fascinating once she dug past the Imperial propaganda imbedded in the rhetoric of their history. It still allowed her to understand quite a bit of what the Imperials believed, and why they revered and downright worshipped the Sith.
She was not convinced, not in the slightest, and she still very much wanted to see Veneficus and the entire system of oppression that the Empire generated torn down brick by brick, until the Republic could be restored and the laws of justice returned to the Galaxy. But she had to be honest with herself, she was tempted by Diábolis' offer to locate something powerful that would end Veneficus completely, even if it meant allowing the apprentice to take the throne.
Ideally, the pair would kill each other and that would be the end of the Sith, but she had a feeling one or the other would turn out victorious, and the reign of terror would grow worse for everyone.
However, she was already scheming of a way to profit off this event, and thereby steal away the core world of the Galaxy out from under both Sith Lords' noses. If she knew Harry's methods, and she felt that she certainly did, most control for the defense grid for the entire planet hidden inside the palace itself, formerly the Jedi Temple. If she could escape from Diábolis for even a moment, and hack into the Temple's security, she could take control of the entire planet, and turn everything against the Empire, liberating Coruscant and turning the planet into a shining beacon of hope for the Galaxy once more.
Turning to the guard that was posted just inside the door, respectfully distant but present enough to deter her trying to tear the room apart, she spoke, "I am willing to speak with Diábolis about his offer."
The masked trooper nodded, tapping the side of his helmet to activate a comlink imbedded within. Hermione knew she could make a better design where the comlink would be activated without the need for a hand gesture, but she held her tongue. She wouldn't bother trying to improve the technology of her enemies.
It only took a few minutes for the Sith Lord to arrive. Hermione turned in her seat to face him, "I will help you destroy Veneficus, but nothing more."
"Understandable," the Sith Lord said, and Hermione could feel the malicious and devious mind inside the horned skull spinning as the being before her clearly fashioned a plan wherein she was actually compliant on the spot. So sad that he assumed that she would not even consider it… and all the better for her, as she would be able to perhaps gain a marginal amount of trust and permit her own goal to happen.
"So, am I to get any information regarding the plan?" she asked after several minutes of silence.
The Sith Lord smirked, "Of course," he said, before taking a seat and setting her wand on the table between them.
Hermione realized that it was a test, trying to see if she would go for the wand and try to escape, and she would resist it completely.
"The Palace has a second entrance into the lowest levels, running through what is little more than a sewage drain these days," Diábolis explained, "We will enter from there, and bypass the guardian that Veneficus set to protect that area."
"What guardian?" Hermione pressed, knowing that she would have to fight for every scrap of detail that she was to get. The Devaronian seemed to expect this, and smirked.
"A massive serpent that obeys Veneficus alone, brilliant crimson and capable of swallowing a grown being whole." He described.
"Sounds like a Basilisk in size, but the coloration is wrong…" Hermione said, more trying to riddle it out for herself.
"It breathes flames much like the winged ones from your home world," Diábolis added, and Hermione wondered if the Sith was actually interesting in understanding what the beast was.
"I think I have a theory of what it is…" she started, piecing together what she knew that Veneficus was capable of. "if Sith Alchemy is as capable as I have been led to believe, the Emperor may have taken his ruby cobra from our world, and crossed its form with that of both a Basilisk and a Dragon, forming some new creation that combines the destructive power of all three creatures…"
"The kill count that the beast possesses give more than significant credence to your theory," the Sith replied, pulling a datapad from his robes and setting it next to Hermione's wand, "This is an image of the beast," he said, tapping it and displaying a hologram of the bright crimson serpent. "Do you think you can find a weakness in order to slay the beast?"
"I could, but I'd also need to know what tools I have to work with to devise the right weapon for the job," Hermione countered, pulling the datapad closer and completely ignoring her wand. The records were actually quite detailed, "How did you come by this information?" she asked, noting that there was even a sample of the beasts DNA, likely stolen from shed skin.
"I have my ways, and those who follow me and me alone," Diábolis replied secretively, and Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Whatever," she replied sarcastically. She busied herself by scrolling swiftly through the information and reading the medical readout of the beast's genetic code. It was quite a masterpiece of creation, even if it resulted in such a vile creature. Veneficus was indeed skilled with everything he put his hand toward.
"It's a magnificent piece of genetics," she commented, even as she noted the magical and Force sensitive nature of the sample cells that were documented in the datapad, "capable of limited control of every aspect of the Force, as well as bred for extreme intelligence."
"But is there a weakness to exploit?" Diábolis insisted, clearly only carting for one specific piece of information, regardless of whatever idle interest he had generally.
Hermione smirked. "I found one…" its eyes…" she tapped the layout of the cells. "It inherited the weakness of the Basilisk's eyes rather than its deadly gaze. They are set high and protruding from the socket, which exposes them, even if it thickens the membranes that cover them," she explained.
"So we can blind it, and through that possibly even attack the brain directly?" Diábolis asked, and Hermione nodded.
"As interesting as it would be to study such a creature, it is altogether evil and loyal to the Emperor," she said with a shrug, "it is best that the thing be put down as swiftly as possible."
"So we'll need something powerful to pierce the membrane, and accurate enough to strike the small eye as the beast moves," Diábolis said, thinking hard.
"A pity that there isn't much that could bind down the beast," Hermione added, looking over the data again, "preventing its movement would allow a much larger range of weapons to be used."
The Sith nodded in agreement, "Still, I have a few ideas of what we could use; excellent reasoning." He complimented. Rising and turning to the trooper nearby, issues a few quiet commands.
"I will have the armory set up several of them, and later you may inspect each of them to see which of our weapons would be most effective. Until then I will leave you to your evening. We have about half a day left until we arrive at Coruscant. Make sure that you get the rest you need."
And with that, Diábolis left. Hermione turned from the closed door and her guard back to the datapad that was on the table, and realized that the Sith had left her wand with her as well. It didn't seem like a trap, so she could only assume that she had passed whatever test that the Devaronian had prepared.
She also realized that the Sith likely thought that her wand wouldn't be of any use to her here, and therefore trying to use it would be futile. Nevertheless, she felt more comfortable with it in her possession, and therefore pocketed it swiftly. The guard at the door didn't even flinch at the movement, so she guessed that he was already aware of the change of situation. Hermione sat back, knowing that she wasn't getting anywhere for the time being, and thought about what she might request for her evening meal.
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Ist stared at the empty point in space that surrounded them. The Imperial ship was equipped with all the known Hyperspace routes that the Empire used, and it was certain that the beacon that Director Granger had triggered stopped for a time at this point. The problem came in the form of communication from Bakura, and Professor Snape.
"You mean that the Sith will be taking her to Coruscant?" Ist asked, even as the black-robed Potions Master nodded.
"Undoubtedly. There is some fixation that the Sith have with her specifically. What I do not know is whether this Diábolis is operating alone or for the will of his master…"
"Veneficus…" Ist confirmed, growing grim. If indeed the Emperor himself had orchestrated the kidnapping of Director Granger, then time was indeed of the essence. The tracker had moved on, but almost if in agreement with Professor Snape's assumption, it was following the Imperial Hyperlanes toward the Core world, although there were many interceptions where it might turn off and proceed elsewhere.
"We have little choice but to believe you in this," Ist said, acknowledging that the man had insight that they needed. "If you find anything else, let us know."
"I will," Severus said solemnly, and Ist closed the communication.
Turning to Admiral Weasley, who was disguised as a high ranking Imperial officer, just in case they intercepted any communication from the Empire, she gave her decision, "We will make use of the old Republic routes to get to Coruscant by a swifter route, and wait there for the ship carrying Hermione to arrive, then attack and try to rescue her as swiftly as possible."
"Understood," Weasley said, turning to relay the orders to the rest of the command crew. For a ship this size, they were certainly undermanned, but they could get most of the systems to operate normally, or at least passably. Other Imperial ships ought to not notice any difference if they encountered them en route.
Ist brushed at her fur for what felt like the hundredth time. As part of their disguises, she and the other Jedi had had to raid the private quarters of the former inhabitants of the ship. They had found many Dark Adept robes and ornaments, and were suitably uncomfortable with the amount of Dark Side energy that was lingering on them. As an additional effect for herself, Ist had used a bit of soot and darkened her fur in places, particularly around her face to detract anyone's attention from studying her too closely.
"What will we do if the Emperor is present?" one of the other Jedi asked, picking at a spot on his dark robes, clearly the wrong size for his frame.
"We will do what we intend to do in any circumstance, do not engage him, release Ms. Granger and retreat. Hopefully Commander Flitwick will arrive with reinforcements to cover our escape, and we continue the resistance as we have been." She repeated again.
"But what if…? Another persisted, and Ist sighed.
There was no shortage in the amount of worries that this mission accompanied. They had very little in the way of a plan, and without outside intervention they might not succeed anyway, but if the Emperor for his hands of their leader, then the Rebellion might be well and truly lost. Hermione had all the secrets of their strongholds, their movement and numbers, everything. And there was no doubt in anyone's mind that the Emperor would have ways enough to extract that information from her.
"We will adjust the plan once we have more information of what we're up against," she finally said, silencing them and turning to stand next to the Admiral.
The red haired Mage-born was watching their progress on a holographic chart, which marked their own ship on the old Republic route, and the ship with Hermione on the Imperial route. "It will be close," he said, indicating the two dots that indicated the fleets, "We'll arrive just barely behind them, and if we're not exact on our removal from Hyperspace, the time it would take to sub-light over they might have Hermione in a shuttle and on her way down to the planet."
"So we should have fighters prepared to launch the movement we leave, to cut off and force any shuttle back to the waiting ship?" Ist suggested.
"I doubt that the Empire would not send an escort down with it, and that would hinder fighters alone. We would most likely need to send a strike team to follow them wherever they went and extract Hermione from them planet side." Weasley replied, and Ist frowned.
That would not go over well with anyone here. It was well rumored that the Emperor could sense if a Jedi or anyone loyal to the Rebellion set foot on Coruscant, and despite the ridicules nature of the rumor it nevertheless had power over many of their minds.
Still, she nodded. "So we'll prepare an assault force with fighter escort to pursue any possible shuttles heading out from the other ship, while the cruiser engages with the rest of the fighters."
Weasley looked thoughtful, "Yes," he said, "that seems to be our only option. I don't like it, but it's the best we can do with the resources we have."
"Hopefully Commander Flitwick arrives with reinforcements swiftly," Ist said, but she noticed the grimace that crossed Weasley's face as she said it, "What?" she asked.
"It is unlikely that we will get any reinforcements for this quickly," Weasley said slowly, hesitating. "The distance is too great between Bakura and Coruscant, and we had taken the majority of our strong fighters and pilots for the original attack to claim this ship. There won't be much left at Bakura to make use of…"
Ist allowed that news to sink in. "Then we're more or less alone in our mission…" she stated, more to herself than to anyone else. Staring ahead into the swirling vortex of Hyperspace, she thought hard. Everything relied on them. Unless…
"Open all communication channels, every encrypted code that we have, and broadcast the message of an assault on Coruscant," she said swiftly, surprising the admiral, "if we can get even a handful of fighters to aid us, that would be something…"
"If we do that, we might also signal out enemies to encircle around us…" Weasley said hesitantly.
"It's a chance that we might have no other choice but to take," Ist replied, starting away from the bridge. "I'll make sure that our shuttles are prepared to launch the moment we break out of Hyperspace."
"As you wish…" the admiral stated, and Ist departed, the weight of what was about to commence heavy on her shoulders.
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Zhar had had enough. Despite his extra apprentice running about putting out fires, literal and metaphoric, all across New Kaas City, the other local council members of Dromund Kaas continued to create chaos throughout the planet for him to deal with.
Instead of continuing this farce, he was about to cut the head from the snake altogether. Euka was preoccupied in researching what secrets were in the capital's vaults and archives, and therefore Zhar was to deal with this himself.
Jol Tugno, his newest apprentice let in the other members of the local council to the meeting chambers where Zhar was waiting. The Duros was a very loyal member of their team, and hated the other members of the hierarchy of the Empire passionately.
That hatred was the perfect tool to bend the male being to Zhar's view of the Galaxy, and their need to escape the ruthless destruction of the Sith. And eliminating the local council would be a decent start here on Dromund Kaas, he mused upon as an afterthought.
"What is the meaning of this meeting?" Snarlfang, the sole goblin in the higharchy of the Empire to leave Veneficus' home world said, toothily smirking at Zhar.
Eleven figures of prominence and Dark Side power over those of the planet, and Zhar was only partially sure that he could defeat them as he rose from the Supreme Prophet's throne and drew his saber.
"You are being disloyal to the orders of the Emperor," he said, as part of his excuse for this cleansing, even as his blade activated, "and it is time for a new council to be formed for Dromund Kaas… a council that does not include you…"
"You are a fool to think you can defeat us all!" Prophet Saquesh Noloff retorted, facial tentacles of the Quarren visibly twitching as his rage built.
"But do I need to?" Zhar added, smirking, "Who would ascend to the leadership role when I am gone?"
And with that small seed of discord throw into the mix, he advanced, even as Jol Tugno sealed the door behind him. The Duros had already been given his instructions to not allow the door to be opened until the fighting stopped, and if Zhar had not survived, to kill whomever remained. Better that Euka take charge and continue their plan that for any of these fools to take command of the reins.
The torrent of crimson blades illuminated the room as every member of the council took out their weapons. But the fools did not think that Zhar would be as aggressive as this, and he was already upon them, bashing through the hasty defenses of Sullustan Prophet Jae Nian, cleaving through the being's torso and eliminating him swiftly.
"Ten…" Zhar said, beginning a countdown to their defeat.
Prophet Om'seca charged him, the Twi'lek's saberstaff whirling over her head as she closed distance. Switching to Soresu, and much more confident in his skills with the style after using it far more and with motivation, Zhar backed away slowly from the rampaging twin blades of the staff.
Val Elnen leapt over their heads, the male human's skill in Ataru being shown as he tried to flank Zhar and attack from the other end. Turning to counter a hasty strike, Zhar started to bat himself back and forth between the two combatants, waiting for an opening.
The tiresome methods of Ataru eventually took their toll on both his assailents, and Zhar struck, kicking Val Elnen in the chest, and leaping forward to slam his blade through the man with a hasty Djem So strike.
"Nine…" he muttered, dodging to the side from the stabbing blade of Om'seca's staff.
Slamming his own blade on top of hers, he forced them both down, before reversing his strength and slashing upward through the Twi'lek's torso, cleaving her in two. The wide, empty eyes stared upward as the body rolled away, opening some breathing room for Zhar before the next group launched themselves at him.
As he had predicted, the hottest heads of the council had thrown themselves away first, and the remaining eight were just as wary of each other as they were on him. "Eight…" he taunted, wondering who would be provoked into attempting to slay him next.
Snarlfang seemed like he particularly wanted to, but the hesitation against potential betrayal gave way for others to make the wrong choice. Dithul stepped forward, and Zhar knew what was about to happen. The Ithorian had a powerful talent for creating sonic-based attacks with the Force, and Zhar quickly created a shield around his ears to try and dilute the damage as the Prophet unleashed a piercing bellow.
Zhar smirked, as that attack alone started the battle between the prophets, as Pana Bibble silenced the sonic blast by starting to strangle the Ithorian with the Force. The others fell into infighting just as quickly, and for a few moments Zhar was able to relax and amuse himself by watching the chaos.
However, Snarlfang clearly had been waiting for this to happen as well, and charged at him with duel shoto sabers drawn, the crimson and violet blades weaving around in front of him as he moved.
Ducking back as the goblin leapt into the air, Zhar blocked the wild, double attack that Snarlfang opened with, and spun away from the diminutive figure and his lightning fast counter.
Knowing that he had to turn the conflict around in order to survive the smaller weapons in the goblin's hands, Zhar switched back to Djem So, and advanced with a powerful downward swing. He altered to a diagonal upward cut when the goblin predictably dodged; forcing Snarlfang to cross his own sabers into an X and block the second attack.
Relishing the battle of physical strength, Zhar applied as much force and pressure as he could, slowly edging the three blades close to the goblin. Behind them, the other prophets were too distracted killing each other to even notice and Zhar grinned widely at the goblin.
He was not prepared; therefore, when the goblin lashed out with a powerful blast of telekinesis, which threw him through the melee of Prophets and into the massive, sealed door.
All combat stopped, and Zhar was disappointed to note that only three of the remaining eight prophets had fallen by their own blades, including Prophet Dithul. It seemed that the forceful reminder of his presence snapped them all out of the chaotic stupor that Zhar had orchestrated, and the five refocused on him in a unified front.
Even as they edged forward, Zhar threw out a hand, allowing bolts of lightning to expel from his fingers, but the Bothan inquisitor, Lo Sei'Dov, countered with her own blue white torrent, even as Saquesh Noloff and Pana Bibblie advanced on him, their sabers held in ready positions.
"Enough of this…" Zhar said, pressing a button on his wrist communicator.
From the vaulted ceiling, metal spheres dropped, red lights flashing on them as the explosives were armed and set to explode upon any contact.
Throwing himself to the side, Zhar escaped the first few explosions as the Prophets tried to throw the explosives away from them with the Force.
Only when the sound ceased did Zhar reemerge. Another two were dead from the surprise attack, leaving only Snarlfang, Lo, and Saquesh to face him.
Now that a scant handful remained, Zhar stopped playing on the defensive. Charging in, he hacked viciously at Saquesh's knees, forcing the Quarren to jump, even as Snarlfang ran from his rearmost position to join the other two. Sei'Dov jumped back, out of saber range and leveled her hands at Zhar, but he dodged the blast of lightning from the prophet, reflecting it with a swift cut of his blade and allowing the electric current to reflect off his blade into Saquesh as he landed.
The Quarren fell to his knees from the sudden attack, but recovered quickly. Snarlfang arrived, and the duel wielder pressed himself to the offense, hammering away as Zhar's blade as he tried to break through the Supreme Prophet's guard.
The Bothan inquisitor tried to move to a better spot and target him with more lightning, but Zhar caught her off guard with the Force, lifting her into the air and choking her, even as he batted away the smaller weapons of the goblin.
Saquesh started to edge abck into the battle, and Zhar hurled Sei'Dov toward the Quarren, forcing the tentacle-faced being to duck out of the way of the flying Bothan.
Snarlfang scored a shallow strike on Zhar's leg, and his concentration on the other two was diverted, even as Zhar kicked back at the goblin, connecting viciously with the dimuitive being's torso, and sending him flying backward.
Saquesh charged in, but Zhar was done with the fools. Embracing the Dark Side fully, he allowed the rage and power of his emotion consume him. Time slowed, and he dodged around the Quarren's pitiful attack and lodged his own saber into the back of the aqua being, dropping him like a stone.
Snarlfang leapt at him, in slow motion, even as Sei'Dov started to rise to her feet. Charging at the Bothan quickly, Zhar swiped upward, cutting through the goblin lengthwise, and vaulted toward the final Prophet, impaling the female through the chest with his saber.
Time reverted, and the surprise on the Bothan's face was multiplied by seeing Snarlfang fall in pieces from the air. "I warned you all not to mess with my power and authority," Zhar stated flatly, withdrawing the saber and allowing her to fall to the ground.
She died quickly, her heart skewered and now burned from within. Zhar looked over the terrible mess of the other eleven Prophets, and consulted the time. The battle had been decidedly shorter than he had expected it would take.
Leaving the room, Zhar addressed his apprentice, "incinerate the interior of that room…" he ordered, "it will be easier to simply replace it than clean and explain the mess…"