CHAPTER 12

The chaos was something Carletta had never witnessed, not even when she was at the Sith Academy. There, everything, including the fighting was under, at least, some control, but this was unleashed mayhem that had no rules, no where to run and no holds barred in the wide, tall space that looked to be a storage facility.

Troops scrambled for cover and jumped out from hiding to give fire to the other side. A few Sith were nearer to the heart of the battle, backed up by their war droids. Carletta and Matturn ducked for the cover of some crates when a flurry of shots zoomed for them. Amazingly, they'd kept their advantage of not being spotted, but judging from the slow nod Matturn gave her, Carletta understood now was the time to use it.

Like a pair of predators, they leapt out of their hiding spots and went straight for unknowing prey. Matturn moved with speed and slick movement Carletta had seen glimpses of during the time they'd spent in each other's company.

Seconds after revealing himself and already three black armoured Sith troopers fell to the floor. Carletta followed his lead, letting go of all pity, all compassion, tapping into the merciless power that was manifesting inside her since she went through the Trials. It was almost as though she switched her persona, like a light going out. Honestly, she didn't know herself. All she knew was that when she came across the first trooper that wheeled round to take his aim at her, all that happened was no hesitation, just a swift slice and the fall of a corpse.

Two more approached her, firing wildly, but their shots were whacked straight into their chests. She moved toward Matturn as he tangled several troops in lightning that poured from his hand. Once he released the smoking bodies, he and Carletta defensively fought back to back. Their blades wheeling at the swarm of enemy fire. The troopers were backing away, appearing wary of the tactic, but when Carletta rolled her head to the left she noticed it was to get out of the firing path of the war droids that crawled menacingly for them. Missiles screamed at them, but Carletta dodged them with a leap and roll when they exploded into the wall. Matturn, however, didn't bother and merely grabbed them with the Force and flung them right back at the droids.

Carletta wondered how long it would take until the Sith on the other side of the room realised their attack and broke off from their advance at Jadus' forces. A large detonation of war droids was obviously the answer as three of them ran straight for them. Troops belonging to Jadus aimed their fire at them while they were distracted, but were defeated with ease.

Now was the time Carletta really proved herself to Matturn. These were not simply rookies that were still in training, or apprentices, but fully fledged Sith Lords that could kill her if she made just one wrong move. It may have been wiser to stay her ground and wait for them to come, but she preferred to be unpredictable in lightsaber combat and ran right at them. She could almost sense Matturn's surprise at this method when she glimpsed his defensive stance.

With a strong leap, Carletta held her blade over her head and brought it down upon the leader's own. The offensive move didn't pay off however when only one of them clashed with Matturn, while she was stuck with the other two. So much for the unexpected she thought.

Fighting them was similar to fighting Peligrous, the differences being they didn't have her style, or her experience. That wasn't to say it wasn't hard. She constantly made defensive blocks from over her shoulder when they circled around her, analysing for any weak spots. One was almost found when Carletta barely blocked the bolts of lightning that were meant for her back. Frustration began to show from them when their strikes became more aggressive and bold, but Matturn had taught her well in keeping the enemy at bay and use more patient ways in beating the opposition.

A deadly lunge pointed straight for her back. Again Carletta sent her blade over her shoulder in an instant, only this time she was fast enough to slash her saber up and strike the Sith across his masked face. He fell, and didn't get up.

There was hope in Carletta that this duel would get easier now, but the remaining Sith Lord only grew in strength after his comrade's fall. He made her back up while he sliced wildly at her, until reaching a wall. One whack was so strong Carletta failed to recover quickly enough to avoid the Sith's choke hold grasp. Her lightsaber fell from her hand, eyes staring helplessly at the crimson light ready to execute her. If this was the end for her she thought, then it would be the end of her village. She'd failed. That was before a second red blade appeared, one that was not held in the Sith's hand, but piercing through his mask. It retracted, revealing Matturn as the dead man fell. Carletta didn't want to look so shaken with fear, but there was hardly any point in trying.

'Don't end up in that position again.' he said drily. 'It was almost embarrassing for me to see your performance drop so fast.'

'Sorry, Master.' she breath heavily.

They rejoined the fighting, this time getting the jump on the remaining Sith, who at this point, were the last ones left to face. Jadus' forces proved formidable as snipers picked off the remaining troopers and war droids, keeping the Sith from getting any further. Carletta noticed how they ceased fire when she and Matturn struck from behind. There were five of them. Matturn remained composed as ever, but Carletta still felt shaken from her last bout. Thankfully Matturn kept behind her and the two became a defensive power that none of the Sith could land a single hit on. They danced round the Master and Apprentice that spun and twirled their blades fiercely, trying in vain with low slices at their legs as well as keeping a safe distance.

It was a waiting game for Carletta. She was simply anticipating Matturn's signal to get straight onto the offensive. It soon came when he took a step forward. Like a trained animal, Carletta fully understood the motion and changed from spinning her lightsaber to striking her nearest opponent with a slice to the shoulder. The Sith blocked it and tried to push her back with several strong blows, but Carletta proved to be more agile, avoiding most of the attack. She seized her chance and threw him away with the Force, right when another crimson blade was swung for her neck. Matturn blocked it, catching the Sith off guard which allowed him to swiftly slice at his torso and use the momentum of his swing to attack one of the remaining four.

Confidence was starting to rebuild inside Carletta. She fought her newest opponent with far more control and was beginning to think she enjoyed it. Even when the Sith, she threw away leapt straight at her furiously, her mind remained at ease, dodging the heavy strike by twirling to her left. Like before, it was one against two, only this time Carletta had some experience to assist her. She noticed how these Sith's attacks weren't quite as coordinated as they were with the previous two, so she wasn't quite as daunted. That wasn't to say it was far easier, because she certainly didn't feel like she was in control. However it did allow her to be more offensive, landing a strong kick into the thigh of one opponent and making a daring lunge that unbalanced the other as he avoided it.

An opportunity opened and she sliced the stunned Sith across the chest. It was now one on one. A slight glance told her Matturn had moved away from her and was practically on the verge of finishing off his last enemy. Carletta found herself in a similar position.

Although the remaining Sith Lord remained as strong as he was with his ally, Carletta was barely intimidated. They entered a saber lock and the two threw all their weight at the other, trying to unsteady them. Finally, a burst of fury in wanting to end it erupted within Carletta and she slid her lightsaber out of their hold and rammed it through the man's stomach. Her breathing fast and heavy as his body crumpled to the floor. She looked round at Matturn and saw he had already won his duel, staring at her with what she perceived as... acceptance?

A platoon approached them almost cautiously.

'Darth Matturn, I presume?' said the group's leader.

'I am.'

The troopers appeared more relaxed then.

'Then you're late. The invaders split into two parties. Obviously, we just dealt with one of them. The other was able to sneak past us and track down Lord Jadus.'

'Which way did they go?'

'Through the medical wing, but they sealed off the way there. We'll have to go the long route through the supply stores. Follow me.'

Carletta fell behind Matturn and strode off with the soldiers, many silent and almost robotic. Some did pass a nervous glance at them though, perhaps smart enough to to be a little suspicious of them, she thought. Betrayal and deceit were all too common in the Empire and lowly troopers were ones that usually got caught in the middle. She moved closer to Matturn, who was speaking to the leader.

'How many are there left, Captain..?'

'Narta. About two hundred individuals left the boarding ships. I suspect we've more than halved that now. However, I strongly believe they've sent the most dangerous opposition after Lord Jadus. We'd warn him, but they've jammed all comms.'

'So numbers aren't as great an advantage as one first thinks...' said Matturn.

'That's also not putting into account that they'll likely use stealth tactics in attack. Don't expect any furious fire fight if that's what you first thought.'

'Not at all my thoughts. Sneak and surprise are the only two ways to get close to Jadus. With that in mind, I'll check the ventilation shafts with a squad.'

'If you do that, I'll take the more direct route and try to cut them off. If we meet up somewhere near engineering, then we might be able to corner them.'

'Very well. My apprentice, Carletta, will join you. I sense you'll need her assistance.'

His gaze lingered at Carletta slightly before he set off down another corridor.

'Unit 4 go after him. We'll converge together nearby the reactor.'

As the small platoon scurried off, Captain Narta turned to Carletta.

'Both of us will take point. If you feel any new presence, alert us through signals. No sounds, no hesitation and, above all else, no mercy. Got all that?'

'Of course.' Carletta answered, slowly nodding.

'Good. Now let's get rolling. We've got a lot of bloodshed ahead of us.'