Taris Part 5
Back in the outcast village, Mission and Zaalbar had joined Carth and Melina, simply waiting for Revan to return from the Black Vulkar base with the swoop accelerator that Gadon wanted them to recover before the swoop race.
It had been over four hours since Revan and Mission had gone to search for Zaalbar, and Revan was still nowhere to be seen.
"I hope Avner is okay, he's been gone for a long time" Mission commented to break the silence.
"He is strong and he has the Force as his ally. I am sure he will return soon" Melina assured her.
"You're talking about him like he's a Jedi, Melina, why is that?" Carth asked, his paranoia seeping out into the conversation once again.
"Awwh, I feel special. You guys are arguing over me again!" Revan shouted from behind them, causing everybody to jump.
"Where's the accelerator?" Carth asked, noticing that Revan wasn't carrying anything in his hand.
"I already gave it to Gadon. That's why I took so long. You will also be happy to know that we all have rooms waiting for us in the Hidden Bek base and we all have transportation to the swoop race tomorrow" Revan told them, motioning them to follow him to their rooms.
Once they all got there, the team of 5 congregated into Revan's room.
"Alright, Avner, what's the plan?" Mission asked.
"Tonight I am going to finish off the lower city dueling ring and tomorrow morning I will rescue Bastila from the Vulkars. Then we need to find a way off this planet" Revan said, almost like it was going to be easy.
"What about the rest of us?" Carth asked.
"Honestly, there isn't much more we can do tonight, so relax or come watch me in the cantina. You can play some Pazaak or get a glass of Tarisian Ale, just remember that we can't afford to be nursing any hangovers until after we get off this world" Revan told her.
Zaalbar decided to stay at the Bek base to nurse his injuries while Carth went to play some Pazaak. Melina and Mission were going to watch Revan fight.
When they got into the dueling chamber, Revan told Zax he was ready to fight before moving back toward the two girls.
"Alright, whatever happens to me in this fight, remember that finding Bastila is the key. If I die, Melina will ride the swoop and use the Force to improve her chances at winning the race. Then you will need to find a way off this planet. Bastila's safety comes ahead of mine. Protect her at all costs. I hope I will be around to help, but if not, may the Force be with you" Revan said, turning and leaving without another thought, off to fight the last remaining member of the Tarisian dueling circuit.
Nobody noticed, however, when Zax pulled a guard off to the side after Revan walked into the arena.
"Make sure to set up the energy field for the Stranger's weapons" Zax ordered.
"Yes, sir" the guard said, leaving Zax's presence quickly.
"You will not survive again, Stranger" Zax whispered, turning his massive body toward the view screen.
Revan had just heard the starting announcements conclude and he pulled out a blaster and shot two shots at the trandoshan.
They hit the beast's armor, but they didn't leave a dent. Confused, Revan shot a few more bolts at the animal, hitting weak spots in the armor, but not doing any damage.
Now angry, Revan went to engage his opponent in a melee fight, dodging a couple of shots from Tanglow's weapon that left scorch marks on the wall of the arena.
"I see; that damn Hutt is trying to get rid of me. Well, two can play at this game" Revan muttered, using his vibroblade to block all the attacks from the dual blade that was almost too much for Revan to deflect.
The weakened metal of Revan's vibroblade just couldn't keep up with the other blade, and Revan knew it.
So, Revan dropped his vibroblade and stole a vibroblade from his opponent's belt, using speed and agility that he hadn't had to show before this fight. Nobody had seen that coming.
Now holding a full strength weapon, Revan had a newfound confidence and Tanglow had his first sense of nervousness that had been shown from the non-human so far in this duel to the death.
And with that newfound confidence, Revan attacked the alien with a renewed aggression that nobody had ever survived, save one.
With his opponent backtracking even faster now, Revan pressed his attack even further.
Revan could tell that he was going to win; it was only a matter of time. And time was running out on the defending dueling champion.
When Revan knocked the large alien to his knees, the entire arena knew that the battle was over. Revan stabbing the vibroblade through the large alien's heart just put the icing on the cake for Revan winning the duel.
A couple of seconds after the alien fell on his face, Revan felt a slight tremor in the Force. On instinct, he turned and rolled away as a thermal detonator exploded, sending Revan flying across the room.
The next few seconds were especially tense because neither fighter was moving. It seemed like both were dead. A draw had never happened in a duel to the death before, so nobody knew what to do.
But it wasn't a draw. Revan jumped to his feet, raising his arms in victory for a couple of seconds before storming out of the dueling ring, right at Zax.
"What was that all about?" Revan demanded, causing Zax to shake on the spot.
"I don't know what happened" Zax stammered.
"That is the biggest load of bantha poodo that I have ever heard!" Revan shouted, his anger causing the other occupants in the room to leave, save for Melina and Mission.
"I have an army" Zax warned.
"Yeah, I have a Wookiee" Revan snapped.
"What do you want?" the Hutt asked, his voice wavering in obvious fear.
"I want every credit you made off of me today" Revan hissed. Zax pointed Revan to a chest that held 21 thousand credits. Nodding, Revan moved to walk away but stopped. He slid the chest back to Mission before walking back to Zax.
"What is it now?" Zax whimpered. Revan shrugged and kicked Zax in the gut, throwing a frag grenade into the Hutt's mouth before walking back to the Hidden Bek base, but not before hearing the sound of the Hutt being splattered all over the walls of the cantina.
Revan joined Melina and Mission who had watched the fight, including the heated battle that took place after. When he looked up, Revan noticed a disappointed look on the face of Melina.
"You look disappointed, Melina. Might I ask why?" Revan asked.
"Revan, why did you kill the Hutt?" Melina asked.
"First off, he tried to kill me. I really don't like it when somebody tries to kill me. It is one of the few things that will turn me against anybody. Second off, I saw that he was a slaver before. Normally, I torture slavers until they are literally begging for death, but we have a schedule to keep, so I just decided to make it quick" Revan told her, shrugging as if it was something he did every day.
"Hmm, well as a Jedi, you know I cannot sit idly by as you kill any defenseless being" Melina told him, standing up to show Revan that she meant business.
"Yeah, trust me, Hutts are never defenseless. You turn your back on them for a second and they can hire somebody to stab you in the back" Revan told her.
"Is that why you wanted the money you made today?" Mission asked.
"Not exactly, Mission. I actually just wanted to have the money so the Hutt couldn't have it" Revan told her, smiling sheepishly.
"Lets just get back to the Hidden Bek base" Melina muttered, storming off after realizing that Revan wasn't going to listen to her and do anything other than what Revan wanted to do for himself.
And maybe, just maybe, that was the way it had to be. Maybe that was the way it had to be for Bastila to be rescued, not that the Jedi Council would ever do anything that Revan asked them to do. That would go against their values, and though she knew Revan wouldn't do that, but still, Melina would try to convert Revan back to the Jedi, even though deep down, she knew that Revan was doing what was right, even though she didn't even want to admit it to herself, at least not quite yet.
Author's Note: Well, I guess I had to end on a note like that. It had to happen. The Hutt got what was coming to him, and I think Revan did it well. A thermal detonator into the mouth and into the stomach must be a horrible way to die, but then again I wouldn't know!
But only a few more chapters until we get off of Taris. I think there is only 3 more chapters until leaving, so I am excited for that, and I hope you are too. So please stay with me until then!
Anyways, thanks for reading and I hope you review! That would be great, thanks guys!