I just have to say to you guys… I want to write these action scenes but then I don't, they are fun but it is not easy writing action that spans on for a long time while trying to make it fast paced, dramatic, and hopefully fun to read… it is not easy writing these sword fights in detail, I know people have a hard time doing it. It's also hard to try and make every fight have some originality, I think the best duel I ever wrote was the one between Adi Gallia and Palpatine in The Rise of the Sith. Hopefully I can somehow rival that one with this… the last duel of Anakin and Obi-Wan… soon you will know the reason as to why.
Chapter 13: The Arrival
It was… in a word: scary. Obi-Wan had evolved into Darth Vader; it was shown in his fighting style which surpassed Anakin's in aggressiveness. During their duel in the hanger of the Nebulon-B frigate Anakin found himself constantly on the defensive, Obi-Wan attacked him with a fury he had never known of his former master. Anakin could remember the time when Obi-Wan commanded they style of Soresu… it was aggressive in its own right but it was also highly defensive, and that is how Obi-Wan used to fight, defensively, attacking only when opportunities presented themselves. Now Obi-Wan used a different style, actually a few, his was now a mixture of Anakin's own: Djem So, as well as Palpatine's, Juyo, and it also had a bit of Ataru in it with aerobatics, it was a mixture of these three different styles, all aggression, defense only when necessary, it was fast, decisive, and efficient, there was no more Soresu. Anakin had all he could do to get an attack in here and there.
As Obi-Wan delivered an overhead strike Anakin raised his blade to parry, back stepped, Obi-Wan preformed another strike to the left, right, then an uppercut, maybe coming in at the shoulder here and there, Anakin had to raise his blade to block every single one with lightning fast agility, or otherwise be cut down by the Sith. Finally Obi-Wan's relentless onslaught… slipped. The Sith Lord swung his blood red blade at Anakin's arm, Anakin then brought his blade up and the sabers locked. Behind the mask Obi-Wan gritted his teeth as he struggled against Anakin's strength. He had previously thought that perhaps his padawan was losing his touch. This was immediately proven untrue as Anakin broke the saber lock, sending Obi-Wan's arm flying backwards from force; however Anakin hesitated for going in with a killing blow. That was all Obi-Wan needed. He swiped his blade across Anakin's stomach, lightning fast reflexes was all that saved Anakin there. All Obi-Wan managed to do was create a singed line across his tunic.
Perhaps it was then that Anakin completely let go of whatever hope he had that Obi-Wan could possibly be saved. He wasn't even aware he had that hope at all, perhaps it was his subconscious, regardless it was released and then Obi-Wan didn't seem as aggressive, he did not seem to be on the offense so much anymore. There was no mistake that being a Sith had changed his fighting style, it was more aggressive, but now that Anakin had let go of his hope to save his master, everything became much simpler, Anakin struck with full force.
XxX
A lone X-wing sat is space near the hanger of a Nebulon-B cruiser. Leia was its pilot; she looked into the hanger bay, flashes of cerulean and scarlet collided and broke, sending flashes of white energy into the air, exploding on impact. Now there was no doubt in her mind that she had seen her father and Darth Vader enter that hanger. She had a choice now, she was assigned to go to the Death Star to reinforce the three squadrons along with several other X-wings, but she had to ignore that. She had to help her father. She kicked the throttle to full and shot inside the hanger bay, landing alongside Anakin's damaged X-wing, she hopped out to see her father and the Sith Lord locked in deadly combat. It seemed Anakin was getting the upper hand. Obi-Wan was now giving ground, but it all went to hell when she landed. Anakin's eyes flicked toward her, concern and fear evident in them, he knew, as skilled as Leia was, not even she and Luke together could defeat Obi-Wan, he was a Sith Lord, they were padawans only, on their way to knighthood. This was what drove Anakin to make a costly mistake.
His eyes locked onto hers for a single moment. "Leia get out of here! Run!" he cried. The moment he took to say this was enough. Anakin felt a boot contact with his chest; the force of Obi-Wan's kick stole his breath and knocked him flat on his back. Obi-Wan smiled beneath his mask, holding his saber high, ready for the killing blow. He looked down at his former apprentice who had bested him on Mustafar, giving him the need for this mask and his electronic limbs.
"Tell me Anakin, do you fear death, do you fear the dark abyss in which you will be trapped in for eternity?"
"The dark abyss is for Sith bastards like you!" Anakin spat. Obi-Wan chuckled.
"We'll see."
He swung his blood red blade down with all the strength he had, but it was stopped just inches away from Anakin's chest by an amethyst bar of energy. Leia looked into Obi-Wan's mask which stared back at her, their weapons locked over Anakin.
"Do you think this is wise…? Leia, is it?" Obi-Wan asked. "You, a mere padawan, crossing blades with a Sith Lord do you think you can best me?"
"I don't know do you want to find out?" Leia retorted.
"You're a fool."
Obi-Wan broke the saber lock, struck at Leia's leg, which she successfully parried; she slashed at her face but was stopped once more, impressive. But she was probably not skilled enough to… he feigned a slash at her left arm and then struck hard at her right. She wasn't fast enough; in just three blows she was defeated. Obi-Wan's saber sliced through her right arm, as smooth as a razor blade cutting through butter. Leia cried out in agony as pain shot up and down her nerve system. Her right arm, still holding the glowing violet blade fell to the ground, she along with it. Obi-Wan cackled loudly, he then turned to Anakin, it was his turn now.
XxX
Dauntless, Bridge
The battle was no longer focused between two lines of ships, it had gone completely to hell, plans were scrapped and everywhere ships were honoring the discontinuing of the order not to go broadside. Star Destroyers and Mon Calamari Cruisers pulled right up next to on another, starboard to port and just unleashed volleys of laser onto one another, blowing the hulls of their enemies into shreds and damaging ships severely. Tarkin had sweat on his brow as he furiously barked commands to the crew on the bridge of his cruiser that were to be relayed to the gunners on the starboard side which was so close to the port side of an Imperial Class Star Destroyer that they might have scratched one another's paint.
"Concentrate all fire on the Star Destroyer's batteries!" Tarkin bellowed to his gunner captain who quickly relayed the orders to the actual gunners. "If they cannot fire on us from their port side they'll go around starboard, we can get them then!"
"Concentrate fire also on their shield generator, within range it is." the green Jedi master at Tarkin's side ordered.
"Belay that!" Tarkin cried. "Their shields are low enough for our fire to get through! Concentrate all fire on their port batteries!"
The gunner captain, not really knowing who to obey sent a combination of both orders out to the gunners, Tarkin snarled and turned back to Yoda.
"You will not give orders on my ship!" he snapped.
"Your superior I am, the power to belay any of my orders you do not have Tarkin!" Yoda retorted.
The newly appointed captain did not dare retaliate, the Jedi master was indeed his superior, and the last thing in the universe he wanted to do was jeopardize his standing within the Rebellion, they did not trust him much at all at the moment, he did not want to lower their level of faith in him. However by the hard look on the Jedi Master's face he knew Yoda no longer trusted him at all.
"ETA for the Death Star to fire, what is it?" Yoda asked.
"I'd say about eleven minutes." Tarkin replied as the gunner captain opened his mouth to shout a report.
"Captain, we've depleted most of the Star Destroyer's port batteries, it's banking hard, about forty five degrees starboard!"
"Excellent, concentrate all fire on the engines! We'll stop it before it can turn and go broadside again!"
"Belay that!" Yoda shouted. "Concentrate all fire on the bridge tower we will."
Tarkin turned around to retaliate but decided it would be better if he did not speak at all.
"If destroyed their bridge is, then as good as useless it will be." Yoda said. Tarkin fought the urge to roll his eyes. Yoda simply turned away and walked toward the view ports, leaning heavily on the twisted gimmer stick wookies had given him so many years ago. Tarkin huffed and walked the opposite way, toward a holoprojector in the middle of the bridge so that he could watch how the battle was playing out.
Yoda gazed into space, it was filled with blasts of dazzling color as gnat like fighter's spat their hot venom at one another, and capitol ships launched blows of energy toward their enemies' hulls. Explosions of superheated gas popped up here and there, Yoda could feel the lives lost because of them. His gaze in the Force drifted from one to the next, but was eventually drawn to something out of place, some danger not of the space battle, taking place on a Nebulon-B frigate… and then he realized Anakin was in danger, he felt the anger of the Sith Lord Darth Vader who had stole Obi-Wan Kenobi's soul and replaced it with its own, and he also sensed pain, pain like burning spikes being pounded into the arm of Leia, accept there was no arm…. It became increasingly clear and less cryptic in Yoda's mind as he focused on it and understood. He set his sights away from the frigate, toward the lead capitol ship of the rebels, there he found the presence of Mace Windu which he reached out to contact.
"Mace," Yoda said through the Force.
"Yoda?" Mace asked back.
"In danger Anakin is, no time is there to explain. Go you must to the Nebulon-B frigate Relentless. There in the hanger you will find Leia injured, Vader and Anakin as well, deadly combat they will be locked in. Help him you must. Powerful Vader has become, unfocused on his goal Skywalker is I believe, blinded by his old friendship. Help him you must!"
"I'm on my way!"
Yoda let go of the force as the ship jolted violently. He spun around and commanded of no one in particular:
"Status report?"
"We're trying to lock it down Jedi master," an officer said. "But we believe a potshot got through our shields and damaged the gravity generator."
"Get it locked down then and get them functioning fully!" Tarkin barked.
"We're trying sir, they are damaged! It's confirmed, I don't know if they'll give out, the gravity well was hit."
"Well then fix it!" Tarkin commanded.
"Belay that order," Yoda said. Tarkin would have huffed in anger and gritted his teeth had he not remembered that Yoda was his superior. "The gravity generator, shut it off you will, transfer its power to our starboard batteries!"
"No master Jedi you cannot be serious!" Tarkin cried. "Anything that is not locked down will begin to float, and it could be damaged! What if it is something important? Like the energy cells for our turbo laser batteries?!"
"A good thing it is that the Rebels have a protocol for locking everything down." Yoda said.
XxX
Anakin leapt to his feet and summoned his lightsaber. He shot a look at Leia who has just passed out from the pain. A look of anger crossed his face; Obi-Wan had just made a big mistake.
"What's the matter my apprentice?" Obi-Wan sneered. "You're daughter is alive."
"Shut up, you're really starting to tick me off!"
"Anakin, remember you cannot give into anger."
"I'll show you anger!"
Anakin pulled his arm back and launched his lightsaber at Obi-Wan, it spun like a saw as it flew toward the Sith Lord, today Obi-Wan decided he did not wish to be impaled so he back flipped and the spinning cerulean saw missed. It flew back to Anakin's hand, and by that time Anakin was a foot away from Obi-Wan. He could do absolutely nothing. Anakin's foot came up and hit Obi-Wan's right hand, he cursed as his weapon flew out of reach. Anakin smiled casually and pulled back his blade for the killing blow. Obi-Wan chuckled slightly, kicked Anakin hard in the shin, and then used the advantage of Anakin gasping, and then kneeling over in pain to disarm him as well.
Both the Jedi and the Sith put their arms up in defensive positions, the Jedi's view was not so narrow, neither was the Sith's. There was such thing as a situation where a lightsaber could not be used, nor could any other weapon, on top of that using the Force would be unnecessary since both combatants were equally adept in that field, so there was only one other option.
Anakin threw a punch at Obi-Wan's face, he wanted to break that mask that the Sith Lord coward behind to hide his injuries. Obi-Wan raised his arm and stopped him. He tossed a kick at Anakin's leg but missed as Anakin leapt about six feet in the air. Obi-Wan's eyes widened as a boot flew at his mask. Anakin for one sweet moment felt victory would follow this kick, he was wrong, with lightning fast reflexes that shocked even Anakin Obi-Wan grabbed his old apprentice's foot in mid air. Anakin lost all control over his attack and his landing and fell hard on his back.
Obi-Wan pulled his leg back and Anakin barely had time to roll backwards into a hand spring and then land on his feet before Obi-Wan's boot contacted with his groin, that would not have been good. It would seem that neither of the two combatants would really be able to gain an advantage over the other with this hand to hand combat, so Anakin did the only thing that would help as Obi-Wan flew at him. He called upon the force and delivered dozens of lightning fast blows, punch, kick, head butt, anything. Obi-Wan also tapped into the dark power that fed him and blocked every single move successfully. Finally Anakin let up his relentless volley of kicks and jabs and ducked as Obi-Wan tried to come around with a wicked right hook. He jumped up, spun in the air and Obi-Wan felt the roundhouse kick Anakin had just preformed contact with his shoulder; he flew to the left and hit the ground. Anakin landed and ran towards him, calling his dead blade and reigniting it as he went.
In seconds Obi-Wan saw a flash of cerulean coming down at his chest. It was a miracle that he was able to summon his own blade and stop it, mere inches away from his face, so close he could smell the ozone through the nostril holes of his mask, emanating from the two locked blades. It was again a contest of strength, one that would not really be decided as an X-Wing landed in the hanger and Mace Windu leapt out of it, his violet lightsaber already glowing in his dark hands.
As if to further prevent this contest from being decided any time soon several rebels, armed with long blaster rifles stormed into the hanger. It was then Obi-Wan realized he could not continue this.
He had to escape, now.
Anakin shot a glance at the rebels and Mace, using this to his advantage Obi-Wan tripped the Jedi, and leapt to his feet. Mace charged at him, saber raised high above his head. However Obi-Wan merely extended a hand and the Jedi Master flew into the hanger wall. The rebels then exchanged glances, however before the thought of opening fire solidified in their minds they found that the barrels of the blasters were missing, and a flying crimson lightsaber was heading back toward its wielder. Obi-Wan caught it in mid air, turned, and sprinted with the aid of the force to that single, unused Y-wing, he jumped into the cockpit and was off before either Anakin, or Mace had even gotten to their feet.
Once Anakin stood he ran to Leia and hastily checked he vitals, her pulse was stable and her breathing was fast but okay. Anakin breathed a small sigh of relief; however Leia was drifting in and out of consciousness and groaning quietly in pain. Anakin turned his head to the baffled rebels, whose rifle barrels lay at their feet, smoking slightly where the lightsaber had severed them.
"Get a gurney in here now! She needs medical attention!" Anakin ordered they all took off for assistance, leaving their useless weapons behind. Anakin kneeled down and whispered quietly in Leia's ear. "You're gonna be okay Leia, stay strong, you're like your mother, don't give up, you'll be fine, in a few days you'll be sparring with Luke again."
Mace crouched down next to Anakin, they're eyes locked.
"How much longer do we have?" Anakin asked gravely.
"Seven minutes," Mace replied, his face grim. Anakin nodded.
"See how the battle is going. I should get Padmé off planet… I'll try and contact Luke. He should have succeeded by now."
XxX
Obi-Wan's cape glided over several crew people's heads as he walked across the path above the crew pit. The Sith Lord approached Admiral Piett who was standing confidently at the bridge view ports, gazing out at the battle they were winning. He turned as he saw his commander's reflection in the window.
"Lord Vader," Piett acknowledged, bowing slightly.
"Admiral Piett," Obi-Wan said. "Has there been a report from the Death Star?"
"Yes sir, there has been." Piett replied. "Admiral Motti estimates seven minutes before they are in range."
"Excellent. When Yavin is destroyed we will kill him."
"What? Lord Vader, I'm sorry I must have heard wrong…"
"No Admiral, you did not hear wrong. Motti is a traitor, I trust that at the moment his actions are predictable, he was in league with Tarkin who wanted to take over the Empire. I trust Motti shares those ambitions and he will wipe out the rebels because they would get in his way. Then he will turn on us. Before that happens we must kill him."
"I see Lord Vader. I will see to it personally that Motti is taken out; I outrank many people not loyal to him on the Death Star as do you. But I will see to it personally milord."
"Thank you Admiral, but why the sudden volunteer?"
"I suspect that you'll have enough things to deal with. A ship just landed in our hanger bays, we suspected rebel sabotage but instead we found three women. Only one gave a name, Mara Jade, the Emperor's Hand."
"Hmm, Jade, I met her before when I rescued her from Myrkr and several smugglers. Whatever she wants it must be important, the Emperor gave no word she would be joining us. Bring her up and the others as well."
Oh look how evil I am. Sorry, Obi-Wan doesn't get to meet Siri once again till the next chapter, but at least I gave you the Obi-Wan/ Anakin fight. I decided to have them go into hand to hand combat because I've never seen Jedi or Sith do that, only once very briefly in Episode III on the Mustafar duel, I guess both of them get disarmed and then Obi-Wan or Anakin punches the other and then kicks him, this was just before Anakin had the saber at Obi-Wan's neck on the table I think, yes, it is somewhat weird I can remember all this. But ROTS is pretty much embedded in my brain, it was the last SW movie after all. I'll shut up now so you can tell me about my evil cliffy.