Chapter 5: Shadow Strike

Nimueh had seen her fair share of races in her time, and even the Boonta Eve Classic a time or two, so she knew how dangerous the circuit was. It was filled with sudden drops and dark caves, it required far more than the regular skill that a pilot — even a Jedi pilot — had. That Merlin would be running in it and, from what she had gathered, not the first time, was one more proof of his talents.

She waited along the others as the flags came to the track, and ignored how Will kept explaining the fine details of the ceremony to the three young people that were part of her company. She noticed that Merlin's mother, Hunith, had arrived, too, and watched it all with a worried gaze. And yet — her expression was kind and soft, and it gave Nimueh the impulse she needed to come and talk to the woman — she would not be so cruel as to just snag the boy away.

"I have heard your dealings," the woman said, before she could open her mouth, and Nimueh liked her immediately for her frank speech. "I know you plan to take my boy away from me."

There was infinite sadness in her eyes, as if she knew herself powerless to do anything about it. Nimueh knew she could trust their secret with her.

"Many call me master, but I own no slaves," she said cryptically, and as the woman's blue eyes met her without understanding, Nimueh allowed her to see the double-lightsaber that had remained hidden under their robes. Hunith's eyes grew wide, before her features eased, clearly feeling more at ease around her. "It's the chance of a new life — a life without hiding, a life without lies, that I'm offering your son."

Hunith nodded and said no more.

"Has he displayed… talents other than piloting?"

It was obvious that the habit of hiding ran deep within the slave, and she said nothing, her mouth set in a hard grim line as she looked outside, to where the flags were now starting to leave the track. Then, as if realising that there was no point in lying to Nimueh, she spoke in a whisper that betrayed pride and fear in equal measures.

"He could move objects before he could talk — before he could walk. I often found him, still a newborn, with toys and things I had not fetched or that were supposed to be out of his range."

"Somehow, I'm not surprised," she answered, with a sigh, although it should be surprising as she couldn't remember having ever heard about children so young showing that much aptitude. "There is just something about Merlin."

"Yes," Hunith agreed, love shining through her eyes as the light turned green and the race started.

For a moment, they were silent, observing as the pods zoomed ahead, heading towards their goals. Merlin's pod, however, didn't move, which the commentator was ready to notice. After a few gasps and some moving around, it speed up quickly, almost a blur as it went out of view. Their eyes moved from the track to the screens that allowed them to see as the runners continued their course, but Merlin wasn't in them yet, a few seconds meant the difference between winning and loosing a race, and he was already starting badly.

Still — Nimueh did not doubt Morgana's vision. The boy would win, one way or another. The how was the only thing left to discover.

She saw Hunith flinch as Sebulba made a particularly harsh move, pushing another competitor out of the race and straight into the rocks, the pod smashing against the rock walls that limited the track. It felt like a good time as any to speak.

"Who was his father?" she asked, finally, returning to their previous conversation.

She hadn't expected the way Hunith's face morphed, moving from anger to grief to defensiveness before answering.

"I carried him, I gave him birth, I raised him."

Nimueh smiled, understanding all too well how important this was.

"Yes — and did a wonderful job, too."

The compliment clearly caught her off-guard, before she shook her head.

"There was no — before, there might — but the time doesn't fit — he was dead long before…" She sighed, fighting with her words. "There was no man in my life by the time I got pregnant. Not for years."

That made Nimueh frown, it was an unknown data. Some species were known to take years to breed, but none of them could impregnate humans. No father — it was no surprise Hunith was so defencive about it; for who would believe her?

Nimueh, however, didn't doubt her for a second.

Because she knew what that meant — that strength, that uniqueness, those were more, far more than the marks of a common Jedi. It might even be…

But she was getting ahead of herself. She needed to check the boy before claiming something as outlandish as that.

They remained silent, all eyes glued to the screens and Merlin finally joined the rest of the runners, passing some of them by quickly; his reflexes were excellent and not even a collision a few meters ahead threw him offtrack. There was more to it, though, than good piloting — he had moved even before it could've been foreseen by a common person, as if he knew, somehow, that it would come.

Hunith held her breath as he was shown flying into the dark caves, and Nimueh wondered what they looked like from inside. It was no surprise no human would play this game, the whole thing was built on their weaknesses. And yet — Merlin emerged a bit ahead than he was before, gaining positions with every passing second.

Sebulba was still ahead, of course, by a good space. He was already going over The Coil, and it seemed unlikely that Merlin would reach him anytime soon.

No one was surprised when, a few moments later, Sebulba crossed through the arena, starting his second lap. After two more pods, came Merlin; his engines in full blast. They all cheered, in spite of him not being in the lead. As soon as he was out of sight, though, they quieted again. He easily got the third place while running through the Starlite Flats, but no one could change positions while entering the narrow curving canyon that made up the section known as Waldo Flats. As they emerged into the Mushroom Mesa, cutting through different rocks, Nimueh saw first hand exactly why Sebulba always won — not because he was the best, alone, but because he was ruthless. In spite of being on the pole position, he quickly threw an object behind, and, being aimed just right, it got to the fan in his closest opponent's pod, being thrown inside. The pilot lost control and clashed to one of the rocks, and the explosion resulting from it brought the whole thing down, far too near Merlin for comfort, but once again the boy moved away easily.

It was almost too much for Hunith, and she set down, hand over her heart. Will tried to console her.

"He's fine — he is always fine — he wouldn't be caught like that," he said, rubbing her back. "And he's flying so well — I bet he'll even finish the race this time."

"What do you mean, this time?" questioned Arthur, turning around. "He never even finished?"

His face was murderous, but Will was clearly used to worse thing than a ugly expression.

"It's a hard race — are you even watching?"

Arthur glared at Will first, and then at Morgana, but she just grinned at him. Nimueh didn't blame him, she had no idea who she would've reacted in his place, without the knowledge of why Morgana did what she did, without the understanding of the Force that allowed them to make this decision, but it didn't matter. There were now less than half of the competitors still on the run, and this had been just the first casualty. More might come, and she doubted anyone would try to punish Sebulba for it. This was the way of life in those things.

She could, however, understand why a mother would be worried upon seeing it.

Merlin was now crossing the Canyon Dune Turn for the second time, and while the first time around had gone smooth, he now was hit by one of the Sand People's shots. Nimueh watched as his left propeller stopped, but somehow, he managed to both keep the pod in control and rework things so it would work again. Quick thinking would be important in his life, even if he didn't end up being who she thought he was, and even more so if he were. He crossed the Bindy Bend without issues, and Sebulba was within his sight through the whole canyon length that followed. Still, the champion was much more experienced, and used it to his advantage as they entered the Hutt Flats, his motor working at full speed and they barely saw him as he crossed through again.

Merlin's real chance came when Sebulba bumped on the floor when he entered the Ebe Crater Valley. He didn't lost control of his pod for more than a few seconds, but it was enough for Merlin to close on him. Even through the canyons, Merlin kept on getting closer to him, until that when they reached the Dune Sea for the last time, they were side by side. Sebulba lost no time in throwing his pod — bigger, sturdier, clearly top of line — into Merlin's smaller one, but the boy gave no inch. He tried it one last time before they reached the Arch Canyon, and Sebulba kept his lead, though not by much.

Even the padawans looked tense now, as they watched them twisting and turning around each other in the midst of narrow walls. Nimueh could hear their accelerated heartbeat when the caves meant the saw nothing of what was going on; but both emerged unscathed as before to face the shots from the Sand People, who ricocheted uselessly around them, but managed to catch the following runner. They remained together, none gaining true lead during the rest of the canyons, until Merlin did a sharp manoeuvre, cartwheeling his pod through the corkscrew to avoid Sebulba's traps, and finally, as they were about to emerge, he lured the champion to move his pod too close, which led the Dug's pod side to hit the wall, slowly him down.

Merlin pressed his advantage, speeding up through the Hutt Flat, and it seemed that while Sebulba was still trying to get ahead, his pod had been more heavily damaged by the hit than it first appeared, losing height with each meter ahead, until he was left on the ground at the bed of the long dried up lake at the same time they finally saw Merlin through their own eyes, almost reaching the arena, and the boy safely crossed the line, winning at last.

Nimueh let out a sigh of relief she didn't even know she was holding, and Morgana turned around, throwing her arms around Mordred, and even Arthur screamed in joy while tears ran down Hunith's cheeks, a sad smile on her face.

"Take good care of my boy," she whispered, looking at Nimueh.

And that she had all intention of doing.

She was proud of her boy, she truly was. She had always believed he would do it one day, and the happiness all around the box had been enough to assure her that he would be well taken care of. Master Nimueh seemed harsh, but kind, and really, there was little more she could've wanted for her child. During those early days after he was born, Hunith had living in both fear and hope that someone would show up and ask her to relinquish her child, but the war had created some ill will towards the Jedi on their sector which in turn made tracks difficult.

In the end, in spite of all that she had lost to wars — her freedom included — she was glad of it. The war meant the Capital had never learnt of Merlin's powers, it meant being taken away from her home, but it also meant keeping her child, which would never have happened had they remained in Essetir. It had been a swift attack — pirates — and their whole village was taken away. Most of them had been sold to different masters in the otter rim, but Hunith had managed to keep both her boy and Will, poor Will, whose mother had died during the raid. Kanen sold him during the last dry season, since he needed the money, but he was still close, just working across the street to a food vendor.

He was going to leave, now, but she had had twelve years with him, more than she had dared to expect.

It had been selfish of her, she knew, but she couldn't help it. She would change it, now, she would let him go. It would be a good life — well, a better life than the one they had now that Kanen was their master.

So she fought to keep her emotions in check as she descended, as she congratulated him, as they took pictures and gave him his prize. Kanen, of course, would keep most of it, but it mattered not, because the biggest prize wasn't the one the Hutt were giving, but the one the young woman, Morgana, had risked herself to give him.

Merlin had spoken often of leaving Tatooine, of seeing the galaxy, of doing good things, of helping people, freeing slaves.

He would be able to do it now.

"It is a pity," Kanen says, self-absorbed as ever. "I would have loved to have you in my household."

Morgana snorted at this, but when she extended her hands, he kept his part of the bargain and gave her the controls.

The other boy — Mordred, if her memory served her correctly — eyed Kanen carefully as he walked away with Master Nimueh and Arthur, to solve whatever problem that had brought them into Tatooine in the first place.

It takes but a few seconds before Morgana spoke again, the happiest and saddest words Hunith would ever hear.

"It's done — it's off — he is free now."

Merlin had just approached them, then, and he frowned.

"Who is free?" he asked, looking around, and Hunith couldn't help herself, and she hugged him.

"You, my darling, you," she told him, finally, and she could feel the shock rocking his body.

"Me?" he asked, and turned around on her arms. She let go of him, trying to clean her tear-stained face, for that was not to be a triumph, not a defeat.

"Lady Morgana bet with Kanen that you'd win the race — she convinced him to free you if you won, risking her own freedom."

"I'm no lady," the younger woman said, blushing, but she turned her eyes on to Merlin. "But I did bet on you — I did… — I wanted you to be free.."

His eyes were glued to her then, as if he had never even considered that anything as wonderful as her could even exist. Hunith herself could barely believe the girl's compassion and her surety — but then again, the shaved head and the braid should be enough of a clue for someone who was raised in one of the core worlds. Whatever the others might say — and there were always those gainsaying it, specially here, on the outer rim,— that was the proof that the Jedi were around to make the galaxy a better place for everyone.

"I was right before — you are an angel!" He exclaimed, finally, once he stopped gapping.

It made the padawan giggle, and the boy next to her laughed as well.

"I'm really not," she insisted, her eyes full of mirth. "But I wanted to help you — you are a very special boy."

That made Merlin freeze, and his eyes quickly moved towards his mother.

"It's alright, my boy," she said, rubbing his back. "You can trust these people."

"Yeah," Merlin agreed, immediately, and it made her heart pang, specially when his eyes moved towards Mordred's with the same adoration as before, for her child was long gone and the young man he would be shone through his eyes, ready for a future, for a life, she could never share. "Yeah, I really can — because, mom, they're like me. They're, like, my people."

Hunith could do little but give him a watery smile.

"Yes, sweetheart," she said, sadly. "They really are."

Merlin felt high on excitement all day, and didn't truly notice anything wrong until they headed home in the evening. By the time the race had ended, and the parts had been found — one last job for Merlin before freedom — and secured in a cart, both suns were low on the horizon, and it was much to risky to cross the desert. Jawas could be nice, but never when there was something to be gained; and Sand People were mostly inside, but there were always a few roaming around, ready to bounce on any prey they saw.

So Hunith had invited them all to spend the night in their home. It would be crowded, sure, but Merlin didn't mind sharing and it was always good to have company. Will, on the other hand, couldn't go with them, as his Master was making him work the night shift in his greenhouse. His mom had always been happy before when having company, but now she seemed conflicted. It made Merlin frown. She was off to prepare food as soon as she was inside, and Mordred and Morgana had offered to help while he remained with Arthur and Nimueh, standing on their tiny balcony, as Nimueh helped him cleaning his scrapes.

"It's just a pinch," Nimueh said, before putting one small device against his arm and sure enough, it pinched Merlin.

"Ouch," he said, reflexively, and Arthur laughed.

"So you're brave enough to nearly be exploded on track, but afraid of a little needle on the outside?" he asked, and Merlin closed off his expression.

"I was just surprised," he justified, but clearly the man didn't buy his answer. What a prat.

"Thank you," Nimueh said, before eyeing the two of them for a moment. "Didn't you say earlier you would show Arthur something?"

Years of practice meant he knew a dismissal very well when he saw one, so he gestured with his head to the inside, leaving the woman alone. Merlin wasn't completely sure what to make of her — she had been incredibly nice to him all the time, but there was something scary about her, almost feral, which was a weird combination, if he ever saw one. He led Arthur towards his small working space, and pulled up the cloth he had used to cover the project he had been working on. Merlin was proud of his little project, and it would help his mother a lot.

"This is G-ORG" he said, turning the droid on. "Well — that is his designation — I prefer calling him George."

Arthur seemed amused that he had given a proper name to the droid, but Merlin didn't mind. He was way too used to be treated like a thing not to give it a name. Merlin turned on the droid, and it was confused for a moment before he sat himself.

"Master Merlin, what a surprise!" he said, his voice seeming truly pleased in spite of being completely electronic.

"Hey, George," he said, and the droid stood up. "He isn't ready yet — it's a protocol droid, to help mom."

George took notice of Arthur for the first time and moved slowly, still feeling the ground underneath him. Merlin had changed the feet joints since he had last turned it on.

"I don't believe we were properly introduced," he said, his voice both friendly and stern. "I am G-ORG, named George, a human-cyborg relations droid. I'll be pleased to assist you in any way I can."

Arthur seemed torn between amusement and awkwardness, as if he wasn't all too used to droids. He gave George a sharp nod.

"I'm Arthur," he said, finally.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," George announced, proper as ever. He then turned to Merlin. "Is there anything in particular you need, Master Merlin?"

"Not really," he said, not knowing what to say now. He looked around, not wanting to turn the droid off — he often had wondered what that must feel like, and doubted it would be good. "But — we have four guests. They will be staying the night. You may get started on getting things set for us to sleep later."

"It will be my pleasure!" George replied, ready to serve as ever. It was exactly what he was meant to do, but it made Merlin feel a bit discomfited every time by his eagerness to do someone else's biding.

"Dinner's ready," his mother voice announced, and Merlin was too well raised to delay for even a moment.

"Let's go," he said, and the two of them were off.

Mordred didn't think he would ever get used to the hard task that was taking children away from their parents and thanked everything in existence that he wasn't to be a recruiter himself. Although this was better, much better, than his previous experience, the fact that they had to spend far longer around the aggrieved mother was harder than what he could have expected. The Chief had been in pain, but in the midst of so much loss, he hadn't been able to handle too prologued a farewell, and the boy had been tiny — but Merlin was almost as old as Mordred had been when he went into Nimueh's service.

It would be a hard sell to the council — for starters.

But the talent was one that could not be denied — the midichlorians count was above anything anyone had ever seen.

So, hard as it was, it had to be done. It was one of the few moments he felt thankful that he was still just a padawan, and the hardest part of it wouldn't fall on him. He didn't know how much he could take of consoling yet another child on the way to Coruscant.

"I want to ask you something, Merlin," Nimueh started, her voice sounding far more light than he would have expected. "When you dreamed — because I'm sure you dreamed of it — when you dreamed about being free; what did you want to do?"

The boy sort of shrugged, and favoured Morgana with a smile, still thankful for the gift she had bestowed him.

"I don't know — becoming a pilot, I think," he said, finally.

"Well, you do have the talent for it," Arthur smiled as well, and for a moment, Mordred could even believe this was a friendly meal.

"If you could be anything — do anything — you would be a pilot?" Nimueh asked, disbelief in her voice.

"Well —" Merlin blushed, betraying his true age. "It's stupid…"

"Don't say that," Hunith interrupted. "You can tell them."

"I promise I won't laugh," Nimueh agreed, her whole face soft. Merlin's eyes darted to Arthur, and the king seemed solemn for once, very unlike the teasing and prodding man he has been towards the child from the get go.

"Nor I," he guaranteed, and it seemed to be good enough for the boy.

"If I could — if I had — well… I'd like to help people, to make life better for them. So, I think… If I could be anything — well, I think I would like to be a Jedi."

There was a pregnant pause at the table, while everyone but the boy (and, perhaps, Arthur) knew that it was far more than a dream, that it was his destiny, and one as clear as the movements of the stars.

"What if I told you you can become one?" Nimueh asked, her face growing serious.

"It's impossible," scoffed Merlin, with a shake of his head. "I could never…"

"Nothing is truly impossible," she answered, her voice firm. Finally, it was time. "Can I fully trust you, Merlin?"

"Yes," he answered without a breath, frowning at them. "Yes, of course."

Nimueh gave them a look, and picked up her long lightsaber from her belt, placing it across the turned off, even with all the details and encryptions, it could not be confused with anything else. Mordred and Morgana followed her suit, putting their own smaller and more discreet hilts on the table, and Merlin's eyes became huge with shock.

"You are — You are all Jedi!" he exclaimed, looking around, baffled.

"Not me," Arthur said, grinning, and Merlin let out a delighted laugh.

"No, you are too much of a prat," he agreed, before looking at them again. "This is why you could put that pile up without touching it!"

Mordred could only smile at him, his excitement was infectious.

"Yes — and I bet you can do the same thing."

"Yeah," he agreed, before looking contrite and glancing at his mom. "But no one is supposed to find out about it."

"It is nothing to be ashamed of," Morgana said, putting her hand over his. "You can train — become like us."

Merlin looked around, as if he just couldn't believe on the day he was having. Mordred could only imagine how it felt like, but the good energy coming from the boy made him feel more at ease.

"It is not an easy life, nor an easy path," Nimueh warned. "But — if you're willing — you can come with us and become a Jedi yourself, like you always dreamed."

"This is…" he was clearly at loss, overwhelmed by emotions, and at that very moment, Mordred could not understand why Jedi spent so long trying to deny good feelings as well as bad ones. "Can I go?" the boy asked his mother.

Hunith was a strong woman, this much was obvious. Her face betrayed none of her pain as she turned towards him.

"It is your choice — yours alone," she told him, before taking a deep breath. "But it means a life in control of yourself, it means no more hiding, no more lying…"

"A better life for us," he nodded, and it was the one thing that it took. "You're coming too, right?"

"I'm sorry," Morgana said, sorrow shining through her expression. "I tried — but Kanen wouldn't free her."

Merlin stopped, quiet for a moment, before giving a small nod of acceptance of her words.

"My life is here, Merlin" Hunith said then. "My future as well."

"I don't want to leave you alone!" Merlin explained, and Mordred looked away, not wanting to be privy to that moment. His eyes met Arthur's, and there was something in there too, a softness that he hadn't seen before.

"I won't be alone," she guaranteed him. "All our friends will still be here — and Will. Someone's gotta take care of Will."

That got a small smile out of Merlin, and finally, he nodded towards Nimueh.

"I'll come with you."

As he said these words, Mordred felt a sense of rightness he had never experienced before. It had been no coincidence that had led them to enter Kanen's shop — this was what was meant to happen all along, this certainty was the reason for Morgana's apparent recklessness. This was the path for him — and, somehow, for them all. This was what they were meant to do.

Merlin felt lucky he didn't have much — and still, packing a life for leaving was hard. It was not about the things he had to take — there were few enough of those, and Nimueh had warned him that possessions were discouraged — it was the harsh reality of saying goodbye to everything he had ever known.

Arthur, Morgana and Mordred had left at first light to bring the items back to the ship and starting the repairs, but Nimueh had given him longer to fix up his things and say his farewells. He had first gone to George to tell him about his impending move, and promising he would have his mother keep him. He had been such a great friend, in spite of being a droid and of being so uptight. Then he passed by his neighbours, and the news of his freedom had already spread. All of them had good wishes to sent him, and some even gave him tokens to remember them by. It was a hard life they led, but he knew they always had each other and would care for Hunith.

Will was in front of his house with Nimueh and his mom when he returned. His mom had his rucksack with her, and Nimueh was clearly ready to leave. He held his friend — almost brother — close for a long while, not knowing what words would possibly be said.

Finally, he settled on the obvious.

"Take care of Mom for me."

"I will," the older boy promised, a smile on his face, as if he wanted to make sure no sadness was felt on this moment. "You go and be amazing as we all knew you should be — and don't forget to put that stupid ponce in his place."

Merlin laughed at it, shaking his head at Will. Then, it was time to talk to his mother one last time.

She held him close, and Merlin tried to commit it all to memory — the softness of her warm body, the smell of her hair, the kindness of her voice.

"Be good," she admonished him, and ran her hand through his hair, pulling it behind his ear where it had grown long. "Always remember I love you."

"And I you," he said, his voice trembling. "We will see each other again." He vowed, and she smiled.

"I hope so," Hunith agreed, and caressed his cheek. "Now, go. Your destiny awaits."

And, with that, Merlin let go of his mother and went.

It was too easy.

Now, his padawans and even the young king might not see it, but it had been far too easy. They had found a ship that had been left over twenty years before. Not only it was fully functional, but also it contained hard gold, as if ready for a escape.

They had gone pass the blockade with little damage, in spite of the time the ship was left to rot.

The first shop they had entered had parts, from what he heard.

And met a boy who seemed to have more midichlorians in him than had ever been considered possible; a boy they had somehow managed to free from his slave master.

It was just too easy.

It just wasn't right.

Gaius was an old man, a man used to hard situations, and to battles. That was not how things usually happened.

Morgana had a brightness in her eyes when she returned, as if she had lived a whole adventure in the few hours since he had last seen her, and it made Gaius weary — but, then again, she was fine, and he wasn't going to fuss. It was probably better not to know. Mordred seemed at ease, too, and eager to start working on repairing the ship, Lance volunteering to help. He was a good boy, Lance, a knight to make their name a proud one.

Percival, too, he knew, and he enjoyed how quiet the big knight was. Even Arthur seemed more at ease, his skin tanned golden by the twin suns of the planet.

Everything was in place when Nimueh finally showed up, a boy in tow.

Gaius had been expecting it, of course, but it still surprised him at how small and thin the child was. Morgana had told him the boy was twelve years of age, but he was small as a child of eight. There was no denying his power, though, it ripped through Gaius as a storm.

It was a wonder and a danger at once, at least like this, untrained and unknowing what he was capable of.

Merlin — that was the boy's name — lost no time to go and help the older men with fixing the circuits that had been damaged by time and fire, and Gaius walked outside for a moment, trying to escape the noise and commotion inside the ship.

The growing age made him grumpy, he knew, but right now the silence and peace of the desert seemed like the best option. He allowed his old legs to enjoy the particular warmth offered by the place as he walked away from the door, further into the dunes. From what he had heard last, they were almost ready to go, but they could wait for him a bit.

He tried, hard, to maintain his peace — he searched tranquillity inside his heart and in his union with the Force, but it seemed to be disturbed, unquiet as he was.

Gaius was unsurprised to open his eyes and see a bike speeding towards them — someone clearly over it. He was ready when the dark-clad man jumped out, his lightsaber in hand, as he met the other man's lightsaber — shining red.

It could only mean one thing.

One thing that wasn't supposed to exist for thousands of years.

There was no time to think on it, though, only to react. For all the decades he had in service, he was not too rusty with his duelling, moving quickly to avoid blows that were far more inclement than anything he had ever experienced before.

Part of his mind could do little but warn Nimueh, and he hoped they would just get on with their activity. He could handle it. The blocked any further thoughts from his mind, as he continued to move, sand quickly dissolving under their feet, trapping them.

It gave the other man — younger, more nimble — the advantage, but Gaius was not one to give himself up. Whatever people might say of Consulars, they were not faint hearted.

He moved his lightsaber left, in a quick parry as he got ready to run towards the ship — it was not a fight he could win, he wasn't too proud to admit it, but the younger man did a somersault, coming to stand in his way. He could see his face now — clearly human, underneath the fire melted skin and the hard tattoos in black and red, the first hint of hair returning after a shave, shining like fire under the sun. He couldn't be older than thirty-five, by Gaius calculations, but the malignant glint in his eyes were timeless. A master of rage and hatred, one that should have long been gone.

Gaius was doing his best to avoid being killed, both hands at the handle, when he saw Morgana rushing out from the door. Stupid girl.

"Start flight!" he yelled at her, before blocking another attack. When his eyes returned to the spot she was on, Morgana was gone.

He could only hope they'd heed him.

Gaius made first contact, burning the side of the man's shoulder, but it didn't slow him down — if anything, made him angrier, as if the memory of burning was what fulled his rage.

The sound of the engines turning on and the ship starting to take off were like heaven.

Gaius stepped back, glazing upwards for a bit, calculating his escape at the same time he held his opponent back. It was a matter of timing everything just right.

He made a particularly aggressive move forward, and while sloppy, it was unexpected, and caught his opponent off-guard. It was obvious that he hadn't expect him to stray from the perfect form III he had so far presented, and Gaius used the opportunity to impulse himself upwards in a full Jedi jump as he hadn't done in years. It wasn't quite perfect — but he managed to get a hold of the lowered platform, and used his right leg to start propelling himself onto it, and they were rising fast, there was no way that the man could get him now.

He wasn't exactly right.

Gaius felt a sharp pain — worse but cleaner than anything he had ever experienced, in is left leg. There was a moment of stillness, before all skin, muscles and bones exploded in feeling, fire burning through him, and he almost fainted from it, taking a few seconds to notice how Percival was now pulling him in.

Gaius looked down only to prove to his incredulous mind what his head and his body already knew.

Under the knee, where frazzled and seared cloth seemed to have melted with the flesh, his leg was gone.