Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Note: Apologies for the delay in this and thanks for your patience! The holiday period got pretty busy and stressful which caused some delays. Anyway, hopefully the wait was worth it! Much love to all my reviewers and readers. As always, the support I get from you all is utterly amazing.

Chapter 40 - Predator

Location: Onderon

"Galen?" Juno's voice crackled over the com-link.

"I need PROXY to run a search for me." He took another small step back from the toothed atrocity.

"What do you need?"

She sounded oddly distracted but there was no time to question it.

He was in the middle of describing the beast to her when the dark clone snapped out of his dazed state and flew at him. Galen's sentence was left half finished as he moved to defend himself, driving his blade down over the clone's to shove him back. They twisted apart and were turning to face one another when, without warning, the beast was on them.

It was quicker than it looked, jerking its head sharply from side to side; attempting to spear them with the tusks sprouting from either side of it's wide mouth. Galen leaped backwards and, focusing the Force, sent a blast of energy straight at its flailing head. The ball of energy struck true but the creature barely even flinched; its head snapping around to focus in on him. Rows of spittle-covered teeth seemed to flex in eager anticipation for a kill.

Dark side energy flared and Galen felt a bite of unexplainable anger as the monster stalked towards him.

His arm came up again, sprouting blue lightning that snapped greedily against the horned crest but dispersed a moment later without effect. The attack seemed to spur it into action and the monster retaliated with a barbed forearm, claws seeking to rend flesh in two. Galen tumbled to safety, bringing down his saber to crack the blade against the bumpy, horned skin. The plating smoked but the only sign of contact was a dark, singed mark branded into its hide. It lunged again, the tips of its claws tearing the fabric of his sleeve as he leapt out of harm's way. His senses felt clouded and he landed awkwardly, swinging a horizontal slash to fend it away. The blade screeched against the snub of its snout and then he was being shoved off of his feet, the monster snarling over him, reaching down with its monstrous jaws.

Galen stabbed upwards in a desperate attempt to land a hit that might hurt it, spearing the saber up through the roof of its mouth. The beast screamed—

—and closed its jaws.

For one horrific moment Galen thought that he'd lost the limb; the pain so intense that it left him half-blind. Anger and desperation filled him and vented into sparks that crackled along the length of his wounded arm and down the creature's esophagus. That, at least, did have the desired affect.

The powerful jaws came loose and the creature reared back, lightning briefly illuminating its insides as it writhed in the aftershock of the attack.

His arm was left torn and bloody, a deep gouge of flesh torn away just above the elbow leaving a flap of skin just barely attached. The multiple rows of teeth had minced the surrounding flesh into a horrific mess, so much so that he felt sick just looking at it.

Galen's com-link crackled with static and then PROXY's voice came through – faint but audible. "Master?"

But the beast was recovering and the sound of the com-link had drawn its attention back to him again, its yellow eyes blazing. The ground was turning to sludge beneath its heavy claws and sucked noisily at its feet as it advanced. If the Force couldn't be used against it perhaps its own bulk could be?

But then the dark clone was giving a roar of rage and duel blades – red and blue – came slashing down through the rain, bouncing hard off of the creature's back. The monster jerked its head around.

"He is mine. Do you hear me? Mine. I will kill him, not you," the dark clone was screaming, incensed.

Galen dragged himself backwards, sabers extinguished, holding his mangled arm awkwardly in his lap. Blood seemed to be seeping lazily from the jagged wounds. If he drew on the Force he was almost certain he'd be able to push through the pain—though blood loss could soon become a concern. Perhaps if he tried to bind it? Looking up through the haze of rain and dark side energy, he could see the beast rounding on the clone, now. Either he was being stupid or he was stronger than Galen had given him credit for. Regardless, the clone stood his ground as the monster charged, building energy for a devastating blast of Force that he released just as the creature closed on him.

The energy slammed into the monster's chest with enough force to cripple the thickest of durasteel—

—and dispersed like the wind.

Galen registered the surprise on his adversary's face before the claws raked across his torso, opening him up from sternum to hip. His bloodshot eyes were bulging as he made a hasty retreat and Galen could read his thoughts from the expression.

How had the monster gotten past the Force attacks?

It was clear by now that they were squandering energy. The dark aura around the monster seemed to be protecting it from harm and he had no idea how to get around that without risking his limbs to deadly teeth.

"Master?" PROXY attempted again.

"Go ahead." He tore off the ragged sleeve of the shirt he was wearing and began to wind it tightly around his wound. It would restrict movement a little but his grip was still steady and with the Force as his ally he was certain it wouldn't pose too much of a hindrance. Almost certain, anyway.

"I would advise caution," the droid chattered over the channel. "If my calculations are correct, Force attacks will have little to no effect on this creature. All indicators point towards it being a terentatek."

"A what?" It was hard to hear him over the storm.

"A terentatek, Master. "

The dark clone was being harassed by the so-called 'terentatek' as Galen strained his ears to listen. The dark forces that followed it seemed to flow from its body in palpable waves and he had no doubt in his mind that the throbbing in his head was as a direct result of it. He leapt back to his feet and steadied himself, drawing the Force in a close, protective bubble around him. The blades came alive in his hands, held low as he gave each an experimental spin. There was pain. A considerable amount. But he had fought Vader in far worse conditions as a youth.

But pain, he would soon learn, had been an ally of the dark side and was harder to ignore in the light.

PROXY continued: "They were known as the predators of Jedi, feeding on their Force energy. Master…the aura they emit could taint a Jedi, forcing them to fight in groups in an attempt to subdue the effect. A single Jedi could easily be overcome."

And all at once his vision made sense.

This was the trap that Vader had set. The dark clone had never been anything more than a puppet. A distraction from the true threat. Vader didn't want him dead. He wanted him to fall. Anger flared within him, though he immediately quashed it down; replacing it with a steely determination instead. He would sooner die than slip into the madness that had claimed his fellow clone. But perhaps Vader knew that, too. Perhaps he cared little about whether Galen fell or died. Either way the result would be the same: he would be lost to the Rebels.

The monster recoiled, roaring in pain as lightning ripped jagged claws through the sky. The rain was so heavy that only the creature's angriest roars permeated through the intense clamor of the storm. The dark clone was yelling but Galen heard not a word. Clearly he'd managed to strike a decent hit.

If Galen couldn't use the Force directly against the creature he'd have to resort to using his saber – though the idea of sticking his arm into its mouth again was…unappealing. There had to be a weak point between the thick, scaled hide; some vulnerable ligament that could be severed to impede it. Everything had a weakness to exploit. It was just a matter of finding it.

And then the terentatek came crashing towards him, chasing the dark clone who was dodging from left to right to stay clear of its slashing claws. His com-link was crackling back into life as PROXY continued but the words were lost as Galen back-flipped out of harm's way, slapping the hissing blade across the creature's flank. The terentatek flinched and snapped around to focus in on Galen, its nostrils flaring. There was a score in the crease between its neck and crest, leaking thick, green blood – the injury given to it by the clone. But behind it the dark clone grasped at the wound on his chest, panting either in pain or exhaustion.

Galen danced out of reach as the terentatek thrashed its head from side to side, and erupted into a flurry of blows; aiming for its eyes and nose and the gums between its multiple rows of teeth. And, whenever the pain in his arm threatened to rear its ugly head, he drew on the Force to keep it at bay, concentrating only on piercing the beast's armor and the rush of rain. The Force was without limits. If he could keep feeding on the energy it offered he'd be able to keep going, he was certain of it. Even if he didn't have any Jedi to band together with, he did have a mad Sith clone. That would have to suffice.

"We're not going to be able to do this alone," he called at the top of his voice as he ducked a claw meant to take off his head and stabbed upwards; the tip of the blade rasping against the terentatek's throat. The skin there was not exactly vulnerable but the groove the blade left was noticeably deeper. If he got through the skin perhaps a second well-aimed strike would pierce deep; cut off its air.

"You think I'm going to help you?"

"You already have once, remember?" Galen snarled, allowing the terentatek to drive him backwards, parrying and dodging with risky manoeuvres - the muddy soup beneath his feet growing more and more treacherous.

"No," the dark clone snarled stubbornly, though he launched himself at the beast and brought a single blade down over his head, both hands on the hilt to further the strength of the blow. His blade hit the terentatek between the shoulder blades. The beast twisted. Dark energy pulsed. And the flat of its snubbed head slammed into the clone, sending him stumbling backwards. It seemed the clone was slowing down…

As a comeback, the dark clone threw his saber, sending it spinning through the air, striking the beast a glancing blow across the jaw. Then it was back in his hand, the blade hissing and spitting like an angry fire in the rain.

Galen rushed forwards, taking advantage of the distraction. His blade came up, his wrist twisting to lever the saber up into the crease of skin behind its elbow. It met resistance and then, surprisingly, the bumpy skin split apart, the blade sinking a hand's depth into its ribcage. A burst of green blood sprayed the air and the terentatek threw its head around, intending to impale him on its bowed tusks.

Nausea claimed Galen again, his head spinning as he tumbled to safety, whipping the blue saber into the air to keep the terentatek at bay. He regained his feet – staggered and gagged – and drew the Force into him in an attempt to purge himself of the dark infection. A twinge of anger pulled tight in his chest.

The pain was nagging, too. He'd never learned to deal with it in the way that Kota had – another technique he would now never be enlightened on. He had embraced pain as a youth, wallowed in it, used it to fuel his strength and anger. That had been his power. But not anymore. He couldn't go back down that path – even if the temptation was growing.

The dark clone unleashed another bout of blue lightning, both hands forward, fingers curled. The electricity went wild, tracing through the rain in a crackle of light and running across the terentatek's body, almost completely encasing it.

Galen reached up with his good arm and wiped the rain from his face with a sodden sleeve.

His com-link crackled again, PROXY's voice coming in fits and starts. With the poor signal and the howling gale, Galen didn't even try to comprehend what the droid was saying.

The terentatek lifted itself until it was standing fully upright and brought its front claws down in a powerful sweep. The clone dropped to the ground and rolled, though he seemed to struggle to rise back onto his feet.

Galen thumbed the activation switch of one of his blades and in three long bounds was back at the monster's side. The terentatek sensed him just as he lunged up for the weakened point at its neck and swung around, roaring defiantly. Its malodorous breath burned Galen's eyes as he lurched to the side, scoring the creature's shoulder and spinning to follow it up with another. The terentatek swung low this time – to try and take his legs out from under him – and he jumped, landing nimbly on the beast's back. The rain and the blood from the minor wounds dotted on its body had made its skin slick and oily. He fought to keep himself in place and, digging the toes of his boots between thick scales, he brought the blade down again, slamming it against the base of its neck; hoping to severe its spine. The armored hide held strong and, as he lifted the blade to try for the second time, the terentatek went wild, raking at its sides with claws that couldn't quite reach.

The darkness seemed to thicken and Galen grew strangely faint; his conscious self attempting to recede into nothingness. One of his feet fell out between the terentatek's scales, pitching him forwards and the monster reared, cracking its head hard against his chin.

He tasted blood.

And then the slap of cold, wet mud against his face told him he was in trouble. With a pained groan he rolled over onto his back and fumbled for the saber at his belt. The monster was above him now, its shining eyes full of gleeful hatred. He felt the swell of hot anger in his chest and the beast seemed to thrum with strange, twisted amusement.

He gave a roar of frustration as the monster lanced its snout down towards him, the note taking on a desperate edge. In his mind's eye he could see the terentatek's mouth around him, his body bursting between its teeth in a spray of blood. His hands came up – one burned and one bloodied – bracing himself against its weight as he pushed back against its jaws. His burned knuckles now felt nothing compared to the pain of the gouges on his arm. His fingers curled to latch between its teeth of the lower and upper jaw, clenching tight, and he imagined the strength he would need to tear its jaws wide apart until the bone and flesh split.

Electricity licked across his forearms again, awoken by his desire for survival, and the terentatek – clearly recalling the pain of before – tried to jerk away. He tightened his fingers reflexively even as his body was lifted clear off of the ground. The pain reignited, squeezing a startled breath from his lungs and – in a moment of weakness – he turned the negative energy into a burst of Sith Lightning so strong that it blasted him clear of the monster's jaws and sent it into violent convulsions.

Breathing hard, Galen dragged himself backwards through the sluicing mud just as thunder cracked directly above them, so loud that it seemed to shake the planet. The huge beast was still in the throes of agony when the dark clone appeared, his eyes as bright as the sabers in his hands. Lightning cast stark shadows across his pallid face as he lunged outwards, taking the terentatek in its wounded side. The saber sank deep and the beast – still locked in seizure – gave a horrific wail.

It took him a moment – as he lay there in the mud – to realize that his com-link was crackling again; the disjointed voice pitched high with panic.

"Galen! Galen? Do you read me?"

"Juno?" Her voice drew him back to himself. He lifted the com-link up and pressed it to his ear to better hear her over the squall.

"Is the terentatek dead?"

He could barely see for all the rain but from the sounds the creature was making it was certainly in a great deal of pain. The darkness had thickened, too, as if readying to consume the corpse. Its essence seemed to be whispering sweet enticements.

"It's wounded," he breathed, trying his best to keep his voice steady.

"Did it get you with its claws?" Her voice was shaky with fear.

"No." At least, he didn't think so. "Why?

"PROXY was trying to tell you."

And the droid cut in: "There is a deadly venom contained in the claws and tusks, Master. A single scratch could prove fatal."

"What about the teeth?" he asked, thinking of his shredded arm currently being held together by a strip of his torn sleeve.

"There is no mention of teeth in the data log," the droid confirmed after a moment.

And then Galen realized. He might have evaded those slashing claws but the clone had not. His eyes snapped across to the battle raging just ten paces away, the monster staggering and crashing across the clearing as it attempted to crush the clone.

So far the dark clone seemed to be staving off any effects of the venom though he seemed to now be sporting another angry red gash down one side of his neck. And, on closer inspection he seemed to be moving as if he were in a great deal of discomfort.

Galen forced himself back to his feet, staggered and braced himself against the broken stump of an old tree.

"So you're okay?" Juno asked.

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine." Mostly.

She tried to speak again but her voice was lost to another fierce howling from the terentatek as it bulled through the tree stumps, a tangled cord of thorns trailing from one of its hind feet. Galen secretly wished that the two of them would end up finishing one another and freeing him from the responsibility of having to take the dark clone's life.

The dark energy fluctuated suddenly, driving pricks of needle-sharp pain into his skull. He snarled in irritation and widened his stance to keep himself upright. The terentatek was lurching across the clearing, lashing out with claws and tusks in an almost blind frenzy. Rain ran torrents down its heaving sides, drawing blood from the spatter of wounds.

A burst of Sith Lightning put a metallic fizz into the air and it reared up again, angered, its lungs working like a pair of huge, worn bellows. The dark clone slammed two bouts of energy into its head and chest to slow its rampage and rolled out of harm's way, coming back to his feet covered in muck. The saber whined in his hand as it pivoted and Galen prepared himself to make use of the distraction.

Switching the blue blade to his less injured off-hand, he drove forwards, using the Force to augment his speed. He was on the terentetek in less than a second, attempting a killing stroke with a clean, vertical stab. The tip of the blade struck an already weakened and bleeding point in the terentatek's neck and sank an inch beneath the skin. In the same moment he summoned sparks that ignited into lightning and rippled down the length of his arm, flowing down to the tip of the blade embedded into the dark beast. The creature instinctively jerked upwards to throw him off but the upwards motion worked in Galen's favor – forcing the saber deeper into its neck.

It gave a sucking, gasping breath and the strength seemed to go out of it. It sagged forwards as Galen was working the lightsaber free; his senses suddenly sending out an alarm of warning. He looked up to see the dark clone launching at him, using the beast's head to gain extra height with ease. The red saber blazed in a fiery arc, scoring Galen across the collarbone as he attempted a hastily constructed retreat.

Thunder rolled above them as he fended off the first string of attacks and forced the dark clone to back away with a few wrenching swings of his saber.

"It's your turn to die now," the dark clone hissed.

Galen got out of harm's way and lowered into a defensive posture, blade held in a reverse grip that buzzed parallel to his forearm. The hilt of Kota's blade was in his leading hand, igniting a green brand protectively over his chest.

"Get out of the way of my destiny."

"This was never about you," Galen replied, his voice cold. He was struggling to feel anything but contempt for the twisted figure before him.

The dying terentatek gave a low growl and tried to turn its head; the side of its tusk knocking against the dark clone's leg.

The Sith clone didn't even seem to notice. "The light has no strength here. Can't you feel it?" He thrust out an arm to enforce his words. And he was right about that. Even though the terentatek lay dying the place reeked of darkness. The cold aura draped across everything like a heavy cape and put a throbbing pain behind his eyes. The land itself was corrupted; the ancient ruin a testimony to the fact that it probably had been for centuries.

"This was never about you," he repeated; his wounded arm listing. "Don't you understand? Are you so blind you can't see what's happening here?" He felt his rage growing with every word that burst forth. "This trap wasn't set for me alone. It was for both of us. That creature was supposed to kill us both. As far as your 'master' is concerned, we're both failures."

The cry that uttered forth from the dark clone sounded almost distraught.

"And even if you do manage to kill me," he added with a hint of malice. "There's a lethal venom currently coursing through your body. You're already dead."

"No!" The dark clone flew at him and, automatically, Galen lifted his wounded arm to block the blow. The pain sang through him and he hastened to bolster himself with the Force.

"You know it's the truth," Galen spat. "Why do you deny it? He sent you here to die at the claws of that monster. And me? Fall or die, it all amounts to the same thing. I'd be dead to the Rebels and Vader would be free of the thorn in his side. Face it. You're worthless and Vader used you. He always has been."

It was hard to tell whether Kota's method of defeating the clone was working or not. It was certainly affecting him but not necessarily in the way the old general had predicted.

The clone launched into another violent tirade that had them wheeling and spinning in lengthy, complicated sequences that saw them moving back and forth across the clearing, leaping from one tree stump to the next in an attempt to avoid the perfidious mud.

"You can feel it, can't you?" Galen snarled, persistent now, as their sabers crossed again. "The venom burning through your veins?"

It was hard to tell in the torrent of rain but the gash on his neck seemed to be oozing.

"You think venom could kill a Force user? A Sith?" the clone replied, throwing a few testing swings in his direction.

"I know it does."

"You're wrong."

"All I need to do is bide my time."

"You will die before I do," the clone barked.

Their sabers clashed again, the intensity of the light rivaling that of the lightning clawing zealously above their heads. And Galen – shoving away his pain as far as it would go – followed an overhand strike with a spinning leap that sent the clone stumbling back into the mud.

"Give up," he warned.

"Give up?" The clone burst into laughter. "When you are in so much pain? I can sense it. How much it bothers you."

Galen squeezed the hilt of the green saber as if to prove him wrong. "Not enough to slow me down."

"We'll see about that." And he pushed up from the muddy ground to land on his feet, his body still twisted at the waist as if to ease the pain of the wound concealed beneath the torn, bloody rags he wore. "Let us put an end to this, shall we?"

Galen only readied his sabers in response.

To be continued...

You may find details on the next update in my profile. The next chapter will be the last, followed by the epilogue.

Thanks for reading!