Chapter Four: Beliefs
Jresh charged toward his enemy, not with some unruly rage, but with focus. With a stoic visage, he closed in on his monstrous foe before leaping and delivering a powerful fist to the creature's face. The blow forced the Massassi to take a knee, where it released a primal roar, shaking the chamber.
The beast lunged forward, attempting to tackle the Pureblood. Jresh fell backward of his own accord, anticipating his opponent's movements. As the abomination surged forward, the warrior slipped beneath it in one smooth motion. Jresh brought his legs in tight, before extending them into a powerful kick to the beast's midsection. Channeling the Force, the Pureblood was able to send the Massassi flying backward.
Lorrik looked back down the path he had traveled as the roaring echoes from the previous chamber reached him. The Human's eyes began to subtly dart back and forth as he saw only the faintest light at the other end of the passageway.
"He can't win, you know," the spirit taunted. His voice chilled Lorrik to his core, each smooth syllable bypassing the senses completely to connect directly to his mind. The inquisitor returned his gaze to the ethereal Human, who took to standing politely with his hands tucked behind his back.
"I believe in him," Lorrik softly stated.
"Is that so? And why would that be?"
"Because he needs me to believe in him. Because I need me to believe in him."
The spirit let out a snide chuckle. "Of course, that's what's been holding back the Jedi and Sith, none of them ever believed in anything. One day you'll find your beliefs will only hold you back, boy."
Lorrik paused, staring as the figure's ghostly visage. "You're probably right. But until that day, I'll do whatever I damned well please."
"Oh ho, the boy does have the making of a Sith, doesn't he?" the spirit teased, rubbing his ghostly chin. "Let me guess, you've come to pilfer this tomb, find some lost artifact belonging to some ancient entity so that you can finally kill your master, or your rival, or whoever it is you feel yourself deserving of dominance over?"
"We came at our master's behest. To find something worth bringing back. And I've already found something," Lorrik explained.
"Really? Do enlighten me."
"Knowledge."
"Rather presumptive of you to believe I'd simply let you have my holocron."
"I'm not talking about any physical tome," Lorrik declared. The spirit arched his brow as his attention focused upon the intruder. "Before I came to Korriban, I was afraid. Afraid of what might happen to myself and my family before I ever knew I was Force-sensitive. After beginning my training, I was still afraid. Afraid of where I was heading and what I was leaving behind. After I became an apprentice, I was afraid. Afraid of what might happen if I wasn't strong enough. But I'm not afraid anymore. Because of the man fighting back there. He lends me his strength, and I lend him mine. And together, we can accomplish anything."
The spirit cast a harsh look into the inquisitor eyes, holding it for what felt like an eternity, before letting out a loud, drawn out yawn. "That'd surely be interesting… if it were true. You hide your thoughts well, boy, but your emotions are easy enough to read. If you are not afraid, why do you keep looking back? If you are not afraid why must you continuously remind yourself that you are not? There is belief… and there is delusion."
"And what is it that you believe in?" Lorrik asked.
"Myself. Me and me alone. That is what sustained me for hundreds of years. That is what allows my spirit to persist beyond my body's demise. The willingness and belief to do whatever is necessary to achieve ascension."
"And yet here you are. Dead. Trapped in a tomb. A selfish Sith buried by his fellows. How's that for ascension?"
"I have not yet faded from this realm. The death of the body is a mere setback for the truly powerful."
"Powerful? You've a single tomb holding a single holocron protected by a single guardian. I don't know what the Order was like in your day but-"
Lorrik found himself unable to complete his sentence as an invisible force overtook him. His limbs stiffened and he began to lose control of most of his body. Frozen, the inquisitor watched as the ethereal specter darkened and adopted a harsh, blood-red hue, tenebrous shadows pooling beneath his feet. Slowly, Lorrik was lifted off his feet as it became harder to draw each new breath.
The warrior and beast combatted, Jresh taking calculated moves using the creature's momentum against it. With each furious slash of its claws, the Pureblood would maneuver around the Massassi, attacking its flank before backing off and preparing for the next exchange.
Jresh's attention faltered as he felt a creeping darkness emerge from the final chamber. A knot began to form in his gut as he felt his companion in pain. The distraction left the Pureblood open to attack as the abomination brought down a diagonal swipe of its claws upon the warrior. The sharpened and hardened talons raked across Jresh's face, cutting deep into his flesh and leaving three bleeding wounds across the right side of his head. Three bleeding lines marred his visage from eye to jaw.
"You two share a connection, don't you?" the sprit taunted as it effortlessly gazed upon the struggling Human. "You know he is in pain. You know he is losing. You know your belief in him amounts to nothing."
Letting out a pained grumble, the Pureblood found himself next thrown onto his back against the cold stone flooring by the attacking beast. As he lay upon the ground, the Massassi secured a single-handed grip upon the warrior's neck and chest. The abomination began lifting and slamming the back of the Pureblood's head against the stone, again and again. With each subsequent slam, Jresh felt himself getting weaker and weaker. As he was struck against the stone once more, he began to feel a dampness pooling within the hairs upon the back of his head.
"That man… is the strongest person I know," Lorrik declared through struggled breaths. "If my belief amounts to nothing... that just means I'll have more to give."
In the brief moment between slams, Jresh was able to turn his head. A short distance away, he saw a dark object resting amongst shadows. His lightsaber. With his last bit of energy, he threw out his open hand and focused his mind. The black hilt began to stir upon the stone floor before heeding its master's call. The Pureblood tugged upon the weapon with the Force until it had made its way into his hands.
Jresh extended the crimson blade and swept the lightsaber between himself and the monster, severing the arm holding him by the neck just above its elbow. The Massassi stumbled backward, clutching at its right stump with its left claw. Jresh meanwhile removed the hand that had chosen to remain firmly around his neck.
Lorrik dropped to the floor as he was released from the spirit's lifting hold. The ghost's previously unwavering stance faltered as he stumbled back, the pooling shadows receding. He appeared weakened, stunned. The inquisitor let out a few wheezing coughs as he attempted to recover. The two figures seemed exhausted, neither able to stand tall.
"It would seem… that you're not as disconnected you might like to believe," Lorrik declared.
Jresh rose from the ground, lightsaber in hand, whatever effect the beast had on it having run its course. The Massassi howled as it gripped the charred stump, releasing sounds of frustration rather than outright pain. The Pureblood felt dizzy, but soon regained control of his body. The aches faded as he cast his sharpened gaze upon the creature. Charging forward, Jresh readied his weapon to deliver another sweeping strike.
The beast released its grip on its severed bicep to bat the blade away with his remaining left hand. The saber sparked and crackled with the momentary contact with the back of the monster's blackened hand, but remained ignited. The Pureblood continued his assault, lashing out with focused swings and calculated thrusts. The Massassi was for once on the defensive, gliding along the stone flooring and deflected whatever blow it could not dodge.
Jresh altered his stance, moving away from powerful two handed strikes to quick jabs and slashes hoping to make it past the abomination's defenses. Slowly, the warrior was able to chip away at the Massassi's guard. As the guardian would parry his blows with its blackened claws, Jresh would follow through rather than resist the retaliatory motions. The creature batted the saber away, only for Jresh to spin and return with a wide sweep, raking the crimson blade across the beast's chest.
The rest of the creature's hide did not possess the same resistance its hands did. The saber's blade left a shallow, scorching cut across its recipient's front. Unable to land a proper finishing blow, Jresh opted to instead land as many minor attacks as he could.
"You believe myself to be connected to that… thing?" the spirit asked, straightening his ghostly stance, his voice still full of pride.
"Yes. Even if you don't," Lorrik declared. "It's a product of Sith Alchemy, correct? The process of altering life itself?"
"As astute observation, boy. Limited, but astute."
"Why limited?"
"Because I was practicing the art before I had ever stepped foot on Korriban. Before the Jedi even knew of the Sith," the spirit explained. "Sith Alchemy was the mere practice of primitives until we arrived. No, what we wielded was something much more. The ability to create new forms of life. A dark power, one we went to war with the Jedi over the right to study."
"Dark Jedi," Lorrik muttered. "Exiles from the Hundred-Year Darkness. The first Sith Lords."
Jresh and the Massassi continued to do battle. Numerous cuts marked the creature's body, but it showed little signs of fatigue or exhaustion. The Pureblood kept up his fight to the fullest, but he knew he could not fight eternally. As the warrior readied another downward swipe of his weapon, the beast extended its arm, ready to grasp the crimson blade. Instead of halting his attack, Jresh deactivated the blade mid swing, reactivating it after the hilt was past the creature's reach. The extending blade clipped the Massassi's side as Jresh finished his swing.
Jresh continued his assault, making quick strikes, rescinding and extending the blade of his lightsaber to make it past his enemy's claws. Each attack could only graze the monster's body, but the wounds were beginning to add up. Liquid began to seep from the beast's wounds, the cauterized cuts reopening near places of articulation. A dark red liquid slowly poured from the injuries, an unnatural ichor.
Bringing down his saber one last time, the warrior's strike was halted by the beast clasping its claw around his wrist. As his right arm was stilled, Jresh delivered a series of blows to the Massassi's oozing midsection with his free hand. As his fist battered the creature's abdomen, the guardian slowly twisted the warrior's wrist, directing the lightsaber's blade toward its wielder. Jresh shut off the weapon in time to prevent it from cutting into his own flesh. The beast continued to push and twist the Pureblood's arm, until the emitter of the lightsaber pressed against his chest.
Turning on his heels, Jresh moved inward rather than attempt to escape. Maneuvering the Massassi behind him, his wrist still gripped, the warrior grabbed ahold of the creature's arm with his free hand. With a hearty grunt, Jresh lifted the beast off the ground, and threw him over his shoulder, slamming the guardian onto the ground in front of him. Just as the Massassi's back struck the stone floor it released its grip on the Pureblood's wrist. Igniting his saber one last time, Jresh lowered himself and plunged the crimson blade into the heart of the fallen beast.
As the Massassi lay motionless upon the ground, Jresh withdrew his lightsaber and rose to his feet. For the next few seconds he simply stared at the fallen being, letting out a series of exhausted breaths. Returning the black hilt to his belt, the Pureblood took a single step away from his fallen foe, before his legs began to weaken and falter. Jresh caught a single glimpse of a light at the end of the hall Lorrik had traveled. Before he could take another step, his entire body grew heavy and he slumped to the ground.