Hi, everyone. At last, I'm back.
So, first off, I think I owe you all an explanation as to why I've been gone, given it may cause me to be unpredictable with my uploads, and I am not sure how my writing is going to be going for the next few months.
So, the reason I haven't been online for weeks now is because my wife and I unfortunately are getting a divorce. I obviously won't go into details, but I will say that it is completely amicable on both sides, and that only makes it all the harder to deal with. I've been dealing with this for a month and a half now, and have only just regained my will to resume writing.
I have moved out and am now on my own again (well, living with family but you know what I mean). The legal process is underway and will soon be finalized. I have no idea what direction my life is going to take now, but I do know I intend to continue writing, and so, I'm back to writing at last. I wasn't sure if I was ready, but I really wanted to get this chapter up in time for May 4th. I thank you all for your patience as I've been away from fanfiction for a little while, and hope you'll continue to be patient with me going forward.
Alright. Enough with the depressing talk. Let's get back to the story. If you need to catch back up on the last few chapters, do that before you go any further, because we're jumping right into it.
Guest: Yeesh, I couldn't even begin to give you a number on the population at this point. Definitely in the trillions, though.
Jason Carter: Yeah, sometimes I miss stuff. I'm trying to do better, and I'll probably start editing past posts for errors.
tristian5: Hey, its okay man.
Endor: I have thought about Allana, but I don't think I'm going to do it.
MR11: No, I don't plan on doing a story about Jaina's time as a Mandalorian.
Chapter 92- The Sith and the Jedi
Ben snarls as he brings one of his sabers up in time to block a fierce strike from Darth Bane's lightsaber. He ducks and rolls aside as Bane attempts another strike at his head. As he rolls, he slashes his other saber at Bane's leg, but Bane deflects it with the Force.
Rey let out a fierce war cry as she leaps forward to engage Bane again. Bane brings his saber up in a flash to block one of the blades of Rey's saber, but Rey swings the other blade of her saber around to try and catch him in the shoulder, but Bane spins away from the humming blade.
Ben growls as he watches his wife dueling Bane. Their duel with the Sith Lord has been going on for several minutes now. To say it has been challenging is an understatement. Nothing they have ever faced has challenged the limits of their skills and powers than this duel has. Bane's skill with his lightsaber exceeds anything they've ever seen. On top of that, Bane is fully integrating his Force powers into his dueling, which adds a whole new layer of challenge.
Ben lets out a war cry as he uses the Force to rip chunks of stone from the floor and send them flying at Bane as he simultaneously charges at Bane, holding his lightsabers ready at his sides. Bane lets out a burst of Force energy that knocks Rey back before he raises his hand, stopping the rocks and Ben in their tracks. Ben growls as he struggles against Bane's hold, but Bane has him firmly frozen in place.
However, Rey is not as affected by Bane's attack as he thought. Seeing an opportunity, Rey draws a small throwing knife from her belt, one of several she carries with her for just this kind of scenario, and throws it at Bane. Bane doesn't see or sense it coming, and the blade slices into his right wrist, the hand he was channeling his hold on Ben with. The wound is not very serious at all, but the pain distracts him and causes him to release his hold on Ben. Ben immediately charges at Bane.
Ben slashes at Bane's head with both sabers, but Bane easily blocks the blow. Ben tries several more strikes around his torso, but Bane's saber is moving so fast to block his blows that at moments, it looks like there is a wall of energy between Ben and Bane.
Rey rejoins the duel, sending a bolt of Force judgment at Bane as she moves in to strike him from behind. However, Bane shoves Ben back with his saber before he whips around, absorbing the bolt into his hand and quelling it. He then sends his own Force lightning at Rey. The bolts are so powerful they almost knock her off her feet, and Rey summons the Force around her just to keep herself on her feet.
Ben snarls and slashes at Bane's wrist on the hand that is sending the lightning at Rey, but before his saber has hardly moved, the hand is no longer where it was…and is now sending lightning at Ben as Bane is also summoning rubble lying around to throw at Ben. Ben desperately tries to hold off the lightning while also fending off the rubble, but one small piece of rubble gets past his defenses and hit him in the knee. Ben stumbles, and a second later, Bane's lightning is coursing through his body.
Ben screams in pain as he drops his sabers and is thrown backwards. Seeing this, Rey feels fear surge through her and she charges at Bane. She begins attacking him wildly, but Bane just laughs wickedly as he blocks every one of her blows with incredible ease. His saber is moving almost as if it has a mind of its own. Pretty soon, Bane begins pressing back against Rey, taking the offense bit by bit.
After several blows, the two lock blades. As Rey struggles back against Bane's brute strength, Bane sneers at her and says, his voice echoing through the chamber, "Your anger and fear have imbalance you. Only if you truly give in to your anger can you destroy me!" He then shoves her backwards before bringing his saber down towards her with great force.
However, Ben has recovered quicker than Bane expected. Desperately, Ben reaches out with one hand and yanks Bane back with the Force. He surges forward as Bane comes flying back towards him, extending one of his sabers to try and drive it into Bane's back. However, Bane spins around and sends out a Force wave that sends Ben tumbling away across the floor. Bane lands on his feet and laughs before he turns back to Rey and engages her again.
Ben continues to tumble away until he reaches a chasm opening up in the floor of the throne room. He starts to fall in, but he manages to grab the rim of the hole and stop himself from falling. It takes him a few moments to manage to clamber back out of the hole.
Ben looks across the throne room at the spot where Rey is still duelling Bane. The blades of their lightsabers are flashing around them at incredible speed as Bane is slowly pressing Rey back and back. For a brief moment, Ben feels a sense of despair, but he quickly pushes it down. He cannot afford to feel despair now. He cannot stop fighting now.
Again, Ben stands and his lightsabers once more ignite. He lets out a fierce war cry, and as he does, the Force seems to explode out of him in a strong Force wave. Both Bane and Rey stumble a bit as Ben comes charging across the room. He then takes a flying leap towards Bane, screaming his way cry again as he brings both sabers down on Bane, only for them to be stopped a foot from Bane's head by Bane's saber.
"Impressive, young Jedi. But you are still nothing before me," Bane jeers at Ben before shoving him back. He then comes at the young Skywalker like a whirlwind. Rey rushes forward to protect her husband, but Bane easily is attacking both Skywalkers. Nothing seems to be getting through his defenses.
As the two Skywalkers are desperately trying to fend off Bane while searching for a gap in his defenses, none of them know someone new has entered the throne room. Hidden in the darkness, Jaina carefully peers around the side of the Throne of the Sith. As she watches her cousins duelling Darth Bane, she feels a moment of hesitation. Not necessarily out of fear her plan won't work, but simply out of fear and awe of Bane himself. He has become a Sith unlike any other, and he is even now beating down the two most powerful Jedi Jaina has ever known.
However, she quickly shakes it off and refocuses on her mission. She starts watching the duel closely. She knows this move she is planning has to be done at the right time, or Bane could avoid it or block it. And if she doesn't hit him now, she may not get another chance.
As she watches, Ben and Rey start to press closer together, causing Bane to focus his attacks in a smaller area, leaving more of himself slightly exposed. Jaina decides now is her chance.
As she raises her hands towards the sky, the last words of her brother echoes in her mind, Bane is powerful in the Force, but even if he can restore it, his body has limitations. The cloning process was greatly flawed, and resulted in his body not being complete. The worst thing is that his nervous system has a serious weakness. It does not fire properly, and can be overloaded. That is why he uses a machine to live. But if it can be overloaded, it will greatly weaken him.
Jaina concentrates as she begins to unleash the full strength of her power in the Force. Clouds begin to gather over the Citadel as she summons, concentrating them for one massive attack. She knows that Force lightning is unlike normal lightning. Force lightning does not hold the raw electrical power of normal lightning, instead drawing on the Force for a lot of its power. Although more powerful in some ways, it cannot compete with the raw electrical power of a bolt of lightning.
Jaina watches carefully as she holds back the lightning yearning to leap from the clouds. With Exegol's environment, lightning strikes are very common. Now, she has to make sure that this lightning doesn't spark until the right moment.
Jaina watches the duel, waiting for the right moment as she feels the strain of what she's doing starting to take its toll on her. For a straight minute, she waits, just watching. Then, Bane lets out a Force repulse that knocks both Ben and Rey back. He charges forward, ready to finish the job.
But in that moment, Jaina sees her chance. With a scream, she relinquishes her hold on the clouds and channels her powers into directing the lightning. Almost simultaneously, two bolts of lightning spring from the clouds. Being directed by Jaina's powers, the bolts arc down towards Bane…right on target.
The bolts slam into Bane, and a terrible scream echoes out from the Sith Lord as over a billion volts of electricity course through his body. In less than a microsecond, his imperfect nervous system is going haywire, its normal electrical gradient completely disrupted by the lightning.
The lightning ceases very quickly, as it naturally does. However, the damage has been done…on both sides. Bane is shaking and twitching as his body is trying to recover. However, the strain has taken its toll on Jaina, and she falls to her knees, panting a bit from the strain.
Ben and Rey stare in stunned amazement at Bane, shocked at what they just watched. Then, while they are still trying to figure out what happened, Bane manages to turn himself around, and he sees Jaina on her hands and knees beside the Throne.
"You will wish soon you had joined your brother!" Bane screams as uses the Force to send rubble flying at Jaina. Unable to react in time, Jaina is pummeled by several pieces of rubble and sent flying into the wall, where she lies unmoving.
Fear surges through Ben for the fate of his cousin, but he quickly refocuses that on Bane and once more charges the Sith Lord. Bane turns slowly and tries to fend off Ben's blows, but it is immediately clear that the lightning has done its work. His movements are slowed by an incredible margin, and Bane can barely fend off Ben's relentless strikes.
Seeing his saber skills are no longer useful in this moment, Bane deactivates his saber as he lets out another Force repulse. He then summons all of his strength and sends extremely powerful bolts of Force lightning at Ben.
Ben raises his grandfathers' sabers to block the lightning, but the attack is so powerful it almost knocks him over. Rey raises her hand and uses the Force to keep Ben upright.
Ben struggles against Bane's lightning as the Sith Lord glares at him in pure hate. "You are nothing! I am all of the Sith, and you are one Jedi! You will die and be nothing!" Bane screams at Ben.
Then, even as he is casting Force lightning at Ben, Bane begins to lift chunks of stone off the floor. A wall of stone forms behind him before it begins flying at Ben. However, before either Ben or Rey can do anything, the stone halts.
All three of them are confused, recognizing that none of them stopped the stone. Then, the ghostly image of Anakin Skywalker forms beside Ben, his hand outstretched, revealing him as the one who stopped the stone.
"Grandfather?" Ben asks in shock as he continues to try and hold back the lightning.
Anakin looks down at his grandson and smiles. "You are not alone," he says.
Right then, Rey sees images on either side of her. Looking from side to side, she is stunned to see the images of the Jedi who had trained them on Mortis. Satele and Bastila Shan. Nomi Sunrider. Vodo Siosk Baas. Anjar Alcara. Lord Hoth. Meetra Surik. Obi-Wan. Qui Gon. Yoda. And Revan. All of them glance at Rey with smiles before focusing on Ben. Then, as one, they raise their hands, pouring their Force energy into Ben.
Ben feels a surge of strength into him, along with a surge of hope. Then, Anakin, still holding back the stone, says, "Go now, Ben."
Summoning every ounce of strength he can, Ben forces one foot forward. Then another. Then another. Pushing himself forward through Bane's lightning as he takes one step after another towards the Sith Lord.
"No. This is impossible!" Bane cires out, though none of them are sure if he's referring to Ben resisting him or the presence of the Force spirits.
"You have no idea what is possible, old master," Anakin sneers at the Sith Lord, his voice loud enough for Bane to hear.
"No!" Bane cries out again, this time a hint of fear in his voice, as he pours more power into his lightning. It is taking everything Ben has stand against the onslaught, but he keeps going.
Finally, Ben is almost within reach of Bane. Channeling his strength and the strength being given to him by the spirits behind him, he screams aloud as he uses the Force to push himself forward. And with a terrible sound that cannot even be described, his sabers finally reach their target, one cutting through the front of Bane's body while the other cuts away the front of his helm and down the side of his face.
The lightning ceases, and at last, Darth Bane's body falls to the ground. His face, though still the face of Palpatine, is now visible and stares up at Ben. Ben, absolutely exhausted, stares down at the fallen Sith Lord as he readies himself for the final blow.
But, before Ben can strike, Bane speaks. "You are nothing. You may be strong in body, but I am stronger in mind."
As Bane finishes that statement, the glow of his eyes begins to dim. Then, without warning, Ben feels excruciating pain throughout his body as something stabs into his mind. In an instant, Ben knows what is happening. Bane is using his powers to transfer his spirit to try and take over Ben's body.
Ben falls to his knees as he desperately tries to fend off Bane's spirit. Within seconds, the world around him seems to fade away and he finds himself in a strange, almost ethereal space, where he finds himself face to face with Darth Bane. But not in the form of Palpatine. In the form of a large, muscular, brutal looking man. And Ben knows that this is the true face of Darth Bane.
Bane smirks as he uses the Force to hold Ben in place. "Your mind is not strong enough to resist me," he says as he stalks towards Ben. True fear starts to take hold of Ben as he desperately tries to use his power to keep Bane away from him.
Suddenly, Bane is thrown back away from Ben. Both Bane and Ben look around, and see, just a few feet away from Ben, Rey. Bane's eyes shoot wide open as he realizes what is happening. Because of their bond as a dyad in the Force, they are completely connected, enough so that Rey can enter Ben's mind to help Ben resist him.
"No," he mutters.
"You are strong, Bane. But nothing is stronger than our bond and our love," Rey declares before she unleashes a Force attack on Bane's spirit. Bane is knocked to the ground, and he desperately tries to push himself back up as Ben recovers and begins to unleash his own attack.
Together, Ben and Rey batter Bane's spirit with their powers as they slowly close the distance. Bane tries everything he can to break free of the hold they have on him, but together, their power is too great for his spirit to challenge.
Finally, the couple is standing over Bane. Ben stares down at him before he says, "For a thousand years, you have brought about nothing but evil. And you have plagued my family for three generations. Now, at last, you are brought low."
Ben extends a hand, and an image of the Skywalker lightsaber forms in his hand, the blade springing to life. Ben stares down into the eyes of Darth Bane as he declares, "Now, at last, it ends." And with that, he plunges the blade into Bane's chest.
Bane screams as his spirit is pummeled by Force energy. He tries to draw on all of his hate and anger to hold his Spirit together, much like Darth Sion, but finds that the assault is too relentless. Finally, with one last scream, his spirit seems to turn into pure energy before, with a terrible sound, it explodes.
In an instant, Ben and Rey are back in the real world, thrown back by the force of Bane's destruction. Lying on the ground, they feel life slipping away from them. But, as they look at each other, they lock eyes, and they feel a surge of strength. Ben turns himself onto his stomach and crawls, with every ounce of his remaining strength, over to Rey. Reaching her, he reaches out and grabs hold of her hand. "Rey…" he gasps, his voice weak and hoarse. He is quiet for another moment before he says, "I won't let you go."
Rey feels a tear slip from her eye, and she whispers, "I'll never leave you."
"Well done."
The two young Jedi slowly turn their eyes up. Around them, the outer walls of the throne room are crumbling, crushing the acolytes of the Sith cult under stone as they scream in fear. But surrounding Ben and Rey are the spirits of the Jedi who taught them on Mortis, with Anakin right in the center.
"Well done, you two. You have accomplished what no one else could. You have brought an end to the Sith," Anakin says with great pride.
"Our work is done. You have accomplished the work we have waited for," Revan says. He pauses for a moment before he adds, "I doubt we will see you again in this life. But until we meet again…May the Force be with you." And then, one by one, the spirits fade away. Anakin is last of all, and gives them a proud and almost amused smile before finally fading away.
Ben and Rey look back at each other, feeling a bit of their strength beginning to return. Rey is the one to speak first as she says, "It's over. At last…we defeated him."
Ben nods slowly. "It's done," he whispers.
At last, Darth Bane is dead. At last, the Sith are defeated.
And, I'll end there.
I hope you liked this chapter and the defeat of Darth Bane. I know parts might have been underwhelming, but I don't think I can adequately capture the full idea of what I had in mind for the events of this chapter in just words, so I hope your mind could help fill in the blanks.
Well, Bane is finally dead, but that doesn't mean that's the end of the Battle of Exegol. There will be one more chapter to wrap up the battle. I promise to have it up by the end of May, at least, but hopefully within the next week or two.
Again, I thank you all for your patience and your support. I will try and start updating more frequently again. In the meantime, please leave a review on this chapter, and stay tuned for more!