Fear ... fear was the way of the sith , And within that cell ... Obrunik was fear , As he knelt at the centre of the room he was in , Shackled to the ground with his hands bounds at the base of his back . His eyes were covered and his mouth was forced shut with a mask .
Yet even though he was bound, The sith apprentices that circled him at all times found themselves deeply troubled , Even terrified .
As even though his ears were covered to allow no sound in his ears , He was able to know exactly where they were within the room no matter where they were .
If they were to come to close to him , His head would snap in their direction , Where he would peer at then unflinchingly.
And staring down at that featureless mask , With no eyes or ear holes , It was like staring at some aberration of the mind . A creature beyond understanding , One couldn't tell you what was wrong with the picture as they looked at the blank mask that looked back .
Maybe it was the chilled atmosphere of the room , The very atmosphere thick with sludge like tension.
Maybe it was the fact that the child had killed hundreds drunk on the first taste of true power beyond anything that the apprentices had been privy to in their short lives .
He had killed darths , Apprentices... monsters they hadn't thought would die to a simple child truly wielding the force for the first time .
Or maybe ... just maybe it was the silence that unsettled them so , He didn't move , Didnt make a wheeze nor an exaggerated gulp of air , The chains didn't even rattle in the slightest.
Not even the apprentices dared breath the wrong way within the chamber , Their breaths crystallising into mist everything they breathed out , Sweat running down their bodies as their fingers shook in abstract terror , Their hands flying to their sabers at even the slightest twitch of their fellow apprentice.
" Through here milord " Captain tarr announced , Staring the apprentices as the door to the chamber opened with a hiss , Their hands flying to their sabers incase they needed to go on the attack .
Stepping into the chamber was darth mortis himself , Having taken the liberty of overseeing the punishment himself .
Yet as he stepped into the chamber , He froze as he felt a cold chill wash over him , And to his amazement , The boy knelt at the centre of the room snapped in his direction .
He could feel the focus solely on him , A weight falling on his shoulders as the force seemed to reach from the boy towards him .
' He's seeing with the force .. ' Mortis felt his eyes narrow at the thought , Yet he didn't fear even as the reaching chill from the boy coalesced him .
Stepping towards the boy , Mortis stopped infront of the boy four paces from his position.
" You can both see and hear me can't you boy " Mortis asked , Earning a slow yet purposeful nod from the prisoner.
" What is this boys history " Mortis asked as he stepped to the right and began to circle the boy , Studying him on all sides .
" A slave from taris , Fifteen by records indications... Through our investigations , The boy discovered his force sensitivity some months ago if the dissapearances of other locals from his camp are to be believed ... Something happened forty eight hours ago , Most likely the death his mother , causing the boy to go on a rampage , Killing over a hundred of our order and countless more soldiers and slaves ... It'll take many months to replenish the lives lost that day " Tarr seethed is he glared down at the kneeling child .
" Indeed ... I see " Mrptis came back around the front of the child " The raw power screaming through his body , Making a shadow darker than the darkside itself ... It's intoxitaing isn't it boy "
Silence reigned as they waited with bated breaths at Mortis's judgement.
" It would be a waste to get rid of such potent power ... Not that you would simply allow us would you boy , Since you could have killed then at any time am I right " Mortis smirked as the apprentices shifted in discomfort.
" Send him to korriban " Mortis ordered of the captain " I expect to hear great things about you in the future boy ... I will be watching with great interest "
And just like that , The boys fate was sealed , Forever forced to walk to dark path in order to survive , He would climb to the top ... crush anyone around him in order not to fear . He would do this ... and nothing would stop him .
And so when mortis left the room , The darkside flowed through the boy with Newfound purpose .
He was stripped of his bindings, Finding the cuffs slamming to the ground with a resounding clunk .
As an apprentice slowly undid the mask clamps while another undid that shackles around his feet .
' That's better ' Obrunik winced slightly at the artificial lightly that bared down on his Molten yellow eyes as the mask was raised from his face.
The air was crisp and cold as he took in several deep breaths , His eyes meeting the girl several years older than him that had been given the unfortunate task of removing hia binds alongside two others .
" You look scared " obruniks lips curled as his teeth flashed in a demented grin " Need some help "
" Be quiet " Another apprentice spoke up as he approached with some black robes that he would be wearing apon his arrival .
" Dress yourself boy " The apprentice tossed the wraps at obruniks feet , The two glaring at eachother whilst the apprentice toyed with his saber .
" I don't particularly like your tone " Obrunik growled as his face scrunched up , The creases of his features becoming pronounced at his snarl .
" And we don't... " A burst of lightning silenced the apprentices words as he found himself assaulted by bolts of lightning striking his head .
After three long seconds of prolonged exposure , Obrunik flexed his fingers as the sparks fizzled out with sparks , All the while he walled over to where the mow dead apprentice had been.
" I actually quite like what he's wearing , Undress him for me will you " Obrunik whirled on the other three remaining apprentices that remained .
" Now " Obrunik snarled as his right hand was once more coated in lightning .
Moving forward, The apprentice who had unshackled his legs reluctantly rushed to undress his fellow dead man, All the while obrunik turned to face the girl still holding his mask .
" I'll be keeping that , It's quite useful to train my senses with , By the way what exactly was he wearing " Obrunik snatched the mask from the womans fingers before placing it on the table where his new items were stored , A vibro blade along with several devices he would be making use of.
" It's armour supplied to apprentices and acolytes who will he taking part of the war effort ... It's called sith eradicator war armour " The aplrentice stammered out , Diverting her eyes as he simply slid his clothing off , Waiting for the armour to be peeled from the carcass of the dead apprentice.
" Perfect ... now you're going to dress me " Nox all but demanded as the force shuddered throughout the room , Causing the girl to wince as she reluctantly did as she was told .
' So this is what it feels like to have power someone ... it's quite ... nice... I could get used to this ' Nox mocked as he felt the girl begin to slide the pieces of armour onto his body , The other apprentices watching in the corner, None of them too happy about the events , But the gap in power between them and Nox all but silenced any opposition they might have had.
' Yes ... very good '
" You ... what is korriban "
THE PRESENT
Vas slammed into the highest tower of sub level 3000 . Durasteel bending under his feet as dust exploded and expanded outward from his position .
The air was barely breathable , The light was dim and all around him , Towers of scrap rose high into the skies , Bugs of all types plagued the world's infrastructure.
Shining bright , All around him , Millions of newborn troglodytes swarmed and attempted to rush to the higher levels .
Above vas , Gunships activated their search lights , Flooding the level as incalculable eyes reflected the light from the dark .
In the distance , Vas watched bombs be dropped from the higher levels , Explosions rocking the layer , Gases were dropped from above to attempt to neutralise the creatures .
" This is jedi knight vas lucis , I am on level three thousand, Taking command and coordinating all forces on level , We are the first and last line of defence for the higher levels , Do you read me " Vas spoke into thr comm unit on his wrist .
" This is red leader standing by "
" This is black leader acknowledge and staningby "
" This is blue , your orders are recieved and acknowledged "
Across all units and squadrons on the level , Vas revieved confirmations of his command .
" Stay clear of all support structures , You are to commit bombing runs throughout the streets , Level every building . Worry not about civilians , They're all dead if they're down here " Vas began as he cast a series of lightning strikes to his right at a group of climbing beasts.
" This is my most important order . I want all access ports shut down , They won't be getting past us . I want plasma beams to be used to cut clear through any unessential support structure " Vas began as more gunships arrived on level " I want all essential support structures brigaded , I need Ray shields set up around both the tops and the bottoms of the support beams "
" Your orders have been relayed " Black leader responded as several shuttles rose to pick up what they needed " But what is the purpose "
" Everything below this level has no doubt perished . At this moment we're denying them the higher levels . The forces above will be able to sweep through the higher levels ... We wait for their arrival ... begin the assault " Vas gestured , And at his wave of a hand , The gunships dropped from the skies ... unleashing their payloads apon those below.
" It appears master Vas has taken direct control of the assault on the lower levels " Windu crossed his arms as they watched the holo of Vas coordinating forces on level 3000 .
Shuttles of resources flew overhead before taking a nose dive into the access tunnels , Dropping as fast as they could to level 3000 .
" It is indeed a sound plan to stop them ascending to the higher levels " Windu pointed out as he was approached by the apprentice of the man they were watching " Young shai "
" What can i do to help ... I can't simply leave master to be the only one doing something down there " Shai asked as her hands curled at her sides , Blonde hair swaying as she shook her head.
" What we need is to have faith , As I do in Master vas . On the other hand , We must clear the levels between us and master vas with great haste so we may link up with him at the bottom " Windu replied .
" Then where must I go " Shai asked as yoda let out a small chuckle , Shaking his head as he approached shai .
" Eager , So eager " Yoda stopped before shai " What you can do ... is help coordinate the survivors , We have near a trillion survivors scouring the surface levels "
Shai was surprised that yoda stopped speaking backwards , Showing just how important this situation was .
" Of course master yoda , I'll head off at once " Shai immediately rushed off in the direction she felt she needed to go .
" This is black leader ... " The clone pilot hissed as he tore his helmet from his head , Smoke filling the cockpit as sirens blared throughout.
His copilot was slumped against his console, His head snapped to the side as oxygen fled the quickly depressurising cockpit .
Fist smashed against the vessels window as they clung to the vessel to kill him , He looked each and everyone of them in the eyes .
" Priming payload ... We're going down " Black leader finished with a snarl as he leaned forward and flicked all switches on his console .
" Acknowledged black leader ... May the force be with you " The voice of general vas relayed before the pilot removed his comm unit and gently placed it at his side .
" And may the force be with you " He growled before gripping the control stick and looking towards a buildings absolutely covered in trogs.
" TAKE THIS ... YOU FILTHY BEASTS " He roared as his ship began to fall in a spiralling motion.
" FOR THE REPUBLIC " Black leader yelled out as he was consumed by a fireball , Taking out well over thirty beasts as his ship slammed Into the duracrete , Squashing many as he died in the explosion .
Over the ships explosion , Yellow coarsed through the skies , Streaking high and far to fall apon the beasts .
Bombs fell from above in-between lightning strikes , Levelling entire streets in one explosion .
" I have just stopped the suffering of millions , And many more soon on the way " Nox stretched his arm out towards the skyline of coruscant.
" And they will find peace ... freedom... within me " Nox did something that would forever mark him an enermy of those who would ever find out , The jedi would never forgive him , The sith would fear and lash out ... the gods themselves would cringe at his actions . And He would take this information to his grave before telling anyone .
He absorbed the life of everyone dying below in one fluid motion , Denying them the right to pass onto the cosmic force , Instead ... as he cast his sith chant . Their lost souls , The negligible power they hold , Would be diverted to him until the end of the outbreak .
Rising from down below , Copious amounts , Thousands of beings life-force flooded his being at once , And Nox howled to the skies in sheer delight , Ecstasy ... pleasure .
Had he not been carefully guarding his presence, Everyone across the galaxy would have thrown up at the sudden explosion of energy flowing through his body .
" POWER " A million voices spoke in tandem, And Kaldani spires shook under the weight of his voice .
" In the end ... all will become ... one " The black of Nox's eyes faded away as he sat himself down to alleviate the rush going through him at every waking moment , Absorbing the lives of a large amount of coruscanti citizens, With the planet having a population of well over a million ... was disorientating .
Slinking back to his desk , With streams of energy continuously flowing into every orifices of his being .
Slowly lowering himself to his desk , Eyes releasing a purple light as soul after soul fused with him , He reached for his datapad intent on opening communications with his dear Lana.
" I might as well further Lana's standing with the Republic. Nothing quite like relief efforts and a public hero " Nox sent the missive to his wife , Recieving and affirmative seconds later before he tossed the datapad to the side and drank in the quickly building power within him .
" In one fell swoop , I have destabilised the war , Upheaved sidious's little game . It will be hard for dooku to reasonably hold back his forces from capturing abandoned battlefronts and press for the core as resources pour in . And i have increased my powerbase tenfold in one moment, With one order ... I changed the galaxy ... this ... is true power " Nox howled into his office in delight and delirium.
" Padme ... I've been given permission to allocate Scions ... and by extension a portion of Zakuulan resources ... to alleviating this tragedy " Lana expressed to Padme as she showed The woman her datapad .
" THIS ... WILL STOP ALL OF ... THIS .. LET'S GO " Padme rushed off yet stopped as Lana grabbed her wrist .
" Padme ... The Republic cannot know that scion has outside forces at play . Nor they know of the fleet or what it can do . And they cannot know of Obruniks influence ... do you understand " Lana pressed as she fixed a glare to padme who looked away from those yellow eyes pinning her in place .
" I have never , Nor will I ever betray obruniks trust " Padme retorted as Lana let go of her arm , Allowing for them to make a quick exit to the speeder .
" The fleet will not be helping , Instead we will be using public vessels to transport minutions quickly, Let's get to the jedi command centre " Lana hopped into the drivers seat as padme went shotgun .
" Let's go "
The two wasted no time in rushing for the speeders nearby , Whilst they were followed by the scions appointed to guard them , The group leaving in a three vehicle convoy .
" Are we ready " Windu asked as tens of jedi stood at attention infront of him .
From anakin skywalker to the latest promoted master , They stood at attention ready to give their all to save coruscant .
" These beasts know no remorse for they slay children mothers and fathers in their wake . They maul and turn our innocents into one of their number .
Our mission is simple , We must halt their progress , We must not lose one of our own for we do not know will happen should we join their ranks . Their claws are deadly and have a pathogen that converts our citizens to their own . Avoid them at all costs " Windu announced as the holo changed to one of Vas currently releasing torrents of lightning from his fingers and into the skies as gunships surrounded him.
" As of right now , Master Vas lucis is currently heading the efforts to halt the beasts from ascending " Windu spoke with passion as he itched to join the young man down below .
" Master ... I thought he was a knight " Anakins teeth ground together in hidden rage , Once more the boy had upstaged him .
" I suspect it's due to his quick thinking and efforts . He moved without prompting and simply leapt into the lower levels , Quite heroic if you ask me ... infact it was his idea to shut off the access ports to the lower levels , Essentially blocking off his only exit , The vast majority of the enemy forces have been stopped from rising" Obiwan pinted out as anakin let out a tsk " He is also guarding the only remaining access port to the surface . He is waging war against their entire front to keep them from rising ... It takes true courage to do that with no hope of survival "
" Still ... " Anakin paused as the jedi quickly broke off and rushed towards the dropships waiting for them " I didnt know it was possible for a jedi to have those powers "
" We'll think about that later " Obiwan urged anakin as they joined up with kit fisto in a dropship that ascended to the skies and hurtled to the only remaining access port .
Yoda and windu hopped into a gunship with shaak ti and several other jedi like Ki adi mundi , As they lifted off and flew towards the accessport .
The access port itself was cleared of all buildings , Flattened to allow several legions of clone troopers and and heavy munitions to give them clear sight of anything that would get out of the port.
With a scream , A troglodyte leapt from the access port , Roaring as it rushed across the quarantine zone , Only to explode under a rocket from an At-te .
Overhead , The clones looked up to see the jedi gunships, Guarded by fighters and bombers , Fly towards the accessport , As they began to spiral down towards the lower levels .
Alongside the gunships , Hundreds of Atte approached the access port, Using their magnetic legs to climb into the access shaft vertically with their clone payload as they gave cover fire, Killing any troglodyte that rushed to the surface .
2 HOURS LATER
" Go go go " A clone pushed a rodian to the side as one of the beast ran at their blockade , Blaster bolts simply rebounding from its armour as it picked up a clone , Tearing him in half as he screamed before hurling his halves at his brothers .
It charged again , But was decapitated by a purple blade that severed its head to its body .
" Level twenty five is clear , Move on " Mace yelled out as the gunships flew back to the access shaft , Diving down the next fifteen levels as the clone army spread out across every part of coruscant they were able .
" Regroup and move out " Mace ordered the clones around him as he leapt back I to a passing gunship before rushing deeper down .
" We've got twenty five levels cleared ... Now only two thousand nine hundred and eighty ... hold on Vas " Windu hissed as he recieved a holocall .
" General , We've recieved resources from one ... Senator beniko ... Ships are dropping into the system as we speak with what we believe to be incendiary weapons and others ... Permission to deploy " Mace frowned at the news provided by the leuitenant , A frown coming to his face as his right hand came to his chin.
" Such weapons would wipe out whole city blocks , Very well , You have permission to drop them on the lower levels in uncontrolled sectors , Anything provided we will make use of " Mace answered , And within ten minutes , He watched as an entire street went up in flames from a single bomb .
" General windu has given permission for the use of your resources ... " Leuitenant braga announced as Lana nodded .
" I will coordinate the allocations of weapons ... I am most informed of their capabilities, Padme will allocate resources on the surface " Lana Informed then as she took out her lightsaber and marched towards one of the remaining gunships " You're with me "
" Of course madam " Braga wasn't about to argue in the face of this apocalyptic outbreak.
" All automated systems ... follow my signature " Lana spoke over an open channel at all zakuulan weaponry.
From the landing starships , Clones leapt back in fright as massive creates exploded open , A thousand heavily armoured droids leaping into the skies and flying after the gunship.
From the remains of the crates , The clones found explosives , Weapons of all kinds. Foods and resource packages.
" They went all out didn't they " Cody mumbled as he picked up a handful of blasters he had never seen before and began handing them out .
" How are these any different from what we usually use " Rex asked as he looked at the odd rifle in hus hand and took aim at a sign in the distance .
Pulling the trigger , Rex and Cody were shocked at the projectile that erupted from the barrel , A magnetic round launching from the barrel to annihalate the sign in an explosion of slag and energy .
" These are apparently neutralisation based weapons ... Ionising anything they impact " Cody explained as he looked at the manual and immediately at the weapon in his hand .
" They're radioactive " Rex looked at the weapon with trepidation .
" Apparently " Cody sounded .. unsure if he wanted to make use of such weapons, But he shrugged and hefted one of the larger variants.
" You , CT one one one three seven five ... hand these out , We make use of them immediately " Cody yelled out before turning to the grenades and warheads that hadn't been disturbed " Dear God "
Amongst level 200 , Nox spread his hands wide as his eyes shon in delight . Troglodytes rushed past him , Climbing higher and higher as they rushed to the surface above .
" THIS IS PERFECT , DON'T YOU AGREE ELEGAST ... LOOK AT ME NOW AND YOUR PATHETIC BALANCE " A spire came tumbling down beside him , falling down to the floors below as Nox held his arms wide and spun around .
Sparks speared from his fingers , Silencing everything around him in a burst of energy that pulverised the city block in a single moment.
" More more give me more " Nox laughed as he continued Absorbing everything around him .
His head perked up as he heard gunships , A growl escaping the man as he rushed towards the access port and dropped deeper into coruscant away from the republic forces .
The war took a turn once the knew munitions continued to arrive from scion .
A unit of clones wielding their new weapons descended the levels , Their weapons being used to great effect in the hands of the arc troopers they were given to .
Level forty five was a mess of jedi , Clone , Droid and troglodyte .
As a heavy iokath droid , Provided by scion as they wished not to give anything to powerful to the Republic such as anything used in the eternal fleet like skytrooper units, hefted a troglodyte overhead before Slamming it into the ground .
It raised its hands , Blasters mounted to its wrists as it used its neutraliser weaponry to turn seven troglodytes to dust under a barrage of fire .
" I think I'm keeping this " Rex yelled out as he rushed at a troglodyte, Firing at the creatures chest before it simply exploded .
The droid turned to look at him , Causing the clone to nervously wave his hand .
" If I have permission of course " Rex chuckled nervously as it stepped by them and simply ran at the wall of troglodytes approaching .
The droid bulldozed the trogs , Before a pulse escaped its frame , Electrify erupting around it as it electrocuted them .
Falling down, The troglodytes were easy prey as the clones finished them off .
" They seem to run off instinct , They don't hide and they don't use anything other than swarm tactics , Do they know nothing other than rage " Kit fisto growled as he watched the droids given to them bring a hard stop to the trog advance , As the clones backed them up with surprising efficiency.
" Keep pushing men " Kitfisto bellowed as he watched the clone arc troopers turn an entire walkway to ash with their new blasters " Gotta stay out of the way of them"
Down on level 3000 , Vas stood atop a mountain of troglodytes , Taller than even the buildings that reached for the level canopy above.
Gunships shon their lights apon the pile of corpses , Shooting at the climbing trogs with concussion missiles , Explosions rocking the pile as their Commander fought at the tip .
A force push of his was significantly more powerful than it had been only hours prior , As his force push wrent the streets below , The continental plate shifted with each use of the force he portrayed .
With a wave of his hand , Entire buildings rose from the ground before being sent cascading into and across the lands .
Several buildings circulated the pile before being dropped onto the swarths of foes .
Yellow bolts spread across the skies spreading far across the horizon , Revealing several more piles of corpses racked up by republic and the force storm around them .
A swing to the right decapitated a trog , Whilst a kick to the left sent one rolling back down the pile . A repulse from his position cleared twenty from around him , Sending them flying into the buildings not covered in the pile of trogs.
Flying above , A gunship newly arrived from the surface unleashed one of their neutralising missiles .
Those aware of what it was watched with trepidation as the missile soared far off into the distance .
The following explosion began as a orb , Blue in colour as it radiated nothing but silence.
" Is there a problem with the audio " Ahsoka asked as she watched the holo .
" No " Baris replied .
It came suddenly after ten seconds of silence , The blue orb suddenly expanded a thousand metres in seconds , Sweeping over the lands in complete silence .
The surface watched in both awe and horror as everything the neutraliser weapon touched simply faded to dust. Whether it was duracrete , Metal or troglodyte ... Nothing survived touching the expanding orb that left naught but circular crater in the surface of the level .
" I think scion just went up in the list of priorities for the Republic... imagine if the separatists got their hands on such weapons " Orn free taa gulped as mas ameda nodded slowly , Eyes squinting as he regarded the deployment of neutraliser missiles .
" And not a sound made , Truly silent death " Lana smirked from her dropship .
'Luckily for us ... only we have the emergency deactivation codes . If any of our weapons is used on our civilians or zakuulan resources , Without our express permission , Will simply not fire or explode ' Lana mused as her gunship roared by a falling spire under the city .
" Oh no what a perfect opportunity " Nox stopped outside of Sidious's secret base aka the Limerge building , Staring up at the supersteucture surrounded by several other smaller buildings .
He was invisible as he used the force to cover his being , Allowing nox to simple approach the building without worry .
He simply walked towards the base entryway of the building.
The security of the building fared horribly , As a system wide reset went off across the facility thanks to the trogs below chewing through one of the power supply cables at his bidding .
" Oh no, A skeleton key " Nox simply waved his hand at the doorway , Forcing it to move along it's guides with a loud screech .
" Perfect , Just my size " Nox shrugged as he entered the dimly lit doorway of Sidious's base .
He freely scoured the building with little care for anything he might find , It was more for his amusmwnt than anything else, Black gloved hands tracing against the wall with amusement trickling through his whistles.
" Would you look at that , A training room , Obviously seen use " Nox hopped into the room , Mockingly acting as if he was fighting invisible foes .
" Okay " Nox stopped mucking around before turning away and moving out towards a rising stairway that lead higher into the limerge building .
A fork of darkside energy from above drew Nox's attention as he tilted his head and stared up towards the higher levels .
" Are you here sidious , Do you want to play a game " Nox smirked before simply crouching and leaping up towards the highest point within the staircase .
Landing atop the staircase with a soft tap , Nox channelled the force .
Infront of his position , A smoke demon formed infront of his position , Its shade like structure turning to its master for orders .
" Take the form of a troglodyte and go give sidious hell " Nox ordered as the smoke demon gave a silent nod before turning and rushing down the dark hallway .
Walking after the demons trail , Nox looked in and out of several rooms . A lab , A meditation chamber .
He did however stop in a room full of holocrons , Activating all of them at once to see what they held .
" How amusing it is that over three thousand years , The sith haven't discovered anything new " Nox sighed and waved his hand , Watching as the holocron matrix's shut down with the holos dispersing .
" A shame " Nox shrugged and listened as he heard a howl of rage from within the superstructure .
" WHERE DID THESE THINGS COME FROM " Sidious howled in rage as he stared out at the holo , Still garbed in his senate attire as his gnarled hands slammed into the table.
With a hiss of rage , Sidious pulled up the hood of his senator robe , Shrugging off his overload to reveal the deep crimson red robe below.
" Dooku ... do you hear me my apprentice " Sidious watched as Dooku answered immediately, Kneeling to his master over holo .
" I have heard there is a predicament over on coruscant my master , What would you wish of me " Dooku asked with his head inclined to show respect.
" Never mind that " Sidious snarled and leant over the table " Reduce the war effort, I don't want anything to shake up what is already happening I ... " Sidious leapt away just as the console he was using was smashed to bits under the fists of a hulking one of these specimens .
" Now how did you get in here I wander " Sidious snarled as he pulled out his red lightsaber , Springing the weapon to life as he glared at the creature " No matter , I'll be enjoying this "
With a scream , Sidious twirled at the creature , Keenly aware of its lack of response to his force scream.
It leant back as he rushed at its chest , His saber flying clear as it threw a punch at his unguarded stomach .
However like the shadow he was , Sidious wound around the punch , His tongue sticking out of his mouth as he let out a made cackle, Jumping up as he swung his blade at its exposed arm .
It impressed him however as it dropped low , Sweeping around to launch its four firsts towards his falling back .
Like the sith master he was , He used the force to send the creature flying across the room before it could strike him , Watching with satisfaction as it slid to the far side of the chamber .
Nox stood directly behind sidious without the man even noticing , As he was invisible to tha naked eye , And onto of that he made sure to use force blank to ensure the sith would be completely naive of his presence.
" He's so " Nox leant directly into the side of sidious's face , Examining the face of the sith that half sulphuric eyes along with a twisted face thanks to darkside degradation " Old "
" This is the so called apprentice of plagueis " Nox rolled his eyes and turned away just as sidious rushed towards the smoke demon that was picking itself up in the form of the troglodyte .
" Hmm " Nox turned to see a databank , An idea coming to mind " Just what I was looking for "
Walking over to the console as Sidious roared in the background , Nox pulled out a data chip and inserted the chip , Turning away to see sidious engaging furiously with the trog .
" Getting a little mad at the lack of progress against this troglodyte sidious " Nox mocked , Sidious obviously couldn't hear him but that didn't stop nox from feeling amusement at the bubbling rage flowing around the aged man.
" Scorpio , Be a dear and download everything within this console , I've slotted in a chip to allow you access " Nox asked of his droid as she immediately bridged the connection began to remotely download everything in the system .
" Perfect " Nox crossed his arms as sidpus had destroyed a good half of the room in his rage and attempts to destroy the smoke demon.
" Download complete , There are some interesting things on here I'm sure you'd like to see ... many pertaining to your friend plagueis ' Scorpio Informed him as he removed the data chip.
" Just in time " Nox slowly walked towards the rooms entryway, Casting a look over his shoulder as sidious screamed and proceeded to hurl lightning at the smoke demon , Sending it flying from the window to its inevitable death at the hands gravity far below the lemurge building.
" I can't help but feel ... underwhelmed " Nox regarded sidious for another seconds before vanishing before sidiois could even guess at the intrusion.
Dispelling the smoke demon because there was no need to keep it sustained , He waltzed towards the buildings exit with an amused stride .
" Until next time sidious " Nox waved over his shoulder before vanishing in a burst of purple , Effectively teleporting across coruscant to his next venture .
Appearing atop the senate building itself , Nox was a tiny black spec apon the massive superstructure that loomed over the rest of the city.
Smoke rose across the city in all directions , The sky was now littered with ships.
" That's gotta be a good portion of the entire Republic navy " Nox mused as he watched the ships circle between the towering skyscrapers .
" Oh no ... In the confusion of such a tragedy , The Venators pilots were unable to properly coordinate with their brothers and surrounding forces " Nox reached towards a venator with his right hand and gave it a push .
Subtle enough that it wouldn't appear as if it was pushed by the force , But significant enough that it moved off course .
An explosion wrung out as a high reaction skyscraper toppled over as the venator struck the structure .
Screams wrung from across the city as the building fell onto the venator , Causing both to fall into the streets swarming with survivors below , a final larger explosion rocking the city as the ship was consumed by a fireball .
" Oh no " Nox laughed before he couched and leapt into the skies towards the refugee zones , Aiming to land behind one of the tents set up without anyone's notice .
" Mum I'm scared " A little girl cried into her mother's shoulder , Whilst her elder brother sat and glared towards the shaft , The same shaft to where his father had become one of their number when he died protecting then in the original onslaught.
" It'll be okay ... " Her mother gently pet her daughters hair , Kissing her scalp with great care .
Nox walked past them with a scoff , Sending an amused side glance towards the brother as he felt the rage permeating the boy.
" Could be force sensitive... oh well " Nox shrugged before pushing through a group of rodians he wasn't to pleased that they touched him .
" Fuck off " Nox hissed before making his way deeper into the pit of plebs .
Anakin cleaved through the head of a troglodyte , Having joined up with Rex and Obiwan as they marched through the horde .
" Come on master , Keep up " Anakin yelled out in clear worry as obiwan leant back and cleaved through the outstretched arms of one of the creatures , Angling his saber to slice the head off of a second in the same movement.
" Oh my bad anakin I forgot we were racing again " Obiwan quipped before joining up with anakin who was locked in battle with four of the beasts .
" Getting old master " Anakin joked as he bisected a trog and used the force on the other three , Forcing them back into their horde as blue beams spraying from Rex and the clones which blew the trogs to pieces under each volley .
Their attention was drawn by the sound of metallic steps , The trip turning to face a wall of hulking iokath wardroids, Marching as one through the streets as they aimed their weapons to the front .
" How about we get out of their way " Obiwan whispered as they rushed down an alley , Just as the droids unleashed a literal sea of blue bolts unto the trogs , A chorus of screams sounding across the streets as the legion slew the monsters .
" That was a MASTER " Anakin yelled out as he pushed obiwan out of the way with his metallic arm .
Anakin screamed as his metal arm was torn from his body , A hulking four arms troglodyte shaking its head from side to side ravenously as the arm was rendered scrap .
Blood rushed from his now open wound as the trog now focussed on obiwan since it disregarded anakin .
It weilded two spears as it fell apon obiwan , Thrusting at the jedi masters stomach .
Blocking the thrusts , Obiwan was relieved to see the trog was wielding simple spears as his saber simple passed through the spears , Rendering them useless .
Regaining his composure, Anakin found his face stinging as the sticks that had been the spears were slashed across his face , Sending blood spraying before it tossed the sticks at Rex.
" This one's different , Its smarter , Provide us backup " Obiwan yelled out as he jumped at the discoloured trog , Thrusting his saber at its head .
Yet to his shock, The trog leant back as the saber passed by its head , elbowing obiwan in the stomach before punching anakin across the cheek .
Obiwan coughed up blood as he felt himself hoisted from the ground and slammed against the wall .
It roared in rage as its armour was burnt away at Rex's blaster fire , Where it turned away , Throwing obiwan at the opposite wall before it yelled and leapt at Rex.
Falling apont the clone , Its maw was stopped from ensnaring Rex's head as it bit down apon the blaster barrel , Its rancid saliva falling apon Rex's helmet ,melting at the helmets plastiod armour .
it was distracted again as obiwan's saber cut off its upper right arm , Causing the beast to screech in a blind rage , As it rose and kicked Rex away , knocking the clone out against the wall where he went limp .
Rounding on obiwan, The creature reached out faster than the master could reacts , Causing obiwan to release a howl as his hand was crushed by the trog , His saber sparking and becoming useless in his grip.
" AAARRRGHH " Obiwan cried as he clutched his hand as the trog let go of his hand , Allowing the master to fall to his knees .
Raising its foot , The trog snickered before booting obiwan against the wall , a vengeful look on its face as it approached the groaning and coughing obiwan who was now face down in a puddle of sludge water.
" Goooooodbyyyye " The broken basic surprised obiwan as it raised its foot to crush him .
Closing his eyes , Obiwan awaited his fate , Ready to become one with the force .
He was however , Startled at a dramatic screeching that released from the air before him , Forcing obiwan to reopen his eyes.
Before his eyes , The trog raised from the ground , Its arms crumpling in on themselves as its legs were wrenched backwards before snapping in on themselves like twigs .
The creature screamed as it spotted the assailant, As did obiwan.
His face contorted in utter and pure rage , His face bleeding in several places as he had his arm less nub in the direction of the beast.
Anakins teeth ground together , as the beasts chest rounded and snapped against its waist , and with a final cry ... it's head snapped the wrong way before it was turned into a simple ball of twisted flesh .
" Anakin " Obiwan mumbled , Feeling his eyes beginning to bruise , Finding his way to his feet as he stumbled over to where anakin was .
Stumbling slightly , The simmering rage anakin felt receded back into the darkest places of his psyche , Allowing anakin to stumbe and falling obiwan's arms .
" Let's get out of here " Obiwan whispered as Anakin nodded slowly, The two looking to the still Rex " Can you help me carry Rex "
" Of course "
Days passed in restless impatience for the refugees on the surface , Explosions from deep within the planet caused the people to shudder and screams occasionally .
Bursts of energy occasionally escaped the only useable surface vent , As supplies were ferried in and out throughout the days , Dropships and entire swathes of droids from scion dropping into the hole to join the war effort.
Over two thousand levels had been cleared , Countless lives had been lost over the days , entire levels had been rendered unlivable as the bombs fell .
" This is hell " Padme winced as she sat down beside Lana on the balcony of her apartment .
The atmosphere was thick with smog , Towers all across the city were orange with fire , Whilst that one crashed venator stuck out of the surface of the planet .
" But it's coming to an end ... They're making a final push towards level three thousand... It's a miracle master Vas had been able to halt their ascension... I can't imagine what it would look like down there " Lana spoke solemnly as padme winced.
" I heard about anakin , Is he alright " Lana asked as Padme sobbed slightly.
" He's fine ... they managed to heal the damages done , Though you should have seen him when he was ferried to the surface , he and Obiwan looked like they had faced the armies themselves... and anakin ... he seemed scared when the jedi came to check on him " Padme relented as a gunship flew by , Causing some cutlery I side to rattle slightly.
' So he's the one that used the darkside down there then , I was wandering who it was ' Lana gently rubbed Padme's shoulder .
" You need some sleep . Obrunik has given you a particulary powerful millaflower extract humidifier , Its been set up in your room , Go ... rest " Padme sniffled weakly , Accepting Lana's command as she got up and shuffled towards her bedroom .
When padme was gone , Obrunik stepped out from behind the curtain towards Lana.
" How many have died ... " Lana stared down into the pit below where gunships were still dropping.
" Over Three trillion ... They're breaking through to level three thousand as we speak ... it ends today " Nox came up to her side , Keenly aware at her frustration .
" Was it worth it " Lana asked in a hushed whisper , Eyes turning to her lover , A pleading ... searching look in her eyes as she studied his face .
" Nothing is ever worth that amount of lives ... But it's going to have to be ... You know whats coming just as I " Nox's brows twisted upwards as Lana let out a few tears , Said crystalline teats flowing down her cheeks as she leant into his chest .
" Tell me again ... tell me how many will die ... I need to know " Lana whispered as he reached up and gently began to rub her scalp .
" Everyone ... If we can't get through this ... if we can't do what has to be done ... everyone . You ... me ... kanya ... Padme ... Everyone we ever loved ... everyone we will ever love will be but a memory ... their sacrifices meaning nothing at the end. And I'm not going to let their deaths be in vein ... I can't lose you ... not again " Nox growled through clenched teeth as he looked up towards the night sky .
" I'm scared " Lana wheezed out , Her voice breaking as her mascara left trails down her cheeks as she clung onto him with dear life .
" I ... so am I " Nox moved them towards the couch nearby , Laying down with Lana, Rubbing her scalp and easing her worries with the force .
It wasn't five minutes before her breathing levelled out , Her body going slack as she gave out after being awake for four days straight .
" I'm sorry love " Nox kissed Lana's forehead as he knew she was asleep " But by the end of this ... The galaxy will forever bear the scars of what i must do to stop them "
She didn't answer as he continued to massage her head , The womans head shifting slightly as she unconsciously moved to a more comfortable position.
He was alone , Having long since ordered the shuttles to retreat long ago when the vessels had run out of minutions .
The lightning above had forever scarred the canopy of the skies , Whilst an endless pile of corpses spread a thin layer across the lands like an ocean of corpses .
Alone he stood , Lightsaber long since rendered useless against the hordes that still rushed his position from all fronts .
A dome of force energy circled around vas , As trogs piled onto of eachother and the dome he had created, Bashing themselves against the energy barrier he focussed to keep sustained .
" They're about to arrive " Vas uttered to himself " Time to finish this then "
He no longer needed to make use of oneness , As he drew the power from his central form through the cosmic force .
Bringing his hands together infront of his chest , His robes long since rendered simple rags that exposed his pale chest in the dimly lit undercity.
Breathing out , The force sung as it came to life , Flowing from his body in all directions as visible streams of energy caused copious amounst of wind currents to toss back the trogs.
Breathing out again , His chest began to glow with orange light , Said orange light spreading from the centre of his chest to bleed through his blood stream .
His body was on fire as his blood stream became liquid fire , His teeth grinding whilst his glowing emerald eyes became fluorescent white.
" See you soon , Shai " Vas caught sight of the lights breaking through the exhaust ventilation in the distance , Soon being caught by the searching gunships .
With a roar , He jumped up the force rallying to him as it layed over his body several times like a dome .
And with a scream , A force repulse the likes the galaxy had never seen ripped from Vas , Tearing everything apart as a dome if blueish white expanded across level three thousand .
The orange of his chest ruptured , His body exploding outwards as pure force energy escaped his being , Leaving a shining outline of a humanoid shape devoid of human flesh , Said flesh spreading far and wide , Carried away by the repulse .
" BRACE " Windu yelled out as he grabbed a hold of shai , Yoda grabbing the handle whilst the others hunkered down .
Yoda raised one of his hands as he prepared to shield their gunship , A thin layer of energy surrounding their vessel as they were swallowed.
The gunships soon rightened themselves from their diverted courses quickly after , Turning and rushing towards where the trogs had been erased from by the repulse.
" Spread out , Kill anything that moves " Windu ordered as the gunships diverted and began to spread far and wide , Raining down rain of cannonfire across the remaining trogs.
" Create an LZ ... I want us down there now ... " Windu searched the area the dome had come from , However he was unable to spot vas amongst the piles of corpses .
Approaching the zone , The ship lowered down onto the piles of corpses , Followed by the other ships that encircled the large blackened grounds .
Jumping down from the hold of the gunship , Mace and shai , along with the other jedi each began to spread out across the dimly lit zone , search lights illuminating the pitch black around them .
" MASTER " Shai cupped her cheeks as she shouted into the dark , The lights fading from the gunships fading off quickly .
" Spread out " Mace ordered as he activated his purple saber , bathing the area around him in purple light as he began a march off in a random direction through ground zero of the repulse .
" Hm " Yods activated his green saber and hobbled off in the opposite direction of Mace.
All around , The jedi ignited their green and blue sabers , Including shai who activated her blue saber and began to walk in a straight line .
' Shai ' A whisper sounded within her head , Causing her to look off to the right in confusion as she spotted a girl no older than herself rushing into the darkness .
Strangely enough it appeared the other jedi couldn't perceive the girl as she simply passed by Ki adi mundi without him even noticing .
" Hey " Shai yelled out as she ran off in pursuit of the girl .
" Careful young one " Mundi yelled out as shai shouldered past him in pursuit of the blonde .
' This way ' The soft feminine whisper sounded in her head again as the blue of her saber barely Illuminated the back of the running girl she was following .
" WAIT UP " Shai called out as she squinted as she ran , If she focussed har enough , She would share she could see through the figure , Yet she shook her head and continued in hot pursuit of the girl she now realised wore jedi robes.
" Where are you going " Shai yelled out , Only to be caught by surprise as the person simply vanished into the darkness like a wraith .
She didn't have time to ponder however as she found herself tumbling down a ravine of corpses , Coughing and huffing as she eventually came to a halt at the centre of a circular indent in the sea of dead .
Groaning , She rolled onto her back , Smelling the rancid smell of cooking flesh as she spotted her lightsaber seering it's way through a corpse a few metres away from her location .
Grumbling , She made her way to her feet , Pulling her saber from the corpse it had impaled itself into .
" Okay , WHERE'D YOU GO " Shai asked as she held her saber at eye level , Peering into the Illuminated darkness .
" There you are " Shai quivered as she spotted the little one squated down facing away from her .
" We need to get you ... out ... of " Shai slowlyed her words she found the girl to be nearly completely translucent , And by the time she had approached the figure , They had vanished completely .
But she immediately forgot about Said spectre , As she found herself gasping at what the spectre had been standing over .
" MASTER " shai screamed as she dropped her saber to the ground and fell onto her master.
His skin was burnt , Eyes closed and didn't appear to be breathing .
Immediately she began to administer CPR , Pushing down on her chest as she repeatedly yelled into the darkness .
' She's here ' Vas remained unconscious as the projection of nox stood over shai with darra at his side .
' Did you really blow yourself up ' Darra asked as she looked up to the other spectre .
' I had to run a test ' Nox replied as the insides of Vas finally reformed after having been detonated like a fucking suicide bomber .
' Note to self ... Detonating one of my bodies is rather unpleasant ... and annoying to regenerate ' Nox mused as he repaired the link to the body of Vas .
" there you go " Nox gently pet Darra on the shoulder before his abstract form vanished as he returned to his main body on the surface.
Nodding silently. Darra knelt down to the unaware shai , Just as Vas convulsed violently as he took in a deep breath , Feigning opening his eyes before falling unconscious.
" HE'S ALIVE ... HE'S ALIVE " Shai cried as she pulled the unconscious body of her master , Racked with sobs as she held him to her chest .
Quickly , She pulled out her communicator and opened an open channel " This is padawan chai ... I've found master lucis ... Transmitting my location "
Clicking her communicator , A hollow beep resounded around the crater as she simply held her master, Smiling slightly as darra watched the two of them with a blank face .
It wasn't thirty seconds later that Mace arrived , Coming to a stop with a contingent of clones , His face relaxing as he spotted the two of them from the rim of the crater .
" Let's get them out of here " Mace ordered before summersaulting down into the crater and landing at Shai's side .
Kneeling down , Mace gently removed Vas from his apprentices arms , Slinging the jedi over his shoulder as he motioned to the apprentice .
" Come on "
" The battle is over ... We've retrieved master vas , I repeat We've retieved master vas " Mace informed the forces that had accompanied them to level three thousand , And urged them to rush back to the transports so they could depart.
ZAKUUL
The streets of zakuul were silent , As scores of Skytroopers walked around with flame throwers equipped , Fed by gas cannisters wired into their backs.
" All zakuul citizens are to remain in their homes , Skytrooper units will deliver foods and supplies from door to door , I repeat , All citizens are to remain in their homes . This is a decree from his majesty "
The hologram in the central plaza began to repeat , as it had been for days at this point .
All the while the legion of skytroopers employed enmasse throughout the spire .
They were hunting , Under the orders of Scorpio herself who was currently controlling every skytrooper unit at once .
Transit from zakuul and iokath had come to a halt as the infinity gates had been shut down and broken incase anything wished to use them .
Skyva and Esna haunted the streets , Stalking through the streets with their towering forms as they turned anything organic to ash , As was their orders .
Hence why every citizen were within their homes , Trusting in their emperor to keep them protected as his underlings liquefied everything within the city that wasn't supposed to be there .
A screech drew esne's and a group of skytroopers attention, A human with blackened eyes and tar like saliva screamed as it rushed them .
It died in an instant as a red beam escaped Esne , Turning it to ash before they moved to investigate where it had come from .
" Sample acquired" Esne hissed as she scooped up the remaining black sludge , Turning and stepping over the skytroopers as she headed towards the emperors spire where Scorpio currently was .
Overlooking the city , The decayed remains of a zakuulan knight stood atop a tower , Yellow eyes peering across the city as it glared at the central spire .
" I can sense you ... can you sense me " It asked as it crouched, A sickening snap resonating from its limbs before it simply flopped off and jumped into the streets below , Where it landed with a sickening crunch, Making sure to avoid the skytroopers patrolling for its forces , Of which most were already dead .
But it didn't fear dying here , If needed , It would bring its full self here instead , But that was only if it needed to do so .
' Yet ' The creature thought as it walked up to the window to a room where a woman was currently resting, Smirking as its fingers turned to liquid , Allowing it to unlock the window from the outside .
CORTEX OF MEMORY
Opening his eyes into the very fabric of his soul , Nox looked at the lands that spread far and wide .
Massive stone spires spread into the skies in the distance , Each holding up a shelf as large as a continent.
Kneeling directly infront of the obsidian throne that signified his centre of being , The faces of tenebrae and tulak horde knelt , Completely mindless as they were puppets to his thoughts, Mere generators of energy for him to draw apon .
Rising from his thereal throne , Nox stepped down from the black steps and made his way to the stairs that dropped to the blackened lands below .
Ascending the stairs , Aloysius , Now completely black in colour and no longer see through , Approached his descendants side , Turning and walking back down the stairs he had just ascended as the two broke into conversation .
" I have taken the liberty of preparing the the dead you have acquired " Aloysius informed him as they reached the bottom after some minutes.
No longer was the main island where the deceased souls bound to nox meandered about simply just that , Instead it was a gargantuan land as eternal in size as it was needed to be , Expanding with the amount of souls walking around aimlessly within.
" Abit dreary don't you think " Nox asked as aloysius shook his head and waved his hand infront of an unresponsive ghost of a woman who had just died on coruscant .
" Not for them , I have taken the liberty of altering their perceptions enmasse , According to them ... they're experiencing the pure bliss of the afterlife, Happy with the families i have linked together " Aloysius stopped infront of two children .
" This little girl and her brother here are sharing the same mental plane as their parents ... Where they are currently happily eating fruits on a beach " Aloysius pointed out as he turned to their grandfather .
" And their grandfather is currently enjoying his younger years , Dancing an eternal ball with his wife , Who is there with him " Aloysius nodded to the old woman standing beside the old man .
" Will they ever break out " Nox asked as he crossed his arms , Staring at the ghost apathetically as felt the link each and everyone of themselves ahd to himself .
" No ... ive locked them deep into the recesses of their minds , For them , this is the perfect heaven and theyre free ... they'll never wish to break the illusion. Anything they wish for they get in there " Aloysius gently pet the head of the little girl before them , Where she simply stared out ahead .
" And if they did somehow break free , I would personally return them to their heavens " Aloysius affirmed as nox nodded .
" Then I entrust their upkeep to you , Though they're taking up a bit too much space " Nox changed the landscape of his cortex of memory , Moving the ghosts deeper into a new land that had appeared at his will .
Said land was a simple black sheet of land far off in the distance , Obscured by by dark shadows and clouds .
The land was flat as a steel plate, Where they would stand unaware for eternity , Ignorant to the fact that they were batteries for the being that devoured them endlessly in their deaths , For they were in their own individual heavens .
Now that the main land of the cortex of memory was so cluttered with lingering spirits, Nox looked towards where they were now stored , Smirking as the newly made storm obscured the land away from the prying eyes of anything that may ever enter.
Anything that would ever enter his cortex of memory , Would never know what was going on high above them , Anyone but aloysius and himself would know .
" Reminds me of hell actually... I wander " Nox chuckled before turning away and moving to ascend back up the stairs to where his throne was .
Stopping momentarily , Nox looked towards aloysius .
" Would you ever wish to walk the mortal plane once more " Nox asked as he peered meaningfully at the shade .
" My time has come and gone , I no longer wish for the whims of the flesh , Instead I am here... I am at peace " Aloysius replied slowly , Earning a sad look from nox .
" I thought so " Nox replied before turning away and ascending the stairs to the throne of his cortex of memory.
CORUSCANT - PADME'S APARTMENT
Returning to the mortal plane , Obrunik woke to the dawn of a new day , With Lana still very much resting on his legs .
Smiling down at the woman , He absent-mindedly noted the amount of people becoming one with him had slowed down drastically , Now a mere trickle rather than the sea of souls not twenty four hours prior.
' It seems they've finally routed the troglodytes, Simply killing the ones that remained ' Nox mused as he listened to the broadcast coming from a holostand at the centre of the room , Ladme curling up on the adjacent couch , Hugging her knees to her chest.
" Seventy percent of all life on coruscant just ... gone " Padme whispered as a livefeed of level three thousand showed the amount of corpses that piled to the ceiling .
" With the efforts of jedi master Vas lucis , We have been able to hold off the main force of these creatures from ascending higher , It is with great honour I present master Lucis with the medal of bravery , However it appears master lucis is in recovery and will be unable to accept his award at this time , A ceremony will be held in one month from now " Palpatine spoke up as his holo appeared beside the life feed of Vas Lucis being moved into a gunship along with shai and Mace.
Nox soon tuned out the speech of palptaine and the reporters, Choosing to focus on padme who was silently crying to herself .
" Padme ... Do what you do best ... help them ... after you've recovered , I'm ordering something for us to eat. Then you're going to prepare yourself , Centre yourself ... and then you're going to head the relief effort ..." Nox ordered , Giving the woman direction as she dried her tears .
" Now come over here ... rest rest with us " Nox gestured to the opposite side side of the couch he and Lana lay , Of which the woman complied , Laying herself down as she sought comfort from their presence .
THE JEDI TEMPLE
Shai sat beside Vas as he layed in the medical bay , Resting her head on the side of the bed to which he lay .
" You need to rest young one " Vokara che spoke softly as she gently pet Shai on the shoudler .
" I am resting " Shai mumbled back as che sighed, rubbing the girls back as she knelt down to the girl.
" Do you believe your master would wish for you to do this to yourself " Che asked as shai closed her eyes and took several deep breaths .
" No " Shai mumbled out as che brought the girl in for a hug .
" Then go rest ... you'll be the first to know when he wakes " Che comforted the girl as she rose and gently guided the padawan from the room , Leaving Vas alone in the sterile chamber .
" Master Che ... do ghosts exist " Shai asked as she looked up at the head healer who looked down at her in confusion .
" I'm not too sure ... though if you commune with the force you might find out " Che replied as Shai nodded and slowly walked away to the room of a thousand fountains.
Something was amiss when nox opened his eyes , As Lana was pressed against his chest , He felt a foreboding feeling coming through the force , Focussed solely on him.
Searching eyes searched padmes apartment only to find nothing, And so he spread his senses wide and far throughout the system .
' Nothing within the system is focussed on me .. rather ... I see then ' Nox frowned as he gently pried Lana from him , Letting her rest her head on the pillow he had been on .
' So he knows ' Nox made sure his black robe was in place as he squared his shoulders , Before fading from the surface of coruscant and appearing across the galaxy a moment later.
DESOLATE MOON OF KORRIBAN
Appearing on a solar body devoid of life , Nox prepared himself for what was to come .
" You're too late elegast " Nox turned to face the father with a mocking smile " Always too late to do what needs to be done "
" You need to stop this obrunik ... This path leads to nothing but death and destruction " Elegast all but plead to nox , Face twinged in open worry and fear for what was to come .
" Do you say that because you've seen it " Nox leant forward and tilted his head slightly as he spoke .. Mocking the would be deity with sarcastic words.
" Or because you fear the lack of control you have over what is happening " Nox pulled the darkstaff to his grip from oblivion where it had been stored , The gnarled stick slamming onto the dead ground between the two of them .
" Chance after chance ... And still you refuse to see " Elegast closed his eyes lightly , Regretting what he was about to do " there will be none more ... Surrender ... Or perish "
" You still think you have the power here don't you " Nox couldn't help the smile that placed itself apon his face , As a pair of pale grey wings erupted from erghasts back, Pure force energy surrounding the being.
Elegasts only response was a to send a force push of gargantuan proportions directly at noxs position.
Watching the ground uplift itself , A trench many times larger than himself being carved out of the surface of the desolate moon before him , Nox chuckled slightly .
And with a mere movement of his right hand , Brought the darkstaff to intercept the path of the force push .
It was something elegast obviously hadnt expected to happen , Seeing the blast of power being negated apon contact with the staffs head only to vanish , Swirling into the gnarled head of the staff that very same moment .
The two didnt speak as the massive trench now stopped dead at noxs feet , A loud echo sounding out as the base of the staff slammed into the dirt once more.
" The time for talking is over then I see " Obrunik gripped the staff with both hands , Aiming its head at erghasts position .
" I suppose it is time to see who's hands the fate of the galaxy rests in ... right ... now " And with a surge of energy releasing from the staff , A beam of black and purple energy ripped between the spaces between the two , Slamming into erghast before he was sent flying off into the direction of the nearby mountains .
The impact of elegast hitting the mountain in the distance was signified by a low rumbling of the ground , Smoke rising in the distance .
With a huff of amusement, Obrunik began to walk in the direction of the deity with a sure strut to his step .What Caused nox surprise however , Was the sudden shift of his environment around him , Being torn from the desolate moon and dropped into the realm of mortis .
" So you're taking this seriously then " All humour left Nox's face as he planted the darkstaff into the ground , Letting go of its handle to allow it to stand apon its own weight.
" Eat ... consume all of mortis " Nox Commanded of the darkstaff ... And it did just that , As it began to suck in and absorb the world around it , The air around it shimmering in a whirlpool like formation towards the staffs head .
Looking up and around , Nox looked around the realm of mortis .
" Are you here to do it " A deep voice he had heard before sounded over his shoulder .
" Are you going to kill father " Turning around , Nox came face to face with the son , One of the many manifestations of the darkside throughout the galaxy .
Beedy red eyes peered at nox with a calculating gaze .
" Are you going to try and stop me " Nox summoned a darksheer with a blank face , Pointing the black shifting tip of the darkside blade at the sons face .
" The only thing me and eipha would attain in interfering is death ... We will not interfere " The son vanished immediately after , Leaving for the only person he actually had any love remaining for .
Turning away from where the son had been , Nox began to walk through the shrubs towards where he felt a concentration of energy coming from , The skies shifting from daytime to midnight within moments.
" I met her you know elegast " Nox studied the fibres on one of the nearby shrubs , Running his fingers over his chin .
" What was she called to you again ... That's right... Abeloth " That seemed to do the trick as elegast appeared from where he was hiding , Rushing towards nox quicker than any creature had any right to move.
He all but materialised infront of nox , His hand alight with white light as he thrust his hand towards Nox's face .
His eyes widened as his brain accelerated , Allowing him the mental acuity and speed to lean back and avoid the palm that would no doubt have obliterated him entirely.
Looking into the eyes of elegast , Nox used fold space to teleport out of his awkward bent position directly behind the father , Electricity sparking around his palm .
Touching elegasts back , Lightning erupted from his hand and immediately coursed through the man , Bolts flying off of elegast and into the surroundings.
The screams of the man vanished as he did , Dissapearing from directly infront of nox even with noxs enhanced perception .
Summoning a darksheer , Nox was ready when elegast reappeared, Theurstung the blade of darkness as the gods stomach .
A wave of elegasts hand momentarily produced a white shield , Blocking the blade and sending it to the right .
Elegasts white covered left hand came around to catch noxs elbow as he was about to swing the darksheer towards elegasts neck .
" This will not go how you want it to obrunik " Elegast rumbled as he closed his hand on obruniks arm , Proceeding to sling obrunik into the air towards the sons dark tower in the distance.
Careening through the air , Nox felt the static buzz of electricity .
Acting on pure instinct , He cast a body wide tutaminus just in time to absorb a lightning strike from elegasts position .
Absorbing the energy , Nox growled , Using the force to right himself in the air and halt his descent.
" RAAAGHHHH " Nox bellowed as he pointed his hands towards where elegast had been , And the world exploded as torrents of red lightning singed the air and everything between as it obliterated the ground all around nox .
The energy release was many hundreds of times larger than himself , And with a sweep of his hand , Caused the lightning to spread in all directions around him.
Using tutaminus again , Nox absorbed the energy carried by a force push sent by the suddenly appearing elegast , And in turn , Sent a single thundering blast directly into elegasts undefended chest .
" Rghhh " Elegast gargled before he was flung into the distance , Sparking with red as he was flung towards his citadel .
" FATHER " A feminine voice carried over the lands as a blinding white light speared into the skies to catch the falling elegast .
" EIPHA NO " The sun sounded as he too appeared before noxs vision as a stream of black following the fleeing white light towards the fathers castle .
" That was too close " Nox grumbled as he felt for the darkstaff , making a grasping motion with his hand where it materialised not a moment later " I need not forget ... this is their place of power "
" Getting ready to interrupt their repreve , Nox crossed the darkstaff infront of his body , Blocking a swipe from the red flowing eyes gargoyle that was the son coming to stop him .
" So you lied " Nox growled as the sons transformed mouth latched on the darkstaff , Attempting to rip it from his grasp.
The two collided with the ground with force , Sending a quake through the realm as several trees crumbled under their weight.
The son pummelled into him with everything his transformed form could muster , Swiping and biting at noxs form who used the darkstaff to block the monsters strikes .
" Get off of me ... FOOL " A repulse escaped nox at the last word , Sending the gargoyle sprawling as he leapt up into the air , Grabbing the son by his transformed leg , Spinning and throwing him straight downwards into the dirt .
The man transformed into his humanoid shape upon falling to the ground.
About to fall onto the son , Nox was expecting and ready for eipha who appeared in her griffon like form , Beak poised to skewer him.
Grabbing the base of the darkstaff with both hands , Nox swung the staff into the light dieties skull , A loud crack sounding out as nox smirked.
Nox watched in slow motion as a purple blast of energy shaped the head of the staff apoj contact with the light womans head , An explosion of energy escaping as it both absorbed a portion of her life and sent her down towards her brother.
Wasting no time , Nox fell apon the still immobilised son , Stabbing clean through his abdomen with the base of the staff, The man releasing a realm shaking scream to his father.
"ABSORB " The darkstaff did as it was ordered , And nox watched in lethargic... vicious mirth as the light in the sons eyes seemed to almost dim as his power was sapped from him , Into the darkstaff and then into nox himself .
" You should have known better " A dark haze seemed to take a momentary hold of noxs mind , Yet he shook it off and kicked the weakened son into a nearby rock , Whilst he himself rushed to the still recovering eipha.
Nox's eyes glowed purple with a hint , Flecks of red sprinkled within as he rushed at the slowly rising daughter, Ready to run her through like he had done her brother .
" GIVE IT TO ME " nox laughed , Yet was stopped as the girls nimble , Delicate fingers managed to curl themselves around the head of the darkstaff .
Grinding his teeth together , Nox tried to push the head of the staff to the daughters chest, Yet she remained firm even as she was pushed back as he tried with all his might to get through her .
" RUGH " Nox chose to pull the darkstaff near , Dragging the woman with it where he planted his forehead into her own .
Her gasp was loud even as his head wrung , Shaking off the momentary haze where he reached out and grabbed her hair .
Her eyes opened wide in fright , As nox pulled her closed , Slamming the staff directly into her nose before raising the staff and slamming it into the back of her skull where she appeared to be momentarily stunned.
' From what I know, they're immortal as long as elegast exists ... But that doesn't mean ' He looped his arm around her neck , The head of the darkstaff locking her head in place despite her struggles .
" Absorb " The glow her hair dulled drastically as a portion of her being was stolen , And with a mighty snap ... Nox reversed the orientation of her head , Causing bile and viscera to erupt fro. her mouth as she went limp in his grasp .
' Theyll be back soon ' No doubt , Even now he could see her head slowly rotating back to its tight orientation , Just as hw could see the gaping hole in niphals abdomen slowly closing .
ELEGAST'S CASTLE
He attacked immediately apon appearing within the main room of the castle , A bean of purple erupting from the dakrstaff as it speared towards the newly recovered elegast .
Like a phantom, The father ran to the right , Defying gravity as he ran up the walls and behind several pillars , Only to appear at noxs side .
Dropping the staff, Nox crossed his hands infront of him , Barely Blocking the brunt of the significantly more powerful forcepush that elegast hurtled at him .
' He's getting faster ... stronger ... where is he getting this power from ' Nox thought as he was ripped from his feet and sent flying into the nearby wall , Where he was embedded in its surface .
Lowering his hand , Elegast cast a furious look towards the groaning nox , Eyes alight with blueish light as he stalked forward.
" You violate my children , Tear them asunder for what ... " Elegast growled as Elegast hovered above the ground , Now having six wings of white light erupting from his back , His white beard slowly beginning to grow as jox felt his power increase.
" Your rule has failed elegast ... time to give it up " He pulled himself from the wall , Dropping to his knees before standing to his full height.
" You have made me do something I had no wished to do " Elegast Growled as his hands became ethereal like , Made of shimmering light and stars .
" And what exactly is that " Nox began to pull his power to the surface, Ready to channel it all at once should he need to , He had a bad feeling .
" To destroy you and your corruption I have cast off my self imposed shackles " Elegast shrugged off his cloak as he became entirely composed of black matter and stars , Like he was a humanoid reflection of the universe itself " I ... am no longer the father of mortis ... balancer of the force "
Elegast spread his hands to the side a twin orbs of pure black gravity appeared in his hands , Noxs eyes opening wide in alarm .
' I have made a miscalculation ' Nox thought as elegast ppinted his palms at nox .
" I am elegast once more ... chosen aeon of the maker himself... know no more ... beastly incarnation " And with his parting words , He tossed the twin orbs at nox .
' I see ... he ascended back into his higher form , drawing power from across all his incarnations throughout all universes back to a single point . He is now a boundless being ... Lana ... vaylin ... hide ' He knew no more as the orbs struck his being , Tearing his form from the realm of mortis and ejecting it into the void surrounding the known universe ... Absolute oblivion .
" You really messed up didn't you " Nox opened his eyes to stare at the familiar being he yet didn't know the identity of .
' Okay ... he's much higher on the totem pole than I believed , Directly interfering with the actions of a boundless aeon ... This being is a lot more powerful and important than I thought '
" I thought I was dead " Nox grumbled as he sat up in the white expanse .
" That's because you are boy " The being shrugged dismissively as it approached Studying noxs ethereal form over .
" You've done well, You're on the cusps of ascending to a higher plane similar to eleghasts own ... " The being studied nox over before turning away .
" But " Nox intoned as the being stopped for a moment.
" You have the power to ascend ... more than enough infact , If you were able to properly Channel it to become something ... more . You would have had no trouble with eleghast ... But you lack the understanding to do so " The being replied as it spread its arms wide , And nox could feel the power within him come to the surface, Causing his impartial aeon form to erupt and appear.
" So I will make you understand... Elegast has overstepped his bounds ... he needs punishment... You will complete this task I send you on before confronting elegast again ... Worry not for your lovers or your empire in your absence ... for he has been forbidden to do so . Elegast will not go after them in your absence . Go now ... become the being I dream you be , Lord with a thousand faces "
A wave of his hand dispersed the white expanse and dissipated noxs incomplete form , Sending the man falling into the bottomless void where he lost consciousness.
" STOP, Right where you are sith" Carth bellowed as he stared out at the sith standing amongst the bodies of his allies .
To his surprise , The sith put away his saber and raised his hand .
" Calm yourself soldier ... I am not allied with the sith boy " The man reasoned as he stepped over the corpses of the sith at his feet " But I am also no jedi ... I do not care for either of them , But I am no threat to you ... Here "
The man raised his hand as carth followed his movements with his blaster , As the man removed his hood to reveal the face of a man who couldn't have been older than twenty .
" There " The man lowered his hands , But carth didn't miss the sulphuric yellow eyes in the man's head .
" Hold it " Carth raised his blaster to the man's face as the man raised his eyebrow.
" Come now , If I wanted you dead I'd just " He flicked his finger , And carth watched in abject horror as a boulder to their right simply ceased to exist , Causing carth to fall to the ground in fright .
" What are you " Carth asked as the man stood over him , Reaching down to offer a hand .
" Here to learn ... to understand , Come ... I want to speak to your generals , Don't worry I won't let these sith kill you in the meantime " Carth looked up at the offered hand with great dear and trepidation.
" I don't have a choice do I " Carth asked as he slowly reached for the offered hand .
" Even less than you think " The man responded by Pulling Carth to his feet .
" Now where is what's it called again ... ahh ... the endar spire " The man asked as he urged carth to walk with him , Raising a hand to the right to blast a sith soldier with red tinted lightning .
" Hey if I'm guiding you can I atleast get your name " Carth asked as he might as well get information of the man holding him hostage .
" Obrunik .." Nox answered honestly as he flung a piece of debris at a unsuspecting sith soldier , Slicing the man in half .
" Carth " He replied as they stepped onto the larger battlefield " And that's where we need to go "
Between them and the endar spire was a battlefield of Republic and sith soldiers battling it out , He could feel the light that was bastilla giving her gifts to the Republic soldiers as she buffed them with her battle meditation.
And further within the ship resting , He could feel the shattered mind of revan himself , No doubt asleep fro. what he felt .
" I see , Verywell , Allow me to clear the battlefield " Everything went white for a moment before Carth realised how out of his depth he was , Watching as the enemy lines were rendered dust in an instant , Sith soldier , apprentice and darth turned to ash in an instant .
" I ask again ... what are you " Carth clutched his blaster in abstract terror .
" Impatient ... I have a lot of things I need to do and quickly .. quit wasting time "
CHAPTER COMPLETE
It seems nox bit off abit more than he could chew , Namely and enraged elegast who chose to return to his original state .
In doing so , He accessed every ieteration of himself across the multiverse , Absorbing said power back to a central point , Returning to being a boundless aeon .
It was for but a moment, But it was enough to smite Nox who had yet to truly access the powers of an aeon and beings of their calibre.
Afterall what is a being with the power of a million souls , Compared to something that cab create and erase universes at will .
TO ANSWER PEOPLES QUESTIONS
1 . WE WILL BE GOING OVER THE BLUE VIRUS ARC FROM KANYAS PERSPECTIVE AT A LATER DATE .
2 . PADME HAS CONTRACTED NOX TO BUILD SEVERAL ION CANNONS AND HAVE THEM BUILT INTO THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF THEED PALACE , SO THEY CAN DEFEND THEMSELVES FROM INVADING FORCES SUCH AS DROIDS WHO ARE PARTICULARLY WEAK TO ENERGY WEAPONS BECAUSE THEYRE ... WELL .. DROIDS .
3 . TIMELINE WISE WE ARE A COUPLE WEEKS / MONTHS BEFORE THE KIDNAPPING OF JABBAS SON
I apologise this chapter took so long to get out , I've been moving house due to the cost of rent and it's taken me some time to get things ready . So I've had to sort of rush this chapter . And so I will most likely be editing and adjusting this chapter whilst I work on the next .
Also if you have any questions you'd like answered , or ideas you'd like to see . Please leave a review or dm and I'll post shortly .
ANYWAY ONTO THE NEXT CHAPTER
NEXT CHAPTER : BEFORE YOUR TIME
