Lehon - Jedi Temple

[Kadi Silan]

Kadi's transport arrived in orbit, with her sitting in her quarters as they exited hyperspace. It had only been a few days since she'd seen left the Jedi Temple on Felucia, since she'd seen Eisa, and yet already her heart ached. She didn't think anything of it more than missing a good friend, however. Such people were few and far between- these deployments were common for her, and it was rare for her to spend more than a week or two on a planet at a time past completing her objectives, so it was only natural to feel the way she did about one of those few connections she made disappearing into the black void of space as she hurtled through hyperspace.

 

It all but disappeared though when they arrived over the planet, maneuvering to the proper point of descent as she pulled out the communicator she'd been gifted. That made three that she kept on her person now. It was getting out of hand, but she supposed it was good to keep tabs on her, considering her inclination to set off into the wilderness at the drop of a pin. She sent a brief message to Eisa, though she knew it would be a few hours before she got a response. Their local time wasn't in sync- it was likely the middle of the night on Felucia right now.

 

She retrieved her second communicator, the one for the Grandmaster, sending a message ahead.

 

Arrived in orbit. En route to temple- too dangerous to land there, will disembark nearby and move on foot. Supplies in orbit, waiting for your order.

Edited July 26, 2021 by Mavanger

[Kadi Silan]

By the time they touched down, the storm had abated, leaving only a slight drizzle and cool breeze wafting through the battered terrain. In the wake of the storm, however, the bigger threat was revealed. The Sith had come to this world. Armenia had been right. She checked her communicators, concerned to see no response on either of them. Master Armenia certainly knew of the new development now- It was time for her to do her job. She glanced at the crew as Sith forces flew overhead, ducking low. They were military, but they weren't soldiers. They weren't trained to hold a position or to fight a guerilla fight.

 

"Alright. The Jedi Temple is about a dozen kilometers away, and the Sith have air superiority, at least until the Temple defenses come online. They'll catch us before we can make it, and they'll find us if we hide. So we'll do both. Make your way to the temple- don't stop unless absolutely necessary. I'll draw them away for as long as I can keep their attention. Now go fast- the more distance you can make from the shuttle the better. Try and stick to pathways and openings, it'll make it harder to track you."

 

The crew nodded, heading off into the forest. Good. This wasn't a suicide run or a heroic sacrifice- She could act to the best of her abilities on her own, and they could make it back to the Temple unharmed, or so she hoped. Juro approached her, and she rubbed his head affectionately. She could already sense the Sith approaching, but there was something different about this group. Whereas the usual cohorts of the Sith tromped through their zones with little to no care, a fact that made them incredibly easy to track, these ones moved with the dark grace of a predator. She shuddered- it reminded her of the untamed Acklay populace on Felucia, tainted by the darkness of their environment. Juro chittered, taking a defensive posture as she climbed atop. Most the group had broken away, moving in a different direction, but one was still drawing ever nearer. There was no doubt in her mind- this was a pack of Force Sensitives, though whether they were Sith or something else remained unknown.

 

Eisa had once told her that she resembled the knights of storybook tales atop Juro. Kadi had never understood that notion until now, as she patiently waited for her foe to reveal herself as she meditated, relying on her bond with Juro for comfort. She opened her eyes as the person drew closer, standing at the ready. When she revealed herself, her weapon seemingly abandoned, her mind open, Kadi readied her weapon, though she didn't ignite it yet.

 

Nightsisters.

 

She remembered the one she had fought on Felucia- A twisted creature, corrupting the world around her as she saw fit. Her face soured in a scowl. This one was younger, even younger than she was. There were subtle differences in attitude and dress as well- the one she'd encountered on Felucia acted like Sith and commanded Sith troops. She'd shown little care for the nature around her beyond how she could use it to her advantage. She was a cruel facsimile of what the Jedi had learned since then of nightsisters and their people, but it was still cause for concern.

 

"Hail, Nightsister. I have met your kind before, on Felucia. I am Kadi Silan, Jedi Naturalist. We may talk, or we may fight, but if you intend this world and its inhabitants harm, then it is my duty to stop you."

 

In truth, if this Nightsister was anything like the one on Felucia, then their conversation would likely be very short. The atrocities she had witnessed still haunted her dreams, and she had committed herself to preventing such a thing from happening again.

Edited July 27, 2021 by Mavanger

[Kadi Silan]

Kadi grimaced. So then this was the child of that woman. She now had a name to match the Sith as well. Quela Darksong. She planted the butt of the spear into the dirt, showing the scarred skin that enveloped her calf and shin to the other woman. "I still bear the scars of that encounter. But they pale in comparison to the scars she left on the people and the worlds that she touches. She is a plague upon worlds, caring little for the natural order or for its inhabitants. If you are here, her daughter, does that mean she has returned?"

 

She glanced up at the sky, looking at the Sith fleet with sadness. If they did not win here, what would become of this place? Would it burn as the villages on Felucia did? Would they massacre the people in the streets like they had on Naboo?

 

"You're right that I have no reason to believe that you seek a peaceful transition of power. You've come to a world with a single Jedi Temple, with hardly a local garrison and a number of untrained padawans, bringing armies and bringing a fleet this large to gently usher us off world? If there was ever to be peace, why is it that the only time the Sith have ever extended a diplomatic hand, they assaulted our representative and her retinue? That, too, was your mother, if the woman is one and the same as the one I met on Felucia."

 

She watched the nightsister test her bow, and Kadi was reminded of their situation. A world on the eve of battle. In time, her position would be overwhelmed, or vice versa. She readied her spear once more, on guard at the other woman's movements.

 

"If the situation was reversed, how would you react? If the Sith had come to ravage your world, as they surely will if you don't already bow to them, would you trust the words you speak?"

 

She was unfazed by the woman's advances- She was a predator. The way she moved, the way she eyed Kadi. These things made it apparent. Letting her guard down would likely get her killed, like facing off against any wild beast. Maybe a few months ago, she'd have dropped her guard at such words. But now, she'd met someone she cared for, she'd seen what the Sith and their allies were capable of.

[Kadi Silan]

As Telperien drew her arrow, Kadi gave her a pained look. Conflict could be avoided here- this violence wasn't necessary. Her eye's met the Nightsister's for the briefest of moments, conveying her thoughts with clarity. She didn't want to fight here- She didn't seek this woman's blood. She held no ill will for her on account of her parents- She was of the belief that people were not the sum of their parents. That tension was broken as Telperien nocked her arrow, cutting herself open as she did. She let out a deflated sigh, moving away from Juro as she did. She could feel the tension in the air, the dark side dripping across the ground as the woman's blood splattered on the dirt in droplets of crimson. In an instant, it snapped. The nightsister spoke, offering a spoken promise that Kadi had no intent to believe before firing her shot, propelled forwards by the Force at a dizzying speed. Were she not a practitioner of Ataru, it would have impaled her in the heart. Instead, as she moved to the side, twisting her torso as it cut open her arm, leaving an angry red line in its wake.

 

Juro let out a loud roar, his shrieking cry echoing across the clearing as he charged. It was partly out of his own inherent instincts- She was a threat, and his fight or flight had deemed that she was a killable one. But a part of it was through the bond that Kadi shared with him as her pain was reflected. Kadi darted forward behind him and to his left, moving to flank the woman in melee combat. Juro reached first, two savage strikes from his front two claws, left then right. Kadi reached her next, skirting the edge of her spear's range as she gave a testing thrust towards the nightsister's shoulder, staying light on her feet and alert to her surroundings. The force flowed through her, and she breathed in and out in a steady rhythm as she engaged. Even here, in this marred landscape rife with the Dark Side, there was light. The sun beating down on the trees and grass. The cool breeze that carried with it the remnants of rain. There was light in almost all things dark. Even this woman. 

 

"You can stop this! There is no need to fight!"

 

The words were hollow and weak, the pain gnawing at her mind, but she was content. A nightsister was as dangerous as any sith, and steeped in mystery. She didn't know what to expect with this fight, but she knew one thing was certain.

 

She couldn't afford to lose. Even if her opponent refused to surrender.

((1, good luck!))

Edited July 28, 2021 by Mavanger

[Kadi Silan]

For a fraction of a second, it seemed as though they had already won. The Nightsister's bow was broken, disarmed and on the run. And then, as the Force warped around them to form the darkness, it became clear what her true plan was. Kadi's breath caught as she froze, gazing across the clearing. In her heart, she knew it wasn't real. She knew it was a false image, an illusion of some sort. That didn't matter though- she'd failed to handle her trauma from that day, and even just the images here were enough for her to seize up. Tears welled in her eyes. This was her fear. This was her horror. Juro shrieked as he glanced around- such images held so sway over him, but he could feel what she felt, and he could sense what this brought out in her. She gasped as her tears overflowed, streaming down her eyes.

 

The horror, the grief, it all came out. The world shuddered in darkness, and she once again felt its tendrils reaching out for her. She clung to her bond with Juro for support, taking comfort in merely his presence. Her weapon, still ignited was slack in her hand. But the Nightsister had made a grave error in what she had chosen to show Kadi. She'd grappled with this already, and it still broke her heart. There were things that she'd seen that still haunted her. But it was in the ashes of that village that she had stayed her course, had hardened her resolve. It was her failure, but it was also her motivation. She'd been too slow to stop this carnage from happening the first time. But not this time- this time she was here. She actively stood against those that would seek to commit acts like this. That would abscond the natural order with such senseless violence.

 

She clung to her bonds as a Jedi- Juro, of course, but Eisa as well. She had shown Kadi how good people could really be, that the stand against the Sith was not in vain. She wept openly, but she embraced the sorrow, letting it flow freely, letting herself be free of it. Here, and now, in this moment, at least for now, she could accept what happened, and accept that, even if she felt that it was her fault, she was in a position to not let it happen a second time. So many people relied on her. The crew that even now fled through the wilderness. The Jedi that were preparing for their battles at the Temple. Every second she stood was another padawan ushered to safety. Every minute that she fought, another defense came online. This Nightsister was their vanguard, but Kadi was the Jedi's.

 

She let her sorrow show on her face- trying to hide it was useless. But she planted her feet into the ground, readied her spear. Juro chittered nervously. She didn't know where the Nightsister hid- the attack had done that much of it's job. All she could do was rely on her own heightened senses. Beyond the burning flesh, the acrid smoke, the ruined huts, the truth of things lingered, ever so slightly. The rain. The wind. The sky. It was all there, just beneath this cruel façade. She readied her weapon for the attack that was sure to come. She didn't know where it would come, she didn't know how, but she knew it would. And she had faith in the Force that it would guide her. That it would show her the truth of things beyond these tormenting visions.

 

((2))

[Kadi Silan]

Her eyes deceived her. Her ears echoed with the screams of the dead. Her skin baked with the heat of the false fire. She closed her eyes. The Force would guide her. She focused on it, feeling it. Feeling the way the energies ebbed and flowed- Even in a world as dark as this one, she could feel the currents as the Nightsister cast her foul magics. Her blood was the key. It didn't matter anymore. She could feel the movements, and while her illusions too played at her mind, it was enough. She sprang into action as she was charged by the doppelgangers. Juro roared once more- these small things had attacked what was essentially his mother. She had raised him from a hatchling. Cleansed him of Felucia's taint. Their bond was unshakeable. They had trained together for years. She trusted him not to strike her, and he trusted her to protect him. 

 

And so she leapt backwards, spinning her spearin a long arc. It moved to parry the first blade and whipped through empty air. A lie. She steeled her heart as she allowed the first illusion to close. The momentum of the spear haft carried it into the second, and it swished in it's long arc. Another miss. But as she fell on the backfoot, she was comfortable. Like a dancer, every movement built into the next, a whirling sentinel, determined to let none through her defense. This was Ataru, the way of the Hawk Bat. Juro rushed the trio from their flank. She knew the true threat now. Juro only saw the three Nightsisters as new combatants. Kadi opened her eyes, and felt the clearing for what it was. A wounded world, the Force sundered a millennia ago by an untold force. Even if it was beyond her ability to heal it, she could stop this battle now, and give other Jedi, more powerful than herself, the opportunity. Maybe a padawan that she helped save this day would come back here, years from now, and heal this world. Maybe someone on Felucia would remember her and seek to be a healer, a protector.

 

As the nightsister closed, Kadi leapt. The blade struck, scoring her unblemished chest and abdomen through her own armor. It would have been a lethal strike, and the pain that coursed through her body was the price she paid for survival. The scar would remind her of this fight, for all future fights. As she sailed through the air, she struck from above, using the spear the stab at the woman's spine- hopefully not a lethal blow, but a debilitating one. Juro rushed forward, striking first at the left illusion, and when he was met with nothing, he struck again with his razor sharp claws at the center as Kadi landed, tumbling along the dirt as she knelt, panting for breath. Each breath caused her pain, a lance across her nervous system, dulled only by the adrenaline coursing through her body and her channeling of the Force.

Even if she died here today, he only regret would be that she didn't buy more time. That she didn't save more. But she was prepared for the outcome, regardless.

 

((3))

[Kadi Silan]

Kadi watched as the Nightsister fell, the pain in her heart at inflicting such injuries on the woman mirroring the pain across her front. The illusion fell, and she once more saw the forest for what it truly was. She stood, leaning on her spear as the woman laid immobile on the ground, approaching slowly as Juro stood over her, chittering dangerously. She called him over, asking him to stay back as she knelt over Telperien. She hadn't crippled the woman, she saw now upon getting closer. Instead, she shared a wound similar to Kadi's own, whatever evasive maneuver having occurred had throw off her strike. Still, it had been enough to end the fight. She sat, lifting the other woman's head into her lap, sorrow in her eyes. Such a young life, consumed by the dark side. Before the fight, she had expressed interest in naturalism. Maybe it wasn't too late for her.

 

"I am sorry, Lady Darksong. I wish this battle had never come to be. But know this- You are not the sum of your parents. Your father's trickery was not, and is not, yours. Your mother's actions are not your own. They don't get to decide who you are or what you do. Only you get to do that. I cannot force you to leave the dark, but I can offer you the path. Come with me, back to the Temple. We can heal your wounds, and I can teach you Naturalism.  Not as your master- you've had plenty of those, I think. As a friend, and as a peer."

 

Regardless of the Nightsister's response, this battle was over. There were other Sith, other Nightsisters moving towards the Temple, and they would need every last Jedi they could muster.

[Kadi Silan]

Kadi took the amulet, shaking her head at Telperiën. The Sith had done this to her, then. They had done what they do best- Destroy and corrupt. They had taken a young child and turned her into a weapon. It broke her heart, but it also reminded her why she fought. Why she would always take up arms against them when they invaded. Why she wouldn't let Lehon fall.

 

"The Force does not curse people- The people using it do. If someone has cursed you to be this way, then I'm sure it's reversible. And even if it's not..." Kadi hesitated for only a moment before continuing. "Then do something good with what you have. You are a leader among your people- bring them out of the dark. Protect them from what the Sith bring to every world the lay their eyes upon- Death and destruction."

 

She grasped the other woman's hand, hoping to comfort the clearly dying nightsister. She wept, though she knew from the way Telperiën spoke that she would be back.

 

"You must think my expectations are great. I don't expect you to be anything- I just want you to be better. Your salvation does not lie in the Spider, whoever he is. It lies in your own heart, and in your will."

 

Kadi held her close, hoping to give comfort where she could. She had struck the final blow. She had taken this life, if only temporarily. It was the least she could do to make sure she was in comfort as she passed. She ran her hands through Telperiën's hair, as her mother used to do when she was young. Something that, judging by her rejection of the Darksong name, her own mother never did for her. Such senseless hatred and disdain for one's own daughter, and for what? So that she could climb the Sith ranks with naught but false promises of power, betrayal, and mayhem? She would never understand it.

[Kadi Silan]

It was nearly half an hour before Kadi moved, sitting silently as she wept. Such pain... What had she been taught that she believed her only chance at existing was this cursed life? What drove the Sith to make such audacious claims on others' lives, like they were but playthings? She felt Lehon's pain, impaled by thousands of dark artifacts, and she shared in it as she held the lifeless corpse in her arms, cradling it close. She didn't just grieve for the loss of life. She grieved that she had caused it. That she hadn't been able to save her. This is what it meant to take a life. To cut someone down in combat. She was entirely unprepared. Would she have the strength to do it again?

 

She planted her spear in the ground beside her, climbing to her feet as she did so. What she had planned wouldn't take long. She retrieved Telperiën's lightsaber and her shattered bow, placing them on the body as she did so. She lit a flame, starting at the dead woman's feet, watching as it quickly caught and spread. The waterlogged forest around her was in no danger from this, and it seemed wrong to just leave the body in the open. She didn't have the time to dig a grave, but she did have time for this. She stood silently, retrieving her spear as she watched the body burn with sorrow, silent the entire time.

 

This was her vigil. Any that would come to disturb this woman's rest, even if it was only a brief one, would do so at their own risk.

[Kadi Silan]

Kadi felt a shift in the force. A great beacon of light, snuffed out by the darkness. She shuddered. Who had died? Was it Kil, the newest member of the council? Or had it been Draygo? Either way, her vigil would need to come to an end. She whispered a quiet apology to the ashen pyre, though she knew that Telperiën likely wasn't there, nor would she care. It was more for Kadi's peace of mind than for Telperiën's sake. Her chest ached from the battle before, but she hadn't finished what she had set out to do. If one of them had died, then the Temple was either breached, or about to be. They would need to get the refugees out, and they'd need ground support to do that. She glanced at the sky, sighing softly. The hurricane had abided, and she could see the Sith ships in orbit. Their retreat would be hard. Hers would be easier. With this shuttle hidden in the forest, miles away from the temple, and her abilities as a a naturalist, even if she didn't make it out with the retreating shuttles she could survive alone until the Sith blockade cleared out.

 

She could certainly fly at least that well, right? She could only hope.

 

She leapt onto Juro, and with a gentle nudge, he took off, rain flicking across her face and Juro's carapace. Her hair clung to her head, her horns seeming larger with her hair plastered against her scalp from the rain. Juro tore through the forest with a speed that dwarfs what a speeder could safely do in the wooded landscape, and she could soon see the temple rising through the trees. Blaster fire, screams, and battlecries echoed through the air. The battle had started.  She could see a breach in the wall nearby, and a shuttle just beyond. A team of Sith troopers were pushing up to secure it. Juro sprinted forward, letting out a shrieking cry as he charged across the battlefield, a terrible sight to behold. She leapt off as he neared, her saberspear igniting in the air.

 

She landed with a soft roll, the end of her shaft connecting with the skull of one of the troopers. There was a sickening crack, and he was down. Juro made quick work of two others with his teeth and serrated legs, and she made a final thrust towards the last, spearing his thigh. He collapsed, and she kicked his weapon away.  Fighting on a battlefield without killing anyone was naive, she knew that. It was a war. But if she could, she would make sure as few died by her hand as possible. She glanced back at the transport. She recognized the crew- they were the ones from her own. They must have slipped in through the same breach. She nodded, and they nodded back appreciatively. She turned to the hole in the wall, now inside the Temple's grounds, and planted her feet as the refugees were loaded. No harm would come to them while she stood here.

[Kadi Silan]

Kadi shook her head as Leena spoke. The assumption was reasonable, but not what happened. "I fought her daughter. The leader of the Nightsisters is dead, and they have been routed- I can only assume that Darksong has fled the battlefield once again. I was outside the Temple, but I was far- I sensed Draygo's passing, and I came to help the battle. I'm far from out of the fight. I fear we've lost this world, but I will fight to buy you as much time as you need to get these people to safety."

 

She glanced back. The shooting had ramped up- the attack had been renewed. She sensed a presence in the Force, racing towards the breach. Her fight would begin soon. She looked back at the other Jedi, placing her hand on Leena's shoulder.

 

"Don't wait for me. These people's safety is the priority. Once they're out, I'll make my way off-world. I won't let this be another Felucia."

 

She turned, letting out a sharp whistle to Juro. Her wounds still ached, but she could fight through them now. She moved away, towards the breach. She could here the shouting and the shooting, and the Sith drawing closer in the Force. She closed her eyes, centering herself before she looked back at Leena with a smile. She would be fine. She would do her job- she had no intent of martyring herself here, though. She would deal with this Sith, and then the next, and then the next until the Sith were routed or Leena could get their people to safety. She twirled her spear for a moment before jogging back through the breach, Juro moving behind her. it was carnage- The Sith and rebel troops traded fire from fortified positions. In the distance, a large explosion rocked the area. And in front of her, a Sith warrior. Another child. Were the Sith conscripting these people so early? Brainwashing them to do their bidding? She stood her ground, and Juro let out another screech behind her.

 

"Turn back Sith. You will not harm these people."

[Kadi Silan]

She sighed in sorrow. First Telperiën, and now this hulking woman. Why did the Sith always choose to fight? What was on this backwater planet they wanted so badly that not even their most level headed fighters were willing to waver? It was in there nature, she supposed. As it was in hers to oppose them. She broke into a run with Juro to meet the Sith- She would need to end this fight fast. Ataru wasn't known for it's ability to fight long battles, and while Leena's healing and her vigil had helped her recover her stamina, it wouldn't be long she felt before she was too tired to fight on. For now, at least, she was able to perform. The Sith's saber flew by, Kadi's heightened senses catching the movement as it flew towards Juro. He moved his head as the saber cut a score across his armor and he shrieked in pain. She felt it too, through her bond, and held it tight, though not like a Sith would. She didn't hold onto it for power or for prestige- she clutched to it to protect Juro, to ease his suffering. He let out an enraged roar, following her lead as the hairs on the back of her neck prickled.

 

She spun, igniting her spear and knocking the returning blade off it's lethal course, her blade meeting it, letting her momentum carry her as she continued her spin into the next blow, the second saber slicing through her armor and leaving a shallow slice against her back. A calculated risk, as her proximity and her spin propelled her to the Sith's left, past the aggressive follow up and left the Sith swinging at empty air. She swung the hilt of her spear towards the back of the Sith's head, followed by a completion of her spin as she gripped close to the base of the spear, sacrificing power for reach as she slashed at the back of the Sith's knees. Meanwhile, Juro took the opportunity to fight as well, a pair of carapaced claws, covered in serrated spikes, came down towards the Sith, who was now caught between a Jedi and her Acklay. The battle would be far from over, Kadi felt, as unless the Sith took the full brunt of Juro's attacks, no blow administered had been lethal.

 

((1))

Edited August 20, 2021 by Mavanger

[Kadi Silan]

Sure enough, the fight wasn't over. But there was a difference between this fight and the fight with Telperiën. The nature in which they enjoyed the fight had shifted- This woman was vengeful and filled with hatred, something that was made apparent when she yet again threw her blade at Juro, this time aiming for his own knee. Juro was not an inept beast as he must have appeared to the Sith, however, as he let out a shriek and dodged to the right, the saber missing him entirely as he skittered back into position. Kadi, for her part, was no slouch either, and as a practitioner of Ataru, speed and agility were her forte. She bent backwards, as though playing a lethal game of limbo, taking advantage of the moments bought by Juro, allowing the thrust to pass harmlessly over her. Rather than try to correct her center of gravity, however, she used the Force to augment her athleticism, and turned the dodge into a short backflip, preventing the Sith from circling behind her. The strain on her arm reopened the wound that Telperien inflicted, and her chest ached as the burnt flesh was forced to stretch. She landed crouched as the Sith's final blow went wide, though it was a wide cleave and bit deep against her other shoulder.

 

Whereas her previous fight had tested her mentally, it was clear this test before her would be purely martial. There was no psychology here, nothing she could do to convince this Sith to divert her course. And so, she would have to defeat her. She gave a trio of thrusts towards the Sith as Juro continued his advance. The first was aimed towards the neck of the Sith, aiming for the soft spot between her helmet and her breastplate. The next was similarly aimed at the Sith's shoulder, followed by a blow towards her hip, where her plate met her belt. The situation wasn't ideal- this Sith was much more martially focused than her previous opponents had been, but her strategy remained the same. She leapt backwards, hoping to further split the Sith's attention between herself and Juro. If she could do that, they could make an opening, and they could exploit it. Juro, for his part, continued his advance, looking to drive the one who had harmed him into his companion's spear, placing her squarely between them, as though she were metal caught between hammer and anvil. He pushed forward still, continuing his assault as he once more drove his serrated claws towards the Sith.

 

((2))

[Kadi Silan]

Once more, she felt herself pulled into the movements of Ataru, moving with fluidity as the Sith redirected her spear. But in her pain from her wounds, she made the mistake of trying retaliate against the warrior's strike, and her spear was sheared in half as she swung, the blade deactivating. Luckily, all of the sensitive components were close to the blade, the lost half essentially a light metal rod elongated for reach, but it was little comfort to her as the weapon's functional half sailed through the air and embedded itself in the mud. Had the Sith continued her assault, Kadi would have likely fallen. But instead, she turned, seeming to believe that all Kadi had was her spear. Kadi reached for her belt, drawing her survivalist knife. It was a deft blade, light and small at around 5 inches, but one she was familiar with.

 

For a moment, it occured to her how battered she must look. Bleeding, scorched, with the wrong half of a lightspear in her off-hand and a mere knife in the other. But she was a Jedi- She would stand against this Sith, no matter the odds. As the Sith sent blows against her friend and companion, she rushed forward to the Sith's exposed back. With the glorified metal pipe, she struck towards the back of the Sith's knee, hoping to throw her off of her course. She dropped the pipe as the swing finished, reaching out with the force to the functional half, and willing it towards herself. She could hear Juro's cry as a saber bit deep into one of his legs. Kadi felt compassion for her injured companion, but she knew the way of the wild. A predator like Juro was not stranger to pain, and to battle. The only difference between him receiving the injury her instead of while hunting was that the Sith before her delivered it out of spite, rather than self preservation.

 

Once again, the duel culminated in a single thrust towards her chest. Her mind raced at a million miles an hour as her insincts decided her course of action. Up, like before? She was too injured- she wouldn't clear the distance in time. Down? She would just be putting her face in the path of the blade instead. Parry? Her knife was saber resistant, but she'd made the mistake of trying to match this warrior's blow already, and had payed for that decision. She braced herself- she knew what was coming. She twisted, and the blade missed it's intended target, impaling her right shoulder. Her vision went white as pain seared her nerved, and she let out a pained cry, her quiet stoicism broken.

 

She had to push through.

 

She focused herself, breathing heavily through the pain in the brief moment that it took for her to move again. Luckily, her right arm required minimum movement in that moment. She drove her knife towards the Sith's wrist, hoping to sever the nerves the let her hand close. Her other arm, now wielding the proper half of her spear, ignited the blade and drove it towards the Sith's chest in a similar move. In truth, she knew that her fate here didn't matter. She could hear the fighting in the Temple- She had bought all the time she could, and she was at peace with that. Maybe this would save a few more today.

 

Juro hesitated for a moment. He knew he had to strike, but he had grown cautious of the Sith's blade, and Kadi wouldn't command him to attack into them. But when she was impaled, Juro's hesitancy vanished, and he leapt forward to protect her as his maw opened, revealing rows of serrated, barbed teeth as he lunged for the Sith's head.

 

((3))