Corellia

[Stormhelm]

Rolling through a few more repetitions of Makashi with Master Armiena helped to take my mind off of Coruscant and the horrors I saw that day, although occasionally I did eye Ryu from time to time during and wonder about his past. Armiena was definitely threatened by him in a sense, his past known, or at least his reputation, only to her. And yet despite this threatened feeling she got from him, she still chose to help him.

 

As she departed, I stayed with the man, offering what little I could to make his journey a pleasant one considering his confinement, and sitting in silence the rest as I remembered first encountering him and the scars that riddled his body. He knew war, that was for sure. Likely as experienced as Master Armiena, if not more. And here I was, rushing off to one inexperienced in every way save for the Force and what Master Armiena had taught me. This was something I never thought I would ever see myself doing, especially after i made a vow to never pick up a blade ever again.

 

But now i was a Jedi, and one of the callings had placed an even more dangerous blade into my hand than the one I used so long ago, and my mentality had began to shift toward the need to use it in the defense of those who can't. It was a bittersweet feeling to say the least, one i knew was important, but rathered not to ever have to. But war was war and it was inevitable. Still, the choice plagued me, especially when the klaxons began to blare and our arrival was upon us, the nervous pit in my stomach only growing deeper.

 

I heard Armiena call for Ryu, her intent to keep her word being set on hold for the moment. But as she spoke, an idea popped into my head that I could not leave unspoken. So as she finished her words, I spoke up. "Master, Ryu..." The echo my nervousness crackled my voice at first, but it firmed up as I continued. "Why not have him fight along side us? Memories or not, he knows war. We saw the scars. And it could benefit us to have another, just as it could benefit him to aid us. Actions speak louder than words, and with your recommendation and his aid, it may persuade the GrandMaster."

 

After I spoke it, the idea sounded silly to even me. But if my Master was intent on helping this man, this felt the best course. Help himself by helping us, the very Order who imprisoned him. Surely it would hold weight. But then again, only Ryu could make this choice for himself.

[Stormhelm]

I erupted into an aura of excitement at Ryu's words to join us. I thought my idea to be silly and embarrassing, but it fit in perfectly. But as my gaze shifted to Armiena, I was humbled by her reaction. She definitely knew something of this man, or more than I did at least, but had remained quiet about it. I could sense the leariness of him, the bond of Master and Padawan an intimate one, and for the first time, I noticed her eye twitch at whatever she was thinking. And so my excitement fell back into recluse, growing silent in the moment as she spoke.

 

Looking into the armory, i only grabbed a single item from it, strapping the best piece across my chest and pulled my vibroknucklers from my satchel, pulling them tight upon my fists and squeezing them to seal them tightly as I took in the plan to memory. It seemed a simple task, but as I learnt on Coruscant, nothing is ever simple, especially in war. If i was to survive this day, i would have to give it my all, even if that meant... i gulped... taking another's life.

 

Speaking of which, I hadn't noticed until Armiena gave Ryu the blade and mentioned its owner that so many Jedi I met upon Coruscant had been missing since, making the realization all the more haunting. Had they became one with the Force? Had they perished like so many we weren't able to help? Or had they simply walked away, unable to bear the moment that swept away so many lives like I had seen on Borleias? The empty pit in my stomach made me worry, but the thought of Coruscant settled my nerves. 

 

Double checking my gear, I turned to Armiena and Ryu. "Ready as I'll ever be." I chuckled.

[Stormhelm]

I acknowledged my Master's words as she spoke, the nervous pit in my stomach on the verge of regurgitation. Still, I calmed himself, letting the Force flow through me and around me, allowing its flow cascade it's natural intent become my serenity. With a breath of exhalation, I followed Armiena and Ryu to the cockpit.

 

The time had come. It was now or never. All I could do was look on as the ships came into view. War had arrived at Corellia.

[Stormhelm]

It was chaos for me, the heat of battle tearing at my soul even before we engaged. Armiena had done her best to prepare me for this moment, but the Force echoed with so many emotions. Fear, doubt, anger, hatred, bloodlust, death. It echoed like thousands of ripples across the pond of space that sat before my gaze. I tried to tune it out, to focus on the task at hand, but despite it, I became lost in the numerous stories scrolling through the Force. Armiena's words were the only ones to snap me back to reality.

 

With a nod, I headed to the guns. This was my first time, a virgin to the massive lingering darkness at our door that the light tried to peer through. Coping a seat, i drew the gun's controls into my hands, viewing out the port enchantedly. I will confess. It was this moment that i subtly doubted my choice to become a Jedi, the realization that I was meant to take a life bearing its fangs down upon my mind. But before I could linger it in long, crimson bolts came across my bow and my instincts took hold.

 

Crimson bolts met emerald as I returned fire, the shaking of my hands and hesitation of my mind causing my aim to linger into warning shots across their own, a part of me hoping and praying that they would turn their focus away. But this was war, and as I soon found out, it was as deadly as it came. Shots connected with the ship's shields, my training kicking in as I turned the guns toward the fighter and fired away, tears silently strolling down my cheeks as the explosion rocked the chair I was in. With a subtle sigh, I knew I had taken a life I knew nothing about, save for it was trying to kill me.

 

And it would continue as such, just as my gaze fell upon a ship of massive proportions. Darkness lingered within eternally, my form chilled nearly to the bone at first glance, my breath trying to seize. I could feel the ship rock as we assaulted it, and I quickly climbed out of the turret as Armiena called for the airlock. Scrambling to reach the cockpit as I climbed, I could feel Ryu's assualt, the massive arms of Mcshipface clambering away outside. Just as Armiena moved to reveal the respirators, I didn't have a chance to ask questions or think. Like on Coruscant, I simply acted, letting Ryu take the lead.

 

Gathering the Force around me, I jumped from the airlock with propulsion, the compression of space threatening to freeze and crush my fleshly form. But with the Force as my aid, the sensation only lasted a second as I cleared the gap and landed inside with Ryu, igniting my lightsaber blade and glancing around for enemy combatants even as my mind threatened to fog over and leave me beside myself. For now, I was but a wild animal acting on instinct and training alone.

[Stormhelm]

Darkness and Chaos, Chaos and Darkness. These two seemed to always be hand in hand wherever one was to be found. From Coruscant to here, during my travels and training under Master Armiena, it has been all I had seen and noticed, its giant maw seeming to have swallowed the entire known universe. Death, destruction, hate, anger, vengeance, revenge, grief. It was a never ending cycle, one that kept the wheels of Darkness ever moving. And here, aboard this ship, it was nothing different.

 

I could feel it vibrating in its steel frame, beneath my feet and along its walls, the drums of war beating with its unison. The energy around us, even as we marched through the void left open by our entrance, the static of the clinging emotion could be felt as we treaded. Looking ahead at Armiena and Ryu, I could feel their familiarity with it, their steeled affinity to it unphased. But for me, it was different. It was smothering, intense, overbearing, and new. It clawed at me, tearing at my soul, knawing at the light in my heart.

 

And when the doors opened, it was as if time stood utterly still...

 

My breath was taken aback, my form freezing cold as I gazed into the darkened abyss before us. What air was around us was eerily silent, foreboding as if a curtain of utter darkness fell upon our forms and trapped us. I attempted to reach out in the Force having felt Ryu's inner turmoil emanating from his form. But as I did, his panic casted my psyche aside, brushing me aside. And then the hammer of war slammed down upon the anvil, rushing us back to reality as action took control.

 

Blaster bolts erupted before us, flashes of crimson amidst the dark as the color hues of our blades reacted against, painting shadows and blind spots among the corridor. Even with my little training in the art of my blade, I managed to deflect a few in the midst of the chaos as the Force guided my hand. But thankfully, i had Master Armiena and Ryu at the forefront taking most of the action's brunt, very few bolts making it in my direction.

 

All i could do was react and hope, standing alone in the rear as these Masters of Combat cleared the way, my mind clouded by the emotions, my form trembling in its wake, and my instincts for survival pushing me to my limits. When an opening presented itself, I aided as best I could, tapping into the Force's guiding hand and helping clear the way as a Trooper found the brunt of my push.

[Stormhelm]

To understand my mind at this moment, one must understand what brought me here. To understand my fear, doubt, and horror, one must first understand what led me there. It wasn't the moment in of its self that brought me to such emotion, but rather emotion that brought me to this moment. For I had known anger, rage, and hate so innocently pure in aspects few could fathom. From the day I slaughtered the offspring of those who slew my parents, where I vowed never to weild another weapon of death, to this moment, it had haunted me my entire existence.

 

So for me, in this moment, it wasn't just the darkness around me that i feared. No. It was what the darkness in me could become, especially around such a concentration of it. And as the emotions swirled a vortex around me, I could fill my own become intertwined, pulled and teased, like the spirits of yesteryear. And I was but a sensitive in its wake, feeling inept to fully combat it, even as i struggle within this ship known as Goliath. Even as i fought for what i felt was right.

 

As Ryu and Armiena fought faithfully on, I lingered in the back, hesitant and leary. I fought my own tension off by focusing on the Force and my breathing as I stood against the coldness I felt around me. It was as if I walked upon the River Styx and found myself lacking. And soon the winds shifted, smoke broiling upon's surface, threatening to swallow us whole. My eyes burned with bitterness, my tongue numb with flame as it encompassed us. I coughed against its toxicity, struggling to swim against it as I sank into its pit. And like any great body of water, it swallowed me. But not before I heard its forewarning as the darkness took me. Was it truly going to be my grave?

 

******************************************

 

When I woke, I could not find Armiena nor Ryu, rushing to my feet in a panic as my eyes adjusted against the burning still setting them aflame and forcing them to bleed their fluids. My saber in hand, deactivated, I wiped away the tearing sensation, looking around this darkened pit of despair I had fallen into. I could no longer feel the weeping cold I once felt, but it still lingered nonetheless, its aura engulfing as far as I could sense, blinding me against the Force I desperately clung hold to.

 

It was pure panic, feeling alone in the depths of this would be grave, unable to feel my Master nor Ryu, unable to sense anything around me. It was just like before, that day upon Dantooine. It felt half a dream and partial reality, like a nightmare I was unable to wake from. Even as I gazed about in the darkness, it felt like nothingness, just as it did when I stood above the corpses of both my dead parents, the kath hounds, as well as their litter I slaughtered in darkness. It felt like hell, and it seems I was destined to once again walk its numbing halls. 

 

The only question that remained to be asked was a simple but true one. Would I survive it just as I had before? Or would its madness seep into me now that i was no longer an innocent?

[Stormhelm]

The Force rippled with cold currents as a voice boomed from my perifial, a form stepping into view as his tone echoed of false promises and freedom. Despite the tremble I felt in my form, the urge to run in my head, I stood firm as I glanced at him, our eyes meeting amidst the darkness barely lit by the hue to emergency power. I knew it the moment i laid eye on him what he was, what he stood for, but despite my instinct of flight for survival, I couldn't help but stand frozen at first glance.

 

"You know nothing of me..." I retorted, the shaking of my voice making apparent both my disdain and and uncertainty as I turned inward to focus on my breathing in a hopeful attempt to calm my nerves. "I have walked the darkness you offer and I know its price. I refuse to become a slave to this false freedom you offer without remorse."

 

As I spoke, I turned to fully face the towering man, the light within me beginning to grow as my mind grew calm and serene against my own emotions. Silently in my mind, I counted each breath, letting the thumping of my heart pulse within my form and feeling the blood in my veins warm me. I knew deep down that my worst enemy was myself, especially in a moment such as this. I was unguarded, open for anyone to read. And if this Sith stood like the others of Legend that I had studied, I was vulnerable.

 

"How about we forget your offer, as well as your host, and we both go our separate ways?" I questioned back with a smirk, unsure if he'd actually go for it, but turning my focus more toward my Master's plight from my own vulnerability. "Its the best offer I can present in our current situation."

[Stormhelm]

"Perhaps you are right." I spoke in return after contemplating his words. It was true that my emotions had long burdened me, fearful of what might happen if I allowed myself to be lost to them, bound and shackled by them. There was truth in his words. "But neither should I allow them to fester and grow. They are but a blight upon the ideology that I cherish wholeheartedly."

 

I could feel the coldness of this man's soul, the emotions that he himself hid so well behind his facade. I was beginning to see the truth of the darkness, the revelation of its core. I could feel it all around me, the pull of it, emotions siphoned from others to empower ones own, false power. And I wanted no part of it. While it may have been true that I only shackled myself by denying myself to feel and know emotion, to allow it to become me and to feed on it would only lead me down a path I could not return from easily. I knew this because of the fateful day i first fell to the darkness as a child and what it rought of me.

 

"You call the life of a Jedi false freedom? What of the Sith? Bound to emotions of your own and others to empower you? Incapable of finding the strength in yourself to persevere and relying on the negatives of others to prosper? There is no freedom in that. Only false hope. An endless life of torment and persecution on others for the sake of yourself, selfish and weak. There is no knowledge of the Force in such a life, only the knowledge of selfishness."

 

I shook my head and gazed at him with pity filled eyes. There was only pain and suffering in his future as long as he stayed on this path, and yet, I knew there was no talking him from it. I could feel the depth it penetrated his being, the void in the Force rippling from his soul. In truth, I felt sorry for the man, lost in his own deprivation. But the time for pleasantries had come to an end. I needed to get to Master Armiena and Ryu. With Ryu in his current condition, especially considering what the Order had done and the permutation of the Darkness that bellowed from this goliath of a ship, his madness could worsen and place her in considerable damage.

 

"I'm afraid we have come to an impasse my friend." I spoke, shifting the weight of my form and drawing my hand to the front, my saber deactivated still. "I ask that you let me pass in peace. If not, then I will have no other alternative." Deep down, I hoped that my bluff would prove successful. If not, I knew that my chances were little. "Please."

[Stormhelm]

His words had became lost upon my deafening ears, my knowledge and disdain of the darkness within myself long have steadied my mind upon staying within the light. To lose oneself within such a place, to try and justify misdeeds, there was no excuse. They were but blight upon the Force, festering and wounding. Even now, I could feel the darkness of his soul trying to snuff away what hope I held as he conversed his attempts to persuade me. And as his Apprentice arrived, it grew clear his intent.

 

"So this was your plan all along?" I questioned, my gaze shifting to this Kahla and the men that followed her before shifting back to the Sith before me. "Debate our different philosophies until your Apprentice arrives with reinforcements?"

 

I smirked. Pathetic.

 

"I wasn't at Dark Sun, but I was at Coruscant, where one of your ilk attempted to destroy the Galaxy's entire ecosystem with one swipe of a moon. It was I, my Master, and numerous other Jedi managed to veer its moon off course and delay the inevitable collision. Did the Sith not revel in joy at the suffering and misery inflicted that day? Where were the Sith then if they are but Free Jedi?"

 

"I cannot excuse some Jedi for their failings no more than you can excuse your own. But I can live up to what and I feel I should be, and my life lays with the Jedi and the Light. I have no intent to harm you or anyone here unless I am left with no other choice. That is who I am, even if i transpire because of it and am but a forgotten soul tomorrow. I care little for power and only raise my blade in defense. That is the Jedi i will be. That is my Order."

 

My gaze shifted from him back to his Apprentice and back to him as i lowered my guard and stood straight. I was done with this debate of philosophies. My Master and Ryu needed my aid, and if this Sith was going to attack, he would have to do it with my back turned. 

 

"If you'll excuse me...." I spoke, granting the two a singular proper bow as I dismissed myself, my gaze never faltering. "I am needed elsewhere."

 

With that, I went to turn and depart.

[Stormhelm]

"If you cannot accept what I teach through words, then I shall teach it to you by the blade."

 

As these words fell upon my ears, the thick cold air began to swirl toward the Sith's direction, a pull upon the Force echoing his actions. And it was in that moment that panic truly began to settle in, my face turning to catch his charge, my face pale against the incoming onslaught. What was I to do now? Could I truly face a Sith opponent in combat? I could feel his rage, his malice intent lingering upon the flow of the Force as the seconds concluded his distance. And by the time I was able to turn and meet him, the first blow was struck.

 

Searing pain met searing flesh as the blade filed a portion of my left shoulder as I attempted to dodge the azure blade, pain that I had never felt before in my life, sending me reeling backwards.

 

It was in this moment, a moment of pain and panic, that time seemed to almost instantly slow to a freeze, reminiscent of someone's life flashing before their eyes just seconds before death. I could feel my instincts urging for control, to take hold and fight back against the momentum of battle. I could feel my heart beat pounding to bust through my chest. And I could hear my mind screaming it's death. I didn't know how to react. I felt defenseless.

 

The second slash was much more shallow, the armor I wore protecting most of my chest against the blade its self as it slid briefly through the metallic form, my chest stinging as the heat melted the flesh beneath, the pain almost unbearable and incapacitating.

 

I could feel myself wanting to give up, wanting to surrender, but my heart and soul would not have it. I could feel the internal struggle of myself waging it's own war within me as the pain and fear only added fuel to the flame. And his gaze, the intent, the devilish stare, the coldness of it. I had never seen such darkness in one's eyes, even on this level of malicious aura. There was no remorse, no pity, only enjoyment. Was this the truth of the Darkside and those who weilded it masterfully? Was this what it meant to be Sith? My mind was settled. I would never give in. I would not become the beast that I saw before me.

 

I felt the pull at my feet, my reeling momentum only adding to the momentum of his attacks. It was almost surreal how quickly he came, how savagely he attacked with feriosity. I haven't even had a chance to gather myself as I felt the cold steel upon my back. It was then that I called upon the Force, the moment I cried for its aid, begging for its salvation. And I felt its answer.

 

My heart beat hastened, the flowing of my blood quickening as oxygen and cells pushed themselves to their limits and beyond, and I felt my muscles contract and expand throughout my youthful form. I rolled backwards against the cold steel floor, guiding myself with my hands against the pain I felt surging against my reactions, and when I felt my feet hit the flooring, I swept my foot outwards and around before lunging myself into the air and placing distance between us as the turquoise hue of my own blade ignited.

 

Despite the fear, despite the pain i felt in my shoulder and chest, despite being out of my element in all senses of the word, I knew this was my unwanted moment. I knew I had to fight one way or the other, no alternatives open for venue. I had to reach Master Armiena and Ryu no matter the cost. Focusing myself, I centered my thoughts upon my breathing, letting it's currents guide me. If this man wanting a fight, he had left me no other choice. Left foot forward, I brought my blade up to guard.

 

((Post 1b, Mordecai vs Genesis))

[Stormhelm]

"I'm impressed that you still stand. We'll see if that lasts."

 

Our gazes locked and our stares stern, the Force swirling around us were mixed with emotions and intent. I stood in guard, carefully studying the Sith with my eye as he moved about, my activated blade loosely gripped in my hand. I could feel my fear struggling against my will, the nervousness knotted in the pit of my stomach tightly as I readied for his inevitable next attack. I did not want to fight him in truth, but I had been left little to no choice in such a matter, the frustration apparent upon my face at this notion.

 

But what was I to do? I could vaguely feel Ryu and Master Armiena through the Force, the mixed currents that flowed nearly drowned out by the wounding grasp of the darkness that permeated within the vessel. I felt the urge to reach them, to drive forward and aid them through the veil of Ashla. But all around me, these followers of Bogan, the darkness in their hearts and their devilish intent seeping through the Force ached to foil me, to blind me and cut me off from them.

 

My brow furrowed as his second charge came to fruition, the beat of my heart hastening as the adrenaline within me shifted into overdrive at the sight. I could feel the Force flowing through my form, the permeated darkness cleansed from its currents as it passed through me, increasing my strength and speed just as Armiena had taught me, a beacon of light amidst the torrent of darkness. As he closed the gap, my gaze fell upon the path of his blades, ever attentive upon their shifts in directions in hopes of evading anymore damage.

 

The first of his second barrage, aimed low was classically avoidable, kicking my feet off the ground and pulling myself into a forward flip. But as I landed, I reacted instinctively and quickly turned to face him as the two blades came driving toward my right shoulder, the sudden flinching of my form causing the seared flesh of my left shoulder to ache and slow my momentum as I continued my spin to avoid the second attack, causing me to gasp as I called more of the Force to my aid to compensate. 

 

With a quick twist of my wrist, my saber came up to meet his own during the third and final attack, batting away his own as he attempted to swing it across my chest, one blade completely missing me and the other grazing my right shoulder in the deflect. Pain once again seared my mind as I opened the palm of my left hand and used the Force in an attempt to push him back out of range, causing me to briefly falter in its strength.

 

The pain was excruciating, each movement of my form aching in its wake. And with each attack, I could feel my anger urge to grow, the pain and fear fueling its embers. But my convictions were strong and solid, my mind reeling inward to focus against my own inner darkness. I could feel the negative energy around me, within me, within the others, but this was the moment I had trained for. I had chosen to be a Jedi, to train in their ways and walk their paths. And in that moment, I brought my blade up to the center of my chest and deactivated it, the Force flowing around me intensifying.

 

"I will last..." I finally spoke in return, the panting of my breath heavy against the moment and the pain. "Whether in life or in death."

 

((2))

Edited September 8, 2020 by Genesis
Forgot to post count

[Stormhelm]

A singular moment in time, for some, could pass in the blink of an eye while lingering eternally for others. For me, this moment was of the latter, lingering just as other moments of this duel had done before it. There is no reason or rhyme as to why, no understanding aside from the divination and growth learnt from it. There is only the moment in time, lingering for its brief but delving length, almost as if time shifts slowly for the moment to be seen clearly.

 

I could feel the Force flowing around me intensely, rigorously flowing against the grasp that tried to dominate its existence to aid me in my moments of need, the wounds of the darkness within it painfully hindering it. And through it, I could feel the dreadful intent mixed, the pain, angst, and hunger corrupting. It felt sad and thick, hauntings of the soul before me plaguing it's natural symbiosis like poison within a river's current, devious and destructive. And despite the anger I felt for the pain inflicted upon my own form, the sadness within my heart that ached for the Force was overwhelming. And in that moment, I understood what it meant to fully commit myself to the path of the Jedi.

 

Like on Coruscant and Borleias, the Sith were a blight upon the Force, leaving behind destruction and devastation, the natural order left wounded and chaotic. As a Jedi, it was my duty to stand against the darkness, to be the beacon of hope and strength for those who could not feel the wounds or see the devastation left in their wake, even in the midst of their justification. It was an easy thing to express excuses for reasons, but harder to admit one's own addition to such chaos. And I too, had added my part to it on Dantooine the day I lost my family. 

 

But now I knew better. I could see both worlds, held knowledge of darkness and light within my own heart. Where the Sith could only see their selfishness and gain, I could see the truth of it, the pain of it, the disorder. As a Jedi, I saw the cancer that was the darkness, even in my own anger, its briefest existence a blight upon my own tranquility. And I could see the lesson that Master Armiena had been so adamant in teaching me during our training. Twice I had slain before, once in anger, and once in defense. But both had left their scars, scars that would sink deeper than any wound the person before me could ever pray to inflict. And in this I found humble solace, if only for this briefest of moments.

 

As the moment progressed forward in time, I knew what I had to do despite the pain it would inflict upon my soul. It was a heavy burden to bear, to raise this blade in my hand and take the life before me. But it was a necessity forced upon me as a Guardian of Light, even if I held no will to do it. And this was the sadness I felt in the Force as his attacks came, the sadness that once had offended it nature and wounded it so deeply that it needed to be cut from its touch surgically, tears dripping down my cheek as the realization was made.

 

As the Force flowed forth feverishly, I let its embrace become guide. My turquoise blade ignited and I turned its blade to meet his own loosely in my hand with my thumb guiding its direction. Sparks and plasma collided and erupted with the first strike, opposing wills meeting for the final moments of battle, each striving for their own justifications. With a quick twist of my wrist, i met his second, using his momentum to follow through and away as I stepped aside, the moment passing in shutters of time like pictures upon the mind. But even in the slowed passage of time, I could not react quicker than my form was allotted and I felt the searing flesh of my thigh the instant his blade grazed it.

 

I had to admit that his feverishly attacks were nearly overwhelming, my the Force was on my side. He was a cancer upon its order, and with its aid, I would cut his touch upon it and cleanse its wounds. I would push myself beyond my limits, whether life or death became the outcome in order to purify his chaos. This was my duty. This was my plight, my cause, my burden. Using the momentum of my reel, i ducked my head from his final attack as I planted my feet against the durasteel floor, grasping my blade with both hands upon its curved form and drove my blade straight up toward his heart, using my feet to shove my momentum forward.

 

Whatever the outcome, no matter which of us was the strongest or quickest, only fate would be the deciding factor. Would the will of the Force be victorious? Or would the cancer spread uncontested? These were the true question to be asked in my final assault. "There is no death, there is the Force."

 

((3 - Great duel brother. Good luck.))

[Stormhelm]

And so the cancer would remain, the tumor unable to be cut away from upon the Force's will. I had lost, the first of my encounters with the Sith first hand as my blade grazed his form but did little damage. As I felt my momentum hinder, his use of it against me, I knew in my heart that I had failed to truly answer the call I had been tasked with. And as my form fell upon the permeated cold floor, my blade sliding away in deactivation, I knew my failure truly.

 

Exhaustive pants were the only warmth the floor experienced as I struggled to rise, feeling his dark form eclipse what little light remained in the darkened corridor as he stepped over me. And in the moment, I awaited what I felt was inevitable death at his hands, turning over to face the victor with disdain. I had lost, this much was true, but I held no doubt that my actions had been in vain. 

 

"Strike me down now, Sith". I spoke, unable to grasp the moment fully as I reeled against both pain and my loss, only hearing the echoes of his words. "I will never join you, no matter how many times you break me."

 

And yet, instead, I heard his call to his Apprentice and heard the revelation of cuffs and chain. Lowering my head in brief disbelief, I felt the coldness of the cuffs as they were locked around my wrists and I was bound. So I was to be a prisoner then? Gazing up, I wondered if the powerfully dark aura emanating from above would be the deciding factor in my fate, or if he truly felt the urge to attempt to break me and persuade me to his side. I could not truly gauge the moment.

 

In that moment, all I could process was my capture, and what it would mean for Master Armiena considering what she spoke of before and her last Padawan. In that moment, all I could hope for was her to remain in the light and leave me to my fate. Pain can be a very driving argument of the Darkness.

[Stormhelm]

As we made our way down the elongated corridors, I began to come out of my daze and notice the populace that populated this ship, Soldiers and Sith alike adorning its metallic halls like endless droves of mindless machines. I could feel their intent, all in the sake of their Master no matter the cost that would be inflicted upon them. In truth, I felt even more pity for them than I did myself at this moment, my heart set in peace for the moment I chose to react.

 

Sure, I knew I had lost. I had failed to do my duty as a Jedi. But because I chose this path, whether I had won or lost, the outcome would be the same. I would know the Force in its truest essence, eventually, in my death. Nothing could take that away from me now.

 

But for them, their idle minds and lost soul, there was only one destination, a Corellian Fable that dated back millennia. The infamous Corellian Hell. Their souls would be forced into its grasp for eternity, never knowing peace, just as they had lived in life. Even as a Padawan, I had studied beliefs to understand the Force and it's true nature. And from that knowledge, I knew a better understanding of light and dark. And to see such a populace, ironically here at Corellia, it only hardened my resolve as I was paraded around.

 

"We follow the will of the Force." I spoke in retort to his question, a smirk adorning my face as the reality of my loss and what it spelt faded away in the back of mind. "Our purpose is to balance its nature, understand the inevitably of death, and stand against those who would throw it into chaos. I may have lost, but eventually you will know such defeat as well. Only our afterlife will differ."

 

My gaze shifted to his Apprentice, the apparent sadness in my eyes not for myself, but for both her and her Master.

 

"Those who believe there is order in chaos, those who wish to bend the Force to their will, will never know its eternal afterlife. The Corellians have long spoke of a place where darkness leads, and they named it Hell in honor of the life that brought its souls to it. Mock my beliefs if you will, but those who harm the natural order of the Force will never become one with it. Like the Followers of Bogan that were the original fallen Jedi, it will banish you."

 

My gaze shifted back to Mordecai, the same sadness in my gaze. 

 

"A Jedi always defends, never attacks. This is the way."

[Stormhelm]

I stopped, a grin upon my face as I gazed upon the Master and Apprentice. Perhaps in another life, where ambition and tranquility did not separate us, we could have been allies or even friends. But not in this one. I held strong to my convictions and beliefs just as strongly as the two before me. Such was life, a difference of views clashing against one another with no true winner or philosophy. Just opinions and debates. Nothing more.

 

"Some things just aren't meant to be studied." I spoke first, in reply, to the Apprentice. "Fuel is a precious commodity, and yet you must destroy nature to gain it, and destruction is left in your wake. But if another, less destructive and eco friendly option is viable, why not pursue it? Because it would cost more? Because the gain wouldn't bring enough profit? The darkside is no different. Jedi move with the Force rather than against it, not bend it to our will and disrupt its flow like the Sith."

 

My gaze then shifts to Mordecai, the smirk still adorning my face as the Force flowing around us begins to slowly pick up intensity, the torrential pour of it flowing forth like the rapids before the waterfall.

 

"Perhaps in another life, we could have been allies, perhaps even friends..." I speak, my mind focused upon the thought of what a friendship like that could be. "But for now you stand here an enemy, perversing my words and making them hollow. If the Jedi Order is truly meant to die out, then let it. Such is the path of nature, civilizations and religions rising and falling across the Galaxy's small life. But for millennia before the birth of your own corrupted Order, the Galaxy knew peace and balance under the Jedi. It was only when the fallen chose to study the Forbidden, the unnatural, that the Force became cursed with the birth of the Sith Order and the enslavement and destruction of those your Order's namesake derives.

 

My gaze briefly shifts to my own blade clipped to his form, myself drawing upon the Force flowing around us and willing it to me.

 

"Let nature take its course, no matter the outcome..."

 

With that, my blade flew toward me and I found its familiar feeling within my hand, inactivate, as I unleashed a torrential push of the Force in their direction, the men behind me clambering to quickly subdue me. I would have no choice, despite my wounds, to act quickly. Blade activated, I spun toward the men grasping at me, it's aqua hue cleaving through the metal form of their rifles as I pushed myself up and over them. Without looking back, I took off back from wence I came. I had to reach Master Armiena and Ryu quickly as I could.

Edited September 27, 2020 by Genesis
Coding

[Stormhelm]

Adrenaline was an old old friend, one that I had relied upon very much of my life, whether out of fear or a moment of anger, it had always been a constant companion. Such was it today as my heightened senses became fully aware of my surroundings and the moment I had placed myself in during my attempt at escape once again. Something that I was generally well at, despite my injuries.

 

If I had not been trained to use the Force, nor have its aid at this very moment, this moment would have ended rather abruptly, something I was very aware of as the sounds of igniting gas echoed briefly as bolts of crimson slid into my perifial and ahead of me. One could attest it to luck, or even fate. But how the barrage of volleys managed to miss me, I am still unsure. There was no way that even the Apprentice would have missed. But as the one streamed past me into the blast door's control just ahead of me, I knew that it was life or death in this singular moment of time.

 

In my run, I kicked my foot out and pivoted, guiding my blade into my defense, striking one or two blaster bolts in the process as I kicked myself backward with the Force. Curling my form up into a folded plank, i watched as one of the bolts struck what seemed to be a flashbang on the hip of the soldiers as i slide through the diminishing hole of the blast door as it closed shut and landed hard against the bulkhead, sending me into a briefly debilitating daze.

 

Scrambling to my feet, the urge to run still grasping at me, I stumbled for a second. It was hard to move, not just from my injuries at the hands of this Mordecai and loss of blood, but from my head crashing into durasteel at usual velocity. No one could ever accuse me of not having a head, that's for certain. In the distance, I could hear the clambering of feet, sounding like twenty or thirty in a solid looming march. And as I reached out to feel for my Master, the darkness still looming rendered me nearly blind to her and Ryu's location.

 

My mind scrambled at the notion of their faint signatures, my own form injured and waning. What was I to do? What would Armiena want me to do? And I had to think fast. The looming march was growing louder and louder as time progressed. Now that my eye had settled, I glanced about and found my sole chance catacorner from my position and away from their approach. With a heavy heart, i knew the only thing i could do: Ventilation Shaft.

 

Moments later, Klaxons resounded as I flew into open space and toward salvation, Jedi Transponder Codes open. And in the pit of my stomach sat guilt as I briefly looked back. My only hope was that Armiena would understand as I winced in my shift back before me.