Battle for Tython II: The Silent Desert

[The Storyteller]

Arda has returned to the world with her Order she will not give up on the potential that is the Jedi Order. With the crippling of the Sith Empire now is the time for them to strike fast and hard. This fight will be just as tough with the entire galaxy having their eyes turned to the core. The remnants of the Sith and those who are still dedicated to their Empire are still filled with hatred to the Jedi and will seek opportunity to push them back into extinction.

Battle for Tython II

The Silent Desert

Its not a beach, but since deserts have sand, the Silent Desert would have to do for Tagus. Even as the wind blows and the sands shift, not a sound could be heard through the dunes and the spirals of stone that erupt from the desert floor. Here, Tagus would not walk alone and would be met by the Grandmaster, Arda Breaux.​

Jedi: Grandmaster @Arda Breaux
Sith: @Darth Tagus


Please reference here for the rules.

 

[Darth Tagus]

Ah Tython.

What an absolute shite pile of a planet.

Tagus had never cared for the planet but he knew that people within the Galaxy did. Specifically, he knew that the Jedi cared about their spiritual home so he made sure to keep a close watch on it. While the Mandalorians were, if he was honest, infinitely more of a threat than the Jedi and their fellow rebels, there was still just a part of being a Sith that meant that facing down a Jedi was instinctive on a level most people couldn't really think of.

He had felt the presence in the Force.

The presence of his Jedi counterpart, of Arda Breaux.

It had been some time since he had last seen her in person but he remembered it well. Dressed and equipped as he usually was, Tagus walked into the desert to meet her face to face. Along the dunes and the rolling sands, with one of the massive, destroyed, statues of a Jedi off to his right in the distance.

No audience? That actually made a change now didn't it, in this day and age of public declarations for duels? There was something so much more meaningful, so much more intimate, about a duel between two people of opposing ideologies free from the constraints of what was expected of them.

With his lightsaber held at ease in his right hand, not ignited just yet, he waited for her to arrive.

@GABAdactyl
@Arda Breaux

 

[Arda Breaux]

This would be a different meeting from that time ago when she met the Darth on Naboo. She never told anyone of that meeting, it was one that was unusual, probably a story that would be believed as fiction. Never would the galaxy think a Jedi and a Sith came together to honor a lost loved one, a moment of bittersweet peace for someone who may have been viewed as a traitor if the politics of war interfered. She had felt his presence almost immediately when she had arrived, she knew where to find him through all the terrain, the winds, the rain, and finally in the bright, but cold desert.

There was not a whisper to be heard, only her breath as she walked to approach Tagus, his lightsaber at hand. She wondered how many Jedi before her had fought here where they stood, eras even prior to the last twilight of the Order there would always be guardians, those who sought to protect the balance. She would make sure that legacy lived onward, every choice she would make would ripple into generations ahead of her, Jedi or not.

The Light of the Force glowed within and with a gentle grasp, she could feel its power, its wisdom and guidance on what she would need to do in order to correct what has been corrupting the galaxy for so long. An extension of its will, the Force would be always with her. Arda readied herself, her lips parted slightly as though to speak, but no words came, no words would be allowed to be spoke in the desert of silence. However, the story that would leave here would be spoken to those across the galaxy, inspire hope in others and the flames of hope will grow.

Arda ignited her saber, the snap-hiss and its hum muted.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

Arda had arrived.

Just like he had, she arrived in silence and did not seem inclined to break it. There was much to discuss between the two of them but Tagus felt little need to indulge. They had much to speak about if they had the mind to speak but right now it was clear that neither of them did.

All that mattered was the conflict between the Light, the Dark and the Jedi and the Sith.

She ignited her blade first, resolved to lower herself to violence... Tagus ignited his own lightsaber to accept it. He was always ready to commit violence after all. The Dark Side swirled around him as he advanced to meet his Jedi counterpart.

Keen to begin, Tagus would make the first attack once he was within range, a sweeping upwards slash from his bottom right to mid-torso level up his left side, sweeping his blade up as if to cut Arda in half diagonally. It was the first strike and would never be the last so he prepared for the parry and the inevitable, wonderful, clash of blades.

@GABAdactyl
@Arda Breaux

 

[Arda Breaux]

He didn't utter a word as he approached, closing the gap to meet her as his blade ignited, the hum of his own weapon swallowed by the unusual desert. The dark side poured like molten stone from the Emperor, obeying his own will as he swung at the woman in a diagonal slash. It was a tease, but it would mark the opening of their dual as Arda brought her own blade to block his swing, catching with her saber as it struck hard against his own. No hum, no crackle, just silence as she used the counter to put distance between herself and the Sith, her blade glowed vibrantly viridian even in the brightness of the desert sun. Arda prepared for his next strike, her saber posed in defense, her own senses reaching within readying herself for what he would do next.

She could not recall the last time the Jedi in her lifetime fought against the ruler of the Sith. It was too often the Emperors hid behind their sealed doors and on their thrones, fighting vicariously through their servants of the dark side. Her encounter with the now disgraced former Drast Empress had to mark in firsts and though the battles of that day were a loss, she could not be more proud of her Jedi for doing what was right. It would take time, but the Jedi Order would once more be as vast as it was centuries prior. However, she had to make sure there would be a future for them first. She would have to ensure the Order could hold their own, to dispel the darkness and its corruption and then the Light restore its balance.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

"Interesting... Soresu?"

Arda countered, as expected, but rather than attempting an attack of her own she backed up instead. Rather than countering, she parried and used the window she made for herself to back herself up. It was something Tagus wasn't used to in his fighting partners but considering his fighting partners were usually other Sith, it made sence that she was fighting differently to them.

Shadowing her, Tagus would follow her by taking a step forwards as she took a step backwards, keeping them within melee range. He brought his lightsaber back up to brush it against her's, their blades sparking slightly as they touched in a brief meeting.

Flicking the tip of his blade to the left, he flicked her blade to her right (his left) before making a quick, small, slash to his right (her left), aiming to cut into her left shoulder area. It wouldn't be a savage blow either, it would be a small wound.

Death by a thousand cuts was still death after all.

@GABAdactyl
@Arda Breaux

 

[Arda Breaux]

He spoke something and the desert took his words never reaching the Jedi woman's ears, but it would be rather insignificant as he followed her steps. She gave a coy grin regardless as he kept onward to the grandmaster, like prey to the bait. He would make sure to stay in melee distance as he tapped is blade against hers pushing her blade to the side in an attempt to strike her left shoulder with a quick slash, but it would go through air as the Jedi's foot work kept to her right and to Tagus' left corner. As Tagus would follow through in his strike, the Force would come in swiftly as Arda sent a punch of Force energy into the stomach of the Emperor.

The power behind the blow whipped the sand up in its path and regardless the distance it would through back Tagus, the woman followed, always keeping to just his left, the Light glowed bright from within as it tore through the darkside's weighted grasp of her path. Her her speed was unnatural to the normal eye and her blade snapped across her front in a backhanded slash that would threaten to divide the Emperor into two halves. She would be ready to parry either by the blade or the Force as she moved with the flow of the light.

The winds around them began to pick up in the sudden surge, the natural phenomenon of the desert's silence struggled to have its own peace as the Force users fought. The wind's scream broke through like a siren's call, the shrieking like nails grinding against durasteel. The balance that Tython attempted to keep in the desert was disturbed and its tremor and discomfort would be noticeable to the the Force users.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

The attack from Arda was as a lurch in the Force - giving Tagus a warning in time to act but not in time to evade. Rather than attempt to evade, Tagus used the hit to his advantage. Taking the hit to the gut, Tagus layered the Force into himself to lessen the blow but instead used the momentum of the blow to assist him in backpedaling away from Arda.

With the initial speed of his step back, Tagus was able to evade the slash once she was committed to it by letting it pass before lifting his own blade up to push her blade upwards and to his right (her left) to leave the both of them open.

With their blades held up, his own below hers, Tagus pushed his body closer into her guard in a rush of speed to bring his left foot down atop her right foot to physically pin her in place before thrusting his free left hand forwards in a punching motion towards her lower right abdomen - except as his fist closed the distance it erupted into sparks as he fired lightning at her from close range with only a slight darkening in the Force to telegraph his intentions.

At the same time, he kept his senses open to anything she would do to end the stalemate of the blades early and prepared to take some pain in order to deal some out himself.

@GABAdactyl

 

[Arda Breaux]

The winds blew and the sand snapped at their skin while Tagus caught her blade in her backhanded slash. He pushed it upwards in an attempt to leave them both open and exposed, but Arda did not wait as she pulled her blade back simultaneously moving backwards away from the Emperor who moved swiftly into the spot where she once stood. His attempt to step on her foot and get uncomfortably close only nicked her boot as she took a couple awkward steps to regain her footing; his fist meanwhile had swung out, bolts and stray sparks ignited across sands. Its arms crackling and snapping, reaching for anything it could touch in its path including the Grandmaster.

She absorbed as much as what she could with her saber, but it snipped at her being like dozens of long needles. She gritted her teeth and pushed through her discomfort her blade snapped to her side as though she were whipping off the pain that threatened to bring her down. The Jedi would grace the Emperor with a wry grin reminding him she was unfazed by his display. "Settle down there sparkles..."

There were still a few meters between them, but remained out of the striking distance of the Emperor; she could hear her breath as the desert denied them the sound that accompanied who they were. Though what it would not take was the Force it would champion its warriors, even that of the dark side, for it seemed the desert let alone Tython was beginning to enjoy the tease from the clash of the two warriors.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

Sparkles?

Did she literally call him sparkles?

Tagus wasn't gonna lie, that was actually annoying. Though it was the closest she had come to hurting him so far - his feelings stung from that. Narrowing his eyes behind his mask slightly, he tutted even as he took a step back. If she wanted some distance he would oblige her for now.

He reached into the Force, beginning to saturate the ground around him with the Dark Side and his own control over it. Of course he wasn't trying to control all of it but enough of it would do. He held his lightsaber in front of himself in a defensive stance as he waited as she did.

With his free hand he gestured to assist him with the Force but, at the same time, hide that was it's purpose. He gestured for her to 'bring it' as the street rats would say.

@GABAdactyl

 

[Arda Breaux]

There was a shift in the Force, not a large one, but his feelings told Arda he did not find amusement in her words and she was fine with that, it told her all that she needed to know as he stood his ground. She felt the Force wince to his command and he gestured for her to resume, but as he, she stood her ground, reaching from within as her saber held in ready position if he could not keep his patience in check. And though Arda was steady, the Force spoke, and she listened, the Light searched for the balance, the serenity to the chaos and discord that stood across from her.

She breathed and the winds whipped their robes around their bodies and the whisper became stronger as the Jedi jutted out her hand as the natural Tythonian winds gusted, so did the sand that was picked up by the energy emitted from the Jedi woman. It created a cloud of sand and dust that blew into the Darth, obstructing his physical sight, the glow of her saber would not be seen until it was ready to strike, again in a backhanded slash that cut from his right hip to his left shoulder and down through his middle. She had followed her cloud, using the natural elements as cover, relying on the Force as her guide to lead her to the most efficient way to stopping the Emperor of Darkness from further corrupting Tython. Whether her strike was blocked or parried she was ready to counter.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

The wind picked up and whether it was from the Force or simply instinct from practice and experience, Tagus knew that Arda was making her move. Light surged and Dark raged against it across the desert sands as they resumed the contest that had been waged between their kind for centuries.

The Jedi fought the Sith and that never changed.

Sand and wind picked up and rushed towards him and Tagus did not flinch. The sand buffeted right into his face but did nothing, finding no purchase against his mask. If her plan had been to literally throw sand in his eyes, he would be happy to disappoint her. Thankfully for the Dark Lord of the Sith, Arda still had to move across the sands herself to face him and those sands belonged to him - and his eyes had once been the same as his wife's.

As he sensed her approach, Tagus raised his free hand, raising some of the sand with it into a solid wedge of sand that rose to roughly mid-shin height. The solid obstacle of sand rose up just ahead of Arda to halt her advance, turning it into a stumble forwards instead. At the same time he saw through the Force instead of his eyes, utilizing Force Sight to see through her smoke screen as she hit the barrier he had erected.

With her stumble, her attack would be less certain at the very least, allowing him to bring his own saber upwards in a diagonal slash to bat her lightsaber up and away from his body over her right shoulder. He had the firm footing so his swing should overwhelm her own, giving him a chance for his counter attack, bringing his saber down in a reversal of the motion that saw it cutting diagonally up, slicing diagonally down at her chest.

If she stumbled badly it would bring her torso forwards as she tipped forwards, giving his blade a chance to cleave her in two. If she managed to recover from the stumble, it would still score down her front on it's way down.

And all the while the winds sang, the sand danced and the Force screamed.

@GABAdactyl

 

[Arda Breaux]

The attempt by the Emperor to slow down the Jedi woman was unsuccessful as Arda was not slowed by the sand. She would reach him with the certainty and determination that she started with, possibly even surprising him if he was hoping for his trip-attack to work. However, her saber was caught by his own though, batted upward, breaking her diagonal assault. The Jedi broke the hold on her saber before it reached over her shoulder. She stepped backward as the red blade sliced the air before her; she could feel the heat from the plasma weapon streak across her front. A narrow miss, but the Force would wave from the Grandmaster like a current, hitting the Emperor's center. It would be enough to take the breath away from anyone upon contact.

The winds continued to howl and not even the desert could control its song and Arda would follow her blow to the Emperor, her saber posed ready - a guarded defense. "Go home, Emperor." she spoke, her voice firm, "Tython is no longer yours." she reached into the Force, feeling the stone she held on her being, "The galaxy doesn't belong to you either, the Sith have run their course in history, it is time for balance to return."

She spoke feeling the Light's warmth glow brighter within herself, but she held her saber ready in case he became tired of her words. She was though, giving him the opportunity to retreat. It would be an unpopular idea for many, but as a Jedi, it was the right thing to do, for she did not need to dictate when fate would appear for another.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

Okay so trying to move sand - bad idea.

The hit he took from relying on the trick wasn't too bad but it still hurt and that was beginning to get to him. It wasn't tiring him down too much but it was getting him annoyed. While the anger might help his strength, it would also dull his senses and his strategies if he fed it too much.

Grunting as he took the hit and staggered a step or two back from it, Tagus gritted his teeth as he drew the Force, the Dark Side, to himself. It filled him to the brim and boiled almost as he listened to Arda speak. He grinned behind his mask.

"I don't want the Galaxy." he assured her firmly, "I pissed it away, remember?"

He held his lightsaber at the ready in front of him defensively as he raised his left hand, the Dark Side building within him. Tagus readied himself as best he could, knowing that Arda would not seek to draw this out. She was a Jedi - she would seek an ending but she would not make it brutal or overly painful.

"No - I know the Sith are in pain. So I'm going to do what the Dark Side always does; I'm going to use that pain as fuel and make our enemies suffer."

@GABAdactyl

 

[Arda Breaux]

He stumbled back from the hit, pushing himself to regain his footing as Arda watched and felt the Force bellow from his command. He fell into a defensive stance and as he spoke his left arm raised and Arda mirrored his action, raising her free hand slightly in preparation from an attack to or from the Emperor. Her brow furrowed as she tried to decipher what he meant by pissing it away; it could have very well been the Sith retreat back into the shadows, but then again, was it the day he was required to take the life of his wife, her Knight in the Order.

However, his words spoke of desperation, the Sith had nothing to lose, they were forced back into the crevasses of shadows and nightmares, their Empire rotted away to almost nothing and a galaxy that would soon forget who they were. It was clear to the Grandmaster, this was more dangerous than what they had come across previously; an animal cornered who would more than fight back, they would leave scars in remembrance.

She felt the stone's power that would aide her, the Light burned through the tendrils of the darkside that snaked from the Emperor, "You have caused the galaxy to suffer enough, five centuries the dark side has kept the galaxy unbalanced, riddled with wounds unable to heal, your pain will have its limits, it will only be as powerful as the dark side wishes it to be." The man that stood across from her was very different from the one she met on Naboo, she could almost assure he was a shell of what that person was, one who was able to care, who held good that Nikka once was able to see. Arda stood cautiously, her senses looking for any shifts in the Force as they face each other in the stand off.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

Maybe she saw it.

Maybe.

Maybe she saw what it was that Tagus had seen when he had considered his options in the depths of Hyperspace after learning of Aadya Drast's decision to step down. He had looked out of the windows at the way the stars stretched and space became nothing to the speed of the ship and he had realized it.

He would never say what, exactly, he had realized but that was fine because he knew it. He knew it and maybe now Arda knew it as well. She definitely knew one thing no matter how much she tried to hide it; the Jedi and their allies would be next. To a Mandalorian the Force was a magic used by those who could not be trusted.

By those who twisted the Galaxy to suit their needs.

To a zealot what difference did the a color of a blade truly make? None. Arda would live to see her Order as hated and as reviled as his own - perhaps. Perhaps she would be the first target, to throw the already disorganized Jedi Order into disarray? It didn't matter to him.

"My pain and my anger will outlast your patience and tolerance." He assured her with a grin behind his mask, "Tell me - when your Mandalorian friends decide that ANY Force users are too many... will you be angry when they gun your friends down? Will you feel the pain of watching your Order be put to the sword?"

The Dark Side continued to swell and grow as he gathered every scrap of the Force that he could to himself. To those with sensitivity to the Force he would be almost abhorrent to be close to he was sure.

"The Darkness will welcome you, when the Light fails to save you."

@GABAdactyl

 

[Arda Breaux]

Life was riddled with pain, it was full of suffering, but in order to see hope and appreciate the joys of life, there must also be despair. It was how the Jedi would need to keep themselves centered, to recognize its existence, but to believe one own's pain and anger will transcend generations, he was wrong. His death would end his legacy, just as her own death will result in the same fate, even if she transcended into the consciousness of the Force, there was no pain in death, no anger, peace and yet nothingness. There would always be those who opposed the Jedi, she understood from past lessons they were an easy target, romanticized by myth and legends, never realizing the life of sacrifice and suffering they would endure to ensure they achieve peace not only within themselves, but others they help.

Even in all their suffering, one thing was certain, the Light will not fail her.

The woman step forward and the Force erupted from her palm at the Emperor, the power that came from the Jedi was amplified by the gift of the Bendu. The darkside spoke of rigidity, absolutes, and corruption, she would not let it continue, it was time for the Force to fall back into balance and having the Emperor and his disciples fall back in the shadows where they belonged would accomplish that task.

As her push had be directed to the Sith's center mass, the natural elements around them fell into turmoil, the winds and sands blew erratically, but the Jedi would stand her ground, seeking to end this fight and send the Emperor back to the crevasses of darkness.

@Nefieslab

 

[Darth Tagus]

The Force leaped forwards and Tagus grinned wide behind his mask as he brought his gauntlet up in his left hand. Even as he threw his right hand forwards as Arda did the same, he launched a Force Push with all of his might with his right hand at the Jedi's centre mass. Arda's own surge of the Force rushed at Tagus and his gauntlet began to absorb the energy she put out.

Unfortunately for Tagus her attack was boosted as well, far stronger than she had any right to be on her own.

His eyes widened as the level of energy he was expecting was surpassed by the level of energy that was actually put out and suddenly the excess energy was upon him, lifting him up and sending him rocketing backwards. The energy he had managed to siphon off from her attack he wrapped around himself in a protective barrier as he slammed through the tips of several sand dunes, careening away from where they had fought.

While he had not managed to avoid her attack, she would likewise have been unable to avoid his own due to the both of them focusing on her letting off her attack; her to overpower him and him in his attempt to sap her power away and redouble his own efforts.

It was a few moments, and what seemed like several hundred meters, before Tagus came to a stop, driving into a sand dune from the force. He lay there in the impression for a moment before scowling and spitting out some of the sand.

Force but he was beginning to hate sand.

/End Thread

Spoiler: OOC

End thread based on end of event.

@GABAdactyl