Deliver Us

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

A long time ago, in a Galaxy far, far away...

The First Sith


DELIVER US​

After having discovered that her Father had fallen, Kathry sought to find the cause. The threads of questioning lead her to one of his former allies, a VAHLA who'd taken refuge in the Onderon system. Hiding on the DEMON MOON, DXUN, the being seeks to leave his old life behind. But the cost of betrayal does not come cheap, and fate will always have it's due. The SITH has travelled to the moon, seeking fealty or blood from the oathbreaker. Unbeknownst to her, there is another nearby who would stand against her. The JEDI KNIGHTS, as always, stand fast to defend the innocent, no matter how misguided...

-Music-​

 

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

A scream echoed across the valleys as an elderly woman spotted the Vahla in dark armor marching up the pathway to the small and derelict hut her quarry had taken to living in. This girl must be a family member, a thought that caused Kathreveris to smile with a jagged and melancholy laugh. The woman, human from the looks of it, began to scamper back up the harsh stone steps in a pitiful attempt to warn her family. Kathry was unconcerned, she would have her quarry whether they were aware of her presence or not. It was not until the woman fell to the ground and attempted to crawl over and beg her to leave them be, clasping at her legs, that she grew spiteful. For a moment, she began to kick and wrestle her foot free, when the flash of a silver barrel caught her eye from above. Extending the dark tendrils of her power, she grasped the elder's left foot and lifted the woman in the way of the bolt, causing her instant death. Tossing the body aside, she allowed her halberd to swing forward.

"That was entirely your fault. I had only come here to talk."

Outside the entrance of the hut stood a lanky and pale near-human, with lavender eyes and a scruffy beard. Once, he had shouldered a strange blaster, but let out a scream of agony and dropped it to the floor as the woman tumbled from sight, her body breaking on the rocks below. A snarling growl came in response, his eyes beginning to glow with a cyan hue, and crackling with energy. Unlike Kathry's own, this one seemed to have a preference for lightning. He was but a common Vahla, not trained as a member of the Chosen, and even as he conjured the pitiful sparks he was smote aside by a flick of her wrist. The sorceress had begun to grow distastefully annoyed with the welcome she had received. This was not how you greeted a Demi-Goddess. She expected the ignorance from outsiders, but one of her own kind should know better.

"I know enough about your talks. What do you want, Sith?"

Her eyes became slits and began to spit and crackle with flame. What was this mockery? He did not even recognize her?! Or perhaps he simply needed a reminder of what he faced. By nature of being a Black Dame of the Sith, she was powerful, but that power was not of the Sith's creation; a reminder that would aptly apply in this situation. Striding forward, she attempted to grab the man by the collar of his tunic, before a small clatter emerged from within the hut. Reaching out with her senses, Kathry detected heavy breathing, unsteady heartbeats... fear. He was protecting someone. All the better, this would be an easily finished situation. Striding past the man, she walked menacingly towards the Hut. He roared and rose to his feet, but before he could prevent it the door was barred, and the rooftop lit aflame.

"Eiric. He came here. WHY?! Tell me, and they live!"

Spinning on her heel, the Priestess caught his stab at the wrist and clasped her left hand around his throat, gruffly throwing him into the now-locked door. Screams and cries for help could be heard within, and the man began to panic and struggle, but he could not escape. The fire was now beginning to grow and rage almost beyond control, clearing lighting the area for many miles around. The screams grew louder and more frantic.

@Nefieslab ​

 

[Lucian Volante]

Dxun wasn't exactly his ideas of a holiday spot but Lucian had found he was here regardless and would you look at that?

Didn't look like it was going to be a holiday either.

He hadn't meant to even be here but the freighter he had taken from the Order to complete his missions was having some issues so he had landed it on Dxun rather than Onderon - just until he could make the repairs and make it to Onderon. He had felt the Dark Side of the Force.

Part of him had wanted to ignore it - Dxun was a naturally Dark place anyway - but that wasn't in the cards. Lucian wasn't the kind of man to ignore screams or the Dark Side so here he was, dressed in his armour, appearing from the treeline with his lightsaber in his right hand and his blaster pistol in his left,

"I'm going to have to ask you to let the family go." he declared loudly, igniting his lightsaber and preparing the Force around him, "Or I fear this conversation may yet become rather ugly."

@TheMorrigan

 

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

Kathreveris' senses detected the shining aura even as he broke from his cover, lightsaber ablaze in hand and blaster at the ready. Scoffing and rolling her eyes in annoyance, she released the Vahla and turned on her heel. As the man scrambled to open the blocked doorway before the hut burned to the ground, the girl gently walked a pace from the abode. She needed the information he had, and this one Jedi could not be allowed to interfere in that. The man would collect the one he was protecting and flee, and after she dealt with this nuisance, she would only find him again. It was inevitable.

"I thought your kind had learned their lesson by now."

The halberd was thrown clean into the ground with a resounding clang as her left hand snaked towards her shortsword, drawing it with a single flick and spinning it forward. Her right arm simply lowered and grasped the silver hilt of her lightsaber, unclipping it from the belt and igniting the emerald blade. Bringing it up and across her chest, she settled it resting at her side. He had decided to interfere with her affairs, and she wasn't one to allow that to pass, nor would she condone such a challenge. If he intended to save this family, then he would have to save them with his own powers, for the girl would not allow the family to walk free until she had the knowledge she sought. Come one Jedi, come ten, it mattered not. They would falter and fail, like all the rest. Even the weapon in her hand had been taken from one of their precious Knights, something she hoped this one noticed.

Still, you are a bold one. At a minimum, perhaps this will be a fight worthy of my time.

Bringing her left foot behind her right and rotating her body to accommodate, Kathry lowered her stance and braced. Her right foot was brought to the side, pointed towards her opponent. Her right hand, lightsaber activated, would outstretch lead - keeping a good distance between his melee weapon and her body. Her left hand, with shortsword clasped, rested close to her hip in a guard. It lay there for two reasons, one among them being the possible necessity of her own blaster pistol, the other being to block or bind an opponent's thrust, if he tried to snake an attack in through her guard. The stance was noticeable and lent to a challenging reply, signifying that she intended to do battle and have this Jedi prove his worth. It had been instilled in her from a young age that if you state you intend to do something, you had best preform that action. Now, she moved to enforce that rule, flicking her lightsaber up and leveling it in a salute.

"Did you come to talk, or fight, Jedi?"

@Nefieslab ​

 

[Lucian Volante]

Usually Lucian couldn't speak to his enemy because normally he was fighting the enemy from the cockpit of his fighter rather than anything else. In space combat, you didn't speak to your opponent because there was the plastisteel and there was the void between you and them.

Probably explained why he didn't let her finish the first sentence.

Instead he fired off four shots from his pistol, two aimed for the left side of her chest just below the shoulder and two aimed for the right side of her chest, again, just below the shoulder. There was nothing that said in the Jedi Code that he had to wait for his opponent to be ready after all.

As soon as he fired those shots, Lucian charged forwards to cut the distance between the two of them while she was dealing with the shots to the chest, having not managed to draw her weapons before he fired. The distance closed, he struck out at her with a quick, low, stab at her left knee.

He was, however, prepared to pull away from the jab and use the greater agility his armour afforded him over her to evade.

@TheMorrigan

 

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

And so it began. She had never expected a Jedi to circumvent honor, but she did expect any of her opponents to try something underhanded. It was only natural to choose the path of least resistance, however in these circumstances that was not the case. She was far more dangerous than he seemed to comprehend, her offer for combat had been rebuked. And though her armor was heavier than the Jedi's own, her natural physiology provided her with increased acrobatic prowess. Noticing his arm as it began to twitch (as to pull the trigger), she dropped completely, keeping the grip on her halberd as she fell. Allowing her weight to bring her to the ground even as the weapon stirred, and the bolts to pass overhead.

Mmmh, devious, I like this one. You remind me of my brother.

The halberd flicked towards it's target as he came in for a jab - the axehead swung from the right inwards - as the far left side of the halberd curved toward her legs to guard her from the jab. As it was one movement, she could bind the lightsaber against its surface magnetically. As with all lightsabers, attempting to force the weapon to impale as she spun it aside would require great effort, due to the field around the blade. Even from her currently prone position, the halberd could protect her entire body. Designed so that it could attack and defend simultaneously, it served as a decent defense against the incoming attack. As she had changed levels entirely, and her knee was no longer located in its previous position, the Jedi would have to lean forward and almost fall to jab her as planned.

@Nefieslab ​

 

[Lucian Volante]

Blast.

Initial volley hadn't connected but he was able to close the distance because of how she had dodged his shots. Frowning at the halberd, he moved the thrust to instead connect with the head of the halberd to stop it's movement. With the halberd's head blocked as a threat by his lightsaber, Lucian stepped onto the halberd's pole at the same time with his right foot, using his weight against the non-deadly shaft of the halberd to further stop it from moving and pin the Sith beneath her own weapon.

His pistol was already drawn and pointing down, so he was able to fire quickly.

He fired six shots in quick succession into her upper chest and throat. It probably wouldn't take that much to kill her considering any joints between armour were naturally weaker, but Lucian believed in being thorough.

Equally, he was ready to push off from her down form should something go awry.

@TheMorrigan

 

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

You would slay me?

Even before he went to close the distance, impaling Grimm's axe-head to the ground and attempting to hold her pinion, Kathry struck.


Ignorant, cheeky little...

Kathry would roll slightly to the right, releasing her grip on the halberd and allowing the force of his foot to spin the weapon - throwing the Jedi off kilter. Her left leg shot forward to strike her opponent's wrist, before he could train it on her, intent on twisting it to break with the impact. It would throw his aim off regardless, if not disarm him, making it impossible to bring his aim to correlate - something compounded by the secondary and simultaneous kick. Her right leg shot up a short distance with incredible force to impact his groin. This strike would be enough to drive him to his knees, completely throw his sensory perception through the window, and make tactically responding extremely unlikely. It was underhanded, but Kathry justified that he deserved it. She would then roll to the left suddenly and completely, using both the kinetic force from the impact to his lower body to throw him to the ground. Perhaps he would enjoy the dirt, he certainly seemed to believe she did. The entire process would appear to be a single fluid movement, as Kathry had learned long ago how to control her muscles and use them to their maximum capacity, in the most efficient manners possible. In essence, she moved with the grace of a viper.

She would not be idle and passive against this one. Such discourtesy on display was... aggravating, to say the least, but she found some amusement in how avidly he seemed to race for the kill. She had intended to play with him for a while, never truly considered this a battle, more of a mental game. The sorceress had become fairly proficient at poking at the shields around the hearts and virtues of others. She, even in this moment in time, drove her siblings to no end of agony in questions. They would both fall to the Darkness before long, and the Jedi she faced today would be no different.

Though if he believed she'd allow him to even lay as much as finger on her, he was incorrect. As her quarry wrenched the door free, his family emerged into the open scenery, and began to back away along the right side of the terrace, safe from the sudden drop to the jagged rocks below. She did not make any move to prevent them from leaving, as he had earned his freedom. Perhaps next time he would not attack her, and indeed it seemed her fellow Vahla had finally recognized what she was. The glint of recognition came for a second only, and he placed a holo-recording on the ground before muttering something unknown and shuffling his family forward. The hut continued to burn.

@Nefieslab ​

 

[Lucian Volante]

She rolled to the right and released the halberd, which meant that his lightsaber swept the weapon away to the right so there was nothing for him to stand on - so he didn't. This meant he had both feet firmly planted on the ground and was able to twist himself so that he was facing the left.

His left arm caught her left leg between his arm and chest, holding it tight against him. His armoured chest meant he would feel almost nothing and from that, he now had control over her left leg.

He would let her kick to the groin happen... because his groin was also protected by his armour. Not wanting to take the full shot anyway, he closed his thighs tight on her foot even as it was travelling so it wouldn't actually reach his groin before it was stopped and he was able to trap her right foot between his thighs.

With both of her legs locked in tight and his footing secure, she would lack the weight or strength advantage to flip him to the ground. Instead his lightsaber, which was still in hand in his right hand, would come sweeping in within a second of the simultaneous capture of both of her legs, cutting clean through both of her armoured thighs and leaving her without her legs.

Naturally he was still submerged in the Force, quick to react differently if needs be but this did not look to be a fight she would be...

Walking away from.

@TheMorrigan

 

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

Under different circumstances, she might have even enjoyed this. Both of her kicks were otherwise caught, one between his thighs and the other on his chest. She didn't have nearly as much maneuverability as she would have liked, but she did have one small advantage. He had released her chest, and the halberd with it, and so when he caught the first of her kicks she reacted instinctively. Her left hand shot forward and grasped his hilt with the Force, yanking the weapon hard to the side. She would focus her full might on that move, essentially pitting her entire will against his own, with the express intent to hold it in place, and not allow him to swing.

"...no... please..."

As she did so, her right hand clasped her blaster, training it on his chest through the holster as she pulled her legs closer, closing the distance between his chest and herself. She doubted this would be enough, and she was woefully unprepared for an actual battle - though she had assumed she had her gear with her, apparently she had been more than forgetful. If not, she had one last idea. Her eyes began to well with tears, a mixture of genuine pain and acting, and for the moment she dropped her ferocity completely. The begging was a ploy, she would never truly beg for mercy from an opponent, though he would have no way of knowing - she was an expert at deception, and even then it wasn't entirely untruthful.

And he was no ordinary opponent, he was Jedi, and perhaps his sensibilities could be useful. Assuming he was anything like her adoptive or half siblings... or Venatus.

She could conjure this pain to the fore whenever she wanted, though she would never admit to herself that any of what she said had basis in truth... whether it did, or did not. If this would not work, and it was evident, she wouldn't bother even beginning the next sentence. It would not be a Sith that he was preparing to strike down, but the image of a nineteen year old girl, seemingly afraid, alone, and very, very angry.

"...I just wanted to find out what happened to my father..."

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[Lucian Volante]

His lightsaber stopped despite his physical motion still continuing - she was using the Force to hold his lightsaber hilt from moving in the swing he had going. Because he was still pushing hard with his arm, it didn't move back... but equally it was stuck in place as he stared down at her.

She wanted him to show mercy.

Lucian nodded...

Using the nod as a motion for a Force push attack that slammed into her chest like a hammer blow, breaking her concentration with the Force. With her use of the Force interrupted (and, unknowingly, her aim thrown), his physical movement continued onwards, cutting through her unprotected thighs without challenge. With the legs no longer connected to her body, Lucian actually took a step back with said legs due to the lack of resistance to his hold now, creating distance between them as the arc of his lightsaber swing ended with it held in front of himself protectively, the Force and his lightsaber ready to defend himself, her lower legs dropping to the ground.

"You are defeated, Sith." he declared firmly, "Throw down your weapons and surrender... or I will be forced to end you."

@TheMorrigan

 

[Kathry Van Alasdaire]

For a moment, it seemed she might have left without unnecessary scarring. Her grip held for the second, her eyes widening in preparation to do something - anything - before he carved her legs apart. It seemed, however, that this Jedi could not be so easily goaded into merciful thought. Her ploy, having appeared to have some form of success, caused her to exhale gently. Perhaps Arhena had not been entirely wron-

She tried not to scream, and to a certain point she managed to clap her mouth shut and grit her teeth, muffling the cry as she smelt burnt flesh. She felt a sudden absence of sensation coming from her below her waist, taken off at the lower thighs by his blade. Her eyes became blood-red anew, the flames roaring back to life as the pain, anger and torment began to spur her on and empower her. But without her legs... she could do nothing. The Vahla could not escape, she could not run, the only choice that she had was to stare down into the eyes of this man. The moments were the girl appeared humanistic were gone, immediately replaced by the savagery and rage that had driven her moments before. These were the ones her father had fought alongside? A strange day indeed when the Sith showed more mercy than a common Jedi. She could do nothing now. Nothing yet.

You will pay... for that in blood...

She longed to spite this Jedi, for no other reason than because he had the gall to act with moral superiority. It was at this moment she understood why the Empire had been formed in the first place, her reaffirmations confirmed that the Light was nothing more than a deception. This was not the face of true evil, perhaps, but it was the certainly not the image of a protector of the innocent, as they so openly claimed to be. It was in this moment that she truly began to hate the Jedi as an Order, and as a people, and even in defeat vowed this one a multiverse of pain that would cause his screams to be heard from every reach of the Galaxy. Little did he know it, but he had doomed himself with this act. Those she served would search, she had informed her Master prior to departing as to her destination. The Vahla had more than one saving grace. And though their relationship was strained, her adoptive siblings had time and time again attempted to turn her from her path. Though they were opponents in war, they shared a similar goal; retribution for their father's death. She was far from hopeless, and yet indeed, she had never required the sentiment. She roared at him, a resounding screech drawing from the depths of her throat, at the mere thought she could even hold her weapons at present. Cauterized wounds or not, the pain was enough to dim her vision, weaving in and out of consciousness semi-willingly.

"Well..? What are you waiting for..?!!"

As a final act before she felt her consciousness give way, she reached out towards the holoprojector with the Force, and willed it into her hands. Grasping it, even if through distance, caused the girl's features to soften for a moment. Her eyes rolled to black as her vision blurred into nothingness and the abyss took her. She could barely hear, the images in her mind trapping her in a veil of ever-encompassing nothingness until she would awake - or die - unable to respond.

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[Lucian Volante]

His opponent cursed him and Lucian just watched her.

He could kill her as she was attempting to goad him into doing... but that was not the Jedi way. Even more - it wasn't his way either. He was an officer before he was a Jedi and part of being an officer meant assessing the situation and making an informed decision because, contrary to popular belief, a soldier was not meant to just follow orders. He was meant to assess the situation and make the right decision.

She had slain an old woman in cold blood.

She had trapped a family in a burning building that they had escaped only due to their own efforts.

She would have let them die to achieve her goals - to obtain the holoprojector she reached for even now. With her having lost consciousness, Lucian walked over and picked up the holoprojector. For a moment there was an urge to spite her, to crush it, before he ignored it and placed it in a pocket at the back of his belt for safe keeping. Extinguishing his lightsaber, he put both the lightsaber and the blaster pistol away on the back of his belt.

Reaching his downed opponent, he took the power pack out of her pistol before throwing it into the flames of the hut, along with her shortsword. Using the Force, he made sure that she would stay asleep before using it to enhance his strength as he picked up his defeated opponent and slung her over his left shoulder, picking up her halberd to act as a staff so he could carry her to his ship, where he would take her to the Jedi Order.

/End Thread
@TheMorrigan