Wherever the Cold Wind Blows...

[Rev]

As his words sank in, meeting their mark she'd allow him to grasp at his lightsaber. Locking her wrist she'd do all she could to hold it in place, only bending to allow some space between the two to grow. She'd still have a strong hand on the weapon, but Thaed would have just as powerful a grip neither of the two willing to give up despite everything.

"You are blind to think I'd return to the Jedi.. Their weakness is in their actions.. ours is in.."

As she attempted to push him away at last her action was met with a firm grip. Her body locked in place as the vile wretch known as Thaed continued his attempts at breaking her. Allowing each word to sink into her mind she'd pause, unable to finish the sentence she started. Perhaps Andraste had needed her in those final moments.. Looking back to his cold face she'd be met with an emotionless stare, but it would be the Sith's quivering lip; fighting against a grin that would foil his plan entirely as her body spun 180 degrees, putting her back to the same wall Thaed found himself hugged against.

"..Then she was weak."

Feeling herself growing fatigued by the minute there was little left in the woman's tank. The Force was all she had to guide her, and that she'd never allow; not as a Sith. Huffing in a breath of the free flowing air she'd take the Force Energy from it, controlling it and using it to reinvigorate not only her body but mind. Anger still swelled in her belly, but where they found themselves meant it would get them no where.

"She taught me control, she showed me the truth. If the Empire failed as you claim it did, then the strong stand taller... she lost control."

It saddened her to say such a thing. Andraste had been more a friend in the Sith than any other she'd come to meet. The maker to bring her into the new life, one of meaning and reason. Looking over at Thaed her eyes had managed to show the sadness her heart felt, beads forming in the corners of each eye.

"Injustice."

She would spit the word out after Thaed misinterpreted her 'actions' or lack of in her "ally's" mind. Turning her head to look at him, she could no longer bear the sight of the avalanche below.

"..and where were you?"

 

[Sreeya]

Thaed grimaced at her words.

"I was..."

He didn't finish his sentence. He exploited her short moment of weakness, where she attempted to subjugate her emotions. Thaed let the Force abruptly coil around her. Without warning, she would be flung backwards and off the edge of the tower. The Zabrak felt fury whirling within him, all his anger converging into an outward blast to slam directly into her body. He would watch her plummet down, glaring at the woman, as she was violently carried by the wind to her death.

"Goodbye, Illusia. May you rest in a tomb as icy as your heart."

 

[Rev]

As she listened to the man speak something whispered at her, warning her. Precognition had always found a unique way of identifying with the Force user, and it was something she'd forever be thankful for. The push would hit her in the chest like the percussion of an amp'd bass drum. The thud almost enough to buckle the ribcage inside of her, but that half second warning gave her the foresight she needed to commit a final act of her own.

"..Coward!"

Her breath would hold as her body stood at the edge of freefall. Her hand would reach out as the scene developed in slow motion before her. Falling backwards her hand would reach out, her fingertips grazing the fabric which kept Thaed's own cold soul warm. Reaching out with both hands the Sith Lord would be just out of arms reach, her hands scrambling for a grip, but to no avail. With that lone action, her body would plummet downwards as her eyes narrowed, her mind focusing even in the eyes of death.

She knew the Sith would be smarter than to allow his body to be pulled by the mystic ways both had learned what felt like a lifetime ago. Instead the molecules which binded the very rock he stood on would begin to heat up, the small pockets of moisture that had formed within the stone hundreds of years prior shaking to a boil. This sudden increase in motion would shatter that stone Thaed stood upon, the rock quaking with life as it'd suddenly explode without notice. As the rock blew outward she'd close her eyes and let her limbs go limp the wind doing little to slow her descent down. If she was going to lose her life, it would be in peace.

 

[Sreeya]

Thaed let out a stream of curses as the support beneath him abruptly crumbled. He had expected an attempt to yank him down, but he hadn't thought she would target the ground under him. Thaed had no time to react, plummeting down as well. He felt the wind blast against his face, quickly grasping a hold of the Force to control his fall as much as he could. He gritted his teeth, anger driving his movements.

As he fell, Thaed twisted his body to align himself to face Ayisha, who was also falling below him. He swiped his saber towards her, aiming to slice and dice while she was still in mid-air. His anger knew no bounds, and this final act had pushed him over the edge. He wanted to destroy her before she hit the ground, paying no heed to his own fate once he did the same.

The freezing winds caused Thaed's eyes to water, but he had no intention of letting Ayisha live. He was in an awkward position, little momentum allowed from his vantage point. Nevertheless, he was determined to land the final few blows before his own life was snuffed.

 

[Rev]

Her gradual plummet couldn't be as peaceful as she hoped; there was no way of it. Between the shockingly cold winds mixed with sub-arctic temperatures and Thaed's dark energy source forever closing in, she couldn't get away. That energy around her is all that kept her awake, that kept her from breaking under the stresses of not only Rhen Var, but the Universe and herself. Allowing the free flowing winds to not only course by her, but through her Force presence, she was able to reach out and sense Silentius' blade, even while shying away from sight.

As Thaed brought his arm back and prepared the swipe, her head and shoulders would tilt backwards, her body forming a more javelin poise and degree her top half bending away from the blade. This minor adjustment reduced her drag while Thaed's own opening arm would do the opposite, the two separating if only a few feet; just enough for the tip to miss her flesh. As the beam's lethal edge passed her arms would open up along with her legs, her body twisting into a barrel roll as she did so. The result was like a parachute opening, her form caught in the wind gusts and surging up past her fellow Sith.

Turning to "face" Thaed her eyes would finally opening, the cold gusts not stopping her piercing eyes as they pinpointed a target. Maintaining her opened arms she'd drift away from the man, her senses forever 'up' as her own limbs dodged falling rock from the ledge above. Upon passing the heavy stone her Force Powers stretched outward doing her best to place the rock between herself and Thaed, the snowy earth getting closer with each passing second. Directing the largest rock she could above Thaed's position she simply waited for it to fall in place.

 

[Sreeya]

Thaed knew the saber was too risky to keep out when he wasn't in control of his motions. He quickly switched it off, gazing up as Ayisha was lifted back above him, a scowl quickly growing on his face. He saw the rocks suddenly shift between them, the boulders enough to crush him under their weight if he let them. Thaed had less than seconds to act, quickly jutting his hand out and slamming the Force into the rocks. It was with enough pressure to crack the debris into tiny rocks that would then shoot directly at Ayisha, showering her with a rain of pebbles.

Thaed had no time to do much else, utilizing that outer blast to his defense and expanding it into a self barrier to cushion his fall. Within an instant, he met the snowy field with a thud, but the fall didn't end there. The avalanche had caused a massive mountain of snow below them and Thaed sunk deep into it, going right through the mound and below. The free fall from so far up ensured he still had a bit to travel, and they were both in danger of being buried underneath the snow.

 

[Rev]

The approaching blanket of white only put a smile on Aÿisha's face as they met the point of no return. She knew at that instant that Thaed's life could end, or at the very least the two would be separated by more than air. It was that smile, her letting into the emotions around her that would allow her to be caught off guard. As quickly and easily as the aged rock had burst on Thaed, so did it on her. The pop of the mineral shattering was the last audible sound she heard before ringing, a chunk of the dense stone smacking her across the face as her cheek bone was littered with pebbles and concrete dust.

Her right hand in reaction would last out a Force blast of her own and only by luck, or guidance of the Force would it change the outcome of her fall. As Thaed plummeted into the loose snow, now riddled with rock, Aÿisha's body would be sent meters away. The energy which shot from her hand enough to distance herself as she too sank into the cold landing pad. Her head ringing with annoyance she did what she could to collect herself physically, then mentally with the aid of the often used energy source. Laying deep within her own crater her eyes stared upwards at the falling snow, the blizzard forever consuming them just as the darkside had. Closing her eyes for the second time a likewise Force bubble would surround her injured body encasing it in a protective shield. At that the snow around her would collapse, the avalanche caving in upon itself burying her and saving her in the same act as it too hid her..

 

[Sreeya]

For a moment, there was nothing but silence. The winds swept through the valley, the area deathly silent, and everything intact as if no living creatures had ever dwelt there. Suddenly, a silvery gray hand jutted out from a mound of snow. It was soon followed by the Zabrak roughly climbing out and spitting out a mouthful of snow. He grimaced as he put his saber on his hip, thankful he had managed to keep a firm grip on it. Thaed looked around for Ayisha, not spotting the wretched woman nor sensing her through the Force.

He began to trudge in the direction she would have been in, using the Force to blast the snow away in different directions. After a few minutes, he gritted his teeth, growling in frustration. That was when he glanced over and realized that her ship was wrecked beyond repair. She had absolutely no way off the desolate planet except to create her own ship from scraps. She could be trapped or dead. Thaed liked both of those options.

Without a word, he slowly began to amble through the snow towards where his ship was. He kept alert in case she decided to jump up from behind him. The storm got worse, making visibility difficult, but he could faintly make out his personal ship in the distance.

 

[Rev]

Within the shell of her resting place, Illusia would reach outward. Feeling the strong surges of emotion emanating from Thaed allowed her to pinpoint him more easily. She could sense the fear radiating off of him like a shimmering light in the distance. All that was left was to grab it and hold onto it, mold it into the device she needed and finally utilize it. Manipulating the twisting flurries around the Sith Lord from within her Tomb would further blind him. The natural winds and energy sources coming from the very terrain and precipitation around them being used to conserve who own energy source. These flurries combined with Thaed's own fear would create a false sense of security; giving him the image of a fighter meters away, every blink would distance himself from the craft. He'd forever be stuck in a loop within his own mind.

As her mind worked on confusing Thaed for the time being her body took over in getting out of the predicament she found herself in. Taking the saber staff from her hip, the crimson beams would hiss to life as the Force Shield around her would drop. Raising the weapon above herself resulted in the dropping snow to meet heated saber blades as they spun much like a propeller above head. It would result in a shaft that would finally come to a stop with only a few inches separating herself from the surface. Plunging the blade through and carving out an opening the interior snow would drop below before her legs would propel her body to the surface.

Gazing out about the area her mind continued to manipulate the natural winds, clearing the area for herself but blinding the Sith from the snow capped mountains around them. Walking in the direction Thaed had started she followed his faint trails, it was when his steps started venturing astray that she'd continue on the line he had started, her steps wiping away as the winds did away with them. Each step came lighter than the last, leaving less of a dent in the cold footholds. Allowing her mental hold on Thaed to drop, all he would see would be blizzard, his ship disappearing from existence just as Illusia had.

Coming to a clearing she could feel something different here. Looking about she spotted the toppled spire, it now half-buried in the dense snow. Stomping her foot down she cursed aloud, the realization that their only lift out of her wiped away by the same avalanche that had nearly killed them both. Pulling the robes which hugged her a little tighter around herself she'd let out a sigh. Letting the wind manipulations drop she'd let Thaed come to the same realization she had. Unburying such a large craft could take days or weeks, then there was no guarantee it would truly work. Letting her Force Mask take over she'd step into the shadows of the mountain basin and begin the search for 'home.'