Private A Night in the Pits

[Xzinn Dronnol]

An Underworld Fighting Pit, Nar Shaddaa
Darth Maladroth

Xzinn paced back and forth calmly at one end of the large pit in which he found himself, waiting for his fight to begin. The pit itself was square square in shape and made entirely of metal, its sides rising perhaps fifteen or twenty feet up from the bottom. All around the edge of the arena, crowding rails intended to prevent them from falling in, were well over a hundred spectators of all shapes and sizes.They were cheering, gesturing and calling out, arguing with one another, exchanging credits and setting bets, and generally getting ready for the coming bout.

All of that was normal. What wasn't as normal was what emerged from the doorway across from him. He stopped pacing when the door began to lift. As he watched the man he was supposed to fight enter the arena, Xzinn clenched his jaw and tightened his grip on the haft of his vibro-ax as the slightest twinge of fear crept into his gut. His opponent was a Houk, and a massive one at that, standing at least eight feet tall, his musclebound profile made to seem even bigger by the armor he wore. In his hands he carried an oversized vibrosword, its blade nearly as long as Xzinn's own weapon.

The worst part about all this? He wasn't being forced to do this; at least, not like before. No, this time he simply needed the money. Getting free of the fighting pits and working for a gang had its benefits, but it had its drawbacks too. One bad tip from a shifty Rodian and a botched job later, and he was going to come up short of money for the month. Hutts didn't like it so much when you came up short, especially under these kinds of circumstances. So, Xzinn had reached out to some old contacts, and just like that, he had a match. Now if only he could get his hands on that Rodian...

"I thought this was gonna be a good fight!" The Houk's voice boomed across the arena, interrupting Xzinn's thoughts. His mouth was spread in a wide grin. "All I gotta do is kill this little green runt? Easiest credits I'll make this week!" He laughed loudly and deeply, and the crowd roared its approval. They wanted blood, and it looked like they were going to get it. "Tell ya what, I'm a nice guy. Beg me for mercy and I'll make sure ya quick!"

"We'll see who begs before this is done," Xzinn snarled in response.

The Falleen stood stock-still, his eyes fixed on his opponent, glaring at him. He could feel the anger in him beginning to churn. The clamoring of the crowd, the droning of the announcer as he introduced the fighters, all of it faded into the background. It didn't matter who this Houk was, or how many fights he'd been in, or what kind of reputation he'd gained for himself. All that mattered was that he was the enemy, and that he was going to die by Xzinn's hand. The noise subsided for a brief moment; it was the calm before the storm. Then, a sound rang out in the arena: the cue to begin. As soon as it sounded, Xzinn hefted his vibro-ax and charged.

 

[Darth Maladroth]

Maladroth strode through the crowd - towering over it in a black cloak. In these places, such a being was not as notable as one would think - even with forced anonymity. Most had a general understanding of underworld etiquette, and questioning or staring at the 9 foot tall man with glowing red eyes tended to be a faux pas in such circles. Few bothered the robot, fewer yet stood in his way as he meandered through the crowd to find somewhere more comfortable to stand - but when he did his attention went towards the man in the ring.​

​

Fighting a houk was no easy task - they were large and vicious creatures. On more than one occasion, Maladroth had seen video recordings of the results of their bouts - and they rarely ended in less than a dismemberment, even with no weapons were to be had in the situation. To see how this Falleen would face such a man interested him greatly; but more than that, he could sense the roiling anger beneath his green visage, boiling and rumbling as his knuckles tightened on the axe handle.​

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"Yes...", he said with a small grin.​

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"End his life."​

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Xzinn Dronnol​

 

[Xzinn Dronnol]

The lumbering houk raised his vibrosword to slash at the charging Falleen man. Xzinn ducked under his swing, moving to one side, before striking at his opponent with is own weapon. The houk's armor sparked as the head of the ax made contact, and the high-speed vibration of the blade allowed it to cut deeply into the plating, much more deeply than any normal weapon could have. When he pulled the blade away Xzinn could see the gouge he'd left in the armor; it hadn't been enough to cut through to the flesh, but it was enough to weaken its integrity in that area.

The houk roared in anger, twisting to bring his blade directly down at Xzinn. Too easy. His opponent was quick, especially for someone that big, but not entirely unpredictable. Xzinn had always been highly adept at reading the flow of battle. He could feel their emotions and read their movements better than most, and this brute was no different. The Falleen spun deftly away from the attack, leaving it to make contact with the place on the floor where'd been only a split second before. Xzinn kept the spin going, using its momentum to bring his ax around again. This time he scored the plate on the houk's chest. The cut wasn't as deep, but it wasn't meant to be. It was meant to make him mad. The houk dragged his vibrosword along the floor, metal sparking against metal, and swung upward at Xzinn. Xzinn lept backwards, avoiding the attack and getting just out of reach.

"Come on, beast," he sneered at his adversary, his voice dripping with contempt. "You're going to have to do better than that."

The houk charged this time, his beady yellow eyes filled with rage, swinging his massive sword again and again at Xzinn. Some he dodged, some he parried away, and some he blocked head-on, meeting his opponent's monstrous strength with his own. He continued to attack and counter-attack as well, anger and adrenaline fueling his strikes. More and more he struck, and more and more cuts and gouges appeared in the houk's armor. Blood oozed from a few that had gone deep enough to break the skin. He continued to attack, apparently undeterred.

Finally the giant alien made a mistake. He over-extended on a one-handed swing, and Xzinn took advantage, hooking the blade with his ax and using his weight to leverage it out of his enemy's grip. The sword clattered to the ground. Xzinn quickly swept it away and out of reach with his own weapon, then kicked out, trying to put even more distance between the houk and his sword. The now-disarmed houk was sent stumbling back when Xzinn's foot connected squarely with his midsection. Those angry yellow eyes, so filled with confidence at the beginning of the fight, now showed a new emotion: fear.

Darth Maladroth

 

[Darth Maladroth]

Maladroth looked upon the fight with a growing glee. He mused to himself quietly;

"Yes, control. Good - strategy, exquisite."

A jumble of notations, memories, and compliments stirred as hard drives saved the holovid data to his internal then external servers. A robotic grin formed on his metal jaw - and he leaned forward as he began to whisper into the man's mind.

"End him. Strike the beast down where he stands."

Xzinn Dronnol

 

[Xzinn Dronnol]

Emboldened, Xzinn lunged forward. He stabbed the point of the vibro-ax into the houk's gut, penetrating a weakened point in the armor and sinking the blade into his flesh. His thick, scaly skin kept it from going as deep as Xzinn would have liked, but the damage caused by the blade's vibrations helped make up for it. The houk roared in pain as blood spilled from the wound onto the arena floor. Then he did something Xzinn hadn't expected: he stepped forward, forcing the blade deeper into his own body. One hand grabbed hold of the shaft of the ax, while the other, balled into a giant fist, swung at Xzinn.

The Falleen braced himself as best as he could, but it didn't help much. The blow impacted hard into Xzinn's side, forcing the air from his lungs. Probably a cracked rib or two from what he could figure. That scarcely registered in his mind before he felt himself being lifted. He's going to throw me. Xzinn released his grip on his weapon just in time; the houk had yanked it up and forward, pulling it out of his body throwing it far out of reach. Had he not let go, Xzinn would have gone flying with it.

The houk lumbered forward menacingly. "I'll tear you apart, you little worm!" he yelled angrily, swinging at the Falleen. Xzinn for his part couldn't believe what had happened. He'd been disarmed by this beast. He'd volunteered for this fight. He'd been deceived and put into a situation where he had to volunteer in the first place. Everything about this situation clawed at his insides, filling him with rage and indignation.

Xzinn engaged his opponent once again, this time hand-to-hand, dodging some strikes, blocking others, all the while delivering his own to the massive figure before him. He struck at gouged and scarred sections he'd already weakened or cut through as well as at other exposed parts of the houk's body. Each blow landed stronger and heavier than the last, and the houk was quickly staggered and put on the back foot. Xzinn continued advancing, striking over and over, driving him back further and further. At last, he saw another opportunity, another opening in the beast's defenses. He kicked as hard as he could. His foot connected with the stab wound in the creature's gut; the armor around it cracked. The houk cried out and doubled over in pain. Xzinn took advantage, jumping up and punching down onto the back of his head. This was enough to finally knock the man off his feet.

While the houk writhed on the ground, Xzinn strode purposefully across the arena to where his ax had fallen. He bent to retrieve his weapon, then turned back to his enemy, his expression contorted with hatred. The brute was struggling to get back to his feet. Xzinn wouldn't let him; it was time to end this. He broke into a dead sprint, charging once more. This time he felt lighter, faster, stronger than he could remember; perhaps more than he'd ever felt in his life. He could feel something like instinct guiding him as he made his final attack. The muscles in his legs tensed, strength flowing through them; at last, he leaped. Vibro-ax held above his head and roaring with anger, he flew through the air nearly ten meters to his target.

The houk's face filled with fear. He only had time to raise one meaty forearm to defend himself, but it wasn't enough to save him. Xzinn's weapon cleaved clean through his wrist before burying itself deep in his torso between the neck and shoulder. He mouthed something wordlessly, then collapsed once more.

Darth Maladroth

 

[Darth Maladroth]

"Excellent.", Maladroth said beneath the cheers and cacophonious noise of the crowd.​

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With the fight done, and the clean up crews soon to be deployed - Maladroth found his way out of the crowd. More bulldozer than snake, he simply walked through them until others moved; unable to stop the great weight and height of the machine god. He smiled at their insignifigance, and found a place outside their suffocating presence before he made his way to the back rooms of the arena; where he knew Xzinn Dronnol would be.​

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A force induced domination or two later, and he was there; outside the room Xzinn would be brought back to after his fight.​

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He rasped his knuckles against it, and smiled.​

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"May I come in?"​

 

[Xzinn Dronnol]

Xzinn had been ushered into a back room after the fight was over. Standard practice after these sorts of bouts, but at least he'd be able to leave afterward, which was much more than he could say about his days as a slave. He sat alone, wrapping a bandage around his hands. The fight had left his knuckles bloodied, though he'd hardly noticed it at the time. No matter, it'd heal soon enough.

His head shot up when the knock came. The voice on the other side of the door sounded odd, yet familiar in some way he couldn't quite grasp.

"Sure, the door's open," he replied.

When the door opened, he froze for a split second as the giant man entered the room, red eyes glowing from under a black hood. He must have been as big as the houk he'd just fought, perhaps bigger, and likely far more dangerous.

"You're not..." Xzinn trailed off. He quickly composed himself. "Who might you be?"

Darth Maladroth

 

[Darth Maladroth]

"Darth Maladroth.", he said with a robotic grin.

The man dropped the cloaks hood and exposed his metallic skull - glistening in its phrik glory. Red eyes danced around the room for personal effects- but ceased when he found nothing. Instead, he motioned to the seat behind the man;

"Take a seat. I've come to make an offer that could very well change your life."

Xzinn Dronnol

 

[Xzinn Dronnol]

Xzinn's body tensed when the robotic man lowered his hood, exposing his head. He was clearly a machine, a droid of some sort, but he'd never seen a droid like this one. He wasn't sure anyone had ever seen a droid like this before, at least not anyone he knew. It was more than that, though; there was the faintest something about him that Xzinn couldn't quite place, something that scratched ever-so-lightly at the very back of his mind.

He shrugged and sat down where he'd been before, looking back up at Maladroth, meeting his red-eyed gaze. From this angle he seemed even bigger, even more imposing than he already was.

"Darth Maladroth, huh?" Xzinn repeated the stranger's name aloud. "All right then, let's hear it. You got a job you need me for?"

Darth Maladroth

 

[Darth Maladroth]

The robot laughed in an echoing metallic chortle that only accentuated his lack of humanity. It ceased quickly with a synthetic sigh, and for a moment Xzinn would almost assume he would wipe his eye of a tear...

But he didn't.

"No job, only freedom. A freedom to choose, a freedom to love, a freedom of being."

"I sense in you potential, and with it I hope to offer you a chance to break your chains. To become a Sith."

Xzinn Dronnol

 

[Xzinn Dronnol]

"Sith?" The Falleen's voice sounded with a mixture of incredulity and curiosity. "I thought the Sith were all gone now. Scattered, destroyed. Their empire is, at least."

Xzinn had never met a Sith before, but like anyone else he'd heard plenty of stories: great feats of power and strength, rumors of dark and terrible magic, intrigue and betrayal, all that at the head of one of the galaxy's greatest empires. Most of the things he'd heard were conversations overheard as a child, or what news and tall tales would trickle down to his area of lower Nar Shaddaa. He didn't know how much to believe, but he knew they were powerful, very powerful. If this giant metallic man was one of them, and he was offering a chance at freedom, it was worth listening to what he had to say.

"I won't lie, that sounds pretty good, but what sort of potential do you mean? Like I could do the kinds of things I hear Sith can do?" He couldn't help but smile wickedly at the thought.

Darth Maladroth

 

[Darth Maladroth]

"With training.", he offered.

Maladroth glanced around the room once more, and found a place for himself to sit. The room quaked under his great weight, and the synthcouch he sat on groaned in displeasure. He adjusted slightly to his own amusement, crossed his legs, and continued.

"The Sith are more than an Empire, more than any number of them. We strive for galactic dominance - and an empire is simply one form of domination. In our domination of the Galaxy, we hold the key to our chains- so that none other can control us. Something I'm sure you know much about..."

"We fight in the shadows for now, but soon we shall re-emerge. You would do well to stand with us- so that you too can be a God amongst men."

Xzinn Dronnol

 

[Xzinn Dronnol]

Xzinn nodded thoughtfully as he listened to Maladroth. His eyes went around the room, finding, as usual, nothing of note. He shook his head in exasperation. "I'm real sick of being in rooms like this. Sick of not having any real control, any real power. Working for fools who have no idea what I can do. I'm so much better than all this."

He leaned back a bit, arms folded, brow furrowed in thought. In truth, though, as far as he was concerned, there was little to think about. He might have to skip out on certain obligations here, but if he could truly become Sith, then such things would soon be far beneath him. Indeed, if anyone from this unimportant little sector of Nar Shaddaa came for him, he would destroy them. Beyond that, what better path to strength could there be?

"All right," Xzinn said at last as he uncrossed his arms. His face was set with determination. "Let's say I want to become Sith. What happens now? What do I need to do?"

Darth Maladroth

 

[Darth Maladroth]

"You've already begun your journey - giving into hate and killing your opponent in the arena.", he said with a metallic grin.​

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"Now all we must do is bring you home. To the Order's control - to find you lessons, teachers, and a future."​

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He stood once more, and lifted his hood.​

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"Come, Acolyte. It's time you learned your destiny."​

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Xzinn Dronnol​