An Assassin's Test

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Although Kaalia wasn't part of the Sith Assassins, she definitely was no stranger to them anymore. [member='Krest'] had introduced her to the assassin's life and although she didn't see it as her calling, she had no qualms about ending the lives of people with dirt on their name and the extra work was justified by the reward for a job well done. To say the woman had a lot of experience however would've very much been a lie, her list of executed targets only having one name. That name was Bartell Doana, a duke of Serenno, an assassination that was overseen by [member='Darth Ophidia'].

After successfully completing her objective that day it seemed Krest had another target ready for the young Sith. Eeth Koth was the name that was given to her, the planet he would be found on being Dagobah. A world that would've raised red flags if the fact those two things and a general direction of where the target was likely going to be were the only bits of information given didn't already do so. The missions the Sith Lord would send her on were often a test in some way and Kaalia had no doubt that this was the case once again, but with nothing to go on she couldn't assume anything. All she could do for now was be careful.

The Sonic Phantom landed on the surface of Dagobah after finding a place where the craft wouldn't sink into the swamp floor of the planet. the redhead could feel the Dark Side power emanating from the place, bringing her mind back to when she first visited the planet. She was a mere Disciple of Ren who was in inner conflict between Light and Dark, but that wasn't her anymore. She was by no means as powerful as a master of the Force but she had definitely grown stronger since that day. The power around her no longer overwhelmed the woman, which instilled the slightest bit of confidence within her.

The boarding ramp lowered and Kaalia stepped out into the harsh environment, looking around the place. She quickly concluded that she was indeed in the general area she was pointed towards and set her feet onto not-so-solid soil. With her lightsabers that were clipped to her belt hidden by a long black coat she started moving, looking for anything that would point her toward her target.

[member="Darth Lykos"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

The sound of the Phasma Class Starcraft landing only a short distance away brush softly against Lykos' ears, audible only because he had been focusing on searching for that sound and the fact that he had been enhancing his already enhanced hearing (when compared to a human, at least) further through the Force. Dressed only in a pair of leather, partially armoured trousers, a leather plackart and leather shoulder pauldrons, Lykos had chosen to forgo his usually cloak, a rather common place article of clothing for the White Assassin. His feet, bared as they normally were, claws that tipped his toes carefully sharpened so that they could be used in both combat and for grip.

Sighing out an explosive exhale of breath, Lykos grunted softly as a fresh scar along the back of his shoulder, obtained during his standard stress relief of hunting some of the more dangerous beasts of the galaxy, was pulled by the movement of pushing himself to his feet. Turning, Lykos strode around the flickering fire before him, kicking in the pile of still sodden sticks he had previously taken the time to stack next to the quickly formed fire pit, before ducking into the ramshackle and makeshift hut. Soon after the wet wood had fallen upon the fire, thick white smoke began to form, first forming as a few wisps before growing into thick clouds of smoke, drifting up through the humid air. Exiting from the hut, a subtle application of the Force preventing the smoke from blowing into his face, even as the sharp scent began to burn at his nose.

Bending down, he lay two stripes of meat upon a stone set dead center of the fire, ignoring the heat through years of living within the desert plains of Iridonia, before returning back to his seat. Slowly, the smell of cooking meat began to be able to be smelt, carried upon the near dead air and out into the surrounding swamp.

Settling down in his seat, Lykos stared into the fire as his thoughts began to run, impatiently awaiting for the appearance of Kaalia. She had met and been tested by his Master, Darth Ophidia, and was the student of his ally and good acquaintance (for while friend might have been a more appropriate word, Lykos would turn upon Krest if it would benefit himself or the Sith Assassins). Having already met two of the four heads of the Sith Assassins, Lykos had thought that he might meet this young Knight that had drawn the attention of his allies. After all, if War and Death saw something of interest in her, then Conquest wished to see what that something was.

As such, he had come to Dagobah and told Krest to direct Kaalia Voldaren to the swamp world with the intent to track down a target, a Zabrak named Eeth Koth - one of his aliases. He had as such seen fit to mask his Presence within the Force, using Quey'tek Meditation to present the emotions of content relaxation and a minor application of Art of the Small to make him seem weaker in the Force than he actually was. His intent was to first test how well she could fight, to learn of her through the art of combat as he had been taught by his parents back in the midst of his childhood. However, should she prove herself, then his choice of Dagobah as their battlegrounds would be revealed to Kaalia.

Picking up a stick that sat next to his feet, Lykos leaned forwards to begin dragging some of the stones surrounding the fire pit back towards himself, concealing the feral smirk that flashed across his face as he sensed as well as heard Kaalia's approach.



[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

As Kaalia came closer it became easier to find the location of her target. The smell of a fire and meat being cooked guided her until smoke came into sight. As a precaution the woman sought to shrink her presence in the Force, even though perhaps it was a bit late for such a measure. The soul she sensed through the Force did not seem particularly strong there was no such thing as being too careful.

Her footsteps were quiet as she came closer and closer to her target, eventually catching a glimpse of a person in a makeshift camp. While her facial expression remained neutral her gears were grinding, taking in her exact surroundings and the camp itself. Another look revealed the person to be a male Zabrak, not unlike [member='Krest']. As the young woman stood behind a large tree she opened part of her coat to reveal Mirari, a relic of her past. That past didn't make the lightsaber any less deadly, however. Her left hand wrapped around the hilt as she unclipped it before closing her coat back up. The other saber remained where it was, ready to provide an extra element of surprise was such a thing required.

With her weapon ready Kaalia readied herself. She was at his six and would strike quick, hopefully quick enough to end this without risk of retaliation. Out of seemingly nowhere her brain switched into a different gear and the redhead dashed, dropping her focus on her shrunk Force presence to tap it into augmenting her speed through it. As she did her saber ignited, revealing a blue beam of light that was directed at her target. Her eyes flashed from its normal emerald hue to a corrupt amber, a surge of the Dark Side coming over her as she went in for the kill.

[member="Darth Lykos"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

The benefit of the fact that he had assisted in engineering a situation in which he was to be subject of a surprise attack was, of course, the fact that the attack lost its element of surprise; the only illusive detail being, of course, when the person who was to attack him did so. As such, when Kaalia leapt through the air towards him, saber humming through the air as it was brought down to end his life and the Dark Side seeped from her form into the surrounding land and Force, Lykos was already prepared on how to react.

As the human had made the final leg of her approach to his location (the fact that it had taken her so long to consider the thought of masking her Presence had left a bitter taste in the Zabrak's mouth if he was being honest with himself, one should, after all, never judge a situation as fully known and always conduct themselves with the height of caution when preforming an assassination), Lykos had finished dragging the fourth, still glowing rock from where it had set surrounding the campfire so that it joined it crimson hued companions at his feet. The stick he had used for such a task had been dipped into the edge of the fire where ash and embers had begun to slowly gather.

When the would-be-assassin's Presence had billowed out into the Force as she reached out for augmentation of her muscles, a flicker of a smirk had stretched across scarred lips as his right hand tightened its grip on the stick before Lykos' body would blur upwards as he leaped upwards into a Force empowered leap. The blue blade of plasma would burn across of his right gastrocnemius muscle, leaving behind the brief scent of scorched muscle and cloth as the strike would pass through the standard cloth robe that the Zabrak wore. The strike left Lykos cursing within his mind for exactly what he had been disparaging Kaalia her for minuets ago, for being sloppy and underestimating his foe. As he had leapt into the air, the stick that had been left with the fire would whip backwards, sending a spray of ash and burning embers towards the red-head's face as Lykos landed on the other side of the fire.

With his right leg taking just a little less weight than normal as he leant upon his make-shift staff, the pain being nominal to Lykos when compared to what he had suffered and pushed himself through but not for Eeth Koth, the Zabrak would speak across the distance as Eeth. "Now, now, my dear. Please do calm down. As much as I do so adore the passion within you, might you please choose to direct it elsewhere?" His final words would be laden with innuendo as Lykos carefully studied what Kaalia's response would be.


[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Kaalia internally cursed as the man leapt away, signifying he had seen her attack coming. She knew that the fact she hadn't masked her Force presence in time was a very likely reason, something that would most definitely not happen again. The fact she did manage to at least strike him wasn't enough of a consolation to the woman, merely leaving him with a minor wound was not what she had come for. Time to dwell on it was not afforded to her however, as a spray of ash was quickly flying towards her face. Quickly she went to close her eyes as her forward momentum halted, but Eeth's attack was still able to have its desired effect. Some of the ash had made its way into her right eye, causing her to grunt in clear displeasure. She blinked repeatedly trying to get it out and counted her blessings as she concluded the amount that actually managed to hit was fairly minimal. A quick wipe away of the amassed tears that was generated to rinse the ash out later the redhead was ready to strike again, despite her eye still being irritated.

The Zabrak spoke, and the innuendo was most certainly not lost on Kaalia, but much time for joking and small talk was not something she was going to indulge in. As she let the Force guide another leap towards him, looking to keep up the attack looking to strike more than just a glancing blow that left him leaning on his makeshift cane. There would be no more underestimating however, she had learned that doing so against him was a bad idea. The Kro Varian decided to keep her focus on his legs, hoping to take them from under him, and went for another strike towards them. As the flash of blue quickly flew by she couldn't help but let out a quick "sorry, don't swing that way," responding to Eeth's previous words.

[member="Darth Lykos"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

As Kaalia lunged across the flames towards him, Lykos shifted his weight, placing more upon his injured leg, no longer pretending that his wound hurt more than it did. Of course, by doing so a small rush of fire raced through his veins, but the pain wasn't rejected but embraced, the short jolt serving to increase his connection to the Dark, revitalizing his body and his single eye begin to softly glow for a few second, looking as if it was being illuminated from behind the iris. However, even as he allowed that surge of Darkness to echo out into the Force, he did not let up on his suppression, never halting in making himself seem weaker in the Force than he was.

Humming blue cut through the air with ease as the woman's leap carried her past him, streaking towards his legs and leaving a humming trail behind. Words, within the same moment, dropped from her lips, however, they were noted and shuffled to the back of his mind as his focus remained on the lightsaber coming towards him. Using his now much more stable position, Lykos twisted his body at the hip, hands tightening their grip upon his makeshift staff as he brought it up to meet the blue blade of the lightsaber while he pivoted on the spot, following Kaalia as she came to the end of her arc, feet reconnecting with the ground.

A single mere moment before his make shift staff would have been sliced in two and the lightsaber would have carried on through the strike at his legs, a palpable aura seemed to coalesce along the length of wood, viscous looking shadows seemingly forming along it surface. As the blade of plasma made contact with those shadows it would fail to travel through to wood to meet flesh, instead, it would be held in place. Before the contact had even been made, however, as soon as Force Weapon had gone into effect in fact, Lykos kicked off with his feet. And as soon as staff met lightsaber, a wave of the Force would be directed downwards, pushing the Zabrak further upwards, leaving him hanging at the apex of his leap, staring down at Kaalia.

Twisting in the air, Lykos allowed gravity to pull him downwards, shadows still clinging to his staff as he directed it towards the red-head. however, a subtle shift in the Force would deliver his true attack. The glowing rocks that he had removed from the fire, still very much containing a burning level of heat, would be flung across the fire, all four of them, towards Kaalia.

"A shame," his voice would join in with his fall in serving as a distraction, his words carefully chosen to match with what he had already said as Eeth as he finally let the words she had muttered just seconds before rush to the front of his mind just as the air rushed past him, "with the ferocity your displaying, I'm sure it would have been fun."


[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

When Kaalia saw her target shift his weight onto the leg she had hit she knew something was up. Whatever it was, something did not add up but in the end she was here to take him down. When her lightsaber's blade hit the staff she did not let up, knowing there would've been a reason to go for a block with something that would normally not stand a chance against the beam of plasma she carried. The zabrak created distance as soon as saber and staff met by jumping upwards. As he came down the staff was pointed into her direction. The woman brought up her blade to block any kind of counterattack.

When he spoke to her in an attempt to distract her from his true attack, the Force spoke just a tad bit louder. Feeling the shift in the air caused her to slightly pivot to the side when the burning-hot rocks came flying towards her. Kaalia grasped the Force around her and laid her focus on the shifts of wind of the world of Dagobah, infusing them with her power. As her free hand made a graceful maneuver the wind increased in strength and three of the rocks were caught in the current, being directed away from her and now towards Eeth instead, forcing him to react. A display of Wind Shaping, a technique which origins were found on the planet here own roots were, Kro Var.

One of the rocks did not get caught however and the redhead dashed sideways, but it still managed to strike the left side her lower midsection, wincing and grunting as waves of pain coursed through her system. Instead of letting it be a detriment she forced herself to channel the agony to strengthen her connection to the Darkness that resided within her. Emerald green eyes that already displayed traces of the Dark Side's corruption further made way for red and sulphur.

With her strengthened connection she drew upon the well of the Force once more, the blistering heat of the rock that had struck her fresh in her mind. That heat coursed from its source towards her right hand as she fuelled her inner fire and called upon the other Shaping power she possessed. Flames burst out from her hand towards the man, not quite willing to let up on her momentum just yet. As she did she smirked, entertained by the words she was finally able to process. Don't let Ishana catch you saying that, she thought in the back of her mind. She often mindlessly spoke her mind out loud during combat, most of her musings quite infuriatingly annoying and distracting to her opponent, but she knew better to not give away personal information through those tidbits.

[member="Darth Lykos"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

As the wind bent around three of the four rocks, leaving only one of them to impact Kaalia, Lykos smirked internally- preventing it from showing upon the face of Eeth - as he felt them be deflected not by telekinesis but by the wind and pressure around the rocks themselves altering. His mental smirk only served to get bigger and bigger still as first the pain of the rock striking the red head was channeled into a deeper connection to the Dark while the heat was directed to assist in the formation of the stream of fire cutting through the air towards his falling body.

Even as he decided that he would return the final attack in equal measure, to see how the woman would react to that, Lykos first had to deal with the flames curling their way towards him as well as three glowing rocks. The make-shift staff he had been wielding thus far was released, left to tumbled along side him, as both of his hands were thrown forwards, both palms facing down towards Kaalia. From his right palm, a barrier of translucent black formed in front of him, and though it shook and web like cracks began to form along its surface, it not having been created at full strength, it held as all three rocks were halted in their path towards him and set flying sideways, off into the trees. The flames met a similar fate, but, instead of being deflected off to the side, the cracked barrier shifted so that the flames began to gather in front of him, obscuring him for view.

The odd lick of flame managed to find its way through the gaps in the shield, brushing along a burnt and already scarred forearm. However, the pain was familiar to the Zabrak, and dulled from the mass of scar tissue, and served to do little to break his concentration, only leaving his arm feeling tender. With his focus still remaining, the scratches along his cybernetic, left palm illuminated a dull purple, revealing themselves to not be scratches but, instead, layers of Sith Runes. The flames curling at the shield would part as a returning stream of flame would pierce through them, originating from the Runes being conjured before the Zabrak and being directed down towards Kaalia.

As last time, Lykos chose to speak up as Eeth while he conjured his fires, his voice piercing through the roar of the flames as he drew upon the personality he had personally labeled as 'The Annoyance'. "I make a few lines and you try to turn me to ash? I truly regret the fact that we will never get to enjoy more fun pursuits, as near to perfect as you may be with that fiery temper."

If Kaalia did not choose to move at this point, shortly after Lykos' created his own flames, then she would feel the full weight of him land upon her as his fall would come to an end. If that happened, then Lykos' hand, the flesh and blood one, would snap forwards in the attempt to fasten itself around her throat. However, if she dodged, the Lykos would simply land in a crouch, staring at the red head.


[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Kaalia blew air out of her nose as she watched Eeth summon a black, translucent barrier to block her attacks. If there was one thought in her mind that stuck out at that moment, it was that, without doubt, this was another of [member='Krest']'s tests. This encounter was more than likely to take everything out of her to get through, but that bothered her none. The zabrak in front her would see the full extent of her capabilities if that was what was needed. There was more to him than met the eye, and she would have to be careful about that.

The diverted rocks met the barrier and flew off, but the flames were gathered in front of him instead of being removed from the equation. She quickly realized they were going to be used against her, and when it came back her way she had to react quickly. Raising her free right hand she aimed at the fire that was hurled her way she focused on it with her connection to the Force, causing it to gather around before her hand. While regaining control over the flames she added some snark to her voice as she commented on his words. "I'm flattered, Casanova." Despite wrestling to gain control she felt some of the flames make contact with her hand. She couldn't allow it to break her concentration and forced herself to channel it. It would leave some nasty burns, but that was something to worry about later. With a flick of her wrist the fire dissipated, leaving just air between the two. Without delay he would come down at her, but instead of dodging she had different plans. Through the Force the redhead called upon Cruentis Cor, the saber that was still hidden beneath her coat, and it quickly made its way towards her right hand. A flash of red revealed itself from the hilt as the weapon ignited, the woman immediately slashing at his descending form from different angles, wincing as the burns on her right hand did not appreciate the direct contact with the saber hilt.

Just. Die. Already. The words echoed through the walls of her mind. Eeth had proven his point, he wasn't to be underestimated, but Kaalia wasn't planning on spending a second longer on Dagobah than what was needed. She realized there was a good chance he had more tricks up his sleeve and that using them at the right time would be fatal to the redhead, but she was not looking to die just yet. Not here, not today. Life didn't always go one's way, in reality it rarely did, but she would do anything to force life to walk the path she wanted it to.

[member="Darth Lykos"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

A surge of something that could have once been a mix of satisfaction and slight respect stirred within cold hearts as Lykos witnessed Kaalia call upon one of her hidden lightaber. Her usage of the elements as she had done so just seconds prior had been enough to negate the slight disappointment he had felt when she had chosen to drop her stealth before initially attacking, leaving him searching for one more aspect, one more thing, for him to be satisfied with that would lead to him actually calling their fight to an end. The fact that, despite the brashness she had first struck with, she had not been fool enough to reveal all weapons she possessed at once was just what he had been looking for. Yes, it was a small detail, but it was one that Lykos had witnessed many a Sith disregard.

For every strike that Kaalia delivered against his form, the humming blade of plasma was met with his arm, the alchemised metal meeting and matching the lightsaber; just as he had designed it to do so. With every block followed by another block, Lykos had begun to gather the Force to him, letting the movement he was making guide his mid-battle meditation. Kaalia had impressed him enough, it was time for this farce to come to an end. As such, one final strike with the lightsaber would be made, the air gaining a burning scent as, instead of his cybernetic arm, the plasma made contact with his right hand. However, his palm was not sliced through, instead, a hissing field of the Force was gathered just bellow the first layer of skin, halting the blade's advancement even as Lykos fed upon the pain and burning that speared its way through his mind.

"Enough!"

The roar of his voice would be accompanied by a roar within the Force as the gathered energy, fed the final spark by the pain that he had purposefully allowed by placing the Tutaminis below a layer of skin, was finally released with explosive force; one that carried itself within his voice as well as around him in all directions. Dirt and dust would be kicked up and the fire that still burnt would be snuffed out, reduced to not even embers, as the pressure would effect the surrounding area even as it pressed upon Kaalia, fighting to fling her away from the Zabrak.

Shedding the persona of Eeth at the same time, Lykos' Presence in the Force was no longer disguised, no longer suppressed and, for the first time in quite some time, it could be fully felt within the Force as he chose to not immediately cloak it. "Enough." This time his voice was much softer that his prior bellow, however, it also lacked any emotion that may have been in Eeth's voice. "You've proven yourself well enough."


[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Lightsaber strikes were blocked by the cybernetic arm of Kaalia's target, the speed of the blocks making it nearly impossible to break through. Eventually however she seemed to have hit the man's hand, but to her surprise it did not have the intended effect of cutting it off. Before the woman had any chance of reacting however Eeth would nothing short of roar, feeling him draw upon the pain that her lightsaber was causing him.

Suddenly a wave of incredible power was felt that was disproportionate to the source's presence, but time to wonder was not alloted to Kaalia. It flung her away from the zabrak and despite trying to shield herself as much as possible through the Force she simply had no answer. Her eyes went wide as she was airborne, the strength behind the push disorienting her. She came down hard on her left arm and rolled on for a few seconds, every fiber in her body hurting. Corrupt eyes would stare at the man as she forced herself to get up, her movement that within combat was normally fluid and precise through the assistance of Wind Shaping now more sluggish and unrefined. Calling upon her sabers hilts as she walked back towards Eeth and igniting them once again, breathing heavily, Kaalia prepared herself to launch another attack. A feeling of frustration that she was not able to land safely through the use of the Force had to be pushed to the back of her mind, a lesson to be reviewed later.

"Enough. You've proven yourself well enough."

His voice had completely changed tone and his presence in the Force had become much greater than what it was before, signifying that once again her objective was not what it seemed. "It's always a test," Kaalia responded as she shook her head, put her weapons back to sleep, and clipped them back. "I should've expected it." Passing by the toppled over seat the zabrak had sat on she dragged it along and put it down at the now put out fire pit to sit down. Still breathing heavily she took a proper look at the man. "I take the Casanova thing was just an act, then?" She rubbed her upper left arm as she spoke.

[member="Darth Lykos"]