Dawn Comes
Coruscant, Senatorial District
Actors: Maou Lanik Dawnstar
Act One: Victory
An air of intensity surrounded Bernard as he shifted from one leg to the other facing the turbolift door. The senator behind him had considered requesting a floor stop but reconsidered the moment Bernard had shifted his gaze backwards, the pressure of determination in his eyes proving too much for the senator to contest. The ride continued in near silence, only broken by the quiet droplets of rain still pearling off the arkanian's jacket. The intensity Bernard radiated bore down on the senator and his aide. They regarded the arkanian as though it was blood, not rain, streaming from his clenched fists. When the lift reached its destination and he rushed out the doors, they finally dared to draw another breath.
The deep reds and purples of the senate's decor were tainted with an unsettling presence in the moonlight. The arkanian's extended spectrum of sight did little to ease the unworldly darkness that absorbed the space around him. The saboteur's emotion shone within the Force, however, guiding Bernard's path through the senate's labyrinthine corridors; though it was a beacon that had long been corrupted. The once noble spirit of the saboteur was sullied by malignant sin which coated it in oily shadows. There was no doubt in Bernard's mind about the evil that had befallen Lanik when he sensed his presence in the Force. It painted the path towards the struggle with a distinctive malaise that sent piercing electricity through the padawan's old wounds.
Dazzling light flickered from within the room where Bernard felt the conflict's presence. Brilliant violet trembled over an undercoat of blue that shone against the wall opposite the doorway. As Bernard dashed towards it the smell of ozone became thick in the air, the sound of crackling electricity dominated the soundscape. The pained screams of Lanik's victim briefly pierced the overbearing noise and added new urgency to Bernard's movements. Every moment counted. If he hesitated even to consider a plan of attack, another innocent life might fall to the false knight's blade.
Bernard slid to a halt before the doorway, taking what momentum he retained to push off into the room. The bright shine of lightning impaired his sight, but the scene was clear to read. Lanik stood above the senator, actively incapacitating him with Sith's lightning while his blade bore down for the execution. Even his tactics were repugnant. The Jedi's eyes locked squarely with the traitor's obscured face. Saving the senator took priority as his first goal. Lanik's blade was already coming for the senator, there wasn't enough time to make the dash to save him, but there was another way. The lightsabre detached from Bernard's utility belt on its own; guided by the Force it spun forward, its ice-blue blade extending with a hiss as it surged to intervene in the other lightsabre's path. Bernard gave the blade one last push as it outpaced him, then shifted his attention to the traitor knight.
Emotion swelled within Bernard's soul with every one of his footfalls. Too many months had passed since their second encounter on the Embrace had left him injured and scarred, even more since Lanik had escaped their first fateful encounter on Kuat. Bernard's every waking breath was spent either in pursuit of the light's enemies or preparing and training for precisely that purpose. Every action he took was in the name of the Jedi. In the name of the innocents whom the dark side threatened. Harsh experience had taught him the pain of loss. A debilitating and destructive force that would consume a person if they let it fester, but Bernard had taken the pain and transformed it into determination, into purpose. Lanik had become the focus of that singular purpose. As a fallen Jedi, he'd become the burning catalyst that pushed Bernard to move forwards, never stopping in pursuit of threats to the light he held dear. All the pain he felt was recast into an unshakable determination that demanded justice for all those whom the dark side wronged.
The crescendo of emotion came to its zenith when he saw the time to strike against Lanik. White light of two lightsabres' clash served as his sign. The blades met and repelled each other. Bernard's own lightsabre first appeared to harmlessly deflect into the floor but was quickly redirected into the arkanian's hand seamlessly with a quick application of the Force. He caught the blade in a reverse grip. The durasteel felt cool in his hand; its presence consoling against the radiating heat of Sith's lightning crashing into his front. He placed his other hand on the sabre's pommel as he rushed forwards, bringing the sabre back, next to his waist, to deliver a blow to end the fallen knight's life. Wordlessly he slid to a halt before Lanik, lunging towards him to thrust the blade into his foe. It sought the traitor's heart. Bernard's gaze shifted to meet the traitor's eyes, fires of determination ablaze behind an emotionless facade.
Last edited: