Crystalfire: Metal Pendulum splicing Eden and Oblivion, servitude or solace.

[Sera Inkari]

Held in the air, Sera was choking, her vision going white. She had dreamed this would happen and embraced the force’s control over her, a smile was born on her face enduring her suffering, this was what she had forseen. Sera extended her hands up to embrace her force’s desire, and then… was dropped to the floor in a heap. Laying on her side, hands reaching out, she gasped for breath.

Pinging sounds of metal missing her, rebounded across walls around her. The priestess took some time regaining her composure, and pushed up. Pained, she still glowed from her force’s embrace, even if intent was to end her life, she felt personally attached to her experience. Across her lightly tanned skin you could see warmth returning, positively enlivened, she had dreamed of exactly this, not of her pain, of her part in the dream, her role. She said a prayer softly, folded her hood over her red locks and smiled fully, her aura carrying that same expression of radiance.

Unlike her companions, this force crystal in her chest was part of her, a gift of her force she could never part with, she had always welcomed her gift. Sith could not be trusted with her crystal's wellbeing, she knew a moment of salvation was close, she was sure.

She picked up her metal staff and hurled her faith forward like a spear, just at the right time.

 

[Taiden Keth]

Closest to Raien, in the malestorm his ancestor lived within, only now a very real whirlwind of force energies, Taiden was battered by metal debris and thrown off his feet. His attack missed, and he felt a pulling on his arm, a heavy throw took him against the nearest wall in the corridor with a crunch, something broke and he was stunned.

Next was a painful piercing, several pieces of metal drove their way toward him, some hit him to bruise, one or two lodged themselves, and he let out a cry, unable to stand. He tried, but fell over again, something in his leg was obviously broken. The pristine white he wore, saw it's first blemish, a stain upon perfection, the ugliness inside to be expelled.

This was his price for his betrayal, better he clean his conscience here than live another day as a thrall! Whatever that required of him, he would learn his opponent through combat, as all Echani did, and master him. Hopping up on his good leg, he picked up his sword, awaited his moment for an opening, poised ready, and swung again into the whirlwind for Raien’s other side.

“Echanon!” A personal challenge called, to anything in Raien that could still be Echani! He would have his redemption, and eliminate this stain on his world’s history, and his families name.

 

[Kei Amadis]

Everything happened at once, Kei’s desire to protect those around him was paramount, and that’s what he focused on.

With Taiden thrown clear, Kei faced Raien’s attack head on. The Epicanthx stepped to cover Nato fully from the flying metal, his desire to protect those around him drew a translucence bubble, a force shield into existence around him, rippling outward it was designed to stop the force, and to sap it of potential if it entered. His Master Kiskla had been able train him to stop some objects with it as well, especially when focused on protecting others.

Metal bounced against the bubble, some, but not all, and Kei did receive three small shards to the chest from that which got through, staggering him to a knee. He had to push hard to stand again, bleeding in places. Sera was further away from the metal and avoided it, but he could do nothing for Taien, or could he?

Dropping the bubble, he fought past his own pain briefly, with limited success, looking instead to hold Taiden’s pain, any injury was focused on and it's pain absorbed, reaching out with his senses to endure for them. Further heaping the pain on Kei, bearing their load, and being there for his crew. It was a lot of pain with his own injuries, and he had to grit his teeth to stand at all, but he would stand for those around him.

Backing off a step, his saber unity was held over his head in a high guard, ready for what was to come.

 

[Glade]

Typical Kei always thinking he had to look after her, Nato wanted to hug and hit him, both, later. This was getting tense, yeppers plan b.

Air around Raien dropped, seeping out and sputtering to stop, her whirlwind stopped, starting around her own feet instead, a Kiffar's own memories of loving these guys, flying by and surrounding her, force connections pulled and manipulated, spinning her life to get a bit more spin out of the body. That petite lithe frame of hers had it’s advantages too.

“Whatca big guy, comin’ through.”

Pushing off the wall, and using Kei’s shoulder to get higher, Nato leapt up soaring, spinning over, Aurora burning bright. Somersaulting over the pair in Ataru, she cheekily swung her saber, straight at old crusties head.

“Heads up”.

Even if the somersaulting jump looked impressive, she was still learning. She’d only fought a few people for real, there wasn’t much to her saber swing, nothing but a lot of heart and love.

 

[Raien Keth]

In the heart of the melee, the combat circle became his life, as always, in that center of conflict he was home. All motions were read as if language to his kind. These here, their words were not shouts, they were hopes and dreams these attacks, whispers pleading to be heard, together they were louder but far from enough.

As the winds around him subsided Raien pulled his body backwards, attempted to catch the slower Taiden’s sword arm, physically press down one way, and lift the force the other to break it cleanly. Stamping down his heavy metal boot toward the Echani’s foot and preparing to shove him through the force, not just to the ground but actually imbed him in the metal. Sadly the staff the red witch threw meant he had no time, and he let the fortunate man go instead, smashing the projectile instead out of the way with his arm.

Raien had no need of Taien, for he carried no crystal, the DNA of his family line was useful to sustain his own longevity, but a mangled body was enough for that, even if he was ending Taien’s life earlier than planned.

Then came the whirling attack of the girl overhead, reckless, adventurous and drawing on what he sort most, her ability to remember, to pull memories out of the past, that is what he would take from her before her death to rebuild what he was. The other aspects of her personality were mere weaknesses that would get her killed.

Edge of truth was ignited, falling into a strong backstance so he had room to push. Soresu form angled down the beam from his shoulder, maintaining a tight grip. Raien did a minor orbit of the saber called a upward weld, rolling the beam around in his grip it glanced off of Nato’s, trying to roll her around further in her somersault, adding to her momentum of her spin and hopefully send her head over heels.

Striding forward, the crimson orbit of Raien’s saber continued, from his opposite shoulder, faster because of what Nato had added to it in her attack, heading to glance off Kei’s right side, diagonally down and across him. No power was expended, it was all from what Nato had given the Betrayer to work with, using the power of her jump against Kei.

 

[Niaana Ren]

Skulking around engineering, creeping through shafts below the deck, she avoided another blast of heat from a flamethrower sent to burn her out. Along another duct, dark places, she didn’t like dark confined places, not unless she was being educated. Sometimes Raien would feed her images of new ways to kill, all day, weeks sometimes, she liked those dark spaces, they helped make her a better assassin and she always had something to watch

“Yessss there we are.” Cutting some cables to see what would happen, she got a shock, so she cut again and got another shock, eventually she got the right one, around her a box blew out, and lights above her went out one by one. Maybe the rest of the ship was black too?

Her nail-like claws dug into her palms, drawing blood, ahhhhh there we are. Yes.. Yes, easing herself out of the nearest latch, you could hear people move around trying to restore the lights. Lots of them now, too many for her… almost too many. Slithering her steps over to the nearest guard, back turned to her. What tempting little morsel that fuel tank on his back was.

Cut

Oh dear.

She ducked back below the floor, and a hissing sound erupted into a large fire above, causing the ship to lurch as the engines were momentarily effected. Well they had light now, a serpent like snigger hissed from somewhere within her. Better move again, they might bring more fire.

Hopefully.

 

[Fyor Nayus]

Fyor didn’t dream much, he didn’t think much to dreams, they always seemed far too random to be usable. So when he woke up again, and didn’t remember anything, that was about the norm. This time though he had a rocking sensation, curious.

No that was the tank he was in, trigged by the fire in engineering, some sort of explosion on the docking bay had caused it to dislodge itself and it was now rocking back and forth on a knife edge. Well, only one thing to do, light them if you’ve got them, if this thing falls he’s done. Sadly he was in a bacta tank, and even if he could get a spice stick in here, he doubted it’d taste as good wet.

Oh sh..

One mind numbing crash later, he found himself gasping for air, off his respirator unit and breathing for the first time in two years, his lungs weren’t ready for it, and he was going into shock. He knew this because he knew medicine, some, enough to stay alive he hoped.

A shaky hand reached for something anything, dropping items off the table above on top of him. He took his time to analyse what he found, others would be fearing for their lives, but he was a calm calculating man, especially when lives were on the line, namely his.

Grabbing what looked to be adrenaline, he couldn’t see with his vision blurring, he stabbed himself in the lung, straight into the lung and collapsed, once again losing consciousness.

 

[Taiden Keth]

Even his Echani timing fell short, training in birth for combat, to read it and when to attack. Raien had seen it coming, he was faster than Taiden had ever seen. Now his wrist was caught, with a painful snap came another cry as it broke and he dropped the sword, his foot followed, the metal shattering it, and he slumped over. The young Echani was unable to stand with now three broken parts of his body, he was done.

Face first he hit the deck, Raien didn’t need to put him down, he was down. The staff Sera had thrown landed nearby, but his sword was out of reach, he could barely even move for the agony, with no training yet to control it. He was feeling every single break and fracture that had just occurred, adrenaline helped but not by much.

Taiden attempted to crawl for his weapon, it was too far, all he could do was reach for the staff and try to knock it closer. If this was it, he wanted the blade in his hand, and he wanted to be on his feet, Raien was purposely insulting a warrior by not finishing him with his sword and disarming him. He could crawl for safety but how could he leave them now, doing what he’d done, putting them in this position, his comrades, allowing this monster to be loose on their ship. When you had only one choice, you made it a good one, that's what his father said, that's what a Keth does, and that's what he'd be again before the end.

 

[Kei Amadis]

Kei could only take so much pain for Taiden then he had to break connection, especially now being attacked by the Sith. Djem So was Kei’s specialty in the fight’s he had so far. He was the most skilled of the crew with the saber, and was keen to show it to his opponent, to maybe stop this before it got any worse.

Hammering a two handed Djem So overhead strike, straight into his opponent’s saber rotation, there was little finesse there, the larger Epicanthx was using brute force to try and put Raien’s beam straight into the ground, so one of the others could get a shot in. Doing a fluid riposte, the beam was rotated around Kei’s head and then jabbed forward with a strong step, applying pressure to his opponent, and trying to push Raien back on the defensive.

Unknown to him, this was a technique of Raien’s that Kei had learned, suggested to him by the crystal in his chest, and it was something his opponent had once known well. It was one more reason why Raien had picked him, because through Kei’s death and using Kei’s crystal, the old Sith would remember exactly who he used to be in martial prowess, and his once core form of Djem So.

“End this now, nobody else needs get hurt.” The words were wasted he was sure, but as a Jedi he must try.

The lights went out, and dim red emergency lights flashed back on, the ground under them lurching as the ship rocked from some kind of explosion.

 

[Glade]

Ataru was fun, that and sooo many memories coming from this old sith, feeling all giddy, drunk almost, then wham. Whah? Was all she thought as she was spun away from old crusty, she didn’t even see how he’d done it.

Nato really needed to get her head straight.

She skipped and slid, trying to land, ending up in a little ball on the floor with a bump. Rolling out of it and popping up, she brushed her hair out of her eyes. Taiden looked hurt, the Sith was toying with him, like a piece of meat. Like they had with her on Coruscant when they broke her back, the young Kiffar’s face became serious, and eyes closed, remembering some of her sessions with Sibby again, how she'd managed to control herself. When she opened them again, she was all business.

From behind Raien, pirouetting and spinning, she threw herself and Aurora around her body swinging, leaping from one foot to the other. Light on her feet, she was perfect for this style, but she still felt shaky with her spins. Accelerating, falling leaf, high to low, around her body, high to low, she span end over end, Aurora lighting the way and blazing ahead of her. She wasn't the best, no matter how fancy her footwork looked, but she was putting her heart into it.

 

[Sera Inkari]

Sera’s master had left her early, left for parts unknown, her oath would have been forever but she had yet to swear to him fully. She still had yet to discover more than the basics of her force connection, feeling that there was much to know, so much that it was everything, and completely lost in it. That shaped how she acted, till someone taught her differently.

Seeing the battle ahead, she almost felt useless, a sneaking doubt the priestess quickly quelled. Walking forward, all was as it should be, grace in her steps, even with the ship rocking, the lights going red, men screaming in pain. All was as it should be, she was here to help, that faith sustained her.

Like her Master Cronos had once told her, anything was possible if you were guided to it, to trust in it. The force was guiding her to move that staff, and trip Raien Keth. To do that, was as much of an effort for her, as spinning or throwing people around was for anyone else.

Folding her robes underneath her, she knelt down a short way from what was going on, folding her hands together and reaching out, trying to move it, trying to move it, it was no good. She needed a Master to guide her, she needed… and then when she let go, when she surrendered to that fact, the staff moved just a short way, but sharply enough to smash against Raien’s boot if he didn’t move it and tangle his feet.

 

[Raien Keth]

Dim red lights, a rocking of the ship, his footing was effected, his all-important stance tested. Raien’s attention was split between back and front in a corridor, clever, he would give them that much, both opponents pressing toward him. Soresu’s trait of allowing his opponent to dictate the pace of the encounter was not the betrayer’s strength, and part of why he required Kei’s crystal and the experience within it. That weakness, need, growled within his stomach, any weakness did because he was not used to it. He did follow Soresu’s tenants here, allowing his own saber to be pushed into the floor, encouraging it even, to unbalance his opponent and move down with it.

As Kei raised his weapon to spin an attack from high around his head, Raien had a huge target to aim at, with his now low beam, he didn’t even move a step back. He thrust his shoulder heavily in toward Kei’s stomach, to give himself room. Turning to face Nato, but spinning his weapon behind himself, pointed downward, inverted, to deflect Kei’s high attack with a brief clash of their beams.

Now head on to Nato as she spun in, Raien had no room to move back, so he side stepped, his weapon continuing around him inverted as a shield, it came over and down atop hers. Meeting her weapon and encouraging hers, she was expending all the energy, while he was merely resting his blade atop hers on each swinging orbit, helping her along and removing the threat, side stepping each time.

That was until her last one, where he reversed direction, squatting low. Raien span the saber up underneath Nato’s swing, folding it down and over, pushing up with his legs, and going to simply cut off her duelling hand if his orbiting saber connected. A saber didn’t take much strength to kill, the briefest of touches could disable an opponent, often fatally.

Thankfully for Nato he felt Sera’s actions at his feet… and his heavy concentration faltered for the briefest moment while she tried to trip him, his all important stance further unbalanced, sending his rotating saber's orbit wild and uncertain.

 

[Glade]

Tension on her face, concentrating so so hard, and he was just tapping her aside like she wasn’t even there, she almost lost it! Then she almost lost her hand! Singed down her dress, sparks flew, Raien had stumbled somehow, Aurora was cut down the side, and her saber died then and there. Grrr! So unfair, what else could she do! She flipped again, taking her away from Raien and toward Taiden, agitation, she wanted to shake all this off, shake loose.

Think fast, Nato, think fast, they need you.

Using the force, she grabbed Sera’s staff, levitated and yanked Raien’s leg forward with it, she tried to pull him off his feet. Then she grabbed Taiden and started to pull him with her, away from getting beat up anymore. Pulling this great lump was not easy, he weighed a ton, was twice her size, and he was probably wanting to do something dumb like run back there and get more beat up.

Muzzchops, all of them, she lived with some of the most thickheaded men she knew!

“Kei we gotta get outta here,” Nato pleaded struggling with the weight in her arms, she knew Kei, knew he’d stay, but how much more could they take? She was hoping for a miracle, but what was left?

 

[Kei Amadis]

Grunting from the shoulder impact and clashing sabers, Kei kept trying to push Raien back away from everyone else. “Get them out of here Nato, no arguments, you’re in charge now.” Barely blinking, long heavy wide swings of the beam, a partial falling avalanche, two handed overhead swings down and down and down on top of the Sith Knight’s head, backed up with strong steps driving at him, Djem So’s brute force trying to break through the Sith’s Soresu guard

Raien was tough, he needed something special. He drove a force push straight at the Sith and launched at him again, putting all his strength, all his energy and everything he had left into it. A trailing guard behind him, the beam went into a lower than usual Krayts eye and he shoved the beam toward Raien’s midrift, extended out, he wanted him as far from everyone as possible, thrusting once, twice, and spinning the saber back into a high inverted guard covering much of the body, putting himself sideways on. For them, he fought harder for them than he ever could for himself, their safety drove each swing of the saber with increasing force, sweat pouring off his face.

“Go.” Kei glanced over, “be safe red.” The large Epicanthx gritted his teeth, bracing himself for what was to come.

 

[Raien Keth]

Kei’s attack was spirited, and for a moment he noted as such in the betrayer’s mind, somewhat impressive to be able to push him back even a step. Kei had come far in his conflicts, far enough then to be of use.

Upward Weld rotations were used against Kei, simple, easy, efficient, they required more energy in meeting the downward strikes, almost like he was weighing and measuring his opponent, angled one way away from him, he side stepped the opposite way Rotations of the wrist, met the beam's orbit straight into the avalanche, deflecting each hit and giving it equal force in return, covering all zones of his body.

His test subject’s force push came and was answered in kind, neutralising the energies, again controlled equality in the exchange. He could have pushed Kei further and down, but he wanted to see how much Djem So the other knew, one last bit of training before the man was crushed.

Which was exactly what was about to happen. To all of them.

Kei’s first thrust came and was met with a beam angled down, the second met the same guard, with no movement needed on Raien’s part, merely tapping it to deflect, while angling his body the opposite way. That was until Nato tried to trip him, unbalancing the Sith again, this time wounding his shoulder on Kei’s saber. The pain bit into Raien, adding to the many, reminding him of this encounter, the searing of his physical shell a marker of this event.

That aggravating tripping staff was taken in the force, and thrown back straight toward Nato’s chest, with the full force he was capable of, looking to not only take her out of the fight, but actually impale her on a blunt object. Momentarily forgetting about her crystal.

“Sufficient.” Raien’s gritty rebuilt voice stated, carving itself into this place like the wound he had received, the test subject was ready.

The roof began to resonate, splinter and crack, metal accelerating to incredible speeds. The sheer density of emotion thrust outward by Raien Keth spoke of all the tragedies that had been inflicted in his name, or by his hand, the betrayals and force awakenings he had caused in decades of work.

Thousand, and by consequence millions of dead voices was what splintered the roof, making his mark upon this place, that was what fell on all around him, including himself. Heavy metal cracking and falling, the roof, then whatever equipment was above it fell on all of them. Everyone would likely be crushed, those that survived might walk, those that didn’t would stay.

A fitting way to decide who would be coming with him today to add to his collection.

 

[Taiden Keth]

White fabric marred with multiple wounds, he didn’t deserve to be wearing colors of home, or holding a Keth blade. The staff ripped from his grasp to trip Raien, he tried in vain to reach his weapon, even as the roof began to fall, to end this with his weapon in his hand. To an Echani, especially a Keth, losing their weapon was like losing an arm, the piece that defined you in your actions, and his choices for those actions had been poor. He couldn’t manage it, his hand remained empty, actionless, unable to choose and shape his own events as a warrior should.

Taiden had nowhere to hide, no way to get up, and nowhere to go, as the roof started to come down on top of him, the Echani was done. All he could do was shove Nato as far and as hard as possible away from him with both hands, even the broken one. The searing pain was momentary, looking up he watched as a huge piece of metal beam, ripped down and smacked him in the forehead.

Dead or alive, it made no difference, he was buried under rubble.

 

[Sera Inkari]

The priestess of Kintan sat amongst falling debris resolute, even as they hit to ground around her. Force was her guiding flame, unarmed, unopposing, her ocean blue eyes drunk in the scene, and began meditating, eyes open as their dream fell apart. She pictured fire consuming all, burning this scene away a new, then actual fires came from Raien's destruction, right on cue.

Sparks flew, their corridor lurched again from being so damaged. Emergency lighting was red and dim, serving to highlight fires for her to concentrate on. Metal hit her but she sat herself back up and knelt, concentrating on fire, uncertain flame, as more strikes hit her back, nothing would shake her faith, no matter what came. All was part of her force’s will.

“Force your will be done, river run, unblocked and undammed.” She could feel their ships temperature rising, they were creeping closer toward Kintan’s sun, an object of her worship and a strong point of her force connection, she felt like she was soaring, that her heart was open. Through their mayhem, through their pains and suffering, she felt embracing fire upon her.

“We return to our home,” she bowed her head, picked herself up, walking as part of her dream, back toward her staff and the mess of bodies and rubble laying about. Their time in the netherworld, and without her Master’s guidance, or presence, had seemingly driven her further into her dreaming state.

 

[Kei Amadis]

Sabers deflected off each other, no amount of brute force was breaking through Soresu, he’d learned that today, never having fought a Sith using Soresu was turning out to be a painful lesson, the crew better live through it. Dim red lighting, he could barely see what his opponent was doing next, throwing unity to split a large piece of the roof falling for Sera, Kei had to expand a force bubble around himself, but was too slow to help anyone else.

Sera was in one of her dreamwalking states again, nothing he could do, frell it. Holding the force bubble fast as more debris hit it, clinging on and expending all he had to maintain, it couldn’t stop the huge piece of the roof heading for him, and it pierced the bubble with ease. The Epicanthx held up his arms and was crushed beneath the heavy impact of equipment and roofing.

On his back, pinned, white pain almost overwhelmed him, aarrrgggg! He tried to shift an arm, then another arm, both were underneath rubble, his saber was over by Sera and she’d walked right by it. Concentrating in the force he was pulling the hilt, trying to, but pull it to where, his teeth? Hurting this bad it was all he could do to stay focused on breathing, which was extremely difficult with all this weight pinning him.

 

[Glade]

Wha..? He’s doin What? Bring the roof down on himself! Sith Crazies, Nato was shoved, Taiden easily moved her, she jumped feeling herself hit by glass and other nasties like sharp splinters, which made her yelp rolling away. Sadly she was not getting very far, because something was pinning her leg! At least that staff pinging by her head had gone wide thanks to Taiden.

Looking back behind her she saw a beam had fallen on her! She had no training to force pull or push, so she was desperately pulling at the heavy thing. Right next to her was some live wires were sparking and popping, which were freaking her out. Come on Naty, come on, just pull! Hnnnnggggggg. She slumped against the stupid beam, kicking metal, then realising how sore her other leg was she stopped.

“Sera wake up, hey, hey!” What was she doing this time! She threw a lump of something at Sera's leg.

Everyone better be alright, Nato started to have a sinking feeling, that things were not getting any better, come on…… ow ow ow, she remembered what Sibby had taught her, control that, control that memory, pain’s just a memory, come on leg, come on!

"Nice goin' crusty," she was mad at herself for being so useless.

 

[Raien Keth]

Stepping right slowly and slicing left, not spared the falling debris fully, he was at least braced for it. Darth Surtr had wanted some weight of it to hit his physical frame, Sith endurance required he test himself regularly, and a few hundred years in stasis had left him untested.

Raien got his wish, a large part of the ceiling collided with his side, sending him with it into the wall. It slowed the Sith Knight, but not for very long, ribs would be broken and reset, they had been many times before. Ripping the offending material out of the way, and hurling it aside, it smashed against the wall. His boots thumped their way over to the now prone Kei, looking down, and holding the saber over his head.

Breathing was more difficult, but the pain was quickly used, born on his frame to make it stronger, denser, like iron. More miniature fractures on his ribs would be their own thing to draw on, whenever he may need it, or to be reminded of his path.

No words were given to Kei, him holding a blazing weapon over a crushed victim were words enough. The test had been a success, and as far as was possible for him to feel, Darth Surtr was satisfied with their performance.

Eyes narrowed crushing further inward, and the crimson saber raised for the kill, it would be a clean cut, he would come back for the others. Sera's unarmed walk towards Raien gave him pause, her behavior was not something he had predicted. No fear he had expected, but this state she walked in was curious, and the betrayer's curiosity was not something you wanted to have, for fear of where it may lead.