End This Way

[Connor Harrison]

Connor stood still, watching Setzi analyse and piece together her idea of what Chastity had been through. After she finished, he motioned to the cell Krux was in.

”If a Jedi Knight came wandering to your Sith Temple, attacked and killed a guard and threatened Acolytes and the life of a Lord, what would you butchers do? You’d kill him, in an instant. Boil his skin and rip out his heart.”

Connor tilted his head slightly, knowing his point was proven.

”We subdued her. Gave her a chance and didn’t slay her like you expect us to. I kept her in this cell, but never was she alone. For her protection and ours. If you can’t see that, then you’re more blind than the Sith. May I remind you, Setzi Lunelle, that one of your own sent her back to us corrupted and infected with poison.”

Connor pointed up to the black orb above the cell.

”That orb is trained on heat signature and will emit a gas into the cell itself if the detainee becomes aggressive. Better that than electrocuting her to death, wouldn’t you say? You’ll be happy to know she was comfortable and she fought the darkness as best she could with me help. And you can touch it, because I did – just a shield between us both, dividing us, light and dark, Master and Apprentice. Here.”

He turned and pulled down on a black lever and pushed a red button by the side where he stood next to the cell. In that second a blue light emitted and snapped down from the cell to the floor, effectively locking Krux in the cell, dividing him from Setzi and leaving both her and Connor on the opposite side.

”You can touch it now. It won’t hurt you.” He turned to Setzi and walked forward casually. ”No Krux to whisper sweet nothings in your ear now Setzi. Why have you come here, however easy it was to twist him to your ear. Do you think I’d hand Chastity over to you on the premise you want to be a good girl form now on?”

[member="Setzi Lunelle"] | [member="Krux Mullarus"]

 

[Krux Mullarus]

Krux watched the two bicker and argue, however calmly. He could tell they've known each other a while, and it almost made him feel left out. Still, he stood on the inside of Chastity's old holding cell and watched as Setzi examined the room, her eyes only glancing over him momentarily. Connor was probably right. Compared to her sister, he probably didn't mean that much to her.

Then, at the pull of a lever, the energy shield activated and separated him from her, and he saw Connor's mouth moving, but heard nothing. An energy shield that was soundproof? Not even the Sith had such technology. Krux, with a look of longing in his eyes, reached out and touched the shield closest to Setzi and frowned, already feeling so much more powerless in this embarassing situation he'd set up for Connor to discover. The man clearly dissapproved of his passionate infatuation for her, but he didn't really care. This wasn't Sith manipulation, that he was being strung along like a puppet. Their love was mutual, and Connor would have to stand back and watch them in order to see that.

For now, Krux just sat down against the wall and examined the cell around him, probably giving Setzi the feeling that he was Chastity right now, being locked up in this cell away from her and Connor, despite not being sick with any Dark Side poison.

Except the one Connor saw called love.

[member="Connor Harrison"] / [member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

The Sith Lord considered Master Harrison’s accusation that a Jedi intruder to a Sith world would be boiled like a Glee Anselm lobster. “Well, I don’t know if I would personally cook someone…,” Setzi said trailing off. But weren’t her vile alchemical experiments similar in a way? She thought nothing of injecting a helpless creature with poison or other drugs in order to transform them into a darkside minion capable of doing her bidding.

She shuddered momentarily, her hands trembling. Then she asked, “Who was that? Who infected Chastity? Did you ever find out?” Setzi wasn’t sure even Connor had the answer, but if she could find out who had captured her sister and had possibly tortured her… perhaps she could have vengeance after all. The brunette Sith glanced at Krux. Would he sanction her revenge against Chastity’s captor?

When the blue electric field divided the three of them, Setzi’s heart began to beat rapidly again. Even though the more advanced and much stronger Jedi Master approached her as though about to give her the weather report, her hackles rose and contorted in her mind by the darkside of the Force, she perceived him to be a threat.

Finally, Harrison had prodded enough and produced the result he wanted. While Krux watched helplessly behind the blue, shimmering screen, Setzi blasted the Jedi Master with an angry burst of Telekinesis, both hands thrusting out the dark wave of the Force. If he was caught unaware he would be thrown backwards towards to slam into the energy field. Blinded by rage, she wasn’t sure what meant to accomplish – only that it felt good to lash out with emotion, rage and hatred. Those familiar panaceas still soothed her just the same as Krux’s gentle words, or lingering kisses.

[member="Krux Mullarus"] [member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Krux Mullarus]

Of course, everything had to go wrong. As the energy field separated them, Krux's heart sank and a knot formed in his gut as Setzi lashed out at Connor. It was a good thing she didn't have her lightsaber at least, still, but Krux stood straight back up and slammed himself against the field. Only he would hear himself scream for Setzi to stop, but it would be to no avail.

[member="Connor Harrison"] / [member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Just as he hoped, Setzi proved she wasn't in control as much as she perhaps she would have liked, or that Krux would have wanted. Looking at the cell shield, and then at Setzi, he felt her frustration and anger at the man she blamed for losing her sister, for trapping her on Voss, for separating her and Krux...

...and then she lashed out with an attack he was actually ready for, but didn't expect something quite so tame.

Her hands came up, and that instant she moved with the contortions of her face, Connor turned his body and held his palms outwards to send an energy burst to counter her's. Nothing violent, but a force equal to her's to show this was something he had expected. Looking up after the shockwave stopped, Connor nodded.

”As I thought. Take a look, Krux. Good job I didn't leave her lightsaber because I could be dead now and you'd be expelled all on her actions.”

He twisted his hand up and took her Force aura and tightened it - not on her throat or her organs, but simply on her torso, Force stasis, holding her in place, a tight Force wall he held as tight as possible.

”The Sith who poisoned your sister is a beast known as Sage Bane. I've encountered him once when he blidned my former Padawan. Then he corrupted Chastity. My track record with him isn't good and I will not stop until he pays for what he has done.”

Connor's face was devoid of emotion, and his mouth tightened as he pushed the Force onto her again in a pulse.

”If you want to die here, Setzi, then so be it. I have quarms about doing it right her. I would relish it. But I owe you the chance, like I did with your sister, to tell me just what you want. And if you lie to me, think on the repercussions for Krux - I will strip his rank and expel him from the Order for harboring a Sith with intent to kill a Master of the Order.”

There was an eerie silence in the room, just a faint hum from the power cells above.

”Be sincere with me,” he spoke softly, ”and let me help you find what you want. What we both want. I'd hate to lose you to the darkness again like I lost Chastity.”

[member="Krux Mullarus"] | [member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

Jedi Master Harrison was ready for her, and the violent energy wave she’d thrown out was parried, in a sense, by his own Telekinesis burst. Then suddenly, she couldn’t move. This elicited a growl from the Sith Lord as she could turn her head a just little, but that was about the only motion she manage. Setzi still had her illusions and mentalism, but she also knew how it had been difficult to rattle the Harrison when she transformed herself into Chastity on Toola.

But when he mentioned Sage Bane, the rage slowly began draining out of her as though seeping through a sieve. Sage Bane was her tutor as well. Not only did he teach her the Bolt of Hatred, but he also helped her to alchemize a young human girl – a female who Setzi handpicked because she resembled Chastity – into a horribly deformed and half-braindead Sithspawn. He face grew very pale, and she thought she would be sick for a moment. Did he poison Chastity before or after they alchemized the girl? Was he inspired by her despair and grief that day, or was it just an unfortunate coincidence that he found Chastity?

As the Jedi hit her with the Force, only a small push to let her know that he was still in control, she let out a grunt. While Setzi was quite sure both men had seen her at her absolute worst, she would be very embarrassed if she were to be physically sick all over the cell block. It would show her weakness as a Sith and her horror and disapproval over what Bane had done to her sister.

Swallowing down a caustic taste, she said, “I just want to find Chastity. That’s all I want.” Her eyes instinctively landed on Krux Mullarus. “No, I want more. I want to be with Krux. Only he can help me. Only he knows what I need for all of this to stop!"

There, she finally admitted it. And the feelings that she had on Ragoon VI, the night before she left Mullarus’s mansion all came flooding back – the longing to be free of the darkside once and for all. To feel the light again. Maybe with both Krux and Master Harrison’s help, she could find Chas, or at least as the Jedi Master said, vanquish their oppressor Sage Bane. Perhaps she could even bring her poor Xilsaga back and heal the girl… okay, no more thoughts of what you’ve done, or you will throw up all of the contents of your stomach, she thought. Her body ached from being suspended in Force statis, her limbs constantly fighting to break free.

That was what Setzi wanted, more than anything: the light.

[member="Krux Mullarus"] [member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Krux Mullarus]

Krux watched, terrified, from the opposite side of the energy field as Connor effortlessly ended any attempts of Darth Azurea trying to resurface herself from being vanquished from Setzi Lunelle's body. He obviously cant read lips well, but following their gazes and the looks on their faces, Setzi was distressed and it was eating at his heart. Still, he could tell there was Dark Side influence in her, something he knew he'd have to deal with if he were to be the one to train her. He was confident now all influence of the Dark Side in him was gone. Even before, theres wasnt a lot. He was always a benevolent person, just on the opposite side of the galaxy's "good guys". His transition from Sith to Jedi was rocky, but not as eocky as Setzi's would be.

There was no point to lashing out and attacking the energy field, they would survive a blast from a dreadnought warship, a bit of angered Force abilities would be nothing, and it would only make Connor look at him at an even lower angle.

You have disappointed me, Krux

The words echoed in his mind, and pierced his heart like a knife. Disappointment. It hurt so badly. Why? Why should he care? But he did, because it's thanks to Connor he was even here. Apparently, sharing a drink on Anaxes, as well as the restraint he showed among the other Sith on Toola was enough to convince him he was worthy of being a Jedi. He was right, and now Krux felt he had to prove to him he could be another Jedi Knight after all the sin he had commited in the past. He was failing.

So he watched. It was painful, watching Connor hold Setzi in a Force Stasis like that. She looked to be in pain, too. When her eyes met his through the field, he had a feeling she was talking about him. Was it hateful words, cursing him for bringing her here? Did she want her disgusting, vile togruta back? The one with copius amounts of credits to spend on her and plenty more alien children for her to bear in his name?

He frowned. He wanted to hold her and tell her how much he loved her. He didnt give a damn if Connor didnt like it, and he didnt care what he thought either. Even if he was only number two or three on Setzi's list of people she trusted, she was number one on his. She was more than a beautiful woman, she was a friend and a partner to him whom he had embarked on many adventures with before and knew he could entrust his own life.

He waited. Maybe the field would go down soon. He would wait, slowly sitting back down against the wall. He wanted to run to her when it did, but...maybe that would be too much?

[member="Setzi Lunelle"] / [member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

When the girl mentions Krux, he didn't need to look at him to feel his emotions too. The issue wasn't how the pair felt, it was WHAT the pair felt. Connor had been here before, and it had been a very uncomfortable and heart-breaking ride. Maybe he just didn't want the same fate to fall on both Setzi and Krux? He had met Setzi briefly on Chroma Zed when her and Chastity were simply two beings looking for their future; they both found it, and both now managed to involve Connor.

He felt...protective again of the one Lunelle sister here now wanting to both be better and right the wrongs gone by. He wasn't going to stop that. He simply had to make sure her intentions were faithful to the heart, not the head. Heck, he was a human - jealousy was also a small factor that Krux had that feeling again with Setzi, while he felt torn away from what Chastity and he could have had.

But that was then.

Connor let her go - the pressure would ease and the energy would subside. He straightened up and lowered his hand, swallowing a hard bit of pride at the past being brought up and his own horrid emotions that never paid off.

”Darkness brings nothing but pain. Don't destroy all you want because of it and all those who depend on you to be strong. It's not worth it when you can be so happy in the light.”

Turning and walking to the control panel, he pushed the cell button and raised the lever and cut the shield with a small flash of light. The purple haze vanished, and Krux was free. Connor watched to see their initial move. There was little he could do right now, and he had made up his mind from Setzi's first response on his question; nothing more was needed for him.

[member="Setzi Lunelle"] | [member="Krux Mullarus"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

Setzi felt the Jedi's restrictive Force hold ease up, her shoulders slumped forward a little, but then she straightened them back up. She still wore a pained expression on her face, but the loose way she held her limbs signaled a weariness.

“Azurea is Sith for agony,” she said, her gaze locked onto Connor’s. “When I was Knighted by Darth Pyrrhus, I chose that name because that’s all I felt. Always. Physical or emotional, the anguish rarely went away. Not unless I chose to bury it among other indulgencies and carnal diversions.” She glanced over at Krux as the energy field faded. He was one of them once, but she realized now that the Jedi Knight was so much more to her than a pleasant distraction.

Once he was free, she immediately ran to him, clutching him tightly, her fingers digging into his back. She didn’t care that Master Harrison saw this display of emotion. With tears pooling in her eyes, she said, “I’m so sorry that I’ve caused so much pain, Krux.” Running her hand across his cheek, she softly kissed his lips.

“I have a plan, in any case, to undo some of the damage,” Setzi said. But time would tell whether her determination now would be premature. Perhaps the padawan had her own healing to do before she could right any wrongs she had inflicted on the galaxy and atone for her sins.

[member="Krux Mullarus"] [member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Krux Mullarus]

He continued to watch, feeling as if a heavy burden had been removed from his shoulders when Connor had lowered his hand and released Setzi from his grip. What were they talking about? Suddenly, Connor approached the controls. Krux stood up once again and stood closer to the energy field until at last, it disappeared.

His eyes darted between the two for a moment, waiting, until Setzi ran into his arms with tears in her eyes. Crying? Krux had never seen her weep before...what was he supposed to think? Whatever, he thought, as her lips reached up and touched his gently. It didn't matter, as long as she was close to him.

"You don't need to be sorry, Setzi. You just need to redeem yourself." he said softly to her, turning his head up again to face Connor, a knot forming in his gut again as the words of his disappointment continued to echo in his mind.

"Let me take her as my Padawan, Master. I've been down this road she treads now. If anyone can guide her properly down the correct path, I feel that person is me." he explained, his arms wrapping firmly around her and holding her close to him.

[member="Setzi Lunelle"] / [member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

This was no place for Connor now; he had only just made his point and made everyone see what they had to. Krux had seen her instability and wrestle with good and bad, Setzi had seen her inner want and what made her happy, and Connor had seen the workings of the heart.

”Take her as your Padawan, Krux. I said on your Knighthood to prove yourself you would have to lead others and discover your own standing. You both know what is at stake here, and you both know if anything goes wrong I will be the first to hear of it.”

He looked at the cell and nodded again, the image of those dark amber eyes behind tear-stained cheeks and dirty hair would never leave him.

”Setzi, don't make the mistake your sister did and take on the galaxy before she is ready. You think you know everything, but right now you'll see you knew nothing and have a lot of soul-searching to do before you can act with a clear head and not endanger yourself or Krux, or even Chastity. I will continue to have the scouts find as much as possible, but remember, if she wanted to be found, she would. She's not stupid. She's a Lunelle.”

A feeble sign he wasn't going to fight her anymore, and he nodded his head to the two who clearly wanted to be alone and spend the start of what time they had together within the Temple walls. He walked across the clean floor and to the exit, which he opened, and turned back looking at Setzi.

”Welcome to the Silver Sanctum, Padawan Lunelle. Don't let me down.”

[member="Krux Mullarus"] | [member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

As Krux wrapped his arms around her tighter, Setzi lay her head onto his broad shoulder. Her hands slipped inside to rest in the comfort of his robes. They were entwined now – black Sith robes against brown and beige. And she would be his padawan, the thought of which was exhilarating but also frightening.

There was no turning back now, no jumping into The Pirate’s Foe to head straight back to Glee Anselm. But none of that matters now. You are where you need to be, and with the person who will help turn you back into Setzi Lunelle, she thought.

Still at Master Harrison’s warning, her chin titled up slightly, her face showing just a little defiance towards the more experienced Jedi Master. It was difficult to forget they were once mortal enemies, but she was smart enough to bite her tongue, suppress any anger and stay right there by Krux’s side.

He was right. She was a Lunelle just the same.

Connor Harrison appeared suddenly older than she remembered him. How many darksiders had he thwarted in his life time? Hundreds? Thousands?

She would not be one of them.

“I won’t fail you,” she said to the Jedi Master as he withdrew. “And I will find Chastity.”

Setzi found Krux’s lips again and kissed him this time more passionately, grasping his face gently in both her hands. As she pulled away she said, “We need to start with Sage Bane. Finding out how he came across Chastity, and then work our way around those facts.” Her eyes unfocused for a minute, seeming to glance at something off in the distance behind them, then she brought them back to meet his indigo ones. Her eyes were still jaundiced with darkside corruption.

“The Xilsaga. Sage Bane actually picked the human girl out for me prior to starting the experiment. Maybe she knows something? It just means… going back for her on Glee Anselm.”

This was the first part of her plan. Go back for the Sithpsawn and then off to find her daughters and bring them home to her and Krux.

[member="Krux Mullarus"] [member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Krux Mullarus]

Krux watched as Connor exited, his face warping slightly. I'll prove myself, Connor. Just wait.

Suddenly, he felt Setzi's hands on his face and before he could do anything, he was kissing her. Not that he didn't want to, it just surprised him. He held her close and even lifted her off of her feet for a moment, ecstatic at the situation at hand. After their kiss had ended, he put her down and made a face at her suggestion.

"No. Not now. I'm not letting you near a Sith - much less Glee Anselm - for a long time. We have training to do. I know...you want to find Chastity, I want you to, also, but I also don't want to take you to Glee Anselm to get brought right back into Darth Pyrrhus' bedroom again. I want to guide you to becoming a Jedi, and I want to be confident you will not succomb to the Dark Side again before we go near Sith Space...okay?" he asked, almost pleading with his eyes as he stroked her cheek.

He took her hand and started to guide her toward the exit, "Come. If you want, you can stay with me in my dormitory. There's plenty of room..."

[member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Setzi Lunelle]

If it was any other individual in the galaxy who Setzi had run into on Voss, she was nearly certain she would not be in this situation – attempting her own transformation from dark to light. But the Force had ensured she had run into Krux Mullarus.

Still, she knew there was a long road ahead. Already she was burning with the desire to go back to Glee Anselm, to rescue and then question her Xilsaga over Sage Bane. She would heal the poor Sithspawn and try to give her a better life, if that was even possible.
“But Krux,” Setzi protested. “We have to go back soon. What if, when Darth Pyrrhus realizes I’m gone, he kills the Xilsaga? He may just kill her out of spite or because he doesn’t want to take care of her.”

She closed to eyes at the touch of his hand against her smooth, warm cheek.

“But I understand your concerns. Yes, show me around the Temple and to where you are staying. I can always camp out in The Pirate’s Foe if there’s not much room. I remember the dorms on Arkania when I was briefly a padawan in the Order.”

[member="Krux Mullarus"]

 

[Krux Mullarus]

When Setzi mentioned the part about Pyrrhus and the Xilsaga, Krux felt a burden on his shoulders. She was right. Pyrrhus probably relished the idea of killing anything, so why not something dear to the woman who just betrayed him? If Krux's wrath after being abandoned by her was bad, Pyrrhus' would be equivalent to a nightmare. Unless, somehow, he would manage his deathly calm demeanor instead and save the wrath for a better time. Did all Sith Lords do that?

For the next hour or so, Krux would walk hand-in-hand with Setzi, showing her around the Academy on Voss from his own point of view that was so much like hers. A Sith risen from the ranks of Hell that found its way into Heaven. His hand never left hers. She was finally here, and he wouldn't lose her again. Finally, he felt like his dreams had come true. Years of seeing her face in his dreams of rescuing her from the clutches of Darth Pyrrhus and the Sith, where she lived in endless agony, and bringing her to Voss to be healed as a Jedi like himself. It was a reality at last, and he had to keep pinching himself to make sure he wasn't still dreaming. Nope. She was here. The hand in his was really hers.

After their tour, Krux took Setzi to the dormitories, where he found his own room that he managed to get for himself. The room was a bit more roomy than his quarters on Patriot, but was still quite modest. At least the bed would be big enough for two people. He used the Force to open the door and invited her in. "These are my quarters. You're welcome inside, if you like. Sit. Rest your feet. I'm sure you're exhausted."

[member="Setzi Lunelle"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Arriving back to his quarters, Connor closed the door behind him and activated the orange LEDs to cast a warmth over the small place he called home. Sunlight continued to stream in from the singular oval window by the table.

Letting out a sigh, he pulled open the button on his shirt collar and rubbed his neck, sitting on the bunk. There, Setzi’s lightsaber remained. He took it in his hands and inspected the hilt quickly and rolled it around his palm, looking at the door.

There was much change within the walls, and he didn’t know he it would feel having a Lunelle back around the grounds. Still, there was nothing he could do now except watch and wait. He placed the hilt by his side and let his fingers trail across it, feeling the aura within.

The blade would be returned to Krux for her before the day was out.