Farewell and into the inevitable...

[Belek]

[member="Ashin Karrde"] [member="Darren Onyx"] [member="Darren Shaw"] [member="Keira Ticon"] [member="Alkor Centaris"] @Ne'tra Aaray

Coruscant. The "hub" of the galaxy, once a ecumenopolis of massive scale, now a war-torn project of a world. The Galactic Alliance had done much to put it to it's pre-One Sith Glory, but Belek was a mere five hears old. Old enough to mature to adulthood as an insectoid Ysalam Xi'Dec, but not old enough to have seen what Coruscant was. As usual Belek was looking for work. Construction or maintenance or even bartending, wherever was willing to pay him. Today he had gotten three companies to set up interviews in the coming weeks, so Belek had taken to celebrating at the local bar. As fate would have it it was the same bar Darren Onyx had resurfaced, though he knew not the name or significance. He hadn't even seen the fight yet, truth be told.

See, Belek was not what one would call a professional drinker. He had ordered something that perhaps his stomach wasn't meant to handle. For the last fifteen minutes he had been in the restroom. He'd eh, cleansed a bit, took a weak over the counter drug, splashed some water on his face, and was finally feeling better. From there Belek began to head back to the bar, now knee-deep in a conflict of epic proportions. He was unarmed, and notably untrained, but little did he know Belek had an ability that would change the tide of the battle. It would be surfacing soon. Perhaps they'd be ready for it, but Belek certainly wasn't.

 

[Darren Onyx]

As the the bottles and glass shot towards him, Onyx quickly holstered his saber and raised both hands to form a shield using the Force. He was quick enough to block most of the bottles, which shattered and sent shards everywhere around him, and back towards his attacker.

However several bottles did impact him, leaving new scratches on his red Mandalorian armor and sinister Revan-esq mask. It only fueled his rage even more. As he stood back into fighting stance, both sabers now reactivated, he barely raised them in time to block the new set of strikes against his attacker.

He smirked under his mask as their blades connected over and over again. "Be careful," Onyx spat as they sparred, "I don't play fair."

It was then that Onyx spun around to throw a hard kick at her rib cage with the intent of knocking the air out of her temporarily so that he could adjust his strategy.

Onyx didn't play fair, it's true. A truth that Ashin, Shaw, Spencer, and many others had experienced first hand. He didn't have any honor or respect for his enemies. He only saw them as objects blocking his path to glory.

[member="Belek"] [member="Ashin Karrde"] [member="Darren Shaw"] [member="Keira Ticon"] [member="Alkor Centaris"] @Ne'tra Aaray

 

[Ne'tra Aaray]

[member="Ashin Karrde"]
Ne'tra is thrown behind the shatterd table and ducks into a one legged crouch, grabbing and loading a gun and holding his lightsaber defensively in one hand. He shoots his gun towards Ashins face.

[member="Darren Shaw"][member="Alkor Centaris"][member="Keira Ticon"][member="Darren Onyx"][member="Belek"]

 

[Alkor Centaris]

"Kid's taking wild shots," Alkor observed across the comm to Keira. "Not really our problem, but he might be in over his head." Whatever [member="Keira Ticon"] decided to do about it was ultimately up to her, but the woman had something of a soft spot for other Mandalorians.

His attention did not stray long from [member="Darren Shaw"], though. Once the man backed off and drew his saber, Alkor snorted. There was a time when he would have engaged this man in that same way. Part of him still wanted to.

Beskar'gam, though. Keira insisted, said that it was imperative that he utilize the Iron Skin in combat. Since losing most of the functionality in his arm, he had become more amenable to the idea.

His HUD brought up readings of the energy output of the blade, length, and circumference- the calculations it would do for spatial compensation would help him to maneuver without the Force. Because the blade was still in his head, and it was so loud.

The entire point of Atropos was that it bled his sins into the Force. It tainted the world around itself with a sea of corpses, all their voices harrowing those unfortunate enough to hear. It meant that the others would be inconvenienced by it as much, if not more than he was.

His right arm moved quickly and unslung the shotgun, which let a click out as the mag lock released. "Keira," he called so that only she would hear. "Sith Killers."

They were pre-loaded, this time. The first mag was ready to go, and as he leveled the weapon toward Shaw, he backed off as well. Melee range in this situation would only give the Forcie an advantage.

Fffffffft-

Like the scream of a firework as it raged skyward, the first round ripped toward Shaw murderously.

[member="Darren Onyx"], [member="Ashin Karrde"], [member="Belek"], @Ne'tra Aaray

 

[Vora Kaar]

Well this took one turn of events. Get close enough to feel the damning effects of the man's sword, or be far enough to be blasted with the weapon. Well, I guess I would have to choose now because the man was leveling a very menacing weapon's barrel straight to me. There was no way that I was fast enough to try and cut at the projectile. Sure, I was fast, but not that fast.

I did my best with what I had. The blade used in the Trakata form, shutting it off to focus upon the force as the barrel came rearing up towards me. I used as much force as I could muster in the small time to try and turn the barrel away from me. Difficult when I could still hear the screams of the damned within my ears, and echoing in my head. Pushing the barrel to my right, I tried to move left just in time. I saw an explosion mid air and felt pain at the same time sting in my side, as well as sprinkles of pain over my chest and right thigh. Man did that fether hurt. I could feel hot on my right side as clearly blood was flowing down my side.

Focusing as much as I could this time, I aimed for the rifle. Instead of attacking him directly, with not much I could purchase on, I found the magazine, and crushed as many of the rounds that were within the weapon he carried. If they could explode like how they just did against me, then maybe the explosion could rupture the man's hands, and exposed legs. Even if you are wearing one of the best suited armors in the galaxy, there is no way that an explosion can't be felt.

I was pretty sure with a magazine that he had, everyone would feel something from this.

[member="Alkor Centaris"], @Ne'tra Aaray [member="Darren Onyx"], [member="Belek"], [member="Keira Ticon"], [member="Ashin Karrde"],

 

[Alkor Centaris]

Warning: Pressure anomaly detected.
Warning: Pressure anomaly detected.​

The red text flashed across his HUD as the other man managed to misdirect his shot, if only just. Thankfully, Alkor had taken the opportunity to create some distance between them, so he had time to react.

Danger pulsated through the Force. There was no time to warn Keira about this- she would have to rely on instinct alone. The metal warped and twisted as kinetic energy began to enact a vicegrip around the magazine.

"Tch."

He did the only thing he could to minimize danger in this situation. Alkor lobbed the shotgun out ahead of him, straight toward [member="Darren Shaw"], right toward his face.

About halfway between them, the volatile rounds grit beneath the pressure of Shaw's efforts, and the resulting explosion filled the room with a bark that pierced louder than any psionic screaming.

Alkor threw himself headlong toward an overturned table for cover, but he was nowhere near as fast as something that ephemeral. The concussive blast shook him, and he could feel the heat licking at him through the armor.

"He's lucky that he's going to be too dead to pay for that," Alkor snorted as he bemoaned the loss of his shotgun. It had been torn asunder by the magazine going up.

Unfortunately, Alkor's HUD screamed at him again.

Structural integrity down 34%
Maintenance required.
Bioscans indicate no significant loss of blood.
Multiple scrapes, contusions, and some tissue bruising.
Armorweave frayed slightly;
Bodyglove intact.​

He stared at the data with an emotionless scowl. Had it been before, that sort of attack would have left him reeling. His instincts were sharper, and the armor was quality.

The jarring pain he felt was a dull roar compared to the still prominent echo in his ears. Alkor took a second to compose himself behind cover, and he glanced at his HUD for combat data.

Retrieving bioscan data from subject [member="Keira Ticon"] now...​

Feth... had he made the right move?

[member="Darren Onyx"], [member="Ashin Karrde"], [member="Belek"], @Ne'tra Aaray

 

[Keira Priest]

His spin into the kick gave her enough of a forewarning that she was able to anticipate the attack, and with a move both improvised and calculated she block his kick with the flat of her blade, left hand braced against the far end enabling her to push back in the hopes of unbalancing him. Regardless of whether he stumbled or not she pressed her advantage, pushing forward inside of his reach and making a sharp cut towards the gap in his armor that exposed his neck just enough for a well-placed strike to make contact. Should he block the strike she would act quickly, turning her wrist sharply in order to hopefully impact the side of his helmet with the hilt of the blade. While the metal would protect him considerably, it would still maintain itself as a devastating move if it connected.

"We deal with him if he becomes a problem, not before. Right now he's keeping her busy enough, which is good for us." It was moments afterwards that her brother made the announcement that he would be utilizing a more deadly projectile weapon, and she made a point to keep an eye on his movements in the peripherals of her HUD, watching from the corner of her eye as he unslung the weapon and fired. The round connected - barely - and she couldn't help but flash a smile. At least one of them was getting somewhere, which meant that this fight was slowly turning in their favor. It wasn't much, but every little bit made a difference.

Just then the Force screamed a warning and she muttered a curse, throwing herself behind another table just as the explosion sounded, the concussive force throwing her forward. Damage reports flashed across her HUD, and she took stock of her injuries, finding only moderate bruising and burns across her back and side. Pressing her back against the overturned table she held her beskad across her lap, calling out across comms to Alkor in order to quell his worry, "I'm fine, just a little banged up. I've had worse. Let's finish this, 'lek?"

[member="Darren Shaw"], [member="Darren Onyx"], [member="Alkor Centaris"], [member="Ashin Karrde"], @Ne'tra Aaray

 

[Belek]

[member="Alkor Centaris"] @Ne'tra Aaray [member="Keira Ticon"] [member="Ashin Karrde"] [member="Darren Onyx"] [member="Darren Shaw"]

The scream of the suffering filled Belek's mind via Atropos, and then he was thrown backwards via explosion. The insectoid Xi'Dec was bruised, a little cooked, and biologically his hormones began to channel a common instinct among many species. Commonly known as fight-or-flight. Normally it'd just a boost in adrenaline, increased awareness at immediate danger while overall decreasing situational awareness, but in the Ysalam gender of the Xi'Dec it caused something far more.

It created an absence of the Force. Everyone within three meters of the Xi'Dec, which included most of the bounties and bounty hunters, would notice a lack of a sixth sense. There would be no telekinesis, no lightning, no enhanced reflexes, no sword brought Force-Nexuses, and no more telepathic screams entering anyone's skulls. Belek, though panicked overall at the situation, was immensely relieved at the absence of the psychic attack.

Belek would attempt to move behind table after table, attempting to leave the bar. This would likely free the prey of the room quicker than the hunters, assuming said hunters were trying to block their prey's escape. Belek himself had no idea what he was doing, and had no real intention of helping this side or that. The insectiod merely wished to get to safety, away from the swords, shotguns, lightsabers and psychic attacks.

 

[Darren Onyx]

Onyx, while off balanced, allowed himself to fall back enough for her blade to just miss his semi-exposed neck. As his back hit the ground he jumped up and away from her, watching her blade and waiting for his next opportunity.

Suddenly he heard the all too familiar sound of an explosion sounding off. Cursing he, like her and Shaw, jumped behind a nearby table just as the explosion rang in his ears. He could feel his armor burning and he smirked beneath his mask.

As he stood up he reactivated both is sabers and looked over to Shaw. "Next time you wanna blow the place up, a warning would be nice," he joked with him. He looked around for Ashin and grew concerned. "Ash?"

He wasn't too concerned though, worst came to pass she'd be slightly bruised like him. Instead he turned around to face Keira again. "Look kids, this is fun. But this is gonna just go on and on forever until we all die of exhaustion," he reasoned. "We're all evenly matched here."

[member="Darren Shaw"] [member="Keira Ticon"] [member="Alkor Centaris"] [member="Ashin Karrde"] [member="Belek"] @Ne'tra Aaray

 

[Keira Priest]

Even as Keira heard her target speak she was blocking out most of what he said, her back turned to him, the table she'd sought cover behind blocking her from his sight, and vice versa. Taking a few seconds to breathe she once more connected with her brother via comms, sheathing her beskad as she laid out her strategy, "I know you can feel it, but the Force is void for the time being, which means it's back to what we know. You can have my tomahawk for the rest of this fight, but wait for my mark before you move." Reaching up she drew her EE-3 - Delilah - from her back, holding the weapon across her lap, flipping the switch that set the weapon to its overcharge setting.

Grabbing her tomahawk from where it hung at her slide she slid it across the floor to Alkor in the same second that she popped up from her cover and fired a three round burst towards Onyx's center mass. The plasma that screamed its existence defiantly from the barrel of the rifle was highly unstable and explosive on impact, the high speeds at which it connected to the body of any target causing it to release the excessive energy violently. The switch was flipped again and she slung the weapon across her back again, drawing her beskad as she finally stood to meet her opponent in the middle. "You're not the only one who doesn't play fair, bur'cya."

[member="Alkor Centaris"], [member="Darren Onyx"], [member="Darren Shaw"], [member="Ashin Karrde"], @Ne'tra Aaray

 

[Ashin Varanin]

@Ne'tra Aaray [member="Alkor Centaris"] [member="Darren Shaw"] [member="Keira Ticon"] [member="Belek"] [member="Darren Onyx"]

Rather a lot of things happened in quick succession. An unusually strong shotgun magazine cooked off. Ashin ducked, flinching, and a blaster bolt seared its way along her temple. Smoke and fire blotted out the room.

The Force vanished utterly.

By exhaustive study and unusual means, she and Spencer had taught themselves - like Luke Skywalker - to overcome a ysalamir field. Even a good six years later, though, Ashin still couldn't pull that off while half-blinded, with a fresh blaster burn on her head, and under fire. Shrapnel from the blast had punched through her shirt and pants; cold spots indicated she was bleeding mildly from several points.

Ashin headed into the bathroom. Once she passed outside the Force-nulling field, she wrapped herself in the strongest shield she could muster. Shaw's Echani vibrosword carved a door in the bathroom wall. Discarding the sword, Ashin vanished into the night.

 

[Ne'tra Aaray]

[member="Darren Shaw"][member="Keira Ticon"][member="Darren Onyx"][member="Belek"][member="Alkor Centaris"][member="Darren Shaw"]

The vibrations from the explosion left a searing pain in Ne'tras' foot. He looked down at it and put his hands on it - it wasn't broken, but it was certainly damaged to an extent that would only heal with time.

He observed the area. Ashin had left, but she was not his target, so persueing her would be foolish. Instead, he checks for other threats from Shaw or new enimies, but he was simply standing with Onyx. He knew his gun wasn't strong enough to pierce Onyxs' armour at range, but he certainly could distract him. He switches to both guns and reloads them, one aiming low at Onyx to distract him and give Keira a chance, the other at Shaw's pulse. Click. Click. The bullet shot, Ne'tra's arms thrown up into the air.

 

[Ne'tra Aaray]

[member="Darren Shaw"][member="Keira Ticon"][member="Darren Onyx"][member="Belek"][member="Alkor Centaris"][member="Darren Shaw"]
((Just realise my gun is supposed to pierce armour really well. Not sure what to say...))

 

[Darren Onyx]

As the force left him, which to him was normal considering his lacking connection these days anyways, he heard footsteps behind him. He quickly turned, drawing his blaster. But it was Ashin, who was walking away towards the bathroom in the back. Onyx wasn't as strong as her. He never was, and probably never would be. But she was his former master, and she did teach him many abilities and powers.

He closed his eyes and breathed slowly, pressing past the void as best he could. He was trying to reach her, through the force. Some may wonder why not just yell to her, or speak up. But Onyx wasn't going to let something mushy or emotional leave his mouth, it would ruin his reputation. And besides, this wasn't just another ally, it was Ashin, his former master. It was taking all the power he had, in fact his breathing was shortened. He pressed, against the void trying to reach her before she could leave his sight.

Just as she reached the door, he could feel her. "Good-bye, my Master," he whispered through the void, "Thank you." As the door closed his connection to her was lost and he gasped for air. He choked slightly and composed himself. He barely had time to react to the screeching sound of blaster fire. He turned quickly and was shot dead in the shoulder. As he hit the ground, his own blaster started letting off shots. After a few shots he rolled over to a turned over table.

@Ne'tra Aaray [member="Ashin Karrde"] [member="Keira Ticon"] [member="Alkor Centaris"] [member="Darren Shaw"] [member="Belek"]

 

[Ne'tra Aaray]

[member="Darren Onyx"][member="Ashin Karrde"][member="Keira Ticon"][member="Belek"][member="Alkor Centaris"][member="Darren Shaw"]
Waiting for the excessive fire to stop, Ne'tra walks forward and takes Onyx's lightsabers. As he does so he searches for bounties, but unfortunately he seems to have lost them. Perhaps some later searching would be necessary. He stands, pivoting a little on his hurt foot, in a defensive position with his lightsaber.
​"Unless you want revenge or somin' I suggest you leave." he says to Shaw. He turns to the mandolorian girl and asks " You know where the bounties on him are? I suggest we split the bounty."
​Perhaps Ne'tra felt a little sorry for Onyx. He was just standing around in a bar and was suddenly attacked by a barrage of bounty hunters in what could only be described as the winner of the bar fight of the year award. He believed that the body should be treated respectfully unless it was needed for the bounty.

 

[Keira Priest]

"He's not dead, you di'kut." Feeling the Force return to her form she utilized it only minutely in order to push [member="Ne'tra Aaray"] out of the way, uncaring for where or how he landed. At the moment he only presented more collateral and an unnecessary danger to himself and the others in the bar. It would be better for all of them if he stayed out of the way, and she wasn't one to have the fight muddied just because an upstart didn't know how to stay out of her way. As far as Keira was concerned she and her brother held an upper hand, and it was something she wasn't willing to sacrifice. This was their hunt, and nobody else's.

It was refreshing to watch the bolt connect solidly, but quickly enough [member="Darren Onyx"] returned fire, pressing her back and preventing her from completely pushing her advantages. Her beskad flashed up to deflect the blaster fire, the bolts impacting wantonly around the bar. Immediately she ducked behind cover again, once more exchanging her blade for her EE-3 and scoping out the impromptu battlefield before her. Quickly enough she located the table her opponent had taken cover behind, sighting through the scope of her rifle and firing three consecutive five-round bursts downrange at his cover. If any luck the shots would break through, and if she was extremely fortunate he would sustain more damage.

[member="Alkor Centaris"], [member="Darren Shaw"]

 

[Ne'tra Aaray]

[member="Keira Ticon"][member="Darren Onyx"][member="Ashin Karrde"][member="Alkor Centaris"][member="Darren Shaw"]
Hmph. Ne'tra felt incredibly embarrassed, and does not have Onyx's lightsabers as with Onyx alive it makes no sense for him to have them. He stumbles to the ground but stands backs up, stumbling on his left foot whilst he unholsters his guns, aiming at Onyx. If she won't play fair, he won't. He decides to try and take Onyx himself.
​"Shabuir di'kut" He mutters to himself.
​He shoots at Onyx, out of spite for that other mando as well as to take the bounty. He also wanted to prove himself after his great blunder.