Left Behind

[Cedric Grayson]

The rain grew louder the farther they ran from the outpost's borders. The raid had been a success; the prisoners were safely tucked away in transports fleeing for the edge of the system. The same could not be said for their saviors.

The two dozen men had been reduced to seven, four of which were wounded. Darius held up a hand for the group to halt as they rounded a canyon corner. Launching a raid on Serenno had been dangerous, but each of them had been volunteers. They knew what they were getting into.

The Jedi Knight motioned toward a clearing in the forest nearby. He shouted for them to move forward, though the torrential rain drowned out his voice with such a violence that most could not hear him. They all boarded the vessel hidden within the clearing just the same. Darius was the last on the ground as the ship's drives kicked up.

Movement nearby saw Darius drawing his lightsaber. The green blade arced through the night air to bat two blaster bolts back to their points of origin. The two imperial officers fell with burning holes in their chests, but then more came running up behind them. Forced on the defensive, Darius drew away from the ship as the volleys intensified. The imperials fell one by one, but time was short, and it seemed the ship's pilot was ever aware of that fact.

The vessel roared into the sky as the last of the men fell. Darius breathed an exasperated sigh, and found himself looking up in disbelief at the rapidly shrinking image of the vessel. no more soldiers came - he'd killed the handful guarding the prison - and messages weren't going to be reaching anyone until their comms dish was repaired.

"Maybe there's a ship in the hanger," he mumbled to himself as he turned to trudge toward the outpost - or so he was, until something different flared up on the edge of his senses.

"What?"

 

[Sundara Nyveit]

Guard duty.

Of all the jobs she could possibly be stuck with, it was guard duty? It was an insult to her ability, a waste of her time, good only for keeping her tied down to one place. Actually, that, she couldn't really fault the Sith for doing.

The job was agonizingly easy, something the fallen knight could do in her sleep. It felt as if she often did, given the company or lack thereof. The lower ranking imperials were far from good conversationalists. Attempts at small talk often left the Devaronian more bored than before, now with a hint of frustration to spice it all up.

It gave her plenty of time to think. About what she'd done, what had been left behind, all the good ol' details she'd much rather avoid until she could run no longer. But no, her idle brain was insistent on its train of thought. Like it or not (and she most certainly did not), the decisions she'd made still weighed on her shoulders and probably would continue to do so for some time.

The raid was an annoying addition to what should've been an easy day. A semi-pleasant shift from the usual monotony, yes, but a nuisance all the same, especially when her superiors of sorts had elected to keep the knight out of the initial fight. They didn't trust her, not that the Devaronian could blame them whatsoever. It was their call, she supposed. Just as it would be their responsibility when others questioned how they allowed the loss of prisoners.

Ordered into a round of controls, Sundara was tempted to simply walk a lap and call it good - any attacker in their right mind would be long gone by now. She was in the middle of doing just that, about ready to call it good, when she felt the presence of someone outside of the Imperials. Did someone get left behind? No, not just a run of the mill rebel. Sundara had the strangest feeling this was someone she'd be better off taking care of personally.

"Who are you?"

[member="Darius"] Sedaire​

 

[Cedric Grayson]

The vessel's vapor trails faded into the midnight air as Darius doused his lightsaber. The Jedi Knight watched his allies make their escape with something akin to peace. The prisoners had all made it out without a casualty, and the rest of the volunteers should be able to return to a safe port. The only issue that remained was his own means of travel, of which he could only hope a ship remained in the hanger to solve. Hew drew ever closer to the Sith outpost, his mind running through a dozen different possible scenarios as he prepared to make the heist.

He almost missed the singular presence that remained. This one was different from the imperial soldiers he had faced - it lacked the singleminded focus that the Sith soldiers possessed. It was a divided mind, one that had not yet entirely surrendered itself to the void. Darius knew that feeling well; he'd seen it in many of the recent Sith converts during the height of the war. They were normally errant padawans that had chosen the easier path: often a waste of potential, but some could be saved.

I've got an hour tops.

The knight mumbled a curse under his breath. He either needed to deal with this now, or circumvent it entirely.

Can't fold space out of here. It'd notice me before I finished.

One path remained clear. With great regret, Darius pivoted about in the mud. His unlit lightsaber fell into his hand as he confronted his pursuer.

"What you could have been." The lightsaber hissed as its emerald blade came to life.

[member="Sundara Nyveit"]

 

[Sundara Nyveit]

His answer was greeted with the raise of an eyebrow and an unimpressed stare. "What's that supposed to mean?" She inquired, though the lightsaber gave a fairly clear indication where this was going to go.

Had she known it was a Jedi she'd sensed, she would've been tempted to let him slip by. The last thing she'd wanted to do was encounter a Jedi, not yet anyway. It had been her every intention to lie low for a while. The longer the better, really. It would've given her a better chance of fading into obscurity and perhaps more importantly, would've let her distance herself from the group she used to consider allies. Obviously, that little plan had backfired.

She stood tall, giving little clue just how much she'd prefer to avoid combat entirely. The Devaronian was filled only with dread at the prospect of fighting this fellow. He was a stranger, yes, worlds better than having to duel someone she'd worked with before, still that didn't take away her reluctance to draw her blade. Still shining blue, the saberstaff was loose in her grasp.

"Tell me you're not going to try preaching at me." She could almost hear a lecture coming, hardly something she felt like listening to.

[member="Darius"] Sedaire​