Strike Back

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Things were different, but they were the same.

Vrak expected nothing more or nothing less of Seraphina, save for a simple understanding. The claim had always been there, ever since the brand had been placed upon her thigh. They had made an arrangement, one for joy and position. They had known that it might eventually end, they had known that one might kill the other, yet it was different now.

Always there had been a balance of power, always Seraphina had ridden that edge. She had been so confident in killing him, so certain that she would defeat him. Yet here this was, the weakness that she had hidden for so long. Now doubt would reign within her, even more so than before. Vrak knew this, but he needed her to be the same. He needed that calm and confident killer, the one that spoke to him as brashly as she could. Her council had lead him well so far, and he would not have it change. "No one will harm you."

His fingers slip down her body, the arm beneath her gently pressing on her to lift her until she slid up slightly on the bed.

"Your future is here." He said a second before kissing her once again, a gentle caress of his tongue flowing over hers. "At my side, in my bed."

Another kiss. "With me."

The words might have been a lie. They might have been a truth. Vrak's voice was calm, soft, his touch upon her skin soothing and relaxed.

"Even If the Empire falls. If everything crumbles and turns to ash." His voice remained that even tone. "Always."

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

To say that she was surprised by this would be an understatement. This was entirely unlike him, and quite the opposite of the reaction she had not more than a minute ago braced herself for. In her mind she had expected backlash, punishment or scolding for such meek response to his assault on her lekku. Given his typical demeanor, lack of empathy for most anything, and an almost non-existent compassion, the fact that he had shifted his attitude to something resembling affection or concern was mildly disturbing.

She laid quietly beneath him, eyes watching carefully for any tells or signs that he might be attempting to pull some kind of act over her.

There was nothing that she could see, though.

Sera wondered if for a moment he either cared something for her, past his practical uses for her, or if he was just looking for additional leverage over her than what he had already garnered.

The claims Vrak made to her position alongside him were bold. It was no surprise that he hungered for power and wealth above all things, including his own people. They were mere stepping stones to his glory, to his fame and fortune, to become legend among his own. That was why, to hear him claim that even if the empire he built collapsed around him that she would still be his was so alien. For just a second she wondered if she had actually been rendered unconscious, and this was all simply a dream.

"Okay." She finally managed to say after lingering moments of silence between his words and their kiss.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

They found themselves on Korriz not long after that, a brief scan of the planet showing them the location of a small outpost of the far side of the world just as Vrak had predicted. Like many within the former Sith domain Korriz was a broken crag of it's former self, little more than a ball of rock and dust. Most would have ignored it, and that was exactly why Berilin had chosen it as his outpost. The complex was enclosed within a large shield of course, allowing men and women to walk around it freely without fear of choking on the toxic air.

There were three buildings within the compounds, one main hall, and two side buildings that Vrak could only assume were barracks and storage areas. Scans through the shield were impossible, though they had been able to detect some automated weapons around the perimeter.

As the shuttle dropped it's landing gear Vrak slowly pulled on the mask that usually adorned his face, the seal hissing into place that would allow him to breath Korriz's toxic atmosphere. He glanced up briefly at Seraphina, wondering for a moment if she had recovered from the shift that had just occurred. She seemed to have regained some of her spirits during their embrace, though he was still cautious. Vrak knew what he had done, the influence he now held.

"There is a path to the south of the compound." He told her as he pulled up a small hologram of the area. "We'll pass through the shield here."

Simple enough. "We then get as close as we can."

Before killing everyone inside.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

The Twi'lek was garbed in the entirety of her armor, save for the veil which needed to be left down in this instance to allow for enough room for the rebreather to function and filter the toxins in the air. Before landing she had made note of several of the weapons placements so that they could carefully avoid entering into their path.What her armor was good for here was reflecting the light away from her, making distanced visuals difficult to determine. In the distance she might look like a gentle breeze through the trees, or a shadow of an animal moving about. The material was also incredibly silent, allowing the Twi'lek to move nearly at full stride without making a sound.

If only she hadn't needed to allow her face to remain unmasked. Bright pink was a tad bit difficult to hide.

"Right." The assassin slipped her weapons along either side of her hips before hopping off the edge of the shuttle ramp. "Everyone dies."

It wasn't exactly a question, more so a statement that she was waiting to hear him confirm, more than anything. She had already planned to kill everyone inside.

Without so much as another word she sprang forward, athletic legs carrying her off towards their destination.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

"Yes." He said shortly before Seraphina sprang from her place and rushed forward.

He hopped after her a moment later, watching her for just a second before rushing in her wake. The Pureblood had never really been one for stealth. His training had been about nothing but full frontal assault, and the fighting style he utilized reflected that. He was not built to run around in the night, he was not made to rush in the dark. Vrak was built to rush in and simply destroy everything in front of him. He had little to no subtlety to available him.

It was a quality that annoyed many of his compatriots, including Sera at times.

Still, The Pureblood managed to squeeze some tact into himself and the two of them quickly rushed along the cliffs of Korriz. Within a few minutes they were to the south of the encampment, the pale blue glow of the domed shield visible just beyond their eyeline.

"There." He motioned towards one of the paths carved through the cliffs. "It heads directly into the facility, careful for watchmen."

Sera likely didn't need to be told that, but it didn't stop Vrak.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

The Twi'lek stopped when Vrak pointed out the pathway that narrowly edged between the shield that protected the outpost from unwelcome guests. A rocky face that lead to a treacherous fall if one were not absolutely careful when making their way. Crossing it for Sera was hardly a challenge itself. The problem really came down to being entirely exposed while doing so. Anyone watching would ultimately see both she and Vrak as they made their way towards the facility.

That alone would make them easy targets for any kind of defensive measures in place.

Being blasted by a long range turret or something was not her idea of a good afternoon.

"We'll need to be fast." She emphasized the word, not that it needed to be said. "We should cross at the same time. If the path is obstructed or damaged in any way one of us may be stranded."

It made them an easier target, but separating would be just as dangerous.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Vrak nodded to her. The strategy made sense, though they would have to be careful regardless of what would happen. Even if they went together they would have to watch to make sure that whatever came at them didn't come too close, in essence they would have to work together.

From his belt he pulled his lightsaber.

"On three." He told her simply as he gripped the weapon. There was a possibility that they would be spotted the moment they rushed forward, though The Pureblood was hoping they'd make it at least half-way before any sort of alarm was raised. "One....two..."

He stood, Seraphina following close after him.

"Three." The instant Vrak said the word he burst forward. The force rushed through his muscles and tendons, every part of him consumed by the natural flow of enhanced energy. The Twi'lek and The Pureblood sprinted across the open pass, running as fast as they could. A second passed, then two, then three, they broke through the mid-point of the pass, and then suddenly he heard a loud mechanical whirring just up ahead.

His lightsaber sprang into life the moment one of the turrets popped up, it's great mechanical head swiveling and targeting on Sera and him.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Kark.

The green eyed assassin forced back the moment of panic as the weapon appeared from beneath covered ground. It was more than large enough to take both of them out with relative ease. It wasn't something she was going to simply knock away with a lightsaber, nor was it something she could easily avoid on this narrow of a path. That left two possible options, at least in her mind: Rush forward as they were, hoping that the gun was not as proficient at aiming towards two enhanced Force masters barreling forward nor capable of knocking them off balance enough to send them over the edge to their death.

That, or make a calculated effort to hurl her own weapon as a twirling blade towards the turret in an effort to disable its' rather large cannon tracking their movements.

Without much consideration Sera pulled free the weapon and activated it, snapping her wrist in a forward arc and releasing it to the Force, utilizing telekinesis to hopefully split the barrel in half before it could fire.

Otherwise, well, maybe the fall wouldn't kill them.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

The lightsaber spun over itself over and over again, turning into a whirling disk of heated plasma. Vrak tracked it for only a moment before before he saw movement from the corner of his eyes. Another turret rose within the distance, this one smaller but with more barrels.

His lips let out a curse, the crimson blade of his lightsaber springing into life with a loud-Hiss. Sera's spinning blade seemed to connect with the first turret almost at the exact same time the second opened fire. Dozens of laser bolts immediately flew towards them, Vrak sending them bounding back in a near instant. An explosion rocked the side of the cliff-face, the turret with the sliced barrel erupting into a fiery ball of metal and shrapnel. The Pureblood nearly fell, only barely catching himself.

"Faster." He breathed as he deflected another bolt.

The compressed tibana gas flew back and went crashing into the second turret, another explosion blooming on the cliff-face as he and Sera continued to spring forward. A moment later they rushed through the shield, the odd blue haze slowing them as they burst through the bubble and landed on the other side.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

An outstretched pink hand caught the twirling saber as the hilt landed once more in her palm, hue of the light retracting into itself as she ducked low beneath the rubble of the explosion that rocked the cliff wall behind her. A ringing in the woman's ears suddenly silenced just about every other sound, including Vrak's cue to move faster.

Once through the shield the Twi'lek made for a small bit of cover behind a series of rocky platforms.

"If they didn't know we were here, they will now."

That wasn't exactly a quiet entrance by any stretch of the imagination. Those explosions could have awoken the dead.

"I'd be surprised if they don't come looking for us very shortly."

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Vrak couldn't really help but agree. They still had no idea just how many people were actually in the facility, and that in it of itself presented a problem. For all they knew Berilin had stationed a small army here, and fighting them out in the open where they could be surrounded wasn't his idea of a good plan.

"That building." He pointed towards the main hall.

It was about as large as the palace back on Dromund Fel, not massive, but large enough to have several dozen rooms. The Pureblood had no idea what they would find inside, but right now all he knew was that he didn't want to get surrounded. With another nod to Seraphina the duo broke out into a sprint, rushing along the side of the courtyard until they struck the far wall of the building. A second later Vrak plunged his lightsaber into the side of the building.

With a quick flick of his wrists he carved an entrance for the two of them, slipping inside a second later.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Stepping into the large building it was rather poorly lit. Sporadic lighting lined the halls towards the ceiling, but everything else appeared dim, and eerily quiet. Unnaturally so. Green eyes shifted to Vrak to silently confirm that he understood what she was thinking. The Twi'lek removed both lightsabers from her sides, igniting both in anticipation for a surprise attack.

Not knowing the layout of the building at all made things more difficult to navigate and more dangerous.

There was no way that a place like this was abandoned. Hidden in the shadows, obscured by the darkness is where they were hiding in wait, looking for an opportune time to strike at Vrak and Sera. Whether they knew it or not the reason for the two being there mattered very little, all things considered. Both sides were looking to kill the other. It was as simple as that.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Vrak crept forward, his eyes flicking from place to place.

This place was an academy for assassins. Berilin ran the department of war, so most of his Massassi were warriors or Marauders, men and women dedicated to killing on the field of battle. Assassins were usually Vrak's place, yet it seemed that the Councilor of War had designs on his seat. He frowned for a moment as they passed by a door, reading the markings of ancient Sith. "Armory."

He told Seraphina, pressing a small button to open the doors.

The durasteel parted, and The Pureblood stepped inside. For a moment he simply surveyed everything inside, stepping in only when he was sure that everything was still there. Vrak laced his fingers over everything, then scowled as he found a small, ancient looking device within a case. Empty seat of foam were arranged around it, clearly signalling that more of the devices had been present.

"Personal cloaking devices." He said turning to Sera, his displeasure evident. "They'll be invisible."

A rather troubling detail.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Lovely.

Nothing quite like adding complication to the day after nearly being blasted off a cliff by some heavy guns.

Sera hadn't a cloaking device of her own, nor did she have a thermal visor to reveal their positions. What she did have however, was an understanding of Force Sight. While hardly a master of the art as a Miraluka would be, she had been trained well enough to be able to distinguish organics as well as navigate using the Force, rather than her eyes.

For a few moments the Twi'lek remained silent, allowing her eyes to close and focus for several seconds. The Force welled within her, pluming like a vibrant flower before suddenly a vision through darkness spread outwards. Perhaps this would help to even the odds already well stacked against them inside of this place, though the thought of finding a way to simply burn it to the ground tickled her.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Vrak had no mastery of force sight, nor even a basic understanding of it. Such things were not the ways of the ancient Sith, and thus it had never really been taught on Athiss.

Instead he turned to something he knew he could use, something he was well practiced in. His eyes slowly shut, but unlike Seraphina he didn't seek to enhance himself, no, instead he reached out with his mind. Slowly, his thoughts expanded outwards, his mind driving and lashing towards anything and everyone in the vicinity. He frowned for a moment, then his eyes snapped open.

"There's four of them in the building." He stated plainly.

Vrak couldn't control them, not under these circumstances, but he could feel like. Two of them were nervous wrecks, half shaking even as they maneuvered through the halls. The other two were the complete opposite, hungry for blood and desperate to prove themselves. They were all relatively strong, though still raw in terms of power. The Pureblood smiled slightly and turned to Seraphina, the grip on his lightsaber tightening slightly.

"One coming this way." He didn't ignite the blade. "To the left."

There were others nearby, though not close enough for Vrak to touch their mind.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Breaking off into a sprint towards the end of the corridor where she would meet the first of their targets the man rounded the corner just as the Twi'lek made it. He quickly rose his weapon as Sera drove her left and right hands in opposing directions across the man's midsection. He rose his alchemized sword just in time to prevent the woman's twin blades from cutting into his torso, though she followed through by driving her foot between the crux of his legs and sent him stumbling back in agony.

Another two steps forward and while he managed to redirect another strike from one of her sabers, the other plunged through his sternum, the flash of light behind his eyes slowly extinguishing as he let out a wicked howl.

Their position inside was unfortunately now also compromised.

Sera pointed down the hallway. "Stairs that way."

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Vrak tried to keep his senses up, though Sith battle Coordination became more and more difficult to use the more you moved. The Technique required a great deal of concentration, needing the user to focus upon a single point and utilize it as a focus for locating the minds of others. Still, he managed to keep track of one more of the figures.

As he and Sera rushed forward he caught a brief glimpse of something within his thoughts.

It was a mix of rage and anticipation, a flash of hatred that could only come with someone who had suffered a loss. The moment he felt it Vrak switched his lightsaber on, the blade igniting with a loud snap-hiss as the Pureblodo whirled around and plunged the blade into an odd hazy spot within the air. There was a slight pop as the cloaking device malfunctioned, it's field broken by burning plasma. Then suddenly another one of the assassins appeared before him.

His blade was raised above his head, slowly tilting to the side as Vrak guided his corpse to the floor.

"More are coming." Seven of eight cloaking device had been taken from the armory, two were now dead and two more were in the building. He could sense the others approaching, though from where it was difficult to tell.

Nonchalantly, almost as a test, Vrak threw up his fingers and released an arch of lightning down the hall, ascending the steps as an afterthought.

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

She had nearly reached the stairs before Vrak turned to impale one of their pursuers on his lightsaber. Hearing his weapon relight she halted and spun around to see what had just happened just as the Pureblood dropped the limp corpse to the ground with a soft thud. Her eyes lingered as Vrak made his way towards her, informing her that there were still others.

Though she could have told him before he wasted the effort of casting off bolts of electricity through the corridor that there were no others. She could in fact, see their signatures as a hazy aura moving about with a clear line of sight. Sera chose not to mention that, though, instead allowing to do it his way for his own sanity.

"We should find the comm room if there is one. We don't want them sending a message to Berilin."

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

Vrak nodded.

The two of them quickly rushed up the stairs, Vrak letting his eyes flick over the walls in hopes of finding some sort of map or directory. Ancient Sith Temples didn't have them of course, but these facility was newly created and housed probably two dozen or so new apprentices, something like that would have been helpful here. "There."

He pointed towards one of the signs.

"Last room on the left." He frowned. That was all Sera needed before she moved forward with another burst of speed. Vrak didn't sense anyone on this floor, but he moved with slightly more caution. Perhaps Seraphina could see, but he was still working in the blind.

Eventually the two reached the comm-room, a heavy security door standing in their way.

"I'll cut." He told her as his lightsaber plunged into the heavy metal. "Hold them off."

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Sera gave a quick affirmative nod to Vrak as he began to cut through the door. The sound was anything but discreet as it burned through layers and layers of thick durasteel, a warm glow of white and red emanating from the hall as he worked.

The Twi'lek shifted her sight from left to right, watching through the eyes of the Force for any sign of the other assassins. Surely it wouldn't be long until they made their way up to find them. What she did hope was that there wasn't anyone already behind that door scrambling to send a message to Berilin before Vrak and Sera could force their way inside. If so, their plan to kill him would become much more difficult.

"Company." She warned as she saw one, then another rush up the stairs, weapons drawn. "Quickly." She said, rushing off to engage them.

Both blades collided with those of the assailants. A quick flurry of strikes between the three combatants traded cracks and snaps in the air as the four weapons battled against one another in hopes of landing a fatal strike against their opponents. These two were far better trained, able to parry and block her attacks together, though still not quite overwhelming the Twi'lek's own unique grace and agility.

"Any day now!" She called just as the scream of one of the assassins tore through the air, her saber catching him across the chest, though not fatally, but enough for him to reconsider his dedication to the cause.

[member="Vrak Nashar"]