The Fate of Hion

[Kira Talith]

@[member="Kiskla Grayson"]
Meanwhile...
Enroute to the Apartments

The holocall came in to Master Kiskla Grayson's personal encrypted channel, upon acceptance, would reveal a rather out of breath Jedi Knight Kira Liadain. There was a measure of urgency in her eyes, and she was more apt to movement, her body language expressing it so for any Lorrdian or master at kinetic communication to read.

"Master Grayson, forgive me. " it appeared as if she was moving while on the call with the Council member. "Can't quite have a decent conversation at the time." she told her, coming to a pause as she hailed a small speeder cab.

"Hey hey hey!! Over here!" she said, waving her hand, rushing out to the pedestrian balcony. A droid driver twisted it's head towards her as the speeder stopped, and within moments, Kira opened the door and slid inside, shutting the door behind her.

"Get me to this address," she told him the apartment complex where everything was going down, her voice breathless. Finally, seated for the moment, Kira focused upon the holotransmission in front of her.

"What may I help you with?' she asked, giving a faint smile, but it was clear her mind was going a thousand parsecs a second.

 

[Kiskla Grayson-Matteo]

JEDI TEMPLE
CHAMBER OF RECONCILIATION

A blonde brow quirked at the...quirkiness of the other blonde. It appeared @[member="Kira Liadain"] was already on her way somewhere -- and with her heritage of being an investigator, Kiskla assumed she knew where.

"I'm sure you're aware that Hion the Herglic has returned to Coruscant and is actively denying Jedi involvement with his trial and demanding that The Republic try him?" She paused "Or, was. He's broken that shell of defence and has become more threatening. As his former Master, I was hoping you could talks some sense into him. I've accessed his records and there's suggestion that there was some mental persuasion going on with your former Padawan, and he was under the influence of a soulsaber at the time of the defection. I suspect he is under similar control now. The holonet news today recorded an incident with his arrival, and that he was unarmed. See if he knows the location of this saber and report back to me. I've one final idea for his redemption."

An investigator, and one keen on redemption and reconciliation. Hion had hope yet.

 

[Kira Talith]

@[member="Kiskla Grayson"]

Enroute to the Apartments

Kira's blue eyes went wide at that. Considering her relationship with her former padawan, Kira felt a measure of responsibility and affection for the Herglic, and it was exactly for that reason she was rushing to the apartments. Holo News Network did not paint a pretty picture, and to hear it confirmed from Master Grayson only made her concern grow.

The hum of the coruscanti sky traffic made the plexiglass of the speeder tremble, the engines roaring as it turned to the right towards the sector where the apartments would be at.

She took a deep breath, nodding, "It is my understanding Master Grayson, that while I was on a mission for the Order, my padawan came across the soulsaber that a young padawan happened upon. As the Soul Saber, per my investigations, corrupts all within the vicinity, it is my belief that this was the item that had corrupted Hion from the start. Prior to this, Hion held an exemplary reputation... and while he did admit to flaws like gambling," she gave a sort sheepish laugh, mainly to relax herself. She was known to joke when tensions were high with her. "He did not actively seek to cause anyone harm."

Her lips drew into a thin line of determination. It was without a doubt that she had already been investigating the Soul Saber, and if Hion didn't have it, perhaps he would know exactly where it was.

"None the less... I believe that calming the situation might prove in the best interest for the Order, the Republic, and most of all Hion himself." a sad smile came to her then, "He was my padawan, Master Grayson. And beyond that, he was my friend."

 

[Kiskla Grayson-Matteo]

JEDI TEMPLE
CHAMBERS OF RECONCILIATION
@[member="Kira Liadain"]

"As his friend, he needs you now more than ever." Kiskla replied with a firm resolve, and a calm that surprised even herself. "From his history that I've uncovered, this current persona doesn't match what's in his files. There's definitely a seed of corruption evident but I want it confirmed. I'm asking you as both his friend and mentor, to appeal to his former nature in uncovering the location of this soulsaber.

Once the location is known, I'd like to take an action to destroy it and hopefully redeem your former Padawan."

She paused, watching as Kira's hair whipped about during her taxi ride. "To be clear, your mission is to calm your former student, uncover the location of his soulsaber, and report back to me. I'll assist you with the recovery of this dark entity once we know where it is.

Thank you. And may the Force be with you."

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Hion, of course knew inside that he had betrayed the Order. He had defected to the dark side in front of their very eyes and would have caused the destruction he did even if Carn had not attempted to arrest him before. Josh meanwhile, had stayed back and hoped that the Hion he knew would have been able to fight the Soulsaber and come through. Of course, he was wrong, and it was a regret he always carried with him.

He didn't seem phased as Orcus broke out of the cuffs. He knew it was only a matter of time. This was Orcus, not Hion....

A small smirk crossed his face.

"No. This isn't Hion" he chided. "Hion is a being of compassion, of understanding. This soulsaber induced monster that just broke out of those cuffs? Nadda" he said, shaking his head. "The sooner we get you away from that thing and try to help you, the better" he said calmly, his eyes never leaving the whale's. "When you've had time away from the corruption to clear your head, perhaps this situation will be solved peacefully instead of with meaningless violence"

Speaking of meaningless violence, suddenly, a lightsaber ignited, and Josh instinctively backpeddled, drawing his own to come to face the attacker that was going to attack either himself, or Hion, or both. To his surprise, Carn had suddenly drawn his saber and attacked.

As irritated as he was about his Master Of The Order's rash actions, he knew he couldn't stop Carn.

"Restrain him, Carn, do not harm him unless necessary" the Grandmaster commanded with a firm tone as he disengaged his own blade.

"And I mean it, Master Dista... Only. If. Necessary". Those last words were cold, serious, commanding... With a firmness that Carn had never heard directed towards him from Grandmaster DragonsFlame since he took the position.

But it had to be said. They had differing views on how to handle darksiders, former jedi, corrupted by outside influences or not. But he would not allow Carn to harm a man who he meant no harm to.

@[member="Carn Dista"] @[member="Hion the Herglic"]

 

[Kira Talith]

@[member="Kiskla Grayson"] @[member="Hion the Herglic"] @Carn Dista
Enroute to the Apartments

"Thank, Master Grayson." Kira said in turn, an expression of relief washing her face as she gave her first genuine smile in the conversation. "I shall." With that the holo-transmission ended.

To have the approval of a council member would give Kira the clout she needed to ensure what she would be doing would not be cast aside lightly. She had a responsibility; as Hion's former Master as well as that to the Jedi Order and the code.

She had sworn to protect all that could not defend themselves, to do what was right and respect all life. Kira had given every Sith or Darksider she ever met an opportunity to surrender, to accept her help. For Hion's sake, she could not deny him what she had done to others. She cared for the Herglic.

The speeder began to slow, drawing Kira's attention as she slid the holocommunicator into a pouch at her waist. Within moments, the speeder came to a stop. Just beyond the viewport, Kira could see a massive crowd, along with familiar faces of Jedi, Republic officers, Holo News media and finally... yes... she could feel the anger. Right in the middle, the large massive shape of the Herglic who had dropped all facade, mental shields, openly reveling in his rage and anger.

To be frank, Kira could not really remember just what happened next, or how she managed to get out of the speeder and weave her way through the crowd. One moment, she was sitting, the next she was standing behind Hion.

One might call it reckless, or perhaps, those who knew Kira better, were aware that there were some situations that required complete faith and trust in the Force. Most importantly, it dealt with trust in Hion, at the Jedi he once used to be, her padawan, her friend.
So even though a mass of parasites writhed like a black sea across the Herglic's thick skin, covering it with a thick scablike consistency, Kira held out her right hand, with every intention of touching the Herglic's back. There would be no words, just her mere presence of acceptance and... one could possibly say, a shower of comfort through the Force in an attempt to ease his pain.

If he did not draw away, she had every intention of holding Hion in her arms.

 

[Gorba the Hutt]

The bar of green plasma easily burnt through the black robes which Orcus wore and slammed into the back of the Herglic's knees. There the blade encountered the shells of the parasitic life forms that clung to nearly every inch of Orcus' body. The impenetrable Orbalisk shells turned aside the lightsaber without any apparent damage, no doubt much to the Jedi's chagrin.

Already filled with Dark Rage, Dista's attack set off Orcus' pent up emotions like an underwater volcano. He whirled on the Jedi Master with Force enhanced speed, launching a punch with his right flipper toward Dista's chest that was more than capable of completely smashing a human's ribcage. With the additional force multiplier of Dark Rage the punch was more likely to simply smash straight through Dista's chest and out the other side. Or at the very least send him flying like a ragdoll.

"YOU SEE WHAT THE JEDI ARE?!" Orcus' voice boomed, "BACKSTABBERS AND LIARS, MURDERERS!"

The cameras rolled, getting it all on the holofeed. The news story was quickly climbing in viewcount, fast approaching the number one spot. A fight between Sith and Jedi? Live? The better question was who wasn't watching.

Dragonsflame's words fell on deaf ears. The being known as Hion no longer heard him, immersed beneath waves of the Dark Ocean. And oh, how that ocean rolled within Orcus. Incredible power traversed through his veins. The Orbalisks pumped adrenaline through his system, giving him a truly terrifying amount of physical strength. But that was not the only thing that fueled him.

In conjunction with the power of Animal Control and his own might, Orcus shoved a flipper in between the joints where two orbalisk shells met on his side. They dug in, shunting the bugs ever so slightly apart. His flipper rammed into his side and tore through his own blubber. He extracted a blood-drenched item from his side. A cylinder, black with a bronzium dragon's head and dripping scarlet. The Soulsaber. Orcus' self-inflicted wound healed almost immediately and the shells closed back together.

Snap-hiss.

The vibrant, purple blade snapped to life, humming with a wicked glee and whispering words of murder into Orcus mind.

"Kiiiiiiilll"​

​

And kill he would.

He shoved blindly at Kira Liadain as she attempted to touch him. In the grip of Dark Rage, the Soulsaber, and the Orbalisk's venom, there was no recognition in those black, pitiless eyes. Orcus saw only the faces of those who had betrayed him. And he would end them all.



@HK-36 @Yusan Fennhttp://starwarsrp.net/user/2468-yusan-fenn/ @Alachei Mnemenos @Joshua Dragonsflame @Isley Verd @Diana Moridena @Daella Apparine@Askrut Fey'ra @Carn Distahttp://starwarsrp.net/user/2601-carn-dista/@Sno Wyte @[member="Kiskla Grayson"] @[member="Kira Liadain"]

 

[Kiskla Grayson-Matteo]

Kiskla clicked on the channel that communicated the live events once more, and her face fell with slight abashment.
Oh.
There the soulsaber was.

This is why you couldn't trust the news.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

There it was. The soulsaber. As he looked at the dark flesh outlining Hion's body, he knew... With the cameras rolling, the world would know too... Josh had been right all along.

"The soulsaber" Josh said calmly to Kira and Carn. "Subdue him. Don't kill him, subdue him. By any means necessary" he said, with emphasis for Carn. "When he's subdued, get the saber away from him. But don't touch it. Use your lightsaber if you have to" he commanded calmly, firmly, as he walked in a circle around the battle...

The Grandmaster wouldn't act yet....

@HK-36 @Yusan Fenn @Alachei Mnemenos @Joshua Dragonsflame @Isley Verd @Diana Moridena @Daella Apparine@Askrut Fey'ra @Carn Dista@Sno Wyte @Kiskla Grayson @Kira Liadain @[member="Hion the Herglic"]

 

[Kira Talith]

She could feel a dark presence churning, the effect of the Soul Saber artifact already amplifying passions and aggression of everyone surrounding Hion. Kira felt it herself, her mind wrestling and warring with emotions. Fear and anger. Affection and Concern.

But she didn't have time to think.

Kira gave a yelp as she was flung to the side by an immense flipper, falling on her arse as the strength amplified by the Force and that of the Soul Saber flung her several feet away into the apartment complex's wall. Her head gave a loud massive crack as it hit the duracrete, stars lighting up the back of her eyes and sending shards of pain down her neck and spine.

Vertigo took her, and her ribs ached from where Hion had hit her. She probably broke a rib or two, and she could be sure that bruises would be blooming across her torso under her robes.

Dazed, she began to slide down the wall, a small red trail from a cut on her head smearing down against the wall with her, just before she fell forward. Her lips twitched, as she gave a choked whisper at the blurry vision before her.

"Hion... no..."

 

[Jorga the Hutt]

The Senator from Eshan had a certain interest in the former Senator from Tython. They'd served together in elected office for a good while, and the man Connory knew would not be perpetrating, well, any of this.

Fortunately, Rel Connory had some idea of what he was doing.

His weapon was a Stokhli spray stick, a premiere anti-Forcer gun designed to ensnare with sticky webbing -- strong enough to restrain creatures the size of a fully grown Herglic, even. But the Stokhli spray stick was not, well, actually filled with Stokhly spray stick spray. Instead, the bottle space-taped to the intake valve was full of sluggish, highly pressurized golden sludge that made his Lightbringer Force sensor go a little wonky.

Jedi Shadow nullification resin, ready to be sprayed and cast the second the Soulsaber got removed from the Herglic.

For the moment, Rel Connory, Bard of the Hyperlanes, stayed back.

 

[Soeht]

When the Jedi arrived at @[member="Hion the Herglic"]’s residence, Daella remained outside on the Coruscanti skywalk and kept an eye on the surroundings. She did not participate in any of the debates related to Hion and stood a considerably distance away from the scene.

Yet, the moment Hion activated his lightsaber, Daella turned her head toward him and those gathered around.

“Eh?” she muttered under her breath.

After seeing Hion violently throw @[member="Kira Liadain"], Daella drew her yellow-bladed lightsaber in her right hand. She rushed for the darksider as fast as she could. She gave no reaction as @[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"] spoke out. She simply seemed to act.

Coming from Hion’s right, Daella gripped her lightsaber with both hands midstride. She pointed the blade horizontally to her right. The closer she got to Hion, the more she dipped the tip of her blade down. She did not seem to slow as she ran forward - though she would have passed behind the Herglic if he did not move.

Because of this, Daella’s blade was positioned to slice off Hion’s legs if the Herglic did not adequately react.

 

[Gorba the Hutt]

Orcus reveled in the pain that bled from the Jedi. He did not recognize that it was the pain of his former master. In his current state of mind, it hardly mattered. The Soulsaber fortified him with battle mind. The Orbalisk venom granted him increased physical strength and agility. Combined with Force Rage, the Herglic wielded formidable power. He was committed to the fight now and even the combined effort of three Jedi Masters would not deter him.

Sudden ripples in the vast ocean of the Force foretold danger. Orcus whirled on Daella with impossible speed for someone so large. The violet length of the Soulsaber leapt out, smashing aside Daella's blade in a brutal Form V parry. The sheer physical might behind the block would continue to push Daella's blade back, back, back. Orcus only used one flipper for that attack. With the other, he smote at Daella with a ferocious backhand that held enough strength to shatter all the bones in her face and send her sailing across the plaza.

@[member="Daella Apparine"]

 

[Soeht]

As soon as @[member="Hion the Herglic"]’s soulsaber touched Daella’s lightsaber, she began to shift around and redirect her motion. The Herglic stood almost two feet taller than Daella - a fit and hardly bulky woman. She did not attempt to meet Hion’s blade with strength in kind.

In the split second as Hion’s blade struck Daella’s though, the woman uttered a faint, “Heh.”

Stepping toward the side that Hion’s swinging flipper came from, Daella also bent her wrists in order to change the orientation of her blade. Her yellow-bladed lightsaber blade began to slide away from Hion’s purple blade. She then lifted up her elbow and hands in order to position her lightsaber in a vertical position just as it broke contact from Hion’s soulsaber.

The purple blade was still before Daella and her lightaber, yet she simply faced a direction that was nearly perpendicular to what Hion did while being ahead of him yet toward the shoulder of the band handing flipper.

The relatively small, compact woman was quick to reposition herself.

As Hion’s flipper flew through the air though, its path would be blocked by a searing hot plasma blade that can easily cut through nearly every material in the known galaxy. Even with the Orbalisk armor, Daella’s eyes fell upon the small joints of Hion’s wrist- where the material would need to be flexible - and did her best to position the blade to endanger such joints.

 

[Nyxie]

Though Alachei's mind was as sound and her spirit as level as the best of them, the presence of the Soulsaber did have one particular effect on her. It grew on her covetous side, one she did not attempt to erase but to balance our with her humble and fundamental self. The aura, however, tipped the delicate scale and left the weights to come raining down. The shaman did not feel thougts of evil or malign flow through her mind, but she did gain a hightened inclination to truly see and feel the blade; to fight it and to handle it in her own two hands. Though she did not want to hurt the Jedi, her pulse slowly rose to the surreally amplified instincts to fight. Fighting was in her blood - it became her; and now more than ever, she craved the feeling of combat.
"Humph...."
Gripping her own mind, Alachei simply took a firm seated position and closed her eyes. She began to meditate, though her ears and her sense were still quite attentive to the battle before her... one it seemed the Jedi started. In her opinion, their way of doing things was sloppy and their master not without flaw - not worthy of his seat. On the other hand, Hion gave them little choice - even though he was the one aggressed and despite the fact that had the Jedi not been so persistent and selfish, he would have had no reason to stop and contest, he was now a threat that none could stop peacefully and forcing their admissions of guilt or folley would not reclaim that. The Jedi were going to fight alone, she would yet give them no aid. After all, they had made the bed and should now be left to lay in it. If they should all fall, or if Hion began to cause too much destruction and harm to the populace around them, only then would Alachei confront the beast for herself.
One thing was for certain; there would be a lengthy report concerning the poor taste in conduct witnessed there today and a world of witnesses to reinforce the validity of the claims.

 

[Gorba the Hutt]

Lost in the glory of the fight, Orcus did not know fear. Black eyes saw the shift in Daella's stance as she brought her blade up vertically. While her maneuver was swift, they fought at speeds surpassing those of any mere human capacity. The Herglic's retaliatory response came faster than thought and just as quick as hers if not faster. His left flipper held the Soulsaber. The parry had been from left to right. His right flipper had been moving from left to right as well. He could not stop its momentum now, but he could alter it.

He stepped forward toward Daella, which moved the entire positioning of his body. Instead of the yellow blade landing on his wrist, where the orbalisk shells stopped, the blade encountered a forearm encased in near-invincible parasites. Smoke and ozone filled the air as the lightsaber sheared through the black robe's sleeve, butOrcus' arm held against the blade. He began to move it implacably toward Daella's face, pushing her own saber back on her. The saber spat and hissed against the orbalisks, ever so slowly chewing into the shells. But these were parasites that could withstand the attack of eight force pikes at once. Even a lightsaber capable of cutting through durasteel with ease could not easily burn through them. Heat from the plasma blade radiated outward, burning the blubber beneath the shells.

In simultaneous conjunction with the block of his forearm, Orcus brought the Soulsaber back, crossing from right to left just underneath the hilt Daella's vertically held lightsaber. Jump and she would lose her feet. Duck and she would lose an arm at the shoulder. Orcus might lack a useable flipper if she continued to hold the blade against his forearm, but Daella would be cut in half if she did not parry his violet blade. Better to take a flipper to the face than a saber anywhere else.

@[member="Daella Apparine"]

 

[Carn Dista]

It was only through an almost instinctive, reflex application of the Force to create a barrier that Carn managed to take the great punch from Darth ShamuOrcus without losing his entire ribcage. Something had cracked - and audiably at that, however his bones hadn't turned inwards to eviscerate his vital organs. A small price to pay, but a good tradeoff. The Orbalisks on his body however...

Carn had come across these parasites but once before, during his tenure as a Jedi Knight. A former tutor, one Jedi Master Raeze had taken to teaching him of things that not many Jedi would encounter. In truth, this was the first time he had come across a live example of the parasites. Setting his fascination aside however, Carn seemed to recall that should an Orbalisk be parted from it's host, the host would perish. While slaying the Herglic wasn't high on his list of things to do, looking for a smaller Orbalisk to prize away from Hion by way of lightsaber began to become a possible option - expecially if he intended to escape again.

As Daella moved to parry and sever limbs, Carn darted forwards with a sudden burst of speed. While the Orbalisks had repelled him once, the Jedi had come up with a new stratagem: The unrelenting and unrestricted use of Juyo. He had long since been a master of the form, and understood that while physically powerful and enhanced by the Darkside, the combined might of multiple masters and the highly aggressive and chaotic onslaught of Juyo would make short work of the fallen Jedi.

With a twirl of his blade, he brought the lightsaber around to the right of Hion's body, only to twist himself around at the very last moment and enact a Jung-Ma. While he span, he re angled his lightsaber so that it would come up towards Hion's neck region, where he hoped that the Orbalisks would be few enough in number to put his foe down. It was an unpredictable feint followed up by a savage strike - Hions would sense the danger from his right first, only to find the real threat to be from the left... The way Carn moved to perform the assault was malignant, graceful, and yet maintained an air of raw and savage brutality about it. Yet for all intents and purposes, this was merely the tip of the iceberg compared to what Carn was truly capable with when it came to Juyo - especially as the duel went on...

Still. This unrestricted use of Juyo was dangerous - the soul saber called deeply to Carn, its encouraging whispers attempted to convince him to use his emotions to become more unpredictable, and to rely on his deep rooted disgust in the darkside to fuel his strikes against Hion. He was almost tempted to give in. To let loose everything and tear Hion apart with worryingly efficient brutality. However Carn was a Jedi - the Master of the Order at that, and while undoubtedly he would need to meditate after this, the temptation from the soulsaber was something he could just brush off, especially due to the lack of physical contact between himself and tainted blade.

@[member="Daella Apparine"] @[member="Hion the Herglic"] @erry1else

 

[Soeht]

Once Daella’s lightsaber made contact with Hion’s forearm, the woman locked her arms. She took quick steps back. Her eyes twitched. She immediately reacted by bounding off her feet into the air. She flew up and over @[member="Hion the Herglic"] and across his arm. His purple blade would pass well below. Daella kept her lightsaber blade upon Hion’s arm while in midair. She landed on the other side of Hion from where she stood.

Immediately, Daella took several steps away from Hion as @[member="Carn Dista"] attacked. She maintained a battle stance with her lightsaber held vertically and the tip pointing up. Daella kept her eyes on Hion’s armor for a moment.

“Huh,” she mumbled.

Daella’s eyes began to dart left and right. She searched for something to aid her against Hion and quickly end his resistance.

 

[Serah Oricion]

Yusan appearently coming out of what ever self induced hibernation of activity blinked as the Soulsaber's blade came to life and his hand shot to his side, tearing his own saberstaff from it and staring at Hion, only one blade lit at the moment. "Hion, Stop this now." He didn't want to help the Jedi fight his friend, but if he didnt help he would be branded a co conspirator so he had to try, only he had spoke far too late as there was no doubt that the Jedi were only fueling his rage and he would have to help them and not his old friend. "Damnit Hion.." He said as he moved forward while he was distracted, sending the blade forward with every bit of strength at his left arm. He stared at himself as he did this, he did the very thing the Jedi had, but he had to, this could only get worse and he had to pick a side, he had to fight with the Republic and the Jedi were still with the Republic.

He looked at @[member="Daella Apparine"] and @[member="Carn Dista"] as he made his attack then back at @[member="Hion the Herglic"], letting the regret and sorrow for doing such a thing known to the Herglic, but also the feeling that this was right and he had to do it. Even then, after his attack and the fact that Hion would hopefully acknowledge him he would yell to the man/fish. "Hion, stop this now, you dont need to make things worse for you, just surrender." All it would take is one hit from Hion's saber to ruin Yusan's own life, he had to be careful so even though he was talking to Hion he kept his blade up and stance ready, his feet light and prepared incase Yusan's strike caused the Herglic to react in only Anger.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Josh breathed as he circled the battle. He wouldn't attack Hion, at least not yet.. He waited... He watched... Carn, Daella and Yusan he hoped would be good for subduing Orcus.

He watched the Soulsaber carefully. They might have only one shot at this... They needed to get that thing out of his grip, and fast....

@HK-36 @Yusan Fenn @Alachei Mnemenos @Joshua Dragonsflame @Isley Verd @Diana Moridena @Daella Apparine@Askrut Fey'ra @Carn Dista@Sno Wyte @Kiskla Grayson @Kira Liadain @Hion the Herglic