They Fall, We Rise

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak didn't pay much attention tot he corpses upon the floor.

The Massassi weren't important, the Temple wasn't important, only the dead man at the end of the hall. He scowled slightly, his lightsaber slipping to the craddle of his fingers. Bright yellow eyes snapped up, watching the flicker of the red lights casting against the hall. He wondered briefly if he would succeed here, he wondered if he would die. It seemed likely, Vrak was only a Knight after all, and Lord Baltha was one of the most powerful members of the Dark Council.

He scowled slightly, stepping from the main hall and into the open floor of the Temple.

"Baltha." His voice rang out within the hall, echoing off the walls. Just before Vrak sat a kneeling Sith Lord. The other Pureblood had positioned himself before a statue of what appeared to be a mass of souls, teeming and writhing bodies that were intertwined with one another.

"Ah. Nashar, I'm so glad you've made it."

Vrak gripped his lightsaber a bit tighter.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Neesa prowled the circumference of the main chamber. She said nothing, but appraised the Lord with her hawkish glare. She could feel the power radiating off of him. If Baltha was concerned he didn't display any of it. She had tried to conserve her energy. A few bouts of intense activity hadn't drained her too much, but she was still a long way from fresh.

Yellow eyes turned up to meet her gaze and she suddenly felt like prey that had accidentally wondered into the lair of a predator.

"I see you brought Sitas' pet. I will have to have words with him after we are done." Neesa could feel his attention wane.

Still he didn't stand. But she could see something laid across his lap. "Siedra is better placed to take my seat," he observed dryly.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

There was no denying facts. Siedra really was better placed to take his seat at the moment. She had an army, a city, and a place within Baltha's sphere of Influence. Siedra had always placed herself within the Domain of Intelligence. It had suited her well and allowed her to make inroads with the Military, something she'd always desired. Vrak had of course gone on a completely different path, using the Sphere of Logistics to undermine and worm his way through the system.

"For now." Vrak said simply, a chuckle pulling from the old Sith Lord's lips.

"Plan to kill her as well? You always have been an ambitious one Nashar."

A sigh escaped the other Purebloods lips, the Councilor slowly rising from his kneeling position. A single lightsaber with a curved hilt fell form scooped up from his lap, the blade not quite activating just yet as he turned to face Vrak. There was no hint of disdain on his expression, instead something that Vrak could onyl describe as respect.

"Your death will be a loss to our people."

Vrak scowled, then pressed the activator on his lightsaber. One half of the saber-staff sprang to life with a loud snap-hiss.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Only her reflexes kept her in the fight. Baltha didn't raise a hand, didn't even turn to face her. She just felt the ripple through the Force and dove to her right. The telekentic blast still found traction around her legs and sent her spinning back towards the wall. Neesa struck it heavily, feeling the wind knocked from her chest.

There was no more immediate threat, but it took her a few seconds to get her bearings and reach for her blades. The sith lord intended to use that time well. He didn't rush, didn't cross his legs or leave any openings as he advanced on Vrak. There was simply control as he launched into a complex offensive routine to try and drive Vrak's saber away from its defensive line.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

He could tell instantly that he had only a pale shadow of Lord Baltha’s skill.

Their lightsaber clashed, and the moment the Sparks of their crimson lightsabers met the Sith Lord already seemed to be on the move again. His blade flicked low to catch Vrak’s leg, the Knight barely stepping back in time to avoid the blow.

He tried to counter with a swipe to the Councilors neck, but his blade was repelled by just a wave of Baltha’s hands.

The two clashed, Vrak barely keeping up.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

There was no room for cowardice here. Stay back and the Lord would cut Vrak down. Baltha likely held him in high enough regard to finish him quickly. Neesa knew she was a different prospect. He might decide to send Sitas a message.

A defence could be measured by its potential to become offence. There was no point waiting for his next attack through the Force. As she charged in the runes faintly glowed. Her left hand changed grip so that her fingers could unfurl. Small bright specks flared from her fingertips and arced towards the Lord's back.

Lord Baltha turned his right shoulder in towards Vrak and went into something resembling a makashi duellist's stance. That freed his left arm to dismiss the dark side manifestations before they could strike him.

It didn't perturb her how easily he blocked them. It was better to have his concentration on that than a more destructive spell. She snapped up one blade at that left hand and then another at his robes. The Lord's footwork was exceptional, twisting and turning to keep them both at bay without leaving any openings to exploit.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak fought as hard and as fast as he could, but the difference was still great.

Even when Neesa stepped into the fray he was still stretched to his very limits trying to counter and jab through the Sith Lord's defenses. Baltha seemingly moving faster each time Vrak did. A scowl pulled across The Pureblood's lips, his fingers slowly tightening around his lightsaber as he slashed and dove forward, attempting to cut Baltha's wrists.

For the first time the Lord made a mistake.

As he moved back from Vrak's lightsaber the man twisted, the odd liquid motion ending against one of Neesa's blade. Crimson skin met cold phrik for just a quick second, blood drawing from the elder Pureblood as he suddenly dashed away from both Neesa and Vrak.

In the blink of an eye the Dark Councilor stood on the dais of the monument, his face contorted in a deep scowl.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Neesa stood stock still for a moment. Her chest was heaving. She noted that even wounded Baltha barely seemed to have exerted himself. He looked down at the stained robe with disdain.

He has been almost a blur between them, holding them at bay with impossible speed. They'd struck him once, but she had the feeling the sith lord had even more in reserve.

"We have to coordinate more," Neesa observed in a hushed whisper. It was an obvious point, but they hadn't been pushed to the point that they couldn't function as individuals before.

"I suppose drawing blood might give you a sense of satisfaction as you expire," Baltha called out. He kept his position, saber tip pointed half way between his two would-be assassins.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"Go to the left." He told her quietly.

This fight was a desperate one. There would be no elegance in this, no beauty, just whatever would work. His grip tightened on the hilt of his lightsaber as he glanced towards Neesa. His lips thinned slightly, his head shaking. He knew that it was unlikely.

Even from across the room he could sense Baltha's power, it seemed to linger wherever he moved.

"No matter."

A surge of strength flowed through the Other Pureblood, his free hand raising as a powerful jolt of Sith Lightning sprang from his palm.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Baltha knew how sith swords worked. When Neesa felt the tremor in the Force and her hairs stand on end she immediately knew that the Lord was confident he could overpower her.

There was no dodging the tendrils that arced out to meet her. Even crossing both swords before her didn't absorb all the lightning thrown in her direction. A bolt lashed her thigh and nearly dropped her.

It wasn't a quick burst. The energy kept coming. Neesa leaned into it but it was overwhelming. She could taste the ozone in the air. The hilts of her swords started to heat up, but she stubbornly held her grip.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak dashed to the side, using Neesa as little more than a lightning rod. The sparks of Sith lightning ravaged across her, drawn by the Sith Swords and the force flowing through her. The Pureblood simply moved to the side as fast as he could, dashing between the pillars and only catching the edge of the sparks.

He winced, coming to a sliding stop to the left of Baltha.

The Sith Lord turned his head, scowling at Vrak, but it was already too late. The Knight dashed forward, his lightsaber swiftly slicing down towards the Sith Lord. Baltha attempted to react, his lightsaber sweeping up to block Vrak, the lightning pouring from his off-hand quickly ceasing as Vrak fell upon yet.

Yet a moment before Vrak struck the Knight pulled back.

His free hand moved forward, palm flattened as a powerful press of the force erupted from him.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

The sound of Baltha crying out spurred her on. Lightning no longer lashed out at her. She smelled burned clothes and charred flesh and realised it was only a little from her. Vrak had struck the Lord with some kind of Force blast. The sith tried to put some distance between himself and Vrak as he recovered and Neesa drew herself up. His robes were blackened all across one side.

She could feel the power coursing through the blades. What she hadn't expected was how bright the Kethl runes glowed all of a sudden. As if those runes were channelling the energy that had been soaked up from the lightning. Interesting.

Baltha powered forwards in her direction, raising a barrier to fend off Vrak for a moment. She saw his plan stretching out ahead of them. Bring down the stunned assassin, return to finish off Vrak. He could do it too. Even injured he was the better swordsman, the more experienced and powerful Force user. That thought crystallised into a fierce resolve within her mind. Everything hinged on an instant.

She stepped away from his first strike, Sorrow came up and pushed his saber out wide. It would have seemed as if she was in a poor position to strike out with the second blade. But she didn't need to strike hard. She merely slapped at his wrist with the flat of the blade and let the thunder rune channel all of that willing energy. The flash of light temporarily blinded her, the sound of the sonic burst made her ears pop.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

The Sith Lord let out a terrible cry of pain.

Power ravaged through him, his body suddenly enthralled with lightning. Vrak's eyes narrowed, his lips thinned, and he saw opportunity.

Half a heartbeat passed, and then The Pureblood rushed forward. He moved in an instant, closing the distance between himself and Baltha as quickly as he possible could. The Knight rushed towards Neesa and Balta, the lightning that had been absorbed into the Assassin's blade still coursing through Baltha as he arrived. His lips twitched in a slight snarl, and then his lightsaber swiped high. The blade let out a loud thrum as it slashed forward, cutting into the Sith Lord's side.

The man's howls only grew louder, his fingers suddenly reaching out to grasp Neesa.

In an instant the other half of Vrak's blade ignited, the Saber-staff suddenly twisting, and then curling to strike down towards the Sith Lord's hands.

The crimson blade swiped down, severing the mans palms a the wrist.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

The expulsion of energy had been even greater than she had expected, leaving her discombobulated too. That was a technique she would need to refine. There was disbelief on Baltha's face. That was the moment she knew it was over. It was common. Everyone was mortal, everyone had to die. Yet no one expected it. They either struggled to accept what was already happening or they raged with their dying breaths.

Did everyone think they would live forever? Certainly it seemed to be more common with the sith than those she had dispatched in Livien Magnus. At the very least, Baltha had not expected that he would die today.

She didn't finish the job. He continued to stumble forwards but she braced her legs and held up one blade. The curved point of Sorrow found his sternum, drawing a line of blood but doing little damage. She used to blade to prop him up, leave him standing tall before Vrak. He was a pitiful sight now. Gawping in shock, his robes tattered and his arms ending in cauterised stumps.

Neesa looked to Vrak and stood impassive.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak kicked the Sith Lord back, using a gentle press of the force to push Neesa's blade away from the man. Baltha stumbled for a moment, and then collapsed onto his knee. The Pureblood attempted to catch himself on his hands, though of course quickly found them lacking in the task. He half collapsed with a loud thud, the stubs of his arms attempting to push himself up. Vrak felt the force welling within the man, a final attempt to lash out, but his foot quickly interrupted anything Baltha could gather.

The Sith Lord went tumbling back, letting out a yelp of pain as the younger Pureblood threw him back. "You tried."

His voice was filled with more than a little bit of smugness. The accomplishment was of course not entirely his own, without Neesa's help he very likely would have fallen, but still this was...sweet. It wasn't vengeance, it wasn't the revenge that he so desperately wanted, but it was something. The first success he'd had since his escape from Naboo. It tasted wonderful. He smiled as he stepped over Lord Baltha, his lightsaber swinging towards the mans throat, hovering only an inch away.

"Your time is over." He said simply, his foot settling on the man's chest.

With that the Lightsaber swiped forward.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

She didn't know Vrak well. The determination had been all too easy to read from his demeanour since reaching the control tower. He had desperately needed this victory. Neesa could not have taken that moment from him even if she had wanted to. She mused on that thought for a moment. There had been only a handful of people that had died by her hand that she had genuinely wanted to kill.

"Siedra next," she muttered. She wasn't literally next. There would be many others before that moment, but it was the next major milestone. Baltha's lightsaber was mostly fried and useless, but there may have been other artefacts on his person. She would search him if Vrak didn't.

"We should go quickly, they'll have ships down here within minutes."

Neesa wondered if she would enjoy Siedra's death rather than it being a mere formality on her path. She decided she would.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

He looked at Neesa, an eyebrow perked.

"That is the point." This was, in a way, a coup. Though the people of Athiss would not believe him, would deny him his claims, those in the ships above would not. Three Dreadnoughts was hardly enough to take all of his homeworld, but it would add to his fleet, add to his power. The Massassi, Kissai, and Zuguruk aboard would be more valuable to him than anything else, and if they found their former Master here dead at his hand they would follow him.

It was how their society worked.

"Let them come." He said as his thumb flicked over the activator of his lightsaber. "They will see Baltha's corse."

Vrak looked down a the severed head, then back at Neesa. "Then they will knee."

There was a confidence in his voice that spoke of truth. Perhaps Lord Sitas had not instructed Neesa on the way of their people, perhaps she had assumed the law did not apply to those of the Dark Council, but there was a reason he had done it this way. There was a reason he hadn't poisoned the old man or gone against him in a more subtle faction. He had to die by his hand, in the style of a True Sith. Of course, those who were about to arrive did not need to know of Neesa's involvement.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

She understood enough. Sometimes a Lord's personal guards were trained to the point of fanatical devotion these days. Sitas had executed an entire squad who had worked for a minor noble whose possessions full to the Lord upon his death. That was Vrak's risk to take, she supposed. She'd seen him bend the will of massassi easily enough more than a few times.

Neesa was also shrewd enough to understand that if he was going to ask them to kneel, that having Sitas' Shadow Hand and personal assassin standing beside the corpse was not going to go well for either of them.

She heard the whine of repulsors outside. A cursory glance around the room and she saw a stairwell leading up. There had been other entrances to the temple. She could find one of those and circle around to the ship. The glow of the Blood runes slowly ebbed away. Thirst almost hummed with pleasure at having drunk from such a powerful Sith. A curt nod, a hiss as blades were sheathed and she was gone.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak didn't put his lightsaber away, cradling it within his finger tips as he took a deep breath. Neesa disappeared into the shadows, and Vrak settled his gaze on the entrance of the Temple. A small smile slipped onto his lips, though he stayed any true emotion as the loud tromps of boots could be heard.

He glimpsed them within a few heartbeats.

Dozens of Massassi, a Kissai marked by the flow of purple robes. They streamed forward with weapons drawn and vengeance in their eyes. More than one of them snarled, letting out a hiss that was reminiscent of a snake. Vrak watched them as they flooded the memorial, one even moving so far as to begin his approach to Vrak himself. Before any of them could get too close however Vrak stepped forward, his voice booming throughout the Temple and beyond.

"Stop!" Instantly the Massassi froze, their eyes shooting towards the already decaying corpse upon the floor.

He gestured to the dead man with his lightsaber, one of the Massassi letting out a low growl. The Pureblood eyed the creature, his gaze turning to steel. The warriors before him twitched slightly, then realization dawned upon their faces. "You know what this means, what I've done."

 

[Neesa]

Neesa followed a narrow staircase to an upper level because it felt right. She was no endurance fighter; she wanted to return back to the cruiser, lick her wounds and meditate. Vrak probably had a speech to deliver.

The chill wind bit at her slim form even through her cloaks. She followed the breeze and found a balcony overlooking the stairs down. There were quite a few craft there now.

There was no time to waste. She knew the bastard would take off and abandon her here if necessary. Neesa needed to find a path back to the ship that kept her mostly out of sight. A few whispers from servants that perhaps Nashar had let Sitas' assassin kill Baltha wouldn't do much harm, but she couldn't walk back openly.

At some point she would need to learn to fly. Fortunately one of the vessels with Nashar's markings came to rest outside as she picked her path back. Perhaps it had come so that Vrak would not have to take the small shuttle they had stolen back up. Regardless of the reason she strode up the landing ramp as soon as it came down, pushed past the massassi and found a seat.