Skirmish A Monument to All Your Achievements | THR vs TSC | Jakku Enclave

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Jakku - Jakku Enclave

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm

Ace didn't answer Isobel Serraris outburst, instead he stood there and let her speak. Some of what she said rang painfully true. Some of it, he couldn't agree with. Once, he'd have challenged every accusation, defended every choice, tried to convince her she was wrong. Not anymore.

He watched her disappear back up the dune. Through the Force, he felt the turmoil inside her finally beginning to settle. She was exhausted. Finished. Relief eased something inside his own chest. Whether she found her way back to the Jedi or chose some other path entirely didn't matter to him anymore. What mattered was that she was walking away from this.

His attention returned to Arris. She'd given him the same answer she'd offered on Corellia.

Ace's brow furrowed. "So instead of convincing them all to leave and going with them..." His hand swept vaguely toward the Covenant forces encircling the Enclave. "...you're just gonna keep letting yourself, and them, be miserable inside that cesspool? That's not protection, Arris. It's just stagnation."

The comparison to Aether lingered between them unanswered. Months ago, Ace would've agreed without a second thought. He would've killed for his brother without hesitation. Now... he wasn't sure it was so cut and dry for him.

As Arris gestured toward the Enclave, Ace's gaze drifted across the battlefield. Artillery thundered beyond the dunes. Crimson and blue bolts carved glowing scars through the smoke while distant explosions rolled across the desert.

Then the revolver settled between his eyes, but Ace didn't flinch. When Arris offered it to him, another battlefield, or the aftermath of one, rose in his mind. Coruscant. She'd offered him her revolver then too, with a similar choice. Back then, taking it had awakened something ugly inside him. The temptation to end everything with a single pull of the trigger had been stronger than he'd ever admitted.

This time... there was nothing. He accepted the revolver and turned it over once in his gloved hand, studying the worn metal in silence.

"Yeah..." A faint edge crept into his voice. "Of course that's how you'd see it." He looked back up at her. "I'm here to right my wrongs. Simple as that."

His thumb idly traced the grip before he stepped forward and placed the revolver back into Arris' waiting hand.

"But also..." His eyes never left hers. "I'm here for the people I care about too."

He trusted she was intelligent enough to understand the words he wasn't saying aloud.

A tired breath escaped through his nose. "Much as I hate to admit it... guess I'm kind of fond of you now."

There was a faint edge of dry humor in his tone.

Arris Windrun​

 

[Arris Windrun]

Acier Moonbound
Down & Out
​

She accepted the revolver back as if it were nothing.

"Figures," she muttered robotically as she flicked the accelerator off and slipped the weapon back into the holster.

When he said he cared about her, too, Arris clicked her teeth together and huffed. By then, the coolant had congealed so much it stopped leaking altogether. Her bleeding, too, seemed to let up. The black metal hand around her gut was now covered in dark red.

"Y'know it's never been easier to kill me. First that Echani Jedi and now Isobel... They always aim everywhere except my head." She tried to chuckle dryly, but it just came out wrong again. "Unlike you, Ace - except you don't aim with a gun, or that," she gestured to his lightsaber. "You talk. But getting inside people's heads was the one thing I never taught you."

Not that she wasn't good at it.

"Short of just abducting them to some backwater and chaining them in a cellar until they come to reason."

Neither Nilira nor Kirie would trust her again. If they ever did.

"W-W-W-What am I supposed to do, A-Ace?"

She also didn't want to wake up one day and find a Republic back in the Core. Senators and Jedi holding hands, running the galaxy with half a personality between them until some deranged old man came along and kicked them to the curb again. That's how it was with the Empire, in her mind anyway.

"I can't let you wreck that siege line... and I'm sure you c-c-can't let me enter the Enclave, yeah? So what now?"

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Mercy Lysander von Ascania Sophelia Ardemark Zaiya Ceti Naniti

The titan sank beneath the swirling sands with such ease that Cora knew this would not, could not be the end.

Nothing with Mercy was ever easy. At least, not where combat was concerned.

The Dark thrummed beneath Cora, and all at once, a ring of sand and ichor exploded around the Jedi. Mercy followed not long after, bursting through granular earth with violent speed and that vicious arm pointed upward.

Cora had just enough warning to sidestep being skewered. Unfortunately, this put her just a hairline over the boundary of sizzling dark-side tar - effectively sandblasting the right side of her face.

The Jedi groaned and hissed as the siren song of Mercy's voice, warm like honey, slipped into her mind with ease. It wasn't a balm, but it wasn't particularly disorienting, either.

"You answered a question with another question," she rasped, teeth grit tightly together while blotches of corruption sizzled and ate away flesh. One eye closed, and the skin around her deepening wounds throbbed a painful red.

Her hands still moved, though. While Mercy was still in the air, carried by the momentum of her thrust, Cora reached into the breast of her robe and retrieved a small, crystallized stake thrumming with concentrated Light.

"That isn't how conversation works."

When what was up came down, she thrust the supercharged spear into Mercy's gut.

 

[Novac Lyrikal]

Objective 2
Silara IX
Armor in sig

A few droids had already left to his ship to drop off what they had, most where in the prosses of doing so. Novac only had himself and Kairo, who was currently a few meters away grabbing some old tomes with his sword on his back next to a large pack.

As the two of them filled their packs Novac heard the elevator coming down and didn't give it much thought other then 'good some of them are back already'. That was until his heat pits along his mouth sensed one heat source quickly followed by another, a person and a lightsaber.

Then as he turned to face the person he saw a few droids fall in two parts each, no matter, they can be fixed later. What mattered was the girl before him raising her arm and a surge of heat coming from it. He knew what that meant from his fight with Darth Strosius. Quickly dropping to the ground just moments before the lightning hit him, now just flying above his head.

Quickly putting his four sabers together he slithered forward at ignited his saber, its yellow blade a few inches from the floor. Charging foward he aimed at the girls legs.

Kairo was a bit farther away but would almost instantly drop his pack and grab his sword and run at silara attempting to stab at her side.

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Jakku - Jakku Enclave

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm

Ace watched the coolant hardening across Arris' frame, the blood around her hand growing darker as it coated black metal instead of dripping freely into the sand. She was getting worse and every sentence seemed to cost her more than the last.

The remark about abducting people earned nothing more than a slow shake of his head. He couldn't tell if she was joking.

"I don't wanna get inside people's heads anymore." His voice was quiet. "I just wanna help, I guess."

Her vocabulator crackled again. Ace had seen Arris fight through injuries that would've killed most people outright. He knew better than to mistake her failing body for weakness. Even so... he didn't even want to fight her. Especially not like this.

When she laid out the problem between them, he found himself agreeing with it. She couldn't let him break the siege line. He couldn't let her enter the Enclave. The two objectives simply couldn't coexist.

Ace shrugged. "We can just talk." Another artillery blast rolled across the dunes. "It's what we're both good at, right?"

Without another word, he lowered himself onto the warm sand, drawing both knees up before resting his forearms across it. The skyline stretched before him beneath a haze of smoke and drifting ash. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his gloved hand.

"You never answered me, by the way." His eyes remained fixed on the burning horizon. "You hate the Covenant. The galaxy. 'Everyone.' But you wanna protect your family." He let the words hang for a moment. "You did me a solid. Convinced me to leave. I owe you for that."

Only then did he turn his head to look at her.

"So why aren't you doing the same?" His expression was calm, genuinely searching rather than accusing. "Why not just take them... and get the hell out of dodge?"

His gaze drifted back toward the skyline, where another distant explosion briefly illuminated the smoke.

"Forget the Covenant. Forget the Republic. Forget all this banthashit." His hand gestured vaguely toward the battlefield stretching across the dunes. "Take your family and disappear."

Silence settled between them for a moment before he spoke again.

"You asked me what you're supposed to do. Answer seems pretty simple to me."

Arris Windrun ​

 

[Arris Windrun]

Acier Moonbound
Down & Out
​

When Acier sat down in the sand, Arris smiled. She let go, falling onto her back, arms sprawled slightly from her sides.

The Triumvir looked up at the orange-yellow sun beating down on her. Mercy, Meliant, and Lysander had all gone ahead. It was she left in charge of the siege line, but there she was, lying down in the sand instead of doing her job.

It was an interesting perspective... watching the artillery fire streak across the sky from her view. Like a reverse meteor shower. Only hotter, brighter, and with the lingering thought that every impact meant death for someone else.

"It's like I said, man. What am I gonna do, drag them out of there?" She asked. "Maybe you spent your time around everyone except the ones who mattered, Ace... Did you ever meet Nilira? Neriah, as she was once known. Did you see how broken she is?"

And if that wasn't the point.

"How about Corsell, when you trained her on Thrantin?" Arris never asked after Kirie past that point. They had last talked on Coruscant, and since then the two hadn't crossed paths. The cyborg wondered if the younger woman was avoiding her.

Arris frowned. Though it would've been difficult to catch from his angle.

"And it's like I said... There's new people. Every day, new people. Honestly, man, just ask yourself: what do you think happens to the Covenant if I'm not there? What do people like Meliant do in that vacuum?"

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

The crimson blade hovered close to wash the pair in its vibrant hue, but it was the violet Togruta as she pressed her face closer that drew Zaiya's attention. It was in this close proximity that Zaiya could almost breathe in the emotions bleeding from Naniti.

The Lovalla's opal eyes met Naniti's as the shifting colors over her skin went rippling into a quiet bronze edged with soft blue. Beneath the anger... beneath the conviction... there was something more.

"I don't think you're wrong because you've seen terrible things," she answered quietly, keeping her stance loose, ready to move the instant the blade did. "I think you're wrong because someone convinced you those terrible things were all there would ever be."

It was then that a sad little smile found Zaiya's lips, thinking back to the wretched amount of disaster and heartache she'd seen since her parents were killed on Commoner so long ago. Since she felt their connection sever and fade.

"I've seen the galaxy burn too." Her bracelets gave the faintest musical chime as her hands shifted, never lowering her guard.

"And every time... someone was still helping someone else out of the fire." The warmth in her expression didn't waver; instead, it seemed to only resonate in the way the colorful bioluminescence edging the patterns over her skin shone brighter.

"So maybe peace isn't believing everyone gets along." A quiet breath. "Maybe it's deciding not to become another reason they don't."

She tilted her head ever so slightly akin to that of a bird's, adding wryly, "...Though I would still very much appreciate it if you didn't try to cut me in half. I rather like being one whole -- whoaaa!"

The sudden rumbling and shaking of the ground around them as Mercy's draw of the Force sent a distant sinkhole to suddenly dip and make the surrounding ground around them shake and rumble. Debris began to fall around them, and Zaiya responded by widening her eyes, calling out, "Watch out!"

A surge of the Force drew up; the vines that Cora had primed to be at the ready suddenly burst through from the ground, Zaiya guiding them up to try and shield them from the debris even as the Lovalla tried to pull the woman away from the danger.

 

[Kadeon Virell]

Objective: Protect the Archives
Location: Jedi Enclave, Jakku
Outfit: Combat Ready
Equipment: Double-bladed lightsaber - Twin Verdict
Tag: Kaelyr

The Force crashed into Kadeon like the blast furnace of a starship engine. For the briefest instant his grip on Kaelyr slipped beneath the overwhelming heat radiating from the Sith. His hand instinctively recoiled as though he'd reached into molten metal rather than the Force itself. "He's burning..." The thought barely registered before crimson met emerald once more.

Twin Verdict spun with practiced precision, its twin blades tracing green circles through the cramped corridor. Kade's footwork remained light despite the confined space, years of athletic training allowing him to shift his weight effortlessly from defense to counter, denying Kaelyr the clean opening he desperately sought. Sparks cascaded around them in brilliant showers as each exchange rang through the archive like hammer strikes against an anvil.

Neither combatant yielded. Neither gained ground. Kade could see it. Every strike from Kaelyr carried enough fury to cleave through the stone itself, the cosmic flames extending his reach far beyond the crimson blade. Walls hissed and melted under glancing blows, chunks of ancient masonry crashing onto the floor. The oppressive heat soaked through his clothing, sweat stinging his eyes as every breath tasted of ash.

Yet for every murderous arc, Twin Verdict was there. A deflection. A redirect. A narrowly-timed duck beneath another flaming sweep. The corridor had become less a battlefield than a furnace. Then Kaelyr's intentions became painfully obvious. He wasn't trying to break through anymore. He was keeping Kade occupied. Every passing second was another second for something else to unfold deeper within the enclave.

"No..." Kade's jaw tightened. "I'm playing his game." Defense had served its purpose. The archives still stood. The Sith hadn't advanced another step. But if he remained reactive…Eventually fatigue would win. Eventually one mistake would be enough.

His former athletic coach had drilled the lesson into him years before he'd ever held a lightsaber. "If you're always defending, you've already surrendered control." The realization settled over him with startling clarity. His stance changed. Subtle. His feet shifted from rooted stability into something far more dynamic. The measured cadence of blocks disappeared as Twin Verdict accelerated, the staff spinning faster with every rotation until its emerald blades blurred together into a wheel of green light.

Instead of waiting—He attacked. Kade exploded forward through the lingering flames, trusting the Force to guide him through the narrowest paths between Kaelyr's burning arcs. Rather than simply batting the fiery blade aside, he met each swing with aggressive redirections, using the momentum of every clash to roll seamlessly into the next strike. High. Low. Reverse spin. A sudden thrust toward the Sith's centerline before the rear blade whipped around in a tight horizontal cut.

Each attack flowed immediately into the next, never lingering long enough for Kaelyr to dictate the exchange. His powerful frame became a whirlwind of speed and relentless pressure, Ataru's mobility blended with the disciplined counteroffensive principles he'd spent years refining. His objective wasn't reckless victory. It was initiative. To make Kaelyr respond instead of scheme. To rob him of the time he so clearly wanted.

"You've been trying to control this fight," Kade said between the rapid rhythm of clashing blades, a determined grin breaking through the sweat and soot across his face. "Let's see how well you do when you're the one trying to keep up."

Twin Verdict screamed through another tight rotation as Kade pressed relentlessly forward, determined to drag the Sith's attention away from whatever larger design he believed was unfolding beyond the duel.



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