Honing the Blade

[Daxton Bane]

The exercise area was littered with the broken hulks of battle droids as well as shattered remnants of target spheres, as a half naked Daxton lashed out with both his light sabers at the final target. Sweat coated his naked torso where the orbalisks were resting, feeding hungrily from their host as he tapped onto the power of the Dark Side.

Every day he devoted hours to practicing his sword skills as well as developing his ability to use shatterpoint. Although it worked in his duel against Shaw, he was still not totally satisfied. He had merely cracked the armor of his foe, when he intended to make it shatter explosively. He could see the fracture lines through the force, tiny little cracks visible only to his eyes. Anything had a potential weak spot, it was only a matter of using the Force like a hammer and striking with massive force until it literally exploded from the pressure.

He had gathered every single tome he could find regarding the discipline and had pored over them night and day. Practicing with his blades as well as with his naked fists and feet until finally he could use it effectively. A powerful weapon in his already impressive arsenal and one few would suspect he knew.

Taking a towel he wiped the sweat off from his torso and considered his next move. His spies told him that there would soon be a power shift, and Daxton fully intended to take advantage of the turmoil to seize more power for himself. The question was who would he have to eliminate to get his heart's desires. The names and faces flashed through his head as he pondered his next move.

 

[Darth Talos]

The grand empire of the sith...how pathetic. The self proclaimed Darth Talos had come to the land of darkness for one purpose, to learn the ways of the dark side that his father was unable to teach him before his death. He had no doubts that he could crush any opponent with his powers over the force, the benefit of training in them since he could walk. However, his saber skills were lacking and he knew it, plus why not learn all there was to learn so that when he conqured the sith no one could ever hope to surpass him.

The young 21 year old had asked around for a mentor, these efforts pointed him in the direction of a Knight known as Dax. He was told he would find him in the training area. As he approached he could hear the sound of sabers cutting through objects up ahead. He would have to be careful as he was not wearing his fathers "witch skin" armor. The being up ahead was giving off a strong aura of dark side energy, not as strong as his own but it was definitely notable. Talos rounded the corner and found the source of th
e sounds, a dark figure naked from the waist up, wiping himself down.

Without fear the youngster approached the sith "are you the one they call Daxton Bane?" Talos asked, his dark green eyes focused on the beast.

 

[Daxton Bane]

Orange eyes met his unflinchingly, gauging his potential foe and dismissing him as irrelevant. "Who wants to know?" He said slowly as he finished wiping down, most of his flesh was covered by dark green insect like creatures which seemed to thrive on their host, what little flesh remained was scarred from old war wounds. Tossing the towel aside, he switched off his light sabers and hung them on his belt.

 

[Darth Talos]

Talos eyed the wounds that littered the siths body. "I am Darth Talos. I come seeking training in the arts of the light saber and what little of the force that you know." The green insects that were covering the Sith's body seemed to be clinging on to his skin. He soon lost interest in the green creatures feeding on their gray skinned host and his eyes drifted down to the light saber clinging to his belt, it was almost exactly like the saber that he had been passed down by his father after his death. His father had never changed the crystal color, so it still held a shimmering blue when turned on. Talos had always been told that you must feel a connection to the weapon, but he never had...not to this saber. Once he had learned the skills he needed, he would take a mission to build his own saber.

 

[Daxton Bane]

"Another one already, and this one has the audacity to seek the title of Darth for so young and inexperienced a fighter. Very well, lets see what you are capable of." Taking one lightsaber into his hand, he ignited the orange blade with a hungry hiss, as he entered a defensive Makashi stance. "Well come along boy. Do you think I have all day? I might as well get some practice while I test you."

 

[Darth Talos]

Talos put a foot back, dropping the tunic he wore to the floor as to expose the dark cloths he wore underneath "Do not be so quick to dismiss me, I have been trained in the ways of the force since I was old enough to suck on my mothers tit." Slowly the naive boy brought his arm back, his palm still facing his opponent "Now you will learn respect Sith!"
Talos thrust his palm forward, unleashing a a wave of red lightning from his right hand as he used the force to claim his fathers lightsaber in his left. The lighting struck Dax's lightsabers with force enough to drain the energy of the strongest Jedi Knight. Flicking his lightsaber on, Talos finished off his lightning attack with one final surge of power, knocking the sith off balance, before leaping towards him with his lightsaber coming down in a sweeping motion.

 

[Daxton Bane]

As the Red Lightning arched at the Sith Knight, Daxton crossed his blades and bent his knees. Too many Sith relied on it without realizing how exposed it made them, digging his armored feet into the sand, with a flick of a muscle, he deployed the grounding coils, so that when the lightning hit, most of the charge was drained harmlessly away with no ill effect to Daxton.

Side stepping his enemies charge, he slashed at the younger Sith's arms with intentionally shallow wounds while keeping his guard up. "That trick might work wonders on whatever back water world you grew up on, but you need to do better if you will present me with a challenge."

 

[Darth Talos]

Daxton's blade cut through Talos's flesh, sending signals of pain up through his arm as he passed by the sith knight. "Bastard!" The boy yelled as he began to build up dark energy in his saber hand. Quickly he through his saber to his right hand and spun in the same direction. His blade came down in a sloppy manner, it had no hope of even denting a trained warriors defense but it was only meant to distract since the boy knew his saber skills were lacking. "

"You will die here!" Talos screamed, his saber meeting Daxton's, as his left hand came sweeping at the Sith's chest at full velocity. When it was mere inches from the Knight, Talos released the small amount of dark energy from his hand and sent it pounding into the knights body. One his age using such advanced Sith Magic was sure to grab his attention, as long as he lived through it that was.

 

[Daxton Bane]

So much anger, so much hate. The crystal was pleased with her host, and this was only the beginning, as the Dark Side Magic flowed against the orbalisks on his body to get agitated and spurred an increase in their activity. Painful, but manageable since he was familiar with the use of Dark Magic. Gritting his teeth, a third lightsaber ignited, mere centimeters from the apprentice's throat. "Foolish and ignorant. You let your emotions blind you to your surroundings. Yield or I will slice you open and eat your heart for dessert."

 

[Darth Talos]

Talos looked Daxton right in the eye, his body unmoving as the two starred eachother down "I do not fear death. Kill me, beat me, torture me...just make sure it does not bore me." The heat from the blade was setting the nerves of Talos's neck on fire. Right here, right noe, he could use his most powerful trick and use the mirror illusion magic on this beast....but he would not. If he revealer his every secret, that would serve against his purpose. In his mind, Talos could still crush Daxton, but he was also aware that he was a necessary cog in his plan....even if the boy looked down on him.

"If you expect me to bow, I invite you to just kill me now and save your breath."

 

[Daxton Bane]

"As you wish." Daxton invaded his mind with images of pain and horror that apprentice couldn't resist. Daxton being a Sith Knight easily broke through his mental defenses and fired the receptors for pain, fear and loathing, making it feel as if he was killing the apprentice when he barely even touched him. Like a wild dog he would train him using coercion and intimidation on a daily basis to break his spirit and make him vulnerable for shaping him as he saw fit.

 

[Darth Talos]

His father...he could see him right in front of him, clear as day. Then he saw Daxton cut him asunder, tow seperate halves hitting the ground. Inside him, and on his skin and in his eyes, everywhere was in agony. Before he realized it, he had fallen to his knees, his body barely able to support its weight on muscles that seemed to be exploding from the inside out. "No, no!" He growled underhis breath as he tried to force himself from the trance. He knew what these visions and pains were, but that did not stop them from seeming so vivid and real. Every cut sent waves of pain across gis body, even when in reality nothing was there.

Taking deep breaths Talos, or Jargas by birth, built his anger and did his best to call on the force through the pain. Then, one final burst of passion, he released a wall of force energy that ripped dirt from earth and sent heaps of battered metal drouds soaring into the air. The visions were gone....but his body ached and he felt drained of energy. The last force push was took a lot of energy to break free of his opponents grasp, but even with little energy he still attempted to stand...he would bow to no mortal.

 

[Daxton Bane]

But Daxton was no longer interested in seeing him brought down to his knees, having turned his back and walked back to the practice area. "You have some potential apprentice. It will take a lot of work but I think I will have a use for you. What is your name?"

 

[DurokNe'Ja]

(wrong character )

 

[Darth Talos]

Talos stumbled to his feet, his eyes were studying the back of the beast as he walked towards the practice area. "My birth name is Jargas." the young apprentice said, his dark green eyes not moving from the Sith Knight.

 

[Daxton Bane]

"Henceforth you will be called Apprentice Jargas, until such a time you gain the skill and right to call me out. On that day, take your sword and fight me as if it will be your last. On the unlikely chance you do beat me, then you can call yourself a Darth. Not a day before, is that understood, my apprentice?"

 

[DurokNe'Ja]

(Shit, this is the second time! I really have to pay more attention.)

 

[Darth Talos]

A grin came across the apprentices face "Yes, and on the day I kill you....master" The title bit his tongue like venom, he would not enjoy having to call this thing master..."I will carve the name Darth Talos into your corpse, and all will know my right to bare it."

 

[Daxton Bane]

"Then train hard and fast my apprentice. There are many who want the honor of finishing me. Take too long and you will be at the end of a very very long line." Summoning a protocol droid who arrived bearing a holocron. "Take the holocron and study it well. It contains the different forms commonly used for lightsaber combat. And before you ask, yes it contains the patterns used by the Jedi. Master the forms well, the key to defeating your foe is to know when and where his next strike would be. Anticipate and strike, by these words you will train day and night. It will be a hard road, but if you desire to kill me and claim your birth right then it is the only path you can take."

 

[Darth Talos]

Talos lifted his hand into the air and used the force to summon the holocron to him. The device flew from his new masters hand and gracefully into his. The young boy studied the device, looking it over in his hand a few times. If what the Knight said was true, then he needed to fix his saber problem now so that he could get used to a saber style he liked. He required something swift and offered protection, two Guard Shoto would suit his needs. Perhaps he had underestimated the usefulness of the Daxton

"Sit-I mean master , I must craft weapons suited to me if i am to learn the way of the saber...I wish to carry on the tradition of the Great Sith Empires and craft two red crystals....could you teach me the ways to craft a synthetic crystal to suit my needs?"