Light Up The Darkness

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

Somewhere in between Coruscant and Brentaal IV, there was left an abandoned outpost. It had been used by the Galactic Republic to monitor communications and traffic along the routes that led in between the Core and Mid Rim. Before the Empire. Before the One Sith.

Stood on that same outpost was a Jedi Knight. She had come alone. Arsix- her trusted astromech- had been left, alongside with the Sochi Ru, on Chazwa. The unmarked shuttle- outdated by several decades- was left docked at the station. She would use it to return to Chazwa, once she had finished her business here.

A week had passed since the Battle of Condruum. It had been a must win for the Galactic Republic. But they had failed. Without letting anyone else know, Ella had called the dreaded Darth Vornskr out to face her in the void. Before the One Sith ended the Republic once and for all, she would take down one of their own that was wholly capable of helping them to do it.

It was time to light up the darkness. At the center of the station, where it's former occupants gathered to eat, drink and socialize in the past life, Ella was knelt in an open space, furthest away from the stations doors. Eyes closed, she meditated on the Force. She would know when Vornskr would arrive.

Then she would be in for the battle of her life.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVPG_KKq7mk​

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From the darkness of the void emerged a Sicarius-class Stealth Yacht, it's sleek and black-matte frame emerged from hyperspace with a shudder as it quickly adjusted to the physics of real-space with a jolt. It was the Crestfallen, personal transport of the Sith Lord Darth Vornskr, and it carried him towards the abandoned Republic communications station that had been abandoned by the Republic as the Empire continued to push them further and further away from the Core regions. It's only living occupant was the Sith Lord himself, but sitting in the co-pilot seat was his personal TAC Tactical Droid designated TA3 - 729, or commonly referred to as the Ripper. His chassis was stained by scarlet blotches and various blades hung from his midsection, each one of them as stained as he was and wickedly sharp and serrated. A pair of crimson photoreceptors stared out into the blankness of space before focusing on their destination.

"Scanning for life forms, Master."

The droid raised a single hand and delicately pressed one of the many buttons that littered the cockpit's control panel causing it to light up and a miniature holographic display of the station being projected in front of him. A red line then began to go over the station again and again, but after a moment the entire display disappeared and a technical readout of the station began to transmit across one of the monitors.

"One major life form detected, Master. She came alone."

The Sith Lord piloting the craft didn't directly reply, but instead grunted with indifference as he angled the ship in for a landing in one of the open hanger bays. It hovered for a moment, and then gingerly lowered itself to the rusted metal floor. The landing gear emerged from the craft's underside and touched the ground with a groan of metal upon metal, and soon enough the boarding ramp descended and the Sith Lord emerged alone. Shortly after the yacht would rear back up from the floor, turn one-hundred-and-eighty degrees and return to the empty void of space. TA3 - 729 would return whenever Vornskr called for him, and not a moment longer. In the meantime he would keep a constant connection with the Ruination, Vornskr's personal battle cruiser, which had anchored itself several systems away and was prepared to jump into the system should things get overcrowded.

Vornskr descended into the abandoned dark, ready to confront the Jedi.

[member="Ella Nova"]

 

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

Ella's eyes opened. The clanking of boots against hard metal echoed through the hall. It was the same sinister presence she had felt on Balmorra. She remembered watching Corvus Raaf disappearing over the ledge, on the upper floors of the Balmorran Arm Factory. She had been too late to join the Grandmaster and her plight to stop Darth Vornskr. Her own duel with Vaulkhar had prevented her from intervening.

Slowly, the Jedi Knight stood up from the floor. Her hand removed her lightsaber from her belt, before sliding itself into the opposite sleeve. Stood in her black Jedi robes, her hood rested on her back. There was no need to keep her face concealed.

She turned to the Sith Lord as he entered the dining halls. It was an eerie scene. Dust had settled over the counters, tables and various booths, where Republic servicemen and women had once sat. There were a few plates and glasses left behind, like they all had to leave quite suddenly. She was alone, facing against the galaxies most strongest of Dark Lords. She would have felt nervous, if she didn't have the Force as her ally.

"Hello... Darth Vornskr."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

His cloak clung to his body loosely, the billowing folds flowing behind him like a specter's shroud as he entered the deserted dining hall. A thick layer of dust had covered nearly everything, and utensils and other appliances laid where they had fallen in the haste to vacate the station as the Sith encroached even closer. Now there was only two of them, one who was born of light; and the other born black as the night. His cloak was bound together at his upper chest by an ornate brooch of black and silver metal studded with scarlet rubies that resembled the ancient symbol of the Sith and the Dark Side. His head was covered by a wide hood, shadows concealing his features beneath it's embroidered rim save for the piercing pin-pricks of yellow that stared out hungrily at the lone Jedi Knight. With almost trivial effort he unsnapped the brooch, and his cloak fell away soundlessly to reveal the monstrous form beneath.

His chest was covered by a breastplate of black armorplast inscribed with ancient Sith runes and horrific depictions of eldritch horrors that upon further inspection resembled creatures born from long lost mythology and occult worship. The rest of his body was covered by matching armor that guarded his forearms, groin, thighs, and shins alongside a pair of leather combat boots. Beneath the armor was a black bodysuit that clung to his muscular features well, conforming to each muscle that coiled beneath. Only his face was unarmored, and it was terrible to look at in itself. From his trademark yellow eyes was a chiseled face pocked by battle scarring and intense burns that left behind a waxy complexion alongside a hairless scalp, and his expression seemed stuck on an angry scowl as he beheld the Jedi.

"Greetings, Jedi. Have you come to this place to die?"

From his hip arose his stylized Sith lightsaber, the curved grip slipping into the palm of his outstretched right hand while the fingers closed around it with a firm grip. From the darkness emerged a beam of crimson energy which crackled and hissed with only a minute fraction of the hate that seethed and boiled within it's wielder. The glowing weapon cast nightmarish shadows upon the Sith Lord, accent the angles of his face like a grim death's head.

"A poor excuse for a tomb, but the dead are not picky."

[member="Ella Nova"]

 

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

"There is no death. Only the Force."

It was almost defiant, the way she retorted. It was well conceivable that this man- this monster- would see to this dining hall becoming her tomb. Many Jedi had stood before her and failed. Corvus Raaf- still fresh in her mind- was a much more powerful and far wiser Jedi than she ever was. The odds did not stack in her favor. But they didn't for the Galactic Republic either.

"I have a proposition."

Her arms moved through her sleeves, allowing the dark garment to drop off her and onto the floor. She took a step forward to clear the jumbled robe, eyes always on the Sith Lord as she did. Blue stared into the yellow defiantly. She hadn't turned on her lightsaber yet. She would to defend herself before he attacked.

"Win or lose, you will take me to Coruscant and will set up a meeting, which will allow me to meet with the leaders of the One Sith. Even if means meeting the Dark Lord of the Sith himself..."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

Well, that was a first.

For a while he was silent, mulling over the Jedi's proposition as his eyes narrowed and bore into her's with such hateful intensity. Finally he let out a derisive chuckle, the edges of his mouth curling upwards mockingly as he pointed the tip of his blade towards her in an aggressive manner. "You are bold, that is for certain." The Dark Side swirled around the Sith Lord as he stalked towards the lone Jedi Knight, each step reverberating through the empty mess hall and down the vacant hallways.

"Face me, Ella Nova. Face me and I will decide your fate, amuse me enough and I may take your broken body to Coruscant. Although I doubt the Dark Lord would waste his time on a cretin like you, now fight!" He lunged forward, his feet rising off of the ground as he leapt towards the Jedi Knight to deliver a vicious diagonal slash with his lightsaber aimed at her torso. Upon landing he would then proceed to unleash a flurry of chops, jabs, and crosscuts utilizing the dominating style of Form V; his primary dueling form. Thanks to the curved design of his lightsaber it allowed for greater overhead strikes and an awkward fighting style that could confuse his opponents.

He was eager to see how she fared.

[member="Ella Nova"]

 

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

Struggle. That was the word. Blue light hummed into life to meet the crimson blade of Darth Vornskr, and followed by his ferocity, Ella was instantly on the back foot. Driven backwards by each swing, jab and crosscuts, the Jedi Knight instantly felt her arm tire under the machinations of the Sith Lord. She no equal for his brute strength.

Like flashes of lightning across the darkness, red and blue met one another with the type of ferocity that was demanded, given the circumstances surrounding the duel and what was at stake. Vornskr, fighting for domination over the galaxy through one vision, one purpose. Ella, fighting for the future of the galaxy and the democracy she swore to serve the day she became a Jedi Knight.

Perspiration gripped her brow, her body drenched in sweat, despite the coldness of space. The whir and hum of lightsaber blades drained away the cold, only leaving the heat of battle. She buckled beneath a crosscut, falling onto one knee and rolling along her side, back onto her feet. The following diagonal slash forced her back into a roll. Her head spun dizzy as she came back onto her feet. Jabs continued to test her defenses and Vornskr would feel his opponent beginning to drain.

Parry. Parry. Parry. She engaged Vornskr in the outer ring, one of the three rings of defense. Form I vs. Form V, as the basic maneuvers of Shii-cho battled against the ferocity of Djem So. Grand sweeping blows held at from diagonal positions. Keeping the Sith Lord at bay, she knew that the closer he got, the closer she came to meeting the Force. But it told her that she would not fall to his hands.

Before he could come in with another crosscut or diagonal slash to break her defense, Ella parried the last jab and gathered the Force in her legs. The back flip carried her across the expanse and down behind the counter, that had been used to serve drinks and the like. She panted behind the temporary barrier, her lightsaber humming to her diagonal right, as her eyes locked onto Vornskr's own.

"You never told me, Vornskr. How did you join the Sith Order?"

She was genuinely curious, a trait that should have been taught out of her during her Padawan years, but one that had managed to remain with her. She knew that some Sith had been born into the darkness, whereas others had simply fallen. Determining which would help Ella unlock the genocidal maniac that was Darth Vornskr.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

He held the advantage through their initial skirmish, his blade work was impeccable as put Ella through her paces. It was abundantly clear that the battle was one-sided from the beginning, but Vornskr had to suspect that Ella knew of that all along. His prowess on the field of battle was something of infamy, his ability to cut a bloody swath through the file and rank soldiers of the Republic was something terrifying to behold, let alone his notoriety in kidnapping the former Jedi Grandmaster and killing plenty of Jedi Knights throughout the war. Not to mention his previous infamy as the Emperor of the Sith Empire that had existed before the One Sith movement had caught fire within the Core Worlds, and his razing of Junction and Togoria were well accounted war crimes.

So why did she call him to this abandoned station all on her lonesome?

Was she suicidal?

He suspected that she wasn't, she came off as too intelligent to blindly charge into the jaws of death expecting to come out victorious; the fatal weakness of most of the Jedi that had willingly confronted Vornskr. Thinking about it reminded Vornskr of the young lad who marched up to his gates and challenged him to combat over his daughter, Evelynn Dorn, only to be brutally defeated in battle and tortured for weeks before being subsequently freed by an overly emotion Evelynn.

He wondered what happened to the boy... probably learned his lesson and is living a simple life somewhere away from the war; if he was smart that is.

He swung his blade at Ella, only to watch her backflip away from his strike and take refuge behind the bar counter. Vornskr needed no momentary respite, but he was in a sporting mood so he didn't press the advantage, and instead deigned to vaguely answer her question. "You could say I was born to be Sith, little Jedi." He reached over to grab the edge of a nearby table, and with a grunt of effort he tore the table from it's foundations and proceeded to chuck it at the space above the counter with Force-enhanced strength like a spear. "But what of you, little Jedi? Why did you join the Jedi Order?"

[member="Ella Nova"]

 

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

"I was born into it."

She didn't have much of a choice, in retrospect. But then, if she hadn't been taken into the arms of the Jedi, then she might have ended up like the monster that stood before. Having Force-sensitivity was a blessing and a curse. She didn't even know who her parents were. And she hadn't even thought about it properly, until that moment.

She concentrated back on the situation. Millions of lives were at stake.

"If you kill me, then your chances of claiming victory over the Galactic Republic dies with me."

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Oh, my dear" he said with a cackle, "I highly doubt that."

He again lunged forward, bringing his blade up and then swinging it down with tremendous force right through the bar counter, scattering utensils and empty cups as the wood and metal split before his wrath with a tremendous crack. He then proceeded to deliver a kick to the remaining side of the counter, the sheer brute force behind it caving in the front of the counter and causing it to splinter inwards and practically lift it up from it's moorings in the floor to lean back and possibly collapse backwards.

"Fight me, damn you. Face your death like a warrior."

[member="Ella Nova"]

 

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

Ella lifted her arms up instinctively to protect her face, as the Sith Lord attacked the bar. She felt pieces of shrapnel pierce her arms, which forced her to jolt backwards. She rebounded off the back war, scattering old glasses and bottles, whose contents had long expired. Her thumb switched her lightsaber off, as she retreated into the dark.

Force Conceal protected her from being sensed. She was no longer visible, nor could she be sensed.

"I am no warrior, Vornskr."

Her voice seemed to come from all directions. In the darkness, she observed her arm. Nothing serious. She pulled out the little pieces of splinters, whilst blood oozed slowly out of the small crevices that had become her cuts.

She retorted to his early statement of doubt. "Search your feelings. They betray you. Why else would I be here, if it wasn't to save the Republic?"

 

[Darth Carnifex]

"Then if you are so keen on saving your precious Republic, then come stand before me and submit." he snarled as he waved his crimson blade menacingly through the air, bringing it down again to carve another section of the counter clean off, cups and plates being thrown to the wayside by his rage. However; she had scurried away into the darkness, concealing herself from his gaze via the Force; and that only moved to infuriate him further.

"Coward! You can't hide forever!"

He raised up his right hand and shot forth tendrils of cerulean lightning from his gnarled fingertips, the bolts of electricity arcing through the dust-clogged air to strike the far wall and cause it to erupt in miniature explosions, knocking aside anything not bolted down and setting several things on fire. He then swung his hand around to bathe the entirety of the far wall with lightning, the air thickening with the rancid smell of ozone and fire.

[member="Ella Nova"]

 

[Darth Ayra]

| [member="Darth Vornskr"] |

Ella watched from the darkness, as Vornskr unleashed the raw manifestation of his hatred. Lightning cackled across the expanse, ripping into the furniture, walls and nearby transparisteel panels, which showed the void that surrounded them and the station they were on. As pieces were obliterated by the lightning, Ella found it to be metaphoric. Here, Republic personnel had once served, protecting the Core and the hub that was the galaxies only truest form of democracy. Now, one of the men who had pushed that democracy to the brink of destruction, was destroying the last remnants of that time with every pull he made on the dark side of the Force.

The snap-hiss of her lightsaber illuminated herself in the corner. She lifted the blue light to the purple streaks, as the surrounding walls around her were ripped to pieces. The sheer power of Vornskr was overwhelming. She felt strands of lightning beginning to tear into her body, as she tried to keep up against the tyrant's attack.

Her lightsaber was flung out of her hand, flying into a nearby wall and rebounding into the corner. Ella was thrown backwards, colliding into a transparisteel panel. The window began to crack, but did break entirely. The Jedi Knight laid at the bottom, arms sprawled, whilst her upper body shook in the last remnants of Vornskr's attack. Then, the last sparks died and the room was quiet, save only for the ominous hum of the Sith Lord's lightsaber.

Another Jedi fell, at the mercy of Darth Vornskr.

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The wrathful storm of anger subsided until all that remained was the buzzing of a lightsaber's blade until that too disappeared as the blade dissipated into nothingness. For a time the Sith Lord only stood there as still as a statue, his feet grounded to the metal floor while his eyes bore hatefully into the smoking form of [member="Ella Nova"]. Finally he moved with a maligned grace fueled by purpose, his left hand extending outward to pluck the Jedi Knight's lightsaber from where it had fallen with a simple telekinetic command. He studied the blade, rolling it over in his hands as he felt every groove, felt the Force flowing through the item and the metaphysical imprint left behind by it's creator. He frowned and hooked the lightsaber at his hip, his right hand still firmly holding his own curved-handle weapon as he turned to approach where Ella had collapsed under his furious assault.

He knelt beside her, flipping her onto her back without even physically touching her so that he could better look upon her serene features. She was but a child, no more than twenty-four / twenty-five years of age, but still she stood before his wrath where more experienced men would have fled. Perhaps it was her righteousness of a Jedi that kept her from fleeing, or perhaps it was misguided hope that perhaps she could trigger some form of change within the Sith Lord; perhaps garner sympathy from his withered soul.

But there was nothing in his heart that even resembled sympathy or compassion, he had purged such weakness from his being many years ago. Still, the scorching bile of pity tickled the back of his throat; which he banished with a hard swallow. He pressed a button on his wrist-communicator: "729, alert the fleet. Tell them that I demand a containment unit."

"As you wish, milord" was the reply that warbled from the device.

Soon enough a dozen Star Destroyer class signatures would warp in close proximity to the station, one of which was the dreaded warship Ruination, who had smashed countless vagrant fleets single-handedly but had yet been untested against Republic vessels. He hoped that would change soon.