Duel Pique la baleine

[Damian Starchaser]

It wasn't hard to track the man, it wasn't nearly as hard as it should have been. This led Damian to a simple conclusion, this was a trap. The planet of Kattada was an ocean world, and both himself and his kind of uncle Coren had interests on the planet, so when Damian had heard about a lookalike parading around the planet trying to make contact with local magistrates he had investigated. It didn't take long to find Marek's trail; a casino, a shady club, a number of back alley card games, the low places where one of less than morale convictions might go to enjoy himself. The kind of place one might go to meet men of standing who might be influenced by the dark powers he seemed to possess. The dark power that Damian, when he was being honest with himself, also possessed. It was the ability hard wired into him to lie. It was knowing what people wanted and giving it to them, making friends with them and otherwise using assets.

Of course Damian didn’t use his gift the way Marek did. The string of strung out men and women were in his wake, a trail of breadcrumbs leading to the outer islands.

Located off the coast and away from the more populous regions of the planet was the outer islands. They were tiny specs of green in a void of blue with a population that matched their side. The islands varied from the hyper rich on their privately owned beach to local townies. Isolated from the mainlands with a series of miles long bridges connecting them it was the perfect place to hide.

Lightning struck in the air overhead as Damians speeder drove across the longest of the chain of bridges leading to the islands proper. Most would glide across the ocean in skimmers except the bridge itself was designed for times like this. Damian wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not, but a storm was coming and the sea was choppy leaving only the bridge for citizens to enter and leave. And leave they did as the mandatory evacuation had started ahead of the large gale that was coming. Damian met few speeders on the way in, only a few stragglers left, and those few who were too stubborn to leave.

Another hour and no more speeders. The wind and waves picked up sending water washing onto the road normally well above the danger line. The speeder shook and rocked from the wind, soon it wouldn’t be safe to drive,but also soon he’d be at his destination.

He wasn’t going to any island in particular, but rather to one of the service stations on the bridge, designed with dock and road access to help with any accidents. Damian didn’t know why Marek had chosen this location, but knew why he would; it was perfect for an ambush, controlling the only access in and out of the area.

He approached Waystation six and could see its structure jutting out of the bridge. Taking a few deep breathes he steeled his resolve. He tries to play nice, then tries to eliminate the mans source of income, none of it worked. His thought went to Brooke and her contract with Marek before his employment, there was redemption perhaps. Not for Marek, but for himself.

The speeder lurched, it’s shield taking he brunt of the blow as a laser canon lanced out to strike him. The vehicle swerved on the road and nearly went off the side except for Damians meaningful jerk of the steering wheel.

Spinning out the speeder came to a rest nearly a hundred meters before the station. The door opened as a laser lanced out at him once again, this time neatly blocked by Damains now ignited saber.

Wind blowing his clothing and hail beating against the ground Damian stood. Siloutted by the light of the waystation and made blurry from rain was his nemesis. He knew him even now through the dim of evening and the obscuration from the storm, he knew him because they shared a face. Damian might have been the copy, but that didn’t make him any less a man.

“I’m surprised you’re alone,” Damian said as he stepped forward with his blade readied for another blast.



Marek Starchaser

 

[Marek Starchaser]

Understanding. That was what Marek was having. The world of Kattada could be something big. A perfect place to set up his next venture. Right in the shadow of his holier than though relative, Coren. That Jedi and their green tech, hell, even the wayward clone was here. But it didn’t matter. Marek had an idea, and when he had an idea, all it took was to get people to follow him. Pretty much a gift for the Dark Jedi. He could run back to the Confederacy, but that wasn’t his world anymore.

After Damian had robbed him of his company he needed to start small. And within the Jedi, and on a world such as this? He could peddle spice real easily. But for now, he knew that the other was on this world. He had to be, with the way he was feeling him in the Force…

But here he was. Listening to the automated report of a speeder coming his way, where he would have to deal with its pilot. Lucky for him, this waystation was relatively under his control. And that meant the automated systems. Marek was dumb but he wasn’t stupid. His mind was mostly clear, despite the hype he was having from the spice flowing through his system, one of the ones that was supposed to add mental clarity and a speed in thinking. He was hoping it would serve him well.

“I think its about time we had this out like men.”

His own blade, a sickly indigo, lit.

Damian Starchaser

 

[Damian Starchaser]

Taking a deep breath Damian focused in the force, absorbing himself in his mirrored image, his opponent. The viridian blade ignited before him and his violet one beside him he charged forward. Their blades clashed as an ocean wave washed up onto the bridge sweeping them away. Damian anchored his feet against the blow and kept Marek in sight as best he could making sure to give the man no option for attack. Hail was starting to fall as well and large balls of ice were hitting against his shoulders. A smile crossed his face as he looked over at Marek. “I never thought we’d meet face to face dad.”

So many thoughts rushed through his head. There was anger, but that was a lie, there was also relief and anxiety. The day had finally come when he could confront this man, this evil man. What would Coren think? It was a question he used to ask himself all the time but now he found the answer to be irrelevant. He wasn’t here for Coren, or family. Damian wasn’t even on that bridge in the moment for himself. The reason for his presence was simple, there was a man he had to stop, a man who left unchecked would continue to commit horrible crimes.

With one hand he gripped his saber and stabbed gracefully at Marek’s midsection before drawing his blaster in his left and sending a stun bolt at the man.

Marek Starchaser

 

[Marek Starchaser]

Marek Starchaser was the type who wasn’t normally going to fight one on one. He was there, in combat, in the past. There were droids defending him as he would play chess with the enemy, commanding forces, and using his control of the Force to start making the battlefield more useful for his own soldiers and team. That was what he had done here. A storm, created by the Force, not one of those true Dark Side storms, but a trick of altering the environment. A storm like this, it was not necessarily the best for him, but with the change of his mental state, due to the use of spice? He was aware of what was going on, and he hoped the winds and rain would psuh the clone away.

This fight was for him. The clone called him ‘dad’ and Marek rolled his eyes. “You are nothing more than a failed experiment.” He grunted through a clap of thunder. The saber, sickly indigo, a mutation of a blue lightsaber crystal, was held in a rear grip, the blade behind Marek, the Dark Master dressed in black leathers, enchanted by some darkness in the Force. Not done by him. Done by others.

The Force and his own senses were able to feel the double shot coming to him. His saber moved to intercept the blade coming for his while he pivoted away from the blast. Marek wasn’t strong at blocking himself in the Force. There would be that feeling of ‘phew’ filling the Force around Damian. Marek pushed forward on the blade and went for a leg swipe, aiming at Damian’s legs.

Damian Starchaser