Revenge Of The Jedi

[Connor Harrison]

City Ruins
Mirial, Mirial System​

This was no mission of mercy.

This was no quest for peace.

This was no diplomatic voyage.

This was for revenge, plain and simple.

Connor Harrison didn’t care right now about what was lawful, or good, or bad. None of that had mattered when the Sith known as Darth Ignus has carved up the innocent [member="Kyra Sol"] and left her to return with one limb missing and a grievous wound on her face.

The promise not to hunt him down was a lie, and the Jedi Master was ready to extract revenge like he never had before. This was beyond what Dredge had done to [member="Keira Ticon"]. This eclipted what Sage Bane had done to Syala Davik and it paled to what he had also to [member="Matsu Xiangu"].

This was an attack on Connor himself through his beloved Kyra, a girl who he had brought out of hiding to learn great things and aspire to be something good. And for that she had been maimed and broken.

Nobody knew he had left for Mirial, and he didn’t care even if they did. There was nobody in the Silver Jedi Order he was close to anymore to warrant them knowing, and this wasn’t their fight; it was his.

The new Shadow Armour clung to him in a way no other armour had; it felt like an extension of his body and he wasn’t weighted down, and he couldn’t wait to everything out on Ignus who had been the fool to push him over the edge. All the betrayals, heart-break and cowardice. Years of suffering and frustration of getting nowhere and being talked down to and ridiculed from peers and allies alike who lied about caring for him.

As the Sith Sorceress herself had said to him – boring.

Connor Harrison was out for revenge, not just against Darth Ignus, but against everyone who had done him injustice.

He stood at the entrance to the desolate void where he had seen Kyra in her thoughts and felt her aura among the ruins of the ravaged city. But he didn’t care for where he was, he was just here to root out Ignus and kill him.

[member="Darth Ignus"]

 

[Kamon Vondiranach]

Leos, for his part, had waited patiently. He'd known that Connor would come based on how much the girl cared for him, and given what had been done to her. Unfortunate though it was, harming the girl would serve his purposes. Connor was not a Jedi. He pretended to be one, and that was what made him dangerous. Someone pretending to be something they weren't, and all the while hating Sith just because they were Sith. No, that wasn't going to work out well. Leos wanted him dead because he was certain that Connor would be a problem for the Reformation. The Sith wanted him dead just because he was who he was.

After the girl had left, he'd put out a call to [member="Darth Carnifex"] first. Why? Even though he didn't like him personally, Leos respected him and his power. This was a valuable ally in battle, someone who had faced down Jedi and defeated the. Experience was not something that could be scoffed at. Experience and power. Respect earned the Lord a place in the coming battle.

The other he'd called was [member="Haytham Kaze"]. A bit of an enigma, but Leos had ascertained that here was someone with a similar am it Ion to his own, and experience to back it up. The man would also serve as a powerful ally in a trap laid for Connor. Sure he was using himself as bait, but that was alright with him. It was the end goal that mattered, and he'd thought about this enough to have a decent idea of what to do. The other two, if they showed, could lie on wait without contacting him, and spring forth when they felt the time was right.

As it was, he'd felt Connor coming. In doing so, he'd crafted an elaborate illusion of himself, in his armor (see bio), standing in the street and waiting for the false Jedi to approach. He even projected his aura around the illusion to make it more genuine while he stood in the shadows of a building, his Maalraas, Asus and Milan, cloaked in the Force and waiting for their turn to engaged in battle. Yes, he came prepared and ready. The illusion was basically corporeal, as it was not huge and therefore easy for him to maintain while keeping himself also hidden.

Let him come, for he who seeks vengeance digs his own grave.

[member="Connor Harrison"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

​

​

Ruined City, Mirial

Not many still lived on Mirial after the atrocities that were committed on its people, but even among the ash coated wreckage of the Mirialan society one could find outcasts and survivors attempting to eek out a living among the shell-blasted skeletons of the once magnificent cities that dotted the planet's surface. Shamblers, corpses that had been reanimated by the Dark Side conjured by the colossal loss of life, roamed the ruins in their never ending purposeless march. Those that still lived among the refuse avoided them at all cost, but confrontation was inevitable as the dark force that gave them motion also compelled them to consume organic material in the form of humanoid flesh. Thanks to the efforts of heavily armed brigades most of the shamblers had been eradicated from the cities, but even so one could still find a gaggle of them roaming in tandem through the dark catacombs that wound their way beneath the city.

The Dark Lord peered out of the glassless window, his sulfuric eyes scanning the streets with meticulous precision. He spied the illusion crafted by [member="Darth Ignus"] down in the streets below that served as the enticing bait for [member="Connor Harrison"] whenever he so happened to stroll into the neighborhood. He thought this a bit overkill for just one Jedi Master, but Carnifex was never one to put much merit into the concept of honor and thus tacked it up to just being thoroughly prepared for an efficient victory. @Haythem Kaze was supposedly somewhere in the vicinity if Ignus was to be believed, but the Dark Lord had his suspicions about the green-skinned Sith. He\d heard of his diplomatic efforts during the Reclamation of the Caldera, and naturally abhorred that a Sith would lower himself to willingly extend the olive branch to their mortal Jedi enemies.

It rank of rampant idealism, something that a purist like Carnifex despised.

It didn't matter, they were here to put down Harrison and that was reason enough for Carnifex to get on board despite the severe lack of Heavenshield trouncing involved in the whole affair. He crouched back down behind the window ledge, his interlocking plates of ceramic armorplast rubbing together audibly with the motion, and absently fingered the Sith amulet that was strewn around his neck. A joint creation between himself and Rave Merrill that allowed the Dark Lord to completely conceal his presence within the Force, shielding him from all but the most dedicating probing senses so long as he kept his power reigned in, which proved to be a trivial feat for a master of the Dark Side such as him.

He'd lie in wait for Ignus to engage, and surprise the Jedi Master when he was at his most vulnerable.

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor walked forward slowly, crunching over the rubble below his feet as he slowly surveyed the city. He imagined this was the mirror of Korriban – a fate brought upon themselves.

A figure stood ahead in the open. Waiting.

There was no battle cry from Connor. No shout of rage. No idiotic charging into a fight.

While he was letting the thrill of cold-blooded revenge fuel him, he didn’t let it take over his common sense. For he had brought with him months – years – of experience and failure in such situations. With each defeat and each time he had been beaten and broken and carved a new wound, the Jedi had taken away a painful memory to learn from.

Now was the time to apply said memories.

He stopped and looked at the figure – a shrouded man he assumed to be the one waiting for him; Ignus. And in respect that the Sith was waiting, so too would be a host of deceitful and dangerous tricks. Sith didn’t play by the rules, and nor would Connor, because he didn’t think this coward would either.

Walking, he activated the shoulder mounted launcher with the internal HUD in his visor for the target. And just as expected, no heat source or read-out was detected. Only a Force aura of the Dark Side. The shoulder launcher retracted.

Connor kept walking. He wasn’t going to be deterred from his objective today with illusions and theatrics.

[member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Kamon Vondiranach]

Leos watched with some curiosity as the man paused for a moment and looked at the illusion. He had no doubt that the being in the heavy armor was Connor. Clearly that armor could see the lack of body heat, and now the man inside was ignoring the illusion. Normally that would work in his favor, but after the numerous times he'd spent working on this particular skill, Leos had learned that even illusions could do harm.

So as Connor neared the illusion, it spoke up.

"You know, had you actually taught the girl, instead of letting her run around, she would be better off. She wandered into a darkside nexus and didn't even care until it hurt her."

The illusion turned to face him, hands at its side. The voice was a perfect match to the one that Connor had heard before when they'd met in the wake of Korriban. He had, in that instance, successfully riled the Jedi up enough to call him a child, and that only because he had pointed out the truth of Jedi hypocrisy in recent years.

"I took your Saber from her and she took mine in retaliation. It was fair and I'd have let her go, but you didn't teach her the folly of attacking a superior foe head on. I tried to tell her she was being stupid, risking her life for a lightsaber, but she wouldn't listen. You really should teach your younglings to be smarter than that. She will remember now, though."

It was a little bit of baiting, but it was also the truth. Her actions had been her own choice and he'd tried to dissuade her from engaging him, but she refused. So, he'd taught her the lesson in a way that would never allow her to forget the truth. It was unfortunate, in his mind, but completely necessary under the circumstances. She wasn't going to quit trying unless she couldn't try any longer. So, he'd made it so she couldnt.

Now, as Connor drew near, the illusion would lift it's hands and send bolts of lightning racing out at the armored man. Perhaps not as powerful as if the real Leos was doing it, but he had learned that Illusions could also do damage, and that's what he was concentrated on doing. If the man's armor had electrical parts, he wanted to short them out. If he didn't succeed, then no matter.

The others could take their cue whenever they wanted. The goal here was to kill Connor. He'd already been baited in, now they just had to complete the task.

[member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Darth Carnifex"], [member="Haytham Kaze"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

Increasingly solitary, even Matsu couldn’t explain why she’d accepted the call. She could understand it. The target was strategic, regardless of any personal grudge any of the Sith in the vicinity of the meeting in the street below might have had with Connor Harrison. He was one of the trio of faces that represented the Silver Jedi, a continuous beacon of an age-old conflict. If anyone’s death would send a message, it would be his. The idea of carrying Coci Heavenshield’s head around by the hair was appealing to Matsu, but she’d always been good at patience - one piece of candy at a time.

If he was going to die though, she would do it herself. She had put in too much work, hooked too many poisonous thoughts in to the Jedi Master’s mind, to see him ground in to the dirt before she could see whether her barbs would blossom. If they did not he could return to ash as Mirial was doing all around them. But if they did…

From her perch several floors up in the skeleton of a crumbling building, she watched through the infrared vision of her armor’s helmet. Even without it she would have picked up on Ignus’ illusion, though not for his lack of skill. Illusions were simply her first love and some absent part of her yearned to talk with someone who made art with them like the fake ‘Ignus’ below. But another time. Tension was building below, Matsu’s fingers wrapped around a window ledge as she watched lightning crackle from the illusion’s fingertips. Acid dripped from the mouthpiece of her armor, its hungry sizzle burrowing through the duracrete sill.

Though the door had been opened, for now she would wait.

[member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Connor Harrison"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]​

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor kept walking, letting the taunt initially wash over him. Ignus knew nothing. NOTHING about Kyra. She was more than just a promising student; she was more than she. She was his only true friend that eclipsed the Order.

A chunk of rock crumbled under his foot as he picked up the pace, and he didn’t stop as the Force Lightning cracked out to him – but inside he did wince and prepare himself.

The duraplast and energy sinks did what Matsu and the Ranger said – the Force Lightning cracked around the armour, temporary blinding him but eating up the energy into nothingness. His movement wasn’t impeded.

His chest swelled with power, and he felt good. A grin broke out over his face, bearing through the visor to the prey ahead. Right hand by his side on the clasp where his lightsaber was fixed, he teased the hilt as he kept walking. Turning his body in a slow 360, he raised his left hand and beckoned his attacker to come again with a simple “come at me” wave.

Ignus was going to know what it meant to cross Connor Harrison. And it would be anything but boring.

[member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Haytham Kaze]

[member="Darth Ignus"], [member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Darth Carnifex"]​

​

Athyssius was sat in the ledge of a ruined building's window. Naturally, his presence in the Force was suppressed, lowered to such a degree that it may as well be impossible to sense him if one were not looking for him specifically. He came because Ignus and he shared a similar view on how the Galaxy should be. He came because Connor Harrison was a blight to both the Galaxy and the title of 'Jedi' that he continued to profess himself as. The entire Silver Jedi Order was a poor representation of what Jedi were supposed to be.

All of them would be purged, soon enough.

Until then, Connor Harrison would be the place to start.

Even if they didn't kill him, he would be broken. Like a twig.

Still, he let his leg hang out of a window as he watched the proceedings below him. He couldn't hear the exchange, too far for that, but he saw the flash of lightning strike the Jedi, and Connor continuing to stand. Yawning, he used a gauntlet to cover his mouth as he waited. Soon, he imagined, would be the time to make his move.

 

[Kamon Vondiranach]

Hidden within the illusion, Leos could only smirk. So the man's armor was more or less impervious to electrical attacks. That was good information to have. See, while Connor was feeling good about himself, Leos was just testing the man's defenses so as to give his compatriots a leg up when it came time for the actual battle. Now they knew lightning wouldn't work, so they wouldn't waste energy on that.

In the meantime, he had a weapon that he could use to his advantage. Since an illusion couldn't actually die, unlike him, he could attack with impunity. As such, the illusion brought forth a lightsaber which Connor would no doubt recognize as his own, the same one that Leos had taken away from Kyra when the girl had fallen and dropped it. This object was the real reason that Connor had come. If Kyra hadn't fought for it, she'd never have been hurt.

"Look familiar?" the illusion asked as he ignited it with a blue snap hiss. "It was this blade that cut your girls arm off, Harrison. Your own blade. Seems to have a thirst for blood."

Aware that the others would step out anytime now he decided to settle into a new mode of attack. The apparition twirled the blade and swung it at Connors right shoulder before changing direction at the last second and bringing the blade across at his face. It would certainly not have the same power as a real lightsaber, but Leos applied some of the same properties to it because he wanted to further test Connor and his armor. This way they could beat him.

[member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Haytham Kaze"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

As Ignus spoke, Connor ran forward a little to close the distance and look upon the green-skinned coward again. And he saw his lightsaber, the one given to Kyra for her to train with and used on her to maim her.

But that was a material object. It was a weapon to be used by any who held it. Connor has his new blade, and it was ripped from his side and ignited with a sharp snap-hiss as Ignus did the same; two blue blades in a flurry of movement.

As Ignus struck across his face, a small spark spat out, which was surprising even for a lightsaber hit. It wasn't powerful at all.

Retaliating, Connor gripped his hilt tight and challenged his lust for violence in each stroke, letting his muscles surrender to a darker amplififcation of the Force to swing out at Ignus - a top strike for the head, and around for the stomach; a figure 8 of brutal swipes that would require defense both high and low.

Connor felt nothing. No fear. No hesitation. No care.

[member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

Connor had to know the illusion wasn't real.

And if that was the case, the fact that the fake 'Ignus' below was still visible was interesting, unheard of. She and Jared Ovmar had traversed mentalism to its edges, and while she was not so foolish or conceited as to believe they would ever know its limits, it had also been a very long time since she'd been surprised. But then again...maybe it wasn't even mentalism at all. That she could see the apparition too suggested it was being cast on its own, not a product of some manipulation of the mind. If it was Ignus must have had exceptional power to make everyone close by see what he was casting. And if that was the case...

She unrolled from the window ledge, somewhere between spider and panther, agile as she sat as if ready to pounce from the sill. From so high up and dressed in dark armor it was unlikely Connor would see her immediately while so preoccupied, though she was making no effort to hide her presence in the Force.

Reaching outwards, she offered and joined her power to Ignus', a stream of Sith sorcery that would strengthen the illusion to the point that it might approach something close to real. Of course that would never be the case, but the hum of its saber would grow louder, its blows faster and heavier, its electrical attacks deadly.

And then she dropped from the sill, free-falling the several stories to the ruined street below and cushioning her landing with the Force, rubble and dust billowing up around her as she stood upright and stalked towards the titans clashing in the center. Her saber rattled, some dying man's inhalation, a product of its unstable crystal that caused it - unlike almost any other saber - to give off a blistering heat that seared flesh off of bone. It had been a parting gift from Darth Sicarii as the Omega crashed and it had been worth all the trouble.

She relied on the distraction of Ignus' illusion coupled with her gifted strength to allow her an approach towards the Master Jedi, or at least that it would force him to be careful when retaliating against her intrusion.

An opponent in armor didn't bother her. There was no way to cover the mind in phrik.

[member="Connor Harrison"] | [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]​

 

[Kamon Vondiranach]

The lightsaber would rise to intercept the strike at the head. Mainly because most people preferred to protect the head. Realism. The other strike would glance off of armor as the body of Ignus' illusion self would back away from the strike. With the addition of Matsu's strength to the illusion, it became even stronger. The sounds of the lightsaber, the glistening of the hide armor, everything. Now it was even more dangerous. Though Ignus himself was not much for lightsaber fighting, he knew enough about it to be capable of directing the apparition in attacking the false Jedi that faced off with it. As it was, Leos was still a little surprised that Connor hadn't seen through it all yet. He'd been certain the man had before.

Either way, from the safety of his hiding spot he took note of Matsu coming down to enter the fight. She was a curious one. Leos knew her son from their involvement at Ziost, but he knew little of her. The fact that she knew enough to lend strength to his illusions, however, made her interesting. That was something he would tuck away for later.

With the woman entering the fray, Leos reached forward with the apparition, directing it to spin in an attack that brought saber down at the mans head, but then withdrew and struck straight forward. Interestingly enough, the attack was meant to miss on the man's left side, in an effort to slide the blade between his body and his arm. If successful, the blade would be yanked to the side, aiming for the inner elbow. Typically this was a weak point in armor; one of only a few. Joints needed to be able to move or else armor was useless as you'd just be standing around unable to move. Because joints needed to move, they were more difficult to protect, making them, usually, the weak point in the armor. He figured to test his hypothesis.

Perhaps Matsu would get a strike in while Connor was distracted.

[member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Haytham Kaze"], [member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

The next strike came for Connor, still silent and speaking only in actions. There was a that twinge in the back of his head this was a diversion…this was a trap…and his gut told him he wasn’t alone. Holding his blade by his side, goading the Sith, Ignus made his move.

Yanking his head back, Connor shot up his left hand as the blade came and arched his body a little to allow him to catch the lightsaber in his Sasori glove, sparking in his palm. A sense of power surged through him at this point, again the feeling of total domination, and suddenly he turned around. His mind told him to.

She was here.

The grotesque armour could have belonged to anyone, but the way it looked and moved, it could only belong to her and it made sense.

Connor let go of the blade without even looking, the sparks spitting out onto the floor. This wasn’t Ignus at all. This was the work of Matsu Xiangu; the Sorceress, playing tricks with his mind and his perception.

"Why are you here? " Connor said calmly, synthetically distorted under the armour.

He walked towards her, as he would a wary ally over a feared enemy.

"Where is he? Don’t protect him! "

Connor didn’t move to fight, but he shouted. He needed to know. This wasn’t her fight – he wasn’t here for her – for the Sith, for anything. He was here for Ignus.

[member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Darth Carnifex]

The battle was joined below, barbs and blows traded in equal measure. A little jab thrown here, an opening salvo tossed there, and all the while the Dark Lord of the Sith continued to peer down upon the spectacle from his comfy position in the abandoned building adjacent to the empty street [member="Connor Harrison"] and [member="Darth Ignus"], his illusion at least, were currently battling on. The Silver Master seemed to be cutting loose, moreso than most other Jedi the Dark Lord had fought against in the past decade or so. Apparently Ignus had ruffled his jimmies by mutilating Harrison's apprentice with his own lightsaber, a move that clearly cut the Jedi deep, a fatal flaw in the Jedi as a whole.

From above descended [member="Matsu Xiangu"] and began to lend her strength to the illusion woven by Ignus before catching Harrison's attention as he turned to face this new combatant. As he shouted his inquiry to Matsu, the Dark Lord found himself agreeing with the Jedi's confusion. Why were they here? I suppose to ensure that Connor fell before their might, but so far this battle was completely and utterly droll. He poked his head out beyond the threshold of the shattered window from which he was viewing the whole affair, and bellowed a throaty laugh as the last reverberations of Connor's words echoed throughout the decrepit city.

"Quite a boisterous little plaything, isn't he? Do not mistake our presence here for coddling, Harrison. The trap that had been laid before you was abysmally simplistic yet you walked headlong into the lion's den without fear, without hesitation. Did your apprentice mean that much to you? From what I've heard she was quite the pitiful creature."

[member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

Just as Connor wasn’t here for her, she wasn’t here for any of the Sith standing near them. This was deeply personal. When he asked about Ignus she shrugged, letting Carnifex roll out the futility of the Jedi’s situation.

The Master had been filled with that foolish arrogance since they’d both left Rhen Var, Matsu in pieces that she’d sewn together in to an even more perfect whole and Connor...apparently still under the illusion that he had garnered some ancient wisdom in the act of adding to her scars. He moved towards her as if confident she would not do anything. As if tamed. But underneath the helmet she smiled - a real one, hideous but reconstructed, the red trail where his lightsaber had rested against her face twisting in to the corners of new lips. The rebuilding had almost been as painful as the undoing, but it was worth it. Now she could speak again.

“I don’t know where Ignus is,” she answered, her own voice coming out fully mechanical from its synthesis through the armor, without tone or inflection. “But I told you. I will hunt you until you accept the truth, or you’re dead still holding on to your lies.”

Seemingly of the same mind as Carnifex on his throne of a windowsill above, Matsu unrolled the full might of her mentalism to latch on to Harrison’s mind - a place she knew well, located easily in the thoughts of the Sith Lords milling around the ruined city. She went for something simple. Complexity would require her to lend some of her strength to the creation, but staying straightforward allowed her to simply push down on her prey with all her strength - to freeze him still, grasp every neuron to stop its signal and lock him in place. Of course she didn’t expect it to simply end the duel. The Jedi was familiar with her mentalism. But just as some warriors pushed through hit after hit to grind their opponent to dust, an undaunted wall of strength and Force, Matsu was the same with her mind. She would stop for nothing.

“If you want Ignus, you’ll have to destroy half this city to get to him. And despite how decrepit it seems...I saw people living among the ruins. Innocent people. What was the pathetic Padawan worth to you?”

Her laughter through the toneless filter of her armor was wrong, punctured by the glaring hum of her saber as she moved towards him in tandem with Ignus’ illusion - hopefully sluggish with the weight of her crushing hold on his nervous system.

[member="Connor Harrison"] | [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]​

 

[Kamon Vondiranach]

"She's not hiding me, Connor. I'm right here."

The apparition he'd faced before was still there and quite tangible in the sense that his attacks, when they hit, would actually hit something that felt solid. The whole city was a remnant of what it once was, something which agitated him to no end. What had been done to his home world disgusted him, and he still owed it to the people to make amends for it. All he needed to do was find the swine responsible, and teach them how the blade of a lightsaber tasted when it was run down their throats. No, he wouldn't give them the dignity of a special death. It would be brutal, cold, and hurt like hell. That was what they deserved.

Now, the apparition approached, igniting Connor's saber once again. Connor wanted him, but Matsu was going to play with him. To be perfectly honest, Leos didn't care at all how the man died. He didn't care who did it or what their motivations were. It was a simple matter of wanting the man dead. That was why he'd invited the others here, because he wanted to ensure the victory, as he knew he was up against a powerful enemy. It made practical sense: when faced with an enemy of great power, overwhelm him with numbers. Even the mightiest of foes will fall when there are too many fighters for them to take on. That was the predicament that Connor now found himself in. Trapped between four immovable objects, and all because a girl, a stupid, foolish child, had gotten herself injured.

With the man seemingly turning his attention, and Matsu reaching out to attempt to freeze him, the apparition would step forward and jab its lightsaber towards the soft joint at the armpit of Connor's right side. Even if it struck it wouldn't kill him, but hey, lightsaber burns were nasty, as Matsu could attest to. Honestly, he had the feeling that Matsu wanted this kill, and that was fine, so he was just going to try to hurt the man a bit and then leave it to her.

"I'm right where I've been since you arrived, watching a dead man try to struggle." He smirked beneath the helmet; the real helmet. "Look at you. Supposedly a Jedi but here seeking vengeance because I defended myself from that pathetic idiots attacks. Too easy. I can't help but laugh at the fact that you even think you are a Jedi."

Indeed, he did laugh at this. The apparition did, anyway.

"You've come here to die. I may not be the only one who wants to see that happen here. The difference is, I don't care how you die or who kills you."

The apparition would dip its head in deference to the experience Master that was making an effort to manipulate the man.

[member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Darth Carnifex"], [member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Before Matsu could speak, another voice boomed out and appeared from nowhere. Another warrior dressed like a demon, emerging from the safety of the ruins with knowledge of just who Connor was. Three against one certainly was pushing it.

His head span - Ignus on one side, Matsu and the New Sith on the other. Matsu lead the charge with her mental attack, but Connor noticed not a word came to his mind, it was her voice. What wonders surgery could do, even for the bludgeoned like her. Before he took to confront her with the mounting pressure, his muscles started to feel like dead weights pinned to his bones. Each one started to get heavy and his body started to shut down.

"No, no no no not now!" Connor hissed through gritted teeth, using all his strength to battle her tricks and move what he could.

It was painful, it was like a dozen gundarks yanking him back as he tried to move forward. And then it made sense - this really was a vision, an illusion fulled by the Dark Side of these warriors, protecting their weasel. This vision was on borrowed time.

It spoke, and goaded and taunted, and moved across with a jab which burnt like a hot cup of caf on the skin that thankfully the weave would counter, but it was burning the skin and would blister if held. Connor seethed and cried out in a mix of pain and anger, his frustration raging. Drawn out with the maiming of young Kyra, and now three of them were trying to take him down.

"You're not even here to face me," he growled at Ignus. "You dare mock me...and call yourself Sith when you hide from ME! SHOW YOURSELF! COWARD!"

His head craned to the Sith Sorceress, his head like a ton weight, body freezing up.

"Don't...don't do this to me. I will kill them all if I must....don't you stop me like the Jedi do. Don't protect him over me!" He curled his free hand into a fist as much as he could. "I don't want you anymore," he gasped, still straining.

And he didn't. She was his way out, and he knew what he had to do to survive the other two Sith and get what he came for.

[member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

She wasn’t protecting Ignus. He hardly needed her protecting for one thing, and for another she barely knew the man. They’d come to the planet out of a shared goal and little else. He’d proved to be interesting with his illusions but no Sith on that planet that day was there with the intent of shielding the other. But the rest of what Connor lay before her...

I will kill them all, if I must. Don’t stop me like the Jedi do.

There was hesitation there, the qualification of killing if he must. But it stopped her in her tracks, absorbing his pain as Ignus’ illusion struck a well-placed blow with a lightsaber.

What were the odds that such a qualification would disappear once he realized what he was capable of?

There was a heartbeat where surprise fluttered across the front of her mind, trailing across the mental hold she had on him until she released and took a step back. She could feel the rent in his head, the very wound in the Force as his whims raged against each other. Their explosive end would be something to behold if only...Don’t stop me like the Jedi do.

“Fine then. Do it.”

Either he would kill them and fall deeper down the hole she’d dug with her own hands, or they would kill him and she could forget that she’d ever tried.

[member="Connor Harrison"] | [member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"] | [member="Haytham Kaze"]​

 

[Kamon Vondiranach]

The apparition held the blade against the spot as long as was feasible. It seemed that even the soft joints were somewhat protected. No doubt this was armorweave. He was familiar with the material considering the second layer of protection from his own armor was armorweave as well. Whoever had designed the armor that Connor was wearing had done a good job of making the man nearly indestructible. It was almost disgusting. Jedi in the old days just wore their robes and things. It was mostly the Sith that had developed various different armors for themselves. Of course, this just played into the fact that Connor was no longer really a Jedi anyway.

With what the man said, and with what Matsu said, the apparition would step back before the man was released, holding the saber at the ready as he circled for a moment. She released him because of what he'd said. Apparently the man was more broken than even Leos had believed. That was interesting. Doing what he'd done to the girl must have been the last straw for him. He'd cracked. That was good. Under normal circumstances Leos would probably try and turn him. But even if they turned Connor, he would remain the threat he'd been before he was turned, and that couldn't be allowed. He had to die. If Matsu wanted to let him fight it out and see what happened, then so be it.

"Fight, you poor excuse for a Jedi. It's your fault the girl got hurt, so fight now. Seek your vengeance."

The apparition motioned with its hand and released a wave of energy meant to sweep the Jedi's legs out from under him and send him tumbling to the floor. Since Leos wasn't really a lightsaber fighter, he had to resort to tricks to get advantages. Of course Connor trying to call him out did nothing. Leos wasn't a coward, he was smart. He wasn't even that far away, but far enough to do his work without being right on top of the scene. Using your skills to your advantage was not cowardice, it was intelligence. Goading wouldn't work on him the way that it did on some other Sith for that very reason.

"Seek your vengeance and be destroyed."

[member="Matsu Xiangu"], [member="Connor Harrison"], [member="Darth Carnifex"], [member="Haytham Kaze"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

The pressure stopped in an instant – and it was then he knew Matsu Xiangu would always have a hold on him. That was something he was doomed to have all his days; it was up to him to make it a blessing before it killed him. With the feeling back in his muscles and her cooperation in actually freeing him from her spiders grasp, he stumbled forward after exerting so much pressure in fighting her.

Then, along with her order, came the voice of Ignus. Not that he needed permission, but for them both underestimating the Jedi Master, he was ready to fulfil their request.

Do it.
Seek your vengeance…

The clenched fist relaxed and with the muscle activation in both hands and feet simultaneously, his armour spat out a burst of energy from the soles and spine plate to lift Connor up into the air with the built in flight system.

Having tried it only once on Voss, this was not going to be a fully-fledged aerobatic display, far from it. He only wanted to be up to see the playing field of Mirial. There were three targets down below; two in view, one hidden. He wanted the one, at whatever cost.

Keeping his feet apart to maintain his height, a good 50 feet, he found the first skeletal tower to the right, habitable on the lower floors, less so the higher it got. He didn’t care. Connor didn’t hold back and felt for the cracks, holes, strains and knarled foundations on the building and ruptured them all in a violent and methodical application of the Force to buckle them all.

Like a domino set, the building gave way on its side, collapsing under the weight above and devouring itself in a crash of stone and metal with a plume of rancid dust kicking up as it billowed across the ground.

Next one. Connor turned left and did the same, pushing outwards this time to accelerate the friction between two structures which caused them to erode enough for their weight to work against them, sending out a monstrous groan as they collapsed over on each other, with more thunderous destruction and dust left in the wake.

As with sentient beings, all creations had weak spots, and Connor knew more than most now to target those weak spots, apply pressure and twist them to breaking point. When they gave way, no matter how big or strong the subject, they would always come crashing down.

Connor didn’t know if he heard cries or screaming in those instants. He didn’t care for them, and he wasn’t done. Scanning the ground, he did one of his favourite attacks, but this time without restraint for not caring who or what was swept up.

He dropped slightly and pushed down into the ground with a forceful burst of energy to effectively start kicking up random chunks of earth; rocks and metal and sides of buildings caught up would simply spit up into the air before coming down wherever gravity left them, akin to random artillery fire across a battlefield.

Like a man possessed, Connor disregarded the rules of battle and sought to force Ignus’s hand with as much destruction and show of force as he could, without care for the two Sith Lords beneath him.

[member="Darth Ignus"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Carnifex"]