Seeking an audience

[Darlyn Excron]

"Perhaps, I enjoy the chance to fight someone new. Do enjoy your books." He smiled, reaching to his weapons and flicking their power settings to a training mode as he politely moved past. He drew them as he walked out and headed to a training room, offering one last wave as he left sight. It wasn't exactly hard to imagine he'd be more than able to hurry back if anyone called for him. There wasn't much for him to do, but a short run over. That made him feel secure in leaving [member="Daxton Bane"] to his devices.

 

[Daxton Bane]

To say Daxton faced a cool reception would be an underestimation. There were those who would not make eye contact, much less directly answer his questions. While it was frustrating to say the least, he wasn't really that surprised. His reputation was far from taint free and many consider his mere presence to warrant such attitude. He didn't blame them, well not really, it was far easier to luxuriate in familar prejudice than to actually risk exposing themselves to such abberant thought,

So the Sith explored the libraries, pouring over old tomes and studying ancient holograms, losing himself in a deluge of data and philosophy he had rarely had a chance to preview before. This wasn't to say he was aloof, in fact those brave enough to strike a conversation would walk away with more insights and not a few tales of lore. Daxton was genuinely interested in learning more.

His most inspiring discovery was the dictonomy of how each side viewed the Force. Dark siders viewed things in absolutes, if something was not one thing, it had to be another, there was no in between. Right and wrong were clear as day, those many believed that might made right. This was compounded by their refusal to accept others judgement as superior to their own.

If the Dark Side was iron and steel, the Light Side was adapatability and flexibility. Right and wrong were dependent on the situation, leading many to judge them weak and unable to make firm decisions.

Neither side was completely right nor without flaws. Finding the balance was truly a unique challenge for Daxton, still he relished it along with doing his share for the community, which tonight involved cooking the evening meal.

With the help of his Red Raven contacts, he was able to procure the rare herbs and spices that he used for tonights dish, a fragrant yet mildly spiced roast boar coupled with golden Alderann spirits. Just the right mix to clear the palate and not dull the senses.

Tossing the sauce stained apron to the side, he headed to the sparring room in hopes of perhaps finding someone looking for a match before the evening meal was to commence....

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Naturally there would be sounds of violence, hissing lightsabers, the good stuff, and soon enough one of the other members was flung through the sparring room doors, groaning a bit. "My bad! Well also your bad for being so predictable, but my bad! I'll take that out of my paycheck." Darlyn's laugh was pretty obvious as he would slowly come into [member="Daxton Bane"]'s view, his yellow blade in hand as he helped the man to his feet. After making sure he wasn't, you know, seriously injured, the ginger turned to give their guest a curious look. "Finished with your reading already? Come down for something more physical?"

 

[Daxton Bane]

The smile that crossed the Zabrak's mouth could have indicated a thousand meanings, none of which was malice. Bowing in respect to his host he replied with some amusement in his voice, "One has to hone both the body and mind. Lets just say, I am hoping to break some sweat. Would you care to spar?"

It was a retorically question, both of them knew it. No one would be here in the gym except to spar. But it was the polite thing to do, after all he was their guest. "Any rules I should be aware of before we begin?"

 

[Daxton Bane]

The answer to his question did not really matter so much, as any experienced duelist would know from experience. Once blades were drawn, rules were usually the first thing thrown out window. Still it did not hurt to ask, he was after all a guest.

Loosening his limbs and doing some quick stretches, he drew a saber in each hand, the familiar hiss, the cutting sting against his bar palms, the smell of fresh ozone as blades flickered to life. The all too familar senses of a coming fight, these all brought a smile to his lips as he manifested his Force Tentacle to hold the third blade which hiss to life.

To anyone not using Force Sight it would seem like the blade was floating in thin air of its own volition. To those who had Force Sight it would seem a dark massive tentacle of pure Force emerged from Daxton's back to hold the blade like a scorpions stinger posed to strike.

 

[Daxton Bane]

Daxton Bane relished any opportunity to duel, to put blade against blade against some of the best, most skilled fighters in the galaxy and see who was better. Some might say it was foolish, some might say it was an addiction. But the Sith truly believed that the best lessons were learned from those you experienced first hand.

For the Sith, time seemed to slow down, as his senses drew in super sharp focus. He could feel the sting of the barbed hooks sink in the soft flesh of his palms as he gripped his weapon in either hand, the feel of sweat drops rolling softly from his forehead down his cheek, the soft swish of sand as his bare feet crossed the practice floor. The blades singing in unison as they swirled around in the humid air, electostatic made the small hair on his arms raise up ever so slightly as he addressed his opponent [member="Darlyn Excron"].

"Shall we begin?"

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn hummed, looking at his opponent. Three blades, that was going to be an issue. Niman was not suited overly so for more than one opponent, and two blades would be hard enough to handle. Three would be a stretch, but he could handle it perhaps. The real concern was the force, the moment he took his stance, obviously Niman, it would be painfully obvious how he would fight. And that would be dangerous since he wasn't sure what form [member="Daxton Bane"] used. The Jar'Kai technique was all he could tell...

He drew Exar Kun's lightsaber, igniting the corrupted blade and holding it in a low guard, angled forward and to the right, a mirror of the classic Niman low guard. Feet close, but not so close to give him no platform to act upon. The corruption from Exar Kun's lightsaber flowed through him, an aura of darkness, a weakened but present boosting power to his lightning, and even a weak aura of unease that Daxton would certainly feel, and perhaps not be affected by, at least for a good long while. There would be little doubt, if he was well learned, that this was the real, genuine thing.

"The only rule is no killing, no permanent maiming. Don't worry, it's set to training mode." He took a slight breath, before making the first move. Like the man who made the weapon he now held, he was a violent fighter, and his aggressive cut, from his lower right to upper left, would give as much away. It was a good opening strike, enough to start the bout and give them a sense of how hard they could go.

 

[Daxton Bane]

Daxton's lips creeped into an amused smile as he felt the presence even from this distance. So the rumors were true, this would make this session so much more interesting then. Clearing his mind of all thought save for the duel ahead, he replied, "Excellent, my blades are set at setting, shall we begin?"

Daxton assumed the stance popular with earth shaping Force users called Bak Toh, a very grounded position, one foot slightly forward, body turned to the side to lower the target profile. Bending slightly from the knees for optimal mobility, the Sith unexpectly launched his blades forward through the air in a tight spiralling arc making them resemble discuses of energy.

To the naked eye or the uninitiated it would seem like they were telekinically thrown, when in truth they were guided by his use of the Force in what could be best called Force Tentacles. Anyone using Force Sight would see the manifestation of Force emitted from his back and shoulders which guided the missiles on their probe of the enemies defenses.

One red blade struck low going for the legs and thighs, while the blue and green when on opposing sides to flank his opponent before hitting with a series of powerful test blows to test [member="Darlyn Excron"], on how fast he could react or block or would any of the test probes strike true. Fortunately, his opponent seemed like a skilled duelist so he would retrieve the sabers back after his initial test.

A thin hiss escapes his lips as the microhooks on the hilts sunk once more into his flesh, a familiar and yet hardly pleasant pain before chamging his stance to one he developed specifically for his unique way of fighting, the Scorpion Stance, as he anticipated his opponents counter attack.

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn was already aware he was fighting a sith lord, and at a severe disadvantage in that manner, yet the swiftness of his strike, using three blades at once, was beyond his expectations. Already Darlyn was going to be forced back, as he ignited Exar's second blade to block the first low strike while his right hand shot to his belt, where the blade of spare parts rested on his hip. The yellow blade shot to life moments before the two flanking lightsabers reached him, which itself was only moments after the blue and red blades clashed. Now was the time for him to put his practice with both a staff and Jar'Kai to the test.

By twisting his wrist and using the force to help 'spin' the blade in the palm of his hand, Darlyn was able to deflect the red blade harmlessly to the side with some exertion, bringing one blade to bear against the other blue beam of light. That left the green to his yellow saber, and with great effort he was able to push the very first strike of each away from him. He adjusted the dial on Exar's lightsaber quickly, disengaging the second blade and shortening its length to a shoto saber before the onslaught began, providing him a parrying tool which he used with some practiced grace. It was evident he was already struggling to keep up with what appeared to be a telekenetic assault, but with these being test blows (and using the more maneuverable shoto saber) he was able to keep his skin from contacting the blades.

He was forced back on the defensive, of course, even stepping back some from [member="Daxton Bane"] in an attempt to gather some breathing room. One of the last strikes slipped past his shoto defense, forcing him to bring the yellow lightsaber close to his face, enough that he could clearly taste the static and ozone from the blade for a moment. When the assault was recalled, Darlyn tried not to look strained, as he flashed a grin at the Zabrak. "Oh I can already tell I'm going to enjoy this." True words perhaps best understood by the Sith, fighting was one of the darksider's few joys, one Kay and Veiere wouldn't ever be able to understand. "Right then, no holding back. I'd hate to win because you didn't give it your all!"

Darlyn lifted his blades up, taking a solid stance, his shoto in front and the standard saber at the ready. A classic stance, unlike Daxton's unique one, but a very solid position. A good place to bring a counter attack from, as Darlyn engaged his yellow lightsaber's dual phase mechanic, swinging the blade at neck level once as the blade doubled in length, then once more aiming to cut diagonally from his upper right to lower left as a follow up. It would become quickly clear that Darlyn's bread and butter was using a variety of tricks to shift how the fight was going to progress, as he continued to assault Daxton from twice the effective range of a standard lightsaber. He'd practiced with the lengthy, almost unwieldy weapon so as to provide more than a sudden surprise, and with his shoto at the ready he was keeping his guard up. Surly the sith lord would have some plan, and Darlyn's experience never included fighting a man with three blades.

 

[Daxton Bane]

The grin that was creeped on his lips, show the joy that Daxton was experiencing, one of the few and very rare times he revealed what he was actually feeling. It was truly a pleasure to encounter another being that understood the pure joy of combat.

With a blade in either hand and a third hissing through the air like a hungry viper, one would have expected the Sith to engage in an all out assault to press his advantage. However, Daxton instead focused on parrying [member="Darlyn Excron"] longer blade attacks, blocking while at the same time pushing back to increase the distance between them.

No one could see the logic at the time, in fact tactics would dictate to close the distance to nuliffy the reach of his opponents blades. By increasing the distance, it would seem that the Sith would be at a disadvantage as his weapons would have less reach.

But like all things that involved Bane, there was always a reason for everything he did. By appearing to be vulnerable, it would invite his opponent to press the advantage and just when his foe would shift their body to deliver a powerful attack, Daxton would stomp his foot into the ground and send a powerful Force Trip/Push combination to the exposed legs, throwing them off balance with the goal of sweeping them off their feet. Typical of Bane, it was so unexpected no one would see it coming.

Once off his feet, he would once more send in the blades to strike from all sides. Being on their back on the floor, it would make parrying the blows so much harder to counter. “Do you yield?” He asked in an almost teasing tone, half expecting his opponent to reply in anger as he allowed his opponent to get back on his feet to continue the match.

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn did press his advantage, being quite the aggressive individual and more than delighted to be given the chance to relish in it. So perhaps there was very little surprise that he did wind up a heavier swing, only to fall victim to the trick Bane had prepared. Perhaps less expected, however, was his response to the simple trip, something Darlyn himself was fond of doing. Rather than fall backwards onto the ground directly, he managed to twist his body around so his front was facing the ground. Why? Well, in this way he could impact the ground first with one hand, blasting it with a burst of telekinetic energy. Naturally, as his hand couldn't very well move the earth beneath him, it instead pushed up back into him, spinning him around onto his back with great force, and applying the same force into his lightsabers as he delivered strikes to the blades flying at him. Without a firm grip on one blade, it would at least garner him precious seconds to reignite Exar's lightsaber.

He stomped his foot on the ground, propelling himself backwards across the floor as he worked to deflect the blades, once more with great strain. This time it was visible how hard it was for him to keep protected, and more than once he had to move his head to avoid what would normally be a fatal blow. But even as he was almost mocked by the Sith, despite the anger obviously bubbling inside of him, Darlyn's face held only a bright, cheery smirk, and his voice echoed in the room with resounding laughter as he was finally let to his feet. "Yield? But it's just starting to get fun! It would be a shame to miss out on this."

Darlyn didn't waste time in taking a stance, choosing to hurl his yellow blade, dimming to its standard length, at Daxton. The yellow disc hurling at him would no doubt be easily parried, sent flying off to the side, but for Darlyn that was perfectly fine. After all, following just behind it would be a sustained assault of Force Lightning, Darlyn's favorite power in his repertoire. Not only was it rather well practiced for a Knight, its power was boosted almost to what one would expect in a Sith Lord thanks to Exar's lightsaber boosting his signature ability to the height of his 'tier'. Indeed, the weapon was no doubt the only reason this was even a viable strategy. Speaking of which, even as Darlyn pressed an assault with the blue arcs of lightning, the weapon was ignited to full length, once more at one blade, and he was slowly advancing. This time he was prepared for trickery, paying close attention, as he sent bolt after bolt at Daxton. He had a hope, if he could get close, to attack with an overhead swing, prompting a block by Daxton.

Then, if he did get close and Daxton did block, he would take a page right out of Exar's own book, and step inside the guard, aiming with the second blade as it would ignite. Of course, if Daxton knew his history, he'd see this coming from a mile away.

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

As expected Daxton parried the blade with ease and was caught flat footed by the blast of Force Lightning straight to the chest, blasting backwards several feet before he braced himself against the attack. The assault continued, eventually forcing Daxton into a crouched half kneeing stance.

What people did not see was when the first arc hit, it triggered the grounding bolts in his boots, shooting oit of his heels and into the ground as he initially braced himself. Meanwhile his containment suit began to soak up the excess charge as fas as it could to mitigate the damage as well as store up charge in the suits reserve fuel cells as they were designed to do. While they did not fully soak the damage, the Sith was less injured than he appeared to be.

Clothes smoking from the attack, he baited his opponent to get close and when [member="Darlyn Excron"] raised his hand to deal the overhand blow, Daxton reversed the polarity and sent out the stored energy in electric arcs against everything with around him. Although less than lethal, few Force Lightning users ever expected their own weapon to be used against them.

Staggering to his feet, Daxton adopted what appeared to be defensive stance as he aited for his opponents next move...

 

[Darlyn Excron]

To his credit, Darlyn was swift to react to the return of the lightning, turning his weapon around like a thrust to be the first subject the lightning would touch, rather than him. Though it was imperfect, most of the lighting that would impact him would be absorbed into his lightsaber rather than his body, only leaving a portion of the currents to strike and course through his body, causing pain and even faint numbness but not much more. It was a clever trick, and Darlyn's smile grew ever wider as he was only demonstrated how great the odds were against him. It made him ever more thrilled to fight.

Pausing only to let feeling return to his hands and feet, lest he go so numb he lost control of his weapon, his chuckle continued where his laughter had left off. For one to whom life was a joke, for who combat, violence, was a thrill, this losing fight was only proving to be educational. So again he decided to attack Daxton with the Force, rather than strictly with the blade. His tactic this time was, effectively, a four stage attack. First, he pulled his left hand back, tugging his lightsaber that had been deflected, while sending a bolt of lightning with his right hand again. His yellow blade would ignite, spinning as it hurled itself from the side at Daxton, just a bit behind him. Darlyn wasn't aware of the 'tentacle' nor would he be aware of if this would act as a way to 'cut off' this limb, he simply expected Daxton to move back into the path of the weapon.

Then, immediately as the blade would cross paths with Daxton's general location, Darlyn would shift and yank directly at Daxton's feet, moving in for a swift strike at his chest. Quite honestly [member="Daxton Bane"] would likely not lose his footing, unless he expected the Lightning using Darlyn to rely solely on his favorite ability. In either case, Darlyn's attempt to thrust directly into the Zabrak's chest would be quite obviously one of the few opportunities he might have of securing a lucky, swift win.

The longer the fight would draw on, the more obvious his flaws and lack of teaching would become.

((OOC note: a less flowery version of his four stage attack:

Spoiler

1. Yellow lightsaber spinning like a disk slightly behind Daxton, coming from the side.
2. Force lightning to the chest area, again.
3. Force Pull at his feet.
4. Thrust at his chest.

))

 

[Daxton Bane]

Daxton appeared to pay no heed to the incoming blade, in fact it would surprise anyone watching that blade freeze in mid air as if caught and wielded by some unseen method. In truth, with the tentacle a mere extension of the Force, there was no way to sever it unless you could somehow disconnect Daxton from the Force.

The Force Lighting combined with the Pull yanked Daxton off his feet, revealing the grounding spikes as they popped out of the earth. All seemed to be going well for [member="Darlyn Excron"] as he thrust forward at the Zabrak’s exposed form.

“Well played my friend,.....” Daxton chuckled in amusement as his blue and green blades paused inches away from his opponents throat. “.......but still not well enough.”

Nodding with his head, it could be seen that he had blocked the chest attack with the hilt of his red saber Malice, the Cortosis studs along the handle shortening out his opponents weapon well before it could actually make contact.

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn's smile was given quite the glow from the two blades at his throat, his right hand resting on his waist as his deactivated weapon remained where it was pressed against the cortosis of his opponent's trickery. "Of course if we were seriously fighting right now, I just activated a thermal detonator. Or would've gone for a blaster." He chuckled as he pulled his weapon back, and slowly stepped back. "I wasn't exactly expecting to win mind you. I know when I'm out matched well enough." He reached with the force, and with visible strain on his face he took control of his yellow blade again, turning it off and pulling it back to his hand. It made sense that he could, after all, even gripped in the throes of Daxton's blade. He and the crystal had spent much time in proximity, even before he made the weapon.

Not to mention [member="Daxton Bane"] didn't seem the sort to prevent him from taking it back. "Never met someone who used three blades as you do. It's quite unorthodox, I approve. It's a shame I couldn't use a blaster as I normally do, that might have proved an entertaining contrast."

 

[Daxton Bane]

Daxton Bane nodded in acknowledgement, making no effort to hinder [member="Darlyn Excron"] retrieve his weapons. Switching his own blades off, he attched them to his hip before stating, “You possess a unique style yourself. But if I may offer a suggestion, you are quick to go for killing blow the moment you perceive weakness. Consider what you may think is a vulnerability is actually an attack in disguise. Sometimes it is all a ploy to lure you in to allow them to strike deeper.”

“As for your other suggestion, I doubt anyone would approve you dropping a thermal detonator here. But I do want to show you something, I assume you have a blaster on your person, yes? I want you to shoot me. I promise this is no trick, well not one to get through your guard, but it should show you what would have happened when a blaster is used on me.”

In a way it was a crazy dare, even on lower stun settings, at this range it was going to sting something mighty bad, perhaps even leave scorch marks if exposed skin was hit.

 

[Darlyn Excron]

"Well not on me. That would be noisy." He reached out towards where he'd left the heavier portion of his robes, the part that draped behind him, and from within a pair of pistols flew out and into his hands. One was clearly the 'spare' blaster, a rather simple weapon more fitting for a politician than a fighter like him, small and concealable. The other, however, was far more ornate despite its advancing age. A DL-18 blaster, a common blaster for smugglers, and from the look of the wear despite being well cared for it was far from the beginning of its life. Outside of that, and its engraved patterns into the grip, it was simply a curious choice for a 'politician' like him.

He took the first, smaller blaster, and tucked it into the fold of his tunic before setting the DL-18 to stun. "I plan on gathering a few more weapons, of course. It's hard to deflect a shot from a weapon pressed against your skin but if even I can manage to deflect a good chunk of weapon shots, I wanna have at least a few that will be a problem for folks like us. Ya know what I mean?" He lifted the weapon up at [member="Daxton Bane"], and rather instinctively fired a pair of shots, just slightly spaced apart horizontally. It wouldn't make a difference at this range but it also showed Daxton how comfortable Darlyn felt with blasters as he did with his lightsabers. Perhaps even show why his skill at bladework, while practiced now, was hardly on a level anywhere close to scratching the Zabrak.

 

[Daxton Bane]

If [member="Darlyn Excron"] was expecting Daxton Bane to dodge or deflect the incoming blaster shots, the Zabrak sudden move would have caught him unaware as the Sith actually stepped into the shots. Catching the first shot with his open left palm before spinning and catching the other in the shoulder. The force of the combied shots, although dampened, could contain still enough force to actually cause damage.

The Zabrak smiled as he revealed his palm facing the younger opponent, the blaster damage was obvious on his skin where the energy had scorched flesh. It would take at least couple of hours of bacta treatment for the damage to be healed, totally reckless and unnecssary. Then the unexpected occured before his eyes, as the flesh of the Zabrak began to knit before his eyes at an accelerated rate, the blackened flesh was soon replaced healthy shade of red, with no obvious signs of damage save for a hiss escaping from the Sith’s lips.

“I really need to find a way to numb the pain. Damn inconvinient but anything is better than the alternative, yes? Plus the the look of their face is prizeless, I guess the Force is still not done with me just yet.”

 

[Darlyn Excron]

There was a surprised, and admittedly puzzled look on Darlyn's face. He'd expected a trick, but this was more than he'd expected. Even so, he just shrugged his shoulders and reached out for his heavier cloak, sliding his arms into the black sleeves and holstering his weapons comfortably. "I see. Good thing I've put in an order with an acquaintance for a more powerful pistol then. I'd hate to fight someone like you to the death without something special on hand." He chuckled and rolled his neck a bit, rubbing his wrists. Now, if only his order from that lovely auction would come through, he could garner another advantage.

"Well then, the time is getting late. Shall we call it a night?"

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

Daxton’s smile could have been interpreted over a dozens ways as he bowed in respect to his foe. Addressing [member="Darlyn Excron"] directly, with no hint of sarcasm or snide superiority common among the Sith, “But of course, thank you for the match. It has been most enlightening. Perhaps we can do it again sometime. I will look forward to when we next cross blades.”

Again he bows politely in the direction of the younger man before heading out of the dueling area.