Question Sneak Peak: The Sith Civil War

Coming soon to a Galaxy Near You...

In the morning, Tari and I shared a light and disappointing breakfast before we broke camp and turned our bikes south and rode back to the city. It was not as pleasant a journey for me as the trip out had been as my thoughts were plagued on events and people out of my reach.

We returned the speeders to the rental shop, I was reimbursed my deposit and we walked to the hanger as we had arranged with the others. Silas had a feeling his welcome was just about worn out and moving on might not be a bad idea. But as we arrived at the hanger I felt a thrill down my spine and sharing a glance with my apprentice showed she had felt the tremor in The Force as well. I took my sabers from my belt, made sure they were not still in training mode, then hung one back, while keeping the other in my hand.

The door slid open to my thumb print and revealed the steps down into the main hanger. Nothing seemed out of place or disturbed. I cautiously led the way down the stars to the turn into the hanger proper. Several of the resupply crates were scorched with blaster fire, as well as a few new mars to the Aces and Eights hull, though nothing dangerous, so merely hand weapons.

Lanaka was sprawled by the ramp, a scorched hole in her duster, but the Force told me she was still alive. Tari would have rushed forward, but I restrained her with a hand to her shoulder. The tremor in the Force was getting closer. Down the ramp he came, his massive form wrapped in armor and armored clothing, his face obscured behind a red and silver mask, and a light saber in his hand. I knew there would be no witty banter with this killer, and the Dark Side swirled around him. He was a Sith Warrior and he was here to kill me.

He casually stepped away from the ramp, reaching up to undo the clasp of his cloak and pull it aside to let fall beside him. This showed what I took to be a mask was in fact a helmet, so I had no idea even what species he was, a fact I'm sure he used to inspire terror. I took the backpack from my shoulders and let it slide to the floor. “Tari, go to the restaurant I had Bantha Milk at. If I have not come for you in two hours...”

“She will be dead,” the warrior's deep, electronic voice declared. “And I will be coming for you.”

Tari obeyed without question and the Warrior let her go. “Does it matter that I have no quarrel with you?” I asked as I took my other saber in my hand.

“Only in that you will die without knowing why I killed you or the fates of your apprentice or companions,” he replied heavily as he ignited his saber and it glowed red as blood against his armor. “If you wish to beg for your life, I will listen to your pleas now. Not that they will do you any service, but they will amuse me.”

I ignited my own sabers and rolled them around my hands as I relaxed and got myself loose to be able to deal with this monster. “After I've killed you and people ask what your name was, what shall I tell them?” I taunted him, but he only laughed and brought the saber up into a high, single handed guard.

“Nobody,” he said ominously.

His stance and guard could be used in four different forms, so that told me nothing and he seemed content for me to come to him, so I focused myself, brought my left hand saber towards him and raised two fingers off it to direct my will. To my immense surprise, the warrior had almost no Force shielding at all and my power grabbed him about the throat and began to crush his larynx.

Well, that wasn't something 'Nobody' was just going to stand and take so he leapt across the intervening distance and began a series of focused, precise attacks that were horrifically powerful even one handed. He flowed, forcing me to give ground, reeling off his strikes as he almost leisurely pursued me and kept us close so I couldn't get enough of a break to use the Force.

His style was heavily modified, but its base was Form II, known as Makashi, the graceful, purposeful style of Count Dooku himself, Christopher Lee, the last of the great Hollywood swordsmen. With that knowledge I began to probe the weaknesses of the form, even managing to force his blade far enough out of line that my strike to his hand should have severed it, but then I got my first nasty shock. His armor had been reinforced to withstand the passing strike of a light saber. Oh it burned hot and glowed and there was damage, but he still had his hand and his saber.

My subterfuge didn't rattle him either as he quickly recovered from my strike and began to press me again with a series of strikes that were as fast as they were exactly aimed. I was able to block him, thanks to my dual wielding style canceling his speed and power not giving him the time to follow up on his advantages without exposing himself to my other blade.

After all, resistant was not invincible.

This forced me to realize that all things being equal, this warrior was better than I was and I had to do something to end this battle and quickly before his skill over came my luck. A slow return of my guard to my left gave him an opening he couldn't pass up and he spun, bringing his blade to my back to bifurcate me at the waist but it was now that I revealed my expertise with Ataru and leapt over his blade, catching him by surprise. I didn't waste my strike by going for him, I brought both of my blades crashing through his saber cutting the hilt in three pieces and its blade winking out.

As I landed, he complimented me with a single, “Impressive,” and then leapt to the roof of the hanger. I tried to grab him with the Force, but he had already disappeared over the lip. I wanted to chase him, but Lanaka was badly wounded and I still had to save Tari. I stared after him for a moment to be sure he was gone, then extinguished my sabers and keyed the comlink built into my left gauntlet as I strode back over to Lanaka.

“Tari?”

Her voice sounded from off to my right at the door. “Here, Mistress!” she said, trotting over. I would have scolded her for disobedience, but as her deception had 'Nobody' chasing a wild goose I was grateful.

“Disconnect the shore power as quickly as you can,” I ordered her.

Lanaka was badly injured, but breathing and I hoped 'Nobody' had not destroyed our medical bay. I drug her up the ramp and aft, to the surprised voice of Fiveareen. “Do you require medical assistance?”

“Yes!” I grunted as I got her up and on the table. “Blaster bolt to the lower back!”

Before the droid could answer, I left, going forward cautiously, looking for stowaways, but finding no one. I also failed to find Silas, Darius or Torm. There was nothing for it, I could not stay where 'Nobody' knew where I was. I heard the ramp raise and turned to find Tari trotting towards me, my backpack and hers in hand. “Good girl,” I told her as I led the way to the cockpit. We got the Aces and Eights up as quickly as we could and lifted ship, not pausing until we were in orbit. And while there was plenty of traffic, none seemed either military or interested in us. “X4,” I ordered the droid. “Take over here and sound the alarm if anything gets within thirty thousand miles or so.”

“Yes, mistress,” the little astromech replied.

“Tari, suit up and go over the hull, no stone unturned, make sure there's no mines or tracking devices attached.”

“Mistress,” she replied, scurrying to her cabin and its pressure suit. Meanwhile, I went aft to check on Lanaka.

“Double check your suit to be sure it wasn't tampered with!” I ordered her as I went by. In the medical bay Fiveareen already had Lanaka in the little bacta tank we had and he hadn't bothered to trouble himself about her modesty.

I could have lived my whole life not knowing her nipples were purple.

She was awake in the blue tinted liquid, and obviously in pain. “How is she?” I asked the droid who did not look up from the monitors he was intently gazing at.

“Lucky to still be able to walk,” the droid replied. “I have the internal damage dealt with and the bacta will see that there is no infection or septic shock. She should be fine in a day or two.” Lanaka scowled at me and banged the side of the tank in anger. The droid threw a switch. “Calm down, please, you can speak, the air mask you're wearing has a microphone.

He threw another switch. “...shit stings like fire ants!” she snarled at the droid, her voice coming through a speaker in the ceiling. The droid injected something into the bacta through a port in the tank.

“Never mind your discomfort,” I told her with my fists on my hips. “What happened here and who was that monster that ambushed me?”

Her eyes became terrified. “Did you kill him?” she begged me. “God, Ed, tell me you killed him!”

I took in a deep, calming breath. “My name is Nyeomi,” I told her tightly. “No, I didn't kill him, he got away. Who is he and where are the others?”

“We have to run! We have to take off! He...”

“We are in orbit,” I told her coldly and I leaned forward to give emphasis to my words. “And if you dare suggest that I abandon my brother, my best friend and my fiancee again, I will space you! What happened?” I demanded. Her normally dark, cobalt blue skin paled to the light blue of Cherenkov radiation and if eyes without an iris or pupil could be terrified, hers were. “Nyeomi it was like the Devil himself came for us! He calls himself the Will of the Sith, a dried up husk of evil and cruelty! He kept jabbering on about he saw you being responsible for the destruction of the Sith! He's determined to kill you! Him and his pet monster the Hand of the Sith.”

I frowned. “Darth Bane was responsible for the Rule of Two, he caused...”

Somehow, Lanaka managed to roll her eyes without having an iris. “You stubborn idiot! You never could be subtle!” she yelled into the mask. “Darth Bane didn't start the Sith Civil War, he was just the last survivor!”