Southstar
Jun 5th, 2005, 12:14:59 AM
*One Day Ago*
"Master, what is this?" Jorshal Vuntana said as he scanned the datapad.
"What does it look like, Apprentice?" Southstar responded as he dragged a picture on the holo to the forefront.
"Someone has been keeping tabs?" He said uneasily. "On all of us..."
"Nothing get's by you, does it?"
"Apparently this got by all of us." He responded. "How'd you find out about this?" Jorshal continued to look through the information. The words Order of Aequitas were appearing numerous times followed in a close secodn with Rayna Eclipse. "And what's the Order of Aequitas? I recognize Rayna's name, what's she got to do with this?"
Southstar paused before responding. Rayna and Jorshal had developed a relationship over time. Rayna was a young apprentice in the order with a shady background. With Southstar's seat in the elder's, he pushed her acceptance and supported her training the ways of the Sith. "Jorshal, she sold us out." He recived only and angry and dismayed look from his apprentice. "All of us. The Order. Me, You."
"That's bull!" Jorshal threw the datapad at the stone wall and clenched his fists. He threw his fist at a flat screen, fracturing it.
"You know it's true. Since she's disappeared our sight has cleared. Our man inside this Order of Aequitas has been saying it for sometime now. I think she got scared and ran which-"
"It's you!" Jorshal pointed his finger at Southstar. "I finally get one thing going for me, Some relief from your ridiculous training and you're taking it away from me!" Jorshal thrust his foot through a short droid and threw it at the wall with the Force. "What'd you do with her? Kill her? Send her to that ridiculous doll house?"
"You're acting irrational and it's irritating me." Southstar responded through gritted teeth.
"You irritate me! You drive me insane with your giant conspiracy theories and ridicuous obsession with political gain."
Southstar wanted to yell back but realized a diffusion of the argument might be most productive. After all, there was a Jedi organization out there with tabs on all the members of the Sith Order ranging from location to weaknesses. "Would you calm down?" Southstar pounded his fist on the console. "This isn't about tearing you two apart! She used you and when she was done she left. Get your senses about you, we have a job to do!"
"Do your job without me." Jorshal said and turned his back to Southstar "Screw you."
Those were the last words Southstar heard from his apprentice, the one he had raised since Jorshal was but a child.
*12 Hours Ago*
"So that's it? He left with a 'screw you' and you took this job yourself?" A female voice said over an intercom.
"Yeah." Southstar responded and glanced at the chronometer gaging how long he had left in hyperspace. "I can handle this without him though. Screw him." He looked back at the red haired beauty he dare call lover, Nadja.
She laughed. "So then you drag me into this, instead of him? Nice."
"I don't need anyone on the ground except myself. But I at least need you in the air." He smiled.
"And in the air, or at least in orbit, I will be."
"Yeah." He rubbed his jaw. "I still can't believe she played me like that." Normally he wouldn't have admitted it to anybody, but Nadja was an exception.
"It happens. Quit focusing on that, you're due to break hyperspace in a few minutes. I'll keep in touch." She winked and the video feed faded to black.
"Keep in touch." He said quietly.
*One Hour Ago*
"That took to long to get on planet." SOuthstar said over the comm he shared with Nadja, who was in her ship. With so many Force users telepathy was the most dangerous method of communication.
"It doesn't matter. You're on the planet now, do what you've got to."
"Working on it."
"There's two guards in the hallway to your left."
Southstar leapt over their heads and landed in front of them. Before they could raise their blasters, he had severed them at the hips.
"Bodies raise alarms." Nadja advised.
"They know I'm here."
*Forty-five Minutes Ago*
"We've known you were here since you arrived," Rayna said. Her voice was as quiet and soft as ever. As unemotional as ever.
"I figured as much." He responded from his position of being draped over two armed men and surrounded by dozens more.
"That was pretty slick with the comm." A male voice said. He was dressed in the same white robes as Rayna. He too was a Jedi. "Telepathy, we would have caught. But we don't have the money to catch this. Regardless, you Sith have a Force signature the size of a Star Destroyer."
Rayna placed a hand over the heart of the other male Jedi. "Enough Enith, you're forgetting your vows." She turned to Southstar. "Please surrender. We will not kill you, it is against our vows. Punishment is neccessary, however, but we are forgiving. Don't force us to inflict any more punishment, I beg you."
"You Jedi are all fools. Had you have killed me long ago I wouldn't be in a position to kill you both now." Southstar laughed.
Neither of the Jedi found it funny. "Again," Rayna said. "We beg you to-" She was interrupted as a tidal wave of telekinesis pushed the Jedi and the guards to the ends of the room. With his lightsaber recalled from a guards belt, he began to fight."
*Now.*
The fighting was approaching an hour. Even with the Force, Southstar did not know how long he could go. The ambush from before had softened him quite a bit. Not to mention there were about a dozen of guards firing at him and two Jedi, lightsabers ignited fighting to stop him. He reminded himself of his primary mission, destroy all of the information the Jedi had on the Sith Order. Nadja had outfitted him with a virus that would track and destroy all the original information as well as any of the copies anywhere they may be. He only needed an outlet.
He absolutely loved the way these particular Jedi fought. They only defended. Perhpas it was why he alive for so long now. Two more guards fell to a deflected blaster shot. Their collapse to the ground revealed the open port he needed. Soon, he reminded himself, he would be out of the thick of it.
Three blaster shots rang past his head and collided with a guard and Rayna's green blade. Southstar turned and found Xau Ghin, a former Sith and insider amongst the Order of Aequitas. He was invaluable outside the field of combat, near worthless in it. Regardless, he was glad for the help.
"What the frell are you doing here?" He asked amongst the fighting.
"I've been in the complex for a while. I'm heading up security." He smiled. "But I saw you were in trouble, so... I guess my cover is blown."
"Xau..." rayna said quietly, but loud enough for him to hear on the other side of the room. "We've known. But how could you? we were willing to place our trust in you."
"You've known!?" A blaster bolt nearly hit his head. "But you gave me the information anyway?"
"Only what we needed to in order to capture a Sith." Enith said. "We were hoping for two."
"I- I-... damn." Xau said and fired a couple of poorly aimed shots at the Jedi.
Their coversation was enough for Southstar to get past the guards to the port. He threw the cylindrical disk at the port and with a little telekinesis it fit right in. "Mission accomplished, let's move Xau!" He said and cut down a guard while Xau shot at a few more.
"We can't let them leave." Enith said to Rayna as the room emptied of guards.
"No we can't"
---
Southstar and Xau had charged through the complex towards the hanger. With Xau's knowledge of the complex and the whereabouts of the emergancy guards, it was a breeze. Once they reached the hanger, both Southstar and Xau were surpised to find a large group of guards waiting for them, blasters raised.
This is it. He said to himself silently.
He turned around but the Force warned him that the two Jedi were there.
"Again, Southstar. Please surrender, I beg you." Rayna said with a little hope glimmering in her face.
"Should you take one more life," Enith warned. "you will be deemed a menace and our only punishment for a menace is death. Even I am asking you to stop. Please."
"One hundred lives is menace status." Xau whispered with a smile. "I'm only at nuisence, but I'm working on it."
"They seriously have a number system for it?" Southstar asked.
"Believe it." Xau responded.
Southstar reached out through the Force and gripped a guards innards. The guard excreted waste through all orfaces and collapsed.
"I'm so sorry." Rayna said with sadness she was unable to keep behind her usual emotionless face. Finally, she and Enith moved to the offensive.
Another tidal wave of telekinesis threw the guards back and the ignition of the engines on the larger ships damaged them enough that Southstar had a glimmer of hope that he might survive this. At the moment, he was locked in combat with two Jedi. He wanted to fight them, kill Rayna, but his gut told him he may get another chance. He kept retreating until he found himself defending at the edge of the hanger. They were better swordsmen that him and now he really wished he had Jorshal at his side. The boy was phenomonal at all forms of combat. He would escape successfully should Jorshal have been there. But Jorshal wasn't there and all he had to depend on was a little luck. All he needed was a bit of luck.
The Storm dropped from above and its guns positioned themselves at the Jedi. "Nadja, thank you." Southstar whispered.
"That thing is with you?" Xau asked.
"You remember Nadja, don't you?" He responded with a smile.
"I do and thank the Force." He said, obviously relieved.
The ramp lowered and Nadja appeared armed with two blaster rifles aimed at the two Jedi. She didn't say a thing.
"Nadja, you're a lifesaver." Southstar said but took special notice that the Jedi had stopped agressing against their "menace".
"I'd have been here sooner, but you know how hard it is to get on planet." She said outloud.
"We understand." Rayna said.
Southstar turned back to Nadja and found the rifles on him and Xau. "Nadja..."
"I'm sorry 'star. With the Emperor dead and the Alliance making headway... Baby, I'm so sorry." She sounded legit, but not a tear left her eye. "Do you have my pay?" She said as if her apology hadn't been said.
"You're service isn't pure, but it serves our purpose." Enith said. "It's been wired to your account. The virus was a fake."
"Right on." She nodded.
"Xau, follow my lead." The telepathic message was sent quick enough that Southstra might be able to save his and possible Xau's hide.
"Sorry pal." Xau raised his blaster towards Southstar's face. "Even I can't miss at this range. Nadja's right, times have changed and I'm gonna be on the winning side. With half of the credits frm the Order of Aequitas. Right Nadja."
"You know it, babe." She sounded confident. Southstar wondered if she had any remorse.
"Babe?" He asked, buying himself some time.
"She's killer between the sheets, 'star." Xau smiled as the remaining guards lined up behind him, blasters raised.
"Southstar," Rayna said. "You have my mercy if you surrender. Please, this can only be our last offer."
He could try and save hismelf and die trying, or he could go out in flames. Jorhsal would support the latter. Perhaps he should take this one lesson from his apprentice. His fist clenched around the hilt of his navy blue lightsaber. He threw himself at the two Jedi but before he could end his slash he felt four bolts hit him in the back, another two in the shoulder. At the peak of his leap, four more from Nadja hit his back, another two from Xau grazed his neck. He rolled in front of the two Jedi feeling an additional four shots from Nadja and more from Xau. He couldn't hear as Xau's shot scorched his ear. He couldn't feel his legs nor his back but the force from Nadja's shots pushed his body forward and told him she hadn't stopped firing. Another blast from Xau blinded hi right eye. His damaged hearing picked up the boots of the guards followed by a blur of noise when seperated sounded like dozens of blaster shots fired at once. Finally the hum of the lightsaber became the last sound he would ever hear and its green glowing blade the last thing he would see. The Sith Knight and Elder known only as Southstar lie dead. His head rolled across the durasteel floor, betrayed and abandoned by all those he had ever known.
"Master, what is this?" Jorshal Vuntana said as he scanned the datapad.
"What does it look like, Apprentice?" Southstar responded as he dragged a picture on the holo to the forefront.
"Someone has been keeping tabs?" He said uneasily. "On all of us..."
"Nothing get's by you, does it?"
"Apparently this got by all of us." He responded. "How'd you find out about this?" Jorshal continued to look through the information. The words Order of Aequitas were appearing numerous times followed in a close secodn with Rayna Eclipse. "And what's the Order of Aequitas? I recognize Rayna's name, what's she got to do with this?"
Southstar paused before responding. Rayna and Jorshal had developed a relationship over time. Rayna was a young apprentice in the order with a shady background. With Southstar's seat in the elder's, he pushed her acceptance and supported her training the ways of the Sith. "Jorshal, she sold us out." He recived only and angry and dismayed look from his apprentice. "All of us. The Order. Me, You."
"That's bull!" Jorshal threw the datapad at the stone wall and clenched his fists. He threw his fist at a flat screen, fracturing it.
"You know it's true. Since she's disappeared our sight has cleared. Our man inside this Order of Aequitas has been saying it for sometime now. I think she got scared and ran which-"
"It's you!" Jorshal pointed his finger at Southstar. "I finally get one thing going for me, Some relief from your ridiculous training and you're taking it away from me!" Jorshal thrust his foot through a short droid and threw it at the wall with the Force. "What'd you do with her? Kill her? Send her to that ridiculous doll house?"
"You're acting irrational and it's irritating me." Southstar responded through gritted teeth.
"You irritate me! You drive me insane with your giant conspiracy theories and ridicuous obsession with political gain."
Southstar wanted to yell back but realized a diffusion of the argument might be most productive. After all, there was a Jedi organization out there with tabs on all the members of the Sith Order ranging from location to weaknesses. "Would you calm down?" Southstar pounded his fist on the console. "This isn't about tearing you two apart! She used you and when she was done she left. Get your senses about you, we have a job to do!"
"Do your job without me." Jorshal said and turned his back to Southstar "Screw you."
Those were the last words Southstar heard from his apprentice, the one he had raised since Jorshal was but a child.
*12 Hours Ago*
"So that's it? He left with a 'screw you' and you took this job yourself?" A female voice said over an intercom.
"Yeah." Southstar responded and glanced at the chronometer gaging how long he had left in hyperspace. "I can handle this without him though. Screw him." He looked back at the red haired beauty he dare call lover, Nadja.
She laughed. "So then you drag me into this, instead of him? Nice."
"I don't need anyone on the ground except myself. But I at least need you in the air." He smiled.
"And in the air, or at least in orbit, I will be."
"Yeah." He rubbed his jaw. "I still can't believe she played me like that." Normally he wouldn't have admitted it to anybody, but Nadja was an exception.
"It happens. Quit focusing on that, you're due to break hyperspace in a few minutes. I'll keep in touch." She winked and the video feed faded to black.
"Keep in touch." He said quietly.
*One Hour Ago*
"That took to long to get on planet." SOuthstar said over the comm he shared with Nadja, who was in her ship. With so many Force users telepathy was the most dangerous method of communication.
"It doesn't matter. You're on the planet now, do what you've got to."
"Working on it."
"There's two guards in the hallway to your left."
Southstar leapt over their heads and landed in front of them. Before they could raise their blasters, he had severed them at the hips.
"Bodies raise alarms." Nadja advised.
"They know I'm here."
*Forty-five Minutes Ago*
"We've known you were here since you arrived," Rayna said. Her voice was as quiet and soft as ever. As unemotional as ever.
"I figured as much." He responded from his position of being draped over two armed men and surrounded by dozens more.
"That was pretty slick with the comm." A male voice said. He was dressed in the same white robes as Rayna. He too was a Jedi. "Telepathy, we would have caught. But we don't have the money to catch this. Regardless, you Sith have a Force signature the size of a Star Destroyer."
Rayna placed a hand over the heart of the other male Jedi. "Enough Enith, you're forgetting your vows." She turned to Southstar. "Please surrender. We will not kill you, it is against our vows. Punishment is neccessary, however, but we are forgiving. Don't force us to inflict any more punishment, I beg you."
"You Jedi are all fools. Had you have killed me long ago I wouldn't be in a position to kill you both now." Southstar laughed.
Neither of the Jedi found it funny. "Again," Rayna said. "We beg you to-" She was interrupted as a tidal wave of telekinesis pushed the Jedi and the guards to the ends of the room. With his lightsaber recalled from a guards belt, he began to fight."
*Now.*
The fighting was approaching an hour. Even with the Force, Southstar did not know how long he could go. The ambush from before had softened him quite a bit. Not to mention there were about a dozen of guards firing at him and two Jedi, lightsabers ignited fighting to stop him. He reminded himself of his primary mission, destroy all of the information the Jedi had on the Sith Order. Nadja had outfitted him with a virus that would track and destroy all the original information as well as any of the copies anywhere they may be. He only needed an outlet.
He absolutely loved the way these particular Jedi fought. They only defended. Perhpas it was why he alive for so long now. Two more guards fell to a deflected blaster shot. Their collapse to the ground revealed the open port he needed. Soon, he reminded himself, he would be out of the thick of it.
Three blaster shots rang past his head and collided with a guard and Rayna's green blade. Southstar turned and found Xau Ghin, a former Sith and insider amongst the Order of Aequitas. He was invaluable outside the field of combat, near worthless in it. Regardless, he was glad for the help.
"What the frell are you doing here?" He asked amongst the fighting.
"I've been in the complex for a while. I'm heading up security." He smiled. "But I saw you were in trouble, so... I guess my cover is blown."
"Xau..." rayna said quietly, but loud enough for him to hear on the other side of the room. "We've known. But how could you? we were willing to place our trust in you."
"You've known!?" A blaster bolt nearly hit his head. "But you gave me the information anyway?"
"Only what we needed to in order to capture a Sith." Enith said. "We were hoping for two."
"I- I-... damn." Xau said and fired a couple of poorly aimed shots at the Jedi.
Their coversation was enough for Southstar to get past the guards to the port. He threw the cylindrical disk at the port and with a little telekinesis it fit right in. "Mission accomplished, let's move Xau!" He said and cut down a guard while Xau shot at a few more.
"We can't let them leave." Enith said to Rayna as the room emptied of guards.
"No we can't"
---
Southstar and Xau had charged through the complex towards the hanger. With Xau's knowledge of the complex and the whereabouts of the emergancy guards, it was a breeze. Once they reached the hanger, both Southstar and Xau were surpised to find a large group of guards waiting for them, blasters raised.
This is it. He said to himself silently.
He turned around but the Force warned him that the two Jedi were there.
"Again, Southstar. Please surrender, I beg you." Rayna said with a little hope glimmering in her face.
"Should you take one more life," Enith warned. "you will be deemed a menace and our only punishment for a menace is death. Even I am asking you to stop. Please."
"One hundred lives is menace status." Xau whispered with a smile. "I'm only at nuisence, but I'm working on it."
"They seriously have a number system for it?" Southstar asked.
"Believe it." Xau responded.
Southstar reached out through the Force and gripped a guards innards. The guard excreted waste through all orfaces and collapsed.
"I'm so sorry." Rayna said with sadness she was unable to keep behind her usual emotionless face. Finally, she and Enith moved to the offensive.
Another tidal wave of telekinesis threw the guards back and the ignition of the engines on the larger ships damaged them enough that Southstar had a glimmer of hope that he might survive this. At the moment, he was locked in combat with two Jedi. He wanted to fight them, kill Rayna, but his gut told him he may get another chance. He kept retreating until he found himself defending at the edge of the hanger. They were better swordsmen that him and now he really wished he had Jorshal at his side. The boy was phenomonal at all forms of combat. He would escape successfully should Jorshal have been there. But Jorshal wasn't there and all he had to depend on was a little luck. All he needed was a bit of luck.
The Storm dropped from above and its guns positioned themselves at the Jedi. "Nadja, thank you." Southstar whispered.
"That thing is with you?" Xau asked.
"You remember Nadja, don't you?" He responded with a smile.
"I do and thank the Force." He said, obviously relieved.
The ramp lowered and Nadja appeared armed with two blaster rifles aimed at the two Jedi. She didn't say a thing.
"Nadja, you're a lifesaver." Southstar said but took special notice that the Jedi had stopped agressing against their "menace".
"I'd have been here sooner, but you know how hard it is to get on planet." She said outloud.
"We understand." Rayna said.
Southstar turned back to Nadja and found the rifles on him and Xau. "Nadja..."
"I'm sorry 'star. With the Emperor dead and the Alliance making headway... Baby, I'm so sorry." She sounded legit, but not a tear left her eye. "Do you have my pay?" She said as if her apology hadn't been said.
"You're service isn't pure, but it serves our purpose." Enith said. "It's been wired to your account. The virus was a fake."
"Right on." She nodded.
"Xau, follow my lead." The telepathic message was sent quick enough that Southstra might be able to save his and possible Xau's hide.
"Sorry pal." Xau raised his blaster towards Southstar's face. "Even I can't miss at this range. Nadja's right, times have changed and I'm gonna be on the winning side. With half of the credits frm the Order of Aequitas. Right Nadja."
"You know it, babe." She sounded confident. Southstar wondered if she had any remorse.
"Babe?" He asked, buying himself some time.
"She's killer between the sheets, 'star." Xau smiled as the remaining guards lined up behind him, blasters raised.
"Southstar," Rayna said. "You have my mercy if you surrender. Please, this can only be our last offer."
He could try and save hismelf and die trying, or he could go out in flames. Jorhsal would support the latter. Perhaps he should take this one lesson from his apprentice. His fist clenched around the hilt of his navy blue lightsaber. He threw himself at the two Jedi but before he could end his slash he felt four bolts hit him in the back, another two in the shoulder. At the peak of his leap, four more from Nadja hit his back, another two from Xau grazed his neck. He rolled in front of the two Jedi feeling an additional four shots from Nadja and more from Xau. He couldn't hear as Xau's shot scorched his ear. He couldn't feel his legs nor his back but the force from Nadja's shots pushed his body forward and told him she hadn't stopped firing. Another blast from Xau blinded hi right eye. His damaged hearing picked up the boots of the guards followed by a blur of noise when seperated sounded like dozens of blaster shots fired at once. Finally the hum of the lightsaber became the last sound he would ever hear and its green glowing blade the last thing he would see. The Sith Knight and Elder known only as Southstar lie dead. His head rolled across the durasteel floor, betrayed and abandoned by all those he had ever known.