Playing Chicken (Cline)

[Lady DeVille]

De'Ville stood with her feet slightly spread for balance as the wind whipped around her. Standing alone in the midst of a city-planet full of people, she was waiting.

She had been waiting for some time. Waiting for the right moment. The Jedi Cline was just another slimy granite slug to be destroyed. Coruscant could hide him, but not from himself. Her past conversations with him had proven that he was stupid enough to remain with the Jedi...

...and so he was to be eliminated.

[Michael Cline]

::Cline was back on Courascant he hadn't been here since he came to pay his repects to his family. it was weird really he honestly didn't know why he was even here agian. He walked slowly through the streets content on just relaxing and taking a small vacation, fire had left for some R&R herself, on Hoth if he remembered correctly. He wondered how that was going. As he walked he could feel the presences of nearly everyone around him, some with Force talents, but his mind suddenly shot with pain as he found himself mentally face to face with a Darkside user, LADY DE'VILLE. he didn't know what she wanted but honestly didn't care he came here to relax and she'd have to be dealt with if that was going to happen.::

::Turning down several long alleys and negotiating through the streets of the huge city-planet he found himself staring into the eyes of the Sith.::

what do you want De'Ville?

[Lady DeVille]

"Your soul." She stared into his eyes, capturing them with her own. Cline stopped where he was, about twenty paces away from her. Worthless bastich.

De'Ville smiled, a cold, heartless smile that did not touch her eyes. "Pray to the Force, or whatever deity you believe in, but you will taste true fear today." She shrugged out of her dark brown cloak, revealing her lithe body barely contained in a jumpsuit. Blades glistened on her arms, and her lightsaber remained on her belt within easy reach.

"Your fiance will be a widow before she is a wife."

[Michael Cline]

::His blood ran cold in his veins as she spoke the words. He considered trying to talk this out with her but realised it would do no good here. He stripped off his leather jacket standing in his t-shirt and jeans.::

I want you to know I don't want to do this.

::His hands fluttered above his blaster and his lightsaber::

[Lady DeVille]

She clicked her tongue. "Please. For my sake at least, grant me the opportunity, no, the pleasure of kicking your a$$."

As De'Ville spoke she cracked her neck and walked a little closer. Cline showed signs of wanting to back down, but somewhere the little Jedi found a backbone. What was more surprising was that he chose to use it.

The wind howled around the corner, sending her cloak flying off the edge of the platform to waft hundreds of feet straight down. She smiled. It was angry weather.

Moving quickly, with Force enhanced reflexes and muscles, De'Ville rushed Cline, spinning and kicking him right below the deltoid muscle of his right arm, sending shooting pains through the limb. Landing lightly on her feet, she slashed viciously at his chest with the vibroblades strapped to her right arm.

[Michael Cline]

::He winched in intense pain as the blades cut through his skin and tissue. he watched as her arms gashed him a few times and got a feel for her movements he reached out and as she motioned to slash again grabbed her arms pulling them apart. She was caught at least momentarilly of guard by this manuever. He didn't think she'd have expected such an aggresive move from him, this worked to his advantage. As he pulled her arms apart she looked towards him in time to see his foot slam into her face, a loud crack thundering against the howling wind. He let go of her arms as she stumbled back and fell, she rolled away and onto her feet regaining her composure. Big surprise. Cline figured she'd do as much, but he hoped that his surprising attack had made her reconsider this fight a little and throw her off her game enough for ihm to at least survive this. He took a step back into a defensive position and motioned for her to attack, blood dripping from his open wounds on his chest. She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and grinned.::

[Lady DeVille]

She fell back from Cline's boot, rolling back and to the side. There was more fight in him than she had expected, but the Jedi would be no match for her. She felt blood trickling from her nose, and she wiped it away. He was just standing there bleeding, as if he was waiting for her to kill him.

Frelling Jedi.

In a swift move she discarded the armblades, fastening them quickly and securely so the howling wind would not blow them away. De'Ville pulled her lightsaber off her belt, extending her arm and igniting the blade in one swift motion. Cline followed suit, his saber bathing his face in an eerie glow. She would have spoken, shouted something against the wind to steal the last of his courage, but the wind would have snatched her words away.

Instead, she licked her lips. As Cline still hesitated, waiting for her to attack, she concentrated and whispered to his mind through the Force.

I'm going to enjoy killing you. And when I am done, no one will stop me from exacting my pound of flesh from your little slut of a fiance

His pupils dialated, and she attacked, swinging with both hands on her jade and purple saber. He blocked, grunting from the force of the blow, and she quickly followed it up with a knee to the groin.

Cline doubled up a little, blood from his chest getting on her arm as she pushed him off herself to free her saber.

[Michael Cline]

::His heart raced his mind pounded, her words echoed in the hallways of his mind. She was going to go after Fire.::

::Something inside of him snapped, he had lost everyone he had ever cared about, he wouldn't lose Fire he wouldn't let De'Ville get to her. Before this had been about surviving this fight with her, now it was about more. Much more. De'Ville would never get a chance to go after Fire. He'd kill her first.::

::He opened his mind and shouted back at her through the Force.::

You'll never get the chance De'Ville. I'll kill you before I'll let you come within ten feet of Fire.

::His words shocked her, he could tell by the expression on her face. If his words had shocked her then this would shock her even more so. He slammed his elbow up into her Jaw a spray of blood exploding from her lip, before she could react he dropped to the ground pulling her with him. He raised his leg flipping her over top and slamming her into the ground hard. He reared back and pulled himself forward into a stance. She too was just getting back to her feet a little confused by the Jedi's aggresive moves. He fell to the ground rolling towards her, she saw the attack coming and went for a kick, but as she did Cline leaped from his position and redrew his saber, as he began to descend from the leap he lunged down harder quickening his descent and bringing the saber deep into the shoulder of the Sith. She looked at him in surprise as he twisted the saber more intensifying the pain coursing through her from the wound.::

[Lady DeVille]

ooc: be careful not to maim my character! ;) I forgot to remind you, normal rules, etc etc. But then, everyone knows that already. :) /ic:

De'Ville allowed an expression of shock to cross her face, but she was not surprised at Cline's retaliation. She had chosen her words to anger him, and it was working. Blood spurted from her lip, staining his face as he threw her to the ground. She rolled to her feet, feigning momentary confusion as he leaped up at her.

Everything slowed.

The wind was horrendous; her hair was blown into her eyes as Cline leaped into the wind towards her. And then she slipped, causing her arms to fling out for balance. De'Ville didn't have time to curse before the frelling Jedi's saber was piercing through her shoulder.

Pain overwhelmed her momentarily, and her surprise was real as he twisted the saber savagely. A detatched part of her mind thanked the stars it was her left shoulder. De'Ville felt the saber in her, felt the energy through the Force, and absorbed as much as she could into her body, disapating it harmlessly. As he pulled the saber out, the wound was not as severe as it would have been, but it was still flaming with pain.

She drew on the Dark side, forming a ball of Force Destruction above her right hand. Cline was leaning into the wind, and she threw the destructive Dark side energy at him, hitting him square in the center of the chest.

De'Ville pulled a vial of bacta from her belt, smearing it on her wound. She fell into a defensive postition with her saber in front of her, trying to give her shoulder as much time as she could.

[Michael Cline]

OOC: I figured as much, that attack was never meant to maim. You would have known instantly if it were.

IC:

::Time seemed to slow as he flew threw the air from the blow, Force Destruction. He had heard of it before, but never actually seen it let alone been on the recieving end of it. The wind seemed to carry him more as he started to land dangerously close to the ledge. He landed with a thud and struggled to keep himself from sliding off. He caught his footing just as he reached the edge and thought for a brief moment.::

She has the advantage. She's willing to hurt anyone or do anything to get to me, I'm not. The only way I could even the playing field would be if I...

::he shook the thought off::

NO! I can't even let myself think like that. But she's standing there waiting, taunting me, and if I fail she'll go after Fire. I can't let that happen. I have to stop her here and now.

::Michael seemed to explode from his croutched position his action at the moment more dictated by raw emotion to protect Fire than anything else. And LD knew this, she swatted him away easily and he fell to the ground again. She decided to play with him a little.::

::Michael was lieing face down about to pull himself up when he felt a weight on his back. He turned his head to see LD grinding her heal into his spine, she had a look of enjoyment as she did this. He saw her lips move and knew she had said something, though the wind carried her words into the distance. Thinking he knew he'd have to cause her as much pain with the Force as she had just caused him. His heart nearly stopped as he realised what that would require. For the first time since his parents death he would have to allow himself to create a force ripple, the very thing that had overloaded and killed them.::

::His breathe slowed as he closed his eyes and tried to relive the situation exactly as it had happened that horrible year ago. His mind shot back to the day and the events began to unfold though unseen to anyone but him. Meanwhile LD was enjoying grinding him into the ground when she noticed an odd glow surround him. It seemed to extend from him and onto her. What could it be?::

::In Michael's mind the events were coming to a close as the blow to the back of his neck, a blow which gave him his Force abilities and also took his parents from him. The engery around Michael and LD began to ripple like waves in a pond, each wave stronger than the last, LD could feel herself starting to be pushed away by each one. finally like a tidal wave the strongest one rushed out, it shot LD back and exploded into her ribcage. She landed several meters away with a loud thud as the energy residue settled and Michael struggled to his feet. Tears streaming down his face from having to relive his parents death again.::

[Lady DeVille]

ooc: see the smilies! :) I didn't think it was /ic:

The bacta in her shoulder did nothing to help her as the glow around Cline exploded outward and into her. De'Ville felt her breath pop out of her lungs as a bantha sat on her ribcage. At least, thats what it felt like.

She was flying through the air, against the stong wind that did nothing to break her fall as she smashed to the ground. The duracrete scraped up her back, ripping through her jumpsuit, but she couldn't feel it at the moment.

De'Ville stared at the darkening sky, unable to close her eyes, let alone move. She could hear Cline panting: he was several yards away still. De'Ville mused, how is it I hear him breathing over this gale? but then in a rush her pain sensors overloaded, and she retreated within herself to escape death.

Drawing on every bit of Force energy she could find, De'Ville filled herself with the Dark side. Her muscles seemed to be trying to separate from her bones, the tendons and ligaments straining. De'Ville worked quickly within herself, squelching the pain with the Force, and calming her body.

Cline was approaching, and she pulled her silently throbbing body into a sitting position. He looked deflated and tearstained, but he still held tightly to his ingited saber. He wanted her to give up but, that isn't going to happen.

She made a slight pinching motion with her left hand, manipulating a paticular nerve in the Jedi's back as she recovered from his attack. He jerked backwards as crippling pain shot up and down his back, and crumpled to the ground as if blown over by the wind.

[Michael Cline]

OOC: Just bumping this to the top is all. :p

[Michael Cline]

::Cline Stumbled to the ground as LD released the pinch he was holding himself up on his hands and knees and she sat on the ground a few feet away from him. He shook his head slightly still in pain from the grip and looked at her. they were close enough to here each other over the howl of the wind now and he had one thing he had to say.::

Why are you doing this? What did I do that you want to kill me so badly?

[Lady DeVille]

De' Ville released the nerve, and tried getting to her feet. Her muscles protested, but she used the Force to strengthen them as she stood. She spotted her saber, lying to the side, near the edge of the building.

The wind was strong, catching Cline's words and throwing them away, but she could hear a sentence or two. "Why?..........What did I do...you want to kill me so badly?"

De'Ville grimaced, recalling her saber to her outstretched palm. Cline struggled to his feet as well and was looking about for his saber. She spoke loudly, amplifying her voice through the Force so he could hear her clearly.

"You hold strongly to nothing. You would be Jedi, yet you entertain thoughts of becoming Sith. If you had a single conviction in your body to hold to I might spare you.. You are a disgrace to the universe!"

[Michael Cline]

::He glared up at her. She mentioned the Sith, what did she mean "thoughts of becoming Sith"? he had never had thoughts of joining the Sith and had allways been careful to avoid the Darkside, hadn't he? Was there something going on in his own mind that she saw that he didn't even know? He shook that off. She was simply screwing with his mind.::

"Convictions? I have convictions and one of them is the protection of life..."

::The words hit him like a brick wall even as he was saying them. He had just been threatening Lady De'Ville's life, true it was to try to protect Fire but it was still a threat against a life. Perhaps thats what she meant by his convictions? It didn't matter now he was in this fight whether he liked it or not. He stood up slowly and stared eye to eye with her his hand inching towards his saber if need be.::

"I won't kill you De'Ville. And I won't give in to your darkside tricks of trying to anger me anymore. I'm through with you. I'll fight you if you make me. but that's the only way I'm fighting you now."

::He seemed to speak with a renewed energy and conviction and waited for a response::

[Lady DeVille]

I am through with you. His words angered her more. "You are through with me? You are through!?" Still holding tightly to her lightsaber hilt, De'Ville threw her hands out in the rushing wind. The Dark side filled her again, and she could feel every particle of the air as it flowed around her body. And she stopped it.Cline stumbled slightly forward as the wind ceased. At least, around the two Force users it was as calm as glass. Around them, around the eye of static De'Ville had caused, the wind whipped by as strong as before.A single tear sprang to her eye, and trickled down her cheek. Through with you, through with you, through with you....! The phrase echoed in the darkest halls of her mind, and struck a dissonant chord in her heart. Blood dripped out of her mouth - she was biting the inside of her cheek and didn't know it.Her eyes stared into Cline's, twin reflections of her soul, as dark and deep as a well. Deeper than any would know. "You will - you will pay!" She seemed to be staring right through Cline, and her gaze seemed hot enough to sear his soul.Cline called his saber to his hand, but De'Ville plucked it out of the air and clutched it in her other hand. "I hate you!" She staggered forward, dropping the sabers on the ground. They rolled a little, and then lay still on the duracrete as she continued forward towards Cline. He tried to move back, but found himself unable as she approached.He could hear her muttering, "You will know fear, you will know pain, you will pay, you will pay....you are not through! I am not through!" He was shocked to find her face glistening with tears that she did not wipe away.De'Ville stopped within arms reach of Cline, and the Dark side energy building up in her mind was becoming unbearable. She could not control her mind/alter skills very well, and the Force seemed to explode out from her into Cline.He jerked, and his mind was filled with dark, murky images. A young girl's screams accompanied images of grey uniforms marching toward him. He saw a girl sleeping in her bed awakened by a fleshy nightmare. And the phrase, spoken by a male voice he had never heard: "I'm through with you, for now." Cline's eyes snapped open.The wind was back, roaring around his body. De'Ville was pressed up against him, her hands clutching either side of his head as if to crush it, but there was no strength in her grip. She spasmed, and lurched backward, away from him. Her eyes were dull and lifeless as the sabers sprang to her hands again. He felt that his shirt was wet from her tears."This is not over." And she ran swiftly to the edge and somersaulted off.