Forging a New Weapon

[Damien Killcannon]

(( OOC: This is a short, fanfic-ish type of story to further Damien's character devlopement. I would have loved to had made this into an actual RP, but I just don't have that kind of free time. So, I did what I could. After it is finished, I would welcome all comments and opinions.:) ))

[Damien Killcannon]

The palms of his hands were sweating as he did his best to hold tight onto the cylinder of metal steadily trying to slip from his grasp. He fumbled around with it for a few moments before managing to get it attached to his belt clip. The whole concept of using a lightsaber was still a bit foreign to Damien Killcannon: in fact, he had only wielded them a handful of times in his whole life. Kind of strange, coming from one who knew as much about the Force as he.

In fact, that was one of the things that bugged him: that nagged at the back of his mind. How did he know so much about the Force, anyway? He had never had any formal training, to the best of his knowledge. And he had been using it for far longer than he could recall. Maybe not specific powers, no: he couldn't toss around bolts of lightning, or anything like that. But he still knew how to manipulate things, how to... shape the world to his needs. He had long ago lost count of the number of people he had killed without even touching, which annoyed him becuase he had, at one time, been keeping track of their numbers.

But now was not the time to dwell on it. He had too many unanswered questions about his past to be worrying about them now. He had joined the Sith not particularly out of want to be "evil", but more becuase the powers the Dark offer seemed far more useful to him. And to satisfying his lust for knowledge. Now he would only have to prove himself to the Sith Order. He was getting tired of their lax training, and needed something to make them acknowlege his abilities. So when they offered him the chance to follow the Jedi Master Darth Turbogeek on a spying mission, he accepted without hesitation. They thought that perhaps he didn't understand the implications of following Turbogeek. Maybe he didn't. But they didn't understand the fact that he didn't care about repricussions. His life was worthless if it wasn't in pursuit of furthering his own knowledge. And just maybe he could find something of some value that he could keep for himself, as well. After all, something had sparked the Council's interest enough that they wanted a spy to find out about it. And that 'something' involved one of the most powerful Jedi Masters ever... or so he had heard.

Nervously, he glanced down at the lightsaber once more. Lady Vader had insisted that he take one along, despite the fact that he knew next to nothing about them. This wasn't even his own, but rather, one he borrowed from her. If this Jedi was half as good as they claimed, he very well might need it.

Wait... here he came now. Damien muttered a curse to himself (something about the fool Jedi being early) as he slipped further back into the darkness. From his cover, he took a moment to glance back to the structure behind him. "What does he want with a smelting facility, anyway?", Damien thought to himself. "Almost nothing useful could be constructed here. At least, nothing useful to a Jedi."

He heard the shuffle of footsteps getting closer to him and his muscles tensed. Should he simply jump the Jedi now and take whatever was in his possesion? Surely that would be his best chance to kill him, wouldn't it? No... there was no garauntee that the Jedi had whatever it was that the Council coveted it on him. And if he was as powerful as the stories said, he wouldn't be able to kill him, even taking him by surprise. Damien would have to bide his time: stealth was the key, here. When the sound of the footsteps softened a bit, he peered around the corner of the pole he had ducked behind. The Jedi was just a few feet from the entrance to the building, walking at a relaxed pace. That was a good sign: it meant that he wasn't suspecting anyone following him. Sticking to the shadows, Damien made his ways over to his quarry, careful to not only keep quiet, but to mask his presence from him. That was the toruble with stalking those who knew how to weild the Force properly: they could find out in an instant if one wasn't careful. Especially when you were as close as Damien was.

Turbogeek stopped at the door for just a moment to punch in the passcode into the control panel before continuing inside. As silent as a stalking Noghri, Damien crept in behind him before the doors closed. He heald his breathe as he entered, not daring to make a sound. Now was the most crucial time to be careful... if the Jedi turned around for any reason, there was nowhere Damien could hide. He didn't expect the Jedi to execute him on the spot; heck, even if he would, that wouldn't concern Damien. But all this trouble would be for naught, and that was unacceptable. As DT rounded the corner just ahead, Damien silently let out his breathe, panting for a few moments.

[Damien Killcannon]

"Back to hiding behind pillars...", Damien thought to himself angrily. He was getting impatient: whatever Turbogeek was doing, he certainly was taking his time about it. Patience was not something he, as a Sith, was accustomed to; And he had been standing in relatively the same spot for the past 2 hours, watching the Jedi make whatever preparations he needed to. Damien had become lulled almost into a trance by the strange silence of the room when DT finally started up the machinery, filling the room with a cacophony that was downright startling. Temporarily forgetting his need to stay hidden, Damien jumped back in surprise, knocking a piece of durasteel armor from the table it was resting on. Despite his best efforts to stop it, it crashed to the ground with a clang, the sound revorborating for a few moments. Luckily, it was well more than drowned out by the machinery's noise. Even if he hadn't known he was doing it, DT would pay for that little joke. But, in any case, the noise served to keep him awake. Damien had been waiting outside for Turbogeek for almost a full day before he came, and he was starting to get a bit groggy.

Peeking around the pillar, Damien saw that DT had already begun whatever it was that he had come to do. Beside him lay an open.... what was that thing? A book?!? By the Force, he didn't even think that those things existed! But it was almost exactly like the descriptions he had read of them: a hard outer cover encompassing "pages" of information. The thing had to be archaic! Perhaps this was what the Council had sent him after. Well, it shouldn't be too hard to nab and run, but now Damien's curiosity was sparked: Just what sort of things were contained in a book? He had heard that they were much like a Holocron, in some respects.

Then, the pieces started to fall together: Why would the Jedi Master go to a smelting facility? To construct something. Something which needed a few older, harder to find parts. Something that just might be contained in an archaic tome of knowledge.Damien's heart began to beat faster, his temperature rising at the thought of learning some long-lost knowledge. His thirst for the unknown was just gettin whetted, and he could hardly contain himself.

"Pateince...", he mumbled to himself. "I need to be patient: See what he's doing. Perhaps I could take from him whatever he's making and save it for myself. The Council only said they wanted this book-thing. The rest shall be my rewards."

He allowed a wicked grin to pass over his face at this thought. He would take whatever it was from the Jedi and kill him afterwards. In fact, he didn't even need to tell the Council about the book. If he killed this one that concerned them so highly, he doubted they would even care about the details of the mission. He turned around, resting his back to the pillar and allowing his eyes to close. it was only moments before sleep overtook him, even amidst all the noise, as he slumped to the ground softly.

[Damien Killcannon]

"Rise and shine!" DT spoke in a loud, clear voice as he delivered a kick to the Sith's side, 'gently' waking him. Startled by the unexpected awakening, Damien almost jumped straight upward. A good thing for him that he didn't: Turbogeek had his lighstsaber pointed right at his...

Wait a minute: that wasn't a lightsaber. But... it certainly looked like one. It's hilt was much larger and thicker than that of a lightsaber, and it had a sort of crossguard covering the Jedi's hands, both of which were being used to handle it. The blade was much longer than that of a lightsaber as well. Caustiosly, Damien spoke.

"Wha... what is that thing?"

"I don't really think that that's any of your business. Now my turn: What were you doing here, as if I couldn't tell?"

Damien bit back a venomous comment that was on the tip of his tongue: bravado would do him little good, now.

"I was sent by the Sith Order under the instructions to follow you.", Damien said curtly. No need to tell him more than he needed to know.

"Did you come alone?"

Damien grinned. "Why, as a matter of fact, I didn't. I came with a fellow apprentice who happens to be right over there."

Damien flicked his eyes to Turbogeek's flank, simultaneously causing a metal can across the room to come crashing to the floor via the Force. A bit startled, the Jedi fell for the ruse, turning to look for himself. It gave Damien the opening he was hoping for. In a flash, the lightsaber was gone from his belt and in his had, ignited. He hopped to his feet in a hurry, swinging his lightsaber in an upward strike at the Jedi's new 'toy' jsut as he was turning back to face him. Much to Damien's surprise and chagrin, the mysterious weapon DT held didn't just look like a lightsaber: it functioned like one, as well. It's glowing blade met his, stopping the blow from passing through. DT grinned at the Sith's surprise.

"A lightsword... I just finished constructing it before I woke your sorry hide up. Quite a nifty little device, if I do say so myself."

Damien scowled as he held their blades locked for a moment longer, before finally pulling the two apart and hopping back a step.

"It doesn't matter to me, Turbogeek. That blade will be brought before the Council along with your head."

And so, what was perhaps the most important battle in Damien's life began. This day would be forever etched into his mind, carved in hatred and bound in blood.

[Damien Killcannon]

He was panting heavy now. Blood trailed down one side of Damien's head from where he had collided with a hanging beam, and it was throbbing with pain. His hands were sweaty and slick against the cold metal of the lightsaber hilt. Turbogeek, however, seemed barely winded. He knew that this was a losing battle: he could see that past even his own arrogance. Right now, he was just looking for a way out. And he had a good idea of how he was going to go about it, as well. He turned his head, looking over the side of the walkway which he stood on. Directly beneath him was a smelting pool where all the metals were melted together, forming a magma-like substance. The heat radiating above it was almost intolerable. He was going to have to make a jump for several meters if he wanted to clear the swirling mass of liquid fire. He turned his gaze back to Turbogeek, spitting on the metal walkway. The spittle hissed and popped as it boiled from the heated metal.

"Don't think you've won quite yet, Jedi. Neither I nor the Sith Order will rest until I have your head as my medal of honor."

CRRRRRrrrrrrrrEEEEEEEEaaaaaaaaaaaa...

Somewhere in the bck of his mind, Damien idly wondered what could be making that sound. No matter... this old place was probably falling apart underneath them, but he had no time to worry about such things.

CRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEAAAAAAAA... TWACK!

The swinging beam collided with the back of Damien's skull with a sickening crack, propelling him forward... and right over the ledge. He flung out his arms wildly, trying to get a grasp on something... anything to keep himself from falling. Darth Turbogeek dropped his weapon, running over as quck as he could to the Sith, their battle forgotten for the moment: he couldn't just stand by as the man fell to his death! His body was only still on the ledge by mere inches when DT made a grab for him...

And missed as Damien's unconscious form slid the rest of the way off. The Jedi yet out a yell of frustration as Damien went tumbling down into the blinding light below. Clenching his teeth, DT turned his back to the smelting pool, not wanting to see the rest. He was still young... there had still ben a chance to make him see the Light. But now, that chance was lost forever. DT turned and walked away.

[Damien Killcannon]

It had only been a few moments before Lady Vader had managed to dreg Damien's body up and out of the molten metal using the mechanical claw. He was a disgusting mess: she was almost ready to vomit just looking at him. Most, if not all, of his torso was missing; his stomach entirely gone. His face was still on fire, the flesh bubling and melting off of the bone like candlewax. Lady Vader sighed to her self, muttering a curse. She was supposed to follow him and make sure nothing like this happened. But it seemed that she had overestimated his abilities. The premature death of an apprentice would not be taken lightly by the Council. She turned to leave, not even trying to consider how to remove his body, when she heard it:

Breathing?

No, it couldn't be! His torso was almost completely missing, burned from his body. He shouldn't even have much of his lungs left intact. But she continued to hear it, slowly... very slowly, growing stronger. She turned back to she his chest, rising and falling at a steady pace. Weak, but it was there. It was simply mind-boggling that he could survive such a thing! She ran back over to him, grabbign a piece of cloth nearby and putting out the flames that were licking at his body. Astounding as it was, he was still alive! His eyelids blinked open, the milkish-white orbs turning to her. In her mind, his voice spoke to her:

Thank you. I thought for certain that I had finally lost my gamble.

How? How is it that you yet live?

The Force... is a powerful tool... and no tool is beyond my ability to use properly.

What...what should I do?

I can't hold on too much longer. It's taking every last drop of willpower to so much as keep what's left of my body intact. I need you to take me somewhere...

Of course! Where?

A place... a special sort of medical facility, you might say. Now please... don't waste any more time on words. My time grows short.

Wordlessly, she lifted his body in her arms as gently as she could. Lady Vader couldn't imgine the agony he was experiencing at the moment, and was quite sure she didn't want to try. She looked down at his face, trying to read what was left of it there. Notoicing her gaze, he grinned, a ghastly sight with bone protruding through flesh and melted strings of flesh lacing together his lips. She rushed to get him onboard her ship as quickly as possible, before she threw up.

[Damien Killcannon]

EPILOUGE

The room was completely dark to Damien's senses. He grew tired of lying in bed all day, evey day. It had been 6 months. For the longest time, thedoctors doubted that he would even live. Several of them simply gave up on him, not wanting to deal with the horror that he had become. But, if you pay someone enough, they'll do just about anything. As it turned out, this wasn't the first time they had dealt with something of this nature, although Damien was far, far worse than the man who had come before him. it was only about 5 standard years ago, and the memory was still fresh in many of their minds. Even now, they all thought it would still take many more months before he should even try to talk. But those weaklings did not know the power he possessed: Not only the power of the Dark Side, but the pure, unadulterated rage that burned within him, hotter than the flames which had melted his flesh.

Raising one clawed hand, he touched the sharp edge of one finger to the top of his head, slicing the bandages there neatly in two. A few more cuts, and his vision was flooded with light once again. He sat there for almost an hour, allowing his sight to return to normal. The second he could see again, he groggily stood up from the medical table, hearing a faint snap as the restraint around his waist broke. Damien atttempted to stretch to his full height, only to be stopped short when his head collided with the ceiling. Although he had barely felt it, he was still surprised: they had told him that his artificial spine would make him significantly taller, but he had no idea that it would be to this extreme. Through his open doorway, he saw one of the doctors running towards him, panicked.

"Sir! Please, Sir..."

"Shut up.", Damien growled in an unearthly voice. "Bring me a holopad. I wish to see what I look like."

"But!"

He growled once more. "Do you not have images of me on record?"

The doctor swallowed and nodded. "Then show me before I decide to see how well your insides would decorate these walls.

The doctor ran off to comply with Damien's request. Moments later, a protocol 'droid cautiously walked into the room without a word, a holopad in it's hand. Damien snatched it away from the 'droid, ripping it's arm off along with the 'pad. He pressed a button on it's side, allowing the projection to appear before him. Silently, he examined it for a few moments, not even noticing the 'droid make it's way outside very quickly. The silence of the room was broken when he let out an uproarus laughter, a sound so inhuman that it surely couldn't be interpreted as humerous. Closing his fist, he crushed the holopad in his hand, sending a small shower of sparks in the air. Yes, this form would do nicely for his revenge. Darth Turbogeek had indeed forged a new weapon, that day. And it was that weapon that would be his doom.

[Damien Killcannon]

(( OOC: And that's it, folks! Tell me what you think. :) ))

[Darth Turbogeek]

Interesting to say the least. Quite well done.

[Lady Vader]

OOC: VERY NICE! I like!... now can I have a cleaning droid to sweep up that mess I made in the cockpit of my ship? ;)