In The Night Awaits Darkness(Open Battle)

[Amalia Azalin]

Amalia stood outside, looking up at the shimmering moonlight. The streets of Coruscant were rather quiet at this time of night. Amalia found peace and comfort in the quiet. The stars shown brightly, looking down upon her as she stood on the balcony.

Though Amalia would some times drift off in thought, thinking of the future, the thought and purpose for why she stood upon the balcony now, never falling astray from her own mind.

The area she was in, it was sacred, and it was Amalia's job to guard it. So sacred that she wasn't even told what she was guarding, just that she was to guard it from the balcony, and never to go inside the building. She had got to the balcony by ship, just dropped off, no instruction whatsoever, except just to let no one pass beyond the balcony. She had asked no questions. She was here to do a job.

Her eyes drifted away from the stars and moon and back onto the empty balcony.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: Sith Master Dara Shadowtide Rayial was en route to Coruscant in her personal ship, a Corellian corvette named the Resilience, gathering more sith blades to bestow upon her apprentices as they ascended in power. Her apprentices brought her much pride as they continued to seek out the destruction of light in the galaxy for the glory of the Sith Empire.

It had been awhile since she had journeyed by herself and she found it gave her time to meditate upon her newfound level of darkness. Glancing at the <a href=http://darkholocron.clanpages.com/Dara/DaraHandSymbol.jpg>symbol</a> on her hand she gave an evil grin in knowing its meaning would be revealed soon.

Finishing the latest entry in her Dark Diary, she placed the holonovel in a secure place and then glanced at the control panel. Her onboard droid crew then alerted her that she was in orbit of Coruscant, and with an evil grin Dara relayed the appropriate landing codes and began to prepare the ship for its descent ::

[Amalia Azalin]

The lone Jedi Master was stretching out with the Lightside of the force now, feeling and reaching out with her senses. All seemed well upon the balcony and inside as well. Even if trouble wanted to come Amalia's way, she would know it. If she didn't feel it by the force, she'd most likely hear it then.

The balcony stretched across the entire buidling. There were many different floors of course to the building, but Amalia was only told to guard this part of the building. If there was anything of value inside the building, it was on this level of the buidling, the top floor.

She paced the balcony floor, ever so often looking up at the stars again. She would do this for many hours, for the night for her was only just beginning and no where near finished in time.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: Multicolored reflections glanced across the hull of the Corellian ship and shimmered briefly in the main cabin as the ship moved through the atmosphere and down toward the metallic planet. It was a sight so completely different from her own homeworld of Garqi which had lush green islands and deep blue oceans as far as one could see.

The hustle and bustle of Coruscant was just as the Sith Master had remembered from her smuggling days long ago with her father, Cale Shadowtide. Dara was not certain that she would be able to find the unique sith blades she was seeking, but then again.. perhaps she was seeking something else in this elaborate labyrinth of industrial development and high tech habitation.

From the uppermost luxury levels of the wealthy elite all the way down to the lowest levels of darkness in the undercity, Coruscant was sure not to disappoint. Dara docked her ship in one of the mid levels in the commercial district. She had recalled this particular location to be an effective place in which to embark upon an objective.

As the ramp of the Resilience lowered and she stepped outside, Dara felt at home in the comfort of the darkness of the hour. The moonlight shimmered down and the shadows placed a blanket on the activities of the day, allowing the chaos of the night to awaken at long last. Taking a few steps toward an alleyway to her destination, she paused.. sensing an unwelcome aura of light. Its origin was not far away and the Sith Master's lips curled in a twisted grin at the thoughts coursing through her mind. Perhaps a short side trip was in order, after all.. her thirst for battle had not been quenched in some time. Dara walked back up the ramp to gather a few extra items and then began to move toward the aggravating beacon of light ::

[Han Skywalker]

*Han stood in the Shadows, and then walked up to Amalia. he knew that somethign was going on, but he would wait to see what it was. He stood next to Amalia He was clothed in Jedi obes, his lightsaber hanging off his belt. He greeted the Jedi Master he knew so well.*


"Master Amalia, how fare you today?"



OOC: If you don't want me to jump in, i'll edit.

[Amalia Azalin]

Amalia, for a short moment, was startled by Han's sudden appearance. She had not felt his presence through the force. He must have masked his own presence, though Amalia, for the moment, did not understand why. She didn't understand why he was on the balcony either, but she didn't question it for far too long. She was sure he had a specific reason for being there, just as she did.

Amalia greeted the Jedi Knight with a warm smile and a slight bow of the head.

"Hello Han, always good to see you. I'm well, I trust you..."

Amalia had still been stretching out with the force while speaking with Han. She had stopped in the middle of her sentence due to the disturbance she had suddenly felt through the force. She had not made Han aware of the feeling, but maybe he felt it as well.

She looked out and beyond, past the balcony, yet she found nothing there but darkness. Through all this searching she had, unintentionally, forgot about Han, her mind too fixed on the situation at hand.

[Han Skywalker]

*Han looked confused.*


"Amalia? What troubles you?"

[Amalia Azalin]

She shook her head, as if to shoo the disturbance aside.

"Not to worry, Han, I'm sure it's nothing. Just felt a disturbance in the force. It really is nothing to be alarmed about until I know what it is."

She stopped peering over the balcony's edge to look back over at Han, smiling softly. Still she kept her senses aware of all that was around.

"Anyway, what brings you here?"

She could not help in asking Han what had brought him there, it seemed her curiousity had got the better of her.

[Han Skywalker]

"I was just taking a walk." Han said, jokingly, even though it was the truth.

[i] And dealing with my past, nd the fact that my enire family is either dead or presumed dead, or missing.[i] Han thought to himself, and then turned back to amalia, as he turned he looked up at the moon, shining in all its glory, on a beuatiful night.
"So, what brings you here?"

[Amalia Azalin]

"So, what bring you here?"

Should she tell him? She wanted to, but decided against it. Her mind wandered as she quickly thought of something. She did not wish to lie to Han, and she knew he could probably keep it to himself. Though something stopped her from telling him the truth, after all, no one else was supposed to know about Amalia keeping watch, except for herself and those who left her in charge.


"Nothing really...You can see everything from up here, on this balcony, just keeping watch, you never know who might come around."

She smiled slightly.

So she hadn't totally lied to him, she gave him part of the truth, just not all of it, she left out a few things.

[Han Skywalker]

*Han felt that she wasn't being entirely truthful but, he didn't press the issue.*


" Interesting place, this balcony is. You cna see the sky really pretty from here."

[Amalia Azalin]

'Yes.."

She kept her answer short and brief, too distracted on the disturbance. She still was not sure if Han was supposed to up on the balcony with her or not.

The disurbance she felt seemed to be silent for the moment, but for how long?...

She turned to look at Han, a serious look on her face.

"Can you do me a favor, that is if you don't have anything you need to do..?"

She paused, knowing that she would have to tell him the truth now.

"I feel a disturbance through the force, though there is nothing here...I'm afraid I can't see below as well as I thought I could and you're here...and.."

She stammered, trying to come up with her words, but trying not o make Han worry at the same time.

"Well, I was wondering if you could..maybe go to ground level and check up on things, you know, make sure everything looks to be alright down there."

She spoke to him through the force.

I sort of lied to you, but I did so, feeling that it was in my best interest, as well as yours, but I feel a disturbance and I need to find it...You see, I'm supposed to be guarding this area, well this part of the building, anyway, of whatever is inside...

She made no gesture as to behind her, just a puase, hoping Han would understand where she meant.

Anyway, whatever is in there is pretty valuable, I think, and I just want to be sure that everything is safe, and I can't be at both places at once. Could you maybe check below for me, please?

Her eyes seemed to plead with him.

[Han Skywalker]

*han looked at her strangley for a second, then nodded, and went down to the lower level. He began to search through each room, checking, and making sure everything was ok.*





I wonder what has Amalia so upset and anxious? She really wanted to get rid of me, fr some reason. I guess i will jsut have to trust her that it is for the best. Han thought to himself.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: Dara pulled her midnight blue cloak tightly around herself and walked toward the source of the disturbance in the Dark Side, her soft, black leather boots treading in silence. Twisting and turning through a variety of alleyways and side streets, she rounded the corner to find two men standing near a trash compactor exchanging credits and a small, unidentifiable package.

With little regard for the happenings of the locals, Dara looked at each of them and then continued on her path down the alley toward them when one called out to her in a husky voice and thick dialect ::

"Hey there little lady, I'm sure we can come to an agreement on how you can pay me to pass through here. Although you gotta take off that coat of yours so I can see you better first. I gotta know if this is going to be as good for me as it is gonna be for you."

:: The two men exchanged knowing glances as their calloused lips curled in wry smiles and their hoarse laughter echoed in the enclosed alley. Dara pushed the hood of her cloak back so that they could see her ocean green eyes flash crimson before fading to black.

Oblivious to the fate about to befall them, the men commenced to whistle and make other vulgar advances toward her. Growing up a smuggler's daughter, Dara had experienced far more than her share of their type. Their hands always trying to wander when her father wasn't looking, and then a quick slice of her dagger and it was over.

Focusing her attention back to the scenario at hand, the Sith Master began to draw upon the darkness within as a gust of wind travelled down the alley and blew paper and other debris up into the air in a spiral motion. Apparently inebriated as well, the second man called out to her, his speech somewhat slurred ::

"Aw come on now darlin', you better get over here quick before it storms. I can sure think of something that will warm you up."

:: Ringlets of electricity began cascading up and down Dara's arms as the power of the Dark Side began to build within her. The intensity and brightness of the dark lightning fluctuated in the night sky and the two men's eyes widened as they began to walk backwards away from her ::

"Hey Bruden? There ain't something normal about this girl here. You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"

"Yeah Veren. She looks like one of those darkness people I heard people in the west sector talkin' about. I heard lightning bolts can come out of their fingers. Maybe we ought to be leavin' now. No woman is worth dyin' for."

:: A small smile danced upon her lips as she raised her hands and held her thumbs and first fingers of each hand close together as the men fell to their knees gasping and coughing. The Sith Master walked slowly toward them as she increased the pressure on their tracheas as bone began to crush and gurgling sounds filled the air. Maximizing the intensity of the force grip upon their airways, the two bodies soon fell limp and dropped to the ground.

Stepping over the lifeless carcasses, Dara pulled the hood of her cloak around her once more and moved with ease in the shadows of the night toward the unknown aura of light which beckoned to her to extinguish ::

[Amalia Azalin]

The wind outside had begun to pick up now, Amalia wrapped her Jedi robes around her tightly, hugging herself for warmth, but it did no good, it was just too cold. The coldness only seemed to add to Amalia's troubles, she could still feel that disturbance drawing closer. Though she had some reassurance, though it wasn't the good kind of reassurance. She was only assured now that she could identify the disturbance as a Darksider now. It was not a presence she recognized, very new to her. On top of that, it was a powerful presence.

She inched forth a bit to look over the balcony yet again.

I seem to be doing this just a tad too much

She smiled a bit, feeling silly about her own actions. Yet she knew why she was doing it. The presence would most likely be coming up and not down.

"Be careful, Han.." She whispered into the night air, knowing that he could not hear her. She hoped he had got as far away from the area as possible.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: Dara navigated comfortably through the dark streets as she moved closer to her destination, the moonlight illuminating her path as the chill of the night air left a trail of her moist breath lingering in the wake of her path. After walking a distance, she realized she was famished from the journey there and seeked to find a means for nourishment. Her eyes scanned the nearest dwellings and upon the third doorway, she saw an open front window with a table set for two.

Stealthily moving against the walls of the structure toward the door, the Sith Master studied the dwelling and saw the two occupants in the kitchen finishing up the last of the preparations. Pulling a small device from her satchel, she pressed a few buttons and heard a pop as the door opened. The smuggling codes still did come in handy after all these years.

With a smile, Dara entered the quarters and moved like silent death toward the man and woman with their backs turned to her. She grabbed each of their heads simultaneously and with a quick flick of her wrists and force enhanced strength, the two dropped to the floor with their necks broken, relieved of their boring and common existence.

Dara turned and gestured with her hand and the curtain to the front window slid closed. Reaching out with the Dark Side she assessed she had disposed of the only two occupants and quickly moved to bring the meal to the table, dining upon a delicately prepared dish while partaking in some fine wine.

Only there for the briefest of moments, the Sith Master finished her meal and then exited the building to continue along her way. After another series of maze-like turns and pathways, she noticed a series of alabaster buildings poised on the horizon in front of her and she sensed she had finally arrived.

Studying the structure nearest her from the alley with her own presence out of sight, Dara saw a woman standing on the balcony. The goodness radiating from this person was nauseating to the Sith as Dara felt overwhelmed by the waves of purity and goodness washing across her own body. Shaking off the feeling and concentrating on the darkness within her, Dara moved with force enhanced speed toward the doorway at the base of the building, and waited for someone to emerge so that she could gain entrance ::

[Amalia Azalin]

Of all the other things I could be doing right now..

She sighed, disappointed.

Well, I only have to do this until morning, and then someone else will take my place.

She went to pacing the side of the balcony that she was on, never taking stopping on concentrating upon the force. She felt the dark presence very near by now, too near. Yet she knew she really had no need to be disturbed really, at least for the moment anyway. All kinds of people entered this building, even Darksiders.

Just not at night though, usually. That's what bothered her so much. She did not dwell on the Darksider for long, being sure to keep her mind concentrated upon the balcony and where she was at.

That concentration did not last long though, as she felt the Darksider enter the building.

Great, well, I guess now I really do have something more to do with my time...

She turned away from the edge of the balcony, and over toward the window, where whatever she was supposed to guard, rested safely untouched inside.

She tried to peer inside the window for a moment, pressing her face up against the glass of the window, placing her hands near each side of her eyes, trying to block out whatever reflections came off of the glass so that she might see what was inside better. Nothing, the draps that decorated the window blocked her view from seeing inside.

Ugh! I wish I knew what was in there!

She guess that it didn't really matter that she not know what was in there, just that she protect it to the best of her ability.

She removed her hands away from her face, moving her face from the window as well and then turned her body so that she could view both the window and the balcony at the same time, back to stretching out with the force, following the presence that had entered the building, follwing it within the force.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: As one of the night servants pushed open the door to the dwelling, Dara reached out and gripped his neck tightly, snapping it instantly as the body fell lifeless to the ground. Dragging him just inside the door, she dropped him inside a garbage chute and then silently treaded up the stairs to the source of the radiating light.

Dara didn't see a soul on her way up to the top floors of the building and as she walked out into the hallway she found the doorway she was looking for. Slipping a small device out of her satchel, she turned a few clicks and depressed a button and the door opened without a sound. The Sith Master pushed the door open and stepped inside, her Dark Side senses heightened.

A sickening warmth and goodness permeated the area and almost made it difficult for Dara to breathe as she scanned the room. Stepping around the corner she saw a woman standing by the balcony.. a woman of immense power in the light side of the force. Placing her palm outwards, Dara summoned the power of the Dark Side and pushed the woman up and over the balcony to fall to her fate below ::

[Amalia Azalin]

Well, at least she was supposed to fall to her fate below, but she never did. It was more like she was meant to hang on tight to the balcony's ledge as her body swayed lose in the wind.

She didn't bother to look down, thinking that doing so would make her lose what firm grip she had upon the ledge. One wrong move and it could mean death for the Jedi Master, and she was sure the Sith wouldn't mind that one bit.

She concentrated on the moment at hand, letting the force flow through her freely. She used the force for strength in this instance, using the force to propel her upward, force pushing herself up and over the ledge, perhaps a small use of craft of force jump was involved as well.

She realized a simple jump would not do, she hadn't even seen her attacker face to face yet, but she knew enough to know that a simple jump would send her plummeting to the ground for sure this time. So her jump was made into a graceful yet careful flip through the air, being sure to land in a safe place upon the balcony, somewhat out of reach of the Sith, at least for the moment.

She landed firmly upon her two feet, a slight blast of energy hitting her feet as she landed. She spun around quickly, seeing her attacker for the very first time. A woman who seemed not to be a procrastinator of any kind, the Sith Master lunged toward Amalia, swooping in for yet another attack, intent, as Amalia had now figured out, on killing the Jedi Master.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: Watching the skilled lightsider closely, Dara smiled as she landed and then force pulled the Jedi inside the balcony. With a quickened movement of her hand, Dara called upon the Dark Side once again and motioned toward a large book case next to Amalia. A crunching sound as if wood were splitting filled the air as the Sith Master pulled the book case down toward the Jedi. Large leather tomes and shelves made a direct route for the Jedi as they slammed onto the marble floor. Dust spiraled upwards and lingered in the air as Dara looked over to see the fate of the follower of light.

As the debris and cloud of dust began to settle, she saw the Jedi emerge unscathed. Feeling the darkness swell within her, Dara gritted her teeth and moved her hands to her dual lightsaber hilts hanging from her belt. With the flick of her thumbs, the turquoise and pale blue blades hummed to life as the eerie light illuminated the Sith Master's face. Dara leapt toward the Jedi and landed gracefully in front of her while stabbing high with her turquoise saber and slicing low with her pale blue blade extended fully ::

[Amalia Azalin]

There was only thing Amalia could think of to do at the moment as the Sith Master made her way to the Jedi Master once more, violently swinging her saber towards Amalia.

She took one of the broken shelves that had previously scattered down on top of her and sent it hurling toward Dara.

"Well, I'd ask how you were and all, but that would be rather pointless, considering we have not been properly introduced...

However, perhaps you would maybe care to fill me in at least as to why you're here, you know, besides the usual thirst for a kill?"

She smiled a sarcastic friendly smile, still the while, managing to be alert of any action that would take place.

[imported_Dara Shadowtide]

:: Dara leans her body back just as the shelf whizzes in front of her, the back edge of the wooden plank just grazing her cheek as a small crimson line of blood appears. Stepping backwards to gaze upon the woman, Dara gives an evil grin as the gash on her own cheek stings as the air meets the fresh wound ::

"I am here.. because you are here."

:: One of the light fixtures behind Amalia explodes and the area against the wall dims ::

"I am like a moth drawn to the light, I suppose..."

:: Waves of Dark Side energy continue to ripple from the Sith Master as another light fixture fizzles out and that section of the room grows dark ::

".. although for me it's not because I seek to walk the path of light or any such rubbish as that.."

:: The light just next to them drops from the wall as darkness begins to surround the two ::

".. it's due more to natural curiosity than anything."

:: The light source in a small lamp by the window shatters as one light remains in the room ::

"I have made it my personal quest to seek out lightsiders and show them the err of their ways.."

:: The last light source explodes as small fragments fall at their feet. The hue of her twin lightsabers casts an eerie glow upon the Sith Master's form as her eyes meet Amalia's ::

".. and if they don't see things from my point of view.. I'll just have to extinguish their way of thinking.. using whatever means at my disposal."

:: Dara raises her pale blue and turquoise lightsabers once again and rushes toward the Jedi, slicing high with her pale blue blade and stabbing low with her turquoise blade extended ::

[Amalia Azalin]

It was clear that the Jedi Master that now stood before Dara was not skilled enough nor clever enough to bypass both weapons. She would take damage from at least one of them.

She decided it best to duck the high blow, and unfortunately take damage from the low blow. Amalia just was not simply ready to go all out with her force abilities. Simple worked best for her, the bigger the ability the more damage it would cause for the Sith Master. Causing major bodily harm was a last resort for the Jedi Master. Small increments of the force was all that the Jedi wanted to use for now.

So she simply reached out with the force, targeting the Sith Master's arm that held the pale blue blade and pushed it back by way of the force. Of course this action was met with struggle by Dara as she fought against Amalia, trying to pull her arm, along with her blade, back down toward Amalia.

Amalia felt a sense of heat as Dara's other blade, the turquoise blade, extended it's way downward. She could feel slight heat rising from her Jedi robes, just near her upper thigh. Within a matter of seconds the blade cut through her robes. What followed was a nice medium sized gash across Amalia's upper right thigh.

Surprisingly though the Jedi Master did not cry out, though the pain could be seen quite evidently on her face.

Amalia did her best to step back, but she was only met with failure as she fell back into the already crushed and destroyed bookcase.

She'd made a poor mistake of not looking behind her as she had stepped back, but she really could not afford to. If she had done so, she knew it would have been all over for her. She would have rather been met by another bookcase than another slash of one of Dara's blades.

She reached out with the force, she'd only now just noticed the gash on Dara's cheek, her blade cascaded light onto her face, allowing Amalia to see the wound ever so slightly. She reached out with the force, healing the wound. She knew Dara had felt it.

She still had not moved from her place as her body lay against the broken piece selves. It was not wise of her to move. Her eyes met Dara's and she spoke through the darkness.

"Error of my ways, huh? Yes, trying to stop violence before it can even begin....seems like a pretty big error to me," she said sarcastically.

She paused, taking note of the silence from Dara and the unwavering movement of her eyes.

"Do you honestly think that what you're doing is going to allow you to get me to see things from your point of view? There is so much more that is at your disposal than you yourself would like to admit. You have not even begun to try and allow me to see things from your point of view. I bet you think that just because I'm different from you, that I don't understand what possess you to act the way you do...."

She paused, reaching out with the force, trying to reach inside Dara's mind, but of course her efforts were useless. The Jedi Master was met with a hard block and she could draw no connection into Dara's mind.

"Experiences are everything, experiences are what make you who you are. If I searched your mind, only to find the deepest of your memories, the memories that you keep locked up deep inside of you, I bet I could find your point of view. I'm no Darksider, but my experiences, which are part of my memories, have helped to mold me into what I am today. You should be no exception. Everyone's mind works in that way...."

"...See things from your point of view? No...how could I, you did not even give me a chance to...."