Bastards! Usurpers, one and all!

[Nupraptor]

"Children playing at darkness, that's what you are!"

The man's scratchy, gravelly voice hardly seemed loud at all in the vast emptiness of Bast Castle's main hall. It easily fell flat against the sterile walls, yet the man was certain it had not gone unheard. No, no... quite impossible, that was. He could sense the others within the castle's walls; Creeping, flitting about him like moths about a flame.

Standing nearly 6 feet tall, the man was covered almost entirely from head to toe in simple brown robes - arguably more humble than the midnight blue robes he wore as a Jedi. Little more than the bridge of his nose and mouth were visible under the concealing darkness of his hood - not unlike his previous garments. Portions of his face became visible only when the dull throb of red light pulsed from his mechanical eye as he scanned the darkness. Indeed, it was nigh-impossible to conceal ones' self from the former Jedi Master with something so trivial as a lack of light; The darkness, after all, favored Nupraptor over all else - and he, it.

Waste of time! Waste of time!, the voice in his head raged at him. They do not share our ideals! They must be cleansed, like all the others.

The insects voice held a certain amount of rationale behind it - or, at least, it seemed to as it tried to cow the Fallen Jedi into cooperating. And while he was never fully under the centipede's control, it's unfluence was strong... and Nupraptor was reminded - rather painfully - that his own life had been anted up in his insane bid for power. This fact came to him in the form of a set of mandibles tightening around his frontal lobe.

"GrraaAAAaah! Yes, yes! They will die! They will all die!", he screamed out in response. "Unworthy... unclean. Impractical..." His voice trailed off into a string of adjectives, temporarily oblivious to his surroundings.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Riddle me this...

The whisper seemed to gather strength from deep inside Bast's hallways. It echoed through the corridors, swirling repeatedly about the halls, and when Bast could no longer contain it, the gates opened to let it out so it could barrage Nupraptor

Riddle me this, riddle me this, riddlemethisriddlemethisriddlemethis...

And then, silence.

Soft steps emerged from this absence of noise, steps that continued until someone had emerged from the open gates. Then a voice broke the silence, a voice spoken aloud with a telepathic echo that slammed into the minds of both man and bug.

"Riddle me this, common little thug: who's the true Master? You? Or the bug?"

Hob stopped at the top of the steps with his cane out in front of him.

"It is such a sad thing when a Jedi Master is brought to weakness and inattention by an insignificant parasite."

[Nupraptor]

A roar escaped Nupraptor's throat as he spun, clawing at the air.

"Who are you?! What are you? What do you think you know about me, little midget? Speak, before I divine my answer from your entrails!"

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"What do I think I know? Or what have the spirits of Bast told me?"

"I see visions," Hob went on, stepping down the staircase one step at a time. "When I am at my meditations, yes. The spirits tell me who is coming, and why, and sometimes, I see what I will say to them. But not always. Certainly, not today."

Hob grinned. "I have been to Meras. I have heard people speak of the apprentice slave to Ogre Mal Pannis, and I have felt him there."

"I have felt you there."

Hob raeched the bottom of the steps- still several feet away from Nupraptor- and paused. "And to find you here, babbling like a lunatic, is a most curious turn of events, yes. What should old Hob do?"

Hob appeared to think, then he apparently gave up. "Well? What should I do with you?"

[Nupraptor]

"Lunatic??"

His voice was incredulous. The stories of the Dark Jedi being mad must surely be true, if this little creature thought he was 'babbling like a lunatic'. How ironically funny... the madman was accusing him - possibly the only sane being in the galaxy - of having lost his mind.

The Fallen Jedi brought one hand to his bearded chin, rubbing it lightly in thought. Around his feet, the darkness swirled, small tendrils of inky-blackness stretching out around him.

"You're an amusing little thing... I recall that now. But quite insane. Ending your life... will be as much a mercy to you as it is a pleasure for me."

[Milivikal k'Vik]

Milivikal stood against the gateway, head back, laughing.
"Go ahead, kill each other."

She clapped, and made her way down the acid worn steps. A bit wobbly. The woman was nearly pissed drunk.

"Oh, you're both mad. And funny. You're a charmer," Mili pointed at Nupraptor, "if a bit scruffy. That red eye, it makes you look so mysterious." She said with a giggle, and fell onto her knees next to Hob, using him for balance.

"He looks lost..." Mili whispered into Hob's ear. "...can we keep him?"

[Nupraptor]

The fallen Jedi Master glared at the madwoman. His face scrunched into a scowl.

"I need not your patronization. You disgust me."

Nupraptor's hand fell to the long, chrome cyllinder on his belt, his finger reaching for the button on its side.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Is it insanity?" Hob said, giving Milivikal a slight shove. She landed with a thud on the ground next to him, giggling like a schoolgirl. "Or genius?"

"The border," he added, as an afterthought. "Between madness and genius is very narrow, you know."

"I riddle you this, old man: what would you gain from attacking us here and now?"

[Nupraptor]

Nup's momentum faltered at the creature's question. His head was the only thing that moved, turning to look at Hob with a questioning stare. The rest of his body was still tensed, ready to attack with but a moment's notice.

"You are all children, playing at a game to which you do not know the rules. And I am most properly equipped to clear the pieces from the board."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Playing?"

Hob screwed up his face and stared at Nupraptor. "Playing a game, you say?"

Hob's eyes defocussed as he thought this over. "Wouldn't that mean we are having fun?"

A grin spread across Hob's face, then disappeared as he thought of something else. "And when was the last time YOU had fun?"

[Nupraptor]

From under his hood, the fallen Jedi arched an eyebrow.

"Fun?" , his voice carrying a tone of genuine confusion. "Just what do you mean... fun? I am to fufill Vicet's will. 'Fun' is not a part of that."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"And how do you know that?"

Hob peered at Nupraptor. "Certainly some enjoyment of life's fruits is owed to you. I am certain that Sorsha and Milivikal would agree."

[Nupraptor]

Upon hearing Hob's comments, Nupraptor seemed to relax. His hand fell away from the lightsabre hilt and, instead, pulled back the hood from his face. The dark dwarf had his full attention now.

"I don't know who this... 'Milivikal' is, but what do you mean by your words? How would you know what my mistress thinks?"

[Milivikal k'Vik]

"Hee hee." She pulled herself up, using Hob like a rope.

"Silly man. Sum of my best, best work is done when I'm having fun." Milivikal leaned on top of the Dark Darwf. "Sometimes, its the small things Vicet likes. Like... like... pushing someone into traffic." The woman giggled again, and slid off.

"OR ICE CREAM. ALWAYS TAKE SOMEONE'S ICE CREAM!"

[Nupraptor]

Hee... the woman mention our master, Vi...

"Shut the frell up! I know what she said!"

He took a few deep breaths in rapid succession, trying to calm himself. Outbursts like that were not typical of him - he still had a great deal of self control from his years as a Jedi. Nonetheless, that bug really pissed him off sometimes.

He turned to a cold stare to the Hobgoblin once again.

"I may have been a bit... hasty, in my earlier assessments. May have been. You will tell me more of the Black Hand before I decide whether or not you need to be cleansed."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Ah, but the Hand is the one doing the cleansing now," Hob replied with a grin. "The galaxy is so full of miscreants and wastrels. It is our duty- nay, our very purpose- to bring such into our flock. Or eliminate them."

Hob gestured at Nupraptor's lightsaber. "By the sword, if necessary. As you had so intended. Hm. Yes."

"Ah, but assumption and supposition that is, yes," Hob said, spreading his hands. "Here for you, is fact: Sorsha has rejoined our ranks after a long absence. This new alliance happened but a fortnight ago."

Hob looked with slight distaste at the drunken Milivikal. "She would have died before letting Sorsha rejoin us, but fortunately Vicet forced the two into an understanding. It did take some pressure off of my hands, really."

Hob returned his attention to Nupraptor, cocking his head with curiosity. "For the universe's gods, what better destiny exists, hm? Do you not agree?"

[Nupraptor]

So... Vicet held command over this Milivikal. If that was true, then there must be more to her than met the mechanical eye. Perhaps she was... under the influence of something at the moment. One must not be hasty in his judgement of others, after all. He couldn't let a poor first impression lead to unecessary bloodshed. And if what the little creature said about Sorsha was true...

"You are very manipulative, creature. Still, I cannot deny that there is a certain logic to your words. Tell me: From where do you pick your flock? You take in the riff-raff, the same as the Sith, do you not?"

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob stared at Nupraptor as though the man had offered him a weasel for dinner. "Are you a Master of the Force, or are you a fool for taking me for a fool?"

"We take our flock from where we deem it right and proper," he said, launching into an explanation. "Planet, species, occupation- they matter not. Where we see potential, we act. Another's garden, properly cultivated weeds can choke. Hardly habitable, this planet is, but its' danger grants us security and freedom. And so it is with our choices of children."

[Nupraptor]

"Yes, yes, of course", he said dismissively, waving his hand. "Forgive me for asking. It is as true Dark Jedi would have it. But you see, therein lay the problem: I thought you were pretenders, mere Sith perverting the title."

He focused more clearly on Hob, making sure his words carried their full impact.

"You see, I am damned. And it is I who has condemned myself. I've forsaken the Light because it is weak. I intend to reshape the galaxy - to file away the imperfections that the Jedi would have me preserve, in the name of equality. I have given up my humanity, so that I can do something greater than I ever could have as a Jedi."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob cocked his head to one side. "I am familiar with the Jedi way. Always, they would have one give to others. What happens, I ask you, when everybody gives useless toaster ovens? Where does there lie time for improvement to oneself, to make those gifts and sacrifices worthwhile? The whole Jedi purpose is weak and ineffective."

Hob spread his hands helplessly. "There is no alternative left but to disregard it."

"The Dark Jedi purpose is far better, anyway," he continued. "Where there lies weakness, the Dark Jedi enforce change. Such is more practical, is it not?"

[Nupraptor]

Gently, Nupraptor nodded his head in agreement. Yes, he had been too hasty in his earlier appraisal. He'd thought the members of the Black Hand were little more than Sith, parading themselves around as 'Dark Jedi' for some false sense of prestige. He'd seen it happen before. Where? Well... that wasn't important.

Yet, if what the Hobgoblin said was true (as Nupraptor was almost certain it was), then the Black Hand represented the rebirth of true Dark Jedi.

"'Enforce Change'? Yesss...", he drawed out the last word. "We are of like mind in that, I think."
He had lost all but the barest hint of his inhibitions, instead taking on the demeanor of an inquistive child. The questions came one after the other.

"And what would one have to do, to count themselves among your ranks?"

You're not sseriousssly conssidering throwing in your lot with thessse foolsss, are you?, the insect warbled.

"Silence!", came the reply from its host, a rumbling bellow that echoed throughout the Bast's chambers. "My mistress is here. It is the will of our master that we should join with them."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob had been about to reply, but then paused at the expression on Nupraptor's face. And then, he paused again at the Jedi Master's thunderous exclaimation.

It was not hard to sort out from the conversation that the Sith insect inside Nupraptor's head was his conversational companion, it having apparently earned his disfavor through some comment it had made.

"Some matters are simply beyond comprehension of simple creatures," Hob said, spreading his hands sympathetically. "They understand not the greater picture."

Hob then cocked his head. "To join the Hand's ranks, there is a test of sorts. One must request admittance in the Hall of Sorrows, where our members gather. But to do that, one must enter Bast, and to enter Bast, one must pass the Gatekeeper."

The flesh around Hob's eyes tightened, and he smiled. "Me."

[Milivikal k'Vik]

Milivikal's eyes grew wide after a quick evaluation of the situation.

Being between two Dark Jedis of tremendous skill and power (especially when one was mad) was not on her agenda. Ever... well, for combat purposes.

She picked herself up of the ground rather abruptly, and stumbled through the gate with a surprising amount of speed.

Maybe Tirsa was about.

[Nupraptor]

Nupraptor's mouth split into a crescent-shaped smile, baring his teeth in a most animalistic display. The red light eminating from his mechanical iris began to pulse violently, bathing the Hobgoblin in it's flickering light.

"A test, you say?"

A deep chuckle began to work its way up through his throat. Low and deeply baritone, stemming from deep in his chest. It quickly became louder, building into a full-throated laughter. Nup threw back his head, the hood falling off his head as he lost himself in the laughter. Eventually, it tapered off.

"Very well, little one. You wish to see if I am powerful enough to stand amongst the Hand? I will show you power. I will show you fear in a handful of dust."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob tilted his head to one side. "A Jedi Master you may be," Hob told him. "But a Master of reality? We will see."

Hob rubbed his hands together. "You are agreed, then, that we will combat for the right to enter Bast?"

Nupraptor's only answer was to widen his smile.

"Then let us begin this battle of wizards."

Hob gathered his strength and threw a Force strike, a projected blow that hammered into Nupraptor's face without any solid matter behind it.

Before Nupraptor could adequately return fire, a flurry of similar blows came, pounding his abdomen and hammering at his lower legs.

[Sorsha Kasajian]

:: watches from the tower ::

[Nupraptor]

Nupraptor's head snapped to his side from the force of the invisible blow, his flesh visibly indenting where he was struck. Yet the barrage seemed to do little to hinder him. A thin trail of blood ran down his nose, making its way towards his upper lip, but it appeared to be beneath his notice.

With a flick of his wrist, Nupraptor sent out a wave of force, pushing the Hobgoblin back several paces and interrupting his assault. It left the cyborg ample time for a counter-attack... an opportunity he decided not to take. Instead, he stretched out his arms, reaching out with open palms.

His fingers flexed and the muscles in his arms tightened with the effort, yet he made no attempt to strike out at his opponent, who had already regained his footing.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

It was a taunting sort of strike, the kind a lesser man would be enraged by. But Hob had not lived for so long by taking all such invitations at their face value.

Life was lies, after all.

Hob lifted one hand and gave it a curious twist. A great gout of flame poured forth from the palm of that hand, seeking to cook Nupraptor's goose.

[Nupraptor]

Normally, the easiest solution to this would have been to simply get out of the projected path of the conflagration. As many of learned in the past, however, the easiest solution is not always the best. The former Jedi had several options open to him and only a split second to choose one. In the end, it was the instinctual choice that won out.

The fiery blast twisted in mid-air, away from his face. It hit the stone walls with a whumph as it sucked all the air out of the surrounding area and sputtered out. Nupraptor smiled. Fire was only energy, and redirecting energy was a trifle.

"Try harder", he said in a playful tone.

--

Along the sides of the hall, where the wall met the floor, the shadows began to writhe and twist as if alive, shaping themselves into little tendrils.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

(ooc) Actually, I was going for more of a flamethrower effect, but the response would still apply.

(ic)
"Harder, you say?" Hob asked. "Try, harder?"

"I would prefer to try softer."

The ground beneath the soles of his opponent abruptly lost cohesion, cracking and breaking into dry dust. A loud crack was Nupraptor's only warning as the formerly solid ground gave way beneath his feet.

(ooc) And just to let you know, the hole presented is about waist deep for Nupraptor.

[Nupraptor]

OOC ~ Er, sorry. I just now saw "gout". Dunno what I thought was there before.

--

"Clever, clever creature," he said, even as the floor collapsed underneath him. The stone cracked and rumbled, the rather weighty cyborg plunging snugly into the ground. The jagged rock scraped at his legs even through his thick cloak. And there he sat, waist deep in the cold earth, his arms spread out to his sides. He was, seemingly, at a disadvantage.

Seemingly.

What Hob was planning next, Nupraptor did not know. Nor did it matter, because he wouldn't get the opportunity to enact it. Up until now, he'd been allowing the dimunitive creature to assault him, unfettered. Now, the time had come to return the favor.

Completely silent, inky black arms lashed out from the darkness, lightning quick and grabbed each of Hobgoblin's limbs. Still smiling, Nupraptor floated out of his hole and into the air, setting himself down on the more stable floor.

"My wrath is as a Juggernaut: Slow to bring to bear, but impossible to stop once it has begun."

He motioned with his hand to the limbs of darkness, even now fighting against the dark dwarf to keep him restrained. "I could use them to tear you apart, you know; to split you into four, roughly equal sized chunks of meat. But somehow, I don't think that would win the prize I'm after. Instead, I will give you something I'm confident you can hadle."

At first, nothing seemed different. Then, Hob noticed that his stomach felt like it was tightening, the muscles stretching as though he had just gorged himself on food.

"I have placed a ball of air in your gut, dwarf. It is expanding. If you do not find a way to stop it, the pressure inside will burst the sac of fleshy skin, spraying its contents for all to see."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

"Do not be so foolish," Hob laughed. "For a master of matter such as myself, this is hardly a challenge."

"But first things first," the dwarf stated. His eyelids lowered, Hob seemingly grown sleepy. Then, his limbs slid free of their restraints.

Except that slid free wasn't the right way to describe it. The restraints were actually doing the sliding, right into a black kind of aura around Hob's hands. They stretched, and pulled, and elongated themselves until they could grow no longer, then they snapped and were swallowed by the black light.

"It is good to have a snack," Hob smiled. His eyes reopened, bands of light and dark seemingly to flickering across their surface.

'For air to be in me,' the dwarf reasoned. 'It must have come from somewhere. And to come from somewhere, it must have a path to travel in on. And if there is a way in, there is a way out- through my pores.'

Within the confines of Hob's stomach, the expanding air began to thin and then shrink as the air was absorbed into Hob's body, then expelled harmlessly through thousands of tiny holes in his skin. A process that took about a minute.

At the end of it, Hob gazed up at Nupraptor. "Is that all?"

[Nupraptor]

"Hmph."

Nupraptor sneered.

"I confess: I did not expect you to escape my tendrils quite so easily. But if it is pain you wish for, I shall show you a whole world of it."

His face still etched in a sneer, the Fallen Jedi raised one hand, hooking his fingers downward like that of a raptor's claw. There was an audible hiss-pop noise, and the air filled with the smell of ozone. And, with a terrible shriek, blue streaks of light left his fingertips, arcing through the air and striking the Hobgoblin.

The lightning wasn't as destructive as the kind normally employed by the Dark Lords of the Sith, as it was something entirely different: The cyborg was channeling the pure electricity from his own body into his hands and outward. Nonetheless, it was still a potent attack: Most creatures bodies weren't meant to handle raw electircal charges, after all.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

(ooc) Just so you don't think I'm moding here, I thought I'd mention that Hob has actually dealt with raw electricity quite frequently, even having been struck by lightning a couple times.

(ic)

The Trickster's eyes lit up as he saw the energy of man and machines leaping through the air towards him. He grinned and threw his head back, letting the energy invade his being, feeling it pulse through his blood cells. The bands of light blurring his eyes began to speed up.

It could have been Nupraptor's imagination, but Hob's flesh around his eyes and face seemed to tighten into a more youthful fashion.

"More!" Hob shouted, and black tentacles of light leapt from the areas of dark aura on his hands. They hurtled towards Nupraptor, although what they would do if they got ahold of him would be far worse than simple restraint.

[Nupraptor]

The aging cyborg, however, dismissed the tentacles with but a flick of his wrist, batting them away with ease. The dark tendrils streaked, instead, towards the wall, crashing into it harmlessly.

"Pah... a pox upon your tricks, little one. Using the darkness against me is as effective as trying to drown a fish. If I must get past you in order to gain entry, then I shall. Even if I have to tear apart this castle to do it!"

He reached up one hand into the air, twisting his fingers into a grotesque claw once again. The air hummed with vibrant energy, growing into a slow rumble. After but a few seconds, the walls began to visibly tremble, as if in the midst of a low grade earthquake.

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob bent his head, clasping his hands together and leaning forward. Unfortunately, Nupraptor had the edge when it came to experience AND sheer power, and all of Hob's subtlety with the Force would not have stopped his assault on Bast itself.

But Hob had the wisdom of two centuries and a good stock of riddling lore besides, and knew that there was more than one way to divert a juggernaut.

The air began to grow quiet and the walls trembled less visibly, though they still shook it was the best Hob could do. "Riddle me this, Jedi Master, and you may pass," he said, loudly enough to be heard over the shaking. "Why, if you are to join the Black Hand, should you not destroy its' home?"

[Nupraptor]

The Fallen Jedi's voice trembled as he spoke, and he was visibly short of breath. He was obviously straining to maintain the effort... but not greatly.

"It is simple: This is an... ultimatum. I do what must be done to gain the upper hand. It leaves you... with little choice."

Nupraptor dropped his hand to his side, and the rumblings subsided. He drew in a deep breath, then released it several times; His breathing was labored, but by no means a panting.

"You will let Us in, then? We are to work together?"

[Evil Hobgoblin]

As the castle ceased to shake, Hob released his own negating effect. He lifted his head and looked Nupraptor in the eye. "That was not an approach I had thought of," he confessed. "But it is nonetheless a valid response. To do what is necessary, what must be done for the benefit of the Hand... yes. Hm. A fine member, you will make."

"Come," Hob gestured. "I will escort you in with the respect you are due."

And then he waited for Nupraptor's response.

[Nupraptor]

"We are due no respect just yet, Hobgoblin. When We have finished our project, then you may shed all the fals adorations you wish upon Us."

[Evil Hobgoblin]

Hob laughed, quick and sudden. "Adoration? Adoration??" Hob laughed again, as though at a private joke. "Then so be it. You may riddle out your own way."

Hob turned with a flare of his robe and entered the castle from whence he came.