Father's Vengeance

[Nefertati]

She's running so fast that her vision is blurred, she can't take that place anymore, she can't take him. She couldn't take how Armaiil was treating her and her brother anymore, the man was becoming insane, he sent her in front of some beasts that had almost killed her. But no more, she wasn't going to sit back and let it happen anymore. The wind whips her hair into her face but she doesn't care, nothing matters except one thing, she has to find him, that last person she was supposed to find, her father....

[Inu]

Inu happens to be seated on the sofa, inspecting his blade when Nefertati bursts into the door, looking scared and shaken. Inu sets his weapon aside and approaches with a concerned look, already suspecting what this is all about. He takes her into his arms to comfort her with a hug.

"What's the matter, honey?" he asks in a quiet voice.

[Nefertati]

Nef winces, her left arm is still all slashed up from her recent bout with Armaiil's altered.

"He's been getting worse by the day and he tried to have me killed!"

She says, her ears back as she remembers, the normally unfeeling warrior was trying her best not to cry now.

[Inu]

Inu's muscles tense as he holds back his anger. It's enough that Armaiil has stolen them from him, but now the mad doctor means to kill them as well? The doctor has always thought himself safe from his specimen, hiding behind his hordes of beasts and more recently behind Inu's own children. Times have changed. Inu is now a Dark Jedi Knight, and has learned to command Force Lightning with fair ease.

"Take me to him, Nefertati. I'll settle this."

[Nefertati]

Nef nods, trying not to think about what may be happening to her brother at the moment, he hadn't been present during her training that time.

"Follow me but we will have to take a ship..."

[Inu]

"That's a given."

Sorr is taking care of the cubs; they're at the headwoman's house. Inu leaves a hurried note--"Out on business"-- and follows his daughter out to her ship.

[Nefertati]

Nef took him out the ship, she had to steal one since she didn't have time to take a freighter like normal.

"It's only about two planets away so the trip will be short."

She said her tone returning to her normal even one but she was still shaking.

[Inu]

"Very well. Let's go."

The pair board the shuttle and take off for the destination. Inu sits calmly on the floor, his katana cradled in his folded arms. After all these years, finally things are coming to a head. His vengeance is mere hours away. Behind his closed eyelids, the Jackel's eyes flicker.

[Nefertati]

Nef seems to get more nervous the closer they get, she's worried of what's to come and what may have happened. When they land, she nudges Inu lightly.

"We're here..."

[Inu]

Inu stands and sets his katana back in his belt, stepping off the shuttle and into Armaiil's hangar bay. His hair hides his eyes, which are closed. He walks out a few paces and spreads his dark sense, ears perking to a slight, hollow echo above. The Jackel draws his altered blade, the silver light of it deepening the shadows made by his hair.

"No use hiding, beasts."

[Nefertati]

Nefertati draws one of her guns and unsheathes her claws in readiness. Who knows what to expect now? Would she see another day? Her thoughts were worried, could Armail be stopped or were they fighting a losing battle?

[imported_Altered Beast]

Nefertati steps into the open, a few paces behind her father. The Beasts know this man; he is the only one to escape them. But...she brought him here. She's a traitor. Their pathetic minds know at least that much. The swarm descends upon her with a feral roar, twenty from above, and from all directions. Powerful claws sink into Nefertati's back and tear large chunks of flesh and cloth from her.

[Nefertati]

Nef doesn't cry out, dropping her gun for another weapon, a mid sized katana which she draws from somewhere under the long cloak she wears and slashes in an arc, killing some of her attackers but of course not many due to their large numbers. It gives her enough time to get to her feet though and at least be able to defend a bit better. She pants a bit, her wounds are bleeding profusely now, she won't last long this way.

[Inu]

Inu whirls and raises a clawed hand, sending thousands of bolts of Force Lightning upon the Beasts. They scatter, falling back behind the shuttles and returning to the rafters. Inu hooks his daughter's arm over his shoulder and carries doggedly on with her, acutely aware of the multitude of eyes on them as he enters the complex proper...

[Nefertati]

Nef winces, her bad arm again, her thoughts were elsewhere though, wondering where her brother was and when the altered would come for her again, she knew she smelled strongly of blood, even more so now.

[imported_Altered Beast]

The answer comes quickly enough. A shrill, piercing cry rings in their ears as a massive beast bursts from the floor. This one is easily the largest they've met, but is a far cry from being the alpha of the swarm. As the pair turn to face it, the beast gets its grip on Nefertati's skull, digging it's short claws into her as it lifts her bodily off the ground. It laughs deep and low, grinning maliciously, and jerks its arm roughly aside. The girl shrieks, then dangles lifelessly in the beast's grasp.

[Inu]

Before the freak can gloat further, it finds itself lacking the means to do so as Inu's blade thrusts through its chest, puncturing flesh and bone to rend the heart and lungs within its body. The smell of the fresh blood and of Nefertati draw irresistably on the Altered beasts lurking back in the hangar and in the rooms surrounding the hall. Inu quickly leaps into the ducts overhead, forging onward and letting the sounds of ravenous feeding spur his anger and hatred.

[imported_Altered Beast]

A skittering draws Inu's attention. Behind, tiny little beasts are boosting themselves into the shaft. Their eyes are pale white, indicating a failed vision experiment. These are blind...but that means they can echolocate. A shrill blast echoes behind him and the scrabbling of tiny claws follows after.

[Inu]

Inu's eyes flare red; these little monsters won't be the end of him. He draws out the darkside and bounds through the shaft, bursting down once he's certain he's found another room. He lands in the midst of the rubble in a laboratory. A single table stands in the center, and various machines and tools are scattered about. Inu can recall being tied to these sorts of tables, feeling the caress of the scalpels and the stinging kiss of the alteration syringes. He turns from the table of memories and cuts down the wall, entering the next room.

[imported_Altered Beast]

The little beasts pour from the shattered vent like water over a cliff, and in the halls paralleling the rooms, the larger beasts follow. Inu is moving room by room further into the complex, toward where the master and the leader are. The beasts leap down the hall in long, parabolic arcs, overtaking the Jackel and amassing three rooms beyond him.

[Inu]

Inu ignores the pursuing beasts. In his haste and fury he neglects to use his Force senses, breaking through the storage and operation rooms beyond and into the cell blocks. There, waiting, are the Altered Beasts. The Jackel unleashes a Force Push, moving back to the next room and into the hallway, where he will have more room to fight.

[imported_Altered Beast]

The little beasts waddle in from the rooms behind, while the larger ones lumber out of the cells beyond. The space is large enough to allow Inu freedom of movement, but the halls are quite crowded for the hordes gathered. At any given time, they can bring only three of the greater beasts to bear on him, and a mere five of the smaller ones. That's more than enough in their minds. Eight beasts lunge with cries of vengeance, intent on avenging their former loss at the Jackel's hands.

[Inu]

Inu sheathes his sword and turns sideways, presenting a smaller target for their attack. He raises both hands and pulls with the Force, stepping back to let the beasts collide. With a gesture another beast's fur ignites, scattering the beings surrounding it and giving Inu a window of opportunity.

[Anuberis]

Anuberis can hear the sounds of scuffle from his room. He finished his training exercises before Nefertati, and has been relaxing since. He'd fallen asleep until the shrieks of echolocating beasts reached his ears. He gets up with a sneer and hooks his sword into his belt, stalking through the series of rooms and hallways to the main corridor where the battle is taking place. He comes out at the point where Nefertati fell, and takes one look at her mangled corpse before his anger overtakes him. The cry of vengeance echoes up the hallway, followed by the transformed blade of the Jackel's pup. It takes an Altered in the chest, narrowly missing Inu. The soft tap of footsteps approaches.

[Inu]

Inu turns, grinning madly with a wild light in his eyes.

"Well, son...it seems you've finally found your wits."

[Anuberis]

Anuberis stalks past the minor beasts without regard for their hissing and pulls his blade where it has stuck in the larger mutant's chest.

"They killed her. No doubt you have something to do with it, but for the moment you will be forgiven. I have buisness with these monsters first."

[imported_Altered Beast]

The beasts in the hallway clear as Anuberis takes his side with Inu. A face off in such narrow quarters is suicide, and they want to do the most damage they can. The hallway is now empty, leading on toward the goal.

[Inu]

Inu holds his sword low and to the right, blade pointed behind him as he rushes forward, eyes blending slowly from red at his pupils to amber at the outermost edge of his irises. The berserk is rising in him. He needs someone to take it out on.

"Cowardly BEASTS!"

[Anuberis]

Anuberis followed, the rage in his heart rising, they would pay for his sister's death. One of the stragglers was the first to meet his blade as he raised it above his head and hacked the creature in half. His rage was growing but his wits were still about him, watching for the ones that couldn't be marred by a blade.

[Inu]

At Inu's outburst three burst from the ceiling and walls. One lands a hefty blow to his back, but the other two aren't so lucky. Inu yields with the move, spinning to take the head off the beast that struck him. The other two dance back, hissing and scuttling about.

[Anuberis]

Anu turns to look and gets a slash to his leg as one catches him off guard as well. But the Jackel's son is determined, he won't go down without a fight, he'll make them pay first. He wheels around and catches the beast with an elbow to it's neck, sending it backward, wheezing from a caved in windpipe. But as he moves to kill it properly, another jumps down from the ceiling and digs it's claws into his back. He growls and slams backwards into the wall to get it off. The creature lets go with time but leaves quite a few punctures and gashes in it's wake.

[Inu]

Inu raises a hand and shoves Anuberis back, unleashing the torrent of lightning from his hand to scatter the beasts. One tries to catch him in the back, but Inu won't let it. He ducks and twists, cleaving the beast in two. His eyes shift further from their normal hue.

[Anuberis]

Anu saw the change was close in his father's eyes, something he had wanted to see happen more often at one time but now, would be dangerous since he was there in middle of it all. He turns away to look towards the next wave coming their way after the others had scattered. His eyes narrowed, he'd never get the truth this way, he would have to kill them all. His ego that he couldn't be harmed was quite a danger to his life but he never cared. His next move, a flip over a few of their heads landed him in the middle of the first part of the pack, the group behind skidded to a halt to avoid clashing with the blade while the others turned to meet his unprotected back. What followed was a rush of bodies against him and his blade, but he didn't care, they all would suffer.

[Inu]

Inu snaps his fingers, throwing fire into the thick of them. His son is advancing, but moving too slow, taking too much time against the beasts.

"Just go for Armaiil! If we get him, the rest are defeated by default!"

Without their master to provide guidance, the beasts will fall into disorder, the Jackel is sure of it.

[Anuberis]

Anu growls before catching a blow to the face while he thinks for a second on it. The creature gets clawed in the throat for it's effort, while Anu bleeds from the gashes made by its claws. Father was right, they had to get to Armaiil, he tapped into the force and threw the horde surrounding him away before leaping over them while they were stunned.

"He's usually down this way."

He sneered, of all people, why was he helping father? That didn't matter for now, his sister was dead by the Doctor's creations hands so he would have to suffer as well.

[Inu]

Inu bounds over the fallen swarm and races neck and neck with his son down the hallway, eyes shimmering out past the irises with red color. Any moment now, and Armaiil will see first hand the damage his creation can deal.

[imported_Altered Beast]

The echolocating shriek of the beasts rings up the hall. They're going to kill the master! The successful specimens reach a huge chamber, the size of a stadium. They've walked into the swarm's hive. Every Altered Beast that was ever created is waiting there for them. Seven hundred before them, twenty behind...the odds of their escape are slim. In the room's center, on the broken pedestal that was once a pillar, stands the alpha of the swarm. Ten feet tall, with a twenty two foot wingspan, long, powerful tail, and a wicked, scheming gleam in its eye. Next to him stands the objective: Armaiil Kryatir, the Tormentor.

[Inu]

The Jackel laughs low, eyes flaring, seeing nothing in the room save for the mad doctor that stands on his misshapen pedestal. This is what he's waited for, the moment his soul has longed for since his arrival in Armaiil's laboratory all those years ago.

"Are you ready to DIE, old man? I'm gonna send you straight to hell, where you can rot with the other misfortunate bastards you've ruined with your goddamned genetic tinkering!"

[Anuberis]

Anuberis lacks his father's patience and control. While Inu has been learning to reign in his impatience and temper, Anuberis has been encouraged to unleash it. His eyes burn red and he leaps the long distance to Armaiil's pedestal in a single bound, blade raised high overhead, projecting wider and longer as he brings his rage to bear. The Jackel's son plunges toward his intended target, that bastard creator, meaning to cleave him in two.

[imported_Altered Beast]

The alpha beast standing by Armaiil moves quickly, extending five inch claws and thrusting its arm out. The helpless berserker impales upon them, blood gushing in spouts from the ten punctures in his chest and back. The beast throws the body to its swarm and folds its arms with a cocky smirk.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

The doctor's shrill laugh echoes through the room, the sound of his voice staying the mad bloodlust of the beasts below.

"Let my most precious specimen be...get lost, the lot of you! And take your fodder with you! I should like to spend time with my greatest abomination."

The beasts clear, all save the alpha of the swarm. It leaps from the pedestal with its master in tow, setting the frail doctor on the ground. The mad creator stalks towards Inu with a twisted smile.

"Perfect...just as I had wanted..."

[Inu]

The amber color of Inu's eyes shows pale through the haze of red clouding his vision.

"Shut up old man...I'm hardly the 'perfect berserker' you set out to make..."

But even as Inu says this, the darkness in his heart drives his berserker's fury forward, barely held in check with the memories of his dead cubs fresh in his mind.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

"Oh no? Look at you, trembling to fight off the berserk you feel. I've seen you in your perfect fury...you defeated a crime syndicate with your bare hands, and mutilated a Hutt's corpse. I know that in your perfect state, you could kill all my creations with the ease of a child squashing a bug. Come on...let's see it."

Armaiil steps back, allowing the alpha beast to come to the fore. The ten foot beast looms over the Jackel, springing over it's master to lunge claws first at the perfect specimen.

[Inu]

Inu turns a backflip, kicking out the throw the beast behind him. The projection from Inu's katana swells, and he goes for the killing strike at Armaiil's throat.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

The beast snags Inu about the waist with it's tail, drawing the Jackel in and taking his sword arm in it's strong grip. Armaiil approaches and with a sadistic smile.

"Stop holding back! If you're going to kill me, then KILL ME! I stole your first-born from your wife by gutting her and taking the fetus with my bare hands! I altered that son and sent him to take another child, who was subsequently altered and set upon you as an assassin! I tortured you mercilessly for two years, working every goddamn day for hours, perfecting you into what you are! I stole from you every memory of your past life! If that isn't reason enough, you are far too tolerant! After all this injustice, you deserve vengeance! Even I think that! Now let go your rage!"

[Inu]

The Jackel begins to speak, the start of a shouted curse erupting from his lips, before a guttural snarl and feral roar take its place. Inu swings his arms, hurling the beast and flipping twice, landing on his feet with all the grace of a predatorial beast. The giant lightblade drags the ground, plowing a furrow as Inu advances with a slow, bloodthirsty pace.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

Armaiil smiles, pulling a scalpel from his labcoat pocket.

"Just as I had wanted...now let us test your mettle."

The scalpel creates a small blade similar to Inu's.

"Come, let us see your perfection!"

[Inu]

Armaiil is blown back across the room as Inu gestures, combining Force Push and Force Lightning to form a powerful repelling attack. The Jackel is upon him almost as quick as Armaiil can stand, blade raised to cleave the man perfectly in two.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

The doctor stands painfully, getting up in time to parry the blade with an oddly casual flick of his wrist. The return strike is carefully calculated, a cut meant to disable Inu's right arm, if it connects as deeply as it is meant to...

[Inu]

Inu dodges, deliver a kick that throws the doctor into the wall to the Jackel's right, leaving a large dent in it. Following up, Inu swings in an upward vertical arc, splitting the floor with ease.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

"He's perfect," Armaiil mutters to himself, rolling clear of the blade. The wall splits, and Armaiil claps the Jackel across the back, sending him reeling through the gash he made. The room beyond is freezing cold, the site of cyrogenic storage. Two small capsules lie before the Jackel, and Armaiil tackles him, holding his head in a lock that keeps his face pointed at them.

"Do you see those capsules?" Armaiil asks quietly. He wants to be certain, absolutely certain, that Inu has reached his peak. "Your children are within them."

[Inu]

The roar from Inu is deafening...literally. The doctor's ears ring so loudly that he can hear nothing. The next blow is from the hilt of the blade, aimed at the doctor's skull.

[Armaiil Kryatir]

The doctor's ears ring, then fade to nothing. He knows he's been deafened, but it doesn't make him feel in the least bit hurt or afraid. He's...ecstatic. The specimen's voice alone carries power! Armaiil doesn't even attempt to dodge, so wrapped up is he in his celebration. The mad doctor staggers to his feet, wide open for the rising Jackel's lunge...

[Inu]

Inu looses a frenzied battle cry, driving his sword to the hilt into the madman's chest, drawing it out to cleave his head from his shoulders. The body drops, lifeless, but Inu's not done yet. Oh no...he's far from it. The doctor loses the fingers of his left hand next. Following shortly after is his feet, then the rest of his legs in sections. The doctor's right arm is removed and rolls away under the machinery against the far wall. At last, Inu realizes that his target isn't moving...but there's living things to his right. He spins, sword raised to strike, but stops short. Children. Two babies, not a year old, sleeping peacefully in the cryo capsules, curled up with happy smiles on their faces.

"Muh...my..."

They're his children. His children! Just as he had seen them last. His mind speaks up, rising against the berserk fury that thrives in his heart.

KILL THEM! No! They're my own flesh and blood! THEY'RE FODDER! AS WORTHLESS AS THE CORPSE YOU BUTCHERED!

The sword vibrates, the tip trying to decide which body to hover over...

My SON. My DAUGHTER. I won't... YOU'LL KILL THEM! SMELL THEIR BLOOD, HEAR THE BEATING OF THEIR TINY HEARTS...STOP THEM!

Inu swings his sword, red color flaring around his pupils as he shuts his eyes.

YES!

He makes wild, deep cuts, not caring where or what he strikes, as his concious mind cries out against the berserk hailstorm of emotion overrunning it. At last, he opens his eyes...

"My...my children!"

The fury in him dissipates, sated for now. The room is covered with deep scores, many piercing through the meter thick walls. The katana fades and Jackel falls to his knees, taking his children into his arms. They're alive, unscratched, a miracle if ever he saw one. He kneels for what feels like hours, shaking with fear and worry and love, holding Anu and Nef tightly to him to make sure they're real and that they're unhurt. He stands shakily, sheathing his blade and stumbling back the way he came.

"Let's go home...let's show mommy..."

It's all over...over! The swell of happiness in his heart is the most beautiful thing he's ever experienced.

[Sorreessa Tarrineezi]

Sorr sits at home, watching the cubs to make sure they play nice in their little pen until she smells Inu's scent nearby but there's blood in it as well. This of course worries her as she gets up to check on him all the while smelling another scent she can't quite place. She throws open the door in her worry then stops, seeing the cubs in his arms. She's not sure what to make of this for a second before she steps out and gives her husband someone to lean on since he looks about to keel over in exhaustion.

"What happened?"

[Inu]

"Nef...Nef came and she...she said..."

Inu stumbles, nearly collapsing to his knees.

"Take...the kids."

[Sorreessa Tarrineezi]

She took one of the cubs from him then put one of his arms over her shoulder before taking the other.

"Nevermind that for now."

She walked slowly with him to the house, wondering but she could wait for the time being.

[Inu]

Inu sets Anu into the pen with the other cubs, before settling himself on the sofa. Already the younger children are poking their elder brother awake, wondering who he is where he came from. Anu opens his eyes and bats away their poking fingers yawning widely before reaching out to get one of the toys. Kalia and Hiro giggle. This new cub is fun!

"Sorr...set Nef in the pen with them. I've got alot to explain to you."

[Sorreessa Tarrineezi]

Sorr's ears raised up, Nef? How could that be? Still she did what he said before sitting on the sofa with him. Her blue eyes looked up at him curiously, knowing this had to be something big all things considered.

[Inu]

The babies are getting along well enough, with the two new arrivals getting a babble-laden dressing down by younger cubs.

"These two cubs I brought home are Anu and Nef...the ol' doctor cloned them and then set the clones upon us. I found them when the clone of Nef came to the house seeking a haven. She said Armaiil had been abusing her and her brother...I...got angry...I lost my temper and left with her to finally deal with Armaiil."

[Sorreessa Tarrineezi]

She looked up at him in slight disbelief but only for a moment, it did make sense. She looked to the children, Hiro was poking and babbling at Nef quite a bit, seemed he remembered her just a tiny bit. Kalia was batting at her brother Anu lightly, babbling away while he fended off her bats the best he could.

"What happened to the clones?"

She asked, suddenly thinking of them and noticing that Inu hadn't mentioned much of them.

[Inu]

Inu simply stares at his children for a while, watching Anu best Kalia and seeing Hiro and Nef hug each other, then, at last, he gives her the answer.

"They died...they were killed and their bodies were devoured by the altered beasts."

He wraps his arms around her and holds her close.

"I couldn't have saved them...I wanted to, so badly...but it was an impossibility."

[Sorreessa Tarrineezi]

She nuzzled the side of his neck, she knew he had to have done what he could.

"But you saved the rrreal ones frrrom a sjimjilarrr fate..."

She watched the cubs a bit, they seemed to all get along well. The mother smiled when Nef and Hiro hugged and purred softly, getting along just fine they all were.

[Inu]

"...yeah..."

Though he himself was almost the cause of it. He sits in her comforting embrace for a while, until at last he sighs and kisses her.

"I've decided its time we moved, honey. We're going to GJO, on Coruscant."

[Sorreessa Tarrineezi]

Her ears pricked up towards him, wondering why there of all places considering both their backgrounds with the people who lived there, her fears of Kajeela and his fighting with the Jedi. But still he had to have a good reason for it so she went with it.

"As you wjish.."

[Inu]

He kisses her lightly, standing up with a stretch and heading to the back of the house.

"We can start later...for now..."

A small thump is heard, and seconds later beasts of every shape and size burst through the walls, catching the family entirely by surprise.

"No way!"