[IC] You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

[freedomliveson]

The bleak, sandy deserts of Korriban were a fantastic match to clientele of the planet. The terrain was mountainous and difficult to navigate, there were blood sucking creatures everywhere one looked and terrible secrets were buried within ancient tombs that only a few insane men and women were able to crack. It was as if the Sith created the entire planet as a crucible for those who wanted to turn to the dark side, to "prove their worth". That was a phrase he had heard uttered by Sith so many times in the context of battle, claiming that they would be able to validate their entire existence to the galaxy through murder or some other heinous act. It was despicable.

Yet he was on his way to their home planet. The Masters of the Council would all have simultaneous cerebral hemorrhaging if they had found out that a Knight was on purposefully on their way to Korriban, let alone one of the up and coming Knights of the order(according to them, not him). With the treaty of Coruscant officially broken by the Empire's siege on Corellia and the subsequent pushback from the Republic, the galaxy was quickly becoming a battlefield that no one could hide on. The Republic seemed to be taking control of the core worlds and there were whispers of some Jedi being shipped off with special Republic commandos to Imperial controlled worlds in attempts to push the Empire further back into their corner of space. Ships were getting pulled out of hyperspace and inspected by both sides, checkpoints at docking areas on almost all worlds were beefed up and military law was essentially in effect, although Supreme Chancellor Saresh had never ACTUALLY declared it.

It was in this fracas that Yerbol Massani had received a message.

It was brief, but conveyed much more than the sender let on. She had looked exhausted, but giddy at the discovery of something "terribly wonderful" and that Yerbol had to meet her on Korriban at specific coordinates.
"I know I'm asking a lot, little brother, but if we can get this off world, we could change everything..." There was, of course, no mention of how she had disappeared for almost two years from Tython nor did she try to dispel rumors that she had fallen to the dark side and become a disciple of a Lord Bracknell on Dromund Kaas. While she stayed in the shadows, Yerbol fought for his sister's reputation, claiming that the Lysa he knew would never allow herself to be tempted to leave the path of Light, all the while flailing to come up with excuses as to why she had gone. It wasn't as if he could contact their parents; young Jedi were separated from them at an early age and comforted by the notion that the sacrifice their parents made would serve the rest of the galaxy.

His reverie was interrupted when his portable nav unit began to chirp, Yerbol's hazel eyes scanning the worn tomb entrance in front of him. There was no one visible in the mouth of the opening, prompting a hard swallow. He had to descend into the tomb. There was no choice in the matter. He had smuggled himself onto a ship headed to Korriban via Nar Shadda and knew that the Sith Masters would feel his presence here soon. Breathing out a sigh, he walked into the darkness, a chill snaking down his spine as his hand gripped his lightsaber hilt, withdrawing it from the clip on his belt before removing his hood, his jet black hair ruffling in a gentle breeze that floated from the entrance.

"Here we go."

Into the nothing.

[The Elvenqueen]

The dark Jedi paused as she slipped behind a half fallen support structure, the dim light filtering in from the holes in the ceiling of the tomb providing her with enough visibility she needed to see her quarry. The other woman had no idea that she was even being pursued. There were techniques, both with and without the Force, that allowed one to muffle their footsteps and remain unnoticed. Techniques she had been practising for many years, with the help of both her father (when he had the time to offer her extra tuition in secret, which was few and far between now with the war effort in full swing) and through the guidance of her formal mentor.

Now, she had to remove this obstacle or she could kiss the apprenticeship to Lord Bracknell goodbye. And that was not a negotiable option. She had trained in the ways of the Sith since her father Khoan Saal had removed her from Onderon upon discovering her sensitivity to the Force. Before her mother's whisperings of these 'Jedi' could taint her thoughts too far against their Empire, perhaps it had been a little rushed but it had been worth the risk. The young acolyte had fallen into the training as easily as Khoan had hoped, and soon had little need of his teachings though she always insisted upon it, if only to impress the other Sith Masters, especially Bracknell whom she had hoped to gain favour, and eventually an offer of apprenticeship, from. She had almost succeeded too, carrying out the Sacrifice test with no hesitation; she'd thought that with her mother out of the way there would be nothing left to give Bracknell and the other Masters cause to doubt her loyalty, until she had returned to Korriban to find that Lysa woman had showed her face. The little ex-Jedi rat had knocked Aria right off her pedestal and she'd be damned if she was just going to sit there and let her have it.

Her fingers flexed as they closed around the hilt of her lightsaber, ready to strike as soon as the opportunity presented itself. Lysa's back was turned as she examined the tightly shut sarcophagus that contained Naga Sadow's remains. Setting her jaw, Aria made her move as she advanced closer, ignoring the crunching sound as the toe of one of her boots connected with a heap of old bones, Lysa would likely take no notice of it and pass it off for the Tuk'ata that lurked in the shadows of the tombs. Only when she was feet away from her did the Sith acolyte finally strike, the saber humming to life as she struck out at her. The scream echoed through the tomb for a few seconds before dying back down into silence.

[freedomliveson]

A pained shriek of agony echoed through the tomb, Yerbol's lightsaber crackling to life as he ran to the end of the hall, grimacing as he went right, hoping that the traces of the scream could lead him to the source. Once he reached another intersection, visceral grunts came barreling from his left, the young Jedi leaping into the air to avoid a charging Tuk'ata and a rather angry Shyrack following in suit. He had seen both creatures in holovids before, but to see them in person...it drove home how disgusting they actually were. With his feet now firmly planted on the ground after the jump, he threw his lightsaber at the Shyrack, the winged creature dodging the initial throw, but the return arc sliced it in half, gore spattering onto the ground as Yerbol's lightsber returned to his hand in time for him to dodge the other attacking creature, rolling to the left before popping back up and thrusting his hand forward to push the creature back.

Nothing happened.

"So you ARE force resistant." The Tuk'ata snorted, then charged again, Yerbol waiting until the very last moment before pirouetting left and slicing horizontally through the skull of the creature, the top half of the monster sliding onto the floor before the bottom collapsed. While the lightsaber was an instant cauterization tool, it didn't prevent the stench of death from wafting into one's nostrils. As his nose crinkled, Yerbol decided he would walk down the same hallway that the creatures had come from. It was a hunch, but he felt that the source of the scream might have come in part to the creatures of the tomb. His large frame darted down the hallway, then right, which opened into a large room with an obsidian colored tomb in the center, five pillars surrounding the grave in a hexagonal manner. Adjacent to the tomb was a woman with a lightsaber and on the ground next to her was...
"Lysa..." Even in the dim lighting, he could identify the curly, raven colored locks, the dark green tunic she always wore...

"You...what did you do to her?!" He could smell the faint aroma of burnt flesh, feel the heavy sensation of loss...

She had killed her...or had she stumbled across the body?

"No...no..." His jaw clenched, the young Jedi raising his lightsaber.
"This might be a mistake, but I'll give you a few seconds to explain why you're standing over the corpse of my sister before I kill you." Anger seethed within his body, seizing his limbs, blinding his mind to the Jedi code he had tried so strictly to follow.

[The Elvenqueen]

Aria's head turned to face the entrance as the young Jedi spoke. The Sith acolyte tilted her head to the side as if she were sizing him up for a moment, a smirk playing on her lips as she took a few deliberately slow steps closer to him.
"Did you really think that her contact with you off world had gone unnoticed? You Jedi really have gotten cocky over the years, haven't you?"

She could sense his anger, and his struggle to fight it down and ignore it. It amused her, to see a Jedi reacting in such a way. She could use it to her advantage, no doubt he would be easy to antagonise into a fight, then she could kill him and she would have two dead Jedi to her name. Bracknell would have trouble passing over her then for sure.

A flick of her wrist spun her lightsaber through the air and back into a ready position as she advanced again, still cautious as she sized him up. He was taller and larger of frame than she was, but in strength she hoped they were evenly matched. Those muscles of his weren't just for show, but she had built up enough of her own she hoped that she could hold her own when they closed blades.
"Only the strong survive here on Korriban, if your sister was foolish enough to let her guard down then that is her fault and the Masters will be glad to be rid of her. That is the way of the Sith, we aren't soft and weak like you are."

Though she was eager to fight, Aria's strategy at the current moment was to try and provoke Yerbol into attacking first, with the end goal of drawing him further into the main chamber of the tomb, so she could block the exit and prevent any chance he had to change his mind and begin retreating.

[freedomliveson]

"The Masters? How would they know that she was here?" It must've been that her presence had been felt by the Sith. He wouldn't consider the alternative that began to nag at the back of his mind. No, she wouldn't fall. She was here to help the Jedi, that's why she disappeared. She would never JOIN the Sith! She was convicted, a follower of the Light through and through. At least, that's what he chose to believe. He would have to investigate later. For now, he had a rather arrogant Sith to deal with.

"Weakness is a matter of perception, isn't it?" He moved to his left as the Sith assailant moved to her right, Yerbol not wanting her to gain any kind of advantage by leaping behind him. The chamber was small, but there was some room between the pillars and behind the actual tomb, but the entranceway was narrow and would have allowed her to leap behind him and deal a killing blow all too easily.

"What you call useless and soft is what has driven your order and your Empire back into the shadows. You know, I've wondered..." He sidestepped to where his lower half was obscured by the crypt.
"How much of your order is left? Surely your 'powerful' Masters are buckling at the pressure the Jedi and the Republic are exhibiting. It's not as if you people work together well. The infighting, the back stabbing...no wonder you would kill Lysa in cold blood. You're scared. You're scared of what's coming, the peace that will come across the galaxy...and I pity you for that. I really do." He was now behind the tomb, stepping back a few feet.
"I would give you a shot at getting out of here alive, but you won't take that chance, will you?" He then threw his lightsaber in front of him, hoping the throw would at least distract her as he leaped above the tomb, grabbing his saber mid jump and delivering an overhead thrust. The force of the blow would send her staggering, but then again, Sith had tricks up their sleeves he would have to be aware of.

Unaware to both of the combatants, the wall across from the entrance was slowly beginning to recede...

[The Elvenqueen]

The flying saber had Aria momentarily distracted and she scarcely had the time to react quickly enough to flick her own blade up to block the blow. She dug in her heels in an attempt to resist the impact but it was to no avail and despite her best efforts her rearmost foot slipped, sending her stumbling backwards a few steps until she regained her balance once again and launched straight into another attack.

She tried to be mindful of her Master's teachings. Most Jedi will choose to face you with the Makashi form, keep on the offensive and keep pushing them. Makashi duelists hate to lock blades, you must force them to and you will always have the advantage.
"What do you think I mean, little Jedi?" she sneered as she tried to track his movements in the dim light. "You don't honestly believe your pathetic sister was here because she wanted to help your Council, do you? In fact, as I understand it there was much she was all too willing to divulge to us. Much that gives us the advantage in this war! You think we have been hiding from you? HA! You know nothing!"

In her haste to best him, she let her guard down and allowed his comment to get to her, after fighting for so long and so hard to prove herself it was too much for her to take and she had to retaliate.
"I'm not afraid! Fear is for the weak!" but beneath the anger there was mingled guilt and regret for something she had done, though what Yerbol would not be able to tell. But by having those emotions within her, no matter how deeply she had buried them in her attempts to ignore or conceal them from her Sith superiors, perhaps she was not so far gone that she was beyond redemption; however it would take more than a mere invitation of mercy to sway her.

Using the Force to propel herself onward she leapt sideways, producing a second lightsaber that had been hidden beneath her sleeve mid-leap, both blades spun at a speed that made it impossible to tell when one ended and the other began, arcing straight towards Yerbol's neck as she came back down in front of him again, using one of the columns as cover against his counterattack.
"Save your pity and your mercy," she snarled at him as she tried to push him back towards the grave again, "I have no use for it!"

[freedomliveson]

Her dual saber onslaught was a technique Yerbol had seen quite a few Sith use in the battles he had endured, but the way she managed to handle them seamlessly was almost intimidating, her raw force of will seeming to be injected into her weapons. Yerbol had deflected a few of her glancing blows, but the one aimed for his neck was a different story. It was too swift for him to block both sabers, the Knight blocking one saber before getting clipped in the right shoulder by the other as he jumped backwards. Grimacing at the burning pain now shooting down his right arm, he took a deep inhale, forcing his breath out as he focused intently on his opponent instead of the pain. He would have time to address his wounds later. This Sith needed to die.

Not a Sith. A person. Remember that.

Right. He DID need to remember that. So many Sith had fallen by his hand, but he could never forget that they could return to the Light...or at least abandon the power-hungry ways of the Sith and attempt to think of others as actual people rather than rungs in a ladder to ascend to power. He couldn't afford to be hypocritical and dehumanize his assailant...even if she was responsible for the death of the only family he had.
"You say that Lysa divulged information to the Dark Council? That she was a Sith?" He snickered as he circled around the tomb again, silently cursing the small battleground. It was hard to track her, let alone try to get in a decent attack without slicing through one of the supports of the tomb. He glanced quickly at Lysa's body, a grimace forming as the possibility of Lysa actually turning to the dark side began to sink in. No, no she would never do that. It was just this Sith manipulating his emotions. He needed to stay calm, in control.

Of course, that didn't mean he couldn't toy with her emotions.

"Why did you kill my sister? Was it because she got in your way? Was it, and I think this is the answer, because she scared you? She represented everything you could ever strive to become and you wanted to eliminate your fear through violence." His hands trembled slightly, the emotions he was attempting to keep in check bubbling to the surface, which led to a rash decision.

He darted around the grave and thrust his saber forward, hoping the direct attack would at least deliver some damage. The thrust quickly turned into two overhead slashes, one of which connected with the support the Sith had been using for cover. A grinding noise could be heard, the tomb shaking as another support crumbled due to the lack of balance.

[The Elvenqueen]

"Tried her hardest to be like us, but she still had Jedi weakness in her. She was slow to kill and too quick to trust!" the Sith acolyte scoffed, Lysa had been no friend of hers and she had no intentions of pretending otherwise while she was desperately trying to brush off his persistent taunting, but it was chipping through the blockade she had made around her concealed emotions and she was finding it harder and harder to keep her head and concentrate solely on attacking and parrying counterattacks the longer this duel wore on.

She no longer worried or cared about the possibility of the tomb coming down around their heads as they fought if the support pillars were damaged, all she wanted was to end this and wipe that smug sneer off his snarky face for good. So focused she had been on his words, that she failed to keep track of his saber arm and thus his swift lunge attack hit its mark, slicing into her torso despite her best attempts to twist out of range in the cramped tomb. Hissing out a pained gasp, she managed to duck to avoid the overhead strike that soon followed, but was unprepared for the ceiling crumbling downwards as a result.

Aria realised all too late her mistake, her eyes leaving Yerbol's to dart frantically towards the dark tunnel opening as the entire tomb rumbled and debris and dust began to fall from above as the ceiling collapsed on top of them.
"Oh, shit!" she cursed as the reality of what was about to happen sank in and her self-preservation instincts kicked in, taking over any desire to spill more Jedi blood. She bolted for the tomb's entrance but even with speed heightened by the Force she couldn't make it in time before a shower of earth and rubble cascaded into the gap and sealed the two opponents in the tomb.

Aria dug in her heels and skidded to a stop just short of the blockade, knocked off her feet by the collapsing debris she hastily extinguished and holstered both sabers to allow her to use her hands to break her fall, slumping against the packed earth she coughed and choked on the dust the rockslide had stirred up.
"No...no no no...c-crap!" squinting as the dust settled she could barely make out Yerbol's form still close to the center of the chamber.
"Nice job, Jedi. Now we're both stuck in here!" she tried to hide her wince as the wound he had given her began to protest violently to her sudden dash towards the tunnel, smirking cruelly. "Oh well, at least I get to watch you die, too."

[freedomliveson]

The supports that crumbled were near the entrance towards the tomb, which then in turn destabilized some of the area just outside their battleground. Yerbol had wanted to tell her they could pull themselves out of this together if they focused their powers, but when the idea came to his mind, it was too late. The once cavernous ceiling buckled a few more times before giving way, chunks of stone and mounds of dirt collapsing in front of the entrance, effectively sealing them in. He would think of a way out in a moment, but first he had to check to see if...

He groaned, running a hand over his face. Lysa's once visible body had been buried underneath the cave in. He could expend all of his energy attempting to secure her body, but with a dangerous attacker in the room, he would need every ounce of strength to make it out intact.
"I'll do all I can to make sure your memory lives on, sister." He whispered faintly, his ears picking up on the Sith's bitter verbal jab.
"Is that really all you're worried about?" He cast her a glare, continuing:
"You DO understand that we're going to have to actually, you know, work together to get out of here, right? That you've got no shot of making it to the surface on your own? But no, of course you wouldn't think about teamwork. You're a Sith. Power to the individual and all that-" His condemnation of the Sith was interrupted by spotting a hallway that extended away from the tomb. That was a wall before...right?
"Is that...that a trick you're playing on me?" Yerbol cautiously approached the new-found passage, placing a foot over the threshold without any consequences.
"During our fight, this must have receded. Is this what Lysa was looking for? What you were looking for?" The line of questioning was more of him thinking aloud, knowing that the Sith wouldn't reveal anything to him...or would her natural curiosity get the better of her? Either way, he proceeded forward down the passageway. His broad shoulders grazed the hallway as he strode ahead, extending a hand and channeling the Force to provide a blueish light to guide him.

A couple of minutes later, he emerged into a circular room lined with shelves containing old scrolls and parchments that were spilling over their appointed locations. In the center of the room was a pedestal that held a sphere pulsing with red light. As he drew closer to the sphere, the light began to pulse quicker until he was within a couple of feet. The pulsing stopped, but the sphere itself unfolded, shooting beams of light up on the ceiling. He looked up, raising his illuminated hand. There were dots sets against the ceiling along with numbers next to some of the dots in parenthesis. After closer examination, the dots seemed to be in a pattern...
"All leading right..."

[The Elvenqueen]

She straightened up, her eyes narrowed as he questioned whether she was trying to play some kind of trick on him. "No, I wish! Get a grip would you? It's probably an illusion, these tombs are full of crazy crap like that!" the Sith acolyte snorted out loud and rolled her eyes as she pulled herself to her feet and carefully began to head towards his voice as it began to get fainter when Yerbol moved down the tunnel.

The idea of having to work alongside him made her blood boil, but as she considered the alternative-being stuck down here until one or both of them starved to death or became so dehydrated that they couldn't carry on-Aria was forced to weigh it up and attempt to come to terms with the suggestion. It was unlikely that any of the other Sith, not even her father, would come looking for her when they realised she was gone. She wasn't that valuable of an asset to them, not yet.

Aria paused at Yerbol's shoulder as the map activated, squinting at the points scattered along the tunnel's walls and ceiling she tried to decipher the co-ordinates and find a planet she recognised, but there were none. This must have been the artifact she had heard Lysa boasting about finding in one of the tombs. Now all Aria had to do was get out of here and she could claim all the credit, and the prestige, for finding it.
"These co-ordinates...they don't belong to any of the planets in known space." the Sith's eyes narrowed as she tore her gaze away from the small blinking red dots to glare at Yerbol. He'd found the pattern long before she was even halfway close to solving it.

"If you think you're going anywhere with any of this then you're sorely mistaken, Jedi. This map belongs to the Sith, this planet's under our control." her fingers itched to reach towards her lightsabers again, she'd fight him for it again if she had to, and this time she would win if she had to cheat to do it. The Sith acolyte snarled angrily under her breath and turned on her heel to give the Jedi a wide berth as she moved closer to the map while she tried to clear her thoughts.
"As soon as I figure out how to get out of here-without your help I might add-" she wouldn't admit she needed his help to get out of here. Never. "I'm taking this information back to the Masters. This must be what they've been looking for..."

[freedomliveson]

"Do you HAVE to inject your bloody ego into this?!" Yerbol snapped, shaking off the burning sensation he was beginning to feel in the center of his chest before looking up at the seemingly haphazard pattern on the ceiling once more. She was right; the dots, the swirling patterns around the dots, the numbers...this was a map of some kind. He had heard of ancient maps buried deep in the hearts of ancient Force-user's tombs, both Jedi and Sith alike. Treasure hunters claimed that most would lead to wealth beyond measure, historians believed they contained road maps to knowledge untold and the cynics dismissed them as mere myth. Yerbol had bought more into the third perspective, but after this...well, he would need to get this to the Council. Of course, the Sith would try to stop him, but that wasn't much of a problem at this point. She was allowing her vanity to get in the way of finding a solution; she wouldn't be hard to shake.

But would he want to abandon her? His conscience wasn't necessarily bothered by leaving his sister's murderer in the tomb where she committed the deed, but it WAS irked by the notion of abandoning a potential lead into the will of the Dark Council. It had been difficult to pin down the location of any Dark Council members before the Emperor was killed and even more so now with his death so recently reported. She could provide some valuable intelligence, yet convincing her to join him would be...a problem. A solution then sprung to mind that might prove intriguing, one that she couldn't refute. Or at least he hoped.

"You say I won't be going anywhere, but what about we?" He turned to face her as he proposed:
"You have information I need, not to mention I want you to face justice for what you did to my sister." He took off his robe and laid it next to one of the bookshelves jammed against the wall.
"Yet you would see me thrown to the Dark Council and they would bestow all sorts of honors upon a Sith that managed to slay two Jedi AND recover a valuable artifact. It would appear that we are at an impasse...unless you can summon up a degree of honor." He placed his lightsaber next to his robe, holding up his hands.
"We duel. Hand to hand. Last one standing takes the other to their Masters."

[The Elvenqueen]

The Sith tipped her head to the side, her odd-coloured eyes glinting with curiosity and the faintest hint of suspicion as she watched him. "...You're messing with me." she finally concluded, it was a statement and not a question in the slightest, resting her hands on her hips. "This is some kind of Jedi trick." he was likely far stronger than she was, it would be a long shot-even if he fought stuck to his precious Jedi Code and didn't cheat-for her to best him hand-to-hand without any Force techniques or sabers to rely on. But maybe that was the point.

And yet at the same time though she knew it was hopeless, Aria could not resist the challenge. Besides, how else was she going to get out of here? She couldn't shift all the dirt and debris on her own. She hesitated for another moment, her eyes not leaving his as she reached up to unclip the dark cloak that was pinned around her neck, letting it fall to the ground. Next she shrugged out of the re-inforced vest but not without hissing and muttering a few choice words under her breath as it aggrevated her wounded torso, leaving only her undershirt and the skintight pants that were of equal protection as his underclothes.

Somewhat reluctantly, she laid each of her lightsabers on the ground with the cloak and vest, straightening to face him again the acolyte dropped into a fighting stance.
"Alright, then." she caved, silently grateful that even if she did lose there was no-one else around to see it.

[freedomliveson]

"That's it? No vehement rejection of the Jedi code and all things reasonable? No triumphant shout of 'guaranteed victory'?" He snorted a derisive laugh, circling slowly around part of the pedestal, muscles in his lower half clenched tightly in preparation for what he expected to be an intense fight. They hadn't had much room to fight in their previous encounter, but this circular room was a bit more spacious and there wasn't a gigantic sarcophagus in the center. While he wasn't keen on fighting a vicious Sith removed from any kind of back up nor with his saber, he knew that challenging her pride would be a way to get her off balance, to tap TOO much into her emotions. Yerbol also knew that his opponent stood barely five feet off the ground(maybe a bit more) and didn't look as burly as some of the other Sith assassins he had faced. He wouldn't want to prognosticate and say this would be an easy fight, but without sabers, he felt he had the upper hand...felt being the key word.

"Now come on, can't just stand there. Where's that fiery determination to snuff out my life? Or did you leave that in the other room?" A smirk played across his face as he dashed forward, thrusting his elbow forward to knock into her ribs. If the blow connected effectively, it would leave her without breath, allowing him to deliver a solid uppercut. If she dodged, he would have to throw a quick block to the back or he would be exposed.

[The Elvenqueen]

Aria snarled furiously, her hands clenching into fists as she shifted her weight in agitation, shuffling from side to side the Sith kept her distance while she tried to find a weakness of his she could exploit. "I already know your Code is a lie. Why state the obvious?" she hissed through her teeth, circling restlessly.

She was completely unprepared for the speed at which he lunged forward suddenly, and even as she tried to twist out of the way Aria felt his elbow connect with her ribs, her breath leaving her in a startled grunt. Aria doubled over, staggering backwards before she dug in her heels and caught herself once again. She would have to retaliate quickly or this would be all over in another few blows. Aria lunged forward, aiming a sharp jab directly for his throat, though she had barely recovered from the impact to her ribs and it was a clumsy attempt at best.

While she wasn't as strong as the young Jedi, her strikes were still rather vicious and would likely leave some nasty bruises if any of them hit their mark. But they were also highly predictable, blows designed to come down in quick succession of one another, and to go straight for the kill. She wasn't used to trying to keep her distance while trying to deal damage at the same time, but getting too close would leave her vulnerable against his greater physical strength. He was faster than she'd been expecting, but if she kept her feet underneath her and tried to stay focused she could still be fast enough to dodge if she paid closer attention to his movements instead of his taunts.

[freedomliveson]

Instead of connecting with the uppercut he was sure he was going to land after successfully landing the body blow, Aria slipped away from his grasp and delivered a solid blow to his throat. He managed to twist to his left, but her palm still connected with the edge of his neck, the already tightened muscles cramping due to the force of the blow. He quickly moved his head in the opposite direction, the cramp relaxing as Yerbol channeled the Force to keep his muscles limber for the upcoming barrage from his attacker.

When she launched into set of furious blows, he managed to keep her at bay, but wasn't able to attack due to the speed of her punches and kicks. He needed to either take advantage of her speed and use it against her or slow her down. The answer came when a kick aimed at his jugular came flashing in from the left, the Knight grabbing the ankle and twisting it, a resounding crack bouncing off the walls of the chamber. He shoved the leg as hard as he could before slamming his fist into her upper back. If he struck at the right place, he knew she would be incapacitated for a few moments, giving him enough time to deliver a knock out blow and end this. Of course, things didn't really turn out the way one expects...

[The Elvenqueen]

At first, it appeared that her usual tactics were working to Aria's advantage. While she landed few blows after the initial jab to his throat, the Jedi was tiring just as quickly as she was in trying to constantly block her advances. Thinking that the duel was in the bag, the acolyte dropped her guard as she aimed her final blow for his jugular, her eyes widening in surprise as his hand shot out to catch hold of her ankle before it connected with his neck.

She managed to twist it free of his grip but not before the sharp stabbing pain shot through it, causing her to yelp out loud. She landed awkwardly, the injured ankle giving way under her weight and leaving her open to further attack. She couldn't move quickly enough to avoid his fist, gritting her teeth as the muscles seized up and spasmed under the impact. A string of curses worthy of making a Corellian pilot blush left her mouth as she could only wait for the next blow unable to do anything to defend against it.

[freedomliveson]

Seeing her vulnerability, Yerbol delivered a front kick to her ribs, following up with a elbow into her obliques and a palm strike to the middle of her chest. Fully confident that the fight was over due to her string of foul language from a few seconds before and her incapacitated state at present, he crossed his arms over his expansive chest, looking at her with a smirk.
"Now, can we work together to get out of here or am I going to have knock you out completely because you're too stubborn to honor your part of the agreement?" The sphere began to vibrate on the pedestal, the Jedi striding over only to find that the sphere had closed, the pulsing red light extinguished completely.
"That can't be good." He mumbled, attempting to pick the sphere off the pedestal, which wouldn't budge. He tried again, harder. Nothing.
"Hey, while I'm trying to get this thing off the pedestal, why don't you try and work out a way for us to-" It came off suddenly, Yerbol almost losing grip of the object, tightening his hold. Sighing in relief, the young Knight walked to his robe, placing the object in one of the deep pockets before standing up, eyes cast around the chamber. There had to be some way to remove themselves. A secret passage of some kind, maybe...
"Now I've heard about these tombs on Korriban, how your Dark Masters would want those who tried to rob their 'treasures' to be locked in forever. However, I also know that you people use these things for trials and that are designated exits out that aren't visible. Your Master has probably sent you on a couple of fetch quests here, right? Which means you could have a viable plan to get us out of here?" He folded the robe over his arm, clipping his saber to his belt.

[The Elvenqueen]

The acolyte doubled over, grimacing in pain and with some difficulty managing to force enough movement out of the spasmed muscles to throw her hands out in front of her to break her fall as she hit the floor of the chamber. Sitting up carefully, she narrowed her eyes at the Jedi's retreating back as Yerbol made his way across to the pedestal and began to try to remove the sphere situated on it.

"I could probably find one of them, yes." Aria answered slowly, barely stifling her snort of laughter as the sphere containing the map detached suddenly and Yerbol fumbled to catch it before it rolled out of his hands. Wincing again, the acolyte flexed her injured ankle carefully testing it while hoping that it would still take her weight if she was careful enough. "Whether or not I can walk that far on this ankle, is another story." she concluded, her eyes narrowed at him in an accusatory glare.

Bracing her hands against the wall of the chamber, Aria pulled herself to her feet and returned to retrieve her own sabers and cloak. While she had never been in this chamber before in her previous explorations of Naga Sadow's tomb, many of the secret passageways were the same and it wasn't all that hard to find them provided that one knew what they were looking for. By methodically searching the room, the Sith acolyte eventually uncovered one such passage behind what had at first appeared to be nothing more than a simple statue.
"Behind here!" she called back to Yerbol, her brow still knitted together in a tight scowl as she tried and failed to shift the stone carving on her own. "I can't move it, but the 'wall' behind it is hollow. Probably loops back round and comes out near the entrance."

[freedomliveson]

"Alright then." He walked to the statue and, with a monumental pull, flung the statue to the ground, the wall receding just as Aria claimed it would.
"And who says a Sith can't be helpful?" He gave her a teasing smirk, watching her hobble on her ankle. He would've asked to help her, but not only would she have refused the assistance, it was slightly satisfying to see his sister's murderer limping out of the tomb in the most defeated manner possible. Some of the swirling feelings of vengeance resurfaced, but Yerbol banished them to the recesses of his mind. He would deal with his emotions later...for now, they needed to keep moving forward and hope that the Sith had no back up on the outside.

The Sith(he needed to learn her name) had been correct in her prediction, the duo finding themselves right at the entrance of the tomb. The rays of Korriban's fierce sun were fading, the sky turning a darker shade of orange, probably to indicate night. He turned to face his captive, telling her:
"My ship is about a quarter of a mile out from here in a cave, so we need to keep moving. Unless you want to put up another fight...of course, we saw how that turned out." Another smirk as he started right, sticking to the edge of the valley. He didn't speak to her for half the journey, but then suddenly asked:
"What's your name? I suppose I should know that when I present you to the council." Unexpectedly, his holo communicator chirped from the other pocket in his robe, the Knight shaking his head. He wouldn't dare answer a call now.

A knot began to form in his stomach as the realization hit him.

He had purposely removed the battery from the communicator when he had come to Korriban.

They knew he was here.

He withdrew his saber just as three figured shimmered into existence about thirty yards off, each of them wielding the trademark red or purple lightsabers of the Sith. One of the figures, a female Zabrak, chuckled.
"Oh Aria, did you REALLY think you were going to succeed?" A male human chimed in, his dark eyes sparkling with glee:
"We knew you were going to the tomb. We heard your talk with your handler, how you were told about this opportunity to please Lord Bracknell and we couldn't help but be excited for you." The Zabrak came back into the fray:
"When we kill you, this Jedi and bring back the relic? And claim that we slayed Lysa, a Jedi plant who was attempting to bring back vital information with her famous Jedi brother?" She cackled, taking a step forward.
"We will be launched into Lord Bracknell's personal guard for this. And you will never live to see it." She charged forward, launching a flurry at Yerbol, who managed to crack his saber to life in time to deflect the onslaught. The Zabrak hissed, slicing at Yerbol's shoulder only to be countered, Yerbol pushing back with his saber and slicing at her torso, a clean blow penetrating her midsection.

He only hoped Aria could hold out long enough for him to help out...

[The Elvenqueen]

Aria paused mid-step and turned to face the three new Sith apprentices as they appeared. As she spoke, her hands closed around the hilt of her sabers.
"You three idiots again? Haven't you learnt your lesson yet?" Aria sneered, forcing herself to walk on her ankle despite the searing pain. Showing any sign of weakness would give these thugs ammunition to use against her and she couldn't let that happen. Not now, after all the effort she had gone through to impress the other Masters. She tried not to shift her weight too often and hoped that her slightly altered stance would be attributed to the uneven surface of the ground. They never had been awfully smart, after all, and likely wouldn't notice as long as she kept up the facade. "I thought I gave you enough of a beating the other week, ready for another one so soon?"

Igniting her own blades, Aria circled towards the remaining two recruits, parrying a blow from the human male as he lunged for her. They'd gotten stronger since she'd last clashed with them, giving her all the more reason to kill them this time or they would become another thorn in her side later on. They exchanged another few blows with neither landing much success until his foot slipped into what must have been an old excavation trench that the sandstorms hadn't filled up yet, giving Aria the needed opening to finish him off.

When she turned to deal with the last remaining opponent, Aria found that they had lunged for Yerbol at the same moment the Zabrak female had, attempting to come up on the Jedi from behind. She considered leaving them to it and trying to make a run for it back to the academy, either way one of them would kill the other and she could deal with the consequences of it later, but not before she had claimed the credit for killing Lysa (and Yerbol too, if she could pull that bluff).

She stopped short, however, as a familiar presence connected with her own consciousness, somewhat surprised by the instructions that she was given.
"Wait. If he is fool enough to place even some trust in you, then let's use it to our advantage. Go with him."
Aria recoiled sharply.
"You want me to what?! Why?!"
"We do not yet know where their Enclave is, how many of their Masters are left and where their greatest weaknesses are." he answered patiently, a hint of amusement in his tone, "Imagine how impressed the rest of the Council is going to be if you can bring that information back to the Academy for us. I know you can pull it off."

Something told her that this was another idea of his that none of the other Masters or Council members knew about just yet. It seemed like an absurd suggestion to Aria, help a Jedi? Pretend to be one of them? But she had little time to argue, her father's suggestions had served her well in the past after all. And it certainly did hold guarantee of gaining their attention directly, rather than having to bother with any more of these stupid missions to gain more prestige than the rest of the students. Killing Lysa had worked out rather splendidly, but if Yerbol managed to escape with the artefact then the whole task would be for naught and would do nothing but invoke the Dark Council's fury. There was a hidden implication in his voice that indicated he would not save her skin this time if she made the wrong choice. She agreed to the assignment, turning quickly to make the jump towards the two lightsaber duelists, she drove her blade through the remaining thug's torso before he could swing down on Yerbol's head.

"For a Jedi, you're pretty terrible at watching for attacks from behind, aren't you?" she scoffed at him, rolling her eyes. "Hurry up, would you, before someone else sees us and we have to fight through every damn recruit in the Academy to get off the planet."