[IC] A Galaxy in Twilight[Lord Gressh/Zarkun]

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I shake my head as the Remembrance breaks atmosphere. All around us, where once was the vibrance of life and the beauty of a planet with a diverse ecosystem, was nothing more than dust and decay. "By the Force...Jakito, there's...it's all dust..."

[Lord Greshh]

Jakito Twilight

“I know. I never thought he would actually succeed like this. We have to stop him before anymore worlds die.”

Becca Twilight

“We might still be able to fix the planet, if nothing else. Somehow spark new life.”

Millu’ci’vanda

I close my eyes, listening to the tiny voices of the Killiks that still communicate with me. “The Genesis Engine. It’s a terraforming device. If we can find that, we might be able to at least partly undo this.”

Salazar Greshh

“One thing at a time. First, we have a long dead Sith Lord to put to rest.” Our ships all land in the wasteland that used to be the Jedi training grounds. I climb out of my fighter and quickly join up with the Twilights and Luci as they exit the Cora. Not far away, we can see Sucal, sitting in mediation.

Jakito Twilight

I look confused. “What’s he doing?”

Becca Twilight

“Waiting for us.”

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

My twin black blades ignite and I frown. "Awfully confident isn't he?"

Alice Durana

The twin cyan blades of my saberstaff ignite, but I do not immediately join Zar'kun as he takes a step forwards. "He's absorbed some of the power they forced Hayden to absorb from Tython. He's...much stronger than anticipated. Even with all my training as a Shadow, I'm not confident this is a fight we can win." Regardless, pieces of rock float up and circle me like a protective barrier. "But I also know we can't let him continue."

[Lord Greshh]

Millu’ci’vanda

“So you’re saying it’s a trap?”

Becca Twilight

“It is most definitely a trap.” I activate my golden lightsaber, and Jakito activates his silver blades behind me.”

Millu’ci’vanda

“Oh, well good. As long as we’re all in agreement.” I switch on my cyan blue lightsaber in one hand, and the other I hold out to the side. Out of my sleeve crawl a few Killik fingerlings, and they immediately take off and swarm around my head.

Salazar Greshh

I hold my crimson lightsaber in two hands. “I’d rather die trying then allow him to take any more lives.”

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"Then we're in agreement. May the Force be with us." And with that I stride forward, the blades of my lightsabers humming quietly at my sides. However, once I'm in range of Sucal, I don't move to attack right away, instead appraising him. "You look better, Jorg. Was that my grandson's cousin's work? Or a trick you managed to hide?"

[Lord Greshh]

Darth Trayus

I rise. “I will admit, I couldn’t have achieved this without the help of Hayden Twilight. I have studied the ancient Sith power of draining life and power from others, but never could I have created such devastation alone. Hayden is... an exceptionally powerful presence in the Force. There is perhaps one in every generation capable of embodying such power and surviving. Tenebre was one; a proverbial god among mortals. Hayden could be the same if she weren’t so rebellious.” I smile. “Perhaps after I am through here, I will correct that. I’m sure she will be a lot more cooperative once her mind has been shattered. All I need is her body and her powers anyways.”

Becca Twilight

“You won’t get that chance!” I enter an Ataru stance. “We six stand as one against you!”

Salazar Greshh

I nod. “Satele Shan gave her life to bring me back. So I could make sure you died properly this time!”

Darth Trayus

“Look at you all. United against me. All the easier to kill you all at once rather than hunt each of you down.” I begin to float off the ground. “And when you are inches from death, I will bring your bodies to Hayden Twilight, and she will be forced to consume the last drops of Force energy from each of you.” Eye eyes glow purple. From the sand, the lightsabers of fallen Jedi begin to rise. Hundreds of lightsabers activate and swirl around me.

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I shake my head and slide into my own ready stance and close my eyes. "To think all this came from a man who feared the Sith so much he could no longer see the difference between good and evil. It's sad really."

[Lord Greshh]

[center][h2] Becca Twilight [/h2[/center]

"The Dark Side has a way of preying upon or worst fears and turning even the best intended into monsters."

[center][h2] Salazar Greshh [/h2[/center]

"Let's not have this talk right now!" I raise my lightsaber just as the whirlwind of blades lashes out towards us. I deflect a couple in quick succession, but am forced to dive out of the way to avoid the rest.

[center][h2] Jakito Twilight [/h2[/center]

"Down!" I knock one of the lightsabers away from Becca, then pull her into a roll across the ground. Both of us land in a crouch a few feet away, our own weapons raised defensively.

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I don't move as the barrage of sabers flies towards me, and Alice joins me. We glance at each other and then nod. With an shout, the two of us slam our fists into the ground and unleash a pulse of Force power, scattering the sabers in all directions as they collided with the wave. It even reaches Trayus, sending more of the sabers around him flying away. "All that power, Trayus, and still no real control. Like an infant with a new toy."

Alice Durana

"Are you sure," I ask as we stand, "that antagonizing the man who just threw hundreds, if not thousands, of lightsabers at us is a good idea?"

[Lord Greshh]

Darth Trayus

I narrow my eyes, and my fingers crackle with electricity. The lightsabers raise up around me again, and I blast them with lightning. The dark side energy crackles between them, bouncing off each other to create a web of deadly power. "Let us end this." When I speak, it is both in my own voice and that of Kreia. I fly across the distance between us, attacking with both the lightsabers I hold in each hand and the thousands crackling with lightning that swirl around us.

Millu'ci'vanda

I duck and weave between the blades, not even trying to fight back. Sucal was near invincible at the moment. The only thing any of us could do was defend ourselves.

Jakito Twilight

and

Becca Twilight

We move together, trying our best to get close enough to attack. But, with the storm of blades and his lightning, it was impossible. Even cutting the lightsabers out of the air wasn't enough because there were just so many.

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

My twin black blades lock against the pair in Trayus' hands and Alice spins away, scattering her rocks in multiple directions to destroy many of the sabers as her saberstaff sliced through as many more as she could. "Your ending, Kreia, was centuries ago when the Jedi Exile Meetra Surik put an end to your ambitions." I push back against Trayus and exchange blows with him twice more, blue flame alighting both my saber blades in response to the electricity crackling on his. "And hiding behind a broken man who's lost everything he cares about is a new low, even for the Lord of Betrayel."

[Lord Greshh]

Darth Trayus

I bat Zar’kun away with a few quick strikes, then I send a wave of lightsabers towards him to keep him busy. I spin away and instantly catch Salazar Greshh in my sights. “Are you ready for another lesson, Sith?”

Salazar Greshh

“You have nothing to teach me, witch!” I flip my lightsaber reverse grip and charge in, sliding under one of the flying lightsabers, then leaping up to clash with Sucal. I channel all of my fury into a relentless attack, hoping to break threw his guard. Unfortunately, Sucal has become much faster than the last time we faced each other.

Millu’ci’vanda

I cup my hand, whispering to the fingerlings in my palm. When I am done, I blow them away, sending them flying towards Sucal. They buzz around and bite at his exposed flesh.

Darth Trayus

I wince at the tiny creatures attacking me, but I do not allow them to divide my attention from the real fight. I spin kick Greshh away, then send an electrical catch through my own body, causing the insects to instantly vaporize.

[Zarkun]

Alice Durana

My saberstaff spins around me and intercepts all the sabers that it can, and those it can't, a liberal use of my telekinetics prowess helped to redirect or use rocks to block. I couldn't find Zar'kun in the mess of blades after Trayus forced him away and I am still trying to fight my way to the ghost possessed husk.

Zar'kun Je'and

Another Force Repulse, lighting crackling through out it, knock away the wave of sabers, shorting them out, and I cup my hands briefly before igniting a blue fireball and hurling it into Trayus' back to hopefully give Salazar an opening. "Quit hiding behind Sucal, Kreia! Face us yourself!"

[Lord Greshh]

Darth Trayus

"No!" I say, jerking away from the fireball. Quietly, I whisper. "Don't leave me, Master. I can finish this." Taking a deep breath, I spin the two lightsabers in my hands and whip up the sand and debris around us with the Force. It becomes incredibly difficult to see anything through the sand storm.

Becca Twilight

I close my eyes, trying to call on the Force to see like Marek taught me. "You cannot hide from us!"

Jakito Twilight

I huff in exhaustion, holding up my arms to guard against the sand. I can still hear the lightsabers flying around us, but I can't see where they are. Only their colorful glow reflected in the clouds of sand, and the occasional crackle of lightning. "He's... not weakening. Or at least it's taking forever!"

Salazar Greshh

"He will fall! Even the Immortal Emperor fell in time!"

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"That's time we don't have!" Closing my eyes, I allow the Force to guide each stroke of my blades as I slash through the lightsabers hidden in Sucal's sandstorm. After a couple of minutes, I focus on building energy in the palm of my hands. "Focus the Force into a ball and then slam it into the ground at the same time! That should dispel this sandstorm."

[Lord Greshh]

All

We all manage to find each other in the storm and create a rough circle. Together, we channel the Force and pound it into the ground, sending the sand flying away in all directions and dispelling the cloud.

Darth Trayus

I stand not far away, watching. "It is pointless to resist. The Force is dead on this planet. Exhaust yourselves trying to defeat me. You will tire and die, and I will barely deplete even a fraction of my strength."

Becca Twilight

"We draw power from each other! The Force may not flow as easily through the ruins of this world, but it flows through us six! That is all we need to finish you once and for all!"

Darth Trayus

"Six against one fueled by the power of thousands. It hardly seems fair." I spin the two lightsabers I hold in each of my hands. They crackle with red lightning. In the sky above, the Genesis Engine begins to shift so that it's transforming device is aimed at the planet. "I have no further use for this place. With the combined power of the Tempest Eye and the Genesis Engine, I shall erase this world from existence... and you along with it."

HJ Twilight

As I sit in space, waiting for the fleet to arrive, I notice the space station beginning to move. "You seeing this, Hank?" I start flipping switches to bring the Rancor's Den back to full power. "What are we gonna do? Whatever is about to happen won't be good. We need to stop it quickly... but how?"

[Zarkun]

HK-49 "Hank"

"Bold Statement: Charge weapons and attack, Master HJ. We might not be of much help against the Sith Lord, but his Station we can fight." As if to punctuate my statement, a familiar voice crackles through on the com.

Jerus Je'and

"Did somebody call the cavalry?!" The combined Aderaanian, Republic, and Mandalorian fleet drops out of orbit and begins to open fire on the station as fighters soar out of their bays. "Where are the others HJ?"

Zar'kun Je'and

Blue flames still roil along the length of my sabers as I stand ready to cross blades with Trayus again. "Indeed it is unfair. That six trained and experienced wielders of the Force are against the meat puppet of an old hag being fed the power of lives they forced a young girl to take by force. Truly a terrifying sight."

[Lord Greshh]

HJ Twilight

"Dad! They're down on the planet, fighting Sucal. But it looks like that station is about to make their job a lot harder. We need to bring that thing down, or at least disabling it." As I speak, the station lashes out with familiar lightning, obliterating the fighters that get too close, and badly damaging the larger ships that charged in too fast. "Even with all these ships, I don't know if we can. It was unstoppable at Coruscant, even with all these ships pelting it. We're going to need a lot of firepower."

Koraline Okarr

"You have it!" The Redshifter drops out of hyperspace, followed by a large fleet of pirate ships and smuggling vessels. "Jolee the Hutt sends her regards!"

Prince Nok Drayen II

The Royal Dubrillion Fleet rockets in. "On behalf of Queen Risha of Dubrillion, we stand with you."

Captain Durant

A small fleet of civilian ships, retrofitted with weapons, appears. "The Dantooine Militia is here to help."

Caalin Daemon

A fleet of Jedi Starfighters, along with some beat up looking ships, arrives. "This is Caalin. I've gathered the remaining Jedi and the Sith Colonists. We're ready to do our part."

[Zarkun]

Jerus Je'and

"We'll leave Trayus to the others. This Station has to fall. Everyone, bring it down!" Punching my thrusters, the Shadow Stalker soars forwards and unleashes a barrage of concussion missiles on the station, aiming for anything that looked like an amplification dish.

Zar'kun Je'and

"No retort for that, Trayus? Or should I call you the ghost of Jorg Sucal? Even the ghosts bound to you weren't done by your own will, they were stolen from another and bound to you through Kreia." Trayus and I begin circling each other. "None of that power is truly yours, but you're too blinded by how it feels to see that. What would the patriot you used to be say to what you've become? Or your parents?"

[Lord Greshh]

Darth Trayus

In response, I flick my hand at Zar’kun and send him flying. “The man I once was no longer exists. He was killed by the Sith and the Jedi. I will avenge him.” I lift Zar’kun into the air with barely a thought. Even as the others attempt to strike at me, my concentration is not broken. “And are you so foolish as to think invoking my parents will somehow break me from this path? You think I’ll crumble with regret at the memory of my ‘poor sweet mother’? You are a greater fool than I took you for.” I slam Zar’kun into the ground. “You seek to unbalance me because you know you cannot defeat me in my current state.”

HJ Twilight

As I fly through the fight. My ship isn’t fast enough to avoid the station’s defenses, and my weapons systems are not very strong. However, as I get a little closer to the station, I sense a familiar presence. “Dad, I sense Hayden is still on that space station. We can’t destroy it until she’s safe.”