#redlightsaber

The figure decides to speak first, letting me know that they feel they are in control of the conversation. This is definitely a ‘he who strikes first, wins’ scenario, and so far I am losing 0-2.

“I believe a greetings are in order, though first an explanation,” he says. His voice comes out distorted from under his helmet, which is black and lined with silver detailing in a rather horrific feeling pattern. “I haven’t come to rob you- not that there’s anything here worth robbing, anyway.”

Okay, a little sassy. Nothing I can’t take though.

“Do you know why I am here?”

He’s asking you a question, Keres. It’s okay to answer. “No.”

The man hums a little, as if he were amused. “Are you telling me the truth?”

I swallow dryly. Then I weigh the pros and cons of each answer I can give him, and all the possible scenarios birthing from me saying each. Finally, I decide on a simple, “no.”

The man takes a step directly forward. His boot comes down against the fish and the stick and the fire all the same, snapping through each as if it were nothing. The flame extinguishes immediately. “You’re a good girl then. For telling me the truth.”

He must’ve seen the darkening of my eyes. There’s a certain hatred developing from me to him, all because of a two word phrase I can’t stand in the slightest. I want to kill him then and there for making me relive something I’m in denial about. I want to make him suffer.

“Did I touch a nerve there?”

I’ll fucking kill you. “No.”

He takes another step forward. Now, I can get a better gage of his height compared to mine. He looms over me, but I doubt he’s over six feet. He’s letting the intimidation speak instead of his size. Funny.

“You should smile. For me.”

I draw my lightsaber without thinking. The green end comes out first, pointing directly at the center of his chest. Emerald light ripples across our features, flickering and expanding in the blades wake. I don’t think before the words come out next.

“I will kill you if you come any closer to me.”

The man’s head tilts down. I try to picture his face underneath, but all I can imagine is something hideous and vile, just like his words. “Are you sure you want to do this girl? Cross a future Sith Lord?”

My brain goes blank. The left side of my lips twitch up into a calm smirk. Slowly but clearly, I look him where I picture his eyes to be. “I can’t cross myself more than I already have.”

A red lightsaber ignites slowly against the green. They skim each other, but I don’t let my eyes wander from his mask. He’s a coward. Hiding behind a mask instead of looking at me with his full eyes. I want him to memorize the face that is responsible for his death. I want him to memorize every detail, as if we were lovers, as he chokes on his own blood.

I don’t have the space to do it here. I need to lead us out of the cave if we’re going to have an honest to Maker duel. He seems to be on the same page at least. One of my feet reaches backwards a step, and another follows. His own move in sync until I break into the open air, and rain makes him appear blurry.

“You are not nearly as good a girl as I thought you to be,” his voice oozes, almost like a promise.

I have nothing to say to him. I have taken abuse in the past. But now I have to show myself that I have not lived all this time and allowed myself to still take abuse from men.

I narrow my eyes. I can see my plan being executed now. First, I do a simple string of jabs to throw him off guard. When he’s comfortable, I jump and kick his face. A punch to the neck will discombobulate him further. Some more strikes to tire him, then choke him upwards with the Force, slam him into the mud, and stab him through his mask  before he can say the word ‘Empire’.

I’m about to do it… I’m about to-

I whip to the side, igniting the second half of my lightsaber just in time. It clashes against a blue forcefully. On the other end, I can see the angered and determined face of a pale man with slim eyes and bushy eyebrows, biting his lip in frustration.

“Ah,” the other one chuckles. “Yutaro. I was beginning to wonder when I’d see you again.”

The man with the blue lightsaber softens his power before he speaks. He has just enough time to say, “It’s never soon enough with-” before I twist and kick him so hard he flies backwards.

“I was listening to that,” the first man growls. He pushes his saber against mine so hard I jump back and disconnect. I snap my lightsabers apart so I am holding each in my hand. One green, one red. I twirl the green in my hand once before using it to block his attacks.

They are sharp and powerful. Not slow, but still calculated. They rely more on brute force. I can use this to my advantage. I just need to make a plan.

They’re forcing me to walk backwards, showing his dominance over me. From the left corner of my eye, I see a flash of blue and I jump back quickly.

When the Jedi raises his blue sword over his head, I slip out of the way and watch as he meets the red blade. They’re just as against each other as they are me. I could use this to my advantage too, I know it. The question is, how can I give myself enough time to formulate a plan and get myself out of this? I can’t just run away, there’s no way they wouldn’t notice and stop me. I could attempt to outsmart them, but how? I could use the environment, I suppose. Scale a tree? No. The Sith would just cut it down or follow me. Anywhere I run as long as they’re alive, they’re sure to be right behind me. I just know it.

While the Sith defends himself against the Jedi- who’s sweat is dripping off his forehead way heavier than it should mixed with the rain- his right hand shoots out towards me. Immediately, I am flying through the air for one, two, three seconds until a splitting pain runs through my vertebrae. A hoarse shriek escapes my lips as I fall to the ground after hitting the tree, my lightsabers coming to a close on their own. When I crash into the ground, wet dirt enters my mouth and my fingerless gloves have ripped at my palms to reveal thin streaks of blood. The injury stings, but it’ll be worse if I don’t move.

The black clothed hand becomes a tight fist, and I’m thrown stiff and upright again. I can hear my back crack and wince in protest, but there’s nothing I can do for it. Then it begins- the sudden realization that I can’t breathe.

My hands find their way to my throat, as if ripping it open would give me air. Oh, air. Sweet, sweet air. How I’ve taken you for granted for so long! If I live through this, I promise I’ll never let you go again.

          Ah, it burns. My senses are drying up, my nose feels sore and enflamed like I inhaled water. In fact, I’m almost certain I am. The rain is burning away at my skin and my insides slowly but surely. My eyes feel teary and everything is gradually becoming darker. And my throat, gods my throat. It feels tighter. It feels like someone poured salt directly down my esophagus. Force, don’t let me die, not like this. Not after all that time, all those months and years I’ve spent wandering around the galaxy. This can’t be my ending- can it? Dying without really knowing where I stand?

Weakly, I tell my right hand to feel the Force around me. After a second of my choking and my fingers wiggling slightly- it clicks. My lightsaber surges into my palm. I flick the switch and hear the unsheathing of the blade. I feel the shadows Force fingers around my throat loosen for a split moment, and then my hand slashes out behind me.

The two men stop themselves to see the giant, red barked tree falling towards them. They both leap out of the way, giving me the air I’ve needed to fling myself out of the way of the tree and away from either of them. I land about 15 feet away from the crashing wood. I don’t see either of them, but I can feel them. The darker robed one must be Aegus. The other one was referred to as Yutaro. Let’s just see if this will be a fair fight.  

If I can sense Aegus, he can definitely sense me as well. There’s no use in running or attempting to hide- that could just give away my location faster. I’m not sure I could beat him in battle. To do that, first I would have to match him in anger to match him in strength. I don’t know if I could do that, physically. It’s best I stick to aiming to outsmart him for the moment.

As soon as I ignite the other blade of my saber, the red one, I hear twigs snapping behind me. Whirling around, I raise my saber with two hands to block Aegus’s attack. He presses me down, edging his blood colored blade closer to my face, separated only by part of my own red sword. Behind his mask, his seething expression radiates through. He hates me. Hates me for both rejecting and accepting the Dark side. Hates me for rejecting the Jedi and not being able to give him the satisfaction of killing one. He absolutely loathes me for being in that gray area. He wants me dead.

Fine by me. I’ve wanted him dead the moment the words “good girl” fell from his foul lips.

I push my saber up, hitting his mask with the hilt of my weapon. He falls back slightly, just enough to take pressure off me. I strike up again, this time cracking his mask. Underneath, I can see skin so pale it’s nearly snow white. It’s haunting to see, but I have no time to contemplate or analyze it. I bring my lightsaber overhead to finish him, but he throws me back again. I hit my back against another tree- harder than the last time. I can’t afford to feel pain though, because he’s in front of me again, ready to aggressively finish me off.

I flip back, my toes slipping back in the mud clumsily. When I raise my head, I can see him edging towards me, a scowl evident on his pale lips. I can do this, I can take him.

Where’s that other Jedi? I need to keep an eye on him as well. If he’s staying back, he’s either injured, or hiding until Aegus or I kill each other, and since I didn’t see a blue and red saber clashing after the tree fell, I’m guessing it’s the former. I have to double my guard then. 

As if on cue, I feel his presence behind me. I twirl around, meeting his fierce expression. This close, I can see his eyes are amber, slanted, and framed by thick eyebrows. He hates me too. He thinks I’m a Sith, because I haven’t committed myself to the Light. I block his strike, then counter with my own.

He’s fast. It becomes a pattern, a quick, rigorous dance of taking turns blocking and attacking- sometimes at the same time. I can feel Aegus lurking behind us, like a hunter-seething, loathing, hating. He’s analyzing my every move. Every time I hop, twirl, defend, attack- he sees. I know this will give him some sort of advantage when he reaches me, but there’s nothing I can do about it at the moment. 

I begin to match Yutaro’s speed. The force tells me when to jump, dodge, when to attack. I can tell he’s taken aback between thrusts. He sees how fast I change between a double-bladed saber and just the one blade. He sees how I dodge. Does he worry the force is stronger with me then he anticipated? He must at least wonder about it now.

I throw my right hand out, and the Jedi stumbles back just enough to let me twist my body around, and slip the green end of the light saber through his abdomen. He makes a choking noise, and I attempt not to wince. I can already feel the twinge of guilt creeping up my throat, but I silence it by pushing my blade through him even more, and listen to him crumple to the ground. Then I twirl my lightsaber in my hand, loosening up the cramps in my fingers.

Aegus’s lips twist up into a cold smirk, illuminated by his blade. He surges forward without warning. I raise my lightsaber just in time, but not without sacrifice.

His red lightsaber passes right through the bound together hilts of my two sabers. They come apart in my hands, both blades flickering. My shock gives him the time needed to kick me back into the dirt. Both the red and the green blades fall from my hands and close on their own. I tumble back, dirt covering my face and clouding my vision. My lightsabers! I treasured that dual bladed advantage.

A screech pulls me from my loss. Aegus.

On instinct, I throw both my palms over my head, squinting my eyes as I watch ants slip in the blades of grass I kneel on.

This next part is not for those with weak stomachs.

Aegus grips into my right palm, reigniting the burning sensation from all the scars on top. He pulls it backwards, and my fingers spread on instinct. One moment, I had all five of them. The next moment, I did not.

My right ring finger erupts like a volcano. It burns and hisses and seems to scream all on its own. It is warm and wet for a moment, but then two rows of teeth descend upon it, just above my knuckle.

My back arches in agony, and I can’t help but cry out. My voice goes hoarse in an instant, but the scream doesn’t end. I can’t push him away, no matter how hard I try. My left hand drops the saber, and my mind goes blank with nothing but searing pain and shock.

My knees and boots clamber against the mud as I struggle and cry. I try to tear my finger away without thinking about the situation, and I’m abhorred to find I succeed. My vision narrows like a tunnel, and my heartbeat drums all too loudly in my ears. When I look down, my right hand is covered in thick, red juice. My right ring finger was half of what it was a moment ago, separated in the most raw and unclean way I could think of.

I have just enough time to grab the lightsaber at my side with my left hand before he kicks me down. Then I watch him bolt at me with a loud hiss, and my throw both my palms over my head on instinct. I prepare myself for death.

The blade pierces me, but no pain comes. A tickling sensation follows. Furrowing my eyebrows, I lift my head up and am greeted with a surprise.

Aegus’s blade is trapped in my palms, but stopped from going any further. Besides my finger, I am not injured or impaled. The light that comes from his lightsaber being so close blinds me slightly, and the heat radiating off of it singes, but I’m alright. I’m… blocking his lightsaber with my hands. I can do that? I can do that? Yes! I can do that!

Aegus’s face falls for a moment, then he grits his teeth again and pushes on me more. It’s no use.

I take one hand away from above my head and feel the electric shocks run through my palm. With a thrust, the hand shoots out- more to the Dark side than him- and I wince slightly in pain as the lightning surges out from my fingers like coils and cages Aegus inside. He screams out, and the indigo arcs carry him up and away as he rears in agony. This is it. This is my chance.

I throw my left hand out, pulling a lightsaber towards me. The red one answers my call immediately. As I sprint through the foliage and towards my kill, I notice how beautiful it looks today. Still rainy, but beautiful.

I flip the switch and hear the buzz of the blade spring to life. Reaching Aegus, I see his eyes widen and his lips part in fear. Quickly, mercilessly, I swing the lightsaber at his knee. He falls onto his side, then flat on his back.

Aegus lifts a hand up as if to stop me. His mouth begins to form the word ‘stop’. With a flick of my wrist, he is silenced. The lightsaber goes straight through his chest. I twist it for good measure.

Aegus twitches. Then he stays still.

Once I am sure that he is not faking his death, my knees buckle against each other. The pain coursing from my finger is raw and unmatched by anything I have ever felt. It’s not something I can just repair either. My finger was bitten off. Aegus may have swallowed it.

I still hate him for what he did to my sabers. I’ll find the green one, which is something broken I know I can at least try to repair, but it won’t be as clean as the Haxion Brood’s work. I’m frustrated and upset by the loss. I really enjoyed having a dual bladed saber!

I do eventually find the green bladed weapon. The end of the hilt is damaged and sparking, and the leather I bound it with is singed. When the beam erupts from the emitter, it looks unstable and flickering. There’s no way I’ll be able to fix that. It’s still usable all together, but I don’t know for how long.

After standing still for a while, I decide my best course of action is to begin to make my way back to the cave. My injuries continue to sting and protest, but I don’t blame them for that part. Least of all my right hand.

It seems I have to change planets again.

Maybe it was my exhaustion that brought me to him. It clouded what I could sense and see. I suppose it doesn’t matter how I came across him, looking back on it. All that matters is that I did- that I do.

I stand and watch the river for a while. I watch the cool, spring waters toss over rocks and flow downstream. The color is a mix between pale blue and glistening silver- like a lightsaber. It’s strikingly different from his own weapon, I’d come to realize.

When I finally turn around to continue my journey to my cave, I am stopped in my very tracks.

I’ve turned around just in time to see his lightsaber come to light. It contrasts the fleeting light in the sky. It’s… unlike any I’ve seen before.

Purple. His lightsaber is purple. The hilt is polished silver, but I can’t make out details from this distance. The blade casts a violet glow on its closest surroundings.

“Going somewhere?” he muses.

I didn’t know it in that moment, but I could sense it. This one would change my life. He would change me.