Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 2129224" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 183: Breaking the Sacred LawsThey had left Hermes and walked across the almost invisible deck to the grey door. The worst part was that their footsteps didn’t even echo. There was no noise beyond their breathing. When they reached the door, it slid open silently revealing stark white corridors. Akan and Kyren exchanged glances, and somehow Akan lost the mental vote. So, he took the lead, stepping into the empty corridor first. Despite the emptiness, though, Akan could feel life. Dim, and still a good distance off, but it was there.     It was there, and it there was something distinctly wrong with it. Akan knew how the Dark Side felt, but this wasn’t it. Maybe close, but something else entirely. Life without life was the best he could figure, and even that didn’t make sense. Shrugging the thoughts off, Akan continued the walk through the empty, silent corridors. Finding what he assumed to be a turbolift(which it wasn’t, of course, but was close enough) Akan stepped over to it and inside.    There were no buttons or switches, and the door almost swished closed right on Kyren’s tail. A moment later, the feeling of movement consumed the both of them as the lift rose for a few seconds. When it opened, ahead of them was a long causeway, with a stark white wall on the left and a railing looking down at a lower level to the right. Akan stepped out and looked down over the railing, seeing at least twenty or so Alraxians. They were...no, not sparring. It was far too violent to be sparring, and there was a very distinct smell of blood in the air. Some would morph here and there, but most stayed Alraxian.    And then they stopped. All of them froze before quickly moving and forming on line, staring ahead but not up to where Akan and Kyren were. Akan glanced to Kyren, saying very quietly, “I think that’s a bad sign.”    Kyren just nodded, looking down to see if there was any indication as to why they had stopped. But there wasn’t, of course. That would make things far too easy. And before he could comment, a cold, dead hand landed on his shoulder, burning as it did so. Kyren yelped painfully, glancing over his shoulder to see a hauntingly familiar sight. It was Marix...it had to be...but she was..was...metal! How?! And it burned!!    Akan felt the same burning from the hand that was tightly gripping his shoulder, but he ignored it. He ignored it because he knew exactly what it was, not feeling the surprise or the panic that Kyren currently was. Slowly, though, he turned to look over his shoulder to the sleek, metal form of Marix, looking into those two empty, black eyes. He said nothing, nor thought anything ‘at’ her through the link. It wouldn’t do any good. He didn’t even need the link to feel that she wouldn’t respond. It was far too easy to feel through the Force that they were too late. Of course, too late to stop something didn’t mean it was too late to do anything...and Akan wasn’t about to just give up, even if he was suddenly depressed at the sight and the feeling.    After a short moment where Akan and Marix simply stared at each other, she easily lifted the two males up and dropped them over the railing. Kyren, still reeling from the shock of seeing Marix as she was and the pain of the metal against his skin, landed on the hard floor on his back. It didn’t crack, but his head snapped back and his vision went all blurry as he lay on the deck groaning. Akan fell next to him, hitting hard on his side but ignoring it as best he could and quickly rolling up to his feet. The other Alraxians were barely two meters away, staring blankly passed him.    And then there was a voice, “Young men, you have broken our most sacred laws to come here...and I know you intend to break the greatest of them all. You may not have her back.”    Akan spun around, hand resting on the lightsaber at his belt, to face a familiar looking Alraxian. He was older, yet not at all weak, with dark ebony skin and tabby markings across his short hair and tail. The Alraxian had a few scars here and there, but they didn’t draw attention like his deep set, pale blue eyes did. It was the same Alraxian Akan had seen as they’d first arrived at the Palace.    Not one to let the chance for a good cliche to pass, though, Akan said simply, “You can’t have her. I don’t care about what you, or any of your species thinks. You can’t have her.”    Somehow, Akan resisted the urge to simply draw his lightsaber and cut down the man. He did grip the weapon still attached to his belt a little tighter, though. There was a thud, and the metal bodied Marix landed right behind the older Alraxian. He glanced at her, smiled, then turned back to Akan, “Can’t have her? She is the property of the Empire, young man, not yours,” his eyes shifted to her and the smile grew slightly, “And what property, hm? Never have I seen such a thing except in the old bedtime stories. This is exactly what we have strived for over the centuries! The obedience of a simple program and the power of a living being!”    For a moment, the Alraxian paused, then watched as Kyren very slowly got to his feet, “You have question for me? No? Well then, let’s get right to it, shall we?” again, he turned to Marix, “Commander, the Knight.”    Akan winced in expectation of what happened to Kyren, instead. In a quick flash of movement, Marix’s silver metal body dashed across and swung a heavy punch at Kyren’s jaw. He didn’t even make a noise beyond the crack of his bones and then the noise of his body crumbling to the deck a second time. This time, though, Kyren was unconscious.    “Now, young man, I believe we have some business to take care of,” the older Alraxian commented, turning his gaze back to Akan, “You have come where you should know, for something you should not have knowledge of. For this alone, you could be killed. I must admit, I admire your courage. It is not something seen in many Alraxians these days...standing here in a room with twenty perfectly training assassins and not even showing fear. You could be killed before that weapon leaves your belt, yet you come here for her knowing this danger. Can it be that you care so much?”    He smiled, taking a calm step forward, an oddly fluid motion for such an older looking creature. Akan did not answer, though, simply standing up straight and ready, his mind slowly sinking into the Force to keep his well aware of everything. How he was finding this calm, though, was beyond him...he just was. After a silence, the other Alraxian simply shrugged and said, “I could understand that, believe me. I had a daughter once, and I loved her more than life itself. Is it not ironic she was born a cursed one? Despite all of that, I did my duty and she became a weapon of the Empire. I did my duty, and she did her’s. She never failed. And then...when she came of age, she slit her own throat in public, her final duty...the one that this Commander here should have done long ago.”    The older Alraxian took another step forward and sighed, “But as I see you are unwilling to speak, we shall dispense with the rest of this wasted time. I know what you are, but I have never seen your kind before. The legends speak of your kind as invincible warriors with mighty weapons like the one you so desperately cling to now. I will see how these stories match up to reality,” he then looked past Akan to a young looking Alraxian boy just behind him, then nodded to the boy, “You. Kill the Jedi.”    All of the other Alraxians, including the metallic Marix, took a step back except for the boy. Akan turned to face the boy, hand still on his lightsaber and a foot planted back. He felt one with the Force in a way he’d never felt before. Even though it went against everything he usually felt, he waited...he waited and he watched, his mind a soothing calm despite everything. And then the boy pounced.    Akan barely twisted to the left, avoiding a fist to the jaw but instead taking a knee to the gut. He grunted, but held his ground and sidestepped another fist. Stepping behind the boy, Akan quickly lashed out with his left hand, backhanding the boy hard across the back of the head. It sent the young Alraxian stumbling forward, giving Akan time to step back. Just as the boy turned back around, a loud snap-hiss cut through the air and the familiar blue-green blade sat in front of Akan’s body.    Calmly, he said through the loudly humming blade, “I don’t want to hurt you, kid.”</blockquote>

Verification