Chapter 13
Rushing to the council chambers Chris cuts through the halls of the temple. The come to a skidding stop outside the chamber doors.
Chris is breathing hard, not from the run but from the adrenaline. The only thing standing between him and the defining moment of his life is a steel door, and he knows it.
”I want to do this alone.”
Knight Zunin looks down at his Padawan confused, “you know I can’t let you try that. It won’t work, you’ll be slaughtered.”
”When I get my chance to grab her, I’m going to take it.”
”And if that chance doesn’t happen.”
”Then I make it happen.”
”Good answer.”
Chris opens the door and steps inside quickly. Standing at the left side of the door is Master Tuyal, on the right is Master Narruo and in the center of the room stands Master Thraxon and Ahna.
He looks to both sides but they don’t seem to be moving to stop him. He walks past them and stands a few feet inside the door, and only fifteen from her.
Knight Zunin begins to walk but the two Masters ignite their blades and hold Zunin back.
”Just you and me Chris, just you and me,” Master Thraxon says with a grin.
”You… You call me Grim.”
She ignites her saber and holds it to her sister’s neck. Ahna’s eyes widen as she sees the blade inches from her neck. “What are you doing?”
”I’m making him make a decision. He has to decide now, join us—or lose you.”
Ahna begins breathing harder and her eyes begin to swell slightly as she realizes she has been betrayed by her own sister.
”Chris…” she whispers, both out of fear and out of shame. Realizing that the only person there to save her is the one she’d betrayed.
”You’re making it out of this, I promise.”
Master Thraxon cackles at Chris, she looks at him in a patronizing manner, “oh child, neither of you will make it out of here unless you join us.”
Chris ignites his saber and takes a step closer to the sisters. “I’d much rather fight you then join you.”
”Foolish child! Gambling with not only your life but hers too? Looks like you’ll need some persuading.” Master Thraxon turns her sister around and slams her saber into her shoulder. Ahna screams in pain, coughing blood and collapsing to her knees. Jennifer pulls the saber from her should and pushes her sister over.
Chris’ breathing becomes deep and quick, his eyes glaze over slightly as tears fill his eyes.
”Chris, do not give in,” Knight Zunin yells. Master Tuyal punches Zunin in the face trying to shut him up.
Chris grips his saber as hard as he can, so hard that his hand begins to bleed. Blood begins dripping to the ground. He pivots his foot against the ground preparing to make a charge.
His eyes flicker, from its normal brown to a shade of yellow and back again, but as it does his shoulder begins to burn causing him extraordinary pain. Knight Zunin can see the Padawan bubbling over in anger but is helpless to do anything.
Chris pushes off and races at the Master standing in the middle of the room. He lunges at her, his feet leaving the ground, she easily sidesteps his attack.
He turns around swinging wildly at the Master, but she keeps ducking his attacks, not even using her saber. He keeps swinging but she won’t attack back. His frustration mounts.
”You’re too weak to hit me Grim,” she says dodging another attack. “You’ll never be strong enough as a Jedi. You know what you’ll have to do—are you willing to do it to save her?”
He continues attacking at the air, not coming close to hitting her. He knows he can’t hit her, he knows he is no match, but he can’t use the alternative. If he does, there is no turning back.
After nearly a minuet of dodging his frivolous attacks Thraxon grows bored and begins her attacks. Easily overthrowing Chris’ defense she disables his saber and force pushes him to the floor. He tries to sit up but she puts her foot on his chest and keeps him down on the ground.
”You are pathetic. You could have joined us, but you wouldn’t. You could have given into your anger completely, but you wouldn’t. You could have saved her life… And you—“
”Succeeded.”
”Are you crazy? What is wrong with you? You’ve lost!”
Chris smiles looking up at the women standing over him and laughs slightly, “I’m not done yet.”
Master Thraxons’ eyes widen as she hears the saber ignite behind her. She turns around to find her little sister standing behind her, blade ready. Christopher pulls himself to his feet, grabbing his blade and igniting it once again.
Master Thraxon cackles as she prepares to fight the two young Padawans. She swings her saber with her right hand at Ahna, then spins around to attack Chris, both Padawans deflect the attack and jump back, out of striking distance.
The Padawans circle Master Thraxon before jumping at her, they take turns attacking as the Master uses her acrobatic ability to dodge and evade the attacks.
The clashing of sabers acts like music filling up the chambers in a symphony of noise and sparks. The Padawans flip around the Master trying to throw her off balance but she stands firm in her defense.
The Padawans quickly begin to fade as their energy levels drop, neither having fully recovered from the previous day’s tournament.
Thraxon takes the opportunity to continue her assault on Chris. She swings at his head, but he ducks it. She’s relentless in her attacks at him, he can’t find his footing long enough to dodge them with any fluency.
Her saber misses by only centimeters and continues getting closer with every swing. He knows he is running low on time and tricks.
He uses the wall to propel him forward as her saber slams into it, just barely missing his foot. Ahna’s injuries stop her as she drops to a knee clutching her shoulder. She is not able to keep up with them as Chris moves at his top speed and she follows suit.
She pauses in the center of the chambers watching them fight along the outside wondering how long before Chris is killed, or worse is pushed over his edge.
Chris dives off the wall and begins a controlled slide on his knees, twisting around and swinging upwards as Master Thraxon swings down. Their sabers clash in an explosion of light. Her saber is pushed back, he spins around to his feet and stands firm awaiting his foe’s next move.
”This is a pointless battle. You are nothing more then a child.”
”I get enough lectures from my Masters at the Academy, I don’t need one from you,” Chris replies entering his stance and preparing for what may come next.
With a smirk she reenters her fighting stance, “I can see why our Master likes you so much. You’re feisty… It’s too bad you’re too cocky for your own good.”
”You talk far too much for your own good, you know that?”
She grunts and takes off after Chris, she begins swinging at him with no thought to the attacks, just as fast and as hard as she can with the only intent to kill.
Chris tries his best to avoid the attacks but his body is giving way. He can hardly manage to move let alone dodge with any certainty.
She gets him falling backwards his feet lose traction and his balance wanes. He falls backwards hitting the ground. He tries to roll back but before he can lift his legs he has a saber once again firmly positioned in his face.
”You should have joined us. Now, your potential will go to waste.”
She pulls back her saber but her eyes widen. She gasps as blood begins to pour out of her mouth. Looking down she finds a saber sticking through her stomach. The saber is turned off as she turns around, “Ahna?”
She sees behind her Ahna stands with no emotion on her face, her saber in hand, and her wound only bleeding slightly.
She collapses to her knees, holding her stomach. Chris stands up walking in front of the wounded Jedi. “As I said. You’ve lost.” He turns around and begins walking towards Knight Zunin and the council room door.
”I will kill you!” Thraxon ignites her blade and pulls it back to swipe at her sister once more. Chris ignites his blade, spinning around he swipes at the wounded Jedi.
Her lifeless body collapses to the floor as Chris turns off his blade. Spinning back around he continues walking towards the door. The two remaining councilors prepare for the young Padawans standing side by side.
Narruo takes a step forward before the Council door opens. They spin around as Master Menelaos, Alpha, and Lei burst through the door, sabers drawn.
”Are we late?” Master Menelaos asks putting a saber to Tuyal’s throat.
”No… Right on time,” Chris says dropping to a knee, the sweat dripping like a fountain off his face pooling on the ground.
The Masters look around the chambers, surveying the scene.
”This is going to be a great story,” Master Lei remarks looking at Chris on the floor, only feet away from the decapitated corpse of Master Thraxon.
