CHAPTER FIFTY FOUR

TARIS – OLARIS BASE

Necrolis Darkstar stood and stared intently at the entry into the spaceport. The former Republic base was in ruins, the defences down, allowing for him to take his time. Scattered bodies littered the stairs and entry next to broken and smoking defence turrets. The Empire had won the day and all that was left was dealing with securing the base. For him personally, it meant one more confrontation, one last battle that was long overdue. Standing before the large entry, the pure blooded sith tightened his grip absently on both of his lightsaber hilts. They felt heavy for some reason, a weight that reminded him of what damage they could do. Normally such was a comfort, but on this occasion for some reason, Necrolis found himself on edge.

He knew Thana Vesh was within and waiting for him. It was not hard to miss her presence at all. Her anger and hatred rippled through the force, rolling out to touch him. She was strong, but completely unfocused and it caused such a disturbance there was no masking it. All that rage and hate consumed her to the point that instead of making her stronger, it blinded and weakened her. All that potential, it was such a waste, Necrolis thought.

Their showdown had been an inevitability from the moment they had first met, Necrolis knew. The simple fact was they were going to fight. The only real question was when such a confrontation would occur. After her attempt to kill him while he fought to save Vette, there was no turning back from a fight. Looking at it, Necrolis wondered why it had to come to such. Perhaps it was simply a case of the two strongest gundarks in the nest, or maybe it was simply because neither of them knew how to step back from a challenge. It mattered not in the end, he reminded himself. The moment was upon him, and there was no turning back from it now.

Pierce had done his job in locking down the spaceport, and was still inside as well, Necrolis knew. Given the lack of communication, he could only assume the other sith had taken out the trooper. There would be no counting on Pierce to join in the fight, not that Necrolis would have wanted him to. Pierce would be a non factor in what was to come. The only real question left to be answered was if Pierce was unconscious or dead? Necrolis did hope the trooper was not deceased. The trooper had proven his mettle and his usefulness, and since Hurdenn was a fool and wanted him gone, Necrolis was quite happy to include Pierce in his growing crew. Jaesa is going to be outraged if he is dead, he thought.

"My lord, I can have special forces there in but a moment." Malavai Quinn's voice came over the comm link to Necrolis' ear. They had been over such enough times already, it was beginning to get on his nerves.

"My orders stand, Captain." Necrolis snapped back.

"I understand, but might I see about having them on stand by with Jaesa?" Quinn pressed.

"Fine!" Necrolis growled out, then sighed heavily. "They are not to enter under any circumstances. I will not tolerate any interference."

"Understood." Quinn stated in his calm, unflappable manner.

Necrolis focused his attention back on the spaceport, rolling his shoulders and getting his armor to settle comfortably on his frame. He knew Quinn did not understand. Even his own apprentice did not really comprehend his motives. This was a confrontation that had to be strictly between the two of them. There could be only one winner, undisputed, and without the excuse of having received aid. It was a matter of pride and honor. Two sith would meet and see who was stronger, and the other would fall. The winner would add to their legacy, while the loser would be nothing more than a quickly forgotten footnote to the other's glory. It was going to be him, or Thana Vesh.

Putting one foot in front of the other, Necrolis pushed aside his musings and entered the spaceport. It was time to face the coming storm. With the Republic crushed, and knowing the Imperial forces had not entered, he held little fear of traps. It would not be in keeping with Thana's character to try underhanded tactics. She was not that clever. All the fury and rage and bloodlust left her as the more in your face, smash mouth type. It made her easy to predict and count on. Know your enemy, he thought.

Necrolis walked around and into the main center of the spaceport, eyes scanning over the interior. He could see the broken remains of battle droids where they had been gunned down, the bodies of fallen Republic soldiers, and the dark scoring of blaster fire over floors and walls. Pierce had done his job, and done it well. It was easy to see the meager forces inside the spaceport had been taken by surprise and were no match for the Imperial trooper.

Standing on the large main ramp down into the heart of the building, Necrolis looked about, seeking out signs of the trooper. It did not take long to find him at all. Pierce's limp form hung from the upper walkway, dangling into the open space, metal having been bent and wrapped about his arms and upper chest. His armor was broken and pieces clearly missing, showing he had been hit and hard. Head down on his chest, Necrolis could not tell if Pierce were alive or dead from the current distance. He doubted Thana would be so stupid as to kill the man and make him angry displaying his body as she had. The odds were, she had taken him out of the equation, likely jumping him from behind once he had completed locking down the spaceport. He was there as a sign to him, not to give him any more reason to kill her, not that he really needed any more motivation. Necrolis had Thana Vesh's whereabouts and he had to give her credit for her choice of location for a confrontation. The upper control area of the catwalk was not that large, and with only an entry from each side it meant it was impossible for someone to really sneak up on her. They would both see each other coming.

Jaesa Willsaam paced back and forth, hands clenching and unclenching at her sides. There was no mistaking the woman's restlessness and displeasure. Ever since Necrolis had gone incommunicado with them, she had been grumbling under her breathe. It was evident she did not like, or agree with, her Master's chosen course of action. Leaning against the wall, Vette could not help the slight grin that came to her lips as Jaesa passed by her once more. She knew how the woman felt. Even without being sith, Vette agreed that they should not be waiting around while Necrolis took on Thana Vesh alone. At the very least they could be in there getting Pierce out of the way. Then again, Vette thought, if Pierce was dead Jaesa was just as likely to go psycho sith crazy and try and kill Thana herself. Vette didn't need a holo picture to know the other woman had more than a passing interest in the trooper.

"Jaesa, you are going to wear a trench in the floor at this rate." Malavai Quinn commented without taking his gaze away from the controls and video surveillance monitors.

"Oh let her be, Captain Killjoy!" Vette answered quickly, even as Jaesa stopped pacing and cast a hard glare at Quinn. "We all want to be going in there, don't even try and deny it."

"I have my orders." Quinn shrugged as he replied to the twi'lek. "I man my station and await new ones. It is that simple."

"Force choke." Jaesa hissed and turned back to pacing, steps slowing as she passed Vette once more and cast the other woman a glance.

"Trust in Necrolis, that other sith is way out of her league." Vette said softly, drawing a nod from Jaesa as she continued her pacing.

With no point to trying stealth, Necrolis walked through the spaceport and up the ramp to the upper walkway. Following along its narrow length, he let steady steps bring him around to the larger control center. The area was simply a large elevated square that attached both walkways. Thana Vesh was there, as he had expected. She stood at the center controls, focused on them, and with her back to him. She clearly knew him well enough to know that he would not attack her from behind. As tempting as the thought was to just leap in and strike, Necrolis knew all too well she would be ready for such.

Leaving her alone for the moment, Necrolis glanced over the rail where Pierce hung suspended. He noted the slight rise and fall of the man's chest. As he had thought, the trooper was unconscious but still alive. With that knowledge in hand, Necrolis turned his attention fully back to his opponent. There was no way he would turn his back on Thana. Pierce could be rescued after Thana had been taken care of.

"Took you long enough." Thana Vesh remarked, even as she played with the controls and continued to leave her back to him. "At least you got here in time for the fun."

"And what is your idea of fun?" Necrolis asked, once again absently playing with his grip on his lightsaber hilts. She was calmer than he expected, and that made him wary. It was clear she had some semblance of a plan in confronting him. Whatever she was up to, he knew he needed to be ready for when she finally did attack.

"Some of those pathetic cowards fled and got into the hangers. They are attempting to override the shield controls to flee. One hanger has troopers, the other a bunch of useless sympathizers. I was just about to crush them like a real sith would."

Necrolis shook his head and chuckled. The not so subtle barbs the woman tossed at him were laughable. If they were meant to rankle instead of amuse, she was failing miserably with the attempt. The fact that Thana saw glory and pride in slaughtering fleeing civilians was pathetic as far as he was concerned. Such was beneath a sith, Necrolis felt. The Republic troopers could be interrogated, the information gained useful to their war efforts. Thana Vesh was showing her inexperience and lack of vision. Tremel would have looked on her as he had Vemrin, Necrolis thought. His first test had been with prisoners, about looking for opportunity and assets, not just killing. It was clear Thana's plan was to try and unnerve and anger him, but she was coming up short on doing that. So much for her plan, such as it was, Necrolis shook his head with the thought.

"You celebrate as if you have won and accomplished something." Necrolis stated finally, noting how the woman stiffened at his words as he mocked her. "Darth Gravus won this day, planned and executed this attack. You merely showed up, and to do what? Bluster and try and steal someone else's glory? Yes you are such a bad ass, aren't you?"

"Fool, you are soft and weak." Thana hissed even as she pressed buttons.

In the large monitors that hung over the control banks, Necrolis could see the overhead hanger doors sliding open. Given access, the shuttle began to rise and make a run for freedom. Thana Vesh had let them work away, thinking they had overridden the system to gain their freedom. In fact, she merely opened the hanger doors and allowed them to fly themselves straight to their deaths. It was clear she had control of, or had scrambled their sensors so that they did not know the shield was still in place. It took only a moment for everything to happen. The shuttle engines came to life, lifting the ship right into the shield. There was the expected explosion of the shuttle, accompanied by the rippling shake that rolled through the entire spaceport as the vessel was destroyed.

Necrolis watched it all happen and remained unmoved. Republic troopers dying was something he had seen before. He had taken more lives than he could count. For them to be treated so, for them to be crushed and destroyed, was nothing more than part of the battle. They knew the risks in fighting the Empire, they had made that choice and put their lives on the line. He had no sympathies or any obligation to act to save them. A few less Republic troopers just meant he would not have to face them later on down the road. If Thana had thought he would act, try to stop her in killing them, she really did not know him at all.

"One down and one to go." Thana cried out, clearly enjoying herself. "Time for those pathetic sympathizers. Every last one of them, man, woman, child, all of them get to share their fate!"

"So the executioner turns to stupid bully." Necrolis growled out, shaking his head in disgust.

Thana Vesh turned finally, leaning against the control console. One eyebrow arched questioningly at Necrolis' words as she took him in. He had not moved since arriving. He made no attempts to attack her or stop her. In truth, other than having a battle of words, he was not doing anything she would have thought him to. While it was frustrating she could not get a read on the man, it did not mean her plan was completely ruined. She merely had to find the right pressure point to draw a reaction out of him. Once she could induce him to attack, she would crush him.

"Going soft after all?" Thana jabbed back at Necrolis. "I'm not surprised you have no stomach or spine to do what should be done."

"You are a fucking idiot, aren't you?" Necrolis shook his head once more, stunned that the woman was so short sighted and clueless. How is it she could not see the difference in her chosen targets? Better yet, how had she even survived Korriban and the sith trials being so stupid?

"Enlighten me." Thana shot back.

"Troopers die all the time, no one cares. No one will do anything but count their number and add it to a tally of this war." Necrolis stated, talking slowly and pointedly as if Thana were nothing more than a child. "Sympathizers, made up of women and children, they are something else entirely. Slaughter them, you just create martyrs and a rallying point for our enemies."

When Thana did not respond, Necrolis sighed and then continued. There was no sign she even understood what he was trying to impart on her. If she was that clueless, then there really was no hope for her at all, he thought.

"Taris was the Republic's gamble to create a symbol to rally about by reclaiming it. We had to stop them from taking a victory where we had used unchecked force to wipe the planet out. Their gambit was to turn that victory against us. You stupid bitch, you'd hand a victory on that front back to them and ruin everything. The Republic would take the slaughter of innocents to draw sympathy and support to their fight against us."

"What do you know?" Thana hissed angrily and then turned back to the controls.

Necrolis sighed lightly and ignited both of his lightsabers. There was no reasoning with her. Unlike with the troopers, he was set to act this time. He was not about to see the Empire's work, all their efforts, wasted because a short sighted foolish sith was so bent on bloodshed she couldn't see what her actions would cause. Gravus had even washed his hands of her, he knew. How far gone was she that her own Master, one that had tried to see past the rabid beast she was, would turn on her? There were going to be no shed tears for Thana Vesh.

At the sound of the lightsabers igniting and coming to life, Thana grinned. There it was. She had gotten him to react, egged him into action. Such a compassionate, sympathetic fool the man was. He was no sith, she thought, as she turned and faced him, igniting her own lightsaber. Necrolis stopped his approach and then held one blade before him in salute. As he did so, Necrolis shut down his offhand weapon, clipping the hilt back on his belt. Keeping the fight even, and giving up his advantage of dual weapons made Thana laugh. Such a damn fool, she thought once more.

The lightsabers came together, locking in the crackle of energy as each made a quick strike at the other. Necrolis stared past the harsh bright glow of their blades into the angry face of Thana Vesh. Her teeth were gritted, her eyes ablaze in her anger and hate. Yet there on her face, etched across her forehead especially, were lines of worry. She was not so sure of herself after all, Necrolis thought. Shoving at her and forcing her to disengage, Necrolis stepped back, keeping his guard up. As expected, Thana rushed forward pressing her attack. Her strikes came in quick short slashes that Necrolis easily parried each time with his own blade. Necrolis let her keep coming, taking a step back each time until she came in harder and faster than before.

Necrolis had been letting her take the initiative, showing him how she would fight. It was as expected. She lacked finesse and form, focusing on power and a continued pressure. When she struck at him with all her strength, he was more than ready for her. Turning her blade to the side, Necrolis stepped into her and past, rolling off her. Now behind the woman, Necrolis turned on the ball of one foot, kicking his other out in front of him to connect on her ass. Swearing, Thana was caught off guard, and sent stumbling to the railing. Catching herself, Thana turned to face Necrolis once more, her fury painted on her face.

"You're going to regret that." Thana hissed angrily, both hands coming to grasp the hilt of her weapon.

"I've regretted even meeting you, so nothing new there!" Necrolis shot back and laughed, even as Thana screamed in anger and rushed him once more.

As before, Necrolis caught and parried her attacks. Each time she tried to overpower him, Necrolis would spin off her rushing body and away from the reckless charge. After three straight dodges, Necrolis knew it was only a matter of time before Thana adjusted. He knew she was not that incompetent in fighting skill. The next time Thana was ready for his countering of her assault. As Necrolis danced away, Thana's hand shot out as she drew the force to her. With a quick shove, Thana pushed the wave of force energy into Necrolis. Knocked back and off his feet, Necrolis did what he could to roll with the attack. In a quick deft move, Necrolis twisted and flipped himself over to land in a crouch, saber held out to his side at the ready.

Thana attacked once more, giving no chance for Necrolis to have any breathing space. As she leapt across the distance, she turned her blade and struck in a downward thrust with both hands. Necrolis leapt back and away from the blow, dodging her once again with ease. Thana landed crouching on one knee, her lightsaber diving into the grated flooring, burning a hole where Necrolis had once been. With a high backflip, Necrolis carried himself over the railing of the platform to land on the broken top of the large statue in the spaceport center. Getting his footing, Necrolis locked his gaze once more at the other sith. He had given himself a momentary respite and changed the battlefield. Perched atop the statue, he now would force her to fight a moving battle, something he doubted she would have the focus and wherewithal to handle.

"Coward!" Thana swore, rushing forward and tossing her lightsaber at Necrolis.

With a small jump, Thana put a booted foot to the rail, then pushed off and leapt across the distance. Necrolis deflected the lightsaber away, watching as it was called right back to the woman's hand as she came at him. Gritting his teeth, Necrolis let her take the top of the broken statue. Leaping aside, Necrolis reached out to grab one of the Republic banners that hung from the ceiling, sliding down its length to then drop the rest of the way to the spaceport floor. Once again Necrolis was struck by Thana's lack of skill. All she had was unbridled fury and reckless aggression. Thana could not even see that he was drawing her in, using her own weaknesses against her. Necrolis noted she was also breathing heavy with the strains of chasing him and putting all she had into her attacks. She was leaving herself unbalanced, and her undisciplined style was leaving her open to counter attack to a point he had not believed possible.

"Gutless! You are nothing but a running coward!" Thana spit the venomous words down at Necrolis, eyes smouldering in her anger.

"You should learn to pay better attention to your surroundings."

With that said, Necrolis reached out with the force. He let it flow and ebb around the base of the statue as it came to his beckoning. He could feel the stone, every crack and flaw in it. Focusing on such, Necrolis toppled the remainder of the statue over, bringing it crashing down right along with Thana Vesh. He doubted he would be so lucky as to kill her, but it would throw her off balance, perhaps even injure her. Don't play games with her, he reminded himself. Wounded animals were, after all, the most dangerous.

Despite the dust kicked up by the fall of the statue, both sith could make the other out by the pale glow of their lightsabers. Necrolis strode slowly forward towards Thana Vesh. She did not move to meet him, remaining crouched, left arm cradled in tight to her body. It was clear she had injured herself with the fall. He had caught her unexpectedly with his force attack. While she could hit, and hard enough to have a measure of success, her lack of skill was showing. Against Necrolis, it was becoming clear he could out manouver her, and had a better understanding of using the force. Had Gravus not been able to impart any real combat knowledge to her, Necrolis was left to wonder?

Glaring and gritting her teeth, Thana pushed herself back up to her feet. Her arm felt broken, but the pain only made her want to tear the other sith's heart out all the more. He was running, she thought. I have him now, all I need to do is finish him off. As she got herself settled into a ready stance, Thana called the force to her, collecting the broken pieces of statue about her. In an instant she had the broken pieces floating in the air about her. Necrolis cocked his head but did not move, watching her and waiting for the woman's next move. With a snarling howl, Thana unleased the force held rocks, sending them flying at her opponent. Necrolis held out his hand, drawing on the force himself. As the rocks flew close to him they suddenly stopped dead in the air. A sweep of his hand to the left sent the debris flying away, Thana's attack stopped as his mastery of the force proved greater than hers.

"You are done." Necrolis stated calmly and pointedly.

"You won't beat me!" Thana snarled, then once again leaping at Necrolis to attack.

Shaking his head, Necrolis continued to draw on the force, letting it rise within, roll through him. Even as Thana got within striking distance, her lightsaber poised to spear through his chest, Necrolis did not move. All at once he let the force go, a wave of it that slammed Thana back to where she had been moments before. She hit onto her back and was driven further back, sliding along the polished durasteel floor of the spaceport. Rolling over onto her stomach, Thana tried to get back to her feet and could only manage a crouch. Her eyes locked on her opponent, noting the reddish glow that had begun to swirl like mist about him. Necrolis did not relent, letting the waves of the force flow freely, sliding Thana back further even as he began a slow methodical pace of walking towards her.

"This can't be. You're nothing. Nothing!" Thana screamed, even as she felt herself forced backward despite her best efforts. No matter how she called the force to her as a shield, or how she tried to dig her feet in and push against the wave of energy, she continued to slide backwards.

"You can't beat me!"

"Petulent child." Necrolis hissed, letting the force flow harder against the woman until she was slid right back against the far wall. Continuing to slam the force wave into her, Necrolis drove her upright to be pinned in place. "Only now, at the end, do you even begin to understand."

"No! No, this can't happen!" Thana shook her head back and forth, rage turning to frustration, tears slipping from her eyes to run down her cheeks.

"You are nothing, and you die as nothing." Necrolis sneered, continuing his slow taunting advance on the helpless woman. "You are a waste of the title sith, a pretender. Worthless and pathetic."

"No..." Thana whimpered then glanced about as fear overwhelmed her. "Master! Master, help me!"

Necrolis laughed at the woman's words. How she ever thought her former Master would help her after all she had said and done was beyond him. All the sheer potential she had once had, wasted as it was, annoyed him further. She could have been such a force in the galaxy, had she only been able to learn and temper her anger. Moving in, Necrolis drew his lightsaber up, pointing it directly at the woman. As he reached her, the red blade slowly began to sink it into her chest. Each slow step carried the blade further into and through her pinned body, searing through her armor, flesh, and bone with ease.. Each time he took a step and the blade went deeper Thana screamed. Her screams of pain nurished and coaxed another step from Necrolis until finally the hilt of his saber met her chest armor, his face right before hers.

"You were never worthy of the sith, or your Master's time and efforts." Necrolis remarked hatefully, eyes meeting and holding Thana's as he spoke. "And now…. you die!"

Necrolis grasped the hilt in both hands and wrenched to the right, freeing the saber as it cut its way from both Thana Vesh's body and the wall. Spinning fully about, Necrolis swept the blade back about, the blow cutting cleanly through the woman's neck to send her head bouncing away across the floor. Letting go of the force, Necrolis let her lifeless corpse fall to the ground. The battle was over. Thana Vesh would trouble the Empire and the Sith no more.

Turning off his lightsaber and clipping it to his hip, Necrolis turned his attention back to Pierce. With the threat nullified, it was time to get to rescuing the man. Leaping back up to the platform, Necrolis moved over to where Thana Vesh had secured and hung the trooper like a piece of stored meat. Reaching a hand down, Necrolis nudged the man's head. Pierce grunted and shifted as much as he could, head lolling to one side before straightening as he began to come around.

"What... where the..." Pierce muttered, barely able to get the words to string together.

"Go slow." Necrolis advised. "You got taken out pretty hard, Pierce. It's a wonder the bitch even left you alive."

'Thana" Pierce growled the name even as he began to collect his thoughts and focus more.

"Do you remember what happened?" Necrolis asked as he studied how Thana had the man trapped in the metal.

"Bitch jumped me. I had finished the mission, called in, then everything just went black." Pierce said, his anger apparent with every word. "Never saw her coming."

"I would not doubt that." Necrolis said, despite the views he held of the woman. A force user if they wanted, could have masked themselves enough to sneak up on just about anyone. An Imperial trooper was nothing more than cannon fodder after all, in comparison. "Be still, I will have you free in a moment."

Necrolis reached out with the force once more. He kept Pierce secure and pinned in place, while at the same time the metal was moved and bent with a screeching that made Pierce grimace. Once he had enough clearance, Necrolis lifted the trooper up and back over the railing onto the platform. Pierce stared wide eyed as he was floated about as if he were nothing more than a feather. He had seen the sith, what they could do, but to have it used against him as it was made him uneasy. It just enforced how helpless he could be against a force user.

"You seem none the worse for wares." Necrolis commented, noting the trooper was able to stand under his own power.

"Just my pride, my lord." Pierce grunted and sighed, forcing away and feelings of inadequacy.

"A good soldier learns even from defeat." Necrolis remarked, then looked down towards where he had left Thana Vesh's body.

"Glad the bitch is dead." Pierce commented, following Necrolis' gaze.

"Couldn't have been all bad." Necrolis said, drawing a quick smirk and shake of the head from Pierce.

"Biggest mistake ever. Rather stick my dick in a rabid nexu from now on."

"Pierce, unlock the hanger doors." Necrolis stated, ignoring the trooper's comment for the time being though it did take effort not to smile, let alone laugh. "Let the civilians go, they serve no purpose for us."

"I'm on it." Pierce remarked, hurrying to do what the sith wanted of him.

"The sooner the better." Necrolis muttered, low and quiet and more to himself than for Pierce to hear. "I've had my fill of Taris."