Temple
Rumble
They
floated out of the Temple like ants. Jedi, in an assortment of robes and
lightsabers, ran out and soon the plaza was a mass of colourful blades and
different lifeforms. There was a large number of masked warriors in tan and
brown, a mask covering their features. They carried yellow lightsaber pikes
consisting of two short thick blades humming menacingly.
Wraith
held his ground. He flexed his fingers and bent to folds of space. His
lightsaber, still clipped to Kenobi’s belt, was sucked inside a small vortex
and materialized back in the hands of its owner. He twisted on the hilt,
separating it into twin lightsabers and ignited the red blades in challenge as
the small Jedi army approached. The crystals inside the hilts glowed with the
Force, reading Wraith’s intentions. The blades dulled despite not losing any of
their intensity. He wanted to defeat them but not kill them. It would look bad
if he were to mass murder the entire Jedi Temple. He needed the audience with
the Grandmaster if he were to follow the destiny shown to him by the Force.
The
first blade swooped down for his head. He sidestepped, deflecting with a parry
and smacked the Jedi at the back of the knee. The crimson blade was coated in
the Force, vastly diluting its cutting power. When the blade struck, it left
nothing permanent save a searing burn and paralysis in the limb. The Jedi cried
out, his knee dislocated. Wraith bent his body, ducking under a green
lightsaber and bludgeoned the new assailant on his head. He spun, lifting his
leg. A third Jedi caught the heel of Wraith’s foot in his jaw and slumped down.
A trio crashed down on him. Wraith managed to block their blades and struggled
in a brutal blade-lock. As he was driven down, Wraith noticed others ganging up
on him. With a burst of power, he threw the blade-lock and spun low. His blades
met their leg, sending them down. He threw one saber at a charging Jedi,
stopping him in his tracks, cut down another, retrieved his blade and smashed
both hilts against the first Jedi’s head. He Force pushed a group, sending them
sprawling into each other.
Slowly
the Temple Guard encircled him. The more Jedi Wraith fought, the tighter the
circle became until Wraith found himself surrounded by a dozen of masked Jedi
wielding double-bladed pikes. Uniformly they assumed a fighting stance, acting
as one. Wraith roamed in their minds but their will acted as one, providing one
solid mental barrier. Wraith knew that his lightsaber skills, albeit great,
could not match theirs – not when they acted as one effective machine.
Wraith
switched off his lightsabers and held his hands up in surrender. In a
heartbeat, he unleashed a Force wave, sending the Temple Guard reeling
backwards. The elite team of Jedi managed to absorb the damage from the blow
but it still sent them backwards. They were in the process of using the Force
to halt their direction and attack Wraith.
Above
one guard loomed a shadow and Wraith’s elbow crashed down on the masked head.
Appearing next to another, he slammed his fist against the guard’s skull and
teleported to hit a third in the chest. The exchange took a second; but in the
space of heartbeat Wraith had disabled three of the Temple Guard elite.
Teleporting once more, Wraith ignited his lightsabers and brought them both
down on a fourth guard.
A
small green figure crashed into the guard, throwing him from under Wraith’s
weapons. It ignited a small green blade, a shoto, and blocked the twin red
blades. Groaning under strain, it raised a small three fingered hand and Force
pushed. The blast threw Wraith away, sending the former Sith flying. Wraith
twisted and applied the Force to his body. He slowed down and doubled his
efforts. He launched himself back across the distance, rocketing towards the
green figure. The small figure raised both hands and yelled. Wraith slammed
against the Force barrier and was sent reeling. Coughing and clenching his
blades tightly, Wraith managed to get up to one knee.
“Enough!”
The phrase contained enough power to shudder Wraith. He felt the Force power
behind the word and, despite his defences, he found himself pausing. The little
green figure hefted a cane and hobbled over to him.
“Wanting
to see me, are you?” it asked. Wraith, from his crouched position stood at eye
level with this creature. He felt power emanating from it, like the soft waves
of a vast ocean.
“Grandmaster
of this Temple, I am.”
No comments:
Post a Comment