NationStates Jolt Archive

A secure facility sat under the Imperial Palace of Crimmond, meant to be a bomb shelter, a staging area for the Royal Gaurd and a training facility for not only the Marines, but the Khan and his apprentice.

Deep inside it, two were involved in a fierce battle...

Kortana parried, swiveled on one foot and struck down, her blade striking her opponent's blade. The training duel went on for some time, niether gaining an upperhand, despite Kortana being much smaller than her opponent, a Civil. As blades crashed against each other, her opponent pressed a switch on his blade. The whole blade glowed faintly as he weilded it and as its struck her's, it sliced clean through. He pressed the button again and it returned to normal.

Her jaw went slack as she stared at that. "What happened?"

"New weapon Delta had commisioned." The Civil answered, smirking. "You like?" He waited for her to nod. "Good. He has two waiting for you in your quarters."

-------

As she stepped into her quarters, she spotted the case on her bed. Not bothering to even check her messages, she went to the case and opened it. Inside the all metal container were two swords in their scabbards, with printed instructions and warnings, along with some strange power cells in a recharging pack that looked to fit on a belt. Both blades were about the same length, just over 28 inches, but one held a curve while the other was straight. Kortana smiled and replaced them, reading the paper with them, before starting a training routine with one.

Allmost an hour later, her door opened and Delta entered. "I see you are enjoying my gift. Good. The civil you faced today is the resident master of these weapons. He helped test them at all stages. You will train with him until you can beat him. And then... you get to go and face a challenge unlike any on this world."

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It took nearly five months for her to beat the Civil in training, energized blades sparking and chrashing as the fields clashed. His blade was knocked from his hands and in an instant, both of hers were at his throat. "You are ready, Kortana." He says, smiling. "You are better than any swordsman on this planet, save but possibly two... the Khan and Dreadfire. As the Khan is busy, I have leave to inform you of your new mission." He picked his own sword up as hers withdrew. "You are to join the Imperial Naval Vessel Fist of God and travel out of the solar system. To where.... that is something I do not know. Orders await you onboard."

It took only hours to get on board and underway. As she made her way to her private quarters, she noticed that one or two of the Civils in each of the four units on board had swords like hers. She recognized one from training and nodded as she went by. Another one she passed scowled at her. He carried electrical burns over his left arm and the left side of his face. Burns she had given him while honing her powers over the electrical side of nature. She raised a hand, palm towards him and he, most sanely, retreated from getting another set of burns.

As it was, the crew did not know their mission, but she had orders waiting and they did not, so she was not irritated that none had any ideas. She had no idea of what they might be, but as she read them she realised that she would have never fathomed the mission ahead of her.

Stepping onto the bridge, with her blades in a scabbards on her back, she approached the captain. "I have our destination. Do you know of a place called Jurai?"

The captain stared at her for a moment, shaking his head as the AI spoke up. "Jurai is not located in this galaxy and can only be reached by way of a rift in space and time. A wormhole, if you will."

"Correct. That's where I must be taken. Once I am there, you will return through the rift and resume normal duties." she turned and left the bridge without another word.

------

Emerging from the rift, the Dreadnought opened a rift of it's own, entering it's own FTL pocket, tearing another rift in space as it emerged, broadcasting only it's normal IFF codes. When it was hailed, it only responded that it was not hostile, was heading for the planet and would send down a shuttle to it's surface. The brief messages were a staple of the Crimmond Imperial Navy. Never say three words when two would do or one would do better. Kortana watched the planet come close and headed for the hanger, boarding a Scarab class shuttle. The ship got it's name from it's domed main body, the two domed engine pods mounted on the upped rear and the inesct like landing struts.

As it glided through the clouds, it seemed more like an insect, deftly manuvering in and around traffic through the skies. After getting clearence to land, it slid into a hanger and setteled to a stop, a door opening on the side... Kortana stepped out and hit the button to close the door behind her. Apparently she was the only one coming down. In space, she knew, the Dreadnought had allready broken orbit and was leaving the system, back towards the rift.

She allmost stalked across the hanger, towards the main doors, ignoring the technicians and the like that stared at her strange ship and strange attire and strange appearence. The two swords were worn across her back as well. She kept walking away from her ship and towards the exit, only stopping when she opened the door and was confronted by someone she instantly knew was not a technician.

Taylor Masaki, the Fire Master, was immediately confronted by a very gothic-looking young woman and immediately thought. 'Not my type.'

He decided to be polite anyway. "Hello there. I'm Taylor Masaki. What brings you here?"

Kortana closed her eyes for a second or so and then looks at him again. "Good. I don't have to work through politicians to get to you." She starts to walk down the large corridor. "I am here to hone my skills. My name is Kortana. I am High Inquisitor of Crimmond and apprentice to Khan Delta. I have defeated all the best swordsmen on Terra, save for two I am far outclassed by. So I have come here, to train with the Jedi. Whatever conflict you are involved in does not concern me. I shall not become involved unless I must."

She spoke with a detirmination that showed she was quite used to giving orders. Her aura, all he could sense about her, was charged with electricity and darkness. She had no Force potential, but drew her powers from the darkest forms of the Occult. For something so dark, she was suprisingly level headed, if a little stuck up.

"If this is not an acceptable arrangement, I shall seek out the Sith and train ith them. I don't care about your religous politics, so either are acceptable."

"I see. Come with me." Taylor walked into the Jedi Temple. Inside his head, he made his own assessments about the High Inquisitor. Powerful and dark. An interesting person to be sure.

He led her through the halls of the Temple, down to the chambers of the Headmaster of the Order, Armas Elendil. An Elf, Armas is the Diplomatic Member of the High Council and one of the Order's most powerful (though that is hotly debated) and oldest Jedi (no contest there).

"Master Elendil." Taylor bowed as he entered the room. "Someone is here to see about recieving training here. A High Inquisitor from Crimmond named Kortana."

"I see." The Master Jedi said. "You may go now, Taylor."

Taylor bowed again and left the room, leaving two very different people alone. "I sense power within you. What instruction have you recieved prior to coming here?"

Kortana looked over this elven Jedi. "I remember you... you protested Overlord Varchak and his purge of all non-humans in the Empire of Crimmond." She pauses for a moment. "A dark stain on a dark period of time in the Empire's legacy."

She removed both her blades and activated the left (http://usera.imagecave.com/Alpha-Zero/kortanasword1.jpg), than the right (http://usera.imagecave.com/Alpha-Zero/kortanasword.jpg). "I have advanced training in swordplay. From what I have heard, your techniques are similar to what the ancient Nipponese Samurai used." She raises the blades into a defensive stance, straight blade held out to block, curved for striking. "I am also skilled in multiple sword use." She deactivated the blades and the metal returned to normal, before she sheathed them on her back.

"My powers are instinctual. They are still being realized, but I have a natural affinity for controlling electricity." She smirks. "I was hoping to find the famed 'Lightning Master' here."

"Ah. I believe he's around here somewhere. He comes and goes as he pleases." Elendil answered.

A sudden flaring of energies occured down the hall, then the distant fwoom of a firey explosion sounded.

"I believe he's approaching." Elendil smiled slyly. It appears these sounds occur often.

The door suddenly opened to reveal a youthful looking Jedi wearing casual clothing and sporting a long braid. He also appears to be charred. He coughed up soot once, put out the candle-fire on the end of his braid, then cleared his throat. "Is it just me, or is Taylor getting better at his fire skills?"

Master Elendil ignored the question for the moment. "Kortana, meet Master Daniel Masaki. Daniel, meet Kortana, High Inquisitor of Crimmond."

"Yo." He answered. Crimmond...Crimmond...sounds vaguely familiar...

Kortana nodded, silent for a moment, eyes closing. She opened them and smiled in a way that wasn't all that pleasant. "I suppose first impressions should be put aside for the moment?" she asked, somewhat jokingly.

Her face grew serious after a moment. "I have come to train with what many consider the best swordsman in the universe. And to hone my instintual powers..." She made a fist and watched static energy arc around it.

"Best swordsman in the universe? I don't know about that." I chuckled modestly. "I'm just good. There's others who are better than me."

I noticed she too has the ability to control electricity. Contrary to popular belief, lightning is hard to control because it always takes the path of least resistance. To get it where you want it to go requires some oomph behind the power. Usually it's telekinesis, though I know some can ionize the air around the opponent, then strike.

Kortana didn't know which way her powers worked. They simply did and that was enough for her. She let her had drop back down and looked between the two men. "I never said I thought that." she says, smirking a bit.

She takes a breath. "My blades are made specificly with your lightsabers in mind. While we could not replicate the technology of the one working model we have, we were able to develop something to match it in a duel."

"Cool. Hey, I think I should see what you know already." I suggested. "Why don't you come with me to the training areas?"

She nods and follows him, speaking on the way. "I have had a short time to familarize myself with the basic Jedi ways. You are pacifistic, but are among the best one on one warriors ever seen. The Sith are much less dynamic. They are filled with hate and show no mercy." She pauses and looks at him. "What gives you this duality to be a pacifist and yet be a fierce warrior?"

"Good question." I commented as we passed some kids rushing by. After sending a mental shout to slow down, I continued. "The Force, as you probably know, is what gives us our powers. It is our choice what we do with that power. We Jedi choose to uphold the ideals of the just, defending the innocents from the forces of evil. The Sith on the other hand, choose to use it for their own gains. You can see where idealogues and swords can and will cross. Pacificism, while an honest ideal, isn't something that works well in the reality we face."

We neared holograms of some famous Jedi of the past. "In defending the weak, in engaging the dark side, many champions of the Force have risen...Ulic Qel Droma, Revan, Lord Hoth, Master Yoda, Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, Master Luke Skywalker...and many, many more."

I hope I'm not boring her... I thought inwardly.

"These 'champions' are yours. What of the Sith's champions?" She asks, looking at the holos, before walking on. She looks at him. "How are they viewed? With pity?" She asked, pointedly.

After a second, he should realise Kortana was probably aware of the answers to her own questions. She was testing him. To what end only she knew, however. He could not probe her mind that deep without her knowing and reacting, most likely with something other than words.

"Yes. And more than that, with sadness." I sighed. The memories... "Some see them as merely an enemy to be eradicated. Some swear vengeance for lives lost. But few remember that the Sith were once Jedi as well. Few see them more than cackling menaces that eat babies for breakfast." There, I chuckled bitterly. "They were people once, twisted by promises of power. In that, we pity them."

Kortana stops suddenly and looks at him. "How can you pity the ones that walk the Dark Path? They knew what would happen to them. It has happened for hundreds of milenia." She eyes him a bit. "You are not what I was expecting. Somehow I thought you more than a blind devotee, who can't manage to respect the Darkness."

She herself was very dark, but not like a Sith. They were darkened by the Force from the outside. She was darkened from the inside and, if he cared to press his luck and scan the surface of her mind, he'd find the imprint of something far more powerful than she on it. Something she feared.

"The Darkness is powerful, make no mistake. It takes a strong will to resist the siren call to unleash terrible destruction upon your foes." I replied. Then we entered an empty training room. "Ah, here we are!"

Kortana stepped into the room and seemed... disappointed in his answers. But she pushed that aside. His blindness about the Dark was not her concern. She looked around the training area and hmmed. "We should begin as soon as possible. I have no definate time I have to return to Terra, but it would not do to miss anything of great importance."

"Very well. Let us begin." I ignited my green lightsaber.

Kortana backed up and drew both her blades, activating them and causing them to glow with a faint blue sheen. "Powers or not?" She asks, starting to circle him. "Though you Jedi allways use your powers..."

"Yeah, true enough." I nodded. "But they always end up crossing blades."

I lunged forward, testing her reaction first of all.

Kortana blocks the thrust, sparks flying from her blades, as the energy field intesified in the spot the saber touched. her other hand comes up and an amazingly bright flash of light goes off in front of Daniel's eyes, before she twists away and strikes from the side opposite his saber hand.

Kortana blocks the thrust, sparks flying from her blades, as the energy field intesified in the spot the saber touched. her other hand comes up and an amazingly bright flash of light goes off in front of Daniel's eyes, before she twists away and strikes from the side opposite his saber hand.
"Ahh!" I flinched, temporarily blinded and reverted to Force sight to 'see' the oncoming blow. I blocked it away, then summoned a series of blows and strikes upon Kortana.

Kortana continued to strike and evade, not letting up on him, forcing him on the defensive as much as she could. While her questions had been a test of the mind, a battle was a test of the soul.

Striking in strange ways, she trys to keep him off balance. She uses her blades to clamp onto his saber's beam, before kicking at his torso. Falling awaay from his counter attack, she switched her blades off. The metal left ripples of heat in it's wake, soon cooling. "You fight well." She says, not having worked up a sweat at all, impossibly.

"So do you." I blinked several times. Sight was returning, but I still see spots. I rubbed my chest. My my, she kicks hard.

[I forgot about this thread, somehow]

Kortana sheathed her blades and blew him a kiss, stepping back. "You are holding back though. I am looking for a person that will not hold back and will strike with every ability they have. Even if it means injury. Just short of death blows shall suffice."

"Really?" I asked, with a smirk. "I won't be liable for any damages incurred then. Don't say I didn't warn you."

With that, I summoned a powerful bolt of lightning from my fingertips, arcing straight towards the High Inquisitor.

Kortana didn't move an inch, didn't even try and duck. She took the bolt directly in the chest. Well, not exactly. Most of it deflected around her body and the rest... she dealt with the pain by merely pushing it to the back of her mind.

She closed her eyes and a disk of electricity appeared around her and rotatoed rapidly, ball lightning forming on it's off-axis spin and flining off three and four at a time at Daniel, as the second group hit, she lept, swords out and activated, striking down at him hard.

OOC: Ooh, looks like a good read. :)

Kortana didn't move an inch, didn't even try and duck. She took the bolt directly in the chest. Well, not exactly. Most of it deflected around her body and the rest... she dealt with the pain by merely pushing it to the back of her mind.

She closed her eyes and a disk of electricity appeared around her and rotatoed rapidly, ball lightning forming on it's off-axis spin and flining off three and four at a time at Daniel, as the second group hit, she lept, swords out and activated, striking down at him hard.
My lightsaber sprang to life once more and I batted the balls away from my body, then as she lept, I summoned my own electroball to smack her silly and then moved to strike while she's down.

Kortana's mind had just enough time to tell her this was going to hurt, before the ball hit her and threw her back several yards. One of her blades dug into the floor, bent and shattered, sending fragments of hot metal everywhere.

Even before he could get to her to strike, she dropped her remaining sword and reached up to her right eye, pulling a shard free from it. Kortana muttered several words in a gutteral language and then took up her blade again, presuming, like most Jedi, he would have not struck her in such a state. "Luck. Just luck." She muttered and raised the blade up in a defensive stance.

Kortana's mind had just enough time to tell her this was going to hurt, before the ball hit her and threw her back several yards. One of her blades dug into the floor, bent and shattered, sending fragments of hot metal everywhere.

Even before he could get to her to strike, she dropped her remaining sword and reached up to her right eye, pulling a shard free from it. Kortana muttered several words in a gutteral language and then took up her blade again, presuming, like most Jedi, he would have not struck her in such a state. "Luck. Just luck." She muttered and raised the blade up in a defensive stance.
Barely twitching to put up a shield to block incoming metal shards, I continued advancing on Kortana, summoning a swift and furious offensive upon her. In other words, I'm going all the way.