[Quest] Like No One Ever Was

[The Chorus]

Ridley led Darth Vindictus to New Abraxas, a small encampment nestled in the ruins of a previous society. Even this level of civilisation seemed unlikely on this plant-choked planet, but the Sith Lord surmised that their defensive contingencies must have been effective. It hid in the shadows of crumbled structures wreathed in vines and moss. Even this settlement could not keep out the coercive influences of the planet entirely.

They had spoken at length during their journey. Vindictus removed the mystery of the Force, explaining its near-unlimited power ready for the taking, but only for those sensitive to its currents. Ridley inquired if this was a learned skill, but the Sith Lord informed him, truthfully, that it was somehow a staple of that being, an intrinsic ability one was born with. He seemed irritated by that, likely craving the power for himself. Darth Vindictus couldn’t blame him. After all, what was the Force for, but to lift the truly exceptional above the entirely forgettable?

The sentient dragon explained the rules of the Crossroads, and what planets it possessed. From his descriptions, the worlds varied significantly. Darth Vindictus assumed that a cluster of planets bound together by an invisible barrier would result in less diversity, not more. He listened with rapture, though his mask hid his facial expression, absorbing the knowledge like a sponge. The potential for a new Sith empire, under his leadership, grew with every word Ridley uttered.

Two guardsmen stood vigilant at the entrance to New Abraxas. They tensed as the two outsiders approached, readying their rifles.

Darth Vindictus allowed his new ally to speak for them. “Allow us through. We seek shelter from this world’s hostile lifeforms.”

The guards looked at each other. “That thing can talk?” one said.

Ridley narrowed his yellow eyes, his tail thrashing about.

Darth Vindictus laughed, drawing the attention away from the dragon. “You people live on this world, filled to the brim with exotic and undocumented beasts, and yet you find my companion Ridley here a surprise? Is everyone at New Abraxas as empty minded as you?”

A mixture of guarded shame and frustration crossed the guards’ faces. The Sith Lord fought the urge to unsheathe his lightsaber and run them through. Killing these weak minded fools would not leave them in good stead with the settlement, nor to help accomplish his goals, though.

“Are you hunters?” a guard asked.

“Look at us,” Darth Vindictus said. “A giant dragon and a cloaked man in a mask. What else would we be doing here?”

Ridley mentioned their cover story during their trek to New Abraxas. Only those with a thirst for hunting the wild beasts of Kraw ended up here, unless they chose to research the flora and fauna. Neither of them looked like scientists, so they adopted the hunter guise to gain entry.

Besides, it was partially true anyway – Ridley’s first task for Darth Vindictus was to help him locate a rare, powerful creature that was said to live on Kraw.

Without another word, the guards straightened up and allowed them passage into the settlement. Ridley bared his teeth in a wicked smile as he entered. Darth Vindictus grinned beneath his mask at the guard’s uneasy reactions.

“It is loathsome, but working within this settlement’s rules will benefit you,” Ridley said as they strode through the camp, the dragon’s sleek and curved form attracting stares. “These backwater poachers will have information that will aid in your search. It will give you time to recover from your crash, as well.”

Darth Vindictus nodded. The Sith didn’t object to operating in the shadows, pulling strings of the unsuspecting. Whatever furthered their goals was on the table. If acting like a hunter of exotic beasts worked better for his ambitions than slaying or bending the camp into servitude, then so be it.

“You know this place better than I,” Darth Vindictus said. “Where do we begin?”

 

[Ridley]

Ridley was briefly happy when he finally reached the settlement of Abraxas with Vindictus. While this knowledge of the Force was illuminating, another way for him to guard against certain enemies, Vindictus was the type to preach of his religiously based powers. It was not a philosophy Ridley was against, but already he could feel the arrogance of the creature.

Likely, Ridley was certain, Vindictus saw himself as even above him, or at least with the capacity to, just for having control of this energy field.

He did not yet understand that the force wasn’t power. Nor was magic, Resolve, weapons, or even tooth and claw.

Power was power. And Ridley would be ready to remind him of that if he forgot his place.

For now, though, there were things that spoke out to Ridley. Vindictus was a competent leader and speaker, confident in his skills and with a multitude of them. He was no fool, and clearly measured his odds.

Their relationship was nothing but a selfish lust for power combined with convenience, which meant it would likely last - so long as Ridley and Vindictus both fulfilled their ends of the bargain.


After their meeting with the first hunters, Ridley kept moving. It helped that Olivia was directing him from the air, pulling up very public plans and knowledge of how the hunter’s camp worked, how to apply, details Ridley had not had the chance to read personally amidst training his new set of pirate warriors - such as the rabble could be.

Ridley used that information to stride with swagger, walking through new Abraxas like he owned the place, as he guided Vindictus with an effortless stride.

Vindictus strode beside him, quiet, for now. As the two walked, Ridley leaving large footprints where he walked, they finally made it to the hunter’s Lodge.

Only for Ridley to have a half-dozen guns waved in his face.

The Dragon’s lips curled as the men came closer.

“If you dare.” Lord Ridley grimaced, looking the rest of the men in the eye. Most of them were well-seasoned, unlikely to baulk at the average animal and unafraid of what was simply big game. Ridley’s gaze itself was a much more dangerous rarity, and several men stepped back as he fixed them all with unrelenting, hateful focus.

“Back off the celebrity, guys. He’s probably here to get a picture and leave.” One man called out, stepping out from an elaborate lodge as he put an oversized cigar in his mouth. “Or does the big DA boy think he can treat this like the game-show. Huh, Ridley?”

Ridley’s response was a low growl as he leaned forward, showing his full height as he loomed over the man. Wearing a sleeveless set of steel armor, the man’s curly hair was complimented with a half-grown mustache and a bit of chin fuzz that could have constituted a beard.

“DA?” Vindictus muttered, but not low enough for the merc to miss it, as he turned, ignoring Ridley as he loomed over him.

“Boy, this guy is Green. Isn’t he? Doesn’t know about Dante’s abyss. Yeah, it’s a competition where the worst of the worst - and some heroes who don’t know what they’re doing - enter to try and show how tough they are. And this boy joined and got himself unmade!”

Ridley’s teeth shone in the light, as the merc continued, catching on the light fading through the treelines.

“I mean, yeah, I saw you eat some guys, lead an army, killed a bunch’a schmucks, whatever. But I also recall you gettin’ captured by King fuck-up Roy mustang, and the cowboy-clown.” The Merc replied, throwing his cigar directly for Ridley’s face.

“And I saw ya friggin’ explode. How intimidating.”

Ridley’s tail flicked out like a bullet, catching the cigarette and leaving it cut in two before it reached him.

“Move, worm.” The dragon growled, stepping forward. To his credit, the merc didn’t move, and instead pulled out his own piece - a large, blocky weapon that emitted a blue glow as it hummed.

“Personal Ion Cannon. This thing fires a blast that tears through steel like it’s paper… keep disrespecting me and we’ll see how well it does against some half-grown Malzeno with an attitude problem.”

Ridley’s smile would grow, as he lowered his head. “I’m here for a hunter’s license. I don’t have patience for your bravado. Say something of value… or take your shot. It will be your last.” Ridley hissed, stepping forward, only to feel something wash past him.

“This is ridiculous. If you have a bone to pick with us, why not do it more… constructively?” Vindictus’s words came from behind ridley, even as the merc’s gun jumped out of his hand… to smack him firmly in the nose. The Space Dragon could appreciate the pettiness.

“Name your challenge, and we’ll prove ourselves worthy…. Whoever you are?”

“Name’s Clint. Clint Westood.” The hunter grumbled, face turning a few shades of red at this newest embarassment. “Alright, spooky boy, you want a challenge? Fine. Ever heard of the Araneus spiders?”

“I haven’t. Inform me.” Vindictus replied.

“Course you haven’t, newbie. Well, They’re a very dangerous group of spiders. Able to spit plasma, create energy webs, the whole she-bang. Apparently they’re the result of crossbreeding some energy spiders from Inverxe with some of the local fauna. Anyways, their eggs are fantastically valuable. Able to go for a cool thousand credits a piece on the market. Not like people wanna breed these things, mind ya, but the eggs can be used to make some wicked painkillers, so medical facilities and… private buyers looking for entertainment, tend to want ‘em.”

“Get to your point.” VIndictus growled.

“My point is the goal.” Clint replied, waving him off. “You get your team together, I get mine. There’s a nest a few kilometers up we’ve got on GPS. We’ll hand ya a copy. You know how to use a GPS, right?” the merc taunted. “Whoever can make it to the nest, bypass or deal with the spiders, and returns the eggs wins. And if you get back I promise I will personally welcome you to the ranks of Kraw’s hunters. Simple enough?”

Ridley glared directly at him as he lowered himself to a distance where he coated the merc with his warm breath.

“Deal.” Ridley uttered with a sadistic grin.

1,057/2,500 words for Ridley

 

[The Chorus]

Once prepared, Darth Vindictus and Ridley set off for their target. The Sith Lord held a palm sized device in his hand, its screen displaying an interactive map of the location of the spider nest. Ridley plodded in front, using his massive girth to crush and tear away the vegetation that grew thickly all around them. They both kept their senses honed in case an opportunistic predator decided they were an easy meal.

They spoke little during their trek, so Darth Vindictus took the time to consider Ridley. The sentient dragon displayed a cunning malice when he spoke to the mercenary. The duo knew this wasn’t just a competition for bragging rights – those eggs held value to the right buyer and the mercenary knew it. He likely believed he and his team could outgun or outsmart them, using them as two fresh newbies who wouldn’t stand a chance against a biologically altered arachnid nest. Ridley hadn’t said as much, but somehow Darth Vindictus knew the dragon had seen through the gossamer-thin ruse as well.

On the other hand, Ridley’s disdain for the weak and arrogant seemed to blind him on occasion. His barbed retorts to the mercenary displayed his unwillingness to tolerate fools, laced with threats and calm impatience. Whether Ridley did this intentionally or not, Darth Vindictus saw a different opportunity in the same situation, twisting these meagre beings into something of use. Was it a conscious decision, choosing to project strength and power at the cost of lost chances? If he used a lighter touch, identifying the weaknesses of his prey and exploiting them rather than bulldozing over them, he might benefit more often.

Although... was that what Ridley was doing right now with Darth Vindictus?

Even in an alien galaxy, sentience often boiled down to the same schemes, the same desires.

“We are approaching the nest,” Darth Vindictus said, after a few hours of tense travel.

Ridley lowered his massive frame closer to the ground and sniffed. “They’re close. Move quietly or we will lose the element of surprise.”

The Sith Lord glanced at the GPS device one last time and switched it off, lest a ping or beep alert the arachnids to their location. He bent at the knees, following the flattened vegetation that Ridley left as he crawled. The dragon sniffed at the air, redirecting their path when necessary. The plant life thinned out as they continued, allowing Darth Vindictus to spot a cave in the distance. Ridley scuttled over to a cluster of rocks large enough to shield his body from sight and motioned for his ‘underling’ to move to him.

Broken threads of spider web clung to the frame of the cave entrance, tall and yawning. Though he possessed no enhanced hearing, Darth Vindictus heard the scratching of rough legs against rock echoing within. Splatters of dark red colouring stained the dirt around the cave mouth. There was no movement nearby the cave, but judging from the sounds, the spiders dwelled within the darkness. If so, they remained undetected.

“I see nor hear any signs of the hunters,” Darth Vindictus said quietly. “Do you sense the imbeciles?”

Ridley turned his long neck, swinging his pointed snout, and flared his nostrils. “They are not close. I would recognise the stench of them anywhere.”

Darth Vindictus quested out with his Force sense, but again the tangle of life signs on the planet drew no conclusions. Had the mercenaries fallen to some tragic fate on their journey here? Did they watch them remotely, waiting for a chance to capitalise on their hard work? Or did they remain at New Abraxas, having sent Ridley and Darth Vindictus on a fatal task?

Sensing the eggs within the cave would prove troublesome. Darth Vindictus doubted Ridley’s ability to sniff out the difference between them and the spiders themselves. And now that the lush camouflage of the jungle petered out, inching closer to the cave and beyond with stealth was out of the question. If the Sith Lord hadn’t received such a battering from the crash, maybe he could coat himself in the light-bending properties of the Force and sneak in, invisible. That was not a viable option, unfortunately.

“Fighting the spiders on their terms would be impractical,” Darth Vindictus whispered, peering around the rock pile. Still no visible signs of anything. “We should draw them out into this little clearing, where we have space to move. If we need more, we can both cleave more of the vegetation away.”

Ridley grinned wickedly. The Sith Lord was growing accustomed to that expression, and knew the suggestion succeeding it would not be to his taste. “We will need bait.” His unsettling predatory gaze fell upon Darth Vindictus.

The Sith Lord balled a fist. Anger boiled within him at being treated like a common lackey, and his corruption to the dark side of the Force urged him to lash out at the condescending dragon. However, as his master had taught him, he controlled the Force, not the other way around. He drew the negative feelings within him, ready to draw upon them in the upcoming battle, and centred his thoughts around his objectives.

Ridley has information and resources ripe for the exploitation, Darth Vindictus told himself. I am not a match for him in combat right now. I will do what I must to bring glory to myself and the dark side.

Darth Vindictus’ mask protected any untoward facial expression from betraying his annoyance. He kept his voice cool and level, choosing his words with care. “Indeed. I shall gain their attention. When they leave the cave, you will have a prime opportunity to ambush them.”

Ridley stared at him with an unsettling gaze. What sort of thoughts whizzed around in the primal creature’s mind? How the Sith Lord wished he could read his thoughts.

Taking one last inspection of the area outside the cave, Darth Vindictus crouched low and shuffled to the edge of the entrance. He peered within, brushing the silken spider thread from his mask. The darkness claimed everything with the enormous rock tunnel, except the irregular scratching on rock.

The Sith Lord rounded the lip of the entrance and stepped slowly, quietly, hugging the wall. Soon he plunged into blackness as the scratching grew louder and closer. Discarded, degrading web stuck to his shoulder and back as he slid against the wall, prompting him to push off it and run his gauntleted hand over it instead.

A moment passed before he realised the constant clacking ceased. He stopped, listening intently for any sound. An uneasy shuffling met his ears, though muffled and slow. Darth Vindictus tensed. Even without the Force, he could tell he wasn’t alone any longer.

The lightsaber hilt on his belt jumped into his hand and the red blade ignited. The light spilled over and around him, illuminating the eight black orbs of a twenty-foot spider staring him in the face. The beast lifted its hooked mandibles and shrieked, lashing out with a barbed leg. Darth Vindictus threw his hand out, firing a concussive blast of Force energy. The monstrous spider flipped over and landed on its back, its hairy legs writhing.

Behind it, a legion of gigantic arachnids formed, their myriad legs clacking on rock as they advanced on him.

Clawing his fingers, the Sith Lord levitated the flipped spider and launched it into the front wave of its ilk. He turned and sprinted for the exit before he saw the extent of his handiwork, and as he hoped, the cacophony of spider leg pitter patter chased him all the way.

Sunlight blinded him momentarily as he breached the mouth of the cave. He spun to face the approaching arachnids, unsure of Ridley’s location.

“The nest has been thoroughly baited,” Darth Vindictus muttered as the spiders poured out of the cave.

1959

 

[Ridley]

Vindictus’s Flight had brought with it a host of spiders, crawling, fawning, moving past the rocks with wild abandon. The scents and sounds of what had to have been hundreds assaulted Ridley’s senses, as he focused. Vindictus passed him in a flash, as the smells shifted.

A minority of the scent remained in the cave, likely the eggs, but the fresher smells - the moving ones - were gone from the cave while only the stagnance of the infants and, likely, the occasional corpses of dead spiders remained.

He waited until the Dark lord of the sith had made it to the denser area of the treeline, and was forced to stop and make his stand rather than navigate further, as Ridley predicted.

Twin slitted eyes opened, the burning glow standing out like a pair of torches in the midst of the clearing, before Ridley’s scales turned, the camoflage fading as the dragon’s natural purple re-asserted itself just as the first of the spiders reached him.

A screech high enough to echo across the jungle flew from Ridley’s tooth-filled maw as he opened his jaws to unleash an inferno, catching the arachnids in a surprise inferno. Ridley’s talons dug into the ground as he leaned forward like a beast, tail swinging to decapitate a smaller spider that had gotten too close before he grabbed a larger one’s head in his grasp and squeezed, failing to crush it beneath his considerable strength, but gaining enough of a primal advantage to beat it’s head against the ground until it’s eyes popped and it’s expiry date was reached.

Ridley’s grin grew chilling, tail lashing side to side as more spiders crawled towards him. The foolish little Arachnids had fallen for the trap, but they had a goal to protect their young, and their instincts overrode their fear… which was good, in Ridley’s estimation. He hadn’t had proper exercise in a long while, and the squealing of the Araneus beneath his jaws brought a sadistic pleasure he had not indulged in for some time.

More came, however, and their bite was not inconsiderable, as the creatures lashed out at Ridley, firing webbing in an attempt to bind him - along with blasts of plasma.

“Grahhh!” The Dragon spat, as a barrage of the substance covered him. His resistant skin still burned at the touch of the plasma, and as the Energy webbing crept across him, he could feel the draining touch of the substance. So this was how they hunted…
Ridley breathed in, ready to crush the mounting numbers under another blast of plasma breath, but it was unnecessary, as a wave of force crashed around ridley, passing him by, but leaving the rest of the beasts knocked asunder by an invisible force. The Sith lord.

“Vindictus.” Ridley snapped, Turning his head to the side to view the Force user with one baleful eye.

“You looked overwhelmed. Or are those injuries for show?” Vindictus replied evenly, striding forward. His lightsaber, quick as a flash, cut a pair of legs from one of thge spiders that had managed to pass Ridley, before a gauntleted hand came up to pick up the juvenile - a merely horse-sized individual - and crushed it in the grip of an invisible hand.

“Injuries?” Ridley asked with a condescending tone, the thought beneath his notice. “Their corpses will replace my Cells. Unimportant.” The dragon replied, before unleashing another stream of plasma, the blast destroying half a dozen of the brilliant beasts.

And leaving the same one that had spearheaded the charge staring Ridley in the face, the massive bug having a challenging look in it’s ebony eyes. No soul, but spark. In a different mood, Ridley would have tried to capture the beast for use, but as now it was time to crush it under heel.

“Into the cave, Vindictus.” Ridley snapped.

“-But the beasts-”

“Are my concern. And my distraction. The smell of fuel assaults my nose. Understood?” Ridley snapped, hoping Vindictus would get the hint.

It didn’t take longer than a second for Vindictus to see the link. This brawl with the spiders had been exactly what their competitors were waiting for, with the spiders distracted so well by dumb muscle that the spider eggs became an easily stolen treasure.

Ridley just gave a glare, one Vindictus understood.

“Slaughter them.” Ridley ordered, and the Sith appeared to need no prompting to move in, though he did offer a question.

“Will you overcome them?”

Ridley’s response was a snarl, as he unfurled his wings.

Ridley had overcome Beast, hunter, soldiers, generals, spaceships, governments, and the stars themselves.

What pitiful faith Mammals held in comparison.

Vindictus faded from his vision and his mind as the patriarch charged Ridley. The beast was nearly his size and had rage pushing it’s strength as the beast slammed into his stomach, pushing the Tyrant off his feet as it Spat plasma directly into his chest cavity.

“Kuhh…” Ridley spat, as the plasma burned, fire spewing from his insides as the Acid burned through his skin and spat his own internal lava across the spider’s stomach. The creature screeched in pain, but did not stop, wrapping it’s legs around Ridley as it tried to Secure Ridley’s head in it’s jaws.

The titan was not to be beaten by some limp arachnid, though, and with a primal growl, he grasped both of the beast’s mandibles with his front talons. The beast screeched, spitting plasma across Ridley’s hands, but the burning pain was not enough to discourage the beast, and as Ridley’s every muscle shuddered, he pulled with every bit of his considerable might.

The mandibles came free with a shower of pale blood and gore, as the beast rolled to the ground, writhing in pain.

With a scream of Triumph, Ridley flapped his wings and sent himself skyward, landing on the beast’s exposed abdomen with a furious thump, and holding the Araneus Patriarch Below his clawed toes. With a flourish, the tyrant king stabbed his tail through the beast’s head, and pulled the blade through to the midsection, leaving the upper half of the spider split in two pieces.

With a grimace, having proved his point, the dragon flung himself into the sky, flames dribbling from his maw as he took the position of aerial superiority and rained hot death on the beasts below. With the loss of their leader, the beasts seemed to understand some level of self-preservation, or at least the understanding that their plasma was woefully ineffective against something that could so easily take wing, and began to scatter, running into the jungle. These beasts created value, and might be useful to Ridley himself in the future, so he let a few of them run purposefully… but most were subjected to a flaming carpet of plasma that drenched them in death, cooking inside their own carapace. It was the price paid by any who defied him, knowing or not.

The flames were quick to catch, leaving the beasts screaming. A few would likely return to the caves, but too few to truly bother Vindictus or the mercs…

but the smell of fuel is too simple to follow to its source. The beast thought smugly, as he took wing. He would find their little ship before its getaway driver had any smart ideas about quitting while he was ahead. Ridley had already decided their fate was sealed the moment he had been challenged so publicly, and he would make sure each and every one of them suffered before they died. This was the price paid for defying the god of Death.


In the midst of the flames, he was quick to spot it out - the faded green and brown paint was well camoflaged, and Ridley had to grudgingly admit he would not have found it relying on his eyesight alone - even the fuel wouldn’t have been enough of a give-away.
Ridley thanked his true benefactor, the pilot currently enjoying an obnoxiously smelly cig outside of the cockpit, by swooping in at high speeds and grabbing him up in a single, well-muscled arm. The mammal began screaming as Ridley accelerated, flying high into the air.

He had not forgotten his lesson from Dr. Olivia Octavia, after all. Most Mammals had never been given the opportunity to truly fly in their life, so as he accelerated upwards five hundred feet, he could hear the scream of gratitude for Ridley’s beneficial gift.

Whatever thanks he may have been given, Ridley could not hear, sadly. A casual throw to the side left the pilot spinning out of control in the wind, and it stole any voice the pilot may have had as he plummeted to his doom, falling through the jungle canopy and impaling himself on a tree branch.

By then, the space pirate had already turned to land at the camoflaged Flattery C-19, the craft now entirely unoccupied. The Behemoth’s landing Sent a tremor through the earth as he made landfall next to the craft, and the action sent a question through the Reptile’s brain…

Would Westood’s group know the reason behind the tremor? Would they divine that this last vibration was the echo of their doom approaching? Or had Vindictus already taken care of them?

The humbling of his lessers was a favorite game of Ridley’s, and he eagerly awaited to find out the answer.

Word count for this post: 1562
total word count: 2,619/2,500

 

[The Chorus]

Blackness swallowed Darth Vindictus as he strode into the cave, shoulders back. Perhaps he was finally recovering from his crash, or the thrill of battle reawakened his passion, but the Force felt closer to him than it had since arriving on Kraw. He needed no sight, nor the crutch of the wall, to navigate the lightless cavern of the gigantic spiders. The Force channelled through him, around him, moving like river currents. It was like the crash blinded him, and now his eyes healed and the world, the true world, became clear and real once more.

A few of the juvenile spiders scuttled past him as he entered, ignoring him for the devastating melee outside. Ridley’s horrific roar echoed faintly against the curved cave walls. Regardless of the Sith Lord’s current weakened state, that dragon would be a challenge even if he was at full strength. He had to ensure he continued striving for power, gathering it like a voracious beast, lest Ridley or another like him managed to dominate him in the future.

Sounds of rustling reached Darth Vindictus’ ears. He slowed his movement, quietening each footstep in the crunchy dirt and gravel, as he drew closer to his quarry.

The Force unveiled the scene before him. Two men worked swiftly at the terminal of the cave tunnel while another supervised them, arms crossed over his chest. A box shaped lantern with a glowing filament within lit up the area. Three duffel bags stuffed full of torso-sized eggs bulged with their contents. The men leaned over into a webbed mesh binding the spider eggs in place, slashing at it with serrated daggers, and tearing their prizes free. The nest still held a half dozen or so eggs as the men squeezed the last few into the almost overflowing bags.

Darth Vindictus reached the end of the tunnel and stepped into the cave chamber. The ceiling reached twenty metres into the air and another fifteen across. None of the oversized arachnids remained within – Ridley’s diversion had succeeded. Of course, that’s what these opportunistic fools were counting on.

“Hurry up,” Clint Westood whispered. “Fuck knows how long that dragon will keep the spiders busy.”

Focusing on the currents of the Force, the Sith Lord sensed two assault rifles laying in the dirt. Another weapon clung to Westood’s back. Easy prey.

The Sith Lord’s will drove the Force around the assault rifles. Although unnecessary, he clenched a fist, and the weapons crumpled into metal balls, cracking and splintering. All three men spun, momentarily confused by the worthless remnants of their guns. Darth Vindictus grinned as he repeated the technique, his heart racing as the lantern shattered, drowning the cave in shadow.

“W-what’s going on?” one of the mercenaries said, looking vainly around in the dark.

Excitement peaked within the Sith Lord as his telekinesis stole that mercenary from the ground. He hurled him towards the ceiling, savouring his terrified scream. The sound cut off as he slammed into the stone roof. Darth Vindictus released his hold and the unconscious mercenary fell unceremoniously to the ground with a heavy, meaty thud.

“Oh no, oh shit!” the other mercenary shouted. “The spiders are here!”

“Calm down, you simpleton,” Westood said, arming himself with the weapon on his back. “Get the fucking eggs and let’s go. At least now it’s a fifty-fifty cut.”

Darth Vindictus grabbed his lightsaber hilt and threw it forward, catching it on the winds of the Force and spinning it. As it approached the nameless mercenary, he activated both blades. The Sith Lord revelled in the split second expression of fear on his face as the crimson light washed over the mercenary and almost laughed as the spinning plasma cleaved through his neck. He deactivated the blades and drew the hilt back to himself before the body hit the floor, returning the cave to darkness.

Westood stepped forward, charging his personal ion cannon. A blue light bathed him as he lifted the barrel of the weapon, ready to fire. “No fucking spiders can do that! Come out, whoever you are!”

It dawned on Darth Vindictus that Clint hadn’t seen him use any of his abilities. The Force telekinesis, the lightsaber, all of it was a mystery to the arrogant mercenary.

The lightsaber ignited, pulsing with sinister red light. Westood immediately levelled the ion cannon at the Sith Lord, and recognition registered on his face.

“You?” Clint said.

Darth Vindictus remained silent, striding forward. The dead comrades, the darkness, his quiet... he knew the psychological torment Clint must have been feeling. To his credit, his aim remained steady, his countenance determined.

The two faced off, the blackness broken by a glowing red blade and a shimmering blue barrel.

“Enough tricks,” Clint said, and pulled the trigger.

The Sith Lord raised two fingers of his free hand and flicked them around. The Force coiled about Westood’s ankle and spun him. Losing composure, Clint fell backwards as the ion cannon discharged, firing a bluish-white bolt of energy into the ceiling. A thunderous explosion boomed through the cave, dislodging an avalanche of broken rock. Westood raised his hands vainly as the cave ceiling cascaded towards him... and then stopped.

Darth Vindictus held out a hand. The bone crushing boulders hovered above the fallen mercenary. With a flick of his wrist, the rocks hurtled across the cave and crashed to the ground.

Striding over to Clint, Vindictus stomped on the mercenary’s chest and drew the tip of the lightsaber blade to his throat.

“I admire your deviousness,” the Sith Lord said. “But your arrogance has almost cost you your life, as it did your contemporaries.”

Clint said nothing as sweat coated his face. His eyes twitched as he waited for the final blow.

“However, you may prove useful to me. Rise to your feet, carry the eggs out of here for me, and you will live. Vouch for myself and Ridley at New Abraxas so that we may obtain our hunting licences, and you will live. Sell the eggs for me, and you will live. You may take a small fee for services rendered. Decide that you will not do all of these tasks for me, as I prescribe them, and you will die. Decide to betray me in any way, and you will die. Is that understood?”

The mercenary ground his teeth together and nodded.

“Say it.”

“Yes.”

“Yes, Lord Vindictus.”

Clint paused, frustration mounting on his face. “Yes, Vindictus.”

The Sith Lord narrowed his eyes beneath his mask. He took the pressure off Clint’s sternum, returned his lightsaber to his belt, and waited for him to gather the bags of eggs. Hopefully Ridley had vanquished the oversized arachnids outside.

Westood loaded up with the spider egg bags and started walking out.

Seething, Darth Vindictus let his hate manifest through the Force. A sickening series of cracks emanated from the mercenary. He screamed, dropping to his knees and grasping his right arm in his left hand. His chest heaved as he groaned.

“W-what the fuck?” he panted. “What the fuck was that?”

The Sith Lord crouched before Westood, his mask inches from his face in the darkness. “You didn’t say lord.” He stood and started walking towards the cave exit.

“Next time, I’ll tear the arm off instead of just breaking the bones.”

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