I warn you — this is the most magical chapter I've ever written. But the action takes place in the protagonist's consciousness, so — it's allowed)))
The rakghouls attacked me like an unending torrent. But if in the real world my abilities were limited by my skills, the Force techniques I'd mastered, then here I was literally a king. So, as the wave leaped at me, it died just as quickly, for portals opened above my head, raining down a hail of lightsabers that literally tore the mad monsters apart. There was no need to engage them in close combat. I had to use my imagination; this was my consciousness, after all, so here my power was limitless. However… The rakghouls still didn't stop, quite the opposite… They kept coming and coming. The zombies seemed to appear from nowhere. And various forms emerged…
Those same Nekghouls, which tried to deflect the hail of lightsabers, either with Telekinesis, or they initially appeared wielding lightsabers they handled quite skillfully. A couple of Nekghouls managed to break through to my body, but were immediately decapitated. The ghost of Darth Marr appeared before me, lightsaber in hand.
"YOU!" the voice of Karness Muur rang out. "You're a Sith! Darth Marr, correct?"
"Hmm, you have access to more than I would have liked," the Sith figure replied.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I know everything! Everything! You want to challenge an incredible being, based on your conversation. She who created, perhaps, this Vitiate of yours. Are you sure this boy is suitable as your ally?"
"Explain," Marr said. The rakghouls stopped.
"Think for yourself. Who is Light Flyingstar? He is just one of many Jedi. Forever empty-handed. Alone, he wanders the Galaxy from planet to planet, occasionally carrying out the will of the current Council. He is one of the countless nobodies with which the Jedi Order is full. Oh, I have access to part of his memory, I am perfectly aware of everything I am saying, Marr," Muur said with a laugh. "He cherishes grand dreams, of restructuring the Order, the Republic, and the Galaxy, but right now he is a nobody. An assassin and a spy who aspires to nothing more. But if you help me… If you help me… I will give you such knowledge! I have lived an amazing life, behind me are countless Force techniques and decades of research! With my rakghouls, I can conquer the entire Galaxy for you! And then this Abeloth will seem like a child's plaything!"
"I see," Marr said, glancing in my direction. I held the lord's gaze. "Indeed. A child only at the beginning of his path… But why do you suddenly think, Muur, that you would become a far more valuable ally than him? Surely you can't rely on nothing but your age and experience? That might work with anyone else, but I have seen young beings, who had none of what you just listed behind them, yet they challenged an incredible enemy. And they defeated him. I will ask you a counter-question… Who are you? Karness Muur… One of those who laid the foundation for the Sith that I knew. You, Ajunta Pall, XoXaan, Sorzus Syn… I have seen both the triumph of everything you set in motion, and how it all met monumental ruin. Perhaps it is somehow connected to what we are learning."
"So Darth Marr has grown weary of the light side of the Force," Karness Muur roared with laughter. "Tired of what a Sith overcomes. Tired of," he snarled, "what is weaker! I don't know what has influenced you so much, Marr. But you will answer for your decision. I will destroy you, seize this body, and then — I will deal with that Sith Scourge. And the entire Galaxy will bow before me!"
The rakghouls resumed their attack, and I, having paused to listen to the pompous conversation between Marr and Karness, continued attacking them. To be honest, I was afraid Marr's pragmatism would win out. After all, Karness was making sense, but apparently Marr's dealings with Satele Shan and Steyris, the Hero of Tython, had rubbed off on him.
"Your distrust and the fact that you doubt your own strength — weakens both you and me," Marr said. "Cast aside foolishness. You must have already understood the harm of hesitation. But still, some part of you hesitates and underestimates your own power. That is what Karness is using now. Cast aside your fears, fight as you have just shown. Fight as you know how, if you truly wish to become our ally, not a burden! It is your body that Karness Muur wants to seize. It is through him that he wants to unleash a horde of rakghouls upon the Galaxy. It is through your body that he wants to destroy, or force to kneel, your comrades, your friends. And is that what you want?! Don't doubt, just act."
Marr really knew how to encourage. Straight out of the textbook… Or maybe the textbook was written based on people like him? A gigantic rakghoul appeared before us. It literally came from nowhere and was about ten meters tall.
"This is my consciousness… how did that bastard create something like that?"
"Just kill it, you can think about it later," the Sith said loudly. I directed my hand towards the rakghoul. A white lightning bolt fell from the sky and struck the monster, roasting it. Whoa… My lightning on the outside was much weaker.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Muur laughed. The clouds above the island literally formed into his face. It looked terrifying… Orange eyes glowing. "Aha-ha-ha-ha!" His mouth opened and a horde of bodies poured out… They flooded over the crowd of rakghouls. Only now did I get a good look. Human bodies? But completely featureless… More like dolls. They simply flowed towards me, regardless of whether I rained lightsabers or lightning on them. I even struck them with fire element, all to no avail. The only thing I could think of was raising a barrier. They battered against the impenetrable film… Faceless dolls with ordinary builds… Karness kept spewing them out in large quantities. Suddenly, everything changed… Instead of another batch of bodies, he suddenly fired an energy blast. White-hot energy shattered my barrier — I hadn't had time to analyze the attack and set up the appropriate defense — and it would have consumed me. But I was Force-pushed out of the way, and Marr appeared in my place. The Sith was engulfed by the energy, which triggered an explosion… I was flung across the ground.
Fuck, what was that?
"That was my last help to you," Marr said. "You can defeat him, but now without me. May the Force be with you, Jedi."
He vanished.
"You make alliances with Sith when it suits you… Some Jedi you are," Muur laughed.
"Perhaps… perhaps," I nodded. "But I do it for specific goals. Sometimes you have to compromise, otherwise you can't survive in this world."
"Only pathetic weaklings, who cannot crush everyone with their own power, make compromises! Behold the true power you have granted me!"
I suddenly felt myself falling.
"It's time to end this," Muur said. I was falling… Down, straight into a lava river. He had changed my Inner World from an island in the middle of a raging ocean, with rain and lightning storms, to a lava world? Everything around me had transformed into a cave… He could melt me like that… However, my world… My rules. I granted myself the ability to fly and hovered about five meters above the lava. "Excellent, but what do you say to this?"
Huge monsters, resembling rakghouls, began to emerge from the lava. Except they were made of rock and lava. How was that even not melting? The monsters began to attack, trying to hit me with their limbs, but using flight, I deftly dodged every attack… But it wasn't just the monsters… The huge cave I was in seemed to come alive, creating massive spears of rock. I was caught in a vice — spears from above, monsters of various shapes and sizes from below. I needed to think of something… Right… If Karness could instantly rewrite the surroundings, then so could I… Fending off another wave of attacks using ice spears, I concentrated on my desire to change the environment, and on the Force… An instant later, the lava world vanished, replaced by a world of ice and snow.
This was starting to look less like a Jedi-Sith battle… Here, inside my own consciousness, we could create whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted. Only I really didn't want to give Muur such rights inside my own body… But what was done was done; once again I had to clean up my own mess. The monsters made of lava and rock, which had been transported, began to freeze. Initially, they melted the snow and ice with their bodies, but gradually, the temperature began to take its toll… Probably also because I enclosed them in a barrier and willed the temperature around their bodies to drop to the limit.
"Do you really think that changing the scenery will allow you to defeat me?" asked Karness Muur. "Oh no, you understand. Just as you have absolute power here, so do I. This is not like it was with my amulet, not at all. My spirit will seize your body; you cannot resist for long!"
"Enough," I cut him off sharply. "Dun Moch won't work on me. You want to shake my confidence in my own abilities? You're wasting your time. I have already triumphed in this world; I will triumph now!"
The icy mountains around me came alive. I intended to direct them towards where I could vaguely feel Muur. Suddenly, an incredible roar sounded… He had created flying rakghouls? And ones capable of using ice breath. Yes… This was a dangerous place. Five huge monsters lunged at me at once; I dodged them and moved towards the mountain peaks I had taken under my control, luring them in. Three rakghouls immediately attacked with ice breath, but I dodged to the side… A few dozen more meters and I flew over a mountain peak. One of the rakghouls, flying over it, was impaled by it. However, that only made things worse, because the monster immediately split into two. So it divided when dealt fatal damage? They attacked me again from all sides, but I threw them back with telekinesis… I had to neutralize that ability somehow and finally lure Karness Muur out.
Because I was sick of fighting his little monsters. It was time for the Sith to come out into the open. The only problem was that he was hiding "somewhere in the sky." No matter how much I stared upwards, whether in the main world, the lava world, or here in the ice world, I couldn't find him… But his presence was a fact… He just wouldn't let me get to him. The monsters multiplied again… What should I do? I started pulling off incredible acrobatics again, mostly trying to bind the monsters with chains or telekinesis, dodging their bites, paw strikes, and breath attacks… And the higher I rose towards the sky, the more aggressive the monsters became.
How could I get rid of them all at once… Ah, an idea. What if I simply created a world with absolute gravity? Then all the monsters would be pinned to the source of gravity, and Karness would also be forced to reveal himself. Concentrating, I mentally wrote the parameters of the world and channeled the Force… The monsters, myself, and Karness himself — were all sharply pulled downwards. The gravity was incredibly powerful, and it also carried certain limitations. This world was the last one; I wasn't going to stay with Muur any longer. After transporting us to this world, I forbade it from being changed as long as Karness Muur was here. With a vile roar, all his artificial monsters crashed to the ground.
"Ugh," Muur landed on his feet and immediately crouched. The world was pressing down too hard… The downside was that it also affected me. "H… How did you do that? Do you even realize what you've done? You've locked us in here! Until someone achieves a clear victory!"
"Yes," I sighed heavily, stopping the blood gushing from my shattered knees. I hadn't landed very gracefully. "I decided to stake everything. Even though I can't overpower you with my imagination, since you, by initiating your technique, have essentially the same power as I do. So I decided to partially limit my own power. Heh-heh… That means I am also limiting yours, Karness Muur."
"Bastard," the Sith snarled. "Your tricks won't be the cause of my downfall! Summon a thousand more such tricks, be as cunning as you like, you won't defeat me!"
"Enough," I interrupted him. "I'm tired of hearing all this," no matter how much his rakghouls multiplied, they still couldn't participate in the fight. "This is my body, and I want every bastard who dares to think of taking it to die a painful death."
"Heh-heh-heh… Ha-ha-ha-ha! This was never your body! You came here… You are an outsider… Oh yes, don't make such a surprised face. I saw much of what was in your memories. A pathetic nobody, craving incredible ambitions. There was no character in you; you were a coward, and now you're just playing the wise man. Think — are you worthy of all this? Such talent? Such techniques? Such weapons? Such teachers?"
"So you saw… Perhaps not, no, not perhaps — definitely I was a nobody, and that is clear to me and to anyone who would know my origins. I don't know how I was chosen. That I was not worthy of everything you listed — I know. But — doesn't the absence of something motivate you to become better… Let this sound arrogant, but I will forge myself… I will make it so that everything I have received — through luck, my understanding of this universe, or persistence — I will make myself worthy of it all. My ambitions, desires, and dreams will be the proof of that. Or rather, the fact of their achievement… And you, Muur, can do nothing more in my body! You died long ago, so kindly match that status!"
I hurled a bolt of Force lightning at him, not from my hand, but straight from the sky. A huge, white lightning bolt struck the spot where he stood. Muur managed to jump away, but the lightning strike was accompanied by an explosion. The Sith absorbed its energy and immediately counterattacked me. A whirlwind of purple energy, laced with lightning, tore from his hand. I raised a barrier and shielded myself from the attack. From below? I was nearly impaled on spears made of lightsabers. I jumped aside, but the Force caught me; he used telekinesis to hurl me into the maw of one of the monsters. Right under Muur's feet, obeying my will, similar spears of lightsabers erupted. Energy shot upwards, and Muur leaned back, dodging the attack. He tried to jump away, but I took advantage of a material object appearing near him and swapped places with it. The Sith stared in shock at me, who had instantly appeared right beside him.
I landed a quick strike with a lightsaber that appeared in my hand. The blow struck his upper torso, wounding the Sith dangerously…
"No! I…" I struck him swiftly in the legs, forcing him to his knees.
"It seems you're not very strong in close combat," I kicked the Sith onto his back. Yes, he probably handled a lightsaber better than most. But still, one's main specialization and activity leaves its mark. And the world of Star Wars, as I'd discovered, heavily depended on the chosen path. I, for instance, was a warrior-mage, if using RPG terms, though "assassin-mage" might fit better. Skilled in fencing, I could, at the right moment, hit an enemy with problematic Force techniques. Muur himself was a wizard, in the classic sense. He didn't like direct confrontation, leaving that to his monsters. Occasionally, Muur himself would also attack from a distance with Force techniques. Nevertheless — I managed to outsmart him and bring it all to my victory. Strange, flickering red lines and dots began to appear on his body. "Now I understand what to do. I've damaged you enough to see them. Marr said I could try to absorb part of your power."
I crouched and grabbed him by the throat.
"Bastard! Don't think I've given up!" he screamed. While I tried to absorb his power through the cracks, he tried to do the same to me. But at this moment, his part of my consciousness was more wounded and depleted. He tried to recreate lightsabers, ordinary swords, bows, arrows, anything, any weapon right behind my back. The barrier that appeared behind me as an invisible film blocked the weapons. "Bastard! Bastard!" his eyes filled with resolve. "That such a nobody should master my power?"
Was he going to self-destruct? The process was already unstoppable; I'd have to be content with what I'd managed to take from him. Leaping back, I watched as his body, his spirit, literally vanished in a wave of white light.
"Damn youuuuu!" came the cry before the explosion, which also caught me. Because of the gravity, I couldn't jump far enough, but I still got far enough to survive. I doubt a close-range blast would have done me any good. Finally, I could see what remained of the once-greatest Sith… For the second time in my life… Though this time, he'd made me worry. Still… What we'd done here fit Star Wars poorly; it was more like a couple of mages in some fantasy story deciding to settle who was the boss. Letting out a heavy sigh, I noted that I could now change the surroundings again. Which meant there was no need to stay in this difficult place. All of Muur's creatures were gone; he himself was destroyed, so now I could return to my usual environment and then come out of meditation. Performing all the necessary manipulations, I opened my eyes back in the real world.
"Oh…" My head was throbbing mercilessly. The Force felt… somewhat different than before the immersion and… more malleable, somehow. Muur's influence? My entire body was drenched in sweat. Scourge sat before me, and next to him was Marr's ghost. "Water," I croaked. I'd need to wash my uniform thoroughly. I'd sweated profusely, even though I'd fought not in my real body, but only within my own consciousness.
"Judging by the purple eyes and the aura, the boy managed it," Marr noted.
"What did I tell you?" Scourge asked, levitating a bottle of water to my hands… Cold water. I greedily pressed my lips to the neck and started drinking. "Talented. A bit more brains, and he'd be perfect."
Having drunk enough, I stared at Scourge.
"I'm right here, you know."
"And your brains?" the Sith asked. "Never mind, we have other problems. Now you'll rest and then do whatever it was you wanted with Hord's mask."
"With Hord's mask?"
"Scourge told me what you're up to. The idea of communing with great Force-wielders and taking their knowledge is not bad. Although the artifact's functionality is quite different, and summoning Ghosts is only one of the stages… But you used it with great wisdom, specifically picking out Revan. Your progress up to this point can be explained by his training as well. However, Revan, as you've already discovered, is a headstrong personality. He clearly wanted you to stop relying on 'relics of the past' and finally start thinking about the future. A sound reasoning. Why do you need all these antiquities, with such abilities? You want power? You are already strong; just develop your abilities… However, your desire to develop a unique fencing style is understandable to me. Perhaps I should teach you, including Juyo. Revan didn't teach you this… Probably feared you weren't ready… Or, more likely, saw that you were floundering in search of something of your own and was afraid to plant unnecessary doubts in you."
"And has the situation changed?" I asked Marr.
"No, you still want something of your own… And you believe that talking to Hord will help you with that. No words of mine will dissuade you from that. So — let's summon Hord together. Scourge and I can back you up, if the Lord of the Rising Dark… appears in a less than agreeable mood. But you understand that he will be?"
"Yes," I said. "I understand perfectly. But I've endured too much for this moment."
"Given your inflated expectations," Scourge stood up. "You'll be disappointed. But the experience will be useful."
After a couple of hours of rest, I finally placed the Medallion on the surface of the mask. Tulak Hord, huh? Let's see if his reputation holds up.