Jedi Insurgency 119

They were close. The probe had confirmed the enemy's location. Much more than that, the Force oozed like an oil spill. Invisible, inky tendrils slithered across the edge of Corvus’s mind. The sensation put him on edge, and he almost caught himself shivering as the Darkside's touch caressed him like a murdererous, long lost lover…except he had been single his entire life. It felt like silky soft cobwebs were tickling his shins, and a feather was going down his back all at once. This overstimulation on him-someone who was immune to the darkness thanks to his class-was nearly overwhelming for the rest of the squad. 

“I got ants in me gear!” Wrecker scowled, and reached all around himself. The big man looked like he was seconds away from ripping off his mask, he was scratching at his armor so fiercely. 

“The numbers, Hunter, what do they mean?” Tech's voice came through the comms, and the LAAT swayed as if a drunk was piloting the controls. 

“101010101000000.” Echo spoke in binary, his soul wretched, and his mechanical instruments trembled. The past traumas that transformed him into a cyborg resurfacing. 

And Crosshair-who had joined them for this mission-was extra twitchy with his gun. The bald clone almost looked as if he would unload on someone any second now. 

“Focus brothers, remember who you are, this is nothing but an illusion!” Hunter grimaced through his own pain to rally his men. 

Corvus-even with [Force Barrier] & [Valor] felt the strain upon himself. Yet even with these abilities cast upon everyone in the party, it was only enough to mitigate the affects of the tidalwave-like pressure coming from up ahead. 

Fortunately, he shared a Force Bond with the boys, and was able to help relieve some of the pressure. Likewise, they each had their own methods to survive. Jax carried with him the majestic aura of the Zilo beast, and Yon had gone into a sort of zen-like state regulating his breathing and creating a ‘bubble’ in the Force around himself. 

As for Obi-Wan, he faced the wave of pressure silently. A slight grimace was pasted at the corner of his lips, but he was holding on. The Jedi Master had experienced much in his 38 years of life, this was yet another roadblock. 

Displeased with this psychic malaise, Corvus drew upon his bond, and had the teens join him in a chant of the Jedi Shadows code: 

“I am at Peace; for I know Emotion.

I have Power; for I also have Knowledge.

I have Passion; for I am Serene.

I can embrace Mortality; for I know Death.

I am balanced through the Force.”

An invisible ripple spread out from their position, like a rock hurled into a still pond, gentle waves pushed against the oppressive darkness. 

Wrecker stilled himself, Tech readjusted the LAAT's stability, and Echo stilled his tongue. 

Hunter shot him an appreciative look, to which Corvus responded with a thumbs up. Obi-Wan curled an eyebrow, seemingly interested in this creed, yet he remained silent. 

“One minute.” Tech's voice came over the comms.

Knowing that they were about to enter a death defying battle, Corvus decided to say a few words to make a quick plan, and raise morale. 

“The probe cut out just as it entered the chamber. But from what it captured, we can be certain of one thing. There is only one opponent. Considering the nature of this disease, and its connection to the Darkside  of the Force, the target has been codenamed: Gloom.”

“Fast bugger, ain't he?” Hunter muttered dangerously. 

“The chamber is about the size of a Grav-ball stadium field. Our strategy is to limit the creature's mobility, so that I can hit it with [Heal] and remove this curse from its body. To that end, if conditions allow it, I'll be deploying stealthed cryo-mines throughout the facility. Take this code, it will allow your visors to identify them.” Corvus said. 

“But Master, won't you be needed to hold it down?” Yon questioned. 

“Master Kenobi is an expert at Form III, Soresu. His defensive capabilities are the best in the Order. With the eight of you on offense, I'll be best placed in a supporting role.” Corvus explained. 

“My, my, I don't know if I should be pleased with the vote of confidence, or wonder if this is some Sith plot to get me killed.” Obi-Wan sarcastically remarked. 

Ignoring Obi-Wan's wit, he continued with his explanation. 

“I want you, Yon, to act as a dagger in the shadows, your ability to hide your breath/scent will be critical to landing a hidden blows. As for you, Jax, I need you to help protect the Bad Batch, and assist Master Kenobi with Force-based attacks.” 

“You can count on me, Master!” Yon exclaimed, then looked to Jax with a triumphant gaze. As if to say ‘see, I'm valued by Master.’

Jax didn’t pay Yon's competitive spirit one lick of attention, and merely nodded at Corvus, then turned to CF-99 and spoke with a high degree of intensity. “It will be done. I will protect my friends.” 

“Thanks Ghost, we've got your back.” Hunter clapped the white haired teen on the shoulder. 

“As for you clones, you know what to do.” Corvus nodded at the most premier special forces unit in the galaxy, and grinned. 

“If there's anything we clones like aiming at, it's weak points.” Crosshair said in a chillingly cold tone of voice. 

“Alright lads, the General's placed his confidence in us, and we've got Omega waiting for us top side. Let's not muck this up.” Hunter growled. 

“Thirty seconds.” Tech's voice came over the comms. 

Corvus ignited a lightsaber, and pointed it out into the dark. 

“For the Republic!” 

Everyone save Obi-Wan had shouted this slogan. The bearded Jedi Master was momentarily at a loss, yet he was quick to smile. Slowly unsheating his lightsaber, Obi-Wan held his blue blade aloft, striking Corvus, Yon, and Jax's lightsaber. 

“For the Republic.” Obi-Wan muttered. 

Confidence high, the LAAT finally burst onto the scene. 

All around them were bacta tanks full of misshapen creatures. To Corvus, it reminded him of a failed cloning facility. Then, growing all around them, was a field of Marakami orchids, the black flowers swayed and shuddered as the Jedi entered. 

Disembarking from the LAAT, Corvus saw the object of their ire. The lights from their vehicle cut through the low light environment, and revealed the beast for all to see. 

Standing at 8ft tall, and possessing a hulking mass, the creature-Gloom-was humanoid, and almost all black. It somewhat reminded Corvus of Venom, the symbiote from the Spiderman comics. Reclining in a throne-like chair of Marakami vines, the Darkside of the Force flowed directly from these flowers into the creature. 

The whole chamber pulsed like a beating heart, subtle quakes and tremors caused the air to distort, and the floor was weeping a foul liquid thanks to the orchids, as if this room was infected with a cancer that threatened to overturn the harmony of Naboo, and transform this fair planet into a Nexus of the Force. One that danced to the subtle sways of the Darkside. 

Unlike all other Blackwing virus infectees, it did not run at them immediately, instead, it paused to look at them as if it was considering something. Like a King regarding his lessers, the being sat upon the throne without a care in the world, safe in the knowledge that it was stronger than all others. 

Corvus almost wondered if it wanted to communicate with them, or if it was stalling to set up some trap. Or if perhaps, even a fucking virus could be arrogant of all things. Whatever the case was, he would take this brief lull in combat to seize the initiative. 

As soon as he had disembarked, he was already invisible. Noting that the orchids were acting as a battery source, and were the origin of the Blackwing virus, he knew that he had to take them out first. Otherwise, he'd probably deal with some nonsense like a boss monster that had infinite healing. Tossing out cryogrenades like they were candy, half of the flowers within this Grav-ball stadium sized chamber were instantly turned into ice sculptures.

However, the flowers were not defenseless. 

(Theme of the day: https://youtu.be/5bKhfwN8hOo?si=JKBW5tsaPVNgpA1a)

A vine surged towards Corvus' position, and many more moved to trip the rest of the party up. Lightsabers twirled, and Obi-Wan, Jax, and Yon began to dice the plant matter to shreds. LAAT beams tried to fry the mutant, yet it held up a hand, and the beam curved to the side, avoiding him. The rest of the clones-who had also disembarked-were hitting the roots with vibroblades, or repositioning themselves to get a bead on the ‘King.’ 

Corvus, meanwhile, had run over to the patch of frozen flowers, and was hard at work planting mines. 

Gloom had not remained idle, and began to telekinetically toss the dimly lit tanks full of failed clones at the squad. Large vats-similar in size to the bacta tank Luke floated in at the end of Episode V-came hurtling down at the men of the Republic. 

“Watch out!” Hunter cried out, and dodge rolled to the side as one came crashing down on his position with the force of an artillery strike. 

“Hahaha!” Wrecker laughed in wild abandon as his super strengthened body ran head on into one, gripped it, and 360 spin threw it back the way it came. 

Crosshair was in the midst of cutting some vines, and was about to roll away, when his leg was caught. The massive cylinder zoomed closer and closer. Jax lifted his hand, and tried to Force Push the container to the side, however, the will that drove the bacta tank was too strong! 

“Not. Again.” Jax grit his teeth, and was breathing hard as he redoubled his efforts. 

The canister slightly had its trajectory knocked off course, and barely missed Crosshair by a foot. 

“Thanks, kid.” Crosshair morosely grinned, pointed his blaster at Jax, then opened fire. 

Jax's blue eyes went wide, and alarm bells were going off in his head at the sudden betrayal. However, his danger senses were blaring from behind instead! 

Crosshair's high-powered sniper bolt struck a vine that had snuck up under Jax's boot, and tightly wrapped around his ankle, slightly piercing it whilst he was distracted, and singed the plant-matter black. 

Jax wordlessly nodded in thanks, slightly applied [Heal] to his wound, then resumed his gardening duties, chopping vines and other flowers to bits. 

“The flower field has almost collapsed, let's put the pressure on this bastard, lads!” Hunter waved his commando pistol in one hand, and swiped at the nearest flower with his vibroblade with the other. 

“The barrier around subject Gloom is weakening!” Tech shouted, the LAAT had been continuously dodging the bacta tanks, and shooting its front mounted laser cannons the entire time, providing cover for everyone else. 

Wrecker then opened up with his autocannon, Echo brought out a slugthrowing shotgun, and Crosshair began dishing out high powered precision rounds. Their combined firepower formed an arcing pattern that covered all angles, and avenues of attack. There was no escape. 

A pair of missiles were launched from the top of the LAAT, and upon their eruption, the ground shook, and a plume of smoke arose from Gloom's location. 

“Did we get'em?” Wrecker asked. 

“Check for thermals.” Echo responded. 

“I've got a bad feeling about this.” Tech added. 

The smoke cleared a second later, and there was nothing to be seen, save for a small crater where the mutant used to be. 

“Check yourselves, the enemy is to the left!” Hunter called out. 

Running between bacta tanks at super speeds, the midnight black, 8ft tall, muscular monster was silent, like a predator stalking its prey. As soon as it was discovered, Gloom raised a hand, shattering the glass of a dozen containers. Thousands of shards of glass then rushed towards the men of the Republic. 

“Have no fear!” Hunter proclaimed, and ran into the storm of death with fury in his heart. 

“No fear!” Wrecker & Echo shouted in unison, and fired as they ran. 

The super fast glass met the combined forces of the shields Corvus had cast, as well as the toughness of their beskar. To CF-99, it was like driving a car through hail, noisy, somewhat blinding, but ultimately, harmless! 

Echo tossed out shock grenades as he closed, Wrecker unloaded with his autocannon, and Hunter moved to flank. All the while, Crosshair & Tech provided support to keep Gloom's super speed in check. 

Gloom sidestepped most shots, but a few scattered rounds inevitably found their mark, and it hissed at them in displeasure. Emotions unlike any other Blackwing monster welled up inside the beast, dark emotions. 

A second later, just as the electro-grenades were about to make contact, and just as Wrecker was about to smash into Gloom, it lifted both hands, its fingers spread wide. 

Corvus, watching all this go down from the side, felt a familiar tang in the air, and saw several brilliant white-blue arcs of electricity run across Gloom's fingertips. 

“Careful!” He shouted out, but it was for naught. 

A large portion of the chamber was instantly bathed in Force Lightning. 

Hunter, Wrecker, and Echo, who were standing closest, bore the brunt of the attack. Bright white skeletons were seen underneath their armor, and the trio screamed out in agony as if they were lobsters being boiled. 

The stream was continuous, and flowed through them towards the LAAT. Tech was unharmed, but the power to the machine suddenly cut, and all heavy firepower that had been brought to this fight had suddenly disappeared. 

Jax, meanwhile, had whipped out his lightsaber, and was barely defending Crosshair. 

Corvus & Yon were off to the side, and Obi-Wan had taken centre stage. 

The bearded Jedi Master's robe fluttered, and his weapon acted as a beacon for the Darkside. The continuous lightning that flowed through Hunter, Wrecker & Echo-that had left them on the floor curled like shrimps-now was forcefully driven into Kenobi's lightsaber! 

Corvus held his breath, as it seemed like Obi-Wan wasn't able to hold on. He was about to act, and break the stalemate, when Yon made his appearance. Whilst Gloom had both of its hands occupied, Yon had run up behind it, and slashed into its back. Green tinged with red popped into existence as Yon lost his invisibility. Rage married with the minty fresh green of Yon's weapon struck Gloom's spine, searing across its foul cancerous flesh like a knife through butter. 

Before it could cut deep, Gloom's foot lifted off the floor, and delivered a brutal kick to Yon's midsection, sending him flying into the wall. The almost living structure pulsed & shuddered, welcoming Yon with a wet embrace. Disgusting, acidic liquids dripped down on top of him. His armor smoked and sizzled as it threatened to disintegrate. 

Corvus rushed towards his student, and yoinked him out of the wall with the Force. Eyes burning white, he saw that the virus was already beginning to infiltrate the short black haired teen's system from such a brief contact, and small point of entry! Channeling [Heal], he made sure his student was secure. 

Whilst this was going on, Yon's distraction had paid off, and Obi-Wan was currently engaging Gloom in a fierce duel. 

Held in Gloom's hand was a confiscated lightsaber, one that had arrived with the Jedi who were used as experimental subjects by Doctor Nuvo. In the other was a calcified Force Blade, much like the ones wielded by the Force Sensitive mutants they had faced in the hangar. Purple met blue as the two clashed. 

Obi-Wan's mastery of Form III meant he made as few movements as possible, and saved his stamina for an optimal point of attack. He was economical with his steps, and frequently parried each strike that came his way. 

As for Gloom, it was almost like it was familiar with every lightsaber form. A hint of Makashi, with sharp straight thrusts, and hard angular slashes. coupled with a dash of Juyo's unpredictability made Gloom a formidable opponent. 

Obi-Wan was waiting for the perfect opportunity to cut into the monster, yet none had presented themselves. However, he had spotted Corvus’s well laid trap, and was slowly goading Gloom into it. Although the fire support was lacking, and the creature's offense was overwhelming, it was not any more difficult than his duel with Grievous. Breathing heavily, and feeling sweat accumulate at his temples, Obi-Wan immersed himself in the Force, and danced to its tune. 

Crosshair, meanwhile, was the only clone who was still in the fight, and was trying to support Obi-Wan as best he could. His shots were perfectly placed, and forced the creature to block or evade at inopportune times. Already. Obi-Wan had scored several glancing blows, and even nicked Gloom's inner knee, forcing it into a limp. Even so, it was too early to celebrate. 

Glancing at his wounded mates, Crosshair's heartstrings tightened. “Kid, go check up on the rest, you don't need to stand guard anymore.” He said over his shoulder at Jax. 

No reply was forthcoming. 

Crosshair-ever suspicious-had his eyes go wide in realization. Why was Jax so close to him, the sniper? There was only one explanation, the vine had pierced his armor, and the lad hadn't cured himself! 

As soon as Crosshair was going to draw his vibroknife, a pair of blue lightsabers were at his neck-where the gap between his chestplate & helmet met, a space with very thin plated beskar-and decapitated him. 

Crosshair's head rolled to the side with a clang, Jax, meanwhile, was slobbering at the mouth, clamoring for flesh. 

As soon as Jax had turned, his memories, and knowledge of the plan were shared between other infected. Gloom, having received this information, immediately changed strategies. Jumping away from Obi-Wan with a backflip, it landed on a bacta tank-a place guaranteed not to have a mine-and then it howled. 

Upon releasing this sonic screech, the walls covered in a thick black mold began to rain acid at a rate comparable to an anti-fire sprinkler system. The entire chamber instantly became awash with this liquid, and all of the mines Corvus had painstakingly planted were ruined. Furthermore, both Corvus and Yon became visible due to this maneuver. 

All these events took place seconds apart, and as soon as Corvus had helped Yon out of his predicament, he felt an aching pain pierce his soul as it felt like his Force Bond with Jax was being torn apart, then branded into his psyche with the pain of fire. The bloody Marakami orchid had infiltrated his boy! 

 “Yon! Hold Jax back, cure him if you can!” Corvus whispered before he took action. 

Fury unrelenting pumped a fistful of adrenaline into his system. Instead of fear, or reticence at this dire situation, all he experienced was grim determination, and a desire to mete out destruction to the enemy! He barely registered Yon's reply as all his focus, all his desire to murder was pointed towards Gloom. 

“Nobody touches my students, my sons, and lives to tell the tale! If you have a problem, you come to me.” Corvus's voice echoed throughout the chamber as he lunged at Gloom.

Unleashing his twin debuffs, Corvus was surprised by what happened next, yet was undeterred. [Force Suppression] was shrugged off, and [Slow] battered aside. However, his twin lightsabers were ever present. Buffed by [Speed] IV, a massive Dex stat, Pause-buffering, and mastery of Form VII, he was like a ravenous beast off its leash. 

The clash began with no hesitation. [Shadow Hopping] behind Gloom for an easy strike, it pivoted just in time, perfectly countering both his and Obi-Wan's attacks. Sparks carved the air as Corvus’s twin blue blades met the violent purple of Gloom’s. Each stroke, unlike Obi-Wan's, was a lethal promise. Their feet tore furrows in the stone floor, every motion blindingly fast, as Form VII’s relentless ferocity met the calculated precision of Forms II and V.

Corvus pressed forward in unpredictable surges, his blade snapping and slashing in chaotic arcs that sought to overwhelm. Gloom parried with the elegance of Makashi, his wrist turning with surgical economy, redirecting Corvus’s fury just enough to strike back. The collision of styles reverberated through the chamber like thunder, each impact a deafening crack of plasma against plasma.

Gloom shifted into the brute force of Djem So, hammering blows rained downward with crushing weight. Corvus  absorbed the strikes in a storm of counter-angles, spinning low, then leaping high, his momentum a whirlwind of momentum that would leave most Force Adepts dead within seconds. Yet this beast, this mutant possessed by the Blackwing virus was no mere Force Adept. Corvus could only wonder at the identity of the cloned individual that had been subsumed by the virus. Who was so legendary that even when puppeted by some flower, he was driven to such desperation in this fight? The clones all had enlarged foreheads, perhaps it was a clone of the leader of the Council of First Knowledge, Astaal Vilbum? 

Shaking his head at such distracting thoughts, Corvus parried a strike meant for his head, and wordlessly thanked Obi-Wan's timely intervention for saving him from a hit to the neck. The mutant seemed to be aware of his Cortosis-Weave gear, and in response, a calcified Force Blade would move for lethal attacks, whereas the lightsaber frequently struck at his less protected neck. 

Feinting with his shoulder, he swept high, then released a grenade low from his inventory. Ice exploded on the scene, encapsulating the creature's Force Blade wielding arm. 

Obi-Wan capitalized on this maneuver by removing Gloom's other arm. Unfortunately, just as the limb had become detached, black vine-like tendrils shot out, and reattached the arm. 

Sparks hissed across his face as the next strike grazed dangerously close, one cut from the diseased Force Blade sheared strands from Corvus’s cloak, in response, another seared one of Gloom's fingers, completely erasing it. Neither gave ground. Corvus ’s body churned with the stormlike rhythm of Juyo, every motion reckless yet razor-precise. Gloom answered with cruel efficiency, alternating between the fencing finesse of Makashi and the sledgehammer brutality of Djem So.

Their blades blurred, violet and blue streaks tore across the air in dizzying arcs. The chamber became a furnace of energy, the floor slick with molten cracks from missed strikes. Each impact sent shockwaves rolling outward, shuddering stone and rattling debris from the ceiling.

Corvus lunged forward with a spinning assault, his saber cutting in erratic, feral patterns. Gloom met it head-on, his blade locking with Corvus’s in a shrieking bind. The sabers screeched, locked in a deadlock of will and strength. Then, as if in the same heartbeat, they broke apart, spinning into another maelstrom of lethal arcs,neither slowing, neither faltering, both consumed by the pure, unrelenting violence of the fight.

The duel spiraled into chaos as the ice shattered. A monumental Force Push pressed both Jedi backwards skidding across the acid slicked floors. Every second they spent under this acid rain meant it ate away at his [Energy Resistance] barrier. If he kept refreshing it, he would have no time to cast other abilities…eventually, his FP bar would be unable to sustain itself, and he would die via attrition! Their brief advantage gone, the pair of Jedi both realized something had to be done about this, and fast. 

“I'll hold him down. You must cure him.” Obi-Wan gasped from his left during a rare moment of reprieve. 

Corvus's lungs were on fire, so he settled for a nod. 

Seconds later, Gloom reappeared, the tireless, zombie-like energy of the virus making it into a relentless machine. 

Obi-Wan, much to Corvus's surprise, unleashed something he never thought he would see in this lifetime. 

Force Judgment. 

As the pair of combatants closed, Obi-Wan executed his typical defensive maneuvers, and was barely holding on through the exhaustion. Right as Gloom was about to attack both of them simultaneously, Kenobi acted. Extending a hand during that brief delay when Gloom extended a blade towards Corvus, a torrent of Lightside attuned lightning burst onto the scene. 

Gloom was forced to raise both lightsaber, and Force Blade to block the intense energy. 

Locked down and unable to move, their plan had been achieved! 

Hands glowing a minty green, and eyes glowing white, Corvus overcharged his reserves, harnessed his kyber crystal to its fullest, and pulled upon all of his Bonds. 

Gloom had demonstrated the ability to resist Force powers earlier, but now that it was actively resisting Obi-Wan, it was now open to attack! 

Bathing the entire chamber in a healing glow, Corvus smote the virus from this wretched hall like the decrepit curse that it was. Light fixtures that had been covered by the wall moss became uncovered, and light once more poured into the underground lair. 

Standing tall, and exuding a dangerous air of power, the pair of Jedi Masters were so steeped in the Lightside after their triumph, it was as if they were twin beacons in the Force. 

Blinking his eyes rapidly to adjust to the sudden change in lighting, Corvus was surprised to discover that the infected man codenamed Gloom was actually a Muun! 

‘Wait. A Muun!? One so powerful he was that strong even when being puppeted?’ Corvus thought to himself, eyes going wide with realization. ‘The Muun who even Legends Palpatine feared confronting, and assassinated in his sleep? THAT MUUN?!’ 

A cultured voice broke him from his inner monologue, and commanded his attention. 

"That mask...I find myself in such august personage. It was arrogant of me to assume I was the only Sith to have achieved immortality…I suppose I have you to thank for restoring my sanity. You honor me with your presence, Darth Revan. A pleasure to meet you, my name is Plagueis. Darth Plagueis.”