Chapter Text
In the blink of an eye, the corridor became filled with white armor clad Troopers, each carrying a blaster rifle. No sooner had the first blaster fired, before a green bladed lightsaber was swung in response, blocking the blaster bolt. However, the more aggressive Maul was less willing to take the defensive stance than Vos. In a brutal onslaught, Maul lashed his crimson blade out and dismembered several Troopers. At the other end of the corridor, Mace Windu fought with a similar aggression, compounded by his recent mental and physical trauma.
With no weapon, Kay simply got low and pressed up against a wall for safety. As a Trooper penetrated their line of defense, they were shocked into unconsciousness by one of M4's mechanical arms. Without missing a beat, Plunder moved to the downed Trooper and picked up his blaster, much larger than what a Kowakian could hold comfortably. And yet, when more Troopers approached and Plunder pulled the trigger, he hit every mark dead center. Gessa too hit his mark with uncanny precision.
The Battle Droid, despite its many years in the service and years since left buried in the sand, had been repaired and even improved from its existing proficiency. Gessa was hit several times, but managed to endure thanks to far improved armored plating. One Trooper after another fell to the chaotic symphony of blaster fire and the slicing of heated plasma beams.
***
Darth Vader swung his red bladed lightsaber down with brutal force, countered only by a swift dodge from Scorr. Scorr countered with a slash of his own crimson blade, but was blocked effortlessly by the Sith Lord.
"Give it up. Your power is nothing compared to my own." Vader exclaimed.
"Maybe. But once I'm gone, the others won't have a reason to stay. They'll escape your grasp." Scorr shot back.
"I expected your friends to come for you. Now I have within my grasp one of the last remaining Jedi Masters. You have outlived your usefulness." Vader answered.
As the reality of his situation began to sink in, Scorr watched as Darth Vader stepped closer and closer, heavy footfalls sending echoes of his impending death through his very psyche. Vader once more sent out a heavy strike with his lightsaber, only for Scorr to block it. Scorr rolled out of the way just as a second strike singed the floor where he once stood. Scorr turned and lashed out at Vader, but the Dark Lord was already returning with a blow of his own. Vader struck again and again, with increasing ferocity, until Scorr's weapon flew out of his hands.
Vader raised his weapon, about to go in for the kill. Scorr shoved out his hand and let loose a torrent of force lightning at Vader. Vader's weapon flew behind him as the first bolts hit his suit. But, after just a few seconds, Vader thrust his own hand out, the force lightning gathering to his palm. Then, with a mechanical grunt of pain and pure wrath, Darth Vader sent every ounce of strength he had into the force and shot it back at Scorr.
Darth Vader's pure power caused the lightning to disperse in an explosion that scorched the walls around them. The resultant shockwave sent Scorr flying off his feet and onto his back. The same force had caused Vader to slide several centimeters backwards, before he managed to halt his momentum with the power of the force.
From behind Darth Vader walked another figure, clad in armor that was not dissimilar to Vader's own. It was his loyal apprentice, Darth Atsvara.
"Looks like you were no match for my master. Face it, you never stood a chance." Atsvara said in a mechanical voice.
***
The battle between the band of allies and the Troopers raged on fiercely. Maul had just cut down another opponent when he was suddenly thrown against the wall. When he looked up in a mix of pain and anger, he saw the Eighth Brother and Seventh Sister looking down at him. Walking to stand beside Maul as he rose to his feet was Mace.
"Keep fighting, hold your positions!" Mace called out to the others fighting the Troopers.
"Yes, keep fighting. Till your dying breath." Barriss said as she and the Eighth Brother ignited their lightsabers.
"Is this really what you want?" Mace asked Barriss.
"More than almost anything." Barriss answered truthfully.
"Then so be it." Mace shot back.
Mace and Barriss struck at nearly the same moment, her dual red blades lashing out against his purple blade. Her blades spun and struck with all the fury of the dark side. But Mace easily blocked the onslaught of blows with calm, precision movements. Despite his anger and pain, calm won out. He took a step back and she took another step forward; their battle was already decided.
Maul had ignited both sides of his dual bladed lightsaber and clashed blow for blow with Eighth Brother's own twin sided weapon. Aggression met aggression as Maul's opponent attacked head first. Maul dodged a potentially fatal blow with his acrobatic prowess, before returning with a strike of his own. Maul's blow impacted Eighth Brother's lightsaber and caused the Inquisitor to stagger backwards. Maul thrust out his hand, using a force shove to knock the Inquisitor against the far wall.
Mace and Barriss continued their heated duel. Barriss swung her lightsaber, aimed at Mace's neck, but Mace ducked backwards, narrowly dodging by the tip of his nose. Then Mace struck back, clashing his blade against hers. Barriss smiled, as she attempted to use her other blade to cut into Mace. But her smile faded quickly as she realized that he had tricked her. That, with her lightsaber locked against his the way it was, she was stuck. Mace raised his free hand and threw a punch, striking Barriss across the face.
As Barriss stumbled back from the blow, Mace delivered a spinning kick to Barriss' gut, sending her flying back and falling unconscious on the ground. Mace turned to Maul just in time to see him raising his weapon against the unconscious Eighth Brother. Before Mace could react, Maul impaled the downed Inquisitor through the chest, killing him instantly.
The two glared at each other, before something caught their senses and both of their heads turned to look down the corridor. Without a moment's hesitation, Maul raced from his position and fled down the corridor. But he wasn't running from anything; no, he was running toward something.
Having sensed the same disturbance as Maul, Mace Windu turned to the others, who still held off the oncoming onslaught of Troopers.
"Keep them busy! I'll find Scorr! And Maul..." Mace said, before running after Maul, the note of disdain in the last few words of his voice.
***
"Winning was never an option for you. Even if you killed one of us, the other would take your life. You're just bait to catch an elusive fish." Atsvara said coldly.
"She's right. Even now, they race to your rescue. And here one is now. I didn't expect it to be you." Vader uttered, before turning his attention to Maul, who had just arrived on the scene.
"I'm not here for him. I'm here for you. The man who killed my former master, OUR former master." Maul said in a low growl.
"If you wish to claim the galaxy for your own, then so be it!" Vader said as he removed a lightsaber from his belt and ignited its red blade.
Maul ran and leapt over Scorr's prone body, before lunging at Darth Vader. But, before his blade could connect, the twin blades of Atsvara's lightsabers crossed between them to block Maul's strike.
"Do you truly think you are worthy to face my master!" Atsvara said as she repelled Maul with a kick.
He slashed at the Sith apprentice with both sides of his lightsaber. But she blocked every strike with one of her own, before retaliating as she attempted to penetrate Maul's defenses. They were every bit evenly matched in the dark side of the force.
Vader suddenly turned his gaze, from casually observing his apprentice's battle, to watch as Mace Windu arrived on the scene.
"Ah, Master Windu, have you come for the Chiss then?" Darth Vader asked coldly.
"I am. And for you. Anakin." Mace said with all the contempt he could muster.
"Unfinished business then." Anakin said coldly.
Then, without another word, Mace Windu sprang toward Vader. Vader moved forward too, red and purple blades clashing in a flurry of power versus power. Neither master was willing to yield, to relent. Each was willing to die to see this to the end.
"I was like you once. A lapdog to the Sith. But no longer. I will kill you. Then I will watch as your master dies." Maul said.
"You will eat your words, Zabrak!" Atsvara said as she stepped closer and closer to Maul.
Maul moved swiftly at Atsvara and, in seconds, their red blades clashed furiously. Each broke contact and swung again. And again and again and again. They were evenly matched in strength and speed and athletic prowess. But the tide of battle again shifted when a torrent of force lightning shot out at Atsvara, forcing her to back away and hold up both of her lightsabers to block the oncoming torrent of power.
Both Maul and Atsvara seemed surprised, until they turned their gaze to Scorr, who had regained his footing. Before Scorr's power began to wane, Maul distanced himself from Atsvara, taking a stand at Scorr's side.
"You really ready to die saving me?" Scorr asked Maul.
"I'm ready to die to get paid. Your friends promised me your payment if I helped rescue you." Maul told him.
"I figured." Scorr said with a small smirk. "If we live, it's yours."
"Neither of you are leaving this facility alive." Atsvara commanded.
Without another word, both Scorr and Maul moved at the Sith Lord, swinging their blades. With the two of them together, the battle turned in their favor, Atsvara losing more and more ground to the pair of force users.
Vader shot out a blast of force lightning, which Mace deflected with the blade of his lightsaber, before sending a blast of force energy at Vader in turn. Vader skidded across the ground, before coming to a halt. The two masters of the force again moved at each other, blades striking one another; looking for an opening, looking for the kill.
***
"Do you feel that?" Asajj asked.
"Yeah..." Vos answered in a concerned tone.
"They're in trouble, aren't they?" Kay questioned.
"Yeah, seems like it! They have company!" Asajj said as she blocked an oncoming blaster bolt. "We will be too if they keep coming!"
At that moment, Kay looked over at the body of one of the dead clone Troopers, observing the satchel around his shoulder.
"I have an idea!" She said suddenly and pulled the satchel off the dead Trooper, before running down the hall, then ducking around a corner.
"Where's she going?" Gessa asked, worriedly.
"I don't know, just... you and Plunder keep covering us, we'll go after her!" Vos shouted, before he and Asajj followed Kay's path.
Gessa and Plunder kept firing at the ever encroaching wave of Troopers when R2-M4 suddenly spoke up.
{Beep boop beep}
"What do you mean you have an idea? Are you gonna run off now too? I joined a bunch of whackjobs..." Gessa lamented half heartedly.
"U rgubj qw agiyks reyar gun." Plunder told him.
"Oh, sure, if YOU say we should trust him, then- hey, wait!" Gessa responded, but saw that Plunder, M4 and even Serra the cat had fled further down the corridor, following in Kay's footsteps.
With the mechanical equivalent of a sigh, Gessa continued to fire as he too retreated further into the base. As they turned the corner and moved several meters in, they encountered Asajj and Vos, who had caught up with and stopped Kay.
"That's insane, we- I thought I told you to give us cover." Vos said.
But M4 was already working at a control panel, not bothering to explain to any of them. In seconds, they saw a group of Troopers approaching their location. But no sooner had they raised their weapons before a heavy security door crashed down between them and the oncoming forces.
"Good plan." Asajj said and M4 beeped in thanks.
"Good, but not great. They'll be through in minutes. Now what's YOUR plan?" Vos asked Kay.
"Um... when we were looking at the map, I saw a power station. I was thinking we place THESE nearby and create a diversion." Kay said and opened her bag.
"Those are bombs!" Gessa uttered.
"I can see that. It could work. Alright, let's go. And hope we're not too late." Vos said.
"And what about actually escaping with our lives?" Asajj asked.
{Beep beep boop} M4 said.
"He said there's a secondary exit a short way from the power relay center. We should be able to make it to our ship. But it'll put us on the opposite side of the complex." Gessa translated.
"It'll have to do." Vos added.
***
The battle against the fearsome duo of Sith Lords raged on through the halls of Kalist Prison. Mace Windu and Darth Vader traded blow after blow, the brutal attacks from the Emperor causing Mace to step back, losing more and more ground to his opponent.
"I see you've replaced the hand that I took from you." Vader tormented Mace.
"It works well enough. Why don't I return the favor?" Mace retorted.
The pair stared daggers into each other's very being. Although they remained still to the outside observer, on the inside, they were both reaching out with the force. They studied each other, measured each other for any sign of weakness, any opening to exploit. Then, in a flash, the two force users again connected blades as their deathly battle resumed.
Maul lashed out at Darth Atsvara with an unbridled fury, only for the Sith Lord to deflect the lightsaber slash with a counter from her own twin blades. Scorr followed up quickly with a strike of his own, but as quickly as she had blocked Maul's blow, she brought her blades over to counter Scorr's strike. Both warriors moved in for another attack; but Atsvara simply thrust out her hand and sent them both flying backwards with a force push. The Zabrak and Chiss both pushed themselves up and looked over just in time to see the fearsome Drarth Atsvara begin her march toward them; lightsaber brandished at each of her sides. Both of them struggled to their feet.
Mace Windu struck down with great force, only for Vader to slash upward, meeting Windu's blade once more in a clash of power versus power. Again and again, they connected, parried and dodged. Neither of them would yield, neither was willing to give in an inch. Theirs was a battle that began some time ago, each of them gaining scars. Now, it no longer mattered to either of them if they lived, so long as the other perished.
The pair of force users had barely taken another step when the ground under their feet began to violently shake. The lights in the room began to flicker, before failing entirely, bathing the room in darkness. For a moment that stretched into an eternity, the only sound they heard was the forced, mechanical breathing of the now unseen Darth Vader. Then, as quickly as the darkness had come, the room was bathed in red as the emergency lighting kicked on.
"Go, now!" Mace Windu shouted a split second before a blue surge of electricity filled the room, heading straight toward the trio of force users.
Without hesitation both Maul and Scorr turned and fled toward the exit and out of the room. Vader grunted with effort as he continued arcing his electrified blast at Mace Windu.
"After them!" Vader ordered.
With a silent nod from Darth Atsvara, the armored knight marched after the pair of fleeing force users.
***
Scorr and Maul ran down long, darkened corridors, toward the outer perimeter of the facility. Behind them, they could feel her; the terrifying presence of the relentless Sith Lord dead on their heels. The pair soon came upon a junction of many different pathways and were, nearly as instantaneously, surrounded by a battalion of Clone Troopers. Without hesitation, both force users reignited their lightsabers. When the very first blaster bolt was fired, they struck in turn.
They blocked blaster fire with blades of heated plasma, before turning their aggression on the Troopers themselves. Maul used a combination of his twin sided lightsaber and feats of acrobatic prowess to effortlessly cut through swaths of Troopers. While Scorr withdrew his blaster pistol and used a combination of lightsaber slashes and pinpoint pistol fire to eliminate Troopers one by one. Once all of their enemies had fallen, Scorr and Maul's attention turned back to their present situation. They again felt the cold chill of the Sith Lord as she continued to follow their escape route.
Scorr and Maul looked over the now multiple branching paths they had to choose from. After a long moment, during which they knew Atsvara drew ever closer, Maul gestured toward one of the paths.
"I had gotten a glimpse of the base layout when we first arrived. I believe the most direct path to the exit is that way." Maul informed him.
"Are you sure?" Scorr asked.
"No." Came Maul's simple response.
Without much of a choice, the pair exchanged a glance that relayed both uncertainty and resignation, before sprinting down the path that Maul had indicated. At the end of the path, they came to a turbolift. With the power of the force, the two were able to open the door and enter the lift. But, while on emergency power, the lifts had all seemingly been deactivated. Maul and Scorr gave each other a glance, before starting to quickly cut through the roof of the lift with their lightsabers.
Their exit was above. So, If they couldn't use the lift, they'd have to get to the higher floor the old fashioned way. They would have to climb.
***
Much to both Maul and Scorr's relief, they came upon a set of heavy durasteel doors. The doors appeared to lead out of the facility. But they noted that the lock on the door was secured by a keycard reader. And neither of them had thought to pilfer an Imperial Officer for their security badge.
"If we both work together, perhaps we can cut through the doors before the Sith arrives." maul suggested.
"I have a better idea." Scorr told him.
Then, holding out his hand, Scorr reached out with the force, reached out and into the keycard reader. Lights on the card reader began to flash, before turning green. And, with a metal clank, the doors began to slide open. Much to their mutual relief, they saw that the doors were indeed an exit. The cold durasteel barrier gave way to the sight of the evening sky, twin moons already visible through the planet's atmosphere.
Maul and Scorr ran through the doorway and onto one of the facility's landing pads. But, as they ran to the center of the landing area, both of them were dismayed to see not a single grounded ship in sight. Before they had even a moment to dwell on the severity of their situation, a feeling of dread overtook the both of them. At once, they spun around to see the fearsome knight Darth Atsvara standing before them. As she approached them, the light of the moons reflected off of her pitch black durasteel armor.
The Dark Lord of the Sith ignited her dual crimson lightsabers, Maul and Scorr following suit. But, before any of them could take another step, the whirring of engines filled their ears. Maul and Scorr noticed that Atsvara seemed to be staring right past them both. And, when the pair turned back around, they understood why. Scorr's cargo ship was hovering in the air, rear hatch aimed toward them.
Darth Atsvara raised her hand, just as the rear hatch of the ship opened. Then, in the blink of an eye, a volley of blaster fire rained down on the platform from within the confines of the ship. Atsvara dodged many of the blasts, but was hit and dropped to her hands and knees on the landing pad. Once the rear hatch had lowered enough, Scorr saw that those who were firing on Vader were Gessa and Kay. Not wasting another moment, both Scorr and Maul leapt through the air and into the ship.
Once the pair of force users were onboard, the hatch began to close and the sublight engines began to power up. As the engines kicked on, the ship began to buck and shake violently; but it didn't move from its position in the sky.
"What's going on? Why aren't we moving?" Kay asked.
"He's holding us. It's too late." Maul said in defeat.
On the landing pad, Darth Vader stood with an outstretched hand, willing the force to grasp and bind the ship. To bring it back to the planet's surface. But, before the shuttle could be pulled too far backwards, another volley of blaster fire shot toward Darth Vader from above. But, before the blasts could hit their target, Atsvara dove toward Vader and knocked him out of the way, taking the brunt of the blast. Darth Vader was thrown against the complex wall, his helmet fractured, his yellow pupil visible in the moonlight.
"Ahsoka!" Anakin cried out at the site of a smoking crater where they had once stood.
Through the sky shot an Imperial Shuttle, the same ship that had just fired upon Darth Vader. And, with that act, the grip on their shuttle was released.
"Go, now!" Scorr ordered and Plunder turned the engines to full power, before punching it and sending the shuttle hurdling through the sky.
"Why would an Imperial ship fire on one of its own?" Maul asked.
"Maybe it was Mace?" Kay mused.
"He IS a Jedi Master. I suppose he carries that title for a good reason." Scorr added and Quinlan Vos gave him a look of gratitude at his praise.
"Um, sir? According to the readout, we have several TIE Fighters heading to intercept!" Gessa told them from his position in the co-pilot's seat.
"We just need to exit the planet's atmosphere to make the jump to hyperspace." Scorr said as he approached the co-pilot's chair, Gessa standing up to allow Scorr to take the seat.
"Uh, we should buckle up." Gessa said, worry in their voice.
Kay nodded and the two of them took seats in the rear of the ship, strapping themselves in, as did Vos, Asajj and Maul. M4 simply anchored himself to the ground with magnetic clamps, while Serra just leapt into Kay's arms and laid down. No sooner had they taken their seats, before the ship was rocked with impacts from enemy blaster fire.
"We'll never shake them at this rate! We just need a few more seconds." Scorr said in frustration.
"Maybe we can give it to you." Asajj said and offered her hand to Vos, who took it readily.
The two force users closed their eyes and reached out with their minds, past the durasteel hull of the shuttle within which they currently rode. Outside of the ship, hot on their tail, were two TIE Fighters. Suddenly and without warning, one of the TIE Fighters began to violently shake, before careening to the side. In an instant, both TIE Fighters collided, exploding in a large fireball.
"That's it, we're out of the atmosphere! Take us into hyperspace!" Scorr ordered and, with a series of buttons, Plunder activated the hyperdrive.
In an instant, both their ship and the stolen shuttle jumped into hyperspace, vanishing from the Empire's radars.
***
The small, damaged ship and the stolen Imperial shuttle both set down in the barren fields on the outskirts of Nar Kaaga city, located on the planet Nar Kaaga. Both ships opened, their occupants stepping out to greet one another.
"Looks like the mission was a success." Mace Windu said to Scorr.
"You didn't come for me. You knew it was a trap. You were only there for the Emperor. And, in that regard, you failed." Scorr shot back.
"We're still alive. I'll consider that a small victory." Mace said, earning a smile from Scorr.
"The question is: what now?" Asajj asked.
"This planet is in Hutt Space. That should earn us a momentary reprieve from the reach of the Empire. But we shouldn't stay too long, or we might attract unwelcome customers of a different sort." Vos suggested.
"I still have a few contacts I could reach out to. I don't intend on staying out of this fight. All things considered." Mace told them, displaying his mechanical right hand, which had been cut off as it had before.
"Then I'm coming with you." Vos declared, before looking at Asajj.
"Where you go, I go, my love. If that's not a problem." Asajj turned her gaze to Mace, who only offered her a cursory glance before responding.
"It's fine with me. I'm more concerned about..." Mace's words were cut short when they all turned to look at Maul, who had his back turned toward them.
"Don't worry, I've no intention of asking to tag along with you. I'll find my own way. As a matter of my payment?" Maul asked, turning to exchange glances with Scorr.
Scorr withdrew a small satchel of credits and tossed them to Maul, who caught the parcel. Offering a nod of respect to the Chiss, Maul turned and began to walk toward Nar Kaaga city.
"And what of you?" Asajj asked Kay who had, up until now, been taking in the entire exchange.
"I- I'm staying with Ruza!" She declared.
Mace gave a concerned glance, before Asajj placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
"It's her choice. We all have to find our place in this new galaxy." She told him.
"Even with the company they keep?" Mace retorted, turning his gaze from Plunder to Gessa.
"Hey! Rude!" Gessa said in indignance.
"You might not view mechanicals as worthy of respect, but I do. None of us asked to be born into this world. But we're stuck here nonetheless." Scorr said defiantly, glaring intensely at Mace.
"Very well. I suppose spending years at the other end of a droid blaster has me on edge when it comes to droids." Mace said.
"Apology accepted." Gessa said, earning only a cursory nod from Mace, before the Jedi began walking toward the city, followed by Vos and Asajj.
"Watch the ship. If anything moves, blast it. I'll be back shortly with the parts we need for repairs to be made." Scorr said and Plunder nodded, before running back to the shuttle.
"Roger Roger!" Gessa said, before following.
"Can I come? I've never been to other planets until recently..." Kay asked.
"...just be careful. And trust no one." Scorr agreed, which made Kay smile widely. As they began walking, alongside their feet, sprinted the small Tooka cat Serra.
***
In a medical facility on the planet Mustafar, Anakin Skywalker, helmet removed, stood by the bedside of an injured Ahsoka Tano. She twisted and turned in her bed as her eyes sprang open.
"Snips, you had me worried there for a minute." Anakin said, relief in his voice.
"How long was I out?" She asked.
"A few days. You didn't have to jump in the way like that." He told her.
"I know. But I guess I wasn't thinking. I couldn't lose you. Not after everything..." She said, tears welling up in her eyes.
"I know, Snips. I know." Anakin said and bent down to embrace his apprentice and lover in a tight hug.
***
Some time later, Planet Exegol
A shuttle set down on the rocky, inhospitable surface of the planet and opened up to reveal two cloaked figures. One of them stood at five feet and nine inches tall, clad in a green, hooded cloak. The other stood at just four and a half feet tall and was clad in a brown cloak.
The smaller figure, Kay, turned to her guardian and spoke. "Where are we?"
"Planet Exegol, a former Sith stronghold. But, more importantly, it contains within its depths a rare gem. That is what we seek." The taller figure, Scorr, told her.
"O-okay." Kay agreed as the two began walking.
In only a short time, they came upon a system of caves and journeyed inside. Deeper and deeper they went, until they suddenly found themselves surrounded by vibrant, clear crystalline structures.
"These... are Kyber Crystals." Scorr said.
"Wow!" Kay said and reached out; but Scorr stopped her, placing his hand on her wrist.
"No. You must call a crystal to you. Sit. And reach out with the force. Soon a crystal will choose you and you may begin the next phase of your journey. Constructing a lightsaber." Scorr instructed.
Kay did as she was told, sitting on the cavern's ground and closing her eyes to meditate in the force. Minutes drifted together for Kay, as her mind searched the chasms before her. She was moments away from giving up in frustration when her call with the force was answered back, answered with a spark of light. The spark grew brighter and brighter until, when Kay opened her eyes, the small Kyber crystal was floating before her. Kay smiled and reached out, taking the crystal in her palm.
"Now you may begin. Remember your lessons." Scorr said. "The same lessons I learned from an ancient Sith Holocron, the lessons that brought me here, guided me further along my path in the force."
"R-right... will my lightsaber be the same color as yours?" Kay asked.
"The colors of a kyber crystal are as unique and as vibrant as the people in this galaxy. They are decided by a person's essence, their very being. Only you can decide what that means." Scorr said, before walking away, back toward the cavern's exit.
***
Scorr was sitting in deep meditation at the mouth of the cave, when the sound of footfalls caused him to open his eyes. When he did, he saw Kay standing there, smiling at him. Without prompting, she held up her arm, a newly constructed lightsaber hilt gripped in her hand.
"Let's see it." Scorr said as he stood up.
Kay's smile widened as she pushed a button on the silver hilt, causing a crimson blade to erupt from the top of the device.
"It's... red." Scorr said in shock.
"Like yours..." Kay responded, as she deactivated her new weapon, picking up on the sound of sadness in his voice.
"That's not good, you... you tapped into the power of the dark side. I didn't want this for you... how did you...?" He told her, tears welling up in his eyes.
"While I was focusing on the crystal like you said and I started thinking of you and it just... happened." Kay confessed.
"I'm..." Scorr began, only to be interrupted by Kay throwing her arms around him.
"You're NOT bad, okay?! You were the only one who protected me when my parents were... killed... This is... how much you mean to me." Kay said, as tears poured from her eyes.
Scorr hugged her back tightly, his own tears flowing now.
"Our bond." He said in response.
"I don't care if it is the 'dark side', it's a part of you. And me too now. I know my parents... they're gone, but... you're family to me now." Kay said as the two hugged each other tightly.
"Let's get out of here." Scorr said after they broke their hug.
The pair walked back to their ship and entered, taking a seat in the rear of the vessel.
"Ewlst ri fi?" Plunder asked.
"Ready!" Kay said chipperly.
"Take us out. Course... let's just see." Scorr said, smiling over at Kay as Serra jumped into her lap to lay down.
"Did you find it, sir?" Gessa asked Kay.
"Yep!" She commented, holding up her lightsaber for them to see. "Right in here, my new lightsaber. And you don't have to call me sir."
"Sorry, s- oh, uh... sorry." Gessa said.
{Beep boop beep} R4 uttered.
"You're saying you can reprogram me?" Gessa asked M4.
"They can, they're very competent." Scorr assured Gessa.
"I dunno... reprogramming before usually meant death to droids..." Gessa said.
"We won't erase your memory or anything. You're YOU! And you're awesome. But it's up to you. From now on, you choose what happens to you. We all do." Kay said with a smile and, if Gessa could have, he would have smiled back at her.
The ship left the atmosphere of Planet Exegol and its engines powered on before, in the blink of an eye, the shuttle jumped into hyperspace. Taking itself and the new family within to parts unknown.