Triak Kraal watched the sun touch the horizon on its long, slow death. Around him smoldered the ruins Ifof the infidel city; its cloying odor was unpleasant in his nostrils. He took deep breaths and tried to snort the ugly scent away.<\/p>\n
The sun was setting on Domain Kraal, he knew. Twilight was falling around them. The treachery of the infidel ambush had wiped away chances of honorable victory, and now only death remained.<\/p>\n
Not just death<\/em>, he amended. Either we must die as warriors, the children of the gods, or be Shamed into oblivion. There is no other path.<\/em><\/p>\n Ret Kraal limped up beside him on the pile of rubble. \u201cSupreme One,\u201d he said with a slow, deep bow.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have lost, have we not, tactician?\u201d Triak said low and slow. \u201cEven should I defeat the Jeedai<\/em>, there is no way for us to achieve victory.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe infidels have trapped us,\u201d Ret acknowledged. \u201cBut how do we define victory, Supreme One?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTactician?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019ll permit me, Commander.\u201d Ret bowed his head deeper. \u201cIf you intend for us to conquer this world, as we did infidel strongholds like Ithor, Duro, and Coruscant, it is no longer possible. Our forces are too few. Yet with the help of the gods, we may yet bring about conquest here.\u201d<\/p>\n Triak smiled. \u201cYou trifle with me, tactician.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, Supreme One. Without a strong leader, these infidels will fall apart. If we shatter their coordination, we can use our fleet to raze their cities and wipe out their treacherous race.\u201d Ret bowed so low he nearly tumbled over. \u201cYet all depends upon you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUpon me, tactician?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSuch victory can only be brought about by the will of the gods,\u201d Ret explained. \u201cOur only chance of victory is for your own triumph over the Jeedai<\/em>. With such a victory, all of Domain Kraal will know we are children of the gods without Shame; but if you should fall in the battle, the domain itself will cry out from the abandonment of the gods and no victory can be found.\u201d<\/p>\n Triak thought about Ret\u2019s words for long moments. \u201cThen the solution is clear\u2014Domain Kraal shall fight one more battle, either for victory or honor, regardless of the outcome of this duel with the Jeedai.<\/em> Am I correct, tactician?\u201d<\/p>\n Ret nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cThen spread the word to all our remaining warriors, and relay instructions to the fleet. Upon conclusion of the duel, either way, strike with all remaining strength. Wipe out these Iridonians. Leave none alive! Let no abomination escape our wrath!\u201d Triak trembled. \u201cEven should we be Shamed, we still remain true to the tenants of the True Faith! Should we be shamed, let us find redemption in the blood of our enemies!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs you command,\u201d Ret groveled, then limped away to follow his orders.<\/p>\n Triak pondered the slowly dying sun, possibly the last such sight he would ever see. I will destroy this <\/em>Jeedai, <\/em>he told himself. I wish only for the opportunity to avenge myself upon my true enemy, the infidels\u2019 warmaster. I would trade everything for a chance at his head.<\/em><\/p>\n As the sun nearly dipped completely below the horizon, Ret Kraal cleared his throat. \u201cYour foe approaches, Supreme One.\u201d<\/p>\n Triak turned away from the last remnant of sunlight in time to see his enemy advancing.<\/p>\n In the dying light, he was shocked to see the identity of his foe was not the Jeedai<\/em> woman.<\/p>\n It was the infidel warmaster, Halyn Sanshir.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Halyn Lance wished he felt a fraction of the strength and energy he remembered from his previous fights with the Yuuzhan Vong. Instead, he felt exhausted, at the very edge of collapse. Kelta\u2019s healing had taken him from the edge of death, but he knew her efforts hadn\u2019t healed him entirely\u2014his torn muscles, bruised ribs, cracked bones all cursed him for his foolishness. His own movements seemed impossibly slow, like he was walking through syrup.<\/p>\n The zhaboka on his back and the sword at his hip were heavier than he remembered; even his duster seemed to weigh thirty extra kilos. The fast march through the Rak\u2019Edalin ruins had sapped him further of his strength, though his impossible exertions had left his body in surprisingly good physical condition outside of his multiple injuries. He knew, in spite of it all, he would be capable of fighting this duel. I hope.<\/em><\/p>\n Neither Halyn nor Anishor had seen Kativie and Ceikeh during their attempts to reach the site of the duel. Halyn had worried that the other pair would reach the location first, but his fears had proven unfounded. Now to convince this Vong to fight me instead of Kativie.<\/em><\/p>\n He didn\u2019t have much experience reading the expressions of Vong warriors\u2014they never showed fear, and he had an accurate grasp on surprise from cutting them down in combat, but nearly any other emotion was beyond him. Though I\u2019m going to go with shock<\/em>, he decided.<\/p>\n \u201cYou<\/em>,\u201d the Yuuzhan Vong warrior hissed. \u201cIt\u2019s you<\/em>. The infidel warmaster.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen you must be Triak Kraal, the Vong commander,\u201d Halyn said, deliberately insulting his opponent with the abbreviated Vong<\/em>. \u201cOr are you his second, because he was too cowardly to show up?\u201d<\/p>\n The warrior growled at him. \u201cFoolish little Zabrak. I shall snap your neck after I destroy the Jeedai<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSuch a coward, even now,\u201d Halyn commented. \u201cYou Vong and your \u2018honor.\u2019 All you want is a big death, and you know a Jedi will give you that. You\u2019re hiding behind that, hoping she\u2019ll kill you, because if you die to me<\/em>, just a normal heretic, then you\u2019re dishonored, right?\u201d He laughed aloud at the warrior. \u201cKeep hiding from me, Commander, just like you have this entire war. That\u2019s why you\u2019ve been throwing your troops at me, isn\u2019t it? You wouldn\u2019t dare fight me yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n The Vong growled, deep in his throat. \u201cI look forward to gutting you,\u201d he snarled. \u201cI shall feast upon your entrails when you die, insignificant little nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis little insignificant nothing spits on your whole domain,\u201d Halyn said succinctly. \u201cMust be irritating not to crush a bug, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n Triak continued to stare him down, but Halyn didn\u2019t budge a centimeter. Keep it up.<\/em> \u201cYeah, it\u2019s a pity you\u2019ll never get a chance to kill the Zabrak who proved your whole domain is a bunch of godless cowards, isn\u2019t it? The one who showed the galaxy that your gods are a bunch of fakes, and you don\u2019t have the strength to stand up to a single race on a single world?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI shall crush every bone in your body,\u201d the Vong commander snarled.<\/p>\n \u201cThen fight me!\u201d Halyn shouted. \u201cFight me, and prove you\u2019re not the coward the whole galaxy knows you to be!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI accept,\u201d the Vong spat.<\/p>\n Halyn smirked. Got him. This is all mine.<\/em><\/p>\n The Zabrak turned his back deliberately and walked back to Anishor while Triak Kraal returned to his second. \u201cOkay,\u201d Halyn said quietly to the big Wookiee. \u201cThis is all going according to plan.\u201d<\/p>\n <According to plan?> Anishor asked. <You\u2019ve gotten yourself into a one on one fight against the meanest Yuuzhan Vong on the planet. Honor brother, I don\u2019t know if you can win this battle.><\/p>\n \u201cOf course I can,\u201d Halyn said confidently. \u201cI\u2019ve beaten other Vong, haven\u2019t I?\u201d<\/p>\n <Yes, you have, when you could feel no pain or exhaustion. Now I see both in your eyes\u2014this war has taken as much out of you as it has any of us, but you did not know it until now. If you were rested a week\u2019s time, you could stand and face him as he is now. But I do not believe you have the strength to face him currently.><\/p>\n \u201cWell, I don\u2019t think either he or Kativie are going to wait a week now, are they?\u201d Halyn said with a small smile.<\/p>\n <This is not a joking matter, coatrack.><\/p>\n \u201cNo time to joke like the present. Especially since I might be dead later.\u201d Halyn smiled just a bit to his friend.<\/p>\n <Halyn, you can\u2019t beat him.> Anishor was deadly serious. <He\u2019s far more prepared for this fight, and he\u2019s committed to killing you even at the cost of his own life. He\u2019s a born killer\u2014not because he fights to protect, as we do, but solely because he chooses to kill.><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019ll be okay. I have a plan.\u201d<\/p>\n <Plan? What plan?><\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ll see.\u201d Halyn freed his zhaboka from his back and spun it around in his hand. Its motions seemed slower than they should have been, but he didn\u2019t let his discomfort show. Instead, he jammed the weapon blade-first into the dirt and turned back to face Triak Kraal.<\/p>\n The Yuuzhan Vong commander was now marching toward him, a hissing amphistaff in hand. Around his left bracer was a coiled baton of command, a much shorter but no less deadly living weapon.<\/p>\n This is going to get interesting, <\/em>Halyn decided. He\u2019s well-equipped and apparently came through the turbolaser raking a lot better than I\u2019d hoped. Damn.<\/em><\/p>\n The Yuuzhan Vong commander stopped and glared at his opponent. \u201cYou insult the Yuuzhan Vong and Domain Kraal. You rely on treacherous ambushes and fight without the honor of a warrior. For your affronts against the chosen race of the gods, I shall strike you down.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou led an invasion of the home of my ancestors,\u201d Halyn said acidly in return. \u201cThe very dust of this world is in the bones of all Zabraks everywhere. I fight for the world of my birth and the birthplace of my race. Your gods<\/em> will never have sway here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLet us waste no more time with words,\u201d Triak growled. \u201cWe both have known this moment would come. We each wanted it from the very beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the way it always had to be,\u201d Halyn acknowledged. \u201cJust you and me, Vong. Iridonia against your gods.\u201d<\/p>\n Halyn dipped his head into a bow\u2014the only sign of respect he had given Triak Kraal the entire time. Triak hesitated before mirroring his gesture, returning a small token of respect\u2014perhaps mocking.<\/p>\n The Zabrak struck.<\/p>\n He lashed out with the zhaboka, putting all his strength and speed behind the blow. The blades flashed in the dim light, arrow-straight for Triak\u2019s head.<\/p>\n It was the same trap Jram Lusp had tried to spring on him in the Council chamber during their duel for the title of Ul\u2019akhoi. Halyn had survived the attack by luck and poor judgement on Jram\u2019s part. While many had declared the attack treacherous and dishonorable, Halyn had always played fast and loose with the rules. To some degree, he considered such concern for \u201chonor\u201d to be archaic and foolish, and had carefully committed the details of the ambush to memory for later use.<\/p>\n A one-on-one duel with a Yuuzhan Vong warrior seemed like a great opportunity to try his hand at it.<\/p>\n Impossibly the Vong was already moving, and the blade did no more than slice through skin across the back of his head. Triak Kraal dove away, shoulder-rolling awkwardly before coming up with his amphistaff in hand.<\/p>\n Well, so much for that plan<\/em>, Halyn thought glumly as he brought his zhaboka up into a defensive guard. Let\u2019s see what happens now.<\/em><\/p>\n Triak seemed determined to give him no time or space to plan. The warrior charged at him, twirling the amphistaff over his head in a flourish before leaping toward the Zabrak, swinging the amphistaff down in an overhead two-handed power blow.<\/p>\n Halyn barely had time to bring his zhaboka up to block. The blow brought white-hot flares of pain to his wrists from the impact, and he nearly dropped his weapon. The Vong continued to press down hard, as though trying to force the zhaboka into Halyn\u2019s skull.<\/p>\n The Zabrak finally twisted out from under the Yuuzhan Vong, pushing the strike away. Triak stumbled for a moment, giving Halyn just enough time to turn and plant his feet before the Vong threw a pair of lightning-fast strikes at him, left-right.<\/p>\n The first slapped harmlessly against his leather duster\u2014he suspected neither Yuuzhan Vong nor amphistaff had expected the strike to land\u2014and he caught the second on the zhaboka. He counterattacked with a spinning kick aimed at Triak\u2019s head, but the Vong withdrew a half-step and let the foot flash past. Halyn was still recovering when the Vong\u2019s foot swept through his ankle, sending him sprawling to the ashes and the zhaboka flying.<\/p>\n Halyn immediately rolled away; an instant later Triak\u2019s amphistaff buried itself head-first into the ash less than two centimeters from his shoulder. The force of the blow buried the living weapon\u2019s head beneath the rubble, and the Zabrak gave him no time to respond. The simple forged sword swept out from under the cloak and flashed with its own internal light, striking the blinded weapon and severing it into two pieces.<\/p>\n Triak snarled as his baton of command slithered into his hand and extended out into a blade, a mirror image of Halyn and his sword. Halyn pulled himself to his feet, doing his best to ignore the flares of pain from both knees as he leveled his sword at Triak.<\/p>\n The two stood facing each other. The sunlight was gone now, but the stars provided dim illumination. More light seemed to emit from Halyn\u2019s blade, casting him in a blue-white glow.<\/p>\n For the hope of Iridonia<\/em>, Anishor had engraved in the blade over twenty years ago. He couldn\u2019t have known then<\/em>, Halyn thought. He doesn\u2019t have visions. But it\u2019s still like he knew, somehow.<\/em><\/p>\n Vong and Zabrak continued to wait, mirror-posed, each waiting for the other to slip, to make a mistake, to be distracted.<\/p>\n Triak finally tired of the waiting game and charged, sweeping high-low with his blade. Halyn barely dodged the first strike, caught the second on his sword just enough to keep the Vong\u2019s attack from disemboweling him, but not enough to prevent injury. The blade traced a line of bloody fire across his belly.<\/p>\n He hopped back and hissed. I\u2019m not fast enough<\/em>, he realized. Now that Kelta healed me, I can\u2019t keep up with this pace. There\u2019s only one sane thing left to do.<\/em><\/p>\n Halyn charged.<\/p>\n He swung the sword as hard as he could, over and over, aiming for the Vong\u2019s head, his throat, his chest. Triak seemed to stumble backward at the ferocity of the assault, his living blade frantically swinging to block and parry the blows.<\/p>\n Halyn continued to press hard. He\u2019s not used to fighting with a shorter-bladed weapon. He\u2019s too used to the amphistaff. You can beat him. Push, push, push!<\/em><\/p>\n Triak hopped backward and Halyn rushed him one last time. Then his foot caught the hole Triak had leapt over, sending him to his knees.<\/p>\n His sword went tumbling from his grasp; intense pain flared from his twisted ankle, and his palms and wrists cried out in protest as he landed heavily on them. He immediately tried to straighten, but before he could so much as lean back to pull himself to his feet, he felt the Yuuzhan Vong\u2019s weapon lay against his shoulder.<\/p>\n Slowly, he looked up. Triak Kraal stood over him, a smirk of triumph twisting his face into an ugly death mask. \u201cDid you believe you could defeat me?\u201d the Yuuzhan Vong warrior snarled. \u201cA twist of my wrist, and your head will fall to the cursed dirt of this world. First you, then the Jeedai<\/em>, and finally your world.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re a fool if you think you\u2019ve won,\u201d Halyn said bluntly. \u201cYour forces are devastated. You don\u2019t have the numbers you\u2019d need to conquer my world.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI shall burn every living thing on this world,\u201d Triak snarled. \u201cA burnt offering of life to the gods.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHalyn!<\/em>\u201d a very female voice screamed.<\/p>\n Katie. It has to be Kativie.<\/em><\/p>\n It was\u2014the Jedi Knight\u2019s lightsaber was in hand and lit, an emerald beacon in the falling darkness. Ceikeh Alari was dimly visible in the light of her weapon. \u201cHalyn!<\/em>\u201d she screamed again.<\/p>\n Triak looked at the Jedi and gave her the same death-head smile he had already given his fallen opponent.<\/p>\n It was the opportunity Halyn had looked for the entire fight.<\/p>\n Triak Kraal stared down with uncomprehending eyes as purple fire chewed through his belly. \u201cYou\u2026you\u2019re no Jeedai<\/em>,\u201d he said dumbly.<\/p>\n \u201cDoesn\u2019t take a Jedi to push a button, scarhead,\u201d Halyn snarled, then yanked back violently on the hilt of the lightsaber, forcing the brilliant blade to burn through his chest. The Zabrak stood up as the Yuuzhan Vong fell backward to the ashes.<\/p>\n When the Vong had completely crumpled, Halyn shut down Kelta\u2019s lightsaber and returned it to the hook inside the sleeve of his duster.<\/p>\n <That was Kelta\u2019s token?> Anishor growled from the sudden darkness.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah. She can be pretty sneaky for a Jedi. Don\u2019t know if she had some Force-hunch or what, but that worked out better than expected.\u201d Halyn allowed himself a small, weary smile. The only thing I want right now is to fall into bed for a month<\/em>, he thought.<\/p>\n Arms wrapped tightly around him, squeezing him so hard he struggled to breathe. \u201cYou\u2019re alive!<\/em>\u201d Kativie shouted in his ear, half-deafening him and bringing fresh pain to his ribs as she continued to cling to him fiercely. \u201cHow? How?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKelta,\u201d Halyn croaked. \u201cShe found a way.\u201d<\/p>\n The arms loosened, and he could breathe again. \u201cWelcome back, boss,\u201d Ceikeh Alari drawled slowly. \u201cI never doubted you.\u201d<\/p>\n Halyn snorted. \u201cYeah, right.\u201d<\/p>\n Then a terrifying, soul-ripping cry filled the air. It went up singly, first, from Triak Kraal\u2019s second; then it was echoed, again and again, in the darkness surrounding them. It was a simple cry that had been heard across every world the Yuuzhan Vong had conquered; untranslated it was unnerving, but knowledge of the meaning made it a nightmare for the defenders of the New Republic.<\/p>\n \u201cDo-ro\u2019ik vong pratte!\u201d And woe to our enemies.<\/em><\/p>\n It was the cry of every warrior of the Yuuzhan Vong race, a blood-boiling call to glory, war, and victory.<\/p>\n Now, it was the cry of an entire domain of Shamed warriors\u2014warriors who would rather fight to their deaths then admit defeat, warriors who could not live with disgrace or Shame.<\/p>\n From the darkness, every Yuuzhan Vong left alive on Rak\u2019Edalin echoed the battle cry.<\/p>\n And then attacked.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Triak Kraal watched the sun touch the horizon on its long, slow death. Around him smoldered the ruins Ifof the infidel city; its cloying odor was unpleasant in his nostrils. He took deep breaths and tried to snort the ugly … Continue reading