Lava is mined as a precious natural resource on this volatile and volcanic world. The opposing gravitational forces of the twin gas giants closest to Mustafar tear apart the planet’s surface to reveal the mineral-rich lava flows underneath. Once serving as the capital world for the Confederacy of Independent Systems, remnants of their past influence still linger. Massive mining facilities—originally constructed by the Techno Union—are still maintained by the native Mustafarians, an egocentric people who would like nothing more than to squeeze minerals for the purposes of trade and commerce from their volcanic planet.

Other than in the pursuit of business interests, few arrive on Mustafar save for those needing to incinerate evidence in its vast expanses of magma. What little curiosity is given to the volcanic planet is thwarted by a natural scanning interference caused by intense geological activity. Pirates, smugglers, criminals and scum all value this world’s ability to dump bodies, tracked cargo shipments and other unwanted articles—the singular reason for the Black Sun’s interest in the Outer Rim world.

Droids, machines and conveyor belts create the workings of an efficient system to extract the minerals and have it prepared for refinement and transportation. Lacking a suitable surface, metal walkways are shielded against the heat to allow workers passage throughout the facilities. Even with the worst of the heat being shielded against, Mustafar’s temperature remains less than comfortable to most species lacking exoskeletons.

Beyond the blistering heat of the volcanic world, Mustafar served as the battlefield for the fabled final duel between Obi Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker.

'Why does it have to be Mustafar?'

Appius kept asking himself that question as the lava burst into his eyesight. The orange and red hues swallowed at the darkness as it shot into the air, the heat almost unbearable even from a distance. The last time that Appius had stood on this wretched world was when he came to sever the ties of his old life. He had battled his former apprentice, trying to get Trenkyp to kill him so he could end the suffering and turmoil that was going on inside Appius' heart.

The new Taldryan Consul shook his head, trying to shake the memories and feelings from his body. The darkness didn't consume him, not anymore. He was in control. He had to be.

'That was then, this is now. I'm a different man. A better man.'

Needless to say, Mustafar was not Appius' first choice for a face-to-face meeting. Bentre Sadow, the Clan Naga Sadow Consul, had been insistent on coming out this far to discuss matters regarding their common enemy, the Unchained. Now, Appius could understand that their mutual foe could have had eyes and ears within the Caelus and Orion Systems respectively, but coming all the way out to this Force forsaken magma rock seemed a bit excessive, if you asked him!

Yet, here he was, as punctual as ever, at their destined meeting spot within one of the many mining facilities that scoured the Mustafar surface. Lava roared like thunder as droids and local Mustafarians worked tirelessly to collect their precious product for shipping. On either side of the Mandalorian were two bridges leading into other parts of the facility, hanging treacherously over the magma rivers below. The sky was an ashen black, no doubt tainted from the smoke produced from the planet itself. The fumes alone were suffocating, and to Appius, the sooner he was off the dust ball of a world, the better.

That's when the Taldryan Consul sensed a presence approaching him, but it wasn't the Clan Naga Sadow Consul. Instead, it was a man instantly recognised as wearing Mandalorian armor as black as night. The person wearing the armor was tall, though Appius could not tell the race of the person behind the T-shaped visor.

"You aren't Bentre," Appius pointed out, and after a moment when this individual didn't respond, he continued. "Who are you?"

Suddenly, the Taldryan Consul felt the spike of killing intent surge through his subconscious. The black-armoured man retrieved a cylindrical hilt from his side and activated the weapon, revealing a cerulean blue lightsaber blade that pierced through the Mustafar atmosphere. The matte-black armoured man raised the weapon far above his head, lunged forward, and brought it down upon Appius with the strength of a rancor.

'SITHSPIT!'

The Taldryan Consul responded by pouring the Force through his body, empowering his limbs and leaping out of the way. With a mighty swoosh, the blue lightsaber blade cleaved through the metal railing Appius had been next to like it was a hot knife through butter, and leaving sparks of orange in its wake. Lava burst from the planet below, though the Mandalorian Consul had little time to dwell on it. Appius twisted in the air, turning his body to face his would-be attackers as sparks danced between his fingertips. Lightning lanced towards the black-clad man as he positioned his lightsaber to absorb the brunt of the attack.

Appius landed on a rickety bridge leading to another part of the mining facility, staggering back to gain some distance from his attacker. Unfortunately for him, the bridge was structured above one of the many lava rivers that flowed across Mustafar's surface. It was a steep drop, but even from this level of elevation, the Taldryanite could feel the heat building in the soles of his feet.

Appius' attacker wasted no time in taking advantage of his enemies position, with a blunt, horizontal swing, he severed through the end supports of the bridge.

"That's not good!" Appius exclaimed as the bridge collapsed sending him tumbling down to the lava below.

'Sithspit, sithspit, SITHSPIT!' the Mandalorian Force User screamed in his mind.

Falling into lava was not what he had intended today, and the heat became more and more intense the closer he got to his demise. Luckily for him, he was equipped with perhaps the best jetpack that money could afford. Appius activated the device strapped to his back as the thrusters propelled him skywards, back towards his opponent.

To the enemy's credit, it appeared that he hadn't moved from his position. No doubt he was waiting for the Consul's life force to be snuffed out before confirming that he was actually dead.

Sucks to be him, since Appius prided himself on being annoyingly hard to kill. It was, as far as he was concerned, one of his better qualities.

"SURPRISE!" Appius exclaimed.

The Taldryanite suddenly emerged into view and attempted to get the drop on his opponent, who sidestepped the Consul's reckless attempt to crash into him, causing the Taldryanite to skid across the floor of the platform. Appius retrieved his saberstaff hilt from his waist, but kept it inactivated for the moment.

"So, here's how this is going to work. You are going to tell me who you are, who you are working for, and why you are trying to kill me, and I might not have to cleave you with my lightsaber. How does that sound?" Appius bargained.

The two men stood opposite one another, and to his credit, the black-armoured man remained steadfast before decidedly humouring the Consul

"My name is Malisane Sadow, Quaestor of House Shar Dakhan of Clan Naga Sadow. I am here on my own volition to kill you, Appius Wight, Consul of Clan Taldryan, the reason for the Unchained attacking the Orion System," Malisane finally answered.

"The reason? We drove them out! It's not our fault they attacked you next!" Appius spat back. "Does Bentre know you are doing this? Was this his idea?"

In response, Malisane retrieved a small spherical device from his waist, a device that Appius instantly recognised as a thermal detonator.

"What Bentre doesn't know won't hurt him. So long as I prevent future threats to Clan Naga Sadow, that's all I care about. Threats, that start with you," the Sadowan answered, pressing the ignition on the explosive as he threw it towards Appius.

Malisane fired his jetpack and felt himself soar upwards as the grenade bounced across the platform, landing beneath the Consul’s feet. He watched intensely as the enemy reacted, doing the only thing possible as a burst of flame sent the Taldryan upwards as well, lifting himself away from both the Sith and the grenade. Malisane shut his eyes, the black lenses sliding into place against the sudden burst of shock and flame as the detonator exploded.

He opened his eyes again and searched for his opponent. The Quaestor cursed under his breath as he saw the enemy hovering on the other side of the platform, as it shook and collapsed into the lava below. He looked shaken but unscathed.

Malisane snarled and pulled his scattergun from his back, holding it in both hands as he powered the jetpack towards his foe. He aimed and fired a shot directly at the Taldryan sorcerer. It was not accurate but it did not need to be. The spreading barrage of armour piercing shot hit the Consul directly in the chest, scoring into the dense beskar breast plate but not reaching the wearer's flesh.

As he moved closer the Warlord aimed again, sensing it would take one more shot to rip the plate open and his enemies vital organs below. His finger nursed the trigger as he aimed, and then as he began to depress it there was another violent burst of light.

The Quaestor felt the explosion of force light burn into his retinas, penetrating even through the coated visor of his helmet. A second later his black embedded lenses slammed shut protecting his eyes. Malisane snarled in fury as he shook his head, trying to clear it from the bright light he could see even with his eyes covered. Then he felt a surge of pain rock through him as lightning arched and crackled across his armour, before dissipating but leaving his body twitching slightly.

This is why he despised those who used the force as a direct weapon, instead of enhancing their own natural physical abilities. He had hated the Krath in his own Clan and elsewhere for years, and now he hated this opponent and his weasily tricks.

He forced open his eyes and focused blurrily on the Consul who was floating towards him, saber in one hand and the other raised for another force attack. He fired the scattergun again and the Taldryan floated aside, the shot hitting him in the side and rending his armour but causing no serious damage.

Having been given a moment of respite, the Sith powered his jetpack down again, moving past the collapsed platform and landing on a long, narrow gantry over the churning lava, seeing his opponent doing likewise. He dropped the weapon and drew his saber once more, his blade igniting. As he felt the force surging through him, he charged the Consul.

He cleared the distance between them in seconds and hacked furiously at his enemy, the azure saber moving up and down as the Consul’s double blade spun as the Taldryan backed off, focusing on his training as he defended himself. Malisane felt a surge of triumph as he felt his muscles grow stronger and his movements faster as he hacked at the quicker but physically weaker opponent, trying to batter the Mandolorian down. He knew that it would only take one strike past his opponent’s defences to inflict a terrible injury and bring this battle to a close.

Then there was a burst of flame from the right and below as a fountain of lava erupted, showering over the Sith’s head. For a second Malisane fought to overcome his instinct to ignore it and continue his attack. His free hand reached up and dragged at the seals holding his helmet in place as the lava burned through it. Finally he wrenched the melting helmet from his head and threw it into the lava below where it sank with a hiss.

He looked at his opponent who was watching him steadily, apparently unmoved by the sight of the Sith’s mutilated head and features and the furious look in his blue eyes beneath the opening and closing black lenses. As Malisane took a breath of the foul air, the Consul spoke.

“You are a fool,” Appius spat at him angrily, “you will kill both of us. What do you hope to achieve, war between our Clans? A vendetta? You think if you kill me the stronger of our Clan will not seek you out in revenge and the other Sadowans?”

The Sith’s ripped mouth twisted into a sneer. “Does it look like I care about revenge from the Taldrya?” he replied, “Officially your death will be a mystery as your corpse is swallowed by the lava below us. Unofficially word will spread and it will be a warning to the other Clans to keep their personal mess from Naga Sadow’s territory.”

“A worthy sentiment,” Appius replied from beneath his helmet. “There is just one problem.”

“And that would be?” the Dakhan Quaestor demanded.

The Taldryan Consul raised his saber. “I do not die so easily.”

There was a sudden shake as the gantry rocked, causing both opponents to plant their feet and right themselves. Then they both advanced, weapons raised and determined to end this.

Lava burst from the rivers below, illuminating their battle in a chorus of orange and red. It roared like a hungry krayt dragon, eager to devour its prey. Malisane's hate for people like Appius drove him forward like liquid fire burned in his veins. With both hands on his weapon, the Sith raised it and brought it down once again upon the Taldryan Consul. Appius twirled his saberstaff to intercept the attack, feeling the full force of Malisane's strength as the Taldryanite's hands shook from the impact.

'Frakking hell!' Appius thought. Malisane was strong. Stronger than he had initially expected.

Not wanting to be caught off guard, Appius attempted a haphazard, diagonal strike towards Malisane. Though the Quaestor simply allowed the attack to strike his armor as the successful hit created little more than sparks.

'Beskar!?' Appius screamed in his mind. The Force beckoned Appius in his mind to move when it screamed a warning to the front of the Consul's consciousness. Unfortunately, Appius had little time to react against the clubbing, powerful blows Malisane hit him with again, and again, and again. All Appius could do was retreat slowly and defend himself. Even if he was wearing beskar himself, that armor wasn't without its weak points. Gaps existed where the joints in the body existed, allowing them to move. If Malisane cut through there, he'd lose a limb, lose this battle, and likely, his life all at the same time.

'Djem So…' Appius thought to himself as he realised the style of lightsaber combat Malisane was using. 'He's using power-based strikes to try and break through my defence, and he's using his armor to cover for any gaps in his offence. But the form has a mobility weakness which is why he's only advancing on me slowly. If I could just get behind him…'

"It's a pity that Naga Sadow is so weak," Appius commented amidst fearsome lightsaber strikes. Malisane did not respond, but the Taldryan Consul observed the Sith scrunch up his face at his words. "Considering you needed Taldryan's help to save your sorry hides, you should count yourselves lucky we came to your rescue."

"It's your Clan's fault the Unchained were in the Orion System in the first place! A powerful enemy at that!" Malisame hissed, his strikes becoming more aggressive as they cut parts of the gantry around them.

"A weakened enemy," Appius corrected as he parried an incoming strike at his head. "Taldryan chased the Unchained out of the Caelus System. It's not our fault you couldn't finish them off! Some Sith Empire you all turned out to be! The real Naga Sadow would be ashamed of you all!"

Dun Moch, or the ancient art of talking Sithspit to an opponent, was considered a crude tactic by many saberists in the galaxy. Despite it being as crude as it was, it nonetheless had the desired effect. It was only slight, but Appius felt the gap in Malisane's offence as the Sith let his concentration slip for just a moment.

Taking advantage, Appius activated the thrusters on his jetpack once again and sent himself airborne. He remained in the air for a few seconds until he landed on the other side of Malisane, ready to take advantage and attack!

However, something stopped him. A sensation took over Appius as he tried to connect to the Force to empower his muscles, but instead of the great tsunami that usually flowed through his body, it was like a gentle wave that washed up on the gentle beaches of Naboo. No matter how much the Taldryan Consul tried to force power through his body, it wouldn't listen to him.

"What… the hell!?" Appius exclaimed. Drawing upon the Force was like sipping through a squeezed straw.

'I'm nowhere near my limit yet, what's…' the Consul's eyes widened as realisation dawned on him. His ability to tap into the Force was being suppressed!

"It's over, you've lost. NOW DIE!" Malisane spoke with venom in his words.

Behind his visor, Appius grit his teeth together as sweat dripped from his brow. His heart thundered in his chest from the heat of the battle and the planet itself. The Mandalorian needed access to the Force if he wanted any hope of getting out of this alive.

Appius was in desperate need of a distraction. Luckily, he had an idea of how to do it. The Consul threw his saberstaff at the Sith, forcing him to react or be struck by it. Malisane's combat instincts were on point as he sliced the saber in twain. The two separate sides of the hilt fell off the gantry and down into the lava river below.

'THERE'S MY CHANCE!'

Malisane's weapon was lowered by his swing to cut the saberstaff, and Appius seized his moment. With what little of the Force he could summon through his body, he charged at Malisane with reckless abandon. Before the Sith could retaliate, he was winded by Appius' shoulder digging into his sternum. Beskar or not, Malisane still felt it when something, or rather someone, slammed into him!

Appius continued to push until both men fell off the edge of the gantry. The Taldryan Consul could feel the Force begin to flow through him once again, uninhibited, completely at his control like sweet honey trickling through every vein in his body. Unfortunately, Appius' relief was cut short when the Force screamed into his subconscious, warning him of his imminent fall into the molten rivers below if he or Malisane didn't do something!

'FRAKK! NOT AGAIN!' The Consul screamed in his mind.

Both men scrambled to activate their jetpack. Twin sets of thrusters burst to life and carried the two Force users perilously over the lava, sending both men crashing into the embankment. They skid across the almost searing soil, the kind of heat that both Appius and Malisane could feel through their beskar. The Taldryanite was the first to rise to his feet and stood over Malisane. Both men were panting, their near-death experience shaking them slightly. Now, Appius was no doctor. But even he could see the unnatural angle that Malisane's leg was bent. To the Sith's credit, he didn't scream in pain, nor beg for mercy. The Sadowan was defiant even in the face of adversity.

Appius could respect that, even if it was questionable given how close they both were to melting in lava just a couple of minutes prior.

"I think we are done here," the Taldryanite declared. "Your landing was rougher than mine."

"Then do it," Malisane ordered, fighting and gritting his teeth through the pain. "Finish me off."

Appius was silent for an answer. It was true, he could kill Malisane now, and in fairness, he'd deserve it after attacking him. The urge to do so rose within him, his darkness coming to the forefront of his thoughts as the Consul clenched his fists at his sides.

'That was then, this is now. I'm a different man. A better man.'

"No…" Appius said in little more than a whisper. "No, I won't kill you. I have every right too, but I came here hoping for an alliance between our Clan's. I'd like to hope, against all of this, that it's still possible."

"Bentre will never agree to it," Malisane spat back, causing Appius to shrug.

"Maybe he will, maybe he won't. But we have a common enemy. I have to at least try."

Appius began walking his way up the embankment. He turned to Malisane one last time…

"I'll send help to retrieve you. Just hold tight until then," the Taldryan Consul declared, leaving Malisane to stew in his pain and thoughts.

The opponents looked at each other warily, standing several feet apart on the narrow gantry. Beneath them the lava churned and boiled. Malisane was blinking his black lenses open and shut more rapidly than normal and he was finding breathing harder. Without his helmet he was suffering in the foul sulphurous conditions.. He wanted to end this.

Suddenly he moved his free hand, aiming a powerful force blow at the Consul, who rocked backwards and grabbed one of the two narrow rails for support. The Warlord leapt at him, aiming a powerful thrust at his enemies chest. Appius just managed to bring his saber round to deflect the blow away. Malisane moved his own blade rapidly, hitting at his enemy’s own and trying to knock it from the sorcerer's grasp.

Seeing the move Appius backed off, concentrating on his defence. A glance into the sorcerer’s eyes seemed to suggest that he was thinking quickly, and Malisane kept on him, hacking at him as Appius gave more ground. Then there was another explosion of light.

Malisane slammed his lenses shut once more, but without the protection of the helmet's tinted visor it was far more acute this time and he backed off, his free hand coming up to try and shield his eyes. He opened and shut them, trying to dispel the after effects of the burst as he sensed the Consul quickly advancing on him. In desperation he thrust his hand at the ground and there was a detonation that rocked him as he flailed for the rail to his left.

As he gave himself a minute to try and clear his vision further, and then there was a horrendous screaming noise of twisted metal. The ground moved under his feet and he landed on his front, and he felt himself sliding backwards helplessly down the bending gantry floor. He was acutely aware of the boiling lava below and as he kept a grip on his saber with one hand his other grasped at anything that would steady him on the smooth surface. Finally his arm snaked out and grabbed a beam connected to the rail.

He looked up. The Consul was on his front further up the gantry, holding the rail with his arm and climbing. Appius looked down at the Quaestor and seemed to pause for a moment. Then he steadied himself by wrapping an arm around a support, and ignited his lightsaber. As Malisane watched, Appius slowly angled his body and began to cut along the thick metal floor beneath him.

Malisane hit the jetpack booster and it gave a jolt, and then began to lift him upwards slowly. He glanced at the display on his wrist and was concerned to find the fuel was nearly spent. He took a deep breath and then fired it full strength, sending him soaring upwards in one final burst. Appius gave a gasp as the Quaestor landed next to him, grabbing and holding onto a support.

The Consul tried to bring his saber up but Malisane grabbed his wrist with his free hand, swinging his body across the Taldryan leader.

Appius armoured head raised to meet him. “Enough now,” he shouted, “it's over!”

“Not yet Consul!”” Malisane spat.

“You are insane,” Appias replied, “give up man!”

In response Malisane wrenched the Consul’s wrist harder, banging it against the metal floor beneath them. Finally Appius lost his grip, dropping the saber down into the lava. In respons, Appius slammed his head forward and the beskar helmet smashed into the Quaestor's face, knocking it backwards. Malisane felt his head swim and his grip weaken. Finally as he began to fall he wrapped his arms around Appius' body and held on.

Feeling the dead weight of the Dakhan Quaestor, Appius beat at him desperatley with his free fist, until he finally lost his grip. The last sound was a triumphant roar from the Sith before they both disappeared under the boiling lava.