So named because it is located one thousand, three hundred, and thirteen levels from the core of Coruscant, Level 1313 is distanced from the politics of the upper levels. Overlooking the chasm burrowing further into Coruscant’s core, one can watch freighters transporting their illicit cargo between levels. One misstep would send the careless careening into the bottomless pit, or aid the local gangs in staging “accidents.”

Weathered duracrete forms the retainer along the chasm wall, built in concentric rings that descend down an untold height. Strengthened with solid durasteel braces, maintenance has not been needed this far into Coruscant for a long time. Nevertheless, droids pre-programmed to fill in the cracks and crevices that might form in the walls float on repulsorlifts without drawing attention from the criminal gangs. The gangs themselves are focused on their next smuggling operation or struggle for control over Coruscant’s scum-filled underbelly.

The night had been so bright.

Music, people, alcohol, and then darkness.

It was always disorientating when she awoke, but at least there was warmth. Aay'han didn't want to peel her eyes open yet, resting even on the hard damp floor felt good. Fingers grasped at the source of the heat that felt to be rapidly dissipating into a chill.

Ice cold fingers curled around flesh to capture the fleeting comfort it offered. It went far too quickly for her tastes. Reluctantly, Aay'han peeled her eyes open only to be welcomed by dimmed lighting in the backwater alleys of an unknown place.

A small sigh of disappointment passed her lips as she tried to reach back and recall how she got here.

Nothing was forthcoming.

The man was rigid. She had been here for a while she surmised as she patted him down. Within his pockets there was a data chip, some cigarettes and a lighter.

With trembling fingers, she lit one and allowed herself a moment to absorb some of the much needed nicotine.

A plume of smoke escaped past her lips, shakily she found her feet once more.

It was only then she noted the crimson that coated her hands and that it had smeared along her armour.

Not again...

Taking a deep breath to battle against the hot acrid bile was all she could manage. The seconds creeped by as the attempt was made to control her reflex.

Fingers flexed in an attempt to hold back the urge, her head spun and idly the girl wondered what she had done to herself this time.

It was a fleeting thought, with stumbling feet she moved forward. It didn't seem like a good idea to linger any longer, too many awkward questions would be asked.

Her body dragged itself away with lethargy to begin with, but with more momentum and effort she rapidly picked up speed not paying too much attention to her surroundings, concentrating instead on smoking to calm the fraying nerves.

Aay'han had not gone unnoticed. Her exit had been observed and had she been paying attention, she would have noted the stranger tailing her movements. He allowed her some breathing space, but there were many shadows in which to conceal even his towering form.

Getting himself ahead of her didn't prove overly challenging, waiting for her to pass by was much more painful. It felt like an age before he could grab her, but once she passed him, his arms snatched her into the shadows of the side alley.

Trenkyp was surprised. The girl didn't cry out, not that it would have helped her down here. Slamming her bodily against the wall she flattened but found her feet with surprising swiftness.

The mask she wore reminded him more of a Kaleesh than a Zabrak. The creature was a very confusing medley of cultures from what he could glean of her appearance.

His stature alone did nothing to intimidate her. He watched as she tipped her head down and back up to look at him.

"Osik... You're tall." The child-like demeanour threw him for a fraction of a second.

"And you're short." The observation was obvious but he decided he'd play along, keeping his palm upon her shoulder to hold her in place.

"I'll get taller, records told me Buir was tall." He thought about those words, not entirely sure where this conversation was going.

"So they're dead." It was difficult for her to read him, not that she was particularly good at that at the best of times.

"One is," Aay'han said.

Trenkyp nodded a bit, continuing to indulge the conversation as the girl was so forthcoming with information. "The other... Well that's a different story."

Testing his grip she began to push against his palm. He immediately pushed her back against the wall with his right palm once again, eliciting a smirk from under the mask she wore.

"Don't fight me, I just want the data chip."

His advice was promptly ignored as she jammed the still smouldering cigarette into his left arm.

The distraction was enough for Aay'han to slide out from under his hand. She lashed out quickly, kicking at his knee to try and off balance him.

Instead of taking the brunt of her attack, Trenkyp simply stepped away from her, creating a bit of space but still keeping her with nowhere to run.

It didn't look like she was interested in running. Instead opting for an outright charge. For someone so small she could move quickly, lashing out one hit after another, increasing her speed just to see how much he could keep up with her.

To her this was still just a game, even now. Her attacks were more to test reaction rather than to cause any real harm.

When he was told he’d have to take a data chip from a three year old and they insisted that it was a three year old, Trenkyp just gave in and took the job. It just seemed like a bunch of free credits at the time, so he didn’t care if it didn’t meet his standard rate. The girl he found certainly didn’t look like she was three years old, but at least she managed to make it more interesting.

“Are you sure you want to fight me? You can’t back down once you start, you know?” the Juggernaut said as he caught each of Aay’han’s incoming strikes. Her attacks had training on par with Trenkyp’s, but her Mandalorian armor was noticeably slowing her down. It was a breath of fresh air, fighting someone in full Mandalorian armor that was more than a walking tank.

“Ugh, shut up!” the Marauder said, trying to hit Trenkyp. During one of her right hooks, she reached to her belt with her left hand and grabbed her customized vibrosword, swiping at the Kel Dor.

“All right then. You’ve made your choice,” the Force Disciple said as he jumped back, letting the blade hit the wall next to him. He threw a right hook at the Sith’s head, the Force warning her to raise her right hand to block it with her armor. The Juggernaut called upon the Force and pushed his hand downwards with more power than anyone normally could, bruising Aay’han’s arm and forcing her to step back.

“Wayii! Tall and strong!” The Marauder grasped her Westar pistol with her right hand and fired six blasts at the Kel Dor, who raised his hand and conjured a wall in front of him.

Trenkyp scoffed at her attempt to surprise him, noticing more equipment on Aay’han’s belt. He used to be like her, over-equipped and too reliant on his gear, doing his best to surprise opponents. Right now, they had very little space to work with, so if she used explosives, they might as well just shoot themselves in the head.

“If you really want to rely so much on your weapons, you better know what you’re doing. Or you’ll end up even worse than this,” the Kel Dor said, raising his prosthetic hand.

“You just weren’t good enough, utreekov!”

“Ne’johaa, adiik! Fight me like you mean it, like a true Sith would!”

Trenkyp’s words triggered Aay’han, who put her weapons back on her belt and slowly backed deeper into the alleyway. The Kel Dor followed her with his gaze, not wanting to get closer. She took out her land mine and activated it, throwing it trigger-first at the Juggernaut’s face. He ducked, the mine landing a few meters behind him and making the ground rumble as it exploded into shrapnel and dust. The explosion’s force made him plant himself into the ground to be knocked away, the Mandalorian taking advantage of the Kel Dor’s vulnerability and taking out her Westar pistol to shoot him again. She fired over and over until she ran out of blaster gas, not being able to see him in the aftermath of her mine. The dust only took a few seconds to fade, showing nothing where Trenkyp was standing.

“Me’ven?!” she exclaimed, slowly moving out of the alleyway. She ducked under a punch from Trenkyp aimed at her face just as she stepped out, the Sith barely registering it as her body took over her own muscles. The strike hit the wall next to her, shaking the small building it held together. Aay’han launched herself forward, finally free of the cramped space. Some of the locals were gathered around, curiously looking at the two Force Users.

“Give me that chip. Unless you want to be beaten halfway to death,” Trenkyp threatened the Sith. “I don’t mind either way, but one of those seems a lot better for you.”

“Over my dead body! No, not even then!” she yelled, grabbing her lightsaber in her left hand and raising it above her head, shining red plasma jolting out of the hilt. She was panting, not yet used to fighting for so long with a heavy suit of armor.

“Jate, jate! This is where the fun begins!” the Kel Dor said, lowering his arms to his waist, ready to fight. The crowd around them, mesmerized by their attire and Aay’han’s weaponry, stepped back, afraid to be caught in their duel. The two glared at each other, studying their slightest movements as they circled around the street. Aay’han suddenly charged at Trenkyp, who was ready to counterattack anything that came towards him.

The charge came thick and fast, she surged high, the lightsaber held aloft to come in a downward ark. The glow illuminated their faces as she came down bodily to strike.

Trenkyp moved fast, his hands gripped at her wrists. Keeping the small girl held. His grip was fierce around her armour, crushing against the bones and tendons.

A snarl of rage emanated past her lips as she hung for a moment limp in his hands. It lasted a fraction of a second before her legs kicked at his stomach with as much force as she could muster.

Her opponent was forced to pick between pain and negating the attack. He chose to sacrifice his grip, using the whole of his arm to pin her leg. With all the momentum he could muster, Aay'han collided back against the wall as Trenkyp flung her.

The lightsaber had been lost from her grip, the weapon only making a small tinkling sound as it hit the floor in the darkness.

The impact forced the air out of her lungs with a wheeze only to have what little she had left to leave when she hit the floor. Without any grace she scrambled to her feet with enough time to block her enemy's attack.

His fists came fast, striking out at her over and over without mercy. Blocking over and over made her forearms ache under her armour as she kept pace with the aunslaught.

Aay'han refused to yield, her pride too great to allow such a thing without being beaten into the ground. The thought of it happening only enraging the girl further and further.

The small spark of civility that had been left to her now only a frenetic buzz of jumbled half words and sounds.

Then it stopped.

Trenkyp had broken through her defences, landing a blow to her sternum, the bones cracking under his fist with an audible fracture.

Pain lanced out across her nerves adding fuel to the fire but her body unwillingly went limp as she crumbled to the ground yet again. Her body though damaged immediately began to heal and knit back together the bone as she slumped.

"I did warn you." His words were almost empathetic as he patted down her pockets.

It did not take him long to find the chip, hidden away but still intact even after all the fighting. Once his metallic fingers wrapped around the item he withdrew allowing the girl at least some dignity in her defeat.

Trenkyp left her prone form without ceremony, she could hear his footsteps as he made his retreat and a smirk spread across her features.

Aay'han rolled to her belly, hands reached to her back and silently she drew the Amban rifle and took aim.

"Excuse me..."

Her mind reached out to him, her words slipped into his so smoothly he paused and turned.

The shot was loud, the noise reverberated within the confined space. The onlookers screamed and took flight.

The bolt hit true.

The cybernetic hand fried, jolts of electricity sparked up and along his body. It could not be negated by her opponent; his mostly flesh and blood roiled with the charge as he collapsed.

It took Aay'han a long moment to pull herself off the ground. The Sith strapped the rifle back where it belonged and then summoning her will through the Force her lightsaber returned to her hand and she placed it carefully back where it belonged.

With faltering feet she limped across to Trenkyp, eyes searching over him. Easily now it was apparent the chip had fried within his palm, half melted into the machinery.

It didn't matter, she had won.

With little ceremony Aay'han used her lightsaber to slice off the appendage. Almost with a sense of reverence she placed it in one of the larger pockets before reaching for her comm and calling a public line.

"Good Morning, can I ask the nature of your emergency?" The unknown female voice spoke quicker than Aay'han had expected.

"I'd like to report an assault on two people... We need medical support." Even to her own ears she sounded breathless.

"Please hold your position, we will have medical transport to you in a few minutes."

---

When Trenkyp awoke it was with a start. He was disoriented by the bright lights. A hand pressed him back down into the medical centre bed. The slow gradual beep of the monitor traced the pattern of his pulse.

"Morning, Sunshine." His eyes struggled to focus for a moment.

When they did, he saw Aay'han sitting next to him, boots resting on his bed and she waved his severed hand at him in a morbid gesture of greeting.

Trenkyp was genuinely lost for words. This passed Aay'han's notice though as she continued on now she had his undivided attention.

"You know I got in a lot of trouble right up until I told them your description. Trenkyp right? Appius sends his greetings and hopes you recover soon. He gave me some credits and asked me to get you something nice... I would have gotten flowers but I thought you'd appreciate a new hand more."

Immediately he looked to his hand, relief flooding him as he realised it was almost identical to what he had before.

His eyes darted back to her, now she didn't have the mask on, he could see her face properly. She bore none of the tattoos given to adult Zabrak, the horns she had were only just poking through the skin, small and unobtrusive.

Warm coffee eyes peered at him framed by almost white skin, with a look so innocent he hardly believed it was the same girl he had fought. It could be no one else though, the armour was now scuffed but it was unmistakably the same girl.

"I learned a lot fighting you. I won't be so easy next time." She gave him a warm smile of pure joy as she stood up and without any ceremony left him alone to his thoughts.

The Sith swiped at Trenkyp’s torso several times, who dodged each attack with a backwards step. Aay’han struck upwards diagonally, towards the Kel Dor’s right shoulder, nearly slicing it off before he turned his body and launched his fist as fast as he could to her solar plexus. Her armor took most of the momentum, but she still got hit hard enough to knock the air out of her lungs. The Juggernaut tried to kick her head, only to have his leg pushed back by her right arm.

“Not bad. Not good enough, though,” the Force Disciple taunted. Aay’han was still holding on strong, despite her lack of endurance. The Marauder stabbed at Trenkyp’s head, then swung horizontally after it failed to hit. She was not thinking clearly, beyond what was associated with Juyo. The Dark Side was starting to take over her body, something Trenkyp was familiar enough with to know that he’d have to end the fight as early as he could. He wanted to fight for sure, but he did have a job to do, after all. And killing one of Taldryan’s members would certainly affect his reputation poorly, at least with some people he knew. He had to keep his mind focused, he couldn’t let his emotions cloud his judgment. Not this time, at least.

Trenkyp reached forward and grabbed Aay’han’s arm, pulling her ahead as he stepped behind her. He threw a punch toward the back of her neck, though she managed to duck and swiped her leg behind, trying to knock Trenkyp off-balance. The Juggernaut was warned by the Force, stomping on her foot with full force right before she hit him.

The Mandalorian groaned in pain, taking a few steps back. Her eyes turned red, the aura around her screaming violence even more than Trenkyp’s own. He knew then that he’d have to take her out. The Force took over her, and, as a Sith, he didn’t think she could control her murderous urges. He didn’t fear for his own safety as much as he did for the folks around, who were just liabilities in his contract. If any of them died, it wouldn’t look good on his resume. Since Aay’han was purely powered by the Force, he worried that she’d be faster and stronger than him, even in her heavy armor.

“Alright. Try not to die, kid.”

“SHUT UP AND DIE!” the Marauder yelled as she charged at the Juggernaut with unnatural speed. Trenkyp, completely focused on her lightsaber, stepped aside just as it came towards him, only having enough time to react due to his extreme reflexes, not prepared to take the following elbow to the face. The Kel Dor put his right foot back, mustering all the strength he had to not fall over. He pushed her arm back then channeled the Force to his head, bringing it down as hard as a durasteel wall on Aay’han’s own skull. Her golden mask cracked under the pressure, the force knocking her unconscious and nearly killing her, managing to quite literally beat the rage out of her. Her lightsaber deactivated, the white lights on the street remaining the only source of light in the deep darkness of the low levels.

As she fell over, Trenkyp just stood there, focused on his own head to try and diminish any physical trauma he would have gotten. The Force certainly did help, but he was still just flesh and bone. Metal too, but mostly flesh and bone. After a few seconds of silence, the Kel Dor reached into the Sith’s pockets and took the data chip he was looking for. He noticed a few cigarettes in her pockets, so he took them out and stomped on them.

“You’re too young to be smoking, adiik,” Trenkyp said under his breath as he took off. The crowd made way for him to leave, slowly scattering into the alleys they came. Trenkyp fought, kept his resume clean and completed his job, and that’s all that mattered to him. What became of Aay’han after that, he didn’t know nor care too much. As long as they didn’t have to fight again.