Built from the shell of an ancient foundation, the Arx Colosseum has undergone renovations to allow multiple new configurations for battle. Its spectator setup remains largely the same, with high walls, tall enough for even the most savvy Jedi to find unscalable that lead up to spectator chairs which are divided into nearly organized sections to accommodate several thousand people. At the center, an elongated platform “box” contains a central throne of stone with various seats of smaller scale lined beside it in both directions. Two large holo-projection screens are set up on each side of the Colosseum, offering different angles of the match bia holocam drones.

Today’s setup is known as The Shanty Town.

Hundreds of shipping containers line the arena floor, some stacked tall, others singular obstacles forming the walls of a complex maze. Each has been converted to function as housing, windows, doors, even furnishments added to further sell the illusion of it being a living town.

While the only real life contained within is today’s combatants, that is far from the only level of danger found within.

Dozens of armed and battle-ready droids hide in wait. Turrets and barricades line the narrow passageways of the town. Expertly hidden mines wait to trigger with every step. Make no mistake, the Shanty Town is ready to kill all who enter it. Embracing its chaos, and surviving is no easy feat.

This was it; the curtain call. Anders’ one and only opportunity to impress. The crowds erupted into an uproar so deafening that his ears began to ring. Kitty, the large, overgrown nexu at his side, recoiled in fright until the Chiss placed his hand under its chin and gave it a scratch. It was a small gesture of comfort he had learned that his pet appreciated in the small amount of time they'd been together. This was, after all, likely just as heart-pounding for Kitty as it was for him. The Arx midday sun reflected brightly on the bronze, corroded metal sheeting that was the heart and bone of the makeshift Shanty Town. The high walls that the Colosseum consisted of made all forms of escape impossible as the spectators observed with ravenous glee.

Anders was under no illusion that this would be simple. Why would it be? The rank of Grand Inquisitor was on the line and the powers that be, including the Voice of the Brotherhood himself, would be watching. Just thinking about the possibilities drove the Chiss forward in his insatiable lust for prestige and power. The crimes that could be punished, the order that could be achieved, the justice that could be enacted, it was all a perfect trifecta in his mind; the ideal storm for a purified universe.

The Sith felt the presence in the Force before he heard the heavy footsteps upon the ground. He spun along with Kitty, the nexu snarling at the new arrival. The man, a tall, slim individual in heavy armour consisting of a mingled pattern of black and dark blue tones stood before him wearing his helmet so that Anders couldn't see his face. Because why would anything ever be simple? The Chiss had been given no information about his opponent beforehand.

“Am I correct to assume that you are my opponent for this venture? If so, I am hardly impressed by what I see,” Anders sneered.

The heavily armoured man answered by throwing forward an open palm to create some distance between the two of them. The torrent of energy blasted into both Anders and Kitty, sending them hurdling into one of the nearby shipping containers. The Chiss Sith rolled to a stop with his back pressed against a sheet of corroded metal, gasping from the impact to his spine as the nexu rolled to a stop beside him. The blue-skinned man gritted his teeth and seethed, anger rising from the dark pit in his soul.

Was this the way the game was going to be played; With no chivalry or honour? Fine. So be it. Two could play at that particular game. He would not be caught by surprise again!

Anders was broken from his ruminations upon hearing an extremely distinct and loud beeping coming from next to him. His heart pounded in tandem with the sound. It didn't take an explosives expert to recognise that the various flashing red lights spelt imminent doom. The Force, ever his servant in the darkness, urged him to escape from the immediate threat.

Mines! This place was booby trapped! Not only that, but there were large, bulky battle droids and turrets activating after detecting his presence. The turrets turned to aim their blasters at him while the droids staggered to their feet. Whose bright idea were these!?

Without another thought, he established the connection between himself and Kitty, calling his nexu companion to his aid with the Force. The nexu rolled onto his feet and scooped its Chiss master onto its back as it jumped out of the shipping container with one practised, massive leap. The two had cleared the container with a few seconds to spare before it exploded into a cacophony of fire and debris behind them.

The rush of hot wind wafted past them. The ground quaked with the thunderous boom. Shrapnel and metal soared through the air towards Anders and Kitty, but also towards the heavily armoured man at the other side of the narrow street. The metal whizzed by Anders’ ears and he could smell the smoke in the air as he flattened his body against the nexu's back. The spectators rallied into cheers as they watched, but those cheers were quickly followed by jeers of disappointment when all was avoided by the combatants. With a deft hand movement, Anders retrieved his lightsaber and activated the weapon. The black core hummed as the Chiss pointed his weapon forward like a spear.

To Anders’ surprise the heavily armoured individual did not retreat, but instead broke into a full on sprint towards them. Such brazen confidence was both reckless and foolish, but spoke a lot of his confidence in his abilities. The Chiss knew to be wary when he heard the crack and snap of blood-red lightsabers in front of him.

They were moments from colliding with one another. The crowd cheered in anticipation. Yet, at the last possible second, Anders propelled himself off of his nexu, the beast veering a hard right out of danger and down an adjacent alleyway. The Sith soared over his target and used his momentum to roll and return to an upright position. Anders heard his target curse under his breath as he skidded to a stop, spinning around to confront the Sith.

The Chiss had caught him by surprise, and that was all the opening he needed. He lunged forward with a stab towards the throat. Yet, his opponent managed to avoid the attack with a shimmy of his body and a parry with one of his lightsabers. He then followed up with the second crimson blade, initiating a volatile sequence with both blades that pressed Anders immediately on the defensive. The Sith could feel each ferocious swing that sent vibrations up his arms whilst his attacker showed little no regard to any form of self-preservation. Who did he think he was? Did he think Anders would be so easily defeated? The nerve was, quite frankly, insulting! So, as each attack came, the Chiss responded in kind with minimal, but elegant parries and jabs that aimed to cut into whatever openings there were. It was like a pinpoint needle being threaded into flesh; searing and deadly.

“Are you impressed now, Inquisitor?” The heavily armoured man chided. “You seem to be struggling.”

“Hardly,” Anders scoffed during a brief pause in their fight. “I do not need to compensate for a lack of skill with a second lightsaber and heavy armour. I am better than you and you know it. That is why you came prepared, is it not?”

“And you didn't? Did that nexu just appear on its own to come to your aid?” The sarcasm was palpable from the heavily armoured man. “You won't fight your own battle unless it favours you because you are a coward. I know who you are and I know what you did during the purge. I know how many people you killed who couldn't defend themselves. I will avenge them here today! In case you haven't noticed, I have you right where I want you.”

That explained it. This was why this particular person had been selected as Anders’ first opponent. He was being made to confront his past and face his regrets in living form.

How dare they!

Their lightsabers sparked and hissed against one another, black and red dragging sparks along the steel and in the dirt. The High Inquisitor seethed with malice. Who did his opponent think he was? Who was he to pass judgement? It had been a long time since anyone had done so. The Sith was looking forward to putting this blaggard in his place!

Anders poured every ounce of his malice into each stab, lunge, and slash he directed with lethal intent. His eyes flashed from red to amber, going back and forth as the Dark Side within him thrashed against the cage of his restraint. They had no idea what he'd done. How could any of them understand what he had to do in order to survive as an alien species under the regime of Darth Pravus? He was done being oblivious as to who his opponent was. The Sith weaved the tendrils of the Force into the mind of his opponent. Yes. That was the answer he sought. He'd read the dossier information on this fellow.

“You, of all people, should know that just because one is on the defensive does not mean that one is defenceless,” Anders parried one lightsaber, then avoided the next as he followed up with a graceful slash of his weapon. He forced one of the lightsabers out of his opponent's grasp, the still-lit weapon rolling across the ground a few feet away and deactivating. “Is that not correct, Malfrost Xeon? For an acclaimed academy researcher, you are perhaps one of the most dense individuals I have ever had the displeasure of meeting.”

Malfrost recoiled at the sudden loss of one of his weapons. The Sith stepped forward, blade held out in a challenge, daring him to attack again.

A heavy whirring sound followed by the stamping of mechanical feet captured the attention of both men. When they glanced up, they saw the turrets that lined the container rooftops turn to point at them along with more battle droids gathering like they were part of a small army. The arena fell deathly quiet as they descended from the rooftops as the turrets unleashed their deadly blaster fire upon Anders and Malfrost.

Malfrost clicked his tongue as he heard the turret winding up, he hated it when a good fight was interrupted. “Let’s pause our duel for now, Inquisitor and take care of the pests, shall we?” The armored warrior proposed a temporary truce as he called upon the Force to pull his fallen lightsaber back into his hand and with a flick of his wrist the blade was alive once more.

Right on time as well as the blaster bolts began to rain down upon them. Malfrost flipped two switches on his sabers and in an instant the ends magnetically attached to each other forming a saber-staff. Malfrost began to spin the staff in a circle, rapidly deflecting bolts back towards the turrets and approaching droids.

Anders began to deflect blaster bolts as well, each one of his movements was much more precise and calculated, each blaster bolt redirected with precision to slam into a droid and destroy it. “Let us make a contest of it then. I shall show you and our audience my elegant skills as I strike down more droids than you!” Anders proclaimed while rapidly and precisely deflecting three blaster bolts back towards the oncoming droids which caused a cheer to erupt from the crowd; the Chiss certainly knew how to put on a show.

Malfrost simply shrugged, “Whatever makes you happy. Just stay out of my head.” He responded stoically, stilling spinning his saber-staff in circle in front of him as he slowly approached the oncoming droid. The Inquisitor seemed hellbent on proving his skills today and while Malfrost didn’t care much for this whole contest idea, it was a good way to get his opponent off guard if he out did him.

Thus, with a leaping bound the armored Marauder descended into the mass of gathering droids and like an angel of death, he reaped. His aggression was on full display as he swung his staff around with brutal efficiency; each flick of the wrist and twist of the hips resulted in his blades slicing multiple droids into ribbons. Even as he hacked the droids apart, it was clear he was not just some feral hounds eager for destruction; every time the turrets shot off a burst at him, he seemed to be able to shuffle his feet just enough to avoid being hit, the various singed holes in the ground serving as a testament to his prowess.

The sight of carnage caused a roar of excitement from the crowd and Anders could feel his grip on the hilt of his saber tightening. How dare this man with his boorish ways try and upstage him in front of such an illustrious audience. He would not let himself be outdone by such sloppy tricks; if the crowd wanted a show, he would give them a show. His red eyes narrowed as he gazed out at the mass of droid with Malfrost swirling around among then and while he was still effortless deflecting blaster bolts from the turrets with his lightsaber, he brought his other hand up as his blue fingers began to spark and pulse with electricity.

Malfrost felt a tingle in his spine as his lips curled into a smirk; it seemed the Inquisitor would not allow himself upstaged after all. Malfrost pulled the Force into him and sent all the energy into his leg and leapt high into the air just as a barrage of Force Lightening ripped and tore its way through the droids. The Marauder landed on a platform with one of the turrets on it and made short work of the machine by slicing it in two with a quick slash from his staff.

With his back concealed by his cloak towards Anders, who still seemed to be frying droids with his lighting much to the great amusement of the audience, Malfrost pulled out his comlink from his belt and brought it up to his helm. “HK, I’m sure you saw all that. Move towards one of the empty containers nearby and blend in with the shadows and junk. When you have a shot, take it.” He issued a command to his droid companion, whom he had told to stay back and blend in with the clutter of the arena before he had made his presence known to Anders; HK had been his ace in the hole before and if push came to shove it might end up being so again here.

He didn’t wait for a response and shoved the comlink back onto his belt. It had been just a moment, but he knew how sharped eyed Inquisitors could be, even from a distance. Still, Malfrost had counted on Anders being too busy to put on a show to notice and the armored warrior turned around just in time to see Anders perform a quick flourish with his saber, the fried remains of the droids sparking a few yards away from him which invoked a raucous cheer from the audience that brought a small smile to the Inquisitor’s lips.

The Chiss then leapt up one of the adjoining rooftops and quickly dispatched the turret with a elegant slash of his saber, the machine erupting in sparks as the two combatants turned to face each other. Anders still had a small, prideful smirk on his lips while Malfrost’s expression remained indiscernible beneath his helmet.

“It seems I won our little contest. Your sloppy lightsaber work is no match for a potent mastery of the Force.” Anders spoke, his tone amused and mocking as the armored figure simply shrugged its shoulders.

“Your mastery of the Force is truly something to behold, Inquisitor. I suppose frying droids with it is a step above frying defenseless people. I applaud your ability to not be just a murderous psychopath, bravo.” Malfrost responded, though his tone lacked the accusatory tone from before and instead he sounded almost bored and apathetic, as if Anders and the display of his mastery of the Force had been as impressive as primary school production of Squid Lake. The armored figure spun his staff above his head before having it come to rest in a high guard stance as his hips twisted slightly so his right side faced Anders. His knees bent ever so slightly as he looked almost like a coiled spring, primed to burst forward at any moment. “Well, them, I’m ready to get this show back on the road if you are.”

Ander’s could feel his red eyes twitch in frustration just a bit but unlike before he was prepared for Malfrost’s barbs and he recognized them for what they were, attempts to get him off balance and unfocused and he would not fall for the same trick twice. Anders turned so his right side faced Malfrost as well; his feet shifted, falling into a perfect and well-practiced position. He held his saber at chest level and pointed the tip at his armored foe as his lips curled into a frown.

“Your little tricks will not be able to save you now. You are about to see which of us is truly the better duelist.” Anders spoke with complete confidence as the two combatants gazed across the rooftops at each other, separated by only a few yards. The excited crowd roared as the tension filled the air, urging the two of them to get at each other.

Malfrost was about as clueless as he was arrogant. Was he not aware of how obvious the gap in their abilities was? The crowd cheered for Anders, not this pretender-playing wannabe vigilante. The Voice, the Grand Master, and all others watching were finally getting the chance to see his worth with their own eyes.

“We'll see about that,” the Human spun the saberstaff in his hands as he approached.

The crimson blades became a deadly blur so ferocious that it nearly concealed Malfrost behind them. Kicking up orange sparks from the metal rooftop, the saberstaff whirlwind forced Anders to take several steps back and leap down to the safety of solid ground. The crowd roared in approval at the flashy maneuver from the Vizsla Clansman. The Chiss had to restrain the scowl that threatened to form on his face when Malfrost followed after him, still spinning his weapon. What was wrong with using one lightsaber in battle?

“Why are you so determined to mask your woeful abilities in single combat with that ridiculous excuse for a weapon?” Anders chastised.

The High Inquisitor's grip on his lightsaber tightened as he snarled. It mattered not. He refused to be bested by someone like Malfrost. To Anders, there was nothing quite like an honourable duel. The clash of blades, the hum of lightsabers swinging, and the sweet taste of victory. This Human had no honour and used cheap tactics to gain the upper hand. With his dignity on the line, the blue-skinned man intended to make Malfrost pay dearly by lunging forward into a stab towards his chest. Red clashed with black, the lightsabers hissing against one another like angered vipers. Malfrost used his momentum to swing the other side of his staff towards the Chiss’ leg, but the Inquisitor felt it coming and deflected the attack with a quick flick of his wrist.

“How predictable,” Anders shook his head in a derogatory manner.

What Malfrost failed to grasp was that so long as you kept watch on one blade of a saberstaff, you could predict where the second went. The Human struck high, low, vertically, horizontally, but Anders was able to deflect and narrowly sidestep each attack. He had to admit, silently, that Malfrost was more adept with his weapon than he had initially given him credit for. The Sith gritted his teeth together as he sought to exploit openings, narrowly grazing Malfrost's armour. To his surprise, the metal seemed to reflect each of his attacks.

No. It wasn't the metal, but rather the dark aura it exuded. Anders mentally cursed. It seemed the good doctor had come more prepared than he had initially expected. Thankfully, he had ways of navigating such obstacles. Another back and forth ended with a graceful swipe of his lightsaber as he sent the Human's weapon flying out of his hand. Anders smirked, his superiority having been proven yet again. The Chiss was eager to cease this charade once and for all. He readied to tap into the Force, longing to weave it into Malfrost's mind and puppeteer him.

Then, Anders felt his heart pounding in his ears. His chest heaved in and out. Sweat formed on his brow and trickled down his face.

“Something wrong?”

That hint of smugness from Malfrost sent coals burning inside Anders. Using the Force had suddenly become like trying to breathe air through a straw; not impossible, but extremely difficult.

Memories rushed to the forefront of Anders’ consciousness. He could hear the cackling of his Master, Darth Lenora, as she gleefully rendered him powerless and tormented him for years. He'd sworn after her death that he would never allow himself to be that helpless ever again!

How dare Malfrost try to take the Force from him!

How DARE he!

Anders raised his lightsaber, snarling like a man possessed. He intended to strike Malfrost down where he stood, but was so enraptured with his revenge that he almost missed the muted warning from the Force. He turned with a fraction of a second to spare and deflected the blaster bolts that soared toward him, the culprit being a HK assassin droid stepping out from behind one of the nearby containers.

Did they miss one of the droids when they were attacked? No. This one was different from the others. It was more advanced and faster, far more accurate and deadly with the weapons it held in its metal hands. The only logical conclusion was that this was Malfrost's droid. So much for all that talk about fighting his own battles. Where was all that bravado now?

Unfortunately for Anders, that momentary change in focus was all Malfrost needed to take advantage. He struck him in the side of his face with a palm and followed up with a knee to his gut. The Chiss keeled over, pain wracking his abdomen as he gasped away the air in his lungs. The Human then grasped Anders’ dominant arm and pulled it back, locking it in place. Using his slightly superior strength, Malfrost forced Anders’ lightsaber blade to come perilously close to his own throat. Anders could hear the hum of his weapon in his ear. He could feel the light irritate his eyes. He could practically taste the burning plasma near his lips.

“Good job, HK,” Malfrost forced the lightsaber closer to certain death. “Now, we enact vengeance for all those you have killed, Inquisitor. Now, you face justice.”

Justice? What did Malfrost know about justice? He knew nothing. Nothing. Justice is escaping from the Chiss Ascendancy that tried to kill him for being Force Sensitive. Justice is surviving the trials and torment of a wicked Sith Master and killing her in return. Justice is executing vengeance upon the Grand Master who ordered the Purge in this very tournament.

He wouldn't fail. Not here. Not now. He needed a way out. He needed help. With his connection to the Force slowly returning to him, he reconnected with the one being who could aid him.

A loud feline roar elicited gasps from the crowd. Kitty emerged from the adjacent alleyway and broke into a sprint towards them. Its eyes were feral and its rows of sharp teeth looked like small swords in the light of the midday sun. Malfrost had no other choice than to release Anders as the nexu leapt towards him. Instant relief washed over the Chiss just as the HK droid rounded on him with its blasters again.

With Malfrost distracted and his strength in the Force returned to him, Anders got back on his feet. With an outstretched hand, he attempted to ignore the wincing pain in his abdomen, wrapping a telekinetic tether around the droid as he pulled it towards him. In two refined and elegant slashes, he first severed the droid's hands and then removed its head. Watching the droid's body collapse into the dirt brought with it a sense of vindication, though that was short-lived when he heard the snap just a few feet away.

The Vizsla member had retrieved his saberstaff and had the blades poised to strike down Kitty. Not only was Malfrost a coward, but he was a butcher too. He didn't care for what was truly right. The Human only cared for spinning things in his favour and convincing himself and others that he was right. He was nothing more than a hypocrite, and Anders detested hypocrites.

Who did Malfrost think he was judging? With his anger soaring, Anders clasped the Force around the Human's throat. He squeezed, taking great pleasure in the sudden gasps as his enemy clutched at his neck. Anders lifted him off of the ground with the Force both to separate him from Kitty and to send him careening into one of the nearby containers.

Malfrost crashed into one of the made-up living dwellings. He collided with what appeared to be a run-down bar counter. Bits of broken metal and glass fell on top of him and smashed around his feet.

Anders entered the shack with Kitty in tow growling behind him, his breathing harder and more ragged as he tried to hide the pain in his gut. It drove him further, igniting his malice.

“You wish to enact justice? You know nothing of the sort. If you desire to punish me for my crimes, Mr. Xeon, then by all means, try,” Anders closed his eyes for a moment. When he reopened them, they were encrusted with the amber malice of a burning star about to explode. His hate radiated from him, the Dark Side taking hold as the darker aspects of his personality rose to the surface. “I will take delight in watching you fail. I will not hesitate to destroy you. I will send you back to Clan Vizsla in pieces so numerous that cybernetics will not be able to salvage what remains. You wish to face the man who committed atrocities during the purge? Your wish is granted.”

Aequitas stretched his hand out towards Malfrost. He weaved the intricate threads of the Force into the Human's psyche, attempting to take over his mind and body.

Ander’s thin eyebrows twitched ever so slightly as he felt his armored foe resisting his mental invasion; this brute of a man had no small amount of willpower it seemed. It would be impossible to force him to do something truly self-destructive like end his own life, but Anders felt he could still make the man suffer for what he had put him through in front of such a large crowd.

“Struggle all you like but this fight is over. You will kneel to your better.” Anders commanded and Malfrost complied as he dropped to his knees as he stilled gripped his saberstaff in both of his hands. Ander’s lips curled into a smirk as Kitty growled behind him, ready to rip and shred the man to pieces at a moment’s notice. Anders glared at the saberstaff with disdain; so many people thought they could make up for their lack of skill with a fancy show and it never worked out, but he hated how it seemed to amuse people.

“Well, I haven’t managed to get a good look at your face, and I want to see you suffer. Take your helmet off.” The Inquisitor commanded coldly, with a sadistic smirk on his lips. He could feel Malfrost resisting but the Chiss could feel that he was winning the mental battle as one of Malfrost’s hands left his saberstaff and moved to unlatch the clasps on his helmet before he removed the piece of armor and tossed it to the side with a thud. This was perfect, now Anders would have a perfect spot to strike to end this fight.

Malfrost gazed up at Anders, his skin covered in a thin layer of sweat, his messy brown hair clinging to his skin as his hazel eyes gazed into Ander’s red ones. The man was smirking. Why? Didn’t he know he was about to die?

That’s when the Chiss heard a click.

Anders had been so focused on thinking about the suffering and pain he was going to inflict on this wretch who made him feel powerless for a fraction of a second that his eyes had not paid much mind to the Human’s hand on his saberstaff. While he had been undoing his helmet, Malfrost had moved to switch off the maglocks on his sabers with his other hand, effectively turning his saberstaff back into two lightsabers.

With a flick of his wrist, he now sent one of those lightsabers flying towards Kitty and with a little extra speed applied with the Force, the weapon slammed into the beast’s chest before it or Anders could react. The beast let out a howl of pain and in its painful convulsions it slammed through a nearby wall and tumbled several floors down, banging against sheet metal walls and debris as it went.

The brief moment of shock for Anders was enough for the Chiss to lose his mental grip on Malfrost and that was all the Marauder needed. “I told you to stay out of my head, Inquisitor!” Malfrost roared, his teeth bared in anger. The Force surged through his armored body and his mind, replacing his thoughts with pure instinct and rage.

Anders clicked his tongue but now that Malfrost was down to just one lightsaber, the Chiss was sure he would be able to win. Anders moved to strike at Malfrost’s exposed head with a quick downward slash, but he was surprised when the Human countered much more quickly than he had before, and even more strongly. What was going on here?

“You think your brutish ways can overpower me!? Think again!” Anders scoffed as he quickly drew his saber back into a defensive position, his elbow near his wrist as he tilted his blade at a slight angle. If Malfrost heard his words he did not respond to them as he simply surged forward, both of his hands on the hilt of his saber as he unleashed a powerful overhead slash. Anders managed to parry the blow, but he felt his feet shift beneath him from the pure strength of the attack, which left him slightly out of position to deliver a counter blow. He tried to compensate and thrust the tip of his saber towards his foe’s exposed chest, but Malfrost was too quick and brought his blade up from his side to deliver a strong diagonal upward slash.

Ander’s scowl grew wider. This was completely different from before; not just in the fact that he wasn’t using two sabers or a staff, but it was a completely different form now. It was less chaotic and frantic and more powerful and domineering. Each strike forced Anders back, his own stance less confident and sure. Not only that be he had tried to will Malfrost to stop or relent but found that his mental attack was unable to get any purchase. The armored man was rage incarnate, there was absolutely no psyche to latch on to.

Ander’s normally would have thrown out a barb about how the barbarian had shown his true colors but he couldn’t waste a single breath; it was taking every bit of his concentration to not buckle under the relentless assault as they fought their way out onto one of the shanty rooftops, the cheers of the crowd growing louder now that they were in the open and the cameras could get a better look at them.

Normally such relentless assaults would grow sloppy fast, but Malfrost’s attacks were as precise as they were powerful and all the while the Human’s face held an expression of silent rage and contempt for his foe as blow after blow hammered away at Ander’s defenses, rapidly wearing the Chiss down.

Ander’s breath was growing ragged, and his legs were shaking. He couldn’t take much more of this onslaught, he had to end the fight now before he was overwhelmed. Trying to use the Force on Malfrost seemed a fruitless endeavor so the Inquisitor concentrated on attempting to hone his mind’s eyes as much as possible, he just needed a single opening after all.

He got what he was looking for as Malfrost stepped forward and delivered another overhead slash. Anders was able to sense it coming and shuffled back, leaving him enough space and time to deliver a quick strike towards one of Malfrost’s wrists. Anders was sure that he had worn down the armor around his wrists enough that if he were to land a blow, he could disarm the man and finally end the fight.

Just as the blow was getting ready to strike however, Malfrost’s hand shifted on the hilt; it seemed the Chiss wasn’t the only one with a finely tuned mind’s eye. Still, Anders blade connected with the hilt of Malfrost’s saber, cutting it in two and rendering it inoperable. It was not what Anders was hoping for but now that his foe was without a weapon, he believed this fight to be good as over. He could overwhelm the man from a distance with his saber and finally rid himself of this menace, he could already hear the applause from the crowd cheering his name.

All of that shattered when he felt an armored fist connect with his jaw, breaking it entirely and knocking out quite a few of his teeth as the taste of iron in his mouth overwhelmed him. His ears were ringing, and he was seeing stars as he let out a gasp of pain. This was fine. The pain was intense, but he quickly called upon the Force to suppress, to keep it clamped down long enough for him to win. He growled as best he could and glared at Malfrost, who had assumed the stance of some brutish martial art with both his arms raised and his fists level with his face in a guarded position. Did this brute really think something so utterly inelegant could overcome his masterful saber work?

Anders stepped forward and delivered a quick horizontal slice, hoping to lop off both of Malfrost’s arms in the process. For his part, Malfrost leaned into the attack before surging his left arm up to parry the blow. His Sith armor hissed at the contact before finally shattering in that spot, but not before Ander’s arm had been deflected off to side and high in the air, leaving him completely exposed.

Malfrost stepped forward and delivered a powerful right straight directly into Ander’s chest. The impact shattered the Chiss’ ribs, and the pain was so overwhelming that the Inquisitor could no longer suppress it. He would have howled in pain if the strike had not knocked nearly all the air out of his lungs as he coughed up a thick mouthful of blood.

He was so overwhelmed by the pain that he couldn’t reset his position. He tried to bring his arm back towards his chest, but it was too late. Malfrost had gotten a tight grip on his wrist and with a strong tug extended Ander’s arm all the way out, locking his elbow in place. In the next moment, another surge of pain as armored elbow slammed into his locked joint, shattering the bones in his arm, rendering his saber hand completely useless.

He could still win; he could fry this man alive! All he had to do was call on the Force and he could win! Before Anders could act down, he found himself pinned to the ground, and armored arm on his neck, pressing down hard and cutting off his air, making it impossible to summon the Force to him. He gazed up into Malfrost’s eyes, his hazel irises filled with that same cold contempt from before.

“Ye…yield! I…yield!” Anders wheezed as he felt his vision beginning to fade. He could hear the crowd cheer as a booming voice announced Malfrost as the winner of the duel. The cold hate was still present in Malfrost’s eyes though, even as he removed his armored arm from the Chiss’ neck, allowing the man to breathe once more.

As Anders gasped for breath, Malfrost stood up and dusted himself, his contemptuous gaze lingering on his beaten opponent for a moment. “Be thankful this was just a friendly duel, Inquisitor. If this had been a real fight, I would have shattered your skull and taken your brain for studying.” Malfrost scoffed before moving to grab his helmet, “Next time I say stay out of my head, stay out.” The words were firm and fierce as he walked off with his helmet under his arm, leaving Anders a broken and bloody mess on the roof.