Hunting

Character:Zanabar Taanzu
Timeline: 8 days after joining the sith


Zanabar the young Zabark was told he would be spending time on Tatooine again. He has been there to many times in his life. He hated the world and all who lived on it. He was a slave and his family was taken from him on this world.They were killed after his former master got himself into trouble.So he gave up the life of every slave he owned to save himself. So many were killed because of his evil.

He let hate grow in his heart for many years and one of the last times he steped foot on this world was when he came to take the head of his old master. He has lost most of his feeling to the darkside at this point and had only planed to do his job. He was told he would be helping some other Sith Initiate deal with the jedi.

It was just a knight he was looking for so it should be easy to deal. He looked on as he walked the market area looking around for the other Sith. He looked on as the sand shifts and the skum walk the streets. He then asked around the outside of a bar and was told there was a man in robes on his way to the gates. It could be the Sith or the jedi but Zanabar did not really care.He walked off with his hood still on making his way to the gates as he spotted a man. So at that time Zanabar jumped on top of a 6 foot tall rock and said "Who are you? Jedi or Sith?" He then moves his left hand over to his saber and steps down slowly making his way within 10 feet of the man.

"What do you mean by that? The droid is clearly broken" Xue had for some reason or another fallen into an argument with a Jawa trader, the little robed creature was trying to convince the Jedi knight to purchase a out dated and worn out utility droid, who was old enough to clearly out lived several human life times. Despite Xue clear declaration of not being interested in purchasing a droid, the Jawa didn't just led up.

"I said no, you overly friendly scavenger" Said the Jedi Knight as he brushed the Jawa attempt again, he turned around and walked away, letting out a chuckle of laughter as he did, that Jawa sure was persistent. Xue dusted off his simple white shirt and sat in the border of the landspeeder he had rented, in a nearby town. Xue had decided to seek sanctuary in the planet, he was being tracked or more likely hunted by as far as he had determined a powerful force user, that carried the stench of corruption, Xue had decided not to engage his hunter and so had led the one after him in a chase around the outer rim. Of course Xue reported to the Jedi of the current situation he was in, and was told to meet another Jedi knight here in Tatooine so they could both come up with a plan on how to deal with the Dark Jedi or the force forbid a Sith.

Xue stretched his arms and sat in the hood of his landspeeder, right now he was near a canyon and about a thirty minute drive from a small city and next to a temporal encampment of Jawas and one of their iconic sandcrawlers. While resting on the hood and cursing one last time the heat, Xue adopted a meditative position. He crossed his legs and left both of his hand in a relaxed position. The not so traditional Jedi knight who rarely wore the robes of the Jedi, and that looked more like a pirate than anything else assumed a mediative position.

Xue led out one last deep breath and opened his senses to the force. He began using a technique in the force that allowed him to sense the life force of those around him and the ones that had a corrupted heart, which most called the Dark side. Xue was not the average Jedi in the sense that he did not see the force as being a coin with opposite sides, he saw the force in a more neutral way... Indeed to the Jedi Knight there was no dark side, there was only the evil that resided in the heart of people, the force only helped those lost souls to express their wicked ways.

The Jedi knight mind traveled across the landscape, he counted more than one hundred Jawas... and a large concentration of people in the canyon, Xue did not know who they where. And too the south, the general direction of the town Xue felt a large concentration of people... and one, no two strong force user... their signatures where tainted... Xue opened his eyes.

It seems his hunters managed to track him to Tatooine, and it wasnt one but two hunters.

The area near the gate had been a bustle of activity, for Tatooine standards at least. A series of small trading stands, selling fruits, vegetables, grains, scrap parts, and little trinkets are strategically placed to maximize exposure to as many travelers coming in and out of the settlement as possible.

Mingling among the various moisture farmers, merchants, mechanics, and mercenaries was what appeared to be a young female human with auburn hair. She wore a plain, well-cut tan-colored dress, the kind that would not look out of place on a farmer's daughter, and had a wide-brimmed hat and veil to keep the glare of the twin suns out of her eyes and the dust that blew in with the breeze out of her face. Slung over her shoulder was a cloth-wrapped bundle, filled with various goods and supplies, purchases from the marketplace. She stopped at one of the fruit stands, conversed briefly with the owner before bending down to examine the basket of pallies and purchasing one.

Elsie Therin bit into the small fruit, taking care not to let any of the juice drip. On Tatooine moisture was precious, and it would not do to waste any. She wondered idly how many of her friends at the Temple would recognize her if they were to pass her in the street at this instant. Her current garb was quite a contrast to the nice, neat robes that she usually wore in the Temple, and her normally silver hair, a mark of the Echani, was dyed to a more typical human color.

The dark jedi was near. She could feel the presence of the dark side in the area, like a cold icy shiver tickling the back of her neck. She didn't know where the dark jedi was though, other than that he, she, or it was close. She didn't know where her Jedi ally was at the moment either. A previously agreed upon encrypted comlink channel would take care of that question however. But she wanted a chance to scope out the area and assess the situation before making use of that.

Her search came to an end when a hooded figure suddenly jumped on top of a tall boulder. "Who are you? Jedi or Sith?" he called towards another figure in the crowd. He's certainly not Jedi, Elsie thought. And not just any dark jedi. Sith. From the sound of his question, there's more than one of them.

As a cargo carrying ronto stepped between her and the figures at the gate, she took the opportunity to step into a nearby alleyway, and reached for her comlink, connecting into the right channel. She spoke quickly, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Aodh, this is Therin. Guests at the gate. Meet me there."

Koeing was caught off guard by the sudden question, staring up at the man who decided to apparently jump up on a boulder and declare to the entirety of the area that there are either Jedi or Sith around. He couldn't help but stare blankly at the man, who could possess such stupidity as to not know what the hell the element of surprise is, shaking his head Koeing's expression darkened as he now glared. "You are quite the fool, you do happen to realize if the Jedi are around or if there is a spy within this crowed you just completely gave us away, right? To put a fools mind at ease, yes i am Sith, can you not feel the taint?"

Shaking his head Koeing turned and reached out through the force to touch on everyone around them. He could feel the presence of another force user, and no way in hell was this someone tainted by the dark side. A low growl welled up from his throat as he turned back to his so called /partner/ shaking his head he looked down to Kayn. Go now Kayn, back to the ship. He was to protect it.

"You are a fool!" Koeing said with a poison laced tone to his /partner/ then spun on his heels and started toward the direction the other force user was in. His pace quickens with each step, until he's almost broken into a dead run, his eyes focused intently ahead of him as he searches for the exact location of this force user. His right hand rests on Caeling the saber just waiting to be sated with the blood of a Jedi. "Come, i've found one!" He shouts back to the man demanding he follow Koeing.

Xue felt the beeping of the intercommunicator the Jedi carried, he pulled out the device and let the signal come through "Aodh, this is Therin. Guests at the gate. Meet me there." was that message that came through, Xue only had time to make a short reply "Don't engage! avoid them until I get there, gimme twenty minutes!" he said agitated, it seem to Xue that this Therin was already in trouble he needed to hurry.

Xue got up and jumped inside the speeder, he turned the vehicle on and wasted no time to move. The roguish looking Jedi was actually a bit far from the town his hunter and now hunted friend was. He went at full speed, the Jedi knight was good when it came to driving and at his current speed would be in the town in less than fifteen minutes or so, hopefully Elsie could avoid getting into too much trouble. A little drop of sweat made it's way across Xue's frown and to his cheeks before the Jedi cleaned his face with the dusty sleeve of his shirt. The Jedi knight like always was dressed more like a rogue or pirate few would actually recognize the Xue unless they where force sensitives, other than that this Jedi knight passed more like your average gallant scoundrel.

The landspeeder got out of the rocky part, the Jedi knight was previously at and he was in a flat unremarkable dune of sand. It was perfect, as there was no rocks, obstacles or bumps of sand that could hinder Xue concentration. Going for the just in case scenario, Xue closed his eyes and led his body drive by instinct. He just had to go on a straight line, so it allowed to help Elsie in a indirect manner.

Xue opened his mind to the force and began looking for his companion presences, found her near the tainted air of their guest. Xue took a deep breath and focused, he was among the Jedi that could perform a power in the force called battle meditation. Since driving came so easily to the Jedi knight he could use it as a form of meditation to help him keep such ability active. Xue began boosting Elsie general performance from afar and hindering a little of the hunters focus, it probably wasn't much of a change the others felt, but at least it tip a little the odds in Elsie side of the scale, if only slightly for now that was all Xue could do.

Zanabar looked away from the other sith as he did feel a Jedi's energy close by so he had to call out to the dark man. He did speak after calling Zanabar a fool making him a bit more uneasy.{"You are quite the fool, you do happen to realize if the Jedi are around or if there is a spy within this crowed you just completely gave us away, right? To put a fools mind at ease, yes i am Sith, can you not feel the taint?"}

Zanabar became a bit more upset from this. He had hated this planet and it just opened his eyes to his hell like past. So Zanabar had a better idea. He was going to make the jedi come out. He looked around and saw a little human slave boy him and his brother came to mind. But letting that go he uses the force and takes the boy into the air choking him. He then yelled "Jedi come out or the boy will die!" Many people saw but did not try to help because he was a slave. Only people who cared was his young slave friends but they were still fearful. Zanabar did not wise to kill the boy but to only bring out the jedi. He then yelled "Now I will count down come or he will die today! 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...." He yelled as he looked to were the jedi was and turned to his partner and said "You follow me fool..."

She could feel them coming closer, approaching her hiding place. She pressed against the alleyway wall, her hand slowly moving towards the cloth-wrapped bundle on her back. Suddenly one of the Sith grabbed a civilian child, threatening murder if she did not show herself.

The prudent thing to do would have been to stay hidden, striking at the Sith on her own terms and retaining the element of surprise. This was a war, and in war people died, sometimes innocent people, and there was nothing anyone could do to change that.

But she couldn't. She was a Jedi guardian, and with that position came duty and responsibility. There was no looking the other way. Elsie took a deep breath. Fine. I'll beat them and I'll do it the right way.

Ten. Nine. Eight.

She climbed up onto the low roof of the building next to her, silently thanking the clever person who had first decided that slits in skirts was a good idea. She peeked over the edge while laying on her belly, doing her best to keep out of sight.

Seven. Six. Five. Four.

The attention of the Sith seemed to be still focused on the alleyway where she had been, not on where she was now. He was probably expecting herself to move out into the open, lightsaber drawn. But while the lightsaber was indeed her most powerful weapon, that didn't mean that she didn't have other tricks up her sleeve.

She opened herself up to the Force, feeling its warmth and life channeling through her, concentrating in her hands. Elsie was not especially skilled in the telekinetic arts, but for this she was good enough. She shifted to a kneeling position so as to be better able to move her arms.

Three. Two.

One.

Her right hand snapped forward, sending out a blast of telekinetic force energy, slicing through the bonds that the Sith had tied around the boy, who was thrown into the air. He landed on the ground hard, bruised but alive. Following, her left hand quickly pulled back, as a piece of rubble the size of a brick rose from the ground, flying towards the back of the Zabrak Sith's head.

Koeing came to a quick stop as he whirled around to see the Zabrak pick a child up into the air and demand the Jedi come out. "Must i always get stuck with the mentally handicapped." A low growl welled up from deep in his chest as he spoke. His eyes shifted in the direction of the force user, he could feel the Jedi reaching out with the force to do something, what he was unsure of. It took a split second however for the Jedi to sever the bonds that held the child in the air, a grin crossed Koeing's lips and he reacted the moment the child began to fall.

He reached out through the force letting it wash out over the surrounding area, then with quick movements his arms raised causing the sand in a small area surrounding the zabrak to fly into the air. The follow up was the killer, Koeing's hands shot forward as electricity coalesced down his forearms and cracked as it began to release from his finger tips. The jets of lightning would hit the surrounding sand melting it near instantly into a wall of Glass around the Zabrak.

An evil grin touched Koeing's lips as he brought his arms in crushing the force down around the glass which would cause it to shatter and fall upon the Zabrak with astounding force attempting to rip his body to shreds with the shards. A scoff passed through Koeing's lips and he lifts the hood on his robes then turns on his heels using the alleys to make his way back towards his ship. He refused to be involved with such fools, the Zabrak could deal with the Jedi, if he survived.

Reaching the port he saw his ship awaiting his return, Kayn sat just to the side of the open door guarding the ship with his life. He nodded to Kayn and the large predator leapt inside to take his place by Koeing's side in the cabin. The door was shut behind him and he walked in behind the pilot with heavy foot falls. "To Korriban, the Sith Temple." The Pilot silently nodded and began the start up precedure. Maybe he would find someone better suited to hunting Jedi there, or maybe the Zabrak would survive and he would meet him once more on Korriban and there he would kill him if he dared show his face to Koeing.

Xue opened his eyes ending his meditation and the small help he could provide to Therin from such distance, he was now in the limits of the city so Xue slowed down the speed of his landspeeder somewhat so he would avoid not hit anyone who might get in the way of the speeding vehicle. Xue manuvered the speeder out of the way, as he was in the path of a Ronto, luckly Xue vehicle didnt panic the gentle giant.

The Jedi knight parket the speeder in a open space, weaving off the Jawas that got close to inspect the Jedi knight landspeeder. Xue secured the vehicle and hastely moved through the crowded streets "I'm Almost there Therin hold on" he said through the comm to Elsie his companion in danger, hopefuly she wasn't in that much trouble. Xue stride came to a halt once he felt one of the darksiders force signature moved away from both Elsie and the other man with the taint of evil. "Well ain't I lucky" Xue thought cherfully but with caution, he did not understand why someone would leave a companion behind, but oh well the ways of life where like that and what went in the mind of the one that had hunted Xue was none of his business. "Guess I'll meet you some other day evil one" the Jedi knight mused in his head as he focused on the moment at hand and resumed his hasty walk.

Xue pressed his back against a wall behind a few meters behind the Zebrak and used his small comunicator to speak again with his fellow Jedi "Xue here, I'm behind the Zebrak... what do you want to do with him?" he asked as his left hand went to his belt and grabbed the slightly curved lightsaber that rested there

The air its self was thick with the power of the force, Zanabar was ready to get his job done and leave this dead would of sand and stone. The bonds Zanabar had made around the neck of the young boy were cut.He dropped the boy a bit harder then he had planed, but he best focus on himself for the jedi had shown herself and attacked.Then the most EXPECTED thing happend in that time.

He was safe from the brick but not from the glass made by his former teammate. He had hated the fact he turned on him, but he could not say he did not see it coming. As the glass started to fall zanabar let off a powerful force wave. Most of the people in the area had started running to areas were they could hide from the combat. There was nobody around but Zanabar two jedi and the young boy who was knocked out with his two slave friends by his side. The glass was thrown everywere hitting the ground and area around him. After the wave was used hee saw there were shards about to come down on the 3 young men, his compashion was shown at this time as he took out his left hand grabbing the glass about to fall on the boys holding it up with the power of the force.

Zanabar then yells "Take your friend and run now! This area is not safe and I will not protect you again!" He had never planed on the boys losing there lives, it was only to get the jedi to revile there hiding spots. Then throwing the glass at the female jedi on the roof top Zanabardraws his lightsaber and with a fast spin turns to the male jedi. Zanabar's rage was still there but he was going to keep it controled like he was told. He had no plan to run so he would test himself today.

{Right, been tossing around the idea of joining, with Koeing's departure, to help Zanabar out. Hope you folks don't mind}

There was another watching the unfolding scene in the quickly emptying market square down below. Nieraan watched from afar, perched comfortable on the roof of a nearby building. He'd been perfectly content to let the scene play out as it would and watch as his two Sith companions dealt with the Jedi.

Of course, a kink got thrown into that plan when Zanabar--the Zabrak he recognized from the sparring room with Cho and Renata--took it upon himself to pick a child up out of the crowd and start making threats. It wasn't the smoothest way to go about drawing the Jedi out, but there was a sort of barbaric effectiveness to it. The Jedi were defenders of the people, or so they claimed. So, if they didn't feel like showing themselves, then the object of the game became finding away to force them out, and that led to all sorts of fun possibilities.

Nieraan found himself grinning with a malevolent amusement as he watched Zanabar lift the boy up and make his ultimatum. Surely the Jedi would show his or herself--no, there were two now, with the arrival of the presence of another. Surely they'd show themselves now. If they didn't Nieraan would seriously doubt the 'protector' title they clung to so dearly.

One of the Jedi reacted. She cut the boy's bonds and threw a brick at Zanabar, but the next thing proved to be far more entertaining.

Zanabar's companion, Koeing, suddenly exploded in anger at the Zabrak and sent lightning pouring into the ground. The sand solidified into shards of glass, and then those were sent flying toward Zanabar. Nieraan couldn't say he knew Koeing's reasoning, but he more than strong enough with sense to be able to read intent. That strike was meant to kill Zanabar, or at least to cause him grievous harm. Interestingly enough, turning on fellow Sith, or being caught in the process of doing so, had been what had gotten Nieraan into very dangerous waters with the Overlord, and here it was done openly. It was amusing, at the very least.

Koeing took his leave then, for whatever reason, leaving Zanabar alone. Surprisingly, Zanabar handled the sudden attack easily enough, dispersing the shards of glass harmlessly with a wave of the Force. However, whatever small measure of respect he might have gained was lost and then some by his next action.

Three boys, one of which was the one that Zanabar had been threatening to strangle only moments ago, were nearly hit by some of the shards. Now, if one of the Jedi stopped the glass from skewering the boys, Nieraan more than likely wouldn't have cared, but Zanabar was the one that did it. Nieraan growled as he stood up, hardly believing what he was seeing. The Zabrak told the boys to flee the scene, leaving himself to face the Jedi alone.

"No, no, no Zanabar, you're doing it all wrong," he muttered as he ran to the far side of the roof and jumped down after the retreating trio. "You use them to get a rise out of the Jedi, not send them running away to safety." But beyond his annoyance at that lie a deeper problem; if Zanabar had been willing to do that, Nieraan wasn't sure if he could trust the other Sith not to waver, if the time ever came for it. Weak. Force, he's weak.

Nieraan, however, wouldn't falter, not when the situation presented so many opportunities to screw with the Jedi. He leapt down the alley after the boys and landed in front of them. The sudden appearance brought them to a halt. They were young, fearful looking. He almost felt pity for them, but the Galaxy was a harsh place. It didn't care for youth or innocence, only strength. That was a lesson his mother had taught him well--she'd beaten it into him. As it was in the natural world, the strong lived and thrived, while the weak struggled and ultimately perished. Zanabar dropped the ball with these boys. Nieraan would not.

"So sorry to ruin your day boys, but my ah... comrade back there seemed to have a moment of wavering resolve. Fortunately--for me at least--I'm made of sterner stuff and I still have a use for you..."

--------

A few moments later found Nieraan back on the roof, with one of the boys in tow. He was the oldest of the group--about 15 so, with very tanned skin and sandy hair. The other two had taken it upon themselves to resist him, and were now laying in the alleyway were he found them. They weren't dead though. Not yet, anyway, though they might be if no one found them.

The boy he held hostage now was obviously bruised and battered, but he'd submitted after getting thrown around a bit. Nieraan had been quick to find some cloth and gag the kid, along with binding his hands together behind him. From there it had been a simple matter of getting back to the rooftops. He was on one that was a higher, and farther back from the marketplace; he didn't want to be seen until the time was right. For the time being, he'd hang back, see how Zanabar handled himself against the two Jedi. If things went well, the sandy-haired boy's day might not go too poorly. However, if the Sith ran into some trouble... well, the best way to draw a Jedi's attention was to put an innocent at risk, right?

What happened next was, to put it lightly, surprising, as one of the Sith abruptly decided to throw a temper tantrum, culminating with him storming off. If only all Sith were like him, then maybe the war would win itself. But she wasn't about to chase after him as a third dark presence was sensed nearby. But first...

She spun around quickly, deflecting bits of flying glass to either side. The attack had been weak, the attacker distracted by Xue appearing behind him. For what she had seen of the Sith so far, Xue would be able to at least hold his own just fine.

But weak as the attack was, the glass had distracted her for a moment, enough for the third Sith to swoop in and grab the boy that she was protecting. A human-looking fellow, he proceeded to bound up to another rooftop, boy in tow, and stood seemingly enraptured by the fight that the Zabrak now found himself in.

Perhaps in a tug of war this third Sith would have proved her superior, but with his attention on the Zabrak and not his hostage, added with the unexpected direction of the pull... The boy suddenly shot into the air, ten, fifteen, twenty feet. After a running start on the rooftop, she jumped, grabbing the lad by the back of the shirt, snatching him out of the air. They landed on the ground, and in one smooth motion she unfurled the cloth bundle that had been on her back, drawing out the contents within, an elegant, straight-bladed, double-edged echani vibrosword.

She quickly cut the boys bonds. "Get your friends and run," she commanded. The boy was shaken but he obeyed quickly. With his departure, the streets of the settlement were empty, just abandoned street stands and blowing sand. As Xue and Zabrak clashed near the gate, she faced the other Sith.

With the immediate area cleared of civilians, she no longer had to hold anything back. She raised her metal blade. "You should be running too," she whispered.

OOC: OKay the new post order is Sparrow, Kozeph,Timtank, and last Rugs.

"Well how did I miss that?" Xue thought in a mixture of surprise and a annoyance born out of laziness "So Nerry was around, how surprising" Nieraan was known to Xue, they actually met not to many days ago with same goal which regrettably ended in a fight between both. The Jedi knight smiled at the thought of seeing what secret about himself would Nerry reveal this time. Xue sensed that Elsie moved to engage the new sith who replaced the one that had already left.

"Well guess I'll say hello after I deal with the lonely Zabrak" Xue shrugged and drew his lightsaber leaving it off for now, the Jedi knight left his cover and in a relaxed walk approached the Zabrak Sith, he seized up the humanoid with a friendly smile "Name's Xue Aodh, if you can tell I'm a Jedi knight... but most certainly not the one who threw a brick at you" He bowed, but never left the sith out of his sight.

Once back up he watched the Zabrak sith, being roughly no more than ten meters away from him "So, seems Elsie went to meet your hidden friend... you wanna go for a drink or something while we wait for them?" Xue said cheerfully while turning on his lightsaber, leaving himself in a Niman position. Xue knew he was outmatched by that Zabrak, so his only hope was to make him so angry that he would consume himself making it easier for him to fight a unfocused sith.

Zanabar kept a close eye on the human jedi. He looked more like a bum or drunk then a jedi. This man was not normal for a jedi and that was right away clear. He has a energy not many jedi have. It made Zanabar uncomfortable in more ways then one. The Jedi then told his name. {"Name's Xue Aodh, if you can tell I'm a Jedi knight... but most certainly not the one who threw a brick at you"}

Zanabar laughed as he pulled down his hood and said "I am known as Zanabar Taanzu, and I know you did not throw the brick. For that as a sign of respect and thanks for not making the same foolish move, I will maybe wound you then kill her first. That sound any good Xue?" Zanabar turned on his light saber as the jedi said something else.{"So, seems Elsie went to meet your hidden friend... you wanna go for a drink or something while we wait for them?" } Zanabar laughed again as he stared to back up and said "Well Elsie is her name? Well I will be sure to call her that as I carve out her heart!"

Zanabar yelled this as he took a powerful step forward and pushs his right hand out as if striking something with his palm. As he did this a powerful force push was released throwing up sand and dust as it would throw the jedi into the air. After this Zanabar takes his Shien stance and makes his way closer with slow steps.

Had Nieraan been the type, he might have giggled at the way the situation unfolded. One of the Jedi took notice of him and, ever the hero, as Jedi tended to be, she pulled the boy free from Nieraan's grasp and freed him from his bonds. Nieraan smirked at it all. So that was one plan for some fun with the Jedi that got ruined, but not all was lost. Not even close. No, in being so quick to act to save the life of this innocent boy, the Jedi had, perhaps, given Nieraan a valuable look into her person. Well, perhaps not too valuable, since such action would be expected from a Jedi, but it was something he could use, and he had every intention to do just that.

She told the boy to run away and he did just that, scurrying off from the now-empty marketplace. That just left Nieraan, Zanabar and the two Jedi there, to battle it out. Nieraan could hear the sounds of fighting over from where Zanabar was, and feel the echoes and ripples that it sent out through the Force. He paid it little mind, though. Surely the Zabrak could handle himself while Nieraan dealt with the female Jedi that was starting him down now.

She held a metal blade, rather than a lightsaber--a double edged one, no less. That was something that might prove interesting.

"You should be running too."

Nieraan looked around and her barely-heard threat. They were alone on the rooftop, so she clearly had to have meant it for him. "Me?" he asked, still smirking darkly at her. "Well, I'm not normally one for running away, you see..." The game he intended to play with the Jedi could benefit from it, though.

"But, if you insist, I guess I can switch things up a bit." To play the game, he'd need to buy a little bit of time, make some breathing room. So the Force gathered into him and he threw his hand forward, throwing a wall of the Force at the Jedi to try to throw her back. A short spark of lightning followed, for good measure, though he cared little over if it actually did anything; the push was the thing that mattered.

He wasted no time leaping back off the building, down to the roof of one of the shorter buildings near it, and then down to the street below. And, as the Jedi commanded, he ran. He ran deeper into the city, away from her and Zanabar and the other Jedi, using the Force to boost him along faster. Both of his sabers came up from their places at his side as he moved along, and went into his sleeves. Having those out in plain sight just wouldn't do, and his dress was already such that it didn't scream 'Sith!', with Nieraan being robeless as he was.

His path took him toward where the people fled, as his senses guided him. Where he was going exactly, he couldn't say, but he'd need people, and he'd need to blend to play his game with the Jedi, who he had no doubt would be on his tail. If she wasn't he could just change the game and make her come.

As he ran, he spotted the entrance to a cantina. There were people inside; he could feel them. Nieraan released the Force and slowed down to a job, feigning tiredness and throwing some expression of worry onto his face. He moved slower, but he did not move slowly--if the Jedi was indeed following, he wouldn't have much time to waste, if any.

Nieraan hurried inside. There were indeed people within, and a fair crowd. Some ate, others were drinking, and some were standing around, obviously shaken. He made no overt action when he arrived, only slinked off to a table in the back and sat down in a chair that faced the door. And then he waited for the Jedi. He made no attempts to hide himself in the Force; in fact, he went so far as to draw on it, trying to light himself up as a beacon to draw her near.

If she came, their game could begin.

It was a game he was very much looking forward to playing with her.

As he threw a wall of Force at her, she gathered the Force in her hand, pushing out and splitting the wall down the center, each side blowing past her harmlessly. She stepped to the side, as the tiny bolt of lightning, if it could be even called that, passed by before dissipating into thin air.

And then he turned tail and ran.

What was with Sith running away with their tails between their legs today?

It didn't take a genius to figure out was he was up to. He must of thought that he could continue to use her concern for the safety of others to make her do what he wanted. But there were two ways to protect people. She could shield them from harm, or she could remove the source of harm as quickly and efficiently as possible. When he had the boy in his clutches, the first option had been the only one available to her. Now both were.

So if he wanted to play a game, she would be happy to oblige. But she was going to load the dice first. The sounds of Xue and the zabrak fighting could be heard nearby. While the Zabrak was concentrating on Xue, she would flank him. Between the two of them, they could take him down fast.

The Sith wanted to play cat and mouse, but unless he came out of his hidey-hole very very soon, he would find himself dealing with two cats instead of one.

(( because if she actually followed, he'd find himself impaled through the back before he could get halfway to the cantina. you know it. ))

"So sith you wouldn't mind if I call you Tanny right?" Xue said yet again giving a pet name to a stranger and a enemy to top it off, a strange habit he took up at some point in his life and never managed to get rid of it. "And I can't let you touch Elsie or wound me for that matter, we have errands and things to do still" Xue said not being able to think of a more witty response.

Xue danger sense warned the Jedi knight of the Zabrak attack, a couple of seconds before the sith released a powerful telekinetic push through the force, at that distance and with the couple of seconds of warning Xue had he was able to build a proper shield to protect himself from the brunt of the impact, the bouble the knight build managed to soak most of the impact and broke, the remainings of the impact sent Xue a couple of steps back but otherwise unharmned.

"Ain't ya eager for a fight eh?" Xue said sarcasticly turning on his lightsaber, leaving himself in a casual position with his lightsaber pointing at the sandy floor, the Jedi Knight closed his eyes took a deep breath to center himself for the incoming battle.

Opening his eyes once more, Xue made a little smirk while his eyes showed determination of a Jedi knight, he began walking toward the sith seizing up his opponent confident that Elsie would andle that other sith. Xue used the force to help him reach the Zabrak jumping and using a exellent example of a force leap to land the first blow, using the little advangate he had Xue pushed the offensive using his unrefine skills in the second form Makashi knowing full well that his offensive would soon end after a couple of blows Xue aimed a slash at the sith mid section to allow him retreat a couple of steps, while moving back Xue siezed a large box that was resting in a large heap of trash, he used the force to hurl it at Tanny "Way better than a brick I might add!" Xue said happily while dropping into a Niman stance.