Star Wars: Rise of the Battlemage

A pause hung over the vault as the tremors slowly finished, the statues and artifacts around us settling, dust flowing down off of them. For a moment, the vault was silent until Grakkus roared with rage when he realized that his crafty little plan had been overrun by ours. He immediately focused on me, either because I was the closest or because I was the one talking and humiliating him. He shouted in Huttese, charging at me full tilt, his cybernetic legs carrying him way faster than any Hutt had any right to move.

As he charged, I quickly cast a new spell, Paralyze. The green spell impacted Hutt's chest, but he barely even stuttered, breaking through the spell and continuing to charge. Either he was too big, or the spell had an upper limit of strength, constitution, or willpower.

Behind me, the fight exploded into a barrage of blaster fire and violence. Ahsoka ignited her sabers, dancing through a barrage of bullets, the vast majority of them splattering over her armor as she melted them with her deep magenta blades. Two of the Mandalorians armed with net throwers lined up their shots and fired, but Ahsoka confidently gestured at them, grabbing them with the Force and throwing them back at the Mandalorians, who fell to the ground, now caught in their own weapon.

Nal, who I would need to apologize to for letting him take the opening shot, had already slammed into another guard, knocking them off their feet. He rather cleanly stuck his blaster pistol up under their shoulder and fired, the blue glow of a pair of stun blasts making the Mandolaring shake before going down slump.

I jumped and rolled to the side, avoiding Grakkus's opening monstrous blow, his massive meaty fist actually cracking the tiles of the vault floor as he missed. He whirled around to target me again, his eyes full of deep anger.

"I'm going to enjoy stuffing your broken body into that stasis chamber," he shouted. "You-"

Rather than let him monologue, I raised my left hand and cast a Lightning Bolt while simultaneously using my right hand to summon an Archer Construct. It really drained my mana, but our biggest threat right now was the numbers disadvantage, and the construct would help with that. After a quick mental command to the construct to not go for any lethal shots, I focused on Grakkus. I couldn't help but watch, open-mouthed, as my Lighting Bolt blew several cybernetic legs off of Grakkus's slug torso. I had been aiming at his chest, but his surprising and disturbing athleticism let him jump and roll out of the way.

As I circled around the Hutt, trying to think of the best way to take him down nonlethally, the muscular crime lord rolled to his feet with a shout of anger and pain. With my magic still regenerating, I pulled out my pistol, firing stun blasts that the large Hutt seemed to shake off with worry ease.

As I tried to figure out my next move, I caught a glimpse of the battle going on not far from mine. I watched as Julus took down his own target, ignoring as dozens of blaster rounds and bullets bounced off his armor. For every shot he fired, three more hit him, but so far, our armor was holding steady.

"I'm going to enjoy making your life a living hell, Jedi!" Grakkus shouted, grabbing a nearby statue, one I recognized as something we had just delivered, and hurled it at me.

The large stone artifact flew across the distance with impressive accuracy, very nearly slamming into me. I was just barely able to get a Superior Ward up as I dodged to the left, the impressive magical shield deflecting the torso-sized statue, which exploded into smaller chunks in the process. The impact rattled my arm, but I ignored it, dropping the ward and pushing out a double-handed barrage of Spark, mostly to distract the enraged Hutt.

The lightning danced over the large Hutt's body, leaving black seared marks on his chest and arm. He roared in pain but seemed to have no issues pushing through it, charging, and almost leaping forward to grab my arm. Without my armor, I was sure he could have broken my forearm with his grip strength. Luckily, between Pola knowing what he was doing and the inherit sturdiness of beskar, even the monstrously strong Hutt couldn't flex the plating.

Seeing an opportunity, I conjured a sword, and with a spin and flick, I cut off his arm just above the elbow. The crimelord screamed in pain and shock, stumbling back as his hand slapped down to the ground. As he struggled, purple blood splattered against me, the floor, and the various artifacts around me. The Hutt was losing blood at a prodigious rate. Already, he looked pale, so even as he recoiled in pain and horror, further covering the room in blood, I cast Heal Middling Trauma on him. The bleeding quickly stopped, the healing spell doing its job.

"Wha-"

Before he could comment, I charged up another spell, a bright green blast of energy catching the large, off-guard hutt in the chest. Immediately, he froze, his body glowing a soft green as the Paralyze spell locked him up completely. Either his shock had thrown him off enough for the spell to work, or losing his hand had. I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, though.

I quickly slashed through the remaining cybernetics on his already partially disabled side. When the short-lived disabling spell wore off, I jumped back just in time to dodge the swipe of the Hutt's tail. I listened, nonplussed, as he cursed me out in what I again assumed was Huttese before eventually switching back to Basic.

"You can't kill me, and I won't call them off!" He shouted, ineffectually trying to crawl away from me, clutching his stump. "When the Mandalorians finish with the rest of your team, you're next!"

"... you clearly haven't been paying attention," I pointed out, gesturing to the rest of the fight.

More than half of the Mandalorians were on the ground, wounded, stunned, or otherwise unable to continue fighting. Ahsoka was providing cover with her lightsabers while Nal and Tatnia laid down covering fire to keep the remaining guards from running. As we watched, one Mandalorian tried to improve their position with a boost of their rocket pack, only for Vaz to jump up onto a crate of some kind and then jump again to grab the Mandalorian by the chest plate. The Shistavanen weathered a barrage of blaster fire but still dragged the Mandalorian down from the air, slamming them down into the ground.

It was clear that between our superior armor and the many enchantment objects my crew had on them, the Mandalorians were outclassed. We were stronger, faster, and tougher. Their only advantage was training and experience, but even there, we weren't exactly slouches.

While I didn't know exactly what he was saying, the Huttese flowing from Grakkus's mouth was filled with disbelief. As we watched, Tatnia picked up one of the Mandalorians' own net weapons and fired it at Corvak, the leader going down heavily, struggling uselessly against the confinement.

Seeing that his guards were falling quickly, Grakkus tried one more time to escape, ignoring his still intact cybernetics, instead just trying to slither away like most Hutts did. I rolled my eyes and hit him with another Paralyze, the Hutt once again locking up with a slight green glow. Taking the opportunity, I quickly jumped up onto his back, managing to stay steady as I put my hands on the back of his head.

Simultaneously, I cast two separate spells. With my left, I cast Sparks, feeding the sparking electricity into the Hutt's skull. With the other, I cast Healing Hands, healing the physical I was doing to the Hutt as I did it. It didn't wipe away the mental damage I was putting him through, though, cooking his brain as he lay there frozen.

Eventually, he broke through the paralysis spell, flailing and twitching as he tried to throw me off, his mouth open in a wide, silent scream. But after a few more seconds, that stopped as well, the massive hut slumping over. I continued my brutal but effective brain-wiping technique for another twenty seconds until my mana ran out. By then, smoke was coming off from his eyes, which made me glad they were currently shut.

"Okay! Grakkus is down!" I called out. "You can stop fighting!"

It took a minute for Corvak to understand what I meant, but when he did, he quickly called the few Mandalorians still standing to stop. I made my way to him, making sure to visually inspect all of my crew as I did. As far as I could tell, none of them were seriously injured, though Nal was favoring his shoulder, so I quickly healed him as I passed.

"Did you kill him?" Corvak asked desperately once I rolled him over. "Is he dead!?"

"No, I just fried his brain," I explained, using a conjured dagger to cut him free of the net. "Take a look for yourself."

He quickly stood and rushed to the large, brain-dead Hutt. Apparently, the best way to test if a Hutt was alive was by putting your hand in its mouth and pulling out its tongue. Whether he was looking for something or feeling for a pulse, I did not envy him. He did seem satisfied with what he found, however, since he quickly returned.

"He is alive," He confirmed, the slowly recovering Mandalorians letting out various sounds and words of relief.

"I'm sorry to cut off your mini celebration, but our window of freedom is closing quickly," I explained, getting the clan leader's attention. "We need to get going, now."

"We? We cannot leave until we find our people," He explained, turning back to me. "I know they were here in the palace, but I don't know where!"

"That's the easy part. With the right stuff, I can find them no matter where they are," I assured him. "Even if we don't have what I need, then our slicer can scan the palace. In the meantime…"

Ahsoka, seeing that the fight was finished, was already going through the treasure. One repulsor cart was already carrying two open crates, in which Ahsoka was putting holocrons and lightsabers. As we watched, Julus was already going to Grakkus to grab his necklace. I gestured for Nal and Vaz to assist while Tatnia approached from behind me.

"We should split up and work together," I explained. "Too big of a group running through the palace is going to attract a lot of attention. I suggest that Tatnia, myself, and another member of my team, along with you and a few of your team, go looking for your missing people. The rest should help Ahsoka. When she is done gathering everything important, they can make their way to the ship and keep our escape clear. How many of your people are here?"

"Twenty-four," He responded. "Including children."

"We can handle that, but first, we need to find them and get them out."

For a while, I thought he would refuse my offer, but after a few tense seconds, he nodded.

"We already owe you for not killing us outright, as you clearly could," he said, though his admission sounded pained. "We will work together."

"Fantastic. Pick your people while I get everyone healed up and ready to go. We are waiting for word from our slicer, and then we move."

While Grakkus had been our primary concern, there was no doubt an excessive amount of threats littered throughout the palace. Even just the turrets out in the hall, which both my team and Corvak's had studiously avoided, would be a threat, considering how large they were. We were tough in our beskar armor but not invincible.

I quickly went around and healed anyone who was injured, mostly Mandalorians. A quick zap of Sparks to the Mandalorian that Nal stunned, followed by some healing, quickly got them on their feet, though I was pretty sure I was not their favorite at the moment. We were making good progress on loading up the repulsor carts when the lights dimmed slightly, then booted back up to full power. Not a second later, my comms flicked on.

"VIP Racer successfully guided to target," The voice of Boxi, a deeper version of the infamous B1 voice, reported. "VIP reports security has been infiltrated. Awaiting further orders."

"Good job, Boxi, keep guarding Racer," I ordered. "Confirm that Racer is watching us and will be covering our movements."

"Roger Roger," Boxi confirmed, pausing a beat before continuing. "VIP Racer confirms overwatch."

I finished healing everyone, getting the last Mandalorian on their feet before waving Corvak over.

"Okay, our slicer is in position and watching over us," I explained, speaking up so everyone could hear. "Tatnia, Julus, you're with me. Nal, Vaz, stick with Ahsoka and help her load up. Once all her carts are full, move out. Corvak, who is staying and who is going?"

The Mandalorian leader made a quick few hand gestures, and three of his men rushed forward, standing by his side. I nodded and tapped my helmet, contacting Boxi.

"Boxi, let Racer know we are splitting into two groups," I explained, speaking clearly and plainly to the droid. "One is remaining behind in the vault to continue the mission, while the other is splitting off to stage a rescue mission. Be aware that we have new allies, including a group of Mandalorians traveling with us. "

"...Change in mission parameters confirmed," Boxi responded after a moment. "VIP Racer confirms their understanding. Is further aid required?"

"Not yet, but stay alert," I said before nodding to Corvak. "Let's move out."

"Wait! How are we going to find them?" The Mandalorian leader pressed. "There is no way we can search this entire Palace top to bottom before someone comes looking for Grakkus."

"Does anyone have any pictures or video of the people Grakkus took prisoner?" I asked, my question catching them off guard. "Datapad or physical, it doesn't matter."

"A… picture? How-"

In rapid succession, I cast Sparks, threw a fireball across the vault, conjured my sword, slammed it into a crate, and finished by conjuring my familiar and the mage construct.

"I am not a Jedi, I am a fucking wizard! If I say I can find your people with nothing but a picture and my mysterious ways, you best fucking believe I can do it!" I said, starting to get frustrated. "Now, is someone going to show me something, or do we have to waste more time?"

For a moment, nobody moved. Then, slowly, one of the armored warriors who had rushed to Corvak's side reached into a pouch and pulled out a small datapad. It was less a full data pad and more of just a viewing screen for photos, as far as I could tell. It flicked on, showing off the image of a woman and a child, both of them smiling and waving. I looked at it for a long moment before casting the path version of Clairvoyance. When the spell latched on, I couldn't help but smile.

"I have them, it's time to move!"