On the Wings of Valkyrie

Chapter LXXVII

"Stay back!!" a voice yelled even as Luna felt something drop away that left her free floating in space. Except she wasn't in space because her eyes were open now and despite being surrounded by mostly darkness and other random people, she could still see the mausoleum surrounding her.

She was in the spirit world, wasn't she?

....Chuba.

Someone grabbed her arm, pulling her into an upright position and away from most of the spirits as everything became steadily clearer.

"She doesn't want your help, back off," Angelica growled from Luna's side, even as the ghost positioned herself in front of the girl. Somehow they had been backed up to Vader's destroyed throne. Stone, only stone. Luna needed metal.

"And who are you to disagree with Dark Lords of the Sith?" one of the Sith spirits asked even as Luna felt a chill deep in her body. Almost naturally a pulse of power left her in an attempt to get rid of the intrusion. A Sith spirit was thrown out of the group that had surrounded her body, crying out in pain. Luna angrily made a start forward only for the death grip on her arm to keep her in place.

"They want you to get close to them," Angelica hissed under her breath. "Stay behind me."

"That's my body they're messing with!"

"They can't control it until they completely overpower you. Do you want them to corrupt your soul?"

"Of course not!"

"Then don't let them touch you."

"If I can't fight them hand to hand, then how do you suppose we escape?" Luna half growled.

"Shush, Sweetie, I'm thinking."

The ex-Shadow was tempted to roll her eyes even as anger rose at the newly given nickname that she now hated more than when the Emperor called her child. Why in the name of the Force should she obey the words of a ghost she hardly knew? Especially when they were being surrounded again?

Luna drew on the Force thrusting the spirits back a few feet, but the ancient Sith together had power to rival her own. Maybe she could keep them back, but not for long. And even if they ran, they'd be abandoning something Luna considered rather important. Maybe the stone—

There was a sharp clatter as something dropped to the ground at Luna's feet. She risked a glance down to find an old Force-imbued blade, so old that dark tendrils of the Force were laying broken around the weapon and it's glow had long since died.

Luna didn't question it, grabbing what might have been a rather unique shikkar from the ground along with a handful of small rocks that had been laying with it from the throne's rubble, ignoring what could have been dog slobber as she melded the weapon and stone together with the Force and her spirit. Almost instantly the weapon reacted, the stone reinforcing the blade's core and guard even as the metal itself reformed as the Force re-entered the blade, shining brightly as the crystal reacted to her presence. The Sith spirits howled in anger, but Luna was too quick, darting around Angelica as she fought her way back to her body, her new weapon working perfectly.

~*~

Luna gasped as she opened her eyes, though the Force screamed before she could take in her surroundings. Half a second later, she found what looked like a weird glowing damascus steel blade, between her face and several of the Sith's swords courtesy of her hand. In a moment the ex-Shadow was back on her feet, attacking and defending, glad to finally have a weapon that worked.

The Sith spirits however, were not as pleased that she could hurt them, and soon retreated once they realized they no longer had the upper hand. Luna allowed herself to relax slightly, glancing back to the destroyed throne to find the one-eyed tuk'ata looking at her, positioned slightly in front of where she'd last seen Angelica standing. Perhaps it could see ghosts too.

"Thank you," Luna told it, managing a small smile despite the pain radiating all over her body. She meant to kneel down and see if she could coax it closer; instead her legs gave out in part from the deep cuts she had suffered earlier during the fight that adrenaline and the Force had let her ignore. The tuk'ata came over, though it paused a few feet away, as though waiting for permission. "It's alright. I won't hurt you," the ex-Shadow said, raising a shaky hand. The Sith hound inched closer, eventually pressing it's noise into her palm. Luna closed her eyes, breathing shakily as she touched the tuk'ata's Force presence.

The creature felt friendly enough. Concerned actually. She could sense it was a loyal creature, though had never had a chance to show it, needing to spend every piece of energy on survival.

"You're a peculiar hound," she whispered. "Why did you help me?"

An image of the pack Luna had killed appeared in the tuk'ata's mind along with the familiar pain of exclusion. As she had noted before, this tuk'ata was a runt and had been treated poorly by his pack. It seemed he also had no loyalty to the tomb's master who they were supposed to protect.

"So if your master isn't the same as the other's, who is it?"

Luna's reflection appeared in answer.

"....I see. You wish to accompany me then?"

She could feel the Sith hound's affermination to her words. Before Luna could ask another question, the tuk'ata's head spun to face the main entrance to the hall, ears swiveling forward. With the Force's help, Luna heard it too.

"Vader," she whispered in half horror. The ex-Shadow scrambled to her feet, suddenly realizing she had nowhere to put her new weapon only to notice a sheith had appeared on her belt at some undefined point. Deciding she would address the issue of what the hell the weapon really was later, she sheathed the blade as she cut herself from the Force. "You know this Valley better than me. Can you lead me closer to my ship without running into them?"

The Sith hound nodded, walking with it's limp towards a tunnel just behind the destroyed throne. Luna bit her lip in an effort to ignore her injuries and followed behind.

Thank the Force for high pain tolerance. I just hope it'll last long enough.