[Takadona Maz Kanata’s Castle](Asset Not Found)

When the First Order beset on Takadona, Maz Kanata’s castle took the brunt of the assault. Located on the shore of a lake that was owned by the pirate Maz Kanata, it served as a haven for travelers, smugglers and other unsavory characters. Sensor grids and advanced communication gear secured the castle from unannounced attacks, giving its owner and visitors enough notice to flee the scene.

The area around it is rumored to have been the battleground for the Jedi and Sith, being of strategic value for those willing to seek control over Takadona. Inside, the castle’s gray exterior vanishes into shades of brown, the color of sandstone. Tables and chairs fill the cluttered spaces where travelers could share tales or pursue their own controversial interests. Unfiltered smoke permeates the air, clogging the senses with a sweet odor. Various criminal groups have at some time or another sought shelter in the castle, their passage evidenced by the many-colored banners outside bearing their insignia.

[Takadona Maz Kanata’s Castle](Asset Not Found)

Now, the castle remains uninhabited. Several of its towers have crumbled under the First Order’s assault. Stonework pillars have toppled over, scorched from turbolasers and blaster fire. Other segments lie in ruin, still too new for the forest to have reclaimed the land around the castle.

Lieutenant Colonel Lithar Andaris slowly walked through the thick jungle of Takadona. He was moving towards the Maz Kanata's castle, where he was going to look for a cache of intel documents about a secret facility of a Clan Tarentum, one of Clans of the Dark Jedi Brotherhood that hated members of Clan Odan-Urr. The Consul of Clan Odan-Urr had sent him there to retrieve the documents as they would have provided the Jedi and their supporters an upper hand over Tarentum. The intel data was rumoured to be brought to the Maz Kanata's castle by an unknown mercenary just prior to the brief battle between forces of the First Order and the Resistance. However, amidst the chaos casued by the battle, the documents had vanished. Lithar's task was to determine, if they were still in the ruins of the castle and, if yes, to retrieve them. Despite the fact that the area was said to be abandoned, he expected that someone from Tarentum would come to intercept the intel data and keep it safe from hostile units.

Lithar Andaris finally entered the ruins of the castle. The building seemed to be empty, but it soon turned out not to be empty. The human was not alone there. He managed to make just few steps, when he heard someone walking several meters away from him. Few seconds later, he noticed another human. He immediately took out his DC-17 hand blaster out of a holster and ordered, "Indentify yourself!"

The mysterious man turned towards the Lieutenant Colonel. "Do not stand in my way or I will kill you."

“Identify yourself,” the intruder repeated the order.

“I will give you one chance,” Blackhawk threatened. “Leave, and I will allow you to live. Stay, and I will shred you.”

“I doubt that,” came the response.

In response, Blackhawk’s twin red blades came to life.

“Still doubt it?” Blackhawk sneered.

His opponents blaster fired, only to be met by one of the Clawdite’s blades. Sure that Blackhawk had him, Blackhawk advanced on the intruder, blocking the occasional blaster bolt along the way. Before he could get into striking range however, the Human bolted.

You won't get away that easily. Blackhawk bolted after him, returning his blades to his belt. The chase didn't last long. With a wave of his hand, some large rocks that had come loose during a previous battle there fell, blocking the Human’s escape. In the time it took for his opponent to turn around, the Clawdite was on him.

The blaster came up to late to stop Blackhawk. He grabbed the blaster by the barrel and quickly twisted it out of Lithar’s grip, following with a punch to the face. Throwing the blaster aside, Blackhawk planted his feet, his front foot shoulder width ahead of his back foot, his hands protecting his chest.

“Surrender or be destroyed,” Blackhawk declared.

“Never.”

With that, the Clawdite threw another punch toward Lithar’s face, which he dodged, only to be met with a kick to the knee, followed by a punch to the gut.

“You cannot win.” the Knight declared.

“We shall see.” came the sharp reply through ragged breath.

Lithar Andaris struggled to free himself, but his enemy was stronger. Yet another strong punch in the gut made the Lieutenant Colonel moan in pain. He was aware that his enemy had an upper hand over him and that if he continued the fight, his internal organs would get badly damaged at one point. That would mean his death, unless he would have been beaten to death by the Clawdite.

He let the air out of his lungs and said, „Fine, I cannot defeat you. I will not disturb you in your quest in this place.”

„Will you leave it?” asked the Dark Jedi Knight.

„Yes”, answered Lithar Andaris thinking of the room, where they were fighting each other.

„Why should I believe you?” asked the Clawdite.

„I am a man of principles and honour,” explained the human, as he actually planned to leave the room. „I keep my promises, no matter of to whom I give them.”

„I hope so. If you disturb me again, I will kill you without any hesititation,” replied Blackhawk. „I am not a patient person, so you will not have another chance to survive.”

The Dark Jedi got up and let Lithar stand up too. He observed the Lieutenant Colonel as the human walked out slowly from room and descended from the top of the level of the Castle. When the defeated soldier disappeared behind a partially fallen wall, he turned around to explore the interior of the building. He seemed not to notice that his opponent stopped there and looked through a small hole in the wall at the entrance to the building. It was the only way to get in and out of the building, so he could not miss the Dark Jedi Knight leaving the Castle.

That was too easy. Blackhawk knew that a mission to obtain critical intel wouldn't be forfeited that quickly. Knowing that, Blackhawk deduced that his opponent was doing one of two things. Either he was hiding somewhere in the ruins to attack him later, or he was waiting outside in order to ambush him.

Clever, but not good enough. Knowing that, Blackhawk proceeded to exit the ruins. Upon his exit, the distinct sound of a blaster firing caused the Clawdite to duck behind a rock, the bolt landing only a few centimeters from where he had been standing. His E-11 was out instantly, Blackhawk’s head appearing and disappearing as he attempted to find the shooter. Just before another shot rang out, the Grey Jedi caught a glint of reflected sunlight on what he assumed was his opponent’s blaster.

I have you now. Blackhawk fired his weapon, the shot landing near his opponent. He advanced, firing another shot as he ducked behind another large stone. As far as he could tell, his opponent had stopped firing for the moment, likely worried about the returned fire. When the Tarenti poked his head out however, another shot landed nearby.

This has gone on long enough. A field of pure darkness engulfed some area between him and his enemy, completely blocking the opposing sniper's line of sight. Blackhawk however, could still see through the light absorbing field, and began running, his rifle returning to his back as he flanked around his enemy. The darkness dissipated fairly quickly, but that was more than enough time for the Clawdite to disappear. As his opponent began to move, Blackhawk ducked behind some fallen debris only a few meters behind him, a lightsaber in each hand, ready to ignite at a moment's notice. Unfortunately, his attempt at stealth was ruined when his foot dislodged some loose rock, causing his opponent to turn, suddenly on high alert. Blackhawk's thumbs moved to the activator switches. If Lithar approached, he would be sliced to pieces.

When the strange darkness disappeared, Lithar Andaris looked around to see, where his enemy could go. There was no sign of the Clawdite nearby, but the Lieutenant Colonel was sure that his opponent did not leave the castle, as he would have needed to pass him. Suddenly, he heard a sound of a moved rock. He quickly turned around and carefull scanned the area in front of him.

He did not see his enemy, but he located a possible threat behind a fallen piece of debris few meters away from him. It was located in the direction from which the sound had come, so the human slowly walked there. When he got very close to it, he notice a shadow on the ground. It might have been a round rock, but also a head of a humanoid living being. Thus, Lithar Andaris stopped for a moment to think the situation over, as continuing the march would be an obvious suicide.

After few seconds, the human run quickly around the piece of debris shooting from his towards it, in order to force his enemy out of his hideout. To his own surprise, it turned out to be an effective tactic, as the Clawdite had to avoid the blaster shots, because the lightsaber form, which he had trained, did not allow him to reflect shots. However, it soon depleted most of blaster's energy cell, so Lithar had to stop the suppressive fire.

Now, both the human and the Clawdite stood few meters from each other, looking carefully at each other and planning their next moves.