Hidden Malice

Chapter Nine

Malice woke suddenly, sitting up. She was in her own bed again, and looked around, puzzled.

"You're very good at that." A sly voice came from the corner of her room.

"And what is that?"

"Passing out. Collapsing. It's happened at least three times. Maybe four."

"Be careful, Ren. You were right there watching with me, and we both know who's more powerful." She teased. He crossed his arms.

"I don't know about that. You've got more experience, yes. But it's all still coming back to you. I may still have the upper hand yet."

"Shall we test that?" She asked, a twinkle in her eye. Kylo looked surprised by this. It had always been him to request fighting practice or things of that sort. She was more confident now. More sure of herself. He couldn't help but grin.

"If the Lady Malice insists, how can o say no? I'll meet you in the training room." He stood, inclining his head in a slight now, before exiting her room.

Lady Malice, huh? I could get used to this.

She dressed quickly, choosing a sleek, well fitting, black outfit. It was strange, having her memories back. It was like transforming into an entirely new person overnight. Like she had a dream and woke up as herself again.

She pulled her black hair back into a tight ponytail. Most of her hair was black, but as it went down it got just a tad lighter, going into a more gray shade. Looking into the mirror, her eyes were no longer the blue-gray that they normally were, but we're slowly turning back to the yellow and red that the Sith were known for. Funny. Kylo's eyes were nowhere close to being this shade. But she liked them much better as they were.

Strapping her lightsaber to her belt, she stepped out of her room and came face to face with a stormtrooper. There was a bit of an awkward silence before she finally spoke up.

"Can I help you?"

"Kylo Ren told me to escort you to the training room." The trooper said. Malice smiled.

"What's your name?"

"FN- 2187"

"Well, FN-2187, escort away."

The trooper seemed tense, to say the least. He shuffled quietly forward as they walked to their destination. When they finally got to the door, Malice turned. The trooper just sort of stood there, looking at his feet.

"Don't worry, you don't have to stay here with me anymore. You're free to go. Thank you for joining me."

FN-2187 looked up at her for a moment before turning and heading back down the hallway.

Such an interesting trooper.

Malice entered the room, where, true to his word, Kylo Ren was waiting. He had ditched the cape and mask, most likely to weigh him down less, and ignited his lightsaber. The cross hatch was something she had never seen before, and though it did look intimidating, it seemed to be...unstable. A word she'd often heard associated with him. She grinned, meeting his own determined eyes, and ignited her own lightsaber.

Now she knew why she had constructed a double bladed weapon. When Darth Maul had been slain, she had built herself one in his memory. It had been red, unlike now. Now, it was a brilliant and victorious gold. It hummed to life, but instead of taking a ready stance as Ren had done, she circled him slowly.

"This is going to go a lot different than our first attempt at a duel. Are you prepared?" She questioned. His eyes never left hers.

"Of course I am."

As he said the words, his lightsaber switched off. He looked down at it, confused, before hearing Malice snicker.

"You weren't ready for that." She laughed, and he realized she had used the force to switch his lightsaber off.

"Are we really going to start this with childish force tricks?" He said, starting to get frustrated. She shrugged.

"I mean we can continue if you'd like. Or you can go ahead and make your move."

Before she could finish her last word, his lightsaber was ignited and he was jumping at her. She blocked his attack with a parry, and grinned wider. Pushing him back, she swung at first at his side with her left blade, and then went for his leg with the right. He blocked these attacks with an impressive amount of speed, before taking a slash at her head. She blocked this easily as well, and used the force to push him back.

"So, we're making this a force battle as well?" He asked, getting to his feet.

"I didn't read any rules prohibiting it." She laughed. He aimed a force push at her, which she gracefully dodged.

"Is that all you've got, Ren?" She teased, knowing that the angrier he got, the more interesting the fight would be.  She lunged at him with her blade, coming so close to his face that he felt the heat of the saber on his ear. He jumped back, using the force to land on a nearby platform. Malice followed, jumping after him, and they continued their fight.

Attack, parry, dodge. They were evenly matched for quite sometime before both aiming a force push at the other. Malice decided to pull out an old trick she had been saving. Dodging his force push, she leapt into s backflip, and as her feet swung up, she force kicked him, hitting him square in the chest. He hit the wall hard, falling to his knees. She came forward, bringing her lightsaber to his chin to raise his head.

Her eyes were different. Kylo looked into them with not fear, but a healthy respect. They were pale no longer, but fierce and determined, ringed by the red and yellow, she looked to have fire in her eyes.

"You are strong, Kylo Ren. And I am grateful to you for aiding the return of my memory. I think we are going to make an excellent team."

Dang! This is a side of Asante we haven't seen before! Really wanted to have them fight again, I enjoy writing these scenes! Hope
You enjoyed!