Vano found a stab of relief pass through her as Voldon seemed to agree with her theory, though she couldn’t help but feel the urge to protest to the Battlemaster facing Soto alone. “But shouldn’t you-” though he had already sprinted off in the direction of blaster fire and shouts of final agony further towards the base. “Don’t break cover until we have to fall back!” she instructed her squad, sticking to Voldon’s instructions. Ahead of them, the treeline shivered as more of their units, led by Elara and other members of Havok squad, fell back, unable to beat back the advancing throng of Alliance soldiers as they stormed through the thick jungle canopies towards them. 
“We have to keep them back from the compound as long as we can!”
The shriek of pain that echoed from behind them sent a cold shiver down the Mirialan’s spine. Soto had gotten someone. One of the Force users, too, if the shift in the energies was anything to go by. Doubling over to brace her hands against her knees for a moment, Vano had to drop back and let her squad take the brunt of the next barrage of fire while she regained her breath, extending a hand to yank them back towards the cover line when it was clear they couldn’t hold their position any longer.
“Drop back! There’s too many of them!” 

Master Roan, whatever you’re doing up there...please, hurry. She knew he probably wouldn’t hear her, but if the other team couldn’t get rid of Bracknell and slow the assault soon, there may not be a resistance base left when they returned….
_________________

The Sith beasts skidded to a stop on either side of their Master, snarls rumbling in their throats as they faced down Bracknell while the other Sith Lord advanced towards them. Even Roan seemed to falter for a split second, taken aback by the sheer strength emanating from their adversary. He had intended to let Aria and Yerbol have a hand in Bracknell’s downfall (it only seemed right to give them a chance at some revenge of their own), but now….no, he couldn’t risk it. Bracknell was too powerful. He would have to do this alone. His own lightsaber crackling to life, Roan glanced over his shoulder at the trio behind him and murmured. 
“Yerbol.” Roan’s voice was quiet, but still firm as ever as he spoke directly to the Knight. “Take Aria and Abbeth and find Cheriss, then get back to the shuttle. Leave Bracknell to me.”

They wouldn’t have time to argue as Bracknell raised a hand, almost nonchalantly, a barrage of white-blue electricity flying towards the group. Roan hastily flung up a barrier to block it, though even he was nearly knocked off his feet by the impact. “YERBOL! NOW!” the Sith Lord snarled. He sprang forward to engage Bracknell again, giving them the chance to slip off before the other man could attempt to harm them again. Roan hated having to close blades with Bracknell, he wasn’t a talented duelist by any means, but he had to block Bracknell’s concentration from Aria and Yerbol and there was no more efficient way. Visceral snarls from his left-hand side informed him that Taral was still at his side, giving him some form of cover to fall back on if he tired, though without Chwuq to protect his other side Roan was still vulnerable to Bracknell’s less than honourable tactics.

The remaining Tuk’ata could only do so much, and with Bracknell’s strength so amplified since their last duel, Roan couldn’t hold his ground for more than a few minutes of exchanged blows. He tried to push back, force Bracknell into moving backwards, but each time Roan or Taral tried to mount an offensive strike, Bracknell shifted his stance and closed the opening. There was no way he could predict their every move...he couldn’t! And yet it seemed to Roan the longer this wore on that this would be the place his vision had warned him about. Bracknell lunged forward again, a burst of energy unbalancing Roan and sending his only protector flying backwards to land in a heap at the doorway. Taral’s life essence was faint, but still there, though he could not get up. Roan would not have time to worry about his companion however, as Bracknell almost instantly drove forward again, his movements startlingly precise and quick as they aimed one strike after the other for Roan’s vitals. He parried many, one to the neck, another to the head, one to the abdomen, but his enemy’s assault was so vicious he could not sustain the speed at which he would have to move to keep blocking. No matter, he had done his part...Aria and Yerbol would leave this ship safely and return to the other Masters. If he couldn’t kill Bracknell now, as well, they would just have to mount a second attack attempt...but that would not be for him to decide. 

Exhaling a quiet breath, he tried still, for Aria’s sake (he knew once she found out, it might break her, but she had Yerbol now. She would manage.), to keep fighting, but he was so tired now….his eyes locked with Bracknell’s, the smaller man’s pupil’s dilating as his face twisted into a grin. 
“Roannn!” Taral’s voice distracted him for a fraction of a second, the Tuk’ata dragging himself to his feet once again and leaping to try and knock Bracknell away from his Master. 


A searing pain stabbed right through Roan’s chest, the Sith Lord choking out a pained gasp as he sagged forward, his legs weakening and threatening to collapse from underneath him.
“I’ve waited a long, long time for this, Noctis.” Bracknell spat, withdrawing the energy blade.
Roan could only smirk in response, still determined that he would go down with dignity. Bracknell would not get the satisfaction of knowing he had won. 
“I should have snapped your scrawny neck when I had the chance-!” he coughed, before blackness edged his vision and he dropped to the floor, barely witnessing the dark shape fly over his head as Taral lunged for Bracknell in a fit of rage. With a stab of alarm, he registered Aria’s scream.
“DADDY!!!”

[i]WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE, YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE WITH YERBOL WHERE IT’S SAFE!![/i]
_________________

Aria stiffened in alarm as she heard the Knight’s name spoken in her father’s voice. It didn’t seem….right. Roan had NEVER referred to Yerbol by name, not even once. It was always “boy” or “Jedi”, even later on when it seemed that Roan was warming up to him….and something just didn’t seem quite right about him doing it now. She had a bad feeling about this, but before she could protest, Abbeth had grabbed both the younger duo by the forearm and begun to pull them backwards. Yerbol seemed to be just as much in shock at hearing his name as she was, stumbling as Abbeth yanked them away and urged them into a retreat. 
Aria managed to pull her arm free of Abbeth’s grip, only to stumble forward as the larger of the two tomb beasts fell into step behind them and gave them a forceful nudge down the corridor they had just worked through. 

They complied with Roan’s instructions, frantically searching the ship’s corridors for any sign of their Dathomirian companion, but would stop abruptly before they rounded the next corner as they could feel the shift in Force energies. Something was very, very wrong. She could feel the Tuk’ata beside her tense its muscles and whine uneasily, as if it sensed it too. 
“Roan.”
Aria dug in her heels, her hand flashing out to snatch Yerbol by the wrist and pull him to a stop as well.
“We’re going back. He needs help.” it wasn’t negotiable. Not waiting for her friend to argue, Aria spun on her heels and broke into a Force-propelled sprint back towards the other room, the tomb beast hot on her heels. They would still arrive just too late.

A dark shape twitched in the doorway as the other Sith hound struggled to get back to its paws, letting out an enraged shriek as it leapt towards Bracknell. Aria’s relief at seeing her father still standing would be short-lived as Roan trembled in place, and then fell, first to his knees, and then rolling onto one side as he tried and failed to get up again.
Aria’s heart dropped into her stomach. No, no...not him too, not him…
“DADDY!!!” the scream had ripped from her lungs before she could bite it back.