Match 18286 Darth Vader vs. The Balrog

[Boratz]

With a city burning to the ground, a Dark Lord of the Sith stood watching outside the chaos. The moans of the city's inhabitants started to fade as the fire reached toward the skies above. Imperial stormtroopers surrounded the destruction as probe droids circled around the ruins. The fires reflected off the visors of the Sith Lord as he stood watching. This Sith Lord, that has become a nightmare across the stars, was known as Darth Vader. While watching over the burning city and hearing the pain filled screams, Vader reflected on his duel with his former Master. Left for dead on that volcanic bank of Mustafar, Vader's rage kept him alive. His agonizing screams echoed throughout as his flesh burned from his body. He heard the painful screams of the burning city and pondered on his own pain that he carried with him every moment since his defeat at the hands of Obi-wan Kenobi. His suffering fueled his rage, which in turn made him stronger. 

 

He was trapped within a mechanical prison that was the very thing that kept his body alive. Day by day; this prison, this suit continued to remind him of his failures.  The sound of his mechanical breathing filled the air as the last cry of the city burned away. Within the Sith Lord, there was a rage that burned deep. His anger and hatred were excruciating as he stood watching the flames. In his anger, it almost seemed as if the ground began to shake. In an instant, everything became still. There were no more cries or moans from within the burning city. The Dark Lord stood waiting for his subordinates to address him on their findings.

Vader reflected on the events that had led him to this moment. He took it upon himself to see this mission through after several failed attempts from his Inquisitors. Through intelligence gathered by spies throughout the galaxy and information obtained from the Empire’s probe droids, he was led to this planet. His mission was to find a Jedi Master that had proven to be quite a thorn in the side of the Empire. This Jedi Master had led other surviving Jedi to freedom, and he had led raids against different Imperial forces. The Sith Lord also felt a deep hatred for this Jedi as he was also once close friends with Obi-Wan Kenobi. 

The intelligence that was gathered had led him to this place. Much to the dismay of the Sith Lord, there was no trace of the Jedi Master that he was hunting. The inhabitants of the city did not speak a word of it and even provided slight resistance toward Vader’s forces. As a result of their noncooperation and their opposition, the Sith Lord ordered for the city to be burned to the ground. His rage burned as he had been met with failure in not locating this Jedi Master. Vader clenched his fist as he reflected on his mission to bring an end to this Jedi known as Quinlan Vos.  

With much hesitation, one of the Imperial officers reluctantly started to make his way toward the Sith Lord. This officer had heard the stories and knew the reputation of Darth Vader. He knew that with Vader, failure would be met with extreme punishment. There was a tremor in his right hand as the officer tried to collect his composure. With a deep breath he took control of the shaking in his body. As he approached the Sith that was more machine than man, he tried to find the words to say to Vader. A strand of sweat ran down his face as he stood before Darth Vader. He wiped away the sweat and took a deep breath.

 "We were unable to locate the Jedi, Lord Vader." The officer said as he waited for Vader's response.

 "He was here." Vader said as he turned to the officer. That infamous mechanical breathing filled the officer's ears as Vader towered over him.

 "Sir, there is no sign of him." The officer pleaded as his heart began to beat rapidly. "Perhaps the Intel was wrong."

 "Control yourself, Captain..." Vader responded as he glared down upon the officer. "This is not your failure. I can feel that Quinlan Vos was here."

 The officer released a sigh of relief. There was a moment of silence that was interrupted by approaching stormtroopers. Darth Vader and the officer turned their attention to the approaching stormtroopers. They saw the Imperial troopers dragging what appeared to be a father and his young son across the rocky ground. They stopped short of the Sith Lord and the Imperial officer, bringing themselves to attention.

 "I said no survivors!" Vader roared through that same mechanical breathing.

 "Sir, this one says that he has information in exchange for the safe release of him and his son." One of the stormtroopers said as he pointed down at the man.

 The Sith Lord stood without a response. He glared down upon the whimpering father and son. The Imperial officer glanced at Vader and then at the prisoners. The Officer's lip curled as he stepped forward. "Well what information do you have?!" He said with a chilling voice.

 Whimpering and trying to find any ounce of courage, the man pleaded. "Please..." He cried, "if I tell you what I know, let my son go." 

 "Depends on what you know!" The Officer said sharply as he glared at the young boy.

 In an instant, the boy started gasping for air. The father turned in horror as the boy started to rise off the ground and float above the world. Tears ran down the boy's face as he struggled to breath. "What information do you have?" Vader asked.

 "PLEASE! PLEASE! LET HIM GO!" The father cried as he tries to reach for his son. The surrounding stormtroopers knocked him to his knees.

 "What do you know?" Vader asked through that same mechanical breathing.

 

"CRIMSON...." The father screamed as he struggled to get to his feet. "CRIMSON DAWN! THEY.... THEY CAME.... THEY CAME LAST NIGHT! THEY SURROUNDED US.... THEY TOOK HIM!"

 "Do you have any other information that you would like to share?" The officer asked with a piercing glared.

 "They were being led by a red-faced creature with horns and yellow.... yellow eyes..." The father said as tears ran down his face. "He said if we talked, he would come back and skin everyone alive!"

 A single name ran through Vader's mind. A name that had haunted the Jedi Council during the Clone Wars. This name has now become a nightmare throughout the galaxy's underworld. Vader had remembered that his former Master had battle this criminal on more than one occasion. This criminal, Maul had posed a threat to the Empire for some time. The Inquisitors had tried and failed on many occasions to hunt him down. The task of the Inquisitors proved to be unsuccessful for both Maul and Quinlan Vos. Vader knew that if his hunt for Quinlan Vos continued, he would be facing a trap from Maul himself. Darth Vader glared down at the trembling father. 

 "Thank you for your cooperation." Vader said as he turned around. With a slight twist of his robotic hand, a snapping sound echoed throughout. The boy's neck violently snapped as his lifeless body fell upon the rocky ground in front of his father. The father unleashed a blood curdling scream as cried over his son. The officer's eyes widened as he tried to process what had just happened. He then glanced at the direction of Vader. The officer knew that this mission was far from over. 

 

Within a ship traveling in the Unknown Regions

 

With a cold chill running down his spine, Quinlan Vos watched in horror as the woman that he had fallen in love with had sacrificed herself to save him from death. There was a throbbing pain in Vos’ head as the world seemed to become a blur. The Jedi could vaguely see the former Jedi Master turned Sith Lord, Count Dooku, standing before him with his faded silver hair and beard. As the image of Dooku started to become more distorted, the Jedi could then see a monstrous form standing before him. It was a nightmare. The Jedi had started to regain consciousness. The cold dark room started to become clearer as he could see a male Zabrak. This red skin Zabrak had black tattoos that had run throughout his body.  The former Jedi took a couple breathes as the throbbing pain in his head started to subside. He glanced at his arms that appeared to be in restrains that restricted his power in the Force. With a sigh, he glanced back up at the Zabrak. 

“Maul…” Vos muttered as he dropped his head. 

“Quinlan Vos…” Maul said sharply as he circled around the former Jedi. “You were certainly hard to find.” 

“Not hard enough, I suppose.” Quinlan responded in defeat. 

“You… You certainly have been busy since your little Jedi friends were led to the slaughter.” Maul said with sinister smile. 

“You certainly have been half the man you could have been after your battle with my old friend, Obi-Wan!” Quinlan said with a sarcastic tone. 

“Kenobi!” Maul screeched under his breath. He closed his yellow eyes and shook his head.  A smile formed across his cheeks as he opened his yellow eyes. He glared back at the retrained Jedi. “This is not about….” Maul sighed. “This is not about him.” 

 

“Obi certainly did a number on you.” Quinlan said as he started to chuckle. 

“You have caused issues for the Empire!” Maul roared, trying to change the subject. “The Inquisitors have tried and failed to kill you. With their failures, Darth Vader himself has decided to take it upon himself to hunt you.” 

“I guess I should be honored…” Quinlan responded as he shook his head. “So what? You’re going to drop me off on his doorstep for some reward?”  

“Not exactly…” Maul said as he started to circle around the Jedi once again. “You were trained... Trained to assassinate Count Dooku during the Clone Wars… Hmmm… I want you to help me kill Darth Vader.” 

Several memories swept through Quinlan’s head as he thought about Asajj Ventress. “That was ages ago…” Quinlan muttered. 

“Perhaps…” Maul said as he glared into Quinlan’s eyes. “But the Empire still reigns. They killed your Jedi friends. Your family…” Maul paused as he looked away. “Your brother…” He said under his breath.  

“What are you looking to gain out of all of this, Maul?” Quinlan said as he glared up at the Dark Force user. “You want to team up to kill one of the most powerful beings in the universe? What do you get?” 

“Vengeance.” Maul muttered.  

“How? How are we supposed to kill Vader?” Quinlan argued. “Many have tried, and all have failed.” 

“My spice runners found a planet in the unknown regions. One that has a magic far different than the Force itself.” Maul said with a grin. “We will use that to destroy Vader!” 

"Haha" Quinlan chuckled as he shook his head. "You truly believe that I am that naive. I know what you are. I am nothing more than... bait."

Maul lifted his hand and through the Force, started to choke the Jedi Master. Quinlan struggled for air, but he kept a piercing gaze upon the Dark Side user. Quinlan's eyes met the evil yellow eyes of Maul. There was a stillness that filled the room as the two Force users glared at one another. Maul released his grip from Quinlan Vos and shook his head at one of his enforcers. The enforcer took out a blaster and set it to stun. A smirk formed across Quinlan's face as he watched Maul walking out of the room. With the shot from the blaster, everything when dark as Quinlan lost consciousness. Maul headed to the bridge and gazed upon the world in the Unknown Regions that his spice runners had discovered. The planet was massive and had terrain of many kinds. From the bridge, he could feel that there was a magic within this planet. Maul grinned as the ship started to break through the planet's atmosphere. He remembered one of his spice runners telling him of a creature that they had encountered. They barely escaped with their lives. Maul had left enough breadcrumbs for the Empire to follow him. This would be the planet where he could set his trap. This would be the world where he could have his revenge.

The Mines of Moria

Maul and his enforcers descended upon the world.  Quinlan Vos was dragged through what appeared to be massive caves and mines. The Jedi could hear movement in the shadows and knew that they were not alone in these mines. As he was being dragged across the rough ground below, he could see skeletons scattered throughout the mines. The Jedi quietly reached for an arrow sticking out of some bones and concealed it within his clothes. He knew it was a matter of time before the Empire would arrive. Even being retrained within this Force concealment device, the Jedi could feel that there was a powerful magic looming within this world. He could feel a dark magic within these mines. He let out a sigh as he began to realize true plot of Maul. At this moment, he was surrounded by Maul and his enforcers. He knew he had to be patient. He had to wait for the perfect opportunity to escape if he had any hope of survival. 

 

 Within the Executor

 

Vader stood alone on the bridge as several Imperials were working at their stations in the massive Star Destroyer. The Sith Lord reflected on the memories of Anakin Skywalker. He remembered being a weak child all those years ago on Tatooine. His whole life changed when he was taken from his mother and set on a path to become a Jedi. Anger started to boil within him as he thought about the death of Qui-Gon Jinn at the hands of the Sith assassin known as Maul. The young Skywalker was then placed in the training of Obi-Wan Kenobi. His anger grew worse as he thought about Obi-Wan. His thoughts were broken as an Imperial Officer came before him. The Sith Lord turned his attention to a blue skinned, red eyed Chiss. Admiral Thrawn gazed upon the mechanical being that many in the galaxy had come to fear. For Thrawn, he had spent much of his career studying other individuals. From the slightest muscle movement to a change of tone in a voice, Thrawn could deduce what other people were going to do. As Thrawn gazed at Vader, he knew that Vader was different. From his controlled movements to the mechanical devices in his voice, the Admiral could not pinpoint this being as he could with others. There were moments, though, few and far between. Moments that Thrawn could see that reminded him of a Jedi Knight that he had met during the Clone Wars. Thrawn remembered that Jedi, Anakin Skywalker but he knew it was best to keep this name to himself.

 "Lord Vader, we are approaching the planet that the Jedi was taken to." Thrawn muttered in his cold and monotone voice.

 "You have done well, Admiral." Vader responded with that mechanical voice.

 "There was not much for me to do, Lord Vader. It seemed as if they had left a trail for us to follow through the Unknown Regions..." Thrawn responded as he looked away for a moment. "Almost as if they wanted to be tracked. I would assume this is a trap."

 "I would not expect any differently." Vader said as he commanded one of the other officers to gather troops for his descent upon the planet.

 "Why go if you know that there will be a trap?" Thrawn asked as he glanced at the Sith Lord.

 "It would be foolish to underestimate the power of the Dark Side." Vader responded as he started to make his way to his dropship. 

 Thrawn watched as Vader and several troopers had disappeared into the dropships. He knew that he had to stay behind in the event that Crimson Dawn had tried to attack them with their own ships. The Chiss walked into the bridge and stood before the many stations. From the bridge, he could see the planet that Crimson Dawn had landed upon. "Interesting..." Thrawn said under his breath as he gazed upon the planet. 

 

Middle Earth

 The Sith Lord and his troops followed the trail to a mountain range. Probe droids found that the mountains themselves were covered in thick ice and snow. It would be too intense for the limited equipment that Vader's troops had in their possession. There was another route that went within massive caves under the mountains. Vader could sense the presence of Quinlan Vos and Maul. He knew that there would be resistance ahead. As the Imperial troops made their way into the mines, Vader watched as the Imperial probe droids disappeared into the shadows. He then heard what appeared to be ghoulish screams coming within the shadows. One of the stormtroopers had said that something had destroyed the probe droids. Vader commanded his troops to proceed forward.

 Suddenly, arrows shot out from the shadows as orcs had unleashed an assault on the intruders. These arrows pierced through the stormtroopers' armor. Several blasts scattered in all directions as the stormtroopers had fought back against their attackers. Vader ignited his fiery red lightsaber as he deflected numerous arrows. With his power in the Force, he slaughtered several orcs that had charged at him. He heard a loud thunderous noise as a cave troll had charged toward him and his troops. The Sith Lord quickly slaughtered the troll with ease. He then felt the presence of the Jedi and Maul. Vader quickly made his way through the tunnels until he reached what appeared to be a bridge. He saw the restrained Jedi Master on the center of the bridge. Vader walked out onto the bridge as his troopers followed closely behind. His attention then turned upward as he saw Maul standing high on a cliff. Maul pointed his saber down at Vader and his troops.

 "You have come to this place to die!" Maul yelled and then started to laugh.

 

"You are foolish to think that you can defeat me." Vader said as he started to walk closer toward Quinlan Vos.

 In that moment, Quinlan Vos took out that arrow that he had obtained earlier in the mines. He was able to break the restrains that held him and contained his power. The Jedi stood before the Sith Lord. He raised his hands as if he was going to attack Darth Vader. Vader pointed his saber at the Jedi. "Huh..." Quinlan chuckled as he staggered back. "Not today." The Jedi jumped off the bridge and into the darkness below. Vader watched as he disappeared into the endless darkness and then glared up at Maul.  He then felt the ground violently shake beneath him. Maul grinned as he turned around. The tunnels that stood below where Maul had been standing collapsed with a small explosion. Vader knew that the trap had been sprung. He could feel a presence coming toward them. He could feel a power that he had never felt before. Vader glanced back as he watched his troops scrambling through and setting charges at the entrance of the bridge.  Vader knew that he would have to defeat the source of this power, if he had any hope of escaping these mines.

 

 The Mines of Moria

 

It seemed as if there was an earthquake throughout the Mines of Moria as the world began to shake. There was a thunderous roar that echoed in all corners of the mines as the surrounding orcs began to retreat within the shadows.  Deafening screams started to surround the Imperial troops. These troopers had participated in battles throughout the stars and had seen creatures of many kinds. They were trained for the worst scenarios imaginable, but this was something beyond imagination. Their battle with the orcs and trolls ended in an instant, and what was coming from the deepest pit of these mines was far worse than any of these soldiers could have fathomed. The Imperial troopers fired upon the shadows in hopes that they would survive what was coming for them. They continued to feel ground shake beneath them as they heard a growling coming closer toward them. There was a darkness that surrounded these troopers until those growls grew closer. A fire shined within the shadows as the squad of Imperial troops could see a glimpse of what was making those horrifying growls. They turned their blasters to the source of the growls and screamed as they were quickly overpowered by the shadowy beast. 

 This fiery beast of the shadows moved swiftly through the Mines of Moria. Along its destructive path, there were cries from several fleeing stormtroopers. The demonic shadow ripped through the troops as it was making its way toward the Bridge of Khazad-dûm. The beast could feel a power that was not from this world. It tore through the different squads of Imperial troops with ease as it made its way to the entrance of the Bridge. With multiple thermal detonators, several troopers tried to destroy the only pathway between them and the towering beast. Some of the troops released a sigh of relief as they thought that they had put a stop to the madness. There was a moment of stillness with the only sound coming from a mechanical breathing of Darth Vader. With what was left of the stormtroopers, it seemed as if there was a moment of celebration. The Dark Lord of the Sith stood upon the Bridge and stood without a single movement. He just gazed upon the rubble that was once an entrance. 

In an instant, a thunderous sound shook the troopers in their armor. The towering demon ripped through the rubble and landed upon the Bridge. In the ensuing chaos, several troopers were knocked from the Bridge of Khazad-dûm and into the endless abyss of darkness below. The Sith Lord stood motionless as he gazed upon the massive demon. With much anger and a powerful surge of the Force, Vader knocked the retreating troopers off the Bridge until it was only him and the shadowy demon. Vader gazed over the Balrog.  In one hand the beast held a massive whip that was covered in fire. In the other hand, the demon had a massive sword of flame. Memories of his battle with Obi-Wan on the lava banks of Mustafar quickly raced through his mind as he glared at the fiery whip and the flaming sword. The Sith Lord ignited his crimson-colored lightsaber and stood ready for battle against the Balrog of Moria.

[Callisto]

Learn More About
Darth Vader
Read more about Darth Vader at Wikipedia
Official Site: Lucasfilm, LTD Links: Wikipedia: Darth Vader The Star Wars Wiki: Darth Vader Starwars.com: Darth Vader

The Balrog
Read more about The Balrog at Wikipedia
Official Site: JRR Tolkien Estate Links: wikipedia Encyclopedia of Arda The Truth about Balrogs

[Boratz]

Hope you all enjoy

[SSJRuss]

This is absolutely great. A labor of love to write something with this length. I applaud you.

Now I don't know Balrog but reading this gives me what I need to know. Vader will have trouble for sure and nearly die. Actually I'm almost sure of it, but I do think he can kill Balrog before he falls.

Also, loved how this feels connected to Star Wars. Very creative 

[Mercenaryblade]

This was damn impressive! Great work!

I'm going Balrog. 

[leroypowell3]

I believe the Balrog is more powerful than Star Wars creatures so Vader is going to have a lot of trouble.

[Callisto]

Match Final Results

Member Ratings:
5.00 - Mercenaryblade
5.00 - SSJRuss

FPA Calculation:
2 Total Votes cast
10.00 Total Combined Score
10.00 / 2 = 5.00 Final Rating on the match

MATCH SCORE
Darth Vader: 2
The Balrog: 1