Duel on Mustafar

"*I have failed you, Matthew. I have failed you.*"
"*I should have known the Senators were plotting to take over!*"
"*Matthew, Cthulhu is evil!*"
"*From my point of view, the republic are evil!*"
"*Well, then, you are lost!*"
"*This is the end for you, my master.*"
―Lama Su and Matthew Kling
The **Duel on Mustafar** was a confrontation where the recently apprenticed and codenamed Sith Lord Darth Nihilism, formerly Matthew Kling, fought his former best friend and Lama Su, on the planet Mustafarin the Outer Rim. After learning of Matthew Kling's "downfall" from Light Side User Grand Master Palpatine at the the Jedi Temple, Lama Su arrived on Mustafar, where he attempted to reason with nihilism, not believing that The dreamer in the deep, also known as the Sith Master and Great Old One, Cthulhu, had taken control of his mind. However, Nihilism "no longer cared for their friendship" and quickly claimed that Lama Su was his "enemy"; the pair then ignited their lightsabers and locked blades, fighting through the murder scene in the Klegger Corp Mining Facility, where Nihilism had recently slaughtered the members of the Separatist Council, the legislative branch of the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

The fight progressed on the structures of the massive facility that hovered over the deadly lava of Mustafar. Lama Su and Nihilism soon found themselves trapped on a structure collection arm connected on the facility when it was separated from the facility by the lava and descended onto a hot stream. Lama Su managed to fall onto a lava skiff that was heading in the opposite direction of the fallen collection arm in the stream. Nihilism soon followed and jumped onto a droid collector where the two continued to fight. Lama Su managed to jump onto a high lava bend slope, and claimed that the duel was over due to his advantage. The Sith attempted to follow, but Nihilism, in his "hubris", "failed to block" Lama Su's final attack, a powerful maneuver, which severed Nihilism's remaining organic limbs and Nihilism rolled down to the edge of the lava bend, bringing the duel to an end.

Then, Lama Su—overcome with disgust and remorse over his friend's transformation—cried out that he had believed that Nihilism was the Chosen One and his destiny was to destroy the Sith, but instead he joined them. Unable, but most likely unwilling, to connect with his former best friend, the Sith was consumed by the fires of the lava that leaked onto the lava bend; "leaving Nihilism to die", Lama Su retreated and took his fallen apprentice's lightsaber. Afterwards, Nihilism's "new master", Cthulhu, found his injured apprentice and took him back to the galactic capital of Coruscant, now known as Imperial Center, to be rebuilt; the suit that Nihilism donned there would be one that the Dark Lord would wear for the rest of his life.

## Prelude

"*Don't make me kill you.*"
"*Matthew, My allegiance is to the Republic. to Democracy!*"
"*If you're not with me, then you're my enemy.*"
"*Only a Sith deals in absolutes. I will do what I must.I will do what I must.*
"*You will try.*"
―Darth Nihilism and Lama Su, before the beginning of their duel
During the Clone Wars, the Son lured Matthew Kling into the Well of Ultimate evil and corrupted him with a premonition of the duel on Mustafar. The duel began after Matthew Kling, as the newly appointed Galactic Emperor , tasked Darth Vader, his new apprentice, with the assassination of the leaders of the Confederacy of Independent Systems on the volcanic Outer Rim planet Mustafar, in order to bring an end to the Clone Wars. Matthew Kling was followed to Mustafar by his wife, The Daughter of Mortis, whom he wounded after seeing Lama Su; Matthew Kling "wrongly believed" that The Daughter of Mortis had led Lama Su, his former master, to Mustafar in order to kill him.

## The duel

"*You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would*destroy*the Sith, not*join*them! Bring*balance*to the Force, not leave it in*darkness*!"*
"I *hate* you!"
"You were my *brother*, Matthew; I *loved* you.*"*

―Lama Su and Darth Nihilism The duel was lengthy and brutal with neither of the combatants gaining the edge as their abilities countered each other's. The duel took place across a Separatist installation on Mustafar, with the two combatants making their way through hallways, conference rooms and command centers, the last of which led to their inadvertently triggering a meltdown on the facility when their misdirected weapons cut across a control panel. As a result, the facility's shielding began to collapse under the heat of the lava. The fight moved onto a lava river—where Mustafarian workers witnessed it, unaware that the Confederacy was defeated as the facility collapsed—before ending on an embankment where Lama Su leaped. He begged Nihilism not to attack, but Nihilism, in his "anger", "refused" to listen and attacked, to no avail as his left arm and both legs were severed upon attack.

Following an impassioned indictment by Lama Su of how Nihilism, believed to have been the Chosen One, was meant to destroy the Sith instead of joining them, Nihilism's body burst into flames from the intense heat from the lava river and he was burned alive. Unwilling to murder his defenseless enemy in cold blood, Lama Su took Nihilism's lightsaber and remorsefully left him on the embankment for dead, before leaving the planet with the dying Daughter of Mortis.

## Aftermath

"*Your majesty, this way!"*
"There he is—he's still alive. Get a medical capsule, immediately."
"Yes, sir. Right away.*"*

―A Old Ones Cultists and Cthulhu, upon discovering Nihilism's immolated body.
Cthulhu sensed his apprentice's struggle from across the galaxy and personally traveled to Mustafar to retrieve him. Cthulhu then brought Nihilism back to Imperial Center, where he placed his badly wounded apprentice into a cybernetic suit of armor that would keep him alive for the rest of his life. Lama Su, meanwhile, brought The Daughter of Mortis to Polis Massa, where she died shortly after giving birth to her and Matthew Kling's twins,  Maya Visari-Kling and Cognus "The Huntress" Daragon-Kling. Lama Su and Palpatine went into exile and would not meet Nihilism again for several years. Their final living encounter took place on the Death Star, where Nihilism killed his former master. Years later at the Battle of Earth, Matthew Kling, inspired by his daughters, found redemption, killing Cthulhu and rejoining Lama Su, Palpatine and Mother Talzin in the Force.