Mission Behind Enemy Lines [Paddy Pack, Sith]

[Domina Prime]

My Heartbeat Stumbles & My Backbone Crumbles
I WANT BLOOD AND ILL KILL FOR IT
Burn Me At The Stake, Met The Devil, Made The Deal For It
​

FRIENEMIES: Darth Malum of House Marr | Darth Strosius | Zachariah Conway | Revna | Trayze Tesar | Commodore Helix

ADVERSARIES: Braze | Ko Vuto | Zaiya Ceti | Sol Lupercal | Aris Noble | Nouqai Veil | Eloise Dinn | Raphael Gallustrade | Kaleleon

​

Fire boiled within those veins as the Mandalorian Xeno bounced, ducked, rolled and lept from tree to tree, moving through the dense jungle as if it were second nature to the beast. And given her upbringing on the planet Felucia Domina was no stranger to bizarre, difficult to navigate terrain. In fact, compared to Felucia, this planet seemed rather tame given the lack of hostile wildlife and fauna all capable of killing you and adding your bones to soil as fertilizer.

So comparatively, this was much more relaxing without having to worry about wandering Rancors or other creatures stumbling out of the dark looking for a quick snack. Though, in this specific scenario, she would be the monster.

So…maybe it crossed her mind once or twice that she should probably slow down. Especially when the voice of her droid called out from the distance as X9 attempted to levitate through the woods weaving through swinging branches Dima had boosted off of and dodging the trails of silk that he would get tangled in.

"W-wait! Wait for me! Oh dear oh my~" The poor droid cried in distress as the image of Dima got further and further the more excited Domina became at the potential prospects waiting for her at the crash site.

"Keep up nerd! Dima has no time to waste! If the Darkborn get there first they are gonna HOG all the GOOD warriors!" She barked aloud, the commotion in the trees sending birds erupting into the skies. A signal for those who happened to be close by to be on alert, assuming they paid any mind to such things in their environment. Domina made haste, knowing that if she was going to find worthy champions that she would need to be one of the first to arrive on the scene.

After all, finders keepers right? Dibs was still a thing even among snakes and rats like Sith for sure. At least Domina certainly hoped so. And with the lingering smoke in the air it did not take long for Domina to quiet herself and slow her role as she neared the site, peering out from above and staring down to inspect the many Jedi who seemed to conglomerate in the area.

Seemed like she had at least made it, but something stood out to Domina as she squinted hard and examined her prey from the treeline above them.

Eloise Dinn was the first Domina spotted, quirking a brow as the girl kind of just wandered from the crash site to explore the jungle. The girl seemed…smaller, than Dima expected. Furrowing her brows, Dima tip toed across branches and moved closer towards the crash site. Taking in those who still were around the wreckage and tending to their wounds sustained from the crash.

Only one face looked truly familiar out of everyone below. And that was Ko Vuto , who was surrounded by compatriots such as Aris Noble , Braze and Zaiya Ceti . Domina had not seen Ko since almost a year ago aboard a starship, a godling who forfeited his Lightsaber to her collection of trophies. One of her first ones that she kept around as a device she'd toy with more often than not.

Still, there was something missing among these individuals. Something Domna couldn't quite put her claw on as she inspected them from a distance.

"Hmm, these champions look a little uhh-" She brought up a hand and closed her clawed fingers around the shape of the younglings below. Squinting through her central most eye as if sizing them up by crushing them between her claws. "Shorter, than this one expected…oh well. A god is a god after all~" She mused, stepping out from the tree branch and with a single leg, stepping out into the open air. Falling nearly fifty or so feet from the skies there would be an audible CRASH right in the center of the crash site, closest to Ko and Braze.

Dust and dirt kicked up mixing with the smoke and fire, creating a smokescreen of sorts as the massive tail behind the beast swished and rattled loudly from behind.

"Not going to lie. Domina expected champions who were erm…" Those five eyes all scattered separately, eyeing each of the padawans in the area as Dominas head became heavy, leaning hard to the side in a vicious head-tilt while looking them all up and down, using a hand to gesture up to about here her horns were. "Taller…with a little more mass~" She mused in slight disappointment, her central eye flicking about between each of them as if searching for something before finally settling upon Ko. "And YOU, little godling. Domina was uncertain if you were still alive!" She called out boisterously as if she were a long lost friend to the boy. "Ya know, you really know how to stand a girl up godling! This one waited and waited for a long time for you to come seek this one out, but you never came! Domina was certain you had perished to another foe~" She chittered, reaching behind her cloak and gripping a lightsaber hilt to bring it out, clutching it TIGHTLY within her vice grip claws. "This one had assumed you would want this back, but you never came to get it. And here Domina thought your kind had an emotional attachment to these things~" She told him honestly, igniting the saber to life as it radiated its glowing green color.

Dimas eyes scanned the blade before dragging her azurite claws across the scorching plasma surface, creating a flurry of azure sparks to fly from her fingers in a display most menacing.

"Still, this one is glad your alive. Even IF you stood Dima up! Rude little god~" She pouted, incredibly nonchalant among the enemy and treating them as casual acquaintances.

Each eye remained locked on each of the padawans in her visage. Her central fifth eye locked onto Ko, the upper left eye keeping an eye on Braze , whom she had noticed was injured quite significantly which made Domina grimace. The upper right eye scanned Aris Noble , curious of the lad while Dimas lower left eye followed Zaiya Ceti , uncertain if any of these godborn would attempt some kind of mystics as their kind often resorted to when faced with a threat they did not understand. The green skinned boy Sol Lupercal was the last target Dimas many eyes focused on, keeping them all within a single line of sight as Domina de-activated Kos lightsaber.

"Steady those nerves and remove the jelly from your spines godborn, you should know, Darkborn are on their way to snuff out your light. But Dima sees you are wounded, unprepared, and dazed from your…experience. But they won't care. Darkborn are strange, but this one is half sure they'll either try to kill you, or convert you however the FUCK thats supposed to work~" She told them honestly, weighing her head from side to side, craning her neck and cracking the bones and joints audibly as she loosened up.

"Also, on the way here Domina noticed uhhhhh, you had some stragglers wandering into the fucking woods. They'll probably be the first to get picked by the darkborn but rejoice! Domina does not answer to the darklings, and if this one is being honest, if it wasn't you? Then it was going to be them on the menu next. Domina tells you these things because its important you know that what happens next isn't your fault, you're just doing what you were made to do but you ARE here…and unfortunately, there is no one else around to scratch this itch in Dimas BONES~" She spoke with the godlings, wanting to build a relationship with them beyond just being the monster in their path. "Ya guys ever have like, a really bad itch you just can't scratch? Maddening isn't it?" She asked them curiosuly as those razor claws scratched at her neck as if she had some kind of rash forming.

However, any moment the others would arrive and Spoil her fun. So with a brandish of four pairs of claws and a massive tail poised above her ready to strike, Domina readied herself for conflict with the divine bloods.

"So then, what will it be? One at a time? Or all at once?" She cooed warmly towards them, teeth along her cheeks chittering audibly as she waited for the first move to be made. "We could take turns, if you'd all prefer. This one will even wait for you to tend your wounded if you must. Dima sees one of you is hurt, and if your divine spark is to be pushed to its limit, you must be at your best!" She encouraged them sweetly, a devilish grin spread across her lips from behind her Mandalorian Mask. Her azure eye lingering slightly longer on Braze than the others as she noticed the condition of his arms. "Do you need medical aid, sweet lightborn champion?" She asked him in an almost motherly tone, sharing great concern for his condition given if she was to let the Manda Bear witness to her might then she was bound by honor to not draw her blade against a foe not functioning at their highest potential. A sith might of stabbed him in the back in his condition, but luckily for them, the first opponent to meet them in the field was by far the one with the most honor.

Even if Domina was a force of nature in the same breath, she has a moral code. As complicated and strange as said code was~

 

[Raphael Gallustrade]

He reloaded the pistol with a new powercell, and returned it to the holster and looked about. If only they had more time, and hadn't bee shot dwn, as one of the padawan helpfully pointed out, he would've liked to explore the place a bit more. It was the first time he'd ever been to the planet and learning more about the creatures, the ysalamiri and vornskr would've been nice.

Suddenly he felt something, a presence, a quick one, though where, he didn't know... But it set off his whole body, as he suddenly tensed ready for a fight. Years of dealing with the Force warning him, and living on Nar Shaddaa, coupled with the "survival" training Adeline had put him through, had turned him into a spring.

That was when it landed, at least he didn't know quite what it was, beyond a mandalorian. Yet... this one many limbs. It seemed to know the young Kel Dor, as it drew a lightsaber and ignited it before finally disengaging it, after more words. A warning. Though the words were odd, he more or less understood that she was referring to them, the Jedi, as "godlings" and then referenced "darkborn". His mind made the connection of "darkborn" fairly easily enough: Sith.

Yet, instead of his lightsaber a hand lingered gingerly over the pistol holstered at his side, though he made no moves quite yet. There was no lie, in the mandalorian's words, he knew that they were coming, though how close they were, he had no idea. This one was confusing. The words and speech seemed erratic and all over the place, but he did, at least, get the gist: this mandaloriann wanted to fight.

He felt like his very being was priming itself. The Force was exploding with darkness no matter where he felt. There was not going to be an easy way out of this. Even this mandalorian, looking at her, as he did, he could tell by her stance that she was a seasoned combatant, and good at what she did. What would be the play here... Fighting her, even all of them, even if they beat this mandalorian, would use precious time and stamina. Things that none of them could spare.

Ready as he was, he looked around at the others, trying to guage how they felt. The clock was ticking, after all.

Goodies: Braze Ko Vuto Zaiya Ceti Sol Lupercal Aris Noble Nouqai Veil Eloise Dinn Kaleleon
Baddies: Darth Malum of House Marr Darth Strosius Zachariah Conway Revna Trayze Tesar Commodore Helix
// Good heavens the tags

 

[Zachariah Conway]

Location: Myrkr
Tags: Eloise Dinn | Revna
Others: Darth Malum of House Marr | Darth Strosius | Commodore Helix | Trayze Tesar | Braze | Ko Vuto | Aris Noble | Zaiya Ceti | Sol Lupercal | Nouqai Veil | Kaleleon | Raphael Gallustrade | Sazo Vass
Equipment: Lightsaber​

Myrkr.

Darth Malum of House Marr had asked him to attend, and thus he had agreed. He had followed his tutor into many a different conflict over the recent weeks and Zachariah was almost certain that Myrkr would be no different, especially considering what they were going into. The Jedi they had been sent to slaughter would most certainly fight back.

Not sure how to feel, Zachariah kept quiet. He understood, of course, that the Jedi and the Sith were eternal enemies representing two opposing ideologies of the Force. He understood that he was meant to dislike them, but he was failing to see what they had done wrong. Intelligence suggested that all they had done was been the victim of a crashed ship.

A ship crash wasn't their fault, surely.

When his tutor had given the order to the group to take the Jedi into custody where possible, the young boy let out a sigh of near relief. He would definitely attempt to take the Jedi into custody if he could rather than killing them, prove to the Jedi that the Sith weren't all bad like they had probably been told during their training in the temples.

Darth Strosius spoke about wanting to execute the Jedi, thinking that the Sith wouldn't be able to turn them to the darkside. He had discussed with Commodore Helix about forming a perimeter around the forests to keep the Jedi padawan's contained within. It made sense, be able to keep them contained so that the hunt for them would be easier.

Eyes of the boy flicked towards Revna , waiting to see her reaction to her masters thoughts on the execution of the Jedi. He'd learned on Felucia of her dislike of slavery, but he wasn't entirely certain of her thoughts on the slaughtering of Jedi Padawan's in forests on the planet of Myrkr. He was working on the assumption that she would have some that he disagreed with, having been trained as a Sith by Darth Strosius .

Zachariah licked his teeth softly. He'd listened to the briefing and he knew the plans. Take the Jedi into custody where possible, kill them if there was no other option. That's the plan he'd be sticking to. It was the plan that Darth Malum of House Marr had designed, despite the disagreement from Darth Strosius . It just hoped it would all end without bloodshed.

The young boy made his way out into the forests to begin his hunt, to begin finding Jedi to try and capture if he could. He'd been feeling something in the force that he hadn't felt for a long time, and he'd been feeling it since the Sith had arrived on Myrkr. He'd put it to the back of his mind throughout the Sith briefing but now that he was alone on his hunt through the forest, he had time to think.

What was it that he could feel?

He walked for a while, losing track eventually of how long he'd been walking for. He wasn't using the force to hunt, like he assumed many of the other Sith were. He instead was using the force to try and figure out what he was feeling and why he was feeling it. The actual hunting was being done by his eyes, legs and five senses. His sixth was preoccupied.

Crunching under foot, the branches and leaves of the Myrkr forests fell victim to body weight of the young Sith as he walked. He wasn't exactly being stealthy, but he figured he didn't need to be. If Commodore Helix had truthfully set up a perimeter, then the Jedi wouldn't exactly be able to run far from him. He'd subdue them as best he could and get them into Sith custody.

Every hair on his arms was on stood at attention, and he couldn't figure out why. The force was near screaming at him, yet Zachariah couldn't figure out if it was trying to protect him or tell him something. He could feel something so familar yet he couldn't place what it was. It radiated light, which is what confused him. How could something so familiar feel so light?

Eventually, the young boy stepped out into a clearing and heard a branch snap. He looked down and confirmed that it wasn't a branch that he hadn't broken himself. He saw her before she saw him, and everything made sense in his head. The feeling in the force suddenly became much more familar, the light was radiating from the person, confirming to Zachariah that things were about to get interesting. He realised exactly who the person in front of him was.

"Eloise"

 

[Aris Noble]

Shot down? Aris blinked as he glanced to Braze, then to Zaiya. Just the shift in her colors was enough to show just how wrong this all was. She felt something that he couldn't. They needed to regroup. Figure this out, and quickly, before whatever this feeling some of the others felt arrived. He opened his mouth to speak as much aloud, unaware of Braze's attempts to at least connect their minds before he heard it.

"Seszil."

Dima would land to see Aris holding the silvered blade pointed right for her. He stepped between them, Zaiya and Braze and this dropped creature. Not a creature. Person? His eyes narrowed as the smoke cleared. Dima. He knew of her.

"Sith are coming." He knew what she meant. He knew who she was. If she wasn't here with the Mandalorians than she was here with the Sith. And Sith were the only darkborn he figured she'd mention from what he ha dread on her. And yes, he did read the reports on her. A being of pure strength that could match even Jedi was something that interested the boy who's only strength in the Force was the superhuman qualities his body had.

And she hurt his friends.

"We need to move. Fast." He spoke low to the other two as Dima rambled on and on. Maybe they could catch her in a monologue and leave. He doubted it, given how her eyes were still tracking him, but it was a hope. Either that or Ko and him would have to fight her on their own. He didn't like those chances, not with more Sith coming.

Braze | Zaiya Ceti | Ko Vuto | Domina Prime

 

[Nouqai Veil]

LOCATION: creek
STATUS: fighting off vornskrs.
INTERACTIONS: reserved atm Phaelissia

The sound of running water was music to her ears, a sense of relief washing over her and she trailed along in the direction. If the injury to her leg wasn't such a hindrance or if her webbed feet had some layer of protection, she would have made it to the creek much faster than the near half an hour it took. Still, there were no others in sight - where ever they were, if they were still alive, they'd notice her missing by now. Or so she hoped.

Nouqai ventured down the rocks, her feet sploshing into the coolness of the rushing water. Although the depths were shallow, reaching up to the teen's knees, the part-nautolian didn't hesitate to go under, moistening her drying skin and soothing her wounds.

The Padawan sat in the water and began meditating in hopes of connecting to the others through the force. But through the cloud of unsettling darkness that was around, it was nearly impossible. However, the peace was soon interrupted. By the shoreline of the creek, dark panther-like figures appeared from the shadows of the trees. Stooping low and menacingly, they growed and bared their sharp teeth. Her hand reached for the hilt of her sabre.

The vornskrs were evidently hungry, and she was set to be their supper. It was three of them against her, but she had the advantage of being in her element. With her stance wide and defensive, she bared her own sharp teeth, waiting for them to make the first move as the beasts closed in. The largest would pounce.

Nouqai swung.

 

[Ko Vuto]

Location: Myrkr
Equipment: Shoto-Lightsaber, San-Nii Staff, Utility Belt
Allies: Sazo Vass | Aris Noble | Braze | Nouqai Veil | Kaleleon | Eloise Dinn | Sol Lupercal | Raphael Gallustrade | Zaiya Ceti |
Opponents: Darth Malum of House Marr | Darth Strosius | Revna | Zachariah Conway | Commodore Helix | Trayze Tesar | Phaelissia
Main Opp: Domina Prime

Once the xeno lady had dropped into view for Ko he turned towards her. Not recgonzing her unique qualities yet. To him she appeared more like an eerie void. Covered in warping darkness, like a shaped black hole. But once he heard her voice fear crept into his skin, mussels and bones. Reflexively Ko gripped his right arm. Where he had torn deep cuts and gashes across it during their first encounter.

She taunted him with her words, claiming like he had disappointed her. Even brandishing his own saber in front of him. Showing off its familiar green hue and caressing the plasma blade with her claws. Ko’s breathing became shaky. He was going to confront her again? Today of all days?

It was then that he felt the mental link established by Braze. Removing him from his brief panic and grounding him. Ko took in a deep breath and exhaled through his antiox mask before speaking. “Braze, Aris, listen to me…” Ko said, his tone was serious yet a bit calm for the two younger boys. “I want you two to look after Sazo and Zaiya.” The two of them were still very new and inexperienced. Ko was putting his trust into the boys to help them. Especially the news that sith were abound as well. “Find Eloise as well, she couldn’t have gotten far. As well as anyone else who’s missing.” Of course she’d let herself stumble off from the rest of them. That last part he addressed to the rest of those around him.

Clenching his fists Ko stepped closer to Dima and discarded the robes over his torso. Wearing only a tight dark shirt he had underneath. Not wanting the loose fitting clothing to get caught, snagged, or grabbed. He turned his head and spoke over his shoulder back to the other padawans. “Have each other's backs, I’m trusting you. I’ll take care of Lady Dima here, don’t worry about me.” The Kel Dor said before turning attention back solely on Dima.

Just like their first encounter, on the transport ship over Ryloth, Ko was willing to stand up to Dima. Knowing that so long as she was preoccupied with him, she wouldn’t be able to fight and hurt anyone else. Plus out of them he was the most uniquely qualified to deal with her. Having fought her and lived once, and learning from Jasper Kai'el ’s own encounter with the unique mandalorian warrior.

Stepping closer to Dima he drew a newer weapon of his. Parts of which extended outwards as he activated it. The San-Ni staff was a flexible weapon, practically three batons connected together by power couplings. He’d finally gotten his hands on one of these unique weapons after training off and on with it for some time after losing his lightsaber. He finally felt confident in bringing one with him on a mission. However, if he knew that this was how things were turning out, he probably would’ve equipped the sword Jonyna Si had made for him. Even though he was still learning the weapon, he knew it would be a better fit to fight against Dima than his shoto.

Remembering the smaller lightsaber he had with him, he knew now that he had to get his old one back. The kyber crystals in both weapons were harvested from the same cluster. They were siblings in a sense, after today, he would make sure they were no longer separated anymore.

After brandishing the San-Ni staff, he twirled it around his body for a moment to warm himself up before taking a ready fighting stance in front of Dima. “I’ll face you Lady Dima. I think we owe it to each other after our last fight over Ryloth…” Ko said to the eerie void that was Dima. ​

 

[Sazo Vass]

Sazo took stock of the situation.

The Padawans contingent had largely stayed together; Eloise Dinn had gone ahead, but Sazo knew she could take care of herself, so she wasn't worried. Aris Noble was over with Zaiya Ceti , Ko Vuto , and Braze . Sazo was far too anxious to feel the chagrin of not being able to recognize the latter two Padawans in her earliest days a the Temple at that fast food joint, but that second-hand embarassment would come later.

For now, this being- a Mandalorian?- had appeared in front of them. It seemed...perturbed about their collective heights (which in turn vexed the 6"2 Sazo, easily one of the taller Padawans assembled). But it seemed more-so eager to test their mettle against the "godlings", before the "darkborn" arrived. It seemed to recognize Ko.

Darkborn.

...Bogan. The Bogan are here, coming, for us.

Which threw a wrinkle in things. There was a Wookie Jedi Knight on the shuttle, but he didn't seem to be around- Sazo hoped he was alright. The comms unit was trashed, and they couldn't call for help. The Bogan monsters was coming right for them. And this being was standing in front of them, asking for fight?

Sazo half-drew her vibroblade out of the scabbard; she had taken Aris's advice and played to her strengths, but by Ashla she wished her special project was ready. She bent her knees, gathering the Force around her. She blinked, relaxing slightly, as he heard the Kel Dor announce his intention to fight the Mandalorian being.

Then she felt...something. Something close. Something Bogan.

She narrowed her eyes.

"Something's coming this way. Someone. I'm going to get ahead of it", she said out loud, leaping away without waiting for a response.

Sazo leapt into the tree-line, darting through the jungle like she was back in Haruun Kal, hurtling towards her opponent.



Paddies & Friends: Sazo Vass | Aris Noble | Braze | Nouqai Veil | Kaleleon | Eloise Dinn | Sol Lupercal | Raphael Gallustrade | Zaiya Ceti
Baddies: Darth Malum of House Marr | Darth Strosius | Revna | Zachariah Conway | Commodore Helix | Mellifluous Magenta
Opponent: Trayze Tesar

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

The nauseating feeling wasn't leaving Zaiya. Instead, it was getting worse. There was something terribly, terribly wrong here. It was not just that their shuttle crashed and they had to find a setup before rescue came, but also because something was out there like an intangible dark putrid storm reaching out with intangible claws to rake them into the storm.

As her stomach twisted in revulsion, so did the silver bioluminescence etching the edges of her patterns start to pulse -- an impending warning. It was so terrifying that Zaiya almost didn't feel the mental push for permission from Braze . Confusion marred her brow, only to then give a startled expression when she felt Braze's presence. Not just standing beside her, but... connected to her. It happened to abruptly that she couldn't help by ask, "Braze did you just --"

Then, all chaos broke loose.

A tall purple-blue humanoid with several arms and a large whip-like tale dropped beside Braze . Her eyes went wide, and if Aris hadn't stepped in front of her and Braze, she might have stood there staring in ever-growing fright.

Words were tossed about Godborn, Darkborn, Sith. But above all, the instinctual desire to run seemed to overwhelm her. There was no denying that Aris was correct. They had to leave. Now.

At that point, Ko Vuto stepped forward and addressed Domina Prime . Was he going to fight her? Zaiya wasn't sure, but she knew they had to escape. The last thing Zaiya wanted was for anyone to get hurt again, like Braze did before. Her mind raced to think how she could help in this situation, and the only thing that came to mind was to ensure Braze was okay.

A hand reached out to grab Braze's shirt, trying to get him to slowly back away. With two broken arms, he wasn't in any position to fight. Aris had told her before about his strength and abilities, but she had to trust him and the others who knew far more than her about what to do next. But by then, more padawans darted into the jungle, crying out that something was coming.

Zaiya's patterns flared a foolish bright yellow then; courage amidst her fear. Lovalla weren't prone to being violent unless kin were threatened with harm. So the young teenager did what she did best.

Talk. Straight at Domina Prime .

"If... if you're not here to bring harm upon us and you genuinely want to aid Braze and us... please, just let us go," Zaiya's voice trembled, her gaze fixed unwaveringly on Domina Prime . She swallowed hard, her plea laced with a palpable sense of desperation, the colors swirling over her silver skin shifting in a kaleidoscope of pale yellows, browns, and lime-greens. It was as if every hue conveyed her deep-seated desire to escape impending danger, radiating outward with an intensity that would be unmistakable to anyone sensitive to emotions.

"We have to get out of here... now," she urged, her tone fraught with urgency. "Things are only going to get worse... so much worse."

Spoiler: Gear

Robe and cool jewelry | BCA - Solid State Hologram Tool Band

Spoiler

Jedi Group:

Spoiler

Sazo Vass
Aris Noble
Braze
Nouqai Veil
Kaleleon
Eloise Dinn
Sol Lupercal
Raphael Gallustrade
Zaiya Ceti
Ko Vuto
Sith Group:
Darth Malum of House Marr
Darth Strosius
Revna
Zachariah Conway
Commodore Helix
Trayze Tesar
Mellifluous Magenta
Older Jedi Group (Limited Involvement):
Mya Windu
Darth Assimilus

Outlier:
Domina Prime


The Gang:
Aris Noble
Zaiya Ceti
Ko Vuto
Braze

 

[Eloise Dinn]

"Eloise."

"Zach?" she whispered, recognition dawning at last.

It was Zachariah Conway , one of a handful of strays her father had picked up over the years and tried to raise into a better breed of Sith—with very limited results. Arcturus Dinn 's adoption of Zach hadn't proven nearly as disastrous as his misbegotten claiming of Lord Pharus Dystra (may he rest in piss) but it had still caused problems within the Dinn family. Eloise had been only a child of eight then, yet she remembered it well. Or at least, she remembered her limited, childish perspective of a no doubt complicated matter.

Though nearly ten years had passed, he seemingly hadn't aged a day. She rested her fists on her hips, right hand just above where her lightsaber was clipped to her belt, hiding her shock and fear behind her favorite self-defense mechanism: abrasive sass. "What's a dweeb like you doing in a place like this?" she demanded. As if the Force wasn't lit up with half a dozen other presences nearby, all of them far more malevolent than her long lost "brother".

 

[Braze]

TAGS: ​

Spoiler

Jedi Group:
Sazo Vass
Aris Noble
Braze
Nouqai Veil
Kaleleon
Eloise Dinn
Sol Lupercal
Raphael Gallustrade
Zaiya Ceti
Ko Vuto

Sith Group:
Darth Malum of House Marr
Darth Strosius
Revna
Zachariah Conway
Commodore Helix
Trayze Tesar
Mellifluous Magenta
Older Jedi Group (Limited Involvement):
Mya Windu
Darth Assimilus

Outlier:
Domina Prime


The Gang:
Aris Noble
Zaiya Ceti
Ko Vuto
Braze

Gear

Anti-Toxin Face Mask | Tactical Knife | Saberbreaker Gauntlets | Space Wizard Pattern Boots | Sunfire Signet Ring | GAB-34 Fang | [Pair of Eshan Charms] x3 | Training lightsaber | Echos of Resurgence Lightsaber | Lightsaber Light Foil Blaster Hybrid : Corsage | Lightsaber Bastard Sword : Calypso | Lightaber Shoto Lightsaber Parrying Dagger: Sentry | Lightsaber Light Foil: Requiem | Echos of Eternity | Iroai Amulate | The G.O.O Grappler! | TSS Survival Kit

Braze's attempt to connect with Aris' mind was met with resistance, but he persisted, knowing that their survival depended on their ability to coordinate and communicate effectively. Braze knew time was of the essence.

Braze moved to nudge the side of Aris' shoulder with the front of his forelock. "Aris, let me connect with your mind," Braze insisted, his voice firm yet urgent. He could feel Zaiya tugging on him and glanced back at her.

"Zaiya, let them work this out. We need to find the others and move quickly... Reestablishing coms is paramount. You heard Ko, let's go," he said, drawing back slightly to emphasize the need for swift action.

He tried to reach Aris' mind once more, seeking to synchronize their thoughts and feelings, while also reaching out for anyone else within their radius. It was a challenging and daunting task, but Braze knew it was crucial. He was adept at focusing on constructing mental shields, likening them to castle walls, but now he needed to open up the gates and connect with everyone from their group he could sense.

'Feel for one another. We should be able to hear each other this way. We can't let the coming enemy know our plans, and we need to reestablish coms and get a message out as soon as possible.'

"Zaiya, take my white gun and defend yourself," Braze instructed, trusting her to wield it effectively in the face of danger.

Focusing his concentration, Braze expanded his mental reach, seeking out any other presence nearby. It was a challenging task, akin to navigating a labyrinth in darkness, but Braze was determined to establish a connection with whoever was within reach.

The impending threat of the Sith loomed large, and they needed to act swiftly to protect themselves and relay a warning to others.
Braze sent reassurances through the established bond to his friends, especially Ko to let them know they could rely on one another.

'We need to be on the offensive and we need to move. If we find multiple hostile scatter and reconvene. We can't survive if we all get taken down.'
With their makeshift plan in place and their connection established, Braze steeled himself for the challenges to come, ready to face the oncoming enemy with resolve

He headed in to the forest after Eloise Dinn . They needed to gather everyone.

He embraced the unexpected turn of events, refusing to dwell on self-pity but instead seizing the opportunity to take action wherever possible.
There was no room for indulging in tears or worries. He understood that he simply had to act and mature in the face of adversity.
No longer was he Braze, the worried little padawan.

Now, he stood as Braze the Undaunted.​

 

[Revna]

Tags: @everyone (there's a lot of you, its also 6 am for me, I'm tired and don't have brain power to tag all of you)
Directly: Zachariah Conway // Eloise Dinn


Revna looked around her at their surroundings, before her attention was pulled back to the voices of Darth Malum and of course, the familiar voice of her Mentor. Already a couple individuals with them had slipped off into the forest to start their hunt, not wishing to stick around any longer.

Fine by her, she mused. If they had a plan or an idea of what they wanted to do, then all the more power to them.

Malum wanted to capture the Jedi padawans, and her Mentor of course wanted them all to be executed and Revna found herself sitting on the fence about it. She wasn’t against capturing them; she actually desired to try and bring them into the truth of the Dark instead of just killing them without giving them a chance to change the direction of their life. But she wasn’t against putting them down if they desired to die by her hand. If she successfully beat them in a fight, that was. Neither Malum nor her Mentor knew of the existence of the padawan Jackson, whom she had snuck off from Formos to go see and talk to a while back, and to whom she still held a certain fondness for. And she’d take that secret to her grave, if it were possible. But she knew the truth would be discovered eventually. It wasn’t unheard of for a Sith and a Jedi to…be a thing. But it certainly was forbidden to Revna. She glanced sideways at her Mentor, her thoughts traveling to the thought of him discovering her little secret…

“I mean…it is possible, Lord Strosius. Jedi do defect to the Sith. Just think of how demoralizing it would be to their Order if some of their youngest stars turned to the Dark side.” She replied in response to his sarcastic comments about them ‘seeing the error of their ways’, giving him one of her small innocent smiles. “Of course…those who refuse to turn should be destroyed. Either we gain more forces, or we put down future enemies.” She finished with a shrug. It wasn’t unheard of for her to disagree with her Mentor’s point of view, even if she did understand it.

Revna’s gaze landed on some other familiar faces who had come to join them; Trayze Tesar, and of course Zachariah Conway. She offered the young Sith a small smile, with a hint of a devious glint in her eyes as she did so. She rather liked the young man; she found him…intriguing. Enough so that she found herself willing to work alongside Zach from time to time, especially now that she knew who he really was.

The little woman watched Zach slip off into the woods, headed in the general direction of the crashed ship that the Jedi padawans had occupied. She tilted her head slightly to the left as she followed him with her eyes, pursing her lips a bit in thought. She looked back to glance at Malum and her Mentor, before she silently turned away from them to follow after the young Sith man. He had a little bit of a head start on her, and that was fine. She would simply trail him in the shadows, and perhaps they both could come across some Jedi to play around with. She kind of liked the idea of that, if she was honest with herself.

Revna pulled her Force presence close to herself in an effort to mostly hide or mask her signature. Hiding her Force connection had been something she’d done for years as a slave, and while she knew there were better ways of virtually disappearing into the Force itself, she hadn’t learned of these methods and so she used what she knew already. With this accomplished to the best of her ability, she focused on the path forward, her attention on her surroundings at all times. She’d been told that Myrkr had dangerous predators that stalked the forests, and while she fancied herself to be a predator, a huntress…she knew that she could very easily become the prey if she was not alert and careful.

The woman traversed her pathway with care, following the presence of Zachariah that she could feel, as well as the unmistakable presence of the Light side of the Force. After a long walk without much issue, she could sense that she was getting close to her quarry.

From the shadows of the forest and its underbrush, she saw Zachariah step into a clearing…and not too long later, someone else made their appearance, a young woman who had the touch of the Light upon her. A Jedi.

Both she and Zachariah seemed to know one another. Interesting, Revna noted mentally. As they conversed between themselves, the small Sith woman found herself a decent tree and with the aid of a Force jump, propelled herself up and off the ground, giving herself a better vantage point. She debated revealing her presence to the duo in the clearing, but something told her to wait.

She was smart enough to know that there wasn’t just one Jedi out in these woods; there were more. And if they were separated in the crash…then of course they would want to find others of their group, right?

Either Zach and this unknown young lady he was speaking to would lead her towards the other Jedi padawans that should be out and about, or they would come to find one of their lost comrades, and therefore come to her. It was a simple waiting game, and a hunter had to learn to be patient for the right moment to strike.

Besides, if Zachariah found himself in a bind…then she could lend him some assistance.

 

[Zachariah Conway]

Location: Myrkr
Tags: Eloise Dinn | Revna
Others: Darth Malum of House Marr | Darth Strosius | Commodore Helix | Trayze Tesar | Braze | Ko Vuto | Aris Noble | Zaiya Ceti | Sol Lupercal | Nouqai Veil | Kaleleon | Raphael Gallustrade | Sazo Vass
Equipment: Lightsaber​

"Eloise"

It had been years since he had seen her. They'd parted ways on Eliad, Zachariah leaving for Jutrand and Eloise returning to Zaathru with her father and brother. She'd been so young then, now she was older. The passage of time in the galaxy was a weird one, that much he was certain of. It was something he'd learned not to question. He'd aged a few years and she'd aged many more.

"Dweeb, me?" he blinked, looking at her. "What am I doing here? Better question is what are you doing here?" he asked of her, eyes fixed on her. "There's a Sith hunt going on and you decided to just hang out in the middle of it? The amount of the danger that puts you in Eloise, don't you realise?" he continued, eyes trained on his adopted sister.

The force radiated from his adopted sister, the light shining from her. All of the puzzle pieces were there, he just refused to connect them. He'd met Marcus Dinn on Jutrand a few months ago and darkness had radiated from him, yet Eloise was the polar opposite. Again, all the pieces were there and the young boy just didn't want to admit it.

Zachariah cast his mind back to Zaathru. He hadn't really spent a lot of time with the two twins, preferring to either spend time alone or training with Arcturus Dinn . He'd come across them, of course. They were always around, but he'd never sat and spent time actually talking with them. He vaguely remembered playing a game with one of them, though he couldn't remember which. It had been ages since Zaathru.

Now they were together again, yet they wouldn't be able to be for long. Zachariah was unwillingly starting to connect the puzzle pieces in his mind. The only people in the forests besides the predators would be Sith and Jedi, and Zachariah had accounted for all of the Sith. That left only one option, one reason why Eloise would have been on Myrkr.

His adopted sister had turned to the light. She was one of the Jedi he had been tasked to capture or execute.

"Eloise, I'm sorry" he shook his head softly, accepting there was no other option. "Does Arcturus know?" he asked softly. "Does he know that you went to the Jedi?" he continued, attempting to process the fact his adopted sister was about to be arrested by him. The Dinn's were the first people to show him true love and he was about to abandon all of that in one go, and he wasn't sure how to feel about it.

"Why, Eloise?"

 

[Kaleleon]

Objective: Find and Aid crashed vessel, Survive AA Guns
Allies: Sazo Vass | Aris Noble | Braze | Nouqai Veil | Eloise Dinn | Sol Lupercal | Raphael Gallustrade | Zaiya Ceti | Mya Windu | Darth Assimilus |
Enemies: Darth Malum of House Marr | Revna | Zachariah Conway | Commodore Helix | Trayze Tesar | Darth Strosius | Domina Prime |

Shuttle Voyarck sent out a distress signal. One that had been picked up by my vessel. They were being attacked and very likely taken down. They asked for aid, and the signal cut off as soon as it came in. Meaning it was cut off, or something else. My wide eyes opened brightly before throwing in coordinates to where they were. Throwing hyperdrive on, I sped off into the tunnel.

It took only a couple moments. I wasn't that far from them which made me want to go to them to begin with. Also, they were an allied vessel. If there is anything I could do, then I would do my best. Snapping back to the planet, I didn't attempt to radio anyone. Just pushing the sublight thrusters to their max. The Hand throttle smacking into the forward position as my left hand started turning on guns and armaments. My left hand threw the SLAM into high gear to cross the distance as fast as possible.

The reentry started to bellow around the ship. Shielding protecting it, but obscured my vision for the minute or two before breaking free. The canopy became bright with the light of being planetside. As soon as I came into space, My sensors exploded with beeps of target locks, and incoming fire. Already rolling into evasive maneuvers. My right hand on the Stick, throwing the Azure Sun into a wide Aileron roll. Throwing thermal flares to get any fired rockets off of me. Then to plunge the stock down to drop my elevation as quick as possible.

"Holy chit. No wonder why they called for aid."

Dropping further out of AA gun range, A couple explosions went off behind me as the rockets found the flairs. Now, I used the system to attempt to reach out to the Jedi.

"GADF Code Black, Azure Sun calling to GADF Shuttle Voyarck!"

 

[Eloise Dinn]

"Dweeb, me? What am I doing here? Better question is what are you doing here? There's a Sith hunt going on and you decided to just hang out in the middle of it? The amount of the danger that puts you in Eloise, don't you realize?"

Before she could even answer any of his questions, Zach wound up revealing why he was there. In fact, he gave such a succinct summary of what was going on in these woods, she wondered whether he was incredibly stupid, or intentionally trying to help her. Either way, the news wasn't good. Apparently their ship had just so happened to crash on Myrkr near where a Sith hunt was taking place. What a stroke of horrific luck for the Jedi.

With all this new information sinking in, Eloise hardly had time to process the other jarring fact of this situation: she and Zach were on opposing sides. She had always known this was a possibility; the thought of having to face her brother Marcus had haunted her ever since she found out he had dueled Lossa Aureus on Odacer-Faustin. But Zach?

If she were being honest, she didn't really care if she had to fight him. The two had never been close. He was just yet another ghost from her past, and a relatively harmless one at that. She recalled that he had been a bit of a pushover, a wuss who decided to leave Zaathru after her mother choked Pharus for trying to sow discord in the Pantheon. As if a Sith was somehow not supposed to act like a Sith. He was even apologizing to her now!

"Does Arcturus know? Does he know that you went to the Jedi?"

"He knows." But they hadn't spoken about it, hadn't sat down and had a conversation about it. Maybe they never would.

"Why, Eloise?"

"Why the feth not?" Her lip curled in a snarl of anger and frustration at his flaccid attitude. "Why haven't you switched sides? You sure do seem the type. I saw how you reacted after Mom choked Pharus in front of you. Did you expect her to be nice?" After her own father, Zach was easily one of the most delusional Sith she'd ever met. "You think these people you're with now are going to tolerate you running away every time they commit an injustice? You're nothing to them but a future smear under their bootheel, Zach. A cowardly Sith who can't even follow their philosophy properly."

She grabbed her lightsaber, thumbed the activation switch, and assumed a dueling stance. "And now you're acting like you're trying to protect me. I'm a fething Jedi, you dweeb. Your mortal enemy! You're going to have to kill me, because I sure as chit am not going to fall for that Sith crap again!"

Zachariah Conway Revna​

 

[Zachariah Conway]

Location: Myrkr
Tags: Eloise Dinn | Revna
Others: Darth Malum of House Marr | Darth Strosius | Commodore Helix | Trayze Tesar | Braze | Ko Vuto | Aris Noble | Zaiya Ceti | Sol Lupercal | Nouqai Veil | Kaleleon | Raphael Gallustrade | Sazo Vass
Equipment: Lightsaber​

He understood.

Maybe if he had of spent more time with her on Zaathr and bonded with her, the situation in front of them would have been different. Maybe if they had of bonded, they would have stayed in touch. Instead, she saw him as nothing more than the push over that he'd used to be. She saw him as nothing more than the boy who'd left when everything got too much.

It was reasonable, she hadn't seen him in years. She hadn't been around to see how he'd grown from that boy on Zaathru. She hadn't seen seen his leadership on Ordo, hadn't seen his training with Darth Malum of House Marr and Srina Talon . She hadn't seen what had happened on Felucia, with Revna and Nimian Totan . She'd been off, being a Jedi.

Then she continued speaking.

"Why haven't you switched sides? You sure do seem the type. I saw how you reacted after Mom choked Pharus in front of you. Did you expect her to be nice? You think these people you're with now are going to tolerate you running away every time they commit an injustice? You're nothing to them but a future smear under their bootheel, Zach. A cowardly Sith who can't even follow their philosophy properly."

Something was bubbling within him. The hairs on his arms stood at attention, darkness began clouding him in the force. Zachariah cast his eyes towards his adopted sister, his usual green replaced with the yellow of the Sith. In that moment, Eloise had pressed all of the right buttons. Anger tore through him as he realised exactly what the Dinn's had thought of him.

They'd never thought of him as family in their lives. To everyone but his adopted father, he was just the new stray pet that Arcturus had adopted.

"Do I? Seem the type?" he started, his voice laced with venom. "Well unlike you, I stayed loyal" he spat towards her. "While you were off making daisy chains and preaching peace whilst betraying everything you were taught, I was out there doing what had to be done. Learning, growing in power. Grandfather makes a good teacher." he glared towards her as he spoke.

He watched her lightsaber ignite, and his own blade found his palm. There was a brief moment where he truly wondered if he was about to clash blades with his sister. Anger had taken over though, was guiding his actions for him. Anger at the realisation that they'd thought of him as nothing and that Zaathru was just another place he'd never belonged.

"You should have been more like your brother. I've come across him you know. He'll grow to be a true Sith, someone who may actually grow up to do some good with their life. Someone who may actually make Arcturus proud" he spat towards her. "I wasn't going to kill you originally Eloise, I was going to let you walk out of here"

He offered her a slight smile.

"But since you give me no choice. I may as well take some pride in it. Like a Sith should, of course."

 

[Eloise Dinn]

"Well unlike you, I stayed loyal."

"Well, aren't you a good little dog!" she snapped back.

He just kept rambling about his training and how powerful he had become and blah blah blah. She rolled her eyes.

"I wasn't going to kill you originally Eloise, I was going to let you walk out of here. But since you give me no choice. I may as well take some pride in it. Like a Sith should, of course."

"Then strike first, pussy. Like a Sith should."

Zachariah Conway Revna​

 

[Phaelissia]

Location: Jungle - Myrkr
Dialogue Legend: <<Ghoul-Speak>> │ “Galactic Basic”
Direct Engagement: Nouqai Veil

666 arrived at the stream after only a few minutes of running. She immediately began to take stock of her surroundings, synthetic gaze sweeping back and forth across the bank while a separate process in her enhanced mind monitored the feed from her probe droid. The water was far more turbulent than she would have liked, which for anyone else might have made for a perilous crossing. However, for a cybernetically-enhanced assassin, it was only a minor inconvenience. Thus, the Aetharian made her way down the bank until she found a suitably-positioned boulder in the middle of the water, at which point she came to a halt.

Then, she jumped.

The anti-gravity implant propelled her body higher and further than the muscles in her legs could have done on their own, allowing her to cross a little more than 12 meters in a single bound before gracefully landing on the top of the boulder. Then, after testing her footing, 666 jumped again, the leap carrying her body the remaining 11 meters across the stream until she landed on the other side, none the worse for wear. She took a step forward to continue on towards her objective, only to come to an unanticipated halt upon registering a series of growls and barks in the distance, causing her long, hypersensitive ears to twitch with stimulation.

By itself, the presence of animals, even predatory ones, would have done little to raise her consideration. However, the distinct hum of a lightsaber accompanying the animalistic noises immediately drew the assassin’s gaze towards the source of the commotion.

That was when she spotted the Jedi, lightsaber in hand, surrounded by a trio of predatory vornskr.

666 came to a decision in an instant. It simply would not do to allow mere animals to claim such enticing prey.

And so, 666 kicked into a sprint, her legs striking the ground with increasing force until she was running at superhuman speed. All the while, electricity surged and crackled around her manicured fingers, causing the scent of ozone to gradually fill the air around her, until it suddenly turned acrid and burning. On cue, an explosive, earsplitting crack tore through the air as a searing bolt of galvanic energy lanced out from her outstretched fingers before striking one of the Force-sensitive beasts in its hindquarters, sending the hapless creature flying as its skeleton was briefly illuminated by the electrical charge, dead by the time it hit the ground. A second bolt of electricity struck its packmate in the skull only a split-second later, instantly frying the brain within. However, the last remaining vornskr was not nearly as lucky. Fire consumed its bestial form, causing the creature to give a series of pained, high-pitched yelps as its flesh was melted to the point that it sloughed off the bone as a gooey, boiling liquid, until nothing more than a stripped, blackened carcass was left behind.

“Had fun playing with the animals?” 666 purred as she slinked towards the Jedi, her tone carrying a distinct, predatory purr as she sized up her quarry. “Such disgusting creatures. I hate dogs.” She continued, with particular emphasis on the word ‘disgusting’. “Fortunately, we won’t have to worry about them anymore.” The assassin added.

Then, a pause, before a wicked grin suddenly manifested across her elfin features.

“I think there are bigger fish to fry, wouldn’t you agree, Jedi?”

 

[Nouqai Veil]

INTERACTIONS: Phaelissia

Despite the beasts having planned sushi on their agenda today, the intention of the young jedi's swift swings was not to kill but rather to fend them off without inflicting more harm than she needed to. She moved, making sure not to have her back turned against one for too long to take advantage of. Tails, paws and skin she severed as they took turns lunging, yet ensuring to avoid striking at any organ that was vital, all the while nimbly avoiding their attacks. The padawan was taught that life was precious, even of the animals that wanted to make her a meal. It was a tactic she hoped would eventually lead the beasts to leave her alone when their pain prevailed over hunger.

At least she hoped were the case. While they were relentless, the teen was growing tired and increasingly anxious holding them off. The vornskr were edging her away from the depths and towards the rocky shoreline. Then she made a dire mistake, head turning to the skies as she noticed a blue ship of Kaleleon entering the atmosphere with a loud hail of flairs and gunfire trailing behind. That moment of distraction gave the beast ample opportunity to pounce, the sharp claws catching her skin and ripping flesh. The girl cried out in pain, stumbling backwards, her hand instinctively clutched her mauled side yet her other swung her lightsaber wildly in a futile attempt to scare them off. "Back off!"

Panic seemed to rise with the pain. These large canines would sense it and the smell of her blood seemed to rile them up. Nouqai knew she would not be able to hold them off any longer - but she would die trying. She raised her saber, but just as she was about to deliver one a lethal blow to the head, she sensed it. Darkness was approaching. A deafening crack made the padawan jump, a sudden explosion of bright light enveloped her vision in blinding white. All she heard were the whimpers of dogs and the crackle of electricity. Then the warmth and nauseating smell of burning flesh stung her nose before her light-sensitive eyes adjusted to the world around her again.

There the woman stood with the hounds that had been going at the teen for nearly an hour were now dead around her. If it weren't the darkness radiating from her form, she would have thought that this woman had saved her out of good will... or pity for that matter. The smile was terrifying. The padawan's grip tightened around her saber. Fish to fry. After what the elf had done to the beast... it was apparent that she was next.
At a glance, this was no fair match. But if she could just get into the depths, she might have a slim chance of swim away. "W-who are you?" Nouqai asked. Not that she was curious in the slightest, but to buy herself sometime as she assessed the situation. Those woman's hands, tipped with claw-like manicure, wafted with smoke and buzzed with electricity.

That was her weapon.

What if... Nouqai's fingers curled as if she was gripping to something spherical, reaching through the force unto the shallow water lapping at her feet, feeling each push and pull of the waves. Remembering what Joynya had taught her, this was it. With a swipe of hand, she had tapped into her hydrokinesis, throwing a ball of water in the woman's direction.

Run.

 

[Darth Malum of House Marr]

"Your wisdom?" Malum responded, a ghost of a smirk appearing both underneath his mask, and through his voice, as he turned to gaze at his masked compatriot, "I have always held a healthy distrust of those who give into their base urges, just unlike you I know when we must cooperate with them, when we are actively at war with the rest of the galaxy," Great, he had to keep an eye upon his battlebrother too, upon the rest of his words.

He felt the mounting frustration, along with the wince as she stirred, as he continued on, giving enough time for Ali- Darth Strosius ' apprentice, and Malum's cousin to pipe up, it filled him both with pride, and the barest amount of caution, that she not only echoed his words, but too his thoughts. His battlebrother had chosen well indeed.

But was there any surprise in that?

Revna was a Marr after all, not that any here knew, a secret between them, that would be revealed in time.

"There is no shame in the master learning from the apprentice," He stilled, unconscious memories of his... of her... red eyes continued to haunt him, "...Especially when she speaks so well, do not forget our history, some of the greatest Sith that this galaxy has ever seen were once Jedi that was shown or learned the truth, Exar Kun, Darth Revan, Darth Ruin, Skeere Kaan," To name a few, though perhaps some in that list did not deserve their place, their controversies long and storied.

But that would be an argument for the historians.

Not the Sith Lords.

"My forces found out about the transport, you wi-" He stilled, they were co-apprentices of the Queen of Shadows, and despite what fighting they had engaged with each other, had it been practice, real, or feigned, they were equals in this now, he could not give him orders, "I will ask you do as I say, the Padawans do not deserve death," Unless they deserved it.

He remembered the eyes of Nyla Ven and Eliphas Dune.

The padawans he had let go so long ago.

Did they yet still live?

He threw the thought out of his mind. He had been weak then, weak and foolish. If they did still yet live, if they took the lives of his people, that would be his burden to suffer.

And he would kill them, if need be, for his penance.

His attention turned to another of their makeshift group, one Commodore Helix , certainly one he was glad that his battlebrother had been able to bring to his service. Remarkably intelligent, remarkably able, if the droid's loyalty could be secured... it would truly be a boon for them all. Yet, that was, of course, the open question.

If.

He wondered how Motus and Sibby would feel regarding this specific droid while believing that his two droids, both the protocol and astromech were remarkably lifelike, remarkably filled with personality... he would have to contend that even with Sibby's antics, Helix may have had them beat.

And his words agreeing with him, certainly won him favour.

"I appreciate your diligence on this matter, Commodore," Malum said simply, gazing out into the woodwork, as teams of men began moving out. It was dark, the terrain was treacherous, no doubt if there were Jedi Knights and Masters amongst them, they would have organised a makeshift defence in those woods, it would be bloody, ambushes only revealed by the hum and hue of blue, green, purple, and whatever other colours they wielded.

Thankfully, he would bet that the Padawans, scared, confused, dealing with the consequences of death firsthand.

They would not be ready.

It seemed though, that the Sith were ready, he offered a simple nod as Trayze Tesar began moving into the woodwork, feeling the same weight in his chest everytime his favourite cousin would be running straight into danger. Such sensation only grew stronger ever since Yavin... he had to remind himself, Trayze had survived, they both had, and whether they were both worse for wear or not... they were here now together, and that was all that mattered.

Trayze was competent, he was skilled, and he was powerful.

They would both be safe tonight.

Still, as Trayze disappeared into the darkness, he could not help but feel a similar weight, as he watched Zachariah Conway too leave, the boy... oh who was he kidding himself, the "boy" was not so much younger than himself, yet still, the protective tendencies had gripped him greatly. Whether that was due to Srina Talon 's request or not, he could not even confidently say anymore. He had been oddly quiet tonight, nerves at fighting Jedi perhaps? Oh... had he prepared him enough for this? Malum tittered with nerves, breathing out softly.

He would be fine.

Zachariah had proved himself a hundred times over.

His confidence increased as he watched Revna follow him quickly after, it was no surprise that he felt the same concern regarding his other cousin, newly found or not. Yet, if they were both together, then they could handle anything that would come across their path, that much he was confident of.

And...

Well, if those two thought they were being subtle with the looks they passed each other, he was certainly shirking his responsibilities in training them.

Still...

It would not be the worst thing.

The grandson of the Sith Emperor, and a lady of the House of Marr.

An exceptional match indeed.

As she turned her head to look at both her masked masters, he gave a simple nod, as she scurried into the trees after his apprentice.

"Do not they make you so proud?" Malum spoke, almost wistfully, tilting his head to look towards his battlebrother, before he felt the Force swirl about him, as he faded from eyes both naked and unnaked, it was instinctual now, the third head of the hydra, the son of the Queen of Shadows.

Before he blinked out of existence, his vision swirling, as within a second he was at the treeline, and then further into the trees, and then further still, covering what would take minutes, in mere seconds. He had experienced, the disconcertion of Ysalamir lizards once before, and in the darkness, it would be impossible to see them, he risked their presence every step he took.

But teleporting through these woods, to a fixed point where he knew the crash took place?

Well.

The probability analysis was on his side.

Phaelissia and Domina Prime may have had the headstarts, but he would narrow the gap as best he could.

He ignored what he thought were some strange flashing lights in the sky above, some trick of his vision as his mind processed just simply how quickly he was moving, as he narrowed the gap further, and further to him and the crash site.

He arrived, to quite the scene.

Domina stood, surrounded by the Jedi Padawans, who seemed a veritable caleidoscope of different and perhaps contradictory emotions. Between fear, between resignation, between... perhaps not apathy, but it was a respectable stoicism.

Destiny and Fate, the Force, simply had to give him the misfortune of having a daughter of Kaine to be the one he had to deal with today.

He considered intervening, yet stood still, allowing Domina to talk herself out, though the... woman? If the alien... creation, could be called that, was perhaps one of the most unstable and unpredictable figures he had ever met. He held some faith, she was not yet about to strike down the padawans, she had far too many opportunities to.

Either her words were true, or his sadism theory was too accurate.

He took the opportunity to notice the assembled padawans, a silent thanks that neither Ven or Dune were here... yet, that was about where the thanks ended.

Of the padawans, an older human, perhaps a knight rather than a padawan? However, he spotted no lightsabre... indeed, the man looked more pilot and pistoleer, than a Jedi.

A Mirialan, though from this distance, he could not quite tell what he was doing.

A Lovalla, who shined so brilliantly she may as well have been a beacon that would lead all of them here. The most scared and frightened of the padawans assembled.

A tall Kel Dor, perhaps even rivalling him in height, was the only that stood his ground with a weapon in hand. Seeming to have some sort of history with Domina... which was enough to gain Malum's respect, one did not easily go into combat with that woman and live to tell the tale.

Those were the ones he did not know.

Though, that was not entirely true.

A boy, rather tall for his age, and with a face that reminded him of... Kahlil Noble .

He swallowed his emotions, as he simply gazed on, the boy had a silver blade in hand, pointing it towards Domina, the resemblance was uncanny, it was the younger version of the man... that had defeated him on Yavin... that had almost killed him.

And his son had just fallen into his grasp.

The words that had echoed in his mind back then, echoed in his mind again, as she was fully awake, as she was watching.

"They have children... which is an oh terrible thing when battling Sith."

The advice had not helped him on Yavin, but now, as if a prophecy playing out, it proved oh so useful now.

Would it not be such sweet vengeance, sweet justice, to take away their son?

To show him the truth of the darkness?

He may have found his target, then and there, if not for one he truly did recognise him. One he had last seen at Lothal... one that had confused him then, but now...

...Well now, Braze confused him even further.

Why... did he feel the darkside from him?

Most curious.

Well then, it was enough watching, and as Domina's words finished, as strange and childlike as ever, he knew he would need to be careful. One was able to deal with a child's irrationality, as a child could not crush you with a swing of their weapon... Domina... very much could.

He allowed his cloak and concealment to fall, filling the clearing with his presence, and the darkside that came along with it, his masked form marching out of the trees with nought but a care in the world, toward the burning hulk of the ship that they had brought down.

"Domina, please, you are scaring the pada- lightborns," Malum spoke softly, gently even, reminding himself that this would require him to... dumb down his words... use her language, he considered removing the mask, but with Braze... there was little reason to reveal his identity.

"Thank you for securing the padawans, but from what I have heard, it seems this group are not all of them. We had such a... rich conversation upon Jutrand, I enjoyed the holocron you gave me," Let that be enough to inform you who I am, Bogan if he knew she was here, he might have thought to have brought pastries, "The Lord of Red, at your service once again," He offered a nod, always keeping his hidden eyes upon the padawans, never allowing them out of his sight.

"If you would go look for the others, I will secure these in the name of our Emperor, make sure they are well cared for, and unharmed... and we can have another conversation once again," It was not going to be enough, she wanted something more than that, her words to the padawans revealed that much, "You can have your battle, with whoever you desire, once we make sure the padawans are safe... from anyone who may wish to fight them when they are wounded and injured, unfair, as you would say," His gaze looked to the padawans, he did not expect them to accept this so easily, however... this would not work if they did not.

"I know you have little reason to trust me, Jedi, but I truly mean you no harm, I am only here, to fulfil my duty." Would that matter to them? Likely not.

But it was the truth, regardless.

Facing: Aris Noble Sol Lupercal Raphael Gallustrade Zaiya Ceti Ko Vuto
Other Enemies: Sazo Vass Nouqai Veil Kaleleon Eloise Dinn Mya Windu Darth Assimilus

 

[Sol Lupercal]

Objective: Enage secret technique

As the others sprang into action, something inside Sol froze him to the spot where he stood. It wasn't fear that held him back, but rather a sudden paralysis brought on by the sudden appearance of the other being. Caught in an internal struggle between fight and flight, his instincts seemed to betray him, leaving him immobilized.

In the midst of this internal conflict, Sol's mind echoed with the same two words, 'Stay, Flee,' repeating incessantly like a broken record. Alongside these conflicting thoughts, a sense of shame began to gnaw at him, the belief that remaining perfectly still might render him invisible in the chaos swirling around him.