Clash of The Titans On Rhen Var

[Lord Ghoul]

Mikhail raised his eyebrows beneath the visor. Definitely not the reaction he had been expecting. The enormous Whipid seemed like some sort of scientist-scholar. Shorn, of course, didn't understand a word Velok said. Until the part about the Jedi.

"What?!" Shorn glanced about, questing out with his senses. He didn't feel any- no, wait. His concentration increased as he held Abomination in his hands. It came to him now, light brushing against his senses. Shorn rolled his eyes. He was sure that together, he and Velok could take whoever it was, especially given his acquirement of a new, powerful artifact. Time to test out my new toy. "Anything else I should know?" Mikhail was a bit miffed.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

Velok barked a laugh. "You should know, let's see...you should know better than to take an untested artifact into battle. Rely on your fundamentals and we'll ride this out. I sense...well, I sense a larger problem than simple combat will handle. I suspect we'll need to bring down the ice tunnels above us."

 

[Lord Ghoul]

"Please," Mikhail's eyes glittered beneath his helmet mischievously. "What could go wrong?"

Helmeted head swiveled toward the ice tunnels. "Although, death by entombment wasn't really the way I wanted to go."

Shorn clicked off the headlamp and cycled through options on his Hydra helmet. Let's see, active infrared, nope... holographic processors? Nope. He made a mental note to commend the Grand Vizier on the comfort factor of the armor. The newly issued phrik and duraplast armor fit snugly. It hasn't even had the paint chipped. Well, Mikhail amended. Now it has. Thermal imaging came online and Mikhail blinked rapidly as his eyes adjusted. What better way to see anything moving out there in the cold?

"You can call me Mikhail, by the way," he said. "While it's quite endearing, 'boy' just doesn't have the same ring to it, you know?"

 

[Darron Wraith]

Curse this fething snow..

The Jedi Master couldn't help but feel the slightest bit of annoyance at the inhospitable conditions of the snowy world. Vision was a joke, his ears where burning with each gust of snowy wind, and his hair wouldn't stay out of his electric blue eyes. Ever step seemed to be a chore, and the body suit he was wearing underneath his armor seemed to be doing the exact opposite of what exactly it was supposed to be doing. Without the Force projected around him, he surely would have perished from the perilously low temperatures on Rhen Var. Curse this blasted planet and all of it's blasted snow Wraith, were it not for Rosa's body heat still being on you you'd be a Jediscicle again. The traitorous thought was quickly squashed as his field of responsibility began to detect ripples in the Force.

"We're close Rosa, the temple should be directly underneath us if what I'm feeling is correct."

Below the massive Jedi Master he could feel two pits of darkness, one great, the other powerful in it's own right. They where nigh impossible to detect with all the darkness emanating off of the temple below, but luckily Darron had pushed his senses to the brink to weed out the interference. It was deep below them, he could feel the maze of catacombs below. The structure was impossibly ancient, yet had lasted for millennia. A plan of action was forming in his mind until he felt more ripples coming to them from the west. Looking around his blue eyes could see nothing but snow, yet when he went to touch their minds with the Force he was only met with silence. Whoever they were, they were armed and not Force-users. Did the Republic send more intelligence officers? Or are these Sith troopers? The question seemed to form across his face as he looked at Rosa perplexed before sending a message through the Force to those he couldn't see.

My name is Grand Master Darron Wraith, I am the head of the Jedi Order and am on mission to the Republic. Come to my lightsaber, I mean you no harm whoever you are.

The man pulled one of his electrum plated hilts to his hand and thumbed the activation switch, the blue bar of energy would be the beacon for those approaching....

 

[Ashin Varanin]

"I apologize," said Velok, deadpan. "I'm nearly two centuries old. It's a bad habit I picked up. And you can call me Velok...oh, hello there."

He stared up at the ceiling of the vault, or rather at a point far beyond it, up on top of the snow. Darron's mental voice came to both him and Mikhail, and Velok's eyes narrowed as he responded, being sure to keep Mikhail in the loop.

And my name is Velok, Grandmaster. I have no intention of leaving the tomb of Qel-Droma until I have found what I seek. Perhaps I should have left you in that carbonite -- prophecies are such inexact things. I could have been wrong about the right time to release you.

 

[Darron Wraith]

And my name is Velok, Grandmaster. I have no intention of leaving the tomb of Qel-Droma until I have found what I seek. Perhaps I should have left you in that carbonite -- prophecies are such inexact things. I could have been wrong about the right time to release you.

The wind had been what was originally freezing the Jedi, but the stream of thoughts that had been sent to him chilled him to the bone. What in the feth? How did he even intercept my message? Was this the one Ashin referred to when she spoke of prophecies and the right time to free me? Darron's head was left spinning for a few moments, the only thing keeping him grounded was his responsibility to the mission and Rosa. He could feel his stomach drop with this new revelation, it had been a Sith prophecy that had brought him back and not a Jedi one. A few calming breathes later, and the Jedi Master was re-centered in the Force. It wasn't easy knowing that whatever this Velok was, was waiting for him down in a Sith temple. It also didn't help to know that the Sith was powerful enough to intercept his telepathic messages, and that said Sith was the one who actually released him.

Jesus Je'gan, what company were you keeping near the end?

Standing straight up to his full height, he waved his blade for the incoming men to his west hoping they were friendlies. Blue eyes turned to Rosa before addressing her, he could see she was shaking from the cold too. Wouldn't it be nice to just hold her right now? A small grin crossed his face despite the revelation that was rocking his core. He sadly had to squash that thought, along with the feelings he had for her. The last thing they needed was for their relationship to become a liability on a dangerous mission such as this one. "Listen, whoever this Velok is. Let me handle him, you can have the other Sith with him, but I need answers from this Sith okay?" There was a slight hint of pleading in his voice as he kept his attentions focused on those approaching. Motioning for Rosa to follow, he started to slowly make his way to what could best be described as a massive crater in the snowy ground before them. The only reason he had even seen it was a slight break in the wind, thank the Force.

The pair made their way to the opening, and without pausing the Jedi Master simply jumped down into the opening while hoping Rosa would join him. His lightsaber light the frozen cavern before him, and judging from what he was feeling they had a long way to go. "I sure hope whoever those people following us are, they are friendlies because these tunnels aren't anything we need to be fighting in Rosa." He made sure his tone went flat, and he prayed she would pick up on the reasoning and was doing her best to hide her emotions as well. His thoughts turned back to Velok, and the Jedi decided to keep the communication going while journeying to the temple below.

So you're the one who freed me? Why Velok...and know I am coming for you.

He made sure to keep his feelings neutral, to send no hint of his curiosity or his burning desire to know. There was also no malice in the end of the message either, but the Sith surely had to know that Darron wouldn't allow him to accomplish his objectives.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

Velok glanced at Mikhail, then shrugged, a simple message. Knowledge of Velok's secrets was a trust of sorts, and the Dark Lord would have no compunction about killing someone who betrayed them.

Why would I free you? Because I foresaw Teferi's death at Moridin's hand. Because, without you, the Order would fall into the hands of Phylis Alince or Kamon Vondiranach, whose grudge against Ashin Varanin will become the stuff of legend. Without you, there would have been blood. There may yet be, of course. We'll have to see. But if there is, it'll be blood on my terms.

 

[Rosa Gunn]

Rosa extended her empathy pushing deep below them feeling darkness herself. She closed her eyes as Darron tried to draw the attaention of the troopers trying to make out more than just darkness. Everything had memories a tomb was probably riddled with them, so it wasn't surprising that she could make out tunnels in her minds eye, she followed them passing past the other source of darkness, one was powerful, and replied to Darron's message. The other was a signature she recognised.

She drew back rapidly opening her eyes as she felt the mix of emotions that rattled through Darron only to be buried again. She didn't answer for a moment, she knew that this meant a lot to him, to have answers as to the why and how he was frozen. But she was not about to let him throw his life away for it. "The other one we know." she told him as they moved away "He was an apprentice when he attacked the temple." She leapt after him into the crater wrapping her mind in a blanket of calm, burying whatever emotions she felt.

"How about we asses the situation when we find them." she replied, a statement, not a question. Her emotion was neutral her tone verging on cold. It was a simple message, I don't care how much you want to know, I'm not letting you put yourself in danger to find out. Once inside the tunnel Rosa pulled down her hood, grateful to be out of the wind. Her hand moved to the tunnel walls giving her the briefest of flashed of memories, she withdrew her hands again and looked at Darron. "There are a lot of memories here." she said softly, "Old and dark."

 

[Verz Horak]

Rhen Var surface
@[member="Jorn Mair"] @Darron Shaw @[member="Ashara Zavros"] @ Rosa Mazhar

Verz was no Force user, but heard the message regardless. He did not trust the voice yet, as he was wary of the Sith presence on the planet. Still, he motioned to Jorn and Ashara to follow him. He led them toward the heat signature that was the lightsaber. He stayed at a distance from it though, ready to fire should this be a trap. When the saber and heat sigs vanish into the ground, he had a tough choice tp make. Go into the underground, woth a possible hostile contact, or leave the area to search elsewhere? He decided to follow. He jumped down into the ice cavern, seeing Jedi Grandmaster Darron Wraith. As well as his female companion. He lowered his blaster slowly, swithing his vision mode to low light with a blink. He looked at the Jedi , then spoke, his comanding voice projecting down the cavern.

"Jedi huh? Good. Didn't want to waste my ammo on Sith. I believe we are searching for the same thing?"

 

[Lord Ghoul]

Two centuries old? For some reason, he was not surprised. Sith tended to be long lived, funnily enough. Mikhail appreciated Velok's act of keeping him in the loop during the telepathic back and forth with Darron Wraith. It was no small act. If I had a good side, he would be working his way toward it. The information he received from listening to the conversation was a treasure trove of information about both Darron Wraith and Velok. Darron's words he believed. The Jedi Master was a fool. But an honest fool. The Sith, however, he did not trust. There was a reason why even the drool of a Sith was a curse. We're bad news. Bitches. Mikhail accepted his paranoia openly. It was the only way to survive.

The young Sith - comparatively, considering the ages of those present - did not understand why anyone would opt to bring a powerful Force User back to life just to kill him again. Sometimes, he found the Sith way of thinking really exhasperating. Things would be so much simpler if the bad guys would just off the heroes, instead of having great, big dastardly plots. A glimmer of mischievousness twinkled in his eyes as he glanced toward the ice tunnels. He felt like offing a few heroes right now.

He shot Velok a tight, whiteless smile in response to the shrug and winked as if to say your-secret's-safe-with-me. And it was, for the moment. Mikhail had no illusions about how things would play out if he gabbed. Velok's lightsaber would go swoosh and a headless Mikhail would follow.
"So about bringing down those ice tunnels."

Shorn retrieved Abomination from his belt. As soon as his gloved fingers touched the hilt he felt a flood of awareness rush into him, along with a sudden spike in his levels of spite. Questing out in the Force, Mikhail sensed the presence of two Jedi and... several other beings. He waited a few moments until all the beings were gathered in the ice tunnels, then reached out with tendrils of the Dark Side that sought out the cracks in the tunnels above the Jedi and Mando heads. Finding these fault lines, Mikhail began to push, his concentration empowered by the unlit blade in his hand. Pale blue eyes turned to the Whipid.

"Come on, old man. Lend me some of that ancient wisdom," he said.

Joining efforts, the two Sith shoved at the fault lines with an immense amount of power. For a moment, nothing happened, then with a great cracking the ground trembled as the ice caved in all throughout the tunnel. Just as suddenly as it began, it stopped. The collapse was as immediate and precise as if the whole of the tunnel had been blown at once with demolition ordnance. Like a ruined and disrepaired skyscraper being brought down. Only with people still inside.

Mikhail cheerily dusted off his hands and turned to the Whipid. "So, how's your decade been?"

 

[Jorn Mair]

Jorn followed Verz silently They moved to the heat signatures of the lighsabers. It was vage but they dropped down into a cavern of some kind. Verz yelled into the cavern and Jorn was just about to slap him with the butt of his rifle Whispering he said "so now you want to give away our position?" he shook his head at the brother mando. ​"we might as well start firing out guns" He said jokingly

 

[Darron Wraith]

"Greetings Mandalorians, I am Jedi Grand Master Darron Wraith." He motioned towards Rosa, seeing his breath form as he spoke," and this is Jedi Knight Rosa Mazhar. So what are you guys doing here on Rhen Var? We were briefed on a possible super weapon that the Sith are trying to get their hands on, thus we are here." Blue eyes examined the heavy armor the Mandalorians were wearing, he noted all of the visible heavy weapons on them. Well at least they have come prepared, though I'm curious as who sent them. He had made sure to keep the relations between the Jedi and the Mandalorians quite civil after Teferi's death, even though many vocal leaders disapproved. The Jedi Master saw no reason not to try and keep the relationship somewhat cordial and not cause future conflicts down the road. The Order needs all the allies it can get, if we pushed every organization away from us that tried to do us harm at some point we would be completely isolated.

A slight ripple in the Force caught his attention as the assembled group made their way down the many tunnels before them that lead down to the temple, but the Jedi ignored it.

"Rosa, press with your empathy and please try and see if you can find the weapon in question. I can go off of feelings in the Force, but an actual memory would help us find our target that much quicker." What he left unsaid was, please be careful. Please don't latch on to the emotions involved and see and feel things that no person should ever have to feel, just focus on the images and do your job. His thoughts crumbled like breaking ice as he realized how close he was walking to Rosa, his hand was even almost unconsciously trying to get closer to hold hers. Way to go Darron, lets just show off your affections in front of possible enemies and near the Sith. That will go over real well if you feelings where to be caught and noticed. After berating himself some more, he noticed that the assembled group had made quite some progress in the tunnels and they were only a few hundred feet away from the ancient structure that had brought them here in the first place.

The ripple in the Force grew louder, and that itching sensation crept up his spine as the Force dictated his next actions.

Without even thinking he turned and tackled Rosa back towards where the Mandalorians were at, while letting his lightsaber fall to the ground harmless deactivating. With his outstretched hand he fired a Force push at the armored group behind them to push them out of harms way as the tunnel collapsed all around them. A few more minutes passed as the cavern rocked, but it appeared the two Jedi had come out okay. Darron managed to extend his senses outward and he felt that the soldiers where alright, they were separated by a few feet of ice though. Guess we got lucky and got the one pocket that didn't fall in on itself. His thoughts returned to his current situation and he saw that he was still lying on top of Rosa, their eyes never leaving each others. With all of the strength he possessed, the Jedi Master stood and pulled the Knight to her feet, a look begging for forgiveness all over his face.

"Is everyone alright? If you can hear me only a thin layer of ice maybe a few feet thick separates us from the temple. Me and Rosa are proceeding, come when you can!"

The large man bent down and grabbed his lightsaber hilt, and thumbed the activation switch. The blue blade of energy sprung to life, and with a two handed grip Darron carved a massive hole in the ice to his right. After forming the circle to finish the cut-out, he weakly pushed it with the Force and walked through the entry way. His eyes eagerly searched the massive temple of Ulic Qel-Droma for a few moments as he continued to lead Rosa, his blade still ignited. A few more minutes of walking, and he came upon the pair he had been sensing every sense landing on world. Turning to the young man, he could feel his power had increased since they had last met.

"Mikhail, good to see you again. I'm going to take a guess and say you got promoted?" The Grand Master unclipped his other hilt and the snap-hiss echoed throughout the cavern as the second blue blade activated. Blue eyes fell on the massive whipid before him, "so you must be Velok?"

 

[Ashin Varanin]

"And here he is. The man who may well lead the Jedi Order into schism by holding on too tight. A better leader than some, but with such a need for rules, order, control...fascinating. You weren't always like this. The spectre of guilt, perhaps?"

 

[Lord Ghoul]

Mikhail raised an eyebrow. The tunnel wide avalanche had apparently done little more than slow the Jedi down. Inconceivable. Shorn raised a hand and the ice rumbled again. The area where the Jedi had gotten "lucky" collapsed in a rush of snow and ice. A hundred feet of frozen, collapsed tunnel lay between the Force Users and the other beings Mikhail sensed. The Jedi reinforcements wouldn't be getting into the tomb anytime soon. Mikhail then turned to regard Rosa and Wraith. He thumbed the activation switch on his newest accessory.

Abomination came to life with a snap-hiss. Purplish light spilled from the humming blade. The bronzium eyes of the dragon curled upon the hilt glinted hungrily. The effects of the blade upon the lightsiders would be nauseating. Such a nexus of dark side energy lured all those untainted toward that cimmerian power. Mikhail's negative emotions were heightened. Primarily his annoyance at the Jedi surviving the tunnel collapse. "Well if it isn't Master Macho," Mikhail replied. "Fearless leader of the Jed Order. And his little plaything too." His eyes were as cold as the planet. "My powers have doubled since we last met. Before I was but the learner now I-" he broke up into a toothless smile. "Sorry, too cliche. Let's dance, heroes."

 

[Darron Wraith]

"And here he is. The man who may well lead the Jedi Order into schism by holding on too tight. A better leader than some, but with such a need for rules, order, control...fascinating. You weren't always like this. The spectre of guilt, perhaps?"

A slight grin broke at the edges of his mouth at the Whipid's words, should I have expected logic from this ancient creature? "No Velok, I have given the Order focus and placed it where it always should be. In servitude of the people, I have lost much, but the Order will finally reflect our commitment to sacrifice." The hum of his lightsabers and the echoes of his boots echoed throughout the massive cavern as the pair of Jedi approached the two Sith on the steps before him. Coming to a stop a good twenty feet in front of the pair of darksiders, the calm expression he constantly wore starting to regain itself after his lips relaxed. He eyed the pair, and his eyes couldn't help but catch the sword in Mikhail's hands and when his senses reached out he couldn't help but feel more darkness radiating from the object. "You really might want to consider the kinds of weapons you carry Mikhail. I have a feeling that abomination will only ruin you in the long run...Knight." The purple blade emmiting from the ornate handle caught his attention for a moment as he felt over it with his senses, disgusted with what was there.

"You aren't the only one who was promoted Mikhail, and I'm glad you recognize a cliché. I've heard that line from hundreds of your Order before facing off against them, what you lack for in skill you certainly make up for with arrogance and wit." He knew his jab would hit home, if it was one thing he had learned that particular Sith had an enormous ego. He was a man of his word, but an abundance of hubris was there.

Turning his attentions back to Velok, Darron couldn't help but notice the creatures size.

Yes, as the Grand Master he was powerful, and large for a human. Yet Velok was over a foot taller, and easily had almost a hundred more pounds on him, blue eyes found their way to the Sith's lightsaber hilt and his heart sank a little. That wide grip of a hilt is specifically designed for users of Djem-So, this guy must be a physical powerhouse. Clearing his mind of all thought, he continued to address the elderly Sith before him. "So you were the one who made the prophecy about me, and now you criticize my decisions to implement the Jedi into government? Strange coming from a creature who serves a Order predicated on control whereas the Order I serve and lead has re-affirmed it's dedication to servitude."

 

[Ashin Varanin]

"Patience, Mikhail, patience. There'll be blood soon enough."

Velok steepled his great three-clawed hands and touched his claws to his lips in contemplation. He made no move toward his lightsabre. "You misunderstand, Grandmaster. There is no discontinuity. My criticism describes the outcomes I hoped to attain by guiding the time of your return. Blood on my terms, as I said. I have my uses for your reforms, your emphasis on...dedication."

 

[Isar]

mispost with my alt. LOL. ugh.

 

[Lord Ghoul]

"Dude, you really suck at Dun Moch," Mikhail said. When Sith used the Dun Moch technique they attempted to anger an opponent in an effort to bring them to the dark side. Jedi using it was laughable. Sith were always angry. "Go build more statues of yourself, or give some battle speeches. Save us the pain of listening to your glib taunts."

 

[Darron Wraith]

"I don't taunt boy, unlike you I know how to handle a lightsaber. Your glib words are a poor cover for your sloppy Makashi, why else would you need an ancient Sith lightsaber to compensate?"

Darron let his words hang in the air as he started to walk side to side, sizing up Velok. The eventual confrontation was coming, it didn't take his Force connection to feel that. The hate radiating off of the pair looked tiny in comparison to the waves of darkness he was feeling off the temple. Rosa was remaining quiet as the three males had their pissing contest, it would all come to a head shortly. This is merely the calm before the storm. They know what they are after, and they know we will prevent that. It wasn't the first time such a conflict had come up, and the Grand Master knew what the next move would be. Probably some more debating semantics before they dropped the illusion of formalities and engaged each other physically. It's only a matter of time, guess I better get prepared..

On the outside he remained calm, but on the inside he was allowing his will to win form a storm inside his Force signature. The darkness around him started to be pulled towards him, and he could feel the superconducting loop forming instantaneously as he allowed his mind to go ahead and fall into Vaapad. It was a bit premature to get himself ready for the fight, but judging by the Whipid's presence in the Force he didn't need to even give him a chance at an opening. The raging storm that was his light skirting the edge of the penumbra of the darkside, yet he looked as calm as always. Blue eyes looked back at the temple, planning for all the contingencies should Velok have other plans, he once more spoke.

"Our dedication is our greatest attribute, and it is such that we will serve all sentient life and further democracy. You can posturize all you want Velok, I know why you are here and I will not allow you to accomplish your mission for the new Empress. Ashin should have came herself if she wanted a chance at this...but since you are here why not elaborate on why you didn't kill me." His tone growing firmer with each word, "you had me for twenty years then freed me? Why allow me to ascend to Teferi's position when you could have ended me?"

 

[Lord Ghoul]

Shorn snorted. "You're adorable."