Luxurious Aggression (OS Dominion of Vortex)

[Setzi Lunelle]

Objective: Find the Terentatek
Allies: [member="Darth Pyrrhus"]
Enemies: Cave Critters

As Azurea approached her companion, he wasted no time with his revenge. The Togruta swiftly pulled at her leg, trying to knock her off balance, which she promptly was. She let out a gasp, feeling a weightlessness and then that awful falling sensation, but she steadied herself against the rickety wooden slats of the bridge. His hand also landed on the part of her anatomy he hoped it would.

Once she regained her balance, she pushed her hair out of her eyes and smiled as he warned her teasingly. The brunette human was no longer afraid of Darth Pyrrhus, unlike when they first met, but she did have a healthy reservation of his strength, power, and at times, his temper. He was also a master illusionist, and the last thing she wanted was to experience a terrifying illusion of her falling off the shaky rope bridge.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “You are no longer my prey. I’m saving the rest of my energy for the Terentatek.”

At the cave entrance they both listened for the beast but did not have to wait long. A spine-chilling bellow came out of the bowels of the cave. The Terentatek sounded large, angry and possibly hungry.

Darth Azurea didn’t ignite her lightsaber yet. She planned to use a Bolt of Hatred to take the creature down, but she was also going to watch her Togruta Master and follow his lead.

She walked into the cave, covering her mouth with her forearm to ward away the foul stench inside.

 

[Sage Bane]

Objective: Raid Vors museums reliquaries
Location: Vortex Capital
Allies: [member="Kinsey Starchaser"]
Enemies: N/A
5/20

“No...Kins...wait!”

But it was too late. Before Sage could stop her Kinsey had the talisman in her hands and stuck her head through the chain. The transformation was fascinating, if a bit gruesome, and once complete, had produced a large huffing Nexu where his apprentice had been. The powerful magic raised so many questions. Was it Kinsey’s brain in that fur-covered head or had it been replaced by an animal brain? And was it still mind-fracked with his powerful Mind Twist? His mind swam with the possibilities. If she were sentient enough to obey his commands, he could use her as a battle pet.

The talisman dangled from her smiling mouth like a shiny cat toy. If he tried to remove the talisman would those razor sharp fangs in that too-wide maw clamp down on his hand?

Nervous eyes darted from her teeth to her claws. Sage reached out a tentative hand for her to sniff.

“Good kitty.”

 

[Kinsey Starchaser]

[member="Sage Bane"]

A line of fur raised itself along her spine. Feline blue-eyes darted from Sage's face to his hand, big drops of saliva plopped on the floor. A growl rumbled deep within her throat. Her mind felt...fuzzy. More wild. Ferocious. Senses were heightened.

She smelled something familiar and eyes registered to Sage's hand. And suddenly, she was hungry. And territorial. She struggled between staying in control. The growl deepened in her throat. She lowered on her front haunches and ears went back. She mimicked a hunting sound right before she exploded off her back haunches toward Sage.

 

[Sage Bane]

As a low growl bubbled up in Nexu Kinsey's throat, Sage reached out to try and soothe her mind, but found a strange mixture of personalities inside. Kinsey was there, yes, but her psyche was mixed with an animal savagery that he couldn't control. The artifact was redolent with powerful Nightsister magic. Taming beasts was a staple of their craft. Unfortunately Sage was not adept at most Nightsister magic save for reanimating the dead, so instead, he would have to control Kinsey with more physical tactics.

He backed up a few steps, holding out his hands at his growling, slobbering former apprentice.

"Come on Kins. Don't do this," he said. Was she in there at all?

Suddenly, Nexu Kinsey sprung towards him, claws swinging wildly. Sage let loose a Force repulse that aimed to knock the enraged beast clear across the room. If he was lucky it would knock her out. If not, he supposed, she'd rise to her feet, even angrier.

[member="Kinsey Starchaser"]

 

[Kinsey Starchaser]

[member="Sage Bane"]

Fluffy ears twitched at her name. But she was hungry. Mid-leap an invisible force slammed into her stretched-out torso and slammed her back. With feline-reflexes, her muscular-furry body hit the opposite wall with a CRUNCH, but she managed to land on her paws. A growling whimper left her wide-open maw as she shook out her head.

The amulet string slipped free from one tooth, now only hanging by a single razor canine.

Paws padded lightly on the floor as she stalked Sage, circling around an antique oak table. With a curling of her muscles and preternatural speed, she launched off the ground and used the table for leverage, lunging for her master again, sharp claws going for a vertical slice from his shoulders down his chest with her mouth snapping toward his face. Kins the nexu really wanted a Sage treat.

 

[Sage Bane]

The feline Kinsey landed on her feet, of course. She shook her head and yelped, displaying those endless teeth. His brow deeply furrowed, Sage scrambled to the other side of a table to put some distance between the two of them. He didn't want to hurt her, but stronger measures were called for.

The hungry predator launched herself at him again, jaws snapping. He quickly reared back, managing to avoid her teeth, but three-claws raked diagonally down his chest, and it elicited a howl of pain from the Sith Lord. Kark. That was going to leave a scar. He topped over, Kinsey on top of him, gravity pulling both of them down to the museum's marble floor. He made a grab for the talisman that dangled from a single thorny tooth, but missed. Finally, with every ounce of concentration that wasn't being spent on not dying, Sage reached out with an invisible hand of the Force, aiming to wrap the energy around Kinsey Nexu's throat. If allowed to continue, the Force choke would not be enough to kill her, but would constrict her breathing severely enough to knock her unconscious.

[member="Kinsey Starchaser"]

 

[Kinsey Starchaser]

[member="Sage Bane"]

A hot blast of air hit Sage's face as Kinsey-nexu roared. To be fair, it probably smelled like peppermints. Jaws snapped at his face as she went in for another bite but at the last second, she veered her head to the side, biting into the lushly-carpeted floor near his ear. Up close, those brown eyes triggered a memory....enough of a memory for Kinsey to control the nexu's feral instincts.

It was hard to resist the urge to take a bite out of him, though. And just when she lost control, she felt the restriction around her thick-throat. Head shook and feline ears flattened back against her head. Blue-eyes bulged. Maw opened as she tried to growl but a choking-squeak came out instead. Claw shredded the carpet just off Sage's other ear. Head violently shook to the side and the amulet shot free, clattering across the floor.

With a sickening crunch her nexu-form began retreating, morphing, and changing back into that teen-girl. With a resounding shudder, she passed out on top of Sage's chest. Her clothes were lost through the transformation.

 

[Darth Pyrrhus]

'You are no longer my prey', [member="Darth Azurea"] said with a glint in her eyes. It made him smile. She didn't hide away in fear of his power. She knew him better now, his limits, his buttons. "Good. I imagine anyone who find themselves labelled as your prey do not live a long life." he smirked, offering her that compliment, almost saying it as if she had let him live, and he was lucky to escape. She was such a fascinating creature, but no doubt dangerous. As their 'little' friend in the cave would be about to discover.

Speaking of, from the sounds of the roars heard, their little buddy was feeling lonely. Time for the Sith duo to keep him company. And of course brutally murder it. Pyrrhus didn't ignite his lightsaber either. Instead, his steps became noticeably more sneaky. Subtle steps, making as little sound as possible so as to not betray their position. Slowly, they were creeping up. Not that it would matter. It would see them. Smell them. And then they would fight. But no reason in letting it know they were coming too soon. The longer they clung to the shadows, the better they would be able to exploit the element of surprise.

Even the caves themselves felt dark, like the place itself was strong in the Dark Side. Soon, after a slow journey through a surprisingly long and complex cave, they entered into a large open area. There, before them, was their beastie. A full-grown Terentatek, almost three-and-a-half meters tall, its venomous tusks showing from the side. Had it noticed them yet? At this point it was only a matter of time. It was time for the hunt to begin.