Private Man Marked by Death

[Jasper Kai'el]

Man Marked by Death
The Redoubt
Tags: Valery Noble , Kahlil Noble , Ara Sheridan , Dreidi Xeraic

​

Some time ago, back when Jasper Kai'el was a fresh faced Jedi Knight, the man found himself abducted by a band of traveling cultists enamored with the dark side. Witnessing runes left behind by an encounter with the old Dark Lord of the Sith, the cult developed an obsession with him, hailing him as a dark messiah. They've grown impatient. The conglomerate of mad men and women crave the return of their destined champion, their Man Marked by Death. A message has been issued to the New Jedi Order, a distress signal from the Chiss Redoubt. A local refugee village has been taken hostage by an organization of dark designs. Their ultimatum: Send Jasper Kai'el to participate in ritual combat alone, or civilian lives will be lost. To ensure the prevention of any foul play, the Sentinel of Harmony has agreed to go, providing distraction while a team of Jedi Knights and Masters infiltrate the cult's compound, a labyrinth of underground tunnels that was once a Chiss prison. The villagers are being held on the bottom most layer, where the best darkside warriors of the cult stand guard.

Jasper would give anything to be part of that team, but here he was. No arm, no lightsaber, no shirt on his back, standing in a makeshift arena packed with howling lunatics gone mad from exposure to the darkness. They had to be if they thought he was some kind of prophetic figure. A sigh escaped his chest, one more of frustration than anything.

"The time of prophecy foretold is upon us!" Their ringleader announced, his voice booming through the stadium, "He has returned, the Man Marked by Death! Through ritual combat he will ascend, bringing us ever closer to the release of Armageddon!"

"Shut the hell up!" Jasper shouted back. "I literally do not give a womp rat's ass about any of this!"

"Silence!" the leader boomed. "Your tongue is not your own, Marked One. Let us purify you!"

"Kark off!" the knight responded, giving the cultist the bird.

Jasper was stalling for time by going along with their stupid ritual combat, but he wasn't just going to stand here and take it silently. No, they were going to know his distaste for them.

"Enough!" the cultist sneered. "We begin!"

A door lowered, revealing a pair of Nexu. The four-eyed felines slunk their way out of their cell, and Jasper tensed up in response. This was going to be a long ass day. Hopefully the recovery team would be quick about their rescue operation.


Below their feet, the rescue operation had begun. There would be twelve floors of cultists in their path, all prepared to lay down their lives for a fictional cause.

 

[Valery Noble]

The Chiss Redoubt

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Ship: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsabers
Tag: Kahlil Noble Jasper Kai'el Ara Sheridan Dreidi Xeraic

"I don't like that he's out there on his own," Valery told Kahlil Noble as they stood alone for a moment. She had agreed to join this mission because of how serious it was, but there had been so little time to prepare alternatives. If she had been given more time to think, she'd have come up with another way, she was sure of it. But now... they'd have to trust that Jasper was going to survive, and he'd have to trust that they were going to succeed too.

Valery then sighed and strapped her blaster to her hip, before checking to make sure if her lightsabers were secured. The underground labyrinth wouldn't be far away, so it was time to get to business.

This time, the Sword and Shield weren't alone either.

"Ara, Dreid, you two ready?" She asked after looking over her shoulder.

"We'll need to find a way into the labyrinth, preferably without alerting anybody. The longer we can avoid detection, the more time we'll give ourselves to secure people."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

"I have the utmost faith in our fellow councilmen."

More than that, at least for Kahlil. He saw the rune, what it meant. What it made Jasper see. Together they at least changed the rune to a different ending than death, but the scars would always remain. That alone had spoken the volumes of strength Jasper had. Even if he wasn't as gifted with the Force as the others. He smiled, flashed a grin even to Valery.

"Don't worry, we got this. I make a pretty convincing cultist when I have to."

Dreidi Xeraic | Ara Sheridan | Valery Noble | Jasper Kai'el

 

[Ara Sheridan]

"Ara, Dreid, you two ready?"

Ara stared up, as if able to see the roaring crowd high above them. When she heard that Jasper needed help, she didn't hesitate to throw her name into the hat for this rescue operation. "This makes me think of this one movie I saw." She remarked, glancing at the rest of the team. Masters Valery and Kahlil she knew, but the other one was a new face for her. She hadn't interacted much with her over the years. "Two men enter, one man leaves." She chanted in a hushed tone.

Jasper would be alright, dude was hard as nails. "Welcome to the thunderdome, Jasper." She remarked with a faint smile. They needed to get this over with quickly.

Unclipping her lightsaber, she adjusted the settings as she linked up with the rest. Kahlil's remark earned a snicker from Ara as she glanced up at him. "Got dragged to one too many 'take your kids to work' days?" She quipped. "We got a timeframe, or do we just get it done as quickly as possible?" She asked the two superiors on a more serious note.

Valery Noble Kahlil Noble Dreidi Xeraic Jasper Kai'el

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Outfit: Jedi Attire
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow
Tags: Jasper Kai'el | Valery Noble | Kahlil Noble | Ara Sheridan

Dark side cultists were threatening civilian lives for a chance to prove their beliefs for Jasper to fight in some arena. It seemed wild and Dreidi didn't have much understanding of how things got to this point but she was willing to help out Jasper and ensure that lives were saved. As well as making sure another dark side cult was brought down. As she tightened her handwraps, she could heard Master Valery voice concerns about leaving Jasper alone above them, there hadn't been much option in that regard since their demands were simple and the threats very clear. However, Dreidi could understand the concern and desires to finish this swiftly to ensure that Jasper could get out safely.

When Master Valery addressed both Dreidi and the stranger, Dreidi nodded her head, she was ready to get things down. The other Knight was not someone that Dreidi knew but she felt sure that there was a strong team put together for the mission. "I can create an invisibility field around us as long as we are linked together and remain close?" Dreidi offered, it was not something she could do forever but it would get them a decent way into the labyrinth before they would need to change plans.

"I can only get us so far with it and if I push too hard then I am not going to be much help afterwards." Exhaustion and massive fatigue was an issue before with doing anything powerful with her Magick.

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

The Redoubt
Tags: Valery Noble , Kahlil Noble , Ara Sheridan , Dreidi Xeraic

​

Jasper tensed up as the first wave of creatures began to circle around him. Just two Nexu. Nothing he hadn't dealt with before, only he usually had his equipment with him. It was just him here with his sub-par force sensitivity. Fortunately the knight was far more prepared for this sort of situation.

His stent with the Matukai had given him a variety of more practical abilities. One he had taught to a group of Padawans, encouraging a more defensive use of the skill. Unfortunately he didn't intend to use it here in the same way.

As the first Nexu made it's move, Jasper was quick to step to the sides for it's incoming claws, throwing a singular punch. A faint aura began to build up around his hand. Whenever the blow ultimately landed, the cracking noise made by the beast's jaw completely shattering echoed throughout the stadium, met with a very disheartening wave of thunderous applause. The second would quickly lunge next in rapid succession. and the knight would duck under the Nexu and drive his fist directly into it's exposed gut. In a matter of seconds, both creatures were down. He let the aura fade and gave a sigh. He'd need to be sparing with his use of the force. The last thing he needed was to drain himself.

The cultists wasted no time sending in the second wave, opening a new set of gates to let a wave of old, cobbled together B1 battle droids into the arena, armed with maces and vibro-axes.

---

Below, as the entry team found themselves preparing to make their move. the time table for the patrols of the prison system would update. The guards protecting the entryway set off to take a new shift deeper in the complex, leaving a window of opportunity before the new entryway guards arrived...

 

[Valery Noble]

The Chiss Redoubt

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Ship: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsabers
Tag: Kahlil Noble Jasper Kai'el Ara Sheridan Dreidi Xeraic

"You're right," Valery told Kahlil with a gentle smile. "I'd just rather throw myself into the hornet's nest, rather than watch someone else be in the middle of it." But that didn't mean she had no faith in Jasper. On the contrary, she trusted him more than most other Jedi in the Order. He was calm, collected and never acted against the moral code of the Jedi — he was someone the order could always rely on, and today would be no different.

"But... hopefully we don't have to act like cultists."

She shook her head with a chuckle, and turned to the others. "I'm not sure about an exact timeframe, but let's try to work as quickly as possible. We don't have the time to elaborately study their habits and patrols, so..." she looked at Dreidi and nodded, "I think it's a risk worth taking. I've learned how to cloak myself from sight as well as a Shadow, so I could do that to make it less demanding on you."

"It'd also allow me to move ahead or split up, in case we need to do that."

 

[Kahlil Noble]

There was a spell for that?

Kahlil was already trying to figure out if that was something he might be able to replicate with his runes. Probably not, all things considered, but he did base them off Dathomiric magic all those years ago. No, no. Later. Focus on the mission at hand. More obscure Force abilities could be looked over some other time.

"Father Son bonding time was always a hit among the Sith." He flashed a grin to Ara before nodding ahead. "Let's make it as quick as we can. The sooner the people below are safe, the sooner we can get back up top to help Jasper before they try to sacrifice them to their dark god." He gave Dredi a nod.

"On your mark."

Valery Noble | Ara Sheridan | Dreidi Xeraic | Jasper Kai'el

 

[Ara Sheridan]

Ara's gaze shifted between the rest of the team as they spoke up, a snicker escaping her at Kahlil's remark. Dreidi suggested casting some sort of invisibility spell and Valery pitched in on that. Ara glanced down at her lightsaber as she pursed her lips, she still had a lot to learn. Luckily another question was answered for her, the other girl was a Nightsister. A rather interesting transition, going from that order of witches to the Jedi. She wasn't going to judge, not with her own background.

"Hey, if all else fails, a mind trick here and some zealous cult noises there could actually get us through. Saves us stamina as well." She spoke up with a shrug. Yeah, she wasn't jealous at all. She clipped her weapon to her belt and pulled up the hood of her cloak. It had been a while since she last wore her robes out on a mission like this. She turned to the Nightsister with a grin as she extended a fist. "Don't think I caught your name earlier, sister. Ara Sheridan." She introduced herself. She leaned in a little closer to the girl. "By the way, you can't do that thing where you resurrect corpses, can you?" She asked her rather enthusiastically in a hushed voice. That would make a spectacle.

They were all set, and the time was ticking, they needed to start moving out. She looked to Valery and Kahlil for their orders.

Jasper Kai'el Valery Noble Kahlil Noble Dreidi Xeraic

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Outfit: Jedi Attire
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow
Tags: Valery Noble | Kahlil Noble | Ara Sheridan | Jasper Kai'el

Master Valery was able to cloak herself with the Force, it was fortunate as it meant they weren't all relying on Dreidi for what to do. It was impressive how much Master Valery knew as well, it seemed like she had done it all. Something that reminded her of her father in that regard, he had done a lot of different Jedi fields before cementing his path. Dreidi found herself sticking more to what she knew than branching out.

Her mind snapped back to focus when Master Kahlil stated they would move on her mark, breathing in deeply, she smirked when Ara asked if she could resurrect things with her Magick. Dreidi shook her head as an answer, not thinking it was the time to delve into what she could and couldn't do, and what she refused to do with Magick as well.

"Dreidi Xeraic, Jedi Knight." Dreidi greeted herself before muttering in old Dathomirian. Her eyes turning pure white as green energy circled around Kahlil, Ara and Dreidi. A thread keeping them together as she turned them invisible. Connecting with her ancestors as she poured her energies into the spell. "It is done. Master Kahlil, Ara, you both need to stick close but we can head forward now."

The fires of determination and waiting to help her fellow Jedi, that was fuelling her Magick right now. It was burning deep in her stomach.

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

The Redoubt
Tags: Valery Noble , Kahlil Noble , Ara Sheridan , Dreidi Xeraic

​

Jasper wasted very little time tearing his way through the present battle droids, much to the excitement of the gathered crowd of cultists. In one movement of his lone arm he tore through the head of a B1, claiming their vibrosword to promptly cut his way through the rest. His movement was fluid and calculated, weaving his way through the blades of his mechanical opponents in a manner that contradicted his rather scruffy appearance.

It was that grace that frustrated the leader of the cult, however. The robed figure sitting in the box that overlooked the arena grew frustrated, his craving for a turn for bloodshed increasing exponentially. This was the Man Marked by Death. Why wasn't he snapping?

"Next round," the man hissed to his attendant, shifting with irritation.

As Jasper pushed off the last of the mechanical foes he had to face, an Acklay emerged.

"Feth," the knight hissed with frustration.

Even with how little he had used the force, the man was starting to grow tired. He hadn't even been at this very long. He pushed that assessment back, however.

There was little time for thinking now.

---

The rescue party would enter without a hitch, undetected by the incoming guard detail that would take up the post of the last shift. They would be lead to a series of winding corridors, clouded by the overwhelming sensation of anger, rage, and a hunger for power. It was an indication that the cultists were far into their corruption, twisted by the designs of the darkness.

Fear would stand out most potently, however, as there seemed to be a strong concentration of destress below their feet. The civilians, no doubt. The course of action would become clear: Descend.

Meanwhile, not too far down the hall, a juvenile nexu was being transported, a new replacement for their arena monsters. Without warning it's eyes dilated, nostrils flaring up. The beast had caught the scent of something new, and it's hunger had grown far too strong to stave off. It wrestled itself free of it's handlers and ripped through a cultist before bounding down the hall towards the cloaked team of Jedi...

 

[Valery Noble]

The Chiss Redoubt

​

Outfit: Factory Link | Wedding Ring
Appearance: Link
Ship: Link
Weapons: Blasters | Lightsabers
Tag: Kahlil Noble Jasper Kai'el Ara Sheridan

The plan was set, and Dreidi managed to cloak them with her spell, the way she said she could. Valery was quick to follow suit, and tapped into the Force to bend light and sound around her, resulting in ber being invosible and impossible to hear. The group then began to move at a steady pace and no guard seemed to notice a thing, as they drew closer and closer to the people they could feel up ahead.

But despite their solid plan, trouble couldn't entirely be evaded. Not too far away, a captured Nexu broke free and every single Jedi would be able to feel the danger approaching. Not just because of the creature itself, but because of the fear of exposure.

Someone needed to act quickly.

<Go!> She told them telepathically before rushing straight for the Nexu. She hoped that it'd make the beast come after her, allowing the others to stay hidden so they could continue the mission. Valery would find her way back to them one way or another.

But if the beast decided to go after the others anyway, she'd be ready to move on and help the people in captivity. Rescuing them was priority.

 

[Kahlil Noble]

There was nothing quite like Dathomeric magic. Kahlil smiled faintly as he watched the green glow before they all faded from view. Or at least he assumed they did. Ara and Dreide were still in view, unlike Valery, but that didn't mean the spell failed. It should hide them from sight. He paused at the sudden growling in the distance though. Not so much from scent, it seemed. Still, he remained pretty calm.

Valery was already handling it.

<We'll continue deeper down. Don't get caught, mm?>

Valery Noble | Dreidi Xeraic | Ara Sheridan | Jasper Kai'el

 

[Ara Sheridan]

Dreidi's spell was interesting to watch. A green glow, some shimmering... then that was it. Did it work? She hoped it did, something certainly happened. They finally got a move on and entered the facility, though it didn't take long for them to encounter the first snag in their operation. A young Nexu managed to break loose from its captors and barreled straight to the group of Jedi.

Ara tensed and readied herself to move, though Valery beat her to the punch and intercepted the animal. She glanced at Kahlil and pushed forward alongside him and Dreidi, sparing a glance at the two every now and then. Luckily Valery could handle herself, there was no need to worry.

Her left hand stuck close to her lightsaber as she scanned their surroundings. In a place like this, there was no telling of what to expect. Various sounds echoed in the distance. People moving around, the tournament upstairs, beastmasters tending to their animals. Ara's head was on a swivel as the group quietly moved through the halls and corridors of the enemy.

Kahlil Noble Valery Noble Jasper Kai'el Dreidi Xeraic

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Outfit: Jedi Attire
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow
Tags: Jasper Kai'el | Valery Noble | Kahlil Noble | Ara Sheridan

The spell had worked and she had been able to get the three of them out of sight. However, before they could get moving too far, a Nexu rounded a corner and caught their scent. Dreidi cursed to herself, if she could cast another spell she would have done something to distract the Nexu from them but she was too focused on the invisibility to risk anything. She also could have used Grisial to distract, the Vulptex would draw less suspicion running around and causing chaos.

However, Valery told them to move forward and used the opportunity to handle the beast. Dreidi was thankful for that.

Focused on the spell and maintaining it, Dreidi let Ara and Kahlil lead the way forward, just whispering to her ancestors to keep them safe and prevent any more beasts catching their scents. They would be done for if that were to happen.