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His ship broke atmosphere, literally screaming across the horizon. Within, the furious feline Master stalked the corridors with the leader of his Mercenary band. "I need you to be ready for a fight. I'm leaving the Mask in your hands. On my command, or that of [member="Veiere Arenais"], I'll need you to go in hard and heavy on whatever is deemed hostiles. I'll be stepping out of the ship now." he instructed, as he headed towards the loading bay. "But, sir, the ship is going too fast!" Slipping that old helmet into place, the felinoid scowled behind his mask. Over the com-frequency, so the crew could hear, he barked a command, "Then slow the damn thing down!"
The vessel slowed it's advance momentarily, over a particular canyon, near a particular set of coordinates, as the cloaked Jedi bolted out of the ship from the aft loading ramp. The ship resumed flying without it's owner, the crew mentally and physically preparing themselves for a potentially savage fire-fight. Meanwhile, near a particularly well-armed Herglic. The Jedi, through liberal application of the Force, landed several paces from the much more massive, armored, aquatic humanoid. "It's been quite some time, [member=Ghorua the Shark]...." Ryn'Dhal greeted his ally. The masked Master was significantly larger, more massive, than when the Herglic first met him as a younger padawan, in James' club.
"Do you have any plans?" he asked, masked face canting slightly towards one shoulder, his eyes flaring behind the mask. "My primary objective is to find whomever did this to myKay, and make them fixthis." he growled the words, the anger thinly veiled within his voice. A faint tremble noticeable in his body, his willpower was all that kept his anger in any semblance of 'check'.
Ghorua had ben waiting for a while when he felt a change in the wind. Ghorua scented the air, tasting the subtle smell of a human aproaching. He prepared himself for if this was as ambush, dropping his stance, and stepping behind a pillar. When he saw that it was [member="Veiere Arenais"], he let out a loud sigh of relief, stepping from his ramshackle hiding place.
"Thank the Stars you made it! I had started to wonder if you had been held up by 'Jedi business', or whatever you have." He smiled, obviously looking for any reason to. Ever since he had found out about [member="Lady Kay"], his humor had left him. Her fall, her betrayal to her people, it took a lot out of a man.
"Although, maybe that's what happened to Ryn..."
The Force works in mysterious ways.
Like a speeding bullet of righteousness, [member="Ryn'Dhal"] dropped from the sky, spoke of his revenge, and humorously questioned where Veiere was. Ghorua could only chuckle slightly, and poke a finger directly behind where the Silver Jedi had landed.
The laugh quickly faded, suppressed by the gravity of the situation. The Shark pulled an oversized holopad from his waist, and let a crude map of Chasin City's streets, mapped by his probes, erupt into a 3D image.
"Thank you both for coming. I may not be Jedi, but I'm smart enough to know what's going on with the Lady. She's fallen, hasn't she?" Ghorua directed the question at both of them, with hard features. "I do have a plan."
"Einon has an arrest warrant on him, and he also coincidentally is our best chance of sneaking into the palace. Einon knows Kay's security like the back of his hand. The regime is new, and the guard postings to the Kay's mansion are most likely the same."
"So... We're gonna rescue him, and he'll bring us to Kay..." A dark fire sparked in Ghorua's eyes, and his tone dropped to dangerous levels.
His slices were drawn out and methodical, each cut leaving a black streak behind it as he slowly cut piece by piece, hacking at the bricks with a soft-spoken fizzle as slowly he weakened the structure of the wall. As time passed he watched as slowly the bricks around him turned to dust, a single blade moving with lesser interference as he peeled it back, a single small hole revealing itself as he peaked through. He pulled himself back, his legs bending at the caps as he inhaled a heavy breath. Then charged.
A black bent creature crashed through the wall, its breath a pant as he realized that brick was tougher than he had predicted, leaving his back bent as his shoulders rolled up and down with whimsical motions, a trail of dust followed both behind and ahead of him, sticking to the slight bubbling flesh that had become scrawled along his face. Though the thick scent that came with it was unmistakable.
His head cocked to the left, a large metal door sat there, blocking his progress, a slight hiss was let loose, followed by a pant before his head rolled around, taking in a long stare at the roof before dropping and staring at Kay. There was a long outspoken pause the subtle movements of his fingers as they twitched. As the pause came to an end he slowly twisted and contorted, his legs first to turn, twisting into a long line before his body snapped forward, a sickened motion as his waist rolled around, followed by a sharp stop as he stared down at Kay.
A single arm rose, a digit pointed at Kay as his voice forced out what sounded to be more like a wheez. "You..." his words rolling on the end, taking a single step forward as he de-ignited the length of the vambrace, the blade still in hand. His motion was unnatural, his leg twisting at the cap as he planted his foot down. "Who... Broke you?!" a sharp twist in speech, it was as if a banshee had wailed.
He took another step forward, a natural step this time, contrasting with the rest of his motion. A free hand rose, the digits rolling through the seams of the helmet as a sharp twist and pull removed it, his familiar features revealed. An oily bloodstained mat of hair rolled down his pink cheeks, a flush of red boiled in his skin as a stream of long extending cuts and crevices curled into his skin. A single dark crater sat pooling in his cheek as his head bent down to the side. His lips curled at the edges, a long smile extended across as his eyes moved with frantic vision, taking into account every detail of her figure, it was all there. The familiar look of Kay, though he could see what had changed. It was in the way she held herself, the subtleties of it all. "Sith..." his grave voice rolled out his head cocked back, staring down at her even from their distance. [member="Connor Harrison"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Stardust Raxis"] [member="Ultimatum"] [member="Ryn'Dhal"] [member="Darben Skirae"] [member="Riven Black"] [member="Samka Derith"] [member="Veiere Arenais"] @Darth Prazutis
"This is...him? It was this stunted slime who haunted the old deceased Larr's thoughts?" A deep guttural laugh erupted through a mechanized annunciator bellowed through the presidential palace its origin behind [member="Lady Kay"]. In his first entry through @Thraxis who was so fixated on Kay didn't see the ominous figure in the room with her. But now making its presence known was a goliath unlike any other. A humanoid clad in thick wicked plate standing nearly seven feet tall came into view. A pair of deep sulfuric yellow orbs punched into the darkness of the helmets eye sockets and a myriad of weapons and gear could be seen on his person the dark figure fully geared for what one could only speculate as a full scale war. Those with the force would feel his powerful dark side aura permeating like a smothering fog through the halls and a terrible unease, unmistakeable and impossible to hide. But those without the gifts of the force would only just feel the great aura of uneasiness that permeated this man. Those intimidating yellow orbs bore down on the crawling putrid creature that dared stand before him.
During the constant torture of Kay when he also ravaged her mind entirely Thraxis was a sight he saw and used to his advantage. Anything Kay felt pain from early on was invoked and used to erode away her defenses more and more. While he did see her torturer in his visions never did he expect the man to be so putrid, so disgusting and impish like the ratling monster that scurried in front of him. "This is that pathetic dreg who dug the first scars? Gaze upon him and study him my apprentice, see what the avatar of worthlessness truly looks like." Prazutis bellowed once more, his deep voice getting an almost demonic tinge as it mechanized through his helmet. The man then thrusted his hands forward a feral snarl escaping through his lips as he drew on the dark side of the force. From his hands erupted a thick crimson blast of pure dark side energy hurling through the room like a wave towards the man. Articles of furniture were torn apart and destroyed simply being in its path, obliterated by the physical manifestation of the dark side. Living beings would be met with devastating injury when receiving direct contact to this wave.
But that wasn't all the Sith Lord did in his attack against this poor soul. The mans trained eyes carefully followed Thraxis's movements in the aftermath of his wave, truthfully he hoped the man was only at least partially hit by it. Next came an radiating arc of crimson lightning ripping through the chamber towards the feral zeltron.
[member="Veiere Arenais"] [member="Ryn'Dhal"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"]
Thraxis eyes gazed at the towering behemoth, he knew fully well who stood before him. There were few names in the galaxy that could bring fourth such sheer terror and fear, a name warped with destruction and death. As far as he was concerned, he was a Sith Lord. Many others held the title but few managed to become its embodiment. Thraxis stared right back, the blackness of his eyes, a single slight tinge of white was all that existed to prove that his eyes had pupils and were not wholly enveloped by blackness. "So then. This is what broke Kay." his voice straightened out, his body regaining posture as he stopped his antics. This was no place for jokes or shenanigans. He stood in front of the Force's incarnation of death. "A Sith. I thought you better Kay." he scoffed, forcing the fear down his throat as he started to twist his gaze from Kay to Prazuitis.
He rose an arm, his Cruciatus Blade pointed at the Goliath, even with his gaze up he still looked down, it was the force after all. It was equivalent to bringing a Nuke to a gunfight. While most think it mighty, with that line of logic, it dwindles it to nothing more than cowards playing with toys. A real man would risk life and limb for a fight, where a Force User would run and hide and let the entity do its job for them. "Do not interfere." he said as he felt the first wave of unease rack his body, his eyes narrowed. He had gone through worse. He knew he had to have gone through worse. But it sat there in the back of his mind, his resolve dampened but his mind refused to give in to fear. Not to some force user.
Then he heard the words echo out, Pathetic... Pathetic? Pathetic! the words ran through his mind like a merry go round, up and down back and fourth it addled his mind more than the sense of unease. A flush of rage simmered and boiled his heart pounding heavier and heavier. "The hell did you say to-" he was cut off, a mass of crimson his body hunched over, forced back with a wave of pain as he impacted into the back of one of the dropped doors, his body pressing a dent into it as his body straightened from the impact. A sliver of blood ran up, pressing against his lip as the ball hunched over and dissipated.
He laid there, unmoved, his body a heave as he slowly cocked his head up, his eyes turning to diagonal slits as he slowly rose, his body letting loose a heave wheeze as he ran a hand down his body, pulling out a Single clear vial. To the untrained eye, it was empty. To a trained eye, it was empty. But to the eyes of a Mad Man. It held hell's own essence. He slowly pulled himself up, nothing more than pride overriding his sense of pain as he watched the subtle motions, something he had seen all too many times. He pressed his thumb against the vial, penetrating it with a mighty Crack as its essence flowed through. His dampened eyes widened with fury, blackness enveloping his eyes as his body straightened up. The smell of one Zeltron was potent, but the concentrated smell of fifty was even worse.
He pushed himself along, letting rage and hatred burn through his body with a passion, his mouth arched open as he his head cocked to the side, his voice morphed and changed, and instead of the grave voice that Thraxis was all too use to, an echoing mass of anger and fury combined with a single voice as he spoke out in defiance, feeling the licks of lightning bounce across his body. "You dare call me Pathetic! I am Thraxis, the walker of hell's own gates and Baron of Death's own playground." he echoed taking a step forward as he pressed through the pain, his body convulsing and shaking as lightning ran his body ragged. "I have had my legs blown up, tossed through space, frozen in place, choked by your own tools, had acid poured on my body and tossed by gargantuan Rancors over the tree line and have yet to die." his breath became heavy as he pressed forward, in a desperate bid to close the Gap between himself and Prazuiti axis, "If you can't manage all that and more, then you have already failed at killing me." he screamed in defiance, his body waining and weakening from the bolt of lightning that had coursed through his body. He pressed his feet onto the ground, jumping forward with wild rage as his Vambraces ignited a singel green light. The bag that had strapped behind him was no no more tehn a burning inferno behind him, as if a cape made of fire and brimstone had adorned themselves around him, his eyes wide with rage as a single lick of flame singed his hair. [member="Lady Kay"] [member="Darth Prazutis"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Ryn'Dhal"] [member="Veiere Arenais"]
Kay was about to answer [member="Thraxis"] , but then [member="Darth Prazutis"] beat her to it. Of course to the giant Sith Lord, everyone was short. ( [member="Ghorua the Shark"] was much taller, but that's besides the point.) He pressed forward and she could feel the testosterone rising. Thraxis and her could always talk, that was their way, especially when he worked for her.
But now her Master attacked. Kay narrowed her eyes as more of her things were being destroyed. Did she just not tell Thraxis not to do that? At least Thraxis would have listened to her. And the Jackal did not leave the first scars. This she knew and was reminded many times over. Nor was he worthless. "Master! Leave him to me! He is worth no less than your torturers at your own Palace. I have use for him!" If Prazutis thought that Thraxis came to rescue her, he was sorely mistaken.
She clenched her fists and waited to see if she would be struck for her request. And with [member="Samka Derith"] watching, that would be quite an embarrassing situation for a Queen to be in. Yet still she braced for it, having grown quite used to harsh treatment at any sign of a relapse or hint of growing soft. With so few individuals that she remembered and so little written down in her old self's e-mails, Thraxis was bound to know more information. And she knew that she wouldn't even need to nearly kill him to get it.
Sareen sat aboard the patrol vessel as it began its journey towards a detention center, where Sareen would most likely spend his remaining years, without proper trial in this new regime. But that was not his intention, no, he would not wait in a cell, not at least until he had a meeting with the queen. If his plan went at least, somewhat well, he just might do it. The Trandoshan sat amongst the remaining three soldiers that had taken him prisoner, the vessel lacked a proper brig, as Sareen expected, and if that wasn't even enough good news, the passenger compartment was open to the cockpit, making this all too easy. Sareen just enjoyed the view from his tiny viewport, waiting for the right moment.
Bingo. He saw it, the presidential palace, or what was formerly the presidential palace. Either way, of he was lucky, she was still there, and all of this would not be for nothing. Suddenly, Sareen swung his shackled fists into the soldier nearest him's face, bloodying his nose, and doing in his conscious. Before the other guards could react, Sareen, still shackled, took the handle of the weapon, and began a long burst of the rest of its cartridge at the two helpless souls sitting across from them. The pilots, concerned, asked, "What the hell is going on back there!?" Sareen rose from his seat, dropping the rifle and unholstering a sidearm, approached the pilots from behind, "It isss no of your concern now, boysss." Sareen squeezed off two shots, one to the back of each head.
Turbulence began to shake the ship, now without its pilots. Sareen quickly looked around for his keys and undid the shackles around his wrists. Dragging one of the pilots from his seat, the Trandoshan took the helm, swerving the vessel towards the palace. Reports from the radio began to transmit in, all warning him to stop and turn around. Once the speed and trajectory was calibrated, he turned off all systems, letting the vessel glide itself in. But Sareen did not stay alone for long. Without sound the soldier who had only been knocked cold creeped towards Sareen, and wrapped him in a headlock once within range. Whilst doing this the man tried desperately to turn the systems back on, hoping to avoid collision. But it was too late.
The vessel smashed into one of the wings of the palace, providing a large boom for the occupants to hear. Despite the damage, once Sareen excited, even more bruised than before, he saw no casualties other than the ones he had left in the vessel. Sareen strode confidentally down the damaged hall, but not for long. Within moments he was surrounded by guards, most with batons, others with shock sticks, and some with blasters. Sareen had not thought this through.
Several charged him at once, Sareen beating off the few within his range of slugging. Despite knocking off those he could, those with batons repeatedly smashed into his strong but old body, those with other assorted weapons slowly encircling them, preventing escape. The Trandoshan realized if he wanted to see the queen he need do one thing. With his last once of strength he lifted off two of the Commenori to allow him to bellow, "I demand to see the Queen!" Before being beat back down. Hopefully it would resound to those intended, and not fall upon deaf ears. But Sareen did not have time to think as one enthusiastic women brought down a baton over his one good eye, enclosing Sareen into darkness, his conscious out cold.
Veiere nodded in response to [member="Ghorua the Shark"]'s concern, though whether or not any of this was Jedi Business in itself was still something Veiere was questioning; "There were necessary delays, forgive me" he dipped his head briefly as he began to close the gap between them, some meters yet, however [member="Ryn'Dhal"] decidedly dropped right on in between them and caused a notable stir of dust and earth in his descent. "Master Jedi.." Veiere announced his presence in response to the feline's question before moving to step around his fellow Silver Jedi to form a much more mutual standing party. Between the two of them, Veiere could feel the unease, the anger and urgency around them, regardless of whether or not they meant it, all here stood as friends and in the absence of threat, their aura's remained undeterred within the flow of the Force, regardless of their affinity in it.
"Einon is an important member of Kay Larr's Council..." Veiere nodded in partial agreement, "I stood at her side for a large number of months and in all things he was included on...-I cannot say however where his loyalties lie. He is of the Commenori and Kay is the elected President, the rightful monarch of this planet despite how she chooses to rule it..." He glanced between the two, his words came with an edge of caution as he knew such truths would not wish to be heard yet they remained factual. "And I will not be sneaking into [member="Lady Kay"]'s grounds, I will be walking through the front doors to speak with her in person...-Regardless of my attire, I will not be taking up arms against her", it was paramount that they understood this as Veiere would not willingly stand against Commenor; Kay may have chosen the Dark Side, for whatever reasons he did not yet know however she wasn't the first that he had met who walked such a path and upon taking that route, the Dark Side did not remove the fact that whether right or wrong, she was still sentient, still someone capable of choosing their own life and how they live it.
"Ryn'Dhal, do keep in mind that though I am still a new entry within the Silver Jedi Order, acts of hostilities taken against the Government of Commenor, if discovered, will be considered an act of War. Currently our two societies are holding a fragile Alliance but our actions may have consequences far beyond our own reckoning..." He looked to Ryn, his brows lifting in sympathy and shared grief. He liked this none the more than the feline and though his fellow Jedi place in Kay's life was as family, the Silver Jedi Order held numbers far greater.
"I've reached out to a friend, one Admiral Ansion of whom I was initially reluctant to call upon. He's to bring the Chimaera to drift within a nearby System in the case of fighting; though it will not act as a warship, he and his men will serve as a potential escort away from Commenor should the need arise...He will contact me when the Chimaera's in position and hopefully not be required..." again, Veiere looked to them both, meeting their gaze to assure them that the Vessel would be an asset to both of their lives if things were to end badly. "One way or another, Kay Larr will give me her answer. All I plan to ask her is that she step away from all of this, to come with me...Away from the Politics, away from the eyes of the public. She can leave the seat of power in anyone elses hands but Darkness surrounds Commenor and I cannot shake this feeling...-If she remains here, this is only the beginning".
"...And if she refuses, I will return to Voss...".
The masked Jedi shifted his weight from one foot to the other, tail thrashing slightly behind him in an obvious sign of feline impatience. "I understand your stance Veiere. I have no intentions of raising my blade against my sister. I do, however, want answers, as to whom made her this way." he began, before gesturing in the direction of the palace, the line-of-sight broken by the cliff-wall in the way. "Whomever that is, is notmyKay. And I will find out who did this, and why." the felinoid managed to suppress the almost feral snarl that desired to wrench itself from his throat.
A sharp shake of his head, and the two compatriots could hear sharp, full breaths being taken, as Ryn'Dhal endeavored, to some success, to settle his roiling rage to a mere simmer. When his eyes snapped open again, he looked between the two. "I cannot trust my rationale fully at this time, so I will submit to being tools of your wills. What is our plan? Give me a direction, as our continued inaction only serves to let my emotions stew."
At that note, the felinoid stepped over to a nearby natural stone 'bench', leaning back against it, as he began fidgeting with one of his lightsabers, examining the various components, to ensure all was in working order. He maintained full focus, however, on Veiere and Ghorua. This was their show. He was here to support it.
For now....
Somewhere deep within Ryn'Dhal's heart, he felt something.... unknown, but familiar to him.... It took quite some time of introspection, listening to the Herglic and the Humanoid converse, before it revealed itself to him. He did not know why, but he recognized what it was....
Ghorua had already begun walking towards Chasin City, with urgency in his step, when [member="Veiere Arenais"]' words caught him completely off guard. He stopped in his tracks, a sudden spike of dull surprise hitting him. This bland emotion quickly turned into something deep. Dark. Ancient.
"Despite... Despite how she chooses to rule it?" The Shark turned on his heel, a feral, jerking motion. He growled deeply, his primal voice shaking the bones of all present. Suddenly, a stiff, cold wind sifted through the canyon, and for but a second, everything changed.
The shadows on the walls of stone danced and grew upwards, dark tendrils snaking up rocky crevices. Ghorua's own shadow grew, overcoming the forms of the Jedi in front of him. The Shark's anger blossomed out, a rage unquenchable, insurmountable, completely and utterly devastating.
For less than a second, the Shark was in the vortex of a dark nexus. Then, just like it had never happened, it vanished.
"She is choosing to enslave her population. She is choosing to arrest, and probably even kill her own people. That is NOT her choice to make!" The Herglic's booming yell caught even himself by surprise. "This is not Kay. At least, not the Kay I know. We know," he corrected, looking to [member="Ryn'Dhal"]. "I am not going to stand idly by while this monster tarnishes Lady Kay's name!"
"I thought you would understand." Hurt entered the Shark's features, his frown deepening. "I thought you, of all people, would understand putting others before yourself. Before even Kay!"
Ghorua wasn't just angry. Furious didn't even quite cut it. A rancor's rage didn't hold a candle to the spiteful, vengeful attitude exploding from the Shark. "Go ahead! Walk up to the front door of a tyrant, and expect a hero's feast." His face softened for but a second, before returning to his angry disposition. "I don't know about you both, but I do know I'm going to set things straight."
Ghorua began to walk in the direction of the capital, completely beside himself. He snarled, baring glinting daggers, his next words too soft for any to hear but himself.
Despite the look of insult and rage strewn across [member="Ghorua the Shark"], Veiere stood with his thumbs etched beneath the fabric of his belt looking up at the giant creature with nay an expression of daunt. Listening carefully, his head lifted only at the mention of enslavement, he had not seen hint of this yet however the big fish kept arguing his case as if Veiere might want to stop him; the fact is that he had no intention of deterring their efforts however they chose to approach the situation yet in his mind this was no typical matter black and white.
"I thought you, of all people, would understand putting others before yourself. Before even Kay!"
This however had struck a nerve and while Ghorua sought to walk away without want to hear further rebuttal, Veiere walked in tow speaking up so that the shark would hear him. "You are right to be angry but you are more likely to endanger a larger amount of people by storming the capital palace and demanding a queen bow to you, a rogue in the eyes of the public with no evidence of her wrong doing nor any others. Do not assume to know my feelings on the matter Ghorua, I've stood by Kay day in and day out for years but this is not the place to go in all guns blazing. There is and has always been an audience around the Royal Palace, the public watches the head of the world with adoring eyes and they know no better; half of them couldn't tell the Darkside of the Force from the backside of a bantha, you forget that many people out there don't even believe in the Force yet dare to question their presidents possession under it. You going on the attack right now will only peg you to be a terrorist without any proof against the claim...-There's a time and a place for all things and this is not it..." Veiere had lived on Commenor for a long time, he'd been Kay's personal adviser outside of their formal positions where as far as everyone else was concerned he was simply her bodyguard. The truth however was that in the time he had been here, he had served as her head of security, had foiled attempts taken on her life and had helped to keep her self-esteem when the pressures of politics had become too much. To claim that he did not understand nor feel the same anguish and anger over the present situation was a flat out lie, the only difference between them was that he had three decades of Jedi Training to show that he could mediate between his sense of reason and his rage.
"Kay Larr and I share a force bond. She has spent the majority of her life hiding her force sensitivity from the public and more importantly her friends...-I spent a time training her, our connection in the Force is incredibly strong, we share emotions, memories and our telepathic ability is beyond the typical relationship between two Jedi..." He slowed to glance back over his shoulder looking for [member=Ryn'Dhal] that he might too hear all this. "A Force bond may mean nothing to you Ghorua but it is not your typical sharing of the Force and that is why I must go to Kay without hint of deciet nor hide my intentions. She will see through my words and I must remain genuine, uncompromising in order to reach her and have a hope of swaying her from whatever turmoil grips her". There were too many questions and not enough details, they had spent months searching for [member="Lady Kay"] yet she had vanished only to turn up home again out of the blue with a clearly different persona than what she'd left them with, everything had changed and in their anxiety and wish to see her safe, the others were rushing in while Veiere sought to take things slowly. "You should first see to the prisoners, this is true. I cannot know of your intentions, it's best that I not be involved in order to convince Kay that we are here for her but if you are to go in blindly, you will not prosper for it. Find the others and learn what you can...-If you can...".
"I'll leave the discussion to you both...-I hope you take my advice. We know not what awaits us..." Taking one final look to the back of Ghorua, Veiere turned and began to walk back towards Ryn'Dhal, his right hand extending to land upon the felines shoulder gripping it firmly, "May the Force be with you my friend" he nodded, wishing him well and soon to step off again. He needed to find his own way to the front of the palace, his cause and ideals pure least he wish to bring further threat down upon them all.
[member="Stardust Raxis"] ' request was met with silence. It was almost as though it fell on deaf ears. But she was heard. Her request was sent through the proper channels, yet there was an order to things and their Queen was being bombarded with visitors.
Oddly enough, none were sending her gifts or glorifying her return from captivity. Instead it seemed as though people only came to scold her. Only [member="Samka Derith"] seemed to be on her side, besides [member="Darth Prazutis"] of course. This was Kay's kingdom and she needed to rebuild it's strengths and maintain it.
[member="Darben Skirae"] 's question did not go unanswered however. He had been fully compliant and didn't show signs of defiance. "Our Queen is busy but will see you in time. As you can imagine, there are plenty of meetings on her schedule. Be patient, Minister Skirae, and you will be well treated."
Einon reached the street corner. There was no sign of [member="Ghorua the Shark"] , nor any of Kay's other close friends. Maybe he had walked too quickly. Either way he moved over to the shadows to wait. A few soldiers walked by, but for the moment, they didn't see him. He had ducked out of the way in time. "Come on guys, where are you?..."
[member="Sareen Zar"] 's attack on the Palace did not go unnoticed. As soon as he was knocked out, the Trandoshan was taken down below to the holding cells. There wasn't much of a dungeon in the Palace, at least not yet, but the holding cells were dark, carved in stone with a durasteel door. A panel allowed for food and drink to be slid in to the prisoners, but the smell in the room just belayed it's age and how little it had been used in recent years.
"Very well, deal with him." The Sith Lord said to [member="Lady Kay"], a swift force push blasted towards [member="Thraxis"] with the aim of tossing him back or at least off balance. Either way it would serve as his distraction from which the Sith Lord would sweep from the room. Braxus moved through the wreckage made by the entry of the mad zeltron and into the halls, where he made his way to the large ballroom. The blast doors and security sealing the rooms and halls of the Palace were intricately placed, to direct groups of infiltrators right to the Sith Lord.
Here he waited.
[member="Veiere Arenais"] |[member="Ghorua the Shark"] |[member="Ryn'Dhal"]
The process had been extensive, apparently the sudden change in government had led to a radical increase in security. There was a few pieces of datawork that he had filled out and had then waited for a response. While he waited to be given clearance, Ultimatum had turned his attention to the matters of communication with others. The old [member="Lady Kay"] had friends, ones that would not abandon her in even in this most dreadful of changes. Perhaps they knew something more of what was going on than he. It would be important to have some form of coordination.
Opening a side channel through his own HoloNet connections, the droid sent a message to three people he knew would at least be interested in the new 'Empress'. The first two, [member="Ryn'Dhal"] and [member="Veiere Arenais"], were from direct interaction, while the third, [member="Ghorua the Shark"] was from association of events in the past. They all would either already have some idea of what was happening or were intimately aware of what had occurred and had already attempted something. His hope was to gather and disperse information, perhaps aid in what manner he could. After all, he had resources that could transport, protect, and secure as needed.
"Friends, I send this message while awaiting clearance to enter Commenor Space. I assume that each of you is aware or has in some way begun attempting to react the situation regarding our mutual friend, the ex-President of Commenor. I would like to offer my assistance in whatever tasks intended to involve our old friend or any of her associates.
Sincerely LM"
The droid assumed that the three organics would be able to relatively easily decipher the meaning and from who it was sent. Supposing that 'LM' was a simple enough break down of Lord of Mustafar for them to figure out. If that was not enough, the signature sent with the message was definitely a droid created signature. He hoped that he could help, though time would tell while he awaited word from the security below.
[member="Ultimatum"] didn't have long to wait before he was given clearance. He had been to Commenor a few times before and there was no word from their Queen that would suggest that he should be barred.
Kat turned to [member="Darth Prazutis"] and bowed her head a little. "Thank you, Master." She watched as he pushed back [member="Thraxis"] and then left. No doubt he had some form of plan in his mind, some reason for being here.
The Queen turned her attention back to Thraxis. She took a few steps towards him, keeping her poise tall and confident. "Now you know who helped in my rebirth. But the question is, what do you plan on doing with that information?"
A pulse of pain would be an understatement, it was more akin to a sensation of a seizure of pain nigh paralyzing his every move as a wave of force smashed him aside, forcing his legs to withstand his weight as he keeled over, the threat vanishing from the room as his sight started to blur. "Bastard.... Next chance I get...." he grumbled, his arm twisting round as a resounding 'CRACK' echoed out as he slowly stared at Kay. "Right... Mada... No..." he realized as the words left his mouth, he couldn't call her Madam Kay no more. In his eyes, she had lost her right as Madam, now she was some weak minded sith with aspirations of delusional power.
Slowly with riddling pain he turned upright, his glare meeting Kay's as he took a march towards her, the flames from his makeshift cloak starting to peel and dissipate, leaving nothing but shocking flicks of embers to scorch across his armor, the weapons inside heated as the leather barely managed to hold together. "Kay." the words rolled with an alien like inflection if his face could be seen it was clear he was uncomfortable, the idea of calling her Madam remaining a nuisance in his mind as he forced out his next words. "I don't know what to say truly. But a few words pop to mind." he said as his head cocked to the side, a few feet from her as he kept his guard up, anything short of a gentle breeze and he was going to fall down dead.
"The first is pathetic. But I am sure you don't need to hear that." he chuckled, a feeble attempt to undercut the tension of the room. "Another is strange, foreign and alien." he continued his tirade of words, each word popping into his mind describing everything about her, from her attire to her walk and to even how she presented herself. "But clearly you do not have time to listen to the mad ramblings of a madder man. No, let us cut to the chase." he continued taking another step forward as he closed the gap, "As what I like to call the greatest Torturer, tell me. What did he do to break you?" he requested his head straightening up as he looked her up and down looking for any visible marks or scars.
"Mayhaps he filled you up with dopamine?" he inquired starting to pace around her little by little in a hopes to get a chance mark of her wounds, "Tortured a child in front of you until you could do the same?" he rose a hand to his chin, contemplating as he looked her down, "No.... Some sort of power struggle mayhaps? Gave you chances of escape.... Maybe... Maybe yet he gave you a companion to do it with." an idea formed in his mind, there was clearly an idea of a power trip going on in her mind, she wanted to attain the grandest of delusions. Power, strength the capacity to do it all yourself. A delusion all but the maddest fell for. "And maybe... Just maybe you had to cut him off, he was weak and holding you back..." his form narrowed and pinpointed as he clasped a hand in another, satisfied with his own answer. "And if that one was a close friend of yours. Even a child it might just drive you mad... No. No not you." the thought rushed through his mind for a split second. This was all mediocre torture, this was Kay he was dealing with, the thing visage of a shell had already started to play tricks on his mind. "No... No what am I talking about? I shouldn't be able to even fathom what suffering you went through." he let loose a long winded chuckle as slowly his voice twisted from sadistic joy to malevolent misery. "So then what broke Kay damn it! What horrors has my broken mind not been able to fathom!" he screamed snapping at Kay, the sheer audacity of not being insane enough sent him snapping back to an older edition, an angst-ridden madman far from what he had evolved to now. "Do I need to start eating entrails! Go on a goddamn spirit quest woman! What horrors do I need to go through to see what you went through!?" his muscles began to twist with pain, his voice box scarring as he let loose a blood-curdling cough, a splatter of blood veiling the front of his mask as he bent down, a hand peeling the mask off as he began to spray blood along the floor. "What.... What do I have to do to be the best." he finally keeled over, his body twisted into a ball as the essence of pain finally caught up with him, a groan echoing as spittle and blood mixed into a sickeningly vicious pile a few inches from his mouth. [member="Lady Kay"] [member="Darth Prazutis"] [member="Veiere Arenais"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Ryn'Dhal"] [member="Samka Derith"] [member="Sareen Zar"] [member="Darben Skirae"] [member="Riven Black"] [member="Stardust Raxis"]
Kay could feel the hatred dripping from [member="Thraxis"] . If he was a Force user, well he'd certainly be a force to reckon with. But no. She knew he despised them as much as he despised his own kind. Though he knew of Kay's gifts, she didn't use them often in front of him. Maybe she had gained a little respect from him for that.
She clenched her jaw and remained perfectly still while he paced around her, working hard at trying to figure out what had happened to her. Of course he wasn't very close in his guesswork. In his maddened state, he couldn't think clearly enough.
A brow was raised as he coughed up blood, only to collapse on the floor in front of her. She took a couple of steps back so that the blood wouldn't reach her shoes before she crouched down and looked to his crumpled form. "Perhaps you'd like to go through it yourself, hmm? But then....maybe that's what you had wanted the moment that you saw that I had returned..." Kay got to her feet and nodded to a couple of the guards. "Pick him up and take him to the medical wing. I want him stripped of his weapons, armour and all fixed up, sedate him if you have to. After that, put him in a cell."
Her arms folded acrossed her chest while she watched the guards move in to take the Jackal away.
Darlyn sighed to himself as he walked the city streets, his attentive eyes darting from left to right behind his mirrored mask as he moved through the darkened streets. Of course, the hunter happened to be on the public transit when Kay's latest, sinister sounding transmission came over the airways, broadcasting to the entire city, the entire planet really. The poor hunter didn't own his own ship, perhaps for the best in this case, for the simple fact he relied on public forms of transportation allowed him to see the call given by Kay. And even though the man had only truly met her once, it didn't take a genius to see what was going on. She wasn't acting like her usual self, even from his one true time being near her he could tell. Her word choice was all off, more firm, and the woman was supposed to be against the idea of focusing on military or violent might. He ran his hand under his hood, doing everything he could to avoid soldiers, and stick to the shadows.
Something was wrong with Kay. And the Hunter owed her, for saving his life. He'd be a fool not to take the opportunity to repay it.. however there was the question of how to do so. Of course, he was fairly certain he could easily get into the actual government building, the problem came in how to deal with what he would find. Worst case scenarios weren't his forte, however given her language, it was likely she had 'fallen' to the darkside. And that would mean Sith, and he was unsure if said Sith knew enough of him to be part of his old master's hunt for him. He simply couldn't take any risks, if [member="Ghorua the Shark"] had taught him anything, it was the value of patience in a hunt. And so, first he'd find a support, a basis.
To that end, he took the time to search the Net for bounties, and lo and behold there was one of particular interest, though it was government sanctioned. Einon, an ex member of Kay's staff. While he was loathe to consider what he was doing, he had to know, at the least, where he would be walking into. So the darksider, blending into the much darker city, wandered the streets in search of his 'prey'. His target. The man would be found, it was simply a matter of when, of where. The Hunter's hidden lightsaber felt warm against his body, as if it anticipated violence, to be drawn. Oh the hunt made his blood boil.. it would be hard to restrain himself. He gritted his teeth behind the mask, and slipped into the shadows.
Einon, he opened his mind in an attempt to try and expand his awareness for the man. He was no master, no knight, but such a fundamental skill would at least help locate those trying to hide. He would find this man, and he would find his way to Kay, to see what had happened to her. What had happened to [member="Lady Kay"]... and what he could do to fulfill his debt.
[member="Thraxis"] I [member="Ultimatum"] I [member="Darth Prazutis"] I [member="Veiere Arenais"] I [member="Ryn'Dhal"] I [member="Sareen Zar"] I @Samanka Derith I [member="Darben Skirae"] I [member="Riven Black"] I [member="Stardust Raxis"]
Vikras Ansion. Location: Brelor, 2nd moon of Commenor. Objective: Secure possible extraction in the case of hostilities.
Vikras stood with his back to the room, the bridge of the Chimaera busied with the preparation of their mission, smaller as far as operations went yet none the less important to Vikras. His home had come just into view around the cover of the Moon, a world of trade and small meanings as far as the warring galaxy went. It had been a place of relative peace and diplomacy once; Commenori born and raised. Like so many others within the military and enforcement sectors of Commenor's governance, he had not come to know [member="Lady Kay"] at all personally. Hers was a name that spread across the world swiftly the day of her commemoration yet Vikras did not hold the value of a man thought worthy of gracing the Madame Presidents personal entourage as Veiere had. The Jedi Knight, still something of a puzzle to Vikras even in his age and many years of experience, a man whose moods went from extremes, hot and cold, and yet claimed to be fueled by some higher calling in the Force. He had to wonder if all Jedi were this way, led by a monastic faith yet so prone to cross the line when it suited them.
Beside him stood First Captain, Decius of the Stormtrooper 501st Legion. A soldier that struck Vikras as cold and calculating; his military profile dated so far back as to have fought for the Sith Empire, the "lords of the fringe". Many battles had been faced under the command of Darth Arcis, followed by Darth Mephirium who strangely enough befriended Veiere and on the day of his reckoning left the Jedi everything. This gift had turned every man aboard the vessel against the side they had previously fought for, it was a feat in itself to see such loyalty maintained through blood and battle, experiences that had shifted their allegiances so greatly as to now serve the Silver Jedi Order, as Vikras now did.
"What news from Lord Arenais?" Decius turned to look to the Admiral, his helmet tucked beneath his right arm, held against his side; he played the soldier perfectly, standing at attention at all times in the company of a fellow higher officer and though their personalities differed greatly, they'd both come to harbor a mutual respect for one another. It was amusing to note that the man still called Veiere by the title of his former Commander, old habits died hard Vikras supposed though the Jedi must have found it a little off-putting given their proposed selfless ways.
"There is a foothold in the mountains overlooking Chasin City. Master Arenais' private residence given to him by the Queen herself, it's been kept off records, Veiere negated of all debts given his service at the Queens side. Veiere needs eight of your best to land and secure the residence, retrieve any and all belongings you deem significant to the Jedi aboard the ship and then await further orders. He made it especially clear that we are not here to bring conflict to Commenor..." Vikras turned to look to Decius with a perculiar smile, he imaged a regiment as experienced as the 501st wouldn't have any trouble following orders though Decius himself was well regarded as a ruffian and a brawler; "Discretion in this case is paramount, Captain".
The Captain nodded, he needed no further help in the affair, his instructions were simple as far as ground operations went, secure the premises and await further orders. No point in wasting anymore time, Vikras watched as he turned and left the Admiral to the rest of his staff. The blanket of stars illuminated by the atmospheric glow of Commenor beyond, it offered a little hope that things would be as peaceful down there as they were stationed aboard the Chimaera.
It was only now that he was joined by one of his senior officers, "Initial scans detect no trace of the Commenori fleet within Brelor's proximity Admiral. None the less, the Cloaking Field is active and power is being regulated to the Chimaera's shields and armaments as instructed. Communications say all is quiet, I dare say our presence remains unnoticed".
"Perhaps..." Vikras exhaled slowly as he spoke, as if to savor the moment. "Though do not let it go to the crews mind, I want all eyes open in case we are to receive visitors...After all, best laid plans rarely go accordingly...".
There was no deception in his venture into the Royal Grounds, the Jedi Knight had walked through the streets of Chasin City looking upon the people to gauge reactions and finding nothing out of place. They were all blissfully unaware of the mindset of their new ruler and in that, Veiere found himself thankful; their ignorance meant fewer potential harm could come to the people should [member="Ghorua the Shark"] and [member="Ryn'Dhal"] succeed in kicking up a fuss.
As he got closer to the grounds however, Veiere had felt the pull of the Force, the ominous and heavy pull of the Dark Side to be exact. It was much stronger within the grounds of the Palace than he had anticipated which could only mean a small number of things, both that Kay herself was not alone and that her new found strength in the Dark Side had indeed been the work of another; furthermore that Veiere could assume they were not alone in this cause where as he had neglected the company of the others in the hope of deterring a fight. Even he had to admit the chances were slim but even so, it was worth trying to get to Kay without violence. It would not solve anything here.
Meeting the Guardsmen at the entrance, they both recognized Veiere immediately; his face quite the well known one within the area. The Jedi lowered his head in a brief nod of acknowledgement, the silence between the three of them only adding to the tension and yet reaching out not physically but mentally to the presence of the light surrounding him and unseen to those untrained, he called upon the calming warmth of the lightside in that it would bring them the passive confidence to not act in haste as Veiere stepped passed, pushing his way through the doors and finally coming into the main hall to which he found himself looking upon another, [member="Darth Prazutis"], the source of strength in the Dark Side around this man was unmistakable.
His pace slowed, his brows furrowing as he looked upon the Sith Lord, the answer to so many questions of the past. Kay's abduction, the one to take her from her seat of leadership over Commenor to Force knows where else. This was not the first time that he'd had dealings with the Sith, some civil though most otherwise. Save for themselves the hallway seemed immensely quiet, not a movement beyond them. Lifting his head, he offered a half nod in acknowledgement of the other, that very silence needing to be broken.
"I see the Queen has acquired the company of new staff within the Palace. To whom do I owe for this occasion...".
Before Veiere departed, Ryn'Dhal nodded agreement to his own plan and view. The Knight needed to proceed openly, yet cautiously, lest he reveal himself prematurely and ruin any hopes of success for his own plans. The felinoid, however, would not be so fortunate, should he approach the front like Veiere. Ryn'Dhal knew that puppet-master, the shadow pulling Kay's strings, would be lurking nearby. That shadow was the target, and that target would receive a full taste of the felinoid's wrath.
Instead, Ryn'Dhal elected to travel and aid Ghorua in retrieving Kay's aide. "Lead on, Ghorua, I'll watch your back." If there was ever a skill-set beyond healing that the feline Master held copious mastery in, it was stealth and mobility. He became one with the shadows of the city, as the two entered. Unseen, and unnoticed, through judicious usage of the Art of the Small, concealing his presence within the Force. The Herglic would have an unseen pair of eyes lurking around every corner, from any roof-top, always present, ready at a moments notice, as the duo approached their quarry.
Ryn'Dhal had never actually met Kay's aide, though he'd seen the young man a number of times during different events that the felinoid had stalked as a security agent for Kay. Spotting the man, Ryn'Dhal would tumble silently off of a roof, landing lightly next to Ghorua. The Herglic would likely be startled slightly by the sudden voice near him. "Your mark is around the corner. A pair of Leos are about thirty meters out. I will lure them away, and will meet with you shortly."
Around the time the massive Herglic would have turned to respond, the Jedi had disappeared again. Moments later, shouting could be heard, the sounds of officers calling for the masked man to stop for questioning. Footsteps could be heard stomping in pursuit, the echoing trailing away into the distance.....
