Dominion Shadow Empire: The Living Planet | EE Dominion of Zonama Sekot

[Darth Tennacus]

​

Objective: Seize Technology
Faction: New Sith Order, Brotherhood of the Maw
Equipment: Lightsaber, Zersium Rifle
Ship: Wandering Pilgrim
Droid: 77-B
Whispering Swarm
Open​

Despite how close the promise of riches appeared before him, the Sith Lord prolonged his stillness a little longer, favouring observation over action. He waited - patiently - for some manner of soul - rival, enemy or otherwise - to reach out and move upon him, but the Force had yet to warn of anything in regards to a threat. Knelt down amongst the soils, Tennacus reached out through the Force to call his beasts down the cliff behind him, waiting for the moment they touched down before he proceeded to his first target.

Of all the vessels which stood before him, Tennacus favoured one of the Zanoma Sekot fighters, cautiously approaching the rear of the vessel until he suddenly came to a halt. The Force suddenly reached out to him, alerting him of multiple lifeforms - two, specifically - that were obscured behind the broad shape of the legendary craft. For some reason, the Sith Lord could not identify exactly who they were, but he sensed neither the light nor the dark within them. The Force was silent in its offerings, promising presence rather than identity. Tennacus was not an individual to take unnecessary chances - especially if it was them.

The Sith threw his focus into the accompanying Xenomorphs behind him, instilling a drive for hunger that showed promise of being satisfied by the unknown entities further ahead. Without any audible warning, Tennacus moved backwards whilst the two creatures advanced, flailing their sharpened tails wildly as they crept around the sides of the ship, moving within its shadow until they could move around to the other side and initiate a tactical assault. Tennacus never witnessed the ordeal as it unfolded, but by the time the screeching emanated from both parties had quelled, he cautiously proceeded to discover that the Xenomorphs had slain two of the very creatures he believed to be the culprits: the Yuuzhan Vong.

One of them was still alive, albeit gravely wounded in the chest. The other had been impaled by the malicious maw of the retractable tongue, driving itself straight through flesh and bone. The Vong pilot clawed at his chest where blood poured out of a cavity brought on by the elongated tail. Tennacus lifted the Zersium rifle in preparation to end the creature's suffering, but he paused when he realised just how little about their biology he understood. Before him sat a living, breathing candidate of many a great wonders that could further advance his knowledge, and quite possibly serve as one of his living experiments regarding the splicing of genes. His weapon slowly lowered, sparing the Vong's life - for now. A silent order commanded one of the Xenomorphs to believe it was carrying the Vong back up the cliff for later service to the expansion of its race, but in actuality it was blindly following the cunning will of a Sith Lord. It did, however, mean that Darth Tennacus was now a pawn down, left to wander the estranged vessel for its riches while the creature stood guard outside.

For now, Tennacus chose to depend on the dark side to guide him, just as it always did. In the end, he would escape the world with technological wonders that could benefit the Sith's brotherhood and further their conquest over the Galaxy.

Everything they did was in accordance to the Grand Plan.

 

[Felmorante L'lerim]

WATCHING FROM AFAR

Equipment: Powered Wheelchair, Enviroweave Blanket, Plain Cloths
Haywire I Armor over Viper Mk. I Skinsuit, Duraglide Boots with Boot Rockets
Dark Purple pair of Wrist Dazzlers, 7 Whimsy Knives, 3 Glitter Grenades, 2 Giggle Grenades, 1 Pink Vapor Grenade
Objective: Tal Type Medical Vessel - Obj III
Tag: Anashja Tal

She perked up at the mention of using the force to ease the sores. Her face quickly raised to look the woman in the eye with a curious and hopeful look.

"Y-yes! Please! Is that...can you teach me to do that?" The answer was quick and stumbling over the focus as her hands fumbled their hold and nearly twisted herself into the wall.

The sharp squeak of boots behind them had a hand raised sharply to call the soldier off from helping her as she grumbled in aggravation.

"Like flying a really goofy starship. BAH! Missing that already." The soldier kept their hands off as she snarled to herself. The painfully slow process of orienting her hands once more getting the trio moving.

The previous frown of exasperation faded as they entered the garden, eyes bright as she took everything in. Her own experience with medical equipment giving her hints that the instruments were still present but covered. Enough to let one forget they were there.

A pleasant thought as she watched a butterfly wing along and settle on a flower.

"I do. It's beautiful." Her words were genuine, staring at everything as her gaze slowly moved across everything in the room. It was slow to return to Anashja, mind slightly boggled at the concept of such a place on a ship in space.

"Can I swim? I mean..." The slight furrow of her brow marked the quick retreat of the smile as she gave a nod to her legs. The soldier was motionless by the door, allowing Fel to do as she pleased without intruding as they kept their gaze squarely on her.

"I guess swim first. Dry off looking around? Then eat?" Her eyes kept drifting to the pool, intent fairly clear before settling on Anashja.

 

[Anashja Tal]

Location: Tal class medical corvette
Tags: Felmorante L'lerim
Equipped: Beskar'gam, lightsabers, healing supplies

"Y-yes! Please! Is that...can you teach me to do that?"

Anashja was happy to give the girl some more comfort, she reached her hands down and lifted up the blanket. Putting her hands directly onto the Felmorante's legs, she closed her eyes and uttered a prayer in mandalorian. There was a glow in her hands that passed into her legs. She might feel a slight warmth in her body as the sores knitted themselves back together and disappeared.

"That should feel a little better for you, they might come back after a while, but we can work on that for you." She tried to feel if the girl herself was force sensitive but couldn't really tell, she could be hiding it. "If you are connected to the force I can teach you a few techniques that might help you, if not I can at the very least help you learn to meditate and supress the discomfort" she was reluctant to teach self healing, but now wasn't the time to be discussing the metaphysical risks of using the force for self benefit.

She noticed that Felmorante was looking intently at the pool as she spoke, this was good. Allowing her to enjoy something positive would hopefully improve her mood and distract her.

"Can I swim? I mean..."

"Absolutely, it might take a few minutes to adjust to doing everything with your upper body, but ultimately you should be able to swim as well as you could before."

Anashja helped Felmorante behind the screen to change, she would help her into her bathing suit if she needed to but would try to ensure she had every bit of independence that she could. Once she was ready, Anashja also changed into a wetsuit and rejoined her.

Anashja led her patient to the waters edge and lowered her in, allowing the buoyancy of the water to take her legs away, small hidden bouncy aids woven into the suit provided small assistance for safety purposes.

"OK, so roll over on to your back and just relax, your body is naturally buoyant, just let yourself float for a few moments first to get used to the water, then you can try using your arms to move around. She paused, looking at the young adult in front of her "Please tell me if this is working for you, there is a whole process I go through but it can sometimes sound patronising to an intelligent and capable person, that isn't my intention."

The water was a very comfortable body temperature and Anashja was enjoying being in it herself, it was a moment to take the weight off her own limbs from pacing around the ship treating people.

 

[Keilara Kala'myr]

Ziare Dyarron (NIO) | Keilara Kala'myr (Maw)
COMPNOR (ISB) Junior Agent, Nite agent | Slave of the Maw​

Objective I.: How can you be here?
Location: Streets of La'okio
Equipment: FS-18-UP2 Omega Phase Assault Rifle | 2x PV-16 "Sunfury" Pulse Pistol | Druetium Armour | Viper Mk. I Skinsuit | 2x Vibrodagger || Stealth field generator || OPBC-01m
Tags / Writing with: Ivixa Nera'kas

[ Das Tier in mir ]
"Galactic Basic" | ~"Telepathic" communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

~ Another target is coming from behind! ~ I got a last minute warning from MANIAC.

As the door opened at the same time, someone behind me started shooting at me. I had no time left to shoot at the incoming Ultranaut. I successfully avoided further shots. Not only was she fast, but I hoped I would be fast too. I heard a thud; one of the shots flew from my position and hit the incoming soldier. Friendly fire! The most beautiful thing the enemy could do! And in the meantime, I had an idea.

~ Nite access […] hide me from all MEIPOC sensors, don't be seen by members of the Eternal Empire! ~ I instructed in thought.

~ Nite code adopted, the encryption protocol came into effect on the planet Zonama Sekot. ~ the answer came from him.

This, as far as I knew, means asking for any information about me, my situation, and the like, will run into encryption issues. Higher access than mine is needed to override this. And there certainly wasn't such a thing on the planet. I mean, these chances were pretty small, it wasn’t such a significant place.*

After the shots, commands, and the like, I stopped behind another cover. I didn't want her to shoot me again. It would have been good for me to shoot and hit it at least for once. So I tried to look out of my new cover in the right place based on the sensors and shoot from there, still in shotgun mode.


*She doesn’t know Ingrid and Curse are here, she is underestimating the Nite leaders lol…

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Objective: Protect the others
Location: Dragon Cave
Tags: Vidalu Na'an :||: Taozi Fuyuan :||: Adelle Bastiel :||: Kalic Daws

​

Darlyn trailed behind significantly compared to the others, every step feeling like he was knee deep in the swamps of Zakuul again. This place weighed on him in a... unique fashion. Beyond the fetid smell of rot and decay, and the sense of forboding in his stomach, he could hear a sweet siren's call. A song simple and pure, ringing in his skull in piercing notes and beckoning him to drop his guard.

Oh yes, they were drawing ever closer now. He just had to keep focused on the task at hand, for their sake and his own... as it drew ever apparent that the Empire simply could not stop what was already done. He was grateful at least for his robes, as they did provide some measure of security to his senses. The tarentatek leather did nothing to silence the song inside him, but it felt safer here.

Of course it did nothing to make his job harder, as intentionally drawing the corruption into himself was uninhibited. His hands clasped in prayer like pose before him, with his Light infused lightsaber hilt facing upwards, he worked to keep the flow of darkness stable and diverted away from the others. Taozi in particular, she was near her limit for how much she could allow within herself.

There was no telling how effective it truly was as the corruption would become more potent and all consuming as they approached. But even just a little security woupd be enough right?

He coughed, lifting his hands so he could keep it contained to his robe sleeve. This was.. not the brightest idea. But when he couldn't cure it himself, he had to do what he could for those who the Light favored. His first time seeing these people in ten years, for him anyways. Just his luck really.

"I think it's more accurate to say this planet is consuming itself. Or what part of it is corrupted is cannabalizing the rest. I would hazard a guess it's like a body fighting off a disease that makes its own immune system attack itself."

 

[Vidalu Na'an]

Location: Dragon Cave, deeper in
Equipment: One (1) custom-made shoto lightsaber, Dantari crystal, One (1) CR-1 Blast Cannon, One (1) 50-meter length of synthrope, Four (4) standard thermal detonators.
Appearance: Nondescript leathers, mismatched with standard-issue Ultranaut helmet.
Interacting: Taozi Fuyuan ,
Kalic Daws , Adelle Bastiel , Darlyn Excron
Nearby: LE-03 (Leigh)
​

"Exactly."

Na'an paused at the ridge where the natural part of the cave ended, turning back to watch Darlyn carefully. The light from her blade lit her face in scarlet and sharp shadows, and obscured the sudden careful look in her eye. "It might not be safe for you to go too far in, Red," she said quietly. "Whatever's past this point....well, like you said. It likes the dark, and..."

She turned back in towards the cave, regarding the too-smooth walls. She lifted up her eyepatch with her free hand, cocking her left side further inwards. If she held her breath, she could hear something just faint enough to be picked up by her implant....humming? Breathing? Moaning?

Singing?

"It's hungry."

For a moment she found herself leaning forward, craning her implant deeper into the cave to try to suss out the words. Something rhythmic and sluggish, like it was being spoken with swollen tongues or mouths filled with sores... But what was it? She took a step in, still trying to hear, but her foot landed on something and she stumbled. In that moment, something--a rock, maybe--shot out from under her heel, clattering inwards and and breaking the spell of the moment. Na'an sucked in a breath, suddenly aware that both she and Darlyn hadn't been breathing at all.
"It--it's probably best to lure it out piece by piece, handle it out here, near the mouth," she said, feeling abruptly unsteady, and flipped her eyepatch back down. "Go in pairs, while the rest set up out here. Doc? Rabbit?"

It went without saying that she already expected to be in the first pair.

 

[Gwyneira Vizsla]

The moment the enemies fell, Gwyn let go of the flames, letting them continue naturally, and darted for Eliz. All according to plan. She briefly paused by him, explaining, "We'll get to the city following the road, but not on it! The enemy would only ambush us more! We can talk more once we've sure we're not being chased!"

Gwyn was racing for the living planet's trees and bushes. The best natural cover, and still close enough to maintain visible contact with the path to their destination. Gwyn turned and checked to see if Eliz was following. She needed someone who was a stronger warrior than her, for survival. Even more, she was growing rather fond of the young warrior. "Come on!"

Eliz Krayt

 

[Eliz Krayt]

Through the underbrush to the city, huh? Eliz ran along with Gwyneira Vizsla , his red eyes behind his helmet constantly surveying around them. He could probably get them to the city faster, with his jetpack. But he barely knew how to fly solo, let alone carrying someone else. He really needed to get those kinds of lessons in. The Charric in his grasp lit up, blasting someone who'd gotten too close to their retreat.

They'd be surrounded if they didn't hurry.

"Can't you run any faster?"

 

[Gwyneira Vizsla]

Gwyn frowned at Eliz's impatience. "Well, sorry if I'm new to running marathons, Edgy McHandsome."

Still, she knew why he was worried. They were being chased and under the threat of being surrounded once again. Gwyn's mind did backflips as she tried to figure out how to throw them off. More fire? No. Fire was uncontrollable in this environment, and a massive forest fire could be disasterous for anyone. However, another idea flickered in her mind.

"You got any explosives?" She panted, "If we set a trap that triggers an explosion behind us, we'll have far less enemies to deal with once the rest are caught up."

She looked up, the biological city towers in perfect sight from the brush. They had to make it. She could not die out here, a nameless casualty in a forest. If she was to die, she wanted it to be glorious. She wanted it to be worth legend and song. Which was why she was determined to survive this place.



Eliz Krayt

 

[Romund Sro]

Objective: 1
Gear: Cane | Knuckle Plate Vibro Blades
Tags: Ingrid L'lerim | Zachariel Steelblood ​

As Romund trekked through the city some as it was being raided by others in the Maw along with himself he found the streets rather empty, at least the ones that he walked. Although he could hear the raging of fighting elsewhere in the city. Standing there with his cane he closed his eyes for a moment behind his bland white mask and looked into the force some, trying to sense those around. Eventually catching the familiar Force Signature of a certain Zachariel Steelblood. Romund figured he could pay his alley a visit.

With his cane disguised weapon in hand Romund made his way in the direction of his comrade. He’d never really interacted with the warlord himself but figured this could be a good place to start. Whether or not he found the others in the Brotherhood pleasant individuals didn’t mean he wouldn’t like getting to know them all a little better. Eventually.

Turning the corner on one street he eventually found his target. The hulking individual standing amongst a plethora of slain bodies and… they seemed to have company. A seemingly feminine figure running their own hand across the massive figure. He didn’t recognize the person he was with, she couldn’t be from the maw though. Romund couldn’t help but let out a chuckle to the sight as he began to approach. Tap tap tap, his cane gently hitting the ground with each step he took as he got closer, before speaking out. “I hope I’m not ruining the moment.” He, standing there with his cane in front of him. The top of it being held with both his hands. Romund could say he didn’t see this for a turn of events. He had gotten the impression that Mr. Steelblood was a no nonsense killing machine and yet here he was.

 

[Kalic Daws]

Vidalu Na'an Taozi Fuyuan Adelle Bastiel Darlyn Excron

Kalic looked as people commented on the smell. He looked down a bit, taking a breath as he looked down the strangelly smooth corridor.

"I really hate that this isn't the worst thing I've smelt, and no. I'm going into that any further." He'd keep his heavy repeater pointed down the cave before looking back at the other as the purposed plan went through his head. Draw it out in pieces? What the.... He looked at Vidula, shrugging a little.

"I mean, if a blaster will hurt it that'll work. If not I'm not sure how useful I'll be. Not exactly the most sensitive of the lot." He looked around, shaking his head from the stink. Hopefully they could do something quick.

 

[Felmorante L'lerim]

TAKING TIME

Equipment: Powered Wheelchair, Enviroweave Blanket, Plain Cloths
Haywire I Armor over Viper Mk. I Skinsuit, Duraglide Boots with Boot Rockets
Dark Purple pair of Wrist Dazzlers, 7 Whimsy Knives, 3 Glitter Grenades, 2 Giggle Grenades, 1 Pink Vapor Grenade
Objective: Tal Type Medical Vessel - Obj III
Tag: Anashja Tal

The contact on her legs was strange, able to feel the pressure as she was moved a little, but unable to feel the touch as the sores began to repair themselves. Her mind had an ease settle over it, realizing she might have been hiding her force presence as she allowed the woman to sense it while touching her.

It was akin to throwing a rock down a well. Only a short distance before the probing mind found itself dunked into a reserve that was hidden behind a number of distant hands. There was a lingering presence behind the girls own, as though a number of eyes watched the woman that had felt for her force presence. When she withdrew her hands, the sensation of eyes upon her would disappear, and the presence of the young girl would slowly dissipate.

"I am. But I don't know a whole lot of stuff yet. I...haven't really been good about studying." There was a shameful smile behind the words, quietly avoiding the woman's gaze.

"I would appreciate that though. Learning I mean." The girl admitted finally, looking at Anashja. The revelation of being able to swim had her intently focused before moving to change behind the screen, with a bit of frustration and admittance of needing a bit of help with certain parts.

There was a cautious proximity to the pools edge, holding herself up with her arms as she slowly scooted herself closer and closer before letting herself be helped in at the edge before instructions were given. Her mind switched to panic for a brief time, not quite used to the idea of letting go of control as she tried to relax and let the water take her.

She rolled slowly, her breathing tense and motions sharply swift as she continued to struggle with relaxing. Her whole body was bobbing as her eyes settled on the ceiling of the room, the soldier still silent as they watched the pair move.

"What is it you usually think about to relax?" Felmorante asked suddenly, her legs freely floating as her waist and shoulders slowly bobbed up and down. For her credit, she didn't flail, instead trying to calm and relax herself or distract herself in some way.

 

[Adelle Bastiel]

Location: Dragon Cave
Equipment: Standard lightsaber​

Adelle paused and drew her fingers away from the unnaturally carved stone, a cold sliminess clinging to her fingertips. Now that Na'an had put words to the feeling, she could feel a gnawing hunger in her bones. For the moment, it stayed confined in the darkness ahead of her, deeper in the tunnel. But that could--would--change shortly. One of the ritual sites the Shadow Empire performed lay down there. They needed to disrupt it, cleanse it, in order to purge Sekot of the cancerous thing that corrupted and poisoned it.

But the entity and its siren song . . . It had to be dealt with too.

"Na'an or Rabbit," she said, turning back to them. The shadows at her back felt eerily close to tentacles trying to grip her, even with Darlyn's intervention. "I will need one of you for the ritual. The other should lure it out of the ritual chamber and distract it from attacking us. Darlyn, save your energy for those that need it. There are side-effects I have that will help me. You and Kalic should prepare yourselves for a fight."

"Whoever's coming down needs to stay close." Adelle turned back to face the darkness and stepped into the shadows.



Vidalu Na'an | Taozi Fuyuan | Darlyn Excron | Kalic Daws

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Objective: Protect the others
Location: Dragon Cave
Tags: Vidalu Na'an :||: Taozi Fuyuan :||: Adelle Bastiel :||: Kalic Daws

​

Darlyn shook his head in response to Na'an's words. Oh he understood her concern, but it was somewhat lost on him as he continued to intentionally try and filter the ambient darkness. It was touching but, well, regardless of how much she wanted him to take it easy that simply was not in his nature. Not to mention, if someone as vulnerable as Taozi was left subject to the Dark's manipulations he didn't have much of a way to protect her from herself. "I spent ten years in the Nether, Shortstop. I can handle the living world's darkness for ten minutes."

He paused with the others again, finally fully catching up to them, and looking down the tunnel. His breath caught along with Na'ans, though he didn't actually realize he'd been holding it at all like she did. Instead, he only became distinctly aware of the grip the Darkness had over him. If it was tentacles or tendrils seeking to grab hold of the others... it was more like threads already wrapped around his heart. Wasn't really possible for him to keep it at bay. He drew a breath in slowly, and looked from one person to another.

"Can you... just call me Red like she does? If the Empire finds out I'm here it will be an international incident, I'd rather at least hold off until... later for that. But I'll focus on the others." He slowly did just that, shifting his focus onto Taozi, Kalic, and Na'an as much as each felt they needed. IT was a reduction in pain and burden, but he still felt it hard. In reference to her suggesting they prepare for a fight, he shifted his grip on his lightsaber and ignited the white blade, which sprung to life with a particularly sharp sounding hiss.

If she expected a fight he would at least try to remain calm doing so, right?

 

[Zachariel Steelblood]

Objective: Kill, Maim, Burn
Tags: Ingrid L'lerim | Romund Sro
Links: Weapons​

Rolling his eyes at Ingrid's words, Zachariel laughed, showing his contempt at her titles and names. It was acting and truth, though just a small percentage of truth. She had many names and titles and Zachariel didn't remember the all. In the end, titles and names bore little consequence, a first name was all that mattered, because most were dead in the end.

"Aye Ingrid, and my counter attacks would have been the same." Glancing over to his shoulder where his Vong had been, he shrugged and continued on. "I suppose it matters little now."

At her challenge towards the Avatars, Zachariel simply laughed. That would be an amusing sight, watching Ingrid be devoured by the Avatars for her insolence. Then again, she may be able to survive and escape. But her survival wasn't guaranteed, and retrieval of the souls impossible. So he simply let her feel his amusement and lack of concern regarding the Avatars.
"I welcome you to try, your soul would certainly feed them well." Snorting, he leaned forward, smiling. "Oh but you can. 'Dear subjects and soldiers of the Eternal Empire. Should you see a massive armored warlord of the Brotherhood, avoid at all costs. Few can stand against him and survive.' See, simple. Oh well, something for the next world then."

Laughing as she ran her hands across his armor, he stepped closer, leaving no gap between them now. About to speak, Zachariel suddenly senses Romunds approach. Head snapping up and to the side. Romund spoke and Zachariel simply laughed, one arm snaking behind Ingrid to hold her close, and one hand reaching to her rear, giving it a squeeze as he spoke.
"Hardly!" Trusting Ingrid to hide her identity properly, Zachariel instead straightened and spoke, arm still around Ingrid. "We haven't truly gotten started yet, though that may have to wait for later now. What brings you here Romund?"

 

[Vidalu Na'an]

Location: Dragon Cave, deeper in
Equipment: One (1) custom-made shoto lightsaber, Dantari crystal, One (1) CR-1 Blast Cannon, One (1) 50-meter length of synthrope, Four (4) standard thermal detonators.
Appearance: Nondescript leathers, mismatched with standard-issue Ultranaut helmet.
Interacting: Taozi Fuyuan ,
Kalic Daws , Adelle Bastiel , Darlyn Excron
Nearby: LE-03 (Leigh)
​

Na'an swallowed, nodded, forced half a smile. In the growing dark, with cold creeping down her neck like invisible fingers, the familiar edges of the others' minds was a welcome warmth. Darlyn's blade, Kalic and Taozi's own weapons....Doc's touch, her smell like fresh tea.

And her. Na'an's own warmth, echoed back on herself through them. Tenuous and vulnerable, flickering and unsure, already pushed halfway into a dark space, but there nonetheless.

"...Okay then," she said with soft little huff of breath. "Taking point."

And the next three steps took her around the cave bend.

Around the bend, the cave was less a cave and more of a tunnel, smooth sides boring deeper into the bedrock. The stones were smooth, and surprisingly clean--no puddles or moss like in the cave mouth, no deformities, nothing visible that could cause the faint smell of rot in the back of Na'an's nose. Na'an paced soundlessly into the narrow passageway with her shoto held out like a torch, keeping her breathing carefully steady and quiet. Even with her implant covered, the sound from before was more audible now that she was in the tunnel. The underlying tone was mechanical, a low hum like a running engine, or maybe multiple engines running at different speeds. Na'an started humming absently along, trying to match one of the tones, but quickly found it impossible to do both that and focus on what else she was doing. It was strange, how that thrum got into your head so quickly, overriding conscious thought...maybe, she wondered, that was why people like Darlyn fell to the Dark Side so easily.

Or like the Empress.

The tunnel opened up after about fifty feet, into a chamber too large to be lit from just her shoto light. Based on the volume, whatever they'd come for, whatever was making that sound, was in that dark space. Na'an stopped at the lip of the tunnel, forcing herself to swallow back her unease again and tasting bile at the back of her throat in response. It didn't feel like there was anything alive ahead, but something about the way the space echoed--the sick feeling in her throat--
"H--" Her voice quavered briefly, echoing into the chamber against walls she couldn't see. "Hello? I'm coming in--Whatever you're doin' in here, it's got to--"

A scream ripped out of the chamber, just ahead of a figure hurling itself into view. Na'an had just enough time to flinch back and twist her shoto to guard her body before it lunged at her, arms outstretched. She caught a glimpse of a pale face, a whiff of something horrible, like vomit and excrement and long-rotted flesh all at once, and a weight slammed against her chest with enough power to knock her breathless. She fell back against one of the others behind her, flailing out for a second to push the weight away, heart hammering in her chest--

But the weight--the body--had already dropped to her feet.

"What--" She was trembling, but Na'an forced herself back onto her feet, one grateful hand steadying herself on the body that had caught her. Her saber had disengaged in the brief struggle; she reignited it, angling the blade down to get a good look at what had hit her, then immediately wished she hadn't.

"It's...a Cerean."

Even in the scarlet light, the pale conical forehead of a Cerean male was clearly visible. From the length of the beard, matted with filth as it was, whoever he had been had survived into their fifties at least before dying, and must have been dead at least a few weeks from the stench. That clearly had not stopped it from moving around, somehow; neither had throwing itself onto Na'an's shoto and getting sliced nearly in half. Even as she bent down over the body it twitched lazily, still reaching blindly for the bright blade as it lay in its own gore. Na'an pulled the shoto away from its grasping fingers, holding her breath against the stink of it and trying more than anything else to keep from vomiting. "I keep meeting Cereans when the Shadow Empire's involved," she said, "but what--"

The Cerean moaned, rolling to keep reaching for her. The motion exposed the back of his neck, where the thick black cables embedded in its spine, protruding from incisions swollen with infection, could finally catch the shoto's light. He moaned again, and the moan thrummed in the cables, deep and electronic. At that sound, already so familiar, Na'an felt her heart grip with something horrible and cold.

"Oh, gods," she whispered. "Oh, no, no no no no--what have they been doing in here?"

Deeper in the chamber, the droning continued.

 

[Ingrid L'lerim]

Lady Ingrid L’lerim Ragal Terassi Vandiir
Eternal Empress of the Eternal Empire, Lord Commander of the Wardens of the Shroud, Archon of the Primyn Group
Empress of Terraris, Supreme Commander of the Terraris Command, Head of the House L’lerim, CEO of the HPI Consortium​

Objective I.: Kill the Maw.
Location: Streets of La'okio
Equipment: 2x Sigra vibroblade | 2x Striith vibrosword | The Soulsabers | Heilagr MK. I Assassin Armour | The Last Gift || Empyrean gland | OPBC-01m
Writing With: Zachariel Steelblood | Romund Sro

[ Der Herr der Schatten ]
<"High Nelvaanian"> | ~ telepathic communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

"Don't underestimate me, I'm capable of what your Avatars are capable of. They are unlikely to be able to devour me." she said coldly, she didn't mean it as a funny remark, she meant it seriously. Zach already knew the woman well enough, so he could have discovered a very small sadness in her voice.

Another issue is that the woman did not eat souls like Voracitos or the Avatars. She respected them all the more and didn’t want to become a complete monster. For now, dark thoughts, dark side energies were still enough to keep her alive and chase away her hunger too. For now, Ingrid was still very far from a thousand years old or more. Over time, she may need souls to survive, but not yet. She couldn’t deny that she was interested in what it might feel like to devour a soul, but fortunately the woman’s willpower had always been legendary. The Empress could easily resist the temptation.

The red-haired woman looked up as Zach came close to her during the game. The next moment, however, she became completely motionless. Ingrid felt an aura approaching, and she recognised it. They had fought each other before. Luckily, the man didn't know who Ingrid might be; she was only an assassin on the planet Ninn when they fought together. And Ingrid didn't wear any coat of arms now, even the armband was missing from her arm. Of course, she had no plan to reveal her true identity.

She let Zachariel hug her and squeeze her rear. With the movements, Ingrid's posture became calmer, almost "melting" into the gen'daii's arms. Her body language and posture indicated submissive behaviour. The way she raised her head to the man, as if she was looking at Zachariel with adoration, reverence. Of course her gaze was unseeable due to her helmet. She put her hand on the man's chest and tilted her head to his armoured chest as if she were entirely the man's. Many times, while working, she had to act in a way that made everyone believe she was only a submissive lover, someone’s property. This was the case now and it was a very easy task.

~ Don’t try to enjoy the situation too much! ~ she warned the warlord telepathically.

"If the warlord says you didn't bother us, you didn't bother us, my Lord. Everything is the way he wants it… and when he wants it…" she did not speak in her own voice, so it could not be recognized. Her voice was full of admiration, adoration, and madness, as if she were feel mortally love in the towards of the warlord, her movements and body language revealed this as she looked up at the man again and with her free hand she hugged Zach as well, she was nothing more than the warlord's pet.

 

[Anashja Tal]

Location: Tal class medical corvette
Tags: Felmorante L'lerim
Equipped: Beskar'gam, lightsabers, healing supplies

Anashja laughed at the confession,

"I am. But I don't know a whole lot of stuff yet. I...haven't really been good about studying."

"It's OK, we were all girls once, except maybe our soldier friend over here, I never liked studying either, but in my culture it is hard to avoid it, it's the mandalorian way, learn or die, no other options really. Its never too late for you to start." It wasn't really as brutal as that amongst the Tals specifically, but in a lot of mandalorian clans, learning meant survival.

She thought about the strange force presence she felt on the girl, had the Empress done something dark to her, or was it already there, she would have to tread with care with those lessons, but she was willing to try.

Anashja watches as Felmorante floated herself with a little anxiety, it was a new feeling and the lack of full control would take some getting used too.

"What is it you usually think about to relax?"

"Oh, that's easy for me," and she twisted the metal dial around a ring in on one of her fingers. Immediately above the ring was projected an image of a Togrutan boy, sat on the floor making a stuffed mudhorn and plastic wampa fight each other. After about 10 seconds, he lifts his head up as if someone said his name and smiled directly into the holo, before the recording replayed itself.

"That is Ti'zan, he is my son, I am bonded to another of clan Tal and just over two years ago this little bundle joined the clan." Anashja looked lovingly at the holo, a wide smile on her head. "I could watch this all day, mummy will see you soon little Ti," she said as she turned the holo back off.

She looked back at Fel to see if the distraction had had any effect on her mood. "Being away from my Ti is the hardest thing, but my duty gives him his place in the clan until he is old enough to own his own place."

Anashja had always considered herself an open book when it came to things like her family, but chatting openly to a patient like this was probably pushing it to the limit.

"Try moving your arms around, you can move easily in the water, you will never swim like a Mon Cal, but you can give it a good shot and be a damn site prettier while doing it."

 

[Taozi Fuyuan]

Objective: Stop the corruption
Location: Dragon Cave
Tags: Vidalu Na'an || Adelle Bastiel || Kalic Daws || Darlyn Excron
​

The deeper into the cave they went, the heavier a weight Taozi felt upon her shoulders. Then, what has started as but a whisper of the wind, grew into a singing in her ears. Her nose scrunched up, and she felt bile in the back of her throat as the stench of rot filled her nostrils. Darlyn filtering the Dark that surrounded them gave no comfort to Taozi, but only made her more incentivized to get this done and over with.

For if such action was deemed necessary by him, she could only be there for so long once he stopped, lest a repeat of her awakening on Taanab occur.

When Vidalu and Adelle suggested splitting up, Taozi frowned. Was splitting up truly a good idea? None of them knew what was singing to them, luring them down. It just didn't seem to be a good idea. Her grip tightened on the Anam style blade in her hand, the songsteel blade reflecting the white light from Darlyn's lightsaber instantaneously.

"Safety in numbers. We don't know what's down there, but whatever it is needs to die."

Taozi's voice wavered slightly as she spoke, and she just knew her knuckles were white underneath her gloves. She followed Adelle and Vidalu down, deeper into the cave., her throat tightening the closer they got to the source of the corruption. The urge to vomit up nothing but the bile in her stomach was only tamped down by her own will. Not even in her residency days did she encounter a stench such as this...

The stench of death.

And then? The scream. Taozi rushed forward to stand by Vidalu, but by then the Cerean was already collapsed on the floor. Her gaze fell to the moaning corpse and the cables sticking out of it's back. The signs of infection curdled her blood, thinking about how long the man suffered before death claimed him. No one deserved this fate.

Her blade reflecting red, Taozi cut the cables connected to the Cerean.

"This feels of Sith."

Looking into the dark, Taozi felt a void deeper within. A Void, surrounded by the Dark, and she could only come to one conclusion.

"They're trying to blend Vong tech with Sith Alchemy... This ends now."

 

[Kalic Daws]

Vidalu Na'an Taozi Fuyuan Adelle Bastiel Darlyn Excron

Kalic would simply follow Vidalu as they went deeper into the cave. He was definitely the least experienced one with anything like this. He looked around though, and began to notice things didn't... look right? Something strange was definitely going on here. He couldn't explain it though. He heard Rabbit say that splitting up was a bad idea, and in this case he agreed. In no small part because of his want to live through this.

As the Miraluka continued, and would quickly jump back, see the Cerean that jumped out, but they looked wrong.... They looked so wrong! Like someone had twisted them with.... No.... Kalic's hands shook as he realized what he was looking at, and it was worse as Rabbit confirmed it. Alchemy.... He would quickly lean against the cave wall, looking at the Cerean for another moment before starting to cough a bit. That didn't seem good. He clenched a fist before looking where the Cerean came from, repeater aimed down the cave opening. He could handle this.... He could handle this.....