The Ren: Expedition to Lothal - The Crystal Quest

[Darth Veles]

“I see.”

Disappointment and perhaps even hints of irritation stole into his voice. He could not understand the refusal – it angered him, even, to see a Sith denying his offer as if he had talked about worthless junk and not a holocron filled with plethora of information. Slowly, Darth Veles nodded to display understanding of their current situation. While not satisfied with the result, he understood what needed to be done. Always a survivor, he’d do whatever was necessary to live through this battle, whether it cost [member="Taeli Raaf"] her life or not. Preferably not – he hated the thought of sending vital, priceless knowledge down the Void’s pits alongside the Sith lady.

“Oh well.”

A heavy, resigned sigh followed, and he stood up, both hand slipping back under the heavy cloak. Darth Veles opted to not go in just yet. No attack followed his words, only a few steps back as he carefully measured the distance. Frowning slightly once Arcanix’ purple blade flared to life, the Sith lord finally called upon the dark side to bless him with strength for what was to come. Burning through the reserves of anger, he felt it filling his body with raw energy.

“Do you know what happened to Corvus, Taeli?” Darth Veles questioned slyly, purposely calling the woman by her real name rather than the title.

The mention of Corvus was no mistake either, tossed in there to imbalance the woman’s inner currents and catch her off guard. Keeping both hands beneath the midnight hued robe, the master assassin discreetly coiled a noose of crushing telekinetic energy around his raven-haired opponent’s neck, dealing her the same as he had delivered to the former admiral. If successful, it would strangle the woman, denying blood its passage through the Jedi’s neck and rendering her unconscious through a temporary hypoxia without bringing death.

 

[Siriwook]

Siriwook is confused. Tanomas is not responding as expected. His leg almost fully healed and his breathing steady, he should be up, probably. Perhaps what she deemed was him being roused is just a fit of sleep. Or maybe he is scared of her and pretending to sleep until she leaves. Either way, it seems, Tanomas does not want to get up yet. Perhaps she would leave him here to sleep--after all, he has activated a transponder and probably needs rest. He looks like he's been exhausted. There may be people coming to get him already, so Siriwook rolls up his jacket and gently sets him down on it like a pillow.

Either way, she's done all she can for him right now, and whoever hurt him is probably still around. Second guessing just leaving him, she decides to write him a note. Quickly, she scribbles out, "Dear Hansome, Officer, I found you unconscious with a wounded leg and patched you up. I will be back to check on you, but I've gone after whoever hurt you. Hope your friends reinforcements make it here okay. Love, Sincerely, Siriwook."

Siriwook tries her best to scribble out the words she didn't mean. She regrets her only experience with letters comes from the romance novels she reads in her spare time. She hopes she's butched her note up enough for the soldier. Soldiers respect that. No flowery stuff--just the facts. With regret, this reminds her to scribble out the flower she doodled next to her name before she puts the note in his pocket.

She looks down at the helpless man. Can she really just leave him here, in a cave? No, she cannot. What if the bad person came back? And, carrying him could be risky--she could accidentally hit his head on the wall of the caverns. She decides to use the Force to call someone. "[Help! Help! Injured man here! Bad guys in the crystal caves!]"

With so many people in the caves today, there has to be someone nearby who can help them.

​

Spoiler

Out of town fRENds​

[member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Samka Derith"]​

[member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"]
[member="Castor Ren"]
​

(And Sith [member="Darth Veles"])​

​

Local fRENds​

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"]​

[member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Siriwook"]​

[member="Zark"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"]​

[member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Thyra Sunborne"]​

[member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]​

​

​

 

[Taeli Raaf]

While Veles threw her sister's name out at her, asking in a way that he was trying to hint he might be responsible for something, Taeli knew that wasn't the case. Her sister may have disappeared, but both of her sisters did. Plus, she knew [member="Darth Veles"] had always refrained from going after Corvus... except for having a tea party. His attempt to choke her though... that was just amusing in a way. Using her command of the Force, which had been building as she waited, her reservoirs running deep and fresh, she placed a simple block on her throat, reinforcing it against any pressure he might add to it to try and strangle her into unconsciousness. Why was it that every Sith she fought always resorted to the Force Choke first? Every single bloody time, from Condruum to Coruscant, every Sith opened with a Choke.

He could squeeze all he wanted, but she would just reinforce the block to match the choke.

"That was poor, my friend, a very poor opening to dun moch," she answered. "Really? Implying you had something to do with my sister's disappearance? That would be something an acolyte would try."

She sent a Force Push his way with her free hand, just enough to disrupt him. It was basically a slap on the wrist to force him to move and lose the concentration to maintain his attempted choke.

"We both know you're not going to overpower me with the Force, given our chosen paths," she added, almost in afterthought. She pursued the mysteries and deeper knowledge of the Force, the path of the Sorceress. He had gone the path of the Assassin.

 

[Darth Veles]

It was most interesting that the mention of Corvus had zero effect on the Jedi Grandmaster’s older sister, [member="Taeli Raaf"] – indicating she had something to do with Corvus’ fate, perhaps? Nevertheless, he saw the futility of trying to get under Arcanix’s skin through her sister, safely crossing it off his list. The playfully directed surge of telekinetic force crashed harmlessly against the powerful Sith lord, almost removing his robe, causing it to helplessly twist and flap behind his back as if by a powerful gust of wind. This also revealed one of the Dark lord’s webbed hands readily gripping his ornamented lightsaber, while the other was clenched in a fist, the likely perpetrator of Force choke. While the heavy cloth most certainly found itself affected by the Jedi’s push, Darth Veles’ figure remained an unflinching solid wall, still maintaining his hold over the woman’s neck.

“Good. Then you have nothing to worry about.” Darth Veles cordially replied with a mock bow, his grip slowly losing in strength.

Before his power over her body completely dissipated, the Sith lord’s webbed hand swiftly shot up at lightning speed, capitalizing on his grip and directing the invisible energy of the dark side to fling Taeli’s form into the rock wall around the cave entrance behind her. While this attack commenced, Darth Veles’ lips muttered a forbidden Sith incantation used to summon an unbreakable, shimmering web of dark side energy that would seize her and wrap itself around the Jedi’s body while she found herself distracted, stealing her strength and effectively removing the Force from her list of allies.

"Lay down your weapons. It is not too late for my mercy."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Honestly, she had just got done explaining... the push at her would send her skidding back a few feet but she would anchor herself with the Force to keep from moving further... and that's when she heard him utter the first syllable of a spell she knew. Odd that he would be trying to use it in a combat situation, it was always best for use when an opponent was beaten down or when torture was on the menu for someone and you didn't want them to resist.

As he spoke the incantation for Odojinya, she would create a barrier of energy around herself, not even a centimeter away from her skin and close to protect herself from actually being touched by the strands of dark side energy that his spell summoned.

"Odojinya," she said, almost admiringly as she observed the dark side energies pressed against the Force Barrier. "You've been studying your Naddist cults, I see. Not easy knowledge to come by, but maybe not the best tactic to use against me, [member="Darth Veles"]."

A slow smirk would form on her lips... and the illusion that kept her Marks of Darkness hidden fell away, revealing the Sith markings around her eyes.

"Sliuz ra," she intoned, speaking a language Veles would possibly be familiar with. The Marks around her eyes would turn red, writhing with the power of the dark side. No one was around currently, no need to worry, and she could simply blame it on Veles for any leftover dark side energies left. Her aura would shift completely, revealing her nature. "Galia ir vutdi."

The strands of his spell were themselves surrounded by the barrier she had created, a sinister red light consuming the strands and feeding them into the marks around her eyes... eyes that had turned from purple to yellow. That red light would start to travel back to the source of its meal, heading for Veles and determined to absorb his reservoirs of energy if he didn't sever the trace threads of his incantation.

"I will show you why using Sith magic against me is... unwise," she stated in Basic now.

 

[Darth Veles]

Seeing his ace card crash and fail against her shield, the Sith lord’s will snuffed out the ages old incantation before it cost him too much, watching as [member="Taeli Raaf"] finally showed her true colours, eyes sickly yellow instead of the usual purple. Nodding in recognition of her power, Darth Veles started to pace back and forth, signalling his impatience to see more of what she had in store for him - truly, being exposed to such power was almost arousing and he got to observe this bizarre occurrence up close while drawing from the dark side's eternal reservoirs. Better to preserve strength and energy for later rather than wasting it with no results whatsoever. Patience belonged among the sly Sith lord’s virtues, finding a way to put a dent into even the most impenetrable of armours. Much like predators stalking and observing their prey before lunging forth and delivering a fatal injury.

“Nenx nustia, Arcanix.” His lips uttered in the ancient and long dead language surviving only among scholars and Sith.

His benevolent sight locked onto the woman’s corrupted form and he tasted the unknown technique through the Force, bionic eye scanning for anything visually interesting. Shamefully, the situation did not allow for a thorough study, thus Darth Veles’ focus delved into the everpresent currents of the Force to return some of the energy he had lost thus far. Muscles inside his body flexed in anticipation of physical contact, yet despite the dire situation surrounding him, his lightsaber continued to sleep extinguished, movement calm and oozing that traditional Imperial elegance and arrogace alike.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She would give a small bow at the waist in recognition of his words, her spell fading away as he cut off his own. Her eyes wouldn't leave his pacing form though, and her lightsaber remained ignited at her side. This lull in their contest gave both time to examine the other, Taeli feeling even more refreshed even just absorbing the energy behind his spell. There had been no clash of blades yet, but that possibility remained close at hand. Her eyes took in his cybernetic eye and arm, noting as possible weak points that could be attacked. She could employ hassat-durr to disable them, it was an option anyways.

His stride spoke of arrogance, borne of his mentality and belief system. He had always been an Imperial at heart, and that showed in how he moved. It was another note, something to keep in mind. She believed in the minimizing of movement and expenditure of energy, patience and defense until she saw an opening to strike. As two patient and cunning beings, it was going to be who could get under the other's skin first and make the other have a mistake. He knew attacking with Sith magic again would just result in her using her spell again to absorb it, so it had stripped him of one avenue of attack at least.

That would leave either blade work or using his stealth, but he also knew that she had known when he arrived and when he was moving through the caves. She didn't need to sense where he was if he decided to go that route, she just needed to follow the currents to where they flowed around something not there. He could have more aces up his sleeve, but then so did she.

"What next, [member="Darth Veles"]? What else have you learned since we last met?" she asked quietly, not moving from where she stood but following his pacing with her eyes. "How have you evolved as a Sith?"

 

[Aela Talith]

Location: Flower Field
Objective: Find The Padawan([member="Jamie Pyne"])

She frowned slightly as she wandered through the field of flowers, her eyes searching for her padawan. The Togruta Master had told her that Jamie had ventured out here some time ago, apparently intent on picking the flowers. Jamie hadn't mentioned anything of the sort to Aela, but her Padawan was more than a slave to her whims. Generally Jamie did...well whatever seemed like a good idea to her at the time, whether that was charging an assassin with knives in her boots or going to pick flowers.

Either way it was a headache for her. "Where did you go?"

Aela asked herself as she snooped around the field for a few moments more.

"What I wouldn't give for a little psychometry right now." The Jedi Marshall said to herself as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. Unfortunately for Aela that particular genetic skill had not been passed down to her, her Kiffar lineage having been only a small part of who she was. A sigh escaped her lungs, quickly replaced by a deep breath as she squatted down and looked around the field, as though Jamie could maybe be hiding among the flowers somewhere. When she didn't find her there she simply shook head.

She had to be around here somewhere, Even Jamie wouldn't just go rushing off.

The Jedi Marshall stood, looking around one more time until she found a set of rocky cliffs in the distance. Her lips turned to a frown, and slowly she began to head towards the rocky outcroppings. Perhaps she would get a better look atop them.

Worth a shot.

 

[Darth Veles]

The not so subtle glance towards his right arm revealed the woman’s future plans, letting her opponent know to watch out for disabling techniques. Darth Veles steeled himself against that possibility, mind and body ready to resist. After the erection-inducing display of Arcanix’ powers was over, silence settled over the area, suddenly alerting both to the sounds of nature. Leaves rustled in the wind, giving the battlefield a serene expression. It wouldn’t last long as the Sith lord’s machiavellian mind birthed a new plan while observing Arcanix’ movements. [member="Taeli Raaf"] possessed great power, but how would it fare against the Dark lord’s devious plots ruthlessly abusing any advantage he could get? All honour aside – cheating was a perfectly viable option when faced with immense strength. A Sith, a survivor, the Sith lord considered all to be fair when one fought for their life and dominance over another.

“Perhaps I’ll show you one day, my sweet friend.” Darth Veles states courtly, taking two steps back to increase the distance between them.

One more step further away, slow, cautious. If he spun around now and sprinted fast enough, escape would be possible.

While the movement suggested retreat, he wasn’t done yet. The open-spaced environment worked in his favour, allowing for dodges and various tricks to be pulled off without hindering his mobility. The Mon Cal went for his heavy blaster, warm gaze glued to the woman’s curvy hips. Passions ran high, knowing this one rival stood between him and freedom – it all added to his already growing anger, increasing the Sith lord’s control over the Force that had already bent a knee to his will. Finally, he took aim at the false Jedi master, barrel trained at her torso, prepared to fire.

Taeli’s speeder rested by the cave entrance, inconspicuously parked and completely oblivious a much more interesting fate awaited it. No motion or hand gestures announced the intention - suddenly seized by invisible energy, lifted, it discreetly became a slave to the dark side’s might and obeyed the Sith lord’s command. No warning heralded the large metal projectile telekinetically shot at the woman’s side.
​

 

[Zark San Tekka]

"Nobody is killing anybody," called a voice from Samka, Isla, Brennan and Kyrel's flank, its owner emerging from the cave shadows, "Galactic Alliance Defense Force! Stand fast and identify yourselves."

It had taken some time for Zark to meet up with the rest of the party, but now that he was here he stood off to the intruder's left side and a little in front of them, heavy blaster drawn and raised in a threatening but unaggressive posture. When he had first sensed the Darkside auras strongly enough to recognize that they belonged to sentients, the Jedi Knight had immediately suppressed his connection with the Force, instead relying on his natural senses. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, half a lifetime spent in the underworld as well as relatively decent skills as a tracker had made it a reliable technique in the past. As a general rule, Force users tended to underestimate baseliners, sometimes at their own peril. Zark enjoyed solving problems with good old fashioned insight and technique where other Jedi would automatically default to the Force, but in this particular circumstance he had gravely underestimated the complexity of the caverns.

Good at tracking but apparently not good enough, he had almost immediately wandered off in the opposite direction of everyone else, deprived as he was of his supernatural homing beacon in the Force. It had taken him longer than he cared to admit to realize his folly, but after backtracking towards close to where he came in, the distorted echo of raised voices and an odd noise severely warped by the acoustics but Zark suspected to be that of activated lightsabers drew him towards other people at last. He had come across the intruders in the midst of their negotiation with D'vok, uncertain what to make of the man's pleas for mercy and the others' seeming total disregard. But their reaction to the arrival of other Jedi farther beyond was a telling one, and when the young girl of all people made such a brazen threat, he decided to make himself known, in a sense. The line about being GADF was true enough, but so far Zark had not dropped his concentration on suppressing his connection. Unless they were acutely perceptive, as far as everyone else was concerned he was just another baseliner like D'vok. Especially dressed as he was and with his saber concealed within his duster.

Spoiler

NJO: [member="Tanomas Graf"], [member="Tiland Kortun"], [member="Aela Talith"], [member="Desmond C'artyom"], [member="Jamie Pyne"], [member="Siriwook"], @D'vok Windroamer, [member="Aerion Ivelisse"] [member="Rhen Qel-Droma"] [member="HK-36"]
KoR: [member="Castor Ren"], [member="Isla Ashen"], [member="Kyrel Ren"], [member="Samka Derith"], [member="Brennan Cabrol"], [member="Darth Veles"], [member="Perth Levov"]

 

[Progflaw99]

--- --- ---​

Location: Lothal, Mountain Range, Interior Cavern​

Status: Bring it Down.​

--- --- ---​

​

A sneer appeared on the Ren's face as the girl spoke of the crystals. Non-violence had its uses he agreed, but the girl couldn't be naive enough to think that was truly an option here. Warily watching the pair he brought his blade lower, adjusting his feet so he stood slightly angled to them, right foot farther back than his right. The tip of the blade dipped as Castor transitioned his grip on the saber, switching to a low, single handed grasp.

"Are you so naive to think that the Force is only filled with light? The Force is indiscriminate. Uncaring. It can be made to bend to your will if you are strong enough, just like these crystals. Given time, and effort - they too can channel the other side of the Force you so detest."​

Castor raised an eyebrow, his attention falling to the armored Jedi as he stepped forward and began to speak - his saber disengaged and re-clipped to his belt. He narrowed his eyes, a smile tugging at one edge of his lips. He spoke of time, wasted time to be specific - that Castor found amusing. Despite the Jedi's attempt at deception Castor confirmed what he'd guessed in that instant. The girl, the man. They were part of the same cadre - but cut of entirely different cloth. There was tension there, however thinly veiled by the deactivation of the man's lightsaber.

"Now that would hardly be any fun at all, now would it Jedi?"​

Blade still ignited, Castor took a deep breath and closing his eyes. Time seemed to slow in his mind - he could feel the crystal's presence calling out to him. Focusing on it his eyes snapped open, filled with a sudden energy fueled by the desire and greed he felt in his heart for this thing of beauty. These two before him were merely obstacles. Releasing a burst of Dark Side energy as he extended a hand towards the stone, he forcibly sent it spinning and whizzing backwards into the tunnel from which he'd entered the cave. As soon as he'd sent it spinning he directed his attention upwards, stepping backwards as he did so. With a simple nod of his head Castor exerted yet more force, this time driven almost entirely by anger. With a deep rumble the ceiling shook, then gave way. Jagged chunks of rock and sediment fell, stalactites ripped from their moorings in the ceiling, falling towards the pair of Jedi. Having already loosened from his actions earlier they now formed a quickly descending hail of death were the Jedi to remain immobile.

As the cavern began caving in, Castor continued to back towards where he knew the two entrances he'd spied earlier to be, blade raised to cover his retreat. It was time to go - the game was afoot. Reaching out quickly he pushed a mental image to the rest of the Ren quickly, a simple image of their speeders. That would have to do, he hoped they understood.

​

Spoiler

Ren​

[member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Samka Derith"]​

[member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"]​

(And our Resident Sith [member="Darth Veles"])​

​

Other​

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"]​

[member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Siriwook"]​

[member="Zark"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"]​

[member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Thyra Sunborne"]​

[member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]​

​

​

 

[Eun]

"I should have killed you during the lizard attack."

"Technically I am your superior officer now. Such threats are a punishable offense."

"Let's not get caught up in the details, Sideburns. Why am I here."

"You know, when I decided to become your handler I expected some resistance to the FOSB chain of command, but if you keep this up I'll have to put in a formal reprimand."

"You do that. What am I doing away from my crew this time?"

"I thought pirates loved mystery?"

"Hilarious."

"Well, how do you feel about Lothal this time of year?"

* * *​

Lothal, it turned out, was mildly pleasant. The caves of Lothal, however, were not.

Kate pulled the black shell spider silk cloak around her and marched ahead. Blaster pistol? Check. Lightfoil? Check. Pouch full of cred coins? Check.

She made some headway, but the Rens had charged on ahead before she had even landed. The cavern shook suddenly.

Shorn sighed. "What now?"

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie's vibrant blue eyes widened with the realization of what exactly Castor had done. It was as if time itself had paused, leaving her alone in an echo chamber of her own inner thoughts. That brief moment where a decision needed to be made, one that would have profound consequences depending on which avenue the young Jedi Padawan chose to make. It was one of those the man or the mission types. Luckily for Jamie she was acutely aware of the type of person she was, so, despite the risks, understood full and well what her role to play here was. Regardless of her own personal safety and duty, regardless of her rather blatant distaste for Aerion and his bravado, and regardless of the fact that the man would inevitably concoct some reason as to why her following actions were wrong and stupid, she performed her obligation all the same.

Without a single word, the blonde released her grip on Daylight, the yellow hue of the plasma sword vanishing from existence as it fell to the ground by her feet. In the same breath she dove deep within herself, surging the power of the Force through her being like a wild fire of energy. That energy came quickly to a head at the tips of her fingers, extending outwards towards [member="Aerion Ivelisse"]. The Jedi Knight would feel a sudden, gentle touch of the Force wrap around him, before quickly carrying him in a not so gentle manner through the air towards the exit where Castor had fled. Her eyes would follow the dark skinned man for a single brief second, just before the rocks above came down upon her.

Jamie had a plan for those as well. Releasing Aerion from her grasp she made a modest attempt at erecting a Force Bubble around herself to protect from the heavy chunks of stone, sharpened razor-like stalactites falling like needles towards her. Unfortunately she was hardly fast enough with the latter half of her plan. Instead of surrounding herself with the Force, the falling debris caught her on the back of the head, sending her straight down into the dirt, only to be further covered by the remaining rocks that had been loosened. Some kind of groan escaped her lips before being buried beneath the rock. Surrounded by the darkness, the weight of stone atop her, drawing even a shallow breath was an act of strength in and of itself. Pinned where she was it was hard to tell, but she could swear the warm trickle of liquid rolling down the back of her neck was not rain water.

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Castor Ren"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"] | [member="Samka Derith"] | [member="Darth Veles"] | [member="Zark"] | [member="Siriwook"] | [member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Perth Levov"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"] | [member="Tiland Kortun"] | [member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]

 

[Aela Talith]

Location: Above the Caverns
Objective: Save The Padawan([member="Jamie Pyne"])

When the cavern began to collapse, even Aela felt it. The ground shook, and the force went rumbling through her.

She had never been a particularly gifted Jedi when it came to sensory abilities. She could feel the darkside of the force when it was nearby or concentrated, she could sometimes get a sense of her friends and family, but beyond that Aela truly was terrible at knowing things simply through impressions within the Force. This however...well this screamed to her.

A scowl immediately painted on her lips and she dashed towards where the center of the odd quake had come from.

She could see dust rising in the distance, particles of rock and debris tumbling down from a now nearly closed hole within the cliffside. She stopped just short of it, eyes darting up to see if the cliffs had collapsed. When she found no such thing she immediately peered towards the small opening below and the large boulders now found there.

A cave in.

Aela frowned slightly, taking in a deep breath as she tried to figure out what the kark had happened. Her eyes closed, and she tried to reach out through the force for...well anything. At first there was nothing...then...then a tiny familiar ping.

Panic, fear...then nothing. Aela’s eyes snapped open. ”Jamie!”

Aela gasped, her hands immediately flicking up as the force flowed through her. Slowly she set to work, wrenching rocks from within the cavern and pulling them into the flowery field.

 

[HK-36]

@D'vok Windroamer, [member="Kyrel Ren"], [member="Samka Derith"], [member="Zark"], @Everyone Else in that group

At first the machine was captivated by Kyrel, muttering out to himself in bewilderment,

"Is that an organic doing a droid impression?"

Before glancing to D'Vok as he scrambled up to stand in front of him,

"Oh, those are nerf herders? How quaint!"

The machine looked over the group once more while things were still calm,

"This is a very weird environment to be herding nerfes in, is it not? How did you manage to get your flock through these tunnels?"


But soon enough things begun to kick off, as D'Vok's words provoked the Ren's and one of them gave out a deep chuckle, the fellow trying to imitate a machine. The droids were not so good at precognition and sensing danger, being cut from the Force and all since constructs, but their quick bodies, especially ones like the HK currently inhabited, made them very good reflex wise.

As Kyrel reached out to D'Vok, the machine already being focused on him, with his age HK gained knowledge and begun to notice patterns, like for example evil figures usually giving out a laugh or a chuckle before doing a sneak attack, it was a very cliche manouver, HK snapped his hand quickly to grab the spacer by his collar, just next to the unit, and try to tug him back so that he would be just inches out of Kyrel's reach when the Ren tried to grab at him.

Just the same HK was right there when the red saber was pointed at D'Vok's face, the droid was not very phased by it.

Samka stepped up then, doing something to a crystal that was lost on droid, it was nothing that he could sense and barely noticed physical changes to her with everything else going on around them, he did registered her words, egging others on to attack them and kill them,

"I thought nerf herders were jolly folk."

HK quipped as he released D'Vok if he managed to pull him away from Kyrel's grip, he brought his hand up closer to the man's lightsaber as suddenly three claws erupted from his external gauntlet. Unless Kyrel somehow for some reason foresaw that another being touching his lightsaber's blade would be a bad thing, or moved his lightsaber away from the droid and D'Vok enough for HK not to be able to reach it simply by adjusting his arm's position, suddenly three blades erupted out from the vambrace of his external gauntlet, not covered by the Force-dead biot.

The blade would then attempt to connect with his red energy saber in surprise ambush, if it would Kyrel's lightsaber would be deactivated out of a sudden, for the gauntlet's built-in wrist claws had a coating of purified cortosis, which had that effect on lightsabers, temporarily of course.

Whether that worked and happened or not the cavern system would begun to shake and rumble as near them the ceiling would begin to collapse due to Caster's work. Of course, being a bit away from it they still had some time before it reached them. Either way, HK calculated that it was nothing the could not survive, probably not the same could be said about D'Vok, but still, the machine did not mind stalling the Ren's.

The droid looked to Isla then, just as Zark made his appearance apparently with Galactic Alliance forces among the chaos,

"Do you and your lot really want to dance, Red?"

HK flexed and relaxed both of his hands, splaying out the six fingers on each as he was all ready for an attack aimed at him, or to go on offense,

"Because I can dance."

 

[Aerion Ivelisse]

Naturally, there was a spectrum when it came to the way things were in the Galaxy. Like most things in his world, Aerion saw that it was rarely ever black and white. Jedi and Sith? They weren't the only Force Users that existed, they were merely the main Force Orders that most grew up learning of in whatever form of education they had. Whether it was learning in a classroom, or in the streets whether from unfortunate circumstances, or for solely being a bad person. The relationship of [member="Jamie Pyne"] and Aerion Ivelisse was black and white however. It was either a like, or dislike, and it was ever so clear that it was one based on the latter. But in the moments when the rocks began to fell, almost as if the Force whispered as to what was coming, Aerion tensed, as if preparing to lunge forwards.

The first rocks passed his armoured form.

And then he saw [member="Castor Ren"] fleeing, and that was when he sent forwards, by none other than the blonde Jedi. Had he the mental capacity to truly discern as to what was happening, perhaps he would've had enough time to throw Jamie out of harms way through the Force as well, but it was too late. He reacted to the play that she had made.

Silver hilt found its way into his left hand again, and then he touched down onto the ground, a handful of metres behind the Dark Sider.

There was a drive in Aerion. One that he wholly intended to use to his benefit. A hunger. Not a mere want for justice or for the purging of the Dark Siders, but a need to catch him. As if bringing him down would act as feeding that hunger. At least, that's what it felt like, and then the amethyst beam of the lightsabre came to life. The perceived Sith could use his lightsabre as a shield against physical attacks, but against a sudden assault from the metaphysical plane that was the Force?

Aerion's right hand lunged out to the right and towards the closest wall. As if an invisible force was, for the most brief of seconds wrapping around the pale man, he likely would've been tossed into the wall.

[member="Aela Talith"], [member="Kyrel Ren"], [member="Samka Derith"], [member="HK-36"], [member="Zark"], @D'vok Windroamer, [member="Brennan Cabrol"], [member="Darth Veles"],

 

[Isla Ashen]

It seemed that mission was doomed by meddlers. Had the scruffy man and the droid simply retreated to the exit, it would have made the matter far less complicated. Isla understood that few things in life were ever easy; this situation was proving to be no different. Their cover story had served its purpose, even if short-lived. But now, there was no point in trying to mask the truth. A gloved hand disappeared beneath her cloak, and retrieved the saber hidden at the small of her back.

Her emerald eyes narrowed sharply. She let the droid speak his piece, merely listening to the nonsense he was spouting. However, the corner of her mouth twitched ever so slightly at being called “Red,” for a second time. And she never did like to dance.

Just then, a new arrival drew her attention.

Turning slightly, Isla viewed the man as he came out of the shadows to their side. A smirk curled across her lips at his order, as if the Ren would submit to such a request. Well now, this was going to get interesting very quickly. While each potential adversary had arrived separately, they seemed to be united in their stance against the Ren. The numbers were even now, but the power of the dark side was ever in their favor. They would not be defeated easily.

Isla did not move from her spot, but let her emerald orbs meet that of [member="Zark"]. There was no chance for words, as the whole cave began to shake and shudder for a moment. Her eyes shifted up towards the ceiling of the tunnel, where bits of rock and rubble were now crumbling down, she held her arm up to shield herself. Luckily, she avoided any large rocks that came loose, but this was highly concerning. Their position in the cave was far from ideal. With the winding tunnels towards the exit blocked by [member="HK-36"] and [member="D'vok Windroamer], she only hoped that they did not become trapped.

Then, in a flash, there was an image in her mind – placed there by [member="Castor Ren"]. The speeders. It was simple enough to understand, they had to get out of here. Before making any moves, she glanced to the side at [member="Samka Derith"], [member="Kyrel Ren"], and [member="Brennan Cabrol"]. Surely, they understood what needed to be done next.

Isla ignited her saber, if any chose to remain between them and the exit… they would pay dearly.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She watched him take a few steps back, not that it would help him get away with his prize. Running would just exhaust him eventually, and she would chase him down with her speeder and following his presence, or lack there of if the case occurred. No, the game was still afoot and it was disappointing that he wasn't going to reveal more about his skills just yet. There would be time to pry those out though... and then she tilted her head in confusion.

She wasn't sure why Veles decided to pull a blaster on her. It just seemed an odd decision consdiering she was holding a lit lightsaber in her hand... and then she felt the surge of Force energy heading towards her speeder. He didn't need to move his hands of anything, but that surge of the Force was still detectable and that was actually rather irritating... that speeder was a rental after all. Still, even as he plucked it up and sent it careening towards her side. One moment she was standing there, and the next she had flipped away to avoid the speeder that smashed against the ground where she had been standing.

Even as her feet touched the ground, she sent a surge of the Force outwards and sent the remains of the speeder hurtling back towards Veles. She was pretty sure after today, the security deposit was not being refunded anytime on that thing.

[member="Darth Veles"]

 

[Darth Veles]

One of the Sith lord’s bulbous eyes followed Darth Arcanix in her dodge, the other still looking through the blaster pistol’s sights. Her escape did not matter; he had expected that. It was satisfying to see one’s plans come together. Once a loud crash signalled the speeder had impacted the ground, albeit without crushing [member="Taeli Raaf"], it was time to finish the job. Already prepared – gun pointed at where Arcanix used to stand, the speeder itself now turned into a target. Its afterburner was exposed after the crash, ready to cause a violent chain reaction should it be hit. Darth Veles did not wait for his opponent to land – by the time her feet connected with the solid ground, he had already fired.

His cybernetic eye and artificial arm worked in conjunction, further aided by the Force to make his shots accurate. Squeezing the trigger, the Sith lord released two perfectly aimed shots. Two barks of the heavy blaster disturbed the silence and brought a devastating damage upon the speeder’s jet pipes, igniting the fuel tanks and - boom! The machine turned into an infernal tool spewing fire and shrapnel in a deafening explosion that sent shockwave in all directions. Darth Veles only had enough time to counter the woman’s telekinesis with his own, ensuring this fiery mess did not head his way before the shockwave claimed him, tossing him back like an angry child playing with undesired ragdolls.

Ears ringing, air knocked out of his lungs, the Sith lord landed on his back and rolled several times before reaching stillness. It hurt, but pain served as an excellent motivator and source of power. Recovering at surprising speed, he stood on his feet once more, releasing a cough and observing the results. The corner of his robe burned – alerted to this fact by the stench of flaming cloth, Darth Veles calmly moved both retrieved kyber crystals into his tunic and undid the heavy cloak, letting it fall from his shoulders and hit the ground, consumed by flames soon after.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She saw what was going to happen a moment before it did, not that it would help much. The speeder might be closer to Veles, not nearly as close because his own attempt to keep the speeder away, but the heat and shockwave still flung her back, flames licking at her robes. With a groan, she rose to her feet again... and much more annoyed than she had been just a moment ago. She shrugged her overrobe off, letting it smolder in the rocky ground. The ends of her hair was charred and she could feel several bruises wanting to form. That fish had tried to blow her up...

Anger, red hot anger, raced through her being and her eyes were alight with it as she began to stalk forward. The flames parted as she approached the Mon Calamari again, lightsaber ablaze at her side. Wreckage from the remains of her rented speeder twisted and rose in the air around her, her anger and command of the Force pulsing from her at the moment for him to feel as he was closest to her.

"That... was incredibly rude, [member="Darth Veles"]," she snarled. There would be no preamble now, he had tried to kill her. She had been playing defense so far in this little bout, but she hadn't been intending to injure the Mon Cal to such a degree as he had just attempted. She had wanted to stop him from running off that kyber crystal, but now... now she wanted more. There would be no warning, no telegraph from her body... but as a Sorceress and as he would know from his dabbling into her realm, she didn't need to move to summon her favorite technique. Arcs of lightning erupted around her and lanced at Veles, blue and purple strands of energy designed for one purpose... to see the Mon Cal writhing in pain on the rocky ground.