Private What Was Forbidden

[Alina Tremiru]

The item on display brought back all too many terrible memories.

Alina stood on the bridge of her small vessel. A handful of the 67th accompanied her. Some of the Inquisitors. Whenever one of her lost family 'heirlooms' cropped up, she went on her own to reclaim them. Sometimes even hired out mercenaries to gather what had been lost in the fall of Dromund Kaas. In the sacking of the Tremiru estate. The vast library hidden below the estate's ground had all manner of books, holocrons, and artifacts from the Sith, other darkside cults. Even some Jedi material. Despite her inability to use the Force, she was still a Tremiru. And at the time in her youth, she was allowed almost anywhere in the vast halls to read what she wanted.

But there was one wing she never dared to enter. It wasn't forbidden. To her, at least. The reason why she learned from her older sister the day she first tried to enter it. Within were the most dangerous artifacts the family held. It was a vault to contain the wayward darkness they gave off. The horrid effects that could kill those who got too close. The look of fear in her sister's face said it all.

Alina was allowed only because it didn't matter if she lived or died.

"The Talismin of Darth Ximmar isn't to be taken lightly. If you find it, do not touch it with your bare hands. Do not even try to pull on it with the Force. Report it's location to me and I will take care of it." She couldn't stress that enough. It was the artifact her sister had stopped her from touching all those years ago. It consumed the souls of those who touched it, if the rumors were to be believed. Not the whole soul. Just the good. Leaving behind only the twisted and dark.

A perfect Sith, in Ximmar's words.

The shuttle hooked up to the space station in question. It was a trade hub. Made for hundreds of people to pass through a day in the outer rim. Whoever had bought the artifact was passing through. That, or the courier. Alina was hazy on the details that specific. Panic was all she had in her mind. She didn't touch the artifact. But the next day her younger sister made sure to show her just how close she was to death. What remained of the poor man who was forced to hold it had haunted her dreams for years.

And now those memories were coming back. She closed her eyes. Took a breath. She needed to keep herself in control. The repair to her connection had made it all too easy for her to loose control to her emotions. She was Sith. They served her. Gave her power. She wasn't a slave to her emotions. Her golden eyes narrowed as the shuttle doors opened.

"Move out. Subdue anyone who gets in the way."

Caedyn Arenais

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

CAEDYN ARENAIS​

---

Apparel: Tunic/Robes.
Weapons: Armistice Staff Lightsaber, Bo Staff.
Tags: Alina Tremiru .

---

At the time of the emergency transmission sent out across open frequencies in response to the Space Station's coming under attack, "The Vagabond" Heavy Patrol Cruiser had been en route towards a neighbouring system on a joint mission with the Rimward Trade League. There, along for the ride as he so often was these days, Caedyn had been called to the bridge by Captain Gene Whayeson, watching the transmission play over once more and subsequently deciding to disembark the Heavy War Cruiser, instead taking The Repertoire on an intercept course in order to respond to the hail as quickly as possible.

With "Lexas" at the controls of the Repertoire, Caedyn moved quickly to collect his belongings from his private quarters, knowingly walking into a fight when they would eventually arrive at the station under attack. His attire was light and loose, his traditional Je'daii tunic and robe, accompanied by his signature Lightsaber which he attached to his hip via the utility belt, as well as his Bo Staff slung over one shoulder; Soon returning to the cockpit of the Corvette to oversee the droids progress in getting them to the fight in a timely manner.

Reaching down to the communications control panel, Caedyn signalled the Space Station in response to their original call for help. "This is Caedyn Arenais of the Repertoire. We have received your distress call and are in-bound. I have forwarded word to the Rimward Trade League, further support is on its way". Although Caedyn wasn't certain how long backup would take to arrive, given that their current mission was already underway and further support meant personnel being dispatched from the Outer Rim Territories.

According to a preliminary scan of the Station, it was a local trading hub for the sector. All kinds of people were drawn to such places, and therefore the need for private security was high; This was hopefully going to play out in their favour now as they had come under attack from suspected Sith and would need all the assistance they could manage.

As the Repertoire came in on the Hangar designated for their arrival, the landing ramp lowered before the gear had touched down upon the surface, with Caedyn moving out into the open, only pausing for a moment before leaving the vessel as soon as it had landed. They'd been granted entrance closest to the section of the space station under assault, and already Caedyn had drawn the hilt of his Lightsaber into hand, moving with the Force as his guide toward where the fighting was heaviest.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

It was worse than she thought.

Alina's golden eyes stayed narrowed on the hangar she'd come to take over and find the artifact within. Blood scattered across metal flooring. Walls. The curious courier realized too late just what they had their hands on. Uncontained, weak minds like their own didn't even need to hold it. Or at least that's what she assumed by the number of bodies scattered around.

:: Ma'am, RTL inbound. ::

The crackle of her com pulled her mind from the grizzly scene. Elsewhere in the facility her Inquisitorius were locked in various engagements. Local security. Private security. In their quest to find the artifact, there would be no quarter spared. She stood, smoothing out the black tunic she wore to mark her station. Beside her, a pair of her Inquisitors stood at the ready, lightsabers in hand.

:: Hangar is secure, no artifact. Secure the passageway back to our shuttle in preparation for retreat once the artifact is secure. ::

They weren't here to get into open warfare with the Rimward. Her gaze shifted to the pair beside her, their masks hiding their features as expected. She dipped her head once, and they split off. Surely the hangar's cameras would at least point her in the direction of the artifact. Then a rather.. Peculiar sensation hit. The hair on the back of her neck sticking up. It wasn't a sensation she was used to, not yet.

Someone strong had decided to swing by.

"Chit."

Caedyn Arenais

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

CAEDYN ARENAIS​

---

Apparel: Tunic/Robes.
Weapons: Armistice Staff Lightsaber, Bo Staff.
Tags: Alina Tremiru .

---

Caedyn's arrival was very reminiscent of his recent meeting with Darth Ahriman aboard a similar structure as the Space Station currently under assault. As soon as he had departed from the Repertoire, the Je'daii was met with the sight and smell of the deceased crewmen that had been left in the wake of the insurgents' path.

Kneeling down beside one of the bodies, Caedyn searched for the woman's pulse only to find that she had already passed. His eyes swept the floor to her nearby team, all of whom lay motionless and unresponsive to his presence. A slow exhale left through barely parted lips as he took a moment to acknowledge their loss, soon to rise back to his feet and move towards the adjacent doorway leading further into the Station.

As he moved with the hilt of his lightsaber in hand, the blade not yet drawn but readied, all the same, something caused his pace to slow and drew his attention towards the left wall, though his gaze seemed to distance as if able to see through the solid durasteel infrastructure. The moment his presence had been detected, someone had established a connection through the Force, alerting him to their nearby whereabouts.

What was interesting however was that their signature within the Force wasn't as profound as he might have expected, not as subtle as that of an Apprentice he assumed, but neither that of a Sith Lord. Furthermore, though he couldn't be certain, he almost guessed that he had felt this presence someplace before.

Reaching a four-way junction, footsteps could be heard moving with some pace and growing louder by the second. The Force surged in towards him with a rush of heightened activity, alerting him to the imminent threat and causing Caedyn's right hand to bring the hilt up at chest height, igniting the blade alongside his head and meeting the handle of the weapon with his left hand in a readied stance.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

She knew he was there. He knew she knew.

Alina didn't waste any more time. Her grip on her lightspear tightened as she rushed out of the hangar and into the hall. Red erupted from the tip of her weapon as she heard the snap hiss of a lightsaber. Jedi. Of course there had to be a Jedi. Anger, resentment. A flood of emotions took over as she rounded the corner and jumped. Her blade flashed, it's lethal edge thrust out in the blink of an eye for the man.

Only for her to recognize him midstrike. She didn't pull her attack, not in the slightest. But her eyes narrowed.

"You?"

Caedyn Arenais

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

CAEDYN ARENAIS​

---

Apparel: Tunic/Robes.
Weapons: Armistice Staff Lightsaber, Bo Staff.
Tags: Alina Tremiru .

---

"You?"

Caedyn's instincts had been correct, he had met this Sith before.

"You're the one leading this attack I presume?" Caedyn answered her with an evidence-based assumption he had gathered, given that she was the strongest Force Signature among those attacking the people aboard the Space Station.

Alina Tremiru and Caedyn Arenais had run into each other once before, long back when Valen was still but a child compared. It had been during the years where Caedyn had tried to search for Darth Ahriman before the young teenager had become fully indoctrinated into the way of the Sith Brotherhood.

Back then, Alina had shared a conversation with him, proving that she wasn't as far gone as some of her peers within the Order of the Sith. Perhaps she would do so again, although if she stood at the head of this assault team then the vault would inevitably land on her head if none of the others were able to be detained.

His hands opened and closed around the hilt of his Lightsaber, the single blade giving a blue glow against the right side of his body while the other half of the staff remained deactivated. This was Caedyn's primary stance and style of combat, only resorting to the second blade when outnumbered or under heavy blaster fire and needing to adopt a more capable mix of Soresu and Jar'kai.

"What are you after here? Why attack a civilian trade port?" He asked, seeking to understand the woman's intentions. Lives had already been lost and as a Je'daii, Caedyn was obligated to apprehend any guilty party, yet he did not immediately go on the attack despite feeling time moving against him.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

He had grown older.

For the Sangnir, it was something she couldn't just overlook. Where he could age, grow. Change, she couldn't. Despite the years she hadn't grown in the slightest. Still the barely twenty acolyte she'd appeared as in their meeting so long ago. A frozen corpse, kept alive only on the blood of others. It was annoying to see someone age where she couldn't. That was partly the reason her glare was so sharp.

She didn't pause her assault, even as he spoke. Her blade came around again and again, the spears length being used to the fullest as she tried to skewer him. Crush him before he became yet another danger for her Inqusitors to contend with. There were too many variables going on for her to do anything less.

"You're only getting in the way, Jedi." She hissed out the words with more venom than she'd normally. Perhaps before she'd of tried to get his assistance, but the sting of betrayal was still strong. No, he'd only insist on peace. There was no time for peace or mercy. A few lives were worth stopping a greater tragedy.

Caedyn Arenais

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

CAEDYN ARENAIS​

---

Apparel: Tunic/Robes.
Weapons: Armistice Staff Lightsaber, Bo Staff.
Tags: Alina Tremiru .

---

Alina Tremiru wasted no time in rushing into the attack, forcing Caedyn on the back foot as he brought his Lightsaber down to parry her strikes one after the next, defensive blows that would meet her weapon, not attempting to land a hit against Alina herself as he focused on moving lightly and evading the reach of her weapon.

"You ought to know that I cannot let the murder of innocents go without consequence," he replied with a firm voice, conviction heavily behind his words as he handled the lightsaber with both hands, retaining his strength with each swing.

The corridor they fought within held few options for maneuverability. Alina had pushed Caedyn beyond the connecting corridor he had come from in his approach, and the further he retreated, the greater the risk he ran of backing up into her own personnel, wherever they were.

Finally, Caedyn withdrew his blade back as Alina made another sweep with her own, instead stepping back just shy of its reach and using the opening to launch himself forward once again, jumping forward with the aid of the Force and side-stepping across the wall, finally throwing himself into a somersault over top of Alina herself, landing down behind her and rolling to put further space between them.

"What were you hoping to achieve here !?" He questioned hasilty as he turned back to face her once again, now with the intersecting corridors now far away from where they stood.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"The few for the many. I won't justify it to a Jedi." Why did it always have to be a Jedi getting in her way. Her eyes narrowed as Caedyn leapt overhead. Away. Clever, to avoid getting boxed in with her Inquisitors close by. Or perhaps better for them not to handle a Jedi like this while fighting the local security. She wasn't sure whether she wanted the help or to avoid any further danger than they were already facing.

Her spear spun in her grasp, the blade angled down as she took hold of the weapon with both hands. Narrowed her eyes in focus. Delaying him might be enough. At least, that was the thought process until a hateful scream echoed from down the left. Her eyes widened as she glanced over. Just in time to watch someone come barreling down. Human, probably. Under all the blood.

Alina's gaze narrowed as she turned her weapon around, pointing it towards the figure. Readying a strike. The man charged forward, reckless, enraged. It'd be all too easy for her to cut him down, and she would without hesitation if the Jedi didn't stop her.

"It's already spreading. Stay out of the way."

Caedyn Arenais