Within the Once Mighty Jungle

[Zinai]

Hooray.​

It was time to attack. Heol nodded towards the bounty hunter's compliment.

And you are, once again, a fierce man.

Heol had suggested they remain together, to cover for one another whenever they fell behind. Though, Heol did believe they both could, hold on their own against the simple, heavy tentacles. They were not slow like the locals. They were fast.

As the Heol dropped his robes to the floor beside him, his eyes ignited in bloodlust. In a dangerous voice, he announced, Let's start.

In a flash, Heol ran towards the first corner they would meet, to reach the underground entrance. Igniting both sabers, Heol began clashing against the sarlacc. The hunter, unexpectingly, pulled out a vibroblade. It was not a popular weapon anymore, since lightsabers had been innovated a long time ago.

Impressed by the old arsenal, he continued parrying and jabbing at the tentacles, as he approached the first corner.

@Akio Diachi

 

[Akio Diachi]

Akio took a deep breath and launched himself at the monster, following his young companion. The mantra of his clansmen echoed in Akio's ears, bringing clarity.

Move with the cunning and serenity of the vipers.

A rogue tentacle whipped towards him, Akio's vibroblade sliced through it with a cold clarity before he bounded to a footing in a graceful arc. A tentacle swung towards his middle, Akio dodged in a low slide, his blade backslashing it behind him. Blood sprayed everywhere.

Peace is a lie there is only passion.

Without loosing momentum Akio spun around, a well-placed double slice cleaved two more in two.

"Passion yet serenity," Akio murmured to himself.

He bound off the loose rocks he had landed, hand springing off an outcropping. A tentacle wrapped around his ankle, the micro-sized teeth bit into his ankle, massive pain roared through Akio's body.

Through passion I gain strength, drawing off this to suppress the agony, Akio cleanly severed himself free.

"There is no Chaos, there is harmony," Akio panted as he sat at the outcropping and looked for [member="Heol Wraith"]. Thank you, masters.

 

[Zinai]

Strength.​

The tentacles armed with razor sharp teeth had been lashing out extremely quickly. Parrying against them had become difficult and tiring. Heol couldn't wait to get underground, blowing up the cursed sarlacc.

Suddenly, a short, rapid arm shot out and tore the flesh on Heol's right arm. Watching as blood trickled down from the large cut, Heol grimaced. This is why he wanted to build his guard shoto soon. It would have helped him much more on the defence.

Continually running, ignoring the pain, Heol managed to fend off the rest of the attacking tentacles before taking cover behind the first corner. Watching the bounty hunter continue down the path with his vibroblade, Heol quickly bandaged the cut on his arm with the extra wrap he packed. Inhaling extra oxygen, he dashed out of his cover and sprinted for the entrance.

Jumping and avoiding the strong whips that continued lashing his way, Heol quickly slashed back as his face met with sarlacc blood. Licking a bit of it, he yelped in disgust. It didn't taste anything close to human blood. But it did, strangely, taste of wine.

Finally reaching the entrance, Heol slid into the final cover. Gasping for breath, he realized how tired he was. His wrap had become soaked, but he was fine. Carefully leaning his saber close to his wound, he winced and muttered as it touched the wound with heat. It was a method of medicine, to close a serious wound up. He held no symbiotic healing spray.

Looks like it went well.

[member="Akio Diachi "]

 

[Akio Diachi]

Akio saw [member="Heol Wraith"] reach the entrance and made a quick calculation to get there.

With a soft hand spring he landed on his feet not too far away. A pair of wild tentacles rose at him but Akio had no problem slicing them away. As his wounded leg cried out in protest Akio sprinted towards the door. The ground was soft and gave way easily. If Akio hadn't had the practice needed to cross such wayward terrain he would have fallen to the monster. His blade never stopped moving, whirling in quick, graceful slices with tight, close hand movements. Any of his clansmen would have been surely proud.

The exertion was draining. By the time he reached the door Akio was soaked in his own sweat and the monster's blood. Fatigued but releaved, Akio reached the door and ducked inside. He registered that his partner had made it, at this point it was little more than pleased and approval of the teen's skills. He was not made for intense combat like that, a few moments more and Akio was sure he would have fallen to the beast.

Gaining control of his breathing again, Akio motioned for [member="Heol Wraith"] to follow him down the dark tunnels as he limped slightly.

 

[Zinai]

The underground.​

What an interesting place. It was so dark, Heol turned on a little flashlight he kept by his pockets.

He noticed the hunter was limping. Of course, Heol expected that both of them, would have received injuries from such a large monster. It was inevitable. His arm was much better and stopped bleeding, but the heat burn left by the plasma close-up stung whenever something touched it.

Hopefully you're leg will get better later, Akio. It's good we made it, we'll be able to get some materials.

He hoped the rest of the journey wouldn't turn out to throw more enemies towards them.

---

It had been half an hour, and the two were still journeying through the dark underground. Heol could hear the screams and cries of others as they attempted to approach the same entrance they entered, but in ultimate failure.

Suddenly, Heol bumped into a strange, squishy surface. Wincing at the pain of his right arm, Heol turned to look where he hit.

It was a large, wall of flesh.

[member=Akio Diachi]

 

[Akio Diachi]

Akio nodded benevolently to [member="Heol Wraith"]. The Chiss had sustained much greater pain during his training as a child--he recalled the brutal interogation training at Heol's age. But the gesture was a kind one that the assassin appreciated, "I shall recover. These are merely markings to comemorate the honor defeating our worthy foe."

As they walked Akio suppressed the pain and regianed most of his energy. His mind flowed over the wealth the resources they were recovering would be worth. His sensitive ears heard the echoes of his breathing reverberate off the stone walls. This place had to be massive, Akio decided.

He must have been too distracted recovering for him to notice the wall of flesh until they were upon it.

Akio had seen many horrific things in his time; he had committed some of the most brutal assassinations imaginable. His training had brought a cold, quiet logic and observation to him that made even some of the fellow clansmen wonder if he was an android. But this was enough to make his stomach turn. The putrid, damp, vile flesh was reeking with death and living decay. They said that Scarlaccs absorbed the flesh of their victims to make their bodies, which made this all the worse. A side thought wandered through Akio's head, Can this odd wizardling feel the screams of terror from the souls within as their ki is stolen from their souls? His stomach fell into his knees as Akio realized that more limbs of the monster extended over their heads along the ceiling, like thick roots riveted into the passage. These were even thicker than the ones on the surface.

That was when they began to quiver. There is no bargaining, there is no way out, there is no second plan, no second way out, Akio realized with an acute sense of horror. The beast has us right where he wants us. His razor-edged blade came out in a second as one of the wampa-sized tentacles lashed out behind him. Spinning with a forward slash Akio hacked deeply into it, knocking it back. The tendril recoiled for a second attack and Akio back-cut it open. Blood sprayed all over his armor.

"[member="Heol Wraith"] we are surrounded!" Akio shouted.

He set to a combat position and prayed to the ascended masters for a quick, honorable death. It was all he could hope for at this point.

 

[Zinai]

Surrounded?​

No, this was the perfect method to kill the Sarlacc. His defensive form would protect him against any creature who couldn't outsmart anyone. It was the right choice to enter.

It's fine, remain in control. I have a plan.

Rushing towards the opening the Sarlacc had made with the tentacle, he attempted to calculate the impossible. Setting a fuse to a plasma bomb, Heol threw out a grenade out of the opening. The Sarlacc was too occupied with them underground, that he didn't have anything to guard the post above.

A large boom rocked the underground. Unfortunately, he had missed. The Sarlacc was still attacking them.

Use any explosives, throw them out in the opening and try to get it inside the Sarlacc's mouth or beak. It's unguarded!

Heol continued throwing bombs out the sunny opening. Each time, a close miss. It could take forever for him to get the calculation right.

Suddenly, a large explosion made the Sarlacc cry out in pain. They had his beak destroyed! Now all they needed to do was throw one more explosive into the mouth, to finish it off.

Suddenly, Heol was lifted from his position, into midair.

[member=Akio Diachi]

 

[Akio Diachi]

The blood bath was the creation of horror. When he heard [member="Heol Wraith"] mention explosives, he chided himself for a hundredth of a second for having used his last one two days earlier. I don't suppose I had to blow that frigate's deck. But how else could I have covered my escape from the hostiles?

His blade whirled through the air in close-cut circles, fending off a barrage of attacks for his friend. The least he could do is cover the youngling for his assault. But the greater battle was with not with the Sarlacc. Fatigue was locking his muscles up, causing the limber fluid movements of his snake style to become ragged, rough and jagged. The milliseconds between the slices and cross-cuts could lead to death--or in this case worse.

The horrific roar from the beast was a sound Akio was well-familiar with. The grips of agony's death has come upon it. He loosed a swing that cleaved a tentacle in half, before Akio could recover, another grabbed Heol's body and swung it high into the air. An inward groan of despair hit Akio then a familiar thought occurred, I could leave him behind and let his death cover my tracks. The assassin had done it before, to those who were closest to him even. But something inside, something illogical, something else happened.

Summoning all his strength, Akio grabbed a tendril and catapulted off it to another. He chased Heol's fleeling body out of the chamber high into the air. Twisting and swinging on pure instinct the assassin willed his body to obedience. Through passion I gain strength.

But he wasn't fast enough still. The teen was suspended over the massive and deadly maw of the Scarlacc and Akio was still several yard too far away to reach him. Without thinking Akio hurled his blade at the beast's limb, blood spewed out. It recoiled, dropping the teen. Akio summersaulted through the air, catching him and landing on the loose sand. His shoulders slammed the ground brutally, one of them dislocating. He rolled over with a grunt, the pain intensified as the weary muscles locked up, "Kill it, kill it."

 

[Zinai]

Perfect, once more.​

The hunter's support had dropped Heol back on his feet. Now, he was point blank range. The sarlacc's beak was destroyed, and the last ticking bomb sank down the organism's large yet stout body.

Dragging the hunter along, he carefully dropped his body through a large hole, and attempted to use his force to cushion the fall. It...worked, to an extent where the hunter did not suffer any more injuries. Heol detested his weakness in the Force.

Jumping right back into the underground through a hole one of the tentacles made, Heol nodded towards the hunter in acknowledgment. Quickly covering himself behind a wall with Akio's body in such a weary state, he waited as the bomb ticked to its last second.

An explosion of blood and flesh sprayed into the air, both over and underground. The wet mess the sarlacc created hit the walls beside Heol, as he sighed gladly, that the struggle was over.

[member=Akio Diachi]

 

[Akio Diachi]

The blood and gore splattered over everything and Akio was never more relieved than now to kill a target. He sat up and spat some of the disgusting Sarlacc blood from his mouth. A victory hard-won from this opponent was worth its weight in honor.

Akio took several calming deep breaths. His body was not made to sustain this level of exertion on mission. Nor this level of injury He chided himself for getting sloppy. His shoulder burned and ached, the bites on his leg were pulsing, and every fiber of his being was in agony from the exertion and the fall. After bracing himself, Akio shoved his shoulder back into place, he shouted as the pain ripped through a fresh.

[member="Heol Wraith"] had exceeded even Akio's expectations. He had no doubt in his mind he would be in one of the Scarlacc's stomachs at this point if it hadn't been for this teen. He licked his lips and said two words he rarely ever uttered, "Thank you."

He paused. A variety of strange feelings he was not familiar with rose in his chest; gratitude, companionship, friendship, indebtedness. He was unsure what to do with these. I never felt these towards a clansman. All work was business, pure and simple--wasn't that what this was too? He would deal with those questions later, "Let's find what we came here for."

Akio secured his grapple hook to one way and began slowly repelling down into the abyss.

 

[Zinai]

A good day's work.​

That's what Heol felt like saying, but he wasnt strong enough. Nodding towards the thanks of the Hunter, he replied with the same. It was necessary after all, his help saved his life once, and brought him to the cortosis mine.

Climbing down the walls of the rough, edgy mine, Heol could look down and only see darkness. The ravine was huge, but he bet the hunter knew his way. Cortosis, finally, an expensive material he could use.

Dropping down finally, on the floor, he clicked on a small flashlight he kept, and analyzed the walls. Nothing so far, just rock.

To see even more, Heol turned on his green lightsaber and expanded his field of view. The bright light illuminated the walls, and he could notice more and more of the rough surface.

Suddenly, he recognized something shiny. It was twinkling, reflecting and responding to the lightsaber.

It's cortosis.

[member=Akio Diachi]

 

[Akio Diachi]

Akio's feet touched the ground. He had to gingerly lower himself the bottom, slower than he would have liked but his body was sore and stiffening up. He was burning with the pain of the battle but he needed to push through and finish the job. We have almost ended the work here. It is almost done. The payoff is here.

Akio unbuckled himself from the rappel line. He heard [member="Heol Wraith"] mention the cortosis. His glowing red eyes looked around them. Interposed between the gore and blood of their deceased was a silver lining of gleaming metal. Akio was pleased with himself. He had finally made it. His body ached, and questioned the logic of digging for the metal. We have worked this hard, we might as well finish this.

He pulled out a diamond-edged climbing pick and began chipping away at the area around the metal. it wasn't the best tool for the job, but it would do the trick. His muscles groaned from the exertion, but the hardened diamond tip made it easier. Pieces of the shinning, brittle metal began to gather at their feet, raw and unrefined. After half an hour, Akio took a step back and breathed. Sweat was pouring off his body. The vein had been widened, revealing a deeper, longer, wider vein of the precious metal. Akio wiped the sweat off his face and looked at Heol, "Your turn."

He began stalking off, stretching out the knots in his muscles.

 

[Zinai]

It was amazing.​

The amount of cortosis down this ravine: It was insane! Of course, Heol had to get to work. Pulling out his lightsaber, adjusting the power to medium, he began carving out another large vein of cortosis. It wasn't too heavy, surprisingly. He could get enough for a few decent weapons, maybe even his own speeder. That could be handy.

He continued walking down the ravine with the hunter, searching for more ortosis, increasing the power bit by bit on his lightsaber.

Perfect day.

---

Nearly an hour had passed. Both Heol and Akio were mining and carving out Cortosis ores, as much as they could. The material was expensive, and it was a gold mine to Heol. He was a dirt poor young man.

Glad at the end result, Heol looked at Akio. The main was injured, and was sweating. Heol was sure the hunter had another good day ahead of him.

Giving the man a handshake with his thin palms, Heol grinned.

Good to do business, with you.

[member=Akio Diachi]

 

[Akio Diachi]

Akio shook the hand of [member="Heol Wraith"] and gave him a quarter bow, the highest honor a clansman could give. "It was an honor doing business with you as well. I am sure we shall meet again."

The assassin heaved his pack of cortosis on his undamaged shoulder and began finding his way out. The cost had been great, but the reward was massive. He was sure he could find a weapons maker that would apply this to his weapons and armor with more to spare. It never hurt to have something as valuable as this on hand for all occasions.

Akio reached the jungle. The sun was setting. It was several miles to the nearest spaceport. When he reached it, darkness had caste a thick fog. It was a simple matter to climb aboard a freighter and stow away, even in his weary and damaged condition. Settling in between a pair of crates the Chiss began his routine meditation. The aches in his body reminded him that the prize he won was well worth the effort. He had earned great honor and a potential ally that day, all when he was looking to catch a few animal trophies. Sometimes the masters' faces shine on you with blessing.

Blissfully, he surrendered to his meditation and the pain faded from his body.