A Diplomatic Solution

[Cassius Droma]

The Stardust Melody broke through the atmosphere of Ansion, the view of the golden plains steadily coming into view. The pilot, Cassius Droma, made some adjustments for the new environment, and took some readings for the current weather and flight conditions. Other than some high wind, they looked to be on a steady course.

He had been asked to come for his archaeological and anthropological knowledge. Apparently, some sort of dispute was happening between two of the native tribes on a southern island. An ancient temple had been discovered directly in the middle of their border, and small bouts of violence had taken place over just who owned the rights to the temple. No one had even been too far inside of the temple yet, due to not just overgrowth, but a series of traps and security measures that had already taken the lives of three tribe members.

A Jedi diplomat who had been trying to mediate between the two tribes, Gianna Aegis, had finally managed to get the two tribes to agree to something: an inspection and expedition of the temple by a third party to objectively prove which tribe the temple belonged to. So, the call for a Jedi archaeologist went out, and Cassius gladly answered – it had been far too long since he had been on an expedition.

The YT-1000 light freighter beautifully dipped low to the ground, passing hills and plateaus as it made its way to the designated landing site for his vessel. Already, he could see a B-7 freighter, which he identified as the personal transport of Gianna. A small area had been cleared out for the negotiations, with a small hut erected close to Gianna’s ship in order for there to be neutral ground for them to meet.

With a loud hissing sound and steam billowing from the ventral vents, the Stardust Melody touched down on the ground, a clunk signifying when the landing gear locked into place. The ramp lowered, and Cassius walked down, taking a deep breath and soaking in the morning sun. The sound of whirring servos came from behind as T-4D4 stepped down after him.

Cassius had on his typical simple Jedi robes, and unlike many other times he was on assignment, he didn’t have his blaster strapped to his thigh. As this was a diplomatic mission in addition to an expedition, he figured it wouldn’t be prudent to have extra weaponry on him. As for anything else he was bringing, he certainly had a good amount of gear stashed in a bag slung over his shoulder. T-4D4 was also carrying a similar load of supplies in case they needed anything else.

He looked around for Gianna, his point of contact.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Warm sunlight streaked through the hurriedly arranged roof panels of the meeting area. It was little more than a hut, however, it served her purposes perfectly. Ansion was wonderful. There was nothing quite as beautiful as the way heavy winds made grassy fields dance as if possessed. The sound of incoming suubatar was unmistakably soft, a disturbance in the air, versus the sound of a galloping behemoth crushing everything it passed. Gianna couldn’t help but smile softly when she realized that her ears were growing accustomed to the wildlife in the area. Everyone would have been idyllic, were it not for the constant, nagging arguing going on behind her head.

Two Highborn Overclan leaders were snapping at each other, despite the arrangements that had been made, and the young woman sighed as she pulled away from the muslin curtain that separated them from the outside world. It had been like this for days—ever since she’d sent for an archaeologist to aid them in settling this debate. The Borokii and the Januul both blamed the other for losses to both tribes from attempts to enter the hidden temple. It had taken hours of debate and proof that the area had its own defenses to get them to realize that neither side had slighted the other. “Please—there’s no need to resort to insults. I beg your patience, just a little while longer. My associate is arriving as quickly as possible... It is a long journey.”

All of the Elders present seemed to accept her words but one of them, a female named Tashara, turned her sights on the half-finished plate of food in front of her. Her skin was a shade of pale-yellow with a furry Mohawk that spread back from the crown of her forehead. It had been dyed a majestic shade of pink that went well with large mauve colored eyes. “You do not eat, Jedi. How will you stay healthy? Strong? I will not return a skinny and sick negotiator.”

Gianna smiled, expression ever gentle, despite the rather brusque attempt at concern. She had learned not to take any Ansionian too seriously—despite the gruff words that often escaped them. The Januul boasted some of the most capable warriors she had seen on the planet and tended to have the quickest of tempers, whereas the Borokii seemed more honor bound. Both of them would definitely have difficulties surviving among the Corusanti elite but Gia liked them just fine. “Don’t worry I swear I’ve had plenty. I can’t thank you enough for your hospitality. It’s all very good. Can you tell me what this is though? I don’t recognize it.”

“It is a potherb.”, Tashara responded, glancing at the open expression the small human wore, not for the first time, melting beneath it. This Jedi was different. She welcomed their customs and traditions, even those which rebelled against, such as the placement of a mixed honor guard in the area to keep her safe. “A green. It is in the family of ootoowerg. These are spiced and boiled to pair with the meat.”

Gianna repeated the name of the vegetable again, her nose crinkling as she realized she’d said it wrong, and the pink haired Elder corrected her when realizing her honest embarrassment. The red-haired woman tried again, this time Tashara to nod her head in approval, and the girl smiled in response. Suddenly realizing that the rest of the room had stopped bickering to pay attention to them Gianna smiled at them all, dissipating any awkwardness, and with it the innate sense of dislike that permeated the air.

It wasn’t Gianna they hated. If anything, either clan seemed to be vying for her focus, perhaps, hoping to sway her to their point of view. They simply despised each other. While war had been avoided for centuries, relations had been strained, and the discovery of this temple was the straw that broke the suubatars back. The pale-skinned woman gave neither side what they wanted and focused on them equally, hearing each and every gripe, while they waited for [member="Cassius Droma"].

As if on cue she heard the sound of starship engines ran overhead. Her eyes closed as a flavor of new energy washed over her and in her mind’s eye she colored the force user overhead emerald green. Almost like a pixie, she stood up from the low table on the floor with a half spin, and blessed the room with her usual dazzling smile. “My partner is here. It’ll be just a moment…”, she turned to head outside of the tent, before pausing, looking back at each of the chieftains and Elders present. “Try not to kill each other.”

Green eyes stared, a little reproachful, a little wary, as she backed out of the tent. “Really. No fighting, no arguing, we left our weapons at the door—Remember?”

She heard some grudging agreements and her face bloomed into a smile again. Once outside of the tent and out of earshot she took a deep, calming breath of fresh air, before releasing it slowly. It had been a long few weeks. Raising her hand to her eyes to block the sun she followed a steady pull from the Force, as well as the direction her ears had led her in, and eventually found herself looking at a dark-haired human. Fully human? That was surprising. Normally she worked with near-human hybrids and had to struggle with dialects she was rusty in. “Hello!”, she greeted sweetly, flame-colored hair even brighter in the sun, “Cassius Droma?”

Gianna wore pale robes of light cloth, considering the heat, rough spun but fitting to her slender frame. It didn’t seem to be of extremely fine quality but less uncomfortable than some. She held freedom of movement and no weapon could be seen, however, that didn’t mean she didn’t have one. It simply wasn’t visible to the naked eye. A graceful hand with delicate fingers reached out to greet him.

“You’re just in time. I’m afraid that if we don’t get started soon we might have less of a friendly brunch with awkward stares and more of a warzone. Do accept food when offered, don’t stare at their hair, and cracking knuckles mean they agree with you.”

 

[Cassius Droma]

Cassius picked up on her easily, even before she spoke. Her presence in the Force was solid, yet calming, the signature of a diplomatic knight. Not only that, but her appearance gave her away. Red hair like fire, pale skin that contrasted neatly with robes similar in appearance to his. Her hazel-green eyes shone in the morning sun, not unlike his. They were lighter in color, and in turn, visually more striking.

He stretched out his hand to connect with hers, and he could feel the physical warmth as well as spiritual warmth rush through him. The Force surrounding them seemed to mesh very well – already, he could tell that they would work well together. Cassius returned the warm smile, it turning into a grin as he replied, “Yes. And you’re Gianna, I’m guessing.” He adjusted the strap on his shoulder as he fell into step next to her, walking towards the hut. “This is Tee-Four-Dee-Four, a medical droid, and has patched me up more times than I’d like to admit.”

“And I’ve saved you from having to be patched up in the first place,” T-4D4 noted, raising his index finger. Cassius chuckled slightly and nodded in acknowledgement. It was true. When he had installed a medical suite on the Stardust Melody, as well as accepted the assignment of a medical droid, he had no idea just how much his life would depend on it, and how he would thank the Force every day for leading him to make those decisions.

As Gianna quickly went over some of the mannerisms of the to-dos around the Ansionians, he nodded his head, listening in earnest. “I’ve been studying them as much as I can since I left Kashyyyk, but any insights you can give me will be helpful.” It was nearly a five-day trip from the forested home of the Wookiees to the plains where they now stood, so he had indeed tried to fill it with as much study time as he could. Books, HoloNet entries, holos on their culture – anything he could get their hands on, he consumed it. Their history and language were musts to learn, if this temple was in dispute. He needed to say with certainty whose ancestors had owned it.

All of the studying in the world wouldn’t be the same as the boots-on-the-ground experience that Gianna had been accumulating since her time here. As an archaeologist, he knew that first hand, such as when he spent time with the Wookiees or Ruusanians.

He could already hear the rumblings of conversation as they got closer. Turning to his friend, Cassius said, “You might want to stay outside and guard the door, buddy.” He patted T-4D4 on the arm as he did so. The droid let out the electronic approximation of a sigh as he said, “Alright,” and took a post outside the hut, head on a swivel.

When the muslin curtain was pulled back, the murmurs settled down as everyone in the room looked at the two of them, then focused more on Gianna, as if they were waiting on her to introduce the newcomer.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

“You would be entirely correct. Although, my friends call me Gia.”

Her nose crinkled cutely as she returned his grin, expression nothing short of welcoming when her fingers wrapped delicately around his. It was always an experience meeting someone new. Especially when they were steeped in the Force versus simply existing as part of the balance. Occasionally, it gave her a sense of déjà vu, as if she’d met him, or seen him somewhere before. The everyday individual would simply pass the almost disconcerting feeling off as happenstance. They would assume, logically, that perhaps they had once before traded glances from across a busy skylane or simply that the person in question strongly resembled someone close to them. It was a fair assumption.

Just…Incorrect. Truly, it was simply the light within that she recognized. A kindred spirit. Her head tilted to the side as pale green eyes flickered over his form. A gentle evaluation, if it could really be called that, before she released him to focus on his companion droid.

Gianna laughed when the T-4D4 responded with some level of personality, the sound sweet and airy, honey on the breeze. She hardly sounded or looked like someone that had been diffusing a war for several weeks on end. “Oh, I like you very much. Thank you for keeping Padawan Droma in such good health Tee-Four-Dee-Four. I’ll try and return him to you without any major damage but I make no promises.”

They made their way back to the hut rather quickly. Mostly, because Gianna wasn’t certain how long the Elders of the overclans could contain themselves in a space so small without supervision. They hadn’t liked each other much before the discovery of the temple. Now, they enjoyed each other much, much less. She was pleased to hear that Cassius had been diligent in his studies before his arrival. It was a sign that she had been sent a competent partner, versus the more bullish, who depended solely on the Force to pave the way. “I’ll impart all I can—but feel free to ask if you are uncertain. We’ll be working with Elders of the Borokii and the Januul. They have a long history of not seeing eye to eye.”

“Please forgive me for throwing you right to the wolves. This is not how I wished it to be…”, she hesitated just outside, fingers on the curtain as she lowered her voice. Her words were not offensive, but in an effort to keep tempers moderate, there were some things that their hosts did not need to hear. For the first time, her countenance seemed to fall just slightly from the warmth and grace of the sun. The emotion would be hard to read, but she was clearly pensive and concerned. “…But you must believe it when I say that this cannot wait. Lives already have been lost on both sides and peace is hanging on only by the smallest thread.”

As they passed into the hut the smaller woman brushed stray waves of cinnamon-colored hair from her eyes and gave the Ansionians her full attention. She deliberately made eye contact with the Highborn Leaders that seemed to be making true efforts to reign in the other Elders. “I would like to introduce all of you to my colleague. His name is Cassius Droma and this is the man I spoke of that will aid us in navigating the dangers of the temple.”

Gianna smiled at the people before her, unphased by their yellow skin, and mouths full of teeth that were much too sharp. Cassius would find, if any stood, that they were more her height than his. She drew her new friend toward the head of the long table and gestured him to take the seat that she had vacated. One of the Elders made efforts to rise, but she motioned that he stay seated, gifting his graciousness with an appreciative smile. She had two perfectly able legs while his back appeared to have seen better days. “This is Tashara of the Borokii and this is Okoye of the Januul. On both sides of the table we have Elders from the Council of both overclans. They are as follows, from right to left, Jada, Nyong, Guri….”

The list went on. Once formalities were upheld to the standards of the clans, and the table was cleared, but not before they insisted on feeding Cassius, Gianna activated a holographic projector that triggered a well-documented map of the area. She had spent part of the past two weeks putting it together with the help of the Honor Guard. “The location of the temple is due north. As far as we can tell there is only one entry point, however, that doesn’t mean there aren’t hidden tunnels that we’ve yet to find. While Padawan Droma and I evaluate the site all of you will return to your camps as we agreed. For the safety of all—please limit your contact save through your designated couriers.”

“We will take two members from the Honor Guard of each clan with us. However, only one from each clan, will venture into the ruins with us due to the possibility of small spaces. The remaining pair will remain just outside the entrance to provide emergency aid if it is required. We will return with proof that not only does the temple have its own defenses, but hopefully, ancestral proof to determine whom it belongs to. No clan member, not elder, nor warrior, will take action against the other while we are away or they will forfeit their claim. Is that clear?”

Pale-green eyes held the gaze of the Elders with ease. Whilst they might have fought against each other, days of utilizing Gianna as an in-between told them that she would not be moved, once the course of action had been decided. It may have been strange to see a room full of decorated warriors follow her every command, but she controlled the situation with ease, often answering questions before they could be asked. “Does anyone have any concerns? Please, speak your minds. This is your home. This plan of action was devised with the best interests of all in mind. No more threats of war. No more lives lost.”

Tashara and Okoye glanced at each other after a long moment of silence, before nodding their heads toward Gianna, and the flame-haired woman exhaled slowly. That was good. Very good. The plan was for both clans to return to their homes so that they could honor their dead in peace. It was to her understanding that they built great pyres instead of burying those that had been lost. They returned them to the wind and sky where they might always watch over those that they left behind.

The meeting broke and Gianna waited for the room to clear before approaching the Honor Guards that would be accompanying them. Kindly, she requested that they ready the team, and two suubatars for herself and Cassius. She had already given the loyal warriors lists of necessary provisions and had other equipment waiting just inside her ship. Her focus fell on Cassius when she finished and she nodded her head toward the exit. “Would you care to join me? I need to retrieve some things from my ship before we begin.”

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

He dismissively wove his hand as she apologized for tossing him into the middle of a slowly boiling conflict. “I’ve been in worse scraps. I’ll be fine,” he murmured. Just counting the flying missions he’d been on, there were certainly more harrowing scrapes with death he’d faced before. As they stopped outside of the hut, he leaned in closer so that he could hear her clearly. He solemnly nodded – as of this moment, they were the only people that were standing in the way of a bloody war between two tribes.

They entered the hut, and Cassius took a stoic stance as he glanced around the room. These people were warriors – they would respect strength and wisdom, but also find any sort of perceived weakness and make sure to exploit it. He took his seat and kept his back straight, clasping his hands in front of him on the table. As the introductions were made, he made eye-contact and gave curt nods to each one, making sure they knew that he was showing them respect.

The plan was laid out, and Cassius’s eyes squinted as the holoprojector turned on, already studying the basic architecture of the structure. From his crash-course on the trip here, he would have to place it from a few thousand years ago. He could only guess it was made of stone – if he could get closer, he would be able to determine what kinds of tools were used to cut the stone, which would help narrow down the timeline a little bit.

He wasn’t exactly sure about bringing members of the Honor Guard with them. It was probably done for the sake of transparency, which Cassius completely understood, but he also preferred it if they were working a little more independently. While Gianna might trust these warriors enough to bring them along for their excursion, the more wary Jedi made a mental note to keep an eye on the two of them.

Amazingly, the two tribes agreed to place hostilities aside while they were away. There was a lot of tension and pressure in the room, but Gianna seemed to have a very good handle of it all. He could only imagine the headaches she probably had to go through in order to get to this point, however.

When she requested that he accompany him to her ship, he nodded in agreement. “Absolutely,” he said as he followed her outside. Once they were out of earshot of the rest of the tribesmen and Honor Guard, he leaned closer to her and spoke, “You’ve been doing very well here. I can’t imagine it’s been easy.”

T-4D4 fell into step behind them, and Cassius looked over to his droid companion. While he would have liked to have him along for the journey due to his medical knowledge and enhanced strength, but the thought of leaving the ships here completely unsupervised didn’t sit well with him. They merely exchanged a glance and a nod before the taller droid peeled off and headed for the Stardust.

He turned back to Gianna and asked, “Have you ever explored anything like this before?” This was becoming his area of expertise, after all. If she needed to know anything about the potential dangers of what lay before them in the stone temple, he could rattle off a list – none of them pleasant.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Gianna sighed gently when they stepped back into the sunlight. This might be the last they saw of it for a little while. It was warm and soothing compared to the barely contained, nearly cloying emotions, crammed inside the too-small hut. The Ansionians had done their best to make accommodations that were acceptable for their off-world guests but there was only so much that could be done. At the end of the day, they were still imprisoned in a room full of warriors that wanted little more than to kill each other. Violently.

The slender woman began to mentally roll through the items and equipment that she needed from the Lighthawke as they made their way to the freighter. Cassius had done well during his first encounter with the Elders. To be fair, they were far more cordial now, versus a few weeks ago—but he’d still done well to maintain cultural expectations. A soft smile lingered at the kiss of her mouth, ever present, when the Padawan fell into step beside her. She felt him near, coupled with a quiet compliment, and honest green eyes rose to meet his. “I appreciate the sentiment…But I’m not sure if well is the word for it.”

“I’ve been managing, so far. Trying to coax others into things that don’t come naturally to them can be like trying to squeeze blood from a turnip. Lucky for me, I’ve got magic that can make rocks float.”, she went on teasingly, raising her fingers in the air to move them a little before her hands fell back to her sides. “The impossible becomes possible and here we are. Easy? No. Enjoyable—Definitely.”

The red-haired woman approached her ship and touched the HUD on her wrist, briefly, to trigger the ramp. She headed up the walk, ignoring the stares from the Honor Guard, as if they weren’t there at all. They preferred it that way. She had been assigned guards from either over clan without her knowledge, but, she understood the reasoning. She was a small, pale human, in a world of unique and strange things. Along with some locals that saw her presence as an intrusion. They were already scared and on edge. Gianna let the Honor Guard perform their duties, occasionally providing them with small treats, and they let her work all the same.

They did not seem to like the addition of another ward. It was a buzz, a filter of chatter, a sense of innate distrust when it came to people from other worlds. Cassius Droma did not have their faith yet. He was tolerated because if his proximity to Gia and nothing more. “You wouldn’t believe the things I’ve seen. Learned. Have you ever ridden a suubatar? It’s the most wonderful thing. Better than any pod race.”

She walked into the freighter proper and began to open a few compartments. Cassius would see that although the ship was well loved, it was clean, and everything seemed to have a place. From one she removed a sturdy rucksack and checked the contents. Small containers for safekeeping, a variety of hand tools, rope threaded with flexible durasteel, as well as medical supplies, and rations. She had preinstalled a variety of sensors into the HUD on her wrist, including, but not limited to ground penetrating radar. It would document their progress and create a map that they could follow to avoid getting lost. He asked if she had ever done anything like this before and she smiled, unable to help herself, when humor bubbled up beneath her sense of duty. “Do you mean to ask if I’ve ever thrown myself head first into a dangerous situation mostly blind?”

”I would never do such a thing.”, she responded, fishing out a few pairs of gloves, just in case Cassius hadn’t brought any. He was the expert, though—so she didn’t want to assume. They were made from SureGrip tech that could be activated at will. Her tan boots had the same type of soles. “Really, I’ve done some light exploration, and I’ve spent some unfortunate time in dark places…”

“But nothing quite like this. Whomever built this temple didn’t want anyone unintended coming in. It’s the defenses, the traps, that worry me most. We might need to use rebreathers to keep from catching crypt rot in some areas. For the most part, the probes I sent came back with breathable air on the first level, but there’s a lot of uncharted area. Is there anything else you might suggest?”

The small woman kept moving while she waited for Cassius to respond, not fidgety, but simply ever in motion. She pulled her hair up high and secured it in a bun atop her head with a tie, before reaching for a pair of gloves to tuck them into a compartment of the pack. Gingerly, she lifted it to test the weight. It wasn’t overly heavy but she would definitely feel it the next day lugging it around—that was for sure.

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

He adjusted his stride as they made their way up the main ramp into the light freighter, the rubber soles of his sturdy boots making small clanking sounds. She asked if he had ever ridden a suubatar, and Cassius shook his head. “No, I haven’t had the pleasure. I read that they were the main mode of locomotion for the higher-ups in the tribes here.” Apparently, it meant that Gianna was of importance to them if they had let her ride one. Or maybe suubatars had become more common over the years since the HoloNet entry had been updated.

His eyes wandered around the freighter as she gathered her things. Like his beloved Stardust, her ship was similarly clean, but Cassius certainly had more things on his ship. It was his home, after all. He found that even when offered nicer accommodations like a hotel room, he preferred his own ship. This kind of freighter was perfect for the traveling Jedi – it had just what she needed without being too much.

The tools she was gathering seemed to be fit for the job. Cassius had everything he needed in his own sack, including survival supplies and scanning equipment. He cracked a smile as she responded to his question in jest. All Jedi were different, but nearly all of them had a penchant for getting themselves into trouble without even trying, and Gianna seemed no different. She elaborated by saying that while she had done exploration typical of Jedi, this was foreign to her.

“Rebreathers are a good idea,” Cassius confirmed, nodding his head. One was already in his pack for long-term use – using the Force to hold one’s breath only worked for so long. “As for anything else… it’s hard to tell until we get in there. I could only imagine that the traps set by the ancestors who built the temple will be simple, almost too simple to be read by our devices. Wooden arrows, large stones falling from above… we’ll have to rely on the Force to see things coming. Any energy-based weapons might have run out of power long ago.” A distinct memory of being shot by harmless, low-powered blasters from malfunctioning Sith battle droids came to mind.

Once they were both set to go, they departed the freighter, and the suubatars were waiting for them at the edge of a field. The beasts were larger than Cassius expected, with greenish-yellow fur that seemed to glisten in the morning sun. While ferocious-looking with fangs and rippling muscles, the young Jedi could tell that they had been heavily domesticated.

As he mounted his steed, he set his feet firmly in the stirrups and made sure his supplies were secure. Taking out a headscarf, he wrapped it around his face in order to protect himself from the potential harsh winds they were to face whilst riding across the field. He looked to Gianna, his guide, and indicated he was ready with a nod.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Gianna shot the Padawan a rather disbelieving glance at his admission of never having ridden one of the most majestic creatures Ansion had to offer. Olive toned eyes were wide, beautifully crystalline, alight with feigned horror, and perhaps even a touch of over the top surprise. Of course, her rather spirited personality was simply rolling to the surface as she teased the younger man, but it couldn’t be helped. It was one of the reasons she shied away from signing up full time with the largest official groups that the Jedi had to offer. She didn’t fit the traditional mold, despite serving the living Force, and refused to adopt the appropriate amount of detachment. “Thankfully, for your sake, we will correct that today. Although it's not a surprise if this is your first visit. You aren't wrong. Suubatars used to be reserved for Alwari Elders and the like, but the rules have evolved. Respect is currency enough for the privilege.”

The pale-skinned woman watched while her new companion took a gander around her ship. He had a critical eye. Part of her wondered what he was thinking, what comparisons he made, but small talk of the beauty-parlor nature would need to wait. There was no better time to get to know one another than while descending into deep, dark, unknown ancient ruins. Right?

His frequent smile was reassuring. At least, from that, she could glean that he had a sense of humor. Thank the Force. If she was sent one more stuffy, achingly boring, and entirely tedious Jedi for use on special assignment she was likely to leave them behind. She would do better work on her own, actually hearing and seeing people for what they were, versus nameless beads to slide frivolously back and forth on a cosmic abacus.

Cassius confirmed that she had packed most of the essentials and the slender woman listened quietly while he explained the nature of the traps. Slowly, she nodded her head, a faint shadow crossing her inquisitive expression before it faded. Gianna would never find peace when party to the sorrow of loved ones that an untimely passing left behind. Death was inevitable. The subsequent agony of loss could be eternal. “That explains the injuries that two of the locals sustained. Simple traps. Hard to see but still… problematic.”

Problematic was a very polite way of saying lethal. She knew that the Padawan would not forget the meeting they had just had, not so soon, and seemed smart enough to remember that Ansionians had already died just trying to breach the entrance. It might have seemed like she was packing for a friendly camping trip, but in reality, she was preparing for the worst.

They left when she had what they needed. Gianna moved fairly well despite the weight of the rucksack slung over her shoulder and her steps quickened at the sight of the suubatars. She already knew which of the beasts she would ride. More importantly, it knew her. Large eyes speckled with silver found her and it began to shuffle with excitement. She smiled and reached up with both hands, completely ignoring the tusks that grew from its maw, and gave it a quick pat. “Poor thing…”, they’d been in the makeshift stables all day, trapped, versus roaming the windswept plains. “Forgive me. We ran later than I thought.”

Apologizing, more than that, holding a full on conversation with her suubatar was ignored entirely by the Honor Guard. It was common enough. Jedi Aegis was strange but there was a method to her madness that seemed to keep most entranced, or at the very least, accepting. She made her way around the beast and strapped her pack on top of the rest of the gear near its backend, before sneaking back around to discretely offer the creature a treat, something small that it nipped up immediately. Gianna seemed to sober up all at once, the small amounts uncomplicated enjoyment disappearing as she turned to address the small squad of Ansionians that would be accompanying them. “Have the clans begun to move out? Have you everything you need? The rebreathers? Medical supplies?”

“Yes, Jedi Aegis. The Elders will be in their own territory before the sun sets. We have everything you requested.”, the Honor Guard toward the front of the line, Draxis, responded formally to her inquiries. He would be entering the ruins on behalf of the Borokii and Vol would represent Januul. They were trusted by the Elders to keep the peace between each other, however, that didn’t mean they liked each other very much.

“Gia.”

“As you wish, Jedi Aegis.”

Gianna rolled her eyes at the reoccurring debate but mounted her suubatar effortlessly. There was surprising flow of grace to be found in her all too human movements, signaling that there was more to the flame haired woman than met the eye. However, it was true of most Jedi. Being mysterious, keeping parts of themselves hidden until the last moment, was often how they survived. Glancing toward Cassius she gave him a confident smile, feeling hopeful with the expedition underway, despite the grim circumstances. He wrapped his face and she did the same, only, she added a pair of goggles.

Breathing deeply, she pulled on the reigns gently, as she had been taught, and uttered only one word. “Elup!”

Her suubatar snapped into action and began to launch itself forward. As she passed Draxis she called to him one more time, cheekily, using the sudden rush of wind to keep from hearing his response. “It's Gia!”

She missed the subtle twitch of humor in the rest of the Honor Guard and simply began to pave the way, trusting the suubatar, and the Force, as the landscape began to blur. The only time she slowed was to make sure that Cassius wasn’t falling behind, or, to ask one of their escorts a question. They made excellent time to the ruins. The area itself seemed mostly undisturbed, half buried, and partially excavated. They stopped a decent distance from the entrance. The two extra Honor Guard began to make camp and set up communications almost immediately. The Elders would want updates as often as possible.

Gianna found herself standing before crumbling, gigantic stone pillars, and felt rather small. She had felt that way before, in the vastness of space, but things of this nature seemed to have a humbling effect. There was also a sense of something not quite right. Shadow. Loss. Green eyes fixated on the dried blood that had been absorbed into the dirt and sand. “There’s a set of pressure plates just outside. It caused two stone slabs of aggregate to slam together on the Januul standing on them…”, she murmured to Cassius, again, reminding him without words the need for care.

“We should get started before we lose the light. Draxis, Vol, you must stay with Cassius and I. You must do as we ask, no matter how strange it seems, or there may be dire consequences. There may also come a point where you may not be able to follow us. The Elders are aware of this. Take only what you need.”, she instructed kindly, respectfully, stepping around the stained earth. The little cinnamon haired sprite seemed to have no fear as she moved forward, examining the markings on the outside of the massive entrance, comparing the weathered and nearly eroded designs with current Ansionian language.

It was too far gone. Too exposed to the elements. To her eyes it remained little more than indecipherable scratches on stone. To her heart it felt like a warning.

“What do you think?”, she asked the Padawan, valuing his experience, versus whom was the elder. She had not summoned him to sit back and watch.

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

Cassius watched as the ginger-haired Jedi interacted with her suubatar, as if they were longtime friends. It was the kind of compassion that was expected of most Jedi, but something he felt he sorely lacked from time to time. Whilst growing up on the frozen world of Rinn, the only interaction Cassius had with animals or beasts of that size was eating them, and since he’d left his homeworld, it had mostly been with creatures that wanted to kill him. Still, her attitude was admirable, one that he wished he saw more of from Jedi.

Soon enough, they were underway, and as soon as Gia’s suubatar shot forward, so did his. He felt that all too familiar rush of speed and energy, just like being in the cockpit of an A-wing. Only this time, there was wind in his face, fresh air, and open fields. It was certainly a different type of experience, that was for sure. He could see why Gianna had been so eager for him to ride one.

As the ruins came into view, Cassius could see that he had his work cut out for him. While the stone pillars looked mighty even in their crumbled forms, overgrowth had taken it some time ago. It was easy to tell why it had been hidden for so long, not to mention the fact that it seemed a little out of the way from trade routes or skylanes. As he heftily dismounted from his steed, he saw the dried blood at Gianna’s feet. His morbid curiosity egged him to touch the spot and see the event itself through his skills in psychometry, but he knew that was a dark path to take. Gianna’s explanation was enough for him to visualize it.

Unwrapping his head scarf, he took in an unobstructed breath. As Gianna instructed the Honor Guard, he began to feel the area around him, let the Force here sink into his soul. It would be vital in predicting the various traps and perils that would soon befall them. Adjusting the rucksack on his back, he stepped forward beside her, his eyes squinting at the faded etchings on the pillars guarding the entrance.

He was asked his opinion, and he stepped even closer, his hand coming up to lightly touch the markings. They were indeed weathered, nearly beyond recognition, but luckily Cassius hadn’t spent the five-day trip to Ansion doing nothing. Retrieving his bulky datapad, he turned it on and consulted his notes.

Looking back up to the markings, he began to mumble, “It’s old… but not as old as the temple. There’s very slight discoloration in the etchings themselves, indicating they were scratched there after the temple had been built for some time. It looks like it says…” He took another breath to mull it over. “Turn away.”

Cassius looked to Gianna. It certainly didn’t bode well. Apparently, someone else had tried to come here, long ago. It hadn’t gone well.

“Do you still have those maps the probe droids made?” he asked, handing his datapad towards her. It was equipped with a small holoprojector, so they would be able to follow the maps as they made their way inside.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Gianna remained silent while Cassius evaluated the markings near the entrance. Eyes of polished Jade were pinned on the dark depths that lay before them, undaunted, but watching as if some sort of creature may leap from the shadows at any moment. It was the lure of the bleakness and mystery that saturated these ruins. It was dark, thick, and if she really focused, the scent of deterioration was so heavy she could nearly touch it.

When Cassius spoke a comforting smile flashed across rose-tinted lips, though, it held little joy. It was not his words that caused the response, but the swift deduction, and her innate need to provide reassurance. He had only just stepped foot on the planet for the first time. This was the first time he would breathe its air, or meet its people, and she had already pulled him headlong into a precarious location. “Well done, Cassius.”

It bothered her slightly that the warning she held felt turned out to be more than just her imagination. Gianna deliberately kept her thoughts to herself. Her Padawan friend seemed level, and rather rational, but she didn’t want to test the limits of his courage just yet. Not when they’d only just begun. She turned her gaze back to the black, wondering what had happened to those that had come before, and how they would manage to avoid the same fate.

The Force was the only answer she could provide. It guided her in all things. This would be no exception.

Her companion asked if she still had the data that she had used to create maps for the meeting. She wordlessly nodded her head and accepted the datapad Cassius offered before she began the short process of linking it to the interactive HUD on her wrist. It took the devices a moment to sync up, but, when they did he would have access to all he needed.

At first, the holo-projector did not respond and Gianna frowned. Quirking her lips to the side she tried to engage it again, but still, no luck. It was then that she performed the tried and tested ‘tap’ to the back of it that always seemed to get things in gear. Often, equipment got dirty, with sand in places it didn’t belong. This was no different and she perked up when light erupted and placed a little three-dimensional display before their eyes. “There we go. That’s better.”

“The map will only take us to the end of the first level. Perhaps, a little bit further but eventually the data stopped transmitting. The probots must have malfunctioned.”

There were a million reasons why the equipment could have failed. Air pressure, a collapse, or simply shoddy craftsmanship. Gianna continued walking as she passed the datapad back to Cassius. He was the one with extensive archaeological experience, and although she could read a map, she thought it more prudent to utilize his skill set. A small chill ran down her spine. She had not been any further than here after her first visit, and for good reason, because of the mangled body at the door.

The copper-haired woman paid close attention to the air readings on her HUD and reached out into the vastness before them with more than just her eyes. The light from her HUD as well as Cassius’s datapad was more than enough to light the way. “Draxis—As we move inside please drop a chemlight every ten meters or so. Just hold them between your hands, feel for the crease, and break it in half. Shake well. Each rod makes two lights.”

Gianna had a few more sturdy Glo-Long glowrods in her pack but the portable ones would work fine. They operated off of long-lasting power cells that would definitely last the duration of their stay. She would have had the rest of the Honor Guard come in behind them and set up proper lighting but she feared any traps that may have remained.

They passed many weathered columns that were still somehow supporting the ceiling. Gianna couldn’t tell what sorts of tools had been used to craft and mold the stone, but, it was clear that once upon a time it had been well cared for. “I’ve spent time looking at the footage from the first floor. It might just be wishful thinking but I don’t think this place was initially designed with such severe defenses.”

She let her light fall on detailed petroglyphs that covered the walls. Just like the markings on the door, they were hard to see, crumbling, and barely visible…But there were pieces that could just be made out. Gianna had run them through several filters, and had been able to use contrast to make the depictions more clear. There were scenes of peace. Of people in a place of worship, or quiet reflection, with hands upraised. “I have a few theories but…I’m not sure yet. We haven’t seen enough.“

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

Cassius graciously accepted the datapad back from the redhead, his gaze locked in on the holographic projection. This was how he got on assignments, or when he was particularly interested in something – tunnel vision. His eyes were slightly squinted and his mouth a hard line as they slowly made their way further into the ruins. His head was on a constant swivel, not just to take in the new environment, but to look out for any additional traps.

“The structure might have caused interference with the probes… but like you said, hard to tell,” Cassius muttered as they went through the first bit of the entrance. His bare fingers brushed against the columns, and he felt the smoothness of the stone. Not polished, but worked enough to be their particular shape and still be sturdy. Ancient, but not primitive.

Gianna expressed her feelings that this place perhaps wasn’t meant to have so many perils built in to it from the start. “Perhaps,” Cassius said pensively as he craned his neck to look up at the ceiling. “Maybe a group came here afterwards and used it for something else, installed the traps then. Or…” he looked back down, ahead of them, “whatever this place was built for… they didn’t want anyone else coming near it.”

It was common for societies to protect their spiritual or historical artifacts from raiders or other tribes, hence the traps. If Cassius had more time, he would be able to date the structure and the traps to see if they were contemporaries, or if the traps came much later. He took a look back down at the holographic map, spinning it slowly to get a view of it from a new angle. There might be some truth to what she said, but since everything was so old, it was hard to tell.

They came across some petroglyphs and pictograms, and Cassius shone his bright beam light onto it, the palm-sized device fitting snugly in his hand. Silently, he wished that he could have more time here. He’d be able to park the Stardust just outside of the entrance, get his more sophisticated tools down here, and really take his time excavating. But, he knew that time was of the essence – the two tribes were about to go to war over this, and they wouldn’t wait around for some outsider Jedi to take his time going through the temple with a fine-toothed comb.

His eyes poured over the depictions that seemed more religious than anything. With how faded it was, it was hard to tell just what exactly was trying to be conveyed, but he did his best to interpret, and maybe even match the art style to a particular people or timeline.

“This place was important to them, spiritually,” Cassius said, slowly strafing the wall. “Looks like they might have been worshipping the sun…” he pointed to a circle with rays coming off of it, the center of the piece, and what the crude figures in the drawing were facing, “or some other deity.”

“Whatever we’re looking for, though, it’s below,” Cassius concluded. That would be where presumably the most amount of artifacts had escaped weathering and interference from unwanted visitors. It would also be where the most traps would be.

“Looks like the probe droids stopped up here,” he walked forward, pointing the way towards a large stone staircase that was centered in the building and went downwards. From the angle of the stairs and from the lack of light in the room, he couldn’t see where the stairs ended.

Only one way to find out.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Gianna found that her focus was somewhat split. Nearly all of her was focused on the ruins, however, there was a fraction of her faculties that lingered on Cassius Droma. He was a new element to her world, single-minded, and extraordinarily driven for someone that appeared to be rather young. Then again, so was she, but she’d always felt like an old soul. She was a woman that had always lost herself in whatever task she found, be it a chore, or entertainment. The slightly tanned Jedi always gave every endeavor her all, her everything, because it deserved nothing less. Gianna lingered on the mysteries of the universe, almost ridiculously, but she loved her childish heart.

Without it, her curiosity would not be what it was, and she would not see her surroundings nearly as clearly.

It was with that in mind that she was able to shelve her disinclination about taking a veritable Padawan with her into the abysmal unknown. Cassius was confident. Capable. He would be fine. Likely, better off, considering his experience with remnants of dead societies trying it’s hardest to shuffle them loose of the mortal coil. He seemed to consider her observations, though, remained skeptical since their information was so limited. “It’s a shame we’ll need to go against their wishes…”, Gianna murmured, tossing the dark-haired man a wry smile. “It really is the only way. If we don’t find some sort of proof of which Clan this site belongs to…And a way to deactivate the majority of the traps...”

She turned her head to watch the two members of the Honor Guard following closely behind them, briefly, before returning to her own path. The Jedi was light of foot but that wouldn’t save her if the floor fell out from beneath them without her notice.

“There will be war.”

She listened quietly while Cassius assessed some of the faded pictures that had been etched into the smooth stone. He mentioned that they might have been worshipping the sun and slowly her head shook. It was close, but given her knowledge of the Ansionian people involved, that didn’t sound quite right. “If it belonged to the ancestors of either Clan, if anything, they would be worshiping the wind and sky. Not the sun…”

They cremated their dead, certainly, but their ashes were scattered from the topmost peaks with the intention of returning them to the sky. Gianna had a new interesting thought, something she had never before considered since both the Borokii and the Januul had laid such heavy claims on the area ever since she’d first stepped foot from the Lighthawke. “…Perhaps it doesn’t stem from either…”

She had expected that they would need to go deeper into the ruins. They reached the point where her probots had failed and she reached into her pack to pull out a rebreather. She didn’t know what the air was like past this point and she didn’t want to take any chances. “Masks on, gentlemen. Not to sound like a fragged holo…But safety first. There are enough dangers here. We don’t need the air turning against us.”

Gianna angled her light down the staircase and began to descend. She could make out bits and pieces of debris lining the steps, but it wasn’t until she heard a solid crunch beneath her feet, that she realized what she was walking on. Bone fragments. Brittle and bleached from exposure. The flame-haired woman swallowed hard. Evidence of a grim fate for explorers who had found this location previously seemed to be written on every stone. She could feel sadness and phantom remnants of emotional despair trying to burrow beneath her skin. This place was unsettled. Broken. The area was unearthly quiet, without even the steady drip of water, or a gust of wind to stir the stale air.

She took care to avoid the gauzy webs created by arachnids, trying to shiver, every time she felt like she walked into one. More than once, she reached up to check the back of her neck, afraid of what she might find. Despite her rising heartbeat, she continued on, as always, looking for snares.

At the end of the hall sat a statue of a woman that looked neither human nor Ansionian. Gianna could tell from the weathered feminine form that it was female, but there was the distinct shape of something wrong, and it wasn’t until she got closer that she realized there were five serpentine heads. Empty braziers sat on either side of it but the Jedi remained still for a moment, watching, as an imaginary veil parted and the shadows moved. In a split second of Sight she saw bright fire burning and in that tempered brightness, she could almost see the snake-like heads move. She could hear voices. Conversation.

The vision faded as abruptly as it had come and the hall went dark again.

There was what appeared to be a broken portcullis behind the statue. Once upon a time, she could imagine that it may have opened easily, but that had been long ago. It was in pieces now. “We need to go through…It’s the only way…”, she murmured, raising her hand, causing the latticed grilles to move from their moorings. It appeared to be made of some sort of refined ore but the Jedi was able to remove enough that they would be able to pass.

When she moved forward again, despite her caution, she could feel a piece of mosaic floor sink beneath her right foot. “Stop!”, she shouted as she raised her arms, dropping her glowrod just in time, as from seemingly blank walls several dozen thin darts were suddenly deployed. Gianna protected herself and those around her with the Force, her quick actions causing the once sturdy darts to hold steady in midair, as if time had frozen. “Just…Wait…Just a moment…”

She wanted to be sure that was all she needed to expect as she moved off of the stone that had activated the darts in the first place. The piece of floor remained depressed lower than the rest, showing that it had already done all it could. Gianna exhaled slowly and began to move her hands in the air, collecting the weapons, before depositing them in the empty braziers. She didn’t want to simply leave them laying around. They were old, but, that didn’t mean they weren’t lethal. Some poisons were bacteria based. Those could last lifetimes. “What do you make of these Cassius? Do they fit with the time period of the rest of the ruins? I wouldn’t touch them but I am curious. I wish there was a way to know what was, is, in them.”

They still had the statue to pass and the next area to navigate. Gianna...Gianna still felt uneasy. This may not be the adventure she had promised.

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]​

 

[Cassius Droma]

He raised a brow at the insight Gianna had gained whilst living with the Ansionians, a small bit of knowledge that he lacked. Apparently, the ancestors of the current warring tribes didn’t consider the sun a deity, or at least one worthy of worship. Cassius knew pictograms like this, though – the sun was at the center of it. Perhaps it stood for something else?

When Gianna casually theorized that the painting wasn’t from either tribe, he somewhat nervously stole a glance at the Honor Guard that was with them. It wasn’t completely out of the question. Civilizations, in the grand scale of things, rose and fell all the time. For a civilization to have lived in this area, thrived, and then disappeared was a plausible theory. Not that he was willing to share that information out loud, however. If it belonged to neither, yet both tribes still laid claim to the land, then perhaps war would still break out, as combat would determine ownership, rather than ancestry. “Maybe…” Cassius said absentmindedly, almost a whisper.

The staircase to the lower levels lay before them, the gaping maw of a stone beast waiting to swallow them whole. Cassius unclipped a pouch on his belt and took out his rebreather. Affixing it to the front of his face, he took in a deep breath as the device clicked into place. It would certainly take some getting used to.

They made their way down the stairs, Cassius shining his concentrated beam of light ahead of them. A small crunching sound came from under Gianna, and he stopped dead cold to see what it was. Skeletal remains. Not surprising, to say the least – Cassius had probably seen dozens of discarded bones before. They looked humanoid, but it was so crushed and weathered that it could have easily been a beast, as well.

Still, the air was heavy with dread. As he was prone to visions of the past due to his psychometric abilities, Cassius found it difficult to extend his senses through space and yet not through time. It was possibly the Force ability he trained the most on, so that he didn’t experience visions of death and horror on accident. Things like that bred fear and anger – paths to the dark side.

His boots echoed throughout the first hall that they encountered. What little light they had illuminated the statue down the way, causing a rather ghostly image. As the redheaded Jedi experienced the vision, so did Cassius. For him, however, he heard a deafening howl, a blood-curdling scream that blasted towards him from a time long forgotten. Just before it could reach him, though, it stopped as the vision cleared, and it was dark again.

It shook him, that was for sure. His breathing escalated, but he soon caught himself and came back to a more calm state as Gianna cleared the portcullis for them. “Metal…” Cassius said, his voice muffled through the rebreather. “I would have expected stone…”

He was just taking his first step forward when Gianna commanded him to halt. Freezing, he turned as the darts shot at them. While confident he could have put up a shield in time for at least himself, Gianna had managed to protect all of them. Maybe she could teach him a thing or two – for someone who was supposed to be a Jedi for as long as he had been, he felt so far behind.

As the darts were placed into a safer place, he was asked his opinion on them. “Hard to tell,” he said, over-enunciating to compensate for the rebreather. “The stone work and metal would say yes, it fits, but I wouldn’t know for sure until I took some samples back to the Stardust.” He had a small metal container with him that easily fit on his belt, with a few segments for different samples. For now, he figured it best to wait on the scientific analysis until he could more clearly establish the historical context they were dealing with.

“What’s more interesting to me is her, though,” he pointed back at the statue. With her arms bent at the elbows, hands outstretched, she seemed to be some sort of gatekeeper. The precipice was right behind her, after all. “She doesn’t seem very welcoming, does she?” Her stance, as well as the fact that her head was five serpentine figures, didn’t bode well. Symbols of serpents and snakes were common in many cultures, and they rarely were omens of good will in this sort of context. Upon closer inspection, he could still see the weathered details of scales on them.

Part of him dreaded moving past her, but he knew they had to in order to solve this mystery.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

The Knight rolled their discoveries so far around in her mind. So far, it didn’t make much sense. “I feel like we’re trying to put together a puzzle where the pieces have all been flipped upside down.”, she spoke quietly, acknowledging that yes, the answers were likely all around them—however, hidden. She could feel his disbelief when she challenged the placement of the orb in the pictograms. Normally, she would be inclined to agree. Yet, she had been here for weeks and studying the Ansionians for much longer than that. They even told their younglings stories of the sky and moon. Occasionally, of the stars beyond.

Nothing, at least nothing meaningful, of the sun.

Gianna placed it on the back burner for now. Cassius seemed hesitant of the words she had spoken, of the ruins belonging to neither of the clans, whereas the red-head was less concerned. She had two confidences. One, that they would be able to find something to their benefit. Two, she believed in her own abilities. If this failed, though she hoped it would not, she would simply find a better way. Her mind brushed his, gentle as a summer’s breeze, without any attempted invasion in the slightest…’Don’t worry Padawan Droma…We will find a way.’

Her warm unspoken words were filled with hope. Pure, unadulterated, hope.

While she hoped that her telepathic murmur would have placed him at ease, it seemed that the Force had other ideas, and pulled on her senses. It was a common experience for her. To see flickers of things that had been, were, and what would be. They were not the full visions that a Seer might experience but it gave her enough. Little warnings, backed by intuition. There was some sort of leftover energy before the serpentine statue. Born of what, the Knight did not know.

What she did know, for certainty, was that despite the ages it was powerful enough to ensnare both of them. She could hear that the breathing of the man beside her had changed. He was startled, if, momentarily. An elegant brow knit together as her lips parted to ask, however, they were less than gentle interrupted. Her hands fell back to her sides as the darts made their way to the relative safety of the empty brazier. “Take what you need to make your analysis. For that, we can wait.”, she spoke lightly, letting him make his collections, while she surveyed the area around him. She didn’t want another pointy surprise.

Gianna listened to the dark-haired man make his observations. In her vision, the snake-like heads had moved three-hundred and sixty degrees. The firelight made them dance. Change. The cinnamon haired beauty began to step forward when Cassius looked like he was finishing up. “I think you’re right about that…”, her soft voice carried through the room, the inherent gentleness misplaced when combined with an almost sinister echo. “Though…I can’t decide.”

“Does she guard the way in? Or the way out?”

The diminutive Jedi slipped through the opening in the latticework of the portcullis and as an afterthought, the glowrod that she’d dropped, jumped back to her hand. She brought it in front of her and began to lead the way once more. They walked, and walked, for what felt like forever. The Honor Guard behind her had begun to complain, lightly, under their breath. Gianna pretended not to hear it, for the most part, however, she did occasionally hush them when she needed to hear better. She could feel a more cavernous area appearing up ahead. The walls were smooth, not like the rough terrain of a cave, but more of the temple. She couldn’t tell much else. Without warning the temple flooded with light. Deep lines of glowing burnished amber ran along the stone, deeply embedded, through the walls, ceiling, and floor. It lit the area as if it were daylight. “What…”, she trailed off, shocked, as she slowly lowered her glow rod. “What is this?”

In her experience, ancient, dilapidated ruins did not feature what looked to be rolling strips of energy. They made a slight hum, and when she held her hand near it, she could feel warmth. Whatever it was it made plenty of light to see by. Gianna noticed something else up ahead. Two large circular rings, in the make of the same metallic ore as the portcullis. One on either side of the room and raised on small platforms. There were statues of skeletal soldiers in armor that Gianna did not recognize, at all, with great swords of onyx clasped between their massive hands. Serpents adorned the hilts. They were less weathered than the statue outside. Unbothered, undisturbed by the elements. There seemed to be some sort of broken down control panel beside each, seemingly ancient, metal ring.

Most importantly…There didn’t seem to be any way out of this room.

“It’s a dead end.”

Gianna’s tone was filled with disbelief and skepticism. She entered the area carefully and began to look around, though, she did her best not to touch anything. The Jedi wasn’t certain what they were looking at and she didn’t have a clue on where to begin. At least, not yet. There was no possible way that they’d traveled this far only to find nothing at the end. It just didn’t make sense.

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]​

 

[Cassius Droma]

When she had reached out to him, consciousness meeting his, he couldn’t help but give her a small look. Although it was more becoming of a Jedi to be open to such things, Cassius hadn’t been a Jedi for the first twenty years of his life, and some habits were hard to shake off. He didn’t form connections or bonds that easily with people, and usually, he found telepathic communication with others difficult. However, when Gianna sent her message… it didn’t feel like she had wrenched his mind open in order to deliver it. It had been easy, like talking verbally.

Maybe that just went to show how comfortable he was already the redhead.

As requested, he stooped low to the brazier to collect a sample. Raising his hand, he connected to one of the darts with the Force, levitating it. Pulling out a small glass tube, Cassius placed the dart inside, securing the metal cap. The tube then went into a pouch on his belt, where an assortment of other tubes lay in wait. He thought only briefly about how much more focused he had to be in order to move a simple dart… as if his connection to the Force was fading. A trend he had begun to notice, unfortunately.

Training was indeed important, it seemed.

“Perhaps a warning,” Cassius said as he stood back up to full height, in reference to the serpentine-headed lady statue. “Like the other one out front.”

The ensuing walk was long, almost unnecessarily so. Almost… almost as if it was intentional. Cassius silently theorized that like the etching out front and the serpentine statue at the beginning of the hallway, it was another deterrent. It was perhaps meant to make travelers contemplate whether or not they wanted to continue, or maybe it was meant to test resolve.

Either way, Cassius’s feet were beginning to get sore.

A large chamber opened up before them, and as they stepped inside, the room seemed to explode with light. Cassius turned and craned his neck to watch as the luminescence danced up towards the ceiling,

Gianna’s voice pulled him back to the situation at hand. Cassius turned once again to take a look at the whole room, and he began to think with an archaeologist’s mind once again. “Whatever this is…” Cassius said, gaze still moving about the chamber, “it does not look Ansionian.” Maybe if they could definitively prove that, the Ansionians would allow them to explore this place further, and then seal it if need be. The light energy, the statues… they didn’t seem like they came from this world.

Cassius racked his brain to find commonalities between this and other places he’d studied, either in person or in records. His datapad, while probably not able to connect to the HoloNet all the way down here, had a large amount of data stored which detailed a lot of history. However, as Cassius kept staring at the walls, the statues, and the strange metal structures, there was a thread in his mind he began to follow, and neglected getting out his datapad at this time.

Those statues… what did they remind him of? It wasn’t the ebony swords, or even the snake hilts that caught his attention, it was the headpieces. Elongated horns, empty, soulless eyes…

Marka Ragnos. They reminded him of the ancient Sith Lord Marka Ragnos, although the design was slightly different. The time period would make sense, though, since this temple was younger than he had originally anticipated. He’d have to date the area, for sure, and he certainly hoped he was wrong.

It got him thinking about the Sith, though. Not just their numerous Lords, but also their architecture. That’s what clicked his interest – the strips of energetic light, like a veins in a body… he recognized it. It was typical of some Sith temples, dating back thousands of years. According to some scattered reports, a temple of Malachor had some similar lighting fixtures.

“I hope I’m wrong,” Cassius decided to vocalize his concerns, “but this architecture, and those statues bear a lot of resemblance to ancient Sith temples.”

Gianna lamented that they had found the end of their journey. “It’s possible…” Cassius said. “This could be a ritual chamber, the sole purpose of this structure. I wouldn’t be so sure, however.” He continued his search, the beam of light in his hand no longer necessary. If there was more to this, then they just needed to find the right switch…

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

“No, it does not.”, Gianna agreed softly, her tone a little distracted, but nonetheless touched with an edge of warmth. Her companion was already trying to categorize and break down the visions of twisted metal and horrific statues. To him, this was a find, an archaeological discovery. The flame-haired Jedi Knight could not say the same. The veins of amber light that traveled the walls had responded to the presence of organic beings. Or, perhaps, to the presence of Force Sensitives. There was a scent of death that lingered around the temple, perhaps, from the numerous Ansionians that had tried to gain entrance and failed.

But, it felt deeper, and almost paradoxical. For all of the death this place represented…It seemed that it was not yet dead. Had they truly awoken it? Or, had something, or someone else? She hadn’t seen any other footprints or signs of recent life, however, for some creatures that walked the galaxy that meant very little. So little, in fact, that a touch of dread began to pull down at the very tip of her heart. It was unbidden, an unfamiliar weight, but the pale-woman knew to treat her intuition with respect. She had learned a long time ago that there was nothing she could trust more than her Force driven instincts.

Silent feet swept across the dust covered floor with a fair amount of trepidation. Her eyes, though intelligent, seemed to grow cloudy. They become soft, a mist-like green, like a favorite sweater that had been washed one too many times. Turning to the Honor Guard, briefly, her stare pinned them where they stood. “Do not cross the threshold. Do not touch anything.”

Draxis of the Borokii opened his mouth to disagree and her sight momentarily sharpened upon his form.

“Do not argue.”

It was here that some of her gentle nature would fade despite the fact that her tone never rose from that of a casual conversation. She did not yell, she did not sneer, she merely instructed. Her kindness was not a mask that she wore, not when her spirit was so inclined toward the light, but there was a time and place for indulgences. That, was not now. Not when Cassius had begun to speak, confirming her quiet suspicions, and the eye-less statues felt like they were following her every move.

She rounded on one of the platforms and stepped up on the dais to the left. It seemed just as undisturbed as the rest of the temple. Only, something was different. The control panel, if it could be called that, held an impression. She couldn’t quite tell what it was and leaned closer. “There’s something...”, she murmured, squinting a little bit, before her heart skipped. Realization, clear and strong, dawned fully and she took a step back. “We are not alone, here.”

Whether her words referred to a physical presence, or that of the metaphysical, it would remain unclear. Perhaps, the young woman was uncertain herself. Either way, she could feel something, a heaviness, which seemed to grow with every passing moment.

“I also do not think we are the first to enter.”

Amber light flickered along the panel. Sooner than later, it formed symbols that she did not recognize, blearily jumping before her eyes. It cast an intermittent glow on her face as the symbols changed, flipping from one thing to the next, until it eventually settled to something that she COULD read. It was not Ansionian, not even Primitive or Ancient Ansionian. It was her preferred language. Basic. “The final lesson. The final warning. Blessed you are, however, it will aid you no longer. The closer you get to the light the greater your shadow becomes.”

The light moved. The words disappeared and the room shuddered. Tense, Gianna waited, but nothing seemed to happen. Pulling her gaze away from the metallic panel and the dais she looked toward Cassius and her lips parted to speak, to suggest that now might be a sound time to leave, but the sound died in her throat. Behind him, one of the statues was not where it had once been. It seemed to have frozen the second she looked at it. “Cassius…Come to me. Don’t turn, just come this way. Slowly.”

There were three others in the room. All of which she could keep in sight if she didn’t blink. The Honor Guard looked extremely startled and their surprise made Gianna believe that none had seen the inanimate stonework move. It also didn’t look quite the same. From a distance, they had been frightening, but the closer they got the more fearsome they became. Bland and serene facial features turned more horrific, bestial, and almost demonic with clawed fingers and sharp teeth filling wide open mouths.

“Keep your eyes on them…We’re going to move toward the exit. We need to go back the way we came.”

A war cry escaped the representative from the Januul. It was loud, bellowing, and the cinnamon-haired woman could feel her heart drop as Vol threw himself into the room. She didn’t yet know the rules, but from the sudden mythical movement, she understood that they were all in danger. This temple was not the greatest Ansionian find of this century, it was more than that, and not a place they ought to linger. They needed to leave, seal it, and find a way to discern what damage, if any, had been done by other hands. “Vol—“, Gianna started to shout, watching as he drew a sword, only for the statue to move.

It was fast. Faster than her eyes could follow. She could not react quickly enough, no matter how skilled, and could only watch as a blade of onyx tore through the body of the Ansionian Honor Guard. It sliced him in half, spraying off-colored blood on the wall behind him, and it was only then, in her horror, that she realized she had taken her eyes from the statue to their right. She whirled around and came face to face with a monster that had moved without sound.

It froze when spotted, sword raised, as if fully activated by the onset of violence.

Draxis of the Borokii stared, jaw slack, the hand of the hilt of his weapon. He didn’t know how to make sense of what he was seeing, or, how to deal with the sudden death of a man he hadn’t particularly liked. The killing had been done in less than a second. “Jedi Aegis. I think you may need to hurry.”

The blood from Vol was sinking into the stone. The amber lights were glowing brighter along the walls, as if fed, and the metallic gates seemed to change. The greenish oxidation seemed to peel away from the rings on either dais leaving a burnished gold, new, and bright underneath. The energy ran along the edges before coalescing, and finally, forming a solid wall. It moved, as if in flux, almost like a wall of reflective water by sight.

A stone panel from the ceiling slid down in front of Draxis without warning. It removed their only exit—trapping them inside.

Gianna tried to use the Force to push the statue closest to them away, however, nothing happened. It didn’t move, flinch, or even seem to notice. She had her lightsaber, but she wasn’t certain if attacking outright would cause it to react, and slice them through, the same way the other had torn apart Vol. Her thoughts turned to the metallic rings. The gates that had been activated. Rifts or portals? Could they be crossed?

‘We can try and use our sabers to fight and carve our way out…but I think…I think we may need to go through.’

​

​

[member="Cassius Droma"]​

 

[Cassius Droma]

Cassius had been kneeling next to a fallen console, similar to the one that Gianna was inspecting. The stone podium had been snapped in half, and because of that, the amber energy that flowed throughout the stone works of the room didn’t touch it. He squinted as he tried to read the characters. They were different than the ones that had been etched on the entrance outside – a language he’d never seen before. Or maybe he had, but only in ancient texts…

He stood and turned to face Gianna, as it appeared she was about to say something. As her expression changed, Cassius could have sworn he heard movement behind him – stone grinding against stone. He froze, similar to his redhead friend, and kept a watchful eye on the statues around them. Was it possible that it had moved? He didn’t dare look to check. As instructed, the young archaeologist began to creep back towards his partner, but then…

One of their brave Honor Guards decided to rush the room. Cassius thought of maybe pushing the man back into the hallway with the Force, but before he could even put his hand up to guide his actions, he had been cleaved in two, pink intestines mixing with dark blood to give a grisly sight. As if in slow motion, he could see Gianna turn to face the statue that had been leaping towards her, stopping it with her sight. With the other Honor Guard looking at the slain man in horror, and Gianna facing her own attacker, Cassius was spinning before he even realized the one behind him had gone unchecked. The Force was beckoning him to move, spin, defend.

His emerald blade sprang to life as he moved it in an arc with his spin in a fluid motion. With a meaty hum, his saber sliced through the black sword that would have plunged into his heart had he been a microsecond late. Firmly planting his back foot, Cassius had his lightsaber in his favored ox guard, tip pointed at the statue that had now been frozen. His sword had only been chipped off by about a fourth – still a dangerous weapon. Cassius considered himself lucky.

He slowly began to back away, step by step, towards Gianna. While the room changed around them, sealing them in and cutting them off from their last guard, Cassius was completely focused on the face of the statue before him. Although the statue still had no eyes, he could feel that it was looking straight at him, with its pointed nose and gaping maw angled in his direction. Intricate patterns, slightly worn due to time, had been etched across the face and into what could pass as its “skin”, and within those impressions he could see the faint glow of the amber light, the same energy that powered the chamber.

Despite his stance becoming somewhat more relaxed as he neared Gianna, his overall demeanor certainly did not. The two platforms with metallic arcs had reformed themselves and formed some sort of wavy, sparkling membrane. He’d never seen anything like it before, and certainly hadn’t read any records that described the phenomenon.

Gianna gave two choices, neither of them very appealing. Without thinking about how this was the first time he telepathically communicated with someone else, he said to her, “They’re too fast for us to fight. If we try to leave now, they’ll probably just kill us.” He huffed through his nose. “If this is a Sith temple… I certainly don’t like the idea of going through whatever that is. Everything up until this point – the etching outside, the statute of the serpentine woman, the long walk here, the statue guardians… it’s all been to test our resolve. We can’t turn back now.”

“We have to go through.”

Slowly, Cassius began to step up to the metal portcullis, his boots making a more clanging sound as he reached the metal. He dared not take his eyes off of the statues, so he used his peripheral vision to examine the possible doorway. It didn’t seem to go anywhere – all he could see was the distorted view of the other side of the room.

Still, he waited for Gianna to come join him. They’d go in at the same time.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Unexpected.

It was a word she often used to describe her adventures when recalling them for the benefit of others, but this was not quite the same. Olive eyes had lingered on the remains of Vol a little bit too long. It was a mistake with danger so imminent, but the senseless loss caused her soul to burn, as death always equated to heartbreak. The small woman had been around long enough to realize that there was no shame in returning to the Force. She fully acknowledged that death was natural. Yet… The sorrow of those left behind was nearly unbearable. Gia was quick to respond with her abilities in most situations but the death of the Honor Guard came much too quickly.

All she could do was watch blood run down the weathered stone walls. There were many wounds that she could mend. Not this. Not when the victim had literally been sliced in half.

Thankfully, Cassius reacted rapidly, taking a decent sized chunk out of one of their swords with a burst of green light. As she regained her focus she noted that she could hear the ancient machinery humming louder. The warmth from the amber lines that ran through the equipment, walls, floor and even the statues seemed to grow more intense. No matter what else was happening in the room, once the exit was sealed, they were left with the fact that there were still four stone monsters standing. They were still outnumbered. Her mind was whirling through invisible light years as she tried to figure out what it was they were missing. Fighting these abominations, no matter how menacing they seemed, just felt incorrect. Not wrong. Just…

Erroneous.

The soft baritone that belonged to Cassius echoing through the confines of her mind was not exactly a surprise. She had found his mind easily enough upon arrival, his presence nigh still, like calm waters. Once found, the exchange was more like a handshake, and less of an intrusion. He would get used to it in time. Were the situation not so dire, she would have smiled at his innate use, but instead, she remained silent. Tense. Though, thought out all of that, she still had not reached for her lightsaber. Something stayed her hand.

‘We go through.’ she agreed softly, backing up as the Padawan did, making certain that she stood between him and the statues. She reached for his arm without looking, sending up a silent prayer that the physical connection would keep them together, before stepping fully back through the pliable portal. She didn’t know exactly what they were walking through. A door, a portal, a window, a gate. At the very least, she knew it was a method of travel. Activated by what? She remained uncertain.

Perhaps, the presence of a force-user. Light or Dark. Gianna still suspected that they were not the first to cross this threshold, however, she couldn’t be sure as to when the last time these units had been actuated. Weeks ago? Decades? Centuries? Nevertheless, passing through almost felt like walking through a waterfall, complete with pressure all around, before they found themselves somewhere new. Strangely enough, despite feeling like she’d been submerged, they were both bone dry.

It looked like the same dusky stone floors. Similar ruins, unless her eyes were playing tricks, however, there was flowering greenery growing through the cracks. Beauty, trying to force its way into something broken and dreary. Threads of amber light spiraled through the rock, once again, lighting the way—to which there seemed to be only one direction to go. She breathed in slowly through her rebreather and took precious seconds to find her center. They were alive. Breathing. They still had their gear, their weapons, and each other. Nothing currently seemed to be trying to kill them. “Cassius…Are you all right?”, she questioned gently from behind her mask, concern flowing as she turned to look at his face, or at least—what his mask let her see.

Jade eyes flickered, looking for signs of something wrong, far more worried about him over herself. No bruising, no darkening of the skin, no bloodshot eyes. That was good. The HUD on her wrist began to chirp, noting at the air was breathable, and safe. She didn’t remove the rebreather. Not yet. Instead, she tried to open a map, to see if she could get any signal at all, but the device could only show what it had stored.

`Excuse me…`, a small voice called from nothing, suddenly, almost startling Gianna. Mostly, at once again hearing Basic, in a place where she should not. It echoed from everywhere and nowhere all at the same time. ‘Excuse me travelers... Can you hear me?’

The flame-haired Jedi Knight turned slowly in a circle. There was nowhere for anything to hide and no additional sense of dread. No more invisible weight seemed to add upon her shoulders, at least, no more than there already was. At first, Gianna did not respond. In a place like this, she held a certain level of suspicion.

`Do you plan to enter the labyrinth?`

​

Breathing in deeply, she turned around again, and this time she saw a shimmering of the air. She took a few steps forward and breathed in deeply when the apparition of a young woman materialized. Her features were obscured. It was hard to tell how old she was, but her voice rang of manners long gone, and of untainted youth. “It seems to be the only path we have to take.”

‘Please, reconsider. Find another way.’

“Why is that?”

‘It is not safe here. Travelers get lost inside these walls. Once you enter there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to get out.’

“We cannot stay here.”, Gianna began, trying to find the words, to convince the spirit to give them more information without seeming like she was prying. If she truly was a ghost, not a projection, or a trick of technology, there was a high likelihood of upsetting her. If she ran off or dissipated they would be back to square one… “Can you tell us a little bit about the labyrinth? Is there anything that might make it easier to navigate?”

‘Can I not convince you to turn back?’

“I’m afraid not.”

The apparition sighed heavily. Cautiously, she looked over her shoulder, before she began to focus on the two humans before her. She seemed bothered by something, perhaps the fact that they intended to enter, but she didn’t seem unwilling to help. ‘Very well. If that is your decision I beg of you to heed my words very carefully.’

‘The labyrinth is guarded by a mysterious power. I do not understand it fully, however, there are several totems you will need to converse with if you wish to proceed. The only problem is…The others are old. They have been here a long time. Longer than I have. It makes them fickle. They are not always honest.’, the girl responded, seeming almost a little embarrassed or frustrated by it. ‘You will need to use your instincts to guide you. To decide who is false and who is true. Water, Fire, Earth, Air, Darkness, and Light.’

‘I am the Light. I will always guide you. The Darkness… The Darkness is not kind.’

Before she could pose any more questions, such as where they were, or how they’d arrived the specter of the young woman vanished.

Gianna paused, before glancing back at Cassius, uncertain of exactly what they were dealing with. She had never heard of anything like this, but, since they couldn’t go back to the room with the statues they really had no choice but to press onward. She reached for her connection to the Force. It was resilient, unwavering, and unbroken by their transition from one location to the next. It gave her strength. Hope. “Have you crossed anything like this before? I must admit, this is new…But the Force is with us. I don't like it...But it does seem to feel as if the only way out is through...”

Green eyes turned out toward the mouth of the arched stone hallway. It widened. Beyond it, she could see light flicker, and could also tell that the area became larger. Careful footsteps led her forward and she could now understand why the apparition had referred to the ruins as a labyrinth. It was gigantic. The sight that greeted her was that of high stone walls with a forked walkway that she couldn't see the end of. The strips of amber light helped, but, there was only so much they could do. At the very least toward the end of the path on the right side, it appeared to be brighter than the left. "It looks like we have a fifty-fifty chance of getting this right.", she murmured with a soft sigh, truly, having never liked gambling in any sense. Gianna, however, was the kind of person who would always say that they had a chance of getting it right. The slender Jedi would not imply that they had a fifty-fifty chance of getting it wrong. "Stay close. Listen to your feelings, to the Force, and let it show you the way."

She could hear something. Also, from the right side of the fork.

`Iron roof, glass…`

​

Spoiler

The entirety of what Gianna is hearing is: 'Iron roof, glass walls...burns and burns...and never falls.' -- Feel free to have Cassius hear it all and take them down either the left or right fork. It will be repeated over and over. Also--figure out the little riddle. IT'S EASY SO NO CHEATING!

[member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

While Gianna’s touch was reassuring, the Jedi still found his muscles tense, his eyes darting back and forth. He tried to get control of his breathing. A Jedi wasn’t supposed to feel fear, or at the very least could suppress it, but he couldn’t fight his animal instincts. They were trapped in the bottom of a very deep well… and there didn’t seem to be a clear way out.

Except through the portal.

They crossed, and he could feel the energy rushing around them – perhaps it was what was transporting them. Either way, he was less focused on analysis, and more focused on survival now. He would catalog what he saw, but only think on it later. Theories had to be put aside for the moment. Coming out of the other side, Cassius saw that they were perhaps in the same structure, but in a different part.

“I’m fine,” Cassius nodded to Gianna, his voice still muffled through the rebreather. He gave her a once-over as well – nothing seemed to be wrong physically, which they both shared.

Extinguishing his lightsaber for the time being, he almost activated it again when he heard a voice. While the apparition was haunting, Cassius couldn’t help but try and determine its origin. A projection, a hologram… those were all possible. But something this ancient, working after all these years? The knights in the other room didn’t feel mechanical, and neither did this being.

Apparently, turning off the analytical part of his brain was an exercise more difficult than he had anticipated.

Cassius listened as Gianna conversed with the spirit, trying to take in every word she said – it could mean life or death for the duo. When she had spoken of other travelers, that piqued Cassius’s interest. There had been others? Maybe they were the ones who had scribbled on the ruins outside. He refrained from asking to be spared possible details of gruesome deaths in the labyrinth.

Six totems, all presumably represented by humanoid figures like the apparition – the Light, as she called herself. Elemental in nature, and all to judge them on their worthiness.

His redheaded friend asked if he had ever encountered anything like this before. He slowly shook his head as he peered down the path. “No… I haven’t. Strange temples, eerie atmosphere, yes, but…” he looked back at the amber gelatin-looking portal, “that, this… never. The Light was concerned for us, but she didn’t say this was impossible.”

He’d said it without realizing it was somewhat hopeful. It had been an observation, but as the words left his mouth, they made him feel a little better. Having Gianna helped, as well. She was an anchor in the storm of his mind, his growing worry over his slowly loosening hold on the Force. The Force was with them, she had said, and Cassius had felt a small twinge of doubt. Yet, he could feel it – perhaps like a thin sheet now rather than a thick wool blanket, but it was there. Secure, protecting him, guiding him…

But slowly fading.

They had a choice in front of them. Two paths, each with presumably vastly different results. A voice echoed from one side, and it sounded like some sort of riddle. Glass walls, iron roof… burning? What was like that? An engine? Hyperdrive? Furnace?

“Fire, light…” he nodded down the right path, the well-lit one. “The Light will always guide us.” It was his best guess, and he started taking his first steps towards it. His lightsaber was still in his hand, ready to be flicked on at a moment’s notice… but something told him that it wouldn’t save them.

[member="Gianna Aegis"]

 

[Gianna Aegis]

“Peace, my friend. You must find it. Even in the face of death and adversity.”, Gianna spoke softly to the Jedi Adventurer at her side, feeling his unease through the Force, just as clearly as she felt her own. They had just witnessed the death of a good man. A loyal soldier, one who had come to this pit of puzzling despair, of his own free will. The cinnamon haired woman would find herself wracked with guilt when the time was appropriate—but that would come once they made it to the surface. Not a moment before. The taller man claimed to be fine. Gia returned the words with a gentle nod of her head.

They both knew it wasn’t true. They were both fine, physically, perhaps. But that was where being fine stopped and ended.

The ghostly apparition, the Light, left Gianna with more questions than answers. At the very least they seemed to have some sort of direction. It was better than nothing in a place where none of the normal rules seemed to apply. The flame-haired woman began to press on. Mostly, because the long hallway would not walk itself, and also to keep moving. They only had so much water and rations available.

If the Labyrinth didn’t kill them starvation and dehydration were sure to do the trick.

Gia listened when Cassius agreed that he was also, for the most part, out of his depth. There was a comfort in their shared ignorance but the Jedi Knight would never say such a thing aloud. Most would not understand the sentiment. Nevertheless, Cassius spoke with a touch of hope, and the gentle woman smiled faintly in response. No. The Light had not stated their trek was impossible. Simply difficult and rather dangerous.

While her friend held his lightsaber at the ready Gianna did not. Even while they faced the demonic statues from before, her own weapon, remained stashed. Instead, the olive-eyed Jedi seemed content to tug at the threads of the Force and let her abilities guide her. Like a river, free flowing, it carried her along without thought or qualms about where it might be taking her. The slender woman had faith. It was unbreakable and exact—holding only the truest convictions in balance.

The voice up ahead pulled them along, a teasing rhyme escaping throaty and dry vocal chords as if it knew only that which it had already spoken.

’Iron roof, glass walls...burns and burns...and never falls.’

The path to the voice was smooth. As if it had been undisturbed for quite some time. Gianna moved with Cassius until they found themselves in a cavernous area. There were a series of at least five tunnels splitting off from it. All seemed identical. A spirt, much like the Light, flickered in and out of sight in the middle of the area. He was a stout man, clad in dark robes, with flame leaping from the inside of a dark hood. Gianna could not see his face as he slowly paced. She was not sure she wanted to. From appearances alone, combined with the riddle, she was willing to bet that this was the Fire totem.

It looked at them and Gianna felt her blood run cold. It did not simply see them, more than anything, it saw through them. It seemed listless. Almost, sad, in a terrifying way. The crimson-haired woman breathed. How did they converse with something that kept repeating the same phrase over and over? “We need to leave this place. Will you show us the way?”

Almost immediately the hooded figure snapped toward her. Not only did he look at her, but he appeared right in front of her, stopped at the edge of a worn circle engraved in the floor that she had never noticed before. Her breath caught in her throat, but she didn’t flinch, and muted-jade eyes stared back into the burning darkness.

’Iron roof, glass walls...burns and burns...and never falls.’

Instinctively, she realized that there was a puzzle to be solved. Why else would he say the same, cryptic words, over and over? Quietly, she wracked her brain, trying to come up with an answer. “He can’t cross the line.”, she murmured slowly, before turning her gaze to Cassius, and then back to the slowly burning specter. Gianna had no idea what the answer to this puzzle might be. “Any ideas as to what he’s referring to?”

​

Spoiler

I know you cheated XD - Give burning man his answer and feel free to have him point us to a pathway. Choose one through five from left to right and we'll encounter our next totem. Alternatively, you can give him the wrong answer and see what happens [member="Cassius Droma"]