Private A Good Start

[Jacen Nimdok]

“Perfectly fine, dear,” Arimanes replied to Elise’s shocked exclamation. He was still lying on the floor at the other end of the room, his lightsaber in one hand and Nimdok in the other, but his sense of humor remained unaffected by the ordeal. “I didn’t know you could do a backflip like that. Excellent form!”

The Shroud, already wounded from the initial strike of Arimanes’ lightsaber, no longer had the element of surprise or stealth. It had come to kill Nimdok, and it needed to fulfill its mission, but the odds were stacked against it. So it did the only thing it could.

It became incorporeal once more and passed through the floor, its presence fading from their senses. The “smell” abruptly dissipated as the Shroud made its escape, fleeing the house to seek respite and heal from its wounds.

Several minutes passed before Arimanes was willing to turn off his lightsaber and let go of the weapon he had been clutching so tightly. With the crystal no longer stopping him, Nimdok’s spirit passed through his body like a mist, settling in awkwardly, half-drained. Arimanes winced as the two became one again. Oh, that didn’t feel so good…

“I believe… that creature… was what was making me feel so tired earlier,” he said, not sure how to explain what had just happened. “It must have followed me here. Probably some kind of demonic assassin… A few of the Sith are very fond of such beings.”

He rose unsteadily to his feet, feeling far worse than he had before he fell asleep. Sure enough, he had hardly taken his first steps before he collapsed on the floor again. Miri ran over to his side as he propped himself up in a sitting position with his back against the bed. She threw her little arms around him in a big warm hug, which made him feel a little better, though he was still very weak.

“This is nothing new for me,” he tried to reassure Elise and Kurenai, although given the circumstances and how awful he looked, it probably wasn’t very convincing. “I’ve dealt with the Sith sending hunters and assassins after me before. There's always someone I've managed to anger with my actions, stealing artifacts, hiding information, hoarding power in my own way. In fact, it’s becoming so common that I’m starting to get used to it…”

Granted, he was far from proud of it. Especially when it made others suffer. At least this particular creature hadn't attacked anyone else. It only seemed interested in draining Nimdok.

Elise Ike​

 

[Elise Ike]

"I've been around long enough to pick up some trick". Elise trmarked before attempting to launch a wave of Sith Lighting at the form before it skipped away, leaving a chard mark on the ground where the long purple bolts landed, earning a dagger eye from her daughter as the women promptly focused back on the injured person.

"Just because it isn't anything new doesn't mean you can just brush it off, do you need energy? We can both help with that". Vampires though usually the ones draining others did have the abilities to reverse it, with a slight detriment to their own wellbeing, though Elise was certain she could find someone to nibble on in the village.

"If that thing is still around we can't drop our guard... I have to go find Akari, I hope she is okay". Force knows if the shroud has approached her the young girl would have attempted to fight it. Having a bad ass mother that could fight a Wookie bare handed and win with ease did make her over confident way to much.

Jacen Nimdok

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

“Oh, I’ve never dealt with anything quite like this before… a strange incorporeal entity that drains its victims life force like some kind of energy vampire…” Glancing up at Elise, he smiled vaguely, then hesitated before answering. “That probably will help. Although it was only N—uh, only part of me that was drained. Rather badly, might I add…”

Nimdok’s spirit inside him felt as feeble as a newborn, hanging on by a mere thread. He kept his eyes on Miri, as though just seeing her would be enough to keep him tethered to the world of the living, as he slowly pulled himself up from the floor onto the bed. “You stay here with us, gelfling,” he told the girl, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. “Elise is going to help me, so don’t be scared.”

As Kurenai hurried out of the room, he turned to Elise. “I’m sorry about this. I mean, I should probably be apologizing to Kurenai, seeing as it’s her house being invaded by evil ghosts trying to kill me, but I imagine you didn’t envision our visit turning out this way either. I certainly didn’t expect it, even though I always try to expect the unexpected…”

He kept rambling on, embarrassment coupled with shock and exhaustion making him sound as if he were drunk, and would continue until Elise interrupted or bit him, or both.

Meanwhile, Akari would likely remain blissfully unaware of the fleeing Shroud, which remained incorporeal and paid her no heed. It was under orders not to cause collateral damage by attacking civilians and others, hence why it had ignored Elise in favor of attacking Nimdok. If anything, Akari would probably just be confused at the sight of her mother running out of the house with her lightsaber in her hand.

Elise Ike​

 

[Elise Ike]

"Don't group he in with that thing, I have more in common with an Anzat then a Sith spawn". Elise replied, sliding a hand along Jacen Nimdok neck, slowly leaning in to seemingly kiss the man. "You will feel a small prick, similar to a needle, also you may feel.... aroused a little". Some people likened a reverse vampire bite to an weak aphrodisiac, combine that with Elise being quite the nice looking girl and the two's already intimate relationship, things could get out of hand.

"Don't worry Miri, I'll take good care of your dad". Her tongue would lightly brush against Nimdok's skin before the two prongs of her canine would sink in, pricking and penetrating the skin as they pushed in. The slight pain soon replaced with a warm fuzzy feeling as Elise transferred her energy into. The feeling soon washing down his entire body, hopefully revitalizing his condition, both physically and spiritually.

She remained their for a few seconds, slightly hugging her lower before pulling away, a hand lightly rubbing the new bite mark as it healed. The energy transfers giving him a slight boost to regeneration. It would only last a few hours at best but any light cuts or scratches would vanish within a minute or so. "I am sure Kurenai isn't angry, she had faced worse over the years, better question is are you feeling better honey"?

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

At the touch of her tongue to his bare skin, he shivered a little, tilting his head to give her full access to his neck. The wounded spirit within him squirmed, latent memories of a childhood phobia of needles resurfacing as he felt her teeth, long and sharp, sink into a vein. But the pain was soon chased away by the feeling of warmth that suffused his limbs, accompanied by an intensely pleasant sensation that bordered precariously between the exciting effects of a potent stimulant and… well. She wasn’t kidding.

While the physical pleasure of the bite was shared by both, Nimdok’s soul absorbed most of the jolt of energy Elise provided. It rejuvenated him rapidly, giving him more than he’d had in the first place. He sighed in contentment as she pulled away, hardly aware of the mark on his neck as the wound closed beneath her fingertips.

“That was… interesting. I feel much better.” He sat up in bed, wrapped his arms around Elise and kissed her passionately.

“Hey!” Miri protested, wrinkling her nose. “That’s not allowed! You're not married!"

Breaking the kiss, Nimdok smiled. “If things keep going well, we may be soon.” But they really shouldn’t get too carried away, not at a time like this. Disengaging from Elise, he asked the obvious question. “What should we do now?”

Elise Ike​

 

[Elise Ike]

Her hand remained on Jacen Nimdok for a few moment, letting him recover, giving a small smile as he came back around, though her own vision was a little woozy. "That is gowwwmghf". Any words were cut off as Jacen Nimdok kissed her, Elise returning the gesture, having to hold in a chuckle at Miri's comment.

"My, if she is mad at this, well", then who knew what she would say if she learnt about their other interaction with each other. But that was something for when she was older. "As for what we should do... that saber you had, could it harm the shade like creature"? From what she had seen the saber was the thing keeping it at bay before Kurenai had come in.

"One thing I know for sure is that my daughter will want to strangle said sith spawn for daring to intrude upon her house... she had quite a temper".

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

"As for what we should do... that saber you had, could it harm the shade like creature?”

“Certainly.” Nimdok looked over the edge of the bed, where the lightsaber lay discarded on the floor. It would’ve been great if he had any skill with telekinesis and could simply call the hilt to him from across the room, but alas, he did not. So he settled for standing up and retrieving it by hand. The opportunity to get up and move proved that he was indeed revitalized by Elise’s transfer of energy. He felt as if he could walk for several miles without getting tired.

“I suppose our best bet would be to try and track the Sithspawn down before dawn—don’t give it a chance to recover,” he said. Glancing back at Elise, he gave her a quick once-over. She seemed a little paler than usual, her movements slightly unbalanced. “You’re going to have to feed soon, aren’t you? This would be a good opportunity to do that and kill that thing for good while we’re at it.” Assuming the creature could be killed.

“Kurenai can assist us—although someone will have to stay behind with the children.” It wouldn’t be a good idea to bring Miri and Akari along, even if the Sithspawn was only interested in killing Nimdok.

Elise Ike​

 

[Elise Ike]

Well, that was good, though she had a feeling such a saber wouldn't be able to be held by either her of Kurenai without damaging them. A slight problem with being a family of dark side users, even if they were not your stereotypical Sith.

"We should probably start looking as soon as Kurenai get back... I, I will stay behind and look after the kids, I don't think I'd be very useful in a fight, more so if you have to use that saber, Kurnai may be affected a bit but she is tough". The women could walk off almost mortal wound so being uncomfortable with a sith spawn killing lightsaber was nothing.

As she finished her sentence Kurenai reemerged with Akari in hand, placing the small confused girl down onto the bed as she turned toward the rest. What was more surprising was that she had come back fully equipped in her body armor, her own lightsaber hanging from her belt along with a glaive like weapon on her back which emanated it's own force signature.

"Nimdok, are you recovered? We can't waste anytime if we want to track down that thing", her voice being stern but also somewhat excited. The prospect of fighting a Sith spawn seeming to be almost sport for the accomplished fighter.

Jacen Nimdok

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

“All right.” Giving Elise a small smile, he turned to Miri. “You stay here with Elise and Akari. I’ll be back soon.”

“But—”

“No buts.” Nimdok stooped to kiss her forehead. “Be good, sweetheart.”

Finally, he faced Kurenai, raising an eyebrow at her armor and weapon. “Well, you certainly are prepared.” In comparison, he was not at all prepared, even though he was the primary target of their foe.

Making his way over to the luggage Elise had brought upstairs earlier, he opened his bag and pulled out a small pouch of Vita Stones and what looked like a long duster jacket. Once he put the jacket on, however, the cloth shifted and resolved itself into something more resembling armor.

“Polyweave,” he explained. “Neat stuff. Expensive, though. Good thing I’ve got connections.”

Pocketing the pouch of stones and his lightsaber, he bid Elise and the girls goodbye as he followed Kurenai out.

~~~

Miles away, in the middle of a forest clearing, the wounded Shroud practically whimpered at the feet of its master.

“Stupid thing!” the Sith woman growled, kicking a booted foot at it. Her leg passed harmlessly through the immaterial creature, who continued to wordlessly plead and pant.

“Don’t just… float there! Go feed on something!” she commanded it. “Snack on the village idiot, or a homeless person! If you don't recover and gather your strength, you'll be completely useless to me!”

The Shroud slinked away to do as it had been told, headed for the nearby village.

Elise Ike​

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

Akari moved and sat on her grandmother lap, just like she did with her dad when mother had 'work' to do, herself looking to Miri with a smile. "Don't worry I'll keep you company, we can do so many fun things here". And now their was only one person to supervise, her diabolical schemes could now take place without.

"I'll be at the front, don't take to long, mother, I trust you will be fine"? After all she had had worse, something Jacen Nimdok probably knew already when the two talked about their pasts together. Elise responded with a small no giving her lover a slight smirk, "I have a feeling you will be in store for a very fun, Kurenai is quite the fighter, happy hunting you two".

She waved them both off before looking to Miri, patting the bed next to her in attempt to course the young girl to join her new family and hold up. "Anyone hungry"?

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

After giving Elise a mock salute, Nimdok followed Kurenai outside, holding his lightsaber at the ready. The weapon still tugged at the suture between his two souls, but he felt more than strong enough to endure the steady waves of energy now. But now there was the question of how to find the Shroud.

“How do you hunt a Sithspawn that has no true body?” he wondered aloud. “The same way you would hunt a demon, I suppose…”

Despite the creature’s incorporeality, there was something reminiscent of alien blood in the air, ebbing from the Shroud’s wound. Kurenai, perhaps because of her vampiric heritage, would be able to taste it. Nimdok, having supped from Elise’s energies, had a far more vague sense of it as well.

As they veered away from the house and closer toward the village, the miasma from before suddenly returned in full force—an unmistakable stench of darkness and decay. It was coming from the village, where the Shroud had once more taken material form in order to feed...

Kurenai Yumi​

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

She turned to face her new stepfather as he left the main house, giving a short nod. "If it lives and breaths with a physical body, even if only temporary it will bleed, if it bleeds I can find it and if I can find it I can kill it". She had hunted quite a few sith spawn in her days, though a phantom was rather new. That meant a possible learning curve the two would have to over come on the spot.

"I know this also may sound strange, but if that thing attacks in anyway, be it mainly physical, let me deal with it, from what I saw in that room you probably don't have a pain tolerance anywhere near mine and I'd hate to see you losing a limb and fainting". Before she could explain her head darted towards the village down the hill from the Dojo, a heavy frown coming over Kurenai's face. "It's back, crap, come on and stay close"!

Without any hesitation she leaped over the front gate, racing down the slope towards the dark sensation of the shade.

Jacen Nimdok

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

At least Kurenai was confident in her abilities. Alas, that confidence didn’t extend to Nimdok. Not that he was complaining—he had virtually no combat prowess beyond his shapeshifting abilities, and those would be largely useless against an enemy that could become incorporeal at a moment’s notice.

Nimdok struggled to keep up with Kurenai as she took off running. She was in far better shape than him; by the time they reached the edge of the village, he was quite out of breath.

The dark presence was everywhere here. Nimdok felt sick to his stomach. He had wounded the Shroud. It was likely attempting to heal itself, most likely through feeding. That seemed the most obvious explanation for its sudden manifestation here in a populous area.

“Oh hell,” he muttered. “Kurenai, can you sense it? Which house is it in?”

They had to act fast before anyone was killed and the Shroud had a chance to repair, possibly even becoming stronger. He didn’t want to consider the possibility that they were already too late...

Kurenai Yumi​

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

As Jacen Nimdok came up from behind she was already kneeling down hand stretched out as she felt through the force. What ever it was that had return it was most certainly back into its physical form, her other free hand reaching back to the force enchanted blade on her back.

”It’s here, I believe in that house down their, we need to be quiet to get close lest have it run away on us again”. If they managed to catch if too perhaps it could lead them back to the creator, what ever Sith created this beast was surely still on world, they were egotistical like that. “We need a way to draw him out... perhaps I can be bait of some sort if you have the blade, I don’t think I can use it for long without the beam hurting me”.

Though able to heal easily enough she’d rather not take the risk of being weaker when facing this thing unless it was needed.

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

The plan wasn't bad, although Nimdok didn’t like the idea of having to face the creature head-on by himself. “Okay,” he agreed, dropping the volume of his voice to a whisper. “I can wait next to the entrance while you draw it out into the open. If I were you, I'd attack it first, see if that glaive you've got can wound it. Make it fast—if there are people in that house, they could be in danger.”

The house Kurenai had indicated was old and in poor condition, with paint peeling off the walls. As they approached, it became clear that the place was abandoned… or at least, no one was officially living there. Other signs of occupation were evident—scraps of clothing and blankets, food wrappers and other trash littered the front yard. Vagrants must have made this place their home.

Nimdok tried to move quickly and quietly, clutching his lightsaber tightly in his hand. The aura of the Shroud was thickest here, polluting the air and adding to the creepy atmosphere of the house. He stood beside the closed front door, waiting for Kurenai to open it and enter.

Kurenai Yumi​

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

She gave a nod, grasping the weapon in hand. It had been giving to her by her eldest son after he had obtained it from one of her friends during an auction. It had proved a good weapon but so far the light side force enhanced bladed hadn't been properly put to use, today that would change. "Sounds good and don't worry I doubt that thing can kill me easily, I've had far worse".

Moving down she rested on the door for a second, listening, smelling, keeping quite until she reared back, slamming her foot onto the door, bargaining in, trying to make a very clear nose to alert the beast. If it was wounded some poor ill people were probably not going to be very appetizing, but herself, a youthful force user, that would be quite the nice meal for a Sith spawn in need of a very large amount of energy.

The insides carrying a pungent smell, choking in both the airways and the force, but even so she could still pick up the scent of corrupted blood that flowed through the phantoms body. "Come out here you Sith Spawn, you can't hide from me".

Jacen Nimdok

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

The Shroud would’ve jumped if it could. Instead, it opted to screech at the woman who now entered the abandoned house. Bodies of sleeping vagrants lay on dirty blankets on the floor, smothered by the Sithspawn’s form. It had already fed a little from them, its wounds beginning to mend, but it was far from ready for combat. That said, Kurenai would certainly prove a much more substantial meal than these people...

Fading back into immateriality, the Shroud became invisible once more. But it didn’t run. Instead, it circled around Kurenai, creeping in the shadows, waiting for the right opportunity to strike. Once it found its chance, it lashed out at her like a cobra, pincer jaws snapping, intent on taking a bite of her.

Meanwhile, Nimdok stood outside the door, his lightsaber at the ready. It was difficult to resist the urge to peek inside and see what Kurenai was doing. Just when he thought he heard a series of violent thumps as the fight began, he heard rustling in the forest nearby. Turning, he saw a figure emerging from between the trees. A woman with red hair holding a Sith lightsaber, moving fast—and headed straight toward him with murderous intent.

Nimdok had to make a decision in those vital seconds between seeing her and the imminent collision between them. He decided that, rather than staying and trying to fight this new threat alone, he was better off inside the house with Kurenai and the wounded Shroud. The wounded Shroud which wanted to eat him specifically and would be very rejuvenated by consuming his now-doubled energies.

He dove through the doorway, saw Kurenai tangling with the Shroud—and to his dismay, the redhead followed him inside. Her blade was a flash of red as it arced toward him. Nimdok darted out of the way just in time, the sound and smell of molten plasma burning through old wood filling the air as her lightsaber scorched the ground where he once stood.

“Kurenai!” he managed to shout before he was forced to evade the woman again, ducking beneath a slashing blow. “...Chit!”

Kurenai Yumi​

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

She grinned a little at the beast began to circle around her, like an animal waiting, though she wasn't prey, she was herself a tracker and under. grasping her saber hilt she waited, keeping an eye on the shroud until it jumped from behind. As it did she activated a button on her saber, the hilt rapidly extending towards the shroud as a high voltage electric current went through it.

It probably wouldn't do much but at the very least keep the thing back and regardless if she hit or not Kurenai would rapidly swing her blade around towards the Sith spawn to hopefully get a hit in. As she did though her gaze was distract4ed by the sudden appearance of the red blade and Nimdok, the one simple fight turning into a 2v2 in a sense.

"Dammit"! Looking back to the shroud she throw her Naginata at is like a lightsaber before changing targets, charging at the women in question and spear tackling her through the old wooden wall. "I'll take care of her you get that shroud".

Jacen Nimdok

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

It is the logical approach, Nimdok thought, swallowing his fear as he faced the Shroud. I am the one holding the lightsaber which can wound and kill this creature, after all...

Of course, the Shroud was equally determined to kill him. The Sithspawn reared up like a spooked horse when he came into its sights, his blade blazing like a flare in the darkness. It snapped its pincer jaws like scissors, then lashed out at him with an insectoid claw. He narrowly evaded the blow, but was scraped by the second—he felt the cold miasma of the Shroud snag on the edge of his soul like a barb before he swung his saber, slicing through the thing's arm. The severed limb faded away like smoke, leaving Nimdok gasping in relief and the Shroud screeching in pain and fury.

The redhead had just enough time to change the course of her attack, turning to meet Kurenai as the vampiress charged her. She wasn’t fast enough to prevent being tackled through the wall, but she did roll away from Kurenai as soon as she was able. Clambering to her feet, she thrust her red blade at Kurenai’s middle as if to run her through, only to turn it into a feint and instead slash downward with the tip into Kurenai's thigh.

Kurenai Yumi​

 

[Kurenai Yumi]

As the two bust through the wall Kurenai looked back to see Jacen Nimdok face off against the best. Though probably not the best of her decision she knew the shroud would be the easier of the opponents for him to take. At least with the Sith in front of her she knew how to fight and would hopefully be able to subdue her and return to the other threat.

Kurenai rolled with the tackle, not taking the time to draw her weapon getting into a fighter stance with her bare hands as the Sith came down with her counter attack. Herself not waiting for the women to fully follow threw with her attack, lunching a quick jab aimed at her chest while shifting just to the side. She wasn't overly concerned with being hit by the blade after all, wouldn't be the first time she'd been hacked up by one after all.