Burning Bridges {Ask Before Joining}

[Vhrendai Embersky]

SERPENA:
Hyperlane Creation Mission 3: Dumpster Diving
Goal: Eliminate Sithspawn Vinithi

Out in the depths of space, one could find almost anything. Monsters, beasts, magic, and those who were the cause of it all. Even Gods sometimes show themselves in the darkness. But finding what you wanted to find... that was neigh impossible. The Outer Rim was a terrifying place. For most, at least. Some did not care for the demons that lurked in all shadows. No, for some had created them, and others were like them in ways. Others had grown accustom to this land's brand of 'normal'. Our universe has seen a tremendous amount of chaos in it's time. Much of it was forged in these edges of existence. Out here Emperors were born, Gods were crowned, Curses were woven. Anything could be found. Death stood tall wherever you looked. Behind it, past it, around it, lay all sorts of treasures. Things that could- and often would- change history. However, looking for them often meant your own demise. Only those who were exceptionally strong or extraordinarily lucky made it out here without injury. Working in a team was also helpful. But even those who had lived out here all of their lives did not know of everything out here. Not even he who was known as Embersky. Not even I.

Some things were more visible than others. Serpena was not as mysterious as other worlds in this region. It held many horrific things, many dark beings, dark souls. Somehow plenty of it had come to light in recent years. There were certain things one could expect from there. Things they could prepare for. Of course... every place has its secrets. Surely there were more than Vinithi here. More than just freaky plant beasts. To say claim that I was ready for it all... would be a blatant lie. None were. Perhaps that was why hunters and mercenaries alike were being sent here. To purge these stations of whatever vile beings were inside them. Someone wanted these facilities clear of the hideous creatures that inhabited them. Of course I had agreed to assist. Why wouldn't I? The salvage was good, the pay was better, and the Outer Rim was my home. Once upon a time... it had even been home to my family. My father, a Dark Lord of the Sith, was born not far from this planet. Visiting here gave me a secondary excuse to wander about his old hunting grounds. That was good. Though I knew far more about Serpena than I did about his birthland. That will change one day. But for the place he was created is about as visible to me as the center of Coruscant is.

I'm not entirely sure when exactly I docked Vizsla's Heart at the station. Life was an odd thing. And for some reason it made me wait awhile before I exited the ship. The force, perhaps?... No. Not likely. All it had done for me in centuries was increase my capabilities as a smith. I will call this a gut instinct for now. A simple sigh left my lips as I departed my vessel. Upon my back were two vibro-blades, on my hip were grenades, and hidden in the back of my boot was a lightsaber. Perfect killing tools. There was only one issue I found myself facing while inside this compound: The ceilings did not appear to be terribly high. Not all of the rooms would allow me to stand at my full height- that being 10.5 feet. I would not let this slow me down. Walls would be bashed down when necessary. Roofs would be cut into. And at some points I would simply slouch. But nothing would keep me from my goals. Yes, goals. Did you really think I was simply here to do a job?... Heh, if so, then you have a lot to learn about the galaxy, my friend. Three tasks will be accomplished today: Vinithi will be slaughtered, systems will be salvaged or fixed up, and samples will be taken.

I am an alchemist. These monsters can one day be turned- used to serve me.
That day, when it comes, will be glorious.

Something tells me that day will be far, far off. There is much for me to do first. Quietly I pull a broken door open, sliding the metal away. What I found wasn't to surprising. Just some scraps. A few bits of decaying plant matter. I wasn't the first one here, and I wasn't the only one who had come this way. From what I had been told though... there were still some untouched areas. Likely due to the complexity of the station. Somehow I'd need to keep track of my movements. Hmm... Ah, yes, that would work. Within a moment I heard a wondrous snap-hiss split the air. Then a deep tear was made into the nearest wall. Enough of these would let me easily retrace my steps. Not the best method, of course, but a decent one. With that done I resumed moving forward. The only sound I could hear was that of my boots clinking against the floor. Surely there were others here?... And surely they heard me. My only hope was that they did not mistake me for Vinithi scum. Getting into an unnecessary brawl was not part of my plans. Such a thing would only slow me down. It would be unacceptable.

 

[Vhrendai Embersky]

It felt so oddly quiet here. Almost as if the universe could feel the tense air and wished to add to it. This was a place of darkness. That much was certain. History said this was a lab of sorts. Somewhere where demons were made- the Sith kind. But it had been abandoned after to many failed experiments. Now what remained of them wandered around, killing intruders. Or at least that's the version of events I had been told. Once again I am attempted to say that it doesn't matter. Perhaps it doesn't. Because there are a thousand ways to die here, no matter the truth of this place. But perhaps knowing the truth would have allowed me to prepare more. Being as prepared as you possibly can was generally essential out here.... I wondered how prepared these experiments were. Yes, that would be interesting to find out. Sometimes I forget that I to am a creature born of this land. A monster. To me these things were nothing. Vinithi, as they were called, we inferior beasts. Compared to me they are nothing. I chopped down a thick vine with one swipe before continuing forward. These 'decorations' had been created by them. With quick strikes I could destroy them all. How much harder could defeating them be? Couldn't be that difficult. Otherwise this area wouldn't have been cleared out already. If simpleton hunters could do the job... an ancient killing machine could do it as well.

With that thought I paused to inspect this hallway. At the end I came from was the discarded door, which lead to what had once been a docking port. Beyond that was my ship. My lovely vessel, Vizsla's Heart. Turning my attention back to the other end I looked for doorways. On either side of me were long scratches dug deep into the walls. What had happened here? Frowning I pulled down another vine and cast it aside. These, the plants that hung from everywhere and infested the building, were no longer connected to the sentient creatures. Some of them never had been. Instead they were simply overgrown decorations mixed with the original failed trials. Damn things seemed to fill the place. Could they be all that remained here?... I hoped not. I had plans for the other specimens. Plans that required both live and dead samples. These... might work. Plenty of effort would have to be used to get them to tip-top shape though. Hm. Whether or not I end up using them, a few samples wouldn't hurt. Quickly I ripped several fines off the wall and flung them towards the door. Now to deal with the rest of the vermin. Obviously they were quite flammable. Some force-conjured fire could do the trick. Am I good enough at pyromancy to manage the task? Probably not. This will have to be part of the job I complete on my way out then.

Oh well. A little sigh left my lips as I pushed further into the compound. Things were still fairly quiet, but the closer I got to the end of the hallway, the more noticeable a small humming noise was. Generators, perhaps. Even the simplest of beasts have a habit of doing whatever it takes to survive. Those capable of operating machinery will do so. My suspicions were confirmed when I opened the only visible door. Stale white walls gave into a large chamber, likely once some sort of greeting room. Lights above flickered on and off. In the corner stood a little back-up power source. Cables were attached to it with some sort of tape. Rather crude, really. Looking over the area revealed a few more points of interest: An old computer terminal, probably broken, bloodstains scattered around (of various colors), and four more doors. Apparently the battery back was keeping some systems working. The wires attached to it ran underneath two of the exits. Both seemed very battered. Across from them the other two were completely missing handles or keypads. Instead they had holes knocked through them. Kicking them down was a distinct possibility. Now, however, I had to make a choice: Continue on or transfer some power to the terminal. The latter would give me more info on the area... but could alert the Vinithi to my presence.

This decision would prove to be very, very important.
I wish I had realized that sooner.

 

[Vhrendai Embersky]

Finding as much information as I can is essential to my secondary objectives. And so, without even pausing to think, I made my way over to the computer terminal. Surely those who hired me would appreciate me fixing a few things up?... Maybe I could earn a 'few' extra credits while helping myself. That would- no, I must focus. Who knows what might be waiting for an oppurtunity to attack me. There could be anything here. Almost anything, at least. As cautiously as I could I dusted off the machine. From what I could tell it was fairly recent in design. Within the past fifty years or so. Far fancier than a lot of the things I've worked with over the years. But that wouldn't stop me. Quickly I looked around the room. Still no visible threats... With a bit of hope I tried to turn the system on. Unsurprisingly nothing happened. Damn thing didn't have a power source at the moment.... which meant that I would have to hook it up to the generator. Mentally cursing I moved over to said device. Perhaps it could run three things at once? Of course, I didn't have any cables with me at the moment. A few Vinithi vines might do the trick... Before I go off to chop more down, I should probably check out the damn power box. Looking it over revealed little. It did, however, confirm my fears. There were only two spots for cables to attach. Considering my lack of technical savvy-ness... I would have to unplug one of the cords. And so I did. Somewhere in this facility someone would realize that they weren't alone- if they hadn't already. Part of me almost seemed to hear the sounds of lights in the distance shutting off... Hopefully I was just imagining things. Otherwise I'd probably have at least a dozen angry Sithspawn heading my way. In the meantime I'd have to hurry with my data collecting. A new sense of urgency filled me as I grabbed the cord and practically ran back to the terminal. After a moment of searching I found a spot where I could plug in the power source. Good. Time to try this thing again...

And nothing.

Damn it! Must be something wrong with the computer itself... My emotions were starting to get the best of me, and I'll admit that when I opened up the side of the container, I might of pulled a 'little' hard. Plastic or whatever-the-hell it was flew out of my hand. It then slammed into the wall behind me, making a rather loud crashing noise. Damn it damn it damn it! Not good! Starting to panic I looked for anything that might be wrong with the contraption. All of the wires seemed to be in the right place, nothing looked damaged, and everything was plugged in. Feth, I should have just moved on! Trying to calm down I kept looking. There had to be something I could do to fix this. One hand reached in, shuffling things around in an attempt to reveal what was wrong. That's when I heard the first sounds of movement. Already?!? Something was coming. Gotta work faster! Now I was moving even quicker, hands seeming to blur in front of me, eyes searching everywhere, breath speeding up. I swear to the God of Death that when I saw the issue I died. But then I went right back to the present, my one true Lord refusing to take me home just yet. Of course. Couldn't die until my job was complete. It turns out that I had been wrong about the plugs. While everything on the outside was fastened as needed, farther in two cords were rather loose. Another was completely undone. Luck gave me just enough time to fix that before I felt something latch around my ankle. The first sounds of a console booting up were heard as I snapped my head around. There was a vine latched firmly around my boot. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a light flicker on just as a sharp tug brought me to the ground. One of the doors I noted earlier was now open... revealing only darkness, a sickening image of death seeming to float just beyond it....

Now was not the time to get poetic. Wordlessly I reached for my vibro-blades, pulling one out with ease, and slammed it down onto the vine. There was some sort of screech in the distance as the 'limb' was severed. Pathetic. Free of the thing I jumped to my feet. Scrambling noises from the darkness alerted me to a second assault. Feth. Without looking away from the black spot I stepped back, moving until I could feel the edge of the hallway behind me. Good thing the vines from before weren't attached to my enemies. Otherwise I'd be in deep sheb right now. Perhaps I was anyway. The forces coming to meet me were of a kind I did not know. Modern monsters, far ahead of my time, made with sorcery centuries ahead of my own. That was bad. But my father, no matter how horrid of a man he was, had been a great teacher. One who knew exactly what he had been doing. So I pushed aside my fear, confident in myself. Once more my lightsaber came to life. And once more I prepared for combat. Three breaths were taken. Two feet moved forward ever so slightly. And one scream was heard before a being leaped from the shadows. Out of this blackness, so similar to my hearrt, to my soul, came a raging creature. 'Twas a thing of nightmares. All it was was a gathering of hideous features. To beat this monstrosity down would be such a pleasure, that whatever the measures taken, it would be worth it. Today a thousand evils would be wiped from the galaxy! For the Embers of Old I would fight! With a mighty grin, a mighty roar, I lunged forward. My blades swirled around, slicing away at my foe. What a rush! Plant matter fell all around! Thick lumps of sap fell to the ground after each strike. This 'Sithspawn' was no match for me. And for a moment, I once more felt like nothing was.