Corrupting a Legacy

[Via Dolorosa]

It was that time again, all moons in the galaxy were in alignment, and the Dagobah Sith was on the move. A new ligtsaber was in order. Her current one, The Dagobah Curse, had served her well but times where changing. Her life had changed, her madness had blossomed out of control, and she had now had a new calling in life. Collecting bones. Her outfit and her jewelry all contained some form of bones in them; human and animal alike. Even her hair, wrists, and ankles were fashioned with bones.​

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As well as the battle armour she wore.​

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Despite all this, she felt incomplete. Something was missing. And it didn't take her long to realize what it was. She craved a unique lightsaber crafted from the bones of a human; mainly a spine. Plus, she needed crystals to compliment her future lightsaber. She had a couple of prospects in mind, one she could obtain and corrupt with the Darkside; Kenobi's Legacy crystal. The other was something she was working with a fellow Sith Lord. Also, as a side bonus, her knowledge of Sith Alchemy could be used to infuse the lightsaber with additional properties.​

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Options were limitless.​

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The material for the lightsaber would be easy to acquire, so that would be last. First, she needed the crystal. And she was off to the planet of Tatooine. ​

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[Via Dolorosa]

To call the legendary planet hot was a gross understatement. It was near boiling, or it rather was for a swamp witch like Darth Venefica. Upon arriving to the planet, she had toyed with the idea of landing on the outskirts of Anchorhead until she saw the temperature reading on her ship's computer console. In the end, she landed at the outpost and paid the necessary docking fee; which seemed rather high to her. With the formalities out of the way, it was time to go crystal hunting and seek out a proper spinal bone. And leave this hot planet behind.​

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With her hood draped over her head leaving only her eyes and lower face exposed, she made her way to a speeder rental that the docking officer had suggested she use. The moment she entered the office, it occurred to her why the officer was so eager to pointe her in this direction. The human male behind the counter was the twin of the docking officer. Mentally, she laughed while applauding the officer's efforts to squeeze more credits out of her. However, this time she wouldn't be paying for the speeder.​

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"How may I assist you offworlder," the man said as his eyes searched for a credit pouch on her person.​

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"I require the services of a reliable land speeder," she answered not bothering to hide her disgust at the owner's rude eye gesture.​

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"Ah! Well the prices to rent are as follows. For two days it will cost one thousand credits up front and an additional five-hundred credits upon return. For three days..."​

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"The time frame of the rental is of no concern to you....and you will forgo the fee," she said speaking into the mind of the man.​

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The man nodded his head in agreement then fumbled under the counter for his keys.​

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"Come, I'll show you what I have available outback."​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

The speeder, and all the speeders on the lot, was not worth the price the fool was asking. Most, if not all, looked to be in shoddy shape and would break down almost at once. Snatching an ignition tube from the man's hand, she went to the speeder he had stopped in front of, looking it over again. To call the speeder junk was an understatement, yet she hoped inside and set the tube to it's proper place.​

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Not wanting to listen to anymore of the man's jibberish, she exited the lot kicking up sand all around the fool.​

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Her destination was clear, a cave set into a rocky formation deep in the Dune Sea. The great and once feared Jedi Master Kenobi had placed several crystals in a cave he discovered during his time here when he was babysitting and observing the son of Anakin Skywalker, one Luke Skywalker. The death of Obi Wan Kenobi at the hands of his former Padawan, the future Darth Vader, should have protected the long past Jedi Master's secret. Unfortunately, secrets of the dead always had a way of coming to life; especially if enough credits and the right questions were in abundance.​

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Before she had even come to this forsaken planet, she had spent hours upon hours researching the layout of the land where this cave resided. The cave, like much of the area, was a sacred haunt of the Tusken Raiders, or Sand People, who fought violently to protect what little property they still possessed. Regardless of how they felt about trespassers, she would stroll into their lands and take what she wanted.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

It has been well documented that Sith crave confrontation, that both war and battle was infused into to them at the onset of their young lives. And sometimes, confrontation south them out. As was the case when she stopped a few yards from the cave's entrance; heavily guarded by three Tusken Raiders. Darth Venefica lept from the stopped speeder, her feet landing solid in the sand while her eyes stared at the three obstacles. One of them raised their staff and grunted something she didn't understand as a language but took as a sign that she was not welcomed.​

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Calling her hilt to her hand, she ignited the weapon and stalked toward the trio.​

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The Tuskens responded to the Sith Lady's advance by charging forward, spreading out to attempt to flank her on both sides while one brave Raider foolishly challenged her head on. Using the Force, she shot a powerful Force Blast toward the Tusken in front of her, catching him unawares and knocking him hard to the sand. The other two screamed and charged toward her, pitting her in between their attacks.​

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Her blade swiftly knocked away one of the sticks, and following the stick she moved around the back of the Tusken; putting it between her and his comrade. And again she shoved them to the ground via the Force, turning her focus to the recovered Tusken, splitting his stick in two then driving the tip of her blade through the chest of the confused cretin.​

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Darth Venefica spun around just as the dead Tusken hit the hot, golden sand to deal with his still living brethren.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Her deep blue metallic blade caught the incoming gaffi stick that seemed to be coated with the same material used in vibro-weapons, which surprised her when the stick didn't split in two when it came in contact with her blade. It appeared to her that not all Tuskens were mindless beasts afterall. With her blade locked with the gaffi stick, she saw the other Tusken charging toward her out of her peripheral vision, and acted quickly. Since she was a master of Makashi, she had learned to utilize her free hand as a weapon in itself, reaching out to grip the incoming attacker via the Force and hurled it's body toward his comrade.​

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The Tusken, heavily focused on defeating her, did not see the hurling body in time to react to it. The collision send both Tuskens sprawling into the sand a few yards from her. Never one for just sitting there to admire her handiwork, she thrusted her right hand out in front of her, releasing a torrent of Force Lightening that engulfed one of the Tuskens, sending his body into violent convulsions that ended with his painful death.​

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With a savage cry, the last Tusken lept to his feet with delusions of avenging it's dead brethren, and charged toward her. Knowing now that his weapon could defend against a lightsaber blade, she adjusted her tactics to kill him quickly. When the attack came, she parried the blow to her right causing the momentum of the Tusken to follow his weapon's trajectory and spun around his body, turning her blade backwards and driving it into the back of the Tusken; ending his chances of revenge.​

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Powering down her weapon and casually returning it to her waist belt, she glanced around at the dead Tuskens. Her eyes darted back and forth between them as she decided which of them would unknowingly dedicate their spine to her cause. Settling on one, she pulled a small dagger from her pouch and proceeded to cut away the soiled wrappings until she reached flesh. Cutting deep into the filthy and sore infested flesh of the dead Tusken, she conducted her surgery removing with delicate movements the spine of the creature.​

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Once the spine was encased in wrappings from the Tusken, she placed it inside the speeder then turned toward the cave. As she drew closer to the opening, she could feel the presence of not only her prize waiting for her, but that of more guardians of the cave waiting inside.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

As she stepped into the cave, a feeling of home sickness washed over her. She had spent most of her young life living in a cave and this experience was nothing short of a craving for her first true home. Still, she squashed away this feeling because she had a goal to accomplish. Home sickness could wait.​

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Slowly she walked through the cave, the smells of burning campfires filling the tunnel with a craving to sit down by them and reflect on the daily events. Something she had done religiously as a young girl. The smoke and the crackling fire always made her feel safe and at peace. The campfire was also a sign that she had survived another horrifying day in the swamps of Dagobah. Yet, as the smells filled her lungs with sweetness, she knew danger lurked there as well. The Force, her only true ally, had revealed to her no more than seven (7) bodies gathered around. Seven (7) bodies she would have to snuff out.​

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Holding her unlit lightsaber in her left hand, she began to stalk through the poorly lit tunnels, letting the Force guide her to Tuskens. The numbers were against her, but as a devout follower of the Darkside; she was never outnumbered. In fact, the numbers where on her side. To the future dead Tuskens that awaited judgement, they would never truly understand this. ​

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The hot and damp tunnel spilled out into a small opening, where four (4) Tuskens where gathered around a smoldering campfire. Like their lives, the small fire was barely flicking into existence. Darth Venefica halted her advance, placing her right hand on her chin and began stroking it. Options. So many options where available to her. With a smirk, she decided on her course of action.​

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Easily she invaded the weak mind of the nearest Tusken, rearranging his thoughts and attitudes until they suited her. Once she had complete domination over the nomad, she sent him off to do her bidding.​

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Swinging his gaffi stick to his left, the weapon crushed the skull of his comrade with such precision that his long time brother was dead before realization set in. The other two, turning their masked faces to the event, only stared with confusion; hesitation to act being their downfall. The puppet Tusken fell on them like a hungry beast, killing them quickly.​

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The Tusken now having served it's purpose to her, Darth Venefica reached further into it's mind pulling up all the horrors it could imagine; turning the warrior into a drooling pool of it's former self. Methodically, she reached out through the Force, gripping the warrior by it's neck and raised it off it's feet. With a small, yet barely noticeable, flick of her wrist; she snapped the Tusken's neck letting his traitorous body join his fallen comrades.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

With the first obstacles out of the way, she proceeded through the tunnels again, allowing the Force to guide her like an invisible hand in hers to the next wave of Tuskens. The excitement and anticipation of obtaining one of those legendary crystals was eating at her sanity; which by all accounts was already nearly depleted. ​

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"Focus," she said chiding herself for letting herself be distracted. Tuskens might be underneath her in terms of combat skills, but the savage people where dangerous.​

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Halting her advance just outside the new opening that led into another cavern chamber, she gathered more Force energy around her in preparation in dealing with these brown-wrapped beasts. Like the ones she just previously dealt with, she could unleash mind dominance over one and have it kill the others; but she was craving a more confrontational approach now. Like all Sith, she too, wished to test herself against the skills of enemies and knowing now how they fought from her first encounter outside the cave, she was more than prepared to silence them.​

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Thumbing the activation stud on her hilt, the deep blue metallic blade hummed to life just as she stepped inside the chamber. The Tuskens, who where gathered around their small campfire looked up at the intruder and howled or garbled with rage. In unison, the trio lept to their feet grabbing their gaffi sticks in the process. Darth Venefica, all ready having her plan worked out in her mind, attacked first.​

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Using the Force already swelled up inside her, she ripped from the chamber ceiling a sharp and pointy stalactite that fell with enough force that it pierced one of the Tuskens through his head and continue to drive downward; pinning the dead Tusken to the chamber floor. The other two, barely spending time to glance at their dead companion charged toward the Sith Lady.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Like her opponents, she too charged dragging the tip of her lightsaber across the sand covered chamber floor. Just as she was in position, she slid on her knees to avoid the swinging gaffi sticks bringing her own blade up slightly to sever the Tusken's legs at the knees that was on her left. The body crashed behind behind her as she came to a stop a few yards away from them. Quickly, she jumped to her feet ready to deal with the final obstacle.​

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Strikes, parries, strikes, parries were exchanged between Tusken and Sith Lady. The last Tusken, she now noticed, was much larger than the previous ones she had dealt with; understanding that she could not afford to be caught in a saber lock or awkward position since she was much smaller than the savage. She would need to continue to parry his attacks and avoid getting close to it until she was ready to strike it down.​

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The larger than life Tusken swung his gaffi stick with so much force that if she were to parry it, chances were that it could knock her back, or worse, to the ground. She jumped back slightly to avoid the attack but before she could counter, the Tusken recovered and swung his weapon in a sideways angle meant to catch her across the midsection, starting with her right hip. Again she dodged the attack but instead of allowing him to recover, she shot forth from her right hand a Force Blast that sent him flying backwards until he crashed into the campfire, his tattered outfit catching fire.​

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And still the Tusken, despite being on fire, lept to his feet and charged her.​

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Darth Venefica had enough of this monster. When the gaffi stick came toward her again, she raised her blade to meet it and just before stick and blade met, she powered down her weapon. Having already witness it attack with such force, the third time was no different. The Tusken assumed his stick would crash into her blade knocking the small Sith back but to his surprise, when the blade disappeared he fell face first into the sand; and felt the hot blade drive into it's back.​

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She casually walked up to the legless Tusken and silenced him. The cave had now been claimed by her. And with it came the spoils of victory, the Kenobi Legacy crystal that was waiting for her in the final chamber.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

The Goddess of Madness entered the chamber, where several crystal formations were strewn about. She cared for nothing for those, there was only one crystal she wanted, and her eyes grew wide with excitement when she saw the crystal formation that housed the Kenobi Legacy crystal. She moved in double time, taking long strides the best she could despite her short legs. Standing in front of it, she reached out and gently plucked one of the crystals out; holding it like a new born baby in her hand. This crystal, like all crystals were fragile objects. But she had long since mastered crystal shaping, and she only required the one.​

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With the crystal being held by both of her hands, she looked around the cave seeking a place to sit and meditate; she wanted to start the process of aligning the crystal to herself. Sadly, it wasn't the lack of places to sit that bothered her, but the cave itself was not the right setting. Plus, if the dead Tusken's comrades came to this cave it would only delay the process as well. ​

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Boarding the speeder, she hit the acceleration throttle and put distance between her and the cave. On the return trip back to Anchorhead, her mind sifted through the places where she could go, free of distractions and free of pesky Acolytes and Knights. Even after she returned the speeder back to the shop owner, she still had no decisive destination in mind. ​

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Then it came to her. There was only one place she could go that was satisfactory to her. Taking her seat in the ship's cockpit, she began to type in the coordinates to Dagobah. Only Dagobah, her one true love, was worthy of corrupting a legacy.​

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Upon landing on the surface of Dagobah, she gathered her crystal, exited the ship, and walked toward the cave that she had called home for so many years ago; in a life that seemed almost ancient to her now. The cave remained unchanged, but the smell of must and mold was heavy in the air. She looked about her cave, because it was still hers, and noticed some of her old belongings laid strewn about. Old makeshift clothes and weapons where everywhere. Her former fire pit laid quiet and cold, conjuring up old memories of her childhood. She winced at the recollection of some of the things she had been forced to eat to survive, most of which were cooked in that fire pit. And the Darkside's influence was powerful as ever.​

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Ready to begin the task for which she came here for, she took a seat at the far end of the cave; the same place she use to cry herself to sleep in the first few weeks of her exile. Crossing her legs together, she placed the crystal atop an old upturned wooden bowl she carved from a small log that served as her only dish. Pulling first her hood over her head, then her cloak around her, she slowly closed her eyes allowing herself to fall into a deep meditation trance.​

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After spending hours expelling all distracting thoughts from her mind, leaving only her knowledge of crystal shaping to remain at the forefront of her mind. Next, she began to siphon the Darkside energy surrounding her and combining it with her own Darkside energy; focusing intently on maintaining the combination.​

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Carefully she raised the crystal off the bowl with her mind, while slowly gauging the crystal's energy. The crystal, at first seemed unresponsive to her, but when she began to pour her energy, an energy filled with hate, anger, pain, and other darker emotions the crystal began to hum and glow a reddish hue. Mentally, she began to reshape the crystal by adding her personal Force signature into it, turning the crystal into both an extension of herself and made to be used only by her once placed in her future lightsaber.​

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The process was finally completed, and to ensure it was what and how she wanted the crystal to be, she scanned through it once more. Satisfied with the end result, she slowly lowered the crystal back on top of the bowl and retracted her mind from the meditation trance. Finally, she opened her eyes and felt for the first time how weak she felt physically and mentally. Standing up, she called the crystal to her hand and placed it in one of her pouches on her belt. From there, she added the turadium alloy to the hilt, fusing it to the bone hilt.​

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The Bone Collector bid her cave farewell and returned to her ship, where she noticed that she had been working on her project for two weeks. After setting the nav computer to take her back to Anaxes, she showered and ate; restoring some of the physical strength back into her body. Next, she went to the cramped quarters and fell asleep for the remainder of the trip.​