Private Haunted Treasures

[Gatz Derrevar]

Erakhis, Luminex System​

---

The wornout VCX-100 light freighter known as The Red Night exited hyperspace with a shimmy that shook the whole ship, like a soundwave reverberating along the hull. She drifted in empty space for a moment, before her aftermarket sublight engines kicked on with a high pitched whine. Currently sitting alone in the cockpit, Gatz let out a long sigh, relieved that the journey along the treacherous hyperspace lanes into The Unknown Regions hadn't ended in the total destruction of his ship. This side of the galaxy wasn't one he was familiar with, and he hated traveling along space lanes he didn't know. It was... rare for him to travel this far past the Core Worlds

And they were far.

The planetary body in front of them was a vast ocean world, the fifth planet in the Luminex System, a solar system on the edge of the Unknown Regions themselves. To Gatz's knowledge, which was quite limited, Erakhis was the only inhabitable world that orbited around this star. It held no natural moons, but scanners pinged a number of orbital stations above the lagrange points of the planet. Not exactly the most relieving of sights: Gatz and his... passenger weren't supposed to be here. Not here, floating in orbit around the planet, and certainly not down on the planet itself, where their true destination lay.

But trespassing without being caught was old hat for Gatz Derrevar. Usually he did it for the Hutts, or some other crime syndicate, and ususally he was delivering illicit goods to worlds whose governments didn't want those goods. This time, though... this time was different.

This time, he was in the employ of Jedi Master Valery Noble, a seated member of the Jedi Council, and the Sword of the Jedi herself. How that had come about, Gatz still wasn't sure. He'd left the order when he was nine, as a youngling. Fifteen years ago. He'd thought his business with the Jedi was over, but here he was, acting the part of the chauffeur for the most infamous Jedi in the whole Order. He didn't understand how he'd managed to get on her radar. How she'd known where to find him. Why she'd chosen to find him of all pilots.

But he supposed it didn't matter now.

"Master Noble," Gatz broadcast over the ship comm, not sure where the Jedi was on his ship currently, "we've exited hyperspace. You'll want to come up to the cockpit."

As he waited for her to join him, Gatz began to maneuver his freighter into orbit, hoping to avoid the sensor range of the orbital stations that protected Erakhis. His ship ran silent and cold, but it didn't have a proper cloaking system. If they got too close, someone could just look out a window and spot them. Which they really didn't want. Not when they were heading to the ruins of Freehold Arctrius, the most heavily restricted area on the planet. It was the site of a former megalopolis, a city that had once been home to seven hundred million people, until the population was eradicated. Now it was closely monitored by the Erakhis government, who really didn't like visitors.

But they were going to visit anyways. Gatz didn't know what the Jedi wanted with a dead city, but they were paying him an enormous sum to safely transport Master Noble to and from the planet, without alerting the local authorities.

The Jedi rarely asked for easy favors.

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Ship: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

The sudden disturbance of the otherwise rhythmic humming of the hull when the ship exited Hyperspace forced Valery's eyes to open again. For most of the trip, she had retreated to a small guest room for some quiet meditation. Some time to focus on not just the mission ahead of her, but life as a whole. It had been especially hectic these last few months, but now that it was finally calming down a little again, she actually found some joy and excitement in assignments like this. Exploring what was mostly unknown to the Galaxy, and retrieving something of great value to the Jedi.

It was, however, a mission she couldn't do alone.

Her skills as a pilot were largely limited to combat scenarios in her fighter, and while she knew various excellent pilots, they were all either too busy to assist, or she wasn't too confident about their skills for this task. But Valery was no stranger to finding alternative solutions to her problems, and this is how she ended up contacting Gatz. Aside from his apparent excellent piloting skills, she knew very little about the man, but she was confident that would soon change.

Right now, she was very glad to have received his help.

<I'm on my way,> Valery replied over comms after he made it clear that his difficult part of the mission had been a success. She then rose up to her feet, tied up her hair into her usual ponytail, and headed back down the hallway to reach the cockpit. Through its viewscreen, she could already see the large oceanic planet. Teaching it had already been a difficult task, but getting down there without being noticed was going to be the next challenge. For now, though, she offered a content smile.

"Great work. I wasn't expecting it to be this smooth." She looked at the man and flashed a bright smile. "Do you see a path to get down there without attracting too much unwanted attention?" she asked, while her fiery eyes began to scan the instruments almost instinctively to find a solution as well.

"I'm certain there must be a gap in their net of sensors somewhere."

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

Before Valery even entered the cockpit, Gatz felt something... shift. It was as if the room became brighter, the air more easy to breathe. It was a sense of peace that spread throughout the ship, settling his nerves, and putting him at ease. It was a sensation Gatz had only ever experienced once before: when he'd stood before the Jedi Council at the tender young age of nine, to renounce his ties to the Order.

It was the gentle caress of the Light.

Master Noble carried it with her, as she entered The Red Night's cockpit. She exuded warmth that chased away the frigid cold of space that clung to the metal deck of the ship. Not for the first time since she had boarded his vessel, Gatz was left with a sense of awe that he barely managed to conceal. This was the presence of a Jedi Master: of someone truly in tune with the Force. Even he, with his pitiful connection dulled and rusted from years of disuse, could feel her.

"I'm looking for a way through right now," Gatz shook himself from his reverie, eyes turning down to his instruments, "but they clearly take security seriously on this world. Particularly around where you want to go."

He couldn't see Freehold Arctrius, they were still too far from the planet for that. But he could cleary see the gathering of storm clouds over the continent that held their destination, and his scanners confirmed that more than one orbital station hovered above their prize. That net might prove too tight to pierce without drawing attention. They might have to enter the planet's atmosphere from somewhere else, and come around to the ruined city.

"I can jam their sensors, but it's kind of a crude option," Gatz explained, "they wouldn't be able to spot us directly, but they'd certainly know that someone was snooping around."

All they'd have to do was deploy scouts in starfighters, and confirm their presence visually. That'd put a swift end to their covert mission. So jamming was Gatz's last resort, unless the Jedi ordered otherwise.

"We could reveal ourselves, and try to pass ourselves off as just another freighter hauling goods. But then they'd probably try and direct us to a specific port, and they'd most certainly track us." Gatz paused for a moment, before continuing, "Or we could try to breach their security around a less populated spot on the planet, where there's likely to be fewer orbital stations and patrols. Probably at one of the poles. We'd have to fly in atmosphere for awhile, and it'd take longer, but The Red Night should be able to remain undetected if we fly close to the ground."

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

Valery's smile lingered for a moment as her eyes found his, but with a slight shake of his head, Gatz snapped himself into focusing on the mission, and she was quick to follow his gaze to his instruments. She stepped forward, placing one hand on the top of his chair while she studied the situation and listened to his advice. He knew his own ship far better than she ever would, so his suggestions about how to handle this obstacle were likely the best ones.

"Usually I would have taken my stealthier ship for a mission like this, but it wouldn't have been ideal for reaching the planet." It's why she had contacted him for assistance, after all. His ship and piloting skills had gotten them through dangerous stretches of space almost effortlessly. All that remained now was this final challenge to reach their destination.

"I agree that jamming is too risky," Valery continued as she looked at the storm and what their sensors picked up. With how difficult it was to reach the planet, they likely didn't get many visitors. Yet they still had a lot of defensive countermeasures in place to pick up the few who did manage to get down there. If anything, it showed just how alert these people were.

Looking back down at Gatz, she listened to the options he laid out and could only agree with his assessment. "Let's enter the planet's atmosphere further away from our destination, then. It might take longer but if we run into trouble trying to take the shortest route, we may as well abandon the entire mission. It's dangerous enough down there without the locals chasing us down." She let out a soft chuckle and stepped around his chair to sit down in the co-pilot chair.

She then strapped herself in, sat up straight, and let out a soft breath. "If you need any help from me while you fly, let me know. I contacted you for this mission because I trust you to bring us down safely, so I'll do what you say to help make it work." Ranks, titles, or the fact he was being paid didn't matter at all to her. She only cared about doing what was most reasonable to get them both on the ground safely.

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

Gatz let them drift idly through space as the Jedi assessed their options. At this range, the young smuggler was confident that his freighter wouldn't so much as register as a blip on any of Erakhis' many scanners. She was too small, too quiet, and too cold to be spotted at a distance like this. Not like the many stations that orbited the planet: large, loud, and with heat signatures that lit up his own scanners like a supernova. For a moment, he thought that might have been a way through: cling so close to one of the stations that The Red Night's signature couldn't be picked out amongst the white noise of the stations own signature.

But for that to work, they'd already have to be close to one of the many orbital stations. So he dismissed that idea. If they tried that, they'd be spotted on the approach.

It turned out that Master Noble wanted to take the slow and steady route, which Gatz didn't argue with. In truth, he agreed with her decision: it was the most foolproof way to complete her mission without any extra complications. Gatz usually enjoyed a complication or two, but being in the Unknown Regions already had him on edge, not to mention that he had to sneak down to a heavily fortified world. His nerves probably would have gotten the better of him, if not for Valery's calming presence.

For once, Gatz was grateful for his tepid connection to the Force.

"Aye, aye," Gatz complied easily, "I'll set course for the Southern pole."

With a low whine, the sublight engines kicked on once more, and Gatz grabbed the yoke of his ship. He angled the freighter's pitch to a point below the planet, in a way that would let them gently coast into the atmosphere at a sort of slope, so as to lessen the heat and stress of atmospheric entry. Then, knowing that their eventual re-entry would heat up the ship, Gatz began to flip a number of toggle switches in front of him.

"This ship needs to be as cold as possible if we want to avoid thermal scans," Gatz explained, half to himself, and half to the Jedi, "I'm killing power to the hyperdrive, deflector shields, weapons systems, and most of life support. Don't worry, we'll still have oxygen. But you may want to go put on a jacket and an extra pair of socks: it's gonna get cold in here before we hit atmo."

Gatz himself made no move to get up from his seat. He'd pulled this trick many, many times before: killing all nonessential power, including heating, in order to fly undetected past a blockade. At this point, he was used to the frigid cold of space, and the way it would numb fingers and toes. It was uncomfortable to be sure, but his jacket would keep the important parts of him warm.

It was then that the Jedi Master claimed that she trusted in him. Gatz found that puzzling, and opened his mouth to speak.

"Rather odd, to place your trust in a criminal," and that was exactly what he was, even if he didn't like to admit it very often, "speaking of which... there's something I've been meaning to ask you, pretty much from the moment you offered me this job: why me, specifically? Why not some other pilot? Why not one of the Sector Rangers?"

The Jedi Praxeum had to have records of him, considering he'd spent the first nine years of his life with the Order. Most of the galaxy wouldn't have known of his upbringing, and even Alliance files on him probably didn't list him as anything other than the Captain of The Red Night. The Jedi, though... they had to know pretty much all there was to know about him, right? He suspected that a Jedi Master who sat on the Council would know of his past with them, but that still didn't answer the question: why him out of everyone she could have asked.

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

"Very well," Valery said before she let her shoulders drop and got as comfortable as she could within her chair. This mission wasn't the most dangerous one she has been on, but going into the unknown and having to place her trust in someone she didn't know too well definitely had her on edge a little. Not that it showed — she was able to control it perfectly fine and maintained a calm exterior, as well as a calming presence in the Force.

They could do this.

It was only when he mentioned going cold that she turned to him with a less confident smile, "That makes sense, let's do it..." she said with a soft sigh. "I didn't bring a coat or any other clothing." What she was currently wearing and had equipped to her belt was all she had, and really needed. "But that's alright. If it gets too cold, I can use the Force to retain my body heat," she went on to explain, but it clearly wasn't the most comfortable idea.

She was no fan of the cold at all.

With the plan made, Gatz then began its execution, starting with taking most systems offline. It immediately started getting much colder inside the cockpit, so Valery drew on the Force and wrapped it around her like a blanket to keep herself warm. Perhaps it was an odd thing to see, considering the lack of warm clothing, but all that mattered was that she didn't get dangerously cold.

Finally, with them on their way to their destination, she relaxed again and focused on Gatz, as he turned to her with something on his mind. "I'm placing my trust in someone I know is capable to do this job," Valery corrected with a soft smile. "I know of your past within the Jedi and that this likely wasn't the easiest job to accept, but I wanted to have a 100% guarantee that my pilot wouldn't just be able to get me there, but that they'd also be able to look after themselves."

"We're in dangerous territory, after all." Sitting back in her chair, Valery drew in a deep breath and rubbed her hands together to keep herself just a little warmer. "You just caught my attention when I went through your files. It felt... right, and I'm not one to ignore those feelings." Perhaps it had just been gut instinct, but she believed it to be the Force in this case.

It had to be right.

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

"There should be a winter coat in my quarters," Gatz offered, "probably hanging off a hook on the wall."

Gatz wasn't usually a gentleman. No one in this line of work really was, they only pretended to be. But he wasn't about to let his employer freeze to death, especially before he got his pay. More than that, though, the young smuggler refused to be the reason that a Jedi Master turned into a popsicle. Especially one as renowned as Valery Noble. Some part of him just... refused to allow that to befall her. It was odd, but in a way, he felt connected to the Sword of the Jedi. In another life, he might have called her a comrade. Teacher, even.

And... the Force bound all things, all people, to one another. So, in a way, he was connected to her.

He scoffed, mostly to himself: even a decade and a half later, some part of him was still Jedi, it seemed. He wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that.

Master Noble elaborated on her willingness to put her faith in him, a concept he still found a little baffling. But as she went on, he realized it wasn't baffling at all. Just the opposite, in fact. She said that "it felt right." Gatz knew what she really meant: that the Force had brought them together for a reason. The Jedi taught that there were no coincidences, that there was no such thing as luck. That the Force had a Will, and everything happened according to it.

He'd held those same beliefs once. Deep down... maybe he still did.

"Then I suppose it's by the Will of the Force that I'm at your side," Gatz sighed almost wistfully, his breath visible in the chilly air, "and here I thought it was done with me."

He was quiet for a bit after that. He gently guided The Red Night toward the Southern pole, all while his fingers began to go numb. The ship's internal temperature had long since plummeted below freezing, evident by the way the condensation from their breath clung to the glass of the cockpit, and froze. Unlike the Jedi Master, Gatz simply wasn't adept at manipulating the ebb and flow of the Force, and therefore couldn't warm himself. Yet, at the same time, he was quite used to the cold. He'd pulled off this trick many times before.

He shivered, but not uncontrollably.

His ship had just started to breach the atmosphere, when he began to feel a different kind of cold. Unlike the natural cold all around them, he felt it from within. It was a subtle thing at first, like a blossoming of ice within his chest. But the closer they came to atmospheric re-entry, and the closer they came to the ruins of Freehold Arctrius, that feeling became stronger. Ice turned frigid, and filled him with an unnatural sense of dread. Of fear.

It was like the polar opposite of Master Noble's presence.

"I-I" chattering teeth prevented Gatz from speaking at first, before he locked his jaw, "something feels... wrong."

That was the best description he could offer, currently.

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

"I appreciate the offer but I'd like to just keep my clothing the way it is." She had a strong preference for the type of clothes she wore, but it was especially strong for her Jedi attire. Her current outfit was specifically designed to fit her and offer everything she wanted and more. Besides, she could use the Force to maintain a safe body temperature.

The conversation then shifted to her reasoning for bringing him alone. It had seemed like he was confused as to why she'd put her trust in him, but somewhat surprisingly, he understood her answer. Perhaps some old lessons he learned as a Jedi still lingered deep inside, after all. "I don't think it'll ever be done with you. But I agree — the Force paired us up for this mission for a reason." She flashed another brief smile before it was time to focus.

He was about to guide them down to the planet.

Despite the plan to circumvent planetary defenses, there was still some tension. What if it failed or what if they had overlooked something? How could they still continue the mission if they got chased down by the locals? Valery let out a soft sigh to set aside all these doomsday scenarios and just watched him. Even though the cold was starting to affect him a little, he remained focused and brought them safely through the atmosphere.

But that's when they both felt a sudden shift in the Force.

Gatz responded very physically to this darker presence and even struggled to speak, but Valery sat completely still. Her own focus was drawn inwards, where she shielded her mind and tried to understand what it was. A Sith or a Dark Jedi? Or was it an artifact or Nexus of some kind? Either way, it was sickening.

"The unnatural stain of the Dark Side," Valery agreed. "If you still remember how to shield your mind, I suggest you do so. If you don't or if you believe you may not be able to withstand it if we get closer, let me know. Then I will keep you shielded as well." If they could already feel it out here, she worried about what it would be like up close.

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

That insidious feeling growing in his chest only became more intense as they drew ever nearer to the storm, and the ruins of Freehold Arctrius beneath it. The Dark Side. The mere idea of it sent chills down his spine. The arctic echo in his chest... that wasn't how the Force was supposed to feel. He'd never have the same kind of connection to the Force that a Jedi did, but even he knew that it was supposed to be a comforting presence. Warm, like the flow of energy from one life form to another.

"I'll manage," Gatz forced out through clenched teeth.

Shielding his mind wasn't something he had practiced in a long time, but he still remembered the basics. The temple had taught him to empty his mind, and that only through meditation would he achieve clarity and mental fortitude. Gatz had found a way that worked better for him: he started listing hyperspace coordinates in his head. It didn't matter where, or which ones. It didn't matter if he was listing coordinates halfway across the galaxy.

His mind was filled with nothing other than sequential numbers.

The Red Night hit atmo, at last. The light freighter moved so fast that it compressed the air ahead of it, which was a natural occurrence. The air began to heat up rapidly, igniting the oxygen in the air, and setting the hull ablaze. They were in no danger, of course: the durasteel plating of most ships were rated for atmospheric reentry. The ship would hold.

It did, however, heat the interior up rapidly. The cold of space was quickly chased away, quickly replaced with a sweltering heat that made Gatz feel like he was being boiled inside his own ship. Normally, the interior temperature of the vessel would have regulated itself. Gatz, however, had never re-engaged the life support systems that he'd turned off. So now they'd traded nearly freezing for nearly roasting.

Sweat poured down his face, and Gatz swiftly shed his jacket and his gloves. He pulled hard on the yoke of the ship, leveling them out.

"Remember how I mentioned wearing an extra pair of socks?" Gatz strained to get out, feeling far warmer than was probably healthy for the human body, "you might wanna shed them now!"

This was why he hated this maneuver. Gatz could deal with the frigid cold. In some ways, he even welcomed it. But struggling with heat stroke on reentry? That was what he struggled with: feeling like every nerve in his body was being cooked. It was bad enough that he couldn't keep the sweat out of his eyes, but it felt like a furnace had been lit inside his body.

All except for that unnaturally frigid grip on his heart.

But for all his gripes about this particular trick, it seemed to have worked out. He spotted nothing on radar, and tight beam scans confirmed no local aerial presence other than them. They'd made it through undetected. So far.

Gatz let himself lean back in his seat, panting, as the ship began to coast through the stratosphere, "well, I hope you didn't find that too uncomfortable, Master Noble."

Sarcasm was sort of his default icebreaker. Especially after he'd nearly frozen and baked himself in the span of a few minutes.

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

Suddenly, Valery felt very relieved that she hadn't accepted the extra coat.

The steep descent meant they came down through the atmosphere so fast that even the internal temperature of his ship began to rapidly rise. Sweat poured down every bit of exposed skin and her breathing felt much heavier. The absolute worst part, though, was feeling as if she was melting into her chair. "This is a bit too much, even for my taste," Valery said with a slight grin when he tried to use humor to get through this.

He likely didn't know about her ability to create and manipulate fire with the Force, but it's one reason that made her very used to being surrounded by intense heat.

Luckily, the rather uncomfortable maneuver did have a very positive effect — they were down on the planet and nobody had noticed them at all. It was unlikely that planetary authorities were actively patrolling or searching the ruins with how impossible it seemed even to get there, so she hoped they had gotten through the worst. Now all that remained was to find what she was looking for and get back out again.

"It was... intense, but I'll be okay." She smiled in his direction and wiped some sweat off her forehead before climbing out of her chair. Her fiery eyes quickly shifted to Gatz, studying him for a moment as he tried to catch his breath a little. "You doing alright? If we lower the ramp and go outside, I'm sure you can get some cooling in." She chuckled and waited for him to join her, so they could head out together.

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

Well at least he wasn't the only one sweating to the point of dehydration.

Freehold Arctrius came into a view, and as it did so, the ice in his chest became all encompasing. What was once a beautiful metropolis had been reduced to a husk of ruined rubble, sprawling across the planet for miles and miles. Nature had long since reclaimed the city, with vines having climbed over buildings, and trees having broken through metal and concrete to grow. With the storm overhead, light struggled to break through the dark clouds, and it cast an eerie darkness over their surroundings.

It was, to put it bluntly, ominous.

"Well, I'm not cooked yet," Gatz replied, as he flipped the switch to lower the ramps as Master Noble had suggested, "on the brightside, we won't have to repeat that on the way out. We'll make a beeline out of here. Soon as we break atmo, we'll just jump out of this system."

They'd probably draw a few eyes, or scanners, on their way out, but it wouldn't matter. By then they'd already have what the Jedi had come for, and the need for discretion would be done with. By the time The Red Night was flagged by someone's radar, they'd be seconds away from jumping to lightspeed. Or so Gatz hoped. His plans rarely went the way they were supposed to, after all.

"Alright," Gatz stood from his chair, "let's go take a peek outside, see what trouble we can get into."

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

"Thank the stars," Valery replied with a grin when he mentioned that they'd be able to get out of here without having to sit inside a sauna again. But once she stepped outside, the grin faded and a more somber expression took its place. She had visited ruins of ancient civilizations before, but somehow it seemed impossible to get used to it. The ruined homes, shops, and streets paired with lingering echoes of the past always made these places rather haunting.

"Alright, stay close to me just to be safe. I'm... not sure what to expect in there," she admitted. Other than the artifact she was hoping to find, Valery wasn't too sure what else could cross their path.

Hopefully, nothing to be worried about.

"I'm going to use my senses to guide us. Feel free to let your own wander as well, but be careful. The more you open yourself up, the more that corrupted cold will try to find its way inside." It was a warning he likely didn't need considering his Jedi past, but she'd rather annoy him with these warnings than end up seeing him caught by surprise anyway.

After a moment of focusing intensely, Valery let out a soft breath and turned to Gatz, "The Dark Side clouds my senses, but I think I felt something. It's not at the center of the city, but closer to its outskirts."

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

On his way out, Gatz snagged his bandolier and blaster pistol. The Dark Side presence on this part of the planet probably couldn't be solved by gun, but it made the young smuggler feel more secure about his situation. Well, that and the fact that he was working for the greatest swordswoman to grace the galaxy. Contrary to what Master Noble thought, he wasn't quite sure he could take care of himself if a Dark Jedi popped up out of nowhere. It wasn't like he had lightsaber resistant weaponry or armor. His control over the Force was limited to reaching out with his feelings, and very minor telekinesis if he pushed himself.

Gatz was suddenly becoming very aware of how foolish it was for him to take this job. Oh well. Nothing to be done about it now. So Gatz sauntered down the ramp behind the Jedi Master.

"Don't have to tell me twice," Gatz agreed easily, "no matter what we run into out here, you've got a much better chance against it than I do."

Not that he was certain as to what they could run into out here. It was all ruins and undisturbed flora as far as the eye could see. Eerie as it was with the overcast skies, Gatz wouldn't have thought that this place could hold danger, if not for that sinister Dark presence assaulting his senses.

"You can sense something through all this?"

The only thing Gatz could feel was an oppressive blanket of cold, smothering his already weak senses. He supposed that was why she was the Jedi Master, and he the smuggler.

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

Valery never viewed herself to be above anybody, but she was also realistic and knew that she hadn't asked Gatz to come along to have him battle Sith Lords or hordes of enemies on his own. His piloting and navigational skills were superior to hers, so that's what he had mostly come along for, and protection was her specialty.

His own understanding hopefully meant that he wasn't going to rush into danger.

"It depends on what it is, but I'll make sure to cover you if anything threatens us. Of course, it'll be easier if we work together." She flashed a quick smirk and turned her fiery gaze back to the road ahead of them. Or, well, what remained of what had once been a road. Buildings on either side of the street were barely recognizable because nature reclaimed them, and debris was scattered all across the streets.

It almost looked like a warzone to her.

"I can sense the dark presence in the city outskirts, but I can't tell what it is yet. It could be a Dark Jedi or Sith, but it could just as easily be an artifact tainted by the Dark Side. Either way, it's trouble," Valery told him as she continued to move towards it. "Do you have any experience encountering these things?"

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

A Jedi who wanted to "work together" with a scoundrel. Gatz might have been surprised, if Master Noble hadn't already outlined her reasons for choosing him. Still, for all his internal snark, Gatz couldn't bring himself to actually voice the remark. This Jedi had been nothing but kind to him, from the very moment she hired him. She didn't deserve derision for choosing to have faith in someone.

The galaxy would have been a much better place, if people could have just trusted one another. A lot of evil wouldn't exist in a galaxy like that. Except for the Sith, probably.

"Oh good. I've always wanted to try my luck at wooing a Sith Lord," Gatz forced levity into his tone, but fear seized his heart, "and here I thought I wasn't getting anything out of this trip."

But then Valery asked him a serious question. One that Gatz really didn't want to answer. Because he had felt the Dark Side before. He still remembered, even after fifteen years, the way it had lit a fire in his blood. The way the flames had consumed his heart and mind. How it felt... good to embrace it, even if only for a moment.

But this... this cold that still lingered in his chest was foreign to him. Whatever it was, Gatz had never felt before.

"Yes," he answered quietly, "but not... not like this. This is different. This is worse."

Which was an unsettling thought. He'd thought the Dark Side was already bad enough. Bad enough that he'd left the Order after experiencing it as a child.

He didn't know it could get worse.

"I didn't want to ask before, because I figured it wasn't my business," Gatz followed the Jedi as she led him through the city, "but with a potential encoutner with a Sith Lord in our near future, I feel like I'm entitled to know what it is we're actually looking for."

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

"Let's hope it's not a Sith Lord," Valery said with a serious tone that shifted into a smirk. "... I took this assignment on specifically to avoid having to fight a lot, so that would suck," she added as a joke, making it seem as if the ruining of her plan outweighed having to clash with a Sith. Of course, she didn't want to fight one because it would be risky.

Still, she felt confident that they'd be alright if they did encounter one.

While they continued their walk, Valery asked a more serious question and she immediately felt an emotional shift in him. It wasn't a topic he seemed to want to talk about, but something still compelled him to tell her.

"Worse?" Valery frowned and let out a soft sigh. "Well, this isn't the worst darkness I've felt, and I'm still around now. Whatever it is, we'll be able to handle it." She wasn't sure if it'd be reassuring at all, but there was no reason to panic or give in to forms of defeatism. Her whole life revolved around fighting the Dark Side, so this wasn't going to be any different from the times before.

Right?

Turning her gaze back to Gatz, she raised an eyebrow as he began to ask a question. She hadn't told him anything about the artifact yet, but she knew that she eventually would have to. So as he asked his question, Valery nodded, "It's an amulet but ancient texts are divided about what it does. They all describe it as a healing artifact of some kind, but while some explain it as healing through the Force... others seem to hint at a darker way to restore life." She raised a hand up through her hair and let out a soft sigh.

"I'm starting to feel as if this artifact might be used for Dark Side necromancy, now that I can feel its presence."

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

This wasn't even the worst Dark Side presence Valery had felt before? Gatz wasn't sure how to feel about that. On one hand, that meant that Master Noble had survived worse than this, and so theoretically they should be fine. On the other hand, there were things worse than this. What little comfort her words brought him were dashed by the realization that the galaxy was darker than he'd ever imagined. Oh, he knew the galaxy was a troublesome place. He'd worked with some of the worst people the criminal underworld had to offer.

But there was being selfish, and then there was being evil. He'd thought he'd already experienced the latter.

The ice in his chest told him he was wrong.

"I understand that Jedi don't seek violence," and some part of that philosophy was still ingrained in him, "but I'm having a hard time imagining the Sword herself avoiding battle with a Sith. I thought that was sort of your calling."

Oh, so they were here looking for some rusty old necklace. That figured. Jedi rarely seemed interested in normal things, like new ships or cool weapons. Naturally, they'd be here to play archeologist. And of course the artifact in question would be intended for some sort of perverse use, like reanimating corpses. Because Jedi business was always weird. Always had been.

"Ah. Zombies," Gats sighed, "can't say I'm interested in wooing one of those."

How the hell did you kill a zombie reanimated by the Force? His blaster pistol sure wouldn't do the trick. He didn't have a laser sword like Valery. And he'd left his thermal detonators back on the ship. What in the world was he even doing here? He was a smuggler and a pilot. His life was outrunning starfighters and sneaking past port officials, not hamming it up with a Jedi Council member and confronting the Dark Side.

But... he had to admit, it felt good to be doing something other than serving his own self-interests.

"So, what's the plan with this necklace? If it's what you think it is, why are we taking the chance of retrieving it? Why not destroy it?"

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

"It's more... that I also need my rest," Valery said a little more seriously this time. Kahlil Noble had often talked to her about taking better care of herself, and especially since his return, she was taking it far more seriously. There was no way she'd ever allow anything she can control, such as her rest, to create problems in her life again.

Sure, there would be times when she had no choice and she'd get pushed to her limits, but she wanted to be careful if she could help it.

"Not necessarily zombies, as in mindless beasts. They could be spirits as well or something a lot more dangerous than the average zombie." She blinked, realizing that it probably didn't help the tension to go into how much worse it could be. But at the same time, she'd rather have him be prepared for the worst.

At the question regarding the amulet, she smirked. "Oh, I do plan to destroy it, just not in the way you think. I'm going to purge its connection to the Dark Side and store away the amulet in nullification resin, which is just a safety precaution." She paused and looked at him for a moment. "Sometimes, destroying these artifacts can unleash very dangerous and unexpected problems. So instead, I neutralize it and make sure nobody can ever get to it again."

With that said, she walked further into the city, but only stopped when she felt something else. Or rather, someone else.

"We're getting close, so I can focus better. I... don't think we're the only ones here."

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

As Valery elaborated on her desire to avoid a fight, Gatz adjusted his view on such things. He supposed that even Jedi needed a break. Especially a Jedi who found herself thrust into violent situations time and time again. Aggression was the path to the Dark Side, and living as the Sword must have been like giving aggression a handmade invitation to walk into her life. How thin was the line, he wondered, for people who walked so close to the darkness?

He came to the sudden realization that he didn't want to know, actually.

"I... don't suppose a blaster is gonna be much help against a spirit."

But then, a blaster wasn't going to be much help against a Sith or Dark Jedi either, he supposed. Lightsaber wielders were predisposed to deflecting blaster bolts. Maybe he should have grabbed those thermal detonators, but then, a Force-wielder could just throw those back telekinetically... Gatz was starting to realize that his only real place on this mission was to helm the ship. If it came down to a fight with anyone wielding the Force, he'd just be a liability to the Jedi Master.

Not that she'd say as much. She was too kind, and Jedi found too much value in individuals to be pragmatic about such things.

Gatz had been just about to respond to Valery, and ask her about this resin she could seal the artifact in, when she stopped him and told him she sensed something. That must have been a testament to how sharply tuned her senses were, because Gatz could feel nothing through the oppressive miasma that the Dark Side had enveloped them in.

"A wrench in the plan. Tale as old as time," Gatz whispered back, as he silently drew his blaster, "how many are we talking?"

---

Valery Noble

 

[Valery Noble]

Erakhis

​

Outfit: Factory Link
Appearance: Link
Weapons: Lightsabers
Tag: Gatz Derrevar

"Not against a spirit, but those are rare. If we run into anything physical, it'll be useful." Even if Force Users had a myriad of ways to defend themselves against blasters, his support with one would be very helpful. She could pressure a threat up close, while he'd be able to cover her from a distance away. Of course, she hoped that it wouldn't be necessary, but she was trained to always be prepared for any outcome.

Soon enough, it seemed that this mental readiness would be necessary.

After sensing a presence through the thick fog that was the Dark Side, Valery stopped Gatz and alerted him to the danger. He wasn't able to pick up on it yet, but she knew that if they had pushed forward, he'd eventually feel it too. "I only sense one presence so far, but there could be more. This one is stronger in the Force," she said with a frown, knowing that it likely meant serious trouble.

She still felt ready to move on despite it, though, but this likely fell beyond the agreed-upon terms for his involvement. So rather than dragging him into it, she turned to Gatz and let out a soft sigh. "I'm going to intercept the presence I feel, but I can't expect you to join me. We'll likely have to deal with someone who isn't very willing to talk, so... this is the time to head back to the ship if you prefer not to get into it."

Whether he decided to stay with her or not, Valery would press forward.