Star Wars Roleplay: Chaos

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Haven

Ziost was a world unlike any Darius had ever visited.

Never before had he set foot upon a world so tainted with the dark side. The shadows were everywhere here; the skies remained cast in an eerie blue twilight, and the icy tundras remained a stark white at all times of the year. Little life grew on Ziost, and what little did was of the most savage breed. This was a world where nature's violence had been capitalized upon in favor of its grace; where savagery thrived in favor of balance.

It was a horrible place, and Darius inherently despised it. Yet he'd been drawn to this world all the same.

He drew the leather cloak about his features as he strode across the ice. His vessel had settled down upon one of the vast tundra planes that dotted the icy world. The sheet of white was broken only by the mass of black buildings that made up the old Sith ruins. Darius looked upon the ruins with curiosity, though he never once allowed himself to relax. This was a place of the dark side, a haven for the unnatural and the chaotic. Disorder reigned here, and he did well to remember that.

With a huff, the Jedi Knight strode deeper into the city, his arms tight about his chest. The force guided him toward the heart of the ruins, where his quarry lay waiting for anyone with the right initiative to take her.

Darius was certain it would be him...
 
"Curious", Saroya murmured softly as she clutched her sturdy Terenthium-alloy walking stick and began a steep ascent of the ice-covered wall ruins. If there were steps here once, they were now long gone; having withered away like much of the flora of this barren wasteland of a planet. She had just taken a brief respite from her trek to the citadel by swallowing some lukewarm water from the canteen on her belt. Sudden influx of moisture brought necessary, albeit temporary, relief. Stalking onward, the woman pulled the heavy canvas folds of her cloak about her person, ignoring for the moment, the hood that had fallen back a little -- exposing tufts of ebony hair, now stubbornly billowing in the wind.

Casting her head slowly over her shoulder, Saroya grinned before pulling the hood back on. Most curious, indeed. You would not find me easy prey, young one. The large, felinoid mammal with a skin color to match her own seemed undecided -- as if he could sense the Falleen's thoughts. But by now the traveler was keenly aware of the creature's movement pattern, its smell, even the characteristic noise it made as it scratched its clawed appendages against the ice in a rather effective manner of achieving both absolute balance and easy grace.

In truth, had the vine cat thought to make Saroya his meal, he would have done so long ago. Both of them were now intensely mindful of the other, each respecting the other's personal space. Respect. Now that was not something she expected to encounter from a base repto-mammal -- and here, of all places. The thought wrought a thin smile from her lips just as she heard the animal spook and take off suddenly in the opposite direction - clearly startled by something it did not expect to encounter. Saroya resumed her decisive gait, determined to reach some higher ground before investigating further -- if indeed there was anything worthy of investigation.

Animals are often easily startled. Perhaps it is time to get indoors.

Gaze sweeping over surroundings just coming into view, the traveler blinked with satisfaction, recognizing deeply etched markings on a large cornerstone that was once perhaps, the base of a pillar that framed a generous entrance. The rune translated to 'Qo', a word in Ancient Sith that represented the concept of a way, or a path. So at least I am heading in the right direction, Saroya reassured herself with her usual calm, inborn patience of her species holding firm. Somewhere in the distance, a howl of a vine cat answered her -- and another joined it in reply, forming an almost ominous chorus. She almost felt -something- for a fleeting moment . . . and then it was gone, steering the traveler's thoughts back to the harmony of pure, feline expression born of wilderness and twilight.

These creatures of the night - such music they make.

Stepping within the citadel's walls, Saroya continued onward -- seemingly ignorant of the soft, almost unremarkable ripple in the Living Force that presently broke itself upon the surface of her impregnable peace of mind, like water . . . on rock.
 
The beasts were natural hunters; creatures that thrived on the daily game of murder that was Ziost's life cycle. It understood strength in the most primal sense of the word; creatures deserving of its acknowledgment were often left to their own devices. The beasts beneath them were the prey. This dynamic could continue for a dozen centuries, just as it had before he had arrived here, but his presence threw a wrench in the entire operation. The vine cats charged along the tree line at the edge of his view, bellowing warning calls as they had little idea as to what this intruder was. None approached, for fear of death at the hands of this strange intruder, but their cries never ceased either.

Darius paid them little mind, his fingers wrapped firmly about the hilt of his lightsaber should he need it. Fortunately the beasts seemed content to put on the show of resistance without offering any real problems. They waited at the edge of the city and did not follow him any further as delved further into its depths.

The force was twisted and broken here. Where once thousands of souls had thrived, now only a few dozen remained. Death clung to this place like the stench of carrion, though the air here was strangely crisp. It thrummed with the force's power, having been ripped out of its normal flow to serve as a font of sorts. It was within this supreme darkness that the artifact Darius intended to claim was housed. Satisfied that he was following the right path, Darius stepped own toward the entrance of the temple in the city center...

He caught sight of ebony locks and green skin before the figure strode onward. Her presence melded perfectly with that of the force here - his own contrast against the world's alignment would make him noticeable almost immediately.The knight halted at the lip of the temple, his brow furrowed.

"I wasn't expecting any inhabitants."

[member="Saroya"]
 
Basking in the corruption of the Dark side, the traveler stepped into what once must have been a heavily fortified bastion or perhaps a defense tower of some kind. Not much remained of it now, save a heap of snow-covered stones and broken obelisks - a testament to days of twisted, ancient glory. Gloved fingertips brushed gently against the white-covered surface, leaving a trail of curious fingertips without purpose. Without gain. Sometimes, it was simply enough to achieve tactile contact with a thing, to feel a connection with it--

Just then, a subtle shiver ran up and down Saroya's veiled wrist but when the Falleen glanced upon it, there was nothing there. Pulling her hood tighter about the face to protect and obscure her features, the traveler pivoted on her heel and turned slowly -- as if to survey her new surroundings for unlikely trespassers. She could feel an unfamiliar life signature in the vicinity, yes . . . of that there could be no doubt. Intrigued but not unsettled, she leaned onto her walking stick and stared deftly ahead as if seeing something in the mist that was revealed only unto her, and no one else.

You can see me . . . I can feel you.

Playing the waiting game, Saroya waited for the mist to clear. It eventually ebbed away revealing a presence some hundred meters away, a presence aglow with a strange aura in the Force. It was almost . . . inconclusive. And yet, it was nothing like her own.

Bipedal. Male, if I did not know better, judging by the breadth of the shoulders and overall tall physique.

Saroya approached slowly, with an almost taunting gait. The stranger seemed intent on heading toward the entrance of the centrally located Sith temple ruins -- judging by the trajectory of his footfalls in the snow. Emerald eyes flickered with amusement. Did he know what he was getting himself into? Or was it precisely why he was here, in the first place?

Do we share a common purpose? Doubtful, but as long as you do not get in my way, all will be well.

Just then, the low timber of the stranger's voice confirmed Saroya's earlier suspicions, head canting slightly as she thought for a moment, suppressing an inward smirk before offering a reply.

He mistakes me for a native. Simply unaware or equally deceptive? One person's ignorance is another's power. And yet, would a naive wanderer last long in this place? No, this one is . . . prudent.

Suddenly, the Falleen was on her guard, although neither her speech or demeanor suggested anything in her initial approach had changed. Innate self-discipline and patience fell over her like second cloak, and another step forward indicated complete composure in the face of real (and possibly) present, danger.

"Considering where you are, I should think my presence is the least of your worries . . . off-worlder."


---------------------------------
[member="Darius Sedaire"]
 
Everything felt cold.

Darius walked within the valley of damnation alone, as he always had. Its malignant presence crept over him like a death shroud, but he refused its welcoming embrace. To dive into the depths of oblivion and face what might be born of such an unholy union was a constant thought in the back of the Jedi Knight's mind, but he remained resolute. It was a faith in the light that kept him from the brink of insanity. Only the holy presence of the Ashla allowed him to stare into the abyss, and he had learned very much in his time as an observer.

It was that faith that made him halt now. His mind shifted to thoughts of serenity; of the peace the force offered him no matter his chosen locale. Even in the darkest of places, the force would never leave him - it was his sole companion; his constant companion. Right now, that companion told him to hold his ground, and prepare for any possible outcome with this stranger. From her he felt the shadows dancing; she was a vessel of corruption. Her soul was tinged with the cancerous presence of the Dark Side, she and it were one.

Cut her down. She is another test.

His fingers twitched for the lightsaber at his belt. His greater sense gave them pause. He knew such thoughts drew from his vehement disdain for all that had been touched by the shadow, and he knew they were another tool of the disease he fought. Now was not the time for them.

"Perhaps, but I could say the same of you," he offered, his tone diplomatic if nothing else. His footfalls rang out through the ruins as he strode toward the figure, though well out of striking range.

His cowl remained drawn over his features, though one could make out brooding green eyes peering out from its hem. The knight smiled. "What remains to be seen is whether or not our purpose here is the same."

[member="Saroya"]
 

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