Heart of Darkness

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

They were a good bit away from the crashed smuggling ship, the lone trio making their way on the remote jungle paths. They just needed to get back to the city and find another ride off. Trickier because her face would be recognizable. But maybe with a little luck of the force...

"No, it's separate. I think some Republic members split away and started it," hand smacked against her neck as one of the native bugs got a meal out of hear. Ouch. She went to swat another one away that was buzzing around her arm. Great. Was she the sweet-blooded one of the group?

"Well. I left the republic just after the One Sith invasion of Kashyyyk. From what I've heard, it's mostly dissolved. Spent some time healing in the outer rim and ended up joining the Alliance shortly after...," voice quieted. After the change to a new body. After death.

Surprise flecked her brow as Maalik shared the details of his relationship with the captain. She'd assumed....

"I'm sorry too," myrtle orbs looked up to the woman hanging off the man's shoulder. A large part of the healer felt responsible. If only she'd been stronger. Saved them all.

Another smack on her other arm then a drop of wet plopped on her nose. Then another on her brow and another on her head. Big, fat, warm raindrops.

"Were you fighting with the Sith?" She asked Blue, unsure of whether she was thankful for the rain to keep the bugs away or not on Varonat.

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

Molten orbs closed slowly, fluttering as his eye lashes were struck with a drop of rain. Looking upwards, he stopped in his tracks. With the ship left far in their wake, they were somewhat removed from the danger of tracking for the time being. The forest offered extensive canopy for protection when one knew where to look. Even large rock protrusions, clawing their way out of the earth, offered meager means of shelter to wait for a storm to pass.

Perhaps, in some way that he couldn't shake, the fear of lightning by the Vong had been too deeply embedded to shake. And while he couldn't fathom how he knew, he assumed it was the smell. That scent of ozone, pungent yet sweet, gave him slight indication of what was to come.

A few small droplets would become something more as he cast his view in the Mirialans direction. Then behind her. Between the varying trees and across an open cut in the jungle, a large rock stood upright and at 45 degree angle to the ground. Boulders stood on the sides and he assumed a tunnel burrowed deep beneath the earth. If he were a beast, he would use such as his den.

"Let us take shelter..." Fear wasn't entirely present in his expression, yet it hid away beneath a certain and distinguished frailty. "We can check that cavern for any beasts and once clear, we will wait for the storm to pass over."

A clap smacked across the sky as his eyes flicked upwards to discern presence of lightning.

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

He conveniently didn't answer her question. At least the rain was warm and not icy cold. For a moment, she found herself lost in his molten orbs. But maybe it was because she saw a flicker of something she had yet to see on the chiss. Was it fear? Anxiety? Perhaps she was over-reading his facial expressions. Green cheeks warmed and she abruptly turned, eyes searching for the cave he spoke of.

"Good idea," she muttered. Carefully picking her way up the path that was beginning to get slick with water, she crouched at the entrance. They would have to go hand and knee for a ways. She couldn't tell if it opened up further back.

"I'll go first."

With her lightsaber set on low power, she flicked on the golden blade. The low hum echoed down the tunnel and painted everything in a surreal glow. Slowly, she began to crawl forward, acutely aware of what Maalik's view would be.

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

Relief washed over him as the deluge slowly made its way in. There was static in the air, he could feel its presence move about armored and scarred figure. Following her, he knelt as the Jedi moved into position. Molten orbs drifted from the golden ambiance of her lightsaber, the way it lit up the small tunnel that led into the cavern. Shifting, he noticed the delicate differences between his figure and her own. He had made note of the way she moved but he deemed that perhaps an artifact of cultural or racial difference, importance in determining the weaknesses and strengths of a potential ally. There were, of course, women on Selvaris - both part of the Slayer regiment and part of the Vong themselves. But just like him, they always felt like nothing more than tools. Was this any different?

"Can you crawl through, yourself? Or should I drag you?" He looked over to the Captain as he set her down by the entrance.

"My arms work fine, Maalik. I'll crawl in after you." The Falleen shifted uncomfortably, already ashamed by the need to be carried. Though the Chiss hybrid could tell that she was relieved to have a break, as the movement was likely causing further pain.

Crawling in after Taheera, it wasn't long before the tunnel opened up into a small cavern. Rock formations, mostly darkened except by the glow of her saber, were slightly illuminated by the grey clouds. That light poked through via a small eroded hole in the southern most part of the chamber, where water had likely formed window for the world outside. But besides that, the room seemed entirely enclosed.

As the lightning clapped across the sky, Maalik shuddered in view of the blue and gray as it arched across the natural window. The sound filled the chamber, like an acoustic amplifier, as the rain hit hard against the orange and brown rock. He recalled some time ago, when fighting against the Galactic Republic, that such things brought no fear or discomfort. As he looked down at his hands, hardly seen in the low light, he wondered if he had grown weak in his time among the stars.

"Yes." He nodded his head, signaled by the slow movement of glowing orange eyes. "I fought for the One Sith. These hands were not my own. They killed when commanded. Caused suffering, helped to erode what remained of the Jedi and their Republic. I believed, at the time, that it was for Yun-Yuuzhan but I know now...that it wasn't the truth."

Just then, the Captains head cleared the tunnel as she pulled herself into the chamber. "Never took you for the loquacious!"

[member="Taheera Sollo"]​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"]

Once the captain pulled herself in, the healer switched off the lightsaber blade. The natural gap in the rock would provide just enough light and their eyes would adjust. Without the steady hum of the lightsaber, the rain seemed suddenly louder within the cavern. She clipped the cylinder to her belt, blinking a few times as her eyes adjusted.

"I see," she said quietly, trying to reserve any sort of leap to judgement. Lips twitched slightly at the Falleen woman's comment. There was a bright flash of light and another clap-boom of thunder. For a second, she thought she observed a tension in Maalik's shoulders.

Wandering over to a boulder-sized bench, she sat. Fingers weaved through wet strands of chestnut hair, trying to squish the water out. The cave was a bit chilly. And damp clothes didn't help either. Teeth grit against a shiver. At least there weren't any biting bugs in here. She'd been lost in her own, quiet thoughts and finally, she looked up for that set of magma eyes.

"Sometimes, learning the truth can be more painful and devastating than any sort of physical wound. When did you...decide to walk away and change the path you'd been previously set to walk?"

The clone was a kindred spirit in many ways. She'd been cloned by a Sith Lord and placed in the hands of the Sith. She'd escaped before anything could happen. But...she always questioned whether her choices were her own now or if she was fulfilling some cursed purpose.

 

[RIP Carlyle Rausgeber]

Admiral Carlyle Rausgeber watched anxiously from the command centre of FINY Varonat.. Even through the bustling noise of the command centre, Carlyle could hear TIE fighter squadrons howling outside. Usually a facility like this was quiet. Studiously interpreting telemetry and data. But the coming super storm had been a pressing matter. Down below, hundreds of stormtroopers, and naval personnel were working overtime to secure equipment for the coming monsoon.

A monsoon, which if predicted accurately, would be the largest in nearly a century. The potential of the storm to tear through the southern hemisphere, bearing down flooding and gale force winds in the lowlands was too much to ignore. So preparations for the protection of key equipment had been made. But that operation was under the purview of the Varonat staff, and Brigadier General Hale. What Carlyle was concerned about, were reports of a starship crash.

So far the location had been unverified by anyone, but villagers in the far east reported a ship failing, and falling back to Varonat's jungle surface, and that had sparked Carlyle's interest. Overruling General Hale, Carlyle ordered an air search, with the hopes of finding the wreck, and possibly survivors. Carlyle's glassy eyes gazed out as a second squad of TIE fighters returned to the Naval Yard's hangar. His concentration was however broken, as the chaos of the command centre was broken by a steely silence. Hale, had arrived.

"I have had quite enough of this search Admiral Rausgeber." The General Hale snarled, as Carlyle turned to face the man, "I have assets here to protect, personnel to defend. This search must end."

Carlyle shook his head, "General Hale, what you fail to understand is-"

"What you fail to understand Rausgeber, is that this facility, is not for you to commandeer!" The General roared, "You have done nothing here but steal my forces, in the face of disaster no less!"

"The villagers talk is to be taken seriously," Carlyle venomously retorted, "There may be survivors yet-"

"And there may be no survivors!" Hale bitterly snapped, "I will risk my squadrons no further here," The General growled, "You may have your fleets repairs, but you may no longer-" The General's blustering was halted by the beeping of a comms terminal. Both men looked down at the left crew pit, and watched as a young ensign, fresh from the academy quivered under their glare. "What is it?" Hale asked coldly.

"We uh, we have confirmation of a crash site sir," The ensign reported, her voice stammering as she delivered the report, "Rave Squadron has confirmed a crash. But there's no survivors there."

"See," Hale snapped, glaring back at Carlyle, before turning back to him, "They're dead."

"Or not. There still may be hope," Carlyle shot back, "Are there any details Rave Squadron has?"

"The ship is largely intact from their fly over." The ensign replied,

"Well then, they're still in with a chance," Carlyle said, with an air of satisfaction, "Where was the crash site ensign?"

"The Darteth Lowlands sir." The ensign replied, before returning back to her work, keeping both officers in the corner of her eye, as she laboured underneath the glowing screen.

"That'll be underwater soon enough," Carlyle replied, as one of the architects of the Varonat Naval Yard, he'd been privy to the decision in locality. The Lowlands had initially been chosen, but due to the propensity for flash flooding, and cave networks, it hadn't been chosen. "Commander," He turned to an infantry officer working at the rear of the command centre, "Prepare a detatchment, I'll search for these survivors myself."

Hale scoffed, "Are you mad Rausgeber?!" his eyes nearly bulging, "You'll drown!"

"Then I'll see you in hell." Carlyle replied, eyeing the man derisively, "If there are any wounded down there, perhaps even crippled, there will be no hope for them. They'll die, slowly and painfully." He turned to the Commander, "Continue with the preparations," he ordered, "There's no time to lose."

[member="Taheera Sollo"] | [member="Atham'aali'kema"]

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

The man stirred in the open cockpit of the downed fighter. Peppered through the wake of their flight, small swoops and small gunships riddled the mountainous jungle that separated Fortress of the First Order and Tropis-On-Varonat, swallowed by the foliage of the tall and overgrown chapparal. Their location had been a serpentine effort, finding way along the exterior of the Edgelines-On-Varonat, mesic and near-tropical forests lining the path. Such was most of the ecosystem of the world, given to little change between mountains and forests and plains.

"A...anyone alive?" The man's chest oozed blood as the heavy rains came down upon his vessel. The flow formed rivulets and ravines, moving through elongated wrinkles across the mountainscape. The provocation of gravity was far too persuasive to allow any concern of being swallowed by threats of a flood.

He heard crackling across the encrypted communications as he gripped it in fingerless gloved hands. Blue eyes drifted skyward as the words came across.

::Yeah. I hear ya, boss. Not sure about Arlan. He went down several miles back.::​

​

"Y-yeah..." He wheezed, having felt the passage of hours after applying emergency medicine to stave off death. "How is the ship?"

::Not good. Not sure I can get her off the ground.::​

​

"Took a pretty good hit from the launcher..." He coughed and laughed. "Can you reach the rest of the gang?"

::Sure. Though I'm not sure how quick they'll respond, chatter over the open channel about a monsoon. Think their sitting quiet at spaceport in Tropis::​

​

He laughed as he looked towards the sky, shaking his head. Sure, the rain felt heavy, but there was hardly any serious concern. "Call 'em in. You know as well as I do that meteorologists are right about 1 out of every 10,000 forecasts. They'll come. Tell 'em to bring the big one. We'll chase them down and get what we came for."

::Gotcha.::​

​

~~~​

​

He felt a certain reassurance in their hidden position, deeply set in a cavern among many against the slight mountainside. What felt like hours since the initial pickup, trail left would seem as nothing more than foraging and game path.

Molten orbs traced the silhouette of the Mirialans figure as his gaze shifted to the Captain. She was currently propping herself up on a stone, squeezing water from the small bit of hair that rested in a tight knot.

"Painful?" His vision narrowed as he looked towards the stone wall before him. Smiling, his lips parted to reveal sharp canines. "No. Not pain. Up until that point, life held no meaning for me. And it wasn't a value I could apply in retrospect. Of course..." He looked towards the Jedi Healer. "There was always pain...one doesn't lose sense of self without first having it clawed out. But when you know nothing but pain, everything tends to numb."

"I didn't decide...I was cut loose. When Selvaris burned, the Legion abandoned me as they dissolved away. I am now forever stuck in twilight, neither Vong nor Chiss...but a beast caught somewhere in the middle." His fingers stretched out and in, recalling the mixture of memories as the metal of a clawcraft was replaced with the mental connection to coral and living meteorite. "Are you happy with the Alliance? Do they serve some sort of purpose?"

The Captain shifted against the stone, looking towards Taheera before shifting her attention to Maalik. "You've never told me anything about your past..."

Maalik's gaze wavered from the hard stare, once fixed on Harla, to his Captain. "You never took the time to ask."

[member="Taheera Sollo"] | [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]​

​

​

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"] [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]

Green-fingers tucked damp strands of chestnut hair behind her ears as she looked up. "I haven't been with the Alliance very long but yes. The people I've met are good people." She thought of Trextan Voidstalker and Gabe. "We defend the weak, fight to rid the galaxy of the corruption of the darkside, and work to protect the worlds we've been charged with." A shadow crossed her tattooed face.

"Sometimes we fail." She couldn't shake Barkesh. All those people counted on them and they'd failed. She had a feeling Gabe wouldn't want her dwelling on these thoughts and feelings for long. There was a point to learn lessons, stop self-wallowing, and move on. She wasn't quite at the moving on part yet but she was trying.

Another rumble of thunder shook through the cave.

"I don't think you're a beast and I bet your captain would agree," she spoke quietly, myrtle-ellipses flickering beyond Maalik to the Falleen woman. Still, the healer had to wonder. If he hadn't been abandoned, would he have continued to slaughter the jedi without a second though? Would he ever go back to that?

"Do you-," the comm at her side crackled. Fingers tuned-in for the frequency. Quiet chatter from First Order reports transmitted through the cave. Something about the weather, though it wasn't raining too hard outside, yet, and a search for.....new voices filled the static-filled frequency. Their tones were certainly less military. She caught the word 'gang' and something about 'get what we came here for.'

Myrtle-ellipses widened and for a moment, she forgot the damp chill that clung to her form.

"Maalik. What exactly was that gang after on your ship?"

And for the first time, she began to wonder if she wasn't the only thing they were trying to smuggle off the First Order planet.

 

[RIP Carlyle Rausgeber]

Carlyle boots clattered along the docking ramp as he boarded the upsilon-class shuttle, flanked by stormtrooper field medics. Two other atmospheric assault landers were being prepped, so in all in all the total compliment of stormtroopers was half a platoon. Though this platoon was valuable, being made up of field medics meant that if they were lost in the storm, it would cost the Order dearly. Though Carlyle would fortunately be dead if questions ever needed to be raised. The Admiral had shed his ostentatious cape, for the more orthodox black, gaberwool greatcoat and cap as he entered the shuttle.

"How long will it take us to reach the crash site?" Carlyle asked, as he proceeded to the cockpit. The two pilots were running flight systems checks, and the engines howled as they were warmed.

"Approximately ten minutes sir," One of the pilots reported, looking back at the man, "We're going to have a half hour respite before poodoo hits the fan. When we get there, so this needs to be an in and out mission." He warned, "When the main storm hits, it'll be way harder to keep a bird like this in the air."

"Understood," Rausgeber continued, "Any possibilities of us running into civilian traffic? I imagine our sensor arrays won't be too effective here, and visual range will be.... well, non-existent."

The pilot nodded, "We have all skies clear," The officer confirmed, "Governor Marrarn has declared a state of martial law, any and all civilian traffic in this hemisphere is grounded until the storm clears." The pilot continued, "If we see anyone up near us, we're cleared to arrest."

"Good, good...." Carlyle coolly responded, "Get us up in the air major, we have to give the survivors more time." He ordered, "And prep us a line on all civilian channels, they may have a transmitter or something. Let them know, that help is arriving."

"As you wish." The Co-Pilot responded, "Now go, and buckle yourself in sir, this is going to be a bumpy ride." Carlyle nodded, and walked back into the passenger portion of the shuttle. He could feel the weight shifting as the shuttle began to take off from the hangar. As he did that, the upsilon-class shuttle broadcast a signal across all planetary signals.

::This is First Order Command. We are on a rescue mission. If there are any survivors of the crash at quadrant 6-0-6, please hold your position. Rescue is coming.::​

​

[member="Taheera Sollo"] | [member="Atham'aali'kema"]

 

[Atham'aali'kema]

"You hear..." He coughed. "You hear that?"

::Yeah, boss. Something about quadrant 6-0-6 and a rescue mission. Not really sure that's for us. Never shown much interest in our well being.::​

​

"Yeah. What's this about Martial Law?"

::Just got off the comms with Roscoe. Something about Governor Marraan ordering martial law, grounding everyone until the emergency is resolved.::​

​

"Emergency? And who is Governor Marraan?"

::No idea. But port authorities at Tropis are already deep in our pockets so we should be good. The team has already departed and is en route. I guess a bit of rain puts a damper on things.::​

​

"Yeah, gods forbid these people ever fly on Manaan. You remember that time w..." He let out another cough. "You remember that treasure dive?"

::Yeah...good times. Listen boss, you doing alright?::​

​

"Got hit by that snake thing...hopefully the crew shows up soon." He clutched the communications in one hand, holding the bandage tightly to the wound. He could feel his breath getting more and more labored.

~~~​

​

He looked towards the comm as it chimed, in reference to the rescue mission being put out by the First Order. It sounded like a lie to him as he never had a good interaction with the group, but he didn't know much more about it. Turning his eyes to her, his vision narrowed.

"I think the more important question is...what did you take from the First Order, Harla?" He stepped closer, his hands cradled within one another. He held no love for the faction and held as much care for his own well being. But his job was to protect the package. And this package was a living, breathing thing - with eyes that matched the forest.

He looked up towards the window in the stone as lightning arched across the darkened grey sky. The rain splashed through the entrance way with the gentle breeze. "We may have no time to wait here..."

The captain moved against the stone as she sighed. "My men should be here soon...this has gone on long enough." Maalik turned his head towards the woman who looked coldly back. "You said it yourself...you're a Vong Chiss hybrid. When I found out about it, I couldn't pass up the opportunity."

Maalik felt the amphistaff uncoil from his waist and slither into his palm.

[member="Taheera Sollo"] | [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]

 

[Magnus Ren]

Magnus dropped down behind a tower of crates silently from the ceiling of one of the warehouses. During the day, the area tended to be more busy, with other workers out and about, but on this day it was more or less clear - even if it was raining a little. He looked up into the sky, water splashing down over his flesh as he nodded to himself.

"How many?" He recalled asking when he had been deployed to the planet.

Black boots carried the six foot tall dark skinned man through the rain.

The number was largely than previously thought of the corrupt officials, but the Knight of Ren ventured out to the planet all the same. The water spilled off his hood as he approached the first one head-on.

"H-hey you, what are you doing?"

Magnus was quick, and as the man fumbled at his holster, the black form of the Ren crashed into the man, driving him into a crate which cracked on impact, though didn't fall apart completely. The man was winded, but Magnus didn't give him enough time to beg. There were others he had to deal with as well.

Magnus' hand reached down to flip open the holster of the man's pistol, drawing it out slowly, almost as if he sought to tease him. He pressed th end of the barrel against the mans chest, his head gently tilting to the side.

Two crimson shots whined out of the muzzle, striking the man in the chest.

"Sieger doesn't take kindly to traitors," he breathed out before he let the man drop. Dropping the blaster to the floor. Soon, within moments, he was disappearing into the Port. There were others he had to take care of.

[member="Taheera Sollo"] - [member="Atham'aali'kema"] - [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"]

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Atham'aali'kema"] [member="Carlyle Rausgeber"] [member="Magnus Ren"]

The healer shifted uncomfortably under the weight of Maalik's gaze. It was no secret the First Order housed many darksiders. And with that, came darkside knowledge. She had a contact here, a retired master who tipped her off on something related to essence transfer.

It wasn't stolen codes or base information or anything like that, nothing that would necessarily profit the alliance. If things had gone extremely in her favor, the Order never would've known she'd been here or copied something so archaic and force-power specific in the first place. Slender-green digits gripped the comm a bit tighter, feeling the weight of the datachit in her pocket.

This so-called rescue mission would be around their general area soon, even with the distance they'd put between the crash. They had some time but not much.

There was a chance the First Order still didn't know. And perhaps the Mirialan healer wouldn't be recognizable at all. She'd only been on Barkesh, fighting that armored Sith. It wasn't like she was as well known as Trextan Voidstalker or his father.

"I'm not sure if it's what I took so much as who I am and being with the Alliance," she admitted quietly. Then again, she could be completely wrong. She wasn't that well-known, was she? She'd only hired the smugglers as a precaution....and look how that turned out.

The healer shot up from her perch on the rock as the captain spoke. Once again, she couldn't feel Maalik's emotions but she didn't need to. The betrayal settled like a thick cloud within the damp, cool air in their temporary refuge. She ignored the captain, focusing on the man.

"Maalik," a soft touch at his shoulder, myrtle-ellipses eyeing that amphistaff warily. "We need to go. Head to the city. Now."

The captain wouldn't follow them. She couldn't. And a good stun blast would take the woman out for a few long hours.