Private Private Investigations

[Calyx Sundrift]

S T R A N G L E D -C L I F F S
D A T H O M I R

Calyx studied the swirling red mists clinging to the orange-crimson canopy below. The forest looked less like a woodland and more like a tangle of roots, its gnarled trees strangling jagged stone and clawing their way up the towering cliffs that rose from the fog.

It was anything but welcoming.

With a gentle nudge, he guided the TIE/sr lower, scanning for a suitable landing site.

"We've arrived. You may want to get ready..." He hesitated before adding, "...if it pleases you." He still wasn't sure how to address the Sith Knight. They had barely spoken during the journey, and Tamsin's presence was about as inviting as a frozen lake. Yet she had volunteered, if that was the right word, to serve as his escort when the Overseers insisted he find one. Without her, his investigation into Dathomir would have ended before it began.

It made for an unfortunate arrangement. Because while he needed her to have freedom of movement, her watchful eyes made it difficult to do what he actually needed to do.

For a brief moment, he had considered being honest with her. But the thought alone left a sour taste in his mouth. Besides, would Tamsin really believe him?

He had only partially uncovered the prophecy of the 'Final Weave' on Arcana. And that had been based on all the leads he'd gathered from the bowels of the Red Library. The rest had come through the Dyad. Through Acier Moonbound , whose memories had passed to him as dreams filled with the desperate pleas of Clan Verthrisa. Only now did he realise that those held the key.

Now all he had to do was find them, or whatever remained of them.

"Didn't expect we'd get this far." Calyx leaned back in his seat. "I'd figured the Mandalorians would gun us down the moment we dropped out of hyperspace."

His gaze lingered on the crimson wilderness below. "Do you think the Nightsisters will welcome us?" Over the course of the journey, he had spent hours studying holorecordings of Dathomir's history. Its fauna, the Nightbrothers, the clans, the witches. The more he learned, the less enthusiastic he became about meeting any of them.

"I'm usually the first to start talking, but perhaps you should handle introductions." A faint smile tugged at his mouth. "I'd rather not end up in chains because some sister decided I was being too friendly." He shook his head, but could not shake the thoughts of witches his age. "I'll stay with the ship. Unpack. Run a systems check." He gestured vaguely toward the rear compartments. "Something started rattling back in hyperspace that definitely shouldn't have. I'll see if I can figure out what it was."

That was a lie, of course.

The moment Tamsin was out of sight, he intended to make for the Weavewoods. He had studied every map he could acquire and committed most of them to memory. By the time she returned, he would have his answers. And she would be none the wiser.

Calyx glanced over his shoulder and offered what he hoped was a charming smile. The injury had diminished its effectiveness. People rarely found an eyepatch charming. Intimidating, however, now came far more easily.

"That alright with you?" Without waiting for an answer, he engaged the landing systems.

Tamsin Starfall | Meya Liefi​

 

[Tamsin Starfall]

Theme: Witch Kingdom
Location: Strangled-Cliffs, Dathomir
Equipment: Twin Omens | Combat Knife | Talisman | Multi-Tool | Mind Crown | Jacket (Black) | War Paint
TAGS: Calyx Sundrift | Meya Liefi

Tamsin looked out from the TIE/sr down towards the world she was told her heritage came from. Unlike the world she was created on, and then the one she was enslaved upon this was not a desert world. She had known that before she had decided to come here but still it brought a bit of awe to her as she looked down on the clouded canopy. She had half expected the demon only liked barren nearly dead worlds.

As the man in the cockpit spoke Tamsin just watched out the windows in silence. She had not known why he wanted to come here, at least not an honest reason. She had a way of reading people and knew he wasn't telling the truth about his compulsion to come to this world.

Then again, she couldn't blame him from hiding his intentions from her, she herself had volunteered for a reason. Not a reason she could control either, the Demon within her had forced her hand. It desired to return home, it desired to gain more power and control. Tamsin as much as she wanted to fight the Demon's swaying, in the end she always broke to it.

She took a moment to look down at her right arm that was still healing from Humbarine. A price she had to pay for begging the Demon to show mercy. As the Tie/sr came to a landing on the surface, her strange eyes went forward as he addressed her. "I'm ready and you can just call me Tamsin." She said politely.

In the back of her mind she heard the demon speak to her.

"Slit the filthy outsider malings throat. He doesn't deserve to step foot on this holy place."

Tamsin just pushed the voice back as best she could as, her creators soul combined with her own only known as the demon because Tamsin knew not its real name. She hoped it would stay in the mind and not present itself before Calyx. It was part of the reason she had remained so silent and introverted to keep it from creeping to the surface.

"Didn't expect we'd get this far." Calyx leaned back in his seat. "I'd figured the Mandalorians would gun us down the moment we dropped out of hyperspace."

"They only protect this world, as far as I know. They don't control or rule over the people, I am sure someone on the surface felt us coming and told them. If they would have hailed us I would have invoked my sisters name and been allowed to pass."

Tamsin said politely her voice calm and oddly meek for a sith. Yet she didn't seem to concerned about the Mandalorians, because her sister had been a foundling of one of the clans she assumed was still on good terms with the Mandalorian Empire.

"Do you think the Nightsisters will welcome us?"

"I do not know, from what I have studied of them their reaction will vary depending on which clans territory we are in. I have never been to Dathomir but have studied it extensively."

She admitted openly, probably to Calyx's shock as he thought she would be an able guide. In truth the real guide was the demon in her, it knew every nook and cranny of this world. It knew its secrets and the traps meant to catch the unexpecting.

"I'm usually the first to start talking, but perhaps you should handle introductions." A faint smile tugged at his mouth. "I'd rather not end up in chains because some sister decided I was being too friendly." He shook his head, but could not shake the thoughts of witches his age. "I'll stay with the ship. Unpack. Run a systems check." He gestured vaguely toward the rear compartments. "Something started rattling back in hyperspace that definitely shouldn't have. I'll see if I can figure out what it was."

As she got off the TIE/rn and her feet touched the ground, the man began digging through the cargo he had brought. Tamsin walked a bit away as he spoke to her, her strange glowing orange eyes scanning the land around them. The Demon telling her they were close to Howling Crags Territory. Yet also close to the Red Hills clan, Great Canyon Clan, and Broken Columns Clan, not sure which of the four clans control this particular area.

"Uh…what? Me….." She turned to him with wide Orange eyes. Tamsin was no social butterfly she was just as liable to get them killed if they spoke first. "Uh…sure I guess….I can do that." Frak, frak she thought as the demon laughed in her skull. "Yeah you um…stay here. Uh don't get yourself killed, fix the ship I will scout and see what I can find." Then the demon spoke in her mind as she turned to the forest and she took a deep breath.

"You're fucked, and he is going to die no loss there."

Tamsin just shook her head as she began to move forward into the jungles and cliffs of Dathomir.

 

[Meya Liefi]

Tag: Calyx Sundrift Tamsin Starfall
​

The forests of Dathomir were never truly silent.

Wind hissed through crimson leaves high above. Insects droned somewhere beyond the curtain of mist. Distant cries of unseen creatures echoed between the towering cliffs, distorted by the fog until it became difficult to judge how far away they truly were. Air itself carried the scent of damp earth, crushed vegetation, and the faint metallic tang that seemed to cling to much of Dathomir's wilderness.

A woven basket rested against Meya’s left hip, filled with freshly gathered materials destined for future experiments. Strange herbs with dark-veined leaves protruded from the top alongside clusters of crimson fungi, pale roots, and several carefully wrapped mineral samples collected from the nearby cliffs. None of it appeared particularly remarkable to an untrained eye. To Meya, however, each specimen represented a possibility worth investigating.

The distant scream of engines drew her attention upward. Golden eyes tracked the descending vessel as it cut through the fog overhead before settling several hundred meters away. Outsiders? Why land right on the edge of Liefi territory?

Meya knew it was in her best interest to investigate. It was part of the oath she took when she was baptized into the clan, and her soul was forever bound to Dathomir. Even after death, it would be drawn back to the planet.

Adjusting her grip upon the basket, Meya altered course and began moving toward the landing site. The forest gradually thinned. Gnarled roots twisted across the ground beneath her boots while crimson mist drifted lazily between ancient trunks. The shuttle became visible through the foliage first. Then movement nearby.

Two figures.

She stepped from the crimson haze without hurry. Red robes hung loosely from her frame, the hood resting against her shoulders rather than concealing her features. Tattoos marked her as a Nightsister, covering portions of her exposed upper arm before disappearing beneath layers of cloth. Thin gold chains glimmered at her wrists and throat, though far fewer than she typically wore, while a handful of delicate chains had been woven through her dark hair, catching the crimson light filtering through the canopy overhead.

Meya came to a stop several meters away from both arrivals. Nothing in her bearing suggested hesitation or uncertainty, even when approaching complete strangers alone. Her expression remained neutral. Observant.

"What business brings outsiders here?" There was no hostility in the question. No warmth either. Simply expectation.

Golden eyes moved briefly between the pair before settling upon them once more.

"Dathomir is not generally a destination people arrive at by accident."

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

S T R A N G L E D -C L I F F S
D A T H O M I R

A smirk played about his features when her orange eyes widened. "Yes, you." He took particular delight in startling Tamsin. It was the first time he'd seen her rattled by anything he'd said.

Calyx watched her trudge through the rust-coloured mud from the ramp of the TIE. Each step toward the canopy of dead trees produced a sucking sound that matched, tonally, the low howl of the wind.

The planet really did not offer a welcome.

He was already beginning to regret this. Sneaking off here, into a damp swamp reeking of iron and rot, went against every instinct he had. Still. He had to find the Weavewoods. Had to find out the origin of the nightmares that plagued him.

He'd considered asking Acier. But his counterpart had never let anything slip where Dathomir was concerned. If he wanted answers, he was on his own.

Calyx took a step down the ramp and caught a glimpse of movement in the murky undergrowth.

He leapt back, and made a face. ”Disgusting- why couldn’t it have been Cantonica or Zeltros! Blast you, Acier Moonbound.” He was much more in his element there, with nothing but silk touching his body and fine alien women all around. Hell, anywhere but this forsaken world was more his element.

When he’d sufficiently steeled his mind again, Calyx made another attempt to descend the ramp. This time he wasn’t alone either. Somehow the Force had heard his pleas about fine company.

A woman stood at the bottom, watching him. She held a woven basket and wore loose red robes adorned with rings, cut to reveal just enough to make out the tattoos clearly.

Calyx found that he could not stop staring back. It was like encountering a Nexu. Breathtaking, until you realised that their instincts did not include your feelings about it.

He finally managed to pry his eyes loose. ”Tamsin?” He raised his voice toward the treeline, where he could still make out her shape. ”Nevermind the scouting part, they found us first!”

”What business brings outsiders here? Dathomir is not generally a destination people arrive at by accident.”

He glanced toward Tamsin, who was nearly with them now. It made more sense for him to answer until she was close, in case the Nightsister only talked to women.

"We're..." He hesitated. The Nightsister was stunning, and usually that motivation would've worked in his favour. But this woman struck him as the type who, no matter what he said, would simply watch him for one long, unhurried moment until he felt compelled to apologise for something he hadn't even done. "...trespassing. I apologise." And there it was already.

He inclined his head slightly. "We mean no intrusion. But we're looking for answers, and they've led us here." He wasn't sure what angle would land. Politeness and respect tended to serve him well, but there was something feral about her that made him uneasy. "Personal inquiries. Nothing to do with power or knowledge. Could you spare a moment to help us along?"

He glanced at Tamsin, hoping her presence would help tip the balance.

Tamsin Starfall | Meya Liefi​

 

[Tamsin Starfall]

Theme: Witch Kingdom
Location: Strangled-Cliffs, Dathomir
Equipment: Twin Omens | Combat Knife | Talisman | Multi-Tool | Mind Crown | Jacket (Black) | War Paint
TAGS: Calyx Sundrift | Meya Liefi

Her head turned back to the man as he called out her name and quirk eyebrow followed but then he said to her.

"Nevermind the scouting part, they found us first!"

She made a heavy sigh, at those words that only spelled trouble. Then she turned fully and made her way back to Calyx. Her foot falls steady but keeping a good pace at the same time. As she made her way back to the man, she could hear him taking to whom ever it was as she could not see the woman do to Calyx standing in her visual sight.

As she finally came up beside the man she caught sight of the woman in red. As Tamsin came into full view of the Sephi woman, the Sephi would see a small woman who old stood about four foot ten. Tamsin had dark hair, pale skin, and eerily glowing orange eyes. Yet to any witch that knew their ancient history it was the young face Tamsin wore that was her most distinguishing feature.

Tamsin bore the face of the younger Psycho Witch'ari the apocalyptic wolf of clan howling crags. An old elder witch who had been banished from Dathomir for her crimes against the covens. Yet Tamsin herself knew none of this, one of the many secrets the Demon kept from her.

Her orange eyes just stared back at the Sephi who had witch marking on her body. It wasn't the first Sephi Tamsin had come across and dealt with. They were often chaotic and unpredictable. Liable to slit your throat as they were to talk you to death.

She then turned to Calyx. "You just admitted to a crime accidentally or not. You are aware of that right?" Referring to him apologizing for trespassing before turning back to Meya.

"The maling knows not what he speaks of. We have come here with purpose and intent. I am Darth Lunaris Knight of the Sith Covenant. Which clans territory do we encroach on?" Calling him a maling wasn't meant as slight against Calyx, it was just that often on Dathomir males were second class citizens or worse. It was a way of displaying to the Sephi witch that she was not subservient to Calyx.

"We have business with Clan Howling Crags. If this is not their territory or near it then it would seem our navigation equipment has failed us." Tamsin lied they had no business with the clan but at least it was a better cover story then just trying to seek answers from a secretive people.

 

[Meya Liefi]

Tag: Calyx Sundrift Tamsin Starfall
​

One dark eyebrow rose slightly at the male's response.

Trespassing. Interesting.

Most outsiders at least attempted to invent a convincing lie before admitting to crimes.

Her attention shifted as the woman approached. Golden eyes lingered upon her for several moments. There was something beneath the surface, a subtle disconnect between words and intent that drew Meya's attention. Deception, though determining precisely what the woman was concealing would require additional information.

Then came the mention of the Sith Covenant. Meya stared silently for a moment, her expression settling somewhere between disbelief and professional disappointment.

"You admitted to trespassing, which raises the question of whether you should have been left unattended on Dathomir." Meya looked at the man before her attention settled fully upon Tamsin. "Your navigation equipment is apparently faulty. No one thought to verify it before departure?"

A brief pause followed as she looked between the pair.

"What is this? Amateur hour? Does the Covenant hire just anyone now?"

There was remarkably little hostility in her voice. If anything, she almost sounded offended on behalf of basic competence.

Her attention returned to Tamsin, her gaze narrowing by the slightest degree.

"You've given me little reason to trust you with any name. Simply know that the further north you travel, the greater the likelihood your souls will find their rest on Dathomir."

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

S T R A N G L E D -C L I F F S
D A T H O M I R

"You just admitted to a crime accidentally or not. You are aware of that right?"

His brow scrunched up, clouding his good eye with concern. ”…totally am, yeah.” He failed to sound confident.

It was a play.

He hoped it would convince the Nightsister that he was exactly what Tamsin had suggested. A slow-witted maling. The last thing he wanted was for her to correctly gauge how cunning he could be.

Calyx lowered himself onto the ramp, clasping his hands together as he studied the two women. His gaze lingered on Tamsin for a moment when she introduced herself. He hadn't known her Darth title. Hadn't even known she'd been granted one. He made a quick mental note to be careful around her. She was more powerful than she let on.

The mention of the Covenant, however, made him flinch.

I tried to hide that.

Not everyone respected the Covenant - he certainly didn't.

When Tamsin finished, an uneasy silence hung between them. It lasted a heartbeat longer than he found comfortable.

Is she considering her options?

When the witch finally broke the silence, relief loosened some of the tension in his shoulders. The Covenant had permitted him to bring his lightsaber, but gauging the full extent of a Nightsister's abilities was another matter entirely. Even with two against one, things could turn ugly fast.

”Amateur hour.” he snickered. Yeah, she'd written them off. That was good. It meant the act was working.

The navigational equipment had originally charted a course toward the rumored territory of the Howling Crags Clan. He had overwritten the route himself, directing them here instead. Close enough to the Howling Crags to blame faulty equipment, but much nearer to the Weavewoods.

Sorry Tamsin.

"What's north of here? Your clan's territory?" He tilted his head slightly ajar, feigning innocent curiosity. "Is there anything we can offer you in exchange for passage through your lands?" The witch was difficult to read. If all she wanted was for them to leave, she wouldn't have been so specific about heading north, or so Calyx believed. "And is there anything we can do to earn your trust?"

Tamsin Starfall | Meya Liefi​

 

[Tamsin Starfall]

Theme: Witch Kingdom
Location: Strangled-Cliffs, Dathomir
Equipment: Twin Omens | Combat Knife | Talisman | Multi-Tool | Mind Crown | Jacket (Black) | War Paint
TAGS: Calyx Sundrift | Meya Liefi

She nodded slightly as Calyx decide to play along and play the part of an inept male.

"What is this? Amateur hour? Does the Covenant hire just anyone now?"

Tamsin's left eyebrow raised at the insult tossed her and covenants way. The demon laughed in her mind, as it watched all this playing out before it. Tamsin herself knew just how volatile Sephi could be. Yet she had to play this carefully, right now just a dangerous game of words. Yet it could escalate very easily if she did not tread carefully.

Yet before she could even muster a response Calyx spoke up again. It caused her to visibly wince as he asked what was north and for the Sephi's help. His ask to earn this Elfs trust, there was no trust at least not in any Sephi she had ever met.

It took a moment for words to come Tamsin's lips. "I have told you my title and mission, it is more then you have offered. I see before me a Sephi, not Dathomiri blood." The Elf may have had witch markings but as far as Tamsin knew those could be faked. "How do we know you aren't just a trespasser too? You have done nothing to show us you belong here anymore then we do."

She turned to Calyx. "Don't trust so easily, we do not know who this Sephi is or if she has anymore right to be here then us."

 

[Meya Liefi]

Tag: Calyx Sundrift Tamsin Starfall
​

Meya sensed the deception before the male had even finished speaking. Not the details, merely the shape of it. His questions came easily enough, but there was intent beneath them that did not align with the image he was attempting to project.

She remained silent nevertheless, allowing the smaller woman to speak uninterrupted. Wind whispered through the crimson canopy overhead while distant creatures called somewhere beyond the mist. When Tamsin finally finished, Meya's expression remained unchanged.

"You wish to earn trust?" A faint sound escaped her, somewhere between a hum and a scoff, as golden eyes settled upon the male. "You will not earn it from me while being deceitful."

Her gaze shifted between the pair.

"You. And her."

The statement carried no accusation. Merely observation.

A moment later, her free hand lifted. No towards the pair. To her side. Fingers flicked lightly through the air, and green mist gathered instantly around her wrist before curling upward in thin tendrils. Ancient Dathomiri words slipped quietly from her lips. The mist echoed them back in distorted whispers and spread outward between the trees before dissolving.

The display lasted only seconds. The signal itself, however, would remain. Its meaning was simple enough: outsiders here. Clan Liefi would feel it. Other Nightsisters might as well. Nightbrothers wandering nearby could notice it too. Unfortunately, several of Dathomir's predators had also learned to associate such signs with the possibility of fresh corpses.

Meya lowered her hand.

"But you may save your breath. I do not particularly care what either of you are concealing," she said calmly. Others could uncover the truth if they wished. Chase the pair from the planet. Kill them. Ignore them. Whatever Clan Liefi ultimately deemed appropriate for these visitors was of little concern to her. The bottom line was that Meya had no desire to become an unwitting participant in whatever scheme they had carried with them to Dathomir.

Her attention settled upon Tamsin once more.

"You may wish to be more careful with those accusations. It is not unheard of for a nightsister to conceive a child with an outsider and return to raise them on Dathomir." Meaning, half-breeds could look entirely Dathomiri or entirely like their father, or a mix, though she understood why the outsider was being cautious at the sight of her.

The basket shifted slightly against her hip as she adjusted her grip.

"Whether you believe I belong here is largely irrelevant to me. Others may be less forgiving."

She was aware she was being somewhat more restrained than she might otherwise have been. Their connection to the Sith Covenant had earned them a measure of patience, little though it was.

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

S T R A N G L E D -C L I F F S
D A T H O M I R

He looked at Tamsin. "I'll try not to." Trusting was, perhaps, not the right word for it. The two of them needed results, and direction at the very least. That began by winning the Nightsister's trust, if there was any to build on.

Those hopes were immediately snuffed out the moment the witch addressed them. Calyx's attention snapped to her. He almost drew his saber too, hesitating at the last moment when she so carelessly gathered the green mists of Nightsister magick. He held back, aware of how quickly that could escalate.

Still, he'd risen to his feet, gaze fixed firmly on the Nightsister, even as a rancor's call carried in from the distant bony woods.

"You know what? Perhaps we should go." He didn't like to turn tail and run. But nothing on this planet so far had indicated it was worth the risk they were taking. "I'll plot a new route to the Howling Crags. See where that gets us."

Calyx marched up the ramp without waiting for an answer.

He hurried through the TIE's cramped compartments. The craft really only consisted of two rooms. The cockpit, and a small living area with a collapsible bunk. Even the lavatory was too small to bend down in. The whole ship had been designed for efficiency over comfort.

If only the controls had been the same.

He dropped into the pilot's seat, hands moving quickly over the console to restore their original course. "That went about as well as could be expected." He didn't look up from his work when he heard Tamsin coming up the ramp. "If all the locals are like this, we're going to have a great time."

Then, abruptly, he swiveled the chair to face her. "And maleling?" Calyx growled. "What's next, you expect me to grovel?" It was no way to speak to a Sith. But emotion overruled logic. "I won't play the slave, Tamsin. I have my own agenda."

He swiveled the chair back and engaged the thrusters. "I'll be honest with you- you're not the only one with ties to Dathomir." He'd wanted to keep it secret. But he'd concluded that Dathomir wasn't the right place to hold secrets in. "It's hard to explain, but… I need to find a place called the Weavewoods. That last place where we landed? That wasn't faulty equipment. It was just in-between the crags and the woods." He didn't know how she would react. Half of him fully expected to see the burning red blade leap through his chest.

"I had hoped to settle my business fast and quietly. Without you ever knowing. But now, it seems that plan's gone up in smoke." He managed a laugh. "So. Can we strike a deal? I'll scratch your back, you scratch mine?"

Tamsin Starfall