"Rain" on Upekzar

[Taeli Raaf]

It had been a long time coming, Taeli thought, as she looked at the rather pleasant orb of the world she was orbiting. It had taken years, but she had finally broken the last piece of the puzzle for a quest she had begun when she had been a Sith Knight.

Laying open on her desk in her private quarters was the cipher she had been working on, one phrase now circled. A name of a planet and the location of her goal. But ... it felt hollow to just go and do it herself, but she wasn't about to invite the people who had helped her reach this point. Raven was dead, that Maja girl was still a Sith as far as she knew, but it would be nice to have company.

That was when the idea came to her, and she couldn't stop the smile. She had said while she was out and about that she would be in contact with her sister. Connor was still seeing about his ship on Voss and would rendezvous with her again once he was done with that. That shouldn't be too many more days, but right now, it was time for a sisterly adventure.

Clicking on her holo-terminal, she didn't even try and fight the smile as she said to her dearest sister [member="Corvus Raaf"], "Hello Corvy, how would you like to meet me on the Sith planet of Upekzar to recover a holocron of a certain girl named Rain?"

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus was a scholar. And in truth someone of a follower of Bane. Not a Banite — that would be silly — but she had read all about him. She even used some of his training methods. And the period around the Ruusan Reformation was a favourite of hers. She’d even visited the sites the planet had to offer with her sister.

So the call to find something that his Apprentice had crafted? How could she turn that down?

“Upekzar…see you there.”

This was all she had time for before she packed. As ever it was the bare minimum. Her wooden staff, a few key data pads thrown into a shoulder bag, and she was off to her ship. As she walked she gave word to rearrange meetings and lessons. Her sister was not one for wild-goose chases, so if she said the Holocron was there? It was there.

So she almost ran to her ship, Raven, and reached space as soon as she could before punching in the coordinates for the hyperspace jump. As dots turned to streaks of light she finally relaxed. Right now there was nothing she could do but wait until she arrived at the planet.

Apart from do her research of course. Which she duly did, the grin on her face evident...

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

While she waited for her sister, Taeli busied herself in learning as much as she could about the world below from both her collection on board and from the Jedi database. There wasn't a whole lot, but what was there was ... interesting. Apparently the ancient Sith that had called this world home had used a combination of the pheromones secreted by the rhak-skuri and the dark side to induce visions in a volcanic island chain.

The Circle of Visions, as it was called, had become over time a nexus of raw dark side power and it had been exasperated during the incident with Abeloth, according to the records left from the Jedi expedition here. The dark side energies had been reinforced and turned even wilder by the ancient being and had caused the volcanos to erupt. She had a feeling that the holocron was contained in the central part of the city that had developed around the Circle of Visions. She just hoped the solidified lava wouldn't get in the way though ... and this was probably going to be an unpleasant trek through the city.

Rhak-skuri would be present and the dark side energies present would be doing their darn best to corrupt both her and Corvus, whispering in their ears and so on. Certainly knew how to pick exotic locales she did.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus knew a little of the planet.

It was a rather nondescript planet in appearance. By and large, it was a pleasant and temperate planet. There are polar ice caps, rain forests, oceans, plains, mountains, forested areas — most climates were represented there. Unfortunately, she expected the unpleasant spots were where they were bound to target their travels.

There was a chain of islands and coastlines clustered in one part of the world. It started near Upekzar's south pole, going up through its equator, toward the north pole, and then down again. The ancient Sith called it the Circle of Visions. The rest of the planet went undeveloped while they focused all their attention on five specific sites along this circle.

Because of the abundance of volcanoes.

Because they valued what the volcanoes left behind. Volcanic caves, caverns, tubes — all formed when lava continued to flow beneath a top layer that cooled faster, forming a crust. The Sith thought these caves significant, and when they ventured to explore them, many Sith suffered hallucinations.

So they conducted initiations and other rites of passage without protection from the pheromones. The caves were, if not a Dark-side nexus precisely, definitely a site in which the Dark-side flourished. Centuries of rituals imbued with the power of fear and anguish induced by the pheromones only strengthened that. Also — while the Sith did not live in the lava tubes, their interactions with the bugs became the foundation of their culture. They dwelled close to the five major places where they performed their Mysteries. Each settlement was located near an elaborate lava cave system that had a specific focus.


A warning signal indicated she was coming out of Hyperspace. She would be with her sister soon.

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

Taeli had already landed and was waiting impatiently for her sister to arrive. It had taken her years to reach this point, and now her goal was just a few hours away, if that. The beep from her sensor module alerted her to a ship transmitting the transponder of the Raven had just dropped out of hyperspace.

"Finally!" Taeli exclaimed, grabbing her gear from around the cockpit and stowing it in her satchel. She also made sure to grab her air mask as she had no intention of going on a trip with rhak-skuri pheromones then getting eaten by the large spider creatures. She had other plans and they certainly didn't involve that fate.

Lowering the ramp, she landed outside what had been the first site of the old Sith rituals. She figured they would probably need to check all five to be absolutely sure and she suspected that Zannah had placed one of her concealment spells on the holocron. With the dark energies here free to roam as they willed, that spell was most likely still active. Good thing she had studied Sith spells all while she was a member of the One Sith, otherwise it would be quite difficult.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus landed next to her sister’s ship, the Jedi Corvette touching down and no sooner had the engines quietened than the ramp was lowered and Corvus was bounding down it.

She was wearing the special ankle bracelet that she’d been gifted by the Silver Jedi. So there was no need to wear a respirator — not that pheromones had an effect on her anyway, given she had shut her emotions down the moment she’d landed.

She was — in many ways — the guard for this trip. Taeli would do all the clever work and Corvus would ensure she came to no harm. It was an odd role for her to fulfil, but she hadn’t been named Shield of the Jedi for no reason.

“Hi sis,” she offered as she saw Taeli. She wandered across and gave her a hug. “This is where you tell me that you have no idea where it is and we may have to search the entire planet isn’t it? Payback for Mustafar?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"Hi sis," Taeli said, hugging her sister back for a moment and sharing in the excitement of discovery. "And, we won't need to search the entire planet for this one so no payback for Mustafar. Unlike some people, I did my proper research on this one. I've spent six years trying to find this bloody thing, getting coordinates from two separate people on Ciutric IV, finding a partial clue in a journal left behind by Zannah, and then decoding another journal left by both Zannah and Cognus. So, I know it's somewhere here ... within the Circle of Visions as it is called."

Hitching her bag on her shoulder, she smiled at her sister. It did feel really good to be able to go on another treasure hunt with Corvus, just the two of them.

"We're going to have to check each ritual site though and I suspect Zannah placed a spell of concealment on it," she continued saying. "Shall we begin?"

With a grand gesture and then looping her arm around her sister's, she began leading the way towards the first ritual site for the ancient Sith.

"So how is ... Braith right doing?" she asked.

 

[Corvus Raaf]

“So, not the whole planet? The chain starts near Upekzar's south pole, goes up through its equator, toward the north pole, and then down again. A tiny area really?”

She smiled. “Just kidding. Well, that’s a fact but I know what we’re likely to be looking for is going to be in one of five sites. I’m a scholar too you know.”

Corvus’ faced was positively radiant. “She’s wonderful. Just…perfect.” She tried to straighten her face but failed miserably. “So…you and Connor. Yes, no?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"We're standing at a maybe right now," Taeli sighed as they began their hike to their first destination. "I know how I feel for him and ... I'm giving him time to sort out his own head and heart. He is sorry for what he said to you though, but I suspect he will want to apologize to you and Braith in person. Speaking of which, when am I going to meet this mysterious woman who stole my sister's heart hmm?"

She was teasing her sister a bit, yes true, but it felt good to do so. They had been so serious last time they had spoken about the future of the Jedi's finances and the removal of the darkness plaguing Corvus from Andeddu's holocron. The hike to the first ritual site wouldn't take too long since they had landed near it, but the others might take a bit of flying to unless they wanted to walk everywhere.

"Abeloth didn't do this place any favors," Taeli said as they crested a ridge to see volcanic rock formations littering the area now from these volcanoes had erupted from that time. "The dark energies here are ... almost wild, untamed."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

“Maybe is better than a no I guess?” Corvus sighed too. “I’m just lucky I don’t have to deal with those emotions.” Her voice suggested she would not consider that day ever coming.

“And Braith is around and you don’t need my permission to meet her.” Corvus smiled. “We’re both busy people and steal what time we can together. So if you don’t bump into her, I’ll make sure to introduce you, OK?”

Corvus shivered involuntarily. “You think one Dark-sided nexus would be much like any other but they’re not. They’re all different. No wonder Zannah chose to hide her Holocron here. I mean…its aura would be hard to find given the background noise.”

“So…being practical, what’s the reason for choosing this one first?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"A maybe is definitely better than nothing," Taeli agreed, looking back at her sister. "I do believe though, that as the younger sibling, you're supposed to bring your significant other to me so I can try and make it clear what happens if heartbreak occurs. Not so sure on how well that might go, considering everything Braith has seen, but hey some levity never goes amiss."

Looking at the first site, she did shudder a bit as she watched several small spiders scuttle past.

"I chose this place for two reasons," she said. "One, it was the place where the Sith began their initiation rites for new members of their order here ... and two it was just the closest one to where I entered the atmosphere. If I had to wager a guess, and sadly I know the mindset, the prize is going to be at the end and we're going to have to at least observe the rites the ancient Sith went through. As much as I don't like it, we might need to experience visions at each site. This one is easy enough, the Site of Dreams I think it was called. It was said the pheromones produced by the spiders here led one to see their greatest achievements and what they could attain if they became a Lord or Lady."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus gave Taeli a funny look. “You’re looking to approve her?” She smiled, knowing her elder sibling was teasing. Or at least she thought she was. “And after I put you on the Council…”

Corvus’ hand went to her mouth. “I…um…er…sorry. That wasn’t how you were supposed to find out. You see, I’ve been thinking and I…we need to shake things up. The next few months may decide the fate of the Order and the Republic. The Jedi need leadership and it needs people like you having a voice. So I’m putting together a new Council and you’re on it.”

“So,” Corvus said, as if nothing had happened, “Initiation rites, eh? Maybe you’re right and perhaps there will be clues along the way? Or a map? Or they left the key under the doormat?”

She laughed. “Given your plan beats any I’ve ever come up with, it sounds good to me.”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"Wait ... wait wait wait ... me ... on the Jedi Council?" Taeli said, coming to a complete and dead stop at her sister's words. "Hold the phone here sis, I might be a Jedi Master now, but I don't think I'm ready to be on the council. I mean ... my past speaks for itself ... and ... uh ... wow ... um I have no idea what else to say."

It was a shock, pure and simple, that Corvus thought she would be good a for a new Jedi Council. In the trying time ahead, the Jedi would need leadership and with the old council gone, some members disappearing, others leaving ... the Jedi could ill afford to be rudderless.

"But ... um yeah ... sorry, my brain is still trying to catch up to the notion," she said, shaking her head. "Key? Key key key ... oh yes, there was mention of a key of some sort in Cognus's journal. Oh, I never did tell you I recovered a journal of Darth Cognus's did I? It started as Zannah's but you know, Rule of Two and all, it became hers and she mentioned that the key to reaching the holocron could be found through a rite of passage, a rite of knowledge. I wonder if Cognus might have tied some of the energies here to create illusions as sort of gatekeepers to test our knowledge of the Sith from that time?"

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus chuckled. “Yes you. Why not you? You have a perspective that few can claim to have. Fortunately, if you know what I mean. And I trust your judgement implicitly. So, as I say, why not?”

“Anyway, back to the task in hand.”

She smiled broadly. She’d hand-picked the Council — it was never a case of why not, it was about choosing the best people for the role, and Taeli was clearly one of those.

“Cognus?” Corvus was familiar enough to recognise the name as one of Zannah’s apprentices. “Well, Bane was keen on improving the Sith, so he would be the sort to install that philosophy in Zannah. Only the worthy shall find it and all that. It makes sense. So…looks like we’ll be tested on our Sith knowledge. At least it’s in my era and you have an unnatural head-start of course.”

She laughed but then pulled a straight face. “Just kidding,” she added, and poked her tongue out.

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"Well as a former Banite, I take that as somewhat of a compliment," Taeli said, sticking her tongue back out at her sister. A few more minutes of hiking and they were at the first ritual site. Taeli shivered a bit as she walked around, observing the writings left behind on walls by Sith hoping to be inducted into the ranks.

"I can feel ... something here," Taeli whispered. She didn't know if Corvus was as in tune with dark energies as she was, her experiences as a Sith had left her quite sensitive to them, but she could feel the under current of something ... waiting. "It's being restrained but it feels like a test of some sort ... hmm where is the restraint.... ah ha."

Walking over, she delicately wiped away some volcanic dust from the wall to reveal a small silver rune etched into the wall. Dark side energies were twisting around it, wanting to be unleashed.

"Trigger rune, should have expected that," she mumbled, more to herself than to Corvus. "Be ready for anything, sis."

Placing a finger on the rune, she sent a jolt of Force energy into the rune and it sparked and hissed as the dark energies rushed out and coalesced in the middle of the floor, slowly taking the shape of an Iktotchi in a heavy black robe. Looking over the illusion, Taeli had to admire the fact that she and her sister were actually seeing what Zannah's apprentice looked like.

"You who seek knowledge here must first share knowledge in return," the illusion of Darth Cognus said. "Five tests await, fail one and your life is forfeit to the dark energies of this world. Where did the schism between our progenitor Darth Bane and his apprentice Darth Zannah begin?"

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus could feel the Dark-side - but not the subtleties that Taeli obviously did. They walked a while before the older sister stopped them.

She may have trusted the Force implicitly — but she trusted her sister too. And when she revealed the ancient rune, she felt a subtle change in the energy, although probably not the same way as her sister — who probably knew what it meant.

When Taeli activated the rune, Corus held firm. She avoided pulling on the Light-side of the Force, in case it was a negative thing to do in these circumstances. The area may be trapped for Jedi.

The apparition looked familiar. Corvus didn’t bet, because in part she had no money. But she’d wager a sizeable portion of Taeli’s wealth that this was Darth Cognus.

The first question was already a test. Their entire relationship was built on a preposition that one would kill the other. So you could say their first meeting was the catalyst for Bane’s eventual death at Zannah’s hand. But she doubted that was the answer.

So she allowed her thoughts to be shared with her sister, for fearing that the first sentence out of either of their mouths would be taken as their response.

'I was going to say when she discovered he’d traveled to Prakith to learn the secret of eternal life from Andeddu's holocron? Or maybe when she killed Lucia and believed he’d held back knowledge from her? What do you think?'

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

'It's definitely tied into the events on Doan, but I'm wagering more towards when they started the duel,' Taeli thought to her sister. It would make sense that this was the first question, but then they had run head long into why it might be difficult. There were so many possibilities on what the correct answer was and they had one shot to get it right. Personally, she didn't want to get the life drained out of her by the dark side energies. That usually meant pile of dust, never pleasant.

Taking a steadying breath, she made her decision on what her answer would be to the illusion of Cognus.

"The schism occurred when Darth Zannah learned that Darth Bane had potentially betrayed his own teachings by seeking out the holocron of Darth Andeddu, thinking his intention was to live forever and rule the Sith. She challenged him when she confronted him about that and discovered he didn't have a lightsaber, but they were interrupted in finishing the duel by the prison exploding."

Silence fell in the ritual site for moments, very unsettling moments. Then the illusion spoke.

"You have knowledge, you may proceed to the second test ... if you can manage it," the illusion stated and then it faded away and the dark side energies of the place became less threatening again.

Letting out a breath, she looked at her sister with a grin.

"Onwards and upwards we go, sis, I'm just glad that was the right answer."

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus was as relieved as her sister. The delay between answer and response had felt way too long to be positive. And Corvus knew about Bane — but would always allow her sister to have the final say. Being a Sith formerly gave her the natural edge in these things.

“I’m hoping the questions don’t necessarily get harder. Or more cryptic. Or practical — given I can’t access the Dark-side of the Force and wonder if you can any more?”

“So, lead on. This is very much your gig. And what do you plan to do with the Holocron if you find it? I can’t see you destroying it, but it needs to be kept somewhere very safe.”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

"I've got a secure vault at my company's headquarters on Erilnar," Taeli explained, linking arms with her sister and proceeding along a narrow path that would lead them to the next site. "Heavily encrypted, bio-locked to my DNA, laser grid defenses, isolated power generators so the power can't be knocked out to the vault. It's an impressive set-up sis, and it's designed to hold really dangerous artifacts."

Several small spiders skittered past their feet on the volcanic rock. Around them, the area was both beautiful and dangerous.

"So it's going to get locked up and protected, I don't think we can risk anyone learning from Zannah's gatekeeper, do you?"

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus suppressed a snicker. Her sister had every angle covered. Corvus would probably just sleep with it under her pillow and trust in the Force.

The one thing in her favour about where she’d hidden the Obi-Wan Holocron was that she’d never told anyone where it was. Or written it down. Anywhere.

“Locked up tighter than these bugs I hope,” Corvus said - not referencing the spiders, which were arachnids of course.

“So, how far do you figure we’ll have to cover to defeat all five challenges? I mean pole to pole? Or a few hundred yards? Surely our ability to walk isn’t considered one of the tests?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]