Return To The Abyss

[Krayzen Dratos]

Never, in a million years would he think he would return to the planet, nicknamed, Mepho, in the Unknown Regions. The planet was the same as most planets, having a good breathing atmosphere. The only difference was the planet leaned more toward the dark side only slightly, but that didn't matter anywhere, as any strong willed person, force sensitive or not, could resist the pull of the dark-side here.

"Lord Dratos, we are approaching it." a droid stated, the Anzat being accompanied by [member="Bato Golden"], a skilled soldier of the Iron Empire. The General had asked him to accompany him, as Krayzen knew all to well that the planet's wilds were dangerous. "Welcome to Mepho." Krayzen stated, looking at Bato.

The shuttle then approached the planet, and Krayzen was flooded with memories of being in this planet. When he first arrived, millions of soldiers were under his control. When he returned to the Iron Empire, they numbered in the few tens of thousands. Ship ruins, etc were visible in the surface, an exemplification of the resources that the former Sith Knight once controlled.

"Would you like me to brief you in the mission?" Krayzen stated.

 

[Bato Golden]

Bato's face went blank for a few moments. "There's a mission? I kinda thought we were just on safari."

In truth, Bato Golden had considered that he might be in over his head. He had never thought of himself as an outdoorsman by any means, but when one of the Lords of the Iron Empire asked for his company, he thought it was a social call. Sure Mepho might be a bit on the wilder side, but a hunting trip was hadn't been out of the question. Well, until now.

Still, [member="Krayzen Dratos"] was expecting an answer. This was no time to back out now. He quickly recovered, and hid his previous surprise with ease. "Kidding. So yeah, what are we doing out here?"

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

"I want to recover something that rightfully belongs to me." he stated. "You see the ship ruins over there?" he asked, pointing at one part of the planet. "We are going to be going there; be prepared though, as we will have to battle through natural barriers, including animals, Sithspawns, etc." Krayzen said. He thought about mentioning the fact that this planet wasn't on any hyperspace map, but the Iron Knight thought about keeping it to himself.

"We are descending on the planet." Krayzen said. The shuttle descended on the planet, going down to the ground, and soon, the shuttle landed. "Come, let us go." Krayzen said; "I hope you have your armaments ready." Krayzen said. The Anzat knew that his two lightsabers weren't enough, so he added some other weapons in order to fight his opponent.

When he entered the exit hatch, he saw a dead body, and quickly recognized it was a former One Sith Trooper due to his armor. Krayzen sighed, closing his eyes, as he remembered all the memories, from the killing of his second in command, to the lives that were taken by the beasts that were in this planet. "So much has truly changed." he slightly murmered, hoping [member="Bato Golden"] didn't here it. He then reminded himself that he would only be here for a while, and came out.

"Be caerful." Bato stated. The Anzat wasn't going to let another soldier die, especially know that he had recovered from his injuries.

 

[Bato Golden]

If before Bato was worried he may have gotten himself in far too deep, now he was certain of it. The Knight he accompanied, one [member="Krayzen Dratos"], seemed to think he was some skilled special forces soldier, who could drink ship fuel and spit Beskar. And while he had played a character like that before, Bato severely doubted his purely fictional expertise could help him out here. Not that he was going to admit that. No, a horrifying series of unfortunate assumptions had gotten him into this mess, and with any luck, lies and pretending would get him out of it.

In hindsight, maybe this was not the best game plan.

While Bato had never fought a Sithspawn before, he figured that neither his kukri nor the small blaster he carried with him would be very useful against something with Sith in the name. When he passed the One Sith trooper, Bato quickly grabbed the rifle that lay next to him, and silently prayed it would still fire.

"So," Bato said, with much more confidence than he actually had, "you've been here before, huh?"

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

"Yes, I have." Krayzen stated. He knew sooner or later, he would have to reveal it to someone, and while he always had thought that it would be to someone he had known for years, Bato deserved an explanation.

"I once served in the One Sith, as a General to our Emperor, [member="Isamu Baelor"]." Krayzen stated. As you know, many One Sith soldiers defected to Isamu, who was once the Grand General of the One Sith; I however was not one of them. When the Galactic Alliance defeated us in Coruscant, I was badly injured, and I ventured out to the Unknown Regions, and I found the planet Mepho here. There were millions of soldiers under my command when I left Coruscant, but when I returned to known space, we were a fraction of the size that we were originally." Krayzen said. A slight tear came out of the Anzat that prided himself over using logic over emotion, but he knew his responsibilities, and many of those soldiers had died here were under his command. The Anzat however knew he had to move on from his past, even though he could still hear sounds, screams, etc, when he slept, etc.

"But enough about me, what about you Bato. What do you?" he asked, having a slight curiosity of his companion.

[member="Bato Golden"]

 

[Bato Golden]

As far as his One Sith past went, Bato didn't have too many hard feelings about it. The past was the past after all, and the actor wasn't really all too caught up on current events. Besides, everyone deserved at least one second chance, and his companion had the guts to share this with him, when he really didn't have to. Unlike a certain actor masquerading as a soldier, who was feeling a slight twinge of guilt.

Unfortunately for Bato, this false identity wouldn't last very long. [member="Krayzen Dratos"] just asked him about his background.

"Oh, I'm an actor." As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Bato turned just the slightest bit paler. With his mind on autopilot, he had said them on reflex, and now there was nothing he could do but try and undersell it. "But I was raised Mandalorian and all that, so, y'know."

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

[member="Bato Golden"]

When Krayzen heard he was an actor, he instantly stopped walking, and looked at him. The Anzat wasn't happy about it, as he thought he had brought a soldier to battle. Krayzen then thought about it, and decided not to get mad, as there was no point now. If there was anything he had learned in this world, it was that they needed to stick together, and Krayzen realized he would have to be aware, the Iron Knight using the dark-side of the force to expand his sensory range, in order to be prepared for any animals that were here.

"I see..." he stated, making a slight pause before responding again. "I guess it's both of our faults; I should have been more thorough in checking your background." Krayzen said. The Iron Knight then instantly thought about making an idea, seeing it as an opportunity to increase his, and Bato's wealth. "When we return, you interested in a partnership? I wouldn't mind devoting some of my personal resources to create an entertainment company with you?" Krayzen said, waiting for his response.

As he waited, he observed their surroundings, and the Broken General saw they were getting deeper and deeper into the jungle; their first enemies would soon arrive.

 

[Bato Golden]

Well, this was certainly not how Bato thought things would turn out. He had expected the man to be furious, and certainly not so accommodating. Even more surprising, he offered him a business opportunity. Bato considered his proposal for a few moments as they walked, hacking away at encroaching plant life as he did. They were going deeper into the jungle, and the flora around them was making advancement more difficult than it previously had been.

"Well, that depends," the actor said. "What did you have in mind for this kind of venture?"

[member="Krayzen Dratos"]

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

"Equal partnership. 50 % of the stake for me, and for you. I have a busy schedule, but I can make time to expand our venture together." Krayzen said. "I even might know of a few locations." The locations came from his old days as a bounty hunter before he had joined the One Sith. He had heard bounty hunters were still there, so the Anzati, and crime was rife in some of those places, so Krayzen didn't mind going to kill some of them.

"Look, I'm going to be honest. I know nothing about acting, or the industry, nor do I know anything about entertainment. I however recognize your expertise, although I was thinking we could go a little bit more grander than acting. Resorts, hotels, that sort of thing." Krayzen said.

Krayzen then stopped for a moment, looking at footprints that were bigger than normal. He knew the Sithspawns were near, and was prepared to defeat them.

The Anzat sighed, then spoke to [member="Bato Golden"], his voice while calm, showed there was something bad that was going to occur.

"I don't know if you haven't been in a fight, but I'll need your help in this one. We are about to fight some Sithspawns. There can be kileld the same way, you and I can. They don't have any sense of being,nor can they think. They simply kill. " He made sure to emphasize the last word, as a rush of emotions filled him, and Krayzen, feeling a sense of revenge & justice, prepared to use his emotions to fuel him in battle.

"Be prepared. This is the toughest battle you may have had in your life." he said, cracking his knuckles in the process.

 

[Bato Golden]

Bato Golden could only manage a surprised "Huh" at his companion's proposal. He had never envisioned himself as a tycoon or owner of some media empire. Truthfully, he just liked acting and martial arts, and since only acting paid the bills, he put his tournament hopping and training on the backburner. And while being a super rich and wealthy film magnate might not be as fun or interesting, it would certainly free him up to improve his skills. He shrugged. "Yeah, sure. Not really my thing, but I guess it's worth a shot."

Then the Anzat stopped. As he gave Bato his warning on Sithspawn, the actor listened silently. Without much ado, he pressed his newly obtained rifle firmly against his shoulder, and kept his kukri clenched in his hand, pointing downwards in an icepick grip. After a few deep breaths, he nodded grimly towards [member="Krayzen Dratos"]. He was ready.

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

"Once we get out of this hellhole, I'll meet you somewhere so that we can discuss business." Krayzen stated. The Iron Knight observed Bato's reaction to his other statement, and he saw that the man was ready. While he may be an actor, he would have to pull his 'inner Mandalorian', as the Anzat would need all the help he could get.

Krayzen sighed, then nodded at him, his eyes having been glowing for the entire time due to his usage of force sight. "Let us go then." The Anzat, filling himself with the pain, and loss he had suffered here, activated his grey-lightsaber, the former Sith Knight ready to kill some of the beasts that had killed his soldiers.

After a few minutes of walking, along the path, the Anzati saw a horde of Sithspawns, numbering at least 5, all looking at him and [member="Bato Golden"]. The Broken General attacked first, stabbing one in the heart in the process. As he went out to kill more Sith, he looked at Bato, some of his focus being on him, as he didn't want his companion to be injured.

 

[Bato Golden]

As strange and kinda creepy Bato thought [member="Krayzen Dratos"] new glowing eye trick was, when the Sithspawn emerged from the underbrush, they quickly surpassed it. Despite their obviously mutated nature, they still looked.. like people. Scarily like people. He remembered what the Knight had told him though; they were only interested in killing him. With that in mind, he shook his previous hesitation out of his mind.

He aimed at one of the group advancing on him and fired, backpedaling as he did to keep his range. He didn't know what the Sithspawn could do to him, but he wasn't all too curious to find out. A second shot sent the Sithspawn crashing to the ground, but the rest creeping a bit closer than Bato could call comfortably. Hopefully his companion could hold his weight, because Bato wasn't sure how long he would last.

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

The Anzat was in a position where he could see the Sithspawns that approached Bato, while still seeing the ones that came after him. Krayzen hadn't used the force as frequently as he used to over the past 10 years due to his injuries that he had suffered from the Battle of Coruscant. Even then however, when he had recovered, he had to fight his way out of this planet in order to return to known space, and he had certainly being gaining the grasp on the abilities he once had, mastering one in the process.

Using the emotions he had to fuel him, Krayzen, after a few seconds, sent a lightning strike at two of the Sithspawns, immobilizing them instantly, but not killing them. A Sithspawn then attacked him, intending to strike Krayzen from the top in a downward movement. Krayzen then extended his lightsaber, activating it's dual phase function as he bent, striking the Sithspawn before it could strike him.

He then approached the two other Sithspawns, using his flechette pistol to send projectiles straight through their head. Thank the force they don't have any form of armor. he thought in his mind. As he fought the remaining Sithspawns, some of them went to [member="Bato Golden"]. The Anzat was in a position to respond, but he wanted Bato to deal with it himself, as they would face other difficulties in their journey.

 

[Bato Golden]

Three Sithspawns glared at Bato as he backed away, poised for attack. Bato's grip on his rifle tightened unconsciously, and he fired wildly at the approaching Sithspawn, hoping to buy himself some distance. Unfortunately for him, the creatures didn't seem to have the cognitive abilities to fear suppressive fire. That, or they just didn't care.

The first of the Sithspawn charged at him, knocking him off of his feet and onto his back hard with a sudden tackle. Bato scrambled for his rifle, quickly grabbing it off the ground and firing three bolts into his attacker's chest. The offending Sithspawn collapsed to the ground, but the two others bolted forward, eager to finish him off. The actor launched himself off the ground and back onto his feet, but one of the Sithspawn clawed at his face. Caught by surprise, Bato raised his rifle up to block the blow, but he soon realized his mistake; the attacking Sithspawn snatched the blaster rifle from his hands, sending it clattering to the ground.

Still, the situation wasn't all bad. After all, now both of his enemies were within striking distance. Bato thrust his machete at the first one, piercing through its chest. He continued his attack however, charging forward and shoving the now dead enemy into the last living one. Both fell to the ground, and as soon as they did, Bato lunged at them, hacking away with his kukri.

Once he was sure that all of his Sithspawn were well and truly dead, he got into a fighting stance and prepared to help [member="Krayzen Dratos"] finish the rest off. Suddenly, the safari wasn't looking like such a fun idea.

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

Krayzen turned around to stab one of the Sithspawns, going toward attacking another Sithspawn as well. His cybernetics allowed him to have quicker reflexes than when he was in his natural Anzati state, which against the Sithspawns made easily counter the Sithspawns' vicious attacks.

When Bato was injured, Krayzen, seeing the last Sithspawn, cut off it's hands and run toward Bato. "Are you okay?" he wondered, seeing the injuries that were in his head. Krayzen however was more impressed with the fact that he had survived, and killed of the horde of Sith. The Anzat, touched Bato's face, the wound slowly beginning to heal, although in exchange, Krayzen's stamina diminished somewhat.

That was why he had not killed the Sithspawn, as the Anzat, sucked the life force out of the Sithspawn, which created a new source of stamina for him. He was dependent on the life force of other beings to fuel him. After killing the Sithspawn, Krayzen now 'full' from his meal, quickly signaled Bato to start walking.

[member="Bato Golden"]

 

[Bato Golden]

Bato blinked as the small cuts on his face sealed, and the bruises began to fade. "Well. That's certainly a neat trick." The actor figured it was best not to comment on the whole soul health stealing thing his companion had done. It would hardly be polite, considering the healing he just gave him. Bato walked over to where the blaster rifle lay on the ground, and picked it up. After giving it a cursory inspection, it appeared to still be in working order. Which was good. Bato wasn't quite sure of how physically strong the Sithspawn were yet, but he certainly didn't want to find out.

After dusting himself off to an acceptable level of cleanliness, he turned to [member="Krayzen Dratos"] and began following him yet again into the underbrush. "So, what's the diagnosis with the scars on my face, huh?" He cracked a joking grin. "Think it'll put me out of a job?"

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

When Bato asked him the question, Krayzen simply wondered how to answer, as he was no doctor. He felt bad the Mandalorian had been injured, but he had never given a diagnosis before, although he felt that he should give an honest opinion.

"The healing of the wound I just performed is temporary." Krayzen said, remembering that healing via the force was different for followers of the light, and the dark. "It should last long enough in order for you to get proper medical help, which we will get when we return to Csilla. In terms of the diagnosis, in my opinion, it isn't that bad. I am no doctor, but I've seen injuries similar to that." he said, nodding at the Actor.

Krayzen then looked up, and saw that it was at night. He expanded his sensory range, augmented by his natural Anzati abilities, and there were no Sithspawns nearby

"Ik a camp close to here. Let us go." he said, the Anzat making sure to keep close to Bato.

 

[Bato Golden]

Bato snickered when his companion gave his assignment. "It was just a joke, I'm sure I look fine. Hopefully." He wasn't too worried about it. A handful of small scars might actually help his action roles. Besides, it wasn't something makeup couldn't fix. Hopefully.

He shrugged and followed behind Krayzen. By now, the humidity was getting to him, and the danger of the situation had made itself starkly clear. "You think it will take much longer? No offense, but I'm really not too into this whole 'dying on a strange uncivilized world' thing."

 

[Krayzen Dratos]

[member="Bato Golden"]

"I wasn't aware." Krayzen said, slightly embarrassed, but still being alert. The man then heard Bato speak, and Krayzen understood that he was most likely testing the actor's patience. It was his fault he was here, so he would do the best he could do to hurry up.

"We are close to the camp." Krayzen said. After a few minutes of walking, they entered the camp, old guns from various companies, and tents still existing here.

"We shall sleep here for now, until the morning. There is one tent over here, and another for myself. Each has a bed, although I don't think they will be very comfortable." he said. "If you need me, just call me, but remember that Sithspawns might be lurking. Don't be loud." he reminded him. Krayzen knew it wasn't cold, but despite it being somewhat hot, the Anzat could still survive. "Be safe." he said, before he went to the tent, and prepared to sleep.

 

[Bato Golden]

[member="Krayzen Dratos"]

Bato shrugged. He chose to come, even if he didn't really know what he was signed up for, that might have been a mistake on his part, as much as his companion's. More to the point, he was far too exhausted to be angry. Though, maybe angry wasn't the right word for it.

The actor crawled into his tent and tried to sleep, but despite his fatigue, rest wasn't coming very easily. Despite his heritage, aside from hunting trips as a child, Bato had never killed anything. Definitely not something that tried to kill him back. Every small sound sent his heart racing and him scrambling for his kukri. After the fifth or so noise, he clutched it firmly in his hand and didn't let go for the rest of the night.

Bato didn't get much sleep.