Private Scales of the Dragon

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

Ambria. JJ never understood the fascination scavengers and the ilk of the galaxy liked about arid worlds. They seemed to be the exact kind of place to avoid, which was likely the attraction. The Corellian Jedi had always preferred the city for such things. Perhaps having been raised in the foothills of Coronet Peak made JJ the type to think of country and backwater type places as pure while it was the cities which were full of the seedy characteristics brought on by the scoundrels of the galaxy. He was not so innocent to believe that, of course, no matter how much he wished it were true.

This was a different kind of call entirely, however. A sanctioned salvager had turned up dead after they had been reported missing. That was not out of the ordinary in and of itself, but the condition the body had been found in was. It had been mauled, and according to the reports JJ had access to it seemed like the work of giant lizard like creature. Naturally JJ feared the worst case from the start.

Ambria was known to be full of Hssiss, dark side tainted lizards which were not only deadly, but a real threat to force sensitives. Just one bite could leave the victim full of a toxin which could make even the most dedicated of Jedi overcome by darkness as long as the venom remained in the bloodstream.

Judah sighed as his ship touched down. The YT-1930 had yet to be named, but it was his ship, well it had been his mother’s but he could not bear to call it what she had. Losing her had been a heavy hand for the Lesan family indeed, and her fiery red hair and piercing blue eyes still haunted his sleep. She had always lived life with the saying, “Mach 10 with your hair on fire,” and she certainly lived up to it. JJ had always thought he would lose his father first, he was a Jedi Shadow after all, but the force had taken his mother.

Another sigh could be heard escaping his lips as he pushed out of the pilot’s chair. Wearing the green robes she had made for him, JJ walked down the boarding ramp and let his boots touch the dry ground which seemed in desperate need of water. Of course there was none to be seen for kilometers in any direction. JJ knew it just by first look, but this mission was going to suck. Regardless, he supposed he needed to make his way into the village, town, settlement, whatever they were calling the place he had just landed outside of. He wanted to see the body in person before letting his mind settle on the fact he was going to be hunting Hssiss.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]​

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

It was through a number of relays that Amilthi, who had not been 'home' on Eira Pechal in some time, was reached by a message that originated in Ambria. The locals were convinced that they had found the victim of a monster with extraordinary abilities, and faced with such, the Jedi were the natural place to turn to. It was somewhat surprising that the message had even reached the Praxeum, for while the population of the galaxy usually knew little about the various Jedi organisations and did not distinguish them, surely the Silver Jedi Order, in light of the planet's proximity to the space it dominated, would have been the one they'd have turned to first. But perhaps the Silver Jedi were busy with their political machinations, or the Ambrians had simply been in such a state of panic that they wanted to be safe and had tried to get the message to any group of Jedi they could get a hold of. Regardless, as the journey to Ambria was not a long one from her present position, Amilthi decided to follow this call.

In all probability, the locals were entirely mistaken. They had one victim and, according to the report, not even an eye-witness. But to lift the galaxy out of ignorance was a much a Jedi's duty as to raise his weapon in its defence.

When Amilthi arrived in the town that had been named as the site of the event, it was no great surprise to be told by the rather confused locals that another Jedi had arrived already. What would have been a surprise, had she not been a Jedi and had a history with the Force, was the fact that he had arrived only shortly before her and had not yet set out into the wilderness or revealed any findings.

"He is inspecting the remains as we speak, Master Jedi", explained the deputy of the mayor.

"Please lead me to him", said Amilthi. Dressed in black robes that contrasted starkly with her fair skin, she was a rather austere sight.

Not only was it a natural first step to look at the corpse - she was also rather curious to meet this individual who had the decency to undertake this trip on account of such a rather trivial matter in these times of turmoil.

[member="Judah Lesan Jr."]

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

The body was definitely marred and mutilated. JJ could see why it was assumed to be the work of some large lizard like creature, but any predator could have left marks. What JJ wanted to know could not be confirmed by any medical professional. If the attack had been from a Hssiss, the beast would have left a dark side toxin in his system. Only someone who knew what they were sensing for would be able to pick up on that. For all JJ knew this could be nothing, but the attack did seem suspect. In any case, as a good Jedi he needed to answer the call. One way or another he would be able to alleviate the concern many had, and stop future attacks from taking place.

"If I could have a few moments alone with the body," JJ said to those around him.

Without much word or fanfare the others cleared out of the room. Feet shuffled against the floor all in the same direction, with the exception of two sets. JJ distinctly picked up on two sets of feet coming toward him, and he turned around. He was about to complain he had asked to be left alone with the body when his eyes fell another dressed in robes. Black robes were an interesting choice for the climate and a light sider. Her aura made her distinctly a Jedi of some kind, though the younger Lesan was unsure that he had seen her face before.

JJ greeted her with a warm smile, the color of her hair not lost on the young Jedi, red like his mothers.

"I wasn't aware the Council was sending another to investigate as well," he said assuming she had to have some connection to the Silver Jedi. While there were other Jedi factions in the galaxy it was rare to meet a Jedi who was not connected to the Silver Jedi in some way. "Knight Judah Lesan... or JJ. I'm a junior," he explained as he reached out his hand in a form of greeting. "I was about to see if there were traces of the dark side here. This planet is known to contain Hssiss, and I figured I should rule this out as a Hssiss attack before taking any other action."

He certainly hoped it was not a Hssiss attack, even though his gut told him it was.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

"That's because they weren't", replied Amilthi with a wry smile, mildly confused. "Amilthi Camlenn", she introduced herself politely and bowed slightly. By her accent, she was clearly a Core-worlder of some sort in origin. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." She gave him a friendly, in some sense encouraging smile. Her failure to reveal her origin or title might have seemed oblivious, but was in truth quite deliberate. She was taking to heart the example of her friend [member="Gianna Aegis"] and trying to be a little warmer with people, and at least not to put unnecessary distance between them and herself. In this instance, with someone who was so aware of his own junior rank, to mention her own experience would surely have done so.

"Yes, that's clearly what these people are thinking, whether they know it or not. They said the beast is invisible - I'm sure there must be all sorts of myths and legends around about them that picked up on this feature", she remarked lightly and without regard for the deputy mayor, who had not yet withdrawn and found himself in a state of limbo, not knowing whether he was expected to. But then she pointed out, with a tone of skepticism: "But we are rather far from Lake Natth."

"Do you have any idea whether it's true, by the way? That they can turn invisible", she asked casually and seemingly without concern, indeed almost naively, while she stepped closer to the body to take a look at it.

[member="Judah Lesan Jr."]

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

Right. She was with another Jedi faction then. JJ was still getting used to the idea of actually being with the Silver Jedi once more. It had really been his father's thing while JJ had only spent a short amount of time with them. He had departed shortly after deciding he was not dealing well with killing a Sith. It had been the first life JJ had deliberately taken, even if it was in defense of himself and others. The event had changed him for a time, but moreso was the fact he did not feel as guilty about it as he thought he should. JJ could justify it, and that felt odd to him. He'd saved a friend, someone who could have been more. They had feelings for each other, ones neither had ever expressed, but JJ knew what they were. Maybe that had been the other reason he left.

"Amilthi," JJ said trying the name out. It was different, in a nice kind of way. "Likewise," came his answer, his accent in that moment marking him clearly as Corellian, if the green robes had not already. JJ did not know many other Jedi which wore the green he chose to wear to identify with his heritage. Such things were frowned upon among most Jedi anyway.

Her escort seemed to just be standing around as they conversed about the attack, and the source of it. JJ looked at the man giving him some indication that he could leave. Anything they were about to talk about was likely going to cause him to feel extra concern. A small smirk crept at his lips as he answered the redhead's comment.

"That does not mean they didn't wander away, and I did see the reports. Everything is consistent except the one thing they cannot check."

JJ turned his head and nudged toward the body.

"If the venom is tainted with the dark side, then we know."

Whether it was true if they were invisible, Judah simply nodded. Fortunately he had known of another Hssiss attack. His father had dealt with them before. Without an answer JJ closed his eyes and stretched his senses over the body. Canting his head slightly he isolated the venom. Darkness. Pulling himself back, JJ turned and looked at the other Jedi.

"Definitely Hssiss, and yes, invisible, one of them is always invisible. If you can see one there is always one more waiting, lurking. They are never alone. Good thing you're here because I was worried I'd have to take them both on by myself."

Clearly JJ was not giving her an option to say no about helping him. He just simply nodded and headed toward the door.

"Time to see where the attack happened then?"

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi did not show any intention to investigate the body in more depth herself and seemed quite content to take Judah's word on the matter. As far as she was concerned, the nature of the beast was not a done conclusion, but the young Jedi's words had certainly caused her estimation to shift.

"Let's", she acknowledged. "Have they given you coordinates? And do you have a means of transportation? I imagine an entire ship's engine might make them... skittish", she remarked with a wry smile and an oddly mischievous tone of voice. One might have thought that she was trying to make light of a situation that made her nervous, but there was a curious absence of any other obvious or subliminal signs of anxiety or agitation.

"You have experience with Hssiss, then?" The way they were spoken, it was not entirely clear whether her words constituted a statement or a question.

[member="Judah Lesan Jr."]

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

"I mean, everything was in the report. Did you read it?"

JJ grinned as he started to walk back toward the ship. They were going to need transportation, and the ship he inherited from his mother came with a great solution. One thing was true about Katara Starkos, she loved to live life and was definitely an adrenaline junkie. The speeder bike in the hangar bay of the ship spoke to the thrill she enjoyed. JJ took after his mother in that regard and considering his father had his own speeder bike it made sense for JJ to take his mothers. The red bike with flames on it spoke to her mach 10 and hair on fire attitude. Judah looked to Amilthi and smiled.

"If you don't mind holding onto my waist, then yes, I got us a ride."

He smirked as he flung his leg over the bike and started the engine.

"Hssiss, yes and no. My dad does, and of course being raised by a Jedi he told me all the stories. It's just that's how I know what I do beyond the legend they pose."

Whether she was asking a question or not, JJ answered. This Jedi he was with was... interesting. Something about her seemed to make him scratch his head. There was not doubt in his mind she was committed to the light, but she also seemed to be very independent. Judah liked that. It was more his style. Amilthi seemed to be straight forward and a bit blunt so far as well, and edge that was softened by the fact she was pretty. JJ couldn't argue that the red hair was a bonus, but then again having a redheaded mother made it that much more an endearing quality to the young knight.

"Hold on tight now, these things go fast," JJ said not leaving her with a choice as to whether they were going to use another vehicle. Once she was secure, JJ turned the throttle and they sped off toward the scene of the attack.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi raised an eyebrow and seemed to experience a moment of confusion at the mention of a full report with coordinates. It seemed that whoever had send it along to her from the Praxeum had preferred to use bandwidth on message redundancy for somewhat fragile long-range communication, as opposed to detail, and had therefore not attached such a thing. Or perhaps it had been there and Amilthi had overlooked or forgotten about it? She did seem to notice that her memory was a bit spotty of late - a side effect, she suspected, of her meditation regimen. Many things simply did not seem so important anymore and did not receive that much attention from her mind.

She said nothing.

An amused chuckle escaped Amilthi at the sight of Judah's speeder bike. She gave him a quizzical look, clearly wondering what to make of it. Perhaps it was a gift from someone and he was too committed to frugality to repaint it, even though his order would have hardly required that. Or perhaps this was just... Corellians.

”Did you lose a bet?”, she teased, with a twinkle in her eye. Her words were gentle enough not to be easily mistaken for actual criticism, but for a moment, she worried if she hadn’t gone too far. Not that a bet would have been objectionable in itself. While some might regard it as frivolous, the matter was more subtle than that and everything depended on the frame of mind with which one entered it. If one did so for the purpose of competition, to prove something and triumph over another, it was unwholesome. If it was merely as an entertaining social ritual between two well-meaning participants fully aware of its nature, it was harmless.

Amilthi got on the speeder bike behind Judah and wrapped her arms around him with ever so slight hesitation. It felt odd, unfamiliar. Touch was not a frequent occurrence in her life, and to be so close to another living body, to embrace it, even if in such a utilitarian way, was very foreign. It made her feel insecure for no reason she could discern. Amilthi observed this reaction in herself, noted it, and proceeded to pay close attention to her sensations, investigating them. They were alien, but they were just one of many things that existed and whose existence was perfectly in order and acceptable. And they weren’t her.

[member="Judah Lesan Jr."]

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

Did he lose a bet?

"No," came the defensive reply, however as soon as it left his lips, JJ thought better of it. "The bike belonged to my mother. She has since passed, and I have not been able to bring myself to change her paint job."

It was a simple explanation which exposed something about who JJ was and what he believed. Even though it was not romantic, JJ had allowed an attachment to his mother. Corellian Jedi had never debated the value of such attachments. They believed in family, and how it could make one stronger, better. Judah was not one to disagree, however he also knew how they could cause contention and bitterness. Two side of the same coin he supposed. There was potential for light and dark in everything, and it was to the individual to decide which it would be for them.

Judah sensed her hesitation as she wrapped her arms around his waist. He smiled.

"You're going to want to hold on tighter than that. I'm not going to bite, I promise." JJ winked, but it was likely the redhead did not see it. It was his nature to tease when he could, and his tone of voice indicated that was all it was. He figured if she could tease him about the paint job on his bike then he could tease her about this.

Touch was something which was not foreign to Judah, in fact he embraced it. Whether it was to show affection or simply out of need, touch was something common and base amongst most sentient beings as something they craved. The odd feeling to Judah was the fact he liked her touch. The way she hesitated, and the way she was forced to tighten her grip as the bike sped through the arid landscape toward where they body had been found, all of it sent a sensation through the young Jedi he had not experienced in a long time. Desire. It was a base emotion, one which JJ tended to press down due to past experiences, however the suddenness of it made the younger Lesan hold onto the feeling longer than he should have perhaps.

He let go if it as the bike came to a stop. Pointing a few meters ahead toward where the body had been found, JJ indicated she could dismount whenever she was ready.

"It's just up ahead. I will admit this is pretty far out for Hssiss, but there was a distinct darkness to the venom. Other than saying I've got a feeling about this... if no one has tampered with things hopefully we can find tracks or footprints. Something that will help us identify the attacker. Force I hope I am wrong."

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

A Jedi with a Jedi for a father who kept his mother's speeder bike as a keepsake of sorts. It didn't really get any more Corellian than that. Those people had a very curious approach to things, they kept, and apparently thrived with, all sorts of rather strange-seeming attachments. Amilthi wondered whether they were happy. Probably not. At the same time, they were probably responsible for spreading Force sensitivity around in the galaxy quite a bit, second perhaps only to Sith from Panatha - an unexpected silver lining to the fact of their existence, even if their offspring were rarely in a position to make good use of their talents. This, of course, was not a concern she would have levied against the Corellian Jedi, at least not more than any other Jedi. And she had to admit that, from a grand perspective, their habit of building Force-sensitive dynasties had something to recommend it. If only it didn't seem to risky for any individual one. It was probably not an accident that none of them had ever been among the truly great masters of the Force whose discoveries and teachings had made a lasting impact.

While under other circumstances, Amilthi might have rolled her eyes at Judah's remark, in this instance, she was positively thankful for it, being relieved by it of any concern about the spirit in which her own words had been understood. Noticeably shorter, she could hide behind Judah from the wind as they sped through the landscape, and eventually rested her head against his back. She was not slow, however, to let go and get off when they arrived at their destination.

"Can you read tracks?" she asked casually. "I can only follow them." It was a simple statement of fact, free of self-deprecation or any admission of inadequacy. "Now to be a Kiffar who can see into the past..." she said with a wry smile as she strolled up to the spot where the body had been found.

A few yards off, there was the wreck of a small ship, half buried in the ground. A still visible strip in the ground showed the path from the spot where it had first impacted the surface to where it had come to rest. However, the scavenger never seemed to have made it that far. Neither were there steps leading up to the point where the body had lain - it had been thrown there, and if the man hadn't been dead at that point already, he had been too injured to get up again. To see from where, they would have to look around on the ground and hope that the unattractive mixture of sand and soil had preserved any tracks.

[member="Judah Lesan Jr."]

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

She got off the speeder in a hurry. JJ could only smirk at how uncomfortable she seemed with the idea of being that physically close to someone. A quick retort came to Judah's tongue, something about not being that repulsive, but he thought better of it. Something about her made him want to tame his tongue slightly, and he ventured to guess she would not appreciate that particular jest. Amilthi seemed to be more guarded, and certainly not Corellian in her approach to people. Sure her accent placed her in the Core somewhere, but she certainly did not have the distinct indicators of being Corellian. It was a pity in some ways, because JJ got the feeling the woman could let her her down and let loose for a bit if she really wanted to have a good time. It seemed business as usual for them however.

"I was raised in the mountains, so yeah, we did a lot of hunting to ensure we had meat for the winter months. I got pretty good at tracking, knowing what print was what. That being said, I've never seen an actual Hssiss print so..."

The external evidence pointed to Hssiss, but JJ could not actually identify whether they were dealing with that or not based on the tracks. Sure, he would be able to tell if they were from a giant lizard, which would be string support for the Hssiss theory at the moment, but he would never be 100 percent certain.

A small sigh escaped his lips as they approached the crash site, and where the body had been cast aside.

Nothing.

The train itself was cold in regards to any signs as to what may have happened. JJ chuckled at the idea of wishing one of them were Kiffar. That would make the job a whole lot easier.

"There is always the option of farseeing, but I'd need my dad here for that. It isn't a skill I've mastered to his level yet."

For once Judah was being serious without trying to add any humor. He was a guardian, a fighter, but his father had taken the path of a shadow, and as such there were things his father could do which JJ could not. The Corellian turned to face the redhead with a playful grin.

"I bet you would look even more pretty with those face markings... maybe in a sky blue or something," he said before scanning the area for some kind starting point, where the attack actually took place.

His eyes kept falling to the ship however. One question ran through his head.

"So what was on that ship which would draw Hssiss all the way out here?"

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi gave JJ a look in response to his remark whose meaning was likely something to the effect that should could have immediately named about a dozen reasons why what he had said was nonsense. She didn't, however, say a word, and for a while merely stood still and looked into the distance. She waited, listened inside herself - but there was only stillness. It had become very pronounced of late, to the point that it sometimes frightened her and made her worry that she had actually lost some of her abilities. Where in the past, impulses, very small ones that could only be observed by a trained mind, would normally arise, and more often than not, they would nudge her into a favourable direction. Now, this had becoming rarer, often minutes would pass, while feeling like hours, in which not a single such impulse arose.

This had been the case in the past at times, and she knew that she simply needed to accept it, face the worry and anxiety when they arose, have faith - and eventually it would pass again. However, in this particular moment, when there was a mystery to be solved, it was... irksome. Or the Force was trying to tell her that all this was irrelevant and silly. Amilthi reminded herself not to get lost in contemplation of this question, but took note of the fact that the question was posing itself.

She returned her attention to the input in her visual field and on an impulse turned her head. It fell on the crashed ship. The same moment, she heard JJ's voice from behind, speculating as to whether something in the ship could have drawn creatures here. She gave an audible chuckle which, having no discernible reason or justification, must have appeared rather odd. With an amused smile, more to herself than him, she turned to face her companion. "Yes, let's have a look", she said, well aware that the question belonged on only one of the many branches of the tree of possibilities. But they had time and there was no particular reason why they should explore one or another branch first. And this branch, it seemed, was suggesting itself.

[member="Judah Lesan Jr."]

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

With both sets of eyes on the ship it was hard to deny the force was drawing them to one of many possibilities. The small chuckle from Amilthi which followed JJ's words about the ship could have been an indication she had been thinking the same thing, but JJ could only guess. It was not his practice to simply raid someone's mind for the information he wanted. His father on the other had, he was constantly scanning people's thoughts, searching for motive or danger behind everything and everyone he encountered. Judah Lesan was not the most trusting of men, and perhaps JJ should have been more like his father in that regard, but he was not.

Judah nodded at her suggestion. Normally he might motion with a gesture indicating ladies first, but JJ felt the impulse to lead. He had been doing it thus far on the mission, unsure as to why the other Jedi seemed content to let him run with it. Maybe she was there as an observer, but whatever her reasons, she was there. Judah could argue some philosophical drivel about the force wanting this meeting to happen, but he was not one to dwell on such things. He was a man of action, and believed that actions led to other actions. Life was built by the work a man did with his own hands, and the same could be said of the Jedi. Their paths were simply a series of decisions and actions which led from one to the next, just as each foot JJ put in front of the other until they reached the wreckage.

Something dark, but fading. There was not enough of a sense to belong to a thing, but maybe the remnant of a presence. JJ approached the ship slowly, his senses stretched out. Even if the Hssiss attack was long over by now, JJ did not know if they might still be present. Perhaps the Hssiss had been protecting something on the ship, which would explain why the salvager never got close to it, but what? Judah kept trying to run through all the things they could have been protecting when his eyes fell on what seemed to be blood. It could not have been from the salvager as he did not make it to the ship. Bright eyes turned to the redhead with him and he sighed.

"Does this look like blood to you?" he asked as she drew closer.

[member="Amilthi Camlenn"]

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi followed after JJ, approaching the ship, but while he stepped inside, she, on a whim, jumped and landed on top of the vessel. After a minute, she jumped back down onto the ground and joined JJ in the interior of the ship, where he pointed out his finding.

"It does. Not the most unheard-of finding in a shipwreck like this", quipped Amilthi, but then continued seriously. "Look at how it landed - too controlled to have been an unmanned crash after the occupants had escaped, but certainly rough enough to injure them."

"There's a hatch on top with scratch marks around it. Maybe some clever beast was trying to open what it took for a can of fodder." She spoke lightly, in a manner that was quite incongruent with the severity of the matter, and yet not dismissive of it. She recognised its nature perfectly well - it was merely that it did not move her from a state of tranquil happiness.

"But it doesn't look like they got to it. No trace of anyone else being mauled outside, was there? Rather odd. Let's see if we can't find out who it was", she mused and went up to the pilot's seat and consoles. Those were, naturally, shot to hell, as a proper Outer Rim spacer would have put it. With a fleeting expression of dismay, Amilthi inspected the partly broken buttons, screens and panels. She looked for the on-switch, but it appeared to have suffered damage and either wasn't working, or the whole system was dead altogether.

But she remained undeterred, and presently kneeled down and began to take apart the panel below the switch to delve into the wires with a playful, almost child-like air. After some rummaging, suddenly some red and yellow lights came on and screens appeared to start - only to die a moment later when a rumble went through the whole ship, punctuated by a momentary loud noise.

Amilthi felt a vague, distant sense of doom arising, as if something had been set in motion. She noticed, and noted, the feeling, tranquilly and equanimously. She was not afraid, nor did she look it, when she looked up at JJ, still crouched next to the console, but her expression was now more serious than before.

Judah Lesan Jr.

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

"No you're right. Someone was in the ship..."

They were not now however. Perhaps if they could recover the ships logs they could determine who was on the ship and what they were doing, maybe even where they were going. His eyes went to the hatch which was pointed out to him with the scratch marks, or whatever they were, and JJ simply nodded. He was going to answer, but before he could, it was clear the redhead had the same idea as him.

JJ chuckled. Here they were on the same page again, though Amilthi wasted no time in getting into the wiring to try and work the console back to life. It worked, until it didn't. A sigh of frustration left JJ's lips as this was not going to get them anywhere. The ship seemed to be a dead end.

Then there was the sense of... darkness and dread. JJ did not know what to make of it other than he knew this was what the dark side felt like. In his time among the Jedi he had confronted and killed Sith, the first his hardest. He felt guilty that it seemed to get easier over time, but when lives were at stake the needs of the many always outweighed the needs of the few... the one.

Amilthi looked serious. She sensed it too. A curt nod was his only response to what they had felt. He offered his hand to help the woman back on her feet. Something was coming for them, or they had triggered something. One thing was certain...

"We need to leave the ship..."

Amilthi Camlenn

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi noticed the hand that was extended to her and found it odd, but did not react to it. It was a curiously unnecessary gesture, as she had no difficulty standing up quite gracefully by herself.

"I suppose we should..." she replied, evidently more uncertain about the prospect than JJ was. The more determined of the two of them, he was first out the door, but she made a point of following him closely.

On the other side of the ship, there was a plain with a mountain range visible in the distance. On this side, the terrain was also flat, but broken up by the occasional rock formation. To their left, there was a particularly large one, practically a low cliff, some five metres high, but well over twenty metres wide. It wasn't clearly what was behind it.

Amilthi turned left and went around the ship, towards the cliff. No sign of anything was visible in the distance on either side, no disturbance of the dusty ground that would have been indicative of the movement of any vehicle or living being, nor was any sound to be heard. But the sinister feeling she was having did not subside. She gave JJ a thoughftul look, turning her back to the cliffs. "I have a bad feeling about this." It was a simple statement of fact and the calm tone of her voice was somewhat at odds with the meaning of her words.

Judah Lesan Jr.

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

Judah looked out across the landscape of the area surrounding the crash site. Other than the scratches on the ship itself there was no actual evidence of any creature which would have mauled the man they had just viewed a couple of hours before. The sigh which escaped Judah was audibly frustrated in nature. Unlike traditional Jedi, JJ wore his emotions on his sleeve. There was no point in hiding the fact he was an emotional person, or that he felt deeply. Perhaps it was mistake when another Jedi was involved, one he was not sure would lecture him or not in regards to his unapologetic display of emotion. Despite all of it, Judah knew and lived the code well. Emotion, yet peace. He would always be in control.

Eyes watched the other Jedi scan the cliff off to the left. If there was going to be a good place to ambush anyone from it would be that cliff. Yet, JJ did not see the visible Hssiss. They always became visible before they attacked, and there was always more than one. Yes, his information was based on what his father was telling him, but one thing that was well documented about the beasts was the darkside toxin. If either of them were exposed, it would not take much to have a devastating effect. In fact, Judah was not a healer. He would not even know where to begin.

She said what he was thinking. A bad feeling, maybe more than that, coursed through his veins as he looked at the cliff. Despite it, JJ was drawn to the cliff.

"I am guessing that's how whatever it was got onto the ship. Best keep an eye out. Great place for an ambush."

No sooner had JJ gotten the words out of his mouth when the sound of a creepy and dark hiss echoed above their heads from the cliff edge. Judah still could not see anything, but he could feel it. Dark. Cold. It enveloped him like a wet blanket, making him feel even more uneasy than he had before. Without thinking about the Jedi reached for his blade, the vibrant emerald blade coming to life. With his senses outstretched, Judah waited for the attack.

Amilthi Camlenn

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Noticing her companion's frustration, Amilthi said nothing, but gave him a reassuring smile. Her gaze drifted off into the distance again, put she paid little attention to what she saw. Her mind was focused on feeling out the situation, observing the smallest impulses she found within herself that could provide a hint.

Not half a second after the sound of an ignited lightsaber erupted behind her, she launched herself into the air on the acute hunch that her present position was unsafe. Just as she did so, the form of a monstrously large reptile became visible in mid-flight, having lunged from the edge of the cliff, and landed right where Amilthi had stood. She had barely jumped high enough to escape it, and falling back down landed awkwardly and unstably with her foot on the beast's head, which it shook, sending her to the ground with a thud.

Amilthi rolled out of the way of a clawed foot reaching for her, her lightsaber hilt painfully stabbing into her side when she rolled over it. She finally managed to reach for her weapon, activated its teal-coloured blade, and rolled back, just in the right moment for the blade to cut off the same reptilian limb as it was moving after her. As it fell off and to the ground, it did so in the most unfortunate way, the unexpectedly sharp tip of a claw grazing the back of Amilthi's hand. She noted it, but did not react. Indeed, she pushed herself off the ground with the same hand, and having finally got the ground under her feet, stepped forward and with a wide sweep of her lightsaber cut deeply into the creature's neck, producing a sizzling sound as the blood from its large arteries come into contact with the lightsaber's blade and was vaporised in an instant.

Judah Lesan Jr.

 

[Judah Lesan Jr.]

There was little time to react as Amilthi leapt into the air. As she did the reptile became visible. It was a Hssiss. Judah rushed the beast hoping to distract it long enough for Amilthi to get her feet ste, but unfortunately for her, she landed on the lizard. He watched as the beast threw her off and went to press its attack on her. JJ would have helped her, but the second beast revealed itself, lunging at JJ from the cliff as well.

He rolled, hoping to avoid it, which he barely had. The sound of the beast's feet thudding was too close for comfort. Rolling again, JJ stood to his feet and took the stance for the fourth form of combat. For his size and build, Judah was rather agile, and leaping over the beast as it charged him was not a difficult task. As his feet landed on the back of the best his blade was pressed downward and into the base of the lizards skull. The kill was instant, but the danger was not over.

JJ turned to see Amilthi fell her attacker, but the blood coming from the top of her hand held his focus.

"Amilthi, your hand!"

The exclamation came as his lightsaber feel quiet. The hilt was returned to his belt as he ran toward her. JJ was unsure about how the poison worked. Was it only from a bite, or was it from a scratch. He was wishing he knew. As clear concern for the woman settled on his face, JJ left her little choice as he helped her back onto her feet, and took a look at the hand.

A cotton patch was pulled from the medkit on his belt to help stop the bleeding. With the force he reached out over the wound to see if he could feel the presence of the darkside, and there was nothing. He sighed in relief.

"The toxin must only be from a bite," he said as he attempted to heal the small scratch through the force. He might not have been skilled with the ability, but a small scratch was not too difficult for him. When it refused to heal Judah became concerned.

JJ smiled, though blushed slightly at the amount of concern he had displayed. Yes, he valued all life, but the concern he expressed was enough that it could have been read as something more, deeper, than just simple caring. The thought itself confused JJ enough. They were strangers after all, but there was something there, a feeling, an attraction, JJ could not deny.

"It's not healing right, Ami... Something is wrong."

Amilthi Camlenn

 

[Amilthi Camlenn]

Amilthi found that she experienced a mild annoyance at the young Jedi knight's concern and would rather have been left alone. She noted this fact with suspicion and decided that it was not an appropriate reaction to the situation. And so, she pushed those feelings and thoughts away, and they dissolved like the impermanent wisps of mind-stuff that they were.

"Don't worry about it", she said sanguinely. "I'll be fine." She smiled and looked at him encouragingly. Only for a brief moment was there a more serious expression in her eyes. It was not an expression of worry or concern - but an affirmation that she really meant these words she seemed to be speaking so lightly.

"They hunt always in pairs, you said? That should be it, then." She thought occurred to her that Judah's reaction had been really rather touching. "Let's see where they came from. Maybe there were more victims." Once again she shot up into the air, this time much more controlled, and practically stepped onto the cliff when her feet reached its upper edge.

Judah Lesan Jr.