First Reply Science on Kalsunor

[Darth Misis]

Tumi stood at the brink of the Northern Ridge, her hands casually clasped behind her back. Below her, the canyon floor was littered with jagged fragments of shattered stone and ancient Sith ruins, now overtaken by sickly, pale lichen. Five hundred meters down, something enormous stirred beneath the rocky ledges. A dull clattering sound echoed from below, likely the mandibles scraping against the stone.

She recognized these sounds from the Silooths, enormous beetle-like Sithspawn that had been left behind due to their unpredictable and aggressive nature. A modified security drone hovered three feet to her left, its repulsors producing a low, steady hum. Two more drones patrolled the perimeter of her makeshift camp, which consisted of a single folding worktable, several sealed supply crates, and a portable telemetry rack anchored to the granite base.

Tumi input a sequence into the console on her table. A low-frequency hum resonated through the metal legs of the equipment, penetrating deep into the stone. Tumi had no desire to command these war beasts in combat; instead, she aimed to sample the acid they expelled to extract its properties for future applications.

 

[Mercy]

Darth Misis

Once again Mercy was outside the Core, but this time around she wasn't on a vacation that would piss Arris Windrun right off. Instead she was there for the purpose of the Sith Covenant.

All throughout the Sith Worlds were ancient worlds filled with deadly things.

From artifacts to beasts and worse.

The idea had come to her after her conversation with Revna Marr . The latter had been given the opportunity to expand into the Covenant territory, to set up shop and create another base of power for herself. So why shouldn't Mercy go to the ancestral home of the Sith to use what was there for her own power and that of the Covenant?

The Graspborn were on Kalsunor to capture beasts.

Unlike Misis, they certainly wished to weaponize these monsters for further campaigns. They had assumed they were alone and that was far from the truth.

So it was not a surprise when Misis' sentries would call out an alarm to their mistress.

When a woman casually strolled towards their camp, no concern at all, even giving a lazy wave. "Hail to the Lords of the Sith and those that follow the Creed."

That would be an immediate filter if this was a party of Jedi.

 

[Darth Misis]

She sensed a distinct shift in the Force surrounding her, a unique presence reminiscent of the actual Sith Empress, yet far more untamed and free-spirited than the frigid aura she had come to expect. Her eyes traced the outline of the canyon below before finally turning toward Mercy , a woman she had heard about but never seen in person until now.

Mercy's relaxed manner suggested a lack of formal training, yet it confirmed to Tumi that this was no Jedi. That suited her well enough; she had long believed the Jedi lacking in both conviction and ideals. She answered with only a slow tilt of her head, a gesture of acknowledgment that stopped short of deference and left the balance of power unspoken between them.

"Empress," Tumi said at last, her tone respectful. The drones drifted aside, granting them space. Tumi turned to the console beside her and made a few precise adjustments, ensuring the data for her experiment continued to stream cleanly. Far below, the Silooths struck the lower shelf of the canyon, releasing a burst of yellow acid that hissed white against the rock.

"You've traveled quite a distance from the Core," Tumi remarked, picking up her stylus. "I take it you didn't come all this way to enjoy the sulfur on a barren rock." She was well aware of the rumors circulating within the Covenant, the Graspborn encroaching on ancient territories, eager to reclaim whatever perilous relics or creatures had been left to decay. Still, Tumi preferred straightforward answers over assumptions.

 

[Calyx Sundrift]

Mercy | Darth Misis​

Life as an acolyte meant life without free will.

He'd found out early that asking questions resulted in a number of responses, and none of them pleasant. What you knew, you knew through rumor or experience. Consequently, his entire cohort, a group put together on that same shallow foundation, was absolutely in the dark on what had brought them to Kalsunor.

He'd half expected another Desevro, considering who they were with.

That was another thing about being an acolyte. The endless, uprooting cycle between the Covenant's strongholds. Pelagon. Coruscant. Thrantin. Byss. Whenever he got comfortable enough, the Covenant forced him somewhere else. Somewhere precarious, competitive, and new. Sometimes for months. Sometimes just a field trip. Never with prior explanation.

And this? Aiding the "graspborn," as they called themselves? That felt like the latter.

Thankfully, he'd managed to split off during their hunt for the Silooths. He'd offered some poor excuse about "scouting ahead" that, remarkably, got approved, and now he stood here.

On the cliffside. Facing a camp that, by all accounts, shouldn't be there.

Calyx watched, stunned for a moment.

S'pose that's a secret. And witnesses don't do well with secrets. He bit his lip as the thought flashed through his head.

He'd considered leaving. Truly.

But they'd probably already seen him, so...

He unclipped the worn hilt from his belt and began the descent. Already thinking up what alias to don.

 

[Darth Misis]

She waited for a reply from Empress Mercy , but her main attention was on her research. Acids of this nature couldn't be kept in a regular container without a proper containment field, which she had ensured to bring along. She activated the field with her fingerprint and then handed it to a nearby drone.

She gave the drone a silent command to descend into the canyon to gather samples of the acid that was currently embedding itself in the rock. The Silooths appeared busy returning to their lairs deep underground, where the Gapsborn were likely lying in wait for a moment of vulnerability.

Even though she could already hear the screams in her mind as they were taken down one by one. She was pulled from such pleasurable thoughts by another presence in the Force, one that was much weaker and not worth her attention. Without turning her body, she extended her red hand toward Calyx Sundrift .

Bolts of Force lightning shot from her palm, arcing across the ground toward the figure on the cliffside. It was a straightforward test to see if the newcomer was an ally or an enemy, though she cared little if they were reduced to ashes for interrupting her work.
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