See me in your darkest dreams

[Adron Malvern]

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Location: Bothawui, Training Grounds
Objective: Dark Acolyte Training
Tags: [member="Xobos Yakieer"]
Post: I

The training grounds on Bothawui were the perfect place for today's lesson. The Bothan training grounds were not an actual training center, more they were a collection of areas where practiced spy masters had come to train their teams on the more rigorous parts of espionage. The swamp was thick and teeming with life. The continuous racket that nature gave off was a never ending reminder to all that the swamp held. A thick fog danced over the waters, allowing the evening sun to shine through it in such a way that it had an eerie sun struck glow to it.

A single ebony boot touched down onto the planet's surface. As the Dark Lord touched down onto the planet, his presence threatened to overtake all that stood around him. The swamp quaked in response to him, almost as if it wished to flee his very being. Drawing his spine into a deep stretch, the Sith allowed himself to absorb all the things that surrounded him. One after another, the lifeforms fell into his grasp and he identified them as if he himself had crafted them in the Force. His reach was vast and in seconds he knew all that he needed to know. When his spine relaxed and his hands rested back at his side, he took a moment to adjust the raven black bang that fell over his eyes. He smoothed it back over his head without a thought.

"The Force exists in most things. Connecting them like strands on a tapestry. If you are able to understand how the individuals work to produce the whole, you understand the very fabric of life itself. Then, perhaps one day, you will learn what it is to wield true power." Malphas' eyes were teeming with the Darkness that he kept within. As always, they were as amethyst crystals that showed the truth of his fate. Power. He was careful as he took a step forward, allowing his boot to sink into the shallow bog that was before them.

For Xobos, she would not remember the travel to Bothawui. She would not see a shuttle around them to tell of their journey, she would not even remember awakening that morning to her usual training routine. No, in one moment she would be thrown into a new reality. A planet she did not know or understand, a Master in the midst of his own thoughts, and nothing to call her own, not even her lightsaber.

It seemed that Darth Malphas would offer no explanation as to where, why, or how, only what.

His voice had an amused tone about it, as it usually did before he threw the woman into some new hell. Well, this hell was not all that new. She would, yet again, be set to the receiving end of her master's training. What could that mean? Injury, crippling, death? Maybe none, maybe one, or maybe all. Only time will tell.

Malphas, oddly enough, was not heavily armed either. In fact, the only thing he did carry was a pair of simple daggers that hung from his waist. Not quite his style, though their intricate design had a beauty to it that spoke to his own personal flair. "To understand the galaxy you have to be able to see it for what it is and what it is not. That is what your lesson will be about today." Xobos did not see with her eyes, which meant her sight was entirely reliant to the Force. What came next, would shock her more than any other.

She went blind.

Not in a traditional sense, no. Her eyesight was never truly there, making her eyes useless. No, what came next was a minor extension of her Master's power. By identifying the smallest ripples in the Force that give Xobos her eyesight he was able to isolate them and in the next moment, sever them. He severed her from the Force, quite minorly so that even her own special sight would be gone. She was really, truly, blind now. With her blindness, the Dark Lord's voice could be heard.

"Force Sense is a powerful ability, but most do not truly understand how to use it. This power will teach you how to learn of other things via the imprint they leave on the Force. When I first met you I knew your eyes did not work, because of your presence in the Force. If you master this ability you can search the truth out in a lie, feel the emotions that come off of another, and even feel the subtle changes that the future will bring." Although his voice seemed to fade away, his hand brushed against her own.

As it did, he slid one of the daggers into her hand, with an amused tone. "There is a treasure hidden in this swamp. It is small and normally your senses would seek to wash over it, for you to find it you must focus on the all that lays around you. Sense it out using your own connection to the Dark Side. It has a connection to the Dark Side as well, though it is small. I am giving you three hours to find this treasure. You will have to survive this swamp and it's many dangers without your eyes, only your connection to the Force." Malphas stalked past Xobos and his lips then curled into a humbling smirk. "Oh, and in ten minutes I am going to begin hunting you. I will not relent until you find me this treasure, if you do not find it then it will be you who is lost in the swamp."

"Find the treasure or die, my apprentice."​

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

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Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Quiet
Post: #1
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

​

When Xobos awoke, it only took a few moments of looking around to realize that she had been taken to a new training site. That was easy enough, having been resting after a long days worth of lightsaber training had left her utterly exhausted and waking up in the middle of a forest. Her master was standing off to the side, similarly dressed in barely any armor. However, the difference in their armaments was quite obvious as well. As she stood, the normal weight of her lightsaber was not felt, giving her an immediate sense of unease at the prospects of why this might be occurring.

Making her way over to the location of her master, the voices seemingly began to wake up as well, confused at the situation as she was. “I don’t believe this all is setting up to be the best of prospects for us, little master..” Ambrus grumbled, and Ora could be heard in the background agreeing. It seemed as though the pair were beginning to agree with each other more often now a days, though it wasn’t something that Xobos found herself focusing on. The better part was that, for the most part, she had been able to keep them at bay and not be plagued by the visions of her past. It allowed her to focus on training and honing her skills instead of worrying about what they might show her next because she failed to do what they said.

Once Adron began to speak, her thoughts were brought away from the voices and instead to the task at hand, which quickly became apparent the moment her sight was taken from her. Obviously, she had been blind in a traditional sense up to this point, with the ability to see through the use of the force. However, in this most, she was completely blind, unable to use the force to see like she had sense her childhood. In the back of her mind, she wondered if this was a power she could learn to effect all senses of normal people, or if this was just localized to species like her that relied on the force. An interesting question to ask later, if she made it out of this alive.

As he began to describe to her what exactly the lesson was about, and how to achieve her goal, the apprentice could feel herself nodding along, even if she could not see her master at this point. She looked out toward the forest, only seeing darkness. Yet as he explained, and she therefore followed his instructions, she could feel herself gathering her bearings again. It was little things at first, a flicker of a feeling there, a flash there, but eventually she could feel enough in front of her to begin to take her first few tentative steps.

She leapt her way into the forest, hands still bracing in front of her. The feelings were still little more than flickers in the darkness, but she could feel them and how big they were. The trees felt cold, unmoving, and she began to navigate her way from tree to tree, deciding it best to just push into the forest as deeply as possible, as to gain some distance between her and her master before he came after her. At this point, Xobos had no idea how she was going to find this supposed treasure in this massive swamp, but making sure she wasn’t killed by her master within the first few minutes seemed like a reasonable way to start.

 

[Adron Malvern]

​

Location: Bothawui, Training Grounds
Objective: Dark Acolyte Training
Tags: [member="Xobos Yakieer"]
Post: II

The Dark Lord lowered himself to the ground, falling on his knees silently. He closed his eyes, allowing his hands to fall to his waist. Though his apprentice did not know it, this would be training for him as well. From his sash, he pulled a thin leather band. The black band had a crimson marker on it, which glowed softly in the man's hands. Malphas pulled the band over his eyes, allowing the crimson insignia to land just over his eyes. This insignia was one from the ancient Sith dialect, the same dialect where Malphas gained his own mark. As he tightened the band around his eyes, he felt his own vision fall away. His eyes were covered by the band, yet his own ability to use Force Sight was muted as well. The crimson mark glowed bright as the Exarch inhaled deeply.

The grounds would be even. Malphas would be just as blind as his apprentice. Of course, he had done this before. A hundred times? A thousand times? It did not matter. His own training would never end. Not until the power of the Dark Side was his in totality. Malphas exhaled, allowing the Dark Side of the Force to spill from him. Hatred, anger, and malice filled him, it seethed from him to the point where he gritted his teeth from it's sheer weight. Yet, he needed more.

So his mind turned to memories. Dark memories. Death, betrayal, banishment. He fell so silent, so still that it seemed a single movement would shatter the world around him. "Fight, apprentice. Fight for your life or I swear I will destroy you." It had been nearly five minutes when Malphas spoke. The trees around him began to creak and splinter as he lashed out with The Force.

A number of loud snaps occured, trees fell all around him, sending out a number of loud echoes. It had been nearly seven minutes by this point. He finally stood to his full height. The shadows that fell from his body, they were tangible manifestations of the Dark Side. These shadows were like tentacles of evil, slamming into the ground and washing back over his form as he looked to the skies. He turned his neck a bit, craning it until he heard an audible pop. He exhaled in relief as his mind reminded the time constraint. "Ten." He lifted his hand, aiming it out towards where his apprentice had gone. "Run run, little rabbit." He muttered, as a sickening smile came across his lips.

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Helpful
Post: #2
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

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Sounds such as the ones that surrounded the apprentice would be enough to make most men stop, turn around and try to find the source of these noises. Not Xobos, knowing that the sound of trees snapping, thunder rolling throughout the sky, and the sound of dark energy waving it’s way through the forest could only come from one, terrifying source. One that the apprentice had absolutely no desire to be anywhere near when it started to come after her. Though she had to admit, progress moving forward was slower than she would have liked.

The blindness was something she should have been used to. When they were younger, one of the first things that her species was taught was how to move around while blind. Since most of them weren’t able to use the force to see until they were a few years into adolescence, at least not in a way that would be useful to them, many were taught how to use sounds and such to move about. Yet, as Xobos attempted to navigate her way through this forest, her progress was at a rate that she knew would leave her much worse off, very soon.

This did not stop her, however. Stopping meant death. And from the sounds, and how they were seemingly reaching a peak, her hunter would soon be on her tracks. But even as she moved forward, where her end goal was still eluded her. Wherever this treasure was, the animals and other living things in this swamp were obscuring her feeling of it’s location. Blindly moving deeper into the swamp itself seemed to be the best bet, at least for the moment.

Ambrus’s voice began to linger in her mind, even as her breathing began to get heavy from leaping and sprinting her way through the densely forested area. “You need a plan, little master. He obviously knows where this supposed treasure is. He could have sent you on the wrong direction only to lead you into a trap.” These words caused the apprentice to slow her pace lightly, though she continued deeper into the swamp. He was right. Rushing forward blindly would doom her.

Finally, she just stopped, taking a moment to lean against one of the large trees. To her knowledge, knowing that she had sprinted in a relatively straight line for what must have been ten minutes, she was at least a klick or two away from the starting spot. Not nearly as much distance as she would have liked between her and her master, but it was a start, and one she could use to gather her bearings. Which Xobos began to do, the moment she started taking deep, long breaths, to cleanse her mind of all the worries of the moment.

This was not a power she was used to using, or channeling through the force. What might seem as a full picture to some, the vision she experienced was much more flashy, almost like echolocation. The more solid objects made waves through the force as their life energy rippled with every moment, as if they were breathing and living creatures. For their sake, every movement of the animals created their own ripples, and what was left was a noisy, unorganized mess that left Xobos with a pounding headache.

This time it was Lagos who spoke, cutting through the noise to broadcast his voice through her mind clearly. “Stop getting overwhelmed. You know your objective. Remove the clutter.” With a another deep breath, the apprentice gave a silent nod, reaching back into the force to see once again. Now, focusing only on the objectives that made movements, letting their ripples create the image for her. And through all of it, a great source of the ripples emitted, as if a waterfall was hitting a tranquil stream. It was unlike anything else in this swamp, which meant, of course, it was the thing she needed to go toward.

And she did, letting the ripples against the large objectives give her her vision. All the apprentice could hope for now was that she hadn’t spent too much time finding the object, and that her master wasn’t right on her tail. If he popped up, she needed to be thinking of a way to defend herself.

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Xobos Yakieer"]​

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His hand tightened against the hilt of his dagger. The moment that Malphas exhaled he felt the Force wrap itself around him in a blazing embrace. He had practiced like this, so many years ago, and he had long since learned the trick to such a thing. Though he could not see, he was able to effectively tether himself to the many presences that the Force presented him. By doing this he created a web, and so like the spider he waited and watched at the many moving pieces that shifted in his web. There was one single thing, one presence that was so much more than the others. Xobos. She was like a flare shot into the nighttime and on this web where the hungry spider sat, he was eager to close the distance between them.

His boots moved into the swamp and he picked up a steady jog. It was not a full sprint, no, even he could only move so fast when relying on his enhanced senses to guide him through the swamp. After-all he could not track every being that was in the forest, so he focused on the larger ones. Trees, rocks, living creatures. If he attempted to see it all, he would drastically diminish the range of his senses.

So he moved forward, gradually closing the distance between the master and the apprentice. The swamp around him grew smaller and Xobos grew closer. With every branch he touched or rock he stepped on, he could feel his apprentice. She was learning, adapting to her latest trial. In all senses, she was doing quite well, but that would not reveal whether or not she would survive this.

He moved with the will of the Force until finally the gap was closed. There was no hesitation, no stall for time, and no sign that he had arrived. He moved from behind a tree with a deadly speed and in one fluid motion his arm lashed out. His dagger was aimed to run down the length of Xobos's arm. Not nearly enough to kill her, but it would hurt like hell.

[member="Xobos Yakieer"]

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Quiet
Post: #3
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

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It wasn’t until it was practically too late that she felt his presence. Using the movement of other beings to aid in her vision had it’s own downsides, and seeing her master was obviously among those. The way he moved meant that he created no ripples, almost as if he was ghosting over the ground, and avoided anything that might cast a ripple onto him. She couldn’t tell if he was actively moving to avoid the ripples, or was using the force in some way to completely cover his image. Regardless, it wasn’t until he lashed out at her with the knife, seemingly breaking this illusion, that she was able to sense and avoid him.

Using the same tree that he had appeared behind as something to push off of, the apprentice dove downward into the dirt and underneath the blade, barely avoiding it’s firey bite. It wasn’t the cleanest getaway, leaving her rolling in the watery mud before coming to stop. The miraluka knew she needed to keep moving immediately, especially now that he was so close to her tail. Springing up from her position, she evaluated her next move before swiftly deciding to take to the trees with a prompting of Lagos. “Up, little master. You have no advantage on the ground.”

Whatever the treasure was, she was still plenty a ways away from it, but with her master breathing down her neck, she couldn’t allow herself to stay on the ground as an easy target. Her first leap led her to landing on a semi-thick branch near the middle of the tree cover. Her vision was less useful up here, since there was less things to create ripples for the objects to bounce off of. Noticing this, she decided to enact a two part plan that would allow her to see, but also might keep adron slowed if he decided to follow her up here.

The first part, in her mind, was the harder bit. The apprentice began to leap from branch to branch, and each time she landed, her foot would send small ripples through the force, allowing her to see the next branch, over and over again. However, this had a limited range, and required almost all of her concentration to be able to see the branch the moment the ripple hit it. Sometimes it lead to her jumping sideways, or waiting just an extra second to fully see her next jumping target. She knew this might let Adron catch up to her quicker, but she hoped the second part of her plan would be able to slow him down. It worked on the Trandoshans, at least.

See, she had been chased through the trees before. Back on Roon, those lizard men would chase her if her hunting went awry and they found out where she was. Yet, the trees were exactly where she wanted them. Although she didn’t know it at the time, she had a way of sending the force coursing through the branch until it snapped. Every time her boot pushed off the branch as she leaped to the next, it would send a shockwave of the force throughout the branch, weakening it to the point of snapping whenever it was next touched in any way.

Now, she knew that her master was smarter than the average lizard man and would probably notice she was doing this. That would hopefully leave him with the choice of following from the ground. At least xobos would have the high ground in this situation, right?

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Xobos Yakieer"]​

​

Malphas had closed in and where he expected his blade to strike flesh, he found only the hard bark of a tree. As his dagger sliced into the tree, he cursed himself silently. He had given her too much opportunity to escape. What was worse was his focus had been shifted, and his sight was only a few feet. It was not long until Xobos had slipped from his senses once again. He turned on his heel, lowering a knee to the ground. She was fast. He pressed his hand into the ground, hoping to feel the slightest shimmers of her escape. Nothing. When he drew his hand back he gazed up to the heavens and smiled softly. She was using the trees.

She was smart. By using the trees it gave her an advantage of mobility and a more direct path, it also made open combat damn near impossible. He did not give chase. Not immediately. He could sense her, those soft taps of The Force she pushed into the tree. While he could not understand exactly what she was doing, she was creating a footprint down the trees to track her with. He waited a few moments, letting the woman gain more space so he could have a direct route to follow. A few minutes passed and then he rushed forward. Again, his senses sent him through the forest, intent on finding his apprentice.

With every step she took, he grew closer and closer. How long could she run? How long could she hide?

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

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Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Quiet
Post: #4
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

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Her breathing had become labored at this point, having spent the last few minutes continually hopping from branch to branch, wanting to put as much distance as possible between herself and her master. Constant hopping from branch, to branch, to branch, continually sending the ripples of force through the branch to break it at the next step. However, it wasn’t long til she realized she wasn’t being followed just yet. At least, not through the trees.

See, there was another reason why she had tried to lure her master into the trees was that the breaking of branches was enough to create a ripple through the force, giving her sight in her blinded state. However he was concealing himself, if he had followed her into the trees, that would have at least given her a rough idea where he was as he followed her. But no such luck, and instead he had chosen to remain on the ground, foiling her idea. In the back of her mind, she knew that her was way too smart to fall for something like this, but it still would have been nice if had followed.

Now, she needed a new plan, and fast. Her master was no doubt following her at this point, and she was beginning to exhaust herself with this constant hopping. Taking a break to lean against the trunk, high in the air, the apprentice took the opportunity to evaluate her options and catch her breath. In between breaths, she spoke in her mind, hoping to get some sort of idea from the voices within. “Y’all…wouldn’t have any ideas…would you?” There was silence for a few moments, longer, in fact, than Xobos was expecting. Typically they were quite talkative in this sort of situation, but now, they were almost silent.

“We..are in quite the perilous situation, little master.” Ora proclaiming this wasn’t exactly the thing that the apprentice was trying to hear, though it didn’t surprise it. They did have a way of proclaiming the obvious. Surprisingly, however, was Ambrus offering some actually good advice. “We are near the objective, and to our knowledge, we are still ahead of your master. He’s going to do his best to make sure we never make it to the objective…so we have to make sure we get there first.” That was probably the best of, admittedly very limited, options that Xobos could muster. And with that, and now that she had caught her breath, the apprentice began her branch hopping endeavor, continuing to send the shockwaves through the wood.

​

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Xobos Yakieer"]​

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Still visually blind to the world around him, not even able to see through the Force, he relied on his senses to lead him through. Yet, his senses could not predict everything. The Sith Lord flew into the air, hoping to grab onto one of the branches that Xobos had used along her own path. The moment his weight came onto the branch, he could feel the shifting of pressure.

Snap!

Adron fell back to the ground, his chest slamming into the hard, cold surface below. It did not take him long to realize just what had happened. Although he was a fully grown man, he was not that heavy and the trees were alive and thriving, there was no reason they should not support his weight. He reached out with the Force once again, having had his focus shattered by his apprentice's antics. She was gaining ground.

He pulled himself up to a three-point stance as he continued to track Xobos' movements through the forest. She was doing far better than he imagined, and she was getting closer and closer to her objective. If he did not hurry, she may actually find it before he intended. He smiled softly, before lowering himself back onto the ground. He pulled himself into a cross-legged sitting position, exhaling deeply as he reached out with the Force. He could feel her, moving through the trees, tapping away as she moved further and further away. From where he sat, his hand stretched out towards the woman, his command echoing through the Force. Time meant nothing, distance meant nothing, he was a Sith Lord and that meant his power could compel the very planet to stop spinning if he but focused on it.

But that was not his goal.

Along her route, as Xobos grew closer and closer to the objective, the trees would begin to shiver as if struck by a chill. The waters below would quake and boil as if a pot, taken to a flame. From the waters below the vines would twist and wind, like serpents. With no warning they would lash out of the swampy water, aimed to constrict Xobos. Be it her arm, her leg, or even her neck. They would twist and snap towards the woman like snakes to keep her from her goal.

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Panicked
Post: #5
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

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It was only a few moments when she could sense her master springing up toward her up in the branches. But just as he was about to reach her, she preformed the trick just once more, sending the reverberations throughout the branch. As she began to hop away from the branch, Xobos didn’t even need to look backward to know what had happened when she felt the presence suddenly drop down to the hard ground below them, allowing herself the smallest of smiles at the fact that her trick had worked. He hadn’t sensed her steps destroying the branches until the very last moment, and now she was being able to gain a lot of ground very quickly. Knowing that there was no way the trick would work a second time, she quit with the extra weight, instead focusing her entire body on pushing it to the brink of speed.

Ambrus, in these moments become a motivator of sorts, though his tactics left much to be desired in Xobos’s mind. “Run, run like the wind little master. You’ve now thoroughly made him angry. He’ll be redoubling his efforts now.” Xobos didn’t want to admit it, but he was right. Her master would not allow her to get to much farther without trying something, probably something completely expected, to put her on the ground. For now, however, she continued her branch hopping adventure, taking advantage of whatever ground she could gain away from her master. And for the moment, it was going well.

That was until she felt something beginning to happen around her in the forest. Something unnerving. Even as continued to jump, there was something eerily cold about the air around her. Below her, even if most of her focus was tied up attempting to keep her footing on the seemingly growing wet branches. It was as if the ground beneath her was becoming a constant stream of movement through the force, something that had not been happening up until this moment. Everything felt like it was building up to a boiling point, but thinking and attempting to keep up with this point while also keeping her footing was proving to be problematic.

So much so, that as she focused downward for just a moment too long, to the tip of her boot slipped off the branch she had just jumped to, leaving her to slam her sternum against the branch as she desperately clung to it. It was then that everything suddenly shifted in the wrong direction. All the momentum that she had built up in these moments by tricking her master and gaining a sizeable lead against him, had suddenly and drastically shifting back into his favor. As she dangled there, for just a moment, Xobos felt as something wet, firm suddenly grabbed around both her ankles, and began to yank downward, slamming her sternum again and again against the branch, knocking out the breath she had in her lungs.

Not only did her grip begin to loosen quickly, but her vision through the force began to waver as she focused more on trying desperately to breath than see. It was one final, firm tug, that sent her falling toward the ground. Yet, she didn’t hit the ground and be shattered like she thought would happen. Instead, vines shot out from the trees to either side of her body, quickly wrapping themselves around her wrists, pulling her arms across her body. The tension and pain that shot through her body in these moments caused her to cry aloud. Her mind raced as she desperately tried to think of a way out of this situation, but having to fight to regain her breath, the pain of her arms being pulled in opposite directions, and having suddenly become blind yet again all worked against her mind in the moment.

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Xobos Yakieer"]​

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Got you.

The Sith Lord smiled softly to himself as he rose from his place on the ground. The Mirilukan had been captured by his trap and was now vulnerable to an attack. Of course there was some distance to be covered before he could strike, but it would be simple to cross knowing Xobos was locked in place.

His legs felt weightless as he strode forward. He moved through the forest with a speed unlike the last time he had set out. With his apprentice locked in place it was far easier to keep track of her, causing less of his focus. This allowed him to move faster and more efficiently. His feet struck the ground, yet they did not sink into the bog below. Instead he created small fields of The Force under his feet to provide the imitation of a hard surface beneath him.

As Adron grew closer to his apprentice, his voice reached out to her mind. He spoke in a matter of fact tone as he spoke.

'It's a shame. I saw the signs of true power. However, you have shown that you are nothing different from the rest of the galaxy. Weak, feeble, and an insufferable pain. So I will do to you what I have done to whole worlds, child. I will erase you. Your soul, your spirit, all that you are will be thoroughly erased from the face of the galaxy. Even those detestable voices in your mind will fall silent due to the horrors I will impart upon you.'

'Find the artifact or die. The choice is yours.'

His presence grew closer and closer and finally, when the Sith Lord reached out he could feel Xobos nearly within his grasp.

​

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

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Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Enraged
Post: #5
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

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Pain was quickly becoming the only thing that filled her mind in these moments. Pure, unrivaled, pain. Not just the physical pain that was coursing through every part of her being as her arms were pulled taunt across her body and legs that were pulled downward. Her body screamed at her as the vines’ never ending strength threatened to pull her body apart. Yet that pain wasn’t the worst. The paint that truly coursed through her body and her mind was the pain of knowing that she had failed at this point. Even if she could pull herself from this trap, Adron’s presence was overwhelming, and she could feel it rushing toward her every single moment.

It was his voice that cut through the pain first. His speech, calling things that she already knew herself to be. Weak, feeble, and an imposter. No matter what had happened in the past few months, xobos knew that she was nothing more than a broken, insane woman, and never would be anything different. His speech reinforced that, and she knew that every moment that he streaked toward her, she knew that her death approached all the quicker. Her body began to shut down, knowing that this was her end.

That was, until her head snapped up as lagos screamed through her mind, breaking through every wall that pain had put up. She could feel bursting through her mind with such ferocity that it wouldn’t surprise the Miraluka if even Adron could hear him, especially as the mark on her forearm flare up with a fire of passion. “You are not finished! We are not finished, little master! He will not beat us!” With that scream, she felt as though the pain was washed away and replaced by a pure darkness that surrounded her entire being, emanating from it and pulsating against the trees around her.

Darkened eyes slowly turned to the vine holding up her right arm, cocking to the side as she examined it. A snarl crawled along her lips as her fist clenched, balling the darkness up around her into one, long, sharp entity, before snapping her neck to the side, sending the dark arm shooting upward and slicing the vine in two. Now free from one arm, her vision came rushing back, quickly turning to attempt the same trick at the other two sets of vines. They were cut just as easily, sending the apprentice falling toward the floor of the swamp.

But yet, right before she hit the water, the darkness formed yet again at her command, allowing her to land on one knee with a cushion. She slowly began to stand, the tendrils of darkness forming behind her like two pointed, fluid spears. With a arm mark still shooting fire up her arm, and a pair of eyes filled with utter darkness, the apprentice reached out through the force yet again to her master, addressing him for first time since they started this whole exercise. “Come…get…us.” Voice mixing with Lagos’s, Xobos slowly turned, pressed her foot against the darkened floor underneath her, then dashing forward toward the treasure, every step held above the water by the hardened darkness underneath her feet.

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Xobos Yakieer"]​

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It lashed out in vicious waves, causing the Exarch's lips to turn out into a cruel smirk. The Dark Side had taken hold of Xobos in a symbiotic manifest in the same way that it did Malphas. No, this was different. There was more than a simple schizophrenic Miralukan running from inevitability. She held the presence of a true Sith, ingrained in the Force as if she were fully realized. This caused the hairs on the back of Adron's neck to stand erect as he saw her potential for what it truly was.

"She could become a powerful Sith Lord." He muttered, in subtle realization as his steps grew shallow. For a moment he could see it, a premonition of the woman who could go on to lead hundreds of millions into conquest. Was her potential....Did it possibly outshine his own?

The Darkness within him told him he should strike her down now.

Do not suffer rivals. Certainly do not breed them.

He paused for a moment, extending his right arm out to the air beside him. He could feel the Dark Side calling him to strike this woman down, sever the danger that could one day present itself.

His open palm flexed as he drew on the darkest reaches of the Force. The winds began to swirl ever so lightly, as the Force spilled from him in an endless wave. His hand became the center for shadow and darkness, as if a black hole had conjured itself from the very fabric of the galaxy. In the next moment....it stopped.

His hand closed slowly as he realized himself once again.

"No, she yet holds a potential that I could mold into my own weapon." His hand came back to fall against his side and when his eyes rose he realized the Miralukan had a several minute head start once again. He silently cursed himself before beginning after her once more.

 

[Xobos Yakieer]

Wearing: Minimal training clothing
Mental state: Present
Post: #7
Tags: [member="Adron Malvern"]

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The goal was close now. That was the only thing that consumed Xobos’s mind in these moments, outside of the darkness that had taken hold of every part of her being. She could feel the dark side of the force pulsating from every part of her body. It felt powerful, yet calming. Xobos no longer felt out of control, regardless of the raging power that had been awoken by her torturous experiences. But now, she was close to finishing this challenge, and all it would take is controlling this power for just a few more moments now.

Even so, this felt like a huge challenge. The awoken power had helped her get a large lead away from her master, but the mark on her forearm burned, and the darkness was threatening to drain every bit of her energy. So much so, she tried to pull the darkness close to her, so that the arms of the monster were less whipping and more controlled. This helped, but even with this state the apprentice knew she couldn’t hold everything together for too long.

Thankfully, she was really quite close to the finally treasure. The place she had arrived at was an open area, surrounded by tall trees on all sides. The treasure’s feeling was seemingly emanating from large pile of rocks in the middle. She couldn’t help but grumble lightly at the ridiculousness of the scene, Lagos agreeing with her as she approached the pile. “Of course this wouldn’t be easy…nothing ever seems to be with this man.” Giving a little grumble in response was all the voice got in response from the apprentice.

As she observed the situation, she could tell this was practically helpless. It would take forever to move all these rocks by herself, and it wouldn’t be long until her master found her and inevitably killed her. She didn’t have the strength to beat him at this point, even with her newfound power. This led her to the only reasonable decision left. Slowly kneeling to the ground, she let out a long, deep breath, before extending her hand toward the pile of rocks. The tendrils of the dark side shot forward toward the pile, beginning to slowly snake between them. They didn’t move the rocks, so much as move through the gaps, trying to reach the treasure at the bottom. Xobos didn’t have much time now, and this was seemingly her last gamble. If this worked, she would complete this nightmare of a trial. If not, then she would die. Either way, she would be finally finished.

 

[Adron Malvern]

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[member="Xobos Yakieer"]​

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Step...Step...Step...​

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His boots delved into the muck of the bog that was underneath the two. With his blade in hand, he approached where his apprentice was, to where he could feel her settling. Her presence in the force was still so incredibly erratic that it nearly gave the man a headache. When finally the distance between the two of them had closed a bit more he spun the dagger around in his hand. Her time was up. Though she had come close, she had failed to find the treasure before her master found her. He'd allowed her to slip away but now there was nowhere else to hide. Even if he was purely relying on the use of his senses to guide him, it was impressive that she had lasted this long. Now, he no longer cared to spare her life, she had proven something that could be removed with ease.

So he would do just that.

He sprinted forward, flipping his dagger over in his hand as he raced for the woman who sat kneeling in the clearing. He leaped into the air, aiming the blade directly for the woman's neck as he came down upon her. His speed and force were unlike anything he seldom achieved without the help of his Sith Armor. However, in this moment he felt his power thrive. He could feel the tug of the Dark Side that demanded power and death and he was keen to answer it.

When his foot came down onto the ground, he swung his arm to carve into Xobos' neck.

His blade would never reach.

He stopped, his body as still as a grave. Through the Force Xobos had sent her tendrils of the Dark Side on the search for the treasure that the man had hidden within the bog. The tendrils pulled the small, clear crystal from it's home. Showing it off to be a brilliant gem that shined even in the darkness that had fallen over the planet. Still, with his blade a mere inch from Xobos' neck, the Sith Lord could not help but smile. For so long they stood there, solitary as Adron processed just what she had done. Essentially, she had passed the test that he designed for her to fail. His smirk did not fade as he pulled his blade back, tucking it into the sash where it had come from. He looked to the crystal, placing his arms behind his back before his hand went to his eyes. He pulled the small sash from his face, restoring his vision and even then what he saw was as clear as it had been. He turned away from Xobos, almost as if disappointed, but as he walked away his voice betrayed nothing.

"Exceptional job, I am proud of you, my apprentice." Spoken from the man who was prepared to end her life and write her off.