Squawk! (Tai Fa)

[Niysha]

It surely was great that the useless little bird Niysha had come to this moon with seemed to have checked out at some point. This spinning death chicken was far preferable. She didn't even feel bad with the idea of ditching him to cut and run if things got dicey. He'd probably love nothing more than to reduce whatever it was that was threatening them into so much haggis.

He was right, of course. The mad and the egotistic tended to prefer playing with their food before they went in for the kill. Either way, it was a clear indicator that this entity had no concept of loss. It couldn't conceive of a world in which it was fallible or not invincible. Sometimes that was a well-earned delusion, of course, but it was still a delusion. If there was one thing that the galaxy as a whole had learned over millennia of dealing with Force-users, it was that "immortal" just meant that a Jedi or Sith hadn't put any serious effort into trying to kill it yet.

Niysha gave a curt nod to the tiny creature in front of her and followed him, attempting to keep her Sight focused a meter or two in front of him. It was legitimately painful, but Tai Fa wasn't the only one flooded with endorphins right now. The Sithling was trying very, very hard to use her terror and adrenaline as a shield to dull the mounting agony that whatever it was deep within this cavern was causing her.

"If you have any ideas on how we might do that, Lord Fa, I'm open to suggestions," she responded simply, keeping pace with tiny chicken legs without much difficulty.
[member="Tai Fa"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

Fleye Tsu had shown wisdom in this particular case.

Pretend inferiority and encourage arrogance.

Yet, instead the two Sith had easily dispatched the first animals send against them. Instincts were difficult to ignore and when Fa had been faced with a threat - even one as minor and small as this one - his blade moved before his mind. Domination was the name of the Sith's game, it was all they knew.

Even a coward such as [member="Niysha"] had the same instincts.

"Many ideas.​

Yet only one is needed.​

We must choose wisely.​

​

To draw out this one,​

she must think us weak as prey.​

The next time, we fall."​

​

Fa turned around, looking up towards the Miraluka and cocked his little head slightly. Did she understand?

"Or else she may flee.​

Into the night and the dark.
Scheming for vengeance."

It would be a tricky situation, difficult to properly replicate without actually getting themselves killed, but on the other hand Tai had no wish to have a thing sneak at them in the night without them knowing where and when it might strike against them.​

​

Not a preferable outcome by any sense of the word.​

 

[Niysha]

Well then. If Tai Fa needed a weakling to get himself out of a nasty situation, he had just lucked into the best possible ally in the whole damn Order. Self-depreciation aside, Niysha was a borderline-useless sack of anxiety and neuroses. She had to try at all times not to look like a weakling. It'd be pretty simple for her to just...y'know. Stop doing that.

Also, "she." There was no small amount of irritation festering in the back of Niysha's mind that the uncooked meal speaking to her right now had been able to glean more about what was going on here than the freaking Miraluka had. She'd make a point to pout about it later. They were presently fighting for their lives, and pettiness would serve as nothing but an obstacle.

With a silent nod, Niysha took a deep breath. "Ignore whatever you might hear from me. I'll be fine." Then she expanded her Sight once again.

The pain was immediate, dramatic, and unbearable. Niysha's perceptions expanded to their standard range, ten to twenty meters from her body, and in doing so they caught more than a glimpse of the monster in the deep, echoing cave. As before, it was horrible. It was agonizing, like someone had drilled a hole in her skull just so they had a new orifice to pour molten metal into. Worse yet, even without that singular abomination that was so wrong as to defy Niysha's ability to comprehend what she was Seeing, the cave itself had been its lair for so long that it had taken on an aspect of the creature itself. The walls hurt. The creature hurt.

Niysha shrieked. It wasn't at all unlike the sound of a horror holovid's main heroine right as she saw the murderer. Her pain echoed through the entire cave easily, a wail that was impossible to misinterpret. Her Sight had become not merely a burden, but an aching, open wound which refused to heal. Shortly after the initial cry, her voice continued whimpering and wailing into the cave's acoustic walls, more the sounds of lasting pain than immediate injury. Her body fell to the ground, curling into a helpless, fetal ball.

It was very easy to act pained when you were experiencing agony that sighted species had no frame of reference for.
[member="Tai Fa"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

The peacock did not in fact ignore [member="Niysha"] and what she was going through.

There was a certain amount of fascination displayed as he melted away into the shadows, while observing the angle her spine curved back as the pain reached her brain. Fa wasn't a sadist by any stretch of the imagination, more often than not he attempted to forestall any violence and if it came to it, end it as swiftly as it began. Yet, it was just interesting to see her react to something that his mind could not completely comprehend.

Oh, there was that ink at the edges of his mind, but it seemed that the Mind Witch -- because it was a Mind Witch hunting them -- had little experience in the way of Thirrikens.

Perhaps she even thought he was just a simple, little pet.

Very plausible, he got that often.

He clung to the rocky walls of the cave-in, his eyes trying to pierce the shadows while ignoring the sounds of screams (soon shifted back into whines of pain and sobbing), but he couldn't see anythin- There. It was a shift in black, a silhouette moving slowly... almost prancing about, feet slithering over the surface of the floor without making any sound. Then Fa saw her face. If he had been human, he might have remarked about how ancient it looked.

Like wax molten away and leaving only wrinkles and the faint idea of sculpture behind.

"I know I must wait.​

Until her approach is locked.​

She cannot escape."​

​

The thought entered and stayed with him, as Fa looked on.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, little, little girly." A raspy old voice cut through the sobbing, then. "You seem lost here... in pain? Mmmmhm."

Delicious.

 

[Niysha]

Now, the issue with being a Miraluka in the fetal position is that didn't actually stop you from Seeing anything. In fact, as the monster approached, Niysha had to watch the whole thing, which only heightened her already tangible terror. By the time it was close enough to her to be able to speak, the poor little Sithling was practically shaking, both with fright and with legitimate, mind-numbing pain.

"Please..." She managed to stutter out quietly.

"Oh, please is it?" The crone of a creature moved closer, reaching down one talon to scrape across Niysha's cheek. "Please what, child?"

Plan A. Niysha turned her head towards it. It might have been able to see her lack of eyes about a moment before she summoned up every ounce of unholy terror wracking her brain, channeled it into tangible will, and thrust it out from her body with the palm of her hand. To another Sith, this would have been just a simple, violent push. To Niysha, it was an extended undertaking that required her to force her telekinesis to perform an abrupt and dangerous action as opposed to the delicate control she tended to exhibit. As the witch slammed against a stone wall with the power of the Force hammering into her body, Niysha stood.

"Try not to die until Lord Fa can make you scream."
[member="Tai Fa"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

It was quite difficult to impress Tai, but [member="Niysha"] had done just that.

Of course, it was mostly because of his lowered expectations concerning her - for any other Sith Acolyte a violent Force Push that threw anyone into a wall wasn't especially mind-blowing. But it wouldn't be fair to have these lower expectations and then when she managed to push herself towards normal standards... not at least be a bit impressed about it.

There was little to do about it now, though.

Stopping and congratulating her was quite difficult while he was flying. Yes, flying, his form had blurred when the peacock pushed himself off of the wall. Wings aiding his glide, long blade aimed at ready- the moment the Mind Witch crashed into the wall, the flurry of talons, wings and edged blade crashed into her.

His blade slashed across her side, cutting robe, skin and etching itself in the cold meat of the witch. One of his talons had scratched across her face at the same time - think what a position the peacock had been in to accomplish that - an ear off, or maybe it was a nose, it was difficult to see in the dark. Yet blood gushed and it flew royally.

The witch screeched and cursed and whined, until finally it managed to repulse the flying death chicken with a fist to his soft belly.

Tai Fa flew back, yet managed to right himself in the air, steering himself safely to the ground. Both his little feet clicking against the floor as he landed.

"Lady of sorrow,​

Scream and cry, bellow and shout.​

Your time is over.​

​

His attention shifted for a moment to Niysha.​

​

"Well done, little one.​

A strong show of cogent strength.
Sith you will be yet."

This lack of respect towards the Apex Predator in the room by a chicken, only served to anger the wounded Witch -- making her quite stupid in the progress as well -- no strategy, no tactics. The Witch simply bull-rushed towards She Who Might Be Sith.​

 

[Niysha]

Oh, for the love of...of course Tai Fa hadn't killed her. Of course she went after Niysha. That was just her luck, after all. The Miraluka struggled to her feet, adrenaline again numbing the pain of having to See such a monstrous entity. In all honesty, it seemed less like she was inherently unnatural and more like Niysha was encountering some sort of active interference. Telepathic signal? That might have been it. She took a deep breath and focused, clearing her mind and her Sight all at once.

The cave came back into view properly as Niysha forced the creature's presence further out of her head. It wasn't gone - not in the slightest - but at least it didn't have such a powerful hold over her. Her Sight was still blurry and unfocused, which sucked, but now she could clearly See things that she needed to be aware of. Lord Fa, for instance, and the pillars and stones of the cavern walls and floor. Also the monster, which was currently charging right at-

"Nngh!" Niysha wrenched herself to the side, the flash of the Force in her thoughts taking control of her instincts as she began to feel the possibility of talons across her body. Barely managing to evade the creature's wild and dangerous assault, the Sithling tried to step to one side with fluid footwork, dancing around behind the abomination as her lightsaber ignited with a glorious sound.

...Sort of. Unfortunately, her feet got caught in her own robe as she'd tried to move so quickly to one side, wrapping around her shins. Immediately she stumbled from her feet and came crashing to the ground. During her fall Niysha tried to make a strike at the monster, but it went wide and missed center mass, instead taking off a few talons of one hand right as it passed by the Miraluka's descending form.

Hitting the ground with a sound of pain, she smacked one elbow on the stone and winced, holding it tight. Her lightsaber fell moments later, once again deactivating after making a rather unsightly burn on the floor.
[member="Tai Fa"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

Throughout this all the Thirriken had not been standing aimlessly in wait, instead the wait had been aimed with the purpose of finding an in for the battle without risking unnecessary damage on [member="Niysha"] herself. It wasn't so much concern as much as pragmatic intervention, they were far more capable as a pair with damage output and-

...or not.

Tai Fa stared as the Sith Miraluka stumbled and fell on her face, while trying to pivot away from the claws lunging. Yet, before the moment passed, he decided to keep his comments for him for the meantime.

His little feet pushed off the floor again, form blurring as the Sith took to the air with his blade in tow. There was little more glorious than the sight of a flying ball of death and feathers and edges, speedy and agile, going in for the kill. Whilst the Mind Witch was screaming in pain and using said pain in a channel to inflict bodily harm on his... associate, Fa used her focus to take her unawares.

Her eyes grew large as she suddenly looked up and noticed the space peacock flying up against her. But momentum was on his side again, his sword whipped up and pierced through black fabric and then her heart as well. Or at least the portion where her heart should have been- the Thirriken twisted at the end of his lunge and that incited a gurgle from the Witch. Black, smokey liquid welled up from the edges of her mouth.

Fa pushed her crumbled form off his blade with his tiny foot and left her there.

[member="Niysha"] was presumably still on the floor, clutching her elbow.

"Her scream sounded hard.​

Before her death at last came.​

Your wish fulfilled, yes?"​

​

The Thirriken said silently, while wiping his edge off on the witch's fabric.​

 

[Niysha]

During Tai Fa's little display, Niysha had managed to push herself up from the point of smelling cave floor. Making it to her feet was another thing entirely, and she'd at least endeavored to do so by the time the monster crumbled to the ground to take her place. The little Sithling shook her frizzy hair for a moment, then held out her hand and called her lightsaber to it. "That was exactly what I requested, my lord. Thank you." Ever the polite little creature. Please don't eat me.

The air of the cave had begun to clear a bit, no longer clouding her Sight. She could make out walls and pillars now that there wasn't constant telepathic interference, but it was still quite painful to try to get anything done at all. This abomination had spent so long in here that her essence had drained into the stone itself, imparting it with a nasty reflection of her aura. That, along with Niysha's naturally timid demeanor and propensity to freak out, made her feel a little less than welcome in here.

Replacing her saber on her belt, Niysha fixed her parka and turned to physically face Tai Fa, making a conscious effort to humor his primitive need for facial association. "This cavern would have been a danger to our workers, but even now it's probably pretty unsafe. I'm all for weeding out the weak, but it'd be best if we didn't delay our work here any more than necessary." She "looked" back towards the entrance. "We should probably put up a warning sign."
[member="Tai Fa"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

It was quite the comical effect; the little girl trying to face him, while talking to his tail as the blade was still being dried by the fabric of the witch's rags.

Yet, Tai Fa noticed this not.

His attention was with the ritual. His ritual. It was the ritual after the battle, to dry his blade and cleaned it from the blood spilled, to inspect the body made and think of what kind of person it could have been. To check, once again, with himself how he felt about another life taken and waste made.

It would be wrong to say that Fa was bothered with the act of taking lives.

After all, he was Sith.

But the Thirriken always took it as a personal failing, when he was not able to convert an enemy into an asset and had to resort towards the more baser of instincts.

"Waste it is, Niysha.​

Lives lost with no true meaning.​

You are right, of course.​

​

We may return yet.​

Later. With some droids in tow.​

Safer, less wasteful."​

​

Tai Fa nodded then, to the corpse and to himself, before drifting off of it and finding his way to [member="Niysha"] again.​

​

"Shall we move on then?​

Much work is to be done yet.​

We must not dally."​

 

[Niysha]

Of course there was work to be done. Cleaning out a cave wasn't even what they were here to do. Niysha didn't bother responding to Captain Obvious McPoultry, instead pulling out her comlink and tapping the on switch. "Sigfeyr, make sure the rest of the crew stays away from this cave. How's the work coming up there?" Simple, direct, to the point. Niysha didn't even hang around as she spoke, instead moving towards the mouth of the cavern.

<"We've cleared off a big enough area to lay down the prefab. Repulsors are powering up. We should be able to power down the ship by nightfall, to conserve fuel."> There was a pause, presumably while the Valkyri foreman gave orders. <"The area isn't optimally flat, but it's probably the best we can find.">

As she climbed out back into the open air, the Miraluka covered her comlink with the side of her hand to shield it from the snow. "Is there any sign of civilization visible from this point? Secrecy is at something of a premium." The whole reason to build an enclave in the middle of nowhere was to keep it from being discovered by your enemies, which was normally helped along by being difficult to discover by anyone.

Another few seconds passed before Sigfeyr's reply came. Good. Meant he was checking. <"It's certainly out of the way. It'll be lonely for whoever's stationed up here, my lord.">

Niysha nodded to no one in particular, since the foreman couldn't very well see her. "Alright then. We're coming back to join the group. We'll have the camp set up in a few hours. Work can begin tomorrow." With any luck, they'd be done inside of a month. With two Force-users on the crew, they might be able to shave that to a couple of weeks...
[member="Tai Fa"]

 

[Jairus Starvald]

Lord Fa was a special kind of a special kind of aristocracy, a special breed even, in that the Thirriken did not mind getting his wings dirty when it came to honest to Force labor. No, his family -- mostly his father -- had instilled upon him an excellent work ethic that underlined the necessity and importance of working yourself, if you wished to achieve that which you set out to do. An empire wasn't build within a week, yet, it would not be build at all if you weren't willing to actually work on it.

"You have done quite well.​

I am impressed, [member="Niysha"].​

A Sith you might be."​

It was a compliment, but there was still lingering doubt hidden away in the context of the sentence. Might be. Not that she was, not that she would be, but that if she worked hard enough... something could be made of her.

This was better than seeing her as a little pet, so Tai considered it an overall improvement.

They stepped out of the cave and immediately were hit in the face by another burst of wind, snow and icy cold. If the peacock had been able to frown, he would have done so now, but instead he simply tittered before once again pushing himself off the snowy floor and resting on the little girl's shoulder.

Cold and wet feet weren't functional for his purposes, no matter how much he did not mind work.