Private The Hanged Man

[Arlo Renard]

The Reef, Coruscant

Kai paced the atrium, waiting for Damsy to arrive. They had agreed to meet here, and he didn’t want to doubt her word—but he couldn’t totally stamp out his fear that she wasn’t coming after all.

If she didn’t come, that meant he would either have to find someone else who could help him, or face Erictho alone. After everything the Sith had done to them both, he could think of no better ally to have on his side in this fight than Damsy.

She wants justice, same as you, he told himself. She’ll come.

But Kai didn’t just want justice. He had more at stake here than she did. Much, much more.

Damsy Callat​

 

[Damsy Callat]

"Gon give yourself an ulcer, baby."

Damsy walked though the oversized factory doors towards Kai like she still owned this decrepit place. Like she had ever owned this decrepit place.

Arlo Renard

 

[Arlo Renard]

Kai whirled around as Damsy entered the room. He took a few steps toward her instinctively, but kept his distance somewhat, not sure where they stood now. In the Force, at least, he radiated warmth.

<Thank you for coming. It’s good to see you.>

His message had been vague, as telepathic calls across the stars tend to be. No doubt she wanted an explanation.

<I’ve found Erictho. She’s holed up in an abandoned penitentiary with her enthralled servants. If we go together, we can take her down for good.>

Damsy Callat​

 

[Damsy Callat]

She was warm too, both in aura and body heat as she exhibited none of the same restraint and wrapped him up in a hug. When she pulled away, she echoed his sentiment. "Likewise, Kai. Likewise."

Then she frowned as he mentioned Erictho, nodding nonetheless. "Glad one of us found 'er," she commented. "Sorry it wasn't me, boo."

Arlo Renard

 

[Arlo Renard]

Kai melted into her embrace, trying not to cry. His emotions seemed to be running higher now, and it was harder to keep them under control. No doubt Damsy could sense it in the Force, if not see it in the glassiness of his eyes and the tension of his features.

<It’s okay. I figured you were probably busy with… whatever you’ve been doing.> He wasn’t going to push her to tell him about it, though deep down he longed to know. Some things were better if they were kept secret. <It took me a while to get around to tracking her down, too.>

He was surprised at how easy all of this seemed now. Damsy had raised no objections, hadn’t asked him to wait or refused to participate. In fact, they could leave right this minute and put an end to the witch’s rule then and there.

However...

<There’s one more thing,> he said. <I’m pretty sure Erictho transferred her essence into a new body. One of the Sithspawn she took control of. We don’t want to hurt or kill that body, because it belongs to somebody who was victimized by her. So we need to find a way to… exorcize her.>

The look on his face betrayed the importance of this particular detail to him, though it wasn't immediately clear why it was so vital.

Damsy Callat​

 

[Damsy Callat]

As she pulled away, she brushed a hand over his cheek with motherly concern, as if her touch may be enough to snap some of his features out of the tension. Then her hand fell back down to her side as she listened intently to his plan.

<I’m pretty sure Erictho transferred her essence into a new body. One of the Sithspawn she took control of. We don’t want to hurt or kill that body, because it belongs to somebody who was victimized by her.>

She nodded. "'Kay." A bit of an ask, but if anyone knew the importance of that and would therefore figure it out, it was Damsy and Kai.

<So we need to find a way to… exorcize her.>

"Exorcize?" she repeated. "Have you asked Dag 'bout that one? Or Master..." What was it? "...Orsk?" That was it. She missed their secret crystal therapy in a sincere, if not also ironic, way. It was absolutely traumatizing, but at least it had afforded her a short-lived bout of artificial belonging. Pleasing the Jedi had been for a time all she had wanted.

She honestly didn't know if she had cut that desire entirely out of herself.

Arlo Renard

 

[Arlo Renard]

<Dag doesn’t answer my calls anymore, and Master Orsk is…> He trailed off, a grim look on his face. <Don’t worry, I think I can do it on my own. I’m just telling you to make sure you don’t kill her body when we get to fighting.> He assumed that was the only option. Erictho couldn't exactly be reasoned with.

Heading back outside, he assumed she would follow. <We better get going. I can’t wait to finally get this over with.>

Damsy Callat​

 

[Damsy Callat]

Her face soured at both bits of news, but as h moved on she thought best to do the same. "Aight," she allowed through her teeth instead of everything else she wanted to say.

She did follow. "You can say that again," she agreed after they had climbed out of the Reef and walked into a Veshok Terrace alleyway. "We can finally wake up from one nightmare."

Arlo Renard

 

[Arlo Renard]

The abandoned penitentiary wasn’t too far away from the Reef. Even from a distance, the decay that had suffused the building was apparent. The grounds were in disrepair, and the whole place likely should’ve been condemned a long time ago.

Kai approached the barbed wire fence that surrounded the prison compound. No electricity had run through it for decades, but he still used the Force to check and make sure before he began cutting a hole through it with his lightsaber.

<We may have to deal with some wild animals as well as Sithspawn,> Kai remarked, ducking through the hole he had made. He had scouted out the location before coming here, but hadn’t gone past the fence. <Not to mention black mold and other gunk…>

Damsy Callat​