The Ren: Expedition to Lothal - The Crystal Quest

[Jamie Pyne]

A single cough pushed a wave of dust outwards and over her face as the air from above filled her lungs. The sun was so bright, blinding. She couldn't open her eyes for several minutes, having been beneath the surface for what felt like eternity. The sound of Aela's voice was familiar, though the words weren't recognized. Instead they were replaced by muffled tones of high and low pitches. A release of pressure from the back of her body could be felt as Aela cast the boulder off of her apprentice in an attempt to free her from the rocky prison. Her mouth opened to say something, but another dirt filled cough was all that escaped. Instead she resigned herself to lying still once more, her eyes firmly held shut to shield them from the stinging rays of the Sun.

Bit by bit she felt a lifting of weight from her body, the numbing slowly being replaced by its counterpart, pain.

The blonde's eyes shifted, mouth opening as a loud groan of pain stampeded over the coughing fit to ring out through the air, causing a modest echo to carry across the wind until finally fading in the distance. The reality of what had happened surged back into her body as the feeling in her extremities slowly returned. Spheres of blue caught sight of the pool of red surrounding her face, knowing it was her own, a feeling of nausea began to creep its' way into her gut.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Darth Veles]

[SIZE=10pt]She was just going to leave him like a worthless sack of meat? Not even worth killing? At first he did not know whether to feel relieved or insulted, but watching the woman turn his back on him only added salt to the wound. That, and given she took his deserved prize, he needed to act and stop her. Finding the right mixture of feelings, passions and emotions running through his system, the Sith lord fought back against the brutalizing pain still eliciting in his chest. After so many years of commanding the dark side and bending the Force to his will, it was almost natural – although, given his state, he possessed more than enough ammo to fire Taeli’s way. She only made him more powerful. Injured, definitely, but Sith were among the creatures who grew in strength in such situations. He would prove Arcanix’ decision to be a poor one. Maybe even today, provided the Force obeyed his commands faithfully.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“S-stop!”[/SIZE][SIZE=10pt] cried the Sith lord while fighting his own body to allow him stand, looking after the leaving woman before turning his head towards the lost weapon. The silver hilt still waited for its owner to retrieve it – and Darth Veles intended to do just that. Feeling his anger grow further and reach astronomical levels now, the Sith lord clawed after the lightsaber, seizing it lustfully and resisting a sudden urge to collapse into the dirt. Still shaken, unsure, like a baby taking its first steps, the Sith lord rose up, the characteristic hiss of his blade signalling there was more strength in him than apparent.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“Ah. Sweet, sweet Taeli.”[/SIZE][SIZE=10pt] Darth Veles gasped while ensuring no stuttering stole into the sentence before his expression twisted into an angry scowl that portrayed his feelings much more accurately.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Now his eyes were the ones to gain an unnatural yellow hue, practically glowing. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“I am not l-leaving w-w-without the crystals.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]It was a statement.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]To add more weight to the words, he extended his hand, telekinesis fuelled by anger, hatred and pain racing to the woman. It would stop her with the entire dark side’s might, coiled around her legs and denying her the passage further before a hand gesture was made to pull her back. At the same time, heavy steps thudded closer to [member="Taeli Raaf"]. No longer corrupting sounds or masterfully shifting his weight – whatever Darth Veles’ method for being inaudible were – the Sith lord limped after the woman with surprising speed. If anything, he seemed to move faster with his wounds, a man possessed by unnatural powers that drove him far beyond realistic capabilities.[/SIZE]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She kept walking, even hearing him call for her to stop... she kept walking all the way up to when she felt the Force wrap around her legs to stop and turn her around.

"Oh for Force sake's," she sighed, resisting his pull back to him by planting herself with the Force in her spot. He was coming at her, moving as fast as he could, and he wasn't even attempting to hide his movements anymore. He couldn't just let it go, could he? She had allowed him the chance to leave here with his skin intact, a little crispy, but intact. She had even given him locations to kyber crystals that weren't guarded currently by the Jedi, but no. He just couldn't live with the fact she had wounded his pride. His rage, his anger

He had to be running on his last reserves, burning the energy in his cells and embracing the pain from that and his wounds to fuel himself for this continued fight. Her lightsaber would remain inert, but she had no intention of using it unless necessary. She would reach out with the Force, her will rushing towards [member="Darth Veles"] and then shifting to his lightsaber itself, specifically the emitter matrix. Her command of the Force would start to crush and twist that vital component, which she had heard could result in some rather... entertaining and explosive results when damaged or inverted.

 

[Darth Veles]

[SIZE=10pt]The Sith lord did not stop in his relentless advance, his steady pace almost machine-like and strongly motivated by retrieving the crystal. Only after she broke his grip on her body, Darth Veles’ raging power lacked target once more and was free to search for what it came for. The kyber crystals were not hard to sense through the Force – their screams and cries born from unwillingness to come with either dark side practitioner gave them away. Unfortunately for them, the two dark side users presented the only viable options in this situation. Before Darth Veles seized the crystals, he felt his rival reaching out and going for his weapon. Manipulating it from within was a dangerous thing to do – and the Sith lord disliked the thought of someone tinkering with his masterfully crafted personal tools of death.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“No.”[/SIZE][SIZE=10pt] The Sith lord refused her attack, his own will shattering Taeli’s hold on his lightsaber’s insides and cutting her plan short. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Finally, the crystals yelped for help through the Force, sending small ripples across its monotone surface. Alerted to their position, the Sith lord’s telekinetic arm grasped both the crystals and Arcanix’ spinning lightsaber hanging on her well-shaped hips. Holding both, he would pull them to himself to disarm his opponent and take what belonged to him – while the cybernetic arm started to move and hurled a wave of telekinetic energy at the Sith lady’s chest to push her back and stop her attempts at recovering the craved items. [member="Taeli Raaf"] would not be getting out of this one that easily - or with all her belongings![/SIZE]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"It'll be alright" She called to her apprentice between heavy breaths. The effort of lifting the boulders was slowly starting to get to her, even she could only do so much.

Another was thrown behind her, and slowly Jamie came into view.

The Jedi Marshall let out half a breath of relief, seeing Jamie's chest slowly rise and fall. Blood still pooled beneath her and her hair was a matted mess of dirt, mud, and blood, but at the very least she was alive. Aela's fingers clenched as she removed another stone, then she slowly began to move closer. With hastened steps she slid down the small ridge, moving alongside Jamie. She stopped just short of her apprentice, crawling down to her.

"It'll be okay." Her hand gently touched Jamie's forehead. Her legs were still trapped beneath the stone, but Aela could move those more carefully from here. "I'm here."

Aela gently moved some of the hair out of Jamie's face, smiling at her, trying to comfort her as much as she could.

 

[Progflaw99]

--- --- ---​

Location: Lothal, Mountain Range, Tunnels​

Status: Exit Stage Left​

--- --- ---​

​

His movements were quick now, smoothly ducking low in the confines of the small tunnel. It had been large enough for him to stand at first, his crimson blade trailing behind him to dissuade any following if the Jedi had managed to dodge the tons of rock Castor had flung at his back as he dipped into the tunnel proper. Not even ten meters into the tunnel the ceiling had begun to descend, the generally man sized space shrinking, forcing the Disciple of Ren to crouch, eventually making it impractical to keep his blade ignited. With a disgusted sigh, Castor paused in the tunnel, a sharp hiss sounding as he deactivated the crimson saber. Re-attaching the weapon to his belt, he instead drew his blaster pistol. In such tight quarters, he doubted a saber could even be useful and the blaster would allow him to keep the distance between himself and any pursuers.

Shuffling in a low crouch, he procured another glow stick from a pouch on his belt, activating it. Taking a few small steps he began once more on his journey through the tunnels. He'd felt the initial tremble of the earth as he'd cast the room in on them but now it sounded like there were other repercussions as well, a slight tremble still reverberating through the solid ground. His thoughts drifted towards the other Ren, they would need to escape themselves, he knew they'd be up for the task, the question is if they would emerge unscathed. With a whispered curse, Castor continued on his way through the winding tunnel, the only light visible that of the glow stick. Periodically he checked behind him, pausing and listening for pursuit.

With his hand tightly gripping the blaster he proceeded, ready to fire at anyone and anything he might come across. His mind was set to a dual purpose, observing all around him in an effort to prevent any nasty surprises and discerning his way from the complex network of caverns and tunnels beneath the mountains. It was just barely on the edge of his conscious but he could feel his way out, it was only a matter of time. The relatively few presences he could feel in the Force were now growing, confirming his conviction that now was the time to make their exit. Ahead he could see light, dim at first but steadily growing. It was natural light, the tunnels had taken him down a winding path but now began tracing back towards where their speeders had been. As the light began to increase he checked more frequently behind him, no use getting snuck up on so close to the end. As he progressed towards the light, he could now see the opening. A grin tugged at the corners of Castor's mouth, soon he would be out of the caves completely.

​

Spoiler

Ren​

[member="Isla Ashen"] | [member="Samka Derith"]​

[member="Kyrel Ren"] | [member="Brennan Cabrol"]​

[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]​

(And our Resident Sith, [member="Darth Veles"])​

​

Other​

[member="Aela Talith"] | [member="Desmond C'artyom"]​

[member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Siriwook"]​

[member="Zark"] | [member="Tanomas Graf"]​

[member="Taeli Raaf"] | [member="Thyra Sunborne"]​

[member="Aerion Ivelisse"] | [member="D'vok Windroamer"]​

​

​

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Oh, good." She said, "I was beginning to wonder."

The girl laid still, her voice sounded almost unnaturally relaxed given the predicament she was in.

"Did you catch him?"

Him being Castor, who Aela likely hadn't seen, nor even knew of, given his rather expedient exit after collapsing the tunnel. "He was stealing the crystals. There's more of them."

Jamie simply assumed that Aela had run into him while making her way to her. Aerion...Where was he? The question burned in her mind but she'd expended all of her oxygen and energy for the moment with the few words she had managed to get out. Rest...She needed rest now. As Aela worked she began to doze off again.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela of course had absolutely no idea what Jamie was talking about, she hadn't even known anyone else had been here. As far as she was concerned this was a simple cave-in that her padawan had somehow been caught up in, or maybe even caused. "Who is them?"

Was she delirious?

The idea cropped up into her mind but as soon as Jamie mentioned stealing crystals she knew it likely wasn't a fabrication. Lothal's crystal caves weren't quite as famous as the ones on Ilum, but they were renowned enough that people would come to take something from them. She frowned slightly and looked down at her Padawan, very gently tapping the girl's cheeks. "Hey!"

She called.

"Don't fall asleep." Jamie very likely had a concussion. "Tell me about him, these people."

It wasn't actually important, but would keep Jamie awake while she cleared the rest of the rocks away.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

She flinched as Aela tapped her face, eyes flickering in surprise several times before she could focus enough on what was asked of her.

"I'm not falling asleep. Just resting." Said everyone on the brink of falling asleep ever. "I only saw the one. But I could hear the echo of others." Jamie hadn't the chance to get his name, or where he came from, or if he was affiliated with any particular group. But he was definitely touched by the darkness. "Had a red lightsaber on him." Another deep breath, "Was using it to cut the crystal from the stone." She'd interrupted him then. "I think I surprised him. But before I had much of a chance to ask him questions-" She scowled, "Aerion showed up." The Jedi Knight she believed barely deserved the title. Blood thirsty, aggressive, indignant. "He flashed his lightsaber and that's when the thief collapsed the tunnel."

Her head was aching by this point. "I threw him out of the way, but didn't have time to move, myself."

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Alright so there was someone else in there, a Jedi. She had never met this Aerion person but if Jamie knew him and saved him then he was likely a part of the Order. That at the very least was a good thing, from the way Jamie made it sound there was nobody else buried beneath the rubble either.

Another good thing.

"Did he have any distinguishing marks?" The red lightsaber was a pretty good hint, Sith of some sort, or close to it at least, but it would help if Jamie remembered any badge or something on his coat or armor. It also seemed odd to Aela that he used the lightsaber to cut out the crystals those were usually treated more gently. She frowned for a moment and then shook her head, turning her attention towards the rocks that still buried Jamie.

Gently she lifted and pressed them away, slowly uncovering her padawan.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Human. Skin roughly as pale as mine. Much older than I." Exactly how old she had absolutely no idea. "Bald." He didn't have too much in the way of identifiable marks, at least not that she could see beneath the light of the crystals and their red/yellow sabers. "He was dark sided, I could feel that." There wasn't much more she could tell from the brief time she spoke with him before Aerion had interrupted and things went to hell faster than a Twi'lek could call you a schutta.
"He spoke with surprising tact. Eerily similar to myself." It was hardly gloating, the manner he spoke rang of aristocratic upbringing or a firm understanding of language. It was rather intriguing. "I'm not familiar with his accent, though."

She sighed. "I'm sorry. That's all I got. We only spoke for a minute before Aerion arrived. From there things escalated to this."

With her hands free she reached back, feeling the blood matted mess of hair behind her with a groan the moment she felt the injury. "I'm guessing you didn't see anyone else then?" Where'd they go? She wondered if she'd at least prevented Castor from making off with the crystal he wanted so much, and if Aerion was safe, despite his arrogance.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"I didn't see anyone." Aela told her. "I didn't even know you were hear until I...heard you."

She frowned and shifted the last rock, freeing Jamie's right leg. "I woke up to find you gone, started searching for you and was told you'd gone to pick flowers. Eventually I wandered my way over here and...well here we are."

She shrugged.

More rocks shifted as she tried to reason through what Jamie was telling her. She could think of half a dozen Sith Lords that matched the descripition Jamie was giving her, but unfortunately none of them would have been able to get to Lothal without raising some serious flags. They also wouldn't be after the Crystals, more than likely they would have struck at the Temple and tried to kill the younglings located there...or kidnap them. The Jedi Marshall shook her head.

"He must have been a Noble." That didn't exactly narrow things down. "We'll worry about it later."

 

[Taeli Raaf]

She was really getting tired of this, and so she decided to end it. Even as he tried to take the crystal he had stolen back from her, and trying to take her lightsaber, trying to use the Force to push her away. She would anchor herself once again, becoming an immovable object. Honestly, trying to steal someone's lightsaber was really irritating to her and now she just wanted to be just that little bit more petty. She would retain her lightsaber, the crystal flying back to his outstretched hand... and then it would stop, an invisible tug of war between the two.

He should have stayed down, now... now she would deprive him of his prize the only other way she could. There were would be a terrible feeling in the Force, as Taeli applied pressure onto the side of the crystal she had in her will's thrall... and then it would crack in half. One going to her, the other to him. She would toss the broken crystal aside, reaching back to the holster she wore there and drawing out her second lightsaber, igniting it so two rays of violet light came to hand. She was done with [member="Darth Veles"].

No words would be exchanged now, there was no need for them. She had given him information to use, and spurned her mercy of leaving him be. Now... she was determined to take something from him.

 

[Darth Veles]

He went after the crystals to meet them halfway, steps slow and eliciting uneven thuds that signed a hobble. It was impossible to deny now, but he would not let anything to rob him of his catch. If it meant turning [member="Taeli Raaf"] into a smoking heap of meat, he would do it, his hands forced.

[SIZE=10pt]Both have retrieved one item of them own and now contested over the remaining crystal. While one kyber crystal safely rested in its new owner’s hands, the other could not handle the pressure of being pulled between two Sith lords and their immense power – it cracked, shattered in half, and one would feel a small tremor in the Force, similar to any death. Seeing it, the Sith lord froze, shock washing over him. The disheartening outcome was extremely disappointing, but even the broken half could provide him with valuable information and Darth Veles now wielded yet another source of power. Pocketing both items, the Sith lord’s hateful gaze watched his opponent’s lightsabers. It was time for him to repeat Taeli’s stunt, pour that burning anger into something. Anger danced in both of his eyes as he glanced over her equipment, and made a split decision to flood the very hearts of her weaponry with fiery passion that would boil all lightsaber crystals in his anger from within to the point of causing violent explosions.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Her primary and secondary lightsabers became his target, alongside the shorter shoto. Shutting both yellow orbs closed and producing immense focus, the Dark lord directed the power of Flamusfracta into the respective lightsaber crystals. This connection gave him the option to channel all of his anger through the dark side, pour that devastating strength into her weapons and either cause them to erupt in a crippling surge of power or die, their crystals damaged and unable to support emitting laser any longer.[/SIZE]

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Flowers? Flowers! She'd originally been out in the fields to collect some for a pair of headbands she wanted to make for herself and Aela. She had only set them down outside the entrance of the cavern to take a quick look around the caves littered with crystals. That was when she'd happened upon Castor and Aerion. It was all very happenstance.

With her leg free she made a half-hearted attempt to stand up, but instead ended up simply sitting, the pain in her body surged all over.

"Maybe." She said, "I don't know where he or Aerion went. But Aerion is the type that will kill first, no questions asked."

That was part of why she didn't see eye to eye with him at all. There was no diplomacy in him, just pure desire to rid the galaxy of the dark side.

She wondered to herself if he was actually a Jedi or just a renegade.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela frowned for a moment. "Well, I'll see about that after I get you back to the Temple."

First thing first. She was injured, and neither of them could heal with the force. Her first priority was to make sure that Jamie was okay, after that...well after that she could figure out who the hell had come onto their world to steal Lightsaber crystals.

"Never an easy day with you." Aela said with a tsk of her teeth, removing the last of the rocks. "Come on."

She would help Jamie to her feet, and probably help her walk.

Luckily they weren't too far from the Temple, and by now others would have picked up on the commotion.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Well she had expected him to try something, but [member="Darth Veles"] must really not be happy with her for breaking one of his prizes. She could sense his will, his anger... his concentration on her lightsaber crystals, to damage them. A pity she didn't use actual kyber crystals in them, using artificial crystals she had made. Still, she could resist the effort wholeheartedly... or she could counterattack while he was concentrating. Still, just as he was loathe to allow anything to happen to his lightsaber, she was loathe to allow him to do the same to her.

Crystals could be easily replaced, hands not so much. She wrapped part of her will around her crystals, protecting them from the maelstrom of anger and hate coming from the Mon Calamari to some degree. They would still crack, the blades fading out because she wasn't focusing solely on that task. She only wanted to prevent him blowing up her hilts. No, she was going to respond and make him pay dearly for damaging her lightsabers as he had done.

Her Marks would flare to life again as she unlocked the dark side yet again, savoring the anger she felt towards the Mon Calamari for his actions, gorging herself on the dark emotions wafting off her opponent. And then she would repeat what she had done on Dulvoyinn. A black mist seeped out of the ground around her, twining together and strengthening into several tendrils of inky darkness. Those tendrils, pure manifestations of the dark side that could disintegrate any matter they wrapped around, whether it be bone, flesh, metal, or anything in-between, swarmed towards Veles to wrap around his limbs or body. It wasn't a matter of if one touched him, it was a matter of when and what body part he was going to lose as payment for his prize.

 

[Darth Veles]

[SIZE=10pt]It was infinitely pleasant – feeling his will crack the dreaded crystals and render his opponent’s weapon inoperable despite her meek attempts at reversing the wheels of fortune. Nothing compared to what she had done to him, but satisfying nevertheless. As the Sith lord soon realized, his success was equally taxing. He had burned through his newfound anger swiftly, going further begged reconsideration given his injured state. For all the lust to break Arcanix, Darth Veles could not afford to linger and waste both time and energy on the Sith lady while Jedi reinforcements were underway. Every single minute wasted on battling his opponent decreased his chances of escape – with one crystal recovered, he considered the conditions allowing retreat to have been met. Two slow and subtle steps back gave it away, eyes still fixed upon the woman’s newest display of power that reeked of darkness and death.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“Goodbye, Taeli.”[/SIZE][SIZE=10pt] He declared with a mocking bow and spun around, trying to outrun the dark incarnation, though outrunning perhaps isn't the right word - avoiding it, rather, while drastically increasing the distance between himself and the [member="Taeli Raaf"].[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]How far could she stretch her black tongues?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]What remained of his reserves came into play now. Still releasing grunts and moans as he pushed himself past the lightning’s aftereffects, running for life, the Sith lord sprinted away with speed indicating unnatural happenings in his body and very natural reasons hunting after him. The aching pain in his muscles became liberating, breaking his chains and bringing new strength into the Sith lord’s limbs while the black serpentlike tentacles raced towards his back, hungry to take a bite of his flesh! Perhaps it was faster than any man – but the Force still gave away its distance from his form, allowing a well-measured dodge to spare him being tentacle licked.[/SIZE]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

There wasn't any time to listen to [member='Kyrel Ren']'s answer. Two droids materialized, and the Force warned her of incoming danged. It screamed at her, telling her to move. As the Force gathered around her feet, she quickly vaulted backwards as the two droids threw grenade-like orbs to the ground, and as they activated a cloud of smoke or dust quickly spread. Luckily, the young woman created enough distance to stay out of whatever it was. As the smoke started to settle, an echoed snap-hiss could be heard as beams of blue and red light materialized from the hilts in Kaalia's hand. "Hey Kyrel, how about we send those droids back to the scrap heap?"

The woman didn't wait for an answer, as she quickly dashed forward, she held her blue saber in her left hand forward, looking to slice the left droid in half. She kept the red saber in her right back, ready to deflect any potential incoming attacks.

Spoiler

[member='HK-36']