The Shifting Sands (Exploration of Jakku\Open to All)

[Laira Darkhold]

​

​

Sand.

Sand as far as the eye could see in every direction. To most that was all Jakku was, since the end of the Galactic Civil War the planet had been nothing of importance and seemed it would always be that way.

But every once in a while, if one knew where to look the sands would offer something up to would be explorers and adventures.

The sands had swallowed up most structures over the centuries. Even well built temples and towns eventually found their end as the desert shifted and the dunes grew around them. For eight centuries, the Observatory on the planet had been either lost or buried, but its simple entrance now peaked through the sands in the deep desert, far from any sign of civilization.

Inside, the possibility of hidden treasures and forgotten dangers reside waiting to be uncovered once again, such as an ancient black holocron once possessed by the Galactic Emperor Palpatine, as well as a replica of his personal yacht.

OOC
*Wheatons Law*
Sentinel Droids and various forms of wildlife can be found inside
There will *not* be DM'd opposition
Explore the ruins and have a good time

 

[Edric Vanyan]

Edric walked over the sands, leaving behind the speeder he had arrived on. He was bundled up in enough rags that not an inch of his skin was left to the weather, his eyes shielded by a pair of goggles, and slung over his shoulder was a bag that he had brought with him to collect anything he found that was interesting. He had no real plan, only his saber on him, and simply looked at the location with a bit of surprise in that it didn't look like it was scavenged as of yet. That much was the most surprising thing about this place was the relative lack of disturbance to the structure, or rather what remained of said structure.

With the normal yawn coming from him he found himself walking into the barely showing structure with his hands opening up the bag at his side. He would need his datapad, mostly to take notes as to what he had found. He didn't expect to find much, knowing this was probably just a wild goose chase and that it was likely just some swallowed up home from long ago. But the thought of this place being significant to the past made Edric immensely interested and he could barely keep his steps slow and soft as he pushed past the threshold.

With one hand he reached out, a spark crawling out from his hand and casting light before him. He waited a few more seconds, ensuring that it was stable before continuing on. It was still a bit tough to maintain the force but something this small should be doable without any real strain on his body or too distracting from the ruins around him. He had already gone to work recording what he found, barely more than twenty meters in the ruins before stopping and inspecting the walls for any signs of significance.

 

[Beltran Rarr]

You, sir, are an idiot.

The voice invaded Beltran’s mind with the same whiny, mocking tone that it always did. A sudden gust of wind wept up from between a set of dunes, flinging particles of sand directly into his eyes. Had Beltran not been wearing goggles, a pair that he had lifted from a merchant’s stall at the nearby outpost a few days earlier, he would have likely been blinded.

“You may not be wrong,” He murmured in response as he trudged along. The Jester always enjoyed coming out at times when Beltran felt unsure about himself. That meant that in the six months since he’d been forced to flee from his homeworld of Lorrd, he’d had nearly daily interactions with this particular facet of his personality and it was beginning to become tiresome. “Still, there’s not much else worth doing on this rock and if I can’t find some way to pay for passage off world, we’re going to be here for a lot longer.”

One might have thought, that on a rough and tumble world like Jakku there would be work for a contract killer like Beltran. But work required payment, and just about everyone on this backwater world was as poor as poor could get.

Like you.

“Enough. We have to be getting close.”

As he crested what felt like his hundredth dune, he could feel the heat of the sun beating down on him. Underneath his head wrap and desert cloak, both also pilfered from the merchant’s stall, Beltran could feel drops of sweat running down his face. His instinct was to pull off the wrap in hopes of cooling himself even marginally, but that would only ensure that he dehydrated all the quicker.

Reaching downward, he idly felt for the dented canteen that hung from his belt. It seemed strange to him that water, so readily available across most of the known galaxy, was as scarce as the most precious metal here. He’d had no trouble “acquiring” the clothes necessary to make it out here, but water he’d had to actually pay for.

“There,” He muttered to himself as he looked down into the valley that connected the next set of dunes. “Right where the old man said it would be.”

The Jester remained silent and Beltran allowed himself a rare smirk. That figment of his imagination didn’t much like being proven wrong so it was likely that he’d go hide somewhere deep in Beltran’s psyche and sulk for a bit, leaving the Lorrdian with some time to himself; hopefully.

Unslinging his LD-1 Target Blaster Rifle from across his back, he quickly checked the power pack. The charge was full, as it had been since the last time that he’d checked it, but a professional always made sure. He then brought the rifle to the ready position and looked through the scope, hoping to get a better view of the entrance to this Observatory.

He noticed immediately that there was a speeder parked not far away from the passageway. So he wasn’t to be the first one here. In truth, he really hadn’t expected to be. Certainly not since he’d had to more or less spend the last day and a half walking because he hadn’t the money to arrange passage out this far.

As he approached, the Lorrdian scanned his surroundings looking for any signs that this could be a trap. There were no tracks on the ground leading from the speeder to the passage, but with the wind kicking up like it was, Beltran knew that any tracks the speeder’s owner would have made would likely be erased fairly quickly.

Briefly, Beltran considered just stealing the speeder and being on his way. But he quickly decided against it. As nice as it was, selling it would probably be a pain and he had enemies enough as it was. Besides, if what the old man had said was true, there could be salvage inside worth a dozen speeders or more.

With his rifle at the ready, Beltran toggled a small reddish light on his scope and made his way slowly inside…

[member="Edric Vanyan"]

 

[Mirvak]

A massive figure in a thick black robe riding a large speeder crested the dune not a few minutes after [member="Beltran Rarr"] entered the ruins. Mirvak, the Wolf of the Confederacy, stopped to check his surroundings. Calling on the force, his instincts directed him to a great power ahead of him. He raised his head, his snout protruding from his hood as he scanned in front of him, seeing the entrance to the ruins of the Jakku observatory and a single speeder parked outside. Though to the uninitiated it may have seemed unlikely for such an unceremonious opening to contain such a great power, Mirvak could sense otherwise. This was it. The ruins of the Jakku Observatory that his master had informed him of. While the history behind the legendary Sith, Darth Sidious, was lost on the arrogant Worgian, he still understood the importance of obtaining relics from this place.

He navigated his speeder to the entrance slowly, refocusing his efforts to ignore his need for water. As instructed by his master in an earlier training, he called on his passions to give him strength, to let him go greater lengths without food or water. Regardless, the large wolf shrouded in the black robe was eager to get out of the oppressive sun of Jakku. As the Worgian approached [member="Edric Vanyan"]'s speeder, he dismounted his own. In a single movement he drew his lightsaber, ignited it, and swung it down the middle of the speeder. The speeder collapsed into the sand, sliced in two, and Mirvak continued on his way. As far as the wolf was concerned, they wouldn't be needing it, whoever they were.

Stepping into the dark of the entrance, he raised his snout and gave a few deep snorts. He reflexively snarled as he smelled two faint, yet distinct scents. He raised his lightsaber up to face level and continued on, using it as a dim light source as he descended.

 

[Edric Vanyan]

Edric just sighed as he sensed the first person getting closer, though this wouldn't happen until [member="Beltran Rarr"] was at the door no more than a corner turn and down the hall from Edric. Edric had after all become so absorbed in the area around him that he had taken a seat and been busy archiving every inch of the place. It was a relic from another time and he had been given the chance to study it with no interruptions. Up until that point of course.

He didn't mind that there were others here and slowly packed up the datapad to see who the newcomer was. As he was turning the corner though, still out of sight thanks to the darkness and his clothing, a spike of hostility hit him in the head and he blinked. He hadn't heard any blaster fire and he was decently sure that he could not be seen. It wasn't a particularly large amount of anger or hostility either so Edric was a tad confused. Either way he made sure that the wraps around his head were clear and the goggles hung around his neck, making sure not to hide his face. The last thing he needed was to be mistaken for some lowlife or harmful being.

He wasn't stupid of course, his hand touching the saber up his sleeve and he soon stood waiting for [member="Beltran Rarr"] at the end of the corridor before the turn. He would be waiting with his arms crossed behind him, feet spread about twelve inches apart and his eyes rimmed by a pair of what appeared to be ancient looking glasses, the frames and glass itself no where near the looks of the modern galaxy. Edric was still his same slim and shorter self, as unimposing as possible and yet he had a crooked grin. It was one of the few things he did get from his father, that same dumb look of being amused by the smallest thing.

He didn't know about [member="Mirvak"], atleast not yet. While he could sense two beings, he assumed the second was with the first, so paid little mind to it and focused on the first who would see him long before the other did.

 

[Beltran Rarr]

Beltran travelled down the corridor, keeping the stock of his rifle pressed firmly against his shoulder and the barrel aimed toward the ground. Having seen the speeder on his way in, he knew that there was someone else here already and he didn’t want to be mistaken for having hostile intent. Beltran was no stranger to violence, he had killed and would very likely kill again, but only when he was being paid.

In his opinion misunderstandings had no place in a professional operation, and he considered himself a consummate professional. That being said, the barrel of his weapon was not aimed so low that it could not be lifted back to ready position in a fraction of a second.

He wasn't stupid after all, regardless of what the voices in his head might say.

As he made his way deeper into the facility, he scanned his surroundings looking for both threats and anything that he might be able to sell. Unfortunately, he was a mercenary and not an archaeologist so his knowledge of what might be valuable was limited to the 'ooh that's shiny' variety. With each step, he could feel a nagging sense of doubt welling up inside him and he worked to mentally lock it down before it became a distraction. That last thing he needed was to let his concentration slip and open himself up to the running commentary he was sure to get from The Jester, or worse the full manifestations of the others.

After perhaps only a few moments of quiet, but efficient travel, Beltran came to a corner. Raising his weapons slightly, just to be on the safe side, he turned the corner and came face to face with [member="Edric Vanyan"], though he did not know his name.

The man was obviously younger than him by perhaps a decade, maybe even more. Though he stood taller than Beltran, approximately two inches so, his frame was slight. Beltran was confident that he had at least fifty pounds on him. What intrigued him most about this young man was not that he seemed to be waiting, already alerted to Beltran's approach. In an atmosphere as quiet and dank as this, Beltran was sure that he had made at least some noise and that wasn’t even taking into consideration the possibility that the man had some connection to the Force.

Neither was it the smug, almost knowing smirk plastered on his face or the exaggerated attempt to make himself appear harmless when he was obviously fingering a weapon of some kind under his sleeve. Coming from a race of humans whose primary mode of speech was literally body language, what interested Beltran was the façade behind it all. Behind the smile, it was clear that the young man was clearly perturbed by something more than just a chance encounter with a stranger.

“Greetings,” Beltran called out in accented basic, keeping his weapon pointed midway between the ground and the man. “It was not my intention to disrupt your endeavors. I simply heard of this place and wished to see it for myself.”

Even as he spoke, something in Beltran’s stomach just didn’t sit right.

I have a bad feeling about this. The Jester’s voice spoke in his brain, to which Beltran answered silently.

Me too.

----------
[member="Mirvak"]

 

[Er'in Tenel]

A short distance from the bunker a small, silent fighter swept in to land behind a low dune and a tan-wrapped figure leapt lightly from the cockpit, before it sealed shut and she pulled the sun-shade goggles tighter to her face. Her ornate purple robes hidden under the wrappings of survival gear for Jakku - Er'in had learned her lesson on Dagobah.

Swamps. Deserts. Why where all the most interesting places in the ugliest part of the galaxy?

Something to do with the nature of the Darkside, she supposed. Or perhaps the paranoid nature of its wielders.

But [member="Mirvak"] was here ahead of her, she was certain. And she wasn't about to let him claim all the glory, and if he chose not to share? Then... they'd have their first disagreement.

She crested the hill, seeing the series of tracks leading down into the bunker, it seems that the two of them were not alone. Perhaps the disagreement would be with others. Well, she could cope with that.

Sith archeology was rather becoming something she was looking forward to, really.

She hurried forward and down inside the bunker, flicking the googles to light amplification mode as she did so.

[member="Beltran Rarr"] | [member="Edric Vanyan"] | [member="Mirvak"]​

 

[Mirvak]

Mirvak slowly made his way down into the observatory, pulling his hood away with his free hand. His dark yellow eyes shone like little moons in the dim light of his lightsaber. Rocks and pebbles left over the centuries shifted and rolled down the hallway as the behemoth attempted to move silently, alerting [member="Edric Vanyan"] and [member="Beltran Rarr"], who were just around the corner. The hairs on the back of his neck protruded underneath his robe, he sensed someone close.

He heard someone entering the entrance to the ruins behind him, his attention on trying to locate the two was below broken as he turned to growl viciously at the newcomer. The worgian sensed a familiar presence, and lowered his weapon slowly, recognizing @Er'in Tenel. He extinguished his lighsaber, his eyes shining like beacons to Er'in with her light amplifying goggles. The bright orbs closed in and narrowed further than usual, as his bassy voice acknowledged her arrogantly.

"Noblewoman," was the first word the aloof Sith spoke to his fellow apprentice for the first time ever. Followed by a short, subtle growl from his throat, perhaps a subtle worgian speech habit, or an affirmation that his aggression towards her earlier was not lessened by the fact that they were on 'the same side.' He continued, perhaps surprising Er'in with a sentence that was longer than his usual a few words as he mocked her,"There's no ball, wine tasting, nor jewelry store to be found in this place." He chuffed and shook his head, sand cascading from his rough fur around his neck as he circled around her slowly,"The mmmmasterrr..." He spat the word out spitefully as he hunched down his head to her level,"Was not wise with tasking you to this." His circled her once, returning to his full height and standing in front of her again, pausing to allow her to respond.

 

[Er'in Tenel]

Oh, so it was like that was it?

That meant it was time for the Voice. Er'in had been noticable less of an stuck up aristocrat since joining, and certainly since Dagobah. But she hadn't - probably never would - lose the touch.

"Mivrak, darling." The clipped vowels of Imperial villains the galaxy wide could have cut glass, but her tone was low - barely above a whisper. "I see you've recovered from your little bout with Mandalore the Undying, how did that go for you?"

She held up a finger for one moment, then continued without waiting for a reply.

"No, there is no ball, sadly no wine and no jewelry store. But do you know what the Kinta Knyga looks like? Or the three words of unbinding to prevent it's eternal curse from rotting your flesh? Or as far as he goes..." Er'in noticably avoided using the word master as well. "... do you know to recognise the draft manuscript of The Weakness of Inferiors rumoured to be here? It's not all cursed artifacts and lightsabers, you know."

[member="Mirvak"]

 

[Madison M. Maxwell IV]

Jakku, Ancient Imperial Ruins, Unknown Time

---

Something had been pulling at Alba again.

And it wasn't that Jakku was all too reminding of home. Though, that was a mighty fine distraction from her search.

She kicked a rock over as she cupped a hand over her eyes, looking over the dunes at the opening and all the vehicles already parked outside. Never first, but always last.

"Guess it's time to play nice." She grumbled, starting forward to the entrance. Another quiet tug at her mind, like a pulsing radar hitting a target and bouncing back waves of faint energy. This entire place was cold.

Whatever rich kriffhole was paying her to root through old regime goodies had better be paying well. Glancing at the speeder that was split in half neatly by the entrance, she silently thanked the stars that her own transportation was stowed away behind an old crashed TIE fighter. It was a bit of a walk to get there, but at least it wouldn't be left to join the spoils.

Pausing as she heard voices in the throat of the ruins, the treasure hunter ducked out of sight behind a wall, breathing a gentle curse to everyone breathing on this godforsaken dustball. They didn't sound open to being nice.

This is what you get for joining the party late, something angry taunted inside, should have taken the faster transport, gotten here sooner and started earlier. Should have done a lot of things.

Hopefully you'll keep your head long enough to realize what a colossal idiot you are.

---

Spoiler: OOC

eyyy ms. treasure hunter here to join the party

 

[Edric Vanyan]

[member="Beltran Rarr"]

Edric looked at the man for a few seconds, staring him over and looking past him as he felt around for the other one, soon becoming aware of more and more life signs. He had hoped today would be peaceful and he would be one of a few that might come looking to find out if this rumor was true but he knew that that was no longer true. With a sigh he waved his hand and forgot about even touching his saber at this point, knowing that if he started a fight in this place it would simply crumble around him and he would be trapped here as well as a great deal of history being sealed away. He hated violence anyways, so it worked out in two ways.

First, he had to deal with the person infront of him who was at this point likely not connected to the other two. So Edric let his body relax, his smile softening and becoming a bit more genuine as he realized there was no reason for a conflict.

"A pleasure to meet you as well. I was here myself hoping to avoid disrupting the efforts of others but I would appear I am the first of a few who found this place." He dropped the word few on purpose, alerting the man to the visitors who he may not have known were here.

"I will not stop you either, though I must say to tread carefully, from what I can tell this tunnel is the only entrance and there is likely not an exit that is still serviceable. Never know what might be further down the hall, or what might show up after us."

With that Edric would turn to the side and press against the wall, letting the man past if he so chose to do so. Edric was interested in seeing who the others were that had joined him in these old ruins. [member="Mirvak"] and @Er'in Tenel did not feel like they were too far from him, and he wished to know who the last life signature was that was coming closer.

He would keep an eye on the man he had been talking to while he waited though, making sure the man either stayed to see as well or moved on and sought what ever treasures were long forgotten in the dark reaches of the Observatory.

 

[Mirvak]

Mirvak could not contain his disdain for @Er'in Tenel now, quirking his head to the side and emitting a quiet, dry growl, angered by the simple fact that he needed her help. "Curses and traps, the tools of the weak and craven." He narrowed his eyes as he leaned in towards her,"Prove your worth with this knowledge and I will permit you to loot the petty baubles, Noblewoman." He stood to his full height again, his ears twitching and flattening to the side of his head as he turned to look down the long hallway. "There are others. Time is fleeting." Taking slow strides deeper into the hallway, he sent quiet, murmuring echoes of rocks being kicked and rolling about as he led on.



[member="Edric Vanyan"] [member="Alba Talatheen"] [member="Beltran Rarr"]

 

[Madison M. Maxwell IV]

Jakku, Ancient Imperial Ruins, Unknown Time

---

The treasure hunter remained deathly quiet as the large-sounding male began to stomp away from the entrance, presumably the female following. After waiting a moment or two to let them pass, she eventually scrambled out from behind the wall. But she did doublecheck to make sure nobody else was present in the opening before moving anymore.

Why didn't I get a kriffing blaster before this job?

Alba shook her head and kept moving, her regrets could wait for later. And hopefully, with the groups getting ahead, she'd get a chance to evade them easier. It wasn't like she wasn't open to collaboration... Just maybe not with hostiles.

Of course, this plan wasn't accounting for the fact it was far easier for people to find her than vice versa. Alba couldn't shield herself - consciously or otherwise - from any unwanted probes, by the Force or other traditional means. Looking around at the sandy interior of the opening room, she inspected the walls. Her curiosity couldn't stand not taking a quick look, but this left her back turned to the entrance deeper into the ruins. It gave her a brief disadvantage, one someone could use to approach her un-noticed if they so wished.

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

Nobody yet!

 

[Er'in Tenel]

Er'in let out the smallest of sighs as she followed Mirvak deeper into the ruins.

"Well yes, I'm not blind to their presence. But perhaps we could try talking to them for once? I suspect most of them really, really don't want what we're here for, on account of the limb rotting and mind warping to the uninitiated."

Also, she commented silently to herself, it's better to make allies in the treasure hunting community than enemies when you plan to spend a lot of your life, well... doing occult archeology in the galaxies most unpleasant places. Which she did, because it kept her away from her Master and gave her access to tricks he didn't know she had.

She kept her guard up, senses wary and probing the darkness as she continued deeper, but if she spotted any of the others, she didn't draw their attention to Mirvak. Although...

... she glanced behind them for a moment.... was that was nascent power felt like? Maybe someone was looking for the same thing as them. But no... better to try and complete this little trip without a fight.

 

[Mirvak]

Mirvak glanced over his shoulder back to @Er'in for a moment as she said this, a quiet glare in his eye. "Fear not, I have in my possession a diplomat." He raised his right hand for her to see the large lightsaber he was gripping. The two were nearing the end of the hallway, getting dangerously close to [member="Edric Vanyan"] and [member="Beltran Rarr"]. The two first arrivals could now hear the two Sith quite clearly as Mirvak continued,"The speech craft you have honed in your life of decadence will not be of use here." He ignited his lightsaber, holding it out in front of him, as it was getting too dark even for his canine eyesight.

[member="Alba Talatheen"]

 

[Beltran Rarr]

Beltran caught on to the man’s, [member="Edric Vanyan"] ‘s, usage of the word ‘few’ almost immediately. He hadn’t expected to be the only one here, but he had hoped that he might have had a chance to really take a look around before the multitude arrived to pick the bones of this buried bunker clean. Still, it was no matter to the Lorrdian.

While, he hadn’t been the first to arrive, he certainly hadn’t been the last.

As he listened to the man’s warning about the entrance way, he traced the parameter of the hall with the light emanating from his rifle’s scope. He was right, it was clear that the architecture here was far from completely stable. A careless blaster bolt, or perhaps a careful one depending on the circumstances, could bring this entire place down on top of them-or someone trying to kill them. The mercenary hadn’t come here looking for trouble, but there had definitely been something in the younger man’s demeanor that spoke of the possibility. From his body language, it wasn’t so much that Beltran expected him to stand against the Lorrdian as it was a sense of wariness for those who were coming up behind them.

Taking advantage of the other man’s invitation to move forward, Beltran stepped around him. While he didn’t intend to leave the scene before having a chance to size up the others, the voices of whom he had begun to hear as they neared, he’d rather put someone who wasn’t Beltran in between these two groups of unknowns. That way if it came down to a fight, he would have the option of leaving the younger man here to die, or even bringing the ceiling down on all of them while he retreated deeper into the facility should things become that dire.

“You have my thanks for the advice,” He replied as he stepped around Edric. Once he was standing on the other side, he turned back to look at the hallway. As always, he kept his rifle at the ready in case he needed to make some problems go away. “I am called Beltran. Though I am known to some, I doubt that you have heard of me.”
-------

[member="Mirvak"] , @Er'in Tenel , [member="Alba Talatheen"]

 

[Edric Vanyan]

"A pleasure Beltran, My name is Edric. I would say the same about you having heard me." Edric began, his voice to the point this time.

Edric waited for [member="Beltran Rarr"] to move on, hearing the words and just nodding as his hand came infront of him. There was little he could do here concerning plantsurge but he could still have a bit of fun in this old ruin without harming the structure of the place. His hand touched at the wall and made a quick motion, dragging a piece of metal against the internal structure to create a spark, enough for him as his hand returned and drew back through that spark. The moment he did it turned into a flame and settled into his hand, wavering and casting a comparatively bright light down each end of the hall, and lighting up the turn in the hallway that [member="Mirvak"] and @Er'in Tenel would soon be approaching.

Usually he would hide his connection to the force, but considering what felt like it was coming down the hall, he knew it was unlikely that connection would remain hidden. Other force users were a pain in the first place, especially when there were multiple of them. He couldn't tell how many of them there were but it was the fact they were there that he disliked. He was in no way a skilled user of the force, a great deal of what he knew was self taught or had been taught to him before his father's death.

None the less he held out his hand and left the flame to float towards the turn in the hall that Erin and Mirvak would be coming towards. He would have it sit right in the middle of that turn, showing the two that he already knew they were there, waiting for them and giving them a light so that they could see where they were going more reliably. He himself would back up a bit further, so there was about fifteen meters between him and the turn. He wanted to be safe incase the two turned out to be less than agreeable.

[member="Alba Talatheen"]

 

[Er'in Tenel]

Er'in closed her eyes for the briefest moment as she felt the flow of the force ahead of her - she was hardly what you'd call expertly trained, but gross matter control is generally visible.

Well, if it doesn't rain but it pours. Wait, that's a terrible metaphor on this planet, Er'in. You really need to do better.

"Mirvak, you're talking like a True Sith." She commented with heartfelt scorn for the entire Sith Empire that was in no way faked. "Open your mind. If those people ahead of us wanted to kill us, they'd already have opened fire. Or the person behind us, for that matter. So perhaps, just this once my speech craft might come in handy. Because it's not just foolish to attack before you know your foe, it's weak." She lowered her voice until only Mirvak's ears could hear. "Look, if you must see it that way, then let us use these people - these inferiors - to get what we want without expending our own energy. Or do you think the old Emperor left his treasures unguarded?"

She flicked a finger towards the obviously pyrokinetic light ahead of them as it cast a warm, glowing light down the corridor.

"Or you can start a fight with someone who might be a pyrokinetic master. Your call."

[member="Edric Vanyan"] [member="Beltran Rarr"] @Mirvak @Alba Talatheen

 

[Madison M. Maxwell IV]

Jakku, Ancient Imperial Ruins, Unknown Time

---

How many bloody people were in these ruins?

Alba was trailing far behind the uncomfortably-feeling pair, her glowstick on a muted green light that allowed her to see a few steps ahead of her. Not enough to be interfering or even very visually noticeable by them, but she could hear faint conversation echoing through the metallic halls. But there was no point in hiding her presence now, seeing as they were all in too close of a proximity for it to matter.

The flame up ahead especially caught her eye, past the duo. Oh, delightful, some sort of magic no doubt. She also flinched visibly as the words person and behind them made their way back to her but she shook her head in a push-past-it manner. Maybe they could play nice for now, maybe not. At least the big wolf-looking one hadn't seemed inclined to attack... For the time being.

Her only defence from something like that would be to run away. And she didn't trust her flightiness enough to rely on it with her life.

Perhaps up ahead at the apparent intersection, they'd all converge then figure out where exactly they all stood on the pecking order of ransacking these ancient ruins. No doubt, Alba would be near the bottom. She could live with that, so long as she kept living as a result.

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

Following them madlads @Er'in Tenel & [member="Mirvak"] w/ a sprinkling of [member="Edric Vanyan"] up ahead.

 

[Mirvak]

Mirvak stopped in his tracks completely as Er'in spoke up in protest again, snarling as she made her sarcastic comment, his upper lip curling up briefly. He turned to face her, his intense gaze practically boring holes into her. Clearly, the wolf didn't care for being told what to do. His gaze followed her finger to the pyrokinetic light, before swiftly looking back to her, his large brows furrowing together tightly. Extinguishing his lightsaber and placing it at his hip, the worgian stepped uncomfortable close and spoke to her quietly. "I will allow this treachery, for now." He looked her over once, growling his throat briefly,"You may pose as the pampered Sith Lord you think you are, if for no other reason than you are dressed for it." The wolf begrudgingly spat out,"And you may call me your servant." He paused, letting her enjoy that if she cared to. He quickly raised a single finger, pressing a single sharpened claw underneath her chin,"This is not a form of supplication. Mirvak does not bow. You speak. I slay."

He lowered his hand from her chin, impatiently nodding forward towards the end of the hallway,"Servaaaants.. Do not lead. Go, girl."