Dominion Through the Vines | Dominion of Ajara [Diarchy]

[Zara Saga]

Zara's eyes lit up the second Reign dismissed diplomacy. Her posture shifted, shoulders back, chin raised, like a hound finally let off the leash. The thick jungle heat was suddenly a little more bearable, now that bloodshed was officially sanctioned.

"No diplomacy?" she echoed, grinning like a kid promised fireworks. "Finally. I was starting to think you brought me out here to sweat to death and talk about my feelings."

She fell into step beside him, her gait light, almost bouncing, as if eager to taste the chaos ahead. And then, like a jungle ghost, another figure emerged from the treeline. Zara tilted her head, watching as he approached and bowed, formal, respectful... boring. Her lips curved into a smirk, one brow arching with amusement.

"Well, who's this?" she asked, eyes darting over Ryu with an appraising glint. "Is this your pet, Reign? Do I get to feed him or does he just live on discipline and gravitas?"

She didn't wait for an answer, because the whole thing was clearly a joke, and one she delivered with just enough charm to get away with it.

As Reign turned and made his crack about the mosquitos and Nocturne, Zara snorted.

"Relax. You're not dying out here. Not on my watch," she said, patting his shoulder with mock solemnity. "You might not even get to do much. You're getting old, Reign. Can't have you keeling over from the effort while I'm still getting warmed up."

Then she tossed a wink at Ryu.

"Try to keep up, rookie."

Diarch Reign | Ryu Jung​

 

[Tertius C. Nargath]

obj 1: Get me some gas
TAG: Maldor Sancetti | Diarch Rellik | Damos Vakaro

As soon as one of the ensigns aboard the cruiser's bridge relayed the message that Diarch Rellik had allowed for the communications between them to be patched through, Tertius made a calm nod towards his Centurion; Livicus, who as soon as he noticed this nod, stood up straight as an arrow and activated the holonet transeiver and the subroutines to make sure the signals would be picked up by the Vault and sent through to Rellik's location.

"Honored Exarch, I Livicus Comnenus, Centurion of the Valkan Guards greet you, " The tall, fully armored man made a nod as he then proceeded to remove his helmet, revealing a hardened face with the scars and the wisdom of age embedded within his stern expression. "We have only limited information on the situation regarding the surface, but there is speculation that there should be a communications' station somewhere on the ground, if you could have someone reactivate the signals of that place, our scans and those of the DSN Vault should be capable of giving the Diarchy forces present a better view on the situation on the ground."

For a moment the man held his breath and turned towards the Marquis to give out his own orders...'orders' to a Diarch no less.

"Rellik, you heard the man...we'd need a better view of the situation down there," The Marquis shrugged his shoulders, making it clear that while he was in name the commander of the Valkan Guards, he himself acknowledged to not be the most capable soldier or commander to begin with. "It should be simpler to contact those of the Diarchy who are already on the surface when you have passed the atmosphere... if you could make sure that the signals of the surface can be pinpointed more accurately, we wouldn't have to send down any troops and men blindly."

[/div

 

[Lyssara Thrynn]

I don't summon the Force it's already here. It always lingers around me like a shadow waiting. So I drop into it, graceless, without ceremony. I think of nothing. Or maybe too much. Same result. I just let through what's needed. Nothing more. The holocron reacts. A click soft at first, then another, deeper. The edges tremble, hesitate, then begin to unfold. Slowly. A red light seeps out like a wound opening between the seams. I remain still. Silent. No comment. No glance at Maldor. He knows what I'm doing. And I can start to hear what it's whispering. It's easy for me to open a holocron

I just let the Force flow into it, and watch the mechanism respond. It's open. What I see inside... I like it a lot less. How did he get this? Rellik's father Diarch Rellik's father is present in this holocron? It offers knowledge about immortality, and essence transfer? Fine. I take it all in. Absorb everything. I close my eyes briefly, shutting out the world around me as the vision pulls me in completely. When I open them again, my gaze has changed. Hardened. Not in a good way. I turn toward Maldor Sancetti .

"Who gave you this?"

My brow tightens I take this seriously now. I remember they were out chasing mysteries with Rellik, before I blacked out on that damned bridge. My thoughts flicker to Her .

For now, I keep the holocron open, resting in my hand.

"Well. The holocron contains teachings on immortality and essence transfer. My master, Diarch Rellik , spoke to me of these techniques."

Still holding it in my open palm, I'll decide later whether I share the full formulas or not. Now that this touches something sensitive to the Diarchy, I'm watching closely. Honestly, I'm starting to think this holocron belongs in the hands of the one it was meant for.



I give a small nod at his invitation, without saying a word. I still don't know what exactly he's after here, or what I truly represent in his plans, but now isn't the time to ask questions. He's right about one thing: this place is heavy. Something happened here… and maybe the Force remembers.

I kneel slowly beside him, adjusting my gas mask carefully to avoid any unpleasant surprises. Once I'm settled, I close my eyes.

I let the sounds of the platform fade away, my steady filtered breathing becoming my only focus. I anchor myself, just like Rellik taught me. I let go of the restlessness, the distracting thoughts, the bitterness even that old grudge I still carry like dead weight.

I reach out with my senses.

'Okay, let's do this together Maldor Sancetti "

I don't try to control anything. I don't force it. I just listen.

The Force is here turbulent, disturbed, but present. It stirs beneath the surface, as if it had witnessed… or suffered. I feel fragments, echoes, an invisible weight clinging to the very structure of the ruined metal.

Something ancient. Something broken.

I don't say anything. I just open my mind and let the Force speak. I listen up the communication about rellik in my comlink, and i take this in consideration!

 

[Maldor Sancetti]

Objective 1 - On a Gas Platform
_________________________________________

​

"We are here to discover what has caused this," he explained, "not any traditional weapons or enemies. Something different has ruined these platforms. I thought perhaps the force could show us, or let us feel what has happened here. But your strength in the Force may exceed my own, or have a different focus."

A message came- the Diarch was on overwatch. That actually made him feel safer. Between the other Diarchal forces and Yol Kan on the Blastboat, they should be well covered.

Maldor was surprised when Lyssara produced the holocron. Had she unlocked it?

It seemed she had. But what a moment to reveal it.

In answer to her question, he said, "My former Master took me on an archaeological expedition to a dangerous region of space. We retrieved that from a hidden world. I opened it, once. Began learning its fringe teachings. But the Guardian of the Holocron- the personality imbued into it to protect its secrets- it shut me out. Determined I was not devoted enough to the philosophy of the Sith.

But none of that will help us here. If the Force whispers nothing to us of this calamity, then the investigation must become more mundane.

Perhaps some of the equipment here was connected to vid sensors. Perhaps there is a recording of what transpired."

He was tempted to take the Holocron, but he would not do so until it was offered. No matter the nation, Sith teachings were dangerous roads to tread, and he did not want her to think he'd been overcome by the allure of the Sith.

Instead, he stood and began walking towards some of the destroyed machinery on the surface of the platform. Something still worked, here. Else the platform would have fallen. But did enough of it work to provide them the answers they sought?


Lyssara Thrynn Diarch Rellik Damos Vakaro Merion Oreno Tertius C. Nargath

 

[Lyssara Thrynn]

"Okay, i understood the problem with that's holocron why he reject you, well.. We can talk to it together later with a good tea!"

Eventually, I decide to sit down and reorient my focus toward the mission at hand. We're here to investigate this place not to chase personal emotions or fall into distractions. Everything in its time. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and I intend to uncover the truth behind who did what, and why.

I let myself sink fully into the Force. Steady. Controlled. I extend my awareness outward, reaching into the environment, but also toward Maldor's mind not forcefully, but calmly, to allow for smoother collaboration. We'll find more if we search together, rather than separately.

Maybe the Force will speak more clearly this way. My aura narrows, sharpens. I push deeper, trying to detect what feels wrong the fracture in the air, the residue of something that shouldn't be here. My master's transmission lingers in my thoughts. It unsettles me, just slightly. I don't like uncertainty. I don't like shadows behind shadows. I sincerely hope this isn't a trap.

But speculation won't help. Focus might.

The Force must show us what lingers here and if it refuses, then I'll help Maldor dig through it the hard way.

 

[Merion Oreno]

As more and more angles of investigation unfolded around the ruined gas platform — scanners, probe droids scouts on foot, many trained in the Force — Merion came to an unexpected realization. While they might find an answer still, the answer might actually be elsewhere.

He moved from station-keeping and, probe droids in tow, began to inscribe wider and wider loops around the platform, through opaque clouds, hordes of beldons, beautiful floating creatures of every kind. Out here, down here, being a death cultist felt kind of small.

He kept on turning his loops but made almost a meditation of it. The clouds down here were like nothing he'd seen before.

 

[Nyva Shei]

[Aboard the Ragnarok]

She really left me in command of the Ragnarok? While she's having fun on the surface with the others, I get to take her seat, steal her place! Anyway, she's not here to see it, and even if she did see me, the worst I'd get is a little electric shock. Totally worth it. My legs are stretched out, my arms on the armrests, I'm sipping a nice glass of wine after all, there's no reason she should be the only one drinking.

"Mistress? How's it going down there...? ...

Why she dont reply to me?"
"Ada : It has to go through a tunnel, communication is one-way."
"Oh shut up ada, let me believe in my mistress!"

I press on my comlink and spam her with notifications, but oddly she's not answering. The queen probably muted my calls, which means she doesn't want to be disturbed right now. Oh well. Might as well have some fun aboard the Ragnarok. I feel like a queen in the command seat. No doubt I'm getting tipsy and loving it. Being a bridge captain is awesome! Sure, with my trident I could already do a lot, but this is different this is her seat. It's worth all the credits in the world.

I'm keeping an eye on the radar screens, listening to Rellik's communications apparently there's some movement. I stay alert, but there's no way I'm firing an antimatter bomb while the Mistress is down there absolutely not! And without a direct order from her, I can't do anything anyway. Plus, she cut off the comlink. That queen.

So, in the meantime, I'm basically on standby. Other than watching the radar screens, I'm not doing much else.

 

[Diarch Reign]

​

Location: Ajan Kloss
Tags: Zara Saga Ryu Jung

---

The Diarch smiled as he walked, from talking to him one would not know the terrible power he could bring to bear. He seemed kind, fatherly to most, yet if you knew him, truly knew him. You would know that he carried death in his stride.

“OLD? I’m in the prime of my life. I just hope your bite is a strong as your bark young one”

He said this with a smile, but anyone attuned to the force would be able to feel that he was building up to something. He was drawing power to himself, the chill of the dark side seeping from him.

As they came close to the fortress, he was stopped by a shout.

“Halt! Take one step closer and it’s the last thing you’ll do!”

It was almost as if Reign couldn’t help himself. A smirk on his lips he took the step. No sooner than his foot hit the ground did the red bolt fly. However, it seemed to just disappear into his hand.

He chuckled slightly, and turned to his companions

“I want no survivors. These fools deserve oblivion”

With that he turned back to the fortress and in what seemed to bend reality around him, he launched forth a huge ball of force destruction. Where once there was a durasteel wall and sentries, there existed only a dust in the wind, some the color of steel, others the shimmering pink red of blood.

And with that, The Diarch stepped forward.

 

[Diarch Rellik]

"Honored Exarch, I Livicus Comnenus, Centurion of the Valkan Guards greet you…"

Rellik listened without comment, eyes narrowing as Livicus outlined their intelligence theory. A communications station. Possibly still active. Possibly buried beneath the wreck or in one of the still-floating towers lost deeper in the cloud.

When the Marquis himself added his casual endorsement the Diarch replied.

"I will do my best to see it done. Your suggestion is noted and valid. A relay tower may still be broadcasting on emergency reserve. If so, it would explain the partial sensor garbling.""

He adjusted course. The ship now glided along the platform's underside nearer the jagged break that exposed the sub-deck levels, where emergency systems might still flicker.

Stabilizers flared once to hold position. Rellik opened the lower hatch and extended the docking umbilical, locking onto a fractured maintenance ring still embedded in the structure's belly. Pressure equalized with a hiss, and moments later, his boots found durasteel. The Diarch was masked and in a spacer uniform. Un-common territory for the man. Yet, he proceeded inward.

The sub-deck corridor was a ghost of what it had once been. Exposed wires dangled from the ceiling like torn veins. Something had passed through here recently. But no bodies remained. Perhaps a ship with a strong ramming bow. He moved calmly, ignoring the debris, the flicker of blown lights, the low groan of the platform shifting above.

Then, there. A partially intact console, slanted sideways where the floor had buckled. Emergency power blinked softly from its side panel, still tethered to a backup reactor buried deeper in the rig.

He placed a palm on the interface node. The ancient coding language of the refinery system scrolled across a dim holoscreen. He bypassed safety protocols with a manual override code he possessed then began rerouting the signal beacon back to active broadcast.

The console whined. A low pulse echoed into the surrounding cloud. Static came at first then a lock. Something was out there. But it wasn't a distress ping. A new frequency bled through the speakers. Low. Guttural. Layered over itself in waves. Like a creature calling through miles of storm.

He simply leaned closer to the console and adjusted the gain letting the sound fill the hollow wreck around him.

Then, quietly, he activated his comm.

"This is Rellik. The relay is online… but it's broadcasting something else. It sounds, like an animal."

Damos Vakaro Tertius C. Nargath Maldor Sancetti Lyssara Thrynn Nyva Shei

 

[Lyssara Thrynn]

As we meditate, a piece of information comes to my awareness. I sense that something is hiding very, very close. It's concealed in the Force, and unfortunately, I can't precisely locate where it is, as if something is hiding on the surface.

I know this feeling well; it's something that hides, lurks, almost as if this thing is seeking to track. Maybe us?

Turning to my compatriot, I flash him a small smile to indicate that I've found something suspicious. He understands that we are not alone.

"There is indeed a signature in the Force that is hiding. I can't say precisely where, but we must redouble our vigilance. Moreover, the communication with my master indicates that we should be on our guard."

Once the Force localization is complete, I straighten up. I put the holocron back in my pocket; we'll come back to it later anyway. For now, I focus on the mission and stand ready to receive Maldor's orders. Maldor Sancetti