What Do You Have For Us, Korriban?

[Via Dolorosa]

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"Korriban is the ancestral home of the Sith. It is a place of great power; the dark side lives and breathes in the very core of this world."​

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Prelude​

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"When was the last time I heard footsteps in my tomb?" Silence.​

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"When was the last time any of us heard footsteps?" Silence.​

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"It has been...my memories are fading. Are yours?" Silence.​

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"Yes...fading." Silence.​

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"We are dying brothers." Silence.​

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"Dying? No...we are just forgotten." Silence.​

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"Wait...I...feel...something." Silence.​

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"We have visitors!" Silence.​

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"We are not forgotten Brothers..." Whispering voices.​

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Present​

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The red skies of Korriban at last smiled again and granted it's blessing to the small transport shuttle as it passed through to the waiting red sands below. From all across the dunes a thousand sets of hungry eyes shot up to the sky in unison, the taste of untainted flesh nearly forgotten on their palates. At the same moment, another kind of beast had taken an interest in the flying machine. They whipped their tails about while letting out a slow hiss as they slowly disappeared from sight. The balance on Korriban had shifted...​

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...The Sith have returned.​

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With a small buzzing sound, the shuttle touched down a few klicks from the Valley of the Dark Lords. Small vapor fumes escaped the vessels exhaust system while the heated metal creaked then settled after the flight through the atmosphere. From an observers pointe of view, the shuttle would appear to have been landed by a phantom crew. Nothing stirred. It just sat there.​

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Then like a miracle granted by the Sith Gods themselves, the ship was alive. From the rear of the craft a long, metal rectangular object emerged touching down on the sand with a thud. Then came the visitors, one by one, they exited the vessel. The first Sith to touch the surface of Korriban for in a long time. ​

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She took a long, deep breath absorbing the Darkside energy. It was no swamp but it will do. Slowly she crouched down grabbing a handful of red sand, letting the grains cascade through her fingers back to their brethren. Korriban. She rose to her full height and looked to the others.​

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"They said it would never happen...but we made fools of them all. The Sith have come home," the Sith Lord commented. But it would never be a permanent stay, she knew this was true. "We have our assigned teams...so lets not squander this precious moment."​

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Group A

@Darth Venefica
[member="Zambrano the Hutt"]
[member="Elensa Jari"]
[member="Ostanes"]


Group B

[member="Darth Arcanix"]
[member="Melori Raaf"]
[member="Amaethon"]
[member="Yvette Dusong"]
[member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]

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[Amaethon]

Location: Korriban
Allies: Group A, Group B

Amaethon could feel the presence of the Dark Side here, but it felt like a memory faded with time. He could almost sense the history of this place, all the Sith past. It felt like waking from a dream, the ethereal vapors still in his head. There was a sense of a graveyard here.

He took in the surroundings, all red rock and sand, and he could understand the history of conflict among the Sith Purebloods. It would've made them strong and cruel, given them an affinity to the Dark Side. However, they couldn't hope to stand up against the Dark Jedi who would come and enslave them. It was for the best, for their own advancement.

The forefathers would show the Purebloods the true power of the Force, and later would come the many great Sith Lords. Vitiate, Revan, Bane, Plagueis, Sidious and many more. The Sith would carve their names into the heart of the Universe. All would know their glories throughout time. It all began here....

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Location: Korriban Surface - Just Outside The Valley of the Dark lords
Team: [member="Darth Venefica"] | [member="Zambrano the Hutt"] | [member="Elensa Jari"] | ('A' is for AWESOME ya'll)

As the shuttle touched down, Ontanes' eyes snapped open, a deep and lurid green. The form he wore now was that of something out of a history book, and the fact he was on Korriban wearing it did not escape his rather twisted shi'ido humor. Anyone who knew the lore of the Sith would recognize his handsome features as that of Ulic Qel-Droma. Why he so often favored this form the shape-shifter could not really say, but it tended to strike fear into the unwary and ignorant. Such was the legacy of Qel-Droma, he supposed. And a little extra legacy to help his own never hurt. Power, true power, was in the eye of the beholder in so many ways. And this facade exuded it.

As he stepped out onto the sands of Korriban, he absently reached down to the sand just as Venefica did, but his hands traced idly in the sand, a far away look in his eyes. Ever since Rave had erased his memory, he had the odd habit and compulsion to draw symbols all over everything, even though they were more often than not half finished and sloppily done. Suspicion was, from his mind, that they were alchemical sigils and seals that he no longer remembered the proper execution of. Hefting the sand, he slid some into a sturdy pouch at his belt, measuring out several handfuls. There was no real reason why, but as he was re-learning, alchemy had a strange set of rules, and who knows what use he might find for sand from Korriban in his studies.

For the most part, he remained silent, taking in the air and gazing about, his eyes guarded. There was no Lord to claim his tutelage yet, and that left him to the mercy of the others in a way. And with his failing memories, he didn't relish such a prospect. Not yet, anyway. But he would ease that burden and avail himself to some Knight or Lord soon enough. He knew he had talents, he just had to reaffirm them and regain his strength. Such a fall from such a height still stung him.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Darth Venefica"]

Group B: [member="Amaethon"] [member="Melori Raaf"] [member="Yvette Dusong"] @Vi'kas Mirtis

Taeli was literally brimming with excitement and intellectual curiosity as the shuttle carrying their small group to the ancient Sith burial world of Korriban touched down. Yes, the world probably had been stripped of the most valuable artifacts, by both Jedi and Sith alike, but there was still knowledge to be had here, still some things that could be learned indeed.

Walking down the ramp with the group, Taeli couldn't stop the smile appearing on her face as they took in the sight of the Valley of the Dark Lords. Korriban held so much history, but it was guarded. Tuk'ata, pelko swarms, and hssiss just to name a few of the creatures they could encounter here on the burial world.

"Remember why we are here, this is as much as a learning experience as it is treasure hunt," Taeli said, checking her satchel. "Travel in pairs and do not, I repeat, do not get separated. These tombs are still full of traps and creatures that will kill you, and we don't want that. Whatever you find is yours."

 

[Elensa Jari]

Location: Korriban Surface - Just Outside The Valley of the Dark lords
Team: [member="Darth Venefica"] | [member="Zambrano the Hutt"] | [member="Ostanes"]

Watching two of the others drop to their knees before the ground that was sacred to the Sith, picking up a handful of the dark-red sand and running it through their fingers, Elensa could not help but wonder at that moment of reverence: something she had little observed among their numbers. Few among them truly held anything sacred at all. If it could not be dominated, it was destroyed. This simple act here suggested depth that she had not noticed in their ranks before. Certainly not something that the Masters would ever have told us about the Sith, had they survived to meet them.

That she had chosen to come here...perhaps that, too, spoke volumes about her state of mind. The teachers in the Jedi Temple had always taught the dangers of being a Jedi on a Sith world: places strong with the Dark Side, worlds that would insidiously seek to corrupt, taint, turn or destroy any who came not fully prepared for it. And you can sense it even in the air, she thought musingly. There was something just wrong about this place. It is the stale air of a tomb, dark, dank and foreboding. But worse than that: death was not merely hinted at, but overtly implied. Here, the Force falls into true shadow, and when you peer into the darkness, you see the horrors that this place has experienced.

What the others felt as a soft sense of eerieness, she experienced in a very different way, touched as she had been by the light. These others were natural Sith: as dark and dangerous in their own way as anything this planet could present, a reason they walked here fearless, blind to the threat that she could sense gathering in her mind. To them, this is a homecoming of sorts, a moment when they envelop themselves in that safe space that empowers them. To her, simply stepping off the shuttle had taken an effort that she had been forced to take considerable pains to hide. It is like standing in silence and hearing an ear-piercing scream that never stops. Small wonder that many Jedi had been driven mad by this place.

Elensa was Jedi no longer, of course - that world had been stolen away from her by violence, inducing trauma both physical and psychological that perhaps she might never overcome. A Force User cursed by silence, all I know gone...where could I turn but here? Perhaps she might have run and hid away from the world, made herself a recluse, but this was not what she had been taught. And when they had come, seeking survivors that might yet be made into corpses, they had found her. And they had not offered me blessed release from this curse of living, but forced me to survive it, to endure torment and be one of them. The irony had been something she could not escape.

To stand here now...perhaps that was the final moment she could allow herself to think as a Jedi. Persistence in those ways might mean death or madness, because such did not long survive here. No doubt the others here knew this, and came anyway. All things among the Sith are tests...this is no different. The stakes were higher, but that was as natural as breathing to their kind. To our kind now, she thought sadly. If she left this world at all, she knew that would remain her path, inescapably.

 

[Darth Timoris]

Location: The Valley of the Dark Lords
Allies: [member="Darth Arcanix"] | [member="Amaethon"] | [member="Yvette Dusong"] | [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]

Then journey was uneventful, but the closer she got to Korriban, the greater she could feel the pull of the Dark-side power. It was a place that held so many Sith tombs, a veritable source of evil. Others it seemed, had their eyes on finding some relic, some piece of lost history. Melori was different in that regard. It was a place she felt she needed to visit, rather than wanted to visit. She couldn’t explain it and wouldn’t try.

Finally, the shuttle touched down a few kilometres from the Valley of the Dark Lords. She allowed the others to exit first, her Master amongst them. Today Taeli was her Master – pure and simple. She expected no quarter and in return, would give none.

Travel in pairs was the first instruction she would test. There were five of them. If the others paired off, she might have a chance to be alone. But not this early of course – they were still travelling to the Valley and so would need to remain a cohesive group.

So she looked around. She’d previously sensed the power of the world and expected that feeling to grow stronger with every step that drew her closer to the Valley. Yet she felt nothing. No noticeable change. In the distance she could see the shaded outlines of the nearest tombs carved from the stone walls. She knew that, like all the tombs, this one had been dug out from the high stone cliffs that boxed in the valley on either side. The grand archway at the entrance had been built out from the cliff face, but the chambers that housed the remains of the Dark Lord interred within wound their way deep into the rock.

And she remembered the words of Darth Bane – someone her sister held in high regard as far as she could tell. Yes, she’d done her homework. He believed spirits of powerful Sith Masters were said to linger in their tombs. But they would only appear to those who were worthy. He believed he could learn more from the ghosts in the Valley of the Dark Lords than the living Masters at the Academy. Now artefacts left her cold – but this idea intrigued her more and more every moment that passed.

 

[Yvette Dusong]

Location : Surface of Korriban - Outside "The Valley of the Dark Lords"
Team : Group B
Companions : [member="Darth Arcanix"] / [member="Melori Raaf"] / [member="Amaethon"] / @Vi'kas Mirtis

Soft gasps slipped through the auburn-haired girls lips as she curled her fingers ever more firmly across the metal bar hanging above her head, buckling knees forcefully bending her towards one direction or another as the ship slowly descended the last few meters upon the surface of the planet. Perked ears rang incessantly as she could faintly hear the last of the shuttles mechanical groans and shudders as it set itself down upon solid footing on top of the uninhabited tomb world, eliciting a small breath of relief from the lightly clothed woman as she leaned back against the wall on unsteady feet. Hurried thuds echoed between those four metallic walls as its numerous inhabitants hurriedly gathered their supplies and trickled down the nearby ramp, rays of orange and red washing down upon them from the sun above. Loosening her grip from around the bar overhead, Yvette hurriedly followed in the footsteps of the others as she quickly arranged the tattered and thin brown cloak donned on top of her body.

Blue eyes quickly scanned the disembarked groups in order to find the woman she was tasked to follow on this mission, lips weakly curling into a relieved smile as she managed to recognize her, tentatively walking down to stand besides her as she listened intently. "Anything?" She asked in a meek and uncertain tone of voice, a soft flush of color painting her cheeks as she realized she spoke almost unconsciously. "Even if it's something like . . . a personal weapon, a diary, or a hole-hodo-. . . holocron?" She continued after a small pause, her voice trailing into a whisper for a brief moment as she tried to not stumble over her tongue when pronouncing the last item

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Location: Surface of Korriban, outside the Valley of the Dark Lords
Team: B
Members: [member="Yvette Dusong"] [member="Melori Raaf"] [member="Amaethon"] [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"] [member="Darth Venefica"]

"We will most likely not find holocrons here," Taeli said, smiling at the girl. "Most anything else is for the taking, if we can find things."

Turning to address her fellow Lady, she asked, "Venefica, shall we move along opposite sides of the Valley, exploring different ruins from the other to cover more ground?"

She was more excited to move along because, as a scholar and knowing her adopted father would have killed anything and anyone for this chance to explore here, she couldn't contain herself much longer. The dark side was powerful here, it was in the very air and in the ground, an ever constant embrace of darkness that promised and whispered things to them.

Taeli knew that what lurked in the tombs could be anything, even the spirits of long dead Sith Lords that would impart their wisdom to those they deemed worthy. She just wanted to explore and find artifacts overlooked by both Jedi and Sith, wander through the halls of the tombs of Naga Sadow, Ajunta Pall, Marka Ragnos, oh so many.

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Group A​

[member="Ostanes"]​

[member="Elensa Jari"]​

[member="Zambrano the Hutt"]​

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Location​

Surface of Korriban...Outskirts of The Valley of the Dark Lords​

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"Yes," she answered the other Sith Lady, "There is much to be explored and so much ground to cover." She looked around the surrounding area in hopes of seeing something that would spark a particular direction to go. But all she could see were dunes, red sand, rock clusters, and the outlines of weather beaten statues in the distance. In the end, she would let fate decide the course for her and her group. Once more she took a hand full of red sand and this time tossed it into the air. The small wind current gently blew the red particles to her left. "We shall go east."​

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Darth Venefica walked in silence allowing the others to take in the view. She was not here to lecture, instruct, or play tour guide but she would not shun their questions away either. She had brought them all here so they could learn about themselves and one another; and if the situation called for it, protect those not capable of doing so themselves. Perhaps even find some rare or unique trinket. Hopefully not like the one she currently wore around her neck. That one was nothing but trouble. She realized then that the voices plaguing her mind had fell silent since their arrival to Korriban. The Sith Lord thought for sure they would be vocal about being here, but they seemed to be pacified for the moment. ​

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To her left she spied a cave opening that seemed to beckon her inside. She wanted nothing more to do with caves but the tugging sensation could not be ignored. She wondered if the others were feeling it, too. She paused to look at it wondering what mysterious lied within. She glanced down at the sand that was gathered at the opening checking for tracks. Tu'kata were known to frequent caves here on Korriban and she was in no mood to deal with those pups. But the choice to enter was not her's to make. She glanced at the Acolytes waiting to see which one would be brave enough to step in the darkness.​

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Location:Korriban Surface - Just Outside The Valley of the Dark lords
Team:Darth Venefica | Zambrano the Hutt| Elensa Jari ('A' is for AWESOME ya'll)

Ontanes stepped forward slowly, eyeing the cave with a slight bit of wonder in his eyes, which shifted from green to silver without him noticing, a sign of nerves if anyone knew him. With determined stride, the young look-a-like of Qel-Droma strode forward and held out his hand, almost as if tasting the air. There was an audible hiss and he backed up a step, cocking his head to the side in confusion, something in his memory that Rave had destroyed trying to tug at his consciousness.

"Something lurks in this place... Something that slumbers.... "

That didn't stop the Acolyte from going forward, he merely looked back to his fellows and motioned them forward in almost a display of impatience, or perhaps eagerness. If there was something lurking, slumbering in this cave, the chance of it being something worthwhile was high given it was Korriban. Perhaps even something he could experiment on once he was no longer planetside, like a terentatek... Though he was not relishing trying to bring one of those down.

 

[Zambrano the Starweird]

Group A: [member="Darth Venefica"], @Zambrano the Hutt, [member="Elensa Jari"], [member="Ostanes"]
Location: Korriban - Outskirts of the Valley of the Dark Lords

This was the second appearance on Korriban. Most within the group believed this was a homecoming of the Sith, and where correct, but none knew that they held within them a Remnant of an earlier time on Korriban; from an age of darkness, one of the longest in the galaxies history. Zambrano was very tied to this place, to the point that the familiarity almost satiated his madness completely. He was in an eerie calm, much like he had been the last time. Something happened the last time however, that changed him. Moved him forward... What it was, no one can really say given that it has not yet been described.

The Hutt exited the ship in his Throne... this time devoid of his "friendsss", because they stank and even if the sith don't mind seeing dead bodies, they still possessed noses. He did however, have a very excited Vaapad racing all around his statuesque body. A pillar of lard upon a floating pedestal, with an animate creature buzzing about it, all at once whilst in the midst of a red sea of sand. Unlike the other acolytes, the Hutt remained oddly quiet. Even more oddly, the cretin seemed to have no impulsive urge to... do much of anything really. Though this wasn't due to the stereotype of Hutts being lazy... it was because this was home. It was familiarity. It was comfort, and for the first time in ages he felt normal, not even realizing he was not normal elsewhere in the galaxy.

He followed the group wherever it went, without word.

 

[Elensa Jari]

Location: Korriban Surface - Just Outside The Valley of the Dark Lords
Team: [member="Darth Venefica"] | [member="Zambrano the Hutt"] | [member="Ostanes"]

Does it make a difference as to which way we go?, Elensa thought, silently observing their team leader decide on their destination. She had no inkling as to the Sith Lord's reasons for being here, so the older woman's reasoning as to which direction to take similarly eluded her. Might be best that I don't understand her, though. The Hapan had learned quickly that the teachers among the Sith were not nearly as protective of their students as the Jedi had been - indeed, it often seemed that they went out of their way to place their Acolytes in danger. Only through trials can one grow, so the refrain goes, she noted. Perhaps this was to be another.

The only words spoken between the group so far had come from their escorting Sith Lord, and that strange young man that looked oddly familiar to her. She was sure she'd seen his face before, but Elensa couldn't puzzle out as to where. In truth, she cared little - the doings of men weren't something she found herself interested in. Men were to be seen and not heard within her culture, and though the Sith had no such preferences, it didn't stop her reflecting on the natural inferiority of his gender. It was ironic, truly: he was beneath her, yet he had that precious gift they all took for granted and was yet denied her. She could not utter even those blatantly obvious words he had spoken just a moment ago. That he would waste that gift in such a way struck her as truly absurd.

It should be obvious that something slumbers here, she thought irritably, glancing with a touch of contempt in the direction of the young man, wondering how he had managed to survive so far into his studies if his habit was always to state the obvious. This whole planet is a tomb, of sorts. All the stories speak of the spirits of the ancient Sith Lords wandering their resting places, bound to them through anger at falling, feeling that their stories remained unfinished. Even the lowliest of Acolytes knew that: the Sith often spoke of Korriban and the legends attached to it. No doubt something slumbers here. Will it be your foolishness that awakens it?, she wondered coldly. Moments like this made her once again wish she could just speak her thoughts aloud.

Elensa made do with a simple shake of her head, expressing her thoughts as elegantly as she might, though knowing it did little to make up for that hefty barrier that prevented them sharing thoughts as they would have done had she had that simple capability remaining to her. Then again, he is male. Perhaps he will only understand if I paint the words upon a big neon sign. He would probably think she intended to that to be ironic. The mental image almost made her roll her eyes.

She watched as he entered the cave, his lack of caution laughable in some ways. Trust a man to go forward in a show of bravado with little thought as to the danger. If his severed head came firing out of the cave to roll at her feet, she'd be sure to give it a swift kick as a posthumous lesson on the need to think before acting. I might be asking a little much there, though. The way he was going, Elensa doubted that he would even have made a suitable servant, much less advancing to consort or a position of responsibility. Perhaps that Sith Lord might take pity on him and turn him into her toy. That at least would make him useful.

Her hand slipped to the sash she wore around her slender waist, removing a cylindrical metal lightsaber from a small hook resting upon it, feeling her fingers curl around the cool grip, her thumb resting over the plasteel activation stud that would bring the weapon to life. It was the lightsaber she had been given as a student among the Jedi, and she continued to carry it in absence of a replacement. The Sith had shown no inclination to arm her from their own stores, and she had not yet learned the method to make her own, so her old Jedi weapon would have to suffice for the time being. At least if there is something nasty within the cave, I might be able to make it rethink trying to eat me.

Besides, with that Hutt with them, she wouldn't be the most tempting target for wandering predators. There must be at least a week's worth of eating on that one. If it didn't move so slowly, she'd let it go first, so anything waiting inside could still grab a mouthful before she cut it in half. Always better to die on a full stomach, even if you are just a Tu'kata, she thought in amusement.

 

[Amaethon]

Allies: Team B(eastmode) [member="Darth Arcanix"][member="Yvette Dusong"][member="Melori Raaf"]

Amaethon waited with growing impatience and irritation to begin. He frowned beneath his mask when another Acolyte asked if they might find holocrons. Here, in this place, not likely. He knew from his readings on the history of Korriban that the Valley of the Dark Lords had been bare when Darth Bane went himself millenia ago. Plundered of anything deemed the slightest bit valuable.

He doubted whether anything but the stones themselves were there. The masked one had come for other reasons. He had come to taste the power, feel it within himself deep in his bones. Holocrons and other precious artifacts were mostly sequestered within the Sith Temples. Also among the personal collections of the Lords, of course, hording knowledge.

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Allies: Team B [member="Darth Arcanix"] @Amaethon [member="Yvette Dusong"] [member="Melori Raaf"] [member="Yvette Dusong"]

The Demon's Fist stepped off of the transport shuttle, his boots making contact with the reg sand beneath his feet. He was dressed in traditional Tuskun Raider garbs, save for the mask. His lower face was wrapped in a brown cloth that reached from his neck and shoulders to cover his nose. He surveyed the surrounding landscape, taking it all in. He could feel the history radiating from the red planet, the thousand of Sith who had been here before him. There was something else though, something calling out for him. It didn't speak in words, but sent a feeling of malicious glee through his body. He looked around, wondering if anyone else could feel it.

He frowned as the Sith Lord told them to pair up. He wasn't particularly a team player, nor did he wish to share any treasures that were located on this planet. He very well knew that the planet had been looted and plundered, but there was always something forgotten by time. He felt he could "strike it rich" yet. Though if he did find something, he wouldn't sell it. Much too precious. He kneeled down, and took a few fistfuls of the red sand, heaving it into his pouch. He knew as good as any how the substance could be used in Alchemy.

 

[Julius Sedaire]

Location:Korriban Surface - Valley of the Dark Lords - Cave Chamber
Team:Darth Venefica | Zambrano the Hutt| Elensa Jari ('A' is for AWESOME ya'll)

Still confident, the young acolyte walked forward, his features shifting, warping as he walked within the cave. There was little that he would give away, and something in this cave told him he was meant to be here, at this point in time, and he did not relish trying to fight the others for whatever may be in the Valley that he found. In fact, he felt it best he get away from the group to prevent it, whenever he found wherever he felt he was being lead to. Surely whatever was calling to him would be enough to arouse jealousy. But it wasn't like his kind was incapable of escape.

But, for now, there was safety in number, and he would play along. As far as what he was being pulled to, why, and how, he was still ignorant, and such ignorance bothered him to a degree he'd rather not care to admit. Turning in the first room, he spun, arms out as his form fluidly slipped to resemble that of Venefica herself, then the other members of his team before returning back to it's original state.

"Come now... Nothing in here will bite any worse than we can..."

 

[Via Dolorosa]

Group A​

[member="Ostanes"]​

[member="Elensa Jari"]​

[member="Zambrano the Hutt"]​

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Location​

Surface of Korriban...Outskirts of The Valley of the Dark Lords​

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The Sith Lord agreed with the assessment from the male Acolyte that something was in there. Waiting. Plotting. But whatever was inside, she would find a way to unravel this mystery. It was calling to her and the Dagobah Sith would answer, for fear was her ally not her enemy. One by one the Acolytes filed into the cave displaying bravery in the face of the unknown, leaving her to be the last to enter. The cave had just enough illumination from the outside light that seemed to filter through the cracks and jagged scars in the cave's roof. However, the Sith Lord had long ago gave into not trusting her eyes. ​

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Even before the male Acolyte spoke and abruptly cut off his words, she felt a strange sensation in the Force. There was something here, luring them deeper into the cave. Something primal. Something hungry. Quickly she searched her memory banks for anything she could have missed during her research of the planet. She had been quite meticulous in her examination of the fauna, predators and prey alike, that inhabited Korriban. Slowly she began to check off her mental list the animals that it could be.​

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Tu'kata hunted in packs with no fear of men or woman. The pups were even known to attack small groups, observing the weakest link then focused on taking it down. So it wasn't them. Hssiss hunted on the plains of Korriban. She eliminated them. Since this was not a tomb, that she was aware of, the threat of any Korriban Sith Zombies that guarded the resting places of the Dark Lords would not present. And if it was the walking dead, they would have attacked the moment they stepped inside. Not them.​

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She closed her eyes and stretched her senses out further via the Force, eliminating the Force signatures of the Acolytes as a cause to this disturbance. Without warning, a strong wave of Darkside energy crashed into her senses. She snapped her eyes open at once, for the source had been revealed. "Terentatek," she hissed unclasping the dangling weapon from its resting place.​

 

[Elensa Jari]

Location: Korriban Surface - Just Outside The Valley of the Dark Lords
Team: [member="Darth Venefica"] | [member="Zambrano the Hutt"] | [member="Ostanes"]

Elensa almost missed the word spat out by the Sith Lord that accompanied the group, but she felt the wave of anger and determination that swept across the group, and saw the older woman pull a lightsaber from her belt, clearly preparing for violence, though against what, the Hapan could not say. She sensed the darkness within the cave readily enough, but that same darkness assailed her no matter where she stood on this planet: it was covered in it, consumed by it, unrelenting in it's presence and far less inclined to relinquish her sense to herself. Yet clearly those steeped further in it can sense better than I, if they can distinguish something within this mess.

And if it was something that would propel a Sith Lord into battle readiness, it wasn't likely something to be toyed with.

Her breath exhaled a little more sharply as she felt fear tug at her, not the natural fear that existed to provoke adrenaline and prompt a quick fight-or-flight response, the type that one might fear if someone had just jumped out and startled you. No, this was something altogether different: visceral, primal, striking out from the darkness with all the subtlety of a turbolaser blast. It staggered her backwards, that explosion of emotion within her brain that told her to run, even though she had no understanding of what it was that might be coming to get her. Standing here is to invite death, she thought, hardly able to string together a sentence within her own mind as fear sought to overwhelm her.

It was that notion that stopped her cold, though: that sense of unmitigated fear wasn't something that she'd ever felt before, even when the Sith had first come and blown her world apart. I remember feeling shocked, angry, grieving...but fear was always that mindless, shapeless feeling in the back of her brain that she'd always done her very best to ignore. So what was this, then, an unassailable wave of dark terror? It's not originating with me: it's a projection, she recognised with a sharp inhale of breath.

The Jedi had taught her that it was possible for the Force to play tricks with the mind, though they had spoken of such things with reverence and gravity: to receive a vision from the Force was to be blessed with insight, while for others to touch upon your mind was certainly possible, but rarely happened to Jedi, with their mental discipline. Is this the same, then? She didn't know, but the realisation of it provoked a simple desire: to stay calm, focus on the moment. They'd taught her that, too: that to lose your inner equilibrium was to invite disaster. She inhaled another deep breath, her eyes focusing on the cave in front of her, where the others were watching, clearly waiting for whatever was coming. Just breathe, she thought. Inhale, gather your worries. Hold, and let them solidify. Breathe out, and let your tension flow with it. It was this that invariably forced her mind back to clarity.

Her pale fingers shook slightly as the young woman raised her lightsaber in front of her in a basic guard stance, compressing her thumb against the plasteel stud that would activate the weapon. A meter-long bar of brilliant blue light burst forth from the cylinder, highlighting for all to see that she didn't carry a Sith weapon, as they likely did. Not that it's unexpected: many Sith come from the Jedi ranks, after all. She brandished the weapon before her, pointing the tip forward, in line with her throat, her arms extended outward, elbows bent, expression impassive. Whatever it is that's coming, it had better move fast if it doesn't want to be sliced to pieces, she thought coldly.

 

[Taeli Raaf]

Location: Near the Valley of the Dark Lords
Group B
Allies: [member="Melori Raaf"] [member="Amaethon"] [member="Yvette Dusong"] [member="Vi'kas Mirtis"]

As they began moving into the Valley proper, Taeli had to sigh as a rather over eager acolyte ran into a cave system on the outskirts of the tombs. While she could understand the need to rush into exploration, there were things that could be lurking within those caves that would destroy any acolyte and might give a Sith Lord or Lady problems.

"Let's see, cave systems on Korriban are infamous for having shyracks, tuk'ata, and sometimes even terentateks lurking within them," she said aloud to the acolytes following her. "It's rather foolhardy to charge into them, so we shall be making our way further into the valley and they can deal with lurks within there."

A wave of darkness swept over her, something hungry and all too familiar to her.

"Lovely, seems they woke a terentatek in there," she sighed. "For those who haven't studied those yet, they are a creature born of Sith alchemy that feeds upon the blood of Force users. They have poisonous fangs and claws, very resistant hide to most Force powers and attacks, and razor sharp tusks that will eviscerate those not prepared to face them. Follow me."

With that that, she began leading her acolytes, if they followed that is, down into the Valley proper. Taeli knew this trip was not going to be pleasant for many of them here, but the chance to observe and look over the ruins had her too engrossed to care too much beyond making sure her sister got through unscathed. Gaining some artifacts was just going to be a bonus for this lesson of a trip.

 

[Amaethon]

Location: Valley of the Dark Lords
Allies: [member="Darth Arcanix"]@Vi'kas Mirtis[member="Yvette Dusong"][member="Melori Raaf"]

As the other Acolyte ran off towards the valley proper, Amaethon watched the idiot run off to their likely death. He very nearly cursed when Arcanix said terentatek. He had read of the Force resistant creatures and cursed the fool who made them. The Force was the greatest weapon any Sith could wield and to willingly negate that...pure idiocy.

Unhooking his lightsaber, he followed behind the Sith Lord. He did not fear his end, and yet, only a fool sought death.

 

[Lord Ajihad]

Allies: Team B

Vi'kas watched the imbecile run off into the cave by himself. He sighed, half-tempted to walk in there and kill the boy himself. When he heard of the Terentatek, he actually grinned. He had faced one of the beasts on Yavin 4, and had actually managed to kill it. Terentateks were vicious beasts, but rather fun, if you got a chance to fight one... and live.

He still felt the presence tugging at his conscience. He could feel it pulling him towards the Valley of the Dark Lords. It seemed to him that nobody else in his group could feel this presence, but he couldn't be sure. He would wait until he knew where exactly he was supposed to go, then slip away from his group. After all, he was an assassin. And disappearing was what assassins did best. Besides killing, of course.