Prazutis silently walked aboard his imperial shuttle, taking it over his delta shuttle as for the most part, the ship would rarely see any landings. No point in going in stealthily if the ship would be there and gone at each destination, and if most destinations would be in friendly space.
Prazutis was told that once the proper forms were completed and his new apprentice, one off-Trandoshan female, was ready, she would be accompanying him on this trip. However, as Prazutis knew what would soon be seen by him and the female, he wondered how she would react within the force. He had heard the screams of Dathomir as it was obliterated... he wondered if he would hear them again?
However he supposed that was mostly the point of this venture.
In any case, now he only awaited the arrival of his apprentice and his pilot, ready to head out and find what it was he was looking for.
Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
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Neive Undant
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Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
His Apprentice wasn't long following up Prazutis. Ahron walked towards the ship, not with a purpose, but also not deliberately wasting time. Her foray with the force on their first meeting had done something to her, and now she was in a constant crippling level of pain. The empire dealt with that quite heavy-handedly, desiring to keep her on board due to the potential she had. As she walked up the boarding ramp, she looked over the edge with lazy curiosity. "Hmm... Higher than I had though..." She whispered, going back to walking.
It had taken her a little time to regain the ability to focus on a task, but she was still easily distracted by some things. Hence her quick stop on the ramp to examine the fall she had taken not long beforehand. She looked at Prazutis, but didn't have all that much to say before going and sitting down in the first available chair to her, looking around the room. "If this ride will be anything like my last, it should be interesting..." She said more to herself than anything, her tone dazed and slow.
It had taken her a little time to regain the ability to focus on a task, but she was still easily distracted by some things. Hence her quick stop on the ramp to examine the fall she had taken not long beforehand. She looked at Prazutis, but didn't have all that much to say before going and sitting down in the first available chair to her, looking around the room. "If this ride will be anything like my last, it should be interesting..." She said more to herself than anything, her tone dazed and slow.
Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
The sound of Etro’s quiet steps were muffled by the solid floors. He strolled through a hallway in his black flight suit, reading the mission briefing on his data pad as he walked. Jom stopped to look at his chrono, murmuring to himself as he saw the time.
“Blast it. I’m running behind schedule.”
He quickened his pace, as he rapidly read through the rest of the briefing.
“Alright, just a simple mission.”
As he reached the durasteel doors opening to the landing pad, he closed the data pad down.
The doors hissed open to reveal the landing pad, and the ship he was to pilot. The Lambda-class shuttle was sitting there with its loading ramp down. While it was no TIE Fighter, Lambda’s were always a pleasure to work with.
As Etro approached the ramp, he could hear movement inside. Prazutis was already there. Walking up the ramp at a brisk pace, he saluted to the inquisitor and apologized.
“Sorry for keeping you waiting, sir.”
An almost inaudible sound from behind Jom revealed to be the pale reptilian sitting, ready to go. She looked to be in better health than the last time he had seen her. Etro to her nodded in acknowledgment, and refocused his attention to Prazutis.
“Are you ready to depart, sir?”
“Blast it. I’m running behind schedule.”
He quickened his pace, as he rapidly read through the rest of the briefing.
“Alright, just a simple mission.”
As he reached the durasteel doors opening to the landing pad, he closed the data pad down.
The doors hissed open to reveal the landing pad, and the ship he was to pilot. The Lambda-class shuttle was sitting there with its loading ramp down. While it was no TIE Fighter, Lambda’s were always a pleasure to work with.
As Etro approached the ramp, he could hear movement inside. Prazutis was already there. Walking up the ramp at a brisk pace, he saluted to the inquisitor and apologized.
“Sorry for keeping you waiting, sir.”
An almost inaudible sound from behind Jom revealed to be the pale reptilian sitting, ready to go. She looked to be in better health than the last time he had seen her. Etro to her nodded in acknowledgment, and refocused his attention to Prazutis.
“Are you ready to depart, sir?”
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Neive Undant
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Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
“Pilot.”
He blankly acknowledged as he began preparations for takeoff. Prazutis himself was a pilot, but as the lesser experienced pilots needed practice and training, he knew it would be a good opportunity for the young man to both show his skill and learn a bit about the astrogation systems.
“Not sure what you’ve heard about the mission, but first stop is going to be Moraband. Take care not to land but we’ll need to get in near the coordinates on the computer.”
Prazutis had already plugged in the first coordinates for the trip as he walked back to the main area of the ship, adjusting the new cloth that now hung over his shoulders and back, the shoulder mounted cloths signifying his higher rank now threatening to slightly slip off their usual spots before Prazutis reaches out blankly with the force, pulling them to their original spots and holding them in place. He then took a seat across from Rol, thinking to himself as he let the pilot take the ship out of Prakith’s atmosphere and away from the planet.
“When we reach some of these locations, please let me know if you feel... discomfort. Many of the places we’re going have seen large scale disasters, and echoes of the dead still haunt the lands... take care to remember the difference between the call of the force within you and the calls of the dead.”
Prazutis looked down, crossing his arms as he thought to himself. He was concerned about his new apprentice’s well being, of course, but he wondered how she would react, raced with the tormented screams of those long dead.
“If you hear screams clearly around you, I will do my best to mitigate their volume by redirecting the energy of the force, but there’s not much more I can do to help you.”
He blankly acknowledged as he began preparations for takeoff. Prazutis himself was a pilot, but as the lesser experienced pilots needed practice and training, he knew it would be a good opportunity for the young man to both show his skill and learn a bit about the astrogation systems.
“Not sure what you’ve heard about the mission, but first stop is going to be Moraband. Take care not to land but we’ll need to get in near the coordinates on the computer.”
Prazutis had already plugged in the first coordinates for the trip as he walked back to the main area of the ship, adjusting the new cloth that now hung over his shoulders and back, the shoulder mounted cloths signifying his higher rank now threatening to slightly slip off their usual spots before Prazutis reaches out blankly with the force, pulling them to their original spots and holding them in place. He then took a seat across from Rol, thinking to himself as he let the pilot take the ship out of Prakith’s atmosphere and away from the planet.
“When we reach some of these locations, please let me know if you feel... discomfort. Many of the places we’re going have seen large scale disasters, and echoes of the dead still haunt the lands... take care to remember the difference between the call of the force within you and the calls of the dead.”
Prazutis looked down, crossing his arms as he thought to himself. He was concerned about his new apprentice’s well being, of course, but he wondered how she would react, raced with the tormented screams of those long dead.
“If you hear screams clearly around you, I will do my best to mitigate their volume by redirecting the energy of the force, but there’s not much more I can do to help you.”
Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
"If I... Feel anything..." Ahron said, slowly lifting a hand and looking it over carefully. "I feel much... But I can't make sense of it," She said, furrowing her brow. "Like being in a room and everyone is talking. So many feelings... I cannot make sense of any of them, just like too many voices make it hard to listen to one person," She said, resting her head against the bulkhead, closing her eyes. "But I can feel it there. I know it's there. As if I could reach out and touch it as readily as I could you..." She explained, opening her eyes again.
"The dead do not fear me, nor I, them. Should the force allow them to reach out to me then so be it," She said, taking a deep breath. "I've never been good at learning the easy way, but if it becomes too much I will tell you," Ahron smiled strangely. "I will survive. If I don't, well, maybe that just means I don't deserve the..." She paused, waving her hand in a circular motion as if trying to recall something. "Hype?" She asked, shrugging. "No matter. What happens will happen."
"The dead do not fear me, nor I, them. Should the force allow them to reach out to me then so be it," She said, taking a deep breath. "I've never been good at learning the easy way, but if it becomes too much I will tell you," Ahron smiled strangely. "I will survive. If I don't, well, maybe that just means I don't deserve the..." She paused, waving her hand in a circular motion as if trying to recall something. "Hype?" She asked, shrugging. "No matter. What happens will happen."
Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
Jom nodded as the inquisitor briefly explained the mission, and the first destination. Once again, the exact coordinates were in the navicomputer.
As Etro made his way to the cockpit, he made sure the safety on his E-11 was on, and set it aside. On a mission with a party as small as this, one had to be armed in preparation of attack. He had also recently been spending more time in the shooting range and sparring with training droids, when he wasn’t on duty or in the flight simulator of course, once he realized how hopelessly ineffective he was in ground combat. Jom had little to no downtime at this stage, but if it would saved his life, he would continue.
Jom sat down in the pilots seat, and prepped for flight. As he went through the routine actions, Etro checked the coordinates already inputted into the navicomputer. It was Moraband all right. It felt silly to double check the work of a being as cunning as Prazutis, but it was always a good habit to be able to fend for yourself. When the shuttle was finally prepared, he engaged the upwards thrusters and closed the loading ramp. As the ship raised from the ground, Jom disengaged the landing gears. Toggling a few more switches and one final button on the console above his head, and the main thrusters flared to life, Etro took the throttle and eased the Lambda into the sky.
It was a few moments before the white ship flew above the planet’s atmosphere, but when it did, the contrast between the planet and the cold void of space was a spectacular sight. “Never mind that.” He thought to himself.
Jom couldn’t jump to hyperspace just yet. It would be a few klicks out before the pilot had taken the shuttle out of Prakith’s gravity well. As the distance closed in, Etro keyed the console a few times and activated the hyperdrive.
“Jumping to hyperspace now.”
As the hyperdrive whirred to life with a him, Etro pulled a final lever, and gazed through the viewport as the glimmering stars around him stretched into blurring lines, only to be over taken by a blue vortex, enshrouding the Imperial ship. The party of three was now in hyperspace.
As voices sounded behind him, some more hushed than others, Jom tried to put any other thoughts apart from the mission at hand out of his mind. There could be no mistakes in front of his superiors.
As Etro made his way to the cockpit, he made sure the safety on his E-11 was on, and set it aside. On a mission with a party as small as this, one had to be armed in preparation of attack. He had also recently been spending more time in the shooting range and sparring with training droids, when he wasn’t on duty or in the flight simulator of course, once he realized how hopelessly ineffective he was in ground combat. Jom had little to no downtime at this stage, but if it would saved his life, he would continue.
Jom sat down in the pilots seat, and prepped for flight. As he went through the routine actions, Etro checked the coordinates already inputted into the navicomputer. It was Moraband all right. It felt silly to double check the work of a being as cunning as Prazutis, but it was always a good habit to be able to fend for yourself. When the shuttle was finally prepared, he engaged the upwards thrusters and closed the loading ramp. As the ship raised from the ground, Jom disengaged the landing gears. Toggling a few more switches and one final button on the console above his head, and the main thrusters flared to life, Etro took the throttle and eased the Lambda into the sky.
It was a few moments before the white ship flew above the planet’s atmosphere, but when it did, the contrast between the planet and the cold void of space was a spectacular sight. “Never mind that.” He thought to himself.
Jom couldn’t jump to hyperspace just yet. It would be a few klicks out before the pilot had taken the shuttle out of Prakith’s gravity well. As the distance closed in, Etro keyed the console a few times and activated the hyperdrive.
“Jumping to hyperspace now.”
As the hyperdrive whirred to life with a him, Etro pulled a final lever, and gazed through the viewport as the glimmering stars around him stretched into blurring lines, only to be over taken by a blue vortex, enshrouding the Imperial ship. The party of three was now in hyperspace.
As voices sounded behind him, some more hushed than others, Jom tried to put any other thoughts apart from the mission at hand out of his mind. There could be no mistakes in front of his superiors.
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Neive Undant
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Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
Prazutis sighed as he felt the artificial gravity of the ship replace that of Prakith. Once more, it was less of a needed breath and more of a noise made to emphasize his concern. He told Vassyl he would keep this woman on the path of neutrality, of balance within the force. But these dark places they needed to visit, for Prazutis’ own research... what would they do to his new apprentice?
Prazutis wasn’t sure, but he hoped he could prevent this question from being answered.
As the red, deserted wasteland planet came into view as the group came out of hyperspace, already Prazutis could feel the connection with the planet, as its connection to the dark side was one that was stronger than any other planet.
“Exact coordinates should take us straight into the Valley of the Dark Lords... don’t fly too close to the ground, but let us get a good view of it, along with the temple.”
Prazutis kept his senses over his apprentice, gauging her reactions. He didn’t want the dark side to have a grip over her like it did him... and not just because of the Empire’s rulings.
Prazutis wasn’t sure, but he hoped he could prevent this question from being answered.
As the red, deserted wasteland planet came into view as the group came out of hyperspace, already Prazutis could feel the connection with the planet, as its connection to the dark side was one that was stronger than any other planet.
“Exact coordinates should take us straight into the Valley of the Dark Lords... don’t fly too close to the ground, but let us get a good view of it, along with the temple.”
Prazutis kept his senses over his apprentice, gauging her reactions. He didn’t want the dark side to have a grip over her like it did him... and not just because of the Empire’s rulings.
Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
Ahron was quiet for most of the trip, aside from the occasional strange mutterings of various weird shower thoughts that came to mind. Nothing of grand importance, just little obnoxiously broad philosophical questions, like if the Wookies had similar vocal construction as humans, then why has she never met one who could speak galactic basic? Why could she speak Galactic Basic while also lacking lips with the same functionality as a human? After this realization, she sat there making strange vocalizations of various vowel and plosive sounds to figure out where the sounds actually came from while she was speaking. See? Nothing of consequence.
Once they exited Hyperspace, Ahron could immediately feel something new. Dark, in fact. It was faint, but it stood out in the flood of information she was constantly receiving, being the cause of her sedated state. She paused, taking a breath. She then closed her eyes, seeking out the oddity, suppressing everything else as best she could. It didn't do what she wanted it too, not exactly. The roiling, storming sea that was the force in her mind, causing such chaos was ever present, but she could feel something below the surface. She took another breath, as if preparing to dive into a pool, and took the risk of collapsing in pain yet again.
It didn't hurt...
She "opened" her eyes, withdrawing internally somewhere, that was certainly not her own mind and looked around. There was nothing. Just an empty plane she stood on which lacked any form of definition. A near eternal twilight as far as she could see. She could feel a disconnect from her body. It was strange. She was aware of her body. She could feel it. She could smell the inside of the ship and she could feel the metal on her feet and tail, but it was distant compared to where she stood right now. Despite being in nothing in every sense of the word, it currently felt more present than her actual reality.
She looked down at her hand, and the motion, despite being slow, blurred up, trailing through the air as her motions disturbed whatever constituted the air in this place. Air. As if she were physically here. That was rich of her. She looked around her again, and then she saw what she was here to look for. There was something in the distance that broke the Twilight of this scape, drawing her attention. It was coming closer, and closer.
She took stock of what it was she was looking at. It was certainly beyond the ship she was on. She could see the curvature of the planet they were approaching pushing the force out, like a ball in a pool of water, but she could also tell it was flowing through the planet as well. They were heading directly for the spot that was a formless blot of blackness, and it was starting to unnerve her. She had a sneaking suspicion this was where they were heading. Her suspicions were only closer to being confirmed, the closer they got to the planet.
She wasn't that worried. Prazutis said he could push the force away from her. If anything went bad, he could do that, and if it was worse than that, she could just be sedated again. If she died, well, she was dead. She didn't have to worry about this anymore then. So she steeled herself as the darkness grew closer and closer, turning to answer yet another question she had.
If she could sense this... Disturbance, as well as the planet... Why couldn't she see the crew? She furrowed her brow, looking side to side as she tried to orient herself. He was in front of her, relative to her physical being. What was in front of her? What direction if directions even existed in the way she understood them, did she need to look?
He's right there... She heard, disembodied. A woman's voice. Her voice. Softer, almost purer than her own voice. A voice of beauty and grace, alien to her actual voice, but her voice none the less. She looked around to find the source, but there was nothing else around. "Right where?" She asked, her voice echoing out. Definitely, her voice, just not spoken by her.
Right... There... Ahron heard once again, and she slowly turned her head to look in the only place it felt natural to look. Nothing. But she didn't look away. She just continued to stare at this point in space, knowing there was a reason to do so. Focus... He is there... You simply need to reach... the voice added, forcing Ahron to take another breath. He would exude the force... It would be stronger with him... She reached out again and was met with darkness similar to the one they were heading towards, only less pervasive on the plane. She reached out further, screwing up her face in the effort, but she still couldn't see it. She was just feeling it.
"Prazutis... Why can't I see him? Or the Pilot?" Ahron asked, looking around. That voice seemed to answer her before, maybe it would again. She turned right around and yelped as there was a figure standing right behind her. Far more real than she could imagine, but certainly not someone who was one the ship. No... No, this person looked like her. It was her?
"Why can't you see Prazutis or the Pilot?" The Figure asked, that voice returning with a source. Most of the figure was covered by robes akin to her own, so Ahron couldn't fully see anything. Just enough to know they bore a striking resemblance with each other.
"Uh..." Ahron mumbled, not exactly knowing what it was she was supposed to answer with. "Right. Why can't I do that?" She asked, walking up to the figure.
"You can," the Figure said, looking at a spot. "You just don't want too," She added, turning her hooded head back to Ahron.
"But I can see that perfectly fine!" She snapped, holding her hand back towards the spot the caused her to be here in the first place.
The Figure looked at it, then at Ahron, shaking her head. "No... You can't... You just can't miss it..." The figure explained, taking a breath, letting it out as a sigh. "It hurt you... And now you are scared... Pushing it away. Stop pushing it away..." The Figure said with a smile tinging her voice.
Ahron scowled a little, looking at the blotch of darkness. "I'm not afraid of it..." She hissed, looking back at the figure. "I am not afraid of the force!" She snapped, clenching her fists and narrowing her eyes.
"Good... Fear turns to anger Ahron..." Another voice piped in, this one hoarse and gritty. The figure before her looked displeased at the sound of this voice, letting out a deep, exasperated sigh. Ahron turned, a saw a similar figure, only this one was disfigured. Hunched over, dragging its feet and tail with the sound of dried, worn skin and scale. Ahron lifted her hand to her neck naturally, starting to scratch. Whatever burst of emotion she had was gone as she turned to the first figure.
"Okay, maybe I'm just a little scared..." Ahron muttered, hugging herself and looking down. "So what, I think I have a little right to be scared! What happened last time I tried to dip into the force? It almost killed me!"
"Admitting your fear is a weakness!" The gritty voice snarled, shaking its head as it walked in front of Ahron, the two figures now standing before her. "Let it control you and you deserve it!"
"But acknowledging it is your greatest strength," The other, far prettier figure smiled at her, holding her hands together in front of her, looking at the disfigurement. "How you react to things you are afraid of makes the difference. This is not a time where fighting it will help you..." She explained.
"The force would destroy you..." The disfigured growled. "You know this..."
Ahron frowned, looking at the Disfigured. "How do you know I know this?" She asked, hugging herself tightly.
The two figures looked at each other, then removed their hoods. They were both her... Different versions of her. She was plain, ordinary, unassuming. The fair voiced one, was stunning. Proud, free, and beautiful. Everything a girl dreamed they could be, and the other was vicious, violent, and disfigured, as she had already started to see. Corrupted and scarred from seeming years of torment and abuse. They looked at her, their eyes the only real similarity between all three of them. "Because we are you..." They stated in unison.
Ahron stared, looking between the two versions of herself, trying to figure this out, but alas, she had no idea how to even begin to approach pulling this apart, so she took it at face value. These were her, they knew what she knew, only, they knew it better than she did? She took a breath and waved her arms as if trying to push away all the confusion and focus. "Alright... Prazutis and the Pilot... That blotch in the distance. How can I see them?" She asked.
"Do not let your fear of the force dictate what you see and don't see. Be calm and confident." The Light smiled, taking several steps to the side, holding her hand out to present an empty space.
"Seize that fear if you have too, and use it to push forward towards your goals," The Dark growled, looking to the same spot. "The power is there, you need only bend it to your will," It snarled.
"Though if you take too much... It will destroy you," The both added, looking at Ahron carefully, expectantly. They were waiting.
Ahron looked at the spot, thinking of the things that were said to her. How she knew these things, was not important. She knew them, and she would be wise to listen as if she could not even listen to herself, who could she listen too? She was afraid. She was afraid of the pain, and the helplessness she had been subjected too. She was afraid of the fact she had to be sedated now to keep her mind in the right place. But if she lived in fear that would be her life, so she pushed it aside, opening her eyes.
She was mad, and she could feel that building up in her, but anger was useless. It was a good catalyst, but worthless if not controlled so she worked to relax, stopping her anger from taking over completely. Determined. The right mix of angry, afraid, but controlled and collected. Confident. Bit by bit, she searched for the lense that distorted her vision of the force and sought to break it down. She could feel it start to crumble, pulling down the barriers, stopping herself before pulling down too much, but not before getting a jolt of electricity from what was behind that barrier. They protected her just as much as they hindered her, but when she looked again, she could see Prazutis.
He was a dark silhouette on the twilight backdrop, and then she turned and could see the Pilot. Slightly lighter. He wasn't evil, but he wasn't a paragon. She could respect that. Then she turned to the splotch, and it was far more defined. It looked to be a Valley, and there was just darkness radiating from it. It was massive! She had never in her life experienced an aspect of the force that was this powerful.
Then she could hear it. The screams. They were distant, but so were they. But she had that warning. She had that moment to prepare herself. A moment, she appreciated. Though, sadly...
... It wasn't enough.
They entered the Valley of Darkness and it hit her like nothing she had ever experienced before. The screams, the agony, the anger and the fear were immense. Several hundred orders of magnitude stronger than what they had been on just moments before entering. She could feel all of it. She gasped loudly, grabbing her head and struggling to stay on her feet as the rush of negative emotion flowed over her. Below her she could see dark spectres that appeared to be disfigured people of all species writhing, reaching out pleadingly for her to end their eternal suffering.
She needed to get out! She couldn't stay here, Prazutis had warned her. Screams clear all around her, the spectres of the tormented dead pleading for her to help them and she couldn't. If this wasn't exactly what Prazutis was talking about she didn't want to know how much worse it could get than this. She stopped, trying to push it all away, trying to crawl back out of the ocean of force she had dived into to her dismay, she couldn't...
She collapsed, grabbing her horns and shaking her head. "Help me!" She screamed, unable to take it anymore. Her Doppelgangers were gone, she could no longer find the force of Prazutis or the Pilot, she was alone and incapable of even helping herself...
------
Outside of her mind, in the physical realm, she was actually rather boring. She had stopped making such silly sounds some time ago and had instead, fallen into a trance. She was gone. Seemingly, nothing was in control of her body, and it wasn't responding to any stimuli. She sat, as they drew closer and closer to the planet. Closer to the Valley, unmoving. Oblivious to any conversation taking place.
Though, as they drew closer, it wasn't hard for Prazutis to sense the changes in Ahron. She was struggling with something, but what, wasn't clear to see. They drew closer and closer to the coordinates, closer and closer to the valley, and as if they crossed an unseen line, Ahron jerked, tensing up, her face a mix of pain and fear. Her hands clenched up, claws digging into the flesh of her hands and her legs kicked out as if she were trying to escape something.
She failed to do that, tears starting to roll down her face as she gurgled, hands grabbing at her face, smearing green blood across the white scales of her cheeks. "Help..." She croaked, voice strained as she started to shake. "Help! She said again, this time with more force, curling over onto herself as if to hide.
Once they exited Hyperspace, Ahron could immediately feel something new. Dark, in fact. It was faint, but it stood out in the flood of information she was constantly receiving, being the cause of her sedated state. She paused, taking a breath. She then closed her eyes, seeking out the oddity, suppressing everything else as best she could. It didn't do what she wanted it too, not exactly. The roiling, storming sea that was the force in her mind, causing such chaos was ever present, but she could feel something below the surface. She took another breath, as if preparing to dive into a pool, and took the risk of collapsing in pain yet again.
It didn't hurt...
She "opened" her eyes, withdrawing internally somewhere, that was certainly not her own mind and looked around. There was nothing. Just an empty plane she stood on which lacked any form of definition. A near eternal twilight as far as she could see. She could feel a disconnect from her body. It was strange. She was aware of her body. She could feel it. She could smell the inside of the ship and she could feel the metal on her feet and tail, but it was distant compared to where she stood right now. Despite being in nothing in every sense of the word, it currently felt more present than her actual reality.
She looked down at her hand, and the motion, despite being slow, blurred up, trailing through the air as her motions disturbed whatever constituted the air in this place. Air. As if she were physically here. That was rich of her. She looked around her again, and then she saw what she was here to look for. There was something in the distance that broke the Twilight of this scape, drawing her attention. It was coming closer, and closer.
She took stock of what it was she was looking at. It was certainly beyond the ship she was on. She could see the curvature of the planet they were approaching pushing the force out, like a ball in a pool of water, but she could also tell it was flowing through the planet as well. They were heading directly for the spot that was a formless blot of blackness, and it was starting to unnerve her. She had a sneaking suspicion this was where they were heading. Her suspicions were only closer to being confirmed, the closer they got to the planet.
She wasn't that worried. Prazutis said he could push the force away from her. If anything went bad, he could do that, and if it was worse than that, she could just be sedated again. If she died, well, she was dead. She didn't have to worry about this anymore then. So she steeled herself as the darkness grew closer and closer, turning to answer yet another question she had.
If she could sense this... Disturbance, as well as the planet... Why couldn't she see the crew? She furrowed her brow, looking side to side as she tried to orient herself. He was in front of her, relative to her physical being. What was in front of her? What direction if directions even existed in the way she understood them, did she need to look?
He's right there... She heard, disembodied. A woman's voice. Her voice. Softer, almost purer than her own voice. A voice of beauty and grace, alien to her actual voice, but her voice none the less. She looked around to find the source, but there was nothing else around. "Right where?" She asked, her voice echoing out. Definitely, her voice, just not spoken by her.
Right... There... Ahron heard once again, and she slowly turned her head to look in the only place it felt natural to look. Nothing. But she didn't look away. She just continued to stare at this point in space, knowing there was a reason to do so. Focus... He is there... You simply need to reach... the voice added, forcing Ahron to take another breath. He would exude the force... It would be stronger with him... She reached out again and was met with darkness similar to the one they were heading towards, only less pervasive on the plane. She reached out further, screwing up her face in the effort, but she still couldn't see it. She was just feeling it.
"Prazutis... Why can't I see him? Or the Pilot?" Ahron asked, looking around. That voice seemed to answer her before, maybe it would again. She turned right around and yelped as there was a figure standing right behind her. Far more real than she could imagine, but certainly not someone who was one the ship. No... No, this person looked like her. It was her?
"Why can't you see Prazutis or the Pilot?" The Figure asked, that voice returning with a source. Most of the figure was covered by robes akin to her own, so Ahron couldn't fully see anything. Just enough to know they bore a striking resemblance with each other.
"Uh..." Ahron mumbled, not exactly knowing what it was she was supposed to answer with. "Right. Why can't I do that?" She asked, walking up to the figure.
"You can," the Figure said, looking at a spot. "You just don't want too," She added, turning her hooded head back to Ahron.
"But I can see that perfectly fine!" She snapped, holding her hand back towards the spot the caused her to be here in the first place.
The Figure looked at it, then at Ahron, shaking her head. "No... You can't... You just can't miss it..." The figure explained, taking a breath, letting it out as a sigh. "It hurt you... And now you are scared... Pushing it away. Stop pushing it away..." The Figure said with a smile tinging her voice.
Ahron scowled a little, looking at the blotch of darkness. "I'm not afraid of it..." She hissed, looking back at the figure. "I am not afraid of the force!" She snapped, clenching her fists and narrowing her eyes.
"Good... Fear turns to anger Ahron..." Another voice piped in, this one hoarse and gritty. The figure before her looked displeased at the sound of this voice, letting out a deep, exasperated sigh. Ahron turned, a saw a similar figure, only this one was disfigured. Hunched over, dragging its feet and tail with the sound of dried, worn skin and scale. Ahron lifted her hand to her neck naturally, starting to scratch. Whatever burst of emotion she had was gone as she turned to the first figure.
"Okay, maybe I'm just a little scared..." Ahron muttered, hugging herself and looking down. "So what, I think I have a little right to be scared! What happened last time I tried to dip into the force? It almost killed me!"
"Admitting your fear is a weakness!" The gritty voice snarled, shaking its head as it walked in front of Ahron, the two figures now standing before her. "Let it control you and you deserve it!"
"But acknowledging it is your greatest strength," The other, far prettier figure smiled at her, holding her hands together in front of her, looking at the disfigurement. "How you react to things you are afraid of makes the difference. This is not a time where fighting it will help you..." She explained.
"The force would destroy you..." The disfigured growled. "You know this..."
Ahron frowned, looking at the Disfigured. "How do you know I know this?" She asked, hugging herself tightly.
The two figures looked at each other, then removed their hoods. They were both her... Different versions of her. She was plain, ordinary, unassuming. The fair voiced one, was stunning. Proud, free, and beautiful. Everything a girl dreamed they could be, and the other was vicious, violent, and disfigured, as she had already started to see. Corrupted and scarred from seeming years of torment and abuse. They looked at her, their eyes the only real similarity between all three of them. "Because we are you..." They stated in unison.
Ahron stared, looking between the two versions of herself, trying to figure this out, but alas, she had no idea how to even begin to approach pulling this apart, so she took it at face value. These were her, they knew what she knew, only, they knew it better than she did? She took a breath and waved her arms as if trying to push away all the confusion and focus. "Alright... Prazutis and the Pilot... That blotch in the distance. How can I see them?" She asked.
"Do not let your fear of the force dictate what you see and don't see. Be calm and confident." The Light smiled, taking several steps to the side, holding her hand out to present an empty space.
"Seize that fear if you have too, and use it to push forward towards your goals," The Dark growled, looking to the same spot. "The power is there, you need only bend it to your will," It snarled.
"Though if you take too much... It will destroy you," The both added, looking at Ahron carefully, expectantly. They were waiting.
Ahron looked at the spot, thinking of the things that were said to her. How she knew these things, was not important. She knew them, and she would be wise to listen as if she could not even listen to herself, who could she listen too? She was afraid. She was afraid of the pain, and the helplessness she had been subjected too. She was afraid of the fact she had to be sedated now to keep her mind in the right place. But if she lived in fear that would be her life, so she pushed it aside, opening her eyes.
She was mad, and she could feel that building up in her, but anger was useless. It was a good catalyst, but worthless if not controlled so she worked to relax, stopping her anger from taking over completely. Determined. The right mix of angry, afraid, but controlled and collected. Confident. Bit by bit, she searched for the lense that distorted her vision of the force and sought to break it down. She could feel it start to crumble, pulling down the barriers, stopping herself before pulling down too much, but not before getting a jolt of electricity from what was behind that barrier. They protected her just as much as they hindered her, but when she looked again, she could see Prazutis.
He was a dark silhouette on the twilight backdrop, and then she turned and could see the Pilot. Slightly lighter. He wasn't evil, but he wasn't a paragon. She could respect that. Then she turned to the splotch, and it was far more defined. It looked to be a Valley, and there was just darkness radiating from it. It was massive! She had never in her life experienced an aspect of the force that was this powerful.
Then she could hear it. The screams. They were distant, but so were they. But she had that warning. She had that moment to prepare herself. A moment, she appreciated. Though, sadly...
... It wasn't enough.
They entered the Valley of Darkness and it hit her like nothing she had ever experienced before. The screams, the agony, the anger and the fear were immense. Several hundred orders of magnitude stronger than what they had been on just moments before entering. She could feel all of it. She gasped loudly, grabbing her head and struggling to stay on her feet as the rush of negative emotion flowed over her. Below her she could see dark spectres that appeared to be disfigured people of all species writhing, reaching out pleadingly for her to end their eternal suffering.
She needed to get out! She couldn't stay here, Prazutis had warned her. Screams clear all around her, the spectres of the tormented dead pleading for her to help them and she couldn't. If this wasn't exactly what Prazutis was talking about she didn't want to know how much worse it could get than this. She stopped, trying to push it all away, trying to crawl back out of the ocean of force she had dived into to her dismay, she couldn't...
She collapsed, grabbing her horns and shaking her head. "Help me!" She screamed, unable to take it anymore. Her Doppelgangers were gone, she could no longer find the force of Prazutis or the Pilot, she was alone and incapable of even helping herself...
------
Outside of her mind, in the physical realm, she was actually rather boring. She had stopped making such silly sounds some time ago and had instead, fallen into a trance. She was gone. Seemingly, nothing was in control of her body, and it wasn't responding to any stimuli. She sat, as they drew closer and closer to the planet. Closer to the Valley, unmoving. Oblivious to any conversation taking place.
Though, as they drew closer, it wasn't hard for Prazutis to sense the changes in Ahron. She was struggling with something, but what, wasn't clear to see. They drew closer and closer to the coordinates, closer and closer to the valley, and as if they crossed an unseen line, Ahron jerked, tensing up, her face a mix of pain and fear. Her hands clenched up, claws digging into the flesh of her hands and her legs kicked out as if she were trying to escape something.
She failed to do that, tears starting to roll down her face as she gurgled, hands grabbing at her face, smearing green blood across the white scales of her cheeks. "Help..." She croaked, voice strained as she started to shake. "Help! She said again, this time with more force, curling over onto herself as if to hide.
Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
The menacing oceans of red sand felt as if they could swallow him whole. The planet of Moraband had laid claim to an infamous and brutal reputation in history. It was known throughout the galaxy as an ancient Sith world, although it appeared to be long abandoned. Or, at least, one could only hope it was.
The shuttle soared high over the planets unfavorable surface, with its occupants rather silent. Jom focused on his work, bringing the shuttle down to a glide low to the ground, per the inquisitor’s orders. Reaching on the panel above his head, the man flipped two neighboring switches, and lowered his armored hand to a lever down in the controls in front of him. The main thrusters on the ship lowered the once intense blaze of light to a more neutral hue, as the shuttle slowed its speed.
Looking up from the controls, Etro pulled the ship higher above the ground as a great valley approached. Here they were. It looked to be an ruin, lost in time. What appeared to be once great statues and rock formations now crumbling and excavated. It looked to have been more recently claimed by the present. But who would dare excavating a place like this? What was there to gain on this barren world? These questions could not be answered. There was a job to be done, and he didn’t want to disappoint the inquisitor and the newer being that appeared to now be his apprentice. He wouldn’t be able bear the shame.
Although the pilot doubted that this wasn’t the right place, he looked once more to the coordinates. They were in the right place. The alcoves of rock and sand felt as if filled with malice and evil. It was actually rather unsettling. No wonder the ancient Sith were drawn to this place. Even non force users could feel the darkness radiating from the place.
He was about to call back to his superior when the silence was broken. It started out to sounded like gurgling. Something was not right. His helmet picked up a faint voice. Almost a whisper, or murmur. He couldn’t make out what it was saying. His confusion was no more, overtaken by surprise when a shriek rattled his bones. It was an eardrum-breaking plea for help. Something had gone terribly wrong, but he couldn’t just leave the controls of the shuttle. Not now, when they were in the atmosphere in the middle of the mission. They would crash.
Trying to look backwards in his chair without crashing the ship, Etro couldn’t see anything. Was it the voice of the reptilian female? If so, what had happened. Surely it couldn’t be of the inquisitor’s doing. Although mysterious, and somewhat intimidating, the man had never struck him as one for violence against the innocent. No, it couldn’t be him. But what could it be? Had someone snuck aboard the ship? He knew the inquisitor could probably handle it, but Jom called back either way.
“Is everyone alright, sir? Is there anything I can do?”
There was probably little he could do, but Jom had to at least ask. It was the least the man could do. The thought struck Etro, could it be the female having a negative reaction to the planet, similar to the first time she had traveled with them? That was quite possible. Either way, the situation could most likely be resolved. He did hope both passengers were unharmed.
The shuttle soared high over the planets unfavorable surface, with its occupants rather silent. Jom focused on his work, bringing the shuttle down to a glide low to the ground, per the inquisitor’s orders. Reaching on the panel above his head, the man flipped two neighboring switches, and lowered his armored hand to a lever down in the controls in front of him. The main thrusters on the ship lowered the once intense blaze of light to a more neutral hue, as the shuttle slowed its speed.
Looking up from the controls, Etro pulled the ship higher above the ground as a great valley approached. Here they were. It looked to be an ruin, lost in time. What appeared to be once great statues and rock formations now crumbling and excavated. It looked to have been more recently claimed by the present. But who would dare excavating a place like this? What was there to gain on this barren world? These questions could not be answered. There was a job to be done, and he didn’t want to disappoint the inquisitor and the newer being that appeared to now be his apprentice. He wouldn’t be able bear the shame.
Although the pilot doubted that this wasn’t the right place, he looked once more to the coordinates. They were in the right place. The alcoves of rock and sand felt as if filled with malice and evil. It was actually rather unsettling. No wonder the ancient Sith were drawn to this place. Even non force users could feel the darkness radiating from the place.
He was about to call back to his superior when the silence was broken. It started out to sounded like gurgling. Something was not right. His helmet picked up a faint voice. Almost a whisper, or murmur. He couldn’t make out what it was saying. His confusion was no more, overtaken by surprise when a shriek rattled his bones. It was an eardrum-breaking plea for help. Something had gone terribly wrong, but he couldn’t just leave the controls of the shuttle. Not now, when they were in the atmosphere in the middle of the mission. They would crash.
Trying to look backwards in his chair without crashing the ship, Etro couldn’t see anything. Was it the voice of the reptilian female? If so, what had happened. Surely it couldn’t be of the inquisitor’s doing. Although mysterious, and somewhat intimidating, the man had never struck him as one for violence against the innocent. No, it couldn’t be him. But what could it be? Had someone snuck aboard the ship? He knew the inquisitor could probably handle it, but Jom called back either way.
“Is everyone alright, sir? Is there anything I can do?”
There was probably little he could do, but Jom had to at least ask. It was the least the man could do. The thought struck Etro, could it be the female having a negative reaction to the planet, similar to the first time she had traveled with them? That was quite possible. Either way, the situation could most likely be resolved. He did hope both passengers were unharmed.
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Neive Undant
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Re: Searching for Suffering(Jom, Ahron, open)
Prazutis watched the girl as she fell in pain, sensing their approach to the darkness of the Sith temple, and to the valley. Prazutis knelt down and put one of his armor’s hands onto her scales shoulder, reaching out to the flow of the force and pulling it away from her, pulling much of the information away from her senses, but leaving some to keep her from completely relaxing.
“We’re fine, Pilot. On the computer is the next set of coordinates. Fly low until you past the temple, then we may move to the next location.”
Prazutis looked back to the girl in front of him, quietly speaking to her.
“Can you make out the screams? The terror, the fear of those long dead, who were part of something much larger than themselves...these screams are what we search for now. At least for this mission. Listen for these screams, and rather than feel their pain, simply acknowledge it. They suffered, and hey were mercilessly killed... but that was then. They suffer no longer, though their voices carry on like so.”
Prazutis made sure he didn’t block these screams that emitted from Freedon Nadd’s tomb. So many souls lost in one place... it was overwhelming for many, but with Prazutis fending off much of the unneeded information from her senses, it would at least dull the pain that now drove her mad.
“We’re fine, Pilot. On the computer is the next set of coordinates. Fly low until you past the temple, then we may move to the next location.”
Prazutis looked back to the girl in front of him, quietly speaking to her.
“Can you make out the screams? The terror, the fear of those long dead, who were part of something much larger than themselves...these screams are what we search for now. At least for this mission. Listen for these screams, and rather than feel their pain, simply acknowledge it. They suffered, and hey were mercilessly killed... but that was then. They suffer no longer, though their voices carry on like so.”
Prazutis made sure he didn’t block these screams that emitted from Freedon Nadd’s tomb. So many souls lost in one place... it was overwhelming for many, but with Prazutis fending off much of the unneeded information from her senses, it would at least dull the pain that now drove her mad.