Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Jan 6, 2023 19:42:25 GMT -8
"If it manages to kill us, then we are severely lacking."Darth Rebellious scoffed at the notion. The idea that a sithspawn, even of the wyrm's caliber, could manage to kill two seasoned Sith Lords was preposterous to him. Even on the off chance that it did do so, it would only mean that they themselves were failures; lesser beings that did't deserve to live. The Kiffar's anger rose at the thought, although he didn't allow it to show externally. Internally, he allowed the emotion to stew within the pit of his being and grow. In time it would be used to fuel his might in the Dark Side.
When the saurian asked for his patience, the Dark Lord obliged. Remaining near the claw-marked table seething in silence, he watched as Dragus swap his feathered garment for a cloak of stretched faces. The grotesque attire was another flamboyant display of the Barabel's depravity, although, why he chose to dawn such garb now was an enigma. With a ranat servant sent to ready the sailer and fetch the command pendant, the Darth simply observed as the Famine Lord gathered various unlabeled vials which he threw into a satchel. When he came to the unmistakable hilt of a lightsaber, Rebellious barely paid it any mind until the terrorsaur ignited it, which made him raise an eyebrow. The irregular plasma blade crackled and resonated with a hum much louder than most standard examples of the signature weapon, indicating the inclusion of a dragite crystal in it's construction; an unstable one at that. A curious choice, but it had a theatrical flair that fit the dread-lizard's eccentric personality.
The mention of beast control brought back memories of the Dark Lord's time as an apprentice at the Kashyyyk Academy under his master, Feral Ragnos. Just as often as they were pitted against one another in sparring matches and duels for rank, the students were also forced to test themselves against nature itself. Cast out into the Shadowlands to test their abilities and endurance, they would frequently have to fight for their lives against the dangerous local fauna as well as exiled Wookiee Madclaws. Rather than endlessly fighting, the smarter students often used their Force talents to dominate the minds of the lesser beings to subdue them or use them as mounts to navigate the harsh terrain. Rebellious himself had done so on various occasions to creatures ranging from katarn and kinrath to minstyngar and wyyyschokk webweavers. He chuckled slightly at the recollection before replying."Beast control is an ability I mastered fairly early in my career. Kashyyyk's Shadowlands are unforgiving, and the creatures there are equally so. I shouldn't have any issues taming a sea-dragon."The Kiffar had intentionally given the Famine Lord a morsel of information pertaining to his past. A calculated measure to build trust in their new working relationship. Although the information was slightly vague, he knew a Sith familiar with events of the last few decades could probably piece things together fairly easily. The Kashyyyk Academy and Neo-Sith Order had long since faded from the galaxy, but he assumed the reptilian had at least heard of them, their conflicts with various Jedi groups, or even their betrayal and splintering by the Iron Fist. The academy's most famous graduate, Lord Sinistra, had even gone on to lead the Dark Tide, the precursor to the First Order. Although he wasn't the most known graduate, a fact he was actually glad of, Darth Rebellious hailed from a strong tradition of Dark Side practitioners. If the information wasn't lost on the drake, he would understand the implications and have a greater understanding of who he was currently in league with.
Smoothly, the Dark Lord moved to stand near the laboratory's doorway and paused to give Dragus the lead. He had no need to check his own equipment. His weapon belt always contained healing stems, climbing wire, binders, low-profile communications devices and a compact datapad with slicing gear all sealed away in weather-resistant pouches and sleek hard-cases for whenever a need arose. His own lightsaber would function properly on both land and in water, a fact he was completely sure of due to his meticulous maintenance habits regarding the weapon. Rebellious was well prepared at all times for any and everything that could be thrown at him.
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Jan 7, 2023 20:48:24 GMT -8
"Kashyyyk?!" Sputtered the draconian, misting the air with a spray of bloody spittle from his black lips. He faced Rebellious, standing straight backed as he observed the other Sith like a scientist peering into a microscope. The slit pupils of his red reptilian eyes looked the Kiffar up and down, while his otherworldly senses extended, probing in ways unseen. When he spoke, his hissing was a low muttering mostly intended for himself. "Hmmm, no, not enough hair to be a wookiee. Probably..." His own experience with Kashyyyk and its tall furry population was limited. He had never been there before, nor had he encountered many wookiees in his travels. What he did know had been recanted to him by the older members of his flock, ewoks that had been raised in Bright Tree Village on the Forest Moon of Endor.
They spoke of their encounter with one of Kashyyyk's sons, a towering brute of a wookiee they had welcomed into their village after they had helped a ragtag group of mostly furless outsiders defeat an army of white shelled demons. According to his flock mates, the village shaman had even used his immense command of ewok magic to banish an evil moon that had appeared in the sky over their world during those events. While he doubted the voracity of some of these claims, one thing that stuck with him was the raucous tale of what happened following their victory, during the tree top festivities that took place immediately after. Apparently the wookiee in question, after imbibing several animal bladders of fermented mattberry juice, became a little handsy with some of the village's furry maidens. That was probably putting it lightly, but given Dragus' own perverted proclivities he was hardly in a position to judge. Still, it was made clear to him that the species as a whole were notorious sexual predators with an appetite for the supple ewok figure, what with their shapely bosoms and prestigious booties.
Rebellious might not have been a wookiee himself, but the time he spent amongst them was sure to have had a bad influence on the Sith. He would need to keep a closer eye on his visitor, especially around his harem. The last thing he needed was some Kifwoks added to his menagerie.
With the torch held aloft in his right claw, Dragus stepped out into the hall and began to lead them towards the spiral staircase that descended to the lower levels of the fort. As the luminance projected by the light source in his grip temporarily banished the darkness, it also caught the occasional form of a scurrying ranat or pair of marching night ewoks carrying obsidian tipped spears or gnarled headed mallets. The fort was unusually animate given the time of day, though it stood to reason that its inhabitants were on high alert given Umaroth's latest rampage. Every now and then the Hungering One swore he could feel a slight seismic tremble underfoot as the island quivered and shook.
"Shadowlandz, eh?" He mused aloud, leading Rebellious down what felt like an endless set of steps deep into the Forts foundation, and then further down still. "I've heard of it. Soundz like a rather charming locale. I once tried to arrange an expedition there, though waz ultimately disssuaded from doing ssso by my eldessst brother. I believe he waz concerned I might upssset the localz." The corner of his lip curled into a sneer. His brother had probably been right. He didn't tend to play well with others, especially unsupervised. "Ssstill, I am pleasssed to hear thossse lightlesss landz prepared you thoroughly. Though I should warn you, thessse are not exactly your average garden variety sssea-drakez. I've made a few...tweakz."
As they went deeper, nearly reaching their end destination, the air became damp and the temperature dropped several degrees. The smell of the sea greeted the barabel's flaring nostrils with the salty scent of briny waters. Yet even as they emerged from the stairwell into a large naturally formed coastal cavern beneath the fort, it was impossible to completely escape the visible signs of industry. Rusting pipes with rotten ends jutted in places from the inner rock face, pouring a filthy deluge of sludge into the grotto waters. Dragus walked up to the edge of the stone lip of the large pool that was separated from the sea beyond by a wrought iron portcullis that extended from the cave mouth down into the murky waters. As he held the torch over the water, the result of the fort's poor sanitation practices was evident. What fish dwelt in that contaminated stew were plagued with mutation. Most had too many eyes and teeth, translucent or bioluminescent skin, as well as a few unnatural growths that were a sure sign of corruption. On the far side of the grotto was a separate reservoir, a deep circular pool connected to the larger body of water while also physically separated by a lowered barnacle encrusted blast door. An umbaran cultist in filthy stained robes that might have once been white, stood along the edge with a bucket of chum. It was a simple recipe really. Rishii blood and fish guts.
In an exaggerated swing of his arms, the cultist dumped the contents of the bucket into the pool, upturning the container until the last few drops poured out. Instantly the waters bubbled and churned, practically boiling with activity. A myriad of long scaly forms seethed beneath the surface, swarming the bloody morsels as a primal urge to feed compelled them to slurp up the foul mixture. There were at least six reptilian shapes in the pool, each its own unique shade of glossy scale. When they slowed long enough to be observed, a saddle could be seen strapped to each one of their backs near the base of their long necks, indicating domestication. Their aggressive attitudes, however, suggested otherwise. The reason for which floated towards Dragus' feet. He bent over at the waters edge and wrapped a claw around something floating near the surface. When he stood and turned, held in his claw was a meaty human femur. No wonder they had a hard time telling a difference between riders and their food. Tossing the discarded limb back into the pool, it didn't even hit the water before a tooth filled snout erupted from the depths and snatched the bone from the air, before disappearing again beneath the surface.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Jan 8, 2023 20:17:51 GMT -8
Darth Rebellious followed behind the Famine Lord as he guided them through the corridors of the castle by torchlight. Although the odd brick of the fort's construction drank in the majority of the light, the flame still reflected off of the eyes of the creatures within. Various ranats and ewok sentries could be seen roaming in loose formations as they passed. They appeared to be on edge as they patrolled. Although they were deep within the stone fortress a faint rumbling could be felt in the ground, a tremor that hadn't ceased since his arrival at the Barabel's gates. The Dark Lord assumed it was Umaroth's doing. The wyrm seemed to be on the move. Upon reaching a spiraling stairwell, they began their descent to the grotto in the isle's eastern cliff face. On their way down the seemingly endless stairs, the blood wyrm spoke of the Shadowlands and what he had heard of it and a past wish to visit the treacherous area of Kashyyyk's forest floor as if it was some sort of vacation destination.
"Only if your idea of charming is being surrounded by all manner of creatures trying to kill you. As I said before, the Shadowlands are unforgiving. Where Kashyyyk's local fauna are already dangerous, the beasts of the Shadowlands are even more so. They possess an aggression much greater than their counterparts higher in the trees. At first I wasn't sure if it was simply because of the harshness of the forest floor and evolution or if it was our presence as outsiders, but I came to realize that it was more likely the influence of the Dark Side. Even without full-blown alchemical alteration, it's prolonged presence can change lesser beings. Even before my master built his academy there, the Dark Side held sway in those depths."
The Darth explained as they continued toward their destination.
"There are whispers that the Ancient Ones, who powered their machines with through command of the Dark Side, once left a relic there in the distant past before their empire collapsed."
He spoke of the Rakata and their so called Infinite Empire. There were few historical documents to confirm or deny their presence on the world. Only loose narratives passed through the millennia of Revan and his hunt for the Star Forge leading him into the depths in search of a piece of a star map. In truth it seemed that much of the information regarding the search and the Forge itself had been destroyed or otherwise lost to time.
"I have also read accounts of terentatek inhabiting the area before they were hunted to near extinction by the Jedi."
The Great Hunt, unlike the history surrounding the Star Forge, had been well documented. Exar Kun had used his sithspawn to great effect against the Jedi, thinning their numbers considerably in his crusade to convert or destroy them. None were said to have been more dangerous than the terentatek. Massive beasts similar in size to rancors, they fed almost exclusively on Force-sensitives. Due to a strong resistance to the effects of the Jedi's Force talents, they were so effective at killing members of the Order that they had been uniquely marked for death on a massive scale. There were so few of them in the aftermath of the hunt that they were considered extinct, but that wasn't true. The few specimens left would pop out of dormancy when the Dark Side was strong in the galaxy, with one reportedly being killed by Luke Skywalker after the death of Darth Sidious.
"I would say that such a long history of exposure to malignant powers made an impact on the population of those lands. Corrupted them in a way that made them more fierce and in turn made us stronger."
As they neared the bottom, wafts of warm tropical air began caressing the Kiffar's olive-hued face and the smell of sea salt filled his nose; a fine departure from the mixture of putrid aroma's that filled the inside of Dragus' bastion. The foulness of the upper levels followed them visually however. Jagged pipes protruded from the natural stone of the cave spewing rancid liquids and sludge ranging in color from grime-brown to luminous red into the cove, tainting the water and mutating the aquatic wildlife. One look into the murky water revealed misshapen fish, characterized by extra teeth, eyes and tumors, that had adapted to their polluted habitat. Clearly byproducts of the dread-lizard's experimentation as well as other waste from the castle. The Dark Lord was beginning to understand why the Eternal had exiled the Famine Lord; toxic filth and vermin followed the Barabel wherever he went. Disgusting on it's own, it could also be considered a distraction and an overall hindrance to the operation of a growing empire. However, his thoughts on the matter were currently irrelevant.
On the other side of the grotto, Darth Rebellious observed what appeared to be an Umbaran. A gaunt frame draped in grime-stained robes, the man stood at the edge of a pool cut off from the greater body of water by a blast door. With a bucket in hand, he poured what looked like blood and guts into the pool, instantly causing a reaction. The waters bubbled and thrashed, occasionally revealing the scaled bodies of serpentine creatures muscling for position in a feeding frenzy. Eventually the Kiffar caught a glimpse of a saddle attached to one of the creatures as it writhed under the water.
The Dark Lord turned to his black-scaled host with arms crossed and raised an eyebrow that appeared to imply more irritation than concern. Suddenly, the power of the Dark Side began to emanate from him in a surge greater than he had allowed to be felt within the castle's laboratory. Without a word or even a gesture he reached out with his cosmic grip to seize the Umbaran cultist behind him. In a fraction of a moment, the pale-skinned sentient's feet were off the ground and he dangled nearly 20 meters over the pool in Rebellious' Force grasp. A wicked smile formed on the Kiffar's face as he spoke.
"Thank you for the bait. He should make enticing the sea-dragons an easier task."
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Jan 9, 2023 8:54:56 GMT -8
Admittedly the general hygiene and sanitation practices of the castle were questionable, but that was not to say that He-Who-Hungers was not environmentally conscious. The dark apothecary made all due effort to reduce, reuse, and recycle at every available opportunity. To date he had managed to reduce the Sith Eternal's tibanna footprint by at least thirty percent.Rebellious' explanation of the Shadowlands reminded the Hungering One of the Deep Woods on holy Pzob. That region was similarly afflicted with a vile malignance due to prolonged exposure to the currents of the malevolent fey, what some chose to call the darkside of the Force. The result was a stretch of the great northern forest that was inhabited solely by predators, which included some of the plants as well. When he closed his eyes he swore he could still hear the shrill shrieks of screaming netti as his caterwauling lightsaber blade burned through their trunks and set their bark ablaze. The corruption had set into the very soil, having a myriad of mutagenic effects on a wide variety of medicinal herbs that were both naturally found and artificially introduced to the environment. In fact the wine they had been drinking was produced using a berry that originated in that unwelcoming stretch of woods. Several types of hallucigenic mushrooms, such as those favoured by the cannibal tribes of Gamorreans in the area, grew in the shaded shrubbery of that place. To this day the Famine Lord was uncertain if it was their corrupted diet or exposure to the land itself that had physically and spiritually warped the sentient swine of Clan Morlock.It was a very dangerous place, even for a Lord of the Eye. That was why Dragus typically sent others into that hostile forest to gather his alchemical supplies. He mainly made use of the hannite monks still lurking in the ruins of the Order's former capital. They were fervently devoted to the High Lords, exulting them as heavenly figures blessed with righteous power, with many choosing to focus their worship on one avatar over the others. Those zealous followers of Famine, brainwashed into servitude by the Eye itself, joined the ranks of the Hunger Cults. Like packs of ghouls they shunned the light of day, sinking lower into their depravity as they emulated their dark master, gorging themselves on the flesh of sentient beings. At a word, they would do anything for him.Unfortunately, that devotion did not extend both ways. Dragus cackled and clapped his claws together as he watched his guest wield the currents of the fey to invisibly grasp the umbaran, before dangling him in the air over the putrid pool of pungent waters. His tail thumped on the rock floor, sending sparks spraying across the stone every time his tail spike made contact with the ground. A mirthful hiss escaped his quivering maw as he bellowed maniacally from deep within his belly."Yez, yez! Siss Siss Siss!" He chuckled giddily. "Truly delightful." A creature of impulse, the barabel's jaw began to widen apart as the forest of serrated fangs set into his blackened gums extended from their roots to protrude several inches like a mouth full of daggers. The nostril slits on either side of his snout flared as he drew in a long delicious breath, savouring the fear hormones present in the dangling umbaran's sweat. It caused the saliva glands in the saurian Sith's maw to work overtime, running like a filthy river off the razor edged tips of his incisors, where it drizzled the floor and pooled in a puddle of slime that warmed the talons of his clawed feet. But it was more than just a physical reaction that caused the Great Devourer's crimson eyes to glaze over and his forked tongue to scrape the air for further notes of flavour; his hunger made itself manifest in more ways than one. The terror radiating off the levitating cultist was the sweetest sort of delicacy the Hungering One craved. Fear satisfyingly sated his unnatural appetite more so than any amount of fine food or wine. There was no finer vintage, not even amongst the collection of his full cellar.Raising his right arm, he stretched a claw towards the hovering hannite, flexing his talons ever so gently as he extended a portion of his insatiable aura. Invisible to the naked eye, those gifted with a measure of Force sight would have noticed what appeared as spiralling coils of black smoke curling off the frightened umbaran's body, and drawn towards the reaching claw. Dragus was a fathomless pit, and when that emotional offering was drawn into the all consuming hunger at the core of his being, it was devoured in its entirety. His feast was short lived, however, as the squirming of the pale skinned cultist drew the attention of the creatures lurking beneath the surface of the pool.Erupting in an explosion of brackish water, a brass hued serpent with armoured scales like bronzium plates, emerged from the depths and surged up into the air. With a serpentine head attached to a neck with a wide fanned out hood of scale, it snatched the umbaran from where he floated, impaling the cultist through the chest with two long curved fangs that descended from its upper jaw like sharpened scimitars. The tips of its fangs punctured the umbaran's back and burst from his chest just below the clavicle. Steaming beads of venom seeped from their ends, dripping back into the foul waters of the pool where they sizzled like searing rivulets of molten copper. Then in a powerful bone jarring snap, it closed its sword speckled jaws and mashed the hannite between its teeth in a red welter of gore.It was enough to break the spell of hunger afflicting the Famine Lord. Good that it should, for the sort of meal of emotion he had been supping upon was an appetizer at best. He lowered his claw and stepped back from the bubbling pool as more reptilian forms emerged from the polluted brine. Leaving the bronze beast for his guest to handle, the scheming saurian turned his attention to another sea-drake rising from the depths, one blessed by the Pater Mutatis' gift. Like the battle hydra he had penned elsewhere in the fortress, the emerging sea-drake had two heads, each attached to a long neck that jutted from a fat body with four flippers in place of arms and legs. Its scales were glossy like his own, though more charcoal hued in colour, like the fur of a night ewok. Dragus grit his own fangs as the beast drifted right up to the edge of the pool and focused all four of its serpentine eyes on his much smaller form.Never one to back down from a challenge, the dark apothecary used the pilfered power he had accumulated from his latest meal to fuel the telepathic resonance of his mind, creating an echo chamber of sorts in the fey. Reaching out with a desire to dominate, he caught the sea-dragon's primitive bestial mind in the encircling coils of his astral self. He whispered seductively into its mind, stoking feelings of compulsion, weakening the walls of its resolve. Yet as he attempted to force his will upon its mind, he found his efforts thwarted by the existence of another thinking presence. While one of the sea-drake's heads grew muted and calm, the other snapped at Dragus and forced him to step back beyond the range of its venom hissing fangs. Scowling in frustration, he focused his efforts on the second head, only to have the first he had already calmed become aggressive again and protest much like the other had. It was an impossible task to calm both heads at once, at least alone. He looked over to Rebellious for potential assistance, but the Kiffar appeared to have his hands full dealing with his own dragon.! Just then a thought occurred to him, forcing a wicked grin across his bladed maw. His left claw dropped to his side, the motion causing a ruby red tube to slide out of the sleeve of his cadaverous outfit. Slipping into his palm was the Famine Lord's signature flute, a musical instrument crafted from meltmassif in the hell-forge beneath the black temple on the Cradle of the Eye. He brought the sorcerous pipe to his black lips and began to play a sour tune that assailed the ears of the two-headed beast he was contending with.♪♫♪ ♪♫♪ ♪♪ ♪♫♪ ♪♫♪ ♪♪ ♫♪♫ ♪♪ ♪ Remarkably as the Famine Lord played his ghastly melody, the heavy scaled lids of both the creature's heads began to droop, as the twin minds controlling the sea-dragon were simultaneously mesmerized by the saurian's attempt to charm it. Dragus poured his foul essence into the song, rapturously entrancing the aquatic serpent, until both its chins rested on the cold stone lip of the pool. Removing the flute from his lips, he knelt down and patted both heads, satisfied they had been adequately tamed for his purpose.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Jan 16, 2023 19:40:40 GMT -8
The Umbaran cultist screeched and squirmed to no avail as Darth Rebellious held him aloft in his Force grip above the murky pool that served as a beast pen. He exuded fear into the ether, which drew the attention of the drake lord. The Dark Lord watched as the Barabel's outstretched arm seemed to draw the torrent of emotions to him, uncontrollably salivating from his gaped open jagged maw as he fed on his servant's terror. It was as he had theorized, Dragus found sustenance in the distress of others. Just as the hannite's terror reached it's peak, the Darth turned to see an enormous swell of water rise and blasting from it, the scaled head of his quarry.
Impaling the cultist with venom-dripping fangs before ultimately devouring the man, the copper-colored serpent remained above water viciously gnashing it's teeth as it continued to shred sinew and audibly brunch the bones of it's prey with bloody mists erupting from it's mouth. Not wasting the moment, Rebellious reached out with both arms projecting his powerful cosmic grasp, this time turning it to the sea-dragon. He clamped down around the beast's neck, strangling it as he forced it's head down onto solid ground with the power of his presence, it's body thrashing the pool behind it.
"Be still!"
The Sith Lord growled at the creature as he proceeded to invade it's mind, inserting images and feelings of it's own pain and suffering at the Darth's hands into it's bestial consciousness. He could feel it's rage and desire for violence grow before melting into primal terror as he continued to flood it's brain with his fabricated visions. Only when the violent thrashing turned into fearful quaking did Rebellious end the tormented thoughts, at which point he offered the beast the option to submit or else be subjected to more anguish. A resigned dip of it's head and a calm slither upon the water's surface indicated compliance to the Kiffar's will.
Satisfied, the Dark Lord released his grip and retreated from the serpent's mind, allowing it to gather it's composure and finish it's meal. Turning back to the Famine Lord, Rebellious observed the dread-lizard taming his own mount, lulling the sithspawn with a flute who's melodic tones echoed with the power of the Dark Side. A much less brutal means to bring the two-headed monstrosity to heel than his own, or so he thought. With both beasts seemingly made docile through their separate efforts, the Darth spoke to his host.
"Shall we go?"
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Jan 19, 2023 6:55:16 GMT -8
"Indeed, we shall." Came Dragus' quick reply as he returned his signature flute to its hiding spot up his sleeve, then climbed atop the back of the two headed sea-dragon. The black scaled barabel directed a nod of his snout to a ranat-ogre on the far wall next to a large cog shaped spool and crank. Thick muscular arms of bulging rat flesh began to turn the crank, causing the partially submerged blast-door to rise up out of the water so that they might enter the main grotto. Two albino furred storm vermin scurried from their holes and grabbed long shock-poles from the wall, which they dipped into the smaller pool on either side of the rising door. When one of the non-mounted water drakes attempted to make for the exit, it was greeted by a crackling discharge of electrical current that sent it thrashing away in pain. The voltage was strong enough that even on the far side of the pool, the saurian Sith could feel a mild current tickle his scales.Once Rebellious and his host guided their mounts through the opening into the main grotto, the blast-door was lowered back into place, and another mechanical crank was turned to raise the outer portcullis that separated the cove from the ocean beyond. As the wrought iron wall lifted from the salty brine and their path to outside was clear, it was obvious that the weather had taken a turn for the worse since they had entered the Fort. The sea churned like a boiling pot of water as storm winds from the south swept the island and surrounding waters. The sky was so overcast with storm clouds that one could be forgiven for mistaking midday for night, save for the rare glimpse of the sun that occasionally shone through a brief hole in the dark veil above. The rough seas disturbed the mount between his legs, causing its twin heads to hiss and snap at one another. A part of him wondered if the beast would be easier to control if he removed one its competing heads, though he wasn't prepared to investigate that currently, not with Umaroth still to tackle. Raising two talons to his forehead, he focused his irresistible will on the primitive minds and urged them forwards, towards an object taking shape far out in the bay.A warm deluge of tropical rain soaked them thoroughly as they sped through the frothing waters, the four flippers each sea-dragon had for limbs served the creatures better than a galley with banks of oars, propelling them closer and closer to the ship he had spoken of. There rising and falling in its anchorage far from shore was the Lady of Pzob, an antique Rishii man-of-war the Famine Lord had taken a liking to upon his conquest of the planet and had subsequently rechristened to suit his preferences. It retained much of its original form from millennia earlier, though obviously some repairs and modifications had been made along the way. The original soft lumber that comprised its hull had all rotted away and had been replaced with sturdier Pzobian oak timber with an incredible tensile strength. Each one of its cannons had been melted down and re-forged using alchemy, and its powder and shot had all been imagined by the sinister mind of the mad alchemist and hand crafted by his claws. At the prow of the vessel was a wooden figure head of a slender woman with two large spectacles over her eyes and a face fixed in a chainsaw grin. Sea-rats in leather jerkins could be seen scurrying around its rigging and scampering across its open deck.As they came alongside the storm battered ship their mounts slowed, allowing both Dragus and Rebellious to grab onto the rope netting hanging down from the starboard side of the hull. With the waves rocking the ship and the waters threatening to drag them into their unforgiving depths, it didn't make for an easy climbing environment, but they managed all the same to ascend the netting and pull themselves over the railing. The second Dragus foot talons scraped the rain swabbed deck, a sea-rat looking over the port side turned and noticed them, squeaking in surprise. The vermin approached and as it did so, its absent right paw was a clear indicator that this was the ranat he had spoken of earlier to Squeakers. In the missing appendages place was a gnarly looking vibro-hook that sputtered in the wet drizzle. Stopping on its haunches a few feet from Dragus, the vermin squeaked in a surly accented for of basic, though it was mostly understandable."Cap'n Long-Drags!" Squeaked the hooked-rat. "We aboot ready ta-git oonderway, Cap'n, though dis weather not makin' it eazy-yah." "Mr. Hookpaw." Replied the drake lord, confirming the rodent as the boatswain. Dragus lifted a claw and pointed one talon across the deck at the only other non-ranat aboard apart from himself and the Kiffar. Near the stern was a barrel chested gamorrean boar in a sleeveless jerkin, bullying around sea-rats as though they were its own private army. "Correct me if I am wrong, but iz your quartermassster a gamorrean?" His scaled brow rose whimsically.Skritch Hookpaw turned his snout to regard the porcine alien as though he had forgotten he was present, then turned back to the barabel and offered a sheepish look, scratching the back of his furry head as he explained in gutter-basic."Aye, Cap'n. Tis a wee bit queer, most-def, but the lads voted on it. I be tinkin da reason bein dat if we be caught in becalmed waters wit-out da wind, better to 'ave a supply oh'bacon on hand, eh?" Very prudent. Dragus offered a nod of agreement. "Mmmm, yez, very wissse." He then extended an empty claw, turning over his hand to reveal an empty palm. "Well letz have a look at Her, shall we?"Opening the left flap of its vest, the boatswain retrieved a collapsed spy-glass, opening it fully with a quick jerk of its paw before handing the instrument to the Hungering One. Dragus pressed his red right eye to the lens and peered through it, squinting with his left, before removing the monocular device from his scaled socket and handing it over to Rebellious."Bessst have a look at it." He hissed. "Sssee for yourssself what we are dealing with." If the Kiffar looked through the spy-glass he would be greeted with a terrible sight. Back on shore a monstrous scaled form rose from the jungle floor high over the lush green canopy, at least two-hundred meters tall, which only included the portion exposed above ground. It was anyone's guess how much more of its length was buried beneath the surface. An acidic vapour seemed to shroud much of the jungle, expelled in great volume every time the massive serpent opened its jaws, which appeared large enough to easily bite the head off an AT-AT. That sulphuric mist eroded everything it came into contact with, melting palm trees into a rotting brown mush. The roar of its displeasure was loud enough to temporarily quiet the storm, as though even nature itself was terrified of the Doomslither. Absent any emotion it seemed other than rage, the Sith Wyrm was a primal force that threatened to tear the island apart in its tantrum.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Jan 25, 2023 18:08:51 GMT -8
Darth Rebellious beckoned his sea-mount to maneuver it's body closer to the edge of the artificial pool, a silent order to let him climb atop and prepare for departure. The creature's reluctance was apparent in it's twitchy movements as the Dark Lord hoisted himself onto the dragon's back and swung his leg over to straddle the riding saddle at the base of it's neck. He placed a hand on the beasts scales once he was fully mounted, feeling it's tight muscles quiver with nervous energy under his palm which caused him to smirk. The Sith had truly terrified the creature. It was a necessary measure to break it's will to resist him, but not favorable if he was to ride the sea-drake into battle. Through the Force, he sent soothing waves of energy to calm the mind of the beast, a morsel of kindness to further gain it's trust and fealty. Telepathically, he communicated that as long as it served him well, he would do it no harm.
As soon as the gate that was blocking them off from the greater body of water rose to allow them passage, the Kiffar willed his mount forward to follow the hydra of the Famine Lord into the ocean. Upon exiting the grotto, it had become clear the storm building in the southern sea had finally reached them. The ocean's water's thrashed as hard winds blew, tropical rain battered the ocean's surface and began to thoroughly soak the Sith's fine fabrics. Swiftly the mounted Lords cut through the crashing waves on the backs of their war-beasts making way for the antiquated ship of black wood anchored in the bay. The Lady of Pzob bobbed with the violent waters as it awaited their arrival.
Upon reaching the man-of-war, the Sith Lords dismounted their respective beasts. Gripping the hard-spun rope netting that lined portions of the vessels sides they clambered up to the ship's deck where they were greeted by more of the terrorsaur's vermin horde led by Ranat with a hook attached to the stump of his right wrist where a paw should've been. "More diseased filth," Rebellious thought to himself as Dragus conversed with his minion, staying silent throughout their their exchange. Even with the presence of the green-skinned swine that was the Gamorrean quartermaster aboard he couldn't help but feel surrounded by lesser beings, save for the Barabel who passed him a telescope. He eyed the device for a moment before bringing the lens to his right eye and peering through the scope to see the magnified image of their target.
"The Doomslither..."
The Darth said in an absent toned with his mouth agape as he continued inspecting the sithspawn. A monstrous monolith of scales, the four-eyed serpent stood tall on the exposed portion of its body, towering high above the trees with a sickly green plume expelling from it's wide, jagged-fanged mouth onto the flora below and melting it away into mushy mounds of biomass. The sight was both awe-inspiring and terrifying. A breathtaking abomination not seen in thousands of years. He clacked his mouth closed just as he collapsed the spy glass down into it's compact form and passed it back to the obsidian-scaled Lord. He turned his luminous gaze to his fellow Sith before speaking.
"A marvelous creation. We have our work cut out for us."
He paused momentarily and scanned the watery horizon to the north, obviously in search of the barge they had been expecting to come with Galandan captives to be used as bait.
"Where are the fodder for the wyrm's meal? I will needed it distracted if I am to spring my trap."
Using the maelstrom of emotions at his core, the Sith began manifesting his power in the Dark Side as well as tapping into the malignant essence of Fort Ewok to augment it. Only visible through the Force, numerous threads of dark mist crossed the air from the castle to the ship which formed together as a black cloud at the Dark Lord's feet which seemed to seep into his boots. A master of any Force sect would recognize the mists as pure Dark Side energies, which the Kiffar absorbed into him through his soles like the roots of plants drew in water and nutrients.
"As a being created through the sciences of the ancients, I imagine it should be susceptible to their magical arts as well."
He turned his gaze back to the reptilian, his visage much more menacing than it had been previously. The flesh of his eye sockets as well as the lines that made up the curvature of his facial features appeared to darken in stark contrast to his visible skin which had paled considerably. Blackened veins could be seen under the flesh of his cheeks and forehead giving him the look of someone stricken by illness, while his aura in the ether told the complete opposite. The strength of his being could be felt in it's totality, a wild and dangerous power that exceeded even the storm that currently assaulted them. The mask of the man that had arrived at the Famine Lord's gates had been stripped away, exposing the truth of Darth Rebellious; a living calamity.
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Jan 28, 2023 20:43:40 GMT -8
Upon feeling Darth Rebellious' menacing display of power, Dragus' first instinct was to summon to hand what malign currents of the fey he could grapple quickly, but the more sensible part of his mind willed his body to overcome that urge. Instead he watched in scientific appreciation of what a specimen stood before him. What the mad alchemist could do with a few drops of the Kiffar's blood? He could create a batch of darkside empowered meat puppets to torment his enemies and perform for his merriment. Why with a few gallons of this outstandingly impressive Sith's vitae, the possibilities were endless. He pictured an army of miniature Rebellious', half as tall but twice as feisty, striding among the chattel shirtless despite the abhorrently cold weather making their pectoral muscles rock hard. As a terrifyingly efficient unified force they gathered the slave meat for his flesh pens. The beasts were beginning to get hungry after all. Worse comes to worst and they can't find any sentient delicacies to sate his ever changing appetites, he'd at least have the pocket-clone versions as food. It wasn't by choice, he was simply running out of ranats. Sensing a sorcerous display would be on soon and his own power might be needed, he began to focus his hate and drink deep of the insidious wellspring of darkness, what he often referred to as the malevolent fey but what was more commonly known as the darkside of the Force.It wouldn't be enough though. He knew his limitations after the various abuses and sacrifices he had made over the years. There was a hard cap to how much power he could summon unassisted. Dragus reached into his satchel and retrieved a corked vial from the bag. He thumbed the translucent container that glowed with a strange green light, before bringing it to his teeth and tearing the cork off, then draining the contents into his mouth. This particular concoction was taught to him by his sister in darkness, Dark Lady Trace. The Night Sisters spell-craft was known to enhance their warriors with magical ichor. Fortunately the Witch was a herbalist supreme and easily recreated the arcane effect in bottled form, teaching the drake lord the recipe. Admittedly, his own version of the potion was far less effective than what he had first produced under the guidance of the Witch. He suspected her connection to Dathomir enhanced its strength. What he imbibed now was the lesser version he had managed to stew, its effects much more temporary. It only lasted about an hour and when it wore off it came with one hell of a hangover. Still, he thought as he smacked his gums in savoring of the odd elixir, it didn't taste half bad.The transformation was almost instant. The barabel's blood red eyes glazed over white and the heat pouring from his throat was so hot that the salivation dripping from his mouth of fangs began to form into a froth and drizzle from his jaws as though he were some sort of rabid beast. His talons stretched as his claws expanded and his whole body seemed to swell as though he'd been hitting the gym and guzzling steroid smoothies for several years. Everything seemed more terribly savage about him. His scales had hardened like armoured plates, his every exhalation a breath of a mild paralytic poison, his tail spike sparking like a vibroblade and glowing ember hot. "Not to worry." His reptilian speech impediment was slower and more baritone than usual. "I have it all taken care of. Everything iz going exactly according to plan." Of course the moment the saurian Sith said as much his attentive ranat assistant Squeakers emerged from below deck carrying the serpentine control rod and the command pendant Dragus had crafted personally. Once the hench-rodent reached its benevolent lord's side it squeaked some poorly timed news. The drake lord looked down at his greasy underling, altered eyes boring into his man-vermin. "What do you mean itz late? Had to ssstop off at Raider'z Cove to resssupply on cheessse? Are you kidding me!?" Despite not having protruding veins, one could feel the frustrated pulse of the irate augmented alchemist as he dealt with unfortunate results of hiring cheap labour. He closed his eyes, his lids like armoured bone plates, while he drew in a deep breath through his nostril slits. After a count of three he released a sour breath and reopened his eyes, calmer than the moment before. He cocked his head to the side and smiled insincerely at the Kiffar wielding a catastrophic level of sorcerous power. "Az I waz sssaying, everything iz going exactly according to plan. But um, how about we try a broadssside volley with the Lady'z cannonz? Hmmm?. I hand crafted thossse puppiez myssself in the Black Temple'z hell-forge. You can't imagine the amount of sssuffering it takez to infussse that many cannonz. We practically had to ssstrip a planet of itz populace and even then it required sssome clever trickery with the material to enhance the potency wrought in each barrel." He let out a nostalgic sigh. "I can ssstill remember the soundz of their screamz az my clawz ripped acrosss their...well, that'z rather persssonal actually ssso I'll mind you not to pry for further detail. In any event, they are very nasssty gunz. Not nice at all."He then scooted across the deck to a crate of extra supplies and retrieved a claw sized ball of shot etched with several Pzobian hieroglyphic images, with one very familiar orb like symbol on an emblazoned field of fire. The dark leaden ball wept rage into the fey, its ethereal image to those with the gift of sight was one of a burning eye bleeding a sinister red mist. "And of courssse there iz my ssspecial shot. Itz a bit of a family recipe really, though I've added a unique Rishi twissst. You sssee I've incorporated exonium in the mix. Itz a mineral mined in the mountainz of thiz world. After I defeated the local Rishii tribal war chief, I put the ressst of thossse missserable savagez to work digging the sssubstance from the earth. They're not happy about it of courssse, but honessstly they should jussst be happy to be employed in thiz economy." He shook his snout. "That'z why you have to ussse ranatz. Now az I waz sssaying about that ssspicy additive, exonium iz usssed mainly az fuel for sssonic weaponry. It haz a rather large boom, you sssee. Very loud. Makez my scalez tingle, but I'm alssso certain it will pisss the Doomssslither off well enough to draw my ssscaled masssterpiece in the right direction."Stoically, with one clawed foot upon the Lady's rail, the Famine Lord looked towards the distance. He brought a rain soaked claw to his brow, shielding his double lidded eyes from the wet deluge dousing them from above."They'll arrive on time. Trussst me..."
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Feb 11, 2023 19:06:57 GMT -8
Darth Rebellious felt the apprehension of the Famine Lord grow to a near state of alarm upon witnessing the true face of the Kiffar and the vastness of his aura before it was abruptly quelled, as if the saurian had to forcibly put a stopper on his emotions. Once again he found himself amused by the fellow Sith's reaction, which drew a dry chuckle from the Dark Lord's throat just short of a cackle. He wasn't sure if he had terrified or awed his host. Maybe a bit of both, either way, it didn't matter to him. He spoke in his silky politician voice once again in an attempt to calm the unease.
"Fear not, Lord Dragus. I don't plan on turning this power loose on you..."
He said with particular emphasis on the word you before allowing the sentence to run off. He meant it as both a calming gesture and a threat. Acknowledging that he would be focusing his might on the serpent, but also the fact that had he wanted to bring harm to his current ally that it could be done.
Mere moments later, the dread-lizard had ingested a mysterious green substance from one of the vials tucked away in his satchel. Obviously one of his alchemical concoctions that had quickly augmented his form into something more ferocious. Rebellious' magma-colored eyes seemed to glow as he watched from under the shadows of his rain soaked hood. The beast's muscle mass seemed to double and the scales of his body appeared to thicken, giving him a much more armored look. In addition to the physical changes, the elixir seemed to strengthen Dragus' connection to the Dark Side or at least ease his ability to draw on it's power. "Good," he thought to himself. "The Barabel is taking this as seriously as I am."
Just as Dragus had begun to reassure his guest that the bait should be arriving, one of his seafaring vermin-servants came with news that the shipment would be delayed. The Kiffar's irritation with the situation mirrored the Famine Lord's own. Even when the obsidian-scaled lord proposed the plan of broadsiding the sithspawn with the ship's alchemy-forged cannons to draw it into position, the feeling didn't subside. Aggravating the wyrm without the bait in place would only make them the targets of it's hunger. Besides that, the Darth was having a hard time understanding why his host was so focused on using such mundane methods to deal with such an out-of-the-ordinary beast. What was the point of empowering themselves through their connection to the ether if they weren't going to strike with it? The Dark Lord exhaled with a hard sigh to release some of his tension before replying.
"Bombarding the creature with sonic weapons will do nothing but draw it's attention to us and make us the focal point of it's ire. The point of the captives was to draw it's attention away from us so that we could subdue it while it was distracted by a meal. Without them we would've been better off on solid ground."
Rebellious said with an edge in his tone, his anger bleeding into each word. He turned his head to face the shore where the Doomslither continued causing a ruckus and growled slightly before recomposing himself and speaking again.
"If you want to goad your creation with explosive shells, then fine. However, if things go any further awry, I won't be a meal for your behemoth. It will die by my hand."
The Dark Lord said with finality as he turned his burning gaze back to the terrorsaur. He was adamant that he would kill the beast before it became a real threat to him, whether it's creator agreed or not. It was apparent that between the ranats, filth and crumbling plans, the Darth's patience was wearing thin.
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Feb 16, 2023 9:12:49 GMT -8
"Easssier sssaid than done. Siss Siss Siss!" The mad alchemist cackled, turning his snout over his right shoulder to regard Rebellious with a toothy grin that seemed to spread impossibly beyond the borders of his scaled visage. "Although I sssuspect if anyone iz capable of sssuch a feat, it iz you, my dear Rebelliouz." He swept his scaled lips free of rain drops with a sweep of his forked tongue, regarding the other Sith with his jaws just enough agape to display his glistening yellow incisors and wild almost manic gaze, seeming all too satisfied despite their predicament. Say what you want about Dragus' disorganization and questionable choice in servants, all of which was admittedly true, but the one thing he couldn't be accused of was poor spirit. It was in the chaos, when events had spun horribly out of control, that the saurian Sith was at his best. If anything, he seemed to be enjoying himself. Water sluiced from his manflesh robe like an oiled cloak as he removed his foot talons from the railing and stepped near the mystically charged Kiffar, his sourly steaming breath odorous even over the tropical storm thoroughly soaking them. "Tiz a shame you are not of Pzob." He hissed, staring covetously at the Darth as some of his own unnatural hunger suckled greedily at the invisible currents of the malevolent fey that Rebellious was drawing from the nexus around Fort Ewok, further enhanced by his own raw power it seemed. "Ssstrength sssuch az your own would have been welcome among my brethren."While it was clear to him that the other Sith would not be so susceptible to the wiles of flattery, he hoped his cordial display of respect would at least give the Kiffar pause if the opportunity came to deliver a killing blow to the Doomslither, though he was prepared for that potential eventuality. Even if their actions caused the magnificent beast's death, there would be a scrap of knowledge to glean or something new to learn. Such mysteries were what provided him with a relentless drive to study and experiment, and also what made him such a terrible Sith these days. He had forgone the quest for power in exchange for pursuit of knowledge for its own sake. Perhaps one could argue there was power to be found in knowledge, but that wasn't his motivation for seeking it, not anymore. His passion was entirely coopted by his own curious nature, his desire for strength tempered by scientific introspection. To the Hungering One, Umaroth wasn't just another weapon to be deployed against his many enemies, but rather was proof of the heights his deranged brilliance had ascended to."Alright." He nodded in compromise of Rebellious' preferred addendum to Dragus' suggestion. "We'll try an explosssive volley then." He cupped the end of his snout and roared his orders to the crew, audible even over the deafening gale of the storm. "GUN CREWZ TO THE READY! PORT SSSIDE! LOAD EM WITH IRON SHOT!" His commands were followed by a series of high pitched squeaks from the boatswain as Mr. Hookpaw repeated the demonic draconian's hissed shouts in his own verminous vocabulary. Sea-rats and even the burly chest Gamorrean, Porkeus Hogrid, made their way into the lower holds where the gun decks were. Greasy furred ranats loaded black powder and heavy Sith iron balls packed full of detonite into cannon barrels, before pushing them into place as the gun ports along the side flipped open to expose the yawning muzzles of each alchemically forged weapon. Then they waited as Dragus stood on the foredeck and watched the Doomslither as it rampaged across the island, counting the seconds as it slithered just into the target radius of a broadside barrage. The moment it entered the zone, the Famine Lord roared the order with such intensity that the deck seemed to rattle beneath his foot talons and the wet deluge in front of him was momentarily misted crimson with flecks from his bleeding gums."FIRE!" Across the port side of the Lady of Pzob, cannons muzzles expelled great gouts of flame and black smoke, projecting a volley of iron hail towards the Sith Wyrm making a mess of his island. The explosive shells shrieked over storm-cracks of thunder as they raced towards the beach, striking across the jungle swathed isle as they reached their end destination. Explosive booms echoed across Draggle Rock as palm trees exploded in expanding fiery detonations, some even having the fortune to strike their intended target. Among the flurry of flying shells, a single red orb stood apart from the others, exploding with a such a bang that it temporarily seemed to silence the storm. Whether done by mistake, or possibly intentional, one of the scheming saurian's sonic shells had made it into the mix. A terrible screech escaped the fanged maw of the creature, so oppressively loud that even as far away as they were, the crew including Dragus were temporarily forced to plug their ears. For his part, the Great Devourer tore two strips of tanned skin from the bottom of his robe, which he stuffed into his ear holes to muffle the sound. Rebellious had no doubt noted the error, to which the black scaled barabel could only offer a sheepish shrug of his shoulders.They didn't have to wait long to see the result. Agitated beyond its already intense aggressive display, the Doomslither fixed its serpentine eyes on the sea, easily spotting the Rishi man-of-war amongst the rising and falling waves. Its rage was a palpable thing, manifested in both the flesh and the fey. Its acidic breath wilted the trees around it as it roared in bestial savagery, turning the sand black beneath its massive scales as it began to slither towards the churning waters crashing against the shore. They lost sight of it shortly after as it slipped into the brine and vanished beneath the surface, the storm clouds overhead making it too dark to spot its slithering shadow beneath the waves.Well, that got its attention, he thought. Another series of squeaks drew his vision to the crows nest atop the main mast where a barely visible rodent was squealing down at them. Dragus' eyes widened and he rushed to the starboard railing, gripping the edge with his claws as he stared at the ocean. Out in the distance an object faded in and out of sight as the sea expressed its discontent, but he was able to just barely glimpse what they had all been counting on. There out in deeper waters, among waves that could easily capsize an ill prepared ship, was the slave barge. "The bait!" Rasped the reptilian exasperatedly. "BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHEZ! ALL PAWZ ON DECK! UNFURL THE SAILZ!" Essentially the opposite of his previous instruction occurred, as sea-rats poured from the lower hold onto the deck and began to fight with the rigging. The verminous boatswain scurried over to Dragus' side and squeaked in protest."Cap'n, we can't." Squeak! "Even with da new hull, da winds, dey be puttin t'much pressure onda mast. We'll be torn apart by da storm." "She'll hold." Snarled Dragus with more confidence then he had reason to. Releasing the railing, he purposefully pushed Mr. Hookpaw aside and stalked towards the command deck at the rear, taking the steering yoke from a rodent as he gripped the lacquered wood and gave the wheel a hard spin to starboard. "Now!" Despite the concerns, the order was carried out and the sails were unfurled amidst the stormy winds. The entire antiquated structure jerked hard as the canvas caught the wind and the mast gave a troubled groan, but the Lady of Pzob held, and began to accelerate over the waves as the great serpent swam towards them from the relative safety of the ocean depths. The two sea-drakes the Sith had rode bleated with animalistic shrieks of their own as they sensed a much larger predator in the water, though for now they loyally followed close to the hull of the man-of-war as it cut across the storm sea.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Feb 26, 2023 20:45:17 GMT -8
As the crew of the Lady of Pzob scurried to their positions to ready the ship for battle, Darth Rebellious remained silent and still. As the rain poured and the winds of the storm whipped around him and the explosive recoil of the of the the Sith iron cannons spewing shells blew plumes of smoke back toward the deck, the Dark Lord remained unmoved as if he was merely a statue anchored to the black planks. In fact he was, he was actively using the Force to keep himself steady on the deck as he watched his target move from the island's jungle toward the sands of the beach.
It wasn't until the Doomslither reached the water that he brought himself to action. Slowly he removed his dueling gloves, exposing the pale flesh of his hands and tucked the accessories into his tunic for safe keeping. Immediately he brought his hands up to chest level in front of him and his fingers began to dance in a blur of movement. The motions were jagged and aggressive, but connected and highly intricate in their performance. If one was close enough they could hear the Darth muttering to himself under his breath in an odd language. In fact, he was chanting in ur-Kittat, the ancient language of the Sith. Together with the intricate weaving of his fingers, they were an incantation; old powers were being manifested.
"SUTTA CHWITUSKAK!"
Rebellious shouted above the howling winds. Not on purpose, but because the steady pulse of the Dark Side was beating his eardrums, drowning out the sounds of everything else around him. The magic of the ancients had a way of affecting all that could touch the Force when it was used in their vicinity. Some ancient texts described flickers of light or ripples emanating from the practitioner, while others described hearing faint melodies. In the Darth's case, he always heard the thunderous beating of a violent heart; fitting for the vast malign energies he was harnessing.
As soon as the final syllable of the incantation escaped his lips, two orb of energy crackled to life and expanded to the size of the cannon balls previously shot. Glowing the red of dying stars, the orbs floated just above the Kiffar's overturned palms. He could feel the heat radiating off of them nearly scorching his flesh as he willed them forward and they streaked off with blinding speed toward the wyrm. He didn't need heightened senses to know when the so called Bolts of Hatred struck their target, the glow of their explosion was visible unassisted from their location in bay, appearing as miniature novas which blew the Sithspawn momentarily out of the water and charring portions of it's scaled hide. It wasn't dead, however. Nor was it the purpose. This was only a measure to slow it's advance and weaken the creature before capture.
With the ship's sails extended catching the storm's winds and driving them north towards the incoming bait, the Dark Lord turned the burning embers of his eyes back to the reptilian Sith Lord and cracked an insidious grin before speaking.
"Do you think that'll slow it down enough for us to get into position?"
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Mar 2, 2023 8:55:03 GMT -8
Thorny armour plated eyelids blinked brine from the sinister red gaze of the Famine Lord as he peered across the deck at Rebellious, his forked tongue running across his glistening fangs that gleamed white under the illuminating cracks of lightning in the storm darkened sky. His nostril slits flared, swallowing up a scent on the aether unknowable to all but the truly wretched of heart. The Kiffar's collected hate was an exquisite delight that caused his jaws to salivate and his better senses to wane. He raised a claw off the oaken steering wheel of the ship and reached towards the arcane balls of condensed hate, longing for their eclipsing darkness against his scales and desperate to experience the rage that had become physically manifested into floating spheres. Instead, those Bolts of Hatred shot from the Sith's hands and streaked towards the Doomslither's submerged form, exploding in massive expanding blasts beneath the surface of the stormy sea.
It's gigantic serpentine head rose from the water as the explosions drove it to the surface, shrieking a terrible cry that seemed to quiet the storm. Snatching the spyglass from the hookpawed boatswain beside him, Dragus placed the long brass device against his eye and squinted through the series of lenses as he studied Umaroth's exposed form. He could see blackened scale and enflamed burn soars in several places across its body, likely where it had come into contact with Rebellious' darkside manifested ordnance. It was the most damage he had ever seen his majestic creation take. Blaster bolts, electrical shocks, blunt force from the battering ram of a mighty ewok battle wagon...none of it had worked. However, what he hadn't tried was sorcery, focused etherical energy formed from raw emotion into something more intense. Now that he thought about it, frankly it stood to reason that the Sith Wyrm would be susceptible to Sith magic. After all, its creation had been the result of ancient spellcraft as much as science. Oh, he relied on his fair share of modern scientific and medical wonders of course, but where the real change happened down at the molecular level, it wasn't the result of a secret ingredient or particular technique in brewing a potion. It was his own claws and force of will that tore atoms apart and reshaped the particles of life into a working fabric of reality that inspired fear and tested the boundaries of what was possible. So at the heart of it, the Doomslither was a thing of dark magic; which meant that same sorcery could perhaps be used to tear it apart.
"Of courssse." He hissed aloud to himself. "I can't believe it didn't occur to me until now. Rebelliouz' sssorcery did Umaroth more harm than any physssical weapon I've thuz far usssed againssst it." Yet again this mysterious Sith was proving himself capable of all manner of surprise. This whole time Dragus had been under the belief that the darkside had brought Rebellious to his shores in order to help him subdue the Doomslither. Now he was beginning to wonder if it wasn't the other way around, and that his greatest achievement of alchemy was there actually to test Rebellious. The possibilities made his scales tingle. He caught the beady eye of the gamorrean quartermaster Porkeus and waved him over with a claw. "Take the wheel, Mr. Hogrid." He said, releasing the steering wheel for the ship before the gamorrean had even got there, which caused the ship to lurch violently as it listed to the port side. Sea-rats grasped rope lines and anything tied down so as to not fall overboard. Fortunately Porkeus made it to the wheel a moment later and straightened out the ship.
Dragus, who was largely ignorant to the chaos his carelessness had just caused, stalked purposefully over to Rebellious. As he did so, his elongated tail swept around and lunged like a striking serpent at a ranat hanging on to the railing. The scorpion stinger like vibro-blade plunged through the rodent's back and erupted out the front of its stomach, trailing gooey black ropes of intestine. A wet death rattle escaped its gasping throat as the creature expired. The black scaled barabel then maneuvered the remarkable appendage around so that it was held overhead, shielding his snout from the rain sluicing off everything. Reaching into his satchel, he removed a two inch thick journal bound in tanned twi'lek hide and flipped it open. He reached up with his other claw and dapped a finger talon into his ranat-umbrella's open wound, that was slowly drizzling down the saurian Sith's back and doing a reasonably good job of warming his scales against the cold rain. With his talon coated in rat blood, he began to make several claw scratches into the pages of the journal, relying on the cadaver clinging to his tail to keep the worst of the wet from its surface.
"You definitely ssslowed it down." Rasped the reprehensible reptilian, snapping the journal closed in his hands before returning it to his satchel just as he reached the Kiffar. His hungry features turned thoughtful as he allowed his attention to turn from Rebellious to the sky overhead. The endless downpour that had been soaking them thoroughly seemed to have stopped and the winds had died right down. He had noticed the storm had calmed when the Doomslither had shrieked, but what he hadn't noticed until now was that the storm had failed to pick back up again. Dragus grit his forest of incisors as he pried the dead ranat free from his tail with a yank, tearing most of its guts out as they were tangled around his tail-spike. Bringing the eviscerated rodent carcass to his snout, he opened his deadly maw and sank his jaws into the quickly cooling meat. "But look..." He pointed his bloody stylus at the main mast and the canvas that had gone flat, explaining between tearing strips of meat. "...we've lossst the wind. It'z almossst like the ssstorm iz centered around the Wyrm, and now az clossse az it haz come, we are caught in the eye of it."
He lowered the shredded carcass in his claws, the slightly spoiled flavour of rat meat turning bland in his mouth as his maniacal mind marveled at the thing he had created. If his observation was correct, it would mean he had performed a feat beyond simple flesh crafting, but had created something elemental. Okay, now he really hoped they didn't kill the beast. If they did, he wasn't entirely sure he could recreate such a magnificent specimen. Slinging the ratty remains over the side, the saurian Sith turned back around and tried to spot the slave barge. It was easier to make out now as it got closer, unafflicted by the failing winds as it was propelled over the waves by banks of rowing oars that kept the slave too exhausted to rebel. Now it all came down to which was faster: the barge or the wyrm?
They didn't have long to wait. As Umaroth recovered from the Bolts of Hatred, the giant mutant serpent's tail emerged from the salty depths and rose higher into the air than even its giant head. It then swept the massively meaty length of armoured scale down into the the sea, slapping the water hard enough to cause a swelling surge to rise up, lifting the watery surface as a giant wave rolling towards the Lady of Pzob Rudderless without the wind, they were exposed on the starboard side as the massive tidal surge continued to rise until it cast a shadow over the Rishi man-of-war. "Hang on to sssomething!" Screeched the saurian Sith as he sank his claws into the deck, finding purchase in planks of wood. All sound was eclipsed by the roaring surge of rushing water.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Mar 13, 2023 17:32:27 GMT -8
Dragus' shock at the Bolts of Hatred having such a devastating effect on his prized creation caused Darth Rebellious to release an unrestrained, raspy cackle. He found it hilarious that the alchemist hadn't thought to use his powers in the Dark Side to foil the wyrm rather than relying on mundane weaponry to combat it. As an academic, he surely would've come across at least pieces of lore regarding Exar Kun's triumph over Naga Sadow's creation on Yavin IV. History had always shown that creatures and items imbued with the power of the Force were usually more easily damaged through use of similar powers than more ordinary means.
"It would seem that in your previous attempts, you approached the issue as a scientist rather than a Sith."
The Dark Lord said, not in a berating way, but rather as a matter-of-fact. A fact that the Barabel had pointed out himself, that in his work of research and experimentation he had lost sight of the way of the Sith; the pursuit of power for power's sake. Rather than continuing to push the point, he looked to the sails as the dread-lizard pointed a bloodied talon toward the main mast, explaining that the storm that had propelled the antique ship seemed to have been linked in some way to the Doomslither. With the winds dying down in response to Umaroth's injury, it would appear to be a solid theory. Somehow the former Lord of the Eye had created a being that was more connected to the Force than had originally been believed.
Before he could respond, he felt a tingle of electricity run up his spine. A warning from the Force that danger was near. Rebellious' eyes darted back to sea where the serpent had been previously only to be met by the recovered sithspawn's towering form sweeping it's mighty tail into the ocean to push a powerful swell to consume them. The Kiffar growled in frustration as he drew on his anger to fuel his power. Although Dragus' screeching words had been drowned out by the roaring of the coming surge, the Darth instinctively anchored himself once again to the blackened wood through his will. In defiance of the Doomslither's tidal wave, the Dark Lord extended his arms with open palms and focused the power of the Dark Side into his own Force Wave of greater violent strength which he aimed at the center mass of swell. The invisible torrent of energy shot forth with a thunderous boom which amplified as it crashed into the wall of water, causing the wake to break in two. Although the impact created a break large enough for the ship to narrowly avoid destruction, the force of the waves' passing around and under them still caused the ship to thrash and buck like an untamed steed trying to shake off an unwanted rider. In the midst of the rumbling, Rebellious looked toward the Famine Lord once more and attempted to yell over all the noise.
"We need to get that slave barge in between us and the wyrm!"
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Mar 15, 2023 5:12:55 GMT -8
Ranats rolled around the deck as the ocean thrashed violently around them, but they had been spared the worst of it thanks to Rebellious' timely action. Another impressive feat by his guest, though he worried about the toll such expenditures of power demanded of their caster. There was nothing in the galaxy quite so powerful as the darkside of the Force, but organic beings of flesh and blood had their limits, this he knew all too well. If the Kiffar continued to push himself in such a way, would he have enough left in the tank when they really needed it? Unhooking his talons from the deck, Dragus rose back to his feet and looked from the Doomslither steadily gaining on the stern, then to the slave barge far beyond the prow of the ship.His comrade in this venture was right. If they didn't get the barge between them and the wyrm, it would be the Lady of Pzob and its crew that would become Umaroth's next meal. "Emperor'z black bonez." He cursed under his breath, making the reluctant decision to dip into his precious satchel of supplies for one of the rarest items in his possession. While doing so his talons chanced upon a glass vial containing a murky red liquid. It wasn't what he had been looking for, but that would be useful as well, he surmised. When his claw came out of the bag Dragus was holding in his scaly palm a small pouch and the vial previously mentioned."Here." He called to Rebellious before tossing him the red vial. "Take thiz and drink it. Concentrated esssence of ewok." Explained the mad alchemist. "Bessst usssed to increassse virility, but it should alssso help to ressstore your vitality after thossse lassst two featz of arcane ability."Best not to ask what it was made of. The drake lord closed his claw around the pouch still in his palm and stalked over to the starboard side where they had first boarded. Looking over the side of the ship, he spotted both sea-drakes still faithfully maintaining their position next to the ship, despite all the chaos churned up by the Doomslither's primal tantrum. Looking over his shoulder at the other Sith, the dark apothecary offered Rebellious a wink of one red eye. "I have an idea." He hissed, then threw himself over the railing.The black scaled barabel hit the water with a splash, sinking a few feet beneath the waves until his tail began to swish back and forth, propelling him back to the surface. Catching the two-headed sea-dragon's saddle with his claws, he pulled himself out of the sea and onto the serpent's back. Stroking the right most of the creature's two long necks, he coaxed the beast's scale hooded head towards him. Venom dripped from its fangs as its jaws parted, at which point Dragus tossed the pouch he had been holding into its open maw. The two-headed sea-drake's snout snapped closed and he could see by the descending bulge in its throat that it had swallowed. "Good boy. Siss Siss Siss." He snickered, before looking back up towards the railing of the ship. As expected, several of the sea-rats had rushed to the starboard railing when they watched the Hungering One leap over the side, and now were there staring down at him. Dragus cupped his snout and shouted to them. "Throw me a line! A thick one! And attach the other end to the prow!" Several of the sea-rats looked at each other stupidly, having not the foggiest idea what the devious draconian was planning, but they also knew better than to question him. They scurried off and quickly found a coil of rope to toss over the side.When the rope dropped he caught the end and quickly tied a large loop around both of the sea-drake's necks, just as something began to change in the beast. Its body seemed to swell, expanding beyond its previous portions as though it were...growing? You see, the pouch he had fed to the sea-serpent was of an extremely rare variety, one known only to the ewok shamans of Bright Tree Village. It had taken all of the Famine Lord's charm and mastery of manipulation to convince said shaman to provide him with the small pouch he had just fed to the beast beneath his feet. Known simply as ewok growing powder, the mysterious substance took things that were small and made them large. In the case of the sea-drake, it was having quite the effect. Dragus flung himself out of the saddle and onto the rigging on the side of the ship, climbing his way back onto the deck. By the time he slipped back over the railing, the sea-dragon's two heads were already as tall as the deck and rapidly continuing to grow.Smacking his palms together, he hissed in delight, clearly pleased by the results. "I think that should do the tri..." His words trailed off as he once more sighted the Doomslither, now much closer than before. The massive wyrm was quickly closing the distance, its monstrous set of jaws open wide like a fathomless abyss as it swam through the water towards them. Expelled ahead of it was a caustic yellow cloud of its acidic breath, like a curtain of fog rolling into shore. While we won't call it fear, lets just say that the self proclaimed master of the alchemical arts was feeling a tad bit trepidatious about yonder nearing wyrm at this point. Fortunately it was about this time that he felt the deck lurch beneath his foot talons as the two headed sea-dragon began to pull the ship. Slowly but surely, they began to pick up speed again, whilst the slave barge was that much closer now.There was a chance, however unlikely, they just might make it.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Apr 2, 2023 17:42:35 GMT -8
Darth Rebellious deftly snatched the vial of crimson liquid out of the and inspected it. "Essence of Ewok," Dragus called it, an elixir of his own making to revitalize the drinker. Did the saurian think him weak? The Dark Lord wondered silently. It was true that using the Force in such manner would take it's toll on the average master, however, the Kiffar was far from average. He had also been continually using residual energies harnessed from the nexus of Fort Ewok to augment his abilities in anticipation of a potentially drawn out battle with the Doomslither. He didn't need to be reinvigorated by a serum, he had yet to even break a sweat or show any outward signs of fatigue, but this did provide the opportunity to mislead the Famine Lord into thinking the Dark Lord's power was more limited than it actually was. With that, he looked to the onyx-hued Barabel, feigning a look of weariness and frustration before uncorking vial and draining it's contents. However, he didn't feign the look strained look of revulsion afterward. The taste of the potion was putrid.
Barely a moment after, his reptilian host jumped over the railing of the vessel and onto the back of his two-headed sea dragon, only to return to the ship's deck after feeding the creature a strange bag of powder which apparently caused it to grow significantly in size and hitching the beast to the prow of the ship via a long rope. Using the alchemically-altered dragon as a beast of burden to tow the ship along like a carriage was a good idea, but the Darth couldn't help but wonder why the terrorsaur didn't simply use the Force to conjure air currents to to push the sails? He would probably inquire about the events at a later point, but for now, it was just a relief that they were on the move again. With the Lady of Pzob once again lurching forward and gaining speed, the Dark Lord once again began focusing his energy in preparation to conjure another spell when the time came, turning once more to Lord Dragus so that they may talk strategy.
"When we reach the slave barge, are you sure the Galandans will be enough to draw Umaroth's attention? I'm putting a lot of faith in your theory."
Rebellious spoke with the same level of seriousness he had carried since the sithspawn began it's pursuit of them as prey.
"What I have planned is going to need a fair amount of concentration on my end. Although I'm fairly positive what I have in store for it will work in any case, it will go much smoother if the Doomslither is focus on another target."
The Dark Lord released an exaggerated sigh before his tone switched to a facade of pained disappointment.
"If all else fails, your prized experiment will just have to be eliminated."
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Apr 7, 2023 3:33:35 GMT -8
"You wound me, dear Rebelliouz." Hissed the drake in feign mockery, placing three knife like claws over his heart, shaking his head from side to side as he softly chided. "We are outssside the nullifying field created by my fortresss, leaving uz fully exposssed to the Eye'z omnipotent sstare. It will not allow itz most devout follower to fail." He shrugged, dispelling the zealotry from his tone. "Besidez, I have a bet with my brother Havok that the Doomssslither can be tamed. While I admit hiz prophetic visionz are rarely wrong, I have a good feeling about thiz attempt. We mussst have faith in the plan. I sssaw sssomething sssimilar done once on a holo-drama."It came down to seconds in the end, just a handful at most. As the monstrous Umaroth slithered through the waves towards them like a spiteful exogorth sized torpedo, trailing an acid cloud that seemed to cling to the air as a poisonous fog, their own temporarily enlarged water serpent pulled even harder. The two headed beast dragged the Lady of Pzob behind it like some sort of water-bound chariot, lifting the bow until the antique man-of-war was practically skipping across the surface like a flat thrown stone. Simultaneously the sea-rats on the slave barge whipped the galandans on the oars into such a bloody frenzy that the other ship had increased its speed as well. As slave blood seeped from split backs and congealed on the barge's deck, the lower bodied barge passed by the starboard side of the man-of-war. Dragus, Mr. Hookpaw, Porkeus Hogrid, and a handful of sea-rats all rushed to the railing, watching as the heroic efforts of the other vermin set the barge on a direct course from the enlarging jaws of the approaching Sith Wyrm. Bandana and vest wearing ranats with various states of mange could be seen scurrying over the sides, risking the briny shark infested depths of the sea rather than being swallowed by the monstrous serpent.With each second past, the great beast's open maw seemed to grow larger and larger, threatening to swallow the ocean. It reared at the last second as the slave barge sailed into its reach, encircling the dingy vessel with giant armoured coils of spiny scale. Each of one those meter tall and wide sized scales was like a glossy purple mirror, reflecting a screaming phantom that seemed to rage against the confines of an invisible cell. The cost of creating the Doomslither had been significant. It had required many souls... Umaroth loosed a deafening shriek that caused the deck planks beneath the Famine Lord's claws to vibrate, even as the Lady of Pzob began to turn now that it had passed the barge. As the Sith Wyrm's man size nostril slits scented the banquet of galandins on the barge, ropes of venomous saliva drizzled from its spear lance like fangs, blackening the top deck of the barge as the wood turned into rotten mush. Then in one fell swoop, it plunged its massive head into the centre of the barge and split the slave ship in half."Squeakerz!" Roared Dragus as the winds began to pick up again. He held out a claw expectantly. "The devicez, if you would." He was rewarded as his faithful rodent assistant scurried to his side and placed the serpent staff in his outstretched palm. The beady eyed rodent then held up the control pendant, offering it towards Rebellious. "We mussst place the device between the serpentz eyez. Or rather, you mussst do ssso, my capable companion. I would do it, but I've got a bad knee and climbing over the ssside aggravated my old fornication injury." He averted his gaze.
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on May 4, 2023 19:47:33 GMT -8
With the increased speed afforded them by Dragus' enlarged hydra towing the man-o-war, it seemed that they would make it to the slave barge, if only barely. With very little time and room for error, Darth Rebellious once again began to gather the residual malignant energies of Fort Ewok onto himself to augment his potency with the Dark Side. Almost immediately after crossing path's with the soon-to-be doomed vessel, the Dark Lord's hands and fingers once again went into motion. Rather than the overtly aggressive movements his fingers had displayed prior to summoning the Bolts of Hatred, they had assumed more connected and interlocking motions reminiscent of chain links and basket-weave. The chanting in ur-Kittat also took a different tone. Rather than the load, bassy tones of an aggressor, they took on more subtle note, although just as threatening in a veiled sort of manner.
He watched as the Doomslither used the coils of it's long body to encircle the slave ship, practically entrapping it as the serpent reared it's head in preparation to strike. The violet sheen of it's scales served as the final image that the doomed souls onboard would see as the wyrm lunged at it's long prepared meal. As it's jaws powered through the center mass of the ship, wooden planks and pieces of debris shot into the air only to be dissolved by Umaroth's breath and saliva before coming down. Out of the corner of his eye, Rebellious saw one of the Famine Lord's vermin servants arrive bearing both the serpentine staff that the Barabel had been carrying as well as the device they needed to attach to the sithspawn. Although he had heard Dragus giving him instructions to place the pendant, he did not reply. Instead he locked eyes with their target it it gnashed it's teeth, savoring the flavor of terrified Galandans.
The Kiffar extended his right arm toward the Doomslither with his index and middle fingers pointed precisely between it's eyes, which seemed to get it's attention. In a breath that sounded more like a low growl than anything else, the Sith spat the final word of the incantation.
"Odojinya!"
Immediately after the final syllable left the tip of his tongue, the Dark Side manifested. A spark similar to Force lightning fizzled into existence at the tips of the Dark Lord's pointed index and middle fingers, but rather than glowing in blue or purple manner that one would usually expect, it instead radiated a poisonous shade of green. Within a fraction of a second of forming the spark discharged, just as the technique it imitated, striking the serpent in the middle of it's enormous face and causing additional electrical sparks to dance along it's frame. Momentarily dazed, Umaroth shook as if to regain it's composure. With it's aggressive stance resumed, it prepared to lunge at it's attacker, but just as it attempted to bare fangs, the relatively small bolts that covered it expanded and began to coalesce into a web of pure dark side energies.
With the quick movement of Darth Rebellious' hand balling into a fist, the net tightened around the Sith wyrm, forcing it's maw closed and restricting it movements. It attempted to thrash and rid itself of it's bindings to no avail, finding itself in pain and with it's energy quickly being sapped. Only then did the Dark Lord allow himself to smirk. The Dark Side Web was an insidious technique. Rather than an overt show of destructive power, it was a spell used to ensnare an opponent and weaken them into submission all while exposing them to the pain of torture; a perfect trap.
With the Famine Lord's prized beast essentially shackled, the Kiffar manipulated the net, pulling the creature closer to the ship and forcing it's snout into the water to neutralize any chance of it breathing an acidic plume as well as present its crown to the onlookers on the deck of the Lady of Pzob. Utilizing his free hand, the Darth grasped the command pendant with the Force and floated the device over the side of the ship onto the serpent's head between its large and very angry eyes, embedding it firmly into it's flesh. Although the task was performed, Rebellious didn't dissipate the web. Instead, he turned his gaze to the dread-lizard and spoke questioningly.
"Care to test your control over your creation?"
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on May 6, 2023 6:20:38 GMT -8
"Don't mind if I do." Hissed Dragus pleasantly as he shuffled forwards on the deck with the serpentine staff in claw. He thumped the spear tipped totem on the deck once, sparking off the iron hard Pzobian oak deck planks, before raising the orb of meltmassif gripped between the staffs electrum fangs above his head. The ruby sphere projected an eerie red haze from its core, then seemed to darken before igniting with an internal fire, splitting along the center with a smoking black iris. The deranged draconian focused his incredible will on the transmitter, broadcasting telepathically his desire into the device, which in turn sent an overwhelmingly oppressive demand into the matching shard now adhered to the Doomslither's head. The Sith Wyrm's massive eyes rolled back into its head, dazed at first and then quickly succumbing to the Famine Lord's hypnotic hissing in its mind. All Umaroth could see were two spiraling whirls that dulled its wits and smoothed its foul temper. The orb set in the staff crackled with discharges of arcane power as the saurian Sith poured as much of himself into the link as possible, fully cementing his control over the beast. Its eyes rolled back to the middle of their sockets, fixing the mad alchemist with a vacant stare. In that moment he knew he had dominated the creature.
"Huzzah!" Rasped the reptilian, striking the spear end of the staff on the deck once more before turning to face Rebellious. A delighted grin was etched upon the Dark Apothecary's snout, revealing his gleaming forest of menacing fangs. "Well done, my boy. Well done." He placed another claw on the haft of the staff, leaning on it for support. "Umaroth haz been tamed. I never doubted it for a sssecond. Siss, Siss, Siss."
Now, in this moment the old Dragus would have used the staff to turn the Doomslither and set it upon the Kiffar, but time and age had somewhat mellowed the saurian Sith's more treacherous nature. Besides, he was far more eager to see what else this Sith in his presence was capable of.
"Mr. Hookpaw, turn uz around and make for Draggle Rock. We mussst celebrate!" He roared merrily, thumping his tail on the deck, finally splintering the wood. "Break out the ssspiced rum!"
That brought a chorus of cheerful squeaks from the sea-rats crewing the Lady of Pzob. Barrels of spice rum were cracked open, allowing filthy verminous gnarled paws to dunk rusty mugs into the sweet alcohol, which was spiced with actual glitterstim. The antique man-of-war began to turn, heading back in the direction of the island now that the storm had cleared. Several surviving rodents from the barge scampered over the sides, soaking wet from the brine but otherwise pleased to still be alive. Pulling back the right lapel of his man-hide long-coat, Dragus revealed a furry tome chained to the inner lining of his attire. The book's cover was crafted from the fur of one of his former flock mates, Lil'Kaan, who the saurian Sith unfortunately was forced to kill in order to gain access to a Jensaarai temple some time ago. Rather than let the carcass go to waste, he had transformed his follower's corpse into his personal grimoire into which he stored his vast wealth of alchemical knowledge. As he opened the tome, coils of grey smoke rose from pages of smooth human vellum, coalescing into a shadowy shaped bear that hovered behind the book, holding it aloft in two smoking paws. This was the Famine Lord's personal smoke demon, Smokey, who had been ritually bound to the Ewokinomicon to hold it open for Dragus whenever he wished to add to its pages. He quickly scribbled in the last few details about the Doomslither, dipping his index claw into a pot of blood to perform several talon scratches in ancient Pzobian black script.
When he was done he snapped the book shut, causing Smokey to disparate as the smoke forming the phantom dispersed in the air. Handing possession of the staff over to Squeakers, Dragus came to stand at Rebellious' side and crossed his hard scaled arms over his chest, staring at Fort Ewok in the distance as it loomed larger the closer they got to shore.
"You have done me a ssservice, my dear Rebelliouz." His mused with a hiss, stroking the scaled chin of his crocodile snout. "I am in your debt. Asssk of me a boon and if it iz in my power, I shall make it ssso."
|
|
Darth Rebellious
The Sith Eternal
Posts: 132
Affiliation: Himself
Traffic Light: Orange
|
Post by Darth Rebellious on Jun 1, 2023 19:27:31 GMT -8
Darth Rebellious watched closely, making sure to keep the Sith wyrm restrained with the dark side web as Lord Dragus moved forward with his serptine staff. As the alchemized meltmassif orb glowed like flame, he could feel the Barabel pouring his dark essence into the device which seemed to cause the Sithspawn to respond to his power. It wasn't until he observed the dulled look in Umaroth's eyes did the Dark Lord loosen his grip and eventually dissipate the spell, understanding their goal was achieved and furthermore that he was safe from the creature's wrath. However, he remained alert with a passive Force barrier in place and enough power within him to strike should his saurian host decide treachery would serve him in their moment of success. Hearing the approaching Famine Lord's congratulatory words, the Kiffar turned to meet him.
"Indeed. The Doomslither has been dominated. No small feat to say the least."
Although his fellow Sith's Ranat servants began to indulge in the consumption of spiced rum in celebration, Rebellious himself did not partake. He took notice of the terrorsaur removing a fur-covered book from the lining of his human-leather coat, which when opened was held aloft by the smoky apparition of what appeared to be an Ewok as he scribbled something within. Although he found himself curious as to the contents of the manuscript, he didn't voice it, nor did he give any inclination of his interest; he simply waited. Upon closing the tome, the specter vanished and the reptilian continued his stride before coming to a halt on the planks at the Dark Lord's side. As Dragus continued speaking, he acknowledged the fact that he was now in the Kiffar's dept and expressed his willingness to give something within his power to honor it. However, the Darth's answer was quite simple.
"I merely want what I came here for..."
Rebellious paused to allow the statement to linger momentarily before continuing.
"I arrived here seeking your knowledge of the alchemical arts. However, our discussion about your current benefactors has also given breath to other interests. So if I may, I would ask two things of you. I still want you to help me achieve a greater understanding of your practice, but in addition I would also like you to introduce me to these other Sith, so that I may assess them myself."
Since the moment he had felt the calling of the so called Supreme Leader through the Force, the Darth had been curious as to what or who was out there signalling through the currents. With the answer provided by his host and an opportunity to see for himself at hand, it seemed only right to take it. Calling back to one of Lord Dragus' previous statements, Rebellious began considering the possibility that the Barabael was correct in his assumptions. It seemed that the Dark Side was indeed at work. And in the mind of the Dark Lord, it appeared that it's motives and his own were working in tandem.
|
|
Dragus
The Sith Eternal
In front of the Empire, to all you Vader haters out there. We'll blow your planet up.
Posts: 1,192
Affiliation: Sith Eternal
Traffic Light: Blue
|
Post by Dragus on Jun 2, 2023 4:59:49 GMT -8
"An introduction?" Remarked the Dark Apothecary, his scaled brow rising over a bloody orb in expressed surprise. "A sssimple enough matter to arrange if that iz what you truly wish. Very well, I shall ssset the cogz in motion. Though in exile, I am permitted to return to Roon every ssso often to show off the resultz of my labourz." He uncrossed his arms and rested his scaled palms on the railing, pricking the wood with his talon tips as he looked out over the sea towards Draggle Rock, still shrouded in a quickly fading mist now that the Doomslither had been brought to heel and the storm had subsided. The massive serpent swam beside the Lady of Pzob, slithering beneath the waves, its body effectively now on autopilot. Occasionally its movements displayed somewhat erratic behaviour as several of the sea-rats jockeyed for a turn wielding the serpent staff the saurian Sith had entrusted to Squeakers.A rasping reptilian chuckle hissed up from the black scaled barabel's throat, accompanied by his flicking forked tongue as something amused him. "Siss Siss Siss." The deadly poison coated spike capping his fifth appendage sliced through the air behind him as his overlong tail seemed to wag in pleasure. "I am certain the Dark Council, and the Sssupreme One for that matter, would be much sssurprised to learn that the bulk of my experimentz are ssstill taking place deep beneath their feet. You may recall I mentioned the Sssupreme One'z throne room residez in a place called the Fortresss of Tawntoom. It iz an old Imperial facility once belonging to the planet'z former governor, built into the ssside of a volcanic caldera. A difficult location to insssure, but sssuitable real-essstate for an evil bassse. When I waz firssst invited to join the Sssith Eternal, I took over the lowessst levelz of the fort, utilizing the basementz and subbasementz for my resssearch. I sssoon realized it waz not enough ssspace to adequately contain the bulk of my studiez. Ssso, az any adaptable ssself respecting lord of Famine would, I ssset my vermintide to the tasssk of expanding my Apothecarium."He leaned his snout close enough to Rebellious that the kiffar would be able to smell the rancid scent of rotting morsels of meat trapped between his glistening fangs. When he spoke, his words were hushed, clearly intended for the other Sith's ears only. Though to be fair being overheard didn't seem likely, as most of the crew not engaged with bringing the ship back into Dragusport were busying themselves slurping up all the rum."You might be sssurprised to hear thiz but my verminouz followerz are consssidered to be sssomething of a pessst by the wider galaxy. They posssesss a voraciouz appetite, devouring all they come into contact with, breeding fassster than they can be contained. It only takez two, really, to ssstart a burrow. Well, my great workz could not afford to wait, ssso I migrated ssseveral ranat clanz from Pzob that had sssworn allegiance to me during the War of the Rat. They worked diligently, firssst expanding the lowessst levelz of the fort into a number of fleshpitz and beassst penz to contain my experimentz, but they went further ssstill. Their tunnelz breached the sewerz of Nime and Nunurra, two of Roon'z largessst settlementz, and ssstill they continued to gnaw away at the bonez of the planet. They carved out an entire warren for their kind beneath the ssseat of the Sssith Eternal's rule, which without sssuggestion from myssself, they appropriately named Dragusssblight. In that dark sssubterranean realm, sssome of my finessst flesh sculptorz should be completing my latessst offering for the Sssupreme Leader, asssuming they followed my instructionz accurately. I am mossst eager to sssee the resultz of their labour."It was possible his guest might think Dragus oversharing, but this was simply his way. He was a terrible gossip, a real gab actually, or a razor-bladed blabber mouth. His associate Sith on the council might be upset to find him blabbing away about all of their activities, though to be fair they would also likely be equally upset to discover there was a warren of sentient rats living beneath their feet. Not that they would be entirely unused to seeing the creatures. Dragus' rodent followers ran the sanitation department aboard the SE's star fortress, the Nullus Beacon, and could be found just about anywhere the Dark Apothecary went. They seemed drawn to him, as though he represented some awful malady and they were a manifestation of its symptom."There iz alssso the Sssea Leviathan I recently bred at our underwater facility on Kamino, though I would likely to run a tessst trial on that creature before presssenting it to the Sssupreme Leader." He tapped his chin with a curved talon. "Perhapz the eager eyed studentz of Dragwartz Sssith Academy on Ryloth have produced sssomething worth disssplaying az well, hmmm. I ssset my homunculuz Professor Draggledore to the tasssk of ssschooling thossse initiatez in the cultivation of rare herbz and the brewing of all manner of potion. One of the eager young ladz even came up with a delightful gas that when inhaled turnz onez ssskin inssside out. Sssadly, he inadvertently became the firssst tessst sssubject, but sssuch iz the price required to reach the heightz of alchemical greatnesss I sssuppose."Dragus shook his head. He was rambling and getting off track again. So hard these days to focus his erratic mind. Attempting to reign in his talkative self, he took in a deep breath of salty sea air and released it slowly."In any event, a visssit will take a few dayz to arrange. In the meanwhile, the hossspitality of Draggle Rock is yourz to enjoy. I am certain the night ewokz will arrange a feassst once they hear the good newz about Umaroth. I recall we ssstill had a few captivez in the dark cellz that they've been fattening up az of late." He licked his lips.
|
|