Malachor V's Open Terrain

"The first time was during the war, after sacking the Temple... but I have been there many times since." Jud smiled. "It's easy to fool those who fool themselves, with dogmatic beliefs that blind them to the simplest truths." Jud could feel the Jedi's doubts, his concern, he conflicting feelings, and his unwillingness to believe what Jud was saying to be fact more than Sith fiction. "Don't judge them too harshly. The Order has gone through much since your deep sleep. They are a pale comparison to what we were in the height of the Republic." Jud continued, nodding his head. "But you'll see soon enough what I mean..."
Jud disengaged Alaric's saber, and handed it back to him. "Fair enough..." Jud said making sure to tuck the saber back onto Alaric's belt. "I'm a man of my word, and I won't be using your saber again.  As for Fayian, she holds information that pertained to me." Jud stopped, as if calculating how to finish his explanation. "She had told me she had visions, visions of me, before the fall, before I was Jud'dayus... but I never had the chance to speak with her. The Order had been split, and one of the most gifted seers of our time disappeared. Never to be seen again." Jud started to pace, he did this as others would tap a finger or nervously shake a leg. It was a response to talking about information that had to do with his past, with how he was, with a man that no longer existed, and would never return. Jud looked at Alaric and wondered if he was starting to recognize the man before him? It wouldn't be impossible, yet it wouldn't be easy with the changes that had taken Jud's young visage away. "When I found the classified documents of this mission, of this ship, and the name of the one woman that said she knew something of my future. I had to find her, even if she were dust. I'd still be able to gleam something from her. but to have her alive, that is more than I ever bargained for."

Jud stopped pacing. "I won't harm her. That I think you can tell is the truth?" Jud looked at Alaric's arm and frowned regretfully. "I'd suggest you wake the rest of the crew as well... you need medical attention." Jud turned to look back down the long corridor that lead directly to the bridge, then back to Alaric. "Would you rather me get what I need on the bridge; so you can rouse a small army against me, or would you rather me stay here and wait, then leave with my new knowledge and prize?" Jud smiled. "I leave the choice to you... Alaric."         

Jud just followed the Jedi as he spoke, with his single eye. "What I've said is most certainly true. Can you not feel it, Alaric?" The Sith said with a slight amount of aggravation in his voice, as Alaric continued... giving Jud an ultimatum for the first time since their initial meeting. "Wake who you want, I'm not threatened by your posturing, Jedi."
Just then Alaric mentioned a name that made Jud smile. "Marte?" Jud laughed. "You think someone that big could keep up with me?" Jud continued to laugh, but then stopped abruptly. "How did you fit that gundark into a stasis-pod?" Before laughing again. Four? The Jedi thought that four was too much, maybe a challenge, but Jud had the upper hand in this situation. He had the planet to aid him, Alaric may have the numbers but was missing the simple point; Jud had dominion here. Did the Jedi really think that all Jud was capable of was saber dueling? If so, he was more of a fool than Jud had originally thought.
"Oh?" Jud said, to yet another ultimatum. "You're filled with renewed vigor. I like it. I actually would like nothing more than to test my abilities, and your amusing theory's on my inanimate demise... but I will do as you have commanded, sir." Jud answered, bowing whimsically to the Jedi.

Jud watched as Alaric, entered his code and started the Pod's process in reanimating Fayian. There was a tightness in Jud's chest for a moment. He never thought he'd have the chance to actually see the woman again, but here he was, and as Fayian clumsily got to her feet Jud lowered himself to one knee, bowing his head deeply.
"You honor a dead man, milady Dar... but thank you none the less. It is good to see you among the living. Truly, it is." Jud said calmly, in a voice that sounded different from the hollow rattlings that Alaric had become accustomed to. It sounded youthful, determined... familiar, but the Sith never raised his head to look upon the woman. "As you can see..." Jud pointed in the general direction of Alaric. "The knight and I had a minor disagreement. I apologize for my actions."

Jud finally looked up to Fayian, taking down his hood for the first time since entering the ship. His red eye now it's natural color, hazel. The face that met both Jedi was that of a young man, his skin was slightly tanned, and his long chestnut brown hair was put up into a tight knot, with the exception of two ceremonial braids on either side of his head. Jud used his abilities to show his dead face, the one which they would both recognize. "I have waited a long time, Fay..." Said the young man as he got to his feet. "A very very long time." 

Jud just nodded his head as his dead name was given voice by the woman. There was nothing to say on the matter, he had been Dante, but nothing could bring that man back. Nothing could ever clean the blood off his hands to bring the Jedi knight of his youth back to the world of the living. Jud knew Fayian could feel that, feel the fact that the man she once knew was there, but only by the thinnest of threads.
Jud just shot Alaric a look, followed by a huff of annoyance. His youthful veil shimmered for a moment regressing enough to show the true man beneath. "I did what I had too..." Jud youthful exterior smirked. "You'd know nothing of doing what is right."
"That is correct..." Jud said with a nod. "Though I have no clue if or if not the prophecy has been fulfilled. You were never able to finish it for me." Jud looked at Fay intensely, wishing her to continue. "Please continue..."

Jud didn't shy away as Fayian neared him, the aura of her presence enveloping his own. It wasn't a smothering feeling, actually it was quite the opposite. It was calming, soothing, and the Sith gave the sensation a quaint smile as he felt the young woman's hands caress his cheeks.

It was then Jud grimaced as he felt the Force press in on his skull, and the tendrils of the seer's power vine their way into his very mind. Jud didn't scream out, though he wanted to. Instead he grit his teeth and allowed Fay access to his mind, his darkest secrets, his deepest desires, his monumental regrets. As Fay spoke her vision's cryptic tongue, flashes of images staccatoed through Jud's mind faster than he could have ever been able to decipher them. They were blurred and jumbled, and just about as nonsensical has the seer's babblings. Except for one word; God.

The pressure on Jud's skull intensified just before Fay's final word, as the connection was severed and Fay slumped to the bay floor. It took a few seconds for the Sith to regain his composure and figure out where he was. "Oh, Fay..." Jud said as he unclasped his cloak and draped it over the Jedi with great care. "Thank you." Jud said softly pushing the hair out of the woman's face before lifting her off the floor, turning towards Alaric.

"She's weak, but will pull through..." Jud said softly as he walked over towards Alaric, laying Fay on the floor before him with tender care. "I take my leave of you Alaric." Jud bowed to the Jedi before looking around to the stasis-pods that seemed to be thawing. "Seems like you'll have your hands full in a moment. Oh, hand..." Jud allowed a grin to cross his ancient face, as he turned his back to the Jedi and started towards the bridge. "I'll make sure to have a transport signaled for your rescue, as soon as I'm free of this planet's hold."

Jud stopped for a moment at the precipice of the hangar bay and the corridor, as the first of the stasis-pods started to open. "I hope to see you again, Alaric..." Was all the Sith said before disappearing into the darkness of the corridor.    

Alaric's vision had begun to cloud as pain, exhaustion and the toxicity of the dead world began to erode his willpower. He no longer had the strength to grip his saber which slipped from his grasp, it's green blade retracting into the hilt, therefore he was unable to act as the Sith gingerly placed Fayian on the bulkhead next to him. He hazily thought that it was odd for the sith to show such compassion and he tried to follow the train of thought but in a moment it was lost to him as was the Sith. Unable to recall seeing the man leave, Alaric's head began to droop...

"Knight Alaric! Knight Alaric!" Called out several mechanical voices. The jedi opened his eyes to the approach of a rusted squad of combat droids. "Are you functional?" Asked the lead-most droid, the others fanned out on either side, their joints creaking as they slowly brought their weapons up, gyros in their metal necks creaked as they scanned the room. "Yes." He replied weakly. As he grabbed onto the arm of the droid to pull himself up he ordered the ship be searched for the Sith. "Your orders chance of successful completion is below the acceptable threshold, we cannot comply." replied the droid, in response to Alaric's pained protests the Shepard AI, speaking through the combat droid succinctly explained that the combat droids were minimally functional and would be a waste of remaining power cells to searched the ship and or engage a sith.

"Remaining?" Asked Alaric, his mind still foggy. "Affirmative. We have used 87% of our powercells in order to protect the ship from lizardlike creatures and for forays and surveys of the planet." Forays? Surveys? brow furrowing, the jedi tried to make sense of it all and then all at once the reminder that time had passed on. "Sir? Sir, I am attempting to communicate that this planet is not nor will it ever be suitable for habitation."

Alaric was assisted by the droids in making an arduous trek across the slanted, sometimes broken hallways of the ship to reach the nearest aid station. Behind Alaric, a droid had given up his ancient blaster rifle and now held Fayian in its arms, the seer was still unconscious from her brush with the sith. Alaric conversed with the AI, his heart sinking and his mood darkening with each passing step. Shepard relayed that for many years the ships distress beacon had attracted no attention, he theorized it could be because their technology was too old to be picked up by changed transponder frequencies. Furthermore the planet was more or less deserted and uninhabitable aside from monstrous lizardlike creatures that were strong enough to pull the ship's component of droids apart. Shepard described that most of the combat droids were destroyed in fighting with the lizards in the first few months of the crash, since then the lizards have avoided the ship, it becoming something of a taboo to them. There was only 1 significant structure in any direction, however Shepard had no information about it as all droid patrols were destroyed by lizards before reaching it.

From bad to worse, the medical stations were unable to provide the necessary medical care to heal Alaric's maimed arm... The Kolto had long gone stale... Fortunately the steroid packs were still good and he jabbed three of them into his leg. His pupils dilated and he gasped as the cobwebs in his head vanished, replaced with crystal sharp cognition. Alaric quickly applied antiseptic and painkillers to the deep burns and wrapped his arm bandages and painfully placed it in a sling. Tending to Fayian, who had been laid on a operating table, he reached out with the force and was relieved to find her spirit strong. However he was unable to coax her out of her force induced sleep and he resolved to leave her resting as he tried to take stock of his new reality.

Roblio Marte, the most experienced and powerful jedi of the group roared with anger. He took a step forward and had to be restrained by Jedi Sentinel Jason Grey and Alaric. After stabilizing Fayian and taking enough painkillers to numb a rancor, Alaric had debated whether or not to free his companions from stasis. He was disgusted with himself that it was even a question, but he was on a dark world, with dark thoughts and a reality shattering revalation that all he had known was long since gone. He finally relented and first unfroze the jedi most-likeminded and well reasoned of the group, fellow jedi Sentinel, Jason Grey. Upon learning of the situation, Grey convinced Alaric to re-animate Roblio, the expeditions assumed leader...

Roblio's muscled bulged under his jedi tunic, and Alaric struggled to keep a grip on the Guardian's arm. "Peace brother. Remember peace." Alaric felt the calming warmth of the force radiating off of Jason who had utilized the force to give his suggestion power. Slowly Roblio calmed his breathing and relaxed, the jedi knight returned to himself. "Peace?" The jedi's brow was still furrowed and he scoffed at the thought. "How can there be peace? All that we know is gone. What if we failed the order? Failed the Republic? Alaric and Fayian fought a sith, a powerful one. They still exist in the galaxy."

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6 Days later the 3 jedi tried to make progress in repairs or salvage that Shepard and the combat droids could not. The crash had thrown the ship's squadron of Aurek Starfighters across the hangar causing immense damage. They still hoped however to use the force to move the wrecks to perhaps find one undamaged enough under the rubble. Sweat beaded on 3 foreheads as nostrils flared with strain. The jedi stood in a semi-cirlce, arms or in Alaric's case, arm, were outstretched, fingers splayed wide as together they lifted a fighter whose nose had been crushed into the body. They turned themselves to the left and deposited the ship on the slanting hangar floor.

Alaric wiped his brow, his gloves coming away damp with sweat. They had been at it for days and had made little progress, soon food would become an issue. Roblio called them back to focus and as Alaric stretched out with the force he felt a disturbance... Forgetting the starfighters, he followed the ripples, past the clouds, he spread his awareness to beyond and found it... a consistent presence in the force, getting closer. 

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The jedi wateched as an unfamiliar ship design landed off to the starboard side of their crashed vessel. It disgorged a number of armed men who made their way cautiously down the impact crater. "I do not see any known insignias, they certainly don't look like Republic forces." Said Jason. "They look fairly disciplined but they're not holding all of their weapons with military precision, I assume that they are pirates or smugglers or mercenaries. You can almost feel the greed coming off from the one in the center."
Roblio reached for his lightsaber. "Whoever they are, it is best that we subdue them and ask questions later." Roblio made to move to the nearest airlock to proudly and willfully challenge the would-be rescuers but was stopped by Jason's grip on his arm pulling him back. "Patience. We have never dealt with men from this era. Send a droid while Alaric and I flank them. If they prove hostile, you will come down their center and we will surround them." Roblio reluctantly agreed and took his place by the airlock as Alaric and Jason wrapped themselves in force cloaks and slipped silently and invisibly out of the ship. They split off, each taking responsibility for one of the two pairs of flanking approachers. 

Roblio pressed the release to the airlock, opening a doorway in which a single combat droid could walk out into the harsh terrain of the planet. Controlled the the ship's AI, the combat droid raised its hands in surrender and slowly shuffled forward to grab the attention of the new arrivals. "This is the Republic cruiser Defiance. You have received our distress signal?" Coming from the droid's ancient linguistic module, it sounded more like a statement than a question.

"I thought as much." Said Roblio as he peaked through a viewport, watching the laser blasts shred the droid. It was highly probable that laser technoogy had advanced and for a moment he considered if that the blaster bolts from this era might overpower his saber. He threw aside those thoughts however, putting his trust in his craftsmanship and the force. The imposing Jedi Knight was a jedi battlemaster, focused on lightsaber combat against the enemy of the jedi, he did not fear the steps he took towards the airlock or the hiss of the airlock release, exposing him to the elements and the line of sight of the new-comers. Lightsaber held at his side, he activated the blue blade, letting the tip drag through the stony crust of the planet, leaving a trail of molten rock in his wake. He made his way, walking slowly. Roblio's voice boomed with the force, "I am a jedi knight, servant of the Galactic Republic, wielder of the force and sword of justice. You will lay down your weapons and engage with me in a parlay."

Alaric, still cloaked in the force was behind his unit of armed-newcomers. He rolled his eyes at Roblio's less than humble announcement. He held his saber in his good hand and hoped that it would not come to voilence.

Roblio burst out laughing at the insinuation that he had been the instigator. After he pantomimed wiping a tear from his eye, he used his free hand to point towards the crippled droid. "This poor robot was unarmed and asking a simple query." Roblio slowly raised his lightsaber, pointing at the lead pirate. He thumbed the activator and the blue blade retracted into the hilt. Letting go of his saber he let it clatter to the ground. Confidently the jedi knight crossed his muscled arms and stood almost arrogantly. "Since you have me outnumbered and I scared you so bad by sending out the droid I have relinquished my weapon. Now lets see if there is still honor among thieves. Lower your weapons and let us talk as gentlmen."

After landing on the planet, Ballen made another check of the seismic readings. On top of the deadly lightning storms, the ground could just as easily swallow you whole. Vokk may have been born here, but he absolutely refused to stay here longer than needed.

exits the Grelod, heading in the direction of his birth home

The terrain utterly treacherous, it supported almost zero life. Equipped with a mask and rebreather, Ballen trudged onward.

After an hour's hike, the cloaked doorway made itself visible to him. Ballen was one of three people with the clearance codes for the cloaking system. Zhen's codes had been revoked after his 'death' and Vokk's grandfather had been nowhere for the good part of a century. Neither of those facts stopped Ballen from drawing his katana after the door opened and shut behind him.

Lights on.

The artificial lighting revealed the small living compartment that had been his home, school, and hospital for a decade. Raised by computers in isolation, it was one of the few technical systems Ballen had grown to rely on. All others were kept as simple as possible, and for good reason; assault droids can be reprogrammed, navicomputers can lie, and blasters can fail. This relatively light aversion to technology is what drove Ballen to use a katana over a lightsaber. Sure, it was harder to smuggle, and the weight of alloy can slow your strikes, but nothing blows your cover faster than having a lightsaber on your belt. Nobody trusts a thief, but Jedi are rarely counted upon to not ruin an already bad situation.

After a quick eye over the premises, Ballen sheathed his weapon.

approaches the only terminal in the room, and interfaces using the tactile pads in his gauntlets

Just what am I supposed to find here, old man..

The terminal flashes intermittently, as the data is backed up on a small drive under his forearm bracer. After it completes, Vokk removes his hand from the terminal.

outstretches right hand, and jolts the terminal with a single bolt of Force lightning, frying the terminal

Well, the Force is good for something, I guess.

wheels around and leaves the domicile, the living compartment powering down lights, engaging magnetic locks and cloak

Vokk marched back to his ship, largely without incident. After powering take off thrusters, the Grelod pushed out towards the cold of space, dodging the cluster of Force storms along the way.