Ankrist Roan could not help the dark and malevolent smile which flashed across his imposing features. Beneath his steady hands the Sith ship he had appropriated from the whelp hummed easily enough through the wonders of hyperdriven space. Behind him, long lost, was the planet K'eel Doba and a very empty Temple of S'slan indeed...

...a temple whose already emplaced magicks had been... augmented.

The only other addition to that 4,000 year old place of mystery and magick was the Kaminoan lab, complete with personnel, which he had long-ago taken from that watery world and ensconced in a large but hidden catacomb deep in the bowels of the temple: a lab now utterly destroyed, the limp bodies of the scientists growing colder and colder with every moment that passed.

Ahead....

His smile deepened, and his grip tightened on the arms of the pilot's seat as a slight rustle came from behind him. Something dark and foreboding and completely evil flashed in the depths of his eyes; then he let that look sink away, and turned around.

Shifting her weight against the bulkhead, JhinDarra sighed a little, then crossed one foot over the other. She drew in a deep breath and blinked her large and expressive sky-blue eyes, and tossed her fiery hair from where it had fallen into her face before finally speaking.

"Where are we going, Uncle Roan?" she finally asked, now jutting out her lower lip as she once more puffed away a recalcitrant strand of flame.

Roan sent her a look displaying the closest thing to gentleness that he could manage.

"It's a surprise, my dear," he purred in a voice of black silk, turning back to the controls. A clawed hand reached forward and adjusted a sigil.

"It's a surprise...."

[ 01-05-2003 01:16 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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Entaris turned his head slowly as ShaRhylla stepped out of the shadows beside him...

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He looked about, only allowing his eyes to move behind the protection of his helmet.
Where they hell am I? where did everyone go? WHeres galen?! Oh flac, i donno what you did, but you had better figure it out... Sheesh, this bunch dont look to friendly...

As his thoughts rolled through his head, his vision clearified and he realized just who he was in the presence of.
ROAN?! Ok Flac, this is your chance, Figure out where darra is...

But even as he thought it his eyes caught hold of a red headed girl sitting next to roan.

red hair... cute kid... Blue eyes?! Oh great... please dont tell me thats her... WHat did that guy do to her? no no... that isnt her... Darra's a little girl... She's not...

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Alright Flac... Its time you put your brain to its limits... its time to hope to god you got more luck now then you did a few...however long ago it was...

Working his neck muscles he opened up a comm frequency to the last place established with galen, hopeing that somehow she'd get it, speaking quietly, even with the knowledge that any sound he spoke woudl not be heard.

"Galen... Im on this strange ship... If... If you can... Please get to dj... Ill activate its tracker, will lead you right to me... Be carefull."

Welp buddy, its time to put your acting skills to the test.

With the thought that any mistake could mean his death, flac moved roughly, faking the early stages of conciouslness, bending his wrist oddly to press upon a small button while the rest of his body curled into a fetal possition...

beneath his helmet he smiled. get to dj galen... Hit the blinking button... Please...

He then looked up and shook his head, as if to clear the remnants of sleep. "where the hell am i?"

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For a moment the very atmosphere remained frozen. Then there came a groan from the man Entaris had let fall from his grasp, caring as much about him as a rancor cares about his victim.

Roan snorted, returning his gaze into those turquoise eyes in front of him.

"So you have a favor you would request of me?" he commented in his deep bass voice. "Speak then, my ally, and tell me what it is I can do for you."

He fell silent then, his gaze never leaving Entaris's, even though he could feel his daughter's eyes crawling upon him...

...as were the eyes of his "niece," which were wide with innocence and curiosity.

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hand extending slowly from his side to gesture at the being upon the floor, he allowed his words to roll forth from his throat like the flowing sound of thunder upon the horizon.

"This one is a companion of-" he took the next word straight from roans mind with a little snear. "- the whelp..."

Lips releasing a sound which would pass as laughter, his calm turqoize eyes came upon Flac. "I ask simply for him to be taken along with you... The torture she will feel at having lost two beings dear to her in one day... is bound to be wonderful..."

again the dark laughter came forth as his head turned about to give a knowing nod to ShaRhylla of Terrin Danners death, a nod which was accompanied by the mental sentance.
Your thorns grow sharper by the minute, my dark rose... You have pleased me greatly with your hand in his death...

head turning once more to view roan his sneer became a decieving smile once more.
"I must ask though... That you show this one as much hospitality and kindness as you possibly can."

his head moved in a brief nod before he spoke again. "though if you still desire the whelp for your own purposes, he will make a wonderful lure as well..."

For a third time his lips parted to release a dark chuckle before he questioned roan simplisticly. "so my ally... How have your own endevors come to pass? is all well?"

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The DJ shot off into the skies without so much as a warning; Jasyn didn't even get a chance to brace himself or grab on to a single thing so he instead was thrown willy-nilly into the bulkhead as Malf continued to holler and moan. He popped against the bulkhead, a barrage of stars in turn decorating his personal view of the Universe.

"Damn!!!" he blurted, unable to stop the explicative from escaping his lips as he shook his head to clear the fuzz and took the extra effort to regain his footing.

"What happened?" he queried, finally feeling stable enough to head for the cabin of the unusual ship. He took a seat nearby Galen, looking about the cabin curiously as thoughts whirred through his mind. "I don't guess there's any chance we can regain control...or contact the others?"

At that he fell silent, waiting.

[ 12-27-2002 08:24 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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With a rappid wink half of the helmets view became a view screen of dj's cammera, he smiled even wider to see the lines of hyprespace.

With another rappid blink the view returned to what he himself was seeing... and he wished that he wasnt seeing it at all
This cant be good... No no... This cant be good... Ah what are you saying flac? "this cant be good"? Well, duh, this is worse, your a dead man, or worse... Who the hell is this "whelp" and how the heck are you bait for 'em? WAIT A TICK! thats what he called galen when he took...darra...

at his side his fingers curled into a little fist.

"listen, I dont know what your planning, but galen wants her daughter back, and theres nothign you can do to stop her... ive seen the fire in her eyes, she'd take on a rancor head on, bare handed, AND WIN if it meant saving darra!"

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?! YOUR GONNA GET KILLED!

You know... Your right... ooppss... Shouldnt have said that...

As the thought came to pass he felt the intense glare of the thing that had brought him there, and felt himself throwned backwards. "do not speak, unless you are so addressed." he only heard a fuzzy semblance of that sentance though do to the ringing in his ears...
Thanks sis... You were deffently right, this armor lives up to your bragging... 100% jeez, id be out cold if not for this stuff... Well, i guess now im far enough away that they wont notice...

with a little twitch he changed to broadcast to dj. "Listen, thanks for figuring it out...err... i could be in trouble though... These guy's mean business..."

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The words exploded in my mind as my body did likewise against DJ's cold durasteel deck. I hadn't so much as a clue as to what was happening to us... well, maybe a slight idea that perhaps somehow Flac had managed to contact the ship and send it into sudden life beneath our feet. I mean, it stood to reason that was what the glowing light had been all about: he had somehow managed to enable that to catch our attention, and this was an automatic homing trajectory triggered when my hand had fallen upon that light.

Then again, who knew. For all I knew the maker of the suit Flac's lady friend had worn had made another one, and was likewise sending for the ship; possibly as a double cross to the lady herself, possibly in the discovery -- at last -- that she was dead.

Like I said, who knew. All I knew was that I sure as hell didn't know anything, and I said as much to Jasyn as I scrambled to my feet. Looking down at those members, I quieted, feeling the decking thrumm with that deep timbre uniquely produced upon matter as it traveled through hyperspace.

"I have no idea where we're going, but wherever it is, it's far from where we were," I cautioned at length. "We're in hyperspace; can you feel it?"

I quieted again, thinking. Then Jasyn's other words finally sunk into my startled noggin.

"No, I can't do squat," I pronounced flatly. "Without the pilot's suit and helmet I can't control the ship, I can't sense out, and I can't open any transmissions which might be incoming. All I can do is just sit here like a worrt on a dewback and let the ship carry me wherever it is we're going."

With that I fell silent, hugging myself as I struggled not to let my rising trepidation start winning the insidious battle it was beginning to wage within me.

Each lightyear we traveled meant another lightyear farther and farther from those who would help me find my daughter. Who knew if we'd ever see them again, or for that matter if I would ever hold JhinDarra in my arms as I yearned for so achingly.

My shoulders slumped and I fell into a well of gloom. Time crawled by, and if one paid attention one could see the seconds actually marching past....

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Then he paused, pursing his lips a moment as he ran through the best way they could protect themselves from whatever they were heading towards. Something occurred to him that they'd been discussing back on the Sith warship. "You need to activate that belt of yours," he said, pointing. "It'll give us a modicum of stealth at least. And if your friend has anything on board we can point and shoot, that will be helpful as well."

Then, pausing and pursing his lips one final time, he finished with, "Unless we mess with the ship's actual hyperdrive which might only land us out in the middle of nowhere, that might be all we can do til we get wherever the hell this confounded ship is taking us..."

[ 12-28-2002 04:36 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jasyn Lancaster ]

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"I don't know," I began a bit doubtfully, chewing on my lip as I considered. "I've never enabled the light-bending device while in hyperspace; I mean, we're already bending light as it is by warping through space. I don't think it could actually 'catch' until there is real light for it to hook on to."

With those words I gave Jasyn a small smile, then moved out of his grasp and headed toward the back of the ship.

"There's a storage compartment here, though, where Flac keeps his weapons," I announced as I came to a halt in front of it. I reached out a hand to the panel control, one of the few devices on this ship which was not routed through that weird flight suit. "I know there's something worthwhile in here we can use."

Yeesh, Galen ol' gal, maybe you'll be able to keep hold of it this time, too, I admonished myself as I hit the control. The hatch slid smoothly into its glove, revealing a small but varied array of weapons hanging on the bulkhead inside and stowed neatly in transparent compartments beneath those. Before Jasyn could get his fingers on it, I made a beeline for the only Imperial blaster rifle that was hanging on the wall, a mirror image to the one I had taken earlier but left behind on the Sith warship. I took a firm grip of it, yanking it from its clip with a distinct snik, to then affix with another affirming snik to my belt.

I turned to Jasyn with an expansive wave of one hand.

"Help yourself to what's left," I said, heading back to the bridge. There I came to a contemplative halt in front of the circular plaque on the floor, and eyeballed its silent connectors where they dangled from overhead. With another little sigh I snipped the rifle from my belt as, letting my knees loosen, I allowed myself to sink once again to the floor. There I remained quietly resting, alert to every nuance the ship might be able to send me, and waited to see what would show itself to us at the end of our unexpected voyage into mystery.

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But what fun would that be with no one around to tell you that now was NOT a good time to drink...?

As Jasyn sat and leaned against the bulkhead that one thought reminded him of something he had yet to do, something that he'd really rather not do at all.

Contact EE and let them know what had happened.

His look darkened further at that, a bit of pain flitting across his features. You should have stopped him from going Jasyn; he wasn't ready, was still too unrested after all that had happened in the Imperial prison. And you were his friend, the one person around at the time whom he might have listened to...

...and where were you? Drinking. You should have at least gone with him, and maybe things would have panned out differently...

He shook his head, unable to keep his thoughts of guilt to himself any longer. "I should have gone with him..." he stated aloud in seeming non-sequieter then trailed, his eyes darkening once more.

[ 12-28-2002 11:14 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jasyn Lancaster ]

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I knew that feeling well.

My shoulders slumped then, and the words slipped from my lips before I could stop them: "And I shouldn't have gone."

With that I fell into an uncomfortable silence, gripping the blaster rifle even more tightly as my vision blurred even the comfortingly familiar planes of middle space.

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He let all his withheld anger and disgust flare out in her direction, but the words he spoke were meant for Entaris's dark ears.

"While all is well with me, it is apparently not as well as it is with you... my friend," he whispered, letting his eyes flame up and down ShaRhylla's supple frame. The young woman merely smiled, hiding her soul beneath her eyes, and draped herself in an even more wanton manner against Entaris's strong body.

Now Roan snorted, and collected himself.

"Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen," he finally announced, then fell silent for a moment. Then, almost as an afterthought he looked from his daughter to where Flac lay in apparent fear for his life on the cold decking of the fighter. His eyes flicked from him to his niece and then settled on Entaris's darkly vampiric visage once again.

"What... amenities do you prefer I extend unto this one, my ally?" he purred at length, now taking a step forward until he towered over Flac like a harbinger of doom. For a long moment he merely let his brilliant and utterly inescapable gaze sweep down upon him, pinning him to the floor like one tacks down a carpet. Then he hauled back a booted foot, and with all his strength kicked him in the side, as though to kick away a clod of dirt which had fallen in front of him, impeding his path.

Drawing back from the man who lay at his feet on the floor, he directed a dire and bloodthirsty look at Entaris.

"Actually," he purred, tapping a long and wickedly sharp claw against one fang for emphasis, "I do have something in mind for him. Something I'm sure you are to enjoy, should you choose to remain with us for the...

"Festivities."

[ 12-29-2002 09:12 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Dark Lord Roan ]

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But you certainly can deal in terms of vengeance, can't you Jasyn buddy?

As if on cue to that, Jasyn looked up once more and asked a question that, for all apparent purposes, was intended to change the subject. But he knew very well that he wasn't. "Any chance the suit that controls this ship has a homing device that's linked with it?"

[ 12-29-2002 05:31 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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"I really don't know," I said at length. "I mean, logic would make one think it would have something along those lines, but to tell the truth I really wasn't in control of DJ long enough to check out the accessory package she came equipped with."

I fell silent again, still sitting cross-legged on the deck, the blaster rifle held loosely in my lap, my elbows on my knees and my chin in my hands.

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Recinis nodded at the news, placing a hand upon Jharmeens sholder and smiling slightly. "we will retrieve darra... Im sure of it..."

He pulled her close to him for a moment and gave her a gentle kiss, before turning to gaze outward once again. "i found very little within the temple... it is as Galen told us, empty, yet at the same time, it is filled with much... Memories run through it like wild animals on the hunt, seeking someone to tell their stories to... Memories of better times, of worse times... Things to come, and things that have passed... I fear that the things that have passed in those walls could indeed mean that roan more planned then we could know...the place felt distant... No longer truly sith, changed to serve a master that is no longer sith..."

His head shook slowly and he closed his eyes for a moment.
Roan... I am sorry for stripping you of that... At the time you showed little concern, but i know you must hold scars from it... I know when the time comes, you will seek to strip me of my life in return... I will meet your challange though, and i will not fall...

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If only they knew.... His lips curled in disgust as he pulled upon the cloak which camoflagued the majority of his rather imposing features from the simple people who lived here, tugging it closer to his person to avoid sullying it upon the bodies they were now walking amidst.

At his right side, Entaris smirked, one hand lightly pawing the bared back of ShaRhylla, the other casting about every so often to "accidentally" sink its claws into a passing native, just to enjoy the piggish squeal it made. Roan's own features broadened into a smirk just as knowing, if not more so, as he watched the casually bloodthirsty actions of his ally.

He knew what lay ahead of the trail he was taking them upon. He also knew both their hungers would be easily quenched with what he had planned... if not more so.

Ahead of them walked his niece, who supported the half-comatose Flac. That young man had been nearly throttled before Roan took him from the ship he had so cunningly landed, then hidden, in the fiery wilds of this place; following that throttling he had once more beaten the man to nearly an inch of his life. Entaris and Rhylla, laughing, had refrained from joining, stating instead their preference to obtain vicarious pleasures simply by watching.

And when Roan had nearly killed the man... he used the All to keep him upright, apparently whole and unmarked, and walking. There was only the barest hitch in his step to prove how close to death Flac really was as the quintet moved from the brooding wilderness into the tunnels leading deep into the heart of this planet's civilization.

At length he came to a particular cove in the rock, and paused. The evil smirk broadened on his face as he strode up to a rhyolite reception desk, one upon which the prices for rooms both public and private were engraved into the green stone. He reached a clawed hand out and lightly stroked the lissome arm of the young humanoid who was acting as receptionist.

Turquoise eyes peered into hazel... and soon he and his companions were led into a particular room... one which held particular... meaning for the vile and traitorous Sith.

He smiled as the young girl left them there, his eyes darkening as he drank in her features for... future reference. Then he turned to his niece, waving a hand toward the mineral waters of the bubbling spa. The lighting of the rock chamber cast a peculiar greenish hue to his face as he tilted it toward JhinDarra, indicating she take Flac into the fragrant waters just waiting there, begging to heal him.

The girl smiled at her uncle and began to comply, when he suddenly lashed out with one arm, wrenching Flac from her grasp and flinging him into the nearest stone wall. The man struck with a groan and half crumpled, but somehow managed to remain semi-upright. Roan waved a hand, using the All to thrust into his mind and awaken him with a rude mental shaking. And when he was certain Flac was conscious and aware, he whirled upon JhinDarra.

One clawed hand flew upward, creating a barrier about the young woman, preventing her from instinctively lashing out against them with her young strengths. That is... lash out she did, purely by reflex, but that awesome power did little more than rebound about her and finally dissipate entirely.

Roan's lips curled in an evil grin.

"How naive you are, whelp!" he snarled, slitting his eyes and exposing his fangs. "How truly weak and foolish. Just like your mother; to think I had need of the likes of you, a human! How very, very naive!'

Now he began stalking toward her, slowly, step by lingering step. His powerful muscles flexed and rippled, his eyes glinted and his clawed fingers twitched in anticipation. Off to the side he caught an indrawn gasp of sheer delight as ShaRhylla literally purred and molded herself to Entaris's side, her heart quickening, her breathing becoming faster and faster.

Roan smiled more cruelly, and bore onward, delighting himself in the manner in which his niece backed step by wary step, unseeing, clearly terrified, until one foot came to the edge of the pool and slipped. Her slim arms pinwheeled as she fought to maintain her balance, teetering on the edge in front of him.

"I won't kill you... not yet," Roan whispered, still coming closer to where Darra stood, half terrified, half defiant. That momentary surge of defiance fled from her entirely, however, at his next darkly uttered statement.

"First I wish to introduce you to some of the... entertainments of Sullust."

His eyes cut quickly to the side, to ascertain that Flac was indeed awake and very much aware. Off to his other side, Entaris took a slight step forward, his eyes flaming blood....

Then young receptionist thought she heard a rising scream cut abruptly off, but wasn't quite certain of what she had heard. And when she went to investigate, she found the stone door to the private chamber locked firmly.

All was silent as stone from within.

She merely shrugged and returned to her duties. It really was none of her business how her clients chose to relax when they came to the hotsprings of this planet.

[ 12-29-2002 10:21 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Dark Lord Roan ]

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At that moment in time roan turned upon Darra and much to his surprise he found he could feel his hands tightening into fists, his blood boiling.
Roan you bastard, you'll pay for this... Dont you lay a finger on her! Galen's little girl... Ill never forget the first time i saw them... I wont let her get hurt!

With all his might he tried to move, he knew the gay would kill him in a second should he do anything, but he didnt care... unfortunatly, he couldnt, he just couldnt, his body ached, his mind was spinning...

Finaly he found strength, somewhere, just enough let lose a scream. "LEAVE HER ALONE!"

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He scrambled to his feet, gripping his blaster, somehow knowing minus any Force sensitivity of any type that something was fixing to come down the spacelanes. He turned his head in Galen's direction as he began to feel the ship descend, not speaking a word but simply knowing that she could feel it too. So there he stood, trying to prepare his mind and his body for anything that might be laying ahead of them til at length memory dawned while they continued to descend.

"The Sith belt," he said, stating nothing further.

Then he fell silent, wondering just where the hell they were fixing to end up...

[ 12-29-2002 11:11 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jasyn Lancaster ]

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He pulled closer to her, wanted to feel it all as well. He was vaguely aware of his own claws raking her back.

As Flac screamed out in protest he couldnt help but release a dark laugh, turning to him and piercing him with his gaze. "why would he stop? why would he not allow her to feel such a wonderful pain? it is perfect, oh so perfect!"

He turned to ShaRhylla and briefly allowed the utter wonder of all he was experiencing come through him, allowing his fangs to sink into her skin momentarily before he pulled away, licking the blood from his lips he approuched roan with a little smile.

"I must say Roan... I am eager to see what you have in store... Terribly eager..."

His eyes then turned to look upon the somewhat frightoned appearance of the girl, remaining there for a moment before turning once more to regard roan. "when the time comes my friend... please... Give her life to me... Allow me to take her from this world..."

As he spoke his eyes again trailed to the girl, before turning back to ShaRhylla and nodding in promise of all he would do in her name, all he would do to make her happy...

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Eventually he realized that Entaris had approached him, fresh blood standing upon his fangs. It glistened in the gentle lighting of the chamber, a terrible oxymoron unto itself.

It didn't bother Roan in the slightest that that blood was his own daughter's.

"Yes-ss..." Roan purred through lips which curled in readiness to strike, as Entaris's words finally sank into his heated brain. "You may indeed have her...

"When I am finished with her."

With that he stepped forward, one hand splaying back toward Flac to pin him against the stone with the All like a moth in a collector's exhibit.

The other reached to JhinDarra, took a firm and cruel grip upon her face, and held her thus as he bore her inexorably into the water, his foul lips descending on hers, his claws reaching to rake the clothing from her body....

And when he was thoroughly finished with her, he held her, limp and bloodied, out to Entaris with a terrible, terrible smile.

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I couldn't help the frown which came to my face.

Nobody... and I mean NOBODY orders me around like that!

But in this case, his suggestion was a good one, even though I thought it really might be a touch belated. There was still those few seconds in which our approach could be picked up by every sensor around... seconds which in space can be an eternity.

I just nodded, quickly slapping the belt, and braced myself for the inevitable -- and quite unenviable -- end.

It came with a rush and a roar and a surprisingly gentle bump. Then another... and another, followed by bump after bump. That bumping alternated with a wild rocking, typical of a too-speedy rush though the thermal layers of a planetary atmosphere... which came to a sudden halt as we hit dirt.

I thumped to the floor on the body part which suits that best, and just sat there, my jaw hanging open. Jasyn remained utterly silent as well, as the hatch slid smoothly and silently open to reveal...

The volcanic surface of Sullust.

For the briefest of moments I just sat there on the deck like a startled worrt. Then, filled with the bursting and quite awful surety that something terrible was in progress, I didn't say so much as one word but took off running, leaving the ship and Jasyn in my wake, the blaster held firmly in my hands.

Something terrible inside me kept insisting that blaster wasn't going to be enough....

I ran on through the fires of volcanoes and the black of the basalts, heading toward an entrance which, rather than promising a means by which to enter into light and society instead loomed against the rock like a gateway into Hell itself.

And maybe it was at that.

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Sullust, of all places...?

His memories of the place being mostly far from fond ones, Jasyn took off at a mad dash after Galen, knowing full well that this Flac guy's Wookie-like buddy would take care of the ship in their absence. His blaster aimed and ready he followed not too far behind Galen, his pace only slowing the slightest as he realized that they were nearing spas.

SPAS? This was like...

He gulped, shoving that thought waaaay back in the corners of his mind. Then, slowing a bit as they entered so as to gain a bit of stealth and likewise not scare the hell out of any spa workers or patrons, Jasyn continued to follow as his heart pounded, whether because of his sudden burst of action or something else entirely he couldn't be certain.

[ 12-30-2002 12:33 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jasyn Lancaster ]

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