Phalomir stepped into the chamber of Aelvedaar, following Jharmeen and Rykounagin, and turned to look for the Dark Lord of the Sorcerers…

…only to find a deep, lush forest that surrounded them. Jharmeen was also looking about, her face growing pale. Phalomir heard the buzz of a fly pass by, and his gaze followed it upwards. A flock of large birds flew overhead, visible only for a moment as they passed over the small opening in the tall treetops. Smaller birds chirped overhead and the rustle of a startled animal echoed from a crop of dry leaves to the left.

Phalomir stepped close to Jharmeen and gently touched her shoulder. He could sense the nearby energy of Rykounagin as well.

“What has happened?” he asked.

Before an answer could come, a strange, mournful sound flowed from the distance, as if a feudal horn called out the arrival of royal visitors -- or perhaps signaled the advancing charge of an unseen army.

“Jharmeen?” Phalomir said, unknowingly surveying the heavy forest of Endor.

[ 10-09-2007 12:40 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Phalomir ]

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"However did we get here?" she closely restated Phalomir's question, now turning her wide stare in his direction. "I did nothing to alter the portal, it was open and awaiting our return to it. But, no matter," she continued. "I can easily..."

She paused, her hand likewise halting in mid-rise.

"Dare I create another portal?" she wondered aloud, the wide-eyed look segueing into one that was a little bit uneasy around the edges.

[ 10-09-2007 01:11 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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I step out from the rapidly closing Portal literally onto thin air. My questing foot flails instinctively; I reach out with both hands, seeking purchase on anything I might find, that I should not tumble ignominiously to the ground.

Which, shockingly enough, I see peeping up at me through the leafy green canopy into which I have stepped.

Luckily, there are all about me branches aplenty; as the Portal schlppts into obscurity I find myself holding onto a particularly sturdy one, some twenty meters from the forest floor. For it is within a forest that I find myself; cursing now at the inattention I paid in my youth to survival classes brought to Khar Delba by the warriors, I kick my feet, trying to swing my body onto the branch I am holding. It is a difficult feat for one who has passed through the years and experiences such as I have; with another loud curse I let my feet fall back under me, dangling now from the branch like a hornet's nest.

The thought flashes into my head that I can use the All to relieve myself of the unexpected predicament I am in. Common sense, however, rears its calming head, reminding me that the Portal I had opened had been done so with that wonderful power.

And it had led me astray; there was no guarantee that any of my All-powers were now such as they were. And at this dangling moment, along with this uneasy realization came the further one that I did not know if it ever would again.

A faint, not quite felt image of a pair of immense eyes niggles subliminally in my mind, even while my conscious mind, all too aware of my predicament, persuades me once again in the attempt to gain a foothold upon the branch.

Swinging back and forth, I grunt and curse, and in my opinion make entirely too much noise.

[ 10-09-2007 12:56 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Aelvedaar ]

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“I do not know,” he said. “I assume nothing like this has happened before? Could something have interfered with the portal – intercepted and redirected it somehow? Or could -- could the All be failing? I just do not know. Although opening another portal to test, perhaps, may not be a bad idea. But then again…”

Phalomir looked around once more.

“I do not know where we are,” he admitted. “I have never been here before. I fear our choices are limited to staying here and hope that we find civilization, or open a portal and see if it takes us back to Aelvedaar.”

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"I cannot see the sky well enough to see how many suns there are," she said simply. "That would help in determining which planet -- if planet this is -- that we have landed upon. Assuming, of course, that if it has multiple suns all are presently up. For at least it is daylight."

She waved a slim hand about, indicating the light level around them. Dim it was, but light nevertheless.

"Further, I have no idea how late in the day it is. I only know that it promises to become very dark when night does fall here, to judge by the size and density of the forest we have found ourselves in. And who knows what else might be creeping about in these woods along with the dark when the sun finally sets.

"I heard a noise as I stepped through the Portal, something unnatural, not produced by wildlife. It almost sounded like trumpeting; did either of you hear it? If trumpet it was, if we can determine from which direction it came from, perhaps we will find something in the way of intelligent life. Then we might find out where we are, and perhaps stand a greater chance of leaving this place and continuing on our journey, or returning to Khar Delba at the very least."

She paused again, casting about herself, seeking the tiniest of non-natural noises. But if there had been such when they first set foot upon the rich, loamy soil it was now remaining stubbornly mute. She sighed, and lowered her head.

"I fear to use the All in any manner until I know it is safe to do so," she finally said. "Perhaps either of you have something more helpful to our current cause?

"My Lord? Rykounagin? Either of you?"

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I sniffed the air, then spit on my fingertip, and held it up to the air for a few moments, before bringing it back to my lips and tasting it, and letting a hint of magic flow through it.

"There's an unusually low concentration of metals in the air. That suggests that the world is undeveloped, or at least, any natives are low tech in nature."

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“The horn sounded as if it were coming from--” Phalomir’s sentence was cut short by another blast of the horn, sounding from the woods in front of the group.

“That did not seem very far away,” he said, scanning the trees. Another horn sounded from the left, as if in answer. The blast was two notes, the second drawn out. The first horn sounded again, this time even closer.

“Rykounagin,” he said softly, “do you see anything? I thought for a second I saw something in the trees before us, a movement in the canopy.”

Phalomir’s keen ears caught a rustling in the treetops above them, and his eyes jerked upwards as he stepped back closer to Jharmeen. His hand went instinctively back to find her shoulder, and he crouched slightly into a defensive posture as he called forth his magick to be ready.

A shrill call sounded from above, from several directions, as if a flock of large birds had been startled into flight and called their anger to the world. But it was not birds that screeched, for in the blink of an eye Phalomir could see a blur of movement as many small furry animals came bounding from the treetops, swinging on vines, and descended upon the group.

Phalomir watched one dark furry shape as it launched itself from directly in front and above and came flying feet first at the Dark Lord. The small animal screamed as if calling out a war cry, and crashed feet first into Phalomir. It bounced back several feet and thudded onto the ground, stunned for a second. It shook its head vigorously back and forth and sat up, looking at the wide-eyed Phalomir.

“Bee-ja wawa!” it exclaimed. Many more of the small furry creatures now encircled the three. Some of them carried small sticks with sharp points, others swung slings loaded with rocks. All of them took a threatening posture.

“Does anyone have any clue as to what these creatures are?” Phalomir asked. “They seem, um, wary of us.”

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"I believe they are Ewoks, which means we are on the moon of Endor," she grunted, trying to disentangle the yowling being from where it was seemingly trying to make a nest atop her head.

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Phalomir glanced to Rykounagin, who was encircled by a group of the furry Ewoks, each threatening with their spears. Rykounagin was giving the brave little warriors a bemused smirk, and Phalomir turned his attention back to the task at hand. The Ewok had stubbornly entangled itself in Jharmeen’s hair and would not let go.

“Enough of this!” bellowed Phalomir. “Who is charge here?”

The Ewoks stopped and looked about at each other. Small voices muttered quietly as some of the warriors leaned close to each other and spoke. Finally one Ewok, slightly larger than the others, stepped forward and planted his spear, point up, into the ground before him. He pointed at Phalomir and Jharmeen, then to Rykounagin, then grunted and pointed into the forest. He repeated the gestures, and the grunt, then folded his arms together and waited.

“It could be he wants us to go into the forest with them,” said Phalomir. “Or we are being sent away. Either way, I do not think they understand the language common to the spacefaring races.”

Another Ewok, small and dark, uttered a harsh word to the larger one and stamped his foot. The larger Ewok turned and grunted, causing the smaller to growl in disdain. Then, unexpectedly, the smaller Ewok drew his spear up and charged at Phalomir. The Ewok was fast, and Phalomir was still trying to disentangle Jharmeen from the Ewok in her hair, and he did not have the time or stability to evade the rush of the little warrior. The spear drove into his leg, causing Phalomir to yelp in pain. He quickly bent down and yanked the stick from his leg.

The larger Ewok ran to the smaller one and knocked it to the ground, uttering a harsh stream of strange words at it. It looked up at Phalomir and again pointed to the woods. Phalomir took the small spear in his hand and snapped it in half, dropping the splintered wood and looking sullenly at the Ewok.

“I believe this one is the leader,” he said. “Perhaps we should go with them, at least we may have shelter while we figure out what happened, and how to get off of this moon. What do you say, my lady? Rykounagin?”

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"Indeed," she said to further cement her agreement. "Although the odds of whether or not we can actually depart from this moon by conventional means are fairly low. Rykounagin is correct, they do not have a great degree of technology here."

She paused, her brow furrowing as she thought further.

"However," she went on, brightening somewhat, "as I recall my history I believe there used to be an old rebel base here. Perhaps we might find something useful there, if we can find where it is."

She turned to the closest Ewok and gave it her most brilliant smile; the little being merely rolled its head from side to side and chattered back at her. It held out the short spear it was carrying, and shook it.

"Perhaps that is the gesture to go, as you suggest, my Lord," she smiled, then stepped forth. As the others followed, however, their progress was stopped short as two of the creatures ran up and held twin spears parallel to the ground, separating Phalomir from Rykounagin and the Dark Lady. The odd, muttering language coming from them intensified, and as it finally ceased they each gave their spears one great shake.

Graysith looked to him, her violet eyes wide with concern.

"It would appear they do not desire that you come with us," she observed, her voice low with repressed dismay.

"Perhaps your physical appearance is threatening to them; what do you suggest at this point?"

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“My patience grows thin with these Ewoks,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “But my physical appearance has indeed been the cause of concern for more than one of the primitive races. The stretch of influence of the Sith race throughout the ages has touched many such peoples, and our abilities have been thought of nothing less than magic. For good reason, of course. But in effort to keep the primitives in the dark, our ancestors would spread stories of gods and demons. Throughout the primitive races, it seems the image of the Sith – red skin and horns – has become associated with one or the other.”

Phalomir looked about the lines of Ewoks, noticing now the trepidation and concern from the masses. Smaller Ewoks huddled together, some holding each other with short stubby arms and looking at him with huge eyes.

“I would guess by their reaction,” he continued, “I am taken for a demon, and you are my prisoners, in which case they are rescuing you. They seem to show some familiarity to humans, which follows if there was a rebel base here.”

A wry smile crossed Phalomir’s lips as his eyes met with Jharmeen’s.

“I could be a demon for them,” he said. “But a -- nice -- one. Fear is a powerful weapon, but I feel that we may need their help locating the base.”

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"He is with us," she said, now indicating Phalomir with a graceful wave of one hand all the while keeping a calm and obviously not fear-induced smile planted upon her features. "He means you no harm."

The creatures only stared, muttering and growling amongst themselves. At length the one Phalomir had taken to be a leader stepped forward, at first a touch hesitant but then growing bolder with each step he took. For the great and fierce-looking entity was still held in thrall to his magicians powerful poking spears.

He came to a halt in front of the massive Sith, and tilted his head back until his beady little black eyes came into firm contact with Phalomir's green ones. Once eye contact was established he let loose with a torrent of words, finishing with an odd clicking sound and a gesture to the spear bearers.

The spears were shaken, but remained as they were. The little leader came over to Graysith and grabbed her hand, tugging upon it briefly before letting it go. He looked to the quiet Rykounagin, eyed him for a moment or two, and then chattered something at him, underscoring his words by nodding his head in a particular direction.

The massed Ewoks moved aside, revealing a well camoflagued yet equally well-worn path leading off into the dense forest. The leader whirled about, chattered again, raised his own stubby spear, and then turned back about and marched off down the path, followed by his retinue of upper echelon Ewoks, a few of which encircled Graysith and in this manner gently entreated her to follow.

[ 11-14-2007 10:51 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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I grunt, gain my feet. Then with nowhere in particular to go, I begin heading off through the heavily canopied dimness around me.

((OOC: To see why Aelvedaar's magick failed, see page 7, Out of the Unknown in the "CSWU forums," thank you.))

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Phalomir paused, a wash of nausea coming over him. He looked forward to see Jharmeen also pausing, as if something was suddenly not quite right.

He began to speak, but before any sound escaped his throat a searing pain raced through his head. His hands flew upwards to clench his skull and, letting out an instinctive shout of pain, he fell to his knees. His head fell to his knees as he held it tightly, squeezing as if to keep it from bursting apart

Indeed, something inside Phalomir’s psyche had burst apart. A small ball of energy, held firmly intact by the power of his magick and his will, now with no such magick to secure it, suddenly burst. He fought to remain conscious, and strove to keep his own thoughts separated from the strange insanity that had been held in check for so long.

This energy given life by all of the pain, suffering, and insanity that Jharmeen had once endured when she first became Lord Aelvedaar’s adept, killed her father, and assumed the role she now lived. It was held in check inside of her by Aelvedaar’s magick until Phalomir inadvertently freed it, and to save her life he took it into himself.

Another scream pierced the forest air, and Phalomir now stood. The Ewoks looked at him, and to each other, in fear and confusion. Phalomir’s face was a twist of pain and anguish, and his green eyes seemed to glow with a violet hue as blood filled them. He threw his hands down and hunched, turning quickly in a circle to see each of the Ewoks around him.

But it would have made no difference if they were Ewoks, Jedi Knights, or a herd of banthas. He saw only distorted images, wavering back and forth, and all threatening. A small bit of his mind knew what was happening, but the attack had come so suddenly, with no warning, it now cowered in the dark recesses of the Dark Lord’s thoughts.

[ 11-16-2007 10:34 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Phalomir ]

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But was in turn flung back as one massive arm whipped around, catching her low across the torso, sending her crashing to the ground where, whatever pain she felt being ignored, she scrambled sideways, propping herself on her arms, staring at him now with mouth agape.

"He- he has gone insane!" The words came out quietly enough, but pierced her heart as surely as if each was composed of an entire regiment of the Darker Realm's demons.

"He- he doesn't know me..."

The view in front of her grew distorted then, as hot tears of anguish and fear and confusion filled her eyes. Those tears did not, however, completely block the image of the band of tiny Ewoks who, apparently having decided in favor of the better part of valor, melted into the shadows in response to the sudden rants of what could only be the Devil Himself, and disappeared.

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“You made me KILL him!” the words shouted from his lips. “To save your own selfish race you MADE ME KILL HIM!”

He whirled around and around, watching the distorted figures run away from him. Red, so red, all of them. Those selfish, selfish animals! Users, nothing but users of the innocent, corruptors! They would corrupt no more, would never destroy the life of another for their own gain!

Phalomir stepped forward to pursue the retreating figures, pausing to let loose an animalistic scream, then ran two steps before falling to the ground.

That bit of sanity, now recovering, took steps to stop the mind from being totally lost. It was difficult, and Phalomir struggled with a losing battle to keep a semblance of sanity. But for the moment he lay on one arm, not moving, his face set in an intense stare at the ground.

“Jharmeen…” he managed. “It is loose…”

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Deep down, something very angry began to scream back, in self defense.

"Not my fault," she whispered, her eyes wide with pain and tears. "Not my fault!"

And with that she scrambled to her feet, looking about herself, her breath catching for the deep ache she felt in the area of her diaphragm. Clutching her side, she took a hesitant step backwards, then another, and yet another.

She had to do something, find someone. There had to be SOMETHING on this moon to help.

But she instinctively knew that to stay with him, filled as he was with her own hate and insanity, would not only risk bodily injury to herself... but might be risking her very life.

Quietly, so as not to capture his attention, she kept backing away until she had reached the relative safety of the treeline. Once there she whirled, and began running in earnest, flitting amongst the trees like a flaming shadow, filled with the supernatural strength and speed that only true terror can lend.

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But how? A demon was not flesh, and could not succumb to the spear and the sling. It would take more than this to free the tribe from the menace that now threatened them.

But now the screams from the clearing stopped, replaced by the crunch of leaves and stifled sobbing that drew near the tree.

The female! She had escaped! If any would know how to defeat this demon, it would be her!

Wakti waited until the female was near enough, then jumped from the tree and landed on the path in front of her. He rolled to his shoulder and then popped up to face her. He held his spear to his side, but pointed a short furry finger at her.

“Eee tow nub nub!” he called out, demanding.

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And the next said path was suddenly blocked by... something she entirely leaped over, coming to an astounded halt several feet behind where it had popped unexpectedly into being. There she once again fell, the pain in her side doubled now for how much she was gasping for air; for a moment all she could do was close her eyes and lay there, spent.

When she had regained some of her breath, she opened her eyes... only to have her view of the canopy blocked by something beady eyed and fuzzy.

"Nub nub, eee AWAH!" it scolded her, shaking its tiny spear in her face.

She closed her eyes again, quite unable at the time to get to her feet, content to lay there for a moment and try to figure out just what it was this little being wanted of her.

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“Dee na-go hoosy etow chakta,” he said, pointing into the clearing. The blank look on the female’s face was not encouraging. He then had an idea, and held his hands over his head like horns and stomped in place, growling. He then stopped and pointed back into the clearing.

He then motioned with his spear like he was stabbing at something, then pointed back into the clearing again.

“Grrrrr!” he mimicked, then stabbed at the air again, then closed his eyes and stuck out his tongue, mimicking the look of something dead. He then open an eye to see if the female understood.

[ 11-18-2007 09:12 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by patternghost ]

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He was aware that Jharmeen had backed away and vanished. He was actually glad of this, for his control was precarious and her safety was in jeopardy. As he fought for control, he tried to fathom what had happened. His magick was gone, he felt this. The pure, physical strength that had long been overshadowed by his energies now coursed freely, though.

He felt control returning slowly, and he stood. His fist clenched, he scanned the area with wild eyes, trying hard to focus on the shapes of the trees. His control loosened, and waves of grief and guilt battered at him. His eyes filled with water as he realized the hopelessness of his situation, and a rage was mixed with the knowledge that his actions were done of his own free will.

These are not my thoughts… came a tiny voice in his head, but it echoed hollowly in Phalomir’s scattered mind.

Now overcome by emotion, Phalomir turned and wandered aimlessly into the woods.

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Gods, it hurts! I felt cold and alone, yet my body was on fire.

I felt that I was on my knees, face being brushed by the earth below it, eyes watering in pain.

I took harsh, stabbing breaths, just to keep alive as I knealt there, trying to compensate for the loss of what naturally came to me for so many years.

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“Wermo!” he exclaimed. He looked up, rolling his small eyes, and sighed. Then he looked back to the female.

“Acha,” he said. “Kosh E s’sheesht graks?”

Again, silence.

“Kosh?!”

Wakti folded his arms and tapped his hairy foot. He then held his fingers up to his head, pointing outward to look like horns sticking from his forehead. He then growled loudly and stomped around in a circle. He then pointed into the clearing where Phalomir had been kneeling, not noticing the giant Sith had moved away.

“Graks”, he said, then growled again. “Graks!”

He then lifted his spear and pointed into the air. He stabbed the empty air several times, then looked at the female.

“E s’sheesht!” he said, then repeated it as he stabbed the air again.

“Coro E s’sheesht graks?” he said, pointing at Jharmeen, then to himself, seemingly posing a question.

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“Acha,” she cooed. “Acha.” She held a small canteen up to his face. “Gleeg, gleeg!”

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Sitting up, she cocked her head and pinned the little fuzzball with a stare that was still partly fearful, but mostly curious.

"Graks?" she repeated, making a question out of the word.

[ 12-10-2007 10:43 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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