Taehun lay motionless on the floor, allowing Flac to wallow in his stupidity and ignorance. He was supremely confident that he had outwitted the dark jedi, and he almost had. However, Taehun knew that pricking in his lower calf earlier only meant trouble. Taehun slowly let his breath out, and began to concentrate.

Slowly, Taehun began to exert his will over his own body. Through his meditation, the coldness began to leave his legs, and the poison that had been injected was coming out in the sweatdrops that began to form all over his body. Taehun finished his meditation, and opened his eyes slowly. He was a bit weary, but he could still fight...and exact his vengeance on that fool...

Flac was in the middle of a conversation before he suddenly flew through the air, and hit a ship. His body lifted up from the ground, as Taehun held his hand up in his general direction, balled up in a tight fist. Flac's hands automatically went to his throat.

--------------------

My hand slapped the control...

...and DJ's single blaster let loose, its energetic beam striking the dark jedi square in the chest, and sending him flying back in a whirling collage of sand and robes and probably yowls of outrage to boot.

Then I wound up, ready to let the other fist fly...

...to the speaker system.

"GET ABOARD... NOW!" I hollered, clenching and unclenching my fists as outside Flac got chokingly to his feet and staggered into DJ.

I leaped as high as I could, even as the hatch was closing in his stumbling wake, and the ship sprang for the sky in a whirlwind of her own making.

[ 11-21-2002 12:59 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Galen ]

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Someone on board that ship took action, and took care of the matter herself. Meanwhile Erik landed the Allegiant behind her and extended the hatch. Shayla watched as the other ship took to the sky, and was only interrupted from her thoughts when Erik opened the hatch and yelled out, "Unless you'd like to be the next victim of a blaster, get in here!"

She didn't need any further prompting. She turned and ran, headed for the hatch and into the cabin of the YT-2000. In only a few moments they were headed back to the stars under Erik's controls, and not too long after that they established orbit even further away from K'eel Doba.

Shayla turned to Naad, still panting a bit from her run. "Now's the time to talk about those possibilities regarding other Sith worlds Graysith might have gone to," she prompted.

Meanwhile a little voice was pointing out the fact that, the female voice that had come from that ship loudspeaker, although somewhat distorted, seemed vaguely familiar...

[ 11-21-2002 01:09 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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Flac took a deep breath and gasp in appriciation of galens heroics...

He stood slowly, and as they flew off flac looked through a little window and nodded to himself

"ya bastard... You were stupid enough to make me drop the trigger... AGAIN... Dumbass..."

he then simply collapsed against the interior of the ship and let himself go...

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Graysith wasn't the one who wanted not to be found. The All had been taken from her by Lord Aelvedaar. She had been instructed to leave by Him. He had given up on them all, and understandably so, with some of the recent events which had taken place. But to give up on everything after they had come so far...?

Her eyes clouded over for a moment, and then she simply firmed, her greeny-blue eyes meeting those of Freedon Naad's. "I can't show you how I use my powers," she said quietly. "I'm just a Force-user, as are you. I've already explained to you that Lord Aelvedaar took that from me. He is in despair; he seems to have no hope regarding our Quest to revive the Sith. I do not believe Graysith will give up so easily, however, and I believe it is important for us to continue on towards our goal even when the Sorceror may be doubting it."

She paused at that, her eyes defocusing for a moment, then. "As I have also mentioned, I do not know where Kamino is,” she repeated. Then, an idea came to mind. “I do however know of a planet called Khomm. There was a Jedi from there by the name of Dorsk 82; the peoples there clone themselves repeatedly because they feel that they are perfect,” she explained. Then she turned, reaching for the navboard. “The coordinates should be readily accessible, as it is a known world.”

She keyed something in, waited a few moments, then nodded to herself. “Yes, we can make it there in somewhere around 15 standard hours,” she confirmed. Then she sighed to herself, hating the delay in her mission but feeling that this was the only way she would ever complete it at all. She reached for the navboard controls...

...in a matter of minutes, they were safely away in the depths of hyperspace...

(((OCC: Follow Shayla, Erik, and Freedon into They Whom Pursue Perfection in the Complete Star Wars Universe. Thank you.)))

[ 11-22-2002 12:13 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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His dreams brought no reprieve to his pain.

Taehun was hovering over his body, his body, and not Desolist's. Truth be told, he didn't even recognize himself at first, because the black cloak he was wearing matched the color of the void he was in. In slow motion, a lightsaber was ignited, which emitted a pale red glow. He finally saw a face in the dim light, and recognized himself as the one who was holding the saber. A few feet away was Flac, grinning like a complete idiot.

Without hesitation, Taehun swung his blade. An eternitiy seemed to pass as it slowly hummed through the air, and went through Flac's neck. The grin never disappeared. In fact, Flac grabbed hold of the blade itself with his bare hands, and laughed maniacally. Taehun's mouth dropped in complete shock.

What the hell...

Flac's face changed, and now Taehun could see it was Desolist who was holding the saber. His dark, accusing eyes stared at him deeply, before they morphed again, this time into the eyes of a Sith. They could only belong to one man - Freedon Naad.

Naad did not grin like Flac did. He only shook his head in what seemed to be pity. Slowly, he opened his mouth, and made a few shapes with his lips, but no words came out. He kept repeating the words over and over again, but Taehun could not hear him.

And then it him like a freight train.

You...you are a failure!

Taehun awoke, feeling an intense pain in his chest where two holes had been burned through his robes. He swore an oath as he slowly got up, clutching his chest, and never taking his eyes off of the night sky. The words came from his lips in a hoarse whisper.

Someday...I will kill you.

[ 11-22-2002 12:43 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Taehun ]

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"MALF!" I hollered, fretting with concern for Flac as out of the corner of my eye I saw him stagger against the bulkhead and proceed to slump to the cold deck. "Get your furry hide in here; Flac's hurt!"

I was torn between running to make sure that dark piece of slime hadn't killed Flac, and keeping DJ under control. Sure as there's Treasure on Roon we'd all be dead if I popped off the plate and ran to his side... I shuddered to think what would happen if I just up and left the controls while we were in hyperspace.

Which is where we now were, since here was where I blasted us after that desperate leap from the miserable surface of K'eel Doba.

I hollered again... and this time was rewarded as the hulking furball stomped in and bent over Flac's body. He lay crumpled on the deck like a rag doll some kid had discarded for a new one; Malf gurbled something unintelligible and scooped his buddy up carefully in his strong arms.

Then he turned and faced me, whoofling at me.

"Well... what do you expect me to do, Hairball?!" I stormed impatiently, catching my lip between my teeth in the pure frustration of not being able to do anything. "Go put him in sick bay while I figure out where in Hell's Seven Circles I'm taking us."

Malf nodded and left with his burden... leaving me to stare somewhat blankly at the forward viewscreen.

Who was that piece of dirt down there anyway? Dear Khaandon... if Flac was... if he--

I firmed inwardly, although I didn't dare let a lick of that escape into my outward demeanor.

If I ever run into that guy again, he is toast. Plain and simple as that.

My former thought ran down a single track toward a surprisingly simple destination: Aelvedaar.

Hey, maybe he might know who that was... that is, if we can ever get to him and ask.

That thought reminded me somewhat forcefully of why we had come to K'eel Doba to begin with... and a shudder chased the remnant of geese down my spine as I realized we had to turn around and go back.

Otherwise we had just wasted a trip for nothing, and Flac had-- for nothing....

Sniffling a little, I cautiously began to proceed with the body language that would bring us back to that hellhole of a planet. Only this time I was making sure to land a touch wee farther from where we had to begin with.

Preferably on the opposite side of K'eel Doba. And we'd just have to take it from there as to finding Phrinnchatka and the Sith and anyone who might be around to help us get my daughter returned safely to my arms again.

[ 11-22-2002 12:27 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Galen ]

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"And thats exactly why i dont like jedi..."

He sat up slowly and nodded to malf "thanks buddy..."

dropping to his feet his hands strayed to his throat. "damn jedi... im gonna be feeling this for a week..."

He then exited the little room and entered the room where galen was unstrapping from the piloting system...

He gave her a brief nod of appriciation before turning to the door...

"Well, i suppose we should get going... Err... what were we looking for again? oh ya...that citty thing... Right... Almost forgot..."

He turned to malf for a moment and spoke gently to the giant. "listen man, we got some wierd stuff happening here, hows about staying to guard the ship, Thanks, i appriciate it."

with no further waiting or explanation flac grabed galen and exited the ship, beginning a slow wander accross the planet...

after a few minutes of wandering flac took out the little patch from his pocket and placed it over his eye, examining the far off distance...

"errrm... What exactly are we looking for?

Errr... Theres some wierd rocks over that way... And over there is a cave of sorts... And errmmm... Theres some mountains over there..."

as he spoke he pointed in various directions.
"Which way brown eyes?"

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"The signal I was homing in on is over there," I said at length, pointing toward a low range of mountains. "If I remember correctly, the spaceport they called Ch'arlingua is nestled down there.

"But it's under a shield and then there's some kind of weird magicks involved that hide it from view. I mean, to just come in there all you'd see is a low place between the ranges. However, it's all we've got; that's the only way that I know of to get in and out of Phrinnchatka."

I didn't make any comment about the cave and the rocks Flac's device had revealed. I didn't even want to think about them... and who was buried there.

Later, Galen... Later.

I shook the encroaching trembles from me with a distinct nod of my head. "C'mon then," I said, and set out toward the not so distant mountain range ahead of us.

.........

Okay, ok... so I forget how misleading perspective can be in this absolutely dry climate, I berated myself as after two hours of steady trudging that damned range only appeared to be the teentiest bit closer to us. I cast a gander over to the reddening horizon to our left, and sighed. Chance were that we wouldn't make it before nightfall; I didn't know about my companion, but I sure as Roon's Treasure didn't want to go feeling my way amidst rocks and who knew what else in the dark.

I came to a halt, my hands on my hips.

"Looks like we're gonna have to find somewhere to camp, Flac," I said, now looking around for a suitable site. But all that was revealed to me no matter where I looked was flat and dusty terrain, pocked here and there by craters of every size.

I shook my head and let my hands fall to my side.

"Looks like the Emperor's Suites are taken for the night; guess we'll have to go with the standard rates. You're choice, but remember, we have to end up over there sometime--" I pointed toward the mountains which lay dim and inscrutable in the distance.

"So don't get picky as to which crater you like best."

[ 11-23-2002 04:08 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Galen ]

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he extended his arms and stretched for a moment before examing there soroundings... "well... which pillow do you want? the big jagged rock, or the little jagged rock?"

He shugged and sat down looking about he sighed. "Man... This place sure isnt much for tourest attractions... Hmm... Does it get cold at night? any wild animals?"

He lay back on the ground and sighed as he looked up into the sky, closing his eyes and just waiting... he knew he wasnt gonna get much sleep...

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Then I frowned.

Somebody else in this picture did not have a suit such as I was wearing, and more than likely was extremely subject to the cold the night would bring. A cold which for all I knew might be enough to induce hypothermia....

I sat up abruptly.

"Hey Flac, are you ok? I mean, are you going to be warm enough?"

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When he heard galens voice he opened yes eyes and looked over at her. "e..err-rrmm... I Thin-k so... Ya... I-l-l... B-b-b-e.. F-fine..."

He smiled briefly and pulled his arms though his sleeves and into the warmth of his jacket... "errmm... If im an icecube in the morning... Dont hesitate to shoot me with something hot... Prieferably something sweet, and cocoflavored..."

He chuckled to himself for a moment before closing his eyes again and resisting the urge to use his hands as a pillow...

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I pushed that thought away from me with some effort, and sighed.

"Look," I offerred at length. "This suit is either insulated or has some built-in heater or something... but the point is I'm warm and you're not. Heat conducts, and radiates.

"Get yer hiney over here so you don't freeze to death already, ok?"

I held my arms out to him and just sat there in the growing dark, waiting.

--------------------

He quickly got up and walked over to where she was and sat down beside her...

As he sat down he could literaly feel the heat from her body reach out to seek the cold which had embedded itself within him...

As he lay down he moved a bit closer to her. "thanks galen... I appreciat this..."

--------------------

Then I lay down, and let Flac snuggle closer to me.

"You're welcome," I whispered... but didn't fall asleep for a long time after that. I just lay there beneath the sparkling canopy that arched overhead, watching the stars twinkle in their glory, wondering where all this would lead us, and if Aelvedaar would let us into Phrinnchatka again.

Beside me the contact of Flac's body suddenly was nothing less than a warm and tangible promise of success... and finally I was able to close my eyes and get some sleep.

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Hot. It's hot; Great Khaandon's Ghost but its getting hotter by the minute....

Granted, the actual words didn't cross my mind, in fact I was scarcely aware enough to actively form them. They just arose in defense against the sensations my body was starting to feel as the K'eel Doban sun started to rise, sending its dim little rays over the horizon to bathe us in its light. I grunted and rolled over onto my other side, somehow aware of a more isolated band of heat which was draped loosely about my waist, a band which remained there as in the rolling I seemed to unspoon my body from someone else's.

I wafted to something closer to awareness, a little smile ghosting about my lips.

Someone else....

For a moment I just lay there, my eyes closed, letting myself come closer and closer to full awakening, each step of the way nudged by the warmth of that someone else's proximity which yet was becoming slowly augmented by the additional warmth the sun's strengthening rays were providing. A little tendril of logic crept into my mind, forming an explanation as to why I was getting so uncomfortable.

This sun might be a red dwarf... but the hemisphere we're on is tilted toward it. Intensity is intensity, whether it's red or yellow or purple for that matter....

Now I grinned at my own apparent non sequiteur, and slowly opened my eyes. The grin vanished in a flash when I saw just who I had been instinctively snuggling with so closely; I sat up with a start, swallowing and reflexively running a hand through my hair.

Beside me, Flac merely opened his eyes.

"Ahh--" I groped, waving a hand about. My mind raced, and came up with the obvious.

"Good morning. If you want breakfast, we'll have to eat out.

"I think the nearest restaurant is that way."

I indicated the mountain range with a somewhat more indicative wave of my hand even as I began climbing to my feet, brushing sand from my accoutrements as I did so.

--------------------

Slowly he stood and looked at her, then looked to the mountain... his gaze then returned to her...and to the mountain again...

Finaly something inside him clicked, and he nodded in respones... "right... Less get going then..."

they then set off once more...

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They had been walking FOREVER! Was there no end to this freaken planets landscape?

Quite suddenly he stopped and turned to galen. "Thats it... Ive had it... Just shoot me now... no more walking..."

he then paused, she was looking past him rather then at him...

he stopped his ranting and shook his head "We're there arent we?"

His head spun slowly and he smiled to himself... "ranting and raving... speeds the time up so well..."

He laughed histaricaly and pointed at the mountains "that will only take us like 10 minutes to get to! LETS GO!"

he then grapped galens arm and ran off with her.

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The ship came streaking from the atmosphere, following a course that its cybernetic "brain" knew oh to well...

It decended rapidly, coming down, and to a halt, to rest gently now upon the surfice of the sith space port...

Jharu looked out the view screen for a moment, shook his head... "Doest seem to have any demons... Maybe they got board and went away..."

he then turned to face his companions. "you two ready?"

--------------------

At length he finally spoke. "Yes, I'm ready," he replied. Then he simply bit his tongue to keep himself from handing out any advice concerning the stealthiness of Sith demons, still wishing like hell that he had a change of clothes...

--------------------

But I let him grab me and take off running; can't say as I blamed him. I was getting sick and tired of this blasted hellhole myself. So we flew the remaining meters, and only started really flagging when we had managed to trek up and over the first of the outlaying layers of anticlinal rock....

When something came zipping in over head in a way too familiar blast of greeny-gold and disappeared behind the anticline toward which we were heading.

I nearly jumped out of my skin, double-layered flight suits and all. And when my feet came back down to earth, my jaw was agape and my eyes were blinking in utter shock.

It couldn't be; it just couldn't be...!

"C'MON!" I hollered, now filled with enthusiasm myself... for that greeny-gold blast could only be a Sith fighter coming in to land in the spaceport. And if it was landing, it had to be let in. And to be let in, the shield had to be dropped. And if the shield were dropped, we'd be naked before the weird magicks of that sorcerer and sure as Khaandon made little green worrts he'd let us into Phrinnchatka.

He'd better.... I growled to myself as I hauled hiney up the remaining few hundred meters of slope, now outpacing Flac and leaving him gasping in my wake. I grinned, topped the final anticline...

...and just stood there, mouth agape, and not entirely due to an effort to gain my breath.

There below me, revealed in her full glory, was the Sith spaceport of Ch'arlingua. There to one side was the little fighter that had just landed. There were all the ships, there were two people I couldn't make out followed by some big beast which looked terribly familiar, even from this distance...

There they all were, walking across the tarmac toward the short tunnel which lead to the transport into Phrinnchatka. I stood there, hunched over now, my hands on my knees, and gasped as I watched them enter the inky portal of that tunnel where they disappeared from sight.

So why was I still seeing the spaceport? Why hadn't the field been raised? What happened to all the Sith magick...?

I straightened with a final indrawn breath, and hearing Flac come up beside me now turned to him.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." I hesitated before taking the plunge and beginning to slip and slide my way down into Ch'arlingua, to then continue on into the ancient capital city of the Sith.

[ 11-25-2002 12:59 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Galen ]

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he could tell that this was defenetly a bit ahead of his home... The buildings looked different, to say the least...

He then began walking through the empty streets, before stoping as a shiver ran accross his spine...

"somethings... Not... Right here."

He looked around cautiously... For while he was not expert, his father had taught him to trust his instinct... And his mother had seconded that notion by telling him to trust his feelings... Both had countlessly told him to always trust his heart... And all three were screaming at him to be carefull...

To his side he heard a slight scrapping sound accross the rocks, turning his head in time to see a slipping shadow...

His eyes wandered down to Ghrr... Home he sensed, as well as saw, was in a ready crouch, and defenetly not feeling to err... "light hearted"

he then turned to terrin, and nodded slowly, as if to say. "no sound...dangerious"

Slowly he continued onward... as he progressed he cought site of a larg building that looked somewhat familiar...

That has to be the temple... And that sorcerer guy has got to be in there...

he moved cautiously onward once more, getting almost 1/3 of the way to the temple, when quite suddenly a horde of... of... well, he wasnt sure what, but there were a lot of them...

he turned quickly and almost screemed, they were sorounded...

"Arg! they were toying with us!"

As he continued to survay the scene, near panic started to take hold, and his mind simply froze...

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yet, deep within... The spirit grows... And i indeed now... This one holds promise...

[ 11-25-2002 07:22 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by The Elresar ]

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Man... She wasnt kidding... Something just aint right...

He reached into his pocket slowly, and placed his little patch to his eye then stoped suddenly, letting his hand drop away....

"err galen... Theres umm... A lot of.... Well... A lot of something around that courner... All i got to work with is body heat...and i tell you, theres enough to make this planet nice and toastie at night should they spread themselves out..."

He looked over at her, and reaching to play upon the grip of his blaster...

Trouble follows you like a puppy looking for a free meal, buddy.... Maybe you should just stay in a room... Or is it galen this time? she seems to have the same...err... "condition" that you do...

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