"I'm certain this is a trap of some kind. You can never trust a... Sith... Dark Sider. I don't know about Palomir or his race yet, but I do know that there is not enough life here to be Dagobah - and none of the life that is around is intelligent. We may want to hurry out of this area though cause something is hungry and I don't want to be dinner. I think we should get away from her as soon as we safely can though, you, me, Aaron, Link, and K'kihl."

Thea let her steps lengthen a little but kept her weapon trained on Shayla's back, she wasn't taking any chances.

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

Thea was right, something was amiss here. The forest was too light, the sky somehow different. It was almost like-

Phalomir’s thoughts were interrupted by a faraway cry of an animal. His keen Sith hearing picked it up before the others, and his skin crawled with the realization of what kind of animal it was.

Then he felt it. All around him, in the air, the ground, so faint yet very distinct to the Dark Lord of the Armorers. The thrumming, subtle vibrations of the power of the planet that held his Temple.

Phalomir half scowled and stared at Shayla, still confidently striding ahead of him. Still silent, he took the canteen from his belt and held it in his hand. He inhaled, sneered, and in a flash sent the canteen sailing from his hand and into the air, where it collided with the back of Shayla’s head with a clank. The heavy, full canteen sent Shayla to the ground unconscious.

He walked to her, ignoring the startled cries of those with him. He looked back towards Yaoksi with a steady expression.

“Thea is correct,” he said. “This is not Dagobah. Fetch rope from the pack, hurry.”

Phalomir proceeded to rip two pieces of his clothing into wide strips and fashioned a gag and blindfold, which he secured around Shayla. He was handed a rope by someone, but he was not taking his eyes off of Shayla. He secured her arms behind her back and tied her legs together.

“We are on the planet Korris’ian,” he said, now looking at the faces around him. “We have been sent here to face the wild beasts of this world, probably to die. Whether Shayla was part of this plan or was likewise betrayed, I do not know, but I am not willing to risk it. I have had quite enough of all this. There is no civilization here, only the ruins of an ancient Temple. But it is my Temple, that of my clan, and it is there we shall travel. I can feel it, it calls to me. Graysith’s portal could only be opened to a place she has seen, and from the stories told to me of her stay here, she has not seen much far from the temple. Since Shayla was leading us this way, I suggest we travel the opposite way.”

Phalomir stood and hefted Shayla’s limp form onto his shoulder.

“Are there any questions?”

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

Actually, it was easier than I thought it would be to keep from blurting out the question, for it was lost in the myriad others whirling in my head since Lord Phalomir's surprise attack on Blondie. But whether all was peaches and cream, or whether we had just stepped from the exhaust jets into the proverbial engines yet remained to be seen; as it was, all I could acquiesce to was a directional shift from one potential danger (if not certain) to another.

The difference was that this one still held a slim chance of proving me wrong, and Thea as well.

I considered all Lord Phalomir had revealed, let my open mouth keep disguising my growing unease by pretending to be resultant human shock, and squeezed Thea's shoulder again. Somewhere in the distance, there came an impossible, snarling yowl that sent tiny hairs on the back of my neck to an abrupt attention.

That settled it for me.

"Yeah, right," I stammered, turning about to begin heading off in the direction he indicated, one hand freeing itself from Thea's shoulders to snag Link. Something told me they'd both be embarrassed as hell if I pulled them under my suddenly developing mother hen's arms; instead I merely pulled them alongside of me, then released them to walk on their own. A chittery sort of clack behind me informed me of K'kihl's whereabouts; with nothing in my forward vision now save for a wild tangle of forest and the brush of a cool wind, I was at last free to let my facial muscles do what they had been wanting to do all along.

I frowned, pursed my lips, let out a small sigh of major concern. For while it was indeed clearly evident that we couldn't trust the blonde as far as we could throw her, I was yet uncertain about the Sith Lord. Thea had wanted us to depart from him as well; that didn't seem possible at the moment.

Besides, I told myself as we trudged along, ducking to avoid the whip of thorny branches, stepping over one fallen tree after another.

Better stick close to this guy. He's more than likely the only way we're going to get off this planet, whatever this planet IS. And what better place to keep one's possible foe than right under one's nose?

I agreed with myself by nodding imperceptibly, and kept moving, at length building up enough courage to ask a real question:

"Ahh... you said this place was called Korris'ian. I've never heard of it, and I've been around the galaxy, don't ya know. I'm not seeing any welcome signs anywhere."

I gestured with a brief wave of one hand.

"Care to elucidate a bit further as to what little birdie came along to whisper this gem of wisdom into your ear?"

His explanation of temples calling out to him just didn't cut the mustard with me. I turned a bit to shoot a questioning look toward the Sith Lord, but it was snagged instead by the immense shining eyes of K'kihl. He merely clattered his mandibles again, and kept mute.

[ 03-07-2007 10:34 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Yaoksi Joao ]

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“Korris’ian is not in the known galaxy,” he said. “Not any more.”

His smile dissolved quickly as he continued, walking behind the others with a limp Shayla in tow.

“In the glory days of my race, long, long ago, there were four worlds that made up the core planets of the Sith. That is the race known as ‘Sith’, Thea, not the nasty Force users who stole the name of my race, the Dark Jedi. Three of the worlds each held one clan, and along with it the central Temple devoted to that clan. You have already seen the Temple of Warriors on K’eel Doba. Another splendid Temple devoted to the sorcerer clan is on Khar Delba. Those two planets orbit our red sun, while its younger yellow brother held the other two planets in tow.

“Korris’ian, where we are now, was the home to the Clan of Armorers, or as some called them, the Weapons Clan. The same word in Sith means both, depending on the context. The forth planet was sacred, and was for all clans. When the Dark Jedi came, Korris’ian was the first planet to feel the brunt. The entire population was evacuated to K’eel Doba, and then again to Khar Delba to live amongst the Sorcerers.

“Now this planet is a wild jungle. If we are lucky, we shall not encounter a wild tuk’ata before we reach the safety of the Temple. It has fallen into ruin, being unoccupied for 4000 years, but I have been there recently and know its condition.”

Phalomir suddenly felt a strange sensation, aside from the thrumming that he felt from the Temple. It was something familiar, yet he could not quite place it. Dismissing it, he then considered explaining about the Elseness, but decided against that at the moment.

“There is a guardian of this – realm,” he said. “It required that the world be hidden from the rest of the galaxy, and so it is. If we encounter the guardian, it is best to keep quiet and not be argumentative. I shall explain our condition and with luck it will send us back.”

[ 03-07-2007 03:38 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Phalomir ]

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"Phalomir, earlier you mentioned wild beasts on this planet, can you tell us more about them in case we run into one."

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His frown deepened. "One of those wild beasts...

..or something on one of these Sith worlds...

...killed Terrin. I think if we run into one we should run fast and far," he added, no kidding intended. "And what do we do if this guardian you speak of doesn't send us back away from here?"

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

Phalomir looked to his right, into the jungle. A call from far away came wafting from the distance.

“The animals of the planet are diverse and mostly harmless. All except for the Tuk’ata. They are the predator above all here. They are huge, sharp in claw and tooth, with tentacled faces. They are highly intelligent, hunt in packs, and if we encounter them we may as well be dead. That is why I hope to reach the temple before we--”

Phalomir stopped, both in mid sentence and mid step. He was looking intently to his right.

“Hold,” he said, lifting his hand palm forward. “This is not the way to the Temple.”

Phalomir pointed to the ruins off to the right. Covered in tangled vines and leaves, a pair of small stone buildings rose from the foliage. The woman he held over his shoulder was moving slightly, Phalomir sighed and walked towards the ruins.

“I suggest we stop here for now,” he said. “Shayla is waking.”

Phalomir walked next to one of the buildings, apparently a house of some sort. The stones still looked mostly intact, and except for the missing door and windows. He placed Shayla down on the ground and knelt beside her. Swallowing hard, he pulled the gag from her mouth.

“Shayla,” he said, placing his hand on her forehead. “Awake.”

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

...but increasingly aware of that persistent niggle that something wasn't right. As conciousness began to return even more, she shifted a bit, only to find that her movement was restricted. To realize that she was laying down.

And that none of this had anything to do with her own will whatsoever. She stretched out with the Force a bit, assessing the situation before she fully returned to it, and was immediately impacted with familar, nearby presences.

White hot anger flooded through her...

...but something deeper and darker sent out a silent but beckoning warning call that she also took note of.

Her greeny-blues finally opened, their depths somehow musky for a moment before turning completely serene and unreadable, all traces of anything completely gone.

"Why--?" she whispered as her eyes locked on the kneeling Phalomir, something of a hint of betrayal lurking in those smokey depths.

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

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

And with nothing further than simply that she quieted all together, her eyes growing distant and totally unreadable as something snarled deeply within.

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

Yeah right. Like that was gonna happen...

I rubbed an exasperated hand over my face.

"Oh, hell!" I exploded as without thinking I strode over to where the Sith Lord was kneeling over Blondie.

"She's not gonna tell us anything; I say we leave her here as decoy for these tuckerhoosy critters, and get outselves to-- to--"

I trailed to a close, for I honestly had no idea where in all the universe we could go.

Or, beyond it as, if what Phalomir asserted was indeed true, the case was proving to be.

[ 03-07-2007 09:53 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Yaoksi Joao ]

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“Do you take me for a complete fool to believe you knew nothing of this deception? Tell me why she led us here.”

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"Better then the last place..." I murmured, passing through it without hesitation this time, and feeling an immediate weight fall upon me, as gravity returned. "So it is a world..." I felt a wave of familiarity pass over me. "I'm back where we were..."

I felt a second wave hit me and smiled. "Master Phalomir... one point four six kilometers north east." I immediately turned in that direction and began to walk. "Seems I've found my way out..."

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

I quickly uncrossed my arms and made a movement toward the enraged Phalomir who, judging from the delicate shade of red Shayla's face was slowly becoming, either didn't realize or didn't care about the sum of Sith strength + human throat. He merely grunted, gave his head a dimunitive jerk in my direction, then returned his attention to the task at hand.

I hovered a moment, torn.

Wasn't this acting according to the Darker Side, as Thea was wont to spout? Wasn't this reducing outselves to the level of those who had become our enemy?

Then I remembered what had happened in the Healing Chamber: the overall destruction, and the quickness in which this gal had reacted to produce said destruction.

Not to mention the means by which she had accomplished it...

I looked at Phalomir in quite a different light.

"Good luck, buddy," I whispered to myself as, crossing my arms once more, I quietly stepped back to stand with the remainder of our so far silent little group.

[ 03-08-2007 10:48 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Yaoksi Joao ]

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"Hey, I think I've been here before. You sent me here with Galen once - when your... Dark Master was trying to kill us, didn't you, Traitor? Up in a temple on a rocky hill. And Khar Delba - you held us prisoner there too. You set one of those tuk'ata on us. If Jasyn hadn't found us and rescued us we would be dead now."

Thea was beginning to like Phalomir more now - after all he talked about the Dark Ones with the same dislike she thought of them as even if they knew them by different names.

"I can't believe you would try this again," Thea continued to address Shayla. "It failed once with only a Youngling and a very sick woman, now with all of us you try again. Why don't you tell us what you want, and why? You are a traitor, more and more I wonder why I ever trusted you, why they let you back to the Praxeum. If Phalomir were not in the way I would give you a taste of this." She flashed the vibroblade at her, eyes glittering.

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

...but was immediately squelched by something else entirely.

Betrayal...

Even those who claim to care...

...they really don't. It's all a ruse to feed their conscience. And it matters not.

In that moment, Shayla's eyes hardened. "You will believe what you will believe," she spoke vaguely through her constricted throat. Then, her eyes darkening, she added a final statement. "Go ahead and kill me...

...and be certain to aim for my heart."

Even as her last statement fell from her lips and her face continued to redden, her eyes flicked to Phalomir's...

...and then to Thea's, resting there a moment before they returned to Phalomir's, something dark and accusing oiling up from within.

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

I wont be caught feeble this time. I thought, feeling that same pain inside me twist.

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

He instinctively flinched, his eyes going wide.

“Panthar,” he whispered. It was the same thing he saw in Panthar, here on this same planet. He had been infected with the darkness that had been intended for Phalomir, and it was only through a self-inflicted, nearly fatal injury that made the substance leave Panthar. This he heard after the fact, for it under the influence of that darkness Panthar convinced Aelvedaar to imprison Phalomir. And now Shayla and Jharmeen both were under this same influence.

“Shayla,” he said softly. “Forgive me. I know you are there, be strong. I know what is within you, and I speak to that darkness now. If she allows you to remain, it shall be of her own choosing. Let her speak now.”

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

"Shayla already speaks," she growled, having quite enough of all of all this as she then closed her eyes, stretching out to her talents to then send an overwhelming blast of Force to once more knock everyone head over heels, including the Dark Lord who held her.

She took a few deep breaths then, fire burning in her eyes, the oil within fueling it even more. "You have made the first move, and chosen your part in the Game," she panted, stretching out then to her LInk with Graysith.

They have made the first move, and have made an attempt on my life, in vain. They will surely try to kill us both if they are allowed to be free...

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

“The first move was leading us here instead of aiding us when I asked for help,” he said flatly. “How can there be trust when all I hear are lies? Shayla, or whatever you have become, if you and Jharmeen have issues with me then confront me directly with them. I am still Phalomir, the one who has been through so much with both of you. Just let me know that this darkness has not consumed you, and that it is still you inside.”

Phalomir paused, a lump catching in his throat.

“Do not make me do this,” he said quietly.

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

"This is not unexpected, my Sister; a hazard of the task I have put before you. I must know what the Temple of Armorers holds, for if a device can be made once, it can once more. This cannot be allowed, for in the Grand Scheme of Things we have no time to waste on such distractions.

"One in particular being this self-proclaimed Dark Lord; be wary of him, Sister. He is powerful indeed; you have not yet mastered what you need to hold your own in an outright confrontation with him. Therefore, you must use that gift natural to you and all of the feminine ilk:

"Guile."

She let a pregnant moment pass between them before sending off one last, assuring thought.

"Fear not, however; should he persist in seeking your death, I shall have you from that place in an instant.

"Take care..."

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

"You... you would kill us both?" she queried softly, seeming to waver for the first time.

All the while something dark and oily slipped off to its hiding place, unseen by the others yet not at all gone...

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

That is all.))

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

“I do not wish to harm either of you,” he said. “Jharmeen is everything to me, you know this. And you and I have been through much together, and you know I would lay my own life down for you. But Shayla, there is something wrong, something amiss. Why have you turned against me? Why would you lead us here to this planet of wild tuk’ata and claim it to be Dagobah? What has been done to you?”

Phalomir knew what the answer to this question was, but needed to hear Shayla’s answer.

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

She trailed a moment, then continued, still not looking up. "And help her. You may be the only one who can..."

Trailing again, oil, now hidden from the eyes of the others, momentarily clouded Shayla's eyes, only to then recede back into it's hiding place.

When she looked up her eyes were totally clear. They locked onto Phalomir's. "We have to devise a plan..."

[ 03-10-2007 12:15 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shayla Stargazer Petrolu ]

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