Nightmare on Vendaxa!(OPEN!)

[Othorious]

Jarod paced around in the small hallway separating the small freighter's Cockpit from it's cargo hold, between him were two small pilot and co-pilot bunks. Jarod never bothered to use them, his nerves were too on edge to allow him to drift into sweet slumber. The stranger never told him where he was going, only that this Freighter would transport him to the designated location.

Suddenly the ship lurched forward, sending Jarod hurtling against the durasteel wall. "Damn Freighter!" screamed Jarod as he punched the Freighter's inner hull, and foolishly injuring his hand in the process. Jarod ignored the throbbing sensation, and slowly strode into the cockpit, to discover the Freighter's destination, Vendaxa. "Never heard of....Vendaxa, must be nothing more than a dead rock"

Jarod watched as the blurring space slowed down and held onto the pilot's chair as the ship lurched forward, nearly sending him through the viewport! A large lush green planet filled his view port, Jarod was completely surprised, what could be so bad about this planet? It seemed perfectly harmless from his point of view, but Jarod would soon regret calling Vendaxa a "Harmless" planet.

Jarod stared in wonderment at the lush green planet when suddenly turbulance assaulted the Planet's already malfunctioning engines, the ship lurched and soon barrel rolled towards the rapidly approaching wall of green. The Freighter smacked nose first into the tree lines, luckily the ship's particle shields held...for a few seconds, and like the engines, the failed. The limbs took advantage of this moment of weakness, ripping the hull in many uncountable directions. The ship smashed into the soft grassy ground littering the planet, the ship flipped over once, then fell with a hard dud as it settled.

Jarod felt sick again, during the crash he already vomited when the ship began to barrel roll, and he was about to do it again. Leaning against the wall, he vomited, but he had no more fluid left in his stomach, so only his empty gags filled the eerily silence of the ship. He finally stopped retching, and opened the hatch of the ship, to find out that the ship was sitting upside down. He leaped out onto the lush grassland where his ship crashed, there was a long patch of broken trees and crushed grass where his ship plowed through.

The stranger told him that once he landed he was to immediately contact him using the commlink that was supplied with him. He quickly fished into his robes, and took out the small circular disk, and pressed the button. A small hologram of the stranger filled the disk's surface, "Ah yes, did you arrive at Vendaxa?" "Yes I did, and not the greatest of ways either..."How...unfortunate, none the less your mission is to survive on this planet for three days..." "What!? Three days!?" "If you survive, I will teach you everything the Jedi couldn't!"

Jarod was beginning to question this choice he made when suddenly the Commlink shut off and announced in a metallic voice, "Self Destruct Sequence Activated " "Oh shi..." was all that Jarod managed to say before the Commlink exploded, sending him staggering a few feet, until he fell down on his back. Jarod slowly staggered to his feet, the explosion knocked the wind out of him, and it took him a few seconds to regain it. "HA! What could be so bad about this planet?" Jarod gloated, and was answered by a ferocious roar from deep in the forest. Jarod knew better than to stand his ground, he would surely be killed, he turned on his heel, and bolted away from the approaching roars.

[Talau the Ever-Lurking]

((Please read carefully. I tend to put a lot of information into my opening posts then taper down as time goes on))

A Falleen…

A Sith Empire base…

Torture…

A Falleen…

Meetings (which equated to torture)…

A Noghri assassin…

Vendaxa…

Why?

At this point the azure skinned and red eyed woman was really beginning to question the Force’s fickle will and plans for her life. Perhaps it was simply a bad stretch of events that would lead her to something better…but she doubted it. Well, she doubted it for the most part, anyway. There were, of course, a few bright points in the generally dingy gray blur of memory, actions, thoughts and emotions that was her life and her work. Surprisingly, to her at least, these bright points were beings…while not all of them were flesh and blood, they all held a place in her heart and mind. Sender, of course, was one of those shining points. Her guide, partner, and companion, the little avian droid had as much of a personality as any flesh and blood being, and despite the bluff and bluster she put forth, Rahja wouldn’t have traded him for the galaxy. Sean (and Ayer…the two came as a package deal, after all) was yet another of those glistening lights in her relative gloom. While not the guiding light and beacon that Sender (and to an extent, Ayer) was, Sean provided the stoic chiss with no small amount of amusement…and more than that, he provided support and compassion. Then there was the falleen…Rizzen (yet another Familiar partner, this time to the new FIDES model, Wash)…now there was an odd light to find. Not only had he mucked up her last job, but captured her, turned her over to the Imperials to be tortured, brought about her escape then spent the time tending to her injuries and providing succor when he (as a Mandalorian) should have been nothing more than her enemy.

It was this last meeting, between herself and Rizzen, that had her questioning the Force’s will the most, and for more than one reason. Most specifically, she wondered just why it was that this, most peculiar, light had been brought into her awareness. While it had, in the end, been an…enlightening…experience, it was still effecting her. While the evidence of the torture was mostly faded from her skin, some of her bones and muscles were still bruised, making work…just a bit more difficult. Certainly it hadn’t caused much of a problem while sitting through the most recent PF meeting, or her debriefing (both of which counted at torture to her after her ‘vacation’ with the Empire), it did make her next job quite troublesome. In fact, it was because of that very job that she found herself here…in the middle of the Vendaxa jungle…hunting a bothersome Noghri assassin who’d managed to escape from her from a near by planet. In fact, she and her trusty tin toucan (alright, so he was more of a…raven) were currently attempting to track said Noghri through the jungles without being eaten or mauled by the local flora and fauna.

<<It’s no wonder he chose to run all the way out here…this place is one, large, death trap,>> she said into her sub-vocal mic, the cheunh language rolling easily off her tongue. Was she particularly worried about someone hearing her? No, not really. Was she particularly worried about someone understanding her? Not one bit…after all, it wasn’t as if there were a plethora of chiss running about the galaxy, nor was their language spoken much outside of the Ascendancy. Those that did speak the language tended to be chiss themselves…or, in Sender’s case…a droid who had been to the Ascendancy. Speaking of her AER, his snicker could be heard in her ear piece as he attempted to play scout for her and flush out the troublesome assassin. Thankfully his black and gray coloring allowed him to see and not be seen…not that there was much to see besides, well, jungle.

”Have I ever told you how much I dislike jungles? My systems just aren’t made for moisture rich environments…” he replied, his words sent internally to her earpiece, the outward vocabulator silenced so he kept his noise level to a minimum.

<<Many times, Sender, but you’re forgetting your new chassis is better equipped for them now.>>

Silence.

”Oh…right….yes. Yes, it is…”

Now that had her chuckling as she paused under the thick and wide leaves of one of the tropical plants, her clothing, leather armor, and hair sticking to her in the humidity. Huffing slightly, she readjusted her rifle and pulled her canteen off her jedi issue utility belt. Thank the force she’d horded the things when she’d been part of the medicorps. Taking a drink, she nearly soaked herself with it when Sender all but shouted into her ear, the sound of creaking and displaced air also burning into her ear. <<Sender! Sender?! Report?!>>

”I'm alright…barely. Downed ship in .4572 clicks. Uncertain origin or alignment. Uncertain cause of flight capability loss. Life signs….I’m reading one life sign…yes. It appears to be humanoid, whatever it is, and is contacting someone or something…”

<<Is it our target?>>

”Negative…” those photoreceptors honed in on the features of the being that had just half tumbled, have lept from the wreckage and was now speaking to…something. ”It appears to be a human male, 16 to 18 in age…processing image and matching to republic databanks…odd…”

<<Spit it out, Sender, what did you find.>>

”He matches the jedi databank entry of ‘Jarod Dubrilli’…perhaps his master didn’t survive the crash? Orders?”

Rahja was silent for a long moment. A jedi…a padawan, most likely. Brilliant. As if her current situation couldn’t get any worse. Sighing, she had been about to reply when that thunderous roar sounded across the lands. Shaking her head, she growled slightly, clipping her water canteen back on her belt and hoisted herself up into the trees. <<Bring him to me, Sender. If he’s a padawan, we need to get him back to the temple in one piece. I’ll hold position, but I'm moving toward the canopy so I don’t become dinner.>>

”Understood.” With that, the little droid put full power into his thrusters to propel himself after the running youth. Switching his vocabulator so that he could be heard by Rah, as well as by Jarod, he came up beside the young man, red photoreceptors glancing over at him from beneath that darkened HUD visor. ”Jarod Dubrilli, I am AER 04, designation ‘Sender.’ I am here to assist you. My partner is currently .3980 clicks ahead of you in the jungles. Please follow me and we will assist you to the best of our ability.”

[Rugs]

Truth be told, Nieraan hadn't expected to take to this world so much when he first arrived. The Firrerreo was a man of the city, and had spent the bulk of his life on the urban wasteland of Metellos. Yet here he was, on this wild hellhole, miles and miles away from any city or sign of civilization. He kind of liked it, really. Part of it reminded him of the world of Ruusan, where he'd spent his childhood, back in the days when he'd still been an innocent boy. Maybe that boy was still there inside of him, somewhere. Maybe. If he was, he'd fallen silent a long, long time ago.

But it wasn't memories of a time long gone that so enamored the new Sith Initiate to the world. No, Nieraan loved the thing that made most people hate Vendaxa: the world was completely, unrelentingly ruthless. It's ecosystem was a nightmare, locked in a constant state of struggle where only the strong survived. Nieraan loved it. Metellos--or at least the Metellos Nieraan knew--had been similar. There, it was the gangs that mad life hard, with their constant battles for supremacy. That was the environment that Nieraan came to love. Places like that, places that were fueled by constant struggle and turmoil, where the places where Nieraan flourished. Sure, quiet had its uses, but it had a way of making people soft. Making them weak. Nieraan had no intention to be either.

The entire reason he'd come to this world was Silas. Silas Isao, the Sith that took Nieraan into the order. Shortly after Nieraan arrived on Coruscant, Silas took him to Dxun, perhaps as a sort of test to see what he was made of. Dxun was similar to Vendaxa: a wild world where only he strong made it from day-to-day. Nieraan loved it.

And so, they'd returned to the Sith Temple, and after a while, Nieraan had finally gotten a bit of free time, so he came out to Vendaxa, after hearing about it. It would provide a chance to test himself, without having to worry about anyone else. Here he was alone, with only himself to worry about.

He'd been on the world for a few days. His routine, for the most part, had been to venture out into the wild for a day or few days and then return back to the ship he'd taken out from the Temple. From there he'd move to a different area of the planet and begin the cycle anew.

Nieraan was in the beginning stages of such another cycle. He'd set down not too long ago and now he was out, stalking through the trees to see what he could find.

Thankfully, it didn't take too long to find something.

An explosion sounded a few yards to the south from Nieraan's position. His yellow eyes were drawn instinctively to the sound, and he was greeted by a plume of black smoke trailing up into the sky from a small clearing. What could he do but go check it out?

The Force flowed into his muscles as he moved, enabling him to move faster than any normal being had any right to. He closed the distance quickly and before too long, he was at the wreckage. However, something else drew his attention before he could investigate the smoldering, twisted heap of metal.

Someone else was there. They stood out clear as the noonday sun to his senses, as did the abject terror that filled them. A look in the direction the feeling came from showed what looked to be some young man, running off away from the tree. I wonder what his deal is.

Nieraan gave chase, and as he closed the distance, he noted that there was some droid near the boy. Perhaps the droid was his: a companion of some sort.
"Hey kid!" he called, growing closer. "What are you doing out here?! What happened to your ship?!"

[Othorious]

Jarod ran, he didn't make it 10 feet before a voice assaulted his ears, he turned towards the source of the sound, when he came face to face with a small raven sized sentry droid. He was tempted to grab for his saber, but decided that maybe...it could help him survive. Maybe...whoever controls this droid could be useful, then after he or she served their purpose...i would kill them.. He then quickly put on his best impression of being a scared little child, "Please...help me get away from here, please help me!" Jarod had quickly informed the droid in a shaky, and frightened voice, when suddenly he heard a different voice call at him. He turned and saw a dark clad man running at high speeds towards him, This could...complicate things...

[Dire Wolf]

Nightmare.

Indeed, that was the word that suited the plains world of Vendaxa. It was one of the most hostile environments in the galaxy, second only to places where living beings simply couldn't live. Namely at the bottom of a volcano, or in the infinite maw of deep space. Few people voluntarily went there, few sane ones anyways. Acklay, harsh day light, and a sweltering temperature were a few among a laundry list of reasons.

While the woman's sanity could certainly be called into question at times, she had indeed voluntarily fled to the planet. No one lived there, at least no intelligent being that she could sense, and that meant less people to gaze upon her bruised, beaten, and cut face. Granted, she'd gotten quite good at illusions since her leave from the Order (using them almost constantly did that), but there was always a select few that could see past them.

Jedi.

Sith.

A strong willed and intelligent Mando'ad.

Droids.

AI.

Hutts. Though she had little to worry about those corpulent slugs seeing her. They used infrared to see, and last she checked her visage wasn't shown in that media.

The very people and objects that the illusion would protect her from the most were impervious to its deception. That fact alone was enough to make her want to simply give up Force Illusion all together and hide underneath some rock for the rest of her life. All of her attempts to do some good in the galaxy were either thwarted by blind Jedi or ruthless Sith.

Sith. The word almost brought shudders to her broken frame. Silas Isao. She'd fought tougher men before him, but she couldn't quite remember when. The Firrereo had taken two powerful knees to the sternum, a flurry of her fists to the same spot, and a lightning-powered jab to the throat yet still refused to yield. Moreso, actually managed to subdue her.

Her head shook lightly at the memories after that. Torture was rarely something that one wanted to remember, especially when it was pain received for the express purpose of fulfilling the sadistic desires of the torturer. No longer did her step hold that confident stride, one filled with purpose and a lofty demeanor. Now each step was made as if she was a predatory cat stalking her prey. Her new life on Vendaxa demanded as much, and it soon became something of a second nature.

Lyssah, previously known to most as "Rhissai'arckan", was hunched over with her hands and feet firmly planted on the ground. Her form all but disappeared underneath the tall grass, which served to block her sight. But she didn't need sight. The Force told her when she was getting too close, and straying too far from the creatures. Much like a bha'lir, she had to wait for one of her quarry to stray from the herd... else she be overwhelmed by them.

It wasn't that she was worried about being killed. Hardly. She knew, however, that she simply couldn't go around killing a herd of animals every time she was mildly hungry. Lyss simply didn't have the facilities to preserve that much meat. Minutes passed like hours, and one of the stronger specimens ventured away from the herd... but not far. It was only then, when she prepared to surge forward in an impressive display of Force aptitude, that a starship screamed into the atmosphere and streaked across the sky. She slowly stretched out to a standing position as those now worried green eyes tracked the ship as it smashed into the face of the planet.

Before one could blink, her legs surged forward in a dead sprint towards the ship. Pain roared at her through each and every wound her broken form bore, and her body begged her to stop. But she did not. Pain was an ephemeral beast, one that was best to be ignored if at all possible. The Force powered her movements as she ran across the plains, dodging unseen objects or simply jumping over them as the Force made her aware of their presence. It hardly took a few moments for her to reach the ship... but she was sure to stay out of sight. Either her senses were lieing, or the two men she saw were Dark Jedi.

The various scars on her face and body seemed to throb as she gazed upon the two men and the avian droid. Flashes of her time with Silas Isao streaked across her mind's eye, not unlike the ship that had passed through the night sky not a few moments before. Her bruises did so as well, though a dull pain began to hammer away at her arms and back, where she'd been slammed into the wall. It got to the point where didn't think it was possible to move without screaming and fighting her own body every step of the way, but she'd done such things before without making a peep.

She had to... it meant life or death. It would be close to impossible to truly fight in her state. So instead of playing the part of the idiot nomad, she simply watched from afar... intently. No doubt they could sense her, but her presence was strong enough to truly home in on the epicenter of its strength. At least at the distance she was at. "Please. Don't let them see me, or find me. Or do anything terribly bad where I have to fight them," she murmured, "I could take one... but not two."

[Talau the Ever-Lurking]

((short, but she's cautious. Words in <<...>> are in the chiss language 'cheunh', and all conversation in italics would be silent to those around Sender))

The good thing about Sender was the fact that not only were his systems capable of relaying everything he heard through his com system to her, but he was capable of picking up and recognizing some disturbances in the force. “How is that possible?” one may ask…well, he did work with a force user on a regular basis, and through that interaction he was able to notice irregularities in his readouts when she used it. Force Speed was one of these irregularities that he could pick up on. It allowed his scanners to alert him to the swift approach of two others. One odd disruption vanished soon after, but the second was still gaining.

It didn’t take a psychoanalyst or super spy to realize there was something amiss with the young man. His reply had been just a bit too…theatrical…for either Rahja or Sender to believe. <<His voice sounds too deep to be a younger padawan, Sender…I don’t trust this…something’s wrong,>> she said to him in cheunh over that com-link. Sender whole heartedly agreed…according to the boy’s record, he had to have been near the age of 18, and he knew from experience that padawans that age didn’t plead for help in such a way unless something was very, very, wrong.

”I completely agree with you…and another one just arrived. My systems showed the tells of force use upon his arrival, and there’s another around here somewhere, but it vanished a little while ago. Instructions?” His vocabulator had been shut off, transmitting the ‘sound’ of his voice to her earpiece, and keeping himself silent to the young man. Rahja was silent for a long moment as she debated the intelligence of allowing them to come closer to her position. If the boy really was a padawan, she had a duty to get him back to the temple, but if not…well, she would be taking a very big risk, especially with an unknown factor entering the picture.

<<Stick to him for now and keep me informed of who the newcomer is…take a round-about path back to give you more time if you need it, we cant risk having three hostiles running around, and two of them knowing my exact position, understood?>>

”Understood."

As the second man caught up, Sender turned his dimmed visor to him and taking in his appearance and swiftly attempting to match it to all Jedi files, as well as all known dark jedi files...not a single match could be found. Cursing silently, he banked to the side to lead them in a less direct line to his partner.