Chapter I: The Mysteries of Leá Monde Outside the Mineshaft Entrance The four Jedi investigators had departed from what was left of the Moff's mansion, traveling in the landspeeder until they reached their magnificent destination. Their conversation had been muted and subdued; no doubt each being's mind was on the dangers that lay ahead. Vic Horkin asked the only question, about the possibility of disabling the city's ancient aerial defenses. He was told that the control system for the defenses lay deep within the heart of the city, and had probably been hidden forever following the Great Quakes. And that seemed to be the end of that. There was only one way in, dangerous as it would be. Finally the landspeeder came to a halt, and the Jedi followed Callo Merlose out of the vehicle. They stood still for a moment, staring across an impassable crevasse in the land. On the other side stood the ancient city of Leá Monde; crumbling walls shimmering and flashing in a magnificent kaleidoscope of colour as the sun began to set. Blue shifted to purple to gold to red in seconds across the strange stone. The only way to cross the crevasse was to go underneath it using the old mines, and then enter the city proper via the underground catacombs. The mineshaft entrance lay before them, dug deep into the soil. The darkside seemed to burn around it, calling the Jedi to enter its dangerous depths. It reeked of dirt and damp and death. "It seems blood has already been spilt," noted Callo sadly, and gestured towards the mine. Corpses lay around the entrance doors. Tag: Xan, nemisis, Despised, Trimaj
Vic had been told that the defense systems main computer was deep within the city, hidden away by the wreckage. It seemed unlikely yet convenient for the city that the computer would survive. Though, that's how life dealt its cards at times. The ride to Leá Monde was very quiet, no doubt the other Jedi felt through the Force the same thing he was feeling. It felt very gloomy. Depressing. He could still hear the faint echoes of those who had passed many years back in the quake that had so devastatingly destroyed the city. The Dark Side was growing stronger as they approached as well. It was an odd feeling, the feeling of the Dark Side. It was inviting, as if it were asking Vic to join it right at then and there. He immediately realized how so many weak Jedi were able to fall to the Dark Side. He only hoped that the others around him did nothing of the sort. The land speeder came to a halt on the side of the crevasse opposite of Leá Monde. Right away, Vic could see how all those people died; the destruction was worst than he had expected. And the crevasse, Vic had thought that perhaps the Jedi would be able to use their abilities to jump it, but that was most definitely out of the question. It was extremely wide, wider than he had expected even. "It seems blood has already been spilt," said Callo with a somber tone pointing out corpses that were littering the ground just before the entrance to the mineshaft. It was apparent that the Sith had no problem leaving anyone behind, or killing any who had stood in their way. Vic felt another twinge of curiosity about who exactly they were. Were they Sith who had died because of some trap? Were they civilians who had died at the hands of the Sith? Whoever they were, they would no longer have an outcome on this mission. "I wonder who those people are," Vic pondered aloud. He unclipped one of his lightsabers from his belt, more out of habit than anything really, leaving it unlit, and moved forward. He decided he was not going to check the bodies, pushing his curiosity aside, concentrating solely on the mission at hand. If one of the other Jedi wanted to check the bodies, that was their decision. "I assume this is where you take your leave?" Vic asked Callo. He had not expected her to continue onwards, and, to be honest, he did not want her to tag along, no offense to her skills. This was solely a Jedi mission, and a non-Force sensitive could prove to be a distraction. Even though she could most likely take care of herself, that'd be one more life to look after while they tried to save Joshua.
Anengy sighed as she got her reply, the maps were way to old. It is curious that the newest maps are CENTURIES old, rather than just before the quake. Did nothing change in the city for that long? I can't believe it. Callo had seemed equally anxious for them all to be on their way, and had herded them towards the landspeeders. Or started to when Vic asked one last question. It concerned the computers to the air defenses, and the answer was decidedly less than pleasant. The computers to all of the automated defenses had ended up buried due to the quake, likely making them completely inaccessable. The news simply gets better and better. The short walk to the landspeeders was uneventful, and it was a vast relief to get away from all of the recent pain that was at the burnt out mansion. Taking a seat next to Vic she could tell the gloom was pressing down on him. She smiled slightly at him, and rested a hand lightly on his forearm. Seeing no response after several seconds, she sighed and decided to simply watch their surroundings. Not that there was particularly much to see anymore, as this was a devestated land even after all these years. The rocks poking out of the ground due to the quakes titanic forces was awe inspiring, the juts were several stories high in some instances. It would have been reasonably pleasant a trip... were it not for the minor disturbance that was the darkside. The whole area was simply steeped in it. At first it was almost like a fine tea, perfectly brewed. It was enticing and seemed the perfect thing for the weary traveler. Of course it was a poisoned brew, but that wasn't particularly apparent at first. The ease one could reach for that is amazing. It plucked at her soul, trying to draw her in. That drawing became stronger as time went on. Much stronger, almost like a rope that was tied around her midriff trying to at first tug her towards a gaping abyss. The tea was over done now, plainly poisoned. That made it easier to resist... for a time. When they finally arrived at the entrance to the mines it was as though it were a monster from some child's nightmare pulling with the strength of a krayt dragon on her soul, trying to devour her. To make her it's own, so that it could wreak havoc on the rest of the planet. The inner struggle was unpleasant, and would likely only get worse the longer they were on the planet. When they finally arrived at the mines there was a reasonably rude surprise. Several bodies were strewn in front of the entrance, and Callos commented "It seems that blood has already been spilt." The restatement of the obvious wasn't really a reason to get upset, but Anengy felt a flash of ange. Reigning in her emotions she thought, No. This will not do. I have more control that this. Noticing that Vic had no interest in checking on the bodies, Anengy went over to do so herself. It took her nearer to the entrance of the cave. Behind her she heard Vic comment that this was likely where Callo would take her leave, which left the Balosar relieved. Only having to worry about Force sensitives was always a relief on missions like this. Bending over one of the corpses she found a young boy, obviously killed in a violent fashion. Stretching out with the Force she felt only echoes of that violence, unhappiness in the last minutes of his young life. Sighing at having learned nothing Anengy looked around more. The crevasse dominated everything, the gaping slash in the ground was huge. They would have to go quite deep to get to the bottom, and that long in mines would be an excersise in not being claustrophobic, regardless of any tendencies towards that. Beyond were the walls of Leá Monde, shattered near the tops due to the quake that had long ago caused the crevasse protecting the city. They shimmered in the light, colors rippling in a beautiful counterpoint to the darkness that could be felt oozing throughout the city. It was a dark place, regardless of whatever achetectural wonders might reside within. Last there was the cave. Death could be felt that way, hatred and malice in great abundance. Gripping the hilt of her lightsaber, Anengy felt a stab of fear. Would her cultural heritage come back to bite her in this soaking darkness? Would her will allow her to resist? Only time would tell. Wrapping her arms around herself, the Balosar shivered and waited for the others to approach the cave.
Outside the Mineshaft Entrance "I assume this is where you take your leave?" Vic asked Callo. She nodded at once. "I would only slow you down. May the Force be with you." She bowed, and returned to the landspeeder. Meanwhile, Anengy was examining the bodies. He found a young boy, obviously killed in a violent fashion. The other corpses were also of boys, perhaps around fifteen years old. On closer inspection the Jedi found that all the bodies bore the brand of Mullenkamp on their forearms. It seemed Sydney had no qualms in choosing children to fight the cult's bloody battles. Perhaps the most notable detail about the bodies was the injuries they had sustained. All bore burns and blackened limbs that suggested a minor explosion...but more noticeable than that were the cauterized wounds that pierced through their chests and in one case through the head. Lightsaber wounds. There was only one explanation. The cultists had no problems using boys as guards...and it looked like the Imperial Knights had no problems killing them. Tag: Xan, nemisis, Despised, Trimaj
"I would only slow you down. May the **** gave a response before any of the others. Vic turned to her, gave her a nod of the head. "Thank you for all you have done for us," he said. "And may the Force be with you." He turned back around and walked towards the corpses where Anengy and Kara already were, checking the bodies for any marks or hints at what had happened. Vic had told himself he was not going to worry about the bodies, but it was hard to do as he got closer to them. He saw that they were each young boys, just into their teenage years. He could not bare to look any longer as he saw the cauterized wounds throughout their bodies, obvious markings of lightsabers. The only thought that came to his mind was that of his son, who would be nearing that age soon enough, and looking at them only reminded him of his son. "It looks like the Imperial Knights beat us here," Kara said somberly. Vic had recognized the symbol of the Mullenkamp branded on them. It was obvious that the Sith had left these young boys out here to fight their battles for them. Obviously, it had not worked. Imperial Knights were the only other Force-sensitives on this case, that he knew of, so they were the only others with lightsabers that he could think of - not many people besides Force sensitives had any point in using a lightsaber. Vic felt his stomach tightening up; the Sith had no problem leaving their young to battle any unknown people who was to attempt a rescue, and the Imperial Knights had no remorse either, they slaughtered the young boys without a second thought, or so it appeared. Vic could not decide it he was glad the Knights had gotten here first or not. If the Jedi had arrived first, would they have been able to save the young boys? Or would they have had to kill them as well? Vic would not be able to do the latter. "Hopefully they would have cleared the cave out for us a bit," Vic said. With the Imperial Knights well ahead of them, they would most likely have sprung any traps, killed any deadly animals and cleared out the path for them. Although, they would still have to be as careful as possible, and make sure they were as aware as possible. The Knights could have bypassed any of the traps that lay ahead of them just as easily as springing them without any deaths. It was also possible that the traps would reset within moments of going off, so they would most definitely have to be careful. Vic stepped forward, the hilt of his lightsaber held out a foot away from his body, and moved in to the entrance of the cave. He felt a sense of nervousness pass through him, but he did not let it affect his senses. He allowed the Force to flow into him, clearing his body of any negative emotions, and continued forward at a slow and steady pace. He was the first of the Jedi to enter, so that meant if anything unexpected happened, he would be the first to die. He had no problem with that, he was not afraid of death. He just hoped that his fellow Jedi would be able to continue the mission. He had no doubt that they would, they were amongst the most talented Jedi in the Order. No matter what lay ahead, the Jedi would succeed.
She had tried not to think about the fact that all of them were boys, and that all of them were burned to various degrees. The fact that they also had the Mullenkamps insignia burned into their flesh was also something to try not to think about for a moment, in this darkness enshrouded place. But if she had kept it up then there would be nothing gained from it. The time had allowed her to assimilate the reality and deal with any emtional upheaval that would have come of it. Callo Had left before Anengy turned back around to look things over again. There were various other wounds as well. Wounds that could only have been caused by a lightsaber. Kara seemed to think it likely that the Imperial Knights had beaten them there. Vic agreed, more or less. He hoped that the Imperial's had cleared the cave a bit. Anengy was... less than certain that it was the Imperials. "Who says this wasn't the Sith disposing of beings who were more hindrance than help? They've certainly shown in the past they have no problems killing people when they become problematic, or useless to them. Don't assume that the Imperial Knights have cleared anything out, as they might not even be here yet. Until we have more proof of them act as though it was the Sith who did it. That way we won't be surprised any more than necessary." Stepping up beside Vic before he entered, Anengy also drew her lightsaber. Lighting them seemed like a decent idea when one goes into the unknown and could expect an attack of some sort. She did so, wanting some kind of defense even if the Human felt no similar need to do so. Following close behind Vic the Balosar was prepared to guard his back should anything come from the ceiling behind them. The whole cave seemed to teem with a sense of danger, a silent sneer that seemed to say "To enter me is to die." We'll just have to make sure that doesn't happen.
Entering the Mineshaft Leá Monde beckoned the Jedi into the depths of its darkness, and they entered in. Vic Horkin led the team into the first room of the mineshaft, his lightsaber in hand but unactivated, his mind centered and serene. The young man brought a troubled past into the evil city. Family ghosts still haunted his mind. His black robes currently clothed a servant of the light...but the very air seemed to reek of corruption and decay, and who knew what temptations lay ahead? Anengy Facefoot followed close behind, her saber alive and blazing purple. Her conscience, her reasonableness, her sense of justice...all these things did her credit, and belied the reputation of her race. But in the trials that lay ahead, the true virtues and vices of the soul would come to the fore, and any underlying selfishness or weakness would undoubtedly show itself if it was present. The City could find a being's greatest flaws with unerring ease, and Anengy would do well to pray that hers were well hidden. Kara Dysar was next, the young Zeltron naturally cautious and wary as she stepped past the corpses and into the mine. To her in particular the darkness seemed to call, whispering at the edge of her hearing. The thrillseeking behaviour of her species might indeed come to light in the face of the city's perils...and that could be to either her benefit or her detriment. Far more dangerous would be her empathic ability- in this nexus of the darkside, the negative emotions that seemed to seep from the walls could easily overwhelm one who was sensitive to it. Kimara Odon was last into the mineshaft...and the young Arkanian would soon find much to dampen her current eagerness. Her keenness to bring justice to the cultists and the rule of law into the darkest corners of the galaxy was admirable, but if she were to find herself alone, would that still be the case? If separated from her fellow Jedi, if forced to choose between them and the mission, could she still make the right choice? And what of the arrogance and pride said to be inherent to her race? In a place like Leá Monde, such questions needed to be asked. As the four Jedi proceeded through the dimly lit and narrow rooms of the mine, they noticed more cultist corpses at their feet, all bearing lightsaber wounds on their bodies. After only two minutes they reached a fork in the path. The left fork seemed marginally better lit, but it was quite narrow, and a strange, low hissing seemed to be coming from it. The right fork was enveloped in darkness, but seemed considerably wider. As the Jedi pondered which route to take, a voice spoke in their heads, clearly and loudly. "My poor children...the City of Shade will forgive your sins. Come, Jedi hounds- the hunt begins!" Though they had never heard his voice before, all four Investigators recognised it to be that of Sydney Losstarot, leader of Mullenkamp. Tag: Xan, nemisis, Despised, Trimaj
In that year began Sydney’s plot And the kidnap of the Moff’s young heir The mansion he burned and left to rot Before fleeing to a vile ancient lair Empire’s Knights rode in, tempers hot And the hunters pursued the cultist hare Then came just Anengy and fair Kimara Stalwart Vic and righteous Kara Into Lea Monde did these Jedi go Corpses strewn already at their feet Not knowing the face of their foe They made their way to death’s dark seat What slumb’ring devilry stirs below? What foul evil must they defeat? O servants of light, for thee the bell tolls The Force is toying with your souls. -Excerpt from The Vagrant's Song by Ashley Riot
Vic felt phenomenal. That may seem weird but it was true. He had not felt this great since the last time he was on a mission several years ago. It had to be the...excitement of the unknown for him. He felt nearly invincible for what was to come. However, that was not going to stop him from taking all the precautions that was needed. Anengy had come up with a very valid point. What if those that had slaughtered the boys were not the Imperial Knights? It seemed crazy, though. Who else would kill those young boys. Surely the Sith would not leave the entrance to the mineshaft deserted, free for anyone to enter. But, again, even if the Imperial Knights were ahead, he would not stop from being cautious as he advanced slowly into the cave. With his Force Awareness at its maximum potential, Vic continued to walk. So far so good. Nothing had happened yet, and Vic had expected something within the first couple moments. But there was nothing. Surely the shaft was not clean of all traps. It came to his attention that traps was most likely not the only thing the Jedi had to worry about. The mineshaft had not been toured in years. There were no doubt deadly animals, crumbled pathways, seemingly endless pits, and many unknown dangers. The probability of getting lost was high in a shaft such as this. That fact became apparent when the Jedi came to a fork in their path. Two directions to choose from, but which one was the right path? Would they both lead to the same place? Or would one be a dead end? Is one of them a trap? The right one was certainly more inviting, it was far more open than the left, but darker. That problem could be solved with a few lit lightsabers or glowrods. The left was better lit, but would be a problem for those that were claustrophobic. He turned back to his Jedi females. He wanted to choose a path that they all agreed upon. "Which path?" he asked. "I say we take the right, it'll be easier to navigate, it seems." It was apparent that it was easier to navigate, but that could definitely not be the case. Perhaps there were more tricks to the right than the left since there was more open space. However, if there was a trap, they could more easily avoid it with all the open space. Through the Force, he did not feel any more danger from one side than he did the other. "My poor children...the City of Shade will forgive your sins. Come, Jedi hounds- the hunt begins!" Vic nearly dropped his lightsaber. The voice came out of nowhere. He had never heard that voice before, but, somehow, he knew exactly who it was. Sydney, leader of the Sith Cultists. "Great," he thought aloud. "They already know we're coming."
Surprisingly there was a distinct lack of anything happening as they all entered the mine. There were more bodies strewn about, which leant far more credence to the Imperial's having past this way before them. That was something of a disappointment, but the way the bodies had been so haphazard before didn't really point to it being the Sith in the first place. The sheer amount of darkness within the cave, both literal and metaphysical, was staggering. When taken together it made Anengy very glad she had lit her saber before venturing within. After all, going into a cave without a light source wasn't the most brilliant action in the world. Combine the darkness with the feeling of the ground over your head and you had a claustrophobe's nightmare. The Balosar hadn't thought that was any problem for her... but you never realize how much open spaces means to most sentients until you have a distinct lack of them. Her breath started to come in faster gasps the deeper she entered into the cave, sweat started to bead on her skin. When they finally arrived at a fork, it felt like she'd been under ground for hours already. This is going to be a problem, panicing a little at her own weakness. Vic's voice made her jump, asking which path to take. It did seem that the right would be easier... more open. That automatically made it more favorable to the Balosar. She was determined not to let the others know of her weakness though, unless the weakness grew to the point that it was overwhelming. Before anyone could reply to Vic a disembodied voice spoke. It was a haunting voice, and it invited them onward. It seemed reasonably obvious that the voice was that of Sydney. There was no logic behind it, just intuition. Hearing that voice made her jump even more and even resulted in a hasty slash a nearby rock outcropping. Slightly abashed she looked back at the others to see if they'd noticed. Or rather if they would make any comment. Kara seemed to have reacted as well, her lightsaber now glowing green in an eerie harmony to Anengy's own purple. It cast a sickly glow around the cave. There was also the glow from her neatly sheered off stalagtite. It didn't really cast any light, only counterpointed the unnatural glow in the rest of the cave. She wanted desperately to turn on her glow rod, but wasting it at this point seemed like a bad idea. Vic seemed to be thinking aloud, and sounded decidedly put off that it appeared that the Sith knew they were coming. It didn't seem like it could have been a recording, but who knew? Of course they knew we were coming, eventually we had to didn't we? Kara immediately replied in a biting fashion and apologized direcly after, saying that she thought the right path seemed like it was more friendly. Finally making her presence known more Kimara voiced the thought that maybe the right was a trap that Sydney was trying to herd them into. Anengy didn't really care, and figured they could deal with whatever trap there might be. Closed quarters like the left path were was not something that the Balosar was interested in dealing with. Besides, she really didn't like the sound of that hissing. "What do you think that hissing is then?" Her voice wasn't as pleasant as it could have been, but being underground was stealing her normal cheerful tone. "I don't know about you, but I can't think that someone would leave a recording of that noise on the off chance that we'd be following to the left. There's no maneuvering room and despite the light I just have a bad feeling about it." She neglected to mention that she had a bad feeling in general, but that didn't seem to matter too much. "Remember that there's animals in here? That seems like a much more... den-ny type of place to me." There was nothing very homey about it to her, but she wasn't an animal. The note of panic in her voice was something that she couldn't hide towards the end. It was embaressing. As a result she did something that under normal circumstances she wouldn't have dreamed of doing. Anengy Facefoot started down the right path before anyone else could reply again.
Kara agreed with Vic about the right path, so that eased his mind up a bit. Kimara finally spoke her mind, but, unfortunately for Vic, she argued that they should take the left path, since it was the less obvious path. He did not want to have to argue with his fellow Jedi but would be prepared to do so. The hissing noise that came from the left would probably be the most convincing argument. It was for Anengy at least. "What do you think that hissing is then?" she asked. "I don't know about you, but I can't think that someone would leave a recording of that noise on the off chance that we'd be following to the left. There's no maneuvering room and despite the light I just have a bad feeling about it." "Kimara," Vic said to the youngest of the group, "either of the paths are most likely as expected as the other, both have their advantages and disadvantages it seems." He gave her a look that almost said he was sorry. "But, it appears the vote has been decided, the right path is the one that we will choose. Besides, with the lightsabers of Anengy and myself, we will have sufficient light." Vic stepped forward, following closely behind Anengy who had taken his place as first in line, igniting his lightsaber finally, the dark blue blade shooting outward, lighting up the entire area around him that Anengy's blade could not reach. He had thought about asking if the others had brought a glowrod, but decided against it. Besides the fact that it gave off a noise - which was amplified throughout the cave walls - the lightsaber would do just fine; it provided sufficient lightning and would do what the glow rod couldn't: protect him from any oncoming danger. As he continued forward, the thought that he had angered Kimara crossed his mind, for a split second. He hoped she wasn't too upset. Having an angered team member would not bode well for the mission. But, it wasn't like it was that big of a deal, it was most likely that both paths would lead towards the same area, but that was not a 100 percent fact. They could have just chosen the path to their death.
