Onderon

[Vladimir Faust]

Isel watches Aira go, waiving as she leaves, then has one of his assistants close the door behind her. Immediately the warm faccade drops off the Adept's face.

 

"We have little time if the Jedi are closing in on the Master's plans. I doubt they know of the alchemy lab, but we cannot be too careful." He walks over to the shelf and picks up the sphere and the lanvarok, arming himself with both. "We want those experiments shipped out tonight." Reaching into his desk, he pulls out a datapad with the Master's experiments- some Sith undead reanimates, a half-dozen fledgling Leviathans, recreated in particular for their life absorbing tendencies, chrysalides, and other sundry Sithspawn. "They're probably not battle ready yet, but I'd rather not have them wiped by a Jedi extermination squad before I can see them in real action."

 

Going into a lower drawer on his desk, he pulls out two datapads containing manuscripts the doctor collected in his research: The Creation of Monsters by Palpatine himself, and excerpts from Syn's writings in the Book of Sith. The Master himself had shown Isel how to decipher the books and what wonders they held. That the Master trusted Isel to maintain his alchemy lab on the eve of his Endgame...

 

Hurrying out of his office and down the hall (Missing Aira in his haste to exist), Isel sends out a comm, calling not only other lab assistants to action, but Luciferian's other followers in Iziz. The professor makes his way down and outside to his private speeder, and is soon taking off beyond the city gates into Iziz's jungles.

[Emily]

As the Shadow's Shine came out of hyperspace over Onderon, Emily pondered how she wanted to play this. According to her research, Dr. Van Isel was a professor at the University of Iziz. There was something about his name that struck her as familiar, but she dismissed it, not being able to place why she would have heard of some backwater professor. The information on him stated that he was a professor of ancient religions, and noted several awards and research grants that meant next to nothing to her. She cared less about his professional research than the small note in the Sith databases she had read where it mention that he had studied ancient Sith artifacts at one time or another. She hoped that the database had been correct. She could have just holocommed him, she supposed, but she had been itchy to get off Rish'navin.

 

Which brought her back to the issue of determining how she should present herself. It would be easy to find his office and get in without being noticed, but she had no guarantee he was even on-world. It might be more prudent to at least attempt to contact him through official channels, and then present her true reasons for coming when she had a meeting with him. And if he was reluctant to share knowledge, she mused, glancing at Roe'gall towering on her right, she might have something of interest to offer him in return.

 

Her mind made up, she made her way to Iziz. Her ship was using a false transponder registering it as the Princess of Blood, captained by Em Randar, a businesswoman from Chandrila here to visit a friend. Once she had landed in the city, she gave Roe'gall some quick instructions in the Sith language, telling him to follow but not be seen--a specialty of the tuk'ata, despite his enormous size. He growled an acknowledgement, and she headed down the ramp, dressed in a simple green cotton dress and tall brown boots with a white wrap that concealed her lightsaber.

 

She grabbed lunch at a tapcafe before heading to the university. Finding the correct department, she asked for an appointment with Dr. Van Isel. "I'm interesting in one of his papers on the Klatooinian's Ancients and was wondering when he would be available?" she asked brightly. "I'm only here on Onderon for a few days, but I'm really hoping to speak with him."

[Vladimir Faust]

The assistant, all smiles and cheer, is almost surprised at the ask for Isel. "The doctor's been popular lately. Had a visitor... was it earlier today... or was it a while ago?" She shakes her head, having lost track of time with so many other things going on around her, unsure if the previous visitor here to see the doctor was still present. "He's at one of his jungle research sites. There's a few of them...." She tries to get into Isel's itinerary, but cannot- finding it merely blocked off for "research". She shakes her head. "I wish I could do more to help you, but I don't know which site he's at There's one that's he's been at for some time- it's about a good 4-5 hours out into the jungle."

 

While the administrator was a dead end, there was an oppressive air over Iziz, radiating from the jungles beyond the city, one that was growing more powerful by the second.

 

*****

 

In the alchemy labs, a curious mixture of old stone architecture mingled with new machinery, Isel rises from kneeling, having finished a secured comm with the Master himself. Making his way from the antechamber (notes indicate this was once the private quarters for a Sith luminary and served as a meditation chamber), he passes into the main lab. A giant holo display contains not maps, but various texts, including the Master's notes as well as works by other known Sith Lords. Scores and scores of reanimate undead clamored for blood, being contained at the moment in a simple pit with smooth steep walls and a 12 foot drop. Chrysalides mutated from rancors were kept in containment, as were the deadly leviathan larvae in a separate section.

 

Speaking to some of his adherents- the Force sensitives who actually executed the work Isel and the Master deciphered, he gave a quiet repeat of the Master's words. "The end is here. The Master himself will be by to retrieve his army and lay siege to Ground Zero." Isel smiled, unfazed by the black air hanging over the lab and ruins. He could feel the energies now, they were a tangible thing here. He no longer cared if that Jedi back in the city was on his trail.

 

Isel nervously fingered a small syringe, a last resort if he came under siege here or at Ground Zero. The mutagenic properties of Alchemy were his now and even as a powerless professor, he now had one trump card to show them all what his learning had wrought. "Start burning and destroying the archives," he added softly. "Our work is done. I wish to leave behind as little evidence as possible of the Master's plans."

[Emily]

"Thank you," Emily replied with a small smile. "I think I will visit him at his site. I'd love to see his research actually in progress." She spun on her heel and returned the way she came, heading back to the spaceport. Once she reached the Shadow's Shine she headed into the cargo area and pulled out the swoop she kept stored for occasions such as this. It was still in good working order, since she often used it to explore Rish'navin's vast plains. She locked her ship up tight and headed through the city and out the gates.

 

Once away from the press of people and on the winding paths through the jungle, she gave a mental command for Roe'gall to decrease the distance between them. She would have preferred to ride him and leave the swoop back in the city, but she liked to keep her options open. He came up, almost keeping pace with her swoop, his black hide blending in well to the jungle. While Onderon's native species were slightly less feral and vicious than those of its infamous moon Dxun, Emily knew that there were beasts dangerous enough to present a threat even to her if they attacked in numbers. Therefore she moved swiftly, and encountered nothing more than a family of startled boma.

 

Despite not knowing for sure where Isel was, she had decided to follow the sense of...wrongness that had begun to permeate the area. While she was unsure if the source of that wrongness was indeed Isel or his research, she had long ago come to associate that particular feeling with the dark side. Even if she was on the wrong track to find him, she knew she was on the path that she needed to be on. If anything else, it would be educational.

 

A few hours passed, and the sense she had of a dark side nexus only grew stronger. Finally, she pulled over to the side. "Come now, Roe'gall. Let's see what we have here." Sticking to the tree line and keeping her presence dampened in the Force, she surveyed the area. In front of her was an old building of unknown origin and strange architecture. A thick, noxious-looking black air lay over the whole scene. There was a bustle of activity around it, mostly beings doing various destructive activities, burning crates, smashing datapads, and the like. She glanced at Roe'gall and shrugged. "Shall we take our chances?" He snarled, which she knew meant he was thrilled by the prospect. She returned a somewhat feral grin; she had been out of the loop for too long. "Come."

 

Opening herself to the Force, she stepped out into the clearing. As she strode forward, she noticed with interest that most of the people that she had taken for researchers were in fact Force sensitives, and some had a touch of training to round out the rough edges. Adepts, she tentatively labeled them with interest. Perhaps she had stumbled across the cult of one of her Sith brethren? Roe'gall swung his head from side to side. Picking up on his signal, she reached out and sensed the presence of many other lifeforms, all bearing the corrupt taint of being dark side twisted experiments.

 

She couldn't help but smile to herself. Whoever was running this place seemed to have a taste for Sith alchemy and bioengineering, one that she herself shared, as evidenced by the mutated giant tuk'ata at her side. She strode up to one of the adepts, alert in case they refused to acknowledge her authority. "I am Darth Eris, and I’m looking for Professor Van Isel. What is going on here?" she asked, her tone neutral but her air a bit imperious.

[Vladimir Faust]

One of the white cloaked adepts at the gate of the complex into the old Sith ruins steps forward at the sight of Darth Eris, two more adepts staying alert, hands approaching lightsabers- while not expert duelists by any stretch of the imagination, the pose suggested at least competence to defend themselves against soldiers or hold out against a duelist. The rest of the adepts ignore the newcomer at her pronouncement, working on destroying evidence. One white cloaked "researcher" hurries into the ruins to let Isel known of the newcomer's arrival, hand already on the comm.

 

The one who stepped forward to approach Eris pushed back his hood, revealing the skeletal features of a Givin. In an unsettling fashion, the black eyes of the Givin burned a cold blue, the same with the two Falleen, brother and sister behind him- signs of Faust marking his adepts and force sensitives. A simple question is posed.

 

"A question a follower of Darth Luciferian would know the answer to. To whom do you owe your allegiance, Sith?"

 

*****

 

As the question hangs in the air, Isel turns from his duties deep in the ruins and the heart of Faust's lab, a frown on his face, having just gotten the news from outside. The Master was arriving in person- was this a herald of the Master, or was this a fell coincidence? He knew of one apprentice Faust took in the past, but since the Master was turning on his former order, this was troubling. He opens up a comm back to Faust, awaiting instructions...

[Emily]

Her internal question about the nature of this cult was answered by the white-garbed Givin researcher--and, she suspected, adept--when he mentioned Darth Luciferian's name. While Emily had never met him in person, she knew him by reputation. His history with the Sith Order was as messy as her own, although for different reasons. She didn't know what the infamous hunter/Sith was up to at the moment, but Van Isel's research made much more sense now. She wondered briefly why the link between them had been missing from the Sith Archives, then decided it didn't matter. It was hard to trust information from the Sith Archives anyway--an order where no one trusted each other did not make for the most reliable information.

 

As for his question, she knew she could simply lie in a way that best served her purposes, but the problem was that she didn't know what would allow her to see Van Isel and investigate his research. Giving a mental shrug, she decided on the truth.

 

All this passed through her mind in an instant. She nodded. "Negative b plus or minus the square root of b squared minus 4 ac divided by 2a," she said, greeting the Givin with the standard greeting of his (or her? it was so hard to tell!) people. "I owe allegiance to none but myself."

 

That was for the most part true. She'd probably acknowledge allegiance to Darth Quietus as well. But her affiliation with the Sith Order as a whole was merely a convenient connection when she felt like using it. "If Darth Luciferian would be so kind as to allow me to investigate his research projects here, I have a great interest in some of the things you may have been developing here." Roe'gall remained on alert behind her, towering over everyone else in the area, his glittering yellow eyes flicking from adept to adept, judging threat levels to his mistress.

[Vladimir Faust]

The Givin inclines his head in a nod of appreciation for the traditional greeting, and a smile almost appears on his face at the Sith's pledge of allegiance. The answer was typical Sith, and one even the Master used with honesty. "Come with us. We will take you to the doctor." He makes a subtle hand gesture to the Falleen twin adepts. "We will take Darth Eris and her companion the lab. Isel and the Master will want to see her." The Givin and the Falleen seem to commune, no fear in their voice, suffering heavily from the imprint Faust placed on his adept, even in the wake of Roe'gall.

 

*****

 

Within the ruins, Faust's image appears once more on the holo as Isel quickly briefs the Master on the situation. Faust's eyes, so blue they are almost as black as the Givin's stand out even in the holo, blinking close as he meditates, knowing this Sith by reputation. So close to the very end, and a spoiler was arriving. He sensed danger at this intrusion, wondering how it was happening. Once more he wondered if the Force itself conspired against him, setting its pawns to thwart his plans. Damnation! He gives his orders to Isel, who comms them very quietly back to the adepts escorting Eris, verbatim.

 

*****

The stone hallways and lithograph lined ruins had a narrow, almost catacomb like feel with passages leading off into tombs, rooms, and other areas best left undisturbed... not that it stopped Faust or his followers. Machinery and relics scattered through half closed stone or metal doorways hinted at the alchemical nature of the research and experiments going on within. Traps could be sensed but were current disabled. The Dark air hung over it, a miasma to the soul that should be thick enough to be present to the naked eye. Even the Valley of the Sith on Korriban lacked this level of darkness. The trio of escorts were silent the whole time, Faust's command echoing in their heads.

 

They passed over a long pit, spanned only by a metal catwalk some forty feet across. The pit dropped into darkness some thirty feet below, though the cyclopean sounds of the Hunter's abominations could be heard rustling below, hungering: one of Faust's newly bred and larvae Leviathans. A wave of nausea and screaming could be felt, an echo on the Sith's sixth sense- though without the full blister pods, these creatures were still fed sentient lifeforms the Hunter had either need to dispose of, or abducted just for that purpose. At the pit's floor, the Levianthan stirred, sensing food above it. The pit's stone walls lined with a heavy titanium alloy starting from the floor to ten feet up. Behind a shielded and even thicker metal covering was a door that lead outside the pit, leading eventually into the main complex of the ruins and the heart of Faust's lab.

 

In the middle of the span, the trio stopped. They had to be quick- they knew an assault against the Sith was suicide with their skills and if they were to give their lives, it would be to take down a foe of the Master. It was lamentable their path lead her close to the Doctor at the heart of Faust's lab should they continue on their current path, but treachery was their only recourse. Three lightsabers sprang to life, cutting not at the Sith following their lead, but at the catwalk itself, severing railings and floor in neat strokes, letting it collapse. They would take themselves, the Sith, and her towering companion down into the pit deep below.

 

Faust's words were precise:

 

"Let the Leviathans feast on her bones, and let the bones join our ranks."

[Emily]

Emily shrugged inwardly at the adept’s manner and followed him into the building. As they walked, she sensed a veritable army of creatures being bred. It was enough to get her excited. As they passed over one pit, she peered over the side and was astonished to identify a leviathan, it's telepathy screaming in her mind. Looks like he’s doing more here than I had hoped. I wonder why...

 

It was over the second leviathan pit—this one containing only a single youth—that her danger sense tingled. The mere seconds it took for the adepts to ignite their lightsabers and cut like butter through the durasteel catwalk was nevertheless enough time for her to gather the Force to herself and use it to launch off the falling catwalk like it was a springboard. It was a mere 20 feet to the side of the pit, and she made the jump easily, but she had misjudged her trajectory enough that she slammed hard into the rough pit wall. Thankfully, there were plenty of handholds, and she managed to catch herself before she fell down into the leviathan pit. She knew of the creature’s weaknesses--they were quite vulnerable to electricity--but she had no desire to face one. She glanced around. Roe’gall, who could leap that far even without the aid of the Force, landed on the opposite side, having leapt when she did, but in the other direction. Satisfied, another application of the Force boosted her up out of the pit.

 

Rolling to her feet, she grabbed her lightsaber but did not ignite it. “Looks like we have already worn out our welcome,” she muttered. “Kriffing Sith.” She debated briefly continuing forward and finding Van Isel himself, but if Darth Luciferian had ordered her death, then she knew that to stay was to fight through all of his adepts and possibly the army he was breeding down here. That was something that, while it might be fun, would be risky, and she didn’t want to take a chance.

 

At the same time, she wasn’t about to let an attempt on her life go unrepaid. She grinned ferally. “Time to disappear.”

 

Emily had spent hours upon hours practicing the art of stealth. She was a Sith assassin, trained to stay hidden and then strike from the shadows. If she didn’t want to be found, then few if any could find her.

 

Closing her eyes, she stepped back into a shadow and vanished, both to the naked eye and to the Force.

[Vladimir Faust]

The trio tumble down into the pit. The Givin made a last, desperate lunge to grab onto the Sith as she leapt away, but failed, falling with a screech. The leviathan feasted well on all three.

 

In the lab's center, Isel remained calm, but kept nervously fingering the syringe, knowing it was a last resort, but one that looked necessary- one of Faust's alchemical pieces of brilliance. Striding over to a console, he gives the evacuation order: All creations that could be loaded into a freighter, do so at once, and all other staff, evacuate. That would include most of the leviathans and other beasts, though the reanimates were expendable. Anything that could not be loaded would be released into the jungles and directed towards Iziz as a diversion in case there were any others on the Sith's trail.

 

"Evacuate," he states softly to the adepts surrounding him, "We won't find the Sith, even with your powers as they are. The important thing is the Master's plan. He needs to the army to run opposition while he conducts the final Ritual. Get into space and send the usual comm channels. Lord Faust will pick you up- the final hour is upon us. That is what matters above all else... That is all that matters now. She wants me, and she can find me. For Lord Luciferian." He keeps the syringe pressed to his thigh, standing at a console, and waits the inevitable.

 

While not a Force user, while only devoted to their history, and their arts as an outsider looking in, Isel had a moment of clarity as if he could see the future. He knew he would not live to see his lord execute the final ritual and ascend- that was his only regret. He could only ensure enough forces were available to give him the time needed to reshape the Galaxy... no the very Universe at large. That was solace enough.

[Emily]

From the shadows, Emily watched the evacuation begin. She wasn’t sure if her being here had caused it directly, or if she had simply arrived at the predetermined time. Regardless, it presented a few opportunities. She moved to a ledge where she could observe the loading of the ships. It seemed that Luciferian not only had various Sithspawn under his command, but also some walking corpses of some sort. The former she approved of, but the latter turned her stomach. She didn’t know what Luciferian could be doing with them, but it didn’t matter in the end. All of his monstrosities were a good target for her displeasure at her attempted murder.

 

Whereas a Sith warrior would normally stride out into the middle of the clearing and start carving through zombies with his lightsaber, a Sith assassin was usually subtle. She rarely engaged her target outright, but struck from the shadows, suddenly and without warning. This had given her a number of tools in her inventory that a warrior might not have bothered with. Once the right moment came, Eris made her way over to one of the ships some leviathans were on, staying out of sight and fuzzing the minds of those who did see her to make them immediately forget her. Once at the transport, she pulled open a panel on the bottom, grabbed one of her sharp-edged throwing stars, and used it to slice through several key bundles of wires. Replacing the panel, she did the same thing with another section.

 

She did the same thing with two other ships, moving quickly to avoid being seen and to get as much done as she could before the miniature fleet took off. Finally, she pulled out a tiny homing beacon and attached it to a fourth ship before slipping off into the treeline where Roe’gall had made his way.

 

“It’s done,” she whispered to him. “Those ships will have no hyperdrive and no shields, but it’ll take them a while to figure it out, and even longer to repair the damage.” She climbed back onto her parked swoop. “Only one more thing to do.”

 

Reaching out with the Force, she delved into the inner chambers of the lab, searching for Dr. Van Isel’s presence. She finally found a moderately Force-sensitive man of great intellect, nervous but determined. It seemed like such a waste to Emily and she wondered why a man like that would serve a Sith like Luciferian. But it didn’t matter. Using the Force, she spoke into the doctor’s mind. I came to you in honesty, desiring to learn from you what you had discovered in the area of Sith bioengineering and alchemy. I don’t know why you tried to kill me instead, nor why you serve Luciferian. I leave you with your life, until your master—who has no respect for any life but his own—decides to take it. Working for him was your fatal mistake, and it’s a shame, for you could have done so much.

 

Leaving it at that, she sped away back to Iziz, shaking her head.

[Vladimir Faust]

Isel paced back and forth in the heart of the ruins, eyes closed, expecting a confrontation. He wondered, paranoid, if the Sith was on to the Master's plan, or had even allied with the Jedi, CoreSec, or the GA in an attempt to foil the Master's ascendancy. While not Force sensitive, nor even a Force user, he held the sphere containing the Sith wraith and the syringe full of the alchemic mutagen, having expected to use that as a last resort in defense of Luciferian's great works, conscious of how it would have given off a powerful signature to those gifted in the Force. He felt the Sith's thought on his mind, and while he lacked the ability to project his thoughts back, he relaxed his mind enough to let one train of thought echo back.

 

A mistake was made, but in the game my Master plays, there is nothing left to chance, no loose ends, Darth Eris. Some secrets are worth dying for, and killing to keep, even from brethren.. You who claim to serve only yourself must appreciate that. We serve Faust, and Faust's ascendancy cannot risk others seeking his power in his footsteps. Isel knew his life was forfeit once the final Ritual was done, all the acolytes here knew, but Faust's will was theirs, and with it their ability to choose otherwise.

 

The evacuation proceeded at its fast pace, and to Isel's surprise, all of the Master's creations were loaded in with relative safety, save for an unlucky pair of acolytes who were too close to one of the larger abominations. He concluded the Sith retreated without incident and despite the loss of three talented acolytes, it was a wash.

 

Relieved, Isel boarded a private shuttle, taking off after the freighters. Behind him a massive eruption shook the ruins, an all consuming flame wiping out evidence of Faust's lab, his experiments, and his legacy there.

 

The first sign of something amiss was when the shuttles experienced trouble after reaching space. Shields were designed to not only offer protection in battle, but from space debris that lay in space, from cosmic dust to orbiting shrapnel and waste. The tough hulls of the ships endured, but with greater turbulence than should have been possible. When the time came to jump to hyperspace, nothing happened, and a panicked comm reached the doctor.

 

"It's not my fault! It's not my fault! The hyperdrives, they aren't working!"

 

Isel closed his eyes, almost biting his lips before giving a bitter laugh. More than rampaging through the lab, more than setting everything afire and leaving in a blaze of glory, this subtle act of sabotage put the entire wing of this operation at risk. Brilliant... and deadly.

 

"Fix it," the doctor snarls back, "we have to be able to move into hyperspace quickly if we're to meet up with the Master for the final piece."

 

Would their presence attract the GA before Faust arrived? Would they be able to fix it... Isel did not know. He gave a grim snarl, looking out the cockpit window. If they could not assist the Master in his final assault, Onderon would burn and Faust would get his blood's worth for this development. It may be enough to draw off the GA... perhaps...

[Emily]

As she sped back to Iziz, Emily found that she wasn't quite satisfied. Once she arrived at the spaceport, she and Roe'gall boarded the Shadow's Shine and took off. Faust's miniature fleet was already in orbit, so she took a roundabout way, staying away and yet keeping them in sensor range. She then spent a few minutes taking a bunch of scans of the ships, and then shot it off to the GA. She also sent it to the Jedi, just for kicks.

 

Satisfied, she turned away from the ships and headed outsystem. Once she was far enough outside the gravity well, she threw the lever, sending her ship into hyperspace.

[Vladimir Faust]

The transports hung in orbit around Onderon, frantically working to identify the problem on what pulled them out of their attempted egress and left them sitting ducks for the Jedi, the GA, or anyone with a mind to scuttle the Master's plans. Isel hung aside from the main transports in his ship, acting as a pointman in case of any incoming ships or trouble. He fully expected something to happen, a low sinking feeling in his gut. Surprised passed as the helpless transports were not attacked as time ticked on.

 

As precious minutes passed, though in his heart Isel felt like it was weeks. Each second, a subjective day, he felt certain an attack or intercept would come, surprised when nothing happened. Drifting in space, the crews on the transports were able to identify the cause for their misfortune with a dangerous spacewalk, locating the cut wires that scuttled their shields and hyperdrives. More time passed as they identified the same problem on their other ships and the identical throwing stars. Isel almost smiled, knowing very damn well it was the Sith spy that did it. As the repairs went into effect, the cavalry did not arrive, and the ships were fully operational again.

 

The jump was short, taking them out of Onderon's orbit, placing them at a near-by rendezvous point off the beaten path of hyperspace lanes where the remaining ships from Midsengard and Kuat had arrived.

 

Faust, still in meditation, projected his presence to the assembled crews- giving a short rallying cry. Many thought they were set to retake the Galaxy and establish a new empire. Few knew of Faust's true plans.

 

And with this, my loyal troops, we strike at the heart of the Galaxy. Ground Zero will mark the birth of a new age, a new chapter in the Galaxy's bloody history. The wars that marked it in the past will be over, the pawns of the Force will be eclipsed in my glorious shadow. The final Ritual will ascend us to great power, and with it, we shall establish the order this Galaxy deserves.

 

All was technically true, presuming one knew Faust spoke in the royal we. Without waiting further, the ships made their final jump into hyperspace, their destination: Ground Zero, the site of one of the biggest tragedies and bloodletting in the Galaxy's entire history. It was the site where a Wound in the Force Faust personally tore open would be ripped wide open, creating a chance for him to consume the life essence of what was once more the Galaxy's most populous planet, starting a vortex of death that would spiral outward until all was covered in Darkness. As Faust's opponents guessed, the idea was not to take the heart of the Galactic Alliance, but to hold off its forces until the Ritual was done, at which point it would be far, far too late.

 

The ships speed towards Ground Zero at coordinates zero, zero, zero: Coruscant.

[Lusef Aryan]

A lone figure threaded its way through Iziz, a skeletal looking Givin familiar to Emily, though instead of wearing the telltale white cloak and hood of Luciferian, it instead wore a simple blue coat with a white lining over a more casual attire.

 

It had heard the call on Holonet and could not believe it. Even before having its mind and will replaced by its Master's, the Givin had been a loyal Adept of Luciferian. He still couldn't believe that the Master had survived the Memorial, even if he was taking a back seat, away from the affairs of the greater Galaxy, apparently trusting the Cult of Morthos to pick up and try to finish his great work. The Givin hadn't heard much about them, save that they were on to carry out their own version of the apocalypse, they served under some powerful shadowy overlord, and while they saw the Master as a failure, he laid the foundation for what they tried.

 

He found what he was looking for in the University Archives, where the late Dr. Isel's notes and research, done for a public seeming purpose left the last records of the Master's ritual. Most of the Master's lab was destroyed by Isel at Faust's command, though a few things escaped in the rubble. Indeed, a massive, all cleansing flame can and will kill even a Sith Leviathan and destroy its body in that circumstance, and maybe even spare an unfortunate person who was swallowed whole and being slowly, painfully digested in the things gullet, breaking its hide and allowing him to crawl for freedom.

 

He found Isel's research notes for Faust. They were a start for anyone to research further and the Givin knew far from complete in allowing one to recreate the Ritual. The Master had been jealous of his research, not wanting any other Sith or "spoilers" as he called them upstaging him in his hour of glory. He found the notes on Nathema by Darth Vitiate, the Nephilim Cult lead by Darth Thanatos, and his metaphysical studies on Darth Nihilus. Oddly, he looked in and found a datacard he hadn't seen before when he'd checked on Isel's possessions in the aftermath of the Coruscant Ritual's collapsed.

 

He ran through the datacard and it mentioned "new" artifacts: A diary of Faust's, which the Givin was surprised to hear about. It was definitely the Master's per the datacard and the markers on it that only Faust could know, but it looks like it was left in the Memorial after his supposed death? There were other artifacts he'd made, including some amulets and a even a subtle replacement for the sword of his that was a key focus for much of his power. The Givin's mind tried to work logically. The Master was alive, but leaving new clues somehow, even if he hadn't been seen. Interesting. He concluded Faust wasn't likely behind the Morthos Cult, but that it was just a very, very coincidental timing. He waited in the University storeroom, reading through the notes, wondering if the Morthos Cult would reach him first so he could pass on the notes, or if some of those accursed Sith or Jedi would figure out the Master's riddle?

[Tenebris]

As the Raisonneur threaded into the atmosphere of Onderon, Tenebris sighed heavily. There was not much to go on; they had trekked halfway across the galaxy to pursue a vague lead left by a madman. The ancient holdings of Vaklu and the royal family of Onderon were the best place to start, and even then, it was not likely that CoreSec's presence would be terribly well received on such a private world.

 

The ship touched down and Tenebris geared up but halted his team as they were in the process of doing so, informing them that it was to be primarily a scouting mission. However, the trio of Skye, Lux, and Tenebris would keep constant comm contact with the ship such that they could be surveyed for safety and data retrieval.

 

Approaching the Jedi Master as they prepared to disembark, Tenebris spoke to her in low tones such that only she could hear.

 

"Master Organa, if there is even the slightest chance that this could be Faust himself, and not some shadow or ghost, we need to know. The Galaxy needs to see the Jedi at work," he urged.

[Anastasia Faust]

A comm arrives for Major Tenebris of CoreSec.

 

 

Major Tenebris. My name is Ammi Wolfstar of the Galaxy GlobeTrotters. I understand you were the leader of the CoreSec operations on Corellia at the time of the terrorist attack. We're been running a charity concert to help out your people and other civilians who were injured in the attack. The charity and good will of the Corellian people is amazing and there should be enough credits raised to help all of tho- Oh, what? Thirty seconds until our next song? Hold on. Yeah, let's follow it up with Kessel Run and then- Whoop! Is this thing still on? Sorry, Major! Gotta run!

 

[Skye Organa]

Skye watched on with interest when Lux and Tenebris began to spar. Their fighting styles gave her insight into their personalities. Lux’s enthusiasm allowed her the first hit though Tenebris’s experience soon evened out the score. Glancing at the others observing the two on the mat was just as interesting as watching the combatants. She could see that some of them were behind their superior and others the Thyrsian. By the time the proximity alarm sounded it was clear that the Commissioner had won. Their sparring match had another effect as well. It relaxed the tension everyone had been feeling since the attacks on both Coresec Headquarters. By concentrating on the match, the crew had something else to focus on, cheering on their chosen combatant let them relax. The Jedi Master had a grin on her face when Tenebris made a teasing remark to Lux and when he bowed to her, she returned the mark of respect the same way before watching him head to the cockpit.

 

The Healer spent the rest of their trip in her allotted quarters going over the information and reports from the crime scenes. When she joined Tenebris and Lux, it was clear that she was prepared for anything. As well as her medkit and saber clipped onto her utility belt she also had a blaster.

 

"Master Organa, if there is even the slightest chance that this could be Faust himself, and not some shadow or ghost, we need to know. The Galaxy needs to see the Jedi at work."

Skye met the Commissioner’s eyes as she answered, “If we find him I will know if it is really him. I have had many encounters with Faust in the past. I also have a particular skill that he knows about, one that I have used to identify him before. He once used a clone of a Jedi friend of mine to disguise himself… yes he has stooped that low. When I called him out, he committed suicide with the clone he was using, though made it look like I had stabbed him.” She paused a moment, stretching out her senses to see if she could feel the malice that usually accompanied Faust. She couldn’t feel the malice that usually accompanied Faust though that could be because of a number of reasons. “So… where are we heading first?”

[Tenebris]

Tenebris opened his mouth to respond to the Jedi's question when his comm pinged. Holding up a hand in apology, he murmured, "Excuse me."

 

The chipper voice of a young woman streamed through his in-ear comlink as the message played. Something in the sincerity and excitement of the girl's tone played a grin across Tenebris face, even as her use of his official comm number meant that he would have some conversations with personnel when he returned to Corellia. Moving to the communications array, he activated it and quickly toggled the display to show the local Corellian news stations. The show that the girl's band was putting on was a beautiful tribute to the people of Corellia and the resilience they carried like steel in their bones.

 

While he knew she would not answer immediately, he quickly sent a comm back before gearing up his unorthodox team and gathering them around the landing ramp.

 

"We're going to the Royal Palace and starting from there. If Faust has left any clues for us, we'll hopefully find somewhere to begin. Keep your eyes peeled," he said to Lux and Skye after they had all robed themselves externally to appear like average Onderonian citizenry. "We're staying undercover for the time being. If anyone asks, we're archaeologists."

[Lux]

Lux hung back briefly to gather her thoughts, wiping beads of sweat from her face. It had been some time since she’d gotten a solid fight and she felt oddly excited. Even as her fatigue and exhaustion bore down upon her, pulling her lungs into a series of short labored breaths, her eyes were aglow with fervent energy. Part of her wanted to linger here; to continue to see their fight repeat again and again. But, with the alarm, came expectation. Lux was part of this team now and she would do whatever she could to prove herself. And she would start by following Tenebris’ lead and prepping for the mission.

 

Lux hurried off to the ship’s barracks and, midway, met up with Skye who was already set for the next mission. The Thyrsian nodded to the Jedi as she passed and was just about to get started in her own preparations when she noticed that the other officers were giving her odd looks. A few of them were grumbling or cheering at the outcome of her and Tenebris’ spar. But a few of them were looking at her awkwardly. They were officers of the law, so the staring wasn't extremely obvious, but she still caught a few of them looking directly at her. After a minute or so of this, Lux started to wonder if there was something on her face and tried in vain to find whatever it was they were looking at. Then, a little late, she realized that she was still wearing her formfitting underclothes. They weren’t very revealing, but they didn’t leave much to the imagination. Lux’s face brightened a little, and she looked down. Impulsively, she felt as if she should be covering herself, trying to hide from their gaze. Her confident mask, however, followed by the pleasant feelings of her fight, pushed its way through and led her hands away from her sheepish response. She busied herself getting ready instead of paying any more attention to them or trying to shoo away their awkward stares. Their eyes still poked at her nervous mind, but the euphoric momentum she rallied behind wouldn’t let her be swayed. When she was finished, she ran off to meet Tenebris and Skye near the boarding ramp.

 

There, she found a bundle of clothes waiting for her. The colors weren’t very appealing, but Tenebris said they were going undercover. And, well, he was the lead officer on this mission. Lux bent over and grabbed the robes, struggling momentarily to finagle the cumbersome things, switching the direction of the robes a few times and finally managing to settle them down. The Thyrsian wrapped a simple tool belt around the robe and latched her commlink, her datapad, and a pair of macro binoculars to the belt. When she was done, she caught up with Tenebris and maintained stride beside him.

 

“I think I might have something, but there is a strong chance it’s a dud.” Lux recounted, paging back through her notes. “There are several sub- accounts in this system using the names Vaklu as their handle. But, looking a little further, they might just be citizens trying to avoid taxes. I’ll keep you posted if I have any more definitive results.”

[Lusef Aryan]

The Givin, codename Geister, had the faintest stirrings of the Force, a one time Acolyte of Luciferian. Unknown to him, he was likely the last with any talent at all left in the entire Galaxy between Faust's own actions at Ground Zero, Zero, Zero, and between the recent purge. He'd spent what seemed like days ransacking all of the notes of one of Faust's last lieutenants, indeed the last to fall before the Master himself. He'd received orders early on to gather all of Isel's notes and to have them prepared for any Dark Sider who came.

 

He found more notes, and found more on the artifacts he'd left behind. Faust put all of his focus into his sword, it taking on a significance in the end not unlike Nihilus' mask. There were a few notes as well in there, outlining notes and debriefings from Palpatine's personal physician. Geister understood now part of the reason why Faust never went with clones, especially after the Ritual. The Dark Side linked to his soul in a way that pulled it into chaos. Only near perfect copy could house his soul without degrading, the amount of Dark energy his lord imbued latching onto any body, causing it to degrade rapidly, or perhaps, never fully form.

 

Geister understood now. The Sith, the Cult, anyone with Dark Side potential could empower those artifacts, reforging a link to ground his Lord's spirit, and to anchor the worst of the dark energies. Geister still felt there was something missing, but reviewing the notes on Nathema and the Ritual, understood that whatever stopped the Ritual closed up the Wound in the Force over Coruscant created by the various wars and the Shield Collapse. His Lord would in the end need something else quite spectacular to try it again... if that was his goal. He thought he understood some of the maneuvering, but wasn't sure...

 

He had felt a presence, a strong lightside force, and immediately contacted his lord. He didn't know who or where it was, other than on the planet, but this was an eventuality he was prepared for. He was not expecting the words that came back from his Lord.

 

They will make their way to the University and to Isel, and then to the Royal Crypts no doubt if the accursed Force is leading them on. Stall them, and only engage if they are closing in on the Crypts. I will deal with these meddlers myself. I do not care if it's a Jedi Master or the Grand Master in all his fuzzy glory. There are secrets there they cannot be allowed to find.

 

Geister's skeletal face hardens at the message and he locks up all of Isel's assembled notes back at the archives. He wasn't sure what was protected in the Crypts, but his Lord had something there... As for the Jedi, if they got too close... well, they were going to have a bad time.

[Skye Organa]

"We're going to the Royal Palace and starting from there. If Faust has left any clues for us, we'll hopefully find somewhere to begin. Keep your eyes peeled," he said to Lux and Skye after they had all robed themselves externally to appear like average Onderonian citizenry. "We're staying undercover for the time being. If anyone asks, we're archaeologists."

 

With the camouflaged robes in place Skye again stretched out her senses while Tenebris took a holocall and found herself turning in a particular direction… What had drawn her attention was a brief darkside touch, one that put her on alert. She closed her eyes tightening her focus on the taint that she could feel. There… It wasn’t Faust but it was tainted with that same flavour through the Force. She didn’t know if the other two had noticed her reaction but they soon would. “I know where to go,” the Jedi Master stated as the three of them entered a speeder. Skye slipping behind the controls ahead of Tenebris, “The Force will guide us to where we need to be.” Again she closed her eyes, letting the Force flow through her, guiding her as they took off.

 

“They know we’re here, you better alert the others to be ready… spread them out in two’s and three’s to camouflage their numbers. They shouldn’t be targeted that way since none of them are Force sensitive… If this is Faust. There is something…” Skye paused, her voice trailing off as she glanced at her companions. “We will need to wary of traps. Lux, you need to be particularly careful. You’re a sensitive and will become a target. If he catches you he will attempt to corrupt you. Do not give in to anger – that is a path to the darkside. For now, stay close to me so I can mask your presence with my own.” She dodged around an obstacle, before opening her eyes which were subtly glowing emerald green with flecks of brilliant blue. There was no point hiding her presence since she had already been sensed, though she did mute it somewhat so that they wouldn’t know how strong she was in the Force. She would also mask herself more the closer she got. The dark touch was not one known to her so she figured that they didn’t know who she was, only that she was a Jedi.

 

“If this goes the way I think it will, I will send out an alert to warn the other Jedi. Hopefully there will be someone close enough to reinforce us.” Glancing back at Tenebris she added, “ I don’t suppose you have access to any ysalamiri?” As they closed in on the presence she felt, Skye became more cautious, setting down at a distance before she stated, “We best go the rest of the way on foot. Stay alert for traps.”

[Tenebris]

Lux's findings in the Bank of Coruscant's records were, as she had insinuated, inconclusive at best. "Vaklu" seemed to be somewhat of a joke in the financial sector on Onderon, and "Morthos" returned no leads whatsoever. For the time being, however, Tenebris found himself more concerned with what they might find ahead of them than what trails had been left behind.

 

Tapping his in-ear comm alive, he murmured to Corporal Mithwyr, "Keep an open channel between the Raisonneur and our nearest outpost. If there is any interference with the comms whatsoever or any suspicious activity at all, we're calling this investigation stone dead and packing it in. Understood?"

 

"Yes, sir. You should also know that we have reports from Bothawui that Drev'starn's shield generator is down."

 

"This week could not get worse," he grumbled to himself. "Contact Mazzari. Activate the fleet. We'll do them no good from here, but we can send in the cavalry."

 

"Sir, he hasn't been responding. Intel reports that he is on Carida."

 

Carida? Mazzari had no business being there given the Senate's orders. What was the demented Chiss up to?

 

"Copy that," he said gravely, "go over his head, then. Contact the Senate or the Chief of State's office. Make sure they know what he's been up to."

 

Ever-efficient, the Zabrak answered him with a double-click of the comm, when something changed. Skye's manner shifted and her awareness seemed to spike, like a prey animal who has caught wind of a predator nearby and is preparing its countermeasures. A series of brisk directions sent them whizzing across the city following nothing but her vague inclinations through the mysterious Force the Jedi were always going on about.

 

Nervous about the strangely ethereal lead they were pursuing, Tenebris nevertheless issued the corresponding orders to his men at the Jedi's behest. Several of his team posted themselves throughout the city, the special unit unobtrusively mingling with the populace as though they had always belonged there.

 

"No, we don't typically keep ysalamiri on hand," Tenebris answered the Jedi as they disembarked the speeder, trying not to let his unease at their current tack show. "I'm surprised that you'd actually want one close. Aren't they terribly debilitating for your... you... Jedi, I mean?"

 

The city hub was before them: the Royal Palace surrounded by its local markets and squares, the University with its famed historical libraries and research labs that had garnered it recognition across the galaxy, the central courtyard with its statue memorializing the conflict between Queen Talia and General Vaklu of old, long before the days of the Empire.

 

As they made their way through the courtyard, Tenebris laid a hand on the statue, on the heel of Queen Talia as she braced her arms against the form of the militant Vaklu, as though he could force her to reveal the secrets of her homeworld. But he kept moving, because Skye kept moving, a bloodhound with her nose to the ground. Finally, they bypassed the large columnated entrance to the Palace, and Tenebris decided he had taken enough of being jerked around by the whims of a sorceress.

 

"Master Organa," he called. "Wait. We can't just go rushing around the city on a glorified hunch. We don't even know what we're looking for. If it's Faust, it won't be as simple as just finding him. I for one would prefer not to be the jakrab caught in his trap."

 

His eyes flicked to Lux, keeping in mind the warning of the Jedi Master towards the girl. "Nor am I willing to let any of my men pay the price for our failure to strategize." Suddenly he found he could not meet the Thyrsian's piercing electric gaze and looked back to the diminutive healer.

 

"Do you have any semblance of a plan? Where are we going?" His tone was not condescending as it had been in the hospital. In truth, Tenebris was grateful to have something more concrete than the whimsical words of a terrorist to follow up on. But the information he had received from his subordinates nagged at him. A planetary siege was underway, the fifth such terrorist event in a handful of weeks, and his felt impotence was not helped by his assumption of yet another wild bantha chase. It manifested in the form of snideness with the Jedi, and the small flicker of regret he felt for the sharpness of his words was tempered by his irritation that once again, he did not know the right course of action.

[Skye Organa]

When Tenebris commented on her mentioning of the ysalamiri she responded with, "While I'm not fond of those creatures, they do come in handy when you need to subdue a Force User. They take away the ability to use the Force and therefore give you a more level playing field."

 

"Master Organa," he called. "Wait. We can't just go rushing around the city on a glorified hunch. We don't even know what we're looking for. If it's Faust, it won't be as simple as just finding him. I for one would prefer not to be the jakrab caught in his trap. Nor am I willing to let any of my men pay the price for our failure to strategize. Do you have any semblance of a plan? Where are we going?"

 

Skye didn't react to the snideness in Tenebris' tone as he was under a lot of stress. She could feel the level mounting with each communication he received. She stopped just past the statue and turned towards him, "I didn't intend to trip the trap. I merely wanted us to get close enough to evaluate and see what we are up against before we go in. As for who it is, what I felt was a male with the same 'flavour' if you will, through the Force as Faust. Like a taint."

[Lux]

As they made their way through the market square, their robes billowing in the small wind that pushed its way through the masses, the Thyrsian started to feel like there was a large growth developing on her face. Both Tenebris and Skye were wary of her. They avoided her gaze and seemed to distance themselves from her. Which bred confusion and, to some degree, a mild paranoia. After Skye’s warning, Lux felt like she was doing a decent job keeping any of her tempers in check, but paranoia was starting to build the subtle fear brick by brick in her mind. Would she crack? She did before. Would she succumb to this Faust person?

 

The afternoon light was perched on the mantle of buildings nearby and glaring down at her ebony skin. Lux could feel thin beads of sweat drawing on the surface of her forehead. A small itching sensation crawled across the back of her right hand and she looked at her wrist datapad every few minutes without fail. A few times, it was to check the time. Other times, she wasn’t sure. To divert attention from the maddening stimuli, Lux tried to gawp at the palace and take in the architectural magnificence; to pretend, for a moment, that she actually was an archaeologist. But the feelings returned. Slowly, they seeped their way into her consciousness and would not leave.

 

Skye and Tenebris seemed preoccupied, so Lux needed to handle this on her own. The Thyrsian kept pace with the two of them and took a few silent breaths. She cleared her mind and thought back to the fight. She thought of the poetry of motion that she shared in that moment and did whatever she could to bring the simplicity of that feeling to her mind. It was a serene balance of humor that Lux hadn’t had in a very long time. And although she wasn’t sure if she could recapture the moment, her paranoia started to fade away as she relived the best sparring match she’d had in years.

 

The Thyrsian smiled a little to herself, starting to find peace in the light of the afternoon. The market bloomed to life with a myriad of colors and as the fight played end on end in her mind, she could see the colorful poetry of the busy square come to life. Tenebris and Skye still seemed on edge, but Lux was doing what she could to manage herself and felt there was nothing constructive she could add to the conversation.

[Lusef Aryan]

Geister received a comm that his master was on the way, still in transit from Coruscant. He'd taken care of the late Doctor Van Isel's notes and artifacts, having them bundled with him. He knew that above all the Jedi must not get to them, and kept them safe on his person, keeping them tucked into his blue coat.

 

He could feel the faintest of light side stirrings as if it were masked, but that still proved inconclusive. He wondered if his own meager talents would also act like a beacon and had second doubts about carrying so many valuables on him, but he felt he had little other choice. He knew a few secret ways into the Palace, and while his master's research was left in the gutted remains of his lab, as well as in what had been sealed up in Isel's offices at Iziz University, Geister also understood too why Faust was leery about them getting too close. Sith Alchemy created monsters, as well as undead. Silencing the living was easy enough, but silencing the dead was far, far more difficult. Geister had heard, very briefly, of various hostilities that his master earned retrieving certain artifacts from the Valley of the Sith on Korriban. Similar items were cached in the tombs of Onderon's great followers of the Dark Side. Small in value, but potential clues or means towards banishing his master again. Worse, the same spirits that rested there might be willing to work with the Jedi even if it meant twisting the knife in his master's back. Faust's machinations, as well as those od the Dark Jedi Order before him had weakened certain barriers on Onderon, so the dead would not rest quietly.

 

Once inside the walls of the Palace, Geister tried to move unobserved, succeeding by sticking to ancient by-ways and passages. The crypts would not be far off. Retrieving those artifacts, meant as calling cards for other Dark Siders to take up his master's call would be easy. Destroying the physical remains, tying the dead here, giving their spirits the ability to manifest would be trickier. Geister wished he had something like baradium tape or a good old fashioned thermal detonator, but in lieu of that, more conventional explosives would have to do. Fortunately, Geister carried enough. Not enough to level the palace, but enough to empty the crypts if not stopped in time.

 

As he got closer, he could feel the build of Dark Side energy. Those who had passed before sensed him and his intent, and he could feel their hatred and hostility, a growing cloud swirling over him. He hoped he could succeed in his task before it became too much or before it alerted any other parties that could try to stop him.

[Tenebris]

"I still don't like it," Tenebris cautioned, "but I guess we have no other leads."

 

With a resetting sigh, he gave a nod and they picked up their progress under the sweltering heat of late afternoon. Tenebris' team kept tabs on them as they moved through the city, keeping a perimeter about a mile wide in all directions as surreptitiously as possible. Skye lead them on winding turns through the heart of the city until at last, they stood before the doors of the city's premier University.

 

Tenebris frowned. This couldn't be right. Faust would not dare show himself in such a public place, would he? He tapped his belt comm to open a channel in his in-ear unit.

 

"Sir?" the Zabrak's voice came almost instantly.

 

"Master Organa has triangulated something here at the University, though no concrete evidence as of yet. Do me a favor and have records look up any logs the GA or CoreSec might have concerning any prior association Faust might have with the planet and specifically the University."

 

"Yes, sir. Anything else?"

 

"Negative. Keep a weather eye out," he said quietly, before turning once more to the pair of women. Wordlessly, he gestured at the building, a wry glint in his eye. "So, what do you think, Vladimir Faust showed up to check out his favorite romance novel from the university library? Actually, I bet he'd be into those teen post-apocalyptic series. You know, like the Thirsty Trials."

[Lux]

Lux followed closely behind Tenebris and Skye, keeping her own eyes peeled for any strange anomalies, and still floating amidst the peace she’d found. However, not knowing what passed for strange on Onderon, didn’t help her cause. Instead, it seemed she was wrapped up in the culture and etiquette of others around her. The color of the robes differed among classes; the physicality of each greeting was different than Coruscant, and traditional dances that took place in the market square were a lovely change of pace from the heavy bureaucratic construction that was Coruscant’s business sector.

 

When the trio paused outside the University and Tenebris commed the rest of his team, Lux looked around the building and started examining the architecture. It was large. The portico featured ornate columns that held a series of engravings, telling the history of Onderon and its people. The pediment that stood atop the vaulted entrance featured a marvelous relief of the first battle of Onderon. Neo-crusaders were carved from the marble and rampaged across the battlefield to face their Onderonian foes. It was magical in its artistic significance, but Lux carried on with the trio when they continued through the large metal double doors.

 

The Thyrsian chuckled at Tenebris’ joke and gasped when he mentioned the ‘Thirsty Trials.’ “Oh! I love those books. Sagittaria Evergreen is a marvelous character.” Suddenly realizing her outburst, Lux retreated slightly. “She was a strong influence for me when I was a child.” Lux finished, mumbling.

[Lusef Aryan]

It was something of an open secret within Iziz's most prestigious university that one of their own was once a lieutenant of the infamous Hunter. Since Faust's failed ritual at the Coruscant Memorial, Isel's presence had been marked by authorities on Onderon, Coruscant, and even CoreSec. The same files likely made their way to the databases belong to the Jedi and Sith too in the wake of Faust's seemingly final defeat.

 

The late Dr. Van Isel, professor of archeology, published papers on the Naddists and other Sith movements that gained some attention even off world. Some time after he was first published, Faust made contact with him. The nature was unclear, but through promises, coercion, and more, Faust brought the professor into his fold, even marking him body and soul as an Acolyte of Luciferian, imprinting his will on the doctor. He had marked contacts with the Jedi, Sith, and even the late Onderin Starlisk.

 

The doctor's fame remained steady, neither making him a Galactic grandee nor pushing him back into total obscurity, but his works became wider, more published, secretly aided by Darth Luciferian. Following the death of a high placed Countess in the Mandalorian's massacre in Iziz some time back, Isel moved up as Faust's chief lieutenant on the planet, and overseer of some kind of base, first under the city, then out in old ruins. Both were destroyed, the last containing the remains of things that could only be described as abominations born of the Sith's vilest secrets. Given his role at the Memorial based on other evidence, he may have been as close to Luciferian's right hand as one such as Faust trusted his subordinates.

 

It became clear that some of Isel's research was key to the rituals Faust had pulled off. Despite this, authorities on Onderon moved simply to seal up his office and research, preferring not to meddle. There was a fear, quite justified, that the doctor left lethal traps in his wake, and greater fear too that some dark powers remained, ones even those who revered Onderon's Sith past feared. Despite that, it would be obvious for any who followed that the late professor's research had been disturbed, his office searched, and fairly recently. A few witnesses, including a former student of Isel's would if pressed maybe recall a skeleton like alien rummaging around, trying to gather in materials the doctor left behind. Said student would radiate no small amount of fear if her mind was probed, having been a late inductee as an Acolyte of Luciferian under the professor, now reformed and freed of Faust's influence after his demise.

[Tenebris]

As the trio stepped into the central hall of the University and made their way in the direction of the information desk, Tenebris' in-ear comm twittered once more.

 

"Go," he quipped, stepping off to the side.

 

Mithwyr's voice came without hesitation. "It's a minefield, Sarge--I mean, Commissioner. Faust has fingerprints all over that place. Ever heard of Doctor Van Isel?"

 

Tenebris frowned. "Wasn't he an old pal of Faust's? Involved somehow in the incident at the Memorial?"

 

"Yeah, and you aren't gonna like it, sir, but he was tenured faculty at that University. Research professor. Published a lot of dwang on ancient Sith. Seems he was something of an admirer of theirs."

 

Though the Zabrak could not see him, he nodded slowly to himself, a dawning realization flickering around the edges of his senses. He scanned the directory console but did not immediately see what he was looking for. "He still work here?"

 

"Looks like he's dead, sir, or he's fallen too far off the map to trace. Nothing in our files about what they did with his effects, though."

 

"Roger that. Thank you, Corporal. E'lann out," he said hastily.

 

Lux's glance when he rejoined the women appeared to ask what he had uncovered, but his skin was crawling inexplicably and to explain himself would have taken far too much time. Sidling up to the information desk, Tenebris flashed a forced smile at the humanoid working there who appeared to be half-Bothan. "Hi, can you point me in the direction of the Van Isel offices?"

 

The girl's furry features widened in alarm. "Sir, I'm sorry, those offices are strictly off-limits. No one is allowed in there."

 

Like hell, he thought grimly. Either someone's already been there or is about to be, and either way that means we don't have time for this.

 

A glint of light caught the badge that he held up for her examination. "Commissioner E'lann of CoreSec. We're here following a lead, and we need to examine that office. Please tell me where it is," he said in a tone that made clear this was no request.

 

Her hesitation wavered, but it appeared that the girl was more afraid of her superiors than of the repercussions of dragging her feet here and now. "Sir, I'm sorry, you'll have to take it up with Security."

 

Tenebris glanced sideways toward his Jedi companion. "We need to get in there," he said under his breath.

[Skye Organa]

Skye smiled at Tenebris’ quip about ‘The Thirsty Trials’. She appreciated his injection of humour, her smile widening at Lux’s comment. “Strong characters can make great role models.” Her voice was reassuring as she felt Lux’s retreat. She hadn’t meant for Lux to withdraw from them, only to be more cautious of what might lay ahead. Her attention turned back to the doors of the University. The architecture was amazing. Her eyes scanned the halls as they entered and approached the information desk.

 

"Hi, can you point me in the direction of the Van Isel offices?" Tenebris asled.

 

"Sir, I'm sorry, those offices are strictly off-limits. No one is allowed in there." The girls alarm was immediate, her fear almost palpable.

 

"Commissioner E'lann of CoreSec. We're here following a lead, and we need to examine that office. Please tell me where it is." Skye stepped closer as he spoke, gently radiating empathy to calm the girl’s fear.

 

"Sir, I'm sorry, you'll have to take it up with Security."

 

"We need to get in there." Tenebris’ words elicited a slight nod from the Healer. The Jedi deftly reached out for the girl’s mind, gently insinuating her will upon her. “You will give us the directions to get to Dr Van Isel’s office and the means to open the door.” A second later the girl responded, “I will give you directions to Dr Van Isel’s office and the means to open the door.” Moments later she handed them an active locator key for the doctor's office door. Skye held her gaze a little longer as she added, “Thank you for your assistance, you have been most helpful.” The girl smiled brightly back at them, the Force having soothed her fear.