Dathomir

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

“If you’re looking for that bratling, you’ll never find her,” Daris volunteered. “She ran off years ago. Another…how did you put it... “product” of Bas’lan. Brat was more trouble than she was worth.”

 

“Daris…” Nae’hem intoned, warningly. “Why don’t you go for a walk and let the adults talk for a bit since you’re not inclined to be civil.”

 

“It’s why he’s here isn’t it? The only reason that Bas’lan passed down that mark is if he couldn’t come for her himself.” Daris rose, shrugged and left the tent, not really caring what past journeys the two of them chose to reminisce down.

[saberforce]

Tros felt something run down the back of his spine at the mention of another. To his knowledge, Bas'lan had no others. But even with his face hidden, he needed to remain still and not show any other outward sign that the mention of another... girl?... was something that interested him. So, I am not the last Ardell... or at least not of his tal'din. It was news to him for sure.

 

"So... What now?"

 

He kept his tongue quiet on the fact that Bas'an was in fact... dead. He couldn't come back, unless someone brought his bones to rest on this waste of a planet. Most of such information was useless to them, or rather, it served him no purpose in sharing it.

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

Nae’hem shrugged. “Up to you, I guess. You came here demanding answers, figured you’d ask the questions.”

[saberforce]

Tros didn't care much for the pleasantries of the Dathomir males. The one called Nae’hem seemed more like a level headed man, but his words always seemed to come up just short of what he was looking for. It was almost as if the man knew what he was trying to get out of him and wanted the beroya to gedetir for it. It wouldn't happen. So instead, Tros tried a new tactic.

 

"The medallion. What exactly is it? Why and how would someone come in possession of it if they are not from this planet."

 

The last part was not a question, so much as a demand. It was a just one that fit with he question, and may not even be seen as a demand by Nae’hem as the Mando used no hint of a different tone from use of words. And since it was a very natural second question to ask, Tros hoped it wold lead to the information he sought without having to directly ask for it.

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

Nae’hem looked at the younger man for a long moment before removing the leather cuff at his wrist that covered the same symbol the medallion bore burned on to his skin. “It was the mark of the high priestess and clan leader of the Great Canyon Nightsisters. The last in that line would have been Xae-Lin, the girl Daris mentioned. Eri’anya, her mother, kept tight reigns on the girl after your - Bas’lan,” he corrected himself before he set the other man off again, “tried to leave with her when the girl was six."

 

“As for how he came in possession of it, the answer is simple. He’d been one of Eri’anya’s consorts and she gave it to him to ensure his safe passage here on Dathomir. Few were stupid enough to cross her, with the exception of Bas’lan, and later Xae-Lin when she ran off-planet with some meddling hermit in the woods our scouts had neglected to kill when she was fourteen.”

 

“The reason Daris hold such a grudge against him, is because Bas’lan was able to give Eri’anya the one thing she desired - a daughter. Daris and his son were displaced in their status among the clan the moment that child came screeching into this world. There was no doubt that she wasn’t Daris’s or one of the others. The child came with a full head of auburn hair and looked exactly like the Mandalorian guest we’d had several months prior. He’d left shortly after the bonding ceremony, and Xae-Lin’s apparent making. I can only guess that was back to his home, wherever that might have been."

 

Daris wondered in, catching the tail end of Nae’hem’s diatribe. He snorted. “Bonding…heh. Took me weeks after she was killed to get used to not feeling the damned pull."

 

“Eri’anya was very strong in her magic. Xae-Lin even more so,” Nae’hem cut off Daris before he could get too far and needle the Mandalorian again. “It didn’t help that Bas’lan taught her how to evade us well enough that she could use both her magic and hard skills to disappear. His influence over her when she was younger resulted in Eri’anya not allowing him to train her without being present herself."

 

“I was the one that caught wind of his plan to disappear with the girl,” Daris said proudly. “Eri’anya rewarded me handsomely for that, but still felt it was worth keeping the outsider around to continue training the girl, but only under her watchful eye and influence."

 

“He finally left about a year later. I guess he couldn’t bear to watch Eri’anya exert her own will over the girl any more.” Nae’hem redirected the conversation.

 

“No doubt he endured a chronic headache and did until Eri’anya died. I tried running when I was younger, just after bonding. Didn’t last long,” Daris interjected. “I guess he couldn’t stomach seeing the kid used against him. Or he finally got sick of looking at jungle. One of the two."

[saberforce]

Tros listened carefully to every word spoken by the two men. They dropped information that was indeed worth hearing, and some that was more of a waste of his time. However, everything said would explain where his dar'buir had been all of those years. It would also explain how the medallion came into the Ardell clan's possession. Slightly lost without knowing how to respond to such information given, as he was not used to getting information on something personal. He carefully placed one hand on his blaster holster without knowing exactly what he was doing.

 

"So, Bas'lan managed to position himself here in high favor... for a while at least. What about the girl? You mentioned she ran off with someone you didn't kill?"

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

Nae’hem shrugged. “Don’t know what happened to her…not exactly. She stole off one day and when we went to search, a small camp was discovered within our territory. Odds and ends left indicated someone had been there for a long while."

 

“We initially thought it was Bas’lan, exacting his revenge on Eri’anya,” Daris remarked. “It wasn’t until one of the scout slaves admitted to seeing the hermit and not killing him on sight that we pieced together what had likely happened. Needless to say he died slowly and horribly for his lapse of reporting.”

 

“Can’t say if she went willingly or not. Considering how much trouble she gave Eri’anya, I’m guessing it was more than likely willing. Her mother was constantly complaining about what a willful child she was.” He added.

[saberforce]

Tros looked off for a long moment. If what they spoke of was true, it meant that there is still another Ardell out there... somewhere. It also meant that all of his leads here were now over and at an end. He needed to track down this girl... if they knew any information on her past that she left.

 

"So, I take it you know nothing more on this girl. What else can you tell me, of either the clan here, Eri’anya, or what she wold want of me."

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

Daris laughed. “If you can get Eri’anya to tell you what she wants, you must be possessed of the magics yourself. That bitch is long dead. The entire sisterhood and any of the males too stupid to flee when the power change over happened joined her.”

 

Nae’hem looked grim. “Of this group we know as much as you, well, perhaps a bit more considering we knew they weren’t Nightsisters. Not many of them venture towards the cities or have business here. That’s usually males' work.”

 

Just then the Chieftess entered the hut and regarded the three men before her. “Ardell, before we decide whether or not to lead you to what’s left of the Nightsister’s village, I would know your business there. Though that clan was slain long ago by a Mandalorian and woman that passed through this way."

 

((You know, it struck me as I was signing into this alias...it really doesn't matter which one I post these with since it's just NPC stuff to keep your line moving...oh well.))

[saberforce]

Tros turned slow to look at the Chieftess, slightly dumbfounded. He had told them why he was here, but it didn't seem to stick. Without letting any physical side of his emotions show, he spoke rather cold.

 

"As I've told you guys already, I was seeking out the clan that the symbol belonged to so that I could get information on why my father had it and more of what he was doing here. That's it."

 

It was simple, but it was very true.

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

“And as I said, young warrior, you will not find any living,” The woman said smiling at him. Asking him to repeat his business had merely been a test, and one he’d passed. “But perhaps you might learn something in what the jungle has yet to reclaim as its own. My people will lead you there, but you will find your own way back if you do at all. Dark magic scars that place and festers there. We do not go near it because of its impurities. Tread with caution Mandalorian, your arsenal and armor can only protect you so far.”

[saberforce]

Tros stared her down behind his buy'ce. What sort of mess did he walk into was a question that seemed to be floating around within his own mind. He looked at her face and tried to get a read on what she might actually be saying. After a long pause, he spoke rather softly.

 

"I will travel to this site. My own eyes might serve me best on what I am seeking."

 

Plus, he didn't trust her. To him, he felt like this was more of a skira for her. They wanted him to make this jaro. But he knew that they all were greatly looking at him with duraan on their faces. They didn't hide it. But he would walk their path simply because he had to.

Edited July 25, 2016 by Guest

[Xae-Lin Ardel]

The Witches led him deep into the dense jungle as they’d promised. As they neared their destination things seemed to grow eerily silent and, if he looked closely at his surroundings the way Baslan had taught him, there was evidence of lightsaber and lightwhip scarring. It was evident a pitched battle had been fought in the forest.

 

“You are on your own from here, Tros Ardell of Clan Ardell. We do not go near the evil of this place. May your steps send you on the path you need."

[saberforce]

Tros was slow to move away from where the witches left him. The place didn't appear evil, or even leave too much of a pit of his stomach evilness to him. It did however reek. Blood had stained much of the surrounding area, along with burning flesh. While the flesh was all gone by this point, the bones that remained still held the smell upon it. While not evil in his standards, there was something very wrong with he place. The smell should have disappeared somehow by now. The fact that it remained told him that something or someone affected the way everything decomposed. Luckily he had his buy'ce to filter out most of the smells that lingered.

 

Using now his scanners on his buy'ce, Tros looked for clues that he might be able to use. The place was a havoc of things that 'would have been' helpful for him, five years prior. But it seemed the majority of it was just past a useable date to try to track any information down. After a good twenty minutes, Tros was about to give up hope of finding anything at all, but then he spotted something. A small shine in a tree. As he approached it, he realized that it was in fact a shard of metal. The interior piece of it was bedded deep within the tree, looking a bit like a vibro blade that was cut by something thirty times sharper. Maybe a lightsaber perhaps. As he took it out carefully as to not hurt himself, he noticed his luck in the situation. Whatever had persevered the battlefield longer than it should have been, also allowed for the blood on the other end of the shard to survive. It was unique, as it held a few types of blood, at least what his own scanner indicated.

 

So it wold appear that luck would have allowed for him to find the smallest thing of usefulness to him. Whether or not it was what he was looking for, it was good enough for him to leave the area and head back to his ship. Very soon he would be off again, and then hopefully getting a chance to further his own gain of tracking down the remnants of his bloodline....

[Delta73]

Ca’aran sat in the bed of pillows, basking in the lustful ambitions of the past few hours. The bed shifted slightly as the Marie came out of hyperspace over the planet Dathomir. Delta felt the soft shimmer silk of the pillow covers and sighed audibly. “Well Qaela, we’ve arrived at your planet. You can almost smell the misandry from here. Or that could be me.” He shrugged and sat up in the bed. Stretching his tight muscular back, cracking his neck and standing. He slowly put his under jumpsuit back on and placed his hand on her back.

 

“Hey by the way, I cannot for the life of me find your children. Did they like die, or something? Also I took us on a romantic excursion to the place you killed me last time. No bitters though. You want to like go see your people? Or maybe the little ones?”

 

He slowly laced up his boots and waited for the girl to dress herself. She was lovely. And he was happy to stand in the long line of conquerors. Though thinking of it that way made his stomach produce a tad bit too much bile. So he ignored those thoughts and concentrated on what to wear.

"Hey I still have some sweet mando armour that the Kal-Korans like left in their estates back before you could go into hyperspace mid planetary gravity well. Its specially fitted for both of us, and is like enhanced by the Krath Hutt Lord."

[Qaela]

For the first time in a very long time, Qaela was truly happy. Ca'Aran wasn't the most experienced or skilled man she had been with, but he was the first that she actually cared anything about and that made all the difference. She had no doubt that she would train him to be one of the best lovers in time. She was quite happy with herself for having conquered his body, though she was more happy that they were together at last. She ship shuddered slightly and she suddenly could feel the familiarity of Dathomir through the Force. Curious, it was as though he read her mind about where to go. Maybe he hadn't abandoned the Force as much as she thought.

 

She was more than content to stay in bed and watch him as he dressed himself. If anything, the last few years had left him more lean and hardened and it was a delight to view him. Though, as with all good things, her show came to an end and it was her turn to dress.

 

Home beckoned and she needed to prepare for it. "I am glad you are not angry with me," she said softly, almost tenderly. "I was not myself when I struck you down. Now, I am in more control and not as foolish."

 

She got out of bed and began putting on a very functional deep grey form fitting jumpsuit that both showed off her lithe figure and gave her superior range of motion should battle be needed. "My children are here, in the care of my old Clan Darksong. I delivered them for safekeeping and to fulfill my duty. Unfortunately, I was exiled for saving the Jedi I was with at the time. Not all supported my exile, but those that did were the majority and forced their way. At the time, I could not do anything about it, but I believe it is time to reclaim them. I do believe your armor will come in handy for that, especially if it was enchanted by that rather intriguing and powerful Hutt."

[Delta73]

Delta was shocked. Or at least as much as he could be when dealing with Qaela. He was his fingers through his blonde hair as he collected the two sets of beskar from his collection. He raised his voice so that he could be heard between the rooms. He had surely enjoyed the show this night, but he was now itching for a different type of action.

 

“So you are telling me that you left your kids, two of which are boys, with arguably the shittiest and most backwards clan on this backwater world. And just went along with Exile? What are you a Jedi now? Well we have a corvette and some dandy turbolasers.” He walked back in with both sets of armour. Still painted the traditional Kal-Koran green and orange. “So here is what we’ll do, you identify the hut that your kids are in, and we will shit all over the rest of the camp with a bit of green fire. I mean really, we have a flying starship. They have like wands and magic. It gunna be a massacre. And one they will write about like the Naboo one. Heck it'll be over the top.”

 

He stripped down again to get into the armour. Looked down then at Qaela, he winked and gestured to his chronometer. "What you think we have another like three hours before we find the Darksong encampment?"

[Qaela]

Qaela endured Ca'Aran's outburst with an arched eyebrow and a good deal of bemusement. When he was back with the armor—which she had to admit looked quite nice—she said in a light, amused voice, "Ca'Aran, don't think that just because I may love you and have I am an idiot'ed you multiple times last night that I will tolerate you insulting me consistently. Also, it would be quite the shame to damage your dashing body by throwing you around like a rag doll with the Force—unless, of course, that is something that you are into. I recommend that, for now, you get a good grip on the basics before we start exploring all the more exotic ways in which we can I am an idiot." She made sure to maintain a smile throughout just on the off chance he didn't catch the playfulness in her voice.

 

After a moment, her tone became more serious, "As for my children, they are all treated as royalty. Such prized bloodlines and power that they have were the whole point of me leaving Dathomir in the first place. I accepted the exile because there was nothing more I could do without putting them at risk and, it was a good way to keep them safe in a rather dangerous time. Not only that, but, if you recall, I wasn't exactly the most stable, logical individual. They were more dangerous around me than anyone else, and you and I weren't on great terms either. I am definitely in favor of retrieving them, but not at the expense of the entire Clan. There were some sisters that didn't agree with my exile. They preferred to see me as the natural heir after I proved my strength against my mother. I will not waste potential allies when I can recruit them and turn them into apprentices and, ultimately, worthy guardians of my children. Besides, no matter how good your gunners or soldiers are, there is a chance that you will harm one of my children in any sort of battle. I would much rather get them to safety using my allies before we deal with the rest."

 

She was more than amused at his desire to continue their previous I am an idiot'ing. Clearly, whatever sort of concoctions the Kaminoans cooked up for him when he was cloned included some superb stamina. She felt no need to complain as she pushed him back down on the bed and began stripping her jumpsuit off.

[Delta73]

Delta stood from the wreck of the bed. He looked down again and whispered in a horrid voice

 

“Do you feel it? There has been an awakening.” He winked and jumped back into the tangle.

[sIGNIFICANTLY more than Three Hours Later]

Delta grinned and rolled out of bed. He could hear his comm unit chirping from the command deck signalling that they had found the Darksong clan. Almost regretfully, he answered and instructed the corvette into a holding pattern. It would be surely time to finally approach the Dathomiri clan’s hideout. He finally put his Kal-Koran armour on, full beskar and all that. He walked to Qaela who was already dressed.

 

“You ready to go visit your children?”

[Qaela]

Even as she got into the enchanted armor Ca'Aran had gotten for her, Qaela began to wonder what sort of beast she had woken in the clone. Not that she was complaining, but he went from being rather standoffish and reserved to being quite enthusiastic in his carnal pursuits. It was impressive. She may have finally found a male who could keep up with her needs.

 

The armor was slightly loose, whoever wore it before her was more muscular and not as lithe as she was. That wasn't too big of an issue. At some point, she would get some more padding to fill it out. She could feel all sorts of deliciously dark spells all but oozing from it. She was very intrigued and would definitely have to spend some time seeing if she could back engineer whatever spells were used so she could learn them. For now, it was probably the most powerful, protected suit of armor she had ever worn and she was grateful to Ca'Aran for getting it for her.

 

"Yes, I am ready to confront my old clan. In the interest of not having any sort of hostage standoff, may I request that you take my lead down there? I don't want to run headlong into things and get them killed in the crossfire."

[Delta73]

The Marie cut its way through the clouds of dismal Dathomir, blotting flocks of endangered migratory birds from the air with its thruster wake. Delta and Qaela stood at the aft unloading dock, prepared for a quick disembark. In the HUD display, Delta watched the counter spin to zero and the loading doors opened, revealing the swampy terrain of the planet a meter below the edge of the ramp. Delta and Qaeal strode out and jumped down, along with thirty of his Black Sun bodyguards, led by Captain Argent. All were heavily armoured and equipped, no arrows would threaten his men this day.

 

The village was still a kilometer away, and As they walked towards it, the Marie flew off into the air to maintain a holding pattern within optimal turbolaser range. With one command from Delta and the gunners would rain catastrophic hell upon whoever or whatever the laser designator in his helmet landed on. He turned to Qaela as their boots crunched through the underbrush.

“Hey by they way, totally forgot about this but I have to waste some Bothans after this adventure. You down? We have to commit minor holocaust, but that should ok right?”

[darth shadowlord]

A ship entered the Space over Dathomir, following a set of Coordinates entered into the system several years before. He landed in a clearing not far from a landing strip where he had landed the last time, though he deemed it prudent this time to not land directly on property owned by the clan he had visited last time. He glanced over at Alora.

 

Welcome to Dathomir. The last time I was here I was wearing a collar so that the witches wouldn't claim me as their champion or rather mate. Although that soon changed when they saw what I was capable of. Also the fact that I was a wielder of the Dark Side and they are a lightsider clan. Oh also watch out for rancors, they are much quieter then first suspected."

[Alora]

During the trip to Dathomir, Alora had searched the holonet for information on the planet. She liked to know a bit about where she was going. The Sith Mistress grinned as Draken told her he had worn a collar when here last. "Wasn't the first time you've worn one". Her violet eyes sparkled from recalling him wearing a collar for her. "I read that the Witches are lightside and the Nightsisters are darksiders. You came here with a Witch didn't you? What else happened while you were here last time?" She vaguely recalled him saying something about it years ago. She listened to Draken as he spoke while looking out the front view screen at where they had landed.

 

"I wonder what clan Raia is from. She seemed very worried about coming back here. She also told me that her clan doesn't associate with outsiders, that they aren't tolerated." She stood and slipped her arm around Draken, her eyes sparkling with mischief as she asked, "Do you think you need a collar this time?"

[darth shadowlord]

"Do you think you need a collar this time?"

 

He smiled for a moment then his voice took on the strength of granite. "There will be no collar this time, this clan knows what I am capable of. I have met with them twice, the first time I was escorting one of their witches home and aided them against the night sisters and the second when I raided one of the Nightsisters sacred sites for a scroll. I annihilated a tribe of their enemies with little to no loss on the Witches side. To them, I am a worthy ally albeit one to be watched closely."

 

He paused for a moment, before continuing. "We are about a ten minute walk from one of their compounds, I would rather not just show up in the compound without first alerting them to my presence." He reached for the comm unit and sent a quick text comm to the Kara and also to the Matron of the clan.

[Alora]

Alora looked out the view screen as Draken came in to land in a clearing surrounded on all sides by forest. The scenery was stunning. She continued to take in the view while they waited for an answer to the comm. “What do you think we can expect? Think they know anything about the cult?”

 

An answer to the text comm. took a little longer than expected and instead of a text in return, a metallic voice spoke in response. “The Raging River Clan is no longer communicating with outsiders. If you are wanting access to this compound, please send any enquiries through to Zara Nargal on **** code Link.”

 

Alora looked across at Draken. “That’s unexpected, I’m guessing that didn’t happen last time?” The Sith Mistress paused a second before adding, “I guess we had better contact Zara Nargal then.”

[Qaela]

The Darksong Clan was no longer one of the larger of the Nightsister clans. Fighting with Black Sun several years ago cost them many of its members, but it was not without strength. Despite not having many spellcasters or slave warriors, they had something that made them the envy of all Nightsisters: three toddlers with a potent, strong connection to the Force that promised to reinvigorate the bloodlines of all Nightsisters. With only twenty-one capable spellcasters, it was vulnerable to raids from the other Nightsisters, but none would dare risk harming the precious toddlers in an attack, so all were forced to negotiate and maintain friendly relations with Darksong in hopes that one day, their spellcasters would have access to one of the two males to enhance their own bloodlines.

 

The Clan elders, being angry with Qaela's killing of her mother, her assisting the Jedi, and sensing the danger of her Sith knowledge, decided that it was safer to exile her than risk her taking over the clan. Not everyone agreed with that move, especially among the younger women, but it was decided and enforced. Qaela, at the time, was in no condition to argue and was content to leave her children in the relative safety of her clan. Now, however, she was not so content.

 

As she and Ca'Aran began hiking toward the Clan, she was careful to shield their presences with some of her Sith knowledge. It wouldn't do for the sentries to detect them just yet. She needed to devise a plan to get her children out without violence and the best way to do that was stealth. "We need to contact some among the Clan who may prove to be very useful allies," she explained as they walked. "I believe they can smuggle my children out of the village and will join me. It would be quite useful to have a small cadre of spellcasters as devoted bodyguards, don't you think?"

[darth shadowlord]

“The Raging River Clan is no longer communicating with outsiders. If you are wanting access to this compound, please send any enquiries through to Zara Nargal on **** code Link.”

 

"It did not. It would seem much has changed since the last time that I was here." He stroked his beard for a moment as he contemplated this information. "It has been some time since I have talked with Zara, although I rather doubt she has forgotten me. Very well, I will contact her and see what she can do. "

 

He typed a quick message into the comm unit and sent it off to Zara.

[Dizzy]

----- Comm. for Draken Shadowlord -----

 

It is a pleasure to hear from you Count Shadowlord. Mum says to give you her regards. You will have to pay us a visit some time as we're now based on Naboo at the Kat Nargal Memorial Resort. As you probably heard, Black Sun bought the Casino from us so we are no longer affiliated with it. Attached are the codes you will need to get into the Compound. The Raging River Clan has closed itself off from outsiders so if you want to talk to them be prepared for them to refuse - We haven't been back for years because we're seen as outsiders too. They also don't use anything much in the way of tech - they don't even have communications there now.

 

We look forward to seeing you again whenever you are out this way.

 

Kalyani Wartide.

 

--- end comm. ---

[darth shadowlord]

"It is a pleasure to hear from you Count Shadowlord. Mum says to give you her regards. You will have to pay us a visit some time as we're now based on Naboo at the Kat Nargal Memorial Resort. As you probably heard, Black Sun bought the Casino from us so we are no longer affiliated with it. Attached are the codes you will need to get into the Compound. The Raging River Clan has closed itself off from outsiders so if you want to talk to them be prepared for them to refuse - We haven't been back for years because we're seen as outsiders too. They also don't use anything much in the way of tech - they don't even have communications there now.

 

We look forward to seeing you again whenever you are out this way.

 

Kalyani Wartide."

 

"Another voice I have not heard in a long time. I may have been with the force for longer then I had thought." He glanced over at Alora for a moment. "So we have the codes for the compound, this will give us a place to leave the ship and a place where we can base our search from. Though I admit the fact of the clan shutting out the world worries me a bit. I had intended to meet with the Matron as more oft then not they know much of what has transpired near their clan territory. Now I may have to expand my search and capture a Nightsister"

 

He pondered for a moment. "Based on the information on the datapad, the cultists were near here and had some dealings with Nightsisters though they didn't mention the clan."

[Alora]

Alora listened to the comm message along with Draken and nodded as he commented on it. "So... Kalyani is Zara's daughter... she sounds all grown up now. Wartide... is that as in Ronin Wartide?" The Sith MIstress shook her head... it didn't matter. She watched as Draken lifted the Grand Duke and headed to the compound. Alora imputed the codes when they were requested and watched as the hanger opened. Draken set his ship down and they both went through the post flight checks in companionable silence.

 

"Well they wouldn't, would they. They are after Darkside items so in theory they wouldn't go near a lightside Clan." She paused for a moment before asking, "So do we wait for the others or do we go and find one of these Nightsisters?"