C O M P E T E N C E
Queen of Darkness
Z O R Y A
Zorya tread lightly on the mottled ground of Onderon, her every step infused with memories of another time. The planet’s atmosphere had the tang of verdant jungles and long-lost histories, and she felt it pierce her very soul. Her hand reflexively flexed, the seared scars on her left hand a testament to the treachery she had faced. Umbara's shadows were behind her; Onderon's trials lay ahead.
The news of the Royal family's assassination had reached her even in exile. She had felt a pang of sorrow – but what truly vexed her were the Sith abominations Darth Raze and his cronies had unleashed. And the once-famed Beast Riders, now preoccupied, left Onderon's borders susceptible to drexl incursions.
Amidst the chaos, House Kira’s call to mercenaries reverberated across the land. Kill the drexl causing havoc near Kira Fortress and be rewarded handsomely. An echo from the past nudged her; years ago, she had attempted to join Sith hunting an Arkanian dragon. That venture had been cut short, the Master Sith overseeing it called away.
The notion of her joining a hunt, of offering her blade in the defense of the innocent, seemed a capricious twist. Was it altruism? A wish to save Onderon? Or perhaps a latent need to prove herself after her downfall? Whichever it was, she could not deny the allure of testing her mettle against a drexl, one of the apex predators of her homeworld.
Zorya reached the designated rendezvous – the shuttle departure point. She was garbed in nondescript smuggler clothes, a stark contrast to the Sith robes she once donned. A visor, both pragmatic and discreet, shielded her eyes and concealed her identity. The air was thick with the anticipation of the hunt. She awaited the arrival of the other hunter, feeling the simmering warmth of Onderon’s sun on her skin and the cool, gentle brush of the breeze through her long silver dreads. Every scent, every whisper of the leaves bore an intimacy of homecoming. Yet, mingled with it was the tang of danger and the inexorable approach of confrontation.
.
The news of the Royal family's assassination had reached her even in exile. She had felt a pang of sorrow – but what truly vexed her were the Sith abominations Darth Raze and his cronies had unleashed. And the once-famed Beast Riders, now preoccupied, left Onderon's borders susceptible to drexl incursions.
Amidst the chaos, House Kira’s call to mercenaries reverberated across the land. Kill the drexl causing havoc near Kira Fortress and be rewarded handsomely. An echo from the past nudged her; years ago, she had attempted to join Sith hunting an Arkanian dragon. That venture had been cut short, the Master Sith overseeing it called away.
The notion of her joining a hunt, of offering her blade in the defense of the innocent, seemed a capricious twist. Was it altruism? A wish to save Onderon? Or perhaps a latent need to prove herself after her downfall? Whichever it was, she could not deny the allure of testing her mettle against a drexl, one of the apex predators of her homeworld.
Zorya reached the designated rendezvous – the shuttle departure point. She was garbed in nondescript smuggler clothes, a stark contrast to the Sith robes she once donned. A visor, both pragmatic and discreet, shielded her eyes and concealed her identity. The air was thick with the anticipation of the hunt. She awaited the arrival of the other hunter, feeling the simmering warmth of Onderon’s sun on her skin and the cool, gentle brush of the breeze through her long silver dreads. Every scent, every whisper of the leaves bore an intimacy of homecoming. Yet, mingled with it was the tang of danger and the inexorable approach of confrontation.
.