Open Korriban Ancient Sith 101

[Ianthe]

Ancient Sith, the hieroglyphs of the ancient Sith language that emblazoned many of the tombs in the valleys of Korriban. Ianthe shuddered as she looked up from the primer book clutched in her hands to the archway of the ancient tomb that the group of acolytes stood before. She could feel the darkness exuding from the yawning entrance before her even as the elderly Sith twi'lek teacher droned on about the dangers of entering old tombs on Korriban.

"...eadly creatures sometimes inhabit these ancient tombs, either as guardians charged with defending the tombs by the ancient sith, or otherwise inhabiting them later to feed off of the latent dark side energies that linger in their caverns. This tomb, the tomb of Darth Maligax has been clear..."

Ianthe turned her attention back to the book as she tried to translate some of the wind-worn glyphs that marked the entrance to the tomb.

"Beware those who... enter," She began to mutter under her breath, looking up and down from the glyphs to the book. "Only death lay-aaaghhhh!"

Pain erupted in her vision and the book fell to the dusty red valley floor as Ianthe dropped to her knees, lightning crackling off her form for a moment as the teacher's decrepit claw returned to the folds of his robe.

"No interuptions!." The twi'lek sith shouted as he glared at the sniffling Ianthe. "As i was saying, this tomb has been empty and clear of threats for some time, perfect for you weaklings to study the glyphs inside. Any questions? No. Let us proceed." The Twi'lek turned before anyone could voice what questions they might have and strolled into the ancient tomb.

Standing, Ianthe brushed the dust from her robes and picked up the study book. Flipping back to the page she had been on, she looked back up at the glyphs. "Only death lay ahead for those who enter the tomb of... Darth Malgore." She paused, looking back and forth between the book and the archway. "Malgore... but the teacher said Darth Maligax..." She trailed off before shrugging and proceeding to follow the other Acolytes to the entrance of the tomb.

@Logan @Tulos

 

[Bir Vuul]

Korriban. He never truly wanted to return to this dry and desolate world of the Sith, the world where he had lost not only his freedom but himself as a man. But where else could he go? Where was home? He was no longer a Jedi, no longer welcome on Yavin IV. He could return to Ajan Kloss, it seemed, except nothing but the pain of memories of a past life awaited him there. So Korriban it was. Korriban, for the time being, would serve as home for Bir Vuul.

His trip to Malheion was a success, a new lightsaber hanging from his belt as the Kel Dor Acolyte walked through the dusty promenade that connected the tombs of multiple Dark Lords of the Sith, studying each entrance with a critical eye. He mused over the fact that only being captured by the Sith, torn away from the only life he knew, had introduced him to a vast pool of knowledge that was otherwise unobtainable. Each massive monument to the rulers of a bygone era contained secret knowledge and an array of dangerous ensnarements that would punish those seeking to learn from them. Only the strongest could survive. Only the strongest would survive. Many tried, many failed. Only the most capable with the thirst for power could thrive here, this much he knew.

Sitting on a bench, Bir Vuul observed a class of young Acolyte’s walking from tomb to tomb under the guidance of an elderly Twi’lek, his crimson skin adorned with black tattoos that shrouded his eyes and forehead, descending further along is lekku. A fearful sight, to be sure, but the insane Kel Dor was still intrigued by the man as he spoke. The training methods of the Sith were opposite of those he knew in near every way. Oh, how he had desired to be a teacher of young minds when he was about their age. Much had changed for Bir since then but that was one thing that remained. He still wanted to become an instructor but now, he had much more to learn and observing this man and his teaching methods seemed as good a place as any to begin.

Bir Vuul watched as one of the young girls of the group was hit with a blast of lightning, dropping to her knees in pain as the Twi’lek barked at her for…. Something, he was too far to make it out clearly as to just what it was she had done to deserve such treatment. Or was that simply the Sith way? He himself had been tortured by both fire and steel before being granted the opportunity to join their ranks. Pain, it seemed, was a pivotal totem in the Sith curriculum. This would be something the Kel Dor would remember.

As the group of Acolytes crossed the threshold of the tomb’s entrance, Bir pushed himself to his feet and sauntered after them, coming to a stop at the mouth of the construct. Observing the engraved symbols with both his eyes and his metallic fingers, he realized that he would need to spend some time learning the ancient language if he were to uncover the secrets of such a place for himself. Perhaps they told of what dangers may lay within?

”Danger…” he muttered softly. The Force whispered to him, urging him to enter. Something was not quite right here. What, he didn’t know, but it seemed a sliver of the man he once was remained. Something called to him from inside, telling him that not all be as it seemed. Concerned for the Acolytes, the Kel Dor followed the class into the tomb.

@Arclight @Logan​

[/abox3]

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Babysitting. Horrible boring wasteful babysitting. Charlotte was a weapon…a tool of the darkside designed for beautiful purpose and she was babysitting. She was the dutiful soldier, always following orders. She knew her place. Still, she had never expected this. The Acolytes always made a pilgrimage out to the tombs. Rickety old Saris drowning on in the same frustrating voice. He called them weak, he shoved them in the tombs, and few would always lose their minds. Charlotte remembered her own trek fondly. The screams of her classmates as the Darkness ate away their minds. Delicious. She could not have predicted returning as a Marauder. She had such grand plans for herself and yet she stood on the edge of the group. Watching. What was she watching for? To stop them from tripping over themselves?

The tombs were hardly the stuff of legends any longer. Their mystique mostly in reputation alone. Charlotte had long since passed beyond whatever dark secrets they might hold. Blah. Perhaps there was still something to be learned. The Darkness was stronger here, she could feel the pull. The Hapan Sith trailed the group as they moved into the tombs. Kriff she was bored. She let her senses flow forth. Something did feel different she just could not put her finger exactly on it. The tombs always vibrated with the darkness, but today that vibration was stronger. There was no easy explanation for the change. The tombs had been neutered years ago.

Her eyes swept across the group. One of the acolytes was moving a little slowly. “Get moving.” She narrowed her eyes at him. If she was forced to watch over these children, she would at least find something interesting to occupy her time. This mysterious alteration in the Force was far more compelling than guard duty.

@Arclight @Logan @Tulos

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

The meandering dusty trek out to the tomb caused Aadya to question many things. First and foremost, she wondered why she even bothered to attend this.. field trip, as it were. Studying ancient hieroglyphs seemed unlikely to yield any revolutionary information. These tombs had been plundered so many times that anything worth knowing that came from them was probably common Sith knowledge and any relics had long ago been pilfered by Sith who came before.

The second question she had was why Sith teachers seemed to so often resort to inane violence to get their point across. The lightning that forked from the Twi'lek's gnarled claw of a hand seemed.. feeble, even to Aadya. The young acolyte had seen real power, what the dark side was actually capable of. Her mind drifted to Stolas, to Renfry. This schutta was neither of them, and he never would be.

As they passed through the threshold of the tomb, Aadya overheard Ianthe mention her interpretation of the glyphs and how they seemed to defer from what the Twi'lek had told them. Smirking, she saddled up next to the young girl as they continued to walk.

I wouldn't be surprised if that idiot didn't even know how to read basic let alone ancient Sith, She said under her breath, doing her best to stifle a laugh at her own joke. My guess is he got tasked with tomb tours because he's too stupid to do much else.

Despite being willing to shit talk a higher ranking Sith, Aadya was not so stupid to do it loud enough for the Twi'lek to hear. Hopefully Ianthe wasn't the snitching type. Aadya wasn't particularly fond of getting shot with the lightning that would likely follow... or worse.

Have you ever heard of Darth Malgore? She asked, staring at a new set of Sith markings on a wall a few dozen feet inside the tomb. Aadya had absolutely no idea what they said, but maybe Ianthe's book could shed some light.

@Arclight @Tulos @Valen Pelora

 

[Ianthe]

Ianthe could feel the darkness that seemed to surround the entryway to the tomb even as the slowly setting sun warmed her back. Faint sunlight filtered into the tomb through the sunset facing entryway, gently illuminating some of the glyphs that were carved into the walls. From her place near the back of the group Ianthe could barely hear the droning of old Saris and if she was being honest with herself she preferred it that way.

"Oh!" She exclaimed as an older acolyte approached from the side and spoke to her, giving her a spook. She stifled her own giggle and brushed a bit of her unkempt hair out of her face. None of the other acolytes usually bothered to speak with her. "Don't let him hear you say that or..." She held a hooked claw out towards the other acolyte and imitated her earlier, much more real, excruciating expression.

Gaze following the other acolyte's to the runes carved into the tomb wall, Ianthe shook her head. "Not that I can remember." She mumbled quietly as she flipped through the book, looking for a reference to Darth Malgore. She just missed the shimmering of the runes on the wall as the waning sunlight brushed them, their forms seeming to twist and change out of her sight as she found what she was looking for.

"Ah here, Darth Malgore," She began to read, scanning the page before paraphrasing what she gathered from the footnote. "Little is known of Darth Malgore except vague references in subjects talking about Darth Maligax... It says here they were apprenticed to Darth Maligax before the master's untimely demise..." She trailed off in uncertainty as they came into the main hall of the tomb. A rather small tomb comparatively to many that stood on Korriban if she were to say so. Having fully entered the tomb the full droning of the old Twi'lek Saris was much more audible as he carried on about the values of learning the language of the ancient Sith and the wisdoms that could be read in their now empty tombs.

He was completely unaware of the faint glowing reflecting from beneath the dusty sand under his feet as the last of the day's sunlight penetrated through the entry hall to rest on the dusty floor there. Ianthe's eyes travelled quite easily away from the boring teacher to the glowing underneath his feat, the faint red glow growing stronger by the second.

"Teacher Saris..." Ianthe raised her voice, trying to draw his attention to the glow by pointing at it fearfully. The old twi'lek shot a hateful glare at her as he shook one hooked hand free from his robes. "I grow tired of your interruptions weak one." He began as he pointed his fingers towards her and lightning crackled from them. "Perhaps this will be your laaaaagghhgahhghhahaaaaa!" He began to threaten her as the lightning shot from his fingers only to stall midway to its destination. Ianthe cowered behind an arm for a moment, expecting a final shock before succumbing to a painful death.

It didn't come.

Peaking from behind her robe, her eyes grew wide as they caught sight of the teacher Saris standing rigid over a glowing red circle in the floor, eyes black and mouth open in a silent scream of terror as lighting shot from his fingertip and arced up before shooting back down through the crown of his head to end in a crackling circle under his feet, overlaying the red glow and stoking it brighter as lightning and red glowing runes expanded across the floor, a line shooting past the Ianthe and the other stragglers at the back towards the entryway. That was all she had a chance to see before one of the more attentive acolyte's pushed her over on his beeline for the door, a stampede of her classmates that had no regard for the fallen Ianthe as they rushed to escape the tomb.

Most of them did as the entrance slammed shut, the echoing boom punctuated by an agonized scream as another acolyte who had tried to slide under it at the last moment felt part of his body crushed under the heavy stone. "Aaaaaaaagh... he-help me aaaaaaagh!" Ianthe could hear the boy screaming from down the hall as the room was plunged into darkness.

@Tulos @Valen Pelora @Logan

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Charlotte had shifted to completely ignoring the class. She far more interested in the shifting nature of the Force. The deeper they walked into the tombs, the more the Darkness seemed to clutch at them. Oh, the tombs always frightened the young acolytes as they learned the true nature of the Darkside, but it was nothing like this. It was obvious, yet clunky old Saris just kept chattering on. Couldn’t he tell the difference? Charlotte shifted her mind to the present. She did not expect the acolytes to know any better. None of them had experienced the pleasure of this little tour before, but Saris had been here hundreds of times. The change should have rung false in his sense. Instead, he continued the same trite speech as always. What an idiot.

She returned her attention to the Force as the group entered a smaller tomb. What was the change? Why could she not identify the alteration? It was almost like the Darkness evaded her. Impossible. The Darkside was an old friend, it welcomed your body and mind. The Force was nothing like the Jedi proclaimed, all heroic struggled to learn the mysteries of the Force. This was so unusual. She was fascinated. Of course, that was when her concentration was broken Saris’ pealing voice. Charlotte’s head cocked to the side. Odd. The runes beneath the silly teacher were glowing. That was definitely new. Predictably Saris did not notice.

When the Force jumped from his hand, it did not reach his target, but rather doubled back rather spectacularly. Fascinating! Saris was undone by his own lightning. The screams echoed in the small chamber…the smell of burning flesh floating in the air. She would have laughed at the old fool if it wasn’t for the explosion of activity. The runes continued to spread red across the floor. It was almost as if Saris was having his life poured into the runes. That sent the acolytes running. Some of them made it out while one very much did not. Darkness descended on them and she smiled. Well, time to do her job. “Don’t use the Force.” Charlotte had stayed by choice. She was unsure about the remaining acolytes. “Unless you have a burning desire to join Saris.” She pulled her Lightsaber from her belt, careful to avoid stepping on the ruins. They provided enough light to avoid them.

She walked quickly to the end of the hallway where the top of the trapped acolyte continued to scream. Charlotte’s saber jumped to life with a snap-hiss. “Oh thank god, cut me out! Cut me out!” She frowned. “This is a mercy.” She quickly plunged her saber into his heart putting an end to the struggle. The Sith raised her voice to call back. “Start looking for a way out or anything interesting.” This was getting good. To think, she had complained of being bored.

@Arclight @Logan @Tulos

 

[Bir Vuul]

The darkness of the tomb was pierced by the sunlight as it shed through the entrance, alleviating some of the shadows though casting others, dust floating in it’s rays of light. Bir, while not supposed to be a part of this little adventure, was now simply far too curious to turn around. The dark side energies here ebbed in such an intriguing and compelling way. Something was amiss and while he had no indication as to just what it was, he wanted to discover it’s source.

“Get moving,” An older woman hissed at Bir as he brought up the rear of the group while examining the carved runes, still far enough away that he would not have been noticed by the class at large. Turning to meet her eyes, she watched him with a narrowed stare. How typical, he thought, as he reciprocated the cold glare for a moment before the muscles of his face contorted into a beaming grin behind his mask.

”Yes, yes of course! Deeper I go! Indeed! Indeed!” the Kel Dor finally responded with an overt and unnecessary energy, followed by a short and quiet maniacal chuckle as he spun on his heels and pursued the class of Acolytes. It seemed he was along for the full ride after all.

As the group made their way into a second chamber beyond the entrance, Bir approached the group with his tattered black hood drawn over his head. He towered over the majority of them, and as such could see the old Saris quite clearly as he explained just what the runes of the tomb detailed and elaborated on the knowledge they would gain if they took the time to learn the language. That was when the young girl who had suffered his wrath prior to entering the stone construct spoke up, pointing to the softly glowing symbol at his feet.

What happened next caused Bir Vuul to laugh in excitement, clapping his hands together as the lightning shot from Saris’ fingers only to double back and surge through his own body. It was a hilarious sight to the insane young Kel Dor and one he was disappointed had come to an end as the teacher died by his own hand.

”Oh my! How hilariously embarrassing!” Bir laughed, but as majority of the Acolytes turned and ran out of fear, he was able to spin around in time to watch one of them becoming pinned under the stone door that crashed downward. Blood seeped from beneath the giant rock, the boy’s entire lower body now nothing more than a red stain. The room was shrouded in absolute darkness before the Sith woman ignited her saber, casting a red glow as she silenced the poor soul. He followed suit, bringing his own weapon up and igniting the crimson blade. It seemed it was the Sith woman, the Acolyte who had suffered Saris’ wrath and…

”Ah! Aayda! Aa… Aadya?” Bir scowled as he tried to recall the young girl’s name from their meeting on Malheion. Holding his saber in his right hand, he brought his left hand of flesh and blood to his chin. ”It matters not!” he exclaimed finally, throwing his hands wide open. ”Once more we struggle together!” Most people of a stable mind would likely be consumed by fear, but the Kel Dor simply saw this as another misadventure. He was just happy to see a familiar face. Whether or not she was happy to see him? Well, that was a different story.

@Arclight @Logan @Valen Pelora​

 

[Darth Draugr]

Xeno was not one for many words. He mostly stayed towards the back of the class as they listened to Saris speak of the ancient history of the tomb. Honestly the words of the Sith were quite blan and gave no interest to the Zabrak. But of course he promised his master he would go and “learn” something from the class.

Then the crackling of lightning shot through the tomb with screams after. ‘What the hell happened’ Xeno thought to himself as he looked upon the body of Saris. After his classmates were running for the exit a door came crashing down on top of one. It left only his upper half exposed. What lame way to go. Having to have mercy brought upon you by a pitiful strike of a saber.

The Marauder in the class pointed out to not use the force in the tomb. How wonderful. Now the class is searching through the tomb with only the light of their sabers. Xeno only pulled out one since it gave enough light to see what he needed to see. They’re looking for a way out or as the marauder said “something interesting.”

He started to take notice of the odd behavior of the one called Bir Vuul. Xeno wasn’t one to judge of character but he was sure that the acolytes humor was far more sadistic than that of his own. He studied the actions of his other classmates as well. They all seem to know each other. Perhaps he should get to know them. Clearly learning something is off the table at this point.

@Arclight @Valen Pelora @Tulos @Logan

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

Things seemed to unfold extremely quickly down in the tombs. All things considered, Aadya found Saris' untimely death particularly satisfying, but she couldn't help but think being locked in an underground murder dungeon with a bunch of other Sith was not particularly.. good. For anyone.

It was then that Aadya heard someone say her name.. sort of. Turning around, she couldn't help but crack a smile at the sight of Bir Vuul - a rather peculiar Kel Dor she had met on Malheion a few weeks prior. Bir! She said, approaching him with a friendly wave. Why is it we always run into each other in such dire circumstances? Noticing the saber he held in his hand, Aadya nodded in approval. At least you won't have to beat shit to death with other shit anymore. Glad to see you finally in the company of the civilized.

Looking around, Aadya took stock of those who remained. She didn't know any of them outside of Bir, though that wasn't surprising. Addressing the group, she sort of just threw her hands up in the air in a shrug.

So what now?

@Arclight @Tulos @Valen Pelora @Scoobert

 

[Ianthe]

The crimson glow of the runes faded in their brilliance as Ianthe pulled herself to her feet, brushing dust from her acolyte's robes for the second time that day. Darkness enveloped the room briefly, cut only by the faint red glow of runes that filled the floor. The gentle glow didn't last long as crimson sabers ignited one by one, filling the tomb with a harsh red glow.

Ianthe winced as she heard the begging cries for help of one of her classmates be cut off by the sudden stroke of a saber, a small mercy the other acolyte was promised by the Sith that delivered the blow. Mercy... perhaps, certainly a permanent end to the suffering of his grievous injury. Holding her own saber aloft, Ianthe cast her eyes about for anything interesting. Unfortunately at this point pretty much everything that stood out in the room was interesting.

The gentle glow of red sith runes that shone through the sands of generations, pulsing in a gentle rhythm reminiscent of a slow heartbeat. The sarcophagus at the end of the room that pulsed with its own similar etchings. And of course the rigid form of the still standing master Saris, his mouth locked open in agony, eyes as pitch black as the shadows that lingered just at the edge of saber's light.

Ianthe took a tentative step, then another towards her teacher. Carefully of course to avoid stepping on any of the runes. Death could come at any moment, a truth that the young acolyte had accepted since early in her indenture to the Sith. But she would prefer it not to come at this moment if she could help it.

"Hilariously embarrassing indeed." She echoed the Kel Dor's statement as she approached closer to the rigid Sith, her own infernal curiosity getting the better of her. One more step, and then another. She was at the threshold of the rune circle that had grabbed hold of Saris power and ripped his life from him. She dared not take another step, but she was close enough to observe a lack of movement from his chest, indicating that he had ceased to breath. Black liquid trickled down his tattooed face from the black wells of his eyes. A glance at the floor informed Ianthe that he was floating a few centimeters from the ground, the tips of his shoes just barely hovering off the ground. "He's floating... Should we let him down?" She asked nobody in particular, hesitant to act and doubly fearful of crossing the threshold. "Maybe a pebble." She muttered to herself as she backed away a step and looked around for something to throw at the dead teacher.

@Tulos @Valen Pelora @Scoobert @Logan

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

Great. One of the acolytes was insane…just what they needed. Charlotte’s eye raked over the Kel Dor, the stench of psychosis wrinkling her nose. The Darkness was not always kind to those who worshipped at her alter. This acolyte was not the first to madness clinging to them. At least he would be interesting. That was more than she could say for the remaining children. The little red haired one seemed ready to jump out of her skin, the Zabrak was predictably big and scary…Charlotte’s gaze settled on Aadya…at least she’d have something to look at.

Charlotte stepped carefully towards where Ianthe examined dead old Saris. Her voice sounded loudly in the silent chamber. “Marauder Le’Anna.” She gestured at herself. “If we’re all going to die you can call me Charlotte.” The Force continued to thump in time with the runes. Her eyes were again drawn to the sarcophagus. She pointed at Ianthe. “Read that part about Malgore again.” Darth Maligax was sprinkled all throughout Sith texts. His name was familiar to even the lowest acolytes. Malgore was a different matter entirely. His name was nearly forgotten.

Most Sith assumed that was because Malgore had been unimportant…perhaps it had been intentional. Taking the young girl’s advice, she tossed a pebble at Saris. As they expected, it stayed floating. A bright smile flashed across Charlotte’s face. This was magnificent. “Who wants to touch him?” She laughed lightly. The Kel Dor wasn’t the only one flirting with the Darkness. “Come on…don’t be afraid.” She would neve but one of the acolytes might be dumb enough. Charlotte desperately wished to reach out in the Force and feed on whatever Darkness was commanding the tomb. Sadly, her better intellect won out. She wanted to devour these secret and live.

@Arclight @Tulos @Scoobert @Logan

 

[Bir Vuul]

Bir’s beaming grin could be seen through the glow of the numerous lightsabers that now illuminated the chamber. The last time he had seen Aadya, he had been unarmed and forced to utilize whatever was around him to defeat any threat they had faced on the shadow world of Mahleion. Now, he had managed to construct his own weapon and finally felt as though he was on his way to becoming a member of the Sith armada.

”Ohhhh, I wouldn’t rule it out just yet, my smooth skinned friend!” Bir chuckled heartily at the memory of beating a hell hound to death with a member of it’s own pack. The beast had it coming, of course. At least in his own mind. No one lied to Bir Vuul and simply walked away from it without repercussion and the hound had done just that by deceiving him on the location of the crystal he was seeking. Or rather, Bir believed as much at any rate.

As everyone began to congregate around the suspended form of Saris, Bir approached the deceased Twi’lek carefully. Leaning forward, far more than was necessary, the Kel Dor closely examined the Instructor under the gleam of his blade. The fingers of his left hand traced the perimeter around the corpse, careful not to touch it directly. It was astounding to not only him but even the elder Sith of the group as she laughed slightly at his unfortunate state. There was no indication of an energy field holding Saris in suspension, his black boots hovering about a foot above the dusty surface of the tomb. Bir immediately ruled out any sort of hidden and mysterious technology as the cause of Saris’ demise. No, this was most likely some sort of trap laid by the ancient Sith through the Force.

“Who wants to touch him? Go on, don’t be afraid,”

The difference between people of a sound mind and those flirting with the thin line of sanity and madness was often their rational thinking. Someone in control of their faculties would see a source of danger and rightfully maintain a safe distance. Bir, well… He was not one such character.

”Fear?!” Bir exclaimed, rather unnecessarily. ”Fear does not dictate my fate nor my actions!” The Kel Dor snapped straight upward, placing his left hand on his hip while elevating his chin in an overtly pride-filled manner. Eyes closed, face looking to the ceiling of the tomb, the Kel Dor lifted his hand from his hip and extended his primary finger, slowly edging it towards the corpse. Then, like a toddler going against a direct request of a parent, he placed the finger on Saris’ chest.

At first, nothing. Opening his eyes and scanning the group of Sith before him, the Kel Dor’s facial features twisted into another massive grin.

”Nothing to fear! Nothing at all!” he boasted but the grin faded as the floor of the chamber suddenly sunk. Cracking and groaning came from below and the floor sunk once again. Looking to the Zabrak acolyte, the grin returned, bigger than ever.

”I think I’ve made a massive mistake!” he chuckled loudly just before the floor finally gave way.

@Arclight @Logan @Valen Pelora @Scoobert​

 

[Darth Draugr]

Well.. The Zabrak was right to believe that Bir would cause some sort of danger. And it was only confirmed as he watched the Kel Dor walk to the corpse and place a finger on the body. The expression on Xeno’s face wasn’t of worry but annoyance. Only a child would be foolish enough to touch it and this only proved Xeno’s thoughts right.

For only a moment there was a safe pause. “Wow, nothing happened.” Xeno mumbled to himself. He expected a dramatic event like Saris to come back to life, but nothing. That was until the Kel Dor opened his mouth. Some luck he had getting stuck in this class. The acolyte locked eyes with the Kel Dor and heard their last remarks. Xeno could only respond in

The floor began to sink. And it was steadily sinking faster. Xeno was growing furious with the one called Bir Vuul and it was shown on his expression. Xeno was trying to rush towards anything to hold onto but before he could find anything worth holding onto, the floors finally gave out and down they went.

Thanks to a Kel Dor that doesn’t know a joke when they hear one, the whole class was falling into an abyss. Just lovely. After a decent fall Xeno landed on a warm surface. Not any sign of what is heating it, until he looked down. A small stream of possible lava flowing through the floor in an undistinguished shape. Perhaps it was important. Definitely interesting.

He looked up and saw that marauder laying on the ground as well. “Hey, found that interesting kriff you were looking for” as he pointed at the stream.

@Arclight @Logan @Valen Pelora @Tulos

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

Of all of the people that were to give into Charlotte's goading, Aadya was about zero percent surprised that it was Bir. Rolling her eyes so hard they almost got stuck in the back of her head, Aadya watched as the insane Kel Dor tempted fate and got much too close to the floating Saris.

As the floor gave out beneath them, Aadya's mind snapped quickly to the lesson Stolas had showed her in those caves on Zoph. Letting the force flow around her, Aadya didn't fall as the floor disappeared. Instead, she floated downward at a controlled rate, almost like she was able to fly.

Landing next to Xeno, Aadya too noticed the small stream of lava flowing through the ground - although from here, she could not really see where it went. It followed a path that seemed to angle downward and head deeper underground, but to where was anyone's guess.

Looking down, Aadya could see large footprints pressed into the dirt. They looked somewhat fresh, and quite distinct. Thinking back to the books she'd read about Sith tombs, she remembered seeing something like it in a section about what you might expect to find buried beneath the sands of Korriban.

These look like terentatek tracks. She said simply, turning to look at the others. More than one, from the looks of it. We should tread this path lightly.

Reaching to her waist, Aadya took out her lightsaber and ignited it. There was no pretending like violence wasn't going to be the answer to whatever they found down here. Better to be prepared at this point than aloof.

@Arclight @Tulos @Valen Pelora @Scoobert

 

[Ianthe]

Retrieving her book at the Marauder's command, Ianthe started flipping through the pages, trying to find the reference she had read earlier when the Kel Dor acolyte touched the floating Saris. Then all hell broke loose as the floor crumbled beneath them. Clutching the book to her chest with one arm and ducking and covering her head with the other, disengaging her lightsaber so she didn't end up killing herself, Ianthe tumbled to the new floor as rubble rained down alongside the other Sith.

Pain erupted in multiple places as Ianthe collected a fresh batch of scrapes and bruises during the fall. Her eyes welled with moisture but otherwise she stayed quiet and tearless as she rose once more. Pain was unfortunately not a new experience to the young acolyte.

Finding her feet and brushing herself off, Ianthe's saber snapped back to life as she examined the smooth bridge that overlooked what appeared to be a lava flow. Peering into the light of the lava however, it didn't look quite like lava, its red glow matching the runic glow of the floor above, with twisting veins of red seeming to shimmer and dance through the viscous 'liquid' in an unnatural manner.

"Tarantateks?" She whispered fearfully at the nice older acolyte's suggestion. Shaking her head she tried to brush the fear away.

What happened next didn't give her the chance.

Ianthe bit back a frightened scream as iron locked around one of her ankles, the blackened hands of corpse-Saris gripping her from where his body had tumbled next to hers. Tugging away, her lightsaber lashed out, removing the offending hand at the wrist as corpse-Saris rose from the ground, seemingly pulled upwards as if by strings to once more float, arms spread wide as an erie voice echoed out from his unmoving mouth.

"J'us shiyi zûtatarwamsi ri tsûkda iw ri kirs. Rajidona tu'iyia natura dzis tu'iyia dtika."

The hand on her ankle remained their, its grip still iron as Ianthe backed away from the floating corpse-Saris and fell backwards, landing hard on her back at the edge of the bridge as corpse-Saris launched itself at her, passing over her as she fell. The animated corpse continued its flight, coming around to fly at the Kel Dor that had touched it, hand and stump outstretched towards the acolyte's throat as it flung itself at the Sith.

@Valen Pelora @scoober @Tulos @Logan

 

[Charlotte Le'Anna]

He actually did it. That crazy Kel Dor walked right up to the floating corpse of Saris and touched it. For one anti-climatic moment, she almost laughed. The laugh was stolen from her when the floor gave out. Charlotte quickly gathered the Force in her chest. She failed downward, passing a floating Aadya. Hmmm. That one was more impressive than she originally suspected. She thumped into the sand floor, using the Force to disperse her impact into the ground below. The Zabrak may have fallen heavily but Charlotte landed lightly on her feet. There was no need to answer his pithy response. She quickly reignited her lightsaber. Multiple red glows now illuminating the cavern.

She barely had time to register the comment on the Tarantateks. Her mind flipped from one immediate danger to the next. Saris or whatever had poisoned his body, was not yet done with them. Ancient Sith syllables poured from the dead master’s mouth before launching away from Ianthe and towards their insane friend. Charlotte’s mind was spinning. She had barely caught whatever horrible proclamation not-Saris had spilled out. Her ancient Sith was rusty at best. They had the Tarantateks to potentially contend with. Everything was kriffing Darksided mess. She had to make a decision quickly. The acolyte’s survival was rapidly becoming her survival. Charlotte was amazing, but even she could not face down a Tarantatek alone.

Her head whipped around the room. There did not appear to be any spooky glowing runes on the ground. It was probably safe to use the Force. She did enjoy a good lightning show, but the Darkness provided many nonlethal answers. Answers less likely to turn her into Saris’ pal. Charlotte quickly reached out with the Force. She wrapped the flying Saris and held on. Pulling to slow his momentum, hopefully giving the Kel Dor time to react. If her own use of the Force doubled back on her, it likely would not kill her. Likely anyways.

@Logan @Arclight @Tulos @Scoobert

 

[Bir Vuul]

The impact on the cavern floor had knocked the wind from Bir’s lungs but that did not impede his maniacal laughter at the event he had incited, merely removing any sound as he went through the motions. Picking himself up from the dusty surface, the Kel Dor scanned the immediate area and saw the lava streams that Xeno pointed out. As the ‘molten rock’ descended further into the planet’s surface, Bir opened himself to the Force. He could feel the emotions of the other Acolyte’s that surrounded him ranging from irritance to fear, spurred by his choice of actions. Still, he would not be Bir Vuul if he acted rationally. Beyond the reactions of his class mates and their escort, there was a strong pull coming from deep within the tunnel system… Calling to them, urging them to search for it’s source.

”What is this… Terentatata.... Terenke… This thing you speak of, dear Aadya?!” Bir questioned excitedly as he recovered his fallen saber and pulling the hood of his cloak back across his head. As a recently fallen Jedi, he found himself woefully lacking of knowledge of the ancient Sith compared to his comrades. Sure, he learned some bits of information during his stay on Ajan Kloss but nothing like that of those who he was now mingling with. Aadya, nor any of the others, had a chance to respond however, as the dead Instructor found new life.

As Saris’ corpse latched his hand around Ianthe’s ankle, Bir ignited his blade and advanced on the threat. Perhaps it was the traces of his Jedi past, perhaps it was simply his nature to protect those around him, but he wasn’t going to simply allow this undead to harm anyone without a fight. Ianthe was not inept, however, as indicated by her severing the hand from it’s host before the corpse began to float once more. The words that oozed from Saris’ unmoving mouth were nothing but gibberish to Bir but as he flew through the air and turned his advance towards him, well… That was a language Bir knew quite well.

The slowed advance thanks to Charlotte gave Bir the time to react. Stepping to his left and turning his torso to face the corpse, Bir brought his blade upwards and seared through Saris’ right shoulder. However, it was not enough to end the flying carcass’ advance. Rather, now there was a floating arm that had managed to wrap itself around Bir’s neck while the remainder of Saris doubled back through the air as it let off a blood curling scream that echoed down the subterranean passages. With his free hand, Bir began to pry at the offending arm while the yellowed teeth of the dead instructor bared themselves from behind blackened lips with the hope of finding flesh to sink themselves into.

@Arclight @Logan @Valen Pelora @Scoobert​

 

[Darth Draugr]

As the Zabrak had stood up and listened to the acolyte named Aadya speak of Terentateks, and watched as the corpse of their tour guide try to kill the one known as Ianthe, and then Bir Vuul. So much chaos.

Xeno wasn’t one to intrude on anyone’s battles. In fact he believed that one should win their own fights, anyone helping them would cause for their honor to be stripped of the fight. Although Bir’s opponent is a corpse, Xeno wanted to wait until help was absolutely necessary.

Death being brought to the acolytes and marauders in the tomb was not what Xeno had wanted. Even if the Kel Dor was clinically insane, he believed that victory would be possible. Plus Bir caused everyone to be brought down here, he touched the corpse, it’s his problem.

Xeno turned away and began to study the tracks of the Terentatek. Whilst studying he asked the acolyte Aadya, who mentioned these beasts a simple question with a calmness in his voice as if a deadly fight wasn’t occurring behind him,

“What all do you know about these Terentatek? We must know all we can.”

The Zabrak turned his attention to her, and the sighed as he looked back at the Kel Dor fighting for dear life. He hadn’t wanted help. Yet, he did in a way. Something about that insane twerp was charming enough to cause Xeno to want to see him live.

“Alright..”

He mumbled as he began to rush in to fight off the corpse sending two crimson blade in an upward slash toward the head of what was once Saris, now a flesh hungry corpse. Surely he wouldn’t be the only one coming to the rescue.

@Tulos @Arclight @Logan @Valen Pelora

 

[Aadya Rasheer]

There was little opportunity for Aadya to address anyone's questions about the terentatek. The floating, murderous body of Saris was proving a big enough distraction to pull all of their attention towards it. It seemed that even in death, the old Sith instructor was just as annoying as he was in life.

Aadya watched the others drive their blades into zombie Saris, though none of them went for the obvious place until Xeno. Did these people never watch horror holovids? When it comes to creepy undead creature things, you always went straight for the head. Always.

As Xeno's blade caught Saris' head, Aadya watched with an amused smirk as it went flying into the air in an arc like an errant huttball. Reaching out with the force, Aadya gripped it tightly, clenching her hand into a fist which caused it to explode like someone hit a jogan fruit with a sledgehammer.

Once the head had been vanquished, the rest of Saris' body sort of.. crumpled and fell to the floor, turning in on itself like a dying star before disappearing in a gust of blood mist and wind.

Turning to the others, Aadya gave them a shrug. Things had really progressed in a particular way since they had entered the tomb, and she sort of chuckled at her feelings of boredom earlier. Things were anything but boring now.

Terentateks are beasts twisted and owned by the darkside, She said finally, answering some of the questions the others had posed before zombie Saris tried to eat their faces. They feed on the blood of those sensitive to the force, so just because we are Sith doesn't mean it won't try to kill us too. They are mindless hunters typically used as guard beasts for ancient Sith tombs.

Kneeling down, Aadya looked at the tracks again. They lead deeper into the tunnels, where the darkside beckoned them all to come. Looking at the others, mostly at Charlotte as the most senior one around, Aadya shrugged again.

The darkside beckons. If we follow, we'll meet them soon enough.

Aadya wasn't stupid, so she wasn't going to traverse deeper into the Sith tunnels alone. Should the others choose to go, though, she would follow.

@Arclight @Tulos @Valen Pelora @Scoobert

 

[Ianthe]

Ianthe tried to grasp the hand that wrapped around her ankle as the others dealt with flying corpse-Saris, her concern less on the threat to others and more than entirely focused on the iron grip that squeezed her leg tightly. Her fingers scrabbled against the quickly decaying hand, trying to pry it free but failing. However weak Saris' grip had been in life, one that she had felt many times as he pulled her about or punished her for whatever failings he perceived, in death his grip was stronger than durasteel.

A quick slash at the hand yielded no success, too fearful to cut too close to her own flesh, she merely managed to take another few centimeters off the wrist of the corpse hand.

A blood curdling scream filled the cavern as corpse-Saris head was cut from its shoulders, followed by silence as the head was crushed to a pulp. The corpse and its errant pieces dissolved into a bloody mist and searing pain gripped Ianthe's ankle, and likely Bir's neck as well as the aggressively dead flesh burned away, along with whatever it touched.

Gritting her teeth, refusing to show weakness now, Ianthe took a fearful look at her ankle. A quiet whimper escaped her throat as she beheld the mess there, blood oozed from cracked skin, finger shaped gouges in flesh where the iron grip had held her. Holding back tears, she attempted once, then twice to gather her footing. Finally succeeding on her third attempt, she limped over to the rest of the group.

This tomb would be her... well, tomb.

No. She refused.

"If the Darkside beckons, it is our call to answer it." Her voice was breathy as she talked through the pain. These were Sith, she was Sith. She could not show weakness even as blood dripped from her ankle, now concealed by her robe, to soak her socks and squelch in her shoes. She could not show weakness.

Eyeing the corridor deeper, she shook her head. "They will have heard us." She whispered. The screeching corpse-Saris had not been quiet, and effective deterrent for weak intruders, and an alarm to alert the stronger defenses of the tomb. Whoever this Darth Malgore had been, he had been powerful, and crafty. To so erase his presence from history and hide his tomb so that even in this age it had remained untouched.

She wasn't sure whether to be afraid or impressed. Mostly afraid.

@Valen Pelora @Tulos @Scoobert @Logan