Ask Coocoo for Klatooine

[Arla]

Per my new OP normal, thread is death enabled​

Klatooine wasn't a planet that Arla was particularly familiar with, and the more she had read about it the less excited she was about it. Primarily because it sounded hot and it was controlled by the Hutts.

On the other hand, if she had an opportunity to undermine some Hutts, then that was all the better. Her few interactions with Hutts had been profoundly unpleasant and led her to have a less than favorable view of them. So as she landed her ship in the arid desert, she'd held onto the idea that at least she'd be able to spite some hutts.

Truthfully, she wasn't entirely sure what she was walking into. Commander Din had requested someone with skills in the arcane, and Arla had been the one sent. Though she hadn't actually met him before technically they had both been at the disaster of a yacht party. He seemed to be quite the ladies man based on what she had seen, but that was before his promotion. Now, he was a Commander, and she wasn't entirely sure what that rank differential would bring.

Ultimately, she shrugged to herself, grabbed her things, and made her way down the ramp of her ship, chugging down a bottle of cold water as she looked over the fortress and village in front of her. She could already tell it was all abandoned and that things here felt... off.

Without any sign of Altair out of the gate she just kind of... marched on forward, gulping water and poking around to see if she could find anything interesting. Or any signs of what was causing the... disturbance in the Force.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair’s right arm was still not in the best shape, but he couldn’t wait forever for it to heal. Klatooine and its surrounding planets had been on his mind ever since he conquered Eiattu. He always knew his ambitions went beyond just one kingdom. On top of that, he was very partial to deserts. The tiefling arrived shortly after Arla, having called for her due to her expertise in the arcane and ritualistic things.

The tiefling was dressed for the weather, carrying his collapsible wan-shen on his hip. The bottom hemisphere of his face was concealed, but his horns were unmistakable. He walked over towards her, giving her a nod, “Hey, Arla,” He said. The last time he had seen her was on the yacht, and he knew she and Wodan had something going on, but he knew little else outside of that. There was a four legged beast trotting next to him, its lanky form suggesting that it was still a puppy. It was a charhound, its vivid yellow eyes displaying a mix of mischief and intelligence. She began to run towards Arla, but the tiefling gave a sharp whistle. The puppy paused, looked at Altair and brushed him off to playfully nudge at Arla’s legs anyway. She was a gift from Vahliri and Sol, one Altair had grown to cherish.

“We’re workin’ on it,” Altair said sheepishly, “That’s Belleza,” He explained.

Altair glanced in the direction of the fortress, “You see that?” He pointed, “That’s a lot further than it looks,” He said with a grimace behind the wraps, “We will have to cross a decent bit of desert to get there. Do you have everything you need?” Altair asked. He double checked his own travel pack and extra water. Bel wouldn’t need as much since she was made for heat.

 

[Arla]

There was no mistaking Altair for anyone else, and she was sure that was both a blessing and a curse to the Tiefling throughout his life. She knew her mother had sometimes enjoyed blending in as a normal person throughout her time as Empress, and she supposed that would be difficult for Altair as he continued progressing through the Imperial ranks.

Altair was cool and all, but his puppy. Oh, how Arla was an absolute sucker for animals, and she was on her knee within a moment of the puppy nudging her, showering the pup with affection galore.

Oh, aren't you just the most wonderful thing, she said, scratching the hound behind the ears and quickly reaching into a pouch of her belt to slip her some jerky. Arla seemed completely unperturbed by the hound's somewhat fearsome appearance and sharp teeth. She was, however, caught off-guard by how she seemed to radiate heat of her own, and she could only pet her for a few moments before needing to pull her hand back.

It seemed only now that Arla realized she probably should be paying more attention to her work than the puppy and she stood back up, clearing her throat.

Sorry, Commander, she said. Despite her momentary lapse, it was clear Arla was going to be a little on edge with someone of higher rank until it was made clear she needn't be. And she also realized she had probably undermined some of the training process in her moment of doting on the disobedient puppy.

She tossed a glance back into her backpack to make sure everything was in order before nodding and pulling up a hood over her head to block some of the sun during their travels.

So what's going on here? Everything looks abandoned and you called in an arcanist so... something weird? she asked.

I sense something's off here. Not a Force-entity though. Something... else.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair couldn’t help the smile that graced his lips when he saw Arla interact with Belleza. Of course, the smile was concealed, “She likes you,” He declared, a softness to his tone to suggest he wasn’t exactly going to lord over her. Altair paused for a moment as she addressed him as Commander. It still felt strange to hear that title. It felt like just yesterday that they were all partying on a boat, and now she was technically under his command on this mission.

“Altair’s fine,” He said after a moment of silence. Altair glanced ahead towards the fortress, “Really weird shit, quite frankly,” He stated flatly, “Disappearances, strange runes and symbols showing up and just a lot of inexplicable stuff. The locals here have been left fending for themselves. There’s a Hutt named Garbogg that claims to be Daimyo of the people but has been turnin’ a blind eye to everything going on. All the strange stuff points back to that fortress. No information on its history or anything.”

He looked at Arla, chewing on his inner cheek before he spoke again, “I asked you to come ‘cause…well…stuff like that kinda freaks me out,” Altair admitted sheepishly, “It spooks me and I just…need help from someone that ain’t afraid and knows this stuff,” He felt like an idiot admitting any of this. He was supposed to be a Sith Master and commanding respect, “But Pa always taught me it’s smarter to know your limits than to fuck up after the fact,” He shrugged vaguely, “So I’m hopin’ you can do more of the leadin’ here…if that’s cool with you of course.”

Altair knew this would all catch her off guard, but he definitely didn’t pretend to be an expert in all fields. He could appreciate the talents of others and he would respect those people for it. Belleza kept near Arla, playfully rolling around on the sand near her feet before springing up to give her more nuzzles.

 

[Arla]

He would be able to see Arla relax ever so slightly at using his first name, and that same more-relaxed demeanor she had had on the boat momentarily returned before slipping away once again as her mind turned to the puzzle she'd been called in to solve.

She listened to his description of the situation, all business as she thought about what she was hearing and what it could mean. Honestly, it wasn't much to go on, which would mean investigations and lots more poking around.

And then she was once again sidetracked by the puppers and was back on a knee to pet Belleza. All seemed fine until he started getting... almost sheepish. He seemed quite uncomfortable with what he was saying, and as he went on, she began to understand why he was uncomfortable. It was an admission of weakness in its own way and a level of trust that he placed in her. And a demonstration of wisdom as well.

Uh... yeah. Yes, I can take point on this, she said with a nod, pushing back up to stand and starting to walk off in the direction of the fortress.

He sounds smart, she said about the comment his Pa had told him.

Her face once more became stony and serious as she looked over the fortress and started heading in that direction.

Hutts, she growled half to herself. Shocking: claiming authority while being useless, she said before clearing her throat and realizing she should probably keep it stowed.

Uh, so is there anyone else left in this area or has everyone been evacuated? Can I see the runes? she asked.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair looked around - spotted that no one else was there. Fuck it. He whistled again to get Belleza to come to him and brought out a little toy ball, squeezing it. He tossed it and she bounded after it, running back with it in her mouth, tail wagging. She brought the toy to Arla and Altair nodded for her to throw it, “I been trynna teach her all sorts of tricks,” He said, a hint of excitement in his tone, “And she can shoot flames too!” Altair even bought a little manual on charhound for training, “Though that’s only if she’s pissed, so let's avoid that,” He chuckled to himself.

“Bel, roll over!” He said as he crouched down next to her. The puppy eagerly wagged her tail and attempted to lick his face instead. Altair couldn’t help but laugh, playing with the puppy as she ran back and forth between the two Sith. It was obvious that the tiefling was just as excited about Belleza. Almost half an hour passed just wasting time until Altair remembered the mission again.

Covered in sand, Altair stood back up and dusted himself off, clearing his throat, “Uh, right..” He mumbled as he led towards the city. Belleza fell into step between them, happily trotting along, “Evacuated? When a Hutt’s in charge?” He scoffed, “This place has been allegedly evacuated, but I think most of ‘em disappeared,” Altair explained as they approached a tall wall with gates that were dented and broken.

There was a sense of unease as he stepped inside. He wasn’t alone in that - Belleza began to whimper and cower behind him. Altair grimaced at the sight, crouching down to pet her, “Come on, girl, we both gotta be brave,” He muttered to her before standing again to walk in.

“That’s what I mean,” He pointed to one of the houses with a runic mark on it, “Supposedly they appear on doors and walls. They got more frequent near when everyone just started to vanish. Past the northern gates of this city, there’s a stretch of desert… prolly two days journey. There’s been some strange activity reported and sightings of an obelisk or spire or something out there. When search parties were sent there, they never come back. There was one witness that came back but he was so freaked out, he killed himself before anyone could get any answers from him,” The thought sent a chill down his spine.

“So we got this empty city to look for clues..” Altair opened the door to a home that had a rune symbol on it. It looked as if people just upped and left in the middle of their day - the table had half eaten food that rotted a long time ago. There were clothes and other belongings set out to suggest no one had actually left. And yet there was an eerie silence and a chill throughout the entire city.

 

[Arla]

As he produced a ball and they began to play with the little dog, Arla was all in on it. For all intents and purposes, there was no mission anymore as she played with the hound, tail whipping back and forth.

Wow! she exclaimed as he mentioned that Bel could breathe fire as well. That made sense why she radiated so much heat but Arla still seemed to love her anyway.

As Altair seemed to remember they had a mission, she snapped back to business as well with a nod. Right, yes, you have work to do, Arla. You can pet the pup later as a reward to yourself, she told herself, knowing full well she'd be petting the pup again much sooner than that.

That's a lot of disappearances, she said, eyebrows raised. It was no small area, and she wondered exactly who or what had caused all of this. How many were they?

She glanced back at the poor dog as it seemed to hate the idea of being here as well.

She listened to what Altair explained, sitting down in the sand and letting the puppy completely climb in her lap for a moment if she so chose.

Well, people don't just entirely disappear, right? Even if it's Force entities at work, there should be at least... bodies or something. Normally, she said, tilting her head back and forth in a "but not always" sort of way.

But this doesn't feel like a direct Force entity to me. It feels... different, she said, not really sure how to describe it. It was quite different than the thing she had confronted with Vahliri in the Unknown Region. The thing they had unwittingly released on the rest of the galaxy. The thing that gave her chills even thinking about right now as she sat here in the heat.

After a few moments more she pushed herself up and took a closer look at the runes.

They're scorch marks. Not like a lightsaber, but still burns. Almost like a blowtorch, she said, running a finger over it and coming away with a bit of char.

Did they appear at the same time that people vanished? Like same night a person vanished from their home, the symbols appeared? she asked.

She started wandering through the city and inspecting all the different houses. None showed any signs of struggle or conflict, which was perhaps the oddest part.

The more symbols she looked at, though, the more she noticed the slight variations. Not in the marks themselves, but in the precision.

It's almost like they were each drawn by a different person, she said, pointing out areas between different marks that seemed different.

And the people all leave without a trace, she frowned, tilting her head to the side. I wonder if they're being drawn somewhere. Going "willingly" because of some... foreign influence, she said. And leaving the symbols behind for... some reason.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair nodded, “I think there was a correlation between the marks and the disappearances,” He sighed, “Truth be told, there’s a lotta guessin’ goin’ on because Garbogg tried to cover everything up. He didn’t wanna catch any kinda heat, but he started gettin’ a lot of questions once his spice and weapons trade started getting interrupted on account of people outright disappearing,” He followed along as she inspected the different houses. They all had the same look - people in the middle of everyday mundane things that suddenly got up and left.

“Going willingly?” Altair repeated with a grimace, “Like..like they were in some kinda trance?” The hint of fear was obvious in his voice.

They walked into another house and Altair walked down the stairs to a basement. Nothing looked out of place until he spotted something on the floor. He moved a box out of the way and could see what looked like bloodstains. Altair followed the stain and moved some other things around before a stench hit his nostrils.

He heard some flies buzzing and opened the door, immediately covering his mouth and nose despite the wrappings. Altair spotted what looked like a dead girl, her body in a state of decay. From the looks of it, the blood originated from her wrists. The sight was grizzly and brought up all kinds of questions.

“Think she tried getting away from the influence of whatever it was?” He asked quietly, genuinely disturbed. It was then that he noticed Belleza didn’t even bother coming down the stairs, whimpering and waiting at the top of them.

“Wonder if there are any other clues here..” Altair mused, though entirely uncomfortable to explore.

 

[Arla]

Arla was both unsurprised that there was so much guess work and annoyed that the Hutt was the cause of it.

Sounds like someone needs to take the windbag's head off, she grumbled, momentarily imagining doing just that before moving along with her business.

Seems likely... or at least possible, she said, completely failing to notice how uncomfortable he was and therefore making things so much worse.

I can just see it, she said, wandering into one of the living spaces and mentally recreating it in her mind.

Family of... maybe three or four. All sitting here on the couch when they start to feel a call. A compulsion to leave, but they don't know why. They start to stand and walking out, but they have to get these images out of their minds. They throw them onto the walls in fire before leaving, never to be seen again, she said. The more she thought about it, the more she thought pieces of it were wrong, but she did have something in her gut telling her it was the core of the issue. She was also completely oblivious to the negative impact her vivid storytelling might have on Altair.

She followed him downstairs, finding the grizzly body stashed away. It only brought more questions and the most outstanding one was: Where's the knife?

There was no sign of whatever tool had been used and she couldn't shake the chill that ran down her spine. Something was wrong, she just didn't know what.

Probably, she agreed with him, continuing to poke around the basement. She rounded a corner and started looking through the other rooms, the smells not improving even when she moved further from the body.

As she reached out, pressing a hand against one of the other doors, she found the knife...

In the small bathroom was more blood coating the floor and a knife. But more than that, the walls were completely covered in scratchings. The creature portrayed was unlike anything she'd ever seen before.

It's body seemed huge and it stood upright on two legs, but with a beaked face almost as if it were a cross between man and bird.

I think she was... disturbed, she said. Did the man who killed himself talk about a... bird man? Or monstrosity? she asked, though she wasn't holding her breath.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair was more than a little disturbed by Arla and her vivid description of what likely happened. She would notice he was a bit worthless, keeping a distance while she went looking for the knife. The stench was horrible and he almost gagged. Damn, this was embarrassing. She probably thought he was the biggest wimp in the galaxy. He needed to punch another Sith Master to get his clout back after this..

When she began to talk about a bird man, Altair finally followed her. Trying to keep himself from gagging, he ducked through the doorway to survey the scratchings, “What the fuck is that?” He whispered as he saw the depictions. At Arla’s question, he shook his head.

“The guy started chantin’ about a flight to ascend or some shit, but then his eyes glazed over and he just… grabbed a pen or something and put it through his eye,” Altair said with a grimace, “Doesn’t this sound like Killik stuff? If people feel a compulsion to go do something? Could..something have been mixed in the food or water supply?”

He didn’t understand Killik enough to know whether mass brainwashing could occur, but he did know it usually came from a drink. Altair was about to say more when the stench became too much. He rolled down his wrappings and turned away to vomit right there to the side in the absence of windows or making it in time. After heaving for a bit, he covered up his mouth again.

“I’m…sorry.. I ain’t used to bein’ around rotting corpses..” He blurted out as he stepped back from the room in a hurry.

 

[Arla]

Arla's face scrunched up slightly as he mentioned Killiks. It was an angle she hadn't thought about but he certainly could have been right. She hoped not.

It's possible, she agreed. She also had a sudden and vivid mental picture of Mr. Eye Gouger and there was no question something had driven him out of his right mind. Though whether it was Killiks or something else, she didn't know.

I haven't heard of Killiks and anything to do with bird-men, though, she speculated. Hopefully this wasn't some new evolution in the saga of mind control. Though, that thought made her think of something else. What exactly did she know about it? She had done work with rituals to rearrange people's minds before, but that wasn't the same as this, was it? This was on a massive scale and seemingly with little effort.

She was still thinking when Altair turned and vomited. For a moment, her eyes widened and she looked concerned. She thought he was actually ill, and it wasn't until he mentioned the dead body that it connected. Not that she was exactly enjoying being around the body, but she would have totally believed him had he said it was a literal illness.

Let's get some fresh air, she said, motioning toward the top of the stairs where the pup was still whimpering. She was relieved to take in a breath of only semi-stale and hot air up above rather than the heinous smell down below.

Without warning, she moved over to a corner of the house and plopped into a sitting position on the ground, hands steepled together, thinking.

So we need to make the trip across the desert, but I think we should spend the night here first, she said. Maybe whatever we're looking for will come to us, she said.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair looked visibly relieved when Arla suggested getting some fresh air. He couldn’t get out of there fast enough and was actually shuffling up the stairs before she even got the sentence out fully, his tail disappearing around the corner. The tiefling was about to reach for the front door when Arla abruptly plopped down. He turned to stare at her, wondering if she was doing some sort of spooky ritual. What came out of her mouth was the worst thing he could have heard.

“Excuse me, what?” He practically yelped. He pointed animatedly towards the stairs, “In case you forgot, there’s a literal rotting corpse down there! How can you be here actin’ like this some five star Space BnB!!” Altair was about to continue his dramatic speech when Belleza walked over and promptly sat down right next to Arla, staring at him as if he were the biggest criminal on the planet. The tiefling uttered a series of noises that weren’t entirely coherent, complete with frantic pointing and plenty of hand gestures that conveyed nothing, "God damn traitor," He finally muttered at his puppy that looked entirely gleeful.

“Why would we want somethin’ to come lookin’ for us?!” He threw his arms up in defeat and walked over to plop down on a dusty old couch, “You’re just like that Ren chick I met in the woods ages ago…” He muttered under his breath, “Look like her too,” Altair grumbled as he reached for his pack and took out a granola bar.

“Can you sit closer to the door then?” Altair pointed, “If some walking disaster with bird feathers comes knockin’, I want you to answer first,” He glared at her as he went to take a bite, remembered he had face wrappings, and hastily began to undo them.

 

[Arla]

Arla hadn't expected this reaction, but in hindsight she probably should have.

She was thankful for the support from Bel and couldn't quite help a hint of the smile she was trying to suppress from pulling at her lips. She reached over and scratched the pup before settling on a compromise. Well, at least she saw it as a compromise. She wasn't sure that he would see it that way.

We can pick a different house. Doesn't have to be this one, she said, pushing herself up to her feet to pick a different house for them to set up in for the night.

Better to find out what we're up against not in its lair, she said, the mind of a hunter coming back now. The problem was that they didn't know what they were hunting.

You've met... she blurted out, before balking and catching herself. But the sentence was already half out. Now there wasn't much of an option but to turn it into something. "My mother" wasn't going to be the best thing to blurt as the remainder.

I'm surprised you've met the Queen, she said, clearing her throat as her face turned a slightly rosier shade.

Moving along, she thought to herself, trying to move to the next topic as they moved into the other house.

We just won't check the basement, she said, like that was going to make it better. In reality, it would make things so much worse... the uncertainty of not knowing.

She moved over and began scratching her own runes into the doorframes with her knife in the meantime.

These should at least give us forewarning if anything's coming, she said. Don't worry, Bel and I will protect the mighty Demon Prince, she said, suppressing a smile at her light teasing.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair scoffed at her words, “She got you fooled too, huh?” He quipped in between munching on granola, “Claimed to be the Empress when I saw her, now it’s the Queen I guess. Don’t get me wrong, she was smokin’ hot, but I wonder if a few screws were loose..” He mused aloud, staring off into the distance briefly before Arla mercifully suggested picking a different house.

They walked into the next one and this seemed slightly better. At least it didn’t have rotting food or corpses that he could see. Family pictures suggested there had been a mother, father and two daughters that lived here. Altair grimaced at the thought of what may have happened to them, but he couldn’t let his mind spiral.

The tiefling sat down on the new couch, propping his feet up on the table in front of him. He scowled at Arla’s remarks about protecting him, “Damn straight you will,” He stated right back, “I ain’t gonna act like I ain’t scared.”

The tiefling propped up a pillow and got comfortable, crossing his arms over his chest. He wasn’t exactly tired just yet, and if Arla stuck around he’d make conversation.

“How’d you get into the rune and spooky shit anyway?” Altair asked curiously, “They don’t teach it part of standard curriculum.”

 

[Arla]

Arla looked a little bit baffled by Altair's response about her mother and just stared at him blinking for a few moments. She was about to make a retort before becoming distracted once again by a combination of the dog and her own work.

As she finished with her carvings, she went back to take a seat across from him on the floor, reaching into her pack to dig some food out for herself. She pulled a small bag of veggie snacks.

I learned much as First of my Clan. Technically, I am a Nightsister shaman. What I didn't learn from my Sisters, my mother taught me, she said. She didn't expand on precisely who her mother was, and she pressed on with the conversation without pausing.

When I came to the Sith, I continued my studies and I'm still working on expanding them. The Sith have... a lot of history with this. Almost as much as the Nightsisters, she said.

But it seems like your average Sith lacks the dedication or interest in learning about it, she said. I guess most people are more interested in swinging a lightsaber, she said, eyes falling down to the weapon strapped to his hip.

But you don't use a lightsaber. And you're a Commander, not a Master, she said, eyebrow quirking ever-so-slightly just like her mother used to do.

Seems like there's a story there, she said, offering the bag across to him in case he wanted to share in her veggie snacks.

 

[Altair Din]

Altair grinned at her, “Tell me ‘bout it,” He agreed heartily, “Everyone just wants to do sabers and nothin’ else,” He pondered on how she was taught by her mother, “I was trained as a Matukai for as long as I can remember. My whole family practices it,” He explained, “It’s a martial art and we use the Force a different way. Our limbs are our weapons so we have no need for sabers,” Matukai almost always sounded elitist when they talked about their practice, but Altair didn’t intend it that way. He took some of her veggie snacks, offering one of his granola bars in exchange. Altair stared at the veggie snacks and snickered, "This looks like some of the stuff on the nutrition list on the Thorne routine," He grinned, "Can't pay me to eat this all the time."

“I don’t relate to most Sith honestly,” He shrugged, “Imperials sounded closer to my line of skills. I got sponsored into Ziost academy and never looked back since,” Altair gave her a smile, clearly carrying a lot of pride for how far he had come, “My family..they ain’t got a lotta money so this was a big deal,” Altair didn’t often talk so much about himself. It felt strange to discuss it now and lay out his story. But it was also refreshing to talk to someone that wasn’t completely traditionally Sith - Arla clearly had her own teachings.

“Since you’re a…shaman..” He found that word to be strange and archaic, but it also had an element of mystery, “Can you do stuff like healing?” His eyes widened at the thought. It was the one thing Sith couldn’t do.

 

[Arla]

She listened as he detaield what he had been through, and took particular interest in what he said about the Matukai. They were an order she had heard of in passing, but little more beyond that.

That sounds useful, she said, eyebrows rising ever-so-slightly in quite obvious interest. But she more than most new the sanctity of one's cultural teachings, and wasn't the type to immediately asked to be taught.

She smiled warmly as he talked about his family and acceptance into the Ziost academy. She supposed it made sense in a way that he had taken the path that he did, but she assumed not all Sith would be so understanding.

It sounds like you've carved out an unusual and impressive path for yourself, she complimented. That was more than could be said for many Sith.

When he asked her about healing she tilted her head back and forth. Yes, but not the way Jedi do, she said.

We have some rituals that can heal wounds, but it's easiest to do on Dathomir. Though small things can be done elsewhere, she said.

We have a very different relationship with the Shadow than the Sith do, she said. Most of her Sisters would never leave world to join the Sith, but she had had her eyes opened to something entirely different.

I imagine you do as well. As a Matukai, she said, more than a little curious about that as well.

 

[Altair Din]

“The Shadow? Like the Dark Side?” Altair asked curiously. All of this sounded genuinely fascinating to him. He had a hard time relating to other Sith that only knew the traditional route and strictly what was taught at the academy.

“Matukai generally don’t use the Dark Side of the Force,” Altair explained, “I struggle with it sometimes,” He admitted quietly, “It…changes me. I can feel it startin’ to fuck with how I look at things. Feels like I give up more control each time I use strictly Dark Side powers,” He stared off into the distance, “It’s part of why I went Imperial. I know I can’t escape it entirely - it’s too late for that. But I try to limit it if I can.”

“I been on Dathomir,” Altair said as he looked at her with a grin, “I thought it’d be this trip to scope out hot chicks everywhere. Instead I almost got crushed by a rancor and learned those ladies would rather mount my head on a wall,” He chuckled at that, “Which..” He pointed at his horns, “Would make an impressive display if I do say so myself.”

He reached for another one of those veggie snacks, finding himself growing partial to them, “I would love to visit there again for real without the threat of death loomin’ all the time,” Altair crunched on a carrot thoughtfully, “Maybe I can put on a wig and pretend to be a chick.”

 

[Arla]

Eeh, she replied to his inquiry about whether the Shadow was the Dark Side. The Shadow is the power behind the hunt. It's the power given to us by the Fanged Spirit. It's as natural as anything else as much as people try to label things as "Light and Dark," she said, knowing she wasn't explaining things very well.

She found it interesting the way that he looked at the Dark Side. I'm surprised that you ended up in the Sith as a Matukai, then, she said. The Shadow and the Dark Side sound much closer to each other than the Dark Side and your people, she pondered curiously.

When he mentioned that he'd been to Dathomir before, there was obvious and visible shock on her face: eyebrows up and mouth slightly open.

Really?! When? she asked. It must have been quite an unusual situation to say the least.

Yeah, I'm still planning to mount your head on my wall when this is all done, she said jokingly before realizing that it probably came off as extremely serial killer. Well... it was already out there now so she moved right along, popping another veggie snack and continuing the conversation.

Just throw on some tattoos and I'm sure you could pass, she said, motioning first to her own face and then to his. I'm surprised you want to go back after your first experience. Or for that matter at all. Most people who didn't grow up there don't like it. What draws you back? she asked.

 

[Altair Din]

A lot of what she said sounded not too different from the old Matukai teachings. He hadn’t heard much of that since his grandfather told them the old stories, “You know…I think one day I’ll visit Karvoss II,” Altair said after a moment, “It’s where Matukai was born. My grandpa used to tell me so many stories about it, but even my parents ain’t ever been.”

He simply laughed at her joke about mounting his head, “Only if my face doesn’t have a stupid expression,” Altair quipped back. He wasn’t too bothered by morbid jokes - after all he convinced his friend Cairo to preserve his own AMS infected hand. Altair grinned when she asked why he wanted to return.

“You mean other than for the feisty babes that can kick my ass?” He asked. The women there had a ferocity to them that he found alluring - that Ren woman had it too. Like a beast just barely chained and ready to spring. Altair had a slightly glazed look in his eyes before he quickly recovered, “Uh.. well I wanna learn more about the ways they use the Force. It doesn’t corrupt the same way. The downsides of Matukai is that I gotta get up real close to Jedi and others that can fuck me up from a distance,” He explained, “I think it’d be cool to learn some offensive shit without resorting to your standard lightning or choke that taints you,” He shrugged vaguely.

Altair finished up his snacks and plopped down on the couch, propping his feet up on the armrest, “You can take the bed if ya want,” He said as he tilted his head to look at her, “I was only jokin’ about you havin’ to man the front door,” Altair gave her a warm smile.