Ask Mass Incarceration

Vex

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Vex could feel it.

The further down below the planet's crust they got, the stronger the dark side was becoming. This was completely unlike that time on Rakata Prime. The dark side there felt muted somehow. Like she had just blown dust off an old shelf. But it was still strong here. Nearly as strong as she had felt it on Korriban. She didn't imagine the lift was taking them directly to their target, but they would be close. The path would be through the mines somewhere. But it also meant entering some parts of the prison that hadn't seen visitors in thousands of years. In other words, there was no telling what was down here.

The Acolyte was certainly curious about it. He had taken her suggestion well enough. Spoken up, even if she had refused to give him much information. She supposed she had to reward that. But she wasn't about to give away the whole puzzle. "This planet has been a prison world for a very long time," she replied. "The parts of it we're about to enter, if the old records are to be believed, are more ancient than the Jedi Order itself." The lift came to a halt at the bottom, and Vex removed the rickety fencing separating them from the mine. "I believe another Sith Lord used the old prison facilities as a hiding place for part of his legacy. But I can't risk wasting the Empress' time without confirming my suspicion."

It was enough. She left out the important bits. Mentions of Emperor Palpatine tended to evoke... visceral reactions in people, even other Sith. Mostly, her Sith fellows wanted scraps of his power. Some were willing to kill for it. She couldn't risk that. Not yet.

The path ahead was dark. She lit her lightsaber as a light source, holding it in front of her like a torch. "Search for anything hieroglyphic. Like Old Sith, but older. You won't recognize the dialect." She won't either. She couldn't read a lick of it on Lehon, but it wasn't important to read it. It was only important for detecting the direction they would take.

"In the meantime," she continued, waving her saber about the cave, examining the walls for markings as they walked. "Tell me, who taught you to be so damn persistent? Most Acolytes would have had a dozen blaster holes in their body after that ordeal in the warden's fortress." @Phoenix
 

Varyn Atrix

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Varyn leaned over the edge, gripping the railing and looking down below them. It was still a long drop down, and he listened as she explained what they were doing down here. Ancient Sith weapons and equipment? That seemed like something the Jedi might like to know about, though letting them know without making it obvious that he had let them know might be tricky. He filed it away for later.

Tchk, yeah, that's probably wise, he agreed, knowing that wasting the Empress's time wasn't advisable. He'd heard about Kashyyyk, it was a yikes.

They finally reached the bottom, and he held his own saber up as well to light his way. It was relatively dark down here with no workers and all the lights out. In fact, as he looked around, he realized that he saw no signs of recent activity down here at all. As if the prisoners hadn't been mining this area for some time. Perhaps it was all the more evidence that they were on the right track.

She asked him a question, and he wasn't super caught off guard by it. It was one of the questions he'd been forced to prepare because it was a common question. Most acolytes lacked his skill, and that wasn't an accident.

My master died at Denon. I was almost done with my training when I got shoved back into the academy system, he said, stirring up a begrudging tone as he said it.

I have no intention of dying as a nobody, and I like swordsmanship... a lot, he said. And that was completely true. He loved dueling and had even chosen to take on one of the most difficult forms - common to both Jedi and Sith, fortunately - though it took many years to master. He was making good progress.

I'm going to try to see if I can push out my graduation when I get back, he said. I'm sure the endorsement of a Champion who just took a whole planet wouldn't go amiss if I've shown my worth, he said, not at all subtly. He didn't directly linger on it, though because he had no idea how she would respond to it.

Do you think the Warden knew what was down here? he asked. Did he mention it, is that how you knew?
 

Vex

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Vex absorbed what the Acolyte said as she searched the chamber for any markings that would indicate a path. But she found nothing. One tunnel had completely collapsed, the other two were equally candidates for the right path. She grumbled at her bad luck, stopping only once the Acolyte had made his suggestion. "Well, it's not as if I did it entirely alone," she noted, hoping he could hear the barest smirk beneath her helmet. "Had you not been a magnet for just about every droid in that building, it would have been a much tougher mission."

"I suppose I could recommend you for graduation," she continued. She had never done it before, but she knew the process well enough. "You're efficient with a blade and hard to kill. Both are good enough qualities in a Champion. Of course, I would probably need to know your name first." The smirk widened, though she told herself she should just let it go. "Though, to me, you'll probably always be just 'Acolyte.' Until you're promoted, at least."

The two tunnels were annoying her. She had to choose one. But if she chose the wrong one, it could set them both back hours. Maybe days. She tried to visualize the Warden's memories, but the chamber she had seen in his mind was nothing like the bedrock of this cavern. And the Force wasn't telling her anything helpful, either. The dark side was so strong down here that it prevented her from picking up a particular trail.

"The warden was very much aware," she replied to his question. "Of course, he didn't give the answers to me willingly. I had to pry it from his mind with the Force. But interrogating someone that way is... complicated. The information comes in flashes and images out of context. Not all memories are reliable either. Over time, they become distorted." Finally, she put her hands on her hips and turned in his direction. "Any luck? I can't decide which of these two we should venture down." @Phoenix

Dice: 9/20 for finding the right path.
 

Varyn Atrix

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Varyn smiled widely as she said that she would give him her support. Making Champion was actually in his grasp. First person to rank up to both Champion and Knight at the same time? At least in recent times.

Varyn, he said. I just assumed you refused to use it this whole time, not that you didn't know it, he said, trying not to actually laugh. It was probably not unusual, acolytes were interchangeable.

I'd expect nothing less, he said, also giving the faintest impression he was joking.

He listened to her explanation of finding the information, and it reminded him he needed to protect his thoughts at all times. Dangers of the Force and people who could sense your intentions.

When she turned to ask him which way to go, he just kind of stared blankly from behind his helmet.

Uh... I didn't look in his mind. If you want me to blindly guess I can do that, but otherwise I don't think I'm going to be much help, he said, holding up his hands in a shrug. He was good at a lot of things, but... he knew his limitations.
 

Vex

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Vex scowled. "And here I was hoping your keen instinct for getting into trouble would lead us down the right tunnel." She motioned for him to follow. "Come on. We'll get nowhere standing around here."

The old mining shaft was surprisingly barren. The air was stale, even through the filters on her helmet, but she detected not a whiff of decay. That was a good sign. It meant there were no bodies down here they needed to worry about, prisoner or otherwise. As they pushed on, the rock in the cavern began to change. No hieroglyphs appeared, but she nearly kicked something over during one attempt to examine a cave wall.

She knelt to inspect it. It was a small, stone figurine in the image of a Rakata. She couldn't guess how old, but it was light enough for her to pick it up. She stood up, examining it in the red haze of her lightsaber. Then, she moved the light to expose more of the tunnel. "I think we're moving in the right direction," she noted. "Beyond this point, there's no telling what we'll encounter."

The last time she had invaded Rakata ruins, she had been jumped by no less than three dark side abominations and had needed to soak in bacta for days afterwards. With luck, these ruins would be much less traversed. But she knew they would have to fight eventually. If her suspicion was right, and it was one of Sidious' hidden vaults, the Old Emperor had a guardian who would protect it. And that guardian would likely be very strong.

"This can't be like before," she added, advancing slowly. "In here, we have to fight together. This Sith Lord was fond of challenges that involved Masters and apprentices." She briefly glanced back at Varyn. "You're not mine... but I fear his tests won't know the difference." @Phoenix

Dice: Rolled a 3 for low difficulty, found some clues as a result.
 

Varyn Atrix

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She picked a path without his "help" and he headed after her. The red glow of their lightsabers cast everything in a strange and shadowy light.

He saw her bend over to pick something up and he moved over closer to her and looked down at... a little statue? Okay, well that was a little weird. His head pulled back in a "da heck" motion that was promptly followed up by a corresponding comment.

The heck is that? he asked. He was not well versed in the Rakata or their history at all, and then he realized he probably should not have made that so blatantly obvious. Nice, Varyn. Killing it, he thought to himself.

Yeah, I'll keep my guard up, he said, quickly changing the subject to correspond with her warning.

He thought about what she said about tests to come and the fact that they were not actually master and apprentice. His eyes squinted slightly behind his helmet as he thought for a moment, putting together pieces.

Rule of Two? he asked, sharp enough to pick up that it narrowed down the Sith Lord to about a 1000 year period instead of a 7000 year period. And that 1000 years had far fewer Sith than the combined 6000 years before when there were Empires filled with Sith.

Technically it requires two Sith, not master/apprentice, right? he said. I'll hold up my end, he said, his voice suddenly demonstrating a cool confidence that reflected the skills he had demonstrated so far.

They continued onward to find a much larger cavern that suddenly flashed to light. Electricity shot between several pillars in the room as if some sort of generator was firing up, though what exactly it powered was still a mystery to them both.
 

Vex

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Vex increased her pace and put an arm out in front of him. "Wait, these generators—"

cC6Ymhv.jpg
Her sentence was cut off by the sound of two igniting lightsabers. Ahead, where the path was still darkened, a pair of dark-armored figures emerged, each carrying a single red lightsaber pike. But their armor... It was impossible. Dark Honor Guards had not been seen since Palpatine's reign. He had been dead well over a century, and he had reigned decades before even that. There was no way these Force-users were left over from his Empire. Which either meant the guardian of the vault had brought them down here and trained them, or...

She stopped thinking to focus. It was useless coming up with answers now. She would find them in the vault. "One for each of us," she said to Varyn. "You said you like dueling right? Sounds like you got yoru wish."

The Dark Honor Guards lunged, each thrusting a probing stab at their respective Sith. Nahri brought her lightsaber up defensively and caught hers' blade before it could reach her, but was astonished by the strength behind the thrust. Whoever was underneath that armor was strong. Not particularly strong in the Force, but certainly physically strong. She disengaged and began to back towards a widening in the cave, given Varyn some distance to work his lightsaber against his opponent. And once she was certain he had enough room, she lunged again... @Phoenix

Coin Flip: Heads, we encountered enemies (but they're weak per the earlier roll); Dice Roll: 4/20, couldn't sense them coming through the Force.
 

Varyn Atrix

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Varyn watched the two men in front of him, noting the way their red sabers ignited. He started to wonder if the generator had thawed the two out from some sort of cryo sleep so they could face down the pair of Sith.

He didn't know, and he didn't care. Killing Sith was what he'd signed up for and he brought his saber up in front of him. He stepped away from Vex as the man stepped toward him, saber pike slashing in one hand before it whipped around to strike at him with the blunt end.

He narrowly redirected the first strike and blocked the second one full on, noting that it very nearly still simply battered through his defense.

He stepped back, more alert now for the follow up strike to redirect. One of the tenets of Form X was efficiency and that included using your own opponent's skill against them.

The next several blows came and Varyn deflected them all in rather simple fashion, watching his opponent and the way he moved without attacking himself.

Several more defensive strikes, and then he moved like a flash. His own strikes swung out quickly, mimicking one of his defensive blows, he let his wrists break fully so that in contrast to the prior strikes which he met with full defensive force, his opponent would be thrown off by the sudden and relative lack of resistance.

The half step stutter forward was all Varyn needed to take on step forward himself and draw his saber across his opponent's belly cutting him squarely in two in a single strike.
 

Vex

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Vex was a maelstrom. Her lightsaber was a fan of blood and energy. The Dark Honor Guard who had chosen her was physically strong, but not particularly skilled. And when his companion died, he must have felt it, staggering backwards and giving her an opening to spin and jab the second end of her blade through his abdomen. He gave a stuttered breath and died, collapsing to the ground.

Vex recalled her blades, no longer needing them for light. "That was an impressive technique just now," she noted. She had seen some of his fight while she had dealt with hers. "I don't ever think I've seen a fighting style like that one before. Where did you learn it?"

She knelt down to examine the Dark Honor Guard she had just killed. He wasn't carrying much besides the lightsaber pike he had used against her. But tucked in a black pocket on his utility belt was... something of note. It was a small datacard. She reached into her own utility belt, drew out her phone, and stuck the datacard in. The map that came up was... partial, but it gave her a general direction. "Check yours," she called across the cavern to Varyn. "This one seems to have some sort of map fragment on him."

She turned towards the tunnel hers indicated. "We at least have a general direction, but—"

She didn't finish her thought aloud. It boded poorly that the guards to one of Palpatine's secret vaults had a map fragment leading to the vault itself on him. That had to mean the Old Dark Lord wanted to reward those capable of destroying his vault's defenders. He wanted them to find it. But Sidious was notoriously greedy with his secrets. If he was drawing them in, Vex had the strong suspicion his intention was to lead them into a trap. @Phoenix

Dice Roll: 12/20 for finding something useful on the Dark Honor Guard, with the higher the roll, the more useful the finding was.
 

Varyn Atrix

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She cut down her own soldier a moment later and then proceeded to search him while questioning Varyn. Apparently she'd seen enough of the fight to wonder about him again.

Form X. A combat variant of Form VI. I'm told it was created by the Supreme Leader Venator, he said, who of course went on to become Jedi Battlemaster Corvo Vis.

He was smirking beneath his helmet. I told you I like dueling, he said, kneeling down to rummage through the limited belongings of the black armored warrior. No map fragment and little of outstanding interest, to be honest.

Nevertheless, Varyn took a moment to heft the man's weapon in his hand, looking it up and down for a moment and debating taking it with him.

After a moment, he dug it slightly into the ground and decided that it would be his walking stick for the time being. A new weapon to practice with. Perhaps someday he'd be a Jedi Weaponmaster himself. One never knew... you could have dreams.

What is it? he asked as she trailed off. His eyes followed down the tunnel, but he didn't really... see anything useful. Nothing but more darkness. He lit the saber pike and let it be his walking stick and light all at once again.

I'm guessing it's that way from the ominous look you're giving it, he said. It was then that he spotted something odd, and pointed.

Those generator lines go further in. I don't know what they power, but I don't think they just woke up our friends here, he said.
 

Vex

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"They didn't," Vex said absentmindedly. She snapped from her daze, regarding him and noticing that he had chosen to carry his Dark Honor Guard's lightsaber pike. Beneath her helm, she hoisted a brow. "Funny thing to keep as a souvenir, but I won't judge you. I've never liked the pike variant—personally." She started to walk down the lit shaft. "Come. Before more of those dark ghouls decide to show up."

They walked for a good distance through the narrowly lit tunnel without finding anything. Vex was usually not the talkative sort, but this talk of Form X had piqued her interest greatly, and there was only so much she could stand of looking at cave walls in silence. "I'm somewhat fond of dueling myself," she admitted. "You will be a Champion soon. I don't suppose—" Now came the hard part. She never asked for help. Her own Master had electrocuted and choked her every time she asked. Find the answers yourself, he insisted. But Altair had taught her an important lesson back on Rakata Prime.

Even Sith needed allies. "I don't suppose you would be willing to... teach me? The rudimentaries, of course. I'm sure I could refine the craft on my own." There, at least that way she didn't sound too desperate. She was about to open her mouth and deflect more when the cave mouth opened up and they stood in a grand volcanic cavern.

FfjpCyq.jpg

On the other side of it was a massive stone temple carved into the bedrock and massive versions of the statuette she had picked up earlier in their trek. This is it, she thought. The vault is—

Her thought was silenced by the sound of bare footfalls on the stone steps far ahead. A single man, much taller than either of them was descending. Only, it wasn't a man. It was an alien. One who strongly resembled the statues. And the power flowing off of him. It was staggering. Unlike anything she had ever felt.

Welcome, his voice boomed in her head. She assumed Varyn was hearing this, as well. I congratulate you for coming this far. I've spent so very long down here, guarding this place. Since the last of your kind came here and freed me from my eons imprisoned. I shall repay my debt to him today, here and now, by killing you—then, I shall be free.

Vex's mind was reeling from the information being crammed into her skull. The revelation of a live Rakata. The fact that they were now facing the Guardian himself. The realization of both being swept away, when the Guardian raised his hands and rained down lightning... @Phoenix

Dice Roll: 16/20 for difficulty. This gonna be a hurd one...
 

Varyn Atrix

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She mentioned not liking the pike sabers and he looked up at it before shrugging.

Neither do I compared to a saber, but maybe knowing how to use one will save my life someday, he said. Some people would have called it foolish and a waste of time, but for him, it was just one more tool in a growing arsenal designed to keep him alive.

He headed on after her, and tried to pick up his jaw off the floor at the next thing she said. She wanted him to teach her something?! Was this a trick? Was it even a wise decision to do that? Was a Champion really asking an Acolyte... even a soon to be promoted one!? Of course, none of this crossed his lips. Instead he gave a far more modest and safer answer to the question.

I'm sure I could show you the basic principles at least, he said. What sounded like a humble answer was one part that but a larger part because the Form itself was highly... unusual. It required a great deal of practice and improvisation to use to its fullest potential.

As they were approached by a figure, Varyn probably would have been shocked by what he was seeing if he had any idea what he was seeing. Another one of those funny-looking people who apparently wanted to kill them. Oh how original... just like everyone you found in creepy underground caverns. Clearly, the significance was completely lost on the young Jedi.

Do I have to kill him? Is this going to be another one of those things that I... and that was as far into the thought as he got before the battle was decided for him.

Lightning rained down and he got to use his new pike for the first time... He brought it over his head, using the Force to flow through the weapon and send some of the lightning into the ground. Unfortunately, the weapon was not particularly attuned to him yet, and so the technique was not at its peak. Several tendrils bit at his armored torso, zapping through him while others licked across the armorweave kama and - thankfully - were largely dissipated.
 

Vex

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Vex grit her teeth and bore the lightning against her blade. But something wasn't right. The Guardian was powerful. With the kind of power she was feeling coming off of him, he should easily be able to shrug off their pathetic attempts to block his Force lightning. So, she focused and attuned her senses to him... entirely too late. He was chanting something, she realized. Something in a language she didn't understand. The more she listened, the more her head felt fuzzy.

Yes, my little friend. I shall be one of those things you've come to regret. Vex balked at the voice in her head. She didn't understand. Didn't know the Guardian was speaking to Varyn, not her. He was projecting himself easily into their minds now. But not because I will be one of your latest victims. But because you will be mine. I'll take my time with it. Perhaps I will destroy your minds before your physical bodies.

That was all the warning Vex got before they both had their minds [/i]slammed[/i] with the force of his will. Vex fought the urge to scream as what felt like a thousand serrated knives bored into her skull, penetrating her mind's defenses. And then she wasn't in the cavern with Varyn anymore. She wasn't even in her armor anymore. She was a little girl, aboard her family's star courier. She knew this moment. Panic clawed its way up her chest.

No! She fought to vocalize, to speak the protest aloud, but her words failed her. Still, she tried. No, no, don't show me this! I don't want to see it!

But the Guardian did. She heard the alarms blare. Realized it was the boarding alarms. The people who were coming to rob her of her mother, her father, her sister... They were coming again. She had come, embraced the Sith, the dark side, as a way of scrubbing this memory from her head. But it was still there, and she was still the panicked, powerless little girl who let it happen. She struggled, fought the memory, fought to control her mind again; but she couldn't.

Her attempts to push failed.

And if she was struggling, she could only imagine what Varyn was experiencing right now... @Phoenix

Dice Roll: 4/20 for our initial defenses/resistance against the Guardians attacks. So RIP.
 

Varyn Atrix

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Varyn was not prepared for what was coming next. The lightning was painful enough, but that voice it rang in his mind and stuck there like a cancer, expanding and invading into the depths of his mind. It looked to rifle through his thoughts and he knew he needed to kill it. If not for his own survival and for the fact that it was profoundly dark, then because it knew. It knew the truth about him and he couldn't allow that.

Lethal intent flowed through him and pressed down on his mind, and with that feeling there was almost a satisfaction from the alien being.

She didn't know what torment it was unleashing on Vex, but it seemed to be its own horror. For Varyn, the darkness began to claw at his mind and dragged him back in time to the night his mother died. The anger he had felt and buried many years ago. The feeling of helplessness that he had wanted to keep others from.

Combined with the emotions he felt, the emotions - the rage and anger and helplessness and desire to overcome those things - washed over him and he pushed back. He poured it into the mind assaulting his but felt like alone its effects were not enough. He was too split. His mind was too... divided. Temptation to become precisely what he sought to destroy.
 

Vex

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It was her little sister's memory that broke Vex.

Her mother and father had died with dignity. Her mother was particularly hard to fell. But little Nisreen screamed and begged to be freed. Vex fought the memory. Struggled not to see the moment the blasters were turned on her sister. But when deafening blaster fire turned her sister's screams into silence, Vex's vision went white. Unconsciously, she dove into the dark energies bubbling from the planet, searching for every bit of the dark side that could fill her up. And then she threw her own will against the Guardians.

It was like surfacing from the depths of the deepest swimming pool. The moment she burst back into reality, the Force flew out of her like a shockwave, tearing up the rock and shaking the cavern around her. The sheer force of it even staggered the Guardian, presenting her with an opportunity to rip free her lightsaber and activate it once again. "Varyn!" she yelled, sounding very much like a beast. "Varyn snap out of it! We have to beat him."

At that moment, the world seemed to spin around her and she became acutely aware that their survival hinged on him. On him beating this. She could not win this alone. Loathed as she was to admit it, she truly needed him. Her strength was fading. She had no idea how much damage his assault had her mind. But she had to try. Try to free Varyn. Only then could they strike the killing blow. So, instead of charge the Guardian with her lightsaber, she put it away and threw everything she had at him with the Force.

She slammed her meager will against his impressive mental defenses. She had no hope of breaking through, but hoped her assault would draw enough away to free Varyn from his grip. "You have to dig deep," she said through gritted teeth. "Our chains are broken! The Force has freed us! Now use it! Use your rage against him!" Because she didn't know what they were going to do if he didn't. @Phoenix

Dice Roll: 15/20 for breaking the Force mind invasion.
 

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Varyn barely heard her not because she was quiet, but because he was far away. He was somewhere else deep in his mind in the recesses of himself facing down things he'd left buried and wanted to forget. But they weren't an option to forget at this point. He looked for the peace of the Jedi, but it didn't seem to be there. No matter how much he knew it in his mind, so he did the only thing available to him.

He acted on what he believed. Even though he didn't feel like doing it and felt it was useless, he would die true to himself or he would fight back and survive.

All at once, the chaos of the alien's mental assault swelled and flowed around him like a rock in the river. He let his mind sharpen, his own energy slamming back into the being. Although far weaker, in conjunction with Vex and taking him off guard, the alien's assault staggered for just a moment.

GET HIM! he shouted, knowing the momentary stun they had placed on him would be the only opportunity they got. He poured all the remaining energy into the being before all but collapsing to the ground. It wasn't enough to knock this alien out, but it might buy her the few milliseconds she needed to kill it.
 

Vex

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Vex didn't have the option of running. There was too much of a gap. But she couldn't let the moment Varyn bought them run out either. She lit her saber and tossed it like a boomerang. There was a sound like a saw passing through wood and then the cavernous space fell deathly quiet as the Guardian fell into two pieces. Vex dropped to her knees gasping for breath. It was over. It was over and there were somehow alive.

But there was so much pain in her head.

The technique the Rakata had cast was no ordinary Force illusion. It had sunken its teeth into her mind. Rent something there that wasn't meant to be touched. But that was a problem for another day. She staggered back to her feet and looked for Varyn. "Please don't tell me you keeled over, Acolyte," she huffed. It was the closest thing to affection she could muster. For a Sith Acolyte, he was pretty damn good. She would have no choice but to recommend him for Champion after that display. "Take a look. We made it."

Before them lay the vault of Darth Sidious. Its secrets were theirs for the taking. She moved towards it, seeking the large stone doors that sealed them out. It was hard to draw on the Force in her exhausted state, but she did it anyways, flicking her wrist to unlock the internal Force-bound lock. The massive doors groaned and began to slide backwards. "Come on," she beckoned to him. "To the victor goes the spoils. I'm sure there's something in here you will find useful."

And then she took her first steps inside. @Phoenix
 

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Varyn could barely feel anything anymore. He was simply numb. His body hurt, but his mind and soul were just empty in a way that was not comforting. He just lay there breathing. Time seemed totally absent for a long moment until he heard Vex call out to him.

Ungh, he groaned, about all the energy he could muster just to indicate that he was, in fact, alive.

When she told him to take a look he kind of rolled over a bit with a groan to see the dead alien there. There was a slight sense of relief and he rolled a bit further to get his arms under him and start pushing himself up again.

He called the saber pike to his hand and used it like a walking stick as he moved over to the vault. He couldn't quite believe what he was seeing, and he quickly started realizing that the vault may well have belonged to the one and only most legendary Sith of all time.

For a moment, Varyn considered stabbing Vex in the back. Whatever was in here he didn't want falling into her hands or the Empire's, but two things stopped him. He still might be able to learn more with her recommendation to Champion, and he was exhausted. He didn't feel great about his odds in a fight, so he relented. He waited, and he mentally noted everything for his report to the Jedi.

This was Sidious's, wasn't it? he said, limping along to the treasures inside. A few artifacts that he had no idea what they did, armor, and even weapons. He was shocked, awed, and maybe a little bit worried.
 

Vex

Character
Sith Order
Rank
Sith Master

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Mockingjay
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"It was," she said simply.

He had figured it out. Of course he had. Varyn was smart for an Acolyte. Perhaps too smart. She also considered killing him then and there. As much as she was growing to like him, she didn't think this information getting out was good for the Empire. But once she told the Empress, she didn't think it would matter. Besides, the boy was strong. Damn strong. She doubted she could kill him in her weakened state, and she didn't want to test that hypothesis.

"Rumors say the old Emperor had dozens of these hidden across the galaxy," Vex went on. "I didn't believe it until now."

She glanced around. There was all sorts of equipment inside. Machines she didn't recognize. Crates and boxes. The secrets here could completely change the Empire. But then a red glint caught her eye. She stalked closer to it until she was sure what she was seeing was real. A pyramid, no larger than her palm rested atop one of the crates. She plucked it up. Let it rest in her hand, felt its power coursing through her.

A Sith holocron. But whose?

She snapped her attention back to Varyn. "As of now, we are the only two who know of this place. When I inform the Empress, that will be three." She kept her voice even, but included an edge of warning. She needed the Acolyte to understand her in this moment. "I don't need to tell you what that means, Varyn. Unless the Empress says otherwise, this must remain between us for now. I don't need to tell you what the Empress will do to you if you leak it to the wrong people."

What I will do to you. She felt bad for thinking it, but at least she didn't say it aloud. Instead, she pulled out her phone. Remarkably, it was working down here. Perhaps there was some sort of comm equipment down here that connected it to the surface. It was time to alert the Empress. It was time to finally have an audience.

"If you see anything you wish to take as spoils," Vex said. "Do it now. I doubt either one of us will be allowed down here anytime soon." @Phoenix
 

Varyn Atrix

Character
Empire
Rank
Lord Commander

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Phoenix
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Varyn looked around the room, and it almost overshadowed the threats. Almost. He knew that if and when he reported things to the Jedi he would need to do it with incredible caution, and... probably not yet. He had no doubt the woman he was working with would gladly run him through (well, maybe not gladly) if he leaked things to anyone.

Acolytes don't see, hear, or speak anything, he said. He had often said as much during his years as a Padawan as well. Having the backs of your superiors was what many people valued more than anything else. While he wasn't sure he could really say that for a Sith... it was about as close as it would get.

He looked around further, but... didn't actually take anything. It was probably foolish on his part, but so was grabbing totally unknown Dark Side artifacts. His time would come. The Sith's time would come.

//Thread
 
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