Pre-TL: It's Nothing

Orbit

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Ender walked with Talok as they navigated the valley and entered it's deformed and gaping mouth. He had his vibro-sword strapped to his back as he had given the lightsaber back to his acquaintance. A weapon such as that had to be earned and had to specifically call to him in order for him to know it was right for him. Ender personally couldn't wait until he had his hands on his, very willing to ditch the crude vibro-sword for something that could actually cut down anything the blade touched.

Eventually, the steep incline transformed to even and solid land, Ender's feet thanking him as he relentlessly pushed on Talok. They were on some desert planet that he never got to learn the name of but he could sense it just like anyone of their kind could. There was something dark that slithered beneath the surface of the planet. It was the possibility of a tomb or something maybe even more nefarious than that. Ender was never one to believe superstitious stories or whatnot but when his whole world had been flipped upside down in revealing the force, he would believe anything.

The rocks soon turned into towering walls that stood a couple of stories above them and nearly blocked the invasive sun rays. Ender glanced around slowly they continued walking forward, his eyes scanning between the rocks and other crevices where creatures could hide. "I can sense it. I don't know what it is but it's hidden and taunting us." At least that's what it felt like to him. Ever since meeting Talok, Ender had been working on his skills with the force and was now able to do basic applications of it and at least be able to sense the energy around him but he wasn't proficient at it yet.
 

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Talak had brought the pair to this world because rumor had it that an old dark side cult had its roots here. It wasn't easy to find, but the Dark Jedi had spent the last several years studying a variety of cults and traditions. This particular group was rumored to worship kyber crystals as the connection to the Force, which meant that any of their old structures was a prime place to go searching for kyber.

He knew that in order to continue his path down the dark side, Ender would need a weapon befitting of a dark sider. While there were plenty of sects that relied on technology or Force-enforced weaponry, Talak was of the opinion that a lightsaber was the most powerful tool of them all. It was an extension of the body in a way that a blaster or even a sword never could be.

An old cult, he said. Whatever darkness the group had conjured up was reacting immediately to their presence. Sweat was beading on his forehead long before they reached their destination. The sun of the day was beating down on them in such a way that when the pair reached a large, gaping doorway, it was almost a welcome change.

The Dark Jedi ran his fingers over the doorway and the sand-covered stones that had been chiseled away. A tug at the Force caused a shift in the wind, blowing away the sand to reveal carvings of faces and masks into the edges of the door. He didn't know what it meant, but he took it to be a warning against entry. Ender would be able to feel something crawling up his neck as if the mountain itself was warning him away.
 

Orbit

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An old cult, that was a first for Ender. Talak took him to interesting places, ones that helped him with his skills while also at the same time be able to stab him in the gut and leave Ender out to rot if he wasn't careful enough. He appreciated it. It made Talak's words carry weight when they could actually be applied when he's in a life-threatening situation. That made him more cautious of where they stepped but he still wanted cover from the dreaded sun that honed in on them. The rays burned into the back of young Ender's clothes and small streams of sweat dripped down his back. He swallowed his struggles however, Talak suffering the same as him and it wasn't needed to account what they both were already going through.

Eventually, they reached a massive door, the shadows inside inviting instead of frightening for Ender as it appeared a couple degrees cooler in there. But heeding Talak's warning, he followed behind the man as they walked up the stairs and approached the edge of the doorway. Talak blew away some sand from the stone to reveal faces etched in different emotions. It could have been trespassers that had attempted to steal kyber or maybe they were sacrifices just because it was a cult. Ender didn't really have a care for it, he had the force flowing between his fingertips and he wanted to use it to get his true weapon.

When he put another foot forward past the doorway that's when he felt a spider-like sensation up his spine. It started to spread from his spine but Ender quickly drew the force around him to shield it off. "We're at the right place. Something doesn't want us here." The vibro-sword was unsheathed and was about to find its final use inside the cave. "I'll lead the way." As they navigated down the hallway, kyber crystals poked out from the walls and ground, illuminating the cave handsomely. It was bright enough actually they were able to see various unique and dark symbols drawn over the ceiling and walls, next to kyber crystals or by themselves. It certainly took some time to do something like that.

Mining equipment began appearing as they continued, some of them still holding kyber crystals in their barrels as they were clearly left unattended. When Ender drew near to one of the machines he was able to find a body still in one of the operating seats. With the force, the body's head was lifted from the wheel and placed back against the seat. It was a normal human male but he was extremely pale and his eyes were completely milky as well. "Wha-" Before Ender could start his sentence, the body woke up and lunged at him. It was pretty awkward as its head was still against the seat because of Ender and it was just a quick action to stab his blade through the man's forehead. When it was confirmed dead, he yanked the blade out before hopping off the machine.

Ender started taking steps backward to Talak before glancing towards him, "You ever see anything like that?"
 

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Talak followed with careful steps through the tunnels of the building, feeling the darkness pulsing around them. This place reeked of a darkness that was foreign to the darksider, and it unsettled him. It wasn't of the Sith or any other group that had once been popular within the galaxy. It was something far more rare, and he wondered if it couldn't be a useful find for rituals in the future.

The thought was interrupted by the glistening lights passing through the ceiling and glistening off the kyber in the walls. He knew that in order to access the proper crystal, Ender would have to find the right crystal for himself. It was a mission that the apprentice probably should have taken on his own, but here Talak was anyway. They were probably jumping the gun by being here at all.

Talak reached around to his back and eased the lightsaber off of his belt smoothly as his unease grew. This place might as well have been screaming in his mind not to come any further, but the duo pushed on anyway.

The place smelled of deeper must with every step they took further in, but at least the underground was cooler than the blazing heat of the day. It was a welcome relief as the cool air drifted across his sweat-drenched face.

He threw a glance over his shoulder to see how far they'd come when the monster began to climb up. Out of instinct in the Force, he jumped back and snapped in his hand, but by then the creature was "dead." It's head had been impaled, and an unnatural mist seemed to seep out of its toughened, rotting flesh.

No, he said as his eyes flashed from one side of the room to the other, looking for more of the creatures. Satisfied that nothing was immediately attacking him, he bent down and lifted part of the body with the Force, lighting it in the red glow of his saber before letting it drop to the ground.

Some sorcery brought it back from the dead, he said. This was the power of these cultists, and he made note of it to be careful when crossing blades with the cultists in the future.

Keep an eye out. Do you sense your crystal? Focus, he said, as he moved deeper. The skin of his back was crawling, and everything inside him was telling him to turn back, but he didn't. This had better be worth it, he thought to himself. It was ultimately up to Ender to lead the way to the crystal that might call to him, though as a servant of the dark side, it was more likely that none would call to him. He would simply have to take one by force and bleed it out, subduing it to his will.
 
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