Ask Slay the Beast

[Wodan]

Quest #2 — Slay the Beast

Makem Te had been the home to grotesque Sith abominations for years. These creatures are not only a blight upon the planet, but the Galaxy itself. We must erase the darkness pouring from these creatures less they soak into and disrupt the ecosystem of Makem Te itself. Your quest is to find and eliminate any Sith Abominations you come into contact with on the planet. ​

The Imperial shuttle flew low across the trees, sunlight glistening off the dew-covered leaves, the pair of Imperial Knights quickly advancing upon their destination. Wodan stood near the entrance to the cockpit, his single eye looking through the viewport at the front scanning for their destination. His red armour reflected the dim light of the shuttle as he rocked from side to side as they banked towards the east.

The Lord Commander had chosen to forgo a helmet as usual, his scared face open to the world. Two sabres hung from his belt clinking against the surrounding armour plates. “We are approaching the designated drop site Sir.” Said the co-pilot looking back at Wodan as he spoke.

The man as well as his female pilot were both ex-Sith, the pair choosing to stay with the Empire after Altair’s declaration. At first they struggled in the new order, the prejudice of their previous role shunning them in society. As much as they found it hard to live in this new order, Wodan had found it equally hard to get any help from the Imperial military at large, even finding pilots to transport them had been difficult. Any help he did get was lacklustre at best and when it did arrive it was given with disdain and resentment. Having the two ex-Sith join the Knights as pilots had been the perfect answer for all involved.

Letting go off the hand rail which had steadied him, Wodan turned to head back into the main hold of the shuttle. “We will be arriving shortly.” He said, taking a seat opposite the Squire Cassir Caerleon. “Any last minute doubts?”

@The Good Doctor

 

[Cassir Caerleon]

Cassir Caerleon was eager to go on this quest, to slay some monsters that are blighting Makem Te with darkness. The squire was taught that 'abominations' as they are commonly called as were created by the Sith and their horrid sorcerery. Their sorcerery is as arcane as they are vile and rotten to the core. They can take on many forms as well. It will be a favor not just to Makem Te or the Empire to slay them, but a favor to the whole universe to right this wrong.

The squire is with the Lord-Commander of the Imperial Knights, when asked if he had any last minute doubts, Cassir would reply "None here. My blade is ready, sir" he would say and nod his head. The squire may not be as powerful as the Lord-Commander , but Cassir is still nonetheless keen on proving himself in the field. Cassir did see the scars and wounds on the Lord-Commander, it's clear he saw plenty of fighting. Cassir could learn alot from him, if he makes it out of here.

Looking out the viewport, he can see that they are touching down at their destination. Cassir had his lightsaber with him along with his normal gear. He would be ready...

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

Wodan gave the young squire a smile, although Wodan wasn’t much older than the young inductee to the Imperial Knight, Cassir had the young exuberance and energy of someone who hadn’t see much if any battle. Maybe after coming face to face with one of the creatures they were hunting today would sap some of that energy out of him.

The shuttle touched down, sending a light bump through the ship, a hiss sounding throughout as the hydraulics took the weight of the ship. “Shall we?” He said, standing and making for the rear boarding ramp. As the metal slid away, they were hit with the thick, moist stench of the jungle around them, making Wodan begin to sweat almost immediately as he stepped out onto the soft ground.

“ISB intelligence says that a collection of Cultists lived in a village south of here, that's our first stop.” Wodan said, pulling out his holo’s compass finding the direction before beginning his trip through the jungle.

@The Good Doctor

 

[Max Dram]

Max had spent most of the journey checking over his gear. The brief was pretty harrowing; locate and destroy abominations on the planet's surface. From what he had read, the things were among the worst creatures a soldier could take on and there was very little chance he would make it through this mission unscathed. His rifle and blaster were fully locked and loaded, he had a full complement of grenades and the generic blastsword he had sourced through an arms dealer was ready to go.

He had spent the rest of the journey eyeing his companions. The Lord Commander was pretty impressive, though he spent most of his time in the cockpit. Cassir Caerleon by contrast was interesting on several levels. The first Imperial Knight that Max had got a good look at, he seemed a pretty good advert. Prepared, dutiful, even a tad handsome, Max had to wonder if the Warmaster's Empire had found a way to keep the cream of the Sith crop.

As Max was stepping out of the shuttle, a priority one message chimed through the comm. It seemed the Lord Commander was in fact needed elsewhere.

"What do you reckon?" Max said to Cassir. "Think you and I can handle this on our own?". He certainly did, but he was intrigued whether the Knight had the confidence to match his style.

@The Good Doctor

 

[Cassir Caerleon]

"Yes indeed." The young Squire said back to the Imperial, smiling. "We shall slay the beasts." he said with confidence, although underneath the smile, he is a unsure. Abominations are not known to be nice, deadly infact, and apparently there are reported to be quite a bit in here. If they aren't careful, this could be very ugly. But still, the squire aims on cleansing the place of the foul beasts.

The shuttle would touch down on the ground, the ramp would then unload. Soon after, Cassir's boots would be on the forest grounds. They have made planetfall. The first thing Cassir would do upon doing so is grab his lightsaber hilt to his hand "We will need to be on guard at all times." he said.

Once they are both ready, Cassir would begin to set out forward, walking slowly, keeping his head on a swivel with lightsaber in a tight grip. There would be birds singing, the sounds of insects, then before too long the faint, but hearable sounds of foul roaring. And Cassir would stop, turning himself in the direction he heard that noise, but not getting a visual of anything, yet anywayt.

They are definitely in the right place, no doubt

@Alhon

 

[Max Dram]

Cassir certainly seemed sure of himself, which Max liked. There were so many anxious, underconfident soldiers in the ranks these days and it was reassuring to be partnered with a Knight who believed in himself. He looked and sounded the business, which was half the battle.

"On guard is my default" he smiled, following Cassir out the shuttle. Makem Te was a dry world and though there were a few blackened trees around the landing site, the landscape gradually gave way to rocky ridges and ravines. It was not long before they heard strange cries on the air, grunts and roars that echoed off the rock. It was hard to get a sense of where exactly they were coming from, but there was a foul smell that would certainly help lead them.

The Lieutenant gripped his unsheathed blastsword tightly. "If these things have a nest or lair, it sounds like its to the south" Max suggested, getting the impression the creatures had congregated together.

As if to disprove his theory, a single abomination suddenly lumbered out of a narrow passage ahead, heaving and wailing. It was a twisted mass of flesh and crude weaponry, with a massive maw of teeth and a serrated hook for a hand. The thing saw them immediately and charged towards them, starving.

Max pulled out his blaster pistol with his free hand, firing three shots at the thing's midriff as he ran backwards to create some distance.

@The Good Doctor

 

[Cassir Caerleon]

Max's logic was sound. The truth is, no one can really be too sure about the abominations, except for perhaps the fiend that that made them. "Aye" Cassir nodded at his suggestion was going to advance that way.

But it wasn't too long until they saw an abomination. Cassir gritted his teeth, ignited his lightsaber and brought it up in a defensive position. Looking at the thing, it was a mockery of life. Only the Sith could be so twisted and depraved to make these things.

The blaster shots by the Lieutenant found their mark, all three of them, leaving burn marks on the thing, the thing stopped momentarily as it was staggered by soon would continue it's charge after a pained and berserk roar. The shots inflicted damage no-doubt even if it didn't go down. Cassir would go forward, when the beast would reach out with it's hooked hand. Thinking quickly and on his feet, Cassir would pivot out of the beast's path, then swing his lightsaber to cleave the the abominations legs off at the knees.

Cassir would turn around and he would be shocked to see that the abomination is now crawling after hi, using it's hand and claw to move, still ravenous and blood thirsty as if losing it's legs was only an inconvience. Cassir quickly stepped back in order just in time to avoid that thing so much as touching him.

@Alhon

 

[Max Dram]

Max's shots hit the mark, but sadly seemed to do little but slow the creature. They had learned blasters were ineffectual at least, but unless they were quick they might not live to use the information.

Cassir was quick however. The Knight charged forward, his crimson lightsaber flashing into being. The Adumari in Max never failed to be impressed by the energy blades Force users wielded and Cassir looked every inch a Knight of legend stepping towards the beast. He was young, but clearly did not lack for courage, dodging a violent hooked swing from the creature to slash at its legs.

The Knight's blade cut clean through the abomination went down, writhing and clawing at the ground. In moments it began to haul itself after Cassir, clearly furious but possessed of a primal hunger.

Max leapt into action, closing on the thing and gripping the sharp blastsword in his hand. Planting a booted foot on one of it's severed stumps, he reversed his hold and brought the tip of his blade down hard on the creature's head. The point dug deep and he pulled the trigger, blasting the abomination's skull apart and twisting his face away from the explosion of flesh and bone.

Distantly, the roars of a dozen or more of its brethren filled the sky. They were coming.

"Any ideas on how we take down a group?" Max asked, prizing the blastsword free with difficulty "I don't fancy our chances taking on several at once".

@The Good Doctor

 

[Cassir Caerleon]

Cassir turned off his lightsaber watched as Max plundged his blade into the creature's head and then the head exploded. "What kind of sword is that?" he asked and muttered. The squire hasn't seen a sword that makes things explodes on contact, which is what appeared to have happened. That can't be standard Imperial issue.

The young Knight Squire would ponder the other's question. One of them took quite a lot of effort to kill, so encountering multiples of them would be problematic. "Lets see... Blasters don't seem to be that great. Cutting it in half at the waist only slowed it down... But your sword strike to the head killed it. So head strikes with blade and saber. They appear to be completely feral and don't have any instinct other than attacking. If they have groups, maybe we could weave and move around the trees to limit the numbers attacking us at a time and gain distance as ndeed." If there happens to be a horde of them, then if they use the environment to their advantage so they don't get encircled and overwhelmed at once

"Alright then, lets move on." he said, he would move forward, past the dead creature. They are getting closer, but now only two of the creatures got into view.

"I'll aggro them" he would move forward and then "Come and get me!" he yelled at the abominations, and then they would roar and then charge after him. He would pivot around to where the abominations are in a straight line and allowing Max to attack from behind. Now igniting his lightsaber again, he would ready himself. As soon the front-most started swinging it's elongated claws, he would step to the side to dodge and at the same time swinging his yellow blade to strike the creature into the head, driving it's plasma beam inside to end it.

Now that just leaves the last one, and Cassir would start backpedaling, retreating in a defensive stance. Now Max can attack it from behind or the side to catch the horror offguard.

@Alhon