Ask Strange times on Sinister stations

[Count Nergal]

His fingers ran over the datapad in his hands as he finished the idea he had for his final lightsaber. While the one he had on his hip now was much akin to most he felt it in his bones. It wasn't what called to him, it was strange to him. How the force knew him better than he knew himself at time and whispered it's advices, admonishments and other little things to him but he'd become rather adept at filtering out the useless from the useful. "From Wisdom flows control, from control, strength, from strength, victory." He said to himself as his own mantra of cold rage that he'd deferred from the many texts he'd gotten his hands on in the academy. His hope at least to stave off any mental corruption that the dark side might decide to throw his way down the road. Though it did leave his emotions a little distant at times he still felt them he just didn't want them to interfere with his mind, hence he tried to make the path of cold rage to keep more discipline over himself.

Sith were all about control and their passions after all and he wanted to be in control of himself while he sought out his passion for knowledge. Be it esoteric or otherwise. His time at the academy had shown him that despite the same starting point each sith ended up different in either minute or major ways from one another, usually those more driven and ambitious thrived along the clever and cunning. To often had he been presented with the truth of the strong eating the weak at the academy. Only he was tired of the needless brutality and wanton wish for death and destruction, it didn't serve much of a purpose for an empire. It needed the strength the sith brought to the table certainly but frankly the most violent of the bunch should just be thrown at their enemies and held far, far away from any managerial position of the empire.
He got a headache just thinking of the stuff the Empress must have to deal with and he frankly didn't envy her one bit her position. His attention brought from the datapad and his ruminations when the shuttles pilot let him know they'd arrived and he could disembark. So he did wondering what type of man he'd been given an assignment to aid for one of the mission the academy sometimes threw at its students.

He had felt the man even before he'd stepped off the ramp of the shuttle he'd arrived at the passenger corvette on. A controlled and disciplined maelstrom of force energy close to some of the sorcerers he'd seen at the academy. The order had been a little strange and he'd only been told it might involve ancient artefacts of the sith or some other force using group. As he stood before Lord Xann as he'd been told to, he realized he was almost a full head taller. "Lord Xann?" He asked in his deep baritone voice as he gave a respectfully slight bow. "I am acolyte Nergal here as you've requested."

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

The docking bay of the corvette Recalcitrant that Ervius booked for the journey, greeted the acolyte with uncharacteristic silence which likely owed its origin to the presence of a sith champion. The crew, wary of the reputation of the Sith, wisely avoided the man

“I am not a lord, and there’s no need for formalities,” Ervius replied, looking at the blank mask. “Ervius is enough for me. Let’s go, there is information I wish to share before we reach our destination.”

For his part, Ervius observed the acolyte he requested for this mission. The truth was, as much as the champion wanted to handle this mission alone, he knew when to hold his ego in check, and the case he took on had many warning sights plastered all over it. Ervius realized that he would probably require some help, but inviting another champion could have unforeseen repercussions. Therefore, an acolyte was really the perfect choice.

“Your instructors praised your thirst for knowledge and your discipline,” Ervius continued in the way of greeting, as the two left the hangar of the Recalcitrant and headed to the space that passed for a lobby on this corvette. “That’s why I asked for you, specifically. I hear you have quite the fascination with philosophy…”

The Sith picked this more straightforward approach to his companion out of practicality. They had little time to get acquainted, and Ervius wanted to lose none of it on verbose nonsense.

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

"Then by all means call me Nergal." Nergal replied when Ervius wished to skip formalities which made the acolyte warm up to the man. The stuffy noble like lords and ladies of the sith sometimes made it seem like it was etiquette among psychopaths so meeting a reasonable one among them was a breath of fresh air.

He followed barely a step behind Ervius when prompted and listened to the champion as they walked. "If we don't learn from history or our predecessors we are doomed to repeat their mistakes after all." He said calmly though with a hint of joviality to his voice when Ervius had trailed off a bit. Nergal saw the man as a fellow scholar of a sort, at least he gave off that vibe. Something the crew didn't seem to see as they gave both men a wide berth as they made their way through the ships interior.

"Ervius... What exactly are we doing?" Nergal asked a bit when the bare minimum of social graces had been over and done with. He figured Ervius wanted to get to work and quite frankly Nergal was eager to get started. Who had time for the tiring social dances of civilization when there was interesting knowledge or artifacts to study or find. At least that was what he hoped the trip was for, he wanted more and more to know what he'd been chosen for so specifically.

In the back of his mind though his more paranoid and careful part was raising questions at the reason for why he'd been chosen so specifically out of the others at the academy. The academy had at least done it's part in instilling a bit of healthy weariness and paranoia towards his fellow sith.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

Ervius nodded in assent to his companion’s observation of the necessity of knowledge. Too many Sith, in his opinion, remained preoccupied with blind pursuit of power their entire lives. This acolyte seemed to share the same principles Ervius did, at least in form. As for the nature of those principles… Well, time would tell.

One would be hard pressed to call a sparsely furnished room a lobby under normal circumstances, but corvettes, especially the military ones, had their own definition of comfort. Besides that, Ervius had never been too picky about his work environment, and a couple of sofas around a holotable served him well enough. Bare walls only served to emphasize the function of the room.

“Have a seat. I won’t lie to you, Nergal, this may be just a case of mass-psychosis, or distress really. Stations on the edge of star systems are a confined space, and it may have negative effects on one’s psyche, as you know,” Ervius started the briefing. He touched the holoprojector with the Force, and a hologram appeared above the central table. It featured an image of a space station. “Kedrall station serves as a depot for the smaller mining stations around the asteroid belt. A population of several thousand people makes it akin to a small city in the wilderness.”

Ervius paused.

“As I said, we may end up investigating a psychological condition, but I can feel slight tremors in the Force every time I think about this station,” he elaborated. “You have a disciplined mind, and it will serve you much better than a blade in this instance. We will need to watch each other for signs of unusual behavior, as challenging as this task will be.”

The champion finished and levitated a glass of water from the adjacent kitchen. He had been talking a lot just now, far more than he was used to.

“Any questions?”

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

He chose to remain standing on the other side of where Ervius stood over the holotable. He listened carefully to the champion's words while making sure to absorb them. "I do have three questions. What if this isn't just a case of mass-psychosis what might it be? and will there be any back up or ways of extraction available to us in case things go south?" Even if nothing happened it was good to have at least some back up plans in place.
"Lastly are we to investigate this phenomenon, those suffering from it or it's cause?" He wanted to be fully sure on what they were doing in this supposed station out in the middle of nowhere, galactically speaking that was. Though he did look closely at anything the holotable showed.

Taking out a small datapad which he began to take a few notes on to make sure he could always refresh his memory just in case. Though he had to wonder what might have drawn Ervius to this station in particular. The force didn't just let out tremors to those sensitive to it for no reason. It might be an area with a wound or anomaly in the force so that might cause the tremors but the station supposed situation threw a wrench into any explanation he could come up with on his own.
It was a little frustrating but it also piqued his interest so he had every intention to learn what he could. Either from this or Ervius himself during this mission.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

Ervius noted the acolyte’s attention with well-hidden surprise. He had never really been in a situation like this by virtue of avoiding collaboration with other Sith. Still, this was not the time to get mellow, and thus whatever emotions it roused, Ervius forced them back with well-practiced ease. He did enjoy the relevant questions however.

“If this is more than a psychological condition, then we will find the reason for the aberrant behavior, be it a sith artifact or a virus of some kind. Of course, we will have to conduct a thorough investigation,” Ervius shrugged. He was fairly confident the acolyte could read between the lines. “As for extraction, the spaceport and its contents, which include several spaceships, are rather coincidentally intact.”

He took a sip of water and sighed.

“As far as the Force reveals, I can’t see much where this station is concerned,” Ervius added, once again, not really telling much. It cost him a bit of effort to keep the reports buried under a lot of irrelevant paper to avoid attracting the attention of the ISB, and especially their inquisitor branch. There was little chance of any of the officers on the Recalcitrant reporting this conversation to their superiors, but discretion had always been the better part of valor. And it certainly was not his paranoia speaking.

In any case, Ervius hoped that Nergal would understand him all the same.

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

He nodded at the reply. "I see." He said while finishing his notes on the datapad and placing it back into one of the pouches on his belt were he held the barebones of tools and equipment he needed most of the time. He leaned in and noted the construction of the station and peered at it's foundational structure as much as the hologram could show. "When will we be..." He paused feeling the ship come out of hyperspace and the immediate sensation of being off. Nothing about anything of his environment but he himself felt off a lessening of his senses somehow but at the same time barely noticeable.

"I think we've arrived." He said as he raised his head to give the impression he was looking at Ervius. A shiver ran down his spine figuring there might be some anomaly or slightly changed flow of the force in the area that had caused it. He had half a mind of revealing how he felt but given that he felt Ervius had a stronger connection to the force built up over himself he figured Ervius already knew. To his sight it was only noticeable with a very faint fuzziness like static on a screen every so often appearing at the edges. With a last clear check over his arms, armoured robes and equipment to be certain he stood fully up and nodded to Ervius. "After you. Hopefully this is just a case of distress in the population as you suspect."
His voice one of respectful acknowledgement of Ervius's greater experience though he was rather curious about the place as well. A part of him hoping the trip might help him get past a few of the blockages he'd encountered in his own training so far.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

Indeed, the feeling of sudden discomfort that passed over him could not be anything but the query that led Ervius and Nergal to this remote backwater. It felt alarmingly like approaching a tomb. Of course, no sith would ever allow themselves to be buried on a space station of all places. After years of studying their works and, more frequently, their barely coherent ramblings, Ervius got the distinct impression that the sith of old liked being entombed on planets and viewed anything else as an insult to their pride. At any rate, there were other ways of emulating the same effect, and they required no spirits.

"At this point, even mass psychosis must be quite vicious to produce this effect," Ervius replied. He saw the acolyte's curiosity and could not deny himself sharing in it.

"I considered going here incognito at first, you know, but with how small the station is, we are likely to stand out either way," the champion said, glancing at Nergal’s blank mask. "Brace your mind, anything that can affect our connection to the Force will target our thoughts and emotions first".

That was the favored strategy of most weird anomalies, in Ervius’s modest experience. That was the main reason for bringing the most disciplined acolyte, not the most physically powerful one. Perhaps, he would even have to share some of his knowledge with Nergal, but they would address that matter later.

In the meantime, the corvette docked. The frame rocked gently, as the engines aligned their momentum with that of the station, until all the movements subsided. An officer with a captain's insignia entered the lobby.

"My lords, we have docked with Kedrall space station. The arm is in place. If it pleases you, you may disembark at your convenience," the man reported. Curiously enough, the man’s voice lacked any groveling quality. In fact, it felt like the officer simply recited an etiquette formula which he probably did.

"Thank you, captain, we will proceed to Kedrall momentarily," Ervius nodded.

The hangar where the two sith entered was bare. Extremely so. It looked as though the Recalcitrant was the first ship to dock or land here in a month — at least. However, for all this place lacked the usual hustle and bustle of a local trade hub, it had a very peculiar lived-in feeling. Ervius could sense something at the edge of his mind’s defenses. If only his Force senses were clearer. When his gaze fell on the workers, the champion raised an eyebrow.

"Nergal, I am not used to asking this question… But are you seeing the same as I?" he asked.

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

Nergal nodded to Ervius's reply and he grew a little worried. How vicious did mass psychosis have to be to produce an effect in the force? He breathed in and out as he tried to wrap the force around his mind, erecting any defence he could just in case using the moments they didn't speak to one another to hurriedly erect his mental barriers. The officer seemed like one of those no-nonsense types that he'd read far too many reports about that either survived or died meeting some of the more prideful sith that wanted everyone to grovel before them. It was those with that attitude that sickened him the most among his sith peers.

His first step out into the hangar was almost like a misstep, something was... no, it had only been something of his imagination while the fuzzy feeling continued. His vision still clear but almost now as if filtered through light static that messed with the more precise parts of his force senses. A realization that he was forced to keep to places were the force was stable at least to be able to utilize his senses properly.
His distraction with this phenomenon was only broken when he'd heard Ervius speak and turned his sight to where he was referring to. He had to shake his head as if clearing cobwebs and look again to be perfectly sure. "I'm not sure as I'm physically blind but those men are almost as efficient as droids aren't they?" He asked back turning his head towards Ervius as if for confirmation.

The men were efficient and looked almost tireless as they moved some cargo too and from. The ease of which they moved from place to place speaking of years if not decades of efficient training and work among them though a few were young men. Even some of the hangar crews he'd seen in sith space could learn a thing or two from the small crew working in the adjacent hangar they could see into. "What are you seeing?" He then finally asked.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

“Yes, the precision and their tirelessness is rather strange,” Ervius agreed with his companion. “And these crates they are unloading probably all look the same in the Force, but in this instance, they are the same. Someone is moving them back and forth… It’s like a performance.”

There was one other detail that Ervius had just noticed. The dock workers did not speak. At all. Possession? A possibility. But he also knew he had read about a similar condition before, one that involved some alien species. He would have to refresh his memory later.

“I forgot about your Miralan heritage,” Ervius said in the way of apology. “When your sight clears, you will also note that the security appears rather unusually fixated on us, and their eyes are a little too blank. At any rate, let’s go find a place to stay.”

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

"It is Miralukan actually and you have nothing to apologize for." Nergal replied with a slightly jovial tone showing he wasn't offended in the least. Who could remember the millions of names for the various sentient species of the galaxy anyway. Well perhaps those that did nothing but try to remember them could but Nergal was of the opinion that Ervius like himself had better things to do than just ramble on the names of every species in the galaxy.
"Though this is strange, a performance... yes I see it now." He said as he walked along with Ervius, liking the fact he didn't have to actually turn his head for his eyes to see anything. "The force here is... I wouldn't say turbulent but it's like slight static on a screen to me. Did you uncover any documentation about a wound or anomaly in the force being in this area of space that could explain this?" He then continued, making sure his attention was divided between Ervius, the workers and security.

Again he shook his head, feeling a bit like the metaphorical cobwebs were continuing to pop up in his mind. It wasn't at the level of making it hard to think but more akin to a slight distracting annoyance at worst. What he did note was a strange symmetry to the subtle emanations of emotions that bled into the force from all sentients, though it was most prominent among those trained in the force with those simply connected to it only a step above the rest. It was like they were speaking mind to mind or thinking the same thing which was just bizarre.
"I'm beginning to suspect we aren't dealing with simple distress or psychosis judging from what you described and I can see. Last I saw such... hmm." He started to speak but soon had one hand on his chin in thought, wracking his brain to find the right words for it. "I want to say symmetry of being but it feels wrong somehow but it is also the most apt description of what I can see of the workers and security. I've only seen it in twins or the like that have that strange bond that some twins seem to have. Have you ever heard of some phenomenon like that?"

He felt the feeling of slight pressure like when one's ears about to pop due to air pressure on his mind slightly increase as they came into the station proper. Was psychosis infectious? He hadn't read much about such things so he wasn't entirely sure but he did make sure that his mask had its air filters on in case it was something in the air. He felt watched even when they were walking down the unmanned corridor leading from the hangar to the station proper. The press of life all around him only increasing in his senses when they reached closer to the more populous areas of the station.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

‘Miralukan’ huh? Ervius made a note to update his dictionaries. Not that the issue was too important, he simply disliked having outdated knowledge when the truth was so readily available. In either case, the Sith simply nodded to the acolyte, signifying his acknowledgment.

This station, on the other hand, seemed to thrive on obfuscation. Ervius could glimpse all of nothing through the Force, as it bubbled and rippled like a disturbed surface of a whirlpool. He regarded Nergal.

“No, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like this, at least personally,” the champion shook his head. “My late master, on the other hand, went on numerous expeditions all over the galaxy in his time. I will need to consult his notes I suppose. How are you holding up? This place has a certain… quality to it that makes it hard to ignore.”

Truth be told, the air here felt — oily, elusive, distasteful. Many epithets came to mind, and none of them quite fit the sensation the champion had been experiencing. Perhaps the atmosphere on board was simply stale due to infrequent venting of the air or maybe lack of maintenance for air recycling equipment. Nevertheless, Ervius found himself reminiscing about going to the tombs with his late master. The Sith brought himself out of the reprieve with a shake of his head.

“As for your prior question… The first reports of aberrant behavior came in only a week ago,” Ervius said, as the two walked out of the hangar and into one of the larger corridors which passed for a street here. “Not nearly enough time for an anomaly to develop, that could cause this level of strangeness.”

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

"A hyperspace anomaly then perhaps... no, I didn't get the over all location of this station galactically speaking but this station feels likes its almost in the middle of nowhere." Nergal responded first to the latter statement from Ervius, his more curious and analytical mind racing for an answer before the first question registered.
"I don't really know how to describe it, there is a pressure here somehow. Like being underwater yet not at the same time. As for my sight... If I were to describe it I see as if my head is an orb releasing a sphere of 'water' in about a 100 to 200 meter radius. I can't see through walls but I feel life in that radius but through obstacles that 'water' might not be able to pass through they are faint. I'm more just aware something's alive than any real location of it through obstacles.
Anything in this radius that's unobstructed however I can usually see just like you might with your own eyes but I sometimes can get a better clarity of an area or object at times. Of course the obvious drawback is I am wholly blind to the universe around me outside this radius though powerful force sensitives and signatures sometimes appear like flickering candle flames in the distance. Here however there is this faint smudgy static overlaid over everything... I must admit it is a bit unsettling." He then spoke, realizing that feeling and analysing what he saw would only help them both.

Despite the whole situation of the sith's usual strong eat the weak mentality this time he felt he could show what others might consider weakness. He was here as an acolyte, not a champion. Him professing his unease over how his usual view of the world had become might help both of them find the root cause of it or at least perhaps gain and understanding of it. Ervius after all was much more experienced than him in these matters if his first sense of the man was any indication.
Again he felt cobwebs begin to creep along the furthest recesses of his mind and once more he breathed in the force to funnel it there and clear them away as he was one to do. The force had always been a helpful advisor and subject to Nergal, not the usual master servant of the sith but ultimately the sith were about control and he was in control of the force. It didn't mean he wouldn't listen to its advise and take it under advisement if it so did. It hadn't failed him yet.

As they entered the central halls of the station proper he noted a few of the inhabitants on edge, snappy almost. Others staring off into space or trying to look everywhere at once. "This doesn't seem a simple case at all." He muttered almost to himself at seeing the people around them. Some had that symmetry of flow as he'd noted before while others appeared blissful or self assured which made the variety of contrasts of symmetry and usual chaotic flows he was used to from sentients.
He didn't reach out with his hand, keeping them clasped behind his back as he walked but with a tendril of the force to feel at the lightsaber on his hilt for only the simple reassurance it brought. He didn't want to use it but having it was still brought a sense of self reliance in his ability to defend himself.

The more they travelled along the main halls and strangely sectioned streets of the station proper the more he felt being watched at times. The people of the station either had the same efficient manner of movement they'd seen in the hangar or the more usual natural movements of sentients he was used to, only the more efficient ones were a worrying majority. Then again the more usual sentients also had a few slightly more jittery than usual among them. Perhaps this was something in the air as he'd suspected but he didn't have time to ponder further as they arrived at the hotel that Ervius had booked for them.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

The hotel was more of a glorified inn that offered moderately clean rooms and allegedly edible food. In other words, nothing special for a station on the very edge of imperial space and, coincidentally, the edge of the known regions. The entrance hall doubled as a cantina of sorts, albeit a deserted one. The entire set up had an almost charming rustic quality. Well, it would have, if not for the faint traces of not-quite-present miasma he could feel in the air. Still, Ervius spotted some guests minding their own business… and they followed the same repetitive pattern. The Sith had to wonder who organized this little show and for whose benefit they did it.

Perhaps he should have asked the ISB and their inquisitors for advice. Then again, foregoing their reclusiveness and protectiveness of their secrets, one could never be sure who questioned whom when they spoke to one of the Empire’s elite enforcers. In either case, the time for second-guessing had passed.

“We have a room booked,” Ervius told the being behind the counter, a green-skinned nautolan, in the way of greeting.

“Who the kriff are you?” the alien replied, the gaze of its beady eyes boring into Ervius and Nergal simultaneously.

Ervius simply took out a datapad from one of his pockets and sent a stream of data to the other being. It received them with a frown.

“Outsiders…” the nautolan muttered. “Fine, your room is ready. Corridor besh, room number two.”

“Good,” Ervius nodded. The nautolan clearly had no patience for pleasantries. Well, neither did the Sith, truth be told.

He led Nergal to ‘their’ corridor when a peculiar site caught his attention. One of the ‘patrons’ accidentally — or perhaps not — knocked a glass of some luminescent blue liquid off the table. It would have fallen on the floor and spilled its contents, but another patron, who was just passing by, intervened. The human caught the cup and all of its liquid without any noticeable effort.

Ervius did not pause in his step. He also did not tell Nergal anything. The Sith trusted that his companion had already seen the entire event. They would discuss it later. Even if Ervius did not show or say it, he appreciated the acolyte’s honesty, it provided an insight into the situation that Ervius would have never gotten, had he come here alone.

The acolyte’s honesty also spoke volume’s of the man’s common sense. Few Sith would assume that they were being brought along to be anything other than a sacrifice. Ervius had no such intention, of course, and perhaps Nergal had understood that during their prior interactions… Quite the perceptive fellow.

Getting back on track, could it be that someone went around giving random people Force powers that screwed up the unprepared minds? Where would one even procure such a relic?

As they reached the room, Ervius ushered his companion inside and locked the door.

“Well, what do you think of the little spectacle we’ve just witnessed?” he asked Nergal.

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

He'd almost been on auto pilot when they moved through the hotel, his focus much more on the area around him rather than where he was going. Both the dropper and the catcher had been of that strange symmetry wavelength but the more he observed it the more he noticed the slight and tiny almost imperceptible differences to each unless he was really looking for it. It did show some individuality to each person but there was still that symmetry of the whole that unnerved him about it. When he was finally ushered into the room and asked he took a few moments to fully think his answer.

"Both had that strange symmetry to their being but the one that dropped the glass had a slight flare of alarm, I think, to his being while the other shared it to a slightly lesser degree but reacted all the same. What could possibly cause such a phenomenon? I highly doubt this is just some psychosis and if it is, it certainly isn't normal by any stretch of the imagination. Almost two thirds of the station are like this at least of those we passed in my range on the way here." He answered, once more shaking his head to attempt to clear the returning cobwebs in the recesses of his mind.

'Force users?' He felt he could barely snatch at when he sent his attention to the retreating cobwebs at the back of his mind. Slowly breathing in once more to flood, clear and refortify his mind with the soothing coolness of the force. The dark side did have that seductive coolness to it. A cool breeze that feels just right on a hot summer day.
Again he shook his head and then a memory or rather an observation he'd made subconsciously but hadn't registered properly surfaced. "The locals did seem to be speaking about something. I didn't catch it properly but the and I'm not going to say normal part of the population as I have a rather strong feeling none of this is normal, did seem to be rather oblivious to it themselves at times. Something I think about a master or key but then again it could also be as the other said mustard and kale." Nergal let the observation be vocalized as he shook his head showing his bafflement at the aberrant behaviour of the locals.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

“A symmetry, you say. Every action has a consequence…” Ervius trailed off. He considered everything they had seen. “Whoever or whatever is behind this performance surely must realize that no spectator would be fooled for long. Yet, they still bother with the pretense of normalcy. Why?”

A thought — or rather a memory — struck him suddenly. Ervius took out his datapad and quickly typed the keyword.

“What you’ve described feels like a Dark Side nexus,” he informed Nergal. “My master has studied an ancient Sith Lord, Darth- Irrelevant details, what we need to know is that the Sith Lord in question travelled to Ziost where he exposed a cohort of soldiers to a Force nexus. The results were remarkably similar to what we have present here. Still, that was Ziost. It had centuries to develop its power. This station is literally in the middle of nowhere and only two decades old, no ancient Sith has ever so much as stepped foot here.”

Ervius frowned. He glanced around the small dimly lit room with two beds, a table, and bare walls for decoration.

“I suppose we should retire for the night,” he sighed. “Perhaps, tomorrow we will be able to see the clues we may have missed today.”

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

"Yes... hopefully." Nergal muttered as he retired to his bed, preferring to sleep in his robes just in case of any funny business on the locals part. Though it took a while for him to fall asleep with his vague awareness of the locals life signatures in the force and his own thoughts occupying his mind. Neither did it lead to anything resembling a restful slumber.
His fitful sleep only broken the morning after, vague memory of a fever dream involving running for his life and marionets staying still in his memory for only a mere moment before fading away just as fast. Leaving him only with a growing sense of unease from the day before. Only the cobwebs had grown once again and it took a few long moments of breathing meditation to centre himself and to banish them away once more. It also allowed him to channel the force to sustain himself for the coming day, having found it was easier to use the force to replace food for week or so as long as he slept seven standard hours every day that week. That was by academy standards of activity for each day.

He wasn't sure if Ervius had woken up before him or after himself but the man was up at least when Nergal came fully too. "Morning Ervius, have you any thoughts on our course of action today?" He asked as he rose fully from the meditative posture he'd been on the bed to stand in the middle of the room. Making sure to pat himself down for a refresher of his equipment as well as sneaking a nutrient bar under the mask to help bolster his body for what he was sure would be another strange day.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

Sleep was a strange experience for Ervius this time. He could not remember anything in particular, only the vivid details of something disgusting filling his vision with its oily miasma. Even recalling these snippets brought forth nothing but disgust in the sith. Quite the achievement, really, Ervius noted with wry amusement, considering everything that Sith (he among their number) regularly got up to. He caught himself feeling restless and shook his head.

Ervius knew he did not get restless for no reason, especially during expeditions such as this one. Emotions were tools which had no place outside of combat and Force rituals. There was only action and consequence. The familiar mantra and a practiced discipline helped burn the foreign influence away, for a time at least. This entire experience felt disturbingly similar to staying in a sith tomb. Ervius realized that he would have to help his companion with a similar predicament sooner rather than later. First though, they had a plan to discuss.

When Nergal came out of his meditation, Ervius was consulting his datapad. He looked up at the acolyte’s question.

“I was able to narrow down our list of causes to several possibilities,” he replied. “We can safely rule out mere disorders, none manifest like this. On the other hand, there are drugs which can grant their victim a semblance of precognition and telepathy. None of them are widespread or safe for consumption.”

Ervius paused, considering the possibility of such substances being smuggled to this station.

“It makes little sense though,” he shook his head. “Who in their right mind would peddle it here of all places? A single dose of such drugs would cost like this entire station.”

“Of course, there are species such as Killiks who can grant one similar abilities by joining their victim to their collective mind,” Ervius continued. “And finally, the force nexus version… Theoretically, someone could have smuggled an artifact aboard Kedrall for storage. Over the years, this artifact could develop a minor pseudo-nexus. Either way, this is all speculation. We will need to access local law enforcement database to see all the arrivals to this station in recent weeks and over the years.”

The Sith smirked.

“I refuse to believe that the local law enforcement is unaware of this situation. They had been silent all this time, so I can only presume their complicity,” Ervius spoke. “Shall we, ah, requisition their database?”

@Shaddi

 

[Count Nergal]

Nergal listened to Ervius and filed the thoughts away in his own datapad, both for this particular mission as well as for something to perhaps experiment with in the future. "Am I to assume we requisition their database at the point of a lightsaber?" He asked finding the thought oddly attractive if only in a capacity to either hasten their path to the database or hasten any natives that would eventually turn hostile to turn hostile quicker. Then again it might also sour any further relation that might have otherwise been persuaded to their side. "Because while it might hasten our path I feel we should tread carefully in this unknown situation. If we are dealing with a population capable of some sort of force use or ability we are not in any position to take on the whole station at this time. Let's only be as heavy handed as it required hm?" He then asked in hopes that his overall view of the unaffected portion of the population might come true.

"I think that the other part of the population is slightly unnerved by those that have a sort of symmetry going for them... Perhaps we could persuade that part of the population on to our side if we find some compelling enough evidence?" He then half pondered aloud as he tapped his fingertip against his mask were his mouth would be, a habit he'd thought he broke when he realized he was doing it.

@Keisen

 

[Ervius Xann]

“Oh don’t worry, we won’t smite people on sight,” Ervius chuckled. “But in my experience, small backwater hubs like this one approach the concept of law enforcement in a very creative way.”

He meant, of course, that the average police officers in such places could very well pass for gang thugs if not for ranks and uniforms. Besides that, if Ervius had to subjugate a space station for unknown ends, the first place on his list of victims would be security personnel and maintenance workers. Access codes, authority, overrides — priceless tools for keeping everyone trapped aboard and compliant with anything and everything.

It suddenly occurred to him that the Academy would probably expect their acolyte to learn something during this mission. Well, the knowledge of the outside world could be considered useful, right? Ervius did not consider himself a capable educator in any case (had he been one, he would have started explaining things to Nergal ahead of time), but perhaps this little outing might present an opportunity.

“Now that you mention it, perhaps this is a good time for you to practice some illusions. They are a very convenient tool when you want to get something without ruffling too many feathers,” Ervius looked at Nergal, hiding his amusement at the other’s peculiar gesture. “A crash course, if you will.”

@Shaddi