Ask Tatooine In the Desert, You Can Remember Your Name

[Talak Rand]

Talak wasn't thrilled about being on Tatooine. A tiny little piece of trash backwater world with twin suns, no water, and horrible temperatures. It was like Korriban but worse. The Force didn't flow freely here like it did on Korriban, so it was just the worst parts of Korriban.

The two had taken a shuttle out here in lieu of their regular ships for additional speed. The shuttle was faster, but offered no place for either of them to sleep. Hopefully that meant they would get in and out. He couldn't get out of here quickly enough.

In other words, Talak was grumpy.

It was rumored that Darth Vader had once had a home here on Tatooine, but where and when was a mystery. For his part, Talak didn't really believe the rumors, but someone in the Guardians wanted it investigated. Ana had come out here with him - an actual member of the Guardians - to investigate the rumors, but thus far they had found nothing.

So, you're a Guardian, he said matter of factly as they walked through the dusty town of... Mos Telfa? If you could even call it a town. He didn't even know what exactly they were looking for out here, but the Force had yet to show them anything.

Does that mean that you're a Sith fangirl? he asked. He was under the impression that most of the Guardians were worshippers of the ancient Sith. Personally, Talak found them to be slightly misguided, but they had managed to do some impressive things with the dark side. @Painus

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana hated this insufferable planet. The lush grasslands and verdant forests of Serenno seemed like genuine paradises compared to the dry, barren landscape of Tatooine. Twin suns bore down on them for an irritating period of time, frying anything beneath their gaze, and it seemed like everyone on this world only cared about their next drink of water. It was a pitiful way to live, and she counted herself as truly blessed to have not spent any time on this stupid, tan little world. Even in her linen outfit she was sweltering, and she made a few adjustments to keep the air flowing to cool her down. Her blouse was rolled up a bit, along with her sleeves and pant legs, but it did little to stifle the oppressive temperature. She was clearly unadjusted to the heat.

Ana was amazed at Talak’s persuasiveness to convince her to come out here to investigate rumors of Darth Vader’s home. Normally, she would have rejected the offer of wandering in the desert in search of a hint, a clue… anything, really, on its whereabouts, but he was insistent, and her curiosity got the better of her. Thus far, all they managed to do was wander aimlessly in this dreary little town and attract the attention of the poorly educated locals. The shuttle they landed on waited where they landed, its pilot just as eager to leave here as they were. Though Talak was grumpy, Ana tried to keep up at least the appearance of a positive outlook on things. It could be so much worse; she could be back on Kashyyyk getting shocked, for example, so this was a marked improvement over the last time she spent time with him.

Mos Telfa was, to say the least, an absolute dump. The buildings stood out of sheer luck, rather than as a result of any regular maintenance, and the people were just as stubborn. The primary occupation here was either moisture farming or protecting the town from Tusken attacks, both of which paid in water, rather than credits. All in all, they were fighting for their survival, and Ana couldn’t blame them for that; she just hated visiting here.

Her eyes flicked towards Talak for a moment upon his question as they walked, the nearest sun nearly blinding her as she looked in his direction. ”A fangirl…” she mused, trailing off for a moment, ”Hm, yeah. All I want is an autograph from Darth Vader. Maybe a picture of me at Darth Kravos’ tomb. Something cute, you know? A peace sign with his holocron.” The sarcasm in her tone was practically dripping from her mouth and she couldn’t suppress her smile. ”I’d say they did a few things right and left behind a great deal that we could learn from, otherwise we wouldn’t be here, would we?” She shrugged, not really wanting to get into the philosophical ideologies of the Guardians and why they revered the Sith. To him, she was exactly that – a fangirl. It'd take her a bit to explain how obsessed she was with forbidden lore and learning about the ancient Sith, and she doubted he truly cared.

She turned her head toward him as they walked towards the local cantina. It was the source of all the local gossip, and they’d be sure to find some kind of hint there, even if indirectly. ”And you’re a Legionnaire,” she remarked just as plainly, ”Does that mean you’re just good for hitting things until they stop moving?” She was under the impression that the Legionnaires were the militant arm of the Sith Eternal, good for little else but muscle in situations the Guardians needed help with.

As they walked, they eventually came into the cantina. It was a stuffy place, and what few people lived in this town seemed to be here drinking their sorrows away. Many heads and eyes turned their way to regard the newcomers, but she simply kept walking in, heading straight for the bar.

 

[Talak Rand]

He snorted slightly as she talked about autographs and pictures. Fine, so that wasn't what it was all about, but he still thought the Sith were a bit... myopic. He didn't get the impression she was interested in talking about it... typical. In Talak's experience the Guardians were... a mixed bag. He still wasn't sure about the Eternal's plan to unite with them, but he kept those thoughts to himself.

If you have the IQ of a Gamorrean, then yes, that's all we do, he quipped. Unfortunately, there were some within the Legions that were about that stupid. They swung their sabers at whatever they could and ran around risking the exposure of the entire faction. But for Talak, there was so much more than that. In fact, to view the Legions as only muscle to the Guardians was to mistake the differences between the ideology of the two groups.

They made their way to the cantina and entered to find that it was the only part of the town that actually had people. Poorly lit, wisps of smoke rising up, and a few drunken patrons already - yes in the middle of the after noon - were stumbling around. Talak couldn't quite cover the sneer of disgust when he walked through, it was... not his type of place.

The problem was that the two of them didn't even know what they were looking for or how to find it. Time to simply start asking questions, then. The bright side was that for once he wasn't here to cause problems for anyone. The questions he would ask wasn't likely to piss anyone off and start a fight. In fact, he didn't quite know how to handle that.... It was a completely knew feeling, but not unwelcome.

I'll take a Corellian Whiskey, he said, slapping down more credits than he needed for the drinks. The rest were for the information he planned to ask for.

Got any old ruins out here? Archeologists poking around or artifacts? he asked. It was likely to be the oddest question he'd been asked in a long time. While Talak didn't expect Vader to have lived in a temple, if he had lived here then maybe he had come around to visit them since then. It was a thin thread, but given the size of the planet they were looking at it was really the only option.

The bartender slid a glass across to Talak, and he had the distinct impression that it had been washed well in... years.

We don't get people asking about that very often. Normally it's some bounty or criminal on the run. Never heard of an archeologist coming through here, he said, looking over to Ana and expecting her to order something if she was going to be in his cantina.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana and Talak entered the cantina and immediately drew the attention of those who weren’t already piss drunk at noon. Their curious gazes lasted all of about three seconds before they turned back to their own drinks and conversations, not really concerned with the affairs of off-worlders. The whole place was a dive; dim lighting, hazy air from the smoke, and the general murmurs and slurs of drunken conversation. It was almost a full 180 from what she was used to on Serenno, and the entire place gave off the vibe that she was as likely to contract tetanus from stepping in the wrong spot as she was to get a dirty glass.

She turned her head towards Talak when he asked the bartender about nearby ruins, then flicked her eyes to the man across the counter to see his reaction. Her head followed shortly thereafter as he began to remark about how unusual it was for them to be here. Noticing his expecting glare, she cleared her throat and said, ”The same, please.” The bartender shrugged and repeated the same process as with Talak. She looked at the grimy glass for a moment, then sighed to herself as he poured the murky whiskey.

The bartender folded his arms over his chest and leaned back. His fat, dirty fingers reached up and scratched at his cheek for a few seconds and he looked to be in deep thought. ”Well, there’re rumors about some kind of treasure trove out in the Dune Sea, but ain’t nobody found it yet. Fella came by about a week ago lookin’ for it, but he ain’t come back since.” He started to ramble on about the different rumors of ruins and treasures and how everyone who goes out never comes back. Usually because of the heat and dehydration, but Sand People attacks were just as common. That, and the big game out there that preys on stupid adventurers.

Ana looked at Talak as the bartender continued to tell stories, then raised a hand to pause him. ”Anything more… substantial than stories? Maybe someone who hasn’t died out in the wastes?” The man coughed something up and looked at her, shrugging. ”Nah. Most who go don’t come back. ‘Cept, well, for the Jawas, but they’re not keen on talkin’ to folk. If you really want to, you can find them out in the Dune Sea. Whole pack of ‘em left bout a day ago on one of their big sandcrawler things once we done run ‘em off.” He nodded a few times to himself, smiling at some fond memory of terrorizing Jawa scavengers.

”Yep, your best bet on findin’ old sites’re probably the Jawas. Gonna need to hustle up and catch them, though.” With that said, Ana shrugged and looked at Talak with a “well, it’s the best we’ve got,” kind of expression. She tossed her payment on the counter next to her untouched drink and smiled to the barkeep. ”Thanks for the help,” she said, turning around and catching the eye of one of the patrons. He stared at her lazily then slowly dropped his head on the table, drunk and asleep.

Charming.

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak listened as the bartender told them all about the happenings on the planet, none of which was that helpful. If the Sith Lord had been here, he hadn't left behind blatant evidence, and the locals did have two spare IQ points to rub together to be curious. He decided he preferred the large planetary worlds like Coruscant. It was a different kind of scum, but preferable to this.

He bit back his comment about how unhelpful the man had been, and reeled the thought back in. He was way too irritable and he needed to curb it before it got out of hand. They made their way out of the bar and Talak caught sight of the patron drunkenly eyeing Ana.

I think he wants a date. We can put this on hold if you want, he said, trying to suppress the smile pulling at his mouth. It was the first time he'd really made a joke around her, and there was no question that he had a considerably different demeanor now than he'd had on Kashyyyk. Which of the two persona's was the true Talak and which was a well-established front remained to be seen... or perhaps it wasn't quite as binary as that.

He stepped out into the sunlight and had to put his hand up to block the sun. It hurt his eyes but they quickly adjusted. He kind of wished they hadn't, though. Across the "street" (which was really just an open space covered in sand), he could see a man hunched over on the ground laying next to what Talak had to assume was a pool of his own vomit and talking to someone who wasn't there.

This is a contender for the worst planet I've ever been to, he thought to himself with a sigh.

All right, so we could start with the jawas, which means heading out into the deep desert. We'll need to pick up supplies and maybe a speeder, he said.

Heeeeey, you! vomit man started shouting and waving a hand at the two of them.

Talak tried to pretend he hadn't heard and started pushing Ana in the other direction when what the man said gave him pause.

What's it worth to find your ruins! he shouted in their general direction. Talak shot his eyes over to Ana who would be thinking the same as him: how did this guy know they were looking for ruins? He hadn't been inside the cantina and they hadn't mentioned it anywhere else. Something very... unexpected was going on here.

Don't let the wrapper fool you, friends, he said, noting their hesitation.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana groaned and looked at Talak when he made his joke, rolling her eyes. The man on the table was now fast asleep, a fat strand of drool slowly lurching its way to the floor. ”I’d rather eat sand,” she sighed, shaking her head at the prospect of going on a date with any of these dregs. It took her a moment for the shock of the fact that he made a joke to set in. After a moment, she turned to look at Talak, an expression of shock on her face. ”Wait, was that a joke? From you?” She raised her eyebrows and laughed aloud, ”Huh, maybe the sun really is getting to you.”

The two of them let the dimly lit bar and were met with the harsh glare of the sun, prompting them to raise their hands to shield their eyes. The first thing she noticed was the lack of pretty much anyone walking around, then noted that most of them were likely in the cantina behind them. This entire town was a bit pathetic, and she wondered how long its residents lived here and how long they’d continue to live here.

Her eyes then caught the drunkard that Talak was looking at and continued to look around, not really paying him any attention. ”I hate it here,” she complained, voicing both of their opinions. She then turned her head as Talak spoke, nodding along with his suggestions. The dark lord hadn’t left them much to go on, so the best they could do was ask the creatures most familiar with the wasteland around them. She was on the verge of voicing her support when she was cut off by the drunk man. Talak pushed her in the other direction, which she happily went along with, when the drunkard’s next sentence halted them in their tracks.

Did this man just ask about the ruins?

Her eyes caught Talak’s and they shared a moment of mutual confusion. She quirked an eyebrow and panned her gaze to the drunkard, who was leaning hard and trying not to fall over. Or that’s what he wanted them to think, anyways. Before they moved, Ana shouted back at him, ”Who are you?” She reached out with the Force to see if his surface thoughts were readable, but he seemed like a blank page to her. ”I’m someone who can help,” he said slyly, wobbling in place.

She frowned and turned her eyes towards Talak, then back at the mystery man. He turned away and began walking off down a nearby alleyway, beckoning for them to follow. This entire situation seemed extremely sketchy, but the man knew about the reason behind their visit more than anyone else knew, and he’d certainly caught her interest. She looked back up at Talak, furrowing her brows. ”This seems like a trap,” she noted, then began walking towards the drunkard, ”But it’s better than wandering the desert.”

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak watched as the man turned and began making his way down the alley, and he glanced over at Ana.

Agreed, he said quietly, agreeing that this both felt like a trap and seemed like it might be their best option. Of course, if it were a trap and there was no information of value then they would have just wasted time, energy, and potentially their lives. Perfect.

He headed off after the man, passed the pool of vomit, and down a variety of twisting and turning alleys. While this town was small by the standards of a metropolis, there were still probably several thousand people here inhabiting several hundred buildings. It was clear that this man was intimately familiar with all of them or at least the area they were in.

Finally, they came to a small building and drunky slipped inside, waiting a moment for them to follow. Casting another glance back at Ana he slipped inside as well.

The building was small and sparsely furnished, but a wide variety of electronics and droid parts - in varying states of function and dysfunction - lined the wall. They all seemed to watch as the two Sith Eternal entered, tracking them across the room.

Have a seat! the man said, motioning to two chairs directly across a desk from the one he now took a seat in. Now, I hear you're looking for some ruins, is that right? Are you two some kind of treasure hunters? Fighters? These ruins are supposed to be pretty dangerous, not for the faint of heart? he asked, looking eagerly back and forth between the two. There was a sense of excitement and nervousness in the man, but the precise reason for it was difficult to pin down.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana followed down the many twists and turns of this town’s extensive alley system, and several times she could’ve sworn they went down the same path repeatedly in a circle, if only just to confuse them. The drunk man seemed much more focused and far, far less drunk than before, which kept her on edge. This was absolutely a trap, but it was their best bet of having a lead on the ruins in question. If the man had any information, anything, on the place Darth Vader established here, she would pry it from him, with or without his consent.

They arrived at a small, nondescript building and the lead man slipped in. Talak shared a hesitant glance with her before following, and she did the same shortly thereafter. The inside took her aback somewhat; though spartan in nature, it was densely packed with electronics and other such equipment in various states of disrepair. Her brows furrowed once she noticed that these devices seemed to be following them, and she began to wonder just who this mystery man was.

He invited the two to sit down, but Ana cast Talak a glance before doing so, wondering what he thought of this entire situation. She sat down, but kept to the edge of her seat, clearly disconcerted and skeptical. The man before them seemed very eager, but even she could sense his anxiety. He clearly rarely interacted with off-worlders, especially those with similar interests. Ana raised an eyebrow and looked the man dead in his eyes, which caused him to look quickly to the side from discomfort. ”We’re curious,” she replied, ”About the ruins, and about you. Who are you? How did you know why we’re here?” Her tone was cautious and intrigued, but skeptical.

Drunky smiled sheepishly and rubbed his hands together, darting his eyes between the two. ”Oh, heh, I’m, ah, I’m nobody important, really. Honest!” he stammered out nervously as Ana gave him a harsh look. ”I hear everything that happens in this town. They,” he gestured towards the many electronic devices, ”Help me out. Things are usually pretty dull around here, but you two… aheheh, you’re the most interesting thing I’ve seen in a while.” He continued rubbing his hands nervously, a smile plastered on his face.

Ana shot him a look as if to say “go on,” and he continued, ”I’ll help you find your ruins. Got alllll kinds of ways, ahah, to figure that one out, I think. But, you see, I’m not… the best to go looking around these things,” he gestured towards himself, then pointed at Talak, ”But he… he looks like he can hold his own. And you… well, you’ve got that scary look that tells me you can too, ahaheh.”

Ana looked sidelong at Talak, then back at the mystery man. ”Why are you telling us this?”

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak took a seat as well and listened as the man drawled on. It was... very disconcerting. This place was wrong on many levels, or at least this man was.

When Ana asked why he was telling them this, he paused. See, I was... and before he finished his sentence, electricity coursed from the chairs and into both of their bodies. buying time! he shouted. While they were both recovering, he brought a stun pistol out and had zapped both of the Sith Eternal.

---​

Talak awoke some time later, and although he didn't know exactly how long, it had to have been hours since the suns were starting to set. his head was pounding, and he quickly realized that his lightsaber and sword were missing. Other than that, though... he was alive and without any lasting injuries.

He wasn't sure if that was good or bad.

There was no civilization in sight, and although Ana was next to him in the sand, the only thing visible was canyons and desert. It appeared they'd been dumped, but something told Talak that the danger hadn't passed yet. That same feeling form Kashyyyk of being... hunted, pulled at the back of his mind.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana had no time to react before an agonizing jolt of electricity coursed through her body. ”Ffffaaaffaaffufufufff-“ was all she managed to get out before darkness overcame her, and her mouth, just before she passed out, managed to quietly eek out the final ”-uck.” The mystery man shot the two of them with his stun pistol and that was that.

---​

Ana groggily opened her eyes, groaning in pain as she rolled her head along the sand. Half of her face was coated in the stuff and her head felt like it had been hit with a hammer repeatedly. She laid perfectly still, looking through half-lidded eyes at her surroundings. It appeared to be almost nightfall, and she wasn’t in Mos Telfa anymore. With a grunt, she slid her hands up and pushed against the ground to pick her upper body out of the sand. She spat a few times to get it out of her mouth and then opened her eyes a bit more, the realization that she was not in Mos Telfa finally hitting her.

She frantically slid her hands around the sand, looking for her lightsaber and knife but coming up emptyhanded. Her eyes caught Talak and she felt a bit of relief, but also an extraordinary amount of frustration. ”Why is it that I always end up being shocked around you?” she groaned, rising to her feet unsteadily. She took the time to survey their surroundings, and it appeared that they were in the middle of nowhere, far from anything resembling civilization. All that was nearby was sand, sand, and more sand. A few mountains loomed ominously in the distance, but the only thing in their immediate area was a vast sea of sand.

Her hair stood on end and her skin prickled with goosebumps when that familiar feeling of being hunted washed over her. It was like being back in the Shadowlands, except this time, she had no lightsaber to protect her. The whistling winds carried with them the distant howls and cries of the various desert creatures, but there was something… else lurking closer to them than they thought. She stumbled several meters forward, paused, then turned around and did the same in the opposite direction, desperately trying to find something in the horizon.

”We’re completely lost!” she shouted, turning to look at Talak exasperatedly, ”I knew that was a trap. God, I’m going to kill that man…” she scowled and started grumbling to herself, walking back to Talak.

”What’re we going to do now?”

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak was still shaking the stun from his head when Ana awoke as well and somehow decided this was his fault.

Are you really going to blame me for this? he groaned, rubbing his head. The question of where they would go was a valid one, and also a problematic one.

They could navigate by the stars... except for the fact that he definitely didn't know how to do that, and he really doubted she did either. So that was out. He reached out to the Force, more thankful than ever for its touch in this otherwise empty and hostile terrain. He tried to sense where they should go, but unfortunately, all he felt was hostility. Something - or someone - was out here with them, and it meant to do them harm.

We follow the canyons, he said, pointing in the direction that they ran. If there was ever water here, it may have flowed there, and if there was water, there may be civilization, he said. He knew it was a long shot, but they needed to pick a direction, and this one was as good as any.

They started walking, and night had fallen by the time they made it to the mountainous and canyon filled terrain. It seemed to be destiny that they had just made it there when a light and the whooshing of a repulsorlift could be heard in the distance. It was difficult to make out, but it looked to be some sort of a very small, floating platform, but the light obscured who or what was on it.

Then a blaster bolt tore through the night sky, striking only a foot away from either of the Sith Eternal. And that would be the hostile presence....

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana huffed and looked at the canyons beyond, furrowing her brows. This world was incredibly hostile to anyone who wandered in its wastes, and she knew that they needed to get moving somewhere soon. The canyons, and Talak’s reasoning, seemed like the best thing they had at the time. ”The canyons it is, then” she agreed, folding her arms across her chest. That lingering feeling at the back of her mind, the one that warned of the wyyyschokk and katarn attacks on Kashyyyk, unnerved her, and she wondered if Talak felt it as well.”But something about this entire thing seems off. I feel it.”

They set off towards their goal, the twin suns of this world setting below the horizon and disappearing entirely by the time they had arrived. For a moment, she longed for their return, for the desert grew extraordinarily cold at night and she had on little else but a linen shirt and pants. ”We’ll need shelter for… the…” she trailed off as she spotted the lights in the distance and knew that he had as well. It looked to be too small to be a ship or a speeder, and it seemed to simply sit in place. For a moment, she thought that they had found salvation.

That was before the bolt slammed into the sand between the two Sith Eternal.

Ana shouted and dove aside just in time for another bolt to hit where she had been standing, kicking up sand. She landed and scrambled to her feet, then looked for Talak. ”Why the hell are they shooting at us?!” she shouted before beginning to dash towards the canyon. At least in there they had a modicum of cover and concealment; out here in the dunes was a death sentence for them, and this individual had the high ground. Another bolt screamed out towards Talak, and she hoped he was on the move with her.

Her heart pounded as she slid into cover behind a rock while a bolt impacted the other side. They had several meters of open ground to cover before they could reach the safety of the canyon, and this shooter seemed to be zeroed in on her position. She poked her head out around the corner and quickly retreated as another bolt hit close, scattering stone towards her face. ”Make a run for the rocks!” she shouted at her comrade, reaching out with the Force to feel the presence of the shooter. Their hostile intent was apparent, and that fear and loathing began to bubble back to the surface. Once they were safely in cover, they could think of a plan.

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak agreed with her that something felt off, and nodded in response to her comment. The problem was that it was only a matter of sitting and waiting at this point... or rather walking and waiting. But if both of them felt it then it was likely that something bad was on the horizon... well, not the literal horizon. The only thing actually on the horizon had been the mountains and canyons.

With the opening of gunfire, he started moving immediately. He wasn't really moving in any particular direction, just moving to make himself a more difficult target.

Moving! he shouted in agreement as she said to move for the rocks. He started in a zig-zag pattern as more shots came down. Gunfire was striking near both of them at the same time, so Talak could only assume that there were multiple hunters coming after them.

He had no answer for her about why they were shooting, but it didn't matter right now. All he cared about was not being shot.

He ran and slid behind the first rock he could find as blaster fire peppered his cover. He heard a slight whirring sound followed by a pale yellow bolt slicing through the night sky. There was a small detonation and Talak could feel the heat on his face as half the stone was obliterated in what he figured was a disruptor shot.

Kriff, kriff, kriff, he cursed as he leapt to his feet again and dropped to the first level of the canyon floor. It was a ledge into the lower canyon, and on it was a cave of some sort. He hoped Ana could see or would follow him as he made his way into the mouth and deeper down the cave's throat. If it was a dead end that could end up being a problem, but the Force could get them out of that problem too. Even without lightsabers, the two were formidable opponents.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana breathed quickly a few times and leaned forward, ready to dash behind the rock when several bolts peppered her cover, forcing her back down. Kriff, shabla, shit… she whispered to herself, gripping handfuls of sand. Her eyes caught Talak behind cover and grew wide once said cover was nearly disintegrated in a single shot. She grimaced and gritted her teeth, shaking her head and building up the resolve to sprint out into gunfire. She crouched low, sitting on the balls of her feet, and then looked behind her. She wasn’t sure if this idea would work or not, but it was worth a shot.

She thrust her hand outward behind her, shunting a small wave of energy into the dune to kick up the sand and make it look like she was concealing her escape that way. As soon as she did, she sprinted forward in the opposite direction, ducking her head as the shooters realized she moved the other way. She hustled, using her fear and anger to enhance her speed just enough to not exhaust her, and dropped down into a baseball slide right as she reached the edge of the canyon Talak dropped down into.

She landed on her hands and knees on the ledge and scrambled forward as a bolt hit where she was kneeling, ducking and diving into the cave. Her breathing was frenetic, and the adrenaline was well and truly pumping through her veins now. This was the first time she’d ever been shot at and it was both terrifying and exhilarating. She couldn’t explain it, but the way her heart pounded made her feel more alive than before. At least she worked off the grogginess from being stunned.

Ana followed after Talak quickly, jogging to catch up to him. When she finally did, she looked around the cave and back towards the entrance they had come through, panting hard. ”God, a lightsaber would be nice right about now…” she whined quietly, shaking her head. They walked through the tunnels for some time, and she could’ve sworn she heard shouting from towards the entrance behind them, spurring her to hasten. Eventually they came to several branches in the tunnel, probably four or so, each one of varying widths. They had a difficult choice here, for if they picked the wrong path, they could get boxed in and put down like animals, but the right path might see them to safety.

”It’s like they’re hunting us,” she mused in a hushed tone, chuckling grimly to herself, ”Just like on Kashyyyk, except this time they’ve got the weapons. We need to get them alone, take them down.” She looked at the various tunnels, then at Talak. ”Better pick one soon,” she urged, definitely hearing the shouting behind them. They really were being hunted. What’d they even do to deserve this?

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak recognized that this situation was bad. Things were not going well for the pair, and he couldn't fault her for wanting her saber. He would have killed for his as well. He felt like he was completely naked without it. Even with how rarely he used it in public, he always had it with him if he needed it. Now, when he really needed it, it was gone.

Typical, he thought. But there was no time to dwell on it. He headed back down the cave along with Ana. She was wondering why the two of them were being hunted, and he didn't know. At least it wasn't her first time being hunted. This was precisely why the training on Kahsyyyk - as unpleasant as it had been for them both - was a necessity. Or so he told himself.

When they came to the fork in the path, Talak paused. The largest one would be the most likely that the criminals would travel, and the smallest seemed like it would be potentially too small to fit into. Finally, he settled on one of the two middling sized ones and began to squeeze his way through. He had a bad feeling about this, and within a few meters he realized that this wasn't going to be large enough. At least not for him.

Kriff, we don't have a choice, he said, heading down the larger path. He kept running as quickly as he could, but the cave was pitch dark. Even with the Force to help him, the path was difficult to travel. These scum had even taken his flashlight!

As they came to another fork in the path, he stopped. He could hear them getting closer, but without any light to guide them, they would continue to lose ground until they were caught.

We need to get ready. We're going to have to fight them, he said. This time, unlike Kashyyyk, if she reached into his mind she would feel that same fear she had felt in the shadowlands. It was a desperation that could fuel one to fight unlike anything else.

We don't need lightsabers to kill, he said bluntly. The Force could kill as well or better than a saber if you didn't hold back.

He moved just through one of the forks and stopped just out of sight as the path started to turn. If the enemy took the other path, the two would be behind them. If they picked this path then the bend would at least partially cover them from sight or incoming fire.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana let Talak take the more narrow passage for a few meters until she realized he was too big to squeeze through. Together, they blindly stumbled through the larger tunnel, nearly tripping over or hitting their heads on jutting rocks. At one point, a jagged stone caught Ana’s arm and tore the sleeve off, as well as left a small cut in it, but she ignored it, her desire to live overwhelming any pain she would feel. They ran and ran until they came to another fork, forcing them to pause.

Talak’s words confirmed her fears and she nodded gravely, uneasy from sensing his fear and apprehension. They were like cornered animals forced to fight or flee, and their option to flee had just been thrown out the window. Unlike cornered animals, though, they had the overwhelming power of the Force on their side; they just needed to let go of their inhibitions. ”I was afraid you’d say that,” she lamented, then nodded an acknowledgement that their lightsabers weren’t their only weapons. They were still considered superhuman by those who couldn’t control the Force the way they did, and they’d need to use that to their advantage. These scums may have had rifles and disruptors, but they had something far more insidious.

As they hid out of sight, Ana took what few precious seconds she had to reach inward and focus on her fear and anger. The beast she had chained up within her gnashed its profane maw and she beckoned it to come forth, commanding it to aid her. Unlike on Kashyyyk, she had a greater control of the darkness inside, and now she was beginning to refine her hold over it.

The heavy thudding of footsteps grew louder by the moment, and she could count two… maybe three hunters, but the way sound echoed in these chambers made it difficult to determine. Their hunters came to the same fork and hesitated, and Ana felt herself hold her breath to stay hidden in the shadows across from Talak. ”Where the hell did they go?!” one asked, ”I don’t kriffin’ know! Coulda gone down either one of these tunnels.” Before they could speak further, a hush swept over them, and Ana figured that they were quietly coordinating paths to take.

Bootsteps thundered down the other path and Ana almost immediately moved out to flank them, were it not for her supernatural instincts commanding her to halt. She froze and her venom-green eyes faintly made out the figure moving slowly down the tunnel they were in. Her muscles tensed as he walked down the path, shining his flashlight across the rocks when suddenly it caught Ana, who sat frozen in its beam like a deer in headlights.

For what was possibly the longest nanosecond of her life, she stood there, motionless, staring at the hunter with his rifle before instinct kicked in. He fired and she deftly darted to the side, simultaneously pulling her hand towards her and wrapping him in an invisible force to yank him off balance. His bolt slammed into the wall where she was standing and he stumbled, surprised by the sudden pull. He righted himself and went to fire at her again when she repeated the move, this time desperately yanking him closer into the wall towards Talak. The gunshots echoed in the tunnel and she knew it was only a matter of time before his friends turned around and returned here.

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak moved around the corner and waited. It was only a matter of time until they were in the sights of the gunmen, but if they could bring down even one of them, they might be able to fight back more easily.

In short order, a Trandoshan had come down the path and began to open fire at Ana. She was deftly avoiding the shots, but that would only buy them a few moments. Talak focused his energy, his fear, and his hatred. He let it pour through the Force, twisting and warping it to his will. Blue lightning lit the cave and struck the Trandoshan, forcing him down and wracking him in agony and sending all his muscles into spasm.

Grab his gun, he said, eyes turning back down the path to where the others would be coming. A blaster shot tore through the darkness, and Talak couldn't quite evade it in time. It ripped into his left shoulder and he cried out in pain, falling backward onto the ground and cutting short the lightning before it could kill the Trandoshan.

Talak rolled to the side to dodge the follow up shot he presumed would be coming. It wasn't his first time being shot, but this time he didn't even have any medical supplies to patch up with. Healing with the dark side was... inadequate at best, but he knew another way. A way that scared him almost more than his need to survive this encounter.

Another shot came a moment later, this time aimed at Ana who was presumably still standing and moving to get the blaster. Their situation was dire, but it would have been so much worse were they not Force users.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana’s heart slammed against her chest as the Trandoshan’s shots narrowly missed her, but she was guiding him towards Talak for the kill. It didn’t take long for Talak to reach inward and focus his fear and hatred to make the Force manifest in and arc of brilliant blue lightning. The energy streaked through the air like hostile strands of spiderweb and engulfed the hunter, overwhelming his senses and causing him horrible, crackling anguish. As he dropped to the ground, his blaster fell from his hands and Ana scrambled forward to retrieve it at Talak’s command.

She’d never held a blaster before, much less a full-on rifle, so she took this precious moment to figure out where the trigger was. It seemed like a simple enough concept; point at the thing you want dead and pull the trigger. How hard can that be?

A bolt streaked through the air and hit Talak, rousing Ana from her lesson on how blasters worked. She leveled the weapon in the direction of the shooter but couldn’t see anything. Her instincts warned her to step aside, so she did exactly that and rolled sideways from her position on the ground, bringing the weapon up in the general direction of the shots. She squeezed the trigger as many times and as fast as she could, sending a flurry of bolts screaming wildly down the tunnel towards the hunters. She doubted any of them hit, but it forced their enemies into cover, given the lack of return fire for a moment.

Using this slight respite, Ana scrambled behind a rock to use as cover, still firing wildly down the hall until her blaster clicked instead of shot. She cursed and tossed it aside, frustrated by their complete lack of options. For a moment, there was silence, then the shouting returned. The hunters were fully aware their prey was down this tunnel and it was only a matter of time before they started overwhelming them. Her eyes darted around the tunnel, looking for any way to delay the attack, when she realized one of the very neat natures of stone: it could break with enough pressure.

Ana stayed in cover and looked for Talak, projecting her mind into his to avoid giving away her position. Collapse the tunnel, she suggested, It’ll cut them off from us! If he acceded to her idea, she would turn around behind her cover and reach out with her senses, focusing on the stone ceiling several meters ahead. She strained, but let her fear and anger strengthen her and assist in pulling down the stone. Hopefully, with Talak’s help, they’d be able to collapse a portion of the tunnel and give them time to lick their wounds and find another way out. They might have had the Force as a weapon, but these hunters outnumbered and outgunned them, and with Talak’s injury, they needed every moment of respite they could get.

If it didn’t work, then they’d just be creating their own tomb.

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak knew that he wasn't any good with a blaster, but he hadn't even considered the possibility that she hadn't even ever shot or held a blaster before. She ran off down the cave, firing wildly, and he wondered if she had even actually hit anything. At least it gave him the time to recover and scrambled back to his feet. Pain shot through his shoulder, and he took the opportunity to stomp on the Trandoshan's head a few times. Not hard enough to kill him, but enough to knock him out cold.

He let the anger build from the pain as she mentioned they should collapse the cave. He... couldn't help but think that sounded like a terrible idea. They might well end up burying themselves alive, but what other options did they really have? Being shot wasn't an option to him either.

Kriff, fine, he finally said, beginning to gather the Force between his hands. It would take no small ounce of power from both of them in order to accomplish this. He let fly the blast, tearing down the tunnel and ripping into the stones on the wall. It slammed across the tunnel until stones began to fall in at the end of the tunnel. He could only hope that it caught some of the hunters as well.

He assumed Ana would contribute as well and the tunnel began to crack and crumble. The darkness consumed them again, and then it was quiet. Talak sat dropped to his knee and let out a sigh. That had been tiring, and added to his injury it was enough to drain him of breath.

Are you injured? he asked, reaching up and feeling his shoulder. He could feel that his hand came away wet with blood, and he cursed under his breath.

Do I want to do it? he asked himself. He'd heard stories about abilities designed in the dark side to heal the user, but it came with a cost.

Not a lot of options, he thought as he stepped over to the Trandoshan. Unconscious on the ground, Talak knew that he wouldn't stay asleep for long. The legionnaire reached out to the Force, sensing the life and the energy that connected this being to the rest of the galaxy. That Force energy... and then he began to pull on it. He drew it into himself and the sensation made his skin crawl. He transferred it into the injury on his shoulder and the wound almost immediately began to heal.

Luckily for the Trandoshan, Talak didn't need much to replenish his stamina or heal his injury, so instead of a sustained, horrible agony, it was over shortly. Despite the feeling of disgust he felt at what he'd just done, he couldn't deny that it was accompanied by an intoxicating sensation of power. It was complete control over another being right down to their life force. It was... oddly addicting, and that realization made him stop immediately. He didn't want that. He didn't want to become hooked on this hunger. The injury on his shoulder - only partially healed - would have to be adequate as it was.

 

[Ana DAmico]

Ana knew her idea wasn’t the best, but it was better than surviving a standoff with Force-knows-how-many hunters down the tunnel waiting for them. The two of them were good, but she doubted they were good enough to survive that kind of encounter without at least their lightsabers. She strained as she reached out and began to pull down the rocks alongside Talak’s tandem blast, trying to contain it so that their side of the cave-in wouldn’t be collapsed. With their combined effort, the tunnel cracked, and massive chunks of stone began to collapse. The noise was deafening, but eventually it all went very quiet. The only noises now were the settling debris and the belabored breathing of her, Talak, and the Trandoshan.

She panted heavily from the exertion, but at least she was afforded the opportunity to do so without being fired upon. The darkness made it difficult to see exactly where everything was, but her eyes were somewhat adjusted and Talak wasn’t very far away. After his question, she quickly patted herself for injuries, then shook her head. ”No,” she sighed, ”Are you…?” Her voice trailed off when she saw his silhouette reach for the Trandoshan and heal himself through the profane draining of its life force. She said nothing when he concluded once she sensed his intense feeling of disgust, choosing instead to rise to her feet and walk past him towards the only way they had to go.

”Well… This is our only way out,” she mused, hoping that their decision to cut off the known cave entrance from their position didn’t inadvertently doom them to a slow, agonizing death by suffocation, ”…I hope.” Her head turned around to regard Talak and the Trandoshan, then looked back at the path ahead. ”Is… it dead?” she asked, ”Is it going to wake up and follow us?” She didn’t particularly fancy the idea of having a hunter on their side of the cave in, even if it was seriously wounded and weakened. It might have a means of calling its fellows and continuing the hunt.

As Ana thought about the possibility of it calling on others, it dawned on her to search its body for its communicator. She hurried over and knelt down by the body, running her hands along its bracers and rummaging through its satchel until she found the small device. It felt half-cracked and she thought it broken until it came to life and broadcast garbled static.

”*shhzzk* - kriffin’ tunne- *szzt* can’t go down – *kshhk* back *zzt* surface.” She listened closely but couldn’t make much out of what they were saying. Either the speaker was damaged or being surrounded entirely by several meters of stone made transmitting and receiving signals difficult. Deciding that it might be best to at least keep it on her, she held onto it and turned to Talak, anxious to get moving. ”Are you okay to keep going?”