Ask Nal Hutta Killing the Unkillable

[Arla]

Per my new OP template, thread is death enabled​

Well, this was familiar. Arla had been to this exact place once before while she was hunting a Sith defector. It was AMS territory, and while she had been here she had seen something she had never forgotten.

Although it had been several years now, it came back to her mind during her search for work. The banishing rituals of corrupted anomalies like that could produce kyber crystals worth thousands of credits to the right buyer, and while Arla had not been strong enough to face the creature down back then, she was a much different person now.

So, she had set out to Nal Hutta and landed in the wilds in search of the creature. With energy bow, knife, and lightsaber on her belt, she had started the process of trying to track the creature down. She knew that it would be no small thing, so she started at the same lumber mill where she had once run across the creature.

The air was as muggy as ever, but Arla pushed the thought out of her mind as she headed into the building for any signs that the creature had been here recently.

 

[Sarella]

Months had passed, and Sarella hadn’t entirely recovered from the events on Lucrazec.

It was a small miracle that she had survived Hera tearing through her mind - even if its effects lingered in the bouts of memory loss and visions she was plagued with. Most of her clan-sisters on Lucrazec had been killed by the Kilik Invaders, and those who remained had fled from the planet entirely - returning to their nomadic ways in search of a new home.

For the first time in her life, Sarella was truly alone. She had little desire to seek out Darth Tempest and her group of Exiles, nor would she ever return to the Jedi Order. The Fallanassi was driven entirely by her own ambition and self-interest, and the pursuit of knowledge scattered across the stars.

It drew her skillset towards Bounty Hunting - and particularly to those jobs where the strange and supernatural was involved. Whatever the fuck lived on Nar Shaddaa, it certainly met that description. Locals were unfortunate enough to encounter the beast on occasion, and most never lived to tell the tale. Eventually, enough of them had pooled resources to hire a Hunter break enough to deal with it.

Sarella was dressed in darker robes - sporting a vibroblade and satchel of reagents on her belt. Though the hilt of her ornate Lightsaber was tucked inside of her sleeve, the weapon had never been her tool of choice.It didn’t take her long to begin making her way to the lumber mill - following some of the tracks and witness testimony of the locals.

Almost at once, Sarella could feel the familiar hum of life up ahead - indicating that someone else was dwelling in the area. While she had no idea who Arla was, Sarella was confident that none of the locals would dare get close after so many sightings of the creature. Her guard was up, but she didn’t quite reach for the vibroblade strapped to her belt.

Instead, she pressed onward - her interest piquing for whoever was - alongside herself - was suicidal enough be hunting the monster.

@Phoenix

 

[Arla]

Arla poked around the mill for a few minutes, seeing no signs at all of the creature that had once been here. She found herself disappointed by it, but at the same time there was a sort of relief. She didn't want to fight this thing again, but as she pondered herself and it, she couldn't help but wonder if she was now ready. She had gone into bounty hunting for several reasons, but one of them was to test her skills. Hunting monsters would really do that.

It was only after a few minutes that she finally caught a glimpse of what might have once been her target. A pillar supporting the mill was cracked as if it had been snapped in two by a great strength that slammed into it. It could have been a local animal, but something told her that wasn't the case.

Her breath caught momentarily in her throat as she spotted this and she began to reach out to the Shadow, the webs of life - and death - that connected everything in the galaxy. That was when she sensed something or someone else. Another spot of intelligent light in this web of darkness that almost caused her to hunch over reflexively when she felt it.

Her run in with AHA hunters on Klatooine had been a mixture of positive-neutral to outright hostile, and she didn't know if any of their hunters had picked up on this job yet, but if they had, then she needed to be ready.

She leapt to the upper level of the mill, taking cover just inside the door on its side that was open to the air and she drew back her energy bow. The slight pink glow was the only evidence of her presence, but she knew that people could and would still fire at it.

State yourself and your business! she shouted at the approaching woman. She looked too gentle to be out here, but looks could be deceiving.

 

[Sarella]

Sarella couldn’t help but narrow her eyes, suspicion intensifying as she grew closer to the lumber mill. There was no mistaking the ripples and eddies that moved across the White Current - brushing across the Fallanassi like waves of water. She heavily doubted that it was the monster she sensed, though that wasn’t an entirely comforting thought. AHA Hunters weren’t known for being particularly friendly to outsiders, or those that threatened to cut in on their claimed bounty.

Out of instinct alone, Sarella pulled the knife from her belt - curling the leather grip between her fingers. It was the familiar pink blow of an energy bow, bright against the natural fog, that caused her to move defensively.

Opening herself to the Current all around her, Sarella allowed the waves and ripples to wash over her physical form - immersing herself within its flow of energy. It surrounded her like a cloak, causing her physical form to shimmer and grow translucent amongst the dense fog. Arla could feel the presence of life within the Force grow distant, attempting to make itself indiscernible.

She had no intention of lashing out against Arla, but certainly wasn’t going to stay a stationary and easily traceable target.

“Hunting,” She called out towards Arla, her voice projected and amplified as if moved through the air. “As I can guess you are.”

 

[Arla]

Arla watched the woman vanish from sight even as she looked at her. Arla knew similar techniques through magick, and she knew that some Sith assassins mastered such techniques as well. So she was a Force-user. Another Sith? One of those Dark Side gunslinging assassins? A full independent?

Arla wasn't sure, but she nearly released the arrow right then and there to cut down the target before she had moved too far, but she held herself. Another huntress with the power of the Force was... a new change. Whether it would prove to be a deadly change or a positive one remained to be seen.

Are we going to kill each other? she asked, her usual style of excessive bluntness popping to the surface. She didn't trust the other woman, but if they could cut the tension out of the gate, that would be preferable.

Even so, Arla kept her senses alert in the event that the other woman attacked.

 

[Sarella]

Sarella kept her eyes harshly narrowed upon Arla - watching the Nightsister and her every movement. She was horribly disadvantaged without her own bow or ranged weaponry, and the Fallanassi wasn’t convinced she could reach for her saber before Arla released the bowstring. A few moments of silence passed, as she weighed the options before her. None of them were particularly pleasant options.

“I should hope not.” The Fallanassi called back over the clearing, slowly allowing the illusion to dissipate around herself. It presented Arla with the opportunity to fire upon Sarella right then and there - and she knew it. It was a risk. But it was also the best chance of presenting herself as non threatening to the stranger.

“I am Sarella of the Fallanassi,” She said - introducing herself as she had been born. Not as a Sith or Jedi - as neither Order seemed to garner her loyalty these days.

Her finger still hovered close to the knife on her belt, though she otherwise maybe no aggressive movements. “I would much prefer to kill the beast we are both looking for. I think,” Maybe Arla wasn’t hunting for the same monster she was. Which.. Seemed unlikely. Considering no one survived in these parts for very long without encountering it. There was enough folklore to keep the unsuspecting away.

 

[Arla]

To Arla's eyes, it seemed like the woman materialized out of thin air. Arla knew techniques like that, but they were uncommon. She was more intrigued by the woman's declaration as being a Fallanassi. It wasn't a group that Arla was familiar with, which meant there might be something of value to be learned there.

She held her bowstring for several beats more to see if the woman was using this as a ruse before she finally let the string ease.

Venatrix, she said simply. You hunt the beast, too, then, Sarella of the Fallanassi? she said.

What is a Fallanassi? she said, deciding she had no interest in waiting or trying to dance around the issue.

And do your people hunt creatures like this regularly? she asked. Evidently, she was feeling unusually talkative. Or rather, there was information here that needed to be discovered.

 

[Sarella]

“I do,” Sarella said after a moment passed, staring back at the woman who called herself Venatrix. Her arms crossed casually over her chest, falling away from the hunting knife that was strapped to her belt. Even if she didn’t trust the Nightsister entirely, the chances of shooting at one another seemed… Less. If only for that brief moment.

“I am here to collect on the local’s bounty. And whatever else can be found with the creature,” She said without really dancing around the topic. She figured that Arla was here for the same, and it was a fact that was maybe going to be a point of contention. Before it could be addressed, however, the Nightsister went on to inquire as to what Sarella was.

“My people,” She said after a moment, considering the best way to answer the question. “Nomadic tribes who hail from Lucrazec. We are followers and practitioners of the White Current,” She paused for a moment, staring back at Arla. “We view the Force quite different from the rest of the Galaxy.”

“They do not,” Sarella shook her head, gazing out towards the direction where she’d seen tracks prior. “I hunt beasts like this for what it can bring me - and that I might funnel back to my own tribe. To learn what I can about things like this beast.” It wasn’t natural in the least, and Sarella was almost certain it had been created by a Force User powerful enough to do so.

“And you?” She returned her gaze to Arla. “Who are you, Venatrix?”

 

[Arla]

Arla related to the other woman more than she related to most people in the galaxy. Trying to support the Clan, taking on danger and hunts in order to do so. A Force-user with an unorthodox view of the galaxy. Sarella may not have known it, but for Arla these were all marks in her favor.

A Nightsister also hunting the creature, she said. She paused a moment, trying to decide whether the next thing she was going to say was a bad idea. Probably, but she was saying it anyway.

Shall we partner up? she asked. I've seen this thing before, and it is dangerous, she said. While she thought she could probably bring it down herself - she wouldn't be out here otherwise - it probably wouldn't hurt to have some backup.

Arla started heading down the ramp regardless, never fully turning her back on the other hunter. She searched the area around the pillars that had been torn apart, trying to pick up any signs of where it may have headed. It almost reminded her of an animal scratching itself up against a tree in some way.

 

[Sarella]

Sarella couldn’t deny - her own interest in Venatrix was piqued. The parallels between them were clear as day, from their unique origins to the nomadic lifestyle they chose for themselves. It allowed her to relate to Arla in ways she could with few other people in the Galaxy, and immediately seemed to put the Fallanassi somewhat more at ease. Her hands were completely away from her weapons at this point, her posture relaxed.

“It’s good to know I’m not the only one,” She said after a moment, feeling some relief that she wasn’t the only one suicidal enough to hunt for the monster. Sarella paused for a moment, before dipping her head and bringing a hand towards her heart. “My condolences, for any you may have lost.” The Imperial attack of Dathomir had spread across the HoloNet and to all corners of the Galaxy. While the dust might still have been settling, the lost of countless on both sides was confirmed.

“If you’ll have me,” She said with a nod. “I’d certainly enjoy the company,” Sarella jutted her chin towards the bow Arla carried. Somehow, she doubted that was the most powerful weapon at her command. “And another pair of capable hands.”

Sarella nodded and began to follow after the Nightsister - pausing for a moment to inspect some of the damaged boards and pillars. Her cerulean gaze flicked out towards the horizon ahead, picking out a faint trail of broken branches and damage along the treeline. Whatever it’s origins, the monster was entirely too big for its environment. It left a trail through the brush and vegetation.

Finding it was perhaps the easy part. Facing it, now that would be the challenge.

“You have experience with it, yes?” She glanced over to Arla. “How it moves - how it behaves.” The Fallanassi pondered for a moment. “If it hunts, we may be able to bait it out of hiding.”

 

[Arla]

Arla's jaw tensed at the comment about the losses on Dathomir. The wounds of her own loss were still incredibly fresh, and the reminder made her want to... she didn't even know. Hurl a tree or something that she had already deemed as thoroughly irrational, but the urge was still undeniable.

For the briefest moment, the gold flecks in her eyes became more prominent and her eyes a bit more wild before she seemed to pull herself back. She said nothing.

After a moment, she nodded her ascent that they should join together, her mind still lightyears away and thinking about Dathomir. Focus, Arla. Mother wouldn't want you distracted, she told herself.

Saying I have experience with it might be overselling it, she admitted honestly as they started hiking through the swamp.

The last time I was here, I sensed its presence and hid from it. It is stiflingly powerful, she said, but she also knew that her own power had grown. And you have your father's amulet.

It wasn't long before they found their first remnants of the AMS-infected.

Slowed and decaying with time and age, they weren't nearly as ferocious as they had once been, and Arla moved in against one of them, sending a bow shot cleanly through its head. To her right and nearing Sarella were two more, but they truly shambled along at a slow speed that could be outpaced by a brisk walk.

 

[Sarella]

Sarella made no attempt to press further about Dathomir. The Fallanassi had no idea who Arla actually was, or just how much the Nightsister had lost due to the invasion of the Empire. Did she really need to? The death toll on both sides was catastrophic - and it left the Nightsister’s with countless dead to bury. She couldn’t help but consider her own people. The Fallanassi has habitually kept themselves out of the Galactic spotlight, going so far as to hide their own villages and settlements behind illusions. What happened to Renfry was only a reminder of why the Fallanassi did what they did.

“More experience than I do is likely more accurate,” Sarella said after a moment, a true enough statement. The Fallanassi didn’t really grasp what they were up again, beyond initial reports and eye witness accounts. If Arla knew anything - it was likely going to be very quickly useful.”

“Delightful,” She said sarcastically upon hearing that the beast was terrifyingly powerful. Before they could discuss it further, Sarella watched as the remnants of AMS victims begun to appear around them. Without missing a beat, Sarella pulled the pair of Petar’s from her waist - her thumb flicking across the activation button to energize the edge.

The Fallanassi moved swiftly - throwing one of the Petar’s adeptly into an undead. It buried deep into its decayed forehead, causing the zombie to slump down to the ground. She quickly closed the distance between herself and the next, dodging as the zombie swiped at her. Sarella slipped to the left, swinging her arm to pierce through the side of its skull.

“That’s two to your one,” She said casually. Cause yup - they were definitely keeping a tally now.

She continued to follow alongside Arla, retrieving her other Petar from the undead. “There is a ritual,” The woman pondered for a moment. “To reach through the Currrent, to locate a presence within the Force.” She paused for a moment. “If this thing is as powerful as you say? It wouldn’t be difficult. But the connection can be felt both ways. It will know we are watching and will be able to find us.”

It was an inherent risk. They could continue to hunt blindly, or they could pinpoint the creature. But they would lose the element of surprise, and perhaps even draw it to themselves.

 

[Arla]

Hm, was all Arla said in response to Sarella's two-to-one comment. The movement across the open ground was precarious, and she half-expected other hunters to pop out of the bushes at any moment. But then, this thing had been here for years and no one had managed to kill it.

When the Fallanassi mentioned a ritual that would draw the creature out and let them track it, Arla stopped. Her eyes darted around the area.

An open central area, cover in the lumber mill itself, multiple other buildings attached to the area, she considered it all.

Good, do it. We can draw it here and fight it here, she said. They had already cleared out most of the infected here so they wouldn't have to deal with that, and that would let them set traps of their own.

I'll start trapping the area, she said, and slung her energy bow over her shoulder as she pulled her lightsaber out of its sheathe to start carving runes into the ground throughout the compound. She didn't know how much time they had so it was prudent to be quick.

 

[Sarella]

Sarella paused for a long moment - staring back at Arla before nodding. She couldn’t help but note just how confident the Nightsister seemed to confront the beast head-on, and it momentarily was something that gave the Fallanassi pause. If it was as powerful as she claimed? Sarella would’ve expected some measure of hesitation upon hearing the idea.

That said, Sarella wasn’t the type to ask twice. “Give me a minute or two to prepare,” She said simply. Pulling one of the blade from her hip, the Fallanassi began to carve intricate symbols onto the ground at her feet - gouging deep into the earth to trace the runes. When her circle was complete, Sarella crouched down at its center - gripping the one of the strings of beads that was normally tied around the belt at her waist.

As she rolled the beads between her fingers, Sarella began to mutter quietly - whispers that echoed in her native language, echoing through the Force and carried on the wind all around the. Arla wouldn’t understand their meaning or the ritual behind them, but she would hear them all the same.

Slowly but surely, Sarella began to open her very consciousness to the White Current. It was an ocean of living energy, washing over and submerging the Fallanassi in its warm embrace. She made no attempt to touch or manipulate the sea of energy, but instead peered across its ever-changing surface. Across every ripple and wave that washed over Nar Shaddaa.

She knew what she was looking for, and Sarella allowed the current to carry her freely through the plane of the Force. Until she began to feel a presence more oppressive than the others. A singular sentient creature, thrashing and violent across an otherwise serene sea.

Though her eyes remained closed, Arla would be able to feel the Force flowing all around her. She would be able to feel the tether of energy that seemed to flow out of Sarella and deeper into the forest, locating and anchoring itself to the beast they were looking for. And she would hear the inhuman screech that echoed through the forest as a result.

Sarella may have found the beast indeed, but now it was aware of them just as well.

 

[Arla]

Arla was true to her word and went to work on the traps and runes they would use against the creature, but she couldn't help but pause and watch some parts of the other woman's work. It was fascinating and something she didn't recognize, though she wondered if she took the time to study it if she could find similarities to some of her own techniques. Unfortunately, she didn't have time for that now.

Seconds ticked by into minutes as Sarella executed her ritual, and as those minutes continued, Arla finally felt it drawing closer.

Come over here, she said to Sarella, indicating a safe path to reach Arla through the runes and traps.

The creature continued to come, and now she could see its flailing tentacles whipping out and searching for them even as its bone-plated face seemed to stare through their souls.

In a way, it reminded her of the tentacled people of the Entity, but now was not a time to look for similarities.

She motioned her hands through the air in a Sign, as she drew on the Shadow to conjure shards and spikes of ice all around herself. The creature seemed drawn to it, but as it charged forward, Arla didn't move.

It struck the first rune about two seconds later and tendrils of green energy burst up from the ground, wrapping around its front legs and holding it to the ground.

Arla's hands thrust forward in quick succession, launching the spikes of ice at the creature as she did so. Most were deflected by the tentacles, but two made it through and slammed into the chest and leg of the monstrosity, causing it to screech and real backwards. Arla had no idea what Sarella would do, but she could only hope the woman was up to the challenge.

 

[Sarella]

Sarella couldn’t help the shuddered breath that escaped from her lips - feeling the initial wave of dizziness and exhaustion that washed over her entire body. To track another sentient creature through the Force was extremely taxing, and it was only due to the close, physical proximity that Sarella was able to pull off the maneuver in such a short period of time. It took a few moments for the Fallanassi to regain her composure, her eyes opening again to the waking world.

Without much hesitation, the Fallanassi rose to her feet - wordlessly moving behind one of the many runes that Arla had carved into the ground. She didn’t know their function or the magick that had been conducted to carve them. But she trusted that Arla knew what she was doing and didn’t have any desire to question it.

She could hear as the beast drew closer - and instinctively drew one of the Petar’s from her belt. Her expression indicated just how perturbed the Fallanassi was by its tentacles and bone-covered face, defying any semblance of natural evolution or process. It was a creature forged by the Dark Side, twisted and corrupted into something horrific.

Even with her brief exposure to the Sith Order, Sarella had encountered nothing quite like it. Nothing that caused her skin to crawl and the color to drain from her face.

The Fallanassi watched just long enough for the tendrils of Shadow Magick to burst from the ground - giving Arla the opportunity to attack the creature. Sarella similarly began to weave her hands before her, drawing sigils and Signs to better channel the White Current. She whispered in a language that Arla wouldn’t understand, even as those words carried on the wind and echoed all around them. Curiously, they were impossible to pinpoint to any physical location.

Arla might’ve seen Sarella standing physical beside her, but the Fallanassi’s voice echoed from every other direction.

The Current warped and shifted with every draw of Sarella’s hands, until the glamor that the Fallanassi projected was solidified around them. From Arla’s perspective, she would only see a shimmering reflection of their own selves - mirroring their movements and standing off several meters to their left. But the Beast? Sarella had already woven her illusion into its twisted mind, warping its perception of the physical world around it.

To her glee, Sarella watched as the beast finally overpowered the runes that Arla drew - and proceeded to blindly charge at their illusion. It provided Arla the opportunity to strike it in the back, if the Nightsister so desired.

 

[Arla]

Arla had never really seen anything like what Sarella unleashed. The woman had a talent with the Shadow that Arla had seen glimpses of here and there, but honed in a way that was quite unlike anything any Sith or even her Nightsisters could produce.

The illusion - not unlike the one that she had used on Draugr and the Jedi on Thyferra - was somehow much more potent than it should have been for someone of the woman's power. Not that she was weak in the Force, but she was Darth Raze.

The thought seemed to trigger the switch in Arla's mind, and as the beast charged forward against one of illusions, Arla tapped into the power of the amulet hanging around her neck.

She felt the Shadow flow through her like a current, threatening to rip her apart from the inside out. It was power beyond what Arla could conjure on her own, even with all her power.

And the creature was open for just the killing blow that Arla needed.

She pulled the power of the Shadow within herself and let it pour out as green flames, hot enough to nearly scorch even her ally who stood near her. It slammed into the creature's back, the scent of singed flesh and ichor filled the air followed by a wailing screech.

Arla didn't relent, letting the supernatural flame heat until flesh began to melt away from bone and the creature was simply a pile of semi-melted flesh on the ground.

Rage lingered in the Nightsister's mind. Rage at nothing in particular, and hatred that seemed to rob her ability to speak.

She moved over and drew runes into the ground before touching her hand to them and the melted flesh began to suck itself inward as if being pulled into a black hole. The banishment ritual took only a few minutes, but Arla had still not fully come down from the darkness within her. Her already gruff demeanor was made even more so by the lingering effects of the pendant, and the gold flecks in her eyes seemed to be even more prominent.

Come work for my company. You'll be well paid for your skills, she said. It almost sounded more like a command than the offer that it was, but such was the nature of the darkness.

We'll sell the crystal and split the payout, she added.