The Call

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

The Call

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Crix's emerald eyes studied the miasmic undulations of hyperspace through his new ship's viewport. He still wasn't accustomed to the ship yet, but his natural piloting ability coupled with his attunement to the force had made the transition much easier than he'd expected. The XS-250s was a little bigger and slower than his old beat up XS-100, but what this thing lacked in agility it more than made up for in raw firepower.

The Smuggler leaned back in his captain's chair and kicked his feet up. With Arda's guidance, he'd discovered the path to the entity in the thunderstorm. She'd also agreed to go with him, which he greatly appreciated. He'd never say it, but he was glad to have her as a mentor and even more proud to call her friend. He glanced at his Chrono and yawned. He desperately wanted a cigara, but promised Peetwo he wouldn't smoke in The Rambler. As if on queue the little droid rolled into the cockpit with a whisper of a warble.

"Yeah, I'm awake, bud. How's that new processor treating you?" He asked watching the little droid slide up to the main console and connect. Crix knew the little guy was running his routine diagnostic on the hyperdrive and he twittered a pleased little response. The Smuggler smiled at the droids excitement. He was glad to have finally come through for his little friend.

Crix stood up and stretched. He groaned as his stiffened muscles slowly loosened up. Shaking the weariness from his bones he let his partner take over flying the ship and made for the lounge. As he passed his room he casually lifted a hand beckoning into the unlit room. A moment later his lightsaber floated into his hand as if released from the artificial gravity of the ship and suddenly magnetized to his body. He caught the weapon and clipped it to his belt as he passed through the lounge and made for the main-hold.

The main-hold was empty at the moment. He hadn't had to take a smuggling job in a while so he wasn't carrying anything other than himself, Arda, and Peetwo. When the hold was empty like this, The Jedi loved to use it as a training room. He bent over and picked up a little remote and pressed the power button. A little orb about five feet from him hissed into the air. It hung in the air floating like a buoy awaiting his input. He draped his jacket over the handrail leading into the room and then set the level of difficulty for his session.

The newly minted Jedi Knight sank into the force and focused the power into his hands, submerging them in a bubble that would protect his hands from the incoming stun bolts. He cleared his mind. He washed away his doubt and anxiety about the coming encounter and fell into a trance. He was one with the force and the force was one with him.

The little droid zipped around it's air jets hissing here and there as it began it's attack run. The remote fired off one shot, Crix deflected it. It zipped to his right, then left, then dropped and fired at his left leg, Crix shifted marginally avoiding the shot and maintaining his defensive stance. From there the orb whipped to his right and then diagonally across his body ending at his left shoulder. As it crossed him it fired three times one at his hip, one at center mass, and finally one at his shoulder.

The Jedi stepped back with his right leg dodging the first shot, and turning himself to the side shrinking the target he presented to the droid while quickly passing his force protected hand in a crescent wave blocking both the center and left shoulder. The left bolt was reflected back at the orb forcing it to dodge it's own fire. As if frustrated the little orb increased in activity. It bobbed and weaved throwing in feints and fakeouts in an attempt to throw him off, but Crix was submerged in the force and no matter where it went he was aware. Stun bolts fired from it feverishly and the Jedi Knight returned or dodged them in kind.

Twenty minutes into the session Crix reflected a bolt back into the little droid and it took a direct hit. With a fizzle and a pop, the little orb dropped from the air and bounced off the durasteel floor. He took a deep breath and released his hold on the force. His hands were numb and he was covered in a sheen of sweat. He wiped his brow and then looked over to the little ball. Apparently, his last deflection had short-circuited the little guy, because the session was supposed to last another ten minutes.

Crix stripped his sweat-soaked tunic off and hung it over the railing next to his jacket. He stepped over to the little orb and for good measure pressed the "off" button on the remote before picking it up and looking it over. "Huh, I didn't think these could break."

@GABA @Nefieslab

 

[Arda Breaux]

Arda had hunkered down for most of the trip after helping Crix, busy sketching and noting materials she would need in order to build a holocron in order to store and share her knowledge with future Jedi of the Order. Occasionally, she would check on Crix in the cockpit, leaning against the back of his pilot's seat as the violet swirl of stars engulfed the ship as they traveled across the galaxy before returning to her business. Though she would hear him stir again, speaking to his droid as he headed to the other end of the ship, she could feel the Force shift and the familiar hum of a lightsaber echoed over the hum of the hyperspace engine. She closed the journal, her pencil bookmarking her page as she went to go see what he was doing.

In silence she watched him practice, the probe droid darting at all angles in order to overwhelm the Knight in his routine. He was good at knowing when to move, from what she understood it was the basics in blaster defenses, form III if she recalled the correct lightsaber discipline. She was curious to see him in battle, if he would continue to be entirely defensive or if there was a spit fire in the Knight to push back his opponents until they surrendered their weapon. He kept going, but Arda resided near the entrance, arms folded as she made notes on where he could improve, though the session would finally end when he reflected the bolt back into the droid itself and a small smirk formed on her lips.

He slipped off his tunic, setting it aside, clearly not realizing the Jedi Master that watching him as he spoke out loud about the broken droid.

"I guess they could." she said, revealing herself, or more so, bringing him back to the awareness of his surroundings, "Not bad, you got sloppy in some places, but that will fix itself over time." Arda smiled, she glanced over her shoulder, calling a canteen of water to her palm and handed it to Crix, her eyes glancing down at the scar on his chest. She had seen it when he had been cooking and was certain she probably seen it before she fell asleep the night prior.

"Or your injury," she gestured to the scar, "Is that slowing you down at all?" she asked him, with some concern in her tone.

@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix froze at the sound of Arda's voice. He glanced over his shoulder at her and then to his shirt. Kriff... he thought as he turned to face her. His chest midriff had a sheen of sweat across it and his chest hair was matted to his ruined flesh.

"Thanks, I've been working on my force manipulation, a little form three sans the lightsaber," he ran a hand through his hair pushing it back out of his face and asked, "Any pointers, Master?" He punctuated his question with a little flirtation as he watched her eyes drift over his exposed torso. A small smile played on his lips as she asked about his injury.

"Not that I know of. I got this from a psycho on Coruscant when I was a kid," he wasn't sure why he was telling her this. He never spoke about his life on Coruscant. "As far as I can tell, it just looks really bad," he said with more confidence than he felt. Feeling a little self-conscious he casually crossed his arms over his chest, only marginally obscuring the inky purple tendrils that spread web like across his chest.

"What about you, any cool scars?" He asked playfully. He tossed her the broken little orb and walked over to the railing beside her leaning against it and watching her with interest. He wondered who he was going to get, Arda or The Grandmaster?

@GABA

 

[Arda Breaux]

"A psycho from when you were a child?" she questioned tasting the disgust in her mouth, "How? What? Why did they do that?" her eyes narrowed, knowing she was prying, but it didn't look like a normal scar, it looked living, a permanent wound from someone sinister enough to leave on a kid. She caught the broken probe droid, examining it before refocusing her attention to him as he inquired if she had any scars. "I do, a couple." she told him in a matter-of-fact tone as she slowly turned the spherical droid in her grasp, "But none of them look like that," she said as he approached her, "It almost looks like a darkside wound..." she said looking closer at what she could see; he mentioned he was on Coruscant, as it was as much as an Imperial world as Corellia and she wouldn't be surprised if the Sith or its related followings were behind such things.

She wondered how many of her friends in the slums on Corellia were picked off by the sith for their experiments, it was something she didn't want to think about but the possibility of that happening was very real to the Jedi Master. "I was hit by friendly fire." she told him, really not wanting to let those memories intrude, her hand rubbing along the scar on her back; she had made habit to only touch that one since the other was closer to her bottom. "Nothing as intense as psychopaths torturing children." she smirked, trying to find some light in such a frightful experience, however, she felt herself looking at his chest a bit too much and for too long.

Arda grabbed his tunic and handed it to him, "Though if you don't want to talk about it, its best that I don't see it." she told him with a nod in her own approval of her decision.

@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix shrugged at her prying, but he felt a compulsion to tell her. His brow furrowed and his gaze may as well have been a million lightyears away. "Well, first off, my name's just Crix." He flashed her an apologetic smile. "Dolan's just the name I wrote down on my registration." He considered dropping it there when she mentioned the distinct difference in their scar's appearance and chuckled when she mentioned the darkside. Crix nodded saying, "Yeah, it is," with the nonchalance of someone answering a simple question.

Unable to bring himself to face her as he spoke, Crix looked up toward the roof of The Rambler and said, "I'm an orphan, don't remember my parents, have no clue who they were..." he swallowed feeling really uncomfortable. "My first memories are of deep purple lightning..."

Crix recalled everything he could while describing the terrors of his childhood. From extensive Sith electrotherapy to near starvation, and long stints of complete isolation. "I have no idea how long I was kept there... time doesn't really mean anything to you when torture is the norm," he scoffed trying to hide the pain the memories resurfaced in him. He could see her attempting to get a better look at his chest so he turned and faced her.

He took a deep breath his chest rising and falling so she could see the corruption marbling his across his skin. The flesh itself was completely intact, but it was decorated with what looked like ruined veins stretching across the upper half of his torso. The center of his chest, around the solar plex, was black as pitch and as the scarring extended outward it gradually faded to deep shades of purple and then varying shades of blue.

"I know it looks gross, but it doesn't hurt. You seem curious, do you want to touch it or something?" he chuckled. Then realizing he hadn't finished his story said, "Honestly, I don't know how I got out, or what happened to the person that did this, I'm just glad I made it out alive."

He felt drained but in a good way. Like he'd been carrying a burden he hadn't known about and sharing his story with her somehow lifted it from his shoulders. "Well, there ya go, that's my sob story," he laughed adding, "Maybe if I get famous enough they'll make a holovid after it!"


@GABA

 

[Arda Breaux]

She gave a disapproving scowl when he said he lied on his registration papers about his last name, though it was too late, she attached Dolan to his identity and he was certainly keeping it for a while. However, he continued, explaining what he remembered what had happened, even more to Arda's horror was the fact it was caused by the darkside, and it left her jaw agape as he seemed so nonchalant about it.

As he continued, he didn't look at her, she tried to search why, looking for reason of embarrassment, shame, or pain, but it could have been all of those things, it certainly something that was not shared often, none struck her more than the other as she felt the Force around him. He spoke as though being an orphaned bothered him, but could understand the pain and shame he could feel from his first memories that involved being tortured for who knows how long. She rested a hand on his arm, her own way of letting him know she was there and to remember he was in the present and the past no longer could be here. Her eyes fell back on his chest and he told her she could touch it. Arda's face turned the brightest shade of red before she even could control any of her feeling and quickly withdrew her hand, cupping her hands onto her cheeks in an unsuccessful attempt to hid her cheeks.

"I-uh, I am glad you got out also, you are more than just some kid from the streets you know." she told him with a stupid grin trying to find her Jedi Master composure. "Perfect sob story though for when you make it onto Galaxy's Got Talent!" she was rolling horribly over her thoughts, trying to recover, but instead of running away like she really wanted to do, she reached out and finally touched his scar. The Force flowed through her, pouring from her finger tips as she slowly traced the veins, seeming a little more calmer that she got over herself, falling a quiet for a few moments before speaking again.

"I am glad you were able to survive, to escape." she said with sincerity and then paused looking up at Crix, "In my village growing up, we looked for ways to explain odd ailments by how they looked in nature around us. We had white flowers with purple veins, starting in the center and grow outward..." she traced her finger from the center of the scar and out across his chest, "And the elders would require you pay homage to the god who created these flowers because he protected you, as this scar is a reminder of his work." Arda looked up at Crix, a small smile formed as she felt good recalling the old stories from childhood.

@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix couldn't help but smile at the crimson hue that colored the grandmaster's expression. He hadn't felt this close to someone since Leah, and honestly is scared the shab out of him, but talking to Arda was surprisingly easy. Sure, she tried to maintain the veil of perfection, but when it came down if even for a moment was more than enough for him. She tried to recover by agreeing with him. Escaping the clutches of a crazy person was something to be celebrated. He admired her smile a moment and then laughed in agreeance with her.

"I'd get a golden buzzer for sure," he said with this lopsided grin. He leaned against the railing relishing in the forbidden emotion and then found himself blushing like a fool as Arda called his bluff. Her fingers carefully reached out and touched his ruined flesh. The force permeated through her and a soothing coolness spread throughout his chest. He swallowed, fighting a sudden urge to pull her close.

"Er, thanks," he responded dumbly running a hand through his hair and smiling.

Arda's words were more impactful than she'd know. When Leah left the order Crix had felt lost. Hell, he'd basically dropped off the map for a bit, before he got the call to head to Nubia. The Smuggler had never truly felt like a member of the rebellion or the order, but now he reluctantly concluded the fault had been his own. His emerald eyes locked on to hers and he opened his mouth to speak but before he could the keening squeal of Peetwo came careening into the main hold.

"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!!" cried the little astromech. As he shot past his domed head turned to focus on them and blurted a confused boop right before it crashed into the wall. He warbled a string of obscenities as he wobbled precariously before falling over. Crix's eyes were wide with surprise and reluctantly he pulled himself from Arda's touch. He rushed to the little droid and helped it back on to it's tracks.

"Peetwo!?" he said attempting to shake his desire form his mind, Peetwo didn't overreact unless something really bad was about to happen. The Droid chittered urgently and then made a snide remark that caused Crix to blush and shoot a sideways glance in the grandmaster's direction, before saying, "Shut up!"

The little droid's dome rotated a 360 and he stamped his little tracks while warbling petulantly, suddenly Crix was up bolt right and sprinting for the cockpit, "C'mon!" he beckoned to Arda on his way out. Peetwo beeped indignantly and followed behind.

As he closed in on the front of The Rambler he noticed a tumultuous stirring in the force and it nearly stopped him in his tracks, but knowing he had to get to the console kept his legs moving. Crix jumped into his seat, completely forgetting his shirt and jacket. Peetwo rolled up right behind him and connected to the ships main computer. "Hang on!" he called over his shoulder.

On the count of three, the duo brought the ship out of hyperspace ship and Crix immediately sent the ship into evasive maneuvers. His mouth was pinched in a tight frown as he narrowly avoided a cluster of asteroids that appeared before them. Peetwo kicked on it's mag tracks and locked into place just as Crix sent The Rambler into a corkscrew maneuver. He deftly piloted the ship through the treacherous terrain before them and after a few tense moments, they were clear.

His lopsided grin returned and the tension that had set in his shoulders relaxed. He affectionately patted Peetwo's dome and looked back to Arda, "That was fun," he said giving her a little wink and then looked back out the viewport. Before the light freighter lay the mysterious planet of Atollon. Crix's mouth hung open in stunned surprise as he beheld the crimson planet. He looked back to Arda and said, "Do you feel that?"

@GABA @Nefieslab

 

[The Storyteller]

The planet of Atollon was nothing but that - a planet.

Therefore it was completely incapable of feeling emotions or reacting to anything that came towards it. The planet was just a planet and that meant it just hung there in it's orbit and it waited for whatever was coming it's way to interact with it in some way. In the case of the ship that appeared from hyperspace it was that it had come out of hyperspace too close to the planet and was now stuck in it's gravity.

Usually a ship such as the freighter would have no issues activating it's engines to escape the insistent tug of gravity. Unfortunately for Crix and Arda, the planet Atollon had something living on it.

Something that was capable of reacting.

The Force reached out from the planet below, encompassing the ship for a second. It washed over the ship and both Jedi with almost no effect. Only a Force sensitive would even be aware that anything had actually waved over them at all. It had had almost no actual effect.

Almost.

There was an ominous click within the ship as the power cable running to the engine was disconnected.

The gravity of Atollon did it's job, dragging the freighter in to the embrace of the planet even as the power cable was disconnected and kept from being reconnected by an invisible Force that stopped it from closing up again.

@Zay @GABA

 

[Arda Breaux]

She noted how his cheeks reddened and how he ran his fingers through his hair when he felt a little uncomfortable; but it wasn't a bad uncomfortable, she could feel it in the Force as much as she could read it from his face as she finished her story. From his scar, she looked back into his eyes and gave a small smirk to how silly she sounded and possibly how dumb his smile looked, but the moment, there was something just silly and dumb about it all and she didn't think she could leave his gaze. He had started to say something when his droid came flying into the main hold, and Arda suddenly realized how close she was standing and stepped back; her focus returned to her Jedi Master visage and as his attention was drawn to the droid. She slipped out, around the door, waiting for him to figure out what was wrong with his droid. The Jedi Master rubbed her cheeks, pulling on the Force to clear her mind of fairy tale thoughts, thinking how silly that had all been and the issues that could rise if it were to continue, especially during critical hours of the Alliance's efforts.

Crix came out of the hold, gesturing for her to follow, something was not right and her senses reached outward. As he took a seat in the pilot's chair, she took a seat next to him, watching the stars return to stillness as the Knight quickly pulled out of hyperspace. Arda gasped as she realized where they had exited and for a moment she was suddenly very worried as the asteroid seemed to be magnetized to them, but, Crix's piloting skills were impressive and as they made it out of the path of the asteroids she felt herself relax. He turned to her with his grin, commenting on fun and Arda shook her head, "No, we need to find you a different fun..." she said leaning back in her seat, watching as Atollon grew bigger. He said something about feeling the world, but Arda didn't say anything because something didn't feel right as she heard a click within the ship.

"What was that?" she asked watching the lights blink on and off on the console. However, what was more critical was Atollon had them in its hold, pulling the ship closer to its surface, "Crix..." she said with a worry undertone as she glanced at the Knight. She reached within, she trusted he would do what he can to land, but that landing was going to hurt, and she was ready to act to protect him as much as she could.

@Zay @Nefieslab

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix frowned as the ship's controls stopped responding. Atollon's embrace was pulling them toward it's surface and while that was their ultimate destination, this wasn't the way he wanted to land. "Peetwo?"

The Jedi couldn't shake the strange feeling he'd felt wash over them. Arda asked about the click and Crix could only respond with a small shrug. He felt almost like he recognized the signature, but he couldn't place the feeling. Peetwo warbled a negative and Crix's frown deepened. The Rambler was beginning to gain speed as it was led toward the planet.

There was no time to look for the malfunction. Without Peetwo narrowing the search they'd be dashed upon the unforgiving grounds of the planet before he even came close to finding the problem. Arda's worried tone wasn't helping the stress of the situation and the only thing he knew to do was to consult the force. Closing his eyes, Crix opened his mind to the omnipresent power searching for anything out of the usual.

At first, there was nothing. Only the ambient sounds of the cockpit could be discerned.

Closing out everything else he emptied his mind and examined the situation. That's when he noticed it, a small nearly imperceivable ripple in the chaos of the moment. The Jedi's eyes snapped open and he lunged for ship's main computer housing. He pulled off the paneling and began systematically rifling through the wires.

The ship was hurtling toward the planet's surface now, fully engulfed in Atolloan's atmosphere. The ship bucked and dipped wildly and Crix struggled to stay on his feet. He was running out of time and beads of sweat began to form on his forehead as the stress of failure weighed on him. That's when he found it, in the very back of the ship's main computer there was a disconnected cable. Throwing caution to the wind he reached in and reconnected the cable.

Peetwo whistled triumphantly and Crix bugled a victory call as he jumped back into the captain's seat. The controls responded to his grasp and he guided the ship through the planet's atmosphere. He shot Arda a cocky grin and gave her a little wink saying, "See we're fine, totally fine!"

They broke through the skyline and the crimson rocky landscape came into view. He couldn't shake the feeling he'd been here before, but he'd obviously set foot on the planet. Instead of letting himself get worked up, he looked to Arda and said, "Any idea where we should land?"


@GABA @Nefieslab

 

[Arda Breaux]

Arda was not liking this at all and though Crix worked to keep a cool face, she knew he was just as worried. The ship creaked under the pressure and speed that they were descending to the atmosphere, the lands becoming visible as the Knight worked to figure out what was wrong with his ship. The Jedi Master though was also working, keeping her mind calm as she reached inside, ready to use the Force even if it meant to give her last breath to make sure he survived. Her fingers dug into the edge of the flight console as she glanced from Crix to the growing landscape of Atollon.

Though there was a significant hum that came from the engines as Crix quickly returned to the pilot with a cry of success and Arda felt relief rush through her body. Her fingers relaxed and she leaned back in her seat as he reassured they were fine; raising her eyebrows and turning to glance at him, she couldn't find any words other than "By the Force, Crix..." and shook her head, rubbing her face with her palms, "I feel entirely sick now..." she told him, the adrenaline clearly taking an adverse effect.

He inquired where he should land and Arda leaned forward pointing over to a clearing that would work well for their ship and upon landing, Arda couldn't get off the ship fast enough, returning her feet to the sweat earth of Atollon, and soiling it as she found a stone to vomit her nerves behind. She had never felt so distraught over a flight before and she couldn't help to start question this. Once feeling she was done, she sat on the ground, letting herself roll back until she laid flat on the dry sands of the mystery world, recalling her own visit several times here and wondered if she should possibly have Crix continue forward on his own.

@Zay @Nefieslab

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix still couldn't shake the feeling that he'd been here. He was positive he'd never set foot on this planet before and after quickly surveying his surroundings The Jedi seriously doubted anyone had set foot here before. He gave Arda a few minutes of privacy as she rushed for a big rock and began to hurl. Crix stifled a laugh and then felt a little offended she'd been so worried, he'd totally fixed the problem in time.

Deciding shirtless wasn't exactly the best idea on a desert planet, The Jedi donned his Scout Armor and wore his gunbelt around his waist. The belt supported his three main weapons, The Quickdraw blaster, His renegade heavy blaster, and his lightsaber. It was too hot for his usual leather jacket and he'd reluctantly decided to leave it on his ship. He made his way over to the rock Arda had taken refuged behind and asked, "How ya feeling?"

Obviously, she'd just been throwing up so it couldn't be great, but he hoped she was alright. That kind of entry can be jarring to anyone even if they were the grandmaster of the Jedi order. Crix decided to step around the rock and offered her his hand to help her up, but wouldn't be offended if she declined. Their surroundings were stark and reminded him of an, even more, barren Tatooine. Little crustaceans looking critters scurried about as he tried to find his heading.

"So, any idea where we're supposed to go?"


@GABA @Nefieslab

 

[Arda Breaux]

Arda could feel Crix's presence grow until he stood over her and Arda opened one eye and then the other to look at him with the glow of the sun behind him. Offering a hand, the Jedi Master gave him a small grin and took it, allowing him to help her stand, "I think I ate some bad rations or something..." she grumbled and brushed the dirt off her robes. She was still a little shaken, but knew once she started walking, her nerves would settle. Arda looked around, it was just as barren as all the times she had been here, but she knew the general direct that they needed to go and again, Arda knew this journey was for Crix and could only guide him.

She turned and looked at Crix and sighed, scratching her head and then folded her arms before her without giving a clear answer if she knew exactly where to go. Closing her eyes she reached out with her senses, feeling the balance the world created and she knew the Bendu was present. "We should go that direction..." she pointed, gesturing their path, "I feel something, do you?" she asked leading the way into a dense pocket of coral trees.

Carefully not to trip over the dokma, she made sure Crix followed, "Have you heard anything else from your caller?" she asked him curious to know if the Bendu had continued to reach out to him, she wouldn't be surprised if it stopped for now, they were here, he just needed to arrive at the Bendu's valley where he resided.

@Zay @Nefieslab

 

[The Storyteller]

Crix and Arda had landed but it was not, by any stretch of the imagination, a happy landing.

Indeed, they had landed on the planet but the planet was not happy that they were here at all. Their ship had come to a halt in an area without any geographical hazards; but with more than a few biological hazards. Namely, they had crash landed in the middle of the nesting grounds for the local Krykna population.

And they were, as they ever were, hungry.

Through the Force, they would sense the unbridled hunger and hatred that the spiders held for them as their latest source of food. Truly, there would be no respite from the spiders now that they had identified Arda and Crix as their meal. Bursting up from the ground, four of them advanced on the Jedi in a charge, their toughed hides strong enough to ignore blaster fire to all but their weakest points.

However, there was another source of information in the Force, one that Arda knew well and one that Crix had been hearing in his dreams for some time now.

'Come to me.'

@Zay @GABA

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix's smile broadened as Arda took his hand. Her mention of bad rations forced a retort, "Sure, bad rations, that we both ate."

Crix kept her hand in his a moment remembering the moment that'd been ruined on the ship. He reluctantly let go as she gestured in the direction they needed to head. As they walked Arda asked about a feeling and Crix opened himself to the force noticing what seemed like... malice? That didn't make any sense, could a place permeate an emotion? Had they landed on a Darkside nexus?

"Yeah, it feels like the sand under our feet is pissed we're walking on it," he laughed at how ridiculous that sounded and kept on. Arda asked if he'd heard from the living thunderstorm and he shook his head, "Not yet, but I feel like I've been here before." As he spoke he noticed the emotion he'd felt before was growing... and it was ravenous. He whipped around just as four huge spiders burst out of the ground and charged them. Crix looked to Arda, smiled jerking his head toward their heading and took off running.

"Ugh, I hate spid--" he stopped mid quip when he heard the command.

"Come to me."

The force reverberated with the beings presence and the jocularity in the Jedi's visage disappeared. His brow furrowed and he pulled his Renegade Blaster and his lightsaber. He really did hate spiders, but he wasn't going to waste ammo on a bug when he was preparing to fight a force of nature.

Snapping out of his dower contemplation he looked to Arda and said, "Let's see what you can do, Master"

@GABA @Nefieslab

 

[Arda Breaux]

Arda glanced at her own feet when he mentioned how angry the world felt and she frowned, the world felt angry since they arrived within the grasp of the system. It was like they interrupted an old man's nap and she was ok with that, the Bendu probably slept too much. She glanced at Crix when he said he thought he felt as though he had been here also and she raised her eyebrows with a smirk, "Same." though, Arda knew for certain she had been here many times and her own grin may have carried a bit of coy to it. It was with that did they discover why the sands beneath their feet felt angry and the spiders arrived.

"Huh..."

Crix's smile showed more of his unease being in the presence of the spiders, hinting that they should get out of the area as fast as they could, though before she could respond, she heard the Bendu's voice echo in her head and she grinned recognizing the Bendu's voice.

"What I can do?" she looked from him to the spiders and back again, her demeanor was calm compared to Crix's, seemingly not bothered by the giant spiders, "They're just spiders..." she backed up a few steps, but they seemed to be drawn to Crix's anxiety and worry as he drew his weapons. She didn't draw her weapons, "Why don't you light them on fire? Isn't that the reasonable thing to do?" she asked calmly, taking on the sage-like Jedi Master role. The Light of the Force drew to her palms releasing a blinding light, their eyes sensitive to the flash and sent them scurrying away from the two Jedi.

"Simple..." she gave him a wink, it was almost as though she knew that would work.

@Nefieslab @Zay

 

[The Storyteller]

The spider beasts of the planet were hardly the kind to be called intelligent or sentient but they had some cunning and some smarts to them that separated them from the more simple beasts. Unfortunately for Crix, one of the things that they had learned to do was to see who was armed and who was not. Crix was hardly the first person to encounter this colony with a blaster pistol in hand so they recognized it.

They recognized it as a weapon.

The spiders already above the ground shrieked in rage but also... also calling out.

Answering their cries, the ground between the four large spiders opened up. For a second there was nothing but the darkness of a hole in the ground - and then the shadows moved. As one, a tidal wave of smaller spiders began to march forwards towards Crix. They were smaller than the four main spiders (which were the size of adult humans) but they were still bigger and more venomous than typical spiders (roughly the size of a man's head).

As one the tidal wave and the four man-sized spiders charged at Crix to drag him to their lair to be eaten alive slowly.

@Zay @GABA

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Spiders.... it HAD to be spiders... Crix thought as he came to halt, turning and seeing Arda banish the initial wave with only the force. He suddenly felt foolish holding weapons, but then again she was the grandmaster for a reason. As the first few were rebuked they let out a shrill cry that made the hair on his arms stand up and shiver run up his spine. Through the force, he could feel their unbridled rage directed toward him and... only him.

What did I do?! he thought mournfully as the literal ground split before him and vomited a tidal wave of creepy crawlies. Arda's question about lighting the gross arachnids on fire wasn't a bad idea, but just because he didn't like them didn't mean they deserved to die. He just wanted them to not be around him like ever. As they rushed him he noticed that Arda still wasn't armed and on a whim he holstered his blaster and clipped his lightsaber to his belt. He closed his eyes and opened himself to the force in an attempt to exude calm. He could feel their ravenous hunger and the idea of being overwhelmed by their insatiable appetite wasn't exactly comforting, but it felt like the right thing to do.

He began to gather the force to him. The Knight prepared for the worst as the tidal wave encroached, but his anxiety was gone, he was one with the force and even his irrational fear for the spiders faded into the background. The Jedi hoped he wasn't accepting his death, but this was the path he'd chosen and he was confident in his interpretation of the force's will.

@GABA @Nefieslab

 

[Arda Breaux]

The first four spiders retreated, but she could feel the fear radiating off Crix as he was trying to gather himself and figure out what he could do next time. However, next time would come quicker before Arda could offer some sagely advice as the ground opened with a horde of spiders that were still attracted to the Knight. She watched as he put away his weapons, and the girl grinned seeing that he may have been catching on to something that he sensed with her. With his eyes closed, she could feel the peace that grew inside him, accepting his fear, and though he didn't like it, it would let it come.

The spiders, Arda knew, were attracted to the negative emotions, calling them like a beacon to its source, now for Crix, there was an underlying fear of spiders and though she thought it was silly since there were far worse things in the galaxy to fear, it was a very uncomfortable reality for him.

She took a few steps back, her presence fading knowing this was a trial he would have to face on his own; she would not be by his side at all times nor would have anyone else except himself. Even the things that made one the most uncomfortable, a Jedi had to learn and to accept those feelings and better understand the reasoning for such fears. For all Arda knew he could have been a toddler who woke with one on his face and has been living with the fear since then. Her steps were just as silent as her own presence in the Force, barely making a ripple, several of the smaller spiders scurried past her as she made her way to the Bendu.

Her own curiosity as to why he was calling perked her interests, hoping there was something she could do to help in her role as the grand master.

@Zay @Nefieslab

 

[The Storyteller]

The spiders did not stop.

However, the decrease and then complete stop to the negative emotions meant that they were no longer on the warpath. What they were, however, was on the move. The tidal wave of spiders reached Crix but without any kind of malicious intent. So what did they do?

They ran up and onto the young Jedi.

Dozens of spiders settled themselves all over the young Jedi, settling in for a small nap after their flurry of activity. Legs upon legs touched and gently tickled at Crix's skin as spiders nestled in his hair and all over his face. One of the large spiders sat itself down beside him.

And, being completely at ease, it began to lay it's eggs against his right leg.

The Bendu's presence was further out, calling out to both Crix and Arda but only Arda was really in any position to continue on her way towards it.

@GABA @Zay