The Witching Hour

[Rhea]

The surface of Dathomir was as red as its atmosphere. Rhea was used to bleak worlds, but this planet was such on an entirely different level. After her recent excursion to Ilum, she was finally prepared to execute the next phase in her plan — and the endgame in the operation concerning young Vin. There was no doubt in her mind the girl would come. She was desperate for answers, especially after the incident in the cave. Now, it was just a matter of a waiting game.

Rhea stood in the clearing of a particularly dense forest. Jagged mountains rose on either side of her to the east and west. A red supermoon loomed behind them. She had been tracking a clan of witches since her arrival and she knew that she must be nearing their camp. There were rancor tracks all around and they were fresh. Rhea knew that meant she needed to be cautious. She also hoped that Vin — when she arrived — would have the sense to be discreet. The noise from the shi's engines would undoubtably rouse the rancors and, thus, the witches that rode them.

@Wit

 

[Vin]

Vin hadn't been sure about coming to Dathomir. As enlightening as her visit to Ilum had seemed in the moment, the more time she had spent reflecting on the events that had transpired there the more scared she had been. The insights she had gained seemed less insightful, the questions she sought answers were still unanswered, and worst of all Alais's claims about her had seemingly been proved true. For she had done exactly as Alais had said, let her curiosity get the better of her and do what she should not have done. The simple fact of the matter was that she had touched the dark side on Ilum, and it terrified her. What had convinced her to come here terrified her even more. She needed to know, and that meant that she had to see this through.

She had no idea what she was doing on Dathomir, much less where on the planet she was supposed to go. So after arriving in the system she had simply let her instincts take over and let the Force take the wheel. Soon enough she was flying over a forest, and when she noticed a clearing, she decided this was provably as close to her destination the Force was going to guide her. As the ship descended, she spotted a figure standing in the clearing, though she could not see clearly enough from within the ship to identify who it was. Having landed the ship, she pulled on her cloak, a dark rough spun thing, and made her way out of the ship. As the ramp descended she finally saw who the figure was, the old woman, Rhea. Vin had wondered if she had been somehow responsible for what she had experienced on Ilum, but she had no concrete proof. But somehow she wasn't surprised to see her here. For whatever reason, the Force seemed to have intertwined their fates, at least for now.

Walking up to the woman, she stopped at arms length and stared her in the eyes, trying to decipher something of her intentions. You were waiting for me, weren't you?

@Malon

 

[Rhea]

"I was." Rhea replied bluntly. "It has been some time. When I last laid eyes upon you, you were at the mercy of a woman who used to be your friend. Now, I sense you are... different. Changed somehow."

Of course, Rhea was lying; and perhaps the girl knew that she was lying. She had gained somewhat of a reputation among the Jedi and the Dark Jedi for being hard to read, manipulative, and a soothe-sayer. But Rhea paid those rumors no mind. The girl had fallen into her web and, like a spider, here she was to close the trap. She would turn here, on Dathomir, or Rhea would break her.

The older, Master Exile sensed that the girl's future was deeply entwined with Alais's own. For that, she needed to be brought to Prakith and be made to join the cell there. Still, there was some truth in what Alais had said upon Devaron. The girl, Vin, was useless if she did not find it within herself to fall and seek power. Dathomir, then, would be her test.

Reaching for one of the three lightsabers hanging from her belt, Rhea plucked one the girl might find familiar. She examined it momentarily before handing it over towards the girl. "This weapon once belonged to a friend of yours," she explained. "Do not mistake it as a gift, for everything has its price. The price of the weapon will be made known to you in due time."

A tremor in the nearby woods drew her attention. She glanced back of her shoulder. "In the meantime, your arrival seems to have alerted the natives and it would do me no good if you were unarmed. Prepare yourself. This planet will test you in ways you have never been tested before."

In reality, the test was orchestrated by Rhea. A test — and a dangerous one at that — which would force the girl to use the dark side or be captured. And, in so doing, Rhea would also get what she had come to Dathomir for. Two birds with one stone, she thought, as the saying went.

@Valen Pelora @Wit

 

[Vin]

Vin couldn't deny a bit of skepticism at hearing Rhea's reply, but she let it slip for now. Time would reveal all truths, for now there seemed to be more immediate concerns that needed her attention. Whether or not Rhea had played any part in bringing Vin to Dathomir, the older woman had some purpose for being here, and Vin had the distinct feeling that was not going to be anything simple. She was reminded then of a line one of the rouge princes in A Game of Crones often said, but she also recalled the misfortune that seemed to strike him whenever he uttered them and so she kept her mouth shut.

And that feeling just went from bad to worst as Rhea handed the blade to Vin. She recognized it at once, even though it was the first time she had ever set eyes on it. Saeros, this had belonged to the fallen Rishii. Rishii, she finally knew what he had been. She had spent the journey from Ilum trying to learn more about the Jedi who had fallen on Ilum, particularly the one who had visited her on Ilum. The intricate patterns on the hilt, the delicate design, with the knowledge she now possessed it was not hard for her to figure out that this had been Saeros's blade. And Rhea was giving it to her.

Taking the blade from in a surprisingly steady hand, Vin felt the cold metal in her grasp. The guilt was returning, stronger than before. Wasn't that price enough? What more did Rhea expect from her?

She had felt the tremor as well, and upon hearing Rhea's words she slipped Saeros's lightsaber into her right hand and pulled out her blaster in her left. First Ilum, now this, how many tests was she supposed to face? The tremors didn't quiet down, they seemed to be getting stronger, and the rouge prince popped into her head once more. This time she couldn't stop herself before the words slipped out of her mouth.

I got a bad feeling about this.

@Valen Pelora @Malon

 

[The Storyteller]

Dathomir was inhospitable. A barren world filled with dark forests, towering mountains, and hungry wildlife. The true danger of Dathomir was far greater than any little beast or scary tree. True power stalked the surface, and they were not fond of visitors. The Witches of Dathomir were notoriously wicked. They were out of a child’s fairytale. Powerful clans who wielded mysterious magic that mortals could not understand. They bent men and beasts to their will alike. It was unwise to offend the Witches. Unfortunately, they took offense to everything.

To trespass in a Clan’s territory was to accept your death. Rhea and Vin had wandered into the territory of the Misty Falls Clan. Rhea may have known the dangers, but Vin was about to face a rude welcome. The two Force users had been tracked the moment their feet crossed into Misty Falls territory. They were watched. Two of the Clan’s Witches carefully observed the women. They were accompanied by four of their non-force wielding sisters, and eight zabrak slaves. The slaves had a variety of crude vibroweapons. The Witches had only the Force, their sisters wielding bows. The small force was split evenly on both sides. First, they would test these trespassers.

The sisters each fired a shot from their bow. Two aimed towards Vin, two aimed towards Rhea. They came from opposite sides. One arrow from each side for each interloper. The arrows were fired from the trees. The sisters, zabraks, and Witches carefully concealed in the terrain they knew so well. @Malon @Wit

 

[Rhea]

Rhea's powers had increased since Devaron, and her senses and perceptions had sharpened along with them. Dathomir's natural dark side aura made it hard for even her to sense the witches themselves, but she sensed their intent as a shark might blood. As the arrows came at her from either side, Rhea did not so much as flinch.

Instead, she discreetly twitched one of her fingers, even as she reached out with the Force, and stopped the energy arrows mid-air, as though they were caught in an invisible net. Their momentum lost, Rhea was then able to let them drop uselessly to the ground.

She made no such move to save Vin. The girl was being tested and Alais was right about one thing: she did need to see out her own avenues to power. That meant that Rhea could not interfere, even if the girl's life were to be in danger. Instead, she turned the moment into a teachable one: "Cast aside your feelings about your predicament. Instead, stretch out and feel the intent around you. Only then can you begin to anticipate the actions of those around you, rather than simply reacting to them."

@Wit @Valen Pelora

 

[Vin]

Even though she was expecting trouble, Vin didn't have Rhea's honed senses to actually sense when the attack was coming. The only warning she received was movement at the periphery of her vision as one of the arrows crossed the tree line on its trajectory towards her. Acting on instinct, she dropped and rolled, coming to a stop on her knees a few feet ahead of her original position.

It was only then did she notice Rhea, exactly where she was, but with two arrows floating near her, held in place by the Force. Vin had not known what they were facing even she had acted to evade them, she had shot enough stray bullets to know that standing still would kill you, so fearing the worst she had moved. Her first thought had been silenced rifles, she hadn't heard the sound of a weapon discharging, but this was something new altogether. She had never seen anything like it.


Regardless of whether or not she found any answers here, she just might learn from new tricks, provided she got out of here with her life. Getting to her feet she grudgingly nodded in response to Rhea's suggestion. She might not like the woman, but Vin couldn't deny the wisdom in what she said. She opened herself to the Force and cast her senses in a wide net around her. The forest was teeming with life, and while she couldn't really make out their attackers from the animals, she should, in theory, be able to sense if one of the animals suddenly lit up with the intent of a killer stalking its prey.

@Malon @Valen Pelora

 

[The Storyteller]

The witches hissed silently in displeasure. Their sisters had failed them. They had expected, demanded the arrows to find a home in the fleshy bodies of the trespassers. The discovery attack was not a total failure. The elderly, saggy, woman was powerful in the Force. She managed to stop the energy arrows in their tracks. That was useful information. The younger one was far less skilled.

The child dodged the arrows with a forward roll. Her choice of defense spoke volumes. She was not confident in her abilities or the Force. She was not confident at all. The witches chortled their satisfaction. All they had to do was pry the girl from the old dusty woman. The sisters gave their orders. The eight Zabrak slaves stepped forward. They emerged from the tree line and brandished their weapons, waiting for the pair to make a move. The sisters drew their bows and waited. The witches silently observed. @Wit @Malon