Ask Upon Gravitational Pulses, A Sith Spawn!

[Scorpio Armegedon]

Upon a Dying World, in an unknown system at the edge of a Black Hole, a group of scientists studying the effects that Gravitational Disruptions have upon the Equatorial Space-time suddenly have gone quiet. Assigned to Scorpio, along with Alhazred, by Jedi Master Jung Ling, at the behest of an unidentified Investor, their mission is to travel to the dying world and figure out what went wrong. Exiting hyperspace at the edge of the system, Homesteader makes its approach at sublight speeds.

"We've got a few hours before we get there," Scorpio speaks briefly as he removes his hands from the control stick after setting the autopilot and turns to gaze upon the readouts amassing data through it's sensor array. "There doesn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary on the scans though. Everything's within normal range."

It's not to say that Scorpio wasn't exactly of a brilliant mind, but the levels of his understanding upon the subject matter at hand were bordering upon the level of dumbfounded. Then again, Scorpio's education was of average learning. Tatooine wasn't exactly Anaxis. Still though, he was learned enough to recognize the normalities of the effects a Black Hole has upon star systems within proximity. Minimal atmosphere, absence of life, and heavier gravity. And as a Scout Ship, Homesteader was set up to detect anomalies.

"Could be that seismic activity cut off communications or destroyed the facility," Scorpio concluded his observations and speculations, his gut aching with knots. Nothing of note showed anything out of the ordinary, and from what he saw during the briefing, the facility was built specifically for enduring this task. It left an uneasy feeling upon him. "But the plans included an Orbital Waystation. Surely someone was able to reach it."

With the planet coming into view, the astronomical object sat in pristine condition and seemed well preserved. Even the Facility planetside appeared intact as soon as the readouts came through and the data collected. But as the Homsteader moved to enter the upper atmosphere, all electrical systems short circuited and he and Alhazred soon found themselves barreling toward their own disaster.

A Forced Landing was the last thing that either of them expected, but Scorpio was able to land the ship with as little damage as possible deep in the planet's shriveled and decaying jungle. Rising from the cockpit, Scorpio looked outward across the unsheletered horizon. While most of the jungle within view remained, the effects of the minimal atmosphere were present upon the growth of the foliage. It slouched across the viewport of the cockpit and drooped starvingly. The investigation had turned into a possible rescue mission.

Tags: @Narzen @Akheron

 

[Trodai Narat-iv-Adas]

Trodai was not amused at his predicament, yet again finding himself in a situation he would rather not be in. And yet he had had come originally with a purpose. Old tomes had spoken of a artefact of value that the Order would find of interest out here, and he had originally been sent with more but they had not survived the crash as the ship malfunctioned and plummeted below.

It was a complication but not unexpected, he was getting used to such things.

He traversed the jungles with a cautious approach and hand, there was no telling what was out here. No doubt all manner of predator and prey were in this jungle and so he needed to keep his eyes and other senses sharp less he become somethings meal. As he walked he heard the sound of another ship, looking up in time to see it spiral into the jungle ahead. If they were here for the same thing he would aim to disappoint. Regardless he decided to investigate, afterall he needed a way off the planet with his own ship now a mangled mess.

He had taken only what he needed to survive.

With a sword he swung, cutting any plants that stood in the way. Being careful of his footing, he didn't need to step on something venomous if he could help it. In the Force he felt something....familiar. But he couldn't place what just yet and so continued, trying to make up for any lost time. The artefact was all that mattered, and besides he might find a way off the planet during the process of looking for it.

Time would tell.

@Narzen @Mythos

 

[Alhazred]

Alhazred brushed his face tendrils as one would brush a beard in thought. Before him, in the labratory section of Scorpio's ship, Alhazred studied the star map of the world, and the placements of local star patterns. While recently knighted in the Jedi order, his own personal beliefs on the celestial placements influencing or being influenced by the Force had not dimmed. Alhazred was thankful that Scorpio was willing to drive on this mission, as it allowed him to contemplate more on the situation.

"The Tortuous Thernbee is in full rise over this world..." Alhazred whispered as he walked around the starmap. "but the Hungry Howlrunner is also strong here. See how these stars almost ever so align with the planet's moons? It means its alone, and needing its pack. That is an interesting connection. And with the black hole's relation to the other parts in the system, it seems something interesting is here..."

On the ground, the tumor-esque thing inside the container wriggled excitedly. Almost smirked to himself. While he was speaking outloud to it, he might has well been talking to himself. It had only been a few weeks since the birthing, and the spawn had not yet developed any of its senses. And yet, Alhazred could not help but talk to it from time to time. True, he had practiced telepathy on it, but all he could communicate was basic images, nothing resembling words. It felt good to simply talk to it.

The map went dead, as did the rest of the ship. As the vessel began its descent, Alhazred jumped and wrapped himself around the container, protecting it with his body. When the ship landed, Alhazred looked it over and breathed a sigh of relief. No damage had occurred.

"Master Scorpio, what just occurred? Are we alright?" Alhazred asked when he got to the cockpit, the container on his back. A glance out of the ship, and Alhazred felt a shiver run up his spine. His star prediction of the world ominous words, and the jungles did not ease his mind.

@Trodai Narat-iv-Adas @Mythos

 

[Scorpio Armegedon]

Scorpio stumbled but for a moment as a sharp pain shot through his head and his equilibrium waivered. It didn't help much that he had a minor gash over his left eye from the beating he endured during the sudden halt. But, it wasn't his first crash, nor had it been his first or even third concussion. Seemed his head enjoyed being the first place of sustained injuries. Catching himself against the chair he rose from, he managed to correlate a response to Alhazred's question.

"Think we got hit with a natural occurring EMP." Scorpio said aloud as he wiped the wound on his head and laid against the chair as his balance restored its self in a momentary process, and focusing his inner sight. "I'm alright, but I've definitely sustained a minor concussion. My vision is foggy at best."

Motioning for Alhazred's aid until his vision would grow more focused and his balance would restore its self, he would outreach his arm and use the smaller more stout Nu-Vaal's shoulder as a guide and sturdy footing until the duo stepped out of the ship and upon the world's surface. A time elapse of roughly 5 minutes would occur, not to mention the effects that time upon a world so close to the void of a Black Hole would have against the time of the outside Galaxy, but enough that Scorpio was capable of stepping out of the ship on his own strength and sight. Needlessly the beauty of it was well taken in.

In the distance upon the twilighted sky, the low orbit of the Waystation was visible and off in the vastness of space, one could see the arching waves of light that gave Black Hole's an eye shaped formation even from upon its surface and feel the added weight of its gravitational pull. To stand upon such precipice had long been the dream of many, and the momentum of it was not lost upon the blind Jedi. As chaotic as the natural Force was in such a placement, it's wrought with the beauty that can be found in the appreciation of life before death. Truly, Scorpio's gaze upon the Force here held its own study of thought and possible effects that the natural order held upon such world's.

Ship appears to be space worthy, and most of the electric circuitry doesn't seem to be fried..." Scorpio spoke as he turned his gaze toward the ship and let his mind flow upon the inner workings. It wasn't up to the level of Mechu-deru, but his Force Sight was capable of allowing him to see through even the densest of metals. Add that with his knowledge of mechanical repair, and he could make a proper assessment. The power cells, however, were a different matter. "But we're on foot until we can acquire charged power cells."

Same went for their weapons and comms. Everything electrical had been drained of its power. Not that it hindered them much, as practioners of the Force. But their relationship with technology was dead in the water, basic survival skills becoming a largely bare necessity in this moment. And with all the interference both upon compasses and within the Force that the Black Hole was affecting, bearings would be hard to gather. In essence, they were blind.

Spoiler: @Narzen;@Akheron

All technology is drained of power, Bearings are all but impossible to calculate even with the Force

@Narzen @Akheron

 

[Trodai Narat-iv-Adas]

As Trodai traversed the jungle he found that the further he went in, the thicker the foliage got even as he cut down many leaves and plants in his way. And it was humid. He noted the unusual sky and weird creatures that passed him by, even as he found his electronics not working, which aggravated him to no end. He just hoped his lightsaber was still working.

He took a brief stop in a a more open area, checking the rest of his equipment and finding it was equally as useless.

Not even his compass worked which didn't bode well and the Force was acting very strange, with navigation proving next to impossible as the black hole messed with his connection. He didn't like this place one bit, more so the fact he was practically blind here and had to rely more on his other senses. His hearing, sense of smell and sight. Yet he found even though navigation wasn't possible he was able to use the Force to look ahead as he employed sparing use of Force Sight now and again as he walked.

The place was elusive, and he wasn't sure but he felt like he was being watched by something.

In the jungle and on a unknown, unlisted planet with no electronics, he hated it. And so he went forwards, doing his best you find a path.

@Narzen @Mythos

 

[Alhazred]

Alhazred rushed to Scorpio's side and assisted his recovery.

"You humans are very fragile I've noticed" Alhazred tried to joke. Still, it was half hearted at best.

A weak and distorted vision appeared in Alhazred's mind. Or rather, a feeling, originating from the Spawn on his back. A feeling of slight coldness of the skin, slowly but surely dropping in temperature. Alhazred shook his head as he realized how true Scorpio's words about the EMP were. Even the DX container's heating unit on his back had been depowered, and now the water housing his spawn was dropping slowly. He doubted it would reach a critical temperature, but the feeling of not controlling his spawn's growth unnerved him. If possible, he wanted to get a new power source immediately.

As Scorpio looked at the ship, Alhazred looked at the wildlife around him. This planet was unnerving in of itself. The decaying trees, the lack of noise from wildlife....it felt both dead but not dead.

"Are there other bases on this planet Scorpio?" Alhazred pondered outloud. "Or perhaps sources of energy that we could use to recharge our vessel?"

@Trodai Narat-iv-Adas @Mythos

 

[Scorpio Armegedon]

For one such as Scorpio, dependence upon the Force was similar to one who needed an environment suit, plausible without it, and yet required it to be unhandicapped in the overall scheme that was life. Here, though, on this world, he was boxed in, confined to a visual room where his life continued, unable to see outside of it. He could feel the death within approaching and encompassing all of it, leaving only the field of vision his mind's eye could fathom.

Blind to normality, despite the dead of the eyes which he had been born with that sat glazed silver in their sockets, he could see best within a kilometer of his location. Not the best of situations, but one he could manage within. It would limit his skill, however, as would they all find to ring true. If combat were to intervene, it would be enveloped in hand to hand. And this world, albeit void of life according to the scans and the reports, was largely unexplored.

There were always chance that scans miss something, and in truth, were the hopes of those whom had vested interests in this mission.... if worst came to worst. And yet, reality rarely chose to reward the hopeful, as in the distance of both groups, remained the last remnants of the planet's life. These spawn, remnants of Ancient ties with the Sith, were of few generations, only about a tenth of the time since their creation to guard the secret that the world of Enasha held.

But this was all unknown at this time, it's history locked away and about to be laid to rest without the Galaxy ever knowing it's secrets, or at least would have had if things had gone according to the Galactic Setting. Here, in the now, however, things had been set in motion to disrupt the entire setting. Turning to Alhazred, Scorpio replied to his questions.

"I'm honestly unsure. The encampment that was set up was supposed to be about two days south of where we crashed." Scorpio spoke, wiping the drying blood from his brow due the coagulation of the gash. "But I'm not entirely sure if my estimations are correct. I was only able to grasp a second of our fall before my sight was hindered. Could be closer or farther and in any direction at this point."

That was the dire situation of it all. And yet, the reality was a bit more in their favor. South was the direction, and it was only half a days walk. But here, upon Enasha, and without any guidance, it may have been an eternity if not for the fact that Sekura Moss grew on the Southside of the Manura Tree, and was a common variety of tree located across millions of planet's. And Sekura Moss was capable of living in zero atmosphere, something Alhazred might notice at first glance.

"It's the only site ground side. But should have what we need. I'm unsure about the planet's ruined cities." Scorpio sat down, trying to gather his bearing as much as possible for whichever choice they made. "But it's likely a day's walk on foot, north, in the opposite direction."

But in truth, it was much farther away, nearly three days. At least, for Scorpio and Alhazred. For Trodai, it was much farther. Trodai was roughly a hour or so from the Facility that had been set up on Enasha for the Research. And in between both groups came what the former residents called the Bekura Shi'Ni, or Children of the Forest. These foul beast were ancient, roughly halfway through their life cycle of a millennia with some of the elder Bekura nearly two thirds. A hunting party of the pack, that nestled in the decaying forest ahead.

Reshan, the ruined city to the North, held both power supplies along with secrets that pertained to Enasha and its former allegiance to the Sith nearly ten millennia ago. And Research Base Delta-Alpha 4927 Foxtrot, or Melannia by the researchers themselves, held neither. Only cells needed for the ship. Due to its positioning of the cliff face of a tall mesa, it was exposed to the gravitational pulse like the rest. Only the encased cells managed to survive. What an adventure this was turning out to be.

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Tags: @Narzen @Akheron

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[Trodai Narat-iv-Adas]

Despite the lack of technology and sense of direction, Trodai felt drawn to the north. As if the Dark Side of the Force itself was calling him that direction and yet he could not explain why. He was both curious and cautious. He decided to keep going and see if this feeling he felt led to somewhere beneficial given his current situation. He needed a way to get power back to his lightsaber or things were going to be very difficult.

He would have the Force but that alone would not be enough.

As he traversed he could hear sounds, beasts of some sort and so lowered himself as he carefully stepped forward. Attempting to avoid alerting the beasts whatever they were. Something told him they were not friendly, at least that's what he felt. There was a darkness here. Primordial and ancient he could tell. But from what.

@Narzen @Mythos