A massive cataclysm has struck the universe, and destroyed most everything in its wake. The survivors are now trying to pick up the pieces, and figure out exactly what has befallen them. Gather together, lightsiders!! The darkness has shattered the peace and calm of the galaxy...and they will do anything to stop anyone from finding out exactly what has been done! This is our first sitewide RP plotline. Lightsiders, you are looking for the source of this massive event. Clues must be found, lackeys tracked down, and bits of memory discovered. Darksiders, you guys don't want that to happen....because of the one behind the whole thing is furthering his ultimate goal. Mandalorians, and non-force users, you guys can decide where you stand on this line....do you side with the Jedi, and try to discover the reasons behind the ruined universe, or will you side with the darkness, and protect those secrets. Will the secret of the cataclysmic reaping be kept under wraps? Or will the Jedi and their allies find out the truth? Your RP and writing will decide the outcome!
BATTLE ARENA
Welcome to The Saga Continues. We have a section called the Battle Arena. Here you can use your characters to fight other characters. Hone your skills and see what you are made of. Don't worry, anything that happens here, does not effect your characters in posts, so if your character dies, you can still use them over and over. Have fun and check it out!
The Saga Continues is the product of the mind of ADMIN ADI; all contents are copyright their original owners. All characters belong to their original creators, and may not be used or replicated without permission. All images are copyright their original owners. This skin Operation Mindcrime was made by pharaoh leap of Pixel Perfect and put together by ADMIN KRYSTAL
Alcide chuckled when she gave her answer finally. At least the trip would be entertaining at the very least. The trip to Honoghr would be long, and boring wasn't good when you were in the depths of hyperspace.
The darksider heard a beep from his communicator, and he opened the channel. The man he had hired to find suitable transportation had come across an abandoned shuttlecraft, equipped with a hyperdrive, and a fairly decent cargo bay. That, and it wouldn't cost an arm and a leg. While public transport, along with bartering for passage aboard civilian vessels, had been fine for the most part to get to where he was, after the supposed attack on Honoghr, there wouldn't be anyone going there anytime soon.
Turning to Addison, Alcide gave her the jist of the plan.
"My next stop is Honoghr, a bit out there in the Eastern Outer Rim. The person I'm looking for was last reported to be there. I'm hoping he still is. Get your gear, and meet me at the hangar in an hour. I have a ship ready to go, along with a pilot to get us there.
It's time to blow this popsicle stand, eh?"
A smile crossed his face as he showed her where the ship was in the hangar via his datapad. Once she knew where it was, he would make his way back to his quarters, and do as he had told her.
In the rear the shuttle, Alcide was helping the pilot with pre-flight checks. Alcide was in the cargo bay, checking some of the replaced seals around the main hatch. Once he had completed the check, he went to his datapad, and opened up the file where he kept the information on his latest target. It had been an unknown person who put up the ten-million credit bounty on the head of one Adieumus Matango, and it was a job that Alcide was all too happy to take.
It was, after all, the same bounty whether he was brought in alive...or dead.
The sound of his voice reverberated off the walls, echoing from a dozen different directions. It would sound like an echoing, hollow version of his voice....a slight mocking tone to it. He leapt from the platform to the next, and the next, growing ever closer to her position. He dared not move TOO fast, or the active camouflage would start to blur, ruining the invisibility. The HUD on his helmet detected more incoming.
Apparently, the training program was tired of getting beaten up. It had sent six droidekas in, fully shielded. These were no holoprojections, they were the real deal. Alcide had forgotten that the AI that ran this training facility did not like to get beaten like they were today.
This was the price for being so damn good.
Alcide enveloped himself in the force, the river of endless power raging inside him. He jumped from platform to platform, grabbing an overhead bar to accelerate his forward momentum. The force propelled his muscles to work harder, and he moved more rapidly with every step. It didnt matter anymore if the active camo was blurred...he was moving that fast. From about twenty meters away, Alcide saw something interesting....another weapons locker. Inside was something even MORE interesting....A Z6 rotary cannon.
A wicked half-smile curled across the assassin's face. This was gonna be too easy.
Dashing over to the locker, Alcide grabbed the mesh wire in front, and tore the doors from their moorings. He reached in, and picked up the rapid fire minigun-style blaster. He checked the power pack, and found it to be full. The shields around the droidekas would block some of the bolts...but it had enough firepower to reduce the shields to nothing in a matter of seconds.
He hastened himself over to where the HUD showed the movement of the rolling droids, looking for anyone they could find. Firing off an intentionally-wide burst to get their attention, Alcide whistled sharply to draw them his way. All six stopped rolling, immediately bringing their shields up. They couldnt see anyone, they knew shots had come from this direction. From out of nowhere, the Z6 began to bark. The first droid was hit more times than Alcide could count, and its shield went down in about three seconds. As soon as it had, the droid was torn to pieces by the heavy blaster rounds.
The others, as stunned as droids could be, managed to start to return fire at the unknown enemy. All they had to go on were blue bolts of plasma flying at them. Alcide, however, was already on the move. He would fire a burst, then move. Again, and again, he repeated the procedure, each droid dropping before they even had close to a bead on the man firing at them. Within thirty seconds, they were nothing but a pile of smoking rubble.
He wasn't sure how Addison would have handled full-on shielded droidekas with the weapons she held. More than likely, she was able...but he wanted to show off a bit anyway. This was a good opportunity to let her see what a force user was capable of, when coupled with the right firepower. Shouldering the weapon, he deactivated the camo, and made his way over to Addison. As he approached her, the scene around them began to fade yet again to the plain room that they had entered.
::Simulation Over. Please proceed to the exit. Scores are available in the control room. Have a nice day!::
It almost came across as snarky....almost. He removed his helmet as he came into speaking distance of Addison, and smiled broadly.
"You did well. Better than I anticipated. Perhaps you and I might be able to strike up a partnership. I could use a good fighter like you. Waddaya say?"
Alcide, in a blazing burst of speed, drew an E-11 blaster from its hidden holster on his waistline in the back, drawing up to where it would almost look like he was bearing down on Addison to fire. While she had impressed him with her skills, she still had a lot to learn. He squeezed the trigger once, and a single blaster bolt sizzled through the air, directly past her left ear. An audible crackling sound filled the air, followed by a creaking, and a 'thunk' as the stealthed droid hit the floor.
"You missed one. Prolly should pay closer attention to your surroundings."
He spun the blaster on his index finger twice as he moved the weapon back to its holster. He then looked to his right wrist, and opened the datalink to the control room. Seeing a connection to the AI running the simulator, Alcide grinned, and spoke.
"AI Niklaus, let's take off the training wheels. Bump the level up from one to, say....five? That should give us some more realistic battlefield conditions. Set it up to be Imperial era Stormies. Throw in a few shocktroopers for fun, eh?"
A single beep showed confirmation, and Alcide turned to Addison.
"Now that we are done with the warmup....Watch and learn, Grasshopper!"
Two more clicks on his wrist datalink, and Alcide vanished from view. He had activated his active camouflage, and dashed away to a higher vantage point, leaving Addison to her own devices. She looked quite capable of handling herself, to be honest...and, even though it looked like it, none of the holoprojections were tuned to kill. It would only appear that way to the untrained eye. Not that getting hit wouldn't hurt, of course. What was training if pain wasn't involved?
A cityscape view spread out before them, projected into the massive room, with blind corners, high and low ground, and dark alleys. Alcide jumped up onto one of the platforms, and scanned the area with the heads-up display in his helmet. Six troopers in the signature white armor worn by Imperial Stormtroopers for a very long time were entering the battle, three armed with stun batons, the other three armed with F-11D blasters. An upgrade to the E-11, Imperials weren't known to have been using them, but it was a nice touch. For now, Alcide declined to engage, and just observe, waiting from his higher vantage point, hidden from view. He could stay like this for up to thirty minutes, waiting for the perfect time for them to pounce.
Now, he just had to see if she drew the group this way....
A wry smile crossed Alcide's face, and he nodded. Grabbing a small bag from the corner of the room, he slung it over his shoulder, and opened the door, waiting for Addison to exit.
The training facility was only one level down, and it was a quick jog down the steps, a right turn, and the pair arrived. Without even waiting, Alcide punched a few keys on the main panel. A room behind the glass came to life...a battle scene. Troops, vehicles, armored hovercraft...the whole works. With a side-eye glance at Addison, Alcide offered only the slightest of warnings.
"I don't do the easy training thing. You sure you are up for this? Wouldn't wanna see you get hurt, ya know?" Sure, the last comment was said with a bit of egotistical snark, but Alcide was a bit arrogant at the abilities he had. Then again, few, if any, were actually able to back up his words like the darksider. He reached into the bag, pulling out a small, cylindrical lightsaber hilt, wrapped in black cloth tape to cut the chrome flash. Clipping it to his right hip, he again reached in, and pulled out an armored helmet. Again, it was flat black, with the visor completely smooth....faceless.
It was exactly how Alcide did his job....a faceless wraith, hell-bent on eliminating any target he was given. He was damn good at his job too.
With a nod to Addison, Alcide turned and entered the training room. As the door came open, a stray blaster bolt streaked just millimeters past his head, striking the wall behind him. With a chuckle at how feisty the droids seemed, the darksider shot into the fray. The heat of battle had his blood running hot now, but his motions were deliberate, a ballet of destruction being conducted by a darksided demon. He was tearing through the battle droids, slicing one after another down in a vicious dance of death. His white bladed lightsaber looked a blur as it spun, snapping out to strike like a venomous snake. While it wasn't apparent, the force was building up within Alcide...the darkness bubbling, boiling, and roiling forth. Alcide was an uncaged beast, unleashed on the unlucky training droids.
Within just two minutes, the first wave of training droids was laying on the ground. They were now just smoking, sparking, burning shells of what they had just been...and Alcide had not even broken a sweat. Leaning against the wall, he pulled a bottle of water out of a small pouch on his belt. Taking a big gulp, Alcide cracked his neck.
That would do for a small warmup. It would only get tougher from here.
She had zoned out a bit, he could tell. His business was reading people, after all....he had to learn his target's habits, movements, and their actions until he knew them without thinking. Given a few words, and the chance to see how someone reacted when certain situations were approached. Something had triggered her to hit the 'deep thought' button. Lightly, he reached out, almost imperceptibly, trying to pull the thoughts from the top of her mind....skimming it, in essence.
There were the light scents of smoke, brimstone, and darkness, and the taste of evil, and hatred. Not everyone in the memory had the luxury of being welcome...but they were still necessary. He could feel the warmth of family, yet, he could sense the insecurity of fear. So many emotions feeding rapidly into one unknown...a dark, black hole from which nothing could be pulled. He had seen it before....either the memory was repressed, or it was sealed by another.
Either way, that made her slightly more dangerous. Alcide had seen the same thing in a few sleeper agents, and they turnedout to be killers without even knowing it. However, the feelings and emotions that were laid on top of that hole were far from artificial. The only way feelings like that were generated is if they were truly experienced.
"Nice to meet you, Addison." He crushed the smoke out in the ashtray, and took another gulp of the water bottle, finishing it. He stood up slowly, and stretched. "Tell you what...I gotta hit the gym for a bit, but if you want, we can talk more when I get back..." The blonde haired man cocked his head to the left, looking at her inquisitively. "Unless you wanna go along?"
She asked exactly what Alcide was figuring she would. His suspicions appeared to be correct...she was an untrained force user with a pull towards the darkness. Bogan would be pleased. It was now time to see just how curious she really was.
"You say 'Dark side' like it's a bad thing. Trust me, my dear....just because someone dabbles in the dark arts does not mean they are evil. That is a lie propagated by the Jedi, one they started millennia ago to make themselves seem righteous and good.
Believe me....they are not as 'good' as they portray themselves to be." Alcide reached into a drawer, and pulled out a pack of smokes. Pulling one out, he lit it, and laid the pack on the table beside her. "Have one if you wish." This would be a delicate explanation of things, one that sith had used to groom apprentices for generations. It had been used to explain the need for the darkness, and it had been successful many times.
"What most don't realize is that darksiders want much of the same as the ones claiming to cling to the light...peace, harmony, and the end of war in the galaxy. Our methods may differ, but the end result is the same, no matter which side you are on. You live, you fight, you suffer, you die. It's a cycle that both the sith and jedi have been trying to end for thousands of years."
He took a drag from his smoke, and exhaled. Drinking a gulp from his water bottle, he continued.
"I will admit, the Jedi have been more successful than the Sith, but only because their numbers were greater for so much longer. They did as all religions do, try to dominate their sphere of influence, and convert those that do not subscribe to their words. I obviously do not. Then again, I really don't feel that religious views should affect the way the force is viewed.
The Force is neutral. It doesn't choose sides...we do."
Those were words that burned as hot as plasma as Alcide spoke them. It was his father that had uttered them the first time he had heard them, in one of the many holovids his mother had shown him. While he did not share his father's brighter view of the universe, he did agree with that statement....and Alcide hated himself for it. Taking a breath, he realized that he didn't even know who this woman was yet.
"So now that I've bored you to tears, my name is Alcide."
Alcide was a little confused at first. Was this an act to get him to drop his guard? He couldn't sense any malice coming from this woman, more confusion, and curiosity. Perhaps she was using her emotions to get him to relax a little bit. That would make more sense than the alternative of her being a force sensitive, and not knowing what a darksider was.
He would play her little game. It wasn't like he wasn't armed, anyway.
"I'm Arkanian, at least half. But that still doesn't answer your question, does it? Come in. We can figure out exactly what it is you are asking, I suppose."
He was almost as confused as she was. Her aura was all over the place...she was definitely untrained in the typical sense. More and more, he was thinking she had a connection to the force, but didn't really know what it was, or understand how to use it. He stepped aside after a moment, and waved her in, motioning for her to take a seat. Reaching into the chiller, he grabbed two bottles of water. Offering one to her, he plopped in a chair.
"I'm just a traveler, wandering the galaxy to avoid catching that nasty flu bug that has been doing so much damage. I'm trying to find a place that is relatively plague-free so I can open a small repair shop."
It was a blatant lie. She would easily be able to look at him and see he wasn't a grease monkey. It -was- true that he was trying to avoid catching the plague, but that was about the only true part of his statement. She could sense things, it was apparent...but Alcide wanted to see how good she really was. You could tell a lot from a person just in a few words, and how they reacted to the conversation. So far, this woman just seemed a curious onlooker. However, he hadn't survived in his line of work for as long as he had by being naive. He knew that all of this could be a ruse to get close to him.
Trust no one...they were the words that Alcide lived by.
He had just been getting dressed to head down to the training facility,when a knock came at the door. Alcide's face gave a puzzled expression...he knew -no- one here. Honestly, he liked it that way. Anonymity was best for someone in his line of work. It wasn't exactly good for an assassin to have a known face.
Still, it was impolite to keep a guest waiting.
Walking to the door, Alcide gave it a tug, and it slid open.
"Yes?"
The intent, icy blue eyes that he shared with his father stared down from his 6'2" height. A dark-haired woman was standing there, looking a bit...intrigued? Scared? Curious? Alcide wasn't quite sure what, but it wasn't calm. Had she been sent here by his employer to check on the progress of his mission? If so, was she going to try to kill him for not having accomplished it yet, or even finding his target for that matter?
Caution was the word for now.
Alcide drew himself up a bit taller. He shared many things with his parents, including his father's build, and eyes. He had acquired his mother's intelligence, however. This had made for a dangerous combination many times for his foes. With a confidence earned through quite a few years of training, Alcide cocked his head.
Alcide had been on Carida for nearly a week now, the transport getting him here about two days later than expected. With the universe in the state it had been, public transportation had not been that reliable...but if you wanted to get somewhere unnoticed, it was still the best way to travel. The delay had been due to the screening for the plague, taking more time than normal to make sure no infected were making their way off-planet at the various stops.
It was annoying, but necessary. No one wanted to have to deal with an infected on board a small transport vessel....it would get messy.
The former military barracks had been converted to handle civilian traffic for now, being the largest place near the spaceport. The military here was not anywhere near full capacity, and in order to make a few extra credits, they had opened the barracks to travelers. Luckily enough, Alcide had enough in the way of funds where he didn't mind spending the extra to get a room here.
He had been searching the holoweb for signs of his father, and finding only the same thing....Nystao had been destroyed, the Red Dawn Medical Center with it, and Adieumus had been defending the complex. No one had seen him leave, and it was assumed that he was killed in the bombardment, or ensuing battle. No one really knew...Nystao was a wasteland after the Order of Ruin had attacked. While it was somewhat comforting to find out that Adi was dead, Alcide knew it probably wasn't true...Matango was notorious for escaping situations that few were able to.
Still, if Matango -was- dead, it was one less thing that Alcide needed to do. He would have to look into this 'Order of Ruin', and find out what they were all about.
Stretching out on the bed, he grabbed the remote for the holoscreen. After turning it on, he began flipping the channels. Most were static, being offline due to lack of staff, but there were a few that had reruns of old programs on. Leaving it on an old war show, Alcide began to drift off, half meditating, half sleeping.
So, the other force wielder felt him. The presence felt soft, feminine....yet tinged with darkness. They were trying to touch his mind...probing, seeking information.
...And beckoning him, almost seductively. It would have warmed his heart, if it weren't already locked up tight. Still...meeting another who might share the same viewpoints could never go amiss. Deciding that perhaps he should go see what this person wanted...or was up to. Perhaps they could help find who Alcide was looking for.
He removed his mask, donned a simple black short robe with black silk pants, and a simple pair of black slipper-style shoes. He ran his fingers through his hair and checked the mirror. As much as he hated it, he was almost a splitting image of his father. He truly, truly despised this fact, but it had played into his favor on more than one occasion. Being somewhat handsome, not to mention the ability to subtly influence emotions on top of it, definitely had its advantages. However, that was not the mission right now. Thinking it best to arm himself, the darksider grabbed a small pair of daggers, and tucked them into his waistband. Alcide exited his cabin, and made a left. The light touch of the force was leading him down a long corridor, the droids turning and putting their weapons down as he passed. Apparently, someone really wanted his attention....
...Caution though...behind darkness, there are always alterior motives.
It took almost five minutes for him to make the trip to the upper cabin from where he felt the 'beckoning' emanating. He gave three sharp knocks, and waited.
He was sitting in one corner of the small cabin he had managed to talk his way into. His mind was drifting...hyperspace travel was always so very boring. However, lately, Alcide Matrineou had been spending most of his time on board long-range starships to avoid the disaster the planets of the universe had become. He had seen firsthand what happened in the initial onset of the raging, rioting, violent phase of the infection. He had been on Coruscant when it had really taken hold. It wasn't a slow onset, either. In the span of just under seventy-two hours, there was a screaming, writhing mass of red-eyed demons, all hell-bent on destroying everything in sight.
It had not been an issue for the darksider to clear a path, however. The infected fell like so much rubble from the destroyed Senate Rotunda...or any other of a plethora of destroyed buildings....and he had just strolled away like the universe -wasn't- tearing itself apart at the seams.
That was three months ago. Now? The infection seemed to be slowing...or at least running out of victims. Alcide had inherited his father's immunity from the plague, vulnerable only to the infection spread from a bite. Since then, he had floated from space vessel to space vessel, bartering passage aboard whatever he could. This time, he had managed a pretty decent berth on board an Imperial Escort Carrier rescued from one of the major fleets before it had been overtaken by the infected masses. This ship seemed to be in perfect shape, albeit way understaffed. There were few beings on board that weren't droids....but that suited him just fine. He was in a small cabin toward the port side of the ship, one designed for a lesser officer. Apparently, the former occupant would not be needing it anymore...just like about half the known worlds in the universe.
Suddenly, a noiseless sound pierced his reverie, breaking his mind free from the thoughts racing through it. The silent whisper in the force caused the darksider's hackles to rise...it was an unfamiliar tickle, but it piqued his interest. He had no idea that there were any force users on board this ship. Now, he would have to introduce himself.
He could feel the darkness seep out in waves from inside him. At first, they were only a minor ripple...a drop in the surface of a calm lake. However, as he continued, they grew in their intensity. Not enough to actually do any kind of damage...but to anyone sensitive enough to pick up on them? They would feel like they were being enveloped in a dark, tight, binding shroud....almost suffocating.
It was a handshake of sorts, and Alcide wanted to show that he had a firm grip.