Trandosha: Hsskhor

The shuttle landed with a soft hiss from as it’s landing pads adjusted to accommodate the ships weight and a moment later the ramp lowered to allow the passengers to disembark. Most passengers were Trandoshan though there was a healthy amount of other races as well exiting the ship. Some returning from hunts, others traders that lacked their own ships that were scouting new trade opportunities, many were simply tourists. One passenger however wasn’t here for any pleasantries or returning home for that matter, as his home literally didn’t ‘exist’ in this universe. If people had been observant they would have noticed how this individual’s footfalls seemed to be heavier then they should and that’s taking in account of the heavy set nature of this individual. In fact the only reason people around him looked at him at was to regard him with a note of disgust, as a fat Trandoshan was obviously not warrior material and warriors were held in high regard in this culture.

In all honesty though, he didn’t like this form too well either as normally when he shifted his shape any extra mass would be shifted to the astral. He was in a completely different universe now, thus the astral equivalent of this place wasn’t compatible with his essence. Thus he was forced to cram it all into this body shape, leaving him with the feeling of being ‘squished’, uncomfortable and rather irritable. This irritability translated all too well on his face, which quickly convinced most people not to bother him. The first couple weeks he spent here in this universe he had spent not only studying the carvings of the cave he had initially emerged in, but testing to see what limitations he had now, being he was completely cut off from his home plane. Unfortunately he had discovered that he could no longer use a lot of his powers, especially many of the stronger ones. He couldn’t teleport anymore, which will make travel in this universe time consuming, but he could still manipulate his essence at will, allowing him to change his shape. However shapeshifting was now a more uncomfortable matter, as his current form revealed all too well.

Eventually he hoped he could adept his own essence to be compatible with this ones, perhaps he will even learn their method of manipulating the essence here, which would give him an added edge should any of his rivals actually decide to pursue him here. That will take time however and from the looks of things there may not be a universe to adept to soon if he couldn’t find a way to stop the destruction of the essence, or the Force as the locals called it. Hence his reason for being here: there were remains of an ancient creature here that may have clues as to the reason the essence of this universe was being damaged.

He quickly made his way out of the starport, pausing only log enough to get his bearings and determine the direction he needed to go. For the next hour or so he kept a tireless brisk pace, heading for the edge of the city. Yes he could have taken a taxi, but that meant he wouldn’t have been able to avoid having to pay for he ride like he did with the shuttle. Sure he could have ‘solved’ that problem though a violent means, but right now he’d rather not draw unneeded attention to himself.

The ‘Trandoshan’ didn’t stop once he reached the cities edge, keeping up the pace until he was a good enough distance from any possible onlookers. Only then did he stop and with a sigh of relief relinquish his Trandoshan form and return to his current ‘normal’ form. This was the same form he changed into when he first arrived in this universe: a multi-limbed, black with silver spines and claws, eye-less dragonish shape that was easily twice the size of the form he had just been in. He took a moment to stretch his limbs before taking to the air.

The site he was heading for was a fair distance from the capital of this planet, but there was little in the way of civilization in between. When he finally landed he was before a cave, one that any normal onlooker wouldn’t have given it a second glance. His senses though could detect the history in this place and the faint ‘scent’ of the last remnants of the creature he was looking for. With his wings carefully tucked to his sides, he entered the cave, some small lizard like creatures scurrying away at his presence. He could tell that the small animals had only recently started inhabiting the cave, some powerful force keeping all life from willingly living here for many eons until now.

It was in the deepest part of the cave he found what he sought, or rather what was left of it. A fine bone white power covered a large part of the cave floor and partly covering the bases of two pillars of stone. Thanks to the carvings on the walls of the cave he first arrived in, he knew the history of this creature: the promise a being not unlike gave it, how it died and how it was finally banished from the material realm completely. There were things only it knew though, things he needed to know, but bringing this creature back far enough to communicate with it will tax even his abilities, especially being cut off from his own plane like he was.

The ritual itself could not be done here though. No, it needed to be done in a place were the Force was strong. That itself was risky, as in many such places the Force was heavily damaged and prone to chaotic storms of raw power: he already learned the hard way that such storms were capable of injuring him. He believed he knew of one place that was relatively ‘stable’ and ironically it was near the center of this galaxy, where most of the damage has appeared thus far. At any rate, he needed to gather this bone dust to take it to that place, the bone dust being the conduit he will need to communicate with the creature.

He sat down and brought his two large forearms up and forward, palms up. Chanting in the native language if his kin, he used his powers to lift and separate the bone dust from the normal dust and dirt of the cave. Soon a cloud of this dust surrounded him and was then he brought up his smaller set of arms, putting them into a cup shape. His larger hands mimicked this move and the dust cloud started condensing between and over his outstretched arms. Tighter and tighter the cloud spun, until it was solid ball of bone roughly the size of a basketball and off white in color. This ball was then plucked out of the air with his smaller pair of hands, while his larger pair rested on the ground once more.

“What secrets do you have to tell me?” He asked it. “We shall find out won’t we?”

Corsucant

He stepped out of the spaceport and looked around. As far as he could see he saw nothing but skyscrapers of various shapes and sizes and zooming in numerous air traffic lanes were countless vehicles of all sizes. The whole planet was a city he was told and even here in the courtyard in front of the spaceport he saw the proof of that claim in the form of the masses of people that went along their business.

The dominant species here were humans, their clothing reflecting all walks of life. The most of the non-humans he had seen thus far here were obviously of the ‘poorer’ caste, though there were exceptions, those exceptions being the odd bounty hunter or mercenary. Even they however, received looks of distain, even disgust, from many of the human inhabitant. Some of those looks even came his way though in his case he could hardly blame them: the fat Trandoshan form he had taken was not even appealing to the Trandoshans. The only noticeable difference this time was the large case he carried in his hand, which was really just an extended part of his own essence to encase and protect the bone sphere he obtained on Trandosha.

Making his way through the crowd, he used his senses to locate the direction he needed to go and proceeded to the very edge of the courtyard, where a very long drop loomed ahead of him. In a place like this, walking was only feasible for short distances and like on Trandosha, he couldn’t afford to take a taxi. He seriously doubted he could have a taxi take him directly where he needed to go anyway. No matter as he had his own means of transport and these people were about to get what was no doubt the biggest shock in their lives in a long time.

He reverted to his preferred shape right there on the courtyard, as there really wasn’t anyplace close by for him to transform without being seen. It was the sudden need for more physical space that attracted everyone’s attention more then anything and for once the courtyard feel into almost complete silence. What no screams? He thought, looking back over his shoulder at the crowd. Disappointed, he was tempted to give them something to scream about, but decided against it. With the bone sphere safely cradled in his smallest pair of arms, he leapt off the courtyard edge and took flight.

His intended destination: the abandoned Jedi Temple.

What a dreadful chaotic planet this was. Hadn’t been flying for but a few moments and he was nearly hit by a vehicle twice already and he wasn’t even flying in the ‘air lanes’! The air here was like a swarm of angry bees, buzzing about looking for someone to sting just for any reason. The walkways and streets below him weren’t much better, for the closer one was to the surface of this planet the poorer and more desperate the populous was. Even at this height he had already seen several muggings and beatings, the usual chaos that influenced the poorest of the poor.

So far, he liked it here. Now if only there weren’t so many ‘tears’ in the essence of the universe here. He could see them, the wounds in the Force, because he was a being that was born of a very similar essence: in another universe. Though he came though one of those wounds to this universe he took care to avoid the flickering red lines and holes as he flew, for he did not know what would happen if he came into contact with one of them again. Touching them could destroy him at worse, evict him back to his own universe or pummel him with a storm of raw energy at best. He who prided himself in taking chances and doing the unexpected, was forced to be cautious. Only temporary though, for once this mystery was solved and everything was brought back to what was considered ‘normal’, he can start truly being ‘himself’.

He felt a slight tingling along his body as the old Jedi Temple finally came into view: someone or thing was watching him. Guess my little show did have some effect. He thought with a chuckle. Well, let them find me…let them try to stop me. They will discover I am something beyond their comprehension.

The temple loomed large ahead of him now and he stooped, aiming for the platform that jutted out from the main entry way. There were a couple of guards present, but he could tell these were only for show and to deter curious onlookers and looters. In fact they showed an incredible lack of bravery when he landed ten feet in front of them, the two men scampering off like a startled posidori on one of the worlds he used to terrorize back home. Looks like this means those watching me will approach me much sooner. He thought with a smile. So be it.

The temple itself no longer looked as it did when the building was in it’s prime. Partly due to decay, partly due to the ‘rebuilding’ the local government did on it to either disguise what it once was or to simply keep the neighborhood looking ‘pretty’. These changes would not be obvious to the mundane people of this planet, but to being such as him they were glaringly obvious. All the additions and changes looked ‘pasted on’ with little regard or respect, an ugly mask to cover the beauty and glory underneath. Even the security doors before him now disgusted him and he easily ripped those away with his powerful claws and will.

Inside the building was much as it was when it was last used, though many of the artifacts and décor have long been removed. There were various stages of decay within the structure, from the minor cracks to crumbling walls. A battle had been fought here, he could tell, a battle as a result of betrayal of the deepest kind. He found it amusing that the so-called ‘purest’ users of the Force thought they were immune to the power of betrayal.

As he made his way though and up the structure, he could read the history of the inhabitants that once roamed this place though the lingering traces of their essence in the Force. Many he discovered had died within these very walls from that single act of betrayal and that the betrayer took many of them by his own hand, even the ones that were the most innocent of innocents. He shuddered with glee.

Finally he arrived at the exact spot he was looking for: the council room. Here he could almost smell and taste the presence of the most powerful of the Jedi that once debated in this very room. None of them had died here, to which he was disappointed, but the time they had spent in this room over the generations was sufficient to imbue the room with the essence of this universe, enough to suit his purposes.

He took a moment to clear the debris around the room before carefully placing the bone sphere in it’s very center. Using some of his own essence, he draw a containment circle around the sphere, lining the edges with glyphs and runes only he could understand. When everything was ready he feel into a deep trace and started to chant, beckoning the entity that once was a part of the sphere to return to the material plane.

The essence of the entity he was summoning had been thoroughly scattered throughout the universe and it was taking quite a bit of time and effort to coax all the bits and pieces toward him. As time passed, he actually started worry that he would not be able to accomplish this task, the limitations he had due to being an ‘outsider’ to this universe too great. His worries become unjustified as the entity itself, recognizing the summons for what it was and no doubt sensing an opportunity, started using it’s own will to pull itself back together. The strength of this entity’s will was impressive and while it was still weaker then even a newborn Karred, it was easily one of the most powerful beings that have ever existed in this universe.

It happened suddenly and if he hadn’t been expecting it even he would have jumped. Visually faint streams of light rushed into the bone sphere, followed by a brief flash and the formation of a large cloud of ‘Force mist’. This mist then condensed into the non-corporal shape the entity he had summoned once had in life. The carvings he had studied were accurate: it looked like a huge mutated Trandoshan. For a moment he studied it and it studied him. He felt it ‘test’ the containment circle for moment before it finally spoke.

~You have done what should have been impossible.~ It said, sounding intrigued and grateful. ~Brought my essence back together so that I can once again speak with those on this plane. Yet you are not of this essence, not of the Force. Who are you?~

“I am Demonakos.” He replied. “A visitor from another universe, one that is concerned for the state of this one. I have summoned you, eldest and most powerful of the beings in this universe I have found, to find out why the essence, the Force, is in the state that it is in.”

~I have noticed, during the time my own essence was scattered across the Force, that it is decaying, dying. Your concerns match my own, for what good does the death of the universe do me in regards to terrorizing the mortals? None at all.~

Demonakos smiled, liking this spirits line of thought. “Then tell me if you can, what started this chain of events, so that I can break that chain. It won’t be within my power to reverse the damage already done, but perhaps I can stop it from getting any worse.” It was a hard thing for him to admit any kind of fault or limitation, but it was a safe assumption that this spirit could figure them out on it’s own.

~And for what reason do you care?~ The spirit asked curiously. ~You could always go back to your own universe.~

At that Demonakos growled and stamped a foot. “I ‘care’ because I am limited at what I can do in my own universe!” He spat. “Those above me and even one that should be below me restrict and hamper what I want to do! Here, once I learn how to use the essence of this universe, I will be able to do as I wish. Rule over these mortals as I feel my kind should and terrorize and torture those that would not bend to my will!”

The spirit grinned from ear hole to ear hole, it finding Demonakos to be a kin to it in spirit. ~I could be your engine of punishment my Lord.~ It said, suddenly showing him full respect and ‘supposed’ loyalty that swelled Demonakos with pride. That would be a good thing, to have this spirit be it’s first minion in this place. However there were certain annoying realities that prevented this.

“When I relearn how to do my most powerful of spells, I would gladly enable it so that you could do so.” Demonakos said. “But I need the information I seek first, for without it there would be no point in doing so if the universe is going to die soon. Do you have the knowledge I seek?”

The spirit was silent, it’s form fading slightly as it thought and searched for the answers. After a couple of minutes it replied. ~You are fortunate that it started before I was banished, otherwise the answers would have been longer in the coming. The damage first started to appear on the planets controlled by a single government, an large ever expending Empire that calls itself ‘The New Order’. It is the child of a previous similar Empire that also caused a great disturbance in the Force, but that one not as great as the one happening now.~

“You refer to the Jedi Purge and the rise of Emperor Palpatine, a Sith Lord of great power for a mortal.” Demonakos said off handedly. “Seems this particular mind set has a bad history of being ‘bad’ for the essence.”

~Indeed.~ The spirit agreed. ~This planet is the Capital of this Empire and you’ll find the ones responsible for starting the decay of the Force here, at least the heads of the group doing the actual damage. What is galling is that the one that heads it is about as Force Sensitive as a rock and gives those within this pet project of his free reign to do as they want with the Force as long as it gets the job done. These people use the Force selfishly and carelessly: the Sith had more respect for the Force then them! It is this disrespect that is tearing the essence of my universe asunder!~

“What is this group called?”

It was at this point the spirit apparently decided not to be so helpful. ~There are two groups of Force
sensitives in this New Order. One is respectful, the other isn’t. One is only loosely connected with the government, the other is a part of it. One old, one recent.~

Demonakos frowned, slightly annoyed. “Don’t play around with me.” He warned. “The name of this group.”

~One is called the Sith Order. The other’s name is a mockery of the Jedi Order name, for they have nothing but false Jedi as members.~

“Is there anything else you ‘won’t’ tell me exactly.?” Demonakos asked, his limited patience wearing dangerously thin.

~Don’t expect help from the Sith and don’t expect the other to even listen.~ The spirit said. ~There is one from the true Jedi Order that may, though he’ll likely be ‘disturbed’ by your very presence. An Azguard by the name Dolash, he is a Jedi Master and has been investigating the damage to the Force. My old host, a T’Doshok named Trazu K’Satikur, may have some insight as well though he won’t be happy to here that you brought me back.~ The spirit grinned.

“That will do.” Demonakos said as he stepped forward and tapped the sphere. The spirit looked in alarm as it was sucked into the bone sphere itself and only a brief cry of protect escaped it before it was fully sealed into the sphere. “Can’t have you running around possibly warning folks of my coming now…” He said to the sphere with a grin. “I know chaotic creatures all too well…as I am one myself.”

He reclaimed the essence he used to make the containment circle and put the sphere into a kind of ‘dimensional pocket’ so he could retrieve it any time any where he wanted. As he made his way out, he found it curious that no one had yet came to investigate the ‘big monstrous creature’ that broke his way into the temple. Did the government of this planet even care? Or were they so confident in their abilities that they didn’t see him as a threat?

"What is it, Isard?" came the irritated voice of Supreme Commander Kaine as he was looking over reports from the ongoing war between the Coalition and Dragon Imperium.

"I need your signature on this pad.." Isard informed holding out her arm.

Kaine's eyes moved from his reports and took the offered pad raising an eyebrow. "You want to demolish the old Jedi Temple?"

Isard grinned. It was not a pretty sight. "It's time to wipe away that damned lingering excuse to have petty force-users from all over the galaxy to come to the Capital like it's some religious pilgrimage!"

Kaine smiled faintly. "Perhaps it is for them. I'll have Lupercus or Vance personally oversee the dismantling. Perhaps the Citadel would like the location."

"Ah yes. Your state religion of fools."

"Only if you join, Isard. Only if you join." Kaine sat back. "So why this sudden interest?"

"There was a minor infiltration, YET AGAIN, by some fool thinking they are more than they really are. I swear, Kaine. It is getting annoying."

"Go on."

"Some alien broke through the security net, which granted isn't that tight to begin with, and rifled through some old Jedi clothes in one of the resident halls."

Kaine gave a disgusted look. "No doubt the Temple attracts freaks of all kinds."

"We caught the little bugger doing .."

"I don't want to know, Ysanne." Kaine interrupted and suddenly an aide walked in whispering into the Director of Imperial Intelligence's ear.

She cursed and spat out, "Another alien?" She turned to the Supreme Commander, "What is it with these animals?"

Kaine shrugged. "Let ISB or the Corps handle it, Ysanne. We've bigger banthas to cook."






Hera stepped into the breach that opened into what was once the hallmark of the Jedi religion. Now it was just a hulk that attracted everything loosely associated with the force.

There was some sort of animal conversing with some sentient mist on the monitor and it was up to Hera to investigate.

Intriguing.

The sentient creature that conversed with a reawakened Force-spirit was increasingly intriguing. Vance listened, his head inclining with interest as the spirit expressed what it believed to be it’s adaptation of the state of the Force; while the Sith Master could hardly deny that the Force, supposedly a never-ending omnipresent entity, had diminished in its potency, Vance felt that what the spirit said was not wholly the rationale…

~This planet is the Capital of this Empire and you’ll find the ones responsible for starting the decay of the Force here, at least the heads of the group doing the actual damage. What is galling is that the one that heads it is about as Force Sensitive as a rock and gives those within this pet project of his free reign to do as they want with the Force as long as it gets the job done. These people use the Force selfishly and carelessly: the Sith had more respect for the Force then them! It is this disrespect that is tearing the essence of my universe asunder!~

Vance smiled to himself, silent as he continued to watch patiently from the far shadowed edge of the Council Chamber; he had long since learned the art of masking his presence, and it took little more than a substantial effort to remain hidden to the spirit, in as diminished a state as it was, while the creature’s attention was intently elsewhere.

“What is this group called?” Demanded the creature, it’s own patience ebbing away.

~There are two groups of Force sensitives in this New Order. One is respectful, the other isn’t. One is only loosely connected with the government, the other is a part of it. One old, one recent. One is called the Sith Order. The other’s name is a mockery of the Jedi Order name, for they have nothing but false Jedi as members.~

True, as it were. Vance couldn’t disagree with the spirit’s feelings toward the Jedi, and how they seemed to be nothing more than a mere shadow of their former Order; in a way it was almost disappointing, as the Sith were able to move completely without regard toward the Jedi.

“Is there anything else you ‘won’t’ tell me exactly.?”

~Don’t expect help from the Sith and don’t expect the other to even listen. There is one from the true Jedi Order that may, though he’ll likely be ‘disturbed’ by your very presence. An Azguard by the name Dolash, he is a Jedi Master and has been investigating the damage to the Force. My old host, a T’Doshok named Trazu K’Satikur, may have some insight as well though he won’t be happy to here that you brought me back.~

Dolash.

Vance knew of this Jedi Master, though even his information was somewhat limited. It seemed safe to assume that this creature, who could reanimate spirits, would hesitate to contact the Jedi initially, as it seemed the Orders’ beliefs weren’t nearly as parallel as the creature’s own. This meant that the Sith Order would be an option, or perhaps the creature simply wished to venture into this undertaking by itself... perhaps.

“That will do. Can’t have you running around possibly warning folks of my coming now… I know chaotic creatures all too well…as I am one myself.”

Vance’s smile broadened. It seemed that, in some instances, there truly was no reason to look beyond the proverbial books cover; this creature clearly wished to harness power, in order to meet it’s own needs, and this single-minded search would bring it to the Sith. However the creature’s methods of, what Vance could only describe as, magic were of a considerably higher degree for which the Sith Master wished to examine. While this being was fascinating, it’s abilities were more so...

Vance decided he would continue to wait. When the moment was right, the Sith would become involved; as yet, it remained as such that the creature would simply be watched, until Vance was ready.

Intriguing.

As he made his way down Demonakos pondered what to do next. The spirit had warned against even bothering with the two Force related factions within the Empire itself. However from what the spirit had also said, one of those two factions was directly responsible for the mess the Force was in and he was a believer in going straight to the root of the problem. That meant finding out what exactly this faction was: the spirit had made it seem the Sith wasn’t the cause of decay, so this yet unnamed ‘mock’ Jedi Order had to be it. The problem was finding what exactly it was called and to locate the representative: something that could take a lot of time and time he wasn’t sure the Force had much left of. While the rate of decay was slow thus far, there was no telling when that would change. It was possible that there was some threshold that once breached, the whole thing could come undone at once and everything within this universe would cense to exist. This unknown factor disturbed him.

He was almost to the bottom floor when he detected another’s presence in the ruined temple and he silently slipped into a darkened corridor for a moment. Though he was expecting someone to investigate his breaking into the place, he was wise to assume from the limited contact he had with the Empire already that any investigating official would view him more as a pesky animal then a sentient being. That was an easy fix however, though it will be uncomfortable for him: he knew that for the sake of the information he needed, some discomfort was needed.

Demonakos felt his essence protest as he reshaped himself in to the form of a human, this form the smallest he had attempted since his arrival in this universe. The appearance of the human form he chose was inverted color scheme to his preferred form: six foot tall with pale skin, fine build, long jet black hair and amber eyes. The clothing he chose was black and made of fine silks.

After the transformation was complete, he remained in the shadows a bit longer to observe the newcomer and to better determine how to deal with this woman. It became obvious to him that she was here to investigate the intrusion into the temple and he smelled an opportunity to get the information he needed to continue his own investigation. He strode out, looking around at the ruined temple architecture with a look of confusion on his face. It didn’t take long for her to notice him.

“Halt!” She cried, one hand touching the hilt of the blaster on her belt. “This is a restricted area! Identify yourself!” He safely guessed that if he had appeared to her in any other form besides human, that blaster would be pointing at him right now.

Demonakos looked at her in feigned surprise and adopted an apologetic look. “I am terribly sorry miss.” He said humbly. “I must have gotten confused and ended up at the wrong place for Force Training. My name is Akos.” He bowed. “If you can direct me in the right direction I’ll leave immediately and disturb this place of the ancient masters no more.”

“Depends on which ‘Force Training’ you are looking for.” The female answered guardedly. “If you are looking for that cult the Jedi Order you are on the wrong planet. If it’s them you seek…I suggest you leave immediately before I blast your cult loving hide.”

“Oh no…it’s not the Jedi Order I seek.” Demonakos said smoothly. “Too drab and boring for my tastes. Besides…why join a faction that’s on it’s way to extinction? No I’m looking for the ones in control of the Force these days. The ones that are working for this glorious Empire. I can’t recall the name of the group…”

“There are two such factions. The Sith Order and the Jedi Corps.”

“Jedi Corps!” He snapped his fingers in a show of revelation. “So that’s where I got confused. This building…from my research…once was owned by the Jedi Order…so I assumed the Corps would have used the same building….”

“The Jedi of old were traitors to the old Republic and we want nothing to do with their tainted order.”

Actually the real traitor was Palapitine…but you don’t want to hear that do you? Demonakos thought as he simply nodded in understanding. “Well…now that that’s settled…mind telling me where I can go to offer my services to the Jedi Corps?”

“Their main office is in the corporate sector.” The woman said. “You can go find it yourself for I have no time to babysit you. There is some kind of animal wandering this building and I’ve been tasked to investigate it.”

“Oh very well then…have a pleasant day…” Good luck trying to find that ‘animal’. He thought with a mental chuckle as watched her go deeper into the building before strolling out himself. Now that he knew the name of the second Force using faction was in this government, it would be just a simple matter of a taxi ride there.

And that’s exactly what he did.