[IC] A Galaxy in Twilight[Lord Gressh/Zarkun]

[Lord Greshh]

Koraline Okarr

"I... I mean. I..." The ship gives another grown, and warning signs continue to flair on the cockpit display. "Maybe if you... I don't know. A spray of torpedoes? A couple proton bombs tossed out the back? That... that might..." Another red light pops on, indicating that the strain on the engines is too great.

Millu'ci'vanda

I open my eyes, having briefly slipped into meditation. "Stop fighting, Koraline. It's no use."

Koraline Okarr

"What?! Are you crazy?! That husks gonna drag us in!"

Millu'ci'vanda

"Its going to get us regardless. Fighting is just going to rip the Redshifter apart. If we let it take us, we might be able to find a way to escape later."

Koraline Okarr

I give her a terrified look. "That thing is made out of the hulls of dead ships. If to drags us in, the Redshifter will just become another dead ship to add to it's mass. And we... I don't even know what that husk does to the crews of the ships it collects. And I don't want to find out."

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"I have to agree with Koraline that that husk is clearly not good. But Luci's right as well, we're just going to blow ourselves up trying to get away."

[Lord Greshh]

Millu'ci'vanda

"The husk is dangerous, but I sense that giving into it, at least for now, is in our best interest."

Koraline Okarr

"What gives you that sense? The voice in your head that turned our crew against us, or the Oroboro earwig nesting in your hair?" When I see the hurt expression on her face, I force myself to soften. "Sorry. You know I don't mean that. I'm just..."

Millu'ci'vanda

"Afraid, I know. This ship means a lot to you. And not to mention, we have no idea whats about that husk. But... trust me. This is the only way right now. The only other option would be to abandon ship."

Koraline Okarr

"Over my dead body. A Captain always goes down with her ship." I look down at the controls before me. I clench my teeth and curse under my breath before flipping the switches to power everything down. "You'd better be right about this, Luci. If we die, I'm going to very upset." The ship lurches backward and begins to float steadily towards the massive ball of broken ships.

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"I'd like to remind you that if we die, you won't be around to BE upset."

[Lord Greshh]

Millu'ci'vanda

"There is no Death; there is the Force." I give Koraline a cheeky smile.

Koraline Okarr

"Oh, shut it." I say, suppressing a smile of my own. "Seriously though, everyone get ready for anything. I don't know whats about to happen. Zar'kun, if you want to start waking the boys up. Since we're all headed to the husk anyways, I don't see any reason for them to want to hijack the ship anymore. Just... be ready to put them back down for naps if I'm wrong."

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"Let them rest a bit longer." I was already on my way to the off ramp. "They won't be much good anyways if it's a Force Entity we're dealing with."

[Lord Greshh]

Koraline Okarr

As the Redshifter draws close to the husk, the pull begins to decrease until it is a gentle tug. Without my control, but ship twists in space so that it's belly faces the husk. With a jolt, the Redshifter locks against the outer shell of junk ball so tightly that the landing struts can't deploy.

I sit in the pilot's chair for a few seconds, staring out at the broken and twisted hulks of ships that surround us. I dreaded to think that my ship would be a permanent addition to this place. Part of me didn't even want to bother exploring, and rather just have Zar'kun knock me out along with the others.

Millu'ci'vanda

"Come on," I prompt, rising from my seat. "It won't let us leave yet. We need to figure out what this place is and how to make it free us."

Koraline Okarr

"PLEASE stop talking about it like it's alive. I am too sleep deprived to deal with it." I also stand, and reluctantly follow Luci towards the boarding ramp. "Looks like we're on the outside of this thing. Guess that means we'll need space suits." I sigh.

Caalin Daemon

I limp out of med bay to join them. "Next time you try to force everyone to go to sleep, Zar'kun, at least warn me. It took everything I had to throw up a barrier at the last minute."

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I shrug in apology. "Didn't have time, at the time. And Koraline, it IS alive. That was the Force pulling us in, not a tractor beam, otherwise you would have escaped it. We both know you're a better pilot than that."

[Lord Greshh]

Koraline Okarr

I sigh even heavier. "Why did I agree to this mission?" Without waiting for an answer, I open a storage compartment door and begin handing out space suits. "Any plans on where to go from here?"

Millu'ci'vanda

"There must be a way inside nearby. Couldn't you feel how we were maneuvered to this spot? It wasn't by random. There has to be an access hatch or something. Perhaps if we enter through one of the ship wrecks?"

Caalin Daemon

"I don't know. The Force is strong here, though not in any particular alignment. It's powerful though, which naturally sets off a sense of dread, but it isn't malevolent, which is good. That means there is a chance." I look at Zar'kun. "What do you think? You're probably the most Force adept among us. What is your assessment?"

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"It reminds me of Ship, and I don't trust that Meditation Sphere further than I can Force Push it." I sigh. "That said, we don't have much of a choice, so I suggest weapons ready just in case. Perhaps seal up the Shifter when we leave."

[Lord Greshh]

Caalin Daemon

"Good idea. But... what about the crew? And Camden and his men? You want to just leave them here?"

Millu'ci'vanda

"We don't have much choice. Bringing them along only leaves them susceptible to further influence."

Koraline Okarr

"Besides, we don't have enough space suits." I indicate the three space laying on the deck. "I never expected to take a full crew into the vacuum. I'd have packed more accordingly." I lean against the wall. "Guess that's my excuse to stay behind. I'll keep an eye on things here and make sure everyone stays relaxed." There is something in my tone that betrays how relieved I am not to have to go exploring this place.

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I nod as I begin to put on a suit. "If anything that doesn't look like us wants on board, well, suppose you know what to do. But do me a favor and put a bolt in it's head just in case."

[Lord Greshh]

Koraline Okarr

I smirk. "I've been putting bolts in things heads for as long as I can remember, and I am very protective of my ship." I think a moment. "Maybe I'll think up some kind of security question. Like if say... something tries to disguise itself as one of you or steals your body or... something."

Millu'ci'vanda

I shake my head. "Girl, you're letting your mind wonder too much. Just relax, okay? We've been in worse spots." I tap my forehead. "And after everything I've been through, I won't let anything take over my body again." I zip up my spacesuit and prepare to dawn my helmet. "Now, give me a kiss for luck before I go."

Koraline Okarr

I roll my eyes and give Luci a quick kiss. "Remember what I said: If I lose my life, or worse, my ship to this husk..."

Millu'ci'vanda

"Love you too, dear." I stuff the helmet over my head.

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I keep my mouth shut, knowing that telling Koraline any of the stories that have come from the few smugglers who've navigated the Maw probably wouldn't help. Instead, I turn to Caelin. "Are you sure you're up to this?"

[Lord Greshh]

Caalin Daemon

“To be honest... no. But I’m not going to sit around on the ship while you two run into danger. I’m not that badly hurt. Just... a little banged up.” I zip up my spacesuit. “Shouldn’t slow me down too much.”

Millu’ci’vanda

“Alright. Everyone in position and prepare For depressurization.” I take one last look at Koraline before sealing off the airlock doors, then begin to slowly release the oxygen from the room. “Stay close to the hull of this thing. The magnets in our boots should hold us down, but able ready just in case one of us starts to drift.”

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

Sealing my helmet, I follow the other two out of the ship and wait until the ramp is up again before speaking. "Luci, I KNOW you've heard the stories about the things in here from spacers. Which means you know that Koraline knows." I leave it at that however as we trek towards the nearest wreck. When I speak again, it's with a thought I'd been mulling over. "Caelin, Luci, what if this is the Tempest Eye? It was, after all, intentionally sent into the Maw."

[Lord Greshh]

Caalin Daemon

“This piece of space junk? It doesn’t look very much like a Rakatan space station.”

Millu’ci’vanda

“Maybe not on the outside, but I had similar suspicion as Zar’kun; this could very well be our goal. That might be why I felt it was in our best interest to let it take us in.” I look at Zar’kun. “Question is, what exactly is it. We all felt it reaching out and speaking to us. Do you think this is some type of Rakata entity or something that moved in later?”

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

"The former, I believe. Like I said, it reminds me of Ship, the Meditation Sphere that I raced against Gressh to get years ago. It has a mind of its own and plans of its own, which mostly involve us all not dying, I think. But the Rakata were once overlords of the galaxy, so it's not uncommon for their relics to not want to deal with the 'slave species' that now run the galaxy with the diminishment of their builders."

[Lord Greshh]

Caalin Daemon

“Great. Just what we needed; a self aware relic imbued with the essence of a long dead overlord race. What are the chances Sucal and this thing don’t get along and they end up killing each other?”

Millu’ci’vanda

“If all goes well, we’ll never know the answer to that.” We reach a bulkhead of what looks to be the remains of an old Centurion-class battlecruiser. I swipe my hand over the access panel, and to my surprise, it is still functional enough to unseal. It only opens ajar, and I have to pull it the rest of the way open. “Well... in we go, I guess.”

[Zarkun]

Zar'kun Je'and

I follow Luci in and wait until Caelin comes in before getting the door closed just enough that we could get out quickly if we needed to. "You know, the Kiliks called it a Celestial Manipulation Construct. What if we turn this on Sucal and his Ghosts? Strip him of them?"