Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic: Endgame

[Rexraptor2000]

Meta could wait a long time, and that's just what he would do until the Sith and the Jedi both came out of the room.

 

He had decided to follow the force-users after they had left the scene. Meta had contemplated acquiring the body for experimental purposes, but concluded that there was no way to test the effects of a force-suppressing substance if the user was dead. It would also not be looked on kindly for even just asking, he also concluded, and decided he'd have more luck in his mission with the other Jedi. They probably wouldn't volunteer to be test subjects, but they would help him with his ultimate goal, in all likelihood. Meta simply had to wait for them to regain their composure and exit their room.

 

One of Meta's favorite pastimes, and he has had plenty of time, was profiling passersby. It was a skill to tell numerous little things about an individual just by observing them, and Meta had learned how to do it very well. He even had a certain advantage in his own vision, in being able to tell what spots on the body were swelled with blood and to see irregularities that others would miss. He could tell, for instance, that a Padawan that just had just walked by was in an aroused state from physical ques as well is things he noticed from the infrared portion of his vision. The cause was obvious; his master, trainer, or whatever they were called was an attractive woman. Meta found deducing physical attraction boring though. It was much more fun to do during gambling games such as poker. Thus, he tried to deduce more in-depth concepts from other passersby as he stood outside the door that the Sith had entered.

[Chevron 7 locke]

((Is Betrayer still in the Rp?))

 

"Of course I'll be here."

 

Juhani pulled away from her and motioned for her to sit on the bed while she contacted the others.

 

"Like I said earlier...I want you to see what happens when someone dies. How the death can many people. You saw that Twi'lek girl. Jolee would often help her pull pranks on the other crew members.

 

Juhani smiled despite how sad she was as she remembered a few of the Twi'lek girls more...unusual pranks.

 

She proceded to contract the rest of the surviving crew of the Hawk and warned them of the possible danger against them.

 

Carth was shocked by the news of the old man's death. He did promise that he would help if the Jedi ever made a move against the Found and that he would be alert.

 

It took her awhile to get ahold of Canderous Ordo who was now Mandalore of the Mandalorian clans but he seemed to be as shocked by the old man's death as Carth was. When he found out how Jolee had died, he flew into a rage and smashed something that she couldn't see. After a few minutes he calmed down again and promised that he would keep a watch out for any possible attackers.

 

When she contacted Bastila and told her the news she had heard the other Jedi drop her lightsaber in shock. Despite her attempts, Bastila informed her that she was coming back to Coruscant to help track down Jolee's killer.

 

Even as Juahni finished, she knew that she had to find out more about Jolee's killer. And only two people other then Jolee had been there. Anna Organ and the smuggler who's name she had forgotten.

 

After the sith told her that she had to leave to get some air, Juhani began walking toward Anna Organ's quarters, but even as she walked she couldn't help but think that something was wrong. She could sense a small disturbance in the force coming form her quarters.

 

She gently knocked on the door to the other Jedi's quarters and waited for a response.

 

 

 

“Master Brianna I have an information given by a smuggler, he was the one who found Jolee's body. This information might be of great help to find the new cult master.”

 

"Very well." The Grand Master replied. "Please begin transmission of the data."

[Tysyacha]

Dazed and shocked, Perdante told Juhani that she needed to "get some air". That was true, although she also needed some outside stimulation to recover from the emotional storm she had just gone through. Exiting the room slowly after Juhani nodded, the former Sith had a sense she was being watched...

[Fredi]

"Very well." The Grand Master replied. "Please begin transmission of the data."

 

“My T3 will send you the transmission of the data in just a few seconds”- Fethe said as the droid begun to send the information “I will be on Manaan, gathering with and old friend of mine, if there is anything else you need master you can contact me, I will be returning to the academy on Coruscant shortly after I meat my friend, May the force be with us.”

[Tysyacha]

Anna felt like something was drilling right into the front part of her skull--which, internally, it was. The ostanovium flakes embedded in her skin were still preventing her from healing herself through the Force, which, up until now, she had honestly believed she could do. Blinding pain coursed through her, and she convulsed with the effort of trying to cope with it. There is no emotion...

 

In a few moments, the agony grew too great, and the Jedi closed her eyes. Letting her physical body sink back into its final sleep, she bowed her head and allowed herself to become one with the Force. No more pain would she endure.

[Chevron 7 locke]

Juhani's head shot up in alarm as Anna seemed to disappear. She could no longer sense her through the force.

 

Is it possible a member of the Found managed to get in by her and finish the job?

 

Juhani ignited her lightsaber and began cutting through the door all while sending a message through the force to everyone in range.

 

Anna Organ is in trouble! I can no longer detect her through the force and she is not answeing her door. Please send Medical help immediatly!

 

Juhani continued to cut through the door as quickly as she could. They had already lost Jolee and she was not about to lose the one who had information on his killer.

[Rexraptor2000]

Meta was absolutely amazed at how oblivious to the world the Jedi could be. True, he was a dead spot in their Force, but a little paranoia couldn't hurt when one of your comrades was killed by a cultist. The Jedi had just walked right him, intent on some purpose. The Sith that followed did so more slowly, and displayed the proper cues of someone who could feel a set of eyes on them. There also appeared to be some emotional trauma, though that could be from over-reading. The puffy red eyes contributed to that opinion. Even she though just walked on by him, granted slowly. He decided not to let this one pass however.

 

“Hello there,” Meta spoke up from the wall he was leaning on. “It looks like you've had quite a time since you've arrived here and your friend is still going.”

[Tysyacha]

Perdante gave a sudden start. "It's you!", she cried, looking at the personage whom she had believed to be a droid not too much earlier. Then, chagrined at how she'd addressed him, she blushed to the roots of her copper-red hair. "Please forgive me, I--!" A pause. "You may call me Perdante. I saw you earlier, in the midst of all the Jedi in the room who were looking at the headless body of one of their own. I'm intrigued--who are you, and if you're not a droid, how come I seem to sense that you're made of metal?"

 

She tried to laugh, but the effort came out sounding flat. "Ah..." Perdante shook her head. "Yes, I have had 'quite a time of it', as you say, and so has my new friend Juhani. She's a Jedi, and she knew the man who was slain. I did not, but that's because I was a Sith Initiate not 72 hours ago."

 

A rueful smile. "We've all been through a lot--Juhani, me, and the entire Order. There's a cult that we think is responsible for the Jedi Jolee Bindo's death, called 'the Found'. Other than that, I don't know much about it or about who killed him. Nevertheless, I want to track down the one who did."

 

She said this last part with an icy knife-edge in her voice. "He shall pay."

[The Betrayer]

[How goes the RP? Should I still kill off the Iridonian guy? What do you think should be next for Ibis?]

[Tysyacha]

((Sure, go ahead and kill off the Iridonian guy. Maybe Ibis could try to either infiltrate Perdante's mind so she follows his orders again--this time against her will--or go after Seeker Adeline, because he can sense her through the Force as a "dead spot" due to something I will reveal in my next post about her. Welcome back, and the RP's great!))

[Rexraptor2000]

“Yes, I heard about that. It's a shame for anyone to go really, but it hurts the most when stuff we think is preventable happens.” Meta commented after Perdy had finished. “Though if it's vengeance that you're looking for, maybe we can help each other out. I've been looking for the Found and a Jedi – or Sith – is a good as any person to help me hunt them down. Or rather, hunt down their weapon of choice. Their weapon of choice is a mineral with a name I really don't feel like repeating and a tendency to stop the Force cold in anyone. Really quite interesting actually thing to study in after-patients, although finding a volunteer to test it in real time has been a pain, and I doubt you would volunteer either, so that's not what I need help with.”

 

Meta paused for a moment to walk over to Perdy and do a quick circle around her, as if sizing her up. “I, to simply put it, need bait. Someone to draw members of the Found out that I can then capture, torture, interrogate, kill, and dissect for any useful pieces of information, even additional samples of the mineral that, again, I don't feel the need to repeat the name of. Either that or you could allow yourself to be captured, taken to their hideout, and then I could come to your rescue. The latter plan would probably work better, since I could pretty much call in a Republic cruiser if I wanted to. That would be too messy though and bad for PR, so I'd think of another cavalry.”

 

In reality, Meta had forgotten the name and would have to consult his notes again to remember. He was also pretty certain that the Found were more likely to kill Sith and capture Jedi than the other way around. He had also made it a point to glaze over her original question and would continue to do so unless pressed.

[Tysyacha]

Perdante smiled. "You know," she said, "I have been looking for a way to prove myself to the Jedi. They don't immediately trust Sith, even if they're only Initiates--or former Initiates--and have turned away from the Dark Side of the Force. Grand Master Brianna has said that if I tend to Juhani and comfort her during this period of great grief..." She stopped for a moment, thinking again of Jolee. "...if I do that, I will have passed her test and will be accepted for Jedi training. However, I'm thinking something a little more active and heroic might earn the Grand Master's attention in a deeper way. Thus, I volunteer."

 

She winked at the strange metallic creature. What was he, anyway? "I may not be as strong in the Force as Juhani or any of the official Jedi here, but I'm willing to be used as bait in your plan to 'find the Found', and I do know how to use the Force." She turned a rather obnoxious-looking picture of Jedi Master Lamar Vrook upside-down on the Temple wall using only the power of her will. "See? I'm good to go, if you are."

[Rexraptor2000]

“Great to hear!” Meta clapped his hands together. He hadn't expected her to reject the plan, though he imagined that she would've consulted with her friend first before anything else. “Of course, we will need a little help in making sure you make a good bait. I'm guessing that the man who picked up the dead man and the woman he rescued is still around, so first we've got to find him in order to find the location of the hideout. We're also going to need to get a Jedi and another non Force-user with us for when we break in, a few supplies to send the place sky high.”

 

Meta was about to head in the general direction of the hall where he had last seen the operative when he remembered something.

 

“I'm Meta,” he greeted, extending one of his gloved hands to shake. "It's a pleasure to meet you Perdy."

[Tysyacha]

Seeker's Sanctum, Gathering Place of the Found, Coruscant

 

My face. I loathe my face, even though I am the most beautiful of all...

 

Seeker Adeline scowled at herself in the mirror. This is me, and yet it is not me. My flesh and bone have been replaced with collagen, porcelain, silicone. Hypoallergenic steel to undergird my lovely features so they'll never wrinkle. Anabolic injections in my shoulders, chest and rear to plump them up, and fat-dissolving chemicals in my abdominal muscle wall to slim it down. Exercise and training, just in case those stopgaps failed. Endless, endless exercise...Even now, I have a personal training droid I haven't found the courage to destroy. The vestiges of childhood are very hard to let go of.

 

And the pageants. All because my mother needed money. She was beautiful, yes, but naturally so, and I suspect I was, too. However, it wasn't good enough. I wasn't good enough. Some producers from a holovid company, the scoundrels who created GALACTIC DIVAS, were the ones that financed my reconstruction. My re-creation from a gawky girl into a wondrous woman.

 

However, it wasn't worth it. Credits never are. In losing my face and body, I lost my identity, too. I lost all sense of who I was. In my place was someone who was always polite, always graceful, always lovely. I forgot my youth. The worst part? No scars show, and that's because every surgery was completed by surgeons who wielded the Force along with their scalpels. They made sure that no one could see the marks they left behind when they cut.

 

I hate the Force as much as I hate my face, hate myself. However, I will not and cannot be like that Sith Lord, Traya, who tried to destroy it utterly.

 

She is evil. I am not, and I will make sure no one will ever wield it again.

 

No one will have the chance to become evil again, even unintentionally.

 

Sighing, Seeker Adeline undressed, picked up a brush from her vanity, and began to brush her long hair in her see-through nightgown. Beauty was life...

 

Before going to bed, she took six ostanovium capsules instead of her usual one.

[Tysyacha]

Jedi Temple, Coruscant

 

Perdante delightedly shook Meta's hand, although when she did, she looked perplexed. Metal again...only metal. If there had been a visible thought bubble over her head, like in political cartoons, it would have read, "?!?!?!!?!"

 

However, she hid this, or tried to hide it, from Meta. "I don't know how Juhani is going to react to this plan," she forewarned the creature, "especially with all the stress and pain she's going through right now. However, if we mention that this is going to help us track down Jolee Bindo's killer, she might relent."

 

I hope she'll relent, thought the former Sith Initiate with a deep breath!

[Cyborg Ninja]

Psycho left the body where it was and began walking through the temple. He was growing impatient and wanted to go after these found members already. It had been such a long time since he killed someone and his thirst for blood just kept growing. He tried his best to not think about bloodshed and nearly bumped into Perdante in the process. He looked over at the strange being she was with and tried to guess what race it was. He only caught a few seconds of what the strange being was saying and that was all he need. He knew the being was named Meta and he had a plan to take out the Found.

 

"If you're looking for an extra hand, I might be of assistance," he said to Meta after he was finished speaking with Perdante.

 

Gathering Place of the Found, Coruscant

 

Zen cursed as his ship refused to start. He hopped out and kicked the ship in anger. Seeing how he despised speeders, he decided that he should wait and fix his ship as it was the only option left.

[Rexraptor2000]

“Alright, we have two people aboard now.” Meta said, glad that things were already going well in terms of recruitment. He had expected the process to take a few hours at least, but covience was on his side now. All he need was the leader of the Found to fall into his lap and his day would be set. Unfortunately, things were rarely that easy for him, so he would still need to go through his plan. “Now we just need to convince your friend Juhani to help us out and we also need to find that republic spy-guy. We should probably start with your friend first, since there's no telling what she might do right now.”

 

With that, Meta started after where Juhani had left. Where she had turn the corner to go, Meta had no idea. He trusted his inscinct though and that of his companions, so he was relatively certain that he could track her down no problem. The republic man might be a bit more difficult, but Meta's ties theoretically should allow him to contact the man or retrieve the data the man collected.

[Tysyacha]

Jedi Temple, Coruscant

 

Finally, Perdante spotted Juhani again. "Here I am," she announced with a glad wink, "and I've found a new friend, or at least an ally." She gestured toward Meta. "Hopefully, he can help us find out more about the Found and discover the secrets of this awful mineral that can absorb the Force." She neglected to tell Juhani about the Plan, as she called it in her mind, for the time being. Better to let Meta introduce himself first, and the Plan, since it was his idea in the first place...

 

Meanwhile, Anna Organ's body began to grow stiff in the aftermath of death.

 

Console Server Room, Gathering Place of the Found

 

Pilgrim Zelain had to hurry. If he was going to delete all of the files that the Republic had on the Found and its goals and objectives, then he'd better crack the almost iron-clad encryption system the Republic had in place. He was a superb hacker, but definitely not as good as the Republic officers in charge of cyberwarfare and console security. If he failed this task, he would be missing his own head before noon tomorrow. He didn't want that at all...

 

The other Pilgrims were feasting and carrying on. Idiots. I need help.

 

Aha! Something gave way in the stream of code that Zelain had been trying to decipher. Within fifteen minutes, that crack in the wall of data had led to a waterfall of files being downloaded to his own console and utterly erased from Republic mainframes all over the galaxy. Best hacker on Coruscant. I have more than earned that title, and I've kept my head for more than one more day! Zelain, covered in cold sweat, retired to bed. Tomorrow he had a big day ahead of him, because he remembered...

 

That spy. The one who helped our prisoner escape. He has the files I deleted. Gah! I must try and kill him, or else accompany someone else on a mission to kill him.

[Chevron 7 locke]

((Tys, did you miss my post that had me trying to break into Anna Organ's room?))

 

"Hopefully, he can help us find out more about the Found and discover the secrets of this awful mineral that can absorb the Force."

 

"That's wonderful." Juahni grunted as she finally managed to cut all the way through the door to Anna Organ's quarters. The cathar immediatly ran to Anna's side and checked her pulse, and then she sighed heavily when she found none.

 

"It looks like the Found have claimed another victim." She said quietly. On the outside she seemed depressed but on the inside she was screaming with rage. Not only had the Jedi who had information on the woman who had killed Jolee was dead, but it looked as though she had died in pain.

 

She motioned to a Jedi apprentice who was passing by the door to alert the medbay that Jedi Knight Anna Organ had died.

 

"I don't think I can take this anymore." She said sadly. "First Jolee and now Knight Organ. She was a good knight and I'm sorry that I was not able to help her in time."

 

She turned to look at the former Sith and the mysterious figure behind her. "And who might you be?"

[Tysyacha]

((No, but at the same time you were trying to break in, Anna expired. Sorry.))

 

Perdante felt the sweaty area underneath her arms grow cold. Two murders, all in one day. First Jolee Bindo, and now another Jedi Knight. By the Force!

 

"I...I'm sorry," she said, at a loss for words even though she was usually quite articulate. "This must be stopped immediately. If it isn't the members of this new cult who killed her, it might be my old Sith Master. Either way, bad news."

[Chevron 7 locke]

"This must be stopped immediately. If it isn't the members of this new cult who killed her, it might be my old Sith Master. Either way, bad news."

 

"I agree." Juahni said bitterly. "They must be stopped before any more deaths occur. The Found have killed two Jedi Knights and are a blight on the galaxy."

 

She sighed tiredly. "Right now...I wish this was a bad dream. Jolee and Anna were both great knights and didn't deserve their fates. But I have a feeling this wasn't done by your master. No...If your master had done this there would have been a greater disturbance in the force then there was. No...I have a feeling this was done by the Found."

[Alkonium]

As they discussed Anna's death, a message came through directly to her room. "This is Garren Shain again. I'm sorry to bother you, but I'd like remain updated on Anna's condition. I'm sure you understand my concern."

[Tysyacha]

"I--I don't quite know how to tell you this," stammered Perdante, "but she's dead..." There. I've said it. It wasn't the way I wanted to tell him, but...

 

All of a sudden, the Force seized the young woman in an ironclad hold. Forced to her knees, Perdante grasped Juhani's hand and, half-consciously, recited a poem and prophecy that she had a dim sense the Force was revealing to her:

 

Darth Traya tried to erase me,

And yet not even she

Is quite as evil as the Found,

Who cause atrocity.

Why do they seek to slay the ones

Who've found their way to me?

The Found are the ones who are lost,

And they don't even see.

 

You, lost one, are my instrument

Of final battle's rage.

With your allies, you'll find the Found

In their ultimate stage.

Be vigilant, and be prepared.

These words will guide your way:

Someone must win; someone must lose;

And someone must betray."

 

Slumping over, Perdante took deep, heavy breaths, almost hyperventilating.

 

When she finally stood up, she cried, "Alas! Did I really say those verses?"

[The Betrayer]

[A FEW HOURS AGO]

The figure who was in the ship watched as his original prey escaped. He did not bother himself with that failure, for it was not an important one. Instead, saying no instruction, he decided to concentrate all the power that flowed around him and release it in a blast.

 

The ship of the Iridonian exploded. And two failures were finally destroyed. And the last...

 

[NOW]

 

Ibis sat down on the musty floor. They have been in Coruscant for only a few hours, and most of the time spent was on meditating. His slave was content to stand up by the door to the apartment, and most people were convinced the slave was too much trouble to disturb.

 

Ibis grinned, as much as his face can grin (which amazingly, no one has seen closely, at least no one who has lived to tell the tale), as his success finally was imminent. And he was relieved that his hard work has paid off.

 

And he spoke, in his mind. Gagnante, or should I say Perdante. You are mine. Never forget this. You are mine.

 

And with that, he started controlling his failed apprentice's motions. A hand, moved awkwardly upward. A foot moving forward as of its own volition.

 

You heed my every command, even though you do not know it. You are mine. Obey.

[Tysyacha]

All of a sudden, Perdante found her injured leg moving forward, and her hand moving upward. Her mind seemed to be floating in a semi-conscious daze, suspended in a flow of time and space, and also orders. You are mine. Obey. "What the Force?!" she cried. To Juhani she said, "All right. It seems the Force is controlling me once again, but this time my old Master is trying to contact me and make me obey his orders. I can stop him quickly."

 

Focusing and concentrating with all the power of her will, Perdante clouded her mind with Force energy, blocking out the dark voice that had spoken to her. The Force, when it was speaking truly, was calm and deep. This voice was not. It was her old Sith Master, and Perdante was not about to let him win again...