Coruscant

[Jet Almeara]

Jet hadn't exactly expected him to answer her comment but then she wasn't entirely sure what she had expected and she studied his expression for a few moments as thought trying to figure out if he was joking or being serious. With Taaru it was sometimes hard to tell and Jet finally had to admit defeat in this guessing game and move on,best to keep her mind on current events..for now.No doubt that particular answer would make itself clear later "It'll work" he assured him - though really there was no guarantee of that, Jet had learned however that sometimes with the force sheer stubborn determination paid off..if she believed it would work then it would damn well work.

As his warmth filled the ship his presence blazed in the force, something he so rarely allowed out, Jet hid a goodly portion of her abilities..but not nearly as much as he did. Then again Jet liked to walk the fine balance between being slightly under estimated..and being strong enough to make someone think twice about bugging her. "This will be interesting" She stated with a slight chuckle, his energy was naturally hot...an embodiment no doubt of the fire he described his force link as being..Jet on the other hand knew her own to burn cold, anywhere from cool and refreshing to bitter and frigid depending on her current temper. She was in a good one at the moment and so when she dropped her own shielding it would be likely he felt something akin to a cool breeze.

"Just let me in when I knock" She told him - it didn't require much more though then that - he merely had to make the decision not to fight her presence when she touched him through the force. Sinking into a chair across from him she dropped her own shields, mentally hoping that no one exceptionally strong in the force happened to be nearby, the link would no doubt cause waves and she hoped they'd go unnoticed. Not something to worry about right now however.

Unlike the time she'd had to find Darren, this required no massive expenditure of energy..she didn't have to search across space or him - he was right here sitting in front of her, she just had to reach out and touch him through the force...so she did, a cool mental tap. Of course what happened next was entirely up to him. Here's hoping he didn't drag them into some hell pit. Here's hoping this would be something simple.

[Taaru Masako]

He only had a few moments to contemplate how wonderfully they complemented each other, as her influence spread out from her, crashing into his awareness as readily as his into hers. A true song of ice and fire, red and blue demons dancing around each other for all eternity.

And demons are what she saw, as a black, tar-soaked arm seized her, and pulled her under.

[...]

Jet awakens in darkness. All is still, save for an echo that suggests an enclosed, yet vast, space.

In the distance is a pinprick of light....natural, as if from a torch or fire.

[Jet Almeara]

Jet wasn't entirely sure what she had expected - when she entered Sagara and Darran consciousness she had taken true possession, been strong enough to keep anything from happening that he didn't want to..but this time, well ..this time was different and she couldn't quite suppress the surprised sound that escaped her when the burned..not oddly tarred hand reached out and dragged her...

Into the abyss...there wasn't any other word Jet could think of to describe the place she woke up in. Almost immediately her own instincts took over, years of refusing to relinquish control rose up in well..blind panic really to fight off the overwhelming darkness...to cease control, weaving tendrils of icy cold mist, given form in this mental world swirled around her in an effort to impose her own sense of right onto this world of black.

Fear was palpable, not of the darkness..Jet's world was dark too...but of the knowledge that she had relinquished so much control of the situation, it was wrong..and must be corrected immediately. Now!

Or that's what her knee jerk reaction was. It took everything Jet had within her to keep from fighting for control, She didn't want to take control of Taaru..didn't want to enter into that mental battle with him, and it was almost painful to just...breath..and accept..and let go of her own panicked reaction. Once she had that thought firmly in mind however it was easier and after a few moments she was able to actually look around.

"Damnit Taaru..." Where the first words that escaped her, or maybe words she thought since this was..you know what? It was probably better to just let that go for the moment. Still..why couldn't his mental world be rainbows and meadows? Even a forest? No..it had to be pitch black and creepy.

Except for the light...and so Jet did what anyone tends to do when they find themselves in the darkness. She went towards the light, focusing her mind on reaching that goal rather then allowing herself to dwell on the continued lack of control.

[Taaru Masako]

((Musical Selection: Black Angels III - Return as performed by Kronos Quartet.))

As Jet, in her panic, lashes out for that briefest of moments, the light in the distance almost disappears from her view. Luckily, her mastery extends to her baser survival extincts, and it soon returns to her, once again beckoning.

Her footfalls sound empty, splintering echoes throughout the dark expanse. They crash into each other, struggling and fighting and warping, the cacophany eventually forming into something greater than the components: It sounds, distinctly, like someone breathing evenly, as if asleep.

The light grows as she nears it, and she is soon able to make out dim shapes around her. They grow in contrast, until finally she is given to realize that they are statues. Winged humanoids, hewn out the very floor she is walking on, as they are the same, mirrored obsidian. Their exact features are unrecognizable, as the statues are weathered and beaten by the elements, the preeminent of which being time.

But their body language is unmistakable. Some contorted in pain, others in penitence or guilt, yet others frozen in fear or wracked with grief, some even fleeing in terror.

It is a terrible menagerie. And as Jet nears that mysterious source of light, she realizes, with the dull pang of horror growing in the seat of her stomach, that none of the statues are facing it.

[Jet Almeara]

Jet decided that it wasn't the lack of light she was walking through which bugged her the most..no it was the sounds, it was as though some great slumbering beast waited just out of sight and part of her, the more primal part had decided that it would be best to find and destroy it before it awoke. The rest of her knew that would be a pointless endeavor and was doing a good job of ignoring the other part.

Mostly. Her fingers twitched of their own accord to hold a saber that wasn't there and her pace quickened as she strode through the darkness, and soon she was able to make out vague shapes..which then resolved themselves to be statues.

Jet was no stranger to statues, Grifter had always been a fan of art and had frequently dragged her from one museum, exhibit or private collector to the next. He'd called it 'culture' - at the time she'd called it boring, but she had come to appreciate it later on, after he'd died of course. Too bad she hadn't had the sense to appreciate it when they could have shared it.

But..back to the situation at hand she mentally scolded her wandering mind. These were like no statues she'd ever seen before, they looked like they'd been carved from the very ground..or perhaps they'd grown from it, it was somewhat hard to tell really and while they were battered and worn she got the jist of their meaning, reaching out to touch one of the grief stricken statues. They were all different...but they had one thing in common and she turned to look at the light they all seemed loath to face. "Don't like the light?" She asked them, more just to break the lonesome silence then anything else "Not a good sign that" She mused further, but really Jet had never been the type to follow the crowds, she had quite often run against the tide and she certainly didn't stop just because things got a bit uncertain.

Glancing at the statues one more time she shrugged and get walking towards the light. Who knew what she'd find, but she was here to hunt out a problem and so far..the light seemed like the most likely direction to find that problem.

[Taaru Masako]

The light resolves, and Jet begins to realize just what it is.

It is a doorway....immeasurably huge and ancient. The sort of massive double doors that guarded impenetrable bastions during the pre-Republic period, when the most modern weapons were metal blades and hyperspace travel was inconceivable. It sits there at the edge of what has to be a cavern, given that the far wall comes into view, finally, as Jet approaches.

The light she saw earlier were the torches ringing the doorway, several dozens set into the baroque and frightening stone carvings that function as the door frame. Beasts and monstrosities fighting knights & commoners in armor unfamiliar to her, all being gored or devoured in a mutual cycle of desperate violence. There are three features in particular that catch her attention: the first is the massive stone eye that sits at the apex of the door frame, its iris the same shimmering obsidian that the statues were made of...it is carved in such a way that no matter where she seems to stand, it is always looking at her.

The other two are two figures, roughly humanoid, their features somewhat washed away, frozen in eternal struggle twixt each other. To either side of them are labels, possibly naming them, but Jet is unable to read them, given that the rough-cut words on in Thruvaran: "Erkunde" and "Erkenne".

As she nears the doorway, its imposing wooden & metal construction looming over her, she begins to notice a draft coming from it.

[Jet Almeara]

Part of Jet was still highly irritated at the situation she was in, and while that part raged just underneath the surface, Jet was able to ignore it for the most part and continue on.

It soon became apparent that the light she had been following came from a natural source, flickering torches whose wavering light only made the carvings seem creepier as she studied them. none of them were familiar however and so she assumed they must come from the Thruvaran culture which she knew little about despite having known Taaru for as long as she had.

The eye was a bit unnerving and she walked from side to side a few times just to see if it really did look to be following her. It did. Creepy ass carving. But creepy of not it wasn't going to get her anywhere sticking around to stare at it or the rest of the carvings she did however make a note of the names. Perhaps she'd try to find out what they meant later. Simply for curiosity's sake.

It was the draft coming from the door which really drew her attention and after placing her fingers along a crack to feel it she turned her attention to looking for a way to open the massive doors - mentally rejecting the urge to just try and blow them open through the force. After a bit of looking she spotted what looked to be an ornately carved lever, it looked about as plausible as any other option and so with a slight shrug Jet pulled it, focus shifting to the doors for any signs htey were responding.

[Taaru Masako]

The lever, while seemingly ancient, shifts effortlessly. The moment it does, the thunderous cacophony of a geared mechanism lurches to life within the door itself, the "plunk plunk plunk" of a gravity driven locking system slowly unfurling.

The ground beneath her shivers at the penultimate movement of the mechanical symphony, motes of dust falling from the ceiling. Finally, the coda: One of the large double doors swings slightly open, finely balanced upon its hinges, enough to allow Jet through.

The light from outside spills into the cavern....harsh sunlight. A whisper of wind follows on its heels.

[Jet Almeara]

Jet took a few steps back as the mechanics of the door rumbled, eying the area warily for a few moments before she was sure nothing unexpected was going to happen. But the door swung open with relative ease, the light shining in was bright, and after her time in darkness she threw up a hand to shield her eyes until they adjusted, blinking even then.

Most people would welcome the light after wandering in what amounted to a dark cave but Jet was just a touch suspicious, the contorted statues had likely been facing away from this door for a reason and the rest of the carvings she'd seen had hardly been of the pleasant and comforting sort. It wouldn't surprise her at all if some ravening beast came barreling out of the door and tried to eat her.

But while she waited for her eyes to adjust, warily alert and still no such thing happened and after a few moments, once the light no longer pained her to look at she slipped through the door and into whatever waited for her on the other side.

[Taaru Masako]

Another gust of wind blows particles of sand into the cavern as Jet takes her first step out the door. Consequently, the scene that greets her, as soon as her eyes adjust to the sunlight, are the yellow-orange dunes of a vast desert.

Three suns hang in the sky above her, a rare trinary system. These are the only clues as to where she could be. The heat is terrible, and yet she feels no discomfort.

In the distance, she sees something out of place...something that doesn't blend into the landscape.

It is moving towards her.

[Jet Almeara]

A desert. Well she supposed she could deal with a desert, nothing incredibly terrible had ever happened to her on a desert and despite the rather irksome lack of moisture they were tactically not all that bad.

Sure things might be lurking in the sand but at least you could see a long ways in any given direction and your enemies wouldn't have much to hide behind, no tree's, no walls, no long grass..just sand dunes and Jet could deal with sand dunes, all in all the open lighted area managed to calm much of her inner desire to impose her own control over the situation, best to stay alert though she cautioned herself - though it was unnecessary, Jet couldn't quite recall the last time she hadn't been alert on some level or another. Likely since Grifter had died - in all honestly she hadn't felt safe or secure since those times no matter how much security she installed or how alert she remained.

In any case this wasn't the time to dwell on inner truths and she turned her attention back to the present, a form in the distance was clearly heading in her direction and Jet being the type least likely to wait patiently for fate to hand her things in its own time made her way across the sand to meet it, she rather wished the three sun overhead were in a different position rather then glaringly impairing her vision so that she had to squint but such was life..or thoughts..or whatever the hell this could be called.

[Taaru Masako]

Dust resolves into shadows resolve into form.

The wind kicks up for a brief moment, blowing a swathe of granual static across her field of vision. As it dies off again, she sees the thing that had been approaching her.

It is a lone horseclaw, bit in mouth and saddle on, pawing at the sand near a stand of oddly twisted cacti, nipping at the rhizomes beneath the sand. An empty boot hangs from the right stirrup.

As she notices it, it notices her, craning its neck and facing her with one of it's apple sized eyes.

It's neck feathers puff out, and it gives a nervous "Wark!" as greeting and warning.

[Jet Almeara]

The sand was going to be somewhat irritating - that was already becoming clear as she rubbed grit from her eyes for the thirtieth time she'd she'd started trudging through the landscape towards the hazy blob.

The hazy blow that soon revealed itself to be one of those strange birdlike mounts Taaru had always been so fond of. Horseclaws she thought they were called and she paused as it swung it's head around to regard her. Going by the response of most animals puffing up generally meant the creature felt threatened and she didn't really want to get into a fight in the middle of a desert with a giant bird - whose claws she noticed could likely do no small amount of damage..and whom had possibly already sent someone else to their doom judging by the boot hanging off its saddle.She kept a respectable distance and crouched down to present a less threatening posture but kept a wary eye on it while she considered her options. The rider could have just fallen off...though something in the back of her mind recalled Taaru saying these creatures were supposed to be exceptionally loyal and should that be true then it was doubtful the creature would have left it s rider if he or she had still been alive.

Which begged the question - what had killed the rider? And where? And did this possibly have anything to do with what she was here for or would it just turn out to be a pointless lark. "I don't suppose your a magical memory bird that can tell me what happened" She asked it and when it just stared at her with those big as hell eyes she sighed "Didn't think so"

So how did you coax a giant bird close and convince it that you weren't going to hurt it? Maybe she should have paid more attention to them in the past, still there was a generally universal signal used by most animal handlers, Jet held her hand out and kissed to the the bird in much the same manner she called to Donegan or any of Erika's menagerie when they visited the mansion.

If it didn't come well...she could always just keep walking.

[Taaru Masako]

The horseclaw cocks it's head curiously at her, shifting the bit in its beak. Speaking to it seems to have elicited a novel behavior....one that not so much communicates nervousness, but more like...calculation. Regard. Cognition.

Calling to it seems to seal the deal. The creature takes a few steps towards her, and stretches its neck out, nuzzling her offered hand and sniffing. Apparently satisfied, the horseclaw clacks its beak together a few times.

[Jet Almeara]

Well it hadn't attempted to take off her hand so Jet figured she was doing fairly well "Good..bird" She soothes it being somewhat unsure of it's gender at the moment and not particularly caring either way. Easing her hand up she takes hold of it's reins and stands, affecting the same demeanor she used when working with Donegan, confident and calm seemed to be the attitude most animals responded to best.

And now it seemed she had a giant ridable bird in the middle of a huge desert. It seemed pretty stupid not to at least try and take advantage of it - whats the worst that could happen? She'd be thrown and have to walk. Wouldn't be the first time.

"Well if we're going to be hanging out your going to need a name of sorts" She told the beast as she worked the hanging boot out of the stirrup "I can't keep calling you bird" She continued as she checked the saddle was still secure "And let's keep it simple, because I'm in the middle of a desert in someones mind and I might be starting to question my sanity just by saying that" She continued placing a foot in the stirrup and pulling herself up "So how about Trusty...because I'm going to trust you not to fling me into the sand" She concluded as she settled into the saddle.