Beacon of Venom

Beacon of Venom
Date of Scene:	09 July 2025
Location:	Aklyrr Bend - Tenoo - Outer Rim
Synopsis:	The search for Mal continues.
Cast of Characters:	159, Pike Windu, Cayde Alexis, Chad Bayne, Navi

---

Athena (159) has posed:
While Thaarin perches atop of a ladder leading to an open hatch on the top of the Skywing, waving at the others and hoping they'll find a way towards the vessel that's balanced a bit precariously on top of a rotten log, Rykard hurries to Cayde's side. He clutches the young padawan's shoulder gently, shaking him. <Cayde, let us go. We cannot tarry here. The birds may return. To the ship, now>

Meanwhile, inside, the ship, Master Yutelli regards the open hatch with a quiet sigh. She turns to Master Windu. "I hope they're alright - but if not everyone is, I hope you're up for the task? We'll all need to be at our best once we find the young witch..."

Pike Windu has posed:
    Master Windu, gravity on his features, nods in agreement. "So do I, Master. So do I."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde blinks and nods. <Yes Master>

    Then he follows the elder Ikkrukki onto the ship, his expression now more determined and resolute.

Chad Bayne has posed:
Once the last birds have absconded, Chad calls out in the direction of Vons, "Hurry up and get back on the ship." He covers Vons all the way back to the ladder, his face stoic, until the Zeltron ascends the ladder. A moment later, he holsters his blasters and begins the ascent as well.

Navi has posed:
Navi manages to protect her face from the worst of the shower of dead thing gunk, but an arm thrown up over one's face isn't the best face shield. Now covered in filth, she manages to extinguish her lightsaber and grab the ladder, ascending just behind Chad.

"Euck...if Mal was capable of laundry duty, she'd /sooooo/ be washing all our clothes after this," the Sephi grumbles.

Athena (159) has posed:
Unfortunately, Navi is right -- maybe they're all mostly uninjured, but they were definitely not spared from a mess. All them will be covered in ash and bits of slimy zombie bird innards, especially Vons.

He limps into the ship, arching a slightly annoyed brow at Chad. He didn't need to be babysat, or so he thought. He stops at the bottom of the ladder, once inside the Skywing. "Uh, hey," he says a bit begrudgingly. "Thanks. Sorry about earlier."

Oona sighs. "We'll worry about that once back at the colony site," she says, "is everyone alright?" She turns to Windu. "Let's give everyone a once over, just in case. I'm sure it's going to take at least ten minutes to fly to the beacon from here -- hopefully we can find a safe place to land.

Pike Windu has posed:
    Windu nods again. The Jedi healer begins to inspect the party with eye and Force for injury. "Is everyone alright?"

Navi has posed:
"At least we /can/ fly there now... hopefully those dead birds were the only thing between us and the beacon, and I guess the fog died off when they got beaten," Navi observes. "But any medical inspections will have to be done via the Force. It was a very bumpy ride in, and I'm expecting more of the same on the connecting flight."

"I'm fine, I think, except for the Dead Thing Gunk... I probably /smell/ ten years' dead," she adds to Master Windu. She looks at Cayde as she reluctantly straps in for the next leg of the journey. "Did you have a hand in the birds retreating and the fog rolling back? You were doing the statue thing again for a moment back there."

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne reaches the inside of the ship, stepping out of the way of the next person and offering a grimy hand to assist if desired. He shakes his head to Vons, "No, I'm sorry. I meant to shoot the thing down when it was only about 7 meters up or so. That didn't work out as intended."

He then looks over to Windu and asks, "What do you have for this olfactory delight? It smells almost as bad as his room does." The last is said with a finger gesturing towards Vons, at which point Chad turns back to the Zeltron and says, "By the way, my name is Chad Bayne, name and vocation. I'm your new roommate and, if we survive this, we need to have a talk..."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde doesn't respond to Navi's question, as he is too busy trying to prevent himself from vomiting in a confined space where someone or perhaps even everyone would have to deal with his vomit in addition to the dead bird entrails should that happen. Fortunately, he manages not to. However, he does not look well in spite of how much he might try to hide that fact...

Athena (159) has posed:
"It will be better, light willing," Thaarin says, "while you were fending off the birds, the Masters and I did some high elevation scouting. The Gorge is bigger than you might all think, but I think I've found a more navigable route and a safe place to land." He affectionately peels a slimy dead leaf off of Navi's hair. "Be seated, if you can."

Indeed everyone seem mostly fine -- Although Vons has some nasty swelling in his ankle, and Cayde looks extremely nauseous.

The Zeltron man seems offended by Chad's comment. "Wait, what? Since--Since when??" he groans. "You... didn't move all your stuff in yet, did you?"

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne pauses to listen and then sets to strapping himself in for the next part of the flight. As he does so, he replies light-heartedly to Vons, with a shake of his head, "I have some of my stuff in the room in an airtight bag while we're letting things air out. The rest of my stuff was too much for the shuttle, so I got the Rangers to lend me of their light freighters to bring the rest of my stuff."

As the last belt clicks, Chad looks to Vons and pops his eyebrows, "Should be here tomorrow. I'd be really thankful if you'd help me move it in. I secured the use of some of the colony's heavy equipment, but you know..." He shakes his head and rolls his eyes, "There's just so... much!"

Pike Windu has posed:
    Windu glances at Chad, "fresh air and a shower."

    The healer hands an alcohol wipe to Cayde. "Sniff this, Padawan."

    "Let me see your ankle, Vons."

Navi has posed:
"Thanks. Good planning. I'm hoping that'll make the next leg a lot smoother," Navi observes, bowing her head to allow Thaarin to deal with the leaf in her hair as she puts the final touches on strapping into her seat. "I'm hoping even harder that Mal's not paying so much attention to us right now."

She glances between Vons and Chad suspiciously as the latter continues to talk about The Mess. She was (un)fortunate enough to have seen The Mess, and it deserved commentary. Was Chad just yanking Vons' chain? She was having a hard time telling...

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde frowns at the cloth. Now why would...?

    But he sniffs it anyway and immediately realizes Master Pike knows what he's talking about. However, after more than a few whiffs just to shut out the smell of rotten flesh, he the nausea begins to give way to...dizziness? Is that what it is? Lightness? Wooziness...

Athena (159) has posed:
Vons scoffs, ignoring Pike and standing up, despite wincing while doing so. "Okay just so you know, there's -rules- for our hab suite and let me make one thing clear. You're not bringing anything into our room without MY permission," he says, wagging a finger at Chad, "and that goes for everyone and each of their respective rooms as well as the communal spaces," he says, "everyone's got to agree on what's going into our hab suite or it's not going in," he says, "got it?" This will be the first time either Cayde or Thaarin will have heard of this rule, however, and while Thaarin makes no comment, he glances over at the Zeltron man and arches a brow in the middle of doing his preflight checks.

"Ha! I find it ironic that you're the one complaining about my room smelling awful when the medic is recommending fresh air and a shower for YOU, not me," he grumbles.

"I hope so," Thaarin says softly to Navi, "and I hope no fights break out while we're en route. This vessel is far too small for that..."

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne grins as he's strapped in, then laughs, "That makes no sense whatsoever. My stuff is going in our room too, and we'll work out how to go about it. Don't worry, and anyway, I strongly suspect that any medic going in your room would have a few recommendations for you. Based on the smell and a limited knowledge of medicine, I'd say the recommendation would start with an antibiotic, probably a little less consumption of ground and fried meat of herdbeasts, and certainly far less shameful relations with them."

Matter of factly, he gestures towards Vons and then to one of the seats, "Strap in, pal. This shuttle waits for no one..." There is a brief glance away and then a smirk, "Except Navi, maybe."

Navi has posed:
Navi rolls her eyes at Chad's comment about the shuttle waiting for her, though she can't help a faint smirk. "Knock it off, you two funny guys... considering everyone on this ship except the very fortunate Thaarin and the Masters smells like years-dead birds, nobody can complain about anyone needing a shower, okay?"

"So let's focus on the mission, hm? You two can kill each other /after/ we get back to the colony, where there will no doubt be /another/ 'life-or-death' crisis waiting for us. Maybe we'll have time to shower and change before it falls in our laps. I hope."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde seems to be completely unaware of the conversation happening. Perhaps he should stop sniffing the cloth, but the smell of rotten bird flesh is just so overwhelming, he fears if he stops he will surely vomit.

    Besides, somehow he is beginning to feel a bit more relaxed, and the fear of the inevitable confrontation coming seems to shrink away into the back of his mind, nearly forgotten.

Pike Windu has posed:
    Pike shrugs at Von, but takes a seat close to him. The Jedi mumbles something repeatedly.

Athena (159) has posed:
"That makes no--" Vons looks like he might be about to punch Chad, even though the man had just saved his life. "You're the one making no sense, do you even have a concept of consent?" He ignores Navi, folding his arms. "Strongly suspect, my ass.." he grumbles. "Yeah, well good thing I don't take recommendations from people who aren't doctors and have limited medical expertise--" And then Pike discreetly heals his ankle.

Surprised by the sudden disappearance of pain from his ankle, he yelps and stumbles into the nearest seat - the one next to Chad. "Dammit! Can you at least tell me -when- you're performing your weird space monk magic!?"

Thaarin sighs, as the shuttle begins to lift off of the rotten tree trunk. "I wouldn't leave -anyone- behind," he says, "although medical expertise aside, I do think it may be a good idea to make a kinder attempt to get along with the person you'll be co-habitating with once we get back." Who he's referring to, though, will remain a mystery for now.

Rykard beckons for Cayde to sit down. <Seek serenity> he advises the young padawan. <And you'll feel better. Barring that, you should have Pike take a look at you.> He pats the young padawan on the back.

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne raises his hands and shakes his head with a grin, "I'm not complaining. I'm fine. I went through Ranger basic training. Thirty sentients living in a confined space with the only thing in common being a diet high in protein relative to the nutritional needs of our species leaves one somewhat fearless of smells." He then adds to Vons, "That's how I know we'll be okay."

With wide eyes, his smile wan, he asks, "Time for a shower and a change before the next life-or-death crisis? You know, I think they really overstated the pace of the life I was training to lead."

With a shake of his head, his voice low even thought it doesn't matter in such a small space, "They have to. It's in the job description. Be mYsTeRiOuSsssssss, which really just means get handsy to the benefit of as many as you can."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods, still holding the cloth, although it is almost dried up by now. <I feel better Master> he tells the elder Jedi. He holds it to his nose one more time, then shrugs and tosses it away. The smell doesn't seem to bother him any more, somehow. But Rykard will probably be able to tell that he has become somewhat intoxicated from whiffing that alcohol cloth one too many times.

Navi has posed:
Navi stifles a chuckle at the back-and-forth between Vons and Chad. "Beautiful save, Master Windu. I rate it nine out of ten," she says to Pike. "Now if you can just keep those two from killing each other after we get back, I'll bump it up to a ten. You're probably the only one who can."

A wipe lands on her boot, and she looks up just in time to see Cayde looking... more spaced than usual, really. Drawing upon the Force, she gets a look at his surface thoughts and the state of his metabolism, and swiftly realizes the sterilizing wipe is to blame. Some not-quite-forceful tweaking of the flow of the Force through the Padawan drains away the intoxication with a slight jolt. At least it also clears up the nausea. "Sober up, Cayde... we need your head on straight right now," she says matter-of-factly.

She looks out through the tiny viewports, watching the beacon get nearer and nearer. "Now I know why the Order abandoned Tenoo. They ran out of migraine meds," she murmurs.

Athena (159) has posed:
"Sure, sure," Vons says, rolling his eyes and strapping himself in. "Now, if you don't mind, can you muster up enough self control to last the rest of the ride there? I... need a rest. My head hurts and you're not helping." Then he rests his head on the headrest, and closes his eyes, sighing.

Rykard frowns when Cayde tosses the cloth aside, and peers at the young padawan. "Navi..." he begins, but the young Sephi girl is already on it.

He looks relieved when she uses the Force to cleanse him of the toxins he'd just inhaled from the alcohol cloth. "Thank you," He says.

Soon, the beacon looks close enough to walk to. Thaarin keeps piloting towards it -- that is, until it suddenly winks out, leaving all of them in utter darkness except for the panels lit up on the Skywing's control console. "I'm going to take us down," Thaarin says calmly. "You'll have to make it by foot from here ... I don't think I can intervene like I did last time. The canopy is too thick, and there's too much fog."

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne arches an eyebrow, but settles back into his seat with a grin. His cheerfulness wanes the closer they get to the beacon, his eyes closing and his breathing settling into a rhythm. Not quite of sleep, but of restfullness.

Pike Windu has posed:
    Windu glares at Navi. When Vons complains of a headache, the Jedi scoffs. "Space monk,,,"

Navi has posed:
"Sure makes you feel underappreciated, doesn't it?" Navi adds to Master Windu, with a hint of sympathy. She flinches as the beacon vanishes. "Guess we're walking again. Go ahead and put us down, Thaarin."

Athena (159) has posed:
Vons makes a face at Pike and Chad, but soon, there's a very slight bump as Thaarin sets them down on... something. It's too dark to see exactly what.

The gangplank deploys. It's pitch black outside -- and the stench of death wafts in. Not a good sign, but they must press forward. Rykard goes first, motioning for Cayde to follow. Master Yutelli goes second, but she pauses next to Cayde. "Are you feeling alright, Cayde?" she asks softly.

Chad Bayne has posed:
As they set down, Chad reaches down to start unstrapping his belt. He pushes himself out of the seat and walks towards the gangplank. As he approaches, he draws both blasters and holds them up and away in a safe direction.

As he passes head down, his nose twitches, "It smells like a gundark stopped suddenly and bent over when we were travelling too close behind it." He glances around, his lips pursed as his eyes narrow, "I have a mediocre feeling about this..."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods at Oona's question, even though it's quite far from the truth. He has a headache, and that feeling of dread has returned. He just knows that the outcome of this will not be good for anyone, regardless of who is 'victorious' or what happens. Especially not him. But it would be better for him to take the brunt of the consequences, than anyone else anyway. It was his fault, after all.

    He follows his master, although again he lags behind a bit.

Pike Windu has posed:
    Windu waits for his comrades to exit before bringing up the rear.

Navi has posed:
"Actually, it probably doesn't smell quite that good," Navi suggests as she unstraps and moves forward toward the hatch, lightsaber in hand, unlit. "Watch your step on the way out. That jolt on landing wasn't a comforting thing."

She nods to Master Windu in passing. "Thank you, Master. You are always such a gentleman."

Athena (159) has posed:
As Chad starts for the gangplank, Thaarin catches up to him, reaching for his hand and grabbing it suddenly. "Wait," he says softly, but firmly. He also waves for Rykard, Oona and Cayde to hold up a moment. "I'll lead," he says giving Chad a faint smile and brief hand squeeze after a slight pause. "I can see a bit better."

He then draws his blaster and heads down, ahead of everyone else.

Oona frowns, and placing a hand on Cayde's shoulder, beckons Pike and Navi to come over and have a look at Cayde. "What's wrong?" she asks, and Rykard slows his pace too.

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne shrugs his shoulders in response to Thaarin, shaking his head, "Fine. Suit yourself." He falls in behind Thaarin, his blasters still pointing skyward as they march towards the beacon.

Navi has posed:
Navi lays a hand on Chad's shoulder. "He's the smartest guy in the room. /Every/ room. If he wants to lead, he's got a good reason for it. Respect his decision," she says gently.

She looks back at Master Yutelli, then moves to assist with Cayde as best she might. "What's up?" she asks softly.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [Nothing] Cayde signs. [Keep going]

    Didn't he say he was fine? He tries to brush away from them and hurry after Thaarin, keeping his lightsaber ready.

Pike Windu has posed:
    Windu shrugs at the others as Cayde denies having any issues.

Athena (159) has posed:
Thaarin seems amused, even though Chad can't really see his expression, given how dark it is. He'll suddenly feel someone pressing his arms down, gently but firmly, paired with a soft chuckle. "I understand your concern about the birds," he says, "but I'm certain there are just as many dangers on the ground as well. But follow me, and we may be able avoid most of it. I don't think those flying creatures are in this area, anyway."

"Ah, Navi," the tall blue alien man's voice floats across the darkness sweetly, "you have been in so few rooms! And my intelligence is but a dying flame when put next to the bonfire that is your flattery," he teases.

Rykard frowns, placing a firm hand on his shoulder, but continuing into the woods after Thaarin, albeit at a slowed pace. "Cayde," he says, "You are not well." He looks to Navi, and Pike. "He is lying," he tells both of them. "Will both of you assess him? Mentally, and physically?"

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne shakes his head and replies quietly, though not quietly enough to not be heard, "I'm not worried about it. The smartest one in the room is also being the best soft cover for blaster fire."

His voice raises slightly, "Keep going, pal. We're right behind you." After a moment, he adds, "You're so brave. I want to grow up and be just like you. I'm already shopping blue body paint and acid eye drops."

Pike Windu has posed:
    The Jedi healer takes Cayde in hand for a quick examination. "What's bothering you, Padawan?"

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Physically, the padawan seems fine, although he might be suffering from the after-effects of intoxication. However, he keeps insisting that nothing is wrong. [Nothing] he signs again when Pike asks him what's bothering him.

    The rest of it is psychological. His mind is a jungle of anxiety and dread about the upcoming confrontation. Navi will be able to discern that he is absolutely convinced that he must kill Mal in order to resolve this, or else let her kill him, and that there is no other solution. However, that is all she will be able to ascertain before he starts trying to force her out of his mind, although it takes a couple of attempts before he's able to succeed in doing so.

Navi has posed:
"He's blocking me out, Masters," Navi reports softly, wincing faintly and withdrawing her mind from Cayde's. "All I could feel was that he's sure he's going to have to kill Mal, or let her kill /him/, before this will resolve itself. He's really, really wound up over it, too."

She rests a hand on Cayde's shoulder. "Cayde, we are /not/ going to kill Mal if we can help it. And we're not going to let you get killed, either."

Athena (159) has posed:
"Oh, is that so?" Thaarin says, "Why, if that's the case, you could simply marry me instead~ I'm sure the blue paint and eye drops will be enough to convince the rest of my family to permit me to wed you," he teases, "after all, you are the most charming and handsome Antarian Explorer I've ever met..."

"Cayde!" Rykard says, a bit severely, "This is not the time to deny your well being!" He shakes his head. "We will not kill her unless there is simply no other way. Cayde..." the elder Ikkrukki sighs.

Athena (159) has posed:
"You must not think in such absolutes," the Marshal continues. "I will not allow you to sacrifice yourself. Not like this." A pause. "Perhaps Cayde and I should return," he says, sounding defeated.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [Okay...then everything is wrong] Cayde finally admits, although it's somewhat pointless now. [What will you do] he asks. [Just go]

    They'd already come this far. How would he even go back? It would be too dangerous to leave those who would press on out here alone with no protection and no way out. Besides, it was him she wanted, wasn't it?

    Although he is struggling to keep it all in, those who have any Force attunement will begin to feel a strong sense of dread. It doesn't come from within, and yet it feels like a deep, yawning pit inside.

Navi has posed:
Navi sways slightly on her feet as something washes over her. It feels like it's coming from Cayde, and yet...

"It's not him! It's Mal! Or the vergence... or Mal /and/ the vergence! I don't know... I've never been near a vergence until now," she cries in frustration. "Either way, somehow he's tapped into it, and it's influencing him, or something."

Athena (159) has posed:
Rykard sighs, shaking his head and placing a hand on his own forehead, seeming very tired all of a sudden. He glances over at Navi. "Perhaps," he murmurs. "But the timing of this is... so poor. Cayde and I have much to discuss and I fear ... I fear it is affecting him negatively." A pause. "Maybe the rest of you should go on," he says, "and Cayde and I will stay here until further notice."

Meanwhile, as Vons, Chad, and Thaarin make their way through the abyss black forest, all of a sudden, the tall blue alien will halt in his tracks. There's rustling, and then Thaarin says. "On the ground... something serpentine! Be careful..."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    <It's me she wants...> Cayde tells his master, looking away even as he suggests that they stay here while the others go on. But was it even safe to split up? Well, Rykard was the one in charge.

Chad Bayne has posed:
Chad Bayne looks back, looking between Rykard and Cayde, a frown on his face, "If there's an attachment issue that may be compromising, that might be for the best, Master Rykard."

Returning his attention to the front, Chad stops short as Thaarin mentions a snake. He looks around warily, his right hand dropping to sweep the floor with his blaster. Taking a calming breath, he nods his head and continues walking, "We'll keep an eye out."

Navi has posed:
"Do what you feel is best, Master. Maybe I can help somehow," Navi says softly. Reaching out through the Force, she tries to make contact with Mal. Maybe she can help the poor girl somehow...

<Mal... it's Navi... can you hear me?>

Athena (159) has posed:
<And we are not going to let her have you> Rykard reassures him. <You are my padawan, and I will take care of you. There is no need for you to sacrifice yourself>

Oona sighs. "Yes, but should we just be handing her what she wants... this all feels like a trap that we just have to walk into."

"Well, I will," Thaarin says, and leaves it at that, given that Chad won't be able to see two feet in front of him without a glow rod. It's so dark in this area of the woods. The rustling sound suddenly amplifies, and Chad will be able to hear the sound scaled bellies on detritus. And not just one. Many. As in, it sounds like the entire forest floor is covered in slithering, undead snakes. "Oh -hell- no!" Vons yells from somewhere in the dark. "You all can deal with this, I'm going back to the ship..."

Mal's presence is faint. Navi will be able to sense that she's out there, somewhere, but she's too far away to communicate with. But something is off. Her presence in the Force doesn't feel the same. It feels... incredibly powerful, and... malevolent.

The beacon suddenly flares to life again, glowing a bright, ghastly green. It illuminates their surroundings -- and sure enough, there are literally hundreds of snakes everywhere, covering the forest floor. One of them rears up and tries to bite Chad.

Chad Bayne has posed:
A look of surprise passes across Chad Bayne's face as his arm and clamped down upon, and bit into, followed by a moment of panicked terror. He raises the arm, bringing his pistol to bare on the snake attached to him. With two quick squeezes of the trigger, Chad sends a blasterbolt into the snake while the second one flies wide. As this happens, he makes a noise that sounds like a long 'eeeeee' but very clenched up.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods. <Yes Master.> Although he does not feel that much better, and especially not about just sitting here doing nothing while the others have to fight a problem that he created. They would need help, and particularly they would at least need Rykard and Oona's help.

    But they've been wandering around for a while, and he is beginning to wonder if they had perhaps rushed into this too quickly. They saw the beacon, yes. But...how does he know Mal is even near the beacon? How would they have -any- idea where she is at all in this enormous gorge? Perhaps they should've found a way to pinpoint her location more precisely, before doing anything.

    <Maybe we all should go back now> he suggests. As far as anyone knows, nothing horrible has happened at the colony yet, if at all.

    But then the rest of the party is being attacked by a bunch of snakes, and he can't sit idly by. He charges into the fray, slicing as many of them as he can into multiple pieces.

Navi has posed:
Navi has barely begun to follow the others when she feels something slither past her leg... and then the beacon lights up again, and she sees what it is... a snake. A /dead/ snake... a dead snake that brought /lots of friends/!

Igniting her lightsaber, she wades in swinging low, trying to carve up as many of the snakes as possible. "We have GOT to get that girl a coloring book or something..!"

Athena (159) has posed:
The other quickly fly into action, doing what they can to fend the snakes off. Well, except for Vons, who is cowering back inside the Skywing.

The first shot knocks the snake off of Chad, but quickly, another one rears up to bite him. Thankfully, after first shot missing, the tall blue alien manages to kill the snake that Chad's second shot had failed to hit.

"Are you alright?" he asks. "You've been bitten.."

All around them, the snakes flail and continue to attack, but soon their attention will be diverted - someone, a very young someone, not so far away, is shouting. "...Help! help!!"

Navi will recognize the voice - it's Peeka! The tiny Chadra Fan teenager is sprinting for her life... from something, or someone.

At first, it would appear that she has no attacker - but then suddenly, in a flash of green light and smoke, the witch herself appears. She's hardly recognizable as Mal - she floats, instead of walks, on an aura of green flame, her eyes twin orbs of lime green light, from which blackish green energy emanates from, spidering out into vine like branches that leap downward and leave blackened holes in the ground where it touched. She looks like she came straight from a horror holodrama...

Chad Bayne has posed:
Through gritted teeth, Chad Bayne replies with a growl to Thaarin's comment, "Yeah I have. Don't worry. Whatever bit me is going to die soon, if it isn't dead already." With his arm free, Chad does not hesitate further in getting back to business.

Lowering both blasters, he begins shooting snakes that are continuing to approach, only one spared from the wraith that is spewed from the business end of the Explorer's blasters.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    As soon as Mal appears, her attention focused on chasing Peeka for some reason, Cayde immediately attempts to use the Force to break a large dead branch off of a nearby tree and fling it at her with the aim of distracting her and causing her to lose her guard, before he ignites his lightsaber and simply charges in.

    Those who are familiar with saber forms will easily notice that he is using very aggressive--and risky--forms that are typically only used against less capable foes that need to be taken out quickly.

Navi has posed:
"Peeka! Get behind me!" Navi shouts, continuing to carve up more of the undead snakes. "You'd think these things would have the simple good manners to /stay dead/..." she grumbles, her blue white lightsaber blade continuing to make little ones out of big ones as she slowly advances toward Peeka, and... something green. And floaty.

Once Peeka is behind her, she lowers her lightsaber, slowly realizing that she's looking at Mal... or rather, Mal after being empowered by the terrible energies of the beacon. Extinguishing the energy blade, she lowers it to her side. "Stay behind me, Peeka," she cautions the Chadra Fan. "And don't hug me... trust me, you /don't/ want this nasty stuff on you."

"Mal... it's Navi," she pleads softly, looking into the malevolent eyes of what was once the sweet-dispositioned Dathomiri girl she remembers from up until they arrived on Tenoo. "You know me. You know I'd never hurt you."

She barely has time to say that much before Cayde rushes in, slashing aggressively at the witch with his lightsaber. She flinches away from the sudden violence. "I guess I can't speak for Cayde!"

Athena (159) has posed:
"You'll have to get that looked at later," Thaarin instructs Chad, but for the time being leaves him alone, as the snakes are proving to be just as much of a problem for him as they are for Chad.

<Cayde! No!> Rykard cries. <Do not be reckless!> He tries to battle his way towards them, but the snakes keep getting in his way.

The whole time, Malgabar says nothing, and neither Cayde or Navi will be able to ascertain her thoughts. Her aura feels malevolent, though, as she brushes aside the branch Cayde has tossed at her with a casual flick of her wrist. Then she and Cayde engage in a sort of dance, him slicing and her appearing and disappearing at will. The young padawan doesn't seem to do her much harm, and she seems amused by his attempts.

Peeka ignores Navi's suggestion and hugs her anyway, clinging to her robe, as Mal stares Navi down, her expression impassive. Did she remember Navi? Or had she forgotten her completely?

At some point, she disappears, and then reappears right next to Peeka, grabbing her arm before disappearing again in a vapor of green and black smoke.

But where she had gone is pretty obvious - there's a large, burned swath in the vegetation now, that leads straight to the beacon that's burning an even brighter green than before. It's almost like she -wants- them to find and follow her. What was her game? Did she have the rest of Peeka's family as well?

Navi has posed:
Navi watches Mal and Cayde spar. Or, more accurately, she watches Cayde rush Mal and Mal simply not be there when he gets there. Over and over again. Until suddenly the witch is gone one more time... and then back again, right in front of her!

She returns Mal's stare, unable to look away. The impassive face of the green-glowing witch is impossible to reconcile with Mal's confused looks, or her smiles and giggles when she was near people she loved.

She's barely aware of Peeka clinging to her pants leg, hiding behind her as bidden. One hand gently rests over one of the Chadra Fan's paw-like hands, reassuring her.

"Mal. I know you're in there," she whispers. "Don't turn me away."

Whether Mal does or not isn't clear, but suddenly Mal, Peeka, and Navi are all gone, in the blink of an eye! Only that terrible burned trail remains, hinting at just where they have gone...

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde immediately starts following them down the burned swath of land. He might not know her game plan, but it doesn't matter much, because he certainly knows his. He does his best to keep these thoughts hidden from everyone else though, because he knows they won't like it at all. But it seems since she is refusing to fight him, that it will be the only way...