Terentatek of the New Age
Posted on Tue Nov 20th, 2018 @ 4:28pm by Bomoor Thort & Thane
Edited on on Sat Jan 26th, 2019 @ 8:08pm
3,202 words; about a 16 minute read
Chapter:
Chapter V: Unbound
Location: XoXaan's Temple Antechamber, Korriban
Timeline: 0100 Hours (Local Time), Day Two (After "Creature of Darkness")
OLD
With the first shift of Thane’s left boot, a queer clicking sound with unmistakably fleshy notes resonated from ahead of them in response, which only unsettled the pale former Jedi further.
Is it possible to judge how such a beast will react against other predators? He quickly wondered to himself, his instinct telling him this cramped stretch of tunnel was not the place for two lightsaber-wielding warriors to make their stand against the unknown creature.
“Running… or walking?” Thane then put to Bomoor as they edged slightly backwards. Courtesy of the bond, it was difficult to ascertain whose trepidation was the greater or the original. Regardless, both had summoned their bravery, especially as Thane sought deeply for a spark of rage to fuel his own power.
Bomoor felt that power too as he gripped the lantern every tighter in the all-consuming darkness, “Well, I think…” he waited just a moment longer as he sensed Coda gain enough ground to be safe, “Run!”
NEW
The cavern walls flashed past at such a speed that any markings upon the walls became a blur, even in the orange-yellow light of the lantern that sped along with the two former-Jedi as they fled away from the predator that stalked them.
They had not turned back since they began to run, but the grinding of talons chipping the ground and the disturbingly-close sound of gnashing jaws signalled that it was only a few paces behind them. If it caught them now, those claws and teeth would immediately begin tearing at the flesh of the Human or Ithorian: whomever it cared to take down first.
While there were many different paths, the Force-bonded pair were able to wordlessly follow the same path without slowing and the power they were sharing allowed for increased stamina, particularly among the naturally-slower Ithorian. They were following the air: a crack or opening lay ahead. Some chance of respite from the tight passages, where they may confront or escape their attacker.
They began running on more stable ground; the uneven cave had become a corridor and, at the end of the corridor, lay some kind of chamber with some dim light filtering in. Bomoor gave a glance towards Thane, knowing they shared their thoughts on how to act as soon as their path widened. It was a critical moment; in the Force they could feel that their fates were to be decided: were they to fall to the beast or would they best it?
Their moment came as they reached the chamber; while the ancient structure in the room had crumbled like much they had seen before, several pillars and platforms lay about the room which provided surfaces to leap to. Bomoor leapt one way, landing on a broken arch and Thane shot another way, securing himself atop one of the pillars. A moment later, the creature burst in, pouncing with great strength and skidded to a halt, chucking up dirt and dust around its muscular but agile form.
Fortunately, through the grace of their power and connection, both men’s landings were silent, doing nothing to alert the beast to their location over the sound of its own gnashing and scraping against the ancient stone beneath its grotesque feet.
Concealed as they know were in their respective spots, Thane summoned upon the Force to better withdraw themselves from the physical plane, conveniently channelling the ability on to the Consular. Whilst he recognised that the creature was likely to have some form of Force talent of its own, it would at least serve to provide some extra level of security, even if for a few, perhaps critical, moments.
Below, they finally had their best view of their pursuer. Wreathed still in the shadows, the billowing dust that silhouetted the beast caught the concealed light source in various angles, casting peculiar and twisting ribbons of shadow across its sleek, rubbery skin. Two malevolent ruby-red eyes peered from beneath an angular fleshy brow, creviced though it was by scars from battles untold. Nestled underneath those fiery beads was a mouth populated with razor sharp fangs almost as wide as the monster’s skull, which stretched disturbingly in a sick, permanent smile. Thick amber-hued globules of saliva dripped unceremoniously to the ancient stone beneath the creature, just a few inches away from its four-taloned feet, which themselves appeared to be appendages designed for rending flesh and sinew from bone.
It then raised its head into full view as it audibly sniffed the disturbed, unsettled air, which itself appeared oversized by comparison to the rest of its densely-muscled bulk. Crowning its head were a number of spines which appeared as sharp as its fangs, but despite their edged appearance, gave the impression of having that same fleshy consistency the rest of the creature had.
To Thane, the creature was not dissimilar to a rancor, given its shape, gait and apparent desire to maul other lifeforms. What did set it apart, however – aside from its four-foot height and elements of its still-ferocious appearance – was its apparent intelligence. From the shadows, he could see it scanning the room, even as it did its utmost to stay as clear as possible from any light sources that threatened to illuminate it too much.
It took but a few creeping and silent steps to its left before it paused once more, flexing the stained claws of both of its hand-like growths in some mock-imitation of consideration. As it flexed, the great muscles and tendons that ran along its limbs bulged beneath its gold-ashen flesh, and a low hiss escaped from its twisted grin as it began pacing forwards once more.
Thane kept his thumb poised over his lightsaber’s activations switch, warranting himself a brief glance to Bomoor above the arch before deciding to take further stock of the room. Whilst the natural light of the room gave vague outlines of objects, pillars and walls – the room was very clearly wide and doubly-taller – it was difficult for the Human to make out the markings of each object. What he did notice, however, was an exceptionally large door positioned at the back of the structure, opposite from the hallway they had entered from.
It was inlaid against a great mural, lined with meticulous carvings of both ancient Sith glyphs and imagery of people and beasts. Without more light and the time to examine it, though, Thane had little chance of being certain of what was depicted. Even so, he had no doubt that they must be in form of antechamber, as the mural-wall and its door boasted an almost immaculate piece of art not uncommon to temple pathways and entrances. After all, the Jedi Temple on Coruscant was just as guilty of such so-called magnanimous pomp as the Sith crypts of Darth Cabal on Vaa.
His eyes fell back to the monster, which had suddenly, and alarmingly, stopped. Once more, it a series of meaty clicks resonated from inside its flesh and its eyes wandered quickly around and up the arch Bomoor was nestled above, setting firmly on the location the Ithorian was huddled. Those clicks grew louder and more intense, before finally giving way to an ear-piercing shriek that almost made Thane stumble in pain.
Throwing its arms out at either side and screaming with unbridled rage, the monster flung itself with abandon directly above the base of one side of the arch, digging its long talons deep into the stonework as though it were mud about three metres up from the ground. Paying no mind to the effort, it scurried at a terrifying speed up the arch’s edge, hissing and screaming with a starved and hate ferocity as it drew rapidly closer to the Ithorian.
“Bomoor!” Thane called instinctively, stepping forth from his concealment as his weapon’s violet blade sprung forth from its hilt, casting an unearthly glow across the black-clad Sith and his portion of the chamber. “Move!” He flung his lightsaber at the archway above where the monster would move next, jumping down from the pillar as he focused upon the blade within the Force, guiding it to its target.
As Thane’s lightsaber blade grazed the stonework, before arcing back towards its owner, the already crumbling, ancient stone began to give way, succeeding in throwing the creature off, but now leaving the Ithorian perilously standing atop a falling archway. Pushing off as best as he could from his delicate foothold, Bomoor leapt away and across towards the far end of the antechamber, where the lantern he still managed to hold more-brightly illuminated the ornate detailing around the doorway. They had perhaps, inadvertently, found the very entrance they were seeking when they entered the cavern.
However, their current situation left little time for reflecting on their fortune as the creature found its footing again and rose up, delivering another blood-curdling shriek that seemed to shake the whole chamber. At its full height, it was a terrifying sight: not a short hulking creature as had been seen in artwork of the old Great Hunts, but still with that horrifying angular face and spines that had kept many a Jedi youngling awake at night fearing the Jedi-gobbling monster. Seeing it now, Bomoor remembered the ancient original name given to the ancestors of this beast: the Terentatek.
Now turning its gaze towards its attacker, the beast began to bound towards Thane, gnashing its jaws as it practised the motion of tearing through flesh. This time, however, it did not attempt to directly climb the steep pillar up to its prey but, instead, flung itself against the nearby wall, digging in its powerful talons so that it was suspended from the ground and within striking distance of the Human.
Thane took a couple of swipes at the terentatek with his lightsaber, and whilst the blade seemed to graze the beast's flesh, it did little in terms of piercing or slicing through the monster's flesh, gliding off with so little as a mildly-pained hiss from his foe.
As it brought itself another foot closer, Thane more consciously aware that he was being closed by the terentatek, his avenues of escape being limited by its broad reach and gut-rending claws. Looking over and past the monster's flailing swipes, the Caanan glanced to either side, seeking out an escape to provide him more space for motion.
Some feet away and now on the ground, he saw Bomoor, lantern in hand, positioning himself and keeping a careful eye on developments. Seeing his moment as the terentatek brought itself high for another strike at his legs, Thane leapt over and behind his attacker, dragging as much Force power into his momentum as was possible as he glided above the monster.
Staring up at Thane with greedy eyes, apparently unsurprised by his Force-using foe's trick, the terentatek once more roared, trying in vain to grasp at the jumping Human. What did surprise the beast, however, was when it found itself suddenly being wrenched away from the stone wall, and instead hurtling with some speed down towards the rocky surface some feet below.
With a brief roar and the heavy reverberating thudding of thick muscle crashing against the ground, the terentatek rolled around and fumbled awkwardly with its misshapen limbs, struggling momentarily to rediscover its footing following the confusion.
Rushing up to the struggling beast, grateful that his Force technique had some measured success in dragging the terentatek down to the ground with him, Thane raised his hilt up high, blade pointed downwards towards the monster's rocking head. Determined to end the creature before it managed to steady itself, he brought the violet blade downwards with as much speed as he could summon-
-and it slid straight into the stone below, sparks sputtering up and lapping Thane's pale skin as the energy beam obliterated and separated the dense and ancient substance. The surprise of the motion gave Thane only a moment to glance to his left, noticing that again his weapon had failed to pierce the marauding monster's flesh, courtesy of some evolutionary quirk of the Force hunter, and had slid almost-harmlessly away and into the ground next to it.
In the latter part of that same moment, Thane narrowly flipped backwards and away from the terentatek thrusting a clawed hand straight at his abdomen, although it succeeded in tearing away a sizeable portion of his cloak.
Landing next to Bomoor, more or less unharmed, Thane brought himself back to full height with a sharp exhale, weapon poised in the Niman position as they regarded their foe. "It's wily," he half-jokingly admitted with a small flourish of his weapon, "and hardy. The lightsaber is barely scraping it."
They watched the terentatek for a moment longer as it once more set its sight unerringly on the two former Jedi, regarding them as a corpulent Neimodian regarding a freshly-harvested vat of kreklarvae laid before them. It was a wonder to Thane how such creatures had endured through these long years, calling upon what little information had been relayed or learnt over the years on the monster. Naturally, much of the truth had been whittled down by the annals of time and the imaginations of alarmist Reborn Jedi.
Whether it was something as fantastical as the dark side itself, a quirk of nature, or even something as simple as pure hibernation, Thane decided it was ultimately secondary to their immediate survival, and the sight of the terentatek lit jointly by his blade and Bomoor's fusion lantern did little to allay his concerns, giving the beast an almost ethereal appearance.
The lantern, Thane then realised, dismayed at his delayed realisation, even if the new hope was limited.
The idea was simultaneous within Bomoor’s mind as well, making it hard to determine if either one of them had generated the original thought. He looked down at the fusion lantern; while not technically-minded enough to be able to assemble such a device, he used his basic learning on shatterpoints to find the weak connection within the device that would trigger the greatest reaction.
“I can do it!” Bomoor exclaimed, almost excited at the prospect of testing the technique, even under such perilous circumstances. However, even as he focussed his powers, the lightsaber-resistant beast reared up, now seeming horrifyingly large as it prepared to bear down upon the two cave explorers.
Working in tandem with the Ithorian, Thane looked to the nearby remnants of the felled archway as he withdrew his saber's blade. Without the time nor concentration to fixate upon the larger pieces, he instead telekinetically grasped several choice samples and flung them towards the terentatek, which was already closing the space between them with furious alacrity.
Equally, not taking the time to specifically aim each individual projectile at the creature, Thane simply launched as many blocks as possible at it, several hitting their mark with remarkable speed and force. As expected, it brushed off the majority of the blows, stalling only momentarily in its relentless rampage towards the two men.
"Now!" Thane insisted, growing alarmed at the ever-shrinking gap between them.
Bomoor threw the fusion lantern forwards towards the beast, focussing on the simple shatterpoint within the device as he did so. When the heated lamp was just a slither away from the creature’s oily outer skin, the former-consular triggered a tiny fracture to form; miniscule in size, but grand in effect. A lightning-fast cascade of electrical and mechanical failures within the lantern led to a complete collapse of the containment barrier around the fusion core, leading to an immense exothermic reaction that sent all the observers flying backwards: Thane and Bomoor towards the ornate door and the terantatek back towards their original entrance.
As the beings fought desperately against flash blindness obscuring their deadly surroundings, the ground began to rumble and the sound of collapsing rock could be heard. Knowing Thane was beside him and having some sense of where they were through the Force, Bomoor ushered Thane backwards, “Quickly, get against the wall!”
Not one to ignore his instincts for self-preservation, Thane brought himself up against the antechamber wall. Between him and Bomoor, they called upon the Force to summon a basic protective bubble about themselves. Within just a few seconds, the sound of crashing stone spread all around them, just as huge swathes of the ancient ceiling crumbled down from above and into the surface below.
Whilst several rocks and stones bounced harmlessly off from the ethereal shield protecting the two friends, their view - barely recovered since the blinding flash of the exploding lantern - was further obscured by the kicking up of millennia-old dust, which now consumed the entirety of the chamber.
Whilst the rumbling and crashing of stone almost made it impossible to hear, the screams of the terentatek were clear for both Thane and Bomoor to hear. In the centre, no doubt scorched and bloodied by the offensive against it, the beast was now finding itself the victim of gravity, as many jagged edges must be plunging into its thick hide, hopefully finding the fleshy organs within and ultimately ending the unholy creature's unnecessary existence.
Some moments passed as the rumbling ceased and the dust settled, with the final few rocks rolling away from their larger counterparts without further incident. With their vision restoring and the view of the chamber clearing, the pair released their protective power over one another and stepped away from their position against the wall.
Glancing around, it was evident that the sheer size of the room had saved it from complete catastrophe, to Thane's relief, with only a few portions of ceiling and weathered pillars making up the majority of the rocky piles and destruction that now littered the ground. The ornate door behind them remained as it had before, its articulate etchings and depictions no further worn away than they had previously been. However, the aspirant young Sith did note that their path into the antechamber - where they had last seen the terentatek - was no longer a path at all.
Three large chunks of ochre-stained stone, crushed into place by other smaller rocks and rubble, now entirely blocked the cracked remnants of that doorway, insofar that to even move any part of it with the Force might cause further calamity within the cavern network.
"I see no blood nor body," the Human said, a degree of pronounced dispassion in his tone, staring at where the terentatek's corpse should have lain, whole or otherwise.
“It lives,” Bomoor stated firmly, “But I believe we managed to weaken it. Perhaps it will think twice about pursuing us further. I imagine you too now recognise the creature from the archive illustrations: the terentatek?”
"And our holocrons," Thane confirmed grimly, still not taking his eyes away from the now non-existent entrance.
“Let us hope Coda," Bomoor added, his mind along the same track as his friend's, "is far enough away that she is safe.”
Thane simply nodded, cold blue eyes narrowed. Either that, he mused, or we truly test the mettle of the survivor of Lorrd.
TBC
BOMOOR
☼ New Ability - Shatterpoint
THANE
▼ Dark Side Shift
RSS Feed