Aeris looked to An when she suggested that left wasn’t going to get them anywhere, that she felt like it would take them in circles. “That isn’t the way it seems to me,” she replied, shaking her head. “Unless the place we want to get to is different, then I see no reason to go deeper,” she spoke in a more firm tone. “Nothing good will come of going down that path. Going deeper in will not get us out. If anything, it'll only make it harder to escape,” she pointed out with a slight frown, hoping that the other woman would heed her words.<br/><br/>She began to walk towards the left, initially thinking that An was heading that way, too, but her course changed, heading down the path to the right. “Wait, An, don’t go that way!” she called to her, reaching out to grab her, but hesitating to dive through the fog and just barely missing her. She clicked her tongue in annoyance, her hands clenching into fists. “I won’t follow you down that path!” she yelled after the other woman, although she knew in her heart that it was a lie.<br/><br/>Even if she didn’t want to go, she couldn’t ignore her friend, or what might happen to her if she remained down there for long. She clenched her fists tightly, trying to control her frustration and her fear, but it was no use. In this place, for her, even the smallest negative emotion seemed to grow disproportionately, making it harder to get it back under control if she allowed it to take root. “You… You idiot!!!!” she screamed after An-Lok, but despite the frustration in the words, her hands trembled, and there was a hint of pain and fear in her eyes.<br/><br/>Just as she was about to go down the path, she felt something, the same feeling at the edge of her consciousness, only this time it didn’t fade, but instead grew stronger. “Jek…” she surmised, turning back towards the path they had taken down and starting back up until she felt the connection snap into place. It was thin, telling her that they were still a little way behind her, but that they were in the tunnels.<span style="font-style: italic">‘Jek! You’re here,’</span>she replied with a soft smile. With all the emotions that had built up inside of her, she felt tears well in her eyes as those feelings faded, replaced by new feelings.<br/><br/>She felt both happy to feel his presence again, to know that he was near, and sad that he was down here in this place, that he would be in danger again because of her. More than that, though, she felt relief to know he was here and that he was okay.<span style="font-style: italic">‘I wish I could tell you where I am, but it’s hard to keep track down here. But, if you followed either of our paths, you should reach a throne room before long. We took the path on the left wall, the one closest to the throne,’</span>she informed him.<span style="font-style: italic">‘Just follow the path straight down and when you the path splits…’</span>she hesitated.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">‘Well, I was with An-Lok, but I told her to go left, and she went right, although I think maybe she couldn’t help it,’</span>she was only guessing with that and quickly shook her head.<span style="font-style: italic">‘I know we need to get out of here, but first, I have to go after her. I’m sure you’ve noticed that this fog messed with our senses. More than that, I think it affects the Force inside of us. It affects our senses and causes us to see visions or more like illusions. But worse than that, I think…’</span>she hesitated again before resolving to tell him her theory.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">‘I think it is slowly siphoning our energy, draining the Force. With the fog we’ve encountered so far, the effects were pretty minimal, but…This tunnel is filled to the brim with the fog. That’s why I have to go. I have to get An out of there, before…’</span>she didn’t finish that thought, just shook her head once again.<span style="font-style: italic">‘I have to go now. I hope the connection will hold but in case it doesn’t…’</span>she turned and walked back towards the split in the path. [/i]‘I’m glad I got to hear your voice again, even if only this way. I trust you, so I know you’ll find us, and that you’ll make the right choices,’[/i] she told him with a gentle tone.<span style="font-style: italic">‘I love you, Jek,’</span>she told him before taking a deep breath and taking both lightsabers in her hands as she stared into the thick fog.<br/><br/>“DAMN IT AAAAALLLLLLLLLLL!!!” she screamed at the top of her lungs before rushing into the thick fog, igniting her sabers as she did. Her charge didn’t last long, only a couple dozen feet before she came to an abrupt stop, looking all around her. “This place…” her eyes widened as she looked upon a small house that sat at the center of a clearing. All around it was trees, flowers, and lush green grass, behind it stood a tall green hill, and off to the left was a small but beautiful lake. The scene looked so serene, so peaceful.<br/><br/>That was until you got a bit closer, close enough to see through the open door, to the scene that was spread out inside. A woman, beaten and bloody, lying in a mess of blood on the floor, a man slumped against the wall, blood dripping from his mouth and a puddle of blood steadily growing beneath him, and finally, a child. The child sat huddled in a corner, knees up to her chest, eyes wide with shock, hands holding tightly to her head as she mumbled the same words over and over through her pitiful sobs.<br/><br/>What was it that she was saying? It was her own past, but for the life of her, Aeris couldn’t remember what it was. Oh, that’s right… “I’m sorry. Come back. I’ll be a good girl, I promise,” Aeris recalled in a monotone, her green eyes seemingly empty as she looked over the scene. “How foolish,” she muttered, her blank expression twisting into a look of annoyance as she looked at the scene for only a moment longer. “As if I want to relive this! You stupid fog and your stupid master!” she exclaimed, spreading her arms and pushing back the fog, and the vision with it.<br/><br/>When the fog parted around her, she saw An-Lok ahead, lightsaber in hand, walking forward with her murderous intent practically radiating off her. “An!” she yelled at the other woman, who was walking straight toward what looked like a coffin on a pedestal at the center of the room. “Not good!” she clicked her tongue as she rushed forward once again, grabbing hold of An’s shoulder and pulling her back. “Hey, wake up!” she shook her a little before pushing her back, behind her.<br/><br/>“You need to leave, now!” Aeris commanded, her eyes fixed on a mass of fog that had begun to shape itself into the figure of a person. “Go back, An,” she said with a softer, almost pleading tone as she stood in a defensive stance between An and the foggy figure. “Please. If not for your sake, then…” she added, pausing as she finally glancing back at her friend for a moment with a knowing look before looking back towards the figure. “I’ll be fine,” she assured her, although that wasn’t entirely true since she knew that the chances of her beating even an imitation of this Sith alone were slim.<br/><br/>She was trying her best to put on a brave face, but despite her best efforts, her hands still trembled slightly. Nevertheless, she was determined to prevent An from entering this conflict, to get her out of this room, even if she had to use force to do it. Her chances alone were slim, but her chances with An here were even slimmer. Not only because she would be worried about her and the child she carried, but also because the drain in this place was worse than anywhere else.<br/><br/>As far as she could tell, the child had been unaffected by the drain so far, probably because An was instinctively protecting it. But the longer she stayed, the weaker she would get, which would put both of them at risk. Beyond that, Aeris had no doubt that the drain was fueling the power of the imitation Sith forming before their eyes, so the more power it could siphon, the stronger it would grow, all while they grew weaker. It was ingenious, really. But this was no time to admire the craftiness of their foe.<br/><br/>“Jek and Jax are here, somewhere, and they should be on their way to us,” she explained truthfully, hoping that if the other was hesitant, the promise of seeing Jax again would be enticing enough to make her go. “So, please, go to them, and let me handle this on my own,” she requested, a sinister grin making its way onto her face as she made the latter request. It was an odd combination of trepidation, determination, and anticipation for the confrontation to come. She wished that they could both just run, that she could believe that they could escape if they did, but she knew that it was too late for that now. This was the only option left.<br/><br/>--<br/>Jax was just about to rush off after the figure he had seen when Jek grabbed hold of his arm and reminded him that it wasn’t real. “But…” he looked back down the tunnel, reaching out a hand for a moment before closing his fist and letting his hand drop. “I know,” he murmured as Jek moved around him to stand between him and the fog. He felt his heart sink a little, but shook his head to rid himself of the feeling. “Thanks,” he finally replied as they walked into a large open room.<br/><br/>He scanned the room for a moment before looking to Jek and nodding when he concluded that there was nothing here, that they should keep moving. Before he got a chance to really respond, though, Jek spun back around. “What about her?” he asked curiously, preparing himself to have to stop Jek just as the other had stopped him before. That didn’t seem to be necessary, though, as he didn’t seem to be experiencing the same thing, nor did he try to go rushing off after her. Well, not exactly, anyway.<br/><br/>It wasn’t the same, but Jek did begin moving down the path before them with far less reservation or caution, seeming as if he had forgotten all about Jax. “I see how it is,” he murmured the teasing remark quietly as he followed after the other, wondering what exactly what driving him forward. Had he felt Aeris through the Force? But, so far, Jax hadn’t been able to feel either of the women through the Force, so was that really possible? Was their bond really that strong? He wondered silently as he followed the other, blinking in surprise when he suddenly started jogging forward with a grin on his face.<br/><br/>“Hey, wait!” Jax jogged after him, ready to stop him if he, too, had been taken in by the illusions in this place. But it seemed that his worries were for nothing, as Jek soon stopped, looking back at him, telling him through gestures that he’d been able to reach one of the girls—no, not one of them, it was obviously Aeris—and that they needed to keep moving, they needed to hurry. “Yeah, alright, then go,” Jax gestured with his head toward the tunnel ahead as he stopped next to the other for only a moment before continuing down the tunnel.<br/><br/>“What about An?” he finally asked as they made their way quickly through the tunnels. “Did she say anything about her? Are they together? Is she… okay?” he asked, glancing to Jek hopefully. At the quick pace they took, it wasn’t long before they reached what seemed to be an old throne room. It was worn away with the centuries, but recognizable, nonetheless. “I wonder what happened here?” he muttered the question as he looked around, noting that the fog seemed to have been pushed outward, as it was thinner here, and there was an increasingly smaller area in the center of the room that was free of fog.<br/><br/>“That’s not really the issue right now, though. I’m guessing this means that at least one of the girls was here, right? But which way did they go?” he wondered. He was just about to jog to the center of the room where the fog had yet to touch and try to use his psychometry to find them, but if Jek had reached Aeris and she had told him where to go, there was no sense in wasting precious time. “Did Aeris tell you which way to go?” he asked, glancing from him back to the fog, which had seemed to come alive again, gathering, growing denser, beginning to take shape.<br/><br/>“We should hurry before this place plays any more tricks on us,” he suggested, waiting for the other man’s answer and to follow him to the two girls.