> Disclaimer: Star Wars and all of it's Intellectual Properties is owned by George Lucas and Walt Disney, This fictional work and all of it's original characters are however mine.
Multi POV Chapter
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Jake's P.O.V. :
Rina was taking the lead again, her steps confident as she strode ahead. I kept my pace a bit behind her, with the Skew and scout droids following close behind. The faint hum of the droids’ servos echoed in the quiet hallway, giving the illusion of safety, but I wasn’t entirely comfortable.
“Rina,” I called out, my voice tinged with annoyance. “Can you please let the droids take the lead? At least the scout droids. That’s what they’re for.”
Rina turned her head slightly, not even breaking stride. “It’s been safe so far, Jake. Don’t worry so much.”
I frowned, muttering under my breath. That’s exactly the attitude that gets people killed in holo-dramas. Still, I didn’t push it further, though the Skew droids remained on high alert behind me.
As we passed the second storage room, I spared a glance inside, catching sight of the stacks of phrik and refined metals. The sight gave me a momentary burst of excitement, but Rina’s determined pace kept me moving. She had her sights set on the third storage room up ahead, and I wasn’t about to let her go in there alone.
When we reached the door to the next storage room, Rina wasted no time. Her fingers flew across the control panel, and the door hissed open.
I stepped up beside her, my usual quips ready to fire, but the sight inside stopped me in my tracks.
The room wasn’t what I expected—not even close.
Instead of racks of schematics, raw materials, or advanced tech, the third storage room was filled with... statues? And... furniture? Ornate, elaborate furniture carved from dark wood and metals, some inlaid with what looked like gemstones. The statues were equally strange—figures cloaked in flowing robes, their expressions either serene or menacing, depending on the angle.
I blinked, my brain struggling to process the sheer mundanity of it. “What the hell is this?” I blurted out, throwing up my hands. “Statues? Furniture? This is pointless! What are we supposed to do with this?”
Rina crossed her arms and leaned against the doorway, a slight smirk on her face. “Well, maybe these are culturally significant? You know, like artifacts or something.”
I turned to her and gave her the blankest stare I could muster.
Her smirk faltered, and she quickly backpedaled. “Okay, fine. Maybe Kado will know why this stuff is here. He’s the one who knows about history and cultural relics, right?”
I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, my earlier excitement completely deflated. “Sure. Let’s just chalk this up to Kado might know and move on. At least this room’s harmless.”
Lowering my guard, I stepped further inside, looking over the statues and ornate furniture. It was all well-crafted, sure, but compared to the treasures in the other rooms, this was... underwhelming. Still, something about the statues made the back of my neck itch. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but they gave off a vibe I didn’t like.
“Let’s finish scanning this room and move on,” I muttered, gesturing for the scout droids to get to work.
Rina nodded, stepping in beside me. “Don’t worry, Jake. Maybe the next room will have more of your precious tech.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I grumbled, my eyes narrowing at a particularly sinister-looking statue. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t involve more furniture.”
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Jake’s P.O.V. :
The walk to the fourth and final storage room felt like it stretched on forever, but that was probably just my mood talking. The third room had sapped my excitement, and it didn’t look like Rina was doing much better—though she hid it behind her usual bravado.
She kept trying to lead the group, but with our slower pace, the scout droids and Skew droids naturally moved ahead of us, finally following my earlier orders to take point. I stayed quiet, content to let them do their thing.
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When we finally arrived at the fourth storage room, I paused. The door looked just like the others—nothing special about it—but something about it felt... wrong. I couldn’t explain it, but there was this faint pressure in the air, like standing too close to a power generator.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Rina hesitate. Her hand hovered over the control panel, her confident demeanor slipping for a split second before she caught herself.
“You okay?” I asked, keeping my tone neutral.
“Yeah,” she replied quickly, though her voice didn’t carry the usual edge.
I stepped closer, giving the door a wary look. “This is the part where I regret saying, what could go wrong.”
Rina snorted but didn’t reply. With a steadying breath, she keyed the door open.
The room beyond was... off.
Even with the overhead lighting flickering on, the space felt dim, the shadows clinging to the walls as if reluctant to let go. The air was heavy, like the atmosphere itself was pressing down on us.
In the center of the room stood a pedestal. It wasn’t particularly ornate, just a solid block of stone with faint carvings along its edges. The carvings glowed faintly, pulsating in a rhythm that seemed to sync with my heartbeat the longer I looked at it.
“What the hell is that?” I muttered, my voice unnaturally loud in the oppressive silence.
Rina stepped in beside me, her hand instinctively brushing the blaster at her hip. “No idea, but it’s giving me bad vibes.”
“Yeah, no kidding.” I took a step back, the instinct to put distance between me and the pedestal growing stronger. “We should call the others before we do anything. This... whatever this is, feels way above our pay grade.”
To my surprise, Rina didn’t argue. She nodded, her usual confidence replaced with a seriousness I rarely saw from her.
“Agreed,” she said, her voice low.
I reached for my commlink, glancing at the Skew droids for reassurance. They stood silent and motionless, their sensors scanning the room as if it were just another storage area. I wasn’t sure if that made me feel better or worse.
“This is Jake,” I said into the comm, forcing my voice to stay steady. “We’ve reached the fourth storage room. Found... something. You’re going to want to see this before we touch anything.”
Static answered me, and I felt my stomach drop.
“Jake to Kado, Mira, anyone. Come in.”
Still nothing.
I exchanged a glance with Rina, whose hand had tightened on her blaster. “Let’s give it a minute,” I said, though the unease curling in my chest told me it wouldn’t help.
This wasn’t normal. None of this was normal.
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Kado's P.O.V. :
After traversing about a third of the way back to the ship by my estimate, Tarek’s voice crackled over the comms. His tone was urgent and panicked, calling us repeatedly until I quickly answered.
“Tarek, what’s going on?” I asked, my grip tightening on the repulsorlift cargo sled I was pushing.
Tarek’s words came in a rush. “Kado you answered, finally! It’s Shmi and Anakin. They’re having… a bad feeling. At first, I thought it was just this place messing with us—I mean, who wouldn’t feel on edge here? But their reactions… Shmi looked pale as a sheet, and Anakin was shaking. It’s scaring me.”
I let out a slow breath. “This is Malachor V, Tarek. The echoes of its past make it a place soaked in dread. What they’re feeling isn’t surprising, given what this planet’s been through. But I understand your concern. We’ll get this haul dropped off and head back to the vault immediately and finish up.”
Hearing his relieved sigh eased some of the tension in my chest. “Thank you, be careful Kado,” Tarek replied.
After ending the call, I turned to the others. “That was Tarek. Shmi and Anakin are deeply unsettled—Tarek said they’re scared out of their minds. Given where we are, it’s not surprising, but we should pick up the pace. They’re counting on us to move fast.”
Davik gave a curt nod, Mira frowned in worry, and Arlos—always polite—added, “Yes, sir. Let’s not waste a moment.”
With that, we doubled our pace. By the time we arrived at the ship’s landing site, we were moving so efficiently it felt like a military operation. The spoils were loaded into the cargo bay with precision and no wasted motion. Then, as quickly as we’d arrived, we set out on the return trek to the vault, the unsettling weight of Malachor’s atmosphere pushing us forward.
When we entered the vault, I immediately spotted Jake and Rina in the first storage area. The skew droids stood on guard near them, while the scout droids hovered nearby. The two were deep in conversation, their expressions far from casual. Jake’s face bore a grimace, and Rina looked like she was half-defensive, half-embarrassed.
“Jake,” I called out sharply, my voice carrying across the room as Davik, Mira, and Arlos filed in behind me. “What’s going on?”
Jake turned to me, looking like a kid caught sneaking sweets before dinner. “We, uh… we checked out the rest of the vault.”
“You what?” My voice dropped into a dangerously calm tone. “Even after I specifically asked you to wait for us to return?”
Rina jumped in to defend their actions, her voice tinged with irritation. “It’s been safe so far! We had the skew droids and the scouts with us.”
I crossed my arms, letting the full weight of my disapproval settle over them. “You don’t get it, do you? Something terrible could have happened, something the droids wouldn’t be able to handle. That promise to wait wasn’t just about keeping you safe—it was about ensuring we could back each other up if anything went wrong. You got lucky nothing actually happened.”
Both Jake and Rina lowered their heads, their previous defiance evaporating. Jake mumbled something that sounded like “Sorry,” and Rina crossed her arms but didn’t meet my gaze.
Mira, ever the peacemaker, spoke up. “Let’s focus on what matters now. What did you find?”
Jake perked up slightly at the shift in topic, and Rina followed suit. Together, they detailed what they’d discovered, from the mundane to the unsettling.
As they spoke, I listened intently, keeping my worry and irritation at bay. Malachor wasn’t a place to take lightly. Whatever they’d uncovered, it had better have been worth the risk.
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