TC-26 kicks open the hatch so his shouting could be heard more clearly, "Are you guys ready!?"
Mill and Menyoo both respond with conciliatory excitement, "Yes TC, we are ready." Mill shakes his head and thinks, trying to please a droid, that is what I do now, disappointed with himself.
Menyoo walks to the small window and sits cross-legged in front of it. He peers down at the dusty world below in search of a structure resembling a castle. Should I be looking for a castle? Why am I imagining it to be a castle? He wonders to himself. He figures it's something about the description of D.G. and all the Sith stuff that makes him think it will be a castle, but he broadens his search to include any type of building or structure that appears. They are too far up to see any particular features of the planet, but even from this distance, Menyoo can confidently say there is nothing special about the modest planet below. "Hey TC, what's the plan? Are we going to scan for it? Or are we just going to fly across the surface and look? The republic probably has some cool toys for this sort of thing, right?"
TC responds, "Yeah, most ships are now equipped with all sorts of tools capable of finding what we are looking for now. For example, some can project lasers across the planet and seek out structures on its surface, report the likely composition of materials based on the relative densities, reflective capabilities, and mineral structures, then returns to the ship to submit the findings. Others scan from space to determine how many structures fit the description we are searching for. For a planet this empty, we could afford to be broad with our description. There are some that utilize experimental gravitational waves to discover man-made structures in particular, some use data from reflected light, and others use magnification and VI processing. Many options with varying degrees of success. All quite high."
Menyoo's mouth increasingly widened as TC continued his list, until his forehead primarily became a hole with teeth (a sight Mill could not help but turn away from, which he feels bad for later.) "That is amazing!" Menyoo says with jubilant enthusiasm, "which are we going to use!?"
"Oh, we do not possess any of those methods. The Republic does as a whole, like you asked. We were not outfitted with upgrades so we will have to fly around and look instead. But I can tell you about my last few days while we look! It has been hectic!"
The excitement drains noticeably from Menyoo's face, but TC's threat to tell them all about his last three days inspires him to perch at the window and search, "Let's get this over with." Mill sits next to Menyoo and watches through the window alongside him. The planet draws near; Its image grows, encompassing the entire pane as the ship descends into the lower atmospheres of Jaguada. Once they get to a proper height for surveying— low enough to find D.G's old home, and high enough to cover a lot of ground—Mill says to Menyoo, "Is it just me, or are you expecting a castle? I can't help but look for a castle."
TC-26 tells Mill and Menyoo about piloting through the abandoned space lanes. His summary includes an unexpected excursion through an unmarked asteroid field; passage around the treacherous Stygian Caldera—a nebula that protects the Esstran sector containing Jaguada—which he describes with profuse detail; and the presence of several ships leaving the only pass to and from the abandoned sector. After fifteen minutes of TC's verbose reporting, and Mill and Menyoo's intent search for any sign of past life, TC finishes his account of his last few days, "All in all, it was tough, but exciting! You two put me to the test, which is good because I have not been tested in years," Mill notes that as another sign of how little the high council cared for his safety. TC continues on, "So, what did you guys do while I was busy? Anything exciting? Preparing for the mission? Training your minds?"
Mill and Menyoo share an uncertain glance and a guttural "uhh…" escape their mouths. Menyoo answers first, "Well, I watched a really good piece on Bantha farming. It talked about how they are overbred, and some of the unethical farming conditions on unregulated planets. It's actually quite sad."
Menyoo then looks at Mill for his turn to speak. Mill is amid his slow, feigned-interest nod when he catches his eye, then sighs and answers, "I um. Well I slept quite a bit. You know, to prepare my body, just in case. And… watched a documentary with Menyoo. You would probably like it pilot, it's about racing. And, other things."
"Oh." TC responds, then remains silent for the rest of the search. After another fifteen minutes pass, they see something standing distinct from the smooth sea of endless yellow sand: a textured orange dot. TC is the first to spot it far off in the distance and yells to alert Mill and Menyoo, "We have something!" The ship dips suddenly, forcing them head-first into the window. Menyoo catches himself with his hands, while Mill puts his legs out to stop himself. They then endure a series of sudden turns and intermittent drops produced by TC's zealous piloting, before the ship finally settles into a comfortable hover. TC shouts down to them, "You should be able to see it now!" Mill and Menyoo peer out the window to see a fortress directly beneath them.
The entire complex is defendable, like a castle should be, and contains all the necessary parts—but the castle below is far from what they were expecting. For one, the black Sith fortress of death is only a shade darker than the sand, creating the impression of a massive sand castle. The ramparts snake along the perimeter of the castle, with rounded stations every meter or so, giving the structure an obtuse appearance; unlike the sharp, tight angles of storybook castles that Mill and Menyoo were expecting.
Walkways extend out from opposite ends, with winding ramps that curve away from the corners toward the immediate front of the castle gates, providing a convenient entryway up to the battlements. Large doors once covered the massive holes in front, but all that remains of them are splintered boards of withering wood with chunks ripped out in various places around the edges. There are no pointy architectural pieces, bastions, or free-standing towers; instead, a large two-story building sits off-center, with a few small buildings surrounding it.
Mill yells up to TC, "Now remember, we are looking for Twin peaks." TC pulls the ship up and steadies it directly above the castle, enabling their search for something resembling a peak among the sprawling sands. Since Mill and Menyoo are confined to the small window, they only cover about sixty degrees worth of their surroundings. Menyoo gets up and clears his bunk. Mill begins to ask him what he is doing, but it becomes clear when he lifts open the door, and his bunk with it, into the air, revealing another lens into the plain desert scene
Menyoo asks Mill if he still has Sbeit's macrobinoculars. Mill rummages through his bag searching for them as Menyoo stares into the expanse. Before Mill can find them, Menyoo shouts, "I see something! They aren't exactly peaks, but there is something over there." Menyoo points into the distance. Mill drops his bag and walks over beside him to look.
"There does appear to be two things sticking out of the sand. It's probably our best shot." Then shouting loud enough for TC to hear, Mill commands, "Pilot, take us to the right, about 2 kilometers."
TC-26 complies, gently turning the ship so the Jedi do not fall out. With light acceleration, the ship glides to where Menyoo pointed. At a closer glance, it appears to be the tips of much larger rock formations buried in the sand. Mill and Menyoo muse over the rocky pillars below, when Mill says aloud, "It doesn't make any sense."
Menyoo responds to him in a dispirited tone, "Mill, remember this place is over 500 years old. It was probably overtaken by the sand. If his tomb is down there, I don't think we are getting to it. And you saw, there is nothing else around."
Mill says defiantly, "No, it is down there and we are meant to be down there with it. Get your things together. We'll drop down and check it out. If it is unreachable, so be it, we'll head back to Coruscant. We've come too far to not at least look."
Menyoo nods in agreement and begins packing his things. The ship remains hovering over the supposed tomb entrance until the Jedi are prepared. Mill brings all of the Sith books and volumes, putting some of them in Menyoo's bag because there is not enough room in his. Menyoo also brings plenty of water, keeping them wrapped and separate from the rare and aged books. They need something to keep the sand out of their faces and the sun from their bare skin, but neither brought such a garment. They decide their best option is the thin sheet from their bunk mats, and wrap the ratty, white fabric across their bodies and faces.
With their bags over their shoulders, and an encouraging leg-five from TC through the ceiling, the Jedi jump out of the lowered ship onto the bed of rough sand—fairly close to the peaks. When they hit the planet's surface, any bare skin from their legs or hands that touched the ground were scorched on impact, causing them a great deal of pain. They both jump into the air and shake the afflicted body parts; Mill goes so far as to blow on his palms, to no practical effect. The ships lifts slowly back into the sky, then pulls away, heading in the direction of the castle where Mill instructed TC to scan for any signs of activity—just to be safe.
Immediately after their rough landing, both Mill and Menyoo feel something under their feet. Physically, it is just sand; but through it, an intense energy pulsates into the soles of their feet. Menyoo can only feel its presence, but Mill can feel a little more: dominant emotions are carried along with the energy, intertwined with its signature, as if the source of the energy is both a living thing and feeling the emotions as it transmits them. Confusion? Ambivalence? No—dissonance. The feelings creep into Mill, causing him to feel panicked.
He begins to wander in semi-circular paths, holding his hands against the side of his head and pressing his outstretched fingers into his skull. He stares down at the ground as he shimmies from one step to the next. Menyoo asks him if he is alright, to which Mill responds, "Difficult to breathe. Confined and stale. Claustrophobic." Mill then holds himself around his waist and backs up until he is kitty corner behind Menyoo. His eyes make rapid passes from left to right across the barren landscape.
Menyoo says with concern, "Mill, you can't be feeling claustrophobic, we are in the open desert. What is going on?"
Mill look at Menyoo, his eyes having returned to a stationary position, and he says to Menyoo, "not me. Back up, over here. With me." Menyoo does as he is told, joining Mill by his side as they face forward toward the tips of the buried peaks. Mill puts his hand on Menyoo's shoulder and squeezes it tightly before giving it a shake, "We did it, here we are."
Menyoo begins to say, "here is what," but is cut off by a loud trembling in the ground beneath them. The sands ahead begin to sink down into some unseen basin; a thin line in front of their feet extends up to the base of the peaks 30 meters away. The line widens into a gap as more sand pours into the empty space appearing before their eyes. The trembling stops, as does the widening of the trail leading into the planet. Mill takes one step forward and peers down into the path.
"Following along?" He asks, tilting his head toward Menyoo and brandishing a sly smile that creeps up the right side of his mouth.
Menyoo responds between timorous breaths, "Uh yes, this is what we came for. But… did you do that?"
Mill says curtly, "nope," then plunges fearlessly into the tunnel. Menyoo hesitates to take his first step as he peers down into the indiscernible abyss. Mill continues on, steadily descending deeper with an uncharacteristic cockiness. Menyoo gulps, then forces himself to take the first step: he is more afraid of losing sight of Mill, than he is of entering the creepy dungeon. Immediately after he makes contact with the first step, flames erupt from braziers many meters down the path, igniting with a whoosh of air and flame. The walls come into view: solid masses of sand, somehow retaining their composure despite the open air beside them. A strong force must be present to pull off such a trick. That, or somebody went to a lot of trouble to scare away unwanted guests.
Regardless, Mill is halfway down the steps and Menyoo has only placed a foot into the sunken cavern. Menyoo pushes aside his negative thoughts, and calls on his newfound trust in Mill to give him the confidence needed to follow him into the depths below. With a hearty breath—the last breath of dry, open air he will breathe for a while— he plunges into the tomb entrance to face whatever secrets await them inside.