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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Insight" data-source="post: 1362377" data-attributes="member: 11437">Stranded on Dathomir, Part ThreeIn his secret laboratory, Dr. Thaevius Orran has a moment of clarity and wonders whether he should continue on with the Empire's assignment.  His trusted droid, RK-9, advises the doctor that one does not simply decide whether or not to work with the Empire, and that having second thoughts is not generally a good idea. A call from Admiral Ozzel (Captain Rosha's superior) comes across the Holonet.  Ozzel asks Dr. Orran for a status report on the current experiments, to which Orran replies that progress is being made in the areas of speed and agility, and some mental awareness as well.  Adm. Ozzel appears pleased and reiterates that cybernetic implants are under development that will be used to enhance (control) the subjects in the field.  Dr. Orran is shocked to learn that test subjects will be taken from him off-planet to complete the surgery and initiate field testing on Septis 7.  Ozzel demands that four of the subjects, Rancors, are to be delivered, and on the hologram, Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith, appears behind him to punctuate the message.  The admiral advises that Lord Vader could make an appearance to help speed things along, and that the creatures are to be delivered in two standard weeks.  After the Holonet conversation has concluded, Dr. Orran tells RK-9 that there is much to be done.Orega Vala, Beedo, and Vort Weer arrive at the mountaintop camp of the Rancor-riding women, who speak little, but refer to themselves as the Nightsisters.  They explain that they fully control the Rancors through the use of magic, and that outworlders (meaning perhaps the Imperials) threaten to ruin Dathomir.  The Nightsisters mention exploration teams sent to Dathomir to survey the land and wildlife, and that the women suspect any outworlder as being a potential threat.  The Nightsister matron meets our heroes and advises them that they will not need their weapons, removing them with a sort of telekinetic power.  Weer is angered by this, but his rage is quickly diffused as several spears are leveled at his face.  Vala, also not giving up without a fight, manages to swipe a spear from the nearest Nightsister, but quickly realizes that resistance is rather futile.  The Nightsister matron says that the new outworlders will make fine slaves, and that food for the Rancors will be found elsewhere.  The heroes are thrown into a huge slave pen, where they see perhaps two dozen other off-worlders like themselves.  Almost all of their fellow slaves are downtrodden, and could have been in Nightsister captivity for weeks or even months.  While assessing their options, Beedo and Vala spy a modern-looking facility on a nearby mountain.  Vala recalls that the Empire supposedly had some kind of research facility here, though he did not have any specifics.  As they watch, a Lambda-class Imperial shuttle lands, and they notice that perhaps a few more shuttles are there as well.  Vala notes that Lambda-class shuttles have hyperdrive capability, and that it would be a fine vehicle by which to not only escape Dathomir, but also return the stolen data disk to Yavin IV.As they mull possible escape plans, a Bothan slave named Gors'ska quietly advises that he and the other slaves are planning a revolt in an attempt to get out of the Nightsisters' grasp.  The Bothan naturalist says he knows how to free the Rancors from their pens, and that doing so should cause enough distraction to enable the slaves to make their way out of the camp.  Gors'ska points out where the Nightsisters are keeping the heroes' equipment, giving them a clear target for once the chaos starts.  When it is deemed time, Gors'ska wriggles through the bars of the slave pen and quietly releases a few of the Rancors, sending the camp into a state of panic.  Nightsisters, occupied with attempts to control the loose Rancors, do not make any attempt to stop the slaves from escaping.  Weer, Vala, and Beedo run into a Nightsister guarding the tent where their equipment is stashed, but they manage to get past her and reacquire their gearJust as they emerge from the tent, a Rancor, now under the control of a Nightsister, bears down on the heroes.  Beedo and Vala manage to flee, but the creatures continues after Vort Weer.  Though he attempts to fend the huge creature off with his blaster carbine, the Rancor shrugs off the stout energy blasts and continues its pursuit.  Orega, spotting his ally in trouble, chases the Rancor down, firing on it from behind and even lobbing a spear at it in an attempt to draw it away from the cornered Weer.  The Bothan Gors'ska, who had managed to acquire a rifle, helps to pin the Rancor down, causing it some indecision between the three potential targets.  This confusion gives Vortimax time to escape the Rancor's immediate vicinity and, switching his blaster to stun, Orega Vala shoots the Rancor, stopping it long enough for the four ecaped slaves to finally be free of the huge monster.</blockquote>

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