Fate of the Falmeri

"Only disturb me if the ship is about to be destroyed," Taisen told the crew before shutting himself inside his quarters.

For the next four days and nights, Taisen lost himself in the memories of Yavanna recorded in the soul stone. He poured over the strange sights, sounds and smells of places that he had never been and people that he had never met.

Yavanna was the leader of a group of extremely rare grey-skinned magic users. A subset of an ancient amphibious humanoid species native to the planet Arkania Prime called the Fameri. They grey ones who were born with a third eye on their foreheads. The eye was granted them a form of precognition that allowed them to see different versions of the future. They utilised it to safely navigate and pilot their ships through the Chaos Region, as well as finding and mapping temporary hyperlanes.

They worshipped something called the Great Presence and believed that when they die, they would join the Great Presence either by fading into the void or be deemed worthy to join the currents of hyperspace to guide the journeys of future Falmeri.

Their ability made them targets of Malkor the deceiver who wanted to use them to build his empire from within the Chaos Region. Although they can glimpse the future, some of the Falmeri were blinded by greed and arrogance. Enough to believe that once Malkor conquered planets outside the Chaos Region, he would still have use for them. Yavanna knew that once he no longer needed the Falmeri to navigate hyperspace, the positions of power that he elevated them to would be abruptly withdrawn but she was the only one who could see that far into the future.

There was a split amongst the Falmeri. There were the Eldar (ones who follow) and the Avari (the unwilling). Malkor restricted the freedoms of the Avari until they were no longer free to travel. Those who dared run were hunted down and killed just like the derelict ships.

Taisen learned from the soul stone of a well-guarded star system located at the very edge of where normal space ends and where the chaos region begins.

"What good is knowledge of the Chaos region if there is no way to navigate it."

However, that was just the beginning. Yavanna described how some of the Falmeri who followed her out of the Chaos Region were captured by pirates led by Jorun Na'ak and had their ship taken. They were sold as slaves to a man she referred to as "Demon" because he had done cruel experiments—some even on children—to try and take their abilities for himself and to find out why after death, their third eye closes permanently, leaving only a crescent-shaped tattoo scar. By the time she rescued them, most of them were dead or driven insane. The Demon was successful in transplanting the third eye of a Falmeri into another being.

"Why of all planets did you come to Argos?"

As if sensing his question, the soul stone attempted to answer. The first reason is that Argos was mysteriously hidden from Third Sight. An added advantage was that the planet was violently resistant to any form of settlement.

Initially, when Yavanna arrived on Argos, her people were hunted by a large beast which they managed to tame using a certain mind control technique. However, the threats had only begun. After trying to fall trees in order to build a colony, the trees attacked and killed many of Yavanna's purple Falmeri attendants. It was the most gruesome method of discovering the sentience of the Myrkwood trees. Even though they rarely moved and preferred to lie dormant, when threatened, they can be quite vicious. Yavanna called the planet Myrkr. A Falmeri word which means "Wayward trees" because their punches could crush starship hulls like tin, and they can tear apart solid rock-like bread crusts.

At Argos, she could not be found by Malkor and his followers. For this reason, she chose to settle the remainder of her people who survived the subjects of the demon's experiments as well as all the research that she had found. For some reason, she didn't destroy it and Taisen was grateful for that poor judgement.

***

Taisen decided to brave the journey with a small team of seven; Himself, Lieutenant Alita, Captain Dorian and four of his men to conceal their presence in this dangerous landscape. A larger force may awaken the many dangers of Argos but that would all be for nought.

He stood with his back to the ocean staring into the virtually impenetrable wall of forest that acted as walls for the Falmeri tomb.

"I sense something else here," Alita said. "A presence."

Taisen could sense it too; a life force of immense size and strength running full speed towards them. A few seconds later, Captain Dorian could hear it crashing through the undergrowth. It must have been drawn by their landing. An enormous hunter searching for new prey.

"Captain, withdraw with your men and protect the landing craft by all means," Taisen said. "Do not fire unless your life is in danger."

"Understood, Commander," Dorian replied with great hesitation and annoyance. He wasn't the type to sit out a fight.

Dorian and his men obediently took up defensive positions around the landing craft while Alita assumed a support position behind Taisen with a blaster pistol in one hand and a medkit in the other.

A large creature burst forth from the trees and began loping across the soft ground bellowing a terrible cry. Taisen stood his ground as he watched it come, marvelling at the speed with which the massive beast closed the distance between them. He calmly held up a hand and channelled the power within him to touch the mind of the charging monster.

At his unspoken command, it stumbled to a halt and stood in place, panting. Careful to keep the creature's predatory instincts firmly in check, Taisen approached. It remained docile like a beast of burden being inspected by its owner.

At three metres tall, it was a large, powerfully built cat-like creature with a long body, immense jaws, and armoured hides. From its size, Taisen could see that it was a full-grown male. It had brightly coloured hind quarters and a small number of scars suggesting that it only just reached adulthood. Taisen laid his palm on its massive head feeling the vibration of its low throaty growl as he probed deeper into the animal's mind.

Taisen was assailed by an assortment of images and sensations. Countless hunts through the forest, most ending in successful kills. The rending of sinew and bone as the creature feasted on its quarry's still warm flesh. The search for a mate, battling with another male for dominance. And then finally, he found what he was searching for.

Buried deep in the creature's memories was the image of a stone pyramid hidden within the heart of the jungle. As a youngling, the creature had a compulsion placed on it to be a guardian and a mount for the Falmeri who settled here before they disappeared. Their death left an indelible mark on its brutish mind because they had a soul bond. The animal was driven wild by this. Taisen attempted to replace its old soul bond with a new one that he would forge with the beast which was successful but less so once he tried to find the cause of the Falmeri's demise.

The creature was at the top of Argos's food chain. It knew no fear but let out a whimpering moan as Taisen dredged up memories of the Falmeri and what killed them. It resisted but it was powerless to flee and compelled to obey its newly soul-bonded master.

Taisen failed to find any images of what doomed the Falmeri. The mystery of their fate on Argos would persist.

The wagged its long tail as it crouched low to the ground. Taisen leapt on its back and it rose carefully to its feet.

Turning around, Captain Dorian and his men were shellshocked by the turn of events. One moment they were preparing to enter a fight for their lives and the next, Taisen was petting the threat on the head as it wagged its tail violently. They gradually unclenched and lowered their blaster rifles.

Taisen held out a hand for Alita to climb on but she hesitated.

"You go on ahead," she said. "I'll stay with the ship."

"I will encounter many dangers on this journey," he said. "Would you really be alright with me getting wounded or killed while you stay with the ship?"

She gave the beast a second look before taking his hand and climbing on. With both riders safely perched on its great hunched shoulders, it rose again. At Taisen's command, it bolted into the forest toward the Falmeri final resting place.