Erised. Taranae smirked as she thought of the badly hidden meaning of the place. DESIRE backwards. her heart's desire could be found inside, and she would get it or die trying. She had no idea how the place knew this fact, but she intended to find out one way or another.
As she approached in the trees surrounding the pyramidal vault, she appraised her options. So far she had been able to keep herself hidden, but a large expanse of open ground stood between her and the entrance. Guarding it was a small group of withered old men holding staffs and she wondered why. Opening up her senses, she reached out and touched them with her mind. They did nothing to shield themselves and she discovered power. Pure force. These men were more than they seemed; she needed to be wary. Whether to sneak past, fight or approach them was her first decision.
She sensed that fighting these men would be a terrible idea. They were strong in the force and could easily overwhelm her. If she tried to sneak she would surely be sensed and once more she would be forced to fight. Her only option seemed to be to approach the men and talk. From there she would weigh her options once more.
She dropped from her perch in the trees lightly, landing on the balls of her feet. Glancing towards the vault, she saw that none of the men acknowledged her presence and never even glanced in her direction. She could feel that her position had been noted, but none of them stirred. Wondering if they were dead, Taranae approached carefully. Keeping her eyes on the men who seemed to be dressed in monk robes, she crept toward the entrance of the vault. Nothing happened until she came within a few feet of being inside. One of the men simply appeared before her, blocking her route.
"Two entrances. One death, one life. But how can you discard what's right and find what's left is still right? Choose wisely. Your life will depend on it."
With that, he disappeared. Glancing around, the Sith saw that none of the three men had moved and were still in their original positions. Unnerved, she moved forward into the overgrown entrance to the pyramid.
Inside, a stone corridor stretched left and right. Glancing both ways, she decided that this must be what the old monk was talking about. She pondered the riddle.
"Discard right," she said to herself, "and find what's left is still right. So, get rid of the right turn, and the left turn is still the right direction."
She allowed herself a little smile. It was rare that the redhead needed to use her exceptional intelligence, but this seemed easy enough and just a question of logic. She continued left and arrived at a stone door. A small panel was set into the wall on the left and she pressed her palm to it. A loud hiss followed and the door slid upwards as the hiss of a lightsaber igniting resounded around her. Leaping back in a somersault, she landed in a crouch, unclipping and igniting her own saberstaff in one fluid movement. Holding the weapon parallel to the ground across her front, she watched as a droid marched forward with a lightsaber gripped in its hand.
She had seen these droids before in her years of training. They were sparring droids and could be set to any level of expertise. Wondering who set this droid's programming and at what level, she stepped back and flourished her weapon, spun it around her head and waited. The droid approached and leaped, swinging the saber in an arc at Taranae's head. She ducked instinctively and rolled forwards, timing her roll so she stopped just as the droid landed in the vacated area. Thrusting backwards and spinning the staff around her waist, she was satisfied as she felt the blade meet resistance and the clang of the droid's upper half striking the ground. Pausing, she could sense no more danger and she flicked off her saber, deftly snapping the hilt back onto her belt as she brought it back around her body.
She stood and walked into the newly opened door which led into a large chamber. In the middle stood a raised dais with a slowly rotating holocron above it suspended in a pale green beam of light. She gingerly reached into the light and grasped the holocron.
"greetings. Your deepest desires are contained within this holocron," said a voice. She looked around but could see no-one. Realising the voice was being projected directly into her head, she concentrated. "Taranae Rhode, gaze upon your deepest desires. The memories of your family and life that were taken from you when you became Sith."
Memories of her past childhood, her family and her life flashed through her mind. Her memory was restored but the onslaught was too much. Taranae sank to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably as tears of joy streamed down her face. Not only tears of joy but also tears of sorrow as she realised all that had been taken from her when she joined the brotherhood. All part of the conditioning she had endured under her Master, Brimstone.
After almost an hour, the Sith rose to her feet, her eyes bloodshot and the floor soaked where tears had fallen like raindrops in an April shower.
She had regained all her memories. She was happy beyond reason, but angry she had been stripped of her life memories. For this, someone would pay. Then she would revisit Naboo and all her childhood friends and places. She now knew who she was and she was sure her wife, Kelly would help. With grim determination, she left the vault, and left an opened, dimly glowing holocron on top of the dais.