A Present for his Mistress.

Var Ullaaba sat in silence, the only sounds interrupting her meditation were distant footsteps echoing on the stone floor of the Sith Temple on Korriban. As always, the Twi’lek was engaged in a battle with her emotions. In her previous life as a Jedi, she had been forced to suppress her anger and her hate. Now she realized they were what gave her strength, but she faced another emotional challenge. Weakness also stemmed from her true feelings.

She felt dirty all over. No amount of scrubbing would take away the sensation she felt. Pity. Mercy. Two sentiments she’d battled today, both pathetic signs of weakness. She’d overcome them, but just barely. She loathed herself for feeling that way. She’d actually felt sorry for a foolish initiate who’d earned himself a well-deserved blast of lightning from an instructor. He was weak though, and that meant he deserved it.

“But was I any different? I was weak too.” A soft voice cast doubt on her actions. One Var had learned to truly loathe for the words it spoke. But quickly another voice countered it, this one defiant and fiery. “I changed. I became strong, I am no longer a child. I am the master of myself now.”

“You weren’t always.” The soft voice reminded again.

Var found herself watching a scene out of her body, everything hazy as if seen through thick mist. A little Twi’lek girl was cowering in a corner, her entire body shaking with sobs. Her pathetic rags clung to her, and her bare knees emerged from underneath, splayed out awkwardly. There were bruises on every bit of exposed skin, and she was nursing a cut to her cheek. Her tiny hands left her face, revealing her large green eyes. They were wide, fearful, and filled with tears.

Those same eyes opened and Varulla’aba looked around her simple room. Her eyes no longer showed tears, or fear. They certainly had no innocence in them, that quality had died long ago in her. Now they were hard, and a quiet fire smoldered in them. It was anger, and even hatred. Bit by bit her kindness had been driven out, banished into the frigid night. Now she fueled herself with anger, and that from pain. And she had no shortage of that.

Everyone who had ever wronged her flashed through her mind. Even if she couldn’t have revenge on them, she could make sure others knew her pain.

It was a bittersweet sensation.

The Twi’lek could sense someone else coming down the hallway. She locked away her insecurities and weak feelings deep inside, knowing they could betray her in an instant. Then she swiveled to face the archway leading to her room, or more accurately ‘alcove.’ By the time her visitor entered her face had become inscrutable. Only her eyes still expressed emotion, this time an obvious displeasure at being interrupted. Not that a mere initiate had any right to privacy among the Sith.

One of the instructors appeared in the doorway. “Initiate, you have been summoned by a master. If you value your life you won’t delay.” The more senior Sith gave a very quick summary of the route to take through the labyrinth of the Temple as the Initiate listened carefully. She committed the directions to memory and nodded curtly to the instructor, signifying in no uncertain terms that she wanted him to leave.

Once had done so the Twi’lek uncrossed her legs and rose to her feet. She’d become slightly stiff from her morning meditation, and the cold chill of the floor had been numbing her legs. She opened the footlocker at the base of her bunk and drew what she’d need for the day. Her lightsaber was most important, but she also prized her armor. A simple set of Echani light armor served as a near-constant companion to the Sith. It was light and not bulky in the slightest, simply providing good protection without any real drawbacks. It slowed down her Ataru, but that had never been her forte at all. The added protection from blaster shots was far more important given her miserable skill at blocking them.

Swiftly she stripped off the dark robes she’d been wearing and zipped herself into the armor. She slid her feet into the snug leather boots of her preference, securing them firmly with a tug. Her swordsmanship confrontations had a tendency to get extremely physical, and kicking was par for the course. The last thing she needed was losing a boot off her foot. That would make for an incredibly laughable end. She didn’t anticipate fighting though. Every day was merely a preparation for the worst. You stayed ready, end of story. And Var was always ready.

She clipped her lightsaber onto her belt and headed off through the temple in search of the room. Unsurprisingly, Var had committed the details to memory just fine and reached her destination without any diversions. Punctuality was important. Especially when dealing with Masters. Regardless of whether or not they were respected, they all demanded at least nominal subservience. And the Initiates gave it. The younger ones tended to either obey like trained animals or make a foolish show of their own arrogance. Those with more experience, like Var, accepted it simply as normal ritual. It wasn’t worthy of resentment or of admiration.

She stepped through the doors into the room and was immediately surprised. It was bare of all furnishings, rather dim, and was unoccupied by any of the Masters. Instead it was occupied by another Twi’lek who was obviously not a Sith at all, that much was obvious from her rather casual civilian attire. No Sith Master would be caught dead in cargo pants and a tank top that exposed the belly. For a few seconds, Var was actually jealous of the other Twi’lek. Though she was attractive by any standards, she paled in comparison to the stranger. To be true, she still drew a few glances in crowded rooms and was more than capable of seduction if the need arose, but suddenly she looked like an amateur.

She was far too experienced to simply hold appearances against her. But she certainly didn't want the stranger to assume she was a 'friend' by the virtue of being the same species. So she trained a rather professional gaze at the other Twi'lek while almost subconsciously conveying her question through subtle movements of her lekku. Who are you?

"Oooooohhhh, this is so boring..." Doviculous groaned as he stared blankly up at the plain ceiling of his room, which was more like a cell than anything. He has accomplished all that he wanted to do, he slew all the Cultists on Vendaxa, and his bloodlust was still not sated. "Bah, I'll find something to do if it kills me" He sat up on his not so compfortable bed, and swivled around so that his legs dangled over the bed. He sighed and grabed his trenchcoat, his boots, and his gloves, and quickly slipped each on at a time, and opened the metal bulkhead door, and entered a dimly lit hallway within the Korriban temple.

Doviculous arrived at this temple a few months ago, and have not truly explored it's depths, nor did he really want to, all he wanted to do was train, and become the strongest. As he strode down the hallway, he noticed a Twi'le female slip into the nearby cafeteria, and he followed shortly. Doviculous had the creepiest hobby of stalking lesser students, no matter of their gender. He watched her get her pastries, her beverage, and continued to follow her through the temple, where she first slipped into the mechanical bay, and suddenly, Doviculous began to have a flashback, to his day he slew Lord Kalma on Vendaxa some years ago.

It was a dark day, rain pelted the mountain as Lord Kalma and Doviculous stared eachother down. Moments earlier Kalma had given Doviculous the rank of Knight, and Doviculous was about to do something that would change both of their lives forever. Doviculous jolted up and began to crush Kalma's breastplate with the force, but the Master would not give up easily, and repelled his force assault. Doviculous unleashed a vicious snarl, and quickly ignited his crimson lightsaber, as Kalma ignited his, and lunged at Doviculous, who switched to the defensive Style of Soresu, and blocked his attacks.

Doviculous and Kalma traded blow after blow, the rain sizzling on the saber's energy blades, as they arced through the sky and came down on one another, sending a sharp buzz through the air. It seemed like neither Dark Jedi would give up, until Kalma, giving into the blood lust, unleashed a massive volley of Force Lightning upon the Dark Jedi Knight, sending him flying backwards, writhing in agony the whole way. Doviculous' slightly charred body flopped against the muddy ground, stoping 7 feet short of the edge, as his lightsaber flew from his hands and slid to a small rock.

Kalma laughed maliciously, and began to walk towards Doviculous' limp body, his lightsaber still glowing brightly. "It ends here Doviculous, I knew you would try to betray me, as I saw you betrayed Devlin, the cycle of betrayal ends here!" He raised his lightsaber, and angled it's blade down at Doviculous, and began to bring it down. Suddenly, a dust cloud exploded infront of Kalma, blinding him momentarily, giving Doviculous the chance to slay him. Doviculous extended his hand towards the Dark Master, but not as his chest, but as his head, and constricted with the force. With a labored grunt, Doviculous closed his fist, while the force around Kalma's head closed with him, slowly crushing Kalma's head inward, blood and skull fragments sprewing everywhere, while his brain was sliced and mushed up, oozing from the cracks and fissures in Kalma's head. Doviculous released his control, and Kalma's corpse tumbled to the muddy ground, as Doviculous laughed, and let the rain wash over him.

Doviculous suddenly awoke from his flashback, and quickly hid behind a nearby hallway, as the Twi'lek girl left the room, and began to head in the opposite direction of Doviculous, who quickly gave persuit. After awhile of walking, he followed her to a lone hallway deep within the temple, and watched her quickly flee into a doorway. He was about to give chase again, when another Twi'lek female entered the same doorway, Interesting..... He quickly patted down his trenchcoat, and headed towards the doorway, and entered rather quietly, his red eyes eyeing the two females. "I'm sorry, but am I intruding?"

Donnie was leaning against a wall when the newcomer showed up. It was odd. She was convinced she was going to be fired, or killed or something, but when somebody else showed up, that changed.

What was going on was still not entirely clear, but it was going to involve more than one person. Donnie couldn't yet see how she fit in, being a pilot and a mechanic, but this newcomer was obviously a Sith, that much was obvious from her robes.

The Cream-Coloured Twi'lek who'd just walked in was, to Donnie, pretty good looking. She was shorter than Donnie, though practically everybody except tall males were, and not as curvy, but she had an air about her, she seemed to be one of those who "knew what they were doing", so to speak.

Before Doneeda could say "Hi", the newcomer used her leeku to convey a message.

The message, or question, came as somewhat of a challenge. Donnie hadn't used her Twi'leki in months, the leeku part being one that she wasn't ever extremely good at. Though the point got across. She wanted to know who Donnie was.

Fair enough.

She squared up on the newcomer, who was of normal height and, strangely enough, cream coloured. Doneeda had to admit, she'd never seen one of such a colour. She'd heard of it, of course, but hadn't ever met somebody with basically white skin. She'd even met a Lethan.

She put on her smile, and replied in Twi'leki.

I'm Doneedas'Oaknada...I'm not a Sith, I'm a Pilot and a Mechanic, You?

She asked, putting her shoulder bag on the floor, before continuing.

Where are you from, anyways? I've never seen somebody with your colours.

Donnie asked, intrigued by her unique look.

Doneeda had just finished her sentence when, what was basically a Demon, walked in. She cocked an eyebrow. The Strange just kept on coming today, it seemed.

Donnie responded in Basic.

Nah, yous'a nah'trudin'. Who's 'ou 'neways?" Donnie asked the newcomer.

Var listened silently to the other Twi'lek. Deoneedas'Oaknada's lekku weren't exactly in line with her words, perhaps she was out of practice? The Sith Initiate rested in a more comfortable stance now, locking one knee and resting on it while balancing with the other.

She had no qualms answering questions. For the moment at least. She responded in Twi'leki. "Varulla'aba. Sith Intitiate here. And if it matters, I was born on Ryloth. But I don't think we came here to share pleasantries about our pasts. Or our skin colors." She said, referencing the question. "But if you really are interested, this color isn't common. Not as rare as some others, but I'm not surprised you haven't seen any."

Var turned her attention to the newcomer now. A Devaronian. She'd never actually met one, but she'd seen them in passing. Certainly if she hadn't, the almost-nightmarish appearance would have left a lasting impression. She hadn't exactly ignored him, but she did make a point of addressing him after she replied to Donneeda.

His question she'd certainly answer, albeit with a question. "I don't know, are you intruding?" Her green eyes punctuated the question with accusation.

Sion sighed, walking down the cavernous halls of the Sith Temple, the only sound to be heard was the acoustic and rythmic clacking of his boots against the stone, Echoing through the empty corridor. He had been summoned by a yet anonymous Sith Lord for an assignment he/she had not yet clarified, and he was heading to the meeting point. He turned the corner and heard people talking to each other, and as he walked through the doorway out into the open room he saw the others that had been summoned. All.. Twi'leks..

They seemed to be arguing. He stomped his foot on the floor, creating a loud bang and an echo as he cracked the stone, calling attention to himself.

"So Why, exactly, are we here?" He inquired in a harsh tone, amplified by the large, circular room. He looked around with his peripheral vision, studying the others in the room.

Doviculous chuckled deeply, his red eyes glaring brightly. He flashed a toothy grin, his mouth lined with many razor sharp teeth, as he slowly approached both females slowly, his heavily booted feet making ominous echos as he walked. " I could be intruding, but I believe I'm forcefully making myself at home, however you decide to think of it" He stopped a few feet away from the Twi'leks, towering over them, his horns glinting off the artificial light of the Temple. " Oh, how foolish of me, I forgot to introduce myself, I am Doviculous, Nightmare Incarnate" He was going to continue his approach, but turned around when he heard the slam of a boot onto the stone.

"Another one, I must be intruding on something important . . . and who are you human?" He turned completely towards Sion, his red skin shined brightly. " Probably another hotheaded youth, I've seen too many here at this academy..."

Sion turned to the older Devaronian man who spoke to him, and gave a fake smile.

Well, aren't we a little full of ourselves? Nightmare Incarnate? He chuckled at the title, at the Devaronian.

Sion walked to the Man until he was about 6 feet away.

And you think you have earned that title, Devaronian? He asked, in a diminuitive fashion toward the alien.

Sion took another step forward, looked at the Twi'leks, and turned back to the man in front of him.

" Then how about a little...sparring match...between us, you can use force if you want, but I don't think you'll last long" He cracked his knuckles, and threw off his tenchcoat, revealing a muscular body covered by a black shirt. He chuckled deeply, " I'll show you how I earned that title! It did not come easy, I had to slay many Dark Jedi to earn it" He quickly gave no time for Sion to make a remark, already rushing forward, fist extending forward, using the force to amplify the momentum and power of his punch.

As soon as the Devaronian rushed at him, Sion instictively dropped to the floor and dove to the side. Standing up he ignited his lightsaber and lunged into the air above the alien, thrusting down in a circular motion. At the Same time he had his fist outstreched to possibly land a blow on his attacker.

Doviculous' expression turned from a solomn calmness, into a madman's enragement, as he quickly activated his crimson saber, and parried the sudden attack from Sion. "Good Boy Good!" He pushed towards Sion with the force, moving the teenager's fist out of the way, along with him. Doviculous snarled in malicious glee, and leaped towards the boy, lightsaber blazing towards him.

Var rolled her eyes. There were a very large amount of Sith who seemed to think squabbling over anything and everything was somehow sensible. It was petty. Yes, the Dark Side does give you power. Yes, only fools wouldn't use their hate and anger to empower them. But there was a time and a place for it, and neither was here. That kind of macho behavior didn't prove anything but stupidity.

She looked back to Doneeda, her thoughts summed up in both her expression and her lekku. "Echuta koochoo," she commented to the other Twi'lek, a gesture with her head signifying the pair sparring as the object of her insult. She followed through on the switch to Huttese and continued their private conversation, ignoring the flash of lightsabers off to the side. "Whichever Master summoned us might not be happy to see them fighting. But that's their problem. Now, you said you were a pilot? Does that mean we're going off-world?" she asked. Var had demonstrated an almost compulsive need to visit Tatooine over the past year, and the possibility to get off Korriban was calling to her.

Sion snapped out of the moment for a brief second to look over at the Twi'lek with the annoying voice, and was slammed against the wall by the Devaronians' force attack.

Sion Coughed, looking down, and then looking up to the angry Devaronian hurtling toward him, lightsaber outstretched, Oh shi- and rolled to the left, standing up and dusting off his robes as the Alien hit the wall with his lightsaber.

Sion looked again to the annoying female Twi'lek and growled, looking back at his opponent and laughing.

Doviculous grinned and extended his hand with the force, gripping the teenager with his most devastating attack, Force Crush. The teenager could probably feel his chest contracting, as Doviculous slowly began to squeeze his hand shut, his airway cutting off, and immense pain spreading through his chest. "You are quite annoying, I think I'll end you now" Doviculous whispered as his eyes were aflame with red, his mouth pulled back in a malicious smile to reveal all of his sharp, dagger like teeth.

Var sighed. "Please excuse me for one moment." she apologized to the other Twi'lek before turning to face the others. It wasn't a prospect she relished, but she had to save the little worm's life. If only to avoid the wrath of the unknown Master. She closed the distance with surprising speed, before any of the others could react.

With a snap and hiss her lightsaber ignited, and she held the red blade right by Doviculous' throat. She switched to Basic now, her melodious voice managing to sound extremely cold. "I suggest you avoid doing that. We were summoned here by a Master, and I don't think he would be very happy to hear one of us was killed. You two can destroy each other later. Now release him."

Doviculous snarls at the girl, then throws the teenager against the opposite wall. "So be it, but when I get the chance, his life is mine" He glared one more time at the boy, before retreiving his saber, and heading to retrieve his trenchcoat " Bah, stupid woman, ruining all the fun" He continues to stare at the two woman, not really caring much for the boy anymore. " I hope you're not like this all the time woman, I'd hate it for you to cross me twice, I'd have to kill you!" He smiles devilishly at the Twi'lek, before putting his coat back on, and leaning against the wall calmly.

Sion gasped for one moment and clutched at his throat, staring at The Devaronian across from him. His hand was outstretched and pointed at him. He couldn't breath.

Oh hell.. he thought, and he started to get dazed.

He struggled to move, but he could not, this man was trying to kill him. He dropped his lightsaber and clutched his chest.

Suddenly he saw the annoying Twi'lek rush towards the Devaronian and threaten him, her lightsaber over his throat.
Sion saw the alien's arm move, and he was thrust through the air at the wall.

Wide eyed he slammed against the wall, his lightsaber fumbling to the ground near his hands, and he slumped against the wall.

Var deactivated her lightsaber and returned it to her belt. "Stupid woman?" she repeated incredulously, clearly annoyed by Doviculous. "Kee baatu baatu," she spat. With a parting glare at the Devaronian, Varulla'aba walked across the room to the young human and promptly kicked him in the ribs. Not hard, but not gently either. Her goal was to rouse him back to consciousness.

As his eyes opened she could see she'd been successful. The Twi'lek straightened up, contempt visible in her vivid green eyes. "Idiot. Next time pick a fight you can win. On your own time. I won't always be generous enough to save your miserable life. You were lucky today."

She wiped some dust off of her boot on his pants leg, adding insult to injury. "What do you know? You make a nice dust rag."

Sion opened his eyes as he was kicked hard in the ribs. He coughed, winced, and looked up to see the annoying Twi'lek talking down to him. He held his head, ignoring her, and looked over at the Devaronian that had knocked him unconscious.

damn.. he swore under his breath, so that no one could hear.

She wiped his boot off on his pant leg, and he swiped at her with the hilt of his lightsaber.