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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
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Aug 12, 2007 16:30:25 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 12, 2007 16:30:25 GMT -5
A dead world. Or, at least, pretty damnably close to one. So they said, anyways. It seemed dead enough to the Assassin. Even if there were eyes to see the inbound Cutlass, they would not have seen it, nor would they have seen its pilot emerge upon landing in one of the underground cities. For all intents and purposes, it was still a dead planet. But it wasn't, not truly. Out of nothing, something appeared. A lone figure, clad in armor darker than the durasteel around it. Nothing, not the temperature, not the confined and stale air, nothing was felt through the suit. Nothing but...emptiness. Darkness.
I almost feel at home...
By a sign labeled Port Authority, the figure waited. Unlike on Korriban, however, with the Admiral, she was more than simply subconsciously alert, she was very nearly on edge. All of her surroundings, every sound, every object was taken into account, memorized. The area around her became more than just durasteel and plastics, it became an extension of her senses. Her eyes flicked open as a small insectoid crawled past her a few feet before her. The only thing missing were the smells, but she didn't trust the air in this place enough to remove her helmet. Sight, sound, and feel, both physical and through the Force, would have to do. "How do I find you...?" She asked thin air, very quietly. Patience...she had patience. But she hated waiting without reason. Still, if the sith had been telling the truth...there was reason enough.
If she had told the truth. "A direction is all I need..."
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
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Aug 12, 2007 17:05:16 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 12, 2007 17:05:16 GMT -5
Since the battle, Subterrel had become quiet. No sounds were heard in the mining cities or facilities. But it was quieter still. Not even the memory of the sounds which had once echoed through the caverns could be sensed. It was as if all Subterrel ever was had never existed. This place was dead, empty of the Force. No life remained in this tomb of a place. But no death either could be felt. There was simply nothing to feel here. No light, no dark. If the Force was a river, here was where the river ran dry.
Until a small trickle arrived in one of the old hangars. It was faint, the Cathar skilled at hiding herself. But in the absence of this world, any small sign was as if magnified. And suddenly, Everos could see her. He could see her own personal darkness, the light engulfed in shadows. He could see her potential. So much more than the whelp from before. Here was his chance.
From within the shadows of the Port Authority, the servants of the Dark Lord stirred. One of the Tuk'ata, the Sith Hounds, stepped forward, eyes transfixed upon the armored Cathar. It had been said that the Tuk'ata were nearly sentient. This one seemed even moreso. The beast approached, but there was no malice in this killer, not yet. Here was a creature of the hunt broken to the will of another, reduced from proud beast to messenger.
A whisper, the first true sound of the planet, echoed through the air around the Cathar.
[glow=purple,2,300]You have come far, what you seek is not much further.[/glow]
The Hound turned, making sure to be seen, and began to lead the way to the temple Nebgra'dall, and the Dark Lord Everos.
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
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Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
Guardian
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Aug 12, 2007 17:31:31 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 12, 2007 17:31:31 GMT -5
And there it was, the sign she had waited for. Tuk'ata she knew, for they still could be found on Korriban if one looked in the right places. She found it somewhat odd to find one here, especially a seemingly docile one, but she had seen many odd things throughout her travels. The voice, however, made very clear where to go from there. The beast was more than a simple animal that had found a desolate home. She needed no more encouragement to follow, and follow she did.
-----
The journey was not exactly quick, but that made little difference to the Cathar. Through passages, tunnels, and eventually crumbles ruins they passed, the Assassin and her guide. Even in the darkness, she needed no help to see clearly. The Tuk'ata stopped before one of the less crumbled entryways, marked by old markings. She stepped inside and followed the path, followed the dark path to an alter. And there it was. To most, nothing more than a small pyrimid-shaped box...Dani knew better. It was a holocron, an old one. "For a purpose unknown to me, I was summoned, but I have come all the same." She said to the darkness around her. There was power in this place, she could feel that much; and it wasn't fueled by the light, either.
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
Master
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Aug 12, 2007 17:45:41 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 12, 2007 17:45:41 GMT -5
The Tuk'ata faded away as torches lit themselves in the black, casting odd shadows across three skeletal corpses in dark robes, the remains of a fight ended long ago. This place was ancient, even before the time of Morafat. Hallways extended far beyond the altar in all directions. There was much lost in this place, and, as deep as she had already come, there was deeper still to delve.
The voice again.
[glow=purple,3,400]Remove your armor and arms. They are of no use to you in this place. We are alone here, and I shall not strike at your body. You will never bear this armor in my presence. You may not yet know me, but you will soon know respect. Consider it your first lesson.[/glow]
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
0 likes
Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
Guardian
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Aug 12, 2007 18:04:10 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 12, 2007 18:04:10 GMT -5
For as much as all of this should have been to take in so quickly, the Cathar did quite well. She didn't even flinch, instead nodding silently. She could be invisible when she wanted to, but this...presence was more than just unseen. Fighting with ghosts, or whatever it truly was, was not her ideal passtime. "As you wish..."
There was a soft click and a hiss as she unsealed her helmet and set it on the floor beside her. She removed all her armor, including the bodysuit beneath, and laid it gently down, revealing the simple, almost civilian attire underneath. Lastly, a pair of lightsabers were rested on top of the armor. Even the small knife came off. There was power here...and she was starting to feel more awed by it, if anything, than she had before. She found herself obeying slowly more out of respect than simply because it was a means to an end. She stood in silence, waiting as she did best.
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
Master
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Aug 12, 2007 18:15:13 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 12, 2007 18:15:13 GMT -5
This one was obedient. Which, at this stage, could only mean that she was curious, hungry for the power she no doubt felt in this place. But that would pass. Soon, she would obey out of pain, then fear, then out of submission. She was strong herself, but she would be broken soon.
[glow=purple,3,400]I am Everos. I am the Lord of this New Sith Empire. The power you feel here is indeed me. All you feel in this place is me. This is the Temple Nebgra'dall, where this power, the power of the Sith, my power, was imparted unto me. You have felt this power, I know it. Yet you do not understand it, you can not.[/glow]
A row of torches lit up down the hall behind the altar.
[glow=purple,3,400]But you wish to understand this power, to use it as your own. I can teach you the ways of this place, of the Sith. I will make you my apprentice, and the Empire will be yours to command.[/glow]
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
0 likes
Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
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Aug 12, 2007 18:38:59 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 12, 2007 18:38:59 GMT -5
"Lord Everos..." She said simply. She did not know much of him, but she had heard rumors...if they were true, she was in farther than she had anticipated. Something, however, was...off. She had met the spirits of old Sith on more than one occasion, and none of them had been so...painless. Something was coming, she was sure. What, she only had a vague idea. The torches lighting another hall compounded that feeling. At this point, however, she had decided against resistance when there was little point. She stepped into the entrance of the hall.
"Yes...I do long for power...power to make those that have betrayed me suffer, though I may not have seen it as clearly before. An apprentice again...yes...Master." And with that, her mind and her body moved forward, the one to detirmination and more purpose than it had ever had before, and the other into the hall.
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
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Aug 12, 2007 18:47:40 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 12, 2007 18:47:40 GMT -5
The voice followed her. Everos was, indeed, the Temple Nebgra'dall. He existed throughout the ancient place. His voice was everywhere. His eyes were everywhere. The hallway led out into a small chamber, much like the altar chamber, with just as many new passages extending in all directions. This chamber lay filled with holocrons as well as old tomes of the past. A thousand years of history lay here, some newer than the rest.
[glow=purple,3,400]Do you know what the Sith are, what you have just become? Do you know what it is we seek, why we do what we do? Do you even know what it is that we do? Do you know anything of us?[/glow]
There was truly no arrogance in this, merely the pained questionings of a man so far removed from the galaxy that he truly does not know what has become of his order. He expected ignorance, but feared a new, different, yet correct answer.
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
0 likes
Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
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Aug 12, 2007 19:25:58 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 12, 2007 19:25:58 GMT -5
"I have studied as much of the Sith as I could find, but many records have been destroyed, hidden. or distorted. It has been hundreds of years since a true Sith Lord has traveled the galaxy. The last I know of were the Triumvirate, the three who nearly destroyed the Jedi. What little I have found has led me to become what I am know, but they have given me little more than ability, not teaching." The Cathar replied as she moved about the room. There was so much knowledge here...she could barely comprehend how much history lay in this one room. "I wish I could say I knew what you ask, but I have found few teachings of the Sith that have been left undistorted through time. Not even the Valley of the Dark Lords holds much information. Even the tombs themselves have been stripped quite bare."
She stopped circling the room and folded her arms behind her back. It was a shame, really, how little of the true Sith was known. Much of what she herself knew she had learned from either the Jedi archives, which were undoubtedly not the best source, and from her broad travels. "Whether or not it be true, what I know of you is that you use the Force without the limitations of the Jedi, and that you do not fear emotion as they do. You are not evil simply because you use the dark side without fear, as the Jedi believe. I have studied your Code, and I have seen the truth in it, but I know little more about your philosophy than that."
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
Master
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Aug 12, 2007 20:58:08 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 12, 2007 20:58:08 GMT -5
Then it had been kept from the others, the secret teachings of the Sith. And kept they would have to be, until this one proved that she might one day succeed him. Until then, only the basics. It was the only way.
[glow=purple,2,300]The Sith are not evil. Some members may have been misguided, but there is no more evil in the Sith teachings than in those of the Jedi. Do not make the mistake of confusing the Dark Side with evil. That misconception is what separates us from the Dark Jedi who roam the galaxy.[/glow]
A pause as one of the holocrons opened to reveal the texts of various techniques characteristic of the Jedi's Light Side abilities.
[glow=purple,2,300]The Jedi think themselves protectors, seeking out the Darkness in the world and cleansing it. We Sith are far less vain. We know that we are a part of this natural galaxy, that both Light and Dark must exist. We understand that we are natural as well, that we must allow the darkness within, our natural passions, to guide ourselves. Only be embracing this truth of ourselves can we ever hope to achieve our ultimate goal.[/glow]
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
0 likes
Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
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Aug 14, 2007 14:45:20 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 14, 2007 14:45:20 GMT -5
"That much I have learned. Many years I spent with the Jedi, yet I still do not understand them. I know that the Sith are not as inherently evil as the Jedi proclaim them. They are too narrow-minded, in my opinion." The Cathar paused as a holocron opened, and glanced over some of it. She recognised several of the techniques described; indeed, she possessed more than a few of them herself. Some had their uses, others didn't, others could be replaced by one more effective that the Jedi would label as inherently 'evil'. Jedi could be amusing, sometimes, but they were mostly just overly cryptic and always annoying.
"Balance. Jedi do not seem able to comprehend the word in its true meaning. They preach it, yet they try and quell all appearances of their opposite." She shook her head and continued maving about the room. She raised a brow inquisitively. "Ultimate goal? I am going to assume it is something less vain than simply destroying all who conflict with our beliefs."
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
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Aug 14, 2007 21:50:42 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 14, 2007 21:50:42 GMT -5
[glow=purple,2,300]The Jedi, for all their faults, are to be respected for the work that they do. They have their purpose in this galaxy, and they fulfill their duty well. You have your duty as well. You must fulfill that duty, or everything will collapse upon itself. Your place is not opposite the Jedi, nor is it with them. You will find your place, it is the only way to achieve the goal of the sith. That goal, my Apprentice, is freedom. Freedom from the limitations forced upon us. This is why we use the Force. It allows us to perform feats that we should not be able to, to survive when we should perish, and to achieve other... impossibilities.[/glow]
A pause, where a breath might have been taken, were Everos to ever breathe.
[glow=purple,2,300]You will find that your freedom is not the same as mine. I have my own path to follow, and you have your own. Only through me; however, can you find the freedom you seek. But...[/glow]
The holocrons closed, the torches unlit. It was as if everything was suddenly gone from this place.
[glow=purple,2,300]If I am to teach you our ways, you must swear yourself to me. Your mind, your body, everything. You must become mine.[/glow]
(Really, this is just a sort of preliminary conversation now, but if you read, there are clues as to his Grand Master Plan!)
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
0 likes
Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
Guardian
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Aug 21, 2007 17:29:58 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Aug 21, 2007 17:29:58 GMT -5
"I suppose so...though I have only met a few Jedi I respected, personally, and some of them are dead now. I hear one isn't even a Jedi any longer." The Cathar glanced over her shoulder briefly and cocked a brow. It felt odd...here she was, holding a conversation with a...well, whatever it was the Everos should be considered at this point, like she was talking to that Vakkor woman before she had returned to the Darkness. The subject matter was a tiny bit different, though. "Freedom? That is something worth seeking out. True freedom can be rather hard to come by. It has eluded me for some time now..."
She listened, closing her eyes slowly, and was about to reply when all light, all activity was suddenly...gone. Shw blinked a few times and waited a second for her eyes to readjust to the darkness around her. Then Everos spoke again. "You are the path to the freedom I have sought for so long...Lord Everos, you are power. How can I do anything but submit in the face of such a thing? My life, my thoughts, my soul, they are yours, my Lord, I swear on what diseased honor I have left. I am yours, my master...do with me what you will."
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last online Feb 10, 2013 16:28:04 GMT -5
Master
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Aug 21, 2007 18:45:25 GMT -5
Post by Jenno on Aug 21, 2007 18:45:25 GMT -5
A laugh as torches again went out and others lit up, stretching the length back to the entrance.
[glow=purple,2,300]You have chosen well, Apprentice. You have sworn yourself to me. But that does not mean that I will so easily give up the teachings of the Sith, and of things darker still. You must first prove to me that the mind and body you have sworn to me can be of true use to me. I have a task for you, Assassin. You will go to Coruscant, to the Jedi High Temple. And you will deliver a message to the Jedi Grand Master. Tell him that I have come to lift the veil. You must be careful, though, Apprentice. The Jedi must not see you, not sense your prescene. None must find you or know you have been there but the Grand Master himself. Make him know that we were able to find him alone, and make him know that you could have killed him. But you will not. You will deliver the message, and then you will return to me. Until then...[/glow]
And the Immortal was gone again from this place. He could not even be felt, as if he had never been there at all. But such power as his could not have been imagined. The power was real, and Everos then must be real. And he would be watching.
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Regnier
I get paid to kill bodies, and I enjoy my job. Any questions?
802 posts
0 likes
Maimkillburn?
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last online Jan 19, 2012 4:30:24 GMT -5
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Sept 6, 2007 17:56:04 GMT -5
Post by Regnier on Sept 6, 2007 17:56:04 GMT -5
"Yes, Lord Everos." The Cathar said simply as the presence of her new master disappeared, and started back for her Cutlass, collecting her arms and armor along the way. It would be a difficult task, without a doubt more difficult than it had been during her last visit, but...it was still something that could be done, and if it could be done, then she would do it, of that she had little doubt. She eventually made it back to her ship, suited up, and started weighing her options as she prepped the fighter.
Getting to Coruscant wasn't as hard as the Senate believed their wartime restrictions made it to be. She had numerous options for that. Which one, however, was the question. She decided as she started her ascent off the dead world. Once she was on Coruscant, she only had two stops to make. The latter was obviously the Temple itself, but first, she had to see if the Jedi had revamped their security since her last visit, because, frankly, she hated surprises; they made life more difficult.
Options, questions, and plans ran through the Assassin's head as the Requiem pulled out of Subterrel's gravitational field and engaged its hyperdrive.
This is going to be fun...
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