Help is on the Way

[Dire Wolf]

Planet Location: Lorrd
Local Time: 1440, One Hour after Argazdan Defeat

A cacophony of heavy boot falls against marble floors echoed from the large rotunda that marked the center of Lorrd City’s capital building. Two Sith ladies flanked by half a dozen crack Imperial troopers and twice as many Lorrdian militiamen strode down the length of the great hallway; their chins held high in triumph. Many of the militiamen and troopers held the scars of battle; yet Lady Vesperia had but her azure robes scortched from blaster bolts. Her body, even the skin, bore no wounds. Any man that stood before her had his life force suddenly and violently ripped out to fuel the twisted version of healing that she used to mend her own wounds.

Those icy blue eyes couldn’t help fall down to the backside of her lover’s shapely form with a rare smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. Vesperia had never seen another creature quite like Allvitende; her passion was matched only by her ferocity. Many would expect the two women to mix like oil and water, but against all odds their reaction had been quite opposite. After a few stray thoughts of nights past she shook herself from the reverie. They couldn’t afford any complications during this operation: Lorrdians had a near telepathic ability to discern the truth via body language. Ironic, as the entire situation was based upon a lie.

Well, more a half-truth than a lie.

Three weeks prior another group of Sith had gone to the Argazdan Myrialites, a group of slavers that once called the Lorrdians their servants. Some centuries ago the Lorrdians lead a successful rebellion to send their masters to the other side of the solar system. The secondary group of Sith had approached the slavers and offer them support in retaking their rightful place in the Lorrd system. Rather than aid the Myrialites the Sith opted for another option: save the Lorrdians from certain defeat.

An hour prior a reinforcing fleet with the flagships of two Sith Lady’s at it’s head. Vesperia’s Crimson Tide, an Invaere-class battleship, tore a path through the lightly armed slaver fleet along with the rest of the massive fleet down to the planet’s surface where the true battle had begun. Ladies Vesperia and Allvitende seemed to have preternatural timing, as they had arrived to save the beleaguered Lorrdian forces just at the zero hour. Truth be told, Vesperia felt more like a butcher than a victor or a savior; the Myrialite forces were more barely armed barbarians than true soldiers. Though her taste for combat with anything but Jedi had become soured after her exchange with the famed Master Took.

“Shall both of us request statues, or just you,” her softly spoken voice could barely be heard over the cascade of boots against relatively empty rotunda. The inflection to her voice betrayed the stoney look her face bore as teasing. It was Hervor that devised the machinations that would not only bring Lorrd into the fold, but cast the Republic in an incompetent light while simultaneously giving the Empire a more heroic appearance.

[Apillis]

The old and ragged white cloak--though more of an off-white or grey for some time now--gained a few more tears and was yet again heavily stained in blood as it has been many times in the past that Hervor has had to wash out--several times unsuccessfully as evidence shown by some of the old even ancient stains upon the garb that still persist to this day. The woman herself lightly hazed in blood with battle-worn boots and clothes looking a bit more weathered as they too were lightly hazed in blood. She seldom drew her lightsaber in the battles, largely taking to either tore her victims asunder with the dark side of the Force or with bear hands, leaving the use of her lightsaber to deflect blaster bolts. The woman is a lightsaber duelist, but there was not really anyone for her to duel, so she took to more savage extremes in her dark rage.

In the end, it was always boils down to savagery--the brutality of warfare whether driven by a hardened, steely cold-heart or one brimming with passionate rage. Lorrd was filled with desperation, it was palpable. The Argazdan Myrialites slavers desperate to cling to their tenuous control, and the slaves themselves seeking liberation. The trick was getting the Lorrdian slaves to choose the Sith over the Republic, and really it was less difficult than one would presume if played right. While it was Vesperia who devised the assault, it was up to Hervor to come up with the means of diplomacy. The idea of Hervor being diplomatic sounds odd considering her tendency toward fury-filled barbarism driven purely through impulse. However, anyone who believes passionate fury cannot be used diplomatically is a short-sighted individual.

The Lorrdians unique ability of telepathy and perception was the trick, but even that can be used to an advantage. Hervor's meeting with their making her case, she spoke with passion--she spoke with anger--emotions that are as genuine and true to her as needing to breath in order to live. So when she spoke--it was with what came most natural to her--most honest to what lay within. But as any Force adept telepath would concede, it is difficult to read the mind of one filled with strong passionate emotions such as rage, anger, lust, etc, the very qualities that Hervor driven by. So when she spoke with purpose, spoke of a plight for the Sith Empire to save the Lorrdian people--unshackle them from the chains that bind them as said within the Sith Code, it could only appear as a "truth" to them--as her passionate body language and emotions were real--genuine. Even if they belied to the reality of her agenda to undermine the Republic and merely use the Lorrdians for the gain of the Empire not really caring of their fate. But it was a enough... enough for them to go to war under the Sith Empire's fold.

The assault upon the Argazdan Myrialites slavers themselves clearly went according to Vesperia's plan, and Hervor's own machinations were going in accordance to hers. With the Argazdan Myrialites slavers brought low, it was now down to ensuring a treaty to the Lorrdians falling under the Sith Empire's banner.

As she stood beside her lover in the rounda watching the Imperial soldiery ceremoniously march after their victory. Hervor's lips curled into an amused smile as she replied, "I think a statue of us naked and adamantly making love on a bed of Argazdan Myrialites' leaderships severed heads would be a quite artistic symbolism for what transpired here. For now, though, it is merely getting the Lorrdians to sign the treaty to join the Sith Empire for our liberating them, and it will be done. And we can leave this place."

[Dire Wolf]

Had Adara believed herself able to laugh, Hervor's comment surely would have caused it to bubble out of her like an undisciplined school girl. Instead she managed to stifle the better part of it into a half chuckle and a slight smile. Both of which were gone as quickly as they came. Instead she focused her attentions on the cadre of crack Sith Troopers that had been just as responsible for crushing the slavers as the two Sith Lovers had been. Every movement they made held exacting precision; the entire procession of men moved through the rotunda to the beat of a single foot fall. A giant may as well have plodded into the room for all her ears could tell.

"Fitting," the Sith spoke softly without lifting her eyes from the troopers, "your... passionate... monologue to the Lorrdians seems to have worked as far as I can tell. Should our luck hold we shall be away from this dreadful world before the day is done."

Adara's reasoning for Hervor's selection went far beyond their own romantic entanglement. Of all the Sith within the Temple there were a select few that held a deep enough passion to mire the Lorrdian's downright miraculous aptitude for reading body language. Of those select few there was only one that she considered competent, let alone intelligent enough to not inadvertently reveal the true nature of their subversion to the people they intended to "save." Hervor was that very one.

"If they still refuse to induct us into the Inner Sanctum after this display of cunning I believe a change in leadership is in order."

Her words were almost too soft to hear above the heavy boots of the ceremonial formation. Above all, Adara was a creature of ambition. Her very reason for joining the Sith hadn't been to become a part of something larger than herself, but merely attain the power one needed to become free.

Since then her ultimate goal had been riddled and shifted by various events until she found herself caring for the Empire. Yet if the Boy Overlord continued to hang elevation to Dark Lady of the Sith before her nose like a carrot to a mule, she would turn her considerable might onto the youngling. It would be an encounter he wouldn't survive, especially with Hervor at her side.