Anderwelt (Red, Open)

[Apillis]

It had only been a day since Hervor returned from Dantooine and she was quickly prepping to fall back into familiar routines. So much still needing to be done, and so much she did not feel best to be relied upon by the boy Overlord as he continually indulges reclusiveness. Hervor to oft like to keep to her own company but not at the expense of seldom being seen, and thus in turn one's presence within the temple waning in its gravitas.

The boy Mithus she had situated within the apprentice quarters away from the mass of initiates, near her own personal space and residence within the temple. She made certain he was cleaned up and comfortable, cared for even. Peculiar for a Sith Lord such as her, but nevertheless--she was already viewing him as her ward. Which while she has yet to admit it aloud, she acknowledges fully by choosing to take the young boy under wing, she has created for herself an exploitable weakness. How much of a weakness her will prove to be to her depends on her more than him, truth be told. For it depends on how quickly she is willing to sever ties with him before he can burden her. Yet pending on how much she chooses to invest into him will determine how quickly she will be willing to cut him off the moment he proves to be a drag on her.

Albeit, rather than tossing him among the other initiates, she has chosen to place him among the apprentices of other Sith Lords, some of which are even knight-level Sith, and she is doing so under her direction and word as a Sith Lord. Which makes it abundantly clear, for whatever her reasons she has chosen invest a fair amount into the lad straight away. Though for a creature of impulse like herself, it maybe that she is not fully clear on her reasoning as well, and it could all just be on one of idiosyncratic whims, living up to the moniker as 'the strange creature'.

Even that though she has somewhat nonchalantly put out of her mind as she goes abot starting up her familiar routines--working within the temple's archives. So much still needed to be done there, so much had been stripped bare from the old dusty tomb of an archive room. Creating and categorizing holocrons and data-records within the ancient archives. Yet as she diligently goes about such trivial tasks out of sense believing the most paramount thing required within the old stone temple within the surrounding barren wasteland that Korriban is. Albeit yet she is also the same individual who has lead Sith armies to conquer worlds and many years before then lead Jedi and Republic forces to quash the last Mandalorian incursion. Then again she is the same individual who will fight with a dark savage rage that few in the galaxy could possibly comprehend.

She had Mithus follow her around as she went about the menial work within the archives, while she firmly believed it was the most important thing to work on within the temple, it was also something that helped keep ground and was meditative work for her. But as she went about her work, she taught Mithus how to catalog the holocrons and data-records of the archives. As they went about the simplicities of the routines Hervor had set for them, she inquired with a stoic tone, "Are you settling in?"

[Red]

The moment he entered the temple with Hervor a pressure, which now he understood as the force, was overwhelming. It was an amazing feeling as if a window had been opened and now for the first time he could feel the wind, see beyond what was in front of him. But what the boy felt wasn't something nice or inviting. No here the force was twisted into a storm of emotions whose pull threatened to consume his will and claim his mind. But just as before it passed, and in its place was a surge of nervousness and excitement from the young boy.

What kind of things would they teach him here? What trails would he have to endure in order to be come stronger? Mithus had no delusions on them being nice and kind, especially if there were anything like the woman who lead him here. Even though she hadn't done anything at harm him, the way she felt was a warning sign that to be on her bad side would end in a painful death. He couldn't help but take it all in, the stone carvings, the passages that never seemed to end, all of it was a mystery to him, but one day he would see beyond those doors. But for now, he was simply escorted to his room.

Mithus liked having a space to call his own again, and while it wasn't anything flashy or luxurious it did have the necessities. He found the closet was stocked with tunics of black or grey, some of them too big for him, but others fit well enough. Now outfitted in his gray uniform he followed Hervor around, learning how to catalog data-pads and holocrons.

The youngling still could not figure out what her endgame was in all this. He suspected that maybe it was simply protocol for the Sith to bring in force sensitives when they were found, but if that was the case why did she warn him of the dangers or give him that advice? He toyed with the idea of her needing him for something, a task that required another's help, but then that made no sense. Why would she enlist a random child for something important when there was a temple full of better trained applicants? Mithus could only speculate for now but one day he might just ask her outright.

Her voice grabbed his attention, a question without concern but then again it had only been a day, what was there to worry about? "Its ok, just different. I keep having flashes of pressure in my head, kind of like when i met you only not as bad." Truthfully it was what woke him up a few times in the night, a strange sensation, one that made him think someone was close by. "Is that other people i'm feeling?"

[Apillis]

((Sorry for taking so damn long to reply! =x))

A brow arched in response to the boy's question, though a small smirk formed on Hervor's lips as she inquired in turn, "'As bad'...? How do you mean?", there could be a few a different interpretations to what Mithus is perceiving, she was not precisely certain what it was. But to perhaps help clarify she did explain, "It could be a few things... Typically it is the Force alerting you to other disturbances or convergences in the Force, or... it could be a warning of danger."

"The Force flows through all life, for some like you or me--its currents flow through stronger, it is part of what makes us Force-Sensitive", Hervor went on to explain, "And because of this the Force informs us through an... extrasensory perception, I suppose you could call it, alerting of other concentrations of the Force that its currents are strongest in.", Hervor smiled a dash, "But that's not all it may inform us", she said as she finished assembling a holocron and slipping into a worn brown leather satchel that contained several others that had yet to be used, "It may warn of impending danger... or even the possible intentions of others. The more you hone such perceptions the more you can glean from them."

"There are many here who are dangerous and strong with the Force", Hervor went on to say, "Though few in the galaxy as much so as myself... in both regards. Knowing this there are those who may wish to use you to get to me, because they are too weak to attempt a more direct approach.", she gave the boy a stern look as she uttered in the moment, "And I will do what I must in such a situation.", her tone was foreboding yet still it was difficult to say she would throw him to the proverbial wolves or if she would do what she could to help him. If the latter, it would be contradictory to what she had advised for him to do back when they left Dantooine.

As she slung the satchel over her shoulder she told him, "When you begin to perceive such things again. Focus on it. As you focus on it and follow it to its source. Not physically though, follow it through the Force alone. See what you can through the Force. Think of it as an exercise to hone your perceptions through the Force.", with a wag of her finger she gestured for the boy to follow her as she walked out of the dusty archives, "The more you hone your perceptions through the Force, the more you will have a clearer understanding for your surroundings and those you encounter."

As Hervor walked through the temple with Mithus, she advised him, "It is a good starting point in learning how to feel the Force. After all, if you struggle to perceive through the Force, how can you be expected to competently tap into it directly to harness its power?"

[Red]

((No problem, kinda figured you were busy))

"It's a strong pressure that's for sure, but it wasn't as strong as yours. Different but kind of the same." He wasn't doing a good job at describing it, but it was a sensation he'd only felt twice now and he did the best he could for a boy with little education. But what little information he gave was enough to allow Hervor to explain what he could be feeling.

She spoke of the force, of its uses and what it could be trying to tell him. The way she explained it made sense, but he wondered why only so few could feel it if it ran through them. Maybe it was like a muscle only some beings could feel or flex, a rare gift to make life easier. When she spoke of warnings of danger Mithus stopped what he was doing and looked to her. There was a small prickling on the back of his neck, not the like before, it was probably his nerves messing with him. But now was the time to ask, she'd broached the subject with that unsaid warning and if he really wanted answers then now was the time.

"Why did you take me along? I-I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but what am I to be? I know that I can be trained in the force, but is it because of a rule that you took me, or did you have something for me to do?"

He felt a little better having that off his chest, but then it seized when he realized that she might not like the idea of being questioned in such a way. She'd given him pointers and warnings, but she also gave the impression that she would not hesitate to leave the youngster to die if he wasn't strong enough. It was very confusing.

[Dire Wolf]

(Here I am. Sorry for the length.)

Victory, in Vesperia’s experience, had been beyond any other pleasure that the corporeal plane had to offer. What felt like years of sullying her hands amongst the Order’s common rabble was finally over; the boy overlord had elevated her from the primordial muck that called itself an Order to the coveted position of Dark Lady of the Sith. A rare smile parted her lips at the thought. “Darth Vesperia,” those lips barely moved to form the soundless words.

Deep within the recesses of the Sith Temple the woman sat sideways in a plush chair. One bare foot hung off of an armrest while the other had been planted on the stone before the throne, and her back had been propped against the plush armrest opposite. Not a comfortable position for most, but she found it restful all the same. Her silken black robe looked to be made of liquid as it clung to her toned form; only gilded embellishments served to liven the shimmering black silk. A circlet that looked to be made from two twisted lengths of silver contrasted her now smooth black hair, and the electric blue crystal that had once rested within her lightsaber had been cut to size and set within the piece of headgear.

Gone were Vesperia’s desires to look anything but regal, and superior to her lesser bred brethren.

A presence swam within Darth Vesperia’s cloudy mind; a presence that she had been all too familiar with as of late. A presence that the newly fashioned Dark Lady of the Sith meant to converse with. Hervor. That smile grew into a wide grin as she ‘gracefully’ slid from her throne with a tastefully filled bottle of Cerean White in one hand and a warming bottle of the same wine in the other. Vesperia wove a sinuous path across the room, stumbling but once, until she finally drew close enough for the door to slide open with a pneumatic hiss to reveal the woman that had taken her heart.

There Hervor stood, but she was not alone; a child of no more than a decade spoke with her. Her brow furrowed as the drunken mind behind it attempted to work out the situation. Vesperia had never been a creature that spoke before she thought, so rather than interrupt the child she merely leaned against the door frame and listened. After a few moments of allowing her cup bearing hand to swirl the white liquid within she brought the glass to her lips and finished the drink.

“I must say, Darth Hervor, you have a rather interesting way of celebrating such a momentous occasion. Though no stranger than my own, I suppose.” Her voice told the two that she was born of high nobility within the core worlds, but that was far from the truth. The slight pause between each word also told pair that she was growing drunk from the wine in her hand, just as the almost empty bottle in the other told them how much she had consumed.

“I had been hoping you would partake, but perhaps wine and whiskey are passions reserved for only me in this… arrangement,” after a trice she glanced down to the child between them, “well? Have you a name, child?”

[Apillis]

The young boy asked her why she was doing so much for him, going out of her way to see that he gets trained, is given comfortable apprentice quarters and Sith apprentice robes to wear, which by proxy also alleviated his need to ever scrounge for food again as that too was now provided for him as at the temple as a young apprentice. Hervor paused in her steps when he asked, but she is a private woman, and her reasons, issues, even her problems were guarded and kept them as her own. As it should be like most of her species would say. Then again, she was also a highly impulsive woman and at times she struggles to articulate why she does things she does, primarily doing whatever the dark side compels her to.

But this... this was unique. Why was she doing this for the boy? A reason was formulating within her, and it was something that is paramount to her species and in a certain regard the Sith as well. Hervor turned to the lad and from her satchel she pulled out an old holocron, it was not like the other ones, it looked like something constructed by a novice, not by the adept ability a master archivist like Hervor could assemble. But she handed it to the boy with a faint smile and a half-lidded gaze, "I have kept that holocron with me for two-hundred thirty-seven years, seven months, four days, and thirteen hours, and some odd minutes and seconds... Generations--even lifetimes for your kind. But for me--because of the longevity of my species, it was simply going from adolescence to maturity. Another century... even two hundred years... I won't even really notice it. And you--if you manage to be lucky enough to grow old wizened... will likely have passed away. That holocron was the first one I made back when I was a student at the Jedi Temple studying to become a Jedi Archivist. But in it, it tells a story of dreams--dreams of a past reality I was plagued with when I was young. If you manage to figure out how to open that holocron, and hear that girl's tale of the dreams she was plagued with. You will have your answer far better articulated than I ever could expound upon here. And if you manage to open it and watch and listen to the girl's tale...", Hervor's voice then held a chilling monotone as she told Mithus, "...destroy the holocron."

But when Hervor turned to press on, she barely had taken another step before finding Vesperia there before she and the young boy Mithus. She smirked a touch in response to Vesperia's remarks a touch, she looked the lean, leggy dark haired woman up and down for trice, "Ah, Vesperia. Inebriated. Newly a Darth, but still ever the pirate.", but she scoffed in reaction to the mention of the little boy who fancies himself as Sith Overlord, "It was done out of necessity. Who has been taking the reigns leading the war front? We have. Where has he been? Cowering. This wasn't a reward--it was appeasement. The little boy likes to play Sith Lord, but has little concept of what that means, nor is he willing to actually lead. It's a wise tactic to keep to the shadows when you don't want the enemy to know who is striking at them. But since Druckenwell if it hasn't been plainly obvious that the Sith Order has been the one's kicking the Republic in the yarbles, then they're damn retarded and there's no point in hiding in the shadows. But we're in a blatant time of war, where the two vying sides are clear. The little boy Overlord too hesitant to come out to lead, it's fallen to those of us with the strength and power to do so. He knows it, we know it--or at least I know it. Attaining the title of Darth was meant for appeasement, but I intend to use it as a stepping stone. There is much that needs to be done here, and very little of it has even been approached."

As ever Hervor's tone was intense and forceful, unyielding and uncompromising in her will and ambition, and also did not care in the least who may have overheard her strong words and opinion on the Sith Order's current situation and leadership. Though much of which was also wrought from her own personal philosophical views on constant opposition, which had lead to much of the power she possesses. Which perhaps at some point, Hervor may begin to teach to her new young apprentice, but all things in their due course and time.

She then nodded to Mithus to go ahead and introduce himself to her. After all, given Hervor's feelings and desired indulgences toward Vesperia, he may as well get used to her and her presence sooner rather than later.

[Red]

The information provided was nearly impossible for Mithus to wrap his head around. To think that there was a species out that who lived so long but looked so human blew his little mind into hyperspace. A holocorn with the information of her past now lay at his finger tips. A puzzle for sure, but a lead if there was any. She'd ordered him to destroy it, and he would, one day. But until he found a way to open, away from the eyes and ears of others, Mithus simply kept it close and out of the way.

The appearance of another was felt in a flash, one that caused Mithus to question his own senses before focusing on the woman that appeared before them. She was older than he, but the boy wondered if she, like Hervor, was older than he flesh portrayed. The spoke of things he didn't understand. Well mostly at least. War he understood, even if he'd only seen it briefly the little experience he possessed was enough to sober up his already tidy thoughts. Names were thrown around, events that remained a mystery to Mithus but he would one day uncover. Then the woman focused on him, prompting him to introduce himself.

"Mithus, ma'am. My name is Mithus."

[Dire Wolf]

"Ever the pirate indeed," the inebriated woman echoed the Hervor with a smile. Any interaction Vesperia had with Mithus fell from her mind when the more sober of the two began a fiery rant of the cowardice of the Overlord, amongst other things. The fiery passion quickly snowballed into a burning fury by the end of the speech, and Vesperia found herself smoothing the black silk robe against her form in response. Unyielding passion was one of many qualities that Vesperia found endearing about Hervor.

"Our ambition seems to be the same, Hervor," the towering woman paused only to finish off the Cerean White. "I am merely celebrating my...our... ascension from the muck known as general populace. No more will my hands be sullied by being of the same tier as idiots, weaklings, and sycophants. From here we may gain our own following, etch our own niche in the power scale of the Order. Erode the political power out from beneath the Boy's feet until the temple collapses out from beneath him. With any luck his fall will be softened only by the tip of our lightsabers."

Vesperia glanced down at her hands only to find them full of the wine glass and bottle. She cast them over her shoulder without a second thought; no sooner did the glass shatter behind her than a square bottle with amber liquid within meet the soft flesh of her hands. The cap twisted from the bottle of it's own accord just as the boy answered her, and his existence sprung back into her mind. For a moment, a long moment, afterwards Vesperia was surprised that he existed all over again. The bottom of the recently opened bottle rose towards the ceiling to allow for a chug of the liquor within. More than a chug, actually; when the bottle's orientation was righted half of the whiskey was gone and Vesperia let in a heavy breath of air.

"Mithus, I am Darth Vesperia, one of your new Master's peers. You may call me 'my lady' or 'Darth Vesperia.' Whichever you prefer." Vesperia's gaze flicked up to Hervor for a moment before returning to the boy. The woman was certainly an interesting creature, and this boy must have been doubly so to capture her attention enough to call for apprenticeship.

[Apillis]

Hervor chuckles a little amused, "Vesperia... I don't have peers. I only have those I indulge myself with and those I do not. The former have been chosen selectively over the course of years... whereas the latter are merely... everyone one else."

It was only a second later that she recalled her new little apprentice was a ten year old boy, she glanced back at him, "I'll explain some other time.", Hervor was not his mother and felt no need or compulsion to shield the boy from such conversations, nor any need to explain to him the nuances of various relations consenting adults engage in with one another. As far as she is concerned, eventually he is going to learn one way or the other, while she personally is fairly flippant and casual about such topics.

Hervor smirked a dash as she she half-teasingly remarked and still clearly amused, "Then again you seem quite selective as well considering whom you decided to make your apprentice. A Sith Knight? Considering her age too one would think her training is quite thorough. Or are you giving her other lessons?", there was no hint or jealousy or some such nonsense, for as mentioned Hervor is and has always been quite casual about such topics. She was merely playing a little game with Vesperia in her inebriated state for the sake of her own fun.

Hervor glanced back at Mithus, "Adult conversation.", she clarified rather not in the mood to try and explain it all to him, while again, she is not his mother nor feels any compulsion to make an attempt to shield him form the innuendo and implications of the topic itself.

Albeit she paused for a second before turning to Mithus, "Speaking of training... I told you before we were going to start by teaching to hone your perceptions through the Force. But doing so without a direct context or medium to do so is a poor way to learn. You must've had a some form of a hobby, even in squalor. Something you did to preoccupy your mind when not searching a means to survive."

[Red]

Indeed their conversation had flown well above his head, something about partners and apprentices but alas he couldn't follow any of it clearly. So he didn't try. Instead his mind had already found itself going over the earlier part of their conversation, before Vesperia, 'Darth Vesperia, won't want to forget that', had joined in.

She'd hinted at a very different past one that stretched well beyond his limited understanding of the universe at large. But if what he did gleam from her words was true, then it pointed to a place much nicer than the outlook of the Empire...let alone the Sith. 'What could have changed--' Mithus realized the foolishness of his question before it finished. What had changed him, a happy naive ten year old boy into a seeker of power? Loss.

Perhaps it was the same with everyone. Maybe this path was riddled with people who chose to cope with their loss by seeking the power to extract revenge. But how would that work for him? The Sith were with the Empire weren't they? How then was he supposed to gain revenge when he'd joined their side? 'No, this is only a means to an end. I'm here to learn, what i do with that knowledge is my choice.'


Hervor was speaking to him, this time directly and not as an explanation of their adult conversation. "I used to garden. My family owned a farm so they let me grow my own plants since there wasn't anything else to do." He didn't tell her how fun it was to spend time with his parents talking about his plants and getting different things to grow. Somehow, Mithus didn't think it would matter.

[Dire Wolf]

"Either way the general populace understands our superiority over them." Darth Vesperia's voice had began to lose the core worlds accent in favor of a far more common one. The final bit of wine she had consumed had finally begun to hit her blood stream in force. Her mind was worse for it. Had Vesperia not chosen to lean against a wall for their conversation she'd likely be wavering like a branch in the wind.

"Ya' ain't far off with Vaaz," the high class accent was replaced by a boorish one, "but what about that Jedi from awhile back? Teach her much about the Dark Side?" A wicked grin only grew while the woman spoke, and parted her lips in a drunken smile. Like Hervor, there wasn't a hint of jealousy within the crude voice that sounded like it should have come from a spacer. Yet again the woman forgot of the ten year old boy's existence directly after he spoke, only to remember it again when his voice reached her ears.

Vesperia didn't speak, though. Drunk she may have been, but even she knew that when nothing but crude thoughts spring to mind one is to stay silent when a child is present. Vesperia recalled back to her own childhood as one of the hopelessly poor on Metellos, and later as an apprentice under a pirate dark Jedi. All before she was this boy's age. Lucky, indeed. There wasn't a hint of sympathy in the woman's coming words, but rather a steely temperance that could have been called cold curiosity. "How'd ya parents die, boy?"

Remember the whole "don't speak when only crude things come to mind" bit from before?

Oops.